Yearly Archives: 2013

How Can the U.S. be at War with Al-Qaeda and Support It?

"How can the U.S. be at war with al-Qaeda and be providing material support to it in overthrowing governments in Libya and Syria? It cannot. How can the U.S. be at war with al-Qaeda and maintain Saudi Arabia as a close ally, when that country is a major source of al-Qaeda people and teaching? The idea put forward by two administrations that the U.S. is at war with al-Qaeda is a 'Big Lie' that is designed to provide cover for other motives for their military actions. It is a very simple and convenient cover story that sells to the public as a rationale for all sorts of U.S. military activities in many countries, all of which have other explanations." Continue reading →

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Ron Paul: Congress, Drones and The Imperial Presidency

"The administration's outrageous response to the most serious Constitutional question of all − when a government can kill its own citizens − is clear evidence of an executive branch out of control. Many of the drafters of the Constitution envisioned the presidency as an office with very limited powers, but even the most dedicated proponents of a strong presidency at the time would be shocked to see the concentration of power in the modern presidency. Today the presidency is viewed as the center of the federal government, with each successive administration expanding the power of the executive at the expense of Congress and the people." Continue reading →

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The U.N.’s complicity in international human rights abuses

"Consider these numbers: Hundreds of thousands of people locked in detention centers and subject to violent punishments. Millions imprisoned. Hundreds hanged, shot or beheaded. Tens of thousands killed by government forces and non-state actors. Thousands beaten and abused to extract information, and abused in government or private 'treatment' centers. Millions denied life-saving medicines. The U.N.’s International Narcotics Control Board has refused to condemn torture or 'any atrocity' carried out in the name of drug control, claiming it was not its mandate to do so." Continue reading →

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Combat stress felt far from front lines

"Sitting at computer banks lining the expansive room, the Air Force analysts watch the video feeds streaming from surveillance drones and other military assets monitoring U.S. forces around the globe. Photos, radar data, full-motion video and electronically gathered intelligence flows across multiple screens. In 15- to 20-minute shifts, the airmen watch and interpret the information. While they are thousands of miles from the gritty combat in Afghanistan, the analysts in the cavernous room at Langley Air Force Base in Virginia relive the explosions, the carnage and the vivid after-battle assessments of the bombings over and over again." Continue reading →

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Dennis Rodman ‘planning a vacation’ with Kim Jong-Un

"The odd couple is getting odder: first, Dennis Rodman and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un took in a hoops game side-by-side. Now they’re planning a holiday together. The retired and flamboyant 51-year-old Rodman, who announced the vacation plan Monday, became the most high-profile American to meet Kim, doing so during a recent trip to Pyongyang which came against a backdrop of increased North Korean saber-rattling on the peninsula. Officials in Washington have played down the significance of the trip, stating that the former Chicago Bulls star does not represent the views of the United States." Continue reading →

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Judge approves use of ‘truth serum’ on accused Aurora shooter James Holmes

"Legal and medical experts are questioning the decision of a judge inColorado to allow James Holmes, the suspected gunman in the Aurora cinema shooting, to be tested with a 'truth serum' should he plead not guilty by reason of insanity. William Shepherd, chair of the criminal justice section of the American Bar Association, whose members include both prosecutors and defence lawyers, said that the proposed use of a 'truth drug' to ascertain the veracity of a defendant's plea of insanity was highly unusual in the US. He predicted it would provoke intense legal argument relating to Holmes's right to remain silent under the fifth amendment of the US constitution." Continue reading →

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U.S. officials warn Pakistan risks sanctions over Iran pipeline

"Pakistan risks sparking US sanctions if it pursues its plans with Iran to build a $7.5 billion gas pipeline linking the two nations, a senior US official said in a renewed warning Monday. 'We have serious concerns, if this project actually goes forward, that the Iran Sanctions Act would be triggered,' State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said. 'We’ve been straight up with the Pakistanis about these concerns.' Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad launched the construction of a much-delayed section of the gas pipeline with his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari at a ceremony on the border of the two neighbors." Continue reading →

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UN: Human rights abuses increase in Iran in 2012

"Human rights violations in Iran spiralled in 2012, a United Nations monitor said Monday in a report spotlighting abuses including repression of freedom of speech, torture and secret executions. 'There has been an apparent increase in the degree of seriousness of human rights violations in the Islamic Republic of Iran,' Ahmed Shaheed said in his report to the UN Human Rights Council. Shaheed highlighted 'frequent and disconcerting' reports about 'punitive state action' against a number of groups, including the jailing of opposition politicians, journalists and human rights campaigners." Continue reading →

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US citing security to censor more public records

"The U.S. government, led by the Pentagon and CIA, censored or withheld for reasons of national security the files that the public requested last year under the Freedom of Information Act more often than at any time since President Barack Obama took office. Overall, the Obama administration last year answered its highest number of requests so far for copies of government documents, emails, photographs and more, and it slightly reduced its backlog of requests from previous years. But it more often cited legal provisions allowing the government to keep records or parts of its records secret, especially a rule intended to protect national security." Continue reading →

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Cop’s Free Speech Rights Violated for Supporting Cannabis Law Reform

"While the higher ups are going to try and argue that their permission to lobby was only revoked due to a technical violation (supposedly because he didn’t get a business license for his address), it is clear that they are only punishing the sergeant because of his support for cannabis law reform. It isn’t just a coincidence that the department allowed Sgt. Wiegert to lobby for the St. Louis Tea Party for a few years and only had a problem with his lobbying activity once he started working for Show-Me Cannabis Regulation." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCop’s Free Speech Rights Violated for Supporting Cannabis Law Reform