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.

War on Terror, CIA Torture Report, Combat Zone, Afghanistan; Israel and Palestine; Muslim Brotherhood; Islamophobia; Turkey; Police State; NSA Spying, Bulk Collection; Your Rights Online; Press Freedom Under Fire; Tech Tracking; Haxx0red

War on Terror

• LISTEN: In Private Speech, Dick Cheney Talks Bombing Iran and GOP Donors Applaud—"The former vice president also calls criticism of the NSA 'hogwash' and rips the 'increasing strain of isolationism" in the GOP.'
• Watch Donald Rumsfeld Lie About Saddam Hussein, al-Qaeda, and 9/11—"In a new doc, the former Defense Secretary says he never meant to imply that Saddam was behind 9/11—despite the implications that the Iraqi dictator and al-Qaeda were in cahoots."
• It's Not Too Late to Try Bush, Cheney and Obama for War Crimes
• Struggling to detail alleged Saudi role in 9/11 attacks

CIA Torture Report

• CIA misled on interrogation program, Senate report says—"Investigators conclude that the agency overstated the effectiveness of harsh tactics while hiding details and taking credit where it wasn't due." Such as information acquired through torture supposedly leading to Osama bin Laden's capture. WaPo
• CIA torture report to remain largely secret despite declassification vote
• John McCain: Classified Senate Report on Torture 'Chilling'—"The Republican says some aspects of the report, which have not yet been made public, are too upsetting to repeat."

Combat Zone

• March Was First Month Without U.S. Fatalities in Iraq or Afghanistan In 11 Years
• Do Iraq and Afghanistan veterans think the wars were worth fighting? WaPo
• Terrorism: The legacy of US war in Iraq—"The US, as global policeman, is no different from any other imperial power when asserting its influence."
• Salim Hamdan, and the Yemeni prisoners who can't leave the prison at Guantánamo Bay

Afghanistan

• Afghanistan: Before and after the Taliban
• Afghanistan at risk of backslide without sustained support, says David Miliband—Also, women's rights may backslide too in the upcoming elections.
• British sniper in Afghanistan kills six Taliban with one bullet—"Lance Corporal in the Coldstream Guards hit trigger switch of suicide bomber whose device then exploded, Telegraph learns." Bad-ass.

Israel and Palestine

• Palestinian child describes details of torture and mistreatment during his arrest
• Israeli bulldozers destroy mosque, medical center in East Jerusalem
• American Spy's Release Would Be High-Stakes Gamble
• Chris Christie apologizes for 'occupied territories' remark—He apologised to major political campaign contributor Sheldon Adelson, a "conservative Zionist" who rejects the term. Politico

Muslim Brotherhood

• Muslim Brotherhood members sentenced to death—"Egyptian court sentences 529 members of the outlawed group to death on charges of murder."
• UK's Cameron Orders Probe of Muslim Brotherhood
• Muslim Brotherhood Slaughter Christian Woman

Islamophobia

• Federal judge: Strip search lawsuit may against FBI—"A federal judge in Detroit has ruled that a lawsuit filed against the FBI and other agencies for detaining and strip searching an Ohio woman because of her ethnicity on the 10th anniversary of Sept. 11 can proceed."
• Muslim victim of Boston Marathon bombing sues Glenn Beck for defamation and slander
• No NSA reform can fix the American Islamophobic surveillance complex—"Muslim Americans likely make up the bulk of US domestic spy targets. This is what it's like for innocent citizens to live in fear."
• Authorities describe killing of man outside Home Depot on Florin Road as racially motivated
• Conservative filmmaker Pat Dollard: "Time for Americans to start slaughtering Muslims in the streets"—"A Breitbart contributor, and former agent to director Steven Soderbergh, gave this disgusting response to Ft. Hood." Salon

Turkey

• Turkey's Riot Police Use Water Cannons on Vote Fraud Protesters
• Opposition ballots found in trash bags in southern Turkey
• Electricity cut off in provinces where pro-gov't firms supply power—Cats were unjustly blamed.
• Turkey's Twitter ban violates free speech: constitutional court

Police State

• The FBI's Failed Two-Year Campaign Against a Group of Nonviolent Activists in the Midwest—"Nearly two dozen people were hauled before a grand jury because an undercover FBI agent said they were talking about revolution."
• Watch: The police are tracking you, so what happens if you track them?—"Automatic license plate readers have changed the game for police, but privacy advocates warn your data is being misused."
• Feds want an expanded ability to hack criminal suspects' computers—"Proposed rules to let one judge authorize 'remote access' essentially anywhere."

