No Agenda 574 - Make Happy

Message to the Congress -- Report Consistent with War Powers Resolution | The White House

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Fri, 13 Dec 2013 22:33

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release

December 13, 2013

Dear Mr. Speaker: (Dear Mr. President:)

I am providing this supplemental consolidated report, prepared by my Administration and consistent with the War Powers Resolution (Public Law 93-148), as part of my efforts to keep the Congress informed about deployments of U.S. Armed Forces equipped for combat.

MILITARY OPERATIONS IN SUPPORT OF U.S. COUNTERTERRORISM OBJECTIVES

In furtherance of U.S. counterterrorism efforts, the United States continues to work with partners around the globe, with a particular focus on the U.S. Central Command's and U.S. Africa Command's areas of responsibility. In this context, the United States has deployed U.S. combat-equipped forces to enhance the counterterrorism capabilities and support the counterterrorism operations of our friends and allies, including special operations and other forces for sensitive operations in various locations around the world. Specific information about counterterrorism deployments to select countries is provided below, and a classified annex to this report provides further information.

Military Operations Against al-Qa'ida, the Taliban, and Associated Forces and in Support of Related U.S. Counterterrorism Objectives

Since October 7, 2001, the United States has conducted combat operations in Afghanistan against al-Qa'ida, the Taliban, and associated forces. In support of these and other overseas operations, the United States has deployed combat-equipped forces to a number of locations in the U.S. Central, Pacific, European, Southern, and Africa Command areas of operation. Such operations and deployments have been reported previously, consistent with Public Law 107-40 and the War Powers Resolution, and operations and deployments remain ongoing. These operations, which the United States has carried out with the assistance of numerous international partners, have been successful in seriously degrading al-Qa'ida's capabilities and brought an end to the Taliban's leadership of Afghanistan.

The United States is committed to thwarting the efforts of al-Qa'ida, the Taliban, and associated forces to carry out future acts of international terrorism, and we have continued to work with our counterterrorism partners to disrupt and degrade the capabilities of al-Qa'ida, the Taliban, and associated forces. As necessary, in response to this terrorist threat, I will direct additional measures to protect U.S. citizens and interests. It is not possible to know at this time the precise scope or the duration of the deployments of U.S. Armed Forces necessary to counter this terrorist threat to the United States.

Afghanistan. United States Armed Forces continue to pursue and engage remaining al-Qa'ida and Taliban fighters in Afghanistan while transitioning to an Afghan security lead. There are approximately 55,000 U.S. forces in Afghanistan, and the United States Armed Forces are on track to meet the Afghanistan Force Management Level of 34,000 by February 12, 2014.

The United Nations (U.N.) Security Council most recently extended its authorization of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan until December 31, 2014, in U.N. Security Council Resolution 2120 (October 10, 2013). The mission of ISAF, under North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) command and in partnership with the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is to reduce the capability and will of the insurgency, support the growth in capacity and capability of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF), and facilitate improvements in governance and socio-economic development in order to provide a secure environment for sustainable stability that is observable to the population. Forty-eight nations, including the United States and all 28 NATO members, contribute forces to ISAF. For the last few years, the ISAF campaign has focused on preparing the ANSF for full security transition in 2014.

In June 2013, at the "Milestone 2013" ceremony, the ANSF assumed the lead for security nationwide. ISAF is now in support of the ANSF. The only unilateral operations that ISAF conducts are in support of its own security, sustainment, and redeployment. In the coming months, ISAF will focus on developing the sustainability of the ANSF and assisting the ANSF as the Afghan government plans for the elections in 2014. The security transition process -- as agreed to at the 2010 NATO Summit in Lisbon and reaffirmed at the 2012 NATO Summit in Chicago -- remains on track and the ANSF are expected to assume full responsibility for security across the whole of Afghanistan by the end of 2014.

As I noted in my report of June 14, 2013, on March 25, 2013, the United States signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Afghan government under which the United States transferred all Afghan nationals detained by U.S. forces in Afghanistan to the custody and control of the Afghan government. Pursuant to the MOU, any new Afghan detainees are to be transferred to Afghan custody and control within 96 hours after capture. United States forces in Afghanistan continue to detain approximately 53 third-country nationals under the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force (Public Law 107-40), as informed by the law of war.

Libya. In Libya, on October 5, 2013, U.S. Armed Forces captured longtime al-Qa'ida member Abu Anas al Libi.

Somalia. In Somalia, the U.S. military has worked to counter the terrorist threat posed by al-Qa'ida and associated elements of al-Shabaab. On the night of October 4, 2013, U.S. Armed Forces conducted a raid in Somalia to capture a member of al-Qa'ida who is also a top commander in the terrorist group al-Shabaab. The operation did not result in the capture of the targeted individual.

Yemen. The U.S. military has also been working closely with the Yemeni government to dismantle operationally and ultimately eliminate the terrorist threat posed by al-Qa'ida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), the most active and dangerous affiliate of al-Qa'ida today. Our joint efforts have resulted in direct action against a limited number of AQAP operatives and senior leaders in that country who posed a terrorist threat to the United States and our interests.

Cuba. Combat-equipped forces, deployed since January 2002 to the Naval Base, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, continue to conduct humane and secure detention operations for the approximately 162 detainees at Guantanamo Bay under the authority provided by the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force (Public Law 107-40), as informed by the law of war.

Military Operations in Niger in Support of U.S. Counterterrorism Objectives

As indicated in my report of June 14, 2013, U.S. military personnel in Niger continue to provide support for intelligence collection and to facilitate intelligence sharing with French forces conducting operations in Mali and with other partners in the region. The total number of U.S. military personnel deployed to Niger is approximately 200.

MILITARY OPERATIONS IN CENTRAL AFRICA

In October and November 2011, U.S. military personnel with appropriate combat equipment deployed to Uganda to serve as advisors to regional forces of the African Union Regional Task Force (AU-RTF) that are working to apprehend or remove Joseph Kony and other senior Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) leaders from the battlefield, and to protect local populations. The number of U.S. military personnel deployed to the central Africa region, including advisors deployed for this mission and personnel providing logistical and support functions to this and other missions, is approximately 120.

United States forces are working with select partner nation forces of the AU-RTF to enhance cooperation, information-sharing and synchronization, operational planning, and overall effectiveness. Elements of these U.S. forces have deployed to forward locations in the LRA-affected areas, including the Republic of South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Central African Republic in order to enhance regional efforts against the LRA. These forces, however, will not engage LRA forces except in self-defense. It is in the U.S. national security interest to help our regional partners in Africa to develop their capability to address threats to regional peace and security, including the threat posed by the LRA. The United States is pursuing a comprehensive strategy to help the governments and people of this region in their efforts to end the threat posed by the LRA and to address the impact of the LRA's atrocities.

MARITIME INTERCEPTION OPERATIONS

As noted in previous reports, the United States remains prepared to conduct maritime interception operations on the high seas in the areas of responsibility of each of the geographic combatant commands. These maritime operations are aimed at stopping the movement, arming, and financing of certain international terrorist groups, and also include operations aimed at stopping proliferation by sea of weapons of mass destruction and related materials.

MILITARY OPERATIONS IN EGYPT

Approximately 715 military personnel are assigned to the U.S. contingent of the Multinational Force and Observers, which have been present in Egypt since 1981.

MILITARY OPERATIONS IN JORDAN

As detailed in my report of June 21, 2013, at the request of the Government of Jordan, a combat-equipped detachment of approximately 700 U.S. personnel remain in Jordan following participation in a training exercise that ended on June 20, 2013. The detachment includes Patriot missile systems, fighter aircraft, and related support, command, control, and communications personnel and systems. These forces joined U.S. forces already in Jordan for a total of approximately 1,500 U.S. military personnel. These forces will remain in Jordan, in full coordination with the Government of Jordan, until the security situation becomes such that they are no longer needed.

U.S./NATO OPERATIONS IN KOSOVO

The U.N. Security Council authorized Member States to establish a NATO-led Kosovo Force (KFOR) in Resolution 1244 on June 10, 1999. The original mission of KFOR was to monitor, verify, and, when necessary, enforce compliance with the Military Technical Agreement between NATO and the then-Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (now Serbia), while maintaining a safe and secure environment. Today, KFOR deters renewed hostilities in cooperation with local authorities, bilateral partners, and international institutions. The principal military tasks of KFOR forces are to help maintain a safe and secure environment and to ensure freedom of movement throughout Kosovo.

Currently, 23 NATO Allies contribute to KFOR. Eight non-NATO countries also participate. The U.S. contribution to KFOR is approximately 670 U.S. military personnel out of the total strength of approximately 4,900 personnel.

REGIONAL SECURITY OPERATIONS

As stated in my report of June 14, 2013, U.S. Armed Forces remain in Libya and Yemen to support the security of U.S. personnel. These forces will remain deployed, in full coordination with the respective host governments, until the security situation no longer requires them.

Additional information about regional security operations is provided in the classified annex.

I have directed the participation of U.S. Armed Forces in all of these operations pursuant to my constitutional and statutory authority as Commander in Chief (including the authority to carry out Public Law 107-40 and other statutes) and as Chief Executive, as well as my constitutional and statutory authority to conduct the foreign relations of the United States. Officials of my Administration and I communicate regularly with the leadership and other Members of Congress with regard to these deployments, and we will continue to do so.

Sincerely,

BARACK OBAMA

Presidential Proclamation -- Bill of Rights Day, 2013

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Fri, 13 Dec 2013 22:33

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release

December 13, 2013

BILL OF RIGHTS DAY, 2013

- - - - - - -

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

A PROCLAMATION

When America's Founders declared our independence, they set forth an idea that became our Nation's defining creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." They understood that while these truths have always been self-evident, they have never been self-executing. After 15 years of democratic experimentation and national debate, the Bill of Rights came into force, touching off a long journey to carve America's highest ideals into enduring, enforceable law.

The Bill of Rights is the foundation of American liberty, securing our most fundamental rights -- from the freedom to speak, assemble, and practice our faith as we please to the protections that ensure justice under the law. For almost two and a quarter centuries, these 10 Constitutional Amendments have served as a basis from which civil society could grow and flourish. They have encouraged innovation and defended Americans who questioned, challenged, and dared our Nation to be greater.

Thomas Jefferson once wrote, "I am not an advocate for frequent changes in laws and constitutions, but laws and constitutions must go hand in hand with the progress of the human mind." Our liberties opened heated debate over the questions of citizenship and human rights, driving progress in the American mind. We learned that our Nation, built on the principles of freedom and equality, could not survive half-slave and half-free. We resolved that our daughters must have the same rights, the same chances, and the same freedom to pursue their dreams as our sons, and that if we are truly created equal, then the love we commit to one another must be equal as well. Americans with disabilities tore down legal and social barriers; disenfranchised farmworkers united to claim their rights to dignity, fairness, and a living wage; civil rights activists marched, bled, and gave their lives to bring the era of segregation to an end. As we celebrate the anniversary of the Bill of Rights, let us reach for a day when we all may enjoy the basic truths of liberty and equality.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim December 15, 2013, as Bill of Rights Day. I call upon the people of the United States to mark this observance with appropriate ceremonies and activities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirteenth day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand thirteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-eighth.

BARACK OBAMA

Local man planned suicide attack at Wichita, Kansas, airport, feds say - CNN.com

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Fri, 13 Dec 2013 21:33

By Eliott C. McLaughlin, CNN

updated 3:15 PM EST, Fri December 13, 2013

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Terry Loewen, 58, arrested trying to drive fake explosive onto Wichita airport tarmac"In fact, these explosives were inert," U.S. attorney says, explaining undercover probeLoewen became target of FBI probe this summer and hoped exact "violent jihad," feds sayNo additional arrests expected; Loewen has no ties to local religious communities, feds say(CNN) -- An airport worker was arrested Friday trying to detonate a vehicle packed with explosives he thought were real in a suicide attack at a Wichita Mid-Continent Airport terminal in Kansas, federal officials said.

Authorities are calling him a lone wolf.

Terry Loewen, 58, who was an avionics technician at the airport, was taken into custody without incident about 6:40 a.m. ET "when he attempted to open a security gate with his pass" and drive a vehicle he believed to be packed with explosives onto the airport tarmac, said U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom.

"He planned to pull the trigger on the explosives himself and die in the explosion," a Justice Department news release said.

"In fact, these explosives were inert, and it was not a bomb that would ever explode," Grissom said, adding that the airport perimeter was never breached and "no one was placed in any jeopardy."

The arrest came as part of an undercover FBI probe, according to the Justice Department statement, which didn't provide further details.

Loewen, who became the subject of a federal investigation early this summer, hoped to commit an "act of violent jihad against the United States" and spent months studying the airport's layout, photographing airport access points, researching flight schedules and assisting in the acquisition of car bomb components, Grissom said.

Loewen hoped to detonate his bomb during peak traffic time for the airport, exacting maximum destruction, Grissom said.

Loewen is charged with one count of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction, one count of attempting to damage property by means of an explosive and one count of attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization.

Officials did not answer questions or elaborate on the third charge during a Friday news conference.

FBI Evidence Response Teams are executing search warrants related to the case, and the investigation is ongoing, the Justice Department said.

No additional arrests are expected, Grissom said, and Loewen was not working with any "religious community" in Wichita.

If convicted, Loewen would face a maximum penalty of life in prison.

"Lone wolves, homegrown violent extremists, remain a very serious threat to our nation's security," FBI Special Agent in Charge Michael Kaste said in a news release. "Today's arrest emphasizes the continual need for the public to remain vigilant as law enforcement relies on the public's assistance."

The Wichita Mid-Continent Airport is west of the city and is the busiest airport in Kansas.

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Active Shooter Drills in Littleton, Colorado Same Day as School Shooting

Active Shooter Drills in Littleton, Colorado Same Day as School Shooting | Citizens for Legitimate Government

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WAR ON CRAZY-We can longer no allow sick individuals like Adam Lanza to go on untreated | Matthew Lysiak | Comment is free | theguardian.com

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Sun, 15 Dec 2013 00:26

Adam Lanza, 20, used three weapons to shoot 26 people dead, 20 of them school children, and then shot himself at Sandy Hook elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut. Photograph: Enterprise News and Pictures

There is a powerful lesson that can be learned from the tragedy of 14 December 2012, but while our attention has focused on gun legislation and tightening up school security measures, my fear is that we have neglected the problem at the core of this recent spat of mass shootings; the fatal flaw in America's mental health system.

In the case of Adam Lanza, we have a young man who had been suffering from mental illness since childhood. From a young age, the smallest sense of touch, light, or sound could be enough to cause him to withdraw completely into isolation. As he got older, that isolation grew into obsessions over mass killers and weaponry.

In the months before the killing, Adam was left alone in his room. Black garbage bags covered the windows to keep out the light. He spend hours playing violent first-person video games, where he held a gun in his hand, shooting his way through human after human. He had cut off those closest to him, his father, brother, and in the final months, his mother, Nancy Lanza.

We know that Nancy Lanza recognized early on that her son was suffering from mental illness. We know she had sought professional help. Remarkably, we also know that Adam was not on medication or being treated.

How could this happen?

Adam Lanza is just the latest mass shooter to suffer from severe mental illness. We saw Aaron Alexis, the man who shot up the Washington Navy Yard in September, who believed people were tracking him by sending vibrations through microwave ovens into his body. There was James Holmes who shot up an Aurora, Colorado movie theater, Jared Loughner, the shooter from Tucson, Arizona, and the Virginia Tech shooter, Seung-Hui Cho.

While violence overall has been trending downward, the list of carnage caused by mass shootings continues to escalate.

Over the last three decades, the overall national homicide rate has fallen from 10 per 100,000 in 1980 to 4 per 100,000 today, but the number of mass shootings has risen from 4 per year, between 1900 and 1970, to 29 per year since then.

It is no coincidence that this rise correlates with the closure of the mental health institutions in 1969. After they were shuttered, they were supposed to be replaced by community outreach programs. Sadly, these programs never took root and many parents who are dealing with severe mental illness feel they are out of options.

Many of the parents I've spoken to fear their mentally-disturbed son or daughter might be capable of committing a terrible act of violence, but without the mental institutions, in many cases their only alternatives are the emergency room or law enforcement, neither of which are equipped to deal with those suffering from severe mental illnesses. In large part, that void has been filled by the United States prison system.

Debates over school security and guns are both important issues in their own right, but let's not fool ourselves; the next mass shooter is out there. He is plotting. Like those before him, there is a high probability he is suffering from severe mental illness, and, also like these others, his sickness is not being treated.

My fear is that if we don't act, we are in the midst of a trend that is poised to continue well into the foreseeable future. Until we deal with the issue of what to do with those suffering from mental illness who remain untreated, we can expect this pattern of mass shootings to continue.

If Americans are serious about stopping the next mass shooter, they will finally decide to do something about the dangerously mentally ill. The Avielle Foundation, named after Avielle Richman, a victim at Sandy Hook, is looking into the field of mental health for proactive ways to prevent the next tragedy.

The statistics are shocking: one in five adults experience a mental illness and forty-five million Americans suffer from depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, or PTSD. The majority of those suffering with mental illness will go untreated. Reaching those who are untreated will go a long way in not only preventing future mass killings, but unleashing this group of productive individuals back into our society.

The mission of The Avielle Foundation, as described on its website, "is bridging behavioral and biochemical sciences" and decreasing the "shame, secrecy, and stigma associated with brain illness; and ultimately facilitate appropriate early-identification and prevention/intervention methods to prevent violence".

Simply put, the lesson of 14 December 2012, is that we no longer have the luxury of allowing sick individuals like Adam Lanza to go on untreated.

' This article was updated on 14 December 2013 to correct an error in the headline.

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2 injured in 'active shooter situation' at Arapahoe High School | 9news.com

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The Denver Post Explains Their Edit of 'Socialist'

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Sat, 14 Dec 2013 23:19

The Denver Post Explains Their EditAs you know, a classmate described the Arapahoe shooter as "a very opinionated Socialist."

Well that won't do. That won't do at all.So the Denver Post edits this to say the boy was "very opinionated."Now they explain the reason for cutting "Socialist" out of his description. You see, the student who described him that way probably didn't even understand (the wonders of) Socialism.And yet they left in a statement that he was a Keynesian, deep into the article.Here's how the Denver Post begins its article:The teenage gunman who entered Arapahoe High School on Friday afternoon and shot two fellow students with a shotgun was outspoken about politics, was a gifted debater and might have been bullied for his beliefs, according to students who knew him.Arapahoe County Sheriff Grayson Robinson identified the gunman as Karl Pierson, an 18-year-old student."He had very strong beliefs about gun laws and stuff," said junior Abbey Skoda, who was in a class with Pierson during her freshman year. "I also heard he was bullied a lot."

You might imagine -- as the Denver Post would clearly like you to imagine -- that the boy's "very strong beliefs about gun laws and stuff" located him on the right. The average Low Information Voter, after all, would assume a school shooter's views on "gun laws and stuff" were pro-gun.This is deliberately misleading. He was in fact a bitter opponent of gun rights (ironically, or maybe not so ironically, enough):Pierson also appears to mock Republicans on another Facebook post, writing "you republicans are so cute" and posting an image that reads: "The Republican Party: Health Care: Let 'em Die, Climate Change: Let 'em Die, Gun Violence: Let 'em Die, Women's Rights: Let 'em Die, More War: Let 'em Die. Is this really the side you want to be on?"

The Denver Post reported that deeper in the article. If it was clear that he was anti-gun rights -- as it is clear -- why leave it vague in the important opening paragraphs of the article?That makes their deletion of the Socialist descriptor all the more suspicious.They will imply he's on the right while deliberately editing out facts placing him on the hard left.Posted by: Ace at 05:32 PM

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karl pierson bullied - Google Search

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Sat, 14 Dec 2013 23:17

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Colorado school shooting victim Claire Davis is still 'fighting for her life'www.nydailynews.com/.../teenage-gunman-strong-beliefs-gun-laws-article-1. 1547638

1 hour ago ...Karl Pierson, shown here in a photo posted on his Facebook page, ...KarlPierson later took his own life. ... "I also heard he was bullied a lot.".Debate coach praised for leading Arapahoe High School shooter ...www.dailymail.co.uk/.../Debate-coach-praised-leading-Arapahoe-High- School-shooter-Karl-Pierson-outside.html

11 hours ago ... The shooter: Karl Pierson, a senior at Arapahoe High School, has been ... 'I couldsee that he was bullied but he was always very humble and ...Karl Halverson Pierson, 18, injured two students at Arapahoe High ...www.news.com.au/world/two...in.../story-fndir2ev-1226783250108

9 hours ago ...Karl Halverson Pierson reportedly asked for a teacher by name when he turnedup at school armed with a ... "I also heard he was bullied a lot.".Colorado shooter was said to be targeting his school debate coach ...www.latimes.com/.../la-na-nn-colorado-school-shooter-identified-20131213, 0,7601970.story

15 hours ago ...Karl Halverson Pierson, 18, was said to be angry at the school debate coach andentered the school ... ''He was bullied a bit, but he didn't stop.12 Karl Pierson Photos - Arapahoe High School Shooter Name ...www.everyjoe.com/.../karl-pierson-photos-arapahoe-high-school-shooter- gunman/

22 hours ago ... Report: Karl Pierson is the Arapahoe High School Gunman. Posted in ... Friendsdescribe him as a nerdy kid who may have been bullied.Karl Pierson: Portrait of the Arapahoe High School shooting ...www.csmonitor.com/.../Karl-Pierson-Portrait-of-the-Arapahoe-High-School- shooting

6 hours ago ...Karl Pierson was a bright student and enthusiastic high school debater ... somesuggestions that he might have been bullied now and then, ...As Centennial, Colo., Picks Up The Pieces, Sandy Hook Marks ...www.npr.org/.../as-centennial-colo-picks-up-the-pieces-sandy-hook-marks- anniversary

6 hours ago ... The Denver Post reports that suspected gunman Karl Pierson may have beenbullied, but he was bright, a member of the track and debate ...Colorado, Centennial, Arapahoe High School, shooting, Karl...www.petaluma360.com/article/20131214/WIRE/131219734/.../news?...

