Sunday, July 10, 2011

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Rick Santelli's Chicago Tea Party

Colorado day-care center proposal: Dolls must represent at least three different races

Posted: 09 Jul 2011 09:11 AM PDT

By Michael Roberts, Westword.com

​Here’s an item with the potential for firing up enemies of political correctness:
New rules proposed by the Colorado Department of Human Services include a requirement that all day-care centers in the state make available dolls representing three different races.

The 98-page document, obtained by 7News, features a slew of rule changes. Among them: children over age two must not be served whole milk without a note from a doctor, kids over age one can’t drink more than six ounces of juice per day, TV and computer time will be capped at twenty minutes daily, and staffers must wear clothes that cover their lap and shoulders. But arguably the most unusual suggestion pops up on page 77: “Dolls shall represent three (3) races.”

​After posting this item, we were able to reach Human Services spokeswoman Liz McDonough, who provides background on the project as a whole.
“These are national child care standards that we are proposing,” she says. “They come from national standards that are entitled ‘Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale.’ They’re minimum standards for quality in childcare — and the process was actually started by statute back in 2000. We initially made changes in the educational levels and training required for childcare workers and redid all of our family childcare home rules back in 2004 — and we began the rule-writing process for family childcare centers in 2006.”

Five years later, the department finally finished drafting the rules, and in early May began a 55-community tour in order to get feedback from day-care providers statewide about the suggested changes. Once that’s completed, early in October, the department will pull together feedback from the tour, as well as from members of the public weighing in online and via a special phone line, and provide it to a working group that will come up with a second draft. Then, over the next several months, the set of rules that result will be given to the State Board of Human Services for more public comment before final approval.

To read more, visit:  http://blogs.westword.com/latestword/2011/07/dolls_three_races_colorado_day_care_centers.php

Administration to propose steps on gun safety

Posted: 09 Jul 2011 09:04 AM PDT


By Associated Press, USA Today

WASHINGTON (AP) — Six months after Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was shot, the White House is preparing to propose some new steps on gun safety, though they’re likely to fall short of the bold measures activists would like to see.

Anti-gun groups have been disappointed to see no action so far from President Barack Obama, who supported tough gun control measures earlier in his career but fell largely silent upon becoming president. Some activists were using the opportunity of the six-month anniversary of the Giffords shooting on Friday to speak up.

Spokesman Jay Carney said that the new steps would be made public “in the near future.” He didn’t offer details, but people involved in talks at the Justice Department to craft the new measures said they expected to see something in the next several weeks. Whatever is proposed is not expected to involve legislation or take on major issues like banning assault weapons but could include executive action to strengthen the background check system or other steps.

The shooting rampage in Tucson, Arizona, killed six people and wounded more than a dozen others, including Giffords. Two months later, Obama wrote an opinion piece in Giffords’ local paper, the Arizona Daily Star, calling for “sound and effective steps” to keep guns out of the hands of criminals, including strengthening background checks. So far the president has done nothing and administration officials have signaled that no major steps should be expected, given the climate in Congress against gun legislation of any kind.

To read more, visit:  http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2011-07-08-obama-gun-control-safety-giffords_n.htm

Secret agents raid Apple store webcam ‘artist’

Posted: 09 Jul 2011 09:00 AM PDT


From BBC.CO.UK

The US Secret Service has raided the home of an artist who collected images from webcams in a New York Apple store.

Kyle McDonald is said to have installed software that photographed people looking at laptops then uploaded the pictures to a website.

Mr McDonald said he had obtained permission from a security guard to take photos inside the store.

Apple declined to comment. However, the Secret Service confirmed that its electronic crime division was involved.

A spokesperson told the BBC that the investigation was taking place under US Code Title 18 /1030 which relates to “Fraud and related activity in connection with computers.”

Offences covered by the legislation carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.

