REBEL NEWS 4/19/13:Drone Wars: Privacy vs Profit

Maverick Media’s Rebel News airs 9-10 a.m. (more or less) Friday on WOMM, 105.9-FM/LP – The Radiator in Burlington on The Howie Rose Variety Show and streaming worldwide.

TOP STORY: Welcome to the Drones Wars

States Debate Limits as Business Eyes $89 Billion

Idaho took the lead in protecting people from drone surveillance last week when Gov. Butch Otter became the first state leader to sign legislation.  Known as the “Preserving Freedom from Unwanted Surveillance Act,” the law restricts the use of drones by government or law enforcement, particularly when it involves gathering of evidence and surveillance on private property.

     

Mosquito MAV

In Florida, the state senate has passed a similar bill, The Freedom from Unwanted Surveillance Act, which prevents police from using drones for routine surveillance. However, it would allow unmanned aircraft if there’s a threat of terrorist attack. 
     Massachusetts and Rhode Island are considering legislation that would prevent police from identifying anyone or anything not related to a warrant.

     According to the ACLU, at least 35 states have considered drone bills so far this year, and 30 states have legislation pending. Most bills require a “probable-cause” warrant for drone use by law enforcement, while a handful seek to ban weaponized drones.

     They come in all sizes, from the Predator drones used in Pakistan and other countries to tiny mosquito drones that can be used covertly in urban neighborhoods and indoors. In the next few years police will increasingly turn to them for surveillance. But groups like People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals also see their potential for tracking poachers, while farmers want aerial vehicles to measure crop growth.

     The ACLU is urging state lawmakers to require that police obtain a warrant before using any drone to conduct a search. But the Virginia-based Rutherford Institute argues that governments should go further and ban any information obtained by drones from use in court. In January, Rutherford submitted model legislation to lawmakers in all 50 states.

     In Maine, a Joint Judiciary Committee had a work session last week on LD 236, officially known as “An Act to Protect the Privacy of Citizens from Domestic Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Use.” After a debate between the Attorney General and an ACLU spokesperson, committee members voted unanimously to postpone a decision for two weeks.

     In a nearby hearing room, where a debate on gun control was underway, one gun-rights supporter displayed a bumper sticker with a drone on it – and the words "Protect our 2nd amendment rights to shoot down drones."

     Maine’s Attorney General has proposed a temporary moratorium until July 1, 2014. The official rationale is to allow time for law enforcement agencies to come up with "minimum standards," including prior authorization by "some official" before drones could be used for surveillance. But the AG also argues that the drone bill should not impede the possibility of a drone test center in northern Maine. 

     At least 37 states are competing for six drone testing centers that are expected eventually to launch 30,000 drones into the skies. For Maine, one lure could be the promise that the state won’t require operators to get a warrant before launching a spy-bot.

     Democrats, who control Maine’s legislature but not the governorship, hope to win back the top spot again.  Thus, they want backing from the police, aerospace industry interests, new drone manufacturing firms, and citizens living near the closed Loring AFB who believe a drone test center and missile defense base would bring back jobs.

     A variety of activist groups are staging protests in an attempt to stop the use of domestic drones in US airspace.  Events are expected in at least 18 states at research facilities, drone command centers, manufacturing plants, universities that have drone programs and the White House, according to Nick Mottern, founder of Known Drones, a website that tracks unmanned aircraft activity in the US and abroad.

     The protests are being organized by more than 15 anti-drone groups, including Codepink, Veterans for Peace, No Drones Network, and the American Friends Service Committee. The groups oppose both domestic drone use and targeted drone killings overseas.

     On February 7, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released an updated list of communities, states, law enforcement agencies, and universities that have requested and received licenses to deploy drones. The Electronic Freedom Foundation obtained the list via a Freedom of Information Act disclosure and learned that more than 81 public entities have so far applied to the FAA for permission to launch drones.

     

Lethal Ornithopter

Why the rapid push for domestic deployment ?  According to the Center for Responsive Politics, drone makers hope to speed their entry into a domestic market valued in the billions.  The US House actually has a 60-member “drone caucus” — officially known as the House Unmanned Systems Caucus. In the last four years, it members received nearly $8 million in drone-related campaign contributions. Drone Caucus members from California, Texas, Virginia, and New York received the lion’s share, channeled from firms in the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International.

