Sunday, May 31, 2015

Playing with the Fire of Terrorism

By pandering to Saudi Arabia and the Sunni-controlled Gulf states, the U.S. government is playing with fire, allowing the spread of Sunni radicalism to destabilize targeted governments like Syria but unable to control the resulting terrorism, writes Joe Lauria. By Joe Lauria African nations were in the forefront of opposing a U.N. Security Council resolution…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/playing-with-fire-of-terrorism.html

Holes in the Neocons’ Syrian Story

Exclusive: The Islamic State and Al-Qaeda’s Nusra Front continue to make gains in Syria while Official Washington plays the blame game, pushing a dubious narrative that the crisis wouldn’t have happened if President Obama had just backed “regime change” earlier, Robert Parry reports. By Robert Parry Official Washington’s narrative about Syria’s civil war is that innocent “pro-democracy” protesters…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/holes-in-neocons-syrian-story.html

Saturday, May 30, 2015

Egypt’s Descent into Despotism

Egypt’s brief experiment with democracy was crushed by internal and external forces alarmed by a populist Islamic government. With the backing of Israel, Saudi Arabia and others, a brutal military despotism took over and consolidated power, but it shouldn’t be called a government, says Lawrence Davidson. By Lawrence Davidson Military officers often take over countries,…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/egypts-descent-into-despotism.html

Indoctrinator-In-Chief On A Climate Change Rampage

The indoctrinator-in-chief has been on a literal rampage over the past month suggesting that climate change is the cause of..well nearly everything. One wonders how he sleeps at night worrying about such lofty and pressing issues.

As the coast guard article points out Obama has been omnipresent as a climate change apostle this month suggesting that it leads to global instability, poverty, environmental devastation, harm to animals, risks to national security, and is an insidious danger to general health. He is actually beginning to sound like Chicken Little- The sky is surely falling tomorrow if we don’t agree to the globalist climate change agenda. See  bolded “Chicken Little” passage. While most American’s yawn over “climate change”  and would rather discuss the bizarre Kardashian world, the indoctrinator-in-chief has done his best to whip the world up-or at least the brain-dead masses-into a frenzied panic.

Yesterday Obama suggested that “we weave climate change into science and social studies lessons because kids instinctively understand the importance of environment, impact on animals, health”, when asked how teachers should approach discussing climate change in a classroom setting. Of course no one wants free-thinkers or gasp, “climate skeptics” slipping through the cracks of the educational system so the children need to be bombarded from every academic discipline. Leave no stone unturned in the holy mission to indoctrinate children with fear mongering messages about a non-existent threat.

The origins of the “settled science number (97% of experts agree)  that he continually repeats is examined below. Remember of course that repetition is essential to all phases of indoctrination. All authorities should seem to be in full agreement so that dissenters  can be castigated and mocked.

Climate change: Mr. Obama, 97 percent of experts is a bogus number

http://ift.tt/1HyCH34Ninety-seven percent of scientists agree: Climate change is real, man-made and dangerous. President Obama tweeted that, and it has been repeated by countless others. It is tempting for a politician to claim that 97 percent of experts agree with you. But do they?

The paper is a treasure trove of how-not-to lessons for a graduate class on survey design and analysis: the sample was not representative, statistical tests were ignored, and the results were misinterpreted.

What was an incompetent piece of research has become a highly influential study, its many errors covered up.

Some of the mistakes in the study should be obvious to all. There are hundreds of papers on the causes of climate change, and thousands of papers on the impacts of climate change and climate policy. Cook focused on the latter. A paper on the impact of a carbon tax on emissions was taken as evidence that the world is warming. A paper on the impact of climate change on the Red Panda was taken as evidence that humans caused this warming. And even a paper on the television coverage of climate change was seen by Cook as proof that carbon dioxide is to blame.

The trouble does not end there. Cook has been reluctant to share his data for others to scrutinize. He has claimed that some data are protected by confidentiality agreements, even when they are not. He was claimed that some data were not collected, even when they were. The paper claims that each abstract was read by two independent readers, but they freely compared notes. Cook and Co. collected data, inspected the results, collected more data, inspected the results again, changed their data classification, collected yet more data, inspected the results once more, and changed their data classification again, before they found their magic 97 percent. People who express concern about the method have been smeared.

