Sunday, December 29, 2013

29 Dec - Blogs I'm Following

10:34am MST

National Security Agency Updates December 29 , 2013 - Glenn Greenwald: ‘A Lot’ More NSA Documents to Come ....... Obama’s NSA Phone Spying Reforms Might Make Things Worse

Fred Walton at Catharsis Ours - 17 minutes ago
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2013/12/greenwald-lot-nsa-documents-come/ Glenn Greenwald: ‘A Lot’ More NSA Documents to Come - BY JOHN BORLAND - 12.27.13 - 5:49 PM [image: A popular sentiment at the CCC.] A popular sentiment at the CCC. Nearly seven months after journalist and privacy activist Glenn Greenwald publicized Edward Snowden’s first revelations of the vast scope of the NSA’s digital surveillance, his life has changed absolutely. Living in Brazil, he is advised not to travel. He’s a hero to privacy activists, and demonized by governments and national security age... more »

Wild Bill: Has something to say to atheists...

Adrienne at Adrienne's Corner - 34 minutes ago
*is the spirit of God speaking to you?* *Are you listening? *

Use of Value-Added Is "Parochial and Ineffectual"

Jim Horn at Schools Matter - 1 hour ago
Tennessee is the test site for every crackpot, over-the-top corporate thought disorder that is translatable into an ed industry scheme that fronts as education policy. The state has TFA lawyer and the former Mr. Michelle Rhee, Kevin Huffman, running the schools from Nashville as Commissioner, and earlier this year Huffman and Jeb Bush's Chiefs for Change, a front organization for laundering corporate education cash, came up with a plan to use student test scores (TVAAS) as the sole criterion for decisions related to teacher licensure renewal. As a result, Tennessee teachers have ... more »

ASSORTED OUTRAGES AND RAMBLINGS

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 1 hour ago
- Two days ago more than 100,000 people turned out in Seoul, South Korea to call for the resignation of right-wing President Park, the daughter of a former US puppet and brutal dictator. The South Koreans have had it with their corporate dominated government that has drowned their democracy and they are non-violently pushing back. We have so much to learn from the South Korean movements. - Over Christmas we had one of our dear local friends and her children share the holiday with us. The single mother and her girls lived here at the Addams-Melman Ho... more »

Rammstein ,”Du Hast”

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 1 hour ago
Rammstein ,”Du Hast” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gZ25MYwWpM

We must not simply add water to the stream. More is expected of us.

Shaun Johnson at @ THE CHALK FACE - 1 hour ago
I recently read this article from the Atlantic on the constant “stream” of information online. Some of it meaningful, most of it not. From the Atlantic: The necessity of nowness plus the professionalization of content production for the stream means that there are thousands and thousands of people churning out more crap than can possibly […]

Musical Interlude: Josh Groban, “Remember When It Rained”

noreply@blogger.com (CoyotePrime) at Running 'Cause I Can't Fly - 2 hours ago
Josh Groban, “Remember When It Rained” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3bEU70R1Yo

Alternative views to ponder December 29 , 2013 - Discussion on who may have been behind 9/11 .... Obama may want to keep his eyes on Saudis and their geopolitical " comrades " ! April 2013 military style raid ( unsolved to date ) a beta test ? NDAA indefinite nullified in Michigan - how many other states follow ?

Fred Walton at Catharsis Ours - 2 hours ago
http://patdollard.com/2013/12/when-the-mossad-and-saudis-want-you-dead-what-happens-next-arabs-say-world-renowned-liar-barack-you-can-keep-your-plan-obama-stabbed-us-in-the-back/ [image: ObamaCrosshairs] [image: obama-orders-us-to-draw-up-overseas-target-list-for-cyber-attacks] *Saudis Say World-Renowned Liar Barack ‘You Can Keep Your Plan’ Obama ‘Stabbed Us In The Back’* *Both the Saudis and Israel are determined that Barack Obama not give Iran a nuclear program. They feel their lives depend on it. Obama is 100% determined that Iran get a nuclear program. If Obama were to no longer ... more »

Sick leave

Libby Spencer at The Impolitic - 2 hours ago
Sorry, I've been too sick to blog for the last few days. All I want to do is sleep. Going to break down and go out and buy some medicine today, so maybe that will help. I will be back.

