Big Lie

Glenn Greenwald: AP’s dangerous Iran hoax demands an accounting and explanation

"AP helped perpetrate a dangerous hoax, and owes an explanation and accounting for what took place, including identifying the 'officials from a country critical of Iran's atomic program' who made false claims about what this is. To begin with, the graph AP touted as reflecting some sort of nefarious, highly threatening and complex nuclear calculation is, in fact, widely available all over the Internet in the most innocuous places. At the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists (BAS), Yousaf Butt and Ferenc Dalnoki-Veress on Wednesday night wrote: 'Graphs such as the one published by the Associated Press can be found in nuclear science textbooks and on the Internet.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGlenn Greenwald: AP’s dangerous Iran hoax demands an accounting and explanation

The U.S. Plot to Nuke the Moon

"Shortly after the Soviets lunched the Sputnik satellite in 1957, the U.S. government seriously considered a nuclear strike against the Moon in order to intimidate Russia. A missile carrying an atom bomb would have been launched from an undisclosed location and then detonated on impact. Preparations were made for a missile launch in 1959, but the program was quietly scrapped. What is truly strange is that the plan to nuke the moon was supposedly inspired by the need to catch up with the Soviets in the space race. Yet there’s evidence that Washington actually spotted Moscow a lead by allowing the Russians to launch the first satellite." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe U.S. Plot to Nuke the Moon

Tell me again… which of these nations is communist?

"Tax rates across the board in the United States are set to increase dramatically in 2013. Currently the government will charge a 35% tax on the value of your estate that exceeds $5 million. If you happen to kick the bucket on January 1st, however, the tax goes up to 55%, and the exemption goes down to $1 million. This exemption is not indexed to inflation. Perhaps most shocking is increase in dividend tax rates, set to rise from 15% to as high as 43.4%. Ironically, the new government of the People’s Republic of China has decided the REDUCE their tax on dividends. Effective January 1st, the dividend tax rate in China will drop to a mere 5%." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTell me again… which of these nations is communist?

Legal logjam lets troubled cops keep their badges

"Police officers punished for serious misconduct by the state may continue to draw their pay and even carry a badge for years if they appeal the sanctions. Some appeals languish for more than a decade after arriving at the state attorney general’s office. Rank and file officers and even chiefs of police have continued to work — for their original agency or a different one — after being sanctioned for violations as serious as killing a recruit during training, waving a gun at random in a bar, falsifying official records and DUI. Some officers were accused of new offenses while they appealed their first cases." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLegal logjam lets troubled cops keep their badges

Downgrade the Long-Term Debt of the United States Before It’s Too Late

"Dear S&P, Moody’s, and Fitch: You are the world’s three dominant rating agencies, largely controlling the ratings of bonds and debts issued by thousands of corporations, municipalities, and sovereign governments. I am the chairman of Weiss Ratings, an independent rating agency. And today, I challenge you to promptly take the bold action that you have so far avoided — to downgrade the long-term credit rating of the U.S. government in order to help protect investors and prod Washington to fix its finances. The necessary first step toward solving our nation’s financial problems is to recognize and confront them honestly." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDowngrade the Long-Term Debt of the United States Before It’s Too Late

US Bank Run Imminent? FDIC Expanded Deposit Insurance Ends Dec 31st

"With the media fixated on the fiscal cliff, no one seems to be noticing the fact that the FDIC’s expanded 100% coverage for insured deposits ends January 1st, 2013. As of January 2013 the FDIC stops offering 100% coverage for all insured deposits. That amounts to $1.6 trillion in deposits, 85-90% deposited with the TBTF mega banks. Once the insurance ramps back to $250,000 the FDIC risk amelioration offered to large depositors will cause them to flee from the insecurity of the much reduced FDIC coverage." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUS Bank Run Imminent? FDIC Expanded Deposit Insurance Ends Dec 31st

Sanctions: More Deadly Than The Atomic Bomb?

"Comparing the effects of sanctions vs nuclear bombs. Contrasting the fatalities of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima to those of the sanctions imposed on Iraq in the 1990s. 'Genocide masquerading as policy' as one congressman put it. Should the US do the same to Iran? Are sanctions a legitimate 'diplomatic tool' to avert war?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSanctions: More Deadly Than The Atomic Bomb?

FHA exhausts reserves, may need bailout

"The Federal Housing Administration has exhausted its reserves, forcing it to institute another round of measures to shore up its finances. The government agency's capital cushion plummeted to -$16.3 billion at the end of fiscal 2012, according to a study prepared annually by an independent actuary. FHA is scheduled to present the assessment, along with its annual report to Congress, on Friday. HUD is expected to announce Friday a series of changes designed to improve the agency's financial position." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFHA exhausts reserves, may need bailout

Puerto Rico Statehood Experts Challenge Results

"The territory question had two parts. The first part asked voters if they favored their current status as a U.S. territory. About 54 percent of voters said no. From there, everyone could answer a second question that gave three options: statehood, sovereign free association or independence. Sovereign free association is not the same as the current status. Only about 1.3 million voters answered the second question. Of those, 61 percent chose statehood, 33 percent chose the semi-autonomous choice and 6 percent chose independence. Nearly 500,000 people left the question blank. The population of Puerto Rico is nearly 4 million people." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPuerto Rico Statehood Experts Challenge Results

3 Myths About Secession

"The latest secession petition phenomenon sure has a lot of people talking about secession, which shows that the idea of it remains an important part of the American political consciousness. But, in response, most of the comments coming from political hacks display a deep, deep ignorance of the history of secession and the Constitutional realities behind it. In response, I thought I'd list some retorts to the basic myths which most of the anti-secession screeds are intent on perpetuating." Continue reading →

Continue Reading3 Myths About Secession