Police arrest black teens at the National Mall. Their crime? Selling water

While the violent crime rate in D.C. continues to soar above the national average, the U.S. Park Police appear to have other priorities.

Three plainclothes police officers went undercover at the National Mall to bust three young black teens on Thursday as they were breaking the law in our nation’s capital. Their crime? Selling water bottles without a permit for some extra cash.

 Yes, these young people were arrested for “vending on the National Mall,” and according to police, they were detained and handcuffed for “the safety of the officers and of the individuals.” The story went viral on Friday after a tour guide named Tim Krepp tweeted photos of the officers and turned it into a lesson on race.

“My kids sell water and everyone smiles at them,” Krepp wrote. “These kids do it and get arrested. It IS racist.” He later added, “God forbid the actual free market be allowed on our National Mall. There’s obviously a racial disparity in how they are treating these young men and other vendors that we see on the mall.”

Of course, the mainstream media jumped on this, and one local politician even lashed out.

Democratic D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen responded by asking the police chief to explain why the officers decided to handle the incident with such severity. “While still the same violation of selling a beverage without proper permits and licenses,” Allen wrote. “I doubt we would have seen little girls in pigtails handcuffed on the ground.”

While these officers had every right to enforce the (pretty dumb) law, they might have benefitted from some discretion in how they handled the situation. In the age of smartphones and social media, anti-police activists have more tools at their disposal than ever before, and more ways to propagate their narrative. Couldn’t they predict that the image of three white police officers arresting three black, unarmed kids might make headlines? Is arresting people for selling cold water really worth it?

Town Seeking 'Termination' Of Employee Who Posted Hate Speech On Video Of Muslim Teen

A Town of Babylon employee faces disciplinary action after he posted profane hate speech on a Facebook post highlighting the accomplishments of the Lindenhurst High School Class of 2017 salutatorian.

The Lindenhurst School District posted a video (watch it at the bottom of this story) on Facebook Thursday morning featuring salutatorian Yasmin Zohny along with co-valedictorians Sofiya Yanyak and Ziad Sabry. The video was shared to a local Facebook group in the afternoon. A few minutes later, Andrew Vita posted two comments under the video. Both directed vile hate speech toward Zohny, who is Muslim.

"This type of hateful language has no place in our society, let alone in our Town of Babylon workforce," Babylon Town Supervisor Rich Schaffer said of Vita, who has been employed with the town's Department of Public Works since 1985. "Mr. Vita will be subject to disciplinary action, particularly if records show these offensive statements were posted during work hours."

Vita's comments were quickly deleted by the admin of the Facebook group, but screenshots of his comments have spread across town and unleashed a torrent of support for Zohny, particularly from fellow members of the Lindenhurst Class of 2017, which will graduate on Friday evening. 

"I am completely and utterly disgusted that Andy Vita has commented such disgusting things on a post celebrating our salutatorian Yasmin Zohny," Paige McDonald told Patch in an email. "She is indeed Muslim and wears a hijab. I can promise you she is the SWEETEST person you'll ever meet and today on Facebook she was attacked for being Muslim."

Another member of the Class of 2017, Shannon McCann, called Zohny "kind, generous, caring and compassionate." McCann said Vita should be fired immediately.

"We need to step up and denounce these unspeakably hurtful people from our workforce in order to maintain a peaceful and safe environment for all," McCann said. "Yasmin has worked diligently and consistently her entire schooling career, inside the classroom and out, and she deserves to see this action be condemned."

Schaffer said Vita, who made $78,577 in 2016, will be "mandated to apologize in-person to this impressive young woman and go through sensitivity training so that we can determine the cause of the hate-driven anger he displayed in his posting."

Schaffer also said he will personally be offering Zohny, who will attend The University of Texas at Austin in the fall, a paid internship with the Town of Babylon if she does not already have plans for the summer.

Sahil Kapoor, another Lindenhurst High student and a friend of Zohny's, told Patch that he's faced "many racial comments" himself as an Indian-American in a family of Indian immigrants. 

"It is one of the worst things a human can face," he said.

Top 10 quotes from PM Modi's address to the US Indian diaspora in Virginia

Here are the top quotes of PM Modi at the event: 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a two-day official visit to the US, on Sunday addressed the Indian diaspora near here in Virginia.

Here are the top quotes of PM Modi at the event:

1/ When India talked of terrorism 20 years back, many in the world said its a law and order problem and didn't understand it. Now terrorists have explained terrorism to them so we don't have to.

2/ When India did surgical strikes the world experienced our power and realized that India practices restrain but can show power when needed.

3/ When growing aspirations of people are given right leadership, they turn into achievements.

4/ Through technology driven governance we are creating an 'Adhunik Bharat'.

5/ Govts in India have been ousted due to corruption; in the last three years no one has been able to put any such charge on us.

6/ Transparent policies of our government have create an environment of trust among the people.

7/ I can see that every Indian wants to contribute towards India's development. India is progressing at a record pace today.

8/ The Indian diaspora rejoices when there is good news from India, it wants India to scale newer heights.

