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Suicided? French-Israeli entrepreneur Thierry Leyne - partner in Strauss-Kahn's new investment bank - 'throws himself from Tel aviv window'

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Thierry Leyne, the French-Israeli entrepreneur who last year started an investment firm with disgraced former International Monetary Fund Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn, committed suicide on Thursday by jumping out of his Tel Aviv apartment, Le Figaro reported. He was 49.

Last year, Leyne and Strauss-Kahn started the Paris-traded firm Leyne, Strauss-Kahn & Partners, after Kahn had bought a 20 percent stake to help develop the investment-banking franchise of Leyne's company, Luxembourg-based Anatevka SA.

Leyne had taken Anatevka public in March 2013 before partnering with Strauss-Kahn.

The new partnership was part of Strauss-Kahn's efforts to revive his career after he was charged in 2011 of criminal sex, attempted rape, sexual abuse, unlawful imprisonment and the forcible touching of a chambermaid in a Manhattan hotel.

Strauss-Kahn denied the charges, which were later dropped. He settled the maid's lawsuit in 2012.

Comment: Sure, nothing suspicious about this death, which happened just several hours before another banker's suicide. And nothing strange about the fact, that Thierry Leyne was Strauss-Kahn's partner.

Wow, somebody sure has it in for DSK, first trumped-up rape charges, now this.

"Honey Traps" and the Strauss-Kahn Affair: A Stealthy Coup d'état at the IMF?


Star of David

Exodus to Berlin: Thousands of young Israelis flee Zionism

israeli exodus
A growing exodus of young Israelis to Berlin has not only shocked Israel's far right leadership but has highlighted the growing disillusionment with Zionism among Israel's younger generation.

As Israeli commentators noted, the trend would encourage the late Israeli leader, Yitzhak Rabin to turn in his grave. He once described those who fled Israel as a "cascade of wimps" and a "fallout of cowards." Ravit Hecht, a columnist with Israel's oldest daily newspaper, Ha'aretz, has blamed ultranationalists for the exodus, and there may well be substance to her claim. "Berlin is a lovely city, but it is sucking away all the forces that we desperately need here, especially now," she wrote. Of course, it's not Berlin that's doing the sucking, but Israel, in a different sense of the word.

Comment: They are right to see no future in an extremely ponerized society. Good on them for getting out while they still can. See also:

Israel: A cornered rat

Israel's Jewish Exodus

BBC Poll: Israel's global image plummets


Arrow Down

South Carolina police impose checkpoints, deploy drones at high school football game

Scan
© WCIVAt the entrance to a Summerville High School football game, police officers scan fans with metal detectors and examine personal belongings in a bin.
Summerville - Fans were startled by the heavy presence of police officers, drone surveillance, and warrantless checkpoints upon entry at the local high school football game.

The prison-like security at Summerville High School was called "the reality of the world we live in today." As students and fans filed into the homecoming football game on Friday, October 24th, 2014, they were forced to place their belongings in a bin for police examination, then walk through a metal detector. Stadium-goers were restricted from bringing certain items into the stands.

"It is very scary to come here tonight," said Summerville resident said Ann Almers to WCIV. "It's such a change, I've been coming to the stadium for so many years. Now we have armed guards. I couldn't carry my purse, I forgot my phone. I'm a little out of sorts."

Fans also were quick to notice the conspicuous presence of police officers mixed among the crowd and perched on the rooftops, surveillance drones whirring overhead, and even SWAT team members ready for action.

Alarm Clock

Thirty jaw-dropping U.S. domestic violence statistics

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© PressTVSelf-portraits taken by Angela Brower, 37, from Tennessee after her ex-partner punched and beat her.
The number of American troops killed in Afghanistan and Iraq between 2001 and 2012 was 6,488. The number of American women who were murdered by current or ex male partners during that time was 11,766. That's nearly double the amount of casualties lost during war.

Women are much more likely to be victims of intimate partner violence with 85 percent of domestic abuse victims being women and 15 percent men. Too many women have been held captive by domestic violence -- whether through physical abuse, financial abuse, emotional abuse or a combination of all three.

