Society's ChildS


House

Minimum wage workers cannot afford a one-bedroom apartment in any state in the US

Tyler Durden
Zero Hedge
Sat, 23 May 2015 01:30 UTC
Reuters Poor
© Reuters/John Gress
Earlier this month we learned that in 21 out of the 26 OECD member countries that have a minimum wage, working 40 hours per week at the pay floor would not be sufficient to keep one's family out of poverty. That rather stunning revelation comes as Democrats in the US push for a $12 minimum wage by 2020 and as pressure grows on companies like McDonald's to raise wages for its lowest-paid employees.

Of course rising minimum wages can also have the rather counterintuitive side effect of harming those they're meant to help because after all, when the cost of labor goes up, employers may simply fire people or, as we saw yesterday when McDonald's pledged to reduce the number of company-owned restaurants by 10% over the next several years, resort to other measures aimed at getting around pay floor hikes.

So while one can debate pros and cons of addressing abysmal wage growth by legislating a non-market-driven solution, what is not up for debate is this: it's getting harder and harder to subsist above the poverty line for low-income workers.

In fact, as the following map shows, in no state can a minimum wage worker afford a one bedroom apartment.
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Question

Mystery of 9 brains found in US county village remains unsolved

Ken Sturtz
www.syracuse.com
Thu, 21 May 2015 23:51 UTC
Brain
© _DJ_/Flickr
Nine brains inexplicably appeared earlier this week along a street in a St. Lawrence County village. How the brains got there and where they came from remains a mystery.

Residents discovered the brains on Beck with Street near railroad tracks and called the police.

Gouverneur police collected one of the brains and brought it to a local veterinarian for an examination, WWNY TV 7 reported. The veterinarian determined the brain had been professionally removed -- likely from a dog -- and preserved in formaldehyde.

The veterinarian told North Country Now that the brain was consistent with a beagle-sized brain and was in very good condition with no damage.

But a chemistry professor at Clarkson University told North Country Now the specimen was possibly from a sheep, not a dog.

Regardless, police told both news outlets there was little to fear. The nine brains are believed to have been part of a collection for educational or research purposes and no criminal activity, other than littering, is suspected, police said.

As unusual as it might seem, mishaps with preserved brains do happen. Last year the University of Texas in Austin said dozens of human brains stored in jars of formaldehyde and reported missing were actually destroyed in 2002. The brains had been donated for teaching and research.
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Stormtrooper

LAPD cop who kicked Alesia Thomas to death is now on trial

S. Wooten and Jackson Marciana
Counter Current News
Fri, 22 May 2015 12:34 UTC
LA cop punt
© NBC screenshot
The LAPD cop who kicked Alesia Thomas to death was recorded on dashcam saying: "I'm going to punt you in your p*ssy."

Those words of Officer Mary O'Callaghan were said as Thomas was handcuffed and her legs restrained.

The video clearly shows Thomas getting punched in the throat, as well as kicked in the groin over and over by Officer O'Callaghan, in the video that surfaced nearly three years ago.

Watch the full report in the video below...

In the video we can clearly see Officer O'Callaghan punching Thomas' throat.

Thomas is seen tied with a nylon restraint, saying "I can't" over and over.

The video showed O'Callaghan raise her boot and strike Thomas, whose body shook in response. A few minutes later, Thomas' eyes closed and her head fell backward, the video showed. The recording then cut off.

She died at the hospital that evening. The video of her being assaulted was just released for the first time in court and can be seen below.

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Heart - Black

Sheriff's department who flash-bombed baby blames infant for being in the room to avoid paying medical bills

Joshua Krause
The Daily Sheeple
Wed, 20 May 2015 00:00 UTC
bou-bou
Nearly a year has passed since a Habersham County SWAT team stormed into the Phonesavanh residence, and very nearly killed their 19 month old child. The no-knock raid was prompted by an anonymous tip which suggested there were drugs in the house. As the officers forced their way into the home, they lobbed a flash grenade which wound up landing in the crib where baby "bou-bou" was sleeping. As it erupted, the infant suffered severe burns and had to be taken to the hospital, and placed in a medically induced coma.

To any sane person, the sheriff's department would be responsible for the damage inflicted on this child. Not only were there no drugs in the house, but the suspect they were looking for was found elsewhere. And despite their claims that they had the house under surveillance for two days prior to the raid, somehow they had no idea that there were children who lived there.

