Tag Archives: department

U.S. Shuts Down Web Sites in Piracy Crackdown

In what appears to be the latest phase of a far-reaching federal crackdown on online piracy of music and movies, the Web addresses of a number of sites that facilitate illegal file-sharing were seized this week by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a division of the Department of Homeland Security. Users of the Web site torrent-finder.com saw this message after the site was seized on Friday. By Friday morning, visiting the addresses of a handful of sites that either hosted unauthorized copies of films and music or allowed users to search for them elsewhere on the Internet produced a notice that said, in part: “This domain name has been seized by ICE — Homeland Security Investigations, pursuant to a seizure warrant issued by a United States District Court.” In taking over the sites’ domain names, or Web addresses, the government effectively redirected any visitors to its own takedown notice. “ICE office of Homeland Security Investigations executed court-ordered seizure warrants against a number of domain names,” said Cori W. Bassett, a spokeswoman for ICE, in a statement. “As this is an ongoing investigation, there are no additional details available at this time.” Among the domains seized were torrent-finder.com and those of three sites that specialized in music: onsmash.com, rapgodfathers.com and dajaz1.com. TorrentFreak, a news blog about BitTorrent — a file-sharing system that has tended to elude the authorities because it is decentralized — said that at least 70 other addresses had been seized, most belonging to sites related to counterfeit clothing, DVDs and other goods. On Friday, torrent users were already discussing new sites that had popped up to serve them. The takedown notices are similar to those that went up on nine sites in June as part of an initiative against Internet counterfeiting and piracy that the agency called Operation in Our Sites. added by: Itsbatman_Durr

Sarah Palin’s message to all 57 states

She will never be the leader of my choice. BUT this is hysterical, true, and to me shows why so many people like her despite her lack of qualifications for public office My fellow Americans in all 57 states, the time has changed for come. With our country founded more than 20 centuries ago, we have much to celebrate – from the FBI’s 100 days to the reforms that bring greater inefficiencies to our health care system. We know that countries like Europe are willing to stand with us in our fight to halt the rise of privacy, and Israel is a strong friend of Israel’s. And let’s face it, everybody knows that it makes no sense that you send a kid to the emergency room for a treatable illness like asthma and they end up taking up a hospital bed. It costs, when, if you, they just gave, you gave them treatment early, and they got some treatment, and ah, a breathalyzer, or an inhalator. I mean, not a breathalyzer, ah, I don’t know what the term is in Austrian for that… Of course, the paragraph above is based on a series of misstatements and verbal gaffes made by Barack Obama (I didn’t have enough time to do one for Joe Biden). YouTube links are provided just in case you doubt the accuracy of these all too human slips-of-the-tongue. If you can’t remember hearing about them, that’s because for the most part the media didn’t consider them newsworthy. I have no complaint about that. Everybody makes the occasional verbal gaffe – even news anchors. Obviously, I would have been even more impressed if the media showed some consistency on this issue. Unfortunately, it seems they couldn’t resist the temptation to turn a simple one word slip-of-the-tongue of mine into a major political headline. The one word slip occurred yesterday during one of my seven back-to-back interviews wherein I was privileged to speak to the American public about the important, world-changing issues before us. If the media had bothered to actually listen to all of my remarks on Glenn Beck’s radio show, they would have noticed that I refer to South Korea as our ally throughout, that I corrected myself seconds after my slip-of-the-tongue, and that I made it abundantly clear that pressure should be put on China to restrict energy exports to the North Korean regime. The media could even have done due diligence and checked my previous statements on the subject, which have always been consistent, and in fact even ahead of the curve. But why let the facts get in the way of a good story? (And for that matter, why not just make up stories out of thin air – like the totally false hard news story which has run for three days now reporting that I lobbied the producers of “Dancing with the Stars” to cast a former Senate candidate on their show. That lie is further clear proof that the media completely makes things up without doing even rudimentary fact-checking.) “Hope springs eternal” as the poet says. Let’s hope that perhaps, just maybe, they might get it right next time. When we the people are effective in holding America’s free press accountable for responsible and truthful reporting, then we shall all have even more to be thankful for! Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! – Sarah Palin http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=463364218434 added by: Itsbatman_Durr

