July 3, 2016


News and Views


GOOD DOGGY!


http://www.inquisitr.com/3268389/dog-retrieves-mans-hand-after-it-was-blown-off-in-horrific-fireworks-accident/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=Feed&utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_content=FaceBook

Dog retrieves man’s hand after it was blown off in horrific fireworks accident
Tara West
July 2, 2016


A Chicago nurse was startled when she heard a loud explosion in her Portage Park neighborhood followed by a scream. The nurse says she initially thought the sound was a gunshot but soon learned that a neighbor was the victim of a fireworks accident that blew off part of his hand. Approximately three hours after the accident, the woman let her dog out into the yard and he came back with something shocking in his mouth: a human hand.

KFSM reports that a Chicago barber lost a portion of his hand in a fireworks accident this week. The barber was shooting off fireworks on Thursday afternoon when one accidentally went off in his hand. The explosion, which authorities say had the power of a half stick of dynamite, caused a portion of the man’s hand to be blown completely off and he was rushed to a nearby trauma center for treatment.

Cheri Steigert says she was sleeping at approximately 3:30 p.m. on Thursday afternoon when she heard a loud bang outside. The nurse, who typically works nights, says the noise woke her from her sleep and was immediately followed by a loud scream. The nurse didn’t know what the sound was, but did not go outside to investigate. However, about three hours later, the woman says she let her dog outside in the backyard. The dog retrieved something from the yard and brought it back to Steigert.

The nurse says she initially thought the dog had brought back a rabbit, but upon further inspection realized the dog was holding a human hand in his mouth.

“I came back out to pick it up, and I found out it was the other part of the young man’s hand.”

Steigert says she called authorities to report the hand and was told that a fireworks accident had taken place in the neighborhood earlier that day. The 39-year-old man, a barber, had lost a portion of his hand in the accident and the force of the explosion must have sent the hand flying into Steigert’s yard.

According to the Daily Mail, the hand was found 250 feet from where the original fireworks accident took place. The nurse says that this is the first time she has had the Fourth of July off in years and that she wasn’t expecting human body parts to be flying into her yard.

“This is the first Fourth of July I’ve had off in three years… and now I’ve got body parts flying in my yard.”

The victim was later identified by ABC 7 as 39-year-old Rafat Shejaeya. The paramedics that responded to the horrific scene noted that they were able to find two of Shejaeya’s fingers in an alley near the explosion and put them on ice. However, the majority of Shejaeya’s hand remained missing until authorities received the call from Steigert about her dog’s strange find.

Shejaeya told reporters from his hospital bed that he is still in shock about the accident and that he would warn others to “be careful” when playing with fireworks this weekend.

“I remember looking at my hand and there was no hand there. No fingers, no nothing.”

Shejaeya is one of the first reported fireworks injuries this year, but he isn’t the only fireworks accident victim speaking out about the dangers of Fourth of July celebrations. Nick Beheng, 31, nearly died in a horrific fireworks accident back in 2012 and is encouraging those celebrating with fireworks to treat them as if they were loaded firearms.

“They should be treated like a loaded firearm, they need to be treated with respect.”



This article didn’t say whether or not the hand was reattached by the hospital or not. I hope it was. We used to use fireworks without adult supervision every Fourth of July, but we were told to be “very careful.” Sparklers at that time were considered to be mainly safe, but on the TV news this morning there was a demonstration of a sparkler instantly setting fire to piece of clothing, and the speed with which it happened. User beware!



http://www.actionnewsjax.com/news/trending-now/girl-who-texted-boyfriend-urging-suicide-must-stand-trial-court-rules/378212203

Girl who texted boyfriend urging suicide must stand trial, court rules
by: WFXT - Boston Updated: Jul 2, 2016 - 3:57 AM

Photograph -- Peter Pereira/Standard Times via AP, Michelle Carter listens to defense attorney Joseph P. Cataldo argue for an involuntary manslaughter charge against her to be dismissed at Juvenile Court in New Bedford, Mass.


BOSTON —
Massachusetts' highest court has ruled that a teenage girl must stand trial on a manslaughter charge for encouraging her boyfriend to kill himself by sending him dozens of text messages and telling him to "get back in" a truck filled with carbon monoxide fumes.

