Month: March 2017

When does wire tapping not mean wire tapping?

Leave a comment

Sean Spicer, President Trump’s Press Secretary, struggled to explain the unexplainable today. Given a deadline to present evidence that the Obama Administration wiretapped Trump Towers during the election, the Trump administration appears to be walking away from the President’s initial claim. In addition, no credible government source supports the wiretapping allegations.

According to Spicer, the term “wiretap” was meant as a general reference to a variety of surveillance methods, but wasn’t intended to specifically refer to the wiretapping of phones in the offices of Trump Towers. Even though it most definitely sounded that way in President Trump’s Tweets and statements. It’s curious that it took so long for the Trump administration to correct this apparent misunderstanding.

In an unusual interview moment, Kelly Anne Conway referred to “microwaves that turn into cameras”, suggesting that the government could use any number of high tech methods to surveil its citizens (and by implication, President Trump.) The statement, clearly intended as a distraction from the absurdity of the President’s claim, may delight legions of gadget crazy middle school boys, but frustrated reporters and journalists. Veteran journalist and commentator David Gergen  was so frustrated by her statements that he dismissed Conway as “not serious” and called for journalists to stop covering her.

So, if President Obama didn’t wiretap, or by extension, surveil in any sense of the word, Trump Towers during the Presidential campaign, then why is President Trump pushing these outrageous ideas? Theories abound, but nobody knows for sure. Perhaps President Trump fears he will soon be exposed in someway, and seeks to distract, or better yet, inoculate his base against such news stories by suggesting he’s the victim of ongoing attacks and accusations from his political rivals? Maybe he had a more significant role in the Russian hacking scandal, for example. Or perhaps he simply enjoys playing with groundless conspiracy theories in the small hours of the morning, before an audience of millions?

In any event, President Trump appears to be true to form, presenting misinformation as fact to the American People, and by doing so, dishonoring the office of the President of the United States. President Trump must stop this ridiculous charade, before he does permanent damage to the nation in the court of popular opinion, both at home and abroad.

Learn more about when wiretapping isn’t wiretapping (CNN)

 

Photo: By VOA [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

 

Breaking world news

Leave a comment
Breaking world news

Needle in the hay: “Elliott Smith’s incomparable brilliance lives on
“The first time I ever heard an Elliott Smith song was in early high school, in Wes Anderson’s The Royal Tenenbaums,” says musician Julien Baker, whose debut album Sprained Ankle pays subtle homage to Smith…” (The Guardian)

Earth’s oceans are warming 13% faster than thought, and accelerating
“New research has convincingly quantified how much the Earth has warmed over the past 56 years. Human activities utilize fossil fuels for many beneficial purposes but have an undesirable side effect of adding carbon dioxide to the atmosphere at ever-increasing rates. That increase – of over 40%, with most since 1980 – traps heat in the Earth’s system, warming the entire planet. (The Guardian)

Trump border wall shines spotlight on French-Swiss cement maker’s murky past
“French-Swiss cement maker LafargeHolcim came under fire this week after offering to supply materials for US President Donald Trump’s planned wall on the Mexican border. But the company has a long history of questionable business practices…” (France 24)

Africa, Picasso and racism: Five art exhibits to see in Paris this spring
“A look at five must-see art exhibitions in Paris this spring, from French artist Abraham Poincheval’s eccentric Oeuf (“Egg”) at the Palais de Tokyo to the thought-provoking “Us and Them” at the Musée de l’Homme…” (France 24)

South Africa’s taxi drivers block roads to main airport
“Taxi drivers in South Africa on Friday b locked roads to Johannesburg’s airport, holding up thousands of travellers in a protest against transport app Uber…” (Africa News)

Somaliland: Investigators discover 17 bodies from old mass graves
“A team of forensic investigators scrape away soil covering a mass grave in the town of Berbera, Somaliland using metal hand tools…” (Africa News)

Iran maintains position as Asia’s top team in latest FIFA ranking
“Iran maintained its position as Asia’s top ranked team in the latest FIFA World Ranking, despite dropping to 33rd place globally…” (Iran Daily)

Iran welcomes China mediation in Saudi Arabia tensions
“Iran welcomed a Chinese offer to play a mediatory role and help settle the differences between Iran and Saudi Arabia, which unilaterally severed ties with the Islamic Republic last year…” (Iran Daily)