25 minutes ago ...Karl Pierson, 18, critically wounded a student before apparently killing himselfFriday at ... None said Pierson was bullied for his beliefs.arapahoe high school shooting Karl Pierson sad hill newssadhillnews.com/...bullying.../arapahoe-high-school-shooting-karl-pierson- sad-hill-news

Arapahoe High Shooter '' A Bullying Left Wing 'Keynesian' Extremist · arapahoehigh school shooting Karl Pierson sad hill news. On 12.14.13, in , by Sad Hill.

Karl Pierson: Portrait of the Arapahoe High School shooting - CSMonitor.com

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Sat, 14 Dec 2013 23:16

Karl Pierson was a bright student and enthusiastic high school debater who got into trouble with his debate coach. Were there signs that his anger would lead to gunshots and suicide?

A bright student who voiced strong opinions in class and on the debate team (especially about gun rights), dividing his time between divorced parents, some suggestions that he might have been bullied now and then, a run-in with a teacher who had ordered him suspended when the student threatened the man.

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On the surface, and like so many other school shootings, there seems to have been an accumulation of events '' warning signs, perhaps '' why Karl Halverson Pierson might have taken a shotgun to Arapahoe High School in Centennial, Colo., looking for the teacher with whom he had had a disagreement but shooting a girl who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time before ending his own life in an empty classroom just minutes after walking into the school.

Informed speculation, but speculation nevertheless. And it's likely to be some time before the full story behind this ''unspeakable horror in a place of learning,'' as Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper put it Friday, is told.

Here's what officials and others '' mainly fellow students '' are saying about 18 year-old Mr. Pierson and about what unfolded.

Pierson had been a member of the school's debate team, but had been kicked off the team by the debate coach, identified in several news reports as Tracy Murphy, who is also the school's librarian. At some point, Pierson was suspended from school for having threatened Mr. Murphy.

When Pierson entered the school at about 12:30 pm Friday, carrying a shotgun he made no effort to conceal, he immediately began shouting for Murphy.

When the teacher heard that he was being targeted, he left "in an effort to try to encourage the shooter to also leave the school," Arapahoe County Sheriff Grayson Robinson said. "That was a very wise tactical decision."

Pierson fired several shots, hitting '' although apparently not targeting '' a 15 year-old female student, who is now being treated at a local hospital and listed in critical condition.

Two suspected Molotov cocktails were also found inside the school, the sheriff said. One detonated, though no one was injured.

Some students have suggested that Pierson was picked on at times, although he wasn't afraid to push back verbally.

''I had class with him and knew he was very outspoken and willing to contribute, and also that he had a controlled temper he would use during discussion,'' Carl Schmidt, a fellow senior, told the Los Angeles Times.

"A lot of people picked on him, but it didn't seem to bother him,'' Thomas Conrad, who had an economics class with Pierson, told the Denver Post.

High school senior Frank Woronoff told CNN he had known Pierson since they were freshmen together.

"He was the last person I would expect to shoot up a high school. He was honestly incredibly humble and down to earth. He was a little geeky but in a charming way," he said.

As gunshots echoed through school hallways, teachers immediately began following the school's protocol '' locking doors, turning off lights, and herding students to the back corners of classrooms or into storage rooms. It was a tactic schools adopted after the 1999 Columbine High School massacre in nearby Littleton, Colo. When everyone scrambled to escape, some jumping from windows and racing through the firing zone.

Senior Megan Jeffords, 18, was singing Christmas carols in the hall with her choir class when the shots rang out. A teacher rushed the 18 singers into a closet, where they huddled for more than half an hour, the Associated Press reported.

Hours later, after Ms. Jeffords was reunited with her father, she was still visibly shaken and unable to talk much about what happened.

The school resource officer '' an Arapahoe County deputy sheriff '' immediately went looking for the source of the gunfire. By the time he found it, Pierson had shot and killed himself.

Other police officers and sheriff's deputies had followed the same post-Columbine protocol '' immediately entering the school in search of the shooter rather than setting up a perimeter around the school and waiting for SWAT teams to arrive.

Sheriff Robinson says this likely saved lives.

"This kid, the officers went right to him literally within minutes," Gov. Hickenlooper said at a press briefing Friday. "That is a world of change from the way response used to happen."

Students are shocked that another school shooting has now involved them, perhaps more so that the shooter was a classmate who had wanted to go to the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

Looking for reasons behind the attack '' as well as such details as where Karl Pierson got the shotgun '' authorities have obtained search warrants for Pierson's mother's home in Highlands Ranch, his father's home in Denver, and his car, found in the school parking lot.

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Silent Night: Giffords' Super PAC Releases Ad for Newtown Anniversary | Crooks and Liars

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China's moon rover leaves traces on lunar soil

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Source: Phys.org - latest science and technology news stories

Sun, 15 Dec 2013 13:49

China's moon rover leaves traces on lunar soil2 hours ago by Louise WattThis image taken from video, shows China's first moon rover touching the lunar surface and leaving deep traces on its loose soil on Sunday, Dec. 15, 2013, several hours after the country successfully carried out the world's first soft landing of a space probe on the moon in nearly four decades. The 300-pound "Jade Rabbit" rover separated from the much larger landing vehicle early Sunday, around seven hours after the unmanned Chang'e 3 space probe touched down on a fairly flat, Earth-facing part of the moon. The writing at the top of the image reads "Surveillance camera C image." (AP Photo/CCTV VNR via AP video)

China's first moon rover has touched the lunar surface and left deep traces on its loose soil, state media reported Sunday, several hours after the country successfully carried out the world's first soft landing of a space probe on the moon in nearly four decades.

The 140-kilogram (300-pound) "Jade Rabbit" rover separated from the much larger landing vehicle early Sunday, around seven hours after the unmanned Chang'e 3 space probe touched down on a fairly flat, Earth-facing part of the moon.

State broadcaster China Central Television showed images taken from the lander's camera of the rover and its shadow moving down a sloping ladder and touching the surface, setting off applause in the Beijing control center. It said the lander and rover, both bearing Chinese flags, will take photos of each other Sunday evening.

Later, the six-wheeled rover will survey the moon's geological structure and surface and look for natural resources for three months, while the lander will carry out scientific explorations at the landing site for one year.

The mission marks the next stage in an ambitious space program that aims to eventually put a Chinese astronaut on the moon. China's space program is an enormous source of pride for the country, the third to carry out a lunar soft landing'--which does not damage the craft and the equipment it carries'--after the United States and the former Soviet Union. The last one was by the Soviet Union in 1976.

This Saturday Dec. 14, 2013 photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, shows a picture of the moon surface taken by the on-board camera of the lunar probe Chang'e-3 on the screen of the Beijing Aerospace Control Center in Beijing, capital of China. China on Saturday successfully carried out the world's first soft landing of a space probe on the moon in nearly four decades, the next stage in an ambitious space program that aims to eventually put a Chinese astronaut on the moon. (AP Photo/Xinhua, Wang Jianmin) NO SALES

"It's still a significant technological challenge to land on another world," said Peter Bond, consultant editor for Jane's Space Systems and Industry. "Especially somewhere like the moon, which doesn't have an atmosphere so you can't use parachutes or anything like that. You have to use rocket motors for the descent and you have to make sure you go down at the right angle and the right rate of descent and you don't end up in a crater on top of a large rock."

On Saturday evening, CCTV showed a computer-generated image of the Chang'e 3 lander's path as it approached the surface of the moon, saying that during the landing period it needed to have no contact with Earth. As it was just hundreds of meters (yards) away, the lander's camera broadcast images of the moon's surface.

The Chang'e 3's solar panels, which are used to absorb sunlight to generate power, opened soon after the landing.

The mission blasted off from southwest China on Dec. 2 on a Long March-3B carrier rocket. It is named after a mythical Chinese goddess of the moon and the "Yutu" rover, or "Jade Rabbit" in English, is the goddess' pet.

China's military-backed space program has made methodical progress in a relatively short time, although it lags far behind the United States and Russia in technology and experience.

China sent its first astronaut into space in 2003, becoming the third nation after Russia and the United States to achieve manned space travel independently. In 2006, it sent its first probe to the moon. China plans to open a space station around 2020 and send an astronaut to the moon after that.

"They are taking their time with getting to know about how to fly humans into space, how to build space stations ... how to explore the solar system, especially the moon and Mars," Bond said. "They are making good strides, and I think over the next 10-20 years they'll certainly be rivaling Russia and America in this area and maybe overtaking them in some areas."

Explore further:China successfully soft-lands probe on the moon

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China ready to land robot rover on Moon

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Source: Hacker News

Sat, 14 Dec 2013 07:39

13 December 2013Last updated at 15:06 ET By Paul RinconScience editor, BBC News websiteChina is set to land a robotic rover on the surface of the Moon, a major step in the Asian superpower's ambitious programme of space exploration.

On Saturday afternoon (GMT), a landing module will undergo a powered descent, using thrusters to perform the first soft landing on the Moon in 37 years.

Several hours later, the lander will deploy a robotic rover called Yutu, which translates as "Jade Rabbit".

The touchdown will take place on a flat plain called the Bay of Rainbows.

The Chang'e-3 mission launched on a Chinese-developed Long March 3B rocket on 1 December from Xichang in the country's south.

Continue reading the main storyChina is saying: 'We are doing something that only two other countries have done before - the US and the Soviet Union''

End QuoteDean ChengHeritage Foundation"On the evening of December 14, Chang'e-3 will carry out a soft landing on the lunar surface," said a post on the mission's official blog on Sina Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter.

The task was described as the mission's "most difficult" in the post, written by the Chinese Academy of Sciences on behalf of the space authorities.

It is the third robotic rover mission to land on the lunar surface, but the Chinese vehicle carries a more sophisticated payload, including ground-penetrating radar which will gather measurements of the lunar soil and crust.

The 120kg (260lb) Jade Rabbit rover can reportedly climb slopes of up to 30 degrees and travel at 200m (660ft) per hour.

Its name - chosen in an online poll of 3.4 million voters - derives from an ancient Chinese myth about a rabbit living on the moon as the pet of the lunar goddess Chang'e.

According to translated documents, the landing module will begin actively reducing its speed at about 15km from the Moon's surface.

When it reaches a distance of 100m from the surface, the craft will fire thrusters to slow its descent.

At a distance of 4m, the lander switches off the thrusters and free-falls to the lunar surface.

The Jade Rabbit is expected to be deployed on Saturday evening, driving down a ramp lowered by the Chang'e-3 landing module.

Reports suggest the lander and rover will photograph each other at some point on Sunday.

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The Chang'e-3 mission launches from Xichang, south China

According to Chinese space scientists, the mission is designed to test new technologies, gather scientific data and build intellectual expertise.

Dean Cheng, a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think-tank in Washington DC, said China's space programme was a good fit with China's concept of "comprehensive national power". This might be described as a measure of a state's all-round capabilities.

Space exploration was, he told BBC News, "a reflection of your economic power, because you need spare resources to have a space programme. It clearly has military implications because so much space technology is dual use".

He added: "It reflects your scientific and technological capabilities, it supports your diplomacy by making you appear strong.

"China is saying: 'We are doing something that only two other countries have done before - the US and the Soviet Union."

Mr Cheng explained that the mission would provide an opportunity to test China's deep-space tracking and communications capability.

"The rover will reportedly be under Earth control at various points of its manoeuvres on the lunar surface," Mr Cheng wrote in a blog post.

"Such a space observation and tracking system has implications not only for space exploration but for national security, as it can be used to maintain space surveillance, keeping watch over Chinese and other nations' space assets."

The European Space Agency said it would provide communications support on the mission. Erik Sorenson, head of ground facilities at the European Space Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany, said Esa's tracking facilities would be able to reconstruct the craft's trajectory during descent and determine its precise location on the Moon.

China has been methodically and patiently building up the key elements needed for an advanced space programme - from launchers to manned missions in Earth orbit to unmanned planetary craft - and it is investing heavily.

The lander's target is Sinus Iridum (Latin for Bay of Rainbows) a flat volcanic plain thought to be relatively clear of large rocks. It is part of a larger feature known as Mare Imbrium that forms the right eye of the "Man in the Moon".

After this, a mission to bring samples of lunar soil back to Earth is planned for 2017. And this may set the stage for further robotic missions, and - perhaps - a crewed lunar mission in the 2020s.

"[Chang'e-3] is probably laying some of the groundwork for a manned mission," said Mr Cheng.

Paul.Rincon-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter

China's Chang'e-3 probe soft-lands on moon - Xinhua | English.news.cn

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Archived Version

Sat, 14 Dec 2013 22:29

BEIJING, Dec. 14 (Xinhua) -- China's lunar probe Chang'e-3, with the country's first moon rover onboard, landed on the moon on Saturday night, marking the first time that China has sent a spacecraft to soft land on the surface of an extraterrestrial body.

Backgrounder: Timeline of China's lunar program

Special Report: China's lunar explorations

Graphics: Launch procedure of Chang'e-3 lunar probe

Lunar mission: craft to conduct re-entry tests before 2015

BEIJING, March 14 (Xinhuanet) -- An experimental spacecraft will be launched before 2015 to conduct crucial re-entry tests on the capsule to be used in the Chang'e-5 lunar-sample mission, a leading space program official said.

Chang'e-5 is expected to be China's first lunar explorer to return to Earth. The mission will be carried out before 2020.Full story

Chinese probe reaches record height in space travel

BEIJING, July 14 (Xinhua) -- China's space probe Chang'e-2 has flew to an outer space about 50 million km from the Earth, marking a new height in the nation's deep space exploration, Chinese scientists said on Sunday.

The probe, which is now "in good conditions", reached the height at around 1 a.m. Sunday Beijing Time, the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence(SASTIND) said in a statement.Fullstory

Lunar probe, space exploration is China's duty to mankind

BEIJING, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- A chief designer with China's second lunar probe project has said that the country's lunar pursuit, while lagging behind Russia and the United States for more than 40 years, is still important because space exploration is part of the country's responsibility towards mankind.

"The most fundamental task for human beings' space exploration is to research on human origins and find a way for mankind to live and develop sustainably," said Qian Weiping, chief designer of the Chang'e-2 mission's tracking and control system.Full story

China calls for int'l cooperation in manned space program

BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese astronaut research and training official Wednesday called for international cooperation to promote the development of manned space technologies.

China has long been pushing for international cooperation in manned space program under the principles of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit, as well as of transparency and opening, said Deng Yibing, director of China Astronaut Research and Training Center.Full story

In pictures: Chang'e-3 soft-lands on moon - Xinhua | English.news.cn

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Archived Version

Sat, 14 Dec 2013 22:29

Photo taken on Dec. 14, 2013 shows the lunar probe Chang'e-3 on the screen of the Beijing Aerospace Control Center in Beijing, capital of China. China's lunar probe Chang'e-3, with the country's first moon rover onboard, landed on the moon on Saturday night, marking the first time that China has sent a spacecraft to soft land on the surface of an extraterrestrial body. (Xinhua/Jin Liangkuai)

Backgrounder: Timeline of China's lunar program

Special Report: China's lunar explorations

Graphics: Launch procedure of Chang'e-3 lunar probe

Lunar mission: craft to conduct re-entry tests before 2015

BEIJING, March 14 (Xinhuanet) -- An experimental spacecraft will be launched before 2015 to conduct crucial re-entry tests on the capsule to be used in the Chang'e-5 lunar-sample mission, a leading space program official said.

Chang'e-5 is expected to be China's first lunar explorer to return to Earth. The mission will be carried out before 2020.Full story

Chinese probe reaches record height in space travel

BEIJING, July 14 (Xinhua) -- China's space probe Chang'e-2 has flew to an outer space about 50 million km from the Earth, marking a new height in the nation's deep space exploration, Chinese scientists said on Sunday.

The probe, which is now "in good conditions", reached the height at around 1 a.m. Sunday Beijing Time, the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence(SASTIND) said in a statement.Fullstory

Lunar probe, space exploration is China's duty to mankind

BEIJING, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- A chief designer with China's second lunar probe project has said that the country's lunar pursuit, while lagging behind Russia and the United States for more than 40 years, is still important because space exploration is part of the country's responsibility towards mankind.

"The most fundamental task for human beings' space exploration is to research on human origins and find a way for mankind to live and develop sustainably," said Qian Weiping, chief designer of the Chang'e-2 mission's tracking and control system.Full story

China calls for int'l cooperation in manned space program

BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese astronaut research and training official Wednesday called for international cooperation to promote the development of manned space technologies.

China has long been pushing for international cooperation in manned space program under the principles of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit, as well as of transparency and opening, said Deng Yibing, director of China Astronaut Research and Training Center.Full story

China's Jade Rabbit rover lands on the Moon

Talks with China begin on high-speed railway from Vienna to Black Sea - Travel News - Austrian Independent Online News - English Newspaper

Turkey-China missle deal could be financially less attractive

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Sat, 14 Dec 2013 22:17

A move in Congress' 2014 defense spending bill banning the use of U.S. funding to integrate a Chinese air and anti-missile defense shield with NATO/U.S. systems was not surprising for the Turkish defense bureaucracy, but it may make the Chinese offer ''financially less attractive,'' Turkish officials and defense industry sources have said. A U.S. diplomat said the budget move aimed to block ''the silly idea'' that a Turkish-Chinese air defense system could be made interoperable with NATO/U.S. assets with the help of U.S. money. ''Why should Washington sponsor something that it views as being against the nature of allied defense. Remember, the U.S. is the top sponsor of NATO money, and it has a right to say where this money is to be used and where it is not,'' the diplomat said. Turkey's defense procurement bureaucracy remains divided regarding possible repercussions. ''We are not surprised by this. But this is not a game changer during the process. We would expect our American allies to try and improve their own offers instead of trying to apply more pressure. At the end of the day, we may not need the U.S. or NATO and instead just use our own money to make the system interoperable,'' one senior procurement official said. But another official familiar with the program said that Congress' move probably aimed to make the Chinese solution financially less attractive. ''If we use Turkish money to make the system interoperable with NATO assets it will make the Chinese offer more expensive than it is. If the Chinese are prepared to share the extra burden it will make the contract less attractive for the Chinese,'' the official said. According to Congress' budget plan, if the 2014 U.S. defense spending bill goes through as proposed, it will ban the use of U.S. funding to integrate Chinese missile defense systems with U.S. or NATO systems.Murad Bayar, the head of the Undersecretariat for Defense Procurement, told the H¼rriyet Daily News in an October interview that full integration with NATO assets was an explicit condition in the contract for the planned air defense system. ''As part of this program, a Turkish defense company will be tasked with integrating the air defense system into a network operated by the Turkish Air Force. That integration will mean integration with NATO assets, too, since the Turkish system is fully integrated with the NATO system,'' Bayar said. The Chinese bid from China Precision Machinery Export-Import Corp. (CPMIEC), which won the tender on Sept. 26, came in at $3.44 billion. The initial contract price was estimated at $4 billion.Turkish Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz announced after a high level defense industry meeting on Sept. 26 that a contract for the construction of long-range air and anti-missile system had been awarded to the China Precision Machinery Export-Import Corp. (CPMIEC). The Chinese contender defeated a U.S. partnership of Raytheon and Lockheed Martin, offering the Patriot air defense system; Russia's Rosoboronexport, marketing the S-300; and the Italian-French consortium Eurosam, maker of the SAMP/T Aster 30.Under the program, dubbed T-LORAMIDS, Turkey is currently holding contract negotiations with CPMIEC, the front-runner of the competition and, if these talked fail, will start negotiations with the Eurosam consortium, the second best offer according to a grading of bids. The U.S. Patriot system was ranked third, and the Russian option has been eliminated entirely. Hurriyet Daily News

EU-Ukraine trade deal could go ahead

EU Suspends Work with Ukraine on Trade Deal '' Official

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Archived Version

Source: RIA Novosti

Sun, 15 Dec 2013 13:41

MOSCOW, December 15 (RIA Novosti) '' The European Union has put on hold work with Ukraine on a trade and cooperation agreement, EU enlargement chief Stefan Fuele has said.

The Ukrainian government's arguments ''have no grounds in reality,'' Fuele said on Twitter. The remarks come after Fuele's talks with Ukraine's first deputy prime minister Serhiy Arbuzov last week in Brussels.

"After that further discussion is conditioned on clear commitment to sign. Work on hold, had no answer," Fuele said.

Prime Minister Mykola Azarov's spokesman Vitaliy Lukyanenko said the Ukrainian government remains committed to signing the agreement.

Kiev ''would take into account only official statements on behalf of the European Union and will respond only to such statements,'' Lukyanenko said.

''For today, the official European Union stance remains unchanged: the door to the association with EU remains open,'' he said.

Kiev turned its back on a widely expected association deal last month, saying it would harm economic relations with Russia, prompting mass demonstrations by pro-EU protesters and throwing the country into a political crisis. Last Wednesday, Azarov said Kiev would return to talks on the association agreement with the EU in the spring.

Both the EU and Moscow have accused the other of using strong-arm tactics to secure economic ties with Kiev.

A senior Russian lawmaker Alexei Pushkov said on Sunday that ''Yanukovych and Azarov had all reasons to reject the agreement.

''The meagre [aid] package proposed by the EU to Ukraine is nothing for any normal country. It's an attempt to colonize Ukraine for 660 million euro [$907 million],'' he said.

Pushkov, who heads the State Duma's international affairs committee, said Fuele's words demonstrated intentions by certain European politicians to have Yanukovych removed from his post.

''Previously, Yanukovych was considered as a possible partner in [association] talks, but now he is seen as an evident political rival, who must be pushed into resigning,'' Pushkov said.