     In a recent study, the Teal Group estimates that spending on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) will increase over the next decade from current worldwide expenditures of $6.6 billion annually to $11.4 billion. That’s more than $89 billion in the next 10 years. "The UAV market will continue to be strong despite cuts in defense spending," claims Philip Finnegan, Teal’s director of corporate analysis. "UAVs have proved their value in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan," he said, "and will continue to be a high priority for militaries in the United States and worldwide."
     On  April 23, the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Human Rights will hold a hearing Drone Wars: The Constitutional and Counterterrorism Implications of Targeted Killing. If you can't attend, you can submit a statement for the record. Chairman Durbin has invited advocates and stakeholders to offer their perspectives and experiences by submitting written testimony.
     Submissions are limited to 10 pages, submitted in PDF or Word Document form to Stephanie Trifone at Stephanie_Trifone@Judiciary-dem.Senate.gov  no later than Monday, April 22, 2013 at 5:00 p.m. Statements can be addressed to Chairman Durbin, Ranking Member Cruz, and Members of the Subcommittee. For some reason they can’t accept previously published information as a statement.
     The FAA is currently writing regulations for domestic drone use. According to Defending Dissent, the federal agency's jurisdiction is limited. But it could provide safeguards such as compliance with Fair Information Practices for all licensees, creation of a public database of drone operators – with information about the surveillance equipment used and the operator's data minimization procedure. Operation of drones could also be restricted to only licensees, ruling out wildcat rental operators. Otherwise, it’s going to be crazy up there.

Related Story: How Are Drones Used in the US? PBS Newshour

THIS WEEK ON REBEL NEWS:  Drone laws  vs. drone business, Patrick Leahy and the F-35s, Django unseen in China, the politics of explosion, economic warnings, and a new leak at Fukushima. VERMONT: Marathon security, no pipeline reversals, and considering online gambling. Here are highlights:

Another Time, Another Bomb

ROUND UP

Django Unseen… in China

Quentin Tarantino’s irreverent film about slavery in America, Django Unchained, had China’s street and media buzzing last week after the film was banned from Chinese theaters. The move, beginning with a dramatic plug pulling in a Beijing cinema less than a minute into a screening, came despite major promotion, including telephone interviews with Leonardo DiCaprio. Notices halting all screenings quickly appeared at other cinemas.
     No reason was given for the ban, but the theory is that the full-frontal shots of male slaves and brief female nudity, together with the violence and profanity, could have triggered the censorship. Some media outlets tied to human rights groups have connected the ban and depictions of torture in the film, suggesting that the scenes bothered Chinese officials concerned that audiences might see a parallel with the state’s own alleged torture of dissidents. New ad brag: Banned in Beijing!

ECONOMIC WARNINGS

Are we headed for another crash?

