Iceland Considers Adopting Canadian Currency



(Reykjavik, Iceland) With the Icelandic economy suffering from high debt, an enduring recession and an effectively worthless currency, economists have proposed abandoning the krona for Canadian dollars.

Icelanders are united on the need to ditch the krona. However, the country’s reigning Social Democrats want the Euro, while the opposition Progressive Party has been pushing for the Canadian dollar since last summer. As resource economies, Canada and Iceland’s economic cycles are more likely to be in sync, loonie proponents argue. Also, Canada is home to about 200,000 people of Icelandic descent, more than anywhere else in the world. “I see that connection helping the public in Iceland accepting a new currency,” said Mr. Gudjonsson.

So far, the loonie appears to be winning. A March Gallup poll showed public approval for the loonie easily pulling ahead of the U.S. dollar, the euro and the Norwegian krone.

The mechanics of the swap would be the easy part. A party of Icelanders officials would simply fly to a Canadian bank and arrange a $300-million withdrawal. The final pile of multicoloured bills — no larger than two photocopiers — would then be shipped across the North Atlantic and loaded into ATMs and bank vaults over a weekend. (While there is far more than $300-million in the Icelandic money system, the country currently only has $300-million worth of krona coins and bills in circulation.)

It's been suggested that a Canada-Iceland currency union could be joined by recently-independent Greenland.

Must not promote suntans?



H&M is a Swedish clothing firm with outlets in many countries

Just days after "tanorexia" became a household word (thanks to New Jersey Tanning Mom Patricia Krentcil), fashion retailer H&M has come under fire for featuring a deeply tanned model in their latest swimwear campaign, sparking outrage from the Swedish Cancer Society for promoting tanning as a fashion accessory.

"The clothing giant is creating, not least among young people, a beauty ideal that is deadly," the group wrote in an opinion piece in the Swedish Newspaper Dagens Nyheter on Thursday, AFP reported. "Every year, more people die in Sweden of [skin cancer] than in traffic accidents, and the main cause is too much sunning."

H&M released an apology almost immediately.

It seems like a stretch to say that a clothing campaign could single-handedly lead to an uptick in skin-cancer, especially given the media focus on the dangers of tanning beds.

Source

Isn't it "racist" to mention skin color?

Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).

Pennsylvania Teacher Accused in Student Sex Case

(Galeton, Pennsylvania) A 36-year-old health and PE teacher at Galeton High School, Kimberly Lake Smith, has been accused of engaging in sex with two students during school hours.

Smith faces felony and misdemeanor charges of endangering the welfare of a child, corruption of minors and intimidating witnesses or victims.

In the criminal complaint, Galeton Borough Police Chief Christopher Brackman accuses Smith of kissing two 17-year-old boys inappropriately and letting them touch her breasts through her clothes.

One of the victims touched her genitals both through and underneath clothes, and she touched his genitals through clothes, Brackman wrote in the complaint.

Smith also twice asked a victim not to tell anyone about the activity and to lie about it, Brackman wrote.

Though the charges arise from conduct alleged to have happened between August 2010 and January 2012, Brackman accused Smith of engaging in similar misconduct with other students throughout her career at the district, from 1999 to 2012.

Smith is free on $35,000 bail.

Rush Limbaugh Honored in Missouri




From the Jefferson City News Tribune:

Conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh was inducted into the Hall of Famous Missourians on Monday during a secretive ceremony in the state Capitol as police stood guard to keep out any uninvited political opponents of the sometimes divisive radio show host.

Limbaugh, a native of Cape Girardeau in southeast Missouri, addressed a crowd of more than 100 Republicans during a closed-door event in the Missouri House chamber.

Speaking from the chamber's dais, he thanked his family for their support throughout his career, denounced liberals and Democrats as "deranged," then helped lift a black curtain off a bronze bust of himself, which he hugged — head to head — for photographs.

The timing of the ceremony was kept secret until shortly before it occurred, and then only Republican lawmakers, other invited guests and the media were allowed into the chamber to watch — an attempt to avoid any public disruption after Limbaugh's selection was criticized by Democrats, some women's groups and other political foes.

To the dismay of Democrats and liberals, Limbaugh joins the likes of President Harry Truman, Mark Twain and Walt Disney in the Hall of Famous Missourians.

Germany's Energy Fiasco: Desperate Greens Call For Fossil Fuel Subsidies!

Winfried Kretschmann (Green Party), the prime minister of the state of Baden Wuerttemberg, is urging Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) to encourage the construction of new gas-fired power plants. Especially in southern Germany where energy security is at risk, according to Kretschmann.

