May 12, 2016


News and Views


http://www.wlox.com/story/31946146/federal-court-indicts-former-north-charleston-cop-in-walter-scott-shooting

Former North Charleston cop arraigned on federal charges in Walter Scott shooting
Wednesday, May 11th 2016, 10:04 am EDT
Wednesday, May 11th 2016, 3:35 pm EDT
By Live 5 News Web Staff


WALTER SCOTT SHOOTING -- April 4, 2015: Police taped off the area near the scene where motorist Walter Scott was fatally shot.
Source: Live 5
MOBILE USERS: Click here to see a timeline of events
View image on Twitter -- Karina Bolster ‎@KRBolster, Federal judge grants Michael Slager bond in new charges. He was released. Judge decided to continue w/ state bond. 2:11 PM - 11 May 2016
VIDEO: Former NCPD officer faces federal charges in Walter Scott killing
Karina Bolster ‎@KRBolster -- Federal judge grants Michael Slager bond in new charges. He was released. Judge decided to continue w/ state bond. 2:11 PM - 11 May 2016
Image -- A still from the dashcam footage from former NCPD officer Michael Slager as he approached Walter Scott's vehicle on April 4, 2015. (Source: NCPD)
Walter Scott (Source: Facebook)


CHARLESTON, SC (WCSC)

The former North Charleston police officer charged with murder in the shooting death of an unarmed man was arraigned on new federal charges Wednesday afternoon.

Michael Slager was indicted Tuesday on three counts counts in the April 4, 2015 shooting death of Walter Scott.

A federal judge granted Slager bond for the three new federal charges, which include violating Walter Scott's civil rights, using a weapon during the commission of a violent crime, and obstruction of justice. The conditions of Slager's release are same as state's conditions, with the addition of home confinement with GPS, and the surrender of his passport.

Attorneys for the family of Walter Scott said they did not object to the judge's decision.

"He already has the bond, he's under house arrest, he was forced to surrender his passport today, he's not going to escape justice in this situation," Scott family attorney Chris Stewart said at a press conference immediately following the arraignment.

Attorneys Andy Savage and Shaun Kent, who are representing Slager in the state case, were appointed to represent him in the federal case as well.

Investigators say Scott was shot and killed by Slager after Scott fled from his vehicle during a traffic stop that took place on Remount Road in North Charleston.

The documents allege Slager shot Scott "without legal justification," violating his right to be free from the use of unreasonable force by a law enforcement officer.

The indictment claims Slager "knowingly and intentionally" misled the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division by falsely stating that he fired his .45 caliber pistol at Scott while Scott was coming forward with a Taser.

Slager told officials he shot Scott because he feared for his life following a physical altercation with the 50-year-old man, who was reportedly unarmed.

"In truth and in fact, as defendant Michael Slager then well knew, he (Slager) repeatedly fired his weapon at Scott when Scott was running away from him," the indictment states.

At the time of the shooting, Slager, 33, was a Patrolman First Class with the police department.

Video shot by a bystander surfaced in the days following Scott's death. The cell phone video showed Slager shooting Scott in the back as he ran from the officer.

Officials say the video evidence led to Slager's arrest and murder charge.

Slager was initially placed on administrative leave while SLED investigated the shooting. He was released on $500,000 bond in January.

Last fall, the City of North Charleston approved a $6.5 million civil settlement with Scott's family.

If convicted, Slager faces a maximum sentence of life in prison for the civil rights violation, as well as a potential $250,000 fine.

The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Columbia Division and SLED.



“A federal judge granted Slager bond for the three new federal charges, which include violating Walter Scott's civil rights, using a weapon during the commission of a violent crime, and obstruction of justice. The conditions of Slager's release are same as state's conditions, with the addition of home confinement with GPS, and the surrender of his passport. …. The documents allege Slager shot Scott "without legal justification," violating his right to be free from the use of unreasonable force by a law enforcement officer. The indictment claims Slager "knowingly and intentionally" misled the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division by falsely stating that he fired his .45 caliber pistol at Scott while Scott was coming forward with a Taser. Slager told officials he shot Scott because he feared for his life following a physical altercation with the 50-year-old man, who was reportedly unarmed.


“Feared for his life!” Why does nearly every one of these stories feature that same exact statement? I watched the video and Scott is obviously running away from Slager and not toward him. In addition, Slager took the classic shooter’s stance and pumped two or more bullets into his back. Does that sound like self-defense? And I wish they wouldn’t use that standard phrase every time. It’s so prim and scholarly – clearly they are parroting what their Union boss, who has been tutored by their lawyer has told them. A real man would say “He scared the hell out of me and I panicked!”



Near Extinction of Rare Species

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/124/553/742/?z00m=27795090&redirectID=2049486651

Ban Fishing Nets That Kill Endangered Porpoises!
BY: Chris Wolverton
TARGET: Environment, Natural Resources and Fishing Ministry of Mexico

Video -- http://cetus.ucsd.edu/voicesinthesea_org/videos/videoVaquitaMeet.html

Only 92 tiny porpoises called vaquita remain in the wild due to illegal fishing with gillnets. Thousands of fishermen use the long nets to catch shrimp, and an increasing number of illegitimate fishermen catch endangered totoaba fish in the Northern Gulf of California. The Chinese use the totaba fish's bladder in soup as a delicacy and for unproven medicinal properties. Vaquitas end up in gillnets and die as a casualty of shrimp fishing and illegal fishing for totaba.

The Mexican government is testing a two-year ban across 5,000 miles of the Gulf in hopes of restoring vaquita populations. Over the two-year period, researchers will develop safer nets that will allow fishermen to catch shrimp without harming vaquitas. The government will reimburse legitimate fishermen for their lost catch during this time period.

Mexican officials have failed to enforce past laws limiting gillnet fishing, and conservationists fear the new ban will not be enforced consistently. This is the last chance to save these tiny porpoises! Please sign the petition to urge the Mexican Environment, Natural Resources and Fishing Ministry to prioritize enforcing the ban on gillnet fishing!


https://www.environment.gov.au/marine/marine-species/cetaceans/whales-dolphins-porpoises

Cetaceans

Dolphins, porpoises, and whales all belong to a group of marine animals known as cetaceans. Like all mammals, cetaceans are warm-blooded, breathe air, and suckle their young. But how do you distinguish one from the other?

The approximately 86 species of cetaceans in the world are placed in two main groups. Cetaceans range in size from the vaquita porpoise (found in the Gulf of California) growing to 1.4 meters long, up to the 30 meter long blue whale who is found in all the waters of the world. The blue whale is the largest animal that has ever existed on earth.

One group, the Mysticetes or baleen whales, with 14 species, includes the largest whales, namely the blue and fin whales. Instead of teeth, they have long horny plates edged with bristle-like fibres that strain small marine animals from seawater.

The other group includes the toothed whales or Odontocetes, with around 72 species including the beaked whales, killer whales, pilot whales, dolphins and porpoises.

