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Rep. Barbara Lee: Repeal AUMF to stop ‘this state of perpetual war’

"Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) on Wednesday called for the Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) to be repealed. 'I’m convinced that if we do not repeal this authorization to use force that I voted against in 2001, we are going to see this state of perpetual war forever,' she told Current TV’s John Fugelsang. Congress approved the AUMF just days after the September 11 terrorist attacks, giving the President authority to wage war 'against those nations, organizations, or persons he determines planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks.' Lee was the only member of Congress to vote against it, describing it as a 'blank check' for war." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRep. Barbara Lee: Repeal AUMF to stop ‘this state of perpetual war’

Government Should Stop Its Own Violence First

"Since 9/11, law-abiding Americans have been subjected to intrusive 'security' measures and civil-liberties infringements. We have been forced to pay billions of dollars for the Department of Homeland Security and increasingly militarized police departments. What have we to show for it? Two men were able to detonate bombs at the most prominent point in a major city on its biggest day of the year. Intended or not, the bombing was a thumb in the eye of our so-called protectors. Bruce Schneier has aptly described the post-9/11 measures as 'security theater.' Clearly, the emperor has no clothes. Here’s another thing we know: This was a crime, not an act of war." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGovernment Should Stop Its Own Violence First

David Galland: The True Import of the Boston Bombings

"Unfortunately, what has been seriously injured – once again – is American freedom, as authorities begin unwrapping all the new homeland security powers constructed since 9/11. Just as it is impossible to predict the price of gold tomorrow, it is impossible to gauge how the government will respond, or how much collateral damage will be done. Who could have predicted, after 9/11 – an act committed by Saudis and Pakistanis – that the US would attack Iraq? What appears clear, at least to me, is that the very nature of terrorism and the invariable reaction of the nation-state being attacked set the stage for bad, bad days for liberty." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDavid Galland: The True Import of the Boston Bombings

Hacking an Airplane With Only an Android Phone

"So it looks like someone could hack a jetliner. With an Android smartphone. Awesome. At the Hack In The Box conference in Amsterdam, security consultant Hugo Teso demonstrated PlaneSploit, an app he developed that can take control of certain systems aboard an airplane and cause it to change direction or just crash itself into the ground. Hugo’s no terrorist, mind you. He developed the app to point out the glaring, frightening, insane security holes in most planes’ onboard flight systems. His demonstration was done in a simulated environment, but the methods and effects, he says, are exactly the same as what could happen with a real plane." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHacking an Airplane With Only an Android Phone

Repeal the “War on Terror”

"When Congress approved the post-911 'Authorization for Use of Military Force' on September 14, 2001, Democratic Congresswoman Barbara Lee of California was the only member of the House to vote against it. The Authorization for Use of Military Force has been used to justify torture, warrantless surveillance, and now summary execution of terror suspects – including at least three US citizens, among them a 16-year-old boy – by drone strikes. That measure is the American equivalent of the 'Enabling Act' passed by the German Reichstag in 1933 – a blank check for both foreign military adventurism and domestic repression." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRepeal the “War on Terror”

New report says there are still no federal safety standards for nation’s bioterror defense labs

"US labs that research bioterror germs such as anthrax are at risk for accidents because they do not have uniform building and operation standards, a Congressional investigative group said on Monday. A lack of oversight has persisted despite a 2009 report by the Government Accountability Office on the same topic, leaving no single agency in charge of safety or research goals at bioterror labs, the GAO said in its report. US labs that research ways to protect against bioterror germs and disease outbreaks have been on the rise since the September 11, 2001 attacks." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNew report says there are still no federal safety standards for nation’s bioterror defense labs

Iraq War Anniversary: Birth Defects And Cancer Rates At Devastating High In Basra And Fallujah

"Ten years after the start of the U.S. invasion in Iraq, doctors in some of the Middle Eastern nation's cities are witnessing an abnormally high number of cases of cancer and birth defects. Scientists suspect the rise is tied to the use of depleted uranium and white phosphorus in military assaults. Dr. Jamail says that the current rate of birth defects for the city of Fallujah has surpassed those of Hiroshima and Nagasaki after the nuclear attacks at the end of World War II. A September 2012 study recorded a devastating number of birth defects in the past decade. The study also indicated that childhood leukemia and other types of cancers are on the rise." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIraq War Anniversary: Birth Defects And Cancer Rates At Devastating High In Basra And Fallujah

Now the CIA Wants Unlimited Access To Your Financial Records

"According to a new plan unveiled by the U.S. Treasury Department, the Obama administration is now seeking authorization to provide all U.S. spy agencies with unlimited access to a massive database containing financial data on virtually every American citizen who uses the banking system. Access to this sensitive financial data has been available to the Federal Bureau of Investigation since the tragic events of 9/11. Now, the Obama administration wants to provide access to this vast database with even more U.S. intelligence agencies, including the Central Intelligence Agency and the National Security Agency." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNow the CIA Wants Unlimited Access To Your Financial Records

Obama administration: Warrantless GPS tracking needed to fight terrorism

"The Obama administration will argue before a federal appeals court on Tuesday that law enforcement must regain the ability to use GPS tracking devices without a warrant, which it says is necessary to continue the fight against terrorism. The use of GPS devices in warrantless snooping has been illegal since January 2012, when the Supreme Court ruled that vehicles are private property protected by the Fourth Amendment, which guarantees freedom from unreasonable search and seizure. If the Obama administration is successful on its appeal however, GPS devices will be fair game for police nationwide." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingObama administration: Warrantless GPS tracking needed to fight terrorism

Federal Judge Finds National Security Letters Unconstitutional, Bans Them

"Ultra-secret national security letters that come with a gag order on the recipient are an unconstitutional impingement on free speech, a federal judge in California ruled in a decision released Friday. U.S. District Judge Susan Illston ordered the government to stop issuing so-called NSLs across the board, in a stunning defeat for the Obama administration’s surveillance practices. She also ordered the government to cease enforcing the gag provision in any other cases. However, she stayed her order for 90 days to give the government a chance to appeal to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFederal Judge Finds National Security Letters Unconstitutional, Bans Them