What Adam Curry is reading

VIDEO-Obama: 'Raising the Debt Ceiling...Does Not Increase Our Debt,' Though It Has 'Over 100 Times' | MRCTV
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  Raising the debt ceiling doesn't increase the nation's debt, Pres. Obama declared in a speech - See more at: http://www.cnsnews.com/mrctv-blog/craig-bannister/obama-raising-debt-ceilingdoes-not-increase-our-debt-though-it-has-over#sthash.ZimieZiY.dpuf
VIDEO-Issa Insists Congress Should Have Access To Benghazi Witnesses | MRCTV
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  MRC TV is an online platform for people to share and view videos, articles and opinions on topics that are important to them -- from news to political issues and rip-roaring humor.
  MRC TV is brought to you by the Media Research Center, a 501(c) 3 nonprofit research and education organization. The MRC is located at: 1900 Campus Commons Drive, Reston, VA 20194. For information about the MRC, please visit www.MRC.org.
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VIDEO- "You Would Think We Were In 17th Century England! This Is An Abomination!" - YouTube
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VIDEO- Massive School Shooting DRILL At Olympic College - YouTube
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VIDEO- "The Whole Thing Started When A Man Urinated On A Teenager In The Back Of The Theater" - YouTube
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Tyler Hicks - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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  Tyler Hicks (born 9 July1969 in S£o Paulo, Brazil) is an American photojournalist who works as a staff photographer for The New York Times. Based in Kenya, he typically covers foreign affairs, with an emphasis in recent years on conflict and war, but also works at times on assignments across the United States.
  Hicks was named the newspaper photographer of the year by the Missouri School of Journalism's Pictures of the Year International contest in 2007.[1] He shared the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting with a team from The New York Times recognized for coverage of Pakistan and Afghanistan, where he works frequently in the field, focusing on the ground-level experience. In 2010, his photographs from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, along with the war correspondence of his colleagues Dexter Filkins and C.J. Chivers, with whom he often works, were selected by New York University as being among the Top Ten Works of Journalism of the Decade.[2] Hicks received a George Polk Award for Foreign Reporting in 2011. [3]
  Hicks was previously a freelance photographer based in Africa and the Balkans, and worked for newspapers in North Carolina and Ohio.[4] He has worked in Syria, Libya, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Iraq, Russia, Bosnia, Lebanon, Israel, Gaza, Chechnya and many countries in Africa including South Sudan during the 2011 referendum. He graduated from Boston University's College of Communication in 1992 with a degree in Journalism.[5] He returned to Boston University in 2011 to deliver the commencement address at the College of Communication.[6]
  Hicks was reported missing on March 16, 2011, while covering the revolution in Libya for The New York Times.[7] The New York Times reported on March 18, 2011, Libya had agreed to free Hicks, Anthony Shadid, Lynsey Addario and Stephen Farrell.[8] Hicks and his three colleagues were released on March 21, 2011, six days after being captured by pro-Qaddafi forces.[9]
  On February 16, 2012, Anthony Shadid suffered a deadly asthma attack while covering civil unrest in Syria with Hicks. Hicks assisted on carrying Shadid's body across the border into Turkey.[10]
  Tyler Hick was present during the deadly attack by terrorists on the Westgate shopping center in Nairobi on 21 September 2013. He was close to the scene taking impressive pictures[11] and followed police as they searched for militants.[12]
  ^TYLER HICKS PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR^Stephens, Mitchell, "Top Ten Works of Journalism of the Decade. 2000-2009" (http://journalism.nyu.edu/decade/) New York University Arthur I. Carter Journalism Institute. http://journalism.nyu.edu/decade/. Retrieved 18 March 2013.^"LIU announces 2011 George Polk Awards in Journalism" (http://www.liu.edu/About/News/Univ-Ctr-PR/2012/February/Polk-PR_Feb-20-2012.aspx.^"Tyler Hicks shares Iraq pics"^"Times Photographer Honored for '06 Work". The New York Times. February 26, 2007. ^http://blogs.bu.edu/bunow/2011/05/26/new-york-times-photographer-tyler-hicks-addresses-bu-com-graduates/^Peters, Jeremy W. (March 16, 2011). "Four New York Times Journalists Are Missing in Libya". Media Decoder. Retrieved March 22, 2011. ^Kirkpatrick, David (March 18, 2011). "Libya Says It Will Release Times Journalists". New York Times. Retrieved March 18,2011. ^Peters, Jeremy W. (March 21, 2011). "Freed Times Journalists Give Account of Captivity". The New York Times. Retrieved March 21, 2011. ^"At Work in Syria, Times Correspondent Dies", New York Times[1]^http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/09/21/witness-to-a-massacre-in-a-nairobi-mall/?smid=fb-nytimes&WT.z_sma=LE_WTA_20130921&_r=1&^http://www.businessinsider.com/ny-times-photo-nairobi-mall-attack-2013-9PersondataNameHicks, TylerAlternative namesShort descriptionAmerican photojournalistDate of birth9 July 1969Place of birthS£o Paulo, BrazilDate of deathPlace of death
VIDEO- Are America's Shopping Malls Soft Targets For Terrorist? DUN! DUN! DUN! - YouTube
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  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 14:05
Jack Klugman's Son Rips Cory Monteith For 'Self Inflicted Tragedy'
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  Source: Radar Online
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 13:58
  Jack Klugman's son Adam has slammed the late Cory Monteith '-- because the Glee star is getting an extended Emmys tribute and his Odd Couple actor dad isn't.
  Adam Klugman criticized Emmy organizers for extending a special honor to Monteith, who died in July of heroin and alcohol poisoning at age 31, while putting his father into the routine ''In Memoriam'' reel.
  Referring to Monteith's overdose, Adam Klugman said in an Associated Press interview: ''They're celebrating this self-inflicted tragedy instead of celebrating the life of my father, who won three Emmys'.... Cory Monteith never won an Emmy.''
  PHOTOS: Celebs Who Have Battled Drinking Problems
  Adam, whose Quincy M.E. star father died in December at age 90, said he has nothing against Monteith but ''to compare the contribution he made to the contribution my father made '-- it doesn't compare.
  ''It's an insult and it really seems typical of this youth-centric culture that has an extremely short attention span and panders to only a very narrow demographic'' of young adults, he said.
  This year, for the first time, Emmy organizers have decided to beef up the ''In Memoriam'' section with special tributes to five notable TV figures who died this year. The other honorees are writer-producer Gary David Goldberg, comic legend Jonathan Winters, and actors James Gandolfini and Jean Stapleton.
  PHOTOS: Heroin Addicts, Coke Fiends & Celebrity Stoners '-- Hollywood Drug Dealers Tell All!
  In addition to leaving Klugman off of the extended tribute list, organizers also aren't doing anything special for Larry Hagman, who played iconic J.R. Ewing on the original ''Dallas.''
  In a statement, Emmy executive producer Ken Ehrlich explained, ''To a younger generation, Cory Monteith's portrayal of Finn Hudson [on 'Glee'] was highly admired, and the producers felt that he should be included along with the four other individuals we have singled out.''
Israeli Special Forces Have Stormed The Mall With Kenyan Police To Rescue Hostages
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  Source: Weasel Zippers
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 13:30
  Via Haaretz, reports are that the special forces are storming the mall and rescuing hostages at this moment:
  Israeli forces have reportedly joined efforts to end a deadly siege by Somali militants at a Kenyan shopping mall, a security source told AFP Sunday.
  ''The Israelis have just entered and they are rescuing the hostages and the injured,'' AFP quoted the sourec as saying on condition he not be named.
  The attack by Al-Qaida-linked militants at the Nairobi killed at least 59 people and wounded 175, Kenya's interior cabinet secretary said earlier Sunday.
  Multiple barrages of gunfire erupted Sunday morning from inside the building where there is a hostage standoff with Islamic extremists nearly 24 hours after they attacked using grenades and assault rifles.
  ''The priority is to save as many lives as possible,'' Joseph Lenku said, reassuring the families of the hostages in the upscale Westgate mall. Kenyan forces have already rescued about 1,000 people, he said.
  Keep reading'...
Suicide Bomber Attacks Church Killing At Least 60 People In Pakistan
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Terrorist Continue To Hold Hostages In Nairobi Mall
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Kenyan deputy president requests ICC trial adjournment
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  Source: Reuters: World News
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 13:29
  TweetShare thisEmailPrintKenya's Deputy President William Ruto reacts in the courtroom before his trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague September 10, 2013.
  Credit: Reuters/Michael Kooren
  By Thomas Escritt
  AMSTERDAM | Sun Sep 22, 2013 9:06am EDT
  AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Judges at the International Criminal Court will meet on Monday to decide if Kenya's deputy president can return home to deal with the armed occupation at a Nairobi shopping mall in which 59 people have been killed, a person close to events said.
  In a filing seen by Reuters, William Ruto's lawyers had asked judges to meet in emergency session on Sunday to adjourn the trial. If it had been granted, Ruto could have left The Hague for Nairobi on Sunday evening.
  Ruto and Kenyan president, Uhuru Kenyatta, face charges of crimes against humanity in relation to their role in coordinating a wave of violence that swept Kenya in the aftermath of the country's contested 2007 elections.
  In the filing, lawyers said Ruto was needed at home to help with security briefings and consultations. Kenyatta and Ruto are voluntarily complying with court summonses, but have previously asked to be excused from attending every session in view of the responsibilities attached to the high offices they both hold.
  "Mr Ruto ... is required to return to Kenya to discharge his ordinary constitutional duties," lawyers wrote in the filing. "Thereafter, Mr Ruto will be required to deal with the aftermath of such a traumatic and tragic event for Kenya."
  Gunmen from a Somali Islamist group are in a stand-off with Kenyan security forces after bursting into the Westgate mall on Saturday, killing shoppers and taking hostages.
  (Editing by Louise Ireland)
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Kenyan deputy president requests ICC trial adjournment to deal with mall attack
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  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 13:28
  TweetShare thisEmailPrintKenya's Deputy President William Ruto reacts in the courtroom before his trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague September 10, 2013.
  Credit: Reuters/Michael Kooren
  AMSTERDAM | Sun Sep 22, 2013 8:05am EDT
  AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Lawyers for Kenyan deputy president William Ruto asked judges to adjourn his International Criminal Court (ICC) trial to allow him to return home to deal with an armed attack on a Nairobi shopping mall, according to a court filing seen by Reuters on Sunday.
  In the filing, lawyers say Ruto, who is in the Hague defending himself against charges of crimes against humanity over his alleged involvement in a wave of violence after the 2007 elections, is needed at home to help with security briefings and consultations.
  (Reporting by Thomas Escritt; Editing by Louise Ireland)
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Amerika platgelegd op 11 oktober?
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  Source: ZapLog
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 13:19
  Als een lopend vuurtje gaat het over internet. De boodschap dat de Amerikaanse bevolking de corruptie die Amerika vernietigt spuugzat is.Er is een algehele staking uitgeroepen die het weekend vanaf 11 oktober alles wil platleggen door heel Amerika.
  Truckchauffeurs zullen geen goederen vervoeren. Arbeiders zullen zich ziek melden. Consumenten zullen niets kopen of verkopen. Dat is de boodschap die op de moment als een lopend vuurtje rond gaat.
  De campagne heet officiel: ''Truckers to Shut Down America'' en is een oproep aan alle vrachtwagenchauffeurs in Amerika om dat weekend geen goederen te vervoeren.
  Zoals op hun Facebook Pagina...
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"You Would Think We Were In 17th Century England! This Is An Abomination!"
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Blog Post: Truth about shale gas is out there for critical thinkers
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  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 13:15
  I've just read a fascinating series of posts published on rbnenergy.com. Planned as a five part series, parts 1-4 have been published so far. The titles of each post start with the phrase ''The Truth is Out There''. Here is the list of posts published so far: The Truth is Out There '' Unconventional Production Economics '' Part 1 '' Drilling The Truth is Out There '' Shale ...read more
"The Whole Thing Started When A Man Urinated On A Teenager In The Back Of The Theater"
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  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 13:15
Massive School Shooting DRILL At Olympic College
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Italy economy minister threatens to resign: paper
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  Source: Reuters: World News
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 13:14
  New Italian Economy Minister Fabrizio Saccomanni attends at the Lower house of the parliament in Rome, April 29, 2013.
  Credit: Reuters/ Alessandro Bianchi
  By Steve Scherer
  ROME | Sun Sep 22, 2013 7:22am EDT
  ROME (Reuters) - Italian Economy Minister Fabrizio Saccomanni will resign if the fragile coalition government flouts European Union deficit spending limits in favor of tax cuts, he told Corriere della Sera newspaper on Sunday.
  The departure of Saccomanni, a former high ranking Bank of Italy official who is not affiliated to a political party, would be a blow to Italy's credibility with the financial markets as it battles to emerge from its longest recession in six decades.
  Italy's accounts are heading toward overshooting the EU deficit limit this year, Saccomanni said on Friday, just months after the country was taken off a black list for running excessive budget gaps in the past.
  While the minister said he would do all it takes to keep the deficit below the 3 percent of output ceiling, senior coalition members have pledged to go ahead with tax cuts amid a growing sense that a national election may be just a few months away.
  "Promises must be kept, otherwise I'm not staying," Saccomanni was quoting saying in an interview with the Corriere's editor-in-chief. "I must defend my credibility, and I have no political ambitions."
  Prime Minister Enrico Letta's government has been in nearly constant turmoil since it was formed five months ago by the country's two biggest parties which have traditionally been bitter rivals.
  Letta's Democratic Party (PD) and Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia (FI) agreed to govern together after an inconclusive national vote in February, but both sides appear to be mulling an early vote as a way out of the awkward alliance.
  "I'm not going to make a desperate search for a billion euros if in February there's going to be a vote," Saccomanni was said to say in the Corriere, explaining that reforms and the management of the public accounts required political stability.
  To meet the EU deficit target, Saccomanni needs 1.4 billion euros and he said a one-percentage-point planned increase of the main sales-tax rate of 21 percent on October 1 cannot be canceled without worsening the public accounts.
  FI's group leader in the lower house, Renato Brunetta, has said the survival of the government depends on cancelling the value-added tax (VAT) hike, and PD officials have also called for it to be scrapped.
  Letta is traveling to the United States and Canada this week, but will return Friday to preside over a cabinet meeting where a decision over the sales-tax increase must be taken.
  It would cost about 1 billion euros to cancel the sales-tax hike, but another newspaper, Il Messaggero, estimated on Sunday that Saccomanni needed to find a total of 6 billion euros by the end of the year to meet the deficit target while satisfying all the demands made by the parties in the ruling coalition.
  (Editing by Mark Potter)
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Nigeria: Patience Jonathan Calls for Peace
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  Source: AllAfrica News: Latest
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 13:13
  Abuja '-- The First Lady, Mrs Patience Jonathan, on Saturday called on troubled regions across the world to embrace ceasefire in celebration of the World Peace Day.
  Jonathan made the appeal in Abuja at an event organised by the Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR) to mark the 2013 World Peace Day.
  "The International Day of Peace should be an international day for ceasefire, the killings around the globe should stop," she said.
  Represented by Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Olajumoke Akinjide, Jonathan appealed to Nigerians to shun violence and embrace the peace.
  She pledged commitment to promote peace initiatives within the country and beyond, noting that peace remained the best way to "break the vicious circle of violence".
  On the theme of the celebration: "Education for peace as a tool for peace building", the wife of the President stressed the need to inculcate good moral and ethical values in young persons.
  Jonathan decried cult practices in primary and post primary schools, describing the development as unacceptable in the nation's quest for peace.
  She said that young people had become tools for perpetrating heinous crimes and political violence.
  The First Lady advised that education should be given priority to ensure economic growth, peace and stability in the country.
  Mr Ade Abolurin, the Commandant-General of the Civil Defence Corps, in his remark at the occasion, said peace was necessary towards nation building.
  He said that that every citizen had a role to play in peace building and once it was done, everyone would be identified as a stakeholder.
  He called for a synergy among the security agencies.
  Dr. Joseph Golwa, the Director-General of IPCR, said peace was essential to humanity, adding that peace was necessary to refocus troubled nations.
Unconfirmed report: Israeli forces enter attacked Nairobi mall
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  Source: ynet - News
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 13:10
  An Israeli security source told Reuters on Sunday that Israeli advisers are helping Kenya formulate a strategy to end the siege at the Nairobi shopping mall, where the Islamist terrorists are holding hostages.
  "There are Israeli advisers helping with the negotiating strategy, but no Israelis involved in any imminent storming operation," said the source, who gave no further details and asked not to be identified.
  The source said only a "handful" of Israelis, "purely in an advisory role", were on scene at the upscale Westgate shopping centre, which has several Israeli-owned outlets and is frequented by expatriates and Kenyans.
  Earlier, a Kenyan security source told AFP that Israeli forces had joined Kenyan efforts to end a deadly siege by Somali terrorists at a Nairobi shopping mall. "The Israelis have just entered and they are rescuing the hostages and the injured," the source told AFP on condition that he not be named. The AFP report could not be confirmed by any other source.
  In Israel, foreign ministry spokesman Paul Hirschson refused to confirm or deny that its forces were involved.
  "We don't make a habit of commenting on security cooperation of any kind that there may or may not be," he told AFP.
  There were conflicting reports from other security sources in Nairobi about the role Israel was playing in the situation.
  One Kenyan security source, who asked not to be identified, told Reuters that the Israeli military was involved in the operation, while a private security official also said they were helping comb the mall.
  But the Kenyan Interior Minister insisted it was a national operation, despite offers of foreign support.
  Saturday's attack on the Westgate shopping center by the Al-Shabaab group, which opposes Kenya's participation in a peacekeeping mission in neighboring Somalia, killed at least 59 people and wounded 200 others. An unknown number of people were still being held hostage.
  A volley of gunfire lasting about 30 seconds interrupted a stalemate of several hours, a Reuters witness said, speaking from close to the shopping center which is frequented by expatriates and Kenyans.
  Earlier in the day, the Kenyan interior minister said that between 10 and 15 militants were barricaded in the Nairobi mall since Saturday's attack. He said local security forces are doing everything they could to make sure the hostages were safe and would not be affected. He brought the death toll so far to 59. An Israeli source in Nairobi said all Israelis who were in the mall at the time of the attack had made it out safely, with the last three being rescued overnight.
  President Shimon Peres Sunday sent condolences to President Uhuru Kenyatta, expressing deep shock and sending sympathies to the families.
  At least 10 terrorists are reported to still be in the mall, armed with Kalashnikovs and hand grenades. They announced Saturday that they would not negotiate with the government of Kenya. Security forces continue to surround the mall, and it appears that local forces were able to surround the terrorists in a closed area of the exclusive shopping center.
  The attackers, apparently operating from Somalia under the auspices of the Al Qaeda-linked terrorist organization al-Shabab, entered the capital-city mall Saturday afternoon, tossing grenades and spraying gunfire at shoppers and staff. They ordered all Muslims out. Others were shot.
  Three Israelis were safely rescued, including Yariv Kedar, a representative of the Amiran company, who has been in Kenya for the past seven years. He said yesterday, "We started to hear the cries and screams of frightened people. Terrorists fired bursts in all directions. At that same second, I hid all the documents that could identify me as an Israeli - my passport and work documents, so that God forbid they did not kidnap me and so that the fact that I am Israeli would not hurt me. My work friend did the same as me. and we stayed under the tables until the lcoal security forces reached us."
  Israel's deputy ambassador to Kenya Yaki Lopez, who over the weekend was acting as ambassador, estimated that the attack was not directed against Israelis. "The first instinct is to think that way, but I think it is not necessarily the answer. It does not seem to me at this point, by instinct and through what we are getting, that they sought Israeli targets. According to him, the Israeli population in Kenya regularly spends time at the mall, and even after the event has maintained relative calm. "The Israelis are all relaxed, to my understanding. I do not see any degree of panic."
  Foreigners, including two diplomats - one from Canada and another from Ghana - were killed in the attack.
  Nairobi's exclusive shopping center has four stories and more than 80 shops, including supermarket, jewelery stalls, and some Israeli-owned stores. Visitors to the area can also enjoy the tropical gardens and artificial water falls.
  AFP, Reuters contributed to the report
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US 'Blackmails' Russia over Syria Resolution '' Lavrov
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  Source: RIA Novosti
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 13:02
  MOSCOW, September 22 (RIA Novosti) '' Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Sunday the US is ''blackmailing'' Moscow over a UN resolution on Syria that could allow the use of force.
  "Our American partners are starting to blackmail us: if Russia does not support a resolution under Chapter VII in the UN Security Council, then we will stop the work in the Organization for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in the Hague," Lavrov said in a Channel One interview.
  Lavrov said ''this is an absolute withdrawal from'' what had been agreed with US Secretary of State John Kerry earlier this month '' first the OPCW decision on Syria's chemical weapons and then the UN Security Council Resolution, but not under Chapter VII (action with respect to threats to the peace, breaches of the peace, and acts of aggression).
  ''Our Western partners are nervous as they understand: if Chapter VII is mentioned, this is a chance to get a justification from the UN Security Council for their unilateral actions,'' Lavrov said.
  ''We advise them to save their nerves and adhere to the international law '' the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), and not devise resolutions, which in fact put this convention on the back burner and put forward their personal or geopolitical and national ambitions,'' he said.
  The Russian foreign minister also said Russia was ready to send servicemen and military police to Syria in an effort to secure the work of experts on chemical weapons sites. He added that he doesn't think that ''large contingents'' are necessary. ''Military observers would be enough," he said.
  After weeks of intense diplomacy and an almost three-day-long marathon of talks in Geneva between Lavrov and Kerry, Moscow and Washington reached a breakthrough agreement in mid-September.
  The deal stipulates that Damascus will submit a comprehensive list of its chemical weapons within a week, that weapons inspectors will be on the ground in Syria by November, and that all the country's weapons will be removed or destroyed by the middle of 2014.
Voting underway in Germany
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  Source: euronews
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 13:02
  Over 61.8 million people are eligible to vote in Germany's parliamentary elections, with polls stations open until 8pm tonight.
  Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats look set to take the largest chunk of the votes, however to form a government she's going to need to find a partner and that might prove tricky.
  Her current coalition partner, the Free Democrats could fail to get enough seats in the Bundestag.
  The two biggest political parties have invested a total of '‚¬43 million in campaigning, but experts fear that many voters may stay at home. In the last elections in 2009 participation stood around 70%, an all time low.
  Euronews' correspondent in Berlin,Lena Roche, says Angela Merkel is hoping for a third term. In the polls it is looking good for her, but the outcome will be decided in the voting booths. And it is estimated that around 30% of people will only decide who to vote for at the last minute.
  More about:Angela Merkel, German economy, German elections 2013, Parliamentary elections, Peer Steinbr¼ckCopyright (C) 2013 euronews
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Cyber protection market takes off in Europe
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  Source: The Local - Germany's news in English
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 13:00
  Published: 22 Sep 2013 11:18 CET | Print versionOnline: http://www.thelocal.de/money/20130922-52035.html
  It is already a booming market in the United States, but in Europe, companies are also waking up to the idea of cyber insurance to protect themselves against internet attack.
  And insurance companies are projecting strong growth in the coming years.On the other side of the Atlantic, where companies are obliged to inform US authorities of online attacks, the cyber insurance market is already highly developed, totalling $1.3 billion ('‚¬960 million) per year, according to Christopher Lohmann, head of Germany and central Europe at Allianz Global Corporate and Speciality.
  Europe is still a long way off that. "But we project strong growth in the coming years. We see the market amounting to 700-900 million euros by 2018," Lohmann said.
  For companies and private individuals, the dangers from the web are very real, ranging from data and identity theft to espionage.
  Companies can see their infrastructure paralysed, their computer systems infected with viruses and malware.
  But these are not the only risks: human error and internal hiccups can also jam systems and wipe data.
  Just last month, mobile phone operator Vodafone was the victim of massive data theft where personal information -- including bank account details -- of around two million people was stolen.
  And with the exponential growth of electronic messages, and the increasing transfer of companies' commercial processing and data storage to cloud computing, the dangers are only going to multiply.
  In Germany, a total 64,000 acts of cyber crime were officially reported in 2012, representing around 42 million euros worth of damage, an increase of 7.5 percent over the previous year.
  And that is just the tip of the iceberg, experts say, because many companies prefer to remain silent over any breaches in their security systems.
  "Europe is still very much behind on this," said Nicolas Helenon, founder of the insurance broker NeoTech Assurances.
  "Big companies armed themselves against these risks long ago. But most small and mid-sized companies are not insured," Helenon said, arguing that many businesses found cyber risks more difficult to grasp than, say, fire or water damage.
  "The threat of cyber crime is primarily a concern for companies who manage a lot of client data," said Philipp Lienau at HDI Gerling.
  "In case of an attack by hackers or data theft, it can be they who can be held responsible. But above all, it's a major cost factor. Informing those affected by any cyber attack can be very costly," Lienau said.
  And it can also seriously damage a company's reputation.
  German's Allianz launched an insurance against all types of online risks to companies in July. And HDI Gerling, a subsidiary of the Talanx group, followed suit, offering tailor-made products to industry since September.
  French giant Axa is scheduled to enter the market at the beginning of October, while Zurich Insurance has been offering such policies to SMEs for a year now.
  New legislation will come into effect in Europe, requiring companies to report cyber attacks and abide by tougher data protection rules. And that will boost demand for cyber insurance, experts say.
  And it is not only companies that are at risk, but the general public too as use of social media, smartphones and online transactions rises exponentially.
  In 2011, insurer Swiss Life launched an e-reputation insurance to protect individuals' online reputation.
  French group Axa is offering a "complete family protection" package to cover all digital risks.
  Nevertheless, "the market is still not mature. Many clients do not sufficiently evaluate the difficulties they may encounter on the Internet.
  There's still a lot of educating to do," said a spokesman at Swiss Life.
  According to software maker Norton, around 556 million people were the victims of cyber crime in 2012 with the losses estimated at '‚¬80 billion.
  AFP
CIA ATTACKS MALL SHOPPERS?
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  Source: aangirfan
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 12:55
  On 21 September 2013, an upscale mall (photo above) became a war zone in Kenya.
  Samantha Lewthwaite is linked to the London Tube Bombings of 2005, and to a bombing campaign against tourist hotels in Kenya. Her father was a soldier in the UK military. SAMANTHA OF MI6?Mossad, the CIA and MI6 are heavily involved in Kenya.Kenya has become friendly with China.
  A few years ago, the Chinese defence minister agreed to modernise Kenya's armed forces.
  (The sound of silence)
  China's trade with Kenya has been rising.
  The leaders of Kenya's Mau Mau, who fought the British, were given military training in Israel. Kenya has many Israeli businessmen and a Mossad presence. In 1998, the US embassy in Nairobi was bombed. WSWS wondered about links to Mossad (Questions mount in Kenya / Israel and Africa) :In Kenya, the Chinese have invested in mining and offshore oil exploration, plus some big infrastructure projects, such as new bypasses around Nairobi.(The sound of silence)
  Kenya is the base for US intelligence operations in East Africa and the Horn of Africa.
  (Kenya: post-election violence continues)
  Michael Adebolajo released from Kenya, with the help of MI5? The London Woolwich 'terrorist' Michael Adebolajo is thought to have been working for MI5-MI6 for many years.When the police in Kenya arrested Michael in 2010, MI5-MI6 are said to have organised his release. Michael Adebolajo was arrested in ... / ADEBOLAJO WAS PAID BY MI6'There are newly discovered oil reserves in Eastern Congo. The oil is to be brought by pipeline through Kenya to Mombasa on the coast.China is currently involved in major highway projects in Kenya."
  Kenya: post-election violence continues
  Two Canadians among dead. Currently, a Briton called Jermaine Grant is about to go on trial in Kenya, charged with organising a bombing campaign.The Somalian terrorist group al-Shabaab, which has links to the CIA's Al-Qaeda, has now claimed responsibility for the 21 September 2013 Westlands shopping mall attack in Nairobi, in Kenya.
  There are at least 40 people dead and more than 150 injured in the attack.
  The "terrorists" stormed the Westgate Mall and sprayed shoppers with bullets. This is similar to the CIA's attacks in Belgium, India...In Belgium, in the mid-80s, hooded gunmen walked into crowded supermarkets and began firing at shoppers.The massacres were later discovered to be linked to Operation Gladio, which was a CIA-NATO enterprise.
  "The Supermarket massacres occurred during the period when the U.S. was pushing a plan to base the Euro-Missiles (nuclear-tipped Cruise missiles) in different European countries...
  "The Belgian Parliament, which investigated the incidents, felt that they were another attempt to sow confusion and fear among the populace, thereby generating public outcries for a law-and-order government which would be amenable to the Euro-Missles."
  http://www.etext.org/Politics/Autonome.Forum/Antifa/gladioThe Mumbai attacks were planned by the American called David Headley, who worked for the USA's Drugs Enforcement Administration.Headley admitted working for the CIA.DAVID HEADLEY - 'DRUG DEALER AND CIA AGENT'
  The people who attacked the Kenyan shopping mall are described as follows:"The attacker they arrested was a Kenyan Muslim convert.""They spoke something that seemed like Arabic..."
  It looked like an Israeli false flag operation.Before bombings... / Kenyan hotel bombs the work of the security services?
  Tyler Hicks/The New York Times
  COMMENTS from readers:
  1. The photographer Tyler Hicks always seems to be there to capture the moment.
  Witness to a Massacre in a Nairobi Mall
  That means psyop.
  What is the chance that this top notch photographer would be in the mall to "record the event"
  Tyler Hicks, who always somehow seems to be at the hottest of hot spots and war zones when things explode, did it again today, improbably being inside the mall in Nairobi when the bomb went off.
  Nairobi mall.www.dailymail.co.uk2. "We knew the shopping center is owned by Israelis and renowned as a place where many Israelis hang out," Lopez told Maariv.
  "Four of the restaurants there are also owned by Israelis and many Israelis are employed in the place."Israel's Deputy Ambassador to Kenya Yaki Lopez and the embassy's security officer arrived early in the afternoon Saturday at the command center of the local security forces, following the first reports about the attack.
  3. Can this destabilization be linked to the recent discovery of a huge underground water reserve?BBC News - Kenya aquifers discovered in dry Turkana region4. Also the killings of Brit Ex-pats linked to the goings on around the election because Kenyatta won.Lots of bad blood there with the UK establishment.5. shirlz007 comments:
  A WESTFIELD SHOPPING CENTRE - Owned by none other than Frank Lowy!
  'these global shopping centres you own seem to attract a suspiciously unusual amount of terrorist activity Frank!'-11 September 2001: New York, the WTC complex buildings 1, 2, and 7 along with Westfield Hotel were ruined in the 9/11 attacks, and consequently about $5.4 billion went into the pockets of Lowy and Silverstein.
  -21 September 2005: Westfield Mall in Perth, Australia, bomb threat.
  -17 May 2006: Westfield in Woden, Australia, bomb threat.
  -21 July 2007: Court house adjacent Westfield Centre Derby, England, bomb threat, which caused evacuation of Westfield premises.
  -01 March 2008: Westfield Old Orchard Mall, Skokie, Illinois, bomb threat.
  -20 April 2009: Westfield Hotel Annapolis, bomb threat.
  -20 September 2008: Marriott Hotel in Islamabad, Pakistan, bombing.
  -17 July 2008: Marriott Hotel in Jakarta, Indonesia, bombing.
  -August 2012: London... wait, that one didn't quite happen for ya did it Frank!)
House of Saud
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Source: Lame Cherry
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 12:53
  As another Lame Cherry exclusive in matter and anti matter by God's Grace..........
  There is a conversation taking place in the children of Persia, Egypt and Pakistan in their having not appreciation for the House of Saud, as the House of Saud in all their money has been a conduit for all the machinations of the Berlin order carried out by the Birther Hussein Obama regime.
  They have divided the lands and made the rulers pass under the rod, some to humiliation, some to cage, some to murder.
  The conspirators have come to a plan to in the next year during conflict to fire a thermo nuclear warhead to decapitate the Saudi leadership.This blog warned that this region has nuclear weapons, as the Saudi's were moved by the weapons sold to Iraq and Iran by the Soviets, to fund the Pakistani bomb, to offset that machination, that now it has graduated to a reality of the use of the Dr. Khan, cone shaped atomic warhead utilized to detonate the hydrogen reaction for a thermo nuclear detonation in Saudi Arabia.
