for life and liberty

How Dare the Iranians Elect a Moderate!

"What did the Iranians do to warrant such deafening and dramatic saber-rattling? Test a nuclear device? Open a military base in Mexico? No. They voted for moderate Iranian politician, Hasan Rouhani, to be president. To punctuate his expressed desire to open to the West, the English-speaking Rouhani unveiled his cabinet today, which includes a PhD from the University of Denver as his new foreign minister and a PhD from the George Washington University as his chief of staff. Iran watcher and RPI advisor Prof. Flint Leverett observed that 'Rohani has appointed his A-team to do a deal with the U.S. It shows Iran is serious.'" Continue reading →

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When “Diplomats” Aren’t Suborning Another Country’s Rulers, They’re Killing Its Citizens

"US diplomat Joshua Walde killed Haji Hassan Ali Lukindo, 43, when his car crashed into the minibus carrying Mr. Lukindo. The deceased leaves his wife of fourteen years, now expecting their fourth child. 'We have been left destitute since Haji was killed,' the widow says. 'I have no means to support our three children, and have to depend entirely on a well wisher for rent, food, school fees and daily living expenses.' And the diplomat? 'He has left Kenya…he is a diplomat so had immunity and was free to go,’ a senior police officer said…” Continue reading →

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Justice Department to review DEA’s mass surveillance program

"The Justice Department is reviewing a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration unit that passes tips culled from intelligence intercepts, wiretaps, informants and a large telephone database to field agents, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said Monday. 'It’s my understanding… that the Department of Justice is looking at some of the issues raised in the story,' Carney said during his daily briefing at the White House on Monday. Carney referred reporters to a Justice Department spokesman, who confirmed that a review was under way, but declined further comment." Continue reading →

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DEA agents use NSA intercepts to investigate Americans

"The Drug Enforcement Agency has a secret unit that has been funneling information from intelligence intercepts, wiretaps, and a massive database of phone records. The unit has been passing this data to law enforcement agencies across the nation and assists in launching criminal investigations against American citizens. Matthew Feeney, assistant editor for Reason 24/7, joins us with more on the findings and how this affects people's Fourth Amendment rights." Continue reading →

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Amazon Billionaire Jeff Bezos’s Life Story

"Today, Jeff Bezos shocked the world by acquiring the Washington Post for $250 million. It's just the latest twist from Bezos, one of the world's richest men thanks to his founding of ecommerce giant Amazon. If you're unfamiliar with Bezos' story, we've put together an abridged version here." Continue reading →

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WaPo and Bezos: The Hope and the Reality

"The reality: Amazon to buy Washington Post fresh after $800M deal to host CIA servers — WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) August 5, 2013. The CIA has reportedly signed a massive cloud computing deal with Amazon, worth up to $600 million over the next 10 years. FCW reports that its sources have told it Amazon will build a private cloud infrastructure for the CIA, to help it 'keep up with emerging technologies like big data in a cost-effective manner not possible under the CIA's previous cloud efforts.' [..] Perhaps the single biggest item on Amazon’s legislative agenda is a bill that would empower all states to collect sales tax from online retailers." Continue reading →

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Are Police in America Now a Military, Occupying Force?

"Today, the SWAT team is largely sold to the American public by way of the media, through reality TV shows such as Cops, Armed and Famous, and Police Women of Broward County, and by politicians well-versed in promising greater security in exchange for the government being given greater freedom to operate as it sees fit outside the framework of the Constitution. Having watered down the Fourth Amendment’s strong prohibitions intended to keep police in check and functioning as peacekeepers, we now find ourselves in the unenviable position of having militarized standing armies enforcing the law." Continue reading →

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Visitors flock to Pakistani-controlled Kashmir valley in rare tourist boom

"Success stories can be rare in Pakistan, but business is booming in one Kashmir tourist spot as the region rebuilds after a devastating earthquake and shrugs off associations with violence. Hundreds of thousands of Pakistani tourists drawn to the lakes and glaciers of the Neelum valley are injecting desperately needed money into one of the poorest parts of the country. With a new road built by the Chinese after the 2005 earthquake killed 73,000 people and a ceasefire holding with India, Pakistanis are discovering the snow-capped peaks, glaciers, lakes and lush-green meadows of the Neelum valley." Continue reading →

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Pakistan TV preacher defends Ramadan baby give-away

"A charismatic Muslim preacher criticised for giving out babies to childless couples live on prime-time Pakistani television denies he is crudely seeking top ratings. Aamir Liaqat Hussain spoke to AFP as a charity involved in the process said a third baby is due to be given away in the coming days. Hussain broadcasts a marathon 12-hour show each day during the holy month of Ramadan, watched by millions of viewers across the country. He mesmerises his audience with celebrity interviews, game shows, by providing in-studio meals to the needy — and, on two consecutive weeks, handing out baby girls to childless couples." Continue reading →

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Should insider trading be legal? Insiders say yes

"Perhaps the folks at hedge fund SAP Capital Advisors, who have recently pleaded guilty to insider-trading charges, should have run for Congress. Last week, the Securities and Exchange Commission served the firm with a criminal indictment and continues pressing civil charges against its founder Steven Cohen. The agency hasn’t done much about accounting fraud, or other shenanigans that lead to the 2008 financial crisis, but insider trading remains a priority. Over the past three years, the SEC boasts of filing 168 insider trading cases, more than any three-year period in the agency’s history." Continue reading →

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