Category Archives: News

Newtown man dies in Stamford accident

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STAMFORD, CT. — A 46-year-old Newtown man who worked behind the scenes on numerous blockbuster films was killed in a head-on accident on the Merritt Parkway Friday evening.

Scott Getzinger, a property master who provided props for more than 25 films, including “Spider-Man,” “Independence Day,” “The Truman Show” and the upcoming “Men in Black III” and “The Dark Knight Rises,” died at Stamford Hospital after sustaining severe injuries.

Getzinger suffered multiple broken bones, but was described as conscious and alert after being cut out of the 2002 Ford F-150 pickup truck he was driving. State police initially characterized his injuries as non-life threatening.

Read more at the Stamford Advocate

Death of Hugo Chavez could set off shock waves across region

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The likelihood that Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez is close to death will pitch rivals against one another in a battle for power and oil riches, and trigger political shock waves across the region. — The Telegraph

On Thursday, Hugo Chavez is set to be inaugurated after his re-election, but it is reported that he may currently be kept alive with a respirator while being treated for cancer.

The Venezuelan leader and full-time hater of the United States is famous for his praise of Cuban leader Fidel Castro and Jesus Christ as revolutionary socialists.

As Philip Sherwell describes in his article on The Telegraph:

The orchestra played and loyal lawmakers erupted in adulatory applause as Hugo Chavez invoked Fidel Castro and Jesus Christ as his revolutionary role models.

His right hand raised, the fiery Venezuelan leader echoed the famous call to arms of his Cuban mentor. “Fatherland, socialism or death,” he proclaimed, then added with a typical flourish: “I swear by Christ, the greatest socialist in history.” That was six years ago as “El Commandante” was sworn in for his third term as president and blew kisses to rose petal-tossing crowds when he returned in an open-topped car to his palace to watch a military parade.

The Chavez regime has been financing terrorist socialist causes with his oil money and set up an alliance with Iran.

Chavez has not been seen or heard from since he left Venezuela in December for his operations in Cuba.

The death of Hugo Chavez could set off a Constitutional struggle to control the oil rich South American country. The Los Angeles Times reports:

Constitutional law expert Carlos Ayala agreed that Chavez can be granted two oath-taking postponements for a total of 180 days in the event he is “temporarily incapacitated.” But he said Venezuelans are entitled to proof that Chavez is alive, is tending to his duties and has a positive prognosis.

“The citizenry has a legitimate right to know the facts surrounding the mental and physical condition of the head of state,” said Ayala, a professor at Andres Bello Catholic University in Caracas. “If he cannot exercise his duties and obligations under the constitution, then that leads to constitutional consequences.”

If Chavez is so ill that he cannot competently carry out his duties, then he could be declared “permanently incapacitated.” That would trigger a constitutional requirement for the National Assembly president to call a new presidential election within 30 days, Ayala said.

Vice President Nicolas Maduro is the hand-picked successor of Chavez and he is reporting that Chavez is simply resting comfortably after emerging from a “delicate postoperative phase.” Maduro indicated that his inauguration could be sworn in by Supreme Court appointees of Chavez at a later date and unspecified location if still alive. Re-elected National Assembly leader Diosdado Cabello puts him next inline to become caretaker president if Mr Chavez does not recover.

This has infuriated the opposition who insist on new elections in thirty days if Chavez does not take the oath on January 10th. With no even pretended separation of powers in the government, that is not likely to happen.

Furniture Maker Hailed As U.S. Job Creator Closes

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LINCOLNTON, N.C. (AP) — A start-up North Carolina furniture company once celebrated as a sign of America’s manufacturing rebound has closed, a year after its head was hosted by President Barack Obama.

Lincolnton Furniture Company was silent Friday, a day after shutting down. President Bruce Cochrane and other company officers did not return messages to The Associated Press.

Company financial officer Ben Causey said manufacturing operations were stopped indefinitely because orders were insufficient. He told The Charlotte Observer that only a few people would remain employed and the next steps were uncertain.

Source: Manufacturing.net

Loyal Italian Cat, Toldo, Brings Gifts To Owner’s Grave

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toledoA loyal cat has been bringing his owner small gifts everyday in a show of affection. The catch? The cat’s owner has been dead for over a year.

