Monthly Archives: August 2020

RIOT OR LOOT LOSE BENEFITS

RIOT OR LOOT LOSE BENEFITS

Rioters could be stripped of unemployment benefits under new bill

Rioters could be stripped of unemployment benefits under new bill

People caught rioting during large protests could be stripped of their federal unemployment benefits,

And be forced to pay an order of restitution to police under a new bill proposed by a Republican Congressman.

Jim Banks, who represents Indiana’s 3rd congressional district, introduced the ‘Support Peaceful Protest Act’ on Friday,

With the aim of stopping the riots, looting and vandalism that have occurred across the country in recent months.

The bill will have to pass the U.S. House and Senate before it becomes written into law,

But Banks says he hopes it will protect peaceful protesters and police officers,

BYSTANDERS CAN EASILY BE CAUGHT UP

As well as bystanders who inadvertently become caught up in a crowd.

RIOT OR LOOT LOSE BENEFITS WITH NEW LAW

The bill proposes that if an individual is convicted of a federal offense while at a protest in which police are present,

They will have to ‘pay an order of restitution…  that is equal to the cost of such policing activity, as determined by the court.’

Further, Banks proposes that those engaging in rioting, looting and arson should be stripped of federal benefits,

Accessible during the COVID-19 crisis, such as the $600 per week unemployment assistance drawn from the CARES Act.

In an interview with WIBC, Banks says he believes a majority of rioters who intentionally disrupt protests are currently unemployed and receiving benefits.

‘Due to enhanced federal benefits, taxpayers are giving wages to jobless rioters that are destroying our communities.

We need to cut them off from their funding and make them feel the full financial consequences of their actions,’ Banks stated.

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DAWG SAYS: AS I ALWAYS SAY EVERY ACTION HAS A REACTION,

BURN AND LOOT SOONER OR LATER WILL HAVE CONSEQUENCES.

WHO IS OFFICER RUSTEN SHESKY

WHO IS OFFICER RUSTEN SHESKY

What we know about the officer involved in the Kenosha shooting

A year before his shooting of a Black man reignited nationwide racial justice protests,

Local police officer Rusten Sheskey gave a lighthearted interview to the Kenosha News about his life as a bicycle cop.

He discussed his love of bicycle racing and described his job as a “customer service” role, with citizens footing the bill for a helpful police force.

“It’s a huge responsibility, and I really like trying to help the people,” Sheskey said.

“We may not be able to make a situation right, or better, but we can maybe make it a little easier for them to handle during that time.”

Sheskey is now on administrative leave pending an investigation by the Wisconsin Department of Justice,

Into an encounter that left 29-year-old Jacob Blake partially paralyzed after Sheskey fired seven times into his back last weekend.

What started the escalated police response is unclear,

But a viral cellphone video shows Sheskey following Blake as he walks toward his vehicle and then firing after Blake opened the car door.

The incident set off a week of protests and unrest in the lakeside Wisconsin city,

Ultimately leading to the fatal shootings of two men,

Allegedly by a 17-year-old who traveled 20 miles from his home to join armed men claiming to protect businesses in the city from rioters.

Two other Kenosha police officers involved in the encounter with Blake — Vincent Arenas and Brittany Meronek — also have been placed on leave.

The Washington Post has requested copies of Sheskey’s disciplinary record,

Service history and any complaints or commendations received during his seven years with the Kenosha police department.

A police spokesman said the requests were received, but it was unclear when those and other records requests would be fulfilled.

The Post also has requested similar information for Arenas and Meronek,

Along with police reports, 911 call recordings and other records related to the Sunday shooting.

When former neighbor Debbie DeShong heard Sheskey was the officer at the center of the case,

She thought of the boy who joined her daughter on hands and knees in her suburban Wisconsin driveway, drawing together in bright-colored chalk as preteens.

She pored over every video of the incident she could find,

Trying to understand why her daughter’s best friend when they graduated from high school 13 years ago,

Might be the lone officer to open fire into Blake’s back, as his young children watched.

He must’ve been protecting someone, she reasoned.

“The person didn’t stop,” DeShong said of Blake.

“When I see four officers pull their gun at the same time,

I know something’s going on that people didn’t see.

If there were kids in the car, any chance of that man hurting those kids,

I could see him doing anything he could to protect those kids. He’s not going to let somebody hurt somebody.”

WHO IS OFFICER RUSTEN SHESKY OF KENOSA PD

Sheskey opened fire on Jacob Blake during an attempted arrest on Aug. 23, shooting him seven times in the back at close range. (AFP/Wisconsin Department of Justice)

DeShong, who lives several doors down from Sheskey’s childhood home in nearby Waukesha, Wis.,

Said Thursday that she believed Sheskey had already been convicted of being a violent racist in the court of public opinion,

And worries that legal consequences could soon follow for him.

