BILLS TO REGULATE MEDICAL MARIJUANA HEAD TO GOV. JERRY BROWN BY LISA LEFF ASSOCIATED PRESS

September 17, 2015

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — With California voters likely to consider legalizing recreational marijuana use next year, state lawmakers approved a package of legislation that would create the first statewide licensing and operating rules for pot growers and retail weed outlets since the state became the first to legalize medical marijuana in 1996.

Lawmakers in both houses of the Legislature pushed through three Democratic bills late Friday to set up the state’s first regulatory framework for the free-wheeling medical marijuana industry, sending the proposal to Gov. Jerry Brown.

“After 20 years, we have an agreement on a comprehensive regulatory regime and that is historic,” said Assemblyman Rob Bonta, D-Oakland, the lead author of the main Assembly bill. “We knew it had to be done this year.”

The framework seeks to manage medical marijuana from seed to smoke, calling for 17 separate license categories, detailed labeling requirements and a product-tracking system complete with bar codes and shipping manifests.

If enacted as drafted, it would not only impose strict controls on an industry that never has had to comply with any but provide a template for how recreational marijuana might be treated if it is legalized.

Another major piece of legislation approved Friday was a landmark climate change bill that Brown and Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon were forced to scale back this week as lawmakers approved dozens of bills.

Among the potential new laws that made it to the governor’s desk on the Legislature’s last day of business was a bill that would allow terminally ill patients to legally end their lives. The measure faces an uncertain future with the Democratic governor, a former Jesuit seminarian who has not said whether he will sign it.

Also Friday, a bipartisan group of 47 state Assembly members delivered a letter to Brown asking him to declare a special session to tackle problems related to California’s ongoing drought.

Racing to meet a deadline for passing the marijuana plan hashed out late Thursday, senators on Friday night approved three bills to establish a regulatory structure.

One, AB266 by Bonta, establishes a Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation to oversee licensing and operating rules for pot growers, marijuana product producers and retail shops.

AB243 by Assemblyman Jim Wood, D-Healdsburg, authorizes the state to use licensing fees to carry out the framework and a fund for helping local governments address environmental problems associated with marijuana cultivation.

A third bill, SB643 by Sen. Mike McGuire, D-Healdsburg, would crack down on clinics that specialize in issuing medical marijuana recommendations to residents without valid health needs and create pesticide standards for pot plants and labeling requirements for edible marijuana products.

Whatever emerges would not have an immediate impact on the existing medical marijuana landscape because the licensing provisions would not take effect until 2018, said Nate Bradley, executive director of the California Cannabis Industry Association.

Pot dispensaries already licensed by local governments would eventually have to comply with the product tracking, advertising, criminal background check and job training provisions required for a state license, but they could continue to operate and buy marijuana from unlicensed farmers until then, Bradley said.

The near-certainty that one or more initiatives to legalize recreational marijuana will be on the 2016 ballot put pressure on lawmakers to get the state’s medical marijuana house in order. The U.S. Department of Justice has said it does not plan to raid medical marijuana sites or interfere in recreational pot sales as long as states have solid regulatory schemes in place.

The bill authors said the package would charge the new medical marijuana bureau with overseeing every aspect of the industry, from pot farms and medical clinics to product safety labs and retail distribution.

The office charged with overseeing the new standards will be housed within the California Department of Consumer Affairs. But the Department of Food and Agriculture and the Department of Public Health will have prominent roles in their implementation and enforcement.

The governor has expressed skepticism over the wisdom of legalizing recreational marijuana use, but his office was involved in crafting the medical marijuana compromise.

Birmingham City Council Highlights

Birmingham Times

September 17, 2015

During the Birmingham City Council Meeting for September 15, 2015

Council:

An Ordinance “TO FURTHER AMEND THE GENERAL FUND BUDGET” for the

fiscal year ending June 30, 2016 by appropriating $660,720.00 to Non

Departmental, STRADA Transportation Initiative the Funding Source being

additional Bank Excise Tax received.

Cliff Notes

Was this item approved? Deferred to next Committee of the Whole

What does this mean? The STRADA Transportation Initiative is an engineering company hired to conduct feasibility studies for expanded Amtrak lines, mobilize

a possible shipping port by using Birmingport in west Birmingham as a shipping hub and recruit a national transportation conference in the City of Birmingham.

Strada is set to complete feasibility studies for a federal proposal to extend Amtrak service. This ordinance will further amend the general fund budget by appropriating $660,720.00 for the services rendered in this initiative.

Next Steps: For more information please contact the Director of Finance, Tom Barnett at 205.254.2250.

Other items approved by the Council at today’s meeting include the

following:

1. An Ordinance authorizing the Mayor to execute a Cost Sharing Agreement

between the City of Birmingham, the City of Hoover, the City of Irondale, the

City of Leeds, the City of Mountain Brook, the City of Vestavia Hills, the

Birmingham Water Works Board, Jefferson County and Shelby County, for

the purpose of jointly undertake, as a collaborative effort, to fund a study for the

purpose of determining possible solutions to the traffic congestion existing in the

U.S. Highway 280 corridor between SR 119 and I-459 by considering alternative

corridors to realign Grants Mill Road from SR-119 to I-459 with a new facility

capable of carrying the design year projected traffic volumes at speeds of 55

mph. The study will look at multiple corridors, each approximately 1000 feet wide,

for possible alternative locations. The desired outcome of the study is to present

a preferred alternate route for the potential relocation of Grants Mill Road

between I-459 and SR-119 (Cahaba Valley Road). The aggregate cost of the

Project shall not exceed $1,040,000.00. Birmingham will contribute the sum of

$560,000.00 and each other entity will contribute the sum of $60,000.00.

