MassPrivateI

A Senate committee report goes to great lengths to determine all of the things that data brokers, the companies that trade in consumer data, don’t want to talk about. The 35-page report describes some of the companies’ strategies for collecting and organizing data, but significant portions of the report discuss what the companies are unwilling to talk about: namely, where they get a lot of their data and where that data is going.

Companies covered in the report include well-known firms, like Datalogix and Acxiom, as well as credit reporting companies that also trade in consumer data, like Experian and TransUnion. In the report, the committee sets out to answer four questions: what data is collected, how specific it is, how it’s collected, and how it’s used. While the first two questions turned out to be reasonably easy to answer, the companies all but stonewalled the committee on substantial answers to the latter two.   Continue reading “Data brokers & private companies are spying on citizens who’re “frequent ‘text posters’””

FILE - In this Thursday, June 6, 2013, file photo, a sign stands outside the National Security Administration (NSA) campus in Fort Meade, Md. The National Security Agency tracks the locations of nearly 5 billion cellphones every day overseas, including those belonging to Americans abroad, The Washington Post reported Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2013. Such data means the NSA can track the movements of almost any cellphone around the world, and map the relationships of the cellphone user. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)Yahoo News – by RAPHAEL SATTER

LONDON (AP) — A German magazine lifted the lid on the operations of the National Security Agency’s hacking unit Sunday, reporting that American spies intercept computer deliveries, exploit hardware vulnerabilities, and even hijack Microsoft’s internal reporting system to spy on their targets.

Der Spiegel’s revelations relate to a division of the NSA known as Tailored Access Operations, or TAO, which is painted as an elite team of hackers specializing in stealing data from the toughest of targets.   Continue reading “Report: NSA intercepts computer deliveries”

Fox News

Secretary of State John Kerry will travel to the Middle East in the first week of the new year amid a flurry of reports in the Israeli press that he has said he would consider freeing convicted spy Jonathan Pollard.

Israel’s Channel 10 TV station first reported Friday that Kerry offered to free Pollard as part of an exchange for the release of a fourth group of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails as peace talks resume between the two sides. The third of four groups is scheduled to be released Monday, the Jerusalem Post reported.   Continue reading “Kerry reportedly says he will consider freeing Jonathan Pollard as part of prisoner swap”

This is a BancorpSouth bank surveillance screen shot released by the Mississippi Department of Public Safety of a bank robbery Monday, Dec. 23, 2013 in Tupelo, Miss. Tupelo police officer Kevin “Gale” Stauffer, 38, was killed, and a 26-year-old officer was injured after they responded to the robbery. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is handling the investigation, which is now focused on a male suspect said to be about 5-feet-9 to 6-feet tall, thin, with light complexion, possibly African-American. He also might be heavily armed. (AP Photo/BancorpSouth via the Mississippi Department of Public Safety)The Mississippi Link

PHOENIX (AP) — A suspect killed by Phoenix police in a bank robbery attempt is believed to be the same man accused in the shooting death of a Mississippi police officer and the wounding of another, the FBI said Sunday.

The statement came hours after Phoenix police shot and killed a suspect after Saturday’s bank robbery attempt.   Continue reading “Man killed in Arizona bank robbery linked to shooting death of Tupelo police officer”

Fox News – by Adam Housley

Fifteen months after the Sept. 11 attack in Benghazi which killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans, the narrative of the attack continues to be shaped, and reshaped, by politicians and the press.

But a New York Times report published over the weekend has angered sources who were on the ground that night. Those sources, who continue to face threats of losing their jobs, sharply challenged the Times’ findings that there was no involvement from Al Qaeda or any other international terror group and that an anti-Islam film played a role in inciting the initial wave of attacks.   Continue reading “‘Completely false’: Sources on ground in Benghazi challenge NYT report”

Fox News

A German magazine, citing internal documents, claims the NSA’s hacking unit uses James Bond-style spy gear to obtain data, including intercepting computer deliveries and outfitting them with espionage software.

