Land Of The Flea

State Department has hired agents with criminal records, memo reveals

"The State Department has hired an alarming number of law-enforcement agents with criminal or checkered backgrounds because of a flawed hiring process, a stunning memo reveals. The background problems are severe enough that many of the roughly 2,000 agents in State’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security can play only limited roles in agency efforts to police bad conduct and prosecute wrongdoers. The problems in the bureau are the latest revelation in an exploding scandal that also involves accusations that members of former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s security detail and those of the US ambassador to Belgium solicited prostitutes overseas." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingState Department has hired agents with criminal records, memo reveals

Declare Detroit a Free City

"Do not expect overnight success, but who knows? A free market always surprises us with new innovations. At first one can expect lots of mom and pop startups, sidewalk vendors, unlicensed and untaxed services such as simple property repair, home schools, private taxis, etc. But if Nike and other American businesses are enticed by lower costs and fewer regulatory burdens to outsource their manufacturing operations overseas, why would they not take a good look at a Free Detroit? Expect to be amazed. Allow Detroit to become a safe, cooperative city that represents the best that America can be. Economic freedom will ensure the rebirth of Detroit." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDeclare Detroit a Free City

Federal appeals court rejects Texas, Wyoming challenge to EPA ‘greenhouse gas’ regulations

"A federal appeals court on Friday rejected a legal challenge by Texas and Wyoming to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s efforts to implement greenhouse gas regulations. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, split 2-1, said that the states did not have standing to sue, while rejecting related claims made by industry groups." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFederal appeals court rejects Texas, Wyoming challenge to EPA ‘greenhouse gas’ regulations

36-Year Old Hacker Who Made ATMs Spit Out Cash Dies in San Francisco; Hastings Connection?

"This is a guy who had demonstrated the year before how he could wirelessly direct an implantable insulin pump to deliver a lethal dose. The year before that, he hacked an ATM to make it spray out bills like a slot machine. But trouble-making is what he’s paid to do at IOActive, and in that role he has developed a particular respect for the looming power of smartphones. What about the firm he was working for, IOActive? The video I put up on Thursday included two specialists who demonstrated how to takeover a car remotely. One of the specialists worked for IOActive. The last tweet by Barnaby Jack, before he died, was to feature an IOActive tweet about the video." Continue reading →

Continue Reading36-Year Old Hacker Who Made ATMs Spit Out Cash Dies in San Francisco; Hastings Connection?

FDA finally releases draft of new food import safety rules

"Importers would be accountable for verifying with their foreign suppliers that certain food safety standards are being met. Under current conditions, U.S. food safety inspectors examine food coming into the country but are able to inspect only a small percentage for potential problems. Importers have a market interest in ensuring the safety of the food they bring in, but currently are not required to mandate that their suppliers meet certain standards. Under the new rules, importers would be required to maintain records verifying that their foreign suppliers have met standards for the production of the food coming into the country. Importers would undergo audits." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFDA finally releases draft of new food import safety rules

FATCA: ‘Simple premise’ gone terribly wrong

"Most Americans living outside the U.S. are not 'tax cheats,' 'tax evaders' or 'traitors' though they are often characterized that way in the media or even by members of Congress. Instead, they are honest, productive, contributing residents of other countries, which they call home. In many cases, they are also citizens of those countries. President Obama and members of Congress, how did the 'simple premise' of 'cracking down on illegal tax evasion and closing loopholes' become an attack on financial lives and personal integrity of millions of people living outside United States, their banks and laws and constitutions of their countries of residence?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFATCA: ‘Simple premise’ gone terribly wrong

Marijuana ad pulled from jumbotron at NASCAR Brickyard 400

"The Marijuana Policy Project said in a news release that Grazie Media, the company that owns the huge billboard at the entrance to the raceway, had approved the content of the ad and accepted payment for it. The ad was supposed to air over the weekend. The Drug Free America Foundation, Inc. had complained that the ad promoted drug abuse. Though 19 states and the District of Columbia have legalized the medical use of marijuana, Indiana has not. The ad noted that smoked marijuana contained no calories, didn’t result in hangovers or overdoses, and wasn’t linked to violent behavior." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMarijuana ad pulled from jumbotron at NASCAR Brickyard 400

U.S. Postal Service hopes to be the ‘cutting edge of functional fashion’

"Watch out Versace and Chanel. Next year the US Postal Service plans to start selling its own clothing range, based on its uniforms. There was a time when your local post office would mainly sell stamps and deliver letters. No longer. According to the Universal Postal Union (UPU), global letter- and light parcel delivery volumes dropped by 3.7 percent in 2011 from a year earlier, and by 5.1 percent when just counting Europe and the former Soviet Union. USPS tripled its losses in 2012, losing $15.9 billion as the state-owned enterprise faces tough competition and what it calls onerous and unfair retirement funding requirements." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.S. Postal Service hopes to be the ‘cutting edge of functional fashion’

Baton Rouge sheriff’s office targets gay men under ‘crimes against nature’ law

"A sheriff’s office task force in Baton Rouge, Louisiana has been conducting undercover investigations that target gay men under the state’s defunct sodomy law. At least a dozen gay men have been arrested for agreeing to have sex with undercover officers, according to the report. The District Attorney Hillar Moore III told the Baton Rouge Advocate his office refused to prosecute the cases because they found no criminal violation had occurred. The Baton Rouge sheriff’s office, meanwhile, told the Baton Rouge Advocate that it would continue to prosecute all laws currently on the Louisiana books." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBaton Rouge sheriff’s office targets gay men under ‘crimes against nature’ law

SWAT Officers Dragged 10-Year-Old from Bathtub, Stood Him Naked Next to Sister, Terrorized Family

"Although the team purportedly sought to arrest William for quarreling with a drunk, off-duty police officer at a local veterans club early that morning, the family says that their 'terrorization' continued for another 45 minutes after William was apprehended. The officers threw to the floor, kicked and handcuffed Georgeia, her stepfather and her adult son Billy. They also injured Mark's shoulder and forced Billy to lie face down in broken glass, according to the complaint. When Georgeia pleaded repeatedly that she had young children in the house, at least one officer allegedly stated, 'You think you can get one of ours, and we won't get one of yours?'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSWAT Officers Dragged 10-Year-Old from Bathtub, Stood Him Naked Next to Sister, Terrorized Family