Breaking News Events

[Kobi]

FONTANA, Calif.—In the foreclosure-battered inland stretches of California, local government officials desperate for change are weighing a controversial but inventive way to fix troubled mortgages: Condemn them.

Officials from San Bernardino County and two of its cities have formed a local agency to consider the plan. But investors who stand to lose money on their mortgage investments have been quick to register their displeasure.

Discussion of the idea is taking place in one of the epicenters of the housing crisis, a working-class region east of Los Angeles where housing prices have plummeted. Last week brought another sharp reminder of the crisis when the 210,000-strong city of San Bernardino, struggling after shrunken home prices walloped local tax revenues, announced it would seek bankruptcy protection.

Now -- and amid skepticism on many fronts -- officials from the surrounding county of San Bernardino and cities of Fontana and Ontario have created a joint powers authority to consider what role local governments could take to stem the crisis. The goal is to keep homeowners saddled by large mortgage payments from losing their homes -- which are now valued at a fraction of what they were once worth.

"We just have too much pain and misery in this county to call off a public discussion like this," said David Wert, a county spokesman.

The idea was broached by a group of West Coast financiers who suggest using the power of eminent domain, which lets the government seize private property for public use. In this case, they would condemn troubled mortgages so they could seize them from the investors who own them. Then the mortgages would be rewritten so the borrowers would have significantly lower monthly payments.

Steven Gluckstern, chairman of the newly formed San Francisco-based Mortgage Resolution Partners, says his main concern is to help the economy, which is being held back by the mortgage crisis.

"This is not a bunch of Wall Street guys sitting around saying, `How do we make money?'" he said. "This was a bunch of Wall Street guys sitting around saying, `How do you solve this problem?'"

Typically, eminent domain has been used to clear property for infrastructure projects like highways, schools and sewage plants. But supporters say that giving help to struggling borrowers is also a legitimate use of eminent domain, because it's in the public interest.

Under the proposal, a city or county would sign on as a client of Mortgage Resolution Partners, then condemn certain mortgages. The mortgages are typically owned by private investors like hedge funds and pension funds.

Under eminent domain, the city or county would be required to pay those investors "fair value" for the seized mortgages. So Mortgage Resolution Partners would find private investors to fund that.Continued...

Mortgage Resolution Partners will focus on mortgages where the borrowers are current on their payments but are "under water," meaning their mortgage costs more than the home is worth. After being condemned and seized, the mortgages would be rewritten based on the homes' current values. The borrowers would get to stay, but with cheaper monthly payments. The city or county would resell the loans to other private investors, so it could pay back the investors who funded the seizure and pay a flat fee to Mortgage Resolution Partners.

The company says that overall, all parties will be happy. The homeowners, for obvious reasons. The cities, for stemming economic blight without using taxpayer bailouts. And even the investors whose mortgage investments are seized. Mortgage Resolution Partners figures they should be glad to unload a risky asset.

Rick Rayl, an eminent domain lawyer in Irvine, Calif., who is not connected to the company, isn't so sure.

"The lenders are going to be livid," he said. He thinks the plan could have unintended consequences, like discouraging banks and other lenders from making new mortgage loans in an area.

The company says that focusing on borrowers who are current on their loans is a smart way to do business, rewarding those who are already working hard to keep their homes. But, Rayl pointed out, those are also the exact mortgages that investors are eager to keep.

Already, the outcry was heard at the first meeting of the joint powers authority on Friday, even as chairman and San Bernardino County chief executive Greg Devereaux said the entity -- which was inspired by Mortgage Resolution Partners' proposal -- has not yet decided on a specific course of action.

Timothy Cameron, managing director of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association's asset managers group, told the authority that residents of the region would find it harder to get loans and investors -- including pensioners -- would suffer losses. He also said such a move would invite costly litigation.

"The use of eminent domain will do more harm than good," he said. "We need mortgage investors and lenders to come back to these fragile markets -- but this plan will force both groups to avoid them."

But Robert Hockett, a Cornell University law professor who serves as an unpaid adviser to Mortgage Resolution Partners, was unsympathetic. He likes how the plan forces the hand of uncooperative investors, who have sometimes stifled plans to reduce mortgage payments.

"It's kind of like saying a loan shark objects to anti-predatory lending laws," Hockett said.

