constitutional liberty coalition

NSA Refuses To Release Secret Obama Directive On Cybersecurity

"An article in the Washington Post cited several US officials saying that Obama signed off on the secret cybersecurity order, believed to widely expand NSA’s spying authorities, in mid-October. In response to the move, lawyers with the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request (PDF) demanding that the Obama administration make public the text of the directive. The NSA responded to the FOIA request this week with a statement arguing that it does not have to release the document because it is a confidential presidential communication and it is classified." Continue reading →

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California gets face scanners to spy on everyone at once

"In a single second, law enforcement agents can match a suspect against millions upon millions of profiles in vast detailed databases stored on the cloud. It’s all done using facial recognition, and in Southern California it’s already occurring. Imagine the police taking a picture: any picture of a person, anywhere, and matching it on the spot in less than a second to a personalized profile, scanning millions upon millions of entries from within vast, intricate databases stored on the cloud. It’s done with state of the art facial recognition technology, and in Southern California it’s already happening." Continue reading →

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Cease Fire as Israel Defends itself from terrorist in gaza!

Israel continues attacking Gaza for a seventh day on Tuesday, killing 21 Palestinians, according to Gazan officials. Meanwhile a rocket from Gaza destroys a building near Tel Aviv. Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu says Israel would prefer a diplomatic solution. In New York, officials show support for Israel. In Chile, hundreds march in support of Palestinians Source post CLC Permalink: https:/?p=83867

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Montana lawmaker asks to be paid in gold

"A Montana state lawmaker is asking that he be paid in gold coins because of his lack of faith in the U.S. dollar amid a rising deficit. Jerry O’Neil, a Republican just reelected in his northern Montana district, says his constituents told him he was not honoring his duty to uphold the U.S. Constitution, which O’Neil and Gold Standard supporters say requires the government to print money backed by gold. So he wrote a letter to the state Legislature asking to be paid his public salary in gold. O’Neil said that he collects about $7,000 annually from the Montana Legislature." Continue reading →

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Anarchist Defeats Minarchist in New Hampshire Election

"When Ward 5 of Manchester, New Hampshire, elected a delegate to the state legislature this month, its voters rejected a Republican from the Free State Project who favors a minimal government. Instead they picked Tim O'Flaherty, a Democrat from the Free State Project who favors the abolition of government altogether. In the words of the Manchester Union-Leader: 'O'Flaherty ran against a fellow Free Stater, housemate Dan Garthwaite, whom O'Flaherty called a statist.' Meanwhile, in Vermont, voters in the town of Randolph have just made my left-anarchist friend Jessamyn West a justice of the peace." Continue reading →

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New England Marijuana Legalization Bills Coming

"In the wake of this month's marijuana legalization victories in Colorado and Washington, legislators in New England are ramping up efforts to be the next state to legalize. Solons in Massachusetts, Maine, Rhode Island, and Vermont have all signaled they will be filing legalization bills next year. The legislative process is frustratingly slow, often taking several years to get a measure through, but in the wake of the Colorado and Washington votes, we could see a sudden collapse in support for pot prohibition, even at the state house." Continue reading →

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Uruguay Marijuana Legalization Bill Allows Home Grows and Sales

"The bill introduced Wednesday says only that the government will manage and regulate commercial cultivation and sales. Whether it will actually open state-run pot farms or marijuana retail outlets is yet to be decided, but in either case, a National Cannabis Institute will be in charge. Under the pending legislation, each household could grow up to six plants or possess up to 480 grams, or slightly more than a pound. People could also join 'smoking clubs' with up to 15 members and grow six plants per member, up to an annual production of 15.8 pounds." Continue reading →

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Singapore Eases Death Penalty in Some Drug Cases

"The parliament of Singapore has approved legislation abolishing mandatory death sentences in some drug trafficking cases. The action came last Wednesday, according to a press release from the Singapore Attorney-General's Chambers. Under the reform, judges will be able to commute some death sentences to sentences of life in prison. Before, judges were forced to impose the death penalty on persons trafficking drugs above certain specified quantities." Continue reading →

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Senate bill rewrite lets feds read your e-mail without warrants

"Leahy's rewritten bill would allow more than 22 agencies -- including the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Federal Communications Commission -- to access Americans' e-mail, Google Docs files, Facebook wall posts, and Twitter direct messages without a search warrant. It also would give the FBI and Homeland Security more authority, in some circumstances, to gain full access to Internet accounts without notifying either the owner or a judge. CNET obtained a draft of the proposed amendments from one of the people involved in the negotiations with Leahy." Continue reading →

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Virginia’s ‘21-day rule’ needs to go

"Jonathan Montgomery was convicted in 2008 of sexual assault on the strength of testimony from a teenage girl who has now recanted. The accuser, charged with perjury, is free while she awaits trial. Mr. Montgomery, sentenced to 7 1 / 2 years, is innocent but can’t get out of prison. This month, the judge who sentenced Mr. Montgomery to prison in 2008 was presented with new evidence that his accuser, Elizabeth Paige Coast, had admitted lying about her accusation. But the evidence came to light only in recent weeks, when Ms. Coast came clean about her deception. New evidence or not, the 21-day rule applies." Continue reading →

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