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US: Fort Hood soldier returning from West Africa found dead in yard

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© KXXV
Killeen Police and Fort Hood Military Police currently have a home blocked off on the 3300 block of Cantebrian Drive where a man was found dead in a yard Tuesday morning.

Fort Hood officials confirm the man is a soldier who recently returned from a deployment to West Africa. Officials say there are no indications the soldier had Ebola, however medical personnel at Carl R. Darnall Medical Center are running tests as a precaution to make sure there is no threat to the community.

Troops returning from West Africa must undergo a 21-day monitoring period at a controlled monitoring site on post. Officials say this soldier was granted an emergency leave that was not medical related and involved a family emergency, according to officials. It is not known if the soldier was hospitalized or if the family emergency was a false report.

The soldier was under self monitoring where he had to check in with officials twice a day before his family emergency.

People

End of the traditional family: Less than half of children in the U.S. grow up living with a mother and father

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Less than half (46%) of U.S. kids younger than 18 years of age are living in a home with two married heterosexual parents in their first marriage. This is a marked change from 1960, when 73% of children fit this description, and 1980, when 61% did, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of recently-released American Community Survey (ACS) and Decennial Census data.

Rapid changes in American family structure have altered the image of who's gathering for the holidays. While the old "ideal" involved couples marrying young, then starting a family, and staying married till "death do they part", the family has become more complex, and less "traditional".

Americans are delaying marriage, and more may be foregoing the institution altogether. At the same time, the share of children born outside of marriage now stands at 41%, up from just 5% in 1960. While debate continues as to whether divorce rates have been rising or falling in recent decades, it's clear that in the longer term, the share of people who have been previously married is rising, as is remarriage.

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Comment: It can be very traumatic for a child to experience the divorce of their parents, and according to these numbers that experience is more and more common in today's modern world. That no doubt has an affect on society since those children are affected by the experience into adulthood. Perhaps it's one more reason why U.S. society is becoming more and more insane?


Black Cat

Former Louisiana mayor charged with child porn possession and animal cruelty; adopted rescued cats to torture

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© NOLA
Wilson Longanecker, Jr., who served as a town councilman and then as Mayor of Sorrento, Louisiana, from 2011 to 2013, was arrested Dec. 29 on four counts of cruelty to animals and three counts of aggravated cruelty to animals, according to the Advocate.

The Advocate also reports that, at that time, Longanecker had already been in custody in Ascension Parish prison since Oct. 23, facing 42 counts of possessing child pornography and one count of obstruction of justice, with bail set at $1.025 million.

Sorrento is a town in Ascension Parish, near Baton Rouge.

Officials with the Northside Humane Society and the Capital Area Animal Welfare Society (CAAWS) were shocked and recalled that on a Saturday, July 7, 2012, the former mayor had stopped by a PetSmart adoption event held at its store in Baton Rouge and he had bottle-fed two newborn kittens that had lost their mother.

Longanecker, 42, came to the store by himself that day and said he was looking for cats to adopt because he wanted his children to have cats in his big house in Sorrento. He promised the rescuers, "They'll be spoiled," Lori D'Arensbourg, president of the Northside Humane Society told Advocate reporter David J. Mitchell.

D'Arensbourg and other cat rescue volunteers were upset and very worried about the cats he adopted that day when they learned this week that Longanecker was arrested on seven counts of animal cruelty involving cats.

Although D'Arensbourg and Stacey Orillion, cat chairperson of the Capital Area Animal Welfare Society, said it is unusual for someone to adopt cats for his children by himself, Longanecker's charm won their confidence; and he adopted from both agencies without home checks.


Comment: A hallmark trait of the psychopathic personality is their charm and ability to manipulate other people. Empathetic people, like the kind that would work an animal welfare organization, are natural targets for them.


They told the Advocate reporter that Longanecker filled out the screening questionnaires and applications and paid fees of $80 - $100 each for three cats and had his photo taken with them.

