Daily Archives: September 6, 2019

2019-09-06: News Headlines

James Bovard (2019-09-06). 9/11 and the American Orwellian Nightmare. counterpunch.org Next week will mark the 18th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Politicians and bureaucrats wasted no time after that carnage to unleash the Surveillance State on average Americans, treating every citizen like a terrorist suspect. Since the government failed to protect the public, Americans somehow forfeited their constitutional right to privacy. Despite heroic efforts by former NSA staffer Edward Snowden and a host of activists and freedom fighters, the government continues ravaging American privacy. More

Staff (2019-09-06). We Are Teetering on the Brink of War With Iran. truthdig.com Sanctions are squeezing Tehran to death. If the EU can't salvage the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, things could escalate quickly.

RT (2019-09-06). 'Jack Ryan' TV show means US coup in Venezuela is toast. rt.com CIA agent Jack Ryan will tackle 'nuclear-armed' Venezuela in the next season of the Amazon streaming show. That is perhaps the clearest admission that Washington's attempt at regime change in Caracas has failed. | Amazon teased the second season of 'Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan' this week, ahead of its premiere in November. The 90-second trailer shows the title character on a mission to Venezuela, which may have secretly obtained nuclear weapons from the evil Russians (who else?), or something to that effect. | Needless to say, this has been met with everything from raised eyebrows to outright derision by journalist…

Robert Scheer (2019-09-06). The Most Consequential Whistleblower Who Wasn't. truthdig.com While so many have heard of whistleblowers Chelsea Manning and Edward Snowden making history in recent years, few have heard the story of Katharine Gun, the subject of the film "Official Secrets," directed and co-written by Gavin Hood. On the latest installment of "Scheer Intelligence," the "Official Secrets" director tells Truthdig Editor in Chief Robert Scheer that he learned about Gun from Ged Doherty, a producer he'd worked with on the film "Eye in the Sky" about drone warfare, and realized the whistleblowe…

ORION (2019-09-06). Basta !!! Free Chelsea Manning & Julien Assange Oakland Weekly Friday Vigil tabeling. indybay.org MACARTHUR&FRUITVALE IN OAKLAND 94602…

Aaron Maté (2019-09-06). Embassy insider exposes CNN lies about Julian Assange. thegrayzone.com A "bombshell" CNN report claimed to show how Wikileaks founder Julian Assange published stolen Democratic Party emails in 2016 in…

WSWS (2019-09-06). WikiLeaks exposes crimes of German imperialism. wsws.org The German media has slandered WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who faces possible life imprisonment or the death penalty in the US for making Washington's war crimes public.

unitedEditor (2019-09-06). NATO Deep State in Turkey. uwidata.com àúnal àáevikà∂z, the deputy opposition leader of the main opposition party in Turkey, the Republican People's Party (RPP, Turk. CHP), commented on President Recep Tayyip Erdoƒüan's recent trip to Russia, saying: "We are concerned that if Turkey, a member of NATO, continues to purchase weapons that are not can be integrated into the Alliance system, …

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2019-09-06). Washington Supreme Court Establishes 'Very Important Precedent' for Climate Necessity Defense in Case of Valve-Turner Ken Ward. commondreams.org In a decision that could profoundly impact future litigation involving climate activists, the Washington Supreme Court this week refused to review a lower court's ruling to allow valve-turner Ken Ward to present a "necessity defense" for charges related to a 2016 multi-state action that temporarily shut down tar sands pipelines. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/ken1.jpg

RT (2019-09-05). Big Tech & Big Brother meet at Facebook HQ to discuss how to 'secure' US elections. rt.com Security teams for Facebook, Google, Twitter and Microsoft met with the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and the Director of National Intelligence's office to coordinate a strategy to secure the 2020 elections. | The tech platforms met with government officials at Facebook's Menlo Park headquarters on Wednesday, the company has confirmed, boasting that Big Tech and Big Brother have developed a "comprehensive strategy" to get control of previous election-related "vulnerabilities" while "analyzing and getting ahead of new threats." | Facebook has scrambled to get in front of the 2020 election after being…

