Society

Illinois Illegally Seizes Bees Resistant To Monsanto’s Roundup; Kills Remaining Queens

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– Illinois illegally seizes Bees Resistant to Monsanto’s Roundup; Kills remaining Queens (Global Research, May 24, 2013):

The Illinois Ag Dept.  illegally seized privately owned bees from renowned naturalist, Terrence Ingram, without providing him with a search warrant and before the court hearing on the matter, reports Prairie Advocate News.

Behind the obvious violations of his Constitutional rights is Monsanto. Ingram was researching Roundup’s effects on bees, which he’s raised for 58 years.  “They ruined 15 years of my research,” he told Prairie Advocate, by stealing most of his stock.

A certified letter from the Ag Dept.’s Apiary Inspection Supervisor, Steven D. Chard, stated:

Read moreIllinois Illegally Seizes Bees Resistant To Monsanto’s Roundup; Kills Remaining Queens

Egypt Descends Into Chaos: At Least 53 Killed And More Than 400 Wounded

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– Egypt Descends Into Chaos (Wall Street Journal, July 8, 2013):

CAIRO—Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood accused the country’s military of massacring dozens of its supporters during dawntime prayers in Cairo on Monday, as Egypt’s deadliest clashes in years between the army and Islamists pushed the country toward armed conflict.

At least 53 people were killed and more than 400 wounded, Egypt’s official media said, in a clash between the military and supporters of Mohammed Morsi, who had gathered near the site where Mr. Morsi has been held under house arrest since he was ousted as president last week.

Read moreEgypt Descends Into Chaos: At Least 53 Killed And More Than 400 Wounded

Rapper And Actor Mos Def Undergoes Force Feeding Procedure Used At Guantanamo Bay (Video)

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– Rapper and Actor Mos Def Undergoes Force Feeding Procedure Used at Guantanamo Bay (Liberty Blitzkrieg, July 8, 2013):

Back in May, I covered the hunger strikes at Guantanamo Bay, which at the time consisted of 100 of 166 detainees.  I noted how the American Medical Association (AMA) expressed concern that the force feeding of many of these detainees was contrary to medical ethics.  A lawyer for one of the detainees described the force feeding practice thus:

“It can be extremely painful. One of my clients said that it’s like having a razor blade go down through your nose and into your throat,” Remes said.

Read moreRapper And Actor Mos Def Undergoes Force Feeding Procedure Used At Guantanamo Bay (Video)

The One Chart That Proves We’re Not … And Never Have Been … In A ‘Recovery’

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– The One Chart That Proves We’re Not in a “Recovery” (ZeroHedge, July 8, 2013):

The US economy continues to fall to pieces, though accounting gimmicks make our employment numbers look better than reality.

Most of the new “jobs” being created are part-time, not full time positions. Indeed, we’ve added over 500,000 part-time jobs to the US economy in 2013 so far. An incredible 360,000 of this came last month. And all in all we’ve now got a record 28+ million people working part-time in the US.

As for full-time jobs, well, we LOST 240,000 last month. And despite all the rhetoric coming out of Washington about a “recovery,” we’ve actually only added 130,000 in 2013 so far. To put this into perspective, we need to create at least 90,000 new full-time jobs PER MONTH to maintain employment levels based on population growth.

Read moreThe One Chart That Proves We’re Not … And Never Have Been … In A ‘Recovery’

Meet The Secret Supreme Court Of The United States

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–  Meet the Secret Supreme Court of the United States (Liberty Blitzkrieg, July 7, 2013):

This program, by the way, is fully overseen not just by Congress, but by the FISA Court — a court specially put together to evaluate classified programs to make sure that the executive branch, or government generally, is not abusing them, and that it’s being carried out consistent with the Constitution and rule of law.

– President Barack Obama on June 7, 2013 (transcript here)

Unlike the Supreme Court, the FISA court hears from only one side in the case — the government — and its findings are almost never made public. A Court of Review is empaneled to hear appeals, but that is known to have happened only a handful of times in the court’s history, and no case has ever been taken to the Supreme Court. In fact, it is not clear in all circumstances whether Internet and phone companies that are turning over the reams of data even have the right to appear before the FISA court.

