State Terrorism

Audio catches cops shouting ‘Burn this motherf*cker!’ during Dorner siege

"Scanner audio apparently broadcast by the Los Angeles CBS affiliate KCAL on Tuesday captured angry officers yelling to 'burn this motherfucker' prior to a cabin fire that is thought to have burned the body of fugitive ex-LAPD officer Christopher Dorner. In a video recording posted to YouTube on Tuesday, the anchor pauses to let the viewer hear the mostly-inaudible scanner traffic. 'Do it right now,' one voice says. 'Fucking burn this motherfucker!' 'Police officers, understandably upset,' the anchor explains. A separate recording of scanner traffic — which has not been verified — features officers talking about going forward 'with the burn.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAudio catches cops shouting ‘Burn this motherf*cker!’ during Dorner siege

Sheriff denies cabin intentionally burnt down with Chris Dorner inside

"San Bernardino Sheriff John McMahon on Wednesday denied that California police had intentionally set a cabin on fire with fugitive ex-LAPD officer Christopher Dorner inside. 'I can tell you that it was not on purpose, we did not intentionally burn down that cabin to get Mr. Dorner out. The tear gas canisters that we used — first off we used a presence when we showed up, a cold tear gas, then the next tear gas was pyrotechnic, which does generate a lot of heat. We introduced those canisters into the residence and a fire arose.' The charred remains found in the Big Bear cabin had not yet been confirmed to be Dorner, but the manhunt had been called off." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSheriff denies cabin intentionally burnt down with Chris Dorner inside

Obama rebukes North Korea over nuke test and calls for ‘swift’ and ‘credible’ action

"US President Barack Obama said Tuesday that North Korea’s 'provocative' nuclear test did not make it more secure and called for 'swift' and 'credible' international action in response. Obama also vowed in a written statement that Washington would remain vigilant in the face of the underground detonation by the Stalinist state and steadfast in its defense commitments to its allies in Asia. 'The danger posed by North Korea’s threatening activities warrants further swift and credible action by the international community,' Obama said, ahead of an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council called for later on Tuesday." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingObama rebukes North Korea over nuke test and calls for ‘swift’ and ‘credible’ action

Barack Obama is pushing gun control at home, but he’s a killer abroad

"His justification for targeted killings and drone strikes in foreign parts, prompted by his nomination of a CIA director, has coincided with his advocacy for stiffer gun control and appeals to respect human life following mass shootings. The result is an administration raising life and death issues in its actions and pronouncements but being unable to talk with any moral authority or ethical consistency on either. The credibility of a president in challenging lawless social violence in US cities is fundamentally undermined when he has his own personal kill list in violation of international law to terminate enemies elsewhere." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBarack Obama is pushing gun control at home, but he’s a killer abroad

Barack Obama’s ‘extreme’ anti-terror tactics face liberal backlash

"President Barack Obama is facing a liberal backlash over his hardline national security policy, which critics say is more extreme and conservative than that pursued by George W Bush. The outrage comes after a week in which Obama’s nominee to be the next head of the CIA, current White House adviser John Brennan, faced a grilling from the Senate intelligence committee over his enthusiastic support of using unmanned drones to strike suspected Islamic militants all over the globe." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBarack Obama’s ‘extreme’ anti-terror tactics face liberal backlash

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?

Paul Craig Roberts: It Has Happened Here

"Some Americans claim that we have had police states during other wartimes and that once the war on terror is won, the police state will be dismantled. Others claim that government will be judicious in its use of the power and that if you are doing nothing wrong you have nothing to fear. These are reassurances from the deluded. The Bush/Obama police state is far more comprehensive than Lincoln’s, Wilson’s, or Roosevelt’s, and the war on terror is open-ended and is already three times longer than World War II. The Police State is acquiring 'squatter’s rights.' Moreover, the government needs the police state in order to protect itself from accountability." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPaul Craig Roberts: It Has Happened Here

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

Reality Check: President Obama’s Rules For Assassinating U.S. Citizens?

"It is a story that has made national headlines in the past twenty four hours but a story Reality Check has been telling you for nearly two years. NBC News obtained a copy of the Obama administration’s rules for assassinating U.S. citizens." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingReality Check: President Obama’s Rules For Assassinating U.S. Citizens?

Incoming CIA Director John Brennan refuses to say whether waterboarding is torture

"At his confirmation hearing on Thursday, President Barack Obama’s nominee for CIA director refused to state whether or not waterboarding was a form of torture. When pressed by Democratic Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan, John Brennan said the simulated drowning technique should be banned. However, he repeatedly declined to label the practice torture." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIncoming CIA Director John Brennan refuses to say whether waterboarding is torture