The term whale can refer to any cetacean but it is mostly used for the baleen whales and larger toothed whales.

In the past, the terms porpoise and dolphin have been used interchangeably, with one or the other favoured in different parts of the world. Today, porpoises refer to a group of six species with characteristic spade-shaped teeth and the absence of a distinct beak. Dolphins may or may not have a beak, and usually have many small pointed teeth.

Approximately thirty-five species of dolphins and other small cetaceans are known to occur in Australian waters.

The number of recognised cetacean species is likely to increase as new species are identified based on new genetic information. For example the Australian snubfin dolphin Orcaella heinsohni, was formally described and recognised as a new species endemic to the Australian region in 2005. This dolphin was previously classified within the Irrawaddy dolphin species Orcaella brevirostris.

Distribution and abundance

The waters around Australia range from the warm tropical waters of northern Australia to the cooler waters around the southern coastline. To the south of the continent are the colder subantarctic waters and off the Australian Antarctic Territory, the very cold, sometimes ice-strewn, Antarctic waters.

The killer whale occurs in all waters though it is most abundant in the southern oceans. The other wide ranging species, the bottlenose dolphin, occurs in all but the colder waters.

On the basis of their distribution the small cetaceans can be placed in three groups: those mostly restricted to shallow waters close inshore and to rivers and estuaries; those occurring most commonly in nearshore waters over the continental shelf; and the truly open ocean species seldom encountered close to land.

In general, the further offshore a small cetacean occurs the less is known about its biology, with the exception of those species taken commercially, and those incidentally taken in fishing nets. Some species are known only from stranded specimens.



Petition Site EXCERPTS -- “The approximately 86 species of cetaceans in the world are placed in two main groups. Cetaceans range in size from the vaquita porpoise (found in the Gulf of California) growing to 1.4 meters long, up to the 30 meter long blue whale who is found in all the waters of the world. The blue whale is the largest animal that has ever existed on earth. …. The other group includes the toothed whales or Odontocetes, with around 72 species including the beaked whales, killer whales, pilot whales, dolphins and porpoises. The term whale can refer to any cetacean but it is mostly used for the baleen whales and larger toothed whales. …. Mexican officials have failed to enforce past laws limiting gillnet fishing, and conservationists fear the new ban will not be enforced consistently. This is the last chance to save these tiny porpoises! Please sign the petition to urge the Mexican Environment, Natural Resources and Fishing Ministry to prioritize enforcing the ban on gillnet fishing!”

Cetaceans EXCERPTS -- The approximately 86 species of cetaceans in the world are placed in two main groups. Cetaceans range in size from the vaquita porpoise (found in the Gulf of California) growing to 1.4 meters long, up to the 30 meter long blue whale who is found in all the waters of the world. The blue whale is the largest animal that has ever existed on earth. …. The other group includes the toothed whales or Odontocetes, with around 72 species including the beaked whales, killer whales, pilot whales, dolphins and porpoises. The term whale can refer to any cetacean but it is mostly used for the baleen whales and larger toothed whales. …. Approximately thirty-five species of dolphins and other small cetaceans are known to occur in Australian waters. The number of recognised [sic] cetacean species is likely to increase as new species are identified based on new genetic information. …. The waters around Australia range from the warm tropical waters of northern Australia to the cooler waters around the southern coastline. To the south of the continent are the colder subantarctic waters and off the Australian Antarctic Territory, the very cold, sometimes ice-strewn, Antarctic waters. The killer whale occurs in all waters though it is most abundant in the southern oceans. The other wide ranging species, the bottlenose dolphin, occurs in all but the colder waters. …. In general, the further offshore a small cetacean occurs the less is known about its biology, with the exception of those species taken commercially, and those incidentally taken in fishing nets. Some species are known only from stranded specimens.”


In the oceans, rain forests and undoubtedly other natural environments, species are going extinct before we can classify them. I know there have been mass extinctions before, but this hurts me. I grew up walking in the woods near my home (nobody worried about sexual predators in those days) and was privileged to see and examine many, many animals and plants. I wish people in the future would be able to do that, but I don’t think they will. It isn’t mainly due to global warming either (although the dying off of polar bears is) but over logging and fishing.

Even farming, a necessary thing, is also responsible for the problem, partly because so many acres are now in use. That removes the natural plants (“weeds”) needed by birds and other species living in the environment. In the 1920s and ’30s era of the Dustbowl the government got busy and tried to teach better farming methods (crop rotation, fallow fields, etc.) but I haven’t heard about that in years now, and the “factory farming” movement which dominates now uses more acres than did the family farms. Because fields must be replenished in some way – under the crop rotation plans, a field of nitrogen-fixing legumes would be planted where a cultivated crop had been -- so several years later when the clover or soybeans were plowed under, the soil would be ready to grow regular farm crops again. That allowed the same acreage to be used over and over. Nowadays they just pump in lots of fertilizer which runs off to the local water sources as pollution. That causes algae to growth which can cause fish kills. A couple of years ago I was down at the St. Johns River and a good fifty or so smelly dead fish littered the top of the water. Not only is that a filthy mess, but it’s a terrible waste of life.

I hate to say this, and I would never suggest that we should mandate birth control and sterilization after an allotted number of children, but the land use and pollution problems here have a great deal to do with overpopulation in this country and in the rest of the world as well. China enacted some 20 years ago that each couple may only have (and keep) one child. Sadly, but not unpredictably, many of the Chinese women began aborting girl babies, because boys bring status to the family, and girls just have to be married off to somebody. Of course they began to have problems finding a mate for their precious male child. Tut, tut! See the interesting article below about China’s one child policy, which has now been loosened to allow two children.

Farming alone, like deforestation, removes not only wild animal food sources but the nesting areas, so that species simply die off. I’ve been hearing about this since the ‘70s and it still goes on. Some of the more creative Counter Culture people used to drive iron spikes into tree trunks so loggers were unable to cut them down, and go in shifts to climb old growth trees to sit up there in groups for days. The famous Greenpeace ship the Rainbow Warrior would bulldog fishing ships to prevent them from doing things like allowing dolphins to die in their fishnets. Dolphins, of course, are predatory and they hunt in groups. They follow the prey fish right into the nets and become entangled. A dolphin, not being a fish but a mammal, must come to the top to breathe periodically, so those that are stuck in the nets literally drown.



http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/04/asia/china-one-child-lawyer-choir/

'Belly money:' How China profits from population control
By Matt Rivers, CNN
Updated 5:05 AM ET, Tue January 5, 2016

Video -- China's new two-child policy 03:10
Video -- China ends one-child policy 03:16
Video -- China legally allows couples to have 2 children 02:18


Hangzhou, China (CNN)The odd collection of voices cuts through the cold Beijing air, the sounds emanating from a small, unremarkable back room.

Inside, there's 20 or so people, most in their sixties and above. They're singing somber songs from the Chinese revolution, painfully and endearingly off-key. They call themselves a choir, but in reality, they're not there to sing. They are there to help one another grieve. China legally allows couples to have 2 children

Each person in the choir is a parent of an only child, and each person's only child has died.

