U.S. to cut Baghdad embassy staff?
The U.S. Embassy in BaghdadBADGHDAD - The United States is looking to cut the size of its embassy in Iraq - the largest and most expensive U.S. diplomatic mission, officials say.A state department spokeswoman said the objective was to reduce the cost of the embassy, which employs about 2,000 diplomats and 14,000 contractors.The New York...Study: Radical U.S. Muslim terrorism a “minuscule threat”
February 10th, 20120 WASHINGTON — A new study of homegrown terrorism involving Muslim Americans suggests alarm bells set off by Congress over sleeper cells of Islamic extremists may be much too loud. Study finds radical Muslim Americans are hardly a threat to United States.Despite warnings of a potential wave of violent attacks hatched on U.S. soil,...Poll: U.S. Favorable attitudes toward Egypt in sharp decline
February 10th, 20120 WASHINGTON, DC - For the first time in two decades, U.S. opinion toward Egypt is in sharp decline with an overall favorability of 33%, according to a poll released by the Arab American Institute this week, with 34% holding a negative view. In July 2011, AAI polling showed 5% of Egyptians held a favorable view of the U.S. The poll...NYPD document: Gather intel info at Shi’a mosques
February 4th, 20120 By Matt Apuzzo, Adam Goldman, Eileen Sullivan and Chris Hawley NEW YORK — The New York Police Department recommended increasing surveillance of thousands of Shi'a Muslims and their mosques, based solely on their religion, as a way to sweep the Northeast for signs of Iranian terrorists, according to interviews and a newly obtained...NDAA indefinite detention provisions already being used
February 3rd, 20120 Not even a month after President Barack Obama signed his name to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012, the U.S. government is already using the legislation to justify its ongoing detainment of a prisoner at Guantanamo Bay.Musa'ab al-Madhwani had barely entered adulthood when he first arrived at the military prison...Poll: Two-thirds of people aware of Google privacy changes, even more concerned
UTICA, NY — Three-fourths of U.S. adults are concerned about Google's changes to its privacy policies that allow the company to follow activities of users as they move across the firm's various services, a new IBOPE Zogby survey finds.The IBOPE Zogby interactive poll conducted from January 27-30, 2012 also finds nearly two-thirds of...ACLU sues U.S. for information on targeted killing program
On Wednesday, Feb. 1, the ACLU filed a lawsuit under the Freedom of Information Act to demand that the government release basic — and accurate — information about the government’s targeted killing program.The government’s deliberate and premeditated killing of American terrorism suspects raises profound questions that ought to be...U.S. “No Fly” list doubles in just a year
February 1st, 20120 As the U.S. prepares to withdraw from Afghanistan, domestically the government feels that threats are increasing. Despite taking down no fewer than three key al-Qaeda members in the last year, the U.S. has doubled the size of its notorious no-fly list. Government figures provided to The Associated Press this week reveal that the no-fly...Legislation introduced against NDAA indefinite detentions
January 26th, 20120 Rep. Ron Paul of Texas also took a break from campaigning last week to speak on the House floor about the highly controversial National Defense Authorization Act, and to introduce legislation to strike down a key provision in the bill authorizing discretionary detention of citizens. The NDAA was signed into law on New Year's Day by...Iraqi outrage as U.S. marine walks free for massacre
January 26th, 20120 A U.S. military court judge ruled that Staff Sergeant Frank Wuterich will serve no time in jail for a 2005 massacre that killed 24 Iraqi civilians in Haditha, enraging local Iraqis who condemned the verdict as an "assault on the blood of Iraqis." U.S. Marine Staff Sergeant Frank Wuterich leaves the courtroom after his sentencing at Camp...Obama brags about bin Laden killing, renews commitment to Israel and pledges to prevent nuclear Iran
January 26th, 20120 Obama brags about bin Laden killing, renews commitment to Israel and pledges to prevent nuclear Iran U.S. President Barack Obama shakes hands with congressional pages following his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, January 24, 2012. REUTERS/Jason ReedWASHINGTON – U.S. President...Obama sued over indefinite detention and torture of Americans act
In the past, journalist Chris Hedges has worked for NPR, The New York Times and The Christian Science Monitor. In his latest endeavor, however, he is teaming up with an unlikely pair: a couple of attorneys that will help him take on the president. U.S. President Barack Obama is the target of a suit filed by Pulitzer Prize-winner Hedges,...“Largest online protest in history” held against Internet censorship bills nets favorable results
January 20th, 20120 A massive online protest extending from various social media platforms into some of the web's most popular sites against the pending Stop Online Piracy Act (HR 3261), and the Protect IP Act (SB 968) bills is being called the largest such protest in history and has reportedly caused numerous Congresspeople to rethink or change their...NYPD and Pentagon to place mobile scanners on NYC streets
January 20th, 20120 New York City’s war on freedom could be adding a new weapon to its arsenal, especially if NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly has his say. The head of the New York Police Department is working with the Pentagon to secure body scanners to be used throughout the Big Apple. Terahertz Imagining Detection scanners can measure the energy that is...‘Occupy AIPAC’ preparing large counter-protest to policy convention
January 13th, 20120 Following a successful protest in 2011 titled ‘Move Over AIPAC,’ over 100 groups across the country are preparing to launch another protest against the Israeli lobbying organization in March in a plan to capitalize on the momentum of the ‘Occupy’ movement across the United States. scenes from last year’s ‘Move Over......
