Gasconade County Child Support Prosecution Cases Could See Changes

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Callaway could see changes in prosecution of child support cases

By Katherine Cummins

Thursday, April 7, 2011

www.fultonsun.com

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he Callaway County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office receives an average of 100 referrals for child support cases each year.
If plans for a new five-county collaborative agreement are approved, there soon could be more resources available for those cases. According to the proposal, Callaway, Cole, Gasconade, Maries and Osage counties would form a partnership in which two full-time prosecutors and four full-time support staff would handle all of the child support cases for those counties.
Callaway County Prosecuting Attorney Chris Wilson said Callaway would account for approximately 28 percent of the anticipated case load.
“The benefit to Callaway County is — as in the past — we have three prosecutors here and one of them handles the child support cases, and that takes about 10 percent of their time. So you have one person spending about four hours a week,” Wilson said. “Now you’re talking about two full-time prosecutors, and 1/4 or 1/3 of their time will be focused on Callaway County.”
He said the state already as approved a budget for the proposed joint office. The money will be fronted by Cole County, which will be reimbursed by the state.
“Now it’s a matter of the counties themselves approving the agreement,” Wilson said. “It requires the approval of the county commissions, the circuit clerks and the prosecuting attorneys.”
He said Callaway County Circuit Court Clerk Judy Groner has been attending the partnership meetings with him, and a meeting with the Callaway County Commission has been scheduled.
Wilson said the proposal for the partnership was prompted in part by changes in recent years in the way appellate courts interpret Missouri’s current child support laws, which require defendants to prove “good cause” as to why they are unable to provide monetary support.
“Case law started to change with the appellate courts trying to determine what constitutes good cause or not. It’s become much more difficult for prosecutors to prove a parent isn’t paying without good cause,” Wilson said. “When I first started, there were very few things that constituted ‘good cause.’ Now the courts have gotten more lenient.”
Another potential source of change could soon come from the Missouri Senate. Wilson said there currently is a bill pending there to modify the child support statute to remove the phrase “good cause” and put in a catch-all so it could still be used as a defense.
“The state would just have to prove child support hasn’t been paid, but (the defendant) could raise the defense that they were unable to pay,” Wilson said.
Even with those changes, Wilson said the way child support cases are handled in Callaway County would remain the same. As a level C county, he said Callaway County cases have to be referred to the prosecuting attorney’s office by the Family Support Division of the Missouri Department of Social Services.
“They are the state entity responsible for keeping up with child support — who pays, how much they pay, how it is paid,” Wilson said. “If they have a case where a parent has been ordered to pay child support and they are behind or not paying, they refer it to us for prosecution.”
Because prosecution of child support cases is paid for based on a contract with the state, the referrals must come from FSD — the prosecuting attorney’s office cannot take a case based on someone coming in with a complaint. Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Casey Clevenger — who spent the past four years prosecuting child support cases in Callaway — said the process can be frustrating for custodial parents who need their money sooner rather than later, but the Family Support Division is the investigating agency in such cases, and the attorneys can’t do anything with a case until asked.

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Israel Iron Dome Intercepts First Rocket

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Iron Dome intercepts first rocket

Ashkelon residents report seeing Grad explode in midair as dozens of rockets fired at south, meanwhile Hamas says Israel taking advantage of Goldstone's regret over Gaza war report to bomb Strip
Shmulik Hadad

Latest Update:

04.07.11

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Residents in Ashkelon reported Thursday seeing Israel's new Iron Dome defense system intercept a Grad rocket fired towards the southern city from the Gaza Strip. 

Eyewitnesses told Ynet they saw the rocket explode in midair and realized that the system had intercepted its first rocket.

Moshe Ben Hemo, a resident of Ashkelon, said, "I was in the street and I heard a strange sound, like someone pushing the gas pedal of a car. Then I saw the rocket fly through the air and explode. Immediately I realized that it was Iron Dome, that's what has been said here."
He added that the rocket alert had not been set off. "The rocket was apparently supposed to explode in Ashkelon. In any case I'm glad the system works," he said.
After hitting a student bus traveling through Shaar Hanegev Regional Council Thursday, critically wounding a 16-year old boy and lightly injuring the driver, terrorists in Gaza fired more than 15 rockets and mortar shells at Israel. No further injuries were reported.

