Headline Clicker

Rand Paul: Americans trading liberty for false security

2013-12-04T13:45:00.000-08:00

In the opening pages of Ray Bradbury’s famous novel Fahrenheit 451, protagonist Guy Montag asks: Wasn’t there a time when firemen used to put out fires? They laugh at him, rebuke him and say: Everybody knows firemen start fires.

Montag knew this. Montag’s father and his grandfather had been firemen. It had been his duty for many years to start fires. He knew it was his duty to burn books, but this day would be different.

Montag arrived on the scene to do his job but found a woman who wouldn’t leave. He complained that she had all of her books but still wouldn’t leave. Undeterred, Montag proceeds with the other firemen to douse her books—and her—with kerosene. The woman shouts out and goads them. She is indignant that they would touch her books at all, and she still wouldn’t leave. She says to them: “Play the man, Master Ridley; today we will light such a candle, by God’s grace, in England, that it won’t be forgotten.”

Read more: http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2013/12/03/We-re-Not-Burning-Books-Yet

Photo by Gage Skidmore

MSNBC host Martin Bashir resigns after Palin remarks

2013-12-04T13:33:00.002-08:00

MSNBC host Martin Bashir resigned Wednesday after making controversial comments on his show Nov. 15 about former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

“After meeting with the president of MSNBC, I have tendered my resignation. It is my sincere hope that all of my colleagues, at this special network, will be allowed to focus on the issues that matter without the distraction of myself or my ill-judged comments,” Mr. Bashir wrote in a statement. “I deeply regret what was said, will endeavor to work hard at making constructive contributions in the future and will always have a deep appreciation for our viewers.”

On his show, Mr. Bashir had called Ms. Palin a “world-class idiot” for comparing U.S. indebtedness to China to slavery. He then quoted from the diary of a plantation owner who punished his slaves by having others defecate in their mouths, and suggested that Ms. Palin would be an “outstanding candidate” for such treatment.

Read more: http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2013/12/04/msnbc-host-martin-bashir-resigns-after-palin-remarks/?mod=WSJBlog

Ron Paul shamefully absent in history book on 2012 election

2013-11-12T14:42:00.000-08:00

Double Down, the new book on the 2012 presidential election by John Heilemann and Mark Helperin, falls short in one way that has been overlooked by the media. While it contains nifty insider tidbits about Barack Obama, Mitt Romney, and other major players from that epic political battle, it overlooks one man whose influence may prove as lasting as the others— Texas Congressman Ron Paul.

Believe me, I’m not writing this as a diehard Paulbot (as one of my more controversial comic articles on this site can attest). While I agree with some of his views on social and foreign policy, his zealotry for the gospel of Austrian economics, regular distortion of American constitutional history, and disturbingly cultish following are all significant turnoffs in my book. Like him or not, however, the historian in me recognizes that he had an enormous – and most likely lasting – impact on the shape of American politics. To overlook this fact in a work meant to chronicle the 2012 election is downright negligent.

Read more: http://www.policymic.com/articles/72955/ron-paul-shamefully-absent-in-history-book-on-2012-election

Mont. Senate candidate says Harry Reid asked him not to run

2013-11-12T14:36:00.000-08:00

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) asked former Montana Lieutenant Gov. John Bohlinger (D) to drop his Senate bid to avoid a Democratic primary, according to Bohlinger.

Bohlinger says Reid called him after he announced his campaign.

"And he said, you know, 'John, you know, you're a nice guy, but we've chosen Walsh. We'd like you to drop out. We don't want to have a primary,'" Bohlinger tells KRTV. "And I said, 'Senator, we're going to have a primary in Montana. And it will be the people of Montana that choose the next Democratic Senatorial candidate.' "

Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/senate-races/189943-montana-senate-candidate-says-harry-reid-asked-him-not-to-run

Video: Thug robs motorcycle rider at gunpoint, gets shot by cop

2013-10-15T09:18:00.000-07:00

Stunning video is going viral showing a motorcyclist who was attacked at gunpoint by two assailants in Sao Paulo, Brazil. While one of the robbers brandished a gun in an attempt to steal the victim’s chopper, he was thwarted when a police officer unexpectedly emerged and shot him from across the street.

The chaotic incident, which unfolded rather quickly at a stoplight, was captured by a helmet-bound camera the victim was wearing at the time of the attack, Gawker reports. It was later uploaded by a YouTube user named Anderson Mangai, although it is not immediately known whether he was the victim.