"I am firmly convinced that the market in its current form is not suitable to meet the challenges of the energy revolution," he wrote in a letter to the Chancellor seen by the Financial Times Deutschland. It lacked both the incentives for building new power plants and for the maintenance of existing ones.

Especially in southern Germany energy security is at risk, according to Kretschmann. Germany is heavily dependent on flexible gas power plants to compensate for intermittent green energy. At the same time, however, the green energy boom is having a fatal side effect: Because the production of wind and solar power have been given priority in the electricity market, the building of gas-fired power plants is no longer profitable. Often, it does not even pay to maintain existing power plants. Analysts at Goldman Sachs are already warning of a large-scale demise of power plants in 2013. Grid operators, on the other hand, fear nothing more than the loss of additional power plants in southern Germany, which is particularly affected by the nuclear phase-out.

SOURCE

Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).

Lady Gaga Nixed in Indonesia



(Jakarta, Indonesia)

Pop star Lady Gaga’s upcoming Jakarta concert was canceled by the National Police on Tuesday amid harsh protest from Indonesia’s hard-line Islamist organizations.

“The National Police said verbally that [the concert] would not be permitted,” Jakarta police spokesman Sr. Comr. Rikwanto said.[…]

Ticket sales were strong, with concert selling some 52,000 tickets in two weeks. Promoter Big Daddy released another 2,000 tickets on Monday.

But hard-line groups like the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) have rallied against the concert — Lady Gaga’s first in Indonesia — calling the pop diva a “dangerous” influence on Indonesia’s youth. The organization’s Jakarta chairman Salim Alatas told Agence France-Presse that FPI members would mobilize 30,000 supporters to forcibly prevent Lady Gaga from stepping off her plane. [ed. emphasis]

“We will stop her from setting foot on our land. She had better not dare spread her satanic faith in this country,” FPI Jakarta chairman Salim Alatas told AFP. “Her style is vulgar, her sexual and indecent clothes will destroy our children’s sense of morality. She’s very dangerous.”

More

Ohio Teacher Accused of Boosting Prom Money

(West Chester, Ohio) A 45-year-old teacher at Lakota East High School, Heather Schoell-Schroeder, has been accused of theft of prom money from students.

Schoell-Schroeder faces a charge of theft of cash under $1,000.

According to the district, a teacher on the prom committee apparently circumvented the ticket sale process by encouraging students to pay the teacher directly. Also, students said when confronted, the teacher asked two students not to report it, according to the district.

Schoell-Schroeder had not reported to school since the prom. A long-term substitute has taken over her duties for the rest of the school year, according to the district. Lakota said it is reviewing its prom ticket sales procedure.

A court appearance is scheduled for next month.

Sheriff Joe Under Fire




From CIS:

The U.S. Department of Justice's lawsuit against Maricopa County, Ariz., Sheriff Joe Arpaio sets a new low for the politicization of DOJ.

Neither President Nixon's Justice Department during the Watergate era nor the Bill Clinton-Janet Reno abuses of DOJ's power (e.g., summary firing of all U.S. attorneys, the invasion at Waco, Bill Lann Lee's Civil Rights Division activism) quite compares with the lengths to which Attorney General Eric Holder, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Tom Perez, and President Obama have gone to pursue a political vendetta.[…]

The administration seems to regard the current immigration laws as unacceptable. So political officials have systematically refused to carry out the laws on the books. Consider the brazen federal lawsuits the Obama administration has brought against Arizona and several other states' laws dealing with illegal immigrants. They have been granting administrative amnesty to "DREAMers" and other illegal aliens who have committed crimes. They have ordered Border Patrol officers to "stand down" when they see illegals, manipulating the border apprehensions statistics to make it seem as if fewer illegals are entering. They have neutered the 287(g) program that was in such high demand among state and local police agencies when the administration came to office.

Now the administration is trying to make an example of Sheriff Arpaio, one of the toughest local law enforcement officials in the country and wildly popular in one of the country's toughest localities — where illegal immigration and its worst consequences intersect. He is a highly capable law officer with a highly effective department and a refreshing backbone for someone who campaigns for election, plus the courage to stand up to cold-blooded Mexican cartels and cold-blooded Washington-Chicago politicos alike. This is a vendetta because Obama administration officials have made it personal.

It's disturbing that this conflict even exists.

Casino Grand Opening

(Cleveland, Ohio)

Ohio’s first casino will open tonight in the storied former Higbee Building. The Horseshoe Casino Cleveland will occupy the basement and first three levels of the old department store, beloved by generations of shoppers and featured as a backdrop in the holiday movie classic “A Christmas Story.”

