Society's ChildS


Sherlock

US government attacks Drudge Report? Conservative website down for 90 minutes after "biggest DDoS attack since site's inception"

Cristina Silva
International Business Times
Thu, 29 Dec 2016 17:07 UTC
drudge
Matt Drudge, founder of the Drudge Report
A tweet from conservative media icon Matt Drudge's verified Twitter account Thursday night appeared to accuse the government of interfering with his website, DrudgeReport.com, just hours after the Barack Obama administration announced new sanctions against Russia over election hacking.

"Is the US government attacking DRUDGE REPORT? Biggest DDoS since site's inception. VERY suspicious routing [and timing]," the tweet to Drudge's 457,000 followers read. There were no other tweets from the account at the time.

A large-scale distributed denial of service attack, or DDoS, can cause major Internet disruptions. In the past, such attacks have shut down major websites such as Twitter, Spotify, Netflix, Amazon, Tumblr, and Reddit. The attack sends a server many illegitimate requests to make it hard for real requests to get through, effectively shutting down the site.

Drudge Report was down briefly around 7 p.m. EST, but working hours later. The top headline read: "MOSCOW MOCKS OBAMA 'LAME DUCK'". Meanwhile, the conservative Washington Times wrote: "Matt Drudge suggests U.S. government cyberattack on Drudge Report website. DDoS attack comes same day Obama announced countermeasures against Russia for hacking of Democrats."
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Sheriff

Former Finnish narcotics police chief sentenced to 10yrs for running drug ring


RT
Fri, 30 Dec 2016 17:00 UTC
Finnish police
© Juha Sorri / AFP
In an ironic case of Finnish corruption, the former head of the country's drug squad police has been sentenced to a decade in jail... for running a drug ring. He plans to appeal the ruling, maintaining his innocence.

Jari Aarnio, the former head of Helsinki's drug squad police, was found guilty of official misconduct and aggravated evidence tampering by the Helsinki District Court on Thursday, according to AP.
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V

John McAfee on Russian hacking allegations: "If it looks like the Russians did it, then I can guarantee you it was not the Russians"


RT
Fri, 30 Dec 2016 17:00 UTC
john mcafee
Following the release of an FBI report outlining Russia's alleged role in hacking the 2016 election, Larry King sat down to talk with tech pioneer John McAfee to discuss the current state of cybersecurity.

McAfee is no stranger to cybersecurity. As the developer of the first commercial antivirus program, he has been a major player in the industry for the past 50 years. He is also the CEO of MGT Capital Investments, and an outspoken former presidential candidate for the Libertarian Party.

Based on all of his experience, McAfee does not believe that Russians were behind the hacks on the Democratic National Committee (DNC), John Podesta's emails, and the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign. As he told RT, "if it looks like the Russians did it, then I can guarantee you it was not the Russians."

The Joint Analysis Report from the FBI contains an appendix that lists hundreds of IP addresses that were supposedly "used by Russian civilian and military intelligence services." While some of those IP addresses are from Russia, the majority are from all over the world, which means that the hackers constantly faked their location.

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Snakes in Suits

Brother of JonBenét Ramsey sues CBS for $750 million over docuseries that suggested he killed JonBenét

Chris Harris
People
Thu, 29 Dec 2016 16:52 UTC
Burke Ramsey
Burke Ramsey on Dr. Phil
Burke Ramsey has filed a second defamation lawsuit over a recent CBS docuseries that advanced the theory he killed his younger sister, JonBenét, more than two decades ago, PEOPLE confirms.

After suing forensic pathologist Dr. Werner Spitz in October for $150 million in damages, lawyers for Burke on Wednesday filed another civil suit — this one, naming CBS as well as Critical Content LLC, the production company behind The Case of: JonBenét Ramsey, and seven experts and consultants featured in the special, which aired over two nights in mid-September.

PEOPLE obtained a copy of the second suit, which seeks $250 million in compensatory damages and $500 million in punitive damages.

In addition to listing Spitz as a defendant, the suit filed Wednesday names retired FBI Supervisory Special Agent and criminal profiler Jim Clemente; criminal behaviorist Laura Richards; Jim Kolar, a former lead investigator in the JonBenét Ramsey murder investigation; forensic linguistics expert James Fitzgerald; statement analyst Stanley Burke; and forensic scientist Dr. Henry Lee.

Stanley Burke and Fitzgerald declined to comment on the suit. Clemente, Kolar, Lee, Richards and Spitz could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday. An attorney who has previously represented Critical Content said he was unable to comment and would forward a message, which did not immediately receive a response.

Comment: See also: 'The case of JonBenet Ramsey': Investigators agree on theory of brother Burke Ramsey

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Bulb

German food minister speaks out against labeling vegan foods with meat-based names


RT
Thu, 29 Dec 2016 21:10 UTC
hot dog
© Brian Snyder / Reuters
Germany is known for its hearty cuisine, and its food minister wants to ensure that carnivores aren't confused by plant-based dishes such as "vegetarian schnitzel." He has called on manufacturers to stop pretending that such imitations are actually meat.