Read more: http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/10/14/now-youre-gonna-rob-in-hell-thief-holds-motorcyclist-at-gunpoint-in-chaotic-robbery-attempt-but-cop-unexpectedly-saves-the-day/#

Two weeks later, reporter still can't sign up for Obamacare

2013-10-14T10:58:00.000-07:00

The healthcare.gov website has been online for two weeks. But folks are having trouble signing up.

One person who says she's been trying for two weeks straight to sign up is CNN senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen.

Here's video of her trying and failing to sign up:

Read more: http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/two-weeks-later-reporter-still-cant-sign-obamacare_762482.html

Brazil announces secure email to counter US spying

2013-10-14T10:54:00.001-07:00

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff announced Sunday that her government was creating a secure email system to try and shield official communications from spying by the United States and other countries.

"We need more security on our messages to prevent possible espionage," Rousseff said on Twitter, ordering the Federal Data Processing Service, or SERPRO, to implement a safe email system throughout the federal government.

The agency, which falls under Brazil's Finance Ministry, develops secure systems for online tax returns and also creates new passports.

Read more: http://www.france24.com/en/20131014-brazil-announces-secure-email-counter-us-spying

EBT benefit card glitch sparks Walmart shopping sprees in Louisiana (video)

2013-10-14T10:51:00.002-07:00

The Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) system allows recipients of government food stamps to purchase goods using a digital card with a set spending limit, but for a few hours over the weekend, that limit disappeared for many users visiting Walmart stores in Louisiana.

Walmart and local police in Springhill and Mansfield confirmed to CBS affiliate KSLA that officers were called into the stores to help maintain order Saturday as shoppers swept through the aisles at two stores and bought as much as they could carry.

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57607332/ebt-benefit-card-glitch-sparks-walmart-shopping-sprees-in-louisiana/

Senate votes to ban the Libertarian Party from Ohio election

2013-10-14T10:00:00.000-07:00

Since 2008, the idea of third parties started to gain more popularity across America. Principled conservatives and libertarians united against both the Democrat and Republican establishment started to explore methods of opposing Washington elites and the status quo.

The Tea Party had some success – and has continued most successfully – with primary campaigns which put principled people like Ted Cruz and Rand Paul in races as the Republican candidate. Once they won the GOP nomination, winning the general election was often pretty straightforward.

Yet many liberty activists have become disenchanted by the two party system and are turning to other options. Third parties have been the other option, employed for a variety of reasons both practical and ideological for many voters.

Read more: http://benswann.com/senate-votes-to-ban-the-libertarian-party-from-ohio-ballot/

Malaysia: 'Allah' word banned for non-Muslims

2013-10-14T09:36:00.001-07:00

A Malaysian appeals court has ruled that the word 'Allah' cannot be used to refer to God in non-Muslim faiths.

Catholic newspaper The Herald wanted to continue using the word, which is commonly used in the Malay language to refer to God, but the government successfully argued it should be reserved for Muslims.

"The usage of the word Allah is not an integral part of the faith in Christianity," said chief judge Mohamed Apandi Ali.

"The usage of the word will cause confusion in the community."

The judgement overturns a decision by a lower court nearly four years ago.

Anger over that decision sparked arson attacks and vandalism at Malaysian churches and other places of worship.

The government has justified the ban on grounds of national security and to avoid misunderstanding and confusion.

Read more: http://news.sky.com/story/1154300/malaysia-allah-word-banned-for-non-muslims

FBI investigating dry ice explosion at LAX

2013-10-14T09:28:00.000-07:00

The FBI has taken over the investigation into a dry ice bomb that exploded in a men’s bathroom at Los Angeles International Airport on Sunday evening.

The explosion, which is created by filling a bottle with dry ice, occurred at about 7 p.m. in a restroom at Terminal 2, which is home to several international and domestic airlines.

Read more: http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-dry-ice-lax-fbi-20131014,0,7203216.story

China calls for new reserve currency, and New World Order

2013-10-14T09:20:00.001-07:00

We assume it is a coincidence that on the day in which we demonstrate China’s relentless appetite for gold, driven by what we and many others believe is the country’s desire to have a call option on a gold-backed reserve currency when the time comes, just posted in China’s official press agency, Xinhua, is an op-ed by writer Liu Chang in which he decries the “US fiscal failure which warrants a de-Americanized world” and flatly states that the world should consider a new reserve currency

“that is to be created to replace the dominant U.S. dollar, so that the international community could permanently stay away from the spillover of the intensifying domestic political turmoil in the United States.”

