Society's ChildS


Dollars

LA City Council agrees to pay $1.5mn to family of unarmed police shooting victim


RT
Fri, 10 Feb 2017 12:48 UTC
Ezell Ford
© Patrick Fallon / ReutersPosters of Ezell Ford hang outside the meeting of the Los Angeles Police Commission in Los Angeles, California
The Los Angeles City Council has approved a $1.5 million settlement with the family of Ezell Ford, an unarmed black man who was gunned down by police in 2014. Prosecutors have declined to charge either officer involved in Ford's death.

Though a "conditional" settlement between the city of Los Angeles, California, and Edsell and Tritobia Ford, Ezell Ford's parents, was reportedlyreachedin October, the terms of the agreement were finally approved by the Los Angeles City Council and formally announced on Wednesday, according to reports.

"They're happy this is behind them so can move on with their lives, but this was never about money," Boris Treyzon, the family's lawyer, told the New York Daily News.

Comment: Further reading: Cops who killed unarmed mentally ill man and kept jobs, suing dept — say being put on desk duty is racist

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Clipboard

New poll finds Americans trust Trump administration more than fake news media

Brian Flood
The Wrap
Thu, 09 Feb 2017 08:37 UTC
Donald Trump thumbs up
© Chip Somadevilla/Getty Images
An Emerson College poll found that 49 percent of U.S. voters believe that the Trump administration is "truthful," while only 39 percent feel that way about the news media. Worse, for the so-called "opposition party," 53 percent of those surveyed described the media as "untruthful."

The poll, released on Tuesday, also showed that Americans are divided on Trump's performance so far — 48 percent of registered voters approve of the job that Trump is doing, compared to 47 percent who disapprove.

It a statistic that should not come as a surprise, the poll notes that 89 percent of Republicans approve of Trump, while 81 percent of Democrats disapprove. According to the poll, Trump's "failure to pass the 50 percent threshold" for approval is because of his standing among independents, a group in which 52 percent disapprove.

Trump and his surrogates have been combative with the media, often referring to CNN as "fake news," and bashing the industry in general, labeling it the "opposition party."
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Bulb

Unknown electrical grid problem causes power outage in Brussels


Business TImes
Fri, 10 Feb 2017 10:48 UTC
Brussells power outage
© Via Twitter@Ahead_eduPhoto from Saint-Josse
A power cut plunged several neighbourhoods of Brussels into darkness overnight after an unknown problem hit the grid, the Belgian capital's electricity distributor said Friday.

"We are getting electricity again from (grid operator) Elia. We are gradually starting to restore the affected areas," Sibelga tweeted shortly after midnight.

The power outage hit the neighbourhoods of Schaerbeek, Evere and Saint-Josse, in the northwest of the city, at 10.40 pm (2140 GMT), according to a Sibelga spokesman quoted by the Belga news agency.

Five of the 48 high-voltage stations in Brussels were no longer powered by Elia, according to the spokesman.

Radio programmes of the French-language public channel RTBF, headquartered in Schaerbeek, were affected by the blackout.

Various RTBF stations broadcast continuous music instead of their usual programmes.
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Pistol

Mississippi lawmakers propose bringing back the firing squad


NBC News
Thu, 09 Feb 2017 00:40 UTC
firing squad chamber
© Trent Nelson / Salt Lake Tribune/APA firing squad execution chamber at a state prison in the United States is pictured in this file photo from June 18, 2010.
Mississippi lawmakers are advancing a proposal to add firing squad, electrocution and gas chamber as execution methods in case a court blocks the use of lethal injection drugs.

House Bill 638 is a response to lawsuits filed by "liberal, left-wing radicals," said House Judiciary B Committee Chairman Andy Gipson, a Republican.

The bill passed the House amid opposition Wednesday, and it moves to the Senate for more debate.

Lethal injection is Mississippi's only execution method. The state faces lawsuits claiming the drugs it plans to use would violate constitutional prohibitions against cruel and unusual punishment.

Comment: The death penalty is killing people that kill people to show people that killing people is wrong. The debate over methods is just a matter of aesthetics: How to make state-sanctioned murder look more pleasing to the eye as to better assuage the guilt of a society that participates in it.

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Heart - Black

Foreign greed and delusion killing ten-thousand Yemeni children

Bernhard
Moon of Alabama
Thu, 09 Feb 2017 20:54 UTC
Yemeni children
Ten-thousands, and soon hundred-thousands die in Yemen as result of zealotry, greed and bureaucratic infighting of foreign countries. The Wahhabi Saudis fight in Yemen against Iranian Shia that ain't there. Under the eyes of the CIA they nurture local al-Qaeda forces to do their bidding. The UAE seeks new ports in Yemen thereby disturbing Saudi pipeline dreams. The Pentagon tussles with the CIA over budgets of special operations. The minor local Yemeni conflicts between the various tribes develop into a war due to foreign interference and financing. Bombing campaigns have replaced tribal mediation.

