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White House aid to Big Pharma: $1.1 billion needed to fight opioid addiction


RT
Wed, 03 Feb 2016 22:32 UTC
heroin injection
© Jose Luis Gonzalez / Reuters
President Barack Obama is seeking $1.1 billion in new funding to address opioid abuse and a heroin epidemic that has surged in states across America, the White House announced on Tuesday.

The administration will ask for the increase in spending to be spread over two years to expand access to treatment. The proposal, which the president will unveil in his budget recommendations next week, will be a significant boost in federal spending to battle the heroin addiction epidemic. The government is already spending $127 million on treatment programs this year.

If approved, the funding will help "ensure Americans who want treatment can get the help they need," said the White House.

Comment: Giving away more money to Big Pharma:

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Info

UN Special Envoy on Syria postpones Geneva talks for 3 weeks


Sputnik
Wed, 03 Feb 2016 22:27 UTC
Staffan de Mistura
© REUTERS/ Denis Balibouse
The intra-Syrian talks on crisis settlement have been postponed until February 25, UN Special Envoy on Syria Staffan de Mistura told reporters on Wednesday after a meeting with Syria opposition's High Negotiations Committee envoys in Geneva.
"I concluded that after the first week of talks, there is more work to be done...I am not prepared for talks for the sake of talks."

"I decided to bring a temporary pause to the talks. The next stage will take place on 25 of February."

"At this stage it is very important to give the opportunity to those who have been insisting that the talks should take place that they also address the issues that are pending and unresolved."

"Therefore I will be asking for the International Group for Syria Support to convene as soon as possible, hopefully already in Munich, and the Security Council to meet, and we reconvene in Geneva again on February 25th."
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Red Flag

Ukraine economic minister abruptly resigns, citing covert corruption


RT
Wed, 03 Feb 2016 22:21 UTC
Ukraine's Economy Minister Aivaras Abromavicius
© Valentyn Ogirenko / Reuters
Ukraine's Economy Minister Aivaras Abromavicius
Ukraine's minister for economic development and trade, Aivaras Abromavicius, who is one of several foreign experts in the government who was brought in to help Kiev with reforms, has announced his resignation, citing corruption levels in the state.

"Neither me, nor my team have any desire to serve as a cover-up for the covert corruption, or become puppets for those who, very much like the 'old' government, are trying to exercise control over the flow of public funds," Abromavicius said in his official statement on Wednesday.

His ministry's reform efforts have been "paralyzed" by the "concrete actions" of certain officials and groups, Abromavicius said, adding that he has been pressured by the president's administration to appoint "questionable individuals" to his team or to key positions in state-owned enterprises.

The minister namely mentioned Igor Kononenko as the one interfering with his work. Kononenko is a close ally of Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko, his deputy in the bloc in the Verkhovna Rada, as well as Poroshenko's old business partner.
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USA

Elizabeth Warren on US justice system: It's rigged in favor of corporations and executives who commit crimes

Zach Carter
Huffington Post
Wed, 03 Feb 2016 22:01 UTC
Elizabeth Warren
© CHIP SOMODEVILLA VIA GETTY IMAGES
US Senator Elizabeth Warren
In a scorching speech from the Senate floor on Wednesday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said the American criminal justice system is rigged in favor of the wealthy, and condemned new legislation that would make it harder to prosecute bank fraud.

"There are two legal systems," Warren said. "One for the rich and powerful, and one for everyone else."

Warren's office issued a report earlier this week documenting 20 cases in which federal officials had enough evidence against corporate malfeasance to issue fines. In most of the cases, companies were not even required to admit guilt. In only one case did a corporate offender go to jail -- Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship, who received a 3-month sentence over a mine disaster that killed 29 people.

"It's not equal justice when a kid gets thrown in jail for stealing a car, while a CEO gets a huge raise when his company steals billions," Warren said. "It's not equal justice when someone hooked on opioids gets locked up for buying pills on the street, but bank executives get off scot-free for laundering nearly a billion dollars of drug cartel money."

Comment: When a country is controlled by corporations, it should be no surprise that the laws are then created and used to protect those corporations. The US is just such a country, wholly controlled by corporate interests who buy their own politicians and then have those stooges introduce legislation meant to protect them from the harm they cause.

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Jet3

Russia destroyed over 1,300 terrorist targets in Syria over the past week


Sputnik
Mon, 01 Feb 2016 21:44 UTC
russia airstrikes syria
© Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation
Russian warplanes have carried out 468 sorties, destroying over 1,300 terrorist targets in eight Syrian provinces in one week, the Russian Defense Ministry said Monday.

"Over the past week, Russian warplanes carried out 468 sorties in the Syrian Arab Republic, including 24 combat missions conducted by long-range Tu-22M3 bombers," Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said.

According to the Russian Defense Ministry spokesman, 1,354 terrorist targets have been destroyed in Syria's provinces of Aleppo, Latakia, Hama, Homs, Damascus, Raqqa, Daraa and Deir ez-Zor.

Russian long-range aviation thwarted a terrorist offensive in Syrian city of Deir ez-Zor, Konashenkov said.