NSA Spying

• NSA performed warrantless searches on Americans' calls and emails – Clapper—"Director of national intelligence confirms for first time that NSA has used 'backdoor' in surveillance law to search for data related to 'US persons.'" Fessing up another lie.
• NSA infiltrated RSA security more deeply than thought - study
• 'A' for Angela Merkel: GCHQ and NSA Targeted Private German Companies
• How a Chinese Tech Firm Became the NSA's Surveillance Nightmare
• Utah city ordered to provide water records for enormous NSA facility—"Reporter compelled Bluffdale to provide data on Utah Data Center's water usage."
• Greenwald: NSA Blows Its Own Top Secret Program in Order to Propagandize

Bulk Collection

• NSA Phone Metadata Collection Program Renewed for 90 Days—"The Obama Administration has secured a 90-day extension of the National Security Agency's (NSA's) controversial authority to collect phone metadata records on U.S. customers under Section 215 of the U.S.A Patriot Act."
• Senate NSA critic urges Barack Obama to end bulk data collection now
• What, besides phone records, does the NSA collect in bulk?—"Gun purchases? Financial transactions? A coalition of orgs wants answers."

Your Rights Online

• CISPA's Author Has Another Privacy-Killing Bill to Pass Before He Retires
• Federal Agents Pierce Tor Web-Anonymity Tool WSJ
• Censorship is free speech when search engines do it, a US court just ruled
• Canada: Government using fear of cyber-bullying to invade Canadians' privacy

Press Freedom Under Fire

• Journalists increasingly under fire from hackers, Google researchers show—"21 out of 25 top news organizations hit by state-sponsored attacks."
• 'Free Flow of Information Act' Is Bad for Journalism
• China's state media seem to be at odds with China's state censors
• Malaysia: New Police Social Media Unit To Quell Opposition Dissent, DAP Reps Say

Tech Tracking

• Microsoft: Additional steps to protect your privacy—'Effective immediately, if we receive information indicating that someone is using our services to traffic in stolen intellectual or physical property from Microsoft, we will not inspect a customer's private content ourselves. Instead, we will refer the matter to law enforcement if further action is required."
• Google tells Supreme Court it's legal to packet sniff open Wi-Fi networks—"After an appeals court ruling and a $25,000 fine, Google says the law is on its side."
• Want to Keep Data Private? Encrypt It Before It Even Reaches a Server
• How To Delete Facebook, Google, Twitter Search Data—"Social networks make millions off your data, but they don't need to know everything. Here's how to clear your search history from three top sites."
• Why Apps Shouldn't Have Access to Your Contacts

Haxx0red

• Microsoft scam man is sentenced in 'landmark' case—"A man who ran a Microsoft computer scam tricking people into paying for free anti-virus software has received a suspended four-month jail sentence."
• Will Target's Lawsuit Finally Expose the Failings of Security Audits?
• Apps with millions of Google Play downloads covertly mine cryptocurrency
• My online impostor: When that Facebook profile isn't you—"For years, I was plagued by fake social media profiles that humiliated me. Who would stalk me this way -- and why?" Salon

Ukraine vs. Russia; Turkey; War on Terror, Police State; Monetary Damages; Child Endangerment; Home Invasion; Road Rage; Guns; Slavery

Ukraine vs. Russia

• Ukraine says 100,000 Russian troops near border
• A rapid Russian build-up of tanks and troops with tough talk from President Vladimir Putin raises fears war with Ukraine could be imminent
• Russian annexation of Ukraine's Crimea illegal: UN General Assembly
• Ukraine faces hard road to economic recovery with Moscow pushing back—"Price Ukraine pays for Russian gas to rise 80 pct."
• Yanukovich calls for referendum on each Ukrainian region: Report

