Saturday, April 30, 2011

Congressman Allen West's Town Hall "Fix" Is Fraud

Chief of Staff for Republican U.S. Rep Allen West (FL-22) gets caught lying. After facing tough Town Hall questioning from constituents during first months in office, handlers for the controversial Tea Party favorite decided on a "fresh approach" for Question & Answer format. But as shown in this video from the April 27th, 2011 Town Hall in Boca Raton, FL, that "fresh approach" raises lots more questions than it answers...

Maddow: Michigan governor thinks democracy is a 'problem'

Monday, April 25, 2011

Democracy index 2010 Democracy in retreat A report from the Economist Intelligence Unit

Syrian Crackdown Intensifies: Over 150 Killed Since Friday as Assad Regime Attempts to Crush Protest Movement I Democracy Now!


Syria has intensified its massive crackdown on demonstrators, despite the lifting of emergency rule last week that banned demonstrations. Al Jazeera reports thousands of troops backed with tanks have swept into the southern city of Daraa, where a curfew is in place, setting up snipers on rooftops and killing at least 20 people. Government security forces have also stormed the large Damascus suburb of Douma. These latest developments follow protests on Friday that ended with more than 100 people killed in the deadliest day since the uprising began. We go to Syria to speak to Rula Amin of Al Jazeera and Razan Zaitouneh, human rights lawyer and activist.

The Guardian's Twitter network of Arab and Middle East protests - interactive map Follow the latest tweets on protests around the Arab world and the Middle East from a network of journalists, bloggers and experts

At Least 480 Tunneled Out of Afghan Prison I AP


Taliban militants tunneled at least 480 inmates out of the main prison in southern Afghanistan overnight, whisking them through a 1,000-foot-long underground passage they had dug over months, officials and insurgents said Monday. (April 25)

Rep. Chris Gibson (R-NY) Says 'Illegal' Not Paying Taxes, Town Hall Attendee Asks: 'You Mean Like GE?'

Michigan Residents Protest Gov. Snyder's Education Cuts At Town Hall

WikiLeaks Documents Reveal U.S. Knowingly Imprisoned 150 Innocent Men at Guantánamo


The whistleblowing website WikiLeaks has begun releasing thousands of secret documents from the U.S. military prison at Guantánamo Bay that reveal the Bush and Obama administrations knowingly imprisoned more than 150 innocent men for years without charge. In dozens of cases, senior U.S. commanders were said to have concluded that there was no reason for the men to have been transferred to Guantánamo. Among the innocent prisoners were an 89-year-old Afghan villager and a 14-year-old boy who had been kidnapped. Some men were imprisoned at Guantánamo simply because they wore a popular model of Casio watches, which had been used as timers by al-Qaeda. The documents also reveal that the journalist Sami al-Hajj was held at Guantánamo for six years partly in order to be interrogated about his employer, the Al Jazeera network. Al-Hajj’s file said he was sent to Guantánamo in order to "provide information on ... the Al-Jazeera news network’s training programme, telecommunications equipment, and newsgathering operations in Chechnya, Kosovo and Afghanistan." For more, we speak with journalist Andy Worthington, author of The Guantánamo Files: The Stories of the 774 Detainees in America’s Illegal Prison.

Syrian citizens getting shot at by police. *GRAPHIC


Documentation of horrible massacre committed by the forces of Syrian President Bashar Assad last night in Daraa south of the country.

Live Radiation Monitoring from West Los Angeles



Online TV Shows by Ustream
A range of normal background radiation at this location at this time over several days has been determined to be between 40 to 46 CPM. These measurements are similar to background measurements taken in this location over long periods of time prior to the partial meltdowns in Japan.


Should radiation measured by the Inspector begin to rise to double background, we will be concerned. If the measurements go to triple background and above for a sustained period of time in the next few days, we might deduce that this may be coming from the Japan nuclear disaster.

