tagged w/ From the Community
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While Hostess in the process of complete liquidation with 18,000 unionized workers set to lose their jobs, now word comes out that the employees may lose their pensions. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Twinkie CEO Admits Company Took Employees Pensions and Put It Toward Executive Pay
Submitted by MSII
According to Wall Street Journal, Hostess’ CEO Gregory Rayburn essentially admitted that his company stole employee pension money and put it toward CEO and senior executive pay.
In August 2011, the employees got a letter that said the company was going to "temporarily suspend payments" to its pension funds. However, the report from Wall Street Journal, stated that the senior management wasn’t just “borrowing” the pension funds – they were using them to fund ongoing operations, including big paychecks to the executives. Hostess CEO Gregory Rayburn stated:
"Whatever the circumstances were, whatever those decisions were, I wasn't there."
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. will have to foot the bill to make sure Hostess workers get at least some of the retirement money.
While Hostess in the process of complete liquidation with 18,000 unionized... more
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On Tuesday, a gunman opened fire in a crowded Oregon mall before killing himself minutes after fatally shooting two people. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Clackamas Town Center shooting: At least 2 shot dead, more injured by man with rifle
Submitted by kennymotown
Police have yet to determine Jacob Tyler Roberts' motive for shooting unsuspecting Christmas shoppers at the Clackamas Town Center. The gunman carried a stolen semi-automatic AR-15 rifle and wore a white hockey mask and a load-bearing vest.
"At this time we do not understand the motive of this attack except to say there is no apparent relationship between the suspect and his victims," Clackamas County Sheriff Craig Roberts said at a press conference.
According to Lt. James Rhodes, of the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office, three people were killed, including the shooter. The shooter died of a self-inflicted gunshot, Rhodes said.
On Tuesday, a gunman opened fire in a crowded Oregon mall before killing himself... more
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The Michigan legislature gave final approval to a highly contested right-to-work plan reducing the power of organized labor. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Michigan Legislature sends governor right-to-work
Submitted by letsliveinpeace
Thousands of protesters surrounded the state Capitol when lawmakers passed the legislation by a 58-51 vote. The two right-to-work laws approved by the House of Representatives will prevent both public and private sector union workers from being required to pay fees as a condition of their employment.
"This is about freedom, fairness and equality," House Speaker Jase Bolger said. "These are basic American rights – rights that should unite us."
Protesters in the gallery chanted "Shame on you!" as the measures were approved. Union backers clogged the hallways and grounds shouting, "No justice, no peace."
Opponents say the laws will shrink unions so they have less leverage in fighting for better wages, benefits and working conditions. Gov. Rick Snyder has said he will sign the bill as soon as this week.
The Michigan legislature gave final approval to a highly contested right-to-work... more
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State and local law enforcement groups are pushing Congress to pass a law requiring cell phone carriers to hold on to text messages for at least two years. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Cops to Congress: We need logs of Americans' text messages
Submitted by Radical_Centrist
The law would require cell phone companies such as AT&T, Verizon Wireless, Sprint, to keep text information for two years - in case they're needed for future criminal investigations.
CNET reports:
Chuck DeWitt, a spokesman for the Major Cities Chiefs Police Association, which represents the 63 largest U.S. police forces including New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, and Chicago, said "all such records should be retained for two years."
Along with the police association, other law enforcement groups making the request to the Senate include the National District Attorneys' Association, the National Sheriffs' Association, and the Association of State Criminal Investigative Agencies, DeWitt said.
"This issue is not addressed in the current proposal before the committee and yet it will become even more important in the future," the groups warn.
State and local law enforcement groups are pushing Congress to pass a law... more
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Seems like Mitt and Ann Romney are grieving the loss of the election in their own ways. We're taking a closer look at this schadenfreude-laced story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Mitt and Ann Romney adjusting to election loss
Submitted by letsliveinpeace
The Romneys have retreated to their vacation home in La Jolla, Calif., where work on the planned car elevator has not yet begun. A few sad photos have surfaced of Romney pumping gas and going to the drugstore. And according to the New York Post, Ann Romney is taking the loss especially hard:
...Ann is having a much tougher time. She has been crying in private about the loss of what she thought was her destiny as first lady, friends said.
Seems like Mitt and Ann Romney are grieving the loss of the election in their own... more
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Conservative media watchdog group One Million Moms is angry about comedian Ellen DeGeneres' newest Christmas ad for J.C. Penney. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Conservative women's group finds Ellen DeGeneres Christmas ad "offensive"
Submitted by HarukoHaruhara
The ad features DeGeneres with a group of Santa's elves assembling toys for a giveaway contest but the talk-show host makes a bunch of small jokes in the process.
