Category Archives: U.S.

U.S.

Martial Law U.S.A.: How one city in Ohio celebrates Independence Day, with tyranny!

03 July 2013 (10:24 UTC-07 Tango)/24 Sha’ban 1434/12 Tir 1391/26 Ji-Wie (5th month) 4711

In the U.S. state of Ohio, Independence Day doesn’t mean freedom, it means police state thuggery!

The mayor of Lakewood, Mike Summers, said it best when he revealed how much the U.S. has changed.  Instead of liberty and justice for all, the new mantra is “Safety is our first priority.”  (way to go, Ohio!)

On 14 June 2013 the city issued the following totalitarian martial laws:

  1. All generators, propane and gas fueled grills are prohibited.
  2. All tents and shelters are prohibited.
  3. Police will be conducting searches of bags and coolers for reasons of public safety.
  4. No alcoholic beverages are permitted at any time throughout the year.
  5. No personal fireworks. This includes novelty fireworks like sparklers.
  6. No dogs or pets of any kind will be permitted in the park on July 4th.
  7. The skate park, tennis courts, basketball courts and Kid’s Cove playground will be closed at 7:00 p.m.

Idaho, U.S.

2 1/2 mile fire update, containment. More Idaho fires expected, warns officials.

03 July 2013 (23:12 UTC-07 Tango 02 July 2013)/24 Sha’ban 1434/12 Tir 1391/26 Ji-Wie (5th month) 4711

Blackened hill from 2 1/2 Mile Road fire. About 1048 acres (424 hectares) burned. During the night winds died down and firefighters got the upper hand.

Blackened hill from 2 1/2 Mile Road fire, northern Bannock County (as seen from Cotant Park, Chubbuck). About 1048 acres (424 hectares) burned. During the night winds died down and firefighters got the upper hand.

Eastern Idaho Interagency Fire Center reports the 2 1/2 Mile fire is contained.

EIIFC also reporting the lightning caused Beaver Pass fire in Butte County.   One of the fire crews that battled the 2 1/2 Mile fire are now working the Beaver Pass fire with other crews from federal agencies and the cities of Arco and Custer County’s Lost River.  50 acres burned so far.

In southern Idaho, several fires are burning federal Bureau of Land management property.   The Emery Fire has burned at least 600 acres (248.8 hectares), they hope to have it contained by Wednesday night.  Another fire 3 miles north of the city of Wendell has burned 1833 acres (741.7 hectares), and is considered contained.  The Point fire, near Rogerson, has burned at least 2500 acres (1011.7 hectares).  The Jim Brown fire has burned 13000 acres (5260.9 hectares), containment expected by Wednesday night.   The West Hollister fire is contained, and burned at least 3000 acres (1214 hectares).  All the mentioned fires are suspected of being caused by lightning.

In western Idaho, fire crews are fighting the Turner fire, near Lucky Peak.  It burned about 300 acres (121 hectares) and is suspected of being human caused.

“We saw what last year’s fire season did to Idaho. Right now, we are set up to have potentially a worse fire season than last year.”-Bob Shindelar, Boise National Forest

Back in June, analysts warned that the fire danger is extreme for Idaho mountain areas.

“They’re coming into their third year of really dry conditions. Even though we had a relatively good snowpack across most of Idaho this year, it hasn’t made up the deficit we’ve seen in the past.”-Ed Delgado, National Interagency Fire Center

02JUL2013 update: 2 1/2 MILE FIRE, APPROACHING NORTHERN POCATELLO

01JUL2013: NEW 2 AND A HALF MILE FIRE NORTHEAST OF CHUBBUCK, IDAHO

June 2012:

Smoke seen from downtown Old Town Pocatello. Photo by AAron B. Hutchins, 28JUN2012.

POCATELLO CHARLOTTE FIRE STILL BURNING! 66 HOMES NOW DESTROYED!

International, U.S.

World War 3, Martial Law U.S.A.: Russian troops to return to United States, in greater numbers!

