Tag Archives: Jersey City

Automobiles

Official: ACLU releases license plate scanning docs, says you are being tracked

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By Damon Lowney

License plate scanner on police car trunk

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The proliferation of automated license plate readers in police departments around the country has increased dramatically over the years, leading the American Civil Liberties Union to commission a report to find out what they are being used for, the policies governing their use and how they should be used to benefit the American public. The report, which has just been released, is called You Are Being Tracked. The report’s findings, according to the ACLU, show that plate readers are not being used in a lawful manner that benefits US citizens.

Automated plate readers are placed on roads, highways, overpasses, police cars, etc., and snap photos of all vehicles and license plates that pass by them. Software reads the numbers, adds a time and location stamp to them and then stores them in a database – often for an indefinite amount of time, even if the drivers are innocent of any crime. The ACLU claims that storing plate data indefinitely, or for an unnecessarily long period of time, is an invasion of privacy because many facets of citizens’ personal lives can be found out if their location is being tracked at all times.

In a 2011 survey, the ACLU found that almost three-quarters of police departments in the US were using plate readers and 85 percent of them were planning to increase their use of the readers over the next five years.

One city that has no plate-read storage policy, Milpitas, CA, the ACLU points out, has a population of 67,000, yet it had 4.7 million stored plate reads as of August 2, 2012. Jersey City, NJ, has a policy to store read data for 5 years, but with a population of 250,000, it still has about 10 million plate reads stored. The Minnesota State Patrol is striking a better balance with the technology, the ACLU states, with a patrol area covering 5.3 million people but a plate-read storage policy of 48 hours. The MSP stores less than 20,000 reads because of its policy, which the ACLU says limits the chance that innocent drivers can be tracked over time. The Ohio State Patrol’s policy is even stricter than the MSP’s, the ACLU reports, as its policy states that all non-hit records can’t be stored and must be deleted immediately.

Fueling the debate, the ACLU report found that, “In Maryland, for every million plates read, only 47 (0.005 percent) were potentially associated with a stolen car or a person wanted for a serious crime.” What do you think about this technology? Check out the ACLU’s press release below, then have your say in Comments.

Continue reading ACLU releases license plate scanning docs, says you are being tracked

ACLU releases license plate scanning docs, says you are being tracked originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 18 Jul 2013 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: FULL ARTICLE at Autoblog

Business, Finance, Occupation & Industry

Stocks Week Ahead: Earnings Season Puts Investors on Edge

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By Reuters

new york stock exchange traders earnings season investing

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Jin Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images

By Ryan Vlastelica

NEW YORK — This week marks the first big week of second-quarter earnings, and it is sure to bring both joy and misery to Wall Street.

Investors will concentrate on market fundamentals after weeks when Federal Reserve policies have dominated the market. If they see companies are still struggling, stocks could take a fall.

Even after Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke scared markets in June by telling investors the Fed is likely to reduce monetary stimulus in the coming months, stocks have recovered, with both the Dow Jones industrial average and S&P 500 climbing to all-time highs. In an appearance earlier this week, the Fed chairman said monetary policy was likely to be accommodative for some time.

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“We’re in the terminal stages of a Bernanke-driven bubble,” said Walter Zimmerman, a technical analyst at United-ICAP in Jersey City, N.J. “While a lot of damage has been done to the bear case, eventually bad news like weak earnings growth will start to bear fruit.”

To be sure, the Fed, which has shown a much friendlier face to investors lately, will not be out of the picture. Bernanke will appear before congressional committees Wednesday and Thursday to deliver the semiannual testimony about monetary policy. However, few surprises are expected.

The S&P’s 17.8 percent advance in 2013 is largely attributable to the central bank’s accommodative policies. The major indexes made impressive gains in the week: the Dow (^DJI) up 2.1 percent, the S&P 500 (^GSPC) 3 percent higher and the Nasdaq (^IXIC) up 3.5 percent. It was the third straight week of gains for all three, and the best week for the S&P and Nasdaq since early January.

“The Fed has been able to prevent a big sell-off so far, but eventually the economy will have to catch up to the market or the market will fall back to match the economy,” said Scott Armiger, who helps oversee $5.6 billion as portfolio manager at Christiana Trust in Greenville, Del.

