Society's ChildS


Vader

Watchlist report shows how Obama administration easily marks individuals as terrorists without any concrete proof

airport homeland security
© AFP Photo / Getty Images / John Moore
A never-before-published document released by The Intercept on Wednesday reveals the flexibility with which United States officials may place individuals on watchlists and deem them terrorists without obtaining concrete proof.

The 166-page document, the "March 2013 Watchlisting Guidance," suggests that the US government relies on "a secret process that requires neither 'concrete facts' nor 'irrefutable evidence' to designate an American or foreigner as a terrorist," journalists Jeremy Scahill and Ryan Devereaux wrote this week.

According to an excerpt of the lengthy but unclassified document, the guideline was "developed to help standardize the watchlisting community's nomination and screening process," which federal agencies implement when encountering persons that officials may believe are linked to terroristic activity.

The document suggests that those officials have a wide breadth with regards to evaluating suspects, however, and that one White House official even has the power to unilaterally place "entire categories" of people onto lists that may bar those individuals from traveling by air. The Obama administration, the journalists claim, "quietly approved a substantial expansion" of the list last year, allowing more individuals to be targeted than before with less evidence than before.

Comment: The ruling psychopaths are stealthily herding the populace into ever more control - they are evidently very frightened of normal human beings who might at any time begin to awaken and actually resist.

We're all terrorists: Secret Government can label anyone a terrorist without facts or evidence
875,000 left in bureaucratic black hole that is U.S. terror watchlist system
US 'No-Fly' List of Suspected Terrorists Doubles in 12 Months
FBI adds people to No Fly List for refusing to become informants
Boo! When the going gets tough, the president talks terror, terror, terror


X

New York rated as least happy city in America

new york city
People living in the Big Apple are in rotten moods more often than people in other cities, according to a new study.

New York City was ranked the least happy city in America when adjusted for income, according to a working study, titled "Unhappy Cities," released by the National Bureau of Economic Research.

The study leaned on a questionnaire that has been administered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for the last several years and asks respondents: "In general, how satisfied are you with your life?"

The study ranked those self-reported answers and adjusted them for income, housing prices, age and other factors that might influence how happy a place could be.

It was also found that new residents were just as happy - or unhappy - as older respondents, which the study's authors said suggested that happiness trends are sustained over time.

It also found that people were willing to trade happiness for better wages or lower housing costs.

Comment: Perhaps the daily grind of living on an island with millions of other struggling individuals accounts for the grim mood of New Yorkers. No doubt this is exacerbated by the fact that New York is dominated by Wall Street and is where evidence of the rule by the 1% is most striking.


Treasure Chest

Economic impact of sanctions on Russia like peanuts say Russian ministers

Andrei Belousov
Andrei Belousov, the Kremlin's top economic adviser, denied Russia's economic growth had been dampened by sanctions.
Russian officials on Wednesday lined up to dismiss the economic impact of Western sanctions imposed for Moscow's role in the Ukraine crisis, saying they were "peanuts" compared to what their country had to face during Soviet times.

In a show of unity a day after an ally of President Vladimir Putin warned that Russia's anti-Western rhetoric could derail the economy, ministers said growth had not been dampened by the sanctions which include measures against some major companies.

The economy is on the brink of a recession as a result of the sanctions and a broader risk aversion towards emerging markets that have sent equities and the rouble tumbling and spurred nearly $75 billion in capital flight so far this year.

"The sanctions in their current format don't have a macroeconomic effect," Andrei Belousov, the Kremlin's top economic adviser, told journalists.