We are inundated with news stories about domestic violence, from athletes beating their significant others in public elevators or in their own homes to celebrities publicly abusing their girlfriends. This problem is not one that will go away quickly or quietly.

As Domestic Violence Awareness Month comes to an end, discussions about intimate partner abuse and its horrible repercussions should not. In an attempt to illustrate the gravity of abuse all genders (but largely women) face in the U.S., we rounded up 30 statistics on domestic violence.

Domestic violence is not a singular incident, it's an insidious problem deeply rooted in our culture -- and these numbers prove that.

3: The number of women murdered every day by a current or former male partner in the U.S.

38,028,000: The number of women who have experienced physical intimate partner violence in their lifetimes.

Comment: If you need help read How to Spot A Dangerous Man Before You Get Involved and Women Who Love Psychopaths by Sandra Brown, M.A.

Also see our discussion on the Forum here. You can also listen to the SOTT editors' interview with Sandra Brown here.


Arrow Up

France unemployment rate hits new record

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© AFP
Jobless rate in France has hit an all-time high for September, with official statistics showing nearly 3.5 million people have claimed unemployment benefits, Press TV reports.

According to figures released by the French Labor Ministry on Friday, unemployment has witnessed a 0.6-percent rise since last month, hitting a new record high of 3.43 million.

The new figures came after a modest 0.3 rise in the European country's jobless rate in August.

"Let's be honest, we are failing," French Labor Minister Francois Rebsamen told Le Parisien newspaper.
Critics say the harsh austerity measures adopted by the French government have consigned many citizens to unemployment."The economic and social policies of the government not only do not work, but they directly attack the economic wellbeing and rights of the average citizens. This has also led to political crisis because the government is losing its legitimacy day after day," Pierra Khalfa, with the Paris-based Copernic Foundation, told Press TV.
France, Europe's second-biggest economy, is grappling with political and economic crises, which are seen as the worst since French President Francois Hollande took power in May 2012.

Attention

Texas man throws dog at Starbucks window after being banned

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© KHOU-TV, HoustonStarbucks the chihuahua
Larry McHale charged with animal cruelty for allegedly throwing a Chihuahua against a Starbucks window, breaking its leg.

A Houston man was charged with animal cruelty after he allegedly threw a 4-pound Chihuahua at a Starbucks window.

Witnesses said the man, Larry McHale, was causing a commotion around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday outside the Starbucks coffee shop, from which he had been banned the last three months.

One witness said McHale yelled and smashed a bottle on the ground.

"He harasses customers every time. He comes in and starts chaos," Starbucks manager Jasmine Hyder told KHOU-TV, Houston.

He then allegedly picked up a Chihuahua and threw it against the restaurant's window.

Pistol

Boy shot 9 times for laughing at neighbor

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© Family photoKobe Jones
Charges were pending for a man accused of shooting to death his 13-year-old neighbor in Gary, Indiana.

A Gary, Ind., man allegedly shot his 13-year-old neighbor nine times because the boy laughed at him.

Kobe Jones, 13, died Friday after he was shot multiple times while standing on his front porch, police said.

A neighbor, whose name wasn't released, had gone door-to-door trying to find out information about a burglary at his home while he was away. Kobe allegedly laughed at the man's misfortune when the man came to his house.

"I was told that my son was laughing and the guy shot him dead," Kobe's father, Kaunda Jones, said.

The suspect and his girlfriend were observed leaving the scene after the shooting and they were both arrested. Charges were still pending for the couple, who remain in police custody.

Info

The truth behind America's most famous 'gay-hate' murder

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© Steve Liss/The LIFE Images Collection/GettyA basket of flowers hangs from the fence where Matthew Shepard was left tied and beaten
Matthew Shepard's horrific death at the hands of redneck homophobes shocked America and changed its laws. Now a different truth is emerging, but does it matter?

The horrific killing of Matthew Shepard in 1998 is widely seen as one of the worst anti-gay hate crimes in American history. Matthew was beaten by two assailants, Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson. They pistol whipped him with a gun then tied him to a fence in freezing conditions and set fire to him before leaving him to die.

