From the Trenches World Report

RT News

The Pentagon’s research arm, DARPA, is developing robot pods that can sit at the bottom of the ocean for long stretches of time, waiting to release airborne and water-based drones to the surface upon an attack command.

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) recently called for bids to complete the final two phases of its Upward Falling Payloads (UFP) program. The UFP operation is an effort to position unmanned systems around far-flung regions of the sea floor. The housing pods would be left in place for years in anticipation of the US Navy’s need for non-lethal assistance.   Continue reading “DARPA producing sea-floor pods that can release attack drones on command”

RT News

US special forces have been committing suicide at record levels for the last two years, the head of the US Special Operations Command (SOCom) admitted in a speech on Thursday. He blamed the high numbers on the length and difficulty of combat.

“There is a lot of angst. There’s a lot of pressure out there. My soldiers have been fighting now for 12, 13 years in hard combat. Hard combat,” Adm. William McRaven, the head of SOCom, said at a conference in Florida. “And anybody that has spent any time in this war has been changed by it. It’s that simple.”   Continue reading “US Special Ops forces committing suicide in record numbers”

RT News

The Obama administration said Friday that it is giving federal agencies more time to assess a proposed trans-national pipeline, likely keeping a decision about the controversial Keystone XL project from being made anytime soon.

Both the Associated Press and Reuters reported that the decision to further delay any announcement about the project is expected to keep the Keystone pipeline’s future uncertain until after November, when several United States government positions will go up for grabs at mid-term elections.   Continue reading “Obama administration delays decision on Keystone XL pipeline again”

RT News

A psychologist considered integral to crafting the CIA’s post-9/11 “enhanced interrogation” tactics slammed an unreleased Senate report on CIA torture as inaccurate while defending his role in working with the spy agency amid a volatile era in US history.

In his first interview in seven years, James Mitchell told freelance reporter Jason Leopold, writing for the Guardian, that he has nothing to apologize for regarding his place in the post-9/11 abuse of prisoners that, as he points out, was legal at the time.   Continue reading “CIA psychologist who developed torture program defends tactics”

Mail.com

WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) — All Massachusetts authorities could say for sure is that they found the lifeless body of a small boy, apparently cast off the side of a highway.

An autopsy should reveal if the child is Jeremiah Oliver, the Fitchburg 5-year-old missing for months before police learned of his disappearance and began looking for him. Jeremiah’s case has led to criminal charges against his mother and her boyfriend and calls for changes within the state’s child welfare agency. Three state workers have been fired.   Continue reading “Autopsy to ID dead boy; body cast off side of road”

Mail.com

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A woman who shot and killed her two young grandsons before committing suicide last year left a note to the boys’ parents saying they did not deserve to have the children, according to a police report.

The report, obtained by The Associated Press through a Freedom of Information request, suggests a possible motive for the first time and sheds new light on her mental health problems: The grandmother, Debra Denison, had a history of conflict with the boys’ mother and had attempted suicide a half dozen times before.   Continue reading “APNewsBreak: Vengeful note left in 2 boys’ murder”

Nutritional Anarchy – by Melissa Melton

I’m always making a joke that our overblown government couldn’t even get together and make a noodle salad without finding some magical way to screw it up.

Apparently, and sadly so, that snarky bit of sarcasm isn’t all that far off the mark.

Food served at a Food Safety Summit held earlier this month between several of our federal agencies including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Big Food industry giants the likes of Tyson, ConAgra and McDonald’s, actually gave some of the people who attended food poisoning.   Continue reading “The Most Irony Ever: Food Poisoning Strikes Diners at Gov’t Food Safety Summit”

Tech Dirt – by Timothy Geigner

When we talk about the stupidity that are school-affiliated zero-tolerance policies, those stories usually revolve around an administration’s inability to marry common sense with their reactions to non-issues. This can produce somewhat varied results, from really dumb stories about children being children and ending up in serious trouble, to a far more angering practice of victim-blaming. What it all boils down to, though, is an overreaction to certain tragic situations that results in bureaucratic lunacy on a level I never would have thought possible. School shootings and violence are the impetus in these cases, but we see this elsewhere as well. 9/11 resulted in the s#!*-show we know as airport security and NSA surveillance. The Boston Marathon bombing has resulted in the kind of militarized protection and media-blitzkrieg that would likely have other world nations that deal with far more terrorism shaking their heads. And, in each of these cases, we learn a simple truth that we should have seen coming all along: reactionary policies breed stupidity, corruption, and trouble.    Continue reading “The Logical Conclusion Of Zero Tolerance: College Prof Suspended Because Daughter Wore A GoT Tshirt”

Philly.com – by Matthew Brown

Sovereign Man – by Simon Black

In the Land of the Free, people grow up hearing a lot of things about their freedom.

