Friday, May 9, 2014


News Clips For The Day


http://rt.com/news/157344-nato-troops-eastern-europe/

NATO eyes 'defensive' permanent troop deployment near Russia's borders
Published time: May 07, 2014 10:47 
Edited time: May 08, 2014

NATO may station permanently additional troops in Eastern Europe, the alliance’s top military commander said, adding that it would be a defensive measure. He cited “a new paradigm” demonstrated by Russia in Crimea and Ukraine.

Currently the alliance has organized a rotation of aircraft and warships in Eastern Europe and sent small contingents of ground troops for military drills to the Baltic States, Poland and Romania. But permanent deployment should be considered, US Air Force General Philip Breedlove said Tuesday.

"We need to look at our responsiveness, our readiness and then our positioning of forces to be able to address this new paradigm that we have seen demonstrated in Crimea and now on the eastern border of Ukraine," he said.

NATO members are to gather for a summit in Wales in early September, but in the run-up to it NATO commanders, defense ministers and foreign ministers would look at "tougher questions" about whether the alliance had the right footprint in Europe, Breedlove told a news conference in Ottawa.

"We are taking measures that should be very easily discerned as being defensive in nature. This is about assuring our allies, not provoking Russia, and we are communicating that at every level," said Breedlove, who earlier on Monday said he didn’t think Russia would invade Ukraine.

The paradigm Breedlove was referring to is apparently the alleged use of Russian special operation troops in Ukraine's Donetsk region. The accusations are regularly voiced by Kiev and some western countries, including the US, but so far all evidence presented proved to be unconvincing or false.

Journalists covering the ongoing turmoil in Ukraine report that while armed militias defying Kiev in eastern Ukraine have strong ethnic, cultural and religious ties with Russia, they found no evidence of them being Russian troops.

Russia voiced objections to NATO's build-up of troops in Eastern Europe amid the Ukrainian conflict. Officials say that a permanent deployment would only prove Moscow's assessment of NATO's action as hostile.

“I believe this decision would be taken and it would pose a real threat to our security. It would be a big, serious international scandal, but I know they would do it,” said Frants Klintsevich, deputy chair of the Russian State Duma’s Defense Committee. “Americans are taking all bets off, and Ukraine is just a pretext. They don't care about people, about what happens in Ukraine.”

“Those statements mean that masks are now completely off. It was clear even before that the deployment of the anti-ballistic missile system in Eastern Europe indicated the continuation of the alliance expansion eastwards,” agreed Russian Senator Dmitry Sablin, who is a member of the Federation Council’s Defense and Security Committee.
Russia’s Defense Ministry, in the meantime, is calm about the suggested NATO troops stationing, Kommersant writes citing a source in the ministry. “Introduction of a substantial permanent contingent in Eastern Europe is associated with significant financial costs, and we believe that the budget of the alliance will not cope with it,” the source said, adding that all the countries “where NATO can theoretically accommodate their troops” are bordering Russia’s Western Military District, well-equipped with air defense systems and ground force weapons.

Earlier US Secretary of State John Kerry said that the Ukrainian crisis poses a threat to West's global leadership and that the US and Europe must join forces to oppose them with sanctions and a downgrading of EU's trade relations with Russia.





“Currently the alliance has organized a rotation of aircraft and warships in Eastern Europe and sent small contingents of ground troops for military drills to the Baltic States, Poland and Romania. But permanent deployment should be considered, US Air Force General Philip Breedlove said Tuesday.” He referred to a “new paradigm” of Russia sending “special operation troops” into Donetsk. The writer of this article, however, said of this allegation that Russian troops are in Ukraine – “so far all evidence presented proved to be unconvincing or false.”

This article states that John Kerry has claimed “the Ukrainian crisis poses a threat to the West's global leadership and that the US and Europe must join forces to oppose them” – using diplomatic and economic means. NATO's newest step to move in permanent troops speaks of an escalation to that position, but in my opinion it is overdue. Russia only responds to force. Russian officials said that permanent NATO ground troops in Eastern Europe would be “proof that our actions are hostile.” Well, that may be true. Of course, all of Russia's actions of the last four or five months are decidedly hostile, so why should we not respond in kind? Rolling over and playing dead with Russia won't work. They will just roll right over us.

