There are few people who have not heard of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which is a tribute to the marketing genius of P.T. Barnum and James Anthony Bailey. To see the beginning of this great company, we must travel all the way back.

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James Anthony Bailey and James E. Cooper created the “Cooper & Bailey Circus” in the 1860’s. P.T. Barnum had already created a recognizable brand with his name and was approached by a different circus from Delavan, Wisconsin. They asked if he might lend his name and financial backing to their company, which would then be called “P.T. Barnum’s Great Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan, and Hippodrome”. He agreed, and the competition between the two circuses began. Rather than continue to fight for the same customers, the two circuses ultimately joined forces in 1881, and renamed the merger “Barnum & Bailey Circus.”

In 1884, five of the seven Ringling Brothers started a small circus which they moved from town to town. Its popularity grew and soon, they had the largest traveling amusement enterprise in the Midwest. Bailey died in 1905 and in 1907, the Ringling Brothers purchased the “Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show on Earth”, but ran the two circuses separately.

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By 1919 only two of the Ringling Brothers remained, and it was just too much work to continue running the circuses separately. They decided to merge the two corporations together. In March, posters all over New York proclaimed, “The Ringling Bros. World’s Greatest Shows and the Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show on Earth are now combined into one record-breaking giant of all exhibitions.” It was a huge success.
Charles Ringling died in 1926, but John Ringling remained at the head of the company, and he made some notable changes. He moved the headquarters to Florida in 1927, and in 1929, acquired “American Circus” and incorporated them into his company. When John died in 1936, his nephew, John Ringling North, took over.

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In 1944, a circus fire caused 167 deaths, some of which, still have not been identified, DNA testing notwithstanding. The circus tents, which were supposed to be fireproof, turned out to be flammable due to the paraffin materials used. Circus management was found to be negligent and several Ringling executives served sentences in jail. All profits for the next ten years were used to pay the claims filed against the show by the City of Hartford, Connecticut, and to the survivors of the fire.
Due to the advancement of television and movies, circus attendance took a dive. In 1957, North took another big step when he decided to graduate from portable tents to permanent structures in stadiums and other permanent venues. It was a risk, but it was right on the money and propelled them forward in a way that portable tents had not been able to.

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In 1967, Irvin Feld, Israel Feld, and Judge Roy Hofheinz, together with backing from Richard Blum, bought the company outright. Irvin removed the freak shows and the less spectacular acts, making it more family friendly and interesting. He established a Clown College in 1968 to improve the quality of the clown shows. In 1970, Feld’s only son, Kenneth, came on board. The circus was sold to Mattel in 1971, with the stipulation that the Feld family was still in charge of Management. The Fields re-purchased the circus in 1982, and then when Irvin died in 1984, Kenneth began to run the company. In 2004, Kenneth’s daughter, Nicole Feld, became the first female producer of the circus. In 2009, her sister Alana joined her as a co-producer.

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The post The History of the Greatest Show on Earth. appeared first on NIR News / National Investigative Report.

Arlington, VA

NIR News has looked over the complaints submitted to the FTC and has found since 07/2002 to 10/2015 there has been 429 complaints about the Better Business Bureau. And 24 of them are from military members.

Most of the complaints deal with deception and misrepresentation. Some of the complaints have been marked as TSR/other. I am not sure what that marking is. It is something the FTC uses.

The Better Business Bureau is supposed to be the champion for the consumer and stop bad companies from doing wrong. The question is if the BBB is doing this, then why do they have some many complaints?

Many complaints are from small business owners who either did not fill out the questionnaire they send out of they did not send it in time.

Other complaints deal with consumers complaining because the BBB sided with the accredited member even thou they had proof of wrongdoing.

A few complaints are from companies who have been asking to become accredited members. Some said when they refused their grade dropped. Others said when they did join their grade went up.

Granted some of these companies was before the 20/20 ABC story revealing that the BBB was selling memberships for grades. Even thou, the president of the BBB at the time, said it was an isolated issue. After reviewing the list of complaints, I would beg to differ.

Other facts show the issues are still happening. I think the BBB needs a complete overhaul of all policies and procedures.

What do you think needs to be done? Comment below and tell NIR News what you think.

The post The Ugly Truth About The Better Business Bureau Scandal appeared first on NIR News / National Investigative Report.

