World Cup, Sports Corruption; Europe, Asia; MH370; Religion; Media and Transparency, Political Partisanship, Obamanation; Vote Machinations, Campaign Finance Deform; Grand Ol' Tea Party; Immigration, Race and Racism; Your Government Inaction

World Cup

• Iran arrests 2 over World Cup video—"Iran's official IRNA news agency says police have arrested two people who appeared in an online video of young people singing and dancing in support of the country's World Cup football team."
• Defying ban, Iranian women watch World Cup with men in public
• Neo-Nazi Banners, Blackface, and Homophobic Chants: World Cup Fans Behaving Badly
• Suarez World Cup bite sets off Twitter meme frenzy—"Harkening Mike Tyson's famous gnawing of Evander Holyfield's ear, the soccer star is pictured wearing a dog cone, with fangs, as Hannibal, and more."
• Miguel Herrera Is the Most GIF-Worthy Man at the World Cup, Perhaps on Earth
• Cristiano Ronaldo, James Milner, Mario Balotelli, Olivier Giroud: The hottest soccer players at the World Cup
• Bravery of young security officer prevents massacre in Beirut—"Hunch by security officer prevents potential massacre as scores of people were watching World Cup match, but it also costs his own life."

Sports Corruption

• Football match-fixing: Ghana deal casts cloud over World Cup finals in Brazil—Is this what the $3 million is for?
• Fifa Bosses 'Secretly Doubled Their Salaries'—"Football chiefs are accused of upping their pay to £118,000 to compensate for lucrative bonuses that have now been axed."
• U.S. Senator Calls On FIFA To Relocate 2022 World Cup Out Of Qatar
• Nobody Wants To Host The 2022 Olympics—"The next Olympics to be awarded, a little more than a year from now, will be the 2022 Winter Games. Rather than going to the strongest bid, the games may end up going to the last city standing--a long list of potential hosts have given up on their Olympic dreams because the whole thing is one huge, useless waste of money."
• Banks Wary of Construction Companies After Olympic Debacle

Europe

• Polish foreign minister says country's alliance with US worthless—"According to a transcript of recordings obtained by Wprost, Radislaw Sikorski said 'we gave the US a blow job.'"
• Polish MPs ridicule Cameron's 'stupid propaganda' aimed at Eurosceptics—"Secretly taped expletive-laden conversation reveals EU fallout from prime minister's plans to curb migrants' benefits access."
• Italy arrests 95 in mafia dragnet, solves century-old murder
• Roma boy left unconscious after being savagely beaten and tortured during vigilante attack in Paris suburb
• Tens of thousands march in London against coalition's austerity measures—"An estimated 50,000 people in London addressed by speakers, including Russell Brand, after People's Assembly march."

Asia

• China jails 'New Citizens' Movement' activists—"China has handed down lengthy jail terms to three anti-corruption activists who had called for officials to disclose their personal wealth."
• Chinese police shoot dead 13 attackers in restive Xinjiang
• In Hong Kong, an Unofficial Election Draws Beijing's Ire NYT
• Chinese warships to join US in drills off Hawaii for first time
• Japan failed to report 640 kg of nuclear fuel to IAEA
• North Korea blasts film featuring James Franco and Seth Rogen plotting assassination of Kim Jong Un—This means war.
• Google removes Singapore hate blog against Filipinos

MH370

• 'A bungled inquiry': 100 days after MH370 went missing it is clear Malaysia officials hiding information National Post
• Malaysian Jet Was in Controlled Flight After Contact Was Lost, Officials Suspect NYT
• Australia: Waiting for Malaysians before announcing new MH370 search area

Religion

• Festival of Dangerous Ideas: 'Honour killings are morally justified' talk cancelled
• Christian woman freed after death sentence ruled 'faulty' in Sudan—NISS says, not so fast.
• Malaysian court to Christians: You can't say 'Allah'

Media and Transparency

• The media's moral center: How John Oliver became the sheriff of cable news' wild west—"The 'Last Week Tonight' host digs deeper and pushes his audience harder than either Jon Stewart or Stephen Colbert." Salon
• Jon Stewart Is A More Trusted News Source Than MSNBC, Study Says
• Lawmakers unveil major changes to FOIA—"Reform legislation emerges from Senate committee that would overhaul Freedom of Information Act, increase transparency."
• Wal-Mart 'edits' a New York Times op-ed—The fact check fudges facts.
• Hacking trial: Coulson guilty, Brooks cleared of charges

Political Partisanship

• Americans Have Less Confidence In Congress Than Just About Anything, Ever
• Let's Stop Kidding Ourselves: 90 Percent of Congressional Incumbents Will Win Re-election—"All signs tell us that incumbents should be grabbed by their lapels and shoved to the curb—but most won't be."
• Americans have not become more politically polarized—Maybe, maybe not. WaPo

Obamanation

• Jindal: People Ready For 'Hostile Takeover' Of DC
• South Dakota Republican Party Passes Resolution Calling For Obama's Impeachment
• New report destroys Gov. Sam Brownback's bid to blame President Obama for Kansas budget crisis

Vote Machinations

• Want to Suppress the Vote? Stress People Out—"The latest science-of-politics study suggests that GOP voter intimidation tactics may be more effective than liberals have feared—for biological reasons."
• Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand plans to introduce legislation to allow voters to register online—"Under Gillibrand's proposal, states with existing online access would expand their system beyond those with state-issued IDs to let more young people, seniors, minorities and the poor to access and update their own voter records online."
• GOP's voter fraud humiliation: Turns out Wisconsin's worst case is a Republican—"Maybe the real reason Scott Walker and Reince Preibus think their state needs tougher laws is a guilty conscience." Hypocrites. Salon
• Racist tactic emerges in GOP primary fight—"Rachel Maddow reports on how Mississippi Republican candidate Thad Cochran's appeal for African-American votes is being met by conservative supporters of his tea party opponent, Chris McDaniel, with 'poll watchers,' to discourage black voters."
• Wilson precinct official removed—Woman who wasn't able to vote: "I am not rich — just a mom who wanted to vote. And I did ask for a provisional ballot. But I didn't get it."
• Fifty Years After Freedom Summer, the Voting Rights Act Is Needed More Than Ever

