What Adam Curry is reading

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  US-led death squads fuel chaos in Syria: Dr. Tarpley
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    Sun, 16 Dec 2012 02:13
    US-led death squads fuel chaos in Syria: Dr. Tarpley
    A prominent political analyst believes that the recognition of al-Qaeda-linked groups by the US and its Western allies' indicates that they want absolute chaos in Syria.
    US President Barack Obama has said Washington will recognize the so-called National Coalition of Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces as the ''legitimate representative of Syrian people.'' Analysts say the move fanned the flames of civil war in Syria and that there is going to be further bloodshed of Syrians at the hands of domestic elements and foreign forces as a result. They also note that the US administration despite having declared the Al-Nusra Front in Syria, which formed in 2011 amid the unrest in the Arab country, a terrorist organization, has moved to the side of al-Qaeda elements, which have come to Syria from other countries to wage war.
    Press TV has conducted an interview with Webster Griffin Tarpley, author & historian in Washington, to further talk over the issue. The video also offers the opinions of two additional guests: Jihad Muracadeh, a political analyst in Beirut, and Eric Draitser who is the founder of stop-imperialism.com in New York. What follows is an approximate transcript of the interview.
    Press TV: Let's look at the timing. Why would the US, which supported al-Qaeda-linked groups, decide to blacklist the al-Qaeda Al-Nusra Front as a terrorist group one day before this Friends of Syria meeting that is being held in Morocco?
    Tarpley: I think this is a [concussion] by the State Department because they can see that this entire strategy has feet of clay. Look, the Assad regime, from the very beginning, has said that the rebellion is composed of al-Qaeda terrorists and I was able to confirm that on the ground myself in a fact finding tour with some others about a year ago that what was rebelling against Assad was primarily death squads composed of terrorists.
    Now the United States State Department turns around and says, yes, Al-Nusra, a main component probably the leading edge of the fighting forces arrayed in Syria, yes, they are terrorist; they are al-Qaeda. This is 29 major death squads. They are the ones who seem to have been able to take over at least a couple of military bases.
    But then at the same time, the United States government also says they are al-Qaeda and in effect we are recognizing them as the sole legitimate government of Syria. Now this is a dangerous thing for many many reasons. Let me just focus on inside the United States.Notice Hillary Clinton did not go. I think Hillary Clinton did not really have the stomach flu. I think she had some kind of diplomatic illness. She did not want to get photographed cavorting with al-Qaeda people in Morocco because she is running for president. How long can this go on, this balancing act of claiming that some are al-Qaeda but the rest are legitimate representatives?
    I would point you to one thing. If you go to the Obama White House website and if you are a US citizen, you can protest against this. There is a petition on the 'we the people' part of the White House website. There is a petition there that says seize all funding and support for al-Qaeda terrorists and extremist rebels in Syria and it is getting tremendous support from here in the United States. Or here is a way: you can register your dissent against this lunatic policy of turning Syria over to al-Qaeda terrorist death squads which the State Department and at least half of it is going with.
    This is the basis of an Obama gate. You can see the handwriting on the wall. Watergate, you know, the second term of a president, this is the time for scandals and the big scandal is the one we see right here.
    Press TV: Russia has said that the US's recognition to place all its bets on the coalition is an 'armed victory' and of course what is your reaction to the statements made by the guest [Jihad Muracadeh] in Beirut?
    Tarpley: Certainly Russia and many other countries across the world have reason to feel the fact that the United States and NATO have now managed to turn Libya over to al-Qaeda death squads. That is what rules the Benghazi-Derna-Tobruk corridor, as we stated before, the Libyan Islamic fighting group rules the roost in Cyrenaica in Libya and now unfortunately in certain parts of Syria, probably northern Syria.
    We have also got Islamic Emirates; we have got the Muslim Brotherhood controlled by Saudi Arabia of course and therefore we have got Chechen fighters certainly in Syria; we have got more than a half of these death squads are foreign fighters. So people in Russia and elsewhere have to be very very concerned about this.
    I would also point out the so-called Syrian National Coalition. Up until about a month ago, France and other countries were saying the only legitimate representative is the Syrian National Council; now they have been dumped and now we have got the coalition created in Qatar a couple of weeks ago and in the middle of that, we have got this guy Khatib.
    Who is Khatib? He is an executive of Royal Dutch Shell; he is a lobbyist for one of the biggest oil multi-nationals and his family. You can get pictures of his grandfather working hand in hand with the French generals in the 1930s who ran the French colonial administration in Syria and he was trained also with the Dutch Cultural Institute in Damascus and as was mentioned, he is also the Muslim Brotherhood and he wants this hard line benighted policy.So there is really nothing indigenous about this. It is simply a trick by Obama and by Western European powers. But again, this cannot go on forever, this contradiction, which you started the program with, right? On the one side, Al-Nusra are al-Qaeda terrorists; they wanted the principle components of this thing that the United States now says it should take over and become the legitimate government.
    This is untenable and I think again we are in the second term of Obama and you can look around for scandals brewing. My horizon here in Washington, this is the biggest scandal brewing here and I do not know how long this illusion can be kept up.Press TV: The Muslim Brotherhood has said that the US was wrong in blacklisting the Al-Nusra Front as a 'terrorist organization', a decision that was 'wrong and hurried'.
    So if our guest in Beirut says they are not a terrorist organization, yet they support the Al-Nusra Front. My deduction is that they support this terrorist organization; so by association, they are just as guilty. Are they terrorist organization or not, Al-Nusra Front?
    Tarpley: Certainly. Let's not be more and more guarded in our judgment on the US State Department. Al-Nusra is a group of 29 death squads largely infiltrated, permeated by al-Qaeda.
    As far as the Muslim Brotherhood of course, this is something a little bit different; this is a mass based organization generally controlled by Saudi Arabia and its oligarchical interests. Its businessmen, wealthy doctors, lawyers and other people like this who use an ideology to get power and we can see in Egypt what they have done is make a deal with the International Monetary Fund [IMF] which is one of the main root causes of what is going on there now.
    But I would say for Syria, it is getting clear and clearer. The choice you have is between the Assad government, with whatever its faults, and absolute chaos because notice the Al-Nusra people, the 29 death squads, refuse to be a part of the new military command which the US and NATO created in Turkey this past weekend.
    So what that sets up is if Assad is driven out, you will then have a final reckoning between the Al-Nusra death squads and the rest of the so-called Free Syria Army, a kind of Armageddon of the death squads on the horizon. Now that is something that nobody can want.
    MSK/JR
  Police Arrest Bartlesville High School Student Planning School Shooting And Bombing
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    Sun, 16 Dec 2012 09:11
  John Kerry Will Be The Next Secretary Of State
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    Sun, 16 Dec 2012 03:08
  "As A Nation We Have Endured Far Too Many Of These Tragedies In The Last Few Years" Pres Obama
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    Sun, 16 Dec 2012 03:08
  "I Have 2 Small Children In A CT. School 30 Minutes Away From Here!" CNN's Ashleigh Banfield Crying
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    Sat, 15 Dec 2012 16:01
  Media Misidentifies Shooter At Sandy Hook Elementary School
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    Sat, 15 Dec 2012 16:01
  Guns Used In Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting Legally Owner By Shooter's Mother
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    Sat, 15 Dec 2012 15:31
  "Could This Horrific Event Be The Moment When We Actually Do Something About Gun Violence?"
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    Sat, 15 Dec 2012 15:27
  "It's Hard Not To Have The Same Feelings That I Had Back On 9/11"
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    Sat, 15 Dec 2012 15:27
  "Hiding Behind The Second Amendment Doesn't Cut It Anymore!"
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    Sat, 15 Dec 2012 15:23
  Who Controls The Internet And Do We An International Treaty Making It Clear?
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    Fri, 14 Dec 2012 15:02
  GIANTS NEED MIDGETS! Congressman Hank Johnson
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    Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:49
  British Government Approves Hydraulic Fracturing To Resume After Earthquakes
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    Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:36
  Russian Leadership Says Assad May Be Losing Control Of Syria
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    Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:35
  BREAKING! US Sending Patriot Missiles To Turkey With 400 Support Troops
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    Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:33
  Revolutionary Cancer Treatment For Children With Leukemia
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    Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:31
  "I Had Never Heard Of The The 'M' Word" Hank Johnson Apologizes For Using The M-word
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    Fri, 14 Dec 2012 08:26
  VIDEO-Geraldo Rivera: 'Angry, Old, White Men' Made Susan Rice the 'Minimum Price' for Benghazi | Video Cafe
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    Sat, 15 Dec 2012 15:58
    Fox News host Geraldo Rivera on Friday said that "angry, old, white men" like Sens. John McCain (R-AZ) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) demanded Susan Rice give up any ambition to be secretary of state as a "minimum price" for the September attacks in Benghazi.
    Speaking to the hosts of Fox & Friends, Rivera explained that female Republican Sens. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) and Susan Collins (R-ME) gave cover to "the angry, old, white men" by joining in their attack on Rice "and then it couldn't be a male-female issue against this poor, beleaguered black woman."
    "Angry, old, white men?" asked co-host Gretchen Carlson.
    "I am speaking expansively and metaphorically and for effect here," Rivera insisted. "But it became clear she couldn't be the beleaguered damsel in distress -- the poor, black, embattled ambassador. It became clear that she was the minimum price... she was the minimum price to pay for the administrations dissembling on the facts and circumstances of the Benghazi attacks. She was going to be the minimum price that the Democrats, that the Obama administration had to pay for that clear offense."
    "In Washington, you make minimum prices. She's the sacrificial lamb."
    NBC News White House correspondent Chuck Todd, however, on Thursday said that Rice had also been a victim of conservative media outlets like Fox News.
    "She became victim of the attacks. ... and it was all driven, in many cases, by conservative outlets who were making her the center of the Benghazi story," Todd told MSNBC's Martin Bashir. "It's too easy now in the way our media landscape is set up: You can become collateral damage in a hurry, in the way you can just get piled on '-- whether it's Twitter, whether its advocacy journalism, talk radio. ... That's what she was. Make no mistake, she was political collateral damage."
    (h/t: Mediaite)
  VIDEO-President Obama Speaks on the Shooting in Connecticut | The White House
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    Sat, 15 Dec 2012 14:58
    Megan SlackDecember 14, 201203:34 PM EST
    Watch the video.
    This afternoon, President Obama made a statement from the Briefing Room on the shooting at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut.
    We've endured too many of these tragedies in the past few years. And each time I learn the news I react not as a President, but as anybody else would -- as a parent. And that was especially true today. I know there's not a parent in America who doesn't feel the same overwhelming grief that I do.
    The majority of those who died today were children -- beautiful little kids between the ages of 5 and 10 years old. They had their entire lives ahead of them -- birthdays, graduations, weddings, kids of their own. Among the fallen were also teachers -- men and women who devoted their lives to helping our children fulfill their dreams.
    So our hearts are broken today -- for the parents and grandparents, sisters and brothers of these little children, and for the families of the adults who were lost. Our hearts are broken for the parents of the survivors as well, for as blessed as they are to have their children home tonight, they know that their children's innocence has been torn away from them too early, and there are no words that will ease their pain.
    As a country, we have been through this too many times. Whether it's an elementary school in Newtown, or a shopping mall in Oregon, or a temple in Wisconsin, or a movie theater in Aurora, or a street corner in Chicago -- these neighborhoods are our neighborhoods, and these children are our children. And we're going to have to come together and take meaningful action to prevent more tragedies like this, regardless of the politics.
    This evening, Michelle and I will do what I know every parent in America will do, which is hug our children a little tighter and we'll tell them that we love them, and we'll remind each other how deeply we love one another. But there are families in Connecticut who cannot do that tonight. And they need all of us right now. In the hard days to come, that community needs us to be at our best as Americans. And I will do everything in my power as President to help.
    Read the full remarks here.
    The President also issued a proclamation honoring the victims of the tragedy, ordering U.S. flags to be flown at half-staff until sunset on December 18.
    President Barack Obama delivers a statement in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House regarding the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, Dec. 14, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)
  VIDEO-TSA detains sick girl because she tested positive for explosives, mother says | Fox News
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    Fri, 14 Dec 2012 17:00
    A 12-year-old girl who uses a wheelchair was detained for nearly an hour at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport by Transportation Security Administration agents who said they detected traces of bomb residue on her hands, according to her mother.
    MyFoxDFW.com reports that Shelbi Walser, who suffers from a genetic bone disorder, was traveling with her mother from Texas to Florida for medical treatment Dec. 8 when she was prevented from proceeding through a security checkpoint.
    When a screener swabbed Shelbi's hands and fingers, she tested positive for explosives, her mother, Tammy Daniels tells KHOU.com. The wheelchair, she said, was never tested.
    Daniels said a bomb specialist showed up and TSA agents prevented her from getting close to her crying daughter, according to MyFoxDFW.com.
    Other passengers reportedly spoke out in support of Shelbi, according to Daniels, who used her cell phone to record a video of the incident.
    After nearly an hour, Daniels said agents suddenly told them they were free to leave, offering no explanation for the detention.
    TSA responded in a statement to MyFoxDFW.com that reads in part, "TSA's mission is to safely, efficiently and respectfully screen nearly two million passengers each day at airports nationwide. We are sensitive to the concerns of passengers who were not satisfied with their screening experience and we invite those individuals to provide feedback to TSA through a variety of channels."
    Click for more from MyFoxDFW.com
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  VIDEO-Grover Norquist: Obama 'May Decide To Go Blow Up Small Countries' Out Of Boredom | Mediaite
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    Fri, 14 Dec 2012 08:56
    Anti-tax activist Grover Norquist believes Republicans will hold President Obama on such a tight fiscal leash that he will have no choice but to launch unnecessary wars against small countries in order to fulfill his desire to spend more money.
    Appearing on C-SPAN's Washington Journal this morning, the Americans for Tax Reform founder made the Wag the Dog-esque prediction while discussing how the GOP will make sure Obama is fiscally restrained during his final four years as president.
    ''We, the Republicans in the House and Senate, will make [Obama] actually make those spending restraints,'' Norquist said of the sort of cuts of which he believes Obama's support is only nominal.
    ''Obama will be on a very short leash, fiscally speaking, over the next four years. He's not gonna have any fun at all,'' Norquist continued. ''He may decide to go blow up small countries he can't pronounce because it won't be any fun to be here because he won't be able to spend the kind of cash he was hoping to.''
    Watch the clip below, via CSPAN:
    [h/t RawStory]'' ''>> Follow Andrew Kirell (@AndrewKirell) on Twitter
Al Qaeda Tried to Hide Hand in Syria | The Weekly Standard
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  Sun, 16 Dec 2012 09:50
  Earlier this week, the State Department designated the al Nusrah Front in Syria as an ''alias'' for al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI). The head of AQI, Abu Bakr al Baghdadi al Husseini al Qurshi (a.k.a. Abu Du'a), ''is in control of both AQI and al Nusrah.'' The designation says a lot about our knowledge, or lack thereof, of al Qaeda's clandestine international network.
  SANA
  If you go back through all of the articles written about al Nusrah in the first eleven months of this year, and there have been many, you will be hard pressed to find any that say the group is commanded by the same man who leads AQI. Yes, the connections between AQI and al Nusrah have been widely noted, including in some very thorough reporting. But the State Department's designation points to something beyond mere connections: command and control.
  This is not intended to be a knock on the journalists and analysts (including this author) who have reported on the group. But it further proves an essential point that gets too little attention: Despite eleven-plus years of a multinational assault on the terrorist organization, al Qaeda's command structure remains opaque.
  Look at it another way. It is a short jog from Iraq to Syria, right over the border, and yet there has been no public reporting (or, none that I've read) on AQI's outright ''control'' of al Nusrah. Again, we've known that the two are related, but this is different.
  There has been a big assumption in counterterrorism circles that al Qaeda's ''core'' in South Asia remains isolated from its affiliates. Detailed reporting about the full cache of Osama bin Laden's documents tells a different story. And we know that Abu Bakr al Baghdadi's predecessors in AQI were in contact with al Qaeda's senior leadership. There is no reason to assume that this relationship has changed. We cannot see al Qaeda emir Ayman al Zawahiri's contacts with AQI, but that doesn't mean we should assume they don't exist.
  AQI, and therefore al Nusrah, remains loyal to al Qaeda's core. AQI has sworn allegiance to Ayman al Zawahiri. ''I tell our brothers in Al Qaeda led by Ayman Al Zawahiri, go on with God's blessing and be glad that you have faithful brothers in the Islamic State of Iraq who are marching on the path of right,'' Abu Bakr al Baghdadi said in a statement released online shortly after bin Laden's demise.
  And as the State Department previously noted, al Baghdadi ''pledged'...to carry out 100 attacks across Iraq in retaliation for bin Laden's death.'' Many Iraqis have died because of al Baghdadi's loyalty to the terror master.
  The very name, Al Nusrah Front, has meaning beyond invoking ''victory'' in Syria. It means that al Qaeda has been working under another name, or brand, in Syria. Undoubtedly, this was intended to hide its hand in the Syrian rebellion. The State Department recognizes this, saying that while conducting nearly 600 attacks in Syria, al Nusrah ''has sought to portray itself as part of the legitimate Syrian opposition while it is, in fact, an attempt by AQI to hijack the struggles of the Syrian people for its own malign purposes.''
  Zawahiri and Abu Bakr al Baghdadi have openly and repeatedly praised the Syrian rebels without ever claiming ownership of Al Nusrah. In July, for instance, al Baghdadi praised the Syrian rebels, saying they had ''taught the world lessons in courage, jihad, and patience'' and that the ''disbelievers'...are amazed by your jihad and your steadfastness'...impotent to oppress you and make you submit'' and ''terrorized by the future of your volcano.''
  Al Qaeda controlled that volcano all along.
10 Wounded In Shootings Since Friday Afternoon CBS Chicago
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  Sun, 16 Dec 2012 09:13
  CHICAGO (STMW) '-- Ten people, including four teenagers, were wounded in separate shootings since Friday afternoon throughout the city.
  The latest shooting happened about 11 p.m. in the 2600 block of South Pulaski Avenue, in the Southwest Side Little Village neighborhood, police said. A male, whose age was not yet known, was shot in the right leg.
  A 26-year-old man was shot about 9:45 p.m. in the Lawndale neighborhood on the West Side. He was standing with a group of people in the 1500 block of South Sawyer Avenue when shots were fired, police said.
  The man began running and was shot in the buttocks, police said. The man was listed in ''stable'' condition at Mount Sinai Hospital.
  Also about 9:45 p.m., a man in his 20s was shot in the left buttock in the 1300 block of North California Avenue, in the West Town neighborhood, police said. He was in ''stable'' condition at Norwegian-American Hospital.
  A gang-related shooting wounded one man in the Northwest Side Logan Square neighborhood about 8:45 p.m., police said. The man, 30, was getting into a car in the 2000 block of West Fullerton Avenue when someone in an alley shot him in the lower leg.
  He was taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center in ''stable'' condition,'' police said.
  About 8:18 p.m. on the Southwest Side, a man believed to be in his 20s was shot in the head in the 5400 block of South Komensky Avenue, police said. He was taken to Mount Sinai in serious condition, police said.
  About 6:27 p.m. in the Chatham neighborhood, a 20-year-old man was shot in the arm in the 8300 block of South Maryland Avenue, police said. He was listed in serious condition at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn.
  About 5:20 p.m., a 16-year-old boy was shot in the buttocks in the 100 block of South Western Avenue, police said. He was taken to John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County, where he was listed in ''stable'' condition, authorities said.
  About 10 minutes earlier, two teenagers were wounded when a person wielding a gun and opened fire in the 1700 block of East 71st Place, police said. The boys'--14 and 16'--both suffered gunshot wounds to the right leg and were taken to Comer Children's Hospital, police said.
  About 4:35 p.m., a 15-year-old boy was shot in the arm and leg in the 1600 block of North Lorel Avenue, authorities said. The boy was listed in ''stable'' condition at Mount Sinai.
  Police have made no arrests in any of the shootings.
  (Source: Sun-Times Media Wire (C) Chicago Sun-Times 2012. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Connecticut Massacre Blamed On Son Of Top CIA Analyst
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  Sun, 16 Dec 2012 08:55
  World's Largest English Language News Service with Over 500 Articles Updated Daily
  "The News You Need Today'...For The World You'll Live In Tomorrow."
  What You Aren't Being Told About The World You Live In
  IronMountainApocalypse: The True Story Of 2013
  A ''must have'' book for those seeking to understand the true events surrounding the most troubled years of our modern times. (Continued)
  Picking up the Pieces: Practical Guide for Surviving Economic Crashes, Internal Unrest and Military SuppressionBy: Sorcha Faal ''In the span of less than 3 months gasoline prices will rise 500%. The prices of both food and shelter rise over 300%. (Continued)
  Partisans Handbook:By: Sorcha Faal ''Essential Survival Guide For Resisting Foreign Military Occupation, Escape And Evasion Techniques, Surviving Interrogation, Facing Execution, Wilderness Survival (Continued)
  December 15, 2012
  ConnecticutMassacre Blamed On Son Of Top CIA Analyst
  By:Sorcha Faal, and as reported to her Western Subscribers
  A grim Federal Security Services (FSB) security memorandum circulating in the Kremlin today is reporting that the man, Adam Lanza [photo 2nd left], believed responsible for the horrific massacre of 20 children and 6 adults yesterday was the son of one of the Central Intelligence Agencies (CIA) top psychological analysts who was assigned to a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) project which developed the sub-hunting simulator video game Dangerous Waters.
  According to FSB analysts in this memorandum, Adam Lanza attacked the Sandy Hook primary education school in the Connecticut County of Fairfield, known as the ''hedge fund ghetto'' due to its being one of the wealthiest counties in the United States, where he killed school officials and an entire class of children Russian intelligence experts believe were a part of a DARPA ''experiment'' being oversaw by his mother Nancy Champion Lanza.
  The total death count from this massacre is 28 as it, also, includes both Adam Lanza and his mother.
  Though initial US news reports claimed Nancy Champion Lanza was a teacher at the Sandy Hook school, this report states this information is not true, and which has been confirmed by local school authorities, including Lillian Bittman, who served on the local school board until 2011, who stated, ''No one has heard of her, teachers don't know her.''
  Russian intelligence files on Nancy Champion Lanza, however, say she lived the majority of her life in and around what is known as the Merrimack Valley Region of Massachusetts and New Hampshire and that the weapons used in this massacre, said to be owned by her, are standard CIA issue. US news reports are further stating that her brother, James Champion, a retired Kingston, New Hampshire police officer, is currently being questioned by the FBI.
  In early 2009, this report continues, Nancy Champion Lanza relocated to Connecticut as the DARPA projects she was assigned to have their headquarters at the US Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton.
  Important to note is that the FSB received an extensive file on CIA and DARPA video game projects from Iranian intelligence officials after the August, 2011 arrest of CIA agent Amir Mirza Hekmati.
  In a video confession to Iranian intelligence officials, Amir Mirzaei Hekmati, a former US Marine of Iranian descent, confessed to a career in American intelligence that included a stint at a video game company in New York that he said was ''a cover for the CIA.''
  According to an English translation of the report published by The Tehran Times, an Iranian state-run newspaper, about one-third of the way through the report, Hekmati said he had worked for DARPA, after he left the Marine Corps in 2005.
  Then, Hekmati said in Persian: ''After DARPA I was recruited by Kuma Games Company, a computer games company which received money from CIA to design and make special films and computer games to change the public opinion's mindset in the Middle East and distribute them among Middle East residents free of charge. The goal of Kuma Games was to convince the people of the world and Iraq that what the U.S. does in Iraq and other countries is good and acceptable.''
  Hekmati further added: ''The head of Kuma called me and said, 'I have received your resume from DARPA, and we have a program in which you can help us.' '' Kuma, Hekmati explained, ''was also a cover for the CIA. and only the chief of company knows that you're working with the agency.''
  The FSB notes in this report that Russia, too, has experienced the grim aftereffects of violent Western video games naming the November 2012 workplace rampage that left 6 dead in Moscow and prompted authorities to begin the process of outright banning them in the Motherland as numerous research studies have linked them to violence and mass killings.
  Perhaps most shocking in this report are FSB analysts stating that this latest massacre ''could very well have been'' a ''retaliation'' after the failed mass shooting in Portland, Oregon earlier in the week, and as we reported on in our report titled ''US Military Sniper Stops Portland Mall Massacre''.
  As we have detailed in many previous reports, the ongoing war between those factions loyal to President Obama, opposed to those aligned with the US Military and intelligence agencies, is taking an ever growing toll upon the American public and with this latest massacre shows no signs of abating.
  Sadly, but always the case, the American people will be the last to know the truth of these matters as the popular US dissident website Infowars.com is already reporting that the news of this latest massacre is already being ''changed and censored'' to protect those who are really to blame.
  December 15, 2012 (C) EU and US all rights reserved. Permission to use this report in its entirety is granted under the condition it is linked back to its original source at WhatDoesItMean.Com. Freebase content licensed under CC-BY and GFDL.
  [Ed. Note: Western governments and their intelligence services actively campaign against the information found in these reports so as not to alarm their citizens about the many catastrophic Earth changes and events to come, a stance that the Sisters of Sorcha Faal strongly disagrees with in believing that it is every human beings right to know the truth. Due to our missions conflicts with that of those governments, the responses of their 'agents' against us has been a longstanding misinformation/misdirection campaign designed to discredit and which is addressed in the report ''Who Is Sorcha Faal?''.]
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Will.i.am: 'I want to write code!'
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  Source: The Guardian World News
  Sun, 16 Dec 2012 03:38
  How smart is Will.i.am? Pretty damned smart, I'd say. Which is not to say that, at times, he doesn't come across like an overactive toddler who's been on the orange squash. Especially when he's talking about his vision of the future, when we'll be listening to music through our clothes: "We won't have headphones! There'll be smart fabrics which affect your nerve endings!" Or more or less anything to do with technology. It's his favourite subject and it gets him hopping up and down in his seat and gesticulating and asking rhetorical questions and putting on a range of different voices (he's a truly excellent mimic, doing Michael Jackson as a sort of ghetto Barbara Cartland, though at one point he does me and I'm a ghetto Princess Margaret).
  But then if you thought that Will.i.am was some rapper who was a judge on a talent show (BBC1's The Voice) with a rich and evocative line in contemporary slang ("I like her, she's dope!" "That's fresh!" etc), you'd be right but slightly missing the point.
  He might have the trappings of a rap star, an entourage that includes a film crew which is following his every move, and a slightly scary way of facing you down if he doesn't like the question, but that's only a small part of it. He's also one of the most sought-after producers in the music industry and one of its shrewdest business brains. And even though this week his latest collaboration, Scream & Shout, with Britney Spears, went straight to number one on iTunes in both the US and in the UK, the music industry is actually the least of his concerns.
