2011-12-25
2011-12-14
2011-12-02
Wind storm in Utah
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/faith/53029513-78/winds-mph-pressure-utah.html.csp
In Utah, about 50,000 customers lost power along the state's 120-mile Wasatch Front as high winds took down power lines, but service was restored to more than half of them by Thursday night.
On Interstate 15, strong gusts blew more than 10 semi-trucks onto their sides, prompting authorities to temporarily close the highway to trucks. Commuter train travel was also interrupted after debris covered the tracks.
Schools closed in Centerville, where a 102-mph gust was reported. Mail delivery and trash pickup were canceled.
Davis County issued a disaster declaration to request state assistance, citing more than $3.5 million in estimated damage to infrastructure.
The Red Cross opened three centers to provide food and aid to people affected by the storm, and opened one overnight shelter in Ogden.
2011-12-01
2011-11-30
2011-11-23
2011-11-18
2011-11-13
2011-11-11
2011-11-08
2011-10-30
Truck ignites, flames spread into Sugar House McDonald’s | The Salt Lake Tribune
I love walking down to a Mcdonalds 3 blocks from my house. Tonight I
drove by it only to find it boarded up.
drove by it only to find it boarded up.
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/52808910-78/fire-truck-building-mccarty.html.csp
Sent from my iPhone
2011-10-27
Ilan Grapel: I want to thank the Israeli people
http://www.jpost.com/DiplomacyAndPolitics/Article.aspx?id=243453
2011-10-26
2011-10-25
2011-10-24
2011-10-22
Fwd: non-criminal illegal aliens
From: larry.r.trout
non-criminal illegal aliens 'The Obama administration soon will begin its systematic review of the approximately 300,000 pending deportation cases, separating "high priority" cases involving criminals it wants to deport from "low priority" cases it will drop, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano told Congress Wednesday.
The effort marks another point in an evolution of immigration enforcement away from the worksite raids of the Bush administration and towards deportations of illegal immigrants in prisons and jails.
Napolitano said a group of Homeland Security and Justice Department officials will begin a small "pilot" review of immigration cases in "two or three" weeks, and hopes to rapidly expand its efforts.
Under the policy announced last year, federal immigration officials will place the highest priority on deporting illegal immigrants who pose a danger to public safety and national security, while "administratively closing" other cases, taking into consideration a list of factors. Those factors include the person's length of time in the United States, whether the immigrant arrived as a child, served in the military and has a spouse, child or parent who is a U.S. citizen.
DHS officials say the new policy, which gives immigration officials "prosecutorial discretion," is similar to policies of previous administrations, and is a "common sense" approach to immigration enforcement…
Napolitano said the department's focus on criminal illegal immigrants is better than "the ad hoc approach where non-criminal aliens are more likely to be removed than criminals."'
http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/19/politics/napolitano-deportation-reviews/?hpt=us_c1
2011-10-21
2011-10-20
2011-10-18
Salt Lake City teen sets wheelchair wheelie record | The Salt Lake Tribune
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/52695549-78/record-wheelchair-team-mcintosh.html.csp
Eliza also competes in Utah chess tournaments.
2011-10-17
2011-10-16
2011-10-15
2011-10-14
2011-10-13
Fwd: Subprime
From: larry.r.trout
'Research by Edward Pinto, a former chief credit officer of Fannie has shown that 27 million loans—half of all mortgages in the U.S.—were subprime or otherwise weak by 2008. That is, the loans were made to borrowers with blemished credit, or were loans with no or low down payments, no documentation, or required only interest payments.
Of these, over 70% were held or guaranteed by Fannie and Freddie or some other government agency or government-regulated institution. Thus it is clear where the demand for these deficient mortgages came from.'
'Beginning in 1992, the government required Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to direct a substantial portion of their mortgage financing to borrowers who were at or below the median income in their communities. The original legislative quota was 30%. But the Department of Housing and Urban Development was given authority to adjust it, and through the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush administrations HUD raised the quota to 50% by 2000 and 55% by 2007.'
'As housing bubbles grow, rising prices suppress delinquencies and defaults. People who could not meet their mortgage obligations could refinance or sell, because their houses were now worth more.
Accordingly, by the mid-2000s, investors had begun to notice that securities based on subprime mortgages were producing the high yields, but not showing the large number of defaults, that are usually associated with subprime loans. This triggered strong investor demand for these securities, causing the growth of the first significant private market for MBS based on subprime and other risky mortgages….
When the bubble deflated in 2007, an unprecedented number of weak mortgages went into default, driving down housing prices throughout the U.S. and throwing Fannie and Freddie into insolvency. Seeing these sudden losses, investors fled from the market for privately issued MBS, and mark-to-market accounting required banks and others to write down the value of their mortgage-backed assets to the distress levels in a market that now had few buyers. This raised questions about the solvency and liquidity of the largest financial institutions and began a period of great investor anxiety.'