More Focus on Earnings

That analysts are now turning their focus to earnings, believing the Fed’s power to buoy stocks is waning, may not be a positive if the rally is going to continue.

Earnings are seen growing 2.8 percent in the second quarter, according to Thomson Reuters data, a far cry from the 8.4 percent growth forecast by analysts Jan. 1. Revenue is now seen increasing 1.5 percent.

For every company that has said it expects positive earnings, 6.5 have lowered their forecasts, the worst positive-to-negative ratio since the first quarter of 2001.

United Parcel Service (UPS), the world’s largest package delivery company, tumbled Friday after giving a weak profit outlook, citing economic conditions as one …read more

Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Business, Finance, Occupation & Industry

CirTran Sets New Repayment Schedule and Converts Debt-to-Equity

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By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

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CirTran Sets New Repayment Schedule and Converts Debt-to-Equity

SALT LAKE CITY–(BUSINESS WIRE)– CirTran Corporation (OTCBB: CIRC), an international contract manufacturer of energy beverages and other consumer products, announced it has entered into a new agreement that converts debt to equity, which included as an exhibit to its Current Report on Form 8-K filed yesterday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Iehab J. Hawatmeh, president of CirTran, said the agreement “continues to stabilize the company and better position it to move forward.

“Since December,” he said, “CirTran has benefitted from three favorable court rulings involving Playboy Energy Drink, manufactured and distributed exclusively by CirTran Beverage Corporation under a product license from Playboy Enterprises to Play Beverages. Now, with this agreement, we have even more positive news exemplified by a display of confidence in the company from a leading venture capital firm.”

Mr. Hawatmeh said the agreement with YA Global Investments, L.P. of Jersey City, N.J., includes a loan repayment schedule of $100,000 per month, commencing immediately and extending through March, 2015. CirTran owes YA Global an aggregate of approximately $4.0 million of principal and accrued interest on outstanding convertible debentures issued to YA Global’s predecessor-in-interest in 2005 and 2006, and subsequently amended, restated and consolidated.

Between December 27, 2012, and March 15, 2013, YA Global converted an aggregate of $254,036 in amounts due under such convertible debentures to 297,459,076 shares of common stock, with the conversion price set forth in the debentures. Between December 20, 2012, and March 22, 2013, CirTran issued an aggregate of 504,000,000 shares for conversion of debt and services, aggregating $227,500. These issuances included Mr. Hawatmeh ($45,000 converted to 150,000,000 restricted shares) and directors Fadi Nora and Kathryn Hollinger ($45,000 and $7,500 converted to 150,000,000 and 25,000,000 restricted shares, respectively). And between December 20, 2012, and February 28, 2013, CirTran also issued (under a registration statement on Form S-8) an aggregate of 159,000,000 shares to unaffiliated employees and contractors in consideration for services rendered.


About CirTran Corporation

Marking its 20th year in business in 2013, CirTran Corporation (www.cirtran.com) has evolved from its roots as an international, full-service contract manufacturer. From its headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah, where it operates, along with its Racore Technology (www.racore.com) electronics manufacturing subsidiary, from an ISO 9001:2000-certified facility, CirTran has grown …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Business, Finance, Occupation & Industry

Elementary School Teachers to Attend Mickelson ExxonMobil Teachers Academy

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By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

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Elementary School Teachers to Attend Mickelson ExxonMobil Teachers Academy

  • Two hundred teachers from 50 states to upgrade math and science teaching skills
  • ExxonMobil partnered with PGA golfer Phil Mickelson to improve math and science education
  • Academy has trained nearly 3,6000 teachers impacting more than 230,000 students

IRVING, Texas–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Two hundred elementary school teachers from across the United States have been selected to attend the 2013 Mickelson ExxonMobil Teachers Academy, a professional development program designed to enhance math and science teaching skills. Participants learn how to bring science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) to life in the classroom, to inspire students to study and pursue careers in the critical fields.

“Today’s teachers and students must learn how to ‘speak science’ to ensure we remain competitive as a nation,” said PGA golfer Phil Mickelson. “The Mickelson ExxonMobil Teachers Academy encourages teachers to use real-world examples and in-class experiments to build excitement about STEM learning, educating the next generation of American innovators.”

