Big Labor’s VA Choke Hold

WSJ: Big Labor’s VA Choke Hold - Fox Nation:
"We know with certainty that there is at least one person the Department of Veterans Affairs is serving well.
That would be the president of local lodge 1798 of the National Federation of Federal Employees.
The Federal Labor Relations Authority, the agency that mediates federal labor disputes, earlier this month ruled in favor of this union president, in a dispute over whether she need bother to show up at her workplace—the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Martinsburg, W.Va.
According to FLRA documents, this particular VA employee is 100% "official time"—D.C. parlance for federal employees who work every hour of every work day for their union, at the taxpayer's expense.

In April 2012, this, ahem, VA "employee" broke her ankle and declared that she now wanted to do her nonwork for the VA entirely from the comfort of her home.
Veterans Affairs attempted a compromise:
Perhaps she could, pretty please, come in two days a week? 
She refused, and complained to the FLRA that the VA was interfering with her right to act as a union official.
The VA failed to respond to the complaint in the required time (perhaps too busy caring for actual veterans) and so the union boss summarily won her case.

The VA battle is only just starting, but any real reform inevitably ends with a fight over organized labor.
Think of it as the federal version of Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan and other states where elected officials have attempted to rein in the public-sector unions that have hijacked government agencies for their own purpose.
Fixing the VA requires first breaking labor's grip, and the unions are already girding for that fight."

Jay Carney Stepping Down as White House Press Secretary | TheBlaze.com

Jay Carney Stepping Down as White House Press Secretary | TheBlaze.com:
"Carney has been in the hot seat through numerous Obama administration controversies, including the Benghazi terror attacks, the IRS targeting of conservative groups, problems with Obamacare, and most recently, the veterans waiting list scandal that prompted Shinseki to resign."

A mother-of-four died after doctors misdiagnosed her cervical cancer 30 times

A mother-of-four died after doctors misdiagnosed her cervical cancer 30 times - Telegraph:
"A mother-of-four died after doctors misdiagnosed her cervical cancer 30 times
An inquest hears that Jeannine Harvey was so crippled with pain she couldn't even get out of bed, but a doctor told the 33-year-old her agony was caused by anxiety

A mother-of-four died after doctors missed 30 chances to diagnose her cervical cancer, an inquest heard.
Jeannine Harvey, 33, was so debilitated by pain she was unable to get out of bed without help.
However, despite consultations with her GP and doctors at three hospitals, her cervical cancer was repeatedly misdiagnosed as a potential torn ligament, protruding discs, sarcoma and "nerve pain".
Doctors even suggested at one point that her agony was caused by anxiety."

The Disaster of Obamanomics, In Two Charts

The Disaster of Obamanomics, In Two Charts [Updated with more charts from Joe] | Power Line: "Apologists for the Obama administration sometimes argue that the nation’s declining rate of labor force participation is largely a function of baby boomers retiring from the labor force.
Unfortunately, this is not the case.
This chart, prepared by the Senate Budget Committee, pretty much says it all.
An unprecedented number of men–one in six–between the ages of 25 and 54, what should be their prime earning years, are either unemployed or out of the work force entirely.
One in eight, the highest proportion since record-keeping began in 1955, are out of the labor force:"

Fast food CEO: Minimum wage hikes closing locations

Fast food CEO: Minimum wage hikes closing locations:
"In cities in other states where the minimum wage has gone up considerably, Puzder said "franchisees are closing locations" after riding out lease expirations.
If the federal minimum hourly pay shoots up to $10.10 from the current $7.25—as many lawmakers and President Barack Obama are advocating—Puzder predicts fewer entry-level jobs will be created. If this happens, CKE would also create fewer positions, he forecast.
A recent nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office study also predicted mass job losses, estimating that a hike to $10.10 could result in a loss of about half a million jobs by late 2016, even as it lifted many above the poverty line."

Report: Directive Details Obama’s Plan to Use Military Force Against Americans within the U.S.