Turkey

• Recordings, Posted Online, Rattle Officials in Turkey—"A recording was posted on YouTube in which officials were heard discussing a plot to establish a justification for military strikes in Syria." NYT
• Turkish foreign minister calls Syria security leak a declaration of war
• PM Erdogan plotted sex tape to topple opposition leader, audio leak reveals
• Turkey moves to block YouTube access after 'audio leak'—EFF says Tor has been blocked too.
• Turkish Court Overturns the Government's Ban on Twitter—"It was not immediately clear whether the ruling would be appealed or circumvented by a new court order." NYT

War on Terror

• UN human rights report slams US for torture, NSA spying
• After seven years, exactly one person gets off the gov't no-fly list—"New report on terrorism 'blacklists' suggests it won't be easier the next time."
• T.S.A. Calls for Armed Guards at Airport Checkpoints—"The agency is recommending several new security measures in response to a fatal shooting last year at Los Angeles International Airport." NYT
• Editorial: Washington's anti-terrorism handouts—"Federal funding is sweet manna from heaven, as far as local and state officials are concerned. The dollars bolster budgets and support special projects without requiring cuts to other programs that, the public is assured, are far too important to sacrifice. It’s free money."

Police State

• Law enforcement in the United States: Armed and dangerous—"No-knock raids, assault weapons and armoured cars: America's police use paramilitary tactics too often."
• Paramilitary police: Cops or soldiers?—"America’s police have become too militarised."
• Communities grow weary of militarized police
• 4 shocking examples of police militarization in America's small towns—"Research shows that the number of SWAT teams in municipalities smaller than 50,000 is up more than 300 percent." Salon
• Officers being 'warriors' modern policing problem

Monetary Damages

• Man chases a $20 down a storm drain, gets stuck underground for two days
• Colo. Man to Go to Trial in May Over $42 Girl Scout Cookie Purchase
• Gambler sues, says he lost $500,000 playing drunk

Child Endangerment

• Jessica Dutro murder trial: Motive for Tigard killing was 4-year-old's perceived homosexuality, prosecutors say
• Tulsa Women With Dead Toddler In Car Found Guilty Of Murder—"The Assistant District Attorney said 19-month-old Zamontay Green was basically tortured to death with long-term abuse.... 'He had been kicked, he had been punched, he had been struck with cords, he had been struck with belts.'"
• 3 Children Found Starving in Home Had 'Hardly Eaten for Months'
• Man left baby in car, went into strip club for hours, police say
• Man gets 16 years for putting infant in freezer
• Minneapolis man, 32, punches 8-year-old, steals iPad
• Razor blades glued to playground at IL park

Home Invasion

• Surveillance Video Shows Burglar Firing Into Home But Police Still Charge Resident For Shooting Back!
• Houston area father kills boy he found in daughter's bedroom—"The father then went into the girl's bedroom and discovered the 17 year old male in bed with his 16 year old daughter. The daughter denied knowing who the boy was. [...] The 16 year old girl later admitted to investigators that she did know the boy and had let him into the home." Looks like she's at fault.
• Uptown family concerned by lack of 911 response after break-in, several calls to authorities—A lot could have happened in during that two-hour delay.

Road Rage

• Two families of victims killed by Texas 'affluenza' teen reach settlement—A injured boy's family is filing a civil suit.
• At Least Two Dead After Car Crashes Into Crowd At SXSW—Up to three now. The driver was reportedly drunk and fleeing the police.
• Manslaughter charge sought for deputy sheriff—"A Maricopa County sheriff's deputy was driving at a rate more than twice the speed limit moments before his Chevrolet Tahoe T-boned a Nissan Cube in December, killing the 63-year-old driver."

Guns

• California Senate's Top Gun Control Advocate Arrested In Firearms Trafficking Plot
• Open-carry gun lawsuit claims Flint Township police improperly jailed man Christmas Eve
• Supreme Court upholds gun ban for domestic violence +

Slavery

• Life in a 'dog cage': Manhattan's secret tenement offers hell for $10 a night
• Malaysian couple to hang for starving Indonesian maid to death
• An Underworld of Male Slaves Comes to Light in the U.K.
• Trucker Kept Sex Slaves, Including Fla. Relative: Deputies
• Video: Daily Record man tells of scenes of fear and desperation as he goes undercover at the rat-infested Bellgrove dosshouse