High-Intensity Interval Training Could Be Your Best Bet for Keeping Your Cells Young
“High-intensity interval training (HIIT), where short bursts of activity are mixed with rest periods, is your best pick when it comes to using exercise to combat the cellular signs of ageing, according to new research…” (Science Alert)

Scientists Have Found Some Much-Needed Clues About the Genetic Cause of Social Anxiety
“Social anxiety disorder (SAD) can be a debilitating condition, but like many mental health disorders, researchers aren’t sure where the genetic basis of the condition lies, or how the environment plays a role in triggering the symptoms – and that makes it particularly difficult to diagnose and treat…” (Science Alert)

 

Photo: llaurens [CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL], via Wikimedia Commons

Breaking world news

Leave a comment
Breaking world news

South Korean president Park Geun-hye forced from office by constitutional court
“Park Geun-hye has become the first democratically elected South Korean president to be forced from office, after the country’s constitutional court upheld a parliamentary vote to impeach her over a corruption and cronyism scandal that could see her face criminal charges…” (The Guardian)


I’m still standing: paddleboarder makes world-first Atlantic crossing
“A South African man has become the first person to cross the Atlantic Ocean on a stand-up paddleboard after completing an epic 4,050-mile voyage alone at sea…” (The Guardian)


American carnage – Fighting the forever war
“In his inaugural address, President Trump described a dark and dismal United States, a country overrun by criminal gangs and drugs, a nation stained with the blood seeping from bullet-ridden corpses left at scenes of “American carnage.” It was more than a little jarring…” (Le Monde diplomatique)


Chinese rock, just another commodity
“Rock faces all the western problems of online distribution in a crowded market; there is also government disapproval and even censorship…” (Le Monde diplomatique)


Barack Obama really wants you to read this letter from an Indian-American woman
“NEW DELHI: When former US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle got back recently from a much needed vacation, awaiting them was a letter by an American of Indian origin which the couple now wants everyone to read because they found it exceptionally inspiring…” (The Times of India)


Mumbai’s boy and Bengaluru’s girl are the winners of Oppo Times Fresh Face 2016
“Months of gruelling sessions, tough competitions, and lakhs of votes later, Mumbai’s Aditya Nanda and Bengaluru’s Ria Nalavade were announced as the winners of Oppo Times Fresh Face 2016…” (The Times of India)


Alleged Winelands murderer back in court
“Cape Town – The man accused of killing his wife on a wine estate in Franschhoek in 2010 is expected back in the Paarl Regional court on Friday…” (News24 – South Africa)


Former NWU employee jailed for stealing million
“Johannesburg – A former North West University senior financial officer has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for stealing more than R17 million in student loans…” (News24 – South Africa)


Harvard Physicists Just Proposed That Mystery Radio Bursts Are Powering Alien Spaceships
“Of all the unexplained things in our Universe, fast radio bursts are arguably the weirdest. They’re some of the most elusive and explosive signals ever detected in space, and while they last for mere milliseconds, they generate as much energy as 500 million Suns…” (Science Alert)


A 2,600-Year-Old Palace Has Been Discovered Under a Shrine Demolished by ISIS
“In some rare good news for locals of the war-torn city of Mosul in northern Iraq, a 2,600-year-old Assyrian palace has been discovered underneath a shrine that was demolished by ISIS back in 2014, complete with untouched artefacts and marble sculptures…” (Science Alert)
Photo: Korea.net / Korean Culture and Information Service (Photographer name) [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Thoughts on Civics Education

Leave a comment
Thoughts on Civics Education

Our latest volunteer, Jenny, is a lover of the arts, especially music, a hopeless liberal, existentialist, wife and Mom. Here’s her take on the importance of bringing back Civics Education in our schools. 

 

“For every generation democracy must be born anew, and education is its midwife!” John Dewey believed this and he was right!  When our generation attended public schools, we were assigned mandatory courses in civics and government. A student could not earn their high school diploma without passing a class called “Problems of Democracy.

We knew the three branches of government and how our Founding Fathers envisioned the separation of power. The importance of Supreme Court cases like “Brown versus the Board of Education” gave us insight as to how “separate but equal” was NOT equal. We knew the importance of the Bill of Rights including the amendments requiring the separation of Church and State, the freedom to protest and express one’s opinion and the abolishment of slavery.

