From the Trenches World Report

Herald Sun – by PAUL TOOHEY

Toronto’s Rob Ford is not the first to hit the crack cocaine. And Auckland’s married mayor Len Brown, who has just been re-elected despite revelations of a two-year affair, detailed in excruciating pornographic detail, is no trailblazer.   Continue reading “Crack, affairs, appropriation of funds: all in a day’s work for a mayor”

Canada Free Press – by Judi McLeod

Aloha Hawaiians!  If you see what you think are soldiers from the Communist Peoples Republic of China Army wandering about in your neck of the woods Tuesday through Thursday next week, your imagination is not playing tricks on you.

For the first time in history the U.S. Army will host the Communist Peoples Republic of China’s Army on American soil Nov. 12-14, 2013.   Continue reading “Chinese troops will have boots on the ground in Hawaii on Tuesday”

Huffington Post – by Jack Mirkinson

It seems like there’s one thing you can’t do if you’re the editor of Guns & Ammo magazine: run a column endorsing gun control.

That’s what Jim Bequette found out this week. On Thursday, he announced that he was resigning immediately from the helm of the gun-friendly title after readers revolted over an article by contributing editor Dick Metcalf which ran in the magazine’s latest issue.   Continue reading “Guns & Ammo Editor Gets Run Out Of Town For Printing Gun Control Column”

North Jersey.com – by ABBOTT KOLOFF

A New Milford man faces a weapons charge for carrying a loaded weapon to the Westfield Garden State Plaza mall on Monday night after telling police he wanted to help them apprehend the gunman who fired shots inside the Paramus shopping center, authorities said Wednesday.

Cody J. Donovan, 22, was charged with unlawful possession of a weapon after a Bergen County detective arrested him at the mall around 11 p.m. Monday, as SWAT teams searched for a man who fired random shots from a rifle shortly before the mall was due to close at 9:30 p.m.   Continue reading “New Milford man allegedly carried loaded gun to Garden State Plaza during shooting”

RT News

US authorities have presented a plan for the mass use of drones in American airspace. Though there have been few objections to the move so far, a global government surveillance drone program is likely to raise privacy concerns later on.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has presented a detailed plan for drones to roam across American skies within the next two years.    Continue reading “FAA proposes widespread civilian drone use in US airspace by 2015”

RT News

As the US Department of Agriculture considers whether to authorize the unrestricted planting of genetically engineered Eucalyptus trees experts are warning that such a policy would not only be unnatural, but negatively impact the environment.

The GE tree is primarily developed by ArborGen, a biotechnology corporation that has been met with protests in recent months, to provide materials to create paper and the wood pellets that fuel power plants around the world. Despite the trees’ propensity for cooler climates, ArborGen has sought to promote the trees’ growth in the south eastern US under the notion that they will help the environment sustain itself.    Continue reading “Genetically engineered trees under USDA consideration could harm environment – report”

The New American – by Joe Wolverton, II, J.D.

The quest to cut off the National Security Agency from the utilities it needs to power its surveillance stations just gained a powerful new partner: Revolution Truth, a non-partisan organization created to provide citizens with information they can use to increase their participation in and influence on the governing process.

Tangerine Bolen is the founder of Revolution Truth and according to a press release, she has thrown her support behind the efforts of the OffNow coalition, describing it as an “exciting initiative.”   Continue reading “Coalition to Cut Off NSA’s Power Gets Potent New Ally”

Fox News

A panel of Florida legislators on Thursday easily defeated an effort to repeal the state’s controversial “stand your ground law” Thursday following hours of passionate testimony.

The vote by a committee of the Republican-controlled House, which seemed unlikely just a few months ago, comes after the trial of George Zimmerman renewed scrutiny of the self-defense law that was first passed in 2005.   Continue reading “‘Stand your ground law’ survives Florida House vote”

Reuters – by LESLEY WROUGHTON AND FREDRIK DAHL

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday important gaps needed to be bridged in high-stakes talks with Iran on curbing its nuclear program and he would meet Tehran’s foreign minister shortly to try to clinch an interim deal.

“I want to emphasize there is not an agreement at this point,” Kerry said shortly after arriving in Geneva, tempering rising anticipation of a breakthrough that would reduce the risk of a Middle East war over Iran’s nuclear aspirations.   Continue reading “Kerry says aims to close ‘important gaps’ in Iran nuclear talks”

Huffington Post – by Kathleen Miles

Surrounded by about 100 police officers in riot gear and a helicopter circling above, more than 50 Walmart workers and supporters were arrested in downtown Los Angeles Thursday night as they sat in the street protesting what they called the retailer’s “poverty wages.”   Continue reading “Largest Civil Disobedience In Walmart History Leads To More Than 50 Arrests”

Arizona Central – by JJ Hensley

Cameras affixed to traffic signals at intersections are now commonplace.

A decade ago, law-enforcement agencies began mounting special cameras on patrol cars capable of reading hundreds of license plates a minute.

And Phoenix police have been flying a plane capable of conducting surveillance from 9,000 feet since 2010.   Continue reading “Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office push for drones stirs privacy concerns”

MassPrivateI

Since October 2001, the enforcement wing of the Department of Education has issued Glock pistols to its special agents as a matter of course, according to documents obtained by MuckRock. The department has continued building out its arsenal and expanding its agents’ weapons selection using discounted law enforcement rates offered to the U.S. Capitol Police and the ATF.

The purchase orders and documents provided to MuckRock user Scriven King— which date back seven years – indicate that the Department of Education’s Office of the Inspector General has purchased more than 200 Glocks for its special agents since 2006, spending more than $80,000 on pistols in that span. The OIG also spent $17,000.79 on Remington shotguns in September 2010, according to another purchase order.    Continue reading “‘Zero Tolerance’ policy be damned the Department of Education is acquiring handguns”