GOP wants to make it easier to hide the bribery.

GOP-led House quietly eliminates annual disclosure requirement for lobbyist-sponsored travel (Click here to read more)

Rss@dailykos.com (jed Lewison) · Tuesday, July 01, 2014, 5:50 pm
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On Monday, National Journal reported that the GOP-led House quietly stripped away a key disclosure mechanism for lobbyist-sponsored travel:
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    It's going to be a little more difficult to ferret out which members of Congress are lavished with all-expenses-paid trips around the world after the House has quietly stripped away the requirement that such privately sponsored travel be included on lawmakers' annual financial-disclosure forms.
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    The move, made behind closed doors and without a public announcement by the House Ethics Committee, reverses more than three decades of precedent.

[...]

Shooting report

Just to remind you that the shootings go on every day. we need gun control legislation and we need it soon.

Gun control: Because we need to protect stupid people from themselves...

Hobby Lobby clarification - Supreme Court Women Haters Club

Supreme Court clarifies: Yes, Hobby Lobby is about all slut pills (Click here to read more)

Rss@dailykos.com (joan Mccarter) · Tuesday, July 01, 2014, 2:47 pm
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Because sex is icky.

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That argument you keep hearing from the Right, about how Hobby Lobby still offers 16 kinds of birth control that they don't believe is abortion-y, so quit your bitchin' libs? Yeah, well, the Supreme Court  punched a hole in that one.
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    The Supreme Court on Tuesday confirmed that its decision a day earlier extending religious rights to closely held corporations applies broadly to the contraceptive coverage requirement in the new health care law, not just the handful of methods the justices considered in their ruling.
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    The justices did not comment in leaving in place lower court rulings in favor of businesses that object to covering all 20 methods of government-approved contraception. […]
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    The justices also ordered lower courts that ruled in favor of the Obama administration to reconsider those decisions in light of Monday's 5-4 decision.

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Women's groups have been warning for years that it's not about abortion. It's about birth control. And it's not just about the actual drugs or devices, it's about your doctor even talking to you about contraception. And that's just been rubber-stamped by the highest court in the land.

----------------
More to come --- Bozo

Conservative logic is SO shallow, it creates significant inconsistencies in law - more on Hobby Lobby

How Hobby Lobby Undermined The Very Idea of a Corporation (Click here to read more)

Alex Park · Thursday, July 03, 2014, 4:48 pm

Here's one more reason to worry about the Supreme Court's Hobby Lobby decision, which allowed the arts and crafts chain to block insurance coverage of contraception for female employees because of the owners' religious objections: It could screw up corporate law.
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This gets complicated, but bear with us. Basically, what you need to know is that if you and some friends start a company that makes a lot of money, you'll be rich, but if it incurs a lot of debt and fails, you won't be left to pay its bills. The Supreme Court affirmed this arrangement in a 2001 case, Cedric Kushner Promotions vs. Don King:
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    linguistically speaking, the employee and the corporation are different "persons," even where the employee is the corporation's sole owner. After all, incorporation's basic purpose is to create a distinct legal entity, with legal rights, obligations, powers, and privileges different from those of the natural individuals who created it, who own it, or whom it employs.

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That separation is what legal and business scholars call the "corporate veil," and it's fundamental to the entire operation. Now, thanks to the Hobby Lobby case, it's in question. By letting Hobby Lobby's owners assert their personal religious rights over an entire corporation, the Supreme Court has poked a major hole in the veil. In other words, if a company is not truly separate from its owners, the owners could be made responsible for its debts and other burdens.
[....]

Hobby Lobby decision becomes more onerous as the days glide by.

Corporations race into Ginsburg's 'minefield' to claim post-Hobby Lobby religious exemptions (Click here to read more)

By Travis Gettys
Thursday, July 3, 2014 13:40 EDT
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The 5-4 majority in the Supreme Court's ruling in the Hobby Lobby case claimed the decision was narrowly focused on closely held corporations that objected to the Affordable Care Act's contraception mandate on religious grounds.
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Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg warned in a scathing, 35-page dissent that her colleagues had "ventured into a minefield" with their ruling, arguing that the majority had invited "for-profit entities to seek religion-based exemptions from regulations they deem offensive to their faith."
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It took only one day to prove her predictions accurate.
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The court on Tuesday, the day after its ruling, ordered three appeals courts to reconsider challenges by corporations that objected to providing insurance that covers any contraceptive services - not just the four contraception methods covered in the Hobby Lobby case.
[...]
-------------
And more to come - Bozo

Christian right's views are becoming less and less American

Russia's Newest Law Inches Nation Closer to the Utopia American Conservatives Want to Create Here (Click here to read more)

July 3, 2014 By Allen Clifton
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A lot of liberals have joked about Russian President Vladimir Putin being a bit of an icon for conservatives in the United States.  His views on homosexuality mirror those of many conservative Christians in the U.S. and quite a few Republicans were heaping praise on him for his "strength" compared to the "weak" President Obama.
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They were literally bragging about what a "strong leader" he was while lobbing partisan attacks at our own president.  It was embarrassing and disgusting.
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But why wouldn't conservatives support Putin?  Hell, from everything I've seen from the guy he's exactly the kind of leader conservatives want.
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He's a "manly man" who goes out hunting with his shirt off to prove how "strong" he is.  You know, kind of like how conservative gun advocates like to stroll around Chili's with loaded AK-47?s.  Or how they seem to think that the more guns they own, the more powerful they are.
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Putin also strongly opposes homosexuality.  Last year he essentially took the first steps toward making homosexuality illegal in Russia.  It's a process, you see.  You can't just come out and ban homosexuality.  But if you slowly chip away at their rights, eventually you build up to the point where homosexuality is illegal.
[...]