We would hope that the president of the United States of America does not spend time checking such trivia. That is the job of the editor of the journal, Dan Kammen of the University of California at Berkeley, who unfortunately has chosen to ignore all issues I and others raised about them. Similarly, the journal’s publisher, the Institute of Physics, and Cook’s employer, the University of Queensland, have turned a deaf ear to my concerns. What was an incompetent piece of research has become a highly influential study, its many errors covered up.

Obama warns Coast Guard cadets global warming a national security threat

http://ift.tt/1PWvUESAt a time when the U.S. military is facing threats on multiple fronts — most immediately, the advances of the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, where the terror group recently seized Ramadi — President Obama told U.S. Coast Guard Academy graduates that climate change needs to be added to that list of threats.

This is not just a problem for countries on the coast or for certain regions of the world. Climate change will impact every country on the planet. No nation is immune,” the president said. “So I am here today to say that climate change constitutes a serious threat to global security, an immediate risk to our national security, and, make no mistake, it will impact how our military defends our country. And so we need to act — and we need to act now.

The president delivered the message at the Coast Guard Academy in New London, Conn.

The president in recent months has pressed for action on global warming as a matter of health, as a matter of environmental protection and as a matter of international obligation.

He even couched it as a family matter, linking it to the worry he felt when one of his daughters had an asthma attack as a preschooler.

His speech to the cadets, by contrast, focused on what the Obama administration says are immediate risks to national security, including contributing to more natural disasters that result in humanitarian crises and potential new flows of refugees. Further, the president said he sees climate change aggravating poverty and social tensions that can fuel instability and foster terrorist activity and other violence.

Obama said the cadets would be part of the first generation of officers to begin their service in a world where it is increasingly clear that “climate change will shape how every one of our services plan, operate, train, equip and protect their infrastructure.”

As for the impact in the U.S., Obama pointed to streets in Miami and Charleston, S.C., that flood at high tide and to military bases around the country already feeling negative effects.

“Around Norfolk, high tides and storms increasingly flood parts of our Navy base and an air base,” Obama said of military facilities in Virginia. “In Alaska, thawing permafrost is damaging military facilities. Out West, deeper droughts and longer wildfires could threaten training areas our troops depend on.”

The post Indoctrinator-In-Chief On A Climate Change Rampage appeared first on PropagandaGuard.


from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/indoctrinator-in-chief-on-climate.html

Friday, May 29, 2015

Is War on ISIS America’s Fight?

The Sunni resistance to the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 led to what is now ISIS or the Islamic State, and many U.S. hawks now want President Obama to “surge” troops back into Iraq to fight this brutal force. But what is the right calibration for U.S. involvement, asks ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar.…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/is-war-on-isis-americas-fight.html

Thursday, May 28, 2015

A Reckless ‘Stand-upper’ on MH-17

Exclusive: Australia’s “60 Minutes” claimed to do an investigative report proving the anti-aircraft battery that shot down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 last July fled into Russia and pinning the atrocity on Russian President Putin. But the news show did a meaningless “stand-upper,” not an investigation, writes Robert Parry. By Robert Parry In TV journalism, there’s a difference between…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/a-reckless-stand-upper-on-mh-17.html

Resurgence of the ‘Surge’ Myth

Exclusive: Official Washington loves the story – the Iraq War was failing until President George W. Bush bravely ordered a “surge” in 2007 that won the war, but President Obama squandered the victory, requiring a new “surge” now. Except the narrative is dangerous make-believe, says ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern. By Ray McGovern As American politicians and editorial writers resume their…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/resurgence-of-surge-myth.html

GOP War-Mongering Back in Style

As the new presidential campaign season starts, most Republican candidates are competing to show off who can sound the most belligerent, with many echoing George W. Bush. Brother Jeb stumbled over his own tough-guy message, as William Blum wrote at Anti-Empire Report. By William Blum Jeb Bush has gotten himself into trouble because, like all…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/gop-war-mongering-back-in-style.html

Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Neocons: The Men of Dementia

In the classic novel Don Quixote de la Mancha, the great Spanish writer Cervantes explored the danger of mixing delusions of grandeur with adventurous combat. Yet, today instead of the man of la Mancha, we have the neocons playing the men (and some women) of dementia, as ex-diplomat William R. Polk describes. By William R.…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/neocons-men-of-dementia.html

Israel’s Looming War on Lebanon

As Israel joins Saudi Arabia and other Sunni sheikdoms in their sectarian war against the Shiites, Israel’s  new front may well be in Lebanon, with Israel attacking Hezbollah in a move that could also kill the Iran nuclear deal, as Trita Parsi and Paul Pillar explain. By Trita Parsi and Paul Pillar There are signs…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/israels-looming-war-on-lebanon.html

