statism

‘There’s element of panic in US policy towards Edward Snowden’

"US civil rights activist Norman Solomon tells RT that hardly any government will want to challenge the US in this way. Solomon believes US attempts at grabbing Snowden and bringing him to the US are a sign of panic. No one, including Snowden, is capable of stopping further leaks, as the documents have been handed to journalists or other people who can make them public. Norman Solomon is one of the organizers of the 'Hands Off Edward Snowden!' online campaign, which calls on US citizens to individually email President Obama asking him not to interfere in Snowden’s attempts to seek asylum. 46,000 signatories have already sent emails." Continue reading →

Continue Reading‘There’s element of panic in US policy towards Edward Snowden’

Travel Before Passports

"A century ago, there were no passports. We forget this. Our world would have seemed inconceivable to any free man in the Western world a century ago. People would not have imagined it possible that a person would be unable to cross a border because his nation had revoked his passport. There were no passports to revoke. The Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire, both considered illiberal tyrannies, had passport systems. World War I did more to undermine liberty in the West than any other event of the last century. European states killed about 20 million citizens, and began taking away liberties from those citizens who survived. War is the health of the state." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTravel Before Passports

Creating a Culture of Denunciation

"The Gestapo created a culture of denunciation, which destroyed the goodwill that comes from people living in peace and privacy together. It replaced goodwill and tolerance with suspicion, resentment, paranoia, and the breakdown of civil society; Nazi Germany was a psychological version of Hobbes’s 'war of all against all.' Because denunciation was thus institutionalized in Germany as a norm, the Stasi was able to walk directly into the void left by the Gestapo. How is a culture of denunciation established? The first step is to create an institutional framework that facilitates it." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCreating a Culture of Denunciation

Hemp flag to fly over the Capitol on the 4th of July

"A flag made from hemp will be flown over the U.S. Capitol Building on America’s birthday, according to the Washington Post. Colorado hemp advocate Michael Bowman and Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO) are the two responsible for the deed. Bowman said flying the hemp-flag on the 4th of July was a 'powerful symbol.' Hemp, a non-psychoactive variant of marijuana, was reportedly grown my several of America’s founding fathers. The federal government currently does not distinguish between psychoactive and non-psychoactive variants of the marijuana plant, which makes hemp production a serious crime." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHemp flag to fly over the Capitol on the 4th of July

Military air tankers join fight against deadly Arizona wildfire

"The US military ordered four air tankers to join fire-dousing efforts in Arizona, where firefighters were battling a still out-of-control inferno which killed 19 of their comrades. The Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System (MAFFS) planes will be redeployed from other states to help tackle blazes including the Yarnell Hill fire, which remained zero percent contained despite a doubling of ground crews fighting it. The extra firefighting aircraft, which are specially-equipped military C-130 planes, can drop 3,000 gallons of water or fire retardant in less than five seconds, and can be refilled in less than 12 minutes." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMilitary air tankers join fight against deadly Arizona wildfire

Obama administration pushes new public health research agenda on gun control

"Americans who own or want guns likely will be subject to rafts of new questions from social scientists, medical researchers and law enforcement officials intent to discover just what guns they own, why they own them and what they intend to use them for — not to mention where and how they keep them. They will also likely have more researchers poring over such issues as whether childhood education programs against gun violence actually work; whether there actually is any relationship between violence in the media and in real life; and whether school safety plans drawn up by in the wake of highly publicized mass shootings actually are effective." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingObama administration pushes new public health research agenda on gun control

3D Printer Company Aims to Block Printing of Guns

"A Danish 3D printer company has developed an algorithm that would prevent independent 3D printer owners from being able to print gun part files, adding fuel to the demonization and censorship campaign already being waged against the incredible technology’s powerful potential. According to Create it REAL’s CEO Jeremie Pierre Gay, his company’s line of 3D printers will be sold with the software already loaded that will block files recognized as gun part components before they’re printed – so far namely those needed to assemble the Liberator or Defense Distributed’s lower receiver." Continue reading →

Continue Reading3D Printer Company Aims to Block Printing of Guns

State Department bureau spent $630,000 on Facebook ‘likes’

"State Department officials spent $630,000 to get more Facebook 'likes,' prompting employees to complain to a government watchdog that the bureau was 'buying fans' in social media, the agency's inspector general says. The department's Bureau of International Information Programs spent the money to increase its 'likes' count between 2011 and March 2013. Despite the surge in likes, the IG said the effort failed to reach the bureau's target audience, which is largely older and more influential than the people liking its pages. Only about 2 percent of fans actually engage with the pages by liking, sharing or commenting." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingState Department bureau spent $630,000 on Facebook ‘likes’

Dell’s Cash Overseas Is Needed at Home, But U.S. Taxes Loom Large

"Advisers working on Dell Inc.'s $24.4 billion buyout are trying to solve a problem: how to use the computer maker's foreign cash without paying a $2.6 billion U.S. tax bill. That could be the cost levied to use the money held in foreign subsidiaries. The efforts highlight a current bind of corporate America: While U.S. companies are holding more cash than ever, the tangle of U.S. tax policies and corporate cash-preservation strategies means much of it isn't readily available for some of the most important corporate decisions, such as returning cash to shareholders or mergers and acquisitions." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDell’s Cash Overseas Is Needed at Home, But U.S. Taxes Loom Large

French competition watchdog raids Apple stores

"French competition authorities last week raided several stores of US tech giant Apple following a complaint by failed local firm eBizcuss of unfair trade practices, officials said Tuesday. Officials from the Autorite de la Concurrance confirmed the raids but did not say where they took place and how many outlets were affected. Apple did not comment. The Les Echos financial daily said the the investigators wanted to probe Apple’s relations with its distributors. The firm has been accused of favouring its own stores with the supply of new devices." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFrench competition watchdog raids Apple stores