Alexander Reed Kelly truthdig http://www.truthdig.com/eartotheground/item/is_there_really_a_terrorist_threat_20130811/ “Nothing can be said for certain as to what prompted the State Department to close more than 20 embassies and consulates in the Middle East and North Africa last Sunday,” writes author Patrick Smith at Salon. “But it is no excuse not to raise the possibility that...
Mark Rumold Electronic Frontier Foundation https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/07/what-it-means-be-target-or-why-we-once-again-stopped-believing-government-and-once An important New York Times investigation from Thursday reporting that the NSA “is searching the contents of vast amounts of Americans’ e-mail and text communications into and out of the country,” coupled with leaked documents published by the Guardian, seriously calls into question the accuracy of crucial statements...
Peter Van Buren TomDispatch.com http://www.tomdispatch.com/post/175732/tomgram%3A_peter_van_buren%2C_the_manning_trial_began_on_9_11/ On July 30, 1778, the Continental Congress created the first whistleblower protection law, stating “that it is the duty of all persons in the service of the United States to give the earliest information to Congress or other proper authority of any misconduct, frauds, or misdemeanors committed...
David Sirota Creators.com http://www.creators.com/liberal/david-sirota/a-case-that-challenges-government-immunity.html They “don’t want these counter terrorism officials distracted by the threat of litigation.” Court cases are often cures for insomnia, but every so often a lawsuit is an eye-opening journey through the looking glass. One of those is suddenly upon us – and we should be...
Amy Goodman Common Dreams http://www.commondreams.org/view/2013/07/26 As the 50th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington approaches, commemorating that historic gathering where Martin Luther King Jr gave his famous “I have a dream” speech, it is important to recall the extent to which King was targeted by the government’s domestic spying apparatus. The FBI operation against King...
Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers Popular Resistance http://www.truth-out.org/opinion/item/17710-the-us-embarrasses-itself-by-flailing-around-over-edward-snowden The US Security State seems to be in a panic over Edward Snowden’s leaks. Secretary of State John Kerry, along with UN nominee Samantha Powers, is threatening acts of war with Venezuela. The US has already violated international law by forcing down...
Charlotte Silver Al Jazeera English http://www.alternet.org/civil-liberties/drones?page=0%2C1&paging=off Using drones for surveillance in the US won’t make overzealous police behaviour or lack of accountability disappear. Recently, outgoing director of the FBI Robert Mueller revealed that his agency has used drones to conduct surveillance in the United States. Mueller’s casual admission serves as an opportune...
Rebecca Solnit TomDispatch http://www.commondreams.org/view/2013/07/18-6 A Letter to Edward Snowden Dear Edward Snowden, Billions of us, from prime ministers to hackers, are watching a live espionage movie in which you are the protagonist and perhaps the sacrifice. Your way forward is clear to no one, least of all, I’m sure,...
Paul Craig Roberts Institute for Political Economy http://www.alternet.org/news-amp-politics/american-coup-detat?paging=off The American people have suffered a coup d’etat, but they are hesitant to acknowledge it. The regime ruling in Washington today lacks constitutional and legal legitimacy. Americans are ruled by usurpers who claim that the executive branch is above the law and...
Tom Engelhardt TomDispatch.com http://www.commondreams.org/view/2013/07/16-4 A Manual for the Twenty-First Century It’s hard even to know how to take it in. I mean, what’s really happening? An employee of a private contractor working for the National Security Agency makes off with unknown numbers of files about America’s developing global security state on a thumb...