Vengeance Is Theirs

Owen Gray at Northern Reflections - 2 hours ago
As part of their tough on crime agenda, the Harperites have instituted mandatory victim fines. They claim that the fines will ensure justice is done. But, Michael Spratt writes, the fines have nothing to do with justice -- and judges have refused to impose them: Given the lack of evidence supporting the use of minimum penalties and the potential negative impacts of mandatory victim fines, the current confrontation was entirely predictable. Conflict between the courts and government is what you get when legislative ideology isn’t backed up by facts. Turning a blind eye to evidenc... more »

Untitled

New Orleans Ladder at New Orleans Ladder - 3 hours ago
*St. Aug's Leonard Fournette is Mr. Football ~Mike Strom, Louisiana Sportswriters Association*

REVOLVING DOOR OF CORRUPTION

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 3 hours ago

Some links

Michael Turton at The View from Taiwan - 3 hours ago
*Old school newspaper and drink stand operated by an old couple, Taichung.* Don't feel like blogging. Enjoy. - Taichung plans to ban scooters in certain areas in 2021. Hahaha. - China Chips away at Taiwan's tablet industry - No really: college student mildly abuses cat, could get a year. Meanwhile puppy mills, stray dog poisoners, slaughterhouses, all over Taiwan regularly abusing animals. Be serious. - State-run CNA and PTS issue call for reciprocal exchange of media with China. Of course those media offices will be full on PRC spying operations. - Bro... more »

Bipartisan Move To End Unconstitutional Domestic Spying

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 3 hours ago
There are now 117 congressmembers cosponsoring H.R. 3361, the John Sensenbrenner and John Conyers-penned USA Freedom Act introduced at the end of October. The official summary of the bill says it aims to end "eavesdropping, dragnet-collection, and Online Monitoring Act or the USA FREEDOM Act-- Amends the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) to set forth additional requirements for obtaining orders for business records in counterterrorism investigations, including requiring that the records sought pertain to a foreign power, an agent of a foreign power, or an indivi... more »

A Reminder: “The Children Do Notice”

plthomasedd at @ THE CHALK FACE - 3 hours ago
A Reminder: \”The Children Do Notice\”. via A Reminder: “The Children Do Notice”.

Andrew Lilley and the Stoke Labour "Conspiracy"

Phil at A Very Public Sociologist - 3 hours ago
It's good to see Stoke Central Labour in the national press. Not so good when it's about my local constituency party having had at ten grand nicked by its former treasurer. Back in November, the Stoke-on-Trent Labour-turned-unaligned councillor Andy Lilley was sent down for 16 months after his pilfering of party funds were uncovered. You can read a bit about the subsequent by-election this caused here and here. Unfortunately, as per the "idiosyncratic" nature of local politics in the Potteries this has become the pivot of a local conspiracy theory. A theory given life by some of th... more »

SUNDAY SONG

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 3 hours ago

War Watch December 29 , 2013 - Syria , Iran , Afghanistan and Iraq in focus !

Fred Walton at Catharsis Ours - 3 hours ago
Syria...... Syrian rebels get arms and advice through secret command centre in Amman Phil Sands and Suha Maayeh December 28, 2013 Updated: December 29, 2013 13:48:00 Istanbul // A secret operations command centre in Jordan, staffed by western and Arab military officials, has given vital support to rebels fighting on Syria’s southern front, providing them with weapons and tactical advice on attacking regime targets. Related - ■ Aid to Syrian rebels flows through a complex maze - [image: Comment] Religious edicts broaden the scope of the Syrian co... more »

Benghazi Consular attack was Local, not al-Qaeda: NYT ...... Another attempt to revive the offensive islamic video as cause ?

Fred Walton at Catharsis Ours - 4 hours ago
http://hotair.com/archives/2013/12/29/ny-times-hey-that-youtube-did-have-something-to-do-with-benghazi-attack-after-all/ NY Times: Hey, that YouTube video did have something to do with Benghazi attack after all POSTED AT 10:31 AM ON DECEMBER 29, 2013 BY ED MORRISSEY The New York Times produced a lengthy update on a story that conservatives complain the media ignores, but most won’t like what it says. David Kirkpatrick traveled to Benghazi to dig into the attack on our consulate in Benghazi, a terrorist attack that left four Americans dead — on the eleventh anniversary of 9/11. ... more »

BitCoin news and views December 27 - 28 , 2013 - Pro and Con news and views on BitCoin.......

Catharsis Ours - 4 hours ago
Pro....... http://www.coindesk.com/goldman-sachs-director-board-bitcoin-startup-circle/ ( Vampire squid heavy hitter and current director on board at BitCoin Start Up Firm Circle Internet Financial ) Goldman Sachs Director to Join Board of Bitcoin Startup Circle Jon Southurst (@southtopia) | Published on December 28, 2013 at 12:09 GMT | *Companies, Exchanges,News, Startups* inShare1 Share 22 [image: MMBurns] Goldman Sachs board member M. Michele Burns is joining the board of new bitcoin payment processor Circle Internet Financial, becoming the latest representative from the worl... more »

Did The American Federation of Teachers Really Do This???

jillconroy at @ THE CHALK FACE - 4 hours ago
Last month, Boston voters elected a new Mayor, arguably with a little help from a mysterious political action committee that dumped $480,000 into the campaign during its final days. One Boston confirmed to the Boston Globe this week that the American Federation of Teachers funded the group’s efforts to swing the race in favor of Mayor-elect Marty […]

This Was Philosophical Comment 2013

noreply@blogger.com (Christian Munthe) at Philosophical Comment - 5 hours ago
Time once again to make a bit of a summary for this blog during a year which will soon end – last year's summary is here. The trend mentioned last year of a seemingly (after my recovery from illness) continuously increasing popularity (in terms of reads) seems this year to have initially continued and then leveled out somewhat after last year's extremely positive surge. The monthly figures have in 2013 been residing rather steadily between over 6 000 and over 9 000 reads, with 9 549 as the top figure for September. There will, however, be a notable dip in reads for this the last mon... more »

AlterNet 2013

plthomasedd at @ THE CHALK FACE - 5 hours ago
AlterNet 2013. via AlterNet 2013.

