Consumerist

The Trump administration has proposed revising a rule that hasn’t even gone into effect yet, with the goal of making sure that nursing home residents and their loved ones can not sue these long-term care facilities in the event that something horrible happens.

Amid concerns about the treatment of patients at nursing homes and assisted living facilities, a growing number of the companies that operate these businesses have begun including forced arbitration clauses in their residents’ contracts.   Continue reading “Trump Administration Will Allow Nursing Homes To Strip Residents Of Legal Rights”

MassPrivateI

Police use military sound cannons or Long Range Acoustic Devices (LRAD’s) on protesters, activists, motorists across the country.

The U.S. military has been using sound as a weapon in Iraq and the Middle East for years.  Continue reading “Police sound cannons are just like flash bangs and concussion grenades”

CBS Pittsburgh – by Julie Grant

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — A Pittsburgh forensic pathologist says the investigation into the JFK assassination is far from over.

On Nov. 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was murdered in broad daylight in Dallas, Texas. The Warren Commission concluded Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone when he shot the president from the 6th floor of the Texas Book Depository. For years, many have doubted those conclusions and believed it was a greater conspiracy.   Continue reading “Pittsburgh Forensic Pathologist Says JFK Assassination Investigation Is Far From Over”

MassPrivateI

Moraga, California residents have launched a ‘Community Watch’ campaign to raise money to purchase license plate readers and surveillance cameras that will spy on everyone.

Law enforcement and the Moraga Community Foundation (MCF) want residents to donate $60,000 to help the police spy on everyone.    Continue reading “Police use non-profits and the public to pay for license plate readers and surveillance cameras”

ACLU – by Twanda Marshinda Brown

“I don’t care if you have one, two, three, four, five, six, or seven kids.”

This is what the judge told me when I tried to explain that I was a single mom with seven kids. I could not afford to pay $100 a month toward traffic tickets. The judge threatened me with jail. I was scared.   Continue reading “I Was Taken From My Family and Jailed For 57 Days Because I Am Poor”

The Sun Chronicle – by Kayla Canne

NORTH ATTLEBORO — The phrase came almost in jest from a new customer, Steve Copoulos said.

“Now that you’re back, I guess North runs on Mike’s,” he said.

Copoulos thought the phrase was funny and decided it would make for some good window art on the front of his new coffee and muffins shop, Mike’s Coffee, at the intersection of routes 1 and 1A in North Attleboro.   Continue reading “Dunkin’ Donuts claims trademark infringement by new North Attleboro coffee shop”

Fast Company – by Glenn Fleishman

When it comes to websites, we have ever more sophisticated techniques at our disposal to block the ads that sometimes track our wanderings around the internet. But most of us spend much of our time these days in mobile apps that offer no transparency on how we’re being tracked or sold–nor tools for blocking that behavior.

We must rely on operating system makers–primarily Apple and Google–to promulgate guidelines to developers on legitimate practices when it comes to tracking behavior, asking for personal information, and transferring data to remote servers. OS makers are also responsible for enforcing those requirements. The rules in place are very broad, and except for abuses that can be quickly checked by in-house reviewers, come into play most often when users and researchers report violations.
Continue reading “Here’s How To Track The Smartphone Apps That Are Tracking You”

Organic Authority – by Emily Monaco

The Natural Resources Defense Council has assigned a “D” grade to America’s top five grocery store chains for their progress – or lack thereof – on the promotion of better antibiotic practices and antibiotic-free chicken offerings.

The NRDC’s new report, entitled “Crying Fowl: Major Grocers Stumble in Promoting Antibiotic Stewardship in Retail Chicken,” was released yesterday and investigates if and how Costco, Albertson’s/Safeway, Publix, Walmart, and Kroger market and sell antibiotic-free chicken brands.   Continue reading “Nation’s Top Grocery Stores Get ‘D’ Grade on Antibiotic-Free Chicken, Says NRDC”

RT

A private security firm which started out as a US military contractor and has been hired by the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) to counter indigenous activists protesting its construction, has used “military-style counterterrorism measures,” the Intercept reports.

The online publication claims it has obtained over 100 internal documents of the TigerSwan security firm, leaked by one of its contractors, and has studied more than 1,000 documents via public records requests. The papers “reveal that TigerSwan spearheaded a multifaceted private security operation characterized by sweeping and invasive surveillance of protesters,” it said.     Continue reading “Private security firm compared DAPL protesters to ‘jihadist insurgency’ – leaked documents”

Eric Peters Autos – by Eric

Naturally, the solution to the problem of police abusing their authority is to hold them less accountable when they do exactly that.

