Chicago Public Schools struggle under $6 billion of debt

Chicago Public Schools struggle under $6 billion of debt - EAGnews.org:
"CHICAGO – Chicago Public Schools wants to borrow up to $700 million to cover recent projects and restructure current loans, the latest proposal in a district in perpetual financial crisis.
A proposed resolution for today’s board meeting would include $300 million in bonds to pay for air conditioners and playground upgrades funded using short-term loans, and would devote another $400 million to refinancing existing loans to save money, CPS spokesman Bill McCaffrey told the Chicago Tribune.
“…CPS has increasingly used refinancing to delay principal payments as they come due, buying short-term relief at a higher long-term cost.
A 2012 refinancing delayed until at least 2033 $60 million worth of principal payments due in 2013 and 2014, driving up interest costs,” the Tribune reports.

“Used often at City Hall for many years, this strategy is dubbed scoop and toss, because the new loan ‘scoops’ up the debt and ‘tosses’ it into the future...."

My God! It's getting like 1930s Europe!-----Russia Pushes Reset Button on U.S. Relations: Parades Missile Threatening to BLOW UP Obama

Russia Pushes Reset Button on U.S. Relations: Parades Missile Threatening to BLOW UP Obama | John Hawkins' Right Wing News:

Russia is supposed to be an ally, but they are (understandably) having a hard time taking President Obama’s foreign policy seriously. A recent post by The Gateway Pundit shows that Putin, like Hitler with Chamberlain, views Obama as weak an ineffective.

In March 2009 Hillary Clinton announced that the Obama Adminstration was going to push the reset button with the Russians.

Unfortunately, the administration bungled their delivery and spelled out “overcharge” rather than “restart” on their prop

This week Russia pushed its own reset button…

Russians paraded a missile on Army Day marked “to be personally delivered to Obama.”

‘My Views Have Changed’: Fox News Host Hammers Scott Walker on Amnesty, Abortion and State Money. Watch How Walker Handles Himself. | Video | TheBlaze.com

‘My Views Have Changed’: Fox News Host Hammers Scott Walker on Amnesty, Abortion and State Money. Watch How Walker Handles Himself. | Video | TheBlaze.com:

"Want to know where Wisconsin Gov. (and Republican presidential frontrunner) Scott Walker stands on the issues?

Here are your answers.

“Fox News Sunday” host Chris Wallace sat down with the governor this week and grilled him on his recent comments and “flips” on everything from abortion to amnesty, earning his reputation as, “The only Sunday moderator who is [a] reliable interrogator of those in power.”

Report: Government Policies Bigger Threat To The Electrical Grid Than Terrorist Attacks

Report: Government Policies Bigger Threat To The Electrical Grid Than Terrorist Attacks | The Daily Caller:
"What’s the biggest threat to the reliability of America’s electrical grid?
It’s not terrorism, or solar flares.
It’s actually federal and state government environmental policies, according to a new study.
Obama administration air and climate regulations, coupled with state policies to push green energy use are forcing 130 gigawatts of power to shut down in the coming years — enough to provide reliable power to 105 million Americans, says the free-market Institute for Energy Research.
“The single greatest emerging threat to reliable electricity in the U.S. does not come from natural disturbances or from human attacks,” writes Travis Fisher, an energy economist at IER.
“Rather, the host of bad policies now coming from the federal government—and, unfortunately, from many state governments —is creating far greater and more predictable problems with grid reliability,” Fisher warns...
Read on!

History for March 2

History for March 2 - On-This-Day.com
Sam Houston 1793 - First President of the Republic of Texas 
Today in Texas History, Dr. Suess (Theodor Seuss Geisel) 1904 - Writer, poet, and cartoonist, Desi Arnaz 1917


Tom Wolfe 1931 - Author, Mikhail Gorbachev 1931 - Former Soviet President, Karen Carpenter 1950 - Singer (The Carpenters)


 Laraine Newman 1952 - Actress ("Saturday Night Live"), Jon Bon Jovi 1962 - Musician (Bon Jovi), Reggie Bush 1985 - Football player 


1807 - The U.S. Congress passed an act to "prohibit the importation of slaves into any port or place within the jurisdiction of the United States... from any foreign kingdom, place, or country." 


1836 - Texas declared its independence from Mexico and an ad interim government was formed. 


1877 - In the U.S., Rutherford B. Hayes was declared the winner of the 1876 presidential election by the U.S. Congress. Samuel J. Tilden, however, had won the popular vote on November 7, 1876. 


1917 - The Russian Revolution began with Czar Nicholas II abdicating. 

1917 - Citizens of Puerto Rico were granted U.S. citizenship with the enactment of the Jones Act. 


1925 - State and federal highway officials developed a nationwide route-numbering system and adopted the familiar U.S. shield-shaped, numbered marker. 


