Thursday, August 27, 2015

In the news, Friday, August 14, 2015


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AUG 13      INDEX      AUG 15
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Information from some sites may not be reliable, or may not be vetted.
Some sources may require subscription.

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from The Cato Institute

China’s decision to abruptly devalue its currency against the dollar is being sold as a move toward a more market-determined exchange rate, but it is sure to infuriate those in Congress who have long argued that China is a currency manipulator.
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from CNSNews.com (& MRC & NewsBusters)
from The Daily Beast

FDA Approves OxyContin for 5th-Graders
On Thursday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the painkiller OxyContin for use in children ages 11 to 16. The National Institute on Drug Abuse has previously stated that prescription opioids like OxyContin are “addictive” and could lead to heroin use. What could possibly go wrong?

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from Gopthedailydose.com
[Information from this site may not be reliable.]
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from Huffington Post
[Information from this site may be unreliable.]

Jeb Bush Insists He's A Washington Outsider
He says he'd barely know how to drive in Washington.

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from The Living Church

Top 10 rules for reading the Bible
It is meet and right that every literate Christian “read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest” the words of sacred Scripture. Those words then form the grammar and syntax and vocabulary of our lives in Christ, they tutor us in our eventual destiny of living in the unmediated presence of the Holy One. But reading the Bible is often a challenge. It can be confusing and troubling, and it is easy to be deceived. These ten guidelines are not the Alpha and Omega of successful biblical interpretation. But perhaps they are useful touchstones.

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from Medium  Community

The Most Intolerant Wins: The Dictatorship of the Small Minority
The minority rule will show us how it all it takes is a small number of intolerant virtuous people with skin in the game, in the form of courage, for society to function properly.



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from Military Times

Gen. Odierno retires
10 photos

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from Power Line

Who Lost Iraq?
Hugh Hewitt has been making news regularly lately. If you haven’t been listening to his radio show, you should. Tonight I was driving home from work and heard the following exchange between Hugh and Lindsey Graham. First, this observation: Graham is not my favorite Republican by any means, but he is smart and generally sound on foreign policy. In addition, he has been personally involved in some key events of recent years.

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from Science (& News from Science)

The littlest farmhands
Scientists have recently discovered thousands of microbial species living in, on, and around plant roots that help plants survive and thrive—for instance by facilitating the uptake of nutrients and water, warding off pests and diseases, and enabling plants to cope with drought, flooding, toxins, or extreme temperatures. Scientists are trying to harness these symbionts for use in agriculture. Several microbial products are already in use on the farm, and major agrochemical companies are investing heavily in research to develop others. To what extent microbial products can eventually increase yields or reduce the use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers is still unclear, however.

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from The Spokesman-Review

Wildfire spreads into Orofino
A Clearwater County Sheriff’s dispatcher said the fire was spreading fast Friday evening. Residents on Upper Fords Creek Road, Cascade Drive and Harmony Heights Loop were told to evacuate.

New fire spreading fast north of Addy
A new fire exploded Friday evening in Stevens County north of Addy, quickly growing to more than 200 acres. The Marble Valley Fire started near Marble Valley Basin Road and is being pushed northeast by the wind, according to a Department of Natural Resources dispatcher. Tree crowning has been reported and the fire has jumped Townsend-Sackman Road.

Wildfires force hundreds to evacuate
Wildfires burning across the Washington and Idaho forced hundreds of people to leave their homes Friday. Lightning strikes and aggressive winds delivered a one-two punch that forced fire evacuations in scenic Chelan, blinded highway drivers with dust and ushered smoke into Spokane from farway flames in Oregon.

Patients injured by chlorine gas doing better
One man hospitalized when he was exposed to chlorine gas Wednesday at a recycling company in east Spokane has been released from the hospital and three others still in intensive care are doing better.

Deer Park man charged with murder for allegedly gunning car, running over rival
Chewelah police were called to the 900 block of North Victoria Street just after 1 a.m. on Sunday for a reported car accident. The first officer on scene found a man performing CPR on the victim, identified as Jonathan Bumatay. Police and firefighters continued CPR until Bumatay was taken away by an ambulance. The man who initially performed CPR told police that he was in a car with his friend, 19-year-old Sherman K. Akina, when Akina ran down Bumatay. The friend said he thought Akina might have gotten out of the car and kicked Bumatay after hitting him with the car. The impact threw Bumatay between 100 and 150 feet down the road and witnesses told police that he was launched high in the air. Akina then left the scene. The passenger said that Akina had been arguing with Bumatay over a woman who had children with Bumatay.