Leave it to “law and order” Republicans such as Texas Sen. John Cornyn and Rep. Ted Poe to evolve such logic. They have put forth the Black and Blue – whoops, Back the Blue – act (see here) which would make it harder to sue run-amok law enforcers in civil court to recover damages resulting from actions undeniably illegal – while at the same time imposing more severe penalties on Mundanes who affront the holy person of a law enforcer than those imposed on Mundanes who do exactly the same thing.   Continue reading “The Black and Blue Bill”

The Signal – by Samie Gebers

When Spencer White’s DeLorean hit 88 mph on Highway 14, he didn’t go “Back to the Future.” Instead, he got a ticket.

When Dr. Emmett Brown’s DeLorean time machine would hit 88 mph in the 1985 movie, “Back to The Future,” the flux capacitor would be activated. The passenger inside would then travel through time.   Continue reading “Man receives ticket after hitting 88 mph in his DeLorean”

The Intercept – by Alleen Brown, Will Parrish, Alice Speri

A SHADOWY INTERNATIONAL mercenary and security firm known as TigerSwan targeted the movement opposed to the Dakota Access Pipeline with military-style counterterrorism measures, collaborating closely with police in at least five states, according to internal documents obtained by The Intercept. The documents provide the first detailed picture of how TigerSwan, which originated as a U.S. military and State Department contractor helping to execute the global war on terror, worked at the behest of its client Energy Transfer Partners, the company building the Dakota Access Pipeline, to respond to the indigenous-led movement that sought to stop the project.   Continue reading “Leaked Documents Reveal Counterterrorism Tactics Used At Standing Rock To “Defeat Pipeline Insurgencies””

Anonymous News – by AnonWatcher

A pilot program conducted by the Department of Homeland Security has been closed early due to an unexpected swamp in proposals submitted to design a new compact drone for the government organization.

Over $1 million has been awarded through the DHS Science and Technology Directorate, giving startups between $100,000 and $200,000 to develop sections of the mini drone, such as sensor and cybersecurity systems.   Continue reading “New Mini Drone for DHS Capable of Tracking and Facial Recognition”

ABC News

The leader of the nation’s largest sheriff’s department said Wednesday that federal officials should restore the flow of surplus military equipment to local law enforcement agencies to ensure officers aren’t put in danger when responding to active shooter calls and terrorist attacks.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Jim McDonnell told members of the House Judiciary Committee that it was critical for the federal government to reconsider the curtailment of a program that provided military-style equipment, including military grenade launchers, bayonets, armored vehicles and high-powered firearms and ammunition, to state and local police departments.   Continue reading “LA sheriff says feds should restore military gear for police”

Eric Peters Autos – by Eric

How long before they bring back prima nocta?

It’s a serious question.

Other aspects of feudalism have been part of everyday life for so long now we hardly notice them – and even consider it normal – just as the peasants of 500 years ago probably did. For instance, just like the kings of 500 years ago, Uncle claims ownership of all land under his jurisdiction; we are merely tenants who are suffered to rent the land for as long as we continue to pay the annual tributum.   Continue reading “Nothing Runs You Like a Deere. . .”

NBC News

A false alarm that went out to some people’s television sets Tuesday might have scared some in New Jersey.

A nuclear power plant warning issued in Cumberland and Salem counties was sent out by mistake.

The message that was sent out said “a civil authority has issued a nuclear power plant warning for the following counties/areas.”   Continue reading “NJ Emergency Alert System Accidentally Activates, Sends Nuclear Warnings to Some TVs”

MassPrivateI

Since 2016, New York motorists are being forced asked to let the police spy on their cellphones for a minimum of 90 days.

In Nassau County, motorists are asked to pay hundreds of dollars to enter the ‘Distracted Driver Education Program’ (DDEP). The Feds, claim to offer motorists a choice, either dispute the texting while driving ticket in court, accept a 5 point moving violation or enter the DDEP.   Continue reading “Police are blackmailing motorists into installing cellphone monitoring devices”

Oregon Live – by Carli Brosseau

At the end of a rulemaking process held mostly behind closed doors, state regulators this year asked the public about Oregon’s first effort in a decade to overhaul the rules for ousting unfit cops.

Three people from the activist group Empower Portland answered the call for feedback from Department of Public Safety Standards and Training. All said they wanted to see more expansive state oversight.   Continue reading “Oregon is about to change how police are held accountable MAYBE!”