The successful educators teach third through fifth grade and were chosen from more than 1,500 applications submitted at www.sendmyteacher.com. Selection was based on teacher qualifications, dedication to inspiring students at an early age and overall commitment to enhancing the teaching profession. A panel of educators from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and the National Science Teachers Association selected participants to attend the national academy, held July 22-26, 2013, at Liberty Science Center in Jersey City, New Jersey.

The academy is an intensive, one-week, all-expenses-paid program developed in 2005 when ExxonMobil partnered with Mickelson and his wife, Amy. Launched with support from the National Science Teachers Association and Math Solutions, the initiative has trained 3,600 teachers benefiting more than 230,000 students nationwide. In addition to the 200 teachers attending this year’s national academy in New Jersey, 400 more teachers will attend regional academies in Louisiana and Texas.

“The academy reaffirmed my belief that the classroom can and should be one of the most exciting places a child visits,” said Krissy Venosdale, a teacher from St. Louis who attended in 2012. “Educators can reinvigorate their classrooms by sharing real-world applications of science and technology – like our country’s space program.”

Currently, U.S. students rank 17th and 25th globally in math and science, respectively, according to results from the 2009 Programme for …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

News, Politics, Government

NJ takes over troubled Camden schools

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The state of New Jersey is taking over the troubled school system in the impoverished city of Camden.

Gov. Chris Christie made the announcement Monday at the city’s Woodrow Wilson High School.

Camden becomes the fourth urban school district under state control, after Paterson, Newark, and Jersey City, and the first in southern New Jersey. It’s the first takeover initiated by Christie.

Three of Camden’s schools are the lowest-performing in the state, and 90 percent are in the bottom 5 percent. Less than 20 percent of fourth graders are proficient in language arts literacy, and just 28 percent of 11th graders are proficient in math.

Christie says he’ll appoint a new superintendent and the state will ensure every student has books and technology.

…read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News

Business, Finance, Occupation & Industry

Duff &amp; Phelps Partners With Cristie Kerr to Mentor LPGA Rookies and Raise Money for Breast Cancer Ch

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By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

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Duff & Phelps Partners With Cristie Kerr to Mentor LPGA Rookies and Raise Money for Breast Cancer Charity

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Duff & Phelps Corporation (NYS: DUF) , a leading independent financial advisory and investment banking firm, has formed a partnership with LPGA Tour golfer Cristie Kerr to mentor a group of LPGA rookies and raise money for Kerr’s Birdies for Breast Cancer charity. As part of the partnership, Duff & Phelps will extend its ongoing sponsorship of Kerr to include rookie LPGA golfers Kathleen Ekey, Victoria Elizabeth and Taylore Karle. In addition to bringing the four golfers together to establish “Team Duff & Phelps,” the company will make a donation to Birdies for Breast Cancer for every birdie scored by the team during 2013 tournament play.

LPGA golfer Cristie Kerr, who has been sponsored by financial advisory and investment banking firm Duff & Phelps since January 2011, wears the Duff & Phelps logo on the front of her hat during competitions. (Photo: Business Wire)

The mentorship aspect of the program marks the first time that an established LPGA golfer and a corporate sponsor will provide formal guidance on and off the course to junior LPGA colleagues. Ekey, Elizabeth and Karle will benefit from career guidance, professional advice and collaboration on charitable endeavors such as the Birdies for Breast Cancer program throughout the course of the partnership. This announcement follows Duff & Phelps’ recent launch of its internal Network of Women (NOW), which aims to attract, develop and promote women at the firm while also supporting broader causes of interest to women. NOW offers special resources in such areas as recruitment, training, marketing, business development, networking and communications.

“Duff & Phelps established the Network of Women to encourage the personal and professional growth of women at our firm. As we expand our focus, we are very excited to join forces with Cristie and Birdies for Breast Cancer,” said Elyse Bluth, co-chair of the Duff & Phelps Network of Women and a managing director in the firm’s investment banking practice. “The partnership is a natural extension of Duff & Phelps’ commitment to its female employees and causes in which our clients, and women in general, take interest.”