New York, NY

Tom Ford once said, “Shoes are always the most important thing for me because they are who you are. They change the way you walk, the way you move”
It should be noted that there are numerous types and styles of shoes, but here our attention will be focused on the most common types.

1. Keep your Shoes Clean Always – This is an area that many guys ignore. Studies reveal that most men shine their shoes only once every week; some others shine once every month. A few others shine their shoes every morning before they leave for work and then wear it all day without cleaning and proper care. A stylish man ought to always keeps his shoes clean, shined and free of dirt at any time of the day. Invest in shoe shiner if you must

2. By all means, avoid warped and worn out shoes – A stylish man should have at least two pairs of dress shoes in the same color so they can be used interchangeably to avoid wearing out. By so doing, unwanted warping is avoided. You should also adopt the habit of placing shoe trees in your shoes when they are not in use, to maintain their best form.

3. Matching the right socks with your shoe – With leather shoes, dark colored cotton or silk socks are most preferable and conventional. By all means, avoid white socks; its only usage should be when you’re going for a run or playing sports. Your leather shoes should be rocked with navy or black casual socks or most preferably men’s dress socks, they come in different forms, like colorful, polka dot, funky and fun types.

4. Avoid square-toe shoes! – In the 90s, square-toed shoes were very popular but fashion has now departed far away from this non-stylish look. So, if they are still locked away in your shoe closet, do get rid of them and purchase some slimmer more attractive shoes.

5. Matching your shoe color with your belt color – The importance of this cannot be over emphasized. It’s only exception is when you are wearing a casual outfit, otherwise, while wearing dress shoes, ensure that the color of your dress shoe matches the color of your belts (for all professional occasions. Therefore, if your shoes are shiny, your belt should be shiny as well.

There you have it, invest in good shoes; Good Shoes can really take you to great places!

The post 5 STYLE TIPS ON HOW TO WEAR AND TAKE CARE OF YOUR SHOES appeared first on NIR News / National Investigative Report.

Credit: Facebook

Washington, DC

The First Amendment reads as such: “The First Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of press, interfering with the right to peaceably assemble, or prohibiting the petitioning for a governmental redress of grievances”
A federal court in Pennsylvania now wants to rule that filming our public officials, with regards to the police in the following two cases, is not protected by the constitution. I cry BS.
In two separate events, involving two completely separated and unrelated parties, two individuals were arrested. Their crime? Filming the police. Not in an act of terrorism, not even in an act of anger. The first was Richard Fields, a student at Temple University, stopped to capture a large group of police outside a house party. He decided to commemorate the incident with a photo. In the second instance, Amanda Geraci, who is a legal observer with CopWatch Berkeley, was at a large protest against fracking when she was arrested for filming another protester being arrested.

Credit: Facebook

It matters not if a person is physically speaking in praise or challenging the police, as the 1st amendment protects silent gathering of information to be used in the future for publication.
In the end, it matters not if the ruling is overturned, though it should be as the police generally tape anyone they pull over, but it should serve to remind us that our free hearts and minds are no longer so. Our cost of liberty is eternal vigilance. We need to stay strong and let our congress and senate create our path to liberation. It is at this point, more than ever before, that we stand up for those ideals which we feel are right and just. Our communities need to band together and organize active cop and politician-watching campaigns. They need to be held accountable remain transparent. As a people, we also need to remain strong and keep or morals, principles, and ethics intact. If we remain strong in these two cases, we are telling the world of judges just what should be banned as unconstitutional. We should not allow anyone or anything to take away the freedoms that we have fought so hard to get

The post Arrested for Filming the Police appeared first on NIR News / National Investigative Report.

Credit: Carmen of charmandhappy.com

In 2010, Carmen of charmandhappy.com was featured on the news show 20/20 on ABC. The 20/20 show was about the Better Business Bureau was being accused by business owners of selling grades for money. The show showed a few business owners running a sting on the BBB where they made up companies and were given an A after paying a membership fee. Many business owners felt this was nothing but a shakedown racket.

Carmen’s company provides clowns for businesses. Charm and Happy Clowns was listed on the Better Business Bureau’s website with a C- because of a two-year old complaint which had already been resolved. Carmen was told by a BBB telemarketer she had to pay a membership fee to remove the C-. Carmen paid $395.00 and the very next day her grade was changed to an A+. Carmen’s concern was if she is paying for a grade then how is the consumer supposed to trust the BBB?

