Glenn Greenwald: Is Facebook Operating as an Arm of the Israeli State by Removing Palestinian Posts?

Shariamerica: Islam, Obama, and the Establishment Clause (2011)

The U.S. government condemns burning the Qur'an. Yet the U.S. government burns Bibles. This is a clear violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

The US Is An Oligarchy, Study Concludes

Researchers concluded that US government policies rarely
align with the preferences of the majority of Americans

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Report by researchers from Princeton and Northwestern universities suggests that US political system serves special interest organisations, instead of voters

The US government does not represent the interests of the majority of the country's citizens, but is instead ruled by those of the rich and powerful, a new study from Princeton and Northwestern Universities has concluded.

The report, entitled Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups, and Average Citizens, used extensive policy data collected from between the years of 1981 and 2002 to empirically determine the state of the US political system.

After sifting through nearly 1,800 US policies enacted in that period and comparing them to the expressed preferences of average Americans (50th percentile of income), affluent Americans (90th percentile) and large special interests groups, researchers concluded that the United States is dominated by its economic elite. Read on and comment » | Zachary Davies Boren | Wednesday, April 16, 2014

US Government Giving Up Control of Internet

Mar. 17, 2014 - 3:12 - James Rosen reports from Washington, D.C.

Lagarde Tells US Lawmakers They Risk Tipping World into Recession

Christine Lagarde, Head of the IMF

THE INDEPENDENT: Stark warning from IMF chief comes as search for deal to extend debt ceiling shifts to Senate

American politicians risk causing a “massive disruption the world over” that could tip the global economy into another recession if politics gets in the way of raising the country’s debt ceiling and the ongoing government shutdown remains unresolved, Christine Lagarde, the head of the International Monetary Fund, warned today as the US Senate became the focus of talks to end the budgetary deadlock in Washington.

The stark assessment by Ms Lagarde, a former French Finance Minister, came after news that talks between the Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives, John Boehner, and President Barack Obama had broken down, putting the onus on the Senate leadership to craft a bipartisan pact to avert what experts predict would be financial catastrophe. » | Nikhil Kumar | New York | Sunday, October 13, 2013

'US Citizen Has No Right to Free Speech?' State Dept Spokesperson Grilled Over Snowden

Tensions are high as NSA leaker Edward Snowden officially submitted application for temporary asylum in Russia on Tuesday. After Russian and international human rights advocates and lawyers met with Snowden at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport on Friday, the US said it is disappointed in Russia for considering the whistleblowers asylum. During a daily press briefing State Department spokeswoman, Jen Psaki was given a thorough grilling on the Snowden affair by journalists, including AP's Matthew Lee and CNN's Elise Labott and was left lost for words at almost every turn.

Snowden Has Enough Information to Cause US Government Worst Damage in History, Journalist Says

FOX NEWS: National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden possesses enough information to cause more damage to the United States government than “anyone else has ever had in the history” of the country, according to the journalist who first reported the former contractor’s leaked documents.

Glenn Greenwald, a columnist for The Guardian newspaper who first reported on the intelligence leaks, told Argentinian newspaper La Nacion that the U.S. government should exercise extreme care with Snowden because he has the potential to do further damage to the country.

“But that's not his goal,” Greenwald told the newspaper. “His objective is to expose software that people around the world use without knowing what they are exposing themselves to, without consciously agreeing to surrender their rights to privacy. He has a huge number of documents that would be very harmful to the U.S. government if they were made public.” » | FoxNews.com with contributions from The Associated Press | Monday, July 15, 2013

Snowden Saga: US Charges Whistleblower, Demands Extradition
The US has filed criminal charges against Edward Snowden, the man who exposed to the world the extent of the secret global surveillance network run by the NSA. Reports say Washington will now attempt to extradite the 30-year old from Hong Kong, where the ex-CIA employee turned whistleblower has been sheltering ever since exposing the American spy machine. RT's Gayane Chichakyan reports.

US Files Criminal Charges Against NSA Whistleblower Edward Snowden
THE GUARDIAN: Charges include theft of government property and unauthorised communication of national defence information

The US has filed espionage charges against the NSA whistleblowerEdward Snowden and reports say authorities have requested that Hong Kong detain him for extradition. Legislators in Hong Kong responded by calling for mainland China to intervene in the case.

Snowden, 29, is charged with theft of government property, unauthorised communication of national defence information and wilful communication of classified communications intelligence information to an unauthorised person, according to court documents.

Snowden is reported to be in hiding in Hong Kong. The Washington Post said the US had asked the autonomous Chinese territory to detain the former NSA contractor on a provisional arrest warrent, while other reports cited US officials as saying preparations were being made to seek his extradition.

One Hong Kong legislator, Leung Kwok-hung, said Beijing should instruct Hong Kong to protect Snowden from extradition before the case was dragged through the court system. Leung also urged the people of Hong Kong to "take to the streets to protect Snowden". Another lawmaker, Cyd Ho, vice-chair of the pro-democracy Labour party, said China "should now make its stance clear to the Hong Kong SAR [special administrative region] government". » | Agencies in Washington DC | Saturday, June 22, 2013

Mitt Romney On Muslims In Government

Chinese Muslims Trigger Public Backlash in Palau
THE INDEPENDENT: The tiny Pacific nation of Palau's decision to allow 13 Chinese Muslims from the Guantanamo Bay prison camp to resettle there has sparked anger among islanders who fear for the safety of the tranquil tourist haven.

The US government determined last year that the Chinese Muslims, or Uighurs, were not enemy combatants and should be released from the US military prison in Cuba. China has objected to their resettlement, calling the men "terrorist suspects" and demanding they be sent home.

The US has said it fears the men would be executed if they were returned to China.

Palau President Johnson Toribiong explained his decision to grant the Uighurs entry as traditional hospitality, but public opinion has appeared overwhelmingly negative. Some complained Friday that the government failed to consult the people.

"I totally disagree" with allowing the Uighurs onto Palau, Natalia Baulis, a 30-year-old mother of two, told The Associated Press by telephone.

"It's good to be humanitarian and all, but still these people ... to me are scary," she said.

The Uighurs (pronounced WEE'-gurs) have been in custody since they were captured in Afghanistan and Pakistan in 2001.

Fermin Nariang, editor of the Palau newspaper Island Times, said he had been stopped in the streets of the capital, Koror, by residents venting their anger. >>> Associated Press | Friday, June 12, 2009

Muslim Americans Serving in the U.S. Government

Barack Obama Reveals George Bush's 'Torture' Techniques
THE TELEGRAPH: President Barack Obama has disclosed the controversial CIA interrogation techniques of the Bush administration, including the threat of stinging insects, simulated drowning and depriving prisoners of sleep for up to 180 hours.

Leg shackles on the floor at at the U.S. Naval Base, in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Photo: The Telegraph
The US government released four memos written by the Justice Department in 2002 and 2005 to provide legal cover for methods that have been widely criticised as torture and which the new president has already disowned.

They exposed in graphic detail how 28 al-Qaeda suspects were questioned at CIA secret prisons, revealing the use of forced nudity, facial and abdominal slaps and the use of confined space and "stress positions".

They considered locking suspects in a box with an insect which they claimed was a stinging insect. >>> By Alex Spillius in Washington | Thursday, April 16, 2009