Pending bill would strip U.S. citizenship of anyone “engaging in hostilities”
WASHINGTON — The recently-introduced “Enemy Expatriation Act,” HR 3166, brought about by Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Rep. Charles Dent (R-PA), is the latest in a line of bills that have caused great concern among civil rights and constitutional advocates. The bill, introduced on October 12, 2011 but devoid of media...‘Marines urinating on Taliban’ video scandal sparks outrage
January 12th, 20120 WASHINGTON — The U.S. military on Thursday was investigating a "disgusting" online video purportedly showing Marines urinating on the corpses of Taliban fighters in Afghanistan, a Pentagon spokesman said. The video shows what appears to be four servicemen, dressed in U.S. military uniform, relieving themselves onto three bloodied......
Civil rights leader Gordon Hirabayashi honored after recent passing
HirabayashiSAN FRANCISCO — Civil Rights hero Gordon Hirabayashi was honored by the Fred T. Korematsu Institute for Civil Rights and Education along with various other Asian American organizations on January 3 after his passing on the previous day in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada at the age of 93. Hirabayashi's former wife, Esther,...Obama signs indefinite detentions bill on New Year’s Eve as rights watchdogs plan counter-actions
January 8th, 20120 Rights advocates decry decision, work to restore liberties WASHINGTON — On December 31, 2011, while most Americans where preparing for dinner with friends or getting ready to celebrate the New Year, President Barack Obama signed the highly controversial National Defense Authorization Act into law despite an earlier White House threat...FBI allowed to add GPS device to cars without warrants
January 7th, 20120 The Supreme Court will soon weigh in on whether law enforcement agencies can monitor your every move without you knowing — and without a warrant. In Missouri, however, one judge isn’t waiting to find out their word. U.S. Magistrate Judge David Noce ruled last week in favor of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and determined that...National news: 2011 Year in review
January 7th, 20120 • FBI documents show billions have been spent spying on Americans post 9/11• Indiana law makers met with strong disapproval for proposed “Shari’a law” bill.• Society of Professional Journalism Committee discusses removing Helen Thomas Award; Claiming they don't stand for “Anti-Semitic” remarks• Civil rights groups......
The contradictions of Obama’s outreach to American Muslims
December 25th, 20110 On the same day that Rep. Peter King held the fourth "homegrown terrorism" hearing focused exclusively on Muslims, the White House released its Strategic Implementation Plan for Empowering Local Partners to Prevent Violent Extremism in the United States. Despite the White House's seemingly benign approach to counterterrorism, its...A man in Tunisia, a movement on Wall Street, and the soldier who ignited the fuse
December 25th, 20110 One year ago on December 17th, Mohamed Bouazizi, a man who had a simple produce stand in Tunisia, set himself on fire to protest his government's repression. His singular sacrifice ignited a revolution that toppled Tunisia's dictator and launched revolts in regimes across the Middle East.Three months ago on December 17th, Occupy Wall......
Half of all Americans are officially poor
December 24th, 20110 WASHINGTON — While it's no surprise that nearly 50 million Americans live below the poverty line, new statistics from the U.S. Census show that almost 100 million others are counted as low-income citizens, making half of the population of America officially poor. The latest figures out of the U.S. Census Bureau show that in addition...U.S. forces lower flag in Iraq as America ends one of its ‘dumb wars’
December 16th, 20110 Withdrawal will end costly war that left tens of thousands of Iraqis, nearly 4,500 American soldiers dead. BAGHDAD— U.S. forces held a formal ceremony to lower the flag in Iraq on Thursday, ahead of their withdrawal from the country nearly nine years after the controversial invasion to topple Saddam Hussein. U.S. soldiers carry an......