Campaign Finance Deform

• Calif. lawmakers seek constitutional convention on Citizens United
• 4 Key Takeaways About Scott Walker's Alleged "Criminal Scheme"—"Here's what you need to know about the probe targeting the Wisconsin governor and two of his aides."
• Senate Democrats Re-up Their Dark-Money Disclosure Bill—and Dare GOPers to Block It
• Mayday PAC: The Super PAC Built to Destroy Super PACs

Grand Ol' Tea Party

• Thad Cochran Defeats the Tea Party -- And So Does Everyone Else
• Losing Tea Party Candidate Refuses to Concede in Mississippi Runoff
• The staggering price of crushing the tea party Politico
• Tea Party's embarrassing irony: How its ideal nation rejects basic American beliefs Salon
• In a Do-Nothing Congress, Blake Farenthold is Enjoying the View—"Blake Farenthold, the tea party congressman from Corpus Christi, has settled into a routine where distraction is just part of the job."
• Tea party, police clash in western Wisconsin town—Also: Wisconsin Police Chief and Tea Party Battle Over Bridge Signs and Gay Dating Websites
• Darrell Issa's flailing search for his white whale
• GOP Rep's Chief Of Staff Resigns After Porn Star Tweets Photo Of His Penis

Immigration

• Obama tells Mexico: Illegal-immigrant children won't get to stay
• Limbaugh Floats Theory That Obama Planned Influx Of Undocumented Minors At Border
• Honduras to ask U.S. not to deport Honduran kids
• Few immediate consequences for child immigrants
• Mass migrant graves unearthed in Texas—"Researchers discover mass graves near US-Mexico border containing bodies of unidentified migrants in body bags."

Race and Racism

• Prominent Republican Lawyer Says Ted Cruz Sounds Like A Racist
• Texas Commissioners Unintentionally Vote In Favor Of Slavery Reparations
• Arizona GOPer: 'We All Need To Stomp Out' Spanish TV Stations, Newspapers—¡Ay caramba!
• If Affirmative Action Is Doomed, What's Next? NYT
• Redditor's discovery leads to white supremacist investigation at Army base
• Joe Dorsey's Big Fight: How An Unknown Boxer Knocked Out Segregation In Louisiana
• Stunning Portraits of Mixed-Race Families

Your Government Inaction

• You paid a fee for 31 years that went nowhere
• Opponents Barred From Speaking As Cobb County Approves Braves Stadium
• Congress Is Weighing Some Bafflingly Bad Ideas for Fixing Our Crumbling Bridges and Roads
• How many people would be 'out of work' if USPS eliminates Saturday delivery? WaPo
• Why Can't We Simplify Our Tax System? It Turns Out, We Can.

Workers and Wages Slaves, IT Crowd, Minimum Wage; Banks and Wall Street, Class Warfare, Corporatocracy; Tea Party, Obamanation, Politics and Partisanship, Vote Machinations, Campaign Finance Deform, Christie, Hillary; IRS; Redskins

Workers and Wage Slaves

• The Economy May Be Improving. Worker Pay Isn't. NYT
• The Downward Ramp—"The jobs crisis has begun to affect even highly skilled college graduates, who are taking jobs that once went to people with fewer skills." NYT
• I got my Master's, couldn't find a job and lived on food stamps. Now stop calling me a 'welfare queen'
• 5 reasons US workers hate their jobs more than they used to
• Young workers hate their jobs WaPo
• It's Official: The Boomerang Kids Won't Leave—"One in five young adults lives with his or her parents. It might be a recessionary blip — or the dawn of a whole new economic age." NYT
• Elizabeth Warren on creating jobs: 'This isn't magic, we actually know how to do this'

IT Crowd

• This IT worker had to train an H-1B replacement—"U.S. workers protested job losses to foreign workers by displaying American flags in their cubicles."
• Should tech workers settle "no-poach" case for $324M? Judge has real doubts—"One plaintiff says the deal isn't fair to workers, and the judge is listening."
• Robot doctors, online lawyers and automated architects: the future of the professions?—"Advances in technology have long been recognised as a threat to manual labour. Now highly skilled, knowledge-based jobs that were once regarded as safe could be at risk. How will they adapt to the digital age?"

Minimum Wage

• IMF urges U.S. to raise minimum wage
• Massachusetts approves $11 minimum wage
• Obamas Want Daughters To Get Taste Of Life On Minimum Wage
• 'Subminimum wage' for disabled workers called exploitative—"Critics of program that pays disabled workers 'subminimum wage' say it should be abolished. Others say it's an important tool to provide training and employment."

Banks and Wall Street

• Wikileaks: Secret Trade in Services Agreement (TISA) - Financial Services Annex—"Despite the failures in financial regulation evident during the 2007-2008 Global Financial Crisis and calls for improvement of relevant regulatory structures, proponents of TISA aim to further deregulate global financial services markets."
• City of Miami sues JPMorgan, claims mortgage discrimination
• Ex-Goldman director goes to prison, still owes $13.9 million fine
• Senate hearing examines flaws in stock markets
• Why a guy making $100,000 a year can't get a bank account WaPo
• Greenpeace suffers $5.2-million loss after rogue employee's currency investment flops
• Master Currency Counterfeiter Prints Millions, Says 'Screw You' to US

Class Warfare

• Class in America: The Fault Lines
• Reich: Real Business Leaders Want to Save Capitalism
• Arizona GOPer Went Birther, Compared Poor To 'Lazy Pigs' In Anonymous Blog Comments
• No, The Poor Aren't Poor Because They Refuse To Work
• America's Dying Factories Are Widening Income Inequality
• Justice Sotomayor: Inequality Could Trigger 'Unrest' In U.S.
• U.S. appeals court overturns L.A. ban on homeless living in vehicles
• British public wrongly believe rich face highest tax burden, new research shows—"Study shows poorest 10% pay eight percentage points more of their income, prompting calls for more progressive system."
• Australia's richest 1% own as much as bottom 60%, says Oxfam—"Income inequality has risen since mid-1990s and nine richest people now have greater net worth than poorest 4.54 million."