  "Music is cool. But I'm just so much more excited about technology. It's like I'm 13, 14 all over again. When I was 12, 13, 14 all I wanted to do was music. Now I'm a little older, all I think about is technology and consumer electronic products. I still make music, don't get me wrong. But it's just like breathing now."
  Music has been the launch pad for Will.i.am's success, but it's now just one strand of his burgeoning empire. He's become a technology evangelist, a speaker at the most prestigious gatherings of the world's elite '' the Clinton Global Initiative, Google events '' he's developed and launched his own range of iPhone accessories, he has his own charitable foundations paying for kids to go through college and bailing out people's mortgages, and this August he became the first musician to broadcast a piece of music on Mars: Nasa's Curiosity rover beamed a song that he'd written especially for the occasion, Reach for the Stars, back to the Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena. (He said he'd used an orchestra because he didn't feel "sending a computer beat to Mars" was "the right thing to do".)
  And that's just this year. On top of which, he played the Queen's jubilee, and carried the Olympic torch (tweeting as he went). And donated £500,000 of his own money to the Prince's Trust to help develop young people's skills in Brixton and east London, with the focus on technology. (He likes Britain, he says, and has slightly adopted us, it seems. But then we've returned the favour: the Black Eyed Peas were successful here before anywhere else, and Scream & Shout took a week to go to the top of the US singles charts, and just 24 hours here.) He went on the Graham Norton Show shortly after the Prince's Trust donation was announced and found himself next to the actress, Miriam Margolyes, who looked astonished. "It's just so unusual for a rapper!" she said.
  But then, Will.i.am is not just unusual for a rapper. He's unusual by pretty much anyone's standards. Born William James Adams to a single mother in a poor community in east Los Angeles, he began his music career at high school and later formed the Black Eyed Peas. Right from the start, they had a clear strategy, ignoring the gangsta rap ghetto, and concentrating on college campuses "until every single college kid" knew them, and then they got a record deal.
  There has always been a strategy. When file-sharing torpedoed album sales, and the music industry started panicking, Will.i.am was exploring other sources of revenue and taking a relentlessly commercial and ultimately highly successful approach to the music business. He started to look at the Black Eyed Peas "as a brand not a band" and began approaching companies with ideas about how they could work together.
  On the surface, it's about a million miles away from rock's countercultural roots and its antipathy to The Man. But, they've been so smart about it, retaining their artistic freedom, and forging their own path, and Will.i.am's now applying the same strategy to technology.
  The i.am camera device for the iPhone that he launched last month (and for which the Britney Spears video looks like a promotional vehicle, which of course it is) is not some celebrity branding exercise. It was devised and developed by Will.i.am and that was part of the point: he wants kids to become technology entrepreneurs (he's currently in talks with Simon Cowell for an X Factor-style show he hopes will uncover the next Mark Zuckerberg, rather than the next Leona Lewis). And showing that it's possible to do things, rather than just talk about them, is part of what seems to be his grand plan.
  will.i.am feat britney spears - Scream & Shout on MUZU.TV."First you have to build capital, and you do that by building a brand, a brand around substance, and things that are valued, and then you start doing things around philanthropy and teaching."
  And that's the endgame? "The endgame? There's no endgame! The point is to keep moving. That's an endgame right there, the language that you use. That's the endgame. There is no endgame, it's called momentum."
  That's me told. But then I've witnessed him telling a roomful of Silicon Valley entrepreneurs where they've gone wrong too, so I don't take it personally. Earlier this year, I attended a weekend organised by the Singularity University, a sort of Silicon Valley thinktank co-founded by the futurist Ray Kurzweil and the founder of the X prize, Pete Diamandis, and after presentations by Craig Venter, who sequenced the human genome, and Vint Cerf, the "father of the internet", a voice down the front asked a question.
  "I've been sitting here listening to how in 20 years' time my niece is going to be dumber than my cellphone. But how are you going to take this into the ghetto?" It was Will.i.am. "That's what I want to know."
  Knowledge is useless if it's exclusive, he says, when I ask him about this. "If you really want change, you really want it to be inclusive, where everyone's included, otherwise you're just going to have more of the same in the future."
  There's a certain degree of contradiction to some of his statements. He treats me to a 10-minute critique of global capitalism and inbuilt obsolescence and the iniquity of global labour markets.
  But it's difficult, isn't it, I say. "It's not difficult at all." But you're a manufacturer these days, how do you build equality into the supply chain? And he looks troubled for a moment and says: "We would need capital to build our own factories in America." And as shiny and modern as his i.am camera is (price £199), it has inbuilt obsolescence written all over it. "Hell, yes, this is obsolete the moment they don't make the iPhone 4 no more."
  But it's part of his "momentum". And I'm quibbling for the sake of it really, because, what is most exceptional about Will.i.am is that there's no doubting his commitment to social change, and he really does put his money where his mouth is. Most celebrities raise money for celebrity causes: they ask people poorer than them to give their money to them.
  "I will not start an initiative until I've spent my own money. Because if I spend my own money, people who want to get on board afterwards know that I am serious about it. There's lots of people who have money but no reach, and their money comes from God knows where and they need to write it off, so they get a celebrity on board to validate it. Unfortunately that is Hollywood. And I don't want to be like that. That just turns my stomach. When I see folks that show up for the night and say 'Oh my God, I really care about blah, blah!'"
  And he is passionate about improving access to education, about the need for young people to engage with science and technology, and about how damaging it will be for us all if they do not. He has always attributed his own success to the strong values that his mother instilled in him, and the emphasis that she placed on education. Growing up in Boyle Heights, a rough neighbourhood in east Los Angeles, his mother got him into something called the "magnet" programme, a scheme originally devised to encourage racial integration, which enabled him to go to school in the wealthy suburb of Brentwood. "And that's where I learned to love science," he says. "We had a computer lab, we had oceanography, we had anatomy, we had physics, that's where it started."
  Music introduced him to new technology, and then, a couple of years back, he bought a Segway, and decided he wanted to hack it. "So I called Dean Kamen [who invented the Segway]. I rang him and said, 'I want to take the governor off and make it go faster.'
  "And he said, 'I'll help you out with that, if you help me out with US First. And I said, 'What's US First?' [It's a not-for-profit group teaching young people about science and technology.] And he said, 'Well, you see that's why I need your help." He ended up making a TV show with Kamen "with the help of my friends: Bono, [Justin] Bieber, [Jason] Timberlake, Miley Cyrus, Britney Spears, the Peas, Jack Black, President Barack Obama, and we all did a testimony on why Stem [Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths] is important."
  Stem education has become one of his great passions, to such an extent that he's said that he wants to do a college course himself next year. He wants to learn how to write code. "We all rely on technology to communicate, to survive, to do our banking, to shop, to get informed, but none of us knows how to read and write the code." It's like the middle ages, he says, when only the clergy could read and write.
  So, you're going to do a course? "Yeah! I want to learn to read and write code! I want to be one of the clergy. I want to be one of the folks who contribute. Everyone should want to be." I did an introductory course on coding, I tell him. And it made my brain ache. "I want brain ache!"
  He used to go to nightclubs, but now he goes to conferences "which are better than clubs because they still have music and after-parties but you get knowledged-up before the party".
  It's all about getting knowledged-up. "I remember going to Brazil in 2005 and Brazil is totally different now. And I can't say the same for Brixton. Brixton is probably the same as when I came in 2006. That's something we should all be concerned about."
  And he's particularly concerned about girls. "When you think about the guys who started Twitter, and the Google guys, and the Facebook guys and the Napster guys, and the Microsoft guys, and the Dell guys and the Instagram guys, it's all guys. The girls they're being left behind."
  Though he likes what Angela Ahrendts has done at Burberry. "I like her. She's dope. She's fresh."
  But then Will.i.am is pretty dope too. Pretty fresh. I tell him about a technology event we want to hold next year, and he grabs my iPhone from me and starts punching in his email address. "I want to be part of that. Can I be part of that?"
  The future, he thinks, is not going to be made in Silicon Valley. It's going to be down to "some kid" in Ghana, or the Philippines or Cambodia. "When the iPhone 8 comes out and you chuck your iPhone 7, when the iPhone 6 is pretty fucking dope, some kid is going to take the iPhone 5 and do something totally different with it. Is going to steam punk the new big thing. That's the future right there."
  i.am foto.sosho cameras are available exclusively through Selfridges. Will.i.am's single Scream and Shout, featuring Britney Spears, is out now and is taken from his solo album #willpower, out early next year
Another Public Shooting In Alabama Hospital
  Link to Article
  Source: Crooks and Liars
  Sun, 16 Dec 2012 03:15
  A psychiatrist's (and Charlie Brooker's) insightful perspective on news coverage's perpetuation of mass shootings in schools -- and how it encourages more.
  Here comes the ripple effect. Whenever we have a mass shooting, the publicity seems to light a fire under some other grievance-collecting man with a gun:
  There was another public shooting this morning, this time at St. Vincent's Hospital in Birmingham, Ala. According to WAFF:
  The incident happened around 4am. Police Sergeant Johnny Williams tells FOX6 News that a man with a gun, shot two employees as well as a police officer. A second officer shot and killed the unidentified gunman.
  Sgt. Williams says that the injuries to the officer and the employees are not life-threatening. The victims were taken to UAB Hospital. Police have not released their names.
  One hospital worker says a ''Code Silver'' was called across the intercom. He says ''Code Silver'' means there is harm or threat with a weapon. He says employees are instructed to call 911.
How Convenient: Hillary Clinton Won't Testify On Benghazi After Suffering A Concussion'...
  Link to Article
  Source: Weasel Zippers
  Sun, 16 Dec 2012 03:11
  You don't think this has something to do with her not wanting to hurt her chances in 2016, do you?
  Via The Cable:
  Secretary of State Hillary Clinton won't testify to Congress next week on Benghazi, after fainting and suffering a concussion Saturday and due to her ongoing stomach ailment.
  ''While suffering from a stomach virus, Secretary Clinton became dehydrated and fainted, sustaining a concussion,'' Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Philippe Reines said in a statement. ''She has been recovering at home and will continue to be monitored regularly by her doctors. At their recommendation, she will continue to work from home next week, staying in regular contact with Department and other officials. She is looking forward to being back in the office soon.''
  Deputy Secretaries of State Bill Burns and Tom Nides will both testify in Clinton's place, according to the office of Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-MA).
  ''Secretary Clinton's team contacted Senator Kerry this morning to inform them of the Secretary's concussion. Senator Kerry was relieved to hear that the Secretary is on the mend, but he insisted that given her condition, she could not and should not appear on Thursday as previously planned, and that the nation's best interests are served by the report and hearings proceeding as scheduled with senior officials appearing in her place,'' said Kerry spokeswoman Jodi Seth in a statement.
  Keep reading'...
Statement by the Press Secretary on the President's Upcoming Schedule
  Link to Article
  Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
  Sun, 16 Dec 2012 03:10
  The White House
  Office of the Press Secretary
  For Immediate Release
  December 15, 2012
  Tomorrow evening, the President will travel to Newtown, CT to meet with the families of those who were lost and thank first responders. The President will also speak at an interfaith vigil for families of the victims as well as families from Sandy Hook Elementary School scheduled for 7PM EST. More details will be released as they are available.
Gun control petition to White House gets large and immediate support online
  Link to Article
  Source: BlackListedNews.com
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 18:35
  Source: The Hill
  A petition urging the Obama administration to ''produce legislation that limits access to guns'' has more than 25,000 signatures just hours after its inception.
  ''The goal of this petition is to force the Obama Administration to produce legislation that limits access to guns,'' it reads in part. ''While a national dialogue is critical, laws are the only means in which we can reduce the number of people murdered in gun related deaths.''
  A petition on the White House's ''We the People'' website needs 25,000 signatures in the first month of being posted to earn an official White House response. The gun control petition '' initiated in the wake of the Connecticut elementary school massacre on Friday '' reached that threshold in a few hours.
  ''Powerful lobbying groups allow the ownership of guns to reach beyond the Constitution's intended purpose of the right to bear arms,'' the petition continues. ''Therefore, Congress must act on what is stated law, and face the reality that access to firearms reaches beyond what the Second Amendment intends to achieve.''
  Full article here
  >>Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.
ABC, NY Times reporters go full-on vulture tweeting friends, family of Connecticut massacre targets
  Link to Article
  Source: BlackListedNews.com
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 18:35
  Source: Daily Caller
  An ABC News editorial producer earned the online equivalent of a hard slap to the face Friday, after she used Twitter to approach two people for interviews who were painfully close to the morning massacre of a Connecticut elementary school.
  Nadine Shubailat tweeted interview requests to a man who said his ''good friend'' had a child in kindergarten at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., and to a woman whose cousin was a first-grade teacher killed in the Friday morning gun rampage.
  In the second case, Shubailat was not the only reporter to go after a victim's relative. A second ABC producer, a New York Times reporter and a Los Angeles-based producer of a YouTube-only news program also approached the grieving woman for interviews just hours after her 22-year-old relative was shot to death.
  Shubailat's LinkedIn profile boasts that she books interview subjects for Diane Sawyer, George Stephanopoulos, Barbara Walters, Robin Roberts, Jake Tapper, Bob Woodruff and other ABC journalists. It also says she was previously a senior producer for ''Larry King Live,'' and the press secretary to Queen Noor of Jordan.
  Full article here
  >>Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.
Report: Obama Has Picked John Kerry As His Next Secretary Of State'...
  Link to Article
  Source: Weasel Zippers
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 18:33
  I don't think he could have picked a man with a worse track record on foreign policy.
  Via Chicago Sun-Times:
  President Barack Obama has chosen Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts to be the next secretary of state, a source has told Sun-Times columnist Michael Sneed.
  His replacement as head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will be Sen. Robert Menendez of New Jersey, the Sneed source said.
  This comes on the heels of Thursday's announcement that U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice had removed herself from the list of candidates to take over from Hillary Clinton. Rice said that what was sure to be a contentious and lengthy approval process took attention away from more pressing problems facing the nation.
  Sneed had tipped previously that Kerry is Clinton's first choice for her old job'' and that Obama is interested in U.S. Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska for either secretary of state or defense.
Lame Cherry: 1st Grade Fury
  Link to Article
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 17:07
  Product determined he had been violated in classroom. Mother subject afforded no relief. Product of NEA and Obama chose power response in firearms and not intimacy of the knife. Original violation was in classroom. Mum chose school over product.
  Firearm in vehicle notes partial auto associated identity.
  Body armour was not for physical protection but to protect from past violations at school. Once justice in product's mind was administered the mother figure the school room of original crimes was visited. Product would have ascertained he was saving children from his condition and competitors eliminated in mother's choice of them over product.
  Once equal justice and pain had been enacted the remedy of death could be administered to justify felt pain product experienced.
  Some form of rape took place in that classroom originally and was not accorded an outlet in product's reasoning.
  This graduated product is due to product deeming he had no like recourse.
  Fury hath no wrath as an abandoned boy in a tortured man's psyche. 1600 Penn Avenue has been Muslim outraging showing this in key Muslims brutal murders from bin Ladens corpse to Khadaffi by sociopath B. Hussein.
  Connecticut just assisted Mr. Obama in election theft again after another sexual violation in the anal rape of Chris Stevens.
  The puppy press will not examine these realities as more crimes arise from little lost boys enraged in trapped men's forms.
  Educated enabled empowered in fury over outrage.
  Another Lame Cherry matter anti matter exclusive.
  Nuff said.
  agtG
Hillary To Head George Soros Foundation?
  Link to Article
  Source: EconomicPolicyJournal.com
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 16:33
  NYT says it's an option:Right now, aides and friends say, Hillary Rodham Clinton's plan looks like this: exit the State Department shortly after Inauguration Day and then seclude herself to rest and reflect on what she wants to do for the next few years. Those who have invited her for 2013 engagements have been told not to even ask again until April or May.
  She and her husband would like to buy a house in the Hamptons or upstate New York, several friends said, and Mrs. Clinton will finally have more time for everyday activities like exercise (last summer, between world crises, she was squeezing in 6 a.m. sessions at a pool with a trainer).
  She is likely to use her husband's foundation as at least a temporary perch, several former aides said, and she has been considering a new book '-- not a painful examination of her failed 2008 presidential bid, as she once proposed, but a more upbeat look at her time as secretary of state.
  For the moment, Mrs. Clinton may appear to be a figure of nearly limitless possibility, and her name has come up for prestigious jobs: president of Yale University, head of George Soros's foundation.
aangirfan: WHO DID NEWTOWN CONNECTICUT SHOOTINGS?
  Link to Article
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 16:12
  Remember Thomas Hamilton? The UK's George Robertson was Secretary General of NATO.Reportedly, on 13 March 1996, in Dunblane in Scotland, Thomas Hamilton, armed with four hand-guns, opened fire on a junior school class, killing 16 children.
  "Lord Robertson was the referee on Thomas Hamilton's shotgun licence."
  ('Blair covering up paedophile scandal?' www.tpuc.org)
  It has been suggested that Thomas Hamilton was a brainwashed patsy and that the real shooters were working for the security services.
  In the Dunblane shootings, "none of the survivors would have been able to obtain a good viewing of the gunman. "Most of those that did see the gunman would have immediately associated him with the figure of Thomas Hamilton that lay dead within the gymnasium after the massacre. That is the way the mind works."
  The Murder of Thomas Hamilton | Dunblane ExposedIn the USA it is not easy to get into an elementary school.Some schools have guards and a locked gate with limited access for visitors.
  The Newtown shooter wore a mask, a bulletproof vest, and was carrying four guns.
  Who let him into the school?
  Reportedly, a very powerful figure called "Lord Cullen had physically walked Thomas Hamilton to the massacre."Lord Cullen | simianpress.com
  Newtown is home to the "Fairfield Hills" Hospital, used as the set of the Wilkinson Home for Boys in the filmSleepersin 1995. In the Wilkinson Home for Boys, children are systematically beaten, abused, and raped.Some shooters are brainwashed Sleepers.The "sleeper" will live a normal life until required to perform the mission/s for which he was created.Adam Lanza - really nice kid.
  Adam Lanza, age 20, an honors student atNewtown High Schoolhad no criminal record.[30][5][31]
  He was born inKingston, New Hampshire, where his parents were married.[32]
  Lanza lived with his mother five miles from Sandy Hook Elementary school.[33]
  At the time of the shooting, Adam Lanza was allegedly carrying the identification of his older brother, Ryan Lanza, age 24,[34]
  Adam's father, Peter Lanza, is a vice president at GE Capital and had been a partner at global accounting giant Ernst & Young.
  A bus driver who drove the Lanza brothers from and to school recalled them as "really nice boys, well-behaved."[37]A typical scene in Newtown.Americans love killing people.
  Anders Breivik. aangirfan: BREIVIK IS INNOCENT (Note also BREIVIK'S DOUBLE)Police initially identified the shooter as Ryan Lanza, the 24-year-old elder brother of Adam Lanza.It was reported that the masked gunman, or gunmen, killed at least 27, including 20 children aged under 10.Reportedly Lanza's body was lying in a classroom.The news first said he had TWO 9mm pistols, and then said he had a .223 rifle.Newtown: home of Richard Craft; ex-CIA.There may have been a 'second gunman'.A little girl said that she saw someone pinned to the ground.One person was being held in police custody after he was detained in the woods near the school wearing camouflage pants, CBS reported.
  Newtown is home to the "Fairfield Hills" Hospital, used as the set of the Wilkinson Home for Boys in the film Sleepers in 1995. In the Wilkinson Home for Boys, children are systematically beaten, abused, and raped.Who really did the shootings?
  Shooters outside Sandy Hook Elementary School, in Newtown, Connecticut, December 14, 2012. Photograph: ADREES LATIF/REUTERSDuring its operation, treatments at Fairfield Hills, in Newtown, included use of the drugs metrazol and insulin in shock therapy, patient seclusion, electric shock therapy, and frontal lobotomy.
  Brad Renfro brainwashed by the spooks? Website for this image
  "An ongoing lawsuit by American veterans reveals a series of secret experiments ... at Edgewood Arsenal and Ft. Detrick, Maryland, experiments that included 'septal implants' meant to control human behavior and will. "Other experiments involved the testing of chemical and biological substances such as sarin nerve gas, LSD, and PCP. Considering the rash of 'lone-gunman' shootings of late, I thought it important to bring up this matter, especially the mind control aspect of these experiments. Is it possible that the technology is such now that a simple, tiny, RFID chip can be slipped surreptitiously into a persons drink or food, thereby gaining control over that persons will? If so, it would easily explain the recent outbreak of 'lone-gunman' shootings and 'zombie' attacks."7,800 Veterans sue CIA/DOD/Army for experimentation...
  Victim of CIA brainwashing"Twelve years ago the parents of an autistic boy won $2.1 Million from the estate of a deceased neuropsychiatrist who had tried to turn the boy into a weapon.
  "Doctor Dudley claimed to be working for the CIA and he may have been involved in the CIA's investigation into human manipulation via psychotropic drugs..."Manchurian Candidates Shrine of Dreams
  The alleged shooter in the Connecticut school shooting "was identified by NBC News as Ryan Lanza, 24, who reportedly also killed his father in Hoboken, N.J."Police originally identified the suspect as Ryan Lanza, but then state police Lt. Paul Vance says the shooter's identity remains unclear. Gladio-style shootings?The US has had a number of mass shootings in 2012.In Oregon, on 11 December 2012, 'a gunman' opened fire at a shopping mall, killing two people and then himself.In July 2012, at a screening of a Batman film in Colorado, 12 people were killed and 58 wounded.The shooting at Columbine high school in Colorado in 1999 killed 12 students and two teachers.
  A gunman killed 32 people at Virginia Tech in 2007.
  A former school board member killed 45 people with three bombs in 1927 in Bath Township, Mich.
  NSA: home to MK Ultra - Monarch brainwashing
  "As we have documented on numerous occasions, many of the mass casualty shootings in the United States have the hallmark of being perpetuated by mind controlled assassins or are attributed to mind controlled patsies.
  From neuroscience student James Holmes' suspicious military psychiatrist to Jared Loughner's fascination with mind control '' mirroring that of Mark David Chapman, John Hinckley, as well as Columbine killers Harris and Klebold '' the narrative on recent mass shootings share unmistakable similarities."Connecticut Shooting
  ''NEW FAIRFIELD, Conn. (AP) '-- A small Connecticut town was sent reeling in grief and confusion Friday after a popular fifth-grade teacher shot and killed a knife-wielding prowler in a black ski mask, only to discover it was his 15-year-old son'....."He confronted someone in a ski mask and opened fire when the person came at him with something shiny in his hand, police said.
  "When police officers arrived, Tyler was lying dead in the driveway with a knife in his hand '...
  "State police spokesman Lt. J. Paul Vance said the boy had never been in trouble with the law, and some of those who knew him described him as a good kid with an easygoing personality.
  "Investigators and acquaintances said they were at a loss to explain what he was doing outside dressed all in black and carrying a weapon'....
  http://www.mail.com/news/us/1593082-conn-teacher-kills-masked-teen-learns-was-son.html#.23140-stage-mostviewed1-3
Daily Press Briefing - December 14, 2012
  Link to Article
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 15:41
  1:00 p.m. EST
  MR. VENTRELL: Okay. Good afternoon and welcome to the briefing. Happy Friday to all. I will go ahead and turn it over to all of you.
  QUESTION: Well, welcome. Your virgin appearance on the --
  MR. VENTRELL: So to speak, Matt. (Laughter.)
  QUESTION: Yes, maiden appearance. I don't really have anything huge, but I do want to start with '' to try and address some of the confusion that I think arose out of yesterday's briefing. Do you have any reason to think that the Secretary will not testify next week?
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, thanks for the question, Matt. I think there was some over-reporting yesterday of the situation.
  QUESTION: Yeah, there seemed to be a lot of it.
  MR. VENTRELL: Yeah, a little bit of stretching there. Here's what I can say: Right now we anticipate that the ARB will complete its work early next week. Toria talked a little bit about the process yesterday. It goes to the Secretary, who reviews it. There's then a 90-day window per legislation for her to send her report to Congress about it. We do anticipate that '' the committees have announced that the Secretary will be on the Hill next Thursday, and so that's the plan.
  QUESTION: This, as far as I understood, was the plan as of two days ago. And yet yesterday '' I mean, had that '' was it just not fully cooked enough for Toria to talk about it yet? Because she seemed to have '' what resulted, what came out of her comments, seemed to be just way, way out of proportion.
  MR. VENTRELL: I thought the reporting was way out of proportion. What we were able to determine as of today is that the report will be done by early next week, and the process that laid out '' that Toria laid out yesterday is very much operative.
  QUESTION: That's it for me.
  QUESTION: So, is it just a matter --
  MR. VENTRELL: Go ahead, Jill.
  QUESTION: Okay. So ARB completes early next week.
  MR. VENTRELL: Yeah.
  QUESTION: Then it goes to the Secretary Clinton.
  MR. VENTRELL: Yeah.
  QUESTION: Then she has 90 days to submit it to Congress.
  MR. VENTRELL: Right, but we've said --
  QUESTION: But she --
  QUESTION: To send her responses on it.
  MR. VENTRELL: Right, of her findings.
  QUESTION: Of her response. Okay. But she could still obviously testify on it on Thursday.
  MR. VENTRELL: Right, which we anticipate will happen next Thursday.
  QUESTION: Okay. But does she '' is it expected that she would give some type of, her comments to Congress before she testifies?
  MR. VENTRELL: Again, let's see when we get a little bit closer. But obviously, the Secretary has committed to being fully transparent with the Congress, and this is a chance for her to discuss with those committees that have the direct oversight the situation, broadly speaking.
  QUESTION: Okay, so she is fully versed. Maybe they won't be. Is that conceivable on Thursday or --
  MR. VENTRELL: Again, we've been cooperating with Congress throughout this extensively and will continue to do so in a variety of formats.
  QUESTION: Can I ask on procedural matters?
  MR. VENTRELL: Go ahead, yes.
  QUESTION: If the ARB makes recommendations, are these binding on the State Department, or are they recommendations that can be taken on board as and when?
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, again, let's talk about the ARB and what it is. It comes out of legislation dating back to 1986. It requires the Secretary of State to name an Accountability Review Board after violence against official Americans overseas. The report then goes to her for her review and action. And so I don't think there's any binding nature of specific actions that have to be taken, but it's a chance for the Department as a whole to look at our operations and look at what needs to be done to improve security.
  QUESTION: And I guess, just so '' and I may be a little slow today. Will Congress, by the time they talk to her on Thursday, will they have something to look at? Will they have some highlights of this report or the report itself by then?