Still, the family had to fight the county tooth and nail to have their $1 million in medical bills reimbursed. Last month they settled with the county, and received $964,000, half of which will be given to them now, and the rest will be given to baby after he turns 18. While it's great to hear that the family is getting something out of this, it's shocking to see how defiant the sheriff's department was, right to the very end. They never once admitted culpability for their gross negligence, and in a bizarre twist, their defense statement in court basically blamed the infant for his own injuries.

Comment: It is beyond belief that anyone could even think to mount such a ridiculous defense. The actions of the SWAT team were completely indefensible, but like any psychopath, completely lacking the capacity for empathy or a moral compass, they prefer to fight rather than own up to their own malfeasance and compensate the family.

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Heart - Black

Mother consents to circumcision of 4-year-old son after being jailed for week


Raw Story
Fri, 22 May 2015 21:39 UTC
Image
© WPBFHeather Hironimus
A Florida mother consented on Friday to allowing her 4-year-old son to be circumcised, ending a legal battle with the child's father, according to media reports.

Heather Hironimus, 31, was jailed for a week after hiding out with the child for months after a protracted court fight to block the circumcision, the Sun Sentinel newspaper reported.

Crying in a state courtroom in Palm Beach County, Florida, she consented to the procedure shortly after a judge ordered her to remain jailed until signing off on it, the newspaper reported.

She still faces a charge of interference with child custody, according to the Palm Beach Post.

A lawyer for the child's father, Dennis Nubus, said a date for the circumcision had not been scheduled, the Post reported. The procedure may take place out of state, as Nubus has received death threats from anti-circumcision activists, the Post reported.

Comment: It's such a sad comment on society that we imprison a mother for standing up for the child's right not to be mutilated with such an invasive, dangerous, and indeed pointless medical procedure:

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Bomb

Suicide bomber strikes Shiite mosque in Saudi Arabia killing 21, ISIS claims responsibility


RT
Fri, 22 May 2015 21:21 UTC
Image
© Reuters / Stringer
A suicide attack on a Shiite mosque in the east of Saudi Arabia during Friday prayers has killed around 20 people, a hospital official says. The Islamic State has reportedly claimed responsibility for the attack.

The official told Reuters that more than 50 people had been wounded after the suicide bomber let off his device.

"We were doing the first part of the prayers when we heard the blast," Kamal Jaafar Hassan, a worshipper, told the agency by telephone from the scene.

The blast occurred at the Iman Ali mosque in the town of al-Qadeeh, Qatif province, where around 150 people were praying.

Comment: Saudi Arabia is swimming in turmoil.

Yemeni Cyber Army group hacks 3,000 Saudi govt computers revealing top secret docs

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Network

Yemeni Cyber Army group hacks 3,000 Saudi govt computers revealing top secret docs


RT
Fri, 22 May 2015 21:08 UTC
Image
© Reuters / Ints Kalnins
Yemeni hackers have allegedly released thousands of top secret Saudi Arabia documents, including spies' identities, after gaining "full control" of over 3,000 computers and servers belonging to Riyadh's Foreign, Interior and Defense Ministries.

The Yemen Cyber Army group claims it not only has the addresses, phone numbers and emails of top Saudi diplomats, Foreign Ministry staff, secret agents and army personnel, but also got hold of classified files and correspondence of senior Riyadh officials with other countries and governments since early 1980s.

"We have gained access to the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) network and have full control over more than 3,000 computers and servers, and thousands of users. We also have access to the emails, personal and secret information of hundreds of thousands of their staff and diplomats in different missions around the world," the hackers informed in a statement cited by the Iranian semi-official Fars news agency.

Comment: Cyber warfare in full swing.

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Dominoes

Over 1,000 monasteries collapsed in Nepal earthquakes; over 200 deaths

Anup Ojha
ekantipur.com
Fri, 22 May 2015 09:14 UTC
Image
© Anup OjhaJyachhen Ka-nying Lama Gumba in Duwachaur VDC, Sindhupalchok.
An estimated 200 Buddhist nuns and monks died after more than 1,000 monasteries collapsed in the 14 districts hit hardest by the earthquake s, according to the Buddhist Philosophy Promotion and Monastery Development Committee (BPPMDC).