"Holocaust survivors" and psychological terrorism

John Friend at John Friend's Blog - 7 hours ago
The fake Jewish "Holocaust" narrative is instilled and implanted in the minds of millions of people around the world - especially young, vulnerable children - largely through psychological terrorism and media manipulation, a subject *I've written about before* and will continue to emphasize. Traumatic images and videos, which in virtually all cases turn out to be either completely fabricated or flagrantly distorted, manipulated, and/or taken out of context, along with extremely emotional (and entirely fabricated or embellished) "eye witness testimony" from "Holocaust survivors" have... more »

A Simple Sourdough Starter

Stranger in a Strange Land at Stranger in a Strange Land - 7 hours ago
Simple sourdough starter Sick of seeing a dozen or more things on the ingredients list of an industrial loaf? Well, here are the first step to making a loaf with just three! - *A bit about sourdough* - *Recipe/method* - *Notes* - *Caring for your starter* see also - Our main sourdough page - Sourdough September A bit about sourdoughTrue sourdough breads are made using a starter that contains a culture of naturally occurring yeasts and lactobacilli or lactic acid bacteria. The yeasts produce carbon dioxide (CO2) that makes the bread rise and the bacteria produc... more »

THE FOURTH REICH; BIS; DONALD MACLAREN

Anon at aangirfan - 7 hours ago
*Donald MacLaren* During World War II, Donald MacLaren, a Scottish clan chief, was given the task of fighting the Nazis in America. He was up against people such as Bush, Rockefeller, the Dulles brothers and various bankers. *The spying Scotsman who hunted the Nazis of New York* ... - Daily Mail *Maison Rouge* According to a US intelligence document, in 1944, a group of top Nazi industrialists met at the Maison Rouge Hotel in Strasbourg. They met to plan 'The Fourth Reich', which would be set up after World War II. In 'The Fourth Reich', Nazi bankers and industrialists would ru... more »

Kittens investigate Newton's cradle

Luboš Motl at The Reference Frame - 7 hours ago
We often think that the humans are the culmination of the Creation. However, kittens are ahead of us. Dr Panda, Dr Pikachu, and Dr Pavel (the principal investigators above) decided to do some research of Newton's cradle. Their research strategy was wise and the tactics were clever. And the performance was so cute and their creativity was so mesmerizing that it is no wonder they received a $300 million grant from NSF. For those readers who are not that far, Newton's cradle demonstrates the conservation of energy and the conservation of momentum. Both quantities are conserve... more »

Magnification of all Gaia Collective and Gaia Inhabitants’ Intents Attains Maximum Level…

Obi-Wan Kabuki at AMERICAN KABUKI - 7 hours ago
*Magnification of all Gaia Collective and Gaia Inhabitants’ Intents Attains Maximum Level…* by ÉirePort Magnification of all Gaia Collective and Gaia inhabitants' intents attains maximum level for the 2013 period. In practice, this period asks for all Hue-Beings to practice care with intent, and refrain from "side thoughts", also referred to in previous post as "Novelty” energy items. Finalizing of Gaia Ascension protocols is now in process, and focusing of this magnified intent is primary. Predication* of collective mass upward movement now occurs. [* predicate: 1. to proclaim... more »

Thailand: Regime Appeals to Same "International Consensus" That Green-Lighted Iraq Invasion

Land Destroyer at Land Destroyer - 8 hours ago
*December 29, 2013* (Tony Cartalucci) - Failing to defend the legitimacy of upcoming sham elections, the regime's minister of foreign affairs (and deputy prime minister), Surapong Tovichakchaikul, has instead decided to invoke the common fallacy of appealing to authority, by claiming "53 nations" have backed upcoming polls that will essentially see the current regime of unelected dictator, Thaksin Shinawatra and his Puea Thai Party run unopposed. *Image: The current Thai regime's foreign minister, Surapong Tovichakchaikul, invokes the tired fallacy of appealing to authority, in t... more »

Harga HP Samsung Galaxy Terbaru Januari 2014

Jack Will at Yaya Blog's - 8 hours ago
Harga HP Samsung Galaxy Terbaru Januari 2014 - Samsung selalu menghadirkan HP terbaru yang berkualitas melalui jajaran Samsung Galaxy Series. Dan yang terbaru, Pabrikan smartphone asal Korea Selatan ini baru saja merilis Galaxy Grand 2 dan Galaxy Core Advance. Berikut ini adalah daftar harga smartphone Samsung Galaxy terbaru akhir Januari 2014 yang dilansir dari toko online terkemuka di

