From the Trenches World Report

BATR -by SARTRE

How did it ever come down to abandoning peace keeping and accepting law enforcement by any means? Even the New York Times expresses alarm in, When the Police Go Military.

“The Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 generally bars the military from law enforcement activities within the United States. But today, some local and city police forces have rendered the law rather moot. They have tanks – yes, tanks, often from military surplus, for use in hostage situations or drug raids – not to mention the sort of equipment and training one would need to deter a Mumbai-style guerrilla assault.”   Continue reading “The Psychotic Militarization of Law Enforcement”

Breitbart – by JOEL B. POLLAK

President Barack Obama issued a long-awaited response Sunday afternoon to the acquittal of George Zimmerman Saturday evening, reminding Americans to temper “passions,” and that “we are a nation of laws and the jury has spoken.”

He added that Americans should “honor” the life of Trayvon Martin by committing to “stem the tide of gun violence,” and “ask ourselves if we are doing all we can to widen the circle of compassion in our communities.”    Continue reading “Obama Responds to Zimmerman Verdict: ‘Stem the Tide of Gun Violence’ — For Trayvon”

Salon – by ALEX HALPERIN 

Radley Balko’s new book, “Rise of the Warrior Cop,” details how America’s police forces have grown to look and behave more like soldiers than neighborly Officer Krupkes walking the beat. This new breed of police, frequently equipped with military weapons and decked out in enough armor to satisfy a storm trooper, are redefining law enforcement.   Continue reading “Radley Balko: “Once a town gets a SWAT team you want to use it””

NORML – by Paul Armentano

Pulmonary complications associated with the regular smoking of cannabis are “relatively small” and far lower than those associated with tobacco smoking, according to a recent review published in the June edition of the scientific journal Annals of the American Thoracic Society.

The paper – authored by Donald P. Tashkin, MD, emeritus professor of medicine and medical director of the Pulmonary Function Laboratory at the David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles – is “the most comprehensive and authoritative review of the subject ever published,” according to an accompanying commentary. Donald Tashkin conducted US-government sponsored studies of marijuana and lung function for over 30 years.   Continue reading “Study: Marijuana Smoking Not Associated With Airway Cancers, COPD, Emphysema, Or Other Tobacco-Related Pulmonary Complications”

Press TV

Israel announced on July 8 that one of their F-16s suffered a mechanical failure off the coast of Gaza. A military spokesman for the Israeli Air Force (IAF) said both pilots were recovered. The plane is said to have crashed into the Mediterranean Sea.

Almost no part of this story is true. It makes as much sense as the story of the American Navy putting 22 Navy Seals on a National Guard helicopter. Nobody bought that one.    Continue reading “F-16 loss, a humiliation for Israel”

Wake Up World – by Carolanne Wright

Remember Agent Orange, the herbicide sprayed in Vietnam linked with devastating birth defects, cancer and Parkinson’s disease?

Dow AgroSciences would like to feed this toxic chemical to the American population via a new breed of genetically modified corn. If the corporation has its way, “Agent Orange corn” will arrive on dinner plates across the U.S. as early as 2014.   Continue reading “Warning: Genetically Modified “Agent Orange Corn” Coming Soon to a Plate Near You”

DC Clotheline – by Patrick Ord

With the recent revelations centered on government surveillance, interest has surged in George Orwell’s dystopian novel 1984. Orwell’s prescient work explores how a futuristic totalitarian state tracks every citizen’s move.

Orwell’s main character Winston was old enough to remember a time when privacy existed-albeit vaguely. In my favorite passage of the novel, Orwell says the following:   Continue reading “Lessons On Surveillance From “1984″”

Judicial Watch

The U.S. proposal to secure the southern border has caused outrage in Mexico, with one renowned Mexican academic claiming in Spanish-language media that deploying more federal agents to the region is tantamount to an increase in “human rights violations.”

Under the immigration reform bill floating around in the U.S. Senate the number of Border Patrol agents will double along the southern border and the amount of drones guarding from above will triple. The measure will also provide funding to complete 700 miles of fencing in the area and around-the-clock surveillance flights by drones.   Continue reading “Mexico: Securing Border Violates Human Rights”

C-Net – by Declan McCullagh

Skype now has a backdoor that permits government surveillance of users’ video and audio calls, according to a new report in the Guardian.

The report, based on leaked slides from the National Security Agency, appears to confirm growing suspicions about the popular video chat service — and indicates calls may be monitored as easily as an old-fashioned phone call.   Continue reading “NSA docs boast: Now we can wiretap Skype video calls”

Business Daily Africa – by CHARLES MWANIKI

Soon before you can get money from the Automated Teller Machine (ATM) a finger print will be required.

you believe AG Eric Holder will find himself guilty.

you believed Governor Jerry Brown would be different this time around.

you believe Iran will use a nuclear weapon, on any country.

you believe the USA would not. (see WWII)   Continue reading “You might be an “American DUMB ass” if… Cont.”

Paul Craig Roberts

The American people have suffered a coup d’etat, but they are hesitant to acknowledge it. The regime ruling in Washington today lacks constitutional and legal legitimacy. Americans are ruled by usurpers who claim that the executive branch is above the law and that the US Constitution is a mere “scrap of paper.”

An unconstitutional government is an illegitimate government. The oath of allegiance requires defense of the Constitution “against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” As the Founding Fathers made clear, the main enemy of the Constitution is the government itself. Power does not like to be bound and tied down and constantly works to free itself from constraints.   Continue reading “Coup d’etat”

Story Leak – by Anthony Gucciardi 

As the world reacts to the Trayvon Martin case, including prominent rappers calling out the media over its race baiting, reports detail around 160,000 Russian troops were called to ‘combat readiness’ following an Israeli strike on Russian-made missiles in Syria.

Is the nation too distracted by the George Zimmerman trial’s 24/7 news cycle to even know about this developing situation that coincides with escalating tensions between Russia and US-affiliated nations around the world?   Continue reading “WW3 Brews as Nation Distracted by Trayvon Martin Case”