– From the July 6, 2013 New York Times article: In Secret, Court Vastly Broadens Powers of N.S.A.

One of the most incredible things that has occurred in the aftermath of Edward Snowden’s NSA leaks has been President Barack Obama’s laughable attempt to justify the spying by claiming the process has judicial oversight, as he did in the quote above. What he fails to mention of course is the fact that the FISA court that signs off on all these activities is a secret court, the opinions of which are never made public. Does he think the American public is so brain-dead it is incapable of recognizing the difference between a regular court of law and a secret one? Apparently he does.  For those of you that have yet to get up to speed on America’s “parallel Supreme Court,” which also disturbingly happens to constructs its own laws, please read the article below from The New York Times:

WASHINGTON — In more than a dozen classified rulings, the nation’s surveillance court has created a secret body of law giving the National Security Agency the power to amass vast collections of data on Americans while pursuing not only terrorism suspects, but also people possibly involved in nuclear proliferation, espionage and cyberattacks, officials say.

Read moreMeet The Secret Supreme Court Of The United States

‘Train Wreck’ Obamacare Set To Self-Destruct By 2015

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– ‘Train wreck’ Obamacare begins to unravel; massive government boondoggle set to self-destruct by 2015 (Natural News, July 8, 2013):

Even before it is fully implemented, Obamacare is already starting to self-destruct. The White House announced last week it will simply invent its own interpretation of the law and “delay the enforcement” of the employer Obamacare mandate for another year, to 2015. This, we are told, is to allow businesses more time to “smooth” compliance with the law, but that’s only the cover story. In reality, the entire private sector economy was preparing to fire tens of millions of workers, cut their hours and radically downsize companies in order to avoid going bankrupt under Obamacare mandates that no one can afford.

Described as a “train wreck” by one of its original authors (Sen. Baucus), and called a “fiasco for the ages” by the Wall Street Journal, Obamacare is a massive government boondoggle that’s headed for complete disaster.

In a desperate effort to get out of the way of that oncoming train, insurance companies are scrambling to flee the market entirely. America’s largest health insurer, UnitedHealth, has just announced it’s closing shop in California and walking away from all health insurance customers there.

That’s how bad Obamacare really is, even for the insurance companies: it’s better to close up shop than even attempt to serve customers under the government’s onerous rules.

Read more‘Train Wreck’ Obamacare Set To Self-Destruct By 2015

Document Obtained Through FOIA: FBI Planned To Kill Occupy Movement Leaders ‘Via Suppressed Sniper Rifles’

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– FBI Planned to Kill Occupy Leaders (Infowars, July 2, 2013):

Murdering political activists is business as usual for ruthless ruling elite

According to journalist David Lindorff, the FBI planned to assassinate the leaders of the now moribund Occupy movement “via suppressed sniper rifles.”

Lindorff cites a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed by the Washington, DC-based Partnership for Civil Justice Fund.

The redacted document obtained from the FBI in Houston states:

An identified [DELETED] as of October planned to engage in sniper attacks against protestors (sic) in Houston, Texas if deemed necessary. An identified [DELETED] had received intelligence that indicated the protesters in New York and Seattle planned similar protests in Houston, Dallas, San Antonio and Austin, Texas. [DELETED] planned to gather intelligence against the leaders of the protest groups and obtain photographs, then formulate a plan to kill the leadership via suppressed sniper rifles.

The FBI confirmed that the document is legitimate.

Read moreDocument Obtained Through FOIA: FBI Planned To Kill Occupy Movement Leaders ‘Via Suppressed Sniper Rifles’

Oliver Stone: US Creating ‘Global Security State’ – ‘The World Is In Danger With Our Tyranny’ – ‘Mad Men’ Are Running The Country

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– US creating ‘global security state’: Oliver Stone (PressTV, July 5, 2013):

Outspoken filmmaker Oliver Stone has sharply criticized the United States for creating the “global security state” by eavesdropping techniques, saying that “the world is in danger with our tyranny.”

In a press conference in the Czech Republic on Thursday, the director also blasted President Barack Obama for his policies regarding American whistleblower Edward Snowden, The Wrap reported.