Daftar Harga HP Lenovo Terbaru Januari 2014

Jack Will at Yaya Blog's - 8 hours ago
Daftar Harga HP Lenovo Terbaru Januari 2014 - Vendor asal China Lenovo kini cukup serius menggarap pasar HP android. Berikut ini adalah daftar harga HP terbaru dari Lenovo untuk bulan Januari 2014 . Harga HP Lenovo Terbaru Januari 2014 untuk Segmen menengah dan bawah, harga smartphone Lenovo relatif stabil dan tidak mengalami perubahan harga. Lenovo A390 tidak mengalami penurunan meski telah

Daftar Harga HP Lenovo Terbaru Januari 2014

Jack Will at Yaya Blog's - 8 hours ago
Daftar Harga HP Lenovo Terbaru Januari 2014 - Vendor asal China Lenovo kini cukup serius menggarap pasar HP android. Berikut ini adalah daftar harga HP terbaru dari Lenovo untuk bulan Januari 2014 . Harga HP Lenovo Terbaru Januari 2014 untuk Segmen menengah dan bawah, harga smartphone Lenovo relatif stabil dan tidak mengalami perubahan harga. Lenovo A390 tidak mengalami penurunan meski telah

Harga Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Terbaru

Jack Will at Yaya Blog's - 8 hours ago
Samsung Galaxy Note 3 merupakan salah satu phablet yang populer di Indonesia saat ini. Pada awal 2014 ini, Harga Samsung Galaxy Note 3 ini berada pada kisaran di angka Rp 7.899.000 atau Rp 7,9 juta. Harga yang tinggi tak menghalanginya menjadi phablet terpopuler di pasar global. Samsung Galaxy Note 3 ini menggunakan layar berukuran 5,7 inci berteknologi Super AMOLED dengan resolusi full HD 1920

Antidepressants Numbing Minds of Children - An Interview With Anthony Gucciardi

Stranger in a Strange Land at Stranger in a Strange Land - 9 hours ago
*Published on December 11, 2013* Anthony Gucciardi joins RT's The Truthseeker to discuss how antidepressants are numbing down the brains of children, leading to the very effects they claim to prevent, and profiting the pharmaceutical industry. *To learrn more about Anthony, visit:* *Natural Society*

The Year of the Whistleblower 2013

brendanorrell@gmail.com at CENSORED NEWS - 12 hours ago
The truth is the one thing that the US can not recover from By Brenda Norrell Censored News The year of 2013 was the year of the whistleblower. Edward Snowden exposed that the US is spying on, and collecting data, belonging to the world's citizens and diplomats. A World Bank whistleblower exposed how the financial elite control the world, and bought the media to silence it. Global

Online-Comments Watch: Are people just stoopid, or helpless, or what?

KenInNY at DownWithTyranny! - 12 hours ago
*I'm not saying there aren't better Blu-ray players on the market, but my eerily compact, incredibly inexpensive region-free Orei BDP-A3 does everything I can imagine asking it to do and is working just fine, thank you! The remote control too. Some of those online commenters really need help.* *by Ken* I'm realizing that after all these years, I may have acquired something like religion, the object of my worship being Amazon Gold Box Specials. Well, mostly the video offerings thereof. Let me see, there were DVD offerings of the complete *Dick Van Dyke Show*, *Route 66*, *Columbo*,... more »

Trifecta: Dumps on the Pope?...

Adrienne at Adrienne's Corner - 13 hours ago
*Bill Whittle goes off...* and we thank him. Income Inequality: The next war.

NGA “Corporate Fellows”: Providing Governors Ideas That Work

deutsch29 at @ THE CHALK FACE - 13 hours ago
For four of the five years that I taught in Northwestern Georgia, I taught at an alternative school. Every time I received a new student, it meant that the student had been expelled from a district public school. I had a student who built a bomb and discharged it on a principal’s lawn. I had […]

the ufo factor

Oberon at GlobaLove Think Tank - 14 hours ago

sorry

Oberon at GlobaLove Think Tank - 14 hours ago

The Idiocracy Files (Redux), Part 4: Special Arkansas Edition

KenInNY at DownWithTyranny! - 15 hours ago
[*We continue our encore presentation of Noah's Idiocracy series. And don't forget Noah's new "Need a last-minute Christmas gift suggestion?," "50 Years Ago Today: The Beatles," and "A Tale of Two Popes -- the one in the Vatican and the one in North Carolina."*] *"A child who disrespects his parents must be permanently removed from society in a way that gives an example to all other children of the importance of respect for parents. The death penalty for rebellious children is not something to be taken lightly."* *-- former Arkansas State Rep. Charlie Fuqua (see below)* [*As Noah e... more »

What's missing from this map?

