Winner of the $500!

Okay so I gave each person that wanted to be included a number, and if you are both a follower and left a comment you got two!

So the winner is #7 Goyo7!

I will be contacting him for his address.

Thanks for anyone that joined the contest.

If I obtain 5,000 views, I'll make another for $250.00!

Thanks Again for your participation!

Blog Contest!

Okay as a new way to celebrate 1,000 visitors, I have decided to host a contest. Okay I know what you really want to know.

What will I get?

$500.00 money order.

How to enter?

If you follow this blog and post a comment below stating you want to be included then you will be. If you want two entries you must be following my blog and comment below.

If I win how will I obtain it:

If you are lucky enough to win, you will receive it by mail.
I will contact you if you were selected.

Is this a scam?

No Way!
I will use http://randomizer.org/ to select the winner.

It ends on August 7, 2009. 7:58 A.M. EST (US).

Restrictions:

Must live in the continental U.S. or Mexico.

Another Plane Crash?

A single-engine plane crashed Saturday outside a bank in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, seriously injuring the five people on board, authorities said.
A damaged airplane lies on the ground Saturday next to a busy road in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

The pilot reported engine problems shortly after leaving the city's Wiley Post Airport, about a mile away from the crash site, at midmorning, said Lynn Lunsford, spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration.

Fire Department Deputy Chief Cecil Clay said the two men and three women on the plane were taken to hospitals. Lunsford said they suffered multiple injuries.The plane was headed to Enid, Oklahoma, about 100 miles north of Oklahoma City. The pilot tried to return to Wiley Post Airport after he recognized the engine trouble, Lunsford said.

Imagine how nervous this guy was?

During this financial crisis and Plane company cut-backs to have a crash?

Three of the injured are in mild state while one is in okay state and sadly ythe other is in critical state.

Well, this comes to show that we're not as safe as we thought...

Un-Citely Event???

Every day across America, police officers investigate murders, defuse domestic squabbles, and arrest dope dealers.

But training is just as important when officers come across a "real American" who is combative and refuses to defer to police authority – even if the alleged offense is relatively minor.

The arrest of Henry Louis Gates Jr., the prominent Harvard scholar, has brought the issue of race and policing literally from the heights of academic inquiry to a dramatic faceoff between a blue-collar Boston-area cop and one of the ivory tower's most recognizable black scholars.

But perhaps one of the core underlying issues in the incident is one of policing: Officers walk a thin line between staying safe and adhering to the Constitution – and straying over that line can have consequences, especially when it involves the black community.


Lessons to be learned

What lessons, then, can be drawn from the July 16 altercation on Gates' front porch on Ware Street?


And for police officers, it isn't just having "thick skin," one of America's top cops says. It is to understand, at a procedural level, the deep trust Americans have in basic constitutional values.


"Americans are the beneficiaries of the incredible foresight and wisdom of our Founding Fathers, who over time created a Constitution that embeds these rights of freedom for Americans," he adds. "So when you come across a real American, how competent are you in carrying out your delicate and demanding and too-often dangerous job?"

What should have happened

In his view of the Gates case, which he has studied closely, Mr. Stamper suggests that Gates overreacted. But Cambridge Police Sgt. James Crowley also made a basic mistake: By becoming distracted by Gates's criticisms and protestations, some of which invoked race, his warnings to Gates to calm down fell short of their mark. And as other police officers arrived, Stamper reasons that it became more difficult for Crowley to back down in front of his peers.

"As soon as you give a warning twice, your authority is shot," Stamper says. "Then, you've approached this thing in precisely the opposite way of how you should have approached it."

The best practice, Stamper says, is called "verbal judo" – and it's an art of its own.

The trick is not to become offended that someone is challenging authority but to turn the argument back on the subject, Stamper says. Instead of making repeated warnings like, for example, "Roll down the window or else," an officer should start by saying, "If you're me right now, how would you resolve this situation?"

Simply by turning the focus back to the subject and listening often de-escalates the tension, and it can be surprisingly hard to do. If the situation still escalates, an officer can take more dramatic actions, if [legally justified], Stamper says.

But for all the Gates case's lessons, former police officer George Kirkham, now a professor at Florida State University, says that it's actually very unusual for a single individual to be arrested for disorderly conduct on their own front porch. After years of studying Florida arrest reports, in fact, Mr. Kirkham says it's the only one he's come across.

Well this is a good thing since it prepares cops for the world of crime.

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Michelle Obama Debuts Sleek New Do

First Lady Michelle Obama has a new 'do.

On Tuesday - as the Obamas hosted a country music celebration in the White House's East Room with Brad Paisley and Alison Krauss - Michelle rocked an elegant shorter hairstyle.

The new look comes on the same day that President Barack Obama said his wife always "looks fabulous."

"I am a little frumpy," he said on Tuesday's Today show. "Up until a few years ago, I only had four suits. She used to tease me because they would get really shiny."

Comment?

Economy Boucning Up???

The Dow Jones industrials ($INDU) jumped 188 points and finished at 9,069.29, its highest level of the year 2009 and its highest level since November.

The Nasdaq Composite Index ($COMPX) added 47 points to 1,973, its highest level since October 2008.The Standard & Poor's 500 Index ($INX) marched up to 976. Like the Dow, it was its best finish since November 2008.Don't bet on it continuing on Friday. For that you can blame Microsoft (MSFT), Amazon.com (AMZN) and American Express (AXP).Which their respective stocks have fallen due to under-estimated losses.


Here's what I'm thinking about tonight:

The Nasdaq blow-off is coming. Microsoft's revenue miss, which was huge, and Amazon.com's profit drop shocked a lot of people. Microsoft shares were up 7% to $23.76 after hours; they had been down more than 8%. Amazon.com was down 6.8% to $87.48.Here's a way to really see how loopy. On March 9, the Technology Sector Index of the S&P 500 closed at 199.62, 31.3% below its 200-day moving average.How a security or an index trades against a moving average is a nice way to see investor confidence -- or in this case, no confidence.Today, the index finished at 316, a 58% gain from March 9. And it was trading at 26.6% above its 200-day average. That's an amazing reversal. Moreover, when the index peaked at 441 on Oct. 31, 2007, it was only 14% above the 200-day average.Welcome back to reality. What Microsoft and a number of other companies, including United Parcel Service (UPS) and Whirlpool (WHR) managed to do in the last day or two was remind the markets how difficult business has been -- and will be for a while.UPS reported a 49% profit decline and said package volumes declined for a sixth-straight quarter.Whirlpool reported a 33% profit decline. Revenue was off 18%. The company at least said it expects to earn $3.50 to $4 a share for the year. Its earlier projection had been for $3 to $4. But the company earned $5.50 a share in 2008.The company said the U.S. housing market remains under pressure.Rising unemployment and tight credit also have dampened consumers' interest in new appliances.What was interesting from Microsoft and UPS was that they suspect a turnaround is coming, but both companies are hyper-cautious.The turn in oil is starting to turn up at the gas pump. Right now, crude is tracking the stock market. Oil closed up 2.7% to $67.16 today on recovery hopes.Retail gas prices moved up slightly for a second day in a row, AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge Report showed. The national average was $2.465 a gallon today. Cool huh prices up meaning "better" economy! (Yayy!)



That's up 52% on the year -- but down 39% from a year ago's $4.0417 a gallon.The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 3.71% from 3.55% on Wednesday. Which means it was losing since the yields are inverse theur price.
When the stock market falls on Friday, look for yields to fall as well.

That tracks with the fact that first-time buyers are snapping up housing dumped on the market as quick as they can. And, apparently, they are able to get loans.

Ponder that...