http://www.liveleak.com/browse?q=compensation Sun, 19 May 2013 12:45:47 -0400 Liveleak http://edge.liveleak.com/80281E/u/u/ll2/logo.gif http://www.liveleak.com/browse?q=compensation Fri, 17 May 2013 13:53:01 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=b17_1368812693 plokiju In a letter (PDF) sent to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, Attorney General Eric Holder and SEC Chair Mary Jo White on Tuesday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) demanded to know why the government keeps accepting financial settlements from criminal bankers when they could instead be taken to trial, convicted and locked up. In six short paragraphs, Warren requested that each institution turn over copies of any internal research "on the trade-offs to the public" between letting big financial firms pay a fine and walk "without admission of guilt" versus moving forward with full-scale prosecutions. The letter was sent as a follow-up to a similar question she asked of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) on Feb. 14. Warren noted that the OCC replied last week denying the existence of any such research. In her letter sent Tuesday, she went on to add: ...I believe very strongly that if a regulator reveals itself to be unwilling to take large financial institutions all the way to trial - either because it is too timid or because it lacks resources - the regulator has a lot less leverage in settlement negotiations and will be forced to settle on terms that are much more favorable to the wrongdoer. The consequence can be insufficient compensation to those who are harmed by illegal activity and inadequate deterrence of future violations. If large financial institutions can break the law and accumulate millions in profits and, if they get caught, settle by paying out of those profits, they do not have much incentive to follow the law. There's been a rash of mega-settlements between the government and the nation's largest banks in recent years over allegations of foreclosing on people without just cause, knowingly making bad loans and reselling the debt, making false statements to rob from retired pensioners, laundering money for drug cartels, repressive regimes and terrorists, and agreeing to settlements and then ignoring them, to name a few. "The problem is the banks have overwhelming confidence that law enforcement is not taking this seriously," New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman said last Monday, appearing on MSNBC. "They have overwhelming confidence that whatever the rules are, they won't be followed up on." Five years on from a financial crisis that nearly froze the flow of credit in the United States and sparked a multi-trillion dollar bailing-out of the global financial industry, few American bankers and big finance executives have faced criminal charges. There is, however, one notable exception: Ponzi-schemer Bernard Madoff, who defrauded mainly wealthy clients to the tune of $64.8 billion. He said from jail in 2011 that many of his former colleagues on Wall Street engage in criminal insider trading on a regular basis, much like he did. "It's unbelievable, Goldman ... no one has any criminal convictions," Madoff told New York Magazine earlier that year. "The whole new regulatory reform is a joke. The whole government is a Ponzi scheme." http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/05/15/sen-warren-demands-to-know-why-criminal-bankers-arent-being-locked-up/ Audit: Fed gave $16 trillion in emergency loans Of the $16.1 trillion loaned out, $3.08 trillion went to financial institutions in the U.K., Germany, Switzerland, France and Belgium, the Government Accountability Office's (GAO) analysis shows. Additionally, asset swap arrangements were opened with banks in the U.K., Canada, Brazil, Japan, South Korea, Norway, Mexico, Singapore and Switzerland. Twelve of those arrangements are still ongoing, having been extended through August 2012. Out of all borrowers, Citigroup received the most financial assistance from the Fed, at $2.5 trillion. Morgan Stanley came in second with $2.04 trillion, followed by Merill Lynch at $1.9 trillion and Bank of America at $1.3 trillion. http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/07/21/audit-fed-gave-16-trillion-in-emergency-loans/ I couldn't find a video of the Warren story but here's a related story that will make your blood boil -ed http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=b17_1368812693 plokiju Sen. Warren demands to know why criminal bankers aren't being locked up Sen, Warren, demands, why, criminal, bankers, aren't, being, locked, up Fri, 17 May 2013 07:20:42 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=e9e_1368789202 LostRothschild D.C. must have a huge budget surplus, and would like to spend it on lawyers, fighting a 2A rights case it can't win. I wonder if the district's voters might have any ideas on how those dollars might be better spent? Just a different flavour to gun control. Compensation for those harmed in gun violence... Damn broad interpretation which allow criminals to sue those who they (criminals) intent to cause harm to when they get shot by their victims -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- April 6 video. D.C. Bill Would Require Gun Owners to Purchase $250K in Liability Insurance Prospective gun owners in Washington, D.C., may be in for a surprise if a proposed bill gains the local council's support. The prospective law would require that those who wish to license a gun purchase a $250,000 liability insurance policy. The D.C. Council is currently considering the proposal, which would mandate coverage for negligent and intentional acts not taken in self-defense . Introduced by Democratic Councilmember Mary Cheh, CBS D.C. reports that the bill will be discussed in committee later today. Rather than impacting only those who wish to purchase a gun, the