Surveillance State, CIA Senate Spying, NSA, Data Privacy, Your Rights Online; Tech Cases; World TB Day

Surveillance State

• Jimmy Carter believes U.S. is spying on him—"I believe if I send an email, it will be monitored." Also, he says that Snowden's leaks "good for Americans to know."
• Sen. Ron Wyden scorches senior CIA and NSA officials and their 'pattern of deception'
• Spy Agencies, Not Politicians, Hold the Cards in Washington—"The CIA and NSA routinely ignore the Constitution, yet want the Justice Department to protect them from an over-reaching Congress."
• Government must stop requesting broad email search warrants, judge says—"District court says it will reject future broad requests." A federal judge says it's "repugnant to the Fourth Amendment."
• How Much Microsoft Charges the FBI for User Data
• Police keep quiet about cell-tracking technology—"Police across the country may be intercepting phone calls or text messages to find suspects using a technology tool known as Stingray. But they're refusing to turn over details about its use or heavily censoring files when they do."
• Navy database tracks civilians' parking tickets, fender-benders, raising fears of domestic spying
• America's Creepy, Surveillance-Endorsing Love of NCIS—"By featuring warrantless agents who thwart domestic terrorists with fantastical technology, shows like NCIS essentially ask Americans to root for Big Brother."
• Former US intelligence contractor speaks on 1975 Australian coup—"Boyce, now 61, confirmed his previous statements that the CIA was centrally involved in the dismissal of the Whitlam government."

CIA Senate Spying

• Terror Report Release May Fuel The Spat Between Congress And The CIA
• CIA chief vows fast review of declassifying interrogation report—Declassifying or destructifying?
• Nancy Pelosi: When Legislators Take on the CIA, 'They Come After You'
• How the CIA Blew It—"America's spooks aren't going rogue. They just picked a fight they couldn't possibly win." Politico
• False Equivalence and the Feud Between the CIA and the Senate—"The outbreak of open hostilities between Dianne Feinstein and the spy agency she oversees is not a problem—it is a glimmer of hope."

NSA

• Greenwald: Some Facts About How NSA Stories Are Reported
• This Is How the NSA Is Trying to Win Over the Media—"[T]he latest step in the NSA's PR campaign is perhaps its boldest and most bizarre yet: A glossy, full-color "media kit" sent to news organizations."
• Was FISC judge misled by gov't lawyers in evidence-destruction spat?—"And a CA judge makes clear: Spying data must be kept to resolve activist suits."
• Targeting Huawei: NSA Spied on Chinese Government and Networking Firm—Ruh-roh.
• SPIEGEL Interview with Former NSA Director Michael Hayden—"In a SPIEGEL interview, former NSA director Michael Hayden, 69, discusses revelations of US spying on Germany made public in documents leaked by Edward Snowden, surveillance against German leaders and tensions between Berlin and Washington."
• Google's Larry Page: We can't Have NSA Spying and a Functioning Democracy
• NSA hacker in residence dishes on how to 'hunt' system admins—"Latest Snowden docs offer lulz from NSA's internal hacker how-to board."

Data Privacy

• The White House wants to know how worried you are about data privacy
• How Microsoft tracked down a spy who leaked its secrets—Was the "sniffing" justified on Hotmail, which Microsoft owns?
• It's not just Microsoft: Apple and Google can also read your emails
• Google Under Fire for Data-Mining Student Email Messages
• Now Gmail Encrypts Messages Sent to Google Servers
• Twitter gives up on encrypting direct messages, at least for now
• Facebook's DeepFace Project Nears Human Accuracy In Identifying Faces
• Fighting Against Phony Location Privacy Protections in the States
• Yahoo forces fantasy sports users to divulge phone numbers

Your Rights Online

• Michelle Obama tells Chinese students internet freedom's a universal right
• The Trans-Pacific Partnership Will "Significantly" Restrict Online Freedoms
• Twitter website 'blocked' in Turkey—So far not so much.
• Orange Gives All Of Its Data To France's NSA
• The Australian Law that Would Force Suspects to Hand Over their Passwords

Tech Cases

• "Weev" prosecutor admits: I don't understand what the hacker did—""Andrew "weev" Auernheimer gets his day in appellate court."
• MIT faulted over its support for students—"School counters it is 'eager' to help 4 facing N.J. fraud charges." Here they go again.
• British man Lauri Love charged with hacking US Federal Reserve servers—"US indictment includes hacking and aggravated identity theft charges that carry a maximum prison sentence of 12 years."

