APNS/ANG Novajoservo

"Yahoo believes it could help Tumblr bring in more money by selling ads—boosting its own revenue in..."

Wed, 22 May 2013 05:13:07 +1000

““Yahoo believes it could help Tumblr bring in more money by selling ads—boosting its own revenue in the process,” The Wall Street Journal reported, citing Yahoo insiders. The model is one of data mining, exploiting the naive surrender of personal privacy so common on the Internet to better target advertising. As the Journal summarized it: “Data is at the heart of Yahoo’s ability to sell online advertising across its sites, based on what it knows about its people’s interests.” This is an advertising model well understood by Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer, who took over the troubled company last summer after 13 years of exploiting such data at Google. The enormous success of Google, and the main model for business success on the Internet, is that of data mining. The societal cost of sorting through people’s most personal information with abandon is the end of the very notion of privacy so basic to the functioning of a democratic society. That the very tools of data mining developed to track consumer habits could also be used to sustain totalitarian thought control was conceded in a recent book, “The New Digital Age,” by top Google execs Eric Schmidt and Jared Cohen.”

- Tumblr Is Worth $1.1 Billion to Yahoo for One Reason: You | The Nation

"By Rady Ananda Food Freedom Early Sunday morning, French police stood helpless as sixty people,..."

Wed, 22 May 2013 05:01:32 +1000

“By Rady Ananda Food Freedom Early Sunday morning, French police stood helpless as sixty people, locked inside an open-air field of genetically modified grapevines, uprooted all the plants. In Spain last month, dozens of people destroyed two GMO fields. On the millennial cusp, Indian farmers burned Bt cotton in their Cremate Monsanto campaign. Ignored by multinational corporations and corrupt public policy makers, citizens act to protect the food supply and the planet. The French vineyard is the same field attacked last year when the plants were only cut. But the security features installed after that incident kept authorities at bay while the group accomplished its mission yesterday. Speaking for the group, Olivier Florent told Le Figero that they condemned the use of public funds for open-field testing of GMOs “that we do not want.””

- GMO Crop Sabotage on the Rise: French citizens destroy trial vineyard - BlackListedNews.com

"According to the UCPD press release of March 3, the two officers involved said Smith fled on foot..."

Wed, 22 May 2013 04:55:37 +1000

“According to the UCPD press release of March 3, the two officers involved said Smith fled on foot from his vehicle after being pulled over by them during a “routine” traffic stop. After a “pursuit,” officers say Smith pulled a gun and pointed it at them. They claim they then fired their weapons, shooting Smith “several times.” Signs held at the vigil for Smith, however, questioned these details, and included messages such as, “Amos Suffered A Cruel Death,” “How Do You explain the Life You Claim,” “Shoot to Yield, Not to Kill,” “We Need Answers,” and “Union City PD Oath…’Serve and Protect’ Not Murder!!” Many at the vigil wore custom made clothing with screen printed pictures of Amos, and some of the designs played on the “Famous Amos” brand as a way to honor him. “I miss my son, very much. He was a good young man. He worked every day… he was so kind….” Yolanda Smith said, speaking briefly to those at the vigil. Smith said that her son had his Class A driver’s license and he was saving money to buy an 18 wheeler truck to start his own business. She recalled that his life was mostly filled with work and church, which is why she was worried when he didn’t come home on time the Saturday evening of March 2, the night he was killed.”

- Family Asks for Answers at Vigil for Amos G. Smith, 26 Year Old Killed by Union City Police : Indybay

Petition | Real Bronx Tours: Stop exploiting the Bronx by giving "ghetto gawking" tours. | Change.org

Wed, 22 May 2013 04:51:23 +1000

Petition | Real Bronx Tours: Stop exploiting the Bronx by giving "ghetto gawking" tours. | Change.org:

As seen in the NY Post on 5/19/13, Real Bronx Tours has tailored a tour geared towards perpetuating racist and classist stereotypes: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/bronx/ghetto_gawking_ffMgfDAaCD76GXNYDrth7L/. The tour visits sites such as St. Mary’s Park, which the guide tells tourists is nicknamed “pickpocket park” and says they will likely be mugged there, gawks at residents on church soup kitchen and food pantry lines, and promises to show guests “the ghetto.” This is disgusting to Bronxites like myself who are proud of our hometown and know that it is much more than a what is portrayed in a 1970s movie.

"London claims her mother, Dwana Voncia London-Richardson, died gasping for breath in court after..."

Wed, 22 May 2013 04:16:40 +1000

“London claims her mother, Dwana Voncia London-Richardson, died gasping for breath in court after callous and unconstitutional treatment from the defendants. Richardson suffered from asthma and other serious health problems, but the defendants refused to give her her medication, accused her of faking, and let her die in the courtroom, her daughter claims. Southern Healthcare Partners, which provided medical care to inmates at the St. Clair County Jail, failed to treat her mother properly, London says. Her 45-year-old mother died in May 2011 at the St. Clair County Courthouse while in the sheriff’s custody. Richardson was arrested on May 19, 2011, in Tarrant City, Ala., for failing to pay a 2008 traffic ticket. She was sent to the St. Clair County Jail. London claims that when she visited her mom in jail two days later, her mother could hardly walk, had trouble breathing and complained of pain in both legs.”