The IDF immediately began bombing targets in Gaza in response to the onslaught. Palestinian medics said a 50-year old man was killed in the airstrikes and a number of other people injured, including a child.

Ashkelon's Iron Dome system was set up just Monday, with soldiers running extensive tests to make sure it was functioning properly. Another system was set up earlier in Beersheba.
The defense establishment decided to place the system earlier than planned due to the recent escalation of violence in the south. It has already been set up in Haifa, and in the coming weeks officials plan to put it in place in central Israel as well.

Hamas: Stop Israeli aggression

Despite Thursday's onslaught, Hamas called on the international community to "stop Israel's aggression in the Gaza Strip".

The terror organization claims Israel is taking advantage of regret expressed by Judge Richard Goldstone over his report on Operation Cast Lead, which accuses Israel of war crimes, in order to attack the Palestinian people.

Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said the Palestinian fire, which included dozens of rockets and mortar shells after the attack on the bus, derives from a desire to protect the people of Gaza and "pressure the occupation to stop its crimes".

He added that the IDF was also trying to ignite violence "in order to thwart inter-Palestinian truce efforts" between Hamas and rival Fatah. He stressed that the Palestinian "will not sit by as innocent blood is shed".

War in South

Teen critically injured in attack on Negev bus / Ilana Curiel Initial report suggests anti-tank fired from Gaza Strip hit bus driving near Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council; 16-year-old boy critically injured, another man sustains leg wounds. IDF bombs target in Gaza, killing one, according to Palestinians Full Story

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Glenn Beck Show Ending 400 Fox Advertisers didn't want their Commercials on Beck's show

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Glenn Beck's Fox show ending