Read more: http://www.globalresearch.ca/china-agency-calls-for-new-reserve-currency-and-new-world-order/5354190

Student files freedom of speech lawsuit against college

2013-10-14T09:14:00.000-07:00

A Modesto Junior College student has filed a lawsuit in federal court against the school and officials who blocked him from handing out copies of the U.S. Constitution on Constitution Day.

Videos of MJC student Robert Van Tuinen got more than 153,000 hits on YouTube. The college received more than 500 phone calls and thousands of emails from across the nation regarding the incident, some including hate speech or death threats, officials said.

Read more: http://www.modbee.com/2013/10/10/2968629/mjc-student-files-freedom-of-speech.html

New UC president gets mixed reviews on first official visit to UCLA

2013-10-12T10:31:00.001-07:00

UC President Janet Napolitano got a mixed reception Friday during her first official visit to UCLA, facing protesters who objected to her actions as the onetime U.S. secretary of Homeland Security but also meeting with student leaders who praised her willingness to listen.

Napolitano came to the Westwood campus for private meetings with students, faculty and administrators and to attend some seminars. Since assuming the presidency two weeks ago, she has been touring the 10-campus University of California system and learning more about its troubled finances, its massive facilities and the programs that enroll 230,000 students.

Read more: http://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-ucla-napolitano-20131012,0,2715642.story

Ron Paul endorses Ken Cuccinelli for Virginia governor

2013-10-12T10:13:00.000-07:00

Ron Paul endorsed Ken Cuccinelli for Virginia governor Friday night, boosting the Republican’s push to woo voters who have bled to a third-party candidate.

Libertarian Robert Sarvis could be a spoiler in next month’s off-year election, attracting what should be Republican voters concerned about the nominee’s strong opposition to gay marriage and abortion.

The former Texas congressman, who retains a large following among libertarians after his presidential bid last year, does not mention Sarvis in his two-page letter of support for Cuccinelli.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/10/ron-paul-endorses-ken-cuccinelli-virginia-governor-2013-elections-98208.html

Photo by Gage Skidmore

John McCain: 'Defunding Obamacare is not achievable' (video)

2013-10-11T12:47:00.000-07:00

Government regulators: Poultry plants linked to Salmonella outbreak to remain open

2013-10-11T11:37:00.000-07:00

Three California poultry processing plants linked to a salmonella outbreak in raw chicken that's sickened 278 people in 17 states can remain open, the U.S. Agriculture Department says.

The three plants are owned by Foster Farms, which has made "immediate substantive changes to their slaughter and processing to allow for continued operations," according to the department, the Associated Press reported.

Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/health/topics/HealthDay681072_20131011_Poultry_Plants_Linked_to_Salmonella_Outbreak_to_Remain_Open__USDA.html#0DHwgVLfEHWdka4s.99

Video: Harry Reid tells D.C. mayor "I'm on your side, don't screw it up"

2013-10-11T11:24:00.000-07:00

N.J. Attorney General: We haven't followed our illegal immigration directive since 2008

2013-10-11T11:11:00.000-07:00

A community activist says Morris County police departments and the county prosecutor's office aren't following the state's rules for reporting people they have reason to believe are undocumented immigrants to federal authorities.

And the state Attorney General's Office says he's right.

The AG's Office told NJ.com it hasn't followed those rules since 2008 and doesn't expect county prosecutors to follow them — even though they're still officially in effect — because they're "superfluous" and out-of-date. But some county prosecutors' offices and most police departments in Morris County still continue to comply with those rules despite the AG's current practice.

Read more:
http://www.nj.com/morris/index.ssf/2013/10/ag_we_havent_fully_enforced_our_own_illegal_immigration_directive_since_2008.html

Photo by Tomas Castelazo

US media failed to cite pundits’ ties to defense industry in Syria strike debate

2013-10-11T10:47:00.000-07:00

Nearly two dozen of the commentators who appeared on major media outlets to discuss a possible US military strike on Syria had relationships with contractors and other organizations with a vested interest in the conflict, according to a new report.

The Public Accountability Initiative, a non-profit research group dedicated to “investigating power and corruption at the heights of business and government,” determined that 22 of the pundits who spoke to the media during the public debate over whether the US should bomb Syria appeared to have conflicts of interest. Seven think tanks with murky affiliations were also involved in the debate.