Birdies for Breast Cancer has raised money for other foundations and research institutions, such as Susan G. Komen for the Cure and the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona. However, its greatest beneficiary is the Cristie Kerr Women’s Health Center in Jersey City, New Jersey. Part of …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Articles of Interest

Cory Booker Engages In ‘Star Trek’ Trivia Contest During Radio Call-In

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By The Huffington Post News Editors

Newark Mayor Cory Booker (D) put talk of his likely U.S. Senate campaign and love of Twitter aside Tuesday night to engage in a “Star Trek” trivia contest while calling into a New Jersey radio station’s pledge drive.

Booker competed with comedian and “Daily Show” correspondent John Hodgman in the contest on WFMU, a Jersey City-based radio station, around 11 p.m. Tuesday. The Star-Ledger first reported Booker’s late night geek-a-thon Wednesday evening, posting audio of the 15-minute interview.

“John and I know the difference between a Vulcan mind meld and a Jedi mind trick,” Booker told host Tom Scharpling when he was challenged to battle Hodgman in the trivia contest.

Read More…
More on Video

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Source: FULL ARTICLE at Huffington Post

Business, Finance, Occupation & Industry

Dow Ends at a Record Again, S&amp;P in 7th Straight Gain

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By Reuters

Dow ends at a record again, S&P in 7th straight gain

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By Chuck Mikolajczak

NEW YORK – Wall Street rose modestly on Monday, lifting the Dow to another record and giving the S&P 500 its seventh straight advance as early weakness enticed buyers. The gains briefly lifted the benchmark S&P 500 index to its highest intraday level since October 2007.

With the slight advance, U.S. stocks continued last week’s rally that took the Dow Jones industrial average to record highs. The S&P 500’s record closing high stands at 1,565.15, which it reached on Oct. 9, 2007.

Wall Street‘s “fear gauge” closed at its lowest level since February 2007, suggesting investors were not spooked by Monday’s brief pullback, despite expectations by many investors that a correction may be looming. The CBOE Volatility Index, known as the VIX, dropped 8.2 percent to 11.56.

U.S. equities have rallied strongly since the start of the year, helped by signs of improvement in the economy and the support of equities by the Federal Reserve‘s quantitative easing program. These factors have contained recent pullbacks as investors have used them as a buying opportunity.

“These dips are consistently bought. There is definitely a soft floor for the market,” said Peter Kenny, managing director at Knight Capital in Jersey City, New Jersey.

“It’s a QE bid,” Kenny said, referring to the Fed’s policy of keeping short-term interest rates near zero since late 2008. “Quite frankly, earnings have not disappointed to the point where it is has been disrupted, and there is nothing out there that seems to be getting in the way of this slow but very consistent and methodical drift higher in the market.”

But volume was light, with about 5.39 billion shares traded on the New York Stock Exchange, NYSE MKT and Nasdaq, below the daily average of 6.47 billion, suggesting the rally may be losing steam.

On Monday, the S&P 500 climbed as high as 1,556.27 – its highest intraday level since Oct. 15, 2007.

The Dow has gained over 10 percent for the year, while the S&P 500 is up more than 9 percent.

Wall Street had traded slightly lower earlier in the day as Italy‘s credit downgrade and disappointing Chinese economic data gave investors a reason to pause.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 50.22 points, or 0.35 percent, to 14,447.29, a record closing high. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 5.04 points, or 0.32 percent, to 1,556.22. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 8.51 points, or 0.26 percent, to close at 3,252.87.

Earlier in the session, the Dow reached another lifetime intraday high, rising as high as 14,448.06.

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Boeing Co (BA) rose to $83.03, its highest level since May 2008, after the U.S. aircraft manufacturer said strong demand was prompting it to increase its production rates of commercial planes. The stock, which rose 2 percent to $82.94 at the close, was the Dow’s biggest percentage gainer. Boeing also gave …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

Articles of Interest

Islamic Butchery Manifests In America With Muslim Immigrants

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By Breaking News

Islam symbol SC Islamic butchery manifests in America with Muslim immigrants

Americans must ask themselves if Muslim-style “multiculturalism” fits into the United States of America. Can our country tolerate beheadings, be-handings, female genital mutilation, arranged marriages of 12 year old girls and murders of gays? Before 1990, no American ever experienced the barbaric ritual of beheading a person.

