Wednesday, 12 October 2011
German police find explosive devices on Berlin railway
German police have discovered another explosive device designed to derail trains in Berlin - the third in two days.
Two of the devices were found on Monday - one on a high-speed line and another near Berlin's main station.The third was discovered on Tuesday on the track of a suburban railway line south of the German capital.
A previously unknown left-wing group, calling itself the Hekla Reception Committee, said it planted the devices.
The explosive devices are made of bottles of flammable liquids attached to fuses.
Leftist group The discovery of the third suspected fire-bomb follows the explosion on Monday of a device on the high-speed line between Hamburg and Berlin, where trains reach speeds of 200km/h.
There were no casualties, but rail traffic was disrupted.
Another device was discovered on Monday before it went off at the mouth of a tunnel leading to Berlin's main station.
It consisted of seven bottles, filled with flammable liquid, bundled together and linked to a fuse.
The leftist Hekla Reception Committee said in an online statement that it had planted the devices in protest at the presence of German troops in Afghanistan.
Police said they were not familiar with Hekla, which is also the name of an Icelandic volcano.
Germany has about 5,000 soldiers deployed in Afghanistan as part of Nato's mission, most of them in the north of the country.
Last November, Berlin's transport system was severely disrupted when signalling cables were set on fire.
There have also been arson attacks on a number of expensive cars in the German capital.
But BBC Berlin correspondent Stephen Evans says these latest attacks on high-speed railway lines take the potential destruction to a new level of danger.
@'BBC'
Tuesday, 11 October 2011
ggreenwald Glenn Greenwald
NYT forced to sue The Most Transparent Administration Ever to learn of its secret interpretation of the Patriot Act is.gd/HdLRM4
Seattle 'superhero' Phoenix Jones arrested over pepper-spray allegations
Seattle's most prolific self-styled superhero has ended up in handcuffs.
Police officers arrested the 23-year-old man who calls himself Phoenix Jones early on Sunday after he allegedly assaulted several people with pepper spray. He was held in county jail on four counts of assault, with arraignment set for Thursday, police said.
Jones, who wears a black mask with yellow stripes and a bodysuit, said he was only trying to stop a street brawl.
"Just because he's dressed up in costume, it doesn't mean he's in special consideration or above the law. You can't go around pepper spraying people because you think they are fighting," said Seattle police spokesman Detective Mark Jamieson.
Jones wrote on his Facebook page in capital letters that he wouldn't "ever assault or hurt another person if they were not causing harm to another human being". He also released a video said to have been filmed during the alleged assault.
The often shaky video shows Jones and his sidekick, known as Ghost, running toward a group of people. Jones said there was a fight in the group, but police said there was no sign of one.
The footage goes on to show Jones breaking up the group. Then a woman screams at him, hitting him with her high-heel shoes. Jones appears to be holding his pepper spray canister. Moments later a BMW car appears and speeds away on the street, almost hitting an unidentified man. Jones chases after the car to get the license plate number. A person with Jones is heard calling police to report a hit-and-run.
Jones and his followers then approach the rest of the group down the block. A woman screams at them to "stay away". Another woman runs up to Jones and hits him, screaming at him, "You sprayed pepper spray in my eye!"
Two men in the group approach Jones, who then appears to pepper spray them.
Jones has been the most public face of a group of vigilante crime-stoppers to show up in Seattle in the past few years. His exploits have garnered much media attention, and he has had a camera crew trailing him in recent months.
Peter Tangen, a volunteer spokesman for Jones, said on Monday that police didn't have any interest in the alleged hit-and-run, but rather have an agenda against the masked crime-fighter.
"They're on a mission to stop Phoenix Jones from what he's doing, which is legal," Tangen said.
On the police report, the officer wrote that Jones "has had a history of injecting himself in these incidents. Recently there have been increased reports of citizens being pepper sprayed by (Jones) and his group".
The report goes on to say that although Jones "has been advised to observe and report incidents to (police), he continues to try to resolve things on his own".
Jones has nearly 4,400 friends on his Facebook page, and says that he's married to a woman with the name PurpleReign.
Police weren't impressed with his Phoenix Jones persona, however. He was booked under Benjamin John Francis Fodor.
@'The Guardian'
Obama's Death Panel
The revelations should shock even those who believe that a fair-minded reading of the law and evidence provides a strong basis for killing Awlaki. For it is becoming increasingly clear that the White House conducted nothing resembling a fair-minded process. Only three years ago, President Barack Obama repudiated John Yoo's secret torture memos; but he is now repeating the same mistake -- and is making a worse blunder. This time around, he not only relied on another secret Justice Department memo to support his general bombing campaign in Yemen, but he also pinpointed Awlaki as a target on the basis of a scandalous process lacking all legal authorization.
At least this is what the leaks flooding the media suggest. We can't know the truth of these rumors from "authoritative" sources, and this itself is testimony to the scandal we are witnessing. Obama's fellow citizens can't begin to judge his actions on the basis of the shallow news releases and public commentaries provided by his spokespeople -- and rumors only make the situation worse. But given Obama's repetition of Bush-like scenarios, it isn't enough to insist that the White House should immediately provide us with suitably edited versions of the relevant documents. Obama should also support fundamental reforms that credibly assure Americans that the White House will never again be the site for legal rubber-stamping and arbitrary kill orders...