He described Fuele's statement as a possible sign that a group of European politicians who had taken a harsh stance against Yanukovych and his government, has prevailed over those in favor of additional financial assistance of $20 billion to encourage Ukraine to sign the deal.

Updates with comments from Ukrainian government, Russian lawmaker

Is War With China Inevitable?

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Source: Zero Hedge

Sat, 14 Dec 2013 07:47

Submitted by Brandon Smith of Alt-Market blog,

As a general rule, extreme economic decline is almost always followed by extreme international conflict. Sometimes, these disasters can be attributed to the human survival imperative and the desire to accumulate resources during crisis. But most often, war amid fiscal distress is usually a means for the political and financial elite to distract the masses away from their empty wallets and empty stomachs.

War galvanizes societies, usually under false pretenses. I'm not talking about superficial ''police actions'' or absurd crusades to ''spread democracy'' to Third World enclaves that don't want it. No, I'm talking about REAL war: war that threatens the fabric of a culture, war that tumbles violently across people's doorsteps. The reality of near-total annihilation is what oligarchs use to avoid blame for economic distress while molding nations and populations.

Because of the very predictable correlation between financial catastrophe and military conflagration, it makes quite a bit of sense for Americans today to be concerned. Never before in history has our country been so close to full-spectrum economic collapse, the kind that kills currencies and simultaneously plunges hundreds of millions of people into poverty. It is a collapse that has progressed thanks to the deliberate efforts of international financiers and central banks. It only follows that the mind-boggling scale of the situation would ''require'' a grand distraction to match.

It is difficult to predict what form this distraction will take and where it will begin, primarily because the elites have so many options. The Mideast is certainly an ever-looming possibility. Iran is a viable catalyst. Syria is not entirely off the table. Saudi Arabia and Israel are now essentially working together, forming a strange alliance that could promise considerable turmoil '-- even without the aid of the United States. Plenty of Americans still fear the Al Qaeda bogeyman, and a terrorist attack is not hard to fabricate. However, when I look at the shift of economic power and military deployment, the potential danger areas appear to be growing not only in the dry deserts of Syria and Iran, but also in the politically volatile waters of the East China Sea.

China is THE key to any outright implosion of the U.S. monetary system. Other countries, like Saudi Arabia, may play a part; but ultimately it will be China that deals the decisive blow against the dollar's world reserve status. China's dollar and Treasury bond holdings could be used as a weapon to trigger a global sell-off of dollar-denominated assets. China has stopped future increases of dollar forex holdings, and has cut the use of the dollar in bilateral trade agreements with multiple countries. Oil-producing nations are shifting alliances to China because it is now the world's largest consumer of petroleum. And, China has clearly been preparing for this eventuality for years. So, given these circumstances, how can the U.S. government conceive of confrontation with the East? Challenging one's creditors to a duel does not usually end well. At the very least, it would be economic suicide. But perhaps that is the point. Perhaps America is meant to make this seemingly idiotic leap.

Here are just some of the signs of a buildup to conflict...

Currency Wars And Shooting Wars

In March 2009, U.S. military and intelligence officials gathered to participate in a simulated war game, a hypothetical economic struggle between the United States and China.

The conclusions of the war game were ominous. The participants determined that there was no way for the United States to win in an economic battle with China. The Chinese had a counterstrategy to every U.S. effort and an ace up their sleeve '' namely, their U.S. dollar reserves, which they could use as a monetary neutron bomb, a chain reaction that would result in the abandonment of the dollar by exporters around the world . They also found that China has been quietly accumulating hard assets (including land and gold) across globe, using sovereign wealth funds, government-controlled front companies, and private equity funds to make the purchases. China could use these tangible assets as a hedge to protect against the eventual devaluation of its U.S. dollar and Treasury holdings, meaning the losses on its remaining U.S. financial investments was acceptable should it decide to crush the dollar.

The natural response of those skeptical of the war game and its findings is to claim that the American military would be the ultimate trump card and probable response to a Chinese economic threat. Of course, China's relationship with Russia suggests a possible alliance against such an action and would definitely negate the use of nuclear weapons (unless the elites plan nuclear Armageddon). That said, it is highly likely that the U.S. government would respond with military action to a Chinese dollar dump, not unlike Germany's rise to militarization and totalitarianism after the hyperinflationary implosion of the mark. The idea that anyone except the internationalists could ''win'' such a venture, though, is foolish.

I would suggest that this may actually be the plan of globalists in the United States and their counterparts in Asia and Europe. China's rise to financial prominence is not due to its economic prowess. In fact, China is ripe with poor fiscal judgment calls and infrastructure projects that have gone nowhere. But what China does have on its side are massive capital inflows from global banks and corporations, mainly based in the United States and the European Union. And, it has help in the spread of its currency (the Yuan) from entities like JPMorgan Chase and Co. The International Monetary Fund is seeking to include China in its global basket currency, the SDR, which would give China even more leverage to use in breaking the dollar's reserve status. Corporate financiers and central bankers have made it more than possible for China to kill the dollar, which they openly suggest is a ''good thing.''

Is it possible that the war game scenarios carried out by the Pentagon and elitist think-tanks like the RAND Corporation were not meant to prevent a war with China, but to ensure one takes place?

The Senkaku Islands

Every terrible war has a trigger point, an event that history books later claim ''started it all.'' For the Spanish-American War, it was the bombing of the USS Maine. For World War I it was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. For U.S. involvement in World War I, it was the sinking of the Lusitania by a German U-Boat. For U.S. involvement in World War II, it was the attack on Pearl Harbor. For Vietnam, it was the Gulf of Tonkin Incident (I recommend readers look into the hidden history behind all of these events). While the initial outbreak of war always appears to be spontaneous, the reality is that most wars are planned far in advance.

As evidence indicates, China has been deliberately positioned to levy an economic blow against the United States. Our government is fully aware what the results of that attack will be, considering they have gamed the scenario multiple times. And, by RAND Corporation's own admission, China and the United States have been preparing for physical confrontation for some time, centered on the concept of pre-emptive strikes. Meaning, the response both sides have exclusively trained for in the event of confrontation is to attack the other first!

The seemingly simple and petty dispute over the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea actually provides a perfect environment for the pre-emptive powder keg to explode.

China has recently declared an ''air defense zone'' that extends over the islands, which Japan has already claimed as its own. China, South Korea and the United States have all moved to defy this defense zone. South Korea has even extended its own air defense zone to overlap China's.

China has responded with warnings that its military aircraft will now monitor the region and demands that other nations provide it with civilian airline flight paths. China has also stated that it plans to create MORE arbitrary defense zones in the near future.

The U.S. government under Barack Obama has long planned a military shift into the Pacific, which is meant specifically to counter China's increased presence. It's almost as if the White House knew a confrontation was coming.

The shift is now accelerating due to the Senkaku situation, as the U.S. transfers submarine-hunting jets to Japan while pledging full support for Japan should war ignite.

And most recently, the Japanese press has suggested that war between the two countries could erupt as early as January.

China, with its limited navy, has focused more of its energy and funding into advanced missile technologies '-- including ''ship killers,'' which fly too low and fast to be detected with current radar. This is the same strategy of cheap compact precision warfare being adopted by countries like Syria and Iran, and it is designed specifically to disrupt tradition American military tactics.

Currently, very little diplomatic headway has been made or attempted in regards to the Senkaku Islands. The culmination of various ingredients so far makes for a sour stew.

All that is required now is that one trigger event '-- that one ironic ''twist of fate'' that mainstream historians love so much, the spark that lights the fuse. China could suddenly sell a mass quantity of U.S. Treasuries, perhaps in response to the renewed debt debate next spring. The United States could use pre-emption to take down a Chinese military plane or submarine. A random missile could destroy a passenger airliner traveling through the defense zone, and both sides could blame each other. The point is nothing good could come from the escalation over Senkaku.

Why Is War Useful?

What could possibly be gained by fomenting a war between the United States and China? What could possibly be gained by throwing America's economy, the supposed "goose that lays the golden eggs", to the fiscal wolves? As stated earlier, distraction is paramount, and fear is valuable political and social capital.

Global financiers created the circumstances that have led to America's probable economic demise, but they don't want to be blamed for it. War provides the perfect cover for monetary collapse, and a war with China might become the cover to end all covers. The resulting fiscal damage and the terror Americans would face could be overwhelming. Activists who question the legitimacy of the U.S. government and its actions, once considered champions of free speech, could easily be labeled ''treasonous'' during wartime by authorities and the frightened masses. (If the government is willing to use the Internal Revenue Service against us today, just think about who it will send after us during the chaos of a losing war tomorrow.) A lockdown of civil liberties could be instituted behind the fog of this national panic.

Primarily, war tends to influence the masses to agree to more centralization, to relinquish their rights in the name of the ''greater good'', and to accept less transparency in government and more power in the hands of fewer people. Most important, though, is war's usefulness as a philosophical manipulation after the dust has settled.

After nearly every war of the 20th and 21st century, the subsequent propaganda implies one message in particular: National sovereignty, or nationalism, is the cause of all our problems. The establishment then claims that there is only one solution that will solve these problems: globalization. This article by Andrew Hunter, the chairman of the Australian Fabian Society, is exactly the kind of narrative I expect to hear if conflict arises between the United States and China.

National identity and sovereignty are the scapegoats, and the Fabians (globalist propagandists) are quick to point a finger. Their assertion is that nation states should no longer exist, borders should be erased and a one-world economic system and government should be founded. Only then will war and financial strife end. Who will be in charge of this interdependent one world utopia? I'll give you three guesses...

The Fabians, of course, make no mention of global bankers and their instigation of nearly every war and depression for the past 100 years; and these are invariably the same people that will end up in positions of authority if globalization comes to fruition. What the majority of people do not yet understand is that globalists have no loyalties to any particular country, and they are perfectly willing to sacrifice governments, economies, even entire cultures, in the pursuit of their "ideal society". "Order out of chaos" is their motto, after all. The bottom line is that a war between China and the United States will not be caused by national sovereignty. Rather, it will be caused by elitists looking for a way to END national sovereignty. That's why such a hypothetical conflict, a conflict that has been gamed by think tanks for years, is likely to be forced into reality.

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Call Made to Congress for China War Plan | DoD Buzz

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Archived Version

Sat, 14 Dec 2013 22:33

The U.S. military needs a more focused war plan specific to China, especially after China's recent declaration of an air defense zone over the East China Sea, a group of defense analysts told a prominent House subcommittee Wednesday.

As part of the Pentagon's overall defense strategy to pivot to the Pacific, the U.S. should buy more Virginia-class attack submarines, prioritizing long-range anti-ship missiles, carrier-based drones, and missile defense technology, the analysts told the House Armed Services' Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee.

Seth Cropsey, a senior fellow at The Hudson Institute, told the subcommittee that the U.S needs a detailed war plan for China in the event that conflict arises.

''Chinese leaders are ambitious and they are moving toward great power status. The U.S. is not taking this possibility as seriously as it should,'' said

Much of the hearing was focused on how the U.S. can counter-balance Chinese strategic moves to deny access to certain areas in the region through the use of long-range missiles, guided missile destroyers and submarines. In particular, the analysts said China have sought to control waterways, choke points and restrict access to key islands and territories in the region.

China has already provoked tensions in the region by declaring an air-defense zone in the East China Sea. U.S. leaders flew two unarmed B-52s through the area shortly after the announcement. However, the White House has also asked civilian U.S. airliners to alert China when their aircraft fly through the zone.

''While Naval modernization is a natural development for any sea-faring nation such as China, it is clear the modernization is emboldening the Chinese government to exert their interests by bullying their neighbors and pushing back the United States in the Asia Pacific region,'' said Rep. Randy Forbes, R-Va., chairman of the Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee.

If China succeeds in restricting access to or controlling its near seas, that would present ''major implications for U.S. strategy and constitute a major challenge to the post World War II international order,'' said Ronald O'Rourke, specialist in Naval Affairs, Congressional Research Service.

Chinese defense spending has increased from an estimated $45 to $60-billion annually in 2003 to $115 to $200 billion today, said Jim Thomas, vice president and director of studies, Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments.

This includes investments in ships, long-range missiles, fighter jets and submarines, he explained. Unlike the U.S. which maintains a global posture, the Chinese military can spend all of its funds on regional counter-intervention, Thomas said.

The Chinese military has as many as 100 land-based strike fighters equipped with sophisticated avionics, sensors and advanced air-to-air missiles, he testified. Thomas also mentioned China's DF-21D long-range ballistic missile, a weapon with a maneuverable warhead able to attack large surface combatants at ranges up to 930 miles.

''A decade ago China was reliant upon Russian assistance in its armaments, but is now increasingly shifted toward indigenous design and production. It is rapidly building up a modernized submarine force and its advanced guided missile destroyers represent a major improvement in fleet air defenses,'' he told the Subcommittee.

These defenses are designed to protect aircraft carriers and help China push its Naval perimeter further off the coast, Thomas added. China also has an armada of small, armed fast-attack craft which could make it difficult for foreign forces to approach to within 200 nautical miles of the Chinese coast, Thomas testified.

Being able to thwart or spoof command and control and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance networks needs to be a key part of a counter-China defense strategy, Thomas emphasized as well.

Andrew Erickson, associate professor at the U.S. Naval War College, testified that the U.S. should do more to deny China the ability to seize and hold off-shore territory. This includes developing anti-ship cruise missiles such as the recently tested Long Range Anti-Ship Missile as well as long-range surface to air missiles, he said.

Erickson said offensive mine warfare could also provide key elements of the strategy. Most of all, however, Erickson emphasized that the U.S. should use its undersea technological advantage to deny China the ability to seize territory.

He stressed that the Navy should maintain its current pace of building two Virginia-class attack submarines, called SSNs, per year.

''It is therefore essential to ensure the present two-a-year construction rate of Virginia-class, nuclear-powered attack submarines. These SSNs are ideal for denying China the ability to hold and re-supply any forcefully seized islands. Given China's ongoing limitations in anti-submarine warfare and the inherent difficulty of progressing in this field, China could spend many times the cost of these SSNs and still not be able to counter them effectively,'' Erickson.

Rourke also told the Subcommittee that the U.S. might want to consider acquiring three Virginia-class submarines per year, citing the importance of the platform.

Tags: China, war plan

Turkey-China missle deal could be financially less attractive

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Archived Version

Sat, 14 Dec 2013 22:17

A move in Congress' 2014 defense spending bill banning the use of U.S. funding to integrate a Chinese air and anti-missile defense shield with NATO/U.S. systems was not surprising for the Turkish defense bureaucracy, but it may make the Chinese offer ''financially less attractive,'' Turkish officials and defense industry sources have said. A U.S. diplomat said the budget move aimed to block ''the silly idea'' that a Turkish-Chinese air defense system could be made interoperable with NATO/U.S. assets with the help of U.S. money. ''Why should Washington sponsor something that it views as being against the nature of allied defense. Remember, the U.S. is the top sponsor of NATO money, and it has a right to say where this money is to be used and where it is not,'' the diplomat said. Turkey's defense procurement bureaucracy remains divided regarding possible repercussions. ''We are not surprised by this. But this is not a game changer during the process. We would expect our American allies to try and improve their own offers instead of trying to apply more pressure. At the end of the day, we may not need the U.S. or NATO and instead just use our own money to make the system interoperable,'' one senior procurement official said. But another official familiar with the program said that Congress' move probably aimed to make the Chinese solution financially less attractive. ''If we use Turkish money to make the system interoperable with NATO assets it will make the Chinese offer more expensive than it is. If the Chinese are prepared to share the extra burden it will make the contract less attractive for the Chinese,'' the official said. According to Congress' budget plan, if the 2014 U.S. defense spending bill goes through as proposed, it will ban the use of U.S. funding to integrate Chinese missile defense systems with U.S. or NATO systems.Murad Bayar, the head of the Undersecretariat for Defense Procurement, told the H¼rriyet Daily News in an October interview that full integration with NATO assets was an explicit condition in the contract for the planned air defense system. ''As part of this program, a Turkish defense company will be tasked with integrating the air defense system into a network operated by the Turkish Air Force. That integration will mean integration with NATO assets, too, since the Turkish system is fully integrated with the NATO system,'' Bayar said. The Chinese bid from China Precision Machinery Export-Import Corp. (CPMIEC), which won the tender on Sept. 26, came in at $3.44 billion. The initial contract price was estimated at $4 billion.Turkish Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz announced after a high level defense industry meeting on Sept. 26 that a contract for the construction of long-range air and anti-missile system had been awarded to the China Precision Machinery Export-Import Corp. (CPMIEC). The Chinese contender defeated a U.S. partnership of Raytheon and Lockheed Martin, offering the Patriot air defense system; Russia's Rosoboronexport, marketing the S-300; and the Italian-French consortium Eurosam, maker of the SAMP/T Aster 30.Under the program, dubbed T-LORAMIDS, Turkey is currently holding contract negotiations with CPMIEC, the front-runner of the competition and, if these talked fail, will start negotiations with the Eurosam consortium, the second best offer according to a grading of bids. The U.S. Patriot system was ranked third, and the Russian option has been eliminated entirely. Hurriyet Daily News

China Imposes First-Ever West Coast Shellfish Ban

China's J-7 fighters in training

Iran cancels Pakistan gas pipeline loan

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Report: NSA mulls Snowden amnesty (but it probably won't happen) | Ars Technica

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Fri, 13 Dec 2013 22:36

Aurich Lawson / The Guardian

View all'...According to an interview on 60 Minutes scheduled for broadcast this coming Sunday, a top National Security Agency (NSA) official says that some in the government are considering giving amnesty to Edward Snowden in exchange for the return of all of the documents that he exfiltrated from the NSA.

According to CBS News, whose parent company produces 60 Minutes, NSA official Rick Ledgett told the news program that ''it's worth having a conversation about'' possible amnesty for Snowden. Ledgett is in charge of the NSA's unauthorized leak task force to investigate the Snowden leaks.

''I would need assurances that the remainder of the data could be secured, and my bar for those assurances would be very high,'' he added. ''It would be more than just an assertion on his part.''

Ledgett, who also has been tapped to be the agency's number two official starting in January 2014, noted that this sentiment was ''not unanimous'' inside the NSA.

However, such a deal seems practically impossible, given that journalists Glenn Greenwald and Laura Poitras (both of whom reside outside the United States) are known to have a full set of the Snowden-leaked documents. Greenwald has said as recently as yesterday that ''others have tens of thousands of documents.'' Those others could include security researchers like Ashkan Soltani and Jacob Appelbaum, as well as other journalists such as Barton Gellman, Ryan Gallagher, and probably more.

The Hill quoted Gen. Keith Alexander, the head of the NSA, as opposing granting amnesty for Snowden in a separate CBS interview also slated to air on Sunday.

"I think people have to be held accountable for their actions'... Because what we don't want is the next person to do the same thing, race off to Hong Kong and to Moscow with another set of data, knowing they can strike the same deal," Alexander said.

"This is analogous to a hostage-taker taking 50 people hostage, shooting 10 and then saying, 'If you give me full amnesty, I'll let the other 40 go.' What do you do?"

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Team Omidyar, World Police: eBay puts user data on a ''silver platter'' for law enforcement | PandoDaily

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Sun, 15 Dec 2013 00:14

By Mark AmesOn December 14, 2013

''We don't believe the NSA has come near our data'... We have a tremendous amount of thought and procedures and security around customer data.'' ''Devin Wenig, president, eBay Marketplace

'¨''Unlike other e-commerce companies, eBay is one of the only ones that provides law enforcement with information on a simple request instead of requiring a subpoena. This is stated in our privacy policy.'''¨'-- Paul Jones, eBay Senior Director of Global Asset Protection'¨'¨

''I don't doubt Paypal cooperates with NSA'...'''¨'-- Glenn Greenwald

This past week, Wikileaks activist and close Snowden ally, Sarah Harrison, was quoted in the Guardian, asking ''How can you take Pierre Omidyar seriously?''

Harrison's outburst was prompted by the trial of the ''PayPal 14,'' and the company's 2010 blockade of Wikileaks. PayPal is owned by eBay, the company that Omidyar founded and for which he still serves as chairman. Omidyar's $250 million media startup, NewCo, recently hired Glenn Greenwald and Laura Poitras, the only two people with access to full cache of Edward Snowden's NSA secrets.

Said Harrison:

'¨'¨''[Omidyar] is on the board of directors. He can't shake off responsibility that easily. He didn't even comment on it'... If you set up a new media organisation which claims to do everything for press freedom, but you are part of a blockade against another media organisation, then that's hard for us to take it seriously.''

'¨'¨'¨[Disclosure: Peter Thiel, co-founder of PayPal, is an investor in Pando Media through Founders Fund. Former eBay president Jeff Jordan and eBay board member Marc Andreessen are personal investors in Pando Media. ]'¨'¨'¨

In fact, Harrison was wrong about Omidyar not commenting on the Wikileaks blockade. In December 2010, in an editorial co-written for his Civil Beat media startup, Omidyar not only commented on the controversy but explained, in stark corporatist terms, why PayPal had no choice but to cut off funding to WikiLeaks: the interests of shareholders take precedence over the interests of a ''principle'' like supporting free speech rights.

''[T]he executives of these businesses [PayPal et al] cannot tell their shareholders that it will hurt their company more to cave on a matter of principle than to drop a customer. It is their right and common practice to shut a customer down when they receive complaints from criminal investigators, even without a court order. This even though the existence of a criminal investigation is no indication of guilt.''The executives have a fiduciary duty to do what's best for their shareholders.''

Again, the largest shareholder in PayPal's parent company is one Pierre Omidyar, who owns nearly 10 percent of the company. Unexpressed in that last sentence is the fact that ''what's best for their shareholders'' means, in particular, ''what's best for Pierre Omidyar.''