bill would also require citizens who already have licenses to obtain liability insurance. Its intent is to provide compensation to individuals who are harmed as a result of gun violence. "These are instrumentalities that, if mishandled or allow others access or mishandling, can cause great harm," Cheh said in an interview with WTTF-TV. Critics are speaking out against the proposal, noting the cost it will impose on gun owners. It's currently unclear how much a $250,000 liability insurance policy would cost, but Cheh also said that she is open to lowering the coverage amount, pending it is too expensive. "I don't mean it to be a centrifuge as a ban," she said in response to those who may accuse her of creating a barrier to gun ownership. "I want it to really be insurance." While insurance would surely help victims of gun violence, there is a gaping hole in the proposal, as crimes committed with an illegal firearm potentially wouldn't yield coverage for victims (i.e. people who own guns illegally likely won't have mandated insurance). Still, the proposal is one that supporters are comparing to home or car insurance. http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/05/16/proposed-bill-in-d-c-wo http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=e9e_1368789202 LostRothschild D.C. Bill Would Require Gun Owners to Purchase $250K in Liability Insurance 2, 2nd, second, amendment, gun, firearm, rights, constitution, tyranny, freedom Wed, 15 May 2013 20:23:46 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=914_1368663676 MartinE One of the least discussed and least reported issues is the Obama administration's effort to bring the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement to the forefront, an oppressive plurilateral US-led free trade agreement currently being negotiated with several Pacific Rim countries. Six hundred US corporate advisors have negotiated and had input into the TPP, and the proposed draft text has not been made available to the public, the press or policymakers. The level of secrecy surrounding the agreements is unparalleled - paramilitary teams scatter outside the premise of each round of discussions while helicopters loom overhead - media outlets impose a near-total blackout of reportage on the subject and US Senator Ron Wyden, the Chair of the Congressional Committee with jurisdiction over TPP, was denied access to the negotiation texts. "The majority of Congress is being kept in the dark as to the substance of the TPP negotiations, while representatives of U.S. corporations - like Halliburton, Chevron, PhaRMA, Comcast and the Motion Picture Association of America - are being consulted and made privy to details of the agreement," said Wyden, in a floor statement to Congress. In addition to the United States, the countries participating in the negotiations include Australia, Brunei, Chile, Canada, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam. Japan has expressed its desire to become a negotiating partner, but not yet joined negotiation, partly due to public pressure to steer-clear. The TPP would impose punishing regulations that give multinational corporations unprecedented rights to demand taxpayer compensation for policies they think will undermine their expected future profits straight from the treasuries of participating nations - it would push the agenda of Big PhaRMA in the developing world to impose longer monopoly controls on drugs, drastically limiting access to affordable generic medications that people depend on. The TPP would undermine food safety by limiting labeling and forcing countries like the United States to import food that fails to meet its national safety standards, in addition to banning Buy America or Buy Local preferences.read more http://nilebowie.blogspot.ca/2013/04/trans-pacific-partnership-tpp-corporate.html http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=914_1368663676 MartinE Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP): Corporate Power-Tool Of The 1% Trans-Pacific Partnership Wed, 15 May 2013 12:40:09 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=d10_1368629164 Shiba-inu Japan In order to avoid misunderstanding about Japan, I am writing this issue. Now of these days, most of people on internet were born after the world war II. However, Koreans are making big issue in U.S.A. & all over the world about sexual abuse by Japanese military, so called comfort women (they changed the words to Sex Slave now), is it true ? Comfort women, crossing river after Japanese solders. Comfort women, recruit advertisement issued by news paper in Korea. http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=d10_1368629164 Shiba-inu Japan Truth of Japan Military Sex Slave - Claimed by Korea Sex slave, Japan, Korea, prostitute Tue, 14 May 2013 14:11:30 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=ce9_1368553949 Tama7866 One of the biggest Mayan pyramids in Belize has been all but destroyed by 'ignorant' builders who ravaged the ancient structure for crushed rock to fill in a new road. The construction workers used bulldozers and diggers to claw at the sloping sides of the 100ft tall pyramid, which is part of the Nohmul complex - the most important Mayan site in northern Belize and one which dates back at least 2,300 years. Horrified archaeologists claim there is no way the builders could have mistaken the Mayan ruins for a hill, as the landscape is naturally flat and the Nohmul complex is well known. 'It's a feeling of Incredible disbelief because of the ignorance and the insensitivity ... they were using this for road fill,' Mr Awe said. 'It's like being punched in the stomach, it's just so horrendous.' Nohmul sat in the middle of a privately owned sugar cane field, and lacked the even stone sides frequently seen in reconstructed or better-preserved pyramids. Nonetheless Mr Awe is certain the builders could not have mistaken the pyramid mound for anything other than Mayan ruins. 