Tuesday, February 16, 2016

16 Feb - Blogs I'm Following

1837 cartoon shows Democratic Party as donkey1837 cartoon shows Democratic Party as donkey (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

10:41pm MST

Alan Waldman : TELEVISION | ‘Peaky Blinders’ is excellent English historical series

Thorne Dreyer at The Rag Blog - 57 seconds ago
Irish, Italian, and Jewish gangster armies contend in Birmingham and London in the 1920s. By Alan Waldman | The Rag Blog | February 17, 2016 [In his Rag Blog column, Alan Waldman reviews some of his favorite films and TV … finish reading Alan Waldman : *TELEVISION* | ‘Peaky Blinders’ is excellent English historical series

France: Civil War Is Imminent

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 12 minutes ago
Officers from the riot police force in France (Compagnies Républicaines de Sécurité) have spoken out on Facebook saying that they believe a civil war is imminent. In a post titled “Diary of a CRS” – police officers belonging to the Compagnies Républicaines de Sécurité say why they think France on the brink of total civil war, and accuse the media are completely hiding certain unpalatable facts from the public. From the Facebook post: Here is the story “Diary of a CRS” you will not find anywhere else as totally forbidden! WORDS OF POLICE: (Take the time to read to the end) This diary... more »

Jesus Healed Sick People With Marijuana, Researchers Discover

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 12 minutes ago
Historical and scientific research suggests that Jesus Christ may have been an avid marijuana user, and experts say he may have also used the plant to heal sick people. Experts suggest that cannabis may have been a key ingredient in the “anointing oil” used by Jesus and his followers in rituals for healing. Naturalnews.com reports: From the original High Times article: “Christ” is the Greek translation of the Hebrew “Messiah.” In modern English, this term would be translated as the “anointed one.” The title “Christ” was only placed upon he who had “God’s unction upon him.” This hol... more »

Lamar W. Hankins : Superdelegates and the undemocratic Democratic Party

Thorne Dreyer at The Rag Blog - 33 minutes ago
It is as though the Democratic Party has declared that the rabble who vote are not to be trusted with the fate of the party. By Lamar W. Hankins | The Rag Blog | Feb. 17, 2016 SAN MARCOS — … finish reading Lamar W. Hankins : Superdelegates and the undemocratic Democratic Party

1.6 Million Struck Down With Flu In Japan Last Week

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 45 minutes ago
The flu season in Japan has struck 1.64 million people who all fell ill with flu symptoms across the country, during a one-week period through February 7, the health ministry has confirmed. 5,995 schools across Japan had to close due to the outbreak in order to prevent further spread of the influenza virus. Japantoday.com reports: This year, flu season began in earnest later than the previous several years, but its outbreak is close to reaching levels seen in average years, according to the ministry. During the week before, an estimated 1.07 million people had been diagnosed with f... more »

Ukraine PM And His Government Have Survived A No-Confidence Vote

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 1 hour ago
Ukraine's Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk delivers a speech during a parliament session in Kiev, Ukraine, February 16, 2016. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich *Washington Post:* *Ukraine’s prime minister survives no-confidence vote amid deepening anger* KIEV, Ukraine — Ukraine’s government under Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk survived a rowdy vote of no confidence on Tuesday, as outrage over economic recession and political cronyism threatened the collapse of his ruling coalition. The motion to oust the cabinet, which gained momentum as President Petro Poroshenko endorsed a government resh... more »

Judge: Apple Must Help U.S. Hack San Bernardino Killer’s Phone

TAMI ABDOLLAH and ERIC TUCKER at The Stream - 1 hour ago
[image: This July 27, 2014, photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows Tashfeen Malik, left, and Syed Farook, as they passed through O'Hare International Airport in Chicago. A U.S. magistrate has ordered Apple to help the Obama administration hack into an iPhone belonging to one of the shooters in San Bernardino, Calif. The ruling by Sheri Pym on Feb. 16, 2016, requires Apple to supply highly specialized software the FBI can load onto the phone to cripple a security encryption feature that erases data after too many unsuccessful unlocking attempts. Federal prosecutor... more »

Obama Will Be The ONLY Black President To Ever Try To Name A Supreme Court Justice In His Final Year!

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 2 hours ago
In the video above, Ted Cruz is lying his ass off, not because he expects anyone sane will believe him, but because the South Carolina Republican presidential primary is coming up. McConnell, Jeb Bush, Rubio, Herr Trumph, Chuck Grassley and lots of other high profile Republicans have demanded President Obama not appoint a replacement for far right Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Rubio was on *Meet the Press* Sunday either demonstrating his ignorance or just lying to the viewers. "Both parties have followed this precedent. There comes a point in the last year of the presiden... more »

Europe Is Note Ready For A Massive New Wave Of Refugees

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 2 hours ago
*Washington Post:* *Spring could bring a fresh surge of refugees. But Europe isn’t ready for them.* LONDON — After an unparalleled tide of asylum seekers washed onto European shores last summer and fall, the continent’s leaders vowed to use the relative calm of winter to bring order to a process marked by chaos. But with only weeks to go before more favorable spring currents are expected to trigger a fresh surge of arrivals, the continent is no better prepared. And in critical respects, the situation is even worse. Ideas that were touted as answers to the crisis last year have fai... more »

MSM's Laughable Anti-Putin Propaganda Masks The Complexities of The War In Syria

Saman Mohammadi at The Excavator - 2 hours ago
Some fool suggested that Putin is the cause of World War III in an article for Forbes called,* "Putin Threatens World War Again, This Time Over Syria: Will Turks And Saudis Call His Bluff?"* Here's an excerpt: Anyway, Americans voted for Obama to pull out. They’d had enough of the region. And the war would have stayed within the region, including the migrant problem, but for one thing – the ambitions of Putin. Not checking Putin sharply in Crimea, then Ukraine, compounding the indecision over Georgia, has indeed brought the world to the brink of total war. Does this idiot believe... more »

"So what if people did behave according to Rand’s philosophy of Objectivism?”

Peter Cresswell at Not PC - 3 hours ago
Writing at NPR, respected research psychologist Denise Cummins expresses her fascination with the growing popularity of Rand's ideas among young people, asking the question: “So what if people behaved according to Rand’s philosophy of ‘objectivism’[sic]? What if we indeed allowed ourselves to be blinded to all but our own self-interest?” She answers the question herself with several straw men thoroughly debunked by Ben Bayer at the new Check Your Premises blog, to which Landon Walsh adds this excellent comment: I think it's important to answer the question she posed for herself... more »

Russian Su-35s Fighter Jets Have Been Stalking German Tornados Over Syria

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 3 hours ago
A German air force Tornado jet takes off from the German army Bundeswehr airbase in Jagel, northern Germany December 10, 2015 (REUTERS Photo) *National Interest*: *Lethal Shadows: Russian Su-35s Stalk German Tornados Over Syria* Russian Sukhoi Su-35S Flanker-E air superiority fighters have been confronting the German Luftwaffe’s Tornado reconnaissance aircraft over Syria—potentially heightening tensions and increasing the chances of a miscalculation. Berlin has deployed six Tornado reconnaissance/strike aircraft to the region to support allied operations against ISIS, while Moscow... more »

Why A Saudi Ground Operation In Syria Is A Bad Idea

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 3 hours ago
Saudi Brigadier General Ahmed al Asiri *Alexander Decina, Daily Beast:* *Saudi Troops to Syria? Whoa. Bad Idea!* If Riyadh and its partners actually intend to send troops to Syria, it will be an incredibly risky move that will prolong the civil war. On Feb. 4, the spokesman for the Saudi military, Brigadier General Ahmed al Asiri, made a bold announcement. The Gulf kingdom, he said, would commit troops to a ground operation against ISIS if the United States asked it to and if the coalition agreed to it. Asiri made the statement sitting in front of the flags of all six Gulf Cooperat... more »

...And The First Casuality of War is.....another MSF Hospital

greencrow at Greencrow As The Crow Flies - 3 hours ago
*MSF accused by Syria of being a spy asset for NATO* *(makes perfect sense to me)* From the New York Times we get this surprisingly "truthy" report: The Latest: Syria Accuses Alliance of Striking Hospital By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FEB. 16, 2016, 5:07 P.M. E.S.T. BEIRUT — The latest on the civil war in Syria (all times local): 11:57 p.m. Syria's United Nations ambassador says his government has "credible information" that the U.S.-led alliance struck a hospital in northern Syria run by Doctors Without Borders and *is accusing the medical aid organization of being a branch of French... more »

Alice Embree : LIBROS | ‘Haydée Santamaría, Revolucionaria cubana’

Cecilia Colome at The Rag Blog - 3 hours ago
Margaret Randall, integrando la voz de una poetiza en su obra, le da dimensiones humanas a los héroes de la revolución cubana. Por Alice Embree | The Rag Blog | 1 de septiembre, 2015 Traducido del inglés por Cecilia Colomé … finish reading Alice Embree : *LIBROS* | ‘Haydée Santamaría, Revolucionaria cubana’

A Winter Vacation in Utah

Debra Hawkins at Housewife Eclectic - 4 hours ago
Snow. Snow everywhere. There comes a time every winter where my entire family gets stir crazy. We want to be outside, but it is just so darn cold. This winter we decided we wanted to go on a little winter vacation where we could enjoy everything about the cold, but also have a warm place to go after we were done with snow. We headed to the Homestead Resort in Midway, Utah. If you have never been to Midway, you are seriously missing out. It is the cutest town I have ever seen. It was settled by Swiss immigrants and they have fully embraced their Swiss heritage right down to the bui... more »

Selling NATO Intervention in Syria the R2P way: Save Refugees and Europe

Penny at Penny for your thoughts - 4 hours ago
*From the Atlantic Council- How to Reverse Putin’s Damage in Syria* By John E. Herbst- *John E. Herbst is Director of the Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center at the Atlantic Council. He served as US Ambassador to Ukraine from 2003 to 2006.* For this post I'm ignoring the title and cutting to the chase! When reading this ask yourself,* could it be any more clear that ISIS was never the enemy*. They were always the proxy, needed to remake the middle east & create 2nd Israel aka Kurdistan. Read as the demon masquerading as a human suggests the necessary US actions to destroy Syria and ch...more »

The Force Beyond

Oberon at GlobaLove Think Tank - 4 hours ago

Success at Business ≠ Understanding Economics

Peter Cresswell at Not PC - 4 hours ago
*Donald Trump claims to be very successful at business, observes Don Boudreaux in this guest post, and so too does John Key, but this would make neither an expert on the economy.* *Wealth doesn't indicate economic wisdom.* Here’s a refrain that I’m being bombarded with by e-mail and on Facebook; this particular version is a Facebook comment by someone named Thomas Marise (whom I don’t know): *[image: _Quote_Idiot]Trump has proven time and again he knows his stuff when it comes to economics. He has a personal wealth of $10Billion proving his understanding. Hard to argue with ... more »

No Black Firewall for Hillary in the South

E.W. Jackson at The Stream - 5 hours ago
[image: DENMARK, SC - FEBRUARY 12: Voters and elected officals listen to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speak in South Carolina a day after her debate with rival candidate Bernie Sanders on February 12, 2016 in Denmark, South Carolina. Clinton is counting on strong support from the African American community in South Carolina to give her a win over Sanders in the upcoming primary on February 27.] Practically every pundit in the mainstream media has opined about Hillary’s “firewall” in the South. These comments intensified after the shellacking she got in the New Ha... more »

Trump the Unhinged

Pete Wehner at The Stream - 5 hours ago
[image: Donald Trump speaking at CPAC 2011 in Washington, D.C.] In Saturday's Republican debate, Donald Trump, in discussing the Iraq war, accused President George W. Bush and his administration of lying to get the United States into the Iraq war. "You call it whatever you want. I wanna tell you.... more »

Bombshell: Scalia Held ‘Secret’ Meeting With Obama Hours Before Death

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 5 hours ago
A Foreign Intelligence Service report has revealed that US Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia visited President Obama just hours before his suspicious death in Houston. The secret meeting was held aboard a US Air Force plane heading to a Texas ranch owned by a close friend of Obama’s. Whatdoesitmean.com reports: According to this report, SVR “assests” reported that on 11 February both President Obama and Justice Scalia were at Joint Base Andrews (JBA) scheduled for two separate US Air Force flights from Andrews Field—the first taking President Obama to Los Angeles, and the second...more »

Vaccinated Kids Spread Whooping Cough – Confirmed

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 5 hours ago
A study has confirmed that 26 vaccinated Florida toddlers all got sick with whooping cough (B. pertussis) after receiving the DtaP vaccine in 2013. All of the children, aged one to five year olds, attended the Tallahassee preschool and had received four doses of the pertussis vaccine (DtaP) – according to official CDC recommendations. Thevaccinereaction.org reports: Let’s examine the evidence to see if it is logical to make a big deal out of kids in a preschool classroom infecting each other, plus infecting other kids in their homes with whooping cough, even though all of them had b... more »

Ukraine Government In Meltdown

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 5 hours ago
Ukraine have confirmed that an imminent collapse of its current coalition government is on the cards, amid a Parliamentary vote on whether to hold snap elections in the country. Ukraine’s largest political party confirmed that they will vote whether the performance of Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk is “unsatisfactory” before arranging a general election. Theglobeandmail.com reports: If the government loses, lawmakers need 150 signatures in parliament to hold a no-confidence vote, which could lead to national elections if the coalition cannot agree on a new cabinet. Two legislators...more »

Police State: US Marshals Arrest Students For Failing To Pay Back Loans

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 5 hours ago
US Marshals in Houston have begun arresting students who have failed to pay back their student loans. Former student Paul Aker has confirmed that he was arrested last week in his home for failing to pay back a $1500 federal student loan he received in 1987. Fox26houston.com reports: He says seven deputy US Marshals showed up at his home with guns and took him to federal court where he had to sign a payment plan for the 29-year-old school loan. Congressman Gene Green says the federal government is now using private debt collectors to go after those who owe student loans. Green says a...more »

