In Case You Missed It - The Story of The Flying Santa

 

At 73 years old, Seamond Ponsart Roberts continues to have a close relationship with Santa. The magical bond was formed when she was just a girl, living on a secluded island as a lighthouse keeper’s daughter. And today, a vivid memory remains:

Cuttyhunk Light’s tall white tower, a beacon to mariners off the coast of Cape Cod, was home for 5-year-old Roberts in the 1940s. In the shadow of the tower, she searched for beach treasure and picked wild strawberries, explored with her dog and watched the clouds change shape.

Roberts loved her magical island world. But there was one small thing she desired — a doll. So she wrote a letter to Santa — Flying Santa, actually — the man who flew over the island at Christmastime and dropped gifts from his plane.

“He’d send that package filled with wonderful stuff for the adults,” Roberts recalled. “And he’d always find out if there were children there, so he could send something special for them. It was so personal, like having an autograph from Santa himself.”

The tradition began in 1929, when Bill Wincapaw of Friendship, Maine, began flying packages of gifts to families stationed at lighthouses and lifesaving stations along the East Coast. Capt. Wincapaw saw the flights as a gesture of recognition to these families.

 

He and his son, Bill Jr., continued the flights for close to two decades, then handed the reins to Winthrop native Edward Rowe Snow, an author and historian who used to teach at Winthrop High School. Snow expanded the list of stops and led the flights for more than four decades with the help of his wife, Anna-Myrle, and their daughter, Dolly.

Roberts knew Flying Santa as Mr. Snow.

In 1945, Roberts watched as his plane passed overhead and three packages fell from the sky.

“I knew he’d brought me something special,” she said. “We unwrapped the package and out came the doll in smithereens.”

The package had hit a rock and the gift she had waited patiently for all year was broken.

“So my dad, being the lighthouse keeper who could always fix everything, he fixed the doll for me,” she said. “He put her arm in a sling and made little bandages for her. So she was my sick doll.”

That year, the lighthouse was condemned, so Roberts’ family moved to the nearby West Chop Light. As months passed, she began to worry that Santa wouldn’t be able to find her at her new home.

On Christmas Day, her family took a trip to the nearby Gay Head Lightsaving Station. They arrived to a crowd of people, and moments later, a helicopter touched down, and out stepped Santa, Mr. Snow, in his red suit and hat. He walked up to Roberts and handed her a new doll.

“I was speechless, totally speechless,” she recalled. “That moment was a pinnacle moment in my life because it was so personal for me, that someone would do that. And I kept finding out tidbits later, like, he paid for it himself. He’d spend all year gathering up this stuff, then his family would wrap it — there was so much of the giving.

“To this day, I believe in Santa Claus, not the kids’ version, but that special things can happen to you on Christmas,” Roberts said.

This true holiday story is told in the new children’s book “Love From the Sky: Seamond and the Flying Santa,” written by Maine author Angeli Perrow and illustrated by New Hampshire artist Heidi Farrow.

“It was just a story that captivated me,” Perrow said. “I have great admiration for people who lived in such isolated places and worked so hard for such as important reason — to keep our mariners safe.”

All proceeds from book sales will go to Flying Santa, a program that continues to deliver gifts to Coast Guard children today.

In 1997, the nonprofit Friends of Flying Santa was formed to support the program. By that time, planes had been replaced by helicopters, and a number of men were playing the role of Flying Santa. Today, the helicopters visit 45 Coast Guard units from Maine to New York, bringing gifts to more than 800 children.

“Last Saturday, I was at Pemaquid Point Lighthouse when Flying Santa landed, and there were about 100 people there, and the kids were so excited when Santa stepped out of that helicopter,” Roberts said. “It was a magical moment.”

Add caption

 

“Even though the lighthouses are automated, there are so many Coast Guard units out there, there’s no reason for us to stop,” said Brian Tague, president of Friends of Flying Santa. “It’s an opportunity to recognize the Coast Guard families. They’re out there every day doing their jobs on the coast of New England.”

Granite State Aviation and JBI Helicopter Services, both of New Hampshire, and Evan Wile donate aircraft for the program, and the rest is funded through fundraising events, lighthouse tours and cruises, individual donations and sales of Flying Santa memorabilia.

The role of Flying Santa is currently performed by David Considine, retired Coast Guard senior chief, and Thomas Guthlein, retired Coast Guard warrant officer. And at each stop, the community gathers to meet Santa and his elves as they pass out gifts and speak to the children about the spirit of the holidays.

