Here is a Great Blog You Might Find Interesting that we Encourage You…

although websites we backlink to below are considerably not related to ours, we feel they are actually worth a go through, so have a look…

Michael Mineo sodomy trial verdict: Jury finds all 3 cops not guilty on all counts

By Scott Shifrel and Corky Siemaszko
Daily News Staff Writers

Monday, February 22nd 2010, 10:54 AM

The cop accused of sodomizing a Brooklyn man with a police baton was found not guilty on all counts Monday.

Officer Richard Kern, who was charged with aggravated sexual assault in connection with the alleged attack on Michael Mineo, faced 25 years in prison.

Two other officers, Alex Cruz and Andrew Maloney, were also found not guilty of charged they covered up the assault.

Mineo claimed he was brutalized after cops nabbed him for smoking pot on the Prospect Park subway platform in October 2008.

The verdict came after Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Alan Marrus dismissed a juror who told other jurors she'd heard that Kern had been convicted of police brutality before.

Kern had been accused of excessive force in a 2007 civil suit, but the city settled with two men out of court for $50,000.

The judge seated an alternate and told the jurors that the officer had never been arrested for anything.

Vernon Hunter, a 67-year-old IRS worker, was killed in the crash.
When Ken Hunter first heard about a plane crashing into his father's office building in Austin, he said he hoped his dad, Vernon Hunter, wasn't there.

After several attempts to reach his father, a 67-year-old IRS worker, he discovered his dad was missing.

Pilot Joseph Stack crashed his Piper Cherokee PA28 single-engine plane into the Echelon Building 1 in northwest Austin. The building housed 200 employees of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service and its criminal investigations division.

The pilot and Hunter's father were killed in the crash. Thirteen others were injured.

“I saw the building and that was my dad's office building. So I called maybe eight times or more,” Ken said.

But his dad never picked up the phone. A few hours later, he learned his dad was missing.
Ken Hunter said he felt compelled to speak out on his father's behalf.

“You hope for a miracle, but logically you're like 'No , no',” he said.

In the hours that followed, Ken said he heard lots of talk about the pilot's motivations and felt compelled to speak out on his father's behalf.

“There was just too much going on about what the guy did and what he believed in, and enough's enough,” he said. “They don't need to talk about him. Talk about my dad. You know, some people are trying to make this guy out to be a hero, a patriot. My dad served two terms in Vietnam. This guy never served at all. My dad wasn't responsible for his tax problems.

Vernon Hunter's son Ken Hunter speaks out about the attack and his father's service to the country.

A Great Loss

The Hunter family identified Vernon Hunter's body Saturday. That same day, as Ken drove to his father's home, he saw firsthand the destruction the small plane caused.

“We turned the radio down, almost off, and we just looked. No one said anything and we just kept coming in. My wife almost broke down, so it was tough,” he said.

While he's angry at the act and he's angry for his loss, he's not holding a grudge against the man responsible for his father's death.

“I can't be angry at the person that did it, and that's just my dad coming out,” he said.

Neighbors and friends of the Hunters also waited as authorities worked to confirm the victim killed was in fact Vernon Hunter.

Neighbor Robert Foster said he's trying to understand the senseless act.

“You just kind of go weak,” Foster said. “You just can't imagine that it's a person that you know.”

Foster said Vernon Hunter was a proud Vietnam Vet and a great neighbor.

“He was just a real tender man,” he said. “It was always good to talk to him. He was just a nice guy.”

Now, as cars gather in front of the Hunter residence, a neighborhood braces itself and offers support.

Vernon Hunter leaves behind a wife, a son and daughter and six grandchildren.

http://www.news8austin.com/content/your_news/de…

Under Obama's plan:

• The secretary of health and human services would work with a seven-member board of doctors, economists and consumer and insurance representatives to review premium hikes. This Health Insurance Rate Authority would provide an annual report to recommend to states whether certain rate increases should be approved, although the secretary could overrule state insurance regulators.

• New health insurance subsidies would be provided to families of four making up to $88,000 annually, or 400 percent of the federal poverty level. Compared with the Senate bill, Obama's proposal lowers premiums for families making between $44,000 and $66,000, according to the White House. Compared with the House legislation, it lowers premiums for families making between $55,000 and $88,000.

• A 40 percent tax would be imposed on insurance companies providing so-called “Cadillac” health plans valued at more than $27,000 for families. The tax would kick in starting in 2018 for all plans. In contrast, the Senate bill would apply the tax to plans valued at more than $23,000 for families. The House bill does not include the tax, which labor unions vehemently oppose.

• Health insurance exchanges would be created to make it easier for small businesses, the self-employed and the unemployed to pool resources and purchase less expensive coverage.

• Total out-of-pocket expenses would be limited, and insurance companies would be prevented from denying coverage for pre-existing conditions. Insurers would be barred from charging higher premiums based on a person's gender or medical history.

And now his daughter says he's a hero. She in turn sounds like these loons in the Islamic world who say the ends justify the means?

With diplomacy failing and precious intelligence just received about two new secret Iranian nuclear facilities, Israel launches a pre-emptive strike against Tehran's nuclear complex. The strike is successful, wiping out six of Iran's key sites and setting back its suspected quest for a bomb by years.

But what happens next isn't pretty.
Read More
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/02/21/87061/war…

Sasha as cute as ever.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/whitehouse/4370666…