August 9, 2016

What We Know About the Young Boy Decapitated on the World’s Tallest Water Slide

Source: Time

Ten-year-old Caleb Schwab was decapitated while riding what has been dubbed the world’s tallest water slide at the Schlitterbahn Water Park in Kansas City, police said.

The case is being investigated as a civil rather than criminal matter, yet details are vague and authorities have disclosed little information about what caused the tragic accident. Questions remain over how exactly Caleb died, including whether the ride or safety equipment — as well as the Velcro straps and belt holding him into the raft — malfunctioned.

Caleb Schwab, the son of a state lawmaker, sustained a fatal “neck injury” at around 2:30 p.m. while riding the 168-foot-tall “Verruckt” (meaning “insane” in German) water slide, the Associated Press reports. Police confirmed to TIME on Tuesday that the boy was decapitated in the accident. He was found dead at the bottom of the ride in a pool.

Schwab boarded the raft with two women who were not related to him, they both suffered minor cuts and scrapes on their face in the incident.


Read more: http://time.com/4444447/caleb-schwab-verruckt-water-slide-death/

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The rumor of the cause of death has been circulating on Twitter for days.

There are no Federal regulations for waterparks, and this park was last inspected by the state in 2012 -- two years before it opened. But the owner has said that they delayed the opening in 2014 because of safety changes they made. Why didn't the state re-inspect after the changes?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3730558/Witnesses-day-ten-year-old-boy-DECAPITATED-flew-world-s-tallest-waterslide-fell-safety-net.html

August 9, 2016

GOP EPA chiefs endorse Clinton

Source: Politico

REPUBLICAN EPA CHIEFS ENDORSE CLINTON: Former Nixon and Reagan EPA Administrator William Ruckelshaus and former George H.W. Bush EPA Administrator William Reilly both endorsed Hillary Clinton for president today, damning Donald Trump for his "profound ignorance of science." As Pro's Andrew Restuccia reports, the two men criticized Trump for failing to accept the warnings on climate change from scientists and threatening to "cancel" the Paris climate deal. "That Trump would call climate change a hoax — the singular health and environmental threat to the world today — flies in the face of overwhelming international science and the public conviction and commitment of almost 200 national governments" that joined the Paris deal, they said. "To back away now, as Trump wants to do, would set the world back decades — years we could never recover. The young people in this country deserve far better than that as our legacy."
Story Continued Below

Republicans lining up for Hillary: Ruckelshaus and Reilly are unusual in the GOP for their acceptance of and concern about climate change. But other Republican heavyweights have joined them in their preference for Clinton over Trump, including Brent Scowcroft, Meg Whitman, Richard Armitage, and Henry Paulson. Last night, Republican Sen. Susan Collins said in a Washington Post op-ed that she could not support Trump. Former George W. Bush EPA chief Christine Todd Whitman said Clinton was "more stable" than Trump, but hasn't endorsed in the race.



Read more: http://www.politico.com/tipsheets/morning-energy/2016/08/gop-epa-chiefs-endorse-clinton-215782

August 8, 2016

Republican Trump-hater, ex CIA Evan McMullin, plans to file for an independent run for President.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/09/us/politics/evan-mcmullin-independent-candidate.html

Evan McMullin, a former C.I.A. official and a Republican who passionately opposes Donald J. Trump, will file papers to run for president as an independent candidate, according to two people briefed on his plans.

Mr. McMullin, who until recently worked on policy development with the House Republican conference, has missed the ballot-access deadlines in more than two dozen states.

But Mr. McMullin, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, studied in Utah and could take votes from Mr. Trump in the heavily Mormon state.

In a statement provided by an aide, Mr. McMullin said, “In a year where Americans have lost faith in the candidates of both major parties, it’s time for a generation of new leadership to step up.”

SNIP

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/evan-mcmullin-trump-independent_us_57a880bae4b021fd9879173e?section=&

Evan McMullin, 40, is expected to file as an independent candidate for president Monday, telling ABC News in a statement that “it’s never too late to do the right thing, and America deserves much better than either Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton can offer us.”

SNIP

McMullin is a former CIA agent and former chief policy director of the House Republican conference. His resume includes stints at Goldman Sachs and the United Nations. He was educated at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania ― a distinction he shares with Trump ― and Brigham Young University. He has never held elected office, and is largely unknown in political circles.

The House Republican Conference distanced itself from McMullin in a statement emailed to reporters on Monday.

“The House Republican Conference has zero knowledge of his intentions,” said conference spokesperson Nate Hodson.

SNIP

August 8, 2016

Bride is walked down the aisle by the man who got her father's heart.

A lovely true story. Sometimes we need to read them.