"I will never get rid of the pain," says Yang Chunhai. His son died of leukemia last year at just 31 years old.
"My son told me while I was alive to continue to live my life, so that's what I'm doing here in this group."
He speaks with a painful resignation that many in the group share, knowing that with the death of his son, the chance to carry on the family name is no more.

'Belly money'

Yang is one of hundreds of millions of Chinese couples affected by the country's one-child policy. The law held that most Chinese couples could only have one child each. On January 1, the law changed to allow couples to have up to two children.

But the one-child policy was enforced for three decades, at times in brutal ways. Rights groups have long said forced abortions and sterilizations were a regular occurrence.

Couples who could afford it were allowed to pay fines in exchange for having more than one child. "The so-called social support fees are actually a method for local authorities to rake in money," says lawyer Wu Youshui.

Wu is a lawyer who says local governments strongly rely on family planning fines to help fund their operations. His interest in the subject was triggered a few years ago, when a client of his said they had paid a fine of only a few thousand yuan to local officials so they could have a second child. Wu said that fine was far lower than others he had heard about that tallied into hundreds of thousands of yuan. He suspected the fines were lowered to encourage people to pay them, rather than to deter having more children.

An investigation he conducted bore this out. Wu sent letters to each of China's 31 provinces asking for information on the amount of money made from one-child policy fines in 2012. Twenty-four provinces responded, and together reported they made 20 billion yuan or $3.2 billion. "The civilians call it 'belly money,' because it's all made off of females' bellies," said Wu.

Half a million enforcers

Enforcing the policy and collecting those fines takes incredible manpower. The government says about half a million people work for the family planning commission. They form a deeply entrenched bureaucracy that has helped create an entire generation of only children. "I'm not optimistic about the new policy, because I think forced abortions will just continue for couples that have more than two children," said Wu. He also expects local governments will still be very aggressive in levying fines against families, because they will still need to rely on the fines for revenue.

For people like Yang, questions about the future are irrelevant. He and others in the choir grieve about the past. He says his son was very kind, and gets choked up talking about it. Whether things change for others in the future, he says, is no longer his concern.



“But the one-child policy was enforced for three decades, at times in brutal ways. Rights groups have long said forced abortions and sterilizations were a regular occurrence. Couples who could afford it were allowed to pay fines in exchange for having more than one child. "The so-called social support fees are actually a method for local authorities to rake in money," says lawyer Wu Youshui. …. Wu said that fine was far lower than others he had heard about that tallied into hundreds of thousands of yuan. He suspected the fines were lowered to encourage people to pay them, rather than to deter having more children. An investigation he conducted bore this out. Wu sent letters to each of China's 31 provinces asking for information on the amount of money made from one-child policy fines in 2012. Twenty-four provinces responded, and together reported they made 20 billion yuan or $3.2 billion. "The civilians call it 'belly money,' because it's all made off of females' bellies," said Wu. …. "I'm not optimistic about the new policy, because I think forced abortions will just continue for couples that have more than two children," said Wu. He also expects local governments will still be very aggressive in levying fines against families, because they will still need to rely on the fines for revenue.”


This way of raising money for the government is just like our parking, broken tail light, and other related fees that the police in this country use in order to “fill their coffers” also. In both cases, if people don’t have enough to pay such fines it is a considerable hardship. In the US a citizen can even be put in jail for a $50.00 fine, and if he can’t pay it, it can be a long time before he can go free. In this case, women have been sterilized or been given forced abortions. Only difference is that in China the life of a baby is at stake and that in the USA, we who pride ourselves on our free and fair democratic system, tend to look the other way rather than rock the boat politically. I would never say that “government” is totally bad as some of the Tea Partiers do, but it situations like this it is shamefully oppressive on the people.




https://go.berniesanders.com/page/share/poverty-is-a-death-sentence

SHARE – FROM A BERNIE EMAIL:
Video: Bernie Holds Community Conversation on Poverty
Bernie Sanders Speaks on Poverty in McDowell County, WV [See Video]


In 2014, over 35 percent of the residents in McDowell lived in poverty, including nearly half of the children. The roads are crumbling and only 6 percent of adults have a college education. Less than two-thirds have graduated high school. It has the lowest life expectancy for men in the entire nation. Watch excerpts of Bernie's speech on poverty and share it with friends and family on social media.

Lucy –

In the United States today, the wealthiest country in the history of the world, 47 million Americans are living in poverty. Almost 22 percent of American children are poor and we have the highest child poverty rate of almost any major country on earth. Let’s be clear. Living in poverty doesn’t just mean you don’t have enough money to buy a big screen TV, a fancy laptop, or the latest iPhone. It goes much deeper than that.

Living in poverty means you are less likely to have a good grocery store in your community selling healthy food. Far too often it means you don’t know where your next meal is going to come from. Living in poverty means you are less likely to have access to a doctor, dentist or mental health care provider. It means you have less access to public transportation, which makes it harder to find a job. It means you are less likely to have access to child care.

In the United States of America, poverty is often a death sentence.

Yesterday, I spoke about poverty in McDowell County, West Virginia — one of the poorest counties in one of the poorest states in America. In 2014, over 35 percent of the residents in McDowell lived in poverty, including nearly half of the children. The roads are crumbling and only 6 percent of adults have a college education. Less than two-thirds have graduated high school. It has the lowest life expectancy for men in the entire nation. I hope you’ll watch part of my speech on poverty and share it with friends and family on social media.

Bernie Sanders Speaks on Poverty in McDowell County, West Virginia



This level of poverty in McDowell County probably explains his success there this week. It’s not unexpected that the wealthy and even the upper range of the Middle Class are horrified at his economic ideas. When I was growing up and in college, there was a great deal of talk against Communism and Socialism (which were confused together in the people’s minds) in my home town. In Chapel Hill, however, the move for a socialist state here was afoot, and rather than Pres. Nixon, Pres Franklin Roosevelt and JFK were the heroes. I still agree with them today. Looking at his bio on Wikipedia, I found that Sanders was also a young politician at the time, so we’re “birds of a feather.”



A Little Old – 2011 -- But Exciting:

http://www.cleveland.com/nation/index.ssf/2011/05/anchor_from_blackbeards_ship_r.html

Anchor from Blackbeard's ship raised after 293 years off North Carolina coast
By McClatchy-Tribune News Service
By Jay Price, Raleigh News & Observer
on May 28, 2011 at 12:28 AM, updated May 28, 2011 at 12:34 AM

Photograph -- A 3,000-pound anchor from Blackbeard's Queen Anne's revenge is pulled from the ocean off the North Carolina coast. Robert Willett, Raleigh News & Observer


MOREHEAD CITY, North Carolina -- Archaeologists on Friday raised an anchor from the Queen Anne's Revenge, the ship that pirate Blackbeard and his crew intentionally grounded off the North Carolina coast in 1718.

