Admiral Who Led Bin Laden Raid Tells President Trump to Revoke His Security Clearance, Too (2018)
time.com

... The Navy admiral who oversaw the 2011 mission to kill Osama Bin Laden has criticized President Donald Trump for revoking former CIA director John Brennan's security clearance -- saying the President has "humiliated" and "divided" America.

Retired Adm. William H. McRaven, a former Navy SEAL and commander of Joint Special Operations Command, wrote an open letter in the Washington Post Thursday in which he asked Trump to revoke his security clearance, as well. McRaven adds to the growing chorus of criticism over Trump's targeting of Brennan and other former intelligence and security officials who have spoken out against him.

On Thursday and early Friday, 13 former intelligence chiefs " including former CIA director General David Petraeus and former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates " released a statement backing Brennan and calling Trump's attacks "ill-considered and unprecedented."

McRaven, in his letter in the Post, said Brennan was "one of the finest public servants I have ever known," adding that he "would consider it an honor if you would revoke my security clearance as well, so I can add my name to the list of men and women who have spoken up against your presidency."

He added: "Through your actions, you have embarrassed us in the eyes of our children, humiliated us on the world stage and, worst of all, divided us as a nation."

The White House announced Wednesday that Trump had revoked Brennan's security clearance, with the President citing "erratic conduct" and "outrageous allegations." Brennan hit back on Thursday, saying that his involvement in the investigation into Russian involvement in Trump's 2016 election victory was the reason for his dismissal.

Trump said he was also considering revoking security clearance for others, including former FBI Director James Comey, former Acting Attorney General Sally Yates, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, and former Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe.

All of the names on Trump's list have either been publicly critical of him, or were involved in the investigation of the Trump campaign and Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Below is the full text of the letter signed by 13 former senior intelligence officials: ...

EDS, an HP Company 'Cat Herders' (1 minute long)
www.youtube.com

... [edited from the provided transcript to provide complete sentences]...

This man right here is my great-grandfather he's the first cat herder in our family hurting cats don't let anybody tell you it's easy anybody can [herd] cattle.

[H]olding together 10,000 half wild short hairs well that's another thing all together

being a cat herder is probably about the
[transcript stops]
...

:)

www.bloomberg.com

... The US military is exploring whether to build a temporary base capable of housing 10,000 people near the Gaza Strip as part of its push for a stabilization force of troops from other countries to monitor a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

The Navy is seeking a cost estimate from a list of pre-qualified companies for "a temporary, self-sustaining military base of operations capable of supporting 10,000 personnel and providing 10,000 square feet of office space for a period of 12 months," according to a Request for Information sent to eligible contractors and seen by Bloomberg News. ...

Stan Ridgway - Camouflage (1986)
www.youtube.com

Lyrics excerpt ...

genius.com

...
[Verse 1]
I was a PFC on a search patrol huntin' Charlie down
It was in the jungle wars of '65
My weapon jammed and I got stuck way out and all alone
And I could hear the enemy movin' in close outside
Just then I heard a twig snap and I grabbed my empty gun

And I dug in scared while I counted down my fate
And then a big marine, a giant with a pair of friendly eyes
Appeared there at my shoulder and said wait
When he came in close beside me he said

"Don't worry, son, I'm here
If Charlie wants to tangle now he'll have two to dodge."
I said, "Well thanks a lot."
I told him my name and asked him his
And he said, "The boys just call me Camouflage."

[Chorus]
Whoa Camouflage
Things are never quite the way they seem

Whoa Camoufalge
I was awfully glad to see this big marine

[Verse 2]
Well I was gonna ask him where he came from
When we heard the bullets fly
Coming through the brush
And all around our ears

It was then I saw this big Marine light a fire in his eye
And it was strange but suddenly I forgot my fears

[Verse 3]
Well, we fought all night side by side we took our battle stance
And I wondered how the bullets missed this man
Cause they seemed to go right through him
As if he wasn't there
And in the mornin' we both took a chance and ran

[Verse 4]
And it was near the river bank when the ambush came on top of us
And I'd thought it was the end and we were had
Then a bullet with my name on it came buzzin' through a bush
And that big marine he just swatted it with his hand

Just like it was a fly

[Chorus]
Whoa Camouflage
Things are never quite the way they seem
Whoa Camouflage
This was an awfully strange Marine

[Verse 5]
And I knew there was something weird about him
Cause when I turned around he was pullin' a big palm tree
Right up out of the ground
And swattin' those Charlies with it from here to Kingdom Come

When he led me out of danger
I saw my camp and waved goodbye
He just winked at me from the jungle and then was gone
And when I got back to my HQ, I told 'em about my night
And the battle I'd spent with a big marine named Camouflage

[Verse 6]
When I said his name a soldier gulped
And a medic took my arm
And led me to a green tent on the right
He said, "You may be tellin' the truth boy
But this here is Camouflage

And he's been right here since he passed away last night.
In fact, he's been here all week long
But before he went he said, 'Semper Fi,'
And said his only wish
Was to save a young marine caught in a barrage

So here, take his dog tag, son
I know he'd want you to have it now."