Turkish Troops Open Fire On Russian Military In Syria

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 5 hours ago
Turkey have open-fired on Kurdish YPG militia and Russian troops operating within the Syrian-Turkish border, as military tensions escalates between Russia and Turkey in Syria. Turkey have asked the United States for military assistance in a ground operation as Russian troops advance closer to its borders. Thestar.com.my reports: A large-scale joint ground operation is still unlikely: Washington has ruled out a major offensive. But the request shows how swiftly a Russian-backed advance in recent weeks has transformed a conflict that has drawn in most regional and global powers. Syri... more »

WW3: Hezbollah Are Now Able To Shoot Down Israeli Jets

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 5 hours ago
Israel are claiming that Hezbollah are now able to shoot down Israeli jets flying over parts of the Middle East. According to an IDF source, Russia’s presence in Syria has given Hezbollah the ability to shoot down Israeli planes. Uprooted Palestinians reports: Those same IDF sources estimate that the increased Hezbollah provocations are the result of the tightening relationship between Russia and Hezbollah, as part of the campaign against ISIS in Syria. “The ties between Hezbollah and Syria and Russia have completely changed the rules of the game in the region — despite the [Russia...more »

Germany Is Crashing The Euro As Europe’s Economy Goes Into Meltdown

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 5 hours ago
Germany’s policies in Europe could spark the Eurozone to collapse, as government debt and bailout regulations put the euro and those countries who use it on the brink of a total economic meltdown. A special advisor to the German government, Professor Peter Bofinger, has predicted that Spain and Italy will be forced to leave the euro in the immediate future because of Germany’s new rules. Express.co.uk reports: Under the proposed scheme, investors who hold Eurozone government-issued debts through bonds would have to accept write-offs on the value of their investment before the group ... more »

Jim Simons : The passing of Scalia: A requiem for Caesar

Thorne Dreyer at The Rag Blog - 5 hours ago
There is no escaping the fact that Justice Scalia did more to harm this country than any other Supreme Court judge in history. By Jim Simons | The Rag Blog | February 16, 2016 “The evil that men do lives … finish reading Jim Simons : The passing of Scalia: A requiem for Caesar

Mohawk Nation News 'Wack Them Mother!'

brendanorrell@gmail.com at CENSORED NEWS - 5 hours ago
http://mohawknationnews.com/blog/2016/02/16/wack-them-mother/

Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- February 16, 2016

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 5 hours ago
*Michael Clarke, The Guardian*: *If the Syria ceasefire fails, Isis will be the least of the west’s problems* *The prospect of Russian and Iranian forces putting a vengeful Assad back in control of a broken country is now all too real* The military campaign against Islamic State is being reduced to a vicious sideshow as the Syrian civil war enters a new make-or-break phase. Russian military involvement has been a game-changer – saving Bashar al-Assad’s forces from near collapse, blatantly attacking western-backed opposition forces, and supplying T-90 tanks to Assad’s army closing ... more »

Are Christians Hypocrites?

Sean McDowell at The Stream - 5 hours ago
[image: seanvideo]

Will 2016 Be The Year The West Goes To War With Russia?

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 5 hours ago
Diplomatic relations between Russia and the West are officially at their lowest point in history, with Russia declaring a new cold war against the West and the U.S. continuing to impose sanctions against its fellow superpower. Many people believe the world is dangerously close to an all out World War 3 scenario, and experts say that 2016 will be the year it ignites. Pravdareport.com reports: As for the United States, one may already talk about another arms race between our countries. Russia and the USA compete in their military power, while officials of the two states release highl... more »

Syrian Army Advances Towards The ISIS Capital Raqqa

Edmondo Burr at Your News Wire - 5 hours ago
Syrian army and paramilitary forces are moving into the ISIS capital of Raqqa in Syria. Syrian army units are seizing strategical areas along the Salamiyah-Raqqa road as they head into the Islamic State stronghold. RT reports: On Sunday, Syrian government forces and Palestinian armed militia captured the strategically important Tal Masbah hilltop, the last entrenched Islamic State (IS, previously ISIS/ISIL) position. The fortified position guarded approaches to the Salamiyah-Raqqa highway, leading to the terror group’s stronghold in the city of Raqqa, Al-Masdar news outlet reported,... more »

‘White Privilege': Part II in a Series of Widely Held Beliefs That Are Either Untrue or Meaningless

Dennis Prager at The Stream - 6 hours ago
[image: Teamwork, Collaboration, People, Diversity] A pillar of contemporary leftism is the notion of “white privilege.” Given that a generation of high school and college students are being taught that a great number of “unearned privileges” accrue to white Americans -- the charge of white... more »

Vanity, the Sultry Prince Protege Who Became a Christian Minister, Dies at 57

JESSE J. HOLLAND at The Stream - 6 hours ago
[image: Vanity3] Vanity, a Prince protege who renounced her sexy stage persona to become a Christian minister, has died. She was 57. The singer and actress, born Denise Matthews, died Monday at a hospital in Fremont, California, said Gisela Hernandez, a spokeswoman...more »

Musical Interlude: Liquid Mind, “Awakening (Cosmic Sea)”

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 6 hours ago
Liquid Mind, “Awakening (Cosmic Sea)” - https://www.youtube.com/

"A Look to the Heavens"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 6 hours ago
“Massive star IRS 4 is beginning to spread its wings. Born only about 100,000 years ago, material streaming out from this newborn star has formed the nebula dubbed Sharpless 2-106 Nebula (S106), featured here. A large disk of dust and gas orbiting Infrared Source 4 (IRS 4), visible in brown near the image center, gives the nebula an hourglass or butterfly shape. *Click image for larger size.* S106 gas near IRS 4 acts as an emission nebula as it emits light after being ionized, while dust far from IRS 4 reflects light from the central star and so acts as a reflection nebula. Detailed ... more »

"12 Rules for Being a Human Being"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 6 hours ago
*"12 Rules for Being a Human Being"* by Marc "Don’t try to be perfect. Just be an excellent example of being human. Here are a few things to keep in mind: *1. Growth requires pain.* Be patient and tough, someday this pain will be useful to you. Those with the strength to succeed in the long run are the ones who lay a firm foundation of growth with the bricks that life has thrown at them. So don’t be afraid to fall apart for a little while. Because when it happens, the situation will open an opportunity for you to grow and rebuild yourself into the brilliant person you are capab... more »

The Poet: John Glenday, "Concerning the Atoms of the Soul"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 6 hours ago
*"Concerning the Atoms of the Soul"* "Someone explained once how the pieces of what we are fall downwards at the same rate as the Universe. The atoms of us, falling towards the centre of whatever everything is. And we don't see it. We only sense their slight drag in the lifting hand. That's what weight is, that communal process of falling. Furthermore, these atoms carry hooks, like burrs, hooks catching like hooks, like clinging to like, that's what keeps us from becoming something else, and why in early love, we sometimes feel the tug of the heart snagging on another's heart. Only th... more »

Chet Raymo, “Nuclear Landscapes”

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 6 hours ago
*“Nuclear Landscapes” * by Chet Raymo "I was thinking recently about August 7, 1945. I was almost nine years old, growing up in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The previous day an atomic bomb had exploded over the heart of Hiroshima. As I recall, all of us, adults and children, struggled to understand this extraordinary event, so remote from common knowledge and experience. It was clear that humanity had crossed a threshold, but to what? Within eight days, the war would be over. One mystery was solved: We now knew what was going on up Highway 11 in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, previously a source ... more »

Stoke City Council Debt Hypocrisy

Phil at All That Is Solid ... - 6 hours ago
There's nothing wrong with a bit of ambition, but at what point does ambition grow over into delusional thinking? Helpfully the ruling coalition is jolly old Stoke-on-Trent is set on providing a case study. Long-term readers will remember that Labour lost its overall majority on the council back in May, and was replaced by an alliance of councillors who, to put it euphemistically, are of mixed ability. We have the City Independents, led by nominal council leader Dave Conway. It's worth noting they went into the elections pledging not to ally with any other party, and with an alacrit... more »

World News Briefs -- February 16, 2016 (Evening Edition)

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 6 hours ago
Tanks stationed at a Turkish army position near the Oncupinar crossing gate near the town of Kilis fire towards the Syria border, on February 16, 2016 (AFP Photo/Bulent Kilic) *AFP:* *Russia and Turkey run risk of escalation over Syria* Moscow (AFP) - Turkey and Russia are already waging a proxy war in Syria as Istanbul backs rebels against Syrian government troops supported by Moscow. But the recent escalation in rhetoric has sharpened fears of a direct confrontation, analysts warn. The two major players in the Syrian conflict have historic enmities dating back to the 16th centur... more »

"Outright Terror...Bold and Brilliant" (Tavistock Square)

Oberon at GlobaLove Think Tank - 6 hours ago
The Tavistock Agenda

No One Escapes the Shift

WakingTimes at Waking Times - 6 hours ago
*Zen Gardner* - The storm is hitting us all and it’s a time of decision. Let go into your higher self and calling, or fasten tighter to what is dissolving anyway. The post No One Escapes the Shift appeared first on Waking Times.

Economic News , Data & Views ( February 16 , 2016 ) Europe In Focus ( 1. Ukraine Prime Minister Survives No Confidence Vote - Where does Ukraine Go from Here ? Split between President & Prime Minister on full display 2. Greece items de jour-political front and economic situation 3. France in focus - State of Emergency extended , Nicolas Sarkozy placed under formal investigation as part of probe into 2012 presidential campaign funding. 4. EU-UK Talks - Items of note. 5. Refugee Crisis Items. 6. Odds & Ends - ECB , Oil , Etc. . )

Fred Walton at Catharsis Ours - 6 hours ago
Europe In Focus ...... Ukraine situation fluid..... *JC Kommer* ‏@Alea_ 2h 2 hours ago Ukraine heads into the abyss http://www.politico.eu/article/ukrain e-heads-into-the-abyss-petro-poroshenko-arseniy-yatsenyuk/ … *tweetonpolitics-eu* ‏@tweetpoliticsEU 3h 3 hours ago Ukraine PM survives no-confidence vote: Ukraine's parliament rejects a no-confidence vote in Prime Minister Ar... http://bbc.in/1QGwh6s *UkrMarketAssist* ‏@UkrMarketAssist 7h 7 hours ago Ukraine Cabinet Risks Confidence Vote After Premier Reports - Bloomberg http://bit.ly/1Sv5IH8 *zerohedg... more »

Analysts Separately Complain Superiors are Modifying ISIS Reports to Make Obama Look Good

Jonah Bennett at The Stream - 6 hours ago
[image: Soldier in Iraq - 900] U.S. Central Command analysts have complained in a separate set of allegations to top intelligence officials that their superiors manipulated reports to make the Obama administration's campaign against Islamic State seem more successful than it really is. This complaint to... more »

Ted Cruz: Why So Many GOP Nominated Justices End Up Disasters

Stream Staff at The Stream - 6 hours ago
[image: Ted Cruz] The sudden, tragic death of Justice Antonin Scalia has thrown a huge spotlight on the Supreme Court. As conservative columnist Thomas Sowell writes today, “at this crucial juncture in the history of the nation -- with 5-to-4 Supreme Court decisions determining... more »

‘Propaganda’: Top MIT Climate Scientist Trashes ‘97% Consensus’ Claim

Michael Bastasch at The Stream - 6 hours ago
[image: Global warming - 900] Dr. Richard Lindzen is sick and tired of the media repeating the so-called "97 percent consensus" statistic to show just how strong the global warming agreement is among climate scientists. It's purely "propaganda," argues Lindzen. "It was the narrative from... more »

No Joke: Suicidal Veterans Calling VA Crisis Hotline Were Sent to Voicemail

Jonah Bennett at The Stream - 6 hours ago
[image: Veterans, Counselling, Therapy, Mental Health, Depression, Soldier, Counselor] Almost two dozen people who called the VA's suicide hotline in fiscal year 2014 heard nothing but a voicemail message instead of reaching a much-needed person on the line. "We substantiated allegations that some calls routed to backup crisis centers were... more »

Questions and Whispers of Conspiracy Surround Death of Justice Scalia

Al Perrotta at The Stream - 6 hours ago
[image: Antonin Scalia Question Mark - 900] The body of Justice Antonin Scalia had barely begun to grow cold before cries of murder and conspiracy hit the web, sparked by a description Scalia had been found with a “pillow over his head” and a political climate that wouldn’t... more »

What American People Don't Understand

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 6 hours ago
The American people don't understand what happens when you've been invaded by the biggest military on the planet and that you have to fight for every single square centimeter of your country in order to protect your land and your loved ones. This picture was taken during the Vietnam war when the US was bombing neighboring Cambodia. On Sept. 15, 1970 a victim of American bombing, ethnic Cambodian guerrilla Danh Son Huol, was carried to an improvised operating room in a mangrove swamp on the Ca Mau Peninsula. This scene was an actual medical situation, not a publicity setup. The ph... more »

Hillary Clinton Barks At The Republicans

Edmondo Burr at Your News Wire - 6 hours ago
Democratic presidential candidate and former secretary of state, Hillary Clinton resorted to barking like a dog to get her message out about the unreasonableness of the Republicans, during her rally in Reno, Nevada on Monday night. National Review reports: The Democratic candidate hit her GOP rivals for saying the economic crash of 2008 was caused by “too much regulation on Wall Street,” prompting her to launch into a story about one of her favorite political ads she heard on the radio during her husband’s run for governor in Arkansas. CBS News YouTube video: “The announcer said, ‘w... more »

Cheney, Lindsay Graham & George W Slam Trump Over 9/11 Comments

Carol Adl at Your News Wire - 6 hours ago
Dick Cheney, Lindsey Graham and even George W Bush crawled out from under their stones to have a go at Donald Trump following his comments about 9/11 The GOP presidential front-runner accused former President George W. Bush of lying about the terror attacks in order to force the US into war in Iraq. “He sounds like a liberal Democrat to me,” Cheney told Fox News “He’s wrong, and I think he’s deliberately promoting those views in order to advance his own political interests.” Daily Kos reports: Lindsay Graham said that Trump sounded like Michael Moore. Just throwing that in there. “W... more »