Corporatocracy

• How America became uncompetitive and unequal—"How corporate mergers contribute to economic inequality." WaPo
• The Corporate Daddy: Walmart, Starbucks, and the Fight Against Inequality—"Walmart, the world's largest public corporation, is a big part of the income-gap problem. It could be a big part of the solution." NYT
• The True Cost of Hidden Money—"A Piketty Protégé's Theory on Tax Havens." NYT
• Medtronic Is Biggest Yet to Renounce U.S. Tax Citizenship
• Legislation Introduced to Stop American Corporations from Pretending to Be Foreign Companies
• EU launches attack against corporate tax avoidance—"The EU has taken steps to curb tax avoidance by global corporations. In recent months, criticism in the budget-strapped bloc has mounted over tax loopholes exploited by companies such as Apple, Google and others."
• Thrown Out of Court—"How corporations became people you can't sue."
• Halliburton Ruling Could Be A Big Win For Big Pharma, Wall Street

Tea Party

• Eugene Robinson: Overdosing on tea—"The Republican Party's reliance on tea party support is like an addict's dependence on a dangerous drug: It may feel good at first, but eventually it eats you alive." WaPo
• Teatopia—"What would actually happen if Tea Partiers controlled Congress and Rand Paul was president?"
• Unwitting tea party folk do the bidding of big business LA Times
• David Brat's Success Due to 19,000 new primary voters
• Reince Priebus After Eric Cantor Loss: I Don't Think GOP Is Divided
• Muslim reporter describes being ridiculed at the Texas GOP convention—"Republican chairman: 'Would the state party ever condone that? Absolutely not.'

Obamanation

• Krugman: Yes He Could—"Health Care and Climate: President Obama's Big Deals" NYT
• GOP Rep: Obama Impeachment 'Probably Could' Pass The House
• Conservatives Uncover Obama Plot to Destroy Phil Mickelson—"According to the latest conspiracy theory, Obama sent the FBI and SEC to investigate the pro golfer because he once complained about high tax rates."
• Here's every presidential executive order going back to George Washington

Politics and Partisanship

• Poll: Congress historic midterm low Politico
• America prepares to reelect the Congress it loathes WaPo
• Congress is making a lot of history! (By being so unpopular) WaPo
• The shocking numbers: Americans are dangerously ignorant on politics—"The scary thing about the man who upset Eric Cantor last week is how familiar his brand of ignorance is." Salon
• Time to Stand Up and Fight for a More Perfect Union—"The irony of American politics is that the right is far weaker than it appears and the left far stronger than it asserts."

Vote Machinations

• End Polarization. Make Everyone Vote.
• Middle Class Squeeze: As incomes slide, voters check out
• AZ Candidate Who Changed His Name To 'Cesar Chavez' Thrown Off Ballot
• Fox News paid Scott Brown $136,000
• Alaska's Don Young violated US House ethics—"The House Ethics Committee has found that U.S. Rep. Don Young of Alaska violated House rules by using campaign funds for personal trips and accepting improper gifts."
• Shadowy Obama Megadonor Indicted On Fraud And Manslaughter Charges
• SCOTUS Rules For Anti-Abortion Group In Case About Campaign Lies

Campaign Finance Deform

• Prosecutors: Walker's Campaign 'Tacitly Admitted' Breaking The Law
• Gov. Scott Walker's Campaign Violations—"There clearly is plenty to fear from independent spending groups that raise unlimited dollars." NYT
• The Koch brothers may spend $290 million on this election. That's how much 5,270 American households make in a year. WaPo
• Campaign-Finance Reform Has to Be Cross-Partisan—"Democrats love to talk about cutting the influence of money in politics, but are they actually any more eager to fix it than Republicans?"
• After Lindsey Graham met billionaire, supportive super PAC secured donation an hour later
• Cronies, corruption and cash: Lawrence Lessig on why we need a super PAC to end all super PACs Salon

Christie

• Despite budget gap, Christie holding firm that business tax cuts are off-limits
• Chris Christie to GOP donors on bridge scandal: 'You'll get over it' LA Times
• Prosecutor Is Closing In on Gov. Christie—"Indictments against four cronies are near certain, sources say. Only question is if David Samson, Christie's longtime mentor, will flip."

Hillary

• The GOP's weapon against Hillary? A giant squirrel
• Clinton: Matt Drudge, Karl Rove Planting 'False Information'
• Man who beat NSA in T-shirt parody case wins against Ready for Hillary

IRS

• Lawmakers fume over lost emails in IRS probe
• Congressman asks NSA to provide metadata for "lost" IRS e-mails
• Attkisson On Missing IRS Documents: If The Emails Really Are Lost, 'That's Quite A Story In Itself'
• IRS Commissioner To Testify About Lois Lerner's Lost Emails
• Republicans, at Hearing on Lost Emails, Accuse I.R.S. Chief of Lying NYT
• Drum: Yet Another IRS Scandal That Isn't

Redskins

• Federal agency cancels Redskins trademark registration, says name is disparaging WaPo
• Retired Native American Chief Would Be Offended If Redskins Did Change Name
• What About the Celtics?
• The Onion: Redskins' Name Only Offensive If You Think About What It Means
• The Onion: Redskins' Kike Owner Refuses To Change Team's Offensive Name
• The Onion: Washington Redskins Change Their Name To The D.C. Redskins
• The Onion: Washington Redskins Ease Tensions With Native Americans By Adding Bottle Of Booze To Logo
• Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: The Washington Redskins
• The Daily Show: Thursday Night Law