Text 911 when calling isn’t an option in Spokane County
Starting today, Spokane County residents can reach 911 with a text message. County officials announced they recently completed testing of the service, which is intended for use in emergency situations where someone can’t safely place a phone call, like a home invasion, and for those who have hearing or speech disabilities. Customers with data plans from Verizon, T-Mobile, AT&T and Sprint now can send a text message in an emergency. Dialing 911 is still the preferred and most effective way to request emergency services.

Wildfires force evacuations in Chelan County
Hundreds of people were evacuating from the central Washington city of Chelan as lightning-sparked wildfires advanced and flames and smoke were visible from downtown.

Dust storm causes multiple crashes near Ritzville
Washington state troopers are ordering drivers on state Route 395 near Ritzville to stop driving due to an extreme dust storm that has caused multiple collisions in the area, including a semi truck that has caught fire.

Second body found in crashed plane in Okanogan County
Officials have removed two bodies from a plane that crashed near Oroville in Okanogan County Thursday afternoon. The crash was discovered by firefighters responding to reports of a fire on Rise Road, about 8 miles east of Oroville. At the time they believed only one person was inside the Cessna T-182. The area did not cool down enough to allow close inspection until this morning and that is when the second body was discovered, said Okanogan County Sheriff Frank Rogers. Investigators believe they know the identity of the two people who died but have not yet notified their family members. The people live in the are and took off from the Oroville Airport Thursday.

Woman falls from WSU sorority house while vomiting out second-story window
A 19-year-old woman fell out a second-story window early Friday at the Delta Gamma sorority house near the Washington State University campus in Pullman. She reportedly had been drinking and was trying to vomit out the window when she lost her balance and fell, landing on a concrete pad after falling about 15 feet. She was taken by ambulance shortly after 2 a.m. to Pullman Regional Hospital with non-life-threatening facial injuries.

Spokane City Council suspends talks on sick leave policy
The Spokane City Council will set aside discussions about a proposed paid sick leave policy to focus on next year’s city budget, according to a news release. The council had been talking about the proposal since April, including creating a panel to draft an ordinance.

Campgrounds forced to evacuate due to wildfires in Colville National Forest
Mandatory evacuations have been ordered at three campgrounds in the Colville National Forest due to “extreme fire behavior,” officials said Friday. The Browns Lake, Skookum and South Skookum campgrounds must be evacuated for the Tower Fire burning 17 miles northwest of Newport, Washington, four miles west of the Idaho border, the Forest Service said. The fire was reported Thursday morning at the lookout tower on South Baldy Mountain.

Trapped black bear destroys car in Montana
A retired Pittsburgh schoolteacher could do nothing but laugh after a Montana black bear broke into her car, destroyed the interior while trying to escape and finally busted out through the windshield.

DISH viewers lose access to KXLY-TV
DISH Network television subscribers in Spokane have lost access to KXLY-TV because the two companies couldn’t agree on the price of broadcasting.

Evacuation notices issued for Stickpin Fire
The Ferry County Sheriff’s Office has issued level 2 evacuation notices to rural residents living near the fast-burning Stickpin Fire, which has spread to about 12,500 acres. The evacuation area covers Upper Aeneas Creek Road, Upper Long Alec Creek Road, Otis Road and North Fork St. Peters Creek Road.

Kerry calls for democracy as US flag rises in Cuba
U.S. Marines raised the Stars and Stripes over the newly reopened American Embassy in Cuba on Friday as Secretary of State John Kerry made an unprecedented call for democratic change on the island ruled by a single party for more than five decades.

State Supreme Court stands firm in dispute with Legislature over education funding
Enough already with promises to fix the state’s schools, the state Supreme Court told the Legislature on Thursday. Until the Legislature establishes a concrete plan, it’ll cost the state $100,000 a day, the justices ruled.

Chlorine gas investigation awaits cleanup, lab tests
Three Pacific Steel and Recycling workers remain hospitalized in critical condition following an accidental release of chlorine gas at the company’s east Spokane recycling facility Wednesday morning.

Grizzly shot, killed near family’s North Idaho home
A 2-year-old male grizzly bear threatening a North Idaho family was shot and ultimately killed on Tuesday. Now Barbara Casey, who shot the bear, is worried she’s in trouble for killing a federally protected species.

As fire threatens retreat, Lutheran faithful pray
Many Lutherans in Spokane have been watching nervously as the Wolverine fire on Lake Chelan creeps closer to the church retreat center known as Holden Village. As of Thursday, fire was on three sides of the former historic mining town located 10 miles west of the lake, just outside Glacier Peak Wilderness.

