U.S. senators and their staffs will undergo sexual harassment training in the next 60 days and at least once every two years under terms of a Senate resolution approved late last week sponsored by Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D.-Minn.), ranking member of the Senate Rules Committee and co-sponsored by 19 others, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R.-Ky.), notes Grumpy Editor.
“All offices will have to certify to the secretary of the Senate that they and their employees here in Washington, as well as those working in our home states, have, in fact, taken the training and complied with the resolution,” says Klobuchar in a CNSNews.com report. “These certifications will be posted online for the public to view.”
“We are all too aware that sexual harassment continues in our workplaces,” she adds.
“A recent study found that one in four women has been sexually harassed in the workplace and that three-quarters of individuals who have experienced sexual harassment at work have not reported the incidences.
"Civil service is actually among the top five industries with the highest sexual harassment incidences.”
Adds Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley (R.-Iowa): “By passing this resolution, we take a step to ensure that all who work for the Senate are able to do their job without feeling unsafe or uncomfortable.”
IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE...
WAL-MART SHOPPER WINS $7.5 MILLION VERDICT. Wal-Mart shopper in Phenix City, Ala, who claims he tripped and broke his hip while buying a watermelon, wins a $7.5 million verdict in his lawsuit against the retailer. He says his foot became trapped in a pallet beneath the watermelons as he reached for one.
WINDY CITY EYES FINE FOR TEXTING WHILE CROSSING STREET. Chicago is considering a fine of $90 to $500 to folks texting or talking on the phone while crossing streets. “Everybody does it and then everybody is irritated when someone else does it. So my total view is I want to look at it. I think it has something to do with peoples' own safety,” says Mayor Rahm Emanuel.
JAIL TIME FOR SPREADING HATE MESSAGES. Venezuela’s constitutional assembly passes a wide-reaching law that clamps down on social media and broadcasters by ordering prison sentences of up to 20 years for anyone who spreads a message through television, radio or social media that instigates violence or hate. The new law says public and private media outlets are “obligated to broadcast messages aimed at promoting peace, tolerance, equality and respect."
ABOUT THIRD OF COUNTRY FEELS SAFER. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 31 percent of likely U.S. voters believe the country today is safer than it was before the New York City terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001 while 52 percnt disagree and feel the country is less safe, and 17 percent are not sure.
ANOTHER L.A. POLICE CHASE ON TV. A police chase reaching speeds of up to 120 m.p.h. ends in bizarre fashion when a suspected carjacker releases a "fuzzy white dog" from a stolen vehicle and then trips and falls as he attempts to run from officers. The pursuit, broadcast live via helicopter, begins in North Hollywood and ends in a residential neighborhood in Palmdale.
NEWLY-LAUNCHED DRIVERLESS VEGAS BUS SMACKS TRUCK. Within two hours after its launch, complete with unveiling ceremonies, a driverless shuttle bus in downtown Las Vegas hit a semi-truck. None of the eight passengers aboard is injured.
FISH STORY FROM TOKYO. Mainstream media get excited when President Donald Trump feeds koi carp at the Akasaka palace in Tokyo. He’s seen on video, with Japanese Prime Minister Prime Minister Shinzo Abe by his side, spooning fish food out of a box. Trump then empties the remainder of the box into the pond. Media call the action uncivilized and ignorant. But Trump merely follows what Abe does (not captured by cameras) moments earlier.
PARROT SHAKES UP NEIGHBORHOOD. Screams from a home that sounded like a person in great distress fills the air near Clackamas, Ore. So responding to a call, a deputy cautiously approachs the residence. When he sees the source of the screams he lets out a sigh of relief, followed by a chuckle. The screamer is a parrot — named Diego.