'These guys knew that this was an ancient structure. It's just bloody laziness,' he said. The builders used backhoes to claw at the sides of the pyramid, leaving an isolated core of limestone cobbles at the centre, with what appears to be a narrow Mayan chamber dangling above one hollowed-out section. 'Just to realize that the ancient Maya acquired all this building material to erect these buildings, using nothing more than stone tools and quarried the stone, and carried this material on their heads, using tump lines,' said the archaeologist. 'To think that today we have modern equipment, that you can go and excavate in a quarry anywhere, but that this company would completely disregard that and completely destroyed this building. Why can't these people just go and quarry somewhere that has no cultural significance? It's mind-boggling.' Belizean police said they are conducting an investigation and that criminal charges may be brought against the construction company. The Nohmul complex sits on private land, but Belizean law says that any pre-Hispanic ruins are under government protection. The Belize community-action group Citizens Organized for Liberty Through Action called the destruction of the archaeological site 'an obscene example of disrespect for the environment and history'. It is not the first time it's happened in Belize, a country of about 350,000 people that is largely covered in jungle and dotted with hundreds of Mayan ruin sites - though few as large as Nohmul. Norman Hammond, an emeritus professor of archaeology at Boston University who worked in Belizean research projects in the 1980s, said it was far from the first time Mayan mounds had been targeted by construction workers seeking materials. He wrote in an email that 'bulldozing Maya mounds for road fill is an endemic problem in Belize (the whole of the San Estevan center has gone, both of the major pyramids at Louisville, other structures at Nohmul, many smaller sites), but this sounds like the biggest yet'. Arlen Chase, chairman of the Department of Anthropology at the University of Central Florida, said: 'Archaeologists are disturbed when such things occur, but there is only a very limited infrastructure in Belize that can be applied to cultural heritage management. 'Unfortunately, they (destruction of sites) are all too common, but not usually in the center of a large Maya site,' he said. He said there had probably still been much to learn from the site. 'A great deal of archaeology was undertaken at Nohmul in the `70s and `80s, but this only sampled a small part of this large center.' Belize isn't the only place where the handiwork of the far-flung and enormously prolific Maya builders is being destroyed. The ancient Mayas spread across southeastern Mexico and through Guatemala, Honduras and Belize. 'I don't think I am exaggerating if I say that every day a Maya mound is being destroyed for construction in one of the countries where the Maya lived,' wrote Francisco Estrada-Belli, a professor at Tulane University's Anthropology Department. 'Unfortunately, this destruction of our heritage is irreversible but many don't take it seriously,' he added. 'The only way to stop it is by showing that it is a major crime and people can and will go to jail for it.' Robert Rosenswig, an archaeologist at the State University of New York at Albany, described the difficult and heartbreaking work of trying to salvage information at the nearby site of San Estevan following similar destruction around 2005. 'Bulldozing damage at San Estevan is extensive and the site is littered with Classic period potsherds,' he wrote in an academic paper describing the scene. 'We spent a number of days at the beginning of the 2005 season trying to figure out the extent of the damage .... after scratching our heads for many days, a bulldozer showed up and we realized that what appear to be mounds, when overgrown with chest-high vegetation, are actually recently bulldozed garbage piles.' However small the compensation, bulldozing pyramids is one very brutal way of revealing the inner cores of the structures, which were often built up in periodic stages of construction. "The one advantage of this massive destruction, to the core site, is that the remains of early domestic activity are now visible on the surface,' Mr Rosenswig wrote. http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=ce9_1368553949 Tama7866 Idiot builders destroy 2,300-yr.old Mayan pyramid in Central America idiots,destroy,temple,ruins,belize,mayan,satan,end,of,the,world,prophecy Tue, 14 May 2013 08:45:34 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=9e5_1368535078 Lake8737 if Philippines govt refuses to apologize. China also urges Philippines to apologize or face necessary consequences. Google translate BEIJING, May 13 Philippines currently has nearly 90,000 workers working in Taiwan, the estimated annual remittance of $ 700 million to return home, the Philippine human intermediaries hope that Taiwan will not take measures to freeze Filipino, called on both sides to calm dialogue to resolve the problem. Ma Ying-jeou to promote the Philippines, the leader of the Taiwan authorities within 72 hours from 12 am to apologize for the incident, compensation, and punish the murderer, otherwise it will take a number of measures of protest, including the freeze on Filipino workers. Certification Filipino intermediaries Federation President Angelo children (Angelo Tong), 12 expressed the hope that this event will not affect the friendly cultural and economic relations between Taiwan and the Philippines, "In particular, we hope that Taiwan will not take measures to freeze Filipino workers, both sides need each other." Philippines currently has nearly 90,000 workers working in Taiwan, the estimated annual remittance of $ 700 million to return home, Taiwan in