02 July 2013 (14:21 UTC-07 Tango)/23 Sha’ban 1434/11 Tir 1391/25 Ji-Wie (5th month) 4711

In April 2012 I wrote about Russian airborne troops landing in the U.S. state of Colorado.  It was about domestic terror operations.

On 26 June 2013 the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry made the following announcement:

The Russian Emergency Situations Ministry and the USA Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) are going to exchange experts during joint rescue operations in major disasters. This is provided by a protocol of the fourth meeting of the U.S.-Russia Bilateral Presidential Commission Working Group on Emergency Situations and seventeenth meeting of Joint U.S.-Russia Cooperation Committee on Emergency Situations, which took place in Washington on 25 June.

The document provides for expert cooperation in disaster response operations and to study the latest practices.

In addition, the parties approved of U.S.-Russian cooperation in this field in 2013-2014, which envisages exchange of experience including in monitoring and forecasting emergency situations, training of rescuers, development of mine-rescuing and provision of security at mass events.

At the end of the meeting the parties expressed their satisfaction with the level of cooperation between the Russian Federation and the United States in the area of emergency prevention and response and agreed to develop it in order to respond efficiently to all kinds of disasters.

 

Business/Economics, U.S.

World War 3, U.S. Economic Front: Job losses & store closings 01 May 2013.

Aluminum maker, Alcoa, says it will reduce production even more.  Alcoa has already been shutting down operations world wide.  They blame the low price of aluminum.  Reduced production equals more layoffs.

In Rhode Island, Westerly Hospital eliminated 45 jobs.  It’s being blamed on the takeover by Lawrence + Memorial Hospital.

Schumacher Group shutting down its Patient Financial Management Services in Louisiana.  41 people laid off.   Blame Obama/Romney Care (Affordable Care Act).

In California, the not for profit doctor and hospital network known as Sutter Health announced 169 people losing their jobs!  There was no reason given, but apparently the network is consolidating 1000 jobs, so expect more layoffs.  The Paradise Unified School District wants to get rid of at least six jobs.  It all depends on Title 1 federal funds.  In Atascadero, Colby Jack Café & Bakery closed down.  The owners blame the bad economy: “We tried to make it work and couldn’t. We haven’t seen the economy get better.”-Natalie Dorris

The proposed budget for the city of Portland, Oregon, plans 182 layoffs, and increases the water/sewer rates!

Electronics/communications company Harris Corporation wants to layoff 150 people in Brevard County, Florida!  Company officials say they have to cut operating costs.

In North Carolina, Too Big to Jail Bank of America closed down its employee child care center in Charlotte.  In High Point, Tar Heel Lanes bowling alley closed after 42 years of business.  The owners were not able to get  new loans, so now the bowling alley is up for sale.  After 37 years Gaston County’s John Deere dealership, Briley’s Lawn and Leisure, closed down.  Blamed on death in the family.

Ecolab laying off 500 people across the U.S., mainly in Texas!  It’s blamed on restructuring after the takeover of a company called Champion Technologies.

In Maryland, Aramark laying off 202 people!  The dining service company lost a major contract.   In Bethesda, Zen Tara Tea shop shut down.   The owners blamed loss of business on major construction projects in the area.  In College Park, On Cloud 9 clothing store closed up.  Blamed on death in the family.  In Ellicott City, Mumbles and Squeaks toy store closed.  After 21 years the owners decided it was time to retire.

What automotive sector recovery?  In Indiana, Jay Products Company of Portland ceased operations.  61 people out-o-work.  The car parts maker blamed it on a reduction in production in the automotive industry.

In Missouri, the Affton Blockbuster video store closed down.

Update on ESCO Technologies closing its Aclara plant in Solon, Ohio.  At least 79 employees being laid off.

The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) doesn’t count the hundreds of layoffs involving less than 50 people each, in its mass layoff reports. It also doesn’t count all the little ‘mom & pop’ businesses that shut down.

