Cambridge, MA City Council Ignores Private Property Rights

Is Councilor Toomey the only elected official who recognizes private property rights? What about the 100 year old tree on the library lawn that was removed? Then there are the scores of trees cut down by Harvard University every year. Why is there perpetual silence from public officials about the widespread abuses by the 900-pound gorilla with a $37 billion endowment who runs the city?


Trees are not just for people

http://cambridge.wickedlocal.com/news/20160622/60-seconds-uptick-in-package-thefts-tree-protection-discussed-at-city-council/?Start=1

60 SECONDS: Uptick in package thefts, tree protection discussed at City Council
By Natalie Handy
nhandy (at) wickedlocal.com
Posted Jun. 22, 2016 at 1:00 PM
CAMBRIDGE Chronicle

Recruiting Cambridge, MA To Fight Theft of Minerals in The Congo

While the people of Massachusetts help fight the war in the Congo on theft of minerals, can they also fight the state government and prevent sharing of driver's license photos with the FBI for facial recognition? Can they fight the Department of Homeland Security giving automatic weapons to suspected terrorists who go on to use them in crowded Florida dance halls killing 49 and wounding 53?

http://cambridge.wickedlocal.com/news/20160621/column-say-no-to-financing-atrocities-take-action-against-congo-conflict-minerals-trade/?Start=1

COLUMN: Say no to financing atrocities; take action against the Congo conflict minerals trade
By Estelle Disch
Posted Jun. 21, 2016 at 11:13 AM
CAMBRIDGE Chronicle

Cambridge, MA Bicyclist Struck By Car, Robbed

[From article]

The woman was riding her bike on Prospect Street around 2:26 a.m. on May 22 in the direction of Inman Square when a dark-colored truck pulled alongside her, according to reports. She told police after the truck first pulled up beside her, it then pulled behind her in the travel line. The truck reportedly did this several times until it pulled up beside her and sideswiped her, knocking her off the bicycle.
The woman sustained minor injuries to her head, hands and feet. After being struck by the vehicle, her purse, which was stored in a basket on her bicycle, was ejected on the ground. While on the ground, the suspect got out of the passenger side of the truck and ran to her, according to police. The suspect reportedly asked the woman if she was okay, then grabbed her purse off the ground, returned to the truck and fled the scene.

http://cambridge.wickedlocal.com/article/20160525/NEWS/160527636

Police: Cambridge cyclist hit by car and then robbed
By Natalie Handy
Posted May. 25, 2016 at 1:15 PM

Cambridge Chronicle

Privileged University of Missouri Student Protester Accused of Theft, Drugs, Misogyny

Jonathan Butler made news with a hunger strike at Mizzou last year, but some of his online rants are eyebrow-raising. (Heat Street)


[From article]

“Butler did it,” gushed Southern Christian Leadership Conference president Vernon Howard, introducing the graduate student as he made the keynote speech at the Martin Luther King Jr. celebration in January. Since November, Butler has made half-a-dozen speeches, including addresses at the law schools of Harvard and Duke.
Perhaps these institutions should have done their research before portraying Butler as a social-justice hero. Heat Street’s review of Butler’s online presence, as well as video reviewed exclusively by the publication, reveals he’s chronically stolen items, denigrated low-income workers, and made troubling comments about women and drugs.
ost of the coverage of the events of last fall focused on claims of pervasive racism at the university, as well as administrators’ struggle to address the demands of student organization #ConcernedStudent1950. But our investigation has uncovered not only past controversial statements by Butler but also other dimensions to the unrest, including pervasive fears about safety on campus, as well as massive backlash from donors, sports fans and alumni.
Last fall, other student activists and social-justice warriors on campus began looking into Butler’s background because he hadn’t been involved in activism at the University of Missouri previously, and they had concerns about his speaking for everyone. Now that things on the campus have settled down, they’ve provided the information they found to Heat Street.
In a blog post from August 2011, titled “My Summer Breakfast Experience,” Butler describes how, for 61 days, he swung by a hotel before work and “decided to indulge myself with ‘free’ breakfast items.”
Butler describes trying to get caught stealing food, making goofy faces in the camera and making sure staff got a good look at his face.
[. . .]



