Calvon Reid update: finally a little justice for taser victim's family

The case of Calvon Reid has been settled out of court. An alert was sent out by Killed by Police:

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/fl-sb-calvon-reid-settlement-20170525-story.html

More info at: https://www.facebook.com/KilledByPolice/posts/997125990315538?comment_id=1639823069379157

IU alum leads DNI; FBI director reports to him

Daniel Coats

According to the U.S. Office of Director of National Intelligence website (https://www.dni.gov/index.php/who-we-are/leadership/director-of-national-intelligence), the current director is Daniel Coats. Coats attended the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law, where he received his Juris Doctor in 1972 and was associate editor of the Indiana Law Review.

Coats, who also served in both the U.S. House and Senate, was sworn in as the fifth Director of National Intelligence (DNI) on March 16, 2017. He leads the United States Intelligence Community (IC) and serves as the principal intelligence advisor to the President.

Wingcom Watchdog contacted Timothy Barrett, Chief of Media Relations, Public Affairs Office of the ODNI and was informed that President Trump did not consult with Director Coats before firing FBI Director Comey. Here is Coats' sworn testimony to the Senate Select Intelligence Committee on May 11 provided by Barrett:

KING: All right, thank you. Mr. Coats -- Director Coats, you're -- you're -- you lead the intelligence community. Were you consulted at all with regard to the firing of Director Comey?

COATS: I was not.

KING: So you had no -- there were no discussions with you even though the FBI's an important part of the intelligence community?

COATS: There were no discussions.

KING: Thank you. Mr. Chairman, thank you.

At press time, Barrett did not respond to additional email asking for Coats to speak to why we should have confidence in the intelligence community for this article.

Update:

“In the short time I've been on this job, I have learned that the I.C. is full of dedicated, talented, creative, patriotic men and women who are committed to keeping America safe, we must retain this posture while looking for ways to improve.” – DNI Dan Coats in testimony before Senate Select Committee on Intelligence

Trump's chilling effect on investigations scares some but doesn't deter truth

Journalists and investigative civil servants should follow the example of chipmunks who dig in the dirt and digest what they find.

Journalists should investigate by asking pointed questions, gathering information, and reporting their findings. Media organizations at the top level decided what is reported, however. That is why free, independent, investigative journalism is important in a democracy, however, the current presidential administration has numbed reporting and, therefore, what is known by the public is lacking. To further exacerbate matters, Presidential Counselor Kellyanne Conway manipulates the truth to protect her boss which is her job, in my opinion.

I have refrained from blogging recently because I have been watching the fallout around President Trump - his finger-pointing at journalists and "fake news" determinations.  And with the recent firing of FBI Director James Comey and the arrest of Public News Service Journalist Dan Heyman, it is evident that Trump and his employees are not afraid of investigations at any level and will do what it takes to quell truth.

What Pres. Trump and his Trumpettes seem to be doing is suppressing information and making folks fear that if they exercise their freedom of speech or willingness to live up to their employment responsibilities to report what they find, they will wind up fired or incarcerated. Candidate Trump even urged that Candidate Hillary Clinton be locked up for using a private email server. What the???

This is the age of Big Brother on steroids.  George Orwell wrote about government manipulation of truth in his dystopian novel 1984. It is ironic that we seem to be in Orwell's perpetual war, not only in Afghanistan, but in a public opinion battle and mis-reality tug - not knowing what is really going on in our world, either because the information is "classified" or manipulated by powers beyond our control.

Today, if you're a truth-searcher, you may be relegated to pre-existing condition status - poor and neglected. Or you survive to tell the story.

May God have mercy on us.

New travel blog features Hawaii, Brazil, Texas, Portugal, and Paris

Like mom, like daughter! Here is my daughter's travel blog from a single girl's perspective...Enjoy!
https://girlspntofview.wordpress.com/blog/

Minority women farmers to meet in Texas

Texas Women in Agriculture are presenting a Minority Women Farmers Symposium, May 4-6 at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Houston, Texas.

On the agenda will be discussion of future generations of women participating in agriculture and the 2018 Farm Bill.

For more information, contact Dr. Tammy Gray-Steele at (405) 424-4623 or
womeninag@gmail.com, or go to www.nwiaa.org.