Idaho, U.S.

2 1/2 mile fire update, approaching northern Pocatello

02 July 2013 (20:37 UTC-07 Tango 01 July 2013)/23 Sha’ban 1434/11 Tir 1391/25 Ji-Wie (5th month) 4711

Click pics to make bigger

Idaho, U.S.

New 2 and a half Mile fire northeast of Chubbuck, Idaho

01 July 2013 (22:07 UTC-07 Tango 30 June 2013)/22 Sha’ban 1434/10 Tir 1391/24 Ji-Wie (5th month) 4711

Click pics to make bigger

Business/Economics, U.S.

World War 3, U.S. Economic Front: Job losses & store closings 19-20 April 2013. What automotive sector recovery? NSA domestic spying company hit by spending cuts!

In New Jersey, North Bergen recycling went bankrupt.  Company officials pled guilty to illegal dumping and got hit with massive fines.

AM General laid off at least 350 people in Indiana!  Company officials blame the bad global economy on crashing Hummer/Humvee orders!  Yet, at the same time they claim there is a big demand for their military type vehicle, it’s just that the expected orders haven’t come in.

In Kentucky, automotive parts supplier, GECOM, laid off 85 employees.  Company officials blamed it on “…current and projected business needs…”, adding that for the foreseeable future “…only a handful of employees…” will be kept working.

In Tennessee, Volkswagen laying off 500 people!  Last year VW thought they were going to add 800 jobs to their U.S. Passat factory, but sales crashed!  VW officials say sales are only good in major metro areas, in the rest of the country sales are down.  And in a bit-o-irony, the Department of of Labor and Workforce is restructuring its Career Centers, and as many as 125 people could lose their jobs!

At least 180 people lost their jobs with L3 Communication Systems-West in Utah!  Company officials blamed Department of Defense spending cuts.  Maybe this is a good thing, as L3 is “…a leading provider of networked communication solutions for high-performance intelligence collection, imagery processing and satellite communications for the Department of Defense (DoD) and other government agencies. We provide high-data rate, wideband, secure, real-time communication systems for surveillance and reconnaissance.”  In other words they’re being paid to spy on you!  (for some reason hi-tech spying operations are setting up shop in the heart of Mormon-land, soon the World’s largest personal information collection center will be operational. It’s located in the Utah Army National Guard’s Camp Williams)

Publicly funded (meaning donations) KCET TV, in California, laid off 22 employees and eliminated five vacant positions.  It’s the result of a merger with publicly funded (donations) Link Media.  In June 2012 KCET posted a loss of $7.4 million USD.

More bad news for Disney owned Lucasfilm.  20 more people laid off in what is supposedly the last round of layoffs since the Disney takeover.

In Maine, SPX Communications Technologies ended antenna operations, laying off 57 employees.

The Puma athletic store in Pennsylvania closed down.

In Oregon, The Elephant’s Trunk toy store closed at the Salem Center Mall.

267 people out-o-work in Ohio, after Turf Products closed its Streetsboro operations!  Another 23 people laid off in the company’s distribution center.   Apparently the company made too many products (like lawnmowers) at other factories, and is calling a production halt.  ESCO Technologies closing its Aclara plant in Solon.  The company saw a 85% drop in profits for its 2nd quarter this year.  No word on how many people will be unemployed.

In Little Rock, Arkansas, Faux Pas closed after 20 years in business.  The owners of the fashion store decided it was time to change careers.

Wonderland Books shut down in Connecticut. The owners blamed competition from big name stores and the internet.

In Mississippi, Bayside Furniture & Appliances shut down.  The longtime family owners (since 1970) blamed the bad economy.