Persecution of CIA’s Jeffrey Sterling

The U.S. government’s successful prosecution of ex-CIA officer Jeffrey Sterling for leaking secrets about a failed covert operation to the press followed a long campaign against him for protesting racial discrimination inside the spy agency, writes Norman Solomon. By Norman Solomon A dozen years before his recent sentencing to a 42-month prison term based on a jury’s…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/persecution-of-cias-jeffrey-sterling.html

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

More Video Fakery on MH-17

Exclusive: Australia’s “60 Minutes” program refuses to admit the obvious: that it messed up in determining the location where the “getaway” video was taken after last July’s Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 shoot-down. Instead, the show presented an update with more deceptive video, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry After being caught red-handed presenting misleading video about…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/more-video-fakery-on-mh-17.html

Monday, May 25, 2015

Blocking a Nuclear-Free Mideast

With a large undeclared arsenal of nukes and the missiles to deliver them, Israel ranks as the world’s top rogue nuclear state, even as it threatens to bomb Iran over the theoretical possibility of building a single nuclear weapon, hypocrisy backed up by the U.S., as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar notes. By Paul R.…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/blocking-nuclear-free-mideast.html

Saudis Eye Human Rights Chair

Despite an abysmal human rights record, Saudi Arabia reportedly hopes to chair the UN’s Human Rights Council, a test of how far money can go in buying the world’s silence and acquiescence, as Jonathan Marshall describes. By Jonathan Marshall It’s hard to be shocked by anything that happens in the Middle East, but this act of…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/saudis-eye-human-rights-chair.html

Sunday, May 24, 2015

How to Honor Memorial Day

Exclusive: Of all the world’s holidays commemorating wars, Memorial Day should be one of sober reflection on war’s horrible costs, surely not a moment to glorify warfare or lust for more wars. But many pols and pundits can’t resist the opportunity, as ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern describes. By Ray McGovern How best to show respect for…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/how-to-honor-memorial-day.html

One More Casualty of US Wars

From the Archive: For many politicians, Memorial Day is just another chance to glorify war with little real remembrance of war’s horrors and waste, like the death of one young veteran a year ago, as recalled by Richard L. Fricker in one of his last articles before his own death from heart failure last Sept.…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/one-more-casualty-of-us-wars.html

Saturday, May 23, 2015

Gay Convassing Doesn’t Result In Amazing Attitude Change-They Made It Up

The Washington Post tried to spin the embarrassing news of scientific fraud overseen by an influential member of the academic community in a extremely prestigious journal (Science) today into a win by stating “the scientific process worked. In fact, those of us who teach undergraduates how to do science had just been handed a valuable story that we can tell in the classroom for years.”

A glass-half-full view of academic fraud in political science – The Washington Post

http://ift.tt/1IDr7px A glass-half-full view of academic fraud in political science – The Washington Post Wednesday was interesting for political scientists. Our social media feeds were full of angst in response to the news that a very influential member of our discipline had requested a retraction of a very widely reported finding published by a very prestigious journal on which he had been a co-author. The data upon which the finding rested appear to have been fraudulently produced. Thus, a process of shaming has begun. It is a necessary process. Yet it misses a very important part of the story: science actually worked.

Not much political science research gets major coverage in outlets like Bloomberg, The Washington Post and “This American Life.” The now retracted finding did (here, here, and here), and that is partly because it was published in a journal that all scientists — not just social scientists — read. A retraction of an article published in such an outlet is major scientific news, and to the best of my knowledge, no political science article has ever been retracted from such a publication. And because some U.S. lawmakers oppose funding for political science research, people are particularly concerned that this “black eye” will contribute to such critiques.

Unfortunately, scientists turn out to be human beings, which is to say some of us are just as likely to succumb to temptation (cheat, commit fraud, etc.) as any other large collection of human beings. Indeed, we have norms against such behavior precisely because such behavior is tempting. Were it not, or were we a collection of ethically pure humans, the norms would be unnecessary.

Hearing that scientists are no better or worse than other collections of humanity, one might wonder whether the results reported in scientific journals are trustworthy. This is why transparency is so important: making publicly available all of the information required to replicate the research. And the retraction that has gotten everyone’s attention is the outcome of the transparency required by scientific journals.