Not reported in this blog was an article from the last couple of days in which Putin is quoted as saying he is pulling his troops back from the Ukrainian border and asking the pro-Russian “self-defense” groups in Ukraine to postpone the upcoming referendum. That would be progress, but NATO and the US agree – Russia did not, in fact, pull back its troops. So Putin lied again. Interestingly there was another article on the Net at the same time stating that Russia's stock market went up when he made his announcement, indicating to me that even in Russia and certainly across Europe the people don't want a war. Putin should pay attention to that.





http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/09/world/europe/odessa-ukrainians-keep-pro-russia-forces-in-check.html?_r=0

In Odessa, Home-Grown Combatants Keep Pro-Russia Forces in Check
By ANDREW E. KRAMERMAY 8, 2014

ODESSA, Ukraine — In a basement headquarters behind a home electronics store, Ruslan Forostyak pored over a map of the city’s defenses against pro-Russian militants: roadblocks, zones of responsibility, strategic sites to defend.

But Mr. Forostyak is no police chief or general. He is a marine radio salesman, only recently turned leader of Odessa’s loose organization of pro-Ukrainian street fighters who see their role as defending their city against pro-Russian activists.

While a call by the Russian president, Vladimir V. Putin, to delay a referendum on sovereignty may have lowered passions for the moment, neither Mr. Forostyak nor his group, the Council for Civil Security, is taking any chances. Their rivals have a permit to stage a march Friday for Victory Day, the annual celebration of the Soviet Union’s defeat of Nazi Germany, and the council’s 3,000 members have vowed to head off any trouble through their 12 roadblocks, telephone hotline and militant wing armed with legally registered hunting rifles.

That would be in keeping with what they have done ever since pro-Russian militants began overrunning public buildings throughout southeastern Ukraine, an area that has far greater historical and cultural ties to Russia than does Odessa. While militants had no trouble seizing control in those cities, Odessa has been a different story.

“We did what the government should have done,” said Mr. Forostyak, still in his salesman’s synthetic suit, sweating and working two constantly ringing cellphones. “We understood we had to organize ourselves. The police are barely observing neutrality. They are barely holding back from helping the Russian side.”

Though the city is predominantly Russian speaking, a fierce grass-roots anti-Russian movement now has de facto control of the streets, owing to careful organization over the past two months. Pro-Russian activists, who tried to mimic their counterparts in the southeast, were routed by pro-Ukrainians last Friday, with 46 people — most of them pro-Russian — dying in a horrific fire.

Odessa, a Black Sea port city of colonnaded facades, cobblestone streets and an elegant old opera house, founded by the Russian empress Catherine the Great in the 18th century, is a multiethnic port inhabited by Ukrainians, Russians, Bulgarians, Greeks, Romanians, Tatars and Jews where Russian is the lingua franca.

Both sides in the recent fighting were Russian speaking, divided not by language but politics, some supporting the interim government, others secession. Local political observers say supporters of the interim government outnumber pro-Russians, though most of the population lies in a passive neutral group in the middle.

As pro-Russian groups tried to spread their movement west and south, the street fighting here defined a geographic limit; further advances into areas of mixed loyalty are likely only to become more chaotic and bloody.

This seems to be true even though much of the administration and police leadership in Odessa were appointees of the former government of Viktor F. Yanukovych and leaned toward the pro-Russian movement, led here by two brothers, Anton and Artyom Davydchenko. Anton is now in prison and Artyom was wounded in the fighting Friday.

With popular support but little police backup, pro-Ukrainian civilian groups confronted the pro-Russian activists storming government buildings and protesting on a central square, Kulikovo Square.

Mr. Forostyak said the model of the Council for Civil Security was an anthill. Each volunteer specializes in one task, aiding the overall effort. The headquarters seethed with activity this week, ahead of Victory Day.

