Network Archives

Lead bullets for artists in Buenos Aires

"Since January this year, the building has been militarized by the city government, with numerous metropolitan police officers and unidentified security personnel circulating its facilities and with all the activities suspended. This is how those in charge of 'culture' in the city of Buenos Aires chose to solve a long-standing conflict. At night on Wednesday, an operation by the Metropolitan Police seriously escalated the level of violence of the conflict trying to evict forcefully the protesters who were carrying out a cultural camp at the square adjacent to the complex, causing at least three gunshot wounds." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLead bullets for artists in Buenos Aires

Shocking video: Rio police heli opens fire in slum during drug baron car chase

"A shocking video of Rio de Janeiro police in a helicopter firing on a moving car in a populous slum has sparked a probe. Footage emerged of the high-octane chase a year after it happened, raising concerns over the excessive use of police force." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingShocking video: Rio police heli opens fire in slum during drug baron car chase

Mao Zedong’s grand-daughter worth more than $815 million

"Kong Dongmei, now in her early 40s, and husband Chen Dongsheng ranked 242th with personal wealth estimated at five billion yuan ($815 million) on a rich list released this month by New Fortune, a Chinese financial magazine. Kong is the grand-daughter of Mao and his third wife He Zizhen. In 2001 she founded a book store in Beijing selling publications about Mao and promoting 'Red Culture' after studying at the University of Pennsylvania in the US. The couple have two daughters and a son, said New Fortune — likely to be a violation of China’s one-child policy." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMao Zedong’s grand-daughter worth more than $815 million

Detroit Threatens To Remove Community-Provided Bus Stop Benches

"Some people from the Detroit Enterprise Academy think that bus patrons - especially older folks - shouldn't have to stand and wait at the city's bus stops, so they put together a voluntary force to do something about it. They build benches from reclaimed wood, fancy them up a bit, and place them at bus stops where resting spots are much needed. The benches built by the crew seat six people, and they also have bookcases in the bottom, filled with books. DDOT (Detroit Department of Transportation) officials have said the placement of benches has not followed protocol, and therefore the benches are not approved and must be removed." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDetroit Threatens To Remove Community-Provided Bus Stop Benches

2 Virginia Boys Suspended For Using Pencils As Guns

"Two Suffolk second graders have been suspended for making shooting noises while pointing pencils at each other. Media outlets report the 7-year-old boys were suspended for two days for a violation of the Suffolk school system’s zero-tolerance policy on weapons. They were playing with one another in class Friday at Driver Elementary. 'When I asked him about it, he said, ‘Well I was being a Marine and the other guy was being a bad guy,’' said Paul Marshall, one of the boys’ fathers. Suffolk Public Schools spokeswoman Bethanne Bradshaw said a pencil is considered a weapon when it’s pointed at someone in a threatening way and gun noises are made." Continue reading →

Continue Reading2 Virginia Boys Suspended For Using Pencils As Guns

World Jewish Congress: World Must Outlaw ‘Holocaust Denial’ And Ban Neo-Nazi Parties

"The World Jewish Congress approved on Tuesday a resolution that calls on countries around the world, 'in particular those whose Jewish populations were decimated in the Shoah,' to outlaw the public denial of the Holocaust, and where appropriate constitutional provisions exist, to consider banning neo-Nazi parties. The resolution also urges Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and other national leaders and legislators in Europe to join the 125 legislators from more than 40 countries in signing the 2009 London Declaration on Combating Anti-Semitism." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWorld Jewish Congress: World Must Outlaw ‘Holocaust Denial’ And Ban Neo-Nazi Parties

Nazi hunters call on Twitter to crack down on terrorists

"A Nazi-hunting group has urged Twitter and other social media to step up efforts to remove online 'hate speech,' citing a surge in incitement to attacks like the recent Boston bombings. The Simon Wiesenthal Center said Twitter has spawned nearly 20,000 hashtags and handles this year that are linked to terrorism and extremism, up 30 percent in the past year. A Twitter spokesman said in a statement sent to AFP that the company does not 'mediate content or intervene in disputes between users.' Twitter's TOS state that it is not responsible for content posted, but that users 'may not publish or post direct, specific threats of violence against others.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNazi hunters call on Twitter to crack down on terrorists

DOJ: We don’t need warrants for e-mail, Facebook chats

"The U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI believe they don't need a search warrant to review Americans' e-mails, Facebook chats, Twitter direct messages, and other private files, internal documents reveal. Government documents obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union and provided to CNET show a split over electronic privacy rights within the Obama administration, with Justice Department prosecutors and investigators privately insisting they're not legally required to obtain search warrants for e-mail." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDOJ: We don’t need warrants for e-mail, Facebook chats

Gun Violence in the USA Has Declined for 20 Years

"Gun violence has been falling in the United States for two decades. Between 1993 and 2010, the gun homicide rate fell by 49%. The public does not perceive this, thanks to media attention to specific cases of gun violence. Rates for all categories of violence have fallen. This includes gun violence. The same study revealed that 56% of those surveyed believe that gun violence is worse today than in 1993. Another 26% think it is about the same. Only 12% think it has declined. What about mass shootings? These account for 1% of all homicides. But stories about them attract readers. The public is uninformed. This comes as no surprise." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGun Violence in the USA Has Declined for 20 Years

In Argentina, More Official Lying About Basic Economic Facts

"How much inflation is there? Who can buy dollars legally? Who really runs the economy? Last Friday these questions tripped up Angel Toninelli, one of the directors general of the Administración Federal de Ingresos Públicos, the national tax agency. Toninelli admitted that he did not really understand the inner workings of the approval process for obtaining foreign currency to travel abroad. 'It is a formula that changes periodically,' he said in answer to a question. 'It contains ingredients that come from the central bank, the A.F.I.P., and others that come from God,” he explained, adding, 'It isn’t the Coca-Cola formula, but it’s very similar.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIn Argentina, More Official Lying About Basic Economic Facts