Alternative News

Ebay: Tell your Members of Congress How New Internet Taxes Will Impact You

"An Internet Sales Tax bill could greatly reduce selection and competitive prices by putting new tax burdens on small businesses. The bills proposed require very small businesses that use the Internet to collect sales taxes from out-of-state customers, increasing their cost of doing business and reducing their ability to compete with giant retail chains. Very small businesses, often with only a handful of employees, could actually be threatened and sued by out-of-state tax collectors, even from states thousands of miles away. All of these new costs may not only harm small businesses that use the Internet, but could also harm shoppers like you by reducing competition and choice." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEbay: Tell your Members of Congress How New Internet Taxes Will Impact You

Snarling, Robotic Police in House-to-House Search

"There is no question of anyone giving on-the-spot consent to a search when an occupant is facing a dozen men with rifles and guns pointing at him or her. The reporter describes the police searches as 'terrifying', as in police terror. Such searches are non-consensual. These police have all been trained to act robotically to control the people and intimidate them. They have been programmed. They will point the guns at a woman with a baby as readily as at someone who looks like their suspect. They will make everyone obey. The reporter says that people were not allowed back into their homes but left on the street for 14-15 hours." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSnarling, Robotic Police in House-to-House Search

EU governments get cold feet on financial transactions tax

"Prospects of an EU tax on financial transactions have been put into question by confusion on how it would work and a legal challenge by the UK. A six-page-long memo drafted by civil servants in the EU Council last week - seen by EUobserver - indicates cooling enthusiasm among the 11 EU countries which supported the introduction of a financial transactions tax (FTT). The officials say the FTT, which includes a 0.1 percent levy on bonds and shares and 0.01 percent on derivative products, would hit repurchase agreements on sovereign bonds, forcing up the cost of financing government debt." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEU governments get cold feet on financial transactions tax

Where Nervous Europeans Are Really Putting Their Money

"Demand for $100 bills has jumped since 2008 as nervous Europeans stuff them under the mattress, providing vivid proof that the world still loves the dollar and confirming the benefit to the US of the currency’s status as a global reserve. The amount of dollar cash in circulation has risen by 42 per cent in the last five years, with a main reason being demand from Europe, according to a top US Federal Reserve official. According to one set of estimates by the Fed in Washington, the share of US currency held abroad has risen from about 56 per cent to nearly 66 per cent in the last five years. It amounts to a $19bn-a-year gift from the rest of the world." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWhere Nervous Europeans Are Really Putting Their Money

Florida pot grower busted for manufacturing ‘high-end assault rifles’

"Police in Port St. Lucie, Florida announced on Wednesday that they had arrested a couple on charges related to a 'weapons manufacturing warehouse' and a marijuana growing operations, according to TCPalm. WPTV reported that a traffic stop made by the Martin County Sheriff’s Office earlier in the week led to a marijuana grow house, which then led to a warehouse facility where 'high-end' weapons were being manufactured. At a warehouse on Northwest Settle Avenue, investigators found about 150 marijuana plants and ten guns, including an AK-47 military-style assault rifle." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFlorida pot grower busted for manufacturing ‘high-end assault rifles’

American Eagle Gold Bullion Coin Sales Suspended; U.S. Inventory Depleted

"The U.S. Mint said it has suspended sales of its one-tenth ounce American Eagle gold bullion coins as surging demand after bullion's plunge to two-year lows depleted the government's inventory. Bottom line: The selling in gold that has occurred isn't coming from the general public. So far in April, the U.S. Mint has sold 175,000 ounces of American Eagle gold coins, putting it on track to challenge a high of 231,500 ounces set in December 2009. The buying by individuals in the wake of the curious decline seems to be global." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAmerican Eagle Gold Bullion Coin Sales Suspended; U.S. Inventory Depleted

FBI and Tsarneav: What Did They Know and When Did They Know it?

"This is getting awkward. Members of the Senate Intelligence Committee were told today that Russian authorities warned the FBI about the potential threat Tamerlan Tsarneav posed not once but 'multiple times' and 'at least once since October 2011.' Also, in a blow to some Russophiles who want to draw the US into Russia's fight against separatism in the Caucuses -- 'it's the Chechens!!!' -- a statement appeared on a website run by Russia's North Caucasus rebels that disavowed any link to the Boston Marathon bombing. So what gives?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFBI and Tsarneav: What Did They Know and When Did They Know it?

Civil Libertarians Appalled by Tsarnaev Manhunt, Boston Residents Thrilled

"Boston-based civil liberties attorney Harvey Silverglate told Reason.com he is very troubled by the measures taken by law enforcement officials during the manhunt for alleged Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. His views contrasted greatly with what this reporter came across during dozens of man-on-the-street interviews conducted across the greater Boston area last week, where residents voiced overwhelming support for the actions of local, state, and federal officials." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCivil Libertarians Appalled by Tsarnaev Manhunt, Boston Residents Thrilled

After U.S. Troops Leave, Armed Drones Will Patrol Afghanistan’s Skies

"One of the major elements of Afghanistan’s air war will remain after most U.S. troops have headed home, the U.S. military command confirmed today. Armed drones, operated by the U.S., will remain over Afghanistan after 2014. Western Pakistan, the epicenter of the U.S. drone war from 2009 to 2011, experienced a surge in U.S. drone strikes at the beginning of this year. Those drones are under the control of the CIA, and U.S. military officials believe that’s likely to remain the case even if the Obama administration takes away many of the CIA’s drone operations, since there is no declared U.S. war in Pakistan. Those drones are flown from Afghanistan." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAfter U.S. Troops Leave, Armed Drones Will Patrol Afghanistan’s Skies

The Trusting Soul Who Tipped Off the Boston Invaders

"A man in Watertown, Massachusetts noticed something odd. It seemed as though his backyard boat had been disturbed. He tipped off the government. The various governments, which had locked down Boston in a vain attempt to find a missing teenager, sent troops into his back yard. They shot up his boat. Let’s understand causation. The authorities locked down the city. They put the locals in Watertown under house arrest. They invaded their homes. They found nothing. It took a tip from a citizen for the armed troops to locate the kid. What did the informant get for his trouble? A destroyed boat." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe Trusting Soul Who Tipped Off the Boston Invaders