Read moreOliver Stone: US Creating ‘Global Security State’ – ‘The World Is In Danger With Our Tyranny’ – ‘Mad Men’ Are Running The Country

15 Signs That The Quality Of Jobs In America Is Fading Fast

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– 15 Signs That The Quality Of Jobs In America Is Going Downhill Really Fast (Economic Collapse, July 7, 2013):

Trying to find a job in America today can be an incredibly frustrating experience.  Most of the jobs that are available seem to pay very little, and there is intense competition for just about any job that is open.  But it wasn’t always like this.  When I was in high school, I was immediately hired when I applied for a job at McDonalds because they were so desperate for workers that they would hire just about anyone that could flip a burger.  But in this economic environment, a single nationwide hiring event conducted by McDonalds resulted in a million job applications, and only a small percentage of those applicants were actually hired.  Our economy simply does not produce enough jobs for everyone anymore, and the percentage of “good jobs” continues to decline.  That means that it is getting really hard to find a job that will enable you to support a family, and a lot of people end up doing jobs that they are massively overqualified for.  But when times are tough, people are going to do what they have to do in order to survive.

Read more15 Signs That The Quality Of Jobs In America Is Fading Fast

U.S. Postal Service Photographing 160 BILLION Letters Annually

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– US Postal Service photographing 160 billion letters annually (RT, July 5, 2013):

As Washington officials continue to grapple with the fallout from the NSA scandal, it has been revealed that the US Postal Service photographs the outside of every piece of mail it processes each year – around 160 billion pieces annually.

At the request of law enforcement agencies, postal workers take pictures of the  letters and packages before they are delivered, the New York Times reported.

The information is then stored for an indefinite period of time in the event a law enforcement official requests it. Each year, tens of thousands of pieces of mail are subjected to further scrutiny.

Reading the contents of a letter requires a court-ordered warrant, but in the case of ‘mail cover’ requests, law enforcement agencies submit a letter to the Postal Service, which “rarely denies a request.”

Read moreU.S. Postal Service Photographing 160 BILLION Letters Annually

Edward Snowden Is A Whistleblower, Not A Spy

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– Edward Snowden is a whistleblower, not a spy – but do our leaders care? (Guardian, July 5, 2013):

According to US legislators and journalists, the surveillance whistleblower Edward Snowden actively aided America’s enemies. They are just missing one essential element for the meme to take flight: evidence.

An op-ed by Representative Mike Pompeo (Republican, Kansas) proclaiming Snowden, who provided disclosed widespread surveillance on phone records and internet communications by the National Security Agency, “not a whistleblower” is indicative of the emerging narrative. Writing in the Wichita Eagle on 30 June Pompeo, a member of the House intelligence committee, wrote that Snowden “has provided intelligence to America’s adversaries“.

Read moreEdward Snowden Is A Whistleblower, Not A Spy

FISA Court Creates Secret Body Of Law, Broadens Powers of NSA

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H/t reader M.G.:

“Just found this article on today’s NY Times: Secret court of 11 judges staffed by John Roberts was established to rubber stamp government spying on US Citizens. It was established some years ago, and all the judges are Republicans. This court only hears the government’s side, never the others.
Absolutely terrifying! This is part of the info Snowden was exposing, explaining in part why this government is so upset. It suspends much of the 4th amendment to battle “terrorism”.”

– In Secret, Court Vastly Broadens Powers of N.S.A. (The New York Times, July 7, 2013):

WASHINGTON — In more than a dozen classified rulings, the nation’s surveillance court has created a secret body of law giving the National Security Agency the power to amass vast collections of data on Americans while pursuing not only terrorism suspects, but also people possibly involved in nuclear proliferation, espionage and cyberattacks, officials say.The rulings, some nearly 100 pages long, reveal that the court has taken on a much more expansive role by regularly assessing broad constitutional questions and establishing important judicial precedents, with almost no public scrutiny, according to current and former officials familiar with the court’s classified decisions.

Read moreFISA Court Creates Secret Body Of Law, Broadens Powers of NSA

Is It “Anti-Faith” To Prepare For The Coming Economic Collapse?

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“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”
– Benjamin Franklin

FYI.

