From the Trenches World Report
Enforce our Bill of Rights
(Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that Daimler AG (DAIGn.DE) cannot be sued in California over human rights allegations in a decision that is a boost for multinational companies facing lawsuits alleging misconduct abroad.
The German-based automaker faced allegations that a subsidiary violated the human rights of workers at a plant in Argentina in the 1970s. Continue reading “U.S. top court rules for Daimler in Argentina human rights case”
The Wall Street Journal – by Ben Leubsdorf
About half of the nation’s 3,069 county economies are still short of their prerecession economic output, reflecting the uneven economic recovery, according to a new report from the National Association of Counties.
The overall U.S. economy had reached its prerecession level of gross domestic product three years ago, Commerce Department figures show. Continue reading “Half of U.S. Counties Haven’t Recovered From Recession”
In the book, “Dune”, a member of the Bene Gesserit said something like, “Fear is the mind killer”, if I remember correctly. I believe that to be true. Fear at a certain level is paralyzing. There’s are two results to states of great fear. One is that you become incapable of action and the other is that you panic. In this day and age, Fear is becoming more and more prominent and more and more pervasive. There’s the usual fears of losing one’s job, one’s place to live and running out of food and water. Increasingly, there is fear of the police. When things like this can happen and justice is publicly pissed on, there is reason for fear. Of course, this isn’t happening to everyone and never does. That’s an area worthy of examination. “Karma, neh?” As America tumbles down into ruins, in a horrifying slo-mo collapse, we increasingly enter into the age of “Road Warrior” and apocalyptic circumstance. Order is vacating the stage and the institutions and individuals that were erected or elected for the protection of the populace have become utterly corrupt. Continue reading “Fear and the Artificial Landscapes of Terror.”
(Video, Infowars) – If Republicans in Congress are unable to muster the forces required to repeal Obamacare – and there is a reasonable chance they will not be able to do so with the current political climate – the socialist scheme will be rescued by the American tax payer. In 2008 through 2009, the banksters had their bailout, followed by General Motors and Chrysler. This cost hundreds and hundreds of billions in devalued dollars. Nobody really knows how much the subprime implosion will ultimately cost and what the lasting effect will be on housing and mortgage markets. Continue reading “Get Ready for the Obamacare Bailout of Insurance Corporations”
Kansas City Star – by Tony Rizzo
She was just another face in the crowd.
But when Luz Maria Amezcua-Valencia applied for a Kansas driver’s license, it was her face, and the Kansas Department of Revenue’s facial recognition software, that did her in.
That software sorted through a database of millions of other photographs. It found a similar one previously submitted for a Kansas identification card issued under a different name.
After analysts determined that the photographs showed the same person, investigators dug into the case. The result: a multiple-count federal identity fraud indictment against Amezcua-Valencia, who was arrested Tuesday in Texas. Continue reading “Kansas Revenue Department’s facial recognition software helps investigators catch scores of criminals”
KDVR Fox 31 Denver – by Matt Farley
DENVER — A man who took a woman hostage at a Denver 7-Eleven Monday morning was shot by an officer, police said.
The incident started when police got a call about a suspicious person inside the store at West Colfax Avenue and Perry Street shortly before 9 a.m. Continue reading “Police shoot barricaded suspect who used woman as human shield”
Fox News – by William La Jeunesse, Laura Prabucki
A federal judge who endorsed “suspicion-less” searches of laptops, cameras and cell phones at the border has set up a possible Supreme Court showdown challenging what critics call “Constitution-free zones” and the Obama administration’s dragnet approach to national security.
A decision by Judge Edward Korman upholding the federal government’s right to search travelers’ electronic devices at or near the border conflicts with a similar ruling in California. That ruling requires a “reasonable suspicion” of criminal activity before agents can confiscate and examine personal photos, laptops and files. Korman’s ruling does not. Continue reading “Judge reaffirms ‘Constitution-free zones’ near border, teeing up high court fight”
Puzzles and games for enthusiasts is nothing new, and dates back hundreds of years. I modern times, however, corporations and spy agencies have deployed riddles into the public sphere as ‘hiring filters’ to snag promising talent. Advert s in newspapers, magazines and online, messages on billboards – all these have been used by Silicon Valley tech firms, CIA, GCHQ and MI5.
