Pistol-packin’ shopper whips our her 9mm and fires at suspected Home Depot shoplifters

vig·i·lan·te ˌvijəˈlan(t)ē/ noun

1. a member of a self-appointed group of citizens who undertake law enforcement in their community without legal authority, typically because the legal agencies are thought to be inadequate.

   Trying to get a sense of what was unfolding in the parking lot of a Home Depot store in Auburn Hills (MI) is not easy.

   Seems a 47-year old female customer at the big-box store believed that two men “fleeing” in a car from the store’s parking lot were “escaping” thieves and in an effort to assist security personnel she opened fire on vehicle containing two men who’d just been confronted by a Home Depot security guard – they are called “loss prevention specialists” now apparently.

   You can decide for yourself what all this means. It means there’s an armed crazy lady from Clarkston running around being all vigilante-like. http://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/oakland-county/2015/10/06/customer-fires-shoplifting-suspect-auburn-hills-home-depot/73467882/

What do these women all have in common?

1905: Bertha von Suttner
1931: Jane Addams
1946: Emily Greene Balch
1976: Betty Williams
1976: Mairead Corrigan
1979: Mother Teresa
1982: Alva Myrdal
1991: Aung San Suu Kyi
1992: Rigoberta Menchú Tum
1997: Jody Williams
2003: Shirin Ebadi
2004: Wangari Muta Maathai
2011: Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
2011: Leymah Gbowee
2011: Tawakkol Karman
2014: Malala Yousafzai

Answer: They are the heroines of peace – the 16 women who’ve been awarded with the Nobel Peace Prize  and the years of each being so honored.

Footnote: Jane Addams was nominated 91 times between 1916 and 1931, when she was finally awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. By contrast Emily Green Balch received the Nobel Peace Prize the first year that she were nominated.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/nobelprize/photos/pb.81239734102.-2207520000.1444334087./10153147084684103/?type=3&theater

Disney movie and Tv star Kevin Corcoran dies at 66

So much of grew up on Disney television, Disney movies, Disney vacations. They are ingrained in our childhoods. When an actor from a beloved Disney classic dies, it feels like a relative has passed. That is the power of Disney. Last month, the death of Dean Jones, the fatherly star of That Darned Cat!, The Love Bug and many others, led to a massive outpouring of feelings on social media. Earlier this week, we lost Kevin Corcoran, a boy best known for his dog.

In 1957, Corcoran landed the principle role in Old Yeller. Playing the son of Fess Parker, better known as television’s Daniel Boone, Corcoran broke hearts with his portrayal of a young man forced to do the unthinkable. Old Yeller still gets us every time. That would not be the California native’s only Disney role. He appeared in The Shaggy Dog (1959) as “Moochie.” He was no stranger to the nickname, as he went under the name in a handful of Mickey Mouse Club television spots. Corcoran also acted in Babes in Toyland,Bon Voyage! and Savage Sam, the Old Yeller sequel, to name a few.

Later in life, he moved to the other side of the camera for Disney as a producer and assistant director, working on memorable entries such as Pete’s Dragon and Return from Witch Mountain.

On October 9, 2006, Corcorcan was honored as a Disney Legend. He died of cancer at the age of 66.  http://metv.com/stories/rip-disney-legend-and-old-yeller-star-kevin-corcoran

Plenty of blame to go around when it comes to Flint water fiasco

Maybe you were too busy to pay much attention – but after last night’s segment on the CBS Evening News – much of the country knows there’s a problem coming out of the water faucets of homes, businesses and schools in Flint (MI) over the past few months.