“It’s just a fun occasion — a big Christmas party,” Tague said. “We’ve had commanders of the sectors say it’s the biggest morale event of the year, and the kids will ask all year, ‘Are we going to see Flying Santa again?’ It’s a unique way of keeping a holiday tradition.”

“We were on the Cape the other day and they had turned their boathouse into a Santa’s workshop, all decorated and with fake snow,” Tague said. “The kids just have a great time with it.”

In 2003, Roberts joined Flying Santa Guthlein on a flight along the East Coast, returning to West Chop Light, 57 years after Santa Snow arrived on the island to deliver her second doll.

“It all came full circle,” she said.

“I got to be the elf and see the joy in the eyes of Coast Guard kids. I knew what they were feeling.

“I went over there and kissed my lighthouse,” she said. “After I got home that night, I couldn’t sleep. This was all going on in my head. I thought, ‘My God, my Santa Claus is still giving me presents.’ With every flight, I get another present. It’s a good feeling. And that’s really, deep down, what it’s all about — making people happy. It did, and it still does.”

To purchase the children’s book “Love from the Sky: Seamond and the Flying Santa,” visitwww.flyingsanta.com. Also available on the website is Roberts’ recently published memoir, “Everyday Heroes: The True Story of a Lighthouse Family” co-written with Jeremy D’Entremont.

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Another Night Another Charlotte Homicide in South Charlotte

CMPD is working another South Charlotte homicide.

From WCNC:

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A man was shot and killed in a south Charlotte parking lot during an argument, according to Charlotte-Mecklenburg police.

Several officers responded to the scene near South Boulevard and Sharon Lakes Drive just before 10 p.m. Wednesday.

Police say the victim and suspect had an altercation outside of a laundromat in the Sharon Lakes Business Center.

A family member took the victim to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Police say the victim is a man, but his identity has not been released.

No one has been taken into custody. Witnesses and anyone else with information about the suspect is asked to come forward.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call 704-432-TIPS and speak directly to a Homicide Unit Detective.  

Cedar'sTake: Sharon Lakes used to be a pretty upscale and crime free area. From the 1980's to the late 1990's the area was populated by young working professionals. Then the city of Charlotte figured it was a great area for affordable housing.  

Today the area is home to low income African American families and an exploding Latino population. All within a a mile of some of the most expensive residential real estate in Charlotte. 

Another example of poor zoning spreading crime throughout Charlotte.

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In Case You Missed It Why Kay Hagan Attack Ads Are Polluting Your Christmas

NPR doesn't have a lot of listeners even here in the liberal strong hold of Charlotte, so you might have missed their left leaning take on Kay Hagen's re-election campaign.

But you can't miss the recent attack ads running around the clock. There are so many, you might think that there is a special election in a few weeks. The election of course is not until November, but Hagen's approval rating is on the ropes and the Democratic PAC is out sniping at Tom Tillis one of many expected contenders for the Republican endorsement.

Cedar's Take: Get used to this, Hagen won the seat held by Jesse Helms for 30 years and her re-election was taken for granted, but Dole lost mainly due to Barrack Obama's coat-tails and in part to her attack ad calling Hagen "Godless". But there was also the backlash against her record at the Red Cross and her wealth. I'd expect to see and hear countless ads and an aggressive push by the GOP to take back Jesse Helms historic senate seat.

Here's the NPR Transcript and the ads via: YouTube.

BTW: Cedar voted to oust Dole, not one of my brightest moves, since Hagen's record is just abysmal.  

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

In North Carolina, the ads are starting early - the political ads, that is. Republicans are setting their sights on defeating first-term Democrat Kay Hagan. Senator Hagan's GOP opponent won't be known until the spring but her support for President Obama and the Affordable Care Act has already hurt her with voters. She's also being targeted by outside groups, spending millions of dollars hoping to unseat her. NPR national political correspondent Don Gonyea reports.

DON GONYEA, BYLINE: Yes, the 2014 election is almost 11 months away but you wouldn't know it from local TV in North Carolina. The attack ads are already up and running.



UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: But health care isn't about politics. It's about people. It's not about a website that doesn't work. It's not about poll numbers or approval ratings. It's about people. And millions of people have lost their health insurance.

GONYEA: This one is paid for by Americans for Prosperity, a group with very close ties to the Tea Party Movement and with lots of cash from the billionaire Koch brothers. That and other similar anti-Hagan ads have been running for more than a month. Then, just this past week, Hagan, the Democrat, has gotten some backing from a friendly group, the Senate Majority PAC.



