Month: July 2013

I mean, come on. You knew it had to happen, didn’t you? In a 2010 Department of Homeland Security report, wrested from the bowels of the secrecy/surveillance state (thanks to a Freedom of Information Act request by the Electronic Frontier Foundation), the Customs and Border Protection agency suggests arming their small fleet of surveillance drones. … Continue reading “Creating a Military-Industrial-Immigration Complex”

At least 96 people were killed and 191 were wounded in what appears to be a series of coordinated attacks across the country. In the deadliest attack, a group of security personnel were sitting down to their Iftar meal when gunmen attacked them.

There seems to be a lot of confusion about the meaning of elections, constitutions, and the rule of law. One recalls that the USSR in its heyday had a beautifully crafted constitution guaranteeing individual rights and also held regular elections for the Supreme Soviet that permitted one to select from a slate of candidates approved … Continue reading “The Meaninglessness of Elections”

Fidelity to the rule of law is the centerpiece of a free society. It means that no one is beneath the protection of the law and no one is absolved of the obligation to comply with it. The government may not make a person or a class of persons exempt from constitutional protections, as it … Continue reading “Above the Law”

The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws. ~ Tacitus Since the Guardian’s publication of the "telephone metadata" order, courtesy of Edward Snowden, the law professoriate et al. have been speculating about a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court’s "secret" opinion that would explain the seemingly inexplicable – how the National Security Agency legally can … Continue reading “Making Tyranny ‘Legal’”

For more than a month, outrage has been profuse in response to news about NSA surveillance and other evidence that all three branches of the U.S. government are turning Uncle Sam into Big Brother. Now what? Continuing to expose and denounce the assaults on civil liberties is essential. So is supporting Bradley Manning, Edward Snowden … Continue reading “Denouncing NSA Surveillance Isn’t Enough – We Need the Power to Stop It”

At least nine Iraqis were killed and four more were wounded.

The United States government hasn’t decided yet whether to call the overthrow of Egypt’s democratically elected government by the military a coup – they’re still mulling that one over in Washington: "Though officials did not dispute the fact that Egyptian President Mohamed Morsy, a democratically-elected leader, was ousted by the military in an extrajudicial fashion, … Continue reading “Egypt’s Coup: Revenge of the NGOs?”

When the dust settles from the ongoing deadly confrontations between the Egyptian armed forces and thousands of Islamist protesters in the streets of Cairo and Alexandria, the eventual winner will be the United States – specifically U.S.-made weapons systems in the hands of the country’s 440,000-strong military. At last count, over 50 demonstrators were killed … Continue reading “Egyptian Army’s Firepower Overwhelmingly U.S.-Supplied”

Apparently, in a fit of personal pique at Afghan leader Hamid Karzai, President Obama has threatened a more rapid withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan than the scheduled endpoint at the close of 2014 and also has warned that there could very well be no residual American force to support Karzai’s regime after that date. … Continue reading “Accelerate a Complete Withdrawal From Afghanistan”