China & Russia refuse nuclear agreement: Obama staff passed out drunk in hotel hallway

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China & Russia refuse nuclear agreement: Obama staff passed out drunk in hotel hallway

DAILY SHOW, COLBERT REPORT Announce Staff Promotions

DAILY SHOW, COLBERT REPORT Announce Staff Promotions

DAILY SHOW, COLBERT REPORT Announce Staff Promotions

NEW YORK, January 28, 2014 – Emily Lazar has been promoted to Co-Executive Producer of Comedy Central"s(R) "The Colbert Report," it was announced today by Stephen Colbert, Executive Producer, Writer and Host of the program. Lazar formerly served …
Read more on Broadway World

Stephen Colbert"s Pistachios Super Bowl Ad Is Predictably Great

Make that commercials as in addition to the teaser, two actually aired during one commercial break of the game. In the teaser for the spot, The Colbert Report host, in typical fashion, thought the Super Bowl was being played in honor of his debut …
Read more on Bustle

Pussy Riot members land some Putin digs on "Colbert"

The language barrier can sometimes be a stumbling block when it comes to humor, especially with the ironic jujitsu Stephen Colbert performs in his interviews nightly on "The Colbert Report." But Tuesday, he had two guests up to the challenge: Nadya …
Read more on Los Angeles Times

Read more about DAILY SHOW, COLBERT REPORT Announce Staff Promotions and other interesting subjects concerning Humor at TheDailyNewsReport.com

US-Funded Hospital in Afghanistan Has 3 Light Bulbs, Forces Staff to Wash Newborns in River Water

A hospital in Afghanistan’s Parwan province, which cost US taxpayers almost $ 600,000, is so ill-equipped, hospital staff are washing newborn infants using untreated river water, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) reported on Wednesday. SIGAR’s visit, which was conducted in November 2013 (photos here), also found mold and mildew throughout the hospital; a lack of furniture and equipment; a serious risk for earthquake damage; and only enough electricity to operate three light bulbs in the entire facility. 

In 2009, a local Afghan contractor, Shafi Hakimi Construction Company, was commissioned to build Salang Hospital as part of a Department of Defense-funded reconstruction program. When a US Forces-Afghanistan (USFOR-A) task force first inspected the hospital when it was under construction in 2012, they determined it had major problems and residents of Salang district wouldn’t have adequate healthcare until they were fixed. In November 2012, the contractor was paid in full. But when SIGAR inspected a year later, it found “the deficiencies identified by the task force had not been corrected.”

NBC News, which recently visited the facility, observed “desperate” hospital staff attempting to administer dental care to a 12-year-old girl—even though they only had access to six pieces of rusty dental equipment. As NBC described it: “The girl was shivering with fear, and began crying after the doctor gave her a shot in her gums. Another man held her still as Sarwy swiftly tilted her head back, opened her mouth and yanked out one of her teeth with a pair of pliers.” 

Hospital staff told SIGAR that they are paying about $ 18 a month of their own money to a neighbor, in order to get enough electricity to operate the three light-bulbs in the hospital. Additionally, SIGAR found that the contractor built the hospital two stories high, instead of one, without authorization from US officials or further study. “The hospital does not serve the medical needs of the people of Salang district as intended and may be a danger to its patients and staff because of the potential for the structure’s collapse in an earthquake,” the report reads. 

This account differs sharply with a press release put out by US Forces-Afghanistan yesterday, which argued that despite the SIGAR report, “the facility is currently providing improved medical services” and noted that, “local ministry officials are currently in the process of hiring a surgeon and other staff and have installed a solar power generation unit.” John Sopko, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, told NBC, “either no one from USFOR-A has actually visited this facility recently or USFOR-A is living in an alternate reality.” 

Mother Jones has reached out to US Forces-Afghanistan to find out when they last visited the facility. According to a January 21 US Army document obtained by Mother Jones, US forces have been unable to conduct a physical re-inspection of the hospital since the SIGAR notified them of their findings on January 3, due to “reduced combat forces [and] threats in the area.” â€‹

Politics | Mother Jones

US-Funded Hospital in Afghanistan Has 3 Light Bulbs, Forces Staff to Wash Newborns in River Water

Media Matters staff: Hannity : TSA Animated Video Explaining Airport Screening Process To Children Is "Indoctrination"

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Media Matters staff: Hannity : TSA Animated Video Explaining Airport Screening Process To Children Is "Indoctrination"

