First Contact Day, Planets, Galaxies, Universe; Environment and Politics, Pollution, Climate Change, Whaling; NSA Spying, Surveillance and Privacy

First Contact Day

• Bill Clinton says he "wouldn't be surprised" if aliens visited Earth—"The former president shares his thoughts on extraterrestrials with Jimmy Kimmel." Salon
• NASA detects ocean inside Saturn Moon, potential home for extraterrestrial microbes
• North Carolina Town Councilman Resigns In Klingon
• The Most Impressive Costumes from Star Trek: TNG's First 3 Seasons
• Eau My, available on Amazon—"Set phasers to stunning."

Planets

• Planetology comes of age—"Those who study planets orbiting other stars now have plenty of data to play with.
• Scientists Home In On Earth-Sized Exoplanet
• NASA Has Discovered 715 New Planets
• Planet Biden: Scientists Nickname New Dwarf Planet After The VP

Galaxies

• Distant galaxy cluster is so huge it can actually bend light—"MACS J0454.1-0300 is 180 trillion times the mass of our sun." Salon
• Milky Way Galaxy Has Four Spiral Arms, New Study Confirms
• Hubble Opens Pandora's Box, and Thousands of Galaxies Fly Out
• Star Birth Sparked at the Galaxy's Edge—"Gas from another galaxy is hitting our own, triggering the birth of bright new stars and adding fresh luster to the Milky Way."
• Where Do Galaxies Come From?

Universe

• The Most Massive Object in the Universe—How Was It Created?
• Stephen Hawking: 'There are no black holes'—"Notion of an 'event horizon', from which nothing can escape, is incompatible with quantum theory, physicist claims."
• Lasers to Solve the Black Hole Information Paradox?
• Gravity - From Newton to Einstein - The Elegant Universe

Environment and Politics

• The Fight for Wisconsin's Soul—"Gov. Scott Walker granted a company astonishing latitude to construct a mine and pollute pristine waters." NYT
• Neighbors bicker in PA. over forced gas drilling—"An energy company is dusting off an old, unused state law that can force property owners to accept oil and gas drilling under their land, pitting neighbor against neighbor in a Pennsylvania community and raising the possibility that lawmakers will have to take sides."
• Australian government may ban environmental boycotts—"Parliamentary secretary says there is 'an appetite' for removing environmental groups' exemption from secondary boycotts ban."
• China Wants To Close 1,725 Coal Mines By The End Of This Year

Pollution

• North Carolina judge denies secrecy motion in trial over coal ash spill—"A North Carolina judge on Friday denied Duke Energy's motion seeking to shield records related to groundwater pollution leeching from 33 coal ash dumps in the state while a separate federal criminal investigation is ongoing."
• Judge says no to Lake O polluting—"A federal judge ruled Friday in New York that backpumping — the practice of taking water from Lake Okeechobee, using it on farm lands and then discharging the nutrient-laden water back into the lake — is a violation of the Clean Water Act and that the state of Florida should no longer permit such operations."
• Lowe's pays $18.1 million to settle violations—"The civil suit filed in Alameda County alleges that the offending stores routinely sent hazardous waste — from aerosols and pesticides to paints and electronic products — to local landfills that were not permitted to receive it."
• Famous paintings help study the Earth's past atmosphere
• 29 dead dolphins found since Galveston oil spill

Climate Change

• Congress's Scientific Illiterates Are Resigning the World to Ruin—"Scientists are begging the world to address climate change. Meet the handful of American science deniers who are ensuring it won't happen."
• The House of Representatives Committee on Science is turning into a national embarrassment
• The right's new climate change lie: It's all the scientists' fault—"Conservative hucksters argue scientists are politicizing their work. They're wrong -- and climate change is real." Salon
• MPs criticise BBC over climate change reporting—BBC "editors were 'poor' at determining viewers' and listeners' level of expertise and sometimes pitted lobbyists against 'top scientists' as if their views had 'equal weight.'"
• Exxon Mobil says climate change unlikely to stop it selling fossil fuels—"Oil giant issues report on risks that climate policies could pose to the value of its assets and future profitability."

Whaling

• Japan accepts court ban on Antarctic whaling—It ain't scientific.
• Will Japan find a way around anti-whaling ruling?
• Big threat to Japan whaling: Declining appetites—"The amount of whale meat stockpiled for lack of buyers has nearly doubled over 10 years, even as anti-whaling protests helped drive catches to record lows."

NSA Spying

• Germany Opens Hearings On NSA Spying, Want To Offer Safe Passage For Snowden To Come To Berlin
• Obama's NSA overhaul may require phone carriers to store more data
• Obama's promise to prevent NSA spying rings hollow
• New Harris poll finds NSA spying affecting online commerce—Hurting the corporate bottom line.
• ACLU database lets anyone dig into NSA activities
• Interactive Graphic: The NSA Spying Machine
• NSA Has Been Hijacking the Botnets of Other Hackers

Surveillance and Privacy

• U.S. Pushes Canada To Loosen Privacy Laws—"The U.S. government is prodding Ottawa and some provinces to overhaul their privacy laws and allow Canadians' personal data to be hosted on U.S. servers."
• U.S. knocks plans for European communication network—"The United States on Friday criticized proposals to build a European communication network to avoid emails and other data passing through the United States, warning that such rules could breach international trade laws." Oh, the hypocrisy.
• Websites Must Use HSTS in Order to Be Secure—That's the HTTP Strict Transport Security.
• Can Yahoo's enhanced encryption stop the NSA from spying?
• Physicists are building an NSA-proof internet

Environment, Keystone, West Virginia, Pollution, Energy; Ecology, Shark Weak, Climate Change; Food Insecurity; NSA Spying

Environment

• 'Neil Young Lies' Is Pro-Oil Propaganda at Its Worst
• The anti-fracking activist barred from 312.5 sq miles of Pennsylvania
• David Cameron pledges to rip up green regulations—"Prime minister says plans to scrap or amend more than 3,000 regulations will save businesses £850m a year."
• Australia Permits Dredge Dumping Near Great Barrier Reef for Major Coal Port NYT
• Yukon Government Opens Vast Wilderness to Mining—"Indigenous leaders, conservation groups vow legal challenge."

