Puppet MastersS


Eye 1

Glenn Greenwald: NSA stores data to target any citizen at any time


RT
Tue, 29 Oct 2013 11:20 UTC
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The current revelations on the NSA's spying are just the tip of the iceberg and affect "almost every country in the world," said Glenn Greenwald. He stressed the NSA stores data for "as long as it can," so they can target a citizen whenever they want.

Glenn Greenwald, the man behind the reports on the NSA global spy program, spoke to El Mundo journalist German Aranda and stressed that the US espionage activities went much further than just Europe.

"There are a lot of countries, and journalists in a lot of different countries, who have been asking for stories and to work on documents for a long time," Greenwald said. He added that he was working as fast as possible to "make sure that all of these documents get reported in every single country there are documents for, which is most countries in the world."

Shedding light on the NSA's motives in compiling metadata on citizens, he said the spy organization's main aim was to store the information to be able to dip into it whenever necessary.

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Dollars

U.S. debt jumps a record $328 billion in one day - debt now over $17 trillion

Kristin Tate
benswann.com
Fri, 18 Oct 2013 11:12 UTC
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On Thursday, the United States debt spiked $328 billion, setting a new record. Our debt has now officially surpassed $17 trillion.

The previous high of $238 billion was set two years ago.

The Washington Times reports that the sudden increase can be attributed to the government's "replenishing its stock of 'extraordinary measures' - federal funds it borrowed from over the last five months as it tried to avoid bumping into the debt ceiling."

Since May, the federal debt barely increased, staying right around $16.7 trillion. But Congress's recent deal, which went into effect on Wednesday, completely suspended the government's borrowing limit.

When the debt ceiling increased on Wednesday, the Treasury Department was subsequently able to refund pensions and programs that had been unfunded since May.
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Stormtrooper

Israeli planes strike Syrian military base, U.S. official says

Barbara Starr
CNN
Fri, 01 Nov 2013 10:06 UTC

Israeli warplanes struck a military base near the Syrian port city of Latakia this week, an Obama administration official told CNN on Thursday.

An explosion at a missile storage site in the area was reported in the Middle Eastern press, but an attack has not been confirmed by the Israeli government.

The target, according to the Obama administration official, was missiles and related equipment the Israelis felt might be transferred to the Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah. The official declined to be identified because of the sensitive nature of the information.
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Vader

U.S. federal court blocks NYPD 'stop-and-frisk' ruling, says it was 'unconstitutional', removes judge from case

Adam Gabbatt
The Guardian
Thu, 31 Oct 2013 21:56 UTC
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Federal court says Shira Scheindlin showed appearance of bias when she ruled that stop-and-frisk was unconstitutional.

A federal appeals court has blocked a judge's ruling that demanded changes to the New York police department's controversial stop-and-frisk policy and ordered she be removed from the case.

In a victory for the outgoing mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg, the court said Shira Scheindlin's ruling, in which she declared the practice to be unconstitutional, would be stayed pending the outcome of an appeal by the city.
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Star of David

U.S. official confirms Israel attack on Syria


BBC News
Fri, 01 Nov 2013 08:09 UTC

Comment: Imagine the outcry if Syria had attacked Israel under the suspicion that it was training and providing weapons to the so-called 'Syrian rebels'.

In this twisted world, some countries have a license to kill and Israel is at the top of the list.

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Star of David

Simon Cowell gave IDF a sum thought to be in the region of £150,000

Gilad Atzmon
gilad.co.uk
Fri, 25 Oct 2013 09:52 UTC
Simon Cowell
© UnknownSimon Cowell donated an estimated £150,000 to the IDF
The Jewish Chronicle reports today that music mogul Simon Cowell has boosted the Israeli Army with a sizeable donation at a gala dinner in Los Angeles.

The "X Factor" chief gave a sum thought to be in the region of £150,000 at the annual fundraising event hosted by the American Friends of the IDF.

The event was hosted by ultra Zionist Power Rangers creator Haim Saban, who pledged to donate $1 million if Mr Cowell joined him to sing the show's theme song, "Go, Go Power Rangers".

Mr Cowell did break into song, but quickly said he would make a donation himself if Mr Saban allowed him to stop.
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Star of David

Israeli lawyers group Shurat HaDin exposed as Mossad proxy

Asa Winstanley
Electric Intifada
Thu, 24 Oct 2013 23:06 UTC
AIPAC
© Jeff Haynes / Agence France Presse
The director of a supposedly independent group of Israeli lawyers privately admitted to a US embassy official it acted as a proxy for the Israeli government, a leaked US embassy cable shows.

Nitsana Darshan-Leitner confided in 2007 that her Shurat HaDin group in the past "took direction ... on which cases to pursue" and still "receives evidence" from the Mossad and from Israel's National Security Council.

This is in direct contradiction to public claims, such as on its website which states it is a "fully independent" organization "unaffiliated with any political party or governmental body."