April raised the basic salary, the benefit of Filipino workers, including 1.7 million foreign workers, freeze on Filipino workers is bound to affect the foreign exchange income of the Philippines and the Filipino family life. In accordance with the form of society in the Philippines, 1 Ming Feilao may want to feed at least five members of the family. http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=9e5_1368535078 Lake8737 Taiwan threats to expel Philippine workers and nannies after its fisherman is killed china,chinese,taiwan,Philippines Mon, 13 May 2013 20:52:41 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=826_1368492270 Detroit Iron Lengthy questionnaire arrived more than two years after the Richmond Tea Party applied for tax-exempt status IRS demanded 'names of the donors, contributors, and grantors' and insisted: 'Please identify your volunteers' Tax collectors began in 2012 to scrutinize conservative nonprofits more closely than others Documents show senior IRS officials in Washington knew of the practice as early as August 2011, but the White House says it learned last month. By DAVID MARTOSKO IN WASHINGTON PUBLISHED: 16:18 EST, 13 May 2013 UPDATED: 16:20 EST, 13 May 2013 The Internal Revenue Service wrote to the Richmond Tea Party last year demanding to know the names of all its financial donors and volunteers, as part of a 55-question inquisition into its application for tax-exempt status, MailOnline has learned. The agency wanted to know 'the names of the donors, contributors, and grantors' for every year 'from inception to the present.' It also demanded 'the amounts of each of the donations, contributions, and grants and the dates you received them.' 'How did you use these donations, contributions, and grants?' the IRS asked. 'Provide the details.' And in addition to the names of board members, officers and employees, the nation's taxing authorities insisted on knowing the names of everyone who helped the Richmond Tea Party without compensation. 'Please identify your volunteers,' the January 9, 2012 letter from the IRS read. The agency also required the Virginia conservative group to provide copies of sections of its website that only its members can access. The IRS came under fire on Friday when its Office of Inspector General released a draft of an investigative timeline showing that the agency had played political favorites with nonprofit groups seeking tax-exempt status. In 2010, according to that investigation, the Cincinnati-based IRS office responsible for vetting tax-exempt applications began targeting groups with 'Tea Party or similar' words in their names - including words like 'patriots' and '9/12' - for tighter scrutiny. The Richmond Tea Party received this demand along with dozens of others from the IRS, asking for a list of its donors and the amounts they had contributed. The group refused, citing their donors' right to privacy The IRS ultimately identified approximately 300 such organizations, many of which were independently organized in 2009 and 2010 under the larger 'tea party' banner. Those groups had a decisive impact in the 2010 midterm congressional elections, and became a thorn in the side of the Democratic party, costing it race after race, especially in the House of Representatives, which shifted to Republican control. In the nearly three years since the IRS began looking more closely at conservative nonprofit groups than others, 125 of the 300 target organizations have been approved for tax-exempt status. Another 25 withdrew their applications. The remainder are still waiting. The Office of Inspector General's timeline shows that in Washington, senior officials with the IRS were made aware of the practice by at least August 4, 2011. On that date, the chief counsel of the IRS met with the agency's Rulings and Agreements unit 'so that everyone would have the latest information on the issue.' But during a press gaggle about Air Force One on Monday, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney insisted the White House was unaware of the investigation or its political implications until last month. 'My understanding,' Carney told reporters while en route to New York City for the president's appearance at political fundraising events, 'is that the White House Counsel's Office was alerted in the week of April 22nd of this year, only about the fact that the IG was finishing a review about matters involving the office in Cincinnati. But that's all they were informed as a normal sort of heads-up.' 'And we have never - we don't have access to, nor should we, the IG's report or any draft versions of it.' Asked whether heads would roll at the IRS if the IG's report concludes that there was substantial wrongdoing, Carney was cautious. 'I think you're getting ahead of it,' he told a reporter, according to a transcript released by the White House. 'I think you heard from the President on this today and how he feels about it. But the "if" is very important, so we're not going to start predicting outcomes if we don't know what the conclusions of the IG report are.' The Washington Post reported on Friday that the IRS has apologized for its practices, which sought to scrutinize conservative nonprofit groups 'that criticized the government and sought to educate Americans about the U.S. Constitution.' In early 2012 a group of tea party organizations refused the IRS's requests for what they considered overreaching information about their operations, instead asking the House Oversight and Government Affairs Committee to investigate. That committee wrote in June 2012 to the IRS inspector general, asking for 'periodic updates' on its investigation. California Republican Rep. Darrel Issa, who chairs the committee, has promised it will 'aggressively follow up' on the IG's findings. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said in a statement Friday that the IRS 'cannot target or intimidate any individual or organization based on their political beliefs.' 