Puppet MastersS


Newspaper

Media organizations are buying drones and sending them to 'report' on crime scenes in the U.S.


RT
Tue, 11 Feb 2014 23:02 UTC
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© Reuters/Jean-Paul Pelissier
As federal regulators work on creating rules for integrating small unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, into US skies, some operators have chosen to get a head start. News-gathering drones are among those already testing the bounds of safe, ethical use.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has opened investigations into a small number of drones suspected of improper operation all while the agency works on permanent commercial guidelines that advance rules beyond the current remote-control-aircraft standard. One recent example stems from an incident earlier this month in Connecticut, where an on-call employee for a local television station was questioned by law enforcement for flying a drone over a Hartford car crash.

The wreck left a victim's body exposed amid a disfigured vehicle, police said.

"Here was a dead body still on the scene. We had covered it the best we could," said Lt. Brian Foley, a Hartford police spokesman, who also told AP the appearance of drones at crime scenes is increasing. "You don't want the family to see that."
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Phoenix

Explosion and fire at Chevron natural gas well in Pennsylvania (Video)

Ari Phillips
Think Progress
Tue, 11 Feb 2014 16:14 UTC
Image
© WXPI
At around 6:45 this morning a fire was reported at a Chevron natural gas well in Greene County, Pennsylvania, just north of the West Virginia border. As of early afternoon, one person had been injured and another was still missing, according to statements from the company.

Twenty workers were on the scene at the time of the fire. While Chevron did not initially know the cause of the blast, the fire chief on scene recently said it was caused by natural gas. According to Chevron spokeswoman Lee Ann Wainwright, the well was in the final stages of being put in production.
BREAKING: Attica Fire Chief says explosion was caused by natural gas. 2 blocks evacuated.
- Liz Gelardi (@LizGelardiFOX59) February 11, 2014
Video taken from a helicopter over the scene shows the flames engulfing drilling and processing equipment.

"State Rep. Pam Snyder, D-Jefferson, said state police have closed the roads around the well on Bald Hill Ridge Road in Dunkard Township," reported the local Observer-Reporter. "State Department of Environmental Protection spokesman John Poister said police have set up a half-mile perimeter around the well site following the explosion."
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Radar

'Hacker' viruses and DDoS attacks on websites actually come from covert cyber-intelligence unit within British GCHQ

RT/Polly Boyko
You Tube
Wed, 12 Feb 2014 00:00 UTC
Sending out viruses, hijacking social media accounts, and attacking computer networks. Those may sound like hackers' techniques, but they're also in the arsenal of Britain's spies, according to leaks from Edward Snowden. RT's Polly Boyko takes apart the tactics being used by GCHQ.
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Light Sabers

Moscow blames radicals for deadly clashes in Ukraine, EU leaders ponder sanctions against government


RT
Wed, 19 Feb 2014 07:55 UTC
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© Reuters / Sergei SupinskyAnti-government rioters clash with the police on Independence Square in Kiev early on February 19, 2014.
Moscow believes the deadly clashes in Kiev were an attempt at a coup by radicalized protesters. EU leaders have quite an opposite view, calling for sanctions against Ukrainian government officials.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Russia's Foreign Ministry described the violence in Ukraine as an attempt at a coup d'etat and a "brown" revolution, accusing European politicians and institutions of "refusing to admit that all of the responsibility for the actions of radical forces in Ukraine rests with the opposition."

"The Russian side is demanding the leaders on the streets to stop the violence in their country, immediately resume dialogue with the lawful government without threats and ultimatums," the statement reads.

The Kremlin has also interpreted the violence in Ukraine as a coup attempt. President Putin's spokesman said that "from the point of view of the Russian leadership", all of the responsibility for the bloodshed could be laid at the door of "the extremist forces."
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Bacon

Price of meat actually rose 23% in the U.S. in 2011, not 6% as reported by government

Robert Hoffman
Dayton News
Wed, 19 Feb 2014 04:00 UTC
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© American Flavors blogspot
Consumers, have you noticed the record high prices for meat and other staple items in the grocery store? All families continue to pay more of their disposable income for food products, putting hardship and difficulty on personal budgets. A larger portion of the family budget now pays for food costs leaving less money for personal use, college savings, and vacations.

Smart shoppers, carefully observing prices and evaluating portions, noticed several changes at the markets the past few years. Many food products and beverages now come in smaller sizes as manufacturers remain reluctant to raise prices. In addition, for the past several years, restaurants have lessened portion sizes rather than raise prices.

Although the U.S. government reportedly said food prices rose 6.4 percent since 2011, ground beef rose 16.8 percent, chicken rose 18.4 percent, and bacon rose a whopping 22.4 percent. The U.S. Department of Agriculture expects that beef will continue rising another 3-4 percent in 2014. In an economy struggling with high unemployment and prolonged recession, it truly remains appalling how prices can increase so much.