A bubble is biggest before it bursts.  Keep it in mind If you listen to talking heads these days, whose happy talk suggests the current stock market boom is set to continue indefinitely. According to CNN, Americans are more optimistic than they’ve been in six years.
     But as CNBC analyst Marc Faber also explains, "If we continue to move up, the probability of a crash becomes higher."  As to when it might happen, he predicts "sometime in the second half of this year."
     How? After all, the stock market isn’t crashing. But there are signs of trouble. As in 2008, it could take stocks extra time to catch up with other economic realities. 
     What realities? One is the demand for energy. Similar to 2008, overall US demand is falling.  Obviously, it’s good for people to consumer less energy. But it’s also an indication that economic activity is starting to slow down. Beyond that, gold and silver are falling, the price of oil continues to decline, markets in Europe are collapsing, and consumer confidence lags in the US.
     Let’s start with gold. The price was down by about 4 percent last week and has fallen below $1500 an ounce for the first time since July 2011. Overall, the price has dropped 10 percent since the beginning of the year, and is about 22 percent below a record high in September 2011. The rapid fall in recent days—some call it the biggest plunge in more than 30 years -- indicates that deflationary tendencies are strengthening worldwide. Nevertheless, gold remains a safe investment for the long-term. (Imagine Jim Cramer sound effect here)
     So does silver, although the price fell by about 5 percent last week.  If it falls much more it will present an even more favorable buying opportunity. Like gold, there are times when the price swings dramatically. But it could be an even better long-term investment.
     The price of oil was down about 3 percent last week. Many also see this as a positive thing. But remember 2008, a price drop came just before the crash. If the price goes below $80, that could be a signal that a major economic crisis is about to happen.
     According to Wells Fargo, the number of Americans taking loans from retirement accounts rose 28 percent over the past year. Of those taking out loans, about a third were in their 50s, followed by those in their 60s (29%) and those in their 40s (27%). The increase in the 50s group was nearly double the rise among those under 30.
     As the same time, casino spending is declining. Positive, right? But casino spending is one of the most reliable indicators about the overall health of the economy. Lean times in Vegas. 
     Turning to Europe, the unemployment rate in Greece had topped 27.2 percent, up from 25.7 percent last month. This isn’t a depression, it’s an avalanche. European financial stocks have been hit particularly hard -- and for a reason:  many Europe’s major banks are close to insolvent.  Last week, European financial stocks fell to seven month lows.
     According to Reuters, the number of Spanish companies going bankrupt is up 45 percent over the past year. A record number went bust in the first quarter. Companies are under intense pressure from tight credit and low demand. The 2,564 firms filing for insolvency was a 10 percent rise from the last quarter, and a 45 percent increase from the same period last year.
    So, does all this mean another crash is coming? The real question seems to be when.

HEALTH SCARES

New Leak Delays Fukushima Repairs

Efforts to remove highly contaminated water from a leaking underground storage pool at the Fukushima nuclear plant were delayed this week when the plant’s operator found another leak, this time in pipes that would be used to move water to above-ground storage containers.
     Tokyo Electric Power Co. (Tepco) discovered that six gallons of water had leaked from a junction in the pipes used to move water between other storage pools. The company is having trouble  finding space to store the huge amounts of toxic water created by makeshift efforts to cool reactors at the Fukushima -plant, which was damaged two years ago by an earthquake and tsunami. Since then, Tepco has been pouring water onto the melted reactors and fuel storage pools to keep them from overheating again.
     The newest leak will force Tepco to postpone removal of water from the No. 2 storage pool while the the faulty pipe is repaired. The pool has spilled 32,000 gallons of radioactive water and may still be leaking. Another recent mishap involved the temporary loss of power for the vital cooling systems last month. A rat had short-circuited part of the electrical system.

VERMONT SCENE

City Marathon Looks at Security

On Sunday May 26, thousands of runners converged in Burlington to take part in the 25th annual Vermont City Marathon, with thousands more cheering them on. "I'd like to think we're safe in Vermont, but I'm sure people in Boston thought that too," said Kasey Flynn, a spectator last year who plans to run this time. But what happened last week at the Boston Marathon “is definitely going to be on all our minds.”
    To help ease public fears race organizers and emergency responders met Tuesday to talk about safety. Burlington police say there will most likely be increased security, which could include bomb sweeps, more cops and asking people to leave any bags behind. If so, they'll get the word out soon. "Nothing is off the table," said Burlington Police Deputy Chief Andi Higbee.

PIPELINE POLITICS:  No Flow Reversal

Environmental regulators say that Act 250, the state’s land use law, applies to any proposal to reverse the flow in an oil pipeline that crosses Vermont. It’s a victory for environmentalists during the fierce debate over another pipeline, the proposed Keystone XL, which would move tar sands oil from Alberta to Texas.
     The Vermont Natural Resources Council says the pipeline that carries oil from Portland, Maine to Montreal could have its flow reversed and carry Canadian tar sands oil through Vermont, New Hampshire and western Maine. The Portland-Montreal Pipe Line Corp. claims to have no “active plan” to do that. But the ruling quotes its CEO telling Vermont Public Radio that the company has been "aggressively looking at every opportunity to use these excellent assets in a way that will continue to provide for the North American energy infrastructure needs." The ruling says that statement means the possibility of such a pipeline reversal is "not hypothetical."
     Monday's decision cited a July 2010 spill of more than 1 million gallons of tar sands oil from a pipeline near the Kalamazoo River in Michigan. Kirsten Sultan, coordinator of the District 7 Environmental Commission, noted that the tar sands oil sank to the river bottom, coating wildlife, rocks, and sediment. “Cleanup from this spill is incomplete, with costs at $800 million and rising," she wrote.