Report: Directive Details Obama’s Plan to Use Military Force Against Americans within the U.S.:

"This directive, No. 3025.18, is called the “Defense Support of Civil Authorities.” It not only gives Obama the power to use the force of the military against Americans, but also says that federal military commanders have such authority if prior authorization by the president is not possible. Such action can be taken during times deemed to be ‘civil unrest."

IG Report: HHS Spent $120 Million on Medicare for Illegal Immigrants

IG Report: HHS Spent $120 Million on Medicare for Illegal Immigrants | Truth Revolt

A report by the Inspector General revealed that between the fiscal years 2009-2011, the Department of Health and Human Services spent $120.6 million under Medicare Parts B and D to cover illegal immigrants.

Under the category “unlawfully present beneficiaries,” the IG report states:

We identified $91.6 million in improper payments to unlawfully present beneficiaries in Part B during CYs 2009 through 2011. When CMS received untimely information indicating that unlawful presence overlapped with the dates of service on previously paid Medicare claims, CMS did not notify Medicare's contractors of this updated information, and the contractors did not detect and recoup improper payments. For the same period, we estimated $29 million in gross drug costs associated with unlawfully present beneficiaries in Part D.

Illinois Paying Millions In Medicaid Premiums For Dead People

Illinois Paying Millions In Medicaid Premiums For Dead People | The Daily Caller:
"Illinois paid $12 million in Medicaid benefits in the past two years for people who were already dead, according to a state audit.
A financial audit of the Illinois Department of Health and Family Services found that Illinois has 8,232 dead people still on Medicaid rolls receiving benefits.
The state has been paying monthly premiums, at the cost of close to $7 million, for 561 people who have been dead an average of two years before they were ever signed up for the Medicaid program, the Chicago Sun Times reports.
“A person was dead for 663 days and then they were signed up for Managed Care,” Auditor General Bill Holland told the Sun Times.
“They need to improve their system to ensure the death dates for current enrollees, and just to ensure that people who were deceased were not enrolled.”"

10 Weird Features Of Old Cars

10 Weird Features Of Old Cars (concept cars, cars, car features) - ODDEE:
#2 "The dog sack gives roadkill a whole new meaning"

John Bolton on Obama’s White House: It’s Like a Bunch of Children are in Charge of Foreign Policy

John Bolton on Obama’s White House: It’s Like a Bunch of Children are in Charge of Foreign Policy:

"Bolton shares that he was absolutely stunned when he heard of the compromise of this CIA operative’s identity, a move that jeopardizes not only his life and well-being, but also that of his family.
I was stunned when I heard this. It really is an example of just incompetence without parallel. It is one thing when somebody leaks a name for purposes of anti-American activity. That sort of thing has happened. Sadly enough, we’ve seen our agents betrayed or trafficked and gossiped and that sort of thing. This was sheer jaw-dropping incompetence. I’m glad the White House counsel is going to investigate it. I think heads should roll over this, there’s just no excuse for it."

Dertroit's UNDERFUNDED pensions caused the problem. Now they can do it again!-------MichiganVotes Weekly Vote Report

May 23, 2014, MichiganVotes Weekly Vote Report [Michigan Capitol Confidential]
May 23, 2014, MichiganVotes Weekly Vote Report

Detroit bailout

House Bill 5574, Give Detroit $195 million: Passed 74 to 36 in the House

To appropriate $194.8 million for a gift to Detroit, which is related to a potential bankruptcy settlement.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"

House Bill 5568, Limit but allow new Detroit employee traditional pensions: Passed 85 to 25 in the House

To limit the normal contributions to Detroit employee retirement benefits, but let the city continue to enroll new hires in a "defined benefit" system that creates underfunding risks for taxpayers. The normal contribution caps would be 7 percent for pensions and 2 percent for retirement health savings accounts. The bill also restricts "pension spiking" and "13th check" extra-benefit schemes. It was introduced as a condition for the state giving Detroit $195 million, and originally would have prohibited creating new unfunded pension liability risks with each new hire.