World TB Day

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

Protests, Turkey, Brazil; China, Middle East; Journalism, Surveillance and Privacy

Protests

• Canada: Wearing a mask at a riot is now a crime—"Maximum 10-year prison term for conviction of new offence."
• Ethiopia opposition threatens protests—"An Ethiopian opposition party called on Thursday for the government to scrap an anti-terrorism law it says is used to stifle dissent, threatening a repeat of protests that brought thousands onto the streets of Addis Ababa early this month."
• After One Week Protest Continues; What's Happening in Bulgaria?

Turkey

• Turkey: A Weekend of Police Abuse
• Turkey unrest: violent clashes in Istanbul as Erdogan holds rally
• Turkey threatens to deploy army to end unrest
• Hundreds of Turks emulate 'Standing Man' in protest
• Turkey: Arrest of Lawyers, Journalists and Doctors Shows Erdogan's True Colours

Brazil

• Brazil protests over World Cup costs spread nationwide
• Brazilian protesters take a break as more security hits the streets
• Pelé tells Brazilians to 'forget' protests sweeping the country FT
• Broken promises and corruption fuel Brazil protests
• Over one million march in Brazil as protests spread

China

• China's economy is freezing up. How freaked out should we be?
• Man Details Risks in Exposing China's Forced Labor—"A Beijing resident and adherent of the banned Falun Gong movement said he slipped letters into product packages apparently meant for the West." NYT
• Argentina caught a Chinese ship trying to steal 180 tonnes of its squid
• Riot after Chinese teachers try to stop pupils cheating—"What should have been a hushed scene of 800 Chinese students diligently sitting their university entrance exams erupted into siege warfare after invigilators tried to stop them from cheating." Quote of the day: "We want fairness. There is no fairness if you do not let us cheat."
• Chinese netizens decry tourist treatment of dying dolphin

Middle East

• Iran election: Hassan Rouhani in his own words—"What I truly wish is for moderation to return to the country. This is my only wish. Extremism pains me greatly. We have suffered many blows as a result of extremism."
• Jewish Israeli man near Western Wall killed by guard
• Palestinian children tortured, used as shields by Israel: U.N.
• Egypt's Coptic Christians say they are 'no longer safe'
• Israeli PM criticized for installing bed on plane

Journalism

• WikiLeaks: Michael Hastings Said FBI Was Tracking Him Hours Before His Death
• The Strange Case of Barrett Brown—"Amid the outrage over the NSA's spying program, the jailing of journalist Barrett Brown points to a deeper and very troubling problem."
• US seizure of journalist records called 'chilling'

Surveillance and Privacy

• NSA Whistleblower: NSA Spying On – and Blackmailing – Top Government Officials and Military Officers
• The FISA court is acting like a legislature, and that’s a problem
• Revealed: the top secret rules that allow NSA to use US data without a warrant—"Fisa court submissions show broad scope of procedures governing NSA's surveillance of Americans' communication."
• Web's Reach Binds N.S.A. and Silicon Valley Leaders—"Technology experts and former intelligence officials say the rise of data mining, both as an industry and as a crucial intelligence tool, has created a complex reality." One where Skype already has a backdoor built in, even before the company was bought by Microsoft. NYT
• A tale of two presidents: The one we voted for – and Obama—"Recent leaks reveal a frightening reality: In fighting terrorism, we have resorted to engaging in terrorism." Salon

World Oceans Day; Domestic Spying; Gender Issues, Rape; Sexism, Fucks News; Abortion and Birth Control, Abstinence, Teen Births; Bitches Behaving Badly; Turkey

World Oceans Day

Domestic Spying

• "Horror at Their Capabilities" Drove Leak of NSA Spying Program
• White House invokes 'state privilege' to halt inquiries into data mining
• These programs might well have been legal. That's almost worse.
• Obama says the NSA has had plenty of oversight. Here's why he's wrong.
  
