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Google Flights Search Is a Powerful, Intuitive, Lightning-Fast Tool for Finding Cheap Tickets
September 13,2011 lifehacker.com
Google just launched Google Flights Search, an attractive, intuitive, lightning fast airline search tool. It's really good.
We're big fans of previously mentioned Hipmunk (and we'll always have a soft spot for Kayak, but Google Flights has come out swinging. The search results are nearly instantaneous (most travel sites make you slog through the "searching airlines" intermediary screen); results display on a Google Map in a way that's actually useful; it's got an impressive, easy-to-use interface; and it also includes powerful filtering tools to help you find tickets matching preferences like non-stop, duration, price, and especially handy, a tool to help you find the cheapest flight by duration when you've got flexible travel dates. After a few initial comparisons, Google Flights Search also looks like it's returning the same "lowest fare" as sites like Hipmunk.
The upshot: It's impressively intuitive, extremely fast, and though I hate to say it, I can see Google's new flight search becoming a lot of people's first destination for finding airline tickets online.
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MDC confirms second photo of mountain lion in Shannon County
by Francis Skalicky
Sept 11, 2011
MOUNTAIN VIEW Mo – The Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) Mountain Lion Response Team has confirmed a second trail-camera photograph of a mountain lion taken near Mountain View on the property of Shannon County landowner John Collins. This latest photo, taken Sept. 4, follows a confirmed trail-camera photo taken at the same location on July 29.
MDC reported earlier this week that a Texas-County landowner shot a subadult male cougar on his property on Sept. 5. MDC also recently confirmed a trail-camera photo of a mountain lion taken on private land Aug. 23 in Oregon County.
MDC Biologist Jeff Beringer, a member of the Response Team, said that the photos from Shannon County and Oregon County are not of the mountain lion shot in Texas County.
“The Texas-County cat had a shortened tail with no black tip,” Beringer explained. “The mountain lions in these photos have full-sized, normal tails.”
Based on limited photographic evidence, Beringer said MDC does not know if the Shannon County and Oregon County photos are of the same mountain lion. He added that widely scattered mountain-lion sightings have been confirmed in Missouri and likely will continue. Evidence to date indicates these animals are dispersing from other states to the west of Missouri. The most extreme evidence of this dispersal occurred in early 2011 when a mountain lion that was killed in Connecticut was genetically traced to South Dakota. MDC has no confirmed evidence of a breeding population in Missouri.
MDC receives many reports each year from people who believe they have seen mountain lions.
“We encourage these reports, but we can only confirm those for which there is physical evidence such as hair, scat, footprints, photos, video, a dead cougar or prey showing evidence of mountain-lion attack,” said Beringer. Reports of sightings can be sent to mountain.lion@mdc.mo.gov, or by contacting Beringer at 573-882-9909, ext. 3211, Rex Martensen at 573-522-4115, ext. 3147, or Shawn Gruber at 573-522-4115, ext. 3262.
Beringer added that mountain lions are naturally shy of humans and generally pose little danger to people, even in states with thriving breeding populations. Although mountain lions are protected by law, Missouri’s Wildlife Code does allow people to protect themselves and their property if they feel threatened.
21. September 2011 — Shannon County
A photograph was taken by a motion-activated game camera. The Department's Mountain Lion Response Team confirmed the location of the image as being the same as #18 taken in July.
20. September 2011 — Texas County
Subadult male shot by a landowner. No obvious signs of confinement. DNA analysis pending.
19. August 2011 — Oregon County
A photograph was taken by a motion-activated game camera. The Department's Mountain Lion Response Team confirmed the location of the image.
18. July 2011 — Shannon County
A photograph was taken by a motion-activated game camera. The Department's Mountain Lion Response Team confirmed the location of the image.
17. May 2011 — Macon County
Citizen sent photos of tracks in a muddy creekbed. The Department's Mountain Lion Response Team confirmed the tracks to be those of a mountain lion.