Give some thought to the impact of the Hobby Lobby decision.

The Koch Brothers - an American parody

True Patriotism --- Robert Reich

The Koch Brothers paraphrase JFK

Look up the word "troll" in the dictionary, you'll find this photo.

The conservative mind --- Robert Reich

Boehner's job gets tougher by the day.

Pony up, patriots!

Now here's an idea: Iraq needs American troops and we've got a whole slew of would-be warriors running around!

Obama's on the move.

Same-sex marriage is not gay privilege

If religion were based in fact, we'd see its proponents producing some real results

Faith - a product of willful ignorance.

Shoot-out at the OK Corral (otherwise known as the Enmark store)

First day of 'guns everywhere' law in GA sparks convenience store showdown (Click here to read more)

By David Ferguson
Wednesday, July 2, 2014 11:20 EDT
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On July 1, the state of Georgia enacted the Georgia Safe Carry Protection Act - also known as the "guns everywhere" law - which allows licensed gun-owners to bring their weapons to churches, bars, government buildings and other places where they were previously prohibited.

The Valdosta Daily Times reported Tuesday evening that the new law had already pitted two armed citizens against each other in a standoff at a local convenience store.
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"Essentially, it involved one customer with a gun on his hip when a second customer entered with a gun on his hip," Valdosta Police Chief Brian Childress told the Daily Times.
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Around 3:00 p.m., a customer entered the Enmark store on Park Avenue with a gun holstered to his hip. Another customer, who was also carrying a holstered weapon, approached the first man and demanded to see his ID and gun permit.
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As he demanded the first customer's ID, the second man pulled his own gun from its holster, but pointed it at the floor. The first customer protested that he isn't legally required to show any ID or permits.
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Still holding his gun, the second customer demanded again to see the other man's permit and ID. The first customer, undeterred by the unholstered weapon, paid for his purchases and exited the store, then called police.
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When police arrived, they arrested 62-year-old Ronald Williams for disorderly conduct related to pulling a loaded weapon inside a place of business. Police took Williams' gun and remanded him to the Lowndes County Jail.
[...]

Gun Fail 75

Thu Jul 03, 2014 at 05:58 AM PDT

Show me the long-form concealed carry permit! WND's birther-in-chief Joseph Farah makes GunFAIL LXXV

by David Waldman

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Six of 40 guns discovered by TSA agents last week, including yet another derringer. At top right is the gun seized at Dulles airport from co-founding WND loon & birther maven Joseph Farah.

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Another relatively quiet week saw most of the action confined to people accidentally shooting themselves (14) or their close friends (11). Just two incidents involved family members accidentally shooting one another. By far the most dangerous gun-related activity of the week: just plain playing with or showing off loaded firearms. Nine people were accidentally shot that way. And for a week with fewer than forty listings, ten fatalities is pretty high. We include in that total one fatal mistake during a defensive gun use, in which a man defending against a home robbery accidentally shot and killed his friend while wounding the perpetrator. 

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Six people had GunFAIL accidents while cleaning, repairing or attempting to unload loaded weapons, including one man who managed to shoot himself in the head while cleaning a single shot, bolt-action rifle, and a law enforcement officer who accidentally discharged a weapon removed from a patient in a hospital. He was one of three law enforcement officers involved in last week's GunFAIL count. Three people helpfully shared spent ammunition with their neighbors in "home invasion shootings" last week, and someone granted a bullet its freedom while riding a city bus in Philadelphia.
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Last Saturday also saw the fifth time in the past three and a half years that there were accidental discharges at more than one gun show on the same day. Bullets unintentionally flew at shows in Bloomsburg, PA, and Cedar Park, TX, the latter ending in a fatality. The Bloomsburg shooting drew a lot of attention, largely because it involved a dealer accidentally Second Amendmenting a prospective customer, but also because the dealer was both: 1) in violation of the show rule prohibiting loaded weapons, and; 2) a NRA-certified firearms instructor.
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Six children were accidentally shot last week, ages 11, 11, 14, 15, 15, and 16. That would actually have to be considered a pretty good week. Not for those kids, of course, but only compared to the carnage we usually see.
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Other standout stories of the week: WND co-founder and nutbar extraordinaire Joseph Farah was stopped at Dulles airport carrying a loaded .38 revolver (pictured above). The Richfield, MN 20-somethings who undertook to train with a friend "to prepare them for the military," but who ended up accidentally shooting one of their numbers. And a few stories that are GunFAIL-like, but don't make the cut because the gunfire involved was too obviously intentional: Billie Jo George of Reading, PA, who decided to engage local kids playing with water guns with her very real gun, including firing a round into the street. And Rudy Palomo-Paez of Fort Wayne, IN, who fired a round into the wall of his apartment in frustration after arguing with his girlfriend, not thinking (or knowing) about the woman and her grandchild sleeping in their apartment on the other side of that wall.
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But enough about them. Below the fold are the stories that did make the list.

