Before It’s News

Putin is not playing games with the west. He just announced that if the U.S. imposes sanctions on Russia, Russia will default on all loans from the western world and the western banking system. Now Putin is playing hard ball with the west.

Obama is in a game with a seasoned war veteran, and a man who has no fear of the US and the western powers. It will be interesting to watch Obama squirm his way out of this situation.    Continue reading “Russia Warns It Will Dump The U.S. Dollar And Stiff The Western Banking Cartel”

Papers, Please!

At first blush, a lawsuit filed last week by the ACLU on behalf of a sociology professor at Indiana University wrongly detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection seems to be about whether CBP is exceeding the limitations on its police powers, and detaining US citizens for purposes unrelated to customs and borders.

That’s bad, but unsurprising in light of the history of abuse of limited administrative search powers as a pretext for unrelated police purposes by CBP and other DHS components, notably the TSA.   Continue reading “DHS uses email intercepts to question US citizen about her sex life”

Mother Jones – by Asawin Suebsaeng

Here’s one way the US government is trying to combat terrorism without the use of controversial explosions. A tiny portion of your tax dollars—just a few million dollars annually—is funding the State Department’s trolling of jihadists on Twitter.

One of the State Department’s official (and verified) Twitter accounts, called “Think AgainTurn Away” and going by the handle “@ThinkAgain_DOS,” is devoted to speaking “some truths about terrorism” online. If you follow the account, you’ll notice that this truth often manifests itself in the form of the State Department directly tweeting at Islamists and their supporters in English, and countering their beliefs.   Continue reading “The State Department Is Actively Trolling Terrorists on Twitter”

Computer World – by Robert L. Mitchell

Privacy is under attack from all quarters, but even today, there are things you can do to protect your personal data. Here are some tips.

Who says privacy is dead? While it’s true that marketers, the government, data aggregators and others are gathering and analyzing more data than ever about every individual, you can still exert some control over what’s out there, who’s tracking you and what they do with that information.   Continue reading “The paranoid’s survival guide, part 1: How to protect your personal data”

Washington’s Blog

New Ooga Booga No Longer Effective … So Government Switches Back to Tried-And-True Old-Timey Ooga-Booga

Preface: I’m not siding with Putin on the Ukrainian dispute. I don’t like Communism.  I was born in the U.S. and have lived here all of my life.  I hate Stalin with a passion – a man who killed countless protesters, and sent numerous others away to insane asylums – and have railed against the “useful idiots” who naively supported the Soviets. I also think that Putin is a corrupt kleptocrat.  I’m just pointing out that the U.S. Government is completely overreacting and fear-mongering. This is taking place on the other side of the world, and doesn’t effect America’s national security (although we may have heavily invested in the outcome).   Continue reading “The Americans’ Fear of Islamic Terrorists Has Worn Off, So the Government Pulls Out the EVIL RUSSIAN Card Again”

Truth Dig – by William Pfaff

What did Washington expect to gain from a successful coup d’état in Ukraine? It gained little enough from the “Orange Revolution” in 2005, that first put Viktor Yuschenko and Yulia Tymoshenko into power in independent Ukraine. Their power produced rivalry, as well as a return of corruption to national government (the Orange Revolution, so-called, was itself inspired by popular protests against corruption in the preceding government of Viktor Yanukovych, causing his ouster). Yanukovych, of course, returned to power in 2010 (with 48 percent of the vote), after which Yulia Tymoshenko was conveniently charged and imprisoned on corruption charges.    Continue reading “What Happens Now in Ukraine?”

Truth Dig – by Harvey Wasserman

Sixty years ago this week, a misfired hydrogen bomb test plastered with lethal radiation the Japanese fishing boat Daigo Fukuryu Maru—“Lucky Dragon”—and its 23-man crew. The March 1, 1954, test, code-named Castle Bravo, spewed a deadly ash cloud into wrongly predicted winds, contaminating a huge swath of the Pacific Ocean.

The Dragon’s crew fell ill with burns, hair loss, joint pain, nausea, headaches and other ailments diagnosed by medical experts as acute radiation syndrome. Radio operator Aikichi Kuboyama died six months later at the age of 40, praying that he would be “the last victim of an atomic or hydrogen bomb.” Liver cancer eventually killed more than a quarter of the crew.   Continue reading “The USS Reagan Is Fukushima’s Unlucky Dragon”

Truth Dig – by Peter Z. Scheer

Breaking a barrier for the legal pot industry, this ad for Marijuana Doctors.com “appeared on Fox, CNN, ESPN, Comedy Central, AMC, and Discovery,” The Verge reports.

Comcast agreed to air the ad in the same time slot ghetto as alcohol commercials, which is to say late at night when only adults are likely watching.   Continue reading “This Marijuana Commercial Airs on National Television”

marijuana ap 263x164 California Bill Would License Medical Pot Dispensaries but Limit Patient AccessNatural Society – by Elizabeth Renter

In an about-face, two California organizations who previously opposed any state-level efforts to regulate medical marijuana are now backing a bill that would create the basis of state licensing and regulation while limiting doctors who can prescribe pot. According to the Fresno Bee, SB 1262 has the backing of  the League of California Cities and the California Police Chiefs Association. And while their support of any marijuana measure is progress, this bill is not likely to gain support of marijuana advocacy groups.   Continue reading “California Bill Would License Medical Pot Dispensaries but Limit Patient Access”

At the cheque presentation ceremony, Mr Ji Haipeng (right), Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Logan Property Holdings Company Limited, presented the donation to Mr James Blake, GBS, OBE, JP, Campaign Committee Member of The Community Chest on the day of listing.Golden Age of Gaia – by Stephen Cook