Who Voted "Yes" and Who Voted "No"
SOURCE: MichiganVotes.org, a free, non-partisan website created by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, providing concise, non-partisan, plain-English descriptions of every bill and vote in the Michigan House and Senate. Please visit http://www.MichiganVotes.org.

'The South Won the Civil War?' Beach Babes Bomb Watters' World Memorial Day Quiz

'The South Won the Civil War?' Beach Babes Bomb Watters' World Memorial Day Quiz - Fox Nation:
"On Memorial Day, O'Reilly Factor correspondent Jesse Watters visited Jones Beach in Wantagh, N.Y, to find out whether the revelers there knew why they had the opportunity to spend the day at the ocean-- and not at work or school.
"Do you know why you're off today?" Watters asked.
"Why..." a young woman responded, visibly trying to think of the correct answer.
"America?" another guessed.

"Who did America fight in the Revolutionary War?" Jesse asked some other beachgoers: receiving answers including 'France' and 'China'.
One man confused the battle for independence with the war our nation fought just under four score and seven years later.
"The Revolutionary War? [We fought] ourselves," a young man said.

The reasoning for that 19th Century conflict also proved a conundrum to those on the beach.
"What was the Civil War about?" Jesse asked.
"I couldn't be able to tell you," a young black man answered.
One vacationer vaguely stated that the Civil War was fought over "civilization".

History for May 31

History for May 31 - On-This-Day.com

Birth anniversary of poet Walt Whitman (1819-1892).

In 1990, the comedy about nothing, “Seinfeld,” premiered on NBC.

In 2000, “Survivor” premiered on CBS.

Happy Birthday! Tom Berenger, Clint Eastwood, Joe Namath

1854 - The Kansas-Nebraska Act passed by the U.S. Congress.


1859 - In London, Big Ben went into operation.

1870 - E.J. DeSemdt patented asphalt.


1884 - Dr. John Harvey Kellogg patented "flaked cereal."


1902 - The Boer War ended between the Boers of South Africa and Great Britain with the Treaty of Vereeniging.

1913 - The 17th Amendment went into effect. It provided for popular election of U.S. senators.

1915 - A German zeppelin made an air raid on London.


1962 - Adolf Eichmann was hanged in Israel. Eichmann was a Gestapo official and was executed for his actions in the Nazi Holocaust.


1977 - The trans-Alaska oil pipeline was finished after 3 years of construction. 

1979 - Zimbabwe proclaimed its independence. 

Honey, I Shrunk the Economy!

Honey, I Shrunk the Economy!:

"The economic decline is the first technical contraction since 2011 and stemmed from an alarming 7.5% decline in business investment in structures and a 5% drop in residential investment.
Additionally, corporate profits sank by 9.8% in the first quarter, the largest drop in almost six years.
If the economy contracts for the current quarter, it will meet the statistical definition of a recession, having fallen for two quarters in a row.

The Obama regime is blaming the weather for the decline."

DHS Secretary: Congress Can’t ‘Micromanage’ the Obama Administration on Immigration | TheBlaze.com

DHS Secretary: Congress Can’t ‘Micromanage’ the Obama Administration on Immigration | TheBlaze.com: "Gowdy rejected that answer, and said that interpretation poses a danger to the United States’ system of government.
“The beauty of this country is, even if our politics differ, we still respect the rule of law, and we are playing with the foundation of this Republic when we decide selectively which laws we’re going to enforce due to political expediency,” he said. “I would urge you to help me find where that line is between prosecutorial discretion and just deciding you don’t like to enforce a law.”