The attack became a cause célèbre: it precipitated a national backlash against hyper-macho culture and tacit tolerance of homophobia. As a result of Matthew's death, many good things have happened for the gay community. The play The Laramie Project has toured the US and many other countries, telling Matthew's story and encouraging campaigns against bigotry. Politicians and celebrities pledged support and funding to combat anti-gay hate crime. The Shepard family have become campaigners for gay rights. Judy and Dennis Shepard run the Matthew Shepard Foundation, which funds educational programmes and an online community for teens to discuss sexual orientation and gender issues. There have been numerous documentaries, dramas, books and events based on the story.

The men responsible for his death were convicted of first-degree murder and given two life sentences. They were not charged with a hate crime, as that wasn't possible under Wyoming's criminal law. But after lengthy wrangling in congress, President Obama finally signed the Matthew Shepard Act in 2009, a law which defined certain attacks motivated by victim identity as hate crimes.

But the Matthew Shepard story is not yet finished. A new twist came last year with the publication of another book, this one by investigative journalist Stephen Jimenez, who has spent 13 years interviewing more than 100 people with a connection to the case. His conclusion, outlined in The Book of Matt: Hidden Truths about the Murder of Matthew Shepard, is that the grotesque murder was not a hate crime, but could instead be blamed on crystal meth, a drug that was flooding Denver and the surrounding area at the time of Matthew's death. This new theory has, understandably, caused a lot of anger.

Evil Rays

New device tracks cop's gun usage, transmits to command in real time

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© Brandfolder.com/yardarm
Amid wide concerns over US police brutality, militarization and indiscriminate use of force against suspects, a new technology has emerged that will enable law enforcement to track down when a bullet was fired from a police gun.

The latest technological marvel developed and currently being tested by a Silicon Valley startup, Yardarm Technologies, is designed to keep track in real time and send a signal to the dispatchers when a gun is drawn from its holster and when it's fired. It can also track the trajectory of the shot as well as the location of the weapon.


"These events are transmitted in real-time to CAD or RTCC dashboards, allowing command to use this information to support officers in the field," the company says.


Comment: Translation: They have the power to amend, delete any information to their benefit.


The new technology is advertised and hailed as a life saver in situations when a police officer is in urgent need of backup but can't call for it, a situation dubbed the "worst nightmare" by those involved in testing of the scientific breakthrough.

"That's the worst nightmare for any police officer in the field," Santa Cruz County Sheriff Phil Wowak told AP.


Comment: The real nightmare is the police state we are living in and the murder of innocent people:
  • Police killed 77 people throughout the U.S. just in September

The technology relies on the Internet and requires an officer to carry a small device that the company says would fit in the handle of most police guns. A small sensor equivalent in weight to a bullet connects to the officer's smartphone using Bluetooth.

Comment: Feel safe, yet? Another tactic that will be used against the real enemy in a Police State: the people.


Attention

US: Returning Ebola healthcare workers made to feel like criminals, prisoners

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© Via MySpaceKaci Hickox (center)
An American nurse published a scathing account of her treatment after being put in isolation in the United States following a stint caring for Ebola patients in West Africa, saying she was made to feel like "a criminal."

Kaci Hickox was the first person to enter mandatory 21-day quarantine for medical staff returning to parts of the United States who may have had contact with Ebola patients in West Africa, the epicenter of the outbreak that has killed nearly 5,000 people.

The new rules took effect in New York and New Jersey on Friday, the same day Hickox returned.

"This is not a situation I would wish on anyone, and I am scared for those who will follow me," Hickox wrote in The Dallas Morning News, saying she was showing no symptoms when she arrived back in the United States.

"I am scared about how health care workers will be treated at airports when they declare that they have been fighting Ebola in West Africa. I am scared that, like me, they will arrive and see a frenzy of disorganization, fear and, most frightening, quarantine."

Hickox, who landed at New Jersey's Newark Liberty International Airport after working with Doctors Without Borders (MSF) in Sierra Leone, will be monitored at a hospital for 21 days, the known incubation period of Ebola.

Her account recalled the ordeal that began with her "grueling" two-day journey from Sierra Leone back to the United States.