The nearly 3,000-pound anchor is the largest artifact yet recovered from the wreck of the notorious pirate's flagship.

The anchor was atop a pile of debris, which appears to be the remnants of the middle of the ship, including its cargo hold, said Mark Wilde-Ramsing, director of the Queen Anne's Revenge project. Next week, researchers hope to dig a small test hole into the pile where the anchor was removed to get a sense of what else might be hidden there.

Queen Anne's Revenge was originally a French slave ship that Blackbeard and his band captured in the fall of 1717. Blackbeard, an Englishman whose real name was thought to be Edward Teach, was killed by British sailors in a battle near Ocracoke in 1718.

COMMENTS

ezek 1 day ago
Bad math if you ask me...or the anchor itself floated for five years before joining the ship on the bottom! I counted 298 fingers from 1718 to 2016.

FlagShareLikeReply
Mike Rose, cleveland.com 23 hours ago
@ezek Good afternoon. The math is correct. This story was published on cleveland.com May 28, 2011 and is not a current story.

From the Archive
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mustardseed May 28, 2011
We owe our general impressions of the Pirates from the writings of Daniel Defoe. He penned "A General History of the Pyrates (sic)" in 2 volumes circa 1724-1728. The caution is that he did mythologize some of the facts to appeal to the public's taste at that time (so what else is new?). There is a reprint, edited by Mauel Schonhorn from University of South Carolina, (Dover 1999). Another source is the highly readable "Honor Among Thieves" by Jan Rogozinski, Stackpole Books, 2000, which tells the amazing tale of the most successful gangs which had a private kingdom off of Madagascar on St. Mary's Island. They put the buccaneers of the Caribbean to shame both in skill and booty.

What is curious is the Pirate stronghold on St. Mary's Island in the 18th century is in the same neighborhood as that of the current Somali Pirates. The solution to the problems caused by St. Mary's Pirates was to sail a British war ship into the lair and blow it to kingdom come.



Archaeologists on Friday raised an anchor from the Queen Anne's Revenge, the ship that pirate Blackbeard and his crew intentionally grounded off the North Carolina coast in 1718. The nearly 3,000-pound anchor is the largest artifact yet recovered from the wreck of the notorious pirate's flagship. The anchor was atop a pile of debris, which appears to be the remnants of the middle of the ship, including its cargo hold, said Mark Wilde-Ramsing, director of the Queen Anne's Revenge project. Next week, researchers hope to dig a small test hole into the pile where the anchor was removed to get a sense of what else might be hidden there.




http://www.cbsnews.com/news/denied-bathroom-breaks-these-workers-must-resort-to-diapers/

Denied bathroom breaks, these workers must resort to diapers
By KATE GIBSON MONEYWATCH
May 12, 2016, 6:00 AM


Beyond the low wages and high injury rates, the nation's roughly 250,000 poultry workers are routinely denied bathroom breaks, leading some to wear diapers and others to not drink liquids. That's according to a report released by Oxfam America, which details conditions that violate U.S. workplace safety laws.

The U.S. arm of the U.K.-based global development group called on Tyson Foods (TSN), Pilgrim's Pride (PPC), Perdue Farms and Sanderson Farms, which together control nearly 60 percent of America's poultry market, to improve workers' conditions.

"It's just basic human dignity, the right to be able to use the bathroom when you need to, as opposed to having to hold it for two hours until the next break, or worse, having to wear diapers or urinating or defecating on yourself," Hunter Ogletree, an organizer at the Western North Carolina Workers' Center, told CBS MoneyWatch.

Oxfam cited the workers' advocacy group's year-long review of conditions at the Case Farms plant in Morganton, North Carolina, which found the bathroom issue to be the top concern for its roughly 800 workers. The employees, paid around $9 to $10 an hour, recently launched a petition campaign through the workers' center calling on the company to let them have bathroom breaks.

"Because they are small it seems they feel they can get away with a lot of these injustices that are taking place, perhaps they might feel they are not going to be held accountable as somebody like Tyson might be," Ogletree said.

The inability to use the bathroom when needed comes in a high-injury industry, where the repetitive motion involved in the work can leave workers with wrist pain and worse.

"We've seen women that can't hold babies because their hands are so deformed from processing a chicken every two seconds, it's the same motion once every two seconds for eight to 10 hours a day," Ogletree said. "When they can't move their hands anymore, they find a way to dispose of the workers. It's sort of like the chicken, they are brought in and spit out."

Case Farms has two other chicken processing operations in North Carolina, in addition to the Morganton facility, and another two in Ohio. The U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration in August placed Case Farms in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program, which is focused on employers who it says demonstrate indifference to the health and safety of their workers through willful, repeated, or failure-to-abate violations relating to significant hazards.

Jason Arnold, manager at the Morganton plant, did not return a call requesting comment, while Case Farms issued a statement late Wednesday saying it believed the difficulties described to be "extremely rare and that U.S. poultry companies work hard to prevent them."

Allowing for bathroom breaks is a logistical challenge at a poultry plant, an industrial operation where the whole line slows if one part stops, Oxfam noted in its report. Workers who need to use the bathroom must ask a supervisor, who then has to find someone to fill the spot to keep the line running.

An adequately staffed plant has line assistants or floaters ready to step into any spot, and ideally workers would be given time to get to facilities that can be far away, along with having to remove and put back on the gloves and smocks worn for work.

Yet in the course of hundreds of interviews only a handful of workers described their bathroom needs as respected, with those exceptions occurring primarily in plants with unions. Workers representing by unions reported feeling comfortable leaving or stopping the line when their requests were denied too long. About two-thirds of the poultry workforce is not unionized.

One survey of 266 workers in Alabama conducted by the Southern Poverty Law Center found almost 80 percent were not allowed to take bathroom breaks when needed. A recent survey in Minnesota found 86 percent of workers interviewed said they get fewer than two bathroom breaks a week.

Workers interviewed by Oxfam and partner organizations reported being yelled at or made fun of by supervisors, who also threatened firing or deportation. The harassment is "exacerbated when the worker needs to ask permission to go to the bathroom, and the supervisor is feeling the heat to keep the line moving," the report said.

According to Oxfam, a worker at a Pilgrim's plant in Alabama said supervisors regularly threatened people: "Go to the bathroom, and from there, go to Human Resources." An employee at a Tyson plant in Arkansas said: "Our supervisor always makes fun of us. He says we eat too much so we go to the bathroom a lot." Another Tyson worker in Arkansas noted: "One of the ladies who works with me was pregnant, and she was crying and walking out because our line lead didn't let her go to the bathroom." A woman worker at a Perdue plant in the Delmarva region cited in the report said she once waited so long that she defecated in her pants before she got a break.

A worker at a Sanderson plant in Mississippi noted: "Women have to tell male supervisors why they have to go to the bathroom and only have a few minutes to go and return. The supervisors are not considering the time it takes to walk to the restroom, remove your gear, put your gear back on and return to the line in those few minutes."