9/ I promise that I will fulfill all your dreams of making India as good as US.

10/ When I meet you all I experience the kind of joy one feels while meeting his/her family. You fill me with new energy.

Words of Wisdom for Every Man (7 pics)

Great advices. 

How Banning Alcohol Can Change Your Looks (5 pics)

40 year old Laura Hogarth regularly drank 15 units of alcohol per week, which equates to around 5 large glasses of wine. As part of an experiment, she stopped drinking altogether for four weeks. Here are the dramatic results seen in her appearance.

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4: In the fourth and final week you can see just how much Laura’s appearance has improved since she stopped drinking.

Week 1 VS Week 4

Potatoes: Good, Bad or Fattening?

Potato Health Benefits

1. Protection from Heart Disease and Cancer
Potatoes contain flavonoids. With protective antioxidant activity, flavanoids protect against cardiovascular disease, respiratory problems and certain cancers.

2. Rival Greens for Phenol Activity
They contain equal or higher amounts of certain phenols than broccoli, spinach or brussel sprouts.

3. High in B Vitamins for your Brain & Athletic Performance
One cup of baked potato contains 21 percent of the daily requirement for B6. B vitamins are essential for growth, your nervous system and cardiovascular health.

Potatoes also contain significant amounts of folic acid, which is essential for pregnant women.

4. Contain Resistant Starch
Many vegetables contain small amounts of resistant starch but potatoes that have been cooked and then cooled down have high amounts. Resistant starch’s benefits are similar to that of fiber, meaning you’ll stay fuller longer and with less calorie consumption.

Since resistant starch acts like fiber, it is either poorly digested or not digested at all. This lowers the glycemic index of potatoes, which is normally higher than white sugar, (averaging 70 – 110) down to reasonable levels of 25-72!  Bring on the potato salad!

5. High in Vitamin C
Who would have thought! Vitamin C is the key to healthy skin. 

Potato Health Concerns

1.  Potatoes are part of the nightshade family
Nightshades have varying amounts of alkaloids, compounds produced by plants to prevent themselves from insects and disease.

Potatoes don’t have high amounts of alkaloids like the 3 powerful nightshades (mandrake, tobacco, belladonna).  IF YOU ARE SENSITIVE to alkaloids, even potatoes could cause a reaction. The level of alkaloids varies greatly depending on the variety of potato and how it is produce and handled

Hey maybe that’s why I don’t like potatoes. I also don’t like tomatoes and eggplant, two other nightshades.

Note: Green potatoes (caused by exposure to the sun) have large amounts of alkaloids as do the sprouts. Therefore avoid green potatoes and cut out the sprout and its eye before use.

2. Fried potatoes contain acrylamide, a neurotoxin and possible carcinogen.
Fried, potato chips and French fries are a greater risk of acrylamide exposure than any other food.  One single ounce snack-sized bag of potato chips contains 20% of the maximum safe intake of dietary acrylamide as established by the EPA. Most people consume a lot more than one ounce.
Suggestion: Baked potato chips are safer with less oil.

3. Commercial potatoes contain high amounts of pesticides.

Potatoes are one of the “Dirty Dozen” group of twelve foods that contain the highest level of pesticides. You can avoid this in your own cooking by just buying or growing organic. As for potato products, assume that all potatoes not in your control (like those in French fries and chips) fall in the “dirty” category.

4. Most potatoes are monocultured
Although there are thousands of varieties of potatoes, most of the potatoes we eat are monocultured.
Monocultures destroy the genetic diversity of the planet and are susceptible to possible disease. The potato blight of the Irish was caused because they all ate a single species of potato which happened to be susceptible to a certain disease.

Suggestion: Look for colored potatoes; the insides have more nutrition. 

Potatoes & Weight Gain

Many people are scared of potatoes because they are OBVIOUSLY a carbohydrate and as a culture we are now scared of carbohydrates because we all want to lose weight!

The truth is that a potato is MOSTLY water so if you don’t eat too many you will not take in too many carbohydrates or calories.

The second consideration is their high glycemic index, which is higher than white sugar, ranging from 80 – 110.  Again, potatoes are not that dense so the glycemic load from an average serving of potatoes is actually not more than any other carbohydrate.

The study that got me thinking about potatoes was a large population study of 120,887 people whose eating habits and weight gain was analyzed over four years.

The average of all types of potatoes for weight gain was more than any other food group studied, which included meat, processed meat, sugary beverages, sweets and desserts and dairy products.

This average was only high though because it contained the category of potato chips and French fries. The weight gain from boiled, baked, or mashed potatoes at (0.57 lb) was only a fraction compared to potato chips (1.69 lbs) and French fries (a whopping 3.35 lbs).

You didn’t need a study to tell you that potato chips and French fries are fattening. Many potato products are NOT a weight loss food like fruits & leafy vegetables but that just means you don’t overeat. 