The truth that our Founders fled Europe to escape kings, dictators and state religions was made plain. Those same teachers who worked so hard to prepare us to be well-informed citizens in a vibrant democracy would be saddened to discover curriculums with no courses in these vital areas. Students today are very well-versed in technology and science. They are fortunate to live in a land of such abundance where there are so many opportunities to be productive and  creative in a host of new fields.

If they do not learn of the social contract which our founders created in which each citizen is responsible for participating in a government “of  the people, by the people and for the people”, we will lose our great country to billionaires, bankers and boors who rule over us for their own personal profit and not for the good of all people. Make America GREAT AGAIN and bring back mandatory Civics Education!!!

Photo: John Dewey – Eva Watson-Schütze [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Breaking world news

Leave a comment
Breaking world news

‘It’s heartbreaking’: Maltese mourn collapse of Azure Window arch
“As arches go, the Azure Window had celebrity status, featuring in films such as Clash of the Titans and The Count of Monte Cristo and serving as the backdrop to the Dothraki wedding scene in the television version of Game of Thrones.

But now, the limestone arch, one of Malta’s most famous landmarks, is no more, having collapsed into the sea after a heavy storm…” (The Guardian)

Revised travel ban to face first legal challenge as Hawaii lawsuit advances
“Donald Trump’s newly revised travel ban is set to face its first legal challenge after a federal judge in Hawaii allowed the state’s attorney general to submit an amended lawsuit previously lodged against the president’s first, failed ban…” (The Guardian)

Russian destabilisation of Balkans rings alarm bells on eve of EU summit
“The European Union needs to be more visible in the western Balkans to counter Russian attempts to destabilise the region, a leading MEP has said…” (The Guardian)

Cool about Revolutionary ardour
“Putin’s Russia has a history problem. How do you commemorate the 1917 Revolution without celebrating it and encouraging mass movements against the system?” (Le Monde diplomatique)

Asian collision course
“Donald Trump challenged the One China policy, but soon backed off. He wants concessions from China on trade and security, and he might even attempt to impede China’s global ascent…” (Le Monde diplomatique)

China’s evolving cyber warfare strategies
“China’s cyber capabilities are continuously evolving in parallel with the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) ongoing military reforms and modernization drives. As the PLA invests in the development of comprehensive cyber capabilities, the character of future conflicts in East Asia will increasingly reflect cyber-kinetic strategic interactions…” (Asia Times)

Hard times for feminists in China
“On January 21, 2017, more than half a million people showed up for the Women’s March in Washington, D.C., and hundreds of similar protests took place around the globe. But not in China, a country with 645 million women — nearly one-sixth of the world’s female population…” (supchina)

Intel squad from Hyderabad helped MP and UP police nab suspected ISIS terrorists
“NEW DELHI: Were it not for a small group of intelligence experts in Telangana dedicated to tracking individuals and groups inspired by the so-called Islamic State, central agencies and Madhya Pradesh police might still have been scrambling to track down the terrorists behind the Ujjain train blast…” (Times of India)

Over 100 farmer suicides this year in drought-prone Marathwada
“MUMBAI: Despite claims by CM Devendra Fadnavis that the agrarian crisis was being tackled on war footing, 117 farmers ended their lives in Maharashtra’s drought-prone Marathwada region in the first two months of 2017…” (Times of India)

Regular Humans Have Been Taught to Double Their Memory Capacity in 40 Days
“Most days, it’s a struggle just to remember where you put your keys. But there are a few ‘super-memorisers’ in the population who can memorise huge lists of words at a time, or recite thousands of digits of Pi by heart…” (Science Alert)

Australia Was Colonised by One Group 50,000 Years Ago, DNA Evidence Reveals
“Historic hair samples collected from Aboriginal people show that following an initial migration 50,000 years ago, populations spread rapidly around the east and west coasts of Australia…” (Science Alert)

 

Photo: By Felix König (Own work) [GFDL or CC BY 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

President Trump: still no evidence for Obama Wire Tapping allegations

Leave a comment

It’s been over 50 hours since President Trump leveled allegations that President Obama ordered a wire tap on Trump Towers during the Presidential Campaign, and his Press Secretary, Sean Spicer, confirms that he still stands by his original allegations. In fact, the President appears to be doubling down on his claims, asking Congress to investigate. But despite this apparent zeal, the President has yet to offer proof, of any kind, to support his seemingly outrageous claims.