For those taking part, the street fighting between neighbors has become intensely personal, a civil war in the purest sense. Men never know when an opponent met unexpectedly in the city will just walk past, or open fire.

Vitaly Kozhukhar, a leader of a pro-Ukrainian group called Maidan Self-Defense, which operates under the umbrella of the council, cut through one such tense situation with a joke. On Friday, he hobbled into a hospital after being struck in the shin by a hurled cobblestone, only to find three of his injured opponents — two policemen and a pro-Russian activist — also awaiting a doctor.

The four sat silently for a while. “It was very tense,” Mr. Kozhukhar said. “It wasn’t clear what would happen. So I told them, ‘Guys, don’t worry, hospitals and graveyards make equals of us all.’ ”

The pro-Russian man chuckled, but pulled off his red arm band and stuffed it in his pocket.

Mr. Koshukhar said he and other leaders of the self-defense groups on both sides spoke often in recent months, meeting in cafes or talking on cellphones in an effort to avoid clashes, until Friday. It remains unclear, he said, why this unofficial truce broke down Friday.

Whatever the reason, it was the bloodiest street fighting in Ukraine since the overthrow of the former government in February, and the deadliest locally since five days of fighting between Reds and Whites and supporters of Ukrainian independence in 1918, which killed 118 people.

The speaker of Russia’s Parliament, Sergei Naryshkin, has called the fire a genocide, Interfax reported. “We are dealing with a real genocide, a genocide of Russian and Ukrainian people in the 21st century,” he said.

The leaders of the pro-Ukrainian groups say that they tried to save those trapped by the fire by putting scaffolding on the side of the building to help them climb out. Pro-Russian groups say people who tried to jump or run from the building were beaten.

In another illustration of the nature of the conflict in this city, in Hospital No. 1, two young men lay in adjacent rooms. Both were ethnic Ukrainian but Russian speaking.

Valentin Volchok, 18, lay on his side, trying to ease the pain from the lacerations on his back where nails from an improvised hand grenade had struck him. He said he belonged to Patriots of Ukraine, a Ukrainian nationalist group. Down the hall, Yevgeny Makarenko, 30, a pro-Russian activist, lay stiffly on his back, his left cheek and both hands blackened with burns, and slathered in a yellow cream to prevent infections.

Mr. Makarenko was barely communicative, while it was unclear whether Mr. Volchok was healing so much as nursing a grudge.

“We feel that we are a majority here, and they should fear us,” he said of his opponents. But he said he was not angry at Mr. Makarenko in the next room. “We’re all people and all need the hospital when we’re hurt,” he said.




“'We did what the government should have done,' said Mr. Forostyak, still in his salesman’s synthetic suit, sweating and working two constantly ringing cellphones. 'We understood we had to organize ourselves. The police are barely observing neutrality. They are barely holding back from helping the Russian side.'”

Odessa has many ethnic groups, perhaps because it is a port city, with “Ukrainians, Russians, Bulgarians, Greeks, Romanians, Tatars and Jews” though the primary language is Russian. Some support the interim government and the others are for secession. Those who are for Kiev outnumber the secessionists, but “most of the population lies in a passive neutral group in the middle....As pro-Russian groups tried to spread their movement west and south, the street fighting here defined a geographic limit; further advances into areas of mixed loyalty are likely only to become more chaotic and bloody.”

The pro-Ukrainian umbrella organization the Council for Civil Security, led by Ruslan Forostyak, has a membership of about 3,000 and has set up “12 roadblocks, a telephone hotline and a militant wing armed with legally registered hunting rifles.” A pro-Ukrainian fighter who was recovering in the hospital said, “We feel that we are a majority here, and they should fear us,” he said of his opponents. But he said he was not angry at Mr. Makarenko in the next room. “We’re all people and all need the hospital when we’re hurt,” he said. This mixed population in Odessa is feeling the conflict very much with people who undoubtedly know each other fighting on different sides. The middle “passive” group will probably go with either side, whoever is winning. Still, 3,000 street fighters cap put up an effective struggle. I have hopes for Odessa.