Cliff Notes

Was this item approved? Approved on the Consent Agenda

What does this mean? Councilors recently recommended a cost-sharing agreement by several local governments to study realigning and expanding

the road in Jefferson and Shelby counties, moving an evaluation of an alternative to U.S. 280 The Budget and Finance committee approved a plan to share the

more than $1 million cost to study realigning Grants Mill Road with five other cities, two counties and the Birmingham Water Works Board. The plan calls for

redesigning Grants Mill between Interstate 459 and Alabama 119 to carry more traffic at 55 mph. The cost sharing agreement calls for Birmingham to pay more

than half $560,000 while Hoover, Irondale, Leeds, Mountain Brook, Vestavia Hills, Jefferson County, Shelby County and the Water Works Board each pay $60,000. The Mayor is authorized to enter into the Joint Services Agreement according to the detailed scope of services in the contract and each municipality is expected to divide the costs based on the total acquisition of land.

Next Steps: For more information please contact the Director of Finance, Tom Barnett at 205.254.2250.

2. A Resolution authorizing a contract with Bernard Lockhart d/b/a Magic City

Smooth Jazz for an expenditure of a sum not to exceed $25,000.00 to provide

artistic services in the form of a concert during the Summer Jam Series in

Birmingham in the summer of 2015, which will include an event at Railroad Park

on October 25, 2015.

Cliff Notes

Was this item approved? Approved on the Consent Agenda

What does this mean? Magic City Smooth Jazz, one of Birmingham’s premier music showcases, is an IRS registered 501 (c)(3) tax-exempt organization

dedicated to enhancing cultural activities through various styles of jazz in the State of Alabama. Since its inception in 2008, Magic City Smooth Jazz has hosted over 75 FREE concerts to the public while presenting over 275 emerging and established artists while impacting the lives of over 20,000 adults and children. This resolution is authorizing the contract in the amount of $25,000.00 for this showcases at Railroad Park on October 25, 2015.

Next Steps: For more information please contact the Office of Council President Johnathan Austin at 205.254.2679.

2. A Resolution author a contract with REV Birmingham for an expenditure of a

sum not to exceed $30,000 from discretionary funds to be allocated to REV

Birmingham, for the purpose of facilitating an event known as “District 8 – Party

with a Purpose” which creates and fosters community pride while providing

recreation, entertainment and opportunities for attendees to gain valuable

information about community resources available to help improve their lives and

community.

Cliff Notes

Was this item approved? Approved unanimously with the updated language

What does this mean? District 8 Party With a Purpose is an annual community event that draws nearly thousands to the Ensley community. This resolution is addressing the scope of work that REV Birmingham will administer in efforts to draw more citizens.

Next Steps: For more information please contact the Office of Councilor Steven Hoyt at 205.254.2304.

3. A Resolution authorizing the Mayor to execute an Agreement for Consulting

Services with STRADA Professional Services, LLC, in substantially the form

attached, under which STRADA has partially performed and will continue to

assist the City in establishing a proposed Port of Birmingham on the Locust Fork

of the Warrior River, within six months following the Effective Date of this

Agreement; and the City will pay STRADA an amount not to exceed $325,000.00

for such services, provided that such funding has been approved and included in

the City’s General Fund Budget for FY2015-2016.

4. A Resolution authorizing the Mayor to execute an Agreement for Consulting

Services with STRADA Professional Services, LLC, in substantially the form

attached, under which STRADA has performed professional consulting services

by conducting preliminary research to establish a fully operational Bus Rapid

Transit Program (“BRT”) and Personal Rapid Transit Program (“PRT”)

(collectively referenced as the “Program” or “Transit System”) to service its

downtown area and also move people to and from the airport, through Uptown

and to the Birmingham Crossplex facility; and has submitted an initial scope of

work and proposal to become the Program Manager for the City’s proposed

Program Management Office (“PMO”) whose primary function shall be to ensure

that the construction of the Program remains on schedule and to track and

monitor the actions of the overall Program and communicate its status and

progress to the City; and to further assist the City in improving its opportunities to

secure Federal, State and other funding in conjunction with proposed Transit

System to achieve the City’s objective of a functioning Transit System in place in

two years before the start of the 11th Edition of The World Games 2021; and the

City will pay STRADA an amount not to exceed $408,220.00 for such services,

provided that such funding has been approved and included in the City’s General

Fund Budget for FY2015-2016.

Cliff Notes

Was this item approved? Deferred to next Committee of the Whole Meeting

What does this mean? STRADA Professional Services, is a minority-owned engineering and consulting company. The company’s partners, staff, and strategic alliance members have over 100 years of combined experience in engineering, construction, design, and management.