Keystone

• Approving Keystone XL could be the biggest mistake of Obama's presidency
• State Department Says Keystone Pipeline Will Create Just 50 Jobs
• Obama's still not ready to approve Keystone—"Obama's top aide says more input is needed before the president makes a final decision on the pipeline." Salon

West Virginia

• WV Senate Committee Votes To Weaken Water Quality Standards
• West Virginians say they don't fault coal industry for water crisis
• War of words arises on MCHM flushing—As it "might not have effectively eliminated Crude MCHM and other toxic chemicals from plumbing systems in homes and businesses...."
• After Chemical Spill, West Virginia Couple Says Their Chickens Laid Blue-Tinted Eggs That Smell Like Licorice
• This Modern World: States of Emergency—"If the water for 300,000 people were poisoned by terrorists, it would be a national emergency."

Pollution

• Pipeline rupture report raises questions about TransCanada inspections—"A CBC News investigation has unearthed a critical report that the federal regulator effectively buried for several years about a rupture on a trouble-prone TransCanada natural gas pipeline."
• TransCanada natural gas pipeline explodes near Winnipeg—"No injuries reported; comes as pipeline safety is under scrutiny ahead of Keystone XL decision."
• Train carrying fuel oil derails, spills in Mississippi
• Duke Pipe Break Causes Ash Release Into North Carolina River
• Mining Tar Sands Produces Much More Air Pollution Than We Thought

Energy

• How the Feds Are Ripping You Off To Benefit Big Coal
• Renewable Energy Is 'Stalinist' Mandate, Says Ohio Legislator
• Facebook Saved Over A Billion Dollars By Building Open Sourced Servers

Ecology

• Right-wing Republicans Launch Assault on Endangered Species Act
• A record 1,004 rhinos were killed in South Africa in 2013
• Hong Kong to Incinerate Huge Ivory Stockpile
• Pesticides halve bees' pollen gathering ability, research shows
• Monarch butterflies drop, migration may disappear
• Black bear accidentally mulched by oil and gas company—"An Apache contractor ran over a hibernating bear den while clearing land near Fort Nelson, B.C."
• Dead dolphins: Peru's beaches littered with hundreds of dead dolphins – again—"More than 400 dead dolphins were found in northern Peru in January. In 2012, more than 870 dead dolphins were found in the same area, and the cause of death was never determined."
• Albania's hunting ban to protect species—"Albania says it will ban all hunting for two years to protect animals threatened with extinction."

Shark Weak

• Zhejiang firm the world's largest shark abattoir, says WildLifeRisk—"Zhejiang plant 'processing hundreds of endangered specimens a year.'"
• America's health craze for fish oil is wiping out the world's rarest shark
• Mexico is Saving Sharks While Australia Kills Them

Climate Change

• Prince Charles finds climate-change denial most unbecoming—"Doubters of man-made global warming a 'headless chicken brigade,' Charles says."
• 24 House Republicans Just Voted To Deny The Reality Of Climate Change
• xkcd on the Cold Truth About Warming
• A Win for the Climate Scientist Skeptics Compared to Jerry Sandusky
• Dirty tactics: The story behind the Drax 29—"A group of climate activists have had their convictions for hijacking a coal train quashed after revelations about the extraordinary role of undercover police."
• The Changing Climate Is Killing Baby Penguins
• Drought-hit California unable to supply state water

Food Insecurity

• Report: FDA Documents Show Decade of Unsuccessful Attempts to Control Farm Antibiotics
• Congress: Keep Chinese-processed chicken out of the U.S.—"The USDA is entrusting our poultry to the country with one of the worst track records for food safety." Salon
• Feds suspend NJ slaughterhouse; cruelty alleged
• China-Japan poisoned dumplings: Chinese man jailed
• Japan food pesticide scare: Factory worker arrested

NSA Spying

• Feds: NSA 'Probably' Spies on Members of Congress—"The admission is hardly surprising, but expect lawmakers to feign outrage anyway."
• The first congressman to battle the NSA is dead. No-one noticed, no-one cares.
• Patriot Act author: Absent reform, we'll halt bulk metadata program renewal—"Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner has said vast data dragnet is 'unbounded in its scope.'"
• The New Snowden Revelation Is Dangerous for Anonymous — And for All of Us—"Whether you agree with the activities of Anonymous or not -- there are many shades of gray around using DDoS attacks as a protest tactic -- the salient point is that some governments now seem to be using their very tactics against them. The key difference, however, is that those involved in Anonymous can and have faced their day in court for those tactics while governments remain unchecked. And that power differential makes all the difference."
• US ambassador: Merkel phone tap was stupid
• Digital Independence: NSA Scandal Boosts German Tech Industry—"The German IT sector is hoping to profit from trust lost in American technology firms in the aftermath of the NSA spying scandal. But critics warn that plans to create a European routing system could affect the openness of the Internet."
• Guardian reveals threats of imprisonment and closure over Snowden leaks

Zero Tolerance, "That's Un-Possible!", Educamation, Think of the Children, Parenting; NSA Spying, Snowden, Surveillance and Privacy, Google

Zero Tolerance

• Ease Up On 'No Tolerance' Policies, U.S. Agencies Tell Schools—"Saying that 'zero tolerance' discipline policies at U.S. schools are unfairly applied 'all too often,' Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is urging officials to rethink that approach."
• Oklahoma lawmaker files bill to protect students creating imaginary weapons
• Minority kids disproportionately impacted by zero-tolerance laws
• Flipside: School ditches rules and loses bullies

"That's Un-Possible!"

