China's wild giant panda population is on the rise

(TheWeek)

Party on, pandas.

China's State Forestry Administration found in its latest census that since the last survey ended in 2003, the wild giant panda population has grown by 268, to a total of 1,864 pandas, The Associated Press reports.

"The rise…is a victory for conservation and definitely one to celebrate," Ginette Hemley, senior vice president of wildlife conservation for World Wildlife Fund, said.

Giant pandas still face threats to their habitats, though. The new survey noted that the development of such structures as hydropower stations, roads, and mining sites is replacing traditional threats like poaching.

9 dead, including suspect, after shootings in Missouri town

(NewYorkPost) - Eight people were killed in overnight shootings in southern Missouri — and the gunman was found dead early Friday from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to reports.

The attacks occurred in various locations in and around the town of Tyrone, in Texas County, about 40 miles north of the Arkansas border, police said. The victims were found at four separate homes.

The 36-year-old suspect — who was found dead in Shannon County — and the victims have not yet been named. A motive for the killings and possible ties between the shooter and victims were not immediately clear.

Texas County Sheriff James Sigman told the Houston Herald that there are four confirmed crime scenes at Tyrone, a possible fifth location and a sixth outside of Texas County in Shannon County.

He declined to provide any additional information.

An elderly woman, whose body was found in another residence, appeared to have died from natural causes, Reuters reported.

One wounded person found at a residence was taken to a hospital, the Missouri State Highway Patrol said. Full Story

US: FCC Approves Net Neutrality Rules For 'Open Internet'

(npr.org) Feb 26 15 = The Federal Communications Commission approved the policy known as net neutrality by a 3-2 vote at its Thursday meeting, with FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler saying the policy will ensure "that no one — whether government or corporate — should control free open access to the Internet."

The Open Internet Order helps to decide an essential question about how the Internet works, requiring service providers to be a neutral gateway instead of handling different types of Internet traffic in different ways — and at different costs.

"Today is a red-letter day," Wheeler said Thursday.

The dissenting votes came from Michael O'Rielly and Ajut Pai, Republicans who warned that the FCC was overstepping its authority and interfering in commerce to solve a problem that doesn't exist. They also complained that the measure's 300-plus pages weren't publicly released or openly debated.

The new policy would replace a prior version adopted in 2010 — but that was put on hold following a legal challenge by Verizon. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled last year that the FCC did not have sufficient regulatory power over broadband.

After that ruling, the FCC looked at ways to reclassify broadband to gain broader regulatory powers. It will now treat Internet service providers as carriers under Title II of the Telecommunications Act, which regulates services as public utilities. Full Story

T.J. Maxx, Marshalls to boost U.S. workers' pay to at least $9 an hour

The Horror!

(LATimes.com) = TJX Cos., the owner of discount retailers T.J. Maxx and Marshalls, is raising its worker pay to at least $9 an hour this year, a sign that the retail industry is responding to a similar wage hike announced last week by Wal-Mart Stores Inc.

TJX, based in Framingham, Mass., said all of its U.S. employees will start earning at least $9 an hour in June and that those who have worked at least six months will get a boost to $10 an hour in 2016.

As the economy improves, pay raises could help retailers hold onto employees who increasingly have more options in the job market. Nationwide protests calling for workers to be paid a living wage have also put the industry's pay scales in the spotlight.

"This pay initiative is an important part of our strategies to continue attracting and retaining the best talent," TJX Chief Executive Carol Meyrowitz said in a statement. She said TJX wanted to "remain competitive on wages in our U.S. markets."

The retailer, which has about 191,000 employees worldwide, did not disclose its current entry-level hourly pay, but a recent report from Credit Suisse pegs it at around $8.24. The federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour, and California's is $9 an hour.

The move by TJX raises the possibility that other retailers will follow the example set by Wal-Mart, which last week announced that it was boosting wages for its employees to at least $9 an hour in April, and then $10 an hour in 2016.

Wal-Mart characterized its decision as an effort to retain employees. The world's biggest retailer had also faced pressure over the past year from labor groups that held demonstrations and rallies calling for higher pay and more consistent hours.

ISIS Leader: Funding Comes From USA

Shocker..