VT LOTTERY: Going Online?

Online lottery sales may be coming to Vermont. The Vermont Lottery Commission is currently looking at ways to expand its base, according to Lottery Commission Chair Martha O’Connor. A recent survey suggests that 45.4 percent of Vermonters play, slightly more women than men, with an average age of 49.
     Lotteries are operated by most US states, and generate major revenues as other sources are decreasing. But they are regressive. In other words, the percentage spent on lottery tickets rises as a person’s income falls. A famous study from Cornell University concluded that people “with lower incomes substitute lottery play for other entertainment.” Sales and poverty are strongly related. The poor appear to see lotteries as “a convenient and otherwise rare opportunity for radically improving their standard of living,” said the study.
     In another study, Duke University researchers found that the more education someone has the less one spends on lottery tickets: dropouts averaged $700 annually, compared to college graduate’s at $178. Those from households with annual incomes below $25,000 spent an average of nearly $600 a year on lottery tickets; those from households earning over $100,000 averaged $289. Blacks spent an average of $998, while whites spent $210.
     In other words, lotteries take the most from those who can least afford it, essentially redistributing wealth from the poor to the batter-heeled.  They escape what is really a disguised taxation simply by not buying tickets. Why not? They’re already “winners.” Retail merchants meanwhile get commissions on a virtually cost-free product -- lottery tickets. And politicians boast that they haven’t raised taxes.
     The recent Vermont survey tested interest playing games online and found that 10.5 percent of the 1,000 people polled — both players and non-players — would more likely play if offered the chance on the Internet. Thirteen percent said they can see themselves using a smart phone to buy tickets.
     Supporters of bringing online lottery sales to Vermont dismiss worries that it would make it even easier for people with gambling problems to lose big.
     Since its creation in 1977, the Vermont Lottery has attempted to balance two competing goals — “produce the maximum amount of net revenue consonant with the dignity of the state and the general welfare of the people.” This tension – between profit and public welfare – will play out next year once the commission makes its official recommendations to the House Ways and Means Committee.
     Jim Condon, a key member of Ways and Means, has already telegraphed support for at least considering online sales. He thinks the lottery is just a form of benign entertainment that produces revenues and helps lower property taxes. The money people drop on tickets is state revenue they are “voluntarily giving up,” he argues.
     However, Ways and Means Chair Janet Ancel and House Speaker Shap Smith are skeptical. “If I had been in the Legislature I wouldn’t have supported Powerball,” Ancel told the Burlington Free Press last week. But she wants to revisit “how much we want to depend on the lottery for essential services.”
     If selling tickets online is needed to keep the lottery alive, Smith claims to be persuadable. But If it’s “a nose under the tent to expanded gambling, I have real concerns.”

*

POSTSCRIPT

“What matters in life is not what happens to you but what you remember and how you remember it.”

- Garcia Marquez

It’s been a week of explosions, first in Boston at the Marathon and then at a fertilizer plant in Texas.  Intense emotions and hot words. Cowardice in the US Senate –and by another maniac or deranged group.

     But that doesn’t explain the music MSNBC has been running under news footage. Kind of a militant dirge, the kind of theme you might hear just before Bruce Willis arrives to bring some villain "to justice.” But somehow I don’t get the sense that the public is in a really forgiving mood at the moment. They’re kind of discontented, even riled up.

     Maybe it’s the music.

DRUG NEWS

VT House Passes Pot Decriminalization

On April 16, in a 92-49 vote, the Vermont House passed a bill decriminalizing possession of limited amounts of marijuana. It now moves to the Senate, where chances of passage are good. At House and Senate hearings Attorney Gen. William Sorrell and Public Safety Commissioner Keith Flynn testified in favor, and Gov. Peter Shumlin has expressed support. It’s one of the upsides of having a one-party state.

     Progressive Chris Pearson introduced H. 200 with a tri-partisan group of 38 co-sponsors. It removes criminal penalties for possession of up to one ounce of marijuana and replaces them with a civil fine, similar to a traffic ticket. However, those under age 21 would have to undergo substance abuse screening. Under current state law, possession of up to two ounces of marijuana is a misdemeanor with a possible six months jail sentence for the first offense and up to two years for getting caught twice.

