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BAGHDAD, Oct. 9, 2008 – Most American soldiers serving in Iraq count down the days to when they can pack up their bags and return home. But for one soldier serving in Multinational Division Baghdad’s 18th Military Police Brigade, returning home meant deploying to Iraq. Army Spc. Emad Jadan, left, an interpreter with Multinational Division Baghdad’s 18th Military Police Brigade, translates Arabic to English and vice versa at a ceremony to honor fallen Iraqi police officers at the Baghdad Provincial Directorate of Police headquarters station, Sept. 23, 2008. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Daniel Blottenberger  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution...

Remembering my mother's home going 1 year this month and with the view of a red-tail hawk in flight with it’s song, also a fish fly by out of the running brook.

Remembering my mother's home going 1 year this month!

In a split decision Thursday, the state Supreme Court rejected a plea by a Kent property owner seeking compensation for damage done during a drug raid. Affirming lower court decisions, five of the court's nine justices found the city of Kent was not required to pay $5,000 for damage to buildings owned by Leo Brutsche during a failed 2004 anti-methamphetamine operation. During the raid, narcotics officers used battering rams to knock down doors in buildings owned by Brutsche while searching for a meth lab they believed Brutsche's son to be operating on the property, according to court records. No drugs...

CAMP ECHO, Iraq, Sept. 30, 2008 – Although most would rather be at home, soldiers from the 4th Infantry Division’s 2nd Brigade Combat Team here are enjoying the comforts and amenities of life at their temporary home away from home. Army Sgt. Leif Wood (left) and Army Spc. Thomas Anderson find a way to play football in the desert heat by playing a video game at the Morale, Welfare and Recreation facility at Camp Echo, Iraq, Sept. 24, 2008. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Rodney Foliente, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available....

The colorful testimony that has been a hallmark in the murder trial of Jose Luis Gonzalez continued Thursday and included statements from an investigator who hinted there might have been no trial at all had Gonzalez shot four intruders and not just one. Gonzalez, 63, was charged after shooting and killing 13-year-old Francisco Anguiano when he and three other juveniles broke into Gonzalez's mobile home last July to steal what they alleged were just snacks and sodas. Major Doyle Holdridge is a former Texas Ranger and ex-member of the National Rifle Association who currently heads the criminal division at the...

AUGUSTA, Ga. --- Investigators tell News 12 an 18-year-old with a butcher knife was trying to get into a house on the 14 hundred block of Wrightsboro Road. Deputies say the homeowner shot the intruder in the left leg with a 12gauge shotgun. The teen is recovering at MCG. At this time no charges have been filed.

UPDATED AT 4:37 P.M.: Lexington police have made an arrest in a burglary that turned fatal Wednesday morning at an apartment complex near Hamburg Pavilion. Reginald Laron Jones, 24, of Lexington has been charged with first-degree burglary. Police say he was one of three people, including a man who was killed by a male resident in the apartment and a female, who charged into the apartment Wednesday morning. Officers are conferring with the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office as they explore whether the shooting was self-defense, said Officer Ann Gutierrez, a Lexington police spokeswoman. The shooting was being treated as a homicide...

A North Sacramento man shot and killed an armed intruder early Tuesday as his pregnant wife and children awoke in terror from the attack. The man, whom police did not identify, told police that two men had tried to break into his home just after midnight in the 800 block of Carmelita Avenue off Rio Linda Boulevard. The resident, who had no telephone, pleaded with neighbors to alert police after the shooting, neighbors said. A neighbor who provided refuge for the resident and his family after the attack recounted what the man told him. The resident heard scuffling and banging...

A would be burglar gets more than he bargains for while breaking into a West Jackson home. The homeowner sent the burglar to the hospital. It happened in the 600 block of Hillsdale Drive off Clinton Boulevard. A homeowner on Hillsdale Drive was still in bed around 9:00 a.m. when a burglar woke him from his sleep. "Once he heard Mr. Moore attempt to break into the home he retrieved a weapon and fired a shot striking Mr. Moore," said Jackson Police Lt. Jeffery Scott. Eighteen year old Lorenzo Moore was shot once in the arm. He fled the home...

A gunman who broke into a Fayetteville home Friday night was shot and killed by another man who was inside the home at the time, police said. The gunman and an accomplice forced their way into the house in the 6400 block of Winter Park Drive about 10:50 p.m., said police Sgt. Sam Oates. An occupant of the home grabbed a small-caliber handgun he kept in the house and fired two shots at the pair as they hastily retreated. Police found the dead assailant lying in the driveway of a nearby home. A gun was still in his hand, Oates...

GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Greenville County deputies said they are investigating a home invasion that ended with an exchange of gunfire between the resident of the home and the burglar. The break-in happened at 669 Rutherford Road at the Magnolia Place Apartments just before 5:30 a.m. Wednesday. Investigators said someone forced their way into one of the apartments. They said once the burglar was inside, the resident of the apartment opened fire, hitting the burglar twice. The burglar also opened fire, they said. The intruder was taken to Greenville Memorial Hospital to be treated for his injuries. The resident was not...

MUNCIE, Ind. -- A Muncie man whose home was burglarized Monday held a would-be robber at gunpoint after waiting in the dark for two hours to see if the burglars would return, police said. Michael Angel returned home Monday evening to find his back door open and several items missing from his home, 6News' Jennifer Carmack reported. He said he called police to make a report and then talked to neighbors, who said they'd seen a few people and a black pickup truck near his home that day. Angel said he wanted to see if the burglars would come back,...

A northwest Charlotte homeowner shot and killed an intruder in his home Tuesday afternoon, police said. Officers said the man arrived at his Toddville Road home and saw a strange car in the driveway. He found the door kicked in and shot the burglar inside, police said. The suspected burglar died and the homeowner is currently being interviewed by police.

NEW ORLEANS — Anxious evacuees across the country clamored to come home Tuesday after Hurricane Gustav largely spared New Orleans and southern Louisiana, but were cautioned to wait for the restoration of power and other critical services knocked out by the storm.

An apartment resident shoots another man to death after that man tried to enter his southwest Houston unit, according to Harris County Sheriff's deputies. Investigators say Clarence Hill, 28, had an argument Tuesday night with John Cruz, 21, at the Sierra Pines Apartments on the 6400 block of Sierra Blanca Drive near Presidio Square Boulevard. Cruz ran into his apartment and was followed by Hill, who forced his way into the unit, according to investigators. After Hill entered the home, deputies say Cruz shot and killed him. The Harris County grand jury will determine whether or not Cruz will face...

An injured National Guard soldier from Woodbury gets a great gift Friday -- a new home. Sgt. Marcus Kuboy was seriously injured by an explosion in Iraq last year and is mostly confined to a wheelchair because of leg and back injuries. Right now he can only use his legs for short periods of time. The project's been under construction for several months now and hundreds of people have helped. On Friday, volunteers were getting started on the landscaping by planting flowers and shrubs. The inside is almost complete as well. Kuboy will have his own elevator and a kitchen...

A worker at a Baton Rouge photo lab is used to developing photographs of birthday parties, beautiful sunsets, and vacations. But a picture of a girl cutting up a dead puppy was a first. The worker, from a Baton Rouge Walgreens drug store, immediately called sheriff's deputies who launched an investigation. Deputies were led to a student from Woodlawn High School who told them her mother had gotten the dead puppy for her from the East Baton Rouge Parish Animal Control, according to a police report. The puppy that was given to the student's mother for the school assignment had...

Those of you who have read earlier threads, may rtemember me mentioning a show about a man that went from a $37,000 a year electric bill, to a $13 a year bill for admin/clerical charge. That man, is Larry Hagman. Tonight, Wednesday, 8/06/2008 on DirecTV, Planet Green Ch#286, will air the 'Living with Ed'(Begley episode that tours Larry Hagmans house, with all the "green" features he has installed.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 4, 2008 – Two videos produced by Army Medical Command and the American Academy of Pediatrics to help children and adolescents cope during a parent’s deployment are gaining in popularity. “Military Youth Coping with Separation: When Family Members Deploy” addresses a variety of deployment-related concerns for teens, and “Mr. Poe and Friends Discuss Reunion After Deployment” was made for elementary-school-age children. “We hope these videos will support the healthy emotional development of military children and adolescents during potentially difficult times in their lives,” Army Maj. (Dr.) Keith Lemmon of the pediatrics department at Madigan Army Medical Center at...

They say three people, one armed with wooden club, went to the home to start a fight -- which they did. After a short time, police say the homeowner, Joshua Pyles, got a shotgun and asked the suspects to leave his home and property. They refused and continued to make threats, so Pyles fired one shot."

MIAMI-DADE, Fla. -- A homeowner shot a would-be burglar in Southwest Miami-Dade on Sunday, police said. Police said the man shot was one of two thieves who tried to burglarize a house in the 2400 block of 117th Avenue about 2 a.m. Related Content: Images He was taken to Ryder Trauma Center, where he was listed in stable condition. The second man apparently got away. Neighbors said the house, which sits on the side of the street nearest the interstate, has been hit by thieves before. Police said two children, ages 5 and 9, were inside the house when the...