His disdain for low-income Americans is also apparent in another blog post, from July 2011, that was written about his visit to a Subway sandwich shop. Butler describes how he “stormed up to the counter inpatient [sic] and indecisive,” further detailing rude behavior to the worker. He describes watching the worker, “a grumpy older gentleman, about 70-75 years old,” making his sandwich.”
Butler, who grew up in Omaha, Nebraska, is the son of an railroad executive whose compensation in 2014 was $8.4 million, according to regulatory filings.
Some videos published by Butler, also in 2011, are equally controversial.
In one, nearly 15 minutes long that was published to YouTube in March 2011, Butler says he wants to “address the issue—a very important issue—of XX versus XY. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, male and female: which is better.”
Butler and a guest continue to discuss the problem of “ratchet women,” who flirt and generally are not well-behaved, by their reckoning.
“So you’re saying, she jumps from male to male,” Butler says, continuing: “So this would be like in the kingdom, the wild kingdom, where they’re trying to get their prey.”
At one point, Butler asks his guest: “So what he’s saying is that us as men, we don’t have issues, it’s all women, obviously, because what do we do? We just eat, sleep, work, we’re the backbone. Is that what you’re saying? … You’re saying all women are trash, is that what you’re saying?”
Another 9-minute video, posted to YouTube in July 2011, features Butler singing about cooking crack cocaine with his love interest.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/05/09/crack-misogyny-and-stealing-from-hotels-meet-mizzous-rich-kid-civil-rights-hero.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+foxnews%2Fmost-popular+%28Internal+-+Most+Popular+Content%29

Crack, misogyny and stealing from hotels: Meet Mizzou's rich-kid civil rights hero
By Jillian Kay Melchior

Heat Street

Published May 09, 2016

Increased Threshold For Major Theft Statute, Brings Increased Shoplifting

[From article]
Perry Lutz says his struggle to survive as a small businessman became a lot harder after California voters reduced theft penalties 1½ years ago.
About a half-dozen times this year, shoplifters have stolen expensive drones or another of the remote-controlled toys he sells in HobbyTown USA, a small shop in Rocklin, northeast of Sacramento. "It's just pretty much open season," Lutz said. "They'll pick the $800 unit and just grab it and run out the door."
Anything below $950 keeps the crime a misdemeanor — and likely means the thieves face no pursuit and no punishment, say retailers and law enforcement officials. Large retailers including Safeway, Target, Rite Aid and CVS pharmacies say shoplifting increased at least 15 percent, and in some cases, doubled since voters approved Proposition 47 and ended the possibility of charging shoplifting as a felony with the potential for a prison sentence.
Shoplifting reports to the Los Angeles Police Department jumped by a quarter in the first year, according to statistics the department compiled for The Associated Press. The ballot measure also lowered penalties for forgery, fraud, petty theft and drug possession.
Public Policy Institute of California researcher Magnus Lofstrom noted a troubling increase in property crime inCalifornia's largest cities in the first half-year after Proposition 47 took effect. Preliminary FBI crime reports show a 12 percent jump in larceny-theft, which includes shoplifting, but he said it is too early to determine what, if any, increase is due to the ballot measure.
The increase in shoplifting reports set up a debate over how much criminals pay attention to penalties, and whether law enforcement is doing enough to adapt to the legal change.
Prosecutors, police and retailers, including California Retailers Association President Bill Dombrowski and CVS Health spokesman Mike DeAngelis, say the problem is organized retail theft rings whose members are well aware of the reduced penalties.
"The law didn't account for that," said Capt. John Romero, commander of the LAPD's commercial crimes division. "It did not give an exception for organized retail theft, so we're seeing these offenders benefiting and the retailers are paying the price."
Lenore Anderson, executive director of Californians for Safety and Justice, who led the drive to pass Proposition 47, said law enforcement still has plenty of tools, including using the state's general conspiracy law and proving that the same thief is responsible for multiple thefts that together top $950.
[. . .]
While misdemeanors, in theory, can bring up to a year in county jail, Fresno Police Sgt. Mark Hudson said it's not worth it to issue a citation or arrest a suspect who would likely be immediately released because of overcrowding.
"We've heard of cases where they're going into stores with a calculator so they can make sure that what they steal is worth less than $950," said Robin Shakely, Sacramento County assistant chief deputy district attorney.
[. . .]
California is among 17 states without an organized retail crime law that specifically targets shoplifting rings with tougher penalties, according to the Organized Retail Crime Resource Center. Results vary: Of the top five states for shoplifting last year, three — Florida, Pennsylvania and Texas — had such laws, while California and New York did not.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/05/14/california-ballot-measure-blamed-for-shoplifting-jump.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+foxnews%2Fmost-popular+%28Internal+-+Most+Popular+Content%29