But since our U.S. Congress began importing a total of seven million Muslims from all over the Middle East and Africa since 1990, an ever increasing rate of “honor killings” continue to horrify Americans around the country.

This week, the New York Daily News reported Islamic violence in Buena Vista, New Jersey: “Cops arrested Muslim Yusuf Ibrahim, 28, of Jersey City on Sunday after detectives found the bodies of the two men, aged 25 and 27, behind a home in Buena Vista Township. Their severed heads and hands were discovered at a separate burial site. The investigation into the grisly murder began Thursday following reports of suspicious activity at the Buena Vista home. Cadaver dogs located the bodies, which both suffered a single gunshot wound to their chests.” (Source: New York Daily News, 2/19/13)

Muslim man accused of beheading two Christians in U.S. Torture, persecution of faithful no longer reserved for Islamic nations

Police reported in New Jersey that Yusuf Ibrahim beheaded and be-handed two Coptic Christians after shooting them. He buried them in two separate graves in Buena Vista, New Jersey.

Read more at Official Wire. By Frosty Wooldridge.

Related posts:

  1. Muslim Beheads Christians In NJ, Mainstream Media Silent Yusuf Ibrahim, a Muslim man, targeted and murdered two Coptic…
  2. Why Is The Administration Subsidizing America’s Islamic Adversaries? “Islamic jihadists remain the most serious threat against America today,…

…read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Western Journalism

News, Politics, Government

Bus driver to serve 6 years for deadly Va. Crash

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The driver of a bus that crashed on Interstate 95 in Virginia, killing four passengers and injuring dozens, was sentenced Wednesday to spend six years in prison.

Kin Yiu Cheung was given 40 years with 34 years suspended for his conviction last November on four counts of involuntary manslaughter, Commonwealth’s Attorney Tony Spencer said.

“Each day of my life is haunted by this memory … and I want to apologize to all the passengers,” Cheung said before sentencing in a circuit court in Bowling Green.

The bus was en route from Greensboro, N.C., to New York early on May 31, 2011, when it swerved off the road, hit an embankment and overturned about 30 miles north of Richmond.

The crash cast national attention on a growing industry of inexpensive buses that travel the East Coast offering cheap fares, convenient routes and, in some cases, free wireless Internet. Last June, government safety officials shut down more than two dozen similar curbside bus operations for safety violations in the largest single federal crackdown on the industry.

Survivors at trial spoke of a harrowing early-morning ride, testifying that the low-fare Sky Express bus swerved from side to side and changed speeds erratically before careening off the interstate. The witnesses said the erratic driving lasted up to an hour as Cheung drank coffee and energy drinks before nodding off and losing control.

A state trooper testified that Cheung nodded when asked whether he’d fallen asleep behind the wheel. The National Transportation Safety Board said in July that driver fatigue and other factors likely caused the crash, finding Cheung had limited opportunities for quality sleep in the days before the accident.

Cheung’s attorneys have called it a “horrendous accident,” but contended it was not a case of criminal negligence.

In sentencing the defendant, Caroline County Circuit Court Judge Joseph Ellis said, “This wasn’t an issue of chance,” the Free Lance-Star (http://bit.ly/149w0CU) reported.

In a report last July on the Sky Express crash, the National Transportation Safety Board found that ineffective government oversight allowed the Charlotte, N.C.-based company to operate despite various safety violations.

The board said Transportation Department officials were in the process of shutting down Sky Express at the time of the crash but had given the company an extra 10 days to appeal an unsatisfactory safety rating. Without the extension, Sky Express would have ceased operations the weekend before the crash.

Those killed in the Sky Express crash were identified by Virginia State Police as Karen Blyden-Decastro, 46, of Cambria Heights, N.Y.; Sie Giok Giang, 63, of Philadelphia; Josefa Torres, 78, of Jamaica, N.Y.; and Denny Estefany Martinez, 25, of Jersey City, N.J.

Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News