  This will be a missile strike and the conspirators are full of suffering the abuse of the cartel at the hands of the Saudi royals. They deem it is justified that removing the dog which bites them in their yards is expedient.
  Ground zero will be 21 miles in circumference. It will be a day when a north wind blows and the front will carry the cloud south to the Indian Ocean, so as not to nuclear pollute the Asian powers.
  I do not desire the end of the children of Ishmael as they are the brothers of the Anglo Americans. Hagar the Egyptian is their mother and Joseph was give an Egyptian to wife. They are family and this should not be.They should not though trust in that prophet Muhammed nor in that moon deity allah, but come to the God of Abraham their father, as they have played the whore worse than Judah and Israel in fornicating with the world.They have gone down with the Assyrian German and Babylonian Italian, by their Birther goat who bowed to them, and now sons of Egypt, Persia and Ham seek to make a prey of them for the murders the house of Ishmael has paid for.
  Now the conspirators seek payment and it is by nuclear flame to vaporize the crescent moon in the sand.
  These are the whispers around the lamps of nuclear fire and you have been warned house of Ishmael.
  nuff said
  agtG 276Y
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Statement by NSC Spokesperson Caitlin Hayden on the Attack in Nairobi
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 12:50
  The White House
  Office of the Press Secretary
  For Immediate Release
  September 21, 2013
  The United States condemns in the strongest terms the despicable terrorist attack on innocent civilians today at the Westgate Shopping Mall in Nairobi, Kenya.
  We extend our deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of those who have been killed or injured, including the American citizens who were injured and the staff of our Embassy in Kenya who were tragically affected by this attack. We also commend the courageous response by Kenyan security personnel and first responders, including the Kenyan Red Cross, who stepped forward to help their fellow citizens.
  The perpetrators of this heinous act must be brought to justice, and we have offered our full support to the Kenyan Government to do so. We will continue to stand with the Kenyan people in their efforts to confront terrorism in all its forms, including the threat posed by al-Shabaab. This cowardly act against innocent civilians will not shake our resolve.
US Nuclear Power Plant Performance August 2013
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Source: Atomic Insights
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 12:49
  I realize that I may be accused of cherry-picking a particularly good month for US nuclear power plants, but I wanted to share something that helps to explain why I am so darned enthusiastic about nuclear energy's potential to improve the human condition. This quote comes from the Nuclear Performance Report of August, 2013. For some reason, this monthly report is not widely published. I'm pretty sure that the publisher will not mind me sharing this quote:
  Estimated U.S. nuclear generation in August 2013 was 71.0 billion kWh, compared to 69.6 billion kWh for the same period in 2012. The average estimated capacity factor for August 2013 was 97.4 percent compared to 92.7 percent in August 2012. Total nuclear generation for the first eight months of 2013 was 0.7 percent higher than the same period in 2012.
  Ninety-two of the 100 nuclear units operated above a 90 percent capacity factor during August. Fifty-five units achieved capacity factors above 100% and 37 units achieved capacity factors between 90% and 100%. Seven units had capacity factors between 38% and 83% and one unit, Fort Calhoun, was offline the entire month.
  For the Fall 2013 refueling outage season, 21 nuclear units are scheduled to refuel compared to 31 units during the same period in 2012.
  How can anyone fail to recognize the value of a technology where a fleet of 100 operating units produced 97.2 of their theoretical maximum output around the clock for a solid month? If that potential performance does not completely thrill you, please consider the importance of the fact that there was no CO2 dumped into the atmosphere during plant operation.
This is your potential fate: What happens when you question ''Common Core'' in America
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Source: Northeast Intelligence Network
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 12:47
  Click image to watch video
  You must not question royalty!
  By Douglas J. Hagmann, The Hagmann & Hagmann Report
  21 September 2013: The ''re-education of the masses'' is moving quickly now, especially when it involves our children. Enter Common Core, an educational initiative surreptitiously sweeping America. By those who understand it, it is a ''Trojan Horse,'' according Ms. Orlean Koehle, an expert on what Common Core is '' and what it's not, and what it doing to our children from elementary school through high school. Ms. Orlean Koehle was a recent guest on The Hagmann & Hagmann Report and explained the dangers of this deceptive program.
  What happens when an informed citizen dares to question the agenda of those pushing Common Core on our children? In one case, Robert Small, an attendee at a meeting of the Baltimore County Schools, became frustrated when his questions were ignored and went unanswered. Rather than settling for the dog-and-pony show, he stood up and demanded answers, only to be physically removed from the meeting and charged with second degree assault of a police officer. For asking questions, Mr. Small now faces up to ten-(10) years in prison. (Click on the image at left to watch the video of Mr. Small getting his questioned answered'... um'... being removed from the meeting for daring to ask ''unapproved and unscripted'' questions.
  Prior to his abrupt departure from the room, Mr. Small stated: ''I want to know how many parents here are aware that the goal of the Common Core standards isn't to prepare kids for full-fledged universities, it's to prepare them for community college'.....Parents, take control. We're sick of this. This is not a CNN political game. This is a public town hall'... Listen, don't stand for this. You're sitting here like cattle. You have questions. Confront them. They don't want to do it in public'.... Parents, you need to question these people'.... (emphasis by this author).
  The Hagmann & Hagmann Report is committed to confront these petty tyrants wherever and whenever possible, and expose these Marxists exactly for who and what they are.
  Listen to the interview with Orlean Koehle describe, in detail, what Common Core is and who (and what) is behind it. Click here to listen (advance to the second hour).
  RELATED:
  What is Common Core?
  ''Common Core State Standards Initiative'' is the latest education program coming down from the Obama administration, preparing the way for Obama's ''Race to the Top Assessments,'' which will take place in 2014, when all the computer software is in place to test the minds of the nation's children to see how well Common Core (CC) has been sufficiently taught. The test will be given online, as are most of the lessons preparing for it.
  CC pretends to be a benign ''State'' program, State-written and controlled. It is touted as being ''more rigorous'' and will ''better prepare students for college and the workplace.'' However, none of the above is true. CC is really a deceptive Trojan Horse, a national program, written by a national cartel, supported by President Obama and the Federal Department of Education. It is imposing national standards and curriculum on all of the 46 States that have signed onto it. [Texas, Alaska, Nebraska, and Virginia have refused it. Minnesota has adopted the English, but not the math.] READ IT ALL HERE.
  Click here to save this article in PDF format
Boston Marathon bombing report delayed ''indefinitely''
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Source: Northeast Intelligence Network
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 12:43
  Information about bombing foreknowledge not exactly forthcoming from U.S. intelligence agencies
  By Douglas J. Hagmann
  21 September 2013: The truth about the bombing that took place at the Boston Marathon is elusive at best. Facts about what the government knew and when they knew it are being hidden, and the investigation into the event is turning into a whitewash. The latest is delivered to us in the format of a letter obtained by ABC News. A letter dated Thursday, September 19, 2013 '' over five months since the April 15, 2013 bombing that killed three and injured some 260 others is being delayed'... indefinitely. Well, at least until the investigatory body receives information from intelligence agencies about ''what they knew and when they knew it'' about the alleged suspects Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.
  The letter is signed by four inspectors general and addressed to congressional committees that oversee national security. Based on the contents of the letter, their ''final'' report is being held up until they receive information from various intelligence agencies concerning their foreknowledge of alleged bombers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. There is sufficient open source and other information that suggests that the bombing is not at all what it appears. Video footage from the finish line shows the presence of assets and operatives from various intelligence agencies in addition to the Tsarnaev brothers. Inconsistencies between the official narrative and the truth are abundant. Of course, we are now facing a delay, exploiting the public's marginal attention span.
  Read the letter '' for what it's worth '' by clicking the image (opens as PDF document). We'll be following this matter '' and more '' in the coming days.
  Click here to save this article in PDF format
US wars in Afghanistan, Iraq to cost $6 trillion - thenews.com.pk
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 12:41
  LAHORE: The decade-long American wars in Afghanistan and Iraq would end up costing as much as $6 trillion, the equivalent of $75,000 for every American household, calculates the prestigious Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government.
  Remember, when President George Bush's National Economic Council Director, Lawrence Lindsey, had told the country's largest newspaper ''The Wall Street Journal'' that the war would cost between $100 billion and $200 billion, he had found himself under intense fire from his colleagues in the administration who claimed that this was a gross overestimation.
  Consequently, Lawrence Lindsey was forced to resign.It is also imperative to recall that the Bush administration had claimed at the very outset that the Iraq war would finance itself out of Iraqi oil revenues, but Washington DC had instead ended up borrowing some $2 trillion to finance the two wars, the bulk of it from foreign lenders.
  According to the Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government 2013 report, this accounted for roughly 20 per cent of the total amount added to the US national debt between 2001 and 2012.
  According to the report, the US ''has already paid $260 billion in interest on the war debt,'' andfuture interest payments would amount to trillions of dollars.This Harvard University report has also been carried on its website by the Centre for Research on Globalisation, which is a widely-quoted Montreal-based independent research and media organisation.
  In its report under review, the 377-year old Harvard University has viewed that these afore-mentioned wars had not only left the United States heavily indebted, but would also have a profound impact on the federal government's fiscal and budgetary crises over a protracted period.
  The report has attributed the largest share of the trillions of dollars in continuing costs to care and compensation for hundreds of thousands of troops left physically and psychologically damaged by the two wars being discussed here.
  The report states: ''The Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts, taken together, will be the most expensive wars in US history'--totaling somewhere between $4 trillion and $6 trillion. This includes long-term medical care and disability compensation for service members, veterans and families, military replenishment and social and economic costs. The largest portion of that bill is yet to be paid.''
  It asserts: ''Another major share of the long-term costs of the wars comes from paying off trillions of dollars in debt incurred as the US government failed to include their cost in annual budgets and simultaneously implemented sweeping tax cuts for the rich. In addition, huge expenditures are being made to replace military equipment used in the two wars. The report also cites improvements in military pay and benefits made in 2004 to counter declining recruitment rates as casualties rose in the Iraq war.''
  The authors of this report have warned that the legacy of decisions taken during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars would dominate future federal budgets for decades to come.
  According to the Harvard University report, some 1.56 million US troops'--56 per cent of all Afghanistan and Iraq veterans'--were receiving medical treatment at Veterans Administration facilities and would be granted benefits for the rest of their lives.
  It reveals: ''One out of every two veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan has already applied for permanent disability benefits. The official figure of 50,000 American troops ''wounded in action'' vastly underestimates the real human costs of the two US wars. One-third of returning veterans are being diagnosed with mental health issues'--suffering from anxiety, depression, and/or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).''
  The report notes that in addition, over a quarter of a million troops have suffered traumatic brain injuries (TBI), which, in many cases, were combined with PTSD, posing greater problems in treatment and recovery.
  ''Constituting a particularly grim facet of this mental health crisis is the doubling of the suicide rate for US Army personnel, with many who attempted suicide suffering serious injuries,'' opine the report authors.
  It maintains: ''Overall, the Veterans Administration's budget has more than doubled over the past decade, from $61.4 billion in 2001 to $140.3 billion in 2013. As a share of the total US budget it has grown from 2.5 percent to 3.5 percent over the same period. Soaring medical costs for veterans is attributable to several factors. Among them is that, thanks to advancements in medical technology and rapid treatment, soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan have survived wounds that would have cost their lives in earlier conflicts.''
  The Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government report has estimated: ''While the US government has already spent $134 billion on medical care and disability benefits for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, this figure will climb by an additional $836 billion over the coming decades.''
  It notes that the largest expenditures on health care for World War II veterans took place in the 1980s, roughly four decades after the war, and that spending on medical care and disability payments for Vietnam War veterans was still on the rise.
  Here follows the description: ''The most common medical problems suffered by troops returning from the two wars include: diseases of the musculoskeletal system (principally joint and back disorders); mental health disorders; central nervous system and endocrine system disorders; as well as respiratory, digestive, skin and hearing disorders. Overall, some 29 per cent of these troops have been diagnosed with PTSD.''
  The report goes on to argue: ''Among the most severely wounded are 6,476 soldiers and Marines who have suffered ''severe penetrating brain injury,'' and another 1,715 who have had one or more limbs amputated. Over 30,000 veterans are listed as suffering 100 percent service-related disabilities, while another 145,000 are listed as 70 to 90 percent disabled.''
  It reads: ''The worst of these casualties have taken place under the Obama administration as a result of the so-called surge that the Democratic president ordered in Afghanistan.''
  It mentions that the Walter Reed Medical Centre, US Army's flagship hospital at Washington DC, was treating hundreds of recent amputees and severe casualties, adding that this facility had received 100 amputees for treatment during 2010; 170 amputees in 2011; and 107 amputees in 2012.
  The report has also stated that the US Marines have suffered an especially high toll.
  The report points out: ''Massive direct spending on the two imperialist interventions continues. With over 60,000 US troops remain in Afghanistan, it is estimated that the cost of deploying one American soldier for one year in this war amounts to $1 million. These troops continue suffering casualties'--including in so-called ''green on blue'' attacks by Afghan security forces on their ostensible allies. As they are brought home, they will further drive up the costs of medical care and disability compensation. The US is maintaining a vast diplomatic presence in Iraq, including at least 10,000 private contractors providing support in security, IT, logistics, engineering and other occupations; as well as logistics support and payments for leased facilities in Kuwait.''
  In its conclusion, the report not only seeks to dispel illusions that ending full-scale wars in Iraq and Afghanistan would produce any kind of ''peace dividend'' that could help ameliorate conditions of poverty, unemployment and declining living standards for working people in the US itself, but makes it clear that the legacy of decisions made during the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts would impose significant long-term costs on the federal government for many years to come.
Did Antidepressant Play a Role in Navy Yard Massacre? | Cross-Check, Scientific American Blog Network
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  Archived Version
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 12:21
  Once again, antidepressants have been linked to an episode of horrific violence. The New York Times reports that Aaron Alexis, who allegedly shot 12 people to death at a Navy facility in Washington, D.C., earlier this week, received a prescription for the antidepressant trazodone in August.
  Aaron Alexis, accused of shooting to death 12 people this week, was reportedly prescribed the antidepressant trazodone in August.
  When I first researched antidepressants almost 20 years ago, I encountered claims that they sometimes triggered violent episodes'--for example, a 1989 incident in which a Kentucky man taking fluoxetine (brand name Prozac) shot to death eight co-workers and then himself. I dismissed the claims, reasoning that, because people prescribed psychiatric drugs are disturbed to begin with, it is not surprising that a tiny fraction hurt themselves and/or others.
  By 2004, however, in part because of lawsuits that forced pharmaceutical companies to disclose data on adverse effects, the FDA ordered antidepressant manufacturers to include a warning that antidepressants ''increased the risk compared to placebo of suicidal thinking and behavior (suicidality) in children, adolescents, and young adults in short-term studies of major depressive disorder (MDD) and other psychiatric disorders.''
  Alexis, who was 34, was reportedly seeking treatment for insomnia when he received his prescription for trazodone. Originally marketed as an antidepressant after its approval by the FDA in 1981, trazodone is also prescribed for anxiety and insomnia. Trazodone was a precursor of the extremely popular selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs); like the SSRIs, trazodone boosts levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin.
  A website maintained by the National Institutes of Health states that trazodone and other antidepressants have been associated with ''new or worsening depression; thinking about harming or killing yourself, or planning or trying to do so; extreme worry; agitation; panic attacks; difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep; aggressive behavior; irritability; acting without thinking; severe restlessness; and frenzied abnormal excitement.''
  Could trazodone have played some role in the Navy Yard rampage? I put this question to David Healy, a professor of psychiatry at Cardiff University in England and an authority on side effects of psychiatric medications.* He has testified in numerous court cases involving suicides and homicides whose perpetrators were ingesting antidepressants. Healy is not opposed to psychiatric medications''he prescribes them to his own patients'--but he has long been active in pointing out medications' risks. *[Healy and other health-care experts have founded an organization called RxISK to gather data on side effects of drugs. See Postscript.]
  Healy responded by email that he ''would need to know much more details'' to judge whether trazodone might have contributed to this week's massacre. Indeed, as the Times reported, Alexis had displayed signs of mental illness and acted violently well before being prescribed trazodone. In 2004 he fired bullets into a car in Seattle, during what he described later as a ''black out'' episode. So far, moreover, there are no reports that he had trazodone in his system during his Navy Yard rampage.
  But Healy said that, although data on antidepressants and violence are much more scarce than data on suicide, there is evidence that ''you can put healthy volunteers on these drugs and some will become violent.'' A study by the Drug Safety Research Unit in Southampton of paroxetine (Paxil) and fluoxetine (Prozac) involving more than 25,000 subjects showed that one out of every 250 subjects were involved in ''a violent episode,'' including 31 assaults and one homicide, Healy said.
  Another study involving more than 9,000 subjects taking the antidepressant paroxetine (Paxil) for depression and other disorders showed that subjects experienced more than twice as many ''hostility events'' as subjects taking a placebo. Healy added: ''I have had clinical experience of at least one older man, with no prior history of violence, who became homicidal after a week on citalopram where the problem cleared up once treatment had stopped.''
  Healy suspects that the main causal factor behind suicide and violence toward others is increased mental and/or physical agitation, which leads about 5 percent of subjects taking antidepressants to drop out of clinical trials, compared to only 0.5 percent of people on placebos.
  In their excellent overview ''Antidepressants and Violence: Problems at the Interface of Medicine and Law,'' published in PLoS Medicine in 2006, Healy and two co-authors note that ''serious violence on antidepressants is likely to be very rare.'' But they call for ''more clinical trial and epidemiological data to be made available and for good clinical descriptions of the adverse outcomes of treatment.''
  They add: ''Legal systems are likely to continue to be faced with cases of violence associated with the use of psychotropic drugs, and it may fall to the courts to demand access to currently unavailable data. The problem is international and calls for an international response.''
  Antidepressants and other psychiatric drugs clearly help alleviate mental illness in some patients. But as I have written previously, such medications may on balance harm patients more than they help. We need better data on the risks that these medications pose not only to patients but also to others.
  *Postscript: David Healy and other health-care experts from around the world have formed an organization called RxISK to gather data on adverse effects of pharmaceutical drugs, including violence. The RxISK website calls it ''the first free, independent website where patients, doctors, and pharmacists can research prescription drugs and easily report a drug side effect''identifying problems and possible solutions earlier than is currently happening.'' I hope RxISK succeeds, because we badly need it.
  Photo: Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Scary Health Warnings Can Boost Sales - Harvard Business Review
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 12:15
  Magazine
  by Ziv Carmon, Yael Steinhart, and Yaacov Trope
  Highlighting the risks of a behavior'--smoking or taking a medication, say'--ought to make people think twice about using a product. But a series of experiments we conducted reveals that sometimes just the opposite is true: A warning label can increase a product's appeal. This happens when there's a lag between delivery of the message and a decision about buying, consuming, or assessing the product. Why? The mere inclusion of a warning builds trust, because consumers feel that the seller is being honest'--and over time that trust becomes more prominent, while the substance of the warning fades.
  In one experiment, we showed a cigarette ad to 71 smokers and asked if they wanted to place an order for the brand. Half the participants saw a version of the ad that included a warning about health hazards; half saw a version with no warning. Half the people in each group were then told that any cigarettes they bought would arrive in a day'--a ''near future'' condition. The other half were told that the cigarettes would come three months later'--a ''distant future'' condition. In the near-future condition, the warning was effective'--participants who had seen it ordered 75% fewer packs of cigarettes, on average, than those who hadn't. In the distant-future condition, however, the warning backfired'--participants who had seen it ordered 493% more packs than those who hadn't.
  To test the impact of a different kind of time lag, we created two versions of an ad for an artificial sweetener'--one that warned of immune-system damage and other adverse side effects, and one that didn't'--and tested them on a group of 74 women. Again, half the participants saw each version of the ad, but this time we set up immediate-choice and delayed-choice conditions: Half the women in each group could order the sweetener right away, and the other half were given the opportunity to order two weeks later. Here, too, the lag caused the warning to backfire. In the immediate-choice condition, women who had seen the warning ordered 94% fewer packages of sweetener than those who hadn't; in the delayed-choice condition, however, they ordered 265% more.
  Subsequent experiments involving erectile-dysfunction and hair-loss medications showed that delays have similar effects when people rate the desirability of a risky product after seeing an ad for it: Warnings led to higher ratings when participants were asked to evaluate the product two weeks after they saw the ad and when they were informed that the product would become available in a year.
  Source: Three warnings from the authors' study
  These findings have important implications for regulators and for managers in fields such as consumer products, health care, and finance. Those who want to minimize the deterrent effects of a warning would do better to build in a delay of some sort (almost any kind of delay will do) than to bury the warning in fine print. In fact, the latter course might hurt sales by forgoing the credibility that warning labels can confer and arousing suspicion instead. Those who genuinely wish to warn consumers should ensure that the message is conveyed'--or repeated'--shortly before the relevant event, whether that's product use, a medical procedure, or a high-stakes investment.
VIDEO- Green Peace Ship Seized By Russian Coast Guard Activist Held At Gunpoint! - YouTube
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  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 05:49
VIDEO- Obama Denies Venezuelan President Travel Through US Airspace! - YouTube
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VIDEO- "United States Of America Is Not A Deadbeat Nation!" WE'RE A WAR PROFITEERING NATION! - YouTube
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VIDEO AFP Reporting Syrian Govt Has Completed Handover Of Inventory Of Chemical Weapons Within Deadline - YouTube
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VIDEO- 51 Countries Vote Down UN Resolution Calling For Israel To Join Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty! - YouTube
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VIDEO- WARNING GRAPHIC IMAGES! Inside Look At Nairobi Mall During After Terrorist Attack - YouTube
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VIDEO- Washington Navy Shipyard Shooting Hoax and Fake, AP Jumps Gun(npi) - YouTube
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VIDEO- Westboro Mingle - YouTube
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WEEKLY ADDRESS: Congress Must Act Now to Pass a Budget and Raise the Debt Ceiling
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  Archived Version
  Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 03:21
  The White House
  Office of the Press Secretary
  For Immediate Release
  September 21, 2013
  WASHINGTON, DC'-- In his weekly address, President Obama said that the economy is making progress five years after the worst recession since the Great Depression, but to avoid another crisis, Congress must meet two deadlines in the coming weeks: pass a budget by the end of the month to keep the government open, and raise the debt ceiling so America can pay its bills. Congress should vote to do these now, so that we can keep creating new jobs and expanding opportunity for the middle class.
  The audio of the address and video of the address will be available online at www.whitehouse.gov at 6:00 a.m. ET, September 21, 2013.
  Remarks of President Barack ObamaWeekly AddressThe White HouseSeptember 21, 2013
  Hi, everybody. It was five years ago this week that a financial crisis on Wall Street spread to Main Street, and very nearly turned a recession into a depression.
  In a matter of months, millions of Americans were robbed of their jobs, their homes, their savings '' after a decade in which they'd already been working harder and harder to just get by.
  It was a crisis from which we're still trying to recover. But thanks to the grit and determination of the American people, we are steadily recovering.
  Over the past three and a half years, our businesses have created seven and a half million new jobs. Our housing market is healing. We've become less dependent on foreign oil. Health care costs are growing at the slowest rate in 50 years. And in just over a week, millions of Americans without health care will be able to get covered for less than $100 a month.
  So our economy is gaining traction. And we're finally tackling threats to middle-class prosperity that Washington neglected for far too long. But as any middle-class family listening right now knows, we've got a long way to go to get to where we need to be. And after five years spent digging out of crisis, the last thing we need is for Washington to manufacture another.
  But that's what will happen in the next few weeks if Congress doesn't meet two deadlines.
  First: the most basic Constitutional duty Congress has is passing a budget. But if it doesn't pass one before September 30th '' a week from Monday '' the government will shut down. And so will many services the American people expect. Military personnel, including those deployed overseas, won't get their paychecks on time. Federal loans for rural communities, small business owners, and new home buyers will be frozen. Critical research into life-saving discoveries and renewable energy will be immediately halted. All of this will be prevented if Congress just passes a budget.
  Second: Congress must authorize the Treasury to pay America's bills. This is done with a simple, usually routine vote to raise what's called the debt ceiling. Since the 1950s, Congress has always passed it, and every President has signed it '' Democrats and Republicans, including President Reagan. And if this Congress doesn't do it within the next few weeks, the United States will default on its obligations and put our entire economy at risk.
  This is important: raising the debt ceiling is not the same as approving more spending. It lets us pay for what Congress already spent. It doesn't cost a dime, or add a penny to our deficit. In fact, right now, our deficits are already falling at the fastest rate since the end of World War II. And by the end of this year, we'll have cut our deficits by more than half since I took office.
  But reducing our deficits and debt isn't even what the current standoff in Congress is about.
  Now, Democrats and some reasonable Republicans are willing to raise the debt ceiling and pass a sensible budget '' one that cuts spending on what we don't need so we can invest in what we do. And I want to work with those Democrats and Republicans on a better bargain for the middle class.
  But there's also a faction on the far right of the Republican party who've convinced their leadership to threaten a government shutdown if they can't shut off the Affordable Care Act. Some are actually willing to plunge America into default if they can't defund the Affordable Care Act.
  Think about that. They'd actually plunge this country back into recession '' all to deny the basic security of health care to millions of Americans.
  Well, that's not happening. And they know it's not happening.
  The United States of America is not a deadbeat nation. We are a compassionate nation. We are the world's bedrock investment. And doing anything to threaten that is the height of irresponsibility. That's why I will not negotiate over the full faith and credit of the United States. I will not allow anyone to harm this country's reputation, or threaten to inflict economic pain on millions of our own people, just to make an ideological point.
  So, we are running out of time to fix this. But we could fix it tomorrow. Both houses of Congress can take a simple vote to pay our bills on time, then work together to pass a budget on time.
  Then we can declare an end to governing by crisis and govern responsibly, by putting our focus back where it should always be '' on creating new jobs, growing our economy, and expanding opportunity not just for ourselves, but for future generations.
  Thank you.
  ###
Spitting on Their Graves: Democrats Leave Benghazi Hearing Before Testimony From Families of Victims - Katie Pavlich
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  Archived Version
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 02:58
  Sep. 19, 2013
  During the second portion of a House Oversight and Government Reform hearing about Benghazi Thursday on Capitol Hill, the majority of Democrats on the Committee left the room and refused to listen to the testimony of Patricia Smith and Charles Woods. Ms. Smith is the mother of Sean Smith, an information management officer killed in the 9/11 Benghazi attack. Charles Woods is the father of Navy SEAL Tyrone Woods, who was also killed.
  The far side of the room, shown empty in the photo, belongs to the Democrats. The only Democrats who stayed were Ranking Member Elijah Cummings and Rep. Jackie Speier.
  UPDATE: It turns out there weren't a whole lot of Republicans in the hearing room for Smith and Wood's testimony either. They should have been there. That being said, here's the difference: Republicans have promised Smith and Woods answers about what happened in Benghazi and their continued efforts to hold hearings, issue subpoenas, etc. prove it. Charles Woods went out of his way during testimony to thank Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz for his help. Democrats have repeatedly called the attack, and it's cover-up, a 'phony scandal' and a political witch hunt.
The Many Ways Of Hiding An Ad As A ''Sponsored Post'' '' Consumerist
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 02:57
  Advertisers have always sought seamless integration of their brands into consumer-targeted content, driven by the notion that the audience is less irritated by a commercial if it doesn't scream ''I'm a commercial.'' But at what point does that line get so fuzzy that it's hard to tell the difference between the two?
  As we mentioned the other day, the Federal Trade Commission is set to ask that very same question as it looks into the latest iteration of thinly veiled marketing, inanely dubbed ''native advertising'' by some executive who makes a lot more money than many of us will ever dream of seeing and probably has really nice teeth.
  Since we don't accept advertising, we decided to take a peek around the Internet to see how news sites, all well-regarded in their own fields, manage to toe the line. We found that some sites have no problem planting a big ''This is advertising'' flag to distance themselves from the content (while also accepting money from the advertiser, of course), while others blur that line like a caffeinated kid holding an Etch-a-Sketch (who did not sponsor this post).
  THE OBVIOUSAs mentioned in the previous post, Buzzfeed makes no attempt to hide the fact that these sponsored stories are bought and paid for.On the Buzzfeed homepage, this post is marked in a distinctly different color with a note that clearly states in big bold letters that this is paid for by Toyota:
  Then on the landing page for the post, it gets an even more Toyota-fied branding, with modules for Toyota's Facebook and Twitter feeds:
  Similarly, the folks at Quartz endeavor to alert readers to the fact that this post about a Boeing submarine is not only sponsored by Boeing, but written by the aircraft giant:
  THE MUDDIED WATERSOver at Consumerist's former home, Gawker Media, they do go out of their way to indicate a post is sponsored, but not as far as the previous examples.
  For example, this post on Gizmodo that was apparently supplied by IBM:
  While the byline does indicate that the post was sponsored and promoted by IBM, there are no other visual indicators '-- like a border or different background color '-- that immediately signify this as something different than the posts around it on the homepage. Making matters even blurrier, the two other posts linked to immediately under this story's headline are also sponsored posts from IBM.
  On the actual story page, there are more indicators that this is content coming from IBM, such as an IBM avatar with the byline, and a mention at the bottom of the story of it being part of a continuing series from IBM:
  THE QUESTIONABLEOver at Mashable, you'll find a video in the column marked ''The Next Big Thing'' that is about some New York restaurateurs discussing the best way to grow their business.
  Yes, it does say at the bottom of the box that it's sponsored by ''AMEX OPENFORUM,'' but the inclusion of this ad in the Next Big Thing Column (and its repeated inclusion '-- you'll see this ad four times if you scroll through the homepage) may lead quick readers to think that this is actual content posted by Mashable.
  Even the video does not make it clear that this is an ad for American Express, as the Open Forum info only shows up very briefly twice during the clip. It's only if you click on a ''get more info'' link during the video that it actually links out to the Amex site'... featuring the same video.
  THE EGREGIOUSThen there's this headscratcher of a post on Eater.com, featuring the editor of Eater L.A. shilling for Gap:
  The post uses a blue background, which is different than other posts on Eater's homepage, but nowhere does it include the word ''sponsored,'' instead swapping that out for the much friendlier sounding ''partner.'' In editorial terms, partner has a wide range of meanings. It could mean a corporate business relationship, in the way that Eater is related to parent company Curbed. It could also mean a content-sharing arrangement, or '-- as in this case '-- some sort of advertising, possibly revenue-share deal.
  Further, the use of an actual Eater editor may cause confusion as you don't normally see a site's editor taking part in a paid ad. Then there is the actual text of the post '-- ''time-tested throwback,'' ''classic vintage look'' '-- which comes across like copy from a Gap sales catalog.
  We are regular readers and linkers to Eater, so we reached out to the site's editorial head to get his feelings on this obvious advertorial content. He passed us on to Curbed Media president Joshua Albertson, who said the ad is transparent enough for his readers.
  ''In addition to the 'From Our Partners' language that appears as a tag in the right column and in the body of the post, the post is shaded blue, which is standard for sponsored copy on the site,'' Albertson told Consumerist. ''We think this combination is sufficient to indicate that the post is sponsored.''
  [UPDATE: Upon further investigation, we noticed that previous stories with the same byline on Eater were all of the advertorial sort, but that some of these posts were not listed as "From our Partners," but were called out as "Sponsored by" and included the logos of companies like Tanqueray and Revlon.
  While this does show that not all sponsored stories on Eater lack transparency, it does seem to indicate that the site is deliberately trying to minimize the transparency of its partnership with The Gap.]
  THE SOCIAL MEDIA PROBLEMGiven that none of the above examples use words like ''sponsored'' in the actual headlines, we wondered if that bought-and-paid-for message was carrying through when readers shared these stories on social media. The answer is no, regardless of how transparent the original site tries to be. Here are how each of the above examples looked when attempting to share on Facebook:BUZZFEED
  QUARTZ
  GIZMODO
  MASHABLE
  EATER
  So when these stories get shared on Facebook and elsewhere, the ''sponsored'' messaging isn't being shared. That means people who would otherwise have not clicked on a post, knowing it was an ad, might click through. While this is not the fault of the websites involved, it is a shortcoming of the Facebook ''like'' system that works out to the advantage of the advertisers.