California ballot measure blamed for shoplifting jump
Published May 14, 2016 

Associated Press

Law Student Charged With Tampering With Court Verdict Document

[From article]
A former law school student given a 90-day suspended sentence for stealing a laptop computer now faces up to 20 years behind bars after prosecutors say he changed the jury verdict slip in his case from "guilty" to "not guilty."
David Scher was convicted of larceny in 2014 for stealing the laptop from Suffolk University Law School while still a student. He got three months in jail, with the entire sentence suspended for two years.
Instead of accepting his fate, the 33-year-old Boston man returned to the clerk's office in Boston Municipal Court at some point after his conviction, requested access to the case file, which is a public record, took out the verdict slip and replaced it with a copy that said "not guilty," according to Assistant Suffolk District Attorney Greer Spatz.
The original has never been found.
The forged verdict slip later became an issue in three subsequent matters involving Scher, including in a complaint to the state Department of Criminal Justice Information Services in which he allegedly claimed he had been acquitted and had notified the court of the error.
It was also submitted to Suffolk Law in an effort to obtain the degree he had been denied because of his conviction, prosecutors said.

http://www.bostonherald.com/news/local_coverage/2016/03/former_law_student_charged_with_changing_jury_verdict_slip

Former law student charged with changing jury verdict slip
Associated Press
Boston Herald
Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Career Cambridge, MA Conman Arrested in New York City

Photo:JEFFERSON SIEGEL/NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Jeremy Wilson went before judge Heidi Cesare wearing a grey Harvard Law School hoodie, dark blue
jeans and a grim expression.

[From article]
Cambridge Police report the arrest of a New York City man on a variety of charges related to the high life he allegedly tried to settle into for a couple months at a Third Street apartment complex that included draining $70,000 from a local design company's coffers and using some of the funds to lease a BMW SUV across the river in Boston.
Police say it all started when Jeremy Daniel Wilson, if that's really his name, 42, created the best Boston-area persona since Clark Rockefeller: Jeremiah Asimov-Beckingham, an Army veteran with traumatic brain injuries from an IED explosion in Afghanistan - and also a pilot for British Airways. Cambridge Police say the earliest they could trace him back in Cambridge was December 3, which makes sense since he was only released from federal prison on Nov. 19 after serving a six-year sentence for impersonating an Army officer and stealing a judge's car.
In Cambridge, police say, the newly minted Asimov-Beckingham set up a local bank account under that name, using several fraudulent documents, including a bogus driver's license, Social-Security card and a Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty. He then got a discount on an apartment on Third Street by claiming to be both a veteran and an airline pilot - even as he was maintaining a $5,000-a-month apartment in lower Manhattan. Oh, and he used his fake discharge papers to sign up for and obtain veteran's benefits, Cambridge PD says.
He also somehow used the ID and more forged documents to suck $70,000 out of a Cambridge design firm's bank account, police say, adding he also stole a computer from MIT.
Police say that on Dec. 31, New York City Police found the BMW. And then, according to New York Magazine, they conned the con man: They contacted him and said the car had been impounded as evidence in a shooting but that he could come by to pick it up - which he did.
At his arraignment in New York on similar charges there, he wore a Harvard Law School hoodie.

http://www.universalhub.com/2016/con-man-long-record-goes-whirlwind-fraud-tour

Con man with long record goes on whirlwind fraud tour of Cambridge, police say
By adamg
Fri, 01/15/2016 - 2:10pm

* * *


DCPI/NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
More than 200 forged checks, military uniforms, fake passports from Canada and the U.K., and other false official documents were recovered from the 10 Hanover Square apartment he rented.

