Chevrolet offers drag racers a Camaro rolling chassis

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If you missed your chance at getting one of the drag-strip-ready COPO Camaros that Chevrolet was building for 2013, the brand is giving drag racers a second chance (of sorts). On March 28, Chevrolet Performance will begin selling an unspecified but “limited number” of Camaro rolling chassis, priced at $55,000.

That money buys you a specially-numbered roller that’s built alongside the COPO Camaros in the Oshawa assembly plant. Each comes in Summit White, with production window glass, headlamps, tail lamps, an NHRA-approved roll cage, racing seats, an instrument panel, a steering wheel, door panels, carpeting and a headliner.

Even the basic body and chassis wiring harnesses are included, though the engine wiring harness is not part of the deal. NHRA-approved suspension bits are used, and the roller gets Bogart racing wheels shod with Hoosier tires.

That means builders need only supply an engine (with intake, exhaust headers and engine mounts), an ECU, a wiring harness, a battery, coolant hoses (for the included radiator), a transmission and shifter, a driveshaft and a differential third member.

In fact, buyers can do essentially all of their shopping out of the Chevrolet Performance catalog, and can even order up the COPO Build Book to virtually duplicate the brand’s turnkey drag racer.

While $55,000 may sound like a lot of money for an incomplete race car (especially when a brand-new Camaro SS can be purchased for a little over $33,000), trust us on this: it would cost you more to tear down a new SS and build the equivalent roller yourself, not to mention how many hours the project would eat up.

For collectors, this may not be as attractive as snapping up one of the 69 COPO Camaros built for 2013, but for racers, this may prove to be an even-more-attractive alternative.

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Coffee company offers brew with 200 percent more caffeine

Published March 24, 2013

FoxNews.com

This is a cup of coffee to die for.

Death Wish Coffee bills itself as “the world’s strongest coffee,” offering more than double the caffeine found in a regular cup, the Los Angeles Times reported.

A cup of coffee contains about 320 milligrams of caffeine, says the American Beverage Association, according to the L.A. Times. By contrast, 16 ounces of Death Wish rings in with about 660 milligrams.

The company, which refers to “sissy Starbucks” on its website, is so proud of its potent brew that it offers to buy back your Death Wish if you can find a stronger blend. The coffee costs about $20 a pound.

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New York offers $500 reward for reporting illegal gun owners

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  Jan. 15, 2013: New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks after signing New York's Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act into law in Albany, N.Y.AP

ALBANY, N.Y. –  Nearly a year before signing the nation's most stringent gun control measure into law, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo launched a hotline that allows state residents to report illegal gun owners in exchange for a $500 reward.

The measure is part of a four-pronged approach established by the governor's office to reduce gun violence in urban communities, according to CBS6Albany.com.

New Yorkers can call the "Gun Tip Line" if they believe someone they know has an illegal gun. Hotline calls are answered by state police and tips are referred to local law enforcement, the station reported.

“This initiative seeks to turn neighbor against neighbor and use their own tax dollars to pay for the $500 reward,” Republican Assemblyman Steve McLaughlin told the station.

Three police agencies contacted by CBS6Albany.com for comment said they have not received tips from state police. Two of the agencies said they were unaware the program existed before this week.

Cuomo and legislative leaders said after announcing a budget deal Wednesday night that they will continue to discuss changes in January's gun control law before a provision kicks in banning the sale of 10-bullet magazines.

The gun measure outlaws the purchase of any magazines that carry more than seven bullets, the nation's most stringent limit. That would have put a severe limit on the sale of guns with industry-standard 10-bullet magazines when the provision of the law went into effect April 15.

"There is no such thing as a seven-bullet magazine. That doesn't exist, so you really have no practical option," Cuomo said. He told reporters that any suggestion this will be a rollback of the law is "wholly without basis."

Cuomo said the state needs to allow the sale of handguns and rifles with 10-shot magazines, but New Yorkers will still be required to keep no more than seven bullets in them, except at shooting ranges and competitions. Violating the seven-bullet limit is a misdemeanor but a violation if the magazine is in the owner's home.

Cuomo minimized the cleanup now needed in the bill as addressing "ambiguities" and "grammatical errors" and routine for complex measures. They include exempting police and their weapons and allowing Hollywood to continue to film violent movies and TV shows in New York using weapons outlawed under his measure.

Tom King, president of the New York Rifle & Pistol Association, said the move will affect gun sellers but does nothing for gun owners.

He says the group plans to sue this week to overturn the gun law, which also banned sales of some formerly legal semi-automatic firearms and requires federal background checks for private gun sales.

Although Cuomo said Wednesday that the gun bill was developed over months within his administration, it was rushed to a vote in the Legislature after closed-door negotiations Jan. 15. Cuomo issued an order approved by the Legislature that suspends the three days' public review of all bills under the constitution.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Click here for more from CBS6Albany.com.