Flag Day; Iraq'd; Politics, Cantor; Vote Machinations, Campaign Finance Deform; Immigration, Race and Racism; Economy; Workers and Wage Slaves, Occupational Hazards, Minimum Wage, On the Job; Homeless; Banks and Wall Street

Flag Day

• Why Are Flags So Cheap? -- Red White and Screwed: How Wal-Mart is Killing the American Flag Business—"The American flag-making business is dying. But those cheap, Chinese-made stars and stripes? They're not to blame."
• Pennsylvania Flag Desecration Case Heads to Court
• 'The Star-Spangled Banner' in a Minor Key Is More Dramatic Than Ever

Iraq'd

• Obama says no combat troops to Iraq; U.S. weighs airstrikes
• Wait, McCain was wrong on Iraq? Yup.
• Fareed Zakaria: Who lost Iraq? The Iraqis did, with an assist from George W. Bush WaPo
• Shep Smith: The Same People Who Were Wrong About Iraq Now Want Us To Go Back
• Opinion: Bush's toxic legacy in Iraq
• Jon Stewart Wonders 'What The F*ck Is Going On' In Iraq?

Politics

• We Hate Each Other, We Really Hate Each Other—This is why you can't have nice things [WaPo], America
• The 3 Things Republicans and Democrats Agree On—"Voters are more split along partisan lines than ever—but there's something like consensus on immigration, national security, and gay rights."
• Conservatives Are So Conservative They Think the Congressional GOP Are Moderate Squishes
• Rand Paul: Moderates aren't GOP's future Politico
• Tea party candidates have lost five times as much as they've won WaPo
• For tea party Republicans, House leadership hopes turn into disappointment—Democrats say, GOP leadership can't get worse. WaPo
• The tea party in Congress: Talking loud, doing nothing WaPo
• Seriously Out of Touch: GOP Uses Live Elephants As Party Props In Downtown Dallas

Cantor

• Eric Cantor's Legacy Is One Of Economic Destruction—"From day one — literally, the night of President Obama's first inauguration — Cantor was leading the charge to not just oppose Obama, but to delegitimize him — denying him the conciliatory, bipartisan policy style he campaigned on, and turning even policy successes into the kind of grueling partisan battles that voters dislike."
• Real lesson in Eric Cantor's loss: Beware conventional wisdom
  
• Krugman: The Fix Isn't In—"The surprise primary defeat of Eric Cantor is the unraveling of an ideological movement."
• The New Nihilism Threatens GOP's Growth—"Cantor's defeat signals deep problems for a party being pushed further to the right by the antigovernment wing."
• Eric Cantor's Loss Was a Fluke, But It Still Reshapes 2014
• Everybody Hates Eric Cantor: A Roundup
• Blast from the Past: Bullet That Hit Eric Cantor's Office From Random Gunfire —He allegedly lied about being shot at, probably to garner sympathy and instill fear.

Vote Machinations

• Alabama GOP struggles to find voter fraud despite $1,000 reward
• A federal judge reminds Ohio Republicans that fettering the right to vote violates the Constitution
• Bill Clinton stresses voter turnout at annual Ohio Democrats' dinner

Campaign Finance Deform

• Krugman: The Koch Cycle of Endless Cash—"The wealthiest Americans are using their fortunes to lobby Congress against any limits on their ability to buy elections." NYT
• Unlimited Dark Campaign Money Is 'The American Way,' Says Terri Lynn Land
• Billionaire's Campaign Contribution Among Biggest In Recent History—Griffin, well known for saying the very wealthy have an 'insufficient influence' in politics, is the richest man in Illinois...."
• The Dark Money Machine That Beat Eric Cantor
• Cuomo Has Raised Millions Through Loophole He Pledged to Close—"The governor has called for closing a gap in the state's campaign finance laws, but he's taken far more through the loophole than his predecessors, much of it from real estate developers."

Immigration

• Cantor Loss Hurts 2016 Republicans Seeking Hispanic Votes
• Immigration Does Matter in GOP Primaries, But It's Not Clear Why
• Influx of minors across Texas border driven by belief that they will be allowed to stay in U.S. WaPo
• Palin: Immigration Debate 'Just About Driving Me To Renounce My Republican Ties'

Race and Racism

• White People Think One Black Person's Success Proves Racism Is Over
• Inside The KKK's Plan For Expansion—"A group of Ku Klux Klan members says it is planning military style combat training for the first time in KKK history."
• A Library of White-Supremacist Hand Gestures—"The Anti-Defamation League has published an online catalog of the symbols, flags, and slogans used by hate groups. Is this an educational tool or a portal for perverse curiosity?"
• Ku Klux Klan hood-wearer to get $215,000 from Los Angeles—"Black resident wore KKK hood and T-shirt emblazoned with racial slur to protest city during 2011 parks commission meeting."
• Ditch 'Old Hickory' and Put Martin Luther King on the $20 Bill—"The civil-rights leader helped America to realize its founding ideals as surely as any president, and ending the run of exclusively white faces on bank notes is long overdue."

Economy

• Recession 'led to 10,000 suicides'
• House GOP approves more tax breaks without paying for them
• America's middle class: Poorer than you think
• Then and now photos of Detroit reveal the real frontline of the Global Financial Crisis
• Rich got 14.6% richer in 2013—"Number of Chinese millionaires jumps as Asia-Pacific region leads growth."

