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The Justice Department's seizure of Associated Press reporter's phone records reveals the Obama administrations true intent which is to intimidate & cow truth tellers from exposing secret gov't actions & wrongdoing to investigative reporters. These are police state tactics, not something unilaterally exercised by the Executive branch in a Constitutional democracy.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership, an expansion of the 2005 Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement, is being negotiated as we speak. As Yogi Berra said,"It's deja vu all over again." Is it another NAFTAesque corporate boondoggle, or will it turn out to be a real windfall for working families as its over 600 corporate promoters suggest?
The Justice Department seizure of AP phone records is horrible but what's behind it and what could horrible is a lot worse.
By David Swanson
Drone Pilots Expose Politicians' Lies
... drone pilots have begun talking to the media. And they describe policies that bear a lot closer resemblance to reporting from the areas where the missiles strike. These pilots should be brought before Congress.
Drone Pilots Expose Politicians' Lies
... drone pilots have begun talking to the media. And they describe policies that bear a lot closer resemblance to reporting from the areas where the missiles strike. These pilots should be brought before Congress.
Once again the military and mainstream press are searching for all the reasons for troop suicides except for the quadrupling of drugs being prescribed that cause suicide.
Obama seems to be morphing into Nixon on steroids.
By Press Release
Justice Department Attacks the Press
Whatever the government's rationale for this extreme action, it sends an unmistakable signal: When government officials talk to journalists about matters of compelling public interest, the Justice Department will go to extreme lengths to find out who they are and prosecute them, even if it this requires the kind of government surveillance of journalism that is incompatible with a free press.
Justice Department Attacks the Press
Whatever the government's rationale for this extreme action, it sends an unmistakable signal: When government officials talk to journalists about matters of compelling public interest, the Justice Department will go to extreme lengths to find out who they are and prosecute them, even if it this requires the kind of government surveillance of journalism that is incompatible with a free press.
Leave to the side how morally grotesque it is to oppose rights assaults only when they affect you. The pragmatic point is that it is vital to oppose such assaults in the first instance no matter who is targeted because such assaults, when unopposed, become institutionalized. Once that happens, they are impossible to stop when they expand beyond the group originally targeted.
IRS "scandal" derives from two Supreme Court decisions that gave money more constitutional importance than individual speech.
By Democracy Now
Chris Hedges: Monitoring of AP Phones a "Terrifying" Step in State Assault on Press Freedom
Highlighting the Obama administration's targeting of government whistleblowers, Hedges says: "Talk to any investigative journalist who must investigate the government, and they will tell you that there is a deep freeze. People are terrified of speaking, because they're terrified of going to jail."
Chris Hedges: Monitoring of AP Phones a "Terrifying" Step in State Assault on Press Freedom
Highlighting the Obama administration's targeting of government whistleblowers, Hedges says: "Talk to any investigative journalist who must investigate the government, and they will tell you that there is a deep freeze. People are terrified of speaking, because they're terrified of going to jail."
Are you and I satisfied going through life- doing absolutely nothing to rectify its ills or make it a better place for humans and animals alike? Maybe this post will help you decide.
Attempts by the Israeli diamond industry to get diamond buyers from Dubai to attend a diamond fair in Israeli were scuppered by BDS activists who highlighted the links between Israeli diamonds and the funding of Israeli war crimes in Palestine.
Dr. John McDougall, a pioneer in encouraging dietary changes over drastic medical intervention, offers some perspective on Angelina Jolie's recent revelation.
We've decided to highlight 24 TED talks specifically around food issues that we found compelling and worth sharing.
By Tom Engelhardt
Andy Kroll: A Democracy of the Wealthy
Once upon a time, the election season began with the New Hampshire primary in early March and never really gained momentum (or much attention) until the candidates were chosen and the fall campaign revved up. Now, the New Hampshire primary is in early January, and by then, the campaign season has already been underway for a couple of years.
Andy Kroll: A Democracy of the Wealthy
Once upon a time, the election season began with the New Hampshire primary in early March and never really gained momentum (or much attention) until the candidates were chosen and the fall campaign revved up. Now, the New Hampshire primary is in early January, and by then, the campaign season has already been underway for a couple of years.
Apparently hunting for the "God particle" is not nearly as exciting or lucrative as doing "God's work" for Goldman Sachs. Goldman has recently hired a physicist named Ryan Buckingham away from the Large Hadron Collider at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (a/k/a CERN) in Switzerland, reports Sarah Butcher of the UK Web site eFinancialCareers.
By Martin Hill
Highest Ranking Catholic Patriarch condemns lies and hypocrisy of the U.S. in Syria
High-ranking member of the Catholic hierarchy speaks out against U.S. actions in Syria.
Highest Ranking Catholic Patriarch condemns lies and hypocrisy of the U.S. in Syria
High-ranking member of the Catholic hierarchy speaks out against U.S. actions in Syria.
