Mainstream News

Do US drone kills need an oversight board? How would it work?

"Should the US establish some sort of secret court to conduct judicial oversight of drone strikes used to kill terror suspects? Committee Chairman Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D) of California said that the time has come to shine a light on the drone program and any other method of targeted killing used in the war against terrorism. She and other senators, she said, were considering legislation establishing a secret court to oversee the targeted killing process, similar to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance court, which now looks at national security wiretap applications within the US." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDo US drone kills need an oversight board? How would it work?

School districts pay dearly for bonds

"Napa is one of at least 1,350 school districts and government agencies across the nation that have turned to a controversial form of borrowing called capital appreciation bonds to finance major projects, a California Watch analysis shows. Relying on these bonds has allowed districts to borrow billions of dollars while postponing payments, in some cases for decades. This form of borrowing has created billions of dollars in debt for taxpayers and hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue for financial advisers and underwriters. Voters are usually unaware of the bonds' high interest. At least one state, Michigan, has banned their use." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSchool districts pay dearly for bonds

Growing number of educators boycott standardized tests

"Since 2002, standardized tests have taken on more significance as federal mandates, beginning with the No Child Left Behind law, pushed schools to give annual tests and report the results publicly. The Obama administration has upped tests' importance by rewarding states whose schools tie student test scores to teacher evaluations. But the decision by a group of Seattle teachers to boycott a standardized test this winter could spill out to other cities as a decade of frustration over testing simmers. Since then, teachers at two more Seattle schools have said they'll sit out the test, with the approval of leading academics and both major U.S. teachers unions." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGrowing number of educators boycott standardized tests

America’s Baby Bust

"For more than three decades, Chinese women have been subjected to their country's brutal one-child policy. Those who try to have more children have been subjected to fines and forced abortions. Their houses have been razed and their husbands fired from their jobs. As a result, Chinese women have a fertility rate of 1.54. Here in America, white, college-educated women—a good proxy for the middle class—have a fertility rate of 1.6. America has its very own one-child policy. And we have chosen it for ourselves. Forget the fiscal cliff, the sequestration cliff and the entitlement cliff. Those are all just symptoms. What America really faces is a demographic cliff." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAmerica’s Baby Bust

The government has your baby’s DNA

"Newborn babies in the United States are routinely screened for a panel of genetic diseases. Since the testing is mandated by the government, it's often done without the parents' consent. In many states, such as Florida, where Isabel was born, babies' DNA is stored indefinitely. Many parents don't realize their baby's DNA is being stored in a government lab, but sometimes when they find out, as the Browns did, they take action. Parents in Texas, and Minnesota have filed lawsuits, and these parents' concerns are sparking a new debate about whether it's appropriate for a baby's genetic blueprint to be in the government's possession." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe government has your baby’s DNA

Massachusetts bans vehicles at 4 p.m.; offenders face fine up to $500, 1 year in jail

"Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick has declared a state of emergency for blizzard that could bring near 3 feet of snow. Patrick signed an executive order banning all vehicles from roadways starting at 4 p.m. today. Ban applies to all roadways, including highways and secondary roads. Any one caught driving after 4 p.m. faces up to one year in jail and $500 fine." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMassachusetts bans vehicles at 4 p.m.; offenders face fine up to $500, 1 year in jail

Crowd packs heat; Oak Harbor, WA backs down

"It's been three weeks since an Oak Harbor city councilmember started a national controversy by trying to kick out a wounded Army veteran who was legally carrying a weapon during a council meeting. Councilmember Rick Almberg then walked out. The council was met by 160 people Tuesday night, many who were packing heat. The city council eventually voted to overturn the ban, which the interim city attorney had told the members was unconstitutional. The council did not call for the resignation of fellow member Almberg, which a few people had called for." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCrowd packs heat; Oak Harbor, WA backs down

Epileptic man mistaken for drug abuser beaten by Indianapolis police, lawsuit claims

"The man's sister, who works nearby, tried to advise officers that he was suffering from epilepsy and not under the influence of drugs, but the lawsuit says officers ignored her. Lynn was booked into jail on charges of resisting arrest, public intoxication and a felony count of disarming a police officer. Lynn's lawyer wrote that he never knowingly tried to grab the officer's Taser during the struggle, and the charges against Lynn were dismissed on Nov. 28, 2012. His lawsuit alleges false arrest, assault, false imprisonment and excessive force by the IMPD officers." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEpileptic man mistaken for drug abuser beaten by Indianapolis police, lawsuit claims

Fugitive Chris Dorner against the LAPD: ‘He knows what he’s doing. We trained him’

"Dorner, 33, who was fired from the LAPD in 2008, is accused of killing three people and wounding two others in self-declared 'unconventional and asymmetrical warfare' against his former comrades, a week-long rampage which terrorised police from San Diego to LA and by Friday had shifted to the icy wilderness of Big Bear. An 11,000 word rambling manifesto he posted on Facebook tried to explain his actions – and listed a 40-person hit list. Schools, stores and hotels were in lockdown and officers in helmets and body armour trekked warily through the snow lest the fugitive, a former navy reservist and trained marksman, a cop killer and a killer cop, had left traps." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFugitive Chris Dorner against the LAPD: ‘He knows what he’s doing. We trained him’

Former Target Store Manager to Oversee Nation’s Nuclear Security

"Ever since last summer, when a 82-year-old nun broke into the Y-12 nuclear weapons complex in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, the National Nuclear Security Administration has scrambled to improve its leadership and beef up security at America's nuke facilities. Now it appears the agency has found the man for the job: NNSA has named as its acting head of nuclear security Steve Asher, a retired Air Force colonel who less than four years ago was working as a 'team leader' at a Target store in Spokane, Washington. Prior to that, he commanded a missile base in Montana that flunked a nuclear security test within five months of his departure." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFormer Target Store Manager to Oversee Nation’s Nuclear Security