The Supreme Judicial Court ruled Friday that a grand jury had probable cause to indict Michelle Carter in the 2014 death of 18-year-old Carter Roy III.

"The court said that in the future they would look at the facts of individual cases and it is possible to be charged with involuntary manslaughter even if you’re not actively engaged in it, and you're just encouraging it or cheerleading it,” criminal defense attorney Peter Elikan said.

Carter's lawyer said her texts were protected by the First Amendment and didn't cause Roy to kill himself.

But the court noted that the grand jury heard evidence suggesting that Carter engaged in a "systematic campaign of coercion" that targeted Roy's insecurities and that her instruction to "get back in" his truck in his final moments was a "direct, causal link to his death."

"They really were in uncharted territory here, they’ve never made a ruling that mere speech could get you charged with involuntary manslaughter,” Elikan said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.


Excerpt -- "The court said that in the future they would look at the facts of individual cases and it is possible to be charged with involuntary manslaughter even if you’re not actively engaged in it, and you're just encouraging it or cheerleading it,” criminal defense attorney Peter Elikan said. Carter's lawyer said her texts were protected by the First Amendment and didn't cause Roy to kill himself. But the court noted that the grand jury heard evidence suggesting that Carter engaged in a "systematic campaign of coercion" that targeted Roy's insecurities and that her instruction to "get back in" his truck in his final moments was a "direct, causal link to his death." "They really were in uncharted territory here, they’ve never made a ruling that mere speech could get you charged with involuntary manslaughter,” Elikan said.”


Why do people “cheerlead” a suicide threat or attempt? Where is our great intelligence, conscience and basic concern for others? Too many people, especially young people, SEEM to be sociopaths. Two more things – 1) the Internet is dangerous, and 2) the spoken or written word is a powerful tool and a powerful weapon. Our First Amendment “rights” don’t include things like this. We’re supposed to be bright enough to do the right thing even if some rightwing yeehaws keep saying we shouldn’t have to.


ISLAM, JUDAISM AND THE US PUBLIC – THREE ARTICLES


http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ohio-arrest-united-arab-emirates-warns-citizens-traditional-clothing/

U.S. apologizes over Ohio arrest of Arab, UAE says
CBS/AP
July 3, 2016, 8:44 AM

Photograph -- Traders wearing kanduras talks on the phone during the opening of the Dubai stock market in the United Arab Emirates on June 26, 2016. REUTERS/AHMED JADALLAH


DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - The United Arab Emirates is warning its citizens to avoid wearing traditional garments when traveling abroad after an Emirati man was handcuffed in Ohio over terrorism fears.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a tweet late Saturday that Emiratis should avoid wearing the garments for their safety. A separate ministry statement urged women to abide by bans on face veils in parts of Europe.

Local media reported Sunday that Emirati national Ahmed al-Menhali was detained at gunpoint last week while wearing a traditional white kandura, or ankle-length robe, and headscarf in Avon, Ohio after a hotel clerk raised suspicions he could have links to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS.) The man was in Ohio to seek medical treatment in nearby Cleveland after suffering a stroke.

"She went off and texted her sister and said I pledged my allegiance to ISIS," Menhali told Al Jazeera. The sister and her father then called 911, according to the news network.

Menhali told the network he may have suffered another stroke during the subsequent arrest.

Cleveland's WEWS-TV posted police camera video footage of al-Menhali's arrest, which involved several officers with rifles aggressively taking down a visibly distraught man.

The news site also posted video of a later meeting where Avon officials offered their apologies.

"No one from the police department (wanted) to disrespect you," Police Chief Richard Bosley told Almenhali, according to WEWS-TV. "That was not the intent of any of our officers. It is a very regrettable circumstance that occurred for you. You should not have been put in that situation like you were."

"There were some false accusations made against you," Mayor Brian Jensen said. "And those are regrettable. I hope...the person that made those can maybe learn from those."

WEWS-TV reports officials are still contemplating charges against the clerk who made the false accusations.

In a statement to Al Jazeera, Avon police said "contact was then made with the front desk clerk and it was learned that the male did not in fact make any statements related to ISIS."

In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it had summoned the U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission Ethan Goldrich over the incident, and he apologized.

"He emphasised that the United States respects the right of different nations to wear their national dress, adding that this incident was an exception which was totally unacceptable," the statement reads.