16. March 2011 — Oregon County
Citizen reported observing a mountain lion jump a fence. DNA analysis of hairs collected at the scene confirmed species; ancestry analysis is underway.
15. January 2011 — Macon County
Subadult male shot by coyote hunters. No obvious signs of confinement. DNA analysis determined this mountain lion was likely a descendant of a South Dakota population.
14. January 2011 — St. Louis County
Photo of probable subadult disperser taken by motion-activated game camera.
13. January 2011 — Ray County
Subadult male treed and shot by raccoon hunters. No obvious signs of confinement. DNA analysis determined this mountain lion was likely a descendant of a South Dakota population.
12. December 2010 — Linn County
Photo of probable subadult disperser taken by motion-activated game camera.
11. November 2010 — Platte County
Photo of probable subadult disperser taken by landowner. DNA analysis of hair samples collected from the scene could not confirm ancestry.
10. December 2006 — Livingston County
A photograph of a probable subadult was taken by a motion-activated game camera.
9. November 2006 — Shannon County
Tracks and deer carcass characteristic of a mountain lion kill were found.
8. August 2003 — Callaway County
An approximately 1 1/2-year-old male road kill. There were no obvious signs that it was formerly a captive animal. DNA analysis revealed its origin to be North America.
7. October 2002 — Clay County
A two- to three-year-old male road kill. DNA analysis revealed its origin to be North America.
6. December 2001 — Pulaski County
A photograph was taken by a motion-activated game camera. After a lengthy evaluation, it was determined that it was likely a small, subadult mountain lion.
5. December 2000 — Lewis County
A video was taken by a deer hunter from a tree stand.
4. January 1999 — Texas County
An adult-sized lion was treed by a rabbit hunter’s dogs. Tracks in the snow (photos taken) and two deer carcasses characteristic of lion kills were found nearby.
3. January 1997 — Christian County
A video was taken by a property owner. The animal’s behavior suggested it had once been held in captivity.
2. November 1996 — Reynolds County
A conservation agent video-recorded a mountain lion with a deer carcass.
1. December 1994 — Carter County
A small adult female was treed and shot by two raccoon hunters near Peck Ranch Conservation Area. The carcass was never recovered, but a photo was obtained of the animal on a truck tailgate. Federal authorities fined each hunter $2,000. In Nov. 1998, a deer hunter found the skinned pelt of a small adult, a female, with head and feet attached, near a remote Texas County road. Although evidence suggests this is the same animal killed in Carter County, it cannot be confirmed absolutely.
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Mountain lion shot by landowner in Texas County
by Joe Jerek
Missouri Department of Conservation
SUMMERSVILLE, Mo – A landowner in Texas County shot a mountain lion on Sept. 5 after encountering it on his property. The landowner then called Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) regional offices to report the incident. Shannon County Conservation Agent Justin Emery responded to the incident and conducted an investigation. Emery found no grounds for charges at this time. Although mountain lions are protected by law, Missouri’s Wildlife Code does allow people to protect themselves and their property if they feel threatened.
MDC took possession of the subadult male mountain lion, which will be used for educational purposes and DNA testing.
The incident occurred approximately three miles from where a Shannon County landowner’s trail camera captured an image of a mountain lion on July 29. In a separate sighting, an Oregon County landowner captured an image on his trail camera of a mountain lion on Aug. 23 northeast of Alton.
MDC Biologist Jeff Beringer, who is a member of MDC’s Mountain Lion Response Team, says that widely scattered mountain lion sightings have been confirmed in Missouri and likely will continue. Evidence to date indicates these animals are dispersing from other states to the west of Missouri. The most extreme evidence of this dispersal occurred in early 2011 when a mountain lion that was killed in Connecticut was genetically traced to South Dakota.
MDC has no confirmed evidence of a breeding population in Missouri.
MDC receives many reports each year from people who believe they have seen mountain lions.
“We encourage these reports, but we can only confirm those for which there is physical evidence such as hair, scat, footprints, photos, video, a dead cougar or prey showing evidence of mountain-lion attack,” says Beringer.
