Thursday, April 9, 2015

In the news, Wednesday, March 25, 2015


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MAR 24      INDEX      MAR 26
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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 Allen West
[Information from this site may not be reliable.]

BOOM! Hillary Clinton was just hit with racketeering lawsuit

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from CNN

Ben Carson says President Barack Obama is a psychopath. His comment came in an exchange between the neurosurgeon who's likely to mount a bid for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination and his chief adviser, Armstrong Williams, captured by a GQ reporter on the night of this year's State of the Union address.

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from Family Policy Institute of Washington

Who Doesn’t Oppose Child Abuse?

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from The Fiscal Times

$478B Infrastructure Bill Blocked by Senate GOP
It was another clear reminder of just how far apart the two parties are on any number of issues – including how to finance infrastructure spending. Senate Republicans defeated a Democratic amendment to the proposed 2016 budget on Tuesday. It was aimed at kick-starting negotiations between the White House and Congress over a new multi-year program for funding highway, bridge and other infrastructure projects. The amendment, offered by Democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), called for $478 billion in new spending over six years but without increasing the deficit. The amendment went down 52 to 45 along party lines.

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from Huffington Post
[Information from this site may be unreliable.]

Jon Stewart's 'Daily Show' Segment Leads To Huge Change For Veterans
The Choice Program, which was put in place to speed access to medical care after it was revealed that some patients had been waiting months for treatment, allows veterans who live far from VA facilities to get out-of-network care closer to home. The problem? To be eligible, you have to live 40 miles from the nearest VA facility using "as-the-crow-flies" miles.

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from The Spokesman-Review

Off-duty police officer nabs suspected bank robber
A man entered the Washington Trust Bank at 27 E. Indiana around 3:30 p.m. and demanded cash, according to a police press release. He did not show a weapon. Officer Jim Christensen was on his way home when he spotted the suspect riding a bike near Division and Mission, the press release said. The man was arrested without incident.

Idaho lawmakers propose big tax changes
Idaho House GOP leaders introduced complicated legislation Wednesday to make big changes in Idaho’s tax system – lowering the top income tax rate, removing the sales tax from groceries, and raising the gas tax by 7 cents a gallon.

Toy gun spurs arrest at Lakeland High School
Two boys, age 13 and 12, were arrested at Lakeland High School in Rathdrum today after carrying a realistic-looking toy gun into the school. They were allegedly at the school to deliver the marijuana and paraphernalia to one of the boy’s 15-year-old sister, who is a Lakeland student. The boys were booked into the Kootenai County Juvenile Detention Center on the charges of disturbing the peace, possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia and assault. The sister is also being charged with conspiracy to possess marijuana, but she was not detained.

US warplanes begin airstrikes against Islamic State in Tikrit, Iraq
U.S. warplanes began conducting airstrikes in Tikrit on Wednesday after the Iraqi government requested assistance with a stalled offensive to retake the militant-held city, officials said. The United States had hesitated to be drawn into the Iraqi government’s drive to take back the Sunni Muslim-dominated city from the extremist group Islamic State because of the involvement of thousands of Shiite militias aided by Iranian advisers.

Suspect identified in murder
Police are searching for Cameron D. Keith, 28, who has been identified as a person of interest in the death of his girlfriend, Christin N. DeMars, 22. DeMars was found in her apartment at 2928 E. Diamond Tuesday morning and it was initially thought that she was overdosing on drugs. She was vomiting and unresponsive when police arrived.

Man with 31 convictions nabbed for restaurant burglary
Christopher J. Cannata, 42, one of Spokane’s most prolific thieves has been arrested again - this time for burglarizing the popular Chaps Diner and Bakery.

Italy high court deciding fate of ’very worried’ Amanda Knox
Italy’s high court took up the appeal of Amanda Knox’s murder conviction Wednesday, considering the fate of the “very worried” American and her Italian former boyfriend in the brutal 2007 murder of Knox’s British roommate.

Bowe Bergdahl reportedly facing desertion charges
The Army sergeant who abandoned his post in Afghanistan and was held captive by the Taliban for five years will be court-martialed on charges of desertion and avoiding military service, a U.S. official said Wednesday.

