Daily Archives: June 27, 2008 »
CCTV doesn’t keep us safe, yet the cameras are everywhere
By Bruce Schneier | Pervasive security cameras don’t substantially reduce crime. There are exceptions, of course, and that’s what gets the press. Most famously, CCTV cameras helped catch James Bulger’s murderers in 1993. And
Read More »We can strike back
Socialist Worker | Gordon Brown says we must all take a wage cut – but up to 800,000 local government workers are set to walk out over pay. Gordon Brown, chancellor Alistair Darling, and
Read More »EU Constitution author says referendums can be ignored
By Bruno Waterfield in Brussels | Future referendums will be ignored whether they are held in Ireland or elsewhere, Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, the architect of the European Union Constitution said. The former President of
Read More »Agents seize Blackwater firearms
RALEIGH, North Carolina: Federal agents raided Blackwater Worldwide this week as part of an investigation into whether the private security company sidestepped federal laws prohibiting the private purchase of automatic assault rifles, the company
Read More »Police chiefs against universal DNA database
The majority of police chiefs are against a universal DNA database for the people of Britain. At a meeting during the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) annual conference, 61 per cent of police
Read More »NY judge: NSA can refuse to discuss wiretapping
WASHINGTON (AP) | The National Security Agency does not need to tell lawyers for Guantanamo Bay detainees whether their phones were tapped as part of the Bush administration’s domestic surveillance program, a federal judge in
Read More »$2 billion in U.S. aid to Pakistan questioned
By Greg Miller | WASHINGTON — The United States has paid more than $5 billion to reimburse Pakistan for counter-terrorism expenses that have often been exaggerated, if not fabricated, according to a government audit
Read More »Iraq authorities say U.S. soldiers killed 9 civilians
By Doug Smith | BAGHDAD — Nine Iraqi civilians were killed Wednesday in two armed clashes involving U.S. soldiers, local authorities reported. The military said U.S. soldiers were fired upon first in both incidents.
Read More »Oh! What a Lovely (drugs) War
By Ron F | According to UN figures, in the 2000 growing season opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan covered 82,000 hectares. (1) Following a ban ruthlessly enforced by the Taliban opium cultivation declined to
Read More »Zimbabwe and the Question of Imperialism
Democracy Now! | Listen to the Interview Audio stream Download mp3 Criticism of Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe and the actions of his ruling Zanu PF party is growing. The most recent condemnation comes from
Read More »Bush administration lifts North Korea sanctions
Bush administration lifts sanctions, moves to take North Korea off terrorist list. President Bush said Thursday he will lift key trade sanctions against North Korea and remove it from the U.S. terrorism blacklist, a
Read More »Exposed: the arms lobbyist in Parliament
By James Macintyre | A senior arms lobbyist is gaining access to ministers, MPs and peers inside Parliament using a research assistant pass allotted to a member of the House of Lords who benefits
Read More »Gitmo Detainee’s Lawyer ‘Not Allowed To Tell Him’ He’s No Longer An ‘Enemy Combatant’
Think Progress | Nearly two weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that detainees held at Guantánamo Bay have the right to habeas corpus and can thus challenge their detention in civilian courts, a
Read More »Kucinich: We went to Iraq for oil
Press TV | Rep. Dennis Kucinich has accused the US of forcing Iraq to privatize its oil fields and keeping US troops at war to protect Iraqi oil reserves. Kucinich, who has introduced measures
Read More »Five Myths About the New Wiretapping Law
By Patrick Radden Keefe | Sometime today, the Senate is likely to approve the most comprehensive overhaul of American surveillance law since the Watergate era. Unless you’re a government lawyer, a legal scholar, a
Read More »How the Pentagon Turned an Interrogation Resistance Program into a Blueprint for Torture
By Spencer Ackerman | In August 2004, a Defense Dept. panel convened to investigate detainee abuse after the Abu Ghraib scandal issued its much-anticipated report. Interrogation techniques designed for use at Guantánamo Bay, which
Read More »UK uses lung-shredder to kill rebels
Quqnoos | BRITISH troops have used missiles in Afghanistan which suck the air out of human targets, shred their internal organs and crush their bodies, according to a leading British newspaper. The Hellfire missiles,
Read More »A Tragedy Unnoticed By The World
How conflict exacerbates Somalia’s starvation Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) says thousands of Somalis are malnourished and in need of urgent medical treatment. This comes as local human rights groups claim conflict in the country
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