Reports of sightings can be sent to mountain.lion@mdc.mo.gov, or by contacting Beringer at 573-882-9909, ext. 3211, Rex Martensen at 573-522-4115, ext. 3147, or Shawn Gruber at 573-522-4115, ext. 3262.
Beringer adds that mountain lions are naturally shy of humans and generally pose little danger to people, even in states with thriving breeding populations.
For more information, visit www.mdc.mo.gov and search “mountain lion.”
Mountain lion photographed in Oregon County
by Francis Skalicky September 1, 2011
ALTON, Mo -- A landowner’s trail camera has confirmed a mountain lion sighting in Oregon County. The camera image, which was of the back-portion of a mountain lion, was sent to Conservation Agent Brad Hadley on Aug. 29. Hadley forwarded the image on to the Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) Mountain Lion Response Team. The image was taken on August 23 on private land near the Eleven Point River northeast of Alton. Conservation agents Hadley and Paul Veatch visited the site on Aug 29 and confirmed the location of the image.
MDC Biologist Jeff Beringer, who is a member of the Response Team, says that widely scattered mountain lion sightings have been confirmed in Missouri and likely will continue. Evidence to date indicates these animals are dispersing from other states to the west of Missouri. The most extreme evidence of this dispersal occurred earlier this year when a mountain lion that was killed in Connecticut was genetically traced to South Dakota.
MDC has no confirmed evidence of a breeding population in Missouri.
MDC receives many reports each year from people who believe they have seen mountain lions.
“We encourage these reports, but we can only confirm those for which there is physical evidence such as hair, scat, footprints, photos, video, a dead cougar or prey showing evidence of mountain-lion attack,” says Beringer.
Reports of sightings can be sent to mountain.lion@mdc.mo.gov, or by contacting Beringer at 573-882-9909, ext. 3211, Rex Martensen at 573-522-4115, ext. 3147, or Shawn Gruber at 573-522-4115, ext. 3262.
Mountain lions are naturally shy of humans and generally pose little danger to people, even in states with thriving breeding populations. Although they are protected by law, Missouri’s Wildlife Code does allow people to protect themselves and their property if necessary.
Mountian lion photographed in Shannon County Missouri
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Mo -- A landowner’s trail camera has confirmed a mountain lion sighting in Shannon County. The landowner emailed the Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) Mountain Lion Response Team on Aug. 6 with a camera image of a mountain lion walking through a clearing. The image was taken on July 29 on private land at the west edge of the county near Mountain View. Shannon County Conservation Agent Brad Hadley visited the site on Aug 9. and confirmed the location of the image.
MDC Biologist Jeff Beringer says that widely scattered mountain lion sightings have been confirmed in Missouri and likely will continue. Evidence to date indicates these animals are dispersing from other states to the west of Missouri. The most extreme evidence of this dispersal occurred earlier this year when a mountain lion that was killed in Connecticut was genetically traced to South Dakota.
MDC has no confirmed evidence of a breeding population in Missouri.
MDC receives many reports each year from people who believe they have seen mountain lions.
“We encourage these reports, but we can only confirm those for which there is physical evidence such as hair, scat, footprints, photos, video, a dead cougar or prey showing evidence of mountain-lion attack,” says Beringer, who is a member of the Response Team.
Reports of sightings can be sent to mountain.lion@mdc.mo.gov, or by contacting Beringer at 573-882-9909, ext. 3211, Rex Martensen at 573-522-4115, ext. 3147, or Shawn Gruber at 573-522-4115, ext. 3262.
Mountain lions are naturally shy of humans and generally pose little danger to people, even in states with thriving breeding populations. Although they are protected by law, Missouri’s Wildlife Code does allow people to protect themselves and their property if necessary.
For more information visit www.missouriconservation.org and search “mountain lion.”
A photograph was taken by a motion-activated game camera.The Department's Mountain Lion Response Team confirmed the location of the image.
