37 Million Bees Found Dead In Ontario, Canada After Planting Large GMO Corn Field

Millions of bees dropped dead after GMO corn was planted few weeks ago in Ontario, Canada. The local bee keeper, Dave Schuit who produces honey in Elmwood lost about 37 million bees which are about 600 hives.

“Once the corn started to get planted our bees died by the millions,” Schuit said. While many bee keepers blame neonicotinoids, or “neonics.” for colony collapse of bees and many countries in EU have banned neonicotinoid class of pesticides, the US Department of Agriculture fails to ban insecticides known as neonicotinoids, manufactured by Bayer CropScience Inc.

Two of Bayer’s best-selling pesticides, Imidacloprid and Clothianidin, are known to get into pollen and nectar, and can damage beneficial insects such as bees. The marketing of these drugs also coincided with the occurrence of large-scale bee deaths in many European countries and the United States.

Nathan Carey another local farmer says that this spring he noticed that there were not enough bees on his farm and he believes that there is a strong correlation between the disappearance of bees and insecticide use.

In the past, many scientists have struggled to find the exact cause of the massive die-offs, a phenomenon they refer to as “colony collapse disorder” (CCD). In the United States, for seven consecutive years, honeybees are in terminal decline.

US scientists have found 121 different pesticides in samples of bees, wax and pollen, lending credence to the notion that pesticides are a key problem. “We believe that some subtle interactions between nutrition, pesticide exposure and other stressors are converging to kill colonies,” said Jeffery Pettis, of the ARS’s bee research laboratory.

The collapse in the global honeybee population is a major threat to crops. It is estimated that a third of everything we eat depends upon honeybee pollination, which means that bees contribute over 30 billion to the global economy.

A new study published in the Journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences revealed that neonicotinoid pesticides kill honeybees by damaging their immune system and making them unable to fight diseases and bacteria.

After reporting large losses of bees after exposure to Imidacloprid, banned it for use on corn and sunflowers, despite protests by Bayer. In another smart move, France also rejected Bayer’s application for Clothianidin, and other countries, such as Italy, have banned certain neonicotinoids as well.

After record-breaking honeybee deaths in the UK, the European Union has banned multiple pesticides, including neonicotinoid pesticides.

Link : http://earthweareone.com/37-million-bees-found-dead-in-ontario-canada-after-planting-large-gmo-corn-field/

Military Admits ‘Martial Law’ Test Runs Planned Throughout U.S. This Summer

Newly-leaked military documents reveal what the United States government is no longer denying: that elite branches of the military are currently preparing for “training exercises” throughout the U.S. southwest which simulate martial law scenarios.

The document reveals the training exercises are being conducted under the name “Operation Jade Helm.”

The exercises are scheduled to begin this July and continue for eight weeks. The operation will include the participation of 1,200 troops from the the Green Berets, Navy SEALS and Special Operations from the Air Force and Marines.

While the military acknowledges the leaked information is legitimate, they have termed the exercises “Realistic Military Training” and confirm that these exercises will be carried out in towns in Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Texas as well as Utah. For whatever reason, the focus seems to be on the U.S. southwest in particular.

In the case of Texas, the military is being the most forthright about the exercises – admitting they are in the works and asking Texans living in close proximity to the operation to report anything which the military has characterized as “suspicious activity” during the exercises.

The leaked US military training document, was released by The Houston Chronicle. It perhaps overestimates the US military belief that Texans have been “historically supportive” of military exercises like these, as they believe them to be for the purposes of “fight[ing] the enemies of the United States.”

Army Special Operation Command spokesman Mark Lastoria acknowledged that the exercises are all about “covert warfare tactics and martial law.”

They are to develop “emerging concepts in special operations warfare,” he continued.

He told a US Army publication known as Stripes that the “notion” that this is training for martial law in the United States “was proposed by a few individuals who are unfamiliar with how and why USASOC conducts training exercises.”

He adds that Americans shouldn’t be worried, because they are really just training to impose martial law on cities around the world “at a moment’s notice.”

“This exercise is routine training to maintain a high level of readiness for Army Special Operations Forces because they must be ready to support potential missions anywhere in the world on a moment’s notice.”

Skeptics, however, have asked why states like Texas and Utah, as well as a section of southern California?

Whatever the reason for the U.S. military conducting what they admit are “martial law” exercises in what they also call “realistic urban sites,” what we know for certain is that the Special Forces will be on the ground in cities and towns across the country. Whether this is for the purposes of training to oppress civilians abroad or in the U.S., it has a lot of people concerned and asking questions.

