News and Developments
M5 Readers: Keep in Mind That Political News, By Nature, May Reflect Sequential Agenda
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January  2012 

Internet: "Google, Yahoo, 13 Others Declare War on Phishing" [01/31/12] "A new anti-phishing effort, backed by the big email service providers as well as banks, PayPal, social networks, and other companies, could dramatically reduce the number of scam emails you get in your inbox. Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, and AOL are backing the new plan; 15 companies in total have come together to create DMARC.org, which officially launches today and will promote standard technologies to authenticate email. The hoped-for end result? If you get an email that claims to be from paypal.com, you could trust that it is actually from paypal.com. If it works, companies would be able to communicate with customers in new ways, the Wall Street Journal reports.  [...]" 

Commentary: "Massive U.S. Military Buildup Reported Around Iran; Up To 100,000 Troops Ready By March" [01/31/12] "In addition to some 50,000 U.S. troops currently in the region waiting for orders (apparently they won’t be home by this past Christmas as was originally promised), Nobel Peace Prize winner President Barack Obama is deploying an additional 50,000 soldiers to be ready for ‘any contingency’ by March: Obama is reported exclusively by DEBKA-Net-Weekly’s military and Washington sources to have secretly ordered US air, naval and marine forces to build up heavy concentrations on two strategic islands – Socotra, which is part of a Yemeni archipelago in the Indian Ocean, and the Omani island of Masirah at the southern exit of the Strait of Hormuz. Since 2010, the US has been quietly building giant air force and naval bases on Socotra with facilities for submarines, intelligence command centers and take-off pads for flying stealth drones, as part of a linked chain of strategic US military facilities in the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf. The Socotra facilities are so secret that they are never mentioned in any catalogue listing US military facilities in this part of the world, which include Jebel Ali and Al Dahfra in the United Arab Emirates; Arifjan in Kuwait; and Al Udeid in Qatar – all within short flying distances from Iran. Additional US forces are also being poured into Camp Justice on the barren, 70-kilometer long Omani island of Masirah, just south of the Hormuz entry point to the Gulf of Oman from the Arabian Sea. [...]"  

MSM: "Illinois Nuclear Reactor Loses Power, Venting Steam" [01/31/12] "Officials at a northern Illinois nuclear power plant believe a failed piece of equipment at a switchyard caused it to shut down. Exelon Nuclear officials say the switchyard is similar to a large substation that delivers power from the plant to the electrical grid. They said the investigation into the equipment failure is ongoing. Unit 2 at Byron Generating Station shut down around 10:18 a.m. Monday after losing power. Generators began supplying power to the plant. Operators began releasing steam to reduce pressure, though not from within the nuclear reactor. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has declared it an "unusual event," the lowest of its four emergency classifications. Officials say the steam contains low levels of tritium, a radioactive isotope of hydrogen. The plant is about 95 miles northwest of Chicago. [...]"  

MSM: "Russia Says Syria Has Agreed To Talks" [01/31/12] "Russia announced on Monday that it had convinced Bashar al-Assad’s government in Syria to start informal negotiations in Moscow with representatives of the opposition in an effort to end a bloody uprising that has left thousands dead. The Russian Foreign Ministry, which made the announcement, said in a statement that it had not yet received an answer from the opposition, but urged a speedy reply. “In an attempt to contribute with the Syrians to a peaceful settlement without foreign intervention and with respect to the sovereignty of Syria, we have appealed to the Syrian government and to all opposition groups to send their representatives to Moscow at a mutually acceptable time for informal contacts without prior conditions,” the Foreign Ministry said. Agence France-Presse reported that the Syrian National Council, the umbrella group of political opposition to Mr. Assad, had rejected the Russian offer unless Mr. Assad stepped down first, a point of disagreement that seemed irreconcilable.  [...]"  

MSM: "Russia Supports Assad, Syria, Last Friend In Middle East " [01/30/12] "Russia's defiance of international efforts to end Syrian President Bashar Assad's crackdown on protests is rooted in a calculation that it can keep a Mideast presence by propping up its last remaining ally in the region – and has nothing to lose if it fails. The Kremlin has put itself in conflict with the West as it shields Assad's regime from United Nations sanctions and continues to provide it with weapons even as others impose arms embargoes. But Moscow's relations with Washington are already strained amid controversy over U.S. missile defense plans and other disputes. And Prime Minister Vladimir Putin seems eager to defy the U.S. as he campaigns to reclaim the presidency in March elections. "It would make no sense for Russia to drop its support for Assad," said Ruslan Pukhov, head of the independent Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies. "He is Russia's last remaining ally in the Middle East, allowing it to preserve some influence in the region." [...]"  

MSM: "Iran Predicts Global Oil Prices To Soar By 50 Per Cent" [01/30/12] "In what will be seen as evidence of brinksmanship, Iran’s parliament postponed debate on a proposal immediately to halt oil deliveries to the EU, which accounts for 20 per cent of Tehran’s exports of crude. [...]"  Note: This underscores the point that the whole world political situation is orchestrated by corporations. Iran is part of the orchestration and the setup for more corporate profits at the expense of the population. Good thing this will come to a halt this year.

World Politics: "Iran Moving Closer To Stage Where It Will Be Too Late To Destroy Nuclear Facilities, Israel Warns" [01/30/12] "Reviving Western concerns that his government is still contemplating unilateral military action against Iran, Ehud Barak gave one of the clearest signs yet that Israel's support for new US and EU sanctions remains strictly limited. "We are determined to prevent Iran from turning nuclear," he told the World Economic Forum in Davos. "And even the American president and opinion leaders have said that no option should be removed from the table. "It seems to us to be urgent, because the Iranians are deliberately drifting into what we call an immunity zone where practically no surgical operation could block them." Although Israeli intelligence and military officials have privately spoken of Iran's nuclear programme entering a "framework of immunity", it is the first time that a senior figure in Benjamin Netanyahu's government has done so in public. Israel's fears that it might soon be too late to launch military action were bolstered earlier this month when Iran announced that it had begun to enrich uranium at its Fordow plant, which is buried so deep within a mountain it may be impossible for Israeli warplanes or missiles to destroy.  [...]" 

MSM: "U.N. Begins Iran Nuclear Inspection" [01/30/12] "Iran's foreign minister expressed optimism Sunday that a visit by U.N. inspectors to Iran's nuclear facilities would produce an understanding, despite world concerns that Iran is trying to build nuclear weapons. The three-day inspection tour by the International Atomic Energy Agency team comes during spiking tension. The West is imposing new sanctions to try to force Iran to slow or halt its nuclear program, and Iran is threatening to close the Strait of Hormuz, a vital oil passage, in retaliation. Visiting Ethiopia, Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi appeared to be trying to defuse the crisis. "We are very optimistic about the mission and the outcome" of the IAEA mission, Salehi was quoted as saying by Iran's semiofficial Mehr news agency. "We've always tried to put transparency as a principle in our cooperation with IAEA," Salehi said. "During this visit, the delegation has questions and the necessary answers will be given ..." The findings from the visit could greatly influence the direction and urgency of U.S.-led efforts to rein in Iran's ability to enrich uranium – which Washington and allies fear could eventually produce weapons-grade material. Iran has declined to abandon its enrichment labs, but claims it seeks to fuel reactors only for energy and medical research. [...]" 

Commentary: "The GOP: A One Hundred Year Record Of Swindling The American People" [01/29/12] "In 1921 -- eight years before the great depression -- Republicans took over the helm of this nation for 12 years. During that time there were three Republican administrations, the first of which was the administration of Warren G. Harding. History remembers Harding's administration for one thing more than anything other -- scandal. It was during Harding's presidency that the Teapot Dome Scandal erupted. His administration was considered the most corrupt administration in the history of the United States -- until Nixon's, then Reagan's, and finally Bush's. Next, in 1923, came Calvin Coolidge, the president that Ronald Reagan is said to have most admired. Coolidge's policies of large tax cuts, allowing business a free-rein, and his encouragement of stock speculation contributed greatly to the impending stock market crash and the great depression that was to come. Then in 1929 Herbert Hoover came to power. During his administration the stock market crashed, starting the great depression. In spite of the fact that by 1933 the unemployment rate was at 33.3% with 16 million people out of work, the Republican, Hoover, just sat, thinking that the economy would eventually rejuvenate itself. During Hoover's administration 15,000 WWI veterans marched on Washington demanding that they be paid what they were owed by the government. Hoover responded by calling in federal troops to throw these ex-servicemen off government property. Finally in 1933 Franklin Delano Roosevelt, a liberal democrat, was elected overwhelmingly. He immediately surrounded himself with a group of the finest minds in the country, including Columbia professors Adolph A. Berle, Jr., Rexford G. Tugwell, and Raymond Moley, known at the time as the "Brain Trust." After assembling these men and others he went about the business of developing a" New Deal" for the working class people of this country. [...]"  Related: "The GOP Intends to Abolish the Middle Class"   

Commentary: "More US Scrap Metal Headed For Persian Gulf: How Much Clearer Could It Be That A False Flag Event Is Planned?" [01/29/12] "The Pentagon is rushing a “mothership” to the Middle East to be used by commando teams as unrest in the region heightens, reports The Washington Post. The U.S. Navy is planning to refit the USS Ponce, an amphibious transport docking ship, which was about to be retired and decommissioned. The Ponce was commissioned in 1971 - it's now over 40 years old. Wikipedia reports: On 2 December, 2011, Ponce came home to await decommissioning on 30 March, 2012, when she would be towed to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and be placed with the mothball fleet [...]"  Related: Commentary:  "USS Enterprise in the Gulf: Setup for False Flag?" [2:37]   

MSM: "U.S. Security Contractors Head To Mexico" [01/28/12] "With waning U.S. presence in Afghanistan and Iraq, security contractors are finding work in Mexico despite its ban on foreigners carrying guns, records show. Security spending by private companies in Mexico, as well as the Mexican and U.S. governments, has increased since Mexican President Felipe Calderon‘s ramped up war on the country’s drug kingpins in December 2006, The Washington Post reported Thursday. The U.S. State Department has promised nearly $2 billion in aid toward the cause since 2008. With the Iraq war over, U.S. security contractors are shifting their focus south of the U.S. border, where demand for personal protection services has increased by at least 20 percent each year, the newspaper said. However, Mexican law forbids foreigners from carrying firearms in the country. “Everyone thinks if they worked in Iraq and Afghanistan they can work in Mexico, but it’s a different ballgame,” said Rick Sweeney, chief executive officer of California-based SECFOR, a company that provides security services to business executives. “I’m not looking for the guys who come to me and say they’re an expert shot or a black-belt. I’m looking for guys who can plan and stay out of trouble, rather than blast their way out of trouble once it starts.” Instead, many U.S. contractors team with Mexican partners who provide the firepower they need, or they train Mexican troops in counterinsurgency and electronic surveillance. [...]"  

MSM: "Corruption Scandal Shakes Vatican As Internal Letters Leaked" [01/28/12] "The Vatican was shaken by a corruption scandal on Thursday after an Italian television investigation said a former top official had been transferred against his will after complaining about irregularities in awarding contracts. The show "The Untouchables" on the respected private television network La 7 on Wednesday night showed what it said were several letters that Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, who was then deputy-governor of Vatican City, sent to superiors, including Pope Benedict, in 2011 about the corruption. The Vatican issued a statement on Thursday criticising the "methods" used in the journalistic investigation. But it confirmed that the letters were authentic by expressing "sadness over the publication of reserved documents". As deputy governor of the Vatican City for two years from 2009 to 2011, Vigano was the number two official in a department responsible for maintaining the tiny city-state's gardens, buildings, streets, museums and other infrastructure. Vigano, currently the Vatican's ambassador in Washington, said in the letters that when he took the job in 2009 he discovered a web of corruption, nepotism and cronyism linked to the awarding of contracts to outside companies at inflated prices. In one letter, Vigano tells the pope of a smear campaign against him (Vigano) by other Vatican officials who wanted him transferred because they were upset that he had taken drastic steps to save the Vatican money by cleaning up its procedures. [...]" :

Commentary: "Julian Assange: The Rolling Stone Interview" [01/27/12]   "It's a few days before Christmas, and Julian Assange has just finished moving to a new hide-out deep in the English countryside. The two-bedroom house, on loan from a WikiLeaks supporter, is comfortable enough, with a big stone fireplace and a porch out back, but it's not as grand as the country estate where he spent the past 363 days under house arrest, waiting for a British court to decide whether he will be extradited to Sweden to face allegations that he sexually molested two women he was briefly involved with in August 2010. Assange sits on a tattered couch, wearing a wool sweater, dark pants and an electronic manacle around his right ankle, visible only when he crosses his legs. At 40, the WikiLeaks founder comes across more like an embattled rebel commander than a hacker or journalist. He's become better at handling the media – more willing to answer questions than he used to be, less likely to storm off during interviews – but the protracted legal battle has left him isolated, broke and vulnerable. Assange recently spoke to someone he calls a Western "intelligence source," and he asked the official about his fate. Will he ever be a free man again, allowed to return to his native Australia, to come and go as he pleases? "He told me I was fucked," Assange says. "Are you fucked?" I ask.  Assange pauses and looks out the window. The house is surrounded by rolling fields and quiet woods, but they offer him little in the way of escape. The British Supreme Court will hear his extradition appeal on February 1st – but even if he wins, he will likely still remain a wanted man. Interpol has issued a so-called "red notice" for his arrest on behalf of Swedish authorities for questioning in "connection with a number of sexual offenses" – Qaddafi, accused of war crimes, earned only an "orange notice" – and the U.S. government has branded him a "high-tech terrorist," unleashing a massive and unprecedented investigation designed to depict Assange's journalism as a form of international espionage. Ever since November 2010, when WikiLeaks embarrassed and infuriated the world's governments with the release of what became known as Cablegate, some 250,000 classified diplomatic cables from more than 150 countries, the group's supporters have found themselves detained at airports, subpoenaed to testify before a grand jury, and ordered to turn over their Twitter accounts and e-mails to authorities.  [...]" 