FBI calls half of populace with 9/11 doubts potential terrorists
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  Archived Version
  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 12:31
  The FBI is instructing local police departments and "communities against terrorism" to consider anyone who harbors "conspiracy theories" about 9/11 to be a potential terrorist, in a circular released to local police departments.The circular thus adds 9/11 official story skeptics to a growing list of targets described by federal law enforcement to be security threats, such as those who express "libertarian philosophies," "Second Amendment-oriented views," interest in "self-sufficiency," "fears of Big Brother or big government," and "Declarations of Constitutional rights and civil liberties."A newly released national poll shows that 48% of Americans either have some doubts about the official account of 9/11, or do not believe it at all.The FBI circular entitled "Potential Indicators of Terrorist Activities Related to Sleepers" says that people who should be 'considered suspicious' of possible involvement in "terrorist activity" include those who hold the "attitude" described as " Conspiracy theories about Westerners." The circular continues: "e.g. (sic) the CIA arranged for 9/11 to legitimize the invasion of foreign lands."fbi.gov
  Section of FBI circular to local police, "Potential Indicators of Terrorist Activities Related to Sleepers."
  image:157378:1::0
  "Sleepers" refers to "sleeper cells," in FBI jargon, which are terrorists awaiting orders to be activated into terrorist activity.In 1998 it was declassified by the Pentagon that the Joint Chiefs of Staff had approved a plan, in 1962, to attack and kill US citizens to "provide justifications for US military intervention in Cuba." The plan was code-named Operation Northwoods, the face page of the declassified document is below.government archives
  Face page, Operation Northwoods memo.
  image:154614:1::0
  The plan was signed by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, General Lyman Lemnitzer. It was rejected by President John F. Kennedy, who demoted Lemnitzer.According to the polling firm YouGov, 38% of Americans have some doubts about the official account of 9/11, 10% do not believe it at all, and 12% are unsure about it.The FBI circular, issued by the Department of Justice Assistance, an arm of the US Department of Justice, is posted at, among other departments, the Columbus, Ohio, police department website, and the New Hampshire state government website. The FBI document also includes as reason for suspicion of involvement in terrorist activities:"Excusing violence against Americans on the grounds that American actions provoked the problem."http://patriotsquestion911.com/
  US Army Major General Albert Stubblebine
  image:157376:0::0
  As well the document cites "fury" at the "global policies of the U.S."Among well-known doubters of the official 9/11 account are many military officers, law enforcement personnel, firefighters, and pilots, all working through affinity groups. One is US Army Major General Albert Stubblebine, who has said of the three buildings which fell on 9/11:"They didn't fall down because airplanes hit them. They fell down because of explosives went off inside. Demolition."Most recently, former Fox News anchorman Ben Swann has questioned the official 9/11 story.This September 11th a group of citizens, architects, and engineers, led by families of 9/11 victims, unveiled an international ad campaign questioning the official version of 9/11. The campaign is sponsoring signs and billboards around the world which ask the question: "Did you know a third tower fell on 9/11?"http://rethink911.org
  Rethink911.org billboard in Dallas.
  image:157377:0::0
  The 9/11 issue has been actively pursued on the Internet, and largely excluded by the major media. However, news organizations such as Time have covered the architects and engineers billboard campaign, sponsored by a group called 2,000 Architects and Engineers for 9/11 Truth.Bloggers and other citizens have long argued that the science employed by the official story is impossible, and that the three towers must have been destroyed by some other means. As the FBI circular states, some argue that 9/11 was planned by a secret coup faction of the US government "to legitimize the invasion of foreign lands," notably Iraq and the Middle East. In 2005 General Wesley Clark, former presidential candidate, said that he was given a copy of a memo by a ranking member of the Bush administration that revealed that war hawks in the Pentagon planned on attacking "seven countries in five years," with Iraq only the beginning.Other federal law enforcement agencies have been criticized for sweeping characterizations of potential terrorists, which demonize Constitutionally protected activity. In 2011, 18-year law enforcement veteran James Wesley Rawles warned that the Department of Homeland Security was being trained to consider as potential terrorists, among other people, those who had expressed "libertarian philosophies, "Second Amendment-oriented views," "Self-sufficiency (stockpiling food, ammo, hand tools, medical supplies,) "Fear of economic collapse," "fears of Big Brother or big government," and "Declarations of Constitutional rights and civil liberties." Since Hurricane Katrina, food stockpiling consultants and merchants have reported greater-than-ever activity and interest in storing long-term supplies of non-perishable food and water supplies.
Chinese Military Capable of Jamming U.S. Communications System | Washington Free Beacon
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  Archived Version
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 02:06
  U.S. spy's secrets assist Chinese electronic warfare against U.S. military data links
  AP
  BY:Bill GertzSeptember 20, 2013 4:59 am
  China's military is using stolen U.S. military secrets obtained from a convicted spy to defeat a high-technology communications system used in joint warfighting, combined arms warfare, and missile defenses, according to U.S. officials.
  The disclosure that China has the capability of jamming the Joint Tactical Information Distribution System, or JTIDS, was revealed in a Chinese military technical article published in July.
  JTIDS is part of a group of military communications systems called Link 16 that gives U.S. military forces jam-resistant communications, a key strategic advantage used in joint warfighting, a specialty of the American military.
  JTIDS allows for a nearly unlimited number of military commanders and operators to share information, such as precision location or position data, critical in tracking, monitoring, and targeting. It is also resistant to electronic warfare attacks by rapidly jumping to different frequencies.
  The Chinese article reveals that the People's Liberation Army is studying this feature and working to defeat it.
  The article, ''Anti-Jamming Performance of JTIDS-Type Waveform,'' was published July 10 in the journal Aerospace Electronic Warfare, a publication of Institute 8511, a unit of the China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC).
  The article states that Chinese researchers have studied the JTIDS anti-jamming capabilities and formulated an ''optimal jamming strategy from the point of view of the interferer.''
  The Chinese article reveals that researchers have extensively studied JTIDS and produced several technical articles on the system. The article discussed ''broadband barrage jamming'' and ''partial-band interference'' of JTIDS.
  As a result, the researchers ''discovered that the only way to obtain a good interference result is to increase the interference power.''
  A footnote to the article notes other work has been done on how to interfere with JTIDS communications.
  According to court papers, Gregg Bergersen, a weapons system analyst with the Pentagon's Defense Security Cooperation Agency, sold secrets on a JTIDS variant known as Po Sheng that was sold to Taiwan in the early 2000s.
  An FBI affidavit in the case revealed that Bergersen ''discussed Po Sheng and communications security'' during a dinner meeting on March 3, 2007 with a Chinese agent identified as Tai Shenkuo. The affidavit said the talks involved disclosure of classified information.
  Bergersen was director of command, control, communications, computers, and intelligence programs for the Navy. He pleaded guilty in 2008 to charges of disclosing national defense secrets to China. He was sentenced to four and a half years in prison.
  Michelle Van Cleave, national counterintelligence executive under President George W. Bush, said China's military has targeted U.S. military communications technology for collection.
  ''China would like nothing better than to be able to disrupt or corrupt sensitive U.S. military communications'--it is at the heart of their military strategies of information dominance and anti-access/area-denial,'' Van Cleave said in an email. ''So they send spies to steal what they need with the help of traitors like Bergerson who blithely sell it to them.''
  Mark Stokes, a former Pentagon official and specialist on Chinese military affairs said the Chinese military for years has invested large sums in electronic countermeasures technology.
  ''The denial of U.S., Japan, South Korea, Taiwan abilities to employ JTIDS is only one goal,'' Stokes said. ''Satellite jamming is another area of focus. The PLA also is investing into R&D on a range of communications technologies, including tactical data links.''
  Richard Fisher, an expert on China's military with the International Assessment and Strategy Center, said in addition to countermeasures, China likely used the military technology secrets obtained from Bergersen to develop its own jam-proof tactical communications system.
  ''It's a fact the Chinese are developing their own JTIDS-like Link 16 system for distributed command and control operations,'' Fisher said, adding that an early version is probably in use now by Chinese military forces.
  ''Right now Link 16 is a crucial force multiplier that allows the United States to fight jointly,'' he said. ''It is the main linkage between different kind of forces and different services. Taking away Link 16 makes our defensive challenge far more difficult and makes it far more expensive in terms of casualties'' in any future conflict with China.
  Stokes said Link 16 communications are a ''backbone'' for advance data links for the military rooted in German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel's North Africa campaign in World War II when a flexible system of tactical communications connected individual tanks.
  The communications allowed greater situational awareness and allowed junior officers to take independent and decentralized action.
  Today, the U.S. military has applied this concept to what it calls network centric operations.
  Recent Chinese military writings indicate the People's Liberation Army is focused on attacking the United States using electronic and other means targeting network centric operations, like Link 16.
  Network-centric warfare gives military forces the ability to ''synchronize action, without necessarily having to wait for orders, which in turn reduces their reaction time,'' Stokes wrote in a recent paper for the Project 2049 Institute, where he is an analyst.
  The communications also are used in missile defenses, which require rapid transference of data on targets to guidance systems.
  China is known to be targeting U.S. missile defenses and is also developing its own missile defenses.
He called climate change 'crap' '' now Australia's new Prime Minister abolishes watchdog - Australasia - World - The Independent
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  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 01:54
  Australia's new Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, who once dismissed evidence of climate change as ''absolute crap'', has disbanded an environmental agency set up to provide independent information to the public, and sacked its head, the internationally renowned scientist and author Tim Flannery.
  Mr Abbott's move, on day two of his premiership, horrified environmentalists, academics and many in the wider community. Among developed nations, Australia '' the world's driest inhabited continent '' is regarded as most vulnerable to climate change, with scientists pointing to more frequent and severe bushfires and floods as part of an already visible pattern.
  Indeed, Professor Flannery's Climate Commission blamed ''a climate on steroids'' for last summer's record-breaking heatwaves, and warned of ''really frightening'' temperatures to come.
  The leader of the Australian Greens, Christine Milne, said Mr Abbott's decision marked ''a black day in the struggle against global warming'' and called him a ''climate criminal '... [who] has demonstrated his contempt for climate science and for the health and wellbeing of future generations''.
  The agency's abolition is part of the conservative government's efforts to streamline what it considers a bloated bureaucracy. However, Mr Flannery '' a former visiting professor at Harvard University in the US, and the author of more than 130 scientific papers and numerous books '' said no other organisation was carrying out the commission's role. While Mr Abbott now says he believes ''climate change is real'', he also plans to axe two other bodies: the Climate Change Authority, which provides the government with independent advice on targets for reducing carbon emissions, and the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, which supports private investment in renewable energy sources.
  One of the centrepieces of his election campaign was a promise to axe a ''carbon tax'' on big polluters, introduced by one of his Labor party predecessors, Julia Gillard.
  Speaking in Melbourne today, Prof Flannery '' whose research as a field biologist in Papua New Guinea prompted David Attenborough to describe him as one of the world's great explorers '' noted that 123 heat records were broken across Australia last summer. ''We have just seen one of the earliest ever starts to the bushfire season in Sydney,'' he added.
Navy Yard murderer Aaron Alexis created webpage with name "Mohammed Salem" - Jihad Watch
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  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 01:49
  There has been no other published indication that Aaron Alexis was a Muslim or had any interest in Islam. It may be, however, that in his delusional madness, he began to identify with the jihadists who have committed mass murder in the name of their bloodthirsty god.
  "Navy Yard gunman's mother says she is heartbroken and sorry for families," by Kyle Eppler, Pete Williams and Erin McClam for NBC News, September 18 (thanks to Darcy):
  The mother of Aaron Alexis, the Washington Navy Yard shooter, said Wednesday that she was heartbroken and sorry for the families of the victims and that she was glad he is "in a place where he can no longer do harm to anyone."
  In a brief statement to a reporter in New York, the woman, Cathleen Alexis, said her son "has murdered 12 people and wounded several others."...
  Authorities say they are still looking for a motive. Since Alexis carried out the attack Monday at the headquarters of the Naval Sea Systems Command, signs have emerged of a troubled history.
  ' Alexis, who served as a naval reservist from 2007 to 2011 and worked more recently as a civilian contractor, had a military disciplinary record that included disorderly conduct, insubordination and unexcused absences.
  Newport, R.I., police said he called them Aug. 7 to say he had changed hotels twice because he believed people were chasing him and sending vibrations through the walls to keep him from sleeping.
  Police said they had forwarded their report to police at the naval station in Newport. Military officials told NBC News on Wednesday that they had found no evidence that naval police forwarded the information to any higher command outside the base.
  ' The Department of Veterans Affairs said Wednesday that it saw Alexis twice. He went to a VA emergency room in Providence, R.I., on Aug. 23 complaining of insomnia and was given sleep medicine and told to follow up with a doctor, the agency said. Five days later, Alexis showed up at a VA emergency room in Washington to get a refill and was again encouraged to see a doctor, the VA said.
  The VA said Alexis denied struggling with anxiety or depression or having thoughts about hurting himself or others. It also said he enrolled in VA health care in February 2011 and never sought an appointment for mental health.
  ' Alexis also had run-ins with the law over gun violence. He was accused in 2004 of having shot out the tires of a car in Seattle and in 2010 of having fired a gun into an upstairs apartment in Fort Worth, Texas.
  ' Friends and relatives have also said he had a preoccupation with the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, felt slighted as a veteran, had money problems and was so unhappy with his life that he considered leaving the U.S.
  Law enforcement officials told NBC News that Alexis created a webpage with the name "Mohammed Salem," but they said he never did anything with it. They said they had found nothing else that might indicate any interest in violent jihad or even in Islam.
Muccings: Our national security is compromised'...
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  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 01:45
  Out-sourcing our security clearances to a Muslim infested culture in Falls Church, VA
  It has been revealed that the security clearance investigations for both Edward Snowden (and I suppose for all those among their 26,000 employees of his military contractor employer Booz Allen Hamilton who require a security clearance) as well as the security investigations for Aaron Alexis, aka Muhammad Salem, and all the employees of that military contractor, have beenconducted by the same firm located in Falls Church, VA. That firm is USIS.
  From USIS's web site:
  ''Of course, USIS is well known as the largest commercial supplier of background investigations to the federal government, but we also provide customized records, information, and document management solutions for the federal government, including the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Department of Justice, Department of Homeland Security, and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, to name a few.''
  Aren't we lucky.
  Why is Falls Church a concern? While the senior management of the firm appear to be squeaky clean Anglo-American types, their employees are likely to be quite different. USIS has 6,000 employees, 2,300 credentialed field investigators and performed nearly 2 million invistigations for government agencies in 2011, according to their web site.
  What their web site does not explain is who investigates the employees of USIS? Who conducts the background checks of their employees that qualifies them to investigate others? What are the ideological preferences and religious affiliations of USIS investigators and managers who vet our military contractor's security clearances? These all have a critical impact on the accuracy and honesty of the investigations they are called upon to conduct. They obviously have a bearing on the FAILED investigations they conducted on Snowden and Alexis, and who knows on how many thousands more.
  Here is the kicker:
  Falls Church has nearly twice the proportion of foreign born persons and those whose primary language is other than English as the State of Virginia.
  Of Falls Church's population, 20.2% are foreign born and 24.7% speak a foreign language at home (non-English as primary language). While there is a significant Hispanic component reported (which may be less than forthcoming), other indicators tell a more accurate story.
  Northern Virginia Yellow Pages ''boast'' 162 Middle East restaurants, the majority located within Falls Church (a town of only 13,000) or in communities adjacent to Falls Church.
  The Falls Church area is home to one of the largest Islamic Mosques in the nation and the largest in the Washington DC area: The Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center (meaning Land of Migration). This mosque is located in Culmore, Lake Barcroft area of Seven Corners, a stone's throw from Falls Church in unincorporated Fairfax County, Virginia. It is said to be one of the most influential mosques in the nation.
  From Wikipedia:
  The Saudi-backed North American Islamic Trust (NAIT) purchased the mosque's grounds on June 19, 1983.[7] The current building, on a 3.4 acre plot, was finished for $5 million in 1991 ($8,427,804 today) with financial help from the Saudi Embassy's Islamic Affairs Department.[5]
  The mosque sits at the corner of Virginia State Route 7 (Leesburg Pike) and Row Street, near a number of apartment units and single-family homes in which many Muslim families live.[citation needed] Numerous halal restaurants, grocery stores, and other Muslim businesses are also located nearby.
  Anwar al-Awlaki was Imam at the mosque between January 2001 and April 2002.[16] Fluent in English, known for giving eloquent talks on Islam, and with a mandate to attract young non-Arabic speakers, al-Awlaki "was the magic bullet," according to mosque spokesman Johari Abdul-Malik; "he had everything all in a box."[5] "He had an allure. He was charming."[17]
  This is the same Anwar al-Awlaki who was a senior al-Qaeda recruiter and motivator linked to various terrorists, including three 9/11 hijackers, the accused Fort Hood shooter, and the accused Christmas Day 2009 bomber.
  The Investigative Project gives more bad news about this mosque HERE.
  Also located nearby is the All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS). Over the past two decades it has grown to be one of the largest Muslim Community organizations in the Washington metropolitan area.
  What sort of Islamic influence is likely to infiltrate the thought and policies of our security investigators? Most likely such influence will be similar to the ''see, hear, and speak'' no Islam when vetting for security clearances that our FBI, CIA, State Department and other Federal agencies are subject to, except worse. The entire security vetting culture may be one to not only ignore but to favor Islamic influences and interests at the expense of our national security. The evidence is mounting.
  Bottom line: Falls Church is occupied if not significantly influenced by an anti-American Islamic culture, Islam. This also being home to the nation's primary source for investigations of security clearances for our government and its security contractors does not bode well for integrity and US interests.
  Is this ''guilt by association?'' More than that. It is guilt by logic and a reason to be very concerned with the influences on the outcome of our national security vetting procedures and integrity.
Contractor that vetted Snowden says it also ran background check for Navy Yard shooter - The Washington Post
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  Archived Version
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 01:42
  By Jia Lynn Yang and Matea Gold, Published: SEPTEMBER 19, 10:25 PM ET Aa USIS, the Falls Church government contractor that handled the background check for National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden, said Thursday that it also vetted Navy Yard shooter Aaron Alexis for his ­secret-level clearance in 2007.
  The company, which is under criminal investigation over whether it misled the government about the thoroughness of its background checks, said earlier this week that it had not handled Alexis's case.
  USIS spokesman Ray Howell said the company got new information Thursday.
  ''Today we were informed that in 2007, USIS conducted a background check of Aaron Alexis'' for the Office of Personnel Management, Howell said in a statement. ''We are contractually prohibited from retaining case information gathered as part of the background checks we conduct for OPM and therefore are unable to comment further on the nature or scope of this or any other background check.''
  USIS, which was spun off from the federal government in the 1990s, has become the largest private provider of government background checks. With 7,000 employees, the company handles about 45 percent of all background checks for the OPM, congressional staffers say.
  Despite the investigation, there was no indication that USIS did anything improper when it vetted Alexis.
  A statement late Thursday by the OPM division that handles security checks for most federal agencies said that the OPM has ''reviewed the 2007 background investigation file for Aaron Alexis, and the agency believes that the file was complete and in compliance with all investigative standards.''
  The statement by Merton W. Miller, associate director of OPM's Federal Investigative Services, acknowledged that Alexis's background investigation was carried out ''with support from a Government contractor, USIS.''
  ''OPM's involvement with matters related to Aaron Alexis' security clearance ended when we submitted the case to the Department of Defense .'‰.'‰. for adjudication in December 2007,'' Miller's statement said. The DOD ''did not ask OPM for any additional investigative actions after it received the completed background investigation.''
  Government officials said this week that the 2007 background check uncovered an incident in which Alexis shot out the tires of a car. The 2004 incident was characterized as ''malicious mischief.''
  Two other run-ins with law enforcement and reports of more serious mental-health issues occurred years after the initial background check.
  Lower-level clearances such as the one granted to Alexis typically remain valid for a decade.
  The government's security clearance process is not designed to flag people struggling with mental illness, experts said. The aim of the system is to root out individuals at risk of compromising classified information. Mental-health treatment is not a disqualifying factor, and there are few ways to alert security officials when someone with clearance develops mental-health problems, according to analysts and former government security officials.
  Federal officials are trying to implement a system that would continuously evaluate personnel with classified security clearance. But with nearly 5 million federal workers holding secret or top-secret security clearance, government officials say they are struggling to keep track of all their cases.
  Tom Hamburger contributed to this report.
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Kroll Chairman William Bratton in talks with British government to become an advisor on preventing gang-related violence and creating safer communities
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  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 01:40
  Kroll Chairman William Bratton in talks with British government to become an advisor on preventing gang-related violence and creating safer communities
  NEW YORK, Aug. 12, 2011 '' Kroll Chairman William J. Bratton is in talks with the British government to become an advisor on preventing gang-related violence and creating safer communities. The discussions began today when Mr. Bratton had a private consultation with U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron.
  Mr. Bratton, because of his leadership expertise in U.S. law enforcement and record of achieving major reductions in violent and gang-related crimes when he led the New York City and Los Angeles Police Departments, has been the subject of recent media speculation about what services and assistance he might be able to provide the British government in the wake of a recent outbreak of gang-related violence in London and several other British cities.
  ''I am honored to provide my counsel to the Prime Minister in light of the understandable interest of the British people and their government to address the issues of gangs and gang violence,'' said Mr. Bratton. ''I would certainly be in a position to discuss the contemporary American experience and my work in these areas '' in particular the successes that created real reductions in gang-related crime in Boston, New York and most recently in Los Angeles, where we also saw significant improvements in the relations between the police and the city's diverse communities. There are many lessons from these experiences that I believe are relevant to the current situation in England.''
  ''I fully appreciate the difficulties they are currently facing,'' said Mr. Bratton. ''I support their resolve to seize upon this difficult situation as an opportunity to address the issues of gangs and gang violence and the resulting fear and disorder head-on. I am certain the British people and their government will be successful in meeting these challenges.''
  Terms and conditions of the engagement have not been finalized.
  Mr. Bratton joined Altegrity, the parent company of Kroll, in November 2009, after serving as Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) for seven years. He is known as one of America's premier police chiefs, the only person to have led two of the largest police forces in the United States, the New York City Police Department and the LAPD. He was named by Security magazine as one of 2010's most influential people in the security industry based on his leadership qualities and the positive impact that his work has made on organizations, colleagues and the general public.
  About KrollKroll, the world's leading risk consulting company, provides a broad range of investigative, intelligence, financial, security and technology services to help clients reduce risks, solve problems and capitalize on opportunities. Headquartered in New York with offices in more than 55 cities in 27 countries, Kroll has a multidisciplinary team of approximately 2,800 employees and serves a global clientele of law firms, financial institutions, corporations, non-profit institutions, government agencies and individuals. For more information, please visit www.Kroll.com or www.Altegrity.com
  # # #
  Media Contact: Jack Papp: office 703.245.0867, cell 571.251.3978, Jack.Papp@altegrity.com
National Security, Due Diligence, Information Services-Altegrity
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  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 01:35
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Jerome Hauer - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 01:34
  Jerome Hauer is the Chief Executive Officer of The Hauer Group LLC, a consulting firm and has served as a member of the Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals board of directors since June 2004.
  Hauer was the Acting Assistant Secretary for the Office of Public Health Emergency Preparedness (OPHP) within the US Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). He was appointed by HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson on May 5, 2002 and served until replaced on April 28, 2004. In this role, Mr. Hauer was responsible for coordinating the country's medical and public health preparedness and response to emergencies, including acts of biological, chemical and nuclear terrorism.
  He was formerly the director of Office of Emergency Management under New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani from 1996 to 2000. Additionally, he was previously an employee of Kroll Inc. which studied biological terrorism attacks.
  Hauer was the Director of the Indiana Department of Emergency Management from 1989 to 1993 during the gubernatorial administration of Evan Bayh. Hauer joined IBM in 1993 to manage programs for Hazardous Materials Response and Crisis Management and Fire Safety. For his production of related training videos he received the International Film and TV Critics of New York Bronze award in 1996. In the early 1990s he received a master's degree in emergency medical services from the Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health (now known as the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health) and later became a member of the Johns Hopkins Working Group on Civilian Bio Defense. He wrote several articles on possible bio terrorist attacks. On April 10, 1998 Hauer attended a "roundtable on genetic engineering and biological weapons" under President Bill Clinton.
  On September 11, 2001, Jerome Hauer was a national security advisor with the Dept. of Health and Human Services, a managing director with Kroll Associates, and a guest on national television, because of his background in counter-terror and his specialized knowledge of biological warfare.
  Hauer was the first director of Mayor Giuliani's Office of Emergency Management. He directed the agency since 1996, when Giuliani shifted responsibility for the city's emergency preparedness from the Police Department to the new agency '' headed by Hauer. Mr. Giuliani and Mr. Hauer began their relationship in January 1996 when Mr. Hauer was hired to lead the new Office of Emergency Management, created to coordinate the city's response to crises. Mr. Hauer, who was little known before he became a Giuliani aide, had previously run emergency management programs for the State of Indiana and IBM.
  Jerome Hauer is best known for being the director of the Office of Emergency Management (OEM) when he made the decision to build a $13 million crisis center on the 23rd floor at 7 World Trade Center.[1] This crisis center was unveiled in June 1999, and became the subject of tension between the agency and the Police Department, whose own command center at 1 Police Plaza had until then been the focus of emergency preparedness operations.
  As the first director of the new crisis center, "one of Hauer's first tasks was to find a home for an emergency command center to replace the inadequate facilities at police headquarters," according to the Times. The site selected, was immediately controversial because it was part of the World Trade Center complex (although not in one of the Twin Towers), which had already been the location of a truck bomb attack in 1993. City officials, though, including Mr. Hauer, have long defended their decision, even after the command center had to be evacuated during the 2001 terror attack. The Emergency Operation Center was widely hailed as the finest such facility in the nation, receiving visitors from around the world and serving as a model for others.
  The center was destroyed when the 47-story tower collapsed at about 5:25 p.m. on 9-11.
  PersondataNameHauer, JeromeAlternative namesShort descriptionDate of birthPlace of birthDate of deathPlace of death
The Key Players of 9-11 - Who is Jerome Hauer?
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  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 01:33
  In the coming days I will publish an important article with crucial new information about several highly-placed U.S. government officials and the foreign computer technology that was used to carry out the aerial attacks of 9-11.
  To obtain a copy of this forthcoming article, please send a donation to the email or postal address provided at the end of this article.
  Thank you.
  THE KEY PLAYERS OF 9-11Who is Jerome M. Hauer?
  By Christopher Bollynwww.bollyn.com
  Yesterday, a reader sent me a document that contained a link to a very interesting 9-minute video clip called "The 9/11 Solution."
  http://www.sott.net/articles/show/146563-The-9-11-Solution-RESTORED-The-Video-Google-Censored
  This short video, which I recommend, is about how the "9-11 cover story was sold to the public." It shows how '' in the first hour after the attacks '' the controlled media conspired, or was used, to promote the fairy tale that became the official story about why the World Trade Center towers collapsed, i.e. structural failure caused by fire.
  The short video is composed of a couple clips taken from network television news on the very morning of 9-11.
  The first is a clip of an unknown person in the street who provided a detailed explanation of how and why the towers collapsed. This simple man on the street, wearing a Harley-Davidson shirt, claims that the towers collapsed due to structural failure due to intense fires.
  Although this person was not named, his non-expert opinion was echoed by highly-placed experts who were interviewed on the first news shows after the collapses. In hindsight, this video shows how manipulative and effective this "random" interview was in seeding the official explanation of 9-11.
  The second clip is even more interesting. This is a Dan Rather interview with Jerome M. Hauer, the first director of the Mayor Rudy Giuliani's Office of Emergency Management (OEM). Not only does Hauer second the opinion that burning jet fuel brought down the towers '' he even goes so far as to put the blame on Osama Bin Laden.
  Now wonder they call him a "Terrorism Expert."
  This is a very important video clip because it shows how Jerome Hauer, the former director of OEM, was instantly ready to speak to the mass media about the attacks in New York '' from San Diego, I presume.
  The buildings had just collapsed but Hauer, from a distance, stated that the "velocity" of the planes and the fuel were responsible for the collapses, which certainly looked explosive to real explosion experts, such as Van Romero of New Mexico Tech.
  Hauer then went on to say that the attacks carried the "fingerprints of Osama bin Laden." How could he possibly make such a damning determination of responsibility before any evidence had even been collected?
  Hauer did not work in New York on 9-11. He had left his position as head of the director of the OEM in New York City in February 2000. He had then joined Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), a large consulting concern based in San Diego, as a vice president and associate director of its Center for Counterterrorism Technology and Analysis.
  Like Benjamin Netanyahu, Jerome Hauer is a Zionist expert on terror.
  WHO IS JEROME HAUER?
  Jerome Hauer is among the small group of key individuals who are suspected of playing crucial roles is setting the stage for Israeli false-flag terror attacks of 9-11.
  Hauer was the first director of Mayor Giuliani's Office of Emergency Management. He directed the agency since 1996, when Giuliani shifted responsibility for the city's emergency preparedness from the Police Department to the new agency '' headed by Hauer, a person he did not even know. How odd.
  The New York Times wrote in May 2007:
  Mr. Giuliani and Mr. Hauer began their relationship in January 1996 when Mr. Hauer was hired to lead the new Office of Emergency Management, created to coordinate the city's response to crises. Mr. Hauer, who was little known before he became a Giuliani aide, had previously run emergency management programs for the State of Indiana and IBM.
  Oddly, the New York Times never mentions Jerome Hauer's deep family roots in the New York Jewish Zionist community. From reading the Times, one might think that Hauer is from Indiana.
  This can only be intentional. Hauer's mother, Rose Muscatine Hauer, is the retired Dean of the Beth Israel School of Nursing and the Honorary President of the New York Chapter of Hadassah, the Daughters of Zion movement that is one of the central Zionist organizations involved in the creation and maintenance of the State of Israel.
  Jerome Hauer is the son of the late Milton G. Hauer and Rose Muscatine who married April 4, 1949. His mother's parents, Hyman David Muscatine (1881-1964) and Rebecca Bertha (nee Gartner), were Hebrew-speaking Zionists. They both came to the United States in 1908-1909; Hyman from "Russia Poland" in 1908 and Rebecca from the Austrian Empire in 1909.
  His father's parents, Moritz and Gussie Hauer, immigrated from Hungary before the turn of the century.
  Jerome Hauer, however, is best known for being the director of the OEM when he made the decision to build a $13 million crisis center on the 23rd floor at 7 World Trade Center. This bizarre crisis center was unveiled in June 1999, and became the subject of tension between the agency and the Police Department, whose own command center at 1 Police Plaza had until then been the focus of emergency preparedness operations.
  As the first director of the new crisis center, "one of Hauer's first tasks was to find a home for an emergency command center to replace the inadequate facilities at police headquarters," according to the Times.
  Reports indicate that the OEM crisis center at the World Trade Center was not being used on 9-11 by the usual personnel. The center had been temporarily relocated to Pier 92 on Manhattan's West Side, due to a FEMA drill which was supposed to begin on the day after 9-11, according to statements made by Mayor Giuliani.
  So who was in the OEM center in Larry Silverstein's building on 9-11? That's the question the needs to be answered.
  As Mayor Giuliani told the 9-11 Commission:
  The reason Pier 92 was selected as a command center was because on the next day, on September 12, Pier 92 was going to have a drill, it had hundreds of people here, from FEMA, from the Federal Government, from the State, from the State Emergency Management Office, and they were getting ready for a drill for biochemical attack. So that was gonna be the place they were going to have the drill. The equipment was already there, so we were able to establish a command center there, within three days, that was two and a half to three times bigger than the command center that we had lost at 7 World Trade Center. And it was from there that the rest of the search and rescue effort was completed.
  The OEM crisis center in WTC 7 is suspected as being the control center for the pre-planned demolition of the towers. The center, and all of the evidence of the crime, was destroyed when the 47-story tower was completely demolished at about 5:25 p.m. on 9-11. This blast-proof command and control bunker with its own air and water supply was fortified to withstand incredible forces. What role did it play in the demolition of the World Trade Center?