Mattel Making Over Barbie With Racial Diversity, Tech Features

(TheOnion.com) After years of losing young consumers to competing doll brands like Bratz and Monster High, Mattel has decided to completely make over Barbie by releasing a new line of dolls that are racially diverse, have the ability to talk, can bend their ankles, and more. Here are some features of the new Barbies:

• Comes with blank census form so Barbie can self-identify gender and sexual orientation
• Dolls will have the option to be either racially diverse or talk but not both
• All speech-enabled dolls programmed with special voice recognition chip that only allows them to speak when spoken to
• Biodegradable plastic allows Barbie’s perfect body to naturally succumb to the ravages of age
• Realistic dry elbows
• Extendable limbs to show that women’s appendages come in all shapes and sizes
• Still no Jewish doll until somebody makes a fuss
• Blonde, Caucasian models continue to be available for company to make some money

Indonesia recalls envoy to Brazil amid row over execution

(Reuters) Feb. 21, 2015 - Indonesia has recalled its new ambassador to Brazil after the South American country stopped him taking part in a credentials ceremony following the execution of a Brazilian national for drugs trafficking.

Brazil and the Netherlands earlier withdrew their ambassadors from Indonesia, which has some of the strictest drug trafficking laws in the world, after two of their citizens were among six people executed for drugs offences last month.

Indonesia is also involved in a diplomatic dispute with Australia over the fate of two Australian members of the "Bali Nine" drug trafficking ring who are due to be executed this month.

Toto Riyanto, who was chosen as Indonesia's new ambassador to Brazil in October, had been invited to present his credentials at a ceremony at the presidential palace in Brasilia on Friday along with several other new ambassadors, but his participation was postponed at short notice. The ceremony went on without him.

When asked why, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff said: "We think it's important there is an evolution in the situation so that we can have clarity over the state of relations between Indonesia and Brazil".

Indonesia's Foreign Ministry responded angrily on Saturday.

"The manner in which the foreign minister of Brazil suddenly informed (us of) the postponement...when the ambassador designate was already at the palace, is unacceptable to Indonesia," the ministry said in a statement.

No foreign country could interfere with Indonesia's laws, including those combating drug trafficking, it said.

The ministry also summoned Brazil's ambassador late on Friday before recalling Riyanto.

Brazil's embassy in Jakarta could not be reached for comment on Saturday. A spokesperson for Brazil's foreign ministry, Itamaraty, in Brasilia declined to comment.

Indonesia is also involved in a diplomatic dispute with Australia over the fate of two Australian members of the "Bali Nine" drug trafficking ring who are due to be executed this month.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo has pledged no clemency for drug offenders, despite pleas from the European Union, Brazil, Australia and Amnesty International.(Source)

India health officials urge calm as swine flu outbreak spreads

(america.aljazeera.com) Feb 20 2015 = Health officials in India this week tried to reassure citizens that the country has adequate medical supplies to combat a swine flue outbreak that has reportedly killed more than 700 people and infected 11,000 others since mid-December.

There is “no shortage of drugs or any other logistics,” and the government is “closely monitoring the situation,” the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said in a statement on Wednesday.

"The situation in terms of availability of drugs, testing kits, diagnostic labs, personal protective equipment (PPE), masks etc., is being continuously reviewed through video conferencing and telephonic means," the release said.

Though the airborne nature of H1N1 swine flu and India’s dense population make the outbreak difficult to contend with, doctors have echoed the health ministry’s warnings and instructed citizens to remain calm.

“There’s no cause for panic, but there is cause for worry and we have to be careful and we have to keep track of this because usually the H1N1 influenza season ends by this time as the temperature increases. But this time, unfortunately, it hasn’t done so yet," Dr. Sumit Ray, a physician at New Delhi's Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, told Al Jazeera.

Doctors attribute the unusually high number of casualties this flu season to infected people delaying hospital visits. Medical professionals are urging anyone who feels symptoms – including chills, coughing, fatigue, fever and headache – to seek immediate care.

Health officials have also launched an education campaign over television and radio to instruct citizens on how to shield themselves from the virus. However, health workers said they were struggling to reach people fast enough. Full Story

Tanzania must halt violence against albinos: UN rights chief

(timeslive.co.za) Feb 19 1015. =The UN human rights chief harshly condemned the murder and mutilation of an albino toddler in Tanzania, demanding authorities protect albinos, whose body parts are used for witchcraft in the country.