Commentary: "Report: British Technicians in Bahrain Interfere With Iranian Satellite Broadcasting" [01/27/12] "The Islamic Republic of Iran broadcasting company, IRIB is now reporting that their channels on the Hotbird Communications Satellite that they leased to basically get their programming out are being jammed by British technicians operating out of Bahrain. Now when communications start to be jammed, when the mass TV starts to be jammed and we know that PressTV just got yanked the air in Great Britain at the urging of an Israeli group. That would suggest the attack on Iran is imminent because whatever is going to happen, whatever false flag is going to happen they want to make sure Iran cannot get out a counter argument. Remember three days before 9-11 the FBI wen't around the United States of America shutting down Islamic Charity websites. Anybody who would have stood up and said 'wait a minute, let us not rush to judgement on who is behind 9-11,' was silenced three days before the actual event in New York. Tragically, this makes sense. The push for sanctions has flopped. With the Asian Dollar Exclusion Zone set to buy Iran's oil without using dollars, this latest war for Israel will destroy the already crippled American and European economies without actually harming Iran. But neither the US nor EU can back off the sanctions because it would be seen as a political failure and more to the point because Israel simply will not allow it, and could care less how supporting nations are made to suffer on the quest for Eratz Israel. That is what the gentiles are for, to quote Gene Simmons. So, immediate invasion is the only alternative to allowing the west collapse from its own corruption and stupidity. [...]" 

Commentary: "A War With Iran Will Turn Middle East Into A Firestorm Warns U.S. Veteran" [01/27/12] "The dark clouds of war hang over the Middle East as Israel prepares to launch an attack on Iranian facilities it suspects are developing a nuclear bomb. The saber rattling and threats emanating from Israel against Iran never stop. Hardly a day goes by when we do not hear ominous warnings issued by the government of Israel. The Middle East is like a seething volcano, increasing in intensity, ready to erupt at any time. This is an extremely tenuous situation. Israel threatens to launch an attack, Iran answers back with a threat to retaliate, and the U.S. announces that “all options are on the table.” Round and round it goes, one threat followed by another. There has been no substantive effort made to alleviate this very dangerous situation by any one of the parties through mutual discussions, negotiations or use of intermediaries. Israel seems to be hell-bent on settling the matter by attacking Iran, and the Obama administration has been powerless to deter it from this reckless obsession. While Israel and Iran have been adversaries for some time, when it became known that Iran was initiating a nuclear program, Israel immediately charged that the program was designed to develop a nuclear bomb; that is, without any concrete evidence to prove it. In May, 2010, Israelis commandos boarded a ship that was a part of the freedom flotilla trying to deliver humanitarian supplies to Gaza; eight Turkish citizens and one Turkish/American were killed. Thereafter Turkey demanded that Israel issue an apology but Israel refused and would not accept responsibility for the attack.  [...]"  

MSM: "Iran Ready To Negotiate On Nuclear Programme" [01/27/12] "Iran is ready to discuss its nuclear programme with world powers, according to the country's president. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was talking in the wake of new sanctions imposed by the European Union, including an embargo on Iranian oil exports and sanctions against its central bank in an effort to raise pressure on the country over its controversial nuclear programme. [...]" "Ahmadinejad Says Iran Is Ready For New Nuclear Talks With The West" 

MSM: "Prime Minister Julia Gillard Swept Up In Australia Day Protest" [01/27/12] "Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and opposition leader Tony Abbott had to be rushed out of a restaurant by riot police, after riots broke out in Canberra. Around 100 to 200 protesters surrounded the Lobby restaurant, after thronging to mark the 40th anniversary of the Aboriginal Tent Embassy close by. More than 50 riot police had to escort the flustered prime minister to a waiting car via a side door, as a frightened- looking Gillard was literally dragged off her feet during the crush. Pictures show Julia Gillard clutching her personal security guard, and at one point the Australian Prime Minister even lost her shoe. [...]"  Note: Gillard is another reincarnated retread, discovering that the game is essentially over, for them, and they're good as gone. Related: "Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard Rescued By Riot Police" "The country's two political leaders were attending a function to mark Australia Day when protesters began banging on the glass sides of the building and yelled "shame" and "racist". The protest lasted 20 minutes until about 50 police dragged the two to safety. Ms Gillard appeared shaken as she was rushed out of the Lobby restaurant near Old Parliament House. During the evacuation, she lost her footing and a shoe as she was ferried by armed officers to a waiting vehicle. She and Mr Abbott were escorted to the same car, with angry protesters chasing after it and banging on the roof and bonnet. The mayhem was apparently sparked by comments by Mr Abbott, who questioned the relevance of a makeshift Aboriginal tent embassy, which was celebrating its fortieth anniversary on the lawns of Federal Parliament. An Aboriginal community leader who was at the protest, Fred Hooper, said the event had been peaceful until Mr Abbott made his remarks. "The opposition leader on national television made a comment to tear down something that have built over 40 years, which is sacred to us,'' he said.  [...]"

MSM: "Australian Senator Accuses Government Of Hacking His Phone" [01/26/12] "WA Senator Scott Ludlam fears the federal government hacked his mobile phone while he was escorting a former WikiLeaks associate visiting Australia. Mr Ludlam became suspicious when his iPhone played up while he was with internet activist Jacob Appelbaum in Victoria last Friday. Mr Appelbaum, a known hacker who represented WikiLeaks at the Hackers on Planet Earth conference in 2010, suggested the phone had been intercepted and the transmitter switched on remotely to record Mr Ludlam's conversations. [...] It was a reasonable [suspicion] because Jacob knows what he's on about [in regards to hacking]," Mr Ludlam said. "The day I was escorting Jacob into Melbourne the battery was draining unusually fast, about three times as fast as normal. "When your phone battery is dead by 10am, something strange has happened." Mr Ludlam said he was giving "serious thought" to taking further action to confirm whether his phone was hacked, and by who. He suspected the government wanted to track his whereabouts and record his conversations with Mr Appelbaum, who is a key member of the Tor Project, which has created software to allow internet anonymity. Users of the software can access websites and post and transmit information with little to no chance of being traced. The American is said to be under regular surveillance by the US Government and has been detained at US airports on numerous occasions, with his laptop and mobile phones confiscated. He was in Australia to attend the War on the Internet conference in Melbourne. Mr Ludlam used his experience to highlight that more than 250,000 requests to intercept telecommunications devices were made in 2010-11 by Australian authorities including state and federal police, but excluding intelligence organisations such as ASIO." 

Commentary: "US Senators Escalate Tensions In Southeast Asia" [01/25/12] "US Senators John McCain and Joseph Lieberman concluded a week-long tour of the Philippines, Vietnam and Burma on January 20, meeting with heads of state and opposition leaders. Each stop was a calculated and marked escalation of US military and political machinations against China in the region. Every meeting saw the assertion of the interests of US imperialism against its geopolitical rival China. McCain and Lieberman repeatedly stressed Washington’s stake in the vital waterways and oil resources of the South China Sea. Seven countries have claims to the disputed waters, with the most heated confrontations recently occurring between the Philippines and Vietnam, on the one side, and China, on the other. McCain is the ranking Republican member of the Senate Armed Forces committee and Lieberman a committee member. While not part of the Obama administration, their speeches and discussions carry significant weight with regional powers. [...]"  Note: The stunningly stupid control-freak duo of McCain and Lieberman, who are both allegedly retiring in 2012, after they've worked to destroy so much in society, continue their robotic legacy typical of reincarnated retreads.

Commentary: "War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery ... and Fighting Back is "Aggression" [01/25/12] "The US Department of Defense recently promulgated a new "defense" guidance document: "Sustaining US Global Leadership: Priorities for 21st Century Defense." I use scare quotes because it just doesn't seem quite right to use "defense" to describe a document that - like its predecessors - envisions something like an American Thousand-Year Reich. The greatest shift in emphasis is in the section "Project power despite Anti- Access /Area Denial Challenges." The "threat" to be countered is that China and Iran "will continue to pursue asymmetric means to counter our power projection capabilities." That refers to a long-standing phenomenon: What Pentagon analysts call "Assassin's Mace" weapons - cheap, agile weapons that render expensive, high-tech, weapons systems ineffective at a cost several orders of magnitude cheaper than the Pentagon's gold-plated turds. In the context of "area denial," they include cheap anti-ship mines, surface-to-air missiles, and anti-ship missiles like the Sunburn (which some believe could destroy or severely damage aircraft carriers). [...]"  

MSM: "Russia, U.S. to Dispose of 34 Tons of Weapon-Grade Plutonium" [01/25/12] "The United States and Russia are successfully implementing their nuclear disarmament agreements and are continuing to work on the next steps in this direction, a U.S. Department of State official said on Tuesday. Rose Gottemoeller, the Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Arms Control, Verification and Compliance said addressing the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva that last year “the U.S.-Russian Plutonium Management and Disposition Agreement (PMDA) and its Protocols came into force.” “The PMDA commits the United States and the Russian Federation each to dispose of no less than 34 metric tons of excess weapon-grade plutonium - enough material in total for approximately 17,000 nuclear weapons,” she added. [...]"  Note:  "Dispose of it" where?

Israel: "U.S. To Grant Three-Year Extension Of Loan Guarantees To Israel" [01/25/12] "The U.S. government has informed Israel that it will recommend that Congress approve a three-year extension of loan guarantees to Israel, worth $3.8 billion. The announcement came after several months of worry in Israel that the loan guarantees would not be extended, despite Israel's request. [...]"  

MSM: "European Union Imposes Oil Embargo On Iran" [01/25/12] "European Union (EU) foreign ministers meeting in Brussels yesterday imposed far-reaching economic sanctions on Iran, including an embargo on Iranian oil imports that will come into full force in July. The embargo is an act of economic war that heightens the danger of a slide into military hostilities in the Persian Gulf. The EU sanctions are comprehensive, hitting every aspect of Iran’s oil industry. The 27 member countries will halt the signing of any new oil contracts with Iran immediately, and end existing ones by July 1. The ban will cover imports of crude oil, petroleum products and petrochemical products, and will extend to the export of equipment and technology to, and new investment in, Iran’s energy sector. The EU has also targetted Iran’s central bank, freezing the bulk of its assets in Europe. There are limited exceptions to allow for what is still regarded as legitimate trade. The European measures complement legislation signed into law by President Barack Obama on December 31 providing for penalties against any company, including foreign corporations, having business dealings with Iran’s central bank. The US measures seek to block all Iranian oil sales internationally, crippling the country’s economy. [...]"  Note: The EU sanctions are an act of economic war that heightens the danger of a slide into military hostilities.

Commentary: " Anonymous Shuts Down Corporate and Government Websites Worldwide" [01/25/12] "Anonymous Shuts Down MPAA, RIAA, FBI, DOJ and Copyright Office Anonymous launched one of the largest hacking attacks in history today. Gizmodo reports that - in response to the Feds' shutting down of the extremely popular file-sharing site MegaUpload - Anonymous has shut down the sites of the main corporate copyright enforcers, including: Motion Picture Association of America Recording Industry Association of America Universal Music EMIAnonymous has also shut down the main U.S. governmental copyright enforcers, including: U.S. Copyright Office Department of Justice FBI Plus foreign agencies, including:  [...]" Note: It's possible that this is an intelligence operation to foster a shutdown of the system.

MSM: "Russia Sells Combat Aircraft To Syria" [01/24/12] "Russia has signed a contract to sell combat jets to Syria, a newspaper reported Monday, in apparent support for President Bashar Assad and open defiance of international condemnation of his regime's bloody crackdown. The respected business daily Kommersant, citing an unidentified source close to Russia's Rosoboronexport state arms trader, said the $550-million deal envisions the delivery of 36 Yak-130 aircraft. A spokesman for Rosoboronexport refused to comment on the report. If confirmed, the deal would cement Russian opposition to international efforts to put pressure on Assad's regime over its attempts to snuff out the country's uprising. The U.N. says more than 5,400 people have died over 10 months. The report of the sale comes the same day that Human Rights Watch called Russia's backing of the Syrian regime "immoral." The Yak-130 is a twin-engined combat trainer jet that can also be used to attack ground targets. The Russian air force has recently placed an order for 55 such jets. [...]"  Related: "Syria Rejects Calls By Arab League For President Assad To Step Aside" "Syria has condemned a move by the Arab League to call for the "peaceful departure" of President Bashar al-Assad, describing it as a "conspiracy" which violates the will of its people. The Arab League had called on Assad to step aside and cede power to his vice president. The 22-member League also asked for democratic elections to be held under a national unity government. [...]" 

Internet: "Soros Mouthpiece Calls On Google To "Police Conspiracy Theories” [01/24/12]   "Former fellow of George Soros’ Open Society and current Stanford University scholar Evgeny Morozov has called on Google and other search engines to become thought crime enforcers, by providing warnings about websites that contain “conspiracy theories” such as the belief, held by a majority of Americans, that global warming is not primarily man-made. Morozov, whose biography confirms him as a well-connected insider, decries in a Slate piece how the Internet is a useful tool for “People who deny global warming” as well as “the anti-vaccination movement,” calling on Google to provide a “socially responsible curated treatment” that would marginalize such beliefs by amending search results. His solution is to, “Nudge search engines to take more responsibility for their index and exercise a heavier curatorial control in presenting search results for issues like “global warming” or “vaccination.” Google already has a list of search queries that send most traffic to sites that trade in pseudoscience and conspiracy theories; why not treat them differently than normal queries? Thus, whenever users are presented with search results that are likely to send them to sites run by pseudoscientists or conspiracy theorists, Google may simply display a huge red banner asking users to exercise caution and check a previously generated list of authoritative resources before making up their minds.”[...]"  