- Elderly Woman Dies in Court “Gasping for Breath” After Sheriff’s Deputies “Callously” Refused to Give Her Medication, Daughter Claims | Alternet

"In the case of the government Soviet-style investigation of this reporter, it is highly questionable..."

Wed, 22 May 2013 04:14:28 +1000

“In the case of the government Soviet-style investigation of this reporter, it is highly questionable that the basis for the frightening actions of the DOJ was even a case of classified information being leaked. Greenwald provides the context for this specific DOJ action, the intended prosecution of a State Department staffer for providing nothing more than speculation to a journalist about North Korean intentions:”

- Under Nixon, Reagan or the Bushes, We Wouldn’t Have Tolerated Obama’s Surveillance State

"The two officers involved claim they were pulling over Mr. Smith in a routine traffic stop (Driving..."

Wed, 22 May 2013 04:04:46 +1000

“The two officers involved claim they were pulling over Mr. Smith in a routine traffic stop (Driving While Black?) and that he pointed a gun at them at which point they shot the young man 8 times in the back of the head. I mean really, was he pointing the gun at them over his shoulder while facing away from them? There has been no report of a gun being recovered from the scene. Smith’s family and fellow church members described him as someone who was active in the church working with youth and worked really hard saving his money to buy an 18 wheeler truck after obtaining his Class A license. Reverend Macklin of New Sweet Home Church of God in Christ who was the young man’s pastor said he could not believe the news because of “who Amos was,” and his “lifestyle,” explaining that Smith was a “church going young man.””

- Police shoot young man 8 times in the BACK OF THE HEAD claiming he pointed gun at them - Black Talk Radio Network™

"The sensational claims are due to be made to Justice Peter Smithwick’s Dublin tribunal of inquiry..."

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:29:01 +1000

“The sensational claims are due to be made to Justice Peter Smithwick’s Dublin tribunal of inquiry into the murder of two senior RUC officers in 1989. The victims, Chief Superintendent Harry Breen and Superintendent Robert Buchanan, died in a hail of IRA gunfire as they crossed the border following an intelligence exchange with the Garda in Dundalk.”

- Half of all top IRA men ‘worked for security services’ - BelfastTelegraph.co.uk

Guatemala Court Annuls Rios Montt Genocide Conviction - Dem Underground | APNS Int.

Tue, 21 May 2013 16:27:13 +1000

Guatemala Court Annuls Rios Montt Genocide Conviction - Dem Underground | APNS Int.:

Guatemala Court Annuls Rios Montt Genocide Conviction - Democratic Underground: Rios Montt was found guilty on May 10 of overseeing the deliberate killings by the armed forces of at least 1,771 members of the Maya Ixil population during his 1982-83 rule. He was sentenced to 80 years in prison…But the constitutional court said it had thrown out all proceedings in the case dating back until April 19. It was then that the trial against Rios Montt was suspended after a spat between judges over who should take the case. (Reporting by Mike McDonald; Editing by Dave Graham)

"This trade route was already very active a very long time ago, and this may [be] evidence of that..."

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:25:34 +1000

““This trade route was already very active a very long time ago, and this may [be] evidence of that early exploration by people from East Africa or from the Middle East,” he said. According to Dr McIntosh, who is currently based at Indiana University in the US, the copper coins were the first produced in sub-Saharan Africa and have only twice been found outside the continent: in Oman in the early 20th century and in Australia by Isenberg, who was fishing off a beach at the time. Dr McIntosh’s team – comprising Australian and American historians, archaeologists and geomorphologists (scientists who study the shaping of landforms), as well as Aboriginal rangers – has confirmed that the coins date from between the 900s and 1300s. At the same spot, the young soldier also unearthed four coins originating in the Dutch East India Company, one dating back to 1690.”

- X marks the spot: The find that could rewrite Australian history - Australasia - World - The Independent

"The tour guide warned of the dangers of going to a park in the Bronx, and also gave inaccurate..."

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:38:25 +1000

“The tour guide warned of the dangers of going to a park in the Bronx, and also gave inaccurate information about the origin of the word “pig” to describe a police officer. While Battaglia claimed the word came from the Bronx, in reality it originated in London. The Bronx Borough President harshly criticized the guide and the tour. The guide is “the biggest fool on the planet,” said Ruben Diaz, the borough president. “To have foreigners come and gawk at a long line of people who are less fortunate than they are and to make money off of that and to view them as they are some sort of entertainment is pretty disgusting.””

- Tourists Encouraged to Gawk At, Mock Poor in Horrifying “GHETTO” Bus Tour in Bronx | Alternet

"But the prejudice will follow you. What will save you is tacking into the love of the work, into the..."

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:01:42 +1000

“But the prejudice will follow you. What will save you is tacking into the love of the work, into the desire that brought you there in the first place. This creates a suspension of time, opens a spacious room of your own in which you can walk around and consider your response. Staring prejudice in the face imposes a cruel discipline: to structure your anger, to achieve a certain dignity, an angry dignity.”

