Politics

Brian Burns / November 16,2021

NAFCU hosts Large Credit Union Compliance Roundtable

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NAFCU hosted a Large Credit Union Compliance Roundtable Tuesday, which brought several credit union leaders to talk about the most important issues affecting their institutions and industry. Of note, attendees of the event reviewed NCUA and CFPB exam expectations and challenges, as well as several top compliance issues.
The association has previously hosted several Large Credit Union Summits and will continue to engage with the NCUA and CFPB. Earlier this year, the association launched a new member-only online community – the NAFCU ONES + CFPB Supervision Network – designed to bring credit union leaders together to discuss the CFPB and NCUA examination processes for larger institutions. Through the network, NAFCU staff regularly shares insights into updates related to NCUA and CFPB supervision.
Regarding CFPB supervision, the association also released an issue brief earlier this year to break down the regulatory landscape and enforcement expectations under the bureau’s unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices (UDAAP) provision. The CFPB in March rescinded its policy statement related to the “abusive” prong of UDAAP.
The statement was initially issued in January 2020 following calls by NAFCU to clarify the prong and efforts by the bureau to gather feedback on the issue. NAFCU has consistently highlighted UDAAP as an area where the CFPB could further clarify its expectations for credit unions and the specific factual basis for violations.
 

Brian Burns / January 24,2021

Signal reportedly developing crypto payment features

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Fast-rising messaging service Signal is rumored to be experimenting with a privacy crypto token.
Privacy-focused messaging app Signal is reportedly devoting res towards the development of a cryptocurrency payments service for its users.
According to a report by Casey Newton, the founder of the technology newsletter service Platformer, Signal is mulling crypto payment integration on the app.
The report revealed that Signal reportedly ran pilot tests for such a token on the Binance-backed, Stellar-based privacy cryptocurrency platform MobileCoin. Moxie Marlinspike, CEO of Signal, serves as an adviser on the MobileCoin project heightening speculation that the test could be a trial run for subsequent deployment on the messaging app.
The Platformer report also noted that Marlinspike has downplayed these speculations, describing the tests as “design explorations,” adding, “If we did decide we wanted to put payments into Signal, we would try to think really carefully about how we did that. It’s hard to be totally hypothetical.”
However, according to Newton, former Signal employees say the company is actively pursuing the necessary protocols for integrating MobileCoin on the messaging platform. Earlier in January, MobileCoin attempted to clarify its relationship with Signal:

Brian Burns / December 18,2020

Pentagon officials float possible NSA, Cyber Command split

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Officials at the Department of Defense have floated a proposal in recent days that could sever the dual-hatted relationship between the National Security Agency and Cyber Command, according to a U.S. official.

Brian Burns / December 18,2020

Florida Laws About Roofs

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Florida Laws About Roofs

Florida Laws About Roofs
••• Xavier Arnau Serrat/Photodisc/Getty Images
When you own a home or a business in Florida, there is a great deal to learn about maintaining the exterior. This includes learning about the roof of your home or other type of building. Roofs are long-term investments, but unfortunately, they do not last forever. In Florida, which annually experiences hurricanes and serious storms, it is common for homeowners and business owners to experience roof damage. Also, normal wear and tear over time requires that roofs be replaced. Whether you have small areas of damage or if your entire roof is old, you need to learn about Florida roofing laws.
Basics of Florida Roofing Regulations
Florida has more roofing regulations than you may realize. There are laws regarding who can work on roofs, how roofs must be installed or repaired, when roofs may be reroofed and much more. Most of these laws are found in the sixth edition of the Florida Building Code, which went into effect on Dec. 31, 2017. Other roofing rules are found in Title XXXII of the Florida Statutes, Chapter 489 on contracting. It is not essential for you to know all of these laws. Instead, when it comes to dealing with your roof, it is best to find a licensed and experienced roofing contractor who knows the Florida roofing rules for roof replacement and repairs.
Can a General Contractor Do Roofing in Florida?

Brian Burns / December 11,2020

On Trump Administration’s Push to Drill in Arctic Refuge

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On Trump Administration’s Push to Drill in Arctic Refuge

 

“We know our lands have now become more valuable. The white people think we do not know their value, but we know that the land is everlasting, and the few goods we receive for it are soon worn out and gone.” 
— Canassatego ( c. 1684–1750), a leader of the Onondaga nation and spokesman of the Iroquois Confederacy

Brian Burns / August 22,2020

Charlie Dent: I’m voting for Joe Biden

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Charlie Dent: I’m voting for Joe Biden

 I’m voting for Joe Biden
This is the Pennsylvania Republican Party, in which I proudly and very comfortably grew up. Label these great public servants however you choose — center-right, pragmatic, common sense conservative, moderate or centrist — it really doesn’t matter. What these men represented, most assuredly, was the governing wing of the Republican Party. They were all thoughtful, measured and steady leaders who came from the tradition of former Pennsylvania Gov. William Scranton, Sr., who unsuccessfully challenged Barry Goldwater for the 1964 Republican Presidential nomination.
All of them, like myself, would have no doubt called themselves Abraham Lincoln Republicans. From that noble heritage came Presidents Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan and the Bushes, all of whom we hailed as decent, honorable and impactful leaders. The same would be said of GOP Presidential candidates Bob Dole, John McCain and Mitt Romney.
So here we are, with President Donald Trump, who has never been part of this great tradition. In fact, he speaks disparagingly and disrespectfully of his predecessors. What’s worse, he has spent the better part of his presidency undermining the international order — methodically and carefully built, defended and repurposed on a bipartisan basis after World War II and again after the Cold War.

