Year: 2015

1st Prize – EJ Grunt

2nd Prize – JENO

Congratulations and thank you to all who participated, your support is greatly appreciated.

Oxfam’s recent report, “WEALTH: HAVING IT ALL AND WANTING MORE” contains shocking figures that the press haven’t sufficiently publicized; so, the findings and the reliability of their sources will be discussed here. The results will then be related to the central political debate now going on in the U.S. Presidential contests for 2016, which is about equality and inequality.

First, the findings:

1. The richest 80 individuals own as much as do all of the poorest half of humanity.   Continue reading “World’s Richest 80 People Own Same Amount as World’s Bottom 50%”

Task and Purpose

The National Guard is running the risk of losing its long-held community ties as it becomes more aligned with the regular Army.

It was a beautiful spring evening as my convoy traversed the country roads en route from our state training area back to the armory. It had been a weekend of continuous field operations for my unit, and the soldiers, while tired, were happy to have conducted solid training. As we passed through the small villages and towns, people would wave, honk, or yell, “Thank you,” to the convoy as it rolled by. In a few cases, families stopped their barbecues to stand alongside the road together and wave as we went by. I was struck with the thought that if I was on active duty and coming back from the training area, this would never happen. The National Guard’s community connection is truly unique. And unfortunately, we’re on the verge of losing it.   Continue reading “Why The National Guard Needs Its Community Connection”

Weather.com

Two tornado watches are in effect for parts of the Southern Plains, and large hail has already been reported in Texas as Friday’s round of severe weather has gotten off to an early start. Following Wednesday’s tornado outbreak in the Plains andThursday’s severe weather and flooding rain, a dangerous, multi-day severe weather outbreak will persist through Mother’s Day in many of the same areas.

Saturday poses a particularly dangerous risk for tornadoes in the heart of the Plains states, while Mother’s Day may feature severe weather from the Upper Midwest to Texas.   Continue reading “Tornado Watches Issued in Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico; Tornado Outbreak Possible Friday into Mother’s Day Weekend”

SHTF Plan – by Mac Slavo

The Obama administration is feverishly working with foreign lawmakers and officials on a new Trans-Pacific Parternship (TPP) trade agreement. Yet what may seem like business as usual is anything but.

The President has made it a point to keep any details of the agreement completely secret, so much so that what amounts to a gag order has been placed on anyone who has anything to do with the bill. Even members of Congress are unable to discuss the contents of the bill with each other or in public, and anyone who is invited to discussions over the bill must leave cell phones and staff members behind. Since not even Republicans have yet to spill the beans about the details of the agreement, one can only assume that those attending the meetings are doing so under threat of criminal prosecution or worse if they talk.   Continue reading “Shock Report About Secret Obama Treaty: “Unlimited Migration From Mexico… Gun Import Bans… Ammunition Bans””

The New American – by  Kelly Holt

The Texas counties of Victoria and Goliad, originally scheduled as two of the sites for the massive Jade Helm 15 military war simulation exercises across the Southwest this summer, will no longer host the operations, reported theVictoria (Texas) Advocate. No reason for the cancellations has yet been released.

Covered in depth by The New American, Jade Helm 15 has been the source of increasing concern and speculation among residents of Texas, ever since a map connected with the training operations surfaced that labeled the states of Texas and Utah as “hostile,” while more liberal states were tagged as “permissive.” Disquieted and unconvinced residents do not trust that the military and federal government are telling them the truth, or that the media is accurately representing their concerns.   Continue reading “Jade Helm 15 Cancelled in Two Texas Counties; Remaining Texans Wary”

All Gov – by Noel Brinkerhoff, Steve Straehley

A bill introduced by Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona that would allow Customs and Border Protection “access to federal lands for security activities” was passed out of committee this week.

McCain and his cosponsor, Rep. Matt Salmon (R-Arizona), said in a March news release that “laws put in place to protect these lands also prevent Border Patrol agents from doing their jobs,” and the legislation, the Arizona Borderland Protection and Preservation Act (SB 750) (pdf), would “cut unnecessary red tape and enable Border Patrol agents to have access to all federally managed land in Southwest Arizona so they can perform their jobs effectively, keep our communities safe, and secure the border once and for all.”   Continue reading “John McCain Says Laws Protecting National Parks and Monuments Threaten National Security”

The Guardian – by Dan Roberts

Barack Obama will seek to rally Democratic support for free trade on Friday with a visit to Nike headquarters designed to allay fears of further offshoring of US jobs.

Amid fierce opposition from the president’s own party in Congress, White House officials are aiming to flip perceptions by staging the speech at a shoe giant notorious for its use of low-cost Asian labour but which claims the proposed transpacific partnership (TPP) trade agreement will allow it to create 10,000 new US jobs.   Continue reading “Obama to visit Nike HQ to rally Democratic support for free trade”

ABC 11 News – by Luis Martinez

Military bases and installations in the United States have been ordered to raise their force protection condition status to Bravo (FPCON Bravo), due to general concerns about ISIS related threats, but not because of any specific threat or plot.

U.S. Northern Command’s Admiral William Gortney ordered the increase in the force protection condition from FPCON Alpha Plus, which is the standard for U.S. military bases.   Continue reading “US Military Bases Raise Security Status due to ISIS Threat”

The Intercept – by Lee Fang

In a little-noticed brief filed last summer, lawyers for the House of Representatives claimed that an SEC investigation of congressional insider trading should be blocked on principle, because lawmakers and their staff are constitutionally protected from such inquiries given the nature of their work.

The legal team led by Kerry W. Kircher, who was appointed House General Counsel by Speaker John Boehner in 2011, claimed that the insider trading probe violated the separation of powers between the legislative and executive branch.   Continue reading “Congress Tells Court That Congress Can’t Be Investigated For Insider Trading”

The Intercept – by Juan Thompson

North St. Louis is grappling with many problems: underperforming schools, a stubbornly high murder rate, lack of good jobs, dirty vacant lots and now the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency.

The NGA, a lesser-known cousin of the National Security Agency, has long had facilities in South St. Louis located a short walk from the historic Anheuser-Busch Brewery. But the NGA is now looking to move and has narrowed its list of possible new locations to four, including one in North St. Louis that would require the demolition of 47 homes.   Continue reading “St. Louis Residents Fight to Keep Spy Agency from Taking Their Homes”