"Any allegations of the nature claimed by Oxfam, if proven, would be clear violations of company policy and would result in disciplinary action," Pilgrim's Pride said in an emailed statement. "Bathroom breaks have not been raised as an issue in any of our internal team member satisfaction surveys, nor in the results of our third-party-conducted sustainable safety culture surveys."

In its emailed response, Perdue said the anecdotes reported were not consistent with its policies and practices, and that an internal review did not find any bathroom-related complaints. Perdue workers get two 30-minute breaks during each eight-hour shift, the company said. "If an associate is unable to wait for the scheduled break and needs to use the restroom, they are to be given permission to leave the line as soon as someone can cover for them," according to the Perdue statement. "If a department is short-staffed that day, there may be times it is difficult to provide immediate coverage."

Tyson did not return a request for comment, while Mike Cockrell, chief financial officer and treasurer at Sanderson Farms, declined comment.



“Beyond the low wages and high injury rates, the nation's roughly 250,000 poultry workers are routinely denied bathroom breaks, leading some to wear diapers and others to not drink liquids. That's according to a report released by Oxfam America, which details conditions that violate U.S. workplace safety laws."


This article mentions the fact that small businesses frequently are not included in the group who must comply with laws from working conditions to getting paid their full salary in some situations such as having to give the owner a portion of all tips that they receive. This is done in many, many restaurants along with paying their wait staff a much lower than minimum wage (that’s “because they get tips!”) So they pay them less and then they don’t get to keep all their tip money. I haven’t looked it up in recent years, but in the ‘70s and ‘80s if a business had fewer than 50 full time employees they were exempt from many of the fair employment laws. To be sure they would stay under the 50 employee level, they hired loads of part time people, paid them less and gave them fewer benefits. Workers should go for the larger business. They will get better everything in most large places. Reason # 15 for why I do not admire or even respect so many of the business leaders. There’s a newbie politician who is running ads around here now who boasts loudly “I’m not a politician. I’m a Businessman.” To Republicans that is a magic slogan, but to people like me it just makes him despicable. If you ever want to read an old classic on this subject, go to the library and get Upton Sinclair's “The Jungle: Muckraking the Meat-Packing Industry.” You’ll never eat canned meat again!


http://www.cbsnews.com/news/60-minutes-morley-safer-retires-after-46-seasons/

60 Minutes' Morley Safer retires after 46 seasons
Longtime CBS newsman Morley Safer retires after a career spanning seven decades, unmatched for its impact, scope and style
May 11, 2016

Photograph -- travelsmorley.jpg, Morley Safer CBS NEWS
22 PHOTOS -- MORLEY SAFER ON ASSIGNMENT


Morley Safer, the CBS newsman and 60 Minutes' longest-serving correspondent, will formally retire this week. His unparalleled career will be celebrated in a special hour directly following this Sunday's regular edition of 60 Minutes. "Morley Safer: A Reporter's Life" will be broadcast Sunday, May 15 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

Safer's first season as a regular 60 Minutes correspondent began in 1970 with a story about the training of U.S. Sky Marshals. His last 60 Minutes report -- number 919 -- a profile of Danish architect Bjarke Ingels, was broadcast in March. "After more than 50 years of broadcasting on CBS News and 60 Minutes I have decided to retire. It's been a wonderful run, but the time has come to say goodbye to all of my friends at CBS and the dozens of people who kept me on the air," said Safer. "But most of all I thank the millions of people who have been loyal to our broadcast."

"Morley has had a brilliant career as a reporter and as one of the most significant figures in CBS News history, on our broadcast and in many of our lives," said Jeff Fager, executive producer of 60 Minutes. "Morley's curiosity, his sense of adventure and his superb writing, all made for exceptional work done by a remarkable man. The best of Morley Safer will be on display in our special broadcast this Sunday." Fager, a personal friend who once produced 60 Minutes stories for Safer, is interviewed for "Morley Safer: A Reporter's Life."

The hour-long special traces Safer's life from his birth in Toronto to his rise in the 50s and 60s as a distinguished war reporter and then 60 Minutes correspondent, whose inimitable style, wonderful writing and broad range captivated millions on the most successful broadcast in television history.

Safer's record of 40-plus years on primetime television will never be matched.

Safer speaks in interviews about some of the impactful work he is known for, namely his 1965 CBS News dispatch that changed war reporting when it showed Marines torching the homes of Vietnamese villagers, and his 60 Minutes investigation that freed Lenell Geter, a black man wrongly convicted and sentenced to life in prison in Texas. In an appearance on the special, Geter credits Safer with saving his life. The hour recalls his classic profiles, including those of Jackie Gleason, Katharine Hepburn and Anna Wintour.

The program also features interviews with former NBC News Anchor Tom Brokaw and the historian David McCullough, and retired U.S. Brig. Gen. Joe Stringham, who commanded a Green Beret unit Safer accompanied into battle in Vietnam. Safer and Stringham have remained in touch; he remembers their time 51 years ago. "[Safer] was all business and he reported what he saw...We looked at eternity right in the face a couple times...and he was as cool as a hog on ice."

Viewers will get a look at the off-camera Morley Safer, too, the man who could play a mean hand of poker, had artistic talent and loved driving a sports car at top speeds. And Safer makes this surprising confession: "I really don't like being on television...It makes me uneasy. It is not natural to be talking to a piece of machinery. But the money is very good."




"After more than 50 years of broadcasting on CBS News and 60 Minutes I have decided to retire. It's been a wonderful run, but the time has come to say goodbye to all of my friends at CBS and the dozens of people who kept me on the air," said Safer. "But most of all I thank the millions of people who have been loyal to our broadcast." …. "Morley's curiosity, his sense of adventure and his superb writing, all made for exceptional work done by a remarkable man. The best of Morley Safer will be on display in our special broadcast this Sunday." …. The hour-long special traces Safer's life from his birth in Toronto to his rise in the 50s and 60s as a distinguished war reporter and then 60 Minutes correspondent, whose inimitable style, wonderful writing and broad range captivated millions on the most successful broadcast in television history. …. Safer speaks in interviews about some of the impactful work he is known for, namely his 1965 CBS News dispatch that changed war reporting when it showed Marines torching the homes of Vietnamese villagers, and his 60 Minutes investigation that freed Lenell Geter, a black man wrongly convicted and sentenced to life in prison in Texas. In an appearance on the special, Geter credits Safer with saving his life. The hour recalls his classic profiles, including those of Jackie Gleason, Katharine Hepburn and Anna Wintour. …. Safer and Stringham have remained in touch; he remembers their time 51 years ago. "[Safer] was all business and he reported what he saw...We looked at eternity right in the face a couple times...and he was as cool as a hog on ice."