Excerpt -- “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a tweet late Saturday that Emiratis should avoid wearing the garments for their safety. A separate ministry statement urged women to abide by bans on face veils in parts of Europe. Local media reported Sunday that Emirati national Ahmed al-Menhali was detained at gunpoint last week while wearing a traditional white kandura, or ankle-length robe, and headscarf in Avon, Ohio after a hotel clerk raised suspicions he could have links to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS.) The man was in Ohio to seek medical treatment in nearby Cleveland after suffering a stroke. "She went off and texted her sister and said I pledged my allegiance to ISIS," Menhali told Al Jazeera. The sister and her father then called 911, according to the news network. Menhali told the network he may have suffered another stroke during the subsequent arrest. Cleveland's WEWS-TV posted police camera video footage of al-Menhali's arrest, which involved several officers with rifles aggressively taking down a visibly distraught man. …. "There were some false accusations made against you," Mayor Brian Jensen said. "And those are regrettable. I hope...the person that made those can maybe learn from those." WEWS-TV reports officials are still contemplating charges against the clerk who made the false accusations. In a statement to Al Jazeera, Avon police said "contact was then made with the front desk clerk and it was learned that the male did not in fact make any statements related to ISIS."


This brings to my mind the news clip in 1968 or so when Eugene McCarthy, the Democratic peace candidate who ran as a third party candidate, after having lost the election against Nixon turned to the cameras and said that we have to realize in this country that it isn’t “the wild west anymore.” It seems that so many people who would make really good leaders are rejected by our fear-based “conservative” turn of mind. We’ll just have to keep trying, though. We mustn’t give in to them or they will totally take control.



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/houston-florida-mosques-worshipers-shooting-beating/

Worshipers attacked at mosques in Texas and Florida
CBS/AP
July 3, 2016, 10:43 AM

Photograph -- The Islamic Center of Fort Pierce, in Fort Pierce, Florida. CBS NEWS
Play VIDEO
U.S. Muslims describe dealing with Islamophobia
Play VIDEO -- Trump changes language of controversial Muslim ban proposal
Play VIDEO -- Orlando shooter's father: "I don't approve of what he did"


FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - A pair of attacks on Muslims near their mosques this weekend may be a sign of increasing physical violence against worshipers of Islam in the United States. It is a fear many have expressed as the issue of Muslims in the U.S. takes center stage during the 2016 presidential race.

Authorities said they have arrested a suspect in the early Saturday beating of a man outside a Florida mosque that Orlando nightclub shooter Omar Mateen had attended, and an Islamic group said the victim was a Muslim.

Meanwhile, worshipers at a mosque in Houston tell KTRK-TV that a doctor who was trying to attend morning prayers was shot just outside after being approached by a group of three men.

In the Florida attack, the Council on American-Islamic Relations said racial slurs were made by the attacker, though authorities said they had no immediate indication of any racially motivated comments. Authorities said, however, that they were continuing to investigate.

St. Lucie County Sheriff Ken J. Mascara said deputies were called to the Fort Pierce Islamic Center at 4:11 a.m. Saturday by a caller who said someone was attempting to burglarize a vehicle. His statement said deputies found a man bleeding from the mouth who said he was approached by a man who "asked him what he was doing and then punched him several times in the face and head."

Mascara added that the man left but an officer's traffic stop minutes later halted a vehicle and the victim subsequently "positively identified the driver as the man who attacked him."

The sheriff's statement said a suspect identified as Taylor Anthony Mazzanti, 25, was arrested and has been charged with felony battery. Mazzanti was booked into jail on a $3,750 bond.

It wasn't immediately clear if Mazzanti had an attorney.

Mascara didn't identify the victim, but said he was treated for injuries at a medical center and released.

The Council, or CAIR, issued a statement earlier that a white truck stopped at the mosque early Saturday and that a man had made slurs, saying "You Muslims need to get back to your country."

Mateen's father is among the roughly 100 members that attend the mosque. Ruiz said Omar Mateen sometimes attended Friday prayers but didn't socialize with others.

Mascara said there was no initial indication of any such statements though he said more interviews would be conducted in the investigation. The sheriff's statement also reported no possible motive or any apparent link to the mosque or those attending it.

CAIR said there was a witness to the beating it identified as Abdul Rauf Khan, 43.

