Yearly Archives: 2013

Why I Joined Shield Mutual

"Shield Mutual is the first implementation of a modern voluntaryist defense agency. The defense agency is owned and operated by well-known libertarian activist George Donnelly, whose mission is to be your greatest advocate should you be abducted by state, or non-state, affiliated criminals. What Shield Mutual will do is come to your aid in any way it can, such as organizing call floods to the police department responsible, contacting media outlets, fund-raising, hiring a lawyer if desired, posting bail if desired, contacting family, friends, and/or colleagues to inform them of the situation. I purchased a year’s membership for only $50 (paid in Bitcoin)." Continue reading →

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The Politics Of Bitcoin Mixing Services

"The emergence of services that mingle bitcoin for the purpose of returning bitcoin not associated with the original input address has had a somewhat spotty history. Also called bitcoin laundries, these web-based services charge bitcoin holders a nominal fee to receive different bitcoins than the ones initially transferred. The largest such service operating today is the Blockchain.info mixing service which has a maximum transaction size of 250 bitcoins and a 0.5% transaction fee. Other services include BitLaundry and The Bitcoin Laundry operated by Mike Gogulski." Continue reading →

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Bill Bonner: Are We Approaching a “Second Coming” For Gold?

"There are no moms or pops left in the gold market. Even serious, knowledgeable investors have gotten out. From what we read, it seems more like a bottom than a top. The public is not interested. And the professionals hate gold. If we were speculating – and we are not – we would bet that gold is a better buy than a sell. The price could go anywhere. But unlike the Fed's paper, gold won't go away. And, at $1,100 an ounce, gold is likely to be one of those few investments you don't mind telling your children and grandchildren about. If you buy, wait five years. Then let us know how it worked out." Continue reading →

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SWAT Team Kills Armed Homeowner in Dawn Drug Raid

"Officers from the State Police special response team and DEA agents knocked on the door of Kohler's home at 6:05am. to serve a federal warrant. The newspaper described the special response team as 'akin to a SWAT team.' Officers knocked on the door, State Police spokesman Sgt. Michael Baylous said, but no one answered, so police 'had to break down the door or forcefully open it somehow.' When police break down the door, they saw Kohler pointing a rifle at them, Baylous said. The troopers opened fire, shooting multiple rounds and killing Kohler. Baylous said he did not think Kohler had fired his weapon, but it was still unclear." Continue reading →

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Mom settles for $143,000 after infant taken away over faulty drug test

"A Pennsylvania woman whose infant daughter was taken away from her by state authorities when she was just three days old, all due to a false positive on a drug test, won a $143,500 settlement Tuesday. The lawsuit alleged that a drug test she and her child were unknowingly subjected came back positive for opiates because she ate an 'Everything' bagel hours before giving birth. That carb-heavy treat turned into a genuine nightmare for Elizabeth Mort, who had her infant daughter Isabella literally taken out of her arms at her home days after returning from the hospital, all authorized by an emergency protective custody order." Continue reading →

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Credit card donations to WikiLeaks once again flowing through Iceland

"International credit card donations to WikiLeaks are flowing again after an Icelandic court ruling forced MasterCard’s and Visa’s local agent to process payments, the companies involved in processing the funds said. One of WikiLeaks’ most important sources of funding – donations made from Visa and MasterCard users around the globe – was cut off in 2010 when the firms stopped processing donations to WikiLeaks’ direct payment line in Iceland. Their move came after criticism by the United States of the anti-secrecy organization’s release of thousands of sensitive U.S. diplomatic cables, which embarrassed Washington." Continue reading →

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Swisscom boss pledges data is safe

"Swisscom has never released data to the US authorities, he assured the paper. Information is only released in response to requests from the Swiss police request on the basis of a court order. However, Schloter estimated that just 10 to 15 per cent of data linked to all Swiss internet users is actually stored in Switzerland. The rest is stored in data centres abroad, 'mainly in the United States, via Google, Facebook or Twitter'. Meanwhile one in four Swiss internet users said they would change their online behaviour following revelations of far-reaching US surveillance of personal data." Continue reading →

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First Amendment lawyer: ‘It is a terrible time to be a journalist’

"Jeff Portnoy was referring to the Obama administration’s secret subpoenas for journalists’ phone and Internet records, as well as the U.S. Department of Justice’s secret investigation into Associated Press and Fox News reporters 'in the name of national security.' Portnoy received a First Amendment award for his work in trying to prevent Hawaii’s five-year-old Journalism Shield law from expiring June 30. The version which passed eliminated from protection bloggers, online journalists and non-traditional journalists. Journalists who investigate fraud, waste and corruption are a 'dying breed,' Portnoy said, but they are needed now more than ever." Continue reading →

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Glenn Greenwald: ‘Obama Admin Using Snowden as an Example in War on Whistleblowers’

"Glenn Greenwald, The Guardian newspaper columnist who first published Edward Snowden's revelations about the NSA surveillance programs, joined Fox and Friends this morning and said that there are many more secrets still to come to light. While he declined to specifically say what they were at this time, he did say, 'There are vast programs of both domestic and international spying that the world will be shocked to learn about that the NSA has engaged in with no democratic accountability.'" Continue reading →

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