The idea that just because you are in the majority the other groups should “fear you” doesn't speak well for them as citizens of the city and country, however. Why do people want others to “fear them”? Clearly they have no interest in accommodating all parties. The nationalistic spirits are so high that there's no room for peace. It's a situation based on constant conflict. Majority parties should set up the nation's laws so that they aren't domineering, so much as sharing the government with minorities and require regular and fair elections to refresh the leadership every few years. Then there wouldn't be a fight. That's what the legislative process is for – to make laws that are fair to all.

This is what we do in the US and it is why our system works. The elections reliably coming on a regular basis are the key, I think. No party can be sure to win and no outside group – like Russia – interferes. There is a high level of patriotism centered around elections here on both sides. As a society we believe in the rule of law, including law-enforcement when needed. Only a few issues such as the Vietnam Conflict, the Occupy movement, KKK marches, the civil rights marches and some labor union conflicts have caused police and sometimes the National Guard to be brought out in the US streets to maintain peace, and even in those cases they didn't simply suppress the marchers on a whim by the government. In the cases of Vietnam and the Civil Rights movement, the legislature was moved finally to make new laws. Our army was made into a volunteer only force and schools and other civic services were opened up to black people even though it wasn't a very popular move in the South. Those particular issues were popularly based and have stimulated legislative action to bring about greater justice for all groups. Most issues are solved on a daily basis by our representation in the Congress and Senate, and by the Supreme Court. It works most of the time.




Russia's Victory Day Takes Deadly Turn in Ukrainian City of Mariupol – NBC
- Richard Engel and Alexander Smith
First published May 9th 2014

Ukrainian troops killed some 20 pro-Russian separatists who tried to storm the police headquarters in the city of Mariupol on Friday, Ukraine's Interior Ministry said.

The clashes came as Moscow and parts of Ukraine staged flamboyant celebrations to mark the anniversary of the Soviet Union's defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.

The Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov wrote on his Facebook page that government forces killed 20 separatists, whom it called "terrorists," and captured four more after about 60 militants tried to storm the police headquarters.

"The only position towards terrorists is shoot to kill," he said. "I ask all of you, the friends and the enemies, put all your conflicts and interests aside, the country is at stake. It is time to recollect our strength and to come out of this situation."

He said one Ukrainian soldier was killed and five more injured as police headquarters in the city were set on fire.

The Interfax Ukraine news agency translated a Facebook post by the Donetsk "People's Governor" Pavlo Hubarev alleging that Kiev-backed militants had used "chemical weapons" when taking back the city's council building on Tuesday.

NBC News was not able to verify the claim.

Moscow, meanwhile, staged one of its largest Victory Day parades in years amid growing Russian patriotic fervor sparked by the annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in March.

There were similar parades in the eastern Ukraine region of Donetsk, where Ukrainian troops have for weeks been trying to dislodge pro-Russian separatists who have occupied buildings in dozens of cities.

Russian President Vladimir Putin blames the United States for stirring up tension within Ukraine. Putin says that by backing the new Kiev government, put in place after an uprising in February, the U.S. is supporting a fascist regime imposed in a coup d'etat.




Mariupolis a few miles west of the Russian border on the Sea of Azov. According to Wikipedia, it has a population of 492,176, is “a centre for the grain trade, metallurgy and heavy engineering.” Ukrainians dominate the population with 248,683 to Russians' 226,848. “Other ethnic groups include Greeks, Jews, Armenians, Belarusians, etc. The city home to the largest Greek population in Ukraine ("Greeks of Priazovye"): 21,900, with 31,400 more in the six nearby rural areas, totaling to about 70% of the Greek population of the area and 60% for the country.”

The ethnic Ukrainians battled “about 60 militants,” killing 20 and capturing 4. Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov wrote on his Facebook page, “'The only position towards terrorists is shoot to kill....I ask all of you, the friends and the enemies, put all your conflicts and interests aside, the country is at stake. It is time to recollect our strength and to come out of this situation.'”

