Michael Douglas has been a generous political contributor over the years. He's given to real progressives like Dennis Kucinich, Howard Dean and Russ Feingold, to conservatives like Bob Kerrey, Joe Baca, Adam Schiff and Max Baucus, and to corporate career Dems like Hillary Clinton, Tom Daschle and Dick Gephardt. Mostly, though, he just likes Democrats and has given tens of thousands of dollars to Beltway Democratic committees like the DCC, DNC and the DSCC. In a letter he sent out yesterday-- on behalf of the Council for a Livable World-- he pointed to 3 crucial Senate races.

BEREHOVE, Ukraine -- A foreign leader whose country pines for its lost empire advocates self-rule for a Ukrainian province and gives passports to its residents. The call resonates among many in the region, where tens of thousands of people don't even speak the Ukrainian language.

By Tim Cushing | Techdirt | June 9, 2014

U.S. Air Forces in Europe
U.S. Air Forces Africa
June 10, 2014
BALTOPS 14 kicks-off
By Airman 1st Class Kyla Gifford
100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs

POWIDZ AIR BASE, Poland: The 100th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron began its participation in the 42nd annual Baltic Operations Exercise June 9, 2014, as it traveled from RAF Mildenhall, England, to Powidz Air Base, Poland.

U.S. Air Forces in Europe
U.S. Air Forces Africa
June 10, 2014
BALTOPS 14 kicks-off
By Airman 1st Class Kyla Gifford
100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs

POWIDZ AIR BASE, Poland: The 100th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron began its participation in the 42nd annual Baltic Operations Exercise June 9, 2014, as it traveled from RAF Mildenhall, England, to Powidz Air Base, Poland.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Allied Command Operations
June 10, 2014
NATO JOINS EXERCISE SABER STRIKE 2014 IN THE BALTICS
NATO Allies are participating in Exercise Saber Strike 2014 which is underway in the Baltics. The U.S. led exercise, which kicked off on Monday, 9 June 2014, at the Adazi training area, Latvia, aims to improve joint operational capability and interoperability with regional Allies and Partners.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Allied Command Operations
June 10, 2014
NATO JOINS EXERCISE SABER STRIKE 2014 IN THE BALTICS
NATO Allies are participating in Exercise Saber Strike 2014 which is underway in the Baltics. The U.S. led exercise, which kicked off on Monday, 9 June 2014, at the Adazi training area, Latvia, aims to improve joint operational capability and interoperability with regional Allies and Partners.

Press TV
June 10, 2014
US, NATO not after solution in Ukraine: Analyst
Video
Press TV has interviewed Rick Rozoff from Stop NATO Network, Chicago, to get his views on NATO activities with regards to the current situation in Ukraine.
What follows is an approximate transcription of that interview:

Press TV
June 10, 2014
US, NATO not after solution in Ukraine: Analyst
Video
Press TV has interviewed Rick Rozoff from Stop NATO Network, Chicago, to get his views on NATO activities with regards to the current situation in Ukraine.
What follows is an approximate transcription of that interview:

Anti-war essays, poems, short stories and literary excerpts
G.K. Chesterton
From The Ball and the Cross (1906)

“I have brought you here,” he answered, “to take part in the last war of the world!”
“The last war!” repeated Turnbull, even in his dazed state a little touchy about such a dogma; “How do you know it will be the last?”

Anti-war essays, poems, short stories and literary excerpts
G.K. Chesterton
From The Ball and the Cross (1906)

“I have brought you here,” he answered, “to take part in the last war of the world!”
“The last war!” repeated Turnbull, even in his dazed state a little touchy about such a dogma; “How do you know it will be the last?”

By Noel Brinkerhoff | AllGov | June 10, 2014

Thousands of federal government employees are armed with handguns and even semiautomatic and automatic weapons as part of their jobs for agencies that are not traditional law enforcement operations.

By Noel Brinkerhoff | AllGov | June 10, 2014

When Colorado legalized recreational marijuana, critics of the idea warned it would lead to more crime throughout the state. But the impact has been just the opposite so far in the state’s largest city, which has seen violent crime go down.

Many years ago, I was new to the big left blogger listserv and had the temerity to harshly criticize then-DCCC chairman Rahm Emanuel. The push-back was overwhelming, one progressive blogger going so far as to suggest I might be a Republican operative. The left blogosphere has matured since then and Rahm and corporate Dems like him regularly come under more thoughtful scrutiny than they did back them.

While powerful beneficiaries of war and military spending - major banks (as primary lenders to governments) and the military-security-industrial complex - thrive on war and international tensions, they nonetheless tend to prefer local, national, limited, or "manageable" wars to large scale regional or global wars that, in a cataclysmic fashion, could paralyze global markets altogether.