Media Matters staff: Eric Boehlert On MSNBC"s Disrupt : Right-Wing Media Thrive On "Phony Outrage" Over Benghazi

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Media Matters staff: Eric Boehlert On MSNBC"s Disrupt : Right-Wing Media Thrive On "Phony Outrage" Over Benghazi

Media Matters staff: Hannity Calls Duck Dynasty Star"s Anti-Gay Comments "Old Fashion Traditional Christian Sentiment And Values"

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Media Matters staff: Hannity Calls Duck Dynasty Star"s Anti-Gay Comments "Old Fashion Traditional Christian Sentiment And Values"

Media Matters staff: Megyn Kelly Defends White Santa "Jest": "Fox News, And Yours Truly, Are Big Targets For Many People"

From the December 13 edition of Fox News’ The Kelly File:

From the December 13 edition of Fox News’ The Kelly File:

Previously: 

Megyn Kelly Wants Kids At Home To Know That Jesus And Santa Were White

What Megyn Kelly’s White Santa Says About Power Dynamics In Journalism

MSNBC’s All In Calls Out Megyn Kelly For “Bizarre” Segment On White Santa

Media Matters for America – County Fair

Media Matters staff: Megyn Kelly Defends White Santa "Jest": "Fox News, And Yours Truly, Are Big Targets For Many People"

Media Matters staff: Megyn Kelly Defends White Santa "Jest": "Fox News, And Yours Truly, Are Big Targets For Many People"

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Media Matters staff: Megyn Kelly Defends White Santa "Jest": "Fox News, And Yours Truly, Are Big Targets For Many People"

Media Matters staff: Rush Lashes Out At The Pope Over Critique Of Inequality

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Media Matters for America

Media Matters staff: Rush Lashes Out At The Pope Over Critique Of Inequality

Steubenville Case: Superindent And 3 Staff Indicted (VIDEO)

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Steubenville Case: Superindent And 3 Staff Indicted (VIDEO)

South Africa G4S prison staff accused of abuse

BBC
October 28, 2013

Leaked video footage shows a prisoner resisting an injection

Staff at one of South Africa’s most dangerous prisons, run by British firm G4S, have been accused of “shocking” abuses and of losing control.

The South African government has temporarily taken over the running of Mangaung prison from G4S and launched an official investigation.

It comes after inmates claimed they had been subjected to electric shocks and forced injections.

Read more

This article was posted: Monday, October 28, 2013 at 9:49 am

Tags: foreign affairs

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Infowars

South Africa G4S prison staff accused of abuse

South Africa G4S prison staff accused of abuse

BBC
October 28, 2013

Leaked video footage shows a prisoner resisting an injection

Staff at one of South Africa’s most dangerous prisons, run by British firm G4S, have been accused of “shocking” abuses and of losing control.

The South African government has temporarily taken over the running of Mangaung prison from G4S and launched an official investigation.

It comes after inmates claimed they had been subjected to electric shocks and forced injections.

Read more

This article was posted: Monday, October 28, 2013 at 9:49 am

Tags: foreign affairs

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Infowars

South Africa G4S prison staff accused of abuse

UK defense ministry staff rack up £271,000 phone bill – calling directory services

Published time: October 12, 2013 14:05

AFP Photo / Eric Piermont

UK Ministry of Defense staff have landed themselves a £271,000 bill after making incessant phone calls to the national Directory Enquiries service, according to new figures. That equates to some 186 times a day.

A new Freedom of Information request has revealed that ministry staff made 158,640 requests to ‘118’ numbers – which put callers in touch with directory services – since the last parliamentary election in 2010. This means that on average, MoD staff would have to be calling the service about 186 times a day.

Staff from the UK’s Department of Work and Pensions called the same Directory Enquiries service 97,265 times over the same period, at a cost of £72,387 to taxpayers, according to figures obtained by Sky News.

“Calls to Directory Enquiries from the majority of the 260,000 MoD fixed phone lines are banned, but some staff working in isolated locations, who do not have access to a military phone network or the Internet, are able to call directory enquiries to obtain contact details,” an MoD spokesperson said.

“Calls…from fixed phone lines have fallen by over 75 per cent in the last four years and we are working to further reduce the number of calls made.”

The news comes amid cuts in defense spending of 8 percent, with the army planning to cut 20,000 jobs and the air force 10,000. On Saturday, the Daily Telegraph cited military sources as saying that an “overzealous” austerity drive was also leaving the armed forces without vital equipment.