GONYEA: That pushback comes as Hagan's poll numbers have slumped, says Tom Jensen of the North Carolina-based Public Policy Polling, a Democratic-leaning firm.

TOM JENSEN: She's dropped over the last three months from leading most of her opponents by about 15 to being tied.

GONYEA: It's a big decline and Jensen attributes it to all of the attention surrounding the troubled rollout of the HealthCare.gov website and to the early drumbeat of attack ads. I talked to some North Carolina voters in the small town of Selma, as they stood curbside waiting for the start of the annual Christmas parade one night last week.

Where's your head right now in terms of who you might support?

DALE AUSTIN: Well, I still like Hagan, you know. Right now, unless something changes drastically, that's where I'll be.

GONYEA: That's 61-year-old Dale Austin. He describes himself as an independent voter. As for Obamacare and what the problems with its website may mean for Senator Hagan...

AUSTIN: Well, that's not her fault. It's not her fault.

GONYEA: But just a block away, 70-year-old Ethel Brown, who's here with her grandkids, puts full blame for Obamacare on Senator Hagan.

ETHEL BROWN: If it had not been for her, we wouldn't have - we wouldn't be having this Obama thing, insurance stuff. She did vote for it.

GONYEA: Then Brown adds something that will be a concern to the Hagan campaign.

BROWN: I'm a Democrat. I'm a registered Democrat, but I don't always vote Democrat. I voted for her. But I wouldn't no more.

GONYEA: Moments later, the parade was starting, so I quit talking politics and let people cheer on the local high school marching band.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "JOY TO THE WORLD")

GONYEA: Political strategists Gary Pearce and Carter Wrenn - a Democrat and a Republican - publish a political blog in North Carolina. They say people often forget that this is such a big state with a changing population. It's becoming less rural, more suburban. Here's Pearce.

GARY PEARCE: A lot of new people coming in here, gravitating toward the cities. Obama won by a hair in 2008. He lost by a hair in 2012. There may be one or two other states that are that close, that volatile, but not much.

GONYEA: His Republican blogging partner, Carter Wrenn, says Senator Hagan will likely go up and down in the polls over the course of the next year, as will Republicans. But he adds...

CARTER WRENN: She's just in a race that she's going to win narrowly or lose narrowly, and she can't change that. And the other thing to worry about is what about Obama. She can't control his popularity.

GONYEA: And, he says, the president's standing will absolutely have an impact in Hagan's chances for re-election. Don Gonyea, NPR News.

Copyright © 2013 NPR. All rights reserved. No quotes from the materials contained herein may be used in any media without attribution to NPR. This transcript is provided for personal, noncommercial use only, pursuant to our Terms of Use. Any other use requires NPR's prior permission. Visit our permissions page for further information.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by a contractor for NPR, and accuracy and availability may vary. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Please be aware that the authoritative record of NPR's programming is the audio.

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Cedar Posts Isn't Sure At What Point This Story Becomes Sick And Twisted

Child found handcuffed to porch with dead chicken around his neck

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Wanda Sue Larson (left) and Dorian Lee Harper

Store |

A Union County social worker was one of two adults charged with intentional child abuse Friday after deputies found a child handcuffed to a porch with a dead chicken around his neck.

Dorian Lee Harper and Wanda Sue Larson, both 57, have been charged with numerous offenses after a deputy discovered the child at 4116 Austin Road, south of Monroe, authorities said.

Larson is employed as a supervisor with Union County Department of Social Services. She and Harper had adopted four children and were serving as foster parents for a fifth child, officials said.

Union County Sheriff Eddie Cathey called the incident “shocking.”

“I can assure you that we have only just begun our investigation into what has happened, and we will pursue it to its fullest extent,” Cathey said.

A deputy was responding to an animal services complaint at a neighboring home Friday when he walked up to Harper’s and Larson’s residence and saw a “10-12-year-old child secured to the front porch at the ankle, by what appeared to be a pair of handcuffs,” officials said.

“The child also had a dead chicken hanging around his neck and appeared to be shivering,” the Sheriff’s Office said.

Moments later a man appeared on the porch, and asked the deputy why he was there. The deputy asked for the man’s identification and why the child was handcuffed to the porch, officials said.

“The man produced a driver’s license, but then a child at the residence opened a door to the house releasing several large dogs that then accosted the officer,” the Sheriff’s Office said.