     Nearly two-thirds of Vermont voters (63 percent) support removing criminal penalties for possession of small amounts and replacing them with a fine, according to a survey by Public Policy Polling.

The Feds vs. the Job Creators

Will Vermont also let farmers grow hemp? And if they do, will the DEA round them all up? Farmers Behind Bars: new reality TV concept. Anyway, that’s the worst case scenario as the Vermont House Agriculture Committee basically announces support for the idea.  In March, a proposal to let Vermont farmers grow the “same” plant that produces marijuana passed the Senate.

     As most people know, it’s not really the same. Plants grown for hemp are raised differently and contain much lower levels of marijuana’s active ingredient. Basically, no buzz.  Yet it’s illegal under federal law, supposedly because it can somehow be diverted for the drug trade.

     ‘I think all we’re up against is that the DEA feels this is a dangerous crop, which we’ve discovered as a committee it just is not,’’ says Rep. Carolyn ­Partridge, Committee chair and supporter of hemp legalization.

     It’s the archetypical multi-purpose crop. Hemp can be used as a heating ­fuel, as fabric for cloth and rope (the Navy used to love it), as construction material, paint, and more. And they say it grows pretty well in Vermont’s tough climate.

     In 2008, Vermont passed a law calling on the Agency of Agriculture (AoA) to begin issuing hemp growing permits to farmers -- as soon as the federal government gets serious about creating jobs and raising revenue.

     After all, hemp growers are J creators. And the J is for jobs. 

REBEL NEWS, 4/5/2013: Obama's Secret Trade Deal

Maverick Media’s Rebel News airs 9-10 a.m. (more or less) on Fridays on WOMM (105.9-FM/LP – The Radiator and live streaming). THIS WEEK: Obama’s secret deal, Labor amnesia, Fukushima fallout, America’s love affair with conspiracies, an attention deficit epidemic, guns in schools , college majors and unemployment, jails gone wild (shocking video from Maine!),  and local updates.  Here are highlights:

TOP STORY: Obama’s Secret Trade Deal

Out of public view the Obama administration is negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement, a US-led free trade deal with several Pacific Rim countries. Six hundred US corporate advisers have had input, but so far the text hasn’t been shared with the public or media.

     The level of secrecy is unprecedented. During discussions paramilitary teams guard the premises, helicopters loom overhead, and there’s a near-total media blackout on the subject. US Senator Ron Wyden, who chairs the congressional committee with jurisdiction over TPP agreement, was denied access to the negotiation texts.

     In a floor statement to Congress Wyden said, “The majority of Congress is being kept in the dark as to the substance of the TPP negotiations, while representatives of US corporations — like Halliburton, Chevron, Comcast and the Motion Picture Association of America — are being consulted and made privy to details of the agreement.”

     The deal would give multinational corporations unprecedented rights to demand taxpayer compensation for policies they think will undermine their expected future profits -- straight from the treasuries of participating nations. It would push Big Pharma’s agenda in the developing world -- longer monopoly controls on drugs, drastically limiting access to affordable generic meds that people need. The TPP would undermine food safety by limiting labeling and forcing countries like the US to import food that fails to meet its national safety standards,  and ban Buy America or Buy Local preferences.

     The proposed legislation on intellectual property will have enormous impacts, including Internet termination for households, businesses, and organizations as an accepted penalty for copyright infringement. Nations who sign on to the deal would essentially submit themselves to oppressive IP restrictions designed by Hollywood, severely limiting their ability to digitally exchange information on sites like YouTube, where streaming videos are considered copyrightable.

     “Broader copyright and intellectual property rights demands by the US would lock up the Internet, stifle research and increase education costs, by extending existing generous copyright from 70 years to 120 years, and even making it a criminal offense to temporarily store files on a computer without authorization. The US, a net exporter of digital information, would be the only party to benefit from this,” said Patricia Ranald, convener of the Australian Fair Trade and Investment Network. 