And the photo itself might draw a tear.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/09/fashion/weddings/bride-is-walked-down-aisle-by-the-man-who-got-her-fathers-donated-heart.html?module=WatchingPortal®ion=c-column-middle-span-region&pgType=Homepage&action=click&mediaId=wide&state=standard&contentPlacement=1&version=internal&contentCollection=www.nytimes.com&contentId=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2016%2F08%2F09%2Ffashion%2Fweddings%2Fbride-is-walked-down-aisle-by-the-man-who-got-her-fathers-donated-heart.html&eventName=Watching-article-click&_r=0

It’s a bittersweet wedding story a decade in the making: Nearly 10 years after Jeni Stepien’s father was killed, the man who received her father’s donated heart traveled from New Jersey to Pennsylvania to walk her down the aisle.

“The murder and the wedding happened within a three-block radius” in the town of Swissvale, Pa., Ms. Stepien, an elementary schoolteacher, said in an interview on Monday, as she was about to board a plane for her honeymoon. “And I was just thinking, ‘My dad is here with us, and this man is here with us because of us.’ ”

SNIP

August 8, 2016

Last winter Jill Stein and Michael Flynn, Trump's general, had dinner with Putin in Russia,

as part of a conference run by RT, Russia's propaganda arm.

Think about that. Jill Stein and Michael Flynn, Trump's surrogate, joining together with Putin in Russia.

And who else is chummy with Jill Stein? Julian Assange, who just spoke by video at the Green convention.

Wake up, real progressives! Putin is NOT one of us, and neither is anyone connected with him.

http://americablog.com/2016/08/jill-stein-moscow-criticized-us-human-rights-said-nothing-russian-human-rights.html

And Stein decided to go to Moscow last winter to share her concerns.

And, what do you know, she’s happy to report she found an audience that agrees with her!

Stein’s report from Moscow is in the video below. She went to attend a conference hosted by the Russian state propaganda organ. In a sign of how much important Moscow put on the conference, Putin himself joined Stein and other attendees for dinner.

From Moscow, Stein noted that we “need to rein in US exceptionalism, and totally reform and revise our foreign policy so that it is based on international law, human rights and diplomacy.” Making those comments from Moscow, at this time, is rather unconventional, unless you work for Donald Trump.


https://mobile.twitter.com/zatchry/status/762055852991713280

Photo: Putin, Jill Stein and Donald Trump's military advisor Michael Flynn attending dinner for RT, Putin's propaganda arm.


http://www.roanoke.com/news/virginia/wire/wikileaks-founder-speaks-to-green-party-convention-in-texas/article_8cf1c760-1c60-5406-9a08-392d92ceeb52.html

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange spoke via video chat to members of the Green Party during their national convention in Houston, criticizing the federal government and corporate America.

The Houston Chronicle reports (http://bit.ly/2b3NE62 ) Assange spoke for about 20 minutes on Saturday.

In his speech, Assange accused Google of controlling communication and criticized President Barack Obama for cracking down on federal employees who leak classified information.

August 8, 2016

Who's been impersonating Melania Trump's plagiarist, Meredith McIver?

(That is the title of this Daily Beast article, but "McIver" actually would have been Michelle Obama's plagiarist, not Melania's.)

And now someone is impersonating McIver. McIver, who apparently is a real person, says she has no Facebook or Twitter presence. Someone named "Brian" claims -- but hasn't proven -- hat he was hired by the RNC to set up and maintain the McIver twitter account after McIver wrote the letter taking responsibility for the plagiarism.

Twitter has suspended the McIver account, which they wouldn't have done unless the holder was being abusive or the account was a fake.

The plot thickens.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/08/03/who-s-impersonating-melania-trump-s-plagiarist-meredith-mciver.html


The account @imeredithmciver began tweeting on July 20, the day after Melania Trump’s prime-time Republican National Convention speech was upended by the revelation that she had cribbed some lines from an address by Michelle Obama at the 2008 Democratic National Convention. And it is still posing as McIver to this day, with no comment or pushback from the Trump campaign.

As the campaign is in the throes of daily sparring with a Gold Star family, fire marshals, and even the speaker of the House, there’s been no acknowledgment of the fake social media presence of McIver, who told The Daily Beast she has no online presence. Multiple people have emailed The Daily Beast claiming to have some knowledge about the mysterious appearance of the account, ranging from abject satire to claims the Trump campaign is actually behind it.

SNIP

The McIver account itself did not respond to direct messages requesting more information, but someone claiming to run it sent an extensive email to The Daily Beast claiming that the RNC hired them.