By Karl Grossman
Fundamental IRS Change Called For
President Obama got it right and wrong when he stated, "If you've got the IRS operating in anything less than a neutral and nonpartisan way, then that is outrageous, it is contrary to our traditions." He was incorrect in saying "it is contrary to our traditions" for the IRS has for decades gone after organizations and individuals that take stands in conflict with the government at the time. Fundamental change is called for.
Fundamental IRS Change Called For
President Obama got it right and wrong when he stated, "If you've got the IRS operating in anything less than a neutral and nonpartisan way, then that is outrageous, it is contrary to our traditions." He was incorrect in saying "it is contrary to our traditions" for the IRS has for decades gone after organizations and individuals that take stands in conflict with the government at the time. Fundamental change is called for.
The Obamam administration seems to be obsessed with leaks and "national security."
The IRS & taxes is a real bucket of snakes for most Americans. That said, why aren't they more enthusiastic about going after political & corporate fat cats?
In a clear warning to Syria to stop the transfer of advanced weapons to Islamic militants in the region, a senior Israeli official signaled on Wednesday that Israel was considering additional military strikes to prevent that from happening and that the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, would face crippling consequences if he retaliated.
Bank crime doesn't seem to appear on the Obama Administration's radar, and it doesn't seem to interest the Holder Justice Department. Law enforcement spends a lot more time evicting homeowners -- including the victims of illegal foreclosure -- than it does arresting lawbreaking bankers. They're wiretapping reporters and jailing leakers, while letting executive-suite criminals go free.
But what of the women like me who do not have insurance or enough money to take the brave actions Angelina took? Are we less brave? We are certainly less valuable in a world that would see any celebrity's body and breasts as more worthy of attention on a daily basis much less when one of those famous souls must endure some bodily alteration through illness or by choice.
President Obama announced Wednesday night that the acting commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service had been ousted after disclosures that the agency gave special scrutiny to conservative groups. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr., meanwhile, warned top I.R.S. officials that a Justice Department inquiry would examine any false statements to see if they constituted a crime.
On the very day that Hawking's decision to boycott the conference was announced, the "civil administration" in Israel agreed to the construction of 296 new housing units in the illegal settlement of Beit El, thus entrenching military occupation and ethnic cleansing.
This article, written for those well-informed re monetary policy, supports a longstanding proposal to replace all Federal Reserve one dollar bills with one dollar United States coins. It quotes at length a related lawsuit against the Treasury now before the Ninth Circuit court of appeal. The complaint and briefs on appeal are available under the Treasury menu at commondada.com.
This kind of behavior is just plain wrong. What really bothers me is what the PTB did to the Occupy movement. If there are so-called "Progressives" that wish to defend Obama and his cronies, they might just wish to take a minute to reflect on how they crushed the most promising populist movement in the 21st Century.
The Republican fixation on Benghazi "talking points" has obscured the bigger scandal of last September's fatal attacks, the CIA's use of the consulate as an operational base without sufficient insufficient security. That failure underscores a series of other unexamined intelligence failures.
What about the Boston Marathon bombing, in which innocent people died seemingly at the hands of anti-American monsters? It's important to ask the tough, even unpopular questions. The Boston story, as we previously noted, is full of question marks and high-stakes implications -- all the more reason to dig beneath the screen of official handouts.
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In the preparation of life
The stability of the life All the leaves fell and Since the time I know life.
The stability of the life All the leaves fell and Since the time I know life.
The Obama administration is sadomasochistic. It enjoys the pain inflicted on it by Republicans and the conservative media (see the controversy over the IRS and the Tea Party) so much, that it voluntarily ups the pain (see AG Holder's criminal investigation of the IRS). And it revels in meting out punishment to whistleblowers and civil servants caught doing their jobs.
While continuing a fierce vigilance against the relentless encroachments of an unhinged, unrestrained and openly murderous government, let us also recognize that the "free market" is, and always has been, a rigged game where vicious predators seek tyrannical control, by hook, crook and vast corruption in every way possible to squeeze out more unjust advantage for themselves.
A common thread runs through many of the nation's tragic mass murders: severe and untreated mental illness.
The ironically named criminal justice system in this country is good at prosecuting and creating many criminals but not very good at producing any justice. The USA would not have the largest prison population of any other country on earth if it did not also have the harshest prosecution and sentencing system of any other country. America's addiction to racism and violence creates outright criminality among police & prosecutors
President Obama Slays Business Killer Myth
There are two pesky myths about Democratic presidents. One is that they are inherently dovish on foreign policy and they are anti-big business in their domestic policy. The GOP myth that Democratic presidents were chronic foreign policy pushovers got some traction in the early going with the GOP attacks on Democratic presidential candidate Obama and for as short time immediately after his election as President.
There are two pesky myths about Democratic presidents. One is that they are inherently dovish on foreign policy and they are anti-big business in their domestic policy. The GOP myth that Democratic presidents were chronic foreign policy pushovers got some traction in the early going with the GOP attacks on Democratic presidential candidate Obama and for as short time immediately after his election as President.