Next Steps: For more information please contact the Director of Finance, Tom Barnett at 205.254.2250.

5. A Resolution setting a public hearing October 27, 2015, to consider the

adoption of a resolution assenting to the vacation of approximately 4,356 square

feet of the Block 8 alley that runs parallel to and between Bessemer Road and

47th Street and perpendicular to and between Terrace S and Avenue T, on behalf

of Anthony C. Marino for ACM Investments, owners, so that the owner can

expand the existing grocery store and move the loading dock Case No.

SUB2015-00038.

6. A Resolution setting a public hearing October 27, 2015 to consider the

adoption of an Ordinance “TO AMEND THE ZONING DISTRICT MAP OF THE

CITY OF BIRMINGHAM” (Case No. ZAC2015-00014) to change zone district

boundaries from R-3, Single Family District to B-2, General Business District,

filed by Anthony Marino owner of Marino’s Grocery Store, for the property located

at 1965 Bessemer Road, Birmingham.

Cliff Notes

Was this item approved? Approved on the Consent Agenda

What does this mean? The established zoning regulations and districts have been made in accordance with a comprehensive plan and designed to lessen congestion in the streets, to secure safety from fire, panic and other dangers; to promote health and the general welfare; to provide adequate light and air; to prevent the overcrowding of land; to avoid undue concentrations of population; to facilitate the adequate provision of transportation, water, sewage, schools, park and other public requirements. This resolution is setting a public hearing, a formal meeting for receiving testimony from the public at large on a local issue, or proposed government action, to assent to property vacations for the expansion of Marino Grocery stores and change the zoning district boundaries from a single family district to a General Business District.

Next Steps: For more information please contact Tim Gambrel in the Department of Planning and Zoning at 205.254.2359.

7. An Ordinance to repeal Ordinance No. 15-132, which declared a moratorium

on spending related to all capital projects for up to thirty (30) days in order for the

Mayor’s Office to provide the City Council with a comprehensive update on those

projects within the City of Birmingham.

Cliff Notes

Was this item approved? Approved on the Consent Agenda

What does this mean? Birmingham City Councilors concluded a three and half-hour Committee of the Whole Meeting on September 11th coming to terms with the financial status of select capital improvement projects, including bond projects, within the City of Birmingham and their expected dates of completion. On Tuesday September 8th the Council voted for a moratorium on spending for all upcoming capital projects in efforts to offer accountability to City government and manage resources responsibly with citizens. At the conclusion the Committee of the Whole meeting councilors moved to rescind the moratorium that will be presented on the council agenda for the September 15th council meeting.

Next Steps: For more information please contact the Office of Council President Johnathan Austin at 205.254.2679.

Announcements and Reminders

1. The Joint Budget and Finance and Economic Development Committee Meeting

will be held Monday September 14, 2015 at 4:00 p.m. in Conference Rooms D &

2. Join Councilor Lashunda Scales and the citizens of District 1 at the Northeast

Birmingham Area Framework Plan Public Open House that will take place

Monday September 14, 2015 from 6:00pm to 7:00 pm at Our Lady of Lourdes

Catholic Church Gymnasium, 980 Huffman Road

3. The Public Improvements and Beautification Committee Meeting scheduled for

Tuesday September 15, 2015 is CANCELLED.

4. The Public Safety Committee Meeting will be held Monday September 21st,

2015 at 4:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers.

Are you unable to attend the Birmingham City Council meetings? Watch Council

Meetings on demand. From anywhere in the world you can log on to

www.birminghamalcitycouncil.org and click on the tab Watch Council Meetings;

or from the comfort of your home, tune to Bright House Cable Channel 340. The

Birmingham City Council meetings are free and on demand.

The City of Birmingham will make reasonable accommodations to ensure that

people with disabilities have equal opportunity to enjoy all city services, programs

and activities. If accommodations are required for public meetings, please

contact Chiara Perry, Public Information Officer, with reasonable advance notice

by emailing chiara.perry@birminghamal.gov or by calling 205-254-2055.

Whitesplaining: Matt Damon Attempts To Explain Diversity To Accomplished Black Filmmaker

Birmingham Times

September 16, 2015

Matt Damon’s politically incorrect standpoint on diversity has added to the ongoing conversation of racial inequality and White privilege in Hollywood.

HBO premiered the fourth season of Project Greenlight Sunday night, a reality TV-esque show that gives first-time filmmakers the chance to helm their own project. The Matt Damon, Ben Affleck-produced enterprise also features several producers and other filmmakers throughout the show to help determine a finalist. One of the assisting filmmakers during the premiere happened to be Effie Brown, a Black producer of 17 feature films, including (ironically) the Sundance favorite, Dear White People.

While discussing the presented film, Brown explained that the only Black character in the project — a woman who is slapped by her pimp — proves problematic in perpetuating racist tropes. Brown stated that someone who understands not to exploit stereotypes should be hired to find a nuanced way to tell the character’s story.

Enter Damon, who rudely cut Brown off to dive into a whitesplaining lecture about diversity in Hollywood, saying diversity should be tackled at casting, not with the people making the film.

Because who needs actual Black filmmakers? Right?