'The House will investigate this matter,' Cantor promised. Add appearing on the Fox News Channel on Sunday, Michigan Republican Rep. Mike Rogers said the IRS had 'agents who were engaged in intimidation of political groups.' 'I don't care if you're a conservative, a liberal, a Democrat or a Republican,' he said. 'This should send a chill up your spine. It needs to have a full investigation.' President Obama echoed that sentiment during a press conference on Monday, sayign any IRS personnel who played political favorites 'have to be held fully accountable. ... And you should feel that way regardless of party. I don't care whether you're a Democrat, independent or a Republican.' 'At some point, there are going to be Republican administrations. At some point, there are going to be Democratic ones. Either way,' the president said, 'you don't want the IRS ever being perceived to be biased and anything less than neutral in terms of how they operate.' Richmond Tea Party Executive Director Larry Nordvig did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But in 2012 his organization lashed out at the IRS for making 'unreasonable documentation requests.' 'This illustrates everything the American people find unacceptable from their government,' the group said in a press release. 'A simple request for tax-exempt status should not take years to complete, involve hundreds of pages of documentation, require hundreds of volunteer hours, and request private information we should never have to disclose.' 'This grants the Federal Government the dangerous power to selectively stymie those voices with which they disagree, bogging them down in endless paperwork and compliance costs so that they are unable to spend time serving the principles they founded their organization to advance.' The Virginia organization said it applied for 501(c)(4) tax-exempt status on December 28, 2009 and waited nearly 10 months for a response, which consisted of 17 questions and a two-week deadline. That demand was made on the opening day of the Virginia Tea Party Convention, which the Richmond Tea Party organized in large part. 'We fully complied,' the group wrote, 'providing over 500 pages of documentation. We received no response for over a year. Eventually the IRS sent a letter dated January 9, 2012, thanking us for our "complete and thorough responses" from the first request,' but then asking 55 more questions in 12 parts - 'including the totally inappropriate request for a full list of our donors and volunteers. We were given the same two-week timeframe for completion.' Alan P. Dye, a nonprofit attorney with the Washington, D.C. firm of Webster, Chamberlain & Bean, told MailOnline that he represents six tea party groups that have been waiting for periods of up to 30 months for the IRS to issue rulings. 'They're very pissed off,' he said, 'and they have every right to be pissed off.' He advises his clients to refuse to answer invasive questions about their donors and volunteers, he said, since information they provide would be made available to the public. 'Everything these groups tell the IRS is open to public inspection once their exempt status is granted,' Dye explained. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio demanded the ouster of acting IRS commissioner Steven T. Miller on Monday. President Obama called the IRS's alleged conduct 'outrageous,' and said the bureaucrats responsible would be 'held accountable.' Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2323978/Revealed-The-55-questions-IRS-asked-tea-party-group-years-waiting--including-demands-names-donors-volunteers.html#ixzz2TDwC9HyZ Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter DailyMail on Facebook http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=826_1368492270 Detroit Iron Revealed: The 55 questions the IRS asked one tea party group after more than two years of waiting - including demands for names of all its donors an IRS, Richmond Tea Party Fri, 10 May 2013 18:49:41 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=a23_1368225606 dcmfox You may have heard that the highest-paid employee in each state is usually the football coach at the largest state school. This is actually a gross mischaracterization: Sometimes it is the basketball coach.Based on data drawn from media reports and state salary databases, the ranks of the highest-paid active public employees include 27 football coaches, 13 basketball coaches, one hockey coach, and 10 dorks who aren't even in charge of a team. So are my hard-earned tax dollars paying these coaches? Probably not. The bulk of this coaching money-especially at the big football schools-is paid out of the revenue that the teams generate. So what's the problem then? These guys make tons of money for their schools; shouldn't they be paid accordingly? There are at least three problems. Coaches don't generate revenue on their own; you could make the exact same case for the student-athletes who actually play the game and score the points and fracture their legs. It can be tough to attribute this revenue directly to the performance of the head coach. In 2011-2012, Mack Brown was paid $5 million to lead a mediocre 8-5 Texas team to the Holiday Bowl. The team still generated $103.8 million in revenue , the most in college football. You don't have to pay someone $5 million to make college football profitable in Texas. This revenue rarely makes its way back to the general funds of these universities. Looking at data from 2011-2012 , athletic departments at 99 major schools lost an average of $5 million once you take out revenue generated from "student fees" and "university subsidies." If you take out "contributions and donations"-some of which might have gone to the universities had they not been lavished on the athletic departments-this drops to an