"Violence and discrimination against people with albinism must be halted," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said in a statement, condemning "the horrific murder and mutilation of Yohana Bahati."

The one-year old boy was seized by men with machetes from his home in northern Tanzania's Chato district overnight Saturday, and his mother was badly injured in the attack.

Police found his body, with his arms and legs hacked off, on Tuesday.

Zeid said attacks on people with albinism, which are often motivated by the use of body parts for witchcraft rituals, had claimed the lives of at least 75 people since 2000.

He warned that the attacks seemed to be on the rise, with at least three incidents over the past two months.

"I call on the Tanzanian authorities to swiftly investigate and prosecute perpetrators of this terrible crime and to strengthen its protection measures for people with albinism," Zeid said.

The UN repeated its fears that the uptick in attacks against albinos could be linked to looming general and presidential elections in October 2015, as political campaigners may be turning to influential sorcerers to improve their odds.

"This is the year of elections in Tanzania and, as some analysts have suggested, it could be a dangerous year for people living with albinism," UN country chief Alvaro Rodriguez warned Wednesday.

Albino body parts sell for around $600 in Tanzania, with an entire corpse fetching $75,000, according to the UN.

Albinism is a hereditary genetic condition which causes a total absence of pigmentation in the skin, hair and eyes. It affects one Tanzanian in 1,400, often as a result of inbreeding, experts say. In the West, it affects just one person in 20,000.

US: South Dakota ranks No. 3 for well-being

(argusleader.com) - How happy and healthy are you?

If you live in South Dakota, the odds are you have a higher well-being than the entire lower contiguous 48 states.

A report released Thursday by Gallup-Healthways lists South Dakota as No. 3 union wide for well-being. Alaska is No. 1 and Hawaii No. 2.

The rankings use five categories to determine the overall well-being. South Dakota ranked first in two categories: Social and community. Social measures "having supportive relationships and love in your life" and community measured "liking where you live, feeling safe and having pride in your community."

A breakdown of the other categories and where South Dakota ranked:

• Purpose (liking what you do each day and being motivated to achieve your goals): 5

• Financial (managing your economic life to reduce stress and increase security): 5

• Physical (having good health and enough energy to get things done daily): 11.

Full Story

Wal-Mart, under pressure, boosts minimum U.S. wage to $9 an hour

Queue ultra right wing conspiracy outrage..

(Reuters) - Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N) said it would raise entry-level wages to $9 an hour, a 24 percent increase from the U.S. minimum wage that some employees now earn, succumbing to longstanding pressure to pay its workforce more.

The world's largest retailer said the increases would cost it $1 billion and impact 500,000 employees, or about 40 percent of its workforce, although the hike falls short of what some labor groups have been agitating for.

The move comes amid a growing debate in the U.S. over the widening gulf between the rich and low-income workers. Wal-Mart has been a prime target of critics who say its low-wages and inflexible scheduling are a big part of the problem.

The White House praised the move, pointing out that 17 states have already moved to boost their minimum wages above the federal level of $7.25 an hour and renewing its call on the Republican Congress to boost the wage on a national level.

"But given their recalcitrance on this because Republicans keep blocking it, we’re going to continue to keep making progress in other ways,” White House spokesman Eric Schultz told reporters.

* * * *

Also, Happy Chinese New Year of the Sheep!

Saudi cleric rejects that Earth revolves around the Sun

(Al Arabiya News) 16 February 2015- A Saudi cleric has appeared in a recent video rejecting the fact that the Earth revolves around the Sun and claiming the opposite holds true, prompting a wave of social media remarks.

Answering a student question on whether the Earth is stationary or moving, Sheikh Bandar al-Khaibari replied: "stationary and does not move."

He then attempted to support his argument by quoting some clerics and selected religious statements. But his most controversial method to debunk the rotation theory was a "logical" deduction in which he used a visual.

“First of all, where are we now? we go to Sharjah airport to travel to China by plane, clear?! focus with me, this is Earth;” he said, holding a sealed water cup.

