7 Killed in Suicide Attack on Iraqi Police Station

A suicide bomber drove a truck fuel of gas into a police station, on Friday.

Seven officers were killed and at least thirty were injured, by the blast.

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack in Tikrit, Iraq.

However, Al Qaeda is considered the likely suspect.

Michigan: Union Tactics Delay Right to Work For Up to a Decade

Governor Snyder

 School districts and universities in Michigan rushed to sign last minute contract extensions that effectively bypass the new right to work law.

The right to work law went into effect last Thursday, but prior to the law going into effect at least forty-one school districts and five colleges had approved contracts that circumvent the new law, for a few years. There may be a price to pay, however; Republicans in the Michigan House of Representatives are threatening to apply costly sanctions on these districts and institutions. The Detroit Free Press reports:

“House Republicans have voted for budgets that cut funding for the institutions and districts that signed contracts between Dec. 10, 2012 — the day that the right-to-work bills received final passage and a signature from Gov. Rick Snyder — and Thursday.

Under the law, any contracts in place before the law goes into effect on Thursday, would be legally binding until they expire, including provisions mandating that employees pay union dues. So school districts, colleges, even Washtenaw County employees, negotiated new contracts or extended current pacts to be in place before the law takes effect.”

And

“The cuts, which would take effect if the education and community officials can’t prove at least a 10% savings from the contracts, would: cut 15% from state appropriations to universities; eliminate a 2% increase that has been slated for community colleges; cut technology and performance grants for K-12 public schools, and withhold some revenue-sharing funds from communities.”

Universities stand to lose the most. For instance, the University of Michigan could lose up to forty-seven million dollars.

Governor Snyder has been cautious in commenting on the budget bills because they are still subject to a few modifications. “If people are bargaining in good faith and showing real benefits, I don’t believe they should be penalized,” Snyder said. “But if they’re simply extending the date, then I can see legislators having a concern.”

The contract extensions will lock members into financially supporting their respective union for up to ten years. So, even though right to work was passed with the intent of giving employees the freedom to choose whether or not to support a union, many will be forced, against their will, to finance a union.

Enter three brave teachers from the Taylor, Michigan School District. The three filed a lawsuit against the school board and the Taylor Federation of Teachers over an extension, one that will bind them to continued financial support of the union until 2023, while also facing a 10 percent pay cut.

Angela Steffke, Rebecca Metz and Nancy Rhatigan are the three teachers who value their freedom. “This is about our civil rights,” Steffke, a special education teacher in the Taylor school district, said in a press release. “This is about fighting for our freedom of association and fighting against coercion in the workplace.”

They believe the union security clause is illegal for a couple of reasons:

• They argue Michigan law prohibits such an agreement from lasting longer than the collective bargaining agreement.
• Additionally, they argue the law prohibits such agreements from binding future school boards to honor them, which is the case in Taylor.

“This is really a union insecurity clause, because rather than proving its worth to members, the union is forcing all teachers to continue paying dues or agency fees through 2023,” Derk Wilcox, the Mackinac Center Legal Foundation’s senior attorney, explained to the Detroit Free Press.

Labor leaders have also alluded to a 2014 ballot push to repeal the legislation.

Legal Filings on Behalf of Three Taylor Teachers

Video: MCLF Press Conference: Taylor Teachers Sue Union and District

US Army Chief Warrant Officer Curtis S. Reagan

US Army Chief Warrant Officer Curtis S. Reagan, forty-three of Summerville, South Carolina, died on March 29.

He died from an undisclosed illness, in Kandahar, Afghanistan.

Reagan was assigned to the 603rd Aviation Support Battalion, 3rd Combat Aviation Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division out of Fort Stewart-Hunter Army Airfield, Georgia.

Flooding in Mauritius Kills 11

Eleven people have been killed by flooding in Mauritius.

They island nation in the Indian Ocean was hit by heavy rains, on Saturday, with more expected Sunday.

Six inches of rain fell in an hour, causing flash flooding throughout the island.

Most of the dead were caught in underground areas, such as parking or pedestrian walkways.

Prime Minister Navin Rangoolam announced that Monday will be a day of morning, for the country.

Syrian Rebels Set Fire to Oil Wells

Rebel forces seized oil and gas fields in Deir al-Zor province, Syria.

Unable to decide which of their factions should control the wells, they lit them on fire.

Furat Petroleum Corporation has been working to put out the fires.

They were able to put out six, but three are still burning.

Estimates are that over five thousand barrels of oil and fifty-two thousand cubic meters of gas are being lost daily.

Free Shotguns For Tucson Arizona

A group known as The Armed Citizen Project has a new idea for how to deal with Tucson, Arizona's rising crime rates.

They have initiated a plan to give residents free shotguns.

Armed Citizen Project will then track crime rates in the city, to see if rates go down due to the increased ability of the public to defend itself.

So far, enough money for thirty-six single shot shotguns has been raised.

Single shot shotguns were chosen as they're decent defensive weapons, yet criminals are unlikely to steal them, due to their limited round capacity and size.

The guns will be supplied by Black Weapons Armory, who will also be handling the back ground checks.

Land Day Celebrated With Violence

Palestinians celebrated their annual Land Day, by attacking each other, Israelis, and reporters.

Dozens of demonstrators were injured, when different factions clashed with each other, as well as attacking an Al Jazeera crew who was reporting on events.

A five year old Israeli child and six soldiers were hospitalized by stone throwing assailants.

IDF and police forces have used tear gas to dispel groups who became violent.

Land Day was originally created to remember six Arabs killed in riots, on March 30, 1976.

Tanzanian Building Collapse Claims 19

Rescue workers continue their efforts to find survivors after a building collapsed, on Friday.

Eighteen people have been rescued so far.

As many as thirty-five people are still unaccounted for.

Hopes are beginning to fade as it has been over twenty-four hours since any survivors were found.

Tanzanian officials announced that two more bodies were found, on Saturday, bringing the total to nineteen.

Originally the building had been listed as being twelve stories, but it has now been updated as having been sixteen.

Supreme Court Confirms Kenyatta Election

On Saturday, Kenya's Supreme Court upheld the Presidential elections, after a partial recount.

Police and military were rushed to parts of Nairobi and other cities as protests began over the decision.

In at least one instance tear gas was used to disperse demonstrators.

However, violence was quite minimal, in comparison to the last election which saw over a thousand killed.

The lack of serious injuries or deaths, on Saturday, is filling hopes that Kenyans have moved past those darker times.

US Navy Special Warfare Operator Chief Brett D. Shadle

US Navy Special Warfare Operator Chief Brett D. Shadle, thirty-one of Elizabethville, Pennsylvania, died on March 28.

He and another SEAL collided in mid air, while undergoing parachute training at Pinal Airpark in Marana, Arizona.

Chief Shadle was taken to the University of Arizona Medical Center in Tucson, where he was pronounced dead.

The other SEAL, who has not been identified, is in stable condition.

Shadle joined the Navy in 2000 and became a SEAL in 2001, eventually he became a member of SEAL Team 6.

Since then he had served in Afghanistan, Iraq, and other locations.

His awards include multiple Bronze Stars with Valor and various service ribbons.