average loss of $17 million, with just one school (Army) in the black. All this football/basketball revenue is sucked up by coach and AD salaries, by administrative and facility costs , and by the athletic department's non-revenue generating sports; it's not like it's going to microscopes and Bunsen burners. But wait. I looked up my coach's pay in a state salary database and he wasn't on top. What gives? Most of these databases include only the coaches' base salaries, which are drawn directly from the state fund. This is how you could be led to believe that Virginia's offensive coordinator earns more than its head coach . Far exceeding these base salaries is the "additional compensation" that almost all of these coaches receive, which is tied to media appearances, apparel contracts, and fundraising . While this compensation does not come directly from the state fund it is guaranteed in the coaches' contracts; if revenue falls short, the school-and thus the state-is on the hook to cover the difference. Plus, even it doesn't come directly from taxpayers, this compensation is still problematic for all the reasons listed above. Beyond salary and additional compensation, coaches earn money from bonus incentives tied primarily to the team's performance. This analysis ignored those bonuses and focused on guaranteed money, as it's impossible to guess at whether a coach will hit his benchmarks. And we're not even touching the ridiculous amounts of money coaches can get if they're fired before their contract ends. Regarding the asterisks on the map: * Penn State is technically "state-related" and not truly public, and as a result the school does not receive as much state funding as a typical public school (leading to higher tuition ) and does not have to disclose as much information about its employees. You can read the details here . ** It's difficult to track down salary information for employees at Ole Miss and Mississippi State, but the highest non-coach salaries we could find top out at around $500,000. While we can't prove that nobody at these schools earns more than Dan Mullen's $2.65 million per year , we think it's very unlikely. http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=a23_1368225606 dcmfox Is Something Wrong Here? highest, paid, public, workers Fri, 10 May 2013 06:13:46 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=5e4_1368179317 forbes1973 The inheritance of Abraham. A report on the 'promised land' May 2013 May Introduction Ten years ago the General Assembly received the report Theology of Land and Covenant, from the Board of World Mission, Church and Nation Committee and the Panel on Doctrine.1 This report concluded with encouragement for us to listen more to others, "enriched by new insights through continuing questions that need to be faced". Since 2003, two new insights have been noted by the General Assembly: in 2007, in the report What Hope for the Middle East?2 the Church of Scotland responded to a declaration from Church leaders in Jerusalem, and endorsed their criticism of Christian Zionism and encouraged members of the Church of Scotland to reject it, and in 2009 Christians in the Holy Land came together and produced Kairos Palestine: a moment of truth, offered as a word of faith, hope and love from the heart of Palestinian Suffering3 (information at http://www.kairospalestine.ps). With the co-operation and support of the World Mission Council, we present this report in 2013 as our latest reflection on the 'questions that need to be faced', as the political and humanitarian situation in the Holy Land continues to be a source of pain and concern for us all. The Bible and the land of Israel There has been a widespread assumption by many Christians as well as many Jewish people that the Bible supports an essentially Jewish state of Israel. This raises an increasing number of difficulties and current Israeli policies regarding the Palestinians have sharpened this questioning. This assumption of biblical support is based on views of promises about land in the Hebrew Bible.4 These views are disputed. The guidance in the Bible, notably the interpretation in the New Testament, provides more help in responding to questions about land and covenant. It also provides insight (discussed later in the report) into how Christians might understand the occupation of Palestinian land by the state of Israel, threats to Middle East peace and security, human rights, and racial intolerance, especially in the forms of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. The phrase "the land of Israel" has a range of understandings amongst the three world faiths, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The city of Jerusalem, which is a holy place for all three religions, is the most contentious religious and political issue. In general terms there have been three main ways of understanding the promises about land in the Bible: 1. A territorial guarantee 2. A land held in trust 3. A land with a universal mission. 1. A territorial guarantee This idea presents scripture as making unconditional, literal promises referring to a specific, identifiable territorial area for the Israelites. Such texts as the following have been cited to support this view: 1 The 2003 report Theology of Land and Covenant is available at http://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0009/13230/Theology_of_Land_and_Covenant.pdf 2 The 2007 report What Hope for the Middle East is available at: http://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/3776/middle_east_07.pdf 3 Information about Kairos Palestine is at http://www.kairospalestine.ps 4 The Hebrew Bible corresponds with the Christian Old Testament. http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=5e4_1368179317 forbes1973 Church of Scotland upsets Jews (Who doesn't?) with report which questioned the divine right of Jews to the land of