In June of 2015, I reached out to Carmen to see how things were in the past five years. I asked the following questions and here are the answers:

Q: When the BBB found out about what was going on. Did the BBB give you your money back?

Before the 20/20 news story aired.

A: The Better Business Bureau did not give me my money back. At the end of the year, the BBB asked if I wanted to rejoin and I astutely said, “No way.” The BBB ended up charging my card for the full year amount. I shockingly could not believe they would even dare do that since there dealing with me. But the BBB did reverse the charges for the new charge.

Q: What happened after the news story aired? What happened with the BBB and your grade?

A: Nothing, they made no contact. The grade stayed as an A+ for the year. Then the next year after they reversed the charges for the membership, I had no grade and was not listed at all even as a business listing of a nonmember.

Q: I know your grade was a C- before the news story aired and on the story you got your grade changed to an A+. Now in 2015 its listed as a “no rating”. Do you know why your listing says “no rating”?

A: Yes, because I did not want to be a paid member.

Q: Have you had any other interaction with the Better Business Bureau since the news story aired?

After Carmen paid for membership with BBB.

A: The only interaction was when the BBB wanted me to renew the membership and when I called upset that the BBB had charged my card in full after I already stated I did not wish to renew.
Q: Please tell me anything you can about issues or happenings with the Better Business Bureau.

A: Before the TV exposure, for years the BBB would try to solicit membership on the grounds that they claimed clients checked with them for trust issues. Being a member would help clients trust the business. I would tell them I have excellent references from celebrities, schools, high profile companies, parents, and churches.

As of today Charmed and Happy, Clowns is listed as “no rating” with no complaints within in the last three years. Wonder why?

How charmandhappy.com is listed today.

The Better Business Bureau has been well respected for many years. That was because the BBB was impartial. The Attorney General at the time Richard Blumenthal said: “the grading system is unworthy of consumer trust.” The Attorney General at the time Richard Blumenthal sent a demand letter to the BBB calling on them to stop using the nationwide grading system. The Attorney General at the time Richard Blumenthal said: “the grading system is harmful and misleading to consumers.”

Credit: blumenthal.senate.gov

The Better Business Bureau later did close down the Los Angeles BBB and vowed to make changes and use a new system. But has the BBB changed?

After looking through hundreds of companies who became paid members, it seems they have not. Almost all paid members have some sort of “A”. I understand the members must follow the BBB’s rules, but it is hard for one to believe all those members deserve an “A.”

Do you think the Better Business Bureau is stilling giving out good grades to paid members? Please tell NIR News in the comments below.

The post Is The Better Business Bureau Really Better? appeared first on NIR News / National Investigative Report.

Mr. President has had enough after continuous obstructionism by the Republicans in the last seven years. He has decided to lock heads with the selfish legislators in the Congress who have done all they could to hinder social development and progress in this country.

Bernard Pollack/flickr

Recently, the President made headlines by issuing an executive order to seal up the lacuna that enables people to avoid the firearm background check system cleverly. Right now he is focusing his attention on the vast sums of money which is eroding the place of integrity in our political system and gradually revealing the foundations of the democracy of the United States which is one of the oldest.

He is keen on making a proposal that will compel government contractors to disclose their contributions to lobbying firms and politically active groups such as Super PACs in a bid to ensure more transparency and accountability.

This move by Mr. President will have a significant and wide-reaching effect as it was estimated by the Public Citizen Congress Watch that 70 percent of Fortune 100 companies including General Electric, Apple, Exxon Mobil and General Motors had federal contracts to the tune of $100,000 in the previous year.

Democrats have welcomed the idea; President Obama has been sent a letter by 155 House Democrats encouraging him to issue the order. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), the House Minority leader in a statement, said that “requiring corporations to disclose their unlimited spending in our elections was the only path the misguided Citizens United Supreme Court decision left us to protect the sanctity of our democracy.”

As everyone would expect, the politicians belonging to the Republican Party are shocked by the fact that it would no longer be possible for them to deny how their corporate donors are influencing their legislative activities instead of first putting into consideration the desires and needs of those who voted them in.