He argued that if a plane stops still in air “China would be coming towards it” in case the Earth rotates on one direction. It the Earth rotates on opposite direction, the plane would never reach China, because “China is also rotating.”

In separate statements Sheikh al-Khaibari said man never went to the moon, rejecting NASA’s lunar excursion video as Hollywood fabrication.

The video of the sheikh triggered a wave of controversial remarks on social media, especially on Twitter, where a special hashtag is being widely circulated. The hashtag translates as: "#cleric_rejects_rotation_of_Earth Full Story

Communist South Africa slams Japan paper over apartheid praise

 (Feb 16 '15 iafricanews) = South Africa has protested after a prominent columnist in a leading right-wing newspaper in Japan praised racial segregation under apartheid as a model for Japanese immigration policy, the paper said Sunday.

Mohau N. Pheko, South Africa's ambassador to Japan, accused novelist Ayako Sono of glorifying the system of apartheid in the column published on Wednesday in the Sankei Shimbun.

Sono, who was previously an adviser to the government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on education reform, wrote that Japan needs immigrant workers to help care for its rapidly ageing population - but that those workers should "live apart", as they did in South Africa under apartheid.

Pheko's letter of protest, according to a story published in the Sankei on Sunday, branded apartheid "a crime against humanity" and said it "must not be justified in the 21st century".

All countries, the Sankei quoted her as saying, must fight discrimination "against others based on skin colour or other standards".

The newspaper did not publish the full letter online, and there was no immediate comment from the South African embassy in Tokyo or from officials in Pretoria on Sunday. Full Story

Bald Eagle Population Soars After Reaching Close To Extinction

(dailysciencejournal.com)  Feb 16. '15) - American wildlife researchers have stated that the bald eagle, which once was on the verge of extinction in the United States, has seen substantial increase in its population.

After almost reaching the verge of extinction, the bald eagle population in US seems to have grown. People across the country are spotting more bald eagles flying overhead and the conservationists are welcoming the sights of new nesting grounds for the birds that were once endangered.

Patti Barber, endangered birds biologist at the Pennsylvania Game Commission, said, “It’s hard to step away from the fact that they are our nation’s symbol and knowing that they’ve now come back from the brink. I think a lot of people have a lot of pride that we managed to do that.”

The bald eagle was adopted as the symbol for newly formed United States of America in 1792. The researchers stated that the country may have been home to around 100,000 nesting eagles at that time. In the mid-1800s, first major decline in the number of bald eagles was noted. The introduction of pesticide DDT after World War II was the biggest blow to the population of the bird.

The Bald Eagle Protection Act of 1940 was established to protect the eagles. They were protected from intentional harm. The use of DDT was banned in United States in 1972 but it seems that the measure came too late. However, the birds have been dropped from ranks of endangered species in 1990s after several years of efforts. Presently, 69,000 bald eagles fly across U.S., which is an increase from the 487 nesting pairs that were seen back in 1963.

However, the researchers have stated that the problem is not over yet. They have now witnessed an alarming number of bald eagles being treated for injuries. Many of their wounds are from other bald eagles as the birds are now competing for space. And some birds are nesting in residential areas as well. They believe that in the over the past 20 years, the amount of suitable habitat for bald eagles to breed-in has decreased.

Canada confirms new case of mad cow disease, cattle prices rise

(Reuters) - Canada confirmed its first case of mad cow disease since 2011 on Friday but said the discovery, which helped drive cattle prices higher, should not hit a beef export sector worth C$2 billion ($1.6 billion) a year.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) said no part of the animal, a beef cow from Alberta, had reached the human food or animal feed systems.

Mad cow is formally known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), a progressive, fatal neurological disease.

"The CFIA is seeking to confirm the age of the animal, its history and how it became infected. The investigation will focus in on the feed supplied to this animal during the first year of its life," the agency said.

Canadian exports were badly hit in 2003 after the first case of BSE was detected. Canada subsequently tightened its controls and many nations have since resumed the beef trade with Canada, despite the discovery of more cases since then.

Asked whether he was concerned about exports being harmed, Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz told reporters in Calgary: "Not at this time, no."

