Search query: west virginia

Source: Industrial Hemp Tasmania / Facebook A bipartisan amendment to the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013 (FARM Bill) that would guarantee a state's right to make its own decision regarding the legalization of industrial hemp was approved by the House on Thursday. Introduced by Representatives Jared Polis (D-CO), Thomas Massie (R-KY), and Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), the amendment passed with a narrow 225 to 200 vote. In states where industrial hemp is legal, lawmakers an

Friday, June 14th 2013 was flag day, a day which tends to go uncelebrated, and about which most people know very little. This post will be a brief detour from my continuing series on the different facets of the Kiera Wilmot Bottle Bomb story. It looks long, and it is, but most of it is pictures.  As you look through the various images included here, I hope you will contrast the actual origins of the U.S. flag, as it was originally adopted by the Founding Fathers, and contrast that with the nic

John Miller has spent his life around firearms. "I grew up with firearms of all kinds, taught to respect and how to use and care for a gun as well as been shooting since I was very young," he said. Today, Miller passes that expertise along to others, working as a martial arts teacher in Roanoke and Vinton, Va. So, when he hears the way politicians, the media, and lobbyist groups talk about gun ownership, Miller says it's "fear-mongering" and "propaganda." "Organizations have a goal, and tend

Independent voters now account for approximately 40 percent of all voters in the United States. Following the national trend, California voters are increasingly leaving the two major parties, with almost 3.7 million voters now registered under "No Party Preference" in the state. Overall voter turnout, however, decreased in 2012 election, with one million fewer Californians casting a ballot in the general election than in previous presidential elections. With independent voters now accounting fo

Credit: "Military drone starting from the runway"/ Shutterstock.com Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) -- more commonly known as drones -- are a topic of contention in the United States. Despite the numerous benefits that could come from the commercial use of drones, many concerns have been raised over this new technology, especially in regards to privacy rights. Here are 5 reasons why the U.S. is not ready for the domestic use drones. 1) Risk of Abuse While the U.S. military commonly uses drone

Congressman Geoff Davis, a Republican serving Kentucky's 4th congressional district, announced in 2011 that he was retiring from office at the end of his term, but in the summer of 2012, Davis resigned his seat immediately. With a resignation so late in his term and hoping to save the cost of a replacement election on another date, this created an unusual scenario: a special election and general election on the same day. Thomas Massie, the judge-executive of Lewis County and the winner of the M

Credit: lcmh.com/psych In the ongoing debate about how to stop mass shootings like Columbine, Virginia Tech, and now Sandy Hook Elementary, there are two issues that are being largely ignored in favor of blaming the gun; the state of the mental health care system and the effects that violent media have on those with mental or emotional problems. This isn't an unusual response to tragedies, according to Lisa Bahar, a licensed marriage and family therapist and licensed professional clinical coun

Another year has passed and a handful of notable media misreports along with it. One of the most prestigious journalists was caught plagiarizing another journalist’s work this year as well as one reporter's serious lack of fact-checking regarding the Aurora shooting. Perhaps the most heinous of media misreports this year was not a single event at all but the consistently uncritical examination of the 2012 election process. This list of 5 media fails of 2012 reviews the more memorable media miss

Credit: AP / Chattanooga Times Free Press Over the past few months, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been in the spotlight because an armed rebel group, M23, took control of the regional capital of Goma. It is the latest reminder of the instability in a region that will become more important in the years to come. The DRC is one of the richest countries in the world in terms of natural resources but is classified as the poorest country in the world by the International Monetary Fund.

Credit: washingtonpost.com Last August, the Drudge Report pushed a story about CIA Director and four star general, David Petraeus, who was said to be on the short list of Governor Romney’s potential vice presidential nominees.1 Although he firmly denied any such aspirations, Petraeus had long been viewed as a strong option for president among both liberals and conservatives, with pundits surmising of the day when we all might refer to him as the leader of the free world.2 Despite every object