Reached by phone by The Associated Press, Khan said he was driving from his home in Boca Raton when it was nearing time for morning prayers around 4 a.m. Saturday. He stopped at the mosque and saw the victim in the parking lot struggling to enter his car after locking the keys inside. He said a man approached, began punching the victim in the face and knocked out one of the man's teeth.

"He just start throwing punches and saying all kinds of foul language," said Khan, adding he called 911.

The Council statement said the sheriff's office has repeatedly ignored pleas to tighten security since Mateen fatally shot 49 people at a nightclub two weeks ago. "Unfortunately, our requests were repeatedly ignored," said CAIR spokesman Wilfredo Amr Ruiz.

Mascara denied that, saying in his statement Saturday that he and his agency "have repeatedly attempted to communicate with the mosque to explore options of working together and there has been no response." He previously said deputies are patrolling the mosque more frequently.

In the Houston attack, a spokesperson for the mosque near Bellaire said the doctor who was shot was on his way to the 5:30 a.m. morning prayers when three people approached and eventually shot him. Witnesses say the doctor was not robbed.

"It is very scary right now given the current political climate," Mohammed Imaduddin said.

After the Orlando nightclub massacre, likely Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump doubled down on his call for a ban on all Muslims entering the United States. Many have criticized his rhetoric on worshipers of Islam for an increasingly hostile atmosphere to all Muslims, regardless of origin.

In the wake of the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino last year, Muslims around the U.S. reported the rhetoric against them becoming increasingly incendiary.

Armed protesters picketed a mosque in Irving, Texas, some chanting "Every Muslim is a terrorist!"

In Virginia, tempers erupted at a meeting over building a mosque -- one man yelled "every one of you are terrorists" at a Muslim man. In Philadelphia, a severed pig's head was found outside a mosque.



Excerpt -- “Mascara added that the man left but an officer's traffic stop minutes later halted a vehicle and the victim subsequently "positively identified the driver as the man who attacked him." The sheriff's statement said a suspect identified as Taylor Anthony Mazzanti, 25, was arrested and has been charged with felony battery. Mazzanti was booked into jail on a $3,750 bond. …. Meanwhile, worshipers at a mosque in Houston tell KTRK-TV that a doctor who was trying to attend morning prayers was shot just outside after being approached by a group of three men. In the Florida attack, the Council on American-Islamic Relations said racial slurs were made by the attacker, though authorities said they had no immediate indication of any racially motivated comments. Authorities said, however, that they were continuing to investigate. …. Mascara didn't identify the victim, but said he was treated for injuries at a medical center and released. The Council, or CAIR, issued a statement earlier that a white truck stopped at the mosque early Saturday and that a man had made slurs, saying "You Muslims need to get back to your country." …. Reached by phone by The Associated Press, Khan said he was driving from his home in Boca Raton when it was nearing time for morning prayers around 4 a.m. Saturday. He stopped at the mosque and saw the victim in the parking lot struggling to enter his car after locking the keys inside. He said a man approached, began punching the victim in the face and knocked out one of the man's teeth." He just start throwing punches and saying all kinds of foul language," said Khan, adding he called 911. …. In the Houston attack, a spokesperson for the mosque near Bellaire said the doctor who was shot was on his way to the 5:30 a.m. morning prayers when three people approached and eventually shot him. Witnesses say the doctor was not robbed. …. In the wake of the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino last year, Muslims around the U.S. reported the rhetoric against them becoming increasingly incendiary. Armed protesters picketed a mosque in Irving, Texas, some chanting "Every Muslim is a terrorist!" In Virginia, tempers erupted at a meeting over building a mosque -- one man yelled "every one of you are terrorists" at a Muslim man. In Philadelphia, a severed pig's head was found outside a mosque.”


“The Council statement said the sheriff's office has repeatedly ignored pleas to tighten security … Mascara denied that, saying … have repeatedly attempted and have been ignored…” There’s a lot of lying going on here, possibly on both sides. There’s a fight and then the cops are called, and suddenly everybody is searching for a good story to tell. Nonetheless, serious events have occurred in some four different places around the country according to this article, with one non-Muslim man taunting all Muslims to “go back to their home countries,” another saying that “all Muslims are terrorists,” then an ARMED protest at Irving TX, a Muslim medical doctor shot on his way to prayers and in Philadelphia a severed pig’s head left outside the Mosque. I wonder what Homeland Security and the FBI are doing about these things? Are the perpetrators being arrested for hate crimes? This article was the first I had heard about them, yet they didn’t all happen in the last week. Are the Mainstream Press covering these stories, and if not, why not?