Workers and Wage Slaves

• Why Newport restaurant has 'no tipping' policy—"Packhouse servers earn $10 per hour or 20 percent of their individual food sales per shift, whichever is larger – almost always the 20 percent. And servers have to meet certain goals – sales and service targets, for example – to get their 20 percent."
• Waffle House denies NC waitress a $1,000 tip from 'angel'
• La Porchetta owner who paid young workers in pizza fined $335k

Occupational Hazards

• US: NY firm made workers pray, say 'I love you'—"A federal agency says a New York healthcare firm forced employees to join prayer circles, thank God for having jobs and say 'I love you' to co-workers and managers."
• The Dangers for Women Who Negotiate—"Contrary to the advice of “Lean In,” for women, asserting a strong position in negotiations can backfire."
• Noncompete Clauses Increasingly Pop Up in Array of Jobs—"Once largely limited to the technology and sales sectors, the agreements are entering a range of fields; even camp counselors and hairstylists are being required to sign." NYT
• Facing massive strikes, mining corporations may soon use weaponized drones to control workers
• Amazon warehouses under scrutiny after worker deaths
• Revealed: Asian slave labour producing prawns for supermarkets in US, UK
• India steel plant gas leak kills six in Bhilai

Minimum Wage

• Obama Moves On Minimum Wage Without Congress
• Vermont To Raise Minimum Wage To $10.50
• Seattle: Business adds 'living wage surcharge' after minimum wage hike—"A locally-owned parking business is adding an unusual charge that customers are just starting to notice."
• Industry Group Files Lawsuit Seeking To Kill Seattle's Minimum Wage, Claiming It Violates Their Free Speech
• Why Are Rhode Island Democrats Blocking Minimum-Wage Increases?—"With friends like this, who needs Republicans."

On the Job

• Why You Hate Work—"Excessive demands are leading to burnout everywhere." NYT
• Google Has Started Hiring More People Who Didn't Go To College—Shades of Silicon Valley?
• European court: Death doesn't end holiday benefits—"Dying for a holiday, but can't fit one in? Not to worry — a new European court ruling says vacation benefits are still valid after death." WaPo
• The Onion: More Office Workers Switching To Fetal Position Desks
• PVP Online: Workaholics

Homeless

• Boris Johnson calls for removal of anti-homeless spikes
• More US Cities Are Cracking Down on Feeding the Homeless
• Sarasota leaders help homeless veterans

Banks and Wall Street

• NYC Settles With 14 Occupy Protesters for $583K
• Cop who punched Occupy Wall Street protester gets tax-free disability pension—"Deputy Inspector Johnny Cardona has been granted three-quarters tax free disability pension of roughly $120,000 a year for injuries suffered during his violent encounter with Felix Rivera-Pitre n the Financial District in October 2011."
• How House Democrats Are Caving On Key Mortgage Rules
• U.S. to Sue Citigroup Over Faulty Mortgage Bonds: Sources—"The U.S. Department of Justice is preparing to sue Citigroup Inc on charges that the bank defrauded investors on billions of dollars worth of mortgage securities in the run-up to the financial crisis, after talks to resolve the probe broke down, people familiar with the matter said on Friday." NYT
• Judge considers dismissing U.S. fraud case against Bank of America—"DOJ may not have the evidence to try this as a fraud case."
• Senator to SEC: Stop granting waivers to law-breaking companies
• Australia: Government grabs $360 million from idle household bank accounts

World News, Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Palestine, UK and Scotland, China, Brazil 2014 and Qatar 2022, MH370; US Politics, Obamanation, Texas, War on Women, Immigrants; Vote Machinations, Campaign Finance Deform, Public-Private Partnerships

World News

• Thai junta pushes 'happiness' project—"Critics say rulers also aim to stifle political dissent." Boston Globe
• Alaa Abdel-Fattah, Icon Of Egypt's 2011 Revolt, Sentenced To 15 Years For Protesting
• Anti-monarchy protests grip Madrid—Spanish lawmakers about to approve abdication.

Ukraine and Russia

• Britain calls up Dad's Army of spies to watch Russia—"Military intelligence chiefs have been re-recruiting Cold War veterans and retired linguists because of a lack of Russian skills to deal with the Ukraine crisis."
• After Ukraine, U.S. trains more special forces in eastern Europe
• Gas row: Ukraine 'won't fall into Russian gas trap'
• Europe Has Finally Found A Way To Make Russia Hurt Economically In Ukraine Crisis
• EU raises 500 mn euros for Ukraine

Israel and Palestine

• Pope says Israelis, Palestinians must seek peace 'undaunted in dialogue'
• Annexation Plan Sparks Threat to Topple Israel Government—"sraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's strongest coalition partner threatened to bring down the government if it tries to annex West Bank settlements following the breakdown of Mideast peace talks."
• Netanyahu Is Facing Heat From All Sides For His Handling Of Palestine Peace Talks

UK and Scotland

• JK Rowling donates £1m to Scotland's anti-independence campaign
• Obama says wants Scotland inside the UK, Britain inside the EU
• Lego asks government to remove Scottish independence images—"Toy manufacturer says it is politically neutral and did not provide photos for press release encouraging Scots to stay in UK."

China

• 2nd China Army Unit Implicated in Online Spying NYT
• Toronto man accused of spying, jailed in China—"A Toronto man living in China says he was wrongfully imprisoned after refusing to spy on Canada."
• Vietnam airs video of Chinese ship sinking fishing boat in South China Sea—In the meantime, Chinese oil rigs are on the move.
• Japan Slams China Over Close Encounter of Jets
• Ancient Chinese maps debunk Beijing's sea claims, says Philippine judge SCMP
• China reaches out to India amid tension with Japan, Vietnam
• Hong Kong must accept Beijing's control, China's Communist Party warns—"Nearly a week after more than 100,000 protesters gathered in Hong Kong to remember the Tiananmen crackdown and call for universal suffrage, Beijing issues controversial white paper reminding the former colony it does not enjoy 'full autonomy.'" Hong Kong protests.