BP funding oil spill research center
Oil wasn’t the only thing that gushed after a well operated by BP exploded in the Gulf of Mexico. There was also a fountain of research. In the five years since the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig disaster, a scientific renaissance has blossomed in the Gulf, with thousands of researchers studying everything from crude-tolerant jellyfish to alligator stem cells. Now, from a building overlooking Corpus Christi Bay, scientists and marine biologists are using part of a $500 million grant from BP to create a single database to house troves of information from the lawsuits, damage assessments and research endeavors to make sense of the oil spill.

Fish oil can lower risk of schizophrenia, study finds
As long as seven years after getting a 12-week course of omega-3 fatty acid supplements, new research has found that young people at very high risk of developing schizophrenia were much less likely than those who did not get the supplements to develop full-blown psychosis, or to manifest a range of psychiatric disorders that commonly afflict such young adults. The new research is the first to document rigorously the impact of fish oil supplements as a means of preventing severe psychiatric disease. The apparent effects of a brief regimen of fish oil capsules were both lasting and far-ranging in a population of young adults whose mental health is fragile.

Food banks struggle to meet unexpected demand
Food banks across the country are seeing a rising demand for free groceries despite the growing economy, leading some charities to reduce the amount of food they offer each family.

Health insurance enrollments keep growing
Nearly a million people signed up for health insurance under President Barack Obama’s law even after the official enrollment season ended, helping push the share of uninsured Americans below 10 percent and underscoring how hard it could be for Republicans to dismantle the program.

Croatia says criminals involved in Egypt abduction
The alleged beheading of a Croatian hostage in Egypt took a sinister turn Thursday with the revelation that a criminal gang kidnapped him, then demanded a ransom from his employer before turning him over to the Islamic State group.

Despite ruling, Kentucky county clerk refuses same-sex marriage license requests
A gay couple marched into the county clerk’s office Thursday, carrying a federal judge’s order that said the clerk can’t deny them a marriage license based on her deeply held Christian beliefs. Still, Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis’ office turned them away. Davis was among a handful of clerks across the country to cite deeply held religious beliefs in denying gay marriage licenses after the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage in June. She was the first to be sued and her attorneys vowed to keep fighting in a case legal experts have likened the resistance some local officials put up five decades ago when the Supreme Court legalized interracial marriage.

In brief: Court rejects Connecticut death penalty
Connecticut’s highest court has overturned the death penalty in the state, saying it’s unconstitutional. Thursday’s ruling means the 11 men on the state’s death row would no longer be subject to execution orders. Those inmates include Joshua Komisarjevsky and Steven Hayes, who were sentenced to die for killing a mother and her two daughters in a 2007 home invasion in Cheshire.
DNA confirms Harding scandal
DNA testing is rewriting a chapter in presidential history. AncestryDNA, a division of Ancestry.com, says genetic analysis has confirmed President Warren G. Harding fathered a child out of wedlock with his long-rumored mistress Nan Britton. She set off a scandal when she went public nearly 90 years ago. The findings were based on DNA results from Britton’s grandson and descendants of Harding.
Inmate knew he was target, lawyer says
An inmate who was a notorious killer with ties to the 1960s and ’70s black revolutionary movement survived 50 years in California prisons before he was fatally stabbed in an exercise yard. Hugo Pinell’s attorney Keith Wattley said the 71-year-old inmate was killed Wednesday just days after being placed in the general prison population at California State Prison, Sacramento. Wattley called Pinell’s death foreseeable, as Pinell was a target of attacks for decades. The inmate spent the last 45 years in disciplinary isolation units, partly for his own protection.
Marijuana issue progresses in Ohio
If Ohio voters decide this fall to legalize marijuana for medicinal and recreational use, Ohio would become the rare state to leap in a single bound from outlawing marijuana altogether to allowing it for all uses. Republican Secretary of State Jon Husted said Wednesday that ResponsibleOhio’s proposal has met the state’s voter signature requirements to get on the Nov. 3 ballot. Organizers initially fell short but were able to gather an additional 44,185 signatures to meet the minimum.
Stolen Picasso returned to French
The U.S. government on Thursday formally returned a painting by Pablo Picasso valued at $15 million that had been stolen from a Paris museum more than a decade ago and seized by immigration officials late last year in New Jersey. During a ceremony at the French Embassy, Sarah Saldaqa, director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, officially repatriated the abstract artwork, titled “La Coiffeuse” or “The Hairdresser.” It was signed over to Fridiric Dori, the Embassy of France’s deputy chief of mission.
Deputies went to home of killings repeatedly
On the day six children and two adults were fatally shot inside their home, deputies made four separate visits to the house over about a nine-hour period before going inside, according to a timeline authorities released Thursday. The Harris County Sheriff’s Office had initially declined to say how many times its deputies had gone to the home Saturday after receiving numerous 911 calls. The first call came from the children’s grandmother, who had received a text from her daughter saying she was being held at gunpoint, authorities said. David Conley remains jailed, facing capital murder charges.

