Criminal: How Lockup Quotas and “Low-Crime Taxes” Guarantee Profits for Private Prison Corporations
September 25th, 2013Via: In the Public Interest:
This report discusses the use of prison bed occupancy guarantee clauses in prison privatization contracts and explores how bed occupancy guarantees undermine criminal justice policy and democratic, accountable government. The report sheds light on the for-profit private prison industry’s reliance on high prison populations, and how these occupancy guarantee provisions directly benefit its bottom line. Also discussed are the prevalence of bed guarantee clauses, drawing on set of contracts that ITPI obtained through state open records requests. We also address how occupancy guarantees have harmed states, focusing on the experiences of Arizona, Colorado, and Ohio — three states that have agreed to these provisions to detrimental consequences. Lastly, the report discusses our recommendation that governments can and should reject prison occupancy guarantees.
Israeli Soldiers Throw Sound Grenades at EU Diplomats Bringing Aid to Displaced Palestinian Families
September 25th, 2013Via: Tikkun Daily:
A Palestinian village home to 120 people had its houses, kindergarten and shepherding stables demolished this week by Israeli authorities. This came after the Supreme Court ruled its inhabitants – some of whom have lived on the land for generations – didn’t have proper building permits.
The Palestinian Bedouin village of Khirbet Al-Makhul, located in the occupied territories, is the third such village to be demolished by Israel since August. After it was destroyed on Monday, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) attempted to deliver emergency aid to the displaced residents on Tuesday and Wednesday, but were stopped by Israeli soldiers.
When a collection of diplomats from France, Britain, Spain, Ireland, Australia and the European Union’s political office arrived on Friday, they were met with force and sound grenades.
Per Reuters:
A Reuters reporter saw soldiers throw sound grenades at a group of diplomats, aid workers and locals in the occupied West Bank, and yank a French diplomat out of the truck before driving away with its contents.
“They dragged me out of the truck and forced me to the ground with no regard for my diplomatic immunity,” French diplomat Marion Castaing said. “This is how international law is being respected here.”
[…]
“It’s shocking and outrageous. We will report these actions to our governments,” said one EU diplomat, who declined to be named because he did not have authorisation to talk to the media.
“(Our presence here) is a clear matter of international humanitarian law. By the Geneva Convention, an occupying power needs to see to the needs of people under occupation. These people aren’t being protected,” he said.
Unfortunately, the incident is making headlines not because of the village’s destruction, but because Israeli authorities manhandled a collection of European diplomats. However, the real story here is that Israel – even as it begins the resumption of peace talks with the Palestinians – continue to appropriate West Bank lands for settlements and ‘military’ purposes.
The Senate Is Busy Creating a Privileged 1st Amendment Club for ‘Official’ Journalists
September 25th, 2013Via: Alternet:
On September 12, 2013, the U.S. Senate Judiciary committee narrowly defined who the law should consider to be a journalist, by amending the proposed Free Flow of Information Act (“FFIA”). The FFIA is a “shield law” that protects journalists from having to reveal their confidential sources when confronted with court subpoenas. The amendment changed the language of the bill from protecting the activity of journalism to protecting the profession. Journalists are now limited to those employed by, recently employed by, or substantially contributing to media organizations for certain minimum durations.
This maneuver skirts the substantial investigative role served by independent journalists, bloggers, and nontraditional media, who are left unprotected by the statute. It also expressly excludes whistleblower organizations. By not extending protection to a vital segment of investigative newsgatherers, the amended FFIA falls short of providing real benefits. More fundamentally, the distinctions created by the bill reinforce a privileged club for journalists. In essence, the government is licensing the press, and treading down a path that courts have for decades cautioned “present[s] practical and conceptual difficulties of a high order.”
Man Fitted with Thought Controlled Bionic Leg
September 25th, 2013Via: CBS:
For the first time ever, doctors have developed an artificial leg that is controlled by the person’s thoughts.
And it happened here at the Rehabilitation Institute Of Chicago (RIC).
“So I move my leg out, push the toes down and bring my toes back up,” said Zac Vawter, the first man in the nation to have a so-called bionic leg.
He is able to make these movements just like people with a fully functioning leg do: With his thoughts.
In 2009, Vawter lost his right leg from above the knee down in a motorcycle accident. His bionic leg allows him to bend his knee and move his ankle.
Somebody Stole 7 Milliseconds From the Federal Reserve
September 24th, 2013This is interesting, but I’m sure that these news based trades are being set up days in advance with much smaller volumes. Why am I sure? Because I look for insider buying before news on dogshit stocks before news, and if bum level executives/criminals are doing this with their penny stocks it’s not a stretch to assume that it’s happening on the confetti with better known names.
Confetti paper markets are a confidence trick. A scam. So, sure, this thing below makes for interesting reading but, hidden in the volume in the days before the news, there are trades being laid on by people who know what’s going to happen. Good luck spotting it, though.
Via: Mother Jones:
Last Wednesday, the Fed announced that it would not be tapering its bond buying program. This news was released at precisely 2 pm in Washington “as measured by the national atomic clock.” It takes 7 milliseconds for this information to get to Chicago. However, several huge orders that were based on the Fed’s decision were placed on Chicago exchanges 2-3 milliseconds after 2 pm. How did this happen?
CNBC has the story here, and the answer is: we don’t know. Reporters get the Fed release early, but they get it in a secure room and aren’t permitted to communicate with the outside world until precisely 2 pm. Still, maybe someone figured out a way to game the embargo. It would certainly be worth a ton of money.
