Why I am a Terrorist - "If that is what it means, then I cannot support our troops. I cannot wish them well if their purpose is conquer other people, and plunder the wealth of other countries that have done us no harm. That would require me to endorse crimes against humanity conducted under the guise of national security and patriotism. I cannot do that—I will not. It is simply wrong." -- I have never understood the meaning of the phrase "support the troops".
White House claims al Qaeda degraded but adjusting - "The Bush administration proclaimed significant progress in the war on terror Tuesday but said the enemy has adjusted to U.S. defenses and that "America is safer but we are not yet safe.""
America's youth must serve their country, one way or another - "That's why it's time to reinstate the draft. ... Here's how the new draft should work:" -- How depressing.
Google developing eavesdropping software - "The idea is to use the existing PC microphone to listen to whatever is heard in the background, be it music, your phone going off or the TV turned down. The PC then identifies it, using fingerprinting, and then shows you relevant content, whether that's adverts or search results, or a chat room on the subject. And, of course, we wouldn’t put it past Google to store that information away, along with the search terms it keeps that you've used, and the web pages you have visited, to help it create a personalised profile that feeds you just the right kind of adverts/content. And given that it is trying to develop alternative approaches to TV advertising, it could go the extra step and help send "content relevant" advertising to your TV as well. We suspect that such a world would be rather eerie, with a constant feeling of déjà vu every time anyone watched TV." -- This should scare the hell out of everyone. Where's my copy of 1984?
Pay To Be Saved - "The Red Cross has just announced a new disaster-response partnership with Wal-Mart. When the next hurricane hits, it will be a co-production of Big Aid and Big Box. This, apparently, is the lesson learned from the government's calamitous response to Hurricane Katrina: Businesses do disaster better. ... But before this new consensus goes any further, perhaps it's time to take a look at where the privatization of disaster began, and where it will inevitably lead. The first step was the government's abdication of its core responsibility to protect the population from disasters. Under the Bush administration, whole sectors of the government, most notably the Department of Homeland Security, have been turned into glorified temp agencies, with essential functions contracted out to private companies. The theory is that entrepreneurs, driven by the profit motive, are always more efficient (please suspend hysterical laughter). ... I call it the Disaster Capitalism Complex. Whatever you might need in a serious crunch, these contractors can provide it: generators, water tanks, cots, port-a-potties, mobile homes, communications systems, helicopters, medicine, men with guns. This state-within-a-state has been built almost exclusively with money from public contracts, including the training of its staff (overwhelmingly former civil servants, politicians and soldiers). Yet it is all privately owned; taxpayers have absolutely no control over it or claim to it. So far, that reality hasn't sunk in because when these companies are getting their bills paid by government contracts, the Disaster Capitalism Complex provides its services to the public free of charge. But here's the catch: The US government is going broke, in no small part thanks to this kind of loony spending. ... They will still have all their high-tech gear giving them the ability to respond to disasters--while the government will have let that precious skill whither away--but now they will sell back the tax-funded infrastructure at whatever price they choose. Here's a snapshot of what could be in store in the not-too-distant future: helicopter rides off of rooftops in flooded cities ($5,000 a pop, $7,000 for families, pets included), bottled water and "meals ready to eat" ($50 per person, steep, but that's supply and demand) and a cot in a shelter with a portable shower (show us your biometric ID--developed on a lucrative Homeland Security contract--and we'll track you down later with the bill. Don't worry, we have ways: Spying has been outsourced too). The model, of course, is the US healthcare system, in which the wealthy can access best-in-class treatment in spa-like environments while 46 million Americans lack health insurance. As emergency response, the model is already at work in the global AIDS pandemic: Private-sector prowess helped produce lifesaving drugs (with heavy public subsidies), then set prices so high that the vast majority of the world's infected cannot afford treatment. If that is the corporate world's track record on slow-motion disasters, why should we expect different values to govern fast-moving disasters, like hurricanes or even terrorist attacks? ... Unless a radical change of course is demanded, New Orleans will prove to be a glimpse of a dystopic future, a future of disaster apartheid in which the wealthy are saved and everyone else is left behind."
Bush, GOP hoping terror card can save them from election drubbing - "President Bush and the Republicans expect a stinging defeat in November, but they're betting the terror card saves them from an electoral debacle. "The security issue trumps everything," a senior Bush official said last week. "That's why even though they're really mad at us, in the end they're going to give us another two years.""
Scripps Howard poll: Half of America angrier at government than ever before; one-third believe government behind 9/11 - "The poll also indicated that people who get their news from alternative sources were more likely to believe in "conspiracies" while, "People who regularly read daily newspapers or listen to radio newscasts were especially unlikely to believe in the conspiracies. A majority of young people, high-school educated adults, minorities and Democrats believe 9/11 conspiracies; only a quarter of those over the age of 65 polled believed 9/11 conspiracies." -- Of course 9/11 was a conspiracy. We're just trying to figure out who did the conspiring.
Poll foreshadows a midterm of discontent - "With midterm elections little more than two months away, Americans are expressing overwhelming disapproval with Congress, incumbents and the way the country is being run, a CNN poll suggests."