Paraguayan girl, 11, gives birth
An 11-year-old girl who was denied an abortion after being raped gave birth Thursday, the culmination of a case that put a spotlight on child rape in this poor South American nation and drew criticism from human rights groups.

In brief: Cartel boss, others killed by gunmen
Five gunmen burst into a bar early Thursday and killed a reputed drug gang boss, a reporter and four other people in Mexico’s Gulf coast state of Veracruz, authorities said. The Veracruz state prosecutors’ office said the gunmen entered the bar and went directly for the victims, who included the local boss of the Zetas drug gang, identified as Jose Marquez Balderas. It said reporter Juan Santos Carrera was among those sitting with him. Two other reporters in the bar were not shot, but were fired by their newspaper for being at the scene with the local cartel boss. Veracruz state now has seen 14 journalists killed since Gov. Javier Duarte took office in 2010 and three more have gone missing, drawing criticism from press freedom advocates.
Study: Pollution kills 4,000 in China daily
A new study shows that air pollution is killing about 4,000 people in China a day, accounting for 1 in 6 premature deaths in the world’s most populous country.
Six hurt in Jordan from Syrian shell
State media say an illuminating shell fired from Syria hit a home in a Jordanian border town injuring six people. The Petra news agency said the shell struck a home in the town of Ramtha on Thursday evening. It said five people were lightly hurt and one was in moderate condition.

Death toll climbing in China port blasts
The death toll from the fiery explosions at a warehouse of hazardous chemicals climbed Thursday to 50, and the Chinese government sent experts to the shattered and smoldering port to assess any environmental dangers from the spectacular blasts. More than 700 people were injured and dozens were reported missing in the explosions shortly before midnight Wednesday that demolished a workers’ dormitory, tossed shipping containers as if they were toy blocks and turned a fleet of 1,000 new cars into scorched metal husks. Windows were shattered for miles around by the shockwaves.

Truck bomb kills 67 at Baghdad market
In one of the deadliest single attacks in postwar Baghdad, a truck bomb shattered a popular fruit-and-vegetable market in a teeming Shiite neighborhood Thursday, killing 67 people and wounding more than 150 others. Militants from the self-described Islamic State claimed responsibility for the bombing that incinerated much of the Jameela market in the district of Sadr City.

Judge rejects Condon’s attempt to block vote on worker rights
A Superior Court judge on Thursday denied Spokane Mayor David Condon’s request to block Envision Spokane’s Worker Bill of Rights from appearing on the Nov. 3 ballot, saying that the state Supreme Court generally rules against preventing an election from occurring.

Arson-detecting dog being ‘retrained’ for retirement
The adjustment to retirement can be difficult: being at home all day instead of at work, missing the interaction with co-workers, the need to sniff gasoline before sitting down to a bowl of food. Mako, an arson dog who worked for the Spokane Valley Fire Department for five years, retired last month. His handler and owner, former fire investigator Rick Freier, said the dog misses hanging out with firefighters.

In brief: Funeral procession today for Valley Fire captain
Traffic on several Spokane Valley streets will be impacted this morning for the funeral procession of Spokane Valley Fire Department Capt. Steve Hatcher, who died suddenly on Aug. 5 after suffering a medical issue. He had been with the department since Jan. 2, 1980, and was the most senior active member of the department. He was a paramedic for more than 20 years and was promoted to captain in 2009.
100-degree Thursday breaks 1992 record
For the second day in a row, Spokane’s high temperature soared into record territory. A high of 100 degrees on Thursday broke the previous daily mark of 99 degrees in 1992. On Wednesday, Spokane tied the daily record at 99, which was reached three other years. So far, Spokane has been in triple digits four times this summer. The others were June 27 at 102; June 28 at 105; and July 31 at 100.
Police identify officers involved in shooting
The Spokane Police Department has released the names of five officers involved in a shooting at 616 E. Sanson Ave. on Saturday. Police followed Kevin L. McDaniel to the home Saturday morning. He was suspected of being involved in a car theft several days before and was wanted on a warrant for probation violations. McDaniel refused commands to come out of the house and after a standoff came running out the front door while firing at police, according to police and witnesses. The officers who returned fire, fatally wounding McDaniel, are senior police Officers Todd Brownlee, Jamie Pavlischak and Craig Hamilton as well as Officers Seth Killian and Shane Phillips.