1. HOLMES BEACH, FL, 6/06/14: A Holmes Beach woman died June 6 from an accidental gunshot while cleaning her revolver. Janice Louise Kratzert, 65, was found dead inside her home in the 300 block of 60th Street around 12:45 p.m., according to the report from the Holmes Beach Police Department. A neighbor called 911 after looking through a window and seeing her body slumped in a chair and blood on her chest, according to the report. The neighbor said he became curious when Kratzert did not come to the door as she normally does in the morning to give his dog a treat. A team of emergency medical responders arrived at Kratzert’s home at 12:28 p.m. and she was pronounced dead. An HBPD officer found a silver revolver on the table next to a cleaning kit, the report said. Holmes Beach Police Chief Bill Tokajer said officers initially thought Kratzert may have died as the result of a suicide, however, they were able to determine Kratzert had been cleaning her gun and it had fired accidentally. Locals knew Kratzert as “Scooter Jan” for the yellow motor scooter she drove. On Sunday mornings, Kratzert’s scooter would frequently be seen outside D.Coy Ducks Tavern, 5410 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach, where she took part in cribbage games.
2. RICHFIELD, MN, 6/16/14: A horseplay session at a Richfield apartment complex resulted in a gunshot wound to the leg for a member of the 934th Airlift Wing on Monday, June 16, according to charges filed in Hennepin County District Court. According to the criminal complaint, the gunshot victim had been teaching his roommates skills to prepare them for the military, when a during a break they began to kid each other. They were inside their apartment at 6301 Lyndale Ave. when the defendant, Richfield resident Krystian Molina, 22, threw a screwdriver or a lug nut at the victim, who pretended to get mad and went to retrieve an expandable baton, the complaint says. Meanwhile, Molina grabbed the victim’s gun from a desk in the living room, not believing it was loaded, police were told. The defendant hid around the corner of the kitchen with the baton, then laughed and jumped around the corner, yelling, “attack,” according to charges. The defendant accidentally discharged the gun, the complaint says, and hit the victim in the upper thigh, causing a fractured femur. Those present immediately administered first aid and called 911. In addition to the defendant and the victim, the complaint says two witnesses also lived in the apartment. When police arrived around 2:30 p.m., the victim said he been hit in a drive-by shooting before admitting to being accidentally shot, according to the complaint. Molina faces a felony charge of reckless discharge of a weapon within a municipality, which carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
3. APPLETON, WI, 6/22/14: An Appleton man is dead after police say he was shot accidentally on Sunday while a handgun was being cleaned. At about 7:45 PM, the 55-year-old man was hit with one round at a home in the 900 block of West Winnebago Street and taken to the hospital. He died from his injury, Appleton police said. The firearm was being examined by an acquaintance when it went off in the residence. Several weapons that were shot recently at a local range were being cleaned. An autopsy was planned for Monday morning. UPDATE: Joseph M. Pastorelli Sr., 55, was hit in the chest with one round at about 7:45 PM in a home in the 900 block of West Winnebago Street and taken to the hospital. He died from his injury, Appleton police said.
4. MURFREESBORO, TN, 6/22/14: A Journey Drive man accidentally shot himself just before 10 o'clock Sunday night. Murfreesboro Police responded to St. Thomas Rutherford Hospital, where the victim was being treated for a gunshot wound to the leg. He told police he dropped his duffle bag and the weapon accidentally discharged. The responding officer did see a small hole in the bag. Detectives were called to the hospital to take photos of the injury and further investigate.
5. NEW ORLEANS, LA, 6/22/14: About 5:50 PM, a man accidentally shot himself near the corner of Leonidas and Apple Sts. in Hollygrove. According to a police report, an 18-year-old man pulled out a gun when he thought he heard someone approaching. The man then stumbled, and the weapon accidentally fired. The man was struck in the forearm, and listed in stable condition after the incident.
6. PINCKNEY, MI, 6/22/14: The Pinckney Police Department is investigating whether an Oceola Township man who accidentally shot himself in the ankle should be charged with possessing an unregistered firearm. Chief Jeff Newton said the investigation began the afternoon of June 22 when police were contacted by hospital officials reporting a patient who had a gunshot wound to the ankle while at the Hell Survivors paintball field at 619 Pearl St. Newton said the Oceola Township man reported that he was cleaning and testing a Derringer — a small, two-barreled handgun often associated with old-time Wild West movies — for a friend when he decided to take the gun with him as he rode his motorcycle. The man said he put the gun in his boot and then drove to Hell Survivors, where he “dropped” his motorcycle, which “resulted in an accidental discharge of the Derringer,” Newton said. Police became aware of the incident after the man drove himself home and then to Saint Joseph Mercy Brighton Hospital, the chief said. At the hospital, medical staff X-rayed the man’s ankle and discovered the cause of the injury, which they then reported to police, who seized the unregistered handgun. The 41-year-old Oceola Township man, who has a valid concealed-weapons permit, could face misdemeanor charges of possessing an unregistered firearm.
7. DULLES, VA, 6/22/14: Joseph Farah, the co-founder of the conservative website now known as WND and one of the guiding lights of the birther movement, was caught by TSA agents at Dulles International Airport on Sunday with a loaded .38-caliber revolver in his carry-on bag, according to The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority told the SPLC that Farah was released pending a summons, and is facing a class 1 misdemeanor charge for carrying a gun in an airport terminal. According to the SPLC, The Washington Post first reported the incident on Monday but misreported the age of the individual involved. The SPLC said an airport spokesperson had confirmed that the person cited for the weapon charge was Joseph Francis Farah, 59. MORE: Calling his actions "dumber than dumb," WND co-founder and birther leader Joseph Farah on Wednesday explained how he was stopped Sunday at Dulles International Airport with a loaded handgun in his bag. "I did something stupid Sunday morning, resulting in being charged with a crime for the first time in my adult life," Farah wrote in a column for WND. "There is no excuse for my mistake." In the column, titled "A Column I Never Wanted To Write," Farah explained that he had been "stressed out" over the weekend, and stayed awake Saturday night working on columns. The next day, he headed for the airport. He was scheduled to give a speech in Seattle on Monday. "Somewhat groggy early Sunday, I actually searched my computer bag for my revolver," Farah wrote. "I’m licensed to carry in Virginia. I didn’t see it. … When I got to Dulles Airport, I put the bag on the security belt. … The TSA agents saw the gun and signaled me over."