Meet Toldo — a cute, 3-year-old black and white cat living in Montagnana, northern Italy. According to the Corriere Fiorentino, Toldo has been visiting his owner — Iozzelli Renzo, who died on September 22, 2011, aged 71 — everyday for the past year and leaving small presents at the grave.

The gifts usually consist of leaves, sticks, twigs, plastic cups or paper towels.

Read more at Huff Post

Snow Sunday in Williams

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The long range forecast gives a 30% chance of snow Sunday night through Monday. Although little snow accumulation is expected, high temperatures will drop below 40-degrees. The temperatures should rise to the lower 40s the rest of the week thereafter.

Daughters of American Revolution responds to report by FOX

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Merry Ann T. Wright; President General DAR.

Merry Ann T. Wright; President General DAR.

FOX News reported on January 2nd that the patriotic Daughters of the American Revolution was essentially removing God from their material. A commenter to this blog responded, “The FOX News report wasn’t entirely accurate. Not all references have been removed–some references. I’m not happy with these changes but am not happy with the reporting on them either. I’ve heard some ugly things said about the DAR today.”

The changes to the Ritual and Missual were made in April of 2012 and that is when the questions rose. Apparently some members were upset over the new changes.

The FOX report claimed that they sought a statement from the office of the President General of the Daughters of the American Revolution and they did not respond. FOX repeated the claim in their updated report. It is not known whether or not Todd Starnes of FOX sought information from the official web sites of the Daughters of the American Revolution. The response from the Daughters of the American Revolution headquarters came the day the FOX report went viral.

In an email response, DAR Public Relations officer Bren Landon stated, “I personally received a voice message and email from FOX on the afternoon of Jan. 2 but I was flying back to DC after the holidays and was unable to access my messages. I do believe that they should have received my out of office voice mail and email messages alerting them that I was out of the office and unable to get back to them until I was back in the office. There has been no indication that, in my absence, FOX News tried to reach the President General or anyone else at the organization by calling the main DAR headquarters phone number or the President General’s Office.”

With the attack on Christianity in this country and the recent vote of the Democratic party to remove God from it’s material, it is not hard to presume yet another assault on Christianity without hearing the other side. [For example]

In an official press release of January 3rd, the NSDAR stated, “NSDAR is disappointed to learn that false and incorrect information has recently been circulated regarding the 2011 edition of the DAR Ritual and Missal and the use of the name Jesus Christ in prayers and other ceremonial events of the National Society. The purpose of this message is to clarify NSDAR’s position on the matter for anyone who has not previously viewed the blogs written by President General Merry Ann T. Wright.”

“First, the question was posed by a national media group that if the motto of DAR is God, Home and Country, then ‘…why is DAR taking out references to God…’ in its printed material,” the statement said. ” Nothing could be further from the truth.” The 113 page Ritual and Missual contains over 300 references to God.

President General Merry Ann T. Wright points out in an April 2012 entry on her blog, “Our DAR Motto was originally: ‘Home and Country’ and it wasn’t until 1978 that it was revised to be ‘God, Home and Country’.”

The official statement said, “Second, the allegation has been leveled that Chaplains and others have been told not to pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Again, this is an absolute falsehood. Each Chaplain and other officers are strongly encouraged to create their own prayers into which they may insert the name of Jesus Christ as deemed appropriate for the occasion and the audience.”

President General Wright stated emphatically, “We have in no way mandated that one must or must not use the name of Jesus Christ in the prayers. In our DAR rituals, prayers are included. Most of the prayers begin with ‘Our Father’ or ‘Almighty God’ and end ‘in Your Holy Name.’ Christ’s prayer, known as The Lord’s Prayer, the prayer of St. Francis of Assisi, Easter and Passover prayers and prayers for other religious observances are included.”

In a May 2012 update on the blog of the President General, Merry Wright commented, “Freedom of religion and expression are at the heart of the founding of our Nation and are ingrained in the hearts of all members as we strive to honor and remember our Patriots who secured our liberty with their blood, their fortunes and their lives. Nowhere is that more clear than in the First Amendment to our Constitution where the framers said: ‘Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof . . . .’ The Patriots who wrote that amendment started their meetings with a prayer, as did the Congress which incorporated NSDAR in 1896 and every session of the U.S. House and Senate since then.”