1984 - The first McDonald's franchise was closed. A new location was opened across the street from the old location in Des Plaines, IL. 

Egypt Lays Down the Law: Hamas Is a ‘Terrorist Organization’ | TheBlaze.com

Egypt Lays Down the Law: Hamas Is a ‘Terrorist Organization’ | TheBlaze.com:

"The ruling by Judge Mohamed el-Sayed of the Court For Urgent Matters described Hamas as targeting both civilians and security forces inside Egypt’s restive Sinai Peninsula and aiming to harm the country. The Sinai has been under increasing attack by Islamic extremists since the Egyptian military ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi in 2013.

“It has been proven without any doubt that the movement has committed acts of sabotage, assassinations and the killing of innocent civilians and members of the armed forces and police in Egypt,” the judge’s ruling said, according to state news agency MENA.

In Gaza, Hamas official Mushir al-Masri condemned the decision and urged Egypt to reverse course."

Treasury won't explain decision to make $3 billion in Obamacare payments

Treasury won't explain decision to make $3 billion in Obamacare payments | WashingtonExaminer.com:
"The U.S. Treasury Department has rebuffed a request by House Ways and Means Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan, R- Wis., to explain $3 billion in payments that were made to health insurers even though Congress never authorized the spending through annual appropriations.
At issue are payments to insurers known as cost-sharing subsidies.
These payments come about because President Obama’s healthcare law forces insurers to limit out-of-pocket costs for certain low income individuals by capping consumer expenses, such as deductibles and co-payments, in insurance policies.
In exchange for capping these charges, insurers are supposed to receive compensation.
What’s tricky is that Congress never authorized any money to make such payments to insurers in its annual appropriations, but the Department of Health and Human Services, with the cooperation of the U.S. Treasury, made them anyway."

Hitler's Nazis and the ISIS Islamofascists - The Rush Limbaugh Show

Hitler's Nazis and the ISIS Islamofascists - The Rush Limbaugh Show:

"The things I've warned people about so many times and some just don't know, they don't remember or what have you, those times are very infrequent when I get bothered by this.  But my overall point is that a lot of people have drawn the analogy, made the analogy, drawn the comparison, but where you haven't seen it is in the mainstream Drive-By Media, where ISIS is in no way being portrayed accurately.  It's not even close.  And that is to give cover to Obama.

Obama is responsible for the lack of truthful coverage about ISIS because he doesn't want to treat them that way.  He doesn't want ISIS to seem like they're anything other than a bunch of random, ragtag criminals.  So when he sends that message, his allies in the media dutifully perform and regard ISIS as a bunch of ragtag, random criminals, certainly not terrorists.  Maybe terrorists, but, no, no."

Legal pot possession to take effect at midnight in the District

Bowser: Legal pot possession to take effect at midnight in the District - The Washington Post
Flanked by members of the D.C. Council and the city’s top lawyer, Mayor Muriel E. Bowser announced on live television Wednesday that marijuana possession will become legal in the District at 12:01 a.m. Thursday.
“We believe that we’re acting lawfully,” Bowser said, offering a direct retort to House Republicans who late Tuesday urged the mayor — and even threatened prison time — to reconsider moving forward with legalization.
“I have a lot of things to do in the District of Columbia,” Bowser said. 
“Me being in jail wouldn’t be a good thing.”

This is how they "lie" without the actual lie-----NBC Devotes Nearly Four Minutes to Dress Debate, Seconds to Clinton Corruption

NBC Devotes Nearly Four Minutes to Dress Debate, Seconds to Clinton Corruption
On Friday, NBC finally noticed the corruption scandal swirling around Hillary Clinton. 
However, the coverage on the Today show was relegated to a 49-second mention within a story slamming Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker. 
By contrast, the morning show devoted 3 minutes 56 seconds to a social media debate about the color of a dress. 
Downplaying the Clinton controversy as something ginned up by partisan critics, correspondent Kelly O'Donnell declared: "Conservatives seized on The Washington Post report that seven foreign governments donated millions of dollars to the Clinton Foundation while Hillary Clinton served as secretary of state, violating an ethics agreement made with the Obama administration." 
O'Donnell noted jabs at Clinton during the Conservative Political Action Conference: "With all the fire of a Texas barbecue...Ted Cruz turned up the heat on Hillary Clinton." 
A soundbite played from Cruz: "Hillary Clinton embodies the corruption of Washington." O'Donnell added: "Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina called out Clinton several times." 
A clip played of Fiorina blasting the former secretary of state: "She tweets about women's rights in this country and takes money from governments that deny women the most basic human rights." 
On Thursday, none of the network evening newscasts covered the scandal, and only CBS This Morning mentioned the front-page Post story in a 32-second news brief...