The deputy got in his vehicle and by the time the dogs were secured, “the man had removed the child from the porch and left the dead chicken on a barrel on the porch,” authorities said.

When backup arrived, deputies entered and searched the home and found five children, ages 8, 9, 11, 13 and 14, the Sheriff’s Office said. The children were removed from the home. Officers then began a criminal investigation, and the man was taken into custody at the scene.

Harper and Larson have both been charged with intentional child abuse inflicting serious injury, false imprisonment and cruelty to animals, authorities said.

Larson was not present when the children were discovered but is accused of being complicit in the ongoing mistreatment of the children, the Sheriff’s Office said. She was also charged with willful failure to discharge her duty as a public official.

The child handcuffed to the porch is the 11-year-old Harper and Larson had been fostering, authorities said. The children are now in custody of an undisclosed social services agency outside Union County.

Harper is being held under a $500,000 bond. Larson’s bond was set at $525,000. Both are being held at the Union County jail and are scheduled to appear in court on Monday.

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Grass Roots North Carolina - Fires A Warning Shot Accross CMPD Chief Monroe's Nose

Cedar Posts has obtained a copy of a letter apparently sent on Tuesday to CMPD Chief Rodney Monroe.

 

 

GRASS ROOTS NORTH CAROLINA / FORUM FOR FIREARMS EDUCATION

P.O. BOX 10665

RALEIGH, NC 27605

877.282.0939

 

http://www.GRNC.org

October 22, 2013

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department
601 East Trade Street
Charlotte, NC 28202

Attn: Chief Rodney Monroe

Dear Chief Monroe: Reports from gun dealers at two recent gun shows, as well as internal communications within your department, indicate you are attempting to regulate gun sales from individuals to dealers, and possibly between individuals who are not dealers under N.C.G.S. Article 45, (Part 1, "Pawnbrokers and Cash Converters") by classifying them as "cash converters."

Specifically, your officers have been distributing and requiring use of the enclosed "CMPD Gun Show Gun Purchase Form."

Please be advised that: (1) As outlined below, the "cash converter" statute clearly does not apply to gun shops or private transactions; and

(2) The imposition of a local gun law or regulation is in violation of § 14-409.40 ("Statewide uniformity of local regulation").

As passed in Session Law 2011-325 and then recodified in S.L. 2012-46, § 66-387(2) defines "cash converter" as follows:

(2) Cash converter. - A person engaged in the business of purchasing goods from the public for cash at a permanently located retail store who holds himself or herself out to the public by signs, advertising, or other methods as engaging in that business.

The term does not include any of the following:

a. Pawnbrokers.

b. Persons whose goods purchases are made directly from manufacturers or wholesalers for their inventories.

c. Precious metals dealers, to the extent that their transactions are regulated under Part 2 of this Article.

d. Purchases by persons primarily in the business of obtaining from the public, either by purchase or exchange, used clothing, children's furniture, and children's products, provided the amount paid for the individual item purchased is less than fifty dollars ($50.00).

e. Purchases by persons primarily in the business of obtaining from the public, either by purchase or exchange, sporting goods and sporting equipment, provided the amount paid for the individual item purchased is less than fifty dollars ($50.00).

Please note that neither gun show vendors who purchase firearms from individuals nor private transfers between individuals meet the definition of "cash converter" for the following reasons:

1. Although your form is entitled "CMPD Gun Show Gun Purchase Form," nothing in the statute addresses gun shows any more than it addresses flea markets or other venues, leading any reasonable person to conclude that you are attempting to stigmatize gun shows;

2. A gun show vendor is not "a person engaged in the business of purchasing goods from the public for cash at a permanently located retail store." Not only do gun show purchases not take place at a "permanently located retail store," many gun show vendors do not even possess such locations.

3. By any reasonable plain language interpretation of the statute, it even more clearly excludes private transfers between individuals not engaged in a firearms-related business;

4. I am unaware of any gun show dealer who "holds himself or herself out to the public by signs, advertising, or other methods as engaging" the business of buying firearms particularly at the show itself, with the possible exception of pawnbrokers, who are specifically exempt as described below;

5. The cash converter statute specifically exempts both "Pawnbrokers" and "Persons whose goods purchases are made directly from manufacturers or wholesalers for their inventories," which would, in all likelihood, encompass nearly all gun show dealers.

Accordingly, Grass Roots North Carolina strongly advises you to cease and desist in your apparent attempt to register guns and gun owners in contravention of both Article 45 of the North Carolina General Statutes and § 14-409.40.