Theodore Woodard, a 62-year-old retired air conditioner installer, said he'd welcome the help on his five-bedroom home in Fontana. So far, he and his wife have kept up with monthly $3,100 payments, plus taxes and insurance, but it hasn't been easy, and they have watched several neighbors in the well-manicured neighborhood some 50 miles east of Los Angeles lose their homes to foreclosure.

"We've been making our monthly payments, barely making them, but we just pay them and try to survive off what's left," said Woodard, who estimates his house has lost a third of its value since 2004.

In San Bernardino County, the problem is clear. The median home price has plunged to $150,000 from $370,000 in five years. The combined San Bernardino-Riverside metro area has the highest foreclosure rate of any large metro area in the country, at four times the national average, according to RealtyTrac, which tracks foreclosure properties.

Devereaux, who has seen other plans to fix the housing crisis peter out, is cautious.

"I don't know whether this will work or not," he said. "But we do think we have a responsibility to explore it."

----

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/ar...tgages/?page=1

[Kobi]

IRVING, Texas—Booted from being a den leader three months ago, a lesbian mother on Wednesday brought her fight to the Boy Scouts of America's backyard.

Flanked by her partner and two young sons, Jennifer Tyrrell of Ohio delivered a massive petition to the youth organization's national headquarters. More than 300,000 signatures she collected call for the group to reinstate her and end its controversial policy prohibiting gay Scouts and troop leaders.

"It's insane and needs to change," said Tyrrell, who at times became tearful. "It's sad."

The Boy Scouts welcomed Tyrrell into their Texas offices but gave her no answers as to why a secret committee recently decided to reaffirm the organization's long-standing rule of excluding gays.

"I don't know how this 11-member committee can decide that 300,000 Americans don't matter, that their opinions don't matter," Tyrrell said after her 15-minute meeting with a Scouts spokesman and another unidentified official.

While it wasn't forthcoming, the 32-year-old said the conversation was civil.

"I did a lot of talking, I did a lot of crying," she said. "I'm not here to bash the Scouts. I'm not here to say anything negative necessarily. I just can't tell you the heartbreak that I felt when I got the phone call telling me that I wasn't good enough ... because I'm gay."

Tyrrell launched her petition on Change.org after being notified in April that she could no longer be the den mother for her 7-year-old's Scout pack in Bridgeport, Ohio. Her online campaign includes signatures from numerous celebrities and thousands of Scouts, Scout leaders and former Scouts.

The site received 2,000 new signatures in the last 24 hours, and Tyrrell said her fight won't stop with Wednesday's visit to the headquarters.

"I told them we weren't going anywhere," she said.

Tyrrell had volunteered for nearly a year, leading her troop to earn multiple Scout badges for their service and skills. She and her son Cruz wore their Boy Scouts gear on Wednesday, despite the fact that she has pulled him out of the program.

"We love the Scouts," said Tyrrell, who also wore gay-pride colors painted on her toes. "We love everything the Scouts stand for. We just don't love this policy. So let's stop teaching our kids to discriminate."

In a statement on Tuesday, the 102-year-old leadership organization said, "This policy reflects the beliefs and perspectives of the BSA's members, thereby allowing Scouting to remain focused on its mission and the work it is doing to serve more youth."

"The vast majority of the parents of youth we serve value their right to address issues of same-sex orientation within their family, with spiritual advisers, and at the appropriate time and in the right setting," said Bob Mazzuca, BSA's chief scout executive.

Tyrrell's visit drew three protesters from a local church. They waved "Fear God" signs and shouted about morality as she spoke to reporters.

"I think God has been pretty good to us, and we have a great family," Tyrrell said. "Everyone is entitled to their beliefs."

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/...170445583.html

[Kobi]

One of the hardest hit groups: Those aged 75 and older, according to a report by AARP based on mortgage data from 2007 through 2011.

All told, more than 1.5 million Americans aged 50 and older lost their homes in the five years from 2007 through 2011.

While the percentage of foreclosures was higher among younger Americans, the rate for homeowners age 50 and older grew faster in recent years.

And in that over-50 group, the 75+ crowd had the highest foreclosure rate in 2011, according to the AARP report, which cited data from CoreLogic, a provider of mortgage-loan data, and other sources.

Among homeowners age 75 and older, 3.2% lost their house to foreclosure in 2011, up from the 0.33% in that age group who faced foreclosure in 2007.