“I worked for the Trump campaign in Cleveland last week, doing some light digital work as needed,” the individual, who identified himself only as “Brian,” wrote. “On Wednesday, as the statement was released regarding the plagiarism controversy, I was approached by campaign staffers to create a Twitter account for this persona as part of what was described as a ‘grassroots’ effort to help squash the scandal before it could become something bigger. While I think they believed the statement would be widely accepted, they apparently wanted to ensure there was something to fall back on as people began to inevitably ask questions.”

“Brian” claimed that Jason Miller, the communications director for the campaign, had written out some explicit instructions for tweets and put them on an Excel sheet. “Brian” provided a screenshot of the alleged spreadsheet to The Daily Beast but would not provide proof of contracting by the campaign. Miller did not comment on the veracity of the claim.

August 8, 2016

New NBC poll. 50% Hillary vs. 42 Trump.

I just heard this on TV.

August 7, 2016

Is Jill Stein plotting a 2018 run against Elizabeth Warren?

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/8/6/1557554/-Twelve-Reasons-NOT-to-Vote-for-Jill-Stein-Ajamu-Baraka

1) Jill Stein is a fraud. Check out her list of campaign contributors per the FEC. The top five donations are from corporate interests -- AON, Xoom Global Money Transfer, IBM, Thoughtworks, and UPS. Would Bernie take money from any of these? http://votesmart.org/candidate/campaign-finance/35775/jill-stein

2) Check out Stein’s hand picked choice for VP, Ajamu Baraka. He's a radical agitator who has publicly referred to Bernie Sanders as a "white supremacist" and labelled Sanders supporters as naive shills. americablog.com/… http://fusion.net/story/332652/jill-stein-ajamu-baraka http://www.jackpineradicals.com/boards/topic/green-vp-baraka-slams-bernie-and-sandernistas/

3. Stein is an opportunist looking to cash in with disgruntled Sanders supporters. She is building a war chest for her 2018 run against Elizabeth Warren's in her home state of MA. Her running might siphon enough votes from Warren to give the Senate seat to the Repubs.

4. Stein has virtually NO political experience. She is an ex-musician and medical professional. She has won just one election in her life -- a town meeting seat where 7 of a larger group of candidates were elected -- in which she got a whopping 539 votes. In her 2012 Presidential bid she received one-third of one percent of the votes. That means that only one out of every 300 voters chose her. Hell, Taylor Swift or Kim Kardashian would have got more votes than that if their names had been on the ballot. Ralph Nader got more than six times that many votes the last time he ran. She is the classic definition of a “spoiler.”

SNIP

August 7, 2016

Former Reagan political director Frank Lavin says he'll be voting for Hillary.

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/290680-ex-reagan-director-voting-for-clinton

Frank Lavin, who worked as Reagan's political director from 1987 to 1989, says he will not be voting for the Republican standard-bearer for the first time in 40 years.

"It might not be entirely clear that Hillary Clinton deserves to win the presidency, but it is thunderingly clear that Donald Trump deserves to lose," Lavin wrote in an op-ed for CNN.

"From this premise, I will do something that I have not done in 40 years of voting: I will vote for the Democratic nominee for president," he wrote.

"The depressing truth of the Republican nominee is that Donald Trump talks a great game but he is the emperor who wears no clothes."

In the op-ed, Lavin slams the GOP nominee, calling him a "bully," a "bigot" and someone "devoid of grace or magnanimity."

August 7, 2016

NYTimes: moving story of the Khan family's American life -- and the convention aftermath.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/06/us/khan-soldier-convention-iraq.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=first-column-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news

Six minutes and one second. That was all it took for the 66 years of Khizr Khan’s life to become an American moment.

It was not something that he could have anticipated. For years, he and his wife, Ghazala, had lived a rather quiet existence of common obscurity in Charlottesville, Va. He was known in circles that dealt with electronic discovery in legal proceedings. Another overlapping sphere was the rotating cast of cadets that passed through the Army R.O.T.C. program at the University of Virginia. His wife was a welcoming face to the customers of a local fabric store.

And the last dozen years for the Khans were darkened by their heartbreak over the death of a military son, Humayun, whose body lies in Arlington National Cemetery, his tombstone adorned with an Islamic crescent. Their grief brought them closer to a university and to a young woman in Germany whom their son loved. It also gave them a conviction and expanded the borders of their lives.

Some of their neighbors knew Mr. Khan liked to carry a $1 pocket Constitution around with him. In the Khan home, a stack of them always lay at the ready. Guests showed up and they were handed one, in the way other hosts might distribute a party favor. Mr. Khan wanted it to stimulate a conversation about liberty, a cherished topic of his. He liked to point out that he lives nearly in the shadow of Monticello, home of one of his heroes, Thomas Jefferson. Mrs. Khan liked to say, “We need Thomas Jefferson.”

SNIP