– Is It “Anti-Faith” To Prepare For The Coming Economic Collapse? (Economic Collapse, July 5, 2013):

Does being a prepper show a lack of faith in God?  Should good Christians reject prepping altogether?  Yesterday, someone actually accused me of being “anti-faith” because I am encouraging people to prepare for the coming economic collapse.  This person believes that if I had faith, then I would make “no provision” for what is ahead and simply trust “in God’s providence alone”.  So is that person right?  Is it really “anti-faith” to prepare for the coming economic collapse?  I spent quite a bit of time thinking about these questions today.

Read moreIs It “Anti-Faith” To Prepare For The Coming Economic Collapse?

Nigeria: 30 Killed In School Attack

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– 30 killed in school attack in northeast Nigeria (USA TODAY, July 6, 2013):

POTISKUM, Nigeria (AP) — Islamic militants attacked a boarding school in northeast Nigeria before dawn Saturday, killing 29 students and one teacher. Some of the pupils were burned alive in the latest school attack blamed on a radical terror group, survivors said.

Parents screamed in anguish as they tried to identify the charred and gunshot victims.

Read moreNigeria: 30 Killed In School Attack

Klamath Basin Water Shutoff – Leaving Livestock to Die, Basin to Burn

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– Klamath Basin Water Shutoff – Leaving Livestock to Die, Basin to Burn (FarmWars, July 1, 2013):

Barb’s Note: Klamath county, Oregon water shutoff – The Klamath Tribes, in collusion with the Federal government and corrupt Oregon officials have started turning off water to farms and ranches. Since the tribe has first water rights, it has claimed those rights and is requiring that all other users with dates later than theirs be shut off. This is everyone else. Read it and weep. Not only will livestock and crops start dying, but this leaves us wide open to rampant wildfires that have the potential to decimate the basin. The following is a communication from Flying T Salers, the best, in my opinion, cattle rancher in the area.

Read moreKlamath Basin Water Shutoff – Leaving Livestock to Die, Basin to Burn

North Carolina National Guard Rapid Reaction Force Civil Unrest Training Photos

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– North Carolina National Guard Rapid Reaction Force Civil Unrest Training Photos (Public Intelligence, July 3, 2013):

The following photos depict soldiers from the 252nd Combined Arms Battalion training in June for their role as a “rapid reaction force” capable of responding anywhere in the state of North Carolina within “four to eight hours with additional forces arriving within 24 to 36 hours.”  The same unit trained in March to respond “to an emergency ahead of federal assets by providing site security, establishing roadblocks or checkpoints, and assisting civilian authorities in controlling civil disturbances.”

The exercises depicted below were held from June 10-14 at an abandoned shopping mall and a water treatment facility in Charlotte.  Soldiers trained to suppress protesters who perform a sit-in as part of a fictional group called “The Pink Panthers.”  According to the North Carolina National Guard, the exercise at the water treatment facility tests soldiers’ “ability to use nonlethal force to disperse a crowd of aggressors.”  Photos of the exercise show soldiers operating from Be On the Look Out (BOLO) notices with the identities of specific individuals in the crowd, listed as “AIN Members,” that are to be targeted for arrest.

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France Intelligence Agency Spies On Phone Calls, Emails, Social Media Activity

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– France Intelligence Agency Spies On Phone Calls, Emails, Social Media Activity: Report (Huffington Post/Reuters, July 4, 2013):

PARIS, July 4 (Reuters) – France’s external intelligence agency spies on the French public’s phone calls, emails and social media activity in France and abroad, the daily Le Monde said on Thursday.

It said the DGSE intercepted signals from computers and telephones in France, and between France and other countries, although not the content of phone calls, to create a map of “who is talking to whom”. It said the activity was illegal.

“All of our communications are spied on,” wrote Le Monde, which based its report on unnamed intelligence sources as well as remarks made publicly by intelligence officials.

“Emails, text messages, telephone records, access to Facebook and Twitter are then stored for years,” it said.

The activities described are similar to those carried out by the U.S. National Security Agency, as described in documents leaked by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden.

Read moreFrance Intelligence Agency Spies On Phone Calls, Emails, Social Media Activity

Big Brother Is Systematically Turning America Into A Giant Prison

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Fourth of July Picnic at Alpine Park in Denver 1903


Why would anyone want to go spend the 4th of July at that park?

