The NYPD Will Record Your Opposition to Drone Strikes
One of the most fascinating moments in the deposition of the NYPD's Intelligence Chief, Thomas Galati, comes when he discusses what kinds of political conversations might be recorded by the NYPD.
A I would say that if there was an event in…
NATO: "Afghanistan Will Not Unravel After Withdrawal" -- Probably Because It's Unraveling Now
The situation in Afghanistan is falling apart so quickly and so dramatically that a senior NATO civilian official took it upon himself today to put out an assurance that Afghanistan will not unravel after NATO withdraws its security forces.…
NYPD's Spying Program: Not a Single Lead
All the spying on Muslims the NYPD has been doing for the last decade plus?
It has not led to a single investigation.
That's what the head of NYPD's intelligence program, Thomas Galati, said in a deposition in June on whether the Department…
Fat Al Gore Shuts Down Highways the Terrorists Couldn't
Remember some years back when one of the big fears was that terrorists would take out one or several of the critical rail or road bridges that cross the Mississippi River?
While attacks against [famous] landmarks would cause massive traffic…
DOJ Corporate Settlement Dealer Takes Over at FinCEN
In February, here's what Jennifer Shasky Calvery said in testimony before a House Subcommittee.
These staggering amounts of money in the hands of some of the worst criminal elements create a terrifyingly vicious cycle – money enables [the…
Pussy Riot and the Spectacle of Protest
Joshua Foust has been criticizing the attention paid to the Pussy Riot trial in controversial ways.
Before I explain where I believe he's wrong, let me assert that the most effective protests in the US in recent years came when gay service…
On the Questions of Drones, First Responders and Collective Punishment in Pakistan
Yesterday evening, I took the ill-advised step of jumping into an already ongoing Twitter discussion with Professor Christine Fair on the topic of drones in Pakistan. My jumping in was ill-advised on two fronts: I had not seen the comments to…
The Gray Lady Falls Off the Balance Beam
Granted, it pertains to my right-wing governor, so it's personal. But this NYT profile of Rick Snyder is a remarkable example of the perverse journalistic fetish for "balance" gone so badly awry it amounts to disinformation.
Let's start with…
Good Thing Obama Kept that Iraq AUMF Lying Around
Remember how both Congress and the Administration refused to repeal the Iraq AUMF?
Maybe they wanted to have it to hang over Nuri al-Maliki's head for the time when Iraqis were discovered helping Iran evade sanctions? The NYT reports that…
Poor Responses by US Military, Press to Increased Green on Blue Attacks
Yesterday, I noted the dramatic increase recently in green on blue attacks in Afghanistan, where Afghan security personnel turn their weapons on NATO forces. This disturbing development clearly has rattled both the US military and the press,…
You Don't Suppose All These Dictators Have Been Looting with SCB's and HSBC's Help?
It happens every time. Around about the time it becomes clear a corrupt Middle Eastern dictator will fall, but before he has actually fallen, the press begins to report on the hunt for the money the dictator looted from his country. There was…
The Trip Wires in the Anwar al-Awlaki Investigation
Congressman Frank Wolf doesn't believe what the FBI told him during an August 1 hearing on the Webster report. He suspects that Anwar al-Awlaki was an informant for the FBI (or some other agency), something that FBI'd Executive Assistant Director…
Green on Blue (Insider) Killings Too Common for Reuters Headlines
The rapidly increasing trend of green on blue (or, in new ISAF-speak, insider) killings has become so common that the killings are no longer headline news for at least one news outlet. Today's Reuters dispatch from Afghanistan takes its headline…
The Terror Attack in the Temple
Over at Lawfare yesterday, a Sikh Notre Dame professor, Naunihal Singh, argued that the media have treated the Oak Creek attack as a singularly Sikh tragedy, not an American one.
The media has treated the shootings in Oak Creek very differently…
10 Years Later, Information Asymmetry Could Launch Another War
Ten years ago, the Bush Administration was planning the last details of the new product announcement it would roll out in September, a new product announcement that would lead to an expensive, illegal war that killed hundreds of thousands of…
Another Week, Another Bankster with Impunity
This week, the bankster who will avoid all legal accountability is MF Global and its CEO Jon Corzine. So says the NYT.
While I'm disgusted by that news, I'm not shocked. I've grown used to the guarantee that top banksters are immune from…
The Assange Diplomatic Standoff Exposes Precisely the Same Side of US/UK as WikiLeaks Cables
everywhere there’s a US post… there’s a diplomatic scandal that will be revealed --Bradley Manning
Yesterday, in anticipation of Ecuador's imminent (and now announced) official decision to offer Julian Assange, the British sent this letter…
Even Liars Get To Invoke State Secrets
As the LAT first reported, Judge Cormac Carney has dismissed a suit, Fazaga v. FBI, brought by Southern California Muslims against the FBI for illegal surveillance. Carney actually made two rulings, one dismissing most of the suit on state secrets…
By "Cooperative Investigations" Does WSJ Mean "Protection Money"?
The WSJ has a funny response to the Standard Chartered Bank settlement. Aside from the predictable claims that Benjamin Lawsky, the NY Superintendent of Financial Services, played hardball to advance his political career, it suggests Lawsky…
Memo To The Clueless Nepotistically Self Unaware Flexible Bag Of Mostly Water Known As Luke Russert
Has there ever been a more self unaware little ball of unworthy entitled Beltway nepotism than Luke Russert? I ask that as an honest question, because it is quite possible the answer is no. The story of Luke, son of Tim, is mostly public record.
Let's…