• CNN Analysis: Some college athletes play like adults, read like fifth-graders—They'd rather shoot the messenger than tackle this issue.
• University of North Carolina Apologizes for Fake Classes, Promises Real Change
• Columbus has 17 charter school failures in one year
• Trend-starting Texas drops algebra II mandate

Educamation

• NC Teachers Fight Over Loss Of Tenure, New Contracts
• Six former Atlanta school employees plead guilty in cheating scandal, avoiding May trial
• Cafeteria worker accused of stealing up to $1M arrested
• Yale censored a student's course selection website. So I made an unblockable replacement—The school dean "apologizes".

Think of the Children

• N-word use lands Poulsbo Elementary principal on leave
• Mom sues Broward school district over service dog
• Reading this can damage your health
• Lunches seized from kids in debt at Salt Lake City elementary—"Up to 40 kids at Uintah Elementary in Salt Lake City picked up their lunches Tuesday, then watched as the meals were taken and thrown away because of outstanding balances on their accounts — a move that shocked and angered parents."

Parenting

• Stop Trying to Make Your Kid Happy (and Other Radical Insights)
• Don't bring your baby to a fancy restaurant Salon
• California court upholds mother's right to spank daughter
• Study shows shopping cart injuries rise after US safety standards set

NSA Spying

• Angry Birds firm calls for industry to respond to NSA spying revelations—Quiet until the bottom line is threatened.
• Snowden Docs: U.S. Spied on Negotiators At 2009 Climate Summit
• Merkel rebukes US and UK over spying—"Merkel said that Western powers sacrificing freedom in the quest for security were sending the wrong signal to 'billions of people living in undemocratic states.'"
• In Germany, memories of repressive national spying inflamed by U.S. surveillance
• Obama Stays Silent on Reform of NSA's Crypto Subversion
• Terror Defendant Challenges Evidence Gathered by NSA Spying
• It Only Took the NSA 61 Years to Hire Its First Privacy and Civil Liberties Officer

Snowden

• Clapper: Snowden and media "accomplices" should return our documents—Clapper wasn't using the term lightly.
• US whistleblower laws offer no protection—"The White House says that Edward Snowden should have reported his concerns within the NSA, instead of revealing surveillance programs to the press. But who exactly do US whistleblower laws protect?"
• Norwegian lawmakers nominate Edward Snowden for Nobel Peace Prize

Surveillance and Privacy

• Limits on surveillance: A global right to privacy
• AP-GfK poll: Americans value privacy over security
• British government reportedly tracking YouTube and Facebook data without permission
• Huge swath of GCHQ mass surveillance is illegal, says top lawyer—"Legal advice given to MPs warns that British spy agency is 'using gaps in regulation to commit serious crime with impunity.'"
• Dont't be scared of phone tapping during Sochi-2014, it's for your own safety - experts

Google

• Google Plus among leaky apps with greatest privacy perils: report
• South Korea: Google Fined for Illegally Collecting Personal Data
• Google broke Canada's privacy laws with targeted health ads, watchdog says
• New Google patent suggests automatically sending your videos and photos to law enforcement
• How much am I willing to let Google stalk me?

War on Terror, Military Money, Drones, Police State, Press Freedom, NSA Spying; Obamacare, Abortion and Birth Control; "Honor" Killings, Rape

War on Terror

• How fear of al Qaeda hurts U.S. more than al Qaeda
• New DHS Nominee Spent Years Justifying War on Terror's Excesses
• Lindsey Graham: I Will Block Appointees Until Benghazi Survivors Testify
• Doctor who helped trace Osama bin Laden to face fresh trial
• Man wrongly deported from Canada to torture in Libya told he has to pay $6,800 in costs before returning
• 9/11 Suspects Can't Mention being Tortured during Trial Testimony because Their Torture is Classified
• Time to End the 'War on Terror' (For Real)—"Six months ago, President Obama said that the fearfulness and over-reaction of the 'GWOT' were doing far more harm than good. He was right then, and still is. So why hasn't he matched his -- our -- policies to his words?"

Military Money

• William Astore, War! What Is It Good For? Profit and Power
• U.S.-funded Afghan hospital project paid $500-a-gallon for gas instead of market-rate of $5 …and is still 23 months behind schedule
• After troops leave, U.S. to lose access to Afghan reconstruction projects worth billions WaPo
• Senior officer, NCIS agent are among those arrested in Navy bribery scandal—"Senior officer, NCIS agent are among those arrested in fraud case involving overseas defense contractor." WaPo
• Army chief: Just 2 brigades combat-ready—"Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno revealed this week that just two Army brigades are combat-ready, with budget cuts hampering the military's ability to train its own troops."

Drones

• Confessions of a US drone operator: 'I watched him die. It took a long time'—"A drone operator for the US describes the horror of killing people remotely while sitting thousands of miles away from Afghanistan's battlefields."
• Secret memos reveal explicit nature of U.S., Pakistan agreement on drones—"For years, Pakistani officials have denounced the program, but CIA documents and diplomatic memos reveal how classified briefings on the U.S. program became routine." WaPo
• US defends drone strikes as 'necessary and just' in face of UN criticism—"Brazil, China and Venezuela sharply critical of 'illegal' program but US says it has taken steps to introduce new guidelines."