Link : http://countercurrentnews.com/2015/03/military-admits-martial-law-test-runs-planned-throughout-u-s-this-summer/

Connecticut college cancels classes over ‘No N*****s’ warning scrawled in bathroom

Classes at Connecticut College in New London were cancelled on Monday so students could gather to address recent incidents of racism on campus.

WVIT reported that the college’s Campus Safety was notified on Sunday that racist graffiti had been found on the first floor of the Crozier-Williams building.

Photos of the graffiti obtained by WVIT showed the words “no” and the plural form of the n-word scrawled on a bathroom wall.

“Given the egregious nature of the graffiti, we are enlisting the campus community to help us to identify those responsible,” Dean of Student Life Victor Arcelus and Director of Campus Safety Stewart Smith wrote in a letter to students on Sunday.

The incident comes as students were dealing with another recent racial controversy.

Earlier this month, Connecticut College Professor Andrew Pessin was placed on leavefor a Facebook post comparing Gazan Palestinians to “a rabid pit bull chained in a cage, regularly making mass efforts to escape.”

Connecticut College president Katherine Bergeron notified students in a letter on Sunday that classes would be cancelled to give students the proper time to address the recent hate speech.

“By now, there have been many opinions expressed about the original Facebook post, as well as about subsequent comments on Yik Yak and elsewhere,” Bergeron noted. “But one thing has become extremely clear: the level of harm that incendiary language can have on a community. The post caused an outpouring of anger and pain among many different groups of students, faculty, and staff.”

“The groundswell of reaction makes it clear that the issue goes far beyond the effects of a single post. It is about who we are as a community,” she continued. “Earlier today, as I was writing this letter, I learned of another incident of racist graffiti in the restrooms of Crozier-Williams. We must take action immediately to expose and eradicate this ignorance and hatred. I have decided to cancel tomorrow’s classes to ensure these events receive the proper attention.”

Bergeron pointed out that students did not have to stand for racism just because it was protected by the First Amendment.

“Even though speech may be protected does not mean that we have to approve of the odious things that people choose to say with their freedom. I do not approve,” she explained. “It does mean, though, that we can and should use our freedom to speak out against injustice.”

A campus-wide meeting was scheduled for Monday night to continue the discussion on campus tolerance.

Watch the video below from WVIT, broadcast March 30, 2015.

Link : http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2015/03/connecticut-college-cancels-classes-over-no-ns-warning-scrawled-in-bathroom/

March to Martial Law Undercover Special Forces to Sweep US Southwest But MSM is Fixated on the Mental State/Vision of a German Pilot

As elite branches of the US military prepare to hold military training in seven southwest states, with some troops operating incognito among civilians, some Americans fear the training is actually preparation for imposing martial law.

Operation Jade Helm, which is scheduled to kick off in July and run for eight weeks, will involve the participation of 1,200 troops from the US military’s most elite fighting forces, including Green Berets, Navy SEALS and Special Operations from the Air Force and Marines.

The troops will be participating in what has been called Realistic Military Training in towns in Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Texas and Utah.

In an effort to simulate the type of battlefield conditions soldiers may face in foreign countries, the US military has designated the remote training areas where they will operate as in a “hostile” territory, a description that has irked some residents.

Meanwhile, Texans living in close proximity to the operation will be asked to report any “suspicious activity” during the exercise, a request that seems to contradict the belief laid out in the US military training document, leaked by The Houston Chronicle, that Texans are “historically supportive” of military efforts to “fight the enemies of the United States.”

The training exercise, according to Shadow Spear, a publication of USASOC, “will be conducted on private and public land with the permission of the private landowners, and from state and local authorities.”

“The most noticeable effect the exercise may have on the local communities is an increase in vehicle and military air traffic and its associated noise,” Shadow Spear said.

image: http://rt.com/files/news/3b/ce/90/00/235465787980.jpg

Map showing 7 states where US military forces will participate in domestic training (Image from the US Army Special Operations Command)

Army Special Operation Command spokesman Mark Lastoria attempted to allay fears that the training is a actually an effort on the part of the military to practice “covert warfare tactics and martial law.” He said the domestic military operations are designed to develop “emerging concepts in special operations warfare,” and were not part of some kind of dark plans to take over the United States.