One Ukrainian was killed and five injured, as the police department building was set on fire. Donetsk "People's Governor" Pavlo Hubarev wrote on his Facebook that the Kiev-backed troops had used chemical weapons on Tuesday when taking back the city council building. “NBC News was not able to verify the claim.” Somehow I doubt that Ukraine, if it has chemical weapons, would use them with the whole world looking on. Putin blames the US for fomenting tensions and supporting “a fascist regime.” And the conflict goes on.





Which U.S. state has the highest share of working moms? – CBS
By ALAIN SHERTER MONEYWATCH May 9, 2014

As Mother's Day approaches, South Dakota moms deserve particular recognition. Nearly eight of 10 moms in the state are employed, giving South Dakota the highest percentage of working mothers in the U.S., according to a new analysis by Ancestry.com.

Why South Dakota? The state's large percentage of women in the labor force largely reflects its thriving economy. Robust job-creation in South Dakota in recent decades has given it one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country, at 3.7 percent, compared with 6.3 percent nationwide. 

Led by a strong energy and mining sector, along with a healthy tourist trade, the local economy even proved somewhat impervious to the Great Recession. South Dakota's job market rebounded quickly after the housing crash and never coming close to the double-digit unemployment rates seen in other states. 

Perhaps not surprisingly, other parts of the country with a large share of working mothers also tend to have a healthy job market. The No. 2 state in Ancestry.com's ranking, North Dakota, has the lowest jobless rate in the nation at 2.6 percent(North Dakota also has the dubious distinction of being the most dangerous statefor workers.)

All the states that made the genealogy research site's list had below-average unemployment, according to federal labor figures. The states with the lowest percentage of working moms? West Virginia, where unemployment still tops 6 percent.

Todd Godfrey Sr., director of content acquisition at Ancestry.com, notes that Plains and Midwestern states long trailed other parts of the country in the percentage of working mothers, while Southern states led the way. But the regions have traded places in recent decades, he said. 

Of course, women have been entering the workforce en masse for more than half a century. Examining U.S. Census data going back more than 150 years, Ancestry.com found that only 7.5 percent of mothers held jobs in 1860, compared with 67 percent today. 

Although many historical currents paved the way for women to find paid employment over the years, the number of working moms rose especially sharply during World War II, when women took factory jobs vacated by men fighting overseas. 

Today, working mothers are the main breadwinners in some 40 percent of household with children, the Pew Research Center found last year. 




“Robust job-creation in South Dakota in recent decades has given it one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country, at 3.7 percent, compared with 6.3 percent nationwide.” North Dakota is next at 2.6 percent. I would like to know why Ancestry.com, hardly a census site, is doing this study. Actually what they are tracking is the percentage of working women. Not surprisingly, their employment rates go up as the unemployment rate goes down. Even in the midwest it's harder for women to get jobs than for men.

“Examining U.S. Census data going back more than 150 years, Ancestry.com found that only 7.5 percent of mothers held jobs in 1860, compared with 67 percent today.“ Ancestry.com wasn't specifically researching women working, but was keeping the data as a part of their information collection. So, in the future, if I want to know about how ordinary families were living down through US history I will go to Ancestry. Com.

My main question after this article is why SD and ND are among the tops at low unemployment achievement. Perhaps they have a long history of Republican rule? That's what Republicans would say, anyway. The following article explores the answer.




http://www.nbcnews.com/id/38838429/ns/business-us_business/t/states-ridiculously-low-unemployment/#.U20T-YFdVkk

10 States With Ridiculously Low Unemployment Rates
By Vincent Femando and Betty Jin
Business Insider
Published 2012

Every U.S. state experienced job losses during the recent downturn, but thanks to the right mix of industries, natural resources, and skilled workers, some states have a far lower unemployment rate than the 9.5 percent national average.

