Number rises to 37 and counting as Tornadoes leaves death and destruction from Kentucky to Georgia

As tornadoes raced across several states it decimated West Liberty, Kentucky; Henryville, Indiana; Harrisburg, Illinois while making its way to Madison County, Meridianville & Huntsville, Alabama; Ooltewah, Tennessee; Ohio; Harveyville, Kansas [20 miles SW of Topeka]; Buffalo, Branson & Stoddard County, Missouri; and Paulding County, Georgia. By the time the powerful storm system faded, 37 lives were lost.

The death toll included:
 Kentucky = 22
 Indiana = 10
 Ohio = 03
 Alabama = 01
 Georgia = 01

A 20 month-old girl was found alone in a field Friday night in Salem, about 20 miles west of Henryville. She is the lone survivor in her immediate family, which consisted of her parents and two siblings, ages 3 years and two months, respectively.
About 250 National Guard troops were deployed in Indiana, with 220 more dispatched to Morgan County, Kentucky according to state officials.

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photo credit: cnn.com

Miami’s Liberty Square Drive-by shootings of kids imitates a “New Jack’s City” Reality

In watching the movie “New Jack City” on the big screen, it seemed unfathomable that a drug gang could actually take control of an entire apartment complex, considering that this a made for entertainment movie.

But what do you say, when life imitates art on a day to day basis? It has become painfully clear to the residents of Liberty Square aka Pork & Beans apartment complex, its local police department and the general public -at -large that this neighborhood [bordered at 62nd Street to the south, 67th Street to the north; West 12th Avenue to the east and West 15th Avenue to the west] is under seized by drug related elements and activities.

Everyone and everything appears to be a target, whether you are moving are standing still. It’s an all out war with no end in sight. A sort of “kill or be-killed mentality has taken over!”

The victims range in age from babies to adults and the shootings could just as easily occur in the quiet of the morning as the sun begins to rise, in the heat of the day or it can occur under the blanket of a dark night.

Even before Liberty Square can recover and heal from one shooting, another one has occurred, sometimes its two in one day. Where does it end? When will it end? And who will take responsibility for its end? Or is it an area too besieged by drugs and crimes to salvage?

New Child Support Debtors Law: Well Intended but Misguided

Old child support debts can prove fatal to those whose only source of income is “Federal Benefits.” Effective next year, according to the new child support law, thousands of poor and disabled men stand to lose their only income because of a change in government policy that will allow states to seize “every dollar of federal benefits from people who owe back child support.“

Since last May, states have had the power to freeze Social Security, Disability and Veteran’s Benefits that have been deposited into those accounts.

In an effort to cut down on paperwork, The Treasury Department will start paying benefits electronically next March. Once paper checks are eliminated, about 275,000 people could lose access to all their income, advocates say.

Does this mean that the men who will be affected by this new law will now be entitled to welfare and food stamps?

Will the children involved in the back child support debts actually receive any of this new found fortune? The answer is, “Unfortunately, Not!” Most of the money will go to the government as repayment for welfare previously provided for those children, “not the children of the men with child support issues.”

There are many mitigating circumstances that would prevent a payee from not being current on their payments. Some include but are not limited to un-employment, under-employment, disabled, homeless, and mentally-ill or incarcerated, etc., “One size does not fit all!” Each case should be decided on a case by case basis. “To deprive a human being of any source of income is inhumane and uncivilized.”

This law should be revisited and revised to accommodate every ones’ need and the woman should bear more responsibility than previously given to her. This business of “we made a baby, now! you take care of him/her needs to end.” Both parties should be equally responsible for the childs’ welfare.

“The New Child Support Law will only create more chaos and lawsuits, not smooth sailing as anticipated!”

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photo credit: AJC.COM