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, let's look when we get a little closer. I don't know the exact timing of how that will all work. We have been sharing with the Congress thousands of documents and extensive briefings that have been ongoing since the incident. So they've had significant information and they will continue to have our cooperation.
  QUESTION: Another procedural question. When the ARB is submitted to the Secretary, do they do that in person, or does a binder or a CD simply get delivered to her desk? How does she actually get it? And I guess what I'm really asking is: Does she have a chance to ask the members of the panel that put this report together some of her initial questions once she starts going through it?
  MR. VENTRELL: I don't think, Roz, I'm going to be able to get into that level of logistical detail with you other than to say there's a classified and there's an unclassified portion of each of these reports. Clearly, they're in writing. To the extent that she sits down with the ARB, we'll get you more information as we have it.
  QUESTION: Is that typical, that there is a meeting between the members of the ARB panel and the Secretary whenever a report is required to be submitted to him or her?
  MR. VENTRELL: I'm not sure. Legislatively speaking, I think what the legislation requires is a written report, but it's their prerogative to see if there will be face-to-face meetings.
  QUESTION: On the documents that they've obviously been reviewing, has the ARB actually been interviewing witnesses who were directly there on the night of the events of Benghazi?
  MR. VENTRELL: I don't think it would be appropriate for me to speak to their methods of investigation at this time.
  QUESTION: Do you know whether the Secretary was deposed, questioned, talked to by the panel?
  MR. VENTRELL: I don't have anything for you on that.
  Okay. Other topics?
  QUESTION: Another subject.
  MR. VENTRELL: In the back.
  QUESTION: Thanks. If we could return to something else from yesterday --
  MR. VENTRELL: Sure.
  QUESTION: On the Chinese plane flying over the Senkaku Island airspace, Toria said that she had '' she didn't have anything new to say. And yet to me it seems like quite a bit of escalation, and I think the Japanese Government considered it such as well. Does the State Department really believe that this is nothing new, this air incursion?
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, let me just say that we are concerned by the flight of a Chinese Government airplane near the Senkakus. It's important to avoid actions that raise tensions and to prevent miscalculations that could undermine peace, security, and economic growth in the region. And so we've raised our concerns with the Chinese Government directly and made clear that U.S. policy and commitments regarding the Senkakus Islands are longstanding and have not changed.
  QUESTION: Are you equally concerned by the Japanese response? I mean, the Japanese also put planes in the area.
  MR. VENTRELL: I mean, we think it's important to avoid any actions that raise tensions.
  QUESTION: Have you said that to the Japanese in relation to this specific incident?
  MR. VENTRELL: I mean, we've been in discussion with the Japanese about the incident, but I don't have anything further for you.
  QUESTION: Can I just follow it?
  MR. VENTRELL: Is this still on the Senkakus?
  QUESTION: On China.
  MR. VENTRELL: Okay. Well, let's go to him and then '' okay.
  QUESTION: So now the Chinese are saying that they're concerned they're send air force over Senkakus against Japanese air self-defense force protecting the area. Don't you '' do you think it's too aggressive and very provocative action, you know, air intrusions?
  MR. VENTRELL: I think I just said that we're concerned and we think it's very important to avoid actions that raise tensions. So we are concerned.
  Goyal.
  QUESTION: A number of nations say in the region are really worried about Chinese aggression and Chinese presence, Chinese buildup and Chinese threat to the Philippines and Japan and other nations, and also now India is also starting worrying. And White House said other day that they are concerned. This building and the State Department, are you concerned or are you worried or are you '' what kind of action are you going to take, or just talking with the Chinese? Because right now, I think just talking will not solve the ongoing rising problem and rising military strength by the Chinese in the region.
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, Goyal, I think you've heard the Secretary say before that the Pacific is big enough for all of us. We obviously have an extensive relationship with the Chinese where we're able to work through the whole breadth of the relationship, from the economic to the security. But the Pacific is big enough for all of us.
  QUESTION: You think the Chinese are taking this action because of U.S. presence now because since U.S. has announced that the future focus of U.S. and international community will be Asia?
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, I wouldn't speculate on Chinese actions. But clearly, we've been clear about why we're pivoting toward Asia and the actions that we're taking and the important alliances we have there and the important work that we do with our partners across the region.
  QUESTION: And if I may one more related to Chinese, Tibetans are now more and more burning themselves or self-immolation, and it's not '' it'll continue unless until international community and U.S. help them to take action as far as their self-independent or human rights and other issues, Chinese are now threatening that if they continue, then action will be taken and doesn't matter what the international community will take '' and take any action.
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, Goyal, the U.S. '' we continue to publicly and privately to urge the Chinese Government at all levels to address policies in Tibetan areas that have created tensions and threaten the distinct religious, cultural, and linguistic identity of the Tibetan people. So we call on the Chinese Government to permit Tibetans to express their grievances freely, publicly, peacefully, and without fear of retribution. So this is something that is very much a part of our dialogue with the Chinese Government.
  QUESTION: Thank you, sir.
  QUESTION: Can we stay in the region?
  MR. VENTRELL: Sure.
  QUESTION: On North Korea.
  MR. VENTRELL: Sure.
  QUESTION: Have there been more '' has there been any progress in deciding how the U.S. and its allies are going to respond to the rocket launch of two days ago?
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, as I think, Roz, you heard a couple of nights ago Ambassador Rice say, we're looking for a clear and credible response at the UN Security Council. That's something we're working toward with our partners. I don't have an update on negotiations in New York today, but that's certainly what we're working toward because these are very much violations of Security Council resolutions, including 1718 and 1874, where North Korea is in clear contravention of an explicit ban on the use of ballistic missile technology. So in that context, we're very much consulting with our partners on the Security Council.
  QUESTION: China?
  QUESTION: One more on North Korea?
  MR. VENTRELL: Go ahead.
  QUESTION: Whatever actions may come, a new round of sanctions or anything like that, do you have any reason to believe that they will work this time?
  MR. VENTRELL: I mean, again, we're doing --
  QUESTION: Work, as in get the North Koreans to scale back their military expansion, stop testing missiles, anything like that?
  MR. VENTRELL: Very clearly, North Korea is one of the most sanctioned countries on earth and will continue to be so. And we're doing '' continuing to work with our partners and looking at all aspects of this, but I wouldn't speculate.
  QUESTION: How does the --
  QUESTION: Still on North Korea?
  MR. VENTRELL: In the back.
  QUESTION: Yeah. North Korea's two previous nuclear tests back in 2006 and 2009 were both followed '' both followed rocket launches. Are you concerned that a third nuclear test may be on the horizon given this pattern?
  MR. VENTRELL: I mean, I don't have anything for you specifically. But clearly, that's something that we have previously discouraged the North Korean Government from considering, and we'll continue to do so.
  QUESTION: Iran?
  MR. VENTRELL: Yeah.
  QUESTION: IAEA team was in Iran and has just come out and the head of the team was making sort of positive noises about the visit and the prospect of sort of resuming the IAEA investigation of Iran's activities. They didn't get to go into Parchin though. And I'm just wondering: (a) if you have any sort of initial read on this IAEA visit, do you think it was a useful exercise; and particularly given that they weren't able to get into Parchin, do you think that they saw everything they needed to see?
  MR. VENTRELL: Thanks for the question, Andy. Well, while we do commend the IAEA for its efforts, we're disappointed that Iran did not grant access to the Parchin site, which Iran has been sanitizing in advance of reengaging the IAEA. So we are disappointed. We recall that Mr. Jalili from the Iranian side indicated that there were no obstacles to reaching agreement with the IAEA, after which Iran quickly proceeded to raise multiple obstacles. So we understand there's going to be a meeting in January between both sides, and we hope that Iran starts the immediate substantive cooperation that is long overdue.
  QUESTION: It sounds as though '' I mean, I don't want to put words into your mouth, but that sounds as though you're thinking that the sort of positive assessment from the IAEA is a little bit premature. Is that right?
  MR. VENTRELL: I mean, again, we commend the IAEA for their work, but we do have concerns specifically, as you mentioned, about Parchin.
  QUESTION: Change subject, Syria?
  MR. VENTRELL: Anything else on Iran? Okay, Syria. Go ahead.
  QUESTION: Have you been able to take a look about videos that came out from Syria today '' today is Friday '' of the protests held across the country? How do you see the reaction after your decision to label the Jabhat al-Nusrah as terrorist organization?
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, I haven't seen the specific videos that you're referring to. We made very clear why we made these designations and that the violence that that group espouses and the radicalism and the extremism is not something that we think the vast majority of the Syrian opposition would agree with. And so we've been very clear about why we made our decision. Clearly, they're a minority among the opposition but one that we very consciously designated.
  QUESTION: In many areas today in Syria, a lot of signs and slogans actually were support for Jabhat al-Nusrah and there were a lot of damnations on the U.S. policy along with Iran and Russia. So how do you rate this? Do you think '' do you still think it was a right move or do you think the Syrian people are on the same page as you are? Apparently, it's not marginal people just protesting this.
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, let me be clear. We stand on the side of the Syrian people. We have from the very beginning of what started as a peaceful protest movement. We think that the vast majority of Syrians want a free, democratic, just future, a peaceful, unified, democratic Syria, and so that's absolutely what we're looking for. There are a small minority of extremists who are trying to hijack the revolution for their own aims, and we don't agree with them, and that's why we thought it was important to marginalize them, to sanction them, and we stand by our decision.
  I haven't seen these particular protest videos to which you're referencing but suffice it to say that we have contact with a large range of Syrians, many of whom very much understand and appreciate that we're supporting them and supporting their deep desire for a democratic, pluralistic society.
  QUESTION: Speaking of on the side of the Syrian people, formerly U.S. post point man Mr. Frederic Hof has been giving some interviews last couple days, has been questioning the timing of this decision as well as U.S. arming policy, which is non-arming policy.
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, I don't have a specific reaction for you from the comments of a former official.
  Matt, I think you had a question.
  QUESTION: Yeah. Yesterday, Toria expressed pleasure with the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister's comments about the Assad regime being '' days being numbered. She said that you guys were glad that Russia was waking up to the reality that Assad was on his last legs, or something to that effect, but waking up to the reality. I'm wondering, since the Foreign Ministry has basically said that he meant '' the Deputy Foreign Minister never said that and that Russia's position hasn't changed, I'm wondering if you're at all disappointed that the Russian bear seems to be going back into hibernation on this, on the Syria issue.
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, Matt, what we think is now is the time for Russia to work with the international community to support the Syrian people. The Syrian people are watching very closely the Russian position to see if they will stand with them. We think that the transition to a post-Assad future is inevitable. Whether this comment was or wasn't made, what we want is the Russians to play a more constructive role, cease its support for the Syrian regime, wind down its support, and work with us on the roadmap that provides for a managed political transition. So that's where we are. Again, I can't comment on how they may or may not have shifted their position, but we think it's absolutely clear that the tide is turning against Asad and we're on our way toward a post-Assad future.
  QUESTION: Two questions: One, does this in any way damage the Burns-Bogdanov-Brahimi talks that were just getting underway to try to see what can be done to try to get to a transition? And two, is there any value, perhaps, in trying to get a meeting between the new President of the SOC, Mr. al-Khatib, and Russian officials to try to change Moscow's mind on the situation there?
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, Roz, I mean, I think that the channel between the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister and our Deputy Secretary along with the Joint Special Envoy is still open and will continue to be, and that's a channel that they'll work through. But suffice it to say, and we've been absolutely clear about this, the '' what was the second part of your question again, Roz? Sorry.
  QUESTION: Is there any value, perhaps, if Moscow is saying, ''Our position on Asad has not changed --
  MR. VENTRELL: Oh, on '' right.
  QUESTION: -- basically got ahead of himself --
  MR. VENTRELL: Thanks.
  QUESTION: -- is there any value, now that the SOC has been recognized by so many countries, should President al-Khatib perhaps start meeting with Russian officials to try to get them to change their minds about what's happening in his country?
  MR. VENTRELL: Right. Thanks, Roz. For President al-Khatib, again I don't have anything on his schedule. He's certainly been invited here to the U.S. to meet with us, but again, we're going to continue to make our case to the Russians and encourage others to do so as well. So, of course, it's good thing is the opposition can continue to make their case of '' this is a group that's a legitimate representative of the Syrian people. So to the extent that they can continue to make their '' it abundantly clear to the Russians how closely they're watching '' Russian behavior is important.
  QUESTION: But is that something that the U.S. could help make happen, some sort of communication established between the SOC and the Russians? Because it just seems as if the Russians are only hearing one side.
  MR. VENTRELL: Roz, I don't think I'd get into our private diplomatic discussions and how we may or may not set up meetings. I'm not sure that's something I'd get into.
  Hannah's been patient in the back. Go ahead, Hannah.
  QUESTION: Back to on the Jabhat al-Nusrah designation, we've seen President Khatib criticize the designation, some prominent generals '' secular, moderate generals from Aleppo criticize it and support '' stand in solidarity with Nusrah. And today, these thousands of ordinary Syrians, where you can see families in the videos come out to support Jabhat la-Nusrah, and in fact call for an Islamic caliphate. So who determined and how that's '' the designation would be a popular decision among most Syrians? And how do you say that this is sort of on the side of the Syrian people if we already have some of your allies criticizing it? Who was consulted?
  MR. VENTRELL: Look, we've been so clear, Hannah, all week, we've talked about this at length, that we think it's absolutely vital to differentiate between those Syrians who look for a just, free, democratic Syria that respects the rights of all Syrians, and those who are al-Qaida and whose ideology permits more violence, greater disunity among the Syrian people, and a complete lack of respect for human life. And so they're just not compatible visions, and we thought it was very clear to make that distinction and important to do so, and so that's the decision we've taken.
  QUESTION: Why do you think a lot of EU countries or Western countries have not followed your steps?
  MR. VENTRELL: I refer you to the European Union for their '' European countries for their positions.
  Jill.
  QUESTION: The case of the Ukrainian journalist, a woman who is being held apparently by some in the opposition, is the U.S. doing anything to pressure the rebels to let her go? Are you aware of her case?
  MR. VENTRELL: Jill, we are aware of her case. We think that she should be released. I don't have any further information beyond that to share with you, but we are very much aware of her case.
  QUESTION: Are you intervening in any way?
  MR. VENTRELL: I don't think I'm going to get into our private diplomatic work on this, but suffice it to say we're aware.
  QUESTION: Yesterday, I asked about lack of resources in especially Aleppo in bread, and Victoria said that it is Assad regime's mission to feed those people. I just wanted to clarify, so you are expecting people who are living under the rebel-controlled areas to be fed by the Assad regime?
  MR. VENTRELL: I think the point we're trying to make is that the Assad government is spending its money, its time, and its resources oppressing its own people instead of feeding them. Meanwhile, the international community is having to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to provide basic services for people who are suffering greatly. And so we provided some $200 million of '' some $210 million of humanitarian assistance. That includes food, that includes shelter, it includes so many things. And so I think Toria's point really was we're looking at a regime that's spending its time, money, and energy killing its own people instead of feeding them.
  QUESTION: But this lack of bread and food is spread across Syria. Many people, they've been arguing, activists today, that Western countries have been arguing this, how many '' how much money they have been spending, whereas they are still cannot get just simple bread and flour to people in Aleppo which has liberated areas to Turkish border.
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, providing staples like bread and flour is absolutely something we do through our UN implementing partners. Obviously, for security reasons, there are times when we don't abundantly and clearly mark it as coming from the U.S. or from the West for obvious reasons, but suffice it to say, we have very talented implementing partners who go to great lengths to get that food to people, and it does get to people. I don't know about the specific area of Aleppo you're talking about, but our tens of millions of dollars of aid are reaching Syrians every day.
  QUESTION: Since it's so close to Turkey --
  MR. VENTRELL: Yes.
  QUESTION: -- don't you think the Turks might play a role in helping to get food there since we're 7,000 miles away and Turkey is about 60?
  MR. VENTRELL: I think the Turkish Government is providing assistance. I obviously refer you to them for the details.
  QUESTION: But if it's not getting to where it is, is the United States solely to blame?
  MR. VENTRELL: We work as hard as we can at this and we work with all of our partners, Matt.
  QUESTION: Are you asking --
  QUESTION: In other words '' excuse me. In other words, just because people in Turkey are not '' I mean, in Syria are not in rebel-controlled areas, are not getting enough to eat or not getting anything to eat, you're not prepared to accept sole responsibility on behalf of the United States Government --
  MR. VENTRELL: I think --
  QUESTION: -- and then not getting the food --
  MR. VENTRELL: I think we were crystal clear that the onus is on the Assad regime, that they are the ones that are causing the suffering, and that we are doing everything we can to alleviate that suffering as efficiently and as effectively as we possibly can.
  QUESTION: Would you prefer them to feed the people before the shelling or after the shelling those people?
  MR. VENTRELL: Let's go on to Jill.
  QUESTION: Another subject?
  MR. VENTRELL: Yes.
  QUESTION: There's a law in Russia right now which is kind of a retaliation for Magnitsky. They are talking about people who '' judges who let people off who have abused, killed, et cetera children who were adopted from Russia. President Putin has come out and said he supports it. It's moving forward.
  Is there any reaction so far, any discussion that you're having with the Russians about this law?
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, first of all, to say, Jill, I think you all saw '' I think it just happened. It was on the President's schedule that he was going to sign into law what had been Senate H.R. 6156 which terminates application of Jackson-Vanik to Russia and Moldova and authorizes the President to extend permanent normal trade relations to both countries. So this was part of a historic bill that normalizes trade relations between the U.S. and Russia. It's a great benefit to both us and to the Russians.
  And there are human rights provisions in the legislation, as you mentioned, that bar gross human rights violators from traveling to the U.S. That's something we already do under existing law and will continue to do. But this sort of Russian attempt at reciprocity, sadly, instead of taking action to bring justice for Mr. Magnitsky, this is their attempt. And we continue to call on Russia to investigate, prosecute, and punish those responsible for the crimes committed against Mr. Magnitsky.
  QUESTION: Right, but what they are saying is there are also human rights violations of these children who are being abused in the United States. They're taken to the United States as adoptees and then the people who carry out these abuses are, they argue, being let off by judges in the United States. So they, I presume, are building a case to list people like that on their type of Magnitsky legislation.
  But the overall point is they're saying it's just as much a human rights violation here as it is there.
  MR. VENTRELL: I think it stretches the imagination to see an equal and reciprocal situation here. The issue of adoption is one that we've worked very hard with the Russians, something that we've looked at carefully, but we just reject any attempt at this sort of '' trying to make a reciprocal comparison. We just reject that.
  QUESTION: (Inaudible.)
  MR. VENTRELL: Yeah.
  QUESTION: I don't believe it's been brought up here but '' correct me if I'm wrong '' the IRI is saying that it's pulling its activities out of Russia. Do you have any reaction to that? And sort of it seems to be yet another shoe dropping on the closing in on civil society operations there.
  MR. VENTRELL: Yeah. Thanks, Andy. We do understand that IRI, the International Republican Institute, has decided to close its office in Moscow. Likewise, we understand that NDI is assessing its own situation in Russia. So, I mean, obviously I have to refer you to IRI and NDI. Those are the '' for more information '' but our commitment to the development of Russian civil society remains strong, and we're vigorously exploring ways to continue to engage with Russian NGOs and activists despite these actions that have come about in Russia.
  In the back.
  QUESTION: On Syria, do you have any indications that Assad regime is now preparing to use chemical weapons? Are you more concerned about today's condition than before?
  MR. VENTRELL: I mean, I don't have any update for you on chemical weapons. We've been very clear about what a grave that mistake that would be. I do '' unfortunately, the U.S. Government does have information, however, to confirm that the Assad regime has launched Scud missiles against targets inside of Syria. So I am, unfortunately, able to confirm that today, which is in our view truly a disproportionate military escalation and really a desperate act from this regime.
  QUESTION: Do you know how many he fired?
  MR. VENTRELL: I'm not able to confirm --
  QUESTION: (Inaudible) reported six earlier in the week.
  MR. VENTRELL: Yeah, I'm not able to confirm a number at this time, Roz.
  QUESTION: Do you know on what ''
  QUESTION: (Inaudible.)
  QUESTION: -- on period --
  MR. VENTRELL: One at a time. What did you say, Roz?
  QUESTION: The time period over which these Scuds were fired, any particular locations that were targeted, do you have any of that detail?
  MR. VENTRELL: I'm not able to get in any detail, other than to say it was inside of Syria.
  Matt, you had a question.
  QUESTION: And what is the evidence that they used?
  MR. VENTRELL: I'm not going to get into intelligence, but we are at this time --
  QUESTION: Can you just explain why it '' why U.S. officials have been saying this for three days now, why it is finally that you're able to say it?
  MR. VENTRELL: I mean, I think we are cautiously confirming things on the record, and careful, and at this time we were able to do it.
  QUESTION: Or is it that the State Department might '' is the last to know? Is that it?
  MR. VENTRELL: No, and I wouldn't characterize it that way, Matt. I think that, obviously, we're very careful with sensitive matters. We do our best to provide the best evidence we have when we're able to.
  QUESTION: But why '' wait. It was so '' this was '' is it then the '' your being able to confirm it today on the record would suggest that it's been declassified somehow.
  MR. VENTRELL: Matt, I'm not going to get into it beyond what I said. We're able to confirm it, but I'm not going to get into it.
  QUESTION: Well, I'm just curious as to why you're '' I mean, this is not something that happened yesterday, is it? It's not something that happened this morning. It's something that's been out there and that NATO has spoken about, that the Pentagon has spoken about, maybe not on the record but they have spoken about it before. Is there something new to '' I mean, are these new uses of Scuds since what everyone was talking about earlier in the week?
  MR. VENTRELL: Matt, I'm simply not going to get into --
  QUESTION: But then I can't tell '' I can't tell why you're '' why are you telling us this?
  MR. VENTRELL: Again, Matt, we --
  QUESTION: I mean, the questions ''
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, we want to make clear --
  QUESTION: Just let me make it '' let me '' just want to make it --
  MR. VENTRELL: All right.
  QUESTION: The question was not about Scuds. You volunteered that.
  MR. VENTRELL: I did.
  QUESTION: So my question is: Are you volunteering it because it is new, or are these the same Scuds that other branch '' other agencies of the government were talking about earlier in the week?
  MR. VENTRELL: What I am able to tell you is I was able to confirm it on the record today, at this point. We weren't there before; now we are. What I will say is that this is utterly disproportionate, and it just shows the regime's desperation and their utter disregard for the lives of their own citizens.
  QUESTION: Yeah. Well, okay. I'm not '' I'm really '' I know you're going to think that this isn't true, but I'm not trying to be difficult. I'm just trying to find out if these are new uses of Scuds since what others were talking about earlier in the week, or are they the same?
  MR. VENTRELL: Matt, it's been going on this week. I'm not going to get into it further about what has led us to be able to confirm it.
  QUESTION: Would this confirmation change any of U.S. policy on the ground if continues or since you confirmed it?
  MR. VENTRELL: We continue to do everything we can to hasten the end of this bloodshed.
  QUESTION: Final question: Spokesman Makdissi, have you been able to locate his whereabouts?
  MR. VENTRELL: I have no information on his whereabouts.
  Goyal's been patient.
  QUESTION: Two questions.
  MR. VENTRELL: Sure.
  QUESTION: India and Bangladesh. First, India. Any comments on this latest rocket?
  MR. VENTRELL: On this latest what, Goyal? I didn't hear you.
  QUESTION: Rocket by India.
  MR. VENTRELL: I don't have anything for you on that, Goyal. We can check afterward and see if we do. I just don't have anything for you.
  QUESTION: And Bangladesh. As far as now situation is Bangladesh is concerned, economically is bad because of these factory fires and garments and now they cannot export to Wal-Mart and other U.S. facilities, and Secretary '' Assistant Secretary Blake was in Bangladesh. Any latest about his visit? What sort of help are they needing '' Bangladesh or what the U.S. has offered?
  MR. VENTRELL: Well, Goyal, I can confirm these are issues he raised on his recent visit. We'll have to check with the Bureau of South Central Asia Affairs.
  QUESTION: And speaking of Deputy Secretary Burns, have you gotten a readout from Abu Dhabi on the counterterrorism conference?
  MR. VENTRELL: Matt, my understanding is that they just wrapped up and he was en route to the airport at this point, so I was not able to get an update before coming down.
  QUESTION: Okay. Well, I don't '' he probably doesn't need to give the update. It can come from '' I'm sure there were staff there, people from the Embassy or consulate, whatever. I'm very curious to know how the agenda item on getting non-members involved in the forum went, and if there was any decisions made about that.
  MR. VENTRELL: Okay, Matt. I know this is an issue near and dear to your heart, and we will endeavor to get you a readout later this afternoon.
  QUESTION: Okay, but please don't '' yeah, don't disturb Deputy Secretary Burns on the plane because it doesn't need to come from him, just anyone who was there --
  MR. VENTRELL: We will touch base with his traveling party.
  QUESTION: -- what the conference decided on this, and whether or not you are happy with it.
  MR. VENTRELL: Okay. We'll check in on that.
  QUESTION: Great. Thank you.
  MR. VENTRELL: Yeah.
  One last question?
  QUESTION: Can I go to China?
  MR. VENTRELL: Yeah.
  QUESTION: You said concern about that action by the Chinese Government, but I would like to ask about how seriously that U.S. Government take this action, because this is actual first time in the history that a Chinese Government airplane invade Japanese airspace. Because I talked with several Japanese officials yesterday after the press conference and they were so surprised at the comment by the State Department, because they felt that the U.S. tried to be neutral between Japan and the United '' Japan and China.
  MR. VENTRELL: I think my previous characterization as concerned is sufficient.
  Thank you.
  (The briefing was concluded at 1:33 p.m.)
  DPB # 213
LIVE UPDATES: Newtown, Conn., School Shooting - ABC News
  Link to Article
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 15:29
  10:03 p.m.: WABC News and ABC News report that the Sandy Hook elementary school principal, Dawn Hochsprung, was among those killed during the Newtown, Conn., school rampage, according to multiple sources.
  9:37 p.m.: A Sig Sauer and a Glock semi automatic handgun were used in the slaying and that .223 shell casings '' a round used in a semi automatic military style rifle '' were also found.
  9:16 p.m.: Numerous relatives and friends of the gunman, Adam Lanza, and his mother were being interviewed by the FBI in New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts, all in an effort to put together a better picture of the gunman and any possible explanation for today's tragedy.
  7:53 p.m.: Connecticut State Police Lt. J. Paul Vance said at a news conference that would be no more pressers tonight and they will not be releasing the identities of the victims tonight. ''We've never seen anything like this. It's heart wrenching for us,'' Vance said.
