bill of rights

Twitter: Government user data requests have risen 20 percent

"Twitter said Monday that worldwide requests from governments about its users rose nearly 20 percent in second half of 2012 as it sought to raise awareness about 'invasive' actions. Twitter said the overwhelming majority of information requests, 815 of the total, came from the United States. The company complied with at least part of the request in 57 percent of cases worldwide and 69 percent of US cases. In launching a revamped 'transparency report' modeled after one by Google, Twitter said it hopes the data can be useful to those seeking to keep an open Internet." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTwitter: Government user data requests have risen 20 percent

Talk of CIA prisons censored at Guantanamo hearing

"US authorities censored part of a preliminary hearing Monday at a Guantanamo military tribunal that touched on CIA secret prisons where suspected 9/11 plotters say they were tortured. Reporters watched the proceedings against the five 9/11 suspects at the US naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba behind a thick, sound-proof glass wall and listened to piped-in audio with a 40-second delay. But when a defense lawyer mentioned the CIA secret sites at Monday’s hearing, a red light flashed on and the sound from the courtroom was cut off. The audio from the proceedings was replaced by white noise, preventing journalists from listening." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTalk of CIA prisons censored at Guantanamo hearing

Homeland Security buys 7000 full-auto assault rifles, calls them ‘personal defense weapons’

"Keep in mind that President Obama is on the record saying, 'AK-47s belong in the hands of soldiers, not in the hands of criminals; that they belong on the battlefield of war, not on the streets of our cities.' But it seems he really means they don't belong on the streets of our cities unless they are in the hands of homeland security enforcers, in which case they can be FULL-AUTO assault weapons. The DHS bid for 7,000 full-auto assault weapons is found by clicking here. " Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHomeland Security buys 7000 full-auto assault rifles, calls them ‘personal defense weapons’

When Police Violate the Constitution

"The federal courts are bearing down on the New York City Police Department’s constitutionally suspect stop-and-frisk program, under which hundreds of thousands of citizens are stopped on the streets each year, often illegally and for no discernible reason. The department’s patently illegal strategy, the judge said, encouraged officers to 'stop and question first, develop reasonable suspicion later.' The ruling focuses on detentions that occurred as people were entering or leaving one of many residential buildings in the Bronx whose managers had simply asked the department to patrol the area and arrest trespassers." Continue reading →

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NYPD Comissioner Ray Kelly: Police to use Tera-Hertz scanners within six months

"The New York Police Department will begin using scanner technology that can see through a person’s clothes within the year, according to Commissioner Ray Kelly. 'We’ve been looking at it for several years, looking at it with the Department of Defense, and also Metropolitan Police in London,' he said on CBS News’ Face the Nation. New technology called Tera-Hertz scanners or T-Ray machines can be used to detect whether a person is carrying a concealed firearm. The new device utilizes T-rays, which pass through fabric and paper, but not cannot pass through metals." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNYPD Comissioner Ray Kelly: Police to use Tera-Hertz scanners within six months

LAPD Spied on 21 Using StingRay Anti-Terrorism Tool

"A secretive cellphone spy device known as StingRay, intended to fight terrorism, was used in far more routine LAPD criminal investigations 21 times in a four-month period during 2012, apparently without the courts' knowledge that the technology probes the lives of non-suspects who happen to be in the same neighborhood as suspected terrorists. StingRay, which allows police to track mobile phones in real time, was tapped for more than 13 percent of the 155 'cellular phone investigation cases' last year. LAPD purchased StingRay technology sometime around 2006 with federal Department of Homeland Security funds." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLAPD Spied on 21 Using StingRay Anti-Terrorism Tool

Alex Jones TYT Interview: Guns, Conspiracies, and Mental Health

"After his appearance on Piers Morgan, Alex Jones has made the news for his stance on guns and his various global conspiracy theories, including one about a group determined to build a dystopia and kill people off. In a heated interview, Cenk Uygur questioned his various statements, and even asked him the question, 'Have you ever sought mental health treatment?' Well, according to Jones, America needs mental health treatment. What does he mean? Watch, as Cenk Uygur attempts to get to the bottom of it." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAlex Jones TYT Interview: Guns, Conspiracies, and Mental Health

Who Says You Can Kill Americans, Mr. President?

"Presidents had never before, to our knowledge, targeted specific Americans for military strikes. There are no court decisions that tell us if he is acting lawfully. Mr. Obama tells us not to worry, though, because his lawyers say it is fine, because experts guide the decisions and because his advisers have set up a careful process to help him decide whom he should kill. He must think we should be relieved. Oddly, under current law, Congress and the courts are involved when presidents eavesdrop on Americans, detain them or harshly interrogate them — but not when they kill them." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWho Says You Can Kill Americans, Mr. President?

Antiwar protester thrown out of Kerry confirmation hearing

"A protester interrupted Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) on Thursday during his confirmation hearings. The woman shouted that the United States was killing thousands of people in the Middle East who were not a threat. Security officers quickly escorted her out of the room." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAntiwar protester thrown out of Kerry confirmation hearing