New York Police Department commissioner Bill Bratton on Thursday unveiled plans for a new “anti-terrorism strike force” that would designate 350 officers to respond to special emergencies—including public protests—with a new wave of machine guns, long rifles, advanced technology, and “extra protective gear.” Bratton said the Strategic Response Group would handle “disorder control and counterterrorism…
Read more'Today, We Celebrate': Net Neutrality Advocates Cheer New FCC Rule Proposal
Federal Communications Commission chairman Tom Wheeler confirmed on Wednesday that the FCC will have the chance to enact the strongest possible protections for the internet at its February 26 meeting. In an op-ed for Wired, Wheeler detailed some of the proposals he would present to the FCC, including reclassifying the internet as a public utility…
Read moreChicago Police Secretly Detain, Abuse Americans at Domestic 'Black Site
Chicago police have operated a secret prison-like compound where they detain, interrogate, and torture U.S. citizens in what lawyers call a domestic equivalent to a CIA “black site,” an exclusive investigation by the Guardian revealed on Tuesday. A “nondescript warehouse” on Chicago’s west side, known as Homan Square, is in fact a secret facility used…
Read moreGreat Recession Linked to Rising Suicides Among Middle-Aged Americans
Economic crises kill in more ways than one. The Great Recession can be tied to a jump in suicides among middle-aged people in the U.S., a new article in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine reveals. Suicide rates among Americans aged 40 to 64 have been climbing since 1999, far out-pacing other age groups, the…
Read moreHuman-Driven Extraction Has Doomed Caribou. So Why Are Wolves Paying Deadly Price?
Alberta’s attempt to boost caribou numbers by killing wolves is an inhumane approach that fails to target the root of the problem—the extractivist industries—says a group of scientists. Explaining how the wolves came to be seen as the problem, Kaleigh Rogers writes at Vice: Controversy erupted in November following the publication of an analysis in…
Read moreIn 'Disastrous Decision,' US Prepares to Widen Exports of Armed Drones
The Obama administration will allow the widespread export of armed drones for the first time, signaling that the White House is preparing to provide its allied nations with highly controversial weapons as the U.S. steps up its so-called ‘War on Terror,’ the Washington Post reports. The policy, to be announced Tuesday, is also the result…
Read moreDespite Positive Spin, Is Greece Still Under Troika's Thumb?
While Greece’s left-leaning new government attempted to put a positive spin on Monday’s continued talks with European finance ministers, conflicting reports indicate that Syriza’s plan to distance the country from its austerity-imposing creditors, the so-called Troika, may be dashed for now. Following a meeting of the Eurogroup council, Eurogroup president Jeroen Dijsselbloem told reporters that—despite…
Read more'Black America in Crisis': Report Shows Troubling Racial Disparities Across US
Click:chinese fan dance props “The state of Black America is in crisis—and we see justice challenged at every turn.” So says this year’s National Urban League assessment of racial equality in the U.S., which considers employment, income, housing, education, health, social justice, and civic engagement. The 39th edition of the State of Black America, released…
Read moreFix the Soil, Feed the Planet, Save the World: The Power of Regeneration
Seeking to elevate sustainable forms of agriculture such as agroecology, holistic grazing, cover cropping, permaculture, and agroforestry over industrial practices that degrade soil, introduce toxins to the food supply—and exacerbate climate change—a group of farmers, scientists, and activists are convening for the Regenerative International Conference in Costa Rica this week. The conference, the first of…
Read moreFerrari: Lack of long runs will lead to ‘surprises’ in Eifel GP
Ferrari sporting director Laurent Mekies believes that teams’ lack of long runs at the Nürburgring will deliver a few surprises in Sunday’s Eifel Grand Prix. Friday’s entire day of running was scrapped by the adverse weather conditions that lingered over the Ring and which impaired the operations of F1’s medical helicopter. The lost mileage inevitably…
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