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September 2017

Republican Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner has angered the party and conservatives after he signed a bill that will allow Medicaid and state employee insurances to cover abortion. The law will also keep abortion legal in Illinois is the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade.

There are many different ways to poll the current controversy over NFL players protesting the National Anthem and flag on the sideline by kneeling down. One way to poll is whether the players "have a right" to protest. It's not at all inconsistent to take the position that they have "a right" to protest but also to criticize and object to the protests.

Californians certainly voted as if they were intoxicated last November. Not only did they pull the lever for Hillary Clinton and banning plastic bags, the Californians also approved the use of recreational marijuana. Now, officials are gearing up for the start of 2018, when the unintended consequences of the new rules begin to kick in.
...[T]he California Department of Public Health has created a website to educate Californians about the drug and its impacts, including how to purchase and safely store cannabis.

An unidentified police officer who was injured by a rock thrown during a "Black Lives Matter" protest in July 2016 sued activist DeRay McKesson and Black Lives Matter. The case was thrown out on a motion to dismiss because (1) as to McKesson, the court found no specific actions alleged against him that showed he directed specific acts of violence, much less the specific act that harmed the officer; and (2) as to Black Lives Matter, the court found that it was not an entity that could be sued, but merely a social movement.

You gotta love government agencies. They lash out when private businesses hurt consumers and yet evidence always seems to surface that they do the exact same thing, sometimes even worse. Take the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), an agency not many know about. Dodd-Frank birthed this agency as a way to protect consumers from another financial crisis. Its webpage claims that it "makes sure banks, lenders, and other financial companies treat you fairly."

An initiative sponsored by the Embassy of Israel in India seeks to connect Jerusalem's startup ecosystem with India's technology scene. Contrary to the popular perception, Jerusalem is fast catching up with Tel Aviv as a leading technology center in the world. In 2015, TIME magazine named Jerusalem as one of the world’s fastest growing hi-tech hubs. The annual startup competition "Start JLM", supported by Indian government and local private sector players, is being held in the country for the first time. This year's winner, Bangalore-based Mimyk startup will be taking part in an technology boost camp in Jerusalem. Four other finalists will be getting access to startup incubators.

President Donald Trump's administration has finally waived the Jones Act, which will allow foreign ships to bring aid to hurricane ravaged Puerto Rico. The Jones Act has been enforced since its inception in 1920. It states that any goods transported by water into U.S. ports must come in on ships made in the U.S., owned by U.S. citizens, have American crews.