That compares to 3.5% among homeowners under age 50 in 2011, up from 0.42% in 2007.

The foreclosure rate was 2.9% in 2011 among all homeowners 50 and older, up from 0.3% in 2007.

While the AARP report does not pinpoint precisely why older Americans faced this predicament, it cites data that helps explain why so many more people had trouble paying their mortgage bill.

For one, older Americans greatly increased their mortgage-debt load in the two decades preceding the housing-market crash, with the 75+ age group notching the greatest increase in mortgage debt over the past 20 years.

While financial planners often advise people to pay off their mortgage before they retire, fully 24% of households headed by a 75-year-old or older person had mortgage debt in 2010, up from 6% in 1989, according to the AARP report, which cited the Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances.

Mortgage debt also increased among other 50+ Americans: 54% of families headed by a 55- to 64-year-old had mortgage debt in 2010, up from 37% in 1989. And 41% of families headed by a 65- to 74-year-old owed money on a mortgage, up from 22% two decades earlier.

“This increase partly reflects increased borrowing that was spurred by historically low interest rates and high home values prior to the housing market collapse,” the report said. “It may indicate that the oldest borrowers have tapped their home equity to finance their needs in retirement.”

Combine that outstanding debt with lower incomes, rising property-tax bills and health-care costs — and you get homeowners facing a severe financial crunch.

“America’s oldest homeowners have been struggling to maintain their financial security as their incomes are falling, and as mortgage payments, property taxes and health-care costs are increasing.”

The ATM is empty
And tapping home equity is no longer a cash-flow solution for the some 3.5 million older Americans, who are now “underwater” on their homes (they owe more than the house is worth).

About 23% of loans nationwide — borrowers of all ages — were underwater in December. That figure rises to 28% among younger homeowners, those under age 50, versus 16% for borrowers over age 50, the report said.

Still, “While it was expected that older homeowners would have accumulated more home equity than younger people, the fact that 3.5 million borrowers age 50+ have no equity at all is alarming,” the report said. “Research has shown that negative equity is an important predictor of default, even more so than unemployment.”

Meanwhile, for borrowers over age 50, 600,000 loans were in foreclosure and 625,000 were 90 or more days delinquent as of December, the report said. The delinquency rate for borrowers age 50 and over is now 6%, up from about 1% in 2007.

To help homeowners of all ages, AARP called for policy and program changes, including greater use of loan-principal reduction as a tool when modifying loans, mediation programs for borrowers and lenders that provide specific timelines and a framework for meeting and for exchanging documents, loan-servicing standards that apply to all lenders, and a greater emphasis on programs that maintain foreclosed properties, such as the FHFA’s “REO-to-rental” program.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ret...9?pagenumber=2

[Kobi]

MINNEAPOLIS—Four years ago, Frank Schubert was a well-paid political consultant for what he jokingly calls "the forces of evil" -- tobacco, timber and pharmaceutical companies -- when he agreed to lead the 2008 campaign to repeal gay marriage in California.

What started as a professional challenge has now become a personal crusade. And Schubert, a specialist in political messaging, has become the central figure in a major effort to stop gay marriage from becoming legal across the country.

Part Karl Rove and part Pat Robertson, Schubert is managing four statewide campaigns where the issue is on the ballot in the fall -- in Maine, Maryland, Minnesota and Washington. He's trying to preserve a winning streak in which conservatives have put anti-gay marriage laws on the books in 31 states since 1998.

Schubert said his mission is to make voters understand what's at stake.

"Five thousand years have shown that marriage between a man and a woman serves us well," he said, adding that it is "fundamental to our nature as people." The alternative, he said, is a culture based on personal desires.

Gay rights organizers begrudgingly admire Schubert's ability as much as they detest what he's doing.

"Whether we like it or not, he's done a very good job of tapping into fears people have about homosexuality that are still very real," said Julie Davis, a San Francisco-based GLBT activist.

Full article here:
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/wa...rriage/?page=1

[*Anya*]

Business Week

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A hospital worker accused of injecting himself with stolen drugs and contaminating syringes that infected at least 30 patients with hepatitis C was charged Thursday with federal drug crimes.