Also missing from the op-ed was any suggestion that Omidyar had formally protested the blockade in his capacity as eBay's chairman. It was only three years later that he insisted he had ''expressed concerns'' directly to company management. Concerns that, despite coming from the company's chairman and single largest shareholder, were apparently ignored.

Until a few days ago, the world knew very little about Pierre Omidyar's personal views on people who leak secrets, particularly secrets belonging to corporations rather than the government. (Remember that, before it started publishing government cables, Wikileaks made its name exposing corporate secrets.)

That changed last weekend when Pando investigations editor Paul Carr invited Omidyar to address remarks he made in 2009 about when editors should turn in non-violent leakers to the authorities.

Omidyar's response must have horrified any source considering leaking to NewCo: '¨'¨''[U]nless I judge significant pub interest in those docs, I'd prob tell the cops. My jdgmt'', he wrote, adding: ''Every case is different, which is why you shouldn't make absolute statements.''

For journalists who believe that (non-violent) sources should be protected under all circumstances, this apparent breach of journalistic convention was astonishing. And made all the more so, coming from the billionaire who just promised $250 million to secure the rights to secrets leaked by America's most wanted whistleblower.

But Omidyar's willingness to ''probably'' hand over sources to law enforcement looks positively Woodwardian when contrasted with the behavior of the company he still serves as chairman. A company that, it turns out, not only complies with requests from government agencies for user data but proudly boasts of doing so proactively, often without formal warrants or subpoenas.

From its earliest days, eBay has operated a vast trans-national private police force which has overseen thousands of arrests and convictions around the globe, has trained countless thousands of law enforcement officials in the US and abroad, and cooperates with police and intelligence agencies on every inhabitable continent.

Last year, eBay's longtime Chief Internet Security Officer, David Culliname, told an audience of top private security executives that eBay's global security operations led to the arrests of 3,000 people around the world over a period of three years '-- or roughly three people arrested per day, thanks to eBay's work.

That represents an increase over the volume of eBay-led arrests cited in 2007, when eBay executive Robert Chesnut boasted before a House Judiciary Subcommittee on Terrorism:*

''The assistance that our teams provide to law enforcement agencies around the world lead to an average of two arrests every single day.''

Chesnut also revealed the scope of eBay's training programs, back when eBay was a much smaller outfit than it is today:

''In 2006 alone, we trained over 3000 law enforcement personnel in North America about online fraud in the eBay/PayPal context and how we can help them prosecute criminals who attempt to abuse our users.''

He revealed that there were ''over 2000 eBay Inc employees around the world working to combat all forms of on-line fraud'' '-- out of a total of some 15,000 employees that year. (Today, eBay has some 30,000 employees worldwide.)

Up through 2008, eBay publicly touted its ''Fraud Investigation Team'' as the centerpiece of its private global policing. Chesnut, a former US Assistant Attorney General in the eastern Virginia District, told Congress that eBay's Fraud Investigation Team ''works closely with law enforcement officials at the federal, state and local levels,'' and boasted:

''[W]e have teams in San Jose and Salt Lake City to serve enforcement agencies throughout North America. Because we operate in a truly global marketplace, we also have Fraud Investigation Teams in Dublin, Ireland and Dreilinden, Germany to serve law enforcement in Europe and Asia.''

eBay works closely with a variety of federal agencies, including the FBI, Homeland Security, and the DEA. In 2007, eBay spokesperson Nichola Sharpe told the AP, ''We've been working with the Drug Enforcement Agency as far back as 2006. People buy items that are completely harmless '-- law enforcement can look at that and see it's suspicious.''

According to a DEA agent from the Rocky Mountain Field division, Mike Tuner, working with eBay offered certain legal advantages. To search a person's home, the DEA would need a court-ordered subpoena or warrant, but to search the suspect's business information and behavior on eBay, the DEA only required an administrative subpoena, which eBay ensured would be easy to obtain.

The company's law enforcement-friendly privacy policy demands users agree to allow eBay to hand over private information to law enforcement upon request. Thanks to the company's ''streamlining'' efforts to help law enforcement investigators access information, those requests were readily complied with.

Not that eBay's cooperation with authorities was a one way street. The company lobbied state and federal legislators ''calling for tougher penalties, mandatory sentences and higher priority prosecutions'' of online retail thieves. As eBay's Chesnut told the House Subcommittee:

''[A] legislative solution to the problem of organized retail theft is simple: increase the criminal penalties for this conduct. If these crimes are currently classified as misdemeanors, upgrade them to felonies. If the jail sentences tied to these crimes are too short, lengthen them.''

In 2008, eBay launched a new program to crack down on sales of stolen property called PROACT '-- Partnering with Retailers Offensively Against Crime and Theft ''under which eBay assisted law enforcement in 7,400 stolen property investigations and helped in the arrests of 237 people in the US in 2008 alone.

In April 2009, eBay executives appeared at a ''training day'' conference with law enforcement officials in Washington, DC, which gave a further glimpse into eBay's work with government law enforcement. At the meeting, according to Washington Internet Daily, eBay senior regulatory counsel Jack Christin boasted:

''The company referred over 500 cases 'on a silver platter' to law enforcement last year [2008], with full records needed to bring cases'...''

Christin's colleague, Edward Torpoco, also admitted that eBay complies with authorities in foreign jurisdictions that may be less protective of data than the US. As recently as October of this year, the UK's Independent newspaper revealed that British authorities had bought data from eBay for use in searching for unemployment benefits cheats.

In 2003, Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported on a confidential talk that eBay's director of law enforcement and compliance, Joseph Sullivan, gave to senior representatives of US law enforcement agencies, in which Sullivan boasted:

''I don't know another Web site that has a privacy policy as flexible as eBay's.''

Haaretz obtained a recording of Sullivan's talk, which was closed to journalists, ''and for good reason,'' the Israeli newspaper reported:

''Sullivan tells the audience that eBay is willing to hand over everything it knows about visitors to its Web site that might be of interest to an investigator. All they have to do is ask. 'There's no need for a court order,' Sullivan said, and related how the company has half a dozen investigators under contract, who scrutinize 'suspicious users' and 'suspicious behavior.'''

Further down the article, eBay's Sullivan is quoted telling law enforcement officials:

'''We don't make you show a subpoena, except in exceptional cases,'' Sullivan told his listeners. 'When someone uses our site and clicks on the I Agree button, it is as if he agrees to let us submit all of his data to the legal authorities. Which means that if you are a law-enforcement officer, all you have to do is send us a fax with a request for information, and ask about the person behind the seller's identity number, and we will provide you with his name, address, sales history and other details '-- all without having to produce a court order. We want law enforcement people to spend time on our site.' He says he receives about 200 such requests a month, most of them unofficial requests in the form of an email or fax.

''The meaning is clear. One fax to eBay from a lawman '-- police investigator, NSA, FBI or CIA employee, National Park ranger '-- and eBay sends back the user's full name, email address, home address, mailing address, home telephone number, name of company where seller is employed and user nickname. What's more, eBay will send the history of items he has browsed, feedbacks received, bids he has made, prices he has paid, and even messages sent in the site's various discussion groups.''

Sullivan's lecture came less than a year after eBay bought PayPal for $1.45 billion. Nimrod Kozlovski, who was with Yale Law School's Internet Society Project at the time, told Haaretz that what made eBay's policies so particularly insidious was the fact that on its platform, a range of private activities '-- from buying and browsing habits to financial information '-- that had once been atomized and harder for law enforcement to obtain was now being tracked on a grand scale under one private entity's roof, an entity which was now essentially acting an unaccountable private-sector prosecutor, all with the users' consent:

'''By buying PayPal, eBay is merging the information about the goods trail with the money trail'... Thus, in spite of the protective mechanisms of the law against disclosure of details on transactions, eBay is in a position to analyze the full set of data and 'advise' investigators when it might be 'worthwhile' for them to ask for a subpoena to disclose the details of a financial transaction. Essentially, this bypasses the rules on non-disclosure of details of financial transactions and the confidentiality of the banker-client relationship.'''

Others agree. In their book ''Who Controls The Internet?'' Harvard Law professor Jack Goldsmith and Columbia Law professor Tim Wu described eBay's dystopian transformation from left coast anarcho-fantasy dream into a profit-making machine greased by big government coercion:

''Our peek below the surface of eBay's self-governing facade revealed a far different story '-- a story of heavy reliance on the iron fist of coercive governmental power. Perpetually threatened by cheaters and fraudsters, eBay established an elaborate hand-in-glove relationship with the police and other governmental officials who can arrest, prosecute, incapacitate, and effectively deter these threats to its business model.''

In the years since these concerns were raised, eBay's operations have grown by leaps and bounds. At the same time information about eBay/PayPal's worldwide policing operations has become increasingly harder to come by, as talking up your company's law enforcement capabilities and cooperation with the government are no longer considered good for business.

A few years ago, the 2000-plus man Fraud Investigation Team was renamed and reorganized '-- now it's called the ''Global Asset Protection Team.'' In 2009, eBay also introduced its ''Global Law Enforcement Organization'' (GLEO) which hosts a police blotter page on eBay.com.

At a 2009 get-together with top law enforcement officials, eBay representativesdescribed the mission of its Global Law Enforcement Organization as:

''[T]o promote trust and protect our businesses by partnering with internal stakeholders and working with law enforcement and regulatory organizations proactively and reactively to support the prevention, detection and prosecution of criminal activity on the eBay and PayPal platforms.''

The Law Enforcement Program which the team operates under is now folded into the Government Relations Division. Which makes sense, when you consider that eBay's private police force and its low-bar privacy policies are the company's friendliest handshake it offers to the government.

Earlier this past week, Glenn Greenwald, Omidyar's first editorial hire, responded to allegations from former FBI whistleblower Sibel Edmonds that the unpublished Snowden documents contain information about PayPal cooperation with the NSA, saying, ''She made claims about what's in NSA docs even though she has no idea what's in them.'' He also described Sibel as ''crazy'' and ''stupid'' before clarifying, ''I don't doubt PayPal cooperates with NSA.''

Asked by Pando whether the Snowden documents contained details of government cooperation by eBay, Greenwald did not respond. At publication time, eBay had not responded to Pando's questions about data sharing with the NSA. eBay spokesperson Kari Ramirez told Pando: ''eBay Inc. responds to lawful requests from law enforcement agencies worldwide regarding specific individuals or accounts. Regarding PayPal data, we respond to these lawful requests to combat any attempted use of our services for money laundering, terrorist financing or financial fraud.''

All of which brings us back to Pierre Omidyar. A recent Rolling Stone profile noted that ''Omidyar came to Greenwald specifically because of the Snowden leaks.'' Given that those leaks deal primarily with how government agencies have accessed data from technology companies in the name of law enforcement, eBay's eagerness to cooperate with those same agencies without so much as a subpoena is troubling. It is notable, too, that aside from his continuing stockholding in eBay, Omidyar has jointly invested in at least one startup (Innocentive) with the CIA's venture capital fund, In-Q-Tel.

Omidyar's dual role as billionaire titan of the Big Data industry and outraged champion of anti-government whistleblowers means that secrets that rightfully belong to The People are now are controlled by a man whose wealth and power are directly dependent on profitable relationships with global law enforcement. A man who boasts of circumstances in which he might personally hand over a corporate leaker to authorities, while his for-profit news organization cries outrage at government overreach.

How can we take Pierre Omidyar seriously? With stakes so high, how can we not?

'...

* Source: CQ Congressional Testimony, October 25, 2007, ''ORGANIZED RETAIL THEFT PREVENTION,'' SECTION: CAPITOL HILL HEARING TESTIMONY, ''Statement of Mr. Robert Chesnut Senior Vice President, Rules, Trust and Safety eBay Inc.,'' Committee on House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security

Image credit: eBay

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Greenwald in trouble?

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NSA Offers High School Seniors $30,000+ to Snoop

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Source: The Top Information Post

Sun, 15 Dec 2013 05:07

Obama is offering high school seniors $30,000 a year for college tuition, PLUS a job, housing, transportation and a galore of other benefits. Apparently, Obama is having a hard time finding youths willing to spy on their friends, so he's upping the ante.

NSA.Gov currently has a ''job'' posted for young people who are desperate for a job, thanks to Obama's lackluster recovery. Under ''Careers'' and ''Opportunities for You,'' the NSA has this posting with a bold red alert notice at the top: ''Notice: Stokes Scholarship Application Deadline extended until 30 November 2013.''

The objective of this job is ambiguous. The Obama administration should be transparent about why taxpayers are being forced to provide these ''jobs'' and ''entitlements'' to high school seniors. In the long run, will these jobs benefit young people, or will they benefit control-hungry bureaucrats? Also, what exactly will these young people be doing? The NSA website says young people will work in ''computer science'' and ''computer or electrical engineering,'' but without concrete details on the projects under those categories.

From the NSA's website:

''Stokes is open to high school seniors planning on majoring in computer science or computer/electrical engineering. As an NSA employee with the Stokes Program, you will attend college full-time, receive up to $30,000 per year for tuition and mandatory fees; and work during the summers at NSA for 12 weeks in areas that are related to your course of study. You'll acquire real-world experience and receive a year-round salary. Please note: must maintain a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale after your freshman year, if selected as a program participant, you are required to work in your area of study for NSA after your college graduation for at least one-and-one-half times the length of study.''

Source:

http://www.blacklistednews.com/

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Yuri Milner - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Sea levels expected to rise two feet within the next 70 years and eight feet by 2200.

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Source: bertb news feed

Sun, 15 Dec 2013 13:58

Hundreds of coastal cities face being wiped out by floodingLevels won't stop rising until they are 25 to 30 feet higher than nowEstimations based on level of carbon in the atmosphere stabilisingBy Daily Mail Reporter

PUBLISHED: 13:43 EST, 14 December 2013 | UPDATED: 14:02 EST, 14 December 2013

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Sea levels will rise two feet within just 70 years and eight feet by the year 2200, according to a new study which suggests hundreds of coastal cities face being wiped out within a matter of generations.

Scientists now claim we have awoken a 'sleeping giant' and that sea levels won't stop rising until they are between 25 to 30 feet higher than now.

Alarmingly those predictions are based on the assumption that levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere remain at what they are today.

Threat: Rising sea levels caused by melting ice will threaten hundreds of coastal cities within the next few generations, scientists predict

Some 600 million people currently live within 10m of present-day sea level and that area generates rougly 10 per cent of the world's total GDP.

The combined effects of rising sea levels coupled with land subsidence and population growth mean that by the 2070s, the population exposed to flooding risk may have tripled.

Researchers found current rate of sea-level rise are roughly twice as any other period between ice ages.

Huge pieces of ice break away from the Perito Moreno glacier in Patagonia, southern Argentina. Scientists claim sea levels won't stop rising until they are between 25 to 30 feet higher than current levels

Researchers found current rate of sea-level rise is roughly twice as much as any other period between ice ages

Meanwhile levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and other factors that cause temperatures to rise, are increasing 10 up to times faster than at any other period before the industrial revolution.

Eelco Rohling, a climate scientist at the Australian National University in Canberra, told NBC News: 'We have awoken a sleeping giant, he is now here to stay.'

The scientists sat that as the earth continues to warm, the major ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica will begin to melt, a process that takes a long time to start and stop.

Melting pot: Retreating glaciers will add to sea level rise

The findings, reported in the journal Scientific Reports, are based on atmospheric carbon dioxide levels stabilising at today's level of 400 parts per million.

But if they continue to rise then even ice that is considered stable, such as the East Antarctic Ice Sheet, could also begin to destabilise.

According to Rohling, if levels hit a worst case scenario of 1,000 parts per million, then 'all bets are off'.

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Snow Covers Egypt for First Time in 100 Years

Antarctic sea ice hit 35-year record high Saturday

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Antarctic sea ice extent on September 22 compared to 1981-2010 median depicted by orange curve (NSIDC)

Antarctic sea ice has grown to a record large extent for a second straight year, baffling scientists seeking to understand why this ice is expanding rather than shrinking in a warming world.

On Saturday, the ice extent reached 19.51 million square kilometers, according to data posted on the National Snow and Ice Data Center Web site. That number bested record high levels set earlier this month and in 2012 (of 19.48 million square kilometers). Records date back to October 1978.

(NSIDC)

The increasing ice is especially perplexing since the water beneath the ice has warmed, not cooled.

''The overwhelming evidence is that the Southern Ocean is warming,'' said Jinlun Zhang, a University of Washington scientist, studying Antarctic ice. ''Why would sea ice be increasing? Although the rate of increase is small, it is a puzzle to scientists.''

In a new study in the Journal of Climate, Zhang finds both strengthening and converging winds around the South Pole can explain 80 percent of the increase in ice volume which has been observed.

''The polar vortex that swirls around the South Pole is not just stronger than it was when satellite records began in the 1970s, it has more convergence, meaning it shoves the sea ice together to cause ridging,'' the study's press release explains. ''Stronger winds also drive ice faster, which leads to still more deformation and ridging. This creates thicker, longer-lasting ice, while exposing surrounding water and thin ice to the blistering cold winds that cause more ice growth.''

But no one seems to have a conclusive answer as to why winds are behaving this way.

''I haven't seen a clear explanation yet of why the winds have gotten stronger,'' Zhang told Michael Lemonick of Climate Central.

Some point to stratospheric ozone depletion, but a new study published in the Journal of Climate notes that computer models simulate declining '' not increasing '' Antarctic sea ice in recent decades due to this phenomenon (aka the ozone ''hole'').

''This modeled Antarctic sea ice decrease in the last three decades is at odds with observations, which show a small yet statistically significant increase in sea ice extent,'' says the study, led by Colorado State University atmospheric scientist Elizabeth Barnes.

A recent study by Lorenzo Polvani and Karen Smith of Columbia University says the model-defying sea ice increase may just reflect natural variability.

If the increase in ice is due to natural variability, Zhang says, warming from manmade greenhouse gases should eventually overcome it and cause the ice to begin retreating.

''If the warming continues, at some point the trend will reverse,'' Zhang said.

However, a conclusion of the Barnes study is that the recovery of the stratospheric ozone layer '' now underway '' may slow/delay Antarctic warming and ice melt.

Ultimately, it's apparent the relationship between ozone depletion, climate warming from greenhouse gases, natural variability, and how Antarctic ice responds is all very complicated. In sharp contrast, in the Arctic, there seems to be a relatively straight forward relationship between temperature and ice extent.

Related:Arctic sea ice has *not* recovered, in 7 visuals

Thus, in the Antarctic, we shouldn't necessarily expect to witness the kind of steep decline in ice that has occurred in the Arctic.

'''...the seeming paradox of Antarctic ice increasing while Arctic ice is decreasing is really no paradox at all,'' explains Climate Central's Lemonick. ''The Arctic is an ocean surrounded by land, while the Antarctic is land surrounded by ocean. In the Arctic, moreover, you've got sea ice decreasing in the summer; at the opposite pole, you've got sea ice increasing in the winter. It's not just an apples-and-oranges comparison: it's more like comparing apple pie with orange juice.''

Related: Antarctic sea ice reaches greatest extent so late in season, 2nd largest extent on record

Northern Israel struggles without electricity, waits for help

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Source: ynet - News

Sun, 15 Dec 2013 13:36

Northern Galilee sees third day without electricity, woman in labor forced to walk 3 km. to get help. Coops damaged, roads blocked as residents trapped in homes: 'Like being in a freezer' Maor Buchnik

As in Jerusalem, many locations in northern Israel are still without power, and meanwhile, the roads remain blocked. The snowfall caused heavy damage to agriculture and impeded exit routes in the upper Galilee. Seniors and children from different communities were transferred by the regional council to a hotel in Tiberias on Sunday.

In Beit Jann, a woman in labor was evacuated on foot, having to walk three kilometers (1.86 miles) through heavy snow until reaching a car that took her to the hospital.

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Michael Moyal, 26, a father-of-one from the northern community of Hoshen, said: "The situation is relatively fine, despite the cold and lack of response from the regional council. We have no furnaces and no way to get out of here. We called the council but there was no reply. This is our third day without power, we don't know how long this will last and there are no evacuation plans being made.

"One more night like this,and even our firewood will run out. We set out on foot to my mother-in-law, since her house has heating. My house's temperature is so low, it's like being in a freezer."

Moyal recounts how his family coped with the cold, without having electricity: "They gave us army heating bags. I charged my phone from my laptop, until the battery ran out. We'll see how long it takes until we get proper treatment, although it looks like we stand at the bottom of the food chain. Major cities are taken care of first, and we get neglected.

"We would leave, but the roads are blocked due to the ice, we have to wait for several more hours. As soon as a way to get out of here will be found, everyone will escape, there's nothing to do here. Perhaps only those who own chicken coops will stay."

Tiran Yakuti from Dovev has a chicken coop, but no electricity or water: "The pipes froze, the power has been cut off for three days and the food in the fridge is going bad. I pass the time by walking to the coop and back home, trying to save my chickens. The snow has accumulated on the coops' roofs and one of them collapsed; half a million shekels went to waste. Meanwhile we huddle up with blankets at home. I want to get out of here, but I can't leave the coop."

Anat Bitton from Avivim blames the Israel Electric Corporation and the regional council for not offering solutions to residents' problems: "We were met with a lack of response from the IEC. I phoned to ask when the electricity would come back and was told that they have no information for me; this was followed by a hang-up. The council transferred seniors and children on Sunday, at least that's what they said, but it turns out that my children, aged five to 14, are not considered children.

"Up until this morning they were about to freeze to death, we sat for three days in one room with blankets and no heating." Bitton said that the IEC, the regional council and the State have all abandoned their responsibilities. "(Avivim) is a small community, we're not superpowers like Jerusalem or Safed," she added.