Police State

• Meet the Private Companies Helping Cops Spy on Protesters—"Promotional materials for private spy companies show that mass surveillance technology is being sold to police departments as a way to monitor dissent."
• Is Facebook going to let cops block you from posting about protests?
• Fury at Facebook as login requests "Government ID" from users
• Federal Prosecutors, in a Policy Shift, Cite Warrantless Wiretaps as Evidence—"The contentious issue of government wiretaps done without a warrant has now moved a step closer to being legally challenged." Or, concerningly, legally upheld. NYT
• Minnesota Supreme Court Upholds Warrantless DUI Tests

Press Freedom

• As Europe erupts over US spying, NSA chief says government must stop media—"With General Alexander calling for NSA reporting to be halted, US and UK credibility as guardians of press freedom is crushed ."
• AP CEO: Press freedom v. security a 'false choice'
• A Grim Report on Press Freedoms Under Obama
• David Cameron makes veiled threat to media over NSA and GCHQ leaks—"Prime minister alludes to courts and D notices and singles out the Guardian over coverage of Edward Snowden saga."
• Conservative Reporter Says Feds Took Her Files While Searching Her Home for Guns

NSA Spying

• NSA spying has nothing to do with terrorism, Greenwald tells Amanpour
• Senator changes tune, now is "totally opposed" to foreign leader surveillance—"'Our oversight needs to be strengthened and increased,' says Sen. Dianne Feinstein." The White House, however, says her statements were not accurate.
• White House says more intelligence constraints needed—For now Obama is keeping silent on whether he knew about Merkel's surveillance.
• The out-of-control NSA—"The agency alienates U.S. allies in its attempt to know all." WaPo
• US on Spying Scandal: 'Allies Aren't Always Friends'
• NSA oversight dismissed as 'illusory' as anger intensifies in Europe and beyond—"Condemnation by Latin American panel comes as US fields worsening outrage from Spain and Germany over surveillance." Europe is considering sanctions.
• If All These Countries Are So Outraged By Revelations Of US Spying On Them, Why Aren't They Offering Snowden Asylum?

Obamacare

• White House Extends Deadline for Obamacare Enrollment—Insurers warn of repercussions for the delay.
• Obama admin. knew millions could not keep their health insurance
• The Democrat's Version of Health Insurance Would Have Been Cheaper, Simpler, and More Popular (So Why Did We Enact the Republican Version and Why Are They So Upset?)
• Appeals court declines religious challenge to Obamacare by Michigan natural foods business—"Citing a recent case out of Grand Rapids, a federal appeals panel ruled Thursday that because a for-profit business cannot exercise religion, it cannot claim an exemption from mandated contraception coverage under the Affordable Care Act."
• Ohio Pro-Lifers Sue To Make Sure 300,000 Poors Don't Get Medicaid, Because 'Life'

Abortion and Birth Control

• Fed Judge: Texas Abortion Limits Unconstitutional
• Stealth Attack: What You Need to Know About the New Abortion Laws
• Why the Right Wing Is Targeting Birth Control Again—"Republican politicians and right-wing businesses are desperate to avoid the legal requirement of affordable contraception."
• Shackled and pregnant: Wis. case challenges 'fetal protection' law
• Wingnut Radio Preacher Kevin Swanson Begs You To Boycott Girl Scouts And Their Commie Lesbo Abortion Cookies

"Honor" Killings

• Yemeni girl, 15, 'burned to death by father'
• Killed for eloping: Girl lynched by family, boy beheaded in Haryana village
• Canadian Muslims Protest 'Honor Killing' Label as Racist—It's murder and should be prosecuted as such.

Rape

• 17 Year old school girl raped in Delhi
• 13 Year Old Girl Buried Alive After Rape in Pakistan
• Kenya petition over 'grass cutting for gang-rape' tops 1 million

Astroturfers, Tech Business, Amazon.com, e-Media, Wikipedia; Cord Cutters, Verizon, Telcos, Broadband; Obamacare; NSA Spying, Surveillance and Privacy

Astroturfers

• Fox News Allegedly Pushed Back Criticism With Phony Commenters
• Samsung fined $340,000 for faking online comments
• Astroturfers shut down after flooding Yelp and Google with fake reviews—"Companies paid freelancers $1 to $10 for each fake review, AG says."
• 20% of all Yelp reviews are written by paid shills
• Lawyers faking online reviews : How pervasive is it?

Tech Business

• Adobe's Software Subscription Model Means You Can't Own Your Software—"If you want certain software, you're going to have to pay up—month after month after month."
• Google's iron grip on Android: Controlling open source by any means necessary
• Get Ready to Pay 99 Cents to Watch YouTube
• People Still REALLY Don't Want Ads on Instagram
• Why I am unapologetic about paywalls or promotion

Amazon.com

• Illinois high court rejects 'Amazon' sales tax
• Amazon increases free shipping minimum to $35
• Little 'Libraires' That Could: French Law Would Keep Amazon At Bay
• Amazon's Jeff Bezos Is Like King Midas in Reverse
• How Amazon and Goodreads could lose their best readers—"When Amazon bought Goodreads it got a community of passionate readers, not all of whom want to follow the new rules." Salon

e-Media

• The Abomination of Ebooks: They Price People Out of Reading—"The real problem with ebooks is that they’re more 'e' than book, so an entirely different set of rules govern what someone can and can't do with them compared to physical books, especially when it comes to pricing. The collusion in pricing has been a public issue for a while, but we need to talk more about how they are priced differently to consumers and to libraries. That’s how ebooks contribute to the ever-growing divide between the haves and have-nots."
• Ebook Best-Seller Prices Jump to Highest Level in Months
• The 'Other' E-Book Pricing Problem—"Consumers are the ultimate victims here, also, but those most directly affected are public libraries."
• Self-publishing: Don’t price your ebook at $1.99
• Why tablet magazines are a failure
• Mark Waid: Reinventing Comics And Graphic Novels For Digital"
• Are Operations Like Flipboard Scams Against Publishers?—Josh posts a follow-up.

