Denver Police Looking for Shooting Suspect

Denver police are looking for a "Hispanic or light skinned black male, wearing a white Tshirt, a blue bandanna, and blue jeans".

He was last seen near West 44th Avenue and Quitman Street, and may be driving a red Chevy Cobalt.

The police are looking for him after a shooting occurred near West 14th Avenue Newton Street, Monday afternoon.

A man was sitting in his car, in his drive way, when he was shot.

According to authorities, the shooter then a series of vehicles, ditching one then taking another, including a postal vehicle.

The victim is still in critical condition.

There is no known motive, in the shooting, at this time.

Anyone with information should call the Denver Police Department at 720-913-6010.

Alaska Airplane Crash Kills 10

Ten people were killed when their airplane crashed near Soldotna, Alaska.

Witnesses say that the plane came down just after takeoff.

All nine passengers were from South Carolina and on their way to a fishing lodge.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of the crash.

Perry Won't be Seeking Reelection

Texas Governor Perry announced, on Monday, that he will not be seeking reelection, in 2014.

The governor left open the possibility of running for President, again, in 2016.

His announcement sets up the first open race for Texas' governorship since 2000, when Perry took office.

Perry is the longest serving governor, in Texas history.

Eyes are now on who will be running in the 2014 election.

Attorney General Greg Abbott is the expected Republican candidate.

Less clear is who will be running for the Democrats.

Quebec Death Toll up to 13, 37 Still Missing

Firefighters finally have eliminated the fire burning in Lac-Megantic after an oil train derailed early Saturday morning.

Five of the cars exploded in the fiery crash that resulted, killing thirteen and injuring dozens.

Thirty-seven people are still missing.

As many as a fifteen hundred people are still evacuated from the area, down from the initial two thousand.

More than twenty-seven thousand gallons of oil leaked from the train into nearby water ways.

Efforts are underway to keep the oil from making it too far down stream, but some of it has made it around fifty miles already, sparking fears that it will reach the St. Lawrence River.

Authorities say that the crash was caused because the air brakes on the train failed.

It had been parked nearly eight miles uphill from Lac-Megantic, over night.

Late Friday night, a fire occurred on the train, but it is unclear if that was what caused the brake failure.

The Canadian Transportation Safety Board is continuing the investigation.

Tropical Storm Chantal Heads for the Caribbean

Tropical Storm Chantal is heading straight for the Caribbean, and should enter the sea on Tuesday.

With winds already around forty-five miles per hour, the storm is expected to continue to gather strength for at least the next two days.

A tropical storm warning has been issued for Barbados, Dominica, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Puerto Rico, and St. Lucia.

Parts of the Dominican Republic and the US Virgin Islands have been placed under tropical storm watch.

Mansour Decrees Election Time Table

Interim president Adly Mansour decreed, on Monday, when Egypt will see elections.

Per his orders, the government will have fifteen days to form a constitutional convention.

The constitution must be fully formed within four months of that, so that a referendum can take place for voting on it.

Parliamentary elections will take place in February.

That will be followed by a presidential election, once parliament has had time to convene.

54 Dead 445 Wounded After Shooting in Egypt

Muslim Brotherhood protesters converged on the compound where it is believed former president Morsi is being held by the Egyptian military, in Cairo.

According to some sources they then attacked the compound, while other sources say they simply protested outside.

Then the military opened fire on the protesters, either in defense of the compound, or as an attack upon the protesters.

Whatever the actual happenings, the results were clear, fifty-one dead and four hundred and thirty-seven wounded.

A police officer and two soldiers were also killed and at least eight soldiers were wounded.

Since the shooting, the Muslim Brotherhood has only increased their calls for an uprising.

Turkish Police Keep Protesters From Entering Gezi Park

Turkish police blocked the path of would be protesters as they tried to make their way into Gezi Park, in Istanbul, on Monday.

As the crowd grew larger, police opened up with a water cannon, forcing them back away from the square.

They later fired tear gas into determined groups of protesters.

Police also closed down the park, removing anyone who refused to leave on their own.

The government says they are moving to ensure the safety of the people.

However, the protest movement has grown larger and moved from demanding the government listen to them, to demanding a new government.

Hotel Collapse in India Kills 6

Six people were killed and twelve injured when a hotel collapsed in Secunderabad, India.

Searchers spent Monday looking for more survivors and victims.

Officials say that the building was very old, and likely collapsed on it's own.

Some stated their thankfulness that it was only a two story building, or more may have ended up hurt.