Staff (2019-09-05). The Pro-Israel Extremist Behind Trump's Economic War on Iran. truthdig.com This is part one of a two part series on the growing impact of the US economic war on Iran. | Several US citizens have been questioned by the FBI and threatened with arrest for their participation in New Horizon, a public media conference held each year in Iran. | The interrogations and threats are the result of orders apparently delivered by Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Sigal P. Mandelker, a militantly pro-Israel lawyer with longstanding ties to right-wing political networks. | Mandelker was…

United Nations (2019-09-04). New technologies, artificial intelligence aid fight against global terrorism. un.org Although terrorists have become skilled at manipulating the Internet and other new technologies, artificial intelligence or AI, is a powerful tool in the fight against them, a top UN counter-terrorism official said this week at a high-level conference on strengthening international cooperation against the scourge.

Ben Norton (2019-09-03). 'Free Julian Assange!' say Roger Waters, John Pilger, and British MP Chris Williamson. thegrayzone.com Legendary musician Roger Waters sang "Wish You Were Here" in honor of Julian Assange, at a public concert outside the…

Staff (2019-09-01). North Carolina Supreme Court Begins Case on Racial Bias in Jury Selection. therealnews.com The North Carolina Supreme Court is hearing a case to decide if racial bias will be allowed to continue in jury selection, or if the Constitution's promise of due process and a trial by a jury of one's peers applies to everyone…

Fight Back (2019-08-31). Chicago students say, 'CIA off campus!'. fightbacknews.org Chicago, IL – On the afternoon of August 28, members of Students for a Democratic Society and AnakBayan Chicago, at the University of Illinois at Chicago, passed out flyers on the quad to oppose the partnership that the university has with the CIA. SDS members held a banner reading "CIA off campus," the slogan that has been used in past decades by student activists around the country in similar campaigns. Protesters held signs each detailing a different CIA operation and the number of deaths it caused. | In February 2018, the UIC announced that they had become a CIA Signature School. Only three months later, Gina…

Staff (2019-08-30). "All-Out Attack": Trump's Anti-Immigrant Policies Target Children, Cancer Patients & Servicemembers. democracynow.org On Tuesday, the Trump administration reportedly ended its "medical deferred action" program, which allows immigrants with serious health problems to stay in the U.S. for up to two years beyond the terms of their visas to receive critical treatment. Just one day later, it announced that some children born to U.S. servicemembers and government employees stationed overseas will no longer automatically receive citizenship. The policy changes come days after the Justice Department asked the Supreme Court to allow the Trump administration to implement its rule banning almost all migrants from seeking asylum in the Unit…

Staff (2019-08-30). Family of Mexican Teenager Slain by Border Agent Awaits SCOTUS Ruling to Determine If They Can Sue. democracynow.org This fall, the Supreme Court will decide whether the parents of Sergio Hernández Gàºereca, a 15-year-old Mexican teen killed by a Border Patrol agent in 2010, can sue the American agent in a U.S. federal court. It's been nearly 10 years since Border Patrol agent Jesus Mesa Jr. shot across the El Paso-Juárez border and struck Hernández Gàºereca in the head. The central question in the case is whether a Mexican citizen killed on Mexican soil by a U.S. border agent is protected by the U.S. Constitution — allowing for the family members of victims to file civil lawsuits. If the Supreme Court rules in…

ACLU (2019-08-27). New Resource Tool Sheds Light on Government's Prepublication Review System. aclu.org Millions of current and former government employees are subjected to this far-reaching censorship system. | This piece was originally published in Just Security. | For more than three years, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University have been litigating a series of Freedom of Information Act requests relating to "prepublication review." Under this far-reaching censorship system, millions of current and former government employees, con…

Mnar Muhawesh (2019-08-26). Breaking The Media Blackout on the Imprisonment of Julian Assange. mintpressnews.com The same media that has spent years dragging Assange's name through the mud is now engaging in a blackout on his treatment. If you are waiting for corporate media pundits to defend freedom of the press, you're going to be disappointed.