[From article]
A seasoned grifter who posed as a wounded veteran and used stolen loot for a Manhattan pad gave a “full, video-recorded confession” to his latest antics — less than two months after leaving prison for similar crimes, prosecutors said Wednesday.
Jeremy Wilson, 42 — whose true name is unknown because of his rampant use of fake identities in a “Catch Me If You Can”-like career of scamming — was ordered held on $1 million bail at his arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court.
[. . .]
“The defendant is a brazen criminal who has spent his entire adult life as a con artist and identity thief,” Assistant District Attorney Diego Diaz said.
Wilson went before judge Heidi Cesare wearing a grey Harvard Law School hoodie, dark blue jeans and a grim expression.
He was back to scheming right after his release from prison on Nov. 19 after serving a six-year federal prison sentence “for crimes that included forging the signature of a federal judge, aggravated identity theft, fraud, and interstate transportation of a stolen vehicle,” Diaz said.
[. . .]
At the prestigious college, Wilson hung around campus and “stole computers and an MIT corporate credit card.”
“He also was able to obtain a corporate apartment by posing as an executive of British Airlines,” the prosecutor added.
On Dec. 12 in Boston, Wilson allegedly used the name Jeremiah Asimov-Beckingham and fake identification documents to lease a 2016 BMW X3, worth at least $50,000.
Using phony checks and the hijacked bank account of a Boston company, he stole $40,000 and skipped off to New York in his new ride.

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/nyc-crime/man-posed-wounded-veteran-held-1m-bail-article-1.2488158

Conman who posed as wounded veteran held on $1M bail after giving 'full, video-recorded confession'
BY SHAYNA JACOBS

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Wednesday, January 6, 2016, 9:50 PM

USPS Carriers Get Angry and Greedy

Daniel Darby leaves Brooklyn federal court on Dec. 29.
Photo: Stefan Jeremiah

[From article]
A Queens mailman was so stressed by the number of holiday cards and gifts he was supposed to deliver this year that he simply dumped hundreds of them in the trash, court papers claim.
Ozone Park postman Daniel Darby, 25, was “overwhelmed” by the uptick in his early December mail, so he went to a neighborhood Stop & Shop the night of Dec. 2 — his first day on a new route — and bought three white garbage bags, according to Brooklyn federal court documents.
Darby then allegedly stuffed the holiday mail in the bags and dumped them in a residential garbage can. They were discovered two days later.



The cooked courier admitted to “ripping open” some of the mail “to see what it contained,” according to the criminal complaint.
He was arraigned on charges of unlawfully delaying and destroying the mail Tuesday — as was another alleged rogue postal worker.
The second mail carrier, who worked in Brooklyn, is accused of swiping about 50 gift cards from envelopes and then treating himself to $1,000 in goodies over the past year, according to court papers.


James Hayden
Photo: Stefan Jeremiah

http://nypost.com/2015/12/29/overwhelmed-mailman-tosses-hundreds-of-holiday-presents-in-trash/

Overwhelmed mailman tosses hundreds of holiday presents in trash: officials
By Priscilla DeGregory
New York Post
December 29, 2015 | 4:25pm

Sexy New Jersey Lady Arrested For Theft From Romantic Gentlemen

The Victims

Ron Zoldan, victim


Jared Siemens, victim
 

Ron Zoldan, victim

The Suspect

Alexandra Martinez, 19, the suspect

[From article]
Some of the alleged victims of a 19-year-old blonde accused of repeatedly stealing Rolex watches, iPhones and money from wealthy men she picked up with friends at bars have been identified.
Alexandra Martinez allegedly preyed on a member of family that owns a Brooklyn oil-company, the heir to a fortune made on selling fireworks and the manager of a Midtown seafood restaurant.
Martinez, of Ewing, New Jersey, who has 'Love yourself so no one has to' tattooed along her arm, has been arrested five times for stealing items and cash from her victims in hotels and their homes,
[. . .]
Martinez and a girlfriend picked up 'Prince' Ron Zoldan - whose father founded Phantom Fireworks - at a bar in August and went back to the 25-year-old's Ritz-Carlton room, the NY Post reported.
Once they were back at Zoldan's room, the women waited until he had fallen asleep and then made off with his Rolex, two iPhones, some designer sunglasses and cash, according to sources.
Zoldan, who has appeared in photographs with Kim Kardashian, Tom Brady and NSYNC singer Joey Fatone, said: 'I didn't do anything wrong... I'm single. I'm 25. Girls come and they go.'
[. . .]
Matrinez does not appear to be the only alleged thief targeting wealthy people in New York City.
Two women are suspected of stealing $750,000 worth of jewelry from New York Knicks star Derrick Williams.
The alleged thieves were caught on a surveillance camera as they left New York City club Up & Down on December 19 at around 5am to head over to Williams' bachelor pad in the city's Tribeca neighborhood.
The NYPD has described them as persons of interests in the case.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3374078/Alexandra-Martinez-s-victims-include-Ron-Zoldan-Vincent-Theurer-Jared-Siemens.html