Der Spiegel’s revelations relate to a division of the NSA known as Tailored Access Operations, or TAO, which is painted as an elite team of hackers specializing in stealing data from the toughest of targets.   Continue reading “German magazine claims NSA hacking unit uses powerful methods to obtain data”

Blacklisted News – by Lee Rogers

The full police investigation into the alleged Sandy Hook mass shooting has finally been released to the public.  The release contains thousands of documents including hours of video footage and numerous photographs pertaining to the investigation.  As expected the content is heavily redacted which alone raises more questions about the official story.  Perhaps even more interesting is the content that hasn’t been redacted which by itself provides more evidence suggesting that this so-called shooting incident is a complete and total fabrication.   Continue reading “Sandy Hook Police Report Contains No Evidence that Mass Shooting Took Place and Strengthens Notion that Event was a Fabricated Hoax”

Seeing green: Marvine Rosales-Martinez, 27, who found a winning scratch-off card while blowing leaves at his landscaping job last fall, was allowed to collect his $1million prize this weekDaily Mail – by SNEJANA FARBEROV

Who said money doesn’t grow on trees?

Marvine Rosales-Martinez, 27, who came upon a winning lottery ticket while blowing leaves at his landscaping job last fall, was finally allowed to collect his $1million prize this week.

Rosales-Martinez, of Hicksville, Long island, was among five lucky winners who were handed oversize checks by the New York Lottery officials Friday.      Continue reading “Lucky landscaper who found $1M lottery ticket while picking up leaves gets to KEEP the money”

Oneida Dispatch – by Michael Virtanen

ALBANY, N.Y. — Nearly a year after passage of the state’s new gun law, dealer sales of popular AR-15 semi-automatic rifles have ended in New York and arrest data show more than 1,000 gun possession charges in New York City were boosted from misdemeanors to felonies because of the changes.

Meanwhile, 59 people have been charged statewide with misdemeanors for possessing large-capacity magazines or having more than seven bullets loaded in a magazine, both outlawed by the law passed last January in the aftermath of the school massacre in Newtown, Conn.   Continue reading “Tougher NY gun law results in 1,146 felony charges”

Ted CruzThe Guardian – by Joanna Walters 

Senator Ted Cruz has said that he is taking steps to renounce his mysterious Canadian citizenship – in a move he insists does not in any way indicate a run for the White House in 2016.

The junior senator from Texas, who made a name for himself as a driving force behind efforts to bring down the Affordable Care Act by way of a government shutdown, was surprised to learn earlier this year – after some digging by one of his home state newspapers – that he reportedly enjoys dual citizenship.   Continue reading “Ted Cruz ‘taking steps’ to renounce Canadian citizenship”

russiabomb640.jpgFox News

For the second time in as many days, an explosion rocked the Russian city of Volgograd Monday morning. Russian officials say a suicide bomber blew himself up on a trolleybus, killing at least 14 people and wounding nearly 30 others. The latest attack came one day after at least 17 people died in a suicide bombing at the city’s central rail station.

The explosion ripped away much of the bus’s exterior and broke windows in nearby buildings. The BBC reported that the explosion took place near a market in the city’s Dzerzhinsky district. It virtually paralyzed public transport in the city, forcing many residents to walk long distances to get to work.   Continue reading “Russian city hit by suicide bombing for second straight day”

ENE News

Juneau Empire, Dec. 29, 2013: […] the king [chinook] salmon — has fallen from its throne. […] Alaska has seen unprecedented declines in recent years […] scientists like Joe Orsi and Jim Murphy, both fisheries research biologists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, are digging deeper into […] the cause of the startling downward trend. […] When asked about the potential impact Fukushima may be having on king salmon stocks in the Gulf of Alaska and elsewhere in the state, Orsi would not comment.   Continue reading “Unprecedented declines in Alaska king salmon… related to impact from Fukushima? No comment, says NOAA biologist — Record low numbers seen in major fishery on Canada’s west coast, “alarming decrease””

Ea O Ka Aina – by  Juan Wilson

In early November I bought a Radex RD1212 radiation monitor from Amazon. The Radex is Russian made with an English menu. It’s simple ans seems to work fine. One feature of the unit is that it keeps a record of the time and strength of radiation it senses.

I used it daily at first to get an idea of what was normal here on Kauai. The unit measures in micro-sieiverts per hour. That’s a millionths of a sievert. As a reference;   Continue reading “Brief radiation spike on Kauai”

A Florida senior citizen drove his brand new Corvette convertible out of the dealership. Taking off down the road, he pushed it to 80 mph, enjoying the wind blowing through what little hair he had left.   “Amazing,” he thought as he flew down I-95, pushing the pedal even more.