ARMAGEDDON UPDATE

Reuters reports that the United States will soon send a missile defense system to Guam to defend it from North Korea. The U.S. military is adjusting to what Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has called a "real and clear danger" from Pyongyang. 

LABOR AMNESIA

Rediscovering the legacy

Automation and globalization continue to create massive labor displacement as corporations advance their interest while attempting to restrict the rights of workers. Labor’s fall from grace is a case of collective amnesia. The true, largely ignored history of the labor movement tells a different story... Revisiting May Day & the First Red Scare.  (Radio drama segment)

The Fukushima Effect 

Thyroid problems for US kids

Some bad news from Common Dreams -- Infants on the West Coast are showing increased incidents of thyroid abnormalities and researchers attribute it to radiation released after the 2011 meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear power plant. According to a new study published in the Open Journal of Pediatrics, children born in Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington between one week and 16 weeks after the meltdown began are 28 percent more likely to suffer from congenital hypothyroidism.

     The abnormalities result from a build up of radioactive iodine in the thyroid and can result in stunted growth, lowered intelligence, deafness, and neurological abnormalities—although some can be treated if detected early. Because their bodies are more vulnerable and their cells grow faster than adults', infants are the proverbial 'canary in the coal mine' for injurious environmental effects.

     Earlier this year, the Fukushima Prefecture Health Management Survey found that more than 40 percent of the Japanese children studied showed evidence of thyroid abnormalities.

CONSPIRACY NATION

America Speaks: One quarter say Obama is the Anti-Christ

They aren’ t absolutely sure, but about a fourth of all Americans suspect that the President just might be the anti-christ. Of course, more than a third also believe that global warming is a hoax and more than half suspect that a secretive global elite is trying to set up a New World Order.

     The survey, conducted by Public Policy Polling, asked a sample of voters about a number of conspiracy theories, phrasing the questions in eye-catching language. The study revealed that 13% of respondents thought Obama was "the antichrist", while another 13% were "not sure" – just open to the possibility that he might be. Some 73% were able to say unequivocally that they didn’t think Obama was "the antichrist".

     The survey also showed that 37% of Americans thought that global warming was a hoax, while 12% were not sure and a slim majority – 51% – agreed with the overwhelming majority view of the scientific establishment and thought that it wasn’t. It indicates that 28% of people believed in a sinister global New World Order conspiracy which is aimed at ruling the whole world through authoritarian government. Another 25% were "not sure," and only – 46% – thought such a theory wasn’t true.

     Some theories were dismissed by large majorities. For example, only 7% said the moon landing was faked, 14% believed in Bigfoot, and 4% accepted that "shape-shifting alien reptilian people control our world by taking on human form." 5% believed that Paul McCartney died in a car crash in 1966 and was replaced by a double so the Beatles could continue their careers. Just 11% believe that the US government knowingly allowed the terror attacks of 11 September 2001 to take place. 

Head Games

One in five boys has ADHD

From Alternet  ...The number of young people diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder has increased remarkably over the past decade, according to data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The rise, reported in the New York Times, has led some to say that it is due to parent pressure on doctors and a loose definition of the disorder. The data says an estimated 6.4 million children aged 4 to 17 have received the diagnosis, a 16 percent increase from 2007 and a 53 percent rise over the last decade.

    The data says an estimated 6.4 million children aged 4 to 17 have received the diagnosis, a 16 percent increase from 2007 and a 53 percent rise over the last decade. Two-thirds of those diagnosed take meds like Ritalin and Adderall, which can lead to anxiety, addiction and potentially psychosis. Nearly one in five high school boys and 11 percent of all school-age children have ADHD, the data indicates.

     One Harvard professor of medicine said, “There’s a tremendous push where if the kid’s behavior is thought to be quote-unquote abnormal — if they’re not sitting quietly at their desk — that’s pathological, instead of just childhood.”

EDUCATION

Indiana could be first state to require guns in schools 

The NRA released its long-awaited "National School Shield Report" last week.  It’s a lengthy document that recommends schools arm and train staff members to carry guns. A few hours earlier, Indiana's House Education Committee advanced a similar measure -- but one that takes the NRA's logic even further. The NRA's "model" legislation would lift restrictions on guns in schools and require training for school employees who carry guns. But the Indiana proposal would make the state the first to require all public schools to have an armed person with a loaded weapon in the building during school hours.

