Silenced Majority Portal

Pilots Possibly Drinking Bongwater Miss Minneapolis

BBC NEWS | Americas | 'Distracted' pilots fail to land

An inquiry has begun after a US plane heading from San Diego to Minneapolis missed the airport it was meant to land at by 150 miles (240km).

(Well there was an article recently about how some of the pilots make so little that they also work at Starbucks.  Kind of like those people who drive the schoolbusses in split shifts, or community college professors who work at several places and aren't paid for any out-of-class time.)

MN Court Says Bongwater is Illegal

Bong water is an illegal drug, Minn. Supreme Court rules - Minneapolis / St. Paul News - City Pages - The Blotter

According to a split decision by the Minnesota Supreme Court, a person in possession of more than 25 grams of bong water that contains a controlled substance can be prosecuted for a first-degree drug crime. 

DWI in Motorized Lounge Chair

A northern Minnesotan man was arrested and pleaded guilty to driving his customized La-Z Boy chair while he was drunk.  The driving season is pretty short up there; I wonder if he plans to make it into a snow-mobile.  

Here is a video of one of these chairs, which represent an old man's version of a go-cart.  The driver may be unrelated in any way to the man who was arrested.  

Franken Grills KBR (Halliburton) Lawyer About Gang Rape

Jamie Leigh Jones was a KBR employee when she was brutally raped in Iraq.  Below is The Guardian's description of her nightmare: 

In legal papers Jones, who was 20 at the time, says she was fed a knockout drug while drinking with KBR firefighters.

"When she awoke the next morning still affected by the drug, she found her body naked and severely bruised, with lacerations to her vagina and anus, blood running down her leg, her breast implants ruptured and her pectoral muscles torn‚ which would later require reconstructive surgery. Upon walking to the rest room, she passed out again," the papers say.

Jones was treated by a US army doctor who gave forensic evidence to company officials. She says the firm placed her under guard in a shipping container and she was released only after her father asked the US embassy to intervene. When the forensic evidence was handed to investigators two years later, crucial photographs and notes were missing.

Jones says she identified one of the men who attacked her after he confessed, but that Halliburton/KBR prevented her from taking legal action against him or the company by pointing to a clause in her contract requiring disputes to go to arbitration. 
... 
KBR has sought to discredit Jones's account by saying she was seen drinking and flirting with a firefighter before leaving the gathering with him, and that the man claims to have had consensual sex with her. The firm denies that Jones was held prisoner, but not that her injuries indicated serious sexual assault.

Al Franken grilled the lawyer representing KBR on the Senate floor and sponsored a bill to allow victims to have their day in court.  Thirty Republicans voted against the bill thus siding with the rapists, a point not lost by Jon Stewart of the Daily Show.  Stewart shows video in his clip of Republicans protecting KBR juxtaposed next to footage of them attacking Acorn and threatening to deny US taxpayer funds to any company whose employees break the law.  This footage makes a great campaign clip showing the differences between Republicans and Democrats. I'm so glad that I worked hard to get Franken elected.  

  

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Target Corporation Apologizes for Illegal Alien Costume

Here is a photo of the costume.  The costume features an orange jumpsuit and an alien mask. The image on Target's website, shown here, is of a person wearing the costume holding a "green card."  What a stupid move for what many think of as a progressive company based in Minnesota.   

Progressive Lifestyle Changes Piloted in "Blue Zone" Albert Lea MN

from my uncle, who says they should make this mandatory in any national health plan.....

http://www.twincities.com/ci_13555749?IADID=Search-www.twincities.com-www.twincities.com

Albert Lea is a small town south of the Twin Cities, near Mankato, where I lived about 30 years ago.  This town is adopting lifestyle habits from Okinawa, Sardinia and Icaria Greece, all places where people live long and health lives.  They are known as "blue zones."  Will Albert Lea be a "blue zone?"  Sponsors are AARP/United Health Foundation.  People of Albert Lea are now in walking groups, use bikes more and work in community gardens.  Children walk to school more and grocery stores advertise longevity foods.  Residents wear blue rubber bands reminding them to "hara hachi bu" - eat only til 80% full.  Churches offer fruit instead of donuts.  Salads are up and french fries are down at area cafes.  Portions are getting smaller. Results so far look positive.

Michelle Bachmann to be Miss November as well as Action Figure

Bachmann is 'Miss November' in conservative calendar | StarTribune.com

Connecticut company unveils Michele Bachmann action figure | Minnesota Public Radio NewsQ

Rosemary Williams Final Eviction: Police Pepper spray the Crowd

Rosemary Williams was evicted from her Minneapolis home by force a few days ago.  In a symbolic gesture, a group of activists have been around her home for weeks in an attempt to gain a moratorium on home foreclosures in Minnesota.  The banks received billions in bailout funds from US taxpayers while individuals are tossed out onto the street. 

Watch the short video that shows the police using pepper spray to quiet chanting protesters.  The complete story at TwinCities.indymedia.org

Al Franken, My Senator, Knows the US Better than his Colleagues

Watch him draw a map of the USA at the state fair in Minnesota. He's fast, but in case you are wondering, the video is time lapsed. Kayakbiker

My Congressman, Keith Ellison, told me he supports the Public Option

I saw Congressman Ellison at a labor day picnic on Boom Island that he sponsored for his district. I spoke with him briefly about health care legislation (see video). He later told a large crowd that those who have inadequate health insurance or none at all outnumber those that do and that there is power in numbers.

Call your representatives and tell them you support real change in health care.