Archive for the 'Dictatorship' Category
China: Sesame Credit
December 23rd, 2015Via: Extra Credits: China has gamified being an obedient citizen with the creation of Sesame Credit. The game links to your social network and gives you a score for doing things that the government approves of, but it also reduces that score for doing things the government disapproves of. Even your friends’ scores affect your […]
ISIS Armed with U.S. Weapons
December 9th, 2015Via: CNN: A new report from a prominent human rights group has found that ISIS has built a substantial arsenal, including U.S.-made weapons obtained from the Iraqi army and Syrian opposition groups. Amnesty International’s 44-page report, released late Monday, found that much of ISIS’ equipment and munitions comes from stockpiles captured from the U.S.-allied Iraqi […]
U.S. Drone Whistleblowers Have Their Bank Accounts Frozen
December 7th, 2015Via: Hang the Bankers: The U.S. Government failed to deter them through threats of criminal prosecution, and clumsy attempts to intimidate their families. Now four former Air Force drone operators-turned-whistleblowers have had their credit cards and bank accounts frozen, according to human rights attorney Jesselyn Radack. “My drone operators went public this week and now […]
Beijing Red Alert for Smog
December 7th, 2015Via: BBC: Schools in Beijing are to close and outdoor construction to stop after the Chinese capital issued its first “red alert” over smog levels. The red alert is the highest possible, and has not been used in the city before, the state-run Xinhua news agency says. Authorities expect more than three consecutive days of […]
France Looking at Banning Tor, Blocking Public Wi-Fi
December 7th, 2015Via: Ars Technica: According to leaked documents from the Ministry of Interior the French government is considering two new pieces of legislation: a ban on free and shared Wi-Fi connections during a state of emergency, and measures to block Tor being used inside France. The documents were seen by the French newspaper Le Monde. According […]
Homeland Security: “An Entirely New Phase”
December 6th, 2015The whole ISIS mess originates with U.S. activities in Iraq (which, even the mainstream hive mind admits had nothing to do with 9/11), and now, “We have moved to an entirely new phase in the global terrorist threat.” Via: Reuters: U.S. officials, faced with an evolving threat of deadly attacks by homegrown extremists, are rethinking […]
72 Department of Homeland Security Employees On Terrorist Watchlist; 95% Failure to Find Weapons at Airports
December 6th, 2015Your what hurts? Via: WGBH: Back in August, we did an investigation—the inspector General did—of the Department of Homeland Security, and they had 72 individuals that were on the terrorist watch list that were actually working at the Department of Homeland Security. The director had to resign because of that. Then we went further and […]
Pentagon Task Force: We Want Villas and Flat-Screen TVs in Afghanistan
December 3rd, 2015Via: ProPublica: The requirements were clear: Villas with no less than queen beds, flat-screen TVs of no less than 27 inches, meals of at least three stars, and round-the-clock bodyguards. Sounds more like a celebrity rider than a description of Afghanistan accommodations for U.S. government employees. But that’s what the Pentagon’s Task Force for Business […]
China Announces Military Overhaul to Make Army More Combat Ready
November 26th, 2015Via: Bloomberg: President Xi Jinping announced a major overhaul of China’s military to make the world’s largest army more combat ready and better equipped to project force beyond the country’s borders. Under the reorganization, all branches of the armed forces would come under a joint military command, Xi told a meeting of military officials in […]
Australia Just Stopped China Buying a Farm the Size of Kentucky
November 19th, 2015Via: Fortune: You can have too much foreign investment, it seems. The Australian government Thursday blocked the sale of a portfolio of farmland the size of Kentucky to Chinese investors on national interest grounds. Four separate groups linked to Chinese-based investors had been dominating the bidding for properties amounting to 2.5% of Australia’s farming land […]