G.O.P. Sets Aside Work on Immigration - "As they prepare for a critical pre-election legislative stretch, Congressional Republican leaders have all but abandoned a broad overhaul of immigration laws and instead will concentrate on national security issues they believe play to their political strength."
US toughens passport rules, required for entry from Canada, Mexico - "The new rules begin January 8th, when citizens entering the US from the Caribbean by air or sea will be required to hold US passports. In January 2008, the same requirement will be put in place for travellers entering the United States by car from Canada or Mexico." -- Pathetic. "I am a citizen of the world first, and of this country at a later and more convenient hour." ~ Henry David Thoreau
Airports set sights on `weird' conduct - "How travellers behave at the airport — not simply the items in their tote bags — could soon be a focus of Canada's air security screeners. ... The initiative would involve training airport screeners to pick up on cues — from facial expressions to vocal patterns — that might indicate a person has something to hide. That could lead to the traveller being pulled aside for more detailed questioning. ... Some critics suggest behavioural monitoring is a poor use of scarce security resources. "What is normal behaviour in an airport? Who determines what's normal?" asked Roch Tasse of the International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group based in Ottawa." -- This is a dangerous road to travel.
One in six Londoners avoid Muslims on buses, trains - "One in six people in Britain's capital have admitted moving seats on public transport to avoid a passenger they think is Muslim, according to a survey published." -- The Fall approaches terminal velocity.
Truckers, bus drivers on lookout for suspicious activity on roads - "Adams is part of a rapidly growing army of truckers and bus drivers who have been trained by Highway Watch to spot suspicious activity on the highways. The program is run by the American Trucking Association with funds from the Department of Homeland Security. Drivers take a class or watch a one-hour DVD to qualify." -- Oh, I feel much safer now.
The flameout of the Plame game - "The expectation on the left that the Valerie Plame affair would blossom into another Watergate, bringing down a second Republican presidency, has fizzled."
Mexican court names winner in disputed election - "Felipe Calderon became president-elect of Mexico on Tuesday, two months after disputed elections, when the nation's top electoral court voted unanimously to reject allegations of fraud and certify his narrow victory."
Promising New Oil Find in Gulf of Mexico - "Tests of a deep-water well in the Gulf of Mexico could indicate a significant oil discovery, three companies announced Tuesday, in the first project to tap into a region that reportedly could boost U.S. oil and gas reserves by as much as 50 percent."
Marriage-protection plan OK'd by Arizona court - "A court ruling in Arizona has given the green light to plans for voters there to join voters in at least six other states this fall in deciding whether to protect traditional marriage or allow for new definitions of the age-old institution."
Rabbi Jesus loses spot at hospital - "The Bible says Jesus was a Jew, but no one wants Jesus painted as a Jew."
Students Can Buy Lunch With Finger Scan - "The never-ending march of technology now means school children here can pay for their cafeteria sloppy joes with their fingers."
Womb transplants could be two years away, experts claim - "The transplant would be temporary, doctors being reluctant to continue giving a patient drugs to help the body to fight rejection of the womb. That could leave the woman two to three years to conceive and carry a baby or babies before the womb was removed."
British hospital introduces burka-style gown for Muslim patients - "A hospital in northwest England has introduced a new surgical gown modelled on the burka, allowing female Muslim patients to cover themselves completely in line with their religious beliefs."
Smoke and enjoy the flight - "As more countries ban smoking in public places, his idea might seem malapropos. But Schoppmann, a German entrepreneur, is hoping to turn smokers' umbrage at ever-expanding efforts to stub out their habit into a highflying business proposal: Smoker's International Airways."
Study: Older fathers bring higher autism risk - "Men who become fathers in their 40s or older are much more likely to have autistic children than younger dads, a new study released Monday shows, bolstering evidence that genetics contributes to the mental disorder."
Teens often skip condom use - "Many teenagers and young adults fail to use condoms consistently, regardless of whether they have sex with a serious or a "casual" partner, a new study suggests."
Tripping the lights organic - "If Universal Display is right, lightbulbs in the future won't come in boxes. They will be incorporated into the wallpaper."
Spam + Blogs = Trouble - "Splogs are the latest thing in online scams – and they could smother the Internet."
We're born with a belief in the supernatural, says scientist - "Religions will continue to thrive despite the rise of science and rationality because we are all born with a tendency to believe in the supernatural, according to research published yesterday."
Priests asked to shame drunk drivers - "Prosecutors in overwhelmingly Catholic Poland have asked priests to read out the names of drink-drivers from the pulpit as part of efforts to reduce the country's high road death rate. Church leaders have not said yet whether they will support the scheme, aimed to shame drivers into sobriety."
Smart shirt tracks hearts on the run - "A "smart" shirt, incorporating stainless steel threads, has been developed by European scientists to monitor heart patients on the move."
Scientist says lots of dinosaurs remain - "Good news for dinosaur fans: There are probably a lot more of them waiting to be discovered. At least, their fossils are."
Quote of the Day
"I didn't say it would be easy. I just said it would be the truth."
~ Morpheus, The Matrix
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