Anger explodes over treatment of Bergdahl’s release as veterans, troops call him a deserter
BY HANNAH ALLAM AND JONATHAN S. LANDAY
McClatchy Washington BureauJune 2, 2014
WASHINGTON — For all the yellow ribbons strewn across his hometown in Idaho and the gratitude expressed by his parents in an emotional visit to the White House on Saturday, it’s looking increasingly unlikely that Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl will receive a hero’s welcome when he returns to the United States after nearly five years in Taliban captivity.
From military forums across the country, a groundswell of anger is rising over the Obama administration’s silence on perhaps the most controversial question surrounding the deal that freed Bergdahl in exchange for five senior Taliban members: Was he a deserter?
So far, the U.S. government has shied away from the long-nagging question, which raged anew Monday with growing clamor on the Internet about the circumstances of Bergdahl’s disappearance from his unit’s small forward position in Afghanistan on June 30, 2009.
Military-related blogs, Twitter accounts and Facebook pages were filled with screeds from commenters accusing Bergdahl of being a “traitor” or a Taliban “collaborator.” The online publication The Daily Beast published a nearly 2,000-word first-person account by a former Army infantry officer who said he was privy to details of Bergdahl’s disappearance and who stated flatly that “he was a deserter, and soldiers from his own unit died trying to track him down.”
*A limited number of wristbands will be available upon purchase of books atBookends Bookstore Join Kendall & Kylie Jenner Today at 7:00pm Bookends Bookstore in Ridgewood, New Jersey
Bookends is a legendary New Jersey Landmark! We are known for our incredible author events and have hosted well over 1,000 authors in the past 15 years!
All books MUST be purchased from BOOKENDS for any of our events and a valid Bookends receipt must be presented for entry.
Appearing authors will only autograph books purchased at Bookends and must have valid Bookends Receipt. Availability & pricing for all autographed books subject to change. Bookends cannot guarantee that the books that are Autographed will always be First Printings.Autographed books purchased at Bookends are non-returnable.
While we try to ensure that all customers coming to Bookends’ signings will meet authors and get their books signed, we cannot guarantee that all attendees will meet the author or that all books will be signed. We cannot control inclement weather, author travel schedules or authors who leave prematurely.
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Summertime Blues: Teen Unemployment in Major U.S. Cities Tops 50 Percent June 2, 2014 – 4:16 PM By Penny Starr
(CNSNews.com) – A new analysisby the Employment Policy Institute (EPI) shows that unemployment among teens without a high school diploma is more than 50 percent in two of the largest U.S. cities.
Using U.S. Census Bureau data from May 2013 to April 2014, the analysis reveals that in Riverside-San Bernardino area of Southern California, the unemployment rate for teens ages 16 to 19 years old who don’t have a high school diploma is 54.2 percent.
In the Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, Ore., metropolitan area, the unemployment rate from that population is 53.8 percent.
“These numbers are staggering,” Michael Saltsman, director of research at EPI told CNSNews.com. “Teens across the country this summer are missing out on valuable work experience as they continue to suffer through an extended period of high unemployment and difficult job prospects.”
The 2014 Great American Backyard Campout will take place on Saturday, June 28!
This year, we’ve set a goal of getting more than 200,000 people across the country to camp out. AND, just in time for the 10th anniversary of the Great American Backyard Campout, National Wildlife Federation’s Board of Directors and other friends have offered to donate $2 in support of NWF’s wildlife conservation work for every person that participates in this year’s Campout— up to $400,000!
On June 28, 2014, thousands of people across the nation will gather in their backyards, neighborhoods, communities and parks to take part in an annual event that provides a fun-filled evening for all generations to get outside and connect with nature.
National Wildlife Federation’s Goal: Get Kids Outside!
Great American Backyard Campout® is a part of National Wildlife Federation’s efforts to help inspire Americans to protect wildlife, including a three-year campaign to get 10 million kids to spend regular outdoor time in nature.
The National Wildlife Federation is America’s largest conservation organization and we work with more than 4 million members, partners and supporters in communities across the country to protect wildlife and reconnect people with nature. Today, NWF continues to be the nation’s leading advocate for wildlife and wild places.
Since 2005, thousands of people from across the nation have come together the fourth Saturday of June to participate in the Great American Backyard Campout in support of Great Outdoors Month. This annual nationwide event is designed to promote the benefits of camping as a way to connect people with nature and support NWF’s efforts to get kids outdoors.