The group has fought several high-profile "lawfare" cases against Palestine solidarity activists around the world in recent years.

Mossad lead

The leaked cable was unearthed by lobbying transparency outfit SpinWatch in an article earlier this month. It was one of the US embassy cables leaked by former US soldier Chelsea (formerly Bradley) Manning in 2010 and published by WikiLeaks in 2011.

The cable's author quotes Darshan-Leitner as explaining the government's rationale for using a proxy rather than going to local courts directly: "The National Security Council (NSC) legal office saw the use of civil courts as a way to do things that they are not authorized to do."

"Among her contacts, Leitner listed Udi Levy at the NSC and Uzi Beshaya at the Mossad, both key [US] Embassy contacts on anti-terrorist finance cooperation," wrote the unnamed official who apparently authored the cable after meeting with Leitner in 2007.

The NSC is an Israeli military planning body led by generals and other senior military figures - including top Mossad figures.

At the time of the cable was written, the NSC's head was Ilan Mizrahi, a former deputy chief of Mossad.

Nitsana Darshan-Leitner and Shurat HaDin did not reply to an email sent yesterday seeking comment on the issues raised in this article.
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Dollar

Modern slavery: Gullah-Geechee people of Sapelo Island, Georgia being forced off by 600% property tax hike

Rich Phillips
CNN
Wed, 30 Oct 2013 22:24 UTC
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Slave descendents fight tax hikes
It's a culture struggling to survive. Fewer than 50 people -- all descendants of slaves -- fear they may soon be taxed out of the property their families have owned since the days of slavery.

They are the Gullah-Geechee people of Sapelo Island off Georgia's coast, near Savannah. This small, simple community is finding itself embroiled in a feud with local officials over a sudden, huge increase in property assessments that are raising property taxes as much as 600% for some.

Many say the increase could force them to sell their ancestral properties.

"That's part of the American history. That's part of what built this country," said Charles Hall, 79, a retired U.S. Air Force colonel who was born under a midwife's care in the same home he lives in today.
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War Whore

France invades Mali for second time in a year

Sam Ball
France 24
Thu, 31 Oct 2013 22:16 UTC
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© AFP Photo/Frederic LafargueFrench soldiers man their positions while clashes erupt in the city of Gao on February 21, 2013
French, Malian and UN troops have begun a "large-scale" military operation aimed at preventing a resurgence of Islamist organisations in Mali, the French military said Thursday, following a recent upswing in violence in the West African country.

A "large-scale" military operation against jihadist forces in Mali has been launched by French, Malian and UN troops, a spokesman for the French armed forces said Thursday.

The operation aims to "avoid [a] resurgence" of "terrorist organisations" in the country, Colonel Gilles Jaron told reporters.

He said "several hundred" French soldiers were involved in the operation alongside Malian soldiers and members of the UN's MINUSMA mission, adding: "It is the first time we have seen forces of significant size working together."

France launched a military intervention in its former colony in January this year after Islamist forces exploited a rebellion by Tuareg separatists to seize control of the north of the country.

Comment: There are no 'Islamic extremists' in Mali. There are, however, U.S./French agents and special forces stirring up trouble so that France, on behalf of its corporate owners, can send in troops to keep the natives away from 'her' uranium and gold mines.

The War in Mali and AFRICOM's Agenda: Target China

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Sheriff

Alabama deputies beat, arrest corruption-fighting reporter

Andrew Kreig
Justice Integrity Project
Fri, 25 Oct 2013 21:30 UTC
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The prominent investigative blogger Roger Shuler was arrested and beaten by Shelby County sheriff's deputies in his Alabama garage upon returning home the evening of Oct. 23.

Shuler faces charges stemming from his refusal to obey a judge's order to stop writing about an alleged affair involving Robert Riley Jr., an attorney who is part of Alabama's most prominent political family.

Shuler is at right in a jail mug shot showing his swollen face after his beating and attack with MACE in his garage. Authorities in his county south of Birmingham held him on two contempt of court charges and one for resisting arrest. A judge refused to set bond on the contempt charges, thereby enabling authorities to hold Shuler for an undetermined period that could be many months at the judge's discretion. His bond was $1,000 for the resisting arrest charge.

Update Oct. 31, PM: As of this writing, Shuler remained in jail, and his wife was barricaded in their home, fearing every knock on the door might be authorities trying to arrest her for her husband's writing and refusal to remove it from his website. A news blackout remained through virtually all of the mainstream media. The first major Alabama news coverage appeared on a web blog at 6 p.m. Oct. 29 under the headline, Truth-teller or bomb-thrower? OpEdNews editor Joan Brunwasser earlier published an interview with me: Andrew Kreig: Alabama Journalist Roger Shuler Beaten and Arrested! A sympathetic reader of these reports dropped off enough food to last for several days, and another prevented a utility shut-off. Also, more than $1,000 has been contributed to a fund for potential legal expenses, including $200 from our Justice Integrity Project.
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