South Dakota — Gets a big boost from government, but also has services and agriculture

Unemployment Rate: 4.4 percent
Lower than U.S. rate by: 5.1 percentage points
Major industries driving the economy: The service sector (especially retail, health, and finance firms) dominates South Dakota's economy, although government-related enterprises also form a large chunk of the GDP. Ellsworth Air Force Base is the second-largest single employer here. Agriculture also contributes heavily to the economy, but its influence is waning.
Education: 25.0 percent of the adult population has a Bachelor's degree or 
higher. (Lower than national average)
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

North Dakota — Powered by agriculture and commodities

Unemployment Rate: 3.6 percent
Lower than U.S. rate by: 5.9 percentage points
Major industries driving the economy: Agriculture, petroleum, food processing, and tourism dominate the nation's most job-friendly state.
Education: 25.7 percent of the adult population has a Bachelor's degree or higher. (Lower than national average)
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics





Feds to schools: You must accept children of undocumented immigrants
By REBECCA KAPLAN CBS NEWS May 8, 2014

The Justice and Education Departments are teaming up to remind public schools that they are required to provide all children with equal access to education at the elementary and secondary level regardless of their parents' or guardians' citizenship or immigration status.

The "dear colleague," letter to schools providing guidance to schools on their legal obligations comes as the departments say they have "become aware of student enrollment practices that may chill or discourage the participation, or lead to the exclusion, of students."

The guidelines do not change existing practices, but rather remind schools of obligations established by Plyler v. Doe, a 1982 Supreme Court case that affirmed all children are guaranteed equal access to a basic public education regardless of their immigration status. The Justice and Education Departments last issued guidance to schools on their responsibilities in 2011, and the 2014 documents update that guidance by stressing the need for "flexibility" in accepting documents from parents to prove a child's age and area of residence, and remind schools what kinds of documents they can and cannot accept.

"We want to be sure every school leader understands the legal requirements under the Constitution and federal laws, and it is our hope that this update will address some of the misperceptions out there," said Secretary Arne Duncan in a statement. "The message here is clear: let all children who live in your district enroll in your public schools."

Attorney General Eric Holder pledged to "vigilantly enforce the law to ensure the schoolhouse door remains open to all." Any actions to put up barriers to student enrollment, "not only harm innocent children, they also markedly weaken our nation...by leaving young people unprepared and ill-equipped to succeed," he said.

Schools are allowed to request proof that children live within the boundaries of the district, for which they typically accept documents like copies of phone and water bills, lease agreements, and affidavits, the guidance says. While schools may accept a parents' drivers license as evidence, they may not require it to establish residency since it would unlawfully bar a student whose parents in the U.S. illegally and do not have a drivers' license. They may also not deny a homeless child access to school if he or she cannot provide documents to establish residency.

To prove a student meets age requirements, the school may accept certificates showing a date of birth from a religious institution, hospital or physician, an entry in a family bible, an adoption record, or a parent affidavit. A birth certificate is also an acceptable form of proof of age, but school districts are not allowed to discourage children from enrolling in or attending school because they do not have a birth certificate or they only have one from a foreign country.

The agencies also issue guidance on the use of Social Security numbers, which are often requested as a student identification number. If the district requests the number, the agencies say, they must inform parents and children that it is voluntary and refusing to provide a social security number will not result in their child being barred from enrolling or attending school. They also must explain what it is used for.

Schools are also specifically advised not to inquire about a student's immigration or citizenship status, because that information, "is not relevant to establishing residency in the district, and inquiring about it in the context of establishing residency is unnecessary and may have a chilling or a discouraging effect on student enrollment," a Q&A document for school says.




As with voter registration, we apparently have underhanded measures by some schools occurring in an effort to keep out certain people. In Florida and some other Republican dominated states it is blacks and immigrants who are being excluded from voter registration by a series of registration rules. No specific states or school districts were mentioned in this case about avoiding the enrolling of some students. This article simply states that the Justice Department and Department of Education have “'become aware of student enrollment practices that may chill or discourage the participation, or lead to the exclusion, of students.'”