Associated Press 
Thursday, April 7, 2011
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Glenn Beck later this year will end his Fox News Channel talk show, which has sunk in the ratings and has suffered from an advertiser boycott.
Fox and Beck's company, Mercury Radio Arts, said Wednesday they will stay in business creating other projects for Fox television and digital, starting with some documentaries Beck is preparing.
Beck was a quick burn on Fox News Channel. Almost immediately after joining the network in January 2009, he doubled the ratings at his afternoon time slot. Fans found his conservative populism entertaining, while Comedy Central's Stephen Colbert described Beck's "crank up the crazy and rip off the knob" moments.
He was popular with tea party activists and drew thousands of people to the National Mall in Washington last August for a "restoring honor" rally.
Yet some of his statements were getting him in trouble, and critics appealed to advertisers to boycott his show last summer after he said President Barack Obama had "a deep-seated hatred for white people."
Beck said that he went to Roger Ailes, Fox News chairman and CEO, in January to discuss ways they could continue to work together without the daily show.
"Half of the headlines say he's been canceled," Ailes said. "The other half say he quit. We're pretty happy with both of them."
Beck said he noted on his show Tuesday "how many times can I tell the (George) Soros story," referring to the liberal donor Beck has made a target of attacks.
"We felt Glenn brought additional information, a unique perspective, a certain amount of passion and insight to the channel and he did," Ailes said. "But that story of what's going on and why America is in trouble today, I think he told that story as well as could be told. Whether you can just keep telling that story or not ... we're not so sure."
Beck, who outlined on Wednesday's show his reasons for believing that "we're heading into deep and treacherous waters," told his viewers at the end of the show that his Fox talk show would conclude.
"I will continue to tell the story and I will be showing other ways for us to connect," he said.
More than 400 Fox advertisers told the company they did not want their commercials on Beck's show. Beck's advertisers were dominated by financial services firms, many touting gold as an investment.
Ailes dismissed the financial impact of the boycott but expressed some frustration with it.
"Advertisers who get weak-kneed because some idiot on a blog site writes to them and says we need to stifle speech, I get a little frustrated by that," he said.
One of Beck's most prominent critics _ David Brock, founder of the liberal watchdog Media Matters for America _ said that "the only surprise is that it took Fox News months to reach this decision."
"Fox News Channel clearly understands that Beck's increasingly erratic behavior is a liability to their ratings and their bottom line, and we are glad to see them take this action," said James Rucker, executive director of ColorofChange.org, which organized the advertiser boycott.
Beck was a lightning rod for other critics, as well. The Jewish Funds for Justice organized a petition drive last fall to get Beck fired for what it called his misuse of Nazis and the Holocaust phrases against political opponents.
Viewers had begun turning away. Beck's 5 p.m. ET show averaged 2.7 million viewers during the first three months of 2010, and was at just under 2 million for the same period this year, the Nielsen Co. said. His decline was sharper among younger viewers sought by advertisers.
Increasingly, the show began to be dominated by Beck standing in front of a chalk board giving his theories about the world's troubles.
However, Beck has built a powerful brand for himself through a daily radio show, best-selling books and personal appearances. Mercury Radio Arts is expanding and a key Fox executive, Joel Cheatwood, is joining the company later this month.
Beck's company created and operates a news and opinion website, TheBlaze.com. For $9.95 a month, he offers fans access to "Insider Extreme," a website that beams documentaries, Beck personal appearances and a video simulcast of Beck's daily radio show, with an extra hour featuring Beck cohorts.
Beck said ratings for his television show were not an issue, noting that "we have buried the competition in every sense." His supporters believe that the recent decline is more a reflection that ratings were abnormally high early last year.
"Call CNN and MSNBC and ask them if they'd like to have Glenn's ratings at 5 in the afternoon," Ailes said.
Ailes emphasized that Fox and Beck will continue to work together.
"We like each other," he said in a dual interview with Beck. "We're not drawing pictures of each other on the walls, having staff fights and stealing each other's food out of the refrigerator or any of that stuff."
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Fox is owned by News Corp.


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Brawl East St. Louis Nightclub VIDEO Fight Caught On Camera UPDATE: Nightclub Liquor License Suspended Fined

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KMOV.com

April 6, 201

(KMOV) – Officials in East St. Louis have voted to suspend the liquor license at a Metro-East club. Blackmon's Plaza came under fire after a violent fight broke out at the club on Saturday night
Blackmon's was cited for violating the city's nuisance law, security ordinance and the state's smoking ban. Officials fined the club $1,000 and suspended its liquor license until April 20.
An inside look at a nightclub fight in East St. Louis on Saturday reveals intense violence among a crowd of about 3,000 gathered to see a rap concert at Blackmon’s Plaza.

The fight spiraled out of control when rappers were ordered to clear the stage. Some fans were hit with chairs – others were pistol whipped. A security guard was even shot in the hand. Witnesses say the gun went off on accident.

East St. Louis Mayor Alvin Parks temporarily shut down the club. “The issue seems to be that security could just not handle what was going on that night,” Parks says.

Mayor Parks is demanding answers after the seven-hour rap show ended in a melee with guards appearing to rile rather than subdue the crowd.

“Sucker-punching somebody when they're not looking, or beating somebody on the ground knocked out is not protecting yourself, that's just being an animal,” says Demetrius Dowdell who caught the brawl on tape.

The mayor is now calling for off-duty police officers to add to club security inside as well as on-duty officers to patrol outside during big events.

“Whether it's 6 o'clock in the day or 2 o'clock in the morning, we want people to come to East St. Louis and know that they're going to be safe and know that they're going to have a great time,” says Mayor Parks.

Fans say the fight puts a black eye on the local hip-hop scene, but witnesses say those who were brawling are not even from the area, but from Indianapolis.
Blackmon’s Plaza has been open for more than 50 years on the East Side. Illinois state police are now looking into criminal charges, and there are reports circulating that Blackmon’s Plaza may have a strip club in the basement, unbeknownst to the police chief.

