Mail.com

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. military officials have sought to ward off congressional efforts to address child-on-child sexual assaults on bases, even as they disclose that the problem is larger than previously acknowledged.

Members of Congress expressed alarm and demanded answers after an Associated Press investigation revealed that reports of sexual violence among kids on U.S. military bases and at Pentagon-run schools are getting lost in a dead zone of justice that often leaves both victim and offender without help.   Continue reading “Military seeks to limit Congress on fixing child sex assault”

Mail.com

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A Texas principal accused of expelling a student who stayed seated during the Pledge of Allegiance and a Utah high school accused of censoring its student newspaper have been bestowed Jefferson Muzzles, tongue-in-cheek awards from a free-speech group.

The Charlottesville, Virginia-based Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression on Sunday announced the seven winners of its Muzzles, given annually to those the group deems the previous year’s most egregious offenders of free expression.   Continue reading “Annual Muzzle ‘awards’ go to alleged protest squelchers”

Zero Hedge – by Tyler Durden

Once again a creeping, years’ long shadow war is expanding from indirect proxy intervention to direct engagement, complete with US “boots on the ground” where no American ground forces were previously thought to exist.

And it’s not Syria, or Libya, or central Africa where the now familiar pattern played out before, but in the Arabian peninsula where the Pentagon has long claimed to merely coordinate intelligence, refuel jets, and provide logistical support to the Saudis which have been bombing Yemen since March of 2015.   Continue reading “Green Berets Are Now On The Ground Assisting The Saudi War On Yemen In “A Marked Escalation””

Boston Globe – by Stephen Kinzer

BRAVE GUATEMALAN air force pilots rebelled against a leftist regime in 1954 and used their planes to bomb the regime’s bases. Army commanders also rebelled; Guatemalans could hear them directing troop movements over the radio. Finally these patriots won their revolution. The United States trumpeted their victory around the world.

This was a “false flag” operation — staged by one force but made to look as if someone else did it. Planes that bombed targets in Guatemala were painted with Guatemalan air force insignia, but the pilots were CIA contractors. Radio messages about troop movements had been pre-recorded at a CIA base in Florida. A revolution that seemed to be emerging from one country, Guatemala, was actually the project of another, the United States.   Continue reading “Hoisting the false flag”

Forbes – by Brendan Coffey, October, 2011

There may be 147 companies in the world that own everything, as colleague Bruce Upbin points out and they are dominated by investment companies as Eric Savitz rightly points out. But it’s not you and I who really control those companies, even though much of our money is in them. Given the nature of how money is invested, there are four companies in the shadows that really control those companies that own everything.

Before I reveal them, some light math:   Continue reading “The Four Companies That Control the 147 Companies That Own Everything”

Chicago Tribune

Several rural Illinois counties have taken a stand for gun rights by co-opting a word that conservatives associate with a liberal policy to skirt the law: sanctuary.

At least five counties recently passed resolutions declaring themselves sanctuary counties for gun owners — a reference to so-called sanctuary cities such as Chicago that don’t cooperate with aspects of federal immigration enforcement.   Continue reading “Illinois counties declare ‘sanctuary’ status for gun owners”

Boing Boing

An off-duty Buena Park, California Police officer decided that a $1 pack of candy was worth risking human life. Mistakenly believing Jose Arreola was shoplifting a package of Mentos he had just purchased, the cop went into thug mode. After repeatedly being told Arreola had paid for the candies, by both the victim and the store’s cashier, the officer offers an apology.   Continue reading “Off-duty officer holds man at gunpoint over $1 package of mints”

AJC

The school shooting in Parkland, Fla., convinced school Superintendent Daniel Brigman that his plan to arm teachers and other Laurens County, Ga., school personnel needed to go beyond the idea phase.

“I’ve had this discussion repeatedly with different boards of education for the last 14 years,” Brigman said. His school district is southeast of Macon and the first in Georgia to make the move. “What happened in Florida heightened the level of awareness and concern that we needed a procedure in place to protect the safety of our schools.”   Continue reading “Armed teachers become a reality in Georgia”

Middle East Eye

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow next week, the premier’s office said, ahead of a possible US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal.

The Wednesday meeting will discuss “regional developments,” Netanyahu’s office said, and follows the Israeli leader’s unveiling of “proof” of Iran’s alleged past military nuclear ambitions.   Continue reading “Netanyahu to meet Putin in Moscow ahead of Iran deal deadline”

Free Thought Project – by Jay Syrmopoulos

Washington, D.C. – The United States hemp industry was dealt a major blow on Monday after the federal U.S.  9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a decision by the Drug Enforcement Agency to list cannabidiol, commonly referred to as CBD, which is a non-psychoactive cannabis derivative, as a Schedule 1 controlled substance under the Controlled Substances Act.

The hemp industry brought a lawsuit against the government in 2016, when the DEA issued a “clarifying rule” that claimed CBD was an illicit drug, due to it being a byproduct of cannabis flowers. A report in the Denver Post explained:   Continue reading “Federal Court Proves Gov’t Loyalty to Big Pharma, Rules CBD Has No Medical Value”

Anti-War – by Jason Ditz

While US “relief funds” are frozen in Syria, the Pentagon continues to seek massive amounts of funding for its military operations in the country. This includes a request for $300 million in weapons to give to “partner forces” in Syria.

This amounts to enough arms for 65,000 fighters. This is expected to center on the Syrian Democratic Forces, which is to say, almost entirely the Kurdish YPG. The US has been arming the YPG for years now as part of its Syria operations.   Continue reading “Pentagon Seeks Arms for 65,000 US-Backed Troops in Syria”

Orange County Register – by Jeff Collins

For seven years, a handful of homebuilders offered solar as an optional item to buyers willing to pay extra to go green.

Now, California is on the verge of making solar standard on virtually every new home built in the Golden State.

The California Energy Commission is scheduled to vote Wednesday, May 9, on new energy standards mandating most new homes have solar panels starting in 2020.   Continue reading “California to become first U.S. state mandating solar on new homes”

Fox 6 Now

NEW YORK — The Trump administration said Friday that it is ending special immigration protections for about 57,000 Hondurans, adding them to hundreds of thousands of immigrants from other countries battered by violence and natural disasters who are losing permission to be in the United States.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s widely anticipated decision not to renew temporary protected status for Hondurans means an estimated 428,000 people from several countries face rolling deadlines beginning late this year to leave or obtain legal residency in other ways.
Continue reading “US ends immigration protections for thousands of Hondurans”

The Sun

A SOUTH African movie director was killed after being hit by a giraffe while shooting close-ups of the wild animal at a South African game farm.

Carlos Carvalho, 47, was shooting scenes at a British expat’s game farm when the giraffe, called Gerald, swung its neck – hitting him on his head and sending him flying.   Continue reading “Final photo of award-winning movie director minutes before he was killed by a GIRAFFE while shooting film in South Africa”