17. May 2011 — Macon County
Citizen sent photos of tracks in a muddy creekbed. The Department's Mountain Lion Response Team confirmed the tracks to be those of a mountain lion.
16. March 2011 — Oregon County
Citizen reported observing a mountain lion jump a fence. DNA analysis of hairs collected at the scene confirmed species; ancestry analysis is underway.
15. January 2011 — Macon County
Subadult male shot by coyote hunters. No obvious signs of confinement. DNA analysis determined this mountain lion was likely a descendant of a South Dakota population.
14. January 2011 — St. Louis County
Photo of probable subadult disperser taken by motion-activated game camera.
13. January 2011 — Ray County
Subadult male treed and shot by raccoon hunters. No obvious signs of confinement. DNA analysis determined this mountain lion was likely a descendant of a South Dakota population.
12. December 2010 — Linn County
Photo of probable subadult disperser taken by motion-activated game camera.
11. November 2010 — Platte County
Photo of probable subadult disperser taken by landowner. DNA analysis of hair samples collected from the scene could not confirm ancestry.
10. December 2006 — Livingston County
A photograph of a probable subadult was taken by a motion-activated game camera.
9. November 2006 — Shannon County
Tracks and deer carcass characteristic of a mountain lion kill were found.
8. August 2003 — Callaway County
An approximately 1 1/2-year-old male road kill. There were no obvious signs that it was formerly a captive animal. DNA analysis revealed its origin to be North America.
7. October 2002 — Clay County
A two- to three-year-old male road kill. DNA analysis revealed its origin to be North America.
6. December 2001 — Pulaski County
A photograph was taken by a motion-activated game camera. After a lengthy evaluation, it was determined that it was likely a small, subadult mountain lion.
5. December 2000 — Lewis County
A video was taken by a deer hunter from a tree stand.
4. January 1999 — Texas County
An adult-sized lion was treed by a rabbit hunter’s dogs. Tracks in the snow (photos taken) and two deer carcasses characteristic of lion kills were found nearby.
3. January 1997 — Christian County
A video was taken by a property owner. The animal’s behavior suggested it had once been held in captivity.
2. November 1996 — Reynolds County
A conservation agent video-recorded a mountain lion with a deer carcass.
1. December 1994 — Carter County
A small adult female was treed and shot by two raccoon hunters near Peck Ranch Conservation Area. The carcass was never recovered, but a photo was obtained of the animal on a truck tailgate. Federal authorities fined each hunter $2,000. In Nov. 1998, a deer hunter found the skinned pelt of a small adult, a female, with head and feet attached, near a remote Texas County road. Although evidence suggests this is the same animal killed in Carter County, it cannot be confirmed absolutely.
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A Warren man who is an advocate for firearm “open carry” practices is suing the city and its police department, claiming officers violated his Second Amendment right to bear arms.
Jeffery Haman, 54, seeks a $100,000 judgment and $500,000 in punitive or exemplary damages, as part of the lawsuit he filed recently in U.S. District Court.
With a semi-automatic pistol holstered at his waist, Haman, a former firearms dealer, was walking home from a local drug store at 12 Mile and Hoover roads in August 2009 when a patrolman quickly drove up to him.
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VIDEO: Big Brother Jack Boot Crack Down, Firearm ‘open carry’ lawsuit filed in Michigan
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. This encounter occurred in the city of Warren. Haman was simply walking down the street and the next thing he knows he has 3 police cars surrounding him and he has an officer pointing a gun at him. He is searched, pistol taken, wallet taken, and before a verbal tongue lashing he is cuffed and the officer dragged him up by the cuffs behind his back making his knees bloody. Out of 3 cars they would only provide him the only police car pointed at the street. Not only that the audio in the first several minutes is obviously censored with white noise. The same period where he was at gunpoint and dragged on the ground!
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“At the first instant where I could see through the open passenger window, he had a gun pointed at me,” he said. “Then he came to a stop. As soon as I saw the gun, I put my hands up.”