Political Theatrics: "Iran: Flotilla Of Warships Sent Through Strait of Hormuz Heightens Tensions" [01/24/12] "Britain has joined the United States and France in sending a flotilla of warships through the sensitive Strait of Hormuz in a pointed message to the Iranian regime. The Ministry of Defence confirmed that a Royal Navy Type 23 frigate, HMS Argyll, was part of the US-led carrier group to pass through the waterway, as tensions continued to escalate over Tehran's nuclear programme. The strait, a 34-mile-wide sea passage, connects the petroleum-producing Persian Gulf states to the ocean, making it a strategic choke point on the world's economy.  [...]" 

MSM: "EU Mulls Ban On Iran Gold, Gems" [01/24/12] "The European Union is mulling a ban of gold and gem imports from Iran, and the EU finance ministers will take up the matter when they meet on Monday in Brussels. Experts expect a unanimous approval for the proposed ban, seen as yet another means of financial pressure on Tehran. The EU earlier agreed a partial freeze of Iranian Central Bank’s assets in Europe and consultations are underway over a French and British proposal to impose an embargo on the import of Iranian oil. Several EU countries, above all Greece, are opposed to the measure. [...]"  

MSM: "DC's 50 Most Powerful People (Reincarnated Retreads)" [01/24/12] "The last time we assessed power in D.C., hope and change were still in the air and a tea party was a game you played with your kids. In a town where everyone inflates their own importance, GQ offers our biennial list of the men and women whose ' decisions' actually ' matter' [...]" 

Internet: "Anonymous Deletes CBS Site" [01/24/12] "Those pesky online pirates known as Anonymous struck again today, knocking CBS.com offline for "a good period of time" and deleting all of its files, Gizmodo reports. Unlike earlier strikes this week against the Justice Department and the Motion Picture Association of America, the hackers actually deleted everything, leaving only an index page with one lonely file. Anonymous also took down Universal Music's website for the second time this week.  [...]" 

MSM: "Homeland Security Detains Senator Rand Paul After Pat-Down Refusal: Obama Sides With TSA" [01/23/12] "The White House is standing by the Transportation Security Administration in its standoff with Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and his father, Republican presidential candidate Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas). The elder Paul called the TSA a "police state" Monday after Rand Paul was reportedly detained by TSA after he refused to take a pat-down from TSA officials at the Nashville International Airport. White House press secretary Jay Carney said Monday that he didn't have any reaction to Paul's "police state" comments. But Carney sided with the TSA saying, "I think it is absolutely essential that we take necessary actions to ensure that air travel is safe." [...]"  Related: "Ron Paul Slams “Out Of Control Police State” After Rand Paul Detained By TSA" | "Rand Paul’s Pat-Down Standoff With TSA in Nashville Ends"

System Notice: After four days, power was restored as of 15:30 PST 23 Jan 2012 . We're working to catch up. First, I have posted a new M5V4 segment.

MSM: "Israel: Decision on Iran Attack "Very Far Off" [01/19/12] "Iran got some good news today, as Israel moved to defuse tensions and Russia indicated it likely would not support more sanctions against the rogue nation. Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said a decision on whether to attack Iran to prevent it from acquiring nuclear weapons was "very far off," the New York Times reports. He added that Israel remains convinced that Iran has not begun building such a weapon. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, meanwhile, said that a military strike against Iran would be a "disaster," and that Russia wasn't keen on sanctions either, which he said were "seriously intended to have a smothering effect on the Iranian economy and the Iranian population, probably in the hopes of provoking discontent." Iran's own foreign minister was in Turkey today in an attempt to set up new international talks. [...]"  

MSM: "With US 'Gone', Iraq Explodes" [01/19/12] " Iraq has experienced a surge in violence since US troops left the country last month, with 327 people dying in explosions or assassinations by the Iraqi Ministry's official count. Bombings have hit Baghdad neighborhoods, Shiite pilgrims, and Sunni police, among other targets. "They are not arbitrary attacks. They are sending messages that security is not under control," one Baghdad analyst tells the Washington Post. In part, they reflect the sectarian political crisis that erupted as soon as the US left. Sunni insurgents are trying to capitalize on that crisis to position themselves as a major force in Iraq. "The message is this: 'While the Sunni political parties are bullied by Maliki, the Sunni insurgents are asserting Sunni claims to power,'" one Iraqi expert explains. The US had handed over security to Iraqi forces long before exiting, but its departure was a psychological boost for insurgents now looking to launch a full-scale war. "What changed is a mindset," says one Defense Department consultant. "The US was now definitely gone. Therefore, all bets are off." [...]" 

RT Interview: "Jack Abramoff: 'Congress Corrupt To Core'" [01/19/12]   [12:15] "When it comes to big money in America's politics, lobbyists are the people who know exactly how it works. RT talks to former lobbyist Jack Abramoff who explains why he thinks Washington is corrupted to the core. [...]"  

Commentary:  "India, China Agree To Pursue Border Solution" [01/19/12] "Six months after resuming military exchanges, India and China have agreed on a mechanism for resolving their long-standing boundary dispute. [...]" 

MSM: "Four Key Senators Abandon Online Piracy Bills Amid Web Protests" [01/18/12] "Congressional support for controversial online piracy legislation eroded dramatically on Wednesay in the face of an unprecedented online protest supported by tech titans such as Google, Wikipedia and Facebook. Several key senators withdrew their support from the Senate's Protect IP Act, including Tea Party favorite Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), an elected member of his party's leadership. Sen. Jon Cornyn (R-Texas), who leads the Senate GOP campaign team, said the legislation should be put on hold, while Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), a sponsor and the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, retreated from the bill.  [...]" 

Commentary:  "The U.S.-Iranian Clash-Falsely Orchestrated by Fascist Elements in Both Countries" [01/18/12] "Former CIA counter-terrorism specialist Philip Giraldi gives a picture of "What War With Iran Might Look Like," concluding that, "A minor engagement between American and Iranian forces in the Persian Gulf," will ignite World War III. We must ask ourselves: how did we get here? Is World War III a product of destiny, or is it by design? Establishing the truth of history is essential if we want to avert World War III that could be triggered at any moment in the Persian Gulf if Iran is attacked. The history of the U.S.-Iranian crisis seems complicated and challenging, but it is really easy to understand. It is a relationship based on secret power and conspiracy, not truth and transparency. There are treacherous and fascist elements in the American and Iranian governments who desire mass ignorance and war as opposed to friendship and peace. [...]"  

Commentary: "Revealed: The FBI's Secretive Practice of "Blackballing" Files" [01/18/12] "Have you ever filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with the FBI and received a written response from the agency stating that it could not locate records responsive to your request? If so, there's a chance the FBI may have found some documents, but for unknown reasons, the agency's FOIA analysts determined it was not responsive and "blackballed" the file, crucial information the FBI withholds from a requester when it issues a "no records" response. The FBI's practice of "blackballing" files has never been publicly disclosed before. With the exception of one open government expert, a half-dozen others contacted by Truthout said they were unfamiliar with the process of "blackballing" and had never heard of the term. Trevor Griffey learned about "blackballing" last year when he filed a FOIA/Privacy Act request with the FBI to determine whether Manning Marable, a Columbia University professor who founded the Institute for Research in African-American Studies, sought to obtain the FBI's files on Malcolm X under FOIA. At the time of his death last April, Marable had just finished writing an exhaustive biography on the late civil rights activist. Griffey filed the FOIA hoping he would receive records to assist him with research he has been conducting related to a long-term civil rights project he has been working on. [...]"  

MSM: "Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker Recall Gets 1M Signatures" [01/18/12] "Looks like Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker will be facing a recall re-election. Leaders of the Democratic effort say they collected 1 million signatures for today's filing, about double the necessary amount. The figure represents about the same number of votes Walker received in the November 2010 election, notes the Wisconsin State Journal. The signatures will need to be verified by the state elections board, which could take months, reports AP. Earlier, the group trying to recall Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald said it would easily make its quota as well. The same applies to the lieutenant governor and three other state senators, all of them Republicans. The recall efforts stem from Walker's move last year to essentially eliminate the collective bargaining rights of public workers. [...]"  

MSM: "Israeli Hackers Bring Down Saudi and UAE Monetary Sites" [01/18/12] "Earlier this month Saudi hacker OxOmar claimed he stole thousands of Israeli credit cards. Then yesterday the young Saudi hacker shut down the El Al airlines website and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. In response, Israeli officials said they would respond the same way to the hacker attacks as they would a terrorist attack. Today a group of hackers called “Israeli Defenders” brought down the official websites of Saudi Arabia’s Monetary Agency and Abu Dhabi’s Securities Exchange. The hackers signed their message “IDF Team.” [...]" Related: See below.

Internet: "Hackers Shut Down Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, El Al Websites" [01/17/12] "Hackers shut down both the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) and El Al’s respective websites on Monday, one day after a hacker network threatened to carry out attacks on both sites. The network, which goes by the name “nightmare group,” was able to cause severe problems for both sites. By 10 A.M., TASE's website was only partially functioning, while El Al’s website did not function at all. The hack comes in the wake of a series of cyber attacks over the past two weeks, and only a day after Hamas called for harsher hacking attempts against Israeli websites. [...]"  

Commentary: "World Map of All Wars and Conflicts Happening In 2012" [01/17/12] "Aviation Week's Defense Technology International has compiled a summary of all the current and probable conflicts of 2012, so I made this map*. Will 2012 bring as many unexpected events as 2011? Changing orders in the Islamic world add more unpredictability, because nobody is sure where the new leadership will fall on the scales of idealism and pragmatism or on the role of Islamic law in society. Certainly, nobody a year ago anticipated an all-air NATO campaign against Libya. The single biggest flashpoint as 2012 opens is the unresolved conflict between the U.S., Israel and Iran, over Tehran’s determination to join the nuclear club, coupled with the apocalyptic threats of its leaders. The crash of a U.S. stealth drone in December—claimed unconvincingly as a shootdown—shows how important intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance has become, but underlines the difficulties of managing relations with a closed society. And the more we learn about the Stuxnet virus, the more we realize that cyberwarfare is real and upon us. Naval forces, meanwhile, find themselves in roles that seemed to be outgrown and roles that are new, or at least new to anyone born in the last 200 years. Chasing smugglers is one thing—but smugglers in submarines? In 2011, too, the war on piracy continued, and the Royal Navy engaged land targets in Libya with gunfire. On land, the main developments of 2012 will be the drawdown in Iraq and attempts to stabilize the wreck of Afghanistan, while keeping the fractious and factional state of Pakistan in some kind of working order. Peace on earth? Not quite yet.  [...]"  Related: "View World Conflict Map" PDF

MSM: "Dow Scientist Gets 5 Years for Stealing Secrets" [01/17/12] "A 75-year-old former Dow Chemical scientist was sentenced to five years in federal prison for stealing trade secrets, selling them to companies in China, and perjury. Wen Chyu Liu, aka David W. Liou, of Houston, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge James J. Brady in Baton Rouge. Brady also ordered Liu to forfeit $600,000 and fined him $25,000. A federal jury convicted Liu in February 2011 of conspiring to steal trade secrets and perjury. Liu came to the United States from China for graduate study, then worked for Dow from 1965 to 1992. Prosecutors said Liu had access to trade secrets on polymers and chlorinated polyethylene (CPE) technology at Dow's Plaquemine, La., facility. The polymers are used in automotive and industrial hoses, electrical cable jackets and vinyl siding. Liu conspired with Dow employees at Plaquemine and in Stade, Germany to take the trade secrets, the Department of Justice said in a statement announcing his sentence. "Liu traveled extensively throughout China to market the stolen information, and evidence introduced at trial showed that he paid current and former Dow employees for Dow's CPE-related material and information. In one instance, Liu bribed a then-employee at the Plaquemine facility with $50,000 in cash to provide Dow's process manual and other CPE-related information," according to the Justice Department. Liu committed perjury by denying under oath that he had arranged for a co-conspirator to travel to China to meet with representatives of a Chinese company interested in designing and building a new CPE plant. He told that lie during a deposition for a civil complaint Dow had filed against him. [...]"  

MSM: "Iran Makes Arrests In Scientist Assassination" [01/17/12]   "Iran has arrested several people in the killing of a nuclear scientist last week that Tehran blames on Israel and the United States, parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani told state Al-Alam TV, Tehran Times daily said on Monday. "We have discovered some clues and some arrests have been made," Larijani told the Arabic-language broadcaster. Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, a deputy director of Iran’s largest uranium enrichment plant, died in a car bomb explosion in Tehran last week. Local police sources said a passing motorcyclist attached a magnetic mine to the car Roshan was riding in. Larijani did not give any further details on the arrests but vowed his country would avenge the death using "non-terrorist" tactics. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has accused the U.S. and Israeli intelligence services of killing of the scientist. The United States has already denied having anything to do with the Iranian scientist's murder. Israel has not commented on its alleged involvement in the assassination. The attack was similar to several other attacks on Iranian nuclear scientists in the past two years. [...]" 

Commentary:  "The West Blinks - Iran Embargo Likely To Be Delayed By Six Months" [01/16/12] "Why? Because the world slowly realized that the potential surge in oil prices would tip a world already on the verge of a recession even deeper into economic contraction. Not rocket science, but certainly something the US president apparently has been unable to comprehend, especially if hoping that he would merely transfer exports from Iran to his close ally Saudi Arabia which would cement its European market monopoly even further. Or, perhaps, someone just explained to Obama that Embargo in January + QE3 in March = No Reelection...In other news, crude is now dumping. [...]"   Note: That would put it sometime in June 2012, where there are astrological configurations from June 24-30, that portend serious stuff ... also in September ... Related: "Saudi, Chinese Oil Giants Ink Joint Refinery Deal"[01/16/12]  "Saudi state oil giant Aramco inked a deal Saturday with China's Sinopec to build an oil refinery in the Red Sea city of Yanbu that will process 400,000 barrels per day, state news agency SPA said. The project, named Yasref, aims to be operational in 2014, SPA reported.  [...]" | "Iran Warns Gulf Arabs On Oil" "Iran warned Gulf Arab oil producers against boosting production to offset any potential drop in Tehran's crude exports in the event of an embargo affecting its oil sales, the latest salvo in the dispute between the West and the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program. The comments by Iran's OPEC governor, published Sunday, came as Saudi Arabia's oil minister was quoted the same day denying that his country's earlier pledges to boost output as needed to meet global demand was linked to a potential siphoning of Iranian crude from the market because of sanctions. [...]"  