That description of the 31-year-old officer as racist couldn’t be further from the truth, said DeShong,

Who worked in the attendance office at Sheskey’s high school.

“He wanted to be a cop so he could serve,” DeShong said, adding that he worked part time as a lifeguard in high school.

“I’ve known him his entire life, and it’s just not him to be a racist. It’s not his family.

It’s just how they are. He’s not a cruel person, not at all.”

Asked whether she feared Sheskey would soon be arrested for his actions,

DeShong began to cry and turned toward her home, waving her hands above her head as if to say, “Enough.”

Sheskey, a 2007 graduate of Waukesha North High School, was described by classmates as a slim,

Quiet student who didn’t participate in many extracurriculars and kept to himself.

He was a part of the marching band for a time, but the now-retired marching band teacher had no memory of him.

He was on the student council and was a member of the intramural bowling club,

But two parent-coaches and two members of the team told The Washington Post they also had little memory of him.

“What I remember about him is that he didn’t have many friends,” said Val Schermer, a fellow 2007 graduate and band member.

One bowling teammate, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the matter candidly, described Sheskey as “the nicest, dweebiest guy you’ve ever met.”

The teammate said he didn’t recall much racial acrimony at their school.

Waukesha North in 2007 was overwhelmingly White — the senior class of more than 250 students included no more than five African Americans.

Sheskey’s parents and his two brothers, one of whom is an elementary school principal, did not respond to The Post’s request for comment.

On the night of the incident, Kenosha police posted a squad car on Sheskey’s street,

A quiet block full of one-story homes, some of which sport lawn signs reading,

“Back the Badge,” a popular pro-police slogan in the region.

Police officers remained posted down the block from Sheskey’s home around-the-clock through Saturday afternoon.

A neighbor, who spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear of retaliation from people who set fires in parts of the city earlier in the week,

Said she often exchanged pleasantries with Sheskey when the two were outside their homes over the years.

“I loved him being my neighbor,” she said tearfully.

“The man went to work. He’s a good man. Do I know his inner thoughts? No. Do I think he’s a racist? No.

Just a young man living his life, got caught up in a mess. … And two lives will never be the same, and it breaks my heart.”

DAWG SAYS: WE KEEP HEARING ABOUT THE SO CALLED VICTIM HOW ABOUT AN OFFICER FOR A CHANGE.

THE “VICTIM” WAS NOT SUCH A NICE GUY.

POLICE ACCUSED OF WELCOMING VIGILANTES

 POLICE ACCUSED OF WELCOMING VIGILANTES

As clashes between armed groups and leftist protesters turn deadly, police face complaints of tolerating vigilantes

In a video recorded shortly before two people were fatally shot last week in Kenosha, Wis.,

The accused gunman — Kyle Rittenhouse, 17 — circulates among a group of gun-wielding men,

Who claim to be guarding a service station amid protests against police brutality.

Although it is well past curfew, police passing in an armored vehicle offer the group bottles of water,

And some friendly encouragement, saying over a loudspeaker: “We appreciate you guys. We really do.”

As protesters march against racism and police violence in cities and towns across the nation,

They are being confronted by groups of armed civilians who claim to be assisting ,

And showing support for police battered and overwhelmed by the protests.

The confrontations have left at least three people dead in recent days:

In addition to the two protesters killed Tuesday in Kenosha, a man thought to be associated with a far-right group,

Called Patriot Prayer was fatally shot late Saturday in Portland, Ore. 

Both incidents have drawn complaints that local authorities abetted the violence by tolerating the presence of these self-appointed gunmen with no uniforms,

Varied training and limited accountability.

The stated motives of these vigilante actors, who are virtually indistinguishable from one another,

Once massed on the streets, range from protecting storefronts and free speech to furthering White supremacy and fomenting civil war.

Many sheriffs and police chiefs, including in Kenosha, have disavowed these armed civilians,

Saying police don’t want their help. Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth said he responded “hell no”

When asked to deputize civilians. And Kenosha Mayor John Antaramian said this week,

“I don’t need more guns on the streets in this city when we are trying to keep people safe.”

But elsewhere, local authorities have at times appeared to support people who took up arms against protests,

That have occasionally turned violent and provided cover for vandals and looters……….

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DAWG SAYS: ME PERSONALLY I WOULD DECLARE POSSE COMITATUS AND TAKE ALL THE HELP I CAN GET.