FOOD POLICE : USDA Creating $1.9 Million Research Center Devoted to Changing American’s Food Choices
Research to examine dismantling fast food combos
BY: Elizabeth Harrington June 2, 2014 5:00 pm
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is creating a $2 million research center to study how the government can “nudge” Americans toward making healthier eating habits.
The agency is currently accepting grant applications to establish a “Center for Behavioral Economics and Healthy Food Choice Research,” which will facilitate studies such as how breaking up combo meals at fast food restaurants would influence customers.
“The USDA Center will facilitate new and innovative research on the application of behavioral economics theory to healthy food choice behaviors that would contribute to enhancing the nutrition, food security, and health of American consumers,” the USDA’s grant announcement said.
The center will be given at least $1.9 million over three years, with the possibility of future funding. Its research will focus on “facilitating food choice behaviors” and improving the diets of Americans enrolled on food stamps and the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program.
Bids for U.S. Senate, Congressional Seats Top Today’s Primary Ballot
The U.S. Senate seat former Newark Mayor Cory Booker won last October tops today’s primary election, which will also determine which major party candidates will vie for all of New Jersey’s 12 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives in November.
This year’s primary is more notable than most because a quarter of the state’s members of Congress are retiring — in the case of the 1st District, Rob Andrews has already left — and in most districts, the winner of the Democratic or Republican primary winds up winning the general election. New Jersey’s districts are currently split, with half “red” and half “blue.”
Given that, probably the most watched race is for the right to represent the Democratic party on the general election ballot in Central Jersey’s 12th District. Three current state legislators are running, as well as a physicist, but the race is expected to boil down to two: Assemblywoman Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-Mercer) and Sen. Linda Greenstein (D-Middlesex).
The only nonpartisan poll, a mid-May Monmouth University Poll, had Greenstein leading Watson Coleman among likely voters by just 1 percentage point, but a third of voters were still undecided. In a blog post yesterday, Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute, gave Watson Coleman a two-point edge, but added, “I won’t be the least bit surprised if this forecast turns out to be wrong.” (O’Dea/NJSpotlight)
JUNE 3, 2014 LAST UPDATED: TUESDAY, JUNE 3, 2014, 8:08 AM BY SCOTT FALLON STAFF WRITER THE RECORD
United Water will spend $220 million over the next three years to replace leaky water mains, valves and other aging infrastructure to help prevent the annual loss of billions of gallons of drinking water, executives said Monday.
The money, from a special fee imposed on ratepayers, will be used to replace as much as 450 miles of water mains, mostly in Bergen and Hudson counties, where the average underground pipe is 70 years old. That would account for 20 percent of the company’s 2,200 miles of water mains.
“It’s not a situation where you’re just going to go out and say we’re going to replace everything immediately,” said Robert Iacullo, executive vice president of United Water, which serves 800,000 residents in the two counties. “You’re going to prioritize where the frequency of main breaks have been, how critical it is in terms of population being served.”
Iacullo announced the plan at a news conference in Cliffside Park, where U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez and Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., D-Paterson, were drumming up support for a bill that would make it easier for local governments to get money to make repairs to aging water systems. The Sustainable Water Infrastructure Investment Act of 2014 would remove the federal cap on municipal bonds used to pay for sewerage and water system upgrades.
“The longer you wait to fix them, it only gets worst and more expensive,” Pascrell said as a United Water crew fixed a broken valve behind him.
Like many of New Jersey’s water utilities, United Water loses much more water than the industry standard of 15 percent. About 26 percent, or 10.6 billion gallons, was unaccounted for in 2011, the bulk of that from burst water mains, holes in corroded pipes or leaky joints, experts have said. United Water has averaged more than one water main break per day over the past five years.
– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/business/united-water-plans-big-fixes-in-north-jersey-1.1027933#sthash.CnAaotLu.dpuf
I have resided in Ridgewood for 35 years, and the first whiff I got of the drastic underpass plan was on May 23, 2014. David Shaw
Lane change an unpleasant surprise David Shaw
To the editor:
Very few people appreciate unpleasant surprises. Fewer yet appreciate being blind sided.
The May 23 issue of The Ridgewood News supplied the citizens of the village an amplitude of both. I have yet to find anyone in my neighborhood who knew that one lane-each direction automobile traffic under the bridge was soon to be irrevocably in their long-term future, nor did they understand why such a thing would be contemplated.
The article stated that the plan had been fully vetted by the council and the DOT, the Ridgewood engineering and police departments, as well as the Citizens Safety Advisory Committee. Critically and significantly, there was no mention that the taxpaying residents of this community were in the vetting loop. Is it unreasonably inquisitive to ask why the people most affected by this decision weren’t included, or, for that matter, even aware of the plans? Could this be construed as government by fiat?