CDC Blames Unvaccinated For Record Measles Outbreak

CDC Blames Unvaccinated For Record Measles Outbreak | The Daily Caller:
"This year’s measles outbreak is the worst in 20 years, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) announced Thursday.
The CDC said 288 cases of the disease have been identified since January, the most in the first five months of the year since 1994.
Ohio has seen the most cases with over 160, most of them emanating from the state’s Amish community.
The vast majority of cases still originate from other countries, with people acquiring the disease while abroad and then bringing it back to the U.S., where they spread it to others.
The U.S. has not had a home-grown measles epidemic in decades.
Despite being officially declared eradicated in the U.S. in 2000, measles has made a comeback in the new millennium.
Assistant Surgeon General Dr. Anne Schuchat blamed the increasingly intense annual outbreaks on the failure of many Americans to have themselves or their children vaccinated against the disease.
At least 70% of this year’s measles cases involve unvaccinated people, the CDC said.
€œ”This is not the kind of record we want to break,” Schuchat said.
“[This] should be a wake-up call to travelers and parents to make sure vaccinations are up to date.”
Doctors recommend that every child receive the MMR (Measles, Mumps, Rubella) vaccine once they are 12 months old.
Some communities, however (including the Amish), avoid vaccines for religious or philosophical reasons, while others believe vaccines are behind the recent rise in childhood autism rates.
A 1998 study purporting to show a link between the two has since been withdrawn, but the belief in a link persists in many quarters, promoted by some public figures such as talk show host Jenny McCarthy."

One weird rule is narrowing Spelling Bee field

One weird rule is narrowing Spelling Bee field | Detroit Free Press | freep.com:
"Here’s the newish rule (it happened last year too, but that doesn’t make it right): the Spelling Bee decided that midway through the competition on Thursday they would just kick out half the remaining spellers. 
Boom, gone. 
No words spelled wrong. 
They just kicked them out.
At first I didn’t understand what was happening.
I was half paying attention, and then all of a sudden they started naming names and handing out medals.
What was happening?
There were still so many spellers left?
Then it dawned on me — they were booting kids. Kids who hadn’t spelled a word wrong. 
To speed things up, they weeded out the field by removing kids who hadn’t done that well on a vocabulary test administered BEFORE the Bee even began.
This is hogwash.
This is an outrage of the highest order.
And I am calling shenanigans on the entire thing."

The Yes-or-No Question Jay Carney Won’t Answer About the VA Scandal | TheBlaze.com

The Yes-or-No Question Jay Carney Won’t Answer About the VA Scandal | TheBlaze.com:

"Despite being asked the question several times Thursday by multiple reporters, White House press secretary Jay Carney could not answer whether President Barack Obama has confidence in embattled Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki."

OMG! B Hussein's lost Big Media!------NBC Reporter Can’t Name A Single Country Where U.S. Relations Have Improved Under Obama

NBC Reporter Can’t Name A Single Country Where U.S. Relations Have Improved Under Obama:
 Thursday’s CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Home Depot co-founder Ken Langone challenged Richard Engel, NBC’s chief foreign correspondent, to name a country where U.S. relations have improved since Barack Obama took office more than 5 years ago. 
After hemming and hawing, Engel admitted that he was unable to do so.

Ironically, when Obama gave his so-called historic speech in Cairo, Egypt, in 2009, Engel was one of those in the media most impressed:

“A lot of people…across the Islamic world simply had their mouths open when they were listening to this speech. They couldn‘t believe what they were hearing. They have not heard this kind of language from an American president. There was a lot of flattery involved, many references to history, and extensive use of Islam. All of these are common in the Arabic world. It sounded very much like an Arabic speech that was given by a well-spoken leader in the Arabic world.”

And now? Engle is singing a different tune:

“Right now we have a black hole in Syria. Iraq is in a state of collapse. Libya is about to go back into a civil war. And this was the one case where we intervened militarily. So I think there is [sic] a lot of problems on the horizon in the foreign policy world just because you are off-ramping in Afghanistan.”

Michelle Gone Wild: First Lady Targets White Potatoes and Republicans

Blog: Michelle Gone Wild: First Lady Targets White Potatoes and Republicans

Michelle Obama won’t rest until we are all scrounging for berries and chomping leafy vegetation in the forest.  Or until she and her fellow progressives regulate the entire food industry Soviet-style.

