thenatureofmind

US guns fuel Mexico drug war? The politics behind the issue.

Mexican President Felipe Calderón reiterated that stance bluntly this week. "I accuse the US weapons industry of [responsibility for] the deaths of thousands of people that are occurring in Mexico," Mr. Calderón said over the weekend, while on a visit to California. "It is for profit, for the profits that it makes for the weapons industry."

Diaz says the Mexican government needs to get even tougher on the US arms industry, even finding a channel to sue it. But gun rights activists have long said this is misplaced blame – that gun laws in the US are much laxer than in Mexico and yet the same levels of violence and impunity are nowhere near what Mexico is encountering: to date more than 35,000 drug-related deaths in the past four and a half years.

US guns fuel Mexico drug war? The politics behind the issue. 

Green Party Candidate Jill Stein Arrested Protesting Keystone XL Pipeline: 'I'm Here To Connect The Dots'

After more than two months of protests against construction of the Keystone XL pipeline in Texas and Oklahoma, the arrest count has reached 33.

Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein was the latest to get arrested after she brought supplies to activist treesitters attempting to block construction of the Keystone XL pipeline in Texas. Stein issued a statement criticizing both President Obama and Governor Romney for their policies on fossil fuels:

“I’m here to connect the dots between super storm Sandy and the record heat, drought, and fire we’ve seen this year – and this Tar Sands pipeline, which will make all of these problems much worse. And I’m here to connect the dots between climate devastation and pipeline politicians – both Obama and Romney – who are competing, as we saw in the debates, for the role of Puppet In Chief for the fossil fuel industry. Both deserve that title. Obama’s record of ‘drill baby drill’ has gone beyond the harm done by George Bush. Mitt Romney promises more of the same.”

Green Party Candidate Jill Stein Arrested Protesting Keystone XL Pipeline: 'I'm Here To Connect The Dots'

Al Gore: On Hurricane Sandy

Repeat after me: "It's all a hoax, there is no global warming, there is no climate change. Humans are not affecting the climate. It's all happening naturally."

Al Gore: On Hurricane Sandy.

Alternative to Wikileaks Arises in Iceland following the passing of new media initiatives

On Sep 24 2012 an article from the Interpress service revealed that a new website titled The Associated Whistleblowing is up and running as a wikileaks alternative. As of September 30th the new website is up and operating following the passing of the Icelandic Modern Media Initiative on June 16th, 2011. Because of these initiatives Iceland is on it’s way to becoming a safe haven for investigative journalism and AWP hopes to be a frontrunner in this new arena.

Alternative to Wikileaks Arises in Iceland following the passing of new media initiatives

Chris Hedges on Occupy, Black Bloc, conservatives and more.

Ex-Government Official Says CIA Scapegoating Whistleblower John Kiriakou to Protect One of Its Own Torturers

A former government official has come forward to tell Firedoglake that the government is prosecuting whistleblower John Kiriakou on the charge of revealing an identity of a “covert CIA officer” because the CIA was “totally ticked at Kiriakou for acknowledging the use of torture as state policy.”

According to the official, the “covert CIA officer” — referred to in the indictment as Official A — was “responsible for ensuring the execution” of the worldwide Retention, Detention and Interrogation (RDI) program.

The official alleges that Official A traveled between black prison sites in the world and monitored, managed and even allegedly engaged in torture himself.

Ex-Government Official Says CIA Scapegoating Whistleblower John Kiriakou to Protect One of Its Own Torturers

Wikileaks Releases DoD Procedure Manual for Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib

WikiLeaks published early this morning hundreds of documents from the Department of Defense that describe the procedures established by the US government to be used with suspects detained by the American government who were sent to the prison Guantanamo Bay.

The organization founded by Julian Assange announced through a press release that, over the next month, the website will disseminate files about the detention policy in chronological order with the directions followed by military officials for more than a decade. Today, the founder of Wikileaks is under political asylum at the Ecuadorian Embassy and is seeking his extradition to South America in order to avoid persecution from the United States, Sweden and other nations that publicly seek revenge.

Wikileaks Releases DoD Procedure Manual for Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib

Greece arrests journalist over 'Lagarde List' leak

The list was originally leaked by an HSBC employee and then handed over by Ms Lagarde to Greek authorities two years ago, according the the AFP news agency.

Since then, successive Greek governments have been accused of trying to cover it up. "Instead of arresting the tax evaders and the ministers who had the list in their hands, they're trying to arrest the truth and freedom of the press," Mr Vaxevanis said.

Greece arrests journalist over 'Lagarde List' leak.

UN Official: Aspects Of US Drone Program Clearly 'War Crimes'

The UN's special rapporteur on counterterrorism and human rights announced Thursday that the Human Rights Council at the UN will likely initiate an investigation into civilian deaths caused by the CIA and US military's use of drones and other targeted killing programs, and said that if certain allegations against the US prove true, he considers them serious enough to call "war crimes".

UN Official: Aspects Of US Drone Program Clearly 'War Crimes'.

Assange: U.S. Military Destroys Evidence