The appearance of DeGeneres, a lesbian, is controversial to those belonging to One Million Moms. One Million Moms stated:
Since April, J.C. Penney's has not aired Ellen DeGeneres in one of their commercials until now. A new JCP ad features Ellen and three elves. JCP has made their choice to offend a huge majority of their customers again. Christians must now vote with their wallets. We have contacted J.C. Penney's several times in the past with our concerns, and they will not listen. They have decided to ignore our complaints so we will avoid them at all costs.
Conservative media watchdog group One Million Moms is angry about comedian Ellen... more
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A new poll suggests that half of all Republicans think ACORN stole the election and many want to secede of the United States. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Republicans not handling election results well - Public Policy Polling
Submitted by kennymotown
Public Policy Polling released a national poll report that found that Republicans are taking the election results pretty hard and the GOP is declining in numbers.
49% of GOP voters nationally say they think that ACORN stole the election for President Obama. We found that 52% of Republicans thought that ACORN stole the 2008 election for Obama, so this is a modest decline, but perhaps smaller than might have been expected given that ACORN doesn’t exist anymore.
Some GOP voters are so unhappy with the outcome that they no longer care to be a part of the United States. 25% of Republicans say they would like their state to secede from the union compared to 56% who want to stay and 19% who aren’t sure.
A new poll suggests that half of all Republicans think ACORN stole the election... more
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The Senate rejected the U.N. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on Tuesday. The treaty would have created a new layer of bureaucracy on the international level to take care of disability issues. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Senate Rejects UN Disabilities Treaty
Submitted by letsliveinpeace
The treaty was aimed at banning discrimination and establishing international standards for the rights of disabled people. Sixty-one senators approved the international treaty, but the treaty failed to recieve a two-thirds majority with 38 Republican opposing votes.
Sen. John Kerry, chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, discussed the Senate's rejection of the U.N. disabilities treaty:
"I said it does not change U.S. law; that is different from saying it doesn't do anything. If it didn't do anything I wouldn’t be here, nor would President Bush have signed it," he said, contending that the U.N. measure would benefit Americans living and traveling abroad.
"This is one of the saddest days I’ve seen in almost 28 years in the Senate," Kerry said in a statement following the vote. "It needs to be a wakeup call about a broken institution that's letting down the American people. We need to fix this place."
Former presidential candidate Rick Santorum opposed the treaty as a new post-election cause, calling it an "egregious move to deny parents of children with disabilities the right to do what they think is in their child’s best interest."
However, eight Republicans approved the treaty following Senator Bob Dole's request.
The Senate rejected the U.N. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities... more
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A new survey shows that restaurants are hurting their brands by publicly speaking out against Obamacare and threatening to punish their employees for it. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Anti-Obamacare Rants Hurt Restaurant Brands
Submitted by cpad
YouGov BrandIndex published a chart that shows how much public stances against the President Obama's health-care reform cost Applebee's, Papa John's, and Denny's in brand equity. YouGov asked respondents about what they heard about each brand's advertising, whether it was positive or negative. Results showed:
Papa John’s Buzz score high point for the month came on Election Day – November 6th – with a score of 32. Eight days later, the score had dropped 10 points down to 22, when the spam text lawsuit was unveiled. A few days later, Papa John’s dropped below Pizza Hut’s score and is presently at 4.
Applebee’s had a 35 Buzz score on the eve of Election Day, when a few days later, Apple-Metro CEO Zane Tankel told Fox Business News he won’t build more restaurants or hire more people. By November 17th, Applebee’s score had fallen 20 points. As of this past Thursday, their score was 5.
After Denny’s franchisee John Metz’s Obamacare comments on November 17th, the chain’s buzz score dropped from 10 down to zero nine days later. However, they have since bounced back to 6, a higher score than both Papa John’s and Applebee’s.
A new survey shows that restaurants are hurting their brands by publicly... more
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NASA conducted its first chemical test of soil from the Curiosity rover's findings but has yet to offer any "earth-shaking" discoveries. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Curiosity finds evidence of organic compounds on Mars (not life .. yet)
Submitted by HarukoHaruhara
Curiosity retrieved its first soil scoops at a location called Rocknest, and delivered the samples to an onboard chemistry lab for testing. The rover used its new Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument, a tool that is capable of identifying organic compounds. However, this initial sample does not indiciate any such compound.
The spacecraft is on the hunt for signs that the red planet can support life.
"We have no definitive detection of Martian organics at this point, but we will keep looking in the diverse environments of Gale Crater," says SAM Principal Investigator Paul Mahaffy of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.
"We used almost every part of our science payload examining this drift," says Curiosity Project Scientist John Grotzinger, in a press release. "The synergies of the instruments and richness of the data sets give us great promise for using them at the mission’s main science destination on Mount Sharp."