FAA Pilot Registry Has Discrepancies Hindering Terror Checks of Foreign Applicants

It has come to the attention of the Transportation Department’s Inspector General that US registries of pilots and aircraft contain incomplete data. This missing information could prove detrimental when it comes to screening for terrorists. The lack of information can also interfere with investigations of aviation accidents.

The report also illuminates the fact that data on approximately half of foreign owned aircraft, registered with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), does not include critical required information, such as owner and address details. Louis King, assistant inspector general for financial and information technology audits, said that, “these data weaknesses largely stem from FAA’s lack of formal quality control procedures to regularly reassess the integrity of the registry’s data and information systems.” 

Auditors also discovered 130 cases in which planes were registered multiple times to different entities, making it difficult to identify the actual owner. The US registry contains 350,000 planes and helicopters, after all. “While this is a small number of discrepancies, the impact is potentially significant if a serious incident occurs and FAA is unable to identify the aircraft’s owner in a timely manner,” King said in the report. But, even though the number of discrepancies is relatively low, all it takes is one unchecked discrepancy in order for a disaster, such as a terrorist attack, to occur.

So, how are the FAA’s foreign trusts handled? According to an article by John Goglia in Forbes:

“FAA regulations allow only aircraft owned by US citizens or resident aliens to be registered in the US and bear US markings, the so-called N number used to identify US aircraft from foreign aircraft. However, there’s a loophole that allows foreign citizens to register their aircraft in the US and carry a US designator. The loophole allows aircraft to be owned by a trust and if the trust is a US trust with an American trustee, the actual owner (beneficiary) can be of any nationality in the world. This allows non-US citizens to have their aircraft registered on FAA’s Registry and bear US markings. As long as the trust meets US citizenship requirements, the FAA does not look beyond that to citizenship of the beneficiaries (e.g. foreign owners).”

When non-US citizens register aircraft with the FAA, under a trust, the owner of the trust and the operator of the aircraft must be identified. It is estimated, by the auditors, that 5,600 of 10,292 foreign-owned aircraft registered by the FAA lack that information. This constitutes 54% of foreign-owned aircraft which, not surprisingly, has led to cases in which the FAA was unable to identify an aircraft’s owner following an accident or other incident. 

Additionally, the FAA has granted pilot licenses to more than 43,000 people who failed to provide a permanent address. Instead, the report found, businesses or flight schools were used as addresses. 

Disturbingly, the IG’s report echoes the conclusions arrived at by a report conducted by the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) last year. The GAO found that some of the 26,000 non-US citizens who received pilot licenses had not been vetted by the TSA as required. 

This situation is further compounded by the Obama administration’s recent move to sign an “Open Skies” agreement with Saudi Arabia. Soon, the Saudis will have “unrestricted” access to US airspace, according to the US State Department website:

“The United States-Saudi Arabia Open Skies agreement will, following a transition period, permit unrestricted air service by the airlines of both countries between and beyond the other’s territory, eliminating restrictions on how often the carriers fly, the kind of aircraft they use and the prices they charge. This agreement will allow for the strengthening and expansion of our strong trade and tourism links with Saudi Arabia, benefiting US and Saudi Arabian businesses and travelers by expanding opportunities for air services and encouraging vigorous price competition by airlines, while preserving our commitments to aviation safety and security. …”

The agreement, in essence, means Saudi airlines may fly from any point in the kingdom to any point in the United States. And, US airlines may fly from any point in the US to any airport in Saudi Arabia. This access is unrestricted. Not everyone is comfortable with this agreement since it is well established that the chief financier of terrorist groups, such as al Qaeda, for the past 3 decades are Saudi Arabia and Qatar. And, of course, 15 of the 19 men who hijacked and crashed American planes on September 11, 2001 were Saudis.

Front Page Magazine points out another troubling action President Obama has recently undertaken in regard to Saudi Arabia. Obama has basically trashed the most recent post 9/11 visa restrictions:

“Diplomats said the administration of President Barack Obama has removed most restrictions on the entry of Saudis to the United States. They said the percentage of visa approvals for Saudis has reached unprecedented levels.

‘The United States aims to raise the number of visas that it issues annually, particularly to Saudi nationals, who represent an important group,’ Joseph Hood, U.S. consul-general in the Saudi city of Dhahran, said.”

The federal government’s claim that the extensive surveillance conducted by the NSA is necessary for national security is inconsistent with many of its other actions, including the FAA screening process and the failure to acknowledge the potential risks entering the country from Saudi Arabia.