Failure to do so will result in legal action.

Please note that under § 6-21.7 ("Attorneys’ fees; cities or counties acting outside the scope of their authority"), we will also seek to recover associated legal expenses.

I can be reached directly at (704) 907-9206.

To preclude further action, please reply within five (5) business days.

Respectfully,

F. Paul Valone

President, Grass Roots North Carolina Executive Director, Rights Watch International

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Monday's Odds and Ends - Law and Order Edition

Serial Dead Beat Tenant April Dawn Willocks - Here's a story that says maybe the economy is not so healthy after all. Apparently, April Willocks aka Dawn Wilcox, aka April Wilcox has a long list of landlords and other creditors hot on her trail.



Not to mention the local cops and North Carolina Highway Patrol.

Seems the single mother has been jumping from apartment to apartment, following eviction after eviction. Apparently the former wife of a Charlotte restaurateur has found a way to live rent free or at least so she thinks. Ms. Willocks has racked countless "Summary Ejection" filings in Mecklenburg County alone over the last 10 years, the most recent one filed just last week.

Eviction actions filed by case number in Mecklenburg County:

2011CVD019770

2012CVM034878

2013CVM024080

2013CR 202898

1999CDV7920

2001CVM27311

2011CVM36992

2012CVM34878

2013CVM24080

2011CVD19770

2011CVD21339

20013CVM29899

2014CVM340

 

Other lawsuits:

Amsted Park

FIA Card DBA Bank America

Kingsley Home Owners Association

Brock & Scott

Staying just one step ahead of the law has been her M/O. That is until she was stopped for speeding in a work zone and was arrested for (DWLR) driving with a revoked license on September 10, 2013.

Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office 2012

 

Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office 2010

Apparently Ms. Willocks lost her NCDL thanks to one or more drunk driving arrests in 2010, 2011 or 2012. But she has reportedly been seen driving around Charlotte with impunity.

 

CP Bonus: Thanks to a CP reader, apparently Ms. Willocks is a promo girl for a liquor wholesale operation out of Florida known as Independence Spirits, LLC. the maker of "Sweet Revenge" a strawberry flavored "high proof" Liquor.

 

A couple of prior addresses this woman has used under different aliases:

 

11910 Royal Castle Ct, Charlotte, NC 28277

 

821 Selwyn Oaks Court, Charlotte, NC 28209

 

Confessions - Admittedly I'm a fan of "This American Life" and host Ira Glass. I simply love the framework that is used to tell a story. Often a story that is too in-depth to tell via mainstream media. Too controversial or too detailed for most of America to follow. 

 

And isn't that what a blog like Cedar Posts should point out?

 

 

Admittedly at first I was hesitant to even admit I found this interesting and in fact vastly enlightening. I feared I would offend some of my police friends and family. 

 

But imagine if you where charged with crime you didn't commit, and that crime was murder. What if the evidence was overwhelming and no one believed you were innocent? What if all the facts, charge card signatures and surveillance photos provided it was you? Would you confess to a crime you didn't commit?

 

The answer of course is NO! or at least that is what one veteran police detective used to think, until he reopened a cold case and reviewed the charges he help bring against a women named Kim.

 

"It was 1994. A man was found dead by the Anacostia River in Washington, DC. He'd been tied up and savagely beaten. Someone had taken his wallet and used his credit card at a liquor store, a drug store, and a Chinese restaurant. Police also had a surveillance photo from an ATM that looked like this woman named Kim. From public documents, they saw that her handwriting matched the signatures on the credit card slips.

 

Jim Trainum was the lead detective on this case. It was one of his first major homicide investigations. And when he started interrogating Kim, she just denied everything. She told him she didn't know the dead men. She'd never signed any credit card slips. So they sat there for hours going back and forth. Then early that afternoon, Kim started to crack."

 

Eventually Kim admitted to the crime, the trouble is she didn't kill anyone in fact she had nothing at all to do with the murder. In fact she couldn't have, but still she confessed to killing someone. Why?

 

The audio link is here. And the complete transcript is here.

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22 Feign Injury After CATS Bus Fender Bender

From the Charlotte Observer:

 

Twenty-two people were injured during a bus crash in uptown Charlotte.

Paramedics said they treated a total of 22 patients following the wreck at Fourth and Caldwell Streets. All the patients have nonlife-threatening injures.