Court rules youth can be factor in sentencing
The youth of an adult defendant can form the basis of an unusually light sentence, the Washington Supreme Court said Thursday in ordering a new sentencing hearing for a teen who raped a 12-year-old girl just days after his 18th birthday.

In brief: Pilot found dead in fiery plane wreckage
A small plane plummeted to the ground Thursday afternoon in rural Okanogan County, catching fire and killing the pilot. Okanogan County sheriff’s deputies and firefighters found the fiery wreckage on Rise Road, about 8 miles east of Oroville, while responding to four other brush fires in the area,
Kettle Crest trails closed because of fire
A wildfire has closed several trails in the Kettle Crest area, a popular destination on the Colville National Forest. The Kettle Crest, Taylor and Stickpin trails are closed, and the Forest Service was anticipating closing additional trails near the Stickpin fire, which grew from 300 to 2,000 acres on Thursday afternoon. The Stickpin fire is burning south of Profanity Peak in Ferry County. Lightning from Tuesday’s storm is believed to have started the blaze.

Spokane County man held on cruelty charges related to animal sex videos
A Spokane County man faces animal cruelty charges after seven videos were turned over to law enforcement that allegedly show him having sex with three dogs and a horse. Travis A. Joy, 45, was arrested Wednesday. He also faces harassment charges for allegedly threatening to kill the people he believed reported him to law enforcement.

Tesla hopes to raise $500M in public offering
Electric car maker Tesla Motors said Thursday it hopes to raise around $500 million in a stock offering that comes as it prepares to roll out its new SUV. Tesla will offer 2.1 million shares and expects net proceeds of $492.6 million. Tesla could make up to $566.5 million if the underwriters exercise their option to buy additional shares. Tesla CEO Elon Musk intends to purchase $20 million worth of stock.

Providence parent exploring merger
Providence Health & Services, the Renton, Washington-based parent organization of the Providence hospitals in Spokane and Eastern Washington, is exploring a merger with St. Joseph Health, a Catholic health care system based in California. The two nonprofits announced recently that they’ve begun talks on a merger, noting the discussions are “in the very early stages.”
CHAS gets grant to open Cheney clinic
The Community Health Association of Spokane, also known as CHAS Health, has received a $358,333 federal grant to open a clinic in Cheney.
Edward Jones to pay $20M for overcharges
Edward Jones has agreed to pay more than $20 million to settle claims by federal regulators that the brokerage firm and its former head of municipal underwriting overcharged customers in new municipal bonds sales, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced Thursday.
Union Pacific cuts jobs as coal volume falls
Union Pacific will cut hundreds of management jobs as the amount of coal shipped by railroads continues to plunge.

Selah’s Tree Top honored for welcoming breast-feeding mothers
Tree Top Inc. has been recognized by local health care organizations for a record of supporting breast-feeding mothers employed at the company. The Excellence in Breastfeeding Support award came last week from Yakima Valley Farm Workers Clinic in partnership with the Yakima Health Equity Forum, a student-run organization at Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences.

Stocks’ jitters easing
The anxiety that rattled markets earlier this week dissipated Thursday as China’s central bank calmed concerns that the country’s currency would continue its slide. Major markets in Europe and Asia made gains, while the U.S. stock market finished with a slight loss.

Shawn Vestal: Students who need teachers most are least likely to get higher-skilled ones

Amy Goodman: Art mirroring life’s beauty, brutality at Venice Biennale

Editorial: Drought put new facet on U.S.-Canada river treaty

Game plan necessary for back to school
Backpack bargains, sweater steals can be found but it’s about timing

National register lists Idaho Hemingway house
An Idaho house where Ernest Hemingway wrote his last works before killing himself in the main entryway in 1961 has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

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from TPNN (Tea Party News Network)
[Information from this site may not be reliable.]
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from The Western Center for Journalism
(Western Journalism)  [Information from this site may not be reliable.]

‘Lord Of The Rings’ Actor Says What No One Else Will About Islam And Christianity
The West has “lost its moral compass” and sits aimlessly doing nothing as Christianity in Africa and the Middle East is being wiped out, according to Welsh-born actor John Rhys-Davies, who played the dwarf Gimli in the Lord of the Rings movies.

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