Year: 2015

Mail.com

TOKYO (AP) — Japan launched a new counterterrorism unit in an air of secrecy Tuesday, with journalists only allowed to photograph its 24 members from behind.

The country is expanding its international espionage work after being shocked by the deaths of five Japanese citizens at the hands of Islamic militants this year. The recent Paris attacks have also raised fears ahead of a Group of Seven summit in Japan next year and the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2020.   Continue reading “Japan launches anti-terrorism unit ahead of summit, Olympics”

Mail.com

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — The latest developments as tens of thousands of people make their way to Europe and across the continent, seeking safety and a better life. All times local.

3:55 p.m. Finland has announced stricter immigration policies to stem an influx of migrants, including opening repatriation centers for the quick expulsion of those denied asylum, tightening conditions for family unification and cutting benefits for refugees.   Continue reading “Finland tightens immigration policies”

So we have three 747’s with all their markings removed. Which one is MH370?

Yahoo News

Kuala Lumpur (AFP) – Still puzzled by the mystery of missing flight MH370, Malaysian airport authorities now have the opposite problem: three Boeing 747 planes left unclaimed at the country’s main airport.   Continue reading “To whom it may concern: please claim your Boeing 747s”

ABC News

The new U.S. terror alert system that Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said today he will announce in the coming days is actually more of a modification, a department official clarified later.

It is “not a new system,” but rather a revision of the one that is already in place, the official said.   Continue reading “Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson to Announce Revised Terror Alert System”

Eric Peters Autos

Ever wonder why people throw empty beer bottles out the window – rather than just throw them in the trash when they get home? Could any of it have to do with fear of being found in possession of an “open container” – and of the severe penalties that one would face in that event, even if one isn’t close to being legally “drunk” by the state’s own arbitrary standards (i.e., BAC level)?

I think so, yes.   Continue reading “Unintended Consequences”

Reason – by Robby Soave

The American Civil Liberties Union apparently hates guns more than it hates arbitrary government-enforced discrimination. Even though the ACLU opposes the no-fly list—and is suing the federal government for violating the due process rights of several people on it—the civil liberties advocacy group is theoretically okay with depriving people on the list of their gun rights.

A spokesperson for the ACLU told Buzzfeed News that the organization had no formal position on legislation, supported by the Obama administration, which would deny the right to purchase firearms to people on the no-fly list:   Continue reading “ACLU Opposes the No-Fly List, But Is Okay with Using It to Take People’s Guns”

NY Daily News – by Alfred Ng

A Florida woman thought she got away from a hit-and-run, until her own car called the cops.

Cathy Bernstein, 57, tried speeding off after hitting both a truck and a van near Northwest Prima Vista Boulevard, but her Ford cut her escape short, police said.   Continue reading “Florida woman’s hit-and-run escape foiled after her own car calls police on her”

Sent to us by a reader.

CPA

Washington, D.C.- Monday, a World Trade Organization (WTO) tribunal authorized over $1 billion in sanctions against the U.S., in retaliation for the congressionally passed Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) law being “incompliant with WTO standards.”   Continue reading “Global WTO Tribunal Overrules Congress on Food Labeling, $1 Billion Sanctions”

Free Thought Project – by William N. Grigg

In an unprecedented protest against the routine offenses against due process and bodily integrity carried out in the name of the “war on drugs,” the union representing Pittsburgh police officers has condemned workplace drug and alcohol testing as a violation of the Constitution. Their zeal for the right to privacy only applies to themselves, however, not to the public they supposedly serve.   Continue reading “Cops Fighting Mandatory Drug Tests – Claim it’s ‘Unconstitutional’ to Screen Police Urine”

The Daily Sheeple – by Joshua Krause

Not a week goes by without the Syrian conflict taking us another step towards World War Three. There’s no way that Western interests can operate in Syria alongside Russian interests, without them butting heads in some capacity. And time after time, we’ve seen what happens when these conflicting global interest collide in the region. People die, like the unfortunate Russian pilot who was killed last month, and both sides of the conflict come a little closer to fighting each other without the benefit of their proxies.   Continue reading “U.S. Accused of Bombing Syrian Military for the First Time”

Breitbart – by AWR Hawkins

With the House GOP opposed to adding the imprecise no-fly list to background checks, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA-12th) says it is “unconscionable” to oppose gun control that would not have stopped the San Bernardino attack.

The addition of the no-fly list would not have stopped the San Bernardino attack because the attackers—Syed Farook and Tashfeen Malik—weren’t on it. On December 4, CNN reported that Farook and Malik weren’t on “any list” of potential terrorists in the U.S.   Continue reading “Nancy Pelosi: ‘Unconscionable’ to Oppose Gun Control That Wouldn’t Have Stopped San Bernardino Attack”

Press TV

The US government’s unconditional support for Israel despite alleged differences of opinion between the two sides is leading the world to believe that Tel Aviv has become the new capital of the United States, an American political analyst says.

An investigation by an Israeli daily revealed on Monday that US donors have channeled over 200 million dollars into Israeli illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank, Palestine, in recent years.   Continue reading “Tel Aviv has replaced Washington, DC as US capital: Analyst”

Sacramento Bee – by Christopher Bodeen, AP

BEIJING – Schools closed and rush-hour roads were much quieter than normal as Beijing invoked its first-ever red alert for smog Tuesday, closing many factories and imposing restrictions to keep half the city’s vehicles off the roads.

The alert in effect through Thursday – the most serious warning on a four-tier system adopted in 2013 – means authorities have forecast more than three consecutive days of severe smog.
Continue reading “Beijing schools close as city issues first smog red alert”

Lohud – by Akiko Matsuda

BUCHANAN – A malfunctioning roof fan caused a power failure for control rods at Indian Point Unit 2, leading to a temporary shutdown of the nuclear reactor, a company spokesman said Monday.

Unit 2, one of the two reactors at the Indian Point Energy Center, was manually shut down at about 5:20 p.m. Saturday after about 10 control rods “dropped” into the reactor core. The reactor is expected to resume its operation either Tuesday or Wednesday, said Jerry Nappi, spokesman for Entergy Corp., which owns and operates the Buchanan nuclear plant. The plant’s other reactor, Unit 3, keeps running.   Continue reading “Malfunctioning fan caused Indian Pt. 2 shutdown”

Yahoo News

Fox News has issued two-week suspensions to on-air contributors Lt. Col. Ralph Peters and Stacey Dash, after each used expletives in critiquing President Barack Obama’s Sunday-night speech from the Oval Office, where he discussed terrorism abroad and at home.

Appearing Monday on Fox Business Network, Peters was discussing the American public’s fervor for action to be taken against ISIS when he said of Obama, “We want you to react, do something. You’re afraid. I mean, this guy is such a total pu–y, it’s stunning.”   Continue reading “Fox News Suspends Two Contributors Over Anti-Obama Expletives”

Wall Street Journal – by Stephen Witt

THE YEAR IS 2040, and as you wait for a drone to deliver your pizza, you decide to throw on some tunes. Once a commodity bought and sold in stores, music is now an omnipresent utility invoked via spoken- word commands. In response to a simple “play,” an algorithmic DJ opens a blended set of songs, incorporating information about your location, your recent activities and your historical preferences—complemented by biofeedback from your implanted SmartChip. A calming set of lo-fi indie hits streams forth, while the algorithm adjusts the beats per minute and acoustic profile to the rain outside and the fact that you haven’t eaten for six hours.   Continue reading “Is the Future of Music a Chip in Your Brain?”