Brazil 2014 and Qatar 2022

• Protests and social unrest threaten World Cup kickoff—Police resort to tear gassing protesters.
• Court rules Sao Paulo subway strike 'illegal'—"Workers must pay increased daily fine if they continue action as strike threatens opening game of Brazil World Cup." The union called it off.
• Fifa sponsor demands 'appropriate investigation'—"One of Fifa's main sponsors, Sony, calls for an investigation into the decision to award the 2022 World Cup to Qatar."
• Adidas: Qatar 2022 Claims Damaging Sponsors
• Report: Qatar paid $1.7m per vote
• Sepp Blatter launches broadside against the 'racist' British media
• Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: FIFA and the World Cup

MH370

• Missing Malaysia jet MH370: 'Whistleblower fund' set up
• Oil rig worker fired after claiming to have seen burning MH370 plane crash
• Australia has spent far more than Malaysia

US Politics

• Eric Cantor succumbs to tea party challenger Tuesday—"The House Republican leader succumbs to David Brat, a little-known conservative activist." What happened? WaPo
• Eric Cantor and the tea party purge WaPo
• Wendy Davis Caught On Camera Saying Republicans Dislike 'People Who Don't Look Like Them'
• The Big Lobotomy—"How Republicans made Congress stupid."
• Does Fox News Cause Ignorance, or Do Ignorant Viewers Prefer Fox News?—"A new study reveals the gap between the channel's fans and the rest of America."
• Why I'm No Longer a Republican

Obamanation

• Sen. Graham fights for Obama's impeachment—"Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., will fight for Obama's impeachment. Why--he's up for re-election."
• Is Obama a Tyrant or a Weakling?—"His critics can't seem to decide." Politico
• White House Aides: Bergdahl Criticism Is Proxy for GOP's Obama Hatred

Texas

• Texas GOP splits between social conservatives, libertarians
• Young Republicans Reject Current Texas GOP Platform—"Current and former leadership of the state's Young Republican chapters shared with Breitbart Texas their frustrations with the current Texas Republican platform, and ideas for how it should be fixed."
• Chris Matthews rips Texas Republican platform: 'How wide is this infection of hatred?'

War on Women

• Sarah Palin believes she is the only actual victim of the "war on women"—"Palin thinks President Obama 'fired the first shot' in the 'war on women' that she doesn't believe even exists." Salon
• Republicans think touching Glamour magazine makes them female-friendly Salon
• WaPo Editorial Page Goes Neanderthal For Second Time In A Week

Immigrants

• Arizona Official Says Immigrant Kids in Good Care
• Questions surround surge in migrant kids left at border
• Obama vows urgent action as children make perilous illegal journey into U.S.
• McCain: GOP must pass immigration to compete in 2016—"Without immigration reform, the former presidential candidate says, the Republican Party won't win in 2016."
• Supreme Court rules against immigrants over visa eligibility
• Woman Waits In Line For 21 Years To Immigrate Into US, Then Gets Turned Away For Being Too Old
• Opinion: On Legal Immigration, Supreme Court Gets It Wrong

Vote Machinations

• Texas Seen as "Kind of an Electoral Wasteland"
• Judge Orders 3 Early Voting Days Restored in Ohio
• Why Mississippi's voter ID law hurts the poor—"Mississippi's new voter-identification law suppresses those who cannot afford the cost of a photo ID, writes Robert Reich. How is Mississippi's effort to stop voter fraud is actually a step back?"
• Voter Fraud Is Rare, but Myth Is Widespread—"Many people believe voter impersonation and other kinds of election fraud are much more widespread than they really are." NYT
• Tea Party Candidate Creates Fake Organization, Endorses Herself In Ad
• Sen. Cruz Formally Renounces Canadian Citizenship

Campaign Finance Deform

• NC House lawmakers file resolution calling for constitutional convention to overturn Citizens United
• Republican Congressman Demolishes The Supreme Court's Rationale For Killing Campaign Finance Laws
• Don't fear the Koch brothers. Fear an election that caters only to billionaires—"Forget right or left. Dark money in politics means you'll never know which 'independent' candidate's views were on the market."

Public-Private Partnerships

• Va. lawmaker to resign, paving way for jobs for self, daughter, according to associates—"Sen. Philip Puckett's resignation paves the way for Republicans to pass a budget without Medicaid." Was this straight-up bribery? WaPo
• GOP Rep. Acknowledges That Members Expect Donations For Votes
• Greenhouse—"A free browser extension for Chrome and Safari that exposes the role money plays in Congress. Displays on any web page detailed campaign contribution data for every Senator and Representative, including total amount received and breakdown by industry and by size of donation."

Tiananmen Square 25th Anniversary; Australia; Russia; Turkey; Nigeria; Religion; Qatar 2022 Corruption; World News; House of Cads; Vote Machinations, Campaign Finance Deform; Racism

Tiananmen Square 25th Anniversary

• Crowds Gather in Hong Kong to Mark 25th Anniversary of Tiananmen Killings—"In Beijing and elsewhere in mainland China, a stifling security presence Wednesday on the streets and online appeared to forestall protests." NYT
• Tiananmen Square Tank Man: 25 Years Later, His Memory Lives On
• Chinese dare recall Tiananmen Square massacre
• 'I will not be silenced. I want truth behind Tiananmen'—"Activists say Beijing's battle to bully the families of Tiananmen victims into silence has failed as relatives of those killed during the 1989 crackdown defy Communist Party intimidation to demand justice."
• China's Tiananmen activists: Where are they now?
• Chinese-Australian artist Guo Jian detained ahead of Tiananmen anniversary
• China Blocks Google to Silence Tiananmen Square Discussion—And did LinkedIn engage in self-censorship?
• 25 Years Later, Details Emerge of Army's Chaos Before Tiananmen Square NYT
• Tiananmen square protests and crackdown: 25 years on
• Why Tiananmen still matters

Australia

• Tony Abbott roasted by John Oliver on HBO show Last Week Tonight
• Chris Kenny to receive on-air ABC apology after legal settlement reached—"TV apology will be broadcast at 9pm Wednesday – the same timeslot as a skit last year that depicted the conservative commentator having sex with a dog."
• Australians unfazed by government spying on other countries—"Poll found 70% of Australian adults believe it is acceptable to spy on nations Australia does not have a good relationship with."