Safer is quoted here, as saying that being in front of a TV camera makes him “uneasy,” because it’s not natural to be talking to a machine. I have no problem with it. I talk to my computer all the time, sometimes affectionately and sometimes abusively. About Safer, though, he’s one of those men with a great speaking voice and facial expression -- tough-looking but gentle. I do remember seeing him with soldiers in the jungle of Vietnam. He seemed to be enjoying himself, rather than afraid. As for the terrible footage of our men burning down a village, a news report just a day or two ago said that the US government “was not happy with him” about filming that footage. I must say, as little as I admire the truly typical business man, I do admire good reporters for newspapers or for TV. I love reading the news, but there’s something especially exciting and informational also about watching it on TV. I have always analyzed people’s faces and body language, and especially if they are talking and interacting. I’m quite capable of distrusting someone on the grounds of their facial expression and manner. I don’t know about the eyes being the window to the soul, but the whole face is. It’s harder for most people to lie successfully than they think.




CONFLICT WITH RUSSIA AGAIN -- TWO ARTICLES

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-missile-defense-romania-russia-nato-defenses/

New U.S. missile site going live in Russia's back yard
CBS/AP
May 12, 2016, 5:15 AM


Photograph -- A U.S. serviceman, backdropped by the radar building of a missile defense base, sets up a red carpet in Deveselu, prior to an opening ceremony attended by U.S., NATO and Romanian officials at a base, originally established by the Soviet Union, in Deveselu, southern Romania, May 12, 2016. AP
Photograph -- A pro-Russian rebel rests at the frontline in a illage not far from Luhasnk, eastern Ukraine, March 12, 2015. AP
Play VIDEO -- Russian jets buzz U.S. warship in "simulated attack pattern"


DEVESELU, Romania -- A U.S missile defense site in Romania aimed at protecting Europe from ballistic missile threats becomes operational Thursday, angering Russia which opposes having the advanced military system in its former area of influence.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg is due to speak at a Thursday ceremony attended by U.S., NATO and Romanian officials to mark the start of operations at a base established by the Soviet Union, 110 miles southwest of Bucharest.

President Klaus Iohannis said Romania wanted NATO to have a "permanent naval presence" in the Black Sea that respected international conventions, and called for increased security for NATO members in the south and east, which border Russia and the Middle East.

"It is important that a credible and predictable presence can be assured of the Allied forces on the eastern flank, to balance the northern dimension with the southern and eastern flank," Iohannis said after meeting Stoltenberg early Thursday in the Romanian capital Bucharest.

On Friday, Polish and U.S. officials will take shovels in hand to break ground at a planned site in the Polish village of Redzikowo, near the Baltic Sea.

U.S. officials say the Romanian missile shield, which cost $800 million, is intended to fend off missile threats from Iran and is not aimed at Russia.

But NATO decided in January 2015 to set up command-and-control centers in Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Bulgaria by the end of 2016 -- at least partly in response to challenges from Russia and Islamic extremists and to reassure eastern partners.

And Russian officials re-registered their displeasure on Thursday, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying the new installation "really is a threat to the security of the Russian Federation."

"Measures are being taken to ensure the necessary level of security for Russia. The president (Putin) himself, let me remind you, has repeatedly asked who the system will work against," Peskov told reporters in a conference call.

President Obama and other NATO heads of state and government met in September and ordered an overhaul of the alliance's capabilities and defense posture, called the Readiness Action Plan, or RAP, to take into account Russia's annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and purported military interference in eastern Ukraine.

The moves have infuriated Moscow -- to the extent that Russia's ambassador to Denmark Mikhail Vanin said in a published report that Danish warships could become targets for Russian nuclear missiles if the Danes joined the alliance's missile defense system.

In a visit to Bucharest, Britain's defense secretary said neither Romania nor Britain would be intimidated by the threats against members of the military alliance.

The program was launched by former President George W. Bush but adapted significantly by President Obama, who eliminated a component intended to be in the Czech Republic. Prague saw its own relationship with Moscow strained by agreeing to take part, leaving some lingering bitterness toward the U.S.

In the initial years of planning, Russia and NATO were still working on what they called a "strategic partnership." Today the relationship is in a more confrontational phase, something on display recently in close encounters between the U.S. and Russian militaries in the Baltic Sea.

Russia buzzed a U.S. warship last month, coming within 30 feet from the destroyer in what the U.S. Navy called a "simulated attack," while a Russian jet barrel-rolled a U.S. Air Force reconnaissance plane. U.S. officials have denounced those maneuvers as unprofessional and dangerous, with Secretary of State John Kerry saying that under U.S. military rules of engagement, the Navy ship could have opened fire.

The Russians have downplayed the incidents, with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov saying the warplanes took a look at the ship "from a safe distance."



http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/russia-calls-new-u-s-missile-shield-romania-direct-threat-n572651

Russia Calls New U.S. Missile Shield in Romania a 'Direct Threat'
by ALASTAIR JAMIESON
NEWS MAY 12 2016, 8:21 AM ET

Video -- FROM APRIL 14: Russian jets buzz US Navy destroyer amidst rising tensions 2:14
Play -- FROM MAY 9: Russia's War Machine Goes On Parade in Red Square 1:02
Image: U.S. helicopters fly over the Aegis Ashore Missile Defense System (AAMDS) in Deveselu, Romania, on Thursday. ROBERT GHEMENT / EPA


Russia has described a new $800 million U.S. missile defense site in Romania as a "direct threat" and warned it would bolster its equivalent systems earlier than planned.

Admiral Vladimir Komoyedov, chairman of the State Duma's defense committee, said: "They are moving to the firing line. This is not just 100; it's 200, 300, 1,000 percent aimed against us."

His comments came as the shield — at the Cold War-era Deveselu base 110 miles southwest of Bucharest — was formally activated at a ceremony featuring military bands and attended by U.S., NATO and Romanian officials.

Komoyedov, a former commander of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, disputed U.S. suggestions that the shield is intended to fend off threats from Iran and is not aimed at Moscow.

"This is a direct threat to us," he told the Interfax news agency. "This is not about Iran, but about Russia with its nuclear capabilities."

At a cost of billions of dollars, the missile umbrella relies on radars to detect a ballistic missile launch into space. Sensors then measure the rocket's trajectory and destroy it in space before it re-enters the earth's atmosphere. The interceptors can be fired from ships or ground sites.

The shield, which is modeled on the United States' so-called Aegis ships, was assembled in New Jersey and then transferred to the Deveselu base in containers.

Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said his country wanted NATO to have a "permanent naval presence" in the Black Sea that respected international conventions.

On Friday, Polish and U.S. officials will take shovels in hand to break ground at another planned site in the Polish village of Redzikowo, near the Baltic Sea.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Czech_Republic%E2%80%93United_States_relations

Czech Republic–United States relations
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Relations between the Czech Republic and the United States were officially established in 1993 following the collapse of the USSR and the subsequent breakup of Communist-aligned Czechoslovakia.

