Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) warns that the April 16, 2014, attack on a California power plant proves that terrorists could take down whole stretches of the U.S. power grid. Schumer said Sunday that power companies currently have the right to veto proposed security requirements, but he is calling for the federal energy regulator and the Department of Homeland Security to draft tougher security standards overseen by Congress that would end the industry’s veto rights.
An additional 55 to 63 people have been murdered each year in Missouri following the state’s 2007 repeal of its permit-to-purchase (PTP) handgun law, which required all handgun purchasers to obtain a license verifying that they have passed a background check.
A divided federal appeals court struck down California’s concealed weapons rules on Tuesday, saying they violate the Second Amendment right to bear arms. By a 2-1 vote, the judge panel said California was wrong to require applicants to show good cause to receive a permit to carry a concealed weapon. Judge Diarmuid O’Scannlain wrote for the majority that “The right to bear arms includes the right to carry an operable firearm outside the home for the lawful purpose of self-defense.”
Illinois residents are increasingly worried about how businesses protect their personal and financial information in the wake of widespread data breaches in 2013. The Illinois Attorney General’s Office saw a 1,600-percent increase in data breach complaints compared to 2012. The office received more than 20,500 complaints in 2013, and identity theft complaints recorded the largest increase – from 2,544 complaints in 2012 to 3,009 in 2013. Within this category, Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s office reported a significant increase in complaints about data breaches specifically – from 33 complaints in 2012 to 576 in 2013.
Failing to prepare for extreme weather events has cost the United States $1.15 trillion in economic losses from 1980 to 2010 and could cost another trillion in coming years.
The National Security Council is back in business – well, at least under its old name again. In May 2009, the president’s National Security Council, which deals with foreign policy hot spots around the globe, The New York Times reports, was renamed the National Security Staff by President Obama. The explanation at the time was that the NSS would incorporate the staff of the president’s Homeland Security Council.
RSS