The committee, under the Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development, said that all 215 monasteries in Sindhupalchok district were flattened by the April 25 earthquake and its aftershocks. Six monks have been reported dead in the district so far.

A total of 150 Buddhist monasteries collapsed in Gorkha, 105 in Dhading, 60 in Rasuwa and 60 in Solukhumbu. There are reports of them destroyed in Nuwakot, Dolakha, Ramechhap, Okhaldhunga, Makwanpur, Lamjung and Syangja as well. "What we have is a preliminary report of damages caused by the quake," said Bhadra Bahadur Golay, under-secretary at the BPPMDC.

The devastating earthquake has destroyed many well-known monasteries including Seto Gumba in Ramkot; Rato Gumba in Sitapaila; Khumchey Gumba in Gorkha; Chrighyang Gumba in Dolakha and Chirite Gumba in Sindhupalchok.

Karma Tsering Tashi Lama, president of the BPPMDC who recently visited many of the earthquake -affected areas in Sindhupalchok and Rasuwa with an inspection team, said he did not see a monastery that stands straight. "The monasteries we visited had either fallen or were on the verge of collapse," said Lama. "Of those that remain, there is eerie silence."
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Red Flag

Ridiculous! Landlord in Oklahoma threatens to evict mother for breastfeeding on her porch

Joan Shipps
Raw Story
Fri, 22 May 2015 11:40 UTC
Image
© Shutterstock
A building manager in Oklahoma threatened a mother and her family with eviction after neighbors complained that she was breastfeeding her infant child on her own porch.

Missy Smith has lived in her apartment for "around a year," SheKnows reports, and Smith has rented from the same property manager for longer than that. But after a tipster filed a complaint, management notified Smith that if she got caught again feeding her child without the use of a bottle, she would be forced to take her stuff and move somewhere else.

Smith writes on Facebook that employees of the management company informed her that "my breastfeeding is child endangerment. That by me breastfeeding outside of my home I am putting my daughter in danger because a 'pervert' might see her nursing."

Cognizant that breastfeeding is a legal practice in the state of Oklahoma, Smith called police for backup against what she felt was an unlawful threat of eviction. The dispatcher who answered Smith's call sympathized with the landlord, however, and instructed the nursing mother to obscure breastfeeding from view when outdoors, "or stay inside."

Smith confronted her property manager with legal text supporting her right to breastfeed her child. The rental company has since halted any process to evict Smith and her family.

A "nurse in" protest — which one of Smith's friends organized while the mom of an infant was still facing the prospect of getting kicked out onto the street — is still scheduled to take place this Sunday.

Comment: It's ridiculous that a management company would threaten this poor woman with homelessness to prevent her from breastfeeding for her baby. All of you moms out there, keep breastfeeding!

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Bulb

Here are 5 reasons why anarchy would be an improvement in human governance

Gary 'Z' McGee
Waking Times
Mon, 18 May 2015 20:38 UTC
Image
"Give a man a gun and he'll rob a bank. Give a man a bank and he'll rob the world." - Unknown
Give people just a little bit of knowledge and courage and they will track down those greedy-ass bankers and hold them accountable. All we need is just a little courageous anarchy. The problem, the crux, the fly in the ointment: most people are not courageous enough, and most people don't want to learn anything that attacks their all-too-precious worldview. Yes, the very worldview that is keeping people indebted to an immoral, unhealthy, unsustainable, unjust system of human governance, is precisely the worldview that the majority of people are clinging to. Indeed, most people, even though they would probably say otherwise, would rather be kissed with a lie than slapped with the truth. They would rather deny facts that tarnish their worldview than reject the deceit that upholds it. But as Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable. Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals."

Healthy human evolution requires authentic vigilance. It requires a consistent upheaval of the status quo. This requires proactive human beings who are willing to be authentically vigilant and consistently rebellious. It requires courageous interdependent individuals who dare to recondition the status-quo-junky original condition. It turns out that the wisdom gained from anarchy is precisely the ability to distinguish between sacrifice that is transformative and healthy from mere suffering caused by the state that we've allowed because we were too cowardly or too unimaginative to think of a healthier way to live. Like Stefan Molyneux said, "Never, ever underestimate the degree to which people will scatter themselves into a deep fog in order to avoid seeing the basic realities of their own cages. The strongest lock on the prison is always avoidance, not force."

Here are five reasons why anarchy will improve human governance and thereby cultivate a healthy human evolution.
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