Comment: The Russians are well aware that the sanctions are more likely to negatively impact Europe:

Is it worth it? Sanctions against Russia affect quarter of German exporters
Association of European Businesses: U.S. sanctions will hurt Europe
Russian sanctions? You Must be Joking! Russia Holds All the Cards!
Russia dismisses sanctions, knows energy needs will weaken EU resolve


Airplane

MH17 victim bodies arrive home in Netherlands; no sign of tampering with black boxes say investigators

Kharkiv airport
© AFP Photo / Sergei BobokFlowers lay on the tarmac as a ground Hercules transport aircraft of the Royal Dutch Airforce, carrying bodies from downed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 prepares to take off from Kharkiv airport on July 23, 2014.
The bodies of the first victims from Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 have arrived back in the Netherlands following the crash in eastern Ukraine last Thursday. Investigators say they have found no evidence that the black box recorder was tampered with.

The Dutch Safety Board said it took charge of the international investigation, adding that the "cockpit voice recorder was damaged but the part that contains the data was intact, nor was there any evidence or indication that [it] had been manipulated."

The authority said it would coordinate a team of 24 investigators from Ukraine, Malaysia, Russia, Germany, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). It added that four Dutch investigators are currently operating in Ukraine.

The board says it will now work on assessing the information it has downloaded from the black box, a process which will need more time. It said the examination of the airliner's other black box, the flight data recorder, would start on Thursday.

Experts have been downloading data from the Boeing 777's voice and data recorders at Britain's Air Accidents Investigation Branch since anti-Kiev militia forces, who control crash sites in eastern Ukraine, handed them over early on Tuesday.

The body said it would also conduct separate investigations into the decision-making processes behind flight routes and the availability of passenger lists.

"Despite the fact that evidence and traces have been damaged or lost, the Dutch Safety Board expects it will be able to gather sufficient relevant information from the crash site," the board said.

2 + 2 = 4

Grammar is important: Outrage over AP tweet saying plane with bodies 'from Flight 17 crash lands in Eindhoven'

Eindhoven airport
© Reuters/Toussaint KluiterCoffins of the victims of Malaysia Airlines MH17 downed over rebel-held territory in eastern Ukraine, are carried from an aircraft during a national reception ceremony at Eindhoven airport July 23, 2014.
The Associated Press Twitter account took heat across the social media site Wednesday morning when it blasted out an errantly-worded tweet announcing supposed "breaking" news regarding the transport of Flight MH17 crash victims.

The crash of the airliner last week with 298 passengers aboard has only exacerbated the row between the US, European powers, and Russia over the developing situation in eastern Ukraine. Thus, AP was entering touchy territory.
The tweet caused widespread confusion on Twitter based on its wording: Did "crash lands" mean a new crash occurred or was it just awkward phrasing that marked the landing of the plane carrying crash victims?

MIB

Journalists and bloggers could be labeled terrorists under Britain's overly broad anti-terrorism legislation

UK Parliament
© Reuters / Andrew WinningHouses of Parliament
British journalists who publish politically motivated content could be labeled terrorists if UK authorities deem the material to be a threat to public safety, according to Britain's counter-terrorism watchdog.

In his annual report published on July 22, the UK's Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation David Anderson QC emphasized the UK's anti-terror laws were simply too broad. His comprehensive review was presented to parliament by Britain's Home Secretary on Tuesday morning.

Anderson references the case of David Miranda - the spouse of journalist Glenn Greenwald, who was first contacted by Edward Snowden regarding the NSA leaks - as an example of how British authorities' scope to enforce anti-terrorism laws is problematic.

By validating state authorities' treatment of Miranda, Britain's legal system "highlighted the remarkable (and some would say alarming) breadth of the UK's current definition of terrorism," the watchdog stated.

While anti-terror legislation gives British authorities the leverage needed to tackle Al-Qaeda and far-right extremists, these powers should be used sparingly, retained only for their proper purpose, Anderson cautions.

Comment: The PTB worldwide are desperate to maintain control of the masses, and are likely intentionally attempting to criminalize any activities that they see as threatening their power base.

