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Thousands of California felons regain right to vote in 2017


RT
Thu, 29 Sep 2016 14:46 UTC
prisoners california
© Stephen Lam / Reuters
Despite protests from law enforcement, California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law the reinstatement of voting rights for felons who are not doing time in state or federal prisons. The law will go into effect in 2017.

Under the new bill, which Governor Brown signed Wednesday, anyone convicted of a felony, but who is not currently in state or federal prison or on parole, is allowed to vote, according to the Associated Press.

The bill, which reinstates voting rights for some felons, including county jail inmates, was authored by Assemblywoman Shirley Weber (D-San Diego) and State Senator Holly Mitchell (D-Culver City). Weber said California is setting an example at a time when other states are trying to limit voting rights.

"Civic participation can be a critical component of re-entry and has been linked to reduced recidivism," Weber said when the bill was introduced, according to KCBS.

Republican lawmakers said felons should not be allowed to cast ballots while serving a sentence, and State Senator Patricia Bates (R-Laguna Niguel) argued it compromised the integrity of elections.
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Heart - Black

Saudi princess allegedly 'abuses' Paris decorator, threatens 'kill the worthless dog' - man files complaint


RT
Thu, 29 Sep 2016 14:25 UTC
paris neighborhood, France saudi princess
© Rosine Mazin/Agence France-Presse
L'avenue Foch, in the 16e arrondissement in Paris.
A Saudi Arabian princess sparked a tsunami of angry remarks online, after it became known that she had allegedly made a Parisian decorator kiss her feet and told her bodyguards to "maim" and "kill" the worker.

The incident took place this past summer, but only became known to the public this week, after the victim of the alleged royal assault filed an official complaint with the French authorities.

The man, whose name also remains unknown, claims that he was invited to the princess's residence in the prestigious 16th district of Paris to do some basic redecorating, Le Point newspaper reported on Tuesday.

Upon arrival, the man started taking pictures of the room he was assigned to decorate, which is a standard procedure aimed at being able to return the furniture back to where it had been after the work is completed.

The princess, however, allegedly accused the decorator of planning to sell the pictures to the media and lost her temper. According to the victim, two of the royal's armed bodyguards grabbed him, tied his hands together, hit him in the head and made him kneel and kiss the woman's toes.

The decorator also said the princess ordered them to "kill the dog, he does not deserve to live," referring to the man.

Comment: The arrogance of the 1% in its most crude form. Feudal times are upon us.

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Stormtrooper

'Military-style' armed police arrest over 20 Dakota Access protesters


RT
Thu, 29 Sep 2016 14:05 UTC
Protestors
More than 20 people were arrested at a Dakota Access pipeline construction site Wednesday, amid ongoing protests against the four-state $3.7 billion project. North Dakota police reportedly handled the rally with "military-style" equipment and armored vehicles.

Ninety-five people have now been arrested, as dozens of people continue their actions to overturn the pipeline construction.

Law enforcement officials claim the arrests were made for criminal trespass on private property, possession of stolen property and resisting arrest.

Comment: Facebook censoring Dakota Access pipeline livestream protests

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USA

Is your nation the exceptional one?

Rob Slane
TheBlogMire
Tue, 27 Sep 2016 13:25 UTC
exceptional nation
With almost 200 nations around the world, telling which is The Exceptional One is really not a very easy task. Every country has a number of unique aspects that mark it out from the others, but not every one has what it really takes to be the Exceptional, much less the Indispensable nation. Only a country possessing a certain set of characteristics can be considered for this prestigious accolade, and it is with this in mind that the following test has been designed. Answer the nine questions below to see if your country is truly The Exceptional One.

Comment: Looks like the good old USA scores a solid "B."
Jeremiah 5:26-30

26 For wicked men are found among my people;
they lurk like fowlers lying in wait.

27 Like a cage full of birds,
their houses are full of deceit;
therefore they have become great and rich;

28 they have grown fat and sleek.
know no bounds in deeds of evil;
they judge not with justice
the cause of the fatherless, to make it prosper,
and they do not defend the rights of the needy.

29 Shall I not punish them for these things?
declares the Lord,
and shall I not avenge myself
on a nation such as this?"

30 An appalling and horrible thing
has happened in the land:


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Magnify

Orlando nightclub shooter Omar Mateen told police he was 'triggered' by Pentagon drone strike in Iraq

Bill Gertz
Washington Free Beacon
Wed, 28 Sep 2016 14:14 UTC
omar mateen

Omar Mateen
The domestic terrorist behind the Orlando nightclub massacre was motivated by a Pentagon drone strike in Iraq a month before the shooting, according to police transcripts made public last week.

Conversations between Omar Mateen and an Orlando police negotiator on June 12 were kept secret by FBI and local police until Friday. The secrecy contributed to misleading media accounts of the terrorist's motives in the days after the killings.

The transcripts were released by Orlando police Friday after a Florida court hearing held in response to a lawsuit filed by several news organizations.

Mateen killed 49 people during the attack on the Pulse, a gay nightclub, and wounded 53 others. Police eventually stormed the club and killed Mateen in a shootout after talks aimed at convincing him to surrender failed.

During an exchange in the early morning hours of June 12, an Orlando Police Department negotiator identified only as "Andy" asked Mateen, who was speaking by cell phone from inside the club, to tell him what was going on.