That very statement, of course, is the reason Christians question why they are excluded from government venues and schools.

She also added some comments from members of the Daughters of the American Revolution:

“Each person has a right to their religious preferences and that is just what our forefathers did when they signed the Constitution. . . that is why we honor these ancestors . . . because they fought for the right of religious freedoms.”

“I am so proud of your statement . . . . ‘Tradition is a guide and not a jailer’ -W. Somerset Maugham”

“I fully support your efforts to make the NSDAR Ritual inclusive and hope others will pray about there [sic] opposition to the new handbook.”

Some of the most recent comments on the FOX update:

I am a DAR member who is very upset about this! NAME the “few” that have changed the missal and Ritual book. Let’s put the heat on them to face the 170,000 members. They don’t speak for me. If the ones who are taking Christ out of DAR then the Christians need to leave…. how many do you think will still be there? Lee Reith, North Carolina Chapter.—Wilma Lee Hostetter Reith

Rewriting history, yet again! I’m seeing a double standard here ~ intolerance, but not from Christians!—Kathy Stuart Wilson

I don’t understand why people who don’t like an organizations beliefs feel they have to change it rather than create their own organization reflecting their own beliefs. On second thought, it seems to be an anti-christian strategy, infiltrate “Christian” organizations and change them from the inside. “Wolves in sheep’s clothing.” is how the Apostle Paul put it. The Boy Scouts of America is another example of the same thing happening.—Erica Gautreaux Babin

Some of these may not be from DAR members.

The NSDAR has provided copies of the Ritual and Missals from 1903 to today in PDF online.

The Town ‘Too Tough to Die’ embattled again

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Boothill graveyard before restoration

Boothill graveyard before restoration

The name of Tombstone in Arizona brings to mind the western saga of the blazing gunfight between Wyatt Earp and the Clanton Gang. Today the “Town [Now the City of Tombstone] Too Tough to Die’ is involved in a battle that would make the founding fathers stand up and take notice. Against an overbearing National Government.

The Goldwater Institute, representing the City, reports:

The City of Tombstone is squaring off against the U.S. Forest Service over water rights in a fight to rescue “The Town Too Tough to Die.” Citing the Wilderness Act, the Forest Service is refusing to allow the city to repair its waterlines to mountain springs it has owned for nearly seventy years – and which date back to the 1880s. This refusal is threatening residents, private property and public safety with the risk of a total loss of fire protection and safe drinking water.

Allen Street in Tombstone, Arizona

Allen Street in Tombstone, Arizona

The Goldwater Institute is an organization fighting for the constitutional concept of limited government espoused by the founding fathers. “The Goldwater Institute is representing the City of Tombstone because the 10th Amendment protects states and their subdivisions from federal regulations that prevent them from using and enjoying their property in order to fulfill the essential functions of protecting public health and safety,” says a statement on their web site.

According to the Benson News-Sun,

Following the 2011 monsoons that caused extensive damage to the city’s pipeline, Gov. Jan Brewer declared a state of emergency to help fund the repairs. Tombstone rented the necessary earth-moving equipment to make the repairs, but was not able to secure the permits needed from the Forest Service for heavy equipment work.

While Tombstone officials contend that the Forest Service has interfered with the city’s ability to take heavy equipment into areas where they want to make repairs, Heidi Schewel, spokesperson for the Coronado National Forest, says there is a process that must be followed when wilderness areas are involved. Schewel also said those areas fall under the protection of the Forest Service, regardless of the documentation that Tombstone holds along with the city’s claims of water and property rights in those areas.

The most recent news in the saga is that the 9th Circuit court put a lump of coal in the stocking of the City on December 24th by denying an appeal for emergency repairs to the water system.

The Tenth Amendment allows States to control their own land within their borders. The Constitution gives the national government claim over lands limited to:

…all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings (Article I, Section 8, Clause 17)

All other lands within the borders of a State are the property of the State in accordance with the Tenth Amendment. An affirmation of the people called Proposition 120 was disapproved by voters in the last election.