Turkey Wants Its Allies To Participate In A Ground Operation In Syria

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 7 hours ago
*New York Times*: *Turkey Says Ground Operation in Syria Is Only Way to Stop War* ISTANBUL — Turkey amplified the big-power tensions over the increasingly chaotic war in Syria on Tuesday, saying it is in discussions with allies, including the United States, over collaborating on a military ground operation into northern Syrian territory. A Turkish official who spoke to reporters in Istanbul about the Syrian situation said it was now impossible to halt the war without a ground operation in northern Syria, and that the Turks would not undertake such an operation on their own. “We ... more »

Military Will Not Cooperate With Any White House Attempt to Unilaterally Close Gitmo

Jonah Bennett at The Stream - 7 hours ago
[image: Guantanamo Bay Detention Center, Gitmo] The U.S. military has confirmed it will not cooperate with the Obama administration if the White House tries to circumvent Congress by unilaterally closing down Guantanamo Bay and transferring detainees to U.S. soil. This stance was confirmed in a letter to Congress... more »

Quote of the Day: Stephen Fry on what Twitter has become

Peter Cresswell at Not PC - 7 hours ago
Trying to make sense of why Stephen Fry left Twitter? Here's what happened... *“Let us grieve at what twitter has become. A stalking ground for thesanctimoniously self-righteous who love to second-guess, to leap to conclusions and be offended – worse, to be offended on behalf of others they do not even know."* ~ Stephen Fry, quoted in the article 'Bag lady' speaks: Costume designer Jenny Beavan says she is not upset by her friend Stephen Fry's Bafta comments’ . *RELATED POSTS*: - “Proper grown-up humans have no idea why a celebrity has deleted his Twitter account.” ... more »

Campaign watch: Brother Hayes seems to take it back!

bob somerby at the daily howler - 7 hours ago
*TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2016And then, he changes his stance:* Midway through last evening's show, Chris Hayes seemed to take it back. He seemed to acknowledge that he had erred at the start of Friday night's program. For our report on Friday's groaner, you can just click here. For TPM's report on his semi-retraction, you can just click this. (Warning! TPM didn't bother producing an accurate transcript of the remarks in question, the remarks Bill Clinton made in Memphis last Thursday night.) We say Hayes made a semi-retraction for the following reason. First, he acknowledged that he... more »

Powerful Anti-Republican Clip Inadvertently Sears Hillary

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 7 hours ago
In a few months I'm being honored by a completely non-political institution for completely non-political activities I'm involved with. My co-honoree is a billionaire, one of Ted Cruz's multimillion dollar contributors. We'll be sitting on a dais together. Awkward. We both gave 7 figure donations to the same institution but his political contribution is meant to help build a takeover of America that will exchange democracy for plutocracy and my work bundling small-dollar contributions for Bernie (here and here) is to help build the political revolution that will strengthen the han... more »

Indigenous Peoples Day to be Considered by Flagstaff Council, Rally Planned

brendanorrell@gmail.com at CENSORED NEWS - 7 hours ago
Indigenous Peoples’ Day to be Considered by Flagstaff Council February 23, 2016, Rally Planned By Klee Benallyindigenousaction@gmail.com Censored News FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — Flagstaff City Council is scheduled to discuss and vote on an Indigenous Peoples' Day proposal Tuesday, February 23 at 6:00pm. A rally to address injustices facing Indigenous Peoples in Flagstaff in support of the

Campaign watch: A special day for TV's Willie Geist!

bob somerby at the daily howler - 7 hours ago
*TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2016Keeps kissing the aspic of power:* Early this morning, it finally happened. We can't link you to the videotape; the Morning Joe staff didn't post it. But this morning, in the program's first hour, we're almost certain we heard it: This was the morning when third banana Willie Geist Jr. referred to "the Democrat Party" [sic] as he snuggled his nose up the ascots of power. It's part of his regular turn as Joe Scarborough's number two sidekick, behind the relentlessly servile Mika. No, really—"the Democrat Party!" At long last, after all these years, that... more »

In the Wake of Scalia’s Death, Cruz Has the Depth and Steadfastness Our Next President Must Have

Thomas Sowell at The Stream - 8 hours ago
[image: Republican presidential candidate, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas speaks at a town hall campaign event, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, in Henniker, N.H. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)] Amid the petty bickering, loud rhetoric and sordid attack ads in this year’s primary election campaigns, the death of a giant -- Justice Antonin Scalia -- suddenly overshadows all of that. The vacancy created on the Supreme Court makes painfully... more »

Syria War News Updates -- February 16, 2016

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 8 hours ago
(Institute for the Study of War) *VOX*: *How Russian bombing is changing Syria's war, in 3 maps* On Monday, Russia apparently bombed three Syrian hospitals and a school. The Russians are denying it, blaming the strikes on the United States, but American planes aren't flying in the parts of northwest Syria where the bombings took place. ISIS has no real presence there, and the group is the sole target of America's airstrikes. Russia, instead, is striking areas held by Syrian rebels — and recently it's been picking up the pace. The goal has been to help the Syrian government, which ... more »

Larry Sanders Gets Applauded For Having A Brother Called Bernie

Edmondo Burr at Your News Wire - 8 hours ago
Bernie Sanders’ older brother Larry from Oxford in England, is getting undue applause from the public for having a brother named Bernie campaigning 3,000 miles away to become the next president of the United States. Sanders Junior happens to be setting the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign on fire with his socialist ideas and revolutionary approach. Larry Sanders, an 80-year-old retired academic, is a campaigner for the Green Party and has recently been appointed as the party’s national spokesman on health. Business Insider UK reports: Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders is an outsider who ha... more »

PARIS: Political Prisoner Leonard Peltier to be Honored with Frantz Fanon Award March 6, 2016

brendanorrell@gmail.com at CENSORED NEWS - 8 hours ago
New! Poster in French for March 6, 2016 event in Paris. PARIS: Leonard Peltier receiving Frantz Fanon Revolutionary Thinking Award By Christine Prat Censored News English, French and Dutch PARIS -- The Frantz Fanon Foundation is awarding the Frantz Fanon Prize to Leonard Peltier. The prize, which honors revolutionary thinkers and their service to mankind, will be presented to Lenny Foster

Why Negative Interest Rates Will Fail

Peter Cresswell at Not PC - 8 hours ago
*Negative rates will fail says Frank Hollenbeck in this guest post, because the problem with the economic system is not a problem of either too little consumption or not enough aggregate demand. The problem stems from a distorted economy caused by manipulated interest rates.* [image: Why Negative Interest Rates Will Fail] It is now just a matter of time before the US central bank follows the central banks of Japan, the EU, Denmark, Sweden and Switzerland in setting negative rates on reserve deposits. The goal of such rates is to force banks to lend their excess reserves. The ass... more »

The War on Terror Has Come Full Circle

Saman Mohammadi at The Excavator - 8 hours ago
*Blackwater and ISIS are both run by the CIA.* *An excerpt from, "Finding the Islamic State a Safe House" by Ulson Gunnar, NEO, February 16, 2016:* Every villain needs a safe house and the Islamic State (IS) is no exception. Luckily for IS, it has two, possibly three waiting for it, all of them courtesy of NATO and in particular the United States. *The war in Syria has been going particularly poor for IS. With Russian air power cutting their supply lines with Turkey and the Syrian Arab Army closing in, it may soon be time for them to shop for a new home.* . . *Of course, and perhap... more »

The Daily "Near You?"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 8 hours ago
Kharkov, Kharkivs'ka Oblast', Ukraine. Thanks for stopping by!

Midday Musical Interlude: M83, “Oblivion - Waking Up”

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 8 hours ago
M83, “Oblivion - Waking Up” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AsHKZCmps-w

“A Brief Visit to the End of the World“

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 8 hours ago
*“A Brief Visit to the End of the World“* by David Cain "People mostly want the same thing, and many of us already have it, but we don’t really notice it. I have no way of confirming this, but I bet that if you could interview people across different centuries and cultures, asking them what they wanted most, you would notice a distinct theme in their answers. Some people would want great riches or power. Others would say they want something very specific: to invent a particular thing, or for a particular person to love them, or to win a gold medal or give an Oscar speech. But I su... more »

Viz Comic Blocked By Facebook

Edmondo Burr at Your News Wire - 8 hours ago
Satirical comic page Viz has had its Facebook page blocked. The popular British comic magazine’s page was taken down without an explanation. Recently Facebook has changed its guidelines regarding material that could be considered inappropriate by a user of the social network, and is frequently giving out warnings, deleting posts and pulling down pages without notice. Breaking News reports: The comic, owned by Dennis Publishing, tweeted an image of its official page complete with a message from Facebook explaining that it had been “unpublished” because it did not follow the site’s te...more »

Unionized News Outlet Praises Scalia for Dying

Connor D. Wolf at The Stream - 8 hours ago
[image: Scalia2 - 900] Unionized news outlet Gawker Media cheered Justice Antonin Scalia's death in a ostentatious victory chant Monday. Because of Scalia's vote (now lack thereof) in a case aimed at ending mandatory public union dues, Gawker's Hamilton Nolan felt it necessary to literally praise Scalia... more »

The Antarctic Climate Card

Paul Homewood at NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW THAT - 9 hours ago
By Paul Homewood When it comes to the poles, it is always the Arctic which gets most of the attention. Time then to update what has been going on down under lately. RSS shows that atmospheric temperatures have effectively remained unchanged during the satellite era, dropping by just 0.02C/decade. (UAH are […]

Yes…

Peter Cresswell at Not PC - 9 hours ago
Yes, it’s true, I’ve been away for a few days. And it was gorgeous (thanks for asking). Did you miss me? Content is copyright PC.BlogSpot.Com © Please contact author for permission to republish: (organon at ihug.co.nz)

Was The Office Of The Director Of National Intelligence Aware That Intelligence On The Islamic State Was 'Skewed'?

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 9 hours ago
*Shane Harris & Nancy Youssef, Daily Beast*:* Exclusive: Whistleblowers Warned Top Spy About Skewed ISIS Intel* It wasn’t just the generals who were warned that ISIS intelligence assessments were overly rosy. The office of the director of national intelligence knew, too. U.S. military analysts told the nation’s top intelligence official that their reports on ISIS were skewed and manipulated by their bosses, The Daily Beast has learned. The result: an overly optimistic account of the campaign against the terror group. The complaints, lodged by analysts at U.S. Central Command in 20... more »

Amnesty International: Site C Dam: Human Rights at Risk

brendanorrell@gmail.com at CENSORED NEWS - 9 hours ago
Site C Dam - Human Rights at Risk “Our people have a deep connection with this land because our ancestors told the stories and legends that are connected to that valley.” -- Chief Liz Logan, Treaty 8 Tribal Association, testifying before the environmental impact assessment of the proposed Site C hydroelectric dam. NEW: Send a message to the Prime Minister  See the beauty of

The Neocons Are A Danger, Especially In Syria

Edmondo Burr at Your News Wire - 9 hours ago
In the following interview Paul Craig Roberts, former assistant secretary of treasury under President Ronald Reagan, says that the neocons in Washington are a dangerous group of people. They can drag America and the world into war and chaos, the likes of which are manifest in Syria. Pravda Report YouTube Channel: What is your forecast for the situation in Syria? Do you think that the World War III can still start because of the clash of interests around that country? Paul Craig Roberts: The situation is dangerous, because the neoconservatives in the United States are still intent on... more »

Untitled

New Orleans Ladder at New Orleans Ladder - 9 hours ago
*Black nationalist 'Washitah Nation' claims Bywater house, changes locks while home is for sale ~Robert McClendon*

Robots Will Replace Half The Global Workforce By 2045

Carol Adl at Your News Wire - 9 hours ago
Robots are set to take over fifty percent of the global workforce by 2045. With the advances in artificial intelligence, robots will be able to outperform humans in any task within the next 30 years. Shocking new statistics were announced during the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Washington on Sunday. RT reports: Jobs at the middle of the skills curve are most at risk, according to Rice University computer science professor Moshi Vardi. High end skills, including those of doctors and attorneys, are unlikely to be developed by mach... more »

Greek PM Tsipras' Airforce Plane Denied Transit To Iran By Turkey After It Had Landed In Rhodes

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 10 hours ago
*Greek Reporter:* *Turkey Prevents Greek PM’s Aircraft from Landing in Rhodes* Turkey did not allow the aircraft carrying Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras to Iran to land in Rhodes for refueling claiming that the island is in a demilitarized zone. It was revealed on Monday that the Greek prime minister’s trip to Iran on February 6 was not as smooth as it should be. The flight plan of the plane that was carrying Tsipras and Greek cabinet members included a landing on the island of Rhodes to refuel. *Read more* .... *Update #1*: Greece complains to Turkey over rejection of Gree... more »

Corrected title: Einstein was wrong again, gravitational waves exist

Luboš Motl at The Reference Frame - 10 hours ago
On Friday, we had a fun exchange with Eclectikus about the Einstein-Rosen paper submitted to Physical Review in Summer 1936 that argued that gravitational waves didn't exist (and was rejected). Eclectikus linked to this one-page PDF file about the history of the 1936 paper. This wrong claim by Einstein and his young collaborator should be kept in mind when people repeat the slogan that "Einstein was right again". The journalists have used this sentence in their titles many times (check e.g. this search query); that's how the average people (whose knowledge of physics and the histo... more »

Trump Says George W. Bush Lied About Weapons of Mass Destruction. Trump is Wrong. Here’s Why.