Where else would the NRA look to justify its non-profit status but public service? And what higher American morality is their than Enlightened Self-interest? Who knew what a modern lobbyist must do to justify its existence on a higher plane?
Hit and Stay
The CIA has been so busy consulting on Zero Dark Thirty, not to mention funding Hamid Karzai, bribing Russians, lying about weapons, and conducting humanitarian drone murders, that it didn't have any time at all to help out with Hit and Stay, and yet arguably the latter turned out to be the better film despite such a severe handicap.
The CIA has been so busy consulting on Zero Dark Thirty, not to mention funding Hamid Karzai, bribing Russians, lying about weapons, and conducting humanitarian drone murders, that it didn't have any time at all to help out with Hit and Stay, and yet arguably the latter turned out to be the better film despite such a severe handicap.
Angelina's double-mastectomy, undertaken because she carries the BRCA1 gene which doctors have estimated gave her an 87% chance of having breast cancer, and a 57% chance of having ovarian cancer, is pretty radical news. So now, thanks to Jolie, we're MORE aware. And guess what? There are really, really expensive tests you can get which tell you beforehand how likely you are to get cancer and die!
Best News Links from the Web
A suicide bomber in a car attacked a convoy of foreign troops in Kabul on Thursday, killing at least 15 people including six Americans, Afghan and foreign officials said, in one of the worst attacks in the Afghan capital in months. Forty people were wounded in the blast at around 8 a.m. (0330 GMT) during the morning rush-hour.
Barack Obama fired the most senior tax official in the US on Wednesday in an effort to bring a speedy end to a scandal over the targeting of Tea Party organisations and other conservative groups for special scrutiny. Obama, speaking at the White House, described the conduct of the employees at the Internal Revenue Service office in Cincinnati, Ohio, as "inexcusable." The president said that the Treasury secretary, Jack Lew, had asked the acting commissioner of the IRS, Steven Miller, to resign in the light of a critical report from the inspector general.
This important documentary features some of the often suppressed progressive voices of African/Black people who have insisted on speaking out against the destructive polices (foreign and domestic) of US President, Barack Obama. This documentary details Barrack Obama's record as a war mongering president whose policies have cost the lives of countless civilians in places like Libya, Yemen, Somalia, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Please watch this documentary with your FULL attention and share it in places of worship, community centers and with your loved ones and friends. Let this film be a force for ending imperialism and starting peace., justice and equality.
Doctors, nurses and other licensed medical professionals were among 89 people recently arrested in nine cities, accused of scheming to defraud the Medicare program of nearly $223 million in false billings, the Obama administration announced Tuesday. The defendants face charges of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, money laundering and violating federal anti-kickback statutes for submitting claims to Medicare for purchases, treatments and services that, according to federal officials, either were medically unnecessary or never provided.
On Tuesday, the American, identified as Ryan C. Fogle, who had been officially posted in Russia as the third secretary of the political department of the United States Embassy, was ordered to leave the country by the Russian government, which officially declared him "persona non grata." He was an operative for the Central Intelligence Agency, Russian officials say, and his goal was to recruit a Russian security officer as a spy.
The White House has released 100 pages of internal e-mails that document the development of talking points used by U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice and others following the Sept. 11, 2012 attack on a U.S. diplomatic facility in Benghazi, Libya. The e-mails show that the White House, State Department, FBI and the CIA all participated in shaping the talking points, which have become a flashpoint for critics of the administration's response to the attack.
NASA's planet-hunting Kepler spacecraft has been crippled by the failure of one of the reaction wheels that keep it pointed, the space agency is announcing this afternoon, according to astronomers close to the situation. If engineers cannot restore the wheel or find some other way to keep the spacecraft's telescope pointed, it could spell a premature end to one of the most romantic and successful of NASA's missions: the search for Earth-like planets in habitable orbits around other stars.
Just a Crook? Pentagon Papers Lawyer Thinks Obama Is Worse Than Nixon
James C. Goodale, the so-called "father of reporters' privilege" and the author of a new book called Fighting for the Press (CUNY Journalism Press, 255 pp., $20), was in his office at the Debevoise & Plimpton law firm, where he's a partner, comparing Barack Obama to Richard M. Nixon. "Nixon and Agnew were like listening to a Fox News program all day long, every day," he said. "In their eyes, the Eastern establishment press were against them and they were against it and they were going to destroy it as best they can." But, he said, "Obama has all these things that he's done to the press on national security matters that Nixon never did."
James C. Goodale, the so-called "father of reporters' privilege" and the author of a new book called Fighting for the Press (CUNY Journalism Press, 255 pp., $20), was in his office at the Debevoise & Plimpton law firm, where he's a partner, comparing Barack Obama to Richard M. Nixon. "Nixon and Agnew were like listening to a Fox News program all day long, every day," he said. "In their eyes, the Eastern establishment press were against them and they were against it and they were going to destroy it as best they can." But, he said, "Obama has all these things that he's done to the press on national security matters that Nixon never did."