Four years and $12 billion later, her campaign to replace French fries and pizza with green pepper strips and Mexican turnip roots in school cafeterias has tanked.  

Kids in Kentucky said the food tasted like "vomit."

One day in Obama's hometown------3 dead, including 58-year-old woman, 11 injured in shootings on South, West Sides

3 dead, including 58-year-old woman, 11 injured in shootings on South, West Sides - chicagotribune.com:
A 58-year-old woman was killed and two others were injured in a shooting in the Chatham neighborhood on the South Side, several hours after a man was shot and seriously wounded near a Lawndale school Thursday afternoon, officials said.
A total of 14 people were shot, 3 fatally during predominantly daytime shootings after sunrise Thursday, police said.

Unions not satisfied with killing our economy, now they're killing our veterans------While Vets Wait, VA Employees Do Union Work

While Vets Wait, VA Employees Do Union Work | National Review Online:

In 2012, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs paid at least $11.4 million to 174 nurses, mental-health specialists, therapists, and other health-care professionals who, instead of caring for veterans, worked full-time doing union business.

The list of these taxpayer-funded union representatives at VA offices around the nation and their salaries was obtained through the Freedom of Information Act by Georgia representative Phil Gingrey’s staff and provided to National Review Online.
“So many health-care providers were on that list — nurses or physical therapists or whatever they may be — when so many veterans are falling through the cracks,” a Gingrey aide tells me. “It’s kind of shocking that these paid employees wouldn’t be fully dedicated to patient care.”

In total, the VA spent at least $13.77 million on 251 salaried employees performing full-time union work.
Others, who were not included on the list provided by the VA, work part-time for unions at the taxpayer expense.
In fiscal year 2011, the latest on record, the VA used 998,483 hours of this “official time,” costing taxpayers more than $42 million.

Obama to Act Without Congress on Climate Change — and It Will Likely Drive Up Your Electricity Prices | TheBlaze.com

Obama to Act Without Congress on Climate Change — and It Will Likely Drive Up Your Electricity Prices | TheBlaze.com:

"The Obama administration is poised to unveil the first rules limiting carbon emissions from the thousands of power plants across the nation.
Obama says the rules are essential to curb the heat-trapping greenhouse gases blamed for “global warming.” Critics contend the rules will kill jobs, drive up electricity prices and shutter plants across the country."

State awards $830K to new Detroit grocery

State awards $830K to new Detroit grocery | The Detroit News
Detroit— Nearly one year ago upscale grocer Whole Foods debuted its first store in Detroit amid mass glee — hundreds jammed the Midtown store the minute it opened and city leaders raved a national grocer had actually set up shop in the city limits.

By comparison, the new Parkway Foods in an empty strip mall on East Jefferson opened with little fanfare, but it has support from one key group: funders. State and city economic officials believe the independent grocer could be another vital step in erasing the city’s image as a “food desert.”

More than $1.2 million in grants and loans have been awarded to the owners of the grocery and retail center it anchors. 

The strip is called the Shops at Jefferson Village, 11250 East Jefferson Ave. 

The retail center is mainly empty now but Parkway Foods is expected to revive the development.

.....The state economic development agency has supported a number of other grocery stores and fresh food projects in Detroit, including:

■June 2013: A $1 million incentive to Eastern Market Corporation for the renovation of Shed 5 and the addition of a community kitchen.

■June 2012: A $1 million grant to aid construction of the Whole Foods on Mack.

■December 2011: A brownfield tax credit valued at up to $6.1 million and local and school tax capture valued at $10.75 million for Gateway Marketplace.

10 War Movies Guaranteed to Make You Cry

PJ Lifestyle » 10 War Movies Guaranteed to Make You Cry:
#10. Gunga Din
A 1939 adventure film “inspired” by the Rudyard Kipling poem follows the exploits of three British army lieutenants — Cutter (Cary Grant), MacChesney (Victor McLaglen), Ballantine (Douglas Fairbanks Jr.) —  on the Indian frontier.
The movie is all dash and panache, except for the erstwhile native water carrier, Gunga Din (Sam Jaffe), whose only dream is to be a real soldier.
In the end, it’s the regimental “beastie,” shot, bayonetted, but carrying on, who saves the day before he falls. Sob along at the end of the film when the colonel declares over the funeral pyre, “You’re a better man than I am, Gunga Din!”"