Councilwoman Bernadette Walsh was quoted as saying “the project and the Complete Streets program was formulated many years ago and is coming to fruition now.” It may have been formulated eons ago, but it surely was not communicated. I have resided in Ridgewood for 35 years, and the first whiff I got of the drastic underpass plan was on May 23, 2014.
Critics and proponents of Valley Hospital expansion make final pleas to planning board
JUNE 3, 2014, 6:36 AM LAST UPDATED: TUESDAY, JUNE 3, 2014, 6:38 AM BY BARBARA WILLIAMS STAFF WRITER THE RECORD
It was their last chance and they took it.
On Monday night, 43 residents told planning board members how to vote on The Valley Hospital’s plan to nearly double in size, their last opportunity to voice an opinion before the board votes in two weeks.
Board members remained impassive for more than three hours as residents spoke for and against the expansion plan, some telling personal stories while others tried to review expert testimony given during the past 15 months of hearings.
Proponents of Valley’s plan to expand from 562,000 square feet to 995,000 square feet noted that less than 200 people showed up for the meeting, questioning whether a majority of village residents really do oppose the plan.
At the same time, opponents of the plan noted that out of the 10 people who spoke in favor of the project, about 7 or 8 were Valley employees or physicians.
“I urge you to consider voting for this change,” said David Sayles, a Valley supporter who talked about having loved ones in both Valley and another hospital in New York City. “It’s a lot easier for family members to go next door when a family member is in the hospital and going through a hard time. It’s a wrong decision to just shoot it all down.”
But those who want board members to vote in favor of the master plan amendment that Valley is seeking were vastly outnumbered by opponents, who repeatedly reminded the board that the 6-year construction project will likely affect students attending the Benjamin Franklin Middle School next to the hospital.
Jeffrey Toobin: Obama ‘Clearly Broke the Law’ on Bergdahl
by Noah Rothman | 5:50 pm, June 2nd, 2014
CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin declared on Monday that President Barack Obama “broke the law” when his administration failed to give Congress notice of at least 30 days before releasing five ranking Taliban members from Guantanamo Bay. Toobin said that a presidential signing statement did not absolve Obama from culpability for failing to abide by the law mandating congressional notification.
“I think he clearly broke the law,” Toobin said. “The law says 30-days’ notice. He didn’t give 30-days’ notice.” Toobin added that Obama’s opinion expressed in a signing statement “is not law.”
“The law is on the books, and he didn’t follow it,” Toobin added.
CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer noted that former President George W. Bush also issued signing statements even though they thought their action may not have been constitutional or legal. “But liberals were outraged by George W. Bush’s signing statements,” Toobin noted.
“You realize, of course, you’re accusing the President of the United States of breaking the law” Blitzer observed.
Primary election day in New Jersey June 3, 2014 the Staff of the Ridgewood blog
Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. There is a primary among four Republican candidates who are seeking the U.S. Senate nomination to challenge Democratic Sen. Cory Booker in November.
Photo credit:Boyd A. Loving 2 injuries in Ridgewood crash on Lake Avenue June 2,2014 Boyd A. Loving via yahoo.com 5:20 PM
Ridgewood NJ , A silver Toyota Camry and maroon Jeep Wrangler collided at the intersection of Lake Avenue and Grant Street in Ridgewood late Monday morning.
The male driver of the Jeep was transported by ambulance to The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood for evaluation/treatment of a neck injury. The Camry’s male driver complained of pain, but refused to be transported to the hospital. Both vehicles were removed by a flatbed tow truck. Ridgewood PD, EMS, and FD responded. Midland Park PD assisted at the scene with traffic control.
Doctor Shortages Aren’t Just a Veterans Affairs Problem. They’re a Nationwide Problem.
The country is running out of physicians to treat a growing pool of patients.
Last week, an investigative report revealed that 1,700 veterans who wanted to see a doctor at a Phoenix Veterans Affairs hospital were missing from an official waiting list, mirroring a tactic used at two dozen other facilities across the country to mask long waits for medical care.
A few hundred other people are missing from the Veterans Affairs system, too: doctors.
The Veterans Affairs Department is 400 doctors short, The New York Times reports. But the doctor deficit is not limited to the VA—it’s a nationwide problem.
Power Plants, Rate-Payers Brace for Obama Administration’s New EPA Regs Eric Boehm June 2, 2014 at 9:32 am
In November 2010, President Obama stood before reporters in the White House briefing room and offered a frank description of his administration’s chances of getting heavy-duty environmental regulations through Congress.