David Kwiatkowski, a former technician at Exeter Hospital, was arrested Thursday morning at a Massachusetts hospital where he was receiving treatment. U.S. Attorney John Kacavas called Kwiatkowski a "serial infector" who worked in at least six other states, including one in which he is a suspect in a similar incident involving a hospital operating room. Kacavas declined to name any of the other states but said they are not clustered in one part of the country.

"We are closer to the beginning of our investigation than the end," Kacavas said.

Kwiatkowski, originally from Michigan, worked at Exeter's cardiac catheterization lab from April 2011 through this past May, when he was fired. He told investigators that he learned he had hepatitis C in May, but Kacavas said there is evidence he had the liver-destroying disease since at least June 2010.

"This serial infector has been contained, and the menace he posed to public health and safety has been removed," Kacavas said.

Authorities didn't say in what hospital Kwiatkowski was being treated so he couldn't be contacted for comment.

Investigators believe Kwiatkowski, 33, stole syringes containing fentanyl, a powerful anesthetic more potent than morphine, and injected himself with them. They said he then put another liquid, such as saline, into the syringes, which were later used for patients. They said a search of his vehicle found an empty fentanyl syringe and several needles.

According to an affidavit, Kwiatkowski sometimes left the lab sweating profusely and attended procedures on his off days. One witness said he appeared to be "on something." At least once, he was sent home for the day after a colleague told a supervisor that he was unfit to perform medical care, Kacavas said.

Kwiatkowski was what is known as a "traveler," a technician hired by hospitals for temporary stints around the country. In a statement, Exeter Hospital said he underwent drug testing and a criminal background check when he was hired.

"It is deeply disturbing that the alleged callous acts of one individual can have such an impact on so many innocent lives. As a result of his alleged actions, people in our community, who in many cases are the friends and neighbors of the 2,300 people who work here, now face the challenge of a potentially chronic disease," hospital president Kevin Callahan said.

The hospital declined to comment further about Kwiatkowski, citing the ongoing investigation.

Hepatitis C is a blood-borne viral infection that can cause liver disease and chronic health issues. Altogether, 31 people, including Kwiatkowski, have tested positive for the same strain of the disease since the investigation began in late May, including an 89-year-old woman who was treated for a heart valve problem in February.

The woman lives with her niece, who also got tested for hepatitis C because she was exposed to the woman's blood while helping her after she suffered a deep cut on her leg in April. The niece's test was negative, but she will get tested again in six months, she said Thursday.

The niece, who asked not to be publicly identified because of the stigma associated with the disease and because she wants to protect her aunt from the media, said she hopes the criminal charges will deter others from similar schemes. She said she was happy to hear that Kwiatkowski had been arrested.

She said the ordeal has turned her family's life upside down.

"We should be able to go into a hospital, put our lives in their hands and know that we're going to be OK," she said.

State and local health departments aren't required to report such outbreaks to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but in a report released in June, the agency said it was notified of 13 outbreaks nationwide between 2008 and 2011. Of those, seven occurred in outpatient facilities; most were traced to unsafe injection practices.

At least two have resulted in criminal charges, including a Colorado woman who was convicted of stealing syringes filled with painkillers from two hospitals where she worked and replacing them with used syringes. The syringes were later used on surgical patients, and up to three dozen patients were found to have hepatitis C after being exposed.

Kacavas said New Hampshire is working with the CDC, law enforcement and departments of public health in other states where Kwiatkowski worked.

"I'm unaware of such a scheme with such reach," he said. "This one has the potential for very far-reaching implications."

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/2012-...tis-c-outbreak

[Kobi]

For the first time ever, U.S. service members marched in a gay pride event decked out in uniform Saturday, after a recent memorandum from the Defense Department to all military branches made an allowance for the San Diego parade - even though its policy generally bars troops from marching in uniform in parades.

http://news.yahoo.com/troops-march-s...204528956.html

[Kobi]

STATE COLLEGE, Pa.) — The famed statue of Joe Paterno was taken down from outside the Penn State football stadium Sunday, eliminating a key piece of the iconography surrounding the once-sainted football coach accused of burying child sex abuse allegations against a retired assistant.

Penn State President Rod Erickson said he decided to have the statue removed and put into storage because it “has become a source of division and an obstacle to healing.”

“I believe that, were it to remain, the statue will be a recurring wound to the multitude of individuals across the nation and beyond who have been the victims of child abuse,” Erickson said in a statement released at 7 a.m. Sunday.

