Massachusetts deploys National Guard to Clear Snow

About 500 National Guard members have been deployed to assist with snow removal and cleanup efforts for areas of Massachusetts most affected by heavy snowfall from recent winter storms.

The Massachusetts National Guard began moving its heavy equipment - including front-end loaders, bobcats, and dump trucks - to communities, Feb. 10, to assist with snow removal. Airmen and Soldiers were responding to the towns of Whitman, Salem, Douglas, Hull, Halifax and Weymouth.

Weymouth and other locales received about 26.5 inches of snow during the latest storm.

Other National Guard teams will be deployed to shovel out fire hydrants, dig out passageways and clear snow around public safety buildings or critical areas. The Vermont National Guard will also be sending equipment and personnel to Massachusetts to assist with cleanup efforts, officials said.

"The commonwealth has been hit by historic storms and unprecedented snowfall, posing challenges for cities and towns struggling with clean up," Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker said. He added that after three major storms in two weeks, the state has secured heavy equipment from the Vermont National Guard and purchased additional snow melters to assist communities in need. 

Massachusetts declared a state of emergency, Feb. 9, and ordered non-emergency personnel who live or work in Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk or Suffolk counties not to report to work the next day.

Two hundred Guardsmen are deploying in 50 teams of four men and women per Humvee to assist cities and towns to dig out fire hydrants and other critical assets. The remainder of the 500 Guardsmen will operate heavy machinery to remove snow, the governor's office said.

Dogs Are The Heroes . . . Again

Usually, we post urgent stories of human rights violations. Today, we have some very good news . . . unless you're a pedophile.

Police dogs in the Northeastern United States are being trained to sniff out child pornography as state police in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island fight back against a growing network of traffickers.

Incredibly smart canines, like Thoreau, a golden Labrador who trained at the Connecticut State Police Training Academy for 22 weeks, can pinpoint hard drives, thumb drives and other technological devices that may be hidden in a home.

The Providence Journal reports: "Given to the state police by the Connecticut State Police, the dog assisted in its first search warrant in June pinpointing a thumb drive containing child pornography hidden four layers deep in a tin box inside a metal cabinet.

That discovery led the police to secure an arrest warrant. "If it has a memory card, he’ll sniff it out,” Detective Adam Houston, Thoreau’s handler, says.

At times, child pornographers hide devices in ceiling tiles or even radios. With the specially trained canines, it doesn't matter where pedophiles hide the evidence of their abuse.

Of course, not every memory card or hard drive contains child pornography. But police say that hard drives containing illicit material are often hidden away from suspects' computers, the Boston Globe reports. Not for long -- Thoreau and some 65 other dogs trained in the Connecticut police academy program are here to help.

Thoreau is leading the charge. His recent arrest was the first in the state canine-assisted search for computer equipment that led to a state search warrant, according to Elite Daily.

To the dogs, though, finding hard drives is a game they seem to love. Just like with explosives and drugs. When they're successful, they're given treats.

An American Hero Continues Saving Lives

Last Thursday, the Dr. Laurie Roth radio show featured a true American Hero, Anthony Donald Coggiola. Anthony is leading a cutting-edge movement to develop, Veteran Owned Controlled Environment Agriculture based businesses. If you're tired of bad news, just listen to Anthony's vision and encouragement. The interview is at this link.