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via Christopher Helman, Forbes Showing that it isn’t worried about the upswell of angst over hydraulic fracking technology, the Chinese government, through state-controlled Sinopec, today struck a deal with Devon Energy to buy into five prospective new exploration areas in the U.S. The deal, which includes $900 million in cash upfront and a promise of … Continue reading
via Jonathan Turley, The Guardian President Barack Obama rang in the New Year by signing the NDAA law with its provision allowing him to indefinitely detain citizens. It was a symbolic moment, to say the least. With Americans distracted with drinking and celebrating, Obama signed one of the greatest rollbacks of civil liberties in the … Continue reading
via Jennifer Lind, Foreign Affairs Pity Kim Jong Un. In one day, he lost his father and inherited the worst job in the world. Yes, pity is far more appropriately bestowed on the millions of victims of his scurrilous family (think just of the one to two million North Koreans who perished during the famine … Continue reading
via Monica Hesse, The Washington Post The scent inside this squat federal building is not fir or cinnamon, but it does have its own particular holiday aroma: cardboard Priority Mail envelopes and packing tape. Christmas at the post office. Possibly the one time of year when everybody still makes a pilgrimage here. Over a lunch … Continue reading
via Rafael Wober, AP, ABC News North Koreans marched by the thousands Monday to their capital’s landmarks to mourn Kim Jong Il, many crying uncontrollably and flailing their arms in grief over the death of their “Dear Leader.” North Korean state media proclaimed his youngest son, Kim Jong Un, a “Great Successor,” while a vigilant … Continue reading
via Tom Vanden Brook, USA Today The war in Iraq ended officially Thursday with a flag-lowering ceremony in which Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said a free, democratic Iraq was worth the sacrifice in American lives. “The cost was high — in blood and treasure for the United States and also for the Iraqi people,” Panetta … Continue reading
via Josh Gerstein, Politico President Barack Obama does not plan to veto a defense bill seeking to direct more terrorism suspects into military custody, the White House signaled Wednesday afternoon. White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said in a statement that changes lawmakers made to the legislation to accomodate White House concerns were sufficient to avoid a veto. The … Continue reading
via Charles C. Krulak and Joseph P. Hoar, The New York Times In his inaugural address, President Obama called on us to “reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals.” We agree. Now, to protect both, he must veto the National Defense Authorization Act that Congress is expected to pass this week. … Continue reading
via Kim Zetter, Wired The WikiLeaks submission system may still be incommunicado, but the secret-spilling site woke up on Thursday to release a trove of marketing documents from surveillance companies hawking their wares to governments — though many were previously published by the Wall Street Journal or were already publicly available on the web. The … Continue reading
via Ryan Teague Beckwith, Roll Call News The super committee has officially failed. In a joint news release, Joint Committee on Deficit Reduction Co-Chairmen Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) said they concluded today that they will not be able to make “any bipartisan agreement” public before the deadline. The brief statement was … Continue reading
via The AP, The Washington Post The leaders of a powerful Mexican cartel, frustrated that U.S. law enforcement was interfering with their lucrative drug business, plotted a military-style attack on a U.S. or Mexican government building to “send the gringos a message,” federal prosecutors allege in documents filed this week. Leaders of the Sinaloa cartel … Continue reading
via Richard Wolf, USA Today After spending less than 36 hours in Europe last week for a G-20 summit of world economic leaders, President Obama may wish he could run on his record for re-election here rather than back home. The stalled U.S. economy, his biggest political burden, is doing just fine by today’s European standards. His actions in … Continue reading
via Hayley Miller, The Huffington Post The Supreme Court may treat corporations like people who can spend whatever they want on elections, but the American people don’t have to accept it, said Democratic senators who proposed a constitutional amendment Tuesday to retake control of campaign spending. The amendment, introduced by Sen. Tom Udall (D-N.M.), doesn’t … Continue reading
via Thom Shanker and Steven Lee Myers, The New York Times The Obama administration plans to bolster the American military presence in the Persian Gulf after it withdraws the remaining troops from Iraq this year, according to officials and diplomats. That repositioning could include new combat forces in Kuwait able to respond to a collapse of security in Iraq … Continue reading
via Rmuse, Politicus USA A little over a year ago the Supreme Court of the United States made a controversial ruling that says corporate funding of independent political broadcasts in candidate elections cannot be limited. The case known as Citizens United v Federal Election Commission allows corporations to use their general funds to buy campaign ads that … Continue reading
via Mark Engler, Common Dreams A month after it began with a few hundred people marching on Wall Street, the #Occupy movement has grown to include tens of thousands of participants throughout the country and has captured headlines around the world. If it has not yet succeeded beyond its wildest dreams, that’s only because its participants … Continue reading
via Glenn Thrush and Dan Hirschhorn, Politico President Barack Obama marked the end of the Iraq War last week, but he left it to Hillary Rodham Clinton — whose support for the unpopular war in 2003 ultimately helped lift Obama to the White House — to answer tough post-withdrawal questions Sunday. The Secretary of the … Continue reading
via Nouriel Roubini, Project-Syndicate This year has witnessed a global wave of social and political turmoil and instability, with masses of people pouring into the real and virtual streets: the Arab Spring; riots in London; Israel’s middle-class protests against high housing prices and an inflationary squeeze on living standards; protesting Chilean students; the destruction in … Continue reading
via Vernea Dobnik, AP/The Huffington Post The Occupy Wall Street movement, which has spawned grass-roots activities around the U.S. and prompted comments from President Barack Obama, is now drawing political remarks from overseas. Poland’s former President Lech Walesa says he supports the Occupy Wall Street movement in New York, saying he is planning either a … Continue reading
via Gawker Occupy Wall Street and its satellite movements have their first show of corporate support: Ben and Jerry’s, the Vermont-based ice cream purveyor and a subsidiary of the Unilever corporation, posted a statement of solidarity on their website. Beneath an illustration of a cow holding a sign that says, “Occupy,” it reads: To those … Continue reading
Don’t Quit, 99%. Get Louder. Occupy Every Street. United States Alabama Occupy Auburn Occupy Birmingham Occupy Huntsville Occupy Mobile Occupy Tuscaloosa Alaska Occupy Alaska Occupy Anchorage Arizona Occupy Arizona Occupy Flagstaff Occupy Phoenix Occupy Prescott Occupy Sedona Occupy Tempe Occupy Tucson Occupy Yuma Arkansas Occupy Arkansas Occupy Fayetteville Occupy Little Rock California Occupy Arcata Occupy … Continue reading
via Radly Balko, The Huffington Post The House Judiciary Committee passed a bill Thursday that would make it a federal crime for U.S. residents to discuss or plan activities on foreign soil that, if carried out in the U.S., would violate the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) — even if the planned activities are legal in … Continue reading
via Don Hazen and Colin Greer, Alternet Author and public intellectual Colin Greer tells us how we got where we are today. It’s not a pretty picture, but hope is on the way. At this moment, there are growing protests on Wall Street in Manhattan, in Boston at the Bank of America, and in cities around … Continue reading
This June the United Nation Human Rights Council narrowly passed its first-ever resolution calling for universal gay rights with the support of more than 80 countries. It was an historic milestone, a global recognition that gay rights and human rights were finally synonymous, at least on paper, here in New York at the world body. … Continue reading
As al-Qaeda’s military capabilities have declined, it has become increasingly dependent on its message to stay in the global spotlight, a strategy undermined by the death of one of its chief propagandists , terrorism experts say. Propaganda has long been a priority of al-Qaeda and its affiliates, but its role has grown in prominence. “It … Continue reading
The Brandt Standard 