James C Morton at Morton's Musings - 16 hours ago
Perhaps the Russians prepared it???

The Bankruptcy of America – 1933

urupiper at Yesterday 's Lies - 16 hours ago
[image: http://anticorruptionsociety.com/the-bankruptcy-of-america-1933/?blogsub=confirming#subscribe-blog] [The following is excerpted from Judge Dale's *The Great American Adventure - Secrets of America.*] By Judge Dale, retired [image: our corrupt legal system_2] Public Trust On March 9, 1933, House Joint Resolution No. 192-10 by the 73rd Congress, was voted into law, which is the Emergency Banking Act. This Act declared the Treasury of the United States, ‘Bankrupt’, which is an impossible feat since the U. S. Treasury was secretly closed by the Congress twelve years earlier in... more »

Similar Fact Evidence

James C Morton at Morton's Musings - 16 hours ago
R. v. P.E.L., 2013 BCCA 542: [20] Similar act evidence exemplifies a type of propensity reasoning. It could be colloquially expressed by the aphorism that a leopard does not change its spots. Of course, this sort of reasoning collides squarely with the long established common law rule that no one should be convicted simply by reason of rascality or a disreputable history – see *Harrison's Trial*(1692), 12 How. St. Tr. 833 (Old Bailey (London)), referred to by Binnie J. in*R. v. Handy*, 2002 SCC 56 (CanLII), 2002 SCC 56, [2002] 2 S.C.R. 908 at para. 32. He said at p. 926, p... more »

Big Foot Riders Photos by Pte San Win

brendanorrell@gmail.com at CENSORED NEWS - 17 hours ago
Photos by Pte San WinPublished with permission at Censored News(Above) This photo was at the Cheyenne River by Bridger the first day the OGLALA's joined with Standing Rock and Cheyenne River relatives for the Big Foot Ride 2013. 12-23-13 Oglala Akicita Ronald Cross Dog - Little, the morning of 12-23-13 the first day he joined with relatives from Standing Rock and Cheyenne River on the

Shelby County Accepts Hard Cash to Settle Civil Rights Lawsuit Brought Against Municipalities

Jim Horn at Schools Matter - 18 hours ago
Last year when Shelby County saw the lucrative Gates plan for turning over Memphis City schools to corporations melting away, the County filed a lawsuit against five suburban municipalities that were threatening to form their own school systems to avoid the Gates consolidation. The ostensible basis for the lawsuit was that the five new leafy suburban districts would exacerbate segregation in the remaining county schools. When the pending lawsuit failed to block the formation of the new school districts, thanks to neo-segregationists at the state level, the County essentially black... more »

File Under: What If...

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 19 hours ago
If you're following the narrative on the blog with any regularity over the week, you probably noticed we've been taking a close look at Stephen Kinzer's brilliant new book, The Brothers, an intense look at the two worst and most destructive arch-villains in 20th Century American history. Having a major international airport named after John Foster Dulles is a slap in the face to all Americans who revere democracy and detest the aggressive fascism he espoused his entire miserable life. The Dulles brothers had just finished deposing the democratically elected prime minister of Iran... more »

Remembering the Gaza Massacre

Nima Shirazi at Wide Asleep in America - 20 hours ago
Government ministry buildings destroyed by an Israeli airstrike on December 30, 2008 in Gaza City, Gaza Strip. (Photo Credit: Abid Katib/Getty Images) On December 27, 2008 – five years ago today – Israel launched a devastating military assault on the besieged people of Gaza. Relentless bombing and destruction continued for 22 days, during which time the Israeli army invaded the occupied

"Am I free to go?"

James C Morton at Morton's Musings - 20 hours ago
The post on Carding raised a concern among readers that cooperating with police as a custom makes Carding effective. That's quite true. My concern is that for most young black men (and that's who are stopped - let's not pretend otherwise) anything other than immediate and polite cooperation might lead to unfortunate results. Remember it's a good idea to save yourself and then save the world. However, if if if one wants to exercise ones rights on being stopped a viable line is: "I do not wish to answer any questions. Am I free to go?" This repeated several times will likely le... more »

Karl Muck playing Parsifal

James C Morton at Morton's Musings - 20 hours ago
One of the wonders of modern life is the ability to access major works of art almost anywhere. I recall when finding historic recordings required visiting record stores and hoping some obscure bin might have a Furtwangler or Hertz or Muck. Rarely indeed were such recordings to be found. That said, earlier today I downloaded Karl Muck's recordings of Parsifal from the late 20's (there is some issue as to whether they are studio or live or a mix). Muck has a direct connection to Wagner; whether we can say this is how Wagner would have presented Parsifal is not clear. But certainly... more »

Mike Duffy

LeDaro at LeDaro - 20 hours ago
I wonder what is he doing these days?