He said Paterno’s name will remain on the campus library because it “symbolizes the substantial and lasting contributions to the academic life and educational excellence that the Paterno family has made to Penn State University.”

Read more: http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/22/...#ixzz21MqqOJYz

[The_Lady_Snow]

I'll rest better at night knowing his statue no longer stands there. To bad he's not around to be held accountable.

Originally Posted by Kobi

STATE COLLEGE, Pa.) — The famed statue of Joe Paterno was taken down from outside the Penn State football stadium Sunday, eliminating a key piece of the iconography surrounding the once-sainted football coach accused of burying child sex abuse allegations against a retired assistant.

Penn State President Rod Erickson said he decided to have the statue removed and put into storage because it “has become a source of division and an obstacle to healing.”

“I believe that, were it to remain, the statue will be a recurring wound to the multitude of individuals across the nation and beyond who have been the victims of child abuse,” Erickson said in a statement released at 7 a.m. Sunday.

He said Paterno’s name will remain on the campus library because it “symbolizes the substantial and lasting contributions to the academic life and educational excellence that the Paterno family has made to Penn State University.”

Read more: http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/22/...#ixzz21MqqOJYz

[UofMfan]

NCAA Hits Penn State With $60 Million Fine, Vacates Wins, Postseason Ban

[Soon]

Originally Posted by UofMfan

NCAA Hits Penn State With $60 Million Fine, Vacates Wins, Postseason Ban

The $60M fine will be used to create a fund for the victims of sexual abuse.

[LeftWriteFemme]

Chick-Fil-A gets dumped by Kermit the Frog




http://thenewcivilrightsmovement.com...12/07/22/44290

[Kobi]

Originally Posted by HowSoonIsNow

The $60M fine will be used to create a fund for the victims of sexual abuse.

I was thinking 60 million was excessive until I saw this on the NCAA website. Now that I know this is equivalent to 1 year of gross revenue for the football program, 60 million is not enough.


"The NCAA imposes a $60 million fine, equivalent to the approximate average of one year's gross revenues from the Penn State football program, to be paid over a five-year period beginning in 2012 into an endowment for programs preventing child sexual abuse and/or assisting the victims of child sexual abuse. The minimum annual payment will be $12 million until the $60 million is paid. "


I like that there were both sanctions and corrective actions involved here. And, that they arent finished yet.


"Individual penalties to be determined. The NCAA reserves the right to initiate a formal investigatory and disciplinary process and impose sanctions on individuals after the conclusion of any criminal proceedings related to any individual involved."


Very interesting reading to see the actual report.


http://www.ncaa.org/wps/wcm/connect/...20723/21207232

[Kobi]

Companies have been paying hefty fines and negotiating high-profile settlements, among them GlaxoSmithKline's $3 billion charge — the largest health care fraud settlement in U.S. history. HSBC, which just copped to money laundering, might see a $10 billion penalty.

These are staggering figures to an ordinary person. A $22.5 million charge may be a Federal Trade Commission record, yet Google can pay that with five hours of work.

Check out how many work days it takes to pay off these fines:

Check the article to see if these fines actually alter business practices.

http://finance.yahoo.com/blogs/the-e...170402105.html

[Kobi]

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The first U.S. church official convicted of covering up sex-abuse claims against Roman Catholic priests was sentenced Tuesday to three to six years in prison by a judge who said he "enabled monsters in clerical garb ... to destroy the souls of children."

Lynn, who handled priest assignments and child sexual assault complaints from 1992 to 2004, was convicted last month of felony child endangerment for his oversight of now-defrocked priest Edward Avery. Avery is serving a 2½- to five-year sentence for sexually assaulting an altar boy in church in 1999.

The judge said Lynn enabled "monsters in clerical garb ... to destroy the souls of children, to whom you turned a hard heart."

She believed he initially hoped to address the sex abuse problem and perhaps drafted a 1994 list of accused priests for that reason. But when Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua instead had the list destroyed, Lynn chose to remain in the job and obey his bishop — by keeping quiet — as children suffered, she said.

Prosecutors who spent a decade investigating sex abuse complaints kept in secret files at the archdiocese and issued two damning grand jury reports argue that Lynn and unindicted co-conspirators in the church hierarchy kept children in danger and the public in the dark.