  7:30 p.m.: Families of Virginia Tech victims release statement on Sandy Hook School shooting: ''The immediate concern we have is for those families in Newtown whose lives are now altered, forever. From our VTV experience, as families of the victims and survivors of the April 16, 2007 massacre at Virginia Tech, we know that their loss is incredible. Helping all to deal with the aftermath will take a lifetime of love and dedication,'' Joe Samaha, President of VTV Family Outreach Foundation, said in a statement.
  7:00 p.m.: Authorities continue to question Ryan Lanza, the shooter's brother, but say he is not under any suspicion.
  Tune in to World News with Diane Sawyer at 6:30 p.m. ET.
  6:25 p.m.: Nancy Lanza, mother of gunman Adam Lanza, was found dead in her Connecticut home. The 20-year-old man, shot her in the face, authorities told ABC News. Following the murder of his mother, Lanza, carrying at least two semi-automatic pistols and an automatic rifle, drove to Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., where his mother worked. There he killed 20 children and six adults. Lanza was found dead in the school with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The rifle was found in his car, authorities said.
  Adam Lanza, seen here in 2005, killed his mother at her Connecticut home before killing 20 elementary school students and 6 adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn, authorities said.
  6:00 p.m.: ''Evil visited this community today,'' said Conn. Gov Dan Malloy.
  5:29 p.m.: Gunman's mother was teacher's aide at school and not a teacher as previously believed, authorities say. WATCH LIVE press conference with Conn. State Police
  4:52 p.m: Neighbors described Adam Lanza to ABC as ''odd'' and displaying characteristics associated with mental illness.
  4:41 p.m.:Federal law enforcement sources now say Connecticut school shooting gunman was Adam Lanza, 20, and not his brother Ryan Lanza, 24, as earlier reported. Adam was found dead in the school along with his mother, a kindergarten teacher there.
  President Obama earlier today ordered flags flown at half staff at all federal and military buildings and installations. Of those thousands of flags, perhaps none flew as mournfully as this one in the town center of Newtown, Conn., hours after 18 children were killed in school shooting. (Kyle Lyddy)
  4:18 p.m.: ''My deepest sympathies are with families of those affected, and my determination to stop this madness is stronger than ever,'' tweets New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a staunch gun-control advocate.
  4:17 p.m.: Federal sources initially identified the suspect as Ryan Lanza, 24, of New Jersey, but there appears now to be confusion over the gunman's identity.
  3:42 p.m.: Shooting took place in ''one section of the school in two rooms,'' says Vance, adds there is only one known shooter ''right now.''
  3:40 p.m.: 18 children pronounced dead at school; 2 dead at hospital; 6 adults dead at school, says Conn. State Police spokesman Paul Vance. WATCH LIVE press conference with Conn. Gov. Dan Malloy.
  3:18 p.m.: ''As a country, we have been through this too many times,'' President Obama says about shooting.
  3:17 p.m.: President Obama says majority of victims were students ages five to 10 years old. READ TRANSCRIPT of President Obama's remarks on Connecticut school massacre.
  3:15 p.m.:President Obama visibly emotional in remarks about Newtown, Conn. school shooting.
  A clearly moved President Obama tells the nations most of the victims killed in today's Newtown, Conn. elementary school shooting were children aged 5 to 10.
  WATCH LIVE President Obama's remarks on school shooting.
  3:15: Gunman Ryan Lanza's mother was a kindergarten teacher at the school. She and many of her students were found dead in the school.
  2:48 p.m.: Hero teacher Kaitlin Roig tells ABC News that she barricaded her first grade students in classroom bathroom and locked the door when she first heard gun shots. ''The kids were being so good. They asked: 'Can we go see if anyone is out there? '... I just want Christmas'... I don't want to die, I just want to have Christmas.' I said, you're going to have Christmas and Hanukkah.. I tried to be positive.''
  2:46 p.m.: White House announces that President Obama will address the nation at 3:15 p.m. Watch it HERE.
  2:37 p.m.: Gunman Ryan Lanza's mother found among the dead at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
  2:28 p.m. The gunman in the Newtown, Conn., school shooting has been identified as Ryan Lanza, 24, of New Jersey. A dead body has also been found in his parents' home, officials said. Lanza's body was found in the school.
  2:22 p.m.: Federal agents investigating whether slain Connecticut school gunman had a relationship with someone in the school, sources say.
  1:44 p.m.: ''The scene is secure. The public is not in danger,'' says Connecticut State Police spokesman Paul Vance.
  1:42 p.m.:'' Shooter is deceased inside the [school,]'' says Connecticut State Police spokesman Paul Vance. WATCH LIVE press conference on school shooting.
  Parents leave a staging area after being reunited with their children following a shooting at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. (Jessica Hill/AP)
  1:26 p.m.: President Obama has been briefed on shooting by FBI director Bob Mueller and spoken with Conn Gov. Dan Malloy.
  1:17 p.m: One shooter is described as 24-years-old, armed with four weapons and wearing a bullet-proof vest, sources tell ABC News.
  1:09 p.m.: Twenty-seven people, or more, most of them children killed in shooting, sources tell ABC News.
  12:57 p.m.: Fatality numbers continue to rise. More than 25 people, mostly young children, killed in Newtown, Conn. school shooting, sources tell ABC News. WATCH live coverage of press conference at scene of school shooting, beginning at 1p .m.
  12:47 p.m.: More than 20 people, most of them young children, killed in elementary school shooting, according to law enforcement sources.
  12:36 p.m.: Law enforcement conducting car to car searches in area of school. Eyewitness PHOTOS from scene of school shooting.
  12:26 p.m.: More than a dozen persons, including children shot and killed at Newtown, Conn., elementary school, federal, and state law enforcement sources tell ABC News.
  12:24 p.m.: Law enforcement agents with weapons drawn seen running into wooded area behind the school.
  12:19 p.m.:Federal agents are at the scene of the school with guns still drawn as parents rush to pick up their children.
  State police personnel led children from the school, following a shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary.
  12:11 p.m: LIVE streaming video from chopper above Sandy Hook Elementary.
  12:09 p.m.: Sources tell ABC News multiple persons shot
  11:55 a.m.: Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton tells WABC three victims in hospital are in ''very serious condition.'' 11:52 a.m.: Danbury Hospital confirms three patients have been taken there for treatment. A shooting involving two gunmen erupted at a Connecticut elementary school this morning, prompting the town of Newtown to lock down all of its schools and draw SWAT teams to the school, authorities said today.State Police confirm that one shooter is dead. A second gunman is apparently at large, sources told ABC News.The shooting occurred at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, about 12 miles east of Danbury.State Police received the first 911 call at 9:41 a.m. and immediately began sending emergency units from the western part of the state. Initial 911 calls stated that multiple students were trapped in a classroom, possibly with a gunman, according to a Connecticut State Police source.
Sandy Hook Shooter's Mother Not A Teacher At School, He Just Decided To Kill Children'... | Weasel Zippers
  Link to Article
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 15:19
  Initially it was reported Adam Lanza killed his mother in her classroom at the elementary school, now it turns out she wan't a teacher or even connected to the school. He killed her at their house, then drove to the school and killed 20 children. Mind blowing.
  Via ABC News:
  Nancy Lanza, mother of gunman Adam Lanza, was found dead in her Connecticut home. The 20-year-old man, shot her in the face, authorities told ABC News. Following the murder of his mother, Lanza, carrying at least two semi-automatic pistols and an automatic rifle, drove to Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., where his mother worked. There he killed 20 children and six adults. Lanza was found dead in the school with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The rifle was found in his car, authorities said.
  Via WSJ:
  A former school board official in Newtown called into question earlier reports that Nancy Lanza had been connected to Sandy Hook Elementary School, possibly as part of the teaching staff.
  ''No one has heard of her,'' said Lillian Bittman, who served on the local school board until 2011. ''Teachers don't know her.''
  HT: Andrew K.
Weekly Address: Nation Grieves for Those Killed in Tragic Shooting in Newtown, CT
  Link to Article
  Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 15:16
  The White House
  Office of the Press Secretary
  For Immediate Release
  December 15, 2012
  On Friday, we learned that more than two dozen people were killed when a gunman opened fire in an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut.
  Most of those who died were just young children with their whole lives ahead of them. And every parent in America has a heart heavy with hurt.
  Among the fallen were also teachers '' men and women who devoted their lives to helping our children fulfill their dreams.
  So our hearts are broken today. We grieve for the families of those we lost. And we keep in our prayers the parents of those who survived. Because as blessed as they are to have their children home, they know that their child's innocence has been torn away far too early.
  As a nation, we have endured far too many of these tragedies in the last few years. An elementary school in Newtown. A shopping mall in Oregon. A house of worship in Wisconsin. A movie theater in Colorado. Countless street corners in places like Chicago and Philadelphia.
  Any of these neighborhoods could be our own. So we have to come together and take meaningful action to prevent more tragedies like this. Regardless of the politics.
  This weekend, Michelle and I are doing what I know every parent is doing '' holding our children as close as we can and reminding them how much we love them.
  There are families in Connecticut who can't do that today. And they need all of us now. Because while nothing can take the place of a lost child or loved one, all of us can extend a hand to those in need '' to remind them that we are there for them; that we are praying for them; and that the love they felt for those they lost endures not just in their own memories, but also in their community, and their country.
  Thank you.
  ###
ultimate portable wire antenna
  Link to Article
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 15:06
  We are Rob, PA3EKE and Ron, PA3RK
  Two hams who are devoted into antenna design. We have designed a range of half wave end fed wire antennas
  We called them "Hy End Fed Antenna". "Hy End" because of the quality we remain. "End Fed" describes the feedingmethod. We are feeding a half wave wire antenna (efhw) at the end ( or beginning, hi ) due a low loss (~0,8 - 1,1dB ) matching network.
  Maximum performance with minimum handling.
  Its a single wire monoband antenna, operating without any radials or grounding. Nothing new. But its in ouropinion a forgotten design. Often misunderstood and confused by the 1:9 balun designs. It is known in the homebrew
  QRP scene but not available as build unit for more than 100 watt. So we decide to build our own series of monopole
  antennas from 300 Watt PEP to more than 2000 Watt continue carrier.( 2kw only for 20 meter at the moment ).
  300 Watt PEP version is on request available for the 40,20,17,15,10,11 and 6 meter band. We are building and experimenting for hobby.
  Read here for more information about EndFed wire antenna;s in general
  Custom made 3500 Watt monoband HyEndFed for 40 meter
China school knife attack leaves 23 injured - CBS News
  Link to Article
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 14:36
  BEIJING A man wielding a knife attacked students Friday at a school in central China, leaving 22 children and one adult injured, according to state-run media reports.
  The attack occurred at the gate of an elementary school in the village of Chengping, in Henan Province. Police arrested the attacker, who they identified as local resident Min Yingjun, 36.
  Children as young as six were among those hospitalized after the attack, suffering injuries including slashes to the ears and head.
  An official at Guangshan Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, the local facility, told CBS News at least two students had been transferred to the larger city of Wuhan, not far from Chengping, for treatment. The editor of the local newspaper which first reported the story said none of the children had injuries severe enough to threaten their lives.
  The attack marks the latest in a series of violent assaults at elementary schools in China. In 2010, a total of 18 children were killed in four separate attacks. On March 23 of that year, Zheng Minsheng attacked children at an elementary school in Fujian Province, killing eight.
  One month later, just a few hours after Zheng Minsheng was executed for his crime, another man, Chen Kanbing wounded 16 students and a teacher in a knife attack at another primary school in Fujian. The following month, on May 12, a man named Wu Huangming killed seven children and two adults with a meat cleaver at a kindergarten in Shaanxi Province. That attack was followed by an August 4 assault by Fang Jiantang, who killed three children and one teacher with a knife at a kindergarten in Shandong Province.
  In 2011, a young girl and three adults were killed with an axe at an elementary school in Henan Province by a 30-year-old man named Wang Hongbin, and eight children were hurt in Shanghai after an employee at a child care center attacked them with a box cutter.
  Some Chinese bloggers have blamed the lack of freedom of expression for the attacks, suggesting people frustrated by their own circumstances but lacking the means to seek justice or voice their concerns with the all-powerful communist government, lash out instead at the least powerful members of society.
  China's lack of mental health care facilities may also be partly to blame for the attacks. There are almost no mental health care facilities in rural communities, which have experienced dramatic changes over the last several years as China's economy has grown.
Connecticut Shooter Adam Lanza: 'Obviously Not Well'
  Link to Article
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 14:23
  Adam Lanza of Newtown, Connecticut was a child of the suburbs and a child of divorce who at age 20 still lived with his mother.
  This morning he appears to have started his day by shooting his mother Nancy in the face, and then drove her car to nearby Sandy Hook Elementary School, armed with two handguns and a semi-automatic rifle.
  There, before turning his gun on himself, he shot and killed 20 children, who President Obama later described as "beautiful little kids" between five and 10 years of age. Six adults were also killed at the school. Nancy Lanza was found dead in her home.
  A relative told ABC News that Adam was "obviously not well."
  Family friends in Newtown also described the young man as troubled and described Nancy as rigid. "[Adam] was not connected with the other kids," said Barbara Frey, who also said he was "a little bit different ... Kind of repressed."
  State and federal authorities believe his mother may have once worked at the elementary school where Adam went on his deadly rampage, although she was not a teacher, according to relatives, perhaps a volunteer.
  Nancy and her husband Peter, Adam's father, divorced in 2009. When they first filed for divorce in 2008, a judge ordered that they participate in a "parenting education program."
  Peter Lanza, who drove to northern New Jersey to talk to police and the FBI, is a vice president at GE Capital and had been a partner at global accounting giant Ernst & Young.
  Adam's older brother Ryan Lanza, 24, has worked at Ernst & Young for four years, apparently following in his father's footsteps and carving out a solid niche in the tax practice. He too was interviewed by the FBI. Neither he nor his father is under any suspicion.
  "[Ryan] is a tax guy and he is clean as a whistle," a source familiar with his work said.
  Police had initially identified Ryan as the killer. Ryan sent out a series of Facebook posts saying it wasn't him and that he was at work all day. Video records as well as card swipes at Ernst & Young verified his statement that he had been at the office.
  Two federal sources told ABC News that identification belonging to Ryan Lanza was found at the scene of the mass shooting. They say that identification may have led to the confusion by authorities during the first hours after the shooting. Neither Adam nor Ryan has any known criminal history.
  A Sig Sauer handgun and a Glock handgun were used in the slaying and .223 shell casings '' a round used in a semi-automatic military-style rifle -- were also found at the scene. Nancy Lanza had numerous weapons registered to her, including a Glock and a Sig Sauer. She also owned a Bushmaster rifle -- a semi-automatic carbine chambered for a .223 caliber round. However, federal authorities cannot confirm that the handguns or the rifle were the weapons recovered at the school.
  Numerous relatives of the Lanzas in New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, as well as multiple friends, are being interviewed by the FBI in an effort to put together a better picture of the gunman and any explanation for today's tragedy.
  "I think the most important thing to point out with this kind of individual is that he did not snap this morning and decide to act out violently," said former FBI profiler Mary Ellen O'Toole. "These acts involve planning and thoughtfulness and strategizing in order to put the plan together so what may appear to be snap behavior is not that at all."
  With reporting by Pierre Thomas, Jim Avila, Santina Leuci, Aaron Katersky, Matthew Mosk, Jason Ryan and Jay Shaylor
  MORE: 27 Dead, Mostly Children, at Connecticut Elementary School Shooting
  LIVE UPDATES: Newton, Conn. School Shooting
  Click Here for the Blotter Homepage.
Connecticut massacre: Heart-breaking pictures of Sandy Hook Elementary School just days before shooting
  Link to Article
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 14:19
  By David Mccormack
  PUBLISHED: 19:03 EST, 14 December 2012 | UPDATED: 07:16 EST, 15 December 2012
  A series of photographs posted on Twitter by murdered Principal Dawn Hochsprung give a glimpse into the happy and normal atmosphere at Sandy Hook Elementary School in the weeks and days leading up to Friday's horrific massacre.
  The images show classrooms full of happy children and smiling teachers learning together in a safe and peaceful environment.
  Located in the affluent village of Sandy Hook, the school serves 575 students in grades K-4.
  Principal Dawn Hochsprung tweeted this pic two months ago along with the message 'Sandy Hook gardeners celebrate their learning after the fall harvest!'
  Principal Hochsprung tweeted: 30 Sandy Hook teachers gather for an early morning Appy Hour... sharing the best iPad apps for our classrooms!
  Principal Hochsprung tweeted: Safety first at Sandy Hook... It's a beautiful day for our annual evacuation drill!
  Sandy Hook Elementary is one of four elementary schools in Newtown, Connecticut. There are 15 students for every full-time equivalent teacher, 90 percent of pupils are white and only five percent of students are eligible for free or reduced price lunches.
  The school has achieved very high educational standards and received a nine out of ten test rating from Education.com, as an overview of a school's test performance.
  Newtown is describes as a 'scenic small town' 60 miles northeast of New York City, with a population of 27,560 in 2010, according to the U.S. census. There were 9,459 households. Of those, 7,431 were family households and 3,797 of those families had children under 18 years old.
  According to the website Neighborhood Scout, Newtown is safer than 79 percent of cities and towns in the U.S. and is rated the fourth safest city in the country.
  It found specifically that the violent crime rate - 1 crime for every 1000 residents - is 'well below the national average of all communities of all population sizes.'
  Principal Hochsprung tweeted: Chicken dancing at Sandy Hook with the Carnivale Trio!
  Principal Hochsprung tweeted: The Sandy Hook Book Fairy reads with first graders... Keeping books in our hearts and on our minds!
  Principal Hochsprung tweeted: Sandy Hook 1st graders learn about the three As of concert behavior: attention, appreciation, and applause
  In other words, according to the site, 'violent crimes such as assault, rape, murder and armed robbery happen less often in Newtown than in most of America.'
  One photograph, posted on Twitter in October, shows pupils forming lines outside as part of the annual evacuation drill.
  The school had recently introduced a new safety policy designed to help prevent tragic situations such as Friday's massacre.
  Murdered principal Mrs. Hochsprung had sent a letter to parents which explained the new protocols to ensure the safety of students and faculty earlier in the school year.
  This picture was tweeted on Wednesday by murdered principal Hochsprung, along with the message 'Sandy Hook students enjoy the rehearsal for our 4th grade winter concert - a talented group led by Maryrose Kristopik'
  Principal Hochsprung tweeted: The Sandy Hook team prepares for Shanghai Study Tour in April.
  That protocol included locking exterior doors at 9.30 a.m. After that time visitors were required to ring the doorbell at the front entrance and the office staff use a visual monitoring system to allow entry.
  It is not known if school officials followed the guidelines during Friday's shooting, although students were seen being escorted to a nearby firehouse in what was described as a very calm and controlled evacuation.
  It is unclear how the shooter gained access to the school or if he showed identification, or if he had entered prior to the 9:30 a.m. doors-locked mandate. It is also unclear how the shooter gained access to the school halls and classrooms.
Did a mob of angry Dutch kill and eat their prime minister?
  Link to Article
  Sat, 15 Dec 2012 13:42
  September 23, 2005
  Dear Cecil:
  A recent article in the New York Times mentioned a bit of civil disobedience that caught my attention: "'... in the 1670's '... the prime minister was killed, and partially eaten, by a mob of angry Dutch '..." Would you mind giving out the background behind this incident? And perhaps the contact information for any of the mob's descendants who might consider consuming a few unruly U.S. politicians?
  '-- Michael Roberts, via e-mail
  Cecil replies:
  I'd better give a little context for this bizarre story, not that it's going to help.
  The article you refer to, which appeared in the Times on August 21, 2005, discusses the views of Yale economist Robert Shiller, who believes that "housing prices may drop sharply, as they did 300 years ago on the Herengracht [canal] in Amsterdam." The article cites the work of Piet Eichholtz, a Dutch economist and evidently an admirer of Shiller's, who charted housing prices on the prestigious waterway over a 400-year span. The passage about the unfortunate prime minister reads in its entirety as follows:
  On the Herengracht, [economic] returns have often been fantastic for 25 or even 50 years at a time. Home prices soared in the first half of the 17th century, around the time of the tulip mania. But they came crashing down in the 1670's, when the prime minister was killed, and partially eaten, by a mob of angry Dutch, and the country nearly disintegrated. Prices lagged inflation during the Napoleonic wars but surged after William became king in 1814 and the country industrialized.
  No further details are provided. The reader seeking guidance about the housing market can only conclude: If people are eating government officials in your neighborhood, it's time to sell.
  So much for the Times. Now for the straight dope:
  (1) The digested party was Johan de Witt (1625-1672; his first name is sometimes given as Jan or John), head of the Dutch government from 1653 till shortly before his demise. His title was raadpensionaris (commonly rendered as "grand pensionary" or "councillor pensionary"), but he was the equivalent of prime minister. Unknown today in the English-speaking world and apparently little remembered even in the Netherlands, he was one of the great statesmen of his time, building his tiny confederacy (the United Provinces, as they were known, had a combined population of less than 2 million) into a global economic power through skillful diplomacy and efficient administration. His reward was a gruesome death at the hands of his ingrate countrymen.
  (2) De Witt's chief problem prior to being eaten was that he was a staunch republican in an era when most people preferred to be ruled by a prince. The princes of the Netherlands, who had traditionally served as stadtholders, or governors, hailed from the house of Orange and were mostly named William. De Witt had no use for princes or stadtholders and contrived to keep the Williams out of the picture during most of the time he was in charge. Meanwhile he did his best to fend off his two much larger neighbors, England and France.
  So, a real champion of the underdog, right? Not that simple. During the 17th century the stadtholders were elected by the Dutch provinces and enjoyed popular support, whereas de Witt represented the wealthy merchant class. But cut the man some slack. He was the smartest person around, and the Dutch were materially better off for his running the show.
  (3) It all fell apart in 1672. France invaded, the frightened populace turned to William III of Orange, and suddenly de Witt was the bad guy. His brother Cornelis was arrested on a trumped-up charge of plotting to assassinate the prince. Johan went to see about getting him out of jail, which was surrounded by a mob. Possibly incited by supporters of William III, the crowd burst in, dragged out Johan and Cornelis, and beat, stabbed, and shot them to death. The bodies were hung upside down from a nearby gallows ladder and mutilated, with fingers, ears, genitals, guts, and so on sliced off. Bits of the corpses were sold as souvenirs, and allegedly a few were cooked and eaten.
  Question #1: Seriously, cannibalism? Answer: The sources cited in the principal English-language bio, Herbert Rowen's 1978 John de Witt, are obscure, but Rowen himself doesn't seem to doubt that the crowd snacked on burghers.
  Question #2: So what was up with these people? Answer: Rowen doesn't say, though he distinguishes between the killers, who were solid citizens, and the mutilators, who were were "scaffold scum," as a contemporary pamphlet puts it.
  The atrocity had no noticeable impact on William III's career (he later became king of England). Though notorious for centuries '-- the murders are the centerpiece of Dumas pere's 1850 novel The BlackTulip '-- Rowen thinks the incident now has been largely forgotten, apparently for some merely marking an occasion when Amsterdam property values temporarily went to hell.
  '-- Cecil Adams
Scripting with Windows PowerShell [Firewall]
  Link to Article
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 15:42
  Skip to main contentScript CenterSign inUnited States (English)HomeLibraryLearnDownloadsRepositoryCommunityForumsBlogScript Center > Learn > Scripting with Windows PowerShell(C) 2012 Microsoft
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Windows Firewall Script To Block IP Addresses And Country Network Ranges
  Link to Article
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 15:41
  The host-based Windows Firewall is easily managed through scripts and the NETSH.EXE command-line tool. This article is about a simple PowerShell script which can create rules to block inbound and outbound access to thousands of IP addresses and network ID ranges, such as for attackers and unwanted countries.
  To get the script, download the SEC505 zip file here or from the Downloads page, open the zip and look in the "\SEC505_Windows\Day6--PowerShell" folder for the script named Import-Firewall-Blocklist.ps1 (and the sample BlockList.txt file too). Like all the other scripts in the zip file, this script is free and in the public domain.
  The script can also create firewall rules which apply only to certain interface profile types (public, private, domain, any) and/or only to certain interface media types (wireless, ras, lan, any); for example, you might wish to only block packets going through an 802.11 NIC (wireless) but only while not at home or at the office (public). The script is just a convenient wrapper around the built-in NETSH.EXE tool.
  RequirementsThe script requires PowerShell 1.0 or later.You must be a member of the local Administrators group.
  The script runs on Windows Server 2008, Windows Vista, and later operating systems.
  A text file containing addresses to block must bepassed into the script as an argument. This file must have one entry per line, each line containing either a single IP address, a network ID using CIDR notation, or an IP address range in the form of StartIP-EndIP, for example, "10.4.0.0-10.4.255.254". Both IPv4 and IPv6 are supported. Blank lines and comment lines are ignored; a comment line is any line that does not begin with a number or hex letter. Even if the input file was originally created for Apache or iptables, it can still be used as long as the formatting is compatible (or made compatible with a bit of scripting).
  Note: If you want similar scripts for Windows XP and Server 2003, that same zip file above also contains VBS and BATscripts that all begin with the word "Firewall_*". Look in the \VBScript directory.
  Block Countries, Attackers, Spammers and BogonsYou can obtain lists of IP addresses and network ID ranges to block from a variety of sources for a variety of purposes.Here are a few sources to try:
  Note: If you also want to block the resolution of unwanted hostnames in DNS, there is another script for that here.ExamplesTo create rules to block all inbound and outbound packets to the IP addresses and CIDR networks listed in a file named iptoblock.txt:import-firewall-blocklist.ps1 -inputfile iptoblock.txtTo block addresses only on public network interfaces:import-firewall-blocklist.ps1 -inputfile iptoblock.txt -profiletype publicTo block addresses only on wireless network adapter cards:import-firewall-blocklist.ps1 -inputfile iptoblock.txt -interfacetype wirelessTo delete the firewall rules created by the script whose names start with "iptoblock*":import-firewall-blocklist.ps1 -rulename iptoblock -deleteonlyThe script defaults to looking for an input file named "blocklist.txt", so you can also simply create that file in the same directory as the script and then run the script with no arguments:import-firewall-blocklist.ps1Note: By default the script will create rules which are named after the input file; for example, with an input file named "Attackers.txt", the script will create rules named like "Attackers-#001". If you wish to override the default rule name, use the -RuleName parameter with the script when both creating and deleting the rules.Caveats & Legal DisclaimersFor NETSH.EXE compatibility reasons, each firewall rule will contain only 200 IP addresses or network ID ranges; hence, when importing 5000 IP addresses or network ranges to block from a file named "Attackers.txt", the script will create 25 inbound rules and 25 outbound rules, each rule named "Attackers-#001" through "Attackers-#025". Don't worry, the script creates or deletes all of them at once, but do take care to use a unique input file name or a unique -RuleName argument.Blocking large numbers of IP addresses or network ID ranges (10,000 for example) appears to have relatively little performance impact, but it does take longer to launch or refresh the Windows Firewall MMC snap-in, and it does take longer to disable/enable network interfaces. This testing was done informally, however, so no hard numbers are available. Please do some testing yourself when importing large input files.