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/trumps-star-of-david-image-appeared-first-on-white-supremacist-site/

Controversial Trump tweet first appeared on neo-Nazi site, report claims
By EMILY SCHULTHEIS CBS NEWS
July 3, 2016, 1:41 PM


Presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump has already come under fire for his controversial Saturday tweet that included a six-pointed Star of David -- and now it appears the image he used first originated on a message board frequented by neo-Nazis and white supremacists.

Trump sent his tweet Saturday morning, saying "Crooked Hillary makes history." It appeared to be photoshopped from multiple places, including a graphic from a Fox News poll and scattered hundred-dollar bills. Next to Hillary Clinton, there is a red, six-pointed Star of David -- the primary symbol of Judaism -- that reads, "Most Corrupt Candidate Ever!"

screen-shot-2016-07-02-at-10-59-24-am.png
The tweet has since been deleted, with a red circle replacing the Star of David in one of Trump's subsequent tweets:

View image on Twitter
Follow
Donald J. Trump ✔ @realDonaldTrump
Crooked Hillary -- Makes History! #ImWithYou #AmericaFirst
11:19 AM - 2 Jul 2016
9,179 9,179 Retweets 20,332 20,332 likes

According to the news site Mic, the image of Clinton with the Star of David showed up in /pol/, an online message board for neo-Nazis and white supremacists, as early as June 22. That's more than a week before Trump sent his tweet featuring the image. (The thread where the image appeared no longer exists, but can be viewed as it originally appeared using an archive website.)

A watermark on the image, as it was posted on the message board, features a Twitter handle which frequently tweets out racist memes and anti-Democratic tweets. That watermark was not included in the image Trump tweeted out: instead, that space was covered up by a Fox News poll graphic.

Trump's campaign has not yet commented on the image.


Excerpt -- “Presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump has already come under fire for his controversial Saturday tweet that included a six-pointed Star of David -- and now it appears the image he used first originated on a message board frequented by neo-Nazis and white supremacists. …. According to the news site Mic, the image of Clinton with the Star of David showed up in /pol/, an online message board for neo-Nazis and white supremacists, as early as June 22. That's more than a week before Trump sent his tweet featuring the image. (The thread where the image appeared no longer exists, but can be viewed as it originally appeared using an archive website.) A watermark on the image, as it was posted on the message board, features a Twitter handle which frequently tweets out racist memes and anti-Democratic tweets. That watermark was not included in the image Trump tweeted out: instead, that space was covered up by a Fox News poll graphic.”


The old Dixiecrats were radical Rightists, but not like Trump. Or, at least, they weren’t always saying and doing yet another and another disgusting thing in front of the news cameras as Trump is. I tend to view him as being so immature that he just can’t resist playing for headlines; but this Star of David is more like a genuine attempt to flirt with hardcore Nazis outrightly rather than merely with the usual drunken and excitable rednecks who love a good bar fight.

Taking the article just above this one about violent assaults and verbal threats from rednecks against Muslims as a case in point, the dangerous trend in American thought which has blossomed since Trump decided to run and began making so many violent threats, it appears to me to be what in chemistry is called a catalyst. It’s a substance that does not itself react chemically, but when two other substances are placed in its presence it can cause a reaction between them to occur.

Our society today is such a chemical mix. Without saying specifically for his followers to attack and kill innocent Muslims (and Jews and others), his gutter level commentary is bringing an innate hatred against all non-Christians and non-whites up onto the front burner where the heat is causing it to boil. They don’t like Liberals or “pointy headed intellectuals” either, so it’s just a matter of time before we’re all being assaulted by “righteous” primarily poor white men.

I have nothing against that element of society. I accept all economic conditions and I grew up among them; but when I was growing up in the South, at least in my home town, the people in that class were “working class” when “work” was not an offensive term, and they were mostly honest and decent. That appears to me to be no longer the case in a significant number of cases. I can’t help feeling very concerned about where we are heading.