“That notion was proposed by a few individuals who are unfamiliar with how and why USASOC conducts training exercises,” he told Stripes, a US Army publication. “This exercise is routine training to maintain a high level of readiness for Army Special Operations Forces because they must be ready to support potential missions anywhere in the world on a moment’s notice.”

Paul Pape, a Bastrop County judge, also downplayed fears that the domestic military training was in reality rehearsal for full-blown martial law on the streets of America following some sort of major catastrophe.

“What I see here is an opportunity for a portion of our military to be better prepared and better trained to do work that has to be done to secure America’s interests around the world and here at home,” Pape told KEYE television in Austin, Texas.

The explanations given for the training, however, has not stopped fierce speculation among a number of citizen groups and alternative media sites as to why the entire states of Texas and Utah, as well as a section of southern California, have been declared“hostile,” while portions of the military detachment will be operating in the shadows of communities.

“They’re having Delta Force, Navy SEALS with the Army trained to basically take over,” Info Wars’ Alex Jones railed Sunday. “Texas is listed as a hostile sector, and of course, we are… here defending the republic.”

This is not the first time that American urban areas have served as the training areas for US forces.

In December 2014, Americans were unsettled by the spectacle of US Special Forces black helicopters buzzing the skylines of major US cities, including Dallas and Los Angeles, part of what it described as training in “realistic urban sites.”

Now, the Special Forces boots will be on the ground in cities and towns across the country, and that has some people asking a lot of questions.

Read more at http://thefreethoughtproject.com/march-martial-law-undercover-special-forces-sweep-southwest/#QWo7fxrBbZgl8qrY.99

Nebraska farmer silences oil and gas committee with invitation to drink water tainted by fracking

Appearing before a Nebraska Oil & Gas Conservation committee hearing, a local farmer received nothing but silence from the pro-fracking members of the board after he invited them to drink glasses of water tainted by fracking.

In the video, uploaded to YouTube by BoldNebraska, Nebraskan James Osborne used his 3 minutes before the committee to visually explain what fracking waste can do to the water table, dramatically pouring out water containing his own “private mixture” of fracking additives.

The committee is holding public hearings on a proposal by an oil company to ship out-of-state fracking wastewater into Nebraska where it will be dumped into a “disposal well” in Sioux County. According to a report, the Terex Energy Corp wants to truck as much as 10,000 barrels a day of the chemical-laden fracking wastewater to a ranch north of Mitchell, Nebraska for disposal.

Explaining that he has ties to the oil industry and that he is still on the fence about fracking, Osbourne explained fluid dynamics to the board while pouring out three cups of the sludgy water that could result from spills or from seeping into the water table.

Referring to earlier testimony, Osbourne said, “So you told me this morning that you would drink this water,” as he indicated the cups.

“So would you drink it? Yes or no?” he asked, only to be met by silence by the stone-faced group before a member explained they wouldn’t be answering any questions.

“Oh, you can’t answer any questions? Well my answer would be ‘no.’ I don’t want this in the water that will travel entirely across this state in three days,” Osborne said. “There is no doubt there will be contamination. There will be spills.”

Osborne left the glasses on the table before thanking the committee and leaving to applause.

Watch the video below from BoldNebraska:

Stop Police Murder Shut It All Down #ShutDownA14

April 14th we will shut America down. It has evolved into a situation that can no longer be ignored. America has ignored the people for far too long. "We the People" must unite and stand unified, letting it be known that enough is enough. We refuse to be treated as cattle or sheep because we are human. Black and Brown people make up 30% of the population, yet we are treated as if our dollar and opinion is insignifigant. It's about to change people.

April 14th: No working, no school and no shopping! We have more important things to do.

We need everyone on board. All races, ages and individuals out there marching, protesting and Shutting It Down!

There are 800,000 police in America and millions of us. Let's spread them thin.. They will need so many for the marches, so many for the protest, and so many to figure out where We are at, Shutting It Down.

We need everyone that has ever marched, protested, participated in civil disobedience or liked a Facebook comment to participate.



#ShutItDownA14

Nothing is off limits. Shut down everything! Malls, highways, train stations, airports.

Cops Kill Another Unarmed Man, Gunned Down at his Place of Work Over Unpaid Traffic Fines

Smyrna, GA — Meet 24-year-old Nicholas Taft Thomas, father to a beautiful baby girl, who is barely 5-months-old.  His name sadly became another hashtag on Tuesday, when police took his life shortly after 1:30 pm.