  The script is free and in the public domain, you may use it for any purpose whatsoever without restriction. However, that being said...
  THIS SCRIPT IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITH NO WARRANTIES OR GUARANTEES OF ANY KIND, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO MERCHANTABILITY AND/OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. ALL RISKS OF DAMAGE REMAINS WITH THE USER, EVEN IF THE AUTHOR, SUPPLIER OR DISTRIBUTOR HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF ANY SUCH DAMAGE. IF YOUR STATE DOES NOT PERMIT THE COMPLETE LIMITATION OF LIABILITY, THEN DO NOT DOWNLOAD OR USE THE SCRIPT. NO TECHNICAL SUPPORT WILL BE PROVIDED.
  Please test the script on non-production servers first, then test on a production server only during off-peak hours and only after having made a full backup.
  The SANS Institute hopes you will find the script useful, so best wishes and good luck!
Cutter Blames Susan Rice For Giving Up On Secretary Of State Nomination'...
  Link to Article
  Source: Weasel Zippers
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 15:12
  Under the bus you go.
  Via Weekly Standard:
  Barack Obama's deputy campaign manager, Stephanie Cutter, blamed Susan Rice for withdrawing her name from consideration to be the next secretary of state, not Obama. She made the comments this morning on national television.
War of pipelines - Dr Ikramul Haq
  Link to Article
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 14:56
  Huzaima Bukhari and
  US Ambassador to Pakistan Richard Olson's statement on December 10 against the Pakistan-Iran gas pipeline (IP) was not a mere reiteration of the economic interests of the United States and its allies; it has serious political connotations, in an area that has always been the battlefield in the Great Game. The expression of concern by Olson came just two days after President Asif Ali Zardari skipped his scheduled visit to Tehran to finalise the project with his Iranian counterpart. The US has been opposing the pipeline since its inception and favouring the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (Tapi).
  The IP, a $1.2 billion project, has been lingering since 1995 when a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between Iran and Pakistan. The Iran-Pakistan Working Group was formed in 2003 to move the project forward. Islamabad told Tehran that in case India was unwilling to join in, the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline would be pursued as an independent project. But in 2005, a memorandum of understanding was signed to include India. In 2007, India and Pakistan provisionally agreed to pay Iran $4.93 per million British thermal units, but India subsequently withdrew from the deal, ostensibly over concerns about the price and security but in fact due to opposition from the US. Under the accord signed in June 2010, Iran was to provide about 21.5 million cubic metres of gas a day to Pakistan for 25 years. The deal is extendable by five years and volumes can rise to 30 million cubic metres a day. The project is now in doldrums.
  The projected 1,680-kilometre Tapi gas pipeline is backed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). It has the potential to bring 3.2 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day (bcfd) from Turkmenistan's gas fields passing near the cities of Herat and Kandahar, crossing into Pakistan near Quetta and linking with existing pipelines at Multan.
  After India's withdrawal from the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project, China showed interest in it. In October 2011 Dr Asim Hussain said, ''Our dependence on Pak-Iran pipeline is very high and there is no other substitute at present to meet the growing demand of the energy.'' This statement irritated the US, which has been pleading the case for Tapi since the 1990s. Tapi was initially designed to provide Turkmen gas to Pakistan through Afghanistan. In April 2008, India was also invited to join in. Pakistan's cabinet gave approval to the Gas Pipeline Framework Agreement (GPFA) for Tapi in its meeting on October 27, 2010. On November 13, 2011, Pakistan and Turkmenistan initiated the Gas Sales and Purchase Agreement (GSPA), which is likely to make the multi-nation project operational by 2016.
  From the very beginning, the US and its allies wanted Pakistan to abandon the project with Iran, which wants to diversify gas sales to Asian markets. Tehran's projection of IP as a ''peace pipeline'' has the support of Russia and China. While regional powers desire to find a stable, reliable source of gas supplies, America and allies want to destabilise the entire region using militancy as a tool. The tussle over the Iran-Pakistan gas project and Tapi is not a mere economic battle but has far-reaching geopolitical dimensions.
  It is a matter of record that the US and its Nato allies had decided to invade Afghanistan much before 9/11. The decision to this effect was taken in Berlin during the joint meeting of the council of ministers held in November 2000 in the wake of apprehensions regarding Tapi, in which powerful corporate entities, which actually rule the US and other capitalist countries, had financial interests. George W Bush appointed Afghan-born Zalmay Khalilzad, former aide to the American oil company Unocal, as special envoy to Afghanistan, nine days after the US-backed interim government of Hamid Karzai took office in Kabul. This appointment underscored the real economic and financial interests at stake in the US military intervention in Central Asia.
  Khalilzad was intimately involved in the long-running US efforts to obtain direct access to the oil and gas resources of the region, largely unexploited but believed to be the second-largest in the world after those of the Persian Gulf. During the Bush government the state department was exploring the potential for post-Taliban energy projects in the region, having more than six percent of the world's proven oil reserves and almost 40 percent of its gas reserves. On December 15, 2001, in an article titled 'As the war shifts alliances, oil deals follow,' the New York Times reported that during a visit in early December to this region, Secretary of State Colin L Powell said he was particularly impressed with the money that American oil companies were investing there. He estimated that $200 billion could flow into this region within the following decade.
  As an advisor for Unocal, Khalilzad drew up the risk analysis of a proposed gas pipeline from the former Soviet republic of Turkmenistan across Afghanistan and Pakistan to the Indian Ocean. He participated in talks between Unocal and Taliban officials in 1997, which were aimed at implementing a 1995 agreement to build the pipeline across western Afghanistan. Unocal was the lead company in the formation of the CentGas consortium behind Tapi.
  The Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline and Tapi are symbols of the New Great Game '' the main goal of which is gaining control of oil and gas reserves in this region. As Frank Viviano wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle on September 26, 2001: ''The hidden stakes in the war against terrorism can be summed up in a single word: oil/gas. The map of terrorist sanctuaries and targets in the Middle East and Central Asia is also, to an extraordinary degree, a map of the world's principal energy sources in the 21st century. It is inevitable that the war against terrorism will be seen by many as a war on behalf of America's Chevron, Exxon, and Arco; France's TotalFinaElf; British Petroleum; Royal Dutch Shell and other multinational giants, which have hundreds of billions of dollars of investment in the region.''
  This is the ugly reality of the ongoing war over gas pipelines in our region '' US and its allies want to grab oil and gas resources for their economic interests benefiting huge multinational corporations in which the western ruling elites have substantial interest. In an article in Global Research, 'Balochistan: Crossroads of Proxy War,' Eric Draitser wrote on July 1: ''China's insatiable thirst for oil and gas makes the development of pipelines from Central Asia, Iran, and elsewhere invaluable to them. The Iran-Pakistan pipeline, the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (Tapi) pipeline, and other projects all serve to increase the importance of Balochistan in the eyes of the Chinese. Additionally, the Chinese-funded Pakistani Gwadar Port is the access point for Chinese commercial shipping to the Indian Ocean and on to Africa. With all of this as a backdrop, one can begin to see just why Balochistan is so significant to the Chinese and, conversely, why the United States and its western puppets seek to destabilise it.''
  The writers are adjunct professors at the Lahore University of Management Sciences. Emails: huzaima@huzaimaikram. com, ikram@huzaimaikram.com
Royal Phone Prank - What Nurse Jacintha Saldanha Wrote In Her Three Suicide Notes
  Link to Article
  Source: Radar Online
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 13:59
  Landov
  By Radar Staff
  One day after we learned nurse Jacintha Saldanha left not one, but three suicide notes, we're now learning more about what she wrote in her emotional letters.
  In one note, Saldanha, a 46-year-old wife and mother-of-two, criticized her senior colleagues at the King Edward VII hospital in central London over how she was being treated in wake of the hoax.
  PHOTOS: Student Nurses In Bangalore, India Hold A Candlelit Vigil Thursday In Saldanha's Memory
  ''One of the letters, which is the longest, deals with the hospital and is critical in its tone,'' a source close to the family told UK's The Daily Mail.
  ''Needless to say, (her husband) Ben Barboza wants a full inquiry into what happened and he wants to make sure the truth comes out.
  ''Within the letter, Jacintha calls into question some of the treatment she received at the hospital.''
  PHOTOS: Prince William Leaves Hospital After Visiting Kate
  In another note, Saldanha -- a native of India and a devout Catholic -- describes how she struggled to come to terms with the prank call by Australian DJs Mel Greig and Michael Christian.
  The third and final letter is practical and deals with her funeral plans, according to the Mail.
  Two of the notes were found near her body at staff quarters at the private hospital in central London, and the third note was among her possessions.
  PHOTOS: Kate Middleton Leaves Hospital
  In addition, Saldanha had also sent a number of emails and made telephone calls that police believe might help explain why she decided to take her own life.
  Scotland Yard detectives are examining the notes and emails, as well as interviewing Saldanha's friends, family and colleagues at the King Edward VII hospital.
  As RadarOnline.com previously reported, during a five-minute hearing at Westminster Coroner's Court in London this week, it was revealed that Saldanha was found hanging by a scarf from a wardrobe in staff accommodations last Friday -- three days after the prank phone call. There were also markings on her wrists.
  PHOTOS: The 11 Most Adorable Celebrity Babies Of The Year
  Saldanha was the senior nurse on duty when she took a call at 5:30am on Tuesday from the two Australian DJs, who were pretending to be the Queen and Prince Charles.
  She unwittingly transferred the call to a fellow nurse on Kate Middleton's floor, who divulged confidential medical information about the condition of the Duchess of Cambridge, who was being treated for severe morning sickness.
  Saldanha, who was born in India, lived in London during the week and returned home to Bristol to be with her family on the weekends.
  PHOTOS: Kate Middleton Makes Vanity Fair's International Best-Dressed List
  Her family became alarmed when she did not return home last Friday.
  In addition to her husband, she leaves behind a son, Junal, 17, and daughter, Lisha, 14.
  A memorial service is scheduled to take place in Bristol Friday night and a mass will be held for Saldanha at London's Westminster Cathedral Saturday morning.
  PHOTOS: Celebrities Found Dead In Famous Hotels
  The mass will be offered ''for the repose of the soul of Jacintha and her grieving family'', a spokesman for Westminster Cathedral said.
  ''We would hope to hold a more formal memorial after the inquest has concluded.''
  As for the two Australian DJs -- who have since tearfully apologized for the prank -- both remain on indefinite suspension, pending an investigation into the call.
  PHOTOS: Celebrities We Lost In 2011
  Southern Cross Austereo, the parent company of Sydney-based 2Day FM which broadcast the hoax call, has canceled Greig and Christian's Hot 30 show and suspended prank calls across the company.
  The radio station has committed to donating at least $500,000 to a memorial fund set up for the family.
  The inquest into Saldanha's death will resume on March 26.
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President Obama Says Marijuana Users Not High Priority in Drug War - ABC News
  Link to Article
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 13:55
  President Obama says recreational users of marijuana in states that have legalized the substance should not be a "top priority" of federal law enforcement officials prosecuting the war on drugs.
  "We've got bigger fish to fry," Obama said of pot users in Colorado and Washington during an exclusive interview with ABC News' Barbara Walters.
  "It would not make sense for us to see a top priority as going after recreational users in states that have determined that it's legal," he said, invoking the same approach taken toward users of medicinal marijuana in 18 states where it's legal.
  More of Barbara Walters' exclusive first joint, post-election interview with President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama airs tonight on "20/20" at 10 p.m. ET on ABC stations.
  Obama's comments on marijuana are his first following Colorado and Washington voters' approval of Nov. 7 ballot measures that legalize the recreational use and sale of pot in defiance of federal law.
  Marijuana, or cannabis, remains classified under the Controlled Substances Act as a Schedule I narcotic whose cultivation, distribution, possession and use are criminal acts. It's in the same category as heroin, LSD and "Ecstasy," all deemed to have high potential for abuse.
  Official White House Photo by Pete Souza
  President Obama: 'Taxes Going Up One Way or Another' Watch VideoBarbara Walters' 10 Most-Fascinating People: Ben Affleck and More Watch VideoPresident Obama Discusses Syrian Violence in Interview Watch VideoObama told Walters he does not '' "at this point" '' support widespread legalization of marijuana. But he cited shifting public opinion and limited government resources as reasons to find a middle ground on punishing use of the drug.
  "This is a tough problem, because Congress has not yet changed the law," Obama said. "I head up the executive branch; we're supposed to be carrying out laws. And so what we're going to need to have is a conversation about, How do you reconcile a federal law that still says marijuana is a federal offense and state laws that say that it's legal?"
  The president said he has asked Attorney General Eric Holder and the Justice Department to examine the legal questions surrounding conflicting state and federal laws on drugs.
  "There are a number of issues that have to be considered, among them the impact that drug usage has on young people, [and] we have treaty obligations with nations outside the United States," Holder said Wednesday of the review underway.
  As a politician, Obama has always opposed legalizing marijuana and downplayed his personal history with the substance.
  Obama wrote in his 1995 memoir, "Dreams from My Father," that he would smoke pot regularly with his high school buddies who formed a "club of disaffection." The group was known as the "Choom Gang," says Obama biographer David Maraniss.
  "There are a bunch of things I did that I regret when I was a kid," Obama told Walters. "My attitude is, substance abuse generally is not good for our kids, not good for our society.
  "I want to discourage drug use," he added.
  While the administration has not prioritized prosecutions of marijuana users and small-scale distributors in states where it's legal, it has not ceased prosecutions altogether. The Justice Department has continued raids on pot providers '' including in states where they are legal '' in an approach that experts say is more aggressive than Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush.
  "I never made a commitment that somehow we were going to give carte blanche to large-scale producers and operators of marijuana '' and the reason is, because it's against federal law," Obama told "Rolling Stone" in an interview earlier this year.
Rolling Stone Mobile - Politics - Politics: Outrageous HSBC Settlement Proves the Drug War is a Joke
  Link to Article
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 13:41
  Politics: Outrageous HSBC Settlement Proves the Drug War is a Joke
  December 13, 2012 | 3:25pm EST
  If you've ever been arrested on a drug charge, if you've ever spent even a day in jail for having a stem of marijuana in your pocket or "drug paraphernalia" in your gym bag, Assistant Attorney General and longtime Bill Clinton pal Lanny Breuer has a message for you: Bite me.
  Breuer this week signed off on a settlement deal with the British banking giant HSBC that is the ultimate insult to every ordinary person who's ever had his life altered by a narcotics charge. Despite the fact that HSBC admitted to laundering billions of dollars for Colombian and Mexican drug cartels (among others) and violating a host of important banking laws (from the Bank Secrecy Act to the Trading With the Enemy Act), Breuer and his Justice Department elected not to pursue criminal prosecutions of the bank, opting instead for a "record" financial settlement of $1.9 billion, which as one analyst noted is about five weeks of income for the bank.
  The banks' laundering transactions were so brazen that the NSA probably could have spotted them from space. Breuer admitted that drug dealers would sometimes come to HSBC's Mexican branches and "deposit hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, in a single day, into a single account, using boxes designed to fit the precise dimensions of the teller windows."
  This bears repeating: in order to more efficiently move as much illegal money as possible into the "legitimate" banking institution HSBC, drug dealers specifically designed boxes to fit through the bank's teller windows. Tony Montana's henchmen marching dufflebags of cash into the fictional "American City Bank" in Miami was actually more subtle than what the cartels were doing when they washed their cash through one of Britain's most storied financial institutions.
  Though this was not stated explicitly, the government's rationale in not pursuing criminal prosecutions against the bank was apparently rooted in concerns that putting executives from a "systemically important institution" in jail for drug laundering would threaten the stability of the financial system. The New York Times put it this way:
  Federal and state authorities have chosen not to indict HSBC, the London-based bank, on charges of vast and prolonged money laundering, for fear that criminal prosecution would topple the bank and, in the process, endanger the financial system.
  It doesn't take a genius to see that the reasoning here is beyond flawed. When you decide not to prosecute bankers for billion-dollar crimes connected to drug-dealing and terrorism (some of HSBC's Saudi and Bangladeshi clients had terrorist ties, according to a Senate investigation), it doesn't protect the banking system, it does exactly the opposite. It terrifies investors and depositors everywhere, leaving them with the clear impression that even the most "reputable" banks may in fact be captured institutions whose senior executives are in the employ of (this can't be repeated often enough) murderers and terrorists. Even more shocking, the Justice Department's response to learning about all of this was to do exactly the same thing that the HSBC executives did in the first place to get themselves in trouble '' they took money to look the other way.
  And not only did they sell out to drug dealers, they sold out cheap. You'll hear bragging this week by the Obama administration that they wrested a record penalty from HSBC, but it's a joke. Some of the penalties involved will literally make you laugh out loud. This is from Breuer's announcement:
  As a result of the government's investigation, HSBC has . . . "clawed back" deferred compensation bonuses given to some of its most senior U.S. anti-money laundering and compliance officers, and agreed to partially defer bonus compensation for its most senior officials during the five-year period of the deferred prosecution agreement.
  Wow. So the executives who spent a decade laundering billions of dollars will have to partially defer their bonuses during the five-year deferred prosecution agreement? Are you fucking kidding me? That's the punishment? The government's negotiators couldn't hold firm on forcing HSBC officials to completely wait to receive their ill-gotten bonuses? They had to settle on making them "partially" wait? Every honest prosecutor in America has to be puking his guts out at such bargaining tactics. What was the Justice Department's opening offer '' asking executives to restrict their Caribbean vacation time to nine weeks a year?
  So you might ask, what's the appropriate financial penalty for a bank in HSBC's position? Exactly how much money should one extract from a firm that has been shamelessly profiting from business with criminals for years and years? Remember, we're talking about a company that has admitted to a smorgasbord of serious banking crimes. If you're the prosecutor, you've got this bank by the balls. So how much money should you take?
  How about all of it? How about every last dollar the bank has made since it started its illegal activity? How about you dive into every bank account of every single executive involved in this mess and take every last bonus dollar they've ever earned? Then take their houses, their cars, the paintings they bought at Sotheby's auctions, the clothes in their closets, the loose change in the jars on their kitchen counters, every last freaking thing. Take it all and don't think twice. And then throw them in jail.
  Sound harsh? It does, doesn't it? The only problem is, that's exactly what the government does just about every day to ordinary people involved in ordinary drug cases.
  It'd be interesting, for instance, to ask the residents of Tenaha, Texas what they think about the HSBC settlement. That's the town where local police routinely pulled over (mostly black) motorists and, whenever they found cash, offered motorists a choice: They could either allow police to seize the money, or face drug and money laundering charges.
  Or we could ask Anthony Smelley, the Indiana resident who won $50,000 in a car accident settlement and was carrying about $17K of that in cash in his car when he got pulled over. Cops searched his car and had drug dogs sniff around: The dogs alerted twice. No drugs were found, but police took the money anyway. Even after Smelley produced documentation proving where he got the money from, Putnam County officials tried to keep the money on the grounds that he could have used the cash to buy drugs in the future.
  Seriously, that happened. It happens all the time, and even Lanny Breuer's own Justice Deparment gets into the act. In 2010 alone, U.S. Attorneys' offices deposited nearly $1.8 billion into government accounts as a result of forfeiture cases, most of them drug cases. You can see the Justice Department's own statistics right here: If you get pulled over in America with cash and the government even thinks it's drug money, that cash is going to be buying your local sheriff or police chief a new Ford Expedition tomorrow afternoon.
  And that's just the icing on the cake. The real prize you get for interacting with a law enforcement officer, if you happen to be connected in any way with drugs, is a preposterous, outsized criminal penalty. Right here in New York, one out of every seven cases that ends up in court is a marijuana case.
  Just the other day, while Breuer was announcing his slap on the wrist for the world's most prolific drug-launderers, I was in arraignment court in Brooklyn watching how they deal with actual people. A public defender explained the absurdity of drug arrests in this city. New York actually has fairly liberal laws about pot '' police aren't supposed to bust you if you possess the drug in private. So how do police work around that to make 50,377 pot-related arrests in a single year, just in this city? Tthat was 2010; the 2009 number was 46,492.)
  "What they do is, they stop you on the street and tell you to empty your pockets," the public defender explained. "Then the instant a pipe or a seed is out of the pocket '' boom, it's 'public use.' And you get arrested."
  People spend nights in jail, or worse. In New York, even if they let you off with a misdemeanor and time served, you have to pay $200 and have your DNA extracted '' a process that you have to pay for (it costs 50 bucks). But even beyond that, you won't have search very far for stories of draconian, idiotic sentences for nonviolent drug crimes.
  Just ask Cameron Douglas, the son of Michael Douglas, who got five years in jail for simple possession. His jailers kept him in solitary for 23 hours a day for 11 months and denied him visits with family and friends. Although your typical non-violent drug inmate isn't the white child of a celebrity, he's usually a minority user who gets far stiffer sentences than rich white kids would for committing the same crimes '' we all remember the crack-versus-coke controversy in which federal and state sentencing guidelines left (predominantly minority) crack users serving sentences up to 100 times harsher than those meted out to the predominantly white users of powdered coke.
  The institutional bias in the crack sentencing guidelines was a racist outrage, but this HSBC settlement blows even that away. By eschewing criminal prosecutions of major drug launderers on the grounds (the patently absurd grounds, incidentally) that their prosecution might imperil the world financial system, the government has now formalized the double standard.
  They're now saying that if you're not an important cog in the global financial system, you can't get away with anything, not even simple possession. You will be jailed and whatever cash they find on you they'll seize on the spot, and convert into new cruisers or toys for your local SWAT team, which will be deployed to kick in the doors of houses where more such inessential economic cogs as you live. If you don't have a systemically important job, in other words, the government's position is that your assets may be used to finance your own political disenfranchisement.
  On the other hand, if you are an important person, and you work for a big international bank, you won't be prosecuted even if you launder nine billion dollars. Even if you actively collude with the people at the very top of the international narcotics trade, your punishment will be far smaller than that of the person at the very bottom of the world drug pyramid. You will be treated with more deference and sympathy than a junkie passing out on a subway car in Manhattan (using two seats of a subway car is a common prosecutable offense in this city). An international drug trafficker is a criminal and usually a murderer; the drug addict walking the street is one of his victims. But thanks to Breuer, we're now in the business, officially, of jailing the victims and enabling the criminals.
  This is the disgrace to end all disgraces. It doesn't even make any sense. There is no reason why the Justice Department couldn't have snatched up everybody at HSBC involved with the trafficking, prosecuted them criminally, and worked with banking regulators to make sure that the bank survived the transition to new management. As it is, HSBC has had to replace virtually all of its senior management. The guilty parties were apparently not so important to the stability of the world economy that they all had to be left at their desks.
  So there is absolutely no reason they couldn't all face criminal penalties. That they are not being prosecuted is cowardice and pure corruption, nothing else. And by approving this settlement, Breuer removed the government's moral authority to prosecute anyone for any other drug offense. Not that most people didn't already know that the drug war is a joke, but this makes it official.
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Obama Hiding the Living Benghazi Bodies'...
  Link to Article
  Source: The Ulsterman Report
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 13:05
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Golden Globe nominations in an outline.