– Are We Really Free When Big Brother Is Systematically Turning America Into A Giant Prison? (Economic Collapse, July 4, 2013):

Every year on July 4th we celebrate our “independence”, but is America really free?  How could we possibly be free when “Big Brother” is constantly intruding in our lives in hundreds of different ways?  And I am not just talking about NSA snooping.  Sadly, the truth is that the United States is beginning to fully embrace a “police state” culture.  We have learned that the government monitors and keeps a record of all of our cell phone calls, emails, Internet searches, credit card transactions, and every piece of mail that we send.  But most Americans don’t seem to care.  We are “encouraged” to report the “suspicious activity” of our neighbors to the authorities, we are told that having security thugs touch the private areas of our women and children at our airports is necessary “for our security”, and 80,000 SWAT team raids are conducted each year in the United States.  But the American people don’t seem to care.  America was once a great country, but now it is being turned into a giant prison, and only a small minority of the citizens are raising their voices in objection.

When I was a child, I was taught that totalitarian societies such as North Korea, the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany were the bad guys.

Read moreBig Brother Is Systematically Turning America Into A Giant Prison

‘US Jobs Boom Prompts Fears Federal Reserve May Call Time On Stimulus’ (Guardian)

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(h/t reader M.G.:

“… here is an article from todays UK Guardian that ought to interest you. The Greedy Guts are upset because they fear their free ride on the backs of the US taxpayer in the $85 Billion a month bleed from the FED will go away because there is minimal growth in the real economy. Any good news for the real economy (and this isn’t very good, of the 195K jobs created, 75K are in hospitality, crap jobs) upsets them.
Here is the article. What awful people we have in power today.”

Related articles:

– 36 Tough Questions About The U.S. Economy That Everyone Should Be Asking

– 17 Signs That Most Americans Will Be Wiped Out By The Coming Economic Collapse

– Forbes: Unemployment Is Really 14.3% — Not 7.6%:

And that brings us to a real unemployment rate of about 23%!!!

And now back to your regularly scheduled programming …

– US jobs boom prompts fears Federal Reserve may call time on stimulus (Guardian, July 5, 2013):

Stock markets wobble as employment boom heightens jitters over central bank’s $85bn-a-month bond-buying programme

Last month, Bernanke said the US economy was improving but Washington’s budget cuts were stalling the recovery. Some business leaders and Republicans argue that the imposition of the president’s healthcare laws is slowing hiring, while Democrats say Republican-backed spending cuts are hurting the economy.

Responding to the latest monthly figures, Alan Krueger, chairman of the White House’s council of economic advisers, said: “In the four years since the recession ended in June 2009, the economy has added 5.3m jobs, thanks to the resilience of the American people and policies like the Recovery Act, which helped bring the recession to an end and put us on the path to recovery. With the recovery gaining traction, now is not the time for Washington to impose self-inflicted wounds on the economy.”

Read more‘US Jobs Boom Prompts Fears Federal Reserve May Call Time On Stimulus’ (Guardian)

Egypt: Intense Clashes Break Out – 10 People Killed And 210 Wounded – Live Feed

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Watch the live feed here: People gather in downtown Cairo (NBC News)

– Egypt clashes kill 10 in Islamist pushback (AP, July 7, 2013):

CAIRO (AP) — A Health Ministry official says 10 people have been killed and 210 wounded in clashes around the country involving opponents and backers of ousted President Mohammed Morsi, as well as security forces.

Khaled el-Khatib, a Health Ministry official, says four people were killed near the Republican Guard building in Cairo, where troops opened fire on Morsi supporters marching on the building Friday afternoon.

In Cairo, another person was killed in clashes that erupted after nightfall when Islamists attacked Morsi opponents near Tahrir Square.

Four others died in the northern Sinai city of el-Arish, where Islamists stormed the main government building. The 10th was killed in the southern city of Assiut.

El-Khatib says 210 people nationwide have been wounded.

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– Health Ministry: 52 dead since unrest began (Egypt Independent, July 7, 2013):

Clashes between supporters and opponents of ousted President Mohamed Morsy have left 52 dead and 2,619 more injured, according to the latest figures released by Egypt’s Health Ministry.

Read moreEgypt: Intense Clashes Break Out – 10 People Killed And 210 Wounded – Live Feed