Writing on Twitter, Mr McDonald said: “@secretservice just stopped by to investigate [web address removed] and took my laptop. Please assume they’re reading any e-mails you send me.”

No arrests had been made in the case as of 8 July.

To read more, visit:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-14080438

Perry calling Iowa activists as potential donors convene

Posted: 09 Jul 2011 08:57 AM PDT

By JONATHAN MARTIN & MAGGIE HABERMAN, Politico

Rick Perry has started calling Iowa Republicans and a former RNC finance chairman is helping to convene a meeting of national donors later this month in Austin to discuss financing a potential 2012 campaign — signs that the Texas governor and his allies are stepping up their exploratory efforts.

The developments come as Perry is being watched by a string of donors, early-state voters and elites who say they’re disenchanted, and in search of a stronger candidate.

Republican activist Joni Scotter told POLITICO she got a surprise phone call this afternoon from Perry, asking about the political landscape as it relates to him.

“It was just a surprise,” said Scotter, of Marion, who’s well-known for her frequent appearances at Iowa Republican events and is a coveted worker bee on presidential campaigns. She said she didn’t know how Perry got her number.

“He sounded great and just asked if he should run,” she said. “And I said, of course.” She said he said he hadn’t made up his mind.

Scotter declined to reveal more about the roughly 20-minute conversation, saying, “I feel like I am violating a trust…it is an honor that he even considered calling. It was a wonderful conversation.”

Dave Carney, Perry's top strategist, confirmed that the governor had been reaching out to Republican caucus-goers.

To read more, visit:  http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0711/58608.html

FLORIDA D.A. FIRED FOR TALKING ABOUT CONSTITUTION SETTLES CASE

Posted: 09 Jul 2011 08:38 AM PDT

By Madeleine Morgenstern, The Blaze

A former Florida assistant state attorney who lost her job over teaching about the Founding Fathers and the Constitution settled her case for an undisclosed amount Thursday against the Florida state attorney who fired her.

KrisAnne Hall was fired last year after participating in a number of political speaking engagements, including at tea party rallies and on talk radio, in which she discussed her originalist views of the Constitution. Her boss, State Attorney Robert "Skip" Jarvis, said he received a complaint about her activities and gave what Hall described as an "ultimatum," telling her to choose between her speaking engagements and her job.

"I told him I could not make that choice. I believe that my First Amendment right is my right and I would not stop speaking," Hall said in an interview with The Blaze.

Hall subsequently filed a federal lawsuit after her dismissal, alleging her rights had been violated and Jarvis had no standing to order her to stop speaking on her own time. Both parties agreed to settle the case Thursday.

To read more, visit:  http://www.theblaze.com/stories/florida-d-a-fired-for-talking-about-constitution-settles-case/

House GOP set to repeal incandescent bulb ban

Posted: 09 Jul 2011 08:35 AM PDT

By Caroline May, The Daily Caller

Republican House members are preparing themselves to take a stand to save the incandescent light bulb.

Monday, the House of Representatives will vote on H.R. 2417, the Better Use of Light Bulbs (BULB) Act, a bill to repeal the federal ban on the incandescent light bulb, contained in a 2007 energy law.

Sponsored by Texas Republican Rep. Joe Barton, the bill would protect Americans' ability to use the kind of light bulbs they want and not be forced to use mercury containing light sources such as compact fluorescent lights.

"This is about more than just energy consumption, it is about personal freedom. Voters sent us a message in November that it is time for politicians and activists in Washington to stop interfering in their lives and manipulating the free market," Barton said. "The light bulb ban is the perfect symbol of that frustration. People don't want Congress dictating what light fixtures they can use."

Texas Republican Rep. Michael Burgess and Tennessee Republican Rep. Marsha Blackburn joined Barton and 12 other Republicans to reintroduce the bill in early 2011.

To read more, visit:  http://dailycaller.com/2011/07/08/house-gop-set-to-repeal-incandescent-bulb-ban/
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