Since transitioning into a democracy in 1989, joining NATO in 1999,[1] and the European Union several years later, the Czech Republic has gradually become a close economic partner and formal military ally of the United States, drastically improving bilateral ties in the years since through increasingly extensive cooperation in areas ranging from counterterrorism to cultural exchanges.

According to the 2012 U.S. Global Leadership Report, 39% of Czechs approve of U.S. leadership, with 26% disapproving and 35% uncertain.[2]

Velvet Revolution[edit]

Since the Velvet Revolution of 1989, bilateral relations have improved immensely. Dissidents once sustained by U.S. encouragement and human rights policies reached high levels in the government. President Václav Havel, in his first official visit as head of Czechoslovakia, addressed the U.S. Congress and was interrupted 21 times by standing ovations. In 1990, on the first anniversary of the revolution, President George H. W. Bush, in front of an enthusiastic crowd on Prague's Wenceslas Square, pledged U.S. support in building a democratic Czechoslovakia. Toward this end, the U.S. Government has actively encouraged political and economic transformation.

The U.S. Government was originally opposed to the idea of Czechoslovakia forming two separate states, due to concerns that a split might aggravate existing regional political tensions. However, the U.S. recognized both the Czech Republic and Slovakia on January 1, 1993. Since then, U.S.–Czech relations have remained strong economically, politically, and culturally.

Missile defense system[edit]

A missile defense system was planned to be installed at Brdy part of the Czech Republic.[6] It would have been an X band radar system that would work with a missile site in Redzikowo, Poland.[7]

In August 2008, the Czech Security Information Service (BIS) published the report for the year 2007, in which it says that Russian secret agents (spies) have been from the beginning highly influencing the public opinion against the building of U.S. radar in Czech republic.[8] In September 2008 Czech Military Counter-intelligence confirmed the report of BIS.[9] "BIS claims, that the Russian espionage is currently at high intensity and level." Russians secret agents mainly influence the people, that can have a great influence on public opinion. After Barack Obama was elected the President of the United States, there were speculations that he might stop the project. The final decision to scratch the plans was announced on 17 September 2009 by a phone call from Obama to Czech Prime Minister Jan Fischer.[citation needed]

In June 2011, Alexander Vondra, a Czech defense minister, told the U.S. that his country was withdrawing from the European missile defense system, stating: "We will seek other opportunities for the Czech Republic to participate in the Alliance system in the future; but this does not change anything about our support for NATO missile defense."[10]

In January 2014, the Czech government approved of the sale of 28 sub-sonic L-159 military planes in a deal worth up to $25.8 million to the United States.[11]



CBS -- Excerpts – “A U.S missile defense site in Romania aimed at protecting Europe from ballistic missile threats becomes operational Thursday, angering Russia which opposes having the advanced military system in its former area of influence. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg is due to speak at a Thursday ceremony attended by U.S., NATO and Romanian officials to mark the start of operations at a base established by the Soviet Union, 110 miles southwest of Bucharest. President Klaus Iohannis said Romania wanted NATO to have a "permanent naval presence" in the Black Sea that respected international conventions, and called for increased security for NATO members in the south and east, which border Russia and the Middle East. …. U.S. officials say the Romanian missile shield, which cost $800 million, is intended to fend off missile threats from Iran and is not aimed at Russia. But NATO decided in January 2015 to set up command-and-control centers in Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Bulgaria by the end of 2016 -- at least partly in response to challenges from Russia and Islamic extremists and to reassure eastern partners. …. President Obama and other NATO heads of state and government met in September and ordered an overhaul of the alliance's capabilities and defense posture, called the Readiness Action Plan, or RAP, to take into account Russia's annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and purported military interference in eastern Ukraine. The moves have infuriated Moscow -- to the extent that Russia's ambassador to Denmark Mikhail Vanin said in a published report that Danish warships could become targets for Russian nuclear missiles if the Danes joined the alliance's missile defense system. In a visit to Bucharest, Britain's defense secretary said neither Romania nor Britain would be intimidated by the threats against members of the military alliance.”

NBC – EXCERPT -- “At a cost of billions of dollars, the missile umbrella relies on radars to detect a ballistic missile launch into space. Sensors then measure the rocket's trajectory and destroy it in space before it re-enters the earth's atmosphere. The interceptors can be fired from ships or ground sites. The shield, which is modeled on the United States' so-called Aegis ships, was assembled in New Jersey and then transferred to the Deveselu base in containers. …. On Friday, Polish and U.S. officials will take shovels in hand to break ground at another planned site in the Polish village of Redzikowo, near the Baltic Sea.”

WIKIPEDIA – Excerpt -- In June 2011, Alexander Vondra, a Czech defense minister, told the U.S. that his country was withdrawing from the European missile defense system, stating: "We will seek other opportunities for the Czech Republic to participate in the Alliance system in the future; but this does not change anything about our support for NATO missile defense."[10] In January 2014, the Czech government approved of the sale of 28 sub-sonic L-159 military planes in a deal worth up to $25.8 million to the United States.[11]”


I am very pleased to see this series of moves. Russia has been threatening the NATO nations since the takeover of Crimea, and now Putin is offended that we have placed a ring of defensive but effective missiles very close to his borders. It is a shocking statement that Putin has actually threatened Denmark with nuclear attack. While that will probably be the smaller “tactical” weapons if it happens, it’s still a threat to the environment, and if launched would probably extend to their land rather than just ships, and it would undoubtedly provoke reprisals in kind. That isn’t good for Mother Earth or us humans.

Personally I don’t believe Putin is either stupid enough or crazy enough to do that as a first strike. If he were to, half a dozen Russian cities (or better still, military bases) would probably be hit within half an hour. The US has moved past verbal threats, complaints and warnings. Obama has simply quietly moved this defensive system into his former client states, partly to defend against a Middle Eastern attack, and overtly also to deter another Russian move. Obama and other NATO countries are using the “Big Stick Diplomacy” of Theodore Roosevelt. I like it better because it is NOT a declaration of war or a trespass on territory currently held by Russia, but it is an effective action that has been needed for a while now. If Putin weren’t so blinking conceited I would like him much more. He is an intelligent and physically attractive man, but is a habitual liar and totally untrustworthy. (See the following Wiki article on nuclear sharing to get an idea of how many locations could be threatening Russian locations as of now.)


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_sharing

Nuclear sharing
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Nuclear sharing is a concept in NATO's policy of nuclear deterrence, which involves member countries without nuclear weapons of their own in the planning for the use of nuclear weapons by NATO, and in particular provides for the armed forces of these countries to be involved in delivering these weapons in the event of their use.

