"ATF set up a undercover sting operation. But criminals stole weapons from them and the ATF, in turn, rips off citizen-landlord. Note also that when the citizen lodges complaints about damages and unpaid bills, he is threatened with criminal charges. Hmm." Continue reading →
"A Kansas City high school will begin collecting hair from students to conduct mandatory drug tests. KHSB-TV reports that Rockhurst High School will start the random drug testing during the 2013-14 school year. The school will collect 60 strands of hair from the student and test for several types of drugs, including marijuana and cocaine. If a student comes back with a positive drug test, that student will have 90 days to get drug-free." Continue reading →
"A New York City woman has threatened to sue the local police department for $250 million for allegedly handcuffing her 7-year-old son and accusing him of beating up another child over $5. According to Frances Mendez, she found her son, Wilson Reyes, cuffed to a wall at 14th Precinct headquarters, after being mistakenly accused of stealing the money. Mendez’s lawyer said in a statement on Monday that the incident occurred last month, when police took the boy out of class and held him in a room at his school for four hours before taking him to the precinct for another six hours, questioning him and charging him with robbery." Continue reading →
"You are stuck with Obamacare if you need health insurance. If you can pay for treatment, you can get treatment far cheaper with no waiting period. Here’s how. No rationing. No standing in line. I like the hospital ship idea. Get on board, sail 200 miles outside the USA, and you get cheap, efficient care. The envy-driven politicians will scream bloody murder. 'The rich are getting good care! They can afford it. It’s just not fair!' This raises some crucial questions. How are they getting good care? 'By not having to deal with America-licensed doctors.'" Continue reading →
"Cook County’s Treasurer has created a website where citizens can find out how far in the hole their governments are. They are all so far in debt that future taxpayers will lose their homes, she says: 'In May, 2012, the collective debt reported by the local primary taxing agencies in Cook County was more than $140 billion! To put that in context, the total debt-per-household in the City of Chicago was $87,720, and $35,774 in the suburbs. Homeowners might be able to give their homes to their children, but that future generation won’t be able to afford to keep them because of the property taxes, which have doubled over a 10-year period.'" Continue reading →
"A warning came Saturday morning from state treasurer Dan Rutherford (R) IL State Treasurer. The Standard and Poor’s downgrade from A to A-minus puts Illinois last on the list– and means a higher cost to borrow money. On Wednesday, the state will issue $500 million in new bonds to pay for roads and other transportation projects. Rutherford says the credit downgrade will cost taxpayers an additional $95 million in interest, when compared to a perfect triple-A bond rating enjoyed by other 11 states including neighboring Indiana, Iowa and Missouri." Continue reading →
"According to the feds, the US GDP shrank 0.1% (annualized) in Q4. These are preliminary figures, of course, and recent revisions have been mostly down. This also comes on the heels of recent news from the UK where the economy shrank, and where, according to The Telegraph, the economy is headed for a 'triple dip.' Most alarmingly, all of this contraction comes as central banks continue to print money like there's no tomorrow, underlying the true weakness in the economy." Continue reading →
"Curious as to how the Defense Department could be spying on you next? PBS checked in with DARPA about the latest in drone camera technology for the NOVA special 'Rise of the Drones,' including the world's highest-resolution camera. Actually seeing the sensor on ARGUS-IS, or Autonomous Real-Time Ground Ubiquitous Surveillance Imaging System, is still classified, but the basics of how it works have been deemed fit for public consumption... It can store a million terabytes of video a day, up to 5,000 hours of footage, so soon drones will not only be able to see everything that happens on the ground, but also keep that record." Continue reading →
"This Cyber Command Unit operates under the command of Gen. Keith Alexander, who also happens to be the head of the National Security Agency, the highly secretive government network that spies on the communications of foreign nationals - and American citizens. The Pentagon's rhetorical justification for this expansion is deeply misleading. Beyond that, these activities pose a wide array of serious threats to internet freedom, privacy, and international law that, as usual, will be conducted with full-scale secrecy and with little to no oversight and accountability, with a small army of private-sector corporations who will benefit most from this expansion." Continue reading →
"Reporters Without Borders on Wednesday launched a new indicator measuring global press freedom by aggregating the scores of its annual index, from perennial table-topping Finland to worst offenders Eritrea. 'In view of the emergence of new technologies and the interdependence of governments and peoples, the freedom to produce and circulate news and information needs to be evaluated at the planetary as well as national level,' the Paris-based watchdog said. Northern European countries topped the rankings of its separate Press Freedom Index, while the small, reclusive African nation of Eritrea came last." Continue reading →