Wikipedia

• The Decline of Wikipedia—"The community that built the largest encyclopedia in history is shrinking, even as more people and Internet services depend on it than ever. Can it be revived, or is this the end of the Web's idealistic era?"
• Wikipedia China Becomes Front Line for Views on Language and Culture—"Even innocuous topics have become controversial for Wikipedia editors from China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, and compounding the issue are language differences." NYT
• Wikipedia editors, locked in battle with PR firm, delete 250 accounts—"Investigation follows reports that Wiki-PR scored Viacom, Priceline as clients."
• Wikipedia Will Start Texting Info To Users In Kenya Who Lack Internet
• Scots Wikipædia—The first encyclopædia in the Scots leid

Cord Cutters

• Comcast CEO: Aereo Illegal, A La Carte Never Happening
• Aereo gets big win in Boston: judge refuses to shut down streaming TV service
• Canadian gov't to push cable providers to unbundle channels
• Cable TV Is Dying, and Colleges Are Killing It
• A cord cutter's dream come true: Comcast offers HBO without cable service
• Netflix Poised to Pass HBO in Paid U.S. Subscribers
• Comcast's latest subscriber shakedown—"There are times when you just have to tip your cap to Comcast for coming up with creative ways of swindling its subscribers. The company's latest masterpiece has been the rollout of its channel encryption program, which now forces customers who have even the most basic television services to get all of their channels through a digital adapter box. "

Verizon

• What if Verizon succeeds in killing the Internet?—"Poor Verizon, its free speech is being violated by laws and competition. Won't someone think of the children?"
• Verizon's Outrageous Plot to Crack Up the Internet—"The company wants to charge web sites tolls for access."
• Verizon CEO says unlimited data plans simply aren't feasible
• Verizon Working Hard to Gut Massachusetts Consumer Protections
• Decades Of Failed Promises From Verizon: It Promises Fiber To Get Tax Breaks... Then Never Delivers

Telcos

• Crush the Carriers!—"For real mobile phone innovation, someone needs to smash AT&T and Verizon."
• T-Mobile: The most important wireless carrier in America
• Verizon and AT&T's data caps have made LTE a waste of money

Broadband

• Top cable lobbyist urges more ISPs to slap users with data caps
• Comcast seen increasing speeds solely as a way to further gouge customers
• Why New Fiber Networks Are Required To Shatter Monopolies Of Comcast & Other ISPs
• Cheapest 150Mbps broadband in big US cities costs 100% more than overseas—"US cellular customers are also paying more and getting less."
• Google's fibre optic boss unravels demand 'myth'—Other telcos outright lying saying users don't want faster speeds.

Obamacare

• How Kentucky Built The Country's Best Obamacare Website
• Claims That Obamacare Website Violates Health Privacy Reveals Embarrassing Fact-GOP Does Not Understand HIPAA Or Obamacare
• SNL skewers Obamacare Web site, suggests low-res version
• But What if Obamacare Works?—"Once the Web site is fixed, the real costs will start showing up." NYT
• Vermont is designing nation's first universal health-care system

NSA Spying

• Obama 'not told of Merkel phone bugging'—Thought he "approved" it 3 years ago? Or is the NSA keeping him in the dark?
• German interior minister: Confidence in U.S. is 'shaken'
• NSA 'monitored 60 million Spanish calls in a month'—Naturally, they're angry.
• Rogers says French should be 'popping champagne' over NSA—"If French citizens knew exactly what the U.S. phone intercepts were about in France, they would be 'applauding and popping champagne corks' because it keeps them safe, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee said Sunday." Politico
• Document Reveals NSA Monitored 125 Billion Phone Calls in One Month
• NSA Chief Keith Alexander Takes His PRISM Pitch to YouTube: "It's Like Taking a Bath"
• Feinstein plans bill to codify NSA's phone spying

Surveillance and Privacy

• Here's What Law Enforcement Can Recover From A Seized iPhone
• A black box in your car? Some see a source of tax revenue—"The devices would track every mile you drive —possibly including your location — and the government would use the data to draw up a tax bill."
• Ten Steps You Can Take Right Now Against Internet Surveillance

Good Cops, K9; Road Rage; Fake Rape; War on Drugs, Politics, Legalization and Decriminalization, Medicinal Marijuana, Hemp; NSA Spying

Good Cops

• Florida Cop Buys $100 in Groceries for Woman Caught Shoplifting Food
• Policemen Immediately Go Shopping to Help Crying Girl on First Day of School
• Years later, cop reunites with suicidal man he saved on Golden Gate Bridge
• Police rescue woman from flying to Africa to meet online scammer
• 'We see you, loser': Exuberant Ohio police chief's Facebook page earns 51,000 fans
• NYPD officer's kind act goes viral
• Blast from the Past: Ice Cream!! You Scream!! We All Scream for Ice Cream!!

K9

• Baltimore police officer got a call about a 'vicious' pit bull and this is what happened next
• Police officer adopts abused puppy
• Cops, Firefighters Make Up Rescue Group Saving Dogs From The Streets

Road Rage

• Detroit man killed after hollering at driver to slow down
• Reginald (Reggie) Chance flips bird before arraignment in biker-SUV attack
• Arrested DHS Agent Accused In Another Road Rage Incident

Fake Rape

• Judith Grossman: A Mother, a Feminist, Aghast—"Unsubstantiated accusations against my son by a former girlfriend landed him before a nightmarish college tribunal." WSJ
• Charges dropped against Temple football player accused of rape
• Meg Lanker, Feminist Who Threatened to 'Hate-F*ck' Herself, Cops a Plea Bargain
• Fake teen jailed for false rape claim—"A conman who fooled social services into thinking he was a vulnerable 17-year-old boy before stealing from his foster carers and 'destroying' the life of a charity boss with a false allegation of rape, has been jailed for four and a half years."
• Ohio University student in hiding after website identifies her as 'false rape accuser': school—Unfortunately in this case, the guy running the website is not 100% certain of the girl's identity, and "even if it the woman filmed in the video isn't Cassidy, [Peter] Nolan said he'd have no regrets." Fuck this guy.