DEA bans K2, other ‘fake pot’ products

WASHINGTON — The DEA used its emergency powers Wednesday to ban K2 and other “fake pot” products that mimic the effects of marijuana. The action by the Drug Enforcement Administration makes it illegal to possess or sell the five chemicals used to make the products for at least one year. The agency and the Department of Health and Human Services will determine whether the chemicals should be permanently added to the federal list of controlled substances considered unsafe, highly abused and without medical use. 'SPICE' DRUG: States, cities race to outlaw K2 The herbal blends coated with synthetic chemicals are marketed under brands such as Spice, Red X Dawn and K2. They are usually sold as packets of incense or potpourri at convenience stores, herbal and spiritual shops and online. The packets can sell for as much as $35 an ounce and have become popular as a legal alternative to marijuana among teenagers and college students. The chemicals are not approved by the Food and Drug Administration for human consumption, the DEA said in its federal notice. http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2010-11-24-k2-ban-dea_N.htm added by: TomTucker

Breaking: Former Gov. Ventura Will No Longer Fly Due to Abuse He’s Endured at Hands of TSA

Appearing on the Alex Jones Show today, the former governor of Minnesota and host of the popular TruTV show,Conspiracy Theory with Jesse Ventura, announced he will no longer use commercial airlines due to the egregious abuses of the TSA and the government. Ventura said he made the decision to avoid public aircraft after he found himself becoming too comfortable with being routinely searched. He said he was subjected to pat down and search three or four times a week when he traveled for his television show. Ventura had hip surgery and the metal in his body invariably sets off airport metal detectors. Jesse said he will no longer be forced by the TSA to prove he is not a criminal or terrorist. He refuses to be considered guilty until proven innocent by the government in violation of the Fourth Amendment. He also admitted the decision not to fly may put an end to his career. After the Department of Homeland Security announced the TSA will conduct “enhanced” pat downs of people opting out of naked body scanners following the toner non-bombing fiasco earlier in the month, the Drudge Report teamed up with Infowars.com and Prison Planet.com to cover exploding public resistance to the new effort by the government to normalize the populace to ever-increasing police state tactics under the rubric of staged and false flag terrorism. Resistance to airport Gestapo zones gained critical momentum after pilots and flight attendants opposed searches and threatened to sue the government. “Nationwide outrage against the TSA is not only bringing to light new cases of airport abuse, it’s throwing fresh attention on previous incidents that have been going on for years,” Paul Joseph Watson wrote on Thursday. Several people have initiated lawsuits against the government, including a 21-year-old college student from Amarillo, Texas, who had her breasts exposed by a TSA goon and a businessman and frequent traveler who has is so infuriated by TSA workers sexually groping passengers, squeezing breasts and genitals, that he has filed a lawsuit in federal court in Miami requesting an injunction against the TSA to prevent them from touching private areas without reasonable suspicion. added by: GLOBALPOLITICAL

Why is NYC Taking Away Bike Lanes…to Make Room for Cars?

Photo: Richard Drdul under a Creative Commons license New York was doing so well. The city has seen a steady rise in the number of cyclists and pedestrians over the past few years, and has made trend-setting efforts to make the streets safer for these new, car-rejecting commuters. But in a surprising step backwards, the NY Department of Transportation announce… Read the full story on TreeHugger

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Why is NYC Taking Away Bike Lanes…to Make Room for Cars?