Russia

• Russian image has deteriorated - BBC World Service poll
• G7 powers meet without Russia in summit snub over Ukraine
• Documents Show How Russia's Troll Army Hit America

Turkey

• Turkey's Erdogan calls CNN reporter 'agent' for his coverage of protests
• Turkey Unblocks YouTube After 2 Months
• Erdogan to grow more powerful as president, Turkey more polarised

Nigeria

• Protests for kidnapped girls banned in Nigerian capital
• 'Dozens killed' in Boko Haram attack on Nigeria villages
• Nigerian military court-martials 15, including 10 generals, for aiding Boko Haram

Religion

• Pakistan clerics issue stoning death decree—"Ulema Council says so-called 'honour killings' are un-Islamic and sign of ignorance...."
• Sudan backtracks on pledge to free woman sentenced to death for apostasy—"The foreign office said on Saturday that Meriam Ibrahim would be freed within days but now says only Sudan's courts can decide on her fate."
• Mob Torches Christian Shops in Egypt Ahead Trial
• The Indian miracle-buster stuck in Finland—"An Indian man who made his name exposing the 'miraculous' feats of holy men as tricks has fled the country after being accused of blasphemy. Now in self-imposed exile in Finland, he fears jail - or even assassination - if he returns."
• Ministry to remove billboard with Hitler quote

Qatar 2022 Corruption

• Fifa faces calls to quash Qatar World Cup vote after corruption allegations
• Fifa ethics head Michael Garcia won't look at new corruption allegations—"Millions of files raise fresh questions over Qatari bid for the 2022 World Cup, with Garcia's report on the issue due 9 June."
• David Cameron: Fifa members lied to David Beckham, Prince William and I over World Cup bid
• Australia Pulled Into FIFA Corruption Probe
• Qatar 2022: Uefa president Michel Platini says 'corruption scandal' claims are an attempt to tarnish his image over Qatar 2022 support

World News

• Egyptian satirist Bassem Youssef ends his TV show—"I'm tired of struggling and worrying about my safety and that of my family."
• Syria parliament speaker: Bashar Assad wins presidential vote in a landslide with 88.7 percent
• Thailand's military threatens to arrest people giving 'Hunger Games' salute WaPo
• Juan Carlos abdication sparks calls for referendum on Spain's monarchy
• Foreign Ministry adopts online "corruption trigger" to prevent aid misuse
• Venice Mayor Orsoni held in Italy corruption inquiry
• Malaysia Airlines plane search: British yachtswoman 'saw MH370 on fire'

House of Cads

• House GOP Backs Tax Breaks That Add $300 Billion To Deficit
• House Vote Aims To Derail DOJ Processing Of Clemency Petitions—"The House of Representatives has voted to prohibit the Justice Department from hiring more attorneys to deal with thousands of backlogged clemency petitions in a bid to block one of the Obama administration's top criminal justice priorities."
• GOP plans to pay for 1 year of highway funds with 10 years of postal service cuts

Vote Machinations

• Study finds strong evidence for discriminatory intent behind voter ID laws WaPo
• 93-year-old black man disenfranchised by Alabama voter ID law
• Alabama Republicans offer $1,000 for information that leads to a felony voter-fraud conviction
• Can turnout save the Democrats in 2014? WaPo
• This computer programmer solved gerrymandering in his spare time—"We could take human error out of the redistricting process entirely. Why don't we?" WaPo
• This Arizona Republican Transformed into a Democrat Named 'Cesar Chazez' for Votes

Campaign Finance Deform

• Reid and McConnell Duel Over Proposed Amendment on Campaign Spending NYT
• Milbank: This is no way to fix the problem of billionaires buying elections—"Cruz isn't defending anybody's liberty; he's championing oligarchy." WaPo
• The 4 Most Ridiculous Arguments Against Getting Money Out of Politics
• West Virginia: Men charged in mine kickback scheme are big Tomblin donors
• Obama to Donors: "I Might Be In a Very Strong Position" To Demand Constitutional Change on Money in Politics
• Don't get campaign finance? Experts recommend watching more Comedy Central.—"A new study shows that watching Colbert made people smarter about super PACs." WaPo

Racism

• Worker records 'racist' supervisor in cotton warehouse—"They're accusing their former supervisor of calling them 'monkeys' and telling them the water fountain and microwave were for white people only."
• Woman 'Hunting Asians' Beats 4-Year-Old With Crowbar in Walmart: Police
• Never Say "I Kill White People Like You" When Asked To Turn Off Your Phone Post-Takeoff
• Blatant Racism in Cheektowaga NY—She digs herself a deeper hole in defending herself.

World No Tobacco Day; Workers and Wage Slaves; Banks and Wall Street, Accountability; US Politics, Vote Machinations, Gerrymandering in Florida; Native American, Racism; NSA Spying, Surveillance and Privacy, Your Rights Online, TrueCrypt, Haxx0red, Facebook and Your Data

World No Tobacco Day

• Child Workers Are Getting Nicotine Poisoning on US Tobacco Farms
• New York raises minimum age to buy cigarettes to 21
• World No Tobacco Day: To tax or not to tax
• UK: NHS could start prescribing e-cigarettes as study finds them 60% more effective than gum or patches
• Top scientists warn WHO not to stub out e-cigarettes

Workers and Wage Slaves

• House GOP Votes Down Measure Aimed At Curbing Wage Theft
• Using Jailed Migrants as a Pool of Cheap Labor —"As the federal government cracks down on immigrants in the country illegally and forbids businesses to hire them, it is relying on tens of thousands of those immigrants each year to provide essential labor." NYT
• Bond set at $250,000 for Wayne Miller, president of Cathedral Bible College with Myrtle Beach campus—Allegation: "Miller threatened to cancel foreign students' visas if they did not work long hours for little pay."
• Michigan Set to Raise Minimum Wage to $9.25 Hour
• America's middle-class defeat: How Canada shamed the wealthiest nation on earth—"Want to understand what's causing the decay of the American dream? Take some lessons from our friends to the north." Salon
• 40% of EU citizens can't afford a vacation
• Japan creates new national holiday for 'overworked' population
• Robots will replace fast-food workers