Haman was ordered to lie on his stomach, with his hands outstretched. The officer handcuffed him and three additional officers in two patrol cars arrived.
“I asked him what his reason was for stopping me. He said, ‘You’re walking down the street with a gun.’ I said, ‘That’s perfectly legal, I’m open carrying.’”
Police took the .45 caliber handgun and his ammunition, and asked if he had documentation for the weapon. Haman said he showed a purchase receipt and a concealed-weapon permit although it’s not required for open carry.
In a police video of the incident, an officer is heard telling Haman: “You should at least call us and tell us what you’re doing. Walking around like this is just going to get you hurt somehow.
“You’re just asking for trouble, brother.”
In his lawsuit, Haman claims the four officers violated his Second Amendment, free speech and due process rights, and that he was a victim of false imprisonment and assault and battery.
Haman was released at the scene and was not formally charged with a crime.
The Warren man said he has been trained to handle weapons since age 14, held a federal license to deal firearms from 1985-91, and has openly packed heat since late 2007.
His reason? “Self defense,” he said.
The retiree said his home was burglarized prior to moving to Warren in 2000 and a convicted felon threatened by phone in 1992 to kill him.
In 2008, Haman helped organize an open carry picnic at Veterans Park in Warren. Organizers notified the city’s top police administrators and commanders in advance. Several observed the event attended by about 75 gun-toting advocates and their families.
Warren Police Commissioner Jere Green, who along with former commissioner William Dwyer are defendants in the lawsuit, said Friday he had just received a copy but had not read it yet.
Green declined to comment on the specifics of the allegations. He said police officials consult with the city’s attorneys whenever new laws are enacted so that police are aware of potential changes to law enforcement practices. He cited Michigan’s medical marijuana statute as an example.
“We have to train and educate our troops when things like this happen,” said Green, “and we certainly do.”
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By Jason Rosenbaum and Jo Mannies, Beacon reporters stlbeacon.org
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The Missouri Senate gave first-round approval Monday afternoon to a bill aimed at correcting language in a newly enacted law -- already in the courts -- that appears to ban most private teacher-student interaction on the Internet, including via email, Facebook and Twitter.
The voice vote signals that the measure -- one of several on the special session agenda -- will likely move quickly out of the Senate and to the House, which does not reconvene until Wednesday.
The Senate bill could face resistance from Gov. Jay Nixon, however, because it attempts to revise the provision in question. Nixon, Missouri's former attorney general, wants an outright repeal. He has called for a commission to then consider the matter. State Sen. Jane Cunningham, (right) R-Chesterfield, sponsored the bill revising the language. She also sponsored the original bill, which was aimed at discouraging communication that could encourage educators who are sexual predators.
Cunningham's revision won unaninmous approval of a Senate committee last week -- largely because the new wording is supported by associations representing teachers, administrators and school boards, as well as social-conservative groups.
The new wording, in effect, requires local school districts to come up with a policy for social-media communication. But the compromise doesn't go into the particulars of what the policy should be, beyond some broad outlines. It also gives districts more time, until March 2012, to put some a policy in place.
Two lawsuits have been filed since the original provisions went into effect in late August, with a judge already barring its implementation over free-speech concerns.
Cunningham told the Senate before today's vote that the new language will "protect teachers' rights" and provide school boards with the flexibilities to enact policies of their own. She also said that educating groups - such as the MNEA and MSTA - signed off the bill. "This allows the local school district the burden and the responsibility and the authority to develop and implement a policy." While supportive of Cunningham's efforts, state Sen. Jolie Justus, (left) D-Kansas City, said she was concerned with trying to statutorily regulate technology "because it changes so quickly."
Said Justus in an exchange with Cunningham, "I had a couple of teachers over the weekend ask me a question ... 'Can I have a Facebook page?' And the answer, I think is, 'I don't know.' Is that the answer? I mean, is it going to be up to the school boards?"