James Agresti at The Stream - 10 hours ago
[image: George Bush - 900] During Saturday night's GOP presidential debate in North Carolina, Donald Trump asserted that former president George W. Bush and his administration deliberately misled the world about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Trump declared: "They lied! They said there were... more »

Justice Scalia’s Chair Draped in Black as Supreme Court Returns to Work

AP at The Stream - 10 hours ago
[image: Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia’'s courtroom chair is draped in black to mark his death as part of a tradition that dates to the 19th century, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016, at the Supreme Court in Washington. Scalia died Saturday at age 79. He joined the court in 1986 and was its longest-serving justice. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)] WASHINGTON (AP) -- Justice Antonin Scalia’s courtroom chair on Tuesday was draped in black to mark his death as part of a Supreme Court tradition that dates to the 19th century. Scalia died Saturday at age 79. He joined the... more »

Congress Targets Feds Being Paid While Doing Union Business

Kathryn Watson at The Stream - 10 hours ago
[image: Jason Chaffetz - 900] Republicans on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform (HOGR) are demanding more information on all federal employees who collect taxpayer-funded salaries while conducting business for government worker unions. In what could be the precursor to a coming legislative... more »

Stand up for Cannabis, Stand up for Freedom

WakingTimes at Waking Times - 10 hours ago
*Wes Annac* - With the corporate and governmental interests that promote alcohol and tobacco ever allow full legalization of cannabis? The post Stand up for Cannabis, Stand up for Freedom appeared first on Waking Times.

I no nou ewaht to know

Steve at Thinking Aboot - 10 hours ago
The world is such a big picture and if its shattered do not blame the rolling stones

"How It Really Is"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 10 hours ago

The Economy: “Get Away, Satan!”

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 10 hours ago
*“Get Away, Satan!”* by Bill Bonner BALTIMORE – ”We were happily snowed in yesterday. The farm road has a steep hill. This makes it difficult to get in and out when it snows. But what the heck! We didn’t have anywhere to go anyway. And the markets in the U.S. were closed for Presidents’ Day. And so it was, we put another log on the fire… and looked out on the falling snow like a 10-year-old watching his school burn down. What a delight! We had nowhere to go… and no way to get there. *Him Alone Shall You Serve: *We are in Lent. If you don’t follow the church calendar, this is the ... more »

Waiting...

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 10 hours ago
Keeping watch over the BBC by night, it's clear that *Newsnight *hasn't lived up to the BBC's self-declared standards of impartiality over the EU referendum issue: http://isthebbcbiased.blogspot.co.uk/2016/01/remainleave-and-newsnight.html http://isthebbcbiased.blogspot.co.uk/2016/02/ishoos-versus-personalities.html http://isthebbcbiased.blogspot.co.uk/2016/02/mounting-evidence.html Yes, so far this year we've had a fair few single-interviewee interviews with pro-Remain types (from the UK and the continent) where the pro-EU guests have been given the chance to explain (at length) wh... more »

Court dismisses lawsuit by XMRV-chronic fatigue syndrome researcher

Shannon Palus at Retraction Watch - 10 hours ago
A California court has dismissed virologist Judy Mikovits’s lawsuit against fourteen people and two Nevada corporations, in part because she failed to submit necessary documents on time. Mikovits is the author on a now-retracted Science paper suggesting a link between a virus known as XMRV and chronic fatigue syndrome, which has no known cause. She alleged that she was fired […] The post Court dismisses lawsuit by XMRV-chronic fatigue syndrome researcher appeared first on Retraction Watch.

Playing with Wider War

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 11 hours ago
Lawrence Wilkerson is a retired United States Army soldier and former chief of staff to United States Secretary of State Colin Powell. Wilkerson is an adjunct professor at the College of William & Mary where he teaches courses on US national security. He also instructs a senior seminar in the Honors Department at the George Washington University entitled "National Security Decision Making."

Truth and Lies

greencrow at Greencrow As The Crow Flies - 11 hours ago
*Truth and Lies* As reported on this blog over the weekend, the BBC has gone into overdrive, lying about Russia. It has launched a major dysinfo campaign and has ordered all its lying supplicant media subcontractors like the CBC to join in...which they're all too happy to do. Amongst various and sundry other lies, the BBC reported that Russia bombed nine civilian targets in Syria and in particular a MSF hospital. With the sheeple loaded up with lies...the BBC and its subsidiaries now make a strategic retreat from all the lies. Now they've dropped the factoid that* MSF has accused ... more »

8 Soldiers Missing After Discovery Of Ancient Flying Machine In Afghan Cave

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 11 hours ago
An ancient “flying machine” has been discovered in a cave in Afghanistan, attracting the attention of world leaders including Barack Obama. The Vimana (a flying machine often described in Sanskrit texts) was discovered by a group of U.S. soldiers on a mission in the desert of Afghanistan. Eight troops who were tasked with removing the machine from the cave have since gone missing following its discovery. The 5,000 year old machine is believed to be protected by an energy barrier, preventing the troops from removing it from the cave. US Military scientists have been deployed to Afgh... more »

Everthing is so bizarre

Steve at Thinking Aboot - 11 hours ago
Thats just your personal life but you can scale it up to the world and thats why you know no one can figure out the reason

4/4 and 44

jurassicpork at Welcome Back to Pottersville - 11 hours ago
(By *American Zen*'s Mike Flannigan, on loan from Ari Goldstein.) *"Mere factual innocence is no reason not to carry out a death sentence properly reached." *- Antonin Scalia, on executing innocent people. *T*here are two ways to report on last Saturday's death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia: One can take stock at his legacy in jurisprudence or the battle that began brewing between Senate Republicans and the White House before rigor mortis even took effect. The man, it could be said, created one Constitutional crisis after another while in life and then, as a parting vo... more »

Student Labour leader quits amid antisemitism claims per The Jewish Chronicle

Not a sheep at Not a sheep - 11 hours ago
This JC report is a must read, here's an extract: 'The co-chair of a leading student Labour group has quit amid accusations that colleagues "have some kind of problem with Jews". Alex Chalmers said he was leaving the "poisonous" Oxford University Labour Club (OULC) after it endorsed Israel Apartheid Week, due to take place next week. Mr Chalmers claimed fellow students had expressed "solidarity" with Hamas and had claimed accusations of antisemitism were "just the Zionists crying wolf". ... In a lengthy Facebook post published following his resignation on Monday evening, Mr Chal... more »

Decision Time: The Pros and Cons of Obama’s Top Supreme Court Options

Blake Neff at The Stream - 11 hours ago
[image: US Supreme Court - 900] President Barack Obama says he intends to forge ahead and name a replacement for deceased Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia's position, despite threats from Republicans to block anybody he tries to nominate. He'll have no lack of options to choose from. While... more »

Heavy Fighting Reported In Eastern Ukraine

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 11 hours ago
*Washington Post*: *As focus remains on Syria, Ukraine sees heaviest fighting in months* As world powers focus on freezing the conflict in Syria, the war in Ukraine continues unabated. According to international monitoring organizations and soldiers on the front, the fighting has reached levels not seen in months. On Monday, three Ukrainian soldiers were killed and six were wounded, according to a tweet from Col. Oleksander Motuzyank, a military spokesman for the Ukrainian government. The deaths follow a sharp-uptick in violence between government troops and Russian-backed separat... more »

Major Political Crisis Is Brewing In Ukraine. Government Facing Collapse In A No-Confidence Vote

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 11 hours ago
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, and Prosecutor-General Viktor Shokin (file photo) *Radio Free Europe*: *Poroshenko Calls For PM, Prosecutor To Resign* Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has asked Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk and Prosecutor-General Viktor Shokin to resign "in order to restore trust in the government.” The move on February 16 came shortly before Yatsenyuk was due to address parliament, where he faces the threat of a no-confidence vote. Yatsenyuk’s coalition partners in Poroshenko’s party announced earlier that they would... more »

Iran Is Ready To Pump Oil

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 11 hours ago
*Wall Street Daily*:* Iran Will Soon Pump Oil at $1 Per Barrel* It’s a true tell of the state of the markets, when a tired old story sends oil rocketing about 10% higher in price In this case, that “tired old story” is Venezuela calling for an emergency meeting of OPEC and Russia. Venezuela has a habit of calling for such meetings because its leftist government thinks oil should never sell below $100 per barrel. The market reaction tells me that the oil price has further to decline. Too many people are still too anxious to jump aboard the oil train before it leaves the station fo... more »

Russia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, And Venezuela Agree To An Oil Output Freeze

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 11 hours ago
*Reuters:* *Saudis and Russia agree oil output freeze, Iran still an obstacle* Top oil exporters Russia and Saudi Arabia agreed on Tuesday to freeze output levels but said the deal was contingent on other producers joining in - a major sticking point with Iran absent from the talks and determined to raise production. The Saudi, Russian, Qatari and Venezuelan oil ministers announced the proposal after a previously undisclosed meeting in Doha. It could become the first joint OPEC and non-OPEC deal in 15 years, aimed at tackling a growing oversupply of crude and helping prices recov... more »

Phwoar!

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 11 hours ago
If you recall (and if you don't please scroll down the page)... The American papal biographer George Weigel used his invitation to appear on this week's *Sunday *on Radio 4 to absolutely blast Ed Stourton (in absentia) for "hunting for salaciousness" regarding the BBC presenter's *Panorama *(broadcast last night) about the sainted John Paul II and his relationship with women. Now I *won't *break the blogger's cardinal rule (pun intended) which demands that we *never *slag off a programme we've not actually seen, but I *will* try to steer you in the direction of someone who (hopefu... more »

What Exactly Makes Politicians So Attractive To Wealthy Donors?

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 11 hours ago
An African-America elected official and old friend sent me a news piece from 2010 by Dr. Boyce Watkins, the brilliant author, professor and social activist, perhaps best known for referring to Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity as "UnAmerican borderline Klansmen who graduated from the Rush Limbaugh School of Arrogant Self-righteousness." Writing for The Grio 6 years ago, Watkins asserted what white commentators are still too nervous to say, namely that the corruption in the Congressional Black caucus is threatening African-Americans. Last week we emphasized the over-the-top corruption... more »

Russian Fighter Jets Regularly Shadow German Tornados In Syria

Edmondo Burr at Your News Wire - 11 hours ago
The Russian air force regularly monitors Luftwaffe Tornados conducting reconnaissance in Syrian airspace, according to a Lieutenant-General of the German Air Force, saying that both sides act professionally to prevent incidents. Russia Today reports: Russian pilots take no aggressive actions towards their German colleagues, such as intercepting them or attempting to force them out of the operations area, Joachim Wundrak told Rheinische Post daily. “Those encounters go on professionally, no incidents have been registered,” said the Luftwaffe Lieutenant General, who has just returned ... more »

Who will replace Saclia

Steve at Thinking Aboot - 11 hours ago
Realy no body cause he was a spcail case of evil It really does not matter cause its all a sideshow the world is in crisis and supreme co*urt can not hear*

Takfiri "Surrender" Key City to Kurdish Militias- Turkey-no ground operation

Penny at Penny for your thoughts - 11 hours ago
*Wow, that's convenient!* As Kurdish fighters continue to annex Syrian territory, *in breach of the ceasefire, * the oh so fierce terrorists simply decide to give a strategically necessary city to the YPG/PKK militia. Without a fight? *The Kurdish “People’s Protection Units” (YPG) have agreed with an offer of the Al-Nusra Front and Ahrar al-Sham groups to allow them to leave Marea for Sandef without any clashes and surrender Marea to the Kurdish fighters.* *Thoughts?* *Cause, I'm wondering would the takfiri terrorists of al nusra & al sham merely have surrendered without a fight to... more »

The solution is the hospital

Steve at Thinking Aboot - 12 hours ago
What if all the hospitals had been bombed: Maybe thats why both side do it. Nihelist shit boming by the Man

The Wealthy Come to the Aid of America’s Iconic Monuments

Steve Birr at The Stream - 12 hours ago
[image: Lincoln Memorial - 900] A billionaire philanthropist is giving millions to help restore and conserve the National Mall's monuments as government allocation continues to fail. David Rubenstein, founder of the Carlyle Group investment firm in Washington D.C., pledged $18 million Monday to the National Park... more »

Antonin Scalia’s Originalism: A Defense of Our Right to Govern Ourselves

Stream Staff at The Stream - 12 hours ago
[image: Constitution originalism] “One might have thought this was simple common sense,” writes Robert P. George, speaking of the late Justice Antonin Scalia’s judicial philosophy of “originalism.” George, one of the country’s leading conservative intellectuals, is McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence at Princeton and a visiting... more »

Man Cures Lung Cancer With Cannabis Oil

Carol Adl at Your News Wire - 12 hours ago
A 50-year-old man from Illinois who was diagnosed with “incurable inoperable” lung and pericardial heart sac cancer, was told by his doctors he had about a year to live with the aid of chemotherapy. Darren Miller began looking desperately for a cure beyond chemotherapy, which left him with “blisters on his mouth, blood hands and feet” according to his Facebook page. Then he found and decided to supplement the treatments with cannabis oil. Activist post reports: As you may or may not know, the survival rate of lung cancer is incredibly grim. It is estimated that the prognosis for Sta... more »

The Taliban In Afghanistan Have 150 Humvees That Are Now Being Used In Suicide Attacks

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 12 hours ago
U.S. Army 1st Lt. Jared Tomberlin climbs on a Humvee for a better view as he and his soldiers search for activity in a town near Forward Operation Base Lane in Zabul province, Afghanistan, March 14, 2009. U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Adam Mancini *New York Times*: *Taliban, Using Humvees Stolen From Army, Attack Check Post* KABUL, Afghanistan — In an attack using a tactic long feared by Afghan officials, Taliban suicide bombers riding in two stolen Afghan Army Humvees clashed with security forces on Saturday in southern Helmand Province, killing six security personnel at a checkp... more »

World News Briefs -- February 16, 2016

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 12 hours ago
*Reuters*: *South China Sea takes center stage at U.S.-ASEAN summit* U.S. President Barack Obama and allies from Southeast Asia will turn their attention to China on Tuesday on the second day of a summit intended to improve commercial links and provide a united front on maritime disputes with Beijing. After a first day focused on trade and economic issues, Obama and his counterparts from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will try to arrive at a common position on the South China Sea during a second day of talks at Sunnylands, a California resort. China and severa... more »