The Syrian presidential election surprised both Syrians and their allies and enemies. The poll, which everyone agrees was legitimate, mobilized 73.42% of the electorate, despite the inability of some people to get to the polls because of the occupation of part of the country by foreign mercenaries. Bashar al-Assad won 88.7% of the vote and his mandate has been extended for 7 more years.
The post The Syrian People Have Spoken appeared first on BSNEWS.

It is astonishing that this pernicious web of lies has been spun largely unchallenged; that the construction of this vast edifice of fabrication has been permitted. Yet the powerful mythology surrounding benefits comes tumbling down with the slightest pressure; crumbles at the gentlest application of logic or rationality, shatters and splinters on exposure to mere facts.
The post Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off appeared first on BSNEWS.

By Finian Cunningham | Press TV | June 10, 2014

An official British probe this week into alleged “Islamic extremism” in schools is replete with rumor, hearsay and sensationalist accusations.
But, as it turns out, the government report is based on scant factual evidence.
What this amounts to is a “witch-hunt” against British Muslims fuelled at the highest level of government.

Mr. Tony Abbot ,

Libya is teetering on the verge of its worst crisis since the 2011 overthrow of the Gaddafi regime. Last month, forces loyal to General Khalifa Haftar launched a brazen assault on the sitting national congress in Tripoli, accusing the Islamist-dominated parliament of being complicit with hostile militias and of fostering terrorism. Proclaiming an anti-Islamist offensive […]

We have just seen the Jew spew mainstream media go hog wild over the latest "shooting" in Las Vegas Nevada.   It does seem that now on a weekly basis we are seeing these shootings take place across America, and of course we find all the liars in the media and many government officials shortly after each shooting calling for gun control legislation across America as a result.  I have yet to sift through all of the evidence to determine if the latest shooting in Las Vegas is authentic, but for this article I want to present some very strong evidence courtesy of my friend, Greg, who is also kn

2012 saw a big drop off in votes for President Obama in central Florida's 7th district. In 2008 the R+4 district gave Obama 49% of its vote (164,563). In 2012 that dropped to 155,489 (47%). The Tea Party "Democrat" in the 2012 race against GOP incumbent John Mica, Jason Kendall, only managed 41% (130,509).

Two of today's attacks focused on Kurdish political party offices, but this time the bombers targeted Tuz Khormato. Yesterday, bombers attacked an office in nearby Jalawla. Also, militants overran the provincial government building in Mosul. It is unclear how much of Mosul is occupied by militants at this point, but it is considerable. The city could fall within days, according to a senior security official. Also, Baghdad suffered a series of bombings. At least 123 people were killed and 261 were wounded.

The main cause of the monarch butterfly’s decline is the loss of milkweed — its food — in its U.S. breeding grounds, a new study has found. That all but confirms that the spread of genetically modified crops is indirectly killing the monarch.

Eric Draitser of StopImperialism.org provides his comments on the nature of the corporate media and its function within the Western imperial system. He notes that the media is almost entirely controlled by a small number of corporations, and that it acts as the mouthpiece of the ruling class.  Draitser explains that the media’s function is to shape public opinion around Washington’s policies.

Investigators said they have identified a secretive hacking group that has spent years systematically targeting US partners in the space and satellite industry, most likely on behalf of the Chinese military.

 
 Image above: Davy Crocket tactical nuclear warhead
 

Medical analysis of millions of post-911 New York cancer patients; 911 first respondents, firefighters, rescue workers, cleanup crew, residents, commuters and especially Wall Street brokers, indicate that 911 attack was a nuclear event. This indication was emphasized by Russian Intelligence leaks claiming that dirty nuclear bombs were used by nuclear capable Israeli Mossad, rather than by primitive cave dweller Osama bin Laden, to vaporize the Twin Trade Towers. 

 

The body of an Oklahoma inmate who died after a botched execution of what corrections officials have said was an apparent heart attack was returned from an independent autopsy without the heart or larynx, a state medical official said Monday.
The Dallas County Medical Examiner’s Office, which is conducting an independent autopsy on the body of inmate Clayton Lockett, retained the body parts, a practice that is not uncommon, said Amy Elliott, a spokeswoman for the Oklahoma Medical Examiner’s Office.

323 BC – Alexander the Great, Macedonian king (b. 356 BC) died.
1539 – Council of Trent: Paul III sends out letters to his bishops, delaying the Council due to war and the difficulty bishops had traveling to Venice.
1692 – Salem witch trials: Bridget Bishop is hanged at Gallows Hill near Salem, Massachusetts, for “certaine Detestable Arts called Witchcraft & Sorceries”.
1793 – French Revolution: Following the arrests of Girondin leaders, the Jacobins gain control of the Committee of Public Safety installing the revolutionary dictatorship.