Full Scale Simulation: New Study Reveals Where To Go When Civilization Collapses: “Head For The Hills”

Full Scale Simulation: New Study Reveals Where To Go When Civilization Collapses: “Head For The Hills” | The Daily Sheeple:
Should the world as we know it ever fall apart as a result of an economic collapse, a massive natural disaster, cyber attack or widespread pandemic there will be millions of people looking for food, clean water and other essential resources.

The cities will be plagued with violence and supply shortages. Government officials will, as Homeland Security has previously admitted, not be able to provide any meaningful support. The masses will be left to fend for themselves.

But just because the whole system around us falls apart doesn’t mean there won’t be any safe havens.

According to researchers at Cornell University who recently published a study analyzing the spread of a deadly virus and how it would affect the population, if you want to improve your chances of survival you should head for the hills.

But the researchers warn that even this may not be enough, noting that we are likely “doomed” either way.

Researchers from Cornell University have now discovered that the correct thing to do should the dead start to walk the earth is to literally head for the hills.

…

They found that cities would fall quickly, but it would take weeks for zombies to penetrate into less densely populated areas, and months to reach northern parts of the mountain-time zone...."

Here Are the 52 House Republicans Who Defied John Boehner on Contentious DHS Spending Bill | TheBlaze.com

Here Are the 52 House Republicans Who Defied John Boehner on Contentious DHS Spending Bill | TheBlaze.com:

"Here are the Republicans who defied House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Friday:"


And here they are...

Black Privilege: Students Get SAT Bonus Points for Being Black or Hispanic – Asians Are Penalized

Black Privilege: Students Get SAT Bonus Points for Being Black or Hispanic – Asians Are Penalized | The Gateway Pundit:

A report in the LA Times revealed that blacks and Hispanics get bonus SAT points at elite universities based on their race. Asian students however are penalized 50 points due to their race.
The LA Times reported, via DownTrend:

Lee’s next slide shows three columns of numbers from a Princeton University study that tried to measure how race and ethnicity affect admissions by using SAT scores as a benchmark. It uses the term “bonus” to describe how many extra SAT points an applicant’s race is worth. She points to the first column.

African Americans received a “bonus” of 230 points, Lee says.

She points to the second column.

“Hispanics received a bonus of 185 points.”

The last column draws gasps.

Asian Americans, Lee says, are penalized by 50 points — in other words, they had to do that much better to win admission.

“Do Asians need higher test scores? Is it harder for Asians to get into college? The answer is yes,” Lee says.

“Zenme keyi,” one mother hisses in Chinese. How can this be possible?

Isn't the definition of "non-profit" proof they don't pay their fair share of taxes and volunteer "pay checks"?-----Group sets $7.5M fundraising goal to bring nonprofit theater to downtown Rochester

Group sets $7.5M fundraising goal to bring nonprofit theater to downtown Rochester | Crain's Detroit Business:
"The last time you could see a movie in downtown Rochester, the Detroit Tigers won a World Series, Frankie Goes To Hollywood told the world to "Relax" and one of the top movies of the year, "Beverly Hills Cop," had its own Detroit connections.
Rochester's last theater, The Hills Theatre on Main Street, closed in 1984 after more than 40 years in operation.
The Idle Hour Theatre, later named Avon Theatre, operated 1914-54.
 They remained part of the downtown's past — until now.
 A 25-person committee, an offshoot of the Rochester-Avon Historical Society, formed three years ago to study the potential of bringing a theater back to Rochester.
Now officially called The Theater Group of Rochester Co., that group is in the process of forming a 501(c)(3) and has set a fundraising goal of $7.5 million to purchase a building on Main Street, renovate it and set up an endowment fund for theater operations. 
The nonprofit theater would be run by volunteers."

And they're better at predicting the climate in 50 years?!!!-----Flu vaccine is only 18 percent effective, CDC says

Flu vaccine is only 18 percent effective, CDC says | NJ.com:
"If you are one of those individuals who received the flu vaccine this season and still got the flu, chances are good you've got company.
Federal officials this week said this season's flu vaccine, already acknowledged to be not highly effective, is performing worse than earlier estimated.
The vaccine is only 18 percent effective against the dominant H3N2 strain of the flu in circulation, according to HealthDay, a National Institutes of Health online news publication.
That's down from a predicted effectiveness level of around 23 percent, estimated in mid-January...."

‘It’s Time for a New Republican Party’: Radio Heavyweight Slams ‘Republican Establishment’ and Jeb Bush at CPAC | TheBlaze.com

‘It’s Time for a New Republican Party’: Radio Heavyweight Slams ‘Republican Establishment’ and Jeb Bush at CPAC | TheBlaze.com:

"He opened up the final day of the 2015 Conservative Political Action Conference, and he made darn sure everyone knew that’s what he was: conservative.