Looking in his rear view mirror, he saw a Florida State Trooper, blue lights flashing and siren blaring. He floored it to 100 mph, then 110,   then 120. Suddenly he thought, “What am I doing? I’m too old for this!” and pulled over to await the trooper’s arrival.    Continue reading “Florida State Trooper”

Turner Radio Network

December 28, 2013  11:00 PM EST — (TRN http://www.TurnerRadioNetwork.com ) — Persons residing on  the west coast of North America should IMMEDIATELY begin preparing for another possible onslaught of dangerous atmospheric radiation from the Fukushima nuclear disaster site in Japan.  The Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) says radioactive steam has suddenly begun emanating from previously exploded nuclear reactor building #3 at the Fukuishima disaster site in Japan.    Continue reading “Steam Suddenly Emanating From Fukushima Reactor # 3”

LAPD performing a drug checkpoint. (Source: NBC Los Angeles)Police State USA

LOS ANGELES, CA — As drivers prove their innocence at warrantless police checkpoints this New Year, they will not only be scrutinized over their potential consumption of alcohol.  A new technology will enable the police to detect and arrest drivers for having marijuana, narcotics, and “other drugs” in their bloodstreams.

The recently unveiled device is a portable saliva swab analyzer, capable of immediately sampling body fluids for the presence of foreign intoxicants.  The machines were paid for by grants from the state.   Continue reading “Police to take saliva & blood from drivers at New Year’s drug checkpoints”

The Verge – by T.C. Sottek 

According to a new report from Der Spiegel based on internal NSA documents, the signals intelligence agency’s elite hacking unit (TAO) is able to conduct sophisticated wiretaps in ways that make Hollywood fantasy look more like reality. The report indicates that the NSA, in collaboration with the CIA and FBI, routinely and secretly intercepts shipping deliveries for laptops or other computer accessories in order to implant bugs before they reach their destinations. According to Der Spiegel, the NSA’s TAO group is able to divert shipping deliveries to its own “secret workshops” in a method called interdiction, where agents load malware onto the electronics or install malicious hardware that can give US intelligence agencies remote access.   Continue reading “NSA reportedly intercepting laptops purchased online to install spy malware”

Michael VagniniPolice State USA

MILWAUKEE, WI –A disgusting scandal involving police officers performing illegal anal cavity searches with the intent to “degrade and humiliate” dozens and dozens of victims has come to an apparent conclusion, which some feel amounts to little more than a slap on the wrists for those involved.

Between February 2010 and February 2012, a small group of Milwaukee officers took part in a string of serial assaults on subjects pulled off the streets.  In many cases, the officers demanded the subjects produce the drugs they assumed were being hidden somewhere on their person.  When they were not satisfied with the cooperation from the subjects, an officer would jam his hand into the subject’s underpants, touch his genitals, and insert a finger into his anus on the side of the road.  Some of the complaints stated that drugs were planted during these searches.  At least one complainant was a juvenile, and one stated that he was fingered so hard that his anus bled afterwards.   Continue reading “Officer who forced dozens of anal cavity searches for fun gets only 2 years in prison”

Boing Boing – by Xeni Jardin 

My country grows stranger by the day. The elderly Italian lady who lives next door to me annotates her almanac to keep track of which moon phases bode best for planting, thinning, or harvesting fresh back yard arugula. Suspicious ways? She’s definitely attempting to maximize the likelihood of operational success through careful planning. If the taste of the fresh, shared greens she drops off on my doorstep in brown paper bags are any proof — it’s working.   Continue reading “FBI warns of terrorists toting copies of Old Farmers’ Almanac”

Breitbart – by FRANCES MARTEL

Bill de Blasio’s tenure as mayor of New York City will officially begin on New Year’s Day, before the steps of City Hall, and with President Bill Clinton holding the Bible on which he will be sworn into office.

De Blasio’s transition team announced the presence of both Clinton’s at the ceremony on Saturday, with the former President presiding over the key inaugural act. “I was honored to serve in President Clinton’s administration and on Secretary Clinton’s campaign for U. S. Senate,” de Blasio said in a statement announcing their presence at the inaugural, “and I am honored again that they will both join our celebration for all of New York City.” He also tweeted out an old photo of his family with the Clintons expressing his gratitude for their presence. De Blasio will be using a Bible owned by another former president, Franklin D. Roosevelt.   Continue reading “Bill Clinton will Swear in Bill De Blasio as NYC Mayor”