He added though that markets in South Korea and Japan were generally very concerned about the potential risk from BSE. Full Story

Staples slams Obama's 'attack' on its health-care policy

(msn.com) - In a rare instance of corporate criticism of a president, Staples Inc. on Wednesday said that President Barack Obama “appears not to have all the facts” when he criticized the company’s policy of limiting worker hours.

The news website BuzzFeed had reported earlier this week that Staples had toughened up enforcement of a rule limiting part-time employees to 25 hours. The story reported that the company’s stance was seen by many workers as an effort to avoid paying benefits.

Under the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, companies with more than 50 employees must pay for health insurance for people who work 30 hours a week or more.

In an interview on Tuesday, BuzzFeed asked Obama to comment on its Staples story.

Obama responded: “I haven’t looked at Staples stock lately or what the compensation of the CEO is, but I suspect that they could well afford to treat their workers favorably and give them some basic financial security, and if they can’t, then they should be willing to allow those workers to get the Affordable Care Act without cutting wages.

“When I hear large corporations that make billions of dollars in profits trying to blame our interest in providing health insurance as an excuse for cutting back workers’ wages, shame on them,” he added.

In a statement Wednesday, Staples denied that its part-time employee policy was the result of the Affordable Care Act.

“The initial [BuzzFeed] story was misleading as our policy regarding hours for part-time employees is more than a decade old,” said Kirk Saville, a Staples spokesman.

“It’s unfortunate that the president is attacking a company that provides more than 85,000 jobs and is a major taxpayer,” he added.

Staples recently agreed to buy Office Depot Inc. for $6.3 billion. A combination of the two likely would get a close look from antitrust regulators, who in 1997 sued successfully to block the same proposed merger, bankers and analysts have said. Full Story

Proposed Bill Would Lower Drinking Age in Minnesota

(Fox21Online.com) 2/4/15 Duluth, MN. It’s not the first time a bill of its kind, one aimed at lowering the drinking age to 18, has been introduced in the Minnesota Legislature

Just across the bridge in Wisconsin it’s already a law.

Anyone over 18-years-old can drink in a bar as long as they are supervised by someone over the age of 21.

Sponsors of the Minnesota bill told us it’s not about lowering the minimum drinking age to encourage fun, instead it’s about decreasing alcohol related accidents and fatalities.

Minnesota State Representative Erik Simonson, said the real problem is that people are not educated when it comes to responsible drinking.

"Kids that turn age 21 are capable of walking into a bar, drinking and consuming alcohol to whatever extent they feel is right. Then they get in their car, leave the bar and drive away,” said Simonson.

The state representative said the greatest majority of people he is concerned about are 21 to 25-year-old's who don’t drink sensibly and never learned how too.

Simonson is hopeful the proposed law allowing 18, 19 and 20-year-old's to drink at bars with a guardian, parent or spouse over the age of 21 will ignite conversations among parents and kids.

“To (learn) to consume alcohol in a responsible fashion. Potentially that they're going to pick up on learning some of the things that they should know before they drink after they turn 21,” said Simonson.

As for the proposed bill, legislators said it has been met with mixed reviews.

Simonson said he doesn’t think it will make it very far in the legislature.

* * * *

Minnesota should just abolish the drinking age all together.

Kansas governor rescinds order protecting gay state workers

(Foxnews.com) 02/11/'15- Kansas will no longer ban discrimination against gays, lesbians, bisexuals and the transgendered in hiring and employment in much of state government because of an action announced Tuesday by Republican Gov. Sam Brownback.

Brownback rescinded an executive order issued in August 2007 by then-Gov. Kathleen Sebelius barring discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. The order applied to hiring and employment decisions by agencies under the governor's direct control and required them to create anti-harassment policies as well.

Brownback said Sebelius — a Democrat who went on to serve as President Barack Obama's health secretary — acted "unilaterally" with her order and that any such changes should be made by the state Legislature. But Brownback, who became governor a little more than four years ago, didn't say why he waited until now to rescind her directive.

The national gay-rights group Human Rights Campaign condemned Brownback's action as "foul, reckless, and shameful."

Brownback, who won a tough re-election race in November, acted less than three months after the federal courts cleared the way for gay marriage in parts of the state. The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to decide this summer whether all states must allow such marriages, and Brownback's move came as social conservatives in other states have sought to respond to the legalization of gay marriages and other gains made by gay-rights advocates.