“When we’re talking about diversity you do it in the casting of the film, not in the casting of the show,” Damon said.

Damon’s statement was heard loud and clear by viewers:

He also explained the heart of his argument was that if they focused on hiring people based on diversity, it would take away the integrity of the project. Merit, he said, was much more important.

But if the box office is any indication, hiring a filmmaker of color (or a woman) doesn’t mean sacrificing integrity, merit, or success. In fact, filmmakers like Gary F. Gray (Straight Outta Compton), Alfonso Cuarón (Gravity), Ava DuVernay (Selma), and Steve McQueen (12 Years A Slave), are continuing to break box office records while authentically and responsibly telling compelling stories.

And most recently, the David M. Rosenthal-directed romantic-thriller The Perfect Guy dominated the box office with African-American actress Sanaa Lathan as lead, proving that stereotypes are useless in pushing a Black movie or Black characters.

At the end of the episode (and as a testament to Brown’s argument), Jason Mann, who is White, was hired to direct the film. It’s unclear if he’ll take Brown’s concerns into consideration, but either way, Damon’s unsolicited lesson on diversity successfully highlights the real problem in Hollywood.

Privilege.

Muslim teen creates clock, shows teachers, gets arrested

Birmingham Times

September 16, 2015

(CNN)When Ahmed Mohamed went to his high school in Irving, Texas, Monday, he was so excited. A teenager with dreams of becoming an engineer, he wanted to show his teacher the digital clock he’d made from a pencil case.

The 14-year-old’s day ended not with praise, but punishment, after the school called police and he was arrested. A photo shows Ahmed, wearing a NASA t-shirt, looking confused and upset as he’s being led out of school in handcuffs.

“They arrested me and they told me that I committed the crime of a hoax bomb, a fake bomb,” the freshman later explained to WFAA after authorities released him.

Irving Police spokesman Officer James McLellan told the station, “We attempted to question the juvenile about what it was and he would simply only tell us that it was a clock.”

The teenager did that because, well, it was a clock, he said.

Outrage over the incident — with many saying the student was profiled because he’s Muslim — spread on social media as #IStandWithAhmed started trending worldwide on Twitter with more than 100,000 tweets Tuesday morning. The school’s Facebook page is roiling with sharp criticism of the way the teen was treated, and the hashtag #engineersforahmed is gaining popularity.

“I think this wouldn’t even be a question if his name wasn’t Ahmed Mohamed,” said Alia Salem of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. “He is an excited kid who is very bright and wants to share it with his teachers.”

Many criticized the school on Facebook.

Kevin McKinney posted, “How did a bunch of complete idiots end up accidentally running a school? Were you all yanked out of a zoo and given paychecks? Learning centers are for teaching…not for ruining innocent people’s lives with your racism and pathetic stupidity!…”This kid is destined to be something great if the dimwits of Irving don’t ruin him first.”

Mocking Irving Schools’ motto, Bill Cain wrote: “‘Where children come first’…to jail in handcuffs. Way to go, Irving.”

Chance Williams posted, “Ahmed Mohamed deserves a public apology from you, the school administrators, police, and teachers involved in his arrest. I hope he sues, and the school district has to pay for his college education.”

CNN has reached out to the police department for a response but has not yet heard back.

McLellan told the Dallas Morning News that Ahmed insisted the device was a clock, and that police have no reason to think it was dangerous and “no information that he claimed it was a bomb.”

Still, police wanted “a broader explanation” from the teen, McLellan said.

Texas law stipulates that a person who commits a hoax bomb offense is one who “knowingly manufactures, sells, purchases, transports, or possesses a hoax bomb with intent to use” it or intentionally causes alarm or reaction.

MacArthur High School provided a statement to CNN in which it said it was cooperating with authorities and said privacy laws prohibited it from sharing details about student discipline. “We can assure everyone that school administrators are handling the situation in accordance with the Irving ISD Student Code of Conduct and applicable laws.”

It was an English teacher who got spooked and reported Ahmed to the principal, according to WFAA.

“We always ask our students and staff to immediately report if they observe any suspicious items and/or suspicious behavior,” the school’s statement reads. “If something is out of the ordinary, the information should be reported immediately to a school administrator and/or the police so it can be addressed right away. We will always take necessary precautions to protect our students and keep our school community as safe as possible.”

The clock is now in an evidence room at the Irving Police Department, the newspaper reported.

A reporter spoke with the boy in his bedroom, which is full of equipment that allows him to tinker and create.

“Here in high school, none of the teachers know what I can do,” Ahmed told the paper while he soldered metal and played around with a cable.

A middle school robotics club member, the teen has won awards for his inventions.

He recalled showing one teacher the clock and her telling him that she thought it was “nice” but he shouldn’t show other instructors, according to the paper. The teen put the clock in his bookbag but an alarm beeped in the middle of 6th period and Ahmed showed the teacher what he had, the newspaper reported.

“She was like, it looks like a bomb,” he said.

“I told her, ‘It doesn’t look like a bomb to me.'”

When Ahmed was called out of class, he said he was brought into a room with four police officers, one of whom said, “Yup. That’s who I thought it was.”