Is Cicada 3301 such a tool? Continue reading “Spook Recruitment Games: What is ‘Cicada 3301′?”
WESLEY CHAPEL, Fla. — An argument over texting in a Florida movie theater Monday triggered a retired Tampa police captain to fatally shoot a man sitting in front of him, as about 25 horrified moviegoers looked on, sheriff’s officials said.
“Somebody throws popcorn. I’m not sure who threw the popcorn,” said Charles Cummings, who, as a birthday treat, was about to watch the movie “Lone Survivor” at The Grove 16 Theater. Continue reading “Ex-cop accused in fatal theater shooting over texting”
Ever wonder how many .gov websites are geared toward children? Lemme tell ya, there are quite a few.
Ben’s Guide, brought to you by the Superintendent of Documents in the U.S. Government Printing Office, provides pretty comprehensive listings, by both subject and agency. If you click over and give a scroll, you’ll get an idea of the wide range.
Some of the sites are not a surprise–like the DEA wanting to make sure our children know drugs are bad, m’kay? Continue reading “Dot Gov Sites for Children: We Make Propaganda Fun!”
(Reuters) – Iran would receive the first $550 million installment of a total of $4.2 billion in previously blocked overseas funds on or about February 1, a senior U.S. official said on Sunday.
Under a November 24 nuclear agreement, six major powers agreed to give Iran access to $4.2 billion in revenues blocked overseas if it carries out the deal, which offers sanctions relief in exchange for steps to curb the Iranian nuclear program. Continue reading “Iran to get first $550 million of blocked $4.2 billion on February 1”
Huffington Post – by Aaron Brophy
Few bands throughout history have better represented the fight between good and evil than heavy metal pioneers Black Sabbath.
The group even had an album and song titled “Heaven And Hell” during one of the periods when the late Ronnie James Dio had replaced Ozzy Osbourne as the band’s lead singer. That song’s main refrain of “Oh, it’s on and on and on/ It goes on and on and on, Heaven and Hell” pointedly captured that sense of an eternal struggle. Continue reading “Black Sabbath’s Eternal Struggle Between Good and Evil”
WASHINGTON (AP) — Top congressional negotiators Monday night released a bipartisan $1.1 trillion spending bill that would pay for the operations of government through October and finally put to rest the bitter budget battles of last year.
The massive measure fleshes out the details of the budget deal that Congress passed last month. That pact gave relatively modest, but much-sought relief to the Pentagon and domestic agencies after deep budget cuts last year. Continue reading “Huge Spending Bill Would Bury Budget Battles”
This picture captures the incredible moment a photographer lies in the grass beside a cheetah at an African game reserve.
The predator is the picture of spotty elegance as she poses with the photographer and peers down the camera.
The beautiful beast has her ears pricked ready to stalk some prey – but luckily seems to have no appetite for the man beside her. Continue reading “Amazing moment a cheetah lies down next to a photographer and even lets him stroke her head”
Before It’s News – by Josey Wales
The American people have started to wake up. Watching everything from weekly police shootings of innocent people across the nation, to ATF running another Fast and Furious program right here on American soil.
Recently a string of ATF operations around the country have been exposed for their rogue tactics exploiting the mentally handicapped, turning out armed felons onto America’s streets. While the ATF was setting up storefront sting operations in at least six American cities nation wide, they recruited mentally disabled people to bring in business to their stores. Continue reading “Manufactured Crisis: Fast and Furious Quietly Expanded To 6 American Cities”
In 2008, President Obama said he would “bankrupt” coal plant owners and force energy prices across the U.S. to “skyrocket” as part of his plan to combat global warming – and now a new EPA rule on power plant emissions promises to do just that, slashing as much as 40 percent of the nation’s power supply and possibly even doubling Americans’ energy bills.
“So if somebody wants to build a coal-powered plant, they can; it’s just that it will bankrupt them, because they’re going to be charged a huge sum for all that greenhouse gas that’s being emitted” Obama told the San Francisco Chronicle editorial board in January 2008. Continue reading “Obama plot: Black out ‘40% of U.S. power supply’”
Visible Origami 
World Events and the Bible
21st Century Wire
New York Post
Yahoo News – by ANDREW TAYLOR
Daily Mail – by Ted Thornhill
WND