Apparently some schools are trying to keep out social “undesirables,” head lice, or speakers of foreign languages. Public schools are under obligation to take on student who have problems, and set up ways to cope with them. Educating “the public” means educating the poor, whatever that entails. Without free public education our country would have folded during the Great Depression. Our population has to be capable of doing a job and maintaining a home, or we will have almost the whole society “on the dole,” as some European nations are.

A letter prohibiting the use of certain requirements by school boards is based on the Supreme Court decision “Plyler v. Doe” from 1982. “Secretary Arne Duncan stresses in a statement. "The message here is clear: let all children who live in your district enroll in your public schools." While it is mainly illegal immigrants children who are being “discouraged” from enrolling, this letter also prohibits the children of homeless people from attending school in their area. Driver's licenses, birth certificates and proof of immigration status may not be required in order to enter school.





Autistic boy calls 911, helps save mom after bad fall
CBS NEWS May 9, 2014

A Florida mother is crediting her 7-year-old autistic son for jumping into action after she was injured in a bad fall.

Lisa Kirby told CBS affiliate WKMG in Orlando that she blacked out after falling trying to hang curtains in her home and ended up spending the night in the hospital.

"At the hospital I said, 'How did I get here? How did I get here?'" said Kirby, who was home alone with her son Joshua.

"There was no one else here to help me. I didn't know what I was gonna do," Kirby told the station. "I was just scared for Joshua. That was my main concern was Joshua, nobody being here for him."

But as it turned out, Joshua had found her phone and dialed 911. The boy told the dispatcher that he needed help and that "mommy fell down."

"Me and my husband were both amazed. We're like, how did he do that? Because I didn't even know he knew what 911 was," said Kirby.

Joshua took directions from the 911 dispatcher, getting a towel for his mother and unlocking the door for the paramedics, who arrived just after his mother regained consciousness.

"He is a little hero," Lisa Kirby said.




People who have children with mental health issues clearly should not write them off or underestimate their capabilities. All kids should be taught how to dial 911 and what it is used for by the time they are able to talk. They should also, I feel, be taught to swim at a rudimentary level and run to get help if there is no phone. They are learning to be adults from the earliest days as they listen to people talking around them, even though they can't talk yet. They understand more language than they can produce in speech. So watch what you say around them!





Fla. woman has neighbors' mobile home bulldozed, cops say
By CRIMESIDER STAFF CBS/AP  May 9, 2014

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. - Authorities say a northeast Florida woman who didn't like her neighbors had their mobile home demolished.

According to an arrest report, 62-year-old Ana Maria Moreta Folch of St. Augustine, part of the Jacksonville metropolitan area, told a heavy equipment operator that she owned the trailer and wanted it and its septic tank destroyed.

The Florida Times-Union reports that St. Johns County Sheriff's deputies were called when the trailer's real owner arrived Monday and found the demolition underway. The owner of the trailer, Maria Gottfried, told authorities that she has owned the mobile home since 2006 and has never had any previous issues with Moreta Folch.

CBS Tampa Bay reports there was $25,000 worth of damage done to Gottfried's home.

The arrest report says Moreta Folch wanted the trailer bulldozed because she thought its occupants were unsavory and she suspected they had broken into her car.

Moreta Folch was charged with criminal mischief, a third-degree felony. She was released Wednesday on $10,000 bail. Jail records did not show whether she had an attorney.





There's interesting and then there's really weird. This is just weird. “Maria Gottfried, told authorities that she has owned the mobile home since 2006 and has never had any previous issues with Moreta Folch.” Folch is said to have thought the owners were “unsavory,” – well aren't we all in somebody's eyes – and she thought they had broken into her car. I wonder how she is going to pay the $25,000 damage. She was able to put up her $10,000 bail, apparently, so maybe she can. I do hope she first gets a lawyer and second gets a psychiatrist for her paranoia. She needs some meds.





At Wal-Mart, Obama Praises Steps On Solar Power – NPR
by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
May 09, 2014

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (AP) — Flanked by bargain-priced displays of women's wear and patio lighting, President Barack Obama came to a Wal-Mart store in Silicon Valley on Friday to praise new steps by businesses and communities to deploy solar energy, showcasing efforts to combat climate change that don't rely on a disinclined Congress.