Ahmed told the Dallas Morning News that he felt aware of what he looked like and his name as the officers fired questions at him.

He recalled that one officer said to him, “So you tried to make a bomb?”

He disputed that and kept telling them he’d created a clock.

Ahmed hasn’t returned to school. His family told the newspaper that the principal suspended him for three days.

Meanwhile, the teen’s defenders continue to slam the school and police.

“I really hope you guys are absolutely ashamed for possibly ruining the ingenuity of one bright kid who made a CLOCK for crying out loud. What kind of education does your professors have?” David Velez wrote on the school’s Facebook page. “It sounds like they are the ones that need to be going back to school!”

“Shame on your school and its administration for arresting Ahmed Mohamed,” wrote Jillian York. “Way to stifle a kid’s creativity and energy. I hope you’re all replaced with compassionate, non-racist, administrators and teachers.”

North Korea warns U.S. it’s ready to use nuclear weapons ‘any time’

Birmingham Times

September 15, 2015

1280px-nuclear_explosion — [CLICK TO PLAY VIDEO]

(CNN)In its latest bout of saber rattling, North Korea says it is ready to use nuclear weapons against the United States and other foes if they pursue “their reckless hostile policy” toward Kim Jong Un’s regime.

In a statement carried by the North’s state-run Korean Central News Agency on Tuesday, an atomic energy official said Pyongyang is improving its nuclear weapons arsenal “in quality and quantity.”

“If the U.S. and other hostile forces persistently seek their reckless hostile policy towards the DPRK and behave mischievously, the DPRK is fully ready to cope with them with nuclear weapons any time,” the director of the North Korean Atomic Energy Institute said, using an abbreviation of the country’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

North Korea’s main nuclear complex at Yongbyon, which includes a uranium enrichment plant and a plutonium production reactor, is operating normally, the official told the news agency.

North says weapons are for self-defense

Notorious for issuing alarming and attention-grabbing statements, Pyongyang has repeatedly threatened to use nuclear weapons against the United States in the past. But strong doubts remain over whether it has the missile technology to target the U.S. mainland.

In an indication it wants to advance its missile capabilities, North Korea said Monday it was planning more satellite launches. Prohibited by U.N. Security Council resolutions, such launches are widely seen as a way of testing ballistic missile technology.

Kim’s regime didn’t say when the next launch would take place, but observers have speculated that it could launch a long-range rocket carrying a satellite in October around the 70th anniversary of North Korea’s ruling party.

The atomic energy official on Tuesday reiterated the North Korean stance that its nuclear weapons program is a self-defense measure “in the face of the U.S. extreme hostile policy and nuclear threats towards it.”

U.S. stresses missile defense measures

In an interview with CNN earlier Tuesday, U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert said Washington is constantly working with Seoul “to ensure that other allies in the region as well as the U.S. homeland are protected from threats posed by North Korea.”

“We’ve moved, over time, a good deal of missile defense capability to the region,” Lippert said before North Korea issued the statement about its nuclear program. “Ground-based interceptors to Alaska, surface combatants to the Western Pacific, a THAAD battery on Guam, another radar in Japan in order to be ready and vigilant for anything the North Koreans may or may not do.”

THAAD, which stands for Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, is a ballistic missile defense system.

Following the North Korean statement, the South Korean government said it was “looking into the matter with close cooperation with the U.S.”

Nuclear complex revamped

The North’s announcement that the Yongbyon nuclear complex is up and running comes as little surprise.

During a period of heightened tensions in the region in the spring of 2013, Pyongyang announced that it would revamp and restart the facilities at the site.

In February of this year, U.S. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said he believed that “North Korea has followed through on its announcement by expanding its Yongbyon enrichment facility and restarting the reactor.”

But some North Korea watchers have questioned whether the reactor is operating at full power.

A July article on 38 North, a website that specializes in analysis of North Korea, said satellite imagery suggested that the reactor may not have been operating or was only functioning at low power levels.

The report’s authors also identified rapid construction at the uranium enrichment plant of a building they theorized could be used “to assemble or store conventional high explosive components of a nuclear weapon.”

The North Korean atomic energy official said Tuesday that the Yongbyon facilities were being employed for both economic development and “the building of a nuclear force.”

Experts says nuclear arsenal is growing

Kim Jong Un’s regime may already have 10 to 15 nuclear weapons, according to David Albright, a former U.N. weapons inspector who now heads the non-profit Institute for Science and International Security.

In a report in February, Albright predicted that Pyongyang could increase its stockpile to anywhere between 20 and roughly 100 nuclear weapons by 2020.

The growing nuclear arsenal poses a serious strategic challenge for the United States.

The U.S. government has repeatedly called on North Korea to commit to denuclearization as a condition of any future negotiations, but Kim’s regime has repeatedly dismissed such an idea, demanding to be recognized as a nuclear power.

Pyongyang’s statement Tuesday provided few details about its specific grievances with U.S. policy, which it accused of “openly seeking the downfall” of North Korea’s “social system.”

The combative rhetoric comes just three weeks after North and South Korea reached a deal to dial down tensions in the region that were inflamed by landmine blasts and artillery fire in the Demilitarized Zone that separates the two countries.