• WaPost backtracks on claim tech companies 'participate knowingly' in PRISM data collection
• US gov't defends NSA surveillance, slams 'reprehensible' journalists—"Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has defended secret data mining — and criticized media outlets for reporting it."
• Glenn Greenwald on the NSA and PRISM: "It's well past time that we have a debate about whether that's the kind of country and world in which we want to live"
• Anonymous Just Leaked a Trove of NSA Documents
• PBS Frontline: Top Secret America – 9/11 to the Boston Bombings—"FRONTLINE probes the unprecedented, yet largely invisible, intelligence response to 9/11."
• Blast from the Past: Wyden Warns of Potential Public Backlash From Allowing Secret Law—Congress has been hiding this for over 2 years.

Gender Issues

• Another teen suicide after alleged assault leaves California town asking tough questions
• Indian acid attack victim fights for justice
• Number of Afghan women jailed for fleeing abuse soars
• Beijing police ask women on public transport to 'cover up'
• Blast from the Past: Saudi police 'stopped' fire rescue—"Saudi Arabia's religious police stopped schoolgirls from leaving a blazing building because they were not wearing correct Islamic dress, according to Saudi newspapers."

Rape

• Leader of Anonymous Steubenville Op on Being Raided by the FBI—"If convicted of hacking-related charges, Deric Lostutter could get more jail time than the rapists he went after."
• Judge offers to quit after saying 'women like rape'
• Girl Gang Raped in Pakistan: Dares to Fight for Justice
• DNA test unacceptable evidence of rape, CII declares—"DNA test in connection with forced rape as insufficient evidence, saying weak evidence could affect the health of the issue as well as distorting it from the reality," but it "could prove much helpful in such cases so it should be accepted as secondary evidence."
• Mainland College Girl Raped by Indian Man in Hong Kong, Reactions
• Dartmouth Students: University Is Targeting Anti-Rape Protesters Instead Of Rapists
• Anonymous Wants to Teach Rape Prevention in Schools—"Officials at Steubenville High were not too psyched about that."

Sexism

• Unemployed woman claims to be 'too pretty to work'
• From ridicule to 'rock star': Weightlifting's petite warrior tames Twitter trolls
• Facebook Promises To Take Action On Domestic Violence Content

Fucks News

• The 'science' of gender roles—Male commentators go nuts over report.
• Megyn Kelly Demolishes Erick Erickson, Lou Dobbs Over Sexist Comments
• Fox Business Refuses To Air Ultraviolet Ad Slamming Pundits For Sexist Comments

Abortion and Birth Control

• US Supreme Court Deals Blow to Defunders of Planned Parenthood
• New Study Confirms Obamacare’s Birth Control Mandate Will Reduce Abortion Rate
• Appeals Court Strikes Down Arizona's 20-Week Abortion Ban
• House Republicans pass 'astonishing' bill to ban all abortions after 20 weeks
• Mississippi Could Soon Jail Women for Stillbirths, Miscarriages—"The state's manslaughter laws weren't supposed to apply to women who lose pregnancies. Prosecutors don't seem to care."
• Congressman: Women Should Be Forced To Give Birth To Fetuses With No Brain Function
• El Salvador Supreme Court denies critically ill woman lifesaving abortion Salon
• Catholic Church takes on reproductive rights in Philippines, risks further alienation

Abstinence

• Illinois Bans Abstinence-Only Sex Ed: 'In Fantasy Land, We Teach Our Kids Abstinence'
• A Public School Brought in Unqualified Christian Women to Teach Students About Sex… and Guess How That Went?
• After Abstinence Assembly Is Caught On Tape, Health Experts Criticize Its Ineffective Scare Tactics

Teen Births

• The New Geography of Teen Mothers—"A look at why birth rates vary so dramatically across states."
• What’s Behind The Drop in U.S. Teen Birth Rates
• Miss. Turns To Cord Blood To Track Down Statutory Rapists

Bitches Behaving Badly

• Sharmeka Moffitt, Lousiana Woman Attacked, Set On Fire, KKK On House – All Self Inflicted
• Benefit cheat mother convicted for £350,000 fraud after claiming children were disabled while they were actually on stage in West End musicals
• Woman purposely blocking subway doors from closing gets what's coming