MSM: "China Angry At US Sanctions On Oil Firm Zhuhai Zhenrong" [01/16/12] "China has criticised sanctions imposed by the US on a Chinese firm for selling refined petroleum products to Iran. China's foreign ministry said imposing unilateral sanctions on Zhuhai Zhenrong based on US law was "unreasonable". The US said on Thursday Zhuhai Zhenrong was one of three international firms to be punished for dealing with Iran. It comes as Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao visits Arab oil-producing nations amid fears of major sanctions-related disruption to Iranian oil exports.  [...]"  

UK: "No Plans" For Western Military Action On Syria, Iran" [01/16/12] "Western nations have no immediate plans for military action to stop the repression of protests in Syria or to halt Iran's nuclear programme, Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Sunday. Asked if there was a possibility of a no-fly zone in Syria like the one imposed over Libya last year, Hague said there was "no serious prospect" of a UN resolution on the subject. "We haven't been looking at a no-fly zone," Hague told Sky News, saying it would be only effective in tandem with other measures, and that the Syrian regime had not been relying on air power to repress protests. "There is no serious prospect certainly at the moment of the United Nations Security Council agreeing any resolution at the moment, let alone agreeing a resolution comparable to anything that happened in Libya." [...]"  

MSM: "Israel, US Discuss Canceling Missile Defense Drill" [01/16/12] "Israel and the US are in talks about the possibility of canceling a missile defense drill, billed as the largest ever in the country's history, planned for the spring. Initially scheduled for April and called "Austere Challenge," the drill was supposed to see the deployment of thousands of US troops and various sophisticated US military equipment in Israel. In recent weeks, Defense Minister Ehud Barak's office has held talks with the Pentagon about the possibility of canceling the drill. Senior military officers told The Jerusalem Post that the drill scheduled for April has been canceled, while defense officials said that it was possible that it would be held later in 2012. [...]"  

RT Interview: "Israel And GOP Join Forces To Oust Obama" [01/16/12]   [8:43] "Israel gunning for Ron Paul first, then Obama. Israel can't afford Ron Paul to gain traction - as he'll cut their hand outs. [...]" 

MSM: "Ya'alon Dismayed With US Response To "Iran Threat" [01/16/12] "Vice Premier Moshe Ya’alon voiced disappointment with the Obama administration on Sunday, saying "election-year considerations" lay behind its caution over tough Iran sanctions sought by US legislators. While Washington has been talking tougher about Iran's nuclear work and threat to block oil export routes out of the Gulf if hit with harsher sanctions, new US measures adopted on December 31 gave US President Barak Obama leeway on the scope of penalties on the Iranian central bank and oil exports. "In the United States, the Senate passed a resolution, by a majority of 100-to-one, to impose these sanctions, and in the US administration there is hesitation for fear of oil prices rising this year, out of election-year considerations," Yaalon told Israel Radio. [...]"  

MSM: "U.S. Troops Need Better Training On Laws Of War, Experts Say" [01/16/12] "The court-martial of Marine Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich at Camp Pendleton for his role in two dozen civilian deaths in the Iraqi village of Haditha has highlighted a legal peril for modern military personnel: determining who is the enemy. Troops these days fight in tense, foreign enclaves where terrorists wear no uniforms and take cover among women and children. They are on a mission to engage the enemy but are expected to hold their fire against civilians, a sacred tenet of international law. Military and international law experts say the case against Wuterich has shown that some troops have little understanding of the laws of war and nagging mistrust of local townfolk on dusty streets and courtyards that quickly ignite into battlefields. Although the venues of armed combat have changed dramatically since the world wars, the international covenants governing warfare have not. And, legal analysts say, there is little support for changing them and little need to do so. Commanders, however, need to do a better job of translating the rules for modern circumstances, experts say. Haditha is not Normandy. It's small-squad fighting in tight quarters with sudden surprises demanding quick reactions. [...]"  

Commentary: "Ominous Turf War Between Pakistani State Institutions" [01/15/12] "Pakistan’s political scene looks like the OK Corral, with the main organs of state and other players heading for an inglorious showdown. In the past few weeks, the powerful military has heaped pressure on the civilian government by participating in a Supreme Court inquiry which could see President Zardari condemned as a “traitor”. The government has retaliated by accusing the military top brass of flouting the rules of business. It has warned them against setting up a “state within the state”. [...]"  Related: "Indian Army Prepared For All Eventualities In Case Of Military Coup In Pakistan" "Chief of Army Staff, General V. K. Singh, played down the rising tension in Pakistan, but declared that the army was prepared for all eventualities in case of a military coup in the neighbouring country. “I assured you, your army is prepared for all eventualities. I would not like to comment on what is happening in Pakistan, our neighbouring country. That is not my domain to comment on it, but for various contingencies that may take place we are prepared,” General Singh told the media here on Thursday. [...]"  

World Politics: "U.S. Warns Israel On Strike" [01/15/12] "U.S. defense leaders are increasingly concerned that Israel is preparing to take military action against Iran, over U.S. objections, and have stepped up contingency planning to safeguard U.S. facilities in the region in case of a conflict. Iranians on Friday carried the flag-draped coffin of Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, a scientist working in Iran's nuclear sector assassinated in Tehran. President Barack Obama, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and other top officials have delivered a string of private messages to Israeli leaders warning about the dire consequences of a strike. The U.S. wants Israel to give more time for the effects of sanctions and other measures intended to force Iran to abandon its perceived efforts to build nuclear weapons. Stepping up the pressure, Mr. Obama spoke by telephone on Thursday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and U.S. Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will meet with Israeli military officials in Tel Aviv next week. The high-stakes planning and diplomacy comes as U.S. officials warn Tehran, including through what administration officials described Friday as direct messages to Iran's leaders, against provocative actions.  [...]"  Related: "Russia’s Former Envoy To NATO: "Any Conflict On Iran Is A Direct Threat To Russia’s Security" "The escalating conflict around Iran should be contained by common effort, otherwise the promising Arab Spring will grow into a “scorching Arab Summer,” says Dmitry Rogozin, Russia’s former envoy to NATO. ­“Iran is our close neighbor, just south of the Caucasus. Should anything happen to Iran, should Iran get drawn into any political or military hardships, this will be a direct threat to our national security,” stressed Rogozin. Dmitry Rogozin, who served as Russia’s special envoy to NATO in 2008-2011, was appointed deputy prime minister by Vladimir Putin in December. On Friday he was bidding farewell to his NATO colleagues in the alliance’s headquarters in Brussels. As for Syria, if NATO persists in interfering in its affairs, a catastrophe will be hard to avoid, said Rogozin, talking to journalists on the premises of the Russian mission to the alliance. “The example of Libya should have cooled everybody down in matters dealing with foreign civil wars,” he said, stressing that this is his personal point of view. “Syria must be left alone and the sides to the conflict must be assisted in breaking the stand-off and starting negotiations. No one must interfere with Syria. This is dangerous,” added Rogozin. [...]"  

MSM: "Russia Says NATO, Persian Gulf Nations Plan To Seek No-Fly Zone For Syria" [01/15/12] "Russia received information that members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and some Persian Gulf countries are preparing military intervention in Syria, the head of the Russian Security Council said. Turkey, a NATO member, may play a key role, Nikolai Patrushev, who used to head the country’s intelligence agency, the Federal Security Service, told Interfax in comments confirmed by his office. The U.S. and Turkey are working on a possible no-fly zone to protect Syrian rebels, Patrushev said. “We are receiving information that NATO members and some Persian Gulf states, working under the ‘Libyan scenario’, intend to move from indirect intervention in Syria to direct military intervention,” the Russian security chief said. [...]"  

MSM: "Israeli Finger Print Seen In Syrian Unrest" [01/15/12] "Syrian security forces reportedly seize yet another cache of weapons, bearing traces of Israel's contribution to unrest inside the country. The shipment had been smuggled into the country for anti-government armed groups. According to authorities, it included bombs manufactured by Israel. The cargo is not the first one containing Israel-made weaponry meant for armed saboteurs fighting the central government in Damascus. On October 16, the Syrian ambassador to the Arab League told a meeting of the regional grouping in the Egyptian capital Cairo that Syrian security forces had seized Israel-manufactured weapons trafficked into the country through Lebanon's soil. [...]"  

Commentary: "U.S. Constantly Violates War Law" [01/15/12] "US government “leadership” violates all Americans by constantly violating war law won by our families through two world wars. The US was the primary author of current war law, bound by treaty and Constitutional Law under Article 6 as the US’ supreme law. War law states a nation can use their military on other nations only if that nation’s government attacks. [...]" 

MSM: "DNS Provision Pulled From SOPA, Victory For Opponents" [01/14/12] "It sounds as if Leahy is trying to keep his some of his troops from bolting. There's little question now that some SOPA and PIPA supporters in Congress are in retreat and seeking to regroup in the face of significant opposition. Congress "is realizing that they are not going to slip these bills in the cover of night," said Corynne McSherry, the intellectual property director for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a technology advocacy group that has been among the most outspoken critics of SOPA and PIPA. "They didn't let the Internet participate in the legislative process and the Internet is speaking now." When asked whether the removal of the DNS provision is sufficient for EFF to drop its opposition, McSherry said it's not even close. "These bills need to be killed altogether," she said. "Our view all along has been they are not fixable." [...]"  

US Politics: "Newt Gingrich Denies Bohemian Grove Existence: "Some People Have "Fantasy Lives" [01/14/12] [1:55] Note: I'd say Gingrich has a rich fantasy life going for himself.

MSM: "Recipe for Vote Fraud: Global Internet Voting Firm Buys U.S. Election Results Reporting Firm" [01/14/12] "A mitigation against fraud by SOE insiders has been the separation of voting machine systems from the SOE results reports. Because most US jurisdictions require posting evidence of results from each voting machine at the precinct, public citizens can organize to examine these results to compare with SOE results. Black Box Voting spearheaded a national citizen action to videotape / photograph these poll tapes in 2008. With the merger of SOE and SCYTL, that won’t work (if SCYTL’s voting system is used). When there are two truly independent sources of information, the public can perform its own “audit” by matching one number against the other. These two independent sources, however, will now be merged into one single source: an Internet voting system controlled by SCYTL, with a results reporting system also controlled by SCYTL. With SCYTL internet voting, there will be no ballots. No physical evidence. No chain of custody. No way for the public to authenticate who actually cast the votes, chain of custody, or the count. SCYTL is moving into or already running elections in: the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Norway, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, South Africa, India and Australia. SCYTL is based in Barcelona; its funding comes from international venture capital funds including Nauta Capital, Balderton Capital and Spinnaker. [...]"  

MSM: "TSA Official Nailed On Corruption Charges" [01/14/12] "The investigation established that while on official duty, Walker assisted certain individuals in bypassing the normal security procedures, measures, and requirements at the Buffalo Airport. The defendant’s criminal conduct included allowing one suspected narcotics trafficker -- Miguel Guzman -- to travel under a fictitious name, and permitting that individual to bypass the ticket document checker, whose job is to examine persons, property and other articles entering aircraft and the airport area at the Buffalo Airport. Walker also on occasion directed the suspected narcotic trafficker to bypass the body image scanner/pat-down security line and interfered with a screener’s ability to monitor the x-ray of his belongings. In addition, the defendant admitted that she alerted at least one other suspected trafficker to the fact that police officers were conducting undercover surveillance of him. The two suspected narcotics traffickers are pending indictment on unrelated narcotics conspiracy charges. [...]"  

MSM: "Barbour's Pardoned Convicts Go Missing" [01/14/12] "First, Haley Barbour issued a spate of controversial last-minute pardons; then, a judge rejected a number of them, calling back five men who'd been released from prison. But the dust still hasn't settled: Those five men, convicted of murder and robbery, are nowhere to be found. The Mississippi attorney general's office is seeking the convicts, all of whom worked in the governor's mansion under Barbour, and none of whom filed pardon-related paperwork on time, the Clarion-Ledger reports. The convicts were required to announce their applications for clemency in local newspapers at least 30 days before any pardon. While all five men sent notices to the newspaper, they didn't meet the 30-day requirement. Under a court order, they're required to check in with correctional officials every 24 hours. The prospect of their return to jail has offered victims' families a glimmer of hope. "I want to be excited but I'm afraid to be excited," says the mother of a murder victim. "This whole thing has put a wet blanket on the trust that I have in the people that are supposed to be there serving us." [...]" 

Report: "Mossad Agents Posed As CIA In Operation" [01/14/12] "Agents with Israel's Mossad agency posed as American CIA agents in operations to recruit members of the Pakistani militant group Jundallah, a report in Foreign Policy magazine said Friday. Using American dollars and US passports, the agents passed themselves off as members of the Central Intelligence Agency in the operations, notably in London, according to memos from 2007 and 2008, said the report. "It's amazing what the Israelis thought they could get away with," a US intelligence officer told Foreign Policy. "Their recruitment activities were nearly in the open. They apparently didn't give a damn what we thought," said the official. The memos were written during the last years of then-president George W. Bush's administration -- the former US leader Bush "went absolutely ballistic" when briefed on the memos, said the magazine. "The report sparked White House concerns that Israel's program was putting Americans at risk," an officer told the magazine. "There's no question that the US has cooperated with Israel in intelligence-gathering operations against the Iranians, but this was different. No matter what anyone thinks, we're not in the business of assassinating Iranian officials or killing Iranian civilians," said the official.  [...]" Related: "Chris Matthews ‘Hardball’ Segment About Israel Trying To Get US Into A War With Iran"  

MSM: "Ex-Israeli Intelligence Officer: “Pearl Harbor” Style Attack Will Be Pretext For War On Iran" [01/14/12] "Former Israeli intelligence officer Avi Perry writes that a “surprise” Pearl Harbor-style Iranian attack on an American warship in the Persian Gulf will provide the pretext for the US to launch all-out warfare against Iran. [...]"  