Brownback, a vocal defender of a ban in the state constitution on same-sex marriage, issued a new order reaffirming the state's commitment to prohibit discrimination based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, gender or religion.

"This executive order ensures that state employees enjoy the same civil rights as all Kansans without creating additional 'protected classes' as the previous order did," Brownback said in a brief statement. "Any such expansion of 'protected classes' should be done by the Legislature and not through unilateral action."

CVS Earnings Increase 4%, Despite End of Tobacco Sales

(nytimes.com) - CVS Health’s fourth-quarter earnings rose more than 4 percent, matching Wall Street expectations, even though its decision to stop tobacco sales delivered an anticipated blow to its drugstore business. The company said on Tuesday that growing demand for expensive specialty drugs helped increase revenue from its pharmacy benefits management business nearly 22 percent in the quarter, to $23.9 billion. The company, which said last fall that eliminating tobacco sales would cut earnings 7 to 8 cents a share, did not elaborate on that move’s impact on earnings. Over all, CVS Health earned $1.32 billion, or $1.14 a share, in the three months that ended Dec. 31. That compares with $1.27 billion, or $1.05 a share, in the final quarter of 2013. Total revenue climbed 13 percent to $37.06 billion.

California warns against intentional measles exposures

(Reuters) - California health officials on Monday warned parents against intentionally exposing their children to measles, which could worsen an outbreak in the state.

In response to media inquiries about so-called measles parties, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) said it did not have information on the parties or their frequency.

But it added that the disease, of which 107 cases have been confirmed since an outbreak began late last year, was serious.

"CDPH strongly recommends against the intentional exposure of children to measles as it unnecessarily places the exposed children at potentially grave risk and could contribute to further spread," said department spokeswoman Anita Gore.

In 2011, federal authorities issued stern warnings following media reports that vaccine-wary parents were trading chicken pox-laced lollipops by mail, in misguided efforts to build children's immunity through exposure to the virus.

More than a third of California's cases have been linked to an outbreak health officials believe began in the Disneyland theme park in Anaheim in December. Gore said 30 percent of people infected in the current outbreak have been hospitalized.

Pentagon study claimes Putin has Asperger's syndrome

(yahoonews.com) Washington (AFP) - A Pentagon study from 2008 claimed that Russian President Vladimir Putin has Asperger's syndrome, giving him a need to exert "extreme control" when faced with crises, according to the report released Thursday.

Experts studying his movements and facial expressions in video footage theorized Putin's neurological development was disrupted in infancy, giving him a sense of physical imbalance and a discomfort with social interaction, according to the report by the Pentagon's internal think tank, the Office of Net Assessment.

"This profound behavioral challenge has been identified by leading neuroscientists as Asperger's Syndrome, an autistic disorder which affects all of his decisions," wrote the study's author, Brenda Connors, a senior fellow at the US Naval War College.

"During crisis, to stabilize himself and his perceptions of any evolving context he reverts to imposing extreme control," wrote Connors, who has analyzed the body language of other world leaders.

USA Today first revealed the study in a report Wednesday, following a Freedom of Information request.

Putin's condition also can prompt him to "withdraw from social stimulation as he did at the time of the Kursk nuclear submarine incident" in 2000, when a Russian sub sank in the Barents Sea, the study claimed.

The theory about Putin's condition could not be definitively confirmed without a brain scan, the report said. But experts cited the Russian president's body movements and "microexpressions" as indicators of Asperger's, a high-functioning form of autism. Read the rest

Anti-government 'sovereign movement' on the rise in U.S.

(usatoday.com) TRINIDAD, Texas – Gary Thomas will never forget the letter he received in early 2000. It was from John Joe Gray, a suspect in a felony assault case, offering a not-so-subtle warning to the area's chief criminal investigator: He had no intention of answering charges that he had attacked a state trooper.

"What he said was this: 'If y'all come to get me, bring body bags,' " said Thomas, now a local justice of the peace.

Thomas remembers the message clearly, not because of its unvarnished threat, but because — after 12 years — Gray, who doesn't acknowledge the authority of any government, continues to dare police to come and get him.