That was in the final days before Republicans seized control of the U.S. House in Obama’s first mid-term. Unable to get greenhouse gas emissions rules through a Democratic Congress, Obama acknowledged it would be far less likely in the soon-to-be divided government.
“I think there are a lot of Republicans that ran against the energy bill that passed in the House last year,” Obama said. “And so it’s doubtful that you could get the votes to pass that through the House this year or next year or the year after.”
It’s now the year after the year after, but the situation is the same.
Today, the administration will see what it can accomplish without congressional approval. The Environmental Protection Agency plans to announce new policies designed to cut carbon emissions at American power plants.
Some details have already leaked out. The new regulations will vary by state, but each state will have to hit targets for carbon emissions—rather than previous EPA regulations that have set limits for specific facilities but never for an entire state or the whole nation—in a two-step process intended to reduce carbon emissions by 25 percent by 2030, the Washington Post reported.
Those mandatory reductions will be a heavy drag on the economy, according to a report issued by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and several other groups representing energy companies.
“They are working on really the most signification EPA regulation, or any regulation, in American history. Certainly, it’s EPA’s costliest regulation,” said Matt LeTourneau, director of communications for the U.S. Chamber.
The report uses a combination of sources in an attempt to determine what the Obama administration might have up its sleeve. The Chamber relied on a comprehensive emissions plan published by the National Resources Defense Council, which is working closely with the EPA to craft the new rules, and took into account international agreements the administration has made, such as the Copenhagen Accords.
If their prognostications are true, the Chamber expects the new EPA regulations to cost 200,000 jobs per year and as much as $51 billion in annual GDP. The changes also would cause electricity prices to skyrocket for individual consumers and businesses, according to the Chamber.
The high costs will be incurred because the new regulations target not only new power plants but also require existing plants be retrofitted or closed in favor of new forms of energy.
LeTourneau said nearly all coal-fired plants would be shut down, and even some natural gas power plants could face the axe.
Even with all those cutbacks, global emissions would be reduced by just 1.8 percent, the Chamber says, because most of the growth in emissions is coming from places such as China and India.
Tom Reynolds, a spokesman for the EPA, took to the agency’s blog Wednesday to respond to the Chamber’s report.
Reynolds said the EPA had gathered testimony from hundreds of groups, including many that are members of the U.S. Chamber, and promised more meetings after the new rules are announced. He said the Chamber’s report had significant holes because the group was working off assumptions and other sources, not the actual EPA regulations.
“The Chamber’s report is nothing more than irresponsible speculation based on guesses of what our draft proposal will be. Just to be clear—it’s not out yet. I strongly suggest that folks read the proposal before they cry the sky is falling.”
If the new regulations are as onerous as business groups believe, and if they are adopted into law without congressional approval, expect lengthy court battles over the issue. The Chamber was one of several groups to sue over the Affordable Care Act—which did have congressional approval—showing it is not afraid to take on the administration in court to delay or defeat costly new rules.
It likely will be years before any new carbon emissions standards for power plants are a reality, but the punch and counter-punch from the Chamber and the EPA shows the battle over messaging already has begun.
Eric Boehm is a reporter for Watchdog.org, a national network of investigative reporters covering waste, fraud and abuse in government. Watchdog.org is a project of the nonprofitFranklin Center for Government & Public Integrity
N.S.A. Collecting Millions of Faces From Web Images
By JAMES RISEN and LAURA POITRASMAY 31, 2014
The National Security Agency is harvesting huge numbers of images of people from communications that it intercepts through its global surveillance operations for use in sophisticated facial recognition programs, according to top-secret documents.
The spy agency’s reliance on facial recognition technology has grown significantly over the last four years as the agency has turned to new software to exploit the flood of images included in emails, text messages, social media, videoconferences and other communications, the N.S.A. documents reveal. Agency officials believe that technological advances could revolutionize the way that the N.S.A. finds intelligence targets around the world, the documents show. The agency’s ambitions for this highly sensitive ability and the scale of its effort have not previously been disclosed.
The agency intercepts “millions of images per day” — including about 55,000 “facial recognition quality images” — which translate into “tremendous untapped potential,” according to 2011 documents obtained from the former agency contractor Edward J. Snowden. While once focused on written and oral communications, the N.S.A. now considers facial images, fingerprints and other identifiers just as important to its mission of tracking suspected terrorists and other intelligence targets, the documents show.