The entire conflict represents bureaucratic, United Nation inspired lunacy that animal life takes precedence over human beings. This bureaucratic notion did not, apparently, save the life of Macho B.

SEE ALSO: Our View: Will Tombstone raise the stakes? – Sierra Vista Herald

Life on Mercury? Scientists claim discovery of water on ‘the Swift Planet’

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mercury-craters-planet-polar.nScientists have confirmed for the first time that the planet Mercury holds “at least 100 billion tons of water ice” and also has “organic material” in the permanently-shadowed craters at its north pole.

The alleged findings came from NASA’s Messenger Spacecraft, which has been in orbit around Mercury since 2011.

Theories that Mercury – also known as the Swift Planet – could potentially contain forms of water were already being discussed back in 1992. Back then, Earth-based telescopes had picked up “bright areas” in and around the planet’s polar regions.

Alternative explanations were put forward to account for the bright areas, but Messenger provided enough evidence for water ice to exist on the planet closest to our sun.

The discovery is even more spectacular, taking into account that Mercury’s surface temperatures can sometimes reach 427 degrees Celsius (800 F).

Although the finding of almost 22 cubic miles pales when compared with our planet’s water capacity (an estimated 332,500,000 cubic miles!), Mercury is our solar system’s smallest planet, roughly one tenth the size of Earth.

Read more at Russia Today

Daughters of the American Revolution kicking God out of country

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(See full interview)

Todd Starnes of FOX radio is reporting the the oldest women’s patriotic organization is removing God from all of their literature and their prayers.

The Daughters of the American Revolution president general has apparently ordered the removal of God as a sign of religious freedom and tolerance. To be a member of the group you must be a direct descendant of someone involved in the American Revolution.

Todd Starnes writes:

“The dispute has been brewing for more than a year when DAR members learned that the newly revised Ritual and Missal books – the primary guide for chaplains – were altered. They noticed that the name of Jesus Christ had been omitted.

“The DAR president general [Merry Ann T. Wright] did not return calls seeking comment for this story.”

According to the report, a state chaplain notified members in a newsletter:

“The newly updated Missal and Ritual was written to reflect the desire to be considerate of other belief systems,” the statement read. “The Chaplain General uses scripture from both the Old and New Testaments and prays in the name of God without reference Christ. Chapter and district chaplains need to follow the example set by the National Society.”

The statement also reminded members to “appreciate the differences in members’ religious beliefs and to adapt our rituals and prayers to respect these differences.”

In the aftermath of the War for Independence, the First Amendment was added to the Bill of Right to prevent requiring people to worship God of the Holy Bible according to a State run religion such as the Anglican Church in England. One of the historic reasons colonist left England was to gain freedom to worship God according to their conscience. The First Amendment also was to give freedom of speech, but some outraged members spoke to Starnes anonymously for fear of being kicked out of the organization.

One member said:

“It’s horrible, I mean how dare they. They’re supposed to be doing it out of inclusion and to me it is exclusion. If they are saying well it’s because of religious freedom and tolerance then my question is if someone is so incensed over the name of Jesus and words like ‘white crosses’ that reference soldiers who died for America, is it not they who are intolerant?”

The DAR was founded in 1890 as a non-profit, non-political volunteer women’s service organization. Membership is open to any woman who can prove they are a lineal descendant of a patriot from the American Revolution. The organization has 170,000 members in 3,000 members.

Inmates extort money from outside prison

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By Rhonda Cook
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

First there was a picture sent to Jimenna Whitner’s cell phone of her brother, who was bloody and beaten.

Next, she got a text message from somewhere inside Baldwin State Prison 950 miles from her home in Michigan, demanding $1,000. Otherwise her inmate brother, Thomas Maher, would be killed.

“From the pictures and stuff we knew they weren’t playing,” said Whitner, who earns $800 to $900 a month cleaning rental mobile homes for new tenants. “We don’t have money.”

But Whitner found a way to pay the inmates who had allegedly punched and kicked her brother, a convicted rapist, for about two hours in a cell block shower. She raised the money from relatives and paid the inmates through “Green Dot” cash cards that carry VISA or MasterCard logos.

Read more at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution