Friday, January 18, 2013

Coast West Music Festival to bring country stars LeAnn Rimes, Josh Turner to Muskegon 4th of July

Coast West Music Festival to bring country stars LeAnn Rimes, Josh Turner to Muskegon 4th of July | MLive.com: "It has a name: The Coast West Music Festival. It will take place from July 1 to 6, and its first two confirmed acts are country music stars Josh Turner and LeAnn Rimes, who will perform on July 4."

Coast West Music Festival

Coast West Music Festival:

National Geographic: Iconic publication celebrates its 125th anniversary with showcase of its most inspirational images

National Geographic: Iconic publication celebrates its 125th anniversary with showcase of its most inspirational images | Mail Online:

From pipe-smoking dogs to Churchill's meeting to end Second World War: Five years of Flickr's hidden treasures in thousands of amazing images

From pipe-smoking dogs to Churchill's meeting to end Second World War: Five years of Flickr's hidden treasures in thousands of amazing images | Mail Online: "

President Barack Obama's Jobs Council hits 1 year without official meeting

President Barack Obama's Jobs Council hits 1 year without official meeting - POLITICO.com:


DRUDGE REPORT 2013®

DRUDGE REPORT 2013®
 CABLE NEWS RACE
WEDS JAN 16 2013

FOXNEWS O'REILLY 3,356,000
DISC AMISH MAFIA 3,200,000
FOXNEWS FIVE 2,323,000
FOXNEWS HANNITY 2,276,000
FOXNEWS BAIER 2,235,000
FOXNEWS SHEP 1,813,000
CMDY DAILY SHOW 1,790,000
FOXNEWS GRETA 1,637,000
CMDY COLBERT 1,360,000
MSNBC MADDOW 1,096,000
MSNBC SCHULTZ 1,020,000
MSNBC HARDBALL 875,000
MSNBC SHARPTON 839,000
MSNBC O'DONNELL 831,000
CNN COOPER 604,000
CNN PIERS 592,000

Bitely's Christopher Abbatoy jailed for pork farm break-in that led to botched throat slitting

Bitely's Christopher Abbatoy jailed for pork farm break-in that led to botched throat slitting | MLive.com

"pork farm break-in"?

The End of the University as We Know It

The End of the University as We Know It - Nathan Harden - The American Interest Magazine
In fifty years, if not much sooner, half of the roughly 4,500 colleges and universities now operating in the United States will have ceased to exist.

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

The eight craziest things about the Manti Te'o hoax story

The eight craziest things about the Manti Te'o hoax story

Courtroom fight involving 80 people breaks out in Harper Woods homicide case

Courtroom fight involving 80 people breaks out in Harper Woods homicide case | MLive.com

State of the State 2013: Gov. Rick Snyder proposes road funding, changes to voting, education

State of the State 2013: Gov. Rick Snyder proposes road funding, changes to voting, education | MLive.com
“The big deal is roads – road funding,” Snyder strategy director Bill Rustem told reporters prior to Snyder’s speech. “
Snyder wants it done early because he knows it is going to be a tough issue, Rustem said.

The road money plan could include raising vehicle registration fees.
It also would shift the tax system from the current 19-cent per gallon tax paid at the pump to a percentage of the wholesale cost of gasoline, which would rise with inflation and could bring in more money.
Snyder also would consider backing local options to raise more money at the county level, such as additional vehicle registration fees.
Both Republicans and Democrats have generally agreed Michigan needs more money for road repairs and transportation system improvements.

Other topics:
Elections and voting: Snyder is expected to back some form of online voter registration and no-reason absentee voting. It would require some steps aimed at security, such as entering Social Security numbers with registration and other features.
Jobs: Snyder is expected to push for ways to better help Michigan workers develop the skills needed for high-tech, health care and other high-demand job areas. It's not clear how much of that will come up in tonight's speech, however. One item that is expected to be mentioned is a special emphasis on military veterans for some types of jobs. Snyder also is expected to announce other steps, including accreditation of a veterans affairs agency, to help better deliver services to veterans.
Education: Great Start and other early childhood education programs could get more of an emphasis in the state budget, which will be proposed in early February. Snyder also is expected to renew his call to expand the state’s Education Achievement Authority. It now includes 15 schools in Detroit, but it could potentially expand to include many of the lowest-performing 5 percent of schools in the state. Proposals that could have put the EAA in state law and expanded that program fizzled in the state Legislature late last year, but likely will be resurrected.
Social services: Snyder is expected to address expanding a program that would put more Department of Human Services workers into elementary schools. The goal would be to help children and families get basic services, so educators can focus more on education. Much of the emphasis could be on Detroit, Flint, Saginaw and Pontiac.

FAA grounds Boeing 787s, issues emergency AD to cover risk of battery fires

FAA grounds Boeing 787s, issues emergency AD to cover risk of battery fires | Airline Biz Blog
“As a result of an in-flight, Boeing 787 battery incident earlier today in Japan, the FAA will issue an emergency airworthiness directive (AD) to address a potential battery fire risk in the 787 and require operators to temporarily cease operations.