NASA conducted its first chemical test of soil from the Curiosity rover's... more
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A veterinarian in Texas spent five years conducting a study to evaluate DNA samples. She now says that they provide conclusive evidence that Bigfoot existed about 15,000 years ago, and that it was closely related to humans. We're taking a closer look at this hairy story from our community:
Bigfoot DNA Tests Prove Hairy Creature Exists, Genetic Researcher Says
Submitted by Vic_Romano
Melba Ketchum has spent more than 30 years working in genetics research and forensics. She says the DNA Diagnostics lab where she works has more than 100 samples of hair, saliva, and other DNA-rich evidence to suggest that Bigfoot existed.
Ketchum told the Huffington Post that she had not gone looking for evidence of yetis:
"Well, it came to me, I didn't go after it, that's for sure. ... I did not believe in these creatures. But my lab did a lot of animal testing, and we did species identification. We didn't have any hits on anything interesting until five years ago."
A veterinarian in Texas spent five years conducting a study to evaluate DNA samples.... more
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One Vancouver man will attempt to cut down panhandling while helping to feed the homeless with a sandwich token program. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Save On Meats launches sandwich token system to help feed Vancouver's poor
Submitted by Hardytoo
Mark Brand, the owner of Save On Meats, is set to launch a program allowing customers to purchase tokens that people on the streets can then redeem in his restaurant. The token is good for a hot $2.25 breakfast sandwich. The recipient can redeem the token and receive a sandwich at the restaurant’s takeout window or inside after the window closes at 4 p.m.
The idea is to ensure that the poor receives a good meal instead of using the money they collect for less healthy alternatives.
"It is a neighbourhood that desperately needs this," Brand said on Wednesday of the plan.
"They are not transferable and they will never be traded for cash," said Brand.
Brand made 10,000 tokens to get the charitable initiative off the ground. Tokens can be purchased at the restaurant and in the next few months.
One Vancouver man will attempt to cut down panhandling while helping to feed the... more
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While on Fox News, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer voiced her opposition to giving driver's licenses to the eligible undocumented immigrants and even compared them to drunk drivers. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Arizona Governor Compares Undocumented Immigrants To Drunks And Children
Submitted by letsliveinpeace
Gov. Brewer continues to fight President Obama's decision to grant some young undocumented immigrants temporary protection from deportation. She reiterated her disapproval by suggesting that she would never issue licenses to undocumented immigrants because of what is said in the state law. She even managed to compare the eligible undocumented immigrants to drunk drivers and kids under 16, reports ThinkProgress.org.
The state is the one who licenses the people to be able to drive, it’s not the federal government. And we don’t license kids under 16. We don’t license DUI drivers. And our laws are very clear and I took an oath to uphold that.
While on Fox News, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer voiced her opposition to giving... more
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One heartwarming photo of a NYPD officer giving a pair of boots to a barefoot homeless man has instantly gone viral. We're taking a closer look at this touching story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Photo of Officer Giving Boots to Barefoot Man Warms Hearts Online
Submitted by letsliveinpeace
While visiting New York, Arizona residents Jennifer Foster and her husband spotted NYPD officer Lawrence Deprimo giving a pair of new boots to a barefoot homeless man:
"The officer said, ‘I have these size 12 boots for you, they are all-weather. Let’s put them on and take care of you.’ The officer squatted down on the ground and proceeded to put socks and the new boots on this man. The officer expected NOTHING in return and did not know I was watching."
Foster snapped the tender moment with her cellphone on Nov. 14 and posted the image to New York Police Department’s official Facebook page. The post has been viewed over 1.6 million times, and had attracted nearly 275,000 "likes" and more than 16,000 comments and has turned Officer DePrimo into an overnight Internet hero.
One heartwarming photo of a NYPD officer giving a pair of boots to a barefoot... more
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President Barack Obama and former opponent Mitt Romney will meet for a private lunch at the White House Thursday, their first meeting since the election. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Mitt Romney, Obama To Meet For Lunch At White House
Submitted by letsliveinpeace
The president is fulfilling his offer after winning the re-election to sit down with Romney to consider the Republican's ideas.
"In the weeks ahead, I also look forward to sitting down with Gov. Romney to talk about where we can work together to move this country forward," Obama said at the time.
The two will meet in the White House's private dining room, with no press coverage expected. While in Washington, Romney will reunite with his former running mate and Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan.
President Barack Obama and former opponent Mitt Romney will meet for a private... more
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In a New York Times opinion piece by Warren Buffett, the billionaire investor proposes a 30 percent minimum tax for the rich. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Buffett Says the Rich Should Pay a 30 Percent Minimum Tax
Submitted by letsliveinpeace
The chairman and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway called for higher taxes on the wealthiest Americans.