Four Loko banned in Ohio

Ohio is among a group of several states that have recently banned alcohol energy drinks or requested that these products be removed from store shelves due to health concerns. The Ohio Department of Commerce, Division of Liquor Control announced today that, at the Division#39;s request, the manufacturer of the alcohol energy drink “Four Loko” and the supplier of alcohol energy drink “Joose” have agreed to stop the distribution of their products in Ohio. With no legal authority at this time to

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Four Loko banned in Ohio

Meteor Shower Tonight November 17 2010

Look for a spectacular Meteor Shower when the shower peaks on Nov. 17 and 18; if you miss it, you can still catch a few streamers through Nov. 23 as Earth moves out of the stream of Comet 55P Tempel-Tuttle#39;s dust.Avid meteor gazers graced with clear skies may see between 15 and 20 meteors per hour. “From the time of moonset until around 5:15 a.m. – when the first streaks of dawn begin to appear in the east – the sky will be dark and moonless,” advises Joe Rao, SPACE.com skywatching columnist

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Meteor Shower Tonight November 17 2010

DHS Source: TSA Infuriated With Coverage Of Nationwide Backlash

No Grope, No Fly: TSA Refuses To Back Down: But lawmakers and local authorities prepare to take on feds. A Department of Homeland Security source has told CNN that the TSA is infuriated with the attention the media has given to the nationwide backlash against naked body scanners and aggressive new airport pat down procedures. During an appearance on CNN’s Anderson Cooper, TSA chief John Pistole attempted to downplay CNN’s Homeland Security source who told them that the TSA was “angry” with the media’s coverage of the issue and also fuming at the portrayal of the “don’t touch my junk” guy as a “folk hero”. Pistole also ludicrously claimed that TSA workers were “professionals in terms of how they carry out their business,” despite a deluge of stories about TSA officials abusing, sexually assaulting and humiliating travelers, including a case currently the subject of a lawsuit where TSA goons pulled down a 21-year-old woman’s blouse before laughing and joking about her exposed breasts. Pistole also parroted Janet Napolitano’s discredited claim that Johns Hopkins University declared the naked radiation scanners to be safe, despite the fact that just three days ago Dr Michael Love, who runs an X-ray lab at the department of biophysics and biophysical chemistry at the Johns Hopkins school of medicine told AFP that “statistically someone is going to get skin cancer from these X-rays”. As we documented, Big Sis’ USA Today editorial was a tissue of lies from start to finish. Pistole also lies to Cooper when he claims that people who clear the traditional metal detector are not being subjected to invasive pat downs, in an effort to dismiss the fact that people who refuse the scanner are being punitively punished for their disobedience. As we documented with the case of radio host Owen JJ Stone, who had a TSA agent put his hand inside his pants and touch his backside and genitalia, Stone cleared the metal detector without a problem but was still made to endure a humiliating pat down that amounted to sexual molestation. Pistole points to the example of underwear bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab as the reason why Americans need to submit to “groin checks” and have their testicles squeezed by goons in uniforms. However, it was the US State Department that allowed Abdulmutallab to board Delta Flight 253 despite the fact that his father warned the US State Department about him a month before, he was on a terror watchlist and was aided through security by a sharp-dressed Indian man. Pistole has indicated that the agency will not back down on radiation body scanners or invasive pat downs despite nationwide outrage and a plethora of lawsuits amidst new cases of travelers being sexually molested and humiliated by TSA goons. “Pistole told the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs that his inspectors at 453 of the nation’s airports are not going to back down in the face of complaints that techniques are invasive,” reports the Washington Post. Pistole said that agency wanted to “strike a balance between privacy and security needs,” and yet the TSA isn’t interested in striking any kind of balance whatsoever. Groping 3-year-old children, pregnant women and the physically disabled does not represent the “risk-based” or “professional” approach that Pistole and Napolitano claim they are enforcing. Amidst the backlash, many are calling for the TSA to be abolished and the current security-theatre to be replaced with something more effective, safer, and more respectful of privacy rights. As Isaac Yeffet, the former head of security for El Al, told CNN, real terrorists are a giveaway for people professionally trained to spot them. Using human intelligence and rationally-based profiling is a far more successful and Constitutional method of providing airport security. Using minimum-wage low grade morons to feel up toddlers and pregnant women is not. Pistole, Napolitano and the TSA are praying that the resistance withers away, but it is only growing stronger, especially now that local governments are warning TSA workers that they will be prosecuted for groping travelers and with state lawmakers in different areas of the country moving to terminate use of the body scanners entirely. http://www.prisonplanet.com/dhs-source-tsa-infuriated-with-coverage-of-nationwid… added by: im1mjrpain