  Link to Article
  Source: Dave Winer
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 13:04
  Best Picture, Drama
  "Argo"
  "Django Unchained"
  "Life of Pi"
  "Lincoln"
  "Zero Dark Thirty"
  Best Picture, Musical or Comedy
  "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel"
  "Les Mis(C)rables"
  "Moonrise Kindgom"
  "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen"
  "Silver Linings Playbook"
  Best Director
  Ben Affleck, "Argo"
  Kathryn Bigelow, "Zero Dark Thirty"
  Ang Lee, "Life of Pi"
  Steven Spielberg, "Lincoln"
  Quentin Tarantino, "Django Unchained"
  Best Actress, Drama
  Jessica Chastain, "Zero Dark Thirty"
  Marion Cotillard, "Rust and Bone"
  Helen Mirren, "Hitchcock"
  Naomi Watts, "The Impossible"
  Rachel Weisz, "The Deep Blue Sea"
  Best Actor, Drama
  Daniel Day-Lewis, "Lincoln"
  Richard Gere, "Arbitrage"
  John Hawkes, "The Sessions"
  Joaquin Phoenix, "The Master"
  Denzel Washington, "Flight"
  Best Actor, Musical or Comedy
  Jack Black, "Bernie"
  Bradley Cooper, "Silver Linings Playbook"
  Hugh Jackman, "Les Mis(C)rables "
  Ewan MCGregor, "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen"
  Bill Murray, "Hyde Park on Hudson"
  Best Actress, Musical or Comedy
  Emily Blunt, "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen"
  Judi Dench, "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel"
  Jennifer Lawrence, "Silver Linings Playbook"
  Maggie Smith, "Quartet"
  Meryl Streep, "Hope Springs"
  Best Supporting Actress
  Amy Adams, "The Master"
  Sally Field, "Lincoln"
  Anne Hathaway, "Les Mis(C)rables"
  Helen Hunt, "The Sessions"
  Nicole Kidman, "The Paperboy"
  Best Supporting Actor
  Alan Arkin, "Argo"
  Leonardo DiCaprio, "Django Unchained"
  Philip Seymour Hoffman, "The Master"
  Tommy Lee Jones, "Lincoln"
  Christoph Waltz, "Django Unchained"
  Best Screenplay
  Mark Boal, "Zero Dark Thirty"
  Tony Kushner, "Lincoln"
  David O. Russell, "Silver Linings Playbook"
  Quentin Tarantino, "Django Unchained"
  Chris Terrio, "Argo"
  Best Original Score
  Dario Marianelli, "Anna Karenina"
  Alexandre Desplat, "Argo"
  Tom Tykwer, Johnny Klimet & Reinhold Heil, "Cloud Atlas"
  Michael Danna, "Life of Pi"
  John Williams, "Lincoln"
  Best Original Song
  "For You" from "Act of Valor"
  "Not Running Anymore" from "Stand Up Guys"
  "Safe and Sound" from "The Hunger Games"
  "Suddenly" from "Les Mis(C)rables"
  "Skyfall" from "Skyfall"
  Best Foreign Language Film
  "Amour"
  "A Royal Affair"
  "The Intouchables"
  "Kon-Tiki"
  "Rust and Bone"
  Best Animated Feature
  "Rise of the Guardians"
  "Brave"
  "Frankenweenie"
  "Hotel Transylvania"
  "Wreck-It Ralph"
  Cecil B. DeMille Award
  Jodie Foster
  Best Television Comedy or Musical
  "The Big Bang Theory"
  "Episodes"
  "Girls"
  "Modern Family"
  "Smash"
  Best Television Drama
  "Breaking Bad"
  "Boardwalk Empire"
  "Downton Abbey"
  "Homeland"
  "The Newsroom"
  Best Miniseries or Television Movie
  "Game Change"
  "The Girl"
  "Hatfields & McCoys"
  "The Hour"
  "Political Animals"
  Best Actress, Television Drama
  Connie Britton, "Nashville"
  Glenn Close, "Damages"
  Claire Danes, "Homeland"
  Michelle Dockery, "Downton Abbey"
  Julianna Margulies, "The Good Wife"
  Best Actor, Television Drama
  Best Actor, TV Drama Steve Buscemi, "Boardwalk Empire"
  Bryan Cranston, "Breaking Bad"
  Jeff Daniels, "The Newsroom"
  Jon Hamm, "Mad Men"
  Damian Lewis, "Homeland"
  Best Actress, Television Comedy Or Musical
  Zooey Deschanel, "New Girl"
  Lena Dunham, "Girls"
  Tina Fey, "30 Rock"
  Julia Louis-Dreyfus, "Veep"
  Amy Poehler, "Parks And Recreation"
  Best Actor, Television Comedy Or Musical
  Alec Baldwin, "30 Rock"
  Don Cheadle, "House of Lies"
  Louis C.K., "Louis"
  Matt LeBlanc, "Episodes"
  Jim Parsons, "The Big Bang Theory"
  Best Actress In A Mini-series or Motion Picture Made for Television
  Nicole Kidman, "Hemingway and Gellhorn"
  Jessica Lange, "American Horror Story Asylum"
  Sienna Miller, "The Girl"
  Julianne Moore, "Game Change"
  Sigourney Weaver, "Political Animals"
  Best Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
  Kevin Costner, "Hatfields and McCoys"
  Benedict Cumberbatch, "Sherlock"
  Woody Harrelson, "Game Change"
  Toby Jones, "The Girl"
  Clive Owen, "Hemingway and Gellhorn"
  Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
  Hayden Panettiere, "Nashville"
  Archie Panjabi, "The Good Wife"
  Sarah Paulson, "Game Change"
  Maggie Smith, "Downton Abbey"
  Sofia Vergara, "Modern Family"
  Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
  Max Greenfield, "New Girl"
  Ed Harris, "Game Change"
  Danny Huston, "Magic City"
  Mandy Patinkin, "Homeland"
  Eric Stonestreet, "Modern Family"
Who Lost Libya, Who Lost Syria, Who Lost Egypt? '-- Al Qaeda and the Harbingers of Obamagate
  Link to Article
  Source: TARPLEY.net
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 13:01
  Archives
  Webster G. Tarpley, Ph.D.PressTVDecember 12, 2012
  Publications
  Select a book to review and purchase on Amazon.com Most are also available at:
TSA Making an Impact with FEMA's Hurricane Recovery Efforts in New York
  Link to Article
  Source: The TSA Blog
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:59
  Over the past five weeks, thousands of New Yorkers have come in contact with more than 700 TSA officers, inspectors and administrative personnel from 200 airports across the country, men and women who have volunteered for a FEMA-led New York humanitarian recovery and assistance efforts in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. But odds are that they never knew it because these TSA employees literally traded in their blue security uniforms, black TSA inspector jackets and TSA badges for a FEMA badge to help residents recover from the devastation of Hurricane Sandy.These TSA employees are wearing winter coats and wool caps as members of the FEMA Community Relations Teams, going door-to-door in neighborhoods affected by Hurricane Sandy, helping residents sign up for both FEMA and state assistance. In many cases, these workers returned to check on the status of those applications, and returned again to make ''wellness checks'' along with members of the National Guard to offer water and food. TSA employees also are staffing many of FEMA's Disaster Recover Centers (DRC) that have been set up in community and recreation centers, schools, and other locations. At DRC's, survivors are guided through the recovery process to ensure that they are getting needed aid . They can also learn about available programs to get heat and electricity restored to their homes and shops '' so that their homes can again become inhabitable, and their shops readied for a return to business.Douglas Esteridge, a Master Behavior Detection Officer from Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW), said he was making a follow-up visit to the home of a middle-aged couple and noticed that the husband was leaning awkwardly on the door frame. Shortly before the storm, the man had undergone double-knee surgery but because his car had been flooded, he had been unable to get to his physical therapy sessions. Esteridge was able to contact his FEMA group leader, and together they arranged transportation for the man to get to his physical therapy appointments.Mark Siepak, a TSA Officer from Piedmont Triad International Airport (GSO) in Greensboro, N.C., said that early in his FEMA deployment, he was speaking with a woman who was living with her elderly mother '' with no heat or electricity.. The mother's feet would turn blue from the cold and the daughter would rub her mother's feet several times a day to warm them up. Siepak made what he refers to as ''an urgent-need call'' and while on the phone it was determined that the women were eligible for funds to cover the cost of housing and that the funds would be transferred the same day. ''If we get one person registered for assistance, we know we are making a difference. We don't want anybody to slip through the cracks,'' explains Vicki Andrews, a TSA Officer from Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport (GPT) in Mississippi, a Hurricane Katrina survivor who knows personally the value of FEMA's efforts. She was so appreciative of the assistance she and her family and community received post-Katrina that for this disaster, she made the decision to ''pay it forward'' and came north to help support FEMA's efforts in New York.These TSA employees put their lives on hold, packed a bag and waved goodbye to their families because they saw a need to help make a difference in the lives of complete strangers at a time when the need was greatest. They spent Thanksgiving away from loved ones. In the words of FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate '' ''duty called.''Like other agencies that fall within the scope of the Department of Homeland Security, TSA employees can volunteer to be members of what is known as the Surge Capacity Force; these volunteers are willing to be deployed to a disaster location to help FEMA with response and recovery support.Make no mistake, this work is no vacation. Surge Capacity Force members are putting in a minimum of 12- to 14-hour days living on maritime training vessels docked in the waterways of New York, to enable displaced residents to utilize the available hotel rooms. TSA employees are eating in a galley and sleeping in the hulls of ships in large, shared living quarters that feature triple-bunks. ''But we are sleeping well knowing that the important work we are doing is making a difference'' in improving the lives of their fellow countrymen, says Sharon Buckley, a Supervisory Transportation Security Officer from Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport (AMA).Guest Blogger Lisa Farbstein TSA Public Affairs Spokesperson, New York/New JerseyIf you have a travel related issue or question that needs an immediate answer, you can contact us byclicking here.
Statement by the President on Ambassador Rice
  Link to Article
  Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:58
  The White House
  Office of the Press Secretary
  For Immediate Release
  December 13, 2012
  Today, I spoke to Ambassador Susan Rice, and accepted her decision to remove her name from consideration for Secretary of State. For two decades, Susan has proven to be an extraordinarily capable, patriotic, and passionate public servant. As my Ambassador to the United Nations, she plays an indispensable role in advancing America's interests. Already, she has secured international support for sanctions against Iran and North Korea, worked to protect the people of Libya, helped achieve an independent South Sudan, stood up for Israel's security and legitimacy, and served as an advocate for UN reform and the human rights of all people. I am grateful that Susan will continue to serve as our Ambassador at the United Nations and a key member of my cabinet and national security team, carrying her work forward on all of these and other issues. I have every confidence that Susan has limitless capability to serve our country now and in the years to come, and know that I will continue to rely on her as an advisor and friend. While I deeply regret the unfair and misleading attacks on Susan Rice in recent weeks, her decision demonstrates the strength of her character, and an admirable commitment to rise above the politics of the moment to put our national interests first. The American people can be proud to have a public servant of her caliber and character representing our country.
Dem Rep. Barbara Lee Plays Race Card On Susan Rice's Withdrawal From Secretary Of State Nomination'...
  Link to Article
  Source: Weasel Zippers
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:57
  Isn't it abundantly obvious her nomination was opposed because she repeatedly lied to the American public in a futile effort to cover up the Benghazi terror attack?
  Disappointed Amb. Rice, such a well qualified woman of color, would be denied a fair shot @ Sec State based on unfounded political attacks.
  '-- Rep. Barbara Lee (@RepBarbaraLee) December 13, 2012
Heartache: Barbra Streisand Says She Would Never Date A Republican'...
  Link to Article
  Source: Weasel Zippers
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:57
  You know, because she's so sexy there's an abundance of conservative men willing to overlook her moonbat political views.
  Via Politico:
  Republicans hoping to romance Barbra Streisand are out of luck.
  Asked by CNN's Piers Morgan if she's ''ever been in love with a Republican,'' the famously liberal actress replied: ''Never.''
  ''Could you ever be?'' Morgan followed up.
  ''No,'' she replied. ''Well, I mean unless there was an enormous sexual chemistry and, you know, and I had to '' we never talked about politics, maybe. But I can't quite imagine it, no.''
USA TODAY
  Link to Article
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:54
  HELEN COMER GANNETT
  Yusra Mohammed conducts a tour for guests before the grand opening at the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro in Tennessee on Nov. 18.
  by Oliver Thomas, USA TODAY
  Published: 12/11/2012 06:09pm
  Iconic poet Carl Sandburg once was asked what was the dirtiest word in the English language. His answer might have surprised some people: Exclusive.
  The tendency to exclude others '-- to prejudge and ostracize '-- has dogged humankind and the United States since its inception. The first Jews to arrive in New York, then caled New Amsterdam, were refused the right even to get off their ship. When Gov. Peter Stuyvesant's Dutch sponsors prevailed upon him to grant the Jews admission, they still weren't allowed to vote, hold office or serve in the militia.
  Throughout America's rich history of welcoming "your huddled masses," this dark thread of bigotry has marred our national tapestry. First, it was Jews, then blacks, Catholics, gays, and now, Muslims who must sometimes bear the brunt of our prejudices.
  Copyright 2012 USATODAY.com
MSNBC's Michael Eric Dyson: GOP Opposed Susan Rice Because She's Black'...
  Link to Article
  Source: Weasel Zippers
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:52
  MSNBC has become a bad parody of itself.
  DYSON: This is the nasty politics that we have become heir to. But at the same time, Eric Holder, Barack Obama, Susan Rice. What do they have in common? They're highly intelligent African-American people who did it the way America said it wants things to be done. They've been well-educated, not that other well-educated people that aren't black or Latino have not been subject to vicious recriminations or assaults, but there's a resonant theme here about highly intelligent black people and some unconscious refusal to acknowledge their legitimacy.
  I mean, the questioning of especially President Obama's intelligence and Susan Rice's intelligence resonates very powerfully here, and I could give you history after history after history of the cases in which African-American people of prominence have been questioned, brought to the bar of public concern as to the legitimacy of their intelligence, and yet all along proving they are more than superior to those who oppose them. I think we have to be honest about that.
  Dyson didn't stop there, he also had this to say:
  It has even more significance now because it attacks a woman of such high pedigree when the question is not only her qualifications as per se who she is, but we know collectively what's going on here. We don't want to name what this is. We try to pretend we're being kind here, but we know she's one of the highest ranking African-American people here, and a female. The assault upon her intelligence stands apart from any consideration of race or gender, but when you throw race and gender in, the consideration of intelligence becomes even more acutely, you know, resonant here. I think we have to acknowledge that and her willingness to serve the country, and to withdraw her nomination, suggests that she truly is about the broader sense of democracy and serving the greater good.
Daily Press Briefing - December 13, 2012
  Link to Article
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:52
  1:04 p.m. EST
  MS. NULAND: All right, Happy Thursday, everybody. A couple of announcements at the top. First, a hearty welcome to our diplomats from Afghanistan in the back of the room. You are most welcome. And also I want to take this opportunity to extend a very happy birthday to George Shultz. He was my very first boss in this building, and we wish him the very best today.
  Let's go to what's on your minds.
  QUESTION: Can we start with Syria and comments made both in Moscow and in Brussels about '' from the Russians and from NATO about the end is nigh kind of thing? I presume you agree with them, but is there evidence that this is really now kind of a matter of days?
  MS. NULAND: Well, as you know, we've been saying for some time that we are seeing the opposition make significant gains on the ground. I don't think any of us has a crystal ball as to exactly how this is going to go, but we do believe that the Assad regime's days are numbered. The opposition, in recent days and weeks, has made a number of significant captures, in particular a major military facility outside of Aleppo, the large Sheik Suleiman base, and other important military installations. And you can see what the regime is doing in its desperate efforts to forestall the inevitable. It is using increasingly lethal weapons and indiscriminate violence against its people.
  So obviously, the fighting continues. There's still fighting in Damascus. There's fighting in Aleppo. But it is clear that the regime's efforts to defeat the opposition militarily are clearly failing.
  QUESTION: And do you have anything to add to what you said yesterday about deployment of missiles?
  MS. NULAND: I don't have anything to add, other than to say again what we said yesterday, that we are seeing use of missiles. I'm not in a position to confirm specific types. And we are also seeing these really horrific barrel bombs as well.
  QUESTION: Okay, hold on. You just said ''use of missiles.'' So they've gone from deploy to use?
  MS. NULAND: We did, I thought, confirm use of missiles yesterday.
  QUESTION: Well, you didn't, but --
  MS. NULAND: Yeah.
  QUESTION: Victoria, on the issue of the use of missiles, since you spoke yesterday, there has been reports actually confirming the use of SCUD missiles. So you cannot confirm that they have been used?
  MS. NULAND: I'm not in a position here to confirm types of missiles, but obviously, we've seen missiles in the field, as we've said for a couple of days.
  QUESTION: Although as spokesman for NATO basically said that they have used them, and he said that the trajectory and the so on indicate that it is a SCUD.
  MS. NULAND: Again, if you have that from NATO, you can run it from NATO. I'm not in a position to confirm types here.
  Jill.
  QUESTION: Toria, if you look at those comments by the Russian '' by Mr. Bogdanov, he goes further and he says the end is nigh. But he also says, at this point, it's going to be even worse because there is no prospect for any type of negotiated settlement because, he would argue, the SOC will not negotiate. They simply won't. And by acknowledging them or recognizing them as the legitimate representatives of the people, the U.S. essentially is throwing its cards on the table and saying there's going to be a military fighting decision or conclusion to this rather than a diplomatic one. What do you say to that?
  MS. NULAND: Well, let me start with regard to the first set of comments by Mr. Bogdanov that the Assad regime's days are numbered. I think we want to commend the Russian Government for finally waking up to the reality and acknowledging that the regime's days are numbered. I think the question now is: Will the Russian Government join those of us in the international community who are working with the opposition to try to have a smooth democratic transition here, to take the blueprint that we all agreed on in Geneva and form a transitional government and have a transition that is as smooth, as democratic, as protective of the patrimony of the Syrian people, if you will, as possible?
  Our concern is that if we do not all use our influence with those in Syria, we will have a further ripping of the fabric of the country, we will have further destruction to important infrastructure, important communities, we will have more tension between communities, which are just going to make it harder to rebuild Syria in a democratic, unified, peaceful, stable direction later.
  So we call on Russia to work with us. We have this channel, the Brahimi-Burns-Bogdanov channel, to look at how we can take the work that we did in Geneva, work with the various stakeholders in Syria to start moving towards transitional structures, and we would like to have their help in doing that.
  QUESTION: But if you look at this, I mean, essentially they agree with a lot of what you're saying, except that Assad has to go. And Mr. Putin is making it clear he is not going to say that publicly, that Assad has to go. So what specifically do you think that they can do to bring about some type of smooth end to this?
  MS. NULAND: Well, first of all, they can withdraw any residual support for the Assad regime, whether it's material support, financial support. They can continue to make the kinds of comments that they've been making that the regime's days are numbered and it's time to work on a transition. That's what they can do publicly. That's what they can do in terms of their policy towards the Assad regime.
  But they can also help us to identify people who might be willing, inside of Syria, to work on a transitional structure. We are obviously encouraging the Syrian Opposition Coalition to work with us on a transition to have its own structure. They have a lot of contacts in Syria, and they ought to be working and helping publicly in forming this transitional governing structure that can take Syria forward and make the transition as smooth as possible.
  QUESTION: Toria, you mentioned that one thing they could do is withdraw any residual support they might have for the Assad regime. That makes it sound as though you guys think that their support is already on a downward slope. Do you have any indication that they are in any way decreasing their material support for Assad and company?
  And secondly, we've had two meetings now of the Brahimi channel, as you call it. Do you have any reason to believe that there is hope that the Russians will sign on? I mean, have they given you indications that, yes, in fact, we are ready to play ball?
  MS. NULAND: With regard to your first question, you know that some months ago the Russian Federation themselves made clear that on the military side there would be no new contracts. We continue to believe that existing contracts should not be fulfilled, and we remain concerned about economic support, other kinds of support. We'd like to see the Russian Federation join our model, the European Union's model, the Arab League's model, of increasingly cutting off economic ties as well with the regime. That would have a material impact on the ground.
  With regard to the sessions in the Brahimi-Bogdanov-Burns channel, I think we expect to have another meeting when Mr. Brahimi is ready. And our hope would be that with these public comments that the Russians see the writing on the wall, we will be able to really bear down now and work on what a transitional governing structure might look like.
  QUESTION: Victoria, just a quick follow-up on the Geneva thing that you mentioned. I know yesterday you contradicted the Russian Foreign Minister when he said that recognizing the council does not comport to the Geneva point. You said to the contrary. Where in the Geneva points does it explicitly state or exclude the regime or the regime elements from being part of the transitions?
  MS. NULAND: Well, I'm not going to get into the letter and spirit here. We can have a separate discussion without wasting the whole room's time. But in the Geneva document, when it talks about how the transitional governing structure might be formed, it talks about members of that structure being named by mutual consent. As the Secretary said in Geneva right afterwards, we don't see anybody consenting to Assad being part of it given the role that he has played. So from our perspective, he's explicitly '' implicitly if not explicitly precluded in that document.
  Justin.
  QUESTION: Hey, Toria. So in light of the comments from the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, are there any indications that the Russians are trying to broker a safe exit for Assad either somewhere in the Middle East or in Russia? Is that '' are we not there yet, or have you gotten any indications that that could happen or that they're working on that?
  MS. NULAND: Sounds like a question for them rather than a question for us in terms of what they may or may not be brokering. You know our view that accountability is important for anybody who is responsible for atrocities or who has blood on their hands, and the Syrian people are going to have to conclude how that should go forward. I think we've said in the past that we've had indications that a number of countries '' and I'll let them speak for themselves '' but that a number of countries have made overtures to the Assad family and have offered safe haven if he would end this and leave. So far, he hasn't shown any interest in taking them up on that.
  QUESTION: Toria, just going to the second '' what Jill talked about, the second part of the Deputy Foreign Minister's comments, there seems to be this feeling in Russia that you are conspiring against them. There was an editorial '' there was an opinion piece yesterday in Pravda, which was called ''The Stupidity of U.S. Foreign Policy,'' which said that you, the Brits, and the French have combined in an axis of what they '' the acronym they used was FUKUS, that F being France, U-K, and then U-S '' (laughter) '' which seems to be rather pointed. And I'm just wondering if, one, this '' you see this axis of this triumvirate of France, UK, U.S. as existing, and two ''
  MS. NULAND: Can you say the name of the acronym again? (Laughter.)
  QUESTION: FUKUS. (Laughter.) But I think you could have an alternate pronunciation if you wanted to. (Laughter.) But using my pronunciation, the second part of the question is whether you think that there is any merit from the Russian perspective that FUKUS is precisely what that is intended to do. (Laughter.)
  MS. NULAND: First, Matt, let me just say that I clearly owe you at least two if not three rounds of drinks for yourself and all your friends for you candor here in my briefing room. Look, frankly, that article, which we did see, speaks to what passes for news in Pravda. Right? For those of you who have been reading Pravda recently, whenever I take a look at it, I really hear the Beatles in my head, ''Back in the USSR.'' But there you go. Look ''
  QUESTION: Well, can you address the point ''
  MS. NULAND: The broader question ''
  QUESTION: -- or the idea that this, that you, the Brits, the French, and the Turks and everyone else who's in the Friends of Syria are really conspiring against the Russians and Russian interests in Syria, and also the point of the Deputy Foreign Minister that Jill was talking about that this really doesn't help the Syrian people either?
  MS. NULAND: Well, first of all, let's just look at the numbers here. I think we talked yesterday about 114 countries coming to the Friends of the Syrian People. If you look at the final declaration from that conference, it comes very close to the precise words that the President used in our recognition of the Syrian Opposition Coalition as representing the Syrian people now. So it has been Russia that's been out of step with the international consensus with regard to who really speaks for the Syrian people, what their aspirations are going forward. So that's one thing.
  So I would simply ask Russia who they do think represents the Syrian people if not this group that has endorsed these declarations that came forward in July expressing a desire for a peaceful, unified, stable Syria that protects the rights of all its people and to be released from the tyranny that they have been living under. So that's one thing.
  With regard to the path going forward, we've said all along to the Russians that we are concerned that the longer this goes on and the longer it takes us to get to an alternative political path for Syria, the only path is going to be the military one; and that's just going to bring more violence, more destruction, more disruption and death inside Syria, and the Syrian people are going to suffer, and that we all ought to be working together.
  We've been making this point for arguably a year, but certainly, it was the basis of the work that we thought we were doing in Geneva in June, that we needed to rally around the concept similar to the way that the international community did in Yemen and, frankly, in Libya that these guys' days are over. We need a group that can take Syria forward in a democratic direction. And we still want to work with Russia in that regard, and we urge them to get to know the Syrian Opposition Coalition, to talk to them, to talk to their leaders and get a sense for how they see taking the country forward, because we think it's a better path than what we're doing now.
  QUESTION: Toria?
  MS. NULAND: Please.
  QUESTION: Are you aware of the discussions that some states like Russia, Iraq, Algeria are engaged with President Assad to find a safe haven for him?
  MS. NULAND: I think I just answered that in relation to '' I think Justin just asked the exact question. We are aware that there are countries out there that have made overtures. To our knowledge, those have not been successful. We'll let those countries speak for themselves. We continue to be concerned that anybody with blood on their hands in Syria needs to be held to account.
  Please.
  QUESTION: You just talk about recent captures of the rebels in Syria as a momentum. Just to be clear, are you viewing this as a positive development to the solution in Syria?
  MS. NULAND: Well, obviously, the most positive development would be for the violence to end, for a transition to begin, for Assad to be gone. But as I said, there was a time there where it wasn't clear what the balance of forces was going to be. Increasingly, we see that the regime is failing in its efforts to defeat this opposition militarily. So we hope that those around Assad who are still supporting him, whether it's political support or whether it's military support, will also see the writing on the wall and peel off from him, split from him, refuse orders, and make their views clear that it's time for a new Syria as well.
  QUESTION: I believe yesterday President of the Syrian National Coalition, Mr. al-Khatib, called on the U.S. Government to reassess its designating of the Jabhat al-Nusrah. (Inaudible) reassess your designation?
  MS. NULAND: We had a long discussion of that in this room yesterday. I would refer you to those comments. As I said, Deputy Secretary Burns had a chance to meet with Syrian Opposition Coalition members, including the president of the coalition, Mr. al-Khatib, yesterday. And they had a really candid discussion about this, and it gave Deputy Secretary Burns a chance to directly say that we want to see the Syrian opposition remain unified behind democratic values, behind an open human rights-based future vision for Syria, and groups like al-Nusrah have a very, very different vision. They have a different playbook, and all you need to do is look at what they tried to do in Iraq to understand the dangers.
  So it was a good conversation, it was a candid conversation, and we remain concerned that anybody fighting in the name of the Syrian people really needs to isolate these guys, because they are bad guys.
  QUESTION: So you want Syria rebels to isolate these extremists?
  MS. NULAND: We do.
  QUESTION: How you are going to help these rebels to do that?
  MS. NULAND: Well, again, we are also talking, as I said yesterday '' and go back to those comments. I don't think we need to relitigate it here today. Our message in designating al-Nusrah had two audiences. It had a Syrian audience, but it also had an audience among those who are providing support for the opposition in the international community. As we've been saying for quite a long time, one of the focuses of our work with our partners, whether they are working on the nonlethal side or whether they're providing other kinds of assistance, has been to try to make sure that anybody providing assistance to the opposition is really vetting who they're providing it to. So again, in designating al-Nusrah, we were also sending a message to our partners to be careful, to watch what al-Nusrah's up to, and to break ties with them and make sure that none of the support that they're giving goes to them.
  Jo.
  QUESTION: Is the --
  MS. NULAND: Jo. Jo.
  QUESTION: Can I ask about --
  MS. NULAND: Yeah.
  QUESTION: Can I ask about '' in relation to your relationships with your other allies on this issue of Syria, and notably with France, there's been some rumblings in the French foreign ministry that Washington didn't share its knowledge of the chemical weapons movements last week with Paris, and they're a little bit discontented with that. I just wondered if that's true, if it's '' and usually you would share such intelligence with allies, and in general, what the relationship has been with France in dealing with Syria?
  MS. NULAND: Well, first of all, I'm not going to talk about intelligence at all, and I'm certainly not going to talk about intelligence sharing with allies. I think you know that we are profoundly committed, particularly with our NATO allies and our other treaty allies around the world, to sharing intelligence at the highest level possible. So '' and let me also say that as the Secretary made clear, as Secretary General Rasmussen made clear, there was a good discussion among allies during the NATO ministerial last week about precisely what we're concerned about, and about the need to send public messages and to be fully prepared in the event that Assad makes a tragic decision.
  QUESTION: Can I just make sure I understand that last bit? So you're saying that the chemical weapon concerns were raised at the NAC meeting?
  MS. NULAND: There was a discussion at the dinner among foreign ministers about the chemical weapon '' about Syria in general --
  QUESTION: Right.
  MS. NULAND: -- but about the chemical weapon concerns.
  QUESTION: And was the French foreign minister privy to this conversation?
  MS. NULAND: He was at the dinner, as I recall. Yeah.
  QUESTION: So maybe he just missed it?
  MS. NULAND: I can't speak to '' no, he was there. He was --
  QUESTION: No, but I mean maybe he wasn't '' maybe he was, I don't know, not paying attention at that particular moment.
  MS. NULAND: I wasn't in the room.
  QUESTION: But in general, have you been on the same page with France and most of your other allies when having to deal with Syria, or have there been sort of tensions about how to deal with some aspects of moving forward in the political transition?
  MS. NULAND: Well, this has been '' in every meeting we've had, with French officials, with UK officials, with German officials, over the last year and a half, Syria has been one of the top three topics, I would say, that we've talked about in an effort to maintain coordination. And as you know, we work '' we've met a number of times in this ad hoc format of those foreign ministers who are providing the bulk of the support to the opposition, and France has been very much a part of that. As you know, one of those meetings took place in Paris back in the spring.