Leave 'em crying

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 12 hours ago
The BBC is, of course, still doing it. A report from Gavin Hewitt on last night's *News at Ten *looked at the effect of 'migration' on the EU referendum debate. The report's closing images were typically carefully-chosen to tug the heart-strings and make us forget that the vast majority of the migrants who have recently made their way to northern Europe have been unaccompanied young men (*not *women and children):

INTRODUCTION TO INCOMPREHENSION: Friend, did you understand the front-page report in last Friday's New York Times?

bob somerby at the daily howler - 12 hours ago
*TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2016Part 2—Our tolerance for incomprehension:* As we noted yesterday, Professor Greene's 2004 book, The Fabric of the Cosmos: Space, Time and the Texture of Reality, went to the New York Times best-seller list. So had his previous book, The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory, when it was issued in paperback. So had earlier books of this type, including several massive best-sellers by Professor Hawking. In part, Professor Hawking's sales were driven by his substantial fame. Also, by the widely-bruited ide... more »

Donald Trump To Start Suing His GOP Opponents

Edmondo Burr at Your News Wire - 12 hours ago
Republican front-runner Donald Trump is thinking of suing his GOP opponents and making hay from the 2016 U.S. presidential race. The billionaire businessman and American success story has got the Grand Old Party by the goolies. The Donald is “seriously thinking” about starting the litigation ball rolling by first accusing his GOP rival Senator Ted Cruz of being a foreigner and a liar. CNN reports: Trump’s threat of litigation, which the billionaire businessman has recently brought up several times in recent days, came during an interview on ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Tuesday, w... more »

Author dispute, “considerable overlap” retract chemistry study

Ross Keith at Retraction Watch - 13 hours ago
A chemistry journal has issued a retraction after “a thorough and time-consuming analysis” revealed two out of four authors did not agree to submitting an article published in May, which also contains “considerable overlap and redundancy” with another paper published a few weeks prior in a different journal. Shortly after the paper appeared in Spectrochimica Acta Part […] The post Author dispute, “considerable overlap” retract chemistry study appeared first on Retraction Watch.

Former UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali Dies at 93

AP at The Stream - 13 hours ago
[image: FILE - In this May 27, 1997 file photo, former United Nations Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali gestures during an interview with the Associated Press on Wednesday, May 21, 1997 in New York. he U.N. Security Council has announced on Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016 the death of former U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali.(AP Photo/Michael Schmelling, File)] UNITED NATIONS (AP) -- The U.N. Security Council has announced the death of former U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali. Venezuela’s U.N. Ambassador Rafael Ramirez, the current council president, made the anno... more »

NHS Hospitals Pressured To ‘Cook Books’ & Downplay Debt

Carol Adl at Your News Wire - 13 hours ago
NHS hospitals are facing pressure from regulators to cook their books and downplay the size of their deficits, according to a whistle blowing finance director. In anonymous evidence given to the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC), the finance chief told MPs that he and his colleagues are concerned that national regulators are pressurising NHS providers to deceive taxpayers and government departments about their financial performance. After five years of austerity and funding cuts under the previous coalition government in conjunction with an aging population, the NHS i... more »

Kitchen Sink #3: Bernie is a Pod Person

Karen Garcia at Sardonicky - 13 hours ago
OK, so this is more of a chipped finger bowl than a kitchen sink, but it does speak to the increasing desperation of the Clinton campaign: Remember that iconic photo of Bernie Sanders speaking at a CORE rally in Chicago in the 60s? According to Hillary's oppo researchers, that wasn't really Bernie at all. It was only a fellow who looks like Bernie. The real Bernie was probably spooning vanilla Ben and Jerry in a Vermont pot barn somewhere instead of working for civil rights. The Bernie in the photo had to be a character out of *Invasion of the Body Snatchers*. You see, say the Clint... more »

Responding to Corporate Domination

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 13 hours ago
In this episode of teleSUR's Days of Revolt, Chris Hedges and Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein diagnose the problems plaguing US politics, highlighting the dysfunction of a two-party system dominated by corporate interests.

Scrap UK's Trident Nukes

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 14 hours ago
The UK's Labour party leader, Jeremy Corbyn, is causing quote, 'a great deal of nervousness' among NATO officials, that's according to a former head of the alliance. Lord Robertson says concerns have been raised by Britain's allies over Corbyn's vocal opposition to Britain renewing it's nuclear weapons program - which NATO relies on for defense.

Washington Post Reporter Detained in Israel for “Provocative Incitement” aka Creating News

Penny at Penny for your thoughts - 14 hours ago
*Washington Post Reporter William Booth Detained by Israel* I’ve run across this media manipulaiton previously with regard to Syria. Where reporters stage news events- then report on them as if it's something real. Apparently a passerby foiled what might have been a breaking news story playing all across tell-a-vision today. *A police spokeswoman, Luba Samri, said in a statement**: “**A passer-by complained that he witnessed a number of people intending to stage a provocative situation and disturbances by young Arabs toward policemen responsible for security in the area, apparently... more »

Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- February 16, 2016

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 14 hours ago
*Military Times:* *A mind-boggling stew of nations is fighting in Syria's civil war* Armies and militias from more than a dozen countries have joined the Syria conflict, making for a mind-boggling and dangerous stew of shifting and competing alliances. Even as a proposed cease-fire is scheduled to begin as early as this week, more nations are escalating their roles in the nearly 5-year-old civil war: Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey said they may send ground troops to fight. Here's how different countries are currently aligned: *Read more* .... *Military And Intelligence News Brie... more »

David Cameron’s Auntie Joins Protest March Against Tory Cuts

Carol Adl at Your News Wire - 14 hours ago
The Aunt of British prime minister David Cameron took part in a demonstration against Tory cuts to children’s centres in his own Oxfordshire county. Auntie Clare was was waving a banner which read: “No ifs, no buts, no cuts. Last week David Cameron’s own mother Mary spoke out against the cuts to local children centres and signed a petition against them. The Mirror reports: Clare Currie, who last week spoke out against cuts which will lead to the closure of 44 children’s centres, joined the anti-austerity demonstration on Saturday, and waved a banner reading “No ifs. No buts. No cuts... more »

Behind The Frontlines In Iraq, Interview With Inside Iraqi Politics’ Nathaniel Rabkin

Joel Wing at MUSINGS ON IRAQ - 14 hours ago
As the Islamic State is losing on the battlefield in Iraq the question of what will happen to those areas now behind the frontlines is coming to the fore. In Baghdad and the south there is growing lawlessness and tribal disputes. Some sections of the country are under the control of the Hashd rather than the government, and the Kurds have taken many of the disputed territories. There is also the issue of who should be able to return to freed areas. To discuss those issues and more is Nathaniel Rabkin, managing editor of Inside Iraqi Politics. He can be followed on Twitter at @ Nate... more »

How Black Slaves Were Routinely Sold as ‘Specimens’ to Ambitious White Doctors

arclein at Terra Forming Terra - 14 hours ago
This crap never gets better. Human rights were recognized as important during the eighteenth century by a handful of agitators. Their steady promotion slowly ushered in serious changes. Those have taken two and one half centuries to reach our present level of enlightenment and that remains a long way from been good enough. Even in Canada which has a pro enlightenment public consensus, we recently understood that low level bureaucratic oppression persists almost to this day against our first nations. Critically it took the activism of first nation champions to end the proble... more »

Extensive System of Caves Discovered Under the Pyramids

arclein at Terra Forming Terra - 14 hours ago
I am not sure when this was written but that hardly matters. What we do know today is that This complex was complete by about 2400 BC. We also know that excellent tunneling technology existed completely capable of producing cast complexes in the bedrock. Complexes of catacombs continued to be built over the next few centuries as it all became solely a necropolis. All that tells us that a so called hall of records was feasible. Better yet we know that books were fabricated using copper gold alloys during the Bronze Age. Thus valuable records existed and were also stored sec... more »

Little Grandmother: The World is Controlled by a Handful People

arclein at Terra Forming Terra - 14 hours ago
A pleasant sentiment but what is the pending reality. First off, a finite group of folks actually manage global credit. Except that it is not obvious that they work much as a coherent group and more likely dislike each other. Thus it is merely possible. \ However they deal now with scales that make them disconnected from the true source of credit which operates presently at the scales available to the middle class. The only thing that can absorb credit at their level is WAR and that causes a contraction in global collateral which is very not smart. Even they have figured tha... more »

New Telescope Detects Intelligent Alien Entities Living on Earth (Invisible to the Naked Eye)

arclein at Terra Forming Terra - 14 hours ago
First this is amazing news. Second, this is early days and it may not have anything to do with aliens at all. Earlier posts developed a serious conjecture that the upper atmosphere is actively populated by living methane balloons. These would be invisible to our eyesight. It also opens the door for successful evolution of propulsion as well. Now that we may be able to see them we may begin to learn something. So far there is no indication of range or from that the likely speed. From the sound of it it could have been very close and not far up at all. I am not... more »

In Mexico, Pope Francis Prods the Bishops, Especially Those Too Close to Wealth and Power

Austen Ivereigh at The Stream - 14 hours ago
[image: Hundreds of thousands of faithful flock to the capital city of Ecatepec in Mexico to participate in the Mass celebrated by Pope Francis on February 14, 2016.] As Pope Francis reaches Chiapas, on Mexico's southern border with Guatemala, it is clear that this apostolic voyage is as much about bolstering the Latin-American Church as it is about evangelizing the nation. His messages over the weekend in Mexico City... more »

Russian - Turkish Tensions At A New Peak

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 15 hours ago
Russian Sukhoi Su-34 jets at the Hmeimim airfield in Syria. © Dmitriy Vinogradov / RIA Novosti *Financial Times*: *Tensions between Russia and Turkey reach new peak* Tension between Russia and Turkey has reached a new peak as the two countries step up military action in Syria in support of opposing sides, edging closer to direct confrontation in the country’s increasingly internationalised war. The growing rift between the two countries — with each now attacking rebels the other supports — has alarmed Western diplomats amid fears Russia is seeking to undermine Nato by ramping up i... more »

Seralini paper released by predatory publisher is plagiarized by predatory journal

Alison McCook at Retraction Watch - 15 hours ago
A 2012 paper co-authored by Gilles Seralini, who has published controversial research showing the dangers of genetically modified foods, has been plagiarized by another researcher. The 2016 paper, published in the International Journal of Technical Research and Applications, has not been retracted, but the text comparison is fairly obvious. It’s a case of intra-predatory crime: the International Journal […] The post Seralini paper released by predatory publisher is plagiarized by predatory journal appeared first on Retraction Watch.

Poilievre's Future

Owen Gray at Northern Reflections - 15 hours ago
http://primepolitics.org/ The last federal election cost $443 million. But we shouldn't, Susan Delacourt writes, get too exorcised about the cost: That’s about $5 more per person than the cost of the 2011 election, but last year’s 78-day campaign was more than twice the length of the last one. It was also more of a box office success: nearly three million more voters than in the 2011 election. All of those new voters means that democracy won the last election: The political parties of all stripes are saying — with some justif... more »

Cruz Makes the Case That Trump is Still Pro-Choice. Trump Reacts.

Stream Staff at The Stream - 15 hours ago
[image: Donald Trump Holds Press Conference in Charleston, SC, Monday, February 15, 2016] Donald Trump told reporters Monday that Ted Cruz is lying about his record, and at one point homed in on the abortion issue. “He’s printed lies,” Trump said. “He said I’m pro-choice and I’m pro-life.” But only last August Trump was asked about... more »

The Latest: Wall Street Set to Enjoy Buoyant Return

AP at The Stream - 15 hours ago
[image: A couple stand by an electronic stock board of a securities firm in Tokyo, Monday, Feb. 15, 2016. Japanese stocks rocketed Monday, leading most Asian markets higher after dismal growth data raised hopes of extra stimulus for the world's third-biggest economy, weakening the yen.] LONDON (AP) -- The latest on the turmoil in global financial markets (all times local): 12:25 a.m. Whether this week’s more robust tone in global stock markets lasts could well hinge on the performance of Wall Street. Following the three-day weekend,... more »

South Korea’s Leader Warns of North Korea Collapse

HYUNG-JIN KIM at The Stream - 15 hours ago
[image: South Korean President Park Geun-hye, center, is greeted by lawmakers after delivering a speech at the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016.] SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- South Korea’s president warned Tuesday that North Korea faces collapse if it doesn’t abandon its nuclear bomb program, an unusually strong broadside that will likely infuriate Pyongyang. President Park Geun-hye, in addressing Parliament to defend... more »

Is The End Of The Two Corrupt DC Party Establishments Nigh?