"Yo, the air strike that killed Abu Wahid a few weeks ago... that's what triggered it, okay?" said Mateen, who earlier in the conversation identified himself as a follower the Islamic State terror group.
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Handcuffs

US police abused database access to stalk and harrass innocent people


RT
Wed, 28 Sep 2016 13:13 UTC
us police
© Gene Blevins / Reuters
Police across the US have been abusing confidential law enforcement databases to stalk romantic partners, landlords, journalists or neighbors who had no connection to actual police investigations, a report has revealed.

An Associated Press probe into abuses of the federal and state crime databases has revealed numerous cases of law enforcement checking information on people for personal reasons - whether romantic quarrels, personal conflicts, or voyeuristic curiosity.

In a handful of cases, officers were caught using the information to stalk or harass people, while one former New York cop even sold information to private investigators.

Comment: Don't you feel safer?

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Lemon

Congress to expand TSA in other forms of travel like bus & train

Claire Bernish
Free Thought Project
Wed, 28 Sep 2016 13:00 UTC
tsa bus
No one's favorite government agency, the U.S. Transportation Security Administration, will be harassing innocent travelers on buses and trains, if new legislation — unsurprisingly proposed after rather questionable 'attacks' in New York City and New Jersey on September 18 — passes as expected.

Several U.S. senators from both sides of the aisle apparently want to make travelers lives' a veritable hell of red tape and insidious surveillance by increasing putative 'security' for rail lines, highways, and marine routes by adding presence and screening procedures at Megabus depots, Amtrak stations, and more.

As perpetually-terrified as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security likes to keep the population, considering the TSA's phenomenally negative reputation at airports — passengers missing flights due to long lines, free molestations, confiscations of breast milk, and countless other good times — it's highly doubtful the proposed legislation will receive more than tepid public support.
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Attention

'Stop enslaving Saudi women' creates twitter storm as historic petition is filed to abolish male guardianship


Sputnik
Tue, 27 Sep 2016 03:00 UTC
Saudi women petition
© AFP 2016/ FAYEZ NURELDINE
More than 14,000 Saudi women signed a petition to the kingdom's Royal Court in an effort to end the internationally criticized system.

Human Rights Watch reported Saturday that women's rights activists in the kingdom initiated a Twitter campaign to support the move, trending such hashtags as #StopEnslavingSaudiWomen, #IAmMyOwnGuardian and #TogetherToEndMaleGuardianship. Additionally, activists used social media to spread instructions on how to submit a telegram calling on the king to comply with their demands.

The petition says that Saudi women, who are being treated as legal minors based on an interpretation of the Quran, must have the right to move freely around the country and abroad, as well as make important decisions regarding their own lives, without asking a man's permission.

"In every aspect, the important issue is to treat a woman as a full citizen," Saudi human rights campaigner Aziza Yousef told BBC.

Comment: If the online campaign can gain enough traction, Saudi women may stand a chance at becoming fully fledged human beings in 'The Kingdom'. There will surely be kicking and screaming from the sexist men that for some reason think it is God's will to oppress and beat women, chop heads and commit many other heinous acts. The video below shows a 'family therapist' discussing how a husband can reprimand his wife if she is disobedient, giving us an insight into their warped ways.


See these articles for more information:

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Bullseye

Creating value vs shifting wealth: Why garbagemen should earn more money than bankers

Rutger Bregman
evonomics
Thu, 21 Apr 2016 00:00 UTC
garbagemen

Translated from Dutch by Elizabeth Manton.

How more people are making money without contributing anything of value

Thick fog envelops City Hall Park at daybreak on February 2, 1968. Seven thousand New York City sanitation workers stand crowded together, their mood rebellious. Union spokesman John DeLury addresses the multitude from the roof of a truck. When he announces that the mayor has refused further concessions, the crowd's anger threatens to boil over. As the first rotten eggs sail overhead, DeLury realizes the time for compromise is over. It's time to take the illegal route, the path prohibited to sanitation workers for the simple reason that the job they do is too important.

It's time to strike.

The next day, trash goes uncollected throughout the Big Apple. Nearly all the city's garbage crews have stayed home. "We've never had prestige, and it never bothered me before," one garbageman is quoted in a local newspaper. "But it does now. People treat us like dirt."

When the mayor goes out to survey the situation two days later, the city is already knee-deep in refuse, with another 10,000 tons added every day. A rank stench begins to percolate through the city's streets, and rats have been sighted in even the swankiest parts of town. In the space of just a few days, one of the world's most iconic cities has started to look like a slum. And for the first time since the polio epidemic of 1931, city authorities declare a state of emergency.
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No Entry

Move over Denver Boot: This 'parking ticket' is as big as your car windshield

Ian Bush
CBS Philly
Thu, 22 Sep 2016 22:00 UTC
the barnacle parking ticket
© Ideas That Stick
The Barnacle
It doesn't get much more conspicuous than a new parking regulation enforcement tool that uses suction cups covered in bright yellow plastic to render your car windshield useless.

It's the idea of a Philadelphia native who says the device — despite its appearance — is designed to be friendly to law violators and enforcers alike.

The appropriate response when seeing the Barnacle is 'what the...?'

"The Barnacle definitely gets your attention," says Kevin Dougherty, president of Ideas That Stick.

You can spot it covering the glass from more than a block away. What you can't see is anything from the front seat of your car.

"It attaches to the windshield using commercial-grade suction cups that provide 750 lbs of force per suction cup. There is no brute force way of getting it off," Dougherty explains.

The Barnacle is placed by a parking enforcement officer, but it's removable by you — once you cover the cost of the violation.
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