     But the Indiana proposal would make the state the first to require all public schools to have an armed person with a loaded weapon in the building during school hours.  After receiving a yet-to-be-determined training course, any school employee -- a teacher, principal, or janitor -- could become the school's guard, called "school protection officers." The amendment doesn't specify which firearms the "officers" must hold or whether the guns should be visible or concealed.

     The amendment's sponsor, Rep. Jim Lucas (R), thinks mass shootings like the one in Newtown could be prevented by more firearms. "The way they are right now, school is a gun-free zone. Tragically we see the tragic consequences of gun-free zones, defenseless zones like the Colorado theater, Columbine, and Virginia Tech," Lucas told The Huffington Post Wednesday. "We have to work to overcome the stigma that firearms are a bad thing."

     According to Marc Egan, a lobbyist for the National Education Association, 27 states are now considering various laws that would arm people in schools. "This is not the right approach," he said. "Parents do not want to see their kids' schools turned into fortresses."

RELATED NEWS: A new report finds a clear link between high levels of gun violence and weak state gun laws. The 10 states with the weakest gun laws collectively have an aggregate level of gun violence that is more than twice as high - 104 percent higher, in fact - than the 10 states with the strongest gun laws.

  

POST-COLLEGE DEPRESSION

From CBS News… Here are the college majors with the highest unemployment rates. Top marks go to number 1. Clinical psychology, with 19.5% unemployment... 2. Miscellaneous fine arts 16.2%... 3. US history 15.1%... 4. Library science 15.0%... 5. a tie between Military technologies and educational psychology 10.9%.

     The rest of the list isn’t good news for prospective psychologists and those interested in the arts. But there are a few surprises: 6. Architecture 10.6%; 7. Industrial & organizational psychology 10.4%; 8. Miscellaneous psychology 10.3%; 9. Linguistics & comparative literature 10.2%; 10. (tie) Visual & performing arts; engineering & industrial management 9.2%.

     11. Engineering & industrial management 9.2%  (what’s up with this?) ;12. Social psychology 8.8%; 13. International business 8.5%; 14. Humanities 8.4%; 15. General social sciences 8.2%; 16. Commercial art & graphic design 8.1%; 17. Studio art 8.0%; 18. Pre-law & legal studies 7.9%; 19.  (tie) Materials engineering and materials science and composition & speech 7.7%; 20. Liberal arts 7.6%.

     21. (another tie) Fine arts and genetics 7.4%; 22. (tie) Film video & photography arts and cosmetology services & culinary arts 7.3%; 23. Philosophy & religious studies and neuroscience (tie) 7.2%; 24. Biochemical sciences 7.1%; 25. (tie) Journalism and sociology 7.0%.

VIDEO SHOCKER: JAILS GONE WILD

Maine provides the latest example of corrections staff abusing restraints and pepper spray, at times with deadly results. Other examples include: Nick Christie died in 2006 after being pepper sprayed twelve times and spending six hours naked in a restraint chair. As in Maine, guards placed a spit hood over him, ensuring he would breathe the liquid as long as he wore it. The case was ruled a homicide. 

     In Arizona, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio discontinued the use of restraint chairs in 2006 after three wrongful death lawsuits. And Jesse Lee Williams, Jr. was restrained when guards sprayed an entire can of pepper spray into a hood before putting it over his mouth as part of a savage beating. He died two days later.

     And now Paul Schlosser, a former military medic who was receiving treatment in a Maine prison for bipolar disorder and depression. In the video, Schlosser is in a restraint chair while his face is coated at close range with pepper spray from a canister intended for use on large crowds from a distance of 20 feet. Schlosser chokes and fights for breath.

Burlington: Crime, Treatment and "Impairment"

Burglaries and violent crime are on the rise in Vermont's Queen City, and the primary reason is substance abuse. That's what Burlington Police Chief Michael Schirling told a Neighborhood Planning Assembly.

      During a lively panel discussion on April 12 Chittenden County State’s Attorney T.J. Donovan argued for a balance between accountability and treatment, and outreach team leader Matt Young warned about "serious functional impairment," which involves poverty, culture, entitlements, and mental health issues. Take a look...