The government likes to blame the weather and drought for the rising prices. In addition, world demand for American products, especially China, increases the prices of these foods. Sometimes farmers will also state that their production costs have risen, and they must pass them to the consumer.
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Extinguisher

Maintaining myth they can actually do something about extreme weather, California lawmakers drafting legislation to prevent wildfires

Erin Kelly
USA Today
Wed, 19 Feb 2014 07:31 UTC
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© Jae C. Hong, APFirefighter Jeff Newby sprays water as he battles the flare-ups from a damaging wildfire on Jan. 17 near Azusa, Calif.
With record droughts fueling fears of devastating wildfires in the West, members of Congress from the region are trying to boost chronically underfunded federal fire prevention efforts.

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., has teamed up with Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, to offer a bill that would stop the vicious cycle of federal agencies raiding fire prevention funds to pay for emergency firefighting efforts.

The Wildfire Disaster Funding Act, which was also introduced in the House this month, would create a special disaster fund to fight huge "mega-fires", which make up about 1% of wildfires but use up 30% of fire suppression funds.

The funding change would free up as much as $412 million a year in the Forest Service and Interior Department budgets to prevent fires by thinning the overgrown tree stands and underbrush that fuel the blazes.
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Play

Psychopathic American leaders joke about dead veterans and children

Realist Report
Youtube
Tue, 04 Feb 2014 07:24 UTC
American political leaders of both parties are war mongering psychopaths. They do not care about you, your family, or the lives of innocent people. Watch as they laugh and make jokes about suffering and death. Warning: Graphic footage.

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Apple Red

U.S. House raises $17.2 trillion debt ceiling, no strings attached


RT
Wed, 12 Feb 2014 15:09 UTC
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© Alex Wong/Getty Images/AFPU.S. Speaker of the House Rep. John Boehner.
The US House of Representatives has agreed to raise the government's borrowing cap until March 2015, without specifying the exact limit. It's a huge shift as the bill was approved for the first time in three years with no conditions from Republicans.

The bill next goes to the Senate, where approval is expected from the Democratic majority.

The 221-220 vote was a landmark victory for Democrats, and will put an end to Washington's budget enmity, which led to a two week US government shutdown in January.

Raising the debt ceiling, an action Republicans have fought against staunchly for three years, means the US will increase the $17.2 trillion borrowing limit and be able to meet promised financial obligations.

Republican House Speaker John Boehner promised the February 27 technical default deadline, set by Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, would be met in good faith.

The vote was "a positive step in moving away from the political brinkmanship that's a needless drag on our economy," White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a statement after the vote.
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Laptop

Bitcoin exchanges suspend conversions as hacker attack intensifies

Charles Arthur
The Guardian
Wed, 12 Feb 2014 14:38 UTC
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© Ted Soqui/ Ted Soqui/CorbisBitcoin's value has plunged as the attack has intensified.
Moves follow crackdowns by China and Russia on use of the cybercurrency amid fears over criminal use

Three online exchanges for the bitcoin virtual currency have suspended conversions into state-backed currencies, saying they are under attack from hackers suspected of trying to create fraudulent transactions.

The value of the currency has plunged as the attack has intensified, from $926 on 5 February to $530 on 12 February on MtGox, one of the affected exchanges. Bitstamp, based in Slovenia, and BTC-e, in Bulgaria, also halted withdrawals indefinitely on Wednesday as they came under attack.

The moves follow crackdowns by China in December and Russia last week on use of the cybercurrency, which some authorities fear could be used for money laundering, funding terrorism or tax evasion.
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Attention

Global capitalism has written off human race

Paul Craig Roberts
Press TV
Wed, 19 Feb 2014 07:08 UTC
Capitalism is over
© Unknown

Economic theory teaches that free price and profit movements ensure that capitalism produces the greatest welfare for the greatest number. Losses indicate economic activities where costs exceed the value of production, thus investment in these activities is curtailed.

Profits indicate economic activities where the value of output exceeds its cost, thus investment increases. Prices indicate the relative scarcity and value of inputs and outputs, thus serving to organize production most efficiently.

This theory doesn't work when the US government socializes cost and privatizes profits as it has been doing with the Federal Reserve's support of "banks too big to fail" and when a handful of financial institutions have concentrated much economic activity. Subsidized "private" banks are no different from the former publicly subsidized socialized industries of Great Britain, France, Italy, and the former communist countries. The banks have imposed the costs of their incompetence, greed, and corruption on taxpayers. Indeed, the socialized firms in England and France were more efficiently run and never threatened the national economies, much less the entire world, with ruin as do the private US "banks too big to fail." The English, French, and communists never had to print $1,000 billion dollars annually to save a handful of corrupt and incompetent financial enterprises.
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