Legislature clears way for WSU medical school
The Legislature gave Washington State University the authority to start its own medical school in Spokane as the Senate gave final approval to a bill this morning that repeals a 1917 statute that gave the University of Washington sole rights to a state-sponsored medical school.

Driver seriously injured in Highway 195 rollover crash
A driver was seriously injured Wednesday morning when he was thrown from a vehicle in a rollover crash shortly after 9 a.m., just south of Cheney-Spangle Road on state Highway 195.

Woman dies from gunshot wound
A woman taken to a Spokane hospital Tuesday with a gunshot wound has died from her injuries, police said Wednesday. Officers responded to a house in the 2900 block of East Diamond Avenue around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday after a man called and said there was something wrong with the woman. He told dispatchers that a gun might have been fired at the house.

Idaho spent $61 million on failed school management system
Idaho wasted $61 million on a statewide instructional management system for schools that former state schools Superintendent Tom Luna continued to push despite warnings it wouldn’t work, according to a new state performance evaluation.

Plane crash in Alps kills 150
The Airbus A320, operated by Germanwings, was less than an hour from landing in Duesseldorf on a flight from Barcelona when it unexpectedly went into a rapid descent. Germanwings said 144 passengers and six crew members were on board. Authorities said 67 Germans were believed among the victims, including 16 high school students. Contralto Maria Radner was returning to Germany with her husband and baby after performing in Wagner’s “Siegfried.” Bass baritone Oleg Bryjak had appeared in the same opera.

Bonner County board backs Scotchman Peaks wilderness proposal
Bonner County commissioners unanimously passed a resolution on Tuesday calling for the U.S. Congress to designate the Idaho portion of the Scotchman Peaks as a wilderness.

EPA seeks Superfund listing for Freeman grain elevator
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency wants a grain elevator in Freeman listed as a Superfund site to remove high levels of a toxic pesticide that’s leeching into groundwater.

Full funding sought for West Coast earthquake detection
Three dozen members of Congress from California, Oregon and Washington on Tuesday pressed for full funding of a West Coast earthquake early warning system. The group on Tuesday sent a letter to the House Appropriations Committee asking that the U.S. Geological Survey receive $16.1 million to make a demonstration system fully operational.

Phones, passengers are distraction for teen drivers
Distractions – especially talking with passengers and using cellphones – play a far greater role in car crashes involving teen drivers than has been previously understood, according to compelling new evidence cited by safety researchers.

Afghanistan pullout slows
President Barack Obama agreed Tuesday to slow the U.S. military pullout from Afghanistan at the request of its new government but insisted the delay won’t jeopardize his commitment to end America’s longest war before leaving office. In a shift from his previous plan, Obama said the U.S. would leave its 9,800 troops currently in Afghanistan in place rather than downsizing to 5,500 by year’s end.

Study: Male nurses scarce, but make more money than women
Even in an occupation that women overwhelmingly dominate, they still earn less than men, a study of nurses found. The gender gap for registered nurses’ salaries amounts to a little over $5,000 yearly on average and it hasn’t budged in more than 20 years.

In brief: Official accused of improper influence
Deputy Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, the No. 2 official at the Homeland Security Department, improperly intervened on behalf of foreign investors seeking U.S. visas in three cases involving prominent Democrats, including a company run by the youngest brother of likely Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton, the agency’s inspector general said Tuesday.
VA relaxes rural commuter rule
Responding to pressure from Congress and veterans groups, the Department of Veterans Affairs is relaxing a rule that makes it hard for some veterans in rural areas to prove they live at least 40 miles from a VA health site.

Mexican farm strike leaders to meet with growers as crops rot
For the last week, striking farmworkers in Baja California have all but stopped the winter harvest, right at its peak. While crops rot, indigenous pickers are rallying on streets and plazas as police and army soldiers keep watch, putting the normally sleepy region on edge. Negotiations between labor leaders and agribusinesses are scheduled to resume today in a meeting that could determine whether the walkout – the first in decades by Baja farmworkers – comes to an end or extends its sometimes violent run.

Attack on protesters kills 6 in Yemen
Shiite rebels fired bullets and tear gas Tuesday to disperse thousands of protesters demanding they withdraw from a southwestern province, killing six demonstrators, wounding scores more and escalating tensions in a country on the verge of civil war.