MSM: "Nevada State Bar Investigating Copyright-Troll Righthaven" [01/14/12] "Steve Gibson, copyright-troll Righthaven’s chief executive, said Friday that he is “fully cooperating” with a Nevada State Bar inquiry into him and two former Righthaven lawyers. Gibson’s comments came a day after VegasInc reported that the Las Vegas-based trolling operation, which is on financial life support after several courthouse setbacks, is the subject of “formal proceedings” by the Nevada State Bar. ... The bar has also requested that Jodi Donetta Lowry and J. Charles Coons, two former Righthaven lawyers, reply to the inquiry by month’s end. Among other things, the disciplinary options at the bar’s disposal include doing nothing, issuing private or public reprimands, suspension or outright disbarment. However, the Nevada Supreme Court has the final say. [...]"  

MSM: "Scotland Yard To Probe Claims MI6 Was Complicit In Torture Of Libyan Rebels" [01/13/12] "Scotland Yard is to investigate the alleged role played by MI6 and British ministers in the rendition and torture of two Libyan dissidents, one of whom is now a leading figure in the post-Gaddafi government. In 2004 Abdel Hakim Belhadj, also known as Abu Abd Allah Sadiq, claims he was abducted as he made his way from Beijing to the UK where he and his wife had hoped to be granted asylum. Instead of arriving in Britain, he was handed over to US authorities and thrown in a secret American prison, where he was mistreated. He was then detained for six years in prisons in Libya where he claims he was interrogated by "foreign" agents, including some from the UK. He later became a leading military commander in the Libyan rebel army and is now the commander of the Libya's military council. Lawyers acting for Abdel Hakim Belhadj claim that documents uncovered following the collapse of the Gaddafi regime prove Britain's involvement in his rendition and torture. According to lawyers, one is a letter from Sir Mark Allen, former director of counter-terrorism at MI6, to Moussa Koussa, head of Gaddafi's intelligence agency, dated 18 March, 2004. In it, Sir Mark is said to pass on thanks for helping to arrange the-then prime minister Tony Blair's visit to Gaddafi, writing: "Most importantly, I congratulate you on the safe arrival of Abu Abd Allah Sadiq. [...]"  Note: Tarpley mentions Belhadj frequently. He has been termed 'the butcher' in many cities and countries in Africa and the Middle East.

Legal Case: "The US Supreme Court in 1866 Struck Down Lincoln's Martial Law and Military Tribunals" [01/13/12] "The case, Milligan 71 U.S. 2 (1866), brought to the U.S. Supreme Court fundamental questions regarding military authority over civilians. In 1864, a military commission in Indiana during the Civil War convicted Lambdin P. Milligan on charges of conspiracy for his part in an alleged plot to release and arm Confederate prisoners in Northern prison camps and sentenced him to death. Milligan appealed to the civil courts, challenging the military tribunal's jurisdiction over his case. When the case reached the Supreme Court in 1866, the justices unanimously ordered Milligan's release. In the majority opinion for the Court, Justice David Davis held that the Constitution prohibited military trials of civilians where civil courts remained open. Martial law was only permissible, he insisted, in “the theater of active military operations,” where civil courts could no longer function. In a concurring opinion joined by three other justices, Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase argued that Congress intended to ensure civil trials to civilians when it adopted the Habeas Corpus Act of 1863, and therefore Milligan had been wrongly tried. However, unlike Davis, Chase insisted that Congress under its war powers had the authority to enact martial law, even in areas removed from the theater of war. Milligan promptly provoked criticism from those who feared that it compromised Republican Reconstruction plans for the South by restricting military authority over civilians. Although in the twentieth century the Supreme Court has been reluctant to endorse Milligan's wholesale ban on martial law outside the theater of war, the case has never been reversed and scholars continue to hail it as a landmark constitutional protection of civil rights. [...]"  

Legal Case: "Law Profs See $300 Million Electric Scheme" [01/13/12] "Morgan Stanley and KeySpan Corp., New York City's largest electricity vendor, face an antitrust class action accusing them of withholding electricity from the market to goose prices to the tune of $300 million. According to the federal complaint, on Jan. 18, 2008, KeySpan and Morgan Stanley "executed an agreement (the 'Morgan/KeySpan Swap') that ensured that KeySpan would withhold substantial output from the New York City electricity generating capacity market, a market that was created to ensure the supply of sufficient generation capacity for New York City consumers of electricity, and in turn reduce capacity supply to be included in statewide capacity market demand curve auctions (the statewide area is referred to as the 'New York Control Area' or 'NYCA'). The likely effect of the Morgan/KeySpan Swap was increased capacity prices for retail electricity suppliers who purchased capacity, and, in turn, pass increase supply prices directly to consumers who pay for electricity in New York City and New York State. For its part, Morgan Stanley obtained a $21 million profit payment in connection with the Morgan/KeySpan Swap, while incurring no substantial expense, advancing no funds and taking no risk in such transaction." Sellers of retail electricity in York City must purchase a product from generators known as "installed capacity," which was created by the New York Independent System Operator (NYISO) to ensure sufficient generation capacity to meet expected demand. [...] The plaintiffs estimate the defendants inflated electricity capacity prices in the New York City area by $200 million and in the rest of the state by $100 million, while reaping $63 million in illegal gains for themselves. They seek disgorgement, penalties and treble damages for attempted monopoly violations of the Sherman Act, unjust enrichment, and violations of New York business law. Their lead counsel is Lawrence Vilardo with Connors & Vilardo of Buffalo." 

Commentary: "5 Minutes To Self-Immolation Of The Israeli Empire" [01/13/12] "Israel Shahak wrote a foreword to his translation of Oded Yinon’s 1982 paper for the World Zionist Organization which revealed Zion’s plans for America, Israel, the Mideast and the world. Wesley Clark was given a list of 7 Muslim nations 10 days after 911 that America was to invade. That 2001 hit list originated in Israel in 1982. The last nation on that list is Iran. Today I would hope to prove that if America attacks Iran for Israel, then the Israeli Empire will self-immolate and the America we knew will die. The words 5 Minutes in the title refers to the undeniable fact that it will take Iran 5 Minutes to sink the American Persian Gulf fleet, eviscerate the US Central Command and send America into a Depression so severe that I think it should be called the Greatest Starvation. [...]"  

Internet: "Symantec Accused Of Using 'Scareware' Tactics To Sell Full-Version Products" [01/12/12] "The complaint alleges that misleading ’scare’ tactics are being used by Symantec in its Norton Utilities, PC Tools Registry Mechanic, and PC Tools Performance Toolkit products. The claims also suggest the software range always report harmful errors, privacy risks and other issues that exist, regardless of whether they actually exist. [...]"  

MSM: "Iranian Nuclear Scientist Latest Victim Of Covert Sabotage Efforts" [01/12/12] "Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, a chemist who worked in the uranium enrichment plant in Natanz, was killed when an assassin riding a motorcycle attached an explosive device to his Peugeot 405. Roshan, 32, was the fifth Iranian nuclear scientist to be killed since 2007. Two attacks using an identical modus operandi occurred in 2010, claiming the lives of one nuclear physicist and wounding another, Fereydoun Abbasi, who has since become the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation. As in the past, Iran was quick to blame Israel. "The responsibility of this explosion falls on the Zionist regime," said Safar Ali Bratloo, the deputy governor of Tehran province. The sophistication of the attack – signified by the fact that the bomb killed only its target and nobody else in the same vehicle – bore the hallmarks of Mossad, the Israeli intelligence service, according to western security experts. Israeli officials declined to confirm or deny this claim, in keeping with their usual policy. However, General Yoav Mordechai, the Israeli military spokesman, said on his official Facebook page: "I don't know who took revenge on the Iranian scientist, but I am definitely not shedding a tear."  [...]"  Related: "Clinton: "US Had No Role In Killing Iran Scientist" "The Obama administration denied any role in Wednesday's killing of an Iranian nuclear scientist, the latest in a series of events that have exacerbated tensions with Iran. The assassination of Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan was the latest in a year that has already seen new U.S. economic sanctions, threats to bar American ships from the Persian Gulf, an Iranian death sentence to a jailed U.S. citizen and an escalation in Tehran's uranium enrichment program. Iranian reports said two assailants on a motorcycle attached a magnetic bomb to Roshan's car of, killing him and his driver. Roshan was a chemistry expert and director of the Natanz uranium enrichment facility in central Iran, and the slaying suggested a widening covert effort to set back the Islamic republic's atomic program. But US officials said they had nothing to do with it. "I want to categorically deny any United States involvement in any kind of act of violence inside Iran," Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told reporters. "We believe there has to be an understanding between Iran, its neighbors and the international community that finds a way forward for it to end its provocative behavior, end its search for nuclear weapons and rejoin the international community and be a productive member of it."  [...]"|Commentary: "Israel Resorts To Murder In Attempt To Convince World Of Iran’s So-Called ‘Nuclear Weapons Program’"  

MSM: "European Oil Refiners Sever Links To Iran" [01/12/12] "European refiners have started to sever links with Iran, stopping spot purchases of crude ahead of a European Union meeting later this month that could impose a full oil embargo on Tehran. Industry executives and oil traders said that some refiners have either stopped or reduced new purchases of Iranian oil, although they continue to receive monthly oil supplies under earlier long-term agreements, or term contracts, that they cannot break without incurring penalties.  [...]"  Note: Induced from the United States, who is extorting and threatening these countries, rather transparently ... these countries do not have to 'obey' any one countries dictates ... all this is in violation of international law.

Commentary: "Manipulation of the UN Security Council in support of the US-NATO Military Agenda" [01/11/12] "United Nations Security Council decisions are portrayed as “the will of the international community,” and Security Council action in support of a national agenda confers moral authority upon that agenda. For this reason it is crucial to understand the tactics by which UN Security Council independence is frequently usurped, and the methods of coercion, intimidation and bribery used to extort approval from reluctant members of the Security Council, or from those members adamantly opposed to a particular course of action.  Twenty-two years ago, as a result of the Untied Nations Security Council adoption of Resolution 678, which authorized the use of “all necessary means” to end the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, and “approved” the launch of the first United Nations supported Persian Gulf War, former United States Attorney General, Ramsey Clark, who had witnessed the devastating consequences of that war’s saturation bombing of Baghdad, stated that “The United Nations, which was created “to prevent the scourge of war,” has become an instrument of war.” Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Security Council has been in danger of becoming a political battering ram used for the purpose of “legitimizing” the neo-imperial adventures, and the reassertion of Western dominance over former colonial territories in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East . Since 1991, the United Nations Security Council has often been referred to as “an arm of the Pentagon,” or “an annex of the US State Department.” In 1990, only two countries in the United Nations Security Council opposed the passage of Resolution 678, and when Yemen cast one of these votes, the U.S. Ambassador brazenly threatened him: “That will be the most expensive vote you ever cast,” and the U.S. immediately cut off 70 million dollars in aid to Yemen . [...]" 

Political Theatrics: "US Decries 'Further Escalation' After UN Reveals 'Impregnable' Underground Enrichment Plant" [01/11/12] "... "The IAEA can confirm that Iran has started the production of uranium enriched up to 20 percent ... in the Fordo Fuel Enrichment Plant," an IAEA spokeswoman said in a statement. "All nuclear material in the facility remains under the Agency's containment and surveillance." [...]"  Note: First of all, Iran is monitored by the IAEA and legally entitled to enrich uranium to 20% .... to run the medical isotope reactor the US built for Iran .... weapons grade is 90% and above, which is NOT what Iran is doing.  Related: "Iran Says Fordo Uranium Enrichment Site Runs Under IAEA Watch" "Iran's permanent representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Ali-Asghar Soltanieh said all of the country's nuclear activities, including those at Fordo enrichment site, are under the supervision of the UN nuclear watchdog, the local satellite Press TV reported on Tuesday. Since two years ago, the agency is continuously monitoring all the activities in Fordo, Soltanieh told Press TV on Monday. [...]" 

MSM: "Rahm's Chief of Staff in Business With Chicago Mob Linked Fred Barbara" [01/11/12] "Theresa E. Mintle, Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s chief of staff, finds herself in an unusual position these days. Last month, her boss filed a lawsuit to break the Chicago Park District’s concession deal with the clout-heavy operators of Millennium Park’s Park Grill restaurant, who city officials say are costing taxpayers money by paying sub-market-rate rent and not getting billed for water, gas and garbage pickups. If the lawsuit is successful, it could cost Mintle and her husband, architect Michael Toolis. Mintle — who’s a cousin of former Mayor Richard M. Daley — and her husband were investors in Park Grill when it opened in November 2003 and quickly became a popular destination in Chicago’s Millennium Park, Daley’s pet project.She’s one of several prominent people who invested in Park Grill with close ties to Daley. The others include trucking magnate Fred Barbara; Pat Degnan, the brother of longtime Daley political adviser Tim Degnan; and janitorial business kingpin Richard Simon, who lived next door to Daley. [...]"  

US Politics: "Ron Paul’s Campaign Defends Romney" [01/11/12]   "Ron Paul’s presidential campaign defended rival Mitt Romney on Tuesday and accused Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich and Jon Huntsman of using “leftist tactics” against him. [...]"  Note: Bizarre ... but then again ... it's Planet Stupid ...