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John Podesta - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Sun, 15 Dec 2013 02:32

John David Podesta (born January 8, 1949)[2] was the fourth and final White House Chief of Staff under President Bill Clinton, from 1998 until 2001. He is the former president and now Chair and Counselor of the Center for American Progress, a liberalthink tank in Washington, D.C., and is also a Visiting Professor of Law at the Georgetown University Law Center. Podesta was a co-chairman of the Obama-Biden Transition Project.[3] On December 10, 2013, it was reported that Podesta would be joining the Obama administration as a special advisor.[4]

Early life[edit]Podesta spent most of his early years in Chicago, where he was born, growing up in the neighborhood of Jefferson Park on the city's Northwest Side.[5] His mother, Mary (n(C)e Kokoris), was Greek-American, and his father, John David Podesta, Sr., was Italian-American.[6]Tony Podesta, a lobbyist, is his brother.[7][8] In 1967, he graduated from Lane Technical High School in Chicago. In 1971, Podesta graduated from Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois. He attended the Georgetown University Law Center and graduated in 1976. Podesta worked as a trial attorney for the Department of Justice's Honors Program in the Land and Natural Resources Division (1976''1977), and as a Special Assistant to the Director of ACTION, the Federal volunteer agency (1978''1979).

On June 6, 1998, during his Knox College commencement address, Mr. Podesta spoke of his family's early days: "Let me close with a couple of thoughts. Permit me what my kids would refer to as an ethnic moment. One month ago I stood on the White House lawn, and I watched as President Clinton, the man I'm proud to work for, greeted the Italian Prime Minister, Romano Prodi. It caused me to think about my grandparents, who came to America from Italy at the turn of the century and struggled their whole lives, never attending school, living in a walkup tenement in downtown Chicago. My grandfather working as a stevedore. And I thought about my father, who had to quit high school after one year to support his family, who worked in factories his whole life, but who kept pushing my brother and myself to get a good education. I realized that I couldn't have been on that lawn without the support'--quite literally the scholarship and financial support, but as importantly, the educational and emotional support'--that Knox College gave me."[9]

Podesta held positions on Capitol Hill, including Counselor to Democratic Leader Senator Thomas Daschle (1995''1996); Chief Counsel for the Senate Agriculture Committee (1987''1988); Chief Minority Counsel for the Senate Judiciary Subcommittees on Patents, Copyrights, and Trademarks; Security and Terrorism; and Regulatory Reform; and Counsel on the Majority Staff of the Senate Judiciary Committee (1979''1981). In 1988, Podesta founded with his brother, Tony, Podesta Associates, Inc., a Washington, D.C., "government relations and public affairs" lobbying firm. Now known as the Podesta Group, the firm "has close ties to the Democratic Party and the Obama administration [and] has been retained by some of the biggest corporations in the country, including Wal-Mart, BP and Lockheed Martin."[10] Podesta has also served as a member of the Council of the Administrative Conference of the United States, and the United States Commission on Protecting and Reducing Government Secrecy.[citation needed]

The Clinton years[edit]Podesta served as both an Assistant to the President and as Deputy Chief of Staff. Earlier, from January 1993 to 1995, he was Assistant to the President, Staff Secretary and a senior policy adviser on government information, privacy, telecommunications security and regulatory policy. In 1998 he became President Bill Clinton's Chief of Staff in the second Clinton Administration and executed the position until the end of Clinton's time in office in January 2001. He had a key role in introducing Executive Order 12958 which led to an unprecedented effort to declassify millions of pages from the U.S. diplomatic and national security history and also oversaw Clinton's pardons in the last days of his administration.[citation needed]

Recent years[edit]Podesta founded and is currently Chair of the Center for American Progress, a progressivethink tank in Washington, D.C., and Counselor to the Center for American Progress Action Fund. In addition to his work at American Progress, Podesta is currently a Visiting Professor of Law at the Georgetown University Law Center, his alma mater, where he has taught classes on Congressional investigations[11] and technology law and policy. He is also a member of the Constitution Project's bipartisan Liberty and Security Committee.[12]

In 2008, Podesta authored his book The Power of Progress: How America's Progressives Can (Once Again) Save Our Economy, Our Climate, and Our Country. In it, he articulates a vision of progressive values based on four core lessons: 1) Progressives stand with people, not privilege; 2) Progressives believe in the Common Good and a government that offers a hand up; 3) Progressives hold that all people are equal in the eyes of God and under the law; and 4) Progressives stand for universal human rights and cooperative global security.[citation needed]

In 2009, Podesta accompanied former President Clinton to North Korea for negotiations securing the release of two American journalists imprisoned on espionage charges. He can be seen in numerous widely circulated photographs of Clinton meeting with Kim Jong Il.[citation needed]

Podesta has supported efforts from the UFO research community to pressure the United States government to release files to the public that could bring light on the simmering allegations of conspiracies and cover-up of the issue. At a 2002 news conference organized by Coalition for Freedom of Information Podesta stated that, "It is time for the government to declassify records that are more than 25 years old and to provide scientists with data that will assist in determining the real nature of this phenomenon".[13] When he worked for the Clinton White House Podesta was in charge of a project to declassify 800 million pages of intelligence documents.[14][15]

Podesta became an Honorary Patron of the University Philosophical Society in March 2006. Podesta remains on the Board of Trustees of Knox College.[16] Currently, John Podesta is the U.S. representative to the UN High-Level Panel on the Post-2015 Development Agenda.[17]

References[edit]^Lawton, Kim (Oct 8, 2004). "Catholic Voters". Religion & Ethics Newsweekly. WNET. Retrieved Apr 3, 2011. ^"Washington Post". Who Runs Gov. Retrieved July 17, 2011. ^"Obama, McCain Transition Efforts Are Worlds Apart". Huffington Post. October 8, 2008. Retrieved July 17, 2011. ^Talev, Margaret (10 December 2013). "Obama to Name Former Clinton Official Podesta as Special Adviser". BusinessWeek. Retrieved 10 December 2013. ^Sweet, Lynn (November 6, 2008). "All-business Obama begins transition to White House". Chicago Sun-Times. ^Fusco, Chris (March 12, 2007). "Cooking, wit nourished D.C. Dem elite: Younger son was chief of staff to Bill Clinton". Chicago Sun-Times. ^Crispin, Jessa. "Podesta: Progressive Politics Will Cure U.S. Ills". NPR. Retrieved July 17, 2011. ^Pear, Robert; Broder, John M. (September 5, 2000). "In a Lobby-Happy Washington, Politics Can Be Even Thicker Than Blood". The New York Times. ^June 6, 1998, Knox College Commencement Address^Elliott, Justin (January 28, 2011) Who's doing Mubarak's bidding in Washington?, Salon.com^"Georgetown Law Courses - Congressional Investigations Seminar". Retrieved 28 February 2012. ^"The Constitution Project - The Liberty and Security Committee". Retrieved 28 February 2012. ^Norman, Tony (December 2, 2008). "Change is coming (but not for space aliens)". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved December 23, 2008. ^"UFO enthusiasts urge Obama to release X-Files about alien sightings". Daily Mail (London). November 30, 2008. Retrieved December 23, 2008. ^Shipman, Tim (November 30, 2008). "UFO enthusiasts call on Obama to release X-Files". The Daily Telegraph (London). Retrieved December 23, 2008. ^"Board of Trustees | Knox College". Knox.edu. December 15, 1957. Retrieved July 17, 2011. ^http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/presscenter/pressreleases/2012/07/31/un-secretary-general-appoints-high-level-panel-on-post-2015-development-agenda.htmlFurther reading[edit]External links[edit]PersondataNamePodesta, JohnAlternative namesShort descriptionFormer White House Chief of StaffDate of birthJanuary 8, 1949Place of birthChicago, IllinoisDate of deathPlace of death

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Bad News: ''Global Warming Making Fish Less Horny'''...

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Pro-Nuke Filmmaker 'Disappointed' By Backlash From Environmental Groups | CNS News Mobile

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'Pandora's Promise' director Robert Stone (AP photo)

(CNSNews.com) '' Documentary filmmaker Robert Stone says he is surprised and disappointed by the backlash his pro-nuclear power film, ''Pandora's Promise,'' has received from major environmental groups, such as the National Resources Defense Council and the Sierra Club.''The vitriol has been a little surprising,'' Stone added. ''The film is really an attempt to solve a problem they claim to care about.''

Stone told CNSNews.com that the ''major message'' of the film is that: ''First, nuclear power is absolutely necessary if we have any hope of averting a climate catastrophe; and second, just about all those arguments against the technology we took for granted - the fears about safety, nuclear waste, weapons proliferation '' are not borne out by the facts.''

The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January, was shown at theaters this summer, and aired on CNN in November.

[video:1]

''I'm disappointed that the leading big environmental groups are so negative they don't even want to engage in a conversation, they just want to attack,'' said the self-described ''passionate environmentalist.''

''The anti-nuclear groups are up-in-arms because it challenges their core beliefs.''

Stone admits he himself was once opposed to any form of nuclear power. ''I was against nuclear power because I was against nuclear weapons and, like a great many people, I conflated the two. But almost everything I thought I knew about nuclear power turned out to be wrong,'' he said. ''Many people have privately acknowledged for some time that we need a lot of nuclear energy to solve our climate problems, but very few will say so publicly.''

Future energy demand was of the things that convinced Stone that nuclear power was not only feasible, but necessary.

''I've never been an activist. I'm a documentary filmmaker, who tends to look at the world from a bit of distance,'' Stone told CNSNews.com. ''But running the numbers about how much energy the world will need in the coming decades and how to provide that energy without leaving future generations with a planet that is not viable, we can't get from A to B. There's no way forward without a really big ramp-up of nuclear power.''

China and India are both ''moving ahead rapidly with nuclear energy,'' Stone pointed out, while the U.S. lags behind. One problem, he says, is that an abundance of cheap natural gas is making the cost of building new reactors prohibitive in the U.S. The other problem is government regulation.

''We have the best nuclear technology in the world, but it's impossible to build projects here because of the regulatory framework,'' he said. ''The more likely scenario is that 20 to 30 years down the road, we'll be buying reactors from China.''

When CNSNews. com asked Stone if the opposition to nuclear power was mainly an economic or a political problem, he replied: ''It's absolutely a political problem that's exacerbated by the fact that many people who care the most about energy policy are passionately anti-nuclear and only see renewable energy as the solution.''

According to the U.S. Energy Information Adminstration (EIA), the U.S. generated 4,054 billion kilowatt hours of electricity in 2012. About 68 percent came from fossil fuels (including coal, natural gas, and oil), 19 percent was generated from nuclear plants, 7 percent came from hydropower, and just 5 percent from other renewables, such as wind (3.46 percent), biomass (1.42 percent), geothermal (0.41 percent), and solar (0.11 percent).

Stone said that the title of his film - named for the mythical character Pandora, who opened a box out of curiosity and released evil into the world - is an ''apt metaphor'' for nuclear technology.

''It is true that splitting the atom led to nuclear weapons, a horror that should be eliminated from the earth,'' Stone said. ''But in the myth, Pandora found hope at the bottom of the box.''

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MPs, Lords and lobbyists who advise Ministers on eco policies... then cash in | Mail Online

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Tim Yeo, chairman of the Energy and Climate Change Select Committee, has received well over £400,000 from green energy firms since 2009Maf Smith, deputy chief executive of lobby Renewable UK, previously worked at Department of Energy and Climate Change on changes to renewable subsidies enshrined in Energy BillBy David Rose

PUBLISHED: 17:13 EST, 14 December 2013 | UPDATED: 17:16 EST, 14 December 2013

Tim Yeo, chairman of the Energy and Climate Change Select Committee, has received well over £400,000 from green energy firms since 2009

The Mail on Sunday's investigation shows how MPs, Lords and lobbyists who benefit from green policies also advise the Government on how those policies ought to operate.

The result is that the debate over measures of questionable value but enormous cost has been almost silenced.

Only three MPs voted against the 2008 Climate Change Act, whose legally binding emissions targets make it the most radical piece of economic legislation in recent history.

The present Energy Bill '' which will increase renewable energy subsidies to new, eyewatering heights '' is backed by all the main parties.

Behind this apparent unanimity lies an extraordinary blurring of the boundaries which normally exist between business, politics, academics and campaigners.

Top civil servants frequently work one year for the Government and the next for lobbyists, trying to influence their former colleagues.

MPs who play major role in energy debates - but are in the pay of green companies

Tim Yeo, chairman of the Energy and Climate Change Select Committee, has received well over £400,000 from green energy firms since 2009.Barry Gardiner, a Labour member of Yeo's committee, has received nearly £60,000 since 2008 from Globe International '' an international group chaired by Lord Deben, who is also chair of the Fovernment Climate Change Committee (CCC). Globe campaigns to get national parliaments to pass green laws.Charles Hendry was Energy Minister until 2012. He is chairman of Forewinds, which is planning the world's biggest offshore windfarm. This role was vacated by Deben when he became chairman of the CCC. For this Hendry is paid £48,000, plus £18,000 from Atlantic Supergrid, which wants to lay a high-voltage cable between Britain and Iceland. In all, he is raking in £66,000 a year, more than his MP's salary.

Lord Oxburgh has directorships with Green Energy Options Ltd and clean energy firm 2OC - which he declared. But he failed to reveal his role with another green firm, the Real Asset Energy Fund

The conflicted House of Lords... where peers don't have to state how much they are paid

Lord Oxburgh moved the amendment to the Energy Bill which sought to impose the 2030 carbon limit that will cut CO2 emissions from electric power by 90 per cent. He has directorships with Green Energy Options Ltd and clean energy firm 2OC '' which he declared. But he failed to reveal his role with another green firm, the Real Asset Energy Fund. This has led to an investigation by the Lords Commissioner for Standards. Oxburgh also advises Climate Change Capital, one of the biggest green investment firms.Lord Maclennan of Rogart is chairman of renewable energy firm Inwatur. Together with Lord Lewis and Lord Cameron of Dillington, he was one of three co-authors of a report in May by the Lords EU Committee demanding bigger increases in low-carbon spending who declared interests in renewables.

Lobbyists who bid for green funds - but advise ministers on green policyOne of most influential green lobby groups is E3G '' Third Generation Environmentalists.

Its London branch and its offshoot Transform UK first conceived and then successfully lobbied for the Green Investment Bank, now spending £3.8'‰billion of taxpayers' money, much of it to fund offshore wind '' yet another subsidy on top of the levies on bills.

Its leadership is the Who's Who of ecocrats. Chief executive Nick Mabey was responsible for energy in Tony Blair's No 10 strategy unit; at E3G he replaced John Ashton, who left to become the UK's chief climate negotiator, serving three successive Foreign Secretaries, Labour and Coalition. He is back at E3G as a 'founding director'.

Few environmentalists have had careers as prodigious as E3G's chairman, Tom Burke '' inventor of the slogan 'green growth'. Having been executive director of Friends Of The Earth and director of the Green Alliance, he moved into Government, as special adviser to three Environment Secretaries, and then into business, as a green adviser to BP and Rio Tinto. Remarkably he is now also the senior climate change adviser to the Foreign Office.E3G's funders reflect its chairman's diverse interests. They include four Government departments: those for International Development, the Environment, DECC and the Foreign Office '' which means taxpayers are funding a lobby group whose actions make them poorer. E3G also gets money from Greenpeace and the World Wildlife Fund.Another powerful lobby is Renewable UK. Maf Smith, its deputy chief executive, previously worked at DECC on changes to renewable subsidies enshrined in the Energy Bill.

James Cameron, chairman of Climate Change Capital, advises the Treasury and was a member of the Prime Minister's Business Advisory Group until last year. He was a member of the commission which set up the Green Investment Bank

The specialist green private equity funds... that are very well connectedSpecialist green private equity funds also have a huge web of links.

For example, James Cameron, chairman of Climate Change Capital, advises the Treasury and was a member of the Prime Minister's Business Advisory Group until last year. He was a member of the commission which set up the Green Investment Bank.

Cameron is on the board of Oxford University's Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment.

There his former Climate Change Capital colleague Ben Caldecott directs the Stranded Assets Programme '' an academic project aiming to prove that fossil fuel reserves will have to be left in the ground in order to save the planet, currently a growing demand from green campaigns.

Caldecott moonlights as head of government advisory '' in other words lobbying '' at Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

While he was still at Climate Change Capital, he worked on secondment at DECC and as a climate policy adviser for the Conservative Party.

The scope of this green elite makes airing objections almost impossible.

Last week, questioned at the Commons Energy Select Committee, even Energy Secretary and Climate Change Secretary Ed Davey admitted that Britain's green policies had increased global CO2 emissions '' because by increasing the price of energy, they have driven jobs to countries like China, which use coal heavily and have no binding emissions limits.

'It is certainly arguable that our carbon footprint is bigger,' he said.

Additional reporting: Stephanie Condron

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Common Core: Who Will Rule the Global Schools? Part 3

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Seven years ago a world-changing event took place. It would revolutionize education, families, faith and basic values in our fading "land of the free."

I'm referring to the Moscow Declaration that was officially adopted on June 2, 2006, by the Education Ministers of the United States, the Russian Federation, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom. The members of this international "Group of Eight" (G-8) have committed their nations to "cooperation in education at all levels in the 21st century."[3]

What about America's "Common Core" standards? How do they fit into the Moscow Declaration?

Marketed to American families as an improved education program, the actual truth about "Common Core" has been hidden from us. Our government leaders didn't tell us that we were already committed to a multinational education agenda! But it all makes sense when we consider the century-old movement toward global education!

Back in 2006, Eagle Forum's Education Reporter explained the implication of the "Moscow Declaration':

"Russia's Science and Education Minister Andrei Fursenko described the declaration as 'both a final document of the conference and the document that will be implemented by education ministers of all the world countries and international organizations, including the World Bank, UNESCO, and UN.'"[3]

That certainly sounds like a global education system, doesn't it? But the American people are kept in the dark! The Education Reporter continues,

"The U.S. Department of Education said the member delegates 'pledged to share best practices across borders' to build 'education systems that can allow people... to live and contribute to a global society, and to work in a global economy....'

"Included in previously adopted initiatives... are those from UNESCO as well as the 1985 agreement with the USSR[before the end of "the cold war"] called 'The General Agreement between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics [USSR] on contacts, exchanges and cooperation in scientific, technical, educational, cultural and other fields.'...

"What can be expected from the Moscow Declaration? If the historical results of U.S. participation with international reforms continue in the same vein, it is not unreasonable to expect the whole of U.S. education ½ from preschool, elementary, secondary, and higher education ½ will encounter further upheaval and decline."[3]

Today's sobering realities remind me of the boastful statement made by Nikita Khrushchev back in 1959. Perhaps he was right:

"You Americans are so gullible. No, you won½t accept communism outright, but we½ll keep feeding you small doses of socialism until you½ll finally wake up and find you already have communism. We won½t have to fight you. We½ll so weaken your economy until you½ll fall like overripe fruit into our hands.'½[4]

Who Defines the Standards for this Rising Global Monstrosity?

"In the global village ... networks will link students around the world to each other and to a vast body of information and human knowledge."[5]

That promise was made in 1994 during a trans-Atlantic conference between Washington and Berlin. Education Secretary Richard Riley and Labor Secretary Robert Reich shared strategies for building the Global Village Schools with their German counterparts. They agreed that educational accord would be vital to their goal of "enforcing social transformation."[5]

What did that mean? Did they seek personal liberty as did the leaders of the American Revolution? Or did they seek totalitarian government control as in the French Revolution? What goals and values would guide their plans for global education and social transformation? Capitalism? Socialism? Or Communism?

And where does militant Islam fit into this global power struggle for the minds of children? Its ambitious Sharia-minded leaders are unlikely to compromise! And why would they? Corrupt politicians and liberal media masters are already bending over backward to accommodate Muslim "rights" and their intimidating enclaves.

Finally, which of the world's governing politicians or religious rulers will determine the standards for the rising global education system?

We don't know yet! Our government doesn't tell us about its international schemes and alliances. It doesn't reveal its mind-bending strategies for the next generation of laboring serfs in its global village. Meanwhile our schools are fast trading history and factual learning for government defined social studies that contradict God's Word on every point!

However, we have some clues. Many of today's champions of change seem committed to following the irrational, mystical and occult plans behind Agenda 21, the Earth Charter and other deceptive alliances that feed the "Green Movement." They welcome paganism and ban unwanted expressions of Christian faith. The Bible sums it up:

"...the whole world is under the sway of the evil one." 1 John 5:19

The Green (earth-centered) agenda fits well with a culture of sex, promiscuity and paganism. It offers pleasure and political correctness but delivers bondage and corruption. Ponder this "Common Core 'Exemplars': "Graphic Sex and Praising Castro" designed for our children's classrooms and described by Mary Grabar:

"I must admit that I would have been too embarrassed to teach Julia Alvarez½s sexually explicit novel.... to ninth- and tenth-graders, as many Georgia high school teachers have been instructed to do....

"Common Core does not prescribe a curriculum½but rather 'standards.' These standards supposedly ensure that students½ academic achievement is consistent state to state. But that½s another reason for textbook selection committees to select works from the 'exemplars'½like Alvarez½s [corrupt] novel....

"...as national social studies standards now come rolling in, they will also learn about new American heroes, like Common Core½s biggest funder, billionaire Bill Gates.... The tribute to the billionaire leftist will make a nice complement to praise of Castro and Che in one of the few works of fiction allowed to remain in the ever-diminishing pool of literary 'exemplars' under these new 'standards.'½[6]

So let's take another look at Bill Gates. Apparently Gates and his UNESCO partners have agreed to the following core standards:

"Environmental education will be incorporated in formal education.Any value or attitude held by anyone globally that stands independent to that of the United Nations½ definition of ½sustainable education½ must change. Current attitudes are unacceptable.Education will be belief-and-spirituality based as defined by the global collective.Environmental education will be integrated into every subject, not just science..."[2]Now ponder this important warning from Phyllis Schlafly:

"UNESCO's efforts in the 1960s and 1970s to influence U.S. school curriculum were unsuccessful. But now UNESCO has found a sugar daddy. On November 17, 2004 at UNESCO's headquarters in Paris, UNESCO signed a 26-page 'Cooperation Agreement' with Microsoft Corporation to develop a 'master curriculum (Syllabus)' for teacher training in information technologies based on standards, guidelines, benchmarks, and assessment techniques. The Agreement states that ... 'UNESCO will explore how to facilitate content development.'"