ACLU (2019-08-23). Will North Carolina's Supreme Court Allow Racism to Remain a Persistent Factor in its Death Penalty? aclu.org North Carolina's Supreme Court will determine whether evidence of racism in capital punishment can be swept under the rug. | In 2009, North Carolina passed the Racial Justice Act (RJA), which allowed defendants to strike the death penalty from their cases if they could show that racial discrimination was a factor in their prosecution. The law came as a response to a series of exonerations of Black people who were falsely convicted of crimes they did not commit by all-white or nearly all-white juries. The legislature took a bold step to address was what suspected to be deeply troubling evidence of racism infe…

Ricardo Vaz (2019-08-14). Venezuela's Maduro Reshuffles Cabinet as Supreme Court Strips Three Opposition Lawmakers of Immunity. venezuelanalysis.com The National Constituent Assembly will also evaluate bringing forward legislative elections.

splcenter (2019-08-13). SPLC joins brief opposing Kansas law targeting immigrants. splcenter.org The SPLC and 29 worker and immigrant rights organizations filed an amicus brief today urging the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold a court decision stating that a Kansas identity theft law cannot be used to turn local law enforcement into immigration agents.

2019-09-06: Social Media Postees

The Most Consequential Whistleblower Who Wasn't
Robert Scheer | truthdig.com | 2019-09-06
While so many have heard of whistleblowers Chelsea Manning and Edward Snowden making history in recent years, few have heard the story of Katharine Gun, the subject of the film "Official Secrets," directed and co-written by Gavin Hood. On the latest installment of "Scheer Intelligence," the "Official Secrets" director tells Truthdig Editor in Chief Robert Scheer that he learned about Gun from Ged Doherty, a producer he'd worked with on the film "Eye in the Sky" about drone warfare, and realized the whistleblowe…
truthdig.com/articles/the-most-consequential-whistleblower-who-wasnt/

The FBI Is Monitoring Immigration Activists as Violent "Extremists"
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-09-06
| An FBI document obtained by Yahoo News shows that the bureau is monitoring groups that protest the Trump administration immigration policies as "extremists." | An FBI "external intelligence note" that was…
truthout.org/articles/the-fbi-is-monitoring-immigration-activists-as-violent-extremists/

Embassy insider exposes CNN lies about Julian Assange
Aaron Maté | thegrayzone.com | 2019-09-06
A "bombshell" CNN report claimed to show how Wikileaks founder Julian Assange published stolen Democratic Party emails in 2016 in…
thegrayzone.com/2019/09/06/embassy-insider-exposes-cnn-lies-about-julian-assange/

WikiLeaks exposes crimes of German imperialism
wsws.org | 2019-09-06
The German media has slandered WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who faces possible life imprisonment or the death penalty in the US for making Washington's war crimes public.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2019/09/06/wiki-s06.html

Basta !!! Free Chelsea Manning & Julien Assange Oakland Weekly Friday Vigil tabeling
ORION | indybay.org | 2019-09-06
MACARTHUR&FRUITVALE IN OAKLAND 94602…
indybay.org/newsitems/2019/09/05/18826006.php

NATO Deep State in Turkey
unitedEditor | uwidata.com | 2019-09-06
àúnal àáevikà∂z, the deputy opposition leader of the main opposition party in Turkey, the Republican People's Party (RPP, Turk. CHP), commented on President Recep Tayyip Erdoƒüan's recent trip to Russia, saying: "We are concerned that if Turkey, a member of NATO, continues to purchase weapons that are not can be integrated into the Alliance system, …
uwidata.com/5228-turkeys-warning-to-nato/