Top 20 Frankenfoods to Avoid

Genetically-modified (GM) foods and food ingredients have infiltrated our food supply, tainting what was once healthy. While agri-businesses continue to claim they are safe, increasing amounts of research demonstrate that GM foods are harmful to human health, damage ecosystems, cause financial calamity for many farmers, and release trans genes that could randomly transfer to other life forms in the environment with the potential for disastrous consequences. A growing body of research links genetically-modified food consumption with sterility, allergies, infant mortality, organ defects, childhood illnesses, and cancer.

Avoid these top 20 foods and food ingredients to make your body GM-free*:

Alfalfa—Not in the habit of eating alfalfa?  You could be unknowingly eating this food in your beef and dairy products. Used by dairy and beef farmers as feed for cows, genetically-modified alfalfa is common in both beef and milk products.

Aspartame—Not only is aspartame a well-established neurotoxin (brain and nervous system toxin), this laboratory-derived ingredient is made from aspartate, phenylalanine, and menthol, all of which are commonly sourced from genetically-modified ingredients.

Beef—Not only does most beef contain genetically-modified alfalfa, it also contains GM corn and soy, which becomes part of the meat.  If you’re eating beef, choose only organic beef that is grass-fed.

Canola Oil—Ninety percent of canola is genetically-modified to withstand the herbicide glyphosate (Round-Up).

Corn and Corn Starch—Almost all corn is genetically-modified, making this once healthy food a suspected cause of organ damage.  Like corn, the starch extract of this GM-food is found in almost all processed and packaged foods.  If you like battered and deep-fried foods of almost any kind, you’re getting lots of this ingredient and lots of genetically-modified corn. Corn starch is commonly-used to make deep-fried foods crispy.

Enzymes—Unfortunately many enzymes used in food production are derived from GM ingredients.  Some of these processes include:  preventing egg products from deteriorating, removing bitter substances from beer, improving the clarity of fruit juices, clotting milk to make cheese, increasing the rising speed of bread dough, and many others.  GM enzymes are also used in the manufacture of many supplements.  Check out the excellent bookGenetic Roulette for more information about GM enzymes.

Flaxseeds/Flaxseed Oil—Even flax has been contaminated with genetically-modified seed.  Be sure to choose only certified organic flax and flax oil.

High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS)—Because high fructose corn syrup is made from corn which is almost entirely genetically-modifed this ingredient is a serious threat to health.  Research links it to weight gain and diabetes.

Ice Cream—Ice cream typically contains multiple genetically-modified ingredients, including high fructose corn syrup, corn starch, and milk which contains bovine growth hormone (rBGH).  If that still doesn’t sound too bad to you, keep reading to learn more about rBGH in milk products.

Infant Formula—Do the corporations behind frankenfoods have no ethics at all?  Even infant formula is contaminated with frankenfood ingredients like soy and milk.  Yes, milk typically contains genetically-modified ingredients (keep reading!).

Margarine and Shortening—Made from genetically-modified canola or vegetable oil blends, margarine and vegetable shortening are not the healthy foods many people believe them to be.

Milk—Genetically-modified bovine growth hormone (rBGH) is injected into cows to increase milk output.  Incidentally, this process also increases the rate of infection in cows and results in blood and pus in the milk, along with the genetically-modified proteins.  Maybe the dairy marketing board should change their slogan from “Got Milk?” to “Got Gross?”

Non-organic and Synthetic Vitamins—You’ve read about enzyme supplements, but other nutritional supplements are commonly made from genetically-modified ingredients.  Choose ones that are made from natural (not synthetic) nutrients and organic ingredients.

Papaya (Hawaiian)—Papayas from Hawaii are largely genetically-modified.  They contain genetic material from the Ringspot virus.

Sausage—Most sausages contain ingredients derived from genetically-modified corn, including:  corn syrup or corn syrup solids.  Choose only organic sausage free of these ingredients and preservatives.

Soy and Lecithin—Most soybean crops are grown from genetically-modified soy, which has been linked to a host of health problems, including cancer.  Lecithin, which is a product made from soy, is also contaminated with harmful trans genes and used in many processed and packaged foods as a thickener.  Choose only certified organic soy.  Ideally, choose certified organic soy that has been fermented (like miso)

Squash—Many varieties of squashes have been created with genetically-modified gene sequences and are best avoided unless they are certified organic.

Sugar Beets—Sugar beets are used to make about 35% of the global supply of white sugar.  Consider that the average person consumes 150 pounds of sugar each year.  That works out to over 52 pounds of genetically-modified sugar on average.  That’s not only a lot of sugar, it’s a lot of genetically-modified organisms, and potentially a large amount of the herbicide glyphosate (Roundup) which is used on many sugar beet farms.

Tomatoes—Since the release of Flavr Savr tomatoes, the first genetically-modified tomatoes, many more frankentomatoes have been released on an unsuspecting public.  These tomatoes contain a DNA sequence that has been reversed to prevent softening and allow for a longer shelf-life, and therefore more money for the agribusinesses that sell them.  Research shows that they have lower nutritional value than their organic counterparts.

Vegetable Oil—Most “vegetable oil” blends are derived from genetically-modified corn, cotton, canola, or soybean oils.  These are four of the most heavily genetically-modified crops, making foods made with vegetable oil among the worst frankenfoods.