Fireworks scion, oil-company heir and top restaurant manager all duped by the 'Rolex blonde': Wealthy victims of teen 'who stole watches and cash from men she picked up in bars' revealed
Alexandra Martinez has been arrested five times for stealing from victims
Ron Zoldan, Vincent Theurer and Jared Siemens were victims of Martinez
Zoldan's father founded Phantom Fireworks, Theurer is son of president of Brooklyn's Approved Oil Co and Siemens manages L&W Oyster Company
Martinez was arraigned Wednesday in Brooklyn on grand larceny charges
By Dailymail.com Reporters
Published: 10:49 EST, 25 December 2015 | Updated: 11:20 EST, 25 December 2015

Chilean Engineers Invent "Unstealable" Bicycle

The Yerka is the creation of Cristóbal Cabello, 22 (right), Andrés Roi Eggers, 23 (left) and Juan José Monsalve, 24 (centre)who dropped out of university market their idea.


[From article]
a trio of Chilean engineers say they have found a way to thwart determined thieves with what they claim is the world's first 'unstealable bike.'
The design, called the Yerka, looks like an average bike, but the bottom tube of the frame can be split into two parts and wrapped around a pole.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3186321/The-world-s-unstealable-bike-goes-production-Chilean-engineers-create-radical-bicycle-self-locking-frame.html

The world's first 'unstealable bike' goes into production: Chilean engineers create radical bicycle with a self-locking frame
Design, called the Yerka, splits into two parts to lock around a pole
Only way for thieves to steal the bike is to saw it in half, say creators
First 100 bikes sold for $400 (£255) and next 200 sold at $500 (£320)
By Ellie Zolfagharifard For Dailymail.com
Published: 14:19 EST, 5 August 2015 | Updated: 02:52 EST, 6 August 2015

Woman NYPD Officer Busted For Buying Diamond Ring Using Dead Man's Credit Card

[From article]

An NYPD officer who found the body of a Manhattan man used the victim’s credit card number to buy herself a pricey diamond ring, authorities said Tuesday.
Officer Ymmacula Pierre, 30, was charged with possession of stolen property, ID theft, attempted grand larceny and official misconduct for allegedly going to a jewelry store’s website and using the dead man’s Citibank MasterCard number to buy bling valued at more than $3,200.
Days before the purchase, on July 14, 2014, Pierre and her partner responded to a call from a relative worried that 65-year-old architect Kenneth Sanden, who had several health problems, had not shown up for work.
Arriving at Sanden’s East 14th Street apartment, they found him dead, according to court records.
Pierre vouchered some of Sanden’s possessions, including the credit card, officials said. Two days later, the number was used to make an unauthorized online purchase of a diamond ring from Zales.com for $3,282.58. Sanden’s niece was notified of possible credit-card fraud and alerted the vendor before the ring was delivered.

http://nypost.com/2015/06/02/cop-busted-for-buying-diamond-ring-with-dead-mans-credit-card/

Cop busted for buying diamond ring with dead man’s credit card
By Antonio Antenucci and Leonard Greene
New York Post
June 2, 2015 | 8:01pm

One More Reason To Dress Down in New York City

[From article]
The NYPD says it happened at about 3:25 p.m. The victim was on an "L" train at the Broadway Junction station when he was attacked.
The attack continued on the train to the Atlantic Avenue station where it spilled out onto the platform.
Police say the man continued to be beaten. In a short video clip that was posted on social media, the man appeared to be unconscious and dragged back toward the train by one of the attackers.
The attackers then stole his pants, shoes, and phone and then ran off.
The victim was taken to Brookdale Hospital where he was being treated for various injuries.
Police say there have been no arrests and the investigation continues.
Community activist Tony Herbert says it appears to be part of a growing pattern where gang members will walk up to someone, ask what gang they are in, and then attack.