War on Drugs

• The War on Drugs Is Over. Drugs Won.
• 'It is time to end the war on drugs', says top UK police chief
• Richard Branson speaks out against 'war on drugs'
• War on illegal drugs failing, medical researchers warn
• The Wasteful War On Drugs Is Doomed By Economics 101
• After 20 Years in Prison, Missouri Man Serving Life Without Parole for Marijuana Asks Governor for Clemency
• NYPD cops confused Jolly Rancher candies for crystal meth: suit
• Mexico drug lord shot dead by clown assassins—"Gunmen in disguise kill lieutenant of once-powerful Tijuana cartel during family children's party."

Politics

• Supreme Court Rejects Marijuana Rescheduling Appeal
• Denver floats new rules that could make even the odor of pot a crime
• Washington state pot use regulations to be approved

Legalization and Decriminalization

• Gallup: For First Time, Americans Favor Legalizing Marijuana—"Support surged 10 percentage points in past year, to 58%."
• Esquire/NBC Poll: Majority of American Center Supports Marijuana Legalization
• Switzerland Decriminalizes Marijuana, Won't Prosecute For Small Amounts Of Weed
• Uruguay to legalize, harvest and sell Marijuana at one dollar per gram
• Mexico City Moves to Legalize Pot

Medicinal Marijuana

• $1.3B medical marijuana free market coming to Canada
• Utah lawmaker will help moms import cannabis extract
• Ohio Mother Moving to Colorado to Treat Daughter's Epilepsy With Cannabidiol Oil
• Post-traumatic stress disorder sufferers qualify for medical marijuana—"The new law, which went into effect... is expected to bring many new patients into Maine's medical marijuana program."
• With only 1 medical marijuana dispensary in NJ, Grandma resorts to buying street pot

Hemp

• Hemp Hemp Hooray: Hoodlab Screens Hemp Documentary Bringing It Home
• Governor Brown Signs California Industrial Hemp Farming Act Legalizing Hemp Farming Under State Law
• Oregon farmer sees potential for industrial hemp in Oregon
• Legal or not, Colorado farmers bringing in nation's first hemp harvest since the 1950s WaPo
• Video of the Day: TV report treats hemp and marijuana like they're the same thing—"Throughout, the piece uses the terms 'hemp' and 'marijuana' interchangeably and makes lots of completely inaccurate stoner jokes."

NSA Spying

• Stop Watching Us: The Video
• Snowden rebuts Feinstein's statement that NSA spying "is not surveillance"—"No telephone in America makes a call without leaving a record with the NSA." Feinstein is full of shit.
• Germany: We Think The NSA May Have Tapped Chancellor Angela Merkel's Cell Phone For Years—Naturally, they're angry.
• NSA monitored calls of 35 world leaders after US official handed over contacts—Sen. Sanders calls this 'outrageous.'
• Growing list of countries protest U.S. spying
• The NSA, Narcissism & Nationalism—"If the Germans were tapping our president's phone, Rush Limbaugh would be musing about fire-bombing Dresden. But since we're doing the spying, the right doesn't care. That indifference only weakens the U.S., says Peter Beinart."
• Activist Tweets Former NSA Chief's 'Off Record' Phone Call On Train
• Ron Wyden: The Lonely Hero of the Battle Against the Surveillance State—"The Oregon senator isn't as famous as Edward Snowden or Julian Assange, but his push for limits on the NSA could result in much-needed reforms."

Wag the Dog? NSA Spying, Surveillance and Privacy; Africa; Americas; Asia; Europe; Middle East

Wag the Dog?

• US embassy closures extended over militant threat fears
• Drone strikes kill militants in Yemen; Americans urged to leave
• Greenwald: Is US Exaggerating Threat to Embassies to Silence Critics of NSA Domestic Surveillance?
• The NSA Leaks Put Our 'Methods' At Risk, But Bragging About Monitoring Al Qaeda Emails Doesn't?
• Colbert: Global Terror Warning—"The Obama administration alerts Americans about an imminent Al Qaeda attack that could happen any moment, anywhere and anytime."

NSA Spying

• Obama: 'We Don't Have A Domestic Spying Program'—It's a global spying program.
• Obama Cancels Meeting With Putin In Moscow
• Greenwald: New U.S. spying revelations coming from Snowden leaks
• Russian senator fundraises for Edward Snowden's work on personal data—"United Russia politician Ruslan Gattarov says he has set up a website to gather money for the NSA whistleblower's work."
• Former NSA Boss Calls Snowden's Supporters Internet Shut-ins; Equates Transparency Activists With Al-Qaeda

Surveillance and Privacy

• US drug agency surveillance unit to be investigated by Department of Justice—"Civil rights groups express concern after revelations that secret unit uses wiretaps and telephone records to arrest Americans."
• Government Reverses Course on Warrantless Wiretapping in Criminal Case, Admits Duty to Notify Defendants
• Mass Data: Transfers from Germany Aid US Surveillance—"German intelligence sends massive amounts of intercepted data to the NSA, according to documents from whistleblower Edward Snowden, which SPIEGEL has seen. The trans-Atlantic cooperation on technical matters is also much closer than first thought."
• Germans' fear of American spying surges FT
• Schneier: Defeating the modern Leviathan of corporate-government data collection—"Individuals face an unholy alliance of data-hungry private firms and public agencies. Only citizen action can win back our privacy."