An 18-year-old man armed with a BB gun was fatally shot while trying to rob the residents of a Franklinton home yesterday afternoon, police said. Police arrested his two alleged accomplices, one of whom was his brother, and charged them with murder for taking part in a crime that resulted in his death. The resident who fired the fatal shot was released after questioning by police. A Franklin County grand jury will decide whether he acted in self-defense or should be indicted for a crime, police said. Terrance W. Jackson, described by police as a college student from out of...

OCALA – Firing a .357-caliber handgun until it was empty, an Ocala woman chased two intruders from her home in the 3800 block of Southeast 68th Street on Wednesday morning. Later Wednesday, Marion County sheriff's detectives had one home invasion suspect in custody and were looking for the second. Aaron Scott Beardsley, 25, was charged with armed home invasion robbery. Deputies were still looking for a heavy-set Hispanic male, about 6-foot-1 or 6-feet-2, who was wearing black shorts at the time, a dark T-shirt and a bandana. Sheriff's Detective Art King, in his report, gave the following account of the...

Construction Industry Research Board figures show that developers are on track to build the fewest homes in Orange County this year since the 1940s. As of May, local builders received building permits for 1,957 new housing units this year — 677 of them for houses and side-by-side condos (or “single-family”), and 1,280 for apartments and multi-story condos (”multi-family”), the research board reported. At that pace, Orange County is on track to build about 4,500 new homes by year’s end. That would be the smallest number of building permits here since 1949, when O.C. had just over 200,000 residents (or one-fifteenth...

WASHINGTON, June 18, 2008 – A congressman from Arizona has recognized a group from his state for its continued dedication to supporting the troops. U.S. Rep. Harry Mitchell honored Packages From Home on June 14 for its efforts and continued support for the nation’s servicemembers and for their dedication in providing care packages to U.S. troops. Packages From Home is a supporter of America Supports You, a Defense Department program connecting citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at home and abroad. Mitchell recognized Kathleen Lewis and Lisa Benson -- president and executive director, respectively, of Packages...

Tears, hugs and American flags welcomed members of a North Dakota National Guard unit back to their home state after nearly a year in Iraq.Most of the 104 members of the 817th Engineer Company arrived at Jamestown airport on two chartered flights Saturday, shortly after 7 a.m., about 45 minutes ahead of schedule. Eleven soldiers had returned earlier and two went directly to homes in Wisconsin and Colorado.Guard officials did their best to notify families of the early arrival, and hundreds turned out to welcome home the troops."The year is done," said Daine Flieth, who was reunited with her husband,...

I found this while looking for some flat iron bar stock. It's on the Centaur Forge webpages. The date it was posted isn't noted, but I found it an interesting read on this Memorial Day. Dear Centaur Forge Customers and Friends – Thank you for your support over the last year during my deployment to Iraq. < snip for excerpt > I can truly tell you that within my year deployment, I witnessed many actions from our troops that would make you proud of our young men and women serving in the military. It is remarkable to think that young...

Renovating a historic home By James Smar The Meadowcroft Rockshelter and Museum in western Pennsylvania is getting a lot of attention this week, as it reopens the archaeological site of a 16,000-year-old human habitation. It had been closed to the public for a year for renovations.The idea of renovating a dwelling after 16,000 years is intriguing. They could have called in a television team consisting of the guys from This Old House, that Extreme Makeover crew and those cavemen from the insurance commercials. Radioactive carbon testing in 1974 of remnants of burned firewood determined the age of the domicile, making...

In March, existing-home sales dropped 2% to a 4.93 million annual rate, (see the article in today’s Journal). Meanwhile, the median home price rose to $200,700 last month from a revised $195,600 in February. Possibly, a sign that home prices may be starting to stabilize — although that’s not how Robert Shiller sees it. In Tampa, we found a three-bedroom, two-bathroom home in a gated golf-course community listed for $200,000. In Billings, Mont., we had to go $24,000 over the median price to find a home. For $224,700 there’s a four-bedroom, two-bathroom of 2,513 square feet, located close to the...

BAGHDAD, April 11, 2008 – Soldiers from the 1st Infantry Division’s 4th Brigade Combat Team are redeploying to Fort Riley, Kan., this month. The brigade deployed in February 2007 to secure southern Baghdad’s Rashid district and to help improve the safety and quality of life for the 1.2 million people living there as part of the surge of five brigades into Iraq. "I am proud of Task Force Dragon's soldiers and the amazing work they've done in 14 months here," Army Col. Ricky D. Gibbs, 4th Brigade commander, said. "We successfully reduced sectarian violence and attacks against coalition and Iraqi...

