CIA helping boost arms shipments to Syria rebels

"Arab nations and Turkey, helped by the CIA, have dramatically increased military aid to Syrian rebels in recent months, The New York Times reported Monday, citing air traffic data and interviews with unnamed officials and the rebel commanders. The airlift has grown to include more than 160 military cargo flights by Jordanian, Saudi and Qatari military-style cargo planes landing at Esenboga Airport near Ankara, and at other Turkish and Jordanian airports, the report said. US intelligence officers have helped the Arab governments shop for weapons and vetted rebel commanders and groups to determine who should receive the weapons as they arrive." Continue reading

Continue ReadingCIA helping boost arms shipments to Syria rebels

CIA helping boost arms shipments to Syria rebels

"Arab nations and Turkey, helped by the CIA, have dramatically increased military aid to Syrian rebels in recent months, The New York Times reported Monday, citing air traffic data and interviews with unnamed officials and the rebel commanders. The airlift has grown to include more than 160 military cargo flights by Jordanian, Saudi and Qatari military-style cargo planes landing at Esenboga Airport near Ankara, and at other Turkish and Jordanian airports, the report said. US intelligence officers have helped the Arab governments shop for weapons and vetted rebel commanders and groups to determine who should receive the weapons as they arrive." Continue reading

Continue ReadingCIA helping boost arms shipments to Syria rebels

Mayor Bloomberg bankrolls $12 million gun control ad campaign

"New York mayor Michael Bloomberg is bankrolling a $12m advertising blitz in a bid to pressure Congress into adopted stricter gun controls. The television ads are set to run in 13 key states during the congressional recess and are aimed at influencing an upcoming Senate vote on gun reforms. Meanwhile public opinion appears to be wavering. In the immediate aftermath of the Connecticut school massacre, some 52% of Americans were found to be in favour of major restrictions on guns. According to a CNN/ORC poll released last week, that number had dropped to 43%." Continue reading

Continue ReadingMayor Bloomberg bankrolls $12 million gun control ad campaign

Federal judge: ‘Clipping’ news articles violates copyright law

"A US federal judge has ruled that the online news 'clipping' service Meltwater violates copyright law by using excerpts from Associated Press articles, the parties said Thursday. 'Investigating and writing about newsworthy events occurring around the globe is an expensive undertaking and enforcement of the copyright laws permits AP to earn the revenue that underwrites that work,' the judge said in a 91-page opinion. 'Permitting Meltwater to take the fruit of AP’s labor for its own profit, without compensating AP, injures AP’s ability to perform this essential function of democracy.'" Continue reading

Continue ReadingFederal judge: ‘Clipping’ news articles violates copyright law

Bradley Manning and Freedom of the Press

"Reading from a prepared statement, Manning said he was not pressured by WikiLeaks to release the information and that he wanted to give the documents to The Washington Post, The New York Times, and Reuters, but they did not want what he had to offer. He also said the leaked information had 'upset' or 'disturbed' him, but did not contain anything he thought would harm the United States if it became public. Regarding the Collateral Murder video, Manning said the 'most alarming part to me was the seemingly delightful blood-lust' and that those in the video 'seemed to not value human life by referring to them as ‘dead bastards.’'" Continue reading

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Internet sites targeted by British MPs for first time ‘in chilling threat to free speech’

"The internet will be targeted for the first time as the 'chilling' Royal Charter attempts to curb free speech on the majority of websites and blogs, experts warned today. The draft version of the document suggests that foreign-based or owned websites such as Twitter, Huffington Post, Facebook, Holy Moly, the Guido Fawkes political site and even The New York Times will be subject to the stifling controls if their articles are aimed at 'an audience in the UK'. But as confusion mounted about exactly who would be covered, the government said it would leave it entirely up to the new regulator to decide whether major foreign sites should be made to sign up." Continue reading

Continue ReadingInternet sites targeted by British MPs for first time ‘in chilling threat to free speech’

The Similarity Between American & Iranian Media

"Apparantly Iran's State TV photoshopped sleeves onto Michelle Obama's dress when she was busy propagandizing at the Oscars. How horrible, right? Blatant censorship. Perhaps the neocons are right...the 'force for good' must do battle with 'the axis of evil'. The 'force for good' must (with bombs and tanks) set those poor citizens free. Their government only portrays to them what their government wants them to see. Over on this side of the Earth, where 'the force for good' resides, we have 'freedom of the press' and tolerance." Continue reading

Continue ReadingThe Similarity Between American & Iranian Media

Ron Paul: The Sequester ‘Crisis’ And What Should Be Done

"The United States did not collapse last Friday when the package of spending reductions known as 'sequestration' went into effect. The financial markets hardly blinked, as they have come to be more skeptical about these periodic government-hyped 'crises.' What had been portrayed as a drastic reduction in government spending was merely a decrease in the projected rate of increase in government spending over the next decade. Under sequestration, government spending increases by $2.4 trillion over the next 10 years rather than $2.5 trillion without it. So we are speeding toward collapse at only 100 miles per hour instead of 110 miles per hour." Continue reading

Continue ReadingRon Paul: The Sequester ‘Crisis’ And What Should Be Done