The incident began when three Smyrna police officers and four officers with the Cobb County Police Department arrived at the Goodyear store where Thomas worked to serve him with a warrant for a probation violation, reportedly for a traffic offense.

When the young father saw the officers at his place of employment, he attempted to flee and jumped into a white Maserati.  Perhaps the new parent who was working hard to repay his traffic debt did not want his job jeopardized by the police causing a scene.

The police claim that, as usual, “they feared for their lives,” alleging Thomas was attempting to use the vehicle as a weapon to run down the officers.  Witnesses came forward immediately to the press, challenging the official report and essentially calling it a bold faced lie.

“They were standing behind the car, opening fire. He wasn’t driving towards them,” Goodyear customer Brittany Eustache told Channel 2 at the scene.

“The car was not moving when they began to shoot at him. The car had been stopped, he hit curb he could go any further,” she said.

“So at no point was he making any aggressive moves?” the reporter asked her.

“None, none at all. They immediately opened fire on them,” Eustache said.

Supporting the witnesses allegation is the fact that there were no visible bullet holes in the windshield or front of the car, a likely place for a bullet to enter- had he been driving at the officers as they claim.

His mother arrived at the scene and tearfully described her son as a “lovable guy” who loved his family and would “do anything for anyone.”

“You think Trayvon Martin’s mother was on a rampage? I am taking this to the next level,” his mother boldly stated at the scene of her sons killing.

It is currently unclear how many officers fired their weapons or how many times Thomas was shot.

A spokesperson for the Smyrna Police Department told WSBtv that the shooting has already taken an “emotional toll” on the officers involved.  Unfortunately, that toll will pale in comparison to the emotional toll it will take on the baby girl who has been left without a father thanks to these trigger happy police.

In 1985, the Supreme Court ruled on the case of Tennessee v. Garner, a 15 year old boy who was shot in the back of the head by a police officer as he attempted to flee after a robbery.  The court ruled that cops could no longer legally kill someone only for attempting to escape. The officer must now have a reasonable belief that the suspect poses a dangerous threat to someone or had committed a violent felony.

In May of last year however, the US Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of three Arkansas police officers who fired 15 bullets at a fleeing motorist and his passenger, killing them both.

The Plumhoff v. Rickard decision ruled that officers did not use excessive force and were entitled to “qualified immunity” from any consequences for their actions.  The judge stated that since Rickard could not flee without posing a threat to the officers, the officers were entitled to kill him and his passenger because “Rickard’s flight posed a grave public safety risk,” the “police acted reasonably in using deadly force to end that risk.”

Ever since this decision it has seemed as though the “car was being used as a weapon” excuse has skyrocketed and become the new “he was reaching for his waistband.”

A simple search on The Free Thought Project for the words “fleeing suspect” will give you a terrifying glimpse at how frequently situations like this continue to occur.

Link : http://thefreethoughtproject.com/life-hashtag-police-execute-young-father-attempted-flee/

Saudi Arabia Imposes Naval Blockade On Red Sea Strait, Deploys 150,000 Troops As Iran Condemns Military Action

The Zionist plan is working--just like Michael Scheuer said: Sunnis killing Shias now--all in the name of what? I can see the Israelis saying, "Oh goodie!"

As noted earlier, the biggest significance of any Yemen conflict has little to do with its own domestic oil production, which at 133,000 bpd is negligible, but due to its location, which not only shares a border with Saudi Arabia, but more importantly due to the Bab el-Mandeb strait which connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden: it is the fourth-biggest shipping chokepoint in the world by volume (3.8 million barrels a day of oil and petroleum products flowed through it in 2013) and is just 18 miles wide at its narrowest point. It’s located between Yemen, Djibouti, and Eritrea, and connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea.



And since to Saudi Arabia preserving the logistics of oil supply is critical, it is hardly surprising that as Egypt's Ahram Gate reported earlier, the Saudi-led Firmness Storm coalition imposed a naval blockade on Bab El-Mandab strait earlier today. The Saudi navy's western fleet has also secured Yemen's main ports including Aden and Midi.

It is not just Saudi Arabia: moments ago Reuters reported that four Egyptian naval vessels have crossed the Suez Canal en route to Yemen to secure the Gulf of Aden, maritime sources at the Suez Canal said on Thursday. The sources said they expected the vessels to reach the Red Sea by Thursday evening.