Speaking to Bild newspaper on Wednesday, Germany's minister for food and agriculture, Christian Schmidt, said that foods such as "vegetarian schnitzel" and "vegan currywurst" are "completely misleading" and "unsettling" to consumers.

"I don't want anyone to pretend that these pseudo-meat dishes are actual meat dishes," he said, adding that he is in favor of "clear identification" of plant-based foods.

It's not the first time that Schmidt has spoken out against the labeling of imitation meat products. The minister has made similar remarks under the slogan, "What's on it must also be in it."
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Brick Wall

Texas parents told they will be charged & arrested if they walk their children on school property

Matt Agorist
The Free Thought Project
Thu, 29 Dec 2016 16:27 UTC
parents tresspassing
Walking your child to and from school in Magnolia, Texas can now end in your extortion through fines and even jail time thanks to a new policy implemented by the school's principal. Bear Branch Elementary School parents have done some hard learning since the year began about the relationship between schools and the American police state after they were told they will be charged with trespassing for walking their own children onto school grounds.

"She's threatening to arrest people," said Wendy Jarman to FOX 26 about principal, Holly Ray — and she's correct. Since the beginning of the year, multiple parents have been cited, threatened with charges, and threatened with arrest for the entirely ordinary act of dropping off their kids at school.

Parents at the school have even started a petition and garnered hundreds of signatures to reverse what they are calling bully tactics. However, it has all been in vain.

Principal Ray is getting plenty of negative publicity for her policy, but she has no plans of changing it and has cops to back her up. The newly enacted policy is enforced by Montgomery County Constables.

"This has happened to many parents," Jarman says. "They have been cited. They have been threatened, if they step one foot on school property, they will be arrested and charged with who knows what."
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Dig

50 feared trapped under debris after mine in India collapses


RT
Fri, 30 Dec 2016 16:22 UTC
coal field, eastern Indian state of Jharkhand.
© Ahmad Masood / Reuters Workers drill at an open cast coal field, eastern Indian state of Jharkhand.

As many as 50 people are feared trapped after a coal mine collapsed in the Indian state of Jharkhand. Up to 10 people have reportedly died, while four others have been taken to a nearby hospital.

The collapse of the mine, which is located in the Lal Matia area of Godda district, took place when a heap of mud caved in at an entry point on Thursday night, according to the Economic Times.
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No Entry

Loitering hysteria! Childless adults could face ban from Los Angeles park playgrounds


RT
Fri, 30 Dec 2016 16:03 UTC
playground
© Michael Narten / Global Look Press
A controversial proposal to ban adults without children from the vicinity of playgrounds in Los Angeles city parks has been met with outrage after it was submitted by a local council member.

Council member Mitch O'Farrell proposed that adults who are not accompanying children should be banned from the perimeter of playgrounds in the parks and ticketed for violating the regulation, according to KTLA5.
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Quenelle

DAPL war rages on: 'Water protectors' arrested


RT
Fri, 30 Dec 2016 14:35 UTC
© Stephen Yang / ReutersActivists march in protest with veterans outside the Oceti Sakowin camp where "water protectors" continue to demonstrate against plans to pass the Dakota Access pipeline adjacent to the Standing Rock Indian Reservation, near Cannon Ball, North Dakota, U.S., December 5, 2016.
The Dakota Access Pipeline may be on hold, but the battles over it are far from over. Diehard protesters continue to clash with local police while an out-of-state city shows its solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux's opposition to the pipeline.

Following months of protests and fights to prevent construction of the Dakotas Access Pipeline (DAPL) on sacred Native American land and through Lake Oahe, the primary source of drinking water for the Standing Rock Sioux nation in North Dakota, a tenuous peace had been reached between law enforcement and protesters. It did not last long, however, as on Tuesday, the Morton County Sheriff's Department arrested five protesters for criminal trespass.

In a statement from the department, officers on the scene claim that protesters violated an agreement made between tribal leaders and law enforcement over where protesters were allowed. Per the terms of the agreement, protesters were to stay to the south side of the Cannonball River.
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Heart

Uber driver saves teen from sex trafficking


RT
Fri, 30 Dec 2016 14:17 UTC
Keith Avila
A 16-year-old girl has been rescued from a sex trafficking ring after an astute Uber driver recognized warning signs. Keith Avila had been driving with Uber for barely a month when he picked up three women and immediately realized something was wrong.

Avila earned less than $8 from an Uber ride Monday, but saved one young woman from being forced into prostitution. He picked up three women in Elk Grove, California, and noticed that one of the passengers appeared at be around 12 years old but dressed oddly for her age.

"She had a really short skirt," Avila told KCRA. "So, you could see all her legs, and it struck me as odd because she was so young and she was dressing like that."

But it wasn't until he decided to eavesdrop on what the other two women were telling her that he figured out what was going on.

Comment: It's good to see someone doing the right thing in today's troubled world.

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