"Following the signing of the Agreement, UNESCO Director General Koichiro Matsuura explained it in a speech. One of its goals, he said, is... worldwide curricula reflecting UNESCO values."[7]

A Troubling Piece of Education History

Let's go back to 1948 for a moment. That year the National Education Association [NEA], funded in part by the Carnegie Corporation, produced a set of international guidelines called "Education for International Understanding in American Schools."... It included this statement by Willard Givens, who would soon be the executive secretary of the NEA:

"The idea has become established that the preservation of international peace and order may require that force be used to compel a nation to conduct its affairs within the framework of an established world system. The most modern expression of this doctrine of collective security is in the United Nations Charter.... Many persons believe that enduring peace cannot be achieved so long as the nation-state system continues as at present constituted. It is a system of international anarchy."[8]

"...many drastic changes must be made. ...all of us, including the 'owners', must be subjected to a large degree of social control.... The major function of the school is the social orientation of the individual. It must seek to give him understanding of the transition to a new social order."[9]

We began this article with this quote from Ben Shapiro: "Every old ideological conflict eventually becomes new again. ... Those of conservative bent ardently hope for a second American Revolution; those of the left wish desperately for a second French Revolution."

The Left may win the next battle in this spiritual war. The signs of a global revolution are already too close for comfort. We can no longer count on the American Constitution or the integrity of our leaders. More often than not, their choices are totally contrary to America's founding values and God's wise guidelines.

But our Lord still reigns! In the midst of this spiritual war, He will surely provide His strength, wisdom and His comforting nearness to all who choose to trust and follow Him!

"... >>>>in Me you may have peace. >>In the world you >>>>will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, >>I have overcome the world.½ (John 16:33)

Notes:

1. Ben Shapiro, "The Second French Revolution," Townhall.com, April 8, 2009.

2. "Top Ten Scariest People in Education Reform: #5: Bill Gates: Scary Philanthropy," by Christel Swasey, March 28, 2013. http://whatiscommoncore.wordpress.com/2013/03/28/top-ten-scariest-people-in-education-reform-5-bill-gates.

3. 'Moscow Declaration' Adopted by G-8: Education Ministers ½ Secretary Spellings Commits U.S. at http://www.eagleforum.org/educate/2006/june06/moscow.html, Eagle Forum,U.S. Dept. of Education, 6-2-2006.

4. Nikita Khrushchev, "Dark Predictions of a KGB Defector," 1959 at http://frontpagemag.com/2010/10/19/dark-predictions-of-a-kgb-defector/print/

5. From a publicity flier announcing the conference held April 10-13, 1994.

6. Mary Grabar, "Common Core 'Exemplars': Graphic Sex and Praising Castro, "May 7, 2013. Cited in http://www.crossroad.to/Books/BraveNewSchools/Chronology.htm

7. Phyllis Schlafly, "Bill Gates Teams Up With UNESCO," Eagle Forum, November 30, 2005 .http://www.eagleforum.org/column/2005/nov05/05-11-30.html

8. Dennis Cuddy, Ph.D., "The Grab for Power: A Chronology of the NEA" (Marlborough NH: Plymouth Rock Foundation, 1993); 8.

9. Willard Givens, who became executive secretary of the National Education Association, 1935. See Chronology of the NEA

No Room for God: Reviving the 'Science' of 'Re-education'

Brainwashing and 'Education Reform'

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Moscow Declaration Adopted by G-8 Education Ministers -- Secretary Spellings Commits U.S.

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Five myths about the Common Core.

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Sun, 15 Dec 2013 13:54

Valerie Strauss is an education columnist for The Washington Post.

The Common Core State Standards, which spell out what K-12 students should learn in school, are at the center of a heated debate: Who should control public education? What do students really need to know? Let's separate fact from fiction to figure out what's at stake.

1. The Common Core is a federal takeover of public education that imposes a national curriculum.

It isn't and it doesn't '-- though it has substantial support from the Obama administration, verging on coercion.

The Common Core has been spearheaded by the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers, D.C.-based associations that get funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. In 2009, with bipartisan support, they engaged education reform nonprofits to take the lead in writing standards for what students should know and be able to do in math and English/language arts, grade by grade, from kindergarten through 12th.

The Core does not prescribe how students should meet those standards, though the English/language arts authors also wrote curriculum guidelines for textbook publishers, and school districts in different states can and are using the same prepackaged lessons.

Forty-five states and the District have adopted the Core, and the Obama administration has a lot to do with that statistic. Its $4.3 billion Race to the Top competition makes adoption of ''common standards'' an incentive to win federal funding. The Education Department also wanted states that applied for waivers from No Child Left Behind to adopt common standards.

2. Opposition to the Common Core is coming primarily from the tea party and white suburban moms.

Education Secretary Arne Duncan last month blamed some of the Core backlash on ''white suburban moms who '-- all of a sudden '-- their child isn't as brilliant as they thought they were, and their school isn't quite as good as they thought they were.'' Earlier, he characterized the opposition as ''political silliness'' and ''a rallying cry for fringe groups.''

The reality is that resistance to the Common Core is coming from every political direction. On the right, the tea party has indeed been vocal. Though the Core has support from the likes of former Florida governor Jeb Bush, conservative Republicans have mounted a sustained attack. Glenn Beck warned his listeners: ''You as a parent are going to be completely pushed out of the loop. The state is completely pushed out of the loop. They now have control of your children.''

On the left, Diane Ravitch , the most vocal critic of school reforms that focus on standardization, has suggested that federal promotion of the Common Core ''may well have been illegal.''

In the middle are educators, students and parents concerned about how the Core has been designed, written and implemented. They worry that teachers haven't had time to absorb the standards and figure out how to teach them. They say prewritten lessons aren't a good solution, because they take away teachers' ability to individualize learning according to student needs. Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers union and a supporter of the Core, has said: ''You think the Obamacare implementation is bad? The implementation of the Common Core is far worse.''

3. Common Core tests will be more advanced than current assessments.

Duncan promised that the new Core-aligned exams would be an ''absolute game-changer in public education'' '-- going beyond multiple-choice bubbles with open-ended questions that more deeply assess what students have learned and how well they can solve problems.

But the tests scheduled to roll out next school year won't be the huge leap forward that supporters had hoped. An independent panel of education leaders determined that there wasn't enough time or money to create groundbreaking exams.

Separately, Stanford University education professor Linda Darling-Hammond found that the Core exams under development are only marginally better than tests that have been used for years '-- and are less helpful than evaluations used in Singapore and by the International Baccalaureate program, for instance, that ask students to design, conduct, analyze and present their work in multiple ways .

4. The Common Core demands that teachers toss out Shakespeare.

How much literature English teachers teach was one of the big education controversies of the year. Reflecting concern that U.S. students can't adequately read and analyze complex studies, reports and primary documents, the Core's English standards require that nonfiction texts represent 50 percent of reading assignments in elementary schools, growing to 70 percent by Grade 12. English teachers across the country expressed angst about all the novels, plays, short stories and poems they'd have to cut from their lessons.

But the Core authors clarified that the requirement applies to reading assignments across all courses '-- not that a single English class had to have the 70-30 ratio. Among the nonfiction works they recommend is Alexis de Tocqueville's 1835 classic ''Democracy in America,'' along with more obscure texts such as ''FedViews'' by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco (2009) and the General Services Administration's ''Executive Order 13423: Strengthening Federal Environmental, Energy, and Transportation Management'' (2007).

5. New Core tests will save taxpayers money.

Some advocates claim that districts can develop Common Core tests cheaply. For example, the national advocacy group Parents for Public Schools said: ''Common Core State Standards will cause states to save money on creating and scoring tests. Since all states that adopt [them] will use the same standards, they can also share on the development.''

But the costs of Core tests have been a big concern, especially for the five states that dropped out of the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, a group of 18 states and the District ''working together to develop a common set of K-12 assessments in English and math,'' according to its Web site. This consortium has acknowledged that half of its member states will spend more than they do for current tests; one of them, Georgia, pulled out when the cost of new exams was announced. The price? More than $2 million above Georgia's existing state assessment budget.

States lack resources to upgrade equipment and provide technical support for the new tests '-- costs likely to exceed that of the exams themselves. One analysis indicates that Race to the Top would provide districts with less than 10 cents on the dollar to defray those expenses plus mandated teacher evaluations.

Bottom line: Nobody knows how much implementing the Common Core will cost.

valerie.strauss@washpost.com

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Partners | The Hour of Code 2013

About Us | Code.org

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Sat, 14 Dec 2013 23:48

Code.org is a non-profit dedicated to expanding participation in computer science education by making it available in more schools, and increasing participation by women and underrepresented students of color. Our vision is that every student in every school should have the opportunity to learn computer programming. We believe computer science should be part of the core curriculum in education, alongside other science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses, such as biology, physics, chemistry and algebra.

Our goals include:Bringing Computer Science classes to every K-12 school in the United States, especially in urban and rural neighborhoods.Demonstrating the successful use of online curriculum in public school classroomsChanging policies in all 50 states to categorize C.S. as part of the math/science "core" curriculumHarnessing the collective power of the tech community to celebrate and grow C.S. education worldwideTo increase the representation of women and students of color in the field of Computer Science.AdvocacyFor federal and local advocacy, Code.org collaborates with our sister organization, Computing in the Core.

Computing in the Core (CinC) is a non-partisan advocacy coalition of associations, corporations, scientific societies, and other non-profits that strive to elevate computer science education to a core academic subject in K-12 education. Learn more about Computing in the Core.

DonorsCode.org is a public 501c3, with support from the general public. Founded initially by Ali Partovi and Hadi Partovi, we've been overwhelmed by small and large acts of generosity from individuals and companies alike who all agree with our vision.

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Congress Wants More Scrutiny of New Arms Export Rules '' and Obama Administration Doesn't - ProPublica

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Sat, 14 Dec 2013 15:14

We reported on concerns about an overhaul of the U.S. arms exports control system. Congress is now attempting to patch oversight gaps opened up by the new rules.

A C-130 Hercules aircraft taxies after completing preflight inspections on the flight line at Little Rock Air Force Base, Ark., in February 2012. C-130 transport planes are among the items that are now subject to fewer export restrictions (U.S. Air Force photo by Ellora Remington/Released)

As ProPublica reported this fall, the Obama administration is rolling back limits on some U.S. arms exports. Experts are concerned that the changes could result in military parts flowing more freely to the world's conflict zones, and that arms sanctions against Iran and other countries will be harder to enforce.

Now, some in Congress are seeking to add back some oversight mechanisms lost in the overhaul '' over opposition from the administration.

As part of the administration's larger changes to what many view as an antiquated arms export system, thousands of military items have moved out from under the State Department's long-standing oversight to the looser controls of the Commerce Department.

Commerce Department officials have said that, as a matter of policy, they will continue human rights vetting of recipient countries and reporting big sales to Congress, things the State Department was legally required to do.

A bill introduced in the House Foreign Affairs Committee last month would add back those and other legal requirements for many military items moving to Commerce control.

The bill is intended to ''preserve Congressional oversight of arms transfers as the administration implements its Export Control Reform Initiative,'' said Daniel Harsha, a spokesman for the committee.

While administration officials declined to comment on the pending legislation, they have quietly resisted it.

''They've opposed it because they don't think it's necessary,'' said Colby Goodman, a consultant to the Open Society Policy Center who was formerly with the U.N. Office for Disarmament Affairs. (Open Society provides funding to ProPublica.) ''The administration appears to prefer having human rights vetting in policy only. Unfortunately, this stance makes it easier for the administration to ignore such vetting when it suits them.''

Brandt Pasco, a lawyer who helped craft the overall export changes, said Congress may be over-reacting. ''Most of what's being transferred over, the reason it was being moved to the Commerce system was that it was not seen as being enormously sensitive,'' said Pasco, who added that the human rights requirement risked creating ''needless bureaucracy'' for unimportant items.

The Senate is also considering legislation in response to the changes, though its approach may have less practical effect than that of the House.

The president decides what stays on the State Department's control list, and the current standard is items that provide a critical military advantage to the U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., has put forward an amendment to the annual defense spending bill that lays out broader criteria for the president's decision.

The amendment says that the State Department should continue to have tighter control over exports of equipment that could provide ''substantial military or intelligence capability'' to the foes of the U.S. or its allies.

Brittany Benowitz, who was a defense adviser to former Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wisc., and is the co-author of a paper on the export changes, said that the administration's standard was too narrow. ''The export control criteria are focused on sophisticated technologies that foreign militaries are trying to obtain, but in this day and age, the U.S. faces threats from not-so-sophisticated, often non-state actors,'' she said.

The amendment, however, ultimately leaves the decision to move equipment off the State Department's list to the president's judgment.

''If what the administration is saying is true, that the reform is moving relatively minor parts and components [to Commerce], then they shouldn't have a problem with the amendment,'' said Goodman, the Open Society consultant.

The approach of both the House and Senate line up with recommendations made by the American Bar Association's Center for Human Rights in a white paper published in January, which called on Congress to patch regulatory gaps opened up by the shift to Commerce.

The immediate future of either effort isn't clear, given the packed legislative agenda squeezed into the end of the year.

The administration has said its changes to arms export rules are a necessary update to an outdated oversight system. By loosening controls on ''items that pose a low risk to national security,'' officials at the State and Commerce Departments told ProPublica, the government can ''improve its ability to safeguard those items that most require protection.''

Defense manufacturers have pushed for the rule changes, which they believe will boost their competitiveness overseas. The Defense Department has also said that the changes will make it easier to equip allies.

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Air strike kills 15 civilians in Yemen by mistake: officials

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Fri, 13 Dec 2013 08:15

Air strike kills 15 civilians in Yemen by mistake: officialsTop News

Air strike kills 15 civilians in Yemen by mistake: officials

Thu, Dec 12 13:34 PM EST

SANAA (Reuters) - Fifteen people on their way to a wedding in Yemen were killed in an air strike after their party was mistaken for an al Qaeda convoy, local security officials said on Thursday.

The officials did not identify the plane in the strike in central al-Bayda province, but tribal and local media sources said that it was a drone.

"An air strike missed its target and hit a wedding car convoy, ten people were killed immediately and another five who were injured died after being admitted to the hospital," one security official said.

Five more people were injured, the officials said.

The United States has stepped up drone strikes as part of a campaign against Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), regarded by Washington as the most active wing of the militant network.

Yemen, AQAP's main stronghold, is among a handful of countries where the United States acknowledges using drones, although it does not comment on the practice.

Human Rights Watch said in a detailed report in August that U.S. missile strikes, including armed drone attacks, have killed dozens of civilians in Yemen.

Stabilizing the country, which is also struggling with southern separatists and northern rebels, is an international priority due to fears of disorder in a state that flanks top oil producer Saudi Arabia and major shipping lanes.

On Monday, missiles fired from a U.S. drone killed at least three people travelling in a car in eastern Yemen.

(Reporting by Mohammed Ghobari; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)

Air strike kills 15 civilians in Yemen by mistake: officialsTop News

Air strike kills 15 civilians in Yemen by mistake: officials

Thu, Dec 12 13:34 PM EST

SANAA (Reuters) - Fifteen people on their way to a wedding in Yemen were killed in an air strike after their party was mistaken for an al Qaeda convoy, local security officials said on Thursday.

The officials did not identify the plane in the strike in central al-Bayda province, but tribal and local media sources said that it was a drone.

"An air strike missed its target and hit a wedding car convoy, ten people were killed immediately and another five who were injured died after being admitted to the hospital," one security official said.

Five more people were injured, the officials said.

The United States has stepped up drone strikes as part of a campaign against Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), regarded by Washington as the most active wing of the militant network.

Yemen, AQAP's main stronghold, is among a handful of countries where the United States acknowledges using drones, although it does not comment on the practice.

Human Rights Watch said in a detailed report in August that U.S. missile strikes, including armed drone attacks, have killed dozens of civilians in Yemen.

Stabilizing the country, which is also struggling with southern separatists and northern rebels, is an international priority due to fears of disorder in a state that flanks top oil producer Saudi Arabia and major shipping lanes.

On Monday, missiles fired from a U.S. drone killed at least three people travelling in a car in eastern Yemen.

(Reporting by Mohammed Ghobari; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)

Five killed as drone hits boat near Pak-Afghan border

UPDATE: Hawaii Health Director dies in plane crash off Molokai | Hawaii Reporter

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Thu, 12 Dec 2013 22:53

Loretta Fuddy

Molokai has some of the most treacherous seas in the world, so when a Cessna Grand Caravan owned by Makani Kai Air crashed one mile off of Kalaupapa, Molokai, at 3:27 p.m. on Wednesday on its way from Molokai to Oahu, eight passengers and pilot were forced to try to escape the wreckage and brave large surf and dangerous conditions until help arrived.

According to the U.S. Coast Guard, 8 people were rescued.

However, Maui County police confirmed Loretta Fuddy, 65, who is the director of the state Department of Health, did not survive.

Deputy Health Director Keith Yamamoto was rescued.

Both were there on official duties as part of an annual visit to the remote North side community where a few remaining patients with Hansen's Disease live.

Today, Kalaupapa is a national park managed by the state Department of Health where a few patients remain. Patients with leprosy were first exiled there in 1866.

In a statement issued Wednesday, the Coast Guard said that after the crash was reported, the Coast Guard launched two MH-65 Dolphin helicopter aircrews and one HC-130 Hercules airplane crew from Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point on Oahu.

Coast Guard Cutters Ahi and Galveston Island, home-ported in Honolulu, and two 45-foot Response-Boat Medium crews from Station Maui were also dispatched to the scene.

Rescue swimmers from the Dolphin helicopters were deployed, rescuing three passengers in the water. They were transported by Dolphin helicopter crews to Honolulu for emergency medical services.

Maui Fire Rescue rescued additional passengers.

Two people were transported by a Makani Kai company plane to Honolulu and the rest of the passengers remained on Molokai.

Kalaupapa, Molokai - Photo courtesy of the National Park Service

Sen. J. Kalani English, who represents the island of Molokai, said he was deeply saddened to hear of the plane crash and extended his most heartfelt sympathy and concerns to those who were aboard the Makani Kai aircraft.

''On behalf of the State of Hawaii, I offer my sincere condolences to the family and friends of the individual who lost their life today.''

"As we continue to monitor the situation, our thoughts and prayers are with the loved ones of those who were on board, and with the people of Molokai.''

Senate President Donna Mercado Kim said Fuddy embodied the very sprit and ethos of public service, dedicating her life to the health and wellbeing of all of Hawaii's people.

''Appointed to Director of the Department of Health in 2011, Loretta brought with her over 35 years of experience in health and human services. Actively involved in improving health care options both locally and nationally, her commitment to public health was undisputed,'' Kim said. ''Under her leadership, she fostered a transparent and collaborative environment, engaging with lawmakers, community members, health care providers, and social service organizations.''

Maui Mayor Alan Arakawa extended his condolences to the Fuddy's family, including her sister, who is a part of the Maui County family and works as a Maui Police Department Chaplain on Molokai.

"We are extremely saddened to hear the news," said Mayor Alan Arakawa. "Loretta's life was dedicated to improving public health in the community and the entire state suffers from this loss," Arakawa said. "At the same time we are very grateful for the efforts of our men and women of the Maui fire and police departments, as well as the U.S. Coast Guard. They managed to get the rest of the crash survivors to shore safely and we thank them for this holiday miracle."

Map of airline route between Oahu and Kalauapapa, Molokai (http://www.makanikaiair.com/)

Fuddy, who served as acting director since January 2011 until becoming director in March 2011, was before that the Chief of the Family Health Services Division for the department. She holds degrees in sociology, social work, and public health from the University of Hawai'i and Johns Hopkins University.

The governor's office, when appointing her, said Fuddy was a recognized leader in the public health field having served as Chair of the Hawai'i Public Health Association, President of the Association of State & Territorial Public Health Association, Treasurer and Secretary of the Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs. She is a recipient of a various awards including the Hawaii Outstanding Advocate for Children and Youth, and the DOH Sustained Superior and Exemplary Performance Award. Raised in Kaimuki, she is a graduate of the Sacred Hearts Academy.

Fuddy made headlines nationally two years ago when she issued a waiver request that allowed President Barack Obama to obtain certified copies of his birth certificate, which were signed by his mother, a local registrar and the delivery doctor.

''Our hearts are broken. Loretta was deeply loved and respected. She was selfless, utterly dedicated, and committed to her colleagues in the Department of Health and to the people of Hawaii. Her knowledge was vast; her counsel and advice always given from her heart as much as from her storehouse of experience," Abercrombie said. ''We send our best thoughts to her family and will do all in our power to reflect her professionalism, her love of Hawaii and the high standard she set for herself and all of us.''

The National Transportation and Safety Board will be in charge of investigating the circumstances surrounding the crash, according to a statement from Maui county officials.

Richard Schuman, president of Makana Kai, told KHON TV 2, that during take off, the pilot heard a loud bang, a sign of engine failure."I have spoken with the pilot and the initial report was on his departure from Kalaupapa, coming back to Honolulu, as he was taking off there was a catastrophic engine failure," Schuman told KHON 2. "He described hearing a large bang and he performed the emergency procedure he is trained to do."