Africa

• Tunisia crisis: Tens of thousands join protest—"Tens of thousands of protesters have marched in the Tunisian capital, Tunis, to demand the resignation of the Islamist-led government."
• Uganda Passes Tough New Law Against Public Protest—'The law gives the police powers to control public meetings, including the use of force to break up gatherings held without prior authorization. Even meetings of a political nature held between three people must be authorized by the police...."
• Egypt: Diplomacy Hasn’t Resolved Political Standoff

Americas

• Canada: You will be shocked(!) to see who is on Stephen Harper's full 'enemy' list
• Falklands, global espionage and multilateral organizations in CFK dialogue with Ban Ki-moon
• Gunman kills head of Venezuela opposition party

Asia

• Japan launches largest warship since World War II
• Secret trove of files on N Korean rights abuses—"US and South Korean intelligence agencies are sitting on a huge archive recording torture, starvation and gross human rights abuses in North Korea. The files would be of great value to a United Nations investigation into crimes against humanity by the Pyongyang regime." Disclosure c/o Wikileaks.
• US criticises Vietnam internet control law—"The US has criticised a new internet decree in Vietnam that would restrict online users from discussing current affairs."
• Chinese firm paid insider 'to kill my company,' American CEO says
• Indonesia: Nazi-themed Asia café sparks global outrage

Europe

• Why Is A Top Obama Strategist Helping Sell UK Immigration Crackdown?
• UK: Doreen Lawrence pledges to condemn 'racial profiling' spot checks in the House of Lords—"Equalities watchdog says it will investigate the operations, with one member of the public saying it was akin to 'Nazi Germany.'"
• French Mayor threatens suicide over traveller camp
• Immigrants under fire in Italy despite pope's call for tolerance
• Swedish police cleared over shooting that sparked riots—"Prosecutors in Sweden have closed the inquiry into a police shooting which sparked Stockholm's worst riots in decades this May."
• Outrage as Swiss move to segregate asylum-seekers
• Malta refuses European demand to accept Africa migrants

Middle East

• Saudi prince defects from royal family
• Saudi offers Russia deal to scale back Assad support
• Syria fired ballistic missiles on its largest city in February. This is what it looks like now
• Bahrain bans protests in capital ahead of major anti-govt demonstration
• Turkish ex-army boss Basbug sentenced to life for Ergenekon overthrow plot
• 'This is our land': Protests at plan to remove Bedouins from ancestral villages—"The so-called 'Prawer plan' is being fought in and outside Israel."
• Israel blocks EU projects in West Bank

Red Light District, Road Rage, Cycling; Guns; Kids; Family Feuds; NSA Spying

Red Light District

• Florida quietly shortened yellow light standards & lengths, resulting in more red light camera tickets for you—They were caught "reducing the minimum below federal recommendations."
• New Orleans Cops Caught Filling Their Pockets With Red Light Camera Cash
• Newark Red Light Camera Ticket Dismissed; Technicality May Mean Millions In Refunds
• Red Light Camera Ban Passed In Ohio
• Michigan doesn't need traffic cams

Road Rage

• Watch As City Changes Parking Signs Then Issues Tickets To Cars That Had Been Parked Legally
• APD email says traffic money to fund future pay raises
• Judge orders Elmwood Place speed cameras confiscated
• Loophole lets Colorado lawmakers avoid photo radar fines—"A loophole in state law has allowed Colorado state senators and representatives to avoid photo radar tickets because of special treatment...."
• NY rabbi accused of flashing a badge, attempting to make his own traffic stops

Cycling

• Driver 'admits' knocking down cyclist on Twitter—"Police have launched an investigation after a young woman apparently admitted on Twitter to having knocked down a cyclist."
• Police stop cyclist near Bristol for 'not wearing Lycra'
• "It must have been your fault. C'mon. You are a biker."
• BMW drivers and cyclists: The war between the luxury cars and bicycles
• Vancouver Bike Lane Debate Cycles On
• CrazyBike—"New York's new bicycle-share program is a big success. Since May, bikers have taken 646,000 trips. But the initiative has also caused many rational people to explode with rage. Why? Because humans are hardwired to hate cheaters."
• Flipside: Police Department Will 'Ticket' Kids —As a reward for wearing helmets while biking.

Guns

• Report: Gunman Outside White House Says He Was Only Going To Fire A Couple Shots
• 6-Year-Old Shoots 5-Year-Old While Playing Cops And Robbers
• Man using rifle as crutch when it fired—"... a burst through the ceiling and killed a little girl upstairs...."

Kids

• A gift, and now grief—"The used iPad was a present from his struggling dad, and the first really nice thing Marcos Arenas ever owned. When robbers grabbed it, he held on, defending it to his death on a Las Vegas street."
• Boy raped in broad daylight attack because 'his phone wasn't good enough to steal'
• Wis. man: I killed teen neighbor for 'justice'—And now the 76-year-old has a life sentence.
• Chinese toddler dies after parking space row—"They say the two-year-old girl suffered critical injuries on Tuesday when the man pulled her out of her pram and threw her to the ground."
• Stripped and stabbed 17 times... for kissing a local girl—"Teenage British tourist fights for his life in Turkey."

Family Feuds

• Dumb Criminal of the Week: The Guy Who Thought You Could Only Be Arrested for Burglary at Night
• Latasha Love, N.C. mom, has son arrested for allegedly stealing her Pop-Tarts, report says
• Sister faked will to cheat nephew out of inheritance
• Parents jailed over toddler's heroin death—"Simon Jones and Emma Bradburn given total of 10 years in prison after 23-month-old son Daniel died from ingesting drug."
• Exoneree Faces Ex-Wife in Compensation Lawsuit—"Phillips spent 24 years in prison before DNA tests connected another man to the s and prompted the courts to declare Phillips innocent. In 2009, the state awarded him lump sum payments totaling more than $2 million.... His ex-wife, now Traci Tucker, is arguing that she is entitled to a portion of that money.