Banks and Wall Street

• IMF chief says banks haven't changed since financial crisis—"Christine Lagarde tells London conference banking sector is still resisting reform and taking excessive risks."
• Bank of England governor: capitalism doomed if ethics vanish—"Mark Carney issues strong critique of City behaviour and warns of growing sense that basic social contract is breaking down."
• Obama Administration Spent a Fortune Monitoring Occupy Protests, including Flash Mobs and Yoga Classes—"The documents show monitoring in 2011 and 2012 by law enforcement agencies around the country [NYT], reporting on religious meetings, Christmas caroling and other events."
• Blast from the Past: What Actually Happens At The End Of 'Trading Places'?

Accountability

• Explosive claims on JP Morgan conduct—"A technical support person who worked for JP Morgan in Australia claims the bank regularly misled its New York parent and the US Federal Reserve by failing to report losing trades." SMH
• Goldman, JPMorgan sued over zinc price manipulation
• Los Angeles sues JPMorgan Chase over foreclosures WaPo
• The guy who tried to rig gold prices and cost his bank $44 million
• Icahn, Mickelson are investigated in U.S. insider trading probe: source
• Iran hangs billionaire over $2.6b bank fraud—"Largest fraud case since 1979 Islamic Revolution sends four scammers to the gallows, including tycoon Mahafarid Amir Khosravi."

US Politics

• Conservatism is losing ground in the US—"Number of Americans describing themselves as social, economic conservatives shrinks, according to new poll."
• Conservatives are losing their edge — quickly WaPo
• Dear GOP: "Duck Dynasty's" Phil Robertson may not help your outreach problem—"Party chair Reince Priebus wants the GOP to be seen as the party of equality. Meet their future leaders." Salon
• Republican Leadership Conference: The GOP’s speakers lineup is a problem—"Why the Republican Party attracts provocateurs, faux martyrs, and grifters in droves."
• America Is Becoming a Bit More Liberal. That's Pretty Unusual Six Years Into a Democratic Presidency.

Vote Machinations

• Americans overwhelmingly side with Hillary Clinton over Karl Rove in brain flap—"Republican strategist Karl Rove may need a different strategy to slow Hillary Clinton's 2016 candidacy." WaPo
• Conservative groups push for voter photo ID requirement in Ohio
• Democrats, stop fighting voter ID laws—"It's a tough concession that could actually work to get more minority voters to the polls." WaPo

Gerrymandering in Florida

• Redistricting Expert: Florida's Gerrymandered Maps Give An 8 Point Advantage To Republicans
• Surprise witness emerges in redistricting trial—"An FSU student who allegedly submitted a map to the Legislature with proposed new districts said he never drew any maps and his name was used without permission."
• Florida may be forced to redraw political districts before midterms WaPo

Native American

• Supreme Court says Mich. can't block Indian casino
• Courts challenge Native American land rights—"Recent cases have undermined tribal sovereignty and economic development, Native Americans say."
• Lawsuit: Casino Built on Native American Burial Ground

Racism

• Unsurprisingly, the Redskins #RedskinsPride Hashtag Backfired Quite Horribly—But that's not stopping them.
• Reports: Donald Sterling To Sue The NBA For $1 Billion
• White Police Lieutenant Awarded $1.35 Million In Racial Discrimination Lawsuit

NSA Spying

• Edward Snowden responds to release of e-mail by U.S. officials WaPo
• Daniel Ellsberg: Snowden would not get a fair trial – and Kerry is wrong—"Edward Snowden is the greatest patriot whistleblower of our time, and he knows what I learned more than four decades ago: until the Espionage Act gets reformed, he can never come home safe and receive justice."
• John Kerry Should 'Man Up' And Admit He's Wrong About Snowden
• Courier Services Deny Participation in NSA Interception Program

Surveillance and Privacy

• Privacy call for internet browsing in the wake of Edward Snowden leaks—"Survey reveals that more than eight out of 10 internet users believe their search history should be kept private."
• German spies want $400M to play catch-up with the NSA—"Confidential documents from the BND, Germany's answer to the NSA and GCHQ, suggest the agency could soon get major funding to improve its online surveillance and hacking capabilities."
• Former Head Of 'NSA North' Says Canadians Are 'Stupid'

Your Rights Online

• User gets prison sentence for using 'Allah CC' nickname on Twitter
• Turkey highest court: YouTube ban violates rights WaPo
• Google sets up 'right to be forgotten' form after EU ruling

TrueCrypt

• "TrueCrypt is not secure," official SourceForge page abruptly warns—"Support for decade-old crypto program pulled, touching off Internet firestorm."
• True Goodbye: 'Using TrueCrypt Is Not Secure'
• Bombshell TrueCrypt advisory: Backdoor? Hack? Hoax? None of the above?—LavaBit 2: Electric Bugaloo?
• TrueCrypt security audit presses on, despite developers jumping ship

Haxx0red

• The eBay hack, the loss of 140 million records, and the PR fiasco—If you still haven't done so, change your eBay password right now.
• Your iPhone has been taken hostage. Pay $100 ransom to get it back—If you still haven't done so, change your iCloud password right now.
• After seven months and no Microsoft patch, Internet Explorer 8 vulnerability is revealed
• Will Everyone Please Quit Bitching About Passwords?

Facebook and Your Data

• Passive listening will soon be a feature for Facebook app during status updates
• Facebook Stops Irresponsibly Defaulting Privacy Of New Users' Posts To "Public", Changes To "Friends"
• Facebook Reaps Billions from Your Data: It's Time to Unplug
• Facebook gives up on automatically posting everything you do online