“We are here not because we’re Republicans,” radio titan Mark Levin told the CPAC crowd on Saturday. “In fact many of us are here in spite of that fact.”

Then Levin went after the “Republican establishment” and called out presidential contender Jeb Bush by name."

Oh yeah...no money to fix roads but lots moolah for chu chu trains------Study to examine Detroit-Lansing-Grand Rapids passenger rail

And lots of union jobs!!!!
Study to examine Detroit-Lansing-Grand Rapids passenger rail | Crain's Detroit Business:
A study will look at possible new passenger rail service that could connect Detroit, Lansing, Grand Rapids and Holland.
The Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority's governing board voted Thursday to authorize a $100,000 contract for a rail ridership and cost estimate study for passenger rail along that corridor.
The study will seek to determine the demand and feasibility for service between eastern and Western Michigan, the Ann Arbor News reported.
The study will involve looking at the economic and financial impacts of establishing such a service, which could include Ann Arbor.
The AAATA is acting as a conduit for pass-through grant funding on behalf of the Michigan Environmental Council, which is taking the lead on the study.
There also has been recent discussion about possible passenger rail service between Ann Arbor and Traverse City, with stops in Cadillac, Mount Pleasant, Alma, Owosso and Howell."

ATF Tries to Ban Common Rifle Ammo As "Armor-Piercing" Despite Its Own Statutory Definition

ATF Tries to Ban Common Rifle Ammo As "Armor-Piercing" Despite Its Own Statutory Definition - Hit & Run : Reason.com
Frank Miniter at Forbes' website has a good summation of a controversial new move by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms to ban further production and sale of some very common rifle ammo, by classifying it as "armor-piercing," something that, by statutory definition at least, it is not.

Excerpts:

The ATF says it wants to ban M855 ball ammunition, a .223 (or 5.56 mm) rifle bullet that has been used by American citizens for decades. The ATF says it wants to ban this popular bullet because it is “armor piercing.”

The law at the basis of this debate is the Gun Control Act of 1968 (GCA). As amended, the GCA prohibits the import, manufacture and distribution of “armor piercing ammunition” as defined by a few terms Attorney General Eric Holder’s Department of Justice (DOJ) is attempting to broaden.

The definition for what constitutes “armor piercing” reads: “a projectile or projectile core which may be used in a handgun and which is constructed entirely … from one or a combination of tungsten alloys, steel, iron, brass, bronze, beryllium copper, or depleted uranium.”

Now, to be as nitpicky as the law, the M855 ball ammunition the ATF wants to ban as “armor piercing” doesn’t have a core made of the metals listed in what legally makes a bullet “armor piercing.” The M855 actually has a lead core with a steel tip. Also, the M855 is traditionally a rifle cartridge and the ban only covers handgun ammunition. The DOJ argues this doesn’t stop them because the law stipulates they can ban a bullet that “may be used in a handgun.” And, after all, any cartridge may be used in a handgun.

History for March 1

History for March 1 - On-This-Day.com
Glenn Miller 1904 - Bandleader , David Niven 1910 - Actor ("The Guns of the Navarone"), William Gaines 1922 - Publisher ("MAD Magazine"), Deke (Donald) Slayton 1924 - Astronaut 


Harry Belafonte 1927 - Singer, actor, Roger Daltry 1944 - Musician (The Who) 
The Who Merchandise, Ron Howard 1954 - Producer, actor ("The Andy Griffith Show", "Happy Days") 


1562 - In Vassy, France, Catholics massacred over 1,000 Huguenots. The event started the First War of Religion. 


1692 - In Salem Village, in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the Salem witch trials began. Four women were the first to be charged. 


1790 - The U.S. Congress authorized the first U.S. census. 

1811 - Egyptian ruler Mohammed Ali massacred the leaders of the Mameluke dynasty. 


1872 - The U.S. Congress authorized the creation of Yellowstone National Park. It was the world's first national park. 


1873 - E. Remington and Sons of Ilion, NY, began the manufacturing the first practical typewriter. 


1912 - Captain Albert Berry made the first parachute jump from a moving airplane. 


1932 - The 22-month-old son of Charles and Anne Lindbergh was kidnapped. The child was found dead in May. 


1954 - Five U.S. congressmen were wounded when four Puerto Rican nationalists opened fire from the gallery of the U.S. House of Representatives. 


2003 - In the U.S., approximately 180,000 personnel from 22 different organizations around the government became part of the Department of Homeland Security. This completed the largest government reorganization since the beginning of the Cold War. 


2003 - Khalid Shaikh Mohammed was captured by CIA and Pakistani agents near Islamabad. He was the suspected mastermind behind the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001.