Miramonte Sex Abuse Scandal: Staff Removal May Not Be Temporary

"Miramonte Sex Abuse Scandal: Staff Removal May Not Be Temporary" by Reut Cohen, Karla Robinson for Neon Tommy, February 9, 2012:

On Wednesday teachers from Miramonte Elementary School received notices of administrative transfers, a disciplinary relocation without an investigation—indicating the removal of Miramonte's teachers may not be temporary.

LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy said the decision to remove the teachers is aimed at rebuilding trust among the students and parents who have lost confidence in the wake of the sex abuse scandal.

Some critics say the decision ignores the real problem and causes unnecessary disruptions.

"LAUSD is making a tragic situation worse, and traumatizing every child in this school," said United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA) president Warren Fletcher at a press conference Thursday. Fletcher said that the removal of 85 teachers without investigation was "nothing more than a cheap media stunt, intended to deflect attention from the fact that the tragedy that is occurring at this school is a result of a failure of supervision."

UTLA said that they will "vigorously represent" the rights of the teachers to have a fair hearing...

Read it all here.

Also See:
- Miramonte Sex Abuse Scandal: UTLA Reacts To Removal Of Entire Staff
- Miramonte Sex Abuse Scandal: Staff Removal May Not Be Temporary

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Bob Hope Airport Introduces New Aircraft Rescue And Firefighting Vehicle

"Bob Hope Airport Introduces New Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting Vehicle" by Reut Cohen for KCET, February 7, 2012:

Bob Hope Airport is slowly rolling out new aircraft rescue and firefighting trucks, starting with the first US Class 4 Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting vehicle (ARFF) in the country. Rosenbauer America, the same company whose Panther 6x6 Aircraft Rescue Fire Fighting vehicle was featured as the character Sentinel Prime in "Transformers 3," designed the new truck.

The vehicle is superior to previous models - using a careful mixture of compressed air, foam solution and water to generate a firefighting agent that uses less water.

"At an airport we don't have a lot of above ground water supplies because we have restrictions on side hydrants," said fire Capt. Marcus Domingo. "We need to be able to conserve as much firefighting agent as we can."

The truck carries 1500 gallons of water, 200 gallons of foam, and 500 pounds of halotron, a clean firefighting agent that doesn't leave a residue or pollute the environment. The truck can also travel 75 mph and reach 50 mph in 35 seconds, allowing it to respond to the furthest portion of the airfield from the airport fire department for an emergency landing in less than three minutes.

"When we have a fire outside of the aircraft we have less than two minutes before fire will burn through the aircraft," said Domingo. [...]

Read it all here.

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Are Killer Whales At SeaWorld Slaves? Court To Hear Case Today

"Are Killer Whales at SeaWorld Slaves? Court to Hear Case Today" by Reut Cohen for KCET, February 6, 2012:

In the first-ever case of its kind a court will hear that SeaWorld is violating the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution by holding whales in captivity.

A federal lawsuit calling on SeaWorld to release three orca whales in San Diego and two in Orlando will be heard in a San Diego federal court Monday. The lawsuit is unprecedented and, if successful, can fundamentally boost the animal rights movement.

"This is the first-ever lawsuit asking a federal court to declare that the five wild orcas are being held as slaves," said Jeffrey S. Kerr, general counsel to PETA, in an interview. "They're denied everything natural to them."

PETA says the orcas (also known as killer whales) are, by definition, slaves who would normally swim up to 100 miles a day in the wild but instead are contained in small concrete tanks at SeaWorld where they swim in circles.

"Nothing in the 13th Amendment excludes these extremely social, sentient and intelligent beings from its protections, and SeaWorld's treatment of these five orcas absolutely defines slavery," said PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk in a statement. [...]

Read it all here.

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No Fly List Doubles In Past Year

"No Fly List Doubles In Past Year" by Reut Cohen and Tracy Bloom for Neon Tommy, February 2, 2012:

"No-Fly" list has more than doubled in the last year, according to new figures released to the Associated Press. The jump comes after the Obama administration announced last October that it is closer than ever to defeating Al Qaeda.

A year ago roughly 10,000 known or suspected terrorists were placed on the list, according to the AP. This year that figure rose to 21,000, with roughly 500 American names on the list. Most individuals identified on the list are from other countries.

Here’s more from the AP report:

"The flood of new names began after the failed Christmas 2009 bombing of a Detroit-bound jetliner. The government lowered the standard for putting people on the list, and then scoured its files for anyone who qualified. The government will not disclose who is on its list or why someone might have been placed on it.

The surge in the size of the no-fly list comes even as the U.S. has killed many senior members of al-Qaida. That's because the government believes the current terror threat extends well beyond the group responsible for the September 2001 attacks."

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Donald Trump Endorses Mitt Romney

"Donald Trump Endorses Mitt Romney" by Reut Cohen and Tracy Bloom for Neon Tommy, February 2, 2012:

UPDATE: Donald Trump has officially endorsed Mitt Romney for president.

Trump told a group of reporters at a Las Vegas press conference this afternoon: "Mitt is tough, he's smart, he's sharp, he's not going to allow bad things to continue to happen to this country that we all love...So Governor Romney, go out and get 'em, you can do it."

Watch the press conference below:

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Business magnate and TV personality Donald Trump will endorse Mitt Romney in Las Vegas today, according to a report from CNN.

Previous reports suggested Trump would endorse former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

From CNN:

“Trump, who has repeatedly flirted with the possibility of his own White House bid, will make the announcement in Las Vegas two days before Nevada's Saturday caucuses. It's unclear whether Trump's decision will have any impact on the Republican race. Sixty-four percent of definite and likely GOP voters in a Pew survey last month said an endorsement from the reality television star would make no difference to them. Thirteen percent said it would make them more likely to back a candidate, while 20% said it would actually make them less likely.”

In general endorsements almost never matter, according to a recent Washington Post-Pew Research Center.

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Mitt Romney Explains Remark On "Very Poor"

"Mitt Romney Explains Remark On ""Very Poor"" by Reut Cohen for Neon Tommy, February 2, 2012:

The GOP’s frontrunner Mitt Romney is in damage control mode following comments he made about the “very poor” on Wednesday during a CNN interview.

“I'm not concerned about the very poor. We have a safety net there. If it needs a repair , I'll fix it,” the former Massachusetts governor said. “I'm not concerned about the very rich.... I'm concerned about the very heart of America, the 90 to 95 percent of Americans who right now are struggling.”

Romney clarified his remarks by explaining that the U.S. has a “safety net” for the poor, which includes food stamps, housing vouchers and Medicaid.

“There's no question it's not good being poor... but my campaign is focused on middle income Americans... people who can't find work, folks that have kids that are getting ready for college,” he said.

Some conservative pundits blasted Romney on Thursday, suggesting Romney is providing more fodder for those who want to cast him as an out-of-touch elite politician.

“Taken in context, it's understandable,” said conservative political commentator Rush Limbaugh. “But I even have a problem with this in context.”

Limbaugh also said that Romney “comes across as the prototypical rich Republican,” arguing it will be harder for him to go after Obama because of it. [...]

Read it all here.

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