The naval blockade is just part of what so far has been mostly an air-based proxy war. As Al Arabia reported previously, as part of the "Decisive Storm" coalition against the Yemen rebels, Saudi Arabia has deployed at least 150,000 soldiers in preparation for what appears to be a land assault next, an assault that already has the preemptive blessing of the US. As a reminder, Saudi Arabia will be fighting US-armed rebels, but that's a different story.

Just as importantly, and since as we reported first yesterday the Yemen conflict is merely a proxy war between the Saudis and Iran, we also now have reports that Iran has condemned Saudi Arabia's intervention, is demanding an immediate halt to the military action, and has warned that a war on Yemen won't be contained in one area.

From Reuters:

Iran demanded an immediate halt to Saudi-led military operations in Yemen on Thursday and said it would make all necessary efforts to control the crisis there, Iranian news agencies reported.

"The Saudi-led air strikes should stop immediately and it is against Yemen's sovereignty," the Students News Agency quoted Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif as saying. "We will make all efforts to control the crisis in Yemen," Zarif said, according to the agency's report from the Swiss city of Lausanne where he is negotiating with six world powers to resolve a years-old dispute over Tehran's nuclear ambitions.

Earlier on Thursday, the Foreign Ministry in Tehran called for an end to the military operation.

"Iran wants an immediate halt to all military aggressions and air strikes against Yemen and its people," Fars quoted Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham as saying.

"Military actions in Yemen, which faces a domestic crisis, ... will further complicate the situation ... and will hinder efforts to resolve the crisis through peaceful ways."

Prior to that, Bloomberg cited the head of the Iranian parliament’s national security and foreign policy committee, who told Iran's Fars News Agency that Saudi Arabia’s strikes on Yemen will haunt the kingdom as war won’t be contained,

So as the proxy war snags more and more countries, threatens to become less proxy, more war and much more global, keep an eye on Russia which is caught in that "other" proxy war from 2014 and which is also going nowhere fast. Because if and when Russia and China pick sides and get involved, that's when it may be a good time to take a vacation far away from any major metropolitan areas.

Link : http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-03-26/saudi-arabia-imposes-naval-blockade-red-sea-strait-deploys-150000-troops-iran-condem

Cheney On Invading Iraq 9-14-1992

BILL CLINTON ‘UNAWARE’ BROTHER-IN-LAW ON BOARD OF HAITIAN GOLD MINE THAT LANDED RARE PERMIT

New reporting by the Washington Post finds a gold mine in Haiti. Or, at least, confirms previous reporting from Breitbart News about a gold mining contract in that troubled country.

In an expose about the controversial Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation, the newspaper’s Kevin Sullivan and Rosalind S. Helderman write that:

Controversy surrounding the Clintons only deepened with the recent revelation, contained in an upcoming book by Peter Schweizer, that Tony Rodham — Hillary Clinton’s younger brother — serves on the advisory board of a U.S.-based company that in 2012 won one of Haiti’s first two gold-mining permits in 50 years. After objection from the Haitian senate, the permits have been placed on hold.

“Neither Bill Clinton nor the brother of Hillary Clinton are individuals who share the interests of the Haitian people,” said Samuel Nesner, an anti-mining activist who thinks mining poses great environmental risks and will mainly benefit foreign investors. “They are part of the elite class who are operating to exploit the Haitian people.”

Clinton Foundation officials said Bill Clinton had been unaware of Rodham’s involvement in the mine project. A spokesman for Hillary Clinton said she does not know the chief executive of the mine.

If the former president is unaware of his brother-in-law’s activities in Haiti, that only proves he doesn’t read Breitbart News.

Earlier this month, we reported that, “Hillary Rodham Clinton’s brother, Tony Rodham, sat on the board of a self-described mining company that in 2012 received one of only two ‘gold exploitation permits’ from the Haitian government—the first issued in over 50 years.”

There’s still plenty more for the Post to investigate:

The Rodham gold mine revelation is just one of dozens featured in a forthcoming bombshell investigative book by three-time New York Times bestselling author Peter Schweizer, according to a Thursday statement from publishing giant HarperCollins.  The publisher says the book, Clinton Cash: The Untold Story of How and Why Foreign Governments and Businesses Helped Make Bill and Hillary Rich, is the culmination of an exhaustive one-year deep dive investigation into the nexus between the Clintons’ $100+ million personal wealth, the Clinton Foundation, and the decisions Hillary made as Secretary of State that benefited foreign donors, governments, and companies.