FORWARD OPERATING BASE SHARANA, Afghanistan, April 1, 2008 – Army cooks from Task Force Pacemaker in Afghanistan are providing their own unique touch and a taste of home with each hot meal they serve to soldiers throughout Regional Command East. Cooks from Task Force Pacemaker, deployed from Fort Lewis Wash., prepare lunch for soldiers at the Reception, Staging, Onward Movements and Integration dining facility at Forward Operating Base Sharana, Afghanistan, March 4, 2008. Photo by Capt. Kenya V. Saenz, USA  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The Task Force Pacemaker Headquarters Support Company cooks, deployed from Fort Lewis, Wash.,...

FORT RILEY, Kan., March 18, 2008 – The 1st Infantry Division’s commanding general yesterday welcomed home 37 U.S. servicemembers who served overseas for the past year as advisors with Afghan or Iraqi forces. Army Capt. James King and wife Alisha embrace at the end of the redeployment ceremony on Fort Riley, Kan., March 17,2008. Defense Dept. photo by Gerry J. Gilmore  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “The first thing that I will do is tell all the troops and their families that they have my personal thanks and my professional admiration for the service that they provide to...

The Edinburgh home where the pioneer of economics spent his final years has been put up for sale. Adam Smith lived in Panmure House in the Old Town from 1778 until his death aged 67 in 1790. The A-listed building has now been put up for sale by its owner, Edinburgh City Council, after it was deemed surplus to requirements. The authoritative Adam Smith Institute today called on any new development within the building to remember its historic past and commemorate the close link it has with the economist. It has been put on the market for offers over £700,000...

Sen Johnny Isakson Says Checks Would Entice People To Buy He would know. As a longtime realtor in Cobb County, Sen. Johnny Isakson has seen housing downturns before. "We had recessions in 1968, 1974, 1982, and 1991, by every measurement, this is going to be a deeper and bigger recession in residential housing. It's a significant event." Isakson is pitching an idea to his colleagues in Congress: a $15,000 tax rebate check to anyone who agrees to buy a home. Congressional budget analysts project the program would cost $14 billion over the next few years. But Isakson said the rebate...

In a large, featureless convention centre 40 miles east of Los Angeles, more than 1,000 people have gathered early on a Sunday morning.From the stage, they are addressed in earnest by a man in tuxedo and bow tie, and they can watch the proceedings on giant video screens on either side of him. He is preaching property, and although this auctioneer's high-speed patter sounds more like a cattle auction, here they are bidding for homes. More than 100 houses are up for sale here and every two to three minutes a property goes under the hammer. Similar auctions of...

A California Court of Appeal recently decided that homeschooling is illegal in California unless a parent is a certified teacher. The case arose in a confidential juvenile court proceeding. The family was represented by court-appointed attorneys and HSLDA did not become aware of the case until the Court of Appeal case was published on February 28, 2008. The Court could have restricted its decision to the facts before it, but instead, it issued a broad ruling that effectively outlaws home education in California. The Court also certified its decision for publication, which means that the decision can now be cited...

Cpl. Eric A. Otero, a squad leader with Company B, 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, hugs his daughter Kiali, 3, after returning Feb. 12 from a seven-month deployment. MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. (Feb. 21, 2008) -- Wives, mothers, fathers, brothers, and other friends were among the excited greeters waiting for the return of Marines from 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, Feb. 12 at the battalion’s home at 53 Area, Camp Horno. Flags waved and children played on the parade deck behind the headquarters building for 1/1 – the “First of the First� – who were drawing to...

After Miami handyman Glenn Rudge was accused of shoplifting an $8 set of drill bits at Home Depot, he thought he'd settled the matter when he showed his receipt to prosecutors and they dropped the charge.But a few weeks later, a law firm hired by Home Depot began sending him letters demanding first $3,000, then a total of $6,000, implying he'd be sued if he didn't pay it. In an escalating battle against theft, retailers are going after anyone suspected of shoplifting, turning over their names to lawyers and collection firms, who pursue the suspects for stiff penalties and split...

Knife-Wielding Home Invader Put in Hospital by 80-Year-Old John Wayne Fan http://www.breitbart.tv/?p=48444

BAQUBAH — Families displaced from a town near Baqubah were escorted back to their homes by the Iraqi Army (IA) and Coalition forces, Feb. 13, during ‘Operation Fierce Thrasher’. During the operation, Soldiers from Company F, 52nd Infantry Regiment, 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division from Fort Lewis, Wash., helped 39 families dislocated due to fear of terrorist attacks return to their homes in the town of Durah. “Today’s mission was to secure the village of Durah to allow the repatriation of the Sunnis into the village,” said Capt. Troy Mills, commander of Company F. The Coalition troops...