Sequestered on a 50-acre, wooded compound in East Texas since jumping bail more than a decade ago, Gray and his clan have effectively outlasted the administrations of four local sheriffs, all of whom have decided that John Joe's arrest is not worth the risk of a violent confrontation.

"The risk of loss of life on both ends is far too great," said Anderson County District Attorney Doug Lowe, who first sought to prosecute Gray for the alleged Christmas Eve 1999 assault of Texas Trooper Jim Cleland. "I believed it then; I still feel that way."

he stalemate, perhaps the longest-running standoff in the U.S. between law enforcement and a fugitive living in plain sight, is also emblematic of what the FBI believes is a troubling re-emergence of an anti-government movement that vaulted to notoriety in 1995. Then, one of its disaffected sympathizers, Timothy McVeigh— angered by the government's botched 1993 raid of the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas — detonated a truck bomb outside the Oklahoma Cityfederal building, killing 168 people in what was at the time the deadliest terrorist attack on U.S. soil.

In the past three years, there has been growing concern over activities of so-called "sovereign citizens," who like the Grays and many of their anti-government predecessors "claim to exist beyond the realm of government authority," according to a January FBI bulletin to state and local law enforcement officials warning of the potential for violence.

The sovereign movement, estimated by the Southern Poverty Law Center to number 100,000 ardent followers and about 200,000 sympathizers across the union, is rooted in an ideology that rejects government authority at its most basic levels, from its power to tax to the enforcement of criminal laws, including common traffic regulations. The law center, which tracks extremist groups in the USA, based its estimates partly on its reviews of tax disputes and court documents involving people who do not recognize government authority.

Although the FBI does not track sovereigns by number, the bureau does not dispute the law center's estimates, which have swelled dramatically within a national anti-government network of related "patriot" and "militia'' groups. Since 2008, the number of groups surged from 149 to 1,274 in 2011, the law center reported this month. Full Story

Minnesota: Jury: Toyota Must Pay $11M to Victims of Fatal 2006 Crash

(ABCNews.com)- A federal jury found that Toyota Motor Corp. must pay nearly $11 million to victims of a fatal 2006 crash after deciding Tuesday that a design flaw in the 1996 Camry was partly to blame for the Minnesota wreck.

Jurors said the company was 60 percent to blame for the accident, which left three people dead and two seriously injured. But they also found that Koua Fong Lee, who has long insisted he tried to stop his car before it slammed into another vehicle, was 40 percent to blame.

Lee and his family sued the company, along with those injured in the crash and relatives of those killed, in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis. The lawsuit alleged the crash was caused by an acceleration defect in Lee's vehicle, but Toyota argued there was no design defect and that Lee was negligent.

"No amount of money... will bring my life back, my life is not the same anymore," Lee said after the verdict, adding that he wanted the victims and their families to know: "I tried everything I could to stop my car."

Toyota released a statement saying the company respects the jury's decision but believes the evidence clearly showed that the vehicle wasn't the cause of the accident. The company said it will study the record and consider its legal options going forward.

After the 2006 wreck, Lee was charged and convicted of vehicular homicide, and sentenced to prison. But he won a new trial after reports surfaced about sudden acceleration in some Toyotas, and questions were raised about the adequacy of his defense. Prosecutors opted against a retrial and he went free after spending 2 ½ years behind bars. He later sued.

Under Minnesota law, Tuesday's verdict means Toyota is responsible for paying all damages minus 40 percent of the amount awarded to Lee, bringing Toyota's total liability to $10.94 million. Lee will receive $750,000 of that total. Full Story

Fiji to remove Union Jack from flag, PM says

(Telegraph) - Fiji will remove the Union Jack from its flag and replace it with a design that symbolises the Pacific nation, not former colonial power Britain, Voreqe Bainimarama, the prime minister, said.

A one-time coup leader who was elected last September in Fiji's first elections in eight years, Mr Bainimarama said the flag had served the country well since independence in 1970 but was now outdated.

"We need to replace the symbols on our existing flag that are out of date and no longer relevant, including some anchored to our colonial past," he said.

"The new flag should reflect Fiji's position in the world today as a modern and truly independent nation state."