Link : http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/03/20/bill-clinton-unaware-brother-in-law-on-board-of-haitian-gold-mine-that-landed-rare-permit/

Spring Twisters Wreak Havoc on Heartland

US Declassifies Document Revealing Israel's Nuclear Program

Obama revenge for Netanyahu's Congress talk? 1987 report on Israel's top secret nuclear program released in unprecedented move.


Dimona nuclear reactor circa 1960s

In a development that has largely been missed by mainstream media, the Pentagon early last month quietly declassified a Department of Defense top-secret document detailing Israel's nuclear program, a highly covert topic that Israel has never formally announced to avoid a regional nuclear arms race, and which the US until now has respected by remaining silent.

But by publishing the declassified document from 1987, the US reportedly breached the silent agreement to keep quiet on Israel's nuclear powers for the first time ever, detailing the nuclear program in great depth.

The timing of the revelation is highly suspect, given that it came astensions spiraled out of control between Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and US President Barack Obama ahead of Netanyahu's March 3 address in Congress, in which he warned against the dangers of Iran's nuclear program and how the deal being formed on that program leaves the Islamic regime with nuclear breakout capabilities.

Another highly suspicious aspect of the document is that while the Pentagon saw fit to declassify sections on Israel's sensitive nuclear program, it kept sections on Italy, France, West Germany and other NATO countries classified, with those sections blocked out in the document.

The 386-page report entitled "Critical Technological Assessment in Israel and NATO Nations" gives a detailed description of how Israel advanced its military technology and developed its nuclear infrastructure and research in the 1970s and 1980s.

Israel is "developing the kind of codes which will enable them to make hydrogen bombs. That is, codes which detail fission and fusion processes on a microscopic and macroscopic level," reveals the report, stating that in the 1980s Israelis were reaching the ability to create bombs considered a thousand times more powerful than atom bombs.

The revelation marks a first in which the US published in a document a description of how Israel attained hydrogen bombs.

The report also notes research laboratories in Israel "are equivalent to our Los Alamos, Lawrence Livermore and Oak Ridge National Laboratories," the key labs in developing America's nuclear arsenal.

Israel's nuclear infrastructure is "an almost exact parallel of the capability currently existing at our National Laboratories," it adds.

"As far as nuclear technology is concerned the Israelis are roughly where the U.S. was in the fission weapon field in about 1955 to 1960," the report reveals, noting a time frame just after America tested its first hydrogen bomb.

Institute for Defense Analysis, a federally funded agency operating under the Pentagon, penned the report back in 1987. 

Aside from nuclear capabilities, the report revealed Israel at the time had "a totally integrated effort in systems development throughout the nation," with electronic combat all in one "integrated system, not separated systems for the Army, Navy and Air Force." It even acknowledged that in some cases, Israeli military technology "is more advanced than in the U.S."

Declassifying the report comes at a sensitive timing as noted above, and given that the process to have it published was started three years ago, that timing is seen as having been the choice of the American government.

US journalist Grant Smith petitioned to have the report published based on the Freedom of Information Act. Initially the Pentagon took its time answering, leading Smith to sue, and a District Court judge to order the Pentagon to respond to the request.

Smith, who heads the Institute for Research: Middle East Policy, reportedly said he thinks this is the first time the US government has officially confirmed that Israel is a nuclear power, a status that Israel has long been widely known to have despite being undeclared.

Link : http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/193175#.VRQu3SvF_Tr

Three Black Women Swimmers Make NCAA History

Three black coeds swept the 100 yard freestyle the 2015 Women’s Division I NCAA Championship this weekend—making history, reports NBC blk. The two top spots fell to Stanford teammates, while third place went to a University of Florida student.

Freshman phenom Simone Manuel of Stanford set an NCAA, American, U.S. Open, Championship and Pool record when she clocked a time of 46.09 in the women’s 100 yard freestyle.

Manuel’s Stanford teammate Lia Neal came in second place with a time of 47.13. (Fans may recall that Neal won a bronze medal in the 4×100 free relay at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.)

The University of Florida’s Natalie Hinds swam a time of 47.24. Hinds reset her own-school record in the event during competition.

In an interview today with USA Swimming, Manuel said she “really didn’t think about” the significance of the three black women at the podium togehter.

“I didn’t really think about it…I always thought it would be cool to go 1-2 with Lia, because she’s my teammate and we’re so close, but I hadn’t thought about Natalie or what all three of us could do together. That hadn’t occurred to me until later when everyone was so excited about it.”