And we both said a prayer for a big marine named Camouflage

[Chorus]
Whoa Camouflage
Things are never quite the way they seem
Whoa Camouflage
This was an awfully big marine
...

Dire Straits - Brothers In Arms (1985)
www.youtube.com

Lyrics excerpt ...

genius.com

...
[Verse 1]
These mist covered mountains
Are a home now for me
But my home is the lowlands
And always will be

Some day you'll return to
Your valleys and your farms
And you'll no longer burn
To be brothers in arms

...

Police stage chilling' raid on Marion County newspaper, seizing computers, records and cellphones (August 2023)
kansasreflector.com

... In an unprecedented raid Friday, local law enforcement seized computers, cellphones and reporting materials from the Marion County Record office, the newspaper's reporters, and the publisher's home.

Eric Meyer, owner and publisher of the newspaper, said police were motivated by a confidential source who leaked sensitive documents to the newspaper, and the message was clear: "Mind your own business or we're going to step on you."

The city's entire five-officer police force and two sheriff's deputies took "everything we have," Meyer said, and it wasn't clear how the newspaper staff would take the weekly publication to press Tuesday night.

The raid followed news stories about a restaurant owner who kicked reporters out of a meeting last week with U.S. Rep. Jake LaTurner, and revelations about the restaurant owner's lack of a driver's license and conviction for drunken driving.

Meyer said he had never heard of police raiding a newspaper office during his 20 years at the Milwaukee Journal or 26 years teaching journalism at the University of Illinois.

"It's going to have a chilling effect on us even tackling issues," Meyer said, as well as "a chilling effect on people giving us information."

The search warrant, signed by Marion County District Court Magistrate Judge Laura Viar, appears to violate federal law that provides protections against searching and seizing materials from journalists. The law requires law enforcement to subpoena materials instead. Viar didn't respond to a request to comment for this story or explain why she would authorize a potentially illegal raid. ...

ESA Looks at Incorporating Insects Into Astronaut Diets
www.extremetech.com

... Humans have been eating insects for millennia, but despite the uncomfortable feelings a bug-based diet might evoke in cultures not used to their consumption, they could form a vital part of future astronauts' diets. A new study being conducted by the European Space Agency will explore how these miniature organisms could help recycle unsavoury compounds and create a useful protein source to supplement future space menus.

"Insects seem to cope quite well in space environments. They have a good ability to withstand physical stresses," said sa Berggren, lead author of a study published in the journal Frontiers in Physiology. Berggren also highlighted how good insects were at converting waste products that humans can't utilize into proteins and fats that we can, making them useful recyclers as well as sources of nutrition. ...

Don't Blame Heritage for ObamaCare Mandate (2012)
www.heritage.org

...Is the individual mandate at the heart of "ObamaCare" a conservative idea? Is it constitutional? And was it invented at The Heritage Foundation? In a word, no. ...

The confusion arises from the fact that 20 years ago, I held the view that as a technical matter, some form of requirement to purchase insurance was needed in a near-universal insurance market to avoid massive instability through "adverse selection" (insurers avoiding bad risks and healthy people declining coverage). At that time, President Clinton was proposing a universal health care plan, and Heritage and I devised a viable alternative.

My view was shared at the time by many conservative experts, including American Enterprise Institute (AEI) scholars, as well as most non-conservative analysts. Even libertarian-conservative icon Milton Friedman, in a 1991 Wall Street Journal article, advocated replacing Medicare and Medicaid "with a requirement that every U.S. family unit have a major medical insurance policy." ...

How the Heritage Foundation, a Conservative Think Tank, Promoted the Individual Mandate (2011)
www.forbes.com

... This came up at Tuesday's Western Republican Leadership Conference Debate, where Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich tussled on the question:

ROMNEY: Actually, Newt, we got the idea of an individual mandate from you.

GINGRICH: That's not true. You got it from the Heritage Foundation.

ROMNEY: Yes, we got it from you, and you got it from the Heritage Foundation and from you.

GINGRICH: Wait a second. What you just said is not true. You did not get that from me. You got it from the Heritage Foundation.

ROMNEY: And you never supported them?

GINGRICH: I agree with them, but I'm just saying, what you said to this audience just now plain wasn't true.

(CROSSTALK)

ROMNEY: OK. Let me ask, have you supported in the past an individual mandate?

GINGRICH: I absolutely did with the Heritage Foundation against Hillarycare.

ROMNEY: You did support an individual mandate?

ROMNEY: Oh, OK. That's what I'm saying. We got the idea from you and the Heritage Foundation.

GINGRICH: OK. A little broader.

ROMNEY: OK.

(Romney was prepared to go on, but Michele Bachmann, in her usual role as the person who makes the debates less useful, interjected and changed the subject. Here's a YouTube video of the entire debate. The Gingrich-Romney exchange begins at the 27:38 mark.) ...

First snowfall of the season in Western New York
www.wivb.com

... The first snowfall of the season has hit Western New York, dropping anywhere from a dusting to six inches of snow across the area. ...