Fiji's flag is light blue with the Union Jack in the top left corner.

It also features a shield with the cross of St George and a British lion, along with sugar cane, bananas, a palm tree and a dove of peace.

"What does this have to do with us?" Mr Bainimarama asked, saying the images were "honoured symbols of our past, but not our future".

He said a national competition to design a new flag would be held, with the aim of hoisting it on October 11 this year, the 45th anniversary of independence.

"We must all have an open mind about the final result, but it should be symbolic of the unity of the nation and instantly recognisable the world over as uniquely and proudly Fijian," he said. Full Story

US: In the fight against measles, science and detective work join forces

(latimes.com) - The battle to halt the spread of the measles outbreak that began at Disneyland has required both infectious disease expertise and a good amount of old-fashioned detective work.

Health officials in California and seven other states have painstakingly traced the steps of measles patients, tried to identify anyone who came in contact with them, and quarantined those at greatest risk of getting the highly contagious disease to keep the virus from spreading.

It's a trail that has taken them to grocery stores, gyms, farmers markets, hospitals, post offices, banks, schools, a casino and even Starbucks and Wal-Mart. Shoppers at Costco in Gilroy were greeted with a public notice stating: "If you were in this store on Sunday January 18, 2015 between 4:00-6:00 p.m., you may have been exposed to measles."

In Arizona, which is hosting the Super Bowl on Sunday, health officials have been busy compiling a list of 1,000 people who might have been exposed to measles based on the movements of seven infected patients. They are urging unvaccinated children and adults in that group to stay away from public places for 21 days.

"All it takes is a quick trip to the Costco before you're ill and, bam, you've just exposed a few hundred people," Arizona Department of Health Services Director Will Humble said. "We're at a real critical juncture."

Officials are using a tried-and-true playbook for tracing infectious diseases. But it's on a much grander scale than recent measles outbreaks because it started at a bustling international tourist destination and has spread across multiple states as well as Mexico. Officials at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention expressed concerns Thursday that it could spread further.

Some experts credit the fast and aggressive response with keeping the number of cases from exploding. There are 98 cases reported in eight states and Mexico, including 82 in California.

There could easily have been many more cases had the outbreak been detected later by health officials. Full Story

Barely making it- Minimum wage still isn't enough for single people in Michigan

Government sanctioned discrimination

(recordeagle.com) LANSING — Michigan minimum wage earners are not making enough to afford their most basic needs like housing, food, clothing or transportation, statistics show.

The Michigan League for Public Policy argues that the minimum wage of $8.15 is not enough to live on. In Lake County, for instance, a single adult, full-time worker would need to make $10 an hour to meet basic needs, according to a 2014 study by the league. In Grand Traverse County, the amount goes up to $11 an hour. In Manistee County, one can get by on $9.94 per hour.

Not a single county lists $8.15 per hour or less as meeting the basic needs wage.

Take rental housing. Megan Bolton, research director for the National Low Income Housing Coalition, said home ownership rates declined and are still declining after the foreclosure crisis. This has resulted in a huge surge in the number of renters.

Affordable housing is considered in terms of its fair-market rent, based on the cost of the 40th least expensive rental rate in an area. Minimum wage does not allow single people to afford fair-market properties, said Peter Ruark, senior policy analyst for the Michigan League for Public Policy. Some properties might be available below those prices, but the housing is often undesirable with the cheapest housing being substandard or potentially unsafe, Ruark said.

Eric Guthrie, Michigan’s state demographer for the Bureau of Labor Market Information & Strategic Initiatives, agreed.

“There technically are places that are available,” he said. “That doesn’t mean that they are desirable or they would work for every person.”

Sarah Lucas, the regional planning department manager for Networks Northwest, formerly Northwest Michigan Council of Governments, said in Traverse City it is almost impossible to find affordable housing while making minimum wage. Rental housing that is affordable brings issues with safety and quality, including old septic systems, bad roofs, and poor insulation. This housing is also located out in the county, which brings increased transportation costs.



The historically accepted standard of affordability for housing, and the standard generally used by rental assistance programs, is 30 percent of an individual’s income. In Grand Traverse County, the fair market rent is $167 more per month than those on minimum wage can reasonably afford. Full Story