In a 5-4 ruling, the justices ruled that the EPA should have taken into account the financial costs to utility companies, states and affected citizens before deciding whether to set limits for the toxic air pollutants it regulated in 2011.  SCOTUS forcing the EPA to consider the wholesale costs to the people benefiting from the power generation.

This case arises from the EPA’s efforts to regulate pollution – and in particular mercury – from power plants. The question before the Court was whether, when determining whether to regulate the emissions from power plants, the EPA should take into account the cost to the plants of complying.

States and industry groups had argued that the EPA must do so, while the EPA argued that it does not have to consider costs until later in the process, when it issues specific pollution standards. Today the Court agreed with the states and industry groups, holding that the EPA’s refusal to consider costs when deciding whether to regulate was unreasonable.

The opinion remands the case to the D.C. Circuit for further proceedings. But from the opinion (embedded below) it seems likely that the agency will have to scrap their plans, try again and finding some mechanism to consider costs, before it can act on this issue.

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For some apparent reason the statements by the local Rowlett authority continue to appear fraught with contradictions as they clamor for the ‘Safari Principle’ rule book..   

TEXAS – The teen involved in an assault last week in Rowlett is now in custody.

Police identified the girl on Friday and by Sunday night were able to get her into custody with the cooperation of her and her family.

She was immediately processed into the Dallas County Henry Wade Juvenile Detention Center in Dallas on charges of injury to a child and assault. It is up to a judge on whether she will remain in custody. Her name will not be released because she is 13.

Rowlett Police issued an arrest warrant for suspect over the weekend following the video going viral. The controversial video shot last week shows a 3-year-old child was caught in the attack and could have been seriously injured. (more…)

The gay rights advocates have rallied coast to coast in celebratory parades and marches delighted with the Supreme Court decision granting gay marriage constitutional protections.  Unfortunately, the general disposition of many advocates has surfaced with vulgarity, crass public display, and vitriolic hatred toward religion.

Father Morris, a frequent guest on media punditry shows, was spit upon in New York:

Pastor Joel Osteen in Texas was heckled throughout his Sunday sermon: (more…)

Unfortunately because former Pentagon lawyer Jeh Johnson is now head of the DHS, and specifically because Secretary Jeh Johnson is in that position as a result of his use of a career IOU for keeping his mouth shut in May 2011, and with full acceptance that Jeh Johnson is a political operative of the highest order, we are faced with the following consideration filter:

Is there really a heightened or anticipatory threat, or is Secretary Johnson merely trying to cover his ass in the event that something actually happens – so he can look back and say “we gave warnings”.

You decide.

(Via USA Today) Federal authorities have warned local law enforcement officials across the country about a heightened concern involving possible terror attacks targeting the July 4th holiday, a U.S. law enforcement official said.

While there was no specific or credible threat of attack, the official said the intelligence bulletin prepared by the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI alerted local colleagues to the ongoing threats posed by the Islamic State and other homegrown extremists. The official was not authorized to comment publicly. (more…)

Prior to his election in 2008 President Obama told everyone his intent was to “fundamentally change” the United States of America.  Not enough people were paying attention to what that actually meant, because everyone was filled with their own self-interpretation of “Hope and Change”, or “Change They Can Believe In”.

However, recent events have brought a few more people to seek a greater understanding of what’s going on in 2015.  This outline is simply going to point out a couple of visible footprints, amid the dozens possible, and show how all the modern activism stems from, and traces back to, the Obama White House.

Obama For America, or OFA, was one of the primary organizational change agents that contained all of the visible sub-sets of various activists working diligently to elect their commander-in-chief organizer, Barack Obama.

From OFA a myriad of splinter groups dispersed following the successful election.  Some began working on new social justice endeavors immediately, others began organizing in preparation for things to come in the years that followed ’08.

If you were to look up “Black Lives Matter” on Wikipedia you would note the following: (more…)

It has been a year since we first posted the full 11,000 word Benghazi Brief, explaining the soup to nuts events of what happened from February 2011 up to September 11th 2012.   Many people have wondered why the Mainstream Media have not picked up the story.

It has been a slow process of sunlight crossing the treetops, but Fox News has just affirmed the content with their new story:  “The Arming of Benghazi” – excerpts below.

(Via Fox Business)  The United States supported the secret supply of weapons to Libyan rebels while Hillary Clinton was Secretary of State according to federal court documents obtained by Fox News.

In a sworn declaration to the District Court of Arizona May 5th 2015, a career CIA officer David Manners said, “It was then, and remains now, my opinion that the United States did participate, directly or indirectly, in the supply of weapons to the Libyan Transitional National Council.”   The timing matters because in the Spring of 2011 the Libyan opposition was not formally recognized, and the direct supply of arms was not authorized. At that time, the CIA Director was David Petraeus. (DAVID MANNERS DOCUMENT HERE)

Manners testified before a grand jury investigating American defense contractor Marc Turi who faces trial this September on two counts that he allegedly violated the arms control export act by making false statements. (more…)

Dallas, Texas  — Clinton Broden of the Dallas based criminal defense firm Broden, Mickelsen, Helms & Snipes, LLP. announced that a hearing has been set on the City of McLennan’s motion to quash  the subpoena he issued to Twin Peaks for its surveillance video of the events of May 17, 2015.

The hearing is set before District Judge Matt Johnson in the 54^th District Court at 9:00 am on Tuesday, June 30, 2015.  Presumably a hearing will also be held at the same time on Broden’s motion to sanction the City Attorney’s Office for filing the frivolous motion to quash in the first place.

Broden continued to express bewilderment that the City of Waco believes it has the authority to stop the production of a video that is owned by the Twin Peaks franchisee and which the franchisee is ready, able and willing to produce.  “Everybody needs to understand that this video is the property of the Twin Peaks franchisee.  It is not the property of the City of Waco, theWaco Police or McLennan county.  It is private property,” said Broden. (more…)

The suspect in the brutal beating of a girl and her 3-year-old nephew was positively identified.  The police issued an arrest warrant.  The family of the teen suspect were not cooperating with local police.  Initially the attacker and her “guardian” fled the area and went into hiding; law enforcement reports the family is now willing to bring the 13-year-old attacker to the police to face charges.

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=1670093436554622&id=1618949028335730

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Bree Newsome, the woman who climbed the flag pole today to remove the confederate flag, is no stranger to activism for profit.

Indeed, this morning’s entourage encompassed professional videographers to document the publicity stunt.

A resident of Raleigh North Carolina, in 2013 Ms. Newsome was arrested during a protest against voter ID laws:

Bree Newsome, one of six protesters arrested and taken to jail Wednesday night after staging a sit-in at the office of the Republican North Carolina House Speaker Thom Tillis, said the group is still demanding a meeting with Tillis, who supports the bill. (link)

In 2014 Newsome was a panelist at Octavia Butler Celebration of Arts & Activism at Spelman College; as described: “culminating event brings together the speculative fiction and film communities to discuss the legacy of Octavia E. Butler; the intersection of Afrofuturism, social justice and Butler’s body of work“.

Here’s a video from that event outlining her complete history during the introduction (watch – beginning 24:35) (more…)