Read more: http://rt.com/usa/media-failed-pundits-defense-syria-011/

Photo by Ken Lund

US-backed terrorist group MEK to disrupt Geneva talks (open letter)

2013-10-11T10:40:00.000-07:00

Iran Interlink closely monitors the ideological and behavioural activities of the Mojahedin Khalq organisation and recent information concerning this group forces us to be blunt in our warnings to you.

More than anyone else you are aware that alongside the optimism for a negotiated settlement of the long running nuclear issue between the United States and its allies and Iran, various parties - Israel, Saudi Arabia, members of the US Congress - are trying hard to prevent any moves toward rapprochement. In particular, since Israel’s political efforts have failed to do this, we believe we will now see the ugly face of Israel through its deployment of the terrorist Mojahedin Khalq cult.

Read more: http://iranian.com/posts/view/post/22372

Taser tackle cover-up claims may stick to cops

2013-10-11T10:32:00.000-07:00

A man who says he fell off a highway bypass after police Tasered him can pursue claims that the police threatened witnesses and said he voluntarily jumped, a federal judge ruled.

Ernest Martin says Officer Brian Errington allegedly attacked and Tasered him on April 19, 2012, causing him to fall from the West Shore Bypass and land on the concrete about 40 feet below. At the time Errington was allegedly on duty with Police Capt. Damon Kloc in West Reading, Pa.

Reading Police Chief William Heim, together with Pennsylvania State Police Captain Dante Orlandi, Trooper Michael Pavelko, and several others, soon investigated the fall.

Despite knowing that Martin was Tasered, the officers told local media outlets, including the Reading Eagle Newspaper and Channel 69 Television News, the man had intentionally jumped off the bridge, Martin claimed in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania months later.

Read more: http://www.courthousenews.com/2013/10/11/61944.htm

Photo by jasonesbain

Libertarian SC Senate candidate declares was on income tax

2013-10-11T10:27:00.002-07:00

Alex Thornton got smoked in her first foray into Palmetto politics (this month’s special election for the S.C. Senate seat vacated by Robert Ford).

But this smokin’ hot Libertarian (note the big “L”) isn’t giving up. Far from it. In fact she’s making it her mission to transform the Libertarian Party in South Carolina into a legitimate contender at the statewide level. She’s also staying focused on advancing the issue nearest and dearest to her heart – the elimination of South Carolina’s individual income tax.

“I’m going to be a one-woman army against the income tax,” Thornton told FITS this week.

Read more: http://www.fitsnews.com/2013/10/09/alex-versus-the-income-tax/

http://alexforscsenate.com/

Patriot Act architect plans bill to deconstruct NSA

2013-10-11T10:11:00.000-07:00

One of the more serious congressional threats to the National Security Agency's controversial surveillance programs could come from one of the unlikeliest of sources: a primary sponsor of the Patriot Act.

Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., criticized the Obama administration this week for its using parts of the Patriot Act to justify the NSA's bulk collection of Americans' email and phone data and said he plans to introduce legislation to limit such programs.

"The NSA has gone far beyond the intent of the Patriot Act, particularly in the accumulation and storage of metadata," Sensenbrenner said. "Had Congress known that the Patriot Act had been used to collect metadata, the bill would have never been passed."

Read more: http://www.govexec.com/defense/2013/10/patriot-act-architect-plans-bill-deconstruct-nsa/71789/?oref=river

US moves Marines to Italy, prepares for blowback from Libya raid

2013-10-08T11:36:00.002-07:00

Two hundred United States Marines are being mobilized from a base in Spain to an Italian site neighboring Libya where an Army raid over the weekend resulted in the capture of suspected Al-Qaeda terrorist, Abu Anas al-Libi.

CNN reported early Tuesday that a US military official confirmed the repositioning of 200 heavily armed Marines to the naval base at Sigonella, Italy, a Sicilian fort south of Catania that sits on the opposite side of the Mediterranean from Libya.

According to the military source, the US Department of State aided in the troop movement and considers the maneuver “a prudent measure” following Saturday’s raid in Tripoli. There is now the potential for a security crisis to arise at the US Embassy in Libya, CNN reported, should tensions worsen as a result of the capture.

Read more: http://rt.com/usa/italy-marines-libya-raid-896/