This pattern is typical of President Trump. He makes accusations, often quite serious in nature, with no supporting evidence. And where do these accusations come from? He claims to have proof, but never offers it to the press, so the American People, and apparently the rest of the government as well, are left in the dark.

Frankly, many believe the President is spinning these stories from whole cloth. But what’s his motive? Some suggest that the President is mentally unbalanced. The stories themselves seem to find safe harbor with the radio shock jocks and conspiracy theory enthusiasts of the far right, and it appears that the current accusation originated in that quarter.

But despite the extreme and even crazy quality, his story telling seems to have a utilitarian function—-distraction. His administration is plagued by accusations and revelations surrounding contact with the Russians during the Presidential Campaign, in addition to other concerns over his governing style, his newly revised travel ban, and much more.

So a distracting story shifting focus, and blame, to his political opponents would help to take the pressure off, at least in the short term. Of course, in the longer term, it would generate a whole new set of issues and problems that would potentially cause trouble for the fledgling Administration. But that doesn’t seem to bother the Nation’s Chief Executive, who seems very comfortable at the center of a confused, swirling vortex of unsupported allegations, misinformation and lies.

But enough is enough. The Presidency of the United States is an office of great importance and power. It’s not to be taken lightly. The occupant, however flawed (as human beings are apt to be) must aspire to the best standards of leadership, appealing to Lincoln’s “better Angel’s of our nature,” not the baser instincts of lesser men. President Trump must end this charade. If he has legitimate evidence to support his claim, then by all means, Mr. President, present it. But drop the matter here and now if you do not. And learn to govern your nation with wisdom, clarity, and good judgement.

 

Photo: Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons

Breaking world news

Leave a comment
5 Truly Bizarre Lifeforms Recently Spotted in the Deep Pacific "NOAA biologists have just completed a three-week expedition to the American Samoa region of the Pacific, and early footage coming out of their deep-sea dive has revealed some mind-boggling lifeforms from the darkest depths..." (Science Alert)

5 Truly Bizarre Lifeforms Recently Spotted in the Deep Pacific
“NOAA biologists have just completed a three-week expedition to the American Samoa region of the Pacific, and early footage coming out of their deep-sea dive has revealed some mind-boggling lifeforms from the darkest depths…” (Science Alert)

Scientists Have Stored a Movie, a Computer OS, and an Amazon Gift Card in a Single Speck of DNA

“Scientists have developed what they claim is the most efficient data storage technique ever, with a new DNA-encoding method that approaches the theoretical maximum for information stored per nucleotide…” (Science Alert)

Brother-in-law admits murdering missing family of four in France
“At first glance, the Troadec family appeared to have vanished into thin air. Their toothbrushes had gone from their family home, food was rotting in their otherwise neat kitchen and the beds had been stripped and laundered…” (The Guardian)

Arctic sea ice could disappear even if world achieves climate target
“Arctic sea ice could vanish in summers this century even if governments achieve a core target for limiting global warming set by almost 200 countries, scientists have said…” (The Guardian)

New man Macron’s old-style expertise
“Emmanuel Macron projects himself as having no past and no allegiances. But he’s very well connected to huge networks of influence…” (Le Monde diplomatique)

Fastest way out of a banlieue without hope
“The brightest of the young from the Lyon banlieues see their best hope in education, entrepreneurship or working abroad: anything to avoid being judged as minorities…” (Le Monde diplomatique)

‘We are Nazis to the bitter end’: right-wing group on trial for terror
“An extremist group accused of attacks at refugee homes and against left-leaning politicians is on trial starting this week, facing charges of terrorism…” (The Local – Germany)

Merkel calls for calm as row erupts over Erdogan’s Nazi jibe
“Chancellor Angela Merkel called for calm on Monday in an escalating dispute with Turkey, a day after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan labelled a German ban on rallies by his ministers “Nazi practices…” (The Local – Germany)

Don calls for legislation to check computer hacking in Nigeria
“Dr David Dimoji, the Dean, School of Science and Technology, Abia State Polytechnic, Aba on Monday called for legislation to check and punish internet hackers in Nigeria…” (The Guardian – Nigeria)

Two feared killed in herdsmen attack in Delta community
“No fewer than two persons were feared killed in a clash between suspected herdsmen and residents of Omumu community in Ika South Local Council of Delta State last week…” (The Guardian – Nigeria)

 

1 2 3 4 5 6