We have harnessed the energy of the sun, it is totally out of control and there's simply nothing we can do about it


A very clued in professional who will not be bought or intimidated into silence: Dr Helen Caldicott, true to style, tells it as it is. As she sees it, you wont usually hear the truth so listen up.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

WIKILEAKS: 7 SHOCKING GITMO REVELATIONS | The Raw Story

WIKILEAKS: 7 SHOCKING GITMO REVELATIONS | The Raw Story

Into The Fire - Full Film


Press For Truth Presents Into The Fire
World leaders and activists from around the world gathered for the G20 Summit. With over 19,000 police officers and security personnel on hand, the results lead to over 1100 arrests, martial law in downtown Toronto, and the most massive violation of civil liberties in Canadian history.

Critical Thinking


A look at some of the principles of critical thinking.

Kingdom Undercover #Bahrain April 19th, 2011 part 1 & 2



In a violent sandstorm it's hard to know what's real and what's not.
And so in the little Arabian island of Bahrain when push came to shove and protest turned to uprising the swift, uncompromising and overwhelming response kicked up a thick, gritty cloud over the Kingdom. One thing is clear though -- this wannabe Dubai might claim it's open for business but if you're selling political reform and democracy the shutters come down and brutality ensues. We go undercover to see how authorities kept a lid on revolution. It's not pretty.

Ethan McCord: Incidents Like 'Collateral Murder' Happen Almost Daily in Iraq

Just over a year ago, WikiLeaks released footage from a gunsight camera of an Apache helicopter engaged in an attack that killed two journalists and eight civilians in Baghdad. The "Collateral Murder" video, as it came to be known, was a shocking document of America's war in Iraq, and was greeted with a firestorm of controversy on its release. One of the first soldiers on the scene after the air attack, Ethan McCord, is now the subject of a short documentary, Incident in New Baghdad, which will premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York next week.


McCord, in New York for the festival premiere, told the story of what he experienced while saving two children wounded in the incident. When he returned to the Forward Operating Base, he requested mental health support to deal with the scenes he had witnessed. He was laughed at and told to "suck it up."


According to McCord, what Americans can see in the video is "one incident of many," and that similar abuses of American military power occur almost daily. "You can see from that one incident that we shouldn't be" in Iraq, McCord concludes.

South Carolina Republican voters at a rally in Columbia


Footage of real interviews with SC Republican voters at a rally in Columbia, hosted by SC Republican Governor Nikki Haley and Republican Presidential candidate Michele Bachmann on April 18, 2011.

Obama on BRADLEY MANNING



People can have philosophical views about…

[Questioner: unintelligible]

No, no, but look, I can’t conduct diplomacy on an open source. That’s not how…the world works. If you’re in the military, and…I have to abide by certain classified information. If I was to release stuff, information that I’m not authorized to release, I’m breaking the law…We’re a nation of laws. We don’t individually make our own decisions about how the laws operate…

He broke the law.

[Questioner: 'You can make it harder to break the law.']

Well, what he did was he dumped…

[Questioner: something about President Nixon's prosecution of Pentagon Papers leaker Daniel Ellsberg]

It wasn’t the same thing. What Ellsberg released wasn’t classified in the same way. So. Anyway. Alright.

Assad statue burning in Deir Az-Zour, Syria



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Apple Iphone Have Been Storing Locations And Tracking Your Movements

Iphone Have Been Storing Locations And Tracking Your Movements
Sky News

Thom Hartmann: CEOs fired 2.9m workers since 2001 -- then hired 2.4m workers overseas


Over 2 MILLION were shipped overseas in the last decade. So who are the fat cat CEOs behind the move and why won't they keep jobs here at home?

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Las Vegas Cop Beats Man For Videotaping Him


Derek Colling is a Las Vegas police officer who attacked a citizen for videotaping him on a public street last month.

The videographer was Mitchell Crooks, a 36-year-old man who ended up with a bruises on his face and a broken nose.