A few of his points:
1. Raising the marginal tax rate to Clinton-era levels will not have any impact on investment decisions. Indeed economic growth was robust during periods of much higher marginal rates—benefiting both the wealthy and the middle class. Recall that this was the same conclusion that the Congressional Research Service reached in a report Republicans recently tried to suppress.
2. Cuts in tax rates have given, as Buffett puts it, "a huge tail wind" to the super rich. These folks paid an average tax of 26.4 percent in 1992, but only 19.9 percent in 2009, on average income of $202 million. As Buffet says, this is an "outrage."
3. There should be, according to Buffett, an absolute minimum tax of 30 percent on income between $1 million and $10 million, and 35 percent above that. No loopholes, no hidden games, keep it simple.
In a New York Times opinion piece by Warren Buffett, the billionaire investor... more
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A group of corporate CEOs want the elderly and poor to help pay for the burgeoning deficit crisis. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
CEO Council Demands Cuts To Poor and Elderly While Reaping Billions In Government Contracts and Tax Breaks
Submitted by jeffissleeping
Executives belonging to what the campaign calls its CEO Fiscal Leadership Council, among them Goldman Sachs’ Lloyd Blankfein and Honeywell’s David Cote, are demanding cuts to assistance programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security to reduce the deficit. Also the CEOs are advocating a "territorial tax system" that would exempt their companies' foreign profits from taxation, netting them about $134 billion in tax savings. Via the Huffington Post:
Yet the CEOs are not offering to forgo federal money or pay a higher tax rate, on their personal income or corporate profits. Instead, council recommendations include cutting "entitlement" programs, as well as what they call "low-priority spending."
Many of the companies recommending austerity would be out of business without the heavy federal support they get, including Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase, which both received billions in direct bailout cash, plus billions more indirectly through AIG and other companies taxpayers rescued.
A group of corporate CEOs want the elderly and poor to help pay for... more
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More than 1,000 new coal plants are expected to be built around the world according to an analysis from the World Resources Institute. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
1,200 New Coal Plants Planned Around The World
Submitted by coolplanet
How is the world reacting to record levels of greenhouse gas emissions? Countries are planning to build more coal-fired power plants to meet the world's energy demands. A new analysis from the World Resources Institute found that there are nearly 1,200 new coal plants planned for construction around the world.
Most of those plants will be built in China and India, but there are dozens planned for America, Australia, Europe, and Russia.
The report outlines virtually every coal plant announced around the world. That does not necessarily mean that every one will get built. In the U.S., for example, it is highly unlikely that many — if any — new coal plants will move forward as cheap natural gas, growing renewables, and legal pressure from environmental groups trips up the pipeline.
But the tally is still staggering. If all these plants were built, they would amount to generation capacity four times greater than the entire U.S. coal fleet.
Coal-fired power plants accounted for nearly 45 percent of carbon dioxide emissions in 2011, according to the World Meteorological Organization.
More than 1,000 new coal plants are expected to be built around the world according... more
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The United Nations has declared Colorado and Washington in violation of international treaties after passing ballot measures to legalize the recreational use of marijuana. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
United Nations Moves to Impose International Treaties On States Legalizing Marijuana
Submitted by Dagum
Raymond Yans, head of the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), is urging U.S. federal officials to challenge ballot measures in Colorado and Washington that legalize recreational use of marijuana for adults 21 and over.
Yans called for the U.S. federal government to "resolve the contradiction between the federal and state levels in the implementation of that country’s obligations under the drug control conventions" and demanded it "take the necessary measures to ensure full compliance with the international drug control treaties within the entire territory of the United States, in order to protect the health and well-being of its citizens."
Both Colorado and Washington are holding off on plans to regulate and tax marijuana while waiting to see if the federal government will ignore the results of the ballot measures and enforce federal laws against marijuana use.
The United Nations has declared Colorado and Washington in violation of... more
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Former Romney staffers believe that Chris Christie deserves some of the blame for the GOP's loss. We're taking a closer look at this interesting story from the Current community. Check it out and add your two cents:
Romney camp blames Chris Christie for their loss: 'Christie allowed Obama to be a president'
Submitted by HarukoHaruhara
During the crucial final moments of the campaign, many Republicans are convinced that Christie hurt Romney's chances by praising President Obama during Hurricane Sandy. Many undecided voters leaned towards Obama because of his leadership during the storm. "Christie," said a Romney adviser, "allowed Obama to be president, not a politician."
Per The New York Times:
"But in the days after the storm, Mr. Christie and his advisers were startled to hear from out-of-state donors to Mr. Romney, who had little interest in the hurricane and viewed him solely as a campaign surrogate, demanding to know why he had stood so close to the president on a tarmac. One of them questioned why he had boarded Mr. Obama’s helicopter, according to people briefed on the conversations."
Former Romney staffers believe that Chris Christie deserves some of the blame for... more
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