 

The cause of the wreck is still under investigation. Pictures from the scene showed the No. 1 bus to Mount Holy stopped at an intersection. A blue Ford pickup truck and a tan car also appeared to be involved in the crash. The bus was struck on the windshield near the door.

 

Nine patients were taken to Carolinas Medical Center. Three went to CMC-Universty and ten were transported to Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center.

 

Cedar's Take: 22 of Charlotte's finest citizens are injured on a city bus during a fender bender, can you imagine the calamity? Perhaps the Observer should publish the names and photos of the injured so that we can offer our prayers?

 

But the truth is public shame, or embarrassment are no match for these citizens. Never mind that people who needed medic, fire, police or hospital care had to wait while these "victims" where treated.  We have a nation of people who as infants uttered "gimme" as their first words.   

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/10/15/4390681/uptown-bus-crash-injures-22.html#.Ul46CGt5mSM#storylink=cpy

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In Case You Missed It - Xerox Glitch Gives Welfare Recipients An Early Christmas

In some Walmart stores, customers emptied shelves like it was Black Friday, while in others, no one could buy anything -- all thanks to a weekend of glitches with the nation's welfare system.

Problems involving Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) cards, the government payments to the poor that are administered by states with the help of private companies, plagued at least 17 states Saturday and Sunday, creating retail riots. At Louisiana stores in Springhill and Mansfield, cards registered no spending limits, prompting recipients to go on buying binges.

"It was worse than any Black Friday,” Springhill Police Chief Will Lynd told local station KSLA-TV

Customers said shelves were picked clean in a mob scene that left employees rattled. Walmart spokeswoman Kayla Whaling told the station the company made a conscious decision to keep ringing up goods rather than to cut people off.

"We did make the decision to continue to accept EBT cards (and purchases on WIC and SNAP) during the outage so that they could get food for their families," she said.

But when order was restored and the cards began reading properly, it became clear that some customers were out to take advantage of the taxpayer-funded program. One woman had $700 worth of merchandise in her cart and an EBT card with a balance of just 49 cents.

The glitches, which were apparently triggered by a a system failure at Xerox, which handles processing for many states, left other users unable to buy anything. At a Mississippi Walmart, customers rioted and even left the store with groceries without paying after they were unable to use their food stamp cards on Saturday, according to the Clarion-Ledger.

The mini riot happened at the Walmart in Philadelphia, Miss. Shortly thereafter, managers decided to temporarily close the store.

“For the safety of our customers we did make a management decision to close the store," Whaling said of the Mississippi incident. "We’re looking into everything; looking at surveillance video and working with the local police.”

While Walmart, as the nation's biggest retailer and grocer, was affected most, the glitch hampered customers at other stores, as well. In Massachusetts, nearly 1 million EBT card users were unable to access the SNAP food program or withdraw cash, said Matthew Kitsos, spokesman with the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance.

“We didn’t have answers for them, except for that there were problems in the state,” the manager of a Market Basket in Somerville, who asked that his name not be used, told the Boston Herald. “A lot of people are depending on them. They have kids; they depend on that money.”

Xerox spokeswoman Karen Arena told USA Today that some Electronic Benefits Transfer systems were experiencing connectivity issues after a routine test of a backup system at a location in the Midwest caused an outage. U.S. Department of Agriculture spokeswoman Courtney Rowe underscored that the outage was not related to the federal government shutdown. Xerox runs EBT card systems for 17 states. All were affected by the outage.

Reports surfaced around 9 a.m. Saturday that customers' EBT cards were not working in stores. Other affected states included Alabama, California, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia.

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FOX Anchor Has A Blonde Moment

Charlotte native and cutie Anna Kooiman inserts foot - The Fox News Channel anchor has apologized for falsely saying that President Barack Obama had offered to pay for the operation of a museum of Muslim culture "out of his own pocket" during the government shutdown.

Anchor Kooiman, a former WCCB reporter in Charlotte, made the remark Saturday on "Fox & Friends" during a discussion about the closed park facilities. She said it didn't seem fair that a World War II monument in Washington was closed, especially in the context of other things funded.

She didn't name her source, but Kooiman appeared to be influenced by a satirical news site that rhymes with Yum Yum, (just kidding it wasn't "The Onion" but rather the lesser known "National Report") that said Obama would use his own money to keep a Muslim culture museum open.

 Kooiman tweeted an apology Sunday:

"Just met w producers- I made a mistake yday after receiving flawed research abt a museum possibly closing. My apologies. Won't happen again."