Link : http://newsone.com/3101553/three-black-women-swimmers-ncaa-history/

Cop Arrested After Video Shows Her Shoot Unarmed Man in Back Lying Face Down in the Snow

The fatal incident occurred during a routine traffic stop gone awry.


Harrisburg, PA– Hummelstown police Officer, Lisa J. Mearkle was charged with criminal homicide on Tuesday in the shooting death of 59-year-old David Kassick on February 2. Mearkle shot Kassick as he laid face down on the ground in the snow, unarmed, during a routine traffic stop gone awry. Mearkle had attempted to pull Kassick over for an expired inspection sticker, but the situation escalated when Kassick attempted to flee from the officer. Eventually Mearkle caught up to the motorist close to his sister’s home where he was staying, but Kassick got out of the vehicle and fled on foot. As he was attempting to run away, he was incapacitated by the officer’s taser which she held in her left hand. With her right hand, she unnecessarily pulled out her service gun and shot the unarmed man twice in the back as he lay face-down on the ground. The 36-year-old officer claims that she shot the unarmed man because he would not show his hands and she was concerned he may have been reaching in his jacket for a weapon, but the recording from the deployed taser paints a different picture. District Attorney Ed Marsico has stated that it appeared from the recording that Kassick was simply trying to remove the stun gun probes from his back before his life was taken. “At the time Officer Mearkle fires both rounds from her pistol, the video clearly depicts Kassick lying on the snow covered lawn with his face toward the ground, furthermore, at the time the rounds are fired nothing can be seen in either of Kassick’s hands, nor does he point or direct anything toward Officer Mearkle,” the arrest affidavit reads. A syringe was found near his body, and there were unspecified drugs as well as alcohol in his system when he died. His family has admitted that he has struggled with addiction, a personal problem which should not have cost him his life. “Mr. Kassick is now dead as a result of a traffic stop, a routine traffic stop,” one of the family’s attorneys, Christopher Slusser, told the press. “He should not be dead. He should not have died as a result of that traffic stop. And the manner in which he was shot — you can infer from that what you will.” Mearkle is currently free on $250,000 bail. She faces potential charges ranging from misdemeanor involuntary manslaughter to felony first-degree murder depending on what the prosecution decides when she is formally arraigned.

 Link : http://www.alternet.org/news-amp-politics/cop-arrested-after-video-shows-her-shoot-unarmed-man-back-lying-face-down-snow#.VRQRG6fYZG4.facebook

Wisconsin Police to Begin Forcibly Taking DNA for ALL Misdemeanor Convictions

Madison, Wisc. – Starting April 1st, felons will no longer be the only ones in the state of Wisconsin to have their DNA forcibly taken. The state is expanding its DNA collection regime to include ALL criminal misdemeanor convictions.

The new law being implemented is expected to exponentially increase the number of samples being analyzed in Madison. The current number of DNA profiles created, from the felons’ samples, ranges from 10,000-12,000 per year.

Of those cases, 550 positive hits were made on unsolved cases, according to Fox 6.

The number of samples is expected to potentially increase to an estimated 60,000 samples being collected per year. Police make the case that perhaps thousands of unsolved crimes could be solved.

“We will save lives. We will save people from becoming sexual assault victims, shooting victims because of the evidence that is collected and out there,” said Brian O’Keefe, with the Department of Justice.

But the infringement upon individual liberties didn’t go unnoticed.

Currently, every time a new felon is convicted, a DNA sample is taken. The sample is tested at the State Crime Lab, creating a DNA profile. Police then input this data into a database and attempt to see if that DNA was found at the scene of any unsolved crimes.

Rep. David Craig (R-Big Bend) made the very important point that for the first time in Wisconsin’s history, DNA would be taken from suspects who have not been convicted, but are accused of a violent crime.

“I think there is a strong contingent of us that say before they have their due process exhausted in the court system, they should maintain something as personal as DNA. We have a job to balance security, and safety versus individual liberty for those who have not had their day in court,” Rep. Craig said.

The idea of taking a person’s DNA without a conviction was first brought forth by Governer Scott Walker in 2013, but it did not sit well with many conservative Republicans. As a compromise, a list of offenses for which DNA could be collected upon arrest was reduced to “just” the most violent crimes on the book.

Rightly the ACLU claimed the compromise did not nearly go far enough.

“One’s personal autonomy, one’s privacy can get eroded by a thousand cuts,” ACLU of Wisconsin Executive Director Chris Ahmuty said.