Israel. Jewish, Church of Scotland, Israel, Criticism of Israel is not Antisemitism. Wed, 08 May 2013 21:15:16 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=343_1368061933 dcmfox by Brett Neely , Minnesota Public Radio May 8, 2013 WASHINGTON - The U.S. House passed legislation today that would make significant changes to overtime pay. The vote was 223 to 204. The bill, pushed by Rep John Kline, R-Minn., would allow workers the option to take time off instead of overtime. It's part of a GOP campaign to restore the party's image with working families, especially women. Kline, who represents Minnesota's 2nd District, said the bill represents conservative principles in action. "At the heart of the legislation is worker choice. Workers choose whether to accept comp time. Worker choose when to cash out their accrued comp time. And workers choose when to use their accrued time off," Kline said. Democrats are strongly opposed. They say employers will push workers to take compensation time instead of overtime pay. "The better way to describe this bill is the more work, less pay bill," said Joe Courtney, D-Conn. The Democratic-controlled Senate is unlikely to take up the legislation and President Barak Obama has vowed a veto should it arrive on his desk. Rep. Collin Peterson, DFL- Minn., was one of three Democrats who voted in favor. All other members of the Minnesota delegation voted along party lines. http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=343_1368061933 dcmfox Change to overtime pay passes U.S. House change, overtime, pay, passes, u.s., house Wed, 08 May 2013 07:07:06 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=406_1368010720 AntiPropagaanda Stephen Hawking joins academic boycott of IsraelPhysicist pulls out of conference hosted by president Shimon Peres in protest at treatment of Palestinians Harriet Sherwood and Matthew Kalman in Jerusalem The Guardian, Wednesday 8 May 2013 A statement published with Stephen Hawking's approval said his withdrawal was based on advice from academic contacts in Palestine. Photograph: Facundo Arrizabalaga/EPAProfessor Stephen Hawking is backing the academic boycott of Israel by pulling out of a conference hosted by Israeli president Shimon Peres in Jerusalem as a protest at Israel's treatment of Palestinians. Hawking, 71, the world-renowned theoretical physicist and Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge, had accepted an invitation to headline the fifth annual president's conference, Facing Tomorrow, in June, which features major international personalities, attracts thousands of participants and this year will celebrate Peres's 90th birthday. Hawking is in very poor health, but last week he wrote a brief letter to the Israeli president to say he had changed his mind. He has not announced his decision publicly, but a statement published by the British Committee for the Universities of Palestine with Hawking's approval described it as "his independent decision to respect the boycott, based upon his knowledge of Palestine, and on the unanimous advice of his own academic contacts there". Hawking's decision marks another victory in the campaign for boycott, divestment and sanctions targeting Israeli academic institutions. In April the Teachers' Union of Ireland became the first lecturers' association in Europe to call for an academic boycott of Israel, and in the United States members of the Association for Asian American Studies voted to support a boycott, the first national academic group to do so. In the four weeks since Hawking's participation in the Jerusalem event was announced, he has been bombarded with messages from Britain and abroad as part of an intense campaign by boycott supporters trying to persuade him to change his mind. In the end, Hawking told friends, he decided to follow the advice of Palestinian colleagues who unanimously agreed that he should not attend. Hawking's decision met with abusive responses on Facebook, with many commentators focusing on his physical condition, and some accusing him of antisemitism. By participating in the boycott, Hawking joins a small but growing list of British personalities who have turned down invitations to visit Israel, including Elvis Costello, Roger Waters, Brian Eno, Annie Lennox and Mike Leigh. However, many artists, writers and academics have defied and even denounced the boycott, calling it ineffective and selective. Ian McEwan, who was awarded the Jerusalem Prize in 2011, responded to critics by saying: "If I only went to countries that I approve of, I probably would never get out of bed ... It's not great if everyone stops talking." Noam Chomsky, a prominent supporter of the Palestinian cause, has said that he supports the "boycott and divestment of firms that are carrying out operations in the occupied territories" but that a general boycott of Israel is "a gift to Israeli hardliners and their American supporters". Hawking has visited Israel four times in the past. Most recently, in 2006, he delivered public lectures at Israeli and Palestinian universities as the guest of the British embassy in Tel Aviv. At the time, he said he was "looking forward to coming out to Israel and the Palestinian territories and excited about meeting both Israeli and Palestinian scientists". Since then, his attitude to Israel appears to have hardened. In 2009, Hawking denounced Israel's three-week attack on Gaza, telling Riz Khan on Al-Jazeera that Israel's response to rocket fire from Gaza was "plain out of proportion ... The situation is like that of South Africa before 1990 and cannot continue." Israel Maimon, chairman of the presidential conference said: "This decision is outrageous and wrong. "The use of an academic boycott against Israel is outrageous and improper, particularly for those to whom the spirit of liberty is the basis of the human and academic mission. Israel is a democracy in which everyone can express