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US offers $10M for info leading to American terror suspects in Somalia

Published March 20, 2013

Associated Press

The United States is offering $10 million for information leading to the arrest of two Americans in Somalia who are on the FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists List. 

The State Department says the rewards are $5 million each for al-Shabab members Omar Shafik Hammami and Jehad Mostafa. 

It says the 28-year-old Hammami is a resident of Daphne, Ala., who moved to Somalia in 2006. 

He has served as a propagandist for the Al Qaeda-affiliated organization, attracting English-speaking youth with rap songs and video statements, and as a military commander. 

The department says Mostafa lived in San Diego before moving to Somalia in 2005. He commands foreign fighters for al-Shabab, which has fought for years for control over Somalia. 

Both men have been indicted in the U.S. on terror charges.

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Burger King offers $1 specialty coffees this week

Published March 18, 2013

The Daily Meal

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  Burger King is offering specialty coffee drinks for just $1.Burger King

Remember when it was announced that Burger King was hopping on the specialty coffee bandwagon? Now, the fast-food joint is serving up the newest additions to its coffee lineup for just $1 this week.

From March 18 to March 22, according to a release, Burger King will be selling its "coffeehouse-style" lattes for $1, in vanilla, caramel, mocha, plain, and non-fat flavors. And the lattes are made with a Seattle's Best Coffee blend from real arabica beans, so you know they're legit. "At Burger King we are excited to share our delicious new coffeehouse lattes with our guests, and encourage them to stop in and fall in love with any of our new latte varieties for just $1,” said Flavia Faugeres, executive vice president and global chief marketing officer of Burger King, in the release. "We are proud to be offering a variety of tasty new specialty beverage options and freshly brewed coffee blend by Seattle’s Best Coffee, developed with Burger King guests in mind."

It's clear that fast-food restaurants are hoping to gain some followers from the Starbucks and Dunkin' Donuts crowd; even McDonald's was considering selling its coffee in stores last year.

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Sen. Paul declares victory after Holder offers assurance on drones

It's one of the few remaining issues that can bring Democrats and Republicans together -- fear of unchecked government drones. 

Sen. Rand Paul's historic 13-hour filibuster has drawn renewed attention to a technological expansion that would have been unthinkable a decade ago, and new legislation that's meant to rein it in. 

While the Obama administration increasingly employs armed drones as a pivotal counterterrorism tool overseas, domestic law enforcement agencies are also moving to broaden the use of surveillance mini-drones over the next several years. The Federal Aviation Administration projects as many as 10,000 licensed systems by 2017. 

The lethal drones used in Pakistan are a far cry from the unarmed eyes in the sky used in America. But Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and a host of other lawmakers see constitutional pitfalls across the board -- namely focusing on how armed, and unarmed, drones might someday be used against American citizens. 

Paul and the senators from both sides of the aisle who joined him on the floor Wednesday described a bleak future where an unscrupulous government might use drones against its own population if left unchecked. 

"Your notification is the buzz of propellers on the drone as it flies overhead in the seconds before you're killed. Is that what we really want from our government?" Paul asked. 

Despite the filibuster, a vote on the nomination of John Brennan for CIA director -- whom Paul was technically holding up with his speech -- is expected to proceed as early as Thursday. 

But lawmakers have already started pushing legislation to rein in the drone program -- legislation that might get a second look after Paul's dramatic performance Wednesday, and into early Thursday morning. 

Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., and Ted Poe, R-Texas, last month introduced a bill to regulate domestic drones much like the government regulates wiretaps. 

It would require officials to obtain a warrant in order to perform many kinds of surveillance with those drones. Further, it would prohibit law enforcement drones from being equipped with firearms or explosives in U.S. airspace. 

"As we enter this uncharted world of drone technology, Congress must be proactive and establish boundaries for drone use that safeguard the constitutional rights of Americans," Poe said in a statement last month. 

The use of armed drones in U.S. airspace fueled Paul's lengthy filibuster Wednesday. Before he took the floor, Paul announced that he had received a letter from Attorney General Eric Holder which opened the door, in extremely rare circumstances, to using a drone to kill someone within U.S. territory. Holder said "catastrophic" attacks such as the Sept. 11 attacks or the attack on Pearl Harbor are examples of circumstances where the president could conceivably feel such an action is necessary. 

Testifying on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, Holder agreed that it would be unconstitutional to use a drone on American soil against a U.S. citizen and suspected terrorist who did not pose an imminent threat. 

Paul, during his filibuster, said he wanted a formal assurance from the administration that it would not use drones to kill noncombatant Americans. 

Aside from the legislation in the House, members of the Senate Intelligence Committee have floated the idea of establishing a sort of drone court to screen potential targets -- much like a court screens surveillance of foreign targets in the U.S.

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