Terrorists "R" Us
Authoritarian regimes (like the U.S. and Britain) treat reporters like terrorists
Journalists and anti-vax campaigners could be considered terrorists under UK Law
Shocking: Reporting factory farm abuses to be considered "Act of Terrorism" if new laws pass


Hourglass

He's sad and too hot: Polar bear continues to suffer in Argentina

Image
© getty
A polar bear in an Argentinian zoo will remain in the hot South American country despite a petition requesting he be moved to Canada. The appeal was signed by more than half a million people.

The petition on the Change.org website asks that Argentinian President Christina Fernandez allow the bear, who is called Arturo, to be relocated to a zoo in Canada. As of Tuesday, it had more than 600,000 signatures.

Arturo's friends include former US House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

"If you love animals the way I do, please sign the petition to help the Argentinian polar bear, Arturo. His current living condition is very sad, and he deserves to be saved," wrote Gingrich on his Facebook page.

The bear paces nervously in his concrete enclosure and animal rights advocates say he suffers from depression.

Campaigners have dubbed Arturo "the world's saddest animal," and have found him a new home at a zoo in Winnipeg, Mantitoba, Canada.

Chess

France defies US and UK by agreeing to deliver Mistral warships to Russia

mistral warship
© Reuters / Stephane MaheThe Mistral-class helicopter carrier Vladivostok is seen at the STX Les Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard site in Saint-Nazaire, western France
France will go ahead with the delivery of the first of two Mistral warships to Russia - despite protests by the US and UK, prompted by Moscow's stance in the Ukrainian crisis. The ship is nearly completed and will be presented in October.

French President Francois Hollande said the plan to deliver the two Mistral helicopter carriers was made in Paris and will go forward despite calls from the US and UK.

"The Russians have paid. Should we repay 1.1 billion euros if the boat was not delivered to the purchaser?" he asked while speaking to reporters late on Monday - the night before EU foreign ministers are to meet in Brussels to discuss tougher sanctions on Russia over the Ukrainian crisis.

"For the time being, a level of sanctions has not been decided on that would prevent this delivery," he said. "The contract was signed in 2011, the boat is almost finished and should be delivered in October."

Attention

Children escape unhurt from bus that crashed in ditch in Norfolk Virginia

A10 closure Norfolk
© Reuters / Regis Duvignau
A coach carrying 42 school children crashed into a ditch in Norfolk on Tuesday morning, overturning on the A10.

Although there were no casualties, the driver sustained back injuries and had to be cut out of the vehicle. He was subsequently taken to Kings Lynn Hospital.

Another child was also transferred to hospital as a result of an ongoing medical condition, according to East England Ambulance Service. Emergency services were alerted of the accident at 11 a.m. local time, following reports of a coach crashing at Hilgay in Norfolk.

The passengers were on a day trip to the Norfolk coast.

The children, all of whom were protected by seat belts, are pupils at William Westley Primary School in Whittlesford, Cambridgeshire. All passengers except for the bus driver were able to leave the vehicle immediately, according to local police.

Pistol

Uhhh, duh! Texas man shoots self hitching up shorts in store: 'It's dangerous to stick a gun in your pants'

gun in pants
© Shutterstock
A Texas man was wounded Friday afternoon after accidentally shooting himself during a trip to a convenience store.

Police said Jason Bryant, who held a concealed carry permit, went into the store in Orange, where the gun discharged as he pulled up his shorts, reported the Longview News-Journal.

"He walked maybe six feet in the door when he pulled his shorts up, something caught the trigger and the gun discharged into his leg," said Chief Jim Vanover, of Orange police. "People immediately rushed over to help."

Another customer fashioned a tourniquet from a belt by the time emergency crews arrived, and Bryant was taken to an area hospital for treatment.

Vanover said the shooting could have been prevented by proper gun safety.

"If you're going to carry a gun it needs to be in a safe holster," Vanover said. "It's dangerous to stick a gun in your pants."

No one else was injured during the incident, which remains under investigation.

Bryant has not been charged in the negligent discharge.