"He locked away in a vault the names of pedophile priests. He locked in a vault the names of men that he knew had abused children. He now will be locked away for a fraction of the time he kept that secret vault," District Attorney Seth Williams said of Lynn.

Defense lawyers have long argued that the state's child endangerment statute, revised in 2007 to include those who supervise abusers, should not apply to Lynn since he left office in 2004. They also insist he did more than anyone at the archdiocese to meet with victims, get pedophile priests into treatment and send recommendations to the cardinal.

Lynn was the first U.S. church official convicted for his handling of abuse claims in the sex scandal that's rocked the Catholic church for more than a decade. But he might not be the last.

Bishop Robert Finn and the Kansas City diocese face a misdemeanor charge of failing to report suspected child sexual abuse. Both Finn and the diocese have pleaded not guilty and are set to go on trial next month.

http://news.yahoo.com/pa-monsignor-g...154117156.html

------------------------



As mentioned in an earlier posting, this is the first conviction of a member of the church hierarchy for following church policy. Still wondering if this is going to stop with him or if they plan to follow it up the chain of command.

The potential implications of this still kind of astound me.

I like that this is like an in your face corrective thing for the Catholic church. I hope it will go up the chain of command, and not stop at this rather low step of the ladder. God knows the Church needs a little more education seeing, back in 2009, they issued new psychological testing in seminaries by equating pedophilia with homosexuality. Sigh. Story here.

As a survivor, I am thankful for this beginning change in the collective consciousness to hold those with the power to stop it accountable for enforcing hierarchial policy.

Yet, there is also a part of me that is very aware that like AIDS "didnt exist" until Rock Hudson, sexual abuse "didnt exist" until it affected males. Then, it took on an entirely different meaning with entirely different strategies, and a shitload of lawyers with a new specialty.

No child should be subjected to sexual abuse or exploitation by anyone, in any position, or with any affliation. The gender of the child involved should not influence the vigor with which the problem is acknowledged or addressed.

[Kobi]

The Boy Scouts of America's stance of not allowing openly gay people to serve as troop leaders or members has inspired several Eagle Scouts to return their hard-earned medals and renounce their membership.

Boing Boing writer Maggie Koerth-Baker first posted a story about how her husband, Christopher Baker, a former Eagle Scout, returned his medal to the Boy Scouts of America. The post, which included Baker's letter to the BSA, drew a strong reaction from the Boing Boing community. So much so, that other former Eagle Scouts began returning their medals as well.

This is no small sacrifice on the part of the Scouts. Becoming an Eagle Scout is serious business that involves years of hard work, at a time in a person's life when goofing off is often more of a priority. In Baker's letter, he wrote, "Today I am returning my Eagle Scout medal because I do not want to be associated with the bigotry for which it now stands. I hope that one day BSA stands up for all boys. It saddens me that until that day comes any sons of mine will not participate in the Boy Scouts."

Koerth-Baker said that the strong reaction wasn't much of a surprise. Over email she said, "I had seen, over the past week, individual letters having a huge impact on Facebook. But they weren't connected to one another. I wanted to do something that linked all these men and made their decisions something bigger than just individual choices."

She continued: "When I posted Baker's (her husband's) letter, I had hoped it would have the kind of impact that it seems to be having. I'm really gratified to know that this is something people connect with so strongly." It is perhaps worth noting that Baker is not gay, nor are any of the other men who have submitted their resignation letters to be posted on Boing Boing.

Koerth-Baker said she is continuing to get more letters from men who have resigned from the Eagle Scouts. "I actually have another half-dozen letters that I'm going to post later this week," she said. The men, she writes, are "doing something really honest, and really respectable, and really brave. And I wanted to support them. I wanted to show them that this wasn't something they were alone in ... lots of other men felt this way."

Earlier this month, spokesperson Deron Smith said that a committee of Scout executives and adult volunteers was unanimous in its decision to keep the anti-gay policy. The committee, Smith said, represented "a diversity of perspectives and opinions."

We reached out via email to the Boy Scouts of America for a comment. Spokesman Smith responded: "Scouting represents millions of youth and adult members in diverse communities across the nation, each with a variety of beliefs about this issue. While a majority of our membership agrees with our policy, no single policy will accommodate the many diverse views among our membership or society. Although we are disappointed to learn of anyone who feels compelled to return his Eagle rank, we fully understand and appreciate that not everyone will agree with any one position or policy."