Comment: From an interview with Robert Hare:
We aren't all good people just trying to do good. Some of us are psychopaths. And psychopaths are to blame for this brutal, misshapen society. They're the jagged rocks thrown into the still pond. (p. 112)

"If some political or business leader had a psychopathically hoodlum childhood, wouldn't it come out in the press and ruin them?" I said.

"They find ways to bury it," Bob replied. "Anyway, Early Behavior Problems don't necessarily mean ending up in Juvenile Hall. It could mean, say, secretly torturing animals." He paused. "But getting access to people like that can be difficult. Prisoners are easy. They like meeting researchers. It breaks up the monotony of their day. But CEOs, politicians ..." Bob looked at me. "It's a really big story," he said. "It's a story that could change forever the way people see the world." (p. 118)

Psychopathic kyriarchy - Our rulers really are unempathic predators



Newspaper

Superstition at work: Doorless India village sure thieves won't be knocking

Shani Shignapur-1
© AFP Photo/Punit ParanjpeA family gathers outside their house, which has no doors, in the village of Shani Shignapur in Ahmednagar District on November 24, 2014
Members of the Gade family proudly show off a stash of Indian rupees kept in an unlocked tin barrel in their bedroom, despite their home not having a front door.

In Shani Shingnapur village in western India, residents see little need for such security, thanks to their belief in special protection from the Hindu deity Shani.

As farmers trundle the roads in bullock carts piled high with sugarcane, they pass rows of homes bearing empty door frames - - a village tradition that goes back for generations.

"Years ago, Shani came in the dreams of devotees and told them you don't need to put any doors on your homes," housewife Jayashree Gade told AFP.

Comment: India is a land of superstition: in some parts of the country, Shani is considered a god of bad luck.


Pistol

Charges dismissed against cop who killed 7 year-old girl while she slept

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© UnknownAiyana Stanley Jones was 7 years old when she was shot and killed in 2010
In all of the melee resulting from the shooting of Michael Brown by Officer Darren Wilson, the media has overlooked a number of other very important shootings of unarmed civilians by police officers. One of the most egregious offenses is that of Officer Joseph Weekley's fatal shooting of 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones. Officer Weekley recently saw manslaughter charge dropped against him, for shooting the 7-year-old while she slept.

The Detroit police officer had been on trial for involuntary manslaughter for shooting and killing the young girl during a 2010 police raid. But early in October, Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Cynthia Gray Hathaway granted a motion which Weekley's attorney had filed, arguing for the dismissal of the felony charge he faced in the young girl's death. The trial was brought to an end while the Michigan Court of Appeals reviewed an emergency appeal of the ruling.

Presiding Judge Michael Talbot issued the order to deny the appeal and allow the judge's dismal to stand.

Comment: In the USA, you can shoot and kill a sleeping child and get away with it, as long as you're a police officer and on duty. No matter what the cops do, the system protects them, again and again.


Cheese

Food stamp recipients in U.S. exceed 46,000,000 for 38 months straight

The number of beneficiaries on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) - AKA food stamps--has topped 46,000,000 for 38th straight month, according to data released by the Department of Agriculture (USDA).

In October 2014, the latest month reported, there were 46,674,364 Americans on food stamps. Food stamp recipients have exceeded 46 million since September 2011.
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The 46,674,364 on food stamps in October was an increase of 214,434 from the 46,459,930 on food stamps in September.

As of July, the national population was 318,857,056, the Census Bureau estimates. Thus, the 46,674,364 on food stamps equaled 14.6 percent of the population.

The number of households on food stamps increased from 22,749,951 in September to 22,867,248 in October, an increase of 117,297.

As of September, according to the Census Bureau, there were 115,831,000 households in the country. Thus, the 22,867,248 households on food stamps in October equaled 19.7 percent of the nation's households.

The 46,674,364 people on food stamps in the United States also exceeded the total populations of Columbia (46,245,297), Kenya (46,245,297), Ukraine (44,291,413) and Argentina (43,024,374).

They were slightly fewer than the population of Spain (47,737,941).

Households on food stamps got an average benefit of $261.44 during the month, and total benefits for the month cost taxpayers $5,978,320,593.

Comment: US: One million of the poorest to lose food assistance next year


Megaphone

Breaking the Set: Islam and free speech? Or racism and intolerance?

