An interesting 12 minutes on Shariamerica

Take the time to watch this video, then ask yourself one question. A what point is the speaker wrong? On any count?

The end of life as we know it!

FBI invites Westboro loons to Training Classes

So....I have a simple question..."Who vets these people?" No, not the loons like Westboro, but those in positions of security and supposed high responsibility in the FBI? Who the hell makes these kinds of decisions in the FBI in the first place, and then is allowed to retain their positions in the FBI.


FBI busted for collaboration with radical militant Westboro Baptist church.

The FBI said Wednesday that members of an anti-gay fundamentalist group participated in the bureau's training of police officers and FBI agents – a move the bureau says it will take steps to remedy in the future.

The bureau extended the invitations to Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., for training this spring at two bureau facilities in Virginia: Quantico and Manassas.

Westboro has stirred widespread outrage with raucous demonstrations at the funerals of U.S. military service members. The group contends God is punishing the military for the nation's tolerance of homosexuality.

National Public Radio first reported the FBI's involvement with Westboro.

At FBI headquarters in Washington, bureau spokesman Paul Bresson acknowledged that Westboro was invited to the training sessions.

An FBI official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, said that in retrospect, the bureau underestimated how the involvement of the outside organization would be perceived.

As a result, said the official, there will be additional layers of review or approval on outside speakers.

California now to tax the internet

Yep, Jerry Brown and the newly elected socialist of California have passed a law to tax the internet. As a result, Amazon and others are pulling out. Costing thousands more jobs. And who get the blame?

Amazon bails on new tax

Gov. Jerry Brown has signed into law California's tax on Internet sales through affiliate advertising which will immediately cut small-business website revenue 20% to 30%, experts say.

The bill, AB 28X, takes effect immediately. The state Board of Equalization says the tax will raise $200 million a year, but critics claim it will raise nothing because online retailers will end their affiliate programs rather than collect the tax.

Read the whole story, but here is the real kicker...

"I think that Amazon.com's decision to throw their affiliates, (including myself) under the bus is a national disgrace," Richards said. "Jeff Bezos should be ashamed of his conduct. His bully boy practice and tactics of extinguishing small business in California should be (condemned). Small business has no power...and no hope to confront Internet giants like Amazon.com."

So, Brown and company decided to create another tax and suddenly it is their victims who are the problem. I guess the time has come to simply sit back and watch as California implodes and cedes itself back to Mexico.

God banned from national cemetery in Houston

 Got this one from "Weasel Zippers" after it was reported tonight on my local news.

VA Cemetery Tells Volunteers To Stop Telling Families “God Bless You” During Funerals…

Outrageous.

(Chron) — Local veterans and volunteer groups are accusing Department of Veterans Affairs officials of censoring religious speech — including banning the word “God” — at Houston National Cemetery.
In one example cited in documents filed this week in federal court, cemetery director Arleen Ocasio reportedly told volunteers with the National Memorial Ladies that they had to stop telling the families, “God bless you,” at funerals and that they had to remove the words “God bless” from condolence cards.
The new allegations of “religious hostility” by VA and cemetery officials follow on the heels of a controversy over a prayer in Jesus’ name by Pastor Scott Rainey at a Memorial Day service in the cemetery.
The complaint accuses VA of “a widespread and consistent practice of discriminating against private religious speech” at the cemetery.
Ocasio is on vacation and could not be reached for comment. Her assistant, Amanda Rhodes, said the cemetery had no comment.
According to court documents, Ocasio banned members of the groups from using certain religious words such as “God” or “Jesus,” censored the content of prayer, and forbade the use of religious messages in burial rituals unless the deceased’s family submitted the text to her for prior approval.
Court documents also describe the closure of the cemetery’s chapel after Ocasio’s appointment as director two years ago.

Update on the Afghanistan draw down

For anyone wondering how the Afghanistan war draw down is going since the president's big announcement last week? I believe we are getting the first poll results in this evening from the Afghanistan Taliban.
 
Afghan Update

The popular Inter-Continental hotel in Kabul came under attack by suicide bombers and gunmen Tuesday, a U.S. official told Fox News. U.S. forces were called in to assist in gunbattles with assailants in the hotel, while NATO says its helicopters have killed three of the attackers.

An Afghan official told Reuters that all of the gunmen in the raid -- around six or seven -- were killed.
Afghanistan news agency TOLOnews is reporting at least 10 people have been killed in the attacks, but that number has yet to be independently confirmed.

It seems the Taliban are quite pleased with the president's efforts on the Afghanistan issue and they are stepping up their appreciation efforts in response.

Environmental literacy

Environmental literacy? Well that's what we say it is of course.

Read on.....

Maryland is the first state in the country to impose a new requirement to graduate from high school -- something called environmental literacy.

But what is that? That is the question State Senator J. B. Jennings is asking.

"What kind of education is it going to be?” he asks. “Is it going to be fact-based? Or is it going to be theory-based, which is usually politically, theory driven. And you can think, it's going to be about global warming or climate change."

Sarah Bodor of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation supports the initiative and says there is no mandate.

"People express concern about the content but what is important to know is that this new requirement doesn't actually mandate any content at all."

The new rule is a regulation from the State Board of Education, not a law passed by the legislature, so it lays out no specifics. Governor Martin O'Malley offers no real details but praises it, saying it will "infuse core subjects with lessons about conservation and smart growth and the health of our natural world."

O’Malley also said it'll serve as a "foundation for green jobs," though one analyst says training for those is just like it is for any other job.

"You need to know how to get there on time, how to be alert, how to work hard, how to absorb a lot of information, how to - you know - learn new skills," says Myron Ebell of free market think tank, the Competitive Enterprise Institute."

The state education board leaves all content up to local school boards and a state official says " local systems will implement the requirement as they see fit."

Boder says students near the Chesapeake Bay could learn by doing.

"[K]ids have the opportunity to participate in some real world learning, such as raising native oysters and replenishing reef habitat,” Boder says. “By raising the oysters, they can learn math and read and write about the history of oystering in the state of Maryland and throughout the Chesapeake Bay and that gets them excited and that helps to boost their achievements."

So, it's learning by doing. All you need is to define what the doing is then. And of course, they are going to allow those at the local level to determine what that 'doing' might entail.

Have no fear though, this is nothing but a new form of introducing environmental awareness to young minds. No one would ever attempt to embed propagated rhetoric into the minds of our children, so everyone relax and carry on with your lives. nothing to see here folks.