In August, it was revealed that MoD staff spent about £40,000 calling the UK’s speaking clock – a recorded message that gives the exact time to the second – 158,640 times in the previous two years. The MoD introduced a ban on ringing the service last year.

RT – News

UK defense ministry staff rack up £271,000 phone bill – calling directory services

NPR Offering Buyouts to Cut Staff by 10 Percent

NPR said Friday that it was offering across-the-board buyouts in hopes of cutting its staff by 10 percent and eliminating its deficit.

The buyouts, which are to be offered across the entire public radio organization, were approved by NPR’s board of directors to help with a projected operating deficit of $ 6.1 million.

NPR, formerly known as National Public Radio, also announced Friday that Paul Haaga Jr., a board member since 2011, will take over as acting president and CEO effective Sept. 30. A search committee has been appointed to find a permanent replacement.

“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to lead one of the world’s leading providers of news, music and cultural programming on an interim basis and I look forward to working with my colleagues on the board and senior leadership team to help this great organization build on its success,” Haaga said in a statement. He was not available for an interview Friday, NPR said.

Haaga has served as chairman of the board at the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History and is the retired chairman of the Board of Capital Research and Management Company.

He succeeds Gary Knell, who is leaving after less than two years to become president and CEO of the National Geographic Society. Knell’s predecessor, Vivian Schiller, resigned under pressure after calling the tea party racist.

The leadership change was announced as the board approved a fiscal 2014 budget that includes $ 178.1 million in operating and investment revenues and expenses of $ 183 million. NPR says its voluntary buyout plan is intended to reduce that deficit.

NPR distributes news, information and music programming to 975 public radio stations, reaching 27 million listeners a week. It also has focused heavily in recent years on expanding its digital presence.

In April, NPR moved to a new $ 201 million headquarters with all digital equipment in Washington. The organization consolidated its staff in one building north of the U.S. Capitol after being spread across several sites for years.

In late 2008, NPR announced it was laying off 7 percent of its staff, the first time it had downsized in 12 years, after experiencing sharp declines in funding, especially from corporate sponsors. The layoffs affected 64 full-time staff, of which half came from news and programming.

© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Newsmax – America

NPR Offering Buyouts to Cut Staff by 10 Percent

Obama aides to brief Congressional staff on Syria

The Obama administration is on Tuesday sending two top officials to Capitol Hill to give a top secret briefing to congressional staff.

Robert Ford, the U.S. ambassador to Syria; Derek Chollet, the assistant secretary of defense for international affairs; and someone from the intelligence commmunity will brief chiefs of staff, legislative directors and other aides with top secret clearance.

Continue Reading

The briefing will be about “U.S. policy for Syria and recent events,” according to an email sent to some aides Tuesday. The briefing will be at 5 p.m. in the U.S. Capitol Visitor’s Center.

POLITICO – Congress

Obama aides to brief Congressional staff on Syria

The Alex Jones Show - Wednesday, August 21, 2013 (Full Show): Staff Sgt. Joe Biggs

The Alex Jones Show - Wednesday, August 21, 2013 (Full Show): Staff Sgt. Joe Biggs

Arkansas private school: ‘Staff is armed and trained’

Robby Soave
Daily Caller
August 24, 2013

In the wake of Arkansas’s decision to prevent school districts from proactively arming their teachers, a private school is taking the exact opposite approach.

The pastor of Arkansas Christian Academy in Bryant, Ark., has decided to advertise the fact that at any time, between one and seven school staff members are carrying guns.

“I just felt like with what’s going on in many of the public sectors where there seems to be a lot of shootings we need to take the same stance that we do in church on Sunday for our kids Monday through Friday,” said Perry Black, pastor of the school, in a statement.

Staff members began receiving training and permits to carry weapons earlier this year, in response to the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Conn. Now, a sign outside Christian Academy stands as a warning to any would-be shooter.

“Staff is armed and trained. Any attempt to harm children will be met with deadly force,” reads the sign.

Full article here

Related posts:

1. Arkansas Houses passes bill on concealed guns on college campuses


2. Newtown Calls for Armed School Officers


3. Arkansas Arms Teachers In Schools; Hiding and Locking Doors “Is Not a Plan”


4. Two soldiers shot at Arkansas recruiting center, one dead


5. Gun Control Laws: Texas ‘Arm The Teachers’ School Policy Uses Concealed Carry Permit

This article was posted: Saturday, August 24, 2013 at 6:04 am

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Prison Planet.com

Arkansas private school: ‘Staff is armed and trained’

Rare turtles smaller than 50p coin surprise staff at sea life centre

By Mark Molloy Saturday 24 Aug 2013 10:25 am

Two Roti Island Snake Necked Turtles were born in Birmingham this week (Picture: National Sea Life Centre/PA)

This turtle may be one of the rarest species in the world and it could also be one of the cutest too.