The executive branch of the United Nations is under pressure from the U.S.-Saudi coalition. It is not allowed to report on the real consequences of the devastating war on Yemen. The leads to rather comical assertions.
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Handcuffs

Ex-con transgender who tried to castrate sixth husband allegedly threatens to shoot judge - says she was just "kidding"

Julie Shaw
Philly.com
Wed, 08 Feb 2017 19:32 UTC
Tammy Felbaum
Tammy Felbaum, charged with terroristic threats and disorderly conduct, after allegedly threatening to shoot a Westmoreland County judge on Monday, Feb. 6, 2017.
A transgender woman who spent time behind bars for a botched castration that led to the death of her sixth husband was arrested this week after she allegedly threatened to shoot a Westmoreland County, Pa., judge, according to news reports and police.

Tammy L. Felbaum, 58, of Seward, in southwestern Pennsylvania, entered the Westmoreland County Courthouse on Monday morning, placed her purse on the baggage X-ray equipment, then made comments that "she had guns and an Uzi and a rocket launcher in her purse," County Park Police Chief Kirk Nolan said Wednesday.

As she walked through the scanner, she told another officer, "I came here to shoot a judge," Nolan said.

He said officers searched her purse and did not find any weapons. Felbaum told police she was only kidding about her threats, Nolan said. He said she did not name a specific judge.
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Mr. Potato

Far-right mouthpiece shocks woman in TV refugee debate by saying 'I hope you don't get raped'


RT
Thu, 09 Feb 2017 18:57 UTC
Jack Buckby
© Liberty GB / YouTubeJack Buckby
A former member of the British National Party (BNP), who was invited on Channel 4 news to talk about Britain's intake of Syrian refugees, challenged a fellow panelist to take one in herself, while warning her that she could be raped as a result.

Jack Buckby previously made headlines by deciding to run in a by-election in the constituency of murdered Labour MP Jo Cox, despite all other parliamentary parties letting Labour run unopposed out of respect.

While debating Barbara Ntumy from the National Union of Students (NUS), Buckby said he only wanted those "who are a drain on society" to be deported. However, when Ntumy questioned how he would define who is and isn't a "drain" on British society, the far-right activist launched into a tirade that left his fellow guests and the Channel 4 crew speechless.
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Cards

Sioux Tribe files legal challenge after resumption of construction of Dakota Access Pipeline


RT
Thu, 09 Feb 2017 18:55 UTC
dapl
© Josh Morgan / Reuters
The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe has filed a legal challenge to the resumption of construction of the final phase of the Dakota Access Pipeline, which has been given the green light after months of protests against the controversial project.

Energy Transfer Partners (ETP) resumed construction work late on Wednesday after receiving final permission from the US Army to proceed with building a section of the pipeline that will cross the Missouri River in southern North Dakota.

Trump signed an executive order in January that asked the Army to expedite the final permitting process for the last portion of the $3.8 billion pipeline.

Wednesday's easement was met by opposition from one of two Native American tribes fighting the pipeline, the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, which filed a legal challenge in a federal court in Washington DC on Thursday.
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Dollar Gold

Profligate: Gulf royal buys central London parking lot for £21mn


RT
Thu, 09 Feb 2017 18:39 UTC
super cars
© Ben Stevens / Global Look Press via ZUMA Press
An anonymous Middle Eastern royal has forked out £21 million (US$26 million) to buy a central London parking lot to store his collection of 80 supercars.

The investor's purchase works out at about £150,000 per parking space, making it the largest parking-related transaction ever recorded in the UK.

The per-space-price is around the same as a brand-new McLaren 570S or Porsche 911 Turbo S.

The parking lot in Knightsbridge sits under luxury apartments opposite Hyde Park. As an added bonus, the building is just outside the London congestion charge zone.

Comment: While many people on the planet struggle to have basic needs like food, clean water and health care, "royals" fill themselves with unbridled excess and avarice.

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Handcuffs

38 men and 4 women arrested in Tennessee sex trafficking operation

Jack Phillips
Epoch Times
Wed, 08 Feb 2017 17:38 UTC
man arrested
© bikeriderlondon/Shutterstock
At least 42 suspects were arrested during a sting targeting human and sex trafficking in Memphis, Tennessee, police said.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, in a release, said that 38 men and four women were arrested, which included "eight men responding to the ads tried to buy sex from a minor." Meanwhile, "those arrested include a medical professional, engineers, a law student, a tow truck driver and construction workers," the TBI added.

Two juvenile female victims of human trafficking were also recovered in the sting and were referred to the Department of Children's Services.

Agents posted four ads each day on Backpage.com for about 7 hours each day, and some 475 men responded to them in total.

"We have said all along that this is a demand-driven crime, and this operation demonstrates how very prevalent that demand is," TBI Director Mark Gwyn said in the release. "Let me speak directly to men: The women you see advertised online are people, not products. We need men to step up and demand better from themselves and the men around them."

"Operations like 'Operation Someone Like Me' are necessary to protect the innocence of youth within our community. It is sickening to know that there are individuals who prey on our girls and women," added Memphis Police Director Michael Rallings. "Parents and family members, be aware and know where your children are and what they are doing at all times."

Comment: Behind the Headlines: Predators Among Us - Interview With Dr. Anna Salter

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