As part of nuclear sharing, the participating countries carry out consultations and take common decisions on nuclear weapons policy, maintain technical equipment required for the use of nuclear weapons (including warplanes capable of delivering them), and store nuclear weapons on their territory. In case of war, the United States told NATO allies the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) would no longer be controlling.[1]




http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/bernie-sanders-weakened-heading-golden-state-n572541

Bernie Sanders Weakened Heading Into California
by ALEX SEITZ-WALD
POLITICS MAY 12 2016, 3:24 AM ET

Video -- One-on-one with Bernie Sanders 7:29
Related: Trump Supporters Boost Sanders in West Virginia
Play -- Bernie Sanders Says His Campaign Is Far From Over 0:59
Related: Sanders' Solo Victories Alter Perception of Dem Race
Play -- Sanders Lobbies Superdelegates 6:16
Play -- Sanders: I'm the stronger candidate to defeat Trump 11:54


Throughout his campaign, California has been Bernie Sanders' promised land — a progressive state rich in delegates and a reliable source of hope, just over the horizon.

"We think we have a path toward victory, and that path absolutely must go through California," Sanders told the Los Angeles Times in March.

But now, with California's June 7 primary finally coming into view, Sanders may be heading into the Golden State hobbled.

Despite notching two wins this month, with more likely to come, Sanders is running lower on cash than expected and replaced his top official in California Wednesday. Meanwhile, Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton has moved to solidify her support in the state, which she won comfortably over Barack Obama in 2008.

The state has a history of progressive insurgents upsetting expectations, such as when Gary Hart beat then-presumptive nominee Walter Mondale in 1984, and Sanders could still be latest. With less than a month to go, though, it's an uphill climb.

The campaign parted ways with its former California State director, Michael Ceraso, this week. No reason was given for the departure, but a spokesperson said the campaign feels "great" with their new director, Robert Becker, who has run several states for Sanders.

Meanwhile, Sanders officials say they "probably" won't spend more on television advertising in the notoriously expensive state, which some California political experts say is virtually a declaration of surrender.

In another sign of trouble, a senior aide says the campaign is likely to stop producing new TV spots all together. That, after the campaign has cut more than 264 different TV ads.

In Kentucky, which votes Tuesday, Sanders' campaign is reusing two old ads and letting himself be outspent by Clinton's campaign $178,000 to $93,000, according to ad tracking data from NBC News partner SMG Delta.

Sanders' online fundraising machine has in the past allowed him to outspend Clinton in almost every contest he wanted to. But there are increasingly signs that that once seemingly bottomless well of donations is drying up.

Sanders raised only $26 million in April, way down from the $46 million he brought in in March and the $42 million he collected in February.

Meanwhile, Sanders was spending an average of about $40 million per month during the first quarter of the year (April data is not yet available), forcing a downsize to meet lower revenue. Last month, the campaign laid off hundreds of staffers and overall headcount has been dramatically reduced from its peak.

The cash crunch comes at a bad time. With some of the nation's largest media markets and its biggest population, California is the most expensive state in the country in which to buy TV advertising - but it's also perhaps the most important.

"If you're behind in the polls and you're not advertising on TV, it's tough to win no matter what you're running for," said Doug Herman, a Los Angeles-based Democratic strategist.

But Sanders and his aides say major broadcast spending is unlikely, though they have already dropped $555,000 on cable in the California and Oregon.

"We'll see," said Tad Devine, Sanders' top strategist and ad-maker. "For many weeks we have talked about barnstorming California as our communications strategy, and I think that's probably what we're going to do. But we will always reserve the option to do other things as well."

Sanders told the Sacramento Bee Monday that he wasn't sure TV would be worth it, adding the campaign was "in reasonably good financial shape."

Even a conservative statewide advertising campaign would cost more than $5 million, operatives say.

In 2008, Obama spent $6.2 million in California, while Clinton dropped $5.6 million, according to the data compiled by the University of Wisconsin Advertising Project. And that year, the state voted on Super Tuesday, meaning it had to compete for resources with 21 other states, including the second most expensive one, New York.

Still, Sanders may be able to skirt by on free media attention from a hungry press corps.

"If I'm Bernie Sanders and I don't have the resources I need to run TV ads, I would not give up hope," said Darry Sragow, a longtime California Democratic strategist.

Clinton's campaign has yet not reserved any TV advertising time in California, and is hoping to spend as little money as possible on the remaining primary states. It only needs a fraction of remaining delegates to clinch the Democratic nomination.

"I think that a lot of voters have a pretty strong sense that they'll able to make judgements about Bernie Sanders. And that means that the conventional wisdom - the conventional wisdom almost always being wrong — that he can't win CA without a huge TV buy is something that I think people should be skeptical of," said Sragow.

Already, the Vermont senator has made up an impressive ground in California.

"I'm looking at the trend line - we've done five polls between Clinton and Sanders - and he's closed the gap in each of those," said Mark DiCamillo, the director of the Field Poll.

Sanders started at just six percent in that first poll in January, but has since risen to within striking distance of Clinton.

Independents are allowed to vote in the state's Democratic primary, which could be major boon for Sanders, since those voters tend to break heavily in his direction.

Still, he'll face demographic hurdles. Clinton won in 2008 by eight percentage points, and this year she's likely to add to her column most of the African-American voters who sided with Obama.

Sanders will need to galvanize progressive voters, especially in the liberal Bay Area, to turn out in large numbers, while trying to come as close to breaking even as possible with Latinos, who made up 30 percent of the vote in 2008.

He also seems to be focusing on the Central Valley, the vast agricultural region in the interior of the state that mostly votes Republican in general elections, with back-to-back rallies this week in Stockton and Sacramento.

Clinton, meanwhile, is favored in Southern California, which is more diverse and more populous, but tends to turn out in lower numbers.

Sanders is also still holding out hope for another primary in California, which Clinton's campaign agreed to in principle earlier this year, when they pushed to add another debate before New Hampshire.



“… Sanders is running lower on cash than expected and replaced his top official in California Wednesday.” Not Good! May every Bernie believer who can spare $10 or $20 dollars or more go to his website and donate now. …. "For many weeks we have talked about barnstorming California as our communications strategy, and I think that's probably what we're going to do. " …. It only needs a fraction of remaining delegates to clinch the Democratic nomination. "I think that a lot of voters have a pretty strong sense that they'll able to make judgements about Bernie Sanders. …. Sanders started at just six percent in that first poll in January, but has since risen to within striking distance of Clinton. Independents are allowed to vote in the state's Democratic primary, which could be major boon for Sanders, since those voters tend to break heavily in his direction. …. Sanders will need to galvanize progressive voters, especially in the liberal Bay Area, to turn out in large numbers, while trying to come as close to breaking even as possible with Latinos, who made up 30 percent of the vote in 2008. …. Clinton, meanwhile, is favored in Southern California, which is more diverse and more populous, but tends to turn out in lower numbers.”


The writer of this article sounds as though he expects Bernie to fall flat. Several writers have said things like that and even outrightly encouraged him to drop out of the race, but I feel sure that he won’t do that. Whatever he is, he’s not a “quitter.” Being at a disadvantage seems merely to encourage him and fire up his energy. So these folks can prophesy all they want to, I’m going to hang in there to the end just like Bernie! You’ve undoubtedly heard the old saw, “Winners don’t quit and quitters don’t win??” Go, Bernie!