Next Generation 3-D Printed Gun Fires Nine Shots, Costs $25

"One evening late last week, a Wisconsin engineer who calls himself 'Joe' test-fired a new version of that handgun printed on a $1,725 Lulzbot A0-101 consumer-grade 3D printer, far cheaper than the one used by Defense Distributed. Joe, who asked that I not reveal his full name, loaded the weapon with .380 caliber rounds and fired it nine times, using a string to pull its trigger for safety. The weapon survived all nine shots over the course of an evening, as you can see in the YouTube video below." Continue reading

Continue ReadingNext Generation 3-D Printed Gun Fires Nine Shots, Costs $25

Surprise, Surprise Again

"Kern County’s coroner has fantasized that David Sal Silva, 78 -- no, wait, make that 33, died of heart disease, not the savage attack nine cops dealt with batons and the dog they sicced on him. The eyewitnesses to that attack must have hallucinated, too. You’ll recall that they insisted cops beat Mr. Silva in the head with their batons and, in fact, could have proved that with the video they shot on their cell-phones. But cops robbed them of those phones, and the incriminating footage in one phone has conveniently disappeared. No matter." Continue reading

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Facing 81 Years For Marijuana, Rich Paul Planning To Appeal Convictions

"Rich Paul, political activist and founder of the 420 Foundation, is seeking help to appeal the guilty verdict he received recently at Cheshire Superior Court in Keene, NH. Rich was on trial for selling marijuana to an undercover Drug Task Force informant. The drug sting was led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and culminated with Rich Paul being asked to 'cooperate' with the FBI in order to ensnare more local activists by wearing a wire into the Keene Activist Center. The appeal will center around the recent New Hampshire State Law, HB 146, which affirms the legality of a jury to judge not just the case but the law itself." Continue reading

Continue ReadingFacing 81 Years For Marijuana, Rich Paul Planning To Appeal Convictions

After IRS Targeting, Now The Gibson Guitar Raids Make Sense

"Interestingly, one of Gibson's leading competitors is C.F. Martin & Co. According to C.F. Martin's catalog, several of their guitars contain 'East Indian Rosewood,' which is the exact same wood in at least 10 of Gibson's guitars. So why were they not also raided and their inventory of foreign wood seized? Grossly underreported at the time was the fact that Gibson's chief executive, Henry Juszkiewicz, contributed to Republican politicians. Recent donations have included $2,000 to Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and $1,500 to Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn. By contrast, Chris Martin IV, the Martin & Co. CEO, is a long-time Democratic supporter." Continue reading

Continue ReadingAfter IRS Targeting, Now The Gibson Guitar Raids Make Sense

Political Savvy of Osama Bin Laden vs. US Foreign Policy Establishment

"In his 1963 book The Pure Theory of Politics, Bertrand de Jouvenal writes of terrorist strategy (p. 179) '... if the terrorist blows are dealt at random, it will almost inevitably happen that reactions [of authorities] will fly wide of the mark and affect the innocent. Goading the authorities into hurting innocent bystanders is essential to terrorist strategy. Its efficiency lies mainly in evoking blind anger and blundering retorts...' Who was more politically savvy on this matter, Osama bin Laden or George W. Bush? Or the neocons who influenced him? Or the U.S. Congress? Or Barack Hussein Obama for that matter?" Continue reading

Continue ReadingPolitical Savvy of Osama Bin Laden vs. US Foreign Policy Establishment

Court orders UK to hold inquiries into illegal civilian deaths during Iraq War

"A series of public inquests should be held into the deaths of civilians who are alleged to have been killed unlawfully by the British military following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the high court has ruled. In a ground-breaking judgment that could have an impact on how the British military is able to conduct operations among civilians in the future, the court ruled on Friday that up to 161 deaths should be the subject of hearings modelled upon coroners’ inquests. In practice, a series of hearings – possibly amounting to more than 100 – are likely to be held as a result of the judgment, which follows a three-year legal battle on behalf of the Iraqis’ families." Continue reading

Continue ReadingCourt orders UK to hold inquiries into illegal civilian deaths during Iraq War

Honduran victims of US drug war still await justice

"In the increasingly militarised drug war, suspects are sometimes killed in the field; suspicion of involvement in drug trafficking warrants a death sentence. Government drug warriors on the scene play the role of judge, jury and executioner. This May 11 marked one year since the tragic killing of four indigenous villagers in Ahuas, in Honduras' Moskitia region. The victims, who included a pregnant woman and a 14-year-old boy, were killed in a joint US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA)/Honduran police counter-narcotics operation. Three other villagers were shot and wounded." Continue reading

Continue ReadingHonduran victims of US drug war still await justice

Marijuana: The Next Diabetes Drug?

"Toking up may help marijuana users to stay slim and lower their risk of developing diabetes, according to the latest study, which suggests that cannabis compounds may help in controlling blood sugar. The new research, which was published in the American Journal of Medicine, is not the first to find that the drug has a two-faced relationship to weight. Three prior studies have shown that marijuana users are less likely to be obese, have a lower risk for diabetes and have lower body-mass-index measurements. And these trends occurred despite the fact that they seemed to take in more calories." Continue reading

Continue ReadingMarijuana: The Next Diabetes Drug?

Marijuana By Itself Not a Significant Factor in Fatal and Injury Crashes in 2012

"Fewer than 1 percent of suspected impaired drivers involved in such crashes tested positive for nothing but marijuana. New Times' findings, based on a records request satisfied by DPS this week, jibe with statistics we reported earlier this month in our feature article about Arizona's zero-tolerance marijuana-DUI law. Drivers suspected of impairment in crashes that hurt or killed people in Phoenix, Chandler, and Scottsdale were rarely found to be impaired by marijuana, our earlier research showed." Continue reading

Continue ReadingMarijuana By Itself Not a Significant Factor in Fatal and Injury Crashes in 2012