You’re told that you live in the freest country on the planet. You’re told that other nations ‘hate you’ for your freedom.

And you’re told that you have the most open and fair justice system in the world.   Continue reading “New court decision destroys the last element of the justice system”

The Economic Collapse – by Michael Snyder

Did you know that Family Dollar is closing 370 stores? When I learned of this, I was quite stunned. I knew that retailers that serve the middle class were really struggling right now, but I had no idea that things had gotten so bad for low end stores like Family Dollar. In the post-2008 era, dollar stores had generally been one of the few bright spots in the retail industry. As millions of Americans fell out of the middle class, they were looking to stretch their family budgets as far as possible, and dollar stores helped them do that. It would be great if we could say that the reason why Family Dollar is doing so poorly is because average Americans have more money now and have resumed shopping at retailers that target the middle class, but that is not happening. Rather, as you will see later in this article, things just continue to get even worse for Americans at the low end of the income scale.   Continue reading “Two More Victims Of The Retail Apocalypse: Family Dollar And Coldwater Creek”

Police State USA

LOUISVILLE, KY — When an esteemed police detective discovered that an innocent woman had spent years in prison for a murder she didn’t commit, he notified his supervisors and tried to make the tragic error known.  Instead of seeing that the new evidence came to light, police brass demoted the whistleblower and kicked out of his unit.  Another veteran officer stood up for the whistleblower, earning him termination from the department after decades of service.  The Louisville Metropolitan Police Department has taken nefarious steps to hide a dark secret.   Continue reading “Louisville officers fired/demoted for exposing a wrongful conviction”

Cop Block

Date of Interaction: 4/15/14
Police Employees Involved: Unnamed Morgan County Deputy
Police Employee Contact Information: 256-351-4800

Earlier this week, an off duty Morgan County Deputy shot an unarmed fleeing suspect at a WalMart in Huntsville, Alabama. The suspect was allegedly wanted on a warrant for a probation violation. Upon seeing the suspect run, the deputy squared up and fired a shot, striking the suspect in the leg. This was confirmed by witnesses. The off duty deputy, whose name is not being released, claims his firearm accidentally discharged during the pursuit. Will this officer be held accountable for going against policy and firing on a fleeing unarmed suspect and putting citizens in way more danger than the suspect? Why are all LEO’s so anxious to fire their weapon and strike another? The following is the news report from WHNT.com.   Continue reading “Off Duty Cop Shoots Fleeing Unarmed Suspect”

The Daily Beast – by Eli Lake

The Joint Chiefs of Staff of the U.S. military and American intelligence agencies have quietly pushed the White House in recent weeks to deny a new Russian surveillance plane the right to fly over U.S. territory. This week, the White House finally began consideration of the decision whether to certify the new Russian aircraft under the so-called “Open Skies Treaty.” And now the question becomes: Will the spies and generals get their way?   Continue reading “Pentagon Moves to Block Russian Spy Plane in American Skies”

Huffington Post- by Nick Wing

A version of this story first appeared in January.

For the first 4/20 ever, people will gather in Colorado this weekend to show support for fully legal marijuana. Just months after the state opened its doors to recreational pot, crowds will head to events on Sunday like the sold-out Cannabis Cup, all to celebrate a plant that brought Colorado $14 million in taxed sales in January alone. Colorado’s example has served as a promising sign that legal marijuana can be a strong source of income for other states interested in scaling back harsh anti-pot laws and listening to voters, who have increasingly shown support for legalizing marijuana.   Continue reading “These States Are Most Likely To Legalize Weed Next. Will You Have A Happier 4/20 In 2015?”