Ya problee dint see this on TV.....Watch How Vastly Different West Point Cadets React Between Hearing Presidents Obama and Bush

Watch How Vastly Different West Point Cadets React Between Hearing Presidents Obama and Bush:

VA Officials Raked Over the Coals for Failing to Provide Documents on Healthcare Scandal | TheBlaze.com

VA Officials Raked Over the Coals for Failing to Provide Documents on Healthcare Scandal | TheBlaze.com:
"But Miller scoffed and said he doubted VA officials were telling Lynch the truth.
“Let me give you a little hint,” he said. “The VA won’t tell you the truth. So if you’re relying solely on the management at these facilities to tell you the truth, you’re not gonna get it. You’re just not gonna get it.”

Media hides black mahem------Widespread Memorial Day Black Violence Ignored by National Media

Articles: Widespread Memorial Day Black Violence Ignored by National Media:
"Black Beach Week used to get all the glory: Every Memorial Day weekend, 300,000 black people gathered in Miami Beach to get their freak on.
And also create a tsunami of violence, robbery, shootings, carjackings, vandalism, mayhem, noise and trash.
But this year, many party-goers complained that Black Beach Week -- only reporters call it “Urban Beach Week” -- just wasn’t as much fun any more:
Too many cops, tactical vehicles, helicopters, lights, towers, cameras, suspicion.
Not enough chaos.
Not to worry:
The rest of the country picked up the slack.
Black mob violence over the holiday weekend was reported in more than a dozen cities around the country.
Some fatal. 
Some comical, almost.
 Let’s take a tour, starting with Cincinnati:
Four days after scattered reports of black mob violence during the Memorial Day Taste of Cincinnati, local police and media are just now starting to figure out how bad it was.
“General mayhem,” said one police Captain.
.....A member of a gay country western dance group reported that members of his club were also victims of racial violence.
.....The violence against them was also unprovoked and seemed to be racially motivated as the black teenagers were selecting white victims as people passed by.”
But black mob violence was just getting started then.
Before it was over, there would be a shooting, robbings, numerous assaults and even “teens” throwing rocks at police.
Curiously, the station that first reported the racial violence did not want much to do with the story: 
“By most accounts, it was a successful weekend for the city of Cincinnati,” said the CBS affiliate news anchor, introducing the first report of the chaos.
Other than that, the play was just fine, Mrs. Lincoln."

Just the first (exposed...) of many, folks. Just the first.........Detroit spends $8.7 million to flip 30 homes that bring in $2 million

Detroit spends $8.7 million to flip 30 homes that bring in $2 million | The Detroit News:
"Detroit — City officials spent as much as $537,000 per home renovating 30 houses under a federal program to fight blight only to sell most for less than $100,000 apiece, a Detroit News investigation has found.
The Detroit Land Bank transformed eyesores — some that were rotting and burned — into gleaming gems, with glass-tiled bathrooms, stainless steel appliances, underground sprinkler systems and even $35,000 geothermal heating in a few.
.....Susan Hanafee was shocked to learn from The Detroit News that $430,000 was spent on the three-story Boston Edison home she bought last year for $80,000.
 “It kind of makes me sick,” she said. “It didn’t really need that much rehab. ... It makes me sad to think about the money that was poured into a particular house and ... to know my neighbors are having to scrape enough together to put a new roof on.”
In total, the land bank spent nearly $8.7 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development on 30 homes. 
That’s an average of $290,000 per home, and the 13 most expensive homes cost $300,000 to $537,000 apiece. 
The return on the investment from sales so far: $2 million. 
 The money was spent under a former director, Aundra Wallace, who left last summer for an economic development job in Florida.
He didn’t return phone calls for comment."