First of all,  oversight by a hightly regarded professional was severely lacking. The study included 9507 respondents who were each supposedly paid $10 each, plus $2 for a referral and $5 more for the follow up surveys. Dr. Donald Green, a big deal in political science circles was Michael Lacour’s advisor and evidently found nothing odd about a graduate student securing funding to the tune of at least 95K? (Turns out-there was no funding)   Also lesser-know researchers than professor Green, found the data to be “too perfect” and began to ask questions. Did Dr Green even look at the raw data and if not, why?

Second of all, failure of the peer review process in a prestigious journal is disturbing. Peer reviews are the front line against fraud. Let’s be frank replicating a study isn’t half as fun as doing new innovative research and so the vast majority of studies will never be replicated. It seems to me highly likely that if you manage to slip past the peer review process, chances are good that your dirty deed will never get exposed. This is akin to crossing the southern U.S.border, where once past the border patrol you are mostly home free.

The Post author would like you to believe that the integrity of science  is exceptionally strong. In reality however things are much worse than the half-full analogy shared by the Post. As recently as this past March, the Post showed a much different story about the state of academic integrity with the following story.

Major publisher retracts 43 scientific papers amid wider fake peer-review scandal

http://ift.tt/1IDr7pxVia washingtonpost.com A major publisher of scholarly medical and science articles has retracted 43 papers because of “fabricated” peer reviews amid signs of a broader fake peer review racket affecting many more publications.

The publisher is BioMed Central, based in the United Kingdom, which puts out 277 peer-reviewed journals. A partial list of the retracted articles suggests most of them were written by scholars at universities in China. But Jigisha Patel, associate editorial director for research integrity at BioMed Central, said it’s not “a China problem. We get a lot of robust research of China. We see this as a broader problem of how scientists are judged.”

Meanwhile, the Committee on Publication Ethics, a multidisciplinary group that includes more than 9,000 journal editors, issued a statement suggesting a much broader potential problem. The committee, it said, “has become aware of systematic, inappropriate attempts to manipulate the peer review processes of several journals across different publishers.” Those journals are now reviewing manuscripts to determine how many may need to be retracted, it said.

Peer review is the vetting process designed to guarantee the integrity of scholarly articles by having experts read them and approve or disapprove them for publication. With researchers increasingly desperate for recognition, citations and professional advancement, the whole peer-review system has come under scrutiny in recent years for a host of flaws and irregularities, ranging from lackadaisical reviewing to cronyism to outright fraud.

“The problem of fake peer reviewers is affecting the whole of academic journal publishing and we are among the ranks of publishers hit by this type of fraud,” Patel of BioMed’s ethics group wrote in November. “The spectrum of ‘fakery’ has ranged from authors suggesting their friends who agree in advance to provide a positive review, to elaborate peer review circles where a group of authors agree to peer review each others’ manuscripts, to impersonating real people, and to generating completely fictitious characters. From what we have discovered amongst our journals, it appears to have reached a higher level of sophistication. The pattern we have found, where there is no apparent connection between the authors but similarities between the suggested reviewers, suggests that a third party could be behind this sophisticated fraud.”

So can we conclude from these two articles that those who are committing these academic sins are propagandists attempting to sway the masses with fraudulent science? No, more research is needed for that.  Following the grant money however will usually reveal significant insights as to whether the fraud is simply the brainchild of a lone academic bent on climbing the ladder and desperate for published articles or a financed plan through grant money to influences masses of people in predetermined directions. (See EPA study masked as a independent peer reviewed study) In this case the unusually large size of the grant purportedly secured by a grad student should have caused some warning bells to go off.

“Science” is the indisputable God-term that cannot be challenged or assailed. “Settled science says” is the mantra of the uber-propagandist who insists that dialogue and critiques be silenced. True science is never truly settled.

Here’s the news that shockingly does not get reported in the American Media about global manipulation of climate data . Hear the crickets yup that is our news media doing their job making sure that anything upsetting to the narrative of climate change be memory holed.

Never be bullied by the propagandist as he gets all indignant that the science is unassailable and …that is is settled.