If this was a story about someone else’s state or country or planet… it might almost be funny… in a very dark humorous sort of way… from now on I think we should all agree to vote only for elected officials especially Governor Snyder who recently admitted that he and others did not “fully understand things” BEFORE they make decisions which impact life and limb and liberty in our state and our country

How the Flint water crisis emerged

Easy to read captions accompany this photo essay on MLive.com and nicely laid out timeline too beginning with the Flint city council voting 7-1 in March 2013 to stop buying Detroit water and join the Karegnondi Water Authority, a new pipeline project that will deliver water from Lake Huron. The state agreed with the water switch, which was projected to save the city $19 million over eight years. Emergency manager Ed Kurtz officially signed the agreement April 16, 2013.

http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2015/10/how_the_flint_water_crisis_eme.html#22

And today’s announcement by Governor Snyder that he’s cobbled together state tax dollars plus foundation grants and Flint city taxes to switch back to buying water from the City of Detroit.

Gov. Rick Snyder this morning held a press conference in which he said he supports reconnecting the city of Flint’s water supply back to Detroit’s water system. Snyder said he will ask the Legislature to provide half ($6 million) of the $12 million bill to reconnect the system. The city of Flint will pay $2 million, and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation will contribute $4 million. Mayor Dayne Walling said he expects the city to reconnect to the Detroit system in two weeks.

http://michiganradio.org/post/gov-snyder-moves-come-12-million-switch-flints-water-back-detroits-supply

Teen pregnancies down in Michigan, study says; overall birthrate lowest in history

According to the Michigan League for Public Policy, funding for evidence-based programs, sex education, and access to birth control and health care have all helped reduce teen pregnancies. Okay, that’s all well and good but it turns out Michigan’s overall birth rate is the lowest in history. For some of you, it’s okay to start having babies. U.S. births are at a record low. Last year saw 63 births per 1000 women. Put that into context. Around a century ago, that figure was 127 births per 1000 women. That means we are at the lowest birth rate since the government started tracking America’s fertility.

Teen births in Michigan have dropped 40% over the past two decades, according to a recent reportby the Michigan League for Public Policy.

In 1992, about 18,000 Michigan teens had babies compared to 8,000 20 years later. That puts Michigan’s teen birth rate of 24 per 1,000 slightly below  the national average of 27 teen births per 1,000 in 2013.

“We have far fewer babies born to teen moms today, and we should be thrilled with this progress,” said Alicia Guevara Warren, Kids Count in Michigan Project Director at the Michigan League for Public Policy and author of the report. “But we must not slow our efforts.”   

For more on the drop in teen pregnancies follow this link to the Michigan Public Radio story – http://michiganradio.org/post/teen-pregnancies-down-michigan-study-says#stream/0

And related…

This report from 2013 blames the recession for the drop in the overall birth rate in Michigan the US.  Laura Scott is a life coach, she’s the author of “Two Is Enough: A Couple’s Guide to Living Childless By Choice.” And she’s the director of the “Childless by Choice Project.”

So what is causing couples to make this decision? Follow this link for more on this topic.

http://michiganradio.org/post/us-birth-rate-record-low-more-couples-choose-remain-child-free#stream/0

Holding Michigan 3rd graders back is not the answer

From: Jeffrey L. Salisbury <jeffreylsalisbury@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, Oct 8, 2015 at 10:21 AM
Subject: House Bill 4822
To: “Rep. Ken Yonker” <district072@house.mi.gov>

Good morning Ken —

I’m  writing you​ today about House Bill 4822, the third grade reading bill.

​ As a retired high school teacher, father, grandfather and former school board member, ​

​ ​

I definitely want to make sure all children become good readers. Many schools ​including the Wayland Union Schools ​ need help to make that happen.

​ 

But punishing children by holding them back a grade is not going to make things better. Kids want to learn, and we just have to make sure they get the opportunity through early interventions coupled with specialized and individualized programming.​

Please, work with your colleagues to take out the “grade retention” requirements.

​ ​

Instead of holding kids back, we need to make a promise: all children will get the help they need, starting as early as possible, and for as long as they need it

​ so that they can reach their own highest reading level possible.​

If you can take out the grade retention sections, and get a promise that schools will get funding for the reading programs, I can support you in voting yes on the bill. 

 

But if the bill would still hold kids back, I need you to vote NO.

Please do what we  both know is best for kids across Michigan. 

 

Thank you.

 

​Jeff