Colling charged him with battery on a police officer and obstruction of justice, which could have sent him to prison.

Fortunately, the district attorney’s office dropped the charges against Crooks. But even more fortunate is the fact that they returned his camera without deleting his footage, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Now Las Vegas police have enough evidence to investigate Colling, who already has a violent history. And Crooks is suing for $500,000 in damages.

The incident took place on March 20 where Colling was arresting some burglary suspects. Crooks was standing in front of his house videotaping the investigation.

Colling pulled up to him, shone a light in his face and began questioning him.

Here is that exchange:

Colling: Can I help you, sir?

Crooks: Nope, just observing.

Colling: Do you live here?

Crooks: Nope.

Colling: Turn that off for me.

Crooks: Why do I have to turn it off? I’m perfectly within my legal rights to be able to do this.

Colling: (Walking towards Crooks) Turn off the camera for me.

Crooks: I’m perfectly within my legal rights to do this, sir.

Colling: Listen, turn off the camera for me.

Crooks: No sir, I am within my legal rights to do this.

Colling: You don’t live here.

Crooks: I do live here.

Colling then attacks Crooks in a vile abuse of authority, taking him down and kicking the camera in the process, all while ordering him to stop resisting.

In his report, Colling claimed that Crooks attempted to take him down by grabbing his shoulders. The video proves otherwise.

Colling tried to justify the arrest because Crooks stated that he did not live there, even though he actually did live there.

It is unclear why he would lie about this, but that still didn’t give Colling the right to attack him or tell him to stop recording.

The truth is, Crooks could have just ignored the question altogether because he was not doing anything other than expressing his First Amendment rights to videotape cops in public.

According to an ACLU attorney interviewed by the Las Vegas Review-Journal:

Colling also erred in claiming that Crooks was trespassing. By law, only a property owner or resident can make a trespassing complaint, Lichtenstein said.

"Even if the officer didn't think he lived there, that doesn't mean he didn't have permission to be there,'' Lichtenstein said. "In the video I heard, that question was never asked."

The Review-Journal also points out that Colling has a history of violence and Crooks has a history of recording police. Not the most compatible pairing.

Colling has been involved in two fatal shootings in his 5 1/2 years as a Las Vegas police officer. In 2006, he and four other officers shot Shawn Jacob Collins after the 43-year-old man pulled a gun at an east valley gas station.

In 2009, he confronted a mentally ill 15-year-old Tanner Chamberlain, who was holding a knife in front of his mother and waving it in the direction of officers. Colling shot him in the head.

Both shootings were ruled justified by Clark County coroner's juries.

Crooks made headlines in 2002 when he videotaped two Inglewood, Calif., police officers beating a 16-year-old boy. One officer was fired and criminally charged but was not convicted after two trials ended with hung juries. The incident strained race relations in Southern California -- the police officer was white, the teenager black.

Israeli troops filmed attacking Palestinian prisoners


Hundreds of Palestinian have died inside Israeli prisons and now an Israeli television channel has aired shocking footage of Israel's so-called Control and Restraint unit, or Masada, attacking Palestinian prisoners.

Activists have demanded people in charge of the operation, carried out in 2007, be charged and the family of one of the victims told Al Jazeera that they would consider suing Masada.

Al Jazeera's Nisreen El-Shamayleh reports from Seida in the occupied West Bank. (17 Apr 2011)

Riz Khan - Jesse Ventura: Clandestine US missions


Has the US secretly started wars and assassinated leaders? We talk to Jesse Ventura, the former governor of the US state of Minnesota, about his controversial new book, '63 Documents the Government Doesn't Want You to Read'. In the book, Ventura has published dozens of previously classified US government papers that seem to suggest Washington may have secretly provoked the Vietnam War, lied to the American people about the actual threat of terrorism and experimented on its own soldiers.