Muskegon County officials hear Nelson Neighborhood opposition to juvenile facility for Craig School

Muskegon County officials hear Nelson Neighborhood opposition to juvenile facility for Craig School | MLive.com
Hammersley told the neighborhood group that she will take the message back to the county and the process will continue as she promised to keep the neighborhood and all citizens in Muskegon County informed.

Michigan Steel in Muskegon and sister company Rothbury Steel showing signs of financial problems

Michigan Steel in Muskegon and sister company Rothbury Steel showing signs of financial problems | MLive.com
With the closure of the Kurdziel Iron Foundry in Rothbury in 2009, a Makary business purchased the facility at 2625 W. Winston Road and opened it to great fanfare with state and local officials in April of last year.
The state of Michigan contributed $2.56 million through Grant Township and the Oceana County Road Commission to improve Winston Road from the foundry to U.S. 31 to assist in launching the company with 50 employees.
At the time, the company projected 300 jobs at Rothbury Steel, because larger castings could be produced than with the equipment at Muskegon Steel.
Hardy said her agency visited with Rothbury Steel officials late in 2012 and found operations continuing with about 60 to 70 employees.
At the time of the Rothbury Steel opening, then company President Chris Moein told MLive and The Muskegon Chronicle that business was “booming” at Michigan Steel and the company was employing 200 people in Muskegon.
Historically, Michigan Steel has employed about 120 workers, according to information from Muskegon Area First.

Blue Storm Ravages California City

Blue Storm Ravages California City | Via Meadia
This is what a blue death spiral looks like. Years and years of unsustainable pension promises, profligate spending and poor fiscal leadership slowly add up until the money runs out and there’s nothing left to pay for the services that keep the city running.
Bankruptcy can help get a city’s finances back on track, but it’s extremely difficult to run a city on a shoestring budget, as San Bernardino is now learning.
It is truly unfortunate that the good citizens of San Bernardino are caught up in this mess. In the meantime, this should serve as a warning to the rest of us.

Meese: Obama Could Be Impeached If He Uses Executive Order For Gun Control

Meese: Obama Could Be Impeached If He Uses Executive Order For Gun Control | RealClearPolitics
NEWSMAX: So, if the president unilaterally overrides the Second Amendment via an executive order, would this be Constitutional?
Would it be legal?
And how should Congress respond?
MEESE: Well it would not be legal, it would not be Constitutional and, indeed, if he tried to override the Second Amendment in any way, I believe it would be an impeachable offense.
MEESE: Then, it would be up to the Congress to take action, such as looking in to it to see if, in fact, he has really tried to override the Constitution itself.
In which case, it would be up to them to determine what action they should take — and perhaps even to the point of impeachment.

What Closing the Gun-Show Loophole Won’t Do

What Closing the Gun-Show Loophole Won’t Do - By Clayton E. Cramer - The Corner - National Review Online:
It is an article of faith that closing the “gun-show loophole” would make America a safer place. But that is what it is: faith.
.....This might seem surprising, and at first glance, it is.
Except for one little detail: Criminals appear not to buy guns at gun shows, because guns are expensive. It is so much cheaper to steal guns instead.

The Legislature's Newest Members

The Legislature's Newest Members [Michigan Capitol Confidential]
Collene Lamonte, D-Montague, 91st District - N 1195 HOB -
(517) 373-3436 - ColleneLamonte@house.mi.gov
Personal Career: Having never run for political office before, Lamonte got in the race for the 91st House District and won in 2012, unseating Rep. Holly Hughes. Lamonte won by less than 400 votes.

Work Experience: She previously worked as a math and science teacher at Muskegon High School.

Education: Before becoming a teacher, Lamonte studied at Saginaw Valley State University.
Personal: She and her husband, Jeff, have two children.

Renegade River Show 1-13-13

Captain Capitalism

Captain Capitalism:

Good blog!

Production of corn ethanol as an automotive fuel source should cease

Guest view of Mark J. Perry: Production of corn ethanol as an automotive fuel source should cease | MLive.com
The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) case for E15, a fuel blend consisting of 15 percent ethanol and 85 percent gasoline, has completely fallen apart, as evidenced by the recent report from the American Automobile Association (AAA) that E15 can cause accelerated engine wear and failure, resulting in costly repairs for unsuspecting consumers.

HISTORY OF MUSKEGON COUNTY,MICHIGAN WITH ILLUSTRATIONS

https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=Ydix0uFKVOsC&printsec=frontcover&output=reader&authuser=0&hl=en

Amash, Huizenga vote against $50.7B in extra Superstorm Sandy relief

Amash, Huizenga vote against $50.7B in extra Superstorm Sandy relief | MLive.com

Welfare Spending Increases Poverty Instead Easing People Out Of It

Welfare Spending Increases Poverty Instead Easing People Out Of It - Investors.com
All told, overall welfare spending for the decade will be $11 trillion — "roughly one-quarter of cumulative federal spending," the Budget Committee reports.
And that doesn't even include state spending on welfare, which, when added to federal benefits, was more than $1 trillion in fiscal 2011.
That's enough, the Budget Committee tells us, "to mail every household in poverty a check for $60,000 each year."

Union workers to protest before State of the State

Union workers to protest before State of the State | Crain's Detroit Business