http://www.myfoxny.com/story/29080061/victim-beaten-and-robbed-of-pants-on-subway-platform

Victim beaten and robbed of pants on subway platform
Posted: May 15, 2015 10:55 PM EDT
Updated: May 15, 2015 11:03 PM EDT
By LUKE FUNK, Senior Web Producer

NYPD Officer Sentenced To 18 Years in Prison For Abuse of Power

[From article]
Jose Tejada, a 17-year department veteran, was found guilty last June of helping a crew of hoodlums rob dealers of drugs and cash in Manhattan, Queens and the Bronx.
The married father of three and his cohorts routinely handcuffed victims and waved guns during the heists – and once terrorized an innocent family after barging into the wrong apartment.
Tejada, 47, actually caught a break Thursday after federal prosecutors lobbied for a sentence of 30 years.

http://nypost.com/2015/03/12/crooked-ex-cop-sentenced-to-18-years-in-prison/

Crooked ex-cop sentenced to 18 years in prison
By Selim Algar
New York Post
March 12, 2015 | 7:11pm

Thieves Steal Four Million In Gold From Truck in North Carolina, Going To Massachusetts

[From article]

Two armed security guards employed by the transport company, TransValue Inc, reported the robbery around 6:45 p.m. on Sunday to Wilson County sheriff's deputies.
The guards told officers that earlier in the evening, as they were passing through Wilson County about 50 miles east of Raleigh, their truck carrying the shipment of gold and silver had mechanical problems, so they pulled it to the side of the road.
While they were parked, three armed men in a white van approached them, ordered them onto the ground and tied their hands behind their backs, police said.
The men made the guards walk into the woods and then left with several barrels of gold estimated to be worth more than $4 million, police said.
The guards said they were traveling northbound from Miami to Massachusetts.
The case is under investigation by the sheriff's office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

http://www.businessinsider.com/armed-robbers-stole-4-million-in-gold-from-a-truck-in-north-carolina-2015-3

Armed robbers stole $4 million in gold from a truck in North Carolina

HARRIET MCLEOD

REUTERS
MAR. 2, 2015, 3:58 PM

Package Deliveries Stolen From Harvard University Housing

Harvard University Housing is the latest name for bureaucracy managing apartments owned by the President and Fellows of Harvard College. Problems with package safety in those buildings, include but are not limited to: (1) campus police, residents and building superintendents leaving doors propped open; (2) contractors roaming the halls, looking for what they can steal; (3) UPS, DHL and FedEx leaving packages outside locked doors; (4) superintendents and police employees (not just HUPD), going into apartments without permission; (5) packages delivered to wrong addresses.

http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2015/2/24/police-respond-package-theft/

Police Respond to ‘Uptick’ in Package Thefts
By BROOKE A. BOURGEOIS and BRETT DOWLING

Harvard CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS
February 24, 2015

Food Aid To Refugees Stolen By ISIS

[From article]
And that is where the Strategy Page article gets really interesting. From it:
The UN is criticizing ISIL for marking foreign (mostly UN and mostly paid for by the U.S.) food aid as coming from ISIL. Before ISIL allows food aid to be distributed the boxes and sacks must be marked as a “gift from ISIL”. The UN also criticizes ISIL for selling some food on the market to raise cash. ISIL tells the UN to shut up and be grateful that ISIL allows the food aid in and generally does not abuse UN staff. Currently the UN food aid program feeds about four million Syrians, which is nearly a third of the population still in Syria. Nearly half of those aid recipients are either in ISIL controlled territory or the food must pass through ISIL controlled areas (in which case the food must be marked as from ISIL before allowed to pass).
On one hand the US and its allies are spending a fortune on troops and aircraft to defeat ISIL. The other hand is feeding ISIL, literally. If we stopped sending food into ISIL-controlled areas, ISIL would disappear pretty quickly. Is this too peculiar an idea? Perhaps we are so rich that we can afford to feed people whose most fervent desire is to kill us.