Continue reading
Bruce Ackerman @'FP'
Al Qaeda Group Confirms Deaths of Two American Citizens
Iranian actress to be lashed over Australian film
An Iranian actress has been sentenced to 90 lashes and a year's jail in Tehran for her role in an Australian-produced film that criticises Iran's hardline policies on the arts.
Marzieh Vafamehr appeared in 2009's My Tehran For Sale, which was shot in the Iranian capital and tells the story of a young actress whose stage work is banned by the authorities.The feature premiered at the Adelaide Film Festival two years ago, but is banned in Iran.
The actress and another Iranian filmmaker were both arrested in July when black market copies of the film reportedly began circulating illegally.
Vafamehr has now been sentenced to a year in prison and 90 lashes of the cane.
An Iranian opposition website says her lawyer has already lodged an appeal.
Adelaide Film Festival director Katrina Sedgwick says she is shocked and distressed at what she believes is a harsh sentence.
However she admits the content of the movie is sensitive.
"There is always somewhat of a risk for filmmakers in that country when they're exploring ideas that are complex and even quite subtly political," she said.
"It certainly makes one very aware of the amazing freedom that we have and the rights that we have in Australia, and we can never take them for granted.
"It also reminds one of the amazing courage of artists around the world working in places where they do take risks."
The Australian Iranian Community says Vafamehr's imprisonment is a bid by Tehran to suppress freedom of expression.
Community chairman Siyamak Ghahreman says he was surprised to learn of the sentence, given the film was made legally.
"Sometimes they do that to stop other people or other filmmakers [making] movies about Iranian problems. So by doing this they probably prevent other people do this," he said.
Anne Barker @'ABC'
Several German states admit to use of controversial spy software
The interior ministers of the states of Baden-Württemberg, Brandenburg and Lower Saxony said that regional police had used the software within the parameters of the law. In Lower Saxony, the software has been in use for two years, according to the public broadcaster NDR.
Authorities in Brandenburg, meanwhile, told the daily Berliner Morgenpost that they are currently using the spyware in a single, on-going investigation. Baden-Württemberg has also used such software to investigate "individual cases," according to the Badische Zeitung.
Officials in the southern German state of Bavaria were the first to confirm late Monday that their agencies have been using a spyware program since 2009. It remains unclear whether all four states had been using the same software or not.
Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann said in a statement that they had acted within the law, and he promised a review of the software's use. Computer security experts and German politicians say such software is likely in violation of the German constitution.
A hacker group accused the German government on Saturday of developing and using the software to spy on its own citizens. Justice Minister Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger called on the federal and state governments to launch a joint investigation into the matter.
"Trying to play down or trivialize the matter won't do," said Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger while at the same time warning against blanket judgments. "The citizen, in both the public and private spheres, must be protected from snooping through strict state control mechanisms."
Germany's Interior Ministry said Monday no such program was being used at a federal level...
Continue reading
Sonya Angelica Diehn, Joanna Impey & Spencer Kimball @'Deutsche Welle'
Germany spyware: Minister calls for probe of state use
The View from North Korea
Unprecedented demos are taking place in the United States these days in protest against exploitation and oppression by capital, shaking all fabrics of society.
The first demo kicked off in Wall Street on Sept. 17. It has been going on for three consecutive weeks.
The demonstrators put up slogan "Let's Occupy Wall Street".
Young Americans formed a mainstream of the ranks of demonstrators at first. But they were joined by people from all walks of life who varied in their ages including day laborers, poor and unemployed Americans as well as employees of companies and housewives.
Their actions included marches, sit-in strikes, occupation of bridges and various other forms of protests and non-stop protests at night.
These actions spilled over to different parts of the U.S. including Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco all of a sudden.
It was reported that organizations were inaugurated in 146 cities of 46 states and the capital city as of Tuesday to supervise demos.
The waves of demo which swept the U.S. recently is an expression of the grievances against the mounting social contradiction resulting from the worsening unemployment and the widening gap between the poor and the rich due to the serious economic crisis.
It also reflects the public opinion critical of the authorities and the exploiting classes who drove the country into such serious phase.
Foreign media predict that demos will go on and spill over to large-scale protests and create something unprecedented in the future.
Such protests as what is happening in the U.S. are expected to take place in other capitalist countries.
It was reported that slogan "Let's Occupy Melbourne!" has already appeared in Australia and "Let's Occupy Toronto Stock Market!" in Canada and organizations were formed in Japan, Germany and other countries to stage demos under the slogan "Let's Occupy!
Via
The first demo kicked off in Wall Street on Sept. 17. It has been going on for three consecutive weeks.
The demonstrators put up slogan "Let's Occupy Wall Street".
Young Americans formed a mainstream of the ranks of demonstrators at first. But they were joined by people from all walks of life who varied in their ages including day laborers, poor and unemployed Americans as well as employees of companies and housewives.