their opinion, whatever it may be. A boycott decision is incompatible with open democratic discourse." In 2011, the Israeli parliament passed a law making a boycott call by an individual or organisation a civil offence which can result in compensation liable to be paid regardless of actual damage caused. It defined a boycott as "deliberately avoiding economic, cultural or academic ties with another person or another factor only because of his ties with the State of Israel, one of its institutions or an area under its control, in such a way that may cause economic, cultural or academic damage". http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=406_1368010720 AntiPropagaanda Stephen Hawking Joins Academic Boycott of Israel Stephen Hawking, Boycott, Israel, Palestine, BDS, Occupation, Crimes, America, Wed, 08 May 2013 06:11:38 -0400 http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=3e0_1368007356 ElegantDecline Stephen Hawking joins academic boycott of Israel Physicist pulls out of conference hosted by president Shimon Peres in protest at treatment of Palestinians Harriet Sherwood and Matthew Kalman in Jerusalem The Guardian, Wednesday 8 May 2013 Professor Stephen Hawking is backing the academic boycott of Israel by pulling out of a conference hosted by Israeli president Shimon Peres in Jerusalem as a protest at Israel's treatment of Palestinians. Hawking, 71, the world-renowned theoretical physicist and Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge, had accepted an invitation to headline the fifth annual president's conference, Facing Tomorrow, in June, which features major international personalities, attracts thousands of participants and this year will celebrate Peres's 90th birthday. Hawking is in very poor health, but last week he wrote a brief letter to the Israeli president to say he had changed his mind. He has not announced his decision publicly, but a statement published by the British Committee for the Universities of Palestine with Hawking's approval described it as "his independent decision to respect the boycott, based upon his knowledge of Palestine, and on the unanimous advice of his own academic contacts there".Hawking's decision marks another victory in the campaign for boycott, divestment and sanctions targeting Israeli academic institutions.In April the Teachers' Union of Ireland became the first lecturers' association in Europe to call for an academic boycott of Israel, and in the United States members of the Association for Asian American Studies voted to support a boycott, the first national academic group to do so. In the four weeks since Hawking's participation in the Jerusalem event was announced, he has been bombarded with messages from Britain and abroad as part of an intense campaign by boycott supporters trying to persuade him to change his mind. In the end, Hawking told friends, he decided to follow the advice of Palestinian colleagues who unanimously agreed that he should not attend.Hawking's decision met with abusive responses on Facebook, with many commentators focusing on his physical condition, and some accusing him of antisemitism.By participating in the boycott, Hawking joins a small but growing list of British personalities who have turned down invitations to visit Israel, including Elvis Costello, Roger Waters, Brian Eno, Annie Lennox and Mike Leigh.However, many artists, writers and academics have defied and even denounced the boycott, calling it ineffective and selective. Ian McEwan, who was awarded the Jerusalem Prize in 2011, responded to critics by saying: "If I only went to countries that I approve of, I probably would never get out of bed ... It's not great if everyone stops talking."Noam Chomsky, a prominent supporter of the Palestinian cause, has said that he supports the "boycott and divestment of firms that are carrying out operations in the occupied territories" but that a general boycott of Israel is "a gift to Israeli hardliners and their American supporters". Hawking has visited Israel four times in the past. Most recently, in 2006, he delivered public lectures at Israeli and Palestinian universities as the guest of the British embassy in Tel Aviv. At the time, he said he was "looking forward to coming out to Israel and the Palestinian territories and excited about meeting both Israeli and Palestinian scientists".Since then, his attitude to Israel appears to have hardened. In 2009, Hawking denounced Israel's three-week attack on Gaza, telling Riz Khan on Al-Jazeera that Israel's response to rocket fire from Gaza was "plain out of proportion ... The situation is like that of South Africa before 1990 and cannot continue."Israel Maimon, chairman of the presidential conference said: "This decision is outrageous and wrong. "The use of an academic boycott against Israel is outrageous and improper, particularly for those to whom the spirit of liberty is the basis of the human and academic mission. Israel is a democracy in which everyone can express their opinion, whatever it may be. A boycott decision is incompatible with open democratic discourse."In 2011, the Israeli parliament passed a law making a boycott call by an individual or organisation a civil offence which can result in compensation liable to be paid regardless of actual damage caused. It defined a boycott as "deliberately avoiding economic, cultural or academic ties with another person or another factor only because of his ties with the State of Israel, one of its institutions or an area under its control, in such a way that may cause economic, cultural or academic damage". http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/may/08/stephen-hawking-israel-academic-boycott http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=3e0_1368007356 ElegantDecline Stephen Hawking joins academic boycott of Israel Israel, Palestine, Occupation, Illegal, Military, Religion, Fanatics, Freedom