2011-10-12
2011-10-11
Fwd: 1 life for 1000
From: larry.r.trout
1 Israeli soldier exchanged for 1000.
Idiots.
'"The deal will happen in two stages -- the first stage the release of 450 Palestinian prisoners, including 315 Palestinian prisoners that have one or many life sentences and the ones who are with high sentences. The second stage will include 550 Palestinian prisoners," he said.
The exchange will also include the release of 27 Palestinian female prisoners, said Meshaal.'
http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/11/world/meast/israel-shalit-release/
Fwd: Iran assassination plot
From: larry.r.trout
'FBI and DEA agents have disrupted a plot to commit a "significant terrorist act in the United States" tied to Iran, federal officials told ABC News today.
The officials said the plot included the assassination of the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the United States, Adel Al-Jubeir, with a bomb and subsequent bomb attacks on the Saudi and Israeli embassies in Washington, D.C. Bombings of the Saudi and Israeli embassies in Buenos Aires, Argentina, were also discussed, according to the U.S. officials.
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said in an announcement today that the plan was "conceived, sponsored and was directed from Iran" by a faction of the government and called it a "flagrant" violation of U.S. and international law.
"The U.S. is committed to holding Iran accountable for its actions," Holder said.'
http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/us-iran-tied-terror-plot-washington-dc-disrupted/story?id=14711933
2011-10-07
2011-10-05
2011-10-03
2011-09-30
2011-09-29
2011-09-28
2011-09-27
$1 Billion Vaccine Push Aims to Protect Children in Poor Countries
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2011/09/1-billion-vaccine-push-aims-to-protect-children-in-poor-countries.html
saudi-woman-faces-flogging-for-driving
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-09-28/saudi-woman-faces-flogging-for-driving/3025264
2011-09-26
2011-09-23
2011-09-21
Re: Mexico
larry.r.trout wrote:
'Suspected drug traffickers dumped 35 bodies at rush hour beneath a busy overpass in the heart of a major Gulf coast city as gunmen pointed weapons at frightened drivers. Mexican authorities said Wednesday they are examining surveillance video for clues to who committed the crime.
Horrified motorists grabbed cell phones and sent Twitter messages warning others to avoid the area near the biggest shopping mall in Boca del Rio, part of the metropolitan area of Veracruz city.'
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/mexico-horror-gunmen-dump-35-bodies-avenue-14570209
Any thoughts?
Yeah. Don't go to Mexico.
2011-09-02
New 'twice as fast' Steffen Method to get passengers onto an airliner
I played chess with Jason in Salt Lake City before he was a PHD in physics...
2011-09-01
Fwd: White House sharply cuts U.S. growth forecast
From: larry.r.trout
'This projects GDP growth this year of 1.7 percent, compared with 2.7 percent expected back in February, with 2.6 percent forecast for 2012, down from a 3.6 percent prediction in February…
Under the new projections, the White House said the deficit would come down more sharply than expected to 8.8 percent of GDP this year, compared with the 10.9 percent forecast when the budget was released in February.
The improvement was largely due to spending cuts imposed under a deal struck last month by Obama and opposition Republicans to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, which will shave $1.45 trillion from the deficit over the next 10 years.'
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/01/obama-budget-idUSN1E7801AZ20110901
2011-08-31
2011-08-05
Wells Fargo warns of new scam, urges customers to be skeptical
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/mobile/52280874-90/fargo-wells-bank-customers.html.csp
I don't even have a Wells Fargo account, which is why I recognized
right away that this is a scam, and I have gotten four calls. The
last one was 2:11 AM this morning. I put my phone on vibrate so it
didn't wake me up.
Most people know not to give out bank information over the phone.
2011-08-02
2011-08-01
2011-07-27
the-end-of-dont-touch-my-junk
http://blogs.forbes.com/andrewbender/2011/07/27/the-end-of-dont-touch-my-junk/?partner=yahootix
2011-06-06
2011-05-24
2011-05-13
2011-05-09
Fwd: Egypt clashes
'After the overnight clashes in the slum of Imbaba, residents turned their anger toward the military. Some said they and the police did almost nothing to intervene in the five-hour frenzy of violence.
Six Muslims were among the dead, said Egypt's state-run news agency.
The bloodshed began Saturday around sundown when word spread around the Imbaba neighborhood that a Christian woman who married a Muslim had been abducted and was being kept in the Virgin Mary Church against her will.
The report of the kidnapping, which was never confirmed by local religious figures, sent a large mob of Muslims toward the church. Christians created a human barricade around the building, and clashes erupted. Gunfire sounded across the neighborhood, and witnesses said people on rooftops were firing into the crowd.
Crowds of hundreds of Muslims lobbed firebombs at homes, shops and the church. Residents say Christians were hiding inside.
Across the Nile River, in downtown Cairo, clashes broke out on Sunday afternoon. Muslim youths attacked Coptic Christian protesters, Christian activist Bishoy Tamri said.
Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2011/05/09/20110509egypt-religious-attacks-mar-shift.html#ixzz1Lpupw8lv
2011-05-02
2011-04-10
2011-04-08
2011-04-07
2011-03-25
2011-03-23
2011-03-22
2011-03-21
2011-03-15
Leaf
From: larry.r.trout
'The massive earthquake and ensuing tsunami that rattled Japan have had a disastrous effect on the entire nation. The catastrophe even abruptly halted production at automotive facilities across the country.
However, Nissan says that a boatload of 600 U.S.-bound Leafs left port on March 10th, a day before the quake. The electric hatches should hit U.S. turf soon and head off to dealerships in early April. This single shipment is nearly ten times the amount of total Leaf deliveries in the U.S. in the month of February alone, so we'll see more on the road before any manufacturing problems caused by the quake are felt here.'
http://green.autoblog.com/2011/03/14/nissan-600-us-bound-leafs-left-port-before-quake-hit-japan/
2011-03-14
2011-03-11
2011-03-10
Ohio
'Unions protested the proposed cuts to collective bargaining, and the effort led to protests in states where similar legislation is under consideration. The Ohio Senate passed a bill last week curbing collective bargaining for government employees with a 17-16 vote. Democrats and six Republicans objected. '
2011-03-07
2011-03-03
Wisconsin
From: larry.r.trout
'Wisconsin Senate OKs arrest of absent Dems for contempt:
The Wisconsin Senate has passed a resolution calling for police to take 14 Democrats into custody for contempt after they fled to Illinois to avoid voting on a union rights bill, the Associated Press reports.
The resolution says the absent Democrats are determined to be guilty of contempt and disorderly content.
It gives the sergeant at arms the authority to take any and all steps, with or without force and assistance from police, to bring the senators back, the AP says.'
2011-03-02
2011-03-01
2011-02-28
2011-02-22
2011-02-17
2011-02-10
2011-02-09
2011-02-08
2011-02-01
Fwd: Egyptian protest's organizer
From: larry.r.trout
'Said, a young businessman from Alexandria, was reportedly beaten to death by local police this summer – well before rumblings of the country's current unrest. But a Facebook page that bears his name has been one of the driving forces behind the upheaval that started last week.…
The anonymous Facebook page administrator who goes by the handle El Shaheed, meaning martyr, has played a crucial role in organizing the demonstrations,
El Shaheed's Facebook page, simply named "We Are All Khaled Said," began as a campaign against torture and police brutality. But this month, shortly after the Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was brought down following weeks of grassroots protests inspired by Bouazizi's self-immolation, a post appeared on the Facebook page, announcing a day of protest in Egypt – Tuesday, Jan. 25…'
http://www.newsweek.com/2011/01/30/el-shaheed-the-mysterious-anonymous-behind-egypt-s-revolt.html
'With the next protest scheduled for that Friday, activists including El Shaheed were busy coordinating their response to what they believed would be a brutal government crackdown. A Google document with a list of demands as well as instructions for the demonstrations was, at one point, viewed at the same time by more than 200 people, altered in real-time by dozens of editors.'
It would be interesting to see the list of demands…
2011-01-28
Spam kills
'A spam message wishing a Russian woman happy new year may very well have killed her, and saved hundreds of intended targets, according to an account by The Telegraph's Moscow correspondent, Andrew Osborn.
The woman, dubbed "The Black Widow," who Russian authorities suspect was part of the same militant group that killed 35 people at Moscow's Domodedovo airport on Monday, was at a house preparing for the attack, which would have occurred on New Year's Eve at Red Square. Instead, the woman's mobile phone, which served as the device's detonator, was activated hours early by a spam message wishing her a happy new year. She was killed, while a man and woman suspected of being accomplices escaped from the house.
Russian security forces told The Telegraph that phones are usually kept off until the last minute for detonation, but in this case, "the terrorists were careless."'
2011-01-27
2011-01-14
2011-01-12
Fwd: fathers and red lights
From: larry.r.trout
'About 2 1/2 hours before the attack, authorities said Wednesday, an Arizona state wildlife officer stopped Loughner for running a red light but had no reason to search the vehicle and allowed the young man to leave with a warning.'
'In the hours before Jared Lee Loughner allegedly tried to assassinate Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) and killed six others, his father chased him into the desert as he carried a mysterious black bag in his hand, the Associated Press reported.'
It's too bad his father did not call the police, saying he did not know what his son had or planned.
Then the red light pull-over may have had probable cause.
Even so it was a legally possesed gun and he hadn't committed a crime yet.
http://www.whorunsgov.com/Profiles/John_A._Boehner
2011-01-11
Goldman Sachs admits it misled investors, pays $550M fine
I heard a financial talk show host on the radio say that Goldman Sachs
got off easy ... that they are laughing all the way to the bank.
got off easy ... that they are laughing all the way to the bank.
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/banking/2010-07-15-goldman-sec-
settlement_N.htm
Likewise, I heard a socialist claim that Obama is in bed with Goldman
Sachs.