Abby Martin
On this episode of Breaking the Set, Abby Martin, discusses the lack of media coverage of the massacre of as many as 2,000 people in the town of Baga by Boko Haram militants. Abby then goes over the most outrageous responses to the Charlie Hebdo attack in Paris and why the clash of civilizations mentality when it comes to these type of acts is so misleading. Abby then speaks with Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and author, Chris Hedges, about the roots of the attacks in France and the relationship between global events and the rise of radicalization.


Stormtrooper

Two Albuquerque police officers charged with murder in killing of homeless camper, James Boyd

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© KRQE
Two Albuquerque police officers were charged with murder Monday in the March killing of a homeless camper, a shooting that generated sometimes violent protests around the southwestern city and brought new scrutiny to the police department amid a federal investigation.

The shooting occurred during a year when police tactics came under intense scrutiny around the U.S., fueled by the fatal shooting of an unarmed 18-year-old in Ferguson, Missouri, and the chokehold death of another unarmed man in New York City. Grand juries declined to charge officers in those cases, leading to protests.

Albuquerque police said SWAT team member Dominique Perez and former detective Keith Sandy fatally shot 38-year-old James Boyd after a four-hour standoff in the foothills of the Sandia Mountains. Video from an officer's helmet camera showed Boyd, who authorities say was mentally ill, appearing to surrender when officers opened fire.

Accused of illegally camping, Boyd was armed with two small knives, the Albuquerque Journal reported.

"Unlike Ferguson and unlike in New York City, we're going to know. The public is going to have that information," said District Attorney Kari Brandenburg. She said she decided to bring murder charges and avoid a grand jury to heighten transparency.


Comment: We'll see how transparent the proceedings are.


Grand jury proceedings are closed to the public.

The shooting prompted protests critical of the Albuquerque police department, which the federal government found has used excessive force against civilians. The city is now subject to federal monitoring.

Comment: It's pretty obvious from the video that James was murdered. Did the DA all of a sudden acquire a conscience? It's interesting that over 9 months later, the DA decides to file charges against these psychopaths. It may be an attempt to release the pressure valve on public anger, and the recent protests that have brought a lot of attention to police brutality and our growing police state.

Listen to a recent SOTT Blog Talk Radio show where the editors discuss the excessive brutality and militarization of the police force.

See also:
Homeless man shot to death by police while "illegally camping" in the foothills of New Mexico


V

Citizens of Stockton, CA engage in a new crowd-funded, direct action against police brutality

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© filmingcops.com
Citizens in Stockton, California have taken a new approach to activism.

Rather than sticking to the traditional form of protest in which signs are held and slogans are chanted, these citizens have taken direct action and offered a grassroots, crowd-funded incentive structure to end police brutality in their community.

They have offered a $2,500 reward to anybody who submits information leading to the arrest or termination of cops who brutalize or kill people.

They were able to let people know about the offer by printing all the details on flyers and spreading them throughout their community.

The flyer specifically names 15 cops as a start, and includes pictures of at least 10 cops who have been involved in either the brutalization or killing of Americans.

The words "Know Your Killer Cops" are printed on the flyers, along with instructions to film any police brutality and a location where the footage can be submitted.

"Stockton police have been getting away with terrorizing our citizens for far too long," the flyer says.

"It is time to take back our streets."

Phoenix

Washington D.C.: L'Enfant plaza metro station fire leaves one woman dead and dozens hospitalized

L'enfant Plaza Metro
© unknownL'Enfant Plaza Metro
One woman is dead and dozens of other people were hospitalized, two in critical condition, after the upper level of the L'Enfant Plaza Metro station in southeast D.C. filled with smoke Monday afternoon.

One Virginia-bound Yellow Line train was in the tunnel just south of the station when the smoke was reported about 3:20 p.m., according to Metro.

"There was a woman who was in distress on that train, and I'm sorry to say she's passed away," Metro General Manager and Chief Executive Officer Richard Sarles said.

The Metropolitan Police Department will take the lead in the death investigation, Sarles said.