Keepers at the National Sea Life Centre in Birmingham received a shock last week when a pair of new arrivals were spotted swimming in a tank.

Staff had no idea their Roti Island Snake Necked Turtles had laid eggs before they made their unexpected debut.

‘The first we knew of it was when we came in one morning and found these two youngsters swimming around,’ explained curator Graham Burrows.

He believes the mother had hidden her eggs in the sand at the bottom of her tank before they hatched.

The species is one of the rarest in the world (Picture: National Sea Life Centre/PA)

The species is one of the rarest in the world and the surprise appearance of the two turtles brings the total captive population to just 250 worldwide.

‘That’s more than the population left in the wild,’ Mr Burrows added.

‘The species is confined to a tiny area in the middle of a single small island, Rote Island, in Indonesia, and was hunted almost to extinction for the pet trade.

‘It has been protected since 2001, and with luck the population will recover.

‘If it doesn’t, captive reared animals like our two new arrivals could be used for reintroduction to give the species a vital last lifeline.’

The one-week-old turtles are now receiving special care and are being fed a diet of bloodworm and shrimp before they go on display to the public next week.

Cute

Metro » Weird | Metro UK

Rare turtles smaller than 50p coin surprise staff at sea life centre

U.S. Senate confirms Obama"s head of Joint Chiefs of Staff

U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey testifies at a Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee hearing on ”Department Leadership.” on Capitol Hill in Washington June 11, 2013.

Credit: Reuters/Kevin Lamarque

Reuters: Politics

U.S. Senate confirms Obama"s head of Joint Chiefs of Staff

SEC staff morale low, atmosphere marked by distrust: study

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission logo adorns an office door at the SEC headquarters in Washington, June 24, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Jonathan Ernst

By Sarah N. Lynch

Thu Jul 18, 2013 8:16pm EDT

(Reuters) – The Securities and Exchange Commission is not the best place to work among federal agencies in Washington, according to a new study by a government watchdog.

The SEC’s organizational structure “has not been conducive to motivating and encouraging a high level of performance,” concluded the Government Accountability Office in a report released on Thursday.

“Many staff indicated that morale is low and a significant percentage characterize the atmosphere of the agency as one of distrust,” the GAO said.

The GAO’s report was required by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law, whose three-year anniversary is this month.

The study was mandated following several high-profile lapses at the SEC during the financial crisis, including its failure to detect Bernard Madoff’s massive Ponzi scheme.

An Office of Personnel Management survey of federal employees ranked the SEC 19th of 22 similarly sized agencies based on employee satisfaction.

The GAO laid out several areas in need of improvement, including workforce planning, performance management, communication and personnel management assessment.

While the SEC has taken some steps in most of these areas to improve, the GAO urged the agency to do more.

Some of the findings in the GAO’s report are consistent with complaints often lodged by the SEC’s Chapter of National Treasury Employees Union.

In addition, the GAO’s survey found that many employees still view the culture at the SEC as “siloed” – where one division does not talk to the other.

This was highlighted several years ago by the Madoff and Allen Stanford Ponzi scandals, where examiners and enforcement lawyers failed to properly communicate and may have missed opportunities to detect the schemes.

The GAO said the SEC is actively working to create a comprehensive workforce plan and is trying to close skill gaps to hire people with more financial industry expertise.

Still, the GAO said, the SEC lacks a transparent process for leadership succession and many interviewed did not see “much incentive” to be promoted into management positions.

In a letter responding to the GAO study, SEC Chair Mary Jo White said she recognizes there is still “work to do in these areas” and that she is “committed to ensuring that process continues.”

The SEC agreed with the report’s recommendations, she said. She added that the SEC is taking steps toward addressing workforce competency gaps and improving intra-agency communication.

She also said the SEC has successfully implemented pay-for-performance for non-bargaining unit employees, and is still in the process of assessing the impact of the new system.

An SEC spokeswoman declined to make any additional comment.

(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch in Washington; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)

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Reuters: Politics

SEC staff morale low, atmosphere marked by distrust: study