Stephen: There’s not a photo of her to be found anywhere on the internet,. Nor any info (well, not in English anyway). My gut is though, that she has an open heart  and will use some of that fortune to help those struggling. Her father, pictured at right, recently donated HKD$1,000,000 to  to The Community Chest of Hong Kong to help those in need, which is wonderful to hear. But oh, what many of us could do to have even a portion of that abundance to help build a world that works for everyone, eh?   Continue reading “24-Year-Old Hong Kong Chinese Woman is World’s Youngest Billionaire”

Romeikes-03-04-14Citizen Link – by Bethany Monk

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will allow a German homeschooling family, who has long been seeking asylum in the U.S., to stay in the country. This comes just one day after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the family’s case.

“This is an incredible victory that I can only credit to Almighty God,” said Michael Farris, chairman of the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA). “I also want to thank those who spoke up on this issue.”   Continue reading “Department of Homeland Security: German Homeschooling Family Can Stay”

The Independent

“To err is human; to forgive, divine”, said the English poet Alexander Pope. Words that may be of some comfort to his namesake (sort of) Pope Francis after he accidentally used some distinctly unholy language during a Papal address to thousands in St Peter’s Square.

It wasn’t, however, an attempt by the man dubbed the ‘People’s Pope’ to further connect with ordinary Italians – though it won’t have done any harm.    Continue reading “He said what?! Pope Francis lets slip the F-word during Vatican address”

Video Rebel’s Blog

This is Myles Eckert of Toledo, Ohio. He is 8 years old. He is hugging the gravestone of his father who died in Iraq when he was 5 weeks old. He never saw his father. He learns of his father through his medals, ID tags, wedding ring, photos and family stories. Myles had wanted to go to the cemetery to talk to the man he never knew. At her son’s request, his mother stayed in the car so he could be alone to talk. His mother took this photo. His father died because our politicians and our news media were willing to believe lies fed to us by Israel.   Continue reading “An 8 Year-Old Boy In Ohio Hugs The Gravestone Of His Father Who Died In Iraq.”

Lilyana Vynogradova / Shutterstock.comThe American Conservative – by PATRICK J. BUCHANAN

With Vladimir Putin’s dispatch of Russian troops into Crimea, our war hawks are breathing fire. Russophobia is rampant and the op-ed pages are ablaze here. Barack Obama should tune them out, and reflect on how Cold War presidents dealt with far graver clashes with Moscow.

When Red Army tank divisions crushed the Hungarian freedom fighters in 1956, killing 50,000, Eisenhower did not lift a finger. When Khrushchev built the Berlin Wall, JFK went to Berlin and gave a speech. When Warsaw Pact troops crushed the Prague Spring in 1968, LBJ did nothing. When, Moscow ordered Gen. Wojciech Jaruzelski to smash Solidarity, Ronald Reagan refused to put Warsaw in default. These presidents saw no vital U.S. interest imperiled in these Soviet actions, however brutal. They sensed that time was on our side in the Cold War. And history has proven them right.   Continue reading “Resist the War Party on Crimea”

Harold Martin, the Michigan assistant attorney general, making believe he's not listening to Mark Baker's lawyer, during arguments last Wednesday before Judge William Fagerman. (Photo by Randy Buchler)The Complete Patient – by David Gumpert

I have found myself thinking a lot about last week’s courtroom antics of Harold Martin, the Michigan assistant attorney general, which have been viewed more than 1,000 times already on YouTube.  While it’s tempting to simply label Martin as unprofessional and less than competent, I think there was much more to it than that. I explore some of the less obvious messages in an Open Letter to Martin.    Continue reading “Hidden Message in MI AG’s Court Shenanigans: Baker Hog Case Far from Over”

Ukrainian marines look at a Russian ship floating out of the Sevastopol bay on March 4, 2014 (AFP Photo / Viktor Drachev)RT News

Ukraine’s statement at the UN that 16,000 Russian soldiers have been deployed to Crimea has caused a frenzy among Western media which chooses to ignore that those troops have been there since the late 1990s in accordance with a Kiev-Moscow agreement.

Western media describes the situation in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea as if a full-scale Russian invasion were under way, with headlines like: “Ukraine says Russia sent 16,000 troops to Crimea” and“Ukraine crisis deepens as Russia sends more troops into Crimea,” as well as “What can Obama do about Russia’s invasion of Crimea?”    Continue reading “Russia’s 25,000-troop allowance & other facts you may not know about Crimea”

chinaknifeattackDaily Slave

An incredibly bizarre story has emerged from China.  According to various media reports a slashing rampage has allegedly left 29 people killed and over 100 wounded at a train station located in Southern China.  Several individuals wearing masks and wielding knives were allegedly responsible for the attacks.  Police were said to have shot and killed 4 of the attackers increasing the death toll to 33.  Based upon the information that has been released so far, this whole event appears to be a staged hoax.   Continue reading “Knife Attack Rampage at Chinese Train Station Appears to be Another Staged Hoax”

CenturyLink – by TIM SULLIVAN

MOSCOW (AP) — Stepping back from the brink of war, Vladimir Putin talked tough but cooled tensions in the Ukraine crisis Tuesday, saying Russia has no intention “to fight the Ukrainian people” but reserves the right to use force.

As the Russian president held court in his personal residence, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met with Kiev’s fledgling government and urged Putin to stand down.   Continue reading “Putin talks tough but cools tensions over Ukraine”