Sheriff to Judge: Give Us What You Got on Oksana

Filed under: Mel Gibson , Oksana Grigorieva , Celebrity Justice TMZ has learned L.A. County Sheriff’s Department investigators will show up at the L.A. County Superior Courthouse this morning to request the entire Mel Gibson / Oksana Grigorieva custody war file to see if there’s any evidence in the docs that Oksana… Read more

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Sheriff to Judge: Give Us What You Got on Oksana

Gay Michigan student defends suspended teacher

A 14-year-old who issued an impassioned defense of a suspended teacher has become a bit of an Internet folk hero in a new viral video. Over the weekend, gossip blogger Perez Hilton and several other high-traffic sites picked up the video, which features the dramatic testimonial of Ann Arbor, Mich., teen Graeme Taylor. Taylor told the Howell, Mich., school board last week that he attempted suicide at age 9 because he was bullied for being gay. He was speaking on behalf of Howell High teacher Jay McDowell, who had been suspended for two days for asking a student to remove her Confederate flag belt buckle and for ejecting two students from class after a heated exchange about gay rights. According to Livingston Daily reporter Jason Carmel Davis, McDowell was suspended after he ejected 16-year-old junior Daniel Glowacki and another student from his classroom. Glowacki objected to his teacher asking a fellow student to remove her Confederate flag belt buckle. The school was participating in Spirit Day on Oct. 20, a voluntary event for students designed to raise awareness about anti-gay bullying. Glowacki apparently argued with McDowell over the request to remove the buckle, asking how his classmate's Confederate flag insignia was different from the students wearing purple for Spirit Day. The local union says the student also made “inappropriate and offensive statements regarding gay students.” Lindsey Forbes, spokeswoman for the local teachers union, the Howell Education Association, tells The Lookout that McDowell followed school policy in asking for the belt buckle to be removed. Teachers are supposed to ask students to remove “inappropriate” or distracting clothing, she says. Confederate flags are not specifically listed as inappropriate, but Forbes says the flag is a symbol of hate, especially in Howell. Two years ago, a group of students were investigated by the Department of Justice for starting a Facebook group that used the Confederate flag as its profile photo and featured hate speech. Two students were suspended. An area north of Howell also had an active Ku Klux Klan membership in the '70s and '80s, according to the Livingston County Press. “It's pretty clear in our community what that symbol stands for,” Forbes says. McDowell was suspended for one day without pay after the student in question complained about the removal of her belt buckle. The staff attorney for Michigan's American Civil Liberties Union chapter, Jay Kaplan, tells The Lookout that the case represents a “balancing act” between protecting free speech and creating a safe school environment, but that both students were most likely protected by the First Amendment. “Wearing [the Confederate flag] on the belt buckle probably is protected speech,” he said, based on court precedents. “The situation where the student expressed his disapproval of homosexuality is also protected speech.” He said the “well-meaning” McDowell should have instead started a discussion about why the Confederate flag is a symbol of hate for so many and how denigrating homosexuality marginalizes gay people. The ACLU has offered to host training sessions for teachers about what the law says. McDowell, who is also president of the local teachers union, is appealing the decision, and is back at work while his grievance is pending–a procedure that has been known to take as long as a year. Howell High is holding a “diversity forum” Monday night to talk about the issue. According to the union, the school has no specific policy prohibiting anti-gay bullying. http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20101115/us_yblog_thelookout/gay-michig… added by: onemalefla