Michael Scheuer: Bin Laden predicted Obama’s war on the 4th Amendment

"More than a decade ago, Osama bin Laden appeared in a brief video to speak about several issues. One of them was to advise the Islamic world that they should expect the U.S. military to be defeated. The other was to suggest that Muslims should be prepared to watch the U.S. government strangle the civil liberties of Americans in the name of prosecuting its war against the Islamist mujahedin. We have learned that the bin Laden’s second prediction has come to pass in the Obama administration’s expansion of a Bush-era program to collect electronic information on U.S. citizens who are entirely unrelated to the war against the Islamists." Continue reading

Continue ReadingMichael Scheuer: Bin Laden predicted Obama’s war on the 4th Amendment

Ron Paul: Should We Be Shocked At Government Spying?

"Some of us were arguing back in 2001 with the introduction of the so-called PATRIOT Act that it would pave the way for massive U.S. government surveillance — not targeting terrorists but rather aimed against American citizens. We were told we must accept this temporary measure to provide government the tools to catch those responsible for 9/11. That was nearly 12 years and at least four wars ago. We should know by now that when it comes to government power-grabs, we never go back to the status quo even when the 'crisis' has passed. That part of our freedom and civil liberties once lost is never regained." Continue reading

Continue ReadingRon Paul: Should We Be Shocked At Government Spying?

I’ve Never Been More Outraged at Washington

"If you think there’s been a loss of privacy and liberty since George W. Bush took office 13 years ago, brace yourself ― it’s about to get a lot worse. It’s what happens when governments start to fight for their survival. It happened in Rome. In Byzantium. In the Weimar Republic in Germany. And in countless other countries where governments became desperate for revenue and started losing the confidence of their citizens. They start invading upon citizens’ privacy and liberties. They start regulating everything in sight. And they start taxing just about anything that moves. Why is it about to get a whole lot worse for us Americans? There are several reasons." Continue reading

Continue ReadingI’ve Never Been More Outraged at Washington

Justin Raimondo: Police-State ‘Progressivism’

"Verizon and other carriers are forbidden by law from revealing the court order. A secret court, such as the FISA court – under which this order was issued – isn’t really a court in the Western sense: it is a star chamber affair, a formality that rubber-stamps whatever our rulers desire at the moment. In what sense is the United States a 'free' country, let alone the leader of the 'Free World'? Sure, we have elections: so does Iran. Yes, we have a 'free' press, but what happens when sources are afraid of talking to reporters? With a massive database that may even be tracking our location, America’s political class is making itself invulnerable to any challenge." Continue reading

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Ron Paul: Iraq Collapse Shows Bankruptcy of Interventionism

"May was Iraq's deadliest month in nearly five years, with more than 1,000 dead – both civilians and security personnel – in a rash of bombings, shootings and other violence. Millions live in constant fear, refugees do not return home, and the economy is destroyed. The Christian community, some 1.2 million persons before 2003, has been nearly wiped off the Iraqi map. Other minorities have likewise disappeared. US support for the Syrian rebels next door has drawn the Shi'ite-led Iraqi government into the spreading regional unrest and breathed new life into extremist elements. The invasion of Iraq opened the door to Al-Qaeda in Iraq, which did not exist beforehand..." Continue reading

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Bill Bonner: Fed’s policies are bringing poverty

"The Panic of 1907, before all these 'protections' were put in place, was over in 3 months...followed by full employment. The Crash of 1921 took longer - about 18 months - but when it was over anyone who wanted a job could find one. But now, we've been in the Great Correction for 5 years. Millions of people have given up; they're no longer even looking for work. And suicide has replaced car accidents as the number one threat to working-age Americans. You want to reduce the rate of suicide? Eliminate the barriers to saving, capital formation and employment." Continue reading

Continue ReadingBill Bonner: Fed’s policies are bringing poverty

New $15 Million Bitcoin VC Fund Seeks Edge with Regulatory, Security Skills

"This month Liberty City Ventures launched the $15 million Digital Currency Fund, which seeks to invest in all types of firms in the Bitcoin ecosystem, including exchanges, banks, brokerages, investment services, insurance, infrastructure, and supporting products and services. It is the largest Bitcoin-related investment fund to date. Liberty City Ventures has been involved in the broader Bitcoin ecosystem through mining and currency investing for a number of years. The team is also very familiar with financial services and payment system startups, having recently retained former U.S. Treasury officials and regulators and computer engineers as advisors." Continue reading

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Japan’s False Dawn

"Ever wonder why Main Street investors are always the last ones into a hot stock market … and the last ones to exit long after the investment cools, and usually with losses? I know the answer. The media. Professional investors never tell reporters they’re building positions in a particular stock, a particular industry or a particular market while they’re in the process. That would undermine the advantage they have. Reporters only notice the trend after the trend is apparent. And by then, the end is already near. Which is the case today with Japan." Continue reading

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Bill Bonner: Statistics show the fall of the US economy

"Good news is bad news. Bad news is good news. Up is down and backwards is forwards. Nothing is what it seems...or what it ought to be. If the economy really were doing better the Fed would have to follow through on its promise to 'normalize' monetary policy. That is, it would stop lending at zero interest rates and stop its $85 billion-per-month QE program. But those hocus-pocus programs - not a genuine recovery - are what keep stock prices going up. What this means is that there is no genuine recovery. It's all the smoke of ZIRP and the mirrors of QE. When the magic show ends...so does the illusion of recovery." Continue reading

Continue ReadingBill Bonner: Statistics show the fall of the US economy

Senator Menendez Calls for More Dead Bodies

"There are no vital national interests at stake in Syria. None. Not Iran, not Israel and not oil. Yes, we can watch from the sidelines and let the Iranians and Syrians form their own politics. This is what the U.S. did with Mexico and Canada. Did the U.S. relish interference from Spain, France, Great Britain and Russia into its affairs? How brainless is it to act as if the refugee crisis is an independent reason for intervening, when it is an outcome of the war itself, encouraged every step of the way by the U.S.? And why must the U.S. rectify this tragedy? What good is a 'freedom' that marches us off to wars willy-nilly or grabs our wealth to do what it wills?" Continue reading

Continue ReadingSenator Menendez Calls for More Dead Bodies