Obama said more than 300 companies and state and local governments have pledged to use solar technology, and he unveiled his own executive actions aimed at increasing energy efficiency with a goal of reducing U.S. reliance on carbon fuels. The two tracks underscored Obama's strategy of sidestepping Congress to advance his own agenda, but they also illustrated the limits of his reach in a bitterly divided government.

"The commitments we're announcing today prove that there are cost-effective ways to tackle climate change and create jobs at the same time," Obama said at a sprawling Wal-Mart store in Mountain View.

The solar effort will power the equivalent of 130,000 homes, the White House said, while Obama's administrative actions could reduce carbon pollution in an amount equal to taking 80 million cars off the road for one year. The White House also announced that long-delayed energy efficiency standards for walk-in coolers and freezers have finally been completed.

Ticking off a list of economic and environmental benefits he attributed to solar technology, Obama cast the commitments as part of a broader campaign to reduce American energy dependence, create jobs in renewable energy and lower heat-trapping emissions blamed for global warming.

"This is what you call a win-win-win," Obama told about 250 store employees as he wrapped up a three-day swing through California focused heavily on raising money for Democrats in advance of November's midterm elections.

Tweaking the mostly Republican opponents of his energy policies in Congress, Obama lamented that lawmakers have "not always been as visionary on these issues as we would like." That's why he's seizing opportunities this year to act unilaterally to advance those goals, Obama said.

"Unfortunately, inside of Washington, we still have some climate deniers who shout loud," Obama said. "But they're wasting people's time on a settled debate."

His policies unable to generate momentum in Congress, Obama has increasingly gone outside the federal government to press his agenda. He has won commitments from colleges and universities to expand access to more students; he has created innovation hubs that link businesses and education institutions; and he has drawn attention to companies and state and local governments that have increased pay for workers.

Still, that choice of tactics has severely limited what Obama may be able to accomplish, a reality the president acknowledged the night before as he spoke to donors at a fundraiser in La Jolla benefiting House Democrats.

"Regardless of how hard I push, regardless of how many administrative actions I take, we're not going to be able to go where we need to go, and can go, and should go unless I've got a Congress that's willing to work with me," Obama said.

The White House said it chose Wal-Mart because the company has committed to doubling the number of solar energy projects at its stores, Sam's Clubs and distribution centers. But in choosing the giant retailer as the backdrop for his announcement, Obama also triggered a backlash from labor unions and pay equity advocates who say low wages paid by Wal-Mart fly in the face of Obama's vaunted push on pay equity.

"What numbskull in the White House arranged this?" former Labor Secretary Robert Reich, who served in the Bill Clinton administration, said on Facebook.

The Wal-Mart location he visited gets about 15 percent of its power from solar panels. Wal-Mart's president, Bill Simon, said. Obama is the first president to visit one of the chain's warehouse stores.




President Obama praises Wal-Mart and other businesses and communities for making moves against climate change without the approval or prodding of the government. “Obama said more than 300 companies and state and local governments have pledged to use solar technology, and he unveiled his own executive actions aimed at increasing energy efficiency with a goal of reducing U.S. reliance on carbon fuels....'The commitments we're announcing today prove that there are cost-effective ways to tackle climate change and create jobs at the same time,' Obama said.”

Pursuing other goals without government action, Obama “has won commitments from colleges and universities to expand access to more students; he has created innovation hubs that link businesses and education institutions; and he has drawn attention to companies and state and local governments that have increased pay for workers.”

Robert Reich criticized the White House for highlighting Wal-Mart due to their notoriously low pay scale. Nonetheless, increasing connections between businesses and colleges is a really good idea for connecting new graduates with employers and getting a large number of businesses to do things like using solar power is significant. Obama acknowledges, however, that without the Congress behind him he is limited in what he can accomplish. Personally, I think the voluntary efforts by businesses and local governments are important. At least the government didn't have to force the 300 mentioned in this article to do their part. It's progress.