After 64 years Smith’s Gardentown Farms closed in Wichita, Texas.   The family owners blame the long drought, and hope to re-open when the rains return: “The drought has everyone worried. I think there were some misunderstandings about the [city’s] watering rules, but the drought is a reality. Much of our business depends on selling bedding plants in the spring to help get us through the summer and into the fall. Business has just been way off because people are guarded about the future, and rightfully so.”-Steve Smith

In New Mexico, the Albuquerque Public Schools District has lost $100 million since 2010, and is now looking at closing down several schools.  The district has already laid off 1000 employees since 2010!  One plan is to get rid of Middle schools (Junior Highs).  The irony is that the district just built two new schools!

The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) doesn’t count the hundreds of layoffs involving less than 50 people each, in its mass layoff reports. It also doesn’t count all the little ‘mom & pop’ businesses that shut down.

 

 

 

Business/Economics, U.S.

World War 3, U.S. Economic Front: Job losses & store closings 18 April 2013. Thousands of people losing their jobs!

Just one day after announcing 300 layoffs in California, Washington based (HQ now in Illinois) Boeing announced that 1700 engineering jobs will be eliminated by the end of the year!   This affects Boeing’s Commercial Airplane unit.   Boeing officials also revealed that they’ve laid off 700 people in other positions since October 2012, and that “…we will continue that effort.”

Cessna Aircraft has warned union employees in Kansas, that some of them will be out-o-work soon.  Company officials blamed the bad economy: “Cessna continues to operate within a challenging economic environment and is experiencing a slower-than-expected recovery….”  The QuikTrip store in the Sprint Center closed down.

The Asada restaurant in Laguna Beach, California, went bankrupt.   The company said the restaurant will stay open, the bankruptcy is to “preserve the business”.  The restaurant owes debts, wages and back rent.  The rent is $21630 per month.   In Modesto, the Memorial Medical Center laid off 39 office employees.  The hospital has consolidated its administrative operations.  In San Jose, two Bay Area Family Fitness centers shut down.  They had opened just 18 months prior!

IBM (International Business Machines, a U.S. company that got its start cataloging concentration camp victims for the NAZIs) warned of major layoffs.  Company officials blame their crashing sales on the bad economy.

In Pennsylvania, the Philadelphia School District is warning of massive job and program cuts, because it is short $304 million for the 2014 school year!

In New Hampshire, The Telegraph laid off about 24 employees, right before the newspaper was taken over by The Ogden Newspapers.

Too Big to Jail, Ohio’s KeyCorp (KeyBank) will increase layoffs and close at least 30 branches around the U.S.  In Youngstown, Cafe Cimmento closed down. The owner said his son left the Cafe for a better paying job.   7-Eleven closed three stores near Ohio State University.

In Cave Junction, Oregon, Rough & Ready Lumber closed down.  The owners of the saw mill blame a lack of logs coming from federal forests.

The Newsland store in Westminster, Colorado, shut down.   It’s the owner’s fifth and final Newsland store.  He started the magazine/book stands 28 years ago.   He blames electronic devices.

In Michigan, Why Not Costumes shut down after 26 years of business.  The owner blames the bad economy.  She’s put the business and her home up for sale.

The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) doesn’t count the hundreds of layoffs involving less than 50 people each, in its mass layoff reports. It also doesn’t count all the little ‘mom & pop’ businesses that shut down.

Business/Economics, U.S.

World War 3, U.S. Economic Front: Job losses & store closings 17 April 2013. More education cuts! More hospital cuts no thanks to Obama/Romney Care!

Boeing laying off as many as 300 people in California!  Boeing has come up with a way to make satellites more efficiently.  The layoffs affect operations in El Segundo, Torrance, Seal Beach and Huntington Beach.

In New Jersey, the newest and most financially troubled Revel casino laid off 83 employees.  Atlantic City’s bad economy just can’t support 12 casinos!

In Minnesota, Creative Memories made it official and went bankrupt, for the second time in five years. At least 163 people to lose their jobs!

Reinsurance company, PartnerRe, will layoff 140 people despite reporting a profit for its fourth quarter!  Company officials say they’re trying to make the company more efficient (make more profits for the stockholders).  Reinsurance is basically insurance on the policies insurance companies sell to you.