The Horseshoe will open at 9:30 PM tonight as a 24/7 operation. Lines will be allowed to form, starting at 5 PM. About 1,500 people, winners of a Facebook contest, have head-of-line privileges.

Bush, Blair Found Guilty of War Crimes

(Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)

Former U.S. President George W. Bush and British ex-Prime Minister Tony Blair have been found guilty at a mock tribunal in Malaysia for committing “crimes against peace” during the Iraq war.

The Kuala Lumpur War Crimes Tribunal, part of an initiative by former Malaysian premier Mahathir Mohamad — a fierce critic of the Iraq war — found the former leaders guilty Tuesday after a four-day hearing.

Offhand, I suspect Saddam Hussein, if he were alive, would be acquitted by the same tribunal.

Missouri Woman Accused of Sex with Boy

(Marshall, Texas) A 31-year-old youth services worker, Dusty Dawn McGrew, has been accused of engaging in sex with a boy under the age of 17.

McGrew faces charges of statutory rape and statutory sodomy.

According to the probable cause, McGrew met the boy while working at Butterfield Youth Services. According to several witnesses, McGrew and the boy reportedly had sex on several occasions in a variety of locations, including in her car and at a park.

According to the probable cause, other juvenile boys would also be in the car while McGrew and the boy had sex. According to one of those boys, McGrew, sitting in the backseat with the juvenile, would place a jacket stretching from the driver-side head rest to the passenger-side head rest, preventing the other boys from seeing the activity.

When investigators asked McGrew about her relationship with the juvenile, she stated they had a “mother-son” relationship.

McGrew was booked into custody with bond set at $15,000.

Texas Teacher Accused of Improper Relationship

(Brown County, Texas) A 46-year-old math teacher at Cross Plains High School, Kimberly O’Briant, has been accused of engaging in an improper relationship with a 15-year-old male student.

O'Briant has been indicted on a charge of improper relationship with a student.

Scott Bird, investigator with the Brown County Sheriff's Office, said school officials contacted him around the beginning of the year about the alleged misconduct.

Bird said he could only say that the student was a juvenile, and that he could not disclose the boy's age.

"I interviewed the juvenile and several teachers and other students," he said. "Through the investigation, we learned of improper texting messages and phone calls. A (Brown County) grand jury indicted Ms. O'Briant last week."

He said O'Briant was placed on administrative leave — with pay — a "couple of months ago."

O'Briant is free on $20,000 bond.

Mortar Shell Tracking

Mortar shell tracking technology allows American artillery to silence a jihadi mortar placement after three rounds, about 20 seconds.




Superior technology wins.

Tip: Rita and Eugene

Florida Teacher Admits Sex with Student

(Riverview, Florida) A 29-year-old social studies teacher at Riverview High School, Chung Ramos, has been accused of engaging in sex with an 18-year-old student. She faced no criminal charges since both were adults.

A concerned parent filed a complaint with school administrators who notified the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.

They investigated it, confirmed it, and when they confronted Ramos, a married mother-of-two herself, they say she admitted it.

Rather than being fired, they say she resigned.

The lack of criminal charges doesn't mean Ramos will be let off that easily. The district says it will be reporting her to the State Board of Education.

Revocation or suspension of her teaching license is possible.

Al-Qaeda in Africa

(Timbuktu, Mali) It appears that Al-Qaeda is getting real comfortable in Mali.

Al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has a new strategy to bolster its ranks in northern Mali: bringing in recruits from the Maghreb.

Sharia Delivery Vehicles

Maghreb militants are flocking to Timbuktu, Kidal and Gao to join al-Qaeda brigades, local officials report.

"Hundreds of fighters from Tunisia, Libya and the Maghreb have arrived in northern Mali to join al-Qaeda, Malian daily L'Express quoted a defence ministry official as saying on Sunday (May 6th).

The Timbuktu spokesperson for Islamist group and al-Qaeda ally Ansar al-Din told Magharebia: "We can't confirm or deny the arrival of new recruits to al-Qaeda in the region."

Sanad Ould Bouamama added, however, "It's not in our interests to expel them as long as their goal is to fight apostates and apply the Islamic Sharia we all seek."

"We're different from them because we are a local group," Ould Bouamama stressed. "Al-Qaeda's presence extends from Mauritania to Niger and Libya, and they can take any of their elements to areas that are under their control."

The international community is raising alarms about the wider threat al-Qaeda poses after its expansion into Mali.

"We are very worried by what is happening in Mali and its impact on the region," UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres said this week.