Following a collage of clips from various countries where it's claimed that soccer is a "religion," John jumps in: "And they're not exaggerating. When David Beckham got a tattoo of Jesus, the response of most soccer fans was, 'Well, that's, that's huge for Jesus. That's, that's a big deal for him.' ""I know that in America soccer is something you pick your ten-year-old daughter up from.

TweetAhmed Maiteg says he is stepping down to comply with a Supreme Court ruling that his election was unconstitutional.

Larry Pinkney is a veteran of the Black Panther Party, the former Minister of Interior of the Republic of New Africa, a former political prisoner and the only American to have successfully self-authored his civil/political rights case to the United Nations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. In connection with his political organizing activities, Pinkney was interviewed in 1988 on the nationally televised PBS News Hour, formerly known as The MacNeil/Lehrer News Hour etc.

TweetThe President of Egypt has promised to fight terrorism and has stated openly that because of the nest of terrorists now residing in Libya and because there is no border security between Egypt and Libya it is in Egypt's best interest for their own national security to assist the Libyans in cleaning their country of radical Islamists.

by Judith Curry
Rapidly melting Arctic sea ice, growing Antarctic sea ice, and concerns about the melting Thwaites glacier – can all of this be explained by anthropogenic global warming?

TweetNewly elected Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi , in a speech Sunday at the Presidential Palace in Cairo, promised to fight the terrorism that has caused Egyptians so much heartache during the past 3 years.

Will the massive national promo blitz for her new book Hard Choices put Hillary on track for White House in 2016?Click here for free audiobook download from Audible, and earn $15 for the PBC Podcast!
–Hillary’s media blitz—see Bob & Barbara Dreyfuss post at the Nation

RT | June 9, 2014

From the streets of Fallujah to Franklin, Indiana, heavily armored military vehicles have been rolled out for one and the same reason: many police officers in the US believe there’s a war going on.

The New York Times has a good story today headlined, “War Gear Flows to Police Departments.”  Unfortunately, the Pentagon’s leftovers have been corrupting domestic law enforcement since the 1990s.  Following is a piece I wrote for Playboy in 2000 on  the militarization of SWAT teams.  The article includes a discussion of Waco and the 1999 high school shootings in Littleton, Colorado.

According to ProgressivePunch, 39 congressmembers have perfect lifetime scores on all votes regarding LGBT rights. All 39 are Democrats and almost all of them are across-the-board progressive Democrats like Keith Ellison (MN), Jim McGovern (MA), Mike Honda (CA), John Lewis (GA), Judy Chu (CA), Donna Edwards (MD), Jan Schakowsky (IL), Jerry Nadler (NY), Maxine Waters (CA), Jim McDermott (WA), Barbara Lee (CA), and Chellie Pingree (ME).

DC on BFP #42 | Ioan Grillo joins us to discuss Brazil, as protests and clashes with police are spurred by the upcoming 2014 FIFA World Cup. We go over the allegations of corruption and the program of "pacification": police raids, homes bulldozed, thousands rendered homeless, and many killed, in an effort to "cleanse" host cities for tourists.

The quotations around 'understanding' are from the Times headline

Petro Poroshenko tells TIME in his first interview as President of Ukraine that he has no choice but to keep Russia at the negotiating table, as no country is prepared to guarantee his country's security from further attack (What Russian attack? And this claim despite all the obvious NATO involvement? )

Stately looking pic

RT | June 9, 2014

At least 100,000 people have formed a 123-kilometer-long human chain in support of a regional referendum on the Basque Country’s independence from Spain.
People began to link up at noon to form a continuous line along a road that connects the northern cities of Durango and Pamplona in the neighboring Navarra region, considered part of Basque cultural heritage.

A man armed with what appeared to be a semi-automatic rifle ran into a neighborhood and climbed onto the roof of a house at the end of a high-speed pursuit that extended from near downtown Los Angeles into the San Fernando Valley.
The man is wanted in connection with a criminal threats report. Details regarding the threats were not immediately available, but police told NBC4 they received the threat report “a few days ago.”

Free Press Houston | June 4, 2014

by Tom McClellan Most people look at the various global temperature data series as a way to draw insights about the changing weather and climate conditions here on planet Earth, and that is understandable. But I have found that some … Continue reading →

By Michael Collins | The People’s Voice | June 9, 2014

Is he still working for his former masters in Washington, DC?

By Michael HoffmanCopyright©2014Suspected killers Jerad and Amanda Miller Jerad is dressed in purple with a green tie and holding a Joker playing card.

Darren Rainey, who died after being placed in excruciatingly hot shower by guards as punishment Florida Department of Corrections

MiamiHerald.com

International Solidarity Movement | June 9, 2014