The ACLU says they have a number of serious problems with the new law. The most pressing issue being privacy concerns — specifically for those whose DNA is collected, but a conviction never happens.

“The state of Wisconsin is not ready for this,” Ahmuty said.

The state claims that samples collected upon arrest will only be tested after establishing probable cause and that if a suspect is never convicted, after a year, the sample would be removed.

“Frankly, I wonder if the criminal justice system is up to the task,” Ahmuty said.

In a controversial Supreme Court ruling in 2013, the precedent was set that says the state can take a citizen’s DNA upon arrest.

It seems the state falsely looks upon DNA much the same as a simple, unique identifier such as a fingerprint. The problem with this line of thinking is the that vast amounts of the most private data contained in DNA must also be relinquished to the state.

There seems something inherently wrong with having to give up the actual code that makes us, as it is the most private thing that can exist. It has the power potentially to recreate you. Obviously DNA is so much more than just a simple and unique identifier.

Should something as precious as our individual code of life ever be allowed to be taken by the state?

Link :  http://thefreethoughtproject.com/beginning-april-1st-wisconsin-collect-dna-misdemeanor-convictions/#DqiKCSvK1q6CFGHJ.99

New Bill Would Have Teachers Diagnose Psychological Issues in Children and Report them to Police

Dallas, Texas – Texas State Representative Jason Villalba (R-Dallas) is once again in the spotlight after submitting yet another Orwellian proposal, H.B. 985.

Villalba first raised the ire of civil libertarians by proposing a bill, H.B. 2006, which would have eliminated the religious exemption for vaccination, essentially creating a forced government vaccination program without exception.

More recently, Villalba was thrust into the national spotlight when he proposed H.B. 2918, which would usurp citizens of the ability to hold law enforcement accountable for their actions. The bill would negate the people’s ability to create an accurate and impartial record of police interactions by restricting citizens from filming within 25 feet of an officer.

Now with H.B. 985, Villalba intends to give school officials the authority to force psychological screenings of students that teachers and staff diagnose as having mental health issues.

Once the process is set in motion by school officials, parents would be forced to take their child to a mental health professional within 30 days, under threat of suspension of the child from school.

“ …the requirement that the parent or guardian, before the expiration of the 30-day period, to avoid suspension of the student under this section, take the student to the nearest local mental health authority or a physician specializing in psychiatry to receive a mental health screening and a certificate of medical examination for mental illness, as described by Section 533.03522(c), Health and Safety Code, that contains the examining physician’s opinion that the student is not a danger to self or others.”

While under suspension the child would still receive an education, but they would be sent to an “alternative school.”

School administrators would be required under the law to provide the student’s name, address, and information regarding the complaint to the local mental health authorities and the police department upon verification of the complaint.

(i) A school counselor or a principal who receives notice
under. Subsection (b) about a student who subsequently is subject to
a notice of intent to suspend under Subsection (g) shall:
(1) provide the student’s name and address and
information concerning the conduct or statement that led to the
notice of intent to suspend to:
(A) the school district police department, if the
school counselor or principal is employed by a school district and
the district has a police department;
(B) the police department of the municipality in
which the school is located or, if the school is not in a
municipality, the sheriff of the county in which the school is
located; and
(C) the local mental health authority nearest the
school;

Teachers have enough on their academic plates without them being forced to become armchair psychologists in the classroom.

Also, it is highly inappropriate and dangerous for unqualified teachers to play the role of child psychiatrists. Unless they’ve had special training and are certified to diagnose the disorders, it can also be illegal.

We are already witnessing the damage caused by parents believing teachers who think that every child who acts out in their classroom has ADHD. It’s called The Ritalin Explosion.

The idea that students’ personal information would be submitted to mental health facilities and police departments for complaints initiated and investigated by only school officials also causes serious concern.

Is it really necessary to criminalize kids based upon a teacher’s unprofessional assessment of a kids mental health? And what about the student that is mentally healthy, but simply defiant?

Perhaps rather than attempting to legislate away this perceived problem by criminalizing “problem” children, there is a better way. Villalba would have been better served by using his position to help create a program to build sustainable bridges of communication between parents and administrators that assist in identifying and combating mental health problems in students.

Instead, like so many tyrants before him, Villalba tries to solve complex problems using the force of the state.

Read more at http://thefreethoughtproject.com/bill-teachers-diagnose-psychological-issues-children-report-police/#PyBlGcHjtVupt3fH.99