  Yeah. Samir.
  QUESTION: The new developments in regarding Syria, do you still see a need for Mr. Brahimi to continue his mission? And what will he be doing, I mean, after the full collapse of the regime?
  MS. NULAND: Well, again, this can happen easily, or it can happen in a very messy way. I'm talking about the political transition. So the degree to which Special Envoy Brahimi can make progress in managing the transition, in coming up with a leadership structure, and in working with the major stakeholders on an agreed plan so we can create a reality that can manage Syria in the post-Assad phase, that's going to be better for Syria, it's going to be better for the Syrian people, it's going to be better for the international community's ability to help the Syrians recover from the tragedy that they've been through.
  So he thinks that he may be able, with the support of the U.S. and Russia, to make more progress. And so, as the Secretary said, we're prepared to support that in the context of a larger policy toward Syria that includes all of these other elements '' the recognition, support for the opposition, humanitarian aid, sanctions against Assad, et cetera.
  Let me '' just before we leave Syria, I have a little bit more information here I want to share with all of you about some of the medical assistance that we've been able to provide. We shared some of this with the journalists who were with Deputy Secretary Burns in Marrakesh, but since the majority of you were not able to travel, let me just give it a little bit more lift here.
  As you know, we have been concerned, among the horrors that the Assad regime has been perpetrating on its own people, that they have deliberately targeted humanitarian aid workers and locations where humanitarian assistance is being provided. Syrian hospitals have been bombed by the regime. Clinics have been raided. Supplies have been damaged and stolen. Doctors and medical staff have been targeted, intimidated, arrested, et cetera.
  So in response to this and the real need for medical care inside Syria and humanitarian relief, we have targeted a lot of the assistance '' humanitarian assistance that we've been providing, some $210 million to date '' on medical needs. During this time, an estimated 410,000 patients in Syria have been reached through field hospitals and medical points by U.S. Government-trained medical workers. And USAID-funded field hospitals inside Syria have performed some 22,370 surgeries, helping a wide range of Syrians who have suffered as a result of the regime's brutality.
  Our partner in Syria, who will go unnamed to protect security, has set up some 20 field hospitals inside the country, many in discreet locations such as in basements and in old warehouses to avoid their being identified, to avoid their becoming the subject of attack. At these hospitals, as well as at aid points and clinics, we're providing a wide range of material supplies as well '' surgical beds, x-ray machines, defibrillators, gauze, bandages, medicines to help with complex injuries and wounds.
  We're also providing training to Syrian doctors in emergency field medicine because medical staff is stretched to capacity, so sometimes nurses and lesser-trained people are called on to deal with very complex situations. And we're also training a number of healthcare workers and first responders.
  As of the end of November, we've trained over 500 medical volunteers and personnel who are helping to save lives in Syria. So that's just a little bit more detail than we've been able to pull together to date on where the U.S. taxpayers' humanitarian support for the people of Syria is going.
  QUESTION: Just if --
  QUESTION: Victoria, is this the only channel, through the Office of the Coordinator for Middle East Transition, of this aid, the $210 million?
  MS. NULAND: And USAID, yes.
  QUESTION: And USAID?
  MS. NULAND: Mm-hmm.
  QUESTION: And where are doing that training, inside or --
  MS. NULAND: All of the detail that I just gave you is happening inside Syria '' inside Syria.
  QUESTION: Is that what you call the inter-agency coordination effort?
  MS. NULAND: Yeah.
  QUESTION: Wait, the training of Syrians is being done inside Syria?
  MS. NULAND: We do train the trainer programs, and then they go inside and train again.
  QUESTION: Just follow up humanitarian aid situation, in Aleppo there have been many reports that there's a lack of bread, oil, and heat, and all these basic needs for people. There are warnings that that could be some deaths in result of hunger. Have you been contacted by other '' maybe Turkey or other countries to do '' supply these basic needs in Syria as well?
  MS. NULAND: Well, we are working through our nonlethal support offices with a large number of folks in Aleppo. Aleppo has been one of the areas that we have been focusing on, giving them the humanitarian needs, et cetera.
  As you know, we've been working with those who've been trying to provide services in those parts of the country where the regime is no longer able to provide for people, so some of these kinds of things. I'm not going to get into any more specifics, to protect those people that we're working with.
  QUESTION: But apparently, it is not working now, because there are many credible reports coming from Aleppo, the place that you have been saying that you have been doing all the work.
  MS. NULAND: Well, as you know, Aleppo is the site of extremely fierce fighting, and has been for months, so again, responsibility, first and foremost at the doorstep of Assad and his regime. But we are working, and the Turks are working, and other partners are working very much to help try to relieve suffering in Aleppo and help them survive the onslaught.
  Can we move on to another country '' subject?
  QUESTION: Yes. Yeah. I will. Just on Egypt --
  MS. NULAND: Yeah.
  QUESTION: -- do you have any particular security concerns for your people in Egypt this weekend?
  MS. NULAND: Well, with regard to '' I think it's less a matter of our people; I think it's simply a question of wanting to see this referendum, assuming --
  QUESTION: Okay. That's fine, but wait, wait. No, my question was --
  MS. NULAND: You're talking about Americans?
  QUESTION: -- specifically about Americans and U.S. officials in Egypt this weekend. You can get into the broader referendum thing. I'm just wondering if there are any specific concerns about possible violence --
  MS. NULAND: Well, obviously we have concerns about violence and we would take appropriate precautions with regard to Americans. But why don't I make the broader point? Is that that --
  QUESTION: Yeah, you can, but my question was (inaudible).
  MS. NULAND: I don't '' I mean, we have concerns that the procedure goes forward peacefully. We will obviously be monitoring that. But we '' I don't have any particular information about Americans being targeted, if that's what you're concerned about, Matt.
  QUESTION: Are you planning to send monitors to monitor the referendum?
  MS. NULAND: My expectation is that the Embassy will be out and about trying to watch the polling, as we always do in countries around the world. But I don't know of any U.S. NGOs who are fielding teams, if that's what you're asking.
  QUESTION: Okay. So that's kind of what I was getting at. I mean, you are '' there are people from the Embassy who are going to be going out to gauge the mood. You're not telling them all to stay home.
  MS. NULAND: I think the Embassy will be performing the function that it usually performs at these kinds of times. But more broadly on Egypt, just to make the point that if and as this referendum goes forward as planned '' this will be an opportunity for Egyptians to exercise their democratic rights and to do so peacefully and to participate in the future of their country.
  It's also the responsibility of the government to provide a safe, transparent, and fair environment for voting, assuming that it goes forward. So we call on Egyptians '' Egypt's political leaders of all stripes to make clear to their supporters that violence of any kind during this polling is unacceptable. And we call on the Egyptian people to take all possible measures to avoid confrontation and violence.
  At the same time, we call on President Morsi, as the first democratically elected leader of Egypt, to lead the effort before, during, and after the voting to continue to try to build a national consensus, because otherwise, we're just going to see a repeat of the kinds of tensions that we've seen over the last months.
  QUESTION: Victoria --
  MS. NULAND: Please.
  QUESTION: Now, you said, ''if'' it goes forward. Do you have any doubt that it might not?
  MS. NULAND: Well, the government has made clear that it's going forward. The opposition has made clear that it intends to participate. Again, this is a key democratic moment for Egypt. So all Egyptian citizens should participate and they should do so peacefully.
  QUESTION: But also in the tone of what you '' follow through '' you're encouraging people to participate in the referendum, and you think it's a good thing for Egypt?
  MS. NULAND: If it goes forward, assuming it goes forward, sitting on the sidelines is not going to have '' ensure that voices and concerns are registered.
  QUESTION: So the (inaudible).
  MS. NULAND: People have to go out and exercise their democratic rights. It's taken Egypt a long time to have these options, and they should go use them.
  QUESTION: So you have faith in those who are actually '' who will supervise this effort, or oversee this effort, and they will conduct themselves professionally and in a transparent way and fair and free way?
  MS. NULAND: Well, again, that's what we've just called for. Assuming voting goes forward, it needs to be conducted in a fair, transparent, open manner. There needs to be no violence, no intimidation of any kind, no effort to manipulate. It needs to meet international standards.
  QUESTION: You have no concern that 40 percent of the public are illiterate and may not understand what is before them?
  MS. NULAND: Again, this needs to go forward in a way that builds consensus, that's perceived as fair, that is comprehensible to the public, et cetera.
  QUESTION: So by calling on President Morsi, are you saying that perhaps he hasn't made enough efforts previously to try to build this national consensus?
  MS. NULAND: Look, Jo, we've all seen what's been going on, and we've spoken about it here for some time. We've spoken about it from '' the Secretary's also raised these concerns, as have others, that there are legitimate questions, both about the process and about the substance. And so there has been a question about whether this is going to build consensus, and we call on the President to continue to try to build that consensus.
  QUESTION: But you do seem to be putting a stronger onus today on President Morsi's responsibilities and role in this issue than you have done in previous weeks.
  MS. NULAND: I think we've been clear all along that as the democratically elected President of the country, he's got responsibilities to the Egyptian people and he's got responsibilities to Egypt's future.
  Moving on? Please.
  QUESTION: Can I go to China and Japan?
  MS. NULAND: China and Japan.
  QUESTION: Yeah. Yesterday the disputes between China and Japan over the Diaoyu Island has entered to a new sphere which involves aircrafts. What is your stance on this disputed airspace?
  MS. NULAND: Well, our view on the Senkakus in general hasn't changed. I don't have anything new to say there. I would simply say that incidents like the one we've seen in the past 24 hours just underscore once again the importance of Japan and China talking to each other, working these issues through consensually.
  QUESTION: Are you concerned this incident will escalate?
  MS. NULAND: Again, they need to talk to each other to ensure that it doesn't.
  QUESTION: But do you have the concern?
  MS. NULAND: Again, they need to talk to each other to ensure that these kinds of things don't continue and that they don't escalate.
  QUESTION: And do you think this incident, China sends the aircraft to this disputed area, indicate that the Chinese '' new China '' Chinese leadership's policy '' their determination to protect its soil?
  MS. NULAND: I'm not going to speak for the Chinese Government and its motives. You can ask them that question.
  Josh.
  QUESTION: Can we --
  QUESTION: Thank you. On North Korea?
  QUESTION: Oh, yeah.
  QUESTION: (Inaudible) North Korea?
  MS. NULAND: Are we all agreeing we're moving to North Korea?
  QUESTION: Yes, yes, yes. I was going to say let's stay in the region.
  QUESTION: North Korea. So has there been any direct contact with the North Korean Government either through New York channel or any other channel?
  MS. NULAND: I spoke to this a little bit yesterday, Josh. We have channels to talk to them, as you know, and we use them as we need to. I'm not going to get into specifics here.
  QUESTION: What's your comment on the fact that the U.S. Government was caught off guard by this rocket launch? I mean, usually we have a pretty good idea when these things are going to happen. But DOD, this building, the intel agencies, they were all sort of surprised at the moment of the launch.
  MS. NULAND: I would reject that. We've been working, as I said yesterday, for weeks and weeks and weeks. We have been warning against this launch, and we've been preparing a response if the North Koreans did the wrong thing, as they did.
  QUESTION: Do you have any idea why it took so long for the reaction '' I mean '' to come out, then? If you were anticipating '' were you waiting for the --
  MS. NULAND: You mean that the launch was at X hour and it took us maybe two and half hours to give you a statement?
  QUESTION: Yeah.
  MS. NULAND: Is that what you're '' I think that the first question was --
  QUESTION: Were you waiting to see whether it was successful or not, or were you --
  MS. NULAND: We were evaluating exactly what had happened and trying to gather information.
  QUESTION: Wasn't it '' sorry. But wasn't it the case that the analysis in this building and in DOD the day of the attack, the day of the launch, Tuesday, was that, based in conjunction with North Korean '' with South Korean intelligence, that the North Koreans were disassembling the rocket, that there was going to be a delay in the launch, that it was going to happen either next week or the week after? Isn't that just factually accurate?
  MS. NULAND: Josh, I am not going to get into what our intelligence was telling us before, during, or after from this podium.
  QUESTION: How's the satellite doing now? I mean, there's reports that it's tumbling and out of control. Do you want to talk about that?
  MS. NULAND: Again, I'm going to send you to NORAD. They are the experts on what's happening.
  QUESTION: They don't '' that's '' not really. (Laughter.)
  MS. NULAND: I --
  QUESTION: Yeah. Again, like I said yesterday, they seem to do a better job of tracking Santa than they do '' (laughter) '' tracking satellites.
  MS. NULAND: I went up on their Santa site. It's kind of cool. Yeah. I liked it.
  QUESTION: Yeah. But, no, in all seriousness, you would think that they would be able to do something. This is actually '' well --
  MS. NULAND: Well, we don't have --
  QUESTION: -- not to ruin any surprises for anyone, but this is actually not fictional. This is a real satellite or a real rocket that launched something real into orbit. And it's great that they want to put on a show for the kids every year. But when it comes down to it, this is a national security issue. And if this thing is out of control and potentially could do damage to other satellites that are up there or could fall '' could land and do damage, then I think it's something that the public should know about.
  MS. NULAND: Well, again, we don't have the expertise in this building, obviously, to evaluate these kinds of things. It rests elsewhere in the government. I don't have any new information from those agencies to share. When we do, we will.
  Yeah.
  QUESTION: So the Administration's policy is often described as one of strategic patience, waiting for the North Koreans to make the decision to engage in talks in good faith under agreed upon parameters. Meanwhile, their rocket technology continues to advance. Is there any sense that this policy of strategic patience is just biding time for the North Koreans to advance their rocket and uranium programs?
  MS. NULAND: Well, I would reject the premise of that question as well. We talked at length here yesterday '' I refer you to that conversation, which went on for about half an hour '' with regard to our efforts to encourage the North Koreans to take a different path, incentives and pressure combined, encouraging this new leader to make a better choice for his people, for regional security, which unfortunately does not seem to be the path that he has chosen. But '' so we are left with continuing to increase the pressure, and that's what we will do, to try to encourage them to change course, working with our partners.
  QUESTION: With regards to that and China's role, we had a long conversation yesterday about how you believe the Chinese have been appropriate in their position before the launch and since the launch, even tried to pressurize North Korea. But Beijing has come out this morning, and it seems to be against the idea of imposing any kind of further '' any further sanctions on North Korea. And actually, there was a comment in one of the state-run media that the Chinese influence on North Korea is much more limited than many people think. What would be your assessment of that?
  MS. NULAND: Well, first of all, as Ambassador Rice said yesterday after the first round of consultations up in New York, we are working with both our Six-Party partners and with our UN Security Council partners '' China is in both of those categories '' on a clear and credible response to what the North Koreans have done. The action on that has moved to New York. We are working hard with the Chinese and with our other partners to make it clear that the international community is extremely concerned about this flagrant violation of international law.
  QUESTION: But is it your sense that the Chinese will actually block any kind of resolution on further sanctions?
  MS. NULAND: I'm not going to predict how these consultations are going to go in New York. I'm going to send you to our folks in New York for the latest. But the action is up there now.
  Please, in the back.
  QUESTION: North Korea news agency reported that Kim Jong said he will continue to launch satellite.
  MS. NULAND: Can you speak up? I can't hear you.
  QUESTION: Okay. North Korea news agency reported that Kim Jong said he would continue to launch satellite from now on. So it seems he doesn't care about further isolation. Do you have any response to it?
  MS. NULAND: Well, again, that also means he doesn't care about the future of his people, because they're just going to get poorer and hungrier and suffer more, if that's the course that he wants to take. He has a chance, as a new leader, to take his country back into the 21st century, to take it back into integration with the region and with the world, but he's making the wrong choices right now.
  QUESTION: And you don't think he's blown that chance? This '' I mean, he hasn't blown that chance now?
  MS. NULAND: Again, he can still change course. We have seen no evidence that he plans to.
  Justin.
  QUESTION: I wanted to change subjects if I could.
  QUESTION: One more.
  MS. NULAND: One more on North Korea? Yeah.
  QUESTION: North Korea (inaudible) announced they are preparing --
  MS. NULAND: Who announced, please?
  QUESTION: North Korean (inaudible).
  MS. NULAND: Yeah.
  QUESTION: And they are prepared to a third launch nuclear test soon. Would you comment on that?
  MS. NULAND: Well, obviously that would be a grave error that's just going to isolate them further.
  QUESTION: On (inaudible) UN Security Council Resolution 1718 and 1874, sanctions against North Korea, that '' does sanctions have any effect on North Korea?
  MS. NULAND: Well, I think you need to ask the North Koreans that, but it's one of the most isolated countries in the world, in terms of its ability to trade and have normal commerce with other countries around the world in terms of the way we deal with it or don't deal with it at all, and that North Korean people are suffering the consequences from the bad choices of their leaders over many years.
  Please.
  QUESTION: So as '' just to change the subject. As you know, Congress has set a date for Secretary Clinton to testify on Benghazi. So does that mean that the ARB is done now? And has she seen it? Have you seen it?
  MS. NULAND: First of all, we talked about this a little bit yesterday. The ARB is continuing to do its work. To my knowledge, it has not yet concluded its work. As you know, it's decided to keep its deliberations confidential until it is finished. As we've been saying, our expectation is that after the ARB reports to the Secretary, then she will have consultations with Congress in terms of the conclusions that she draws about how we need to go forward from there. So obviously, we're planning ahead, but I don't have any dates to announce until we have firm dates on when the ARB is coming forward.
  QUESTION: Does Congress get a copy of the ARB, and do Mullen and Pickering either brief Congress or brief the press?
  MS. NULAND: The ARB's responsibility is to brief the Secretary. The Secretary has said that she will be transparent and open with Congress. I don't have anything further to announce. I think we need to let the ARB report come forward, and we'll go from there.
  QUESTION: Do you know if the ARB has reached any conclusions, any significant conclusions thus far? For example, were the deaths avoidable?
  MS. NULAND: Again, we're not going to be briefing this report '' they are not to the Secretary, nor are we to you '' piecemeal. They're not finished with their work. Presumably, when they are finished, it will become clearer what their conclusions are.
  QUESTION: But she does intend to ''
  QUESTION: On that point ''
  QUESTION: She does intend to testify next Thursday on the 20th of December?
  MS. NULAND: Again, the Hill has talked about a planning date on the calendar. That presumes that the ARB is finished. I don't have any dates '' any schedule of the Secretary's to announce here. It's dependent upon events between now and then.
  QUESTION: So it was a Congress decision to set the date? There wasn't any consultation with the Secretary then?
  MS. NULAND: Again, I think I've had '' I've said what I can on the dates. They've obviously planned a date on the calendar that is dependent on all of the work getting done between now and then. I really don't have anything further.
  QUESTION: So she hasn't committed to that date?
  QUESTION: She hasn't committed to testify?
  MS. NULAND: Again, it's dependent on the work being finished. Okay?
  QUESTION: Are you aware that Senator Kerry announced that she will testify next Thursday?
  MS. NULAND: She has made clear that when the work is ready, she will go consult with Congress on it. And that's a commitment she's made, and she intends to keep it.
  QUESTION: And it could be later. On the point that he made, under the ARB regulations, the report is required to be given to Congress within 90 days of its completion.
  MS. NULAND: No. What is required, Josh, and we'll get you the statute if you'd like, is that the Secretary's response to the ARB's conclusions has to go in writing to the Congress within 90 days of her receiving the report. She obviously will intend to consult with them far earlier than that, as she's committed.
  QUESTION: Does that go to the foreign affairs committee or ''
  MS. NULAND: It goes to our committees of jurisdiction, HFAC and SFRC, yes.
  QUESTION: So you might not share the actual ARB with them*?
  MS. NULAND: Again, I don't have anything to announce one way or the other on that.
  QUESTION: Can we move on?
  QUESTION: Can we change topics?
  MS. NULAND: Yeah, please.
  QUESTION: Yes. Could you share with us anything that might have come out of the Quartet?
  MS. NULAND: That might have come out of the Quartet meetings?
  QUESTION: Yes.
  MS. NULAND: I have a ''
  QUESTION: I can make this shorter. Can you share with us anything substantive that came out of the Quartet meeting? (Laughter.) And then we can just go to the next question.
  MS. NULAND: Let me tell you what Envoy Hale has for me to share with you today. So the Quartet did meet at envoy level, David Hale's level, in Brussels yesterday for some three hours to discuss the full range of Middle East peace issues facing the parties and facing the international community. They anticipate meeting again in the next few weeks, and they did not '' they don't usually issue a statement at their level, so they didn't this time.
  QUESTION: How is the Secretary's health? Can we get an update on the Secretary's health?
  MS. NULAND: She is still under the weather. She does not have a public schedule today, as you saw.
  QUESTION: Let me thank you for that incredibly substantive account ''
  MS. NULAND: You're welcome, Matt.
  QUESTION: -- of the Quartet meeting.
  MS. NULAND: You're welcome.
  QUESTION: For three hours '' after a three-hour meeting, the only thing that was accomplished is they decided ''
  MS. NULAND: To meet again.
  QUESTION: -- that they might meet again sometime in an ill-defined near future. That's it?
  MS. NULAND: Said.
  QUESTION: The Israelis are conducting really '' a great many harsh measures in the West Bank in the last few days, destroying wells and water supplies for the Palestinians, arresting people, killing a six-year-old the other day, and so on. Are you concerned about the rise of, let's say, Israeli occupation and brutality in the West Bank?
  MS. NULAND: Well, obviously, we understand that with regard to the question that you asked yesterday about NGOs and actions with regard to NGOs, that the Israeli Government is investigating now certain Palestinian organizations in the West Bank. Frankly, we're seeking a little bit more information on that. I don't have any more detail on it.
  Obviously, we want to see the parties focused on measures that are going to increase confidence, increase trust, and get them back to the table, and we don't want to see either party making moves that are considered provocative or hurt the environment for getting back to the table.
  QUESTION: It wasn't me that asked about the NGOs yesterday, just ''
  MS. NULAND: Anyway, it was Matt.
  QUESTION: Yeah. I think it was Matt. But I wanted to ask you ''
  MS. NULAND: You're starting to look alike.
  QUESTION: Okay. But there is a great deal of concern by Palestinian women. They are raising the issue of honor killing with the Palestinian Authority. And basically, the Palestinian Authority have dismissed it all along. Do you have a position on this?
  MS. NULAND: Well, you know our global position on honor killing, that it's unacceptable.
  QUESTION: I mean, I understand your global position, but in the Palestinian case, you are their benefactors, the Palestinian Authority. So do you bring that issue with them?
  MS. NULAND: Well, obviously, we bring up the full spectrum of human rights with Palestinian Authority representatives when we talk to them.
  QUESTION: Can we go to Ukraine?
  MS. NULAND: Yes.
  QUESTION: You are familiar with the Skadden report? I'm wondering if the '' this report, as you will know, says that there is no evidence that there was any political motivation in the prosecution of Former Prime Minister Tymoshenko. I'm wondering if you agree with that since it seems to differ with the Administration's opinion over this, including Secretary Clinton's. I'm wondering whether you agree with the report or if you think that the Ukrainian Government got what it paid for here.
  MS. NULAND: I would tend to side towards toward the latter there. By confining themselves to simply looking at the paper trial records and ignoring the larger political context in which the trial took place, our concern is that Skadden Arps lawyers were obviously not going to find political motivation if they weren't looking for it. The report also fails to consider the selective nature of the trials, those who were chosen for trials against Tymoshenko and her '' and former members of her government.
  QUESTION: So your '' the Administration's concerns about this prosecution remain that it --
  MS. NULAND: Correct.
  QUESTION: And do you think that basically the Ukrainians succeeded in buying a former White House counsel?
  MS. NULAND: I can't speak to the relationship that the Ukrainian Government has with a private law firm in the United States. You can talk to the Ukrainians about that.
  QUESTION: Well, no, I'm just wondering if you '' but you '' when you said at the very beginning that you tended to lean toward the latter, the latter meaning that the Ukrainian Government bought --
  MS. NULAND: Frankly I --
  QUESTION: -- a positive review from a team of lawyers headed by someone who at least was a very respected member of a previous administration. So I'm just wondering if there's more you might be able to say about foreign governments purchasing positive reviews from --
  MS. NULAND: I haven't seen the invoices on this. Whomever '' whoever commissioned this study, whatever the mandate for the study was, it was incomplete and doesn't give an accurate picture.
  Jo.
  QUESTION: I want to toss a slightly geeky question, if I may.
  MS. NULAND: Geeky?
  QUESTION: Yeah, which is not me at all, so excuse me if I get some --
  MS. NULAND: I was going to say, you're not a geek.
  QUESTION: No.
  MS. NULAND: Especially not with that butterfly on you.
  QUESTION: There is an International Telecommunications Conference going on in Dubai, which a treaty dated back to 1988, I believe, is being updated. And it's run into a bit of trouble because by a show of hands, Russia or China is trying '' are apparently trying to insert a clause which would basically bring the internet under the governance of '' under international governance, much against the recommendations of the United States. I wondered if you could update us on that and talk a little bit about that, please.
  MS. NULAND: This is not geeky at all. This is serious stuff. And our representative out there, Ambassador Kramer, is going to be having a press conference relatively shortly, in about an hour. The United States has consistently outlined our serious concerns about proposals at the ITU conference that would mandate unnecessary international internet regulations, regulations that would add significant cost and could lead to increased censorship.
  We've made clear that we will not accept any treaty text that includes provisions related to internet regulations, and we've '' but at the same token, we've strongly supported efforts to expand international telecommunication services. So we very much regret that instead of working on that latter dossier, instead of focusing on promoting innovation and market growth in the telecom space, this conference has gone in the wrong direction. And we'll be making our views clear with regard to the posture we take inside the room in a couple of hours out there.
  QUESTION: So is it clear that the United States is threatening to withdraw its support from the treaty, then, from what you've just said?
  MS. NULAND: I think it's more a matter of whether these measures will succeed at this conference.
  QUESTION: Are you going to put paper out on that, a more specific statement?
  MS. NULAND: Why don't we agree to this, that after the press conference that Ambassador Kramer gives a little bit later, we'll make sure to circulate his remarks to all of you. Okay?
  QUESTION: Okay. Can I just --
  MS. NULAND: Mm-hmm.
  QUESTION: -- on that? I mean, what you said until the very end was, I think, almost word for word what was said before the conference began. Is it '' there was a background briefing about it, in which U.S. opposition to these elements, these proposals, was outlined in a pretty strong way as well.
  MS. NULAND: Right.
  QUESTION: Does '' what is new seems to be this '' the last bit of your statement. And I'm just wondering, does that mean that despite your best efforts to turn back these proposals, that you were unsuccessful?