"Yes it will be up to the school boards," Cunningham replied, adding that she believed the changed language did address the issue of rapidly changing technology. Justus and Cunningham :23 mp3[1facer2] :18 “school board”
Cunningham maintins the legisalture has the power to go beyond the specifics in the governor’s call for a special session. Governor Nixon had called for lawmakers to repeal questionable parts of a bill passed in the spring. But he specifically says he wants no new language in its place until January. Cunningham says he cannot place such tight limits on the general assembly.
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ST. LOUIS (KMOX) – There’s a warning today that it will be a lot tougher to take the train to Chicago —and impossible to take it to Kansas City — if the U.S. House Republican transportation budget plan becomes law. The House Appropriations Subcommittee is proposing eliminating federal funding to Amtrak to cover operating costs for state-supported trains. That would include all of them between St. Louis and Kansas City and 3 of the 5 between St. Louis and Chicago. Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari says the cuts would come at a bad time, “Ridership on both of these routes is up. Federal funding to make track improvements to and from St. Louis is in place to enable the service to operate even better.” Magliari says plans are already in place to shift more cost to the states, but if passed, this plan would cut off federal funding abruptly on October first.
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The folks at Nielsen have confirmed what we've long suspected--we waste more time on Facebook than anywhere else. The famed media metrics and ratings company says in its latest social-media report that Americans spend more time on Facebook than any other destination on the Web--about 53 billion total minutes in the month of May 2011 alone.
That's even more time than we spend streaming Pandora, which last quarter ate up 1.8 billion hours of listening time, an activity that requires much less interaction, or even being in the room. The Facebook tally is also just short of the amount of total hours spent by gamers playing on XBox Live, which at one point last year Microsoft estimated to be a total of a billion hours a month. That's a global number though, so take away all those overseas game junkies, and odds are that Facebook is still bigger here in the land of the free and the home of the Liked.
Another statistic in the report finds that Americans spend 23 percent of their time online on social networks and blogs, more than twice as much time as the No. 2 activity, online games, at 10 percent. The data reveals not only that we are a remarkably unproductive society online but also that Nielsen must not be spending much time on the medium it purports to be measuring. I can't think of another reason to combine social networks and blogs into a single category. Why not have another category for time spent on "IRC and HAM radios"?
In the "good news for Carol Bartz a little too late" category, Yahoo is a distant but still surprising No. 2 behind Facebook, beating out Google, AOL Media Network, MSN/Live/Bing, YouTube, and eBay, in that order.
Facebook also dominates the wireless scene, with a mobile audience four times the size of the No. 2 social network on this metric: Twitter.
Can't let it go... all the categories Nielsen deems bigger than "blogs."
(Credit: Screen capture by Eric Mack/CNET)
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(CBS News)
A complicated attack involving multiple gunmen and apparent suicide bombers was underway in the heart of the Afghan capital Tuesday morning, and it appeared to be focused near the U.S. Embassy.
CBS News staff in Kabul reported hearing heavy gunfire and at least seven explosions, some of them large. The situation was described as "chaotic", and it remained unclear how many people were wounded.
A Taliban spokesman claimed there were several militants inside at least one building near the embassy district in Kabul, and that the targets of the attack were Afghan government ministries and the intelligence services.
Mohammed Zahir, a police official in Kabul, told the Associated Press that a group of gunmen were firing from a tall office building under construction near the U.S. embassy. The Taliban's primary website ran a statement Tuesday morning saying "Operation Martyrdom" was underway in the Afghan capital.
Many attacks by the Taliban on the Afghan capital in recent months and years have followed a similar pattern; multiple attackers armed with automatic weapons and suicide vests attacking government targets.
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There’s another ground turkey recall because of salmonella. Meat producer Cargill said last month that it was recalling some 36 million pounds of ground turkey that was produced in Arkansas and was distributed to about 30 states including Indiana. Now, Cargill is pulling an additional 185,000 pounds of turkey for the same reason. Cargill Value Added Meats Retail said the meat was sold under the name Honeysuckle White, HEB and Kroger.