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Mitch McConnell (R-KY), the Majority Leader of the Senate, complained about the president’s bravery and lack of “respect for the process.”
“I believe that’s the word he used, right? Audacious? My goodness. I mean, does the president not have any respect for the process? Goodness, gracious. By that standard, President Obama is Wilsonian, as if there are just no boundaries beyond which he cannot push. Apparently, their strategy is to overreach everywhere for as long as they can.”

The post Republicans React As Obama Moves To Sign An Order Mandating Federal Contractors To Reveal Contributions To A Campaign. appeared first on NIR News / National Investigative Report.

Orange County Archives

The origin of Christmas can be traced to the pagan holidays. It was in the year 354 AD that Christians in the West began the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ on the 25th of December; before that time, it was celebrated on the 6th of January. At the time, Christians considered many of the pagan traditions and festivals of the season that was practiced in most parts of Europe and the Middle East as a means of making them increasingly irrelevant.

Christmas day or Christmas is an annual holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. Although it is observed on different dates in some churches, it is a fact that the actual time of the birth and death of Jesus Christ has not been determined. There are many sides to the celebration of Christmas, some of which are religious and some secular, including the myth of Santa Claus, the exchange of gifts, display and decoration of Christmas tree, and religious occasions.

Christians celebrate Christmas by recreating or remembering the Nativity of Christ. While the Western Church most Christians prefer to celebrate the Advent of Christ, the Eastern Orthodox Churches engage in the Nativity fast in anticipation of the birth of Christ. Children usually sing Christmas carols that make reference to the celebration or celebrate the events of the Nativity. Some Christians place a small size recreation of the Nativity in their houses using small sculptures to display the key persons in the story of the birth of Christ.

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The joy of bringing hope to the lives of others, bearing the burden of others, easy loads of others and filling empty lives and hearts with generous gifts is the true essence of Christmas. It is a period when people do things that they usually don’t do. Be kind to others if you have demonstrated wickedness throughout the year and such things as kindness, love and compassion are infectious. You may find yourself becoming loving and kind for the rest of your entire life which will do you a whole lot of good.

Christmas is a time of the year when we let go of the painful realities of this evil world and adopt and embrace a more real universe (heaven) which represents the ideals that we cherish and believe in but find it difficult to follow through in an unforgiving and ugly world which is inclined towards eroding the real loving nature of man.

The post HISTORY AND MEANING OF CHRISTMAS appeared first on NIR News / National Investigative Report.

Kevin Dooley/flickr

One of the oldest festivals celebrated throughout the history of man is Thanksgiving. There were instances of ancient tribes preparing feasts and making offerings to their gods and seek favor from them. In times of old, the Jews, the Romans and the Greeks also had similar celebrations to the gods and goddesses of harvest.

In the United States, it is believed that Thanksgiving was harvest festival originally held in 1621 by the pilgrims of the Plymouth colony. The pilgrims held a 3-day feast during the first Thanksgiving to celebrate their enormous harvest after they arrived North America.

Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism/flickr

Although a national day of Thanksgiving was proclaimed by George Washington, the idea of having a national holiday of Thanksgiving was later dismissed by Thomas Jefferson. Later on in 1863, President Abraham Lincoln declared the last Thursday of November as a national day of thanksgiving. Again in November 1941, thanksgiving was approved specifically as the fourth Thursday of November by a joint resolution of Congress.

Thanksgiving Day or Thanksgiving is a day chosen to give thanks to God after the end of the harvest season. It is celebrated at different times and in different ways in various parts of the world. While Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday of October in Canada, it is a holiday in the United States and is observed on the fourth Thursday of the month of November. However, in the United Kingdom, it is not a major festival and it is known as the Harvest festival. On Thanksgiving, family and friends gather together to feast and to celebrate their bountiful harvest, relax and enjoy the company of each other. In a standard Thanksgiving recipe, Turkey is the main item. This day also denotes the unofficial commencement of the winter holiday period.

Andrea Westmoreland/flickr

Although the dates for observing Thanksgiving Day in different parts of the world are different, the celebration in Canada is in most part the same as in the United States. In the UK, Harvest festival is celebrated towards the end of September or October and special services of Thanksgiving are held in churches on that day.
The Jews all over the world observe Sukkot, a celebration of thanksgiving which last for nine days. Thanksgiving Day is observed by the Chinese as Zhong Qui or the festival of the Autumn Moon on the eight months of the Chinese calendar. In India, the festival is known as the Onam.