8. BENTON, MO, 6/23/14: An accidental shooting being investigated by the Scott County Sheriff's Department has resulted in the death of a local teenager. Kaden Robert, 15, of Benton was pronounced dead at 9 AM Tuesday morning at Saint Francis Medical Center by Scott County Coroner Scott Amick. Amick said the death appears to have resulted from an accidental shooting in the parking lot of Kelly High School Monday night. Scott County Sheriff Rick Walter said his office received a 911 call about the shooting at approximately 8:16 p.m. Monday evening, according to a press release from the sheriff's department. At the scene, officers found an unresponsive 15-year-old male with a gunshot wound to the head, according to the release. The preliminary investigation by the department said four juvenile males were playing basketball at the school Monday afternoon and one of the boys provided transportation using his grandfather's truck, which contained two firearms, the release said. After the group finished playing basketball, Robert and his friends returned to the truck, intending to go to Robert's house. After everyone got in the truck, someone passed a handgun to Robert, accidentally discharging it and striking Robert in the head, according to the release. At this point in the investigation, Walter said there was no reason to believe any foul play was involved.
9. SKOKOMISH, WA, 6/24/14: A Mason County judge on Wednesday found probable cause for a first-degree manslaughter charge against a 13-year-old boy in the accidental shooting death of his 14-year-old friend on the Skokomish Reservation Tuesday night. Police said the boy told them he thought the rifle was unloaded when he pulled the trigger. The county prosecutor said the boy, who was on suicide watch in the Mason County Juvenile Detention Center overnight, was placed on house arrest and will appear for arraignment next Tuesday. According to the sheriff’s office, the  13-year-old and his 14-year-old friend, Ciqala Miller, had been playing together at a home in the 100 block of N. Twana Court when the two decided to start handling rifles they found inside the residence. The 13-year-old said he and Miller was both armed with rifles and he didn’t believe either of them to be loaded. He “admitted pointing the rifle at Miller and pulling the trigger, again believing that the rifle was unloaded and that the safety was on, and fired a single shot which appeared to have struck Miller in the chest,” the sheriff’s office said in court documents. The boy ran to a neighbor’s house and called 911. Upon learning that Miller was dead, the sheriff’s office said, the 13-year-old “broke down sobbing uncontrollably and had to be consoled by his parents.” No other members of the family were home at the time of the shooting.
10. RIVERDALE, GA, 6/24/14: Clayton County police said an 18-year-old male was fatally shot Tuesday night on Clara Drive in Riverdale. The teen, whose name was not released, was shot once in the chest, Clayton County Officer Ashanti Marbury told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was transported to a hospital by emergency responders, where he was pronounced dead. She said the investigation is ongoing and no other information was immediately available. According to Channel 2 Action News, three teens were playing with a gun when the teen was accidentally shot around 9:30 Tuesday night. The wounded teen’s friends called police, the report said.
11. MARIETTA, GA, 6/24/14: A Marietta man was arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter after he accidentally shot his roommate Tuesday afternoon, police said. Elyjah Marrow, 19, was recklessly handling a handgun when, police said, he shot Daryus Johnson, 19. Police found Johnson unconscious at the Bentley Manor Apartments. Johnson was transported to Kennestone Hospital where he was pronounced dead. Marrow is charged with involuntary manslaughter, possession of firearm in the commission of a felony, reckless conduct, possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute, and possession of a stolen firearm. He is being held in the Cobb County Jail as the investigation continues.
12. CHICAGO, IL, 6/24/14: A 15-year-old boy accidentally shot himself in the foot this morning in the South Shore neighborhood, police said. The boy was standing on the sidewalk in the 7600 block of South Coles Avenue when a gun he was holding discharged about 12:15 AM, Police News Affairs Officer Hector Alfaro said. The boy suffered a gunshot wound to the foot and was taken to University of Chicago Comer Children’s Hospital, where he was listed in good condition.
13. ROCK HILL, SC, 6/24/14: After realizing her Venetian blinds were damaged on Tuesday, police say a Rock Hill woman discovered that a bullet had been fired into her house, penetrating her closet door and flying through a storage room before it landed outside in the grass. Police were sent to a Fawnborough Court home, off Constitution Boulevard, at about 8 AM when a woman, 29, reported that she found a bullet hole in her house, according to a Rock Hill police report. The woman told police she saw that the Venetian blinds on the window in her back room were damaged. She looked closer and saw that the window had a hole in it. She turned around to look across the room, police say, and saw another hole in the closet door. The bullet, she told officers, likely then traveled through the closet’s interior wall and left a bulge in her living room wall. The woman told police she did not recall hearing gunshots or noise recently, saying she was unsure when the bullet was fired into her home because she does not often visit her back room, which she uses for storage. An officer found the bullet outside the house in the grass behind a nearby house, the report states. Police were unable to establish contact with the homeowner.