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A product subject to meat giant Cargill's recall of 36 million pounds of ground turkey linked to a nationwide salmonella outbreak is shown in Redwood City, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2011. Cargill said Wednesday that it is recalling fresh and frozen ground turkey products produced at the company's Springdale, Ark., plant from Feb. 20 through Aug. 2 due to possible contamination from the strain of salmonella linked to the illnesses. The packages were labeled with many different brands, including Honeysuckle White and Kroger. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)
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WASHINGTON (AP) -- Meat giant Cargill is recalling 36 million pounds of ground turkey linked to a nationwide salmonella outbreak that has killed one person in California and sickened at least 76 others.
Illnesses in the outbreak date back to March and have been reported in 26 states coast to coast.
Cargill said Wednesday that it is recalling fresh and frozen ground turkey products produced at the company's Springdale, Ark., plant from Feb. 20 through Aug. 2 due to possible contamination from the strain of salmonella linked to the illnesses.
Company officials said that all ground turkey production has been suspended at the plant until the company is able to determine the source of the outbreak.
"Given our concern for what has happened, and our desire to do what is right for our consumers and customers, we are voluntarily removing our ground turkey products from the marketplace," said Steve Willardsen, president of Cargill's turkey processing business.
The Minnesota-based company said it was initiating the recall after its own internal investigation, an Agriculture Department investigation and information about the illnesses released by the CDC this week.
All of the packages recalled include the code "Est. P-963" on the label, according to Cargill. The packages were labeled with many different brands, including Cargill's Honeysuckle White.
The CDC said this week that cultures of ground turkey from four retail locations between March 7 and June 27 showed contamination with the same strain of salmonella, though those samples had not been specifically linked to the illnesses. The CDC said preliminary information showed that three of those samples were linked to the same production establishment, but it did not name that plant.
A chart on the CDC's website shows cases have occurred every month since early March, with spikes in May and early June. The latest reported cases were in mid-July, although the CDC said some recent cases may not have been reported yet.
The CDC said the strain is resistant to many commonly prescribed antibiotics, which can make treatment more difficult. The agency said 38 percent of those sickened were hospitalized.
The states with the highest number sickened were Michigan and Ohio, 10 illnesses each, while nine illnesses were reported in Texas. Illinois had seven, California six and Pennsylvania five.
The remaining states have between one and three reported illnesses linked to the outbreak, according to the CDC: Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, Nebraska, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Tennessee and Wisconsin.
The CDC estimates that 50 million Americans each year get sick from food poisoning, including about 3,000 who die. Salmonella causes most of these cases and federal health officials say they've made virtually no progress against it.
Government officials say that even contaminated ground turkey is safe to eat if it is cooked to 165 degrees. But it's also important that raw meat be handled properly before it is cooked and that people wash their hands with soap for at least 20 seconds before and after handling the meat. Turkey and other meats should also be properly refrigerated or frozen and leftovers heated.
The most common symptoms of salmonella are diarrhea, abdominal cramps and fever within eight hours to 72 hours of eating a contaminated product. It can be life-threatening to some with weakened immune systems.
Cargill executive Willardsen said, "Public health and the safety of consumers cannot be compromised."
"It is regrettable that people may have become ill from eating one of our ground turkey products," he said, "and, for anyone who did, we are truly sorry."
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BILL SHIFTS INCOME CUTOFF DOWN TO $200,000...
JUST $40B COMES FROM OIL, GAS TAXES...
TAB FOR CORP JET OWNERS: $3 BILLION... Obama to Tout Jobs Act at Donor's Company...
GOP Balks at Taxes to Finance Jobs Plan
By CAROL E. LEE And JANET HOOK
wsj.com
September 13, 2011
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The prospects for President Barack Obama's $447 billion jobs plan grew dimmer Monday as he unveiled the fine print of how it would be paid for—primarily through tax increases that Republicans said would destroy jobs, not create them.