The post HISTORY AND MEANING OF THANKSGIVING appeared first on NIR News / National Investigative Report.

When we try to find answers about the history of Halloween, we need to trace back to the period of time prior to the birth of Christ. The history of Halloween originated in England among the Celtics New year festival.

Today, this event is an annual holiday celebrated on the 31st of October. The origin of Halloween however, has gone through a mixture of different practices and traditions. It is now a blend of Celtic practices, traditions of Europe and Roman Catholic religious activities.

Halloween is a day of celebration which has a superstitious side to it. Initially, it was a day believed to be a day when spirits visit the earth and communicate with the living. It was a day influenced by the Celtic day of Samhain, which translates to mean the end of summer. The Catholics observe the 1st of November as All saints day or Hallowmas and All Hallows or Halloween is celebrated on the eve of Hallowmas.

It is believed that the practice of the Christians celebrating the All Souls Day or All Saints Day on the evening before that day stems from the Jewish tradition of celebrating every holiday from the setting of the sun the previous day until the setting of the sun on the next day.

Now the Halloween of today is not the same as it was over 2000 years ago. Despite all the beliefs and traditions which influence the Halloween day, what we now celebrate is a holiday which is full of fun for children as they get involved activities such as telling Halloween stories which are scary, wearing Halloween costumes and enjoying Halloween recipes.

Halloween is a time of the year that is full of fun and freakish. It is a time when there is only a thin line between the world of the living and the world of the dead and you are sure to feel the scare with goblins, ghosts, werewolves, and witches prowling around ̶ both in their costumes and in their selves. Halloween is an event when to allow the naughty side of you to come alive while you play pranks, scare the living hell out of your folks and spruce up in freaky costumes.
The Celtic Druids or priests also made bonfires and offered sacrifices on this day. This reason for this was to scare away the spirits of the dead and avoid being possessed by them. Also to keep these spirits away, they dressed up as monsters and ghosts and put off all the lights in their houses

The post HISTORY AND MEANING OF HALLOWEEN appeared first on NIR News / National Investigative Report.

Image courtesy of Googliath.org

A woman from Adelaide, Dr. Duffy sued internet giant Google for calumny on a material posted on a website in 2007. She has gotten a partial victory on the matter that will continue to another trial at the South Australia Supreme Court.

An Australian academic, Dr. Janice Duffy has won a court ruling in her favor after a Judge found Google guilty of defaming her through its auto-complete, hyperlinks and search engine result.

Credit- GoFundMe
Dr. Janice Duffy

The former health researcher has been seeking justice on the matter for six years running after she claimed that a material posted in 2007 on the “Ripoff Report” defamed her character.

She claimed it has caused her psychological and financial damage as any would-be future employer would make use of Google search engine to know more about her, and this has left her unemployable.

She also claimed that Google gradually removed the material from their search engine after filing a civil proceeding against the company in 2011.

On their part, Google denied any knowledge of such publications. The internet giant also denied receiving any request from her to pull off the material from the search engine.

When the Judge ruled that defamatory materials concerning her were published by Google, she burst into emotions and wept in court. When she told the court that she needed more time to prepare for the trial as she was exhausted from the proceedings, she also broke down emotionally.

Justice Malcolm Blue, in his 144 – page judgment struck out most of the defenses put up by the counsel to Google. The Judge found out that the hyperlinks and auto-complete results either directed, published or republished a considerable number of internet users towards calumny comments.

The judge also ruled that the case will proceed to further trial to resolve the other issues at the South Australian Supreme Court.

The judge further stated that it would be necessary to proceed to trial on the other remaining issues that are time limitation and defense of triviality, the quantum of damages and causation, and the application for extension of time.

Dr. Duffy said she had no other choice than to file a complaint in court. She said she was not interested in a legal battle, and all she wanted from the onset was for the material to be taken down. She has remained jobless ever since and was forced to leave her health job in South Australia when her colleagues saw the defamatory material on Ripoff Report.

The post Legal Battle Between Internet Giant Google And Australian Academic Dr. Janice Duffy appeared first on NIR News / National Investigative Report.