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03 Feb 2012 14:22

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U.S.: Anonymous records FBI call with Scotland Yard, posts it on the internet

  • The FBI might be curious how we’re able to continuously read their internal comms for some time now.
  • A tweet from an Anonymous member • Discussing how the group managed to listen in on a phone call between the FBI and Scotland Yard, discussing Ryan Cleary, a reported member of Anonymous. The group managed to listen on the call by having access to their internal e-mails, and using a password for the call distributed in one of the e-mails You can watch the video featuring the call’s audio over here, and our boy Matthew Keys has a pretty good wrap-up of the issues involved in the story. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Feb 2012 10:48

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U.S.: Size of the TSA’s infamous no-fly list doubles in a single year

  • 10,000 people on the U.S. government’s no-fly list roughly a year ago
  • 21,000 people on the no-fly list one year later; only 500 are Americans source
  • » So, what happened? After the Christmas 2009 “Underwear Bomber” incident, the TSA worked on improving the list, expanding it far beyond the initial set of names. Of note: The federal government is adding names beyond al-Qaeda, believing that the terror threat expands beyond the group behind the 2001 attacks on the Pentagon and the World Trade Center. “Both U.S. intelligence and law enforcement communities and foreign services continue to identify people who want to cause us harm, particularly in the U.S. and particularly as it relates to aviation,” said TSA head John Pistole, who has had to deal with some backlash against higher security standards in the past year.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Feb 2012 10:31

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U.S.: Today in bizarre adoptions: A polo club owner adopts his adult girlfriend

  • story A wealthy Florida polo club owner, involved in a car crash that killed a 23-year-old man a year ago, is facing both criminal charges and a wrongful death suit in the case. He could face up to 30 years in prison for vehicular homicide and leaving the scene of the crime; he ran a stop sign and was driving under the influence at the time.
  • twist In a legal maneuver which probably has no prior precedent, back in October, 48-year-old John Goodman legally made his longtime 42-year-old girlfriend … his adopted daughter. Officials believe this is an attempt to shield his wealth from a civil suit. Also, the math doesn’t work out on that father-daughter relationship. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

30 Jan 2012 23:27

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U.S.: Dentist heading to jail over botched paper clip root canal

  • cause In 2005, Massachusetts dentist Dr. Michael Clair performed a root canal. He used sections of a paper clip during the procedure in order to save money, something he had done on multiple occasions. This was not a good idea — it made the patient’s tooth turn black, and the tooth had to be removed.
  • effect As a result of this, along with allegations of illegal prescriptions and intimidating witnesses, Clair received a one-year jail sentence Monday. Prosecutors asked for more jail time, but Clair received a shorter sentence due to a lack of criminal record and “certain mental health issues.” source
Posted by samimain • 0 Comments • Permalink

29 Jan 2012 12:17

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U.S.: GOP: We’ll make this payroll tax cut extension work, we swear

  • There is broad agreement on doing the payroll tax holiday through the end of the year … The problem is paying for it. … (Democrats) just don’t want to cut any spending. That is what made it problematic. But we will get it done. We will get it done before the end of February.
  • Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell • Emphasizing that the payroll tax cuts that proved a thorn in the GOP’s side back around Christmas will get extended through the new year, no matter how many arms McConnell has to twist. The thing is, though, he’s not the guy who has to do the hard work. It’s Boehner in the House, who pissed off his rightward-leaning members by ignoring their wishes to score a deal. However, even Boehner is confident: “I’m confident that we’ll be able to resolve this fairly quickly,” he said. The tax cuts expire at the end of February, but there’s no word on how they plan to pay for this. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

29 Jan 2012 10:58

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U.S.: Occupy Oakland protests: Arrests, tear gas, tough statements from officials

  • Whenever journalists are arrested/detained for reporting the news, everyone’s freedom is at risk.
  • KGO Radio reporter Kristin Hanes • Discussing her arrest late Saturday as the Occupy Oakland protests flared up. She and Gavin Aronson of Mother Jones were among the over 200 people placed into custody Saturday night, as the Oakland protests reached a new breaking point — including the burning of an American flag. Both mayor Jean Quan and the police were quick to pin negative attention on the protesters: “The Bay Area Occupy Movement has got to stop using Oakland as their playground,” Quan said in a statement. However, it’s important to keep in mind the nature of the police actions — including violence towards protesters and the use of tear gas grenades. An OpenSalon writer has a pretty informative first-person piece worth reading, which describes both the nature of the protesters (not as bad as reported) and why things flared up Saturday. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Jan 2012 14:52

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U.S.: Erin Brokovich investigating mystery disease affecting high schoolers

  • We don’t have all the answers, but we are suspicious. They have not ruled everything out yet. The community asked us to help and this is what we do.
  • Activist Erin Brokovich • Banking on her getting-to-the-bottom-of-stuff reputation to help a bunch of Le Roy, N.Y., high school students who have developed Tourette’s-style verbal and facial tics, in the wake of evidence of a toxic chemical spill near their high school 42 years ago. Regarding the claims, the school district said that “medical and environmental investigations have not uncovered any evidence that would link the neurological symptoms to anything in the environment or of an infectious nature,” but Brokovich plans to investigate anyway, saying that there are some significant holes in regulatory testing records. She previously exposed a toxic chemical cleanup in California that built her evil-chemical-company-fighting reputation and became a Julia Roberts movie, in case you were wondering where you heard that name before.  source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

27 Jan 2012 14:17

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U.S.: Cincinnati: Casino development site suffers collapse, workers injured

  • 15 hospitalized, no life-threatening injuries: A major development in Cincinnati, the Horseshoe Casino, had stop construction this morning after a 60-square-foot section of the development collapsed. In a statement, Steve Rosenthal of Rock Gaming LLC said there would be an investigation and added: “We are thankful to report that there were no life-threatening injuries to any workers who were in the area at the time of the incident. On behalf of the entire ownership and casino construction team, we wish those workers a quick recovery.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

26 Jan 2012 23:41

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U.S.: California’s new “Clean Car” regulations: Necessary or too costly?

  • We can’t afford to wait. We have to act on these issues now. Our projections show continued growth in population and vehicle miles traveled, which will affect air quality for years to come.
  • Mary Nichols, the chairman of the California Air Resources Board • Discussing why new ‘Clean Car’ regulations are necessary. California’s new bill, which would require vehicles to cut down on pollutants by 75 percent, would start in 2015, and the rules would tighten further by 2025. This could be a step in the right direction for such a smog-ridden state, but opponents say that it would hurt consumers and car manufacturers, claiming it raises the price of a new vehicle by $3,200. The new standards could inspire other states to follow suit. source
Posted by samimain • 0 Comments • Permalink

24 Jan 2012 10:17

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Politics, U.S.: Gay marriage bill gets closer to passing in Washington state

  • pastWashington state has had a same-sex domestic partnership law since 2007, and an “everything but marriage” law since 2009. This week, opponents and supporters of same-sex marriage crowded a state Senate committee hearing to see if the state might go a step further.
  • futureState Senator Mary Margaret Haugen became the 25th vote of support of the bill on Monday. “This is the right vote and it is the vote I will cast when this measure comes to the floor,” she said. Washington would become the seventh state to do so. source
Posted by samimain • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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