Smith continued: "The BSA values the freedom of everyone to express their opinion. We expect all members to respect all other viewpoints and opinions....The BSA does not have an agenda on this matter, and its membership policy is not meant to be a blanket statement or a social commentary. The BSA is a voluntary, private organization that sets policies that are best for the organization. We welcome all who share its beliefs but do not criticize or condemn those who wish to follow a different path."

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/...184508093.html

[Kobi]

BOSTON (Reuters) - Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold a recent appeals court decision striking down parts of the federal law that defines marriage solely as the union of a man and a woman.

The request sets up a potential first consideration of a gay marriage case by the Supreme Court.

"The Defense of Marriage Act is a discriminatory and unconstitutional law that harms thousands of families in Massachusetts and takes away our state's right to extend marriage equality to all couples," Coakley said in a statement.

"It is our firm conviction that in order to truly achieve marriage equality, all couples must enjoy the same rights and protections under both state and federal law."

Coakley's 37-page brief asked the nation's highest court to uphold the decision that found denying federal benefits to married same-sex couples was unconstitutional.

The brief said that the state "normally would oppose further review in order to ensure that the judgment takes effect as soon as possible" but added that "the Commonwealth recognizes that DOMA's unconstitutionality is a question of national significance."

"It is important that the Court address the matter in a case that presents the full complement of DOMA's constitutional infirmities," the brief said.

Coakley's move was a response to a brief filed June 29 by the Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group (BLAG), appointed by the Republican majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, which wants the court to reverse the lower court ruling.

That brief said the appeals court ruling "invalidated a duly enacted Act of Congress."

Same-sex marriages were legalized in Massachusetts in 2004. In 2009, the state became the first state to file a complaint alleging that DOMA, which affects more than 1,100 federal statutory provisions, violated the Constitution.

DOMA was ruled unconstitutional by a district court in Massachusetts in 2010, a ruling that was upheld by the First Circuit Court of Appeals' three-judge panel in a unanimous ruling on May 31.

Plaintiffs, including seven married same-sex couples and three widowers, said the law, which among other things prevents them from filing joint federal tax returns or collecting survivor benefits from the Social Security retirement system, denied them equal protections under the U.S. Constitution.

Among the plaintiffs was Dean Hara, the widower of former U.S. Congressman Gerry Studds, who died in 2006. Studds, the first openly gay member of Congress, and Hara were married one week after same-sex marriages became legal in Massachusetts. Hara is not eligible to receive the pension provided to surviving spouses of former members of Congress.

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/massachuset...214956117.html

[Nat]

Angry crowd forms after Dallas police shooting

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/A...ng-3732025.php

DALLAS (AP) — Dozens of angry residents gathered on a sweltering southeast Dallas street after reports of a police shooting of a suspect spread through the neighborhood.

The incident happened sometime after 5 p.m. Tuesday in a residential neighborhood about a mile southeast of Fair Park and about three miles southeast of downtown Dallas.

Details are sketchy as to what prompted the confrontation with police in riot gear. Aerial video showed some fist fights breaking out among onlookers as temperatures hovered around 100 degrees. No arrests have been reported as tactical squad officers arrived to support dozens of officers standing riot shield to riot shield.

[Nat]

Man shot by police in southeast Dallas

DALLAS -- Gunfire erupted in southeast Dallas late Tuesday afternoon as police confronted a suspect. The tense situation escalated when hundreds of people converged on the crime scene.
At least one person was shot and wounded by Dallas police at a location in the 5200 block of Barber Avenue at around 5:15 p.m., according to initial reports.
No officers were wounded. A police source told News 8 the suspect was dead.
That report triggered emotional outbursts from a number of onlookers.
Sandra Harper, who identified herself as the mother of James Harper, said her 31-year-old son was dead, and had been shot in the back.
"My son didn't have no gun, whatever the police said," Mrs. Harper said.