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2015/02/lets_not_feed_our_enemies.html

February 20, 2015
Let's Not Feed Our Enemies
By David Archibald

Texas Thieves Steal Man's House

[From article]
A San Antonio, Texas couple had build a 'tiny house' to commit themselves to 'green living' but the entire home ended up being stolen.
Casey Friday says, "It was depressing, devastating, made me angry and shocked all at the same time."
An advocate for so-called green living, Friday and his wife had invested 2 1/2 years and $35,000 into building a tiny home from the ground up.
[. . .]
As for how the house was stolen, it was on a trailer that the thief simply attached to a truck and drove off with.

http://www.myfoxny.com/story/27760342/thieves-steal-house

Thieves steal house
Posted: Jan 05, 2015 8:45 AM EST
Updated: Jan 05, 2015 9:04 AM EST
Fox News

Massachusetts Housing Chief Charged With Stealing Elder Woman's Medications

Gregory Bartlett, 57, executive director of the Stoughton (MA) Housing Authority


[From article]
The executive director of the Stoughton Housing Authority was released on $2,500 bail after pleading not guilty stealing prescription pain medications of a woman in her 90s who lived in one of the authority's units.
Gregory Bartlett appeared Monday in Stoughton District Court on a charges including breaking and entering, theft of a controlled substance and larceny of property valued at more than $250 from a person over 65 years old.
Authorities say as executive director, the 57-year-old Bartlett had access to apartments and a list of residents' medications.

http://www.bostonherald.com/news_opinion/local_coverage/2015/01/housing_authority_chief_charged_with_stealing_meds

Housing authority chief charged with stealing meds
Monday, January 5, 2015
By: Associated Press
Boston Herald

Retail Merchandise Theft, Return Fraud, Big Business

[From article]
Siras’ Dustin Ares pointed to one organized crime ring that used eBay as its clearinghouse.
This return scam involved purchasing broken electronics off the auction site and then buying new items off store shelves. “They would go to the store with a repackaged and shrink-wrapped broken item inside a new box and return it for full value.”
The clever crooks managed to rack up $2 million in profits over a year, Ares said.
[. . .]
For instance, “A guy goes around and purchases expensive items and at the same time buys into the extended service plan. Then he calls the service-plan provider and claims the items were in disrepair and asks ‘What can you do about this?’”
A refund for the service plan was executed, and according to Ares, this particular shakedown artist hit the company offering the service plan more than 200 times in two weeks—each time pocketing a couple Benjamins in an insurance settlement with little to no need to prove anything was faulty.
[. . .]
The perpetrators idled in parking lots outside various Wal-Marts and approached customers with cans of paint to ask for the customers to forfeit the cans so they can be used to collect money for their school sports teams.
“They would get the cans and bring them back to the stores but they didn’t have any paint in them,” said the source, who requested anonymity. “Instead, they filled them up with water. This happened over a dozen times before they caught on.”

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/12/19/the-insane-11-billion-scam-at-retailers-return-desks.html

12.19.14
The Insane $11 Billion Scam at Retailers’ Return Desks
M.L. Nestel
Daily Beast

JFK Airport Thieves Take Items Worth $20,000 From Luggage

[From article]
the loot that baggage handlers were allegedly taking for themselves. The items included cellphones, iPads, laptops, jewelry and other items worth a grand total of more than $20,000.
The items were taken from travelers’ checked luggage between March 2012 and June 2014, Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown said Wednesday.
“The defendants have been caught red handed and will now face the consequences of their alleged illegal acts,” said Brown.
“The defendants — who were hired to handle the baggage of those traveling in and out of Kennedy Airport — are alleged to have stolen computers, cell phones and other items from checked luggage with many of them selling the pilfered items to a pawn shop or to a ‘fence’ who was actually an undercover police officer,” Brown said.
[. . .]
The baggage handlers who were arrested were all working for subcontractors for airlines at JFK.
[. . .]
Police said the alleged thieves even fenced or sold the items on airport grounds, telling buyers there was plenty more where that came from.
The only trouble for them was that the buyers were undercover police officers.
Authorities said baggage thefts are now rampant, and anyone who puts their valuables in checked bags may never see them again.

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2014/12/03/7-jfk-bag-handlers-charged-with-stealing-jewelry-electronics-from-checked-luggage/

CBS2 Exclusive: $20,000 In Loot Allegedly Taken From Checked Luggage By JFK Bag Handlers
December 3, 2014 6:13 PM
CBS News New York NY