Mainstream News

Zurich unveils ‘sex boxes’ for prostitutes

"The city of Zurich on Thursday unveiled a sex drive-in which local authorities say will enable them to keep closer tabs on prostitution, a year after voters backed the plan. Due to be opened officially in a ceremony on August 26th, the nine so-called 'sex boxes' are located in a former industrial zone in the west of the metropolis, the city said. With over 1.8 million people, the Zurich conurbation makes up almost a quarter of Switzerland's population, and the city itself has long been home to a red-light district. Work on the new site cost 2.1 million francs ($2.2 million), below the voter-approved budget, while running costs are expected to be around 700,000 francs a year." Continue reading →

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The Surveillance Speech: A Low Point in Barack Obama’s Presidency

"Why, he used to think just like us when he was younger, and promises to consider our arguments. But some decisions just have to be made by the grownups. Do we know how much he loves us? Can we even imagine how awful he would feel if anything bad ever happened while it was still his job to ensure our safety? By observing Obama's condescension, I don't mean to suggest tone was the most objectionable part of the speech. The disinformation should bother the American people most. The weasel words. The impossible-to-believe protestations. The factually inaccurate assertions. They're all there." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe Surveillance Speech: A Low Point in Barack Obama’s Presidency

Utah Uses Eminent Domain to Seize Land of … Uncle Sam

"In March, Gov. Gary Herbert (R) signed a controversial law authorizing the use of eminent domain to capture some of the millions of acres that the federal government owns here. The law was tailor-made to provoke a lawsuit, possibly reaching the US Supreme Court, and to inspire other Western states to enact similar legislation. Other states have tried similar tactics and failed. For example, the US government controls about 80 percent of the land in Nevada. In a case in the 1990s, the state argued that this violated the equal footing doctrine, which holds that states should be treated equally when admitted to the Union. A federal judge rejected the case." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUtah Uses Eminent Domain to Seize Land of … Uncle Sam

Wis. Restaurant Gives 1965 Prices to Customers Who Pay With Pre-1965 Coins

"How about a hamburger for 12 cents, or 10 of them for $1. Like fries? 10 cents. Chicken? 100 pieces for $4.55. And you can nab a Perch sandwich for 20 cents. The sign went up about three months ago. So far, Tikalsky says they’ve made a 'couple dozen' sales with the special. 'You know, it’s the older clientele that come in here,' he explained. 'They think that’s pretty neat, you know, older coins.' He added later, 'We get a lot of older clientele here in the morning who drink coffee for a couple hours at a time and that gave them something to talk about for a week or two.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWis. Restaurant Gives 1965 Prices to Customers Who Pay With Pre-1965 Coins

Half of All Homes Are Being Purchased With Cash

"More than half of all homes sold last year and so far in 2013 have been financed without a mortgage, according to a Goldman Sachs analysis. The analysis estimates that around 20% of all homes sold before the housing crash were 'all-cash' sales (or around 30% of sales by dollar volume). But over the past seven years, the all-cash share of sales has more than doubled. There’s no exact way to know who is responsible for all of these cash purchases, though they are likely to include some combination of investors, foreign buyers, and wealthy homeowners that don’t want to go through the hassle of getting a mortgage before closing on a sale." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHalf of All Homes Are Being Purchased With Cash

More Car Loans Than Mortgages in U.S.

"There are now more auto loans than mortgages in the U.S., but most of them are going to older Americans, according to New York Fed data. Borrowing for vehicles reached $814 billion in the second quarter, an increase of $20 billion from the previous quarter. The 2.5% jump was bigger than any other loan category in the quarter. The recovery has come faster for older Americans. The only group originating more loans than before the recession are people over 50, likely a result of aging Baby Boomers. But 18 to 29 year olds haven’t seen much of a recovery. Meanwhile, student loan borrowing is up 82% from prerecession levels." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMore Car Loans Than Mortgages in U.S.

Fox News Follows California Beach Bum Living Off Food Stamps For Years

"Meet Jason Greenslate. You don’t know him but you help buy him his food. With no job and no plans to get one, Jason picks up a cool $200 a month on his EBT card courtesy of ‘we the people’. How many more Jasons are there out there?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFox News Follows California Beach Bum Living Off Food Stamps For Years

Assistant U.S. attorney’s Facebook posts probed

"The U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas Malcolm Bales released a statement Wednesday morning regarding derogatory comments about minorities and President Obama posted on Facebook by a Beaumont-based assistant U.S. attorney. Asked about his comments Monday, John Craft said they 'were not related to the U.S. Attorney's office' and had no other comment. John Malcolm Bales, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas, said his office does not have a social media policy but said he did not agree with Craft's comments and found any discriminatory sentiments 'reprehensible.'" Continue reading →

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West Virginia judge arrested for allegedly attempting to frame ex-lover’s husband

"A West Virginia judge was arrested on Thursday and charged in federal court with attempting to plant evidence on a former lover’s husband and having him arrested for a crime he did not commit. Mingo County Circuit Judge Michael Thornsbury, 57, also was accused of appointing a business partner to be foreman of the grand jury investigating the husband, the indictment said. Thornsbury, Mingo County’s only circuit judge since 1997, was arrested on Thursday, according to a federal prosecutor. He was released after paying a $10,000 bond, according to court documents." Continue reading →

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More Fast and Furious guns surface at crimes in Mexico

"Three more weapons from Fast and Furious have turned up at crime scenes in Mexico, CBS News has learned, as the toll from the controversial federal operation grows. According to Justice Department tracing documents obtained by CBS News, all three guns are WASR-10 762-caliber Romanian rifles. A steady stream of the guns have been recovered at crime scenes in Mexico and the U.S. But the Justice Department has refused repeated requests from Congress and CBS News to provide a full accounting. An estimated 1,400 guns are still on the street or unaccounted for." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMore Fast and Furious guns surface at crimes in Mexico