Winning Hearts & Minds

Tehran residents urged to flee ‘dangerous’ pollution

"Efforts by Tehran officials to boost public transport, including extending the subway lines and establishing lanes for buses only, have barely dented the problem because of the ever-growing number of cars, many of which are inefficient and old. Western sanctions on fuel imports to Iran have also forced the country to rely on its own production of petrol — of a lower grade, and therefore more polluting, than in many other countries." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTehran residents urged to flee ‘dangerous’ pollution

Glenn Greenwald: Laptop seizures by US government highlight 9/11-era climate of fear

"A nation in which liberties are systematically abused - in which limitations on state power are ignored without consequence - is one which gives rise to a climate of fear. This climate of fear, in turn, leads citizens to refrain from exercising their political rights, because they know the government can act against them without real constraints. This morning, the New York Times reports on the US government's practice of targeting US dissidents - or those whom it believes to be engaging in dissent - with extremely invasive border searches, including seizing (and sometimes keeping for months) their laptops and other electronic data, all without any warrants." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGlenn Greenwald: Laptop seizures by US government highlight 9/11-era climate of fear

Anti-drone protesters knocked off course by broad restraining order

"Adams said that he has repeatedly been arrested as he attempted to deliver a letter to the base commander, Colonel Greg Semmel, and others accusing the government of war crimes. The order of protection, issued by Donald Benack, a judge in the Dewitt town court, Onondaga, New York, on 25 October, forbids the 17 activists from contacting Colonel Earl A. Evans. The activists, Adams said, had asked if the order meant they had to stay away from the weekly permitted protest across the road from the base. The response from law enforcement officers: if Evans found it 'irritating' then it did." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAnti-drone protesters knocked off course by broad restraining order

Afghan Children Legitimate Targets, Says U.S. Lt. Col., As They Might Have “Hostile Intent”

"When the war gets to this level--whether or not we believe the Army's assertions that the kids it's killing in Afghanistan deserved it--it's time to rethink whether you are winning hearts and minds, nation rebuilding, or just involved in an endless insane game of blowing shit up and making people so mad they give you what you think is a legitimate excuse to keep blowing shit up." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAfghan Children Legitimate Targets, Says U.S. Lt. Col., As They Might Have “Hostile Intent”

As Europe Plots Closer Ties, Britain Mulls Split

"German Chancellor Angela Merkel called last week for turning the European Commission, which currently drafts legislation and regulates competition, into 'something like a European government.' The phrase alone rattles the teeth of many British politicians, who have warned for decades of the specter of a European superstate. Last month, Cameron faced a huge rebellion within his own party as 81 of the 303 Conservative lawmakers defied his orders and voted to hold an urgent referendum on EU membership in 2015." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAs Europe Plots Closer Ties, Britain Mulls Split

Greeks commemorate 1970s student uprising crushed by US-backed military junta

"Thousands of Greeks marched behind a blood-stained national flag on Saturday to commemorate the violent suppression of a 1973 student uprising against a US-backed military junta. The bloodied flag that flew over the Athens Polytechnic on the night of November 17, 1973 — seen as a key moment in the restoration of democracy to Greece — was carried as usual at the head of the annual demonstration in memory of those who died. Police said about 20,000 people marched in total in the capital. Outside the U.S. embassy, some of the protesters set fire to an American flag." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGreeks commemorate 1970s student uprising crushed by US-backed military junta

Shots fired during FBI warrant search in District Heights

"Around 6 a.m. he says he came up to the living room and saw 15 FBI SWAT agents coming inside, guns drawn. Hughley says he looked up and saw his daughter standing outside her bedroom in the hallway. Then he heard gunfire. Myasia was treated at a local hospital for a flesh wound and released. The Hughley’s say none of them were armed an in fact, none of them own guns. They were never told why their home was raided." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingShots fired during FBI warrant search in District Heights

Sanctions: More Deadly Than The Atomic Bomb?

"Comparing the effects of sanctions vs nuclear bombs. Contrasting the fatalities of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima to those of the sanctions imposed on Iraq in the 1990s. 'Genocide masquerading as policy' as one congressman put it. Should the US do the same to Iran? Are sanctions a legitimate 'diplomatic tool' to avert war?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSanctions: More Deadly Than The Atomic Bomb?

Gaza, an impoverished and besieged sliver of land

"Some 1.6 million Palestinians live in the cramped territory spread over 362 square kilometres (140 square miles) along the Mediterranean, making it one of the most densely populated parts of the world. The economic and humanitarian situation in the enclave has been precarious since Israel imposed an economic embargo after Hamas seized power in 2007. Under its blockade, Israel controls all goods entering the Gaza Strip, except those smuggled through tunnels under the border with Egypt. The blockade also involves a blanket ban on all weapons and munitions." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGaza, an impoverished and besieged sliver of land

Guy Who Started Alabama’s Secession Petition Wants His Topless Car Wash Back

"'I'm working poor. And I work -– I've never taken a dime from the government. I'll starve before I take a handout. That's what being a true American is all about.' Belcher blamed the government for shutting down his former business. Belcher said his Euro Details car wash, which featured topless women, was successful for a decade on Halls Mill Road in Mobile. But he said he was arrested and charged with obscenity by city officials in 2001. 'The government ripped my business away, and now they're choking America to death with rules and regulations,' he said." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGuy Who Started Alabama’s Secession Petition Wants His Topless Car Wash Back