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 15 hours ago
A friend of mine-- a wise friend of mine-- told me she thinks Bernie's going to win the primary in a walk... but will lose to Trumpf, Cruz or Rubio because the Clintons will utterly destroy the Democratic Party, just as their dear friend Trumpf is destroying the Republican Party. Interesting proposition. The constitution purposely left out any mention of parties and the Founding Fathers were disdainful of their influence. Today we can see why; neither party deserves to exist. Both are so riven with corrupttion and each has become primarily a vehicle for pure and unadulterated evi... more »

Turkey Continues To Shell Kurdish Forces In Syria

Carol Adl at Your News Wire - 15 hours ago
Turkey continues to shell Syrian Kurdish forces in northern Syria in an attempt to stop them from claiming the town of Azaz, which is located just eight kilometers from the Turkish border. The US and France have both called on Turkey to cease its artillery bombardment against Kurdish targets and de-escalate tensions on all sides. RT reports: Turkish artillery units in the southeastern province of Kilis fired shells at Kurdish targets on Tuesday morning, in areas that were under the control of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), Today’s Zaman daily reports citing the Doga... more »

Angela Merkel Calls For No-Fly Zone Over Syria

Carol Adl at Your News Wire - 16 hours ago
The German Chancellor Angela Merkel has backed a controversial call by Turkey to impose a no-fly zone over northern Syria. She said it would help alleviate the refugee crisis: “In the current situation it would be helpful, if there could be such an area, where none of the parties are allowed to launch aerial attacks, that is to say, a kind of no-fly zone“ Turkish President Erdogan threatened Europe with a new migrant wave renewing calls for no-fly zone in Syria just days ago. RT reports: Echoing a long-standing call from Turkey to establish a no-fly zone over parts of Syria, Merkel ... more »

Russia, Saudis, Others Agree to Freeze Oil Output Levels if Others Do; But Iran Doesn’t Agree

ADAM SCHRECK at The Stream - 16 hours ago
[image: FILE -- In this Sept. 30, 2015, file photo, oil pumps work in the desert oil fields of Sakhir, Bahrain. Russia’s energy minister, Alexander Novak, said, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016, that it has agreed with Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Venezuela to freeze oil production at January 2016 levels if other producers do the same following a closed-door meeting in the Doha, Qatar. The meeting reflects growing concern among major oil producers about the effects a prolonged slump in crude prices will have on their domestic economies. (AP Photo/Hasan Jamali, File)] DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP... more »

Tornados in South, Snow, Sleet in East; Record Heat in West

MELISSA NELSON-GABRIEL at The Stream - 16 hours ago
[image: Dave Snyder, of Pennsauken, N.U., runs around the Cooper River Park on Monday, Feb. 15, 2016, on his daily run. (Michael Bryant/The Philadelphia Inquirer via AP)] CENTURY, Fla. (AP) -- A treacherous mix of falling snow, sleet and freezing rain turned Tuesday morning commutes to misery for many returning from a long holiday weekend in the Northeast, one day after suspected twisters tore through parts of... more »

2 More Smuggling Networks Dismantled as Europe Continues Wrestling With Migrant Crisis

AP at The Stream - 16 hours ago
[image: A military officer salutes Greek officials at the new relocation center for refugees and migrants in the western Athens' suburb of Schisto, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016. The Greek government says it has completed work on most of the migrant facilities it has promised its European Union partners to deliver. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)] ATHENS, Greece (AP) -- The Latest on the influx of migrants into Europe (all times local): 2:20 p.m. French police have dismantled two suspected smuggling networks in a makeshift migrant camp near Dunkirk with a reputation for harboring people smug... more »

Untitled

jonjayray at EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL - 16 hours ago
*Why We Shouldn’t Outlaw ‘Unpaid’ Internships* For a new college graduate, finding a job is stressful. That first job is more than a paycheck. The job represents the accumulation of hours of hard work and a start on a stable future. In a job market dominated by resumes, connections and previous work experience, college students will often turn to internships, paid and unpaid, to gain a competitive edge. While paid internships are usually seen as similar to other jobs, unpaid internships have come under increased scrutiny. Critics contend that since employers know students are desp... more »

How Rubio Can Win

John Zmirak at The Stream - 16 hours ago
[image: Republican presidential candidate Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., speaks at a caucus night rally, Monday, Feb. 1, 2016 in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)] For Parts 1, 2, and 3, see here: How Kasich Can Win, How Ben Carson Can Win, and How Bush Can Win). A lot of people like you. It happens almost automatically, when you smile and start to speak. You... more »

Based on Oregon Numbers, Here’s What Would Happen if Assisted Suicide Were Legalized Nationwide

Kelsey Harkness at The Stream - 16 hours ago
[image: Physician assisted suicide] An annual report examining physician-assisted suicide trends in Oregon shows a growing number of individuals seeking to die under the state's Death with Dignity Act. "In the past two years the number of deaths as a result of physician-assisted suicide... more »

Scalia Defended Democracy: Liberals Subvert It

Frank Turek at The Stream - 16 hours ago
[image: Appeals Court Upholds Ruling Ordering Kentucky Clerk to Issue Same-Sex Marriage Licenses] "I write separately to call attention to this Court's threat to American democracy," wrote Justice Scalia in his dissent from last year's Supreme Court decision, where five unelected judges imposed same-sex marriage on all 320 million citizens. "This practice of...more »

Kasich Tells Michigan Students ‘We’re Not a Socialist Country’

DAVID EGGERT at The Stream - 16 hours ago
[image: Republican presidential candidate and Ohio Gov. John Kasich speaks at Grand Valley State University in Allendale Township, Mich., Monday, Feb. 15, 2016. (Cory Morse/The Grand Rapids Press-MLive.com via AP) ALL LOCAL TELEVISION OUT; LOCAL TELEVISION INTERNET OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT] UTICA, Mich. (AP) -- As his rivals focused on South Carolina’s looming primary, Republican presidential candidate John Kasich campaigned across Michigan on Monday, plugging his blue-collar roots and warning college students that the U.S. is “not a socialist country.” The... more »

Is the Sun Setting on Elon Musk’s Solar Empire?

Andrew Follett at The Stream - 16 hours ago
[image: Rooftop solar panels] Rooftop solar companies, including Elon Musk's SolarCity, are facing huge financial hurdles as state governments cut back on lucrative green energy subsidies and reform regulatory schemes. "Is the solar industry's boom for real, or is it being propped up by... more »

Untitled

JR at GREENIE WATCH - 17 hours ago
*Arctic shipping passage 'still decades away'* *For years now, Warmists have been saying that this will happen "real soon now". Reality bites fantasy once again* Ordinary merchant ships will not be able to take an ice-free shortcut from China to Europe until at least 2040, report predicts It will be decades before big cargo ships link China and northern Europe by taking a shortcut through the Arctic Ocean, a report predicts. Climate change, retreating summer ice and the prospect of shorter journey times and 40% lower fuel costs has led Russia, European governments and some indus... more »

Live Updates: Syria/Russia/Turkey/Saudi Arabia Situation Changed Dramatically Today- War Very Near”

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 17 hours ago
*“Stunning Developments: Syria/Russia/Turkey/Saudi Arabia * *Situation Changed Dramatically Today- War Very Near”* “Staggering and dangerous developments in the Middle East on 15 February. Raging battles, furious politics. War draws nearer each HOUR! Here is what your Mass Media has failed to tell you about the rapidly expanding conflict which is leading directly to World War 3. Perhaps only days away.” Please follow this link: - https://www.superstation95.com/index.php/world/901 *Update 2/16/2016: * “300 Erdogan Terrorists Slaughtered by Russia, a Slow Beginning: Russia promises to ... more »

Pentagon Report: U.S. Special Forces Not Ready To Integrate Women

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 17 hours ago
A new report on female integration into the U.S. special armed forces found the male-dominated warrior culture may be adversely affected. Photo by: Petty Officer 2nd Class William (U.S. Navy) *Washington Times:* *U.S. special forces not ready to integrate women, report finds* At a time when U.S. special operations are devising plans for the mission of accepting women into the male domains of SEALs, Green Berets and Army Rangers, the terrorist-fighting community is facing a looming readiness problem. The new challenge is tucked inside President Obama’s 2017 defense budget. It stat... more »

Pope Turns Eye to Mexico’s Drug Heartland in Michoacan Stop

NICOLE WINFIELD & PETER ORSI at The Stream - 17 hours ago
[image: Pope Francis departs from the at San Cristobal Cathedral, Mexico, Monday, Feb. 15, 2016. Photos by Marko Vombergar/ALETEIA] MEXICO CITY (AP) -- Pope Francis heads into the heart of Mexico’s drug-trafficking country Tuesday for meetings with young people, whom he is holding up as the hope for a better future for a country wracked by the violence and... more »

Gold St. Patrick's Day Centerpieces

Debra Hawkins at Housewife Eclectic - 17 hours ago
After years of desperately wanting a mantel to decorate for holidays, I finally have one. My gorgeous white mantel is everything I wanted it to be and I am loving decorating it for the holidays. I thought I loved my Valentine's Day mantel, but it has been since overshadowed by my St. Patrick's Day mantel. The whole St. Patrick's Day mantel is bright, cheery and my current favorite part of my house. I will be sharing the elements of the mantel over the next few days, starting with these gorgeous Mason jars. These jars are simple and honestly really stunning in person. They are usu... more »

Kauilapele's Blog: TASS 2-15-16… “Russia submits to UN SC “express review” of gross violations of UN Charter by US, UK”

Americani Kabuki at AMERICAN KABUKI - 17 hours ago
https://kauilapele.wordpress.com/2016/02/15/tass-2-15-16-russia-submits-to-un-sc-express-review-of-gross-violations-of-un-charter-by-us-uk/ *TASS 2-15-16… “Russia submits to UN SC “express review” of gross violations of UN Charter by US, UK”* Posted on 2016/02/15 by kauilapele *This certainly outlines the step-by-step violations of UN Charter, international law (and all that) which the NATO “leaders”, US and UK, have done over the last few decades. It is now on record with the UN.* *This was also posted at VT.* *“Russia has presented at the UN Security Council on Monday an “expre... more »

Zika: The Essence of the Hoax

WakingTimes at Waking Times - 17 hours ago
*Jon Rappoport* - A real analysis of the hoax. The post Zika: The Essence of the Hoax appeared first on Waking Times.

Venezuela begins power rationing as hydropower failure bites

Paul Homewood at NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW THAT - 17 hours ago
By Paul Homewood The Venezuelan government has ordered all shopping malls in the country to either shut down power or generate their own electricity as part of a rationing strategy in response to a worsening hydroelectric power crisis. President Nicolás Maduro’s plan will force more than 100 shopping malls to close for hours on […]

Finding the Islamic State a Safe House

Land Destroyer at Land Destroyer - 18 hours ago
*February 16, 2016* (Ulson Gunnar - NEO) - Every villain needs a safe house and the Islamic State (IS) is no exception. Luckily for IS, it has two, possibly three waiting for it, all of them courtesy of NATO and in particular the United States. The war in Syria has been going particularly poor for IS. With Russian air power cutting their supply lines with Turkey and the Syrian Arab Army closing in, it may soon be time for them to shop for a new home. If the war is going bad for IS, it is going even worse for the supporting powers that have armed and funded them. To understand wher... more »

EDF to keep four UK nuclear plants open for years longer

Paul Homewood at NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW THAT - 18 hours ago
By Paul Homewood h/t Paul2 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-35583740 From the BBC: French energy firm EDF will extend the life of four of its eight nuclear power plants in the UK. The move will safeguard 2,000 jobs and help with tight energy supplies. Heysham 1 and Hartlepool will have their life extended by five […]

Bill Clinton's Former CIA Director Admits That President George Bush Inherited A ‘Crumbling’ Intel Community

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 18 hours ago
George J. Tenet, then the director of central intelligence, with President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, foreground, in March 2003. Mr. Tenet now says there was never a “serious debate” about the Iraq threat. Credit Eric Draper/The White House *Washington Times:* *George W. Bush inherited ‘crumbling’ intel community from Bill Clinton: Tenet* *GOP presidential hopeful Donald Trump blames Bush for failing to stop 9/11 attacks* As Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump hammers away at former President George W. Bush for not stopping the September 11 attacks, another ... more »

Dying to Live Forever

Dante Witt at The Stream - 18 hours ago
[image: TerraCottaArmy] DANTE WITT -- Some twenty-two centuries ago Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China (259-210 B.C.), grew obsessed with the quest for immortality. He had reached the top of the world and, finding it empty of satisfaction, asked himself what... more »

The Trend Towards Negative Interest Rates

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 19 hours ago
*The Telegraph:* *Mapped: Negative central bank interest rates now herald new danger for the world* Sub-zero rates are becoming the "new abnormal" in a shaky world economy. With fresh panic hitting markets, are we finally hitting the limits of what monetary policy can achieve? Click on the countries to find out The world's tentative experiment with negative interest rates got off to an unremarkable start. Sweden's Riksbank - the world's oldest central bank - became the first major monetary authority to cross the rubicon and take its main policy rate into the red exactly a year ag... more »

PIE and the Labour Party

Not a sheep at Not a sheep - 19 hours ago
News from The Times that you won't see reported on the Labour supporting BBC: 'Fury as paedophile campaigner is allowed to join Labour party A notorious paedophile who once campaigned for sex with children to be legalised has been allowed to join the Labour party. Tom O'Carroll, former chairman of the Paedophile Information Exchange (Pie), is understood to have joined after the election of Jeremy Corbyn as leader in September. Pie was formed in 1974 to campaign for a change in the law. O'Carroll was jailed in 1981 for "corrupting public morals" and again in 2006 for distributing i... more »

Don't Regret Anything You Do....Author Unknown

Stranger in a Strange Land at Stranger in a Strange Land - 20 hours ago
Source: *Transcend In Love Blog*

Iraq-Syria Conflict Without Borders Map

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 20 hours ago
*(Click on Image to Enlarge)* *Public Intelligence:* *U.S. State Department Iraq-Syria Conflict Without Borders Map January 2016* Over 15 million people have been displaced due to conflict in Syria and Iraq. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights documented at least 260,000 Syrians killed in the conflict since it began in 2011. The UN reported at least 26,600 Iraqis killed from 2014-2015 due to acts of terrorism and violence. 89% of Syrian and Iraqi refugees remain in the region. 13.5 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance inside Syria, including 4.5 million peopl... more »

Christy Clark's BC Liberals Have Just Confirmed Through Their Actions That Their 2013 Election Promise of a $trillion Dollar LNG Export Industry Has Already Died!

Grant G at The Straight Goods - 20 hours ago
The below article is very telling.......Hoegh LNG has for financial reasons abandoned participating in any floating LNG facilities(FLNG) and Hoegh LNG has abandoned participating in any new LNG land-based export terminals...Hoegh will concentrate soley on FSRU(floating storage regasification units).....Hoegh's reasons are purely self-serving, they want to survive..Read what Hoegh LNG is saying....The LNG market is over-saturated with excess gas and financial markets are reeling, bankers are leery of lending money for money losing LNG terminals....China is in the midst of a longter... more »

EU referendum: David Cameron’s deal is – in legal terms – not worth the paper it’s printed on per City A.M.