  So, who decided to build the OEM crisis center in the only WTC tower actually owned by Larry Silverstein?
  It was Jerome Hauer, of course.
  "Mr. Hauer said he decided that offices on the 23rd floor of 7 World Trade Center, next to the twin towers and just a few blocks from City Hall, seemed the best choice," Russ Buettner of the New York Times reported in May 2007.
  The site was immediately controversial because it was part of the trade center, which had already been the location of a truck bomb attack in 1993. City officials, though, including Mr. Hauer, have long defended their decision, even after the command center had to be evacuated during the 2001 terror attack.
  Last week, in an interview with Fox News, Mr. Giuliani again faced questions about the site. He put responsibility for selecting it on Mr. Hauer.
  "Jerry Hauer recommended that as the prime site and the site that would make the most sense," Mr. Giuliani said. "It was largely on his recommendation that that site was selected."
  Jerome Hauer clearly belongs to the very small group of people who were involved in setting the stage for 9-11. Like the others, people like Michael Chertoff, Alvin K. Hellerstein, Michael B. Mukasey, Ronald Lauder, Larry Silverstein, Frank Lowy, Rupert Murdoch, Michael Goff, James Rodney Schlesinger, and the Israeli brothers Elad and Amit Yoran, who controlled U.S. cyber-security, Hauer is also a Zionist Jew from a family with strong ties to the State of Israel.
  This is, in fact, the one characteristic that is shared by all of the people who played key roles in setting the stage for the most disastrous terror attack in U.S. history '' or covering up the truth afterwards.
  This is not to say that these individuals are all necessarily witting accomplices in the crime. It is actually more likely that they were used, almost like mules, and because of their devotion to Israel they were placed in positions where they could be influenced to make decisions that would facilitate the attacks, demolitions, and subsequent destruction of the evidence and obstruction of the discovery and litigation processes to obtain justice for the victims.
  Finis
  Christopher Bollyn is an independent journalist and 9-11 researcher who is working on a book entitled Solving 9-11. Bollyn is dedicated to explaining what really happened and bringing the events of 9-11 into historical perspective.This work to increase understanding and clarity of this critical subject can only be completed with the support of readers and interested citizens.
  To support Bollyn's research and writingon this important book project,
  To support his efforts, please send a donation by PayPal to:
  shop@bollynbooks.com or bollyn@bollynbooks.com
  or send a check or money order to:
  Christopher Bollyn3 Golf Center, Suite 365Hoffman Estates, IL 60169U. S. A.
  Many thanks and best wishes.
  Sources:
  Who's Who entries for Jerome and Rose Muscatine Hauer, Marquis 2006
  "Jews Launch Plans to Occupy Holy Land '' Zionists at Baltimore Start Movement to be Supported by $100,000,000 Fund" New York Times, December 17,1917
  "Rose Muscatine Hauer: A Nursing Visionary,"http://www.futurenursebi.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/page.display/page_id/60/
  Buettner, Russ, "Onetime Giuliani Insider Is Now a Critic," New York Times, May 22, 2007
  Rashbaum, William K., "Director of Emergency Agency Is Leaving for a Corporate Job," New York Times, February 2, 2000
  "The 9-11 Solution - RESTORED: The Video Google Censored," Brasscheck TV, January 3, 2008http://www.sott.net/articles/show/146563-The-9-11-Solution-RESTORED-The-Video-Google-Censored
ON HUMAN RIGHTS / Vic Livingston: U.S. SILENTLY TORTURES AMERICANS WITH CELL TOWER ELECTROMAGNETIC NEUROWEAPON
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  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 00:14
  Author's note: A covert censorship regime run by a U.S. military contractor apparently is maliciously sabotaging the content and formatting of this article. It even removed the artwork. I have attempted to restore maliciously deleted references to "stroke, heart attack or aneurysm." This article is subject to "black-holing" -- making the content inaccessible -- when readers attempt to access it via a "spoofed" or counterfeited URL address -- censorship via fraud and deception. The comments are not displaying over my obviously intercepted and maliciously hacked connection. This is information fascism and it has no place in a free society. Read about it here: ' Homeland Security- administered fusion center agencies/commands -- chief among them, U.S. Cyber Command -- use a nationwide scalar electromagnetic radiation "directed energy" weapon system to silently torture, impair, subjugate and, over time, slow-kill extra-legally targeted Americans and their families -- an American genocide hiding in plain sight.' Victims' own cell phones may be used to target them.' A government-devised "electromagnetic ghetto."' How a young FBI agent's "I believe you" gave victim the faith to go public.President Obama has told the nation and the world that America does not torture.President Obama is wrong -- and security/military/intel officials in his administration know it.America tortures. Not just Gitmo and Bagram "war on terror" detainees, but its own citizens.Each day, a nationwide scalar electromagnetic radiation "multifunctional" radio frequency directed energy weapon attack system employing phased array cell tower antenna transmitter/receivers and GPS satellites, under the administration of U.S. Cyber Command and military contractor Lockheed Martin, is used to silently and invisibly torture, impair, subjugate, and degrade the physical and neurological health of untold thousands of American citizens who have been extrajudicially "targeted" by a hate- and ideology-driven domestic "disposition matrix" as "dissidents" or "undesirables."Most of these "targeted individuals" have no idea what is making them sick, tired, exhausted, irritable, confused, lethargic; plagued with painful, debilitating head and body aches; sharp, piercing, painful ringing tones audible only to the target; temporary or permanent cognitive impairment; induction of stroke, heart attack, aneurysm, or diseases such as cancer......leaving them unable to function normally and lead a happy, healthy life.Victims of this government-engineered, stealth genocide are robbed of the most basic of human rights -- free will, freedom from external manipulation of their physiological and neurological functions.The weapon system is capable of delivering speed-of-light scalar (longitudinal) electromagnetic wave attacks (as well as other types of radio frequency energy such as microwaves) that are precision tuned to specific brainwave frequencies of each human target. Virtually all of the victims previously have visited a doctor or neurologist seeking treatment for pounding headache, unexplained fatigue, sleep problems, or disturbing symptoms such as cognitive impairment. Those medical visits allow shadow government operatives to harvest medical records, including EEG test results that facilitate "brain mapping" -- how radio frequency weapon torturers are able to mount radio frequency attacks fine-tuned to each unique individual targeted for no-touch torture, impairment, or, over time, slow-kill murder.The scalar waves produced by the radio frequency directed energy weapon (RFDE) are capable of carrying multiple subcarrier radio frequencies that affect human physiology, at variable power levels (or "amplitude"). In effect, the RFDE arms security forces with a "God machine" that can manipulate, disrupt, or destroy the biological processes that govern the functioning of human beings. Scientists describe this effect as "neuromodulation" of the human nervous system -- the remote manipulation of physiological and neurological processes, including alteration of consciousness and mood states. Electromagnetic weapon attack precision-tuned to the brain frequencies of unique individuals can put unknowing victims into an induced state of forced fatigue, involuntary yawning, deep sleep -- or, conversely, forced wakefulness -- within a matter of minutes, according to victim accounts and supporting published literature. Pulsed electromagnetic wave manipulation of brain-controlled physiological functioning has been demonstrated in the Arizona State University laboratory of neuroscientist Dr. William J. Tyler, whose work has been funded by the U.S. Army Research Laboratory, according to published articles. Tyler describes the process as "ultrasonic neuromodulation." In his writings, Dr. Tyler discusses the use of phased array electromagnetic antennae to precision-target the desired radio frequency neuromodulation effects on human physiology:A recent Popular Science article cites a quotation from Tyler published on the Department of Defense "Armed with Science" blog:''...(M)y laboratory has engineered a novel technology which implements transcranial pulsed ultrasound to remotely and directly stimulate brain circuits without requiring surgery."Tyler told Wired.com's "Danger Room:""The brain serves all the functions of your body, and if you know the neuroanatomy, then you can start to regulate each one of those functions.''The cell tower radio frequency weapon system also is capable of broadcasting disturbing, torturous sounds, even voices, directly into the head of "targeted individuals," using triangulated electromagnetic waves that make a direct connection to the region of the brain that controls hearing, bypassing the auditory organs to generate sounds that are perceptible only to the target. This technology, sometimes deceptively referred to as "voice to skull" ("V to K") or "microwave hearing", raises the specter of what is commonly known as Orwellian "mind control." Persons who report hearing "voices" in their heads may not be delusional or mentally ill; they could be entrained subjects under a heinous form of high-tech social control that facilitates the remote manipulation of human behavior. This weapon system conceivably could be used by rogue elements to spawn Manchurian candidate- style "patsies," persons unknowingly programmed to commit politically-motivated assassinations and other acts of social chaos:http://my.nowpublic.com/world/u-s-cellular-microwave-weapon-pierces-skull-sonic-tortureBecause the radio frequency attack system can be precision-targeted to triangulate its multiple beams on unique individuals, this silent torture and impairment technology can and is being used by federal and local law enforcement to impose a regimen of extra-legal electromagnetic incarceration -- an "electromagnetic ghetto" imposed upon citizens without benefit of due process under the law.According to victim accounts, "innocent but targeted" persons may be subjected to heightened levels of silent torture or impairment if they dare to venture beyond their immediate neighborhoods -- to go "beyond the pale." Operators of the electromagnetic wave weapon obtain the necessary targeting location coordinates from hidden GPS devices; the victim's cellphone; or infrared laser targeting devices trained upon the victim by law enforcement or "community stalkers" who may be affiliated with town watch or community policing groups.The planning for this electromagnetic ghetto is documented in several federally funded studies, such as a March 2001 report from the National Criminal Justice Reference Service.Government documents describes such weaponry, capable of targeting and delivering a wide array of electromagnetic microwave and other radio frequency energy with extreme precision, as "non-lethal" or "less than lethal." In fact, experts familiar with radiation weaponry say these systems can be used to torture; inflict bodily injury; cause illnesses from cataracts to cancer; induce fatigue, weakness, excruciating pain or loss of consciousness; or to KILL -- "slow kill" or "fast kill," depending on the "amplitude" (signal strength) of the attack.A 2006 video produced by the U.S. Air Force "Directed Energy Directorate" at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico discusses how electromagnetic weaponry is designed to "accurately aim and put this energy on target with surgical precision" -- at the speed of light.http://youtube.com/watch?v=mSGprwJx_zs&NR=1A 2008 article on the Wired.com magazine "Danger Room" blog site discusses a court document said to indicate that the U.S. Secret Service is involved in the development of directed energy weapons technology. The article speculates that the agency may have deployed such devices in the course of its official duties.http://blog.wired.com/defense/2008/11/presidents-secr.htmlAccording to publicly available patents upon which the system is based...[WARNING: The active links, above, are subject to MALICIOUS HACKING and may re-direct readers to a phony, or "spoofed" web page. The writer suspects, but cannot prove, that rogue elements are responsible. If you suspect the freepatentsonline.com pages have been hacked, please use a search engine to locate another site that publishes public patent documents. The last time I checked, the patent numbers themselves -- 7629918 and 4456912 -- were correct. Alternative sites are not given here, to dissuade further malicious hacking by those seeking to cover up the truth.]... this "multi-functional radio frequency directed energy weapon system" generates precision-triangulated "directed" bursts of pulsed electromagnetic energy using the combined power of multiplexed, phased array antenna installations that are configured in a "Delta T" form factor: a metallic triangular base upon which are mounted multiple vertical transmission stanchions.These multiple mast antenna arrays generate various forms of electromagnetic energy, including scalar electromagnetic waves. Scalar waves are "out-of-phase" radio waves that have the unique ability at the precise point of intersection to extract from a near- zero point temperature vacuum state electromagnetic energy of variable amplitude (strength) and radio frequency. The technology has its roots in the pioneering work of the scientist Nikola Tesla, whose "Tesla coil" invention first demonstrated the awesome energy-producing properties of scalar waves.Some scientists believe that scalar wave technology, if exploited for peaceful purposes, could provide a cheap and efficient solution to the world's energy demands. But the companies that hold the patents appear to be withholding the technology exclusively for military and national security applications.The God machine can do even more than allow its military and security state operators to lord over the world's population. The Raytheon patent states that this weapon system can be used to "alter atmospheric conditions." In other words, this scalar wave directed energy weapon system can manipulate the weather -- harnessing the world's climate, turning the weather into a potential military super-weapon.The old adage, "You can't change the weather," no longer is true.The scalar radio frequency weapon system also appears to be capable of inducing "telekinesis" -- the movement of distant objects via an unseen electromagnetic force field spawned by the intersection of triangulated electromagnetic waves. The scientific principle behind the "force beam" is present in some existing technologies, such as the propulsion system that drives so-called "magnetic levitation" or "maglev" trains now in service in Japan, South Korea and China.The covert installation of RFDE antennae everywhere across America explains the profusion of cell towers, and why so many towers are clustered so close together, from urban neighborhoods to expansive rural plains and farmlands.The cover story -- that these are just cell phone towers -- amounts to nothing less than a big government lie.Yet the system is inextricably and ominously linked to consumer cellular communications.It appears that a human target's own cell phone may serve as a covert targeting device for this attack system. Those who are marked for electromagnetic attack could be paying for a telecommunications service that enables their silent torture, impairment and potential injury. (For more on targeting technologies, see the footnote at the bottom of this article.)This cell tower attack network has been deployed under the cover of "national security," apparently as a means to instantly and covertly disable electronic devices that could be used as weapons by terrorists or hostile forces. But the capabilities of the scalar electromagnetic weapon grid extend far beyond mere application of destructive force. It also appears that the weapon literally "hyperjack" (a cyber-era derivative of the term "hijack") any microchip controlled electronic device. The weapon is capable of overriding user commands, and, based on empirical evidence, apparently is capable of reprogramming microchips "on the fly." Because the weapon generates electromagnetic force fields, it also can be used to manipulate or degrade the operations of non-computerized motorized devices, from electric motors to gasoline, diesel or jet engines. The celltower RF weapon grid incorporartes targeting capabilities, and apparently utilizes synthetic aperature radar (SAR) systems capable of precision-targeting as well as wireless video and audio "through the wall" surveillance -- no traditional cameras or microphones needed. The technology requires a continuous radar stream of electromagnetic energy -- meaning that the entire population of the United States is being bathed in radio frequency emissions every minute of every hour of every day. Because the system has been built out only in recent years, no entity has studied the long-term health effects of having a stealth cell tower weapon system clustered in populated areas. Scientists long have known that even non-ionizing electromagnetic radiation has a deleterious effect on human health, although the full extent of the danger remains a subject of debate.Silent assaults directed at a targeted individual can cause "induced dementia" -- symptoms that mimic Alzheimer's disease and other cognitive dysfunction. Cognitive impairment apparently can be arrested if and when the attacks cease -- or if the "amplitude" of the electromagnetic radio frequency is turned down by its clandestine government operatives. Prolonged exposure to these electromagnetic attacks can and does degrade human health, and, as mentioned, can induce both injury and disease leading to premature death."The idea is to make the 'target' look mentally ill or emotionally unstable, so that the person can be shunted into a mental hospital or otherwise marginalized and removed from society," says one alleged victim, who says that the silent attacks rendered him so weak, disoriented and fatigued that he was unable to work for a period of four years.This victim says he slowly regained his full cognitive abilities only after repeated visits to a local FBI office, where he pleaded with agents to intervene on his behalf. But he reports that the attacks have continued, causing chronic fatigue, extreme weakness and sharp sudden pain that he says amounts to torture.He also maintains that his local police chief appears to be aware of the covert attack system, but is powerless to stop the attacks."What kept me going when the attacks were most severe, from the summer of 2004 and into 2008, was when I went down to the FBI and literally begged a young FBI agent to help me, and she looked me directly in the eye and said, 'I believe you.'"When she said that, it gave me the confidence to go public despite my fears that I'd be treated like some kind of a nut case. Now that the truth is getting out, I'm grateful to that young agent for giving me the faith to fight this."By the pervasive deployment of these weapons systems as a tool of torture and enslavement, the U.S. government is denying thousands of its citizens the inalienable right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.The U.S. government has enabled the "slow kill," torture, or impairment of thousands of its own people while cruelly stripping them of free will -- the very essence of what it is to be human.This classified weapons system functions in every community in America. Some local police officials know about it. Apparently, they have been sworn to secrecy on "national security" grounds. The mainstream media has its collective head in the sand, buying the government propaganda that a new generation of directed energy weapons is "less lethal" and thus "saves lives."This covert torture matrix is every bit as heinous as the death machine of Nazi Germany -- perhaps even more so, because it is silent and invisible.Victims of these silent assaults also are subject to relentless "community stalking" harassment, vandalism and terroristic acts performed by government-enabled "community watch" and policing organizations that have been transmogrified by a secret multi-agency federal program into a vigilante American Gestapo.Victims also say they are subject to financial and career sabotage enabled by government agencies that have deemed them to be "dissidents" or undesirables -- or have slandered them as suspected criminals or "enemies of the state."GESTAPO USA: FED-POLICE FUSION CENTER VIGILANTE NETWORK PERSECUTES CITIZEN TARGETShttp://viclivingston.blogspot.com/2012/01/thugocracy-u.htmlFederal "threat fusion center" agencies and commands and their state and local law enforcement and corporate partners are conducting an ideology- and hate-driven slow-kill domestic genocide under the false flags of the wars on terror and crime -- enabled by the naivety of those who believe "it can't happen here."
  President Obama: Wake up. You and other top officials also may be in the cross-hairs -- and this stealth technology, when applied using Pavlovian methodology, can even be used to covertly influence behavior and decision-making -- maybe even your own."These are crimes against humanity and the Constitution, being perpetrated under the cover of national security and 'safe streets' by multiple federal and local agencies and commands -- an American genocide hiding in plain sight, enabled by the naivete of those who think 'it can't happen here.'" --Victor Livingston, former reporter for WTXF-TV Philadelphia, Phila. Bulletin, N.Y. Daily News, St. Petersburg Times; producer/host, MSG Network Sports Business Report; columnist, NowPublic.com/scrivener._____________________________________________________FOOTNOTE: TARGETING SYSTEMSThis cell tower- based radio frequency electromagnetic weapon system apparently can utilize various advanced technologies to target human beings. According to information obtained from unclassified patents, defense industry trade journals, as well as an analysis of victim accounts, it appears that the system incorporates sophisticated "synthetic aperture radar" (SAR) video and audio surveillance capabilities via a constant radar-like sweep -- what has been colloquially referred to as "through the wall surveillance." This surveillance and targeting mode requires no traditional cameras or microphones. Some literature also references a three-dimensional, invisible infrared laser targeting sensor array that can be secreted in or near a target's home or place of business. The advanced targeting capabilities of the system makes possible precision-triangulated electromagnetic frequency attacks, prolonged or sudden and momentary, to specific body parts -- internal or external. It appears that the system is capable of remote, no-touch "radio surgery" or torturous mutilation of human targets; think of a radio frequency "cyberknife" that can be remotely inflicted upon unknowing human targets.The literature states that targeting systems can triangulate on vehicles or any moving target, facilitating precision attacks even if the target is traveling at extremely high rates of speed.
  http://www.defensereview.com/lucid-dimensions-spherical-detection-systems-sds-3d-passive-infrared-ir-spherical-sensor-array-detects-and-tracks-high-speed-ballistic-threats-aircraft-vehicles-you-name-it/
  The electromagnetic radio frequency attack system is capable of acquiring targeting coordinates from the intended victim's cell phone or GPS unit. In that case, the targeting is believed to be less precise, but still capable of generating disorienting and painful attacks, such as prolonged and unremitting headache and induced weakness and fatigue.Some victims of this stealth technology now use their cell phones and GPS units only when absolutely necessary, and remove the cell phone's battery to prevent the broadcast of their location coordinates. (Just turning off the unit does not suffice, since a cell phone's power can be turned on by remote control.)
  It is believed that the government has equipped certain personnel -- either its own agents, or, some victims believe, local law enforcement or civilian vigilantes -- with portable laser-equipped devices that can "paint the target" from a distance. It is possible that some sworn officers may be under the impression that this technology is used merely for "through the wall surveillance," not to attack citizens they are sworn to protect.
  The literature also indicates that the electromagnetic weapon system can engage the target by way of tiny RFID tags covertly placed in or on the target's possessions or clothing, or RF microchips implanted inside their bodies (via injection, or surgery). Film-thin RFID tags are ubiquitous in everyday commerce, used for inventory tracking of many consumer products. "GPS-linked" video surveillance systems, in public areas or inside commercial establishments, also could be used to transmit targeting coordinates to government command centers.
  High-powered military satellites are believed to be capable of detecting ground-based tracking devices from low Earth orbit.The article linked below, from the web site of the conservative Heritage Foundation, describes a directed energy weapon system that sounds much like the cell tower- based system described here. The article discusses an electromagnetic wave/laser weapon system capable of both tracking and engaging a speeding target at the speed of light.http://www.heritage.org/Research/BallisticMissileDefense/bg1783.cfm
  The Heritage Foundation article describes directed energy weapon systems as "under development," despite the fact that the cell tower- based system is fully operational. Also, sentences referencing the effectiveness of directed energy systems against "human targets" such as "terrorists" apparently have been expunged in recent weeks -- after this author quoted the article in the "comments" section of this web site.JOURNO TO FBI: TAKE CONTROL OF DHS-RUN FUSION CENTERS TO STOP SILENT RADIO FREQUENCY WEAPON ATTACKS ON U.S. CITIZENSOR (if links are corrupted / disabled): http://www.NowPublic.com/scrivener(see links above bio and in "stories" list)
ON HUMAN RIGHTS / Vic Livingston: OBAMA DEBATE TRANCE: RADIO FREQUENCY WEAPON 'NEUROMODULATION' MIND CONTROL ATTACK?
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Sun, 22 Sep 2013 00:13
  I've seen that look before.The fatigued head-hanging. The constant eye-blinking, as if struggling to stay awake and alert. The absent stares. The scribbling on a notepad in an apparent desperate effort to fight off stupor. Disjointed verbal arguments. An inability to focus. A palpable passivity, malaise, seeming unwillingness -- or inability -- to aggressively engage.
  A lack of will.
  I have known -- I have experienced -- these symptoms for almost a decade. And while I cannot prove it, in my gut this veteran journalist believes that President Barack Obama's astoundingly weak debate performance on October 3 in Denver likely resulted from the behavior-altering electromagnetic spell of a cell tower radio frequency weapon system that elements of the U.S. military and intelligence apparatus have deployed to covertly attack, "entrain," subjugate and silently torture and impair supposed "dissidents," "undesirables" and "enemies of the state."
  This is not the first time I've posited this theory. I wrote about the apparent electromagnetic "entrainment" of President Obama (and Vice President Biden) three years ago, when I first exposed the existence and heinous use of the "Multifunctional Radio Frequency Directed Energy Weapon" (RFDE) system, a publicly patented technology (U.S. Patent 7629918, held by Raytheon) deployed on cell towers everywhere across the United States. As I have reported, this network of "phased array" antennae installations is under the day-to-day operational command and control of Lockheed Martin, the world's largest defense contractor, under the direction of powerful and secretive U.S. government agencies and commands such as the U.S. Air Force Cyber Command, the Secret Service, the National Security Agency, and the Central Intelligence Agency.
  http://viclivingston.blogspot.com/2012/02/mil-security-complex-led-by-lockheed.html
  As noted in comments to my December 2011 expose, first published at http://NowPublic.com/scrivener, I remarked on President Obama's sudden profusion of facial moles; his weight loss, gaunt appearance, physical signs of premature aging such as rapidly graying hair, balding streaks on his scalp -- and, tellingly, I believe, a teleprompter that literally shattered in mid-air, leaving its stand upright, a phenomenon that was widely reported -- and mocked as an omen -- by right-wing media such as The Drudge Report.
  Then came Vice President Biden's serial spells of sudden sleep, loss of consciousness, likely preceded by severe tinnitus (ringing ears), during public events -- again followed by mocking photo coverage by Matt Drudge and his other spoon-fed neo-con cronies. I believed then, and believe now, that what I have termed the "Joe Biden Syndrome" is the product of electromagnetic "neuromodulation," a remotely-induced trance generated by the triangulated intersection of scalar radio waves precision-tuned to the brain waves of the "target" -- frequencies harvested earlier from EEG (electro-encephalogram) medical report data.I've also written about numerous cases of television news reporters, anchors and weathercasters who have been suddenly reduced to incomprehensible gibberish, blank stares and consciousness lapses while on the air. Google the name "Serene Branson" for one notorious and highly publicized example.
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BAwVaSOIMBI&feature=related
  This technology is not fantasy. It is documented fact. It also is documented fact that government agencies and commands, ranging from the U.S. Secret Service to the U.S. Air Force Cyber Command, have been developing electromagnetic radio frequency "directed energy" weapon systems, as cited in my reporting, summarized in my article entitled "U.S. Silently Tortures Americans with Cell Tower Weapon System":
  http://viclivingston.blogspot.com/2011/12/u.html
  So if our nation's top elected leaders are under covert electromagnetic attack, as much forensic, empirical evidence seems to indicate, who are the perpetrators? While an internet search of the term "electromagnetic weapon" might lead a reader to believe that such attacks can be mounted by an individual equipped with a hand-held "ray gun" device, it's much more likely that the source is the nationwide electromagnetic weapon cell tower grid. This weapon system is mounted on proprietary cell towers as well as "co-located" installations shared by cellular telephone providers.
  Multiple agencies, commands and corporations have a hand in the operation and control of this weapon system. It is not inconceivable that rogue elements could be making illicit use of the system to further a radical ideological or political agenda.
  This reporter does know this: This cell tower weapon grid is being used to attack, impair, harm, subjugate, and, in effect, "slow-kill" untold thousands of extrajudicially "targeted" American citizens -- including this journalist, who has been under electromagnetic attack for at least eight years. It is hardly a stretch for me to believe that a weapon capable of covert behavior alteration might be deployed by geopolitical power-abusers to turn the President of the United States into their electromagnetically entrained puppet -- or to sabotage a president who likely has learned how this weapon system has been turned against American citizens, possibly including himself and members of his administration.
  A final word: This journalist has sound reason to believe that both President Obama and Vice President Biden have been made aware of my reporting, and likely have initiated a comprehensive investigation into the past and present use and misuse of America's top secret electromagnetic weapon arsenal.
  FOR MORE OF VETERAN JOURNALIST VIC LIVINGSTON'S EXCLUSIVE REPORTING:
  http://VicLivingston.blogspot.com (article list in right-hand-column)
  http://NowPublic.com/scrivener (click on "stories")
VIDEO-Obama strikes back at Congress: 'They're focused on trying to mess with me' - First Read
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 23:58
  House Republicans voted to stop funding President Barack Obama's health care law, but Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said the Senate "will not repeal or defund Obamacare." NBC's Chuck Todd reports.
  By Michael O'Brien , Political Reporter, NBC News
  President Barack Obama excoriated Congress for being "focused on trying to mess with me," hours after the Republican House approved a stopgap spending measure to continue government operations, but also eliminate funding for "Obamacare."
  The president angrily lashed out at lawmakers who voted largely on party-lines hours earlier to take aim at the signature domestic accomplishment of his first term, the GOP's opening gambit in a fiscal standoff with just days to go until the government runs out of money.
  Speaking at a Ford Motors plant in Missouri, President Barack Obama says Congress is focused on "trying to mess with me," rather than working for the public good by passing a budget.
  "They're focused on politics; they're focused on trying to mess with me," Obama told a crowd at a Ford plant in Kansas City. "They're not focused on you."
  The public battles came 10 days before the deadline at which the government will run out of money, causing a myriad of federal services to cease. Republicans were unable to advance legislation to preserve government operations without including the provision to eradicate the Affordable Care Act as a way to entice conservatives.
  But the measure faces almost certain doom in the Senate, where Democrats have said they would vote to restore funding for the health care overhaul. And even if they were to fail, Obama has flatly promised to veto the bill.
  If no resolution is reached, a shutdown threatens to harm the economy and place scores of government workers out of work for an undetermined period of time. Wall Street appeared unconcerned by the developments, though, expecting lawmakers to reach an 11th-hour accord as they have in virtually every previous showdown.
  Complicating matters is the manner in which the fiscal deadline has split Republicans. On one side are conservatives, who wish to use the specter of a shutdown as leverage to force concessions on Obamacare. On the other side is a group of pragmatists, who regard the odds of repealing Obamacare as extremely unfavorable, and fear the political fallout associated with a shutdown.
  "Our message to the United States Senate is very simple: the American people don't want the government shut down, and they don't want Obamacare," House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, told cheering colleagues after the vote.
  With no solution on the horizon, the nation's capital braced for a tense series of days as Obama and his Democratic allies in Congress must work to find a workable solution with the badly-divided Republicans.
  House Speaker John Boehner speaks at a rally following the House vote to pass a spending bill that temporary prevents a government shutdown and defunds Obamacare, saying "We had a victory today for the American people, and frankly, we had a victory for common sense."
  Those internal GOP divisions have spilled into public view in recent days, with barbs directed toward Sen. Ted Cruz, the figurehead of the effort to defund Obamacare, after the Texas Republican conceded he lacked the votes to make good on his threat to stop Obamacare in the Senate.
  Cruz only turned up the pressure on the Republican-led House, thereby putting House Republicans in a more difficult position once the legislation inevitably returns to them.
  In that sense, Friday's vote was a bid by some Republicans to go through pained motions to demonstrate to the party's conservative grassroots that the strategy favored by Cruz and other hard-liners was doomed, and would risk a government shutdown that could turn politically dangerous for the GOP.
  "It's something we have to do. It's a step in the right direction," Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., said ahead of Friday's House vote. "And hopefully it will be a major step in letting people know that Ted Cruz is a fraud and and he'll no longer have any influence in the Republican Party."
  As an implicit acknowledgement that its work had not yet wrapped up, the House has canceled a planned recess next week in anticipation of the frenetic work it will take to cobble together a compromise to keep the government open that can win the support of Congress.
  More gravely, Congress faces a deadline sometime next month to authorize the government to borrow more money to finance its existing obligations. Even if lawmakers assemble a compromise that averts a shutdown, the prospect of defaulting on the national debt awaits them.
  Obama said that if a default were to come to pass, then, "Basically, America becomes a deadbeat."
  The terms of that debate are still unclear. Republicans met Friday morning to discuss their strategy in that fight, and have long signaled they might seek a more modest, one-year delay of "Obamacare" in exchange for raising the debt limit.
  In the short-term, though, action will next shift to the Senate, where Democrats command a majority of votes. The upper chamber is expected to strip any measure to undermine the Affordable Care Act from the House-passed bill, though that has invited a filibuster threat from some hard-lined conservative senators.
  After passing a spending bill, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) promises a rally crowd that the GOP will "leave no stone unturned" in fighting Obamacare.
  If history is any guide, several Senate Republicans -- some of whom have openly disparaged the effort to use the threat of a government shutdown as leverage to defund Obamacare -- may work to assemble a compromise spending measure to send back to the House. That could provide the contours of an eventual agreement.
  Still, "Obamacare" -- the issue which once united Republicans, and helped fuel the party's victory in the 2010 midterm elections -- has now morphed into somewhat of a boondoggle for the party.
  The GOP's strident opposition to "Obamacare" has been well-established for years. The House has voted 40-some times to do away with either part or the entirety of the law since the GOP took power in 2011, each time having seen Senate Democrats dismiss their efforts.
  NBC News' Frank Thorp contributed to this report.
  Related:
  This story was originally published on Fri Sep 20, 2013 10:27 AM EDT
Homeless, Unemployed, and Surviving on Bitcoins | Wired Enterprise | Wired.com
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 23:40
  Paul Harrison, Chris Kantola, and Jesse Angle, scrounging for bitcoins outside a public library in Pensacola, Florida. Photo: Michael Spooneybarger/WIRED
  Jesse Angle is homeless, living on the streets of Pensacola, Florida. Sometimes he spends the night at a local church. Other nights, he sleeps behind a building in the heart of the city, underneath a carport that protects him from the rain.
  Each morning, he wakes up, grabs some food, and makes his way to Martin Luther King Plaza, a downtown park built where the trolley tracks used to run. He likes this park because his friends hang out there too, and it's a good place to pick up some spending money. But he doesn't panhandle. He uses the internet.
