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Saturday, April 8, 2006 |
The general atmosphere in the US now can be compared to that reigning in Germany in the 30s.
Guardian: "University professors denounced for anti-Americanism; schoolteachers suspended for their politics; students encouraged to report on their tutors. Are US campuses in the grip of a witch-hunt of progressives, or is academic life just too liberal?"
As I feared, the Patriot Act and anti-terror laws are mostly used to intimidate and control people. Those who should protect and execute the law, act like lawless, aggressive bullies, all along the line from the White House to the local cop.
Yahoo: "Leander Pickett, a teacher's assistant at Englewood Elementary, said he was manhandled and handcuffed by two plain clothed Homeland Security officers in front of the school Tuesday for no reason at all."
Independent: "A peace activist who organised an anti-war tea party that took place opposite the House of Commons faces prison.
Mark Barrett, a tour guide, was convicted under recent legislation banning demonstrations near Parliament and was fined £500 including costs.
He is one of a group of activists who meet every week to drink tea and eat cake on Parliament Square in protest at an attack on freedom of expression."
The British government abuses the anti-terror laws to attack civil rights and suppress opposition, something they always accused the Communist bloc of. Now back with a vengeance, only bigger and better, being capitalist.
11:47:43 AM 
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CenterForMediaAndDemocracy: "Over a ten-month period, the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) documented television newsrooms' use of 36 video news releases (VNRs) - a small sample of the thousands produced each year. CMD identified 77 television stations, from those in the largest to the smallest markets, that aired these VNRs or related satellite media tours (SMTs) in 98 separate instances, without disclosure to viewers.
Collectively, these 77 stations reach more than half of the U.S. population.
VNRs are pre-packaged 'news' segments and additional footage created by broadcast PR firms, or by publicists within corporations or government agencies. VNRs are designed to be seamlessly integrated into newscasts, and are freely provided to TV stations."
In short, the widespread use of VNRs is propaganda and indoctrination, something the West always accused the Communists of. Now back with a vengeance, only bigger and better, being capitalist.
11:23:57 AM
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The mess at the White House and the Pentagon is complete now. Who is actually in charge of the Bush Mob?
Yahoo: "Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and his appointees set rules that violate President George W. Bush's order to hold fair trials for prisoners charged with terrorism in the Guantanamo tribunals, a military defense lawyer said on Friday."
There is one thing one can say with certainty and that is that nobody at all cares about laws or rules or anything in the Bush administration.
11:08:09 AM
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UN: "Toxic chemicals constitute serious threats to human rights, especially the right to life of the 47,000 persons estimated by WHO to die every year as a result of poisoning from chemicals like pesticides. Exposure to toxic chemicals occurs in different ways: exposure to everyday household and food products; exposure arising from employment in particular sectors, such as the agricultural or the mining sector; exposure to chemicals in the disposal phase, such as electronic products and end-of-life ships; or exposure as a result of an accident, one of the most extreme illustrations being the case of a catastrophic gas leak from a pesticide plant in Bhopal."
The toxic fallout in countries at war is even greater. Depleted uranium can travel thousands of miles. The population and health damage as a result of war is devastating.
Scienceagogo: "The use of depleted uranium in munitions and weaponry is likely to come under intense scrutiny now that new research that found that uranium can bind to human DNA. The finding will likely have far-reaching implications for returned soldiers, civilians living in what were once war-zones and people who might live near uranium mines or processing facilities."
11:00:47 AM
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