Not a sheep at Not a sheep - 21 hours ago
A fascinating article in today's City AM that you should read in full. 'When David Cameron set out his plans for a renegotiation followed by a referendum in his Bloomberg Speech three years ago, he said the best way to give effect to the outcome would be a new EU Treaty. Government ministers promised they would secure that before the referendum. They have failed to do so. Why does this matter? Because any promised changes which are not contained in a new Treaty will not be worth the paper they are written on. The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has made clear that the EU Treaties c...more »

Why The Afghan Opium Trade Is Not Going To Be Stopped

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 21 hours ago
Afghan farmers harvested poppies last spring in the Nad Ali district of Helmand Province. Credit Bryan Denton for The New York Times *New York Times:* *Tasked With Combating Opium, Afghan Officials Depend on It* GARMSIR, Afghanistan — The United States spent more than $7 billion in the past 14 years to fight the runaway poppy production that has made Afghan opium the world’s biggest brand. Tens of billions more went to governance programs to stem corruption and train a credible police force. Countless more dollars and thousands of lives were lost on the main thrust of the war: to ... more »

Military Photo of the Day: February 16, 2016

Tom Sileo at The Stream - 21 hours ago
[image: Air Assault Training-900] U.S. Army soldiers unload during an air assault training mission at Fort Campbell in Kentucky on Feb. 9, 2016. Thank you to our nation’s winter warriors for courageously serving our country!

Sphere Alliance Message # 134 Alexander Hamilton

Americani Kabuki at AMERICAN KABUKI - 21 hours ago
Watch the Hamilton the Musical performance at The GRAMMYs, because this will be the closest most of us will ever get to actually seeing the show. Posted by Vulture on Monday, February 15, 2016 [1/24/16, 11:31:23 PM] *AK/Terran: AK: What is the real origin of the name America? * *DEAR ONE/AK/TERRAN. THE NAME "AMERICA" ORIGINATES IN THE CELTIC/GAELIC TONGUE. PHONETICALLY DERIVED FROM THE ANDROMEDAN WORD FOR "FREE LAND" OR FREE PLACE. AH-MERKA. DATA COLLECTORS. STAN.X. END.* [10/6/15, 4:50:00 PM] AK/Terran: *AK: What was my prior incarnation before being AK? When was that? Wh... more »

A Perfect Storm  (Help!!! Latest Economic Moves Cause Opposite Effects to What Is Intended?)  Stalking Hillary - How Trump's Fascists Thrive  (Michael Moore Invades Even More Sacred Space)

Stocks Dive as Confidence in Fed FadesWe've piddled-away seven-long years on radical monetary experiments that have achieved nothing and led us right back to where we began. If you want to know why stocks have been taking it on the chin lately, . . . the Central Banks have lost their touch which is why investors are cashing in and heading for the exits. This has nothing to do with the slowdown

A Look At The Impact On Tourism From The Zika Virus

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 22 hours ago
*(Click on Image to Enlarge)* There are currently 30 countries affected by Zika with those in the Americas (above) being most heavily affected. The infographic shows the amount in tourism income that the countries currently receives from international visitors - the amount they could also lose if there is a travel ban as a result of the virus *Daily Mail*: *Brazil and other countries with Zika virus could see income from tourism drop by up to $53.2billion in a single year* * There are currently 30 countries affected by Zika according to the CDC * They have a total annual income of $... more »

Tweet For Today

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 22 hours ago
In honor of #PresidentsDay, here’s the Washington, DC area as seen from @Space_Station: https://t.co/0EbpMl8Ri0 pic.twitter.com/0JY8t1RrMg — NASA (@NASA) February 15, 2016

The U.S. Navy Wants To Install Railguns On Its Newest Destroyers

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 23 hours ago
*(Click on Image to Enlarge)* A radical new weapon that can fire a shell at seven times the speed of sound could be used by the Navy as soon as 2018. Described as 'Star Wars technology' by researchers, the rail gun can fire a shell weighing 10kg at up to 5,400mph over 100 miles *Daily Mail:** Navy's 'Star Wars' weapon could be used on a new stealth warship: Gun that penetrates concrete 100 MILES away to be ready in 2018* * Rail gun can fire a shell weighing 10kg at up to 5,400mph with such force that it penetrates three concrete walls * Weapon uses electricity instead of gunpowder t... more »

The Truth About The Origins Of ISIS

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 23 hours ago
Since the beginning of the Syrian civil war in August 2011 to April 2013, Islamic State (ISIS) and Al-Nusra Front were a single organization that chose the banner of “Jabhat al Nusra.” Although, the current Al-Nusra Front is led by Abu Mohammad al Julani but he was appointed as the Emir of Al-Nusra Front by Abu Bakr al Baghdadi, the leader of Islamic State, in January 2012. The current Al-Nusra Front is only a splinter group of Islamic State which split away from its parent organization in April 2013 over a dispute between the leaders of two organizations. Al Qaeda Central’s leader,... more »

Homicide Commander Says Scalia Death Is “Fishy” Amid Murder Rumors

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 23 hours ago
A former homicide commander from Washington, DC has said that something “fishy” is going on surrounding the death of US Supreme Justice Antonin Scalia. Conspiracy theories about the murder of Scalia have gone viral after it emerged the judge had been found dead in his home with a pillow covering his face, with some suggesting President Obama to be responsible for his death. William O. Richie, a former head of criminal investigations in the capital’s police department, has raised serious questions in the unusual way authorities handled the 79-year-old’s death over the weekend. Daily... more »

Ukraine Is About To Declare War On Russia

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 23 hours ago
Ukrainian authorities have said that the country needs to prepare for an imminent war between Russia and Ukraine, and have appealed to the international community to support the country militarily. An official from the Trilateral Contact Group told reporters: “We can ask for help, and we need to get ready for a serious and long-term confrontation with Russia“. “One should call it the way we see it. Why? Because we have prisoners of war referred to as illegally detained individuals, the fighting on the front lines is called the anti-terrorist operation, and the measures taken by the... more »

Not the America I Knew

Cal Thomas at The Stream - 23 hours ago
[image: Sanders and Clinton2 - 900] Envy is defined by Dictionary.com as “a feeling of discontent or covetousness with regard to another’s advantages, success, possessions, etc.” That perfectly characterizes the entire political philosophy of the Democratic progressive left. Listening to presidential candidates Bernie Sanders and Hillary... more »

Real Life ‘Hobbits’ Found On Flores Island

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 23 hours ago
A mysterious human-like species who died out on an Indonesian island over 15,000 years ago were real life “hobbits”, according to scientists studying their fossil remains. The fossils of Homo floresiensis, dubbed “the hobbits” due to their tiny stature, were found on the island of Flores in 2003. Abc.net.au reports: Controversy has raged ever since as to whether they were an unknown branch of early humans or specimens of modern man deformed by disease. The study, based on an analysis of the skull bones, shows once and for all that the pint-sized people were not Homo sapiens, accord... more »

Picture Of The Day

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 1 day ago
© U.S. Air Force / Flickr

First Known Image Of DARPA's Submarine-Hunting Drone Ship Has Been Published

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 1 day ago
*(Click on Image to Enlarge)* DARPA's Anti-Submarine Warfare Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel or ACTUV, also known as Sea Hunter. *Exclusive:* *This Is The First Known Image Of DARPA's Submarine-Hunting Drone Ship* The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s initiative to build a long-endurance unmanned ship that will hunt and track the quietest submarines on Earth has come to fruition. The image above is the first glimpse ever of the potentially revolutionary Anti-Submarine Warfare Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel or ACTUV, also known as Sea Hunter. Here’s a primer on ACTUV a... more »

Next Week, Will Black Voters In South Carolina Pay Attention To Michelle Alexander-- Or Gregory Meeks?

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 1 day ago
Corey Robin, a political science professor at Brooklyn College, wrote a phenomenal book I read some years ago-- and talked a lot about here at *DWT*-- The Reactionary Mind. Musing aloud last month for *Salon*, Robin let his readers know what Bill and Hillary Clinton mean to him: "Sister Souljah, welfare reform, Ricky Ray Rector and the crime bill." Yeah, not a fan. If that video up top moved you at all, The Clintons’ sordid race game: No one will say it, but the Clintons’ rise was premised on repudiating black voters is a must-read. Especially if you're considering voting for Hill... more »

Only Half Of Americans Believe The US Has The World’s Strongest Military

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 1 day ago
*Gallup*: *Americans Less Likely to See U.S. as No. 1 Militarily* * 49% say U.S. is No. 1 military power in world, down from last year * Views that U.S. is spending too little on defense are edging up * Republicans much more likely to say military spending is too little PRINCETON, N.J. -- Americans are evenly split when asked if the U.S. is No. 1 in the world militarily, with 49% saying "yes" and 49% saying "no." The current percentage who view the U.S. as No. 1 is, by a small margin, the lowest Gallup has recorded in its 23-year trend. It also marks a significant downturn from last... more »

US Senator John McCain Threatens To Subpoena US Sailors Detained By Iran If The Pentagon's Investigation Findings Are Not Released

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 1 day ago
Detained: US sailors (pictured) were detained by Iran on Friday after entering Iranian waters due to what the US called a 'navigational problem.' They were freed the next day after intervention by US *Daily Mail*:* John McCain threatens to subpoena U.S. sailors held by Iran if Obama administration doesn't hand over investigation findings by end of month* * Republican senator John McCain made the announcement on Sunday * McCain says the administration is 'dragging their feet' with the report * The sailors were detained briefly by Iran on January 12 and freed the next day after US sec... more »

"I am the bearded cow-like sea beast."

Spike EP at News Spike - 1 day ago
CHUCK BURKS: Compadres. I teased out something very fabulous from your pottery there. (Recorded sound of a man speaking a foreign language.) CHUCK BURKS: Layered in under the ambience there. Guess what language that is. (MULDER is tired. He has had a bad day.) MULDER: Chuck, I've had a bad day. CHUCK BURKS: It's a dead language. I had a linguist in here to listen to the recording. It's Aramaic. SCULLY: That's the language that Christ spoke. (she looks up at MULDER) Did your linguist happen to translate it? CHUCK BURKS: Yes, he did. It's in two parts. The first part here roughly... more »

Trump, Cruz Continue Jousting Ahead of Saturday’s Primary in South Carolina

SCOTT BAUER at The Stream - 1 day ago
[image: trump_cruz3 - 900] AIKEN, South Carolina (AP) -- Donald Trump and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz continued to joust for primacy heading into the South Carolina primary next weekend, foregoing policy differences for name-calling and insults. Trump called Cruz “nuts,” “dishonest” and “an unstable... more »

Syrian Civil War: NATO General Admits Russia Will Bring Peace To Syria, Turkey Offers Catastrophe

Northerntruthseeker at Northerntruthseeker - 1 day ago
The Syrian civil war is definitely entering a period of immense uncertainty and the next few weeks could see dire consequences for the entire planet.... Right now, Turkish and Saudi forces are amassing along the borders of Syria and Turkey has begun shelling both Kurdish controlled areas, and Syrian government forces that have the last vestiges of "rebel" forces bottled up in a pocket around Aleppo.... The Turks and the Saudis are about to attack Syria and that attack will bring Russian forces into direct conflict with both of those regimes... There is indeed fear of a massive escal... more »

Is Venezuela's Military Taking Control Of The Country's Oil Resources?

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 1 day ago
Venezuela’s president Nicolás Maduro gestures before his state of the nation address to the National Assembly in Caracas on Friday when declared a national economic emergency. Photograph: Carlos Garcia Rawlins/Reuters *Oil Price:* *Is Venezuela Trying To Hide Oil Assets With This Bizarre Move?* Strange and unsettling developments emerging late last week — from one of the world’s key oil-producing countries. Venezuela. The Venezuelan government Friday issued a decree that, for the first time, allows the country’s military to take direct involvement in natural resources projects. ... more »

Saudi Arabia And Russia To Talk Oil Prices On Tuesday

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 1 day ago
Bloomberg:* Saudi, Russian Oil Ministers Plan Talks in Doha Tuesday* * Ministers al-Naimi, Novak to discuss market in private * OPEC member Venezuela will also join the talks Tuesday Saudi Arabia’s oil minister plans to meet with his Russian counterpart in Doha on Tuesday to discuss the oil market, according to a person familiar with the talks. Ali al-Naimi, the most senior oil official of the world’s biggest crude exporter, will speak with Russia’s Alexander Novak in the Qatari capital, according to the person, who asked not to be identified because the talks are private. The per... more »

If that funny-talking Limey John Oliver thinks he can embarrass "Miss Mitch" McConnell, he's got another think coming

KenInNY at DownWithTyranny! - 1 day ago
*John Oliver tells us all about the "Thurmond Rule" -- andshows us Miss Mitch calling it "this rule that doesn't exist"* *"If the President has trouble doing nothing, we will be more than happy to show him how it is done."* *-- Senate Majority Leader "Miss Mitch" McConnell, asquoted this morning by the Borowitz Report (see below)* *by Ken* First, a confidential to whoever thought it was a good idea to have John Oliver's *Last Week Tonight* off HBO's airwaves for three months: *WTF???* I assume there were Reasons. There are always Reasons, aren't there?) I just trust that somewhe... more »

Musical Interlude: Marvin Gaye, “Inner City Blues”

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago
Marvin Gaye, “Inner City Blues” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tI9SKuCIMpc

"A Look to the Heavens"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago
“In this crowded starfield spanning some 3 degrees within the high flying constellation Cygnus, the eye is drawn to the Cocoon Nebula. A compact star forming region, the cosmic Cocoon punctuates a long trail of obscuring interstellar dust clouds. Cataloged as IC 5146, the nebula is nearly 15 light-years wide, located some 4,000 light years away. * Click image for larger size.* Like other star forming regions, it stands out in red, glowing, hydrogen gas excited by the young, hot stars and blue, dust-reflected starlight at the edge of an otherwise invisible molecular cloud. In fact, th... more »

Chet Raymo, "Thank God, It's Doomsday"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago
*"Thank God, It's Doomsday" * by Chet Raymo “OK, folks. Here's what's awaiting you. The End Times. The Apocalypse. The Rapture. The Final Reckoning. Oh, I could pick any one of a thousand representations of the Last Days from centuries of Western art. This one is Luca Signorelli's "The Damned Cast Into Hell," in the Capella Nuova chapel of Orvieto Cathedral, painted around the year 1500 (click to enlarge). Why were these scenes of souls in extremis so common? Exhortations to be good? A reminder of what awaits us if we don't contribute to the Sunday collection? A local bishop trying... more »

"Using Our Outside Voice: Freeing Our Inner Desires"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago
*"Using Our Outside Voice: **Freeing Our Inner Desires"* by Madisyn Taylor, The DailyOm "Our best chance of getting what we need is to communicate by converting our inner voice to our outside voice. Each of us has developed an internal filtering process that helps us choose which parts of our constant inner monologues get voiced outside of our heads. Sometimes the choice is based on what we consider to be polite or appropriate, using subtlety instead of directness to try to get our point across. Other times the choice is made based on our expectations of the other person and what we... more »

“Get Enough Sleep – Or Else!”