9/11 and the American Orwellian Nightmare
James Bovard | counterpunch.org | 2019-09-06
Next week will mark the 18th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Politicians and bureaucrats wasted no time after that carnage to unleash the Surveillance State on average Americans, treating every citizen like a terrorist suspect. Since the government failed to protect the public, Americans somehow forfeited their constitutional right to privacy. Despite heroic efforts by former NSA staffer Edward Snowden and a host of activists and freedom fighters, the government continues ravaging American privacy.
counterpunch.org/2019/09/06/9-11-and-the-american-orwellian-nightmare/

Washington Supreme Court Establishes 'Very Important Precedent' for Climate Necessity Defense in Case of Valve-Turner Ken Ward
Jessica Corbett, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2019-09-06
In a decision that could profoundly impact future litigation involving climate activists, the Washington Supreme Court this week refused to review a lower court's ruling to allow valve-turner Ken Ward to present a "necessity defense" for charges related to a 2016 multi-state action that temporarily shut down tar sands pipelines. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/ken1.jpg
commondreams.org/news/2019/09/06/washington-supreme-court-establishes-very-important-precedent-climate-necessity?cd-origin=rss

Big Tech & Big Brother meet at Facebook HQ to discuss how to 'secure' US elections
rt.com | 2019-09-05
Security teams for Facebook, Google, Twitter and Microsoft met with the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and the Director of National Intelligence's office to coordinate a strategy to secure the 2020 elections. | The tech platforms met with government officials at Facebook's Menlo Park headquarters on Wednesday, the company has confirmed, boasting that Big Tech and Big Brother have developed a "comprehensive strategy" to get control of previous election-related "vulnerabilities" while "analyzing and getting ahead of new threats." | Facebook has scrambled to get in front of the 2020 election after being…
rt.com/usa/468060-big-tech-government-election-security/

The Pro-Israel Extremist Behind Trump's Economic War on Iran
Staff | truthdig.com | 2019-09-05
This is part one of a two part series on the growing impact of the US economic war on Iran. | Several US citizens have been questioned by the FBI and threatened with arrest for their participation in New Horizon, a public media conference held each year in Iran. | The interrogations and threats are the result of orders apparently delivered by Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Sigal P. Mandelker, a militantly pro-Israel lawyer with longstanding ties to right-wing political networks. | Mandelker was…
truthdig.com/articles/the-pro-israel-extremist-behind-trumps-economic-war-on-iran/

New technologies, artificial intelligence aid fight against global terrorism
United Nations | un.org | 2019-09-04
Although terrorists have become skilled at manipulating the Internet and other new technologies, artificial intelligence or AI, is a powerful tool in the fight against them, a top UN counter-terrorism official said this week at a high-level conference on strengthening international cooperation against the scourge.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2019/09/1045562

'Free Julian Assange!' say Roger Waters, John Pilger, and British MP Chris Williamson
Ben Norton | thegrayzone.com | 2019-09-03
Legendary musician Roger Waters sang "Wish You Were Here" in honor of Julian Assange, at a public concert outside the…
thegrayzone.com/2019/09/03/julian-assange-roger-waters-john-pilger-chris-williamson/

North Carolina Supreme Court Begins Case on Racial Bias in Jury Selection
Staff | therealnews.com | 2019-09-01
The North Carolina Supreme Court is hearing a case to decide if racial bias will be allowed to continue in jury selection, or if the Constitution's promise of due process and a trial by a jury of one's peers applies to everyone…
therealnews.com/stories/north-carolina-supreme-court-begins-case-on-racial-bias-in-jury-selection

Chicago students say, 'CIA off campus!'
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2019-08-31
Chicago, IL – On the afternoon of August 28, members of Students for a Democratic Society and AnakBayan Chicago, at the University of Illinois at Chicago, passed out flyers on the quad to oppose the partnership that the university has with the CIA. SDS members held a banner reading "CIA off campus," the slogan that has been used in past decades by student activists around the country in similar campaigns. Protesters held signs each detailing a different CIA operation and the number of deaths it caused. | In February 2018, the UIC announced that they had become a CIA Signature School. Only three months later, Gina…
www.fightbacknews.org/2019/8/31/chicago-students-say-cia-campus