CONGRESS NOT GETTING INTELLIGENCE BRIEFINGS

CONGRESS NOT GETTING INTELLIGENCE BRIEFINGS

INTELLIGENCE DIRECTOR TO STOP IN-PERSON BRIEFINGS TO CONGRESS TRUMP SAYS “TOO MANY “LEAKERS” ON THE COMMITTEE”

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) will stop providing in-person briefings on election security and foreign interference to Congress,

According to congressional and intelligence officials, and instead will provide “primarily” written updates ahead of the November election.

An ODNI official told CBS News the change was being made out of concern over leaks that resulted from prior,

Unspecified congressional briefings, and in an effort to protect sensitive intelligence.

The official said Director of National Intelligence (DNI) John Ratcliffe ordered the change,

Which prompted immediate condemnation from senior Democratic lawmakers.

In a letter to several congressional offices dated August 28 that was obtained by CBS News,

Ratcliffe said he believed written briefings would help “ensure, to the maximum extent possible,

That the information ODNI provides the Congress in support of your oversight responsibilities on elections security,

Foreign malign influence, and election interference is not misunderstood nor politicized.”

“It will also better protect our sources and methods and most sensitive intelligence from additional unauthorized disclosures or misuse,” he wrote.

Speaking after touring damage from Hurricane Laura in Texas,

President Trump said the decision was because “you have leakers on the committee.”

Mr. Trump’s chief of staff, Mark Meadows, said Saturday that “it comes down to one simple thing:

A few members talked to the press and disclosed information that they shouldn’t have disclosed,

And so he’s going to make sure there’s proper tools for their oversight and make sure that they contain it in a way that does not jeopardize sources or methods for the intel that we gather.”

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DAWG SAYS: NEVER A DULL MOMENT THESE DAYS.

SUNDAY RETRO: RORY GALLAGHER

SUNDAY RETRO: RORY GALLAGHER

CALLING CARD IS THE SIXTH STUDIO RELEASE BY IRISH SINGER/GUITARIST RORY GALLAGHER.

A 1976 RELEASE, IT WAS HIS SECOND OF FOUR ALBUMS RELEASED ON CHRYSALIS RECORDS IN THE 1970S.

DEEP PURPLE/RAINBOW BASS GUITARIST ROGER GLOVER CO-PRODUCED WITH GALLAGHER:

IT WAS THE FIRST TIME THAT GALLAGHER WORKED WITH A “NAME” PRODUCER

AND THE ONLY SUCCESSFUL SUCH COLLABORATION.

CELERA 500L “BULLET PLANE

CELERA 500L “BULLET PLANE

The whispers started three years ago.

Long-awaited Celera 500L ‘bullet’ plane is finally revealed

A mysterious bullet-shaped plane was spotted at the Southern California Logistics Airport near Victorville in April 2017.

Its unusual design prompted immediate speculation,

With military website The War Zone being the first to report that the aircraft was the work of California-based Otto Aviation,

And that development was very much under wraps.

Now, in the late summer of the strangest year in aviation history,

The Celera 500L has finally been revealed to the world, with the launch of a new website and a bunch of very cool new photos.

What we’re looking at is a six-person private craft that promises to fly at jet speeds,

But with eight times lower fuel consumption, and a range that’s twice that of a comparably sized craft.

Bold claims indeed. Otto Aviation says on its website that 31 successful test flights have so far been performed,

With aerodynamic efficiency proven in 2019, bolstering its declaration that “the Celera 500L is the most fuel-efficient, commercially viable aircraft in existence.”

The company, founded in 2008 and an offshoot of Bill Otto’s Otto Laboratories,

Says that the Celera 500L runs at 18 to 25 miles-per-gallon fuel economy (compared to the 2-3 miles-per-gallon of a comparable jet aircraft).

Then there are the modest $328 hourly operating costs, which are about six times lower,

And the generous 4,500-nautical-mile range. Maximum cruise speed is projected to reach more than 460 miles per hour.

“Our goal has always been to create a safe and private aircraft that would allow for direct flights in the US,

At speeds and cost comparable to commercial air travel,” company CEO Bill Otto Jr. tells CNN Travel.

The range is such that the Celera 500L would be able to service nearly every city pairing in the United States without refueling.

The reason its aircraft can do all this, says Otto Aviation, is down to laminar flow.

Laminar flow is the minimum……..

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NOR CAL ADVENTURE: SUTTERS FORT

NOR CAL ADVENTURE: SUTTERS FORT

The Historic State Park That All Northern Californians Need To Visit At Least Once

Smack dab in the heart of our state’s capitol,

Is a historic state park that celebrates the pioneer spirit that brought Americans out to Northern California in the first place.