Year’s End

theozarker at The Conflicted Doomer - 21 hours ago
December 28, 2013 I made a pot of chicken and vegetable soup for Christmas dinner (and supper). And before you say, “Poor old woman,” this was a deliberate choice based on several factors – the main one being, had I … Continue reading →

Crippling Government

Owen Gray at Northern Reflections - 22 hours ago
Eugene Lang writes that, if you want to know what Stephen Harper has "accomplished," all you need do is tally up his tax cuts: Over the past eight years, most major categories of federal taxes have been cut deeply — from personal income taxes, to corporate income taxes, to the GST — so much so that Canada now has the second lowest business and consumption taxes in the G7. In addition, a litany of tax credits have been put in place, notably the Children’s Fitness Tax Credit, the Public Transit Credit, The Home Renovation Tax Credit and The Tax Credit for first time home buyers. An... more »

New look for blovel

risa bear at A Way to Live - 22 hours ago
New look for blovel header, illustration by Katrin Orav. http://starvationridge.blogspot.com/ Book cover to follow. No, I had not read Hunger Games when I wrote this. It's more like a The Road/Seven Samurai mashup. http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/risabee

What research really says about "explicit and structured" phonics

skrashen at Schools Matter - 22 hours ago
Sent to the West Australian (Dec. 28) "New reading rules for kids," (Dec. 27) states that " ...international research has found that explicit and structured teaching of phonics - the relationship between letters and sounds - is the most effective way to teach reading." Not so. What research says is that the impact of explicit and structured phonics is strong only on tests in which children read lists of words in isolation; it is minuscule on tests in which children have to understand what they read. By far, the best predictor of how well children read for meaning is the amount o... more »

Will 2015 Be Labour's Poisoned Chalice?

Phil at A Very Public Sociologist - 23 hours ago
It's tough being a political party. Life outside of government is relatively care free affair. You can formulate policy, spend your time critiquing and criticising, and look forward to a fair amount of time sat atop opinion polls. But once you're in power it's a whole different ball game. It's time to come up with the goods you promised in opposition. It's an occasion for breaking promises and getting found out, as our friends the Liberal Democrats have found to their cost. A party's image takes a battering, its representatives in local, devolved and European bodies pay the price o... more »

Caturday Blogging

jurassicpork at Welcome Back to Pottersville - 23 hours ago
Guys, I'm so sorry for the complete lack of posts since Christmas. I'm sure you can all appreciate what demands the silly season makes on us. And right now, my thoughts aren't on the political landscape of the here and now but 1888 Whitechapel. Last night, in a 4000+ word last gasp, I'd finally completed the first draft of *Tatterdemalion*, my epic novel spanning 244,000+ words and over 600 pages. I've been working on it since late February this year and I finally have a complete draft. I've already finished the reformatting and all the headaches real writers publishing real b... more »

Are the elites in Pyongyang all that different from those in DC or NYC or most anywhere else?

KenInNY at DownWithTyranny! - 23 hours ago
*"Gee, I wish we had one of them Doomsday Machines."* *-- Gen. Buck Turgidson (George C. Scott)* *In the U.S. War Room, Soviet ambassador Alexi de Sadesky (Peter Bull) reveals the existence of his country's Doomsday Machine to the American security brain trust, including President Merkin Muffley and technology genius Dr. Strangelove (both Peter Sellers) as well as General Turgidson.* The execution of the uncle of Kim Jong-un, North Korea's leader, had its roots in a firefight between forces loyal to Mr. Kim and those supporting the man who was supposed to be his regent, according to... more »

I THANK MY MOTHER

Bruce K. Gagnon at Organizing Notes - 23 hours ago
*4th of July in Bath, Maine* I often suffer from the world. Maybe because we moved around in my Air Force family so much I have always found myself deeply identifying with suffering people everywhere. Because I lived in Germany and England when I was young I never considered myself an "American" when we moved back stateside. Really my only loyalty to America was the Baltimore Orioles baseball them - my version of a hometown - and hamburgers. I didn't think much about US military bases when I was young. When we were overseas we spent good periods of time living "on the economy" - ... more »

Sovereignty 101:Installment 3 - The Myth of Accumulation

Sophia Love at AMERICAN KABUKI - 23 hours ago
What you see as your daily life becomes burdensome as its purpose moves further up the food chain than you. Fulfillment is part of your every day when you have chosen a work, occupation, pastime or activity that on some level satisfies a desire or allows an expression or expansion of who you are. Most of your time is currently spent consumed in activity that serves the purpose of maintaining your physical life. You have to eat and desire a place to sleep. Perhaps there are others you feel responsible for as well. These facts alone create in you a “need” to work at some... more »