Research Credit: bretwalda
Related: They Made a Killing: The Use of Knowledge of Covert Operations in the Stock Market
World Record Solar Cell with 44.7% Efficiency
September 24th, 2013Via: PhysOrg:
German Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, Soitec, CEA-Leti and the Helmholtz Center Berlin announced today that they have achieved a new world record for the conversion of sunlight into electricity using a new solar cell structure with four solar subcells. Surpassing competition after only over three years of research, and entering the roadmap at world class level, a new record efficiency of 44.7% was measured at a concentration of 297 suns. This indicates that 44.7% of the solar spectrum’s energy, from ultraviolet through to the infrared, is converted into electrical energy. This is a major step towards reducing further the costs of solar electricity and continues to pave the way to the 50% efficiency roadmap.
Who Rooted Kernel.org Servers Two Years Ago, How Did it Happen, and Why?
September 24th, 2013Via: Ars Technica:
More than two years after unknown hackers gained unfettered access over multiple computers used to maintain and distribute the Linux operating system kernel, officials still haven’t released a promised autopsy about what happened.
The compromise, which began no later than August 12, 2011, wasn’t detected for at least 16 days, a public e-mail and interviews immediately following the intrusion revealed. During that time, attackers were able to monitor the activities of anyone using the kernel.org servers known as Hera and Odin1, as well as personal computers belonging to senior Linux developer H. Peter Anvin. The self-injecting rootkit known as Phalanx had access to a wealth of sensitive data, possibly including private keys used to sign and decrypt e-mails and remotely log in to servers. A follow-up advisory a few weeks later opened the possibility that still other developers may have fallen prey to the attackers.
For three weeks in September and early October, officials kept kernel.org closed so the servers that run it could be rebuilt. When the site reopened on October 4, a message on the front page prominently warned of the breach and noted the steps taken to rebuild the site. “Thanks to all for your patience and understanding during our outage and please bear with us as we bring up the different kernel.org systems over the next few weeks,” the message concluded. “We will be writing up a report on the incident in the future.”
Almost two years later, the report has yet to be delivered. The promise to deliver an incident report remained on kernel.org as recently as March 1 of this year, before being quietly pulled the following day. To this day, officials have yet to provide key details, including exactly how many machines were compromised, how the attackers were able to gain root access to them, and what they did once they seized control. The delay contrasts sharply with autopsies that were delivered promptly following two similar compromises of Apache.org, the official distributor of the open-source Apache Web server.
Related: Torvalds On Being Asked to Insert a U.S. Government Back Door Into Linux Kernel
‘Robots May Revolutionize China’s Electronics Manufacturing’
September 24th, 2013Via: Wall Street Journal:
A new worker’s revolution is rising in China and it doesn’t involve humans.
With soaring wages and an aging population, electronics factory managers say the day is approaching when robotic workers will replace people on the Chinese factory floor.
A new wave of industrial robots is in development, ranging from high-end humanoid machines with vision, touch and even learning capabilities, to low-cost robots vying to undercut China’s minimum wage.
Over the next five years these technologies will transform China’s factories, executives say, and also fill a growing labor shortage as the country’s youth become increasingly unwilling to perform manual labor. How the transformation plays out will also go a long way in deciding how much of the electronics supply chain remains in China.
Empty F-16 Jet Tested by Boeing and U.S. Air Force
September 24th, 2013Via: BBC:
Boeing has revealed that it has retrofitted retired fighter jets to turn them into drones.
It said that one of the Lockheed Martin F-16 made a first flight with an empty cockpit last week.
Two US Air Force pilots controlled the plane from the ground as it flew from a Florida base to the Gulf of Mexico.
Boeing suggested that the innovation could ultimately be used to help train pilots, providing an adversary they could practise firing on.
The jet – which had previously sat mothballed at an Arizona site for 15 years – flew at an altitude of 40,000ft (12.2km) and a speed of Mach 1.47 (1,119mph/1,800km/h).
It carried out a series of manoeuvres including a barrel roll and a “split S” – a move in which the aircraft turns upside down before making a half loop so that it flies the right-way-up in the opposite direction. This can be used in combat to evade missile lock-ons.
Boeing said the unmanned F16 was followed by two chase planes to ensure it stayed in sight, and also contained equipment that would have allowed it to self-destruct if necessary.
The firm added that the flight attained 7Gs of acceleration but was capable of carrying out manoeuvres at 9Gs – something that might cause physical problems for a pilot.
Island Emerges Off Coast of Pakistan After Earthquake
September 24th, 2013Via: Reuters:
A major earthquake hit a remote part of western Pakistan on Tuesday, killing at least 45 people and prompting a new island to rise from the sea just off the country’s southern coast.
Tremors were felt as far away as the Indian capital of New Delhi, hundreds of miles (kilometers) to the east, where buildings shook, as well as the sprawling port city of Karachi in Pakistan.
The United States Geological Survey said the 7.8 magnitude quake struck 145 miles southeast of Dalbandin in Pakistan’s quake-prone province of Baluchistan, which borders Iran.
The earthquake was so powerful that it caused the seabed to rise and create a small, mountain-like island about 600 meters (yards) off Pakistan’s Gwadar coastline in the Arabian Sea.
Television channels showed images of a stretch of rocky terrain rising above the sea level, with a crowd of bewildered people gathering on the shore to witness the rare phenomenon.