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Watch Learn and Then Ask Yourself When Would You Draw Your Weapon

Oregon State Police released this video of John Van Allen, 34, as he is pulled over for speeding on I-84 about 100 miles east of Portland.

Allen exits his car and begins walking toward the state trooper eventually pulling a weapon and firing at the trooper. Allen is shot during the exchange, and is later was found dead in his car a half-mile down the road.

Oregon State Trooper Matthew Zistel sustained a bullet wound in his side and was treated at a local hospital and releasd.

Three juveniles ages 10, 13, 15 located in the back of the car were uninjured. Allen is a South Carolina native and was reportedly on his way to South Carolina.

Cedar Asks: When did you draw your weapon? At what point did you stop being polite? How close did he get to you before you knew it was more than a guy with a bad attitude?

Detailed coverage from the Oregonian here.

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In Case You Missed It - Shannon Christy

There are few things in life as enjoyable as the exuberance of youth and the love of the water. Watch through the eyes of David Martin and CBS Sports videographers and you can feel the overwhelming dismay as their story takes a totally unexpected turn.

Cedar's Take: I can't imagine the emotions the reporters, producers and editors dealt with putting this story together, but it is so worth telling. As I have said many times "All glory is fleeting". CP

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In Case You Missed It - Staff Sgt Timothy McGill

Schoolchildren salute as they line the street watching as the coffin of Army Staff. Sgt. Timothy McGill is carried through his hometown of Ramsey, N.J., Monday, Sept. 30, 2013. Residents lined Main Street in Ramsey as they paused to remember the soldier killed in Afghanistan. The 30-year-old Special Forces soldier was one of three troops shot on Sept. 21 by an Afghan wearing a security forces uniform in an attack near the Pakistan border. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/10/01/4358111/the-daily-edit-100213.html#storylink=cpy

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In Case You Missed It - 82 Year Old Arrested For Having Sex With A 29 year old Hooker

MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WMBF) – An 82-year-old man and a 29-year-old woman were arrested for prostitution Thursday night, according to a Myrtle Beach Police Department report.

Don Scarbough Fenters, 82, and Alisha Caroline Phillips, 29, were arrested after a witness reported to police that he saw a vehicle swerving on Highway 501, the report states. He got closer to the vehicle, thinking it may have been a drunk driver, but saw a woman performing sexual acts on the older man while he was driving.

 The witness followed the vehicle as it pulled off Highway 501 and parked in the back of a property in the 1500 block of Executive Avenue, the report states.

The witness then flagged the responding Myrtle Beach Police officer down and told him where they were located. According to the police report, the officer saw Phillips performing sexual acts on Fenters while he sat in the driver's seat of a white Cadillac Deville.

Both were taken to Myrtle Beach Jail, and interviewed with the officer. Both are facing prostitution charges, and Phillips is facing an additional charge of possession of drug paraphernalia after it was found in her purse.

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Miley Cyrus Opts For See Through Mesh Dress

Miley Cyrus shows up at the iHeartRadio event braless with pasties and a white mesh see-through dress. On stage she later spanked a "twerking" midget, errr.... little person.

 

 

Cedar's Take: Hello America, here's proof that stupid sells. Sure everyone is talking about Miley Cyrus, but google her name and try to find anyone that thinks she is a talented singer/actress/songwriter, of course not because she's a stage act and to continue the scam she has to keep doing more and more bizarre stunts. This is not attractive or sexy it is just proof some women can't put this look off. Now Kate Upton is a different story.  

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Lewisburg WV Restaurateur Steve Jackendoff The Owner Of "Julian's" Hangs Up His Apron

If you never made the trip to Julian's in Lewisburg, you really missed out. Julian's was the go to location for Greenbrier Guests looking for something beyond the fabulous Greenbrier Resort Food.

From Charleston's Saturday Gazette Mail:

Stephen "Steve" Jackdendoff operated Julian's restaurant in downtown Lewisburg for 22 years. Now he says its time to do something else while he still can. "We did an awful lot of business but I think it was time to move on," Jackdendoff said.

Steve Jackdendoff doing what he has always done, red wine in hand and chatting with guests.

Julian's served its last meals on September 11, and was sold in an auction to a new owner on September 14.

Jackdendoff, 68, said the restaurant provided him a great life. He traveled the world and ate and drank well all while serving good food to his friends. He started thinking about leaving the restaurant business a few years ago.