"Long-range bomber aircraft units supported the Syrian government troops defending the city Deir ez-Zor. Twenty three major terrorist targets were destroyed in the region as a result of airstrikes conducted by Tu-22M3 bombers flying in from Russia and task air force from the Hmeymim airbase. An attempt of a terrorist offensive in the Deir ez-Zor has been thwarted."
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Yoda

Silent and deadly: NATO becoming increasingly concerned over Russia's high tech submarines


Sputnik
Wed, 03 Feb 2016 21:38 UTC
russian sub
© JSC "PO "Sevmas
Top ranking NATO officials are becoming concerned with technologically advanced Russian submarines operating in the North Atlantic.

According to Vice Admiral Clive Johnstone, Commander of NATO's Maritime Command, his subordinates report "more activity from Russian submarines than we've seen since the days of the Cold War", HIS Jane's points out.

NATO is currently facing "a level of Russian capability that we haven't seen before," he added.

According to the vice admiral, Russia has managed to achieve "technology leaps that [are] remarkable, and credit to them" through "an extraordinary investment path not mirrored by the West." The new Russian submarines have better systems and longer operational ranges, he added.

Furthermore, it has become apparent that Russia has also worked hard on improving the expertise of its naval submarine crews, Dave Majumdar, the Defense Editor of The National Interest, remarks citing a report by the US Office of Naval Intelligence. As a result, NATO personnel have "seen a rise in professionalism and ability to operate their boats that we haven't seen before", Johnstone adds.

The current level of Russian submarine activity in the North Atlantic is "very different from the period of quiet submarine activity that perhaps we've seen in the past," Vice Admiral Johnstone concludes, claiming that "that is a concern."

Comment: While the US military has been for years focusing on developing objects of force such as bullets and bombs to attack large groups of innocent civilians, Russia has quietly been developing their technology to be able to attack and defend against any military in the world. The US should be concerned about how far their military has fallen behind Russia's, especially since they continue to poke the bear.

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Light Sabers

The golden triangle of Russia, China and Iran to drive the world away from US imperial control

F. William Engdahl
New Eastern Outlook
Wed, 03 Feb 2016 21:24 UTC
Rouhani and Xi
© AP Photo/ Ebrahim Noroozi
Sometimes profound tectonic shifts in the global politics arise from least noticed events. Such is the situation with Iran and the recent visit to Teheran of China's President Xi Jinping. What emerged from the talks confirms that the vital third leg of what will become a genuine Eurasian Golden Triangle, of nations committed to peaceful economic development, is now in place. Now Iran, Russia and China have all indicated a will to cooperate that has the potential to change the current Western course of wars and destruction in favor of peace and cooperation. Consider some aspects of recent events since lifting of economic sanctions on Teheran only days ago.

What emerges in the public announcements following talks between China's President and all top Iranian leaders from Prime Minister Rouhani to Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, merely hints at what is clearly a profound shift in the relations between China and Iran. On January 23, an official Chinese Xinhua news agency statement on Xi's Iran trip, the first by any Chinese leader in fourteen years, declared the visit will, "lift their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership." In Teheran the Chinese President noted, "China stands ready to work with Iran to seize the momentum and further elevate our relationship and practical cooperation, so as to usher in a new chapter for our ties featuring comprehensive, long-term and stable development."
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Blackbox

Kremlin: Putin to meet with former US State Secretary Kissinger


Sputnik
Wed, 03 Feb 2016 12:30 UTC
Putin
© Sputnik/ Alexei Druzhinin

Vladimir Putin is meeting with Henry Kissinger in Moscow on Wednesday, the Kremlin confirmed.

Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet on Wednesday with former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger in Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Comment: Oh, to be a fly on the wall during one of their conversations! Imagine: One of the last century's most genocidal political and elitist operatives Kissinger, meeting someone who is quite possibly the most astute, constructive and powerful world leaders of the last sixty years or so, Putin. What do they say to one another? Do they just pick each other's brains; each trying to understand the enemy better? Or do they share information that makes some attempt to stave off WWIII?

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Attention

Sinking ship: US federal debt surpasses $19 trillion for first time


RT
Wed, 03 Feb 2016 19:06 UTC
U.S. Capitol Dome in Washington
© Jonathan Ernst / Reuters
The United States federal debt has surpassed $19 trillion for the first time in history according to the Treasury Department. However, the real figure could exceed $65 trillion, according to a former US Comptroller General.

The official debt of $19 trillion represents almost $60,000 for every man, woman and child living in America today.

President Barack Obama took office with $10.8 trillion debt that has grown more than $8 trillion in seven years. And such a record tempo is likely to continue, according to the Congressional Budget Office, quoted by the Washington Times.

This equals an additional $70,000 in net federal borrowing for each of the 117,480,000 American households, according to Census Bureau estimates.
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Snakes in Suits

Whiny sore loser Trump accuses Cruz of stealing Iowa caucus


RT
Wed, 03 Feb 2016 18:31 UTC
Trump
© Jim Bourg / Reuters
After placing second in the Iowa Caucus, Donald Trump took to Twitter to blast the winner, Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), accusing him of committing fraud during the selection process. Trump called for the results to be "nullified."

The tirade began Wednesday morning, after the real estate magnate was hit with public mocking him for coming in second.

A previous ‒ and since-deleted ‒ tweet said Cruz "illegally stole" the caucus win.


Trump then laid out why he believes Cruz committed fraud during the caucuses, including releasing a statement that neurosurgeon Ben Carson was quitting the race and asking for the doctor's supporters to caucus for Cruz instead; sending out voter violation certificates; and claiming that Trump was strongly in favor of Obamacare and abortion.
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