CNN’s Kathy Novak and journalist HyoungJoo Choi contributed to this report.

Misperceptions persist about Obama’s faith, but aren’t so widespread

Birmingham Times

September 15, 2015

Obama2 — [ click here to watch the video ]

Washington (CNN)A new CNN/ORC poll finds that although misperceptions about Barack Obama’s religious beliefs and background persist, they are not as widespread as some recent polling has suggested. Obama was born in Hawaii and is a Christian.

Overall, when asked “Where was Obama born, as far as you know?” 80% of adults said they believe Obama was born in the United States. The other 20% said that he was born outside the country, including 9% who believe there is solid evidence of that and 11% who say it is just their suspicion.

Misperceptions about Obama’s religious beliefs are more common than those about his birth, particularly among Republicans. Overall, 29% of Americans say they think the President is a Muslim, including 43% of Republicans.

The findings suggest beliefs about Obama’s birth are remarkably stable: When ABC News and the Washington Post asked this question in the same way in April 2010, 77% of adults said Obama was born in the United States, 20% said in another country, with just 9% saying there was solid evidence Obama was not born in the United States.

READ: The complete CNN/ORC poll results

While some polling has suggested that substantial numbers of Republicans, particularly Donald Trump’s backers, doubted that Obama was born in the United States, the new survey suggests most Republicans think Obama was born in the country.

While considering a 2011 run for the presidency, Trump raised questions about the president’s birthplace, pushing for the release of his long-form birth certificate, and recently told CNN’s Anderson Cooper that he didn’t know whether Obama was born in the United States.

Obama ultimately did release a certified long-form birth certificate in April 2011, showing he was born at Honolulu’s Kapiolani Hospital on August 4, 1961. When asked open-ended where Obama was born, rather than if it was in the United States or outside of it, fully 61% of Trump’s supporters said he was born in the United States, as did 71% of all Republican and Republican-leaning voters.

Question wording is the key difference between this survey and those that have found broader doubts about the President’s place of birth. When surveying people, they tend to choose a response from among those offered. If a pollster asks “What’s your favorite color: red, green, orange or purple?” blue would barely register, since the respondent would have to think of it on their own, and orange would likely do better than if the pollster had asked the question without using a list.

In the far more weighty case of Obama’s history, it is easier for a respondent to say Obama was born in another country when the choice offered is “in the United States or not,” than it is when they are asked to recall a place unprompted.

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Although nearly three in 10 say they think Obama is a Muslim, a plurality of Americans say he is a Christian. Among all adults, 39% say they believe Obama is a Protestant or other Christian, 4% think he’s Catholic, 2% Mormon, 1% Jewish and 1% something else. Another 11% say he’s not religious, and 14% that they just don’t know. There’s a wide education gap here, with most college grads believing Obama is a Protestant (63%) compared with just 28% of those who do not have college degrees.

The partisan divide is nearly as large, with 61% of Democrats saying Obama is a Protestant, vs. 32% of independents and 28% of Republicans. But the 43% of Republicans and 54% of Trump supporters who say they believe Obama is a Muslim is a smaller share than in other recent polling which asked only whether Obama is a Christian or a Muslim.

The CNN/ORC Poll was conducted by telephone September 4-8 among a random national sample of 1,012 adults. Results for the full sample have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

A battle is on for Area 51 in Nevada, but not the kind you might think

Birmingham Times

September 15, 2015

Rachel, Nevada (CNN)For decades the public has tried to find out what’s buried at Area 51, the military facility that housed America’s top Cold War secrets.

For Joe Sheahan, it’s his father — buried on a plot of land three miles from where the U-2 spy plane was perfected, according to CIA documents declassified in 2013.

This week, Sheahan visited his father’s grave site for what he thinks will be the last time, now that the U.S. Air Force wants to buy the land and has vowed to use eminent domain to get it. The Sheahan family, which has owned the land in southern Nevada since the 1880s, doesn’t like the government’s price: $5.2 million for 400 acres of land and mining rights.

The Sheahan family has owned Groom Mine, a piece of land in Area 51, for more than 125 years.

A September 10 deadline to accept the offer has passed with no agreement, and Joe Sheahan is digging in for a legal fight.

“If I come out with nothing, so be it,” he told CNN. “I’m not going to lay down and say it’s OK.”

The Air Force wants the land because, after decades of escorting family members into the highly restricted space, it can no longer ensure the family’s safety during the “near-24/7 operation” at the base, officially known as “The Nevada Test and Training Range.”

“We’ve tried to do everything we can, include canceling missions when they come out,” said Col. Thomas Dempsey, commander of the facility. “And that’s a tremendous expense to taxpayers.”

That’s ironic, say the Sheahans, who claim the most danger they’ve faced was from the military itself, intimidating the family since the Air Force began taking over land here in the 1940s — today it controls 2.9 million acres.

“I didn’t create this mess, they did,” Sheahan said. “They surrounded us. We’re tired of running, tired of hiding.”

Bullets and battles

Bullets and shell casings sit on the dining room table at the home of Joe Sheahan, with a half dozen family members sitting around the table.

