Over the past 30 years wildfires have consistently become larger and more frequent in the Western U.S.—increasing by a rate of seven fires each year, a problem that shows no sign of stopping any time soon, according to research conducted by the University of Utah. Using satellite images, the researchers found the total breadth of…
Read moreDespite Explosion, Gaza Freedom Flotilla to Sail Against Siege: Organizers
Gaza’s Ark—a freedom flotilla aimed at breaking the Israeli blockade from within this besieged strip—was rocked by an unidentified explosion last month before it ever left the Gaza Port. Yet organizers announced Monday they intend to overcome severe damage sustained to the boat’s hull, and a history of sabotage against similar flotillas, to sail the…
Read moreSCOTUS Further Weakens EPA Power to Regulate Greenhouse Gases
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday placed further limits on the Environmental Protection Agency’s already-modest power to regulate power plant and factory emissions of greenhouse gases. The Court ruled in a 2007 case that greenhouse gases emitted by new motor vehicles constitute pollution that is subject to regulation under the Clean Air Act. Under this…
Read moreBuilding Bike Commuters One Bike Lane at a Time
It’s that time of year: Bicyclists young and old are lubing chains and dusting off cheap supermarket bikes, top-of-the line Treks and everything in between. A bike, of course, offers a way to get exercise, reduce your carbon footprint or just have fun. But biking activity, in large part, is driven by the pedaling opportunities…
Read moreRevealed: Gov't Used Fusion Centers to Spy on Occupy
U.S. government Fusion Centers, which operate as ill-defined “counter-terrorism” intelligence gathering and sharing centers, conducted spy operations against Occupy protesters involving police, the Pentagon, the FBI, military employees, and business people. So finds a report released Friday by the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund based on 4,000 public documents obtained through a Freedom of Information…
Read more'Unprecedented': Critics Assail Kafkaesque Secret Trial in UK
For the first time in the UK’s modern legal history, two men could face an entirely secret criminal trial for terrorism charges, their identities, the proceedings, and the verdict concealed from the public record. First reported Wednesday, the blackout sparked alarm among human rights campaigners, lawyers, and politicians. “To hold trials entirely in secret is…
Read moreThousands Call for 'No War' as Japanese Govt Authorizes Re-Militarization
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Tuesday announced that despite public opposition the government of Japan was re-authorizing the military, marking a dramatic shift from the nation’s decades-long pledge to pacifism. In a meeting Tuesday, the government Cabinet approved a reinterpretation of Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution, permitting Japan to now exercise the right to…
Read moreGermany Expels CIA Station Chief After Spying Scandals
Click:辦公室租用 Following the discovery of two German intelligence agents possibly working as spies for the U.S., the German government on Thursday ordered the expulsion of a CIA station chief operating in Berlin. “The representative of the U.S. intelligence services at the Embassy of the United States of America was asked to leave Germany,” said government…
Read moreUS Stands Alone in Vote Against UN Inquiry Into Gaza Assault
The United States was the only country in the world that voted Wednesday against the United Nations investigating human rights violations in Gaza unleashed by Israel’s military assault. Of the 47 members of the UN Human Rights Council, 29 nations voted to set up a commission to launch an international, independent inquiry, effectively passing the…
Read moreNYC Police Union Chief Defends NYPD's Killing of Eric Garner
After the chief medical examiner of New York City officially declared Eric Garner’s death a homicide, police union chief Patrick Lynch vehemently defended the New York Police Department, holding a press conference on Tuesday to deny the findings and the video evidence of Garner’s assault by NYPD officers. “It was not a chokehold,” Lynch, president…
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