On the night of the fight, it’s reported that club-goers seeking cover from the melee were charged $10 to head to that basement.__________________________________________________________________________________
by Ann Rubin

East St. Louis, IL (KSDK) - A massive fight at an East St. Louis nightclub involving dozens of people was caught on camera. At least one man, a security guard, was shot. Now police are trying to identify everyone in the video to determine who was hurt, who was responsible, and who broke the law.

The shooting happened Saturday inside Blackmon's Plaza, when a concert gave way to chaos. Punches were thrown, and chairs, and people.

East St. Louis Police Chief Lenzie Stewart said investigators are reviewing the video.
"The security personnel, we'll be looking to see if they violated anyone's civil rights and things of that nature," he said.
Stewart said they're also questioning whether the club and the city had enough manpower to handle this.
"Our situation is what it is with the revenue and not being able to have adequate police 24-7. But do you stop the entertainment part of it? It's a call that I can't make," he said.
Managers with Blackmon's Plaza didn't want to comment on the fight. They have since had their liquor license suspended. They'll have to meet with city officials tomorrow to see whether it will be reinstated.
We showed the video to Mayor Alvin Parks. He said the violence will be addressed and that the clubs are even offering to pay for more police.
Illinois State Police and the Department of Justice are assisting in the investigation. The license hearing Wednesday is set for 1 p.m.
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Economic Collapse 'Big Event' Skyrocketing Gold, Silver, Oil Commodity Prices As Dollar Value Falls

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Ron Paul: Gold, Commodity Prices “Big Event” Signaling Economic Collapse

Kurt Nimmo
Infowars.com
April 6, 2011
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Related: Ron Paul to Announce Presidential Bid Next MonthSkyrocketing gold, silver, oil and other commodity prices, a brazen attempt by the Federal Reserve to monetize a staggering and deleterious debt, a precipitously falling dollar, creeping inflation – these are elements of a “big event,” Ron Paul told Alex Jones on Tuesday.
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“It’s huge, and it has started,” Paul said, and it may be identified as such within 30 days. “I believe it is the beginning… you and others have been talking about commodity prices going up.” The Texas Congressman noted that even the former boss of the Federal Reserve, Alan Greenspan, has warned about out of control inflation.
“A necessary condition for long-term unemployment is low inflation,” Greenspan said recently. “If the Fed does its job and stabilizes the inflation rate, that’s the maximum that the central bank can do.”
Greenspan failed to mention the fact that when the Federal Reserve prints a new fresh new batch of fiat paper money, it unleashes a devastating round of inflation. Quantitative Easing initiated by the Fed is just that – cranking up the printing machines. It created $600 billion out of thin air to purchase Treasuries and another nearly $300 billion for mortgage-backed securities. Pumping all that money into the economy is an engine for creating inflation.
It won’t end with QE2, though. The plan to print gobs of money is open-ended. Late last year, the Fed said it will “regularly review the pace of its securities purchases and the overall size of the asset-purchase program in the light of incoming information and will adjust the program as needed.”
As Lew Rockwell noted with tongue firmly planted in cheek, it makes sense to refer to it as QE[n], because the Fed has hinted it will soon begin QE3.
“These various attempts to restore the inebriated happy time have unpredictable and uncontrollable effects,” said Rockwell in mid-March. “Bernanke would drive us right into hyperinflation to save his industries. Savers living on pensions just don’t have the political clout to stop the money machine,” he added.
“Inflation is when they print the money and create the credit out of thin air,” Paul told Jones and his audience, “and then the price increases come afterwards.”
Both gold and silver reached stellar new highs today based on fears that the central bank’s monetary policies will lead to an increase in interest rates in response to galloping inflation. Both China and the EU ratcheted up their interest rates modestly this week.
Paul noted that the record-breaking rise in the price of gold is a barometer pointing to the fact that the dollar continues to decrease in value. Gold, he said, is the ultimate test to determine the state of the dollar. “Devaluation, it’s not good for anybody.”
In addition to base metals, the price of other commodities – particularly oil and food – have shot through the stratosphere and give no indication of coming back down to earth anytime soon.
An op-ed posted on the NASDAQ website calls current Fed boss Bernanke a myopic Dr. Frankenstein who created the inflation monster now ravaging the world economy. “Frankenstein had his monster and Ben has his and his monster is commodity price inflation,” writes Phil Flynn. “Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke might not see what is coming,” that is to say interest rate increases from China and Europe and inflation on gasoline and food prices.
As Alex Jones noted during the interview, warnings about inflation are coming from all quarters, most recently from Wal-Mart CEO Bill Simon, who said there will be “serious” inflation in the months ahead for clothing, food and other products.
In October of 2008, as Congress was poised to bail out the bankers, Ron Paul criticized his colleagues for misunderstanding the real causes of the financial crisis and reacting in a way that ultimately deepened and prolonged the inevitable slide into depression. “The financial bubble created by the excessive credit and the lowering of the interest rates is the cause of the recession,” Paul explained. “The recession and/or depression will come, my sincere conviction is that by doing more mischief and not allowing markets to adjust, debt to liquidate, you’re going to guarantee a depression.”
“The solution to inflation is not having a Federal Reserve run by somebody like Bernanke,” Paul said as he concluded his interview with Alex Jones.
Paul is currently the chairman of the House Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy and is in a position to rake Bernanke over the coals in the months ahead as the bankster created Frankenstein monster of inflation ravages the nation.