“They’re the .50-caliber rounds we found all over the place, all over the property,” Sheahan said. The family believes the bullets were fired from aircraft overhead back in the 1940s to intimidate the family to leave. But the Sheahans stayed, operating a mine processing mill until nuclear testing began on the range, driving them out of business, they say.

The mill was destroyed in 1954 — firebombed, the family says — likely by an aircraft engine that fell from the sky. They cite a fire inspector’s letter that “a foreign object or device may have been instrumental.”

The family sued the Air Force but withdrew the claim when family members ran out of money fighting it, Joe Sheahan said.

In a letter withdrawing the suit in 1959, Daniel Sheahan blamed the Air Force for “intentionally using our property for military test purposes and then forcing us to bring suit in order to try to protect ourselves.”

That letter fueled the next generation of distrust for the Sheahans, who claim they have been sporadically held at gunpoint while visiting their property. In July, Lisa Hegwood, another family member with a stake in the land, said her 7-year-old niece was distraught when the family car was stopped and a gun was pointed in their direction.

“It’s very disheartening to see generation after generation go through this,” Hegwood said. “It’s even worse when a child is put through it.”

The Air Force says it has no record of the historical incidents of intimidation raised by the Sheahans and says the highly restricted nature of the location requires intense security.

“Our goal is not to intimidate, especially with a family that has been good stewards over the years,” said Dempsey.

He added that the $5.2 million offer is much higher than would likely be offered on the open market, given the depressed nature of the mine. The Sheahans dispute that, and blame the Air Force for the defunct nature of the property.

Last stand

The Sheahan family was given until September 10 to accept the government’s offer, but the family only responded with an email saying they’d be willing to negotiate what they think is a fair price.

The Air Force has already moved forward, saying in a statement Friday it asked the Justice Department to start condemnation proceedings, which are required to take over the land. A judge will determine a fair price after hearing from all sides.

“Everyone says ‘oh no, you’re going to come out with nothing,” Joe Sheahan said. “But I’m not going to let them take what my grandfather and father and mother worked hard for.

“They created this problem,” Sheahan adds. “The Air Force, the federal government. They created the problem.”

Former MI6 chief John Sawers: Terror has become tougher to stop

Birmingham Times

September 14, 2015

Sir John Sawers' code name at MI6 -- "C" -- stood for Chief of Secret Intelligence Service. — Sir John Sawers’ code name at MI6 — “C” — stood for Chief of Secret Intelligence Service.

Watch “Fareed Zakaria GPS,” Sundays at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. ET on CNN.

(CNN)Terror attacks will happen; some just will. No matter how hard authorities fight to intercept plots, they can’t stop them all — and ISIS has made their jobs even tougher, says Sir John Sawers.

In James Bond movies, the head of the MI6 is called “M.” In reality, that person is code-named “C” for Chief of Secret Intelligence Service. Sawers was “C” until he stepped down last year.

He did his best to keep Britain terror-free, and mostly, he was successful, he said on CNN’s Global Public Square. But the dangers have grown since he left his post. “I think it’s pretty chaotic and dangerous at the moment,” Sawers said.

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Olympian task

Sawers’ MI6 worked to keep the 2012 London Olympics terror-free.

On Sawers’ watch, London hosted the Olympic Games in 2012, and security was already a huge job then, but it was manageable. That may no longer be the case.

“We were pretty confident that the London Olympics would be terrorism-free. And thanks to a lot of hard work, it was,” Sawers said. “I don’t think you could be quite so confident now if the London Olympics were in 2016, for example.”

Since ISIS has come along, terrorists have changed their game. “They’re not trying to fly airliners into buildings. They’re doing simpler things,” he said.

They’re picking up Kalashnikovs, pistols or knives and walking into places like the offices of French satire magazine Charlie Hebdo, where two gunman killed 12 people in January.

Or into a market, or onto a crowded passenger train, like the man tackled last month on the Amsterdam-to-Paris line as he brandished a rifle, a pistol and a box cutter.

“That’s much harder to stop and obstruct as an intelligence service,” Sawers said.

ISIS recruiting is a worry, not migrants

Though many terrorists in the West are disaffected younger people, often from immigrant families, Sawers doesn’t see significant dangers from the current mass migration from Syria, Iraq and other war-torn countries.

“I think the great bulk of these refugees are people genuinely fleeing conflict, fleeing for their lives and seeking a better life for themselves and their families,” he said.

What does worry him is the fact that European citizens are signing up with ISIS.

“They can come back radicalized and keen to carry out terrorist attacks in their home countries,” he said.

To fight the new dangers, intelligence services need to gain the trust of Muslim leaders in their home countries and sneak secret agents into overseas terror organizations, Sawers said.

In spite of the dangers, he said, he believes Western intelligence has done a good job at thwarting attacks so far. It’s just that 100% success is unrealistic.

Obama ‘cautious, possibly to a fault’

Sawers would have liked to have seen U.S. President Barack Obama more involved militarily in the fight against overseas terrorism, but he thinks Obama’s focus on weighty domestic issues and sentiments may have held him back.

“I think on his external policy — I think he’s been cautious, possibly to a fault,” Sawers said of Obama. “I think he’s been hesitant to get back involved in military engagements in the Islamic world, for example, scarred by what had happened in Iraq and Afghanistan and recognizing that public opinion and the political appetite for further engagements is very low.”