  MS. NULAND: Well, again, I don't want to pre-empt final decisions at the conference. But my understanding is that this conference operates by consensus.
  QUESTION: So --
  MS. NULAND: And without the United States support, you can't change the treaty.
  QUESTION: (Inaudible) by tomorrow, is that right '' by Friday?
  MS. NULAND: Yeah.
  Okay. Lalit.
  QUESTION: Do you have a readout on Under Secretary Sherman had a meeting with the Chinese officials today?
  MS. NULAND: With Chinese officials --
  QUESTION: Chinese defense officials.
  MS. NULAND: There was a delegation that was at the Pentagon earlier this week.
  QUESTION: Yes.
  MS. NULAND: Under Secretary Sherman was to see them this morning. I don't have a readout on that. I'll let you know if we have anything to share tomorrow.
  QUESTION: And also there were two reports which came out this week from different think tanks basically arguing that now that the war in Afghanistan is over, there's no '' now that the war in Afghanistan is almost over, there is no need for a special office for representative of Afghanistan, Pakistan, and they should merge with the traditional South and Central Asia Bureau. What is the Secretary's view on that?
  MS. NULAND: Well, Secretary Clinton, I think, has been very satisfied with the structure for handling these issues that she set up when she came into the building. Obviously, her successor will have every right to look at the structure of that office and every other office in this building and make decisions about whether that still makes sense and who ought to lead it, et cetera.
  QUESTION: But that office will stay as of now.
  MS. NULAND: It will certainly stay for the duration of her tenure, is my understanding. Yeah.
  QUESTION: (Inaudible) how long? (Laughter.)
  MS. NULAND: She's spoken to this many, many, many times, Josh, that she has '' and I can't say it better than she has said it.
  QUESTION: One more very briefly on Bolivia.
  MS. NULAND: On Bolivia.
  QUESTION: Yeah, there seems to be an up-ticking concern about this American who's been imprisoned there, Mr. Ostreicher. Apologies if I'm pronouncing the name incorrectly. Sean Penn has spoken out about it in the last couple days, and now Congressman Nadler has written a letter to the Secretary about it. So I'm wondering, one, if you've all gotten the letter, but more importantly, two, if you are stepping up your diplomacy with regards to his case.
  MS. NULAND: Well, as you may know, Mr. Ostreicher had a court hearing in Bolivia on December 11th, so two days ago. Both our charge d'affaires and one of our consular agents attended the hearing. At the hearing, a panel of judges remitted the case back to the judge from the previous bail hearing, instructing him to review the case within five days. We have repeatedly throughout this process urged the Bolivian Government to ensure a fair, transparent, and prompt judicial processing of Mr. Ostreicher's case. We've made this point directly at many, many points. And we continue to visit him regularly --
  QUESTION: At many, many points?
  MS. NULAND: Many, many points of time. We continue to visit him regularly. Most recently, we had a chance to speak with him on December 11th. He's also under the care of a physician at a medical clinic, which is something that we worked on, and we continue to monitor his medical condition as well.
  QUESTION: And I'm going to assume, given that answer, that he has, in fact, signed a Privacy Act waiver.
  MS. NULAND: I think that sounds like he has, yeah.
  QUESTION: Can I ask --
  MS. NULAND: Otherwise I would have had nothing to say, right?
  QUESTION: Can I ask for an update on Mr. McAfee, who's back in the United States?
  MS. NULAND: He's back in the United States, so I don't think it's an issue for this podium anymore. I would speak to him directly.
  QUESTION: Is there an '' speaking of Americans, is there an update on the American being held in Mexico?
  MS. NULAND: Let me see what I have. You're talking about John Hammer.
  QUESTION: Mm-hmm.
  MS. NULAND: Yeah. I have something from a couple of days ago. This is the U.S. citizen who was arrested in Matamoros on August 15th. He was charged with possession of a deadly weapon. Our consulate was notified immediately thereafter. We've been in frequent contact with him. We visited him three times at least '' most recently was on November 29th '' and we have been in regular phone contact with him. We interceded on his behalf to ask Mexican authorities to separate him from the general prison population, which they did. We later became aware that in the room that they'd put him in, he was chained up. We interceded again and asked that those restraints be taken away, and they were. And we have continued to try to work with Mexican authorities on his case and on his treatment.
  QUESTION: What about the American being held in North Korea?
  MS. NULAND: I don't have anything for you on that one way or the other, Josh, for privacy reasons.
  QUESTION: Thank you.
  QUESTION: I do have --
  MS. NULAND: Lalit's one more.
  QUESTION: Do you have anything to say on the Indian Government announcement that they will have a judicial probe into Walmart's lobbying in the U.S. on Indian issues?
  MS. NULAND: I don't have anything on that in particular, but I think Walmart has spoken to its view of this.
  Okay. Thanks, everybody.
  (The briefing was concluded at 2:02 p.m.)
  DPB # 212
AP: With Election Over, Obama Unleashes Tidal Wave Of New Business-Killing Regulations'...
  Link to Article
  Source: Weasel Zippers
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:49
  Gotta love how Obama repeatedly claimed during the election he wasn't over-zeleous with new regulations and the second it's over he opens the flood gates.
  WASHINGTON (AP) '-- While the ''fiscal cliff'' of looming tax increases and spending cuts dominates political conversation in Washington, some Republicans and business groups see signs of a ''regulatory cliff'' that they say could be just as damaging to the economy.
  For months, federal agencies and the White House have sidetracked dozens of major regulations that cover everything from power plant pollution to workplace safety to a crackdown on Wall Street.
  The rules had been largely put on hold during the presidential campaign as the White House sought to quiet Republican charges that President Barack Obama was an overzealous regulator who is killing U.S. jobs.
  But since the election, the Obama administration has quietly reopened the regulations pipeline.
  In recent weeks, the Environmental Protection Agency has proposed rules to update water quality guidelines for beaches and other recreational waters and deal with runoff from logging roads. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, meanwhile, has proposed long-delayed regulations requiring auto makers to include event data recorders '' better known as ''black boxes'' '' in all new cars and light trucks beginning in 2014.
  The administration also has initiated several rules to implement its health care overhaul, including a new fee to cushion the cost of covering people with pre-existing conditions.
CAIR And The ACLU Team Up To Sue St. Louis'...
  Link to Article
  Source: Weasel Zippers
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:49
  (ST. LOUIS, MO, 12/12/12) '-- On Thursday, December 13, the St. Louis chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAR-St. Louis), the ACLU-EM and the Law Office of Drew C. Baebler will hold a news conference on the front steps of the 22nd Judicial Circuit Court of Missouri to announce the filing of a religious discrimination suit against the Metropolitan Taxicab Commission (MTC), the City of St. Louis and Whelan Security on behalf of a Muslim taxi driver.
  The plaintiff, Raja Naeem, is a St. Louis taxi driver who alleges that he has suffered loss of income, harassment, humiliation, and arrest due to his constitutionally-protected religious attire.
Wal-Mart CEO: 'Our Wages are Competitive'
  Link to Article
  Source: Crooks and Liars
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:48
  Apparently, Wal-mart CEO Mike Duke isn't getting the message from all those employee protests over pay and benefits.
  During an event sponsored by the Council on Foreign Relations, Bloomberg LP President Dan Doctoroff asked Duke about Wal-Mart employee wages, and noted that "New York is claiming that wages, you know, aren't adequate for that middle-class or emerging middle-class."
  Duke claims that Wal-Mart's over 2 million employees earn "competitive wages."
  "Retailing is the most competitive industry out there, and we do pay competitive wages," Duke said. "Last year we promoted 165,000 people from entry-level to managerial positions."
  Duke added that Walmart provides health insurance to 1 million people in the United States.
  But he said he's used to all the criticism.
  "With more success comes more responsibility and expectations from the public," Duke said. "So I'm thrilled to be in a position where people expect more of me."
  Duke has been CEO since February 2009. According to Forbes, his compensation was $18.7 million last year.
  If Duke is comparing Wal-Mart's wages to say Target, sure, maybe they're competitive. And as for the health insurance, I wonder if that is being "provided" to the less than 50% of Wal-Mart employees or simply "offered"? As many employees can't afford their share of the expense for the plans on their low wages
  Note, too, that Duke didn't really respond to Doctoroff's question of "adequate" wages. How could Duke, who received a base salary of about $1.2 million and a performance-based bonus of nearly $3.9 million in 2010, possibly truthfully say those employee wages were adequate?
  As CEO Duke spoke, Wal-Mart employees stood outside protesting their treatment at work.
Chuck Todd: Susan Rice A ''Victim'' Of The Conservative ''Advocacy Media'''...
  Link to Article
  Source: Weasel Zippers
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:48
  I've heard farts that sound more intelligent than Chuck Todd. If Susan Rice is a ''victim'' of anyone it's Barack Obama and his aides who sent her out to do those Sunday talk shows with information they knew was false.
  Via Mediaite:
  NBC News' Chief White House Correspondent Chuck Todd joined Martin Bashir on Wednesday to discuss the recently announced news that U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice had withdrawn her name from consideration by President Barack Obama to be the next Secretary of State. Todd said that ''advocacy media'' on the right is responsible for making a ''victim'' of Rice. [...]
  ''This was all driven, in many cases, by some conservative outlets who were making her the center of the Benghazi story,'' Todd said. ''She sort of became a victim of this.''
  ''I think she's right, and I'm not going to sit here and say which should come first,'' Todd said. He said that the political class in Washington is ''overly reactive'' to statements made by opinion makers in conservative ''advocacy media'' outlets.
  Keep reading'...
ANALGATE: Obama's Muff Muslims
  Link to Article
  Source: Lame Cherry
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 12:39
  Take a close look at the above photo of the Obama Libyan Muslims of Rape, or as they will all be named here from now on in these Nidal Hassan beard wearers as the MUFF MUSLIMS.
  Look at the anal rapists of Chris Stevens in that photo by Associated Press just days after the gang rape of Ambassador Stevens.Look at the reality of that photo in the murderers and rapists were absolutely at ease in being seen in public as they knew they were protected. Protected enough that when of Col. Khadaffi's security agents was installed to clean out these Obama terrorists........the terrorists hunted him down on his way home and murdered him.The terrorists even stayed around long enough to be numbered as three of them.
  These same Muff Muslims also were dining in the hotel where this photo was snapped at Benghazi.......all without worry that any SEALS would come and shoot them.
  Now why was and is that really?
  Look at that picture closely and a reality should start dawning on you if you have been a reader of this blog and recall the phrase "BITCHIN' STACHE".That phrase was from a FOX series staring Tom Hanks little boy and one of those liberals from the West Wing.
  You should remember that this blog called for Barack Hussein Obama to grow whiskers and on cue, Mr. Obama followed this blogs direction and grew a beard which he sported before the Cairo speech..........a speech which he told the Muslims it was all America's fault for their problems and Obama apologized for Americans being on this planet.
  Look at that photo above and notice the Obama Brohood on the left, the one who looks like Richard Belzer, the Obama voter actor who stooges as a political Letterman Cocktail Crowd rapist for Obama on George Nouri and The View spewing leftist rapine.
  Analyze that picture now closely in one sees flags and the impression that all of these men are bearded band heads, but yet there is this one Richard Belzer minder in the crowd with dark shades on, keeping track of things and posing with the Muff Muslim terror raper.
  Look hard at the Obama beard wearers and start looking past them to the crowd behind. Look at those clean shaven faces. Many clean of whiskers because they are children who have been assembled there.Look hard, examine the other faces and you start noticing male faces without Obama beards who are quite terrified standing there as they know if they do not show up for the riot, that they will be marked and murdered later.
  The Muslim terrorists have always sported the full beards of the Afghan type which signifies them. When Obama though showed up sporting his beard, it was a SIGNAL TO MUSLIMS he was one of them in Thug Islam. Obama was signalling that he was the leader of al Qaeda and taking over the syndicate.The purchasing of bin Laden's corpse, the murder of the actor portraying him AND NO ONE HAS EVER INTERVIEWED THE WOMEN IN THAT HOUSE WHERE THAT MASS MURDER TOOK PLACE, was B. Hussein Obama taking over al Qaeda and the Muslim Brohood to award them nations like Egypt, Libya and Syria, where they could murder people, assassinate politicians like Chris Stevens and gang rape women like Lara Logan.
  Yes this is another Lame Cherry matter anti matter exclusive and you are never going to hear this from enablers like George Nouri of Lebanon nor apologists like Richard Belzer of Paris.Amazingly, Belzer actually has a terrorist fan who poses like him in front of little boys he is terrorizing with anal rape to get them to show up for a riot enjoying the after glow of Ambassador Steven's anal rape.
  These are the Obama Muff Muslims, the terrorists Obama has funded, promoted by having the US military murder competitor terrorists, and Muff Muslims who are armed by B. Hussein as his personal gang rape and murder terror army, flowing around the world and now into Syria.
  You want exclusives no one else will speak of, because Mockingbird has this all shut down, well here it is, in proof that Obama grew his muff beard to announce in Cairo he was taking over Islam. Obama did just that and in proof of this blog's exclusives now backed by the New York Times stories about ANALGATE, reveal that Obama now runs the Muff Muslims around the world as terrorists, and apparently one of them is such a fan of Richard Belzer that he poses like him in Benghazi as one of the head muff heads.
  The reason these terrorits are not afraid is because Barack Obama is protecting them from 1600 Penn Avenue, as they murder Ambassadors as they rape them and blow up SEALS as the CIA stands around with laser pointers watching.
  Obama Outlaw and Disorder as his dick wolf's gang rapes of men, women and children as a terrorist is not an actor, but plays one in close ups at Benghazi looks on minding the Obama terror hordes.
  The proof is in the actual photo evidence. Barack Obama took on the persona of al Qaeda terrorists, to create an Obama chic Islam of Asia in these Muff Muslims who like using rape along with murder. There is one terrorist in Benghazi who has gone Hollywood and is such a fan of Obama apologist, in Paris residing millionaire, Richard Belzer, that this Muff Muslim has gone Belzer in posing.....probably hoping for some anal sex with Richard in France if he gets and invite.
  The Obama Muff Muslims, the terror of rape, Obama style, and all initiated after Obama took over al Qaeda from 1600 Penn Avenue.
  Dr. Zawahiri or Sheik bin Laden, never pulled this gang rape stuff. This is the Stalinist Obama creed and it is now an indoctrination method.
  nuff said
  agtG 265
Substituir IRS e IRC por tributa§£o ambiental - Economia - Correio da Manh£
  Link to Article
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 09:05
  Relat"rio elaborado por Moreira da Silva
  Substituir IRS e IRC por tributa§£o ambientalA Plataforma para o Crescimento Sustentvel, dirigida pelo primeiro vice-presidente do PSD Jorge Moreira da Silva, defende uma descida da carga fiscal no IRC e IRS, compensada por um aumento da tributa§£o ambiental. O grupo de reflex£o apresenta esta quinta-feira um relat"rio em que defende medidas pol­ticas a longo prazo para o per­odo p"s 'troika'.
  De acordo com este 'Think Tank', o actual n­vel de impostos provoca um efeito recessivo na economia e limita a angaria§£o de receita adicional, por isso, o grupo liderado por Moreira da Silva defende ''uma reforma fiscal que seja mais amiga da inova§£o, do crescimento e do ambiente''.
  O nºmero dois do PSD considera que essa reforma se deve traduzir ''num quadro de neutralidade fiscal, por um aumento da carga fiscal na rea ambiental que permita uma redu§£o da carga fiscal nos impostos sobre o trabalho e sobre a cria§£o de riqueza nas empresas''.
  Mesmo que n£o seja poss­vel baixar impostos amanh£, o presidente da Plataforma para o Crescimento Sustentvel defende que h alternativas, nomeadamente ''substituir o eventual prolongamento em 2014 da sobretaxa de 3,5% do IRS por uma taxa de carbono de nove euros sobre toda a economia''.
  O documento define 27 reas estrat(C)gicas para pensar Portugal al(C)m da ''troika'' e apresenta 511 recomenda§µes para encontrar solu§µes de desenvolvimento para o pa­s.
denverpost.com : Pfizer settles with 33 states
  Link to Article
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 09:03
  Pfizer Inc. agreed to pay a combined $42.9 million to Colorado and 32 other states, in a settlement of allegations that the drugmaker used unfair and deceptive practices in the marketing of antibiotic Zyvox and nerve-pain medicine Lyrica.
  Pfizer said it denied any wrongdoing as part of the latest settlement, an accord the company said will resolve virtually all pending state consumer-protection investigations concerning the promotion of Zyvox and Lyrica.
  "This resolution concerns allegations that go back several years and Pfizer is pleased to resolve this investigation and avoid the further time and cost of litigation," it said, adding that Wednesday's settlement finalizes a preliminary accord that it disclosed last month in a regulatory filing.
  Colorado will get more than $1.1 million in the settlement.
  Colorado Attorney General John Suthers said Colorado's proceeds will be used for consumer-protection efforts.
  The states alleged that Pfizer had marketed Zyvox as superior to another antibiotic in fighting certain types of infections, though there allegedly wasn't substantial evidence to support superior results for some uses that Pfizer claimed.
The moon landings were faked (and other science confessions) | Science | guardian.co.uk
  Link to Article
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 09:02
  Yesterday, Channel 5 screened a documentary (and I use that term so loosely it essentially qualifies as a liquid) called "Did we land on the moon?", which looked at the arguments for the well-established conspiracy theory that the moon landings, that defining achievement that inspired generations and showed the true potential of humanity, was an elaborate sham.
  The programme caused a lot of anger among the science community on the social networks, and arguably rightly so. The programme portrayed the conspiracy theorists as having legitimate arguments and unanswered questions that support their claims, making scant effort to show dissenting views or counterarguments from people who have the audacity to be qualified to discuss the matter.
  In a way, this is actually the fault of the science community. We've been complaining about the media distorting science via their obsession with presenting a balancedargument for some time now. We should probably have specified that when we argued that balance is unnecessary, we didn't mean "drop the actual science". Whatever you say about programmes like this, they're not balanced, so we can't complain on that front.
  But giving such a high-profile media platform to the conspiracy theorists and letting them go unchallenged is a very dangerous move; it infers undeserved credibility to their claims, meaning more people take them seriously. It would be like inviting David Icke onto Question Time, or having Stephen Green of Christian Voice on as the main guest to discuss the significance of the discovery of the Higgs Boson.
  That last one actually happened, by the way, on a BBC Radio Wales phone in. I know this because I was invited to be on the show too, but refused once I found who I'd be sharing airtime with. I'm happy to be "token science guy" at times, but I'm not letting what little credibility I have get sullied further by having to speak to that guy as if his views should be taken seriously. Interestingly, on that same programme they had a moon landing denier on to explain why the moon landing, and by association science in general, is a big con. And thus this article gets back on track.
  Despite the fact that the moon landing conspiracy has been debunked many manymany times, it endures. I've had a number of discussions with conspiracy theorists myself, as you may have guessed. For example, I've been told that the moon landings were faked as a publicity stunt. "If the moon landing was real, why didn't they go back?" is one argument used. And apart from the further five times they went back, that's a fair point. Those other ones were probably publicity stunts too, but they kept those quiet.
  "It was a scam to get one over on the Russians" is another argument I've heard. Another good point, the USSR and USA were involved in a space race, so the USA decided to cheat to get to the moon first. Sure, the USSR could have disproved their claims if they'd wanted, but they clearly trusted the Americans not to lie. They may have been willing to wipe out the planet over their ideological differences, but when it came to important stuff like space-based contests, they trusted the Americans implicitly.
  So why, if the evidence is so damning, does the moon landing conspiracy endure? Well, it's gone on long enough, someone has to finally come clean, and I guess I'm the only one who feels the public has a right to know.
  Yes, the moon landings were faked. You can take my word on this, I'm a scientist. A scientist who wasn't even born at the time and who has no official connection to space travel or any space-based discipline, but you know us scientists, we're all in on it together.
  Yes, the moon landings were faked. Even more fake than you know. Never mind the secret studios in warehouses or what have you, the whole moon landing saga was just realistic CGI. That's right, all the footage you've seen of the supposed moon landing is entirely computer animated. The USA had access to computer technology decades ahead of what was normal in the 1960s in order to do this. But, you may say, if that was the case, why wouldn't they use their massive technical advantage to dominate everyone else on the planet economically, militarily and in every other way, rather than piss about concocting an elaborate moon landing fa§ade? Because that wouldn't have been fair to everyone, and if there's one thing you can be sure about the US government of the 60s and 70s, they were unerringly honest about their dealings, give or take the occasional massive conspiracy.
  The thing is, it doesn't stop there. Revelations rarely happen in isolation, so now that I've let the cat out of the bag with regards to the moon landings, it's only a matter of time before the true extent of the deceptions carried out by the scientific community come to light. So, in the interests of transparency, here are some other conspiracies and outright lies that science has been feeding people.
  THE HIGGS BOSON = The Higgs Boson isn't a real thing, I'm afraid. It doesn't even sound like a real thing. A "boson" is a member of a ship's crew, isn't it? The whole thing was concocted as a ruse to build the Large Hadron collider, which is actually a cover for the world's biggest go-kart track, something that would never have got funding on its own merits.
  If we're being honest about particle physics, the atom as is commonly portrayed doesn't exist either. There are actually only four known elements, "Earth", "Wind", "Fire" and "September". Nuclear power is actually the name given for when there is a higher density of fire in one place than normal.
  VACCINATION = Although rational types have been decrying antivaxxers for years, unfortunately they are correct. Vaccinations are unnecessary; they're a cover for the true nature of disease. It was discovered long ago that all diseases were actually spread by the Dodo. Upon this realisation, scientists decided to initiate a brutal extermination campaign, which lead to their apparent extinction. However, racked by guilt over their actions, the science community concocted the whole vaccine story to explain why people weren't getting so sick anymore, and have persevered with it to this day.
  Dodos actually still exist, but in real life they closely resemble pigeons. The story about them being extinct was made up to prevent panic, and the image of the dodo as a large bemused chicken is based on a model created by Jim Henson's Creature Shop, commissioned to back up the story.
  RELATIVITY = The theory of relativity is, as many have guessed, made up. It doesn't make any sense when you think about it, time slowing down as you go faster? Gaining mass as you approach light speed? It's all based on an incident Einstein experienced when on a particularly long train journey where his watch was broken and he went to the buffet car a few too many times. He came up with relativity as an excuse for why he was late and bloated, and the other physicists just went with it. By the time it was discovered what had happened, Einstein was the most famous physicist around and they kept it going rather than risk undermining their most respected scholar.
  THE WORLD IS ROUND = It isn't I'm afraid. It's flat. But it's not static, the land is constantly moving across it like a supermarket conveyer belt. Hence we get night and day, night is when the belt is on the underside of the Earth. This also explains why some long-haul flights take less time on the way back than the way there or vice versa. Planes are either going the opposite way to the direction of travel of the belt, or trying to accelerate in the same direction, which takes longer.
  SCHRODINGER'S CAT = It was actually a ferret, but 'Schrodinger's ferret' just sounds wrong. And a little bit rude. Also, it was dead.
  GENERAL ANAESTHETICS= These don't actually do anything, they're a money-making scam by pharmaceutical companies. People undergoing surgery fall asleep of their own accord as operating theatres and surgeons are kept as boring as possible.
  There are many more I could tell you, but that will do for now. You may think these claims are ridiculous and so farfetched they couldn't possibly be true.
  Yeah, people used to say that about the moon landing conspiracy theories.
  Dean Burnett, if he is real, can be found on Twitter, @garwboy
Dutchman launches life-sized replica of Noah's Ark
  Link to Article
  Fri, 14 Dec 2012 08:13
  NETHERLANDS -- Just as the first storms of winter roll in, Dutchman Johan Huibers has finished his 20-year quest to build a full-scale, functioning model of Noah's Ark - an undertaking of, well, biblical proportions.
  Huibers, a Christian, used books 6-9 of Genesis as his inspiration, following the instructions God gives Noah down to the last cubit.
  Translating to modern measurements, Huibers came up with a vessel that works out to a whopping 427 feet (130 meters) long, 95 feet (29 meters) across and 75 feet (23 meters) high. Perhaps not big enough to fit every species on Earth, two by two, as described in the Bible, but plenty of space, for instance, for a pair elephants to dance a tango.
  Johan's Ark towers across the flat Dutch landscape and is easily visible from a nearby highway where it lies moored in the city of Dordrecht, just south of Rotterdam.Gazing across the ark's main hold, a huge space of stalls supported by a forest of pine trees, visitors gaze upon an array of stuffed and plastic animals, such as buffalo, zebra, gorillas, lions, tigers, bears, you name it. Elsewhere on the ark is a petting zoo with actual live animals that are less dangerous or easier to care for - such as ponies, dogs, sheep, and rabbits - and an impressive aviary of exotic birds.
  "This boat - it's amazing," said Alfred Jongile, visiting from South Africa with his Dutch wife.
  For Huibers, a builder by trade, it all began with a nightmare he had in 1992, when the low-lying Netherlands was flooded, as it has been many times throughout its history.
  Huibers thinks that new floods are possible, not least due to global warming. He cites a New Testament passage prophesying that "the cities of the coast shall tremble" near the end of times.
  But he's not worried the whole Earth will ever be flooded again. In the Bible, the rainbow is God's promise it won't be.
  "I had a call from American television," he says, laughing. "This has nothing to do with the end of the Mayan calendar," he said.
  He said his motivation is ultimately religious, though. He wants to make people think what their purpose is on Earth.
  "I want to make people question that so that they go looking for answers," and ultimately find salvation through God and eternal life, he said.
  Johan's Ark also contains a restaurant on the topmost level and a movie theater capable of seating 50 people. Around the edges of each level of the craft are displays on ancient Middle Eastern history and dress, scenes from the life of Noah, and games for kids, including water pumps and a system of levers to lift bales of hay.
  Down below there is a honeycomb system of hatches, each opening into an area where food could be sealed in for long-term storage.
  There is an outdoor space near the stern with a dizzying series of stairwells. Walking around, Johan points out features such as the curvature of the upper deck, which he said would have been used to collect rainwater for drinking, as well as for letting animals such as horses out to exercise where they could run around.
  Another visitor, Martin Konijn, said he was impressed with the level of detail.
  "You might know the story of Noah, okay, but if you see this you begin to get an idea of how it would actually have worked in practice."
  Huibers says he's considering where to take the floating attraction next, including European ports or even across the Atlantic - though the latter would require transport aboard an even bigger ship.
  But Huibers is also working on a new dream, perhaps even more unlikely than the first one: he wants to get Israelis and Arabs to cooperate and build a water pipeline from the Mediterranean Sea to the Dead Sea.
  "If you have faith, anything is possible," he says.
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