Short URL: http://www.hawaiireporter.com/?p=473660

Author: Hawaii ReporterHawaii Reporter is an award-winning, independent Hawaii-based news and opinion journal founded in 2001 and launched in February 2002. The journal's staff have won a number of top awards from the Society of Professional Journalists, including the top investigative news reporting awards, business reporting awards, government reporting awards, and online news reporting awards. Hawaii Reporter has a weekly television news show, News Behind the News, which airs on Mondays at 1:30 p.m. and Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m.Hawaii Reporter has written 8171 articles for us.

Report: Ronni Chasen Autopsy Report Contradicts Police Account | Variety

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Fri, 13 Dec 2013 21:46

A report from the Los Angeles County Coroner's office is raising questions about the official police account of the November 2010 murder of longtime showbiz publicist Ronni Chasen.

The Los Angeles Times reports that the autopsy report states that while Chasen was stopped at a red light at the intersection, ''an unknown vehicle pulled up and someone fired approximately four gunshots into her vehicle.'' But that account, based on initial informant and witness statements, came in a coroner investigator's narrative that was prepared on Nov. 16, the same day that Chasen was murdered.

Beverly Hills police and other investigators later concluded that Chasen was shot by small-time crook Harold Martin Smith, who pulled up alongside her car on a bike and tried to rob her. Smith later shot himself in a Hollywood apartment building as police were trying to bring him in for questioning.

The Nov. 16, 2010 coroner's report is based on statements that Beverly Hills police detective Chris Coulter made to Lt. Larry Dietz of the Forensic Science Center. It states that while Chasen ''was stopped at a red light at the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Whittier Drive an unknown vehicle pulled up and someone fired approximately 4 gunshots into her vehicle. All witnesses report hearing 4 gunshots. After being struck by gunfire and she then made a left turn and drove for approximately a quarter mile before she crashed her car into a pole.''

Chasen's violent death jolted the showbiz community. Some friends of the veteran praiser have long been skeptical of the official law enforcement account of her death.

NBC News' Andrew Blankstein, citing a source familiar with the case, reported that the autopsy report was delayed in its release because police were trying ''to protect the Chasen family.''

(Pictured above: Beverly Hills Police chief Dave Snowden, left, and Beverly Hills mayor Jimmy Delshad at a December 2010 news conference on the murder investigation.)

Ronni Chasen Autopsy Reveals Desperate Lifesaving Attempt, 2 Fatal Shots - TheWrap

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Fri, 13 Dec 2013 22:09

The widely reported second-vehicle ''contradiction'' is likely nothing more than an investigator's early speculation, coroner says

Ronni Chasen's autopsy report reveals that first responders found her barely breathing and emergency surgeons' desperate attempt to save her life '-- but the document otherwise provides scant insight into her killing.

According to the report, EMTs were dispatched within 3 minutes and arrived on the scene inside of 10 minutes. They found no pulse but did indicate that Chasen was breathing '-- if barely. She was intubated and operated on at Cedars-Sinai, but pronounced dead minutes later.

Ryan Katzenbach, the documentary filmmaker who sued investigators for access to Chasen's case files has dismissed two defendants '' the Los Angeles County Coroner's office and its deputy chief Ed Winter '' after they made her autopsy report public late Thursday.

''I felt that the autopsy was pretty garden-variety, what you would expect on any type of victim,'' Katzenbach, who filed the lawsuit last month, told TheWrap. ''It was very thorough, it was very complete. I am still at this point rather puzzled why there was such a need for secrecy, and why this was locked down for three years.''

Also read:Ronni Chasen Murder: Documentary Filmmaker Sues BHPD for Case File Access

Katzenbach is still seeking the full case file from the Beverly Hills Police Department for a film he's working on about the veteran publicist and awards season consultant's murder, ruled a homicide at the hands of transient felon Harold Smith. Though Katzenbach sees nothing unusual in the autopsy, he plans to turn it over to a medical expert who can possibly glean more details.

A synopsis in an attachment to the document, written just hours after Chasen's death by a coroner's investigator identified as Courtney Morrow, suggests that an ''unknown vehicle pulled up and someone fired approximately 4 gunshots'' as Chasen was driving home from a premiere afterparty on Nov. 17, 2010.

But detectives later determined that Smith approached Chasen's car on foot or on a bicycle; as there were no known eyewitnesses to the crime, the ''second vehicle'' theory never materialized. A coroner's spokesman told TheWrap that there is no meaningful contradiction between the initial report and police investigation, despite media reports this week suggesting one.

Minor discrepancies are commonplace in initial coroner's documents, which are often based on ''quick and dirty'' assessments by investigators who've been on the scene only a short time, spokesman Craig Harvey told TheWrap on Friday. It's highly likely that a detective's early speculation about the ''unknown vehicle'' seeped into the report, but was later dispelled as more evidence about Smith's botched robbery attempt came to light.

''It's a preliminary document,'' Harvey said. ''It's done on the fly. Everything is in flux '' information changes.''

Also read:Police Believe Harold Smith Acted Alone in Ronni Chasen Murder

As for what is in the document:

_ Chasen sustained four gunshot wounds, only two of which were fatal. One shattered Chasen's upper-arm bone and is a ''fatal wound due to the extensive trauma to the right humerus bone with associated hemorrhage.'' The other entered her shoulder, traveled through the chest and is a ''rapidly fatal wound due to internal hemorrhage.'' The other two wounds would not have killed her quickly.

_ Emergency responders were dispatched within 3 minutes and arrived on the scene inside of 10 minutes (approximately). They found no pulse but did indicate that Chasen was breathing '-- if barely.

_ Despite the seriousness of her wounds, there is evidence that emergency surgeons made every effort to keep her alive, including an endotracheal tube ''present and in proper position within the trachea.'' The report also notes incisions, an IV puncture, a vascular line and thoracotomy, or chest wall incision, ''with attempted repair'' of the heart and other organs internally.

Also read:Police Close Ronni Chasen Case '-- Publicist Killed With Cop's Stolen Gun (Exclusive)

_ The cause of death is ''due to multiple gunshot wounds,'' and the manner of death is listed as homicide. On November 16, 2010, Chasen was shot at approximately 12:27 a.m.; she was received at Cedars-Sinai at 12:55 a.m.; she was intubated and operated on at 1 a.m.; and was pronounced dead at 1:12 a.m.

_ Chasen's death took place early Tuesday morning; her autopsy was performed beginning at 9:10 a.m. Wednesday. That's a fairly quick turnaround even for a high-profile homicide investigation, though not unusual if the day's workflow allowed it, Harvey said.

The defendants remaining in Katzenbach's records-violation case include the BHPD; its chief, David Snowden; Lt. Lincoln Hoshino; and city clerk Melissa Crowder. Katzenbach believes there may be more telling details in ballistics reports, crime-scene photos, witness accounts and other police records that have been sealed since the investigation was closed.

Also read:BHPD Chief Declares Ronni Chasen Murder Solved

For instance, investigators said a month after Chasen's death that the gun Smith used to kill himself as detectives were closing in was a ballistics match to the murder weapon '' but they've never revealed what type of gun it was. (Further evidence that initial coroner's reports can be dodgy: the autopsy revealed Tuesday said the weapon was likely a 9mm, but it's now believed that Smith used a stolen police-issue .38 pistol.)

''What's always bothered me,'' Katzenbach said of the BHPD's final analysis, ''is how vague they have been.''

Nelson Mandela Family Finally Gives Up Charade and Admits Mandela Died in June - Guardian

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Fri, 13 Dec 2013 07:36

The problem is that the infighting within the Mandela family is so bad that the beans have now been well and truly spilled. The only fallback position for the world's news manipulators is to blame the family for keeping Mandela alive, and a lawsuit. How could this news have been hidden from the world, except with the full cooperation of the world's governments and the world's media? They are the true perpetrators of this worldwide massive deception. The news media and the world's governments will now have to keep face and ask people to trust them again. I think trust is getting almost impossible. All news is deception these days. The true Mandela story is entirely different to the one being fawned over by relatively educated and intelligent people all across the globe. Mandela is a deception from start to finish - the controlled opposition to apartheid, who was trained and managed by MI6, while the Boers were expropriated and murdered, and the Africans sent into yet worse poverty. The only beneficiaries of all this the corporations. That's who Mandela worked for. His years in prison were years in which he was trained and kept ready. There are rumours of other major deceptions along Paul McCartney lines.The Nelson Mandela family has finally given up their charade and admitted that Nelson Mandela is dead by announcing today that the former leader of South Africa is no longer with us. The charade began in June of 2013, and Guardian Express has maintained Mandela has been deceased since we were informed of his passing in June via one of our reporters embedded in South Africa. That reporter had received a text message from her close friend who works for the South African News which stated that Mandela had died the night prior. Since June, The Guardian Express has come under attack; first from a ''denial of service'' attack which shut the site down on and off for three days right after we published the news that Mandela had died. That denial of service attack was traced back to South Africa.The Guardian Express was also attacked by people denying that the Nelson Mandela family was carrying on a charade. However, we stood by and continue to stand by our account that Mandela was declared permanently brain dead with total organ failure in June of 2013. Now, today, the family has finally decided to give up their charade.We sent an additional reporter to South Africa who returned with an audio recording of two top government officials confirming the fact that Mandela was totally brain dead and was declared so on June 11. However, his family refused to turn off the life support machines hooked up to his body. Thus, the family could keep him artificially ''alive.'' Their motive? To settle a huge lawsuit against Mandela's estate.It was revealed that Mandela's family was suing him for control of his estate and since it is impossible to sue a dead person, it seems Mandela had to be kept ''alive'' with machines until a resolution could be found for the lawsuit. Thus far, there is no word on whether that lawsuit had been settled, but there are already many speculations in the press that this announcement today will begin the battles over the Mandela estate afresh.The Mandela daughters and granddaughters have shown a good deal of greed when it comes to Mandela's legacy. It has been reported that their fighting over his money got so bad that Mandela ''lost faith'' in his daughters and worried that their concern over money was overshadowing their concern for family harmony.The Mandela funeral was planned a year in advance, according to reports. The funeral date is set for December 14 and there is a comprehensive schedule of events leading up to that date. Stay tuned to Guardian Express for complete funeral coverage. The Mandela family has finally given up their charade which they have been carrying on since June and have admitted the great former South African leader is dead. As we have wished him since June, may he rest in peace.

Nelson Mandela: What Were We Thinking?

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Fri, 13 Dec 2013 07:51

The Truth Shouldn't Hurt the One Who Tells It

On the morning of June 26, we received a message from one of our South African correspondents, Laura Oneale that Nelson Mandela had passed away the previous evening. The news had come to her in the form of a text message from an acquaintance who was well-placed in the South African media. It should be understood that this organization was not authorized to break the news. Clearly, the South African government and the Mandela family had already decided that the news would not be made public. Undoubtedly, this decision had been made even before his death; at least, that's what we were thinking.

Our assumption, at the time, was two-fold: firstly, we doubted that such news would not long escape the attention of the international media, even if the South African media was being muzzled. As is the nature of the news media industry, we saw that we had been handed a major scoop and that our window of opportunity to be the first to break this news was limited. Cynical? Perhaps, but we did not doubt the integrity of the source, given that individual's position. We are in the news business. What other publication '' given the gravity of the story and the knowledge of Mandela's health condition '' would not have immediately prepared to publish? We began both to work on a couple of articles and to seek out verification. We found no other corroborating evidence. We wrote our stories.

In the interests of being completely honest, we cannot say that we did not second '' guess ourselves. Did we have direct, first-hand proof that Nelson Mandela was dead? No, we didn't. One must look at how news stories are broken, though: A media publication receives information from a trusted source; every good faith attempt is made to verify the information. In the absence of verification, the editor or editorial team must make a decision to publish or not to publish. What we did have was the best source we could have, other than first-hand, eye-witness testimony. Moreover, Mandela was seriously ill; according to reports, the icon and former African leader was on his deathbed; hooked up to medical devices that enabled him to breathe.

We published.

Now, we were walking on eggshells; our reputation was at stake. What were we thinking? Other news outlets actually published stories announcing Mandela's death; they quickly retracted, without actually justifying why they had done so. To us, that in itself indicated that they had been told to retract, rather than doing so because they had discovered that Mandela was still alive. The Las Vegas Guardian Express, however, was a relatively new and completely independent publication with no government ties and no corporate owners or shareholders. We could not be pressured into retracting, other than through legal action. In addition, we were a tiny speck on the world news radar.

Naturally, it was in our own interests to quickly verify Mandela's condition. Is that an admission that we published news of his death without being sure? No, it is not; we were sure and we could clearly see that an official announcement could be kept under wraps for any number of reasons; a visit by US President Barack Obama was already scheduled and there were obvious security implications. Additionally, the South African government is absolutely capable of using such news for political purposes. Our only misgiving was that we had failed to uncover any corroborating source. The strength of our conviction is proven by the fact that, even as the days went by and no word of his death came from official or family sources, we maintained our position. It seemed logical enough that there was no reason to retract without absolute proof that Nelson Mandela still lived.

As the few articles we published drew attention '' along with numerous comments '' it became self-evident that both the South African government and the Mandela family were aware of our reports. Had we been wrong '' and had the family been able to prove that Mandela was still alive '' it is beyond doubt that the Las Vegas Guardian Express would have received some form of legal threat. Not only did such action never transpire, but our publication was subjected to cyber-attack: Denial of Service attacks, originating in South Africa, disabled our site on more than one occasion. We took this as proof that we were reporting something that the South African government did not want us to report.

It should be remembered that our publication was relatively small and generated only modest revenue through advertising. Nevertheless '' and at considerable expense '' we dispatched a senior editor to South Africa. During his time there, Michael Smith uncovered intriguing details of the situation regarding Nelson Mandela, the family, the African National Congress and South African President Jacob Zuma. Our investigations opened a door into the corruption and dishonesty of the aforementioned parties. During a Mandela family legal battle, documents emerged which stated that doctors had advised the family to turn off Mandela's life support as he was brain-dead. At a later point, Zuma made a statement denying this, but we noted carefully that, while other news organizations were reporting that the doctors themselves had retracted their claims that Mandela was brain-dead, no such retraction had been made; Zuma himself claimed that the doctors had retracted this assertion.

Now that it has been officially announced that Nelson Mandela has passed away, our position on the matter has not changed in any way. Inevitably, his passing had to be revealed. Many of our South African readers have believed us from the start; those that have criticized us have presented not one shred of evidence that we were wrong. The idea that we are proven wrong because the official announcement comes only now is absurd.

This article has not detailed every piece of evidence that fell into place during our investigation into why Nelson Mandela's death was covered up. One of the most compelling discoveries was brought back from South Africa by Michael Smith: He returned with an audio tape of a recorded telephone conversation Between a South African Defense Force officer and a private security contractor. The audio can be found in the first of the links listed at the foot of this article. For the reader who wishes to get the full story of our reporting on this story, each of those articles listed provide, collectively, the complete picture. During the call, the officer details the circumstances of Mandela's death '' which, according to him, occurred even earlier than we reported '' and the possible implications of it, as well as the Mandela family's motives for not releasing the news.

Even now, the South African government, it seems, is attempting to prevent the Las Vegas Guardian Express from revealing the truth to the people of South Africa. Our Facebook page received a telling comment today. The comment reads:

HalloI am from South Africa and for some reason I cannot view your website or any articles regarding Nelson Mandela. Is it possible that your site being blocked by our country?could you kindly send the the articles you recently wrote.

Kind regards

Nelson Mandela is now officially dead '' but he was already dead. Nothing has transpired between our initial June 26 reports and the present time to prove otherwise.

Nevertheless, we would be remiss if we did not convey to the South African people, that we have the utmost respect for Madiba and the great legacy he has left the world. However, as a publication, read by millions across the globe, we have an obligation and responsibility to report the truth and what we were thinking.

Editorial by Graham J Noble

D. Chandler Contributor.

Nelson Mandela Dies, Greed Lives OnNelson Mandela Life Support Shut Down as Respected Humanitarian Dies Age 94?Nelson Mandela, Death, Dishonesty and DenialMandela: Reporting His Death and the Search for the TruthMandela Legacy Betrayed by Family and CountryNelson Mandela Family Finally Gives Up Charade and Admits Mandela Dead

Las Vegas Guardian Express Facebook page

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Three men arrested for anti-Semitic tweets after Premier League match | Reuters

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Sat, 14 Dec 2013 22:18

LONDONFri Dec 13, 2013 6:30am EST

TweetShare thisEmailPrintWest Ham United's Ravel Morrison (L) celebrates with team mate Ricardo Vaz Te after scoring against Tottenham Hotspur during their English Premier League soccer match at White Hart Lane in London October 6, 2013.

Credit: Reuters/Eddie Keogh

LONDON (Reuters) - Three men have been arrested for posting anti-Semitic comments on Twitter following Tottenham Hotspur's Premier League match against West Ham United in October, police said on Friday.

Two men, aged 22 and 24, were arrested on Thursday in London and in Wiltshire, while a 48-year-old man was arrested at his home in Canning Town in London last week on suspicion of inciting racial hatred.

The investigation following the match on October 6 was triggered by complaints about tweets that referred to Hitler and the gas chambers.

Traditionally Spurs has had a large Jewish following and its supporters have been the target of abuse from opposition fans.

Supporters of the club often chant "Yid Army" and "Yiddo" at matches, using a term deemed offensive by some in the Jewish community, but fan groups say the term is used as a badge of honor rather than a derogatory remark.

However, the governing Football Association and police have warned that using the word "Yid" could lead to prosecution and a ban on attending matches.

All three men have been bailed until January while the police make further enquiries.

In a separate investigation also dealing with anti-Semitic tweets relating to the same match, a 55-year-old man from Hemel Hempstead north of London was arrested and cautioned on November 28 for malicious communications, police said.

(Reporting By Freya Berry, editing by Pritha Sarkar)

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Porn is destroying modern sex lives says feminist writer Naomi Wolf | Mail Online

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Fri, 13 Dec 2013 08:29

Couples are having 20% less sex than they did just ten years agoWolf connects this to the rise of pornographyPorn poses health problems...It desensitises those who watch it and has long-term consequencesAs a result, it has a negative effect on sex and relationshipsBy Naomi Wolf

PUBLISHED: 19:44 EST, 11 December 2013 | UPDATED: 15:06 EST, 12 December 2013

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These days, I am rarely surprised when, after a lecture or book signing, someone will try to talk to me about their addiction to porn and ask where he or she can get help.

As an author and feminist social commentator, I often discuss my work at events and meet a wide spectrum of people who talk to me about sex, relationships and, more increasingly, the impact of pornography on their lives.

There is no stereotype of what this person will look like. A man in his 60s has asked me if I think his porn addiction accounts for his current impotence.

New survey: A major study has revealed that British couples are having about 20% less sex than they did just ten years ago

A lovely young mother of three boys asked sadly how her husband, in an otherwise happy, sexually fulfilled marriage, became 'lost to porn' to the point that she had to leave him. She now wonders how to protect her sons.

A bright, male college student confessed that he is worried about what he calls 'the kink spiral' - the term he uses to describe feeling trapped by his need to see more and more extreme porn to get aroused.

Couples in their late teens tell me no one they know can have sex without porn playing on a screen. A guidance counsellor at a private school asks where he can find help for his students - many of whom are so addicted to online porn that the obsession is affecting their schoolwork and social development.

Recently, aA major British study, the National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles, which questioned more than 15,000 people aged 16 to 74, showed couples are having about 20 per cent less sex per monththan they did justjust ten years ago.

New discoveries: Wolf's new book Vagina: A New Biography discusses how neuroscience shows how pornography negatively affects both sex and relationships

As someone who has been researching in this field for over 20 years, I believe we must take seriously the rise of pornography. New research shows it is having a detrimental effect on men's and women's sexual responses and harming relationships as a consequence.

My latest book, Vagina: A New Biography, about female sexual desire, has a chapter on new discoveries in neuroscience that show how pornography negatively affects both sex and relationships.

Popular culture is reflecting this trend: the new film Don Jon centres on porn addiction. The hero is sleeping with Scarlett Johansson but sneaks off to watch porn, since he says nothing with a real woman (even Johansson!) is as good. Meanwhile, sex scenes in mainstream movies are getting more violent. In The Kids Are All Right, I was startled to see Julianne Moore's character start slapping her partner's face as he neared orgasm.

Young women tell me that hair-pulling, and even pressure around the neck at orgasm, are normal parts of courtship sex these days. These are 'porn cliches', as one young woman put it. I am not surprised by these shifts because we all know about the pornification of society.

I believe more voices would be speaking out if the new research on this issue were better understood. What we're not being told - and this is a view which many scientists now confirm, but too few ordinary people understand - is that porn use poses health problems.

Mine is not a moral position. I think adults should be able see whatever they want in the privacy of their own homes (if the images are not based on a crime or any cruelty being committed).

Yet the neuroscience of porn addiction is clear: watching porn causes sharp spikes in the activation of dopamine, a neurotransmitter in the brain, which makes people feel focused, confident and good.

The trouble is that this short-term neurological arousal has long-term consequences. Firstly, it can cause desensitisation to the same erotic simuli that turned you on recently and, over the longer term, it can cause a greater likelihood of sexual dysfunction.

The user then craves more and more extreme pornography - violence and taboo images activate the autonomic nervous system, which is involved with arousal - in order to reach that same level of excitement.

'Young women tell me that hair-pulling, and even pressure around the neck at orgasm, are normal parts of courtship sex these days.'This acclimatisation and desensitisationdesensitisation explains why images that were seen as fetishistic, taboo or violent ten years ago are now mainstream fare on porn sites.

A second effect, confirmed with men and anecdotal with women, is trouble reaching orgasm. Doctors are now reporting an epidemic of healthy young and middle-aged men, with no disease or psychological issue that would otherwise explain their difficulties, who are having sexual problems such as impotence or delayed ejaculation due to this desensitisation.

A final problem related to desensitisation is that men start to see their own partners as less attractive, and less able to arouse them by ordinary sexual behaviour.