  The park offers free wireless access, and with his laptop, Angle watches YouTube videos in exchange for bitcoins, the world's most popular digital currency.
  'Bitcoin beats the shit out of regular money. We've resonated so well with people because it's direct action. There's no chaff between donation and helping people.'
  '-- Jason King
  For every video he watches, Angle gets 0.00004 bitcoins, or about half a cent, thanks to a service, called BitcoinGet, that shamelessly drives artificial traffic to certain online clips. He can watch up to 12 videos a day, which gets him to about six cents.* And he can beef up this daily take with Bitcoin Tapper, a mobile app that doles out about 0.000133 bitcoins a day '-- a couple of pennies '-- if he just taps on a digital icon over and over again. Like the YouTube service, this app isn't exactly the height of internet sophistication '-- it seeks to capture your attention so it can show you ads '-- but for Angle, it's a good way to keep himself fed.
  Angle, 42, is on food stamps, but that never quite gets him through the month. The internet provides the extra money he needs to buy a meal each and every day. Since setting up a bitcoin wallet about three or four months ago, he has earned somewhere between four or five bitcoins '-- about $500 to $630 today '-- through YouTube videos, Bitcoin Tapper, and the occasional donation. And when he does odd jobs for people around Pensacola '-- here in the physical world '-- he still gets paid in bitcoin, just because it's easier and safer. He doesn't have to worry as much about getting robbed.
  Jesse Angle isn't your average homeless person. But he shows that bitcoin is changing the world in more ways than you might imagine. Some believe it could provide a major boost to the country's 640,000 homeless, not only in providing extra pocket change for those on the street, but by helping urban homeless shelters more quickly secure donations for hot meals, beds, and blankets.
  Angle learned about bitcoin through Sean's Outpost, a Pensacola charity that has raised about $32,000 through a program that solicits donations in bitcoins rather than American dollars. So far, it has received donations from 25 different countries, and this has bought almost 16,000 meals for Pensacola homeless.
  ''Bitcoin beats the shit out of regular money,'' says Jason King, the founder of Sean's Outpost. ''We've resonated so well with people because it's direct action. There's no chaff between donation and helping people.'' That could change, as regulators in the U.S. put the clamps on the use of bitcoin. But for now, in the world of the homeless, it reduces chaff in more ways than one.
  Paul Harrison, after his computer loses battery power in the middle of a video game. Photo: Michael Spooneybarger/WIRED
  Bitcoin: The Great EqualizerJesse Angle says bitcoins are harder to come by than spare change shared by people walking down the streets. But there are other reasons for him to go digital.
  ''It's a lot less embarrassing,'' he says. ''You don't have to put yourself out there.'' And unlike panhandling in Pensacola, using an app like Bitcoin Tapper won't put him on the wrong side of the law. This past May, Pensacola '-- where Angle has lived since April '-- passed an ordinance that bans not only panhandling but camping on city property.
  'It's a lot less embarrassing. You don't have to put yourself out there.'
  '-- Jesse Angle
  Yes, you need a smartphone to earn bitcoins '-- or some other device that gets you onto the internet. But the homeless carry mobile devices more often than you might expect. Angle's homeless friends Chris Kantola and Paul Harrison also have phones, and they aren't unlike people living on the streets in other parts of the country. At San Francisco's Tenderloin Technology Lab '-- a nonprofit that provides the city's poor and homeless access to computers '-- organizers say that many of its clients use personal phones to connect to the net. Android is the mobile platform of choice.
  You also need power, but that's not that hard to come by. When Angle and his pals run out of juice for their phones, they walk from Martin Luther King Plaza to the local Pensacola library, where they can plug into outdoor outlets on the side of the wall.
  The bitcoin system could become an equalizer for the country's homeless, a place where the stigma of living on the streets isn't as pronounced. ''Homeless people don't like to raise their hands and say they're different,'' says Mark Horvath, an advocate for using the internet and social media to help end homelessness. ''Nobody does.'' In the bitcoin world, they don't have to.
  If you're homeless, the great thing about bitcoin is that you can set up a wallet without an ID or a street address. And once you start filling this wallet, there are plenty of ways of converting bitcoins into cash and food and other goods, all without identification.
  After earning his money with apps like Bitcoin Tapper, Angle turns to another tool called Gyft, an Android app that converts his bitcoin reserves into gift cards for places like Papa John's pizza. He can then buy a pie online, have it delivered, and share it with Kantola and Harrison.
  The next day, his friends might return the favor. They too have their own bitcoin wallets. ''We're kind of the homeless geeks,'' Angle says. ''We all got laptops and smartphones.''
  Angle converts bitcoins into a Papa John's e-gift card, which he uses to buy food for himself and his friends. Photo: Michael Spooneybarger/WIRED
  Angle gives Kantola a shave in the park, after packing up his computer. Photo: Michael Spooneybarger/WIRED
  A Bitcoin Shelter From the StormAngle used to work as a network engineer and a computer repair technician '-- as well as a carpenter and a pool cleaning guy, among other jobs '-- but the work eventually petered out, and he wound up homeless when his roommates moved out of his apartment and he couldn't afford the rent on his own.
  After a few months, he got back under a roof, but that didn't last, so he decided to live on the street for a while, rather than yo-yoing between home and homelessness.
  He was the first of his group to start using bitcoin. He became a regular at Sean's Outpost, and one day, after Jason King, the organization's founder, mentioned the digital currency, Angle pulled out his Android phone and asked King to help him set up a digital wallet. ''When he left,'' Angle remembers. ''I showed my friends which app to get.''
  'Some tech guys and nerds like myself who got into it early now have millions. For that group, it's a very tangible concept to take virtual currencies and help people with it.'
  '-- Jason King
  King is a longtime fan of bitcoin and its mission to create an online peer-to-peer network for transactions. When he started Sean's Outpost, he didn't set out to help the homeless through the digital currency, but that's what happened. As the value of a bitcoin topped $50, he saw the milestone as an opportunity to prove the nay-sayers wrong, to show them that bitcoin wasn't just the latest geek fad, but something of real value.
  In addition to helping people like Angle make their own money through bitcoin, King began soliciting bitcoin donations to Sean's Outpost. ''If you give me one bitcoin,'' he'd say, ''I can feed 40 homeless people in Pensacola. That's proof that it has real value.''
  He took to reddit to advertise this new model, promising to put donor names on each bagged lunch made possible through bitcoin donations. Within 12 hours of launching, he had given out 80 meals '-- something he couldn't have done so quickly if he'd raised money through more traditional means. Even Paypal, he says, is a dinosaur compared to Bitcoin because it can take days to set up an account, and it saddles people with fees and restrictions. More recently, he started taking donations in Litecoin, a digital currency not unlike bitcoin.
  Using these new-age money systems, King is also tapping into what you might call the digital nouveau riche '-- all those people that jumped on digital currency early, when it was dirt cheap, and quickly amassed fortunes. ''Some tech guys and nerds like myself who got into it early now have millions,'' King says. ''For that group, it's a very tangible concept to take virtual currencies and help people with it.''
  Angle mines bitcoins on a park bench. Photo: Michael Spooneybarger/WIRED
  Other charity organizations are working along similar lines. Bitcoin100 was started with the sole purpose of encouraging charities to accept bitcoins, and it now counts the Khan Academy and the Virtual Doctor Project among its success stories. A woman named Connie Gallippi has launched the first bitcoin-only charity '-- the BitGive Foundation '-- hoping to build a multi-million dollar fund for environmental and health-related causes. And in San Francisco, Project FEED is using bitcoin to accept donations for hoodies that can clothe the homeless this winter.
  Meanwhile, Sean's Outpost has opened something it calls BitHOC, the Bitcoin Homeless Outreach Center, a 1200-square-foot facility that doubles as a storage space and homeless shelter. The lease '' and some of the food it houses '-- is paid in bitcoins through a service called Coinbase. For gas and other supplies, Sean's Outpost taps Gyft, the giftcard app Jesse Angle and his friends use to purchase pizza.
  The $90,000 nine-acre plot will span multiple homes for the homeless, dubbed BitHouses.
  King has also started recruiting the homeless to build houses for other homeless people to live in, and whenever possible, he's paying them in bitcoin. Just this month, Sean's Outpost announced Satoshi Forest, which King calls a ''sanctuary for the homeless.'' The $90,000 nine-acre plot will contain multiple homes for the homeless, dubbed BitHouses.
  In the first 18 hours after the announcement, redditors donated roughly 10 bitcoins, or two months' worth of mortgage payments, and King managed to convince Bob Dale, the property holder, to take the $600 mortgage in bitcoin. This is the only property for which Dale is currently accepting digital currency, but so far, he says, ''it's been a good experience because bitcoins have gone up in value, so it's more than I would have gotten in regular dollars.''
  In the long-term, King wants to morph this into a business in the ''buy-one-get-one-free'' spirit of Tom's Shoes, Warby Parker, and rubberit. Jesse Angle and his friends Kantola and Harrison want to help with this new endeavor, but they may have trouble getting to the BitHouse location because they don't own cars. Watching videos on YouTube earns you only so many bitcoins.
  But it's better than nothing. Much better than nothing.
  Chris Kantola shows his frustration after losing his Wi-Fi connection on a bench in Martin Luther King Plaza. Photo: Michael Spooneybarger/WIRED
  Pages:12 View All
As Worries Over the Power Grid Rise, a Drill Will Simulate a Knockout Blow - NYTimes.com
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  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 23:22
  WASHINGTON '-- The electric grid, as government and private experts describe it, is the glass jaw of American industry. If an adversary lands a knockout blow, they fear, it could black out vast areas of the continent for weeks; interrupt supplies of water, gasoline, diesel fuel and fresh food; shut down communications; and create disruptions of a scale that was only hinted at by Hurricane Sandy and the attacks of Sept. 11.
  This is why thousands of utility workers, business executives, National Guard officers, F.B.I. antiterrorism experts and officials from government agencies in the United States, Canada and Mexico are preparing for an emergency drill in November that will simulate physical attacks and cyberattacks that could take down large sections of the power grid.
  They will practice for a crisis unlike anything the real grid has ever seen, and more than 150 companies and organizations have signed up to participate.
  ''This is different from a hurricane that hits X, Y and Z counties in the Southeast and they have a loss of power for three or four days,'' said the official in charge of the drill, Brian M. Harrell of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, known as NERC. ''We really want to go beyond that.''
  One goal of the drill, called GridEx II, is to explore how governments would react as the loss of the grid crippled the supply chain for everyday necessities.
  ''If we fail at electricity, we're going to fail miserably,'' Curt H(C)bert, a former chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, said at a recent conference held by the Bipartisan Policy Center.
  Mr. Harrell said that previous exercises were based on the expectation that electricity ''would be up and running relatively quick'' after an attack.
  Now, he said, the goal is to ''educate the federal government on what their expectations should or shouldn't be.'' The industry held a smaller exercise two years ago in which 75 utilities, companies and agencies participated, but this one will be vastly expanded and will be carried out in a more anxious mood.
  Most of the participants will join the exercise from their workplaces, with NERC, in Washington, announcing successive failures. One example, organizers say, is a substation break-in that officials initially think is an attempt to steal copper. But instead, the intruder uses a USB drive to upload a virus into a computer network.
  The drill is part of a give-and-take in the past few years between the government and utilities that has exposed the difficulties of securing the electric system.
  The grid is essential for almost everything, but it is mostly controlled by investor-owned companies or municipal or regional agencies. Ninety-nine percent of military facilities rely on commercial power, according to the White House.
  The utilities play down their abilities, in comparison with the government's. ''They have the intelligence operation, the standing army, the three-letter agencies,'' said Scott Aaronson, senior director of national security policy at the Edison Electric Institute, the trade association of investor-owned utilities. ''We have the grid operations expertise.''
  That expertise involves running 5,800 major power plants and 450,000 miles of high-voltage transmission lines, monitored and controlled by a staggering mix of devices installed over decades. Some utilities use their own antique computer protocols and are probably safe from hacking '-- what the industry calls ''security through obscurity.''
  But others rely on Windows-based control systems that are common to many industries. Some of them run on in-house networks, but computer security experts say they are not confident that all the connections to the public Internet have been discovered and secured. Many may be vulnerable to software '-- known as malware '-- that can disable the systems or destroy their ability to communicate, leaving their human operators blind about the positions of switches, the flows of current and other critical parameters. Experts say a sophisticated hacker could also damage hard-to-replace equipment.
  In an effort to draw utilities and the government closer, the industry recently established the Electricity Sub-Sector Coordinating Council, made up of high-level executives, to meet with federal officials. The first session is next month.
  Preparation for the November drill comes as Congress is debating laws that could impose new standards to protect the grid from cyberattacks, but many in the industry, some of whom would like such rules, doubt that they can pass.
  The drill is also being planned as conferences, studies and even works of fiction are raising near-apocalyptic visions of catastrophes involving the grid.
  A National Academy of Sciences report last year said that terrorists could cause broad hardship for months with physical attacks on hard-to-replace components. An emerging effort led in part by R. James Woolsey, a former director of the Central Intelligence Agency, is gearing up to pressure state legislatures to force utilities to protect equipment against an electromagnetic pulse, which could come from solar activity or be caused by small nuclear weapons exploded at low altitude, frying crucial components.
  An attack using an electromagnetic pulse is laid out in extensive detail in the novel ''One Second After,'' published in 2009 and endorsed by Newt Gingrich. In another novel, ''Gridlock,'' published this summer and co-written by Byron L. Dorgan, the former senator from North Dakota, a rogue Russian agent working for Venezuela and Iran helps hackers threaten the grid. In the preface, Mr. Dorgan says such an attack could cause 10,000 times as much devastation as the terrorists' strikes on Sept. 11, 2001.
  Despite the growing anxiety, the government and the private sector have had trouble coordinating their grid protection efforts. The utility industry argues that the government has extensive information on threats but keeps it classified. Government officials concede the problem, and they have suggested that some utility executives get security clearances. But with hundreds of utilities and thousands of executives, it cannot issue such clearances fast enough. And the industry would like to be instantly warned when the government identifies Internet servers that are known to be sources of malware.
  Another problem is that the electric system is so tightly integrated that a collapse in one spot, whether by error or intent, can set off a cascade, as happened in August 2003, when a power failure took a few moments to spread from Detroit to New York.
  Sometimes utility engineers and law enforcement officials also seem to speak different languages. In his book ''Protecting Industrial Control Systems From Electronic Threats,'' Joseph Weiss, an engineer and cybersecurity expert, recounted a meeting between electrical engineers and the F.B.I. in 2008. When an F.B.I. official spoke at length about I.E.D.'s, he was referring to improvised explosive devices, but to the engineers the abbreviation meant intelligent electronic devices.
  And experts fear government-sponsored hacking. Michael V. Hayden, another former C.I.A. director, speaking at the Bipartisan Policy Center conference, said that the Stuxnet virus, which disabled some of Iran's centrifuges for enriching uranium, might invite retaliation.
  ''In a time of peace, someone just used a cyberweapon to destroy another nation's critical infrastructure,'' he said. ''Ouch.''
Imagining a Cyberattack on the Power Grid - NYTimes.com
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  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 23:19
  WASHINGTON '-- It's electrifying.
  Iran and Venezuela want to destroy the United States, so they conspire with a rogue Russian spy to launch a cyberattack on the North American power grid, beginning by electrocuting a lineman in North Dakota. Their main obstacle is a small-town sheriff in the state's badlands, Nate Osborne, a former Marine Corps lieutenant in Afghanistan whose titanium leg ultimately saves the day.
  That is more or less the plot of ''Gridlock,'' co-written by former Senator Byron L. Dorgan, the latest offering in a peculiar Washington genre.
  ''That's my little niche, North Dakota energy thriller,'' said Mr. Dorgan, a Democrat who represented North Dakota in the Senate and House for more than three decades.
  ''Gridlock'' imagines a blackout that continues for weeks.
  Greg Kahn for The New York Times
  But life is increasingly imitating Mr. Dorgan's potboiler. More than 200 utilities and government agencies across the country, from Consolidated Edison to the Department of Homeland Security to Verizon, are now expected to sign up for the largest emergency drill to test the electricity sector's preparation for cyberattack. The drill, scheduled for November, will simulate an attack by an adversary that takes down large sections of the power grid and knocks out vast areas of the continent for weeks.
  The drill, organized by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, is to explore how the country would respond to an enormous grid failure that interrupts supplies of water, food and fuel and creates disruptions on a scale far beyond those of Sept. 11, 2001.
  Although it's potentially bad news for the country, it's good news for Mr. Dorgan, who has been on an episodic book tour since ''Gridlock,'' written with David Hagberg, was published in July.
  ''It's entertaining, it's a thriller, but I hope it will get people to think about this some,'' Mr. Dorgan said in a recent interview in his office at a Washington law firm overlooking K Street, the lobbyists' corridor, and decorated with photos of himself with assorted presidents.
  An attack on the grid could really happen, Mr. Dorgan said. ''I think that we are vulnerable, and it's not just me, it's the National Science Foundation and a number of people in the energy industry. 'Glass jaw' is a pretty good description of the grid system, honestly.''
  The book is a sequel to Mr. Dorgan and Mr. Hagberg's first energy thriller, ''Blowout,'' in which Iran and Venezuela link up with shady hedge-fund types to destroy a supersecret project that uses microbes to turn North Dakota coal into limitless, low-pollution electricity. In both books, many bad guys die, along with a few good ones, but enough survive to preserve the possibility of yet another sequel. Plots vary, but the characters are drawn from a familiar inventory of types, and the story lines have a certain predictability. They read a bit like treatments for action movies, the kind without much heavy dialogue.
  ''I know they're not Shakespeare,'' said Mr. Hagberg, who said he had written more than 80 novels under his own name and several pseudonyms.
  Mr. Dorgan is not completely new to writing either, although his previous offerings have been nonfiction. ''Take This Job and Ship It: How Corporate Greed and Brain-Dead Politics Are Selling Out America,'' was published in 2006, and ''Reckless!,'' on the perils of banking deregulation, was in print three years later.
  Out of the blue, his agent came to him with an idea for fiction, and the notion that in a novel, ''you can put important things into the public consciousness.''
  A prominent local bookseller, Bradley Graham of Politics & Prose bookstore, put it slightly differently: Former spies and military officers often spin tales out of their experience, so why not legislators? In Mr. Dorgan's case, it would be a former appropriator, since he headed a subcommittee in charge of energy spending.
  The two-book collaboration got a boost, said Mr. Hagberg, because his publisher, Forge, which specializes in action titles, was ''keen on more environmental stuff.''
  Mr. Dorgan brought local color to both ''Gridlock'' and ''Blowout.'' The North Dakota characters, for example, make fun of characters from South Dakota. (''What does he know, he's from South Dakota,'' one says to another.)
  Mr. Dorgan also contributed his knowledge of Washington's energy bureaucracy and the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy, or Arpa-e, a new organization that finances high-risk energy projects and is modeled after the better-known Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or Darpa. In ''Gridlock,'' Arpa-e has provided the money for a top-secret Dakota District Initiative, modeled after the Manhattan Project, which developed the atomic bomb.
  The idea of giant secret projects are more fiction than readers may recognize. The real Arpa-e puts small sums into dozens of start-ups, and then publicizes the investments.
  Mr. Dorgan, 71, said he got the idea of microbes that turn coal into natural gas from Craig Venter, the biologist who was one of the first to sequence the human genome. (Mr. Ventor had a contract with Exxon to research making oil from algae.)
  Mr. Dorgan said he started his first book, ''Take This Job and Ship It,'' on a cruise with his extended family, using a 24-page guide to writing a book proposal that he found on the Internet. For the two thrillers, his agent paired him with Mr. Hagberg. (Mr. Hagberg, whose red-white-and-blue heroes tend toward conservative military or small-town types, described himself as a ''raging Republican,'' and called Mr. Dorgan ''my token Democrat.'')
  Mr. Dorgan and Mr. Hagberg would not discuss how ''Gridlock'' and ''Blowout'' were selling, although on Tuesday ''Gridlock'' was No. 94,180 on Amazon. Putting the name of a recently retired senator on the cover of a book does not make it sell any better, Mr. Hagberg said.
Definition of Pathocracy | The Pathocracy Blog
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  Archived Version
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 23:13
  Definition of PathocracyDefinition: pathocracy (n). A system of government created by a small pathological minority that takes control over a society of normal people (from Political Ponerology: A Science on the Nature of Evil Adjusted for Political Purposes, by Andrew Lobaczewski)
  Pathocracyfrom Greek pathos, ''feeling, pain, suffering''; and kratos, ''rule''
  A totalitarian form of government in which absolute political power is held by a psychopathic elite, and their effect on the people is such that the entire society is ruled and motivated by purely pathological values.
  A pathocracy can take many forms and can insinuate itself covertly into any seemingly just system or ideology. As such it can masquerade under the guise of a democracy or theocracy as well as more openly oppressive regimes.
  Characteristics1. suppression of individualism and creativity.2. impoverishment of artistic values.3. impoverishment of moral values; a social structure based on self-interest and one-upmanship, rather than altruism.4. fanatical ideology; often a corrupted form of a valid viable 'trojan' ideology which is perverted into a pathological form, bearing little resemblance to the substance of the original.5. intolerance and suspicion of anyone who is different, or who disagrees with the state.6. centralized control.7. widespread corruption.8. secret activities within government, but surveillance of the general population. (In contrast, a healthy society would have transparent government processes, and respect for privacy of the individual citizen).9. paranoid and reactionary government.10. excessive, arbitrary, unfair and inflexible legislation; the power of decision making is reduced/removed from the citizens' everyday lives.11. an attitude of hypocrisy and contempt demonstrated by the actions of the ruling class, towards the ideals they claim to follow, and towards the citizens they claim to represent.12. controlled media, dominated by propaganda.13. extreme inequality between the richest and poorest.14. endemic use of corrupted psychological reasoning such as paramoralisms, conversive thinking and doubletalk.15. rule by force and/or fear of force.16. people are considered as a 'resource' to be exploited (hence the term ''human resources''), rather than as individuals with intrinsic human worth.17. spiritual life is restricted to inflexible and indoctrinare schemes. Anyone attempting to go beyond these boundaries is considered a heretic or insane, and therefore dangerous.18. arbitrary divisions in the population (class, ethnicity, creed) are inflamed into conflict with one another.19. suppression of free speech '' public debate, demonstration, protest.20. violation of basic human rights, for example: restriction or denial of basic life necessities such as food, water, shelter; detainment without charge; torture and abuse; slave labour.
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PayPal Takes On Kopimism
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  Archived Version
  Source: Falkvinge on Infopolicy
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 16:27
  1
  Activism '' Travis McCrea
  Activism '' Travis McCrea
  For over a year now I have operated a fork of the Kopimist Church (Kopimists of Idaho '' a fully recognized church), to process donations we have accepted bitcoin donations and PayPal donations. Today after our final round of phone ''arbitration'', both sides agreed that we will not be able to settle our differences and our account will stay banned and we will get our $400 of stored funds in 180 days.
  Denying service to a person or group arbitrarily based on faith is against Californian law (the state where PayPal operates), it is in the Unruh Civil Rights Act '' California's expansion on Federal Civil Liberties laws. PayPal has admitted over the phone that their ban against the church was issued because my personal website TUEBL links back on the donate page. Any person who knows the basics of limited liability knows that the Kopimist Church can't be held liable for the actions of its supporters, especially since it has limited liability incorporation which is required of us to be a church in the state of Idaho.
  While many of you may never heard of our church, we tend to host various projects for people and will soon be buying a plane so we can provide rapid response to places in the US and Canada who might have communication problems due to censorship or natural disaster. We have been laying low, slowly building up donations from supporters, and were planning on entering big with our new era K2'... we truly believe in Kopimism as a religion and we want the world to know about it.
  Right now our only course of action is legal action. We wish it didn't come to this, because as much as we know PayPal is a horrible company we knew that legal action was going to be expensive and the fight was going to be an uphill battle with their fancy lawyers. We can't sit back and do nothing though, too frequently PayPal uses it's banhammer with the carelessness of a bull in a china shop'... and it's our obligation as a church which protects the Internet to remind PayPal that we wont just sit back and let them be bullies.
  We need your help though! This battle is going to be expensive'... We are looking for donations to help get good lawyers who will help us establish a precedent not only for our church but all Kopimist sects and furthermore remind PayPal they can't just bully people.
  Please donate to 1EVeAuB82MZYtavLb4deQ5MCVhPwnThASB (the wallet which is earmarked for this legal issue and nothing else), even the smallest microdonation helps and shows your support for Kopimism as a true religion.
  You've read the whole article. Why not subscribe to the RSS flow using your favorite reader, or even have articles delivered by mail?About The Author: Travis McCrea
Syria meets deadline for chemical weapons disclosure
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  Source: Reuters: World News
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 16:25
  1 of 7. Free Syrian Army fighters take cover from snipers by crawling on the front line in Aleppo's Sheikh Saeed neighbourhood September 21, 2013.
  Credit: Reuters/Molhem Barakat
  By Thomas Escritt
  AMSTERDAM | Sat Sep 21, 2013 12:18pm EDT
  AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Syria has handed over information about its chemical arsenal to a U.N.-backed weapons watchdog, meeting the first deadline of an ambitious disarmament operation that averted the threat of Western air strikes.
  The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said on Saturday it had "received the expected disclosure" from Damascus, 24 hours after saying it had been given a partial document from Syrian authorities.
  It said it was reviewing the information, handed over after President Bashar al-Assad agreed to destroy Syria's chemical weapons in the wake of a sarin gas strike in Damascus's suburbs last month - the world's deadliest chemical attack in 25 years.
  Washington blamed Assad's forces for the attack, which it said killed more than 1,400 people. Assad blamed rebels battling to overthrow him, saying it made no sense for his forces to use chemical weapons when they were gaining the upper hand and while U.N. chemical inspectors were staying in central Damascus.
  The timetable for disarmament was laid down by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov a week ago in Geneva when they set aside sharp differences over Syria to address the chemical weapons issue.
  Their plan set a Saturday deadline for Syria to give a full account of the weapons it possesses. Security experts say it has about 1,000 metric tons of mustard gas, VX and sarin - the nerve gas U.N. inspectors found had been used in the August 21 attack.
  The U.S. State Department said on Friday, after the OPCW announced Syria's initial declaration, that it was studying the material. "An accurate list is vital to ensure the effective implementation," spokeswoman Marie Harf said.
  RARE AGREEMENT
  Once the OPCW executive has voted to follow the Lavrov-Kerry plan in a meeting expected early next week, the Security Council is due to give its endorsement of the arrangements - marking a rare consensus after two years of East-West deadlock over Syria.
  However, the two powers are divided over how to ensure compliance with the accord. U.S. President Barack Obama has warned that he is still prepared to attack Syria, even without a U.N. mandate, if Assad reneges on the deal.
  Russia, which says it is not clear who was behind the August 21 attack and has a veto in the Security Council, opposes attempts by Western powers to write in an explicit and immediate threat of penalties under what are known as Chapter VII powers.
  It wants to discuss ways of forcing Syrian compliance only in the event that Damascus fails to cooperate.
  But a senior Russian official suggested on Saturday that if there were clear indications that Assad were not committed to handing over chemical weapons, Moscow may stop supporting him.
  "I'm talking theoretically and hypothetically, but if we became sure that Assad is cheating, we could change our position," said Sergei Ivanov, chief of staff for President Vladimir Putin.
  Ivanov said it would take two to three months to decide how long it would take to eliminate Syria's chemical weapons, a task that the Kerry-Lavrov agreement aims to complete by mid-2014.
  The accord has been welcomed internationally because of its potential to remove a toxic arsenal from Syria's battlefield and possibly revive international efforts to press for a political solution to the civil war.
  But it has done nothing in the short term to stem fighting with conventional weapons, which has killed more than 100,000 people, according to the United Nations.
  REBEL OFFENSIVE IN ALEPPO
  Rebel forces, some of whom accused the West of betrayal when Obama stepped back from air strikes against Assad's forces three weeks ago, seized several villages south of Aleppo on Saturday.
  Their offensive was the latest effort to cut Assad's supply lines to Syria's biggest city, preventing reinforcements by road from Damascus to the south.
  Video posted on the Internet showed rebels from the Tawhid brigade firing from a tank and a truck-mounted machine gun at army positions near the Sheikh Said suburb south of Aleppo.
  Further south, in Hama province, soldiers and pro-Assad militiamen killed at least 15 people, including a woman and two children, in the Sunni Muslim village of Sheikh Hadid, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
  The British-based group, which monitors violence in Syria through a network of activists and medical and security sources, said the killings followed attacks by rebels on military checkpoints in the area over the previous two days.
  It said 26 people - 16 soldiers and 10 members of the pro-Assad National Defence Force - were killed when rebels attacked a nearby checkpoint on Thursday. There was also fighting in the village of Jalma, two miles south of Sheikh Hadid, on Friday, it said.
  Syria's civil war, which grew out of a 2011 uprising against four decades of Assad family rule, pits mainly Sunni Muslim rebels against a president whose Alawite faith is an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam.
  The war has divided the Middle East along sectarian lines, with Shi'ite Iran and Shi'ite fighters from Iraq as well as Lebanon's Hezbollah backing Assad. Sunni Muslim rulers in Turkey and the Gulf support the rebels, who have been joined by Sunni Islamist fighters from across the region.
  The opposition Syrian National Coalition rejected an offer by Iran's president Hassan Rouhani to help start talks with the Syrian government, saying Tehran could not mediate while providing political, economic, and military support to Assad.
  "If serious, the Iranian government would withdraw its military experts and extremist fighters from Syria before embarking on dialogue proposals," it said in a statement.
  (Additional reporting by Dominic Evans in Beirut, Jason Bush in Moscow; Writing by Dominic Evans; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Andrew Heavens)
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Islam is a terrorist culture, not a religion!
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  Source: VENITISM
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 16:24
  Today, Muslims stormed a shopping mall in Nairobi, killing thirty people. The Somali militant group al Shabaab, which Kenya blames for shootings, bombings and grenade attacks against churches and the security forces, had threatened before to strike the Westgate mall, popular with the city's expatriate community.Three dozen wounded were wheeled out on stretchers and shopping trolleys. Many of the victims had multiple light wounds from flying debris. Other walked out, some with bloodied clothing wrapped around wounds.Al Shabaab have previously threatened to launch strikes on Nairobi's tower blocks and soft targets including nightclubs and hotels known to be popular with Westerners in the capital.Al Qaedahas asked the widows of its fighters to abide by Sexual Jihad Fatwa as a means of emotional support to its guerillas. This Fatwa allowsAl Qaeda's women to have sexual intercourse with terrorists to lift their morale!We have a moral obligation to liberate all Muslim women, the zombies of Islam, from the yoke of Sharia. Sharia teems with barbarous prescriptions that conflict with the generally accepted principles on which the Graecoroman civilization is founded, e.g. the observance of personal liberties, the equality of woman and man, or the protection of physical integrity. Sharia denies each individual his personal free choice, imposes the inequality of the sexes, exhibits absolute intolerance against the heterodox and promotes inhuman punishment.Public anger has gripped civil society after a distinguished Saudi preacher who raped and beat to death his 5-year-old daughter was sentenced only to a few months in jail and a $50,000 fine. Saudi preacher Fayhan Ghamdi, a frequent guest on Muslim TV networks, confessed to using cables and a cane to inflict huge injuries to the girl.Ghamdi doubted that his daughter, Lama Ghamdi, was a virgin, and forced her to undergo a medical inspection. In December 2011, Lama was admitted to hospital with multiple injuries, including a crushed skull, broken ribs and left arm, and extensive bruising and burns. The girl's back was broken, and she had been raped very wildly.In October 2012, Lama died from her injuries. The following November, the father was arrested. The judge ruled that the fine and the time the defendant had served in prison since Lama's death suffices as punishment!Most people are disgusted with the misogyny of Islam. First and foremost victims of Islamization are women, the zombies of Islam. Muslim women are systematically discriminated against, oppressed and molested. According to Islam, women are subordinate to men, as they owe their fathers and husbands unquestioning obedience. In Islamic tradition, the men invariably take all important decisions in the stead of their wives and daughters. Islam dictates, a man may chasten his wife in order to keep her in line.Islam is synonymous to humiliation and discrimination. Muslim women can only inherit half as much as a man. The testimony of a Muslim woman is half as trustworthy as that of a man's. Furthermore, Islam coerces females into wearing head scarves, veils, niqabs, and burqas, for women are deemed responsible for men's sexual restraint. Islam also considerably curbs women's liberty of action. Without permission of her husband a Muslim woman may not leave her dwelling. Along with Islam, savage practices such as honor killings, forced marriage, polygamy, and circumcision are making inroads into our society.