MSM: "China Rejects US Limits On Iran Trade" [01/10/12] "China has rejected the US trade restrictions on Iran's oil industry, saying it has nothing to do with Tehran's nuclear energy program. A Chinese deputy foreign minister, Cui Tiankai, said on Monday that Beijing is against mixing the issues with different natures, rejecting linking Iran's nuclear program to trade. Tiankai made the remarks on the eve of a visit by US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to seek Beijing's support for anti-Iran sanctions. “The normal trade relations and energy cooperation between China and Iran have nothing to do with the nuclear issue… We should not mix issues with different natures, and China's legitimate concerns and demands should be respected," he said. Tiankai went on to say that Beijing supports nuclear nonproliferation efforts but believes Iran is entitled to develop peaceful nuclear energy, and called for talks between Iran and the West in order to build mutual trust. "We believe… the normal economic ties between countries in the world and Iran should not be affected," he said. Earlier in the day, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, Liu Weimin, said China is against unilateral sanctions against Iran, noting that dialog is the only way to resolve the remaining issues over Tehran's nuclear energy program. "China opposes placing domestic law above international law and does not favor unilateral sanctions against other countries," he said. The unilateral sanctions on Iran have led to a clash of interests between Washington and its key commercial partners, including China. Iran exported about 622,000 barrels of oil per day to China in November, maintaining its place as the third largest crude supplier to the East Asian country. [...]"  

Commentary:  "Double Vendetta — The Insanity of the Iran Confrontation" [01/10/12] [9:58] Some historical observations about Iran and Israel.   Related:  Flashback: "Iran Propaganda Debunked In Around 6 Minutes" [6:18] | MSM: "Panetta: Iran Is Seeking Capability To Build Nuclear Weapon But Hasn't Decided To Develop One " [01/09/12] "Defense Secretary Leon Panetta says Iran is laying the groundwork for making nuclear weapons someday, but is not yet building a bomb and called for continued diplomatic and economic pressure to persuade Tehran not to take that step. As he has previously, Panetta cautioned against a unilateral strike by Israel against Iran's nuclear facilities, saying the action could trigger Iranian retaliation against U.S. forces in the region. "We have common cause here" with Israel, he said. "And the better approach is for us to work together." Panetta's remarks on CBS' Face the Nation, which were taped Friday and aired Sunday, reflect the long-held view of the Obama administration that Iran is not yet committed to building a nuclear arsenal, only to creating the industrial and scientific capacity to allow one if its leaders to decide to take that final step.  [...]"  Note: It's still illegal in terms of international law for the US to take this stance. There is no credible evidence that Iran is seeking to develop a nuclear weapon. The stance is that that factions of the US government believe everyone else is as immature as they are, and of course all Western countries agree with this logical fallacy, in a very delusional way. The Panetta character is a wind-up reincarnated retread, ultimately a cowardly cog in a deluded wheel.

Propaganda Theatre: " Feds Nab Man in Tampa Bomb Plot" [01/10/12] " Federal agents have arrested a suspected Islamic extremist who allegedly planned to attack Tampa hotspots. Sami Osmakac, 25, a naturalized US citizen from the former Yugoslavia, allegedly plotted attacks using explosives and an assault rifle, the AP reports. Osmakac was reportedly caught buying weapons from an undercover agent; he's due in court today on a charge of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction. A federal complaint says Osmakac "discussed and identified potential targets in Tampa" with a source. That source referred him to an undercover FBI agent to purchase weapons, including an AK-47, Uzi submachine guns, an explosive belt, and grenades. He also planned to use a car bomb and take hostages, the complaint says, noting that he made a video explaining his reasons for the plot. When the source suggested he could change his plans, he reportedly said, "'We all have to die, so why not die the Islamic way?'" [...]"  Note: All a bunch of cretins ... this is seemingly all the FBI does, is create the justification for expenditure of funds using entrapment, in order to keep a legion of thuggish security parasites, and parasitic companies, employed. 

MSM: "London 2012: Police Smuggled Fake Bomb Into Olympics Site To "Test Security" [01/10/12] "Undercover police officers smuggled a fake bomb into the London 2012 Olympics site in order to test security, it has been reported. The dummy run saw officers carry the “device” around the Stratford Olympic Park last year, the Evening Standard reported. The test was carried out to check electronic and human surveillance systems at the site. Police have refused to reveal details of the breach but a spokesman for the Olympic Delivery Authority said it was working with the Met to improve security.  [...] Today it also emerged small attack helicopters known as “killer eggs” will be deployed across the capital during the Olympics. The Evening Standard revealed SAS and SBS commanders will borrow the aircraft from US special forces to help combat terror attacks. "  Related: "London 2012 Olympics: 200 Days To Go" "The London 2012 Olympic countdown has begun with the 9 January marking 200 days till the games begin. Contracts for the long term running of the London 2012 parks have been drawn up with six of the eight main venues having secured a legacy after the Olympic games [...]" 

Commentary: "The Gasoline Export Scam" [01/10/12]   "You don’t have to be a genius to know that gasoline costs around $3.50 per gallon in the US. What most Americans don’t know is that the only thing keeping the price above $2.00 is the fact that our oil companies are exporting our gasoline at bargain basement prices to their own foreign subsidiaries subsidized by high American prices. [...]"  

Commentary: "Iran Crisis: Something Fishy" [01/10/12] "From the sound of it, the US stands ready to attack Iran any day now. Now for the funny part. Two days ago, I took my wife down to get a replacement ID card. We go to our local Air Force Base, headquarters of the 180th Fighter Wing, more or less the “tip of the speak” as for American air power. This is our local boys, family to our town, this is “our” military. They are quietly home, alive and well and not relocating to the Middle East. You can’t even count how many times they have been deployed but they aren’t deployed now. I tend to not believe in the current crisis and the threatened attack. I have intelligence sources in most governments in the region, safely, the equal of the CIA, perhaps better. I am more “likeable” even on my grumpy days. Back years ago, 9/11, the first thing I asked was “who makes money off this.” By 2006, we had enough witnesses come forward we could prove our suspicions that, essentially, America’s government had fallen in 2000 and a cabal, the same that orchestrated the Afghanistan invasion, the Iraq invasion, the phony intelligence for both, those pulling the Bush/Blair “strings” planned and executed 9/11. In the end, we have stood for years now ready to arrest Americans and Israeli’s and not one single Muslim. This would be the easiest criminal case in history. [...]" 

Commentary: "US Obligated To Take Iran Dispute To International Arbitration" [01/09/12] "... Both Iran and the U.S. are signatories of the Kellogg-Briand Peace Pact of 1928 which states, “The High Contracting Parties agree that the settlement or solution of all disputes or conflicts of whatever nature or of whatever origin they may be, which may arise among them, shall never be sought except by pacific means.” To the contrary, “The United States has been illegally threatening war against Iran going back to the Bush Jr. Administration,” says international law authority Francis Boyle of the University of Illinois, Champaign, and author of “Destroying World Order: U.S. Imperialism in the Middle East Before and After September 11”(Clarity Press). Boyle reminds, “Article 2 of the United Nations Charter requires the pacific settlement of the international dispute between the United States and Iran.” The UN Charter, he adds, “sets up numerous procedures” for the U.S.-Iranian dispute while prohibiting “both the threat and use of force by the United States against Iran.” Ditto for the Hague Convention of 1899, to which both nations are a party. That pact set up the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague and made it the duty of other signatories of that treaty to remind the aggrieved parties the Court is there for them. The reason given by the U.S. for threatening Iran is alleged to be that Iran is developing a nuclear weapon in secret. This charge is made with a straight face even as the U.S. lavishes military aid on its ally Israel. Israel is said to have an arsenal of 200-300 nuclear bombs it refuses to allow the International Atomic Energy Agency to inspect. The spurious U.S. pretext for war flies in the face of U.S. aggression against Iran long before Iran began building the nuclear facilities it says are needed to expand electrical output. Past U.S. aggression had everything to do with Iran’s oil and nothing else. It is indisputable that the CIA in 1953 overthrew by force and violence Iran’s democratic government, causing Iranians years of suffering under a savage, despotic regime. The CIA overthrow was prompted by Great Britain, peeved when Iran took over management of its own oil fields after years of being cheated by the British corporation to whom they were entrusted. That firm today is known as BP. [...]"  Related: "Waging War against Iran is a Criminal Act, in Violation of International Law" " Article 2 (3) of the United Nations Charter requires the pacific settlement of the international dispute between the United States and Iran. To the same effect is article 33 and the entirety of Chapter VI of the United Nations Charter that mandate and set up numerous procedures for the pacific settlement of the international dispute between the United States and Iran. And of course Article 2(4) of the U.N. Charter prohibits both the threat and use of force by the United States against Iran.  [...]" | "Obama’s New Military Strategy: Targeting Nations which Challenge US Hegemony" "Obama’s January 5 Pentagon news conference reeked of duplicity like all his pronouncements. Surrounded by Joint Chiefs of Staff, hawkishness took center stage. Stressing a leaner, more agile/flexible military, he said counterterrorism, intelligence and cyberwarfare will be emphasized without sacrificing America’s superiority against global enemies. So will subversion, destabilization, drone killings, other targeted assassinations, global state terrorism, and permanent war. In other words, new and old tactics are featured. Strategies are unchanged. So are imperial aims. Permanent war remains policy. Merciless high-tech killing and destruction will be featured. Ravaging the world one country at a time is planned. [...]" 

Commentary: "The USA’s Flawed Political System And The Push For War With Iran" [01/09/12] Note:  Lawrence Davidson finds the drivers for the push for war on Iran inside the USA’s structurally flawed political system, in which the warmongering neocons and faceless Israeli agents in the guise of lobbyists have primacy, and in amoral, cash-hungry politicians and a corrupt media. Related: "Congressmen are Paid to Vote for War" "According to reports from OpenSecrets.org, in 2006, 151 members of Congress had $195.5 million invested in defense corporations. Their average net worth was $910,000 compared to $100,000 for American families in general. Over 50 range between $5 million and $190 million. John Kerry is at the top end of the scale. While insider trading carries hefty prison terms for common people, it is perfectly legal for US congressmen. They are free to own shares in companies that are regulated by committees they sit on. Members of congress can trade freely using insider knowledge they have about regulations or events that could affect specific industries or the stock market as a whole, such as an economic crash, a new law... or a war. If you are a member of Congress and you sit on a 'defense committee', you are free to trade as much defense stock as you want to. A shocking example is former presidential candidate John Kerry, who has $30 million invested in defense contractors. Wars are planned by groups such as the Council of Foreign Relations, founded by David Rockefeller. They feature both politicians and CEO's of defense contractors. [...]" 

MSM: "Billionaire Gives $5 Million To Pro-Gingrich Group After Gingrich Calls Palestinians ‘Invented People" [01/09/12] "Why do so many people have a conspiratorial view of the Israel lobby? One reason is that our media are largely silent on what we all know to be a real force in our politics, and so feverish minds are left to speculate. The latest evidence. A week or so after Newt Gingrich said that the Palestinians are " an invented people", his Super PAC has received $5 million from Sheldon Adelson, whose central cause is Israel. And lo, the Associated Press fails to mention Adelson's cause in its coverage. [...]"  

MSM: "U.S. Orders Expulsion Of Venezuelan Consul" [01/09/12] "The United States has declared the Venezuelan consul general in Miami persona non grata and ordered her expulsion, a State Department official said Sunday. The State Department had said last month it was looking into “very disturbing” allegations that Noguera was a participant in an alleged Iranian plot to launch cyber-attacks on sensitive US national security facilities. [...]" Related: "Venezuela's Chavez Welcomes Ally Ahmadinejad"  "Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez dismissed a U.S. warning to avoid close ties with Iran on Sunday, denouncing what he said was Washington's attempt to dominate the world as he welcomed the Iranian president to the Latin American nation. Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived at the start of a tour to shore up support from the region's leftist leaders, as tough new Western sanctions aim to isolate the Islamic republic and target its vital oil exports. "A spokesman or spokeswoman in Washington from the State Department or the White House said it was not convenient for any country to get close to Iran. Well, the truth is, it made you laugh," Chavez said in a televised speech. "They're not going to be able to dominate this world. Forget about it (President Barack) Obama, forget about it. It would be better to think about the problems in your country, which are many," he said.  [...]"  

MSM: "Soldiers On Lockdown After 'Sensitive' Military Equipment Is Stolen From Washington Base" [01/09/12] "More than 100 soldiers were on lockdown Sunday after "sensitive" military equipment was stolen from a base in Fort Lewis, Wash. The soldiers were put on lockdown Wednesday after items such as scopes, night vision goggles and range finders went missing from Joint Base Lewis-McChord over the holidays, myFOXSpokane.com reported. Lewis-McChord spokesman Matt Hinkle said Saturday that the army was carrying out a criminal investigation into the 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division after the "sensitive" items went missing, The News Tribune reported. "They'll be on base until the items are found," Hinkle, who estimated the company contained about 100- 200 soldiers, said. "This is the unit's property that's come up missing." "We're going to continue to conduct this investigation as thoroughly as possible," I Corps spokesman Lt. Col. Gary Dangerfield added. "We will get to the bottom of this matter." Neither Hinkle nor Dangerfield confirmed exactly what pieces of equipment were missing but Dangerfield said that many military items including night-vision goggles and military ID cards were considered "sensitive," according to the newspaper. Family members were allowed to visit the soldiers for the first time Friday, myFOXSpokane.com reported. Officials are offering a $10,000 reward for the return of the equipment. [...]"  

US Politics: "Ron Paul Highlights in 01/07/2012 Debate" [01/09/12]   [18:52]   Note: It's interesting to watch how this dynamic unfolds, for all involved.