14. CHICAGO, IL, 6/25/14: A gun went off on a CTA bus on Chicago’s Southwest Side Wednesday morning. It happened on a No. 47 bus at about 6:30 AM near 47th and Kildare. According to Chicago police, a 45-year-old male passenger discovered the unattended gun on the CTA bus. Thinking it was a toy or a lighter, he picked it up and it accidentally discharged and struck a vent underneath a row seats. A 47-year-old female passenger sitting nearby was struck in the left hip with a bullet fragment, police said. According to Nancy Loo, the woman says she on her way to work and said not a lot of people were on the bus. The woman is going to an area hospital now for observation. Nancy Loo reports that the .22 caliber metal and wood gun is about 3 inches long metal. Police told her that they see a lot of these on the street.
15. IMMOKALEE, FL, 6/25/14: A 16-year-old boy accidentally shot himself in his upper thigh Wednesday afternoon in Immokalee, the Collier County Sheriff’s Office reported. Deputies responded to a call at 1:41 PM of a shooting at 1003 South 1st St. in Immokalee. The boy was transported to NCH North Collier for treatment. His injuries are not life threatening. The boy was staying at his great-grandmother’s residence when he went into her room and took her handgun out from under the mattress. He then took the handgun to another room to look at it when the gun accidentally hit him on the upper thigh, said Kristi Lester, a spokeswoman for the Collier County Sheriff’s Office.
16. WASHINGTON, PA, 6/25/14: The woman who suffered an accidental gunshot to the stomach Wednesday night was injured when a handgun stored in a bedroom dresser unexpectedly discharged, Washington police said. Dea Spencer, 48, of 256 Shirls Ave., was closing the drawer in an upstairs bedroom when the .25-caliber handgun fired one shot through the wood and struck her in the stomach shortly after 5 PM, police said. Medics treated Spencer at the scene and she was transported by ambulance to Washington Hospital. Her condition was not known and a hospital operator said they no longer had a record of Spencer as a patient. Police did not elaborate on the severity of Spencer’s wound to her stomach, but said it did not appear to be life-threatening. Two other people in the house at the time, Diamond Spencer and Dusty Shultz, both 16, were not injured. Both were downstairs and thought the gunshot came from outside until they heard Dea Spencer calling for them to help her, police said. The two teens cared for Spencer until medics arrived at the scene. Investigators said they found a hole in the dresser drawer and a spent casing inside. Police did not expect to file any charges.
17. SAN DIEGO, CA, 6/25/14: A U.S. Border Patrol officer was hospitalized after he accidentally shot himself in the hand while cleaning his gun, it was reported Thursday. The unidentified person was taken from the 3100 block of Tequila Way near Dairy Mart Road to UC San Diego Medical Center shortly after 7 PM Wednesday, according to a San Diego Fire-Rescue Department dispatcher. Five children were in the San Ysidro home when the accident happened, according to U-T San Diego.
18. SAN ANTONIO, TX, 6/25/14: A South Texas man accused of breaking into a home during a drug-related robbery has been charged with capital murder after gunfire left two men dead. Bexar County jail records show Joseph Kirschberg of Helotes was being held Saturday on $500,000 bond. No attorney was listed for Kirschberg, who was arrested Thursday. San Antonio police say an apartment resident early Wednesday exchanged gunfire with intruders in a drug dispute. Police say the resident shot and killed a suspected intruder, Mikhael Moore. The resident accidentally shot and killed a friend, Zachary Manciu, he summoned for help. Chief William McManus says the suspects and the resident knew each other. Police don't believe Kirschberg fired the fatal shots but he's charged with capital murder due to the motive behind the break-in.
19. HENDERSON CO., TX, 6/26/14: A young boy was shot inside a home in southwest Henderson County on Thursday afternoon. According to the Henderson County sheriff, two boys were in the same room together when the shooting happened, but only one of them was injured. Authorities believe that the shooting was an accident. The home is located on Highway 59 near the Cross Roads community. The victim has been transported to East Texas Medical Center in Athens and will be taken to a hospital in Dallas. The Henderson County Sheriff's Office is investigating the shooting. MORE: An 11-year-old boy in Henderson County had to be rushed to a local hospital after he was accidentally shot by another child Thursday afternoon. According to Henderson County Chief Deputy Botie Hillhouse, at 1:37 PM, the sheriff's office received a report of a shooting in the 14000 block of FM 59 in the Cross Roads area. STILL MORE: Henderson County authorities say the child that was hospitalized Thursday after he was accidentally shot by his older brother is recovering in a Dallas hospital. The shooting happened Thursday afternoon at their home on FM 59 in the Cross Roads area of rural Henderson County. Michelle Snowden says her nephews had been home all day with their mom. “The boys were in their daddy's bedroom. They were supposed to be cleaning the bedroom up because they had torn their daddy's clothes out of his suitcase and their mother told them to go clean up the mess. While they were in there, they got the guns out. They were playing with them and [his brother] did not know the gun was loaded when he shot it,” she said.
20. FARGO, ND, 6/26/14: A 20-year-old man is dead and one other person is detained after shots were fired in North Fargo Thursday night. Witnesses told Valley News Live that a man was accidentally shot by a family member around 8:30 Thursday night. Fargo police arrived to the 100 block along 7th Avenue North after receiving a disturbance call. When they arrived on scene they found a 20-year-old man with a gunshot wound. The man was given CPR by medics and was then transported to the nearest hospital where he was pronounced dead. Police believe the suspect and victim previously knew one another. Police are still investigating and no arrests have been made at this time.
21. SHERIDAN CO., WY, 6/26/14: Sheridan County Sheriff Dave Hofmeier has confirmed that an unidentified 11-year-old boy from Sheridan County was life flighted to a Billings hospital Thursday evening after being shot in the head. Hofmeier gives us the details about the incident, which appears to be an unfortunate accident. Hofmeier says that while it's still early in the investigation, all signs point to an accidental shooting by a male friend of the child, who's approximately the same age as the boy that was shot. Hofmeier added that if the investigation shows that the shooting was indeed an accident, there would be no charges filed in the case. The Sheriff added that the names of the boys involved are not being released at this time.