  Islam requires all women to dress like zombies! Veil and headscarf are not welcome in Fourth Reich (EU), because they are symbols of women's subservience, repression, incivility, and an increasingly divided Fourth Reich. Veil and headscarf make women invisible, transform women to zombies, invalidate women's participatory rights, flag women as evil temptresses, oppress women with barbarity, are brands of misogynist Islam, and are a security threat.Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a harmful Muslim practice and a serious threat to the psychological, sexual, and reproductive health of women and girls. FGM is mostly carried out on young Muslim girls, between infancy and age 15 and occasionally on adult women. FGM brings cysts and abscesses, damaged urinary incontinence, sexual dysfunction, difficulties with childbirth, anxiety, depression, and sometimes death.For several years, Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani girl has been blogging about life under Taliban tyranny, and calling for the right to women's education. A young girl, with a fierce, brave sense of justice, is able to spread her story to the world. One young girl, armed only with access to the internet, is able to expose and challenge the Taliban. The Taliban were so scared of Malala, they attempted to assassinate her, but they failed. That cowardly attempt to murder a fourteen year old girl won't silence her. And it certainly won't silence her message. That is the power of free speech to spread truth and promote liberty.ISLAM IS NOT A RELIGION, BUT A DANGEROUS IDEOLOGYIslam murders one Christian every single minute! People are disgusted with the terrorism of Islam.Islam is a dangerous ideology, not a religion. Islam fails four major tests that religions should fulfill: Adherence to a religion must be a personal choice; no religion should demand that those who leave it be killed; a religion must never mandate the subjugation of those who do not belong to it; a religion must be in accord with basic human rights.Franklin Roosevelt observed that wherever the Muslims have had a complete sway, wherever citizens have been unable to resist them by the sword, civility has ultimatelydisappeared. Roosevelt rejected as naive the notion that all religions are the same. Some religions give a higher value to each human life, and some religions and belief systems give a lower value. Our social values, including equality before the law, exist only because the Christians of Europe did what the Christians of Asia and Africa had failed to do '' that is, to beat back the Moslem invader.John Quincy Adams pointed out that Muhammad poisoned the sources of human felicity at the fountain, by degrading the condition of the female sex, and the allowance of polygamy; and he declared undistinguishing and exterminating war as part of his religion, against all the rest of mankind. The essence of Muhammad's doctrine was violence and lust; to exalt the brutal over the spiritual part of human nature.In 2004, on a street in Amsterdam, Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh was brutally murdered by a Muslim of Moroccan descent. Van Gogh had collaborated with a Somali emigrant, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, to produce the film Submission, about the abuse of women in Islam. Van Gogh's killer had impaled on his victim's chest an open letter threatening death to Geert Wilders and Ali, whose politics had put them on extremists' kill-lists. Two days after the murder, both were whisked into hiding by police because of imminent threats of assassination.Koran was first written in Aramaic, not in Arabic. There is also a difference between the tolerant verses of the early period, when Muhammad was still powerless and under threat, and the hostile verses of the later period. The Koran was made up by Muhammad as it suited his opportunistic goals for power, money, and sex. September 11 is the International Anti-Koran Day! Koran is a stupid unholy book of satanic verses, the main source of culture clashes, misogyny, polygamy, incivility, and holy wars. Mu-ham-mad is a mu ham gone mad (((:-{>Islam appeared one century after Muhammad's death. The first century of the Arab conquest shows the conquerors holding not to Islam but to Hagarism. Hagarenes claimed descent from Abraham through his slave wife Hagar, similarly to the Jews who claimed descent from Abraham through Sarah. The Muhammad of Islamic tradition did not exist! It was only in theeighth century, when the rulers of a now-vast Arabian empire felt the need for a unifying political theology, that they cobbled together the Islamic religion. The key figure in this enterprise was the brutal governor of Iraq, Hajjaj ibn Yusuf. That's why Islam is such a profoundly political religion with uniquely prominent incivil qualities.Caliphate is the system of government established in Islam and represents the leader's unity of the Muslim Ummah community. It is an aristocratic theocracy, where the Caliph and other officials are representatives of the people and of Islam and must govern according to Sharia. Now Occident has been hoodwinked to support a global terrorist caliphate by encouraging Islamist rebels!Al-Qaeda has as one of its clearly stated goals the re-establishment of the caliphate. Ayman al-Zawahiri seeks to restore the caliphate, which had formally ended in 1924 following the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire. Zawahiri believes that once the caliphate is re-established, Egypt would become a rallying point for the rest of the Islamic world, leading the jihad against Occident.Giving to charity is incumbent upon every Muslim. Throughout history, Muslims have donated to the poor and to charitable endowments set up for the purposes of promoting Islam through the construction of mosques, schools, and hospitals. In recent years, there has been a dramatic proliferation of Islamic charities, many of which were created in the declining decades of the 20th century by the infusion of oil money into the Muslim world. While some of these are legitimate, there is now considerable and worrying evidence that most Islamic charities have more questionable intentions, and most funds from such organizations have been diverted to support terrorist groups, such as al-Qaeda, and conflicts across the world.Apostates from Islam live under the death fatwa every single day. Former MuslimsUnited seeks to protect former Muslims frompersecution by those Muslims who believe that Sharia requires such persecution. They are vocally outspoken against honor killings. They wrote a pledge rejecting punishment by death for apostasy that was sent to many people.
Information Collection Activities: Visitor Perceptions of Climate Change in U.S. National Parks
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Source: Federal Register Latest Entries
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 15:57
  Notice; Request For Comments.
  We, (National Park Service), will ask the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to approve the Information Collection (IC) described below. This collection will consist of a single survey instrument that will be administered through the National Park System. As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, and as part of our continuing efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, we invite the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on this IC. The PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501, et seq.) provides that we may not conduct or sponsor and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.
  To ensure that your comments on this IC are considered, we must receive them on or before November 22, 2013.
  Please send your comments to Phadrea Ponds, Information Collections Coordinator, National Park Service, 1201 Oakridge Drive, Fort Collins, CO 80525 (mail); or phadrea_ponds@nps.gov (email). Please reference Information Collection 1024-NEW, Visitor Perceptions of Climate Change in U.S. National Parks in the subject line.
  Angie Richman, Communication Specialist, Climate Change Response Program, at 1201 Oakridge Drive, Suite 200, Fort Collins, CO 80525 (mail) or angie_richman@nps.gov (email).
  The National Park Service (NPS) Units are valuable public spaces that serve many purposes including providing recreational opportunities and protecting our nations natural and cultural resources. In order to continue to preserve scenery, natural landscapes, and historic objects, it is important for NPS staff and visitors to understand the various benefits of and challenges to NPS units. Furthermore, it is also important to discuss what can be done within and outside the parks to preserve these benefits for future generations.
  As per the NPS Climate Change Action Plan, the NPS is seeking to promote resource stewardship and public understanding of how climate change will impact the National Park units. Data on how to best meet these objectives is needed to ensure public outreach and communication materials are well received and effective. The results of this study will provide NPS staff with recommendations and tools to effectively communicate climate related impacts in national parks and how the NPS is taking action to address these impacts. A questionnaire will be used to assess visitors' responses to climate change messages at thirty parks across the country.
  OMB Control Number: XXXX-New.
  Title: Visitor Perceptions of Climate Change in US National Parks.
  Type of Request: NEW.
  Description of Respondents: Individual.
  Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
  Frequency of Collection: One time.
  Estimated Number of Responses: 9,000. We estimate an average of 300 responses per park, across 30 parks.
  Annual Burden Hours: 1,500 hours. We estimate an average of 10 minutes per response.
  Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping ''Non-Hour Cost'' Burden: None.
  We invite comments concerning this IC on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the agency to perform its duties, including whether the information is useful; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information; (c) how to enhance the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) how to minimize the burden on the respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.
  Please note that the comments submitted in response to this notice are a matter of public record. Before including your address, phone number, email address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment, including your personal identifying information, may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask OMB in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that it will be done.
  Dated: September 18, 2013.
  Madonna L. Baucum,
  Information Collection Clearance Officer, National Park Service.
  [FR Doc. 2013-23061 Filed 9-20-13; 8:45 am]
  BILLING CODE 4310-EH-P
NSA Sends Letter to Its 'Extended' Family to Reassure Them That They Will 'Weather' This 'Storm' | The Dissenter
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 16:20
  The National Security Agency sent out a letter to all of its employees and affiliates, including contractors, that could be printed and shared with family, friends and colleagues. It was intended to reassure them that the NSA is not really the abusive and unchecked spying agency engaged in illegal activity that someone reading former NSA contractor Edward Snowden's disclosures might think it happens to be.
  The letter, sent on September 13, is signed by NSA Director Gen. Keith Alexander and NSA Deputy Director John Inglis, begins, ''We are writing to you, our extended NSA/CSS family, in light of the unauthorized disclosure of classified information by a former contractor employee.''
  If anyone was thinking of breaking up with the NSA family, the letter states, ''We want to put the information you are reading and hearing about in the press into context and reassure you that this Agency and its workforce are deserving and appreciative of your support.''
  ''Some media outlets have sensationalized the leaks to the press in a way that has called into question our motives and wrongly cast doubt on the integrity and commitment of the extraordinary people who work here at NSA/CSS'--your loved one(s),'' the letter suggests. ''It has been discouraging to see how our Agency frequently has been portrayed in the news as more of a rogue element than a national treasure.''
  I don't know what press publications the NSA regularly collects, intercepts and analyzes, but most of the press has questioned the motives of Edward Snowden, not the analysts working at the NSA.
  This siege mentality seems more indicative of the fact that the NSA has been subject to uncharacteristic scrutiny in the past months that should have occurred when the NSA first began to employ the surveillance programs that have been exposed, like PRISM and the bulk data collection from telephone providers.
  ''For more than 6 decades, NSA/CSS has been responsible for protecting the United States and its allies through its information assurance and signals intelligence missions. All of the things we do to conduct our mission are lawful,'' except for when the NSA monitored the calls of over a thousand Americans engaged in political activities between 1967 and 1973.
  Except for when it was intercepting mail in the 1950s without distinguishing between messages from foreigners and Americans. Except for when it was involved in the 1960s in investigating ''racial matters'' or ''student agitation'' by activists in cooperation with the CIA and military intelligence agencies. Except for when it engaged in warrantless wiretapping, most recently after the September 11th attacks.
  In case family members thought their loved one had no sense of what it means to respect privacy and protect civil liberties of US citizens, the directors declare, ''In concert with our mission, NSA/CSS employees are trained from the first day on the job, and regularly thereafter, to respect the privacy and civil liberties of US citizens. We go to great lengths to achieve our goal of no mistakes.''
  ''However, we are human and, because the environment of law and technology within which we operate is so complex and dynamic, mistakes sometimes do occur.'' Thousands of times per year they sometimes occur. Sometimes these ''mistakes'' involve incidents like adding 16,000 phone numbers improperly to an ''alert list.'' This is according to official documents like audits of the agency. Yet, the directors write, ''Some of those reports have been leaked to the press and have been mischaracterized to portray us as irresponsible and careless; nothing could be further from the truth.''
  As both Sen. Ron Wyden and Sen. Mark Udall have suggested, given the ineptitude of the NSA in being able to understand what it was doing with the bulk data collection program, how does it know if the program even kept Americans safe? Seems like it would be best to just end the program. (Plus, it would help the NSA achieve its goal of ''no mistakes.'')
  ''There are some in the media who are taking the time to actually study the leaked material, and they have drawn conclusions that are very different from those who are in it for a quick headline,'' the directors concede. Unfortunately, they are not talking about anyone like Marcy Wheeler.
  The directors quote Lawfare's editor-in-chief and frequent national security state apologist, Benjamin Wittes, who wrote a post chastising The Washington Post as well as President Barack Obama's administration for how it was handling the leaks.
  Shameful as it is that these documents were leaked, they actually should give the public great confidence both in NSA's internal oversight mechanisms and in the executive and judicial oversight mechanisms outside the agency. They show no evidence of any intentional spying on Americans or abuse of civil liberties. They show a low rate of the sort of errors any complex system of technical collection will inevitably yield. They show robust compliance procedures on the part of the NSA. And they show an earnest, ongoing dialog with the FISA Court over the parameters of the agency's legal authority and a commitment both to keeping the court informed of activities and to complying with its judgments on their legality. While it took a criminal act to make this record public, we are deeply proud of this record and make no apologies for it.
  The above is what Wittes thought the Obama administration should have been saying about the leaks (though it is not clear in the letter if Alexander and Inglis realize this). So, essentially, this is an expression of how disappointed the NSA is with how the White House has not done enough to shield it from investigative journalists curious about what it really has been doing with its surveillance powers.
  The letter cites propaganda the agency has peddled'--that its actions have thwarted ''54 different terrorist plots.'' Inglis admitted during a hearing to Sen. Patrick Leahy that US bulk records phone spying had only been key in stopping one terrorist plot. But, this is about reassuring the family that everything is okay and going to be fine so did you know many American service members could have died without this unbounded surveillance? Some even have died.
  ''The NSA/CSS Memorial Wall lists the names of 171 cryptologists who have died in the line of duty since the Agency's inception in 1952,'' according to the letter.
  What does that even mean? People die while working for us and put their lives on the line every day so don't even think about criticizing our role in government? Or, for the families who are questioning whether their loved one is now a forever disgraced government employee, do not worry because they are working on collecting ''intelligence'' at great risk in some cases?
  ''More stories will appear,'' the directors note, but rest assured the NSA will be working to ''separate fact from fiction.'' In fact, it appears employees will be coming home with some kind of kits of materials for family members to help them ''understand that our activities are lawful, appropriate and effective.''
  It concludes, ''We have weathered storms before and we will weather this one together, as well.''
  The entire letter is emblematic of the insular culture of people who have committed their lives to Top Secret America and have placed themselves above criticism by any person, whether they be in the halls of power, a media organization or a civil society group in this country.
  It is not the NSA who has engaged in operations that infringe upon privacy with very little discernible proof that the programs have stopped numerous actual terrorist plots, who should be shamed. It is the press, who have convinced many Americans that the NSA is some kind of ''rogue element.''
  And, even though the NSA director built a replica of the bridge from starship Enterprise and called it the ''Information Dominance Center'' and that wholly perverts the values of peace and cooperation creator Gene Roddenberry intended to promote, it is not a ''rogue element'' but a ''national treasure'' that we all should shower with honor and praise.
One nun puts entire US intel community to shame over 'stage-managed' Syria footage '-- RT Op-Edge
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 16:04
  Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya is a sociologist, award-winning author and geopolitical analyst.
  The US intelligence community has been put to shame by the dedication and determination of a lone Christian nun. Her modest study of the videos of the Syrian chemical attack shows they were productions involving staged bodies.
  Those who take the time to read the report by Mother Agnes and the International Support Team for Mussalaha in Syria (ISTEAMS) will realize that it disgraces the entire US intelligence community for endorsing video footage that is clearly dubious and not credible upon careful study by even a layperson.
  No one denies that chemical weapons were used. The US federal government and the mainstream media in the US and countries allied to it have been playing a dirty game of equating the a) rejection of accusations that the Syrian government used chemical weapons with b) an outright denial that chemical weapons were used. The two are deliberately being mixed together to confuse the general public. The question is who used the chemical weapons?
  What is the US intelligence community?Before I go any further, it has to be emphasized that the US intelligence community is a monstrous apparatus or network that has immense technological resources, mammoth amounts of funding, and massive manpower. It is a collective of all the intelligence bodies of the US government, which is formed by 16 different intelligence agencies.
  Out of the agencies that form the US Intelligence community, one belongs to the US Treasury, one belongs to the US Department of State, two belong to Homeland Security, two belong to the US Department of Justice, one belongs to the US Department of Energy, eight belong to the Pentagon, and finally one of them is the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), which is independent from any US government department.
  Nonetheless, this gargantuan body could not see what Mother Agnes Mariam has found and submitted to the United Nations. It is job of the agencies of the US intelligence community to examine these videos and to authenticate them. But they failed either to serve US foreign policy, or to show professionalism, or both.
  Instead they nominated and endorsed a sample of footage from Syria as a means of proving that (1) the chemical weapons were used in the Damascus suburb of East Ghouta and (2) that the Syrian government was responsible for the diabolical attacks.
  Dubious nature of videos selected by US intel communityThe US intelligence community selected or nominated 13 videos that the Obama Administration used in their case against the Syrian government. These videos need to be carefully looked at.
  The emphasis that US Secretary of State John Kerry put on the videos in his scripted speech that he read out to reporters on August 30, 2013, came across as ingenious. Kerry notably refers to the footage from Syria and constantly uses the words ''our own eyes'' and ''seeing.'' He even asks that the videos be watched by the general public. He should have been taken to task on this, and he was through the study that Mother Agnes has produced.
  Undoubtedly there will be those who will dismiss the fact that there is an almost total absence of adult corpses next to the bodies of the children, nor any parents, especially mothers, coming to claim their children. Where were the parents? From a cultural context, this is strikingly odd. It is highly unlikely that the parents, especially the mothers of all these children, would have left them alone or not rushed to where their bodies were.
  If the parents were not killed, then where are they? If the parents, especially the mothers (following the gender script of Syrian society), were with their children, then where are their corpses?
  In one video where it is stated that all the bodies are dead, we can see that the some of the corpses are being injected with an unknown liquid. Why?
  The report also highlights the fact that there have been no public funerals or announcements about all the dead children. This is outside of both cultural and religious norms.
  In the footage of one burial, only eight people are buried and three of them are not even covered in white shrouds, which is a compulsory ritual. Were these people murdered by the insurgents and disrespectfully buried without the proper rituals as a sign of disdain?
  Moreover, the identities of the dead have consistently been withheld. There is more to say on this and it should be kept in mind.
  Mother Agnes also makes a point of indicating that there is virtually an absence of the sound of ambulances and that in the testimonies that are used the individuals talking claim to have smelled the chemical that was used. Sarin gas, however, is odorless, which raises important questions about the testimonies.
  Stage-managed scenes Even if one ignores some of the arguments in the Mother Agnes report, there are some observations in the study that are undeniable. These observations will lead anyone to conclude that the scenes in the footage that the US intelligence community nominated are stage-managed.
  Some of the same bodies were planted or recycled in different scenes and makeshift morgues that were supposed to be in different locations. The same bodies of the same children are spotted in different locations.
  There is additional footage that either gives a contradictory impression to that of the videos nominated by the US intelligence community for the Obama Administration or shows that children were being arranged and moved around.
  A horrible conclusion Many bad things have happened in Syria, including the chemical attack in East Ghouta. Yet there many questions that have to be answered.
  There was a massacre in Latakia on August 4, 2013 that went unreported. The mainstream media in the US and the countries allied to it failed to cover this or casually pass it over, obviously because it was inconvenient to change the agenda in Syria.
  The study mentions that the relatives of children that were abducted by the US-supported insurgents have begun to come forward to identify their relatives in the videos. It paints an ominous picture that the bodies of these children were prostituted to open the field in Syria for a foreign military intervention.
  Regardless of whatever position one takes on Syria, it is their responsibility to analyze the videos from the alleged chemical attack and pay attention to observations of Mother Agnes Mariam's report.
  The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.
German rivals in last push for votes
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Source: BBC News - Home
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 09:36
  21 September 2013Last updated at03:37 ETPlease turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.
  Stephen Evans explains how the Bundestag election works
  Germany's rival parties are in their final day of campaigning ahead of Sunday's parliamentary elections.
  Polls suggest Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats will win the biggest share of the vote.
  But her current coalition partners, the Free Democrats, may not pass the 5% threshold for winning seats in parliament.
  If so, Mrs Merkel may have to consider a coalition with her main rival Peer Steinbrueck's Social Democrats.
  Mrs Merkel is holding a large rally in Stralsund and Mr Steinbrueck is due to appear at an event in Frankfurt.
  Conservatives rallyAddressing a Christian Democratic Union (CDU) rally in Hanover on Friday, Mrs Merkel asked for votes to continue with her government's policies into 2017.
  "Please vote for the CDU on Sunday," she said, "so that we can continue our solid policy for you, for your children, for your families and friends."
  "So that in four years we are able to say that people in 2017 are doing better than they did in 2013; more people have jobs; the euro is more stable, Europe is more stable and we have less debt. This is my goal, ladies and gentlemen, and therefore I ask you for your support."
  SDP war-cryPeer Steinbrueck - whose opposition SDP party is trying to deny Mrs Merkel a third term - rallied his supporters in the town of Kassel. Mr Steinbrueck has sharpened his attacks on his rival, accusing her of skirting the country's big challenges.
  Mr Steinbrueck touched on the crisis in Syria, saying he did not want German involvement in any military action. But he said peacekeeping could not be ruled out.
  "Germany will have to, within its alliances and under the conditions of a mandate, take part in peacekeeping and peace securing measures," he said.
  The Green Party - who may play some part in an eventual governing coalition - held a rally in Berlin. The party's parliamentary co-chair, Juergen Trittin, criticised Mrs Merkel's government.
  "Two parties went into the election campaign saying: 'We will not increase taxes.' Then they started their term with a 3% VAT increase. Then they ended it with the car trade-in rebate scheme that was environmental, industrial and transport policy madness," he said.
  Mrs Merkel's current coalition partners, the Free Democrats, rallied for votes in Stuttgart.
  The Free Democrats (FDP), whose best-known member is Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, has seen its fortunes decline sharply since the last election in 2009, when it won nearly 15% of the vote.
  Analysts say the party, traditionally more liberal than the CDU/CSU, has struggled to stand out from its more powerful coalition partner on economic policy.
  If the Free Democrats (FDP) do badly, as expected, the Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) may find themselves looking to other small parties to form a broader, more fragile coalition.
  ScenariosAccording to an average of opinion polls tweeted by the 'London-based @electionista monitoring site, the CDU/CSU will get 38.6% of the vote to 25.8% for the SPD and 6.4% for the FDP.
  Some analysts also see the possibility of a government led by Mrs Merkel which includes the Social Democrats (SPD), whose leader served as finance minister under Mrs Merkel in a previous grand coalition.
  Under another scenario, a new party largely formed from disaffected CDU members could get enough votes to be regarded as a different coalition partner. Alternative fuer Deutschland (AfD), as it is known, is avowedly anti-euro and could prove a difficult partner.
  In a letter sent to five million households, Mrs Merkel, in power since 2005, promised voters they would be in safe hands if she stayed on as chancellor.
  "We have achieved a lot together," she wrote. "I also want the next four years to be good."
  Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.
  German coalitions explained in cake
  On Berlin's famous Alexanderplatz Square on Thursday evening, Mr Steinbrueck likened Mrs Merkel to a timid driver steering the country around in circles.
  "She likes to drive around roundabouts," he said. "That way you don't hit anything... You drive without accidents.
  "But the moment you set a direction, the moment you don't just administer this country but also decide its political direction, you also cause offence, you provoke. At least with me you know what you get, in contrast to the last four years."
  Dismissing opinion polls, he said: "It's not the pollsters, nor the wishful thinking of politicians... but you voters who decide."
  The election is one of the most important in years because of Germany's dominant role in the eurozone.
  With the biggest population of any EU state, it enjoys a GDP that far outstrips the economies of its partners and is crucial to decisions on tackling the eurozone's debt crisis.
Why Indian IT firms are hiring failed entrepreneurs
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Source: Hacker News
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 09:35
  Updated: Wed, Feb 13 2013. 04 58 PM IST
  India's biggest information technology (IT) firms are hiring failed entrepreneurs and successful venture capital executives in Silicon Valley as they seek to win fresh business from top outsourcing clients such as Target Corp. and Citigroup Inc. by creating internal start-up organizations focused on building disruptive technology solutions.India's largest software firm TCS, which opened a centre in Santa Clara, California, last year, has already seen over 100 of its existing and potential customers from across the markets of US, Europe and Japan visit the facility in the past one year, a sign that showcasing innovation in the Silicon Valley is increasingly becoming a crucial piece in the battle for fresh outsourcing business.
  For entrepreneurs such as Satya Ramaswamy, who joined TCS in 2010 and is now a vice president and global head for mobility solutions with the company, creating a Silicon Valley-like organization gives a chance to do what he struggled to achieve in his earlier startups. He worked at computer networking start-up Veveo Inc. from December 2004 to March 2008 and founded mobile solutions firm Brightfon Inc. in July 2008 before joining TCS.''When I ran my start-up, getting a CEO meeting was very, very tough. Here at TCS, Chandra (TCS chief executive officer N. Chandrasekaran) can make a call and change fortunes of a start-up firm. For entrepreneurs who are passionate about their ideas, it's a great opportunity to work here,'' said Ramaswamy.''The traditional venture capital backed model of innovation is under pressure in the valley and many good entrepreneurs are not getting funding'--we can more than fund,'' Ramaswamy added.
  Over the past year, TCS has been able to hire some 15 entrepreneurs in the Silicon Valley who have helped build 20 software products in the area of mobile solutions. One of these software products helps some of TCS's top clients manage their employees' devices across different platforms such as those of Apple, Microsoft Corp. and Google. Another entrepreneur who joined TCS developed a wireless solution that a South Korean phone firm wants to buy, said Ramaswamy.''You don't have to be a start-up to come up with the next big disruptive idea; it can come from a company like TCS too,'' Ramaswamy said in a phone interview.
  The opportunity is potentially too big in these new areas to ignore. Technology researcher Gartner Inc. supports the view that enterprise customers will make cloud computing and mobility their top priority over the next three years.Mobile phones are expected to overtake personal computers (PCs) in 2013 as the most common Web access device and that will change the way top outsourcing customers consume and manage software applications. And the market for cloud computing services is expected to cross $109 billion in 2012 and touch $206.6 billion by 2016, according to Gartner
  TCS is not alone in establishing its footprint in the hotbed for technology start-ups.
  At Wipro, Sajjad Hussain, a company veteran based in the San Francisco Bay Area, is busy creating a start-up organization that can compete with the best and most disruptive ventures in the valley. Hussain, who works as chief architect and general manager, R&D, services at Wipro, said after years of helping top customers create their next generation products, the company realized that such expertise can be put to some other use.''It's like driving in Formula One. You pick the best equipment and build your own unique car. We have to engineer unique solutions to solve business problems,'' Hussain said.
  A large gaming customer, for instance, sees its user base shoot up to 2 million in a day, and Hussain and his team have to manage that workload to ensure systems don't crash.
  ''There was a time when we only hired sales, human resources and other support staff here. Now, we are hiring people in the valley from Microsoft and Google who question the status quo of a large services organization like ours,'' said Hussain.Cognizant, which disrupted the pecking order in the Indian IT sector by overtaking Wipro in revenue last year, is also looking at the valley for defining its future. The Teaneck, New Jersey-headquartered software outsourcing firm has appointed what it calls venture partners to run its Emerging Business Accelerator unit that incubates big ideas. ''There are three things we look at when it comes to ideas pursued by this group. One is that it has to contribute to the growth of the company; we look at incubating new stuff that can have a good revenue base and can be shifted to the larger organization for scaling beyond a point,'' said Mahesh Venkateswaran, senior vice- president, emerging business accelerator (EBA), Cognizant.''Second is about differentiation and what we create within EBA is relevant to our customer base so that they start purchasing more and more of new things we create. And the third is about creating platforms and solutions that can bring non-linear revenue,'' Mahesh added.
  Unlike the traditional software outsourcing business, where predictable revenue streams determine whether a new opportunity should be pursued, these corporate incubators even encourage experiments to fail, but fast enough to avoid prolonged and fruitless investments.
  ''One thing we made loud and clear is that failure was an option; not all we try would succeed and there could be many that may fail. We don't want to penalize individuals for taking risks,'' said Venkateswaran.
  ''The EBA is like a venture capital company; ventures that we incubate are like start-ups in the Valley but the only difference and the advantage we have is that we still have a $7 billion organization to back us. So customer access for testing our ideas is taken care of unlike many Silicon Valley start-ups that spend huge time figuring out how to get in front of the customers,'' Mahesh added.
  Experts such as Chandra Gnanasambandam, a partner at consulting firm McKinsey and Co., who relocated from Silicon Valley to Bangalore recently, said outsourcing customers are playing a big role in bringing about this change in mindset among Indian tech firms.''A banking customer that has huge data is asking why I can't do what Google is doing with data. The first question they are asking is what these guys in the Silicon Valley are doing that I can also do to change the game,'' said Gnanasambandam. It is this emerging trend of co-innovating with customers that's driving Indian technology firms like HCL to hire more and more talent in the Valley.''Since our strategy has been to collaborate more and more with clients and aid them in their efforts towards innovation and research and development, hiring talent with an entrepreneurial and innovative streak helps,'' said Shami Khorana, president, HCL America, which is working with companies such as Xerox to design some of their core printers.Khorana said the company has hired almost 2,000 people in the US in the last couple of quarters with almost 40-50% of all hires on the West Coast.
  ''Presence of top notch universities like Stanford and decades of cutting edge technology innovation driven by technology giants like Apple as well new kids on the block like Facebook has built a mass momentum for the valley which is attracting many more companies to tap into its very distinct culture of innovation,'' Khorana said.However, he adds that the change of image of Indian IT companies as firms that are closely partnering with clients on their core functions, instead of just being drivers of cost arbitrage, has also helped in attracting such talent to companies like HCL.
  ''We are still competing with topnotch companies such as Google etc for such kind of talent, but the evolving culture of innovation, high value work, a stressed US economy and the change in the image of Indian IT companies has surely improved the situation from around six-seven years ago, when it used to be very difficult to hire in the US,'' he said.
  Some experts feel Indian tech firms should instead be freeing up the talent they already have to work on the next big thing.
  ''What they need to do is to set their own workers loose so they can stop doing the mindless grunt work and do real innovation. These companies need to start teaching their workers about advanced technologies such as robotics and 3D printing. They need to challenge their people to come up with ideas for new products and innovative start-ups through competitions. Then they need to fund these startups,'' said Vivek Wadhwa, an Indian-American technology entrepreneur and director of research at Duke University's Pratt School of Engineering.Despite that, the stakes are too high for Indian tech firms to risk missing out on innovation.
  ''Indian companies are trying too hard to cling to their old business model'--of providing IT services. They need to branch out into new areas. Otherwise they are doomed. The market is soon going to peak and then shrink,'' said Wadhwa.
Tunisian women 'waging sexual jihad in Syria'
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Source: ynet - News
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 09:33
  Tunisian interior minister claims Tunisian women are entering Syria to commit 'sexual jihad' by sleeping with '20, 30, 100' militants'. Comments echo those made by mufti six months ago, in which he accused rebels of 'moral decay'Ynet
  Tunisian women have travelled to Syria to wage "sex jihad" by comforting Islamist fighters battling the regime there, Interior Minister Lotfi ben Jeddou has told MPs.
  "They have sexual relations with 20, 30, 100" militants, the minister told members of Tunisia's National Constituent Assembly on Thursday. "After the sexual liaisons they have there in the name of 'jihad al-nikah' (sexual holy war, in Arabic) and they come home pregnant," Ben Jeddou told the MPs.
  Related stories:
  He did not elaborate on how many Tunisian women had returned to the country pregnant with the children of jihadist fighters. The minister also did not say how many Tunisian women were thought to have gone to Syria for such a purpose, although media reports have said hundreds have done so.
  However, Ben Jeddou also said that since he assumed office in March, "six thousand of our young people have been prevented from going there" to Syria.
  He has said in the past that border controls have been boosted to intercept young Tunisians seeking to travel to Syria.
  Tunisia's former mufti also commented on the issue some six months ago. The mufti, who was dismissed in wake of his comments, claimed that some 13 Tunisian girls were unlawfully taken to Syria to sleep with rebels, allegedly as part of a 'sexual jihad' which he claimed was no less than prostitution.