And, of course, one woman can't provide the ever-changing novelty, that constantly renewed boost to the brain that porn artificially delivers by a mouse click of the mouse.

There are other ways porn use can negatively affect female arousal. If a woman feels uneasy about her partner's use of porn the stress of her resentment and anger can affect her own ability to become aroused.

If you understand the neuroscience of female arousal, wWomen need to have their autonomic nervous systems (heart rate, breathing, blood circulation) highly activated to get turned on. Emotions such as stress,anger, a sense of threat and resentment can function like throwing a bucket of freezing water on the female system.

Detrimental: Porn does not teach men sexual skills that are useful in arousing women

I have also done a lot of research into the fact that sex portrayed in most porn does not teach men, especially young men, sexual skills that are useful in arousing women. As Dr Jim Pfaus, a pioneer in the field of the science of sexual behaviour from Canada's Concordia University, puts it, porn use can take an emotional toll on relationships because men who use it are 'neurologically bonding' not with their partners, but with the porn.

Relationship expert and couples' counsellor Michael Kallenbach says: 'Couples are far more aware of porn now than they've ever been. With everyone owning iPhones and tablets and being constantly bombarded with sexy ads and imagery, porn is leaking into our lives and affecting our relationships.

'When one partner watches surreptitiously, it's a very dangerous avenue to go down. Their imagination, and relationship, will be put at the mercy of fantasy. This often results in affairs.'

A recent University of Sydney study, in which two professors surveyed more than 800 men, found that excessive porn consumption was reported by almost half the respondents (85 per cent of whom were married or in a relationship), and was harming their professional success and relationships.

The numbers were dramatic: 47'‰'‰per cent of the male subjects watched between 30 minutes to three hours of porn per day, one in three said it harmed their work efforts, and one in five would rather watch porn than have sex with their partners.

I can understand why the porn industry is keen to keep the addictive nature of its products quiet and promote the libertarian notion that there are no consequences. It is a global industry that wishes to turn men, and increasingly women, into addicts for financial reasons.

The situation very much resembles the marketing of cigarettes without health warnings in the Sixties.

So why isn't government-mandated disclosure of the risks obligatory, as it is now with cigarettes?

The answer is our politicians don't yet fully understand the damage that is being done.

Less sexually liberated: Porn is taking over our thought processes and corroding our ability to sustain meaningful relationships

Recently, the Daily Mail won a victory whereby the Government agreed that all households should opt in if they want to be able to view porn on the internet.

I believe that with good health information, people can make more informed choices about how, when, and if they want to use porn, and even better choices about what kind of imagery they might seek out or avoid.

Those who wish to end their addiction - like ending any addiction - can do so with effort.

Men who have done so - that is for whom we have data - report a great sense of regaining psychological control, and heightened arousal with their wives or girlfriends. Mostly they are relieved not to be at the mercy of something that many of those who write to me feel they need - but don't especially like.

Are we 'sexually liberated' if porn is taking over our thought processes and corroding our ability to sustain meaningful relationships? I think we are less sexually free.

A powerful industry is manipulating us - and ruthlessly exploiting some hard-wiring in the male brain - to turn us more and more into sexual and emotional robots, only capable of achieving sexual fulfilment in a room with a computer, alone.

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Zero notifications

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Fri, 13 Dec 2013 21:21

A couple of months ago, my co-founder Leo gave me an interesting suggestion: he said I should try disabling all notifications on my iPhone. I find this suggestion especially interesting because it is one that goes against the normal phone setup. It's so usual to stick to how things are, and with iPhone apps the easiest thing to do is to ''allow'' all those notifications. It seems almost odd to even consider doing things any other way.

I chose to go along with Leo's suggestion, although I was admittedly quite skeptical that it would change much. I imagined that I had pretty good willpower, and that I am fairly productive already. Just because I got notifications, I didn't think that affected my workflow all too much. In hindsight looking back though, one clear indication that it was already affecting my was that I was regularly turning my phone over to stop those notifications lighting up the screen and distracting me.

What it's like to live without notifications"Don't Confuse the Urgent with the Important" - Preston Ni

For the first week that I turned off notifications, I checked Twitter, Facebook, Email and other places regularly. In fact, I still do, although maybe not so much as that first week. After a couple of weeks, I came to love the fact that nothing came onto my lock screen or lit up my phone. I even found that I frequently started to use the switch in Mac OSX to turn off desktop notifications until the next day.

With zero notifications, I feel like I can get my head stuck into a problem much more easily than I did before. I never realised when I had those notifications on that they truly could throw me off my current thought and cause me difficulty getting that focus back. More than anything, I feel a lot calmer. Notifications create a sense of urgency around something that's not important at all. I don't need to know right now that someone liked my status on Facebook.

It changes the balance, it's now my choice"There are two types of people: One strives to control his environment, the other strives not to let his environment control him. I like to control my environment" - George Carlin

The thing I like the most about turning off all notifications is that it is now completely up to me when I choose to check my email, Twitter, Facebook, etc. I have no excuse that a notification came in. If I check it too frequently and find myself procrastinating, it is only my fault: I went out of my way to go and look. As Derek Sivers puts it, "everything is my fault":

But to decide it's your fault feels amazing! Now you weren't wronged. They were just playing their part in the situation you created. They're just delivering the punch-line to the joke you set up. What power! Now you're like a new super-hero, just discovering your strength. Now you're the powerful person that made things happen, made a mistake, and can learn from it. Now you're in control and there's nothing to complain about.

It was my fault that I received push notifications, too, but by controlling that part of my environment everything is so much more pronounced. And now that it's my fault, I can work solely myself to be better, to check those notifications less.

I choose to avoid reliance on willpower"we each have one reservoir of will and discipline, and it is depleted by any act of conscious self-regulation'--whether that's resisting a cookie, solving a puzzle, or doing anything else that requires effort." - Tony Schwartz and Jean Gomes in The Way We're Working Isn't Working

The other reason I am happy that I've turned off all notifications, is that wherever possible I like to avoid relying on willpower or self-discipline. As Tony Schwartz and Jean Gomes put it, we all have a limited reservoir of willpower, and by turning off notifications it means I save some of that for other tasks rather than using it on resisting checking on each push notification that comes in. I'm certainly not suddenly a superhuman with complete focus at all times, but I feel much more in control.

Have you tried turning off notifications? I can highly recommend trying it, just for a week. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.

Photo credit: Christian Ostrosky

JUDGE GIVEN 28 YEARS FOR SELLING KIDS TO PRIVATE PRISONS

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Source: Giza Death Star

Sun, 15 Dec 2013 13:43

TweetTweetThis one may not be of interest to many people, but to me it is, as I once knew someone incarcerated in one of these monstrous private prisons, who required life-sustaining medicines, which, of course, the private prison sometimes provided, and sometimes did not. The whole experience convinced me that like many other massive moral faults and corrupt institutions foisted on the public by out of control government-corporate relationships that can only be qualified as fascist, this is another massive problem.

In short, such prisons gain their profits from government subsidies granted on a per-incarceration basis. The more people incarcerated, the more the subsidy. The opportunities for corruption also grow when one factors in the fact that in many of these private prisons, inmates are used for cheap labor to manufacture items at wages well below that in the public market place. So one may also view them as labor camps. And again, the opportunities for corruption grows in such a system. Indeed, it becomes inconceivable that government officials will not be tempted to receive kickbacks for providing a steady flow of inmates, and therefore money, to the system.

When I first broached these dangers to some friends back in the 1980s, I was laughed at. Private prisons were, after all, a ''good idea'' because they were ''market based'' and ''conservative'', i.e., being promoted by the conservative wags and ideologues in both political parties.

Now, the chickens have come home to roost, and I thank Mr. V.T. for sharing this article with me:

Pennsylvania Judge Sentenced to 28 Years for selling Children into the Prison system

Ciavarella is not the only example folks. He's the tip of a very large iceberg. In my incarcerated friend's case, money was ''saved'' by placing medicine orders perpetually late, and thus, over time, paying for about half of the medicines that would normally have been paid for. Multiply this by every inmate needing medicines in private prisons, and you get the idea. The system is inhuman, and being run by '' I'll dare say it '' monsters.

It's a mirror of what is wrong with America, the idolization of ''markets'', of money, or power, or the material, as the bottom line, for you'll note, the sad fact is, the article does not say that Pennsylvania abolished the private prison, it merely caught a corrupt judge.

But there's another thing here that should profoundly disturb, and that is that this is connected to children. At a very much deeper level I suspect that we'll eventually hear things that will allow dots to be connected to private prisons, child abductions, the imprisonment of the homeless simply for being ''homeless'' on some silly trumped up charge or ridiculous ''ordnances'' or ''laws'' as a source of ''cheap labor'''... and a whole host of other scandals.

See you on the flip side.

CBC My Region - Lenore Zann, L Word actor turned MLA, alleges cyberbullying

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Fri, 13 Dec 2013 07:57

Lenore Zann, a Nova Scotia member of the legislature, has complained to the provincial cyberbullying unit after a high school student tweeted a topless image of her from her acting days, but the teen behind the tweet says he thinks the whole issue has been blown out of proportion.

The New Democrat MLA for Truro-Bible Hill-Millbrook-Salmon River'‹ called police and complained to the newly created cyberbullying unit after Nic Scissons tweeted a screen capture from the Showtime series The L Word in late November.

Scissons, 17, said the image he sent on the evening of Nov. 29 from his Twitter account showed Zann topless. It's from a scene about an assault in the shower of a women's prison.

He said he sent it along with the message, "What happened to the old Lenore?" and added Zann's Twitter handle in the message.

Scissons said he meant it as a joke.

"I just thought it would be funny, pretty much," he said.

Words exchanged on TwitterZann said she noticed the tweet that night and messaged Scissons to ask him to take it down.

"Luckily the old Lenore Zann got in shape so she can kick some political butt! Please remove this photo," she tweeted.

The next day, Zann said, she had a heated exchange with Scissons and a handful of others on Twitter. She claimed the image violated copyright and was also illegal under cyberbullying legislation.

On Twitter she wrote: "Perhaps you've missed the new federal legislation" and "Distribution of this image falls under the Criminal Code. It has been reported."

Shown are a series of Zann's tweets after someone sent out the topless image from her acting days on the Showtime series the L Word. (Twitter)

Scissons replied, arguing the photo was public on the internet.

During the exchange, which lasted around three hours, Zann said she felt increasingly picked on.

"It's not necessarily the image itself, but the fact that someone is tweeting that at me and saying, 'Hey Lenore Zann, where's the old Lenore now,' and calling it porn and things like that. I found that really humiliating and harassing," she told CBC News on Thursday.

Zann said that, on the advice of family and friends, she decided to call the RCMP. She was referred to the Truro Police Service, where she filed a harassment complaint.

"I was being cyberbullied so I felt that I needed to call the police. The police suggested that I call the CyberScan unit as well and that's what they're there for. That's why we legislated them, so that they'd be there to help people who feel that they are being bullied by other people online," she said.

"It was Twitter where I was being tweeted at. I was being sworn at. They were swearing at me. They were disrespectful. It was constant. It was harassment and it was frightening. I was afraid. So that for me accounts for my feeling that I was being bullied. And because it's online, that's cyberbullying."

Zann said she called police and the cyberbullying unit before she knew Scissons's age or that he was in high school. Up until that point she said she assumed he was an adult.

Parents brought inScissons said he deleted the naked image of Zann from his Twitter feed after Zann phoned his father at home to complain.

Zann said Scissons continued to tweet obscenities at her after she called his. The teen said that was because he felt frustrated.

His mother, Susan McCarron, said she was angry.

"It was like, 'Take the photo down. Period.' And he responded, 'It's down.' That was around suppertime on Saturday," said McCarron.

McCarron said she told her son it was a dumb move.

Nic Scissons, 17 at the time of the tweet, sent a screen capture from the L Word showing Zann's exposed breasts. (CBC)

"I think it was done without considering consequences and I think it was a poor decision," she said.

Scissons agreed, but both mother and son said the complaint to the cyberbullying unit went too far.

"I can see why she was angry, but I think this is an over-escalation of the situation and I'd like to see it end," McCarron said.

"I assumed that it would have died at that point. I'm surprised that it has made it that police have become involved. That he was actually referred to this cyberbullying taskforce. I was surprised by that."

Scissons said he never meant to harass Zann.

"It was just meant to be funny and got out of hand I guess," he said. But "she was on that show voluntarily and she knew that image was out there and I don't think I said anything mean about her."

No criminal wrongdoingAfter reading the obscenities, Zann also called the principal of the Cobequid Education Centre, where Scissons attends. Zann said she also contacted the communications director of the Colchester Regional School Board to voice her concerns.

Scissons said he had an informal chat with his principal Bill Kaulbach where Kaulbach said the issue was outside of the school's authority, but advised him to stop tweeting at Zann.

Truro police said they've closed their investigation without finding any criminal wrongdoing.

Roger Merrick of the Nova Scotia Department of Justice said the province can't confirm or comment on any investigation by the CyberScan Investigation Unit.

He said any privacy breach could discourage bullying victims from coming forward with complaints.

It's not the first time the photograph of Zann has made headlines. In 2009, a member of the Liberal campaign team sent CBC News the photo of Zann on the same day New Democratic Party Leader Darrell Dexter announced Zann's candidacy in Truro.

With files from Jack Julian

Israel close to first gas export deal

Iran cancels Pakistan gas pipeline loan

Central African Republic: Massacre in CAR, French Defence Minister Warns of Anarchy

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Source: AllAfrica News: Latest

Sun, 15 Dec 2013 13:37

Christian militias massacred 27 Muslims in a village in the west of the Central African Republic (CAR) on Thursday, UN officials said Friday as French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian warned that violence is worsening on a visit to the country.

"According to information we have received, 27 Muslims were killed by self-defence militias, known as anti-Balaka, in the village of Bohong ... on Thursday," the UN's rights agency UNHCR's spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani told reporters in Geneva.

A "vicious cycle of attacks and reprisals" is underway in the country, she said.

Bohong is about 75 kilometres from Bouar, where French troops were given a warm welcome as they arrived a week ago.

Speaking to French soldiers after arriving in Bangui on Friday, Le Drian said that the "spiral of confrontation has seriously worsened", bringing a risk of humanitarian crisis.

French military sources say that Muslim Seleka militias have largely been disarmed but now armed Christian anti-balaka groups need to be contained.

About 110,000 people who have fled recent violence are living in camps in Bangui, while tens of thousands are living in camps around Bossongoa in the north-west.

The CAR is a "country adrift", Le Drian said, warning that there is a risk of "anarchy" that could destabilise the whole region by attracting criminal and terrorist groups.

Le Drian was to meet interim President Michel Djotodja, who was brought to power by the Seleka but has been unable to prevent some of them going on the rampage.

He will also meet the the commander of the French contingent in Bangui, General Francisco Soriano, before going to neighbouring Chad, where he will meet President Idriss Deby.

French President Fran§ois Hollande, who visited the CAR on Tuesday after two soldiers were killed, will attend Monday's ceremony in homage to them, Le Drian said.

On a visit to Brazil on Friday, Hollande called for a permanent European fund to finance emergency interventions in crises such as that in the CAR.

He is to propose the move at a European summit on 19-20 December.

Central African Republic: Over 600 People Killed, 159,000 Displaced in Central African Republic - UN

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Source: AllAfrica News: Latest

Sun, 15 Dec 2013 13:38

The humanitarian situation in the conflict-wracked Central African Republic (CAR) is deteriorating, with 450 people killed in the capital Bangui and 159,000 others driven from their homes in Bangui, in the last week alone, United Nations agencies reported today, as the largest airlift of emergency supplies since the violence erupted arrived in the capital.

"Much more is going to be needed. We appeal once again to all parties to let humanitarian help through, and to protect civilians," UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) spokesperson Adrian Edwards told a news briefing in Geneva in an update on the impoverished country of 4.6 million, which has been thrown into turmoil since S(C)l(C)ka rebels launched attacks a year ago.

"There are frequent reports of indiscriminate attacks against civilians, recruitment of child soldiers, sexual and gender-based violence, looting and destruction of property," he said, adding that 160 people were also reported to have been killed in other parts of CAR.

After the S(C)l(C)ka coalition forced President Fran§ois Boziz(C) to flee in March, a transitional government was entrusted with restoring peace and paving the way for democratic elections, but armed clashes have erupted again, sometimes on religious grounds with Christians and Muslims launching reprisal attacks against each other in numerous places in Bangui.

"Serious human rights violations are being committed on religious grounds, as well as the looting and destruction of property," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani told the briefing. "One mosque was reported to have been burnt and another one destroyed in Bangui earlier this week."

The situation is also tense in several towns, including Bouca, Bossangoa and Bozoum, where a vicious cycle of attacks and reprisals continues, with 27 Muslims reported to have been killed by self-defence militias, known as anti-Balaka, in the village of Bohong yesterday. "We condemn any attack on places of worship and on religious freedom, and urge all communities to exercise restraint," Ms. Shamdasani said.

Mr Edwards said 38,000 people were massed at Bangui airport without latrines, washing facilities and shelter from the rains or sun, while 12,000 others have sought shelter at St. Joseph Mukassa church, with just one water point.

Vijf jaar celstraf voor IJslandse ex-bankiers

EU banking watchdog warns of risks from Bitcoin

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Fri, 13 Dec 2013 22:04

The European Banking Authority said there was no protection or compensation for people whose "digital wallets" are hacked, a transfer of virtual money goes wrong or a platform is shut.

The warning follows similar announcements from the Bank of France and the Chinese central bank.

The EBA stopped short of telling consumers not to use online currency markets but said if they end up out of pocket there won't be a safety net like the compensation given to deposit holders when a mainstream EU bank goes bust.

"Currently, no specific regulatory protections exist in the EU that would protect consumers from financial losses if a platform that exchanges or holds virtual currencies fails or goes out of business," EBA said in a statement.

Bitcoin is not backed by any central bank or government, or by physical assets. Its value depends on people's confidence in the currency.

It has been gaining acceptance by the general public and investment community but has yet to become an accepted form of payment on websites of major retailers such as Amazon.com.

"Cases have been reported of consumers losing significant amounts of virtual currency, with little prospect of having it returned. Also, when using virtual currency for commercial transactions, consumers are not protected by any refund rights under EU law," said the EBA.

The watchdog has been studying virtual currencies for three months and is still considering whether they can or ought to be regulated. It has powers to ban them, though questions remain over how this could be done in practice.

There are about 100 virtual currencies, with new ones appearing every week. Bitcoin is by far the best known.

The price of the bitcoin rose above $1,000 ('‚¬727) last month for the first time, extending a 400% surge in less than a month and fuelling concerns of a bubble.

EU regulatory officials doubt such published estimates as the currency and the platforms that trade it are not regulated.

Some platforms have been closed down amid concerns there could be a risk of money laundering, leaving those who held money on them nursing temporary or permanent losses.

The EBA said there could also be potential tax liabilities for users of virtual currencies.

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Google executives' planes saved millions by buying fuel at below-market rates | NDTV Gadgets

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Thu, 12 Dec 2013 23:03

The company that manages a fleet of airplanes owned and leased by Google executives Larry Page, Sergey Brin and Eric Schmidt improperly bought fuel from the government at below-market rates, for a savings of up to $5.3 million according to a report released by the NASA Inspector General on Wednesday.The 10-page report said the discounted fuel purchases were the result of a "misunderstanding" between a Defense Department fuel provider and the NASA Ames Research Center, which manages the California airfield where a Boeing 767, a military-type Alpha Jet and several other aircraft are stored.

The report found that overall, NASA benefited from leasing 70,000 square feet of space to H211, the private company that manages the Google executives' aircraft. The $1.4 million a year that H211 paid NASA was at a fair market value. And NASA has flown more than 200 flights using some of the aircraft to collect climate data at no cost to the agency.

But while NASA did not lose any money on the fuel it sold to H211, the report said that H211 received a monetary benefit to which it was not entitled and recommended that NASA and H211 explore options to "remedy" the situation.

Google referred all questions to H211 Vice President Ken Ambrose, who said he was reviewing the report, which the company received Wednesday morning.

Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, who has looked into the allegations, said NASA should seek repayment for the fuel and he has asked the Defense Department's inspector general to take a broader look at such contracts.

Google, the world's No.1 Internet search engine, has its headquarters four miles away from Mountain View's Moffett Field, which is managed by NASA Ames.

The report comes as Google and other Internet companies face criticism for what some see as abusing their hometown's infrastructure and public works.

On Monday, protesters in San Francisco temporarily blocked a private Google bus that ferries employees to company headquarters. The protesters charged that the private commuter buses clog up municipal bus stops, which they use for free.

According to the NASA report, the aviation fuel provider at Moffett Field believed that H211 was performing only NASA-related flights and therefore sold all fuel to the company at the rate reserved for Defense Department entities. Non-Defense Department entities are charged a higher rate, although the rate does not include any state or local taxes.

Roughly three out of every four of the 229 flights that H211 flew between August 2012 and July 2013 had no connection to NASA, the report said. The report estimated that H211 paid between $3.3 million and $5.3 million less for fuel since 2007 than it would have paid at market rates.

It was not clear from the report whether the airplane fuel discounts directly benefited Google executives or the company.

A Google regulatory filing from April 2013 said that Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt owns 100 percent of one aircraft and 33 percent of another aircraft, both of which are used by Schmidt and other Google executives for business trips. Google reimburses Schmidt at a rate of $7,500 per hour for use of the planes, which the filing said was less than the actual operational costs incurred by Schmidt.

While the report said the discounted fuel was not the result of "intentional misconduct," the report acknowledged that it "engendered a sense of unfairness and a perception of favouritism toward H211 and its owners."

Consumer Watchdog, a non-profit organization that has been critical of Google's business practices and of the H211 arrangement, called on NASA to "evict" H211 from the facility.

(C) Thomson Reuters 2013