Their actions included marches, sit-in strikes, occupation of bridges and various other forms of protests and non-stop protests at night.
These actions spilled over to different parts of the U.S. including Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco all of a sudden.
It was reported that organizations were inaugurated in 146 cities of 46 states and the capital city as of Tuesday to supervise demos.
The waves of demo which swept the U.S. recently is an expression of the grievances against the mounting social contradiction resulting from the worsening unemployment and the widening gap between the poor and the rich due to the serious economic crisis.
It also reflects the public opinion critical of the authorities and the exploiting classes who drove the country into such serious phase.
Foreign media predict that demos will go on and spill over to large-scale protests and create something unprecedented in the future.
Such protests as what is happening in the U.S. are expected to take place in other capitalist countries.
It was reported that slogan "Let's Occupy Melbourne!" has already appeared in Australia and "Let's Occupy Toronto Stock Market!" in Canada and organizations were formed in Japan, Germany and other countries to stage demos under the slogan "Let's Occupy!
Via
mikko Mikko Hypponen
Wow. Here's the #ISSWorld presentation file of Digitask, explaining how the R2D2 / #0zapftis Governmental trojan works: bit.ly/omtsKQ
WillLynch WillLynch
Leaked internal Citibank report: 'The World is dividing into two blocs-The Plutonomy and the rest' box.net/shared/9if6v2h…
Climate Change and the End of Australia
Want to know what global warming has in store for us? Just go to Australia, where rivers are drying up, reefs are dying, and fires and floods are ravaging the continent
HERE
...and yet still there are fugtards out here who say there is no proof of global warming...
Luke Davies: Interferon Psalms
Luke Davies is best known as the novelist and then screenwriter behind Candy, the harrowing tale of suburban heroin addiction that dazzled literary and film critics alike. But well before that, Davies was an accomplished poet. His previous collections of poetry include Absolute Event Horizon, Running With Light and Totem, which won the 2005 South Australian Premier's Literary Award for Poetry, the Grace Leven Prize for Poetry 2004, the Age's Poetry Book of the Year Award and the overall Age Book of the Year Award.
Interferon Psalms is his latest book of poems and is described as the 'shadow companion' of the upbeat, optimistic Totem. Loneliness and pain, both physical and emotional, are among its themes, and the poet often invokes the language of religious liturgy to address them. But although it explores complex and serious issues, there are plenty of playful moments.
listen now
download audio
@'ABC'
#OccupyBoston (Livestream)
GregMitch Greg Mitchell
Crackdowns coming in Atlanta and Boston? Tweets say reporters in latter asked to leave for "safety" (i.e. not be there to report?).
Crackdowns coming in Atlanta and Boston? Tweets say reporters in latter asked to leave for "safety" (i.e. not be there to report?).
Occupy_Boston Occupy Boston
Wu_Ming_Foundt Wu Ming Foundation
#SteveWorkers says: iPlay PHONE STORY, an educational game by Molleindustria bit.ly/mU09nF Banned from the App Store!
Image
Wu_Ming_Foundt Wu Ming Foundation
Don't deny it, subvert it, paint it red, make it bad: BAD APPLES 99:1 bit.ly/n9RXAJ #SteveWorkers
Prince - Montreux Jazz Festival 18 Juli 2009
01. Prince Introduces The Band
02. When I Lay My Hands On U
03. Stratus
04. All Shoop Up
05. Peach
06. Spanish Castle Magic
07. When You Where Mine
08. Little Red Corvette
09. Somewhere Here On Earth
10. She Spoke 2 Me
11. Eye Love U, But Eye Dont Trust You Anymore
12. Love Like Jazz
13. All The Critics Love U In Montreux
14. In a Large Room With No Light
15. Purple Rain
Massive Attack VS Burial - Four Walls
Tracklisting:
A. Massive Attack vs. Burial - Four Walls (11.57)
B. Massive Attack vs. Burial – Paradise Circus (12.32)
The subject of prolonged rumour and intense speculation, Inhale Gold and The Vinyl Factory are proud to present Massive Attack’s long awaited collaboration with Burial, Four Walls / Paradise Circus.
These new Burial mixes of previously unreleased Massive Attack track 'Four Walls' and Heligoland favourite 'Paradise Circus' are available exclusively as limited vinyl edition of only 1000 copies worldwide.
Pressed on heavyweight 180g 12” vinyl housed in a stunning, hand numbered, gold glitter screen-printed sleeve designed by Massive Attack’s Robert Del Naja (3D), this edition has been crafted by The Vinyl Factory, and is sure to become a highly coveted collectors item.
As you’d expect from these two acts these are no ordinary remixes and Burial has completely rebuilt both tracks in his own unique style providing a masterclass in production.
At around 12 minutes each, both 'Four Walls' and 'Paradise Circus' have been given the time and space to evolve and develop going way beyond the scope of normal remixes, with the end result two highly original, in every sense of the word, pieces of music.
Product Details:
* Both tracks exclusive to this limited edition
* 1000 copies worldwide
* Artwork by Robert Del Naja
* Screen-printed cover with gold glitter
* 180-gram heavyweight vinyl
* Each edition hand numbered
Buy
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