  "For the sake of jihad in Syria they seduce our girls to go there," the mufti told Al Arabiya, adding that "13 girls were sent there for this 'sexual jihad'. What is this? It is is a form of prostitution. Moral decay."
  Jihad al-nikah '' or 'sexual holy war '' permitting extramarital sexual relations with multiple partners, is considered by some hardliner Sunni Muslim Salafists as a legitimate form of holy war.
  The Iranian news agency Fars published a report some months ago which claimed that a religious decree was issued permitting sexual relations between woman and rebels on the condition their relations are confined to a number of hours. The decree also allowed woman to take on multiple partners during one day.
  Tunisia has seen hundreds of men join the ranks of the jihadists fighting to bring down the regime of President Bashar Assad.
  Generally, media reports say thousands of Tunisians have, over the past 15 years, joined jihadists across the world in Afghanistan Iraq and Syria, mainly travelling via Turkey or Libya.
  Abu Iyadh, who leads the country's main Salafist movement Ansar al-Sharia, is the suspected organizer of a deadly attack last year on the US embassy in Tunis and an Afghanistan veteran.
  He was joint leader of a group responsible for the September 9, 2001 assassination in Afghanistan of anti-Taliban Northern Alliance leader Ahmad Shah Massoud by suicide bombers.
  That attack came just two days before the deadly al-Qaeda attacks on the World Trade Centro in New York and Pentagon in Washington.
  AFP contributed to this report
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Pipeline Reopens in Libya, Bolstering Oil Production - NYTimes.com
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  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 09:32
  More than one-third of Libya's oil production has come back on line in recent days after a striking militia opened the valves on a critical pipeline between two major western oil fields and Mediterranean port terminals outside the capital, Tripoli.
  Protests and strikes by militant groups that overthrew the Libyan dictator Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi reduced Libya's oil production to 10 percent of its capacity in recent weeks, pushing up global oil prices and threatening to make Prime Minister Ali Zeidan's weak interim government look impotent.
  Libyan oil executives said it was not clear whether the lifting of the strike by the Zintan tribal militia was the result of a negotiated settlement with the government or simply a short-term expression of good will or a negotiating tactic. The parliament recently voted to increase the salaries of civil servants, which include oil facility guards, and government officials have threatened to arrest strike leaders.
  With the pipeline open, a critical source of oil is flowing again to the global market. But no resolution appears near to the more intractable strikes at export terminals and oil fields on the eastern side of the country, where the remaining two-thirds of the nation's oil production is based.
  Oil production was expected to reach 700,000 barrels by the end of the week, up from a low of 150,000 barrels early this month. Normal output is 1.6 million barrels a day.
  David L. Goldwyn, the State Department coordinator for international energy affairs in the first Obama administration, said the reopening of the western oil fields represented ''a little bit of success.'' But he said Saudi Arabia, which has been pumping at record levels in recent weeks, could lower its production now to keep prices stable. ''I don't think you are going to get much of a softening of prices.''
  Libya, which has Africa's largest proven reserves, is an important source of high quality oil for European refineries. Its production peaked at 3.3 million barrels a day in 1970 and has since shrunk by half. A recovery is possible since much of the country has not been explored and large shale oil fields have not even been tested. But foreign investment and expertise will be needed.
  Libyan oil and government officials have tried to reassure nervous foreign oil companies with promises of action to end the strikes. ''We will soon overcome these problems and hiccups,'' Nuri Berruien, the chairman of the national oil company, told an oil conference this week.
  Officials have also suggested that they are considering ways to make the country's investment terms more appealing to foreign oil companies to attract bids at an auction for exploration rights. The auction, scheduled for the middle of next year, would be the first since the revolution in 2011.
  But there are no guarantees that there will be bidders. Foreign oil company executives have expressed concern over the ability of the government to provide security for their workers when it relies on the very militias that are supporting the strikers. On Tuesday, Exxon Mobil said it was cutting back its staff and operations in the country because of the security situation.
  The well-armed Zintan militia, which has been a constant thorn for the central government, has backed strikers demanding back pay for guarding western oil fields and critical pipelines. At a festival on Monday, its leaders promised to open the valves on a critical pipeline connecting the El-Sharara and El-Feel oil fields with the Zawiya and Mellitah export terminals that mostly supply southern Europe.
  But oil and security experts say Mr. Zeidan's problems are far from over in the eastern part of the country where militias are demanding virtual self-rule.
  ''You can more easily take care of the western concerns, which are about jobs and money, than the eastern concerns, which are about politics and regional autonomy,'' said Geoff D. Porter, the head of North Africa Risk Consulting. ''The objective of the east is to change the structure of the government, which the government is not going to do.''
Blackberry to slash 4,500 jobs as earnings tank
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Source: euronews
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 09:28
  Blackberry, the once-mighty smartphone maker, has announced it will be slashing its workforce by up to 40 percent as its earnings plummet. 4,500 jobs will be cut world-wide.
  The Canadian firm said it was expecting to report a loss of around 700 million euros when it presents its second quarter earnings next week.
  Blackberry shares nose-dived 20 percent following the announcement from the firm.
  Once at the forefront of the corporate smartphone arena, Blackberry has been losing market share to competitors such as Apple and Samsung, despite continuing to introduce new products.
  This month, the company introduced a new version of its Z30 handset, but the release was overshadowed by Apple's launch of its new iPhone handsets.
  More about:American economy, Blackberry, Technology, USACopyright (C) 2013 euronews
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Statement by NSC Spokesperson Caitlin Hayden on National Security Advisor Rice's Meeting with President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of Somalia
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  Archived Version
  Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 09:23
  The White House
  Office of the Press Secretary
  For Immediate Release
  September 20, 2013
  Today National Security Advisor Susan E. Rice met with President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of Somalia at the White House. During their meeting, Ambassador Rice and President Hassan Sheikh discussed ways to support Somalia as it seeks to strengthen its democratic institutions and promote economic development. They also reaffirmed both countries' commitment to fighting the scourge of terrorism and expanding security throughout Somalia. The United States will continue to work with the Government of Somalia to promote security, advance development, and help create lasting peace and prosperity for all Somalis.
Presidential Proclamation -- National Historically Black Colleges and Universities Week, 2013
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  Archived Version
  Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 01:19
  The White House
  Office of the Press Secretary
  For Immediate Release
  September 20, 2013
  NATIONAL HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES WEEK, 2013
  - - - - - - -
  BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
  A PROCLAMATION
  Before the Civil War, an education -- much less a college education -- was out of reach for most African Americans. There were few institutions focused on meeting the intellectual curiosity and spurring the academic growth of African American students. But as our Union began to heal from the wounds of war, and the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments were signed, a freed people demanded a freed mind, and courageous leaders began expanding what we now know as our Nation's Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).
  More than a century and a half later, we cannot overstate the role HBCUs have played in the narrative of our country. These are the institutions that helped build a middle class and produced some of our Nation's preeminent thinkers and entrepreneurs, doctors and scientists, judges and lawyers, service members and educators. These are the schools where students banded together in open fields and assembly halls as part of a movement that pushed us closer to true freedom and equality for all. And these are the campuses where generations of students not only gained the education and skills necessary for the workforce, but also cultivated an understanding of history and knowledge of self that are necessary in life.
  As we move toward our goal of having the highest proportion of college graduates in the world by 2020, HBCUs continue to provide pathways of opportunity for students across our country. Ensuring these schools have the resources they need to help students reach their fullest potential remains a top priority for my Administration, and we have taken steps to keep these institutions strong -- from providing funding for infrastructure and technology to increasing our investments in Pell Grants.
  During National Historically Black Colleges and Universities Week, we pay tribute to the legacies of these proud halls of higher learning. And as we reflect on the past, let us also draw strength from the founders of these institutions and move forward with the work of making sure the doors to a quality education are open to all.
  NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 22 through September 28, 2013, asNational Historically Black Colleges and Universities Week. I call upon educators, public officials, professional organizations, corporations, and all Americans to observe this week with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities that acknowledge the countless contributions these institutions and their alumni have made to our country.
  IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twentieth day of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand thirteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-eighth.
  BARACK OBAMA
Presidential Memorandum -- Designation of Officers of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to Act as Director of National Intelligence
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  Archived Version
  Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 01:18
  The White House
  Office of the Press Secretary
  For Immediate Release
  September 20, 2013
  MEMORANDUM FOR THE DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE
  SUBJECT: Designation of Officers of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to Act as Director of National Intelligence
  By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998, as amended, 5 U.S.C. 3345 et seq. (the "Act"), it is hereby ordered that:
  Section 1. Order of Succession. Subject to the provisions of sections 2 and 3 of this memorandum, and to the limitations set forth in the Act, the following officials of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, in the order listed, shall act as and perform the functions and duties of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) during any period in which the DNI and the Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence have died, resigned, or otherwise become unable to perform the functions and duties of the DNI:
  (a) Deputy Director of National Intelligence for Intelligence Integration;
  (b) Director of the National Counterterrorism Center;
  (c) National Counterintelligence Executive; and
  (d) Inspector General of the Intelligence Community.
  Sec. 2. National Security Act of 1947. This memorandum shall not supersede the authority of the Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence to act for, and exercise the powers of, the DNI during the absence or disability of the DNI or during a vacancy in the position of the DNI (National Security Act of 1947, as amended, 50 U.S.C. 3026).
  Sec. 3. Exceptions. (a) No individual who is serving in an office listed in section 1(a)-(d) of this memorandum in an acting capacity shall, by virtue of so serving, act as the DNI pursuant to this memorandum.
  (b) No individual listed in section 1(a)-(d) of this memorandum shall act as the DNI unless that individual is otherwise eligible to so serve under the Act.
  (c) Notwithstanding the provisions of this memorandum, the President retains discretion, to the extent permitted by law, to depart from this memorandum in designating an acting DNI.
  (d) In the event that the Director of the National Counterterrorism Center acts as and performs the functions and duties of the DNI pursuant to section 1 of this memorandum, that individual shall not simultaneously serve as Director of the National Counterterrorism Center during that time, in accordance with 50 U.S.C. 3056.
  Sec. 4. Revocation. The Presidential Memorandum of March 8, 2011 (Designation of Officers of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to Act as Director of National Intelligence), is hereby revoked.
  Sec. 5. Judicial Review. This memorandum is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
  Sec. 6. Publication. You are authorized and directed to publish this memorandum in the Federal Register.
  BARACK OBAMA
Presidential Proclamation -- National Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Week, 2013
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 01:18
  The White House
  Office of the Press Secretary
  For Immediate Release
  September 20, 2013
  NATIONAL EMPLOYER SUPPORT OF THE GUARD AND RESERVE WEEK, 2013
  - - - - - - -
  BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
  A PROCLAMATION
  Across generations, members of the United States Armed Forces have made America the greatest force for freedom and security the world has ever known. This week, we honor members of the National Guard and Reserve who carry that legacy forward. We thank the employers who support them; and we reaffirm our promise to provide our troops, our veterans, and our military families with the opportunities they have earned.
  The men and women of the National Guard and Reserve come from every background, race, and creed, and demonstrate an unfaltering commitment to our Nation. On the field of battle and here at home, they place themselves in harm's way to protect our freedoms, our lives, and our communities. We are grateful to the employers that provide our Reservists and National Guard members extraordinary support and flexibility. We commend the businesses that help service members advance their civilian careers and ease transitions between military and civilian life.
  America must pledge our full support to those who serve in our Armed Forces and their families. That is why First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden launched the Joining Forces initiative -- a program that expands employment opportunities for veterans and military spouses. My Administration has also worked to connect veterans to the workforce through an online Veterans Job Bank and through the Veteran Gold Card program, which provide enhanced services to post-9/11 veterans. I also signed into law tax credits that provide incentives for businesses to hire returning heroes and wounded warriors.
  The patriots who serve under our proud flag never lose that sense of service to one another or to country. This week, we pay tribute to these selfless men and women who wear the uniform, to their families, and to their dedicated employers, whose enduring commitment keeps our military strong and our Nation secure.
  NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 22 through September 28, 2013, as National Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve Week. I call upon all Americans to join me in expressing our heartfelt thanks to the members of the National Guard and Reserve and their civilian employers. I also call on State and local officials, private organizations, and all military commanders, to observe this week with appropriate ceremonies and activities.
  IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twentieth day of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand thirteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-eighth.
  BARACK OBAMA
Read Google's Friendly Private Jet Emails with Your Federal Government
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Source: Valleywag
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 01:16
  Google's playboyexecutives didn't just land their planes on NASA property and start chugging Pentagon fuel without permission'--first, they had to cozy up with the government.
  In these emails, released via FOIA request and provided to Valleywag by California non-profit Humanitarian Air Logistics, show a chummy, chatty relationship between Google and NASA staff. The friendliness extends in both directions: Eric Schmidt and Sergey Brin were sure eager to secure Moffett Federal Airfield to shuttle their mistresses and pals around the world. But cash-strapped NASA seems equally'--if not more!'--desperate to cuddle up with the tech sector.
  Although Ken Ambrose, the man in charge of Google's airfield-managing dummy company, told Sen. Chuck Grassley they have "no relationship with [NASA] Director [Pete] Worden other than as a NASA tenant," that's obviously false.
  S
  The "tenant relationship" doesn't usually entail requesting private plane rides for Tom Brokaw:
  S
  Nor does it entail all the email and phone call back and forth seen and described below. Remember: every minute a government employee spends bargaining with Google so its middle-aged male execs can get their international jet-set fuck on, it's a minute they aren't doing their real jobs.
Nancy Pelosi Bending at the Waste
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  Archived Version
  Source: Lame Cherry
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 01:14
  Nancy Pelosi is beginning to scare me. I realize the satire would be in who would not be scared of a woman who bats her eyes like a zombie and is still in bed with Fang Jinn Obama in the utter ruin of America come, but this is much more psychological.
  I realize that the "talking points" are originated in the Democratic caucus daily, and people are sent out to utter them. In most cases, the liberals are over the top and people do not believe a word they say unless they are Obamaniacs who vote in 98% black block for this Designer Negro buried a mile away from the White House in a chicken entree container.
  PELOSI ON OBAMA: 'He has been certainly nonpartisan'...
  Says Republicans 'Preying on People'...
  What Nancy Pelosi, former Speaker of the House though is continuously coming out with though in her singular talking points, are not just the Jake Tapper amusing or Chris Matthews satire in being over the top, but they are so isolated that she is like Maxine Waters and her new breed of shark which was created for feeding upon slaves thrown off of ships in being transported to America.
  Ms. Pelosi is representative now of something troubling. It is Stalin walking out and declaring all are well fed by starving as it was good for the populace and the crowds cheered. It is the Muslim cleric chanting a god's name urging the mob to mass suicide. Ms. Pelosi at a point where she is either suffering from a form of senility like Betty Davis in "Whatever happened to Baby Jane" or she is being retaliated on in the worst type of political rape in making her go out and become a laughing stock.
  I wonder at the last as Ms. Pelosi is featured on Drudge. Matt Drudge like Alex Jones is a paid for conduit of the Jewish propaganda enterprise. There is nothing race related in this or anti Semite in noting it. It is simply a Mosaad product of their Jewish establishment having money like the Mockingbird Paper Clip group, and promoting their self interest.Much like Adelson or whatever that billionaire back door bob in Jewish press is apparently part of a group looking to mass murder the Assad regime, as a better deal from the European Ashkenaz has presented itself.
  Yes Nancy Pelosi is a target, due to her being anti Jewish, but in this she is a bird on the wire with cats all around looking for her fall and none to assist her.Granted the Obama regime tried to destroy her, but she worked a deal and held on with her "information" in the Obama files. That though is a problem now in Barry Chin is in the cooler and a Fang Jinn is at the Oval O and sources are seeking that shapeshifter's exit.Blackmail information has only value in keeping one safe, when those in power are in power. When they are no longer in power, then the blackmailer becomes a loose end which would require being cleaned up, such as Andrew Breitbart.
  This is of concern concerning Ms. Pelosi, as she does appear a mouse on a string on this bird on a wire performance in she is being played the fool and is playing the fool perhaps, but all cats in time tire of the game and just put the bite on that rodent out of raging spite.
  There comes a time, and it is the time now, that Stenny Hoyer emerge from the back rooms and tells Democrats to shut up about gun control as Colorado handed them massive defeats in Democrat districts.The whipcracker Hoyer speaks reason and responsibility, but Nancy Pelosi as leader opens her mouth and sounds the mad woman consistently.
  Power such as this is like King George gone venereal disease mad or whatever, as one does contemplate if Ms. Pelosi's too frequent botox injections have indeed affected her brain.All of this is unsettling in this demise of America by the Obama regime, because there is now another woman afforded power who is literally looking like the whoredoms of Babylon.I do not mean just Ms. Pelosi, but this odd rambling of Hillary Clinton in her out of control Benghazi rants in going after Christians on talking points, to the absolute fabrications which Susan Rice was lying to the American people over, and as one couples the shooting of Gabrielle Giffords in her Jewishness and the now too coy performance of Sarah Palin in looking like a coquette, there does appear to be a marked effort by the boys club to not just make women look insane and on their knees as money whores, but to wipe them from the political spectrum, as when they have risen to power, they absolutely look Baby Jane.
  Betty Davis in that movie provides one of the most disturbing performances ever as a child actress supplanted by her sister later in life, and how the older sister Joan Crawford turns out to be just as unhinged as the overtly unhinged Baby Jane.In watching this with TL recently, I saw how every genre in modern sociopathic and psychopathic script from Dexter to Criminal Minds stole from this movie masterpiece.It makes me ponder who in this scripted version of MK ULTRA hybrids, decided in misogyny to retaliate on all women FOR BEING BORN A MAN.
  That points to this Fagsexual group who has been busy funding the demise of right wing men and women in destroying them and it apparently in the Obama fagsexual group a marked marionette machination of doing this to women on the left.
  I perceive that Nancy Pelosi is an elderly woman, and her mind is not operating in the fullest capacity. She resorts to talking points, and even in "kind" Michael Moore interviewers, she is still being exposed as Charleton Heston was in being not of sound mind.From Gabby Giffords mistreatment in being an invalid of the mind, this runs like a duck regime mocking Special Olympics children, seems to have an arousal they can not control in abusing those not of sound minds or bodies.
  That odd spectacle of Gabby Giffords flapping her arms as her Astro husband abused her as a political whore for his political future as Obama made this mentally handicapped woman perform in her physically handicapped body, was beyond disturbing, and what is taking place with Nancy Pelosi is just as horrid.An elderly woman whose mind is not functioning completely or who is so under duress that she is being made to sound insane most days, is abuse of women, and it is not to be praised or added to, but exposed for being abhorrent.
  The evidence is there and in Washington structures, none of this just happened, but has been by design and it being constant means that it is an operation of lasting effect.
  There comes a time when even Nancy Pelosi deserves compassion in her being made to perform oral acts which degrade her is completely uncalled for, even is she has been a most detestable and witless political stooge the past years.The mistreatment of the mentally infirmed, physically infirmed, women, children, pets and all helpless is a manifestation of the beastly animal America has degraded to.
  I recognize that the male liberals are looking at a coup to replace Ms. Pelosi in time, and the Boehnerites are retaliating for what Pelosi did to them, and it all benefits the boys club in not having to deal with "those women" in both parties.
  For those who think this does not matter, I always base this on, "If they can do it to them, they will one day do it to you". Only this blog has tracked any of this in the clever, but rather base cause and effect in appealing to the primary human emotions in trigger responses from the Designer Negro Obama, to the Crazy Whore Pelosi, and how this has been branded like a scarlet letter upon all women in America.
  For that equality group of the sodomite cause, due to their equally experiencing the bi sexual phase, this is coming out of the fagsexual power brokers and it is not just targeting your Bible and Torah thumpers. It is going after the most powerful women in America, making them look incompetent, emotional and insane.When you try to advance, that is the feudal ceiling you will bash your head into.
  Nancy Pelosi is obviously in a trap designed. She obviously can not extract herself and the appearance is she has faulty mental faculties and needs someone beyond a right wing Christian blog to voice this, as Diane Sawyer swivels about in her chair looking most moments like a too drunk whore sitting on a vibrator, which all expounds upon this reality being programmed into the American psyche.
  I do not appreciate it in being called "sweetie" by rednecks no more than being told I am worth some food money as I am on my knees doing service to dirty old men. The point being for the men, it is your wives, mothers, sisters and daughters who are going to be told the same things, and by eye, by economic power and position and by force, they will be raped, and that comes home for you to deal with as this world cuckolds you men.
  Someone needs to ask what is taking place with Nancy Pelosi and obtain the answers, as it is a plus minus situation in either she is mentally incapacitated and being abused with insane talking points by powerful males, or she is in power of her mind and is being coerced to play and unhinged female in order to save herself as she is being retaliated on.
  Boehner and Cantor of course are not going to lift a finger to save her as it is a liberal thing. Liberals are not going to lift a finger as with Pelosi gone, the Maxine Waters will think they will move up the food chain and the men in charge will move up in doing the choosing.It is a matter though of women, in being worthy of not being mistreated. It is a matter of being vomit sick yet in seeing how Sarah Palin was abased by this same feudal lord group.
  Someone needs beyond this blog to ask the questions in this, as this ruins all of society in giving the perception that women are unbalanced.
  Yes it is Nancy Pelosi bending at the waist, and it is such a waste. Some master is dominating this dominitrix and the questions are who and why are they doing it?
  This is a psyops programme to make women appear nuts, and those behind it, are getting off on the this abuse of women.
  not nuff said
  agtG
WOW '' Some Fireworks Inside The Obama White House Press Room (VIDEO)
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  Archived Version
  Source: The Ulsterman Report
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 01:11
  Watch how the Obama White reacts when a reporter actually calls them on an outright lie they are attempting to sell to the American public, in this case the false debt ceiling ''trauma'' that has come directly from the mouth of Barack Obama. Kudos for reporter Ed Henry for actually acting the part of a real reporter. See video below:
  ____________________________________________________
  And you gotta love how Jay Carney almost swallows his own spit when Ed Henry reminds him it was the WASHINGTON POST that called out Obama for his outright lying on the subject. If there had been just 10% of this kind of actual reporting on Barack Obama during his first term, he never would have been able to steal that second term'... -UM
Baltic Dry Index Rates Up 33% Since August
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Mother of Benghazi victim: ''Lies, all lies''
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  Archived Version
  Source: Northeast Intelligence Network
  Sat, 21 Sep 2013 01:05
  By Douglas J. Hagmann
  19 September 2013: Patricia Smith, mother of murdered Foreign Service Officer Sean Smith, wants answers '' and deserves them. Not hugs from politicians. Not platitudes. And most assuredly, not lies. It is beyond shameful that her impassioned pleas that the lies stop fall on deaf ears as she speaks before a congressional committee. Click HERE to view the short video '' just over a minute '' that succinctly summarizes her desire for the truth.
  The cover-up into the events in Benghazi is by orders of magnitude far greater than any other criminal cover-up by a ''presidential'' administration in modern history. The cover-up is consistent with the deaths that occurred at the Battle of Gangal and Extortion 17.
  Related: Interview with Gold Star mother Susan Price and Charles Strange, father of fallen Seal Six Team hero Michael Strange HERE.
  Click here to save this article in PDF format
Rise of Arab World '' 3 World Leaders to be assassinated | The Warning Second Coming Forums - God the Father, Jesus Christ, Virgin Mary
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  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 19:42
  My dearly beloved daughter, I Am full of joy today now that this important series of Messages are being prepared for release to all mankind. You will find soon that all countries will search out these Messages. Don't worry about your safety, as I will protect you and your family at all times. Although I Am full of love for you, My child, My Heart is breaking with deep sorrow for the suffering, which is being inflicted by the cunning society plotting to take over countries.
  They will do this by cleverly removing Leaders.* Then they will offer help. Then they will buy the friendship of new regimes until they control them. This new control will be worse than the power-hungry dictators who were toppled in the name of freedom.
  Watch now, My daughter, the speed at which the Arab world will unite against My people, the Jews. Watch how all their allies will fall away leaving them exposed.
  My daughter, when the Warning takes place My Word will be heard more readily, after the conversion takes place. This will be the time for My holy followers to unite defiantly against the tyranny that will emerge in the Western World especially in Europe. Fight for your right to pray. If you don't, it will not be a religious war, but a war of genocide.
  There will be three world leaders assassinated shortly, one by one. Remember that each one will be assassinated through the plotting of the evil group '' the sub cultural organizations that rule in all nations '' though you cannot see them because they are cowards. But not for long will they hide. When control is in their grasp they will strive for your attention and demand respect.
  The Warning will help save all My children everywhere. Conversion, a Gift from Me, will be given to even those who plot and scheme to win control over God's Earth. If they could only understand that this power will never be theirs, they might stop. But they are blind.
  More of My angels** who now infiltrate the Earth as human beings, will help show these poor misguided souls the Truth. Many will convert. Others won't.
  My daughter, go spread the Word quickly. You have only weeks. Use every tool available to you. Show courage. Do absolutely everything to allow all of My children, all nations, to understand the meaning of My special Gift '' when My Hand reaches out from Heaven to save their souls.
  Those who do not convert at first, will do so before the persecution, when more and more souls will turn back to Me. This will be a very difficult time for all. But be patient, there are good times ahead, when peace will return to Earth. My children will, after this wake up call, see the Love that I hold and will come running back into My Arms. Then when that happens, My army will form, and defend My Kingdom against the deceiver whose reign will be very short.
  This is a turning point in the history of mankind, children. You will understand this very shortly. By then, any sceptical thoughts you have at the time of The Warning, when it happens, you will open your hearts to the Truth.
  Go now, My daughter, in peace and love for all Mankind
  Jesus ChristKing of the Jews
  Note * The visionary would like to make it clear to the world that the reason she cannot post the names of the leaders TWO OF THEM FROM THE ARAB WORLD AND ONE FROM MAINLAND EUROPE IS OUT OF RESPECT FOR THEIR FAMILIES AND TO AVOID UNDUE DISTRESS. She has, however, given the Messages to a number of the clergy and media, embargoed, ready for publication as soon as the assassinations take place shortly (all within a very short period of each other).
  ** It is the visionary's understanding that references to angels refer to ''messengers'' who have been chosen around the world to impart Divine Messages to help spread conversion.
Like We've Been Saying -- Radiation Is Not A Big Deal - Forbes
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  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 14:49
  Log in with your social account:Or, you can log in or sign up using Forbes.New Posts+22 posts this hourMost PopularForbes 400 NewcomersListsThe Forbes 400VideoWhat Does $1B Buy?12 Stocks to Sell NOWHelp|Connect
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The Fukushima Nuclear Disaster Will Kill No One - As I Told You - Forbes
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  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 14:38
  Log in with your social account:Or, you can log in or sign up using Forbes.New Posts+18 posts this hourMost PopularForbes 400 NewcomersListsThe Forbes 400VideoWhat Does $1B Buy?12 Stocks to Sell NOWHelp|Connect
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The Fukushima Radiation Leak Is Equal To 76 Million Bananas - Forbes
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  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 14:31
  Log in with your social account:Or, you can log in or sign up using Forbes.New Posts+17 posts this hourMost PopularForbes 400 NewcomersListsThe Forbes 400VideoWhat Does $1B Buy?12 Stocks to Sell NOWHelp|Connect
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'Niet NSA, maar Britten hackten Belgacom'
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  Source: VK: Home
  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 09:41
  20/09/13, 10:37 '' bron: Der Spiegel
  (C) epa.
  Volgens documenten van klokkenluider Edward Snowden die het Duitse weekblad Der Spiegel mocht inzien was het niet de NSA, maar de Britse geheime dienst GCHQ die Belgacom gehackt heeft. Het bedrijf diende op 19 juli een klacht in wegens 'het ongeoorloofd toegang verschaffen tot het interne informaticasysteem van het telecombedrijf'.
  Na de recente onthullingen van Snowden over de spionageactiviteiten van de Verenigde Staten liet Belgacom een uitgebreid onderzoek uitvoeren door een Nederlandse firma. De firma ontdekte uiterst gesofisticeerde malware op de communicatie-infrastructuur van Belgacom.
  De technische complexiteit van de hacking en de schaal waarop dit is gebeurd wijzen in de richting van internationale 'state-sponsored' cyberspionage, zo stelde de firma eerder deze week. Meteen werd de Amerikaanse inlichtingendienst NSA verdacht, maar volgens Der Spiegel zitten dus niet de Amerikanen maar de Britten achter de cyberaanval.
  Operatie 'succesvol'Tussen de gelekte documenten van Snowden trof Der Spiegel een presentatie van GCHQ aan over de spionage op Belgacom. Er staat geen datum op de presentatie, maar volgens Der Spiegel is duidelijk dat het telefoonbedrijf al vanaf 2010 werd bespioneerd.
  De malware zou op de systemen van Belgacom zijn gezet medewerkers van het bedrijf met 'goede toegang' tot essentile delen van de infrastructuur gericht aan te vallen. In (C)(C)n slide uit de Powerpoint-presentatie wordt de operatie bestempeld als een 'succes'.
  AangifteBelgacom heeft aangifte gedaan. De Belgische regering waarschuwde gepaste maatregelen te nemen als een land achter de afluisterpraktijken blijkt te zitten. Belgacom is grotendeels in overheidshanden.
"I Expect My Senate Colleagues To Do Everything To DEFUND This Law!" John Boehner
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  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 09:40
Eight held over bank computer theft
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  Source: BBC News - Technology
  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 09:40
  20 September 2013Last updated at05:32 ETEight men have been arrested in connection with a £1.3m theft by a gang who took control of a Barclays Bank computer.
  The money was transferred from the branch in Swiss Cottage in north London in April, a Met Police spokesman said.
  Searches are being carried out at addresses across London where property including cash, jewellery, drugs and credit cards has been seized.
  The men, aged between 24 and 47, were arrested on Thursday and Friday.
  Following the report of the theft, police found a "keyboard video mouse" (KVM) switch attached to one of the branch's computers.
  It had had been placed there by a man purporting to be an IT engineer the day before the theft on 5 April.
  Infiltrate and exploitA KVM switch, which has a 3G router attached, allows a user to control multiple computers. This enabled the gang to remotely transfer funds to other back accounts.
  Barclays said it was able to recover a "significant amount" of the stolen money.
  One central London premises which has been searched was described by detectives as the "control" centre for the fraudsters.
  "Those responsible for this offence are significant players within a sophisticated and determined organised criminal network, who used considerable technical abilities and traditional criminal know-how to infiltrate and exploit secure banking systems," Det Insp Mark Raymond of the Met's Central e-Crime Unit said.
Cyber-blackmailers 'abuse hundreds'
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  Source: BBC News - Technology
  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 09:38
  20 September 2013Last updated at03:12 ETHundreds of British children are being blackmailed into performing sex acts online, the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre has warned.
  Abusers posing online as children talk victims into sexual acts or sharing of images, then threaten to send pictures to the child's family and friends.
  Ceop said in 12 cases over two years, 424 children had been blackmailed in this way - 184 of them in the UK.
  Deputy chief executive Andy Baker said the abuse "escalates really quickly".
  He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that it could take as little as four minutes "to go from, 'Hi, do you want to get naked?', to self-harming".
  Seven victims have killed themselves, including a 17-year-old in the UK.
  Another seven seriously self-harmed, of whom six were from the UK.
  Mr Baker said: "We're talking about a very small dark percentage of [the internet] and this is what we need to police".
  Daniel Perry, from Dunfermline, Fife, took his own life in the summer after blackmailers demanded thousands of pounds having tricked him into thinking he was chatting with a US girl.
  'Slave-like acts'He was told that his video conversations would be spread among friends and family unless he paid cash. Other victims have been told their activities would be shared unless they performed more extreme acts.
  Continue reading the main storyAnalysisOf all the recent developments involving the internet this is one of the most disturbing.
  The perpetrators are usually calculating, computer-savvy men aged between 20 and 44; some act alone, others as part of an organised network. Their motives are more than just sexual - they want control, and in some cases money.
  The victims are girls and boys, unwittingly drawn into the paedophiles' net by the possibility of friendship or consensual sexual contact.
  Adolescents are particularly vulnerable as it's natural for them to explore their emerging sexuality or engage in risky behaviour - but few can imagine the dangers that their innocent internet chat may lead to.
  As well as catching the offenders, investigators say children and parents must be made aware of the risks.