NSA Spying

• Major opinion shifts, in the US and Congress, on NSA surveillance and privacy
• Glenn Greenwald: Low-Level NSA Analysts Have 'Powerful and Invasive' Search Tool
• Greenwald: 'Amazing' that Clapper still employed
• Momentum Builds Against NSA Surveillance NYT
• With NSA revelations, Sen. Ron Wyden's vague warnings about privacy finally become clear
• Chomsky says 'Snowden should be honored' for 'telling Americans what the government was doing'
• Thousands fill German streets to protest Berlin's NSA spying involvement

Medical Marijuana, Kids, 420, Legalization, War on Drugs, Law and Disorder; Police State; NSA Spying, Tech Tracking

Medical Marijuana

• Obama Hates Medical Marijuana And He Doesn't Care What The States Think
• U.S. Attorney Said Montana Medical Pot Growers Wouldn't Be Prosecuted -- Now They're Facing Life in Prison
• Obama Administration Throwing Medical Marijuana Patients Into Federal Prison at Unprecedented Rate
• Orlando attorney John Morgan: Florida's medical marijuana amendment petition to be filed
• Arizona ruling on return of seized marijuana stands—"The Arizona Supreme Court is letting stand a lower court's ruling that the Yuma County sheriff must return marijuana seized from a woman with a California medical marijuana authorization honored by Arizona."
• Federally Sponsored Marijuana Study Backfires: Scientists Conclude DEA Should Reclassify Cannabis—Hoist by their own petard.
• Patients' advocates ask Supreme Court to decide medical value of marijuana

Kids

• Medical Marijuana for Kids?—"The drug has brought relief to children suffering from cancer and other serious ailments, but getting access is often limited by considerable regulatory hurdles."
• Worried Parents Weigh Their Children's Health Against Medical Marijuana Laws
• Majority Of Parents Support Medical Marijuana Legalization, Says Survey By Partnership At Drugfree.org

420

• Video: Ethan Nadelmann Trounces Former DEA Chief in Marijuana Debate at Aspen Institute
• U.S. Mayors to Obama: Quit Cracking Down on Marijuana
• Weed War: Marijuana Plants Sprout across German City
• Rules change on Olympic marijuana testing
• Google Quietly Giving Aid To Marijuana Activists

Legalization

• Marijuana's march toward mainstream confounds feds
• Colorado Nullifies Federal Hemp Ban With Governor's Signature
• Marijuana legalization considered in Maine, DC, Calif.—"Marijuana legalization saw unprecedented success on the ballot in 2012, and the next few rounds of elections could see even more loosening of restrictions on the drug."
• Australia: Expert calls for marijuana to be legalised to reduce harm of binge drinking in teens
• Five Reasons Cops Want to Legalize Marijuana—"More and more police officers are realizing the War on Drugs is a mistake."

War on Drugs

• The War on Drugs Is Worse Than NSA Spying—"We've simply become accustomed to older, more ingrained abuses."
• "How to Make Money Selling Drugs": The war America keeps on losing—"A slick documentary with a jokey premise argues that the "war on drugs" has been a soul-destroying disaster." Salon
• West Virginia: Drugged Driving Bill Launches July 12—"[I]f officers think you've been taking some sort of drug and you fail the sobriety test, they can now test your urine or blood for possible drugs."
• Piss Testing Is a Failure—"Drug testing is a multi-billion dollar scam that targets the poor and steals money from Medicaid."
• Oklahoma DA halts I-40 drug stops after criticism—"Caddo County Special Judge David A. Stephens said he was shocked District Attorney Jason Hicks used private company to participate in drug busts when company officers not certified by state."
• US mom settles suit over poppy seed drug test
• Capture of Mexican mob boss began with a fed-up informant—"Insider gave up 'El Teo' to help 'clean up my country.' The hit to the Tijuana drug cartel has brought peace in Baja."

Law and Disorder

• How Terrifying Drug Raids Became A Cash Cow For America's Police
• Ohio Police Department Using Fake Drug Checkpoints—"Police in the Cleveland suburb of Mayfield Heights know they're not allowed to use checkpoints to search drivers and their cars for drugs." NYT
• Mich. farmer with 8,000 pot plants gets probation—"A southeastern Michigan farmer recovering from throat cancer was sentenced to probation instead of prison Tuesday for growing thousands of marijuana plants, due partly to many handwritten letters from supporters who described him as a modest, selfless man who helps others at every turn."
• Meet Grandpa Pot: Ray McFeters faces prison for pot, but he's still smoking—"Pot saved my life. I'll never stop smoking pot."
• A Madison dad faces deportation for smoking weed as a teenager

Police State

• Radley Balko: "Once a town gets a SWAT team you want to use it"—"America's police are beginning to look like an army, and the author says there's very little we can do about it." Salon
• Have American Police Become Militarized? NYT
• Rise of the Warrior Cop—"Is it time to reconsider the militarization of American policing?" WSJ

NSA Spying

• 'Prolific Partner': German Intelligence Used NSA Spy Program—"Angela Merkel and her ministers claim they first learned about the US government's comprehensive spying programs from press reports. But SPIEGEL has learned that German intelligence services themselves use one of the NSA's most valuable tools."
• NSA head admits the agency made "huge set of mistakes" in 2009—""The reason we use secrecy is not to hide it from the American people, not to hide it from you, but to hide it from those who walk among you who are trying to kill you."
• Glenn Greenwald: Growing Backlash Against NSA Spying Shows Why U.S. Wants to Silence Edward Snowden
• Germany should honour its debt and offer NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden asylum
• Edward Snowden Is No Traitor—"Why treason charges against the NSA whistleblower don't hold up."
• No Warrant, No Problem: How the Government Can Get Your Digital Data
• Microsoft will "aggressively challenge" any government attempt to spy through Kinect

Tech Tracking

• Jealous of PRISM? Use "Amazon 1 Button" Chrome extension to sniff all HTTPS websites
• List of Printers Which Do or Do Not Display Tracking Dots
• Google House View (beta)