In case you missed it…
Eminent domain:
The family whose mining property overlooks top-secret Area 51 says the Air Force went too far when it seized the land. According to some independent appraisers, the property is estimated to be worth between $44 million and $116 million — a far cry from the $333,300 the government offered when it enforced eminent domain. (Read more)
Federal lands:
While the rest of the country celebrates Halloween, Nevada residents have another added bonus to the weekend: Nevada Day. The Silver State is one of the only states to continually celebrate the day it came into the union — but perhaps Nevadans should take a minute and think about what it actually means to be a state. One issue has continued to haunt us since the day Nevada first entered the union: our state lands. Currently about 87 percent of the land in our state is owned and managed by the federal government. Now that’s a scary thought. (Read more)
Healthcare:
Obamacare — titled “The Affordable Care Act” — is not turning out to be “affordable” by any stretch of the imagination. The Obama administration’s own Department of Health and Human Services confirmed that Americans will experience double-digit premium hikes in the next year, and that one out of every five Americans will have only one health insurer to choose from. But now, as it seems Obamacare is in a death spiral, the president is planning on using taxpayer dollars to bail it out. (Read more)
Free speech:
Dr. Eric Walsh, a Seventh Day Adventist lay minister who was hired by the Georgia government in 2014 as a state health official, is fighting for his right to religious freedom. The state of Georgia began investigating Walsh’s “religious activities” back in 2014 and eventually ended up firing him due to activities related to his church. But things have since gotten even worse, with state officials now demanding that Walsh provide investigators with transcripts and notes of all of his sermons. (Read more)
Fraud and abuse:
Short of troops to fight in Iraq and Afghanistan a decade ago, the California National Guard enticed thousands of soldiers with bonuses of $15,000 or more to reenlist and go to war. The Pentagon, however, claims that the incentives were overused — often abused — by California National Guard authorities who were pressured to hit enlistment targets. As a result, nearly 10,000 soldiers have been ordered by the Pentagon to pay back the bonuses out of their own pocket. (Read more)