- Former software engineer and current author Ellen Ullman had a fabulously thoughtful op-ed in The New York Times about her experiences being female in the tech world, and speaking about the changes she’s noticed (not ones for the better, really) in the world of coding and software for women.

I love this last paragraph (the one quoted above) in particular, partly because it’s so real but also so genuinely hopeful. It has real promise but it casts no illusions over what it means to be female in any sort of man’s world. Ullman is talking about a prejudice that women far afield from the world of coding can instantly understand. It may not be phrased identically, but the language of dismissal, neglect and prejudice is at its heart universally recognizable and understood, as is the process of structuring the reaction to it.

Definitely read the full op-ed.

(via thepoliticalnotebook)

marinemammalblog: A disabled killer whale that is missing two...

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:01:07 +1000

marinemammalblog:

A disabled killer whale that is missing two fins is able to survive in the wild with the help of its family, who hunt food its food.

The young killer whale has no dorsal fin or right-side pectoral fin, leaving it unable to hunt for itself.

But rather than be left to fend for itself or die, the whale appears to be cared for by members of its pod, which share their food with the youngster.

Source: X

"While there are Indigenous people working to create changes in their home communities, the move to..."

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:59:46 +1000

““While there are Indigenous people working to create changes in their home communities, the move to reclaim Indigenous homelands by standing up and staking our presence on the homelands of our ancestors, reveals a strength and resilience that white settlers must recognize. The time has come to stand together and rise as nations and the resurgence begins with events such as PKOLS.””

- PKOLS and the Indigenous Nationhood Movement, By Renee Holt - Last Real Indians (via idlenomore)

saharareporters: Achebe And The Quest For Nobel Prize By...

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:59:27 +1000

saharareporters:

Achebe And The Quest For Nobel Prize

By Vincent Alicho, Cmf.

The controversies that trailed Prof. Achebe’s last book—There Was a Country: A Personal History Of Biafra—came from different perspectives. While some people saw the book as one that came to shed more light on the events of the Nigerian/Biafran war, others saw it as a book that should not have been published in the first place.

READ MORE…

Selchie Productions: Nam Aonar ri Taobh na Tuinne: Job opportunity for Gaelic speakers in Steòrnabhagh

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:57:54 +1000

Selchie Productions: Nam Aonar ri Taobh na Tuinne: Job opportunity for Gaelic speakers in Steòrnabhagh:

selchieproductions:

Neach-fàilteachais làn-ùine (37 uairean a thìde) – Oifis Steòrnabhaigh

£14,500-£16,500 gach bliadhna (a rèir eòlas-obrach) + peinnsean

Tha MG ALBA a’ sireadh neach-fàilteachais, le comasan sgrìobhaidh agus labhairt aig ìre fileantais sa Ghàidhlig, airson na h-oifis aca ann an Steòrnabhagh. Bidh…

slatevault: The fiercely independent Eleanor Roosevelt had a...

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:57:37 +1000

slatevault:

The fiercely independent Eleanor Roosevelt had a permit to carry a pistol. Here it is: http://slate.me/14IGr07

Heartbreaking.

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:57:15 +1000

think-progress:

Even though the day was cancelled due to sequestration, a 5-year-old showed up to school because he was hungry.

And there are more devastating effects sequester budget cuts have had on kids and schools.

South Dakota Officials Miss Historic Meeting With Tribes : NPR

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:56:51 +1000

South Dakota Officials Miss Historic Meeting With Tribes : NPR:

Federal officials met with South Dakota’s nine Sioux tribes on Wednesday for a historic summit in Rapid City. A year in the making, it was an effort to address long standing concerns over the high number of Native American children the state places in white foster homes. State officials, however, didn’t show up for the meeting.

fuckyeahmarxismleninism: May 19, 2013 marks the fourth...

Tue, 21 May 2013 07:55:38 +1000

fuckyeahmarxismleninism:

May 19, 2013 marks the fourth anniversary of the abduction and disappearance of Melissa Roxas. An American citizen, Ms. Roxas was abducted on May 19, 2009 while on a medical mission in La Paz, Tarlac, held against her will and tortured via physical beatings and asphyxiation during her captivity until she surfaced in Quezon City on May 25, 2009. Abundant evidence points to the Armed Forces of the Philippines as responsible for Ms. Roxas’ abduction and torture.

As one of the few survivors of abduction and torture by the military, Ms. Roxas filed her case in the Philippine courts, testified in various venues, and fully cooperated with the investigation undertaken by the Commission on Human Rights. Despite exceptionally credible testimony by Ms. Roxas, the perpetrators of this crime still have not been apprehended. Justice continues to be denied Ms. Roxas, who courageously went public with her story, seeking justice not only for herself, but for all victims of human rights violations, which now number into the tens of thousands since the beginning of Aquino’s presidential term in 2010.

Thousands of women, students, farmers, medical professionals, workers, lawyers, journalists, people of faith, and other activists like Melissa Roxas are being unjustly abducted, killed, tortured, disappeared and imprisoned by the Philippine military. President Aquino must act now to stop the human rights violations and put an end to impunity in the Philippines.

Sign the petition