22. SALINA, KS, 6/26/14: Police say a Salina woman is lucky to have escaped injury when a bullet fired into her home struck her bed and traveled through the mattress. The Salina Journal reports (http://bit.ly/... ) the shot was one of two fired into the woman’s home as she slept around 11:30 PM Thursday. A house across the street was also hit by a bullet that was found in a closet. Investigators continued looking Friday for whoever was firing multiple shots with a high-powered rifle. Police Capt. Mike Sweeney says two rounds entered the rear of the sleeping woman’s home. One came through a bedroom wall, struck the headboard and traveled through the mattress and a front wall. That bullet was found on the porch. Officers did not immediately find the second bullet.
23. MICHIGAN CITY, IN, 6/26/14: A Michigan City area man is recovering after accidentally shooting himself in the hand. According to La Porte County police, 46-year old Rick Franko was in his garage when the mishap occurred Thursday evening at 6877 W. Rukmin Trail. Franko said he was trying to open the slide on his .32 caliber handgun, according to police. After applying some lubricating oil, he pulled on the rusty slide some more but it wouldn't move and he wound up pulling the trigger by accident, police said. His wife came out and applied pressure to help slow the bleeding on his hand before paramedics showed up. Police said the bullet left a hole in a shelf in the garage.
24. ATLANTA, GA, 6/26/14: An Atlanta police recruit is in trouble after an accidental shooting involving his city issued gun. Channel 2’s Tony Thomas obtained a report that shows a police recruit’s teenage brother fired a gun that hit a neighbor’s home. The shooting occurred last Thursday night in Gwinnett County. Investigators said it was an accident with no criminal intent, but neighbors say they want someone to pay for the damages. Homeowner Sandy Churley said the bullet came within feet of her daughter who was in an upstairs bathroom at the time. Inside the house, there are large holes in two walls where police crime scene techs dug out bullets. “It’s a constant reminder that my daughter’s life was almost taken,” Churley said. Police reports show that an Atlanta police recruit was cleaning his service revolver when his 16-year-old brother picked it up. His brother thought it was empty and fired at the TV. The police report said, “No injuries were sustained in this incident and no crime has been committed.” The Churley’s disagree. “The kid grabbed the gun, pulled the trigger and we were four feet away from terrible tragedy,” Gary Churley said. Thomas knocked on the recruit’s home, but no one answered. The Churleys said they want someone, either the recruit’s family or the city of Atlanta to pay for the damage to their house. “I just feel like there is a major cover-up going on here to protect the recruit next door,” Churley said. The Atlanta Police Department emailed Thomas saying: “All field training officers are on a probationary status. This particular officer is now on an extended probation status pending an open internal affairs investigation. Depending on the outcome of this investigation, he could be terminated. He has been charged with a work rule violation of Failure to Secure a Weapon.”
25. MILWAUKEE, WI, 6/27/14: A person with a legal concealed carry permit brought a gun inside of Froedtert Hospital Friday, June 27th, but when a deputy tried to confiscate the weapon, it accidentally went off. Froedtert confirms that a patient brought a gun inside of the hospital, and the hospital does not allow firearms inside of the building. The patient mentioned he had the weapon on him, and that’s when deputies were notified to confiscate the firearm. Officials say the firearm discharged as the deputy attempted to clear the weapon, and the bullet struck a wall.  No one was struck or injured, and the only people present in the exam room were the two deputies and the patient. Froedtert says the patient was very cooperative. It appears that he did not notice the signs indicating firearms were banned on the premises when he walked into the building with the holstered gun. Sheriff Clarke is upset about the incident and very apologetic to the staff of Froedtert Hospital. A press release says that Sheriff David Clarke ordered a criminal investigation into the discharge of the weapon by the deputy, and it will be reviewed by the District Attorney’s Office. “Attempting to clear a firearm in a hospital examination room is unimaginable, rising to the level of recklessness.  We don’t train this way in the handling of our own firearms.  Fortunately, nobody was struck,” said Clarke. “However, this lack of awareness by this deputy is serious enough to pursue a charge of Recklessly Endangering Safety.  This is intolerable.” The incident happened at the end of the clinic day and very few people were around. The deputy has been suspended until the investigation is complete.
26. DAYTON, OH, 6/27/14: A man told police he was buying a gun from another person when he was shot in the foot. Police met with the victim at Miami Valley Hospital Friday around 2:30 AM. The victim told police he was on Germantown Street near Clement Avenue to meet a man who was going to sell him a gun. He said when the man arrived, he was messing with the gun, the gun went off, and he accidentally shot himself in the foot. The victim reported the seller grabbed the gun back and fled from the scene. The victim was able to walk to a friend’s house in the 900 block of Haller Avenue. His friends then took him to Miami Valley Hospital. The victim is expected to recover. Police are still investigating the incident.
27. MT. PLEASANT, IA, 6/27/14: On Friday evening, Henry County Sheriff’s Officer responded to a report of a self-inflicted, accidental gunshot wound. The victim identified as Hayden Chapman, 21 of Mt Pleasant, was attempting to clean a single-shot 22lr bolt action rifle when the gun discharged causing the projectile to strike him. Chapman was transported to the Henry County Health Center, No word on his condition.
