Land Of The Flea

One-Man Stand Against Police Checkpoints: Joe Draego

"The phrase 'Your papers, please' has no place in a free republic. Joe Draego of Charlottesville, Virginia is among the brave and principled people who have challenged the legitimacy of police checkpoints. In early July, Mr. Draego was stopped at a checkpoint set up near his home and refused to comply when a police officer demanded to see his ID. He joins us today to explain what happened next -- and why he took the stand that he did." Continue reading →

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DEA agrees to pay $4.1 milllion to student they locked in a cell for days

"A San Diego, California college student was awarded $4.1 million in a settlement with the federal government on Tuesday, ending his lawsuit against the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) for leaving him in a holding cell for five days with no food or water in April 2012. KNSD-TV reported that no criminal charges will be brought against the officers involved in the incident, which began when the victim, 24-year-old Daniel Chong, was taken to a DEA office following a raid by a task force made up of DEA, state and local officers on a '420' party Chong attended." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDEA agrees to pay $4.1 milllion to student they locked in a cell for days

Reevaluating Drug Courts: No Mother Should Have to Go Through What I Did

"July, 4 2013 was the first anniversary of my son's death. My son was a vibrant, well-educated, working professional in New York City. We know that he was in a crisis situation. We know that he could not present himself to the emergency room without breaking his probation. We know that the state's 911 Good Samaritan Law wouldn't have protected him because he was already involved with the criminal justice system. On the day he died, he didn't go to the hospital for a relapse as we practiced time and time again; he did not call 911 as he had before. He passed away in his home in Manhattan, even though he lived one block from Lenox Hill Hospital." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingReevaluating Drug Courts: No Mother Should Have to Go Through What I Did

Massachusetts smokers try to get ahead of new cigarette tax

"The state's newest transportation bill will raise taxes on gas, services on computer software upgrades and cigarettes. Gas will go up three cents a gallon. And you'll be paying a dollar more if you buy a pack of cigarettes and $10 more if you buy a carton. State legislators estimate the new taxes will raise $800 million in the next five years. The added revenue will be used for transportation projects and to help sustain public transit." Continue reading →

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‘Way Harder’ For Goldman And Morgan Stanley To Get Out Of Commodities Than JP Morgan

"Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley two decades ago became known as the 'Wall Street Refiners' for their mastery of both financial and physical commodities. But since 2012 Morgan Stanley has looked at selling its commodity arm and Goldman has made moves to scale back its physical operations. Letters between the banks and the Federal Reserve, received by Reuters under the Freedom of Information Act, show both banks are in discussions on conforming or divesting activities that fall outside the normal scope of commercial banks." Continue reading →

Continue Reading‘Way Harder’ For Goldman And Morgan Stanley To Get Out Of Commodities Than JP Morgan

US Rents Hit Record Highs As Homeownership Plunges To 18 Year Lows

"The raw homeownership rate of 65.0% was unchanged from last quarter and 0.4% lower than a year ago. And on a seasonally adjusted basis, the percentage of Americans who have a house declined from 65.2% to 65.1%: the lowest since 1995. Obviously the flipside to most 'children' in their mid-30s still living in their parents' basements is that those wishing to brave the New Normal world will have to spend a lot for rent. A record lot in fact: the median asking rent for US vacant housing units just hit an all time high of $735 per month. The pain is most acute for those renting in the Northeast, where the median rent soared by $65 to a record high of $961." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUS Rents Hit Record Highs As Homeownership Plunges To 18 Year Lows

Bill Bonner: How America’s Working Stiffs Got Stiffed

"The Party leadership is not infallible. Neither in China nor in the US. In both countries, the feds – looking out for themselves – make policy decisions that are disastrous for others. We have no idea what calamity the central planners will cause in China. But we can take a fair guess of what they will do to America. Broadly, China’s feds build too many factories, malls and apartments. America’s feds encouraged the opposite error – borrowing and spending too much for consumption purposes. China’s real wages doubled in the last 10 years… after doubling in the previous 10 years. That is why the Chinese feel so much better off. They ARE much better off." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBill Bonner: How America’s Working Stiffs Got Stiffed

Treasury’s Lew: Congress Needs to Pass Debt Limit

"Congress needs to raise the debt limit and take away the 'cloud of uncertainty' about the nation's ability to pay its bills, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said. 'The fight over the debt limit in 2011 hurt the economy, even though, in the end, we saw an extension of the debt limit. We saw confidence fall, and it hurt the economy. Congress needs to do its job. It needs to finish its work on appropriation bills. It needs to pass a debt limit,' Lew said on NBC's Meet The Press. Senior lawmakers on Capitol Hill are trying to come up with must-do legislation to keep federal agencies running after Sept. 30 and prevent the possibility of a government shutdown." Continue reading →

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Chicago’s Cash-on-Hand Plunges

"Mayor Rahm Emanuel closed the books on 2012 with $33.4 million in unallocated cash on hand — down from $167 million the year before — while adding to the mountain of debt piled on Chicago taxpayers, year-end audits show, reports the Chicago Sun Times. Last week, Moody’s Investors ordered an unprecedented triple-drop in the city’s bond rating, citing Chicago’s 'very large and growing' pension liabilities, 'significant' debt service payments, 'unrelenting public safety demands'." Continue reading →

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