Commentary: "Homeland Security Monitors Journalists" [01/08/12] "Freedom of speech might allow journalists to get away with a lot in America, but the Department of Homeland Security is on the ready to make sure that the government is keeping dibs on who is saying what. Under the National Operations Center (NOC)’s Media Monitoring Initiative that came out of DHS headquarters in November, Washington has the written permission to retain data on users of social media and online networking platforms. Specifically, the DHS announced the NCO and its Office of Operations Coordination and Planning (OPS) can collect personal information from news anchors, journalists, reporters or anyone who may use “traditional and/or social media in real time to keep their audience situationally aware and informed.” According to the Department of Homeland Security’s own definition of personal identifiable information, or PII, such data could consist of any intellect “that permits the identity of an individual to be directly or indirectly inferred, including any information which is linked or linkable to that individual.” Previously established guidelines within the administration say that data could only be collected under authorization set forth by written code, but the new provisions in the NOC’s write-up means that any reporter, whether someone along the lines of Walter Cronkite or a budding blogger, can be victimized by the agency. Also included in the roster of those subjected to the spying are government officials, domestic or not, who make public statements, private sector employees that do the same and “persons known to have been involved in major crimes of Homeland Security interest,” which to itself opens up the possibilities even wider. The department says that they will only scour publically-made info available while retaining data, but it doesn’t help but raise suspicion as to why the government is going out of their way to spend time, money and resources on watching over those that helped bring news to the masses.  [...]" 

MSM: "Japan to Express Concerns to U.S. Over Possible Iranian Oil Ban" [01/08/12] "Japan plans to express its concerns about a possible embargo on Iranian crude oil (JPCIIRAN) to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner when he visits Tokyo next week, Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura said. Foreign Minister Koichi Gemba “expressed our concerns to the U.S. government in December, including our worries about the impact of a possible import ban on the Japanese and global economy,” Fujimura told reporters in Tokyo today. “We are maintaining that position.” Japan, which imports almost all of its energy supplies, is the world’s second-biggest buyer of Iranian crude after China. The threat of sanctions and an Iranian demand that U.S. warships stay out of the Persian Gulf have stirred new tensions between Iran and the West, contributing to higher energy prices. [...]"  Note: Recall that when the US embargoed Japan's oil in the 1940's ... Japan attacked the US in retaliation.

MSM: "Oil executive threatens Obama over Keystone XL" [01/08/12] "The largest energy firm in America is attacking President Obama, insisting that the White House’s refusal to cooperate with the Keystone XL pipeline will cause the commander-in-chief to suffer in the 2012 election. [...]"  

US Politics: "John McCain Says 'Obama Will Save America' At Romney Support Event" [01/08/12] [0:25] "Senator John McCain says President Obama will turn the country around at a Mitt Romney event and then corrects himself. [...]"  Note: History is full of these cognitive lapses by psychopath McCain ... 

RT Interview: "CIA Agent Exposes How Al-Qaeda Doesn't Exist " [01/07/12]   [11:04] "RT Interviews former CIA Intelligence Officer Michael Scheuer. [...]" 

Commentary: "Israeli Warmongers Itching To Attack Gaza Despite Hamas Peace Overtures" [01/07/12] "Uri Avnery argues that, in his desperation to make a mark by starting a war but unable to attack Iran for fear of the apocalyptic consequences, Israel's new chief of staff, General Benny Gantz, is itching to attack Gaza instead, even without a pretext. [...]" 

RT Interview: "Greenwald: "US Can Only Suppress Democracy For So Long" [01/06/12]   [10:56] "I was on RT last night with the excellent and smart Alyona Minkovski, discussing Obama’s signing of the indefinite detention bill, as well as general American opposition to Arab democracy:” [...]" 

Commentary:  "Zbigniew Brzezinski: After America" [01/06/12] "Not so long ago, a high-ranking Chinese official, who obviously had concluded that America’s decline and China’s rise were both inevitable, noted in a burst of candor to a senior U.S. official: “But, please, let America not decline too quickly.” Although the inevitability of the Chinese leader’s expectation is still far from certain, he was right to be cautious when looking forward to America’s demise. For if America falters, the world is unlikely to be dominated by a single preeminent successor — not even China. [...]"  Note: As you may notice, the scenario spelled out in this material tries to paint a picture of a more or less gradual process taking several decades .... Brzezinski lacks more than 'vision' .. he is cognitively hobbled and cannot look beyond the immature sequential purview .... he thinks the existing dynamic is viable enough to tick on and on ... delusional analysis, at best, and zero foresight on a larger scale. 

MSM: "Pentagon: US Navy Will Remain In Persian Gulf" [01/06/12] "The Pentagon says U.S. warships will continue to sail in the Persian Gulf despite an Iranian warning to stay away. Pentagon press secretary George Little issued a written statement Tuesday saying that the U.S. Navy presence in the Gulf is in compliance with international law. And he said it is intended to maintain what he called a “constant state of high vigilance” in order to ensure the flow of sea commerce. [...]"  

RT Interview: "Matt Taibbi: Mitt Romney Behind Modern Unemployment In America" [01/06/12]   [10:01] " According to some reports, Mitt Romney and his wife are worth approximately $250 million and many believe he won't have the interest of the average American in mind. Matt Taibbi, contributing editor for Rolling Stone, joins us to discuss Mitt's millions. [...]"  Related: "Mitt Romney Avoids U.S Tax By Using Offshore Bank Accounts"  [1:44] "Also the FBI is investigating Bain Capital About two weeks ago, the FBI evoked FOIA exemption 7(a) and denied access to all Bain Capital records on the grounds that "there is a pending or prospective law enforcement proceeding relevant to these responsive records; and that release of the information contained in these responsive records could reasonably be expected to interfere with the enforcement proceedings."  [...]" | MSM: "Romney Camp Admits That Its Bain Job Creation Number Is Bogus" "Mitt Romney, last night’s Iowa caucus winner, has been on the campaign trail claiming that the private equity firm he ran, known as Bain Capital, was responsible for creating loads of jobs. Romney responded to criticism about his time at Bain by saying, “I’m very happy in my former life; we helped create over 100,000 new jobs.” When a group of Romney backers ran an ad making the same claim, they were unable to back up the number with data. And as it turns out, the Romney camp can’t either, as it admitted that the statistic is nothing but cherry-picked job growth from a few companies that did well after they were bought by Bain: [...]" | "Study: Romney Plan Raises Taxes On Poor Families" "Republican Mitt Romney's tax plan would increase taxes on low-income families while cutting taxes for the middle-class and the rich, according to an independent study released Thursday. [...]"| "McCain Says GOP Should Settle Quickly On Romney" "Just two days after the first votes in the race to pick a Republican presidential nominee, Sen. John McCain says it's time to wrap things up. McCain, who endorsed Mitt Romney to be the GOP nominee a day earlier, says Republicans need to "get this thing done with as quickly as possible and get into the main event." [...]"  Note: "Yeah, a plug by psychopath McCain makes him a 'winner'. Yeah, quick, decide now!"

 Internet: "Virus Could Disable Cyber Attack Source" [01/06/12] "Attackers can launch malicious viruses or denial of service attacks by using layers of proxy servers or a botnet to disguise their source Internet address, masking the true origination of the attack. The Japanese company Fujitsu, working on a three-year project for the Japanese Ministry of Defense, said it's not only worked out how to solve this attribution problem but also how to destroy any attacking code it meets en route, NewScientist.com reported Wednesday. "The "virtual cyberweapon" has passed tests in closed networks in which it jumped between attacking computers, reached the origin of the attack and sent back ID information to its controllers, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported. [...]"  

Commentary:  "The New Age of ‘Elites’, ‘Robber Barons’ and ‘Social Darwinists’" [01/06/12] "Social Darwinism is at the very root of an impending economic collapse but it won't be the best or brightest who emerge unscathed on the other side! Social Darwinism is the survival of the most ruthless. Real Darwinism is reviled because it disproves the lies the rich tell themselves to help them sleep at night. The right wing benefits when issues are obscured and when enough dust is kicked up by "intelligent design" to obscure the real issues and various strawmen to boot. [...] A fallacious corollary to "Social Darwinism" is often phrased this way: the rich are rich because they are better, work harder and are more intelligent. " 

Commentary: "Cato Institute Digs Into MPAA's Own Research To Show That SOPA Wouldn't Save A Single Net Job" [01/06/12] "One of the things we've noticed in the debate over SOPA and PIPA is just how the other side is really lying with statistics. We've done a thorough debunking of the stats used by the US Chamber of Commerce to support both bills, as well as highlighted the misleading-to-bogus stats used by Lamar Smith in his support of the bill. [...]" 

Commentary: "The Iowa Caucus' Real Results: Hardly Anybody Voted, And Nobody Won Anything" [01/05/12] "... of the 2,250,423 voters in the state (using the higher voting-eligible population), only 147,255 came out last night. And of those, only 122,255 voted in the Republican contest, for a turnout percentage of 5.4 percent. [...]"  Related: "Iowa And The Politics Of Futility" "Not to say American politics hasn’t been a dead, buried and a rotten corpse for decades, but this flimflam Iowa sham is pathetic. I barely even follow politics as I have no hope whatsoever for freedom of choice in America and its corporate and banking elite owned fascist regulatory stranglehold on the souls of men. Typical media mash-up. I only hope those political starry eyed folks who think the American system has an ounce of integrity will finally get the point. Changing this inside-controlled system is futile. They need to see the real culprits and quit complying by playing their pointless games. It’s useless to try to change this imagine-nation of theirs. [...]" |"Iowa Race Leaves Republican Identity Unclear" "The first round of voting in the Republican presidential contest may tell a lot about the power of negative TV ads, town-to-town campaigning and get-out-the-vote organisations. Just don’t expect it to say much about the heart and soul of the Republican Party, a sprawling, contentious institution that has yet to decide what balance of libertarianism, pragmatism and social and fiscal conservatism should define it. Months of televised debates and campaigning have left the party as splintered and ill-defined as when the primary season began. . . .There is no clear front-runner [...]"  Note: Yeah, the whole dynamic seems to constitute an amorphous pall that hangs over society ... they should just admit that they're fabricating a ludicrous social reality perspective .... but then again, perhaps that's getting more obvious to people over time. Regardless, the dynamic is socially terminal, but they're too preoccupied to notice that. Reincarnated retreads.

US Politics: " Iowa Republican Party Data Director Confirms Potential Voter Fraud In Ron Paul Count" [01/05/12] "Per the results of tonight’s caucus results, the potential for voter fraud is very palpable. The Republican Party has publicly stated that Ron Paul could not, should not, and would not win…even prior to the casting and tabulation of the People’s votes. [...]" Related: "Ron Paul May Have Secretly Won The Iowa Caucuses" Business Insider "Ron Paul may have officially come in third tonight, but if the campaign's caucus strategy went off as planned, then Paul may actually be the real winner of the first Republican voting contest. That's because Paul's massive organizational push in Iowa focused on both winning votes, and also on making sure that Paul supporters stuck around after the vote to make sure they were selected as county delegates — the first step towards being elected as a delegate to the Republican National Convention. That's because Iowa's Republican caucuses are non-binding — they are technically just a straw poll, so once selected, delegates are free to vote for whichever presidential candidate they choose. [...]" | "Republican Insider: GOP Establishment Planning To Subvert Iowa to Prevent Ron Paul Win"   "Republican strategist Dee Dee Benkie revealed during a radio show appearance last night that the GOP establishment has resolved to prevent Ron Paul from winning tonight’s Iowa primary by offering sweetheart deals to move large voting blocks to vote for Romney or Santorum. The host of the show refers to state GOP insiders showing “great concern” that Ron Paul is performing well in Iowa because they fear a Paul win would undermine Iowa’s position as being the first Republican primary. He implies that influential members of the Republican establishment within the state are offering sweetheart deals to prominent voting blocks in key swing districts in order to “sway” the result and ensure Ron Paul doesn’t win. Despite the fact that this is brazenly unethical and, if bribery was involved, without doubt illegal, the host dismisses such conduct as “just politics”. “Is it possible that the party apparatus here could be silently asking those District Chairmen to start swaying some important caucus members over to the anti-Paul side which may end up being Santorum…do you see a scenario like that happening,” he asked Benkie. “I’ve talked to the party officials, I know they’re concerned about it,” said Benkie, adding, “Ron Paul doesn’t do us any good in Iowa, doesn’t do the country any good, will never get there, so let’s figure out what we need to do.”  [...]" | "Iowa GOP Vote Fraud & Electioneering" [5:19]    

MSM: "Gun Makers Baffled By ATF "Secretive System" Criteria" [01/05/12] "The ATF recommends that manufacturers voluntarily submit weapons for case-by-case determination. But those judgments are private and, it turns out, sometimes contradictory. Critics say nearly identical prototypes can be approved for one manufacturer but denied for another. [...]"  Note: Perhaps the end-user, like the cartels, determines what they want, and that's what is accepted. 

MSM: "Russia Says U.S. Human Rights Abuses Violate Washington Ideals" [01/05/12] Business Week "Human rights abuses by the U.S. government, including violations of the law of war and disproportionate use of force, are “far from the ideals declared by Washington,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry said. [...]"  Note: Astrologically, the US is a Cancer country: "Do as we say, not as we do" ...

MSM: "Pentagon To Unveil Plan Guiding Big Spending Cuts" [01/05/12] "The Obama administration is rewriting its defense strategy to absorb hundreds of billions of dollars in defense budget cuts while scaling back the longstanding Pentagon goal of being ready to fight two wars simultaneously ... Obama also wants the new strategy to mark a turning point in his stewardship of defense policy, which has been burdened throughout his presidency by the wars he inherited and their drag on the budget.  [...]"  

MSM: "Iran Warns US Carrier To Stay Out Of Persian Gulf" [01/04/12] "Reuters reports White House officials said Iran's threat to take action if a U.S. aircraft carrier moves into the Gulf showed Tehran was increasingly isolated internationally, faced economic problems from to sanctions and wants to divert attention from its deepening problems. "It reflects the fact that Iran is in a position of weakness," White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters Tuesday. Iran will take action if a U.S. aircraft carrier which left the area because of Iranian naval exercises returns to the Gulf, the state news agency quoted army chief Ataollah Salehi as saying on Tuesday. Iran will not repeat its warning ... the enemy's carrier has been moved to the Sea of Oman because of our drill. I recommend and emphasize to the American carrier not to return to the Persian Gulf," Salehi told IRNA.[...]" 