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Two Boaters Rescued Near Missouri Mississippi River Confluence

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Search ends for missing boaters on Mississippi River in north St. Louis County

KMOV.com

Posted on April 6, 2011

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UPDATE today at 2:27 AM :

ST. LOUIS (KMOV) – Fire officials have rescued two boaters who were drifting on a distressed boat near the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers.

Firefighters say both boaters are okay and left the scene as soon as they reached shore. 

Officials say the boat lost power and drifted south towards the Columbia Bottoms Conservation Area, just north of the Chain of Rocks Bridge.

Officials add that cell phone contact helped them reach the boaters in the dark conditions.

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Missouri Teen Arrested School Shooting Plot, Recruited Others

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Missouri teen accused in school shooting plot had mental hit list, recruited others in plan

KMOV.com

 April 6, 2011

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WINFIELD, Mo. (KMOV) -- A Lincoln County high school student has been charged after allegedly plotting a school shooting.

On Tuesday, the Lincoln County sheriff’s office arrested Winfield High School student Donald G. Walters, 18.

Walters has been charged with first-degree conspiracy assault.

Authorities were called to the high school on Tuesday after a school administrator learned of the possible school shooting plot.

Two high school students told Winfield High School’s resource officer that Walters had tried to recruit them to execute a school shooting.

Both students stated that Walters asked them to make a list of the victims they wanted dead.

During an interview with Lincoln County detectives, Walters said that he didn’t have a physical list of people that he wanted dead, but he did have a long mental list. Walters told them his plan was to run through the halls of the school as fast as he could and shoot as many people as he could. Walters also admitted to researching how to make guns and other types of weapons.

Investigators seized Walters’ computer and sent it to the St. Charles County Cyber Crimes Unit. Authorities there found several images of weapons and YouTube videos about how to build a gun rail and how to shoot guns on Walters’ computer. They also found a letter that said, “I hate everything and everyone, I wanted everyone to die.”

Police say they did not find a gun and they don’t know if the suspect set a date or time for an attack, but police say they have to take any threat seriously.

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Great White Shark Caught on VIDEO Tape Camera Coast of Australia Close to Beach

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 April 6, 2011

A Great White shark spotted dangerously close to Australian beach. 
A woman captured video of a great white shark lurking near an Australian beach. The 11.5-foot shark was less than 30 feet from the shore where two little boys sat playing. 

