Jul
30
2013
“Hundreds of American cities are already locked into watery futures and we are growing that group very rapidly.”
That’s the message from Dr. Ben Strauss, the lead author of a new analysis of climate change data that shows the amount of carbon pollution already in the atmosphere could lead to “more than 4 feet of sea level rise past today’s levels” which would be enough, at high tide, to “submerge more than half of today’s population …
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Jul
30
2013
The editor of a Saudi Arabian social website has been sentenced to seven years in prison and 600 lashes for founding an Internet forum that violates Islamic values and propagates liberal thought, Saudi media reported today.
Raif Badawi, who started the “Free Saudi Liberals” website to discuss the role of religion in Saudi Arabia, has been held since June 2012 on charges of cyber crime and disobeying his father – a crime in the conservative …
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Jul
26
2013
FORT MEADE, Md. — U.S. Army Pfc. Bradley Manning was negligent in releasing classified secrets to WikiLeaks, but the former intelligence analyst did not know al-Qaida would see the material, a defense attorney said Friday.
During closing arguments, attorney David Coombs said the soldier did not have “evil intent,” a key point prosecutors must prove to convict Manning of aiding the enemy, the most serious charge he faces and one that could land him in prison …
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Jul
26
2013
The U.S. government has demanded that major Internet companies divulge users’ stored passwords, according to two industry sources familiar with these orders, which represent an escalation in surveillance techniques that has not previously been disclosed.
If the government is able to determine a person’s password, which is typically stored in encrypted form, the credential could be used to log in to an account to peruse confidential correspondence or even impersonate the user. Obtaining it also …
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Jul
24
2013
Race is America’s Voldemort: That-Which-Must-Not-Be-Named. Even when discrimination’s role in an event is obvious, there has to be another reason. It’s not about race, it’s about class. It’s about safety. It’s about line dancing. But we are arguably experiencing the greatest racial tensions since the 1960’s, Barack or not.
The most prominent racial issue dividing America today is racial profiling. Trayvon, Stop-and-Frisk, Obama’s Beer Summit, and Arizona’s Show-Me-Your-Papers law are all about acting on racial presumptions.
Three …
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Jul
24
2013
The fallout from the George Zimmerman trial was in the air Friday, as President Obama made a surprise speech about the verdict in the White House press briefing room. But at the National Native Media Conference in Tempe, Ariz., where the Native American Journalists Association was meeting, other topics ruled the day. The words “George Zimmerman” or “Trayvon Martin” were hardly uttered.
When asked why, attendees offered remarkably similar responses, variations of, “Welcome to my world. …
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Jul
24
2013
At 5 AM PST today, non-union workers moving Walmart goods at a California warehouse plan to launch a two-day surprise strike in protest of alleged retaliation for exposing safety risks. Organizers expect at least thirty of the warehouse’s two hundred-some employees to join the work stoppage, the latest in a wave of Walmart supply chain strikes.
“I’m scared because I need to work for my family’s sake,” employee Miriam Garcia told The Nation in Spanish. Garcia …
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Jul
24
2013
Egypt’s army chief has called for mass protests against “terrorism” after an explosion outside a police building in northern Egypt killed one police conscript and injured 19 officers and civilians – bringing the deathtoll from fighting since the overthrow of Mohamed Morsi to at least 190, according to one estimate.
The overnight bomb attack in Mansoura marked an escalation in the methods used during clashes between Morsi supporters, his opponents and members of state security. In …
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Jul
24
2013
The Congressional Caucus on Black Men and Boys will be holding its first-ever meeting on Wednesday and they have lined up a special guest.
Tracy Martin, Travyon Martin’s father, is scheduled to appear tomorrow to offer opening remarks. The main topic of the meeting will focus on “The Status of Black Males: Ensuring Our Boys Mature into Strong Men.”
Martin will address this topic and leaves no doubt that undoubtedly refer to the death of his …
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Jul
24
2013
Australia is to investigate reports that asylum seekers at one of its detention camps in Papua New Guinea (PNG) are being raped and tortured.
Kevin Rudd, Australia’s prime minister, has said that no more boat-people will be allowed to resettle in Australia and unauthorised arrivals will be sent to camps in PNG, according to a new agreement between the two countries.
Rudd said on Wednesday that the sinking of a refugee boat off the coast of West …
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