US Politics: "AP, Networks Mum On Romney-Blackwater Connection" [01/04/12] "News reports on Iraq's Interior Ministry ordering security firm Blackwater USA to leave the country following the deaths of at least eight Iraqi civilians have continued to ignore Blackwater USA vice chairman Cofer Black's role as chairman of Mitt Romney's counterterrorism policy advisory group. [...]" 

US Politics: "Romney’s Top Contributor: Goldman Sachs, Ron Paul’s: US Military" [01/04/12] "Mitt Romney's top ten is made up of Goldman Sachs, followed by Credit Suisse (Switzerland), Morgan Stanley, Barclays (UK), Bank of America and JP Morgan. In contrast Romney's co-frontrunner in Iowa, Ron Paul, has a top three donor list made up of the US Army, US Navy and US Airforce. [...]" 

MSM: "Hackers Spill Israelis' Credit Card Info" [01/04/12] " Israeli credit card companies say hackers claiming to be Saudis disclosed credit card information of thousands of Israelis on the Internet. The companies, however, disputed the hackers' claims that 400,000 credit card holders were affected; Israel's central bank put the number at 15,000. The Ynet news website says the hackers called the cyber attack a "gift to the world for the New Year" that they hoped "would hurt the Zionist pocket." Ynet says the information was removed from an Israeli sports website shortly after it appeared, and credit card companies say the compromised cards have been blocked to Internet purchases and will be replaced soon. It's unclear how the information was compromised. A Visa CAL company spokeswoman says she cannot confirm Saudi hackers were responsible. [...]"  

US Politics: "Romney Family Investment Group Partnered With Alleged Perpetrators Of $8 Billion Ponzi Scheme" [01/03/12] "Mitt Romney, his son Tagg, and Romney’s chief fundraiser, Spencer Zwick, have extensive financial and political ties to three men who allegedly participated in an $8.5 billion Ponzi scheme. A few months after the Ponzi scheme collapsed, a firm financed by Mitt Romney and run by his son and chief fundraiser partnered with the three men and created a new “wealth management business” as a subsidiary. [...]"  Related: "Mitt Romney’s Dream World: Cutting $700 Billion Out Of Medicaid Will Not ‘Hurt The Poor’"  "WALLACE: “But you don’t think if you cut $700 billion dollars in aid to the states that some people are going to get hurt? ROMNEY: "In the same way that by cutting welfare spending dramatically, I don’t think we hurt the poor. In the same way I think cutting Medicaid spending by having it go to the states run more efficiently with less fraud, I don’t think will hurt the people that depend on that program for their healthcare.”  [...] It’s an ostentatious claim from a governor who reformed the Massachusetts health care system in order to sustain increased federal funding for Medicaid. And while some states could certainly find less painful cuts to Medicaid, a Congressional Budget Office analysis of Paul Ryan’s very similar block granting scheme found that if federal spending for Medicaid decreased, “states would face significant challenges in achieving sufficient cost savings through efficiencies to mitigate the loss of federal funding.” “To maintain current service levels in the Medicaid program, states would probably need to consider additional changes, such as reducing their spending on other programs or raising additional revenues. [...]"  Note: Same as Ron Paul's apparent position, and that of all the other candidates. Social 'austerity' (based on dysfunctional Austrian economic perspective) destroys society, and this is transparently so ... they're on auto-pilot and really, really conceptually hobbled people, speaking to a population that is largely dead from the neck up.

MSM: "US Governors Preview Their 2012 Priorities" [01/03/12] "While most governors will announce their legislative agendas in speeches they deliver to state lawmakers at the beginning of next year's legislative sessions, some are getting head start on their priorities. They are using the normally quiet week between Christmas and New Year's to outline what could be some of the biggest legislative fights in their states in 2012. [...]" 

MSM: "Person Of Interest' Detained In L.A. Arson Fires" [01/03/12] "Officials said the "person of interest" detained early Monday in connection with a string of more than 50 deliberately set fires has been arrested and is expected to be booked on arson charges later in the afternoon. N0 new arsons have been reported since the suspect was taken into custody, but police stressed that the investigation is ongoing. The fires have caused $2 million in damage, authorities said. [...] The suspect is a native of Germany who may have been in dispute with federal immigration officials, sources said."  

Commentary: "Specter Of 1932: How A Loss Of Faith Could Make 2012 The Most Frightening Year In Living Memory" [01/02/12] "The dawn of a new year is usually a time of hope and ambition, of dreams for the future and thoughts of a better life. But it is a long time since many of us looked forward to the new year with such anxiety, even dread. Here in Britain, many economists believe that by the end of 2012 we could well have slipped into a second devastating recession. The Coalition remains delicately poised; it would take only one or two resignations to provoke a wider schism and a general election. But the real dangers lie overseas. In the Middle East, the excitement of the Arab Spring has long since curdled into sectarian tension and fears of Islamic fundamentalism. And with so many of the world’s oil supplies concentrated in the Persian Gulf, British families will be keeping an anxious eye on events in the Arab world. Meanwhile, as the eurozone slides towards disaster, the prospects for Europe have rarely been bleaker. Already the European elite have installed compliant technocratic governments in Greece and Italy, and with the markets now putting pressure on France, few observers can be optimistic that the Continent can avoid a total meltdown. As commentators often remark, the world picture has not been grimmer since the dark days of the mid-Seventies, when the OPEC oil shock, the rise of stagflation and the surge of nationalist terrorism cast a heavy shadow over the Western world. For the most chilling parallel, though, we should look back exactly 80 years, to the cold wintry days when 1931 gave way to 1932. [...]"  

Flashback: "Senate Hearing On GAO Report On Iraq War (2007)" [01/02/12] [120:27] Note:  September 07, 2007 C-SPAN.  

Photography: "From Mundane To Magical: 2011's Best Nature Time Lapses" [01/02/12] "If a picture can say 1,000 words, then a time lapse video can speak volumes. Below, we've compiled some of our favorite nature time lapses from 2011. Seeing everyday occurrences through a time lapse can turn the mundane into the magical and give us a new perspective on the world around us. From the changing light of a sunny day to the passing of clouds and the growth of a massive pumpkin, these time lapses of the natural world are a treat. If you can't get enough of the best of the natural world in 2011, check out these pictures of auroras and these fascinating photos of meteor showers and eclipses. [...]"  

MSM: "Mount Rainer National Park Shooting: U.S. Forest Service Ranger Shot, Killed " [01/02/12] "A Mount Rainier National Park ranger died in a shooting Sunday following a routine traffic stop, and authorities closed the 368-square-mile park in Washington state as they searched for the armed gunman, a park spokeswoman said. The ranger was identified as 34-year-old Margaret Anderson. She had set up a vehicle as a roadblock on a park road just before the shooting, which happened at about 11 a.m. near the Longmire Ranger Station in the southwestern part of the park, Lee Taylor said. Authorities believe the gunman is still in the woods with an assault rifle. They are asking people to stay away from the park, and for those already inside the park to leave.  Troyer said his department has received reports of cars with bullet holes. He did not have further details and said communication was limited because there is no cellphone service in the park. [...]"  

MSM: "Ron Paul Flips Out Over Accusation That He Doesn't Believe Government 9/11 Conspiracy Theory" [01/02/12] [0:43]  "Former Paul aide Eric Dondero, who worked closely with him from 1987 to 2003, recently wrote that Paul "engaged in conspiracy theories including perhaps the attacks were coordinated with the CIA, and that the Bush administration might have known about the attacks ahead of time." Dondero said that Paul believed George W. Bush planned to use the attacks as a justification for invading Iraq, which Paul vehemently opposed, and that he expressed "no sympathies whatsoever" for the 9/11 victims. [...]"  

MSM: "Volunteers And Cash Pour In For Private Border Fence" [01/01/12] "Donations and volunteers continue to pour in for a privately funded fence along the U.S. – Mexico border in Arizona, according to Republican state legislator Steve Smith. Donations and volunteers continue to pour in for a privately funded fence along the U.S.– Mexico border in Arizona, according to Republican state legislator Steve Smith. Smith recently toldfellow lawmakers that so far more than 5,000 people have made donations to the private fence fund for a total of roughly $300,000. The funds raised are not enough to build much of a fence, but Smith said contractors have stepped forward and greatly reduced their prices to help make this project a reality. “We have a manufacturer who can do a (pedestrian) fence at $426,000 a mile, from every last nut, bolt and screw that goes into it, which is significantly, significantly under cost,” Smith said. That amount only covers the cost of materials, but Smith said he believes a separate firm will install the fence at a minimal cost, potentially bringing the projects total to $500,000 a mile. In contrast Chris Rogers, a construction manager for Granite Construction, which has built border fences for the U.S. government in Arizona, said pedestrian fences, like the one Smith has in mind, cost between $2.5 million to $16.5 million a mile for labor alone. Mike Tatusko, a project manager with Granite Construction, echoed Rogers’s thoughts adding that building a border fence is no simple task as terrain and access must be factored in. [...]"  Related: "DHS To Drawdown Troops Along U.S.-Mexico Border" "Beginning in January the National Guard troops deployed along the U.S-Mexico border will begin heading home to their respective states as part of a broader shift in their mission; the 1,200 troops currently deployed will be reduced to 300, with the majority of them focusing on supporting border patrol efforts in the air rather than on the ground [...]"  

Commentary: "10 Most Nagging Mysteries of 2011" [01/01/12] "A lot of big news happened in 2011 ... and some of it only half-happened. The Atlantic Wire took a look at the most frustrating unanswered questions of the year, and keeps its fingers crossed that 2012 will bring new details. Highlights from its list of the year's 10 most nagging mysteries: [...]"  

MSM: "From Coast to Coast, Around the Globe, RT Looks Back At 2011" [01/01/12]   [4:26] "RT's Anastasia Churkina takes a look at events that shaped 2011 -- the Arab Spring, the Fukushima nuclear plant disaster, to the Wisconsin protests, to the to Occupy Wall Street movement -- and much more. [...]"  

Legal Case: "Money Saved at Misdiagnosed Vets' Expense" [01/01/12] "The Vietnam Veterans of America says the Pentagon has "systematically and wrongfully discharged" more than 22,000 veterans since 2001 "on the basis of so-called 'personality disorder'" - rather than post-traumatic stress disorder - to deny them medical care and save the Pentagon $12.5 billion in medical and disability payments. [...]"  

Commentary: "New Year Brings New Laws In California" [01/01/12] "... One of the most contentious issues was the ban on the open carrying of handguns, which put California in the minority of states that have adopted such restrictions. Some gun-rights advocates say the new law will not keep them from appearing in public with weapons that are not covered by the ban. "Law-abiding citizens will start openly carrying unloaded long guns in public because their basic and fundamental civil right to self-defense, as enumerated in the 2nd Amendment, is clearly being infringed upon,'' said Yih-Chau Chang, a spokesman for the firearms advocacy group Responsible Citizens of California. [...] Of 760 bills signed by California Gov. Jerry Brown in 2011, most take effect Jan. 1. Here are some highlights.[...] "

Internet: "Defining Words, Without the Arbiters" [01/01/12] "Traditional print dictionaries have long enlisted lexicographers to scrutinize new words as they pop up, weighing their merits and eventually accepting some of them.  Not Wordnik, the vast online dictionary. No modern-day Samuel Johnson or Noah Webster ponders each prospective entry there. Instead, automatic programs search the Internet, combing the texts of news feeds, archived broadcasts, the blogosphere, Twitter posts and dozens of other sources for the raw material of Wordnik citations, says Erin McKean, a founder of the company. Then, when you search for a word, Wordnik shows the information it has found, with no editorial tinkering. Instead, readers get the full linguistic Monty. “We don’t pre-select and pre-prune,” she said. “We show you what’s out there now. Then we let people decide whether to use a word or not.” [...]"  

MSM: "New DHS Headquarters Delayed 5 Years And $500 Million Over" [01/01/12] "The latest Congressionally-approved budget for DHS will delay the building of the agency’s new headquarters by at least five years and cost an additional $500 million. The latest Congressionally-approved budget for DHS will delay the building of the agency’s new headquarters by at least five years and cost an additional $500 million. Lawmakers allocated $56 million to complete the Coast Guard’s headquarters, but did not approve enough funds to continue work on other facilities that will eventually house DHS’s many agencies. Originally DHS had planned to consolidate its scattered campuses into a single building located at the former St. Elizabeth’s hospital in southeast Washington D.C. by 2016. Now with Congressional funding cuts, the project will not be completed until 2021 and cost $3.96 billion, more than $500 million over its initial cost of $3.45 million. [...]"  Note: Yeah, it will NEVER BE BUILT.

MSM: "Wikileaks “Spyfiles” Reveal Covert Surveillance Industry" [01/01/12] "Earlier this month WikiLeaks launched its latest campaign, releasing hundreds of documents that reveal the extent of sophisticated surveillance technology that has been used by both oppressive rulers and Western democracies; the more than 287 files expose the work of roughly 160 companies operating in twenty-five countries and their concerted effort to market technology that allow governments or law enforcement agencies to track and monitor individuals. [...]" 

MSM: "Domestic Use Of Drones Make Privacy Advocates Anxious" [01/01/12] "The age of Micro Air Vehicle (MAV) UAV is coming; for now, use of these types of drones for high-risk law enforcement purposes is rare, although the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) plans to implement new rules that would allow the routine flying of these drones across the United States by 2013; equipped with high-resolution, infrared and thermal-imaging cameras, these drones could provide police with the accurate monitoring of all types of civilian areas and topographies; privacy advocates worry [...]"  

Commentary:  "Rigged Elections: A Call for the Second American Revolution in 2012" [01/01/12] "A great battle is coming. The 2012 elections are our chance to turn the tide back toward real democracy, but we must begin immediately. Only by organizing for a democratic revolution now can we break the hold of corporate criminals over our elections and take real power in 2012, legitimately and nonviolently. [...]"