It was in the same area where a wake-boarder was attacked last month.  Experts say it’s not uncommon for the sharks to swim inland this time of year.
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70 Year Old Woman Bank Robber Gets 35 Days In Jail, Time Served

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70-year-old woman gets 35 days in jail for bank robbery

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Times are  tough! Judge has yet to decide on how much restitution she must pay.
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Droege's Open Since 1867 Will Close For Good Thursday 5 PM - UPDATE: After 144 Years Droege's Supermarket Closing Down

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Local grocery store closing after 144 years

Apr 6, 201

By Jeff Small
Washignton, MO (KSDK) - The year was 1867 and President Andrew Johnson was in office, carpet baggers were descending on the South and a family run grocery store held its grand opening.
After 144 years, Droege's grocery store in Washington, Missouri will close its doors Thursday evening.
Despite what signs say, there isn't much left inside Droege's supermarket. It's part of the tough and emotional decision to close Washington's last family owned grocery store.
Droege's has been a place where customers were known by name and known to travel for miles to get the stores famous fried chicken. Droege's also featured great service by several longtime employees.
Butch Droege says his family's small store has employed 2,000 to 3,000 people over the years.  Droege said it was simply too difficult and costly to compete against the chain stores in town.
"You know a lot of the customers and that I will miss and you seem them during the week and you wind up being a part of their family and they become part of our family," said owner Butch Droege.
"It's just so upsetting and we don't know what's gonna go in here but it will never be the Droeges that we know," said customer Cindy Parker.
The owners haven't made a decision yet on what to do with the property. Droege's opens Thursday afternoon and will be closing its doors at 5 p.m.
CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO REPORT

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Droege's Supermarket Announces Closing

by dfox
Tue, 03/15/2011
www.klpw.com
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Droege's Supermarket, located at 109 W. Main Street in Washington, will close in April after 144 years in business. The store's owners, John "Butch" and Judy Droege announced the closure Friday, Mar. 11, but did not give an exact date.
 
"Making the decision to close was a very difficult one for Judy and me," Butch Droege said in a statement to the press. "Like many small businesses, we found it increasingly difficult to compete with larger grocery chains and other retailers that stock food items. We believe we have competed admirably, but with continuing changes in the marketplace and consumer buying habits, closing the store now is a prudent decision for our family."
 
The store first opened in 1867 under the name Droege's Mercantile at the corner of Main and Oak Streets. It moved to its current location in 1896.

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Angry Obama Calls Urgent Budget Meeting With House and Senate Leaders

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Frustrated Obama calls leaders back to White House
By Marc Ambinder
National Journal
April 6, 2011
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President Obama has called House and Senate leaders back to the White House on Wednesday evening for an urgent meeting on the budget, a White House official said.
House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said through a spokesman that he will attend.
The nighttime summit comes just days before the federal government will shut down unless a stopgap measure or an appropriations bill funding the remainder of the fiscal year can be passed and signed into law.
Earlier today, Obama and  Boehner had a three-minute phone call to discuss the budget impasse, which both sides described as productive. Boehner told Obama that another meeting wasn't necessary, but this afternoon, Boehner suggested that the House wanted to vote on a one-week extension - a position that the Senate Democrats have already rejected.
A Democrat familiar with the negotiations said that Obama reacted angrily when he read news reports that Republicans cheered at the mention of a shutdown during their conference meeting.
Obama "has now decided that not enough progress has been made and therefore he has invited the speaker of the House and the Senate majority leader to the White House at 8:45 p.m. this evening," White House press secretary Jay Carney told reporters aboard Air Force One. Obama is on the road today, attending events in New York and Philadelphia. He will return to the White House at 8:00 p.m.
"There wouldn't be a meeting tonight if it wasn't necessary to try to move this forward," a Democrat familiar with the talks told National Journal. "The president said he would invite leaders in if that was the right step and what is clear is that this step is needed."
This morning, both sides hinted that there had been progress, with Democrats suggesting that Boehner had agreed in principle to $40 billion worth of cuts through the end of the year. His spokesperson would not confirm that. Senate Democrats continued to insist that the $33 billion they've offered up represents significant concessions on their part.
Behind the scenes, staffers for the Democratic and Republican leaders continued to try and hash out an agreement. The administration earlier today applied its own pressure, releasing a list of popular programs that would be closed in the event of a shutdown, including events as small and well loved as the annual Cherry Blossom Festival Parade held at this time each year in Washington, D.C.
Yesterday, an insistent Obama vowed to call negotiators back to the White House if talks broke down.
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Rare Earth Elements: U.S. Mine in Mojave Desert May Hold Key to Beating China in Race for Raw Materials