Once his decision was made, he put the two-story building with an upstairs apartment on the market. "After waiting six months and no one seems interested I decided to do something different," Jackdendoff said. "I decided it was time for an auction."

Tommy Garten of Greenways Real Estate & Auction ran Julian's auction. Garten thought it was a good sale.

"I thought it was a very fair price for both the buyer and the seller," Garten said. The property had a 5 percent buyer's premium and sold for $157,500. Garten said that the property needs some repair work.

I'm fairly happy that I was able to sell and pay all my bills," Jackdendoff said. Jackdendoff saw Lewisburg's growth first hand from Julians. When he opened, there were only three restaurants, but there were 10 when he closed.

"That('s) a little harder competition," he said.

Before closing Julian's, Jackdendoff, tried to thank as many customers as possible. He wants to thank any he missed, especially frequent Charleston customers.

He even recalls serving third generation customers. Neither Jackdendoff nor Garten know what will happen with the property now. "Who knows, we might open another one," Jackdendoff added.

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CMPD Arrests Officer Michael Thompson

CMPD Officer Michael L. Thompson is accused of falsifying time sheets while working at his second job in the Berewick Homeowner’s Association. He has been arrested and faces eight counts of obtaining property by false pretense.

The department hired Thompson in 2007. He has been placed on administrative leave pending a criminal and internal investigation.

 “The actions of this officer do not reflect the character of the dedicated men and women that wear the badge of the CMPD with honor.  We will continue to hold officers to the highest standards and accountable for their actions,” said Chief Rodney D. Monroe.

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Roy Cooper Effectively Negates CMPD Officer Arrest SBI StartsInvestigation

When Mecklenburg County DA Andrew Murray handed the case against CMPD Officer Randall Kerrick to North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper he forever changed the playing field, the rules and the teams.

Then Roy Cooper effectively dismissed Chief Monroe's rush to judgement, requesting that the NC SBI take over the investigation of the fatal shooting that happened nearly a week ago.

"We want our SBI agents to do an independent investigation, our attorneys will look carefully at all the laws and the facts and determine if other charges need to be brought." - Roy Cooper

CMPD Chief Rodney Monroe emailed  a statement to WSOC saying he supports the decision to have the state attorney general handle the case, and that the department will fully cooperate by "turning over all evidence collected during the investigation as the department has done in prior cases."

Cedar's Take - it is not hard to imagine that Chief Monroe didn't see Murray's end run coming. What this means for the department is an unprecedented review of CMPD by the SBI and a do over for the arrest of Randall Kerrick. Expect that beyond the shooting the SBI will be looking into training, supervision, communications and the deartment's SOP that has evolved under Monroe.

 

It is Chief Monroe's SOP the requires "when there are multiple Officers on the scene with a combative person and he fails to follow commands, that only one Officer draws his weapon and requires that the others draw their Tasers". Following the Chief's SOP forces one Officer to use a gun even when he might feel a Taser would suffice. In other words Monroe's SOP gave Officer Kerrick little choice but to shoot his weapon when Ferrell charged out of the darkness. 

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WCNC Picks Up CP Blog Poking Chief Monroe Square In The Eye

 

Just to be clear, Cedar Posts has never suggested that there is a "racial divide" in the department among rank and file. There is however you would like to phrase it, a definitive record of showing favoritism from the Chief towards Rank and File Officers and Command Staff of color. Promotions, discipline, assignments and the list goes on and on. In short, black officers are given a "free pass" while white officers and made to tow the line.

This is not racism in the KKK sense of the word, but simply discrimination or if you prefer the gentler term, favoritism based on color.

As far as Dr. Vivian Lord's contention that Cedar Posts is a "blog with poisonous statements" and that people who write and comment on such blogs "are not the norm" CP suggests she step out of her liberal cocoon of academia and live in the normal world for a while.

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Mecklenburg County District Attorney Andrew Murray Bows Out Of KerrickCase

Mecklenburg District Attorney Andrew Murray has asked that the N.C. Attorney General’s Office prosecute the case against a police officer accused of fatally shooting an unarmed man on Saturday.  The complete press release is here.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/09/19/4325824/da-asks-nc-attorney-general-to.html#storyl

Cedar's Take: This action is not without merit and in a sense is the most logical choice given the facts. First the victim was unarmed, second the officer is white and the victim is black, third any acquittal is bound to cause riots and finally, based on the information that has trickled out, there is considerable doubt that any jury would convict the Officer.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/09/19/4325824/da-asks-nc-attorney-general-to.html#storylink=cpy

 

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