Thailand: Dead Policeman Shot from Above Where Regime Gunmen Were

Land Destroyer at Land Destroyer - 1 day ago
*December 28, 2013* (Tony Cartalucci) - Thai PBS confirms that Police Sergeant Major Narong Pitisit was killed by a bullet fired from above, in its article titled, "Chalerm told to clarify “men in black” at the Labour Ministry." It stated (emphasis added): PDRC spokesman Aekkanat Promphan said on Friday that there was no way that protesters could get into the Labour Ministry’s building and climb up to the rooftop unnoticed whereas all the police were deployed at the centre to prevent protesters from breaking in. He added that he would like to know whether Chalerm was aware of the ... more »

New Year's Resolution: Resist the Lists

Karen Garcia at Sardonicky - 1 day ago
I don't know about you, but whenever I see a headline with the words Best Of, Worst Of, Most Shocking Moments of 2013, Best Tweets of the Year, etc., etc. I do an immediate Gump, and run Forrest run. In this last week of the best of all possible worst years ever, we are being inundated by a veritable plague of lists. Have you noticed that *Duck Dynasty* seems to be on every single one of them? A cartoonish Methuselah homophobe racist is only the latest wedge issue in the culture wars that define the divide-and-conquer politics of the ruling class. The timing of Phil Robertson's Firs... more »

Postales de Año Nuevo 2014 con mensajes bonitos

José Luis Ávila Herrera at FOTOFRONTERA - 1 day ago

PEDOPHILES

Anon at aangirfan - 1 day ago
*Professor Cantor* Professor James M. Cantor claims to be an expert on pedophiles. He takes an interest in various paraphilias, such as: Feederism which is about being sexually aroused by eating. Maschalagnia which is about being sexually aroused by armpits. Pedovestism which is about being sexually aroused while dressed like a child. Stigmatophilia which is about being sexually roused by tatoos and body piercings. Professor James M. Cantor is an American clinical psychologist and research scientist. *He is an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the Univers... more »

Time Warped: Repeated Rhetoric of Urgency from Israel to Iran

Nima Shirazi at Wide Asleep in America - 1 day ago
"You will be the death of me.     You will be the death of me." - Time Is Running Out (Muse, 2003) Earlier this week, journalist and author Max Blumenthal posted an excellent piece in Mondoweiss detailing the repetition of the "time is running out" bromide, so often used in discussions about the so-called two-state solution in Israel/Palestine by those who promote the endless and

War Plan Red

Paul Coker at News Spike - 1 day ago
Joint Army and Navy Basic War Plan Red, also known as the Atlantic Strategic War Plan, was a plan for the United States to make war with the British Empire (the "Red" forces). It was developed by the United States Army following the 1927 Geneva Naval Conference; and approved in May 1930 by the Secretary of War and the Secretary of Navy and updated in 1934–35. In 1939 it was decided that further planning was no longer applicable but that the plan be retained. Canada (Crimson), Great Britain, Northern Ireland and Newfoundland (Red), British Raj (Ruby), Australia (Scarlet), New Zeal... more »

Are children in D.C. learning more?

bob somerby at the daily howler - 1 day ago
*SATURDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2013* *In the Post, Whitmire says yes:* Are children in D.C.’s public schools learning more than they did in the past? Have their reading skills advanced? Do today’s students know more math than their counterparts from earlier years? That’s the way it looks on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, even after disaggregation. But uh-oh! Because we liberals know as a matter of faith that such things *cannot* be true, Valerie Strauss invented a set of ridiculous claims to explain the score gains away. To examine Strauss' claims, click this. As always,... more »

Gold and silver news and views - December 28 , 2013 .... Data , pertinent articles and views on and / or touching on the precious metals ..... bonus items exposing the fake fed taper (

Fred Walton at Catharsis Ours - 1 day ago
http://www.caseyresearch.com/gsd/edition/cheaper-gold-brings-new-customers-to-dubai-in-droves ¤ YESTERDAY IN GOLD & SILVER Despite the big decline in the dollar index, there was almost no sign of that in the price action for gold in Far East and early London trading on their Friday. The smallish rally in late-afternoon Far East trading got dealt with in the usual manner at the London open---and the gold price was back below the Thursday New York close by the London morning gold fix. After that, the gold price didn't do a lot until around 8:45 a.m EST in Comex trading. Then, in les... more »

Fukushima nuclear debacle updates - following Fukushima pollution around the globe and into th global food chain.... State of play and decay of Fukushima nuclear plants...... Update on removal of the fuel rods at Reactor building 4

Catharsis Ours - 1 day ago
Energy News..... 07:34 PM EST on December 27th, 2013 | 25 comments Radio: Experts warn ocean currents spreading Fukushima contamination across world — Official 4,000 miles away: Radiation in seafood imports increased noticeably; Time for all stakeholders to be on alert (AUDIO) 02:31 PM EST on December 27th, 2013 | 87 comments Reports: Highly significant quantity of fission products are flushed into environment by water used on Fukushima molten fuel, including plutonium and curium — Radioactivity to recirculate for many generations in ocean food chain, meat content will increase with... more »

I'm not against the police; I'm just afraid of them.