Mr. Obama proposed limiting itemized deductions for families with taxable income of $250,000 or more a year, ending tax breaks for oil companies and corporate jet owners, and cutting out a tax break for investment-fund managers. The White House says the tax changes would take effect in 2013 and estimates they would raise $467 billion in additional revenue over 10 years.
Republicans in Congress, who had been striking a more conciliatory tone about backing at least parts of the proposal the president unveiled last Thursday, disputed the White House contention that the plan would cause no additional job losses for the struggling economy.
"It would be fair to say this tax increase on job creators is the kind of proposal both parties have opposed in the past,'' said Michael Steel, a spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio). "We remain eager to work together on ways to support job growth, but this proposal doesn't appear to have been offered in that bipartisan spirit.''
Mr. Obama made a new pitch for his plan at the White House Monday and has said he intends to campaign against Congress and Republicans in 2012 if they don't pass the bill.
"We've got to decide what our priorities are," he said. "Do we keep tax loopholes for oil companies, or do we put teachers back to work? Should we keep tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires, or should we invest in education and technology and infrastructure?" Despite Mr. Obama's demand that Congress act on the legislation quickly, neither the jobs nor tax proposals are likely to be approved or take affect any time soon. Senate Democratic leaders are expected to bring the bill to a vote in the coming weeks, but it is not expected to pass. More likely some of the proposals in the bill could be passed piecemeal or could be included in a broader deficit-reduction plan crafted by a congressional supercommittee charged with finding at least $1.2 trillion in savings over the next 10 years. Mr. Obama will submit his own deficit plan of more than $2 trillion over 10 years to the committee on Sept. 19, administration officials said. That plan will include budget cuts, including to programs such as Medicare, not just tax increases like the ones he's proposing to pay for his jobs bill, administration officials said.
The congressional committee faces a Nov. 23 deadline to agree on what to include in the deficit-reduction package, which would be put to Congress for an up or down vote by Dec. 23. From the outset, Republicans said Mr. Obama's jobs bill—which comprises tax cuts for employers and employees and a raft of government spending measures, including funds to states to rehire teachers and first responders—was unlikely to pass intact, a point White House officials privately conceded. But GOP leaders had signaled in recent days that they may support an extension of a payroll-tax cut in 2012 and changes to help the long-term unemployed. Despite the White House's hope that Republicans would have a change of heart after their political standing decreased after the acrimonious debt ceiling debate this summer, GOP reaction to Mr. Obama's proposal on Monday expressed a familiar sentiment, although in a less combative tone. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R., Va.) said the parts of the jobs bill involving spending aimed at stimulating economic growth were unacceptable to Republicans. "Anything that is akin to a stimulus bill is not going to be acceptable," he said. "Over half of the total dollar amount is so called stimulus spending. We have been there, done that. The country cannot afford more spending like a stimulus bill." The largest chunk of Mr. Obama's tax package comes from limiting itemized deductions for families with more than $250,000 in yearly taxable income and individuals with more than $200,000, including those for home-mortgage interest, state and local property taxes and charitable donations. The White House says that measure would raise roughly $400 billion over 10 years.
For those affected, the proposal would limit the value of itemized deductions to 28 cents for each dollar of income deducted. Currently, the value of deductions for higher-income earners can be as much as 33 cents or 35 cents on the dollar because they're in the 33% and 35% tax brackets. READ MORE
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VIDEO: MISSOURI THE BEAUTIFUL Take a patriotic tour of the Show Me State's natural wonders . . ==========================================================
State Sen. Jane Cunningham, (right) R-Chesterfield, sponsored the bill revising the language. She also sponsored the original bill, which was aimed at discouraging communication that could encourage educators who are sexual predators.
While supportive of Cunningham's efforts, state Sen. Jolie Justus, (left) D-Kansas City, said she was concerned with trying to statutorily regulate technology "because it changes so quickly."
Justus and Cunningham :23 mp3