"All-Out Attack": Trump's Anti-Immigrant Policies Target Children, Cancer Patients & Servicemembers
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-08-30
On Tuesday, the Trump administration reportedly ended its "medical deferred action" program, which allows immigrants with serious health problems to stay in the U.S. for up to two years beyond the terms of their visas to receive critical treatment. Just one day later, it announced that some children born to U.S. servicemembers and government employees stationed overseas will no longer automatically receive citizenship. The policy changes come days after the Justice Department asked the Supreme Court to allow the Trump administration to implement its rule banning almost all migrants from seeking asylum in the Unit…
www.democracynow.org/2019/8/30/lee_gelernt_aclu_immigrant_rights

Family of Mexican Teenager Slain by Border Agent Awaits SCOTUS Ruling to Determine If They Can Sue
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-08-30
This fall, the Supreme Court will decide whether the parents of Sergio Hernández Gàºereca, a 15-year-old Mexican teen killed by a Border Patrol agent in 2010, can sue the American agent in a U.S. federal court. It's been nearly 10 years since Border Patrol agent Jesus Mesa Jr. shot across the El Paso-Juárez border and struck Hernández Gàºereca in the head. The central question in the case is whether a Mexican citizen killed on Mexican soil by a U.S. border agent is protected by the U.S. Constitution — allowing for the family members of victims to file civil lawsuits. If the Supreme Court rules in…
www.democracynow.org/2019/8/30/scotus_case_border_patrol_killings_mexico

New Resource Tool Sheds Light on Government's Prepublication Review System
aclu.org | 2019-08-27
Millions of current and former government employees are subjected to this far-reaching censorship system. | This piece was originally published in Just Security. | For more than three years, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University have been litigating a series of Freedom of Information Act requests relating to "prepublication review." Under this far-reaching censorship system, millions of current and former government employees, con…
aclu.org/blog/free-speech/employee-speech-and-whistleblowers/new-resource-tool-sheds-light-governments

Breaking The Media Blackout on the Imprisonment of Julian Assange
Mnar Muhawesh | mintpressnews.com | 2019-08-26
The same media that has spent years dragging Assange's name through the mud is now engaging in a blackout on his treatment. If you are waiting for corporate media pundits to defend freedom of the press, you're going to be disappointed.
mintpressnews.com/media-blackout-imprisonment-espionage-act-julian-assange/261510/

Will North Carolina's Supreme Court Allow Racism to Remain a Persistent Factor in its Death Penalty?
aclu.org | 2019-08-23
North Carolina's Supreme Court will determine whether evidence of racism in capital punishment can be swept under the rug. | In 2009, North Carolina passed the Racial Justice Act (RJA), which allowed defendants to strike the death penalty from their cases if they could show that racial discrimination was a factor in their prosecution. The law came as a response to a series of exonerations of Black people who were falsely convicted of crimes they did not commit by all-white or nearly all-white juries. The legislature took a bold step to address was what suspected to be deeply troubling evidence of racism infe…
aclu.org/blog/capital-punishment/racial-disparities-and-death-penalty/will-north-carolinas-supreme-court

Venezuela's Maduro Reshuffles Cabinet as Supreme Court Strips Three Opposition Lawmakers of Immunity
Ricardo Vaz | venezuelanalysis.com | 2019-08-14
The National Constituent Assembly will also evaluate bringing forward legislative elections.
venezuelanalysis.com/news/14628

SPLC joins brief opposing Kansas law targeting immigrants
splcenter.org | 2019-08-13
The SPLC and 29 worker and immigrant rights organizations filed an amicus brief today urging the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold a court decision stating that a Kansas identity theft law cannot be used to turn local law enforcement into immigration agents.
splcenter.org/news/2019/08/13/splc-joins-brief-opposing-kansas-law-targeting-immigrants