There has been no official statement from police, although one was expected at some point Tuesday evening.
The crowd was urged to move to a nearby church to attend a community meeting to discuss what happened. Dallas City Council member Dwaine Caraway was at the scene to gather facts.
"This is beyond Southeast, this is the Dallas Police Department and the City of Dallas," Caraway said. "The police are moving and doing what they need to do to clear the neighborhood so we can bring peace."
Rev. Kyev P. Tatum of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference issued this statement:
"The fair minded people in South Dallas need to remain calm; peaceful and allow justice to take her course. We will make sure a full investigation is conducted and we are confident that Chief Brown and DA Watkins will seek truth in this case. Violence in the community is not the answer. As Dr. King once said, 'An eye for an eye leaves everybody blind.' The SCLC is praying for the peace in South Dallas."
According to unofficial reports, police had received a report of a man being dragged into a house shortly before 5 p.m. It was not clear whether police had been fired upon.
Dozens of police units -- some in riot gear -- converged on the scene to provide crowd control. The department's SWAT team arrived after 6:30 p.m.
There appeared to be several emotional people and at one point, at least one officer was seen firing what appeared to be pellets into the pavement that left marks on the surface in an effort to disperse the crowd.
Later, several fist fights broke out in the street among onlookers.
A woman was taken away in an ambulance.
News 8 observed at least three top police officials at the scene, including Assistant Chief Charles Cato. Two "companion officers" were requested at the scene to provide assistance to any police personnel who were involved in firing their weapons.
Rev. Earnest Freeney, a pastor in the community, was helping police to try and calm down the crowd. He said he was worried that people from other parts of the city and even from other cities would come to this neighborhood, increasing problems for public officials.

Sources said police were familiar with the residence where the shooting occurred as a place where illegal drugs were sold.

Mother of man shot by Dallas police says he wasn't armed

DALLAS — Sandra Harper, who identified herself as the mother of James Harper, said her 31-year-old son was dead, and had been shot in the back by Dallas police.
"My son didn't have no gun, whatever the police said," Mrs. Harper said during an emotional interview broadcast live on WFAA. She said her son had his arms raised in the air to surrender when he was shot.
"Whatever the police say, it's their word against ours," Mrs. Harper said. "They're always right; we're always wrong."

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[Kobi]

NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - Attorney General Eric Holder on Tuesday placed the New Orleans Police Department, which has been accused of widespread abuses, under the scrutiny of a federal monitor for at least four years.

Holder issued a sweeping decree that he said resulted from "one of the most extensive investigations" of a law enforcement agency the Justice Department has ever conducted.

The 170-page agreement, which must receive federal court approval before it can be finalized, resulted from months of negotiations between the federal government and New Orleans officials.

The Justice Department's 2011 report cited dozens of problems in New Orleans police training, recruiting, supervision and interrogation practices, and identified "a troubling racial disparity" in the use of force.

Increased federal attention to the city's problems helped produce more than a dozen convictions during the past year in a series of federal civil rights cases in which local police officers were charged with killing unarmed civilians and covering up the crimes during the violent aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

The New Orleans consent decree is the latest in a string of such orders the federal government has imposed on police departments in cities including Detroit, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and Los Angeles, to provide blueprints for reform. Failure to comply could subject a city to contempt of court charges and possible penalties.

The order, in the form of a lawsuit by the United States against the City of New Orleans, alleges that police have routinely violated citizens' constitutional rights and engaged "in a pattern or practice of intentional discriminatory conduct."

The order requires the police department to conduct use-of-force training; improve investigations of officer-involved shootings; make Spanish and Vietnamese translators available to handle emergency calls; and improve investigation of sexual assaults and domestic violence.

http://news.yahoo.com/attorney-gener...231756919.html

[Kobi]

ATHENS, Greece (AP) -- Triple jumper Voula Papachristou was expelled from Greece's Olympic team Wednesday for her comments on Twitter mocking African immigrants and expressing support for a far-right party.

The Hellenic Olympic Committee said Wednesday that Papachristou is "placed outside the Olympic team for statements contrary to the values and ideas of the Olympic movement."

Papachristou's Twitter account contains several retweets and postings of YouTube videos promoting the views of Golden Dawn, a formerly marginal extreme right party that entered the Greek Parliament in the recent two national elections - in May and June this year - by polling almost 7 percent of the vote.

Commenting on the widely reported appearance of Nile-virus-carrying mosquitoes in Athens, Papachristou wrote: "With so many Africans in Greece, the West Nile mosquitoes will be getting home food!!!". Her tweet prompted thousands of negative comments that snowballed Wednesday.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/greece-...1136--oly.html