Friday, April 22, 2011

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Abortion Wars: Senator Jon Kyl's (R-AZ) Preposterous Lie About Planned Parenthood

Kucinich: Obama Libya War Violates Constitution and UN Resolution

More at The Real News
TIME CRUNCH NOTE: VIDEO IS 15 MINUTES LONG

Thom Hartmann: Secrets the Rich don't Want You to Know


It's a secret that every Republican President since Ronald Reagan didn't want us to know.

Julian Assange Speech in Defense of Whistle-Blowers (April 2011)


Julian Assange, WikiLeaks co-founder and editor-in-chief, speaks at the New Statesman/Frontline Club debate on the motion: "This house believes whistleblowers make the world a safer place."

Speakers for the proposition were Julian Assange, editor-in-chief of WikiLeaks, Mehdi Hasan, senior editor (politics) of the New Statesman, and Clayton Swisher, head of al-Jazeera's transparency unit.

Speakers for the opposition were: David Richmond, former director for British defence and intelligence and member of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Board, Bob Ayers, former director of the information systems and security programme at the US department of defence, and Douglas Murray, author and commentator.

The event took place on April 9th, 2011 at Kensington Town Hall, London.

State Spokesman Mark Toner Grilled About U.N. Being Denied Access to Bradley Manning


Reporter grills U.S. Department of State Acting Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner during daily press briefing, pointing out the hypocrisy of the U.S. releasing their Human Rights report giving themselves a squeaky clean image, and at the same time denying the U.N.'s Special Rapporteur access to evaluate the condition of Pfc. Bradley Manning.

IVORY COAST: In the bunker of Gbagbo, Outtara's soldiers celebrating


IVORY COAST: Outtara's soldiers celebrating
This is the entrance to Laurent Gbagbo's presidential residence- or at least, what's left of it. Among the bodies of some of the former president's last loyalists - Outtara's soldiers are celebrating.

Pat Tillman's Mom Mary Takes On General McChrystal And The President



Left Rite Left post about Pat Tillman in July 2007

Amateur video of Syrian security abuses


Unverified amateur video has emerged of Syrian security services firing on
protesters in the city of Homs and beating protesters in Banias.

Video From 2005 Shows U.S. Troops Firing on Iraqi Detainees


Shocking video has surfaced from 2005 of U.S. troops firing on captive Iraqi detainees at Camp Bucca following a riot. The soldiers seen in the video unload full force and even (what appears to be) a grenade round from behind barbed wire fences, while some laugh about direct hits.

Four detainees were killed and five others wounded. One soldier, seen in the video, comments that the prisoners are only throwing "dirt balls and a few rocks." He was possibly trying to quell what appeared to be a near free-for-all shooting spree against captive targets. "Be decisive on what you f—— shoot," he told the others.

According to Press TV, the "US military tried to cover up the bloodshed, saying the riot happened when the prisoners confronted a search for contraband in the prison." Instead, the ACLU found that the riot was due to the "desecration of the Holy Qur'an by US troops."

Speechless


It's been 100 days and 0 job bills. Rep. Crowley gives the GOP the silent treatment.

[GRAPHIC] - 04.12.11 Regime forces target Libya revolutionists' source of fire power leaving two seriously wounded.

Friday, April 15, 2011

Jesse Ventura's 63 Documents: The DisinfoView


Ventura's new book: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1616082267/disinformation/

Jesse Ventura resumed his conversation with Gary Baddeley while visiting disinformation's NYC offices to promote his new book, 63 Documents the Government Doesn't Want You to Read. They covered everything from joining Ron Paul in the 2012 presidential election to the fall of World Trade Center 7 on 9/11, with many stops along the way including Colony Collapse Disorder, fluoride in municipal water supplies, legalization of drugs, and much more.

See the earlier conversations at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auM0YyqaVj0 and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8d38zHK4c8

Judge Rules Cops CANNOT Make You Stop Filming Them.

