In the wake of last week’s attacks that killed two soldiers in Ottawa and Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, privacy watchdogs fear that expanding the powers of Canadian police and intelligence agencies in the name of national security will curb personal freedoms. The Conservative government on Monday unveiled a new bill—Bill C-44, or the ‘Protection of Canada from…
A senior official at the U.S. National Security Agency has been cleared to work part-time for a private firm started by former NSA director Keith Alexander, according to exclusive Reuters reporting, raising questions about the blurring of lines between government and business. The news agency reports that “[u]nder the arrangement, which was confirmed by Alexander and…
It’s official. New York state will ban fracking. After years of lobbying and aggressive public protest by state residents to make permanent a short-term moratorium on the controversial oil and gas drilling practice, Gov. Andrew Cuomo cited harm to public health as the key reason for the decision to announce an all-out ban. “The potential…
President-elect Donald TrumpDonald John TrumpSenate advances public lands bill in late-night vote Warren, Democrats urge Trump to back down from veto threat over changing Confederate-named bases Esper orders ‘After Action Review’ of National Guard’s role in protests MORE says in a new interview that Facebook has been important in helping him get his message out,…
As the number of Iraqi and Syrian people displaced by war and conflict soars, the United Nations refugee agency is blasting the international community for failing to respond with adequate humanitarian assistance and resettlement. Critics of the U.S.-led war say that the U.S., in particular, is failing to meet its obligation, by driving the conditions…
A coalition of activists including moms, farmers, and public interest groups has filed papers defending Maui County’s recently passed ban on genetically modified organisms (GMOs). The ballot initiative, which passed with 50.2 percent of the vote, prohibits the growth, testing, or cultivation of GMO crops, also known as GE crops, in Maui County until an…
Fossil fuel industry lobbyists have no place at a climate conference, charged activists who on Monday shut down a “greenwashed” fossil fuel industry panel at the United Nations climate talks in Lima, Peru. Seizing on the event as an example of the corporate influence that has pervaded COP20 and all previous climate negotiations, protesters donned…
Former Milwaukee police officer Christopher Manney will not be charged in the shooting death of 31-year-old Dontre Hamilton that took place earlier this year, Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm announced Monday. “This was a tragic incident for the Hamilton family and for the community,” Chisholm stated in a press release. “But, based on all…
U.S. military officials acknowledged for the first time on Tuesday that the more than 1,600 bombings launched on Iraq and Syria by the U.S. and allies over the past five months may have led to “a few” civilian casualties. Analysts, however, say that such an admission is not only an undercounting of civilian deaths and…
The Bank of England, one of the oldest banks in the world, has joined the growing ranks of those warning of the financial risk posed by a “carbon bubble,” which will occur if urgently needed climate change regulations render coal, oil, and gas assets worthless. “One live risk right now is of insurers investing in…