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (Feb. 15, 2008) -- Families and friends gathered at Goettge Field House, here, to celebrate the return of their Marines and Sailors. The 2nd Marine Logistics Group returned from a successful deployment to the Al Anbar Province. MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (February 15, 2008) – Families and friends gathered at Goettge Field House, here, to celebrate the return of their Marines and Sailors. The 2nd Marine Logistics Group returned from a successful deployment to the Al Anbar Province. MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (February 15, 2008) – Families and friends gathered...

BALAD AIR BASE, Iraq, Jan. 29, 2008 – The Air Force Theater Hospital's 98 percent survivability rate for injured U.S. servicemembers would be meaningless if the wounded were unable to survive their journey out of the combat zone. Four years into the war, the process of saving lives and safely transporting critically injured and ill troops out of Iraq has become one of the greatest military feats in modern history, according to Air Force Lt. Col. Beverly Johnson, chief nurse for the Contingency Aeromedical Staging Facility here. The CASF is a minor conglomerate of different functions. It's at once...

Sales of new homes plunged by a record amount in 2007 while prices posted the weakest showing in 16 years, demonstrating the troubles builders are facing with a huge backlog of unsold homes. The Commerce Department reported Monday that sales of new homes dropped by 26.4 percent last year to 774,000. That marked the worst sales year on record, surpassing the old mark of a 23.1 percent plunge in 1980. The government reported that the median price of a new home barely budged last year, edging up a slight 0.2 percent to $246,900, the poorest showing since prices fell by...

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Shawn Hicks was sleeping on his couch when he said he was awoken by police officers who shocked him with a Taser stun gun. The officers had responded to a silent alarm about 2:45 a.m. on July 28. Even after Hicks explained to them that he lived there and the officers saw his identification, police shocked him twice more, Hicks said. Hicks, of North Braddock, filed a lawsuit against borough officials on Wednesday in Allegheny County Court. In it, he accuses the police department of false arrest, battery, assault, intentional infliction of emotional distress and slander.(snip) Police...

FORT HUACHUCA — Forty-three soldiers making up the 518th Signal Company returned to Fort Huachuca arriving at Libby Army Airfield at 7:15 a.m. Monday and then they were bused to a ceremony at Murr Recreation Center, where they were reunited with their families and friends. During their 15-month deployment, they performed missions in Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan. The 518th is a Tactical Installation Network company, which essentially means they install the critical infrastructure for tactical networks where none existed before. This platoon element is stationed in Fort Huachuca. Its parent unit is located in Fort Gordon, Ga. The guest speaker...

KB Home expects 2008 to be as tough as last year KB Home, the fifth largest US homebuilder, has made quarterly loss of $773m (£392m) as the American housing market slowdown continues to bite.Reporting for the last three months of 2007, KB Home said it had written off $305.5m because of the reduced value of its housing and land stocks. The Los Angeles-based firm said its sales fell 22% in the quarter compared with the same time last year. KB Home, which saw revenues fall 31%, said it also expected a tough 2008. Record defaults The company's fourth quarter...

My grandmother recently, and reluctantly, asked if I could give her some money. There's no question my wife, Amy, and I will give her the funds; she raised me and is, by and large, the woman I consider my mom. She has always been kind to Amy. If we have the discretionary cash that can make my grandmother's life happy, shouldn't we hand it over? Yet the request has caused us a lot of angst. Part of our concern is where this will lead. Although my grandmother isn't asking for a lot of money -- just a few hundred dollars...

U.S. house prices "likely would have to fall considerably" to return to a normal relationship with rents, says a study by one former and two current Federal Reserve economists. The study, which doesn't necessarily reflect the views of Fed policy makers, suggests prices would have to fall 15% over five years, assuming rents rose 4% a year. House prices would have to fall further if the adjustment took place more quickly. The study tracks rents and home prices back to 1960 and found annual rents fluctuated at around 5% to 5.25% of home prices until 1995. At the end of...

COMBAT OUTPOST CLEARY — Soldiers of the 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, attended an Iraqi holiday feast at the home of the head sheik of the Mada’in Qada, Sheik Nouri, Dec. 27, in Al Ja’ara. Before the feast, leaders of the Concerned Local Citizens program, Iraqi security forces, 1-15 Infantry Regiment, and village leaders held a meeting to discuss future operations and progress Ja’ara and the surrounding areas. “We specifically talked about recent incidents in the Al Bawi and Wardyah areas,” said Capt. Stephen Hemmann, Des Peres, La. Native and executive officer of Company B, 1-15 Inf. Regt. While the...