“The numbers of the last three years for burglaries citywide look like this,” Burlington Police Chief Schirling reported early in the forum, “247 reported in 2009, 294 reported in 2010, and 380 reported in 2011. So, a substantial increase.”

     Two things are “in play,” he explained. “The first is intractable opiate and substance abuse addiction. Sort of secondary, but quite a bit further behind that, are folks that are I guess for lack of a better word, career criminals.”

     During a question period residents expressed support for police and corrections officials. But some also complained about noise and other “quality of life” offenses, and one resident said some of his friends and colleagues are “talking about leaving because it is at a tipping point.”

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The discussion, held during a regular NPA meeting at Edmunds School near downtown, included Chittenden County State’s Attorney T.J. Donovan, University of Vermont Dean of Students David Nestor, Champlain College Director of Residential Life Ashley Mikell, Community Corrections District Manager Debbie Thibault, Rain Banbury of Burlington Parellel Justice, and Matt Young, who heads the Howard Center’s street outreach team.

     Donovan agreed with Schirling’s general assessment and said substance abuse is becoming an epidemic in Vermont. “It’s not just a Burlington issue.”

     The prosecutor pointed to a recent comment by Public Safety Commissioner Keith Flynn that more people are dying in Vermont due to opiate overdoses than from highway fatalities. “And we’re a rural state,” Donovan added. “Our jails are full in Vermont. We have a corrections budget of $140 million and a recidivism rate, depending on who you ask, of over 50 percent.”

     Thibault reported that the number of people under Corrections Department supervision has actually decreased by 14 percent since last year. That is because treatment courts and rapid arraignment have been effective, she said.

     Probation officers, who work in specialized areas, currently have about 30 people on their caseloads.  “With a smaller caseload we can focus on more serious offenders,” Thibault added. She said that should allow more direct supervision, seeing people more often, and more work by community corrections officers.   

     In 2009 the violent crime rate in Burlington was 29 percent lower than the national rate average, according to FBI figures. But the property crime rate was almost 50 percent higher.

     Donovan said the solution is balance. “People who commit crimes must be held accountable,” he argued, “but we also have to look at the back end of putting people in jail” since they will eventually get out.

     “It’s in our collective interest to plan for that release,” he said.

     One obstacle is that Vermont’s treatment facilities have long waiting lists. “And it’s no secret what people are going to do when they’re not getting treatment. They’re going to burglarize, they’re going to rob,” Donovan said.

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Young noted that even though treatment is available for most of those who want it, many people who feel disadvantaged “are disabling themselves when they are unable to find employment. They see other people getting disability and they believe a lack on employment opportunities means they are disabled.” The resulting frustrating leads to “acting out,” he said.

     Young said that the state defines this as “serious functional impairment,” while the Police Department and courts are seeing “severe and persistent functional impairment. This is very difficult to address. There is poverty involved, culture, entitlements, and mental health issues.”

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Nestor acknowledged that although UVM students are sometimes the victims of crimes, “they may well be perpetrators of crime.” He added the university works with the police and service providers to hold students accountable for crimes committed off campus and get them into restitution programs.

     The list of common “nuisance” or “quality of life” offenses involving students includes noise, open containers and underage parties. Nestor estimates that UVM students are involved in about 250 off campus “infractions” a year. Drugs and alcohol are often involved.

     During the recent mayoral race Bram Kranichfeld, a city council member who sought the Democratic nomination, criticized UVM’s response to noise, vandalism and drug dealing with a memorable line. “Right now they have a more serious internal response to overdue library books than noise complaints,” he charged.

     Ward 6 NPA Co-facilitator Neil Groberg repeated the line as part of a question about whether local schools can do more to make students accountable.

     In response Nestor mentioned the question about whether the school could keep students from graduating if they get into trouble off campus. “We’re asked our legal counsel to look very closely at that,” he said, “and quite frankly, the words comes back that we really can’t begin to make that kind of nexus. We are certainly doing things to hold students accountable.”

     If students don’t pay parking tickets, for example, Nestor said the university checks ticket lists against campus registrations and contacts the students. “We talk about the expectation that the institution has for them to be good citizens,” he said. “We’ve been able to get some good results.”