28. WALNUT HILL, FL, 6/27/14: Marshall H. Harmon, 71, was charged with aggravated battery using a deadly weapon for the 7:20 p.m. incident on Breastworks Road about a mile west of North Pine Barren Road. Harmon and his 32-year old son had become involved in a verbal altercation at a nearby home, deputies said. The son then fled on Breastworks Road on a riding lawn mower, the father following in his pickup truck. When the elder Harmon pulled alongside his son on the riding mower, Harmon fired two shots in the son’s direction, according to Sgt. Andrew Hobbs, spokesperson for the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.  It did not immediately appear that Harmon intended to shoot his son, but may have instead accidentally hit him. One of the shots hit the son in the neck, but the officials said the wound did not appear to be life threatening.  The son was airlifted by Lifeguard helicopter to Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola.
29. BLOOMSBURG, PA, 6/28/14: A woman was accidentally shot in the leg at a gun show being held at the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds. The incident occurred shortly before noon. Witnesses say the injury appeared to be minor and that the woman was transported to the hospital by ambulance. Bloomsburg Police were on scene investigating the incident. The show hosted by Eagle Arms will be continuing until Sunday. MORE: Police in Columbia County said vendor Geoffrey Hawk, the owner of “In Case of Emergency” shot Krysta Gearhart of Orangeville in the thigh with a semi automatic .380 while demonstrating a concealed carry holster, something that is normally done with a plastic model of a gun. “Often times that is what is utilized. This time the vendor used a real gun,” said Sergeant Leonard Rogutski, Bloomsburg Police. Police say that there was not a magazine attached to the weapon, however there was a round in the chamber, which fired. Outside the doors to the show a sign plainly states “loaded weapons are not allowed”. Customers said this is the last place they would expect to get shot.
30. CEDAR PARK, TX, 6/28/14: We are learning more about a shooting outside the Austin Gun Show in Cedar Park Saturday. Police say John Glover Warden, 59, was shot inside a car in the parking lot of the Cedar Park Center shortly after 5:00 p.m. He was from Jarrell. When the gun fired, officials say Warden’s son-in-law, Jared Charles Priddy was handling it after having reloaded it. Warden suffered a single gunshot wound. He was taken to St. David’s Round Rock Medical Center, where he later died. Cedar Park police continue their investigation. At this point, they do not believe the shooting was intentional. According to the Premiere Gun Shows website, the show scheduled for Sunday has been rescheduled to August 2nd and 3rd. KXAN spoke to the show’s owner, who said that in more than 42 years of hosting the show, nothing like this has ever happened. “It’s a tragic event,” said Tim Finucane. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the family.”
31. NORFOLK, VA, 6/28/14: Two men were injured in an accidental shooting at a home in Norfolk Saturday afternoon. Police say around 1:46 PM one of the men was unloading his gun in a home in the 8200 block of Fernwood Drive when the gun accidentally fired. The bullet went through the man’s hand and struck a friend sitting in front of him. Both men were taken to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
32. ORONDO, WA, 6/28/14: A Wenatchee man is dead and his longtime friend was arrested following a fatal shooting at an Orondo campground early Saturday. Douglas County Sheriff Harvey Gjesdal identified the dead man as Eduardo Lara, 19. Booked into Chelan County Regional Justice Center on a charge of first-degree manslaughter is Jaimie Alberto Calderon-Garcia, 21. Gjesdal said deputies were called to a report of gunfire at Orondo County Park just after 12:30 AM, where they found a man with an apparent gunshot wound. He was taken to a Wenatchee hospital, where he died in surgery. Gjesdal said the suspect told investigators he pulled out a .357 Magnum revolver and was “showing off.” “When he lowered the gun, it accidentally went off and struck Lara,” he said.
33. MONTAGUE ISLAND, AK, 6/28/14: Alaska State Troopers say they are investigating the death of a 66-year-old Palmer man from an apparently accidental shooting on Montague Island on the southern edge of Prince William Sound. Troopers on Monday identified the victim as Frederick Fruhwirth. Authorities learned of the shooting after emergency dispatchers in Soldotna got a report at 11:40 PM Friday. Troopers from Crown Point and the Soldotna Alaska Bureau of Investigation flew to the scene in a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter to recover Fruhwirth's body, troopers spokeswoman Beth Ipsen said. The State Medical Examiner's Office is conducting an autopsy. An investigation continues.
34. KEENE, TX, 6/28/14: A Keene man was transported by air ambulance to a Fort Worth hospital Friday night after being accidently shot at his apartment. The name of the victim is being withheld until the investigation is complete, however no charges have been filed against the shooter, Keene Police Chief Rocky Alberti said. The incident began about 10:05 PM June 27 when Keene PD officers Daniel Martin and Cody Moss were dispatched to the 400 block of W. Fourth Street in response to a call about a shooting, a release from the Keene PD said. The officers discovered a 39-year-old man who resides at the apartments had been shot in the chest by another man, who had already left the scene, the release said. Deputies from the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office assisted Martin and Moss until the scene was secure.
35. FORT WAYNE, IN, 6/28/14: A man told Fort Wayne Police he accidentally shot himself in the hand while unloading his gun Saturday evening. An officer responded to Parkview Randallia at around 5:15 PM Saturday in reference to a possible shooting victim who had left the scene in the 2100 block of Eden Street, according to a police report. The officer was told by dispatch the man had shot himself in the hand while in a blue Lexus in a parking lot. The office saw a car in the emergency room parking lot that matched the description of the car. The passenger got out of the car with his right hand wrapped up. The driver told police he and a friend were at Eden Green when his friend went to unload his gun and it went off, striking him in the hand. He said he had told his friend on several occasions he needed to take a gun safety course, according to the report. The man who had shot himself told the officer where in the car he had been when the accident occurred and officers found corresponding stains to match. They also saw a bullet-sized hole in the exterior of the front-seat passenger door, but no holes on the exterior of the door. After examining the scene the officers removed the pistol.

