Land Of The Flea

U.S. Pulls Out of Egypt’s Bright Star War Game Over Massacres

"President Obama on Thursday cancelled the U.S. military’s participation in next month’s Operation Bright Star in Egypt – a biennial training exercise with the Egyptian military – following Cairo’s brutal crackdown on opponents that left more than 500 dead the day before. Continuing the charade – that the U.S. needs to continue to cooperate with Egypt to improve things there – would have been bizarre. The notion that such military cooperation can give the U.S. influence over a foreign military is dubious, despite the $1.3 billion in military aid the U.S. gives to Egypt annually, a bounty for signing the Camp David accords with Israel in 1978." Continue reading →

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Pfc. Bradley Manning Unsworn Statement during Sentencing Trial

"I did not truly appreciate the broader effects of my actions. Those effects are clearer to me now through both self-reflection during my confinement in its various forms and through the merits and sentencing testimony that I have seen here. I am sorry for the unintended consequences of my actions. When I made these decisions I believed I was gonna help people, not hurt people. The last few years have been a learning experience. I look back at my decisions and wonder, 'How on earth could I, a junior analyst, possibly believe I could change the world for the better over the decisions of those with the proper authority?'" Continue reading →

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Obama: Fool Me Thrice, Shame on Whom?

"The New York Times points out that Mr. Obama’s currently promised reforms are insubstantial, and simply 'tinker around the edges of the nation’s abusive surveillance programs.' The cynics among us might think President Obama’s promises to institute reforms for enhanced privacy protections for the American people are simply a response to recent opinion polls showing that Americans are, for the first time since 9/11, more concerned about civil liberties abuses than terrorism. There’s an old saying: 'Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.' So, do we believe the president now?" Continue reading →

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Bitcoin gets the FBI, Homeland Security treatment

"'The Committee directs the FBI, in consultation with the Department and other Federal partners, to provide a briefing no later 120 days after the enactment of this Act on the nature and scale of the risk posed by such ersatz currency, both in financing illegal enterprises and in undermining financial institutions,' said the bill, which was posted on the Committee's website, and reported Tuesday by several industry blogs. Jon Matonis, executive director of the Bitcoin Foundation, told CNBC that the wording of the bill is the type that encourages innovative startups to seek out more acceptable international jurisdictions." Continue reading →

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Is There a Perfect Storm for Federal Sentencing Reform?

"The Justice Safety Valve Act (Senate Bill 619), introduced in the spring, and the Smart Sentencing Act (Senate Bill 1410), introduced just last week, have better prospects of moving forward now than anything since the Fair Sentencing Act passed three years ago. That's because it's not just Democrats or liberals who are supporting them. The Justice Safety Valve Act, sponsored by Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT), has not only the usual suspects behind it, but also The New York Times, conservative taxpayer advocate Grover Norquist, and a group of 50 former prosecutors." Continue reading →

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One in 10 Americans have taken drugs prescribed for others

"One in 10 Americans admit taking a prescription drug they have not been prescribed, and a quarter of those people have used them just to get high, according to an ongoing Reuters/Ipsos poll. While about six in ten Americans who used another person’s prescriptions did so for pain relief, a fifth took them to sleep or to manage stress and anxiety, the poll showed. Pharmacies in the United States dispensed more than 4 billion prescriptions in 2012, according to IMS Health, a healthcare research firm. The poll indicated it is not difficult to get hold of such drugs even without a prescription." Continue reading →

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The Eric Holder Memorandum on Mandatory Minimum Sentences, Explained

"In short, the Holder Memorandum directs prosecutors to prevent application of mandatory minimum sentences for a select group of less-culpable defendants. Isn't this A good thing? Yes, with a but. It's a good thing that the Jane Does of the world can be sentenced according to the judge's discretion and not according to mandatory minimum sentences. A lot of low-level, unsophisticated, and hapless mules and mopes and dupes will get far lower sentences, which is both just and less expensive for you, the taxpayer. But I'm not happy that the methodology for the change is a fairly dramatic expansion of prosecutorial discretion." Continue reading →

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Why does America have such a big prison population?

"America has around 5% of the world’s population, and 25% of its prisoners. Roughly one in every 107 American adults is behind bars, a rate nearly five times that of Britain, seven times that of France and 24 times that of India. Its prison population has more than tripled since 1980. The growth rate has been even faster in the federal prison system: from around 24,000—its level, more or less, from the 1940s until the early 1980s—to more than 219,000 today. Probably the biggest driver of this growth has been ever-harsher drug penalties." Continue reading →

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“We’re building a domestic army”: Marine Corps Colonel speaks out

"Marine Corp Colonel speaks out at a local council meeting about the militarization of our police forces on 08/12/13 at 41 Green St, Concord, NH 03301. Read more about the City of Concord's bid for an attack vehicle to use against peaceful groups at http://www.FreeStateProject.org " Continue reading →

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Obamacare Provision: “Forced” Home Inspections

"The Health and Human Services’ website states that your family will be targeted if you fall under the 'high-risk' categories below: Families where mom is not yet 21; Families where someone is a tobacco user; Families where children have low student achievement, developmental delays, or disabilities; Families with individuals who are serving or formerly served in the armed forces, including such families that have members of the armed forces who have had multiple deployments outside the United States. In 2011, the HHS announced $224 million will be given to support evidence-based home visiting programs to 'help parents and children.'" Continue reading →

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