Turkey

• Turkey's troubles: Democrat or sultan?—"Recep Tayyip Erdogan should heed Turkey's street protesters, not dismiss them."
• Istanbul Gezi Park plan to proceed - Turkish PM Erdogan
• Erdogan Plays Dangerous Game by Ignoring Protester Demands

Tiananmen Square anniversary; Turkey; Woolwich, UK; World News; Free Speech; Austerity; Racism

Tiananmen Square anniversary

• Witnesses to Tiananmen Square struggle with what to tell their children
• Tiananmen Square online searches censored by Chinese authorities
• China Bans 7 Topics in University Classrooms Chronicle
• Chinese tourists' bad manners harming country's reputation, says senior official—A fifteen-year-old boy from Nanjing defaced a 3,000-year-old relic.
• China is starting to get embarrassed about its tourists' obnoxious behavior abroad
• Families demand answers on China blaze—"Protests outside poultry factory after fire kills at least 120 people - the country's worst in more than a decade." The reason why so many died was that they "could not escape the blaze at the Baoyuanfeng factory on Monday because exits were locked."
• In China, 'cancer villages' a reality of life
• In China, Hacking Has Widespread Acceptance—"Hacking in China thrives across official, corporate and criminal worlds and is openly discussed and promoted, whether for breaking into private networks, tracking dissent or stealing trade secrets." Even Google isn't safe. NYT
• US report warns on China IP theft—"The theft of intellectual property from the US is "unprecedented" and costing the nation an estimated $300bn (£200bn) each year, a report says."
• Report: Chinese hackers breach top weapons design

Turkey

• Greenpeace, Istanbul: The last tree or the final straw?
• 'Just a few looters': Turkish PM Erdogan dismisses protests as thousands occupy Istanbul's Taksim Square
• Turkish protesters decry 'unprecedented violence'
• Social media and opposition to blame for protests, says Turkish PM—"Social media is the worst menace to society,' says Recep Erdogan after thousands take control of Istanbul's main square."
• Turkish president defends people's right to protest
• Turkish police captured on video gassing a house!
• Turkey's media under fire: protests at NTV—"Critics of NTV, one of Turkey’s leading news channels, believe that it censored police brutality in its reporting of the mass protests."

Woolwich, UK

• Brutal, fatal cleaver assault in London called a terrorist attack
• Woolwich killings suspect Michael Adebolajo was inspired by cleric banned from UK after urging followers to behead enemies of Islam
• U.K. Beheading Shows It's Time To Fight the Doctrine of Jihad
• Man charged with making 'racist or anti-religious' Facebook comments about British soldier’s death
• UK police: 3 more suspects arrested in Woolwich soldier killing

World News

• We Are Now One Year Away From Global Riots, Complex Systems Theorists Say
• Has summer turned into 'riot season' in Europe?
• Youth unemployment in Greece and Spain above 50 percent
• Swedish riots: if instability can happen here, what might unfold elsewhere?
• Egypt upper house election declared illegal—"Islamist-dominated Shura Council and panel that drafted constitution ruled invalid by Supreme Constitutional Court."

Free Speech

• Kuwait media law proposes $1 million fines for insults to emir
• Singapore to regulate Yahoo, other online news sites
• Iran tightens grip on cyberspace with 'halal internet'

Austerity

• Paul Krugman's right: Austerity kills—Like, literally. Salon
• Bedroom Tax victim commits suicide: Grandmother Stephanie Bottrill blames government in tragic note
• Death and taxes in Italy

Racism

• A fascinating map of the world's most and least racially tolerant countries
• Cardinal says German women should stay home and have 'three or four children' to avoid need for immigrants
• French court to jail 'anti-white' racist for attack—"A man in the southern French city of Toulon has been given a jail sentence after racially abusing a white man, before attacking him. The victim was called a 'dirty white', and told 'this is a place for Arabs.'"
• Italian soccer match stopped due to racist abuse of Milan's Balotelli
• Pies apologise to Goodes after alleged racial slur—"Collingwood president Eddie McGuire has vowed to seek out the fan who allegedly racially abused Sydney Swans champion Adam Goodes on Friday night and ban her from the club."
• PepsiCo forced to withdraw 'racist' Mountain Dew ad
• Backlash greets Cheerios ad with interracial family