James C Morton at Morton's Musings - 1 day ago
Alfred Hitchcock

Ben Carnes 'Remembering Carter Camp'

brendanorrell@gmail.com at CENSORED NEWS - 1 day ago
Carter Camp: R.I.P. 2013 "We Decided that our Indian people are more important to us than long jail terms." Carter Camp, Ponca Nation, Wounded Knee 1973 By Ben Carnes, Choctaw Eaglemanz Carter Camp painted as a warrior at Wounded Knee Remembering people of their words and actions has been my way of mourning, as a way to keep their spirit alive in our memories. His words above

Israel's Hilarious Hysteria:or, How Many North Koreas Does It Take to Fear-Monger About Iran?

Nima Shirazi at Wide Asleep in America - 1 day ago
Back in April, Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Yuval Steinitz took the stage at the second annual Jerusalem Post Conference in New York City and told the right-wing crowd that, among other things, an Iran with an atomic arsenal would be "equal to 30 nuclear North Koreas." Steinitz repeated all the favored Israeli talking points; he called Iran an "existential threat," tossed out lazy

Carding - is it legal?

James C Morton at Morton's Musings - 1 day ago
Carding, that is police stopping of pedestrians on the street, and asking for identification and other information, is in the news again. (Note, if you are stopped I urge you always to be polite with police regardless of your legal rights. Unless you actually have something problematic on your person cooperate fully. If you have something problematic then politely say "I believe I do not have to answer any questions or show you what I have on me. I refuse to answer any questions or show you what I have on me. May I go now?" If they arrest you the police then have to justify their act... more »

AA: "Flight 11 Did Not Fly on 911!"

Len Hart at The Existentialist Cowboy - 1 day ago
*by Len Hart, The Existentialist Cowboy* American Airlines is the source for information that AA Flights 11 (North Tower) and 77 (Pentagon) did not fly on 9/11. WikiScanner discovered that American Airlines changed the Wikipedia entry to state that Flights 11 and 77 were not in the air on 9/11. WikiScanner offers users a searchable database that ties millions of anonymous Wikipedia edits to organizations where those edits apparently originated, by cross-referencing the edits with data on who owns the associated block of internet IP addresses.Reference: http://www.wired.com/politics... more »

Judging the (European) judges

Craig at Is the BBC biased? - 1 day ago
Some senior British judges are now echoing the concerns expressed by many British people (including me) that the unelected judges of the European Court of Human Rights are aggressively asserting their right to overrule British laws, as devised by our own sovereign elected parliament, and that that's a bad thing. Anyone from a planet orbiting Alpha Centauri who enjoys watching what the neighbours are getting up to behind closed clouds (especially over Britain) and who keeps tuning into BBC News (through their ever-so-fetching green antennae) might infer (from the BBC) that those c... more »

FEPZs on the march into education

Michael Turton at The View from Taiwan - 1 day ago
*Are those egg cases on its back?* The Free Economic Pilot Zone initiative continues to advance, as Taiwan Today observes. Apparently one area to be liberalized is education, foreign institutions will be permitted to set up schools in the zones: The eye-catching new plan firmly demonstrates the government’s determination to liberalize. For example, in recent years elite educational institutions from Australia, Europe and the U.S. have established branches in Asia, precipitating educational innovation; Singapore, South Korea and even Malaysia have become important bases for interna... more »

Will Obama's Covert Actions In Egypt Haunt America In Future Decades The Way Eisenhower's Covert Actions In Iran Haunt Us Today?

DownWithTyranny at DownWithTyranny! - 1 day ago
Everyone blames Nazi-sympathizer John Foster Dulles, Eisenhower's Secretary of State, and his bumbling and incompetent brother, Allen, head of the CIA, for the unintended consequences brought on by the violent CIA overthrow of Iranian Prime Minister Mohammed Mosaddegh. History blames them-- and history was meant to blame them. Eisenhower's fingers are nowhere near any of that stuff-- only on his revered speech warning Americans about the Military-Industrial Complex. Eisenhower, who desperately wanted a cheap "victory" against communism, is more to blame than the venal Dulles broth... more »

Untitled

New Orleans Ladder at New Orleans Ladder - 1 day ago
*Federal judge dismisses most of remaining Katrina damage lawsuits ~Mark Schleifstein*

Good News For Cold & Snow Lovers - The Big Freeze & Snow Is Coming To Many Parts Of The Country!

rss2009 at Global Cooling & New Ice Age UK - 1 day ago
*Good News For Cold & Snow Lovers - The Big Freeze & Snow Is Coming To Many Parts Of The Country!* The Arctic Oscillation has remained largely positive to date throughout December and it has been an unusually mild month overall. However, there has still been some snow events in the early and middle part of December, despite the milder temperatures. *http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/dec/02/snow-forecast-for-uk-freezing-weather* *http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-25450818* *http://news.stv.tv/scotland/257435-warnings-in-place-as-gale-force-winds-rain-and-snow-batter-scotland/*... more »

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