  In the 12 cases highlighted by Ceop, the abusers came from four continents and in five cases the criminals were based in the UK.
  Children as young as eight had been forced to perform "slave-like acts", said Mr Baker. As well as the performance of sex acts, the abuse sometimes involved being forced to self-harm and there had been a few attempts to extort money.
  Experts highlighted the accessibility of the English language and foreign abusers' perceptions about the liberal nature of UK society as reasons for the targeting of British children.
  Mr Baker said thousands of British children could have been approached in attempts to instigate abuse.
  While only a handful of children will respond, thousands are exposed to the risk, he said.
  Ceop operations manager Stephanie McCourt said: "First of all it's the English language. They are able to threaten the children if they can communicate to them. English is a really popular universal language.
  "Second of all, the offenders have actually said that because they perceive the UK as a very free and open and liberal society, they think that they will have more success in targeting UK children."
  Continue reading the main story''Start QuoteHe was a happy laddie, not depressed and the last type of person you would think would take their life''
  End QuoteDaniel Perry's motherThe biggest case, known as Operation K, involved 322 children around the world being blackmailed, including 96 in the UK.
  The victims were mainly boys aged 11 to 15, who were targeted by a gang from a non-European country. The suspects are due to stand trial in the coming weeks.
  Fake profilesThe gang used more than 40 fake online profiles and more than 40 different email addresses to carry out their abuse.
  The network of abuse was exposed after a social networking site noticed suspicious activity and a British child told their parents.
  Set up in 2006 in affiliation with the Serious Organised Crime Agency, Ceop is a police agency dedicated to protecting children from sexual abuse.
  Ceop said warning signs that a child was being subjected to online abuse could include them becoming aggressive and withdrawn, as well as self-harming.
  But in Daniel Perry's case it appears there were no warning signs.
  His mother told reporters after his death: "He was a happy laddie, not depressed and the last type of person you would think would take their life... We're a very close family and I just wished he had come to me and said something."
  The apprentice mechanic had been having online conversations with someone he believed to be a girl around his own age.
  Just before his death, he was warned by the blackmailers that he would be better off dead if he did not transfer the cash. Less than an hour after replying to the message, he fell from the Forth Road Bridge.
  Abuse can be reported to Ceop online atwww.ceop.police.uk, via the NSPCC helpline's on 0800 328 0904, or to police
Bruckheimer and Disney part company
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  Archived Version
  Source: BBC News - Home
  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 09:28
  20 September 2013Last updated at04:53 ETPirates of the Caribbean producer Jerry Bruckheimer is to split with Disney.
  The studio will end its first-look deal with Bruckheimer in 2014, bringing to a close a partnership that has produced both the Pirates and National Treasure franchises, as well as hits such as Armageddon and The Rock.
  Disney faces losses of $190m (£118m) following the recent box office failure of Bruckheimer's The Lone Ranger.
  But the producer insisted: "It's not about Lone Ranger."
  "It's time for us to tackle all kinds of movies, not just Disney movies," Bruckheimer told The Hollywood Reporter.
  "We're still working on Pirates and hopefully National Treasure, and we still have development at Disney."
  The Pirates franchise has earned more than $5.4bn (£3.4bn) worldwide for Disney.
  "Jerry is one of the most respected and prolific producers working in the motion picture industry, and we have had an incredibly successful collaboration over the past two decades. He is a friend to many of us here at Disney," said Alan Horn, chairman of Disney Studios.
  "We will continue to work together in the future, and we look forward to seeing more of the films that have made Jerry Bruckheimer a Hollywood legend," he added, confirming the fifth instalment of Pirates of the Caribbean will still go ahead.
  The sequel has reportedly been delayed due to script issues and concerns over budget. It is not expected to open before autumn 2015.
  The Lone Ranger, starring Johnny Depp, reportedly cost $215m (£136m) to make and has grossed $243m (£154m) worldwide to date. At the domestic box office, it has brought in only $89m (£55m).
  "This is about a long-term relationship with lots of pluses and minuses," Horn said.
  "The Lone Ranger certainly didn't help things, but we all have our wins and our losses, and this is an overall thing related to the company's supply of projects from all these other places."
  Bruckheimer, whose hits have included Top Gun, Con Air and the TV series CSI, has said he wants to return to "more mature films". He is currently working on sequels to Top Gun and Bad Boys.
  He made his mark in the 1980s as a prolific producer, who worked in partnership with the late Don Simpson on films like Days of Thunder and the Beverly Hills Cop series.
  "I am very appreciative of the wonderful collaboration and support I have had at The Walt Disney Company for over 20 years and the 27 movies we have made together," Bruckheimer said.
  "As we continue to make adventure films, we look forward to returning to films like Black Hawk Down, Enemy of the State, Beverly Hills Cop and The Rock."
EP Vote on ILUC Proposal, the (Long) Road to Sustainable Biofuels
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  Source: European Public AffairsEuropean Public Affairs
  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 09:24
  On the 11th September 2013, the European parliament adopted its position on the so-called iLUC proposal (Indirect Land-Use Change). This legislation aims at ensuring that unintended consequences on the environment connected with the growing biofuels market are taken into consideration.
  The Commission has committed itself to cut greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), and for this purpose, promotes the use of energy from renewable sources. The Directive on Renewable Energy (RED) sets a 20% target for the overall energy from renewable sources, and a 10% share target of renewable energy specifically in the transport sector by 2020. Indeed, the greenhouse gas emissions from transport account for 21% of total emissions. Additionally, the constant increase of the price of oil requires a secure energy supply and diversification of fuel sources to avoid high dependence on fossil fuels. Therefore, the Commission has created incentives for the use of biofuels; developing a strategy to stimulate demand, increase production and enable distribution.
  The strategy paid off, even if we are far from a tremendous surge in their development, biofuels account for the largest share of the renewable energy used in transport. Between 2008 and 2010, the volume of biofuels consumed in the EU increased by 39%, whereas the volume of petroleum fuels consumed in road transport slightly decreased.[1]
  The use of biofuels in transportation should aid in reducing GHG. However, alarming reports have highlighted their potential negative impact. Indeed, scientists and environmentalists have pointed out that the expansion of agricultural areas to produce biofuel leads to change in land-use and deforestation, resulting in GHG emissions, as well as an increase in the food prices. It affects both EU and non EU countries, particularly emerging countries such as Brazil or Indonesia.[2] The benefits of biofuels have been challenged, leading the Commission in October 2012, to issue a proposal amending the RED, as well as the Fuel Quality Directive (FQD).
  The proposal attempts to address this issue of indirect land-use change. It puts forth sustainability criteria for biofuels which should not threaten biodiversity. To be deemed successful, this would need to save at least 35% compared to fossil fuels, increasing to 50% in 2017. Moreover, the impact of iLUC will be taken into consideration for the assessment of GHG emissions.
  With this proposal, the Commission also seeks to start a transition to advanced biofuels (or 2nd generation biofuels), putting a 5% cap on the 1st generation biofuels (conventional biofuels). It shows a will to respect the investments which have been made to encourage more innovation in this field.
  Last week during the plenary session in Strasbourg, the European Parliament adopted a position on the proposal. The MEPs have voted for a 6% cap on first generation of biofuels. The other point of focus is second generation biofuels from non-feedstocks, for instance seaweed or farm waste. Some NGOs denounced the watering down of the text with the 6% cap, but positively welcomed the consideration of the ILUC factor from 2020 onwards.
  The dossier, which divided the Commission when the proposal came out last October, has once more proven to be very controversial. The scientific community has raised questions concerning the uncertainty of assessing iLUC's impact on the environment, which is, seemingly, not based on scientific evidence. The proposal was subjected to intense lobbying on behalf of the biofuel industry, striving to protect its investments. As a result, the MEPs were divided, and no mandate was given to the rapporteur, Corinne Lepage (ALDE, FR) for negotiations with member states. The next step, or let's say, the next challenge will be for the Council of the European Union to reach a common position on the proposal.
  [1] See the report produced for the European Commission
  [2] To understand the principle of iLUC consequences of the rise in biofuel consumption and production, you can watch this video.
  Pauline LucasAs a hopeless explorer and road trips addict, I have been wandering around Europe throughout the past 6 years in Nantes, Strasbourg, D¼sseldorf and Krakow, to finally settle in Maastricht. I first studied law and languages, continued with European studies and finally began the journey of European Public Affairs. Next stop? Brussels of course. In the meantime, I enjoy my rather hectic life with the stimulating international atmosphere and boxing the stress away. However, I'm not against staying home on rainy days, plenty of them around here, with the company of a nice novel.For any comment or complaint, please contact me in English, French, German or Italian at paulinelucas@europeanpublicaffairs.eu
BBC News - Navy Yard shooting: Swat team awaits answers
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  Archived Version
  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 09:05
  19 September 2013Last updated at19:36 ETBy Debbie SiegelbaumBBC News, WashingtonMembers of a Washington DC Swat team who the BBC has learned were ordered not to respond to Monday's Navy Yard shootings have yet to be contacted by the authorities.
  The Capitol Police tactical response team was told by a supervisor to leave the scene instead of aiding municipal officers, sources told the BBC.
  Meanwhile, the department has installed a new leader of the elite unit. No reason has been given for the decision.
  Gunman Aaron Alexis killed 12 people.
  The BBC has also learned that four members of the highly trained team have applied for temporary leave, as they "grapple" with the aftermath of the incident.
  The Capitol Police department has not yet granted the request, nor given approval for them to use their own paid time off.
  Command shake-upDays after the shooting, none of the officers has been questioned by officials or investigators from a special panel that was convened on Wednesday.
  Continue reading the main story''Start QuoteThey haven't been given the courtesy of a debrief''
  End QuoteCapitol Police sourceMembers of the Containment and Emergency Response Team (Cert) are typically debriefed "right away, at the very least the following day" after an incident, a Capitol Police source said.
  "[They] haven't even been given the courtesy of a debrief'... They have not even been given an answer as to why the decision was made that they should not respond," the source added.
  Another Capitol Police source close to the incident told the BBC: "No-one's talked to these officers since this happened."
  On Thursday, members of the tactical unit, which has several dozen members, were told that it had a new leader, a Capitol Police source said. It is not clear why the command shake-up occurred.
  Four Cert team members wearing full tactical gear and armed with HK-416 assault weapons arrived on scene at Navy Yard at 08:36 (12:36 GMT) on Monday, after reports surfaced of an active gunman at the complex at 08:20.
  Continue reading the main storyAaron AlexisDefence subcontractor IT worker who had a valid pass for Navy YardReportedly suffered from sleeplessness, paranoia and hearing voicesFull-time US Navy reservist from 2007-11, ranked petty officer 3rd classSaid to have been Buddhist convert, he had gun-related brushes with law in 2004 and 2010According to sources, an officer with the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), Washington DC's main municipal force, told the Capitol Cert officers they were the only police on site equipped with long guns, and requested their help stopping the gunman.
  When the Capitol Police team radioed their superiors, they were told by a watch commander to leave the scene, the BBC was told.
  On Thursday, FBI Director James B Comey Jr told ABC News it took roughly half an hour for armed police to arrive and engage Alexis. All 12 victims were killed within that time.
  Capitol Police sources suggest "lives may have been saved" if the Cert team had been allowed to intervene.
  On Wednesday, Capitol Police Chief Kim Dine appointed a "Fact Review Team" to investigate the department's response to the Navy Yard shootings. It will report back on 21 October.
  But on Thursday sources questioned the efficacy of such a panel.
  They said Capitol Police officers had more confidence in the results of an independent FBI investigation which aims to uncover the facts surrounding the incident.
  One officer close to the situation called the lack of communication from department leadership "unforgivable".
  'Better off this way'Details of the gunman and the shooting continue to emerge.
  Alexis, a former Navy reservist, reportedly had a history of mental health problems and gun-related brushes with the law.
  He had sought treatment for insomnia at two Veterans Affairs hospitals in the last month, according to media reports.
  Law enforcement officials said the IT subcontractor had carved the messages "better off this way" and "my ELF weapon" on the stock of his sawn-off Remington 870 pump-action shotgun.
  All victims were killed in hallways or their offices, not in the building's atrium as media outlets previously reported.
  Alexis also gunned down a security guard and took his Beretta handgun, Mr Comey said.
Earth's Biggest Deep Earthquake Still a Mystery - Yahoo News
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  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 09:01
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Presidential Proclamation -- National POW/MIA Recognition Day, 2013
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  Archived Version
  Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 02:07
  The White House
  Office of the Press Secretary
  For Immediate Release
  September 19, 2013
  NATIONAL POW/MIA RECOGNITION DAY, 2013
  - - - - - - -
  BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
  A PROCLAMATION
  Our country endures because in every generation, courageous Americans answer the call to serve in our Armed Forces. They represent the very best of the human spirit, stand tall for the values and freedoms we cherish, and uphold peace and security at home and around the globe. Today, we pay tribute to the service members who have not returned from the battlefield, we stand beside their families, and we honor those who are held captive as prisoners of war. We will never forget their sacrifice, nor will we ever abandon our responsibility to do everything in our power to bring them home.
  America remains steadfast in our determination to recover our missing patriots. Our work is not finished until our heroes are returned safely to our shores or a full accounting is provided to their loved ones. We must care for the men and women who have served so selflessly in our name, and we must carry forward the legacy of those whose fates are still unknown. Today, and every day, we express our profound appreciation to our service members, our veterans, our military families, and all those who placed themselves in harm's way to sustain the virtues that are the hallmarks of our Union.
  On September 20, 2013, the stark black and white banner symbolizing America's Missing in Action and Prisoners of War will be flown over the White House; the United States Capitol; the Departments of State, Defense, and Veterans Affairs; the Selective Service System Headquarters; the World War II Memorial; the Korean War Veterans Memorial; the Vietnam Veterans Memorial; United States post offices; national cemeteries; and other locations across our country. We raise this flag as a solemn reminder of our obligation to always remember the sacrifices made to defend our Nation.
  NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 20, 2013, as National POW/MIA Recognition Day. I urge all Americans to observe this day of honor and remembrance with appropriate ceremonies and activities.
  IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this nineteenth day of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand thirteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-eighth.
  BARACK OBAMA
Nobody Saw This Coming
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  Archived Version
  Source: JustOneMinute
  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 02:03
  Syria may miss first deadline in U.S.-Russia chemical arms deal
  The State Dept says no worries:
  Marie Harf, a State Department spokeswoman, said Wednesday that "our goal is to see forward momentum" by Saturday, not the full list. "We've never said it was a hard and fast deadline."
  But the LA Times uncharitably harkens back a day or so:
  Secretary of State John F. Kerry had described the date as the first of several "specific timelines" that would indicate whether Syria is committed to the deal that he and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had worked out.
  "We agreed that Syria must submit within a week '-- not in 30 days, but in one week '-- a comprehensive listing," Kerry said Saturday. He said the U.S. would allow "no games, no room for avoidance, or anything less than full compliance."
  Well, there are no games - they just aren't going to to do it.
  The Wednesday State Dept press briefing is kind of amusing - the press wasn't buying the "not a missed deadline" idea, but the State Dept wasn't selling anything else.
Michelle Obama Says Eat What I Tell You To Eat America Or Face The Wrath Of My Government!
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Source: The Ulsterman Report
  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 02:00
  In 2011 First Lady Michelle Obama stepped into a brief firestorm when she attempted to dictate to food companies how they can market their products, particularly how they marketed to kids. Americans rightfully viewed such attempted controls as a serious governmental over-reach. Now with her husband safely back in the White House, the First Lady is once again attempting to do what America told her not to in 2011 '' decide what foods are acceptable and what foods are not acceptable to America's kids. Parents '' you have no say in this so just sit down and shut up and let government decide for you'...
  (This is exactly what the First Lady is attempting '' telling all Americans to eat what she tells us to eat.)
  _____________________________________________
  Here is a summary report of a meeting the First Lady is going to have with ''stakeholders'' in her updated ''eat what I tell you'' campaign:
  ''The White House to Host Convening on Food Marketing to Children
  Mrs. Obama will call on stakeholders to leverage the power of marketing to promotehealthy products and decrease the marketing of
  unhealthy products to kids
  On the heels of the First Lady joining the Partnership for a Healthier America's launch of a new ''Drink Up'' campaign to promote water as the healthiest choice, the White House, led by Mrs. Obama and the White House Domestic Policy Council, will host a convening about food marketing to children. Let's Move!, the First Lady's initiative to ensure all our children grow up healthy, works to make the healthy choice the easy choice for American families.
  Mrs. Obama will speak to key stakeholders engaged on the issue of food marketing to children, including food and media industry executives, advocates, parent leaders, government agency representatives and researchers. The convening's goal is to create a constructive dialogue and collaborative process for developing real solutions that support families in making healthier choices, including leveraging the power of marketing to promote healthy products and decreasing the marketing of unhealthy products to kids.''
  ___________
  You see reader, as it so often the case with Big Government power grabs, they market it as being ''for the kids'', when in fact, what this program intends to do is dictate marketing terms for private businesses. Were you aware the a law within the thousands of pages of Obamacare requires that restaurants update their menus to show nutrition information? Those restaurants that don't face heavy fines by the federal government.
  Now think about that '' you own a restaurant in say, Houston Texas, and have been using the same menu successfully for many years. Now with Obamacare, the government requires that you research the nutritional contents of every meal on that menu, order up new menus, or a federal agent could arrive and smack you down with thousands of dollars in fines.
  Michelle Obama is attempting the very same scenario, except she is targeting the entire food industry itself '' ''for the kids'' of course.
  I find myself repeating this phrase more and more since Barack Obama was re-elected and the White House no longer attempts to hide just how radical and pro Big Government mandates they truly are '' we are living in DOMINATUS right now. My novel of the near future is happening right now, and frankly, it scares the hell out of me. -UM
  _________________________________________________
  DOMINATUS
  First they took their guns.
  Then they took their freedom.
  Then they took their lives.
  It's time Liberty fights back'...
  DOWNLOAD YOUR COPY OF DOMINATUS HERE
  PAPERBACK VERSION HERE
  CHECK OUT D.W. ULSTERMAN'S BOOK PAGE HERE
The Coming Dropbox Apocalypse
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Source: Hacker News
  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 01:59
  It's a given that everybody loves Dropbox. From the moment they launched I was in love with the magic blue box too, but recently I'm afraid our relationship has gotten bumpy and the reason may have an impact on their long term future.
  ''Your stuff, anywhere'' is their tagline and I was an early convert in 2009. For four years I've been living the sync dream. Everything was at my fingertips no matter which of my home/work computers I was on. Pay for it? No problem at all, in fact I'll pay extra for versioning. Even better, I'll tell all my friends, they're going to love it!
  As time went on, I ignored the security gossip and really committed, I put everything into that folder, safe in the knowledge it was all going to seamlessly work. But the more I stored in my Dropbox, the more problems I had.
  At first there was few mis-syncs, a few stuck files and a bit of ''Dropbox: 129%'' utilisation in Activity Monitor, but over the last few months it's got really bad. Dropbox hangs with a full core being utilised for hours. New syncs don't finish at all. Time to talk to support'...
  '...after a week (!) I get a reply and they point me to help page 14 which contains this nugget:
  ''Dropbox's performance may start to decline when you store above 300,000 files. At that point you may observe some slowness. We're currently working hard optimising Dropbox to better handle accounts with unusually large numbers of files.''
  Wat?
  Is 300,000 files really ''unusually large'' these days? I've got a folder with 20 node projects that contains over 100,000 files. My User folder on OS X has 225,000 items. A single work project can easily top 2000 asset files. What's the point of giving me 100Gb if I can only use half of it? And ''some slowness'' is underplaying the problem massively'Š'--'Šthis isn't just an extra few minutes of sync time.
  It's pretty easy to say ''But Dave, you're a geek, no one else will have that problem!'' or ''Stupid Node.js and it's fractal dependencies'' but that's not really the point. The problems I have now are going to start happening more and more frequently as Dropbox matures and people add more data to their Dropboxen.
  Even worse, if your considering moving to Dropbox for Business as I was this should be a massive cause for concern. The feature list for Business states that you can have ''as much (storage) as needed'' but that's not going to be very useful once your company gets to 300,000 files.
  I really hope Dropbox can sort this out, they're a great company and it would be good to see them fulfil their potential but for the moment they have a problem thats only going to get worse with time.
Brazil's Wild Plan to Purge America From Its Internet
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 01:31
  Brazil is not very happy about all these NSA revelations. As home to Latin America's biggest economy, the country understandably hates the idea that the United States is listening to its phone calls and reading its emails. In fact, Brazil hates it so much that it wants to disconnect itself from the U.S. internet altogether.
  This will not a simple task, but there is a real plan in place. And to be frank, it's a pretty aggressive move in the direction of the government taking control of how the internet works. President Dilma Rousseff seems bullish about it, though, and has ordered several specific'--and potentially impossible'--measures to break away from the U.S. internet:
  Force Internet companies like Google and Facebook to build servers inside Brazil's borders so that they would be subject to Brazilian privacy laws.Build more internet exchange points in order to route Brazilian traffic around potential spyware.Launch a state-run email service through the postal service to act as an alternative to Gmail, Yahoo Mail and others.Laying a new underwater cable to Europe so that Brazil can connect with those countries directlyRousseff has also demanded a detailed report of the extent of American intelligence gathering in Brazil.
  While the move to create an independent internet seems extreme, the idea of pushing U.S. authorities for more transparency is at the very least understandable. In July The Guardian's Glenn Greenwald reported that Brazil is second only to the United States when it comes to the amount of communications subject to NSA surveillance. We don't know specific numbers, but we do know that U.S. spies are watching Brazil, an ally, as closely if not more closely than countries like China and Iran.
  Why? Well, as former director of both the CIA and NSA, General Michael Hayden, explained to The New Yorker recently, "That's where the transatlantic cables come ashore." It's true. If you look at a map of the undersea cables, you can clearly see how Brazil is one of the most important telecommunications hubs in the world. This fact also further complicates Brazil's plan to disconnect itself from the U.S. internet, a move that lawmakers aren't even sure is possible.
  Difficult as it may be, Rousseff isn't backing away from her plan to make Brazil's internet more independent. She's expected to speak about it more later this month when she address the United Nations General Assembly. Meanwhile, critics warn that Brazil's government intervening in the basic operations of the internet will set a dangerous precedent. It might not even help keep spies away. As one cybersecurity expert told the Associated Press, "It's sort of like a Soviet socialism of computing." And we all know how that's been working out for Russia. [AP]
  Update: In a culmination of disapproval over America's spying on her people, Rousseff canceled a planned trip to Washington on Tuesday. Obama tried to talk her out of cancelling on Monday night. He also failed to make a public apology for the spying like she'd asked.
  Top image via Submarine Cable Map
Bill Clinton's former mistress Gennifer Flowers: 'We'd be together today if it wasn't for Chelsea' | Mail Online
  Link to Article
  Archived Version
  Fri, 20 Sep 2013 01:15
  Flowers's 12-year affair with Bill Clinton was exposed in 1992 during his presidential campaignShe bitterly regrets rejecting him when he last begged to see her and says he's the 'love of her life'Launching a career as a sex columnist she says Clinton taught her everything she knowsBill told her Hillary was 'bisexual' and that he had 'no problem with that'By Laura Collins
  PUBLISHED: 19:15 EST, 18 September 2013 | UPDATED: 10:00 EST, 19 September 2013
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  Their 12-year affair made Gennifer Flowers one of the most high profile mistresses in America. Now, two decades after they split amid scandal, the former news reporter from Little Rock, Arkansas wants to 'sit down and talk' with Bill Clinton.
  In an exclusive interview with MailOnline, Gennifer has spoken of her deep regret at turning down Clinton's pleas to talk some eight years ago and revealed her belief that they would still be together today, were it not the birth of Clinton's daughter, Chelsea.
  She said: 'We have some unresolved issues that it would be nice to sit down and talk about now. He was the love of my life and I was the love of his life and you don't get over those things.'
  'Let's talk:' When he contacted her eight years ago Gennifer Flowers admits she wasn't ready to talk to her former lover, Bill Clinton. Today she longs to
  Gennifer thought that speaking out on 27 January 1992 would be the beginning and end of interest in her affair with Clinton. Instead it shaped the Presidential campaign and changed her life forever
  As well as speaking candidly about the affair and its ongoing impact on her life, Gennifer has released previously unseen images from her Penthouse shoot to MailOnline. She was featured in the magazine's December 1992 issue.
  By then all lines of communication with Clinton had been severed and she had no contact with him for 13 years when he called out of the blue. She said: 'He called me back in 2005 in New Orleans. He wanted to put on the hoodie and jog on over like he used to.
  'First I was just shocked. He was so adamant about wanting to sit down and talk to me in person.
  'It almost seemed like what I had heard of people who were going through a 12 step program and wanted to atone to people for various things.'
  At the time Gennifer, 63, was recently divorced after a ten year marriage.
  Baring her soul...and the rest: Gennifer in a previously unseen picture from her Penthouse 1992 shoot
  La Vie en Rose: Gennifer says she regrets nothing about the Penthouse shoot that appeared in the magazine in December 1992
  She said: 'I was scared. It wasn't that I didn't want to see him in my heart of hearts. I was just afraid. But there's going to be an attachment forever.
  'If we had the opportunity to sit down and visit with each other in person, I'm not saying the romance would be rekindled but we will always have something. Whatever you might call it.
  'Bill and I would be together today if it wasn't for politics. It was me, Bill and Hillary. Then they had Chelsea and the stakes got too high.'
  Trust Me I'm a Politician: Bill Clinton appearing on CBS's '60 Minutes' in January 1992 with Hillary looking on as he denies any affair with Gennifer Flowers
  The other 'other' women Clinton denied having 'relations' with: Monica Lewiinsky embraces Clinton at a public rally in 1996
  It is 21 years since Gennifer's allegations of a long-running affair with then Democratic candidate Bill Clinton became the most sensational event of the 1992 campaign.
  The Madonna of Little Rock, Arkansas: Gennifer Flowers at the time the scandal of her affair with Clinton broke
  On 23 January 1992 tabloid, The Star named Gennifer as Clinton's mistress. Three days later he and wife Hillary appeared on 60 minutes, side by side, flat denying the claim.
  Six years later Clinton admitted to having sexual relations with Gennifer 'one time' in 1977 in his deposition to lawyers representing former Arkansas State employee Paula Jones in her sexual harassment lawsuit against him.
  By then Flowers was already well and truly defined by the scandal which had made both her, and Clinton, household names.
  Apparently driven on by the belief that the 'truth will set you free,' she proceeded to tell her story in a best-sellling book and pose for Penthouse magazine.
  Penthouse alone reportedly earned her close to $1million in the aftermath of the scandal.
  She said: 'I was singing in nightclubs, wearing very sexy outifts and gowns, a very independent liberated woman. I was the Madonna of my day '' in Little Rock.'
  On posing for Penthouse Gennifer said: 'I made the decision to do it.
  'No-one made me do or asked me to do anything that made me feel uncomfortable.
  I knew Bob (Guccione) would be making me look as good as possible and what woman doesn't enjoy that?'
  Of the infamous publisher, whose most famous pictures are available to view on the Guccione Collection website boasts his favorite pictures from the Penthouse archives, she said, 'Bob was just a stud.'
  But while some might assume that, all these years later, Flowers '' who has established herself as a cabaret singer in New Orleans - would want to shed herself of those associations and of the 'mistress' title, she has chosen instead to embrace them.
  She said: 'Why not? I was a mistress for many years.'
  And so as part of what she refers to as 'the extended liberation of Gennifer Flowers' her latest incarnation is as a sex advice columnist.
  'Mistress Flowers': Sex advice columnist Gennifer says Clinton taught her 'everything she knows' about sex
  'Ask Mistress Gennifer' will run daily on Guccionecollection.com'' a site devoted to the archives of Penthouse publisher, Bob Guccione. The haul is part of a treasure trover discovered by businessman Jeremy Frommer after he bought Guccione's archives.
  Demonstrating something of the playfulness that saw her snare the then Governor of Arkansas she said: 'I'm going to have to thank Bill for some of the advice I'm going to be giving.
  'It will be based on experiences I had with him.
  Gennifer in 1996: No longer in Clinton's bed but still in the spotlight in 1996
  She added: 'I wish he would write to me.
  'He could do it. People don't have to send their name.
  'Really he taught me a lot.'
  Clinton, now 67, also shared a lot of intimacies regarding his marriage to Hillary.
  They left Gennifer in no doubt that the union is far from 'traditional.'
  She said: 'What they have is very strong.
  'It obviously worked for them but I've never considered theirs a traditional marriage.'
  When rumours surfaced recently of an affair between Hillary Clinton and her transition office chief, Huma Abedin, 37, Gennifer was not surprised.
  The rumours concerning Huma, wife of disgraced former Mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner, 49, emerged as she stood by her husband in the wake of his recent 'sexting' scandal.
  Revelations that he had sent intimate pictures of himself and steamy messages to 23-year-old Sydney Leathers - a girl he had only ever 'met' online - finally did for his New York Mayoral campaign last week.
  Huma Abedin stood by husband, Anthony Weiner, when he was embroiled in a SECOND sexting scandal earlier this year. Prompting many to ask, 'Why?'
  Up Close and Personal: Huma Abedin leans in to advise Hillary Clinton, then Secretary of State, during an Open Government Partnership event in New York in 2011
  The scandal broke almost exactly a year after the shamed congressman suffered a public mauling for the same behaviour. Then, as recently, his wife Huma Abedin stood by him.
  This time round Huma's loyalty raised eyebrows and questions over why a woman of such accomplishment would stick by a man so apparently incapable of change.
  Gennifer Flowers posing for Penthouse in 1992 - the same year that her affair with Bill Clinton was exposed
  Gennifer at her 1992 press conference, left, and pictured in Dallas in 2006, right, when she failed in her attempt to revive a defamation case against Hillary Clinton and two of her fomer aides
  Gennifer said: 'I don't know Huma or the Weiners. I just know what Bill told me and that was that he was aware that Hillary was bisexual and he didn't care. He should know.
  'He said Hillary had eaten more p***y than he had.'
  Yet however much their roles as mistress and wife cast Gennifer and Hillary Clinton as natural rivals Gennifer claimed to feel a sense of solidarity with Hillary, 65, and would support Hillary's candidacy for President.
  She said: 'The support I would give Hillary is as a woman. I'm one of those women who in so many aspects of my professional and personal life I've been out there making strides for women and allowing them to go down roads in which they were not welcome.
  Clinton in November 1992 and the two great loves against which Gennifer could never compete: Chelsea and Politics
  Closing ranks: Clinton is embraced by wife Hillary and daughter Chelsea following the final Presidential debate in October 1992
  'I would love to see a woman president.
  'And she seems to be the only one that's getting close to it.'
  According to Gennifer, the promise of the Presidency for herself one day was what bound Hillary to her faithless husband across the years.
  She said: 'Absolutely that was her reason for sticking by him and he's going to stick by her because he owes her that.
  'I would have thrown his clothes out on the front lawn but that's just me.'
  Reflecting on her affair with Clinton she said: 'The whole experience changed my life forever and everything went in a different direction.
  'I don't regret telling the truth. It was a defining moment in American culture absolutely.'
  The only difference now, she said, with advances in technology Clinton would have been unable to deny the affair as he did for several years.
  She said: 'I had recorded telephone conversations thank God. But if I hadn't had them and Monica [Lewinsky] hadn't had that blue dress we would have been cast out as crazy stalkers.
  'I think today Bill and I would have texted every opportunity we got. So I would have had tons of texts from him.'
  She also believes that they would be together today were it not for the birth of his daughter, Chelsea, in 1980.
  She said: 'for a long time he was able to have it all. Then when they had Cheslea and he became Governor the stakes became higher.'
  Today Gennifer is single. She has been engaged 'a couple of times' since her divorce in 2005. She lives in New Orleans and sings regularly, though no longer owns the cabaret club where she used to perform nightly.
  'I love singing,' she said. 'It's who I am. That's who I am today I've had the opportunity as time has gone on to put things in their place in my head and move forward.
  'But,' she admitted. 'I'm still affected by it, the Clintons in some way every day and every day something happens that sparks a memory.
  'It was a defining moment in American culture absolutely and to an extent I paid a high price for my honesty.'
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