Military contractor, Concurrent Technologies Corporation, laid off 19 workers at its Cambria County, Pennsylvania operations.  Company officials blame government spending cuts.  Reading Eagle, owner of Reading Hospital, laying off 210 medical staff, plus eliminating another 181 jobs through attrition!  Officials blame the Obama/Romney Care (Affordable Care Act) cuts to Medicare/Medicaid!

In New London, Wisconsin, Saputo Cheese laid off 22 employees due to changes in factory set up.

The Head Start education program in Lorain County, Ohio, laid off four employees.  Officials blame federal funding cuts.  In Columbus, the Flow Skatepark closed down.

In New York, the General Brown Central School District considering cutting or eliminating 21 positions.  The district is dealing with a $1 million USD budget gap.  Bus company, Mile Square Transportation, laid off 102 employees!  The company shut down its Peekskill facility, after the local Peekskill City School District dropped their contract.

The Mat-Su Borough School District, in Alaska, is reviewing next school year’s budget and 44 people could lose their jobs.  It has something to do with state mandated teacher to pupil ratios.

In Florida, Lee County School District laying off 100 people!  Federal funding cuts are being blamed.  Pierce Manufacturing laid off 33 employees and warned of more layoffs to come.  It’s part of layoffs announced last year, due to Oshkosh shutting down its ambulance production.

In Texas, Pratt & Whitney ended its Port San Antonio maintenance operations, and laid off 125 people!  Company officials called it a “business realignment”.  Also in San Antonio, the Zuni Grill closed down.  The Skillman and Abrams store in Lake Highlands shut down.  Reports blame competition from a Super Target, and Super Walmart.

After 57 years of operations, Ponticello’s restaurant closed up in Missouri. The owner retired, saying he wanted to quit before the economy got worse.

In Maine, the Sea Grass Bistro closed.  The owner jumped ship for a job with a private club.

In Kentucky, Indigo Casual Gourmet Cafe in Fort Mitchell closed.  20 employees affected.

Home decor retailer, Kirkland’s, closed its White Marsh Mall store in Maryland.  It’s blamed on the bad economy.

In Illinois, U.S. Cellular closed a store in Evanston.  Apparently the company is focusing on rural markets.

200 Fresh & Easy stores in the United States to be closed and sold off!  The United Kingdom based owner, Tesco, says the economy is so bad they’re losing money on almost every store!  5000 people affected!

The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) doesn’t count the hundreds of layoffs involving less than 50 people each, in its mass layoff reports. It also doesn’t count all the little ‘mom & pop’ businesses that shut down.

Business/Economics, Idaho, U.S.

World War 3, U.S. Economic Front: Another $20 million lost by Coldwater Creek! Blames it on climate change and shuttered stores!

29 June 2013 (21:41 UTC-07 Tango 28 June 2013)/20 Sha’ban 1434/08 Tir 1391/22 Wu-Wu (5th month) 4711

The Idaho based women’s clothing retailer, Coldwater Creek, just keeps bleeding out cash!  For its most recent quarter, which ended in May, Coldwater Creek lost $19.4 million USD.

Executives headquartered in Sandpoint blamed it on climate change and the fact that they’ve closed so many stores: “Our first quarter results were impacted by unseasonable weather throughout the quarter….”-Jill Dean, CEO

Coldwater Creek closed two retail stores in the last quarter, along with one factory store.  Company officials don’t expect any good news when this current quarter ends, either.  Amazingly, Coldwater Creek (CWTR) stocks are selling for about $2.50 per share, despite being downgraded to neutral by investment bank B. Riley!

To try and become more efficient, Coldwater Creek just spent money on a Oracle Retail Merchandise Planning and Optimization program: “Ultimately, this should lead to further reductions in aged inventory and allow us to increase our full price selling, making us more productive and profitable.”-Jim Bell, CFO/COO

They say the program will let them better forecast what women want to buy (by spying on customers’ shopping habits).