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Mine in Mojave Desert May Hold Key to Beating China in the Race for Raw Materials

By Adam Housley

April 06, 2011

FoxNews.com

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In the middle of California's Mojave Desert about an hour outside of the Las Vegas strip, business is booming -- literally -- as detonations reveal the lifeblood of America's technical security. 

Molycorp has begun mining again at its Mountain Pass facility after about a decade of inactivity, extracting valuable and concentrated ore that holds 15 rare earth elements, used in everything from cell phones to U.S. missile systems.

In recent years, the Chinese have flooded, and thus cornered, about 97 percent of the world market of rare earth metals, and now thanks to high-tech demand and new Chinese restrictions on exports, the price of some of these rare earth elements has skyrocketed as much as 500 percent in the last year alone.

“The supply of rare earths predominantly comes from China, and China needs most of the rare earths they produce for their own consumption," Molycorp mine manager Rocky Smith said. "So all of the people of the United States and Europe and Japan, they’re going to have to find another source of these valuable rare earths, and that’s one of the main reasons this operation is so important.”

Molycorp has also developed a better way to extract and then process the elements, doing it in a more affordable and environmentally friendly way. CEO Mark Smith says that the new techniques in mining are allowing them to not only better serve the environment, but at the same time get more minerals than ever before out of the rock. Water, for example, that used to go into storage ponds is now being re-used, and the dirt left over reclaimed. 

“We can now produce the same amount of product for our customers using less than half the ore we did 10 years ago, and that’s a phenomenal improvement in a very short period of time,” Smith said.

Rare earth elements got their name back in the late 1800s because it was thought they were tough to find, but that isn't necessarily the case. In fact these elements, with names like cerium and dysprosium, are found everywhere, just not in high concentrations.

In layman's terms, they are mostly found scattered, like throwing a handful of sand on a driveway. Here at the Mountain Pass facility, it would be more like rocks thrown across the driveway, which means it makes sense to mine at this location, one of only three such concentrations in the world.

Right now, Molycorp is turning out about 3,000 metric tons of the stuff a year, but the compnay is going to up that to 5,000 metric tons annually by the end of 2011. The goal is to crank out 40,000 metric tons yearly by the end of 2013. At that point, they estimate they'll have swiped about 30 percent of the Chinese market share.

"Every ounce of rare earth that is used in anything in the Department of Defense, mission guidance systems, the night vision goggles, just as an example, every computer they use, that's all made with 100 percent Chinese rare earth material today," Smith said.

Rare earths are a set of seventeen chemical elements that are grouped together in the periodic table because of their great chemical similarity. Specifically, the fifteen lanthanides are essential to making hundreds of high-tech products, from wind turbines to jet engines, laptop computers to hybrid cars, and now the Chinese are choking off supply.

"In 1982, the premier of China said publicly that the Middle East may have oil but China has rare earths, and that shows you back in 1982 that the Chinese really understood the basic foundational economic value of rare earths to their country,” Smith said. 

It's clear that while this California mine exists thanks to geological luck, what Molycorp is doing here not only affects its bottom line, but also our national economic and military security.

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Whirlpool Formed During Japan Tsunami After 9.0 Earthquake March 11, 2011 RAW VIDEO

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Raw Video - Boat caught in Japan's swirling water

Ferocious tsunami waves swirled near a port in Oarai, Japan. A boat is seen struggling to stay afloat in the whirlpool. March 11, 2011
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