Police Handcuff Man Videotaping Investigation From His Own Home


In a blatant disregard for a man's First and Fourth Amendment rights, Vallejo (California) police walked on a man's property as he was videotaping a police investigation from his garage and attempted to confiscate his cell phone camera "as evidence."

Lonnel Duchine instead handed the phone to a friend who walked inside the house with it.

Vallejo police officer Scott Yales handcuffed Duchine and charged him with interfering with a police officer in the performance of his duties.

Duchine ended up posting the video on Youtube (raw video here) and a local TV news station did a segment on the arrest as well.

Now police are backtracking from the arrest, saying they will most llkely not proceed with charges against Duchine.

On the surface of things, we do have some concerns about what we saw," Vallejo police spokesman Jeff Bassett told ABC7. "We are currently conducting an internal inquiry into the incident. We're prepared to take appropriate or collective action if necessary."

Duchine was videotaping police detaining a group of juvenile burglary suspects at gunpoint. The juveniles were released when it was determined they did not commit the crime.

Montana Governer vetoes bill that repeals the use of medical marijuana voters passed

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ZEITGEIST: MOVING FORWARD | OFFICIAL RELEASE | 2011


This is the Official Online (Youtube) Release of "Zeitgeist: Moving Forward" by Peter Joseph. [30 subtitles ADDED!]

On Jan. 15th, 2011, "Zeitgeist: Moving Forward" was released theatrically to sold out crowds in 60 countries; 31 languages; 295 cities and 341 Venues. It has been noted as the largest non-profit independent film release in history.

This is a non-commercial work and is available online for free viewing and no restrictions apply to uploading/download/posting/linking - as long as no money is exchanged.

A Free DVD Torrent of the full 2 hr and 42 min film in 30 languages is also made available through the main website [below], with instructions on how one can download and burn the movie to DVD themselves. His other films are also freely available in this format.

Associated Press reports hoax: Truth is GE Does Not Plan to Return $3.2 Billion Tax Refund to U.S. Treasury


The Associated Press reported on Wednesday that “General Electric announced it will repay its entire $3.2 billion tax refund to the U.S. Treasury on April 18." The company’s tax record has been in the spotlight since the New York Times reported it paid no federal incomes taxes last year despite earning $14.2 billion in worldwide profits. It turns out AP’s story was based on a press release that was actually written by members of the group US Uncut, a new organization that describes itself as a "grassroots movement taking direct action against corporate tax cheats." We are joined by Andrew Boyd, a member of US Uncut.

Matt Taibi & Elliot Spitzer discuss the non-prosecution of Wall street.

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Thursday, April 14, 2011

Dennis Kucinich: Repealing Collective Bargaining Rights Had No Effect On The State Budget


Washington D.C. (April 14, 2011) -- Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) today scored an admission from Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker that his decision to strip the rights of public workers to bargain collectively "doesn't save any" money for the Wisconsin taxpayers.

Pro-democracy activists defy Libyan regime


Libyan State television has broadcast pictures of what appears to be a defiant Muammar Gaddafi driving through the streets of Tripoli on Thursday.

But as this video sent to Al Jazeera by an anti-government group seem to show, protesters were also out on the same day, calling for Gaddafi to go.

The pictures show a gathering in Tripoli, involving men and women, stating their intent to continue defying the ban on freedom of expression and to continue to show their support for those calling for freedom in Libya.

Thursday recap: Battle for Libya

Marcy Wheeler: Is the Department of Defense Leak-Proof?


In 2008, someone was able to infect the Department of Defense's computer network with malware by using a simple thumb drive. DOD tightened its policy toward its classified information, yet two years later, Pfc. Bradley Manning was allegedly able to walk in with a CD labeled "Lady Gaga" and download highly sensitive databases.

According to Firedoglake's Marcy Wheeler, even now DOD is dragging its feet on protecting its classified network, SIPRnet. Speaking with The Nation at this year's National Conference for Media Reform, Wheeler asks, if the information that Manning allegedly leaked is so sensitive, why has DOD not taken basic security measures to protect their databases?