"We need to create the right conditions to avoid this crisis becoming a threat to global security," he added, appealing to the international community to get involved. [ed. bold]

It is more than a mere regional crisis, he said. It is a "risk to peace and security all over the world".

Timbuktu mayor Hallé Ousman noted that AQIM members from all over now move freely in the region.

"Al-Qaeda's elements can enter and exit anytime. This has become a usual thing for us. They can pass in front of me without being observed," he said.

More….

DUI Checkpoint

Here's today's travel advisory.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol is planning an OVI checkpoint Saturday night in Marion County.

The checkpoint, the patrol says, will be in operation from 10 p.m. Saturday until 1 a.m. Sunday on S.R. 95 at mile marker 16 in Marion County.

Isn't that thoughtful? The authorities give a heads up on where you may be arrested.

Defense Secretary Proclaims Global Warming Farce to Be a National Security Threat

With an adolescent moonbat in change of the Executive Branch, it should come as no surprise that the international situation is spinning out of control. Fortunately communist-affiliated lifelong leftist hack and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta has identified a crisis sure to take everyone’s mind off the Chen Guangcheng fiasco in China and Russia’s threat to blow up NATO missile defenses.

Being an imaginary problem, it can be cured with the imaginary solutions that are all our government has. On Wednesday Panetta declared to the Environmental Defense Fund:

“The area of climate change has a dramatic impact on national security. Rising sea levels, severe droughts, the melting of the polar caps, the more frequent and devastating natural disasters all raise demand for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.”

Back on earth, CO2 levels steadily rise, yet the National Weather Service Forecast Office reports:

This has been an extreme winter for sea ice in the Bering Sea and now we have broken the records for most number of days with ice at both Saint Paul Island and Saint George Island.

Like the global warming farce, our rulers have become a tired joke.

SOURCE

Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).

California Mom Accused of Sex with Daughter's Boyfriend

(Santa Ana, California) A 32-year-old local woman, Mayra Gonzalez, has been accused of engaging in sex with her daughter's 16-year-old boyfriend, resulting in offspring.

Gonzalez faces counts of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor and oral copulation with a minor.

Police say Gonzalez had a secret relationship with the boy over a span of five months last year. They allegedly had sexual intercourse at least six times.

Neighbors at Gonzalez's apartment complex alerted the boy's parents about the relationship, police said

Gonzalez told police when she was arrested that she was in love with the boy.

Details on booking are unavailable.

Ohio Teacher Gets Prison in Sex Case - Updated

(Aurora, Ohio) Former teacher Mary E. Schnell has been sentenced to prison for two years and ordered to register as a Tier III sex offender for the rest of her life.

* * * * *
Ohio Teacher Guilty in Sex Case - Updated
[Previous 1/26/12 post]
(Aurora, Ohio) Avoiding a trial scheduled for this week, 25-year-old teacher Mary E. Schnell pleaded guilty before Portage County Common Pleas Judge Laurie Pittman to engaging in sex with one of her male students in early 2011.

While convicted on one count of third-degree felony sexual battery, Schnell agreed to a plea that dismissed a second count.

Sentencing is up to Pittman, who ordered a pre-sentence investigation by the Portage County Adult Probation Department. The charge carries a potential sentence of one to five years in prison.

Schnell will be labeled a sex offender and be required to register with the Portage County Sheriff’s Office. She is free on bond, on the condition she have no contact with the victim, according to court records.

The relationship was considered illegal because Schnell was a teacher and therefore in a position of authority over the student.

Despite her ultimate sentence, it's sad that Schnell has effectively torpedoed her career in education, which just recently began. Even though one could blame her crime on a momentary lapse in judgment or maybe immaturity, it will undoubtedly blemish the rest of her life.

* * * * *
Ohio Teacher Accused of Sex with Male Student
[Previous 7/18/11 post]
(Aurora, Ohio) A 24-year-old substitute teacher with the Aurora School District, Mary Schnell, was indicted last week for allegedly engaging in inappropriate relationship with a 16-year-old male student.

Schnell faces charges of two counts of felony sexual battery.

Sheriff David Doak said the charges were filed as a result of an investigation by the Aurora and Streetsboro police departments and the Portage County Sheriff’s Office.

The investigation revealed that Schnell and the student were involved in a sexual relationship.

During the relationship, the two engaged in sexual conduct in Mantua Township, according to the Portage County Sheriff’s Office.

Schnell pleaded not guilty at her arraignment today. She is free on $50,000 bond. Trial is scheduled for October.

Pistol - Three Shot Simultaneous




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