In brief: New Ebola case traced to survivor
A woman who tested positive for Ebola in Liberia last week is dating a survivor of the disease, a health official said Tuesday, offering a possible explanation for how she became the country’s first confirmed case in weeks.
Homeless get tour of Sistine Chapel
First they got sleeping bags from Pope Francis. Then a shower and shave. Now Rome’s homeless are getting a private, guided tour of the Sistine Chapel.

Obama: U.S. must ‘be honest’ about Mideast prospects
President Barack Obama said Tuesday that preserving the nation’s credibility internationally requires re-evaluating the U.S. stance on Mideast peace talks and that recent comments by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have severely hurt chances for progress.

Family of teen killed in bike crash sues Sheriff’s Office
The parents of 15-year-old Ryan Holyk filed a lawsuit against the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office and the deputy involved in the incident, Joseph Bodman, late last week. Holyk was crossing Sprague on his bicycle against a red light about 10:30 p.m. May 23 at Vista Road when Bodman sped by in his patrol SUV. Bodman was going more than 70 mph in a 35-mph zone without his emergency lights on.

Envision Spokane initiative would add workers’ rights to city charter
Spokane voters could require large companies to pay a “family wage” and insert three other workers’ rights into the city charter, under an initiative proposed by community activists. Envision Spokane, which has put forward two unsuccessful ballot measures since 2009 and had a third pulled from the 2013 ballot by a Superior Court judge, filed the new initiative with the city last week to bolster workers’ rights in Spokane.

Washington officials leading Premera cyberattack investigation
Washington insurance officials will lead a multistate investigation into how computer hackers were able to breach the security of the state’s largest health insurance company and whether Premera Blue Cross took the proper steps to notify some 11 million customers after it was discovered.

Judge tells agency to reconsider decision on caribou habitat
A federal judge on Monday ordered the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to reconsider a decision that reduced critical habitat for the South Selkirk caribou herd by 90 percent. Six environmental groups sued the agency over its 2013 decision to designate 30,000 acres of habitat as critical to the recovery of the last caribou herd in the Lower 48 states, instead of the 375,000 acres originally proposed.

Idaho House kills bill to void local knife laws
A proposal that would have allowed knives to be carried in schools and jails across Idaho appears dead. On a 9-8 vote Monday, the state House Judiciary Committee killed a Senate-passed bill seeking to invalidate all local regulations in Idaho on the use, carrying or manufacture of knives.

Spokane hires new county engineer
The state’s largest county road system has its next chief. The Spokane County Commission on Tuesday selected Mitch Reister as the county engineer, who oversees more than 2,500 miles of roads. Reister replaces Bob Brueggemann, who retired earlier this month after working for the county since 1977 and holding the top engineering job since 2006.

In brief: Doctors discover gunshot wound while treating woman
Doctors treating a woman who was thought to be suffering from a drug overdose Tuesday morning found a gunshot wound in her lower abdomen.
Alliance Data to add 130 jobs at call center
Alliance Data Retail Services plans to add 130 jobs at its Coeur d’Alene call center by the end of the year and up to 350 jobs over the next two to three years. The company, which manages credit card programs for retail brands such as Victoria’s Secret, J.Crew, Eddie Bauer and HSN, also plans to add 75,000 square feet of space to make room for the new employees.
Police pursuit ends in crash, DUI charge
Police who believed they were responding to help a fallen fellow officer Monday evening instead ended up chasing a Ford Crown Victoria driven by a man who appeared to be drunk.

In brief: Amy’s Kitchen recalls frozen meals over listeria worry
Amy’s Kitchen is recalling nearly 73,900 cases of certain lots of nearly 20 products, including vegetable lasagna, spinach pizza, and bowls of brown rice and vegetables, due to possible listeria contamination, becoming the latest food maker to recall spinach products because of the bacteria. Amy’s Kitchen said it was not aware of any illness complaints so far regarding its products, which were sold at stores across the United States and in Canada. The recall stems from a recall notice Amy’s said it got from one of its organic spinach suppliers.
Finding job near home getting more difficult
A Brookings Institution report out Tuesday finds the number of jobs within typical commuting range dropped 7 percent between 2000 and 2012 in major U.S. metropolitan areas.
Rising gasoline prices push up inflation
The consumer price index increased 0.2 percent after a 0.7 percent drop in January that was the largest decline in more than six years, the Labor Department said Tuesday. Gasoline prices rose 2.4 percent in February after falling 18.7 percent the previous month.
Morgan Stanley CFO takes Google post
Ruth Porat, chief financial officer of Morgan Stanley, is leaving to take the same job at Google Inc., a symbolically significant move by a high-profile Wall Street executive – and one of the finance industry’s most prominent women.