Brian Burns / July 17,2020

Kanye West to Hold Campaign Rally in South Carolina on Sunday: Report

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Former Trump supporter now rival Kanye West will hold a rally in South Carolina on Sunday for his presidential campaign, Politico reported Saturday night:

Kanye West is heading South for his first political event.
The rapper and former avowed supporter of President Donald Trump will hold the first presidential campaign event of his own Sunday in South Carolina, according to a campaign document obtained by POLITICO.
West will host the afternoon stop at the Exquis Event Center in North Charleston for registered guests only. All attendees will be required to wear masks, observe social distancing and sign a Covid-19 liability release form…

West filed with the FEC this week listing “BDY”, Birthday Party as his party affiliation and filed for the Oklahoma ballot, according to Politico.
West tweeted requests this week for help getting on the ballot in South Carolina, “Hi guys please sign up to put me on the ballot in South Carolina at any of these locations You can also sign up at the website”. West needs to submit 10,000 signatures by noon Monday to qualify.

Brian Burns / July 14,2020

The three Es of taking your property

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The three Es of taking your property

The three Es of taking your propertyby Kathleen Marquardt
When law and morality contradict each other, the citizen has the cruel alternative of either losing his moral sense or losing his respect for the law. —Frederic Bastiat
Agenda 21/2050/Green New Deal is/are all about the three Es: Environment, Economy, and social Equity. And, just in case that isn’t enough there is the Endangered Species Act, although the species that is endangered, human beings, is the only one not protected.
Many people have become aware of the great threat to our way of life, in fact, to our very lives. But, unless you have dug very deep or have been one who has been fighting this for years and years, you do not know how it was brought into our lives and the very fiber of our governments. What does it matter? It’s like knowing how babies are made, not just realizing you are about to be a parent. As Sun Tzu advises, “If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.” So, know your enemy.
Environment

Brian Burns / July 01,2020

This Is How To Organize A Children’s ‘Black Lives Matter’ Event

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This Is How To Organize A Children’s ‘Black Lives Matter’ Event

Courtesy of Bailey Elizabeth Rogers
One of the hardest parts of the racial equity uprising has been figuring out whether or not to attend racial justice events as a family. Will they be safe and kid-friendly? Are children welcome? As a big, multiracial family, we think it’s important to include our kids in as much activism as possible, since we’re working to create a better future and world for them.
Thankfully, more and more events are being created with the entire family in mind, making sure the event is kid-appropriate. After all, Ruby Bridges famously said that racism is an adult issue, a disease, and we need to stop using kids to spread it. By organizing a kids’ march for racial justice, children and adults are able to take an active role in anti-racism, and when applicable, white allyship.
Remember, racial justice isn’t superficial vibes of peace, love, and unity. Racial justice is a fight, a battle, an action—but it must be presented to kids in a way they can appreciate and understand. The ACLU of Louisiana hosted a children’s racial justice march recently, with the goal of providing a “safe space for young people to learn about the Black Lives Matter Movement.” Additionally, their goals were to help children “develop the skills to identify and interrupt racism in their schools, neighborhoods, and communities” as well as “make their voices heard about the future they want to build.”

Brian Burns / June 28,2020

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy says he’s no longer using his desk that once belonged to Woodrow Wilson

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When New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy tweeted a picture of him observing a moment of silence in honor of George Floyd earlier this month, people were quick to point out that he was doing it from behind a desk that was engraved with the name of Woodrow Wilson.

Some found the image ironic because Murphy was remembering the unjust death of a Black man while sitting at a desk that once belonged to Wilson, a former New Jersey governor and US president who defended segregation and slavery.

Now, Murphy has ditched the piece of office furniture, which he said he forgot had a plaque on the front of it that read “Woodrow Wilson’s Desk.”

“As soon as I could get a replacement, which was not as easy as I thought, I got one and I think that was the right thing to do,” Murphy said during a news conference on Monday.

The country is having a “reckoning,” Murphy said, and “Woodrow Wilson and his legacy is being swept up in that as it should be.”

Wilson, who was the country’s 28th president from 1913 to 1921, once called racial segregation a “benefit” and said slaves “were happy and well-cared for.”

When he served as president for Princeton University, from 1902-1910, he denied African American men from being admitted, and sought to exclude them from the school’s history.

Murphy’s decision to switch out his desk comes after Princeton removed Wilson’s name from its school of public policy and a residential college.

“Wilson’s racism was significant and consequential even by the standards of his own time,” Princeton President Christopher Eisgruber said in a statement this past weekend.

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