Originally posted to David Waldman on Thu Jul 03, 2014 at 05:58 AM PDT.

Shooting report

Gun control: Because too many of us are too stupid to own guns.

Our overlords are being naughty again.

French Bank BNP Guilty Of US Sanctions Violations (Click here to read more)

Eric Tucker · Monday, June 30, 2014, 6:24 pm
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WASHINGTON (AP) - France's largest bank, BNP Paribas, pleaded guilty Monday and agreed to pay nearly $9 billion to resolve criminal allegations that it processed transactions for clients in Sudan and other blacklisted countries in violation of U.S. trade sanctions, the Justice Department announced.
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After months of negotiations, the bank admitted to violating U.S. trade sanctions by conducting currency transactions for clients in Sudan, Cuba and Iran. The transactions were made through the bank's New York office from at least 2004 through 2012. The United States had imposed the sanctions on the countries to block their participation in the global financial system.

Too many people of faith use their beliefs as cover for their sickness - be it immorality or hate.

Extremely Homophobic Archbishop Being Investigated for Sexual Relationships with Men (Click to read more)

July 2, 2014 By Allen Clifton
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Tell me if you've heard this story before: An extremely vocal anti-gay advocate being caught, or accused of, having homosexual relationships.
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Well that's the case with Archbishop John Nienstedt of Minnesota, who's now under investigation for "allegations that he had a series of sexual relationships with priests, seminarians and other men."
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I know, you're stunned.

And, of course, Nienstedt claims that the allegations "are absolutely and entirely false" and has said he's the one who ordered the investigation.
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He also said, "The allegations do not involve minors or lay members of the faithful, and they do not implicate any kind of illegal or criminal behavior.  The allegations involve events alleged to have occurred at least a decade ago, before I began serving in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis."

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We're not blaming the guns for the killings. We're blaming the gun owners - and that's why we need background checks on people buying guns.

Texas gun store: Gun show shooting death is 'no different' than not wearing seatbelt (Click here to read more)

By David Edwards
Monday, June 30, 2014 11:28 EDT
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A Texas gun store owner has responding to a fatal shooting at a weekend gun show by saying it was "no different" than dying while not wearing a seatbelt.
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According to KTBC, Cedar Park Police said that they found 59-year-old John Glover Warden with a single gunshot wound in the parking lot of the Austin Premiere Gun Show on Saturday.
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Officers said that Warden's son-in-law, Jared Priddy, was 'manipulating' a firearm, and reloading it in his car when the gun accidentally discharged.
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Warden was taken to St. David's Round Rock Medical Center, where he later died.
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Democratic consultant Jason Stanford told KTBC that the incident was further proof that gun laws needed to change. He said that he would like to see expanded background checks, including checks for gun show attendees.
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"Some people say that guns don't kill people, the person pulling the trigger does," Stanford observed. "They can kill you a lot easier with a gun. And what we need is for gun owners to take it upon themselves to work with us to be safer on this. Because right now the status quo sure ain't working."
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But Central Texas Gunworks owner Michael Cargill argued that the "nay-sayers" should not use this shooting as an example to push for gun control.
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"This is not 'I told you so' this is not 'I gotcha,'" Cargill insisted. "This is no different than this little incident we saw a day or so ago where two kids were ejected from a vehicle because they weren't wearing a seatbelt. We don't blame the vehicle for that incident so we're not gonna blame the guns for this incident."

The stupid - it burns!

How the Supreme Court votes

Vote!

More proof that conservatives are assholes

Dos Equis Cheney

A t-shirt for your conservative friends

Know the Republican hypocrisy

Know the Republican lies.

We have a different "King," but once again we are just subjects

Remember when we used to care about people?

Which god do you believe in again?

Conservative believers - dragging us backwards into scientific illiteracy.

Proud believers post billboard to promote their ignorance.

With regard to Facebook trying to manipulate your emotions - Borowitz wades in. But it could apply any day to almost any company.

June 30, 2014

Abuse of Power by Gigantic Corporation Comes as Total Surprise

Posted by Andy Borowitz
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MENLO PARK (The Borowitz Report)-Millions of Americans awoke on Monday to the shocking news that a gigantic corporation with unprecedented power over their lives had allegedly abused that power for commercial gain.
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Across the United States, stunned consumers were shaking their heads in disbelief after learning that a gargantuan company whose explicit goal is to make as many billions of dollars as possible through any means available would put its own interests ahead of those of its customers.
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"It never would have occurred to me that an enormous corporation with the ability to track over half a billion customers would ever exploit that advantage in any way," said Harland Dorrinson, twenty-nine, a caterer from Albuquerque. "Like a lot of other people, I feel used."
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Carol Foyler, thirty-eight, a human-resources administrator from Pittsburgh, echoed the reactions of many who were blindsided by the news. "I definitely feel like I've lost my innocence today," she said. "If you can't trust a multi-billion-dollar corporation to do the right thing, who can you trust?"

In case you had forgotten - Wal*Mart wants their workers poor and dependent on welfare.

Walmart Penalized For Closing Store Just After It Unionized (Click here to read more)

By Bryce Covert June 30, 2014 at 8:59 am Updated: June 30, 2014 at 9:36 am
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Walmart is known for resisting efforts to unionize its American workforce. But in Canada, one of its stores actually voted to join a union - and then six months later, the company shut the store down.
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In September of 2004, the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) was certified as a representative of employees in a store in Jonquiere, Quebec. In April 2005, just before an arbitrator was about to impose a collective agreement, Walmart closed the store.
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On Friday, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that Walmart violated Quebec's labor laws in doing so. It found that the company closed the store during a freeze period codified in the law, which limits a business's ability to change working conditions from the time that employees file to unionize to when they have a contract, go on strike, or are locked out. The court ruled that Walmart ran afoul of this law without a valid reason for closing the store, which never re-opened.

Shooting report

There are still far too many shootings committed by Americans who really should have no right to a gun.

Gun control: Because unstable people can get all the guns they want.

News from your friendly neighborhood bigots.

KKK at Gettysburg: Those opposing white revolution will be 'going in the ground' (Click here to read more)

By Scott Kaufman
Monday, June 30, 2014 9:37 EDT
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Members of the Maryland-based Traditional Rebel Knights of the Ku Klux Klan held a rally at Gettysburg National Military Park in Pennsylvania on Saturday.
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From a stage in a fenced-off area of the park, speakers delivered diatribes against the conventional foes of the white nationalist organization - minorities, homosexuals, and President Barack Obama.
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"The only solution is an all-white revolution," The Patriot News reported one Klansman as having preached.
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"We are taking back this land," and shouted. "Anyone stands in our way, they're going in the ground."
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