But he praised Obama for reducing al Qaeda’s abilities to launch attacks. The operation that took out Osama bin Laden was daring, he said.

Watch Fareed Zakaria GPS Sundays at 10am and 1pm ET. For the latest from Fareed Zakaria GPS click here.

Bobby Brown Gets Emotional About Daughter’s Death On ‘The Real’ [VIDEO]

Birmingham Times

September 14, 2015

ATLANTA (AP) — Bobby Brown said he believes things would have turned out differently for Bobbi Kristina Brown if he had been with his daughter days before she was found unresponsive in her home in suburban Atlanta.

Brown was to speak publicly for the first time since Bobbi Kristina’s death in July, in an appearance on Fox’s talk show “The Real,” which airs Monday. He became emotional several times while sitting next to his wife Alicia Etheredge in video clips of the pre-taped interview released in advance.

“If I could have been there two days before, it wouldn’t have went down like that,” said Brown, who wore a necklace bearing a photo of him and his daughter.

The 22-year-old Bobbi Kristina died in hospice care July 26. She was found face-down and unresponsive in a bathtub Jan. 31.

Bobbi Kristina was the only daughter between Brown and the late Whitney Houston. Brown says he thinks Houston was ready for their daughter to be with the singer “in heaven.”

Brown said he held out hope for months that Bobbi Kristina would survive.

“We prayed and hoped for six months, you know, for something better to happen,” he said. “But when God calls you, he calls you.”

His daughter was buried in New Jersey next to Houston.

“I’m pretty sure her mother was. … had a part with like, ‘Come on, let’s get her up here,’” he said. “(Houston) was not comfortable by herself, I guess. She just called my daughter with her.”

Houston died in a similar fashion. She was found face-down in a foot of water in her bathtub at the Beverly Hilton Hotel just before the 2012 Grammy Awards. Authorities found prescription drugs in the suite and evidence of heart disease and cocaine in her body but determined her death was an accidental drowning.

Bobbi Kristina was found in the townhome she shared with Nick Gordon, an orphan three years older than her, whom Houston had raised as her own. Bobbi Kristina referred to him as her husband.

A police report earlier this year described the incident as a drowning, and authorities are investigating her death.

3 SEC teams out, Auburn tumbles in AP college football poll

Birmingham Times

September 14, 2015

Tennessee quarterback Joshua Dobbs (11) leaves the field after a 31-24 loss to Oklahoma in double overtime of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 12, 2015 in Knoxville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

Three Southeastern Conference teams fell out of the AP Top 25 and Auburn dropped 12 spots Sunday after the league that set a record for most teams in the college football rankings last week had a rough weekend.

Arkansas, Tennessee and Mississippi State all dropped out after losses Saturday. The Tigers needed overtime to beat Jacksonville State of the FCS and slipped from No. 6 to No. 18.

The SEC was down to seven ranked teams, still the most of any conference.

Ohio State remains No. 1, but the Buckeyes are no longer unanimous. No. 4 Michigan State received two first-place votes from the media panel after beating Oregon 31-28. Alabama remains No. 2. TCU is 3.

No. 19 BYU jumped into the rankings after beating Boise State and knocking out the Broncos. The Cougars were ranked for four weeks early last season before star QB Taysom Hill was injured. Hill went down again in the season opener at Nebraska, but Tanner Mangum has led BYU to two straight victories with late long touchdown pass.

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POLL POINTS

UP AND DOWN

— Oklahoma moved up three spots to No. 16 after coming from 17-0 down to win at Tennessee, 31-24 in double overtime.

— Oregon dropped five spots to No. 12 after its loss at Michigan State.

Also, moving into the rankings this week were No. 23 Northwestern, No. 24 Wisconsin and No. 25 Oklahoma State.

— The Wildcats are ranked for the first time since October 2013.

— The Badgers moved back in after a 58-0 victory against Miami, Ohio. They fell out after the first week of the regular season, when they lost to Alabama.

— The Cowboys are back in the rankings for the first time since falling out last October.

CONFERENCE CALL

Breakdown of ranked teams by conference

SEC — 7

Pac-12 — 5

Big 12 — 4

Big Ten 4

ACC — 3

Independent — 2

RANKED VS. RANKED

No. 15 Mississippi at No. 2 Alabama. The Rebels beat the Crimson Tide in Oxford, Mississippi, last season

No. 14 Georgia Tech at No. 8 Notre Dame. The Yellow Jackets and quarterback Justin Thomas have put up more than 60 points in each of their first two games. The Irish will find out of DeShone Kizer can follow up his amazing debut off the bench as the starting replacement for injured quarterback Malik Zaire.

No. 18 Auburn at No. 13 LSU. The Tigers from Alabama get one more chance to prove they belong in the rankings.

No. 19 BYU at No. 10 UCLA. The comeback Cougars continue college football’s toughest September schedule.

OUTSIDE LOOKING IN

Oklahoma State got very little support as No. 25 with only 48 points. Not far behind in others receiving votes were Temple (38) and West Virginia (37).

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AP college football website: collegefootball.ap.org

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