Entries from May 2006 ↓

Thanks to a post on Digg.com, I have just finished reading an article in the New Yorker by Seymour M. Hersch about the NSA’s wiretapping practices. The article is about a chat he had with a recently retired NSA official, and exposes some very interesting information.

Sadly, this illegal and immoral surveillance has been going on a for a long time indeed. It turns out that back in the ’70’s, the NSA was intercepting telegrams coming in and going out of the United States and abusing power in other ways as well. The congressional hearing about that were exactly where the FISA court came from. As has been the status quo with Bush Administration II, history repeats itself.

I know that I asked in my past blog about this if this made you mad enough to do something about this. I think that after reading this article, you’ll be pretty charged up. Give it a read, it is eye-opening to say the least.

CNN Money has just reported that the Federal Trade Commission has come back with a “negative” in their investigation into allegations of the big oil companies illegally manipulating gas prices. Despite this overall “negative” finding, the FTC did find “15 examples that fit lawmakers’ definition of price-gouging.”

Is it just me, or should I have been more surprised if they did come back with a report of widespread illegal manipulation of gas prices by these assholes? While I am constantly amazed at the lies that our government tells us on a daily basis (and gets away with), I am still shocked when they release reports like this. All of the evidence points to price fixing, yet the FTC is just fine telling the American people that gas really does cost $3.50 a gallon without artificial manipulation.

I am a bit disappointed that the article is extremely short, but will keep an eye out for a follow-up that will hopefully be a little more informative.

No matter what you believe about the 9/11 tragedy, there is no way around the fact that our government broke the law. Destruction of evidence at a crime scene is illegal and unethical, and according to Sourcewatch.org, “federal investigators and New York City Police deem scrap metal from the World Trade Center to be crime scene evidence.”

Within weeks of 9/11, the scrap metal was sold to the highest bidders at fire sale prices. Immediately most of the scrap metal was shipped to China to be melted down, and the rest of it was sent off to be buried. While the agencies in charge of investigating the tragedy insist that the scrap metal was catalogued and searched for forensic evidence, it seems impossible that an effective investigation would begin by removing evidence from a crime scene and examining it off-site.

Besides the removal and destruction of crime scene evidence, our government failed to follow NFPA 921, the the National Fire Protection Association Council’s “Guide for Fire and Explosion Investigation.” While in the title it calls itself a “guide,” it has been accepted by some courts as a standard in the fire prevention community. Since the 9/11 tragedy was the first, second, and third time in history that steel structures were destroyed by fire, one would think that a lot of information about the safer design of steel buildings could be gained from a thorough investigation of the collapses. Our government was either completely ignorant of the information that could have been gained that could have come from the tragedy, or had some other motive.

No matter who was behind the attacks, our government really screwed up in many ways. It is widely accepted that those who destroy evidence at a crime scene have something to hide, and logic would dictate the same. Any additional thoughts on this are appreciated.

Today out of the kindness of their hearts (OK fine, it was really because of a FOIA request and a lawsuit), the United States Department of Defense released two additional videos of Flight 77 hitting the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. Judicial Watch, a self-described “non-partisan educational foundation” was the requestor, and has made both videos available to the public through YouTube. Click on the videos below to view them.

Video 1

Video 2

I have watched both videos, and can’t see anything different from the still images that were released in March of 2002. In one frame of each video, you can see something sort of white and pointy entering the picture, then an explosion and a smoldering Pentagon. It’s nothing earth-shattering, that’s for sure, and it certainly doesn’t debunk any alternative 9/11 theories.

I am curious, however, to hear what the rest of you think about the new footage. Do you see something that I don’t? Am I missing something? To me these new videos prove nothing. The object could be a plane, a missile, or a who-knows-what. Will this footage change your life or beliefs, or will it just distract you from this wiretapping scam for a day or two? Any thoughts are encouraged, and rational conversation would be appreciated.

Take a look at the attached images. They are screen captures of the frames right before impact where you can just barely make out a white pointy thing.

In a followup to my recent blog entry regarding our three major phone providers selling out their customers in the name of “national security,” I am glad to report that Verizon has been sued for five billion dollars in a lawsuit filed on Friday.

While this lawsuit may very well be thrown out, or if not will be appealed into oblivion. Despite this, I can only hope that some other legal firm takes the reins and sues BellSouth and AT&T. We need to send a message to the government and to our corporations that we won’t tolerate this widespread invasion of privacy in the name of “national security.”

If you have been paying any attention to the news lately, you have heard about the wiretapping fiasco going on in our country right now. Maybe you have also noticed in the grander scheme of things that our civil liberties are being compromised on a huge level, and that your personal private matters are no longer private.

Yesterday in the news, you may have heard that AT&T, Verizon and BellSouth have turned over your phone records to the NSA. As an AT&T customer, I am completely disturbed, and they will be hearing from me about this and losing me as a customer. Turns out that of the big guys, Qwest was the only holdout. I am not a Qwest fan, as I have dealt with their customer service way too many times and they still have my $90, but I applaud them for this.

Thinking about this blatant disregard for personal privacy, I feel pretty good about my recent switch to a VoIP provider. I’m OK right, since once my number gets ported all my voice traffic will be encrypted for its trip across the Internet. Ummm, not so much. Check this out. Turns out the NSA is going to be hitting up VoIP carriers too, with the full backing of the FCC no less.

It is truly amazing what these people get away with. It is refreshing that there are a few holdouts, but who knows how long Qwest will be able to fight the legal battle ahead of them (because we all know it’s coming). More importantly though, what are you going to do about it? Are you going to do the research and make a decision for yourself? Are you going to get educated on this stuff and take a stand? I truly hope so.

Read the follow-up HERE!

Good morning, and thanks for stopping by! I bring you today not only three new videos on Google Video for your viewing pleasure, but also a better understanding of the world’s current political environment. What a generous fellow I am!

I was poking around on the Loose Change 9/11 site a few days ago, and someone had posted a comment mentioning a BBC series called “The Power of Nightmares.” Now befoe you get crazy, this is not some conspiracy theory-laden Internet documentary. Not that I’m against those, but I know that some of you probably get turned off by that kind of thing. What it is, however, is a BBC series on the change in the political climate and the role of politicians in the modern era. Basically they trace the change from politicians selling dreams to their need to “protect” their constituents from nightmares, all in the name of preserving their power.

The series does a great job of following the development of our fear of the “terrorist threat,” and explains exactly how and why it has been sold to us. It also makes the war in Iraq and our constant search for the “terrorists” make so much more sense. It almost makes me feel socially aware, but I’m not sure I’m quite comfortable with that.

This series explains the battle between the neo-conservatives (yeah you know who they are) and the radical Islamists (you’ll be surprised who they aren’t), and why it is such a bitter battle. All of the events leading up to the current war in Iraq and the “war on terror” are explained, from the conflict in Afghanistan with the Soviet Union, to the fall of the Soviet Union, to Desert Storm in ‘91 (and the arising bitterness from people like Wolfowitz who didn’t at ll approve of Bush Sr.’s failure to attack Baghdad back then).

Oh, yeah. And apparently the guy behind it is a fellow named Leo Strauss, a philosopher from the University of Chicago who had some very interesting ideas on running a country. Or the world. It really makes me wish I had paid attention in Poli Sci.

Anyway, this is amazing stuff. Probably not as enjoyable viewing for those not of my political stance, but still very interesting nonetheless. Search Google Video for “The Power of Nightmares” and you’ll find all three segments. Let me know what you think!