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago
*“Get Enough Sleep – Or Else!”* by Danny Tyree "Let’s face it: the only thing more pathetic than hosting a pity party is having to shoo the visitors away from your pity party by 7 p.m. Because of various commitments and interests, I am fortunate if I am in bed six hours a night. (Let’s not even talk about QUALITY of sleep.) I am made to feel like a masochistic idiot every time I see one of those ubiquitous “Stop skating by on minimal sleep” articles. To add insult to injury, AOL.com reports that one of the reasons millennials are so successful is that they average eight hours and 5... more »

The Voice of God

Spike EP at News Spike - 1 day ago
*A SUBLIMINAL DR. STRANGELOVE* When Branch Davidian sect members hunkered down in their Waco compound last year and threatened to commit suicide, the FBI turned to an unlikely source. Experts from the *FBI Counter-Terrorism Center *secretly met in Arlington, Va., with a long-haired Russian Dr. Strangelove called Igor Smirnov. His plan: piping subliminal messages from sect members' families through the phone lines during negotiations. *For David Koresh, the self-appointed prophet, the FBI had a special voice in mind: God, as played by Charlton Heston.* The FBI backed out of Smirn... more »

Trump Dumps On Dubya, Praises Saddam, Excoriates Rivals, Threatens to Go Third Party

Al Perrotta at The Stream - 1 day ago
[image: Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event at the Orpheum Theatre in Sioux City, Iowa, Sunday, Jan. 31, 2016.] Donald Trump found time Monday away from attacking Ted Cruz, threatening George W. Bush and complaining about the RNC to send some post-Valentine’s love Saddam Hussein’s way. During a press conference Monday in Hanahan, South Carolina, Trump said of the... more »

More Details Emerge on Justice Scalia’s Health and Death

Sam Hananel & David Warren at The Stream - 1 day ago
[image: Supreme Court Half-Staff flag - 90000] WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Texas county judge who decided no autopsy was needed following the death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has disclosed new details about Scalia’s health in the days before he died. Presidio County Judge Cinderela Guevara... more »

The Ed Wood Investigative Method.

Spike EP at News Spike - 1 day ago
(MULDER's apartment. Late evening. MULDER is lying on his couch watching "Plan Nine From Outer Space" on TV, one of the first cheesy sci-fi films made. He speaks the lines along with the actors. He obviously knows the movie very well.) *MULDER AND TV:* Well, as long as they can think we'll have our problems. But those whom we are using cannot think they are the dead brought to assimilated life by our electrode... (Someone knocks at the door.) *MULDER:* It's open. (SCULLY enters.) *MULDER AND TV:* You know, it's an interesting thing when you consider the earth people who can ...more »

Mohawk Nation News 'When the Whistle Blows'

brendanorrell@gmail.com at CENSORED NEWS - 1 day ago
http://mohawknationnews.com/blog/2016/02/15/when-the-whistle-blows/

Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- February 15, 2016

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 1 day ago
*Marc Champion, Bloomberg:* *Syrian Truce Is Dead, and Russia's in Charge* Syria's cease-fire deal was born in Munich, in the early hours of Friday morning -- and pronounced dead in the same town within a day, a development that exposed just how little influence the U.S. now has over the conflict. U.K. Foreign Minister Philip Hammond probably had the smartest take on the deal, when he divided it into two parts during the annual Munich Security Conference, which began hours after the deal was signed. One part, to deliver humanitarian aid to besieged civilians, will probably happen t... more »

World News Briefs -- February 15, 2016 (Evening Edition)

War News Updates Editor at War News Updates - 1 day ago
*AFP*: *UN, US condemn Syria air strikes as 'almost 50 civilians' killed* Beirut (AFP) - The United Nations and United States on Monday condemned suspected Russian air strikes on medical facilities and schools in northern Syria that the world body said killed almost 50 civilians. Also ahead of a hoped-for ceasefire, Turkey shelled advancing Kurdish fighters in Syria for a third day, as Ankara and Moscow traded accusations over their military entanglement in the conflict. The United Nations said air strikes on at least five medical facilities and two schools in northern Syria's Ale... more »

Cindy Blackstock

Alison at Creekside - 1 day ago
Who knows about love and fairness? Children do. Racial discrimination against children must no longer be tolerated in Canada. First Nations Child & Family Caring Society of Canada filed their complaint in 2007. Tyee : Scared and Spied On Under Harper, Why Child Advocate Didn't Give Up Also, while we're at it ... Cindy Blackstock for Governor General of Canada. .

Dinosaurs Could Be Back By 2050 Say Experts

Edmondo Burr at Your News Wire - 1 day ago
One of the world’s leading think tanks claims that in the future people will be healthier and wealthier and living with dinosaurs. In the future teenagers will be living like millionaires in futuristic homes built for leisure-time and comfort with robots as servants. They would travel in driver-less cars and supersonic planes. Dinosaurs could also make a comeback around 2050 to join the euphoria, through DNA back-breeding. The Daily Star reports: As well as being wealthier, researchers believe we will have more leisure time and live healthier lives with killer diseases such as cance... more »

Syrian Kurdish Forces Liberate Aleppo City Of Tel Rifaat From ISIL

Edmondo Burr at Your News Wire - 1 day ago
Syrian Kurds known as the YPG, backed by the Russian Air Force captured the strategic city of Tel Rifat in northern Aleppo from ISIL on Monday. The highly strategic city close to the Turkish border is a loss for the terrorists and lays the road open for an advance eastwards into Islamic State territory. Fars News English reports: The People’s Protection Units (YPG) who enjoyed the Russian air backup prevailed the terrorists’ positions from the Western direction and shook hand with other Kurdish troops who entered the town from the North. The YPG Kurds have recently bonded with the D... more »

Hillary And The Lobbyists, Part II

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 1 day ago
The newest Quinnipiac poll of Democratic primary voters nationally, shows a dead-heat between Bernie and the establishment candidate. They found Clinton's support had sunk to 44% (from 61% in December) and Bernie's had risen to 42% (from 30%). The hypothetical November match-ups with the 3 conceivable GOP nominees (though not Ryan; no one is polling him set) are more favorable to Bernie than to Clinton: The one recent poll in Nevada also shows a tie (45-45%), again, a gigantic surge for Bernie-- and the opposite for the increasingly mistrusted Clinton. Yesterday the big poll re... more »

The ISA Awakens

Charli Carpenter at Duck of Minerva - 1 day ago
A short time from now, at a conference venue far, far away (at least from Amherst, MA…): The papers on this panel examine the relationship between the Star Wars franchise and socio-political dynamics in the area of international security, broadly defined. In other words, this panel focuses specifically on the inter-relationship between pop culture ideas and […]

Strategic Surprise? Or The Foreseeable Future

Heather Roff at Duck of Minerva - 1 day ago
When the Soviets launched Sputnik in 1957, the US was taken off guard. Seriously off guard. While Eisenhower didn’t think the pointy satellite was a major strategic threat, the public perception was that it was. The Soviets could launch rockets into space, and if they could do that, they could easily launch nuclear missiles at the […]

The Watson Family

Spike EP at News Spike - 1 day ago
[Lead Prosecutor Vincent] Bugliosi: During that period of time, primarily the summers of 1965 and ’66 and 1967, how would you describe Charles Tex Watson? Mallett: He was always very mannerly and happy..... Bugliosi: Would you characterize him as being somewhat carefree? Mallett: Yes.... Bugliosi: Now, after you last saw him in August of 1966 when is the next time you saw him? Mallett: In November of 1969....We just rode around, talked, went to the Dairy Queen and got a coke [recte: Coke]. Bugliosi: How did he look to you in November of 1969? Mallett: He looked great, you know... more »

Israeli Police Officer Kicks Palestinian Man Out Of Wheelchair

Carol Adl at Your News Wire - 1 day ago
An Israeli police officer pushed a disabled Palestinian man out of his wheelchair on Sunday in the West Bank city of Hebron. Footage captured on a mobile phone shows the officer knocking 53 year old Majed al-Fakhouri backwards and sending him sprawling into the street as a crowd looks on. The incident happened after a 14 year old girl was shot, after she had allegedly tried to stab an Israeli policeman. Mr al-Fakhouri said he had been trying to reach the girl to attempt first aid. The officer told him to turn back and when he refused, the officer proceeded to tip his chair, forcing ... more »

Official: Syria Ready To Fight Turkey And Saudi Arabia

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 1 day ago
Syria is preparing to protect its sovereignty via military force in the event of an invasion by Turkey or Saudi Arabia, the Syrian Ambassador to Russia, Riad Haddad has said. “We will resist together with our allies against this aggression, we will bravely confront it in order to protect our sovereignty.” “Because we believe that any military intervention should occur in coordination with the Syrian government,” Haddad told RIA Novosti. Fort Russ reports: “Otherwise it would be a violation of our sovereignty, and we in no way find that acceptable”, — said the Ambassador, quoted b... more »

NWO Document Reveals Nightmare Government Plans To Control Your Family

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 1 day ago
A chilling document released by the US Department of Health and Human Services reveals a New World Order (NWO) plan to control every aspect of family life – completely transferring the rights of the parent over to the State. “To support ongoing relationship building with families, programs and schools should conduct periodic home visits so that teachers and families can get to know each other and communicate about children’s goals, strengths, challenges, and progress. If home visits are not possible for all families, schools or programs should require that teachers or providers and ... more »

Top Secret Files Reveal ‘Hungarian Roswell’ You Never Knew About

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 1 day ago
A Slovakian Ufologist has claimed to have leaked ‘top secret’ UFO files from the Hungarian Air Force to an American UFO organisation (MUFON) that purports to blow the lid on the ‘Hungarian Roswell’ incident in 1996. The top secret documents dated September 18th, 1996 detail a UFO crash between a Hungarian air force pilot and an alien spacecraft, interactions with the alien on board, and a plan to hide the information from the public in its aftermath. Texasufosightings.com reports: The original Hungarian documents have been leaked in a recent MUFON report and previously in 2013 by S... more »

Murder? Scalia Found Dead With ‘Pillow Over Head’

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 1 day ago
The death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia is beginning to look suspicious, as new information reveals that the judge was found with a “pillow over his head”. Despite the suspicious circumstances around his death, Scalia’s family have bizarrely refused an autopsy on the body. Mysanantonio.com reports: “He was seated near me and I had a chance to observe him. He was very entertaining. But about 9 p.m. he said, ‘it’s been a long day and a long week, I want to get some sleep,” recalled Houston businessman John Poindexter, who owns the 30,000-acre luxury ranch. When Poindex... more »

Israel Admit To Providing Nukes To Gulf States For Use Against Iran

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 1 day ago
Israel are helping Persian Gulf states to acquire nuclear weapons in order to counter the ‘threat’ Iran poses, Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon revealed at the Munich Security Conference on Sunday. “We see signs that countries in the Arab world are preparing to acquire nuclear weapons, that they are not willing to sit quietly with Iran on brink of a nuclear or atomic bomb,” Ya’alon told fellow defense ministers on the final day of the Munich Security Conference. RT.com reports: Ya’alon did not name specific countries who might be interested in developing nuclear weapons and gave no e... more »

Turkish Leader Caught Using ISIS Militants To Kill Kurds In Syria

Sean Adl-Tabatabai at Your News Wire - 1 day ago
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been caught funding ISIS militants in order to advance his Middle East agenda to kill Kurds in Syria, a Turkish MP has revealed. “Erdogan uses ISIS [Islamic State/IS, also known as ISIS/ISIL] against the Kurds. He can’t send the Turkish Army directly to Syrian Kurdistan, but he can use ISIS as an instrument against the Kurds. He has a greater Ottoman Empire in his mind, that’s his dream, while ISIS is one of the instruments [to achieve it],” Selma Irmak, a Turkish MP from the Peace and Democracy Party told the Russian media on Monday. . RT...more »

Feb. 15: And the headline is ...

Graeme Decarie at The Decarie Report - 1 day ago
Liberals think... That, alone, would be a great and important front page headline. But, alas, it is not quite the header in today's paper. Instead, it's 'Liberals toy ...." and it gets even more trivial, "Liberals toy with idea of February holiday." But we should be happy with what we get. That headline is the most gripping item in Section A news. _________________________________________________________________ Today's editorial is a gem. Some 95% of it rambles on about finding jobs for Moncton's six percent unemployed. (Though, as it says, any society has 5% of its people who are ... more »

Black Liberation Movement Lives

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 1 day ago
During Black History Month, as the U.S. pays homage to African Americans who have changed the course of history, the establishment shows us a revised version that omits a critical piece: the Black radical political tradition.

The Daily "Near You?"

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 day ago
Albufeira, Faro, Portugal. Thanks for stopping by!

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