Elder care policies put dent in profits
Thirty years ago, insurance companies had the answer to the soaring cost of caring for the elderly. Plan ahead and buy a policy that will cover your expenses. Now, there’s a new problem: Even insurers think it’s unaffordable.

American Express facing difficult times
Changing consumer habits, extremely aggressive competition and increased pushback from its merchants are putting heavy pressure on AmEx is ending its 15-year relationship with AmEx and defecting to Citigroup and Visa starting next March. Airlines that used to give VIP lounge access to AmEx cardholders have been switching in recent years to other credit card companies. And compounding its troubles, AmEx recently lost a government antitrust lawsuit.

Comcast boosts ranks
The cable giant said Monday it will triple its social media employees to 60 by this summer as part of its flagging customer service operations. Social media employees respond to questions or concerns by subscribers on Twitter, Facebook and Comcast support forums. The hiring will be done in Philadelphia and Denver by this summer.

Amazon’s drone approval obsolete
The approval federal aviation officials gave Amazon.com last week to test a specific drone design outdoors is already outdated, the company’s top policy executive said Tuesday in written testimony to a Senate subcommittee. Paul Misener, Amazon’s vice president of global public policy, said the Federal Aviation Administration approved an older drone design that the company has moved past. The company needs FAA approval for outdoor testing of drones that it hopes to one day deploy to deliver small packages to customers within 30 minutes in a service it has dubbed Prime Air.

Shawn Vestal: Consumers drive demand for bad news, study finds

Trudy Rubin: Afghan women must know they’re not alone

Editorial: Inspector general would be worth the cost to Idaho

In the Kitchen with: Betty Peters
Family’s unforgettable cake features toasted marshmallows baked into sugar and nut topping
Crater Cake

Blending love, traditions
‘New Jewish Table’ offers possible Passover dishes
Matzo-Stuffed Cornish Game Hens
Fig & Port Wine Blintzes
Chocolate Hazelnut Rugelach

‘Nutelasagna’ uses beloved spread
Homemade Chocolate- Hazelnut Spread
Nutelasagna

Obituary: Wallace, Lydia Erma Matilda (Feddersen) (Helm)
20 Feb 1920 - 22 Mar 2015     Havillah, Tonasket

Obituary: Matherly, Albert “Allen”
7 May 1946 - 23 Mar 2015     Chewelah, Wellpinit

Obituary: St. John, Roy E.
17 Oct 1923 - 22 Mar 2015     Oakesdale, Farmington, Tekoa

Obituary: Collins, Linda Jane (Brian)
26 Oct 1948 - 13 Mar 2015     Spokane
Spokane Christian Center; Healing Rooms Ministries

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from Tea Party
[Information from this site may not be reliable.]

Police say a man likely saved the lives of several people when he shot and killed a gunman inside a West Philadelphia barbershop.

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from Townhall.com

The Learning Curve of a Candidate
Dr. Ben Carson:  As we stand about 20 months out from Election Day 2016, I have much to learn in terms of becoming both a better candidate and a better potential president of the United States. I do not take the opportunity lightly. In fact, the decision to explore a candidacy for president was one of the most difficult decisions I have ever had to make.

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from The Washington Examiner (DC)

Left-wing state legislator: Police are worse than ISIS
Nebraska state Sen. Ernie Chambers compared U.S. police to Islamic State terrorists and added that if he carried a weapon, he'd use it on a cop.

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from The Washington Free Beacon (DC)

IG Report: Reid More Involved in Visa Controversy Than Previously Known
Senate’s top Dem pushed visa applications for Chinese investors in Vegas casino

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