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Bahrain Blackout-News Analysis-04-11-2011-(Part2)

Bahrain Blackout-News Analysis-04-11-2011-(Part1)


The Persian Gulf Island of /Bahrain has been subject to months of repression by Bahraini forces now backed by Saudi forces.

However, the truth is this repression has been going on for decades and the western and Arab media organizations have barely covered this.

This edition of News Analysis debates on the western and Arab World media cover up toward the repression of Bahraini people.

What happens to Bahraini citizens once they are arrested.

Shocking CNN Report on Bahrain - Torturing Patients in Hospital April 12, 2011

Monday, April 11, 2011

Thursday, April 07, 2011

Gbagbo's End Near After U.N./France Air Strikes in Ivory Coast


Ivory Coast's Laurent Gbagbo was negotiating the terms of his departure on Tuesday following a fierce assault by forces loyal to his rival Alassane Ouattara and backed by U.N. and French helicopter air strikes.

Ivory Coast Election Dispute Timeline

Jesse Ventura: Enough Government Cover-ups! It's time for a Revolution!


RT's Anastasia Churkina sits down for an exclusive one-on-one interview with TV personality, former Governor of Minnesota, and best-selling author Jesse Ventura. His new book "63 Documents the Government Doesn't Want you to Read" hit the shelves this April.

British man describes being tortured in Bahrain


British citizen describes what it was like being tortured in Bahrain then being ignored by the UK government.

Obama: Progress, but No Deal to Avert Shutdown


President Obama says late-night budget talks have helped to narrow the issues, but there is no deal yet to avert a shutdown. He spoke after a late-evening meeting with House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

Sunday, April 03, 2011

Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich on Freedom Watch

Chief Admits Officers Used Excessive Force - News Story - WSB Atlanta

Chief Admits Officers Used Excessive Force - News Story - WSB Atlanta
WEST POINT, Ga. -- Two police officers are under investigation after dashcam video caught them using excessive force on a teenager.

It all began on East Ninth Street in West Point last month after 17-year-old Ciara Flemister began recording the arrest of her cousin. Police were arresting him after complaints of loud music.

The officer's dashcam video shows Flemister walking close to where officers had detained her cousin.

The video shows Flemister screaming, "Don't touch me, don't touch me. Get off me," as two officers wrestle her onto a patrol car. You then see an officer raise his elbow and then slam it onto the teen's head.

Seconds later, the video shows a second officer grabbing Flemister's hair and yanking her head down as she screams in pain. Flemister told Channel 2's Tom Jones that she doesn't remember much of the force.

"I just remember my face being slammed down into the car," she said.

West Point's Police Chief J.K. Cato called the force by both officers excessive.

"At that point, she was restrained and that blow was not called for," Cato said.

But the officers aren't the only ones accused of wrongdoing. Flemister faces felony obstruction of an officer and battery charges.

Police said the dashcam video shows the teen hitting an officer after she gets too close to officers arresting her cousin. Cato said that's why she was arrested.

"We don't care if you take pictures, but just don't violate the safety zone of these officers," Cato explained.

Cato said both officers were given written counseling and ordered to undergo additional use of force training. He said he thought the discipline was fair. Flemister's mother disagrees and is also not happy about the charges her daughter faces.

"I think they should be really taken off the force. Because he could have seriously injured my child. He could have broke her jaw," Julia Flemister said.

Ciara Flemister said no officer told her she was getting too close.

"He didn't tell me anything, he just grabbed my arm," she said. The video shows an officer trying to keep her back.

Her attorney, Jackie Patterson, also thinks she did nothing wrong.

"Absolutely nothing. Other than videoing the incident, which she had an absolute right to do," Patterson said.

Ciara Flemister said she's now afraid of officers. Her attorney is exploring a lawsuit. The police chief said the two officers are good employees who made bad decisions.

Fukushima

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Friday, April 01, 2011

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