Sutter’s Fort State park is an incredible homage to the Old West.

You can still go there today to learn about Northern California life before the gold rush even began,

And you will be greeted by docents in living history gear who will teach you more than you even thought there was to know about the pioneer days.

Now a historic state park, Sutter’s Fort was once a thriving agricultural and trade center.


It was established by John Sutter in 1839 when he received a grant from the Mexican Government.

At that point in time, California was owned by Mexico,

But more and more Americans from the east were heading out west as pioneers.

John Sutter was a Swiss immigrant who named the Sacramento area New Helvetica, or New Switzerland.

In 1847 Sutter sent aid to the Donner Party,

a group of immigrants trapped in a winter storm in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

Word spread and Sutter became known for his hospitality and for providing temporary refuge to travelers.

This reputation made New Helvetia the destination for early immigrants to California.

John Sutter also owned the mill where gold was discovered in 1849 by John Marshall in Coloma.


Despite the growing community that surrounded New Helvetica and Sutter’s Fort,

once gold was discovered, the area became overcome by miners seeking their fortune.


NOR CAL ADVENTURE: SUTTERS FORT IN SACRAMENTO


Sutter’s Fort fell into disrepair but was eventually turned into a state park.

In 1891, the Native Sons of the Golden West, who sought to safeguard many of the landmarks of California’s pioneer days,

purchased and rehabilitated Sutter’s Fort when the City of Sacramento sought to demolish it.

Repair efforts were completed in 1893 and the fort was given by the Native Sons of the Golden West to the State of California.

In 1947, the fort was transferred to the authority of California State Parks.

Today, the state park is a popular stop for school and other tour groups.

People come to soak in the history of the past and learn about the early Californians.


Visitors get to interact with docents in period wear.

Sutter’s Fort State Historic Park is alive with activity throughout the year.

Regular living history events re-create life and activities of Sutter’s time.


“Hands-on History Days” feature costumed staff demonstrating the tools, skills, food, and games of early Californians.

Both daytime and evening special events are offered.

Educational programs are presented for school groups.

The Fort is located in what today is Midtown Sacramento.

It’s a slice of history in an otherwise urban environment.

The city was built up around it and Northern Californians are lucky to have access to a historic,

educational, and lovely state park right at our fingertips.

Sutter’s Fort is located at:

2701 L Street, Sacramento CA, 95816 (916) 445-4422

DAWG SAYS:

ANOTHER PLACE I HAVE VISITED SEVERAL TIMES OVER THE YEARS

GREAT PLACE TO SEE WITH HISTORICAL VALUE.

NEW YORK HOMELESS LIVING AMONG ELITE

NEW YORK HOMELESS LIVING AMONG ELITE

Hundreds of homeless men, including convicted rapists, were placed in luxury hotels

THE HOMELESS AND SEX OFFENDERS NOW LIVING IN NEW YORKS ONCE SERENE UPPER WEST SIDE


When the coronavirus pandemic swept through New York City, officials started filling boutique hotels in Manhattan’s Upper West Side,

With homeless individuals, in an effort to reduce the virus spreading through the streets and cramped shelters.

Residents in the family-friendly neighborhood were shocked,

To find out that those homeless included more than a dozen convicted sex offenders.

NO NOTICE TO RESIDENTS AND CLOSE TO SCHOOLS

Some were reportedly given rooms in hotels a block from a school playground.

City officials have said that, given the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic, there was not time to notify residents well in advance or seek community input.

In all, around 800 people ‒ mostly men ‒ have been placed since April in UWS hotels,

costing taxpayers up to $400 a night, funded 75 percent by Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

NEW YORK HOMELESS LIVING AMONG ELITE IN MANHATTEN

The hotels in the area being used include The Hotel Belleclaire, at 76th Street and Broadway,

The Lucerne, at 79th Street and Amsterdam;

And the Belnord on 87th and Broadway.

SEX OFFENDERS INCLUDED

A number of the rooms are reportedly being occupied by registered sex offenders,

Including some convicted of child rape, child molestation and possession of child porn.

Trying to get clear answers from the city and community representatives has been a source of frustration for many Upper West Siders.

According to official guidance from the city’s Department of Homeless Services (DHS), sex offenders,

Whether tier 3, 2 or 1, are to live at the men’s shelter on Wards Islands, where there are no schools at all.

“[But] during the pandemic, the Department of Homeless Services has broken its own rules on sex offenders and where they are housed over and over again,” said……..

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DAWG SAYS: SOUNDS A LOT LIKE AN EAST COAST SAN FRANCISCO.

SOON NEW YORK WILL HAVE ONLINE POOP MAPS.