See Science as Propaganda Lesson #1 for more insights

The post Gay Convassing Doesn’t Result In Amazing Attitude Change-They Made It Up appeared first on PropagandaGuard.


from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/gay-convassing-doesnt-result-in-amazing.html

Obama Winks at Terrorist Gains

President Obama is playing a reckless game as he winks at Saudi and other Sunni oil-state support for al-Qaeda affiliates in Syria, with the very real possibility that the secular government will collapse and the terrorist black flag will be hoisted over Damascus, writes Gareth Porter. By Gareth Porter News media coverage of the Camp…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/obama-winks-at-terrorist-gains.html

Why Islamic State Is Winning

Exclusive: The Saudi-Israeli alliance and U.S. neocons have pressured President Obama into continuing U.S. hostility toward the secular Syrian government despite major military gains by the Islamic State and Al-Qaeda’s Nusra Front, leading to an emerging catastrophe in the Mideast, as Daniel Lazare explains. By Daniel Lazare President Barack Obama and his foreign policy staff…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/why-islamic-state-is-winning.html

Israel Seeks International Law Rewrite

Israel and its supporters are leading a charge to rewrite how international law defines crimes against humanity to create more leeway for military attacks that kill large numbers of civilians, a bitterly ironic development, says Lawrence Davidson. By Lawrence Davidson The promulgation of International law addressing crimes against humanity was one of the major legal…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/israel-seeks-international-law-rewrite.html

Friday, May 22, 2015

Drone Warfare’s Costs and Benefits

Lethal drones are President Obama’s weapon of choice in striking at suspected Al-Qaeda terrorists in remote areas, but – as with any weapon of war – there must be a cost-benefit analysis, including whether drone strikes create more enemies than they kill, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar explains. By Paul R. Pillar President Barack Obama’s announcement…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/drone-warfares-costs-and-benefits.html

The MH-17 Propaganda War

When called to account for an apparent inaccuracy in a broadcast pinning the MH-17 shoot-down on Russian President Putin, Australia’s “60 Minutes” responded with insults and dissembling. But that behavior has been typical of the propaganda wars around the Ukraine crisis, writes Australian Greg Maybury. By Greg Maybury The following anecdote may or may not be apocryphal,…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/the-mh-17-propaganda-war.html

Thursday, May 21, 2015

Obama’s Strategic Shift

Exclusive: President Obama has belatedly detected the looming catastrophe in Syria and Iraq as Sunni terrorists gain ground. He also grasps the need for Russian and Iranian help. But his administration remains infested with neocons and liberal war hawks who could sabotage the needed deals, reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry It’s finally dawning on…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/obamas-strategic-shift.html

Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Osama Bin Laden Was a 9/11 Truther

Why would the supposed mastermind behind the attacks be interested in conspiracy theories about September 11?
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/osama-bin-laden-was-911-truther.html

False Comparison of N. Korea to Iran

Opponents of a nuclear-limitation deal with Iran often cite the failed effort to constrain North Korea’s nuclear weapons program. But the two cases are dramatically different – from the levels of inspection involved to the nature of the political systems – as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar explains. By Paul R. Pillar One of the…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/false-comparison-of-n-korea-to-iran.html

Israel’s Plan to Kill Lebanese Civilians

Israel has preannounced its intent to inflict heavy civilian casualties the next time it bombs southern Lebanon, already claiming that Hezbollah will be at fault because its forces are enmeshed with the population, a remarkable public admission, says Jonathan Marshall. By Jonathan Marshall It’s a rare and remarkable event when a government broadcasts ahead of time…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/israels-plan-to-kill-lebanese-civilians.html

Watch Live: Rand Paul Filibusters Patriot Act

"It's time to end the NSA spying!" argues Sen. Paul in defense of the Americans' Fourth Amendment protections.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/watch-live-rand-paul-filibusters.html

Over 1,400 suspects investigated in UK historical sex abuse inquiry

Over 1400 individuals are under investigation by British police as part of an inquiry into a historic VIP sex abuse network believed to include celebrities and politicians. Information released by Operation Hydrant, the group of police officers tackling the alleged ring, said that the 1,433 suspected offenders included 76 politicians, 43 musicians, and 135 from […]
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/over-1400-suspects-investigated-in-uk.html

Obama’s Ugly Show of Presidential Petulance

Deal effectively empowers profiteering corporate giants to overrule actions by the governments .
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/obamas-ugly-show-of-presidential.html

FBI Speaks To High School Students About ISIS Recruitment Threat

“You know, you learn that it’s in your own backyard. It’s Americans citizens wanting to join these terrorist groups.”
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/fbi-speaks-to-high-school-students.html

Nebraska Death Penalty Repealed

Legislature Votes To Abolish Capital Punishment, Governor Vows To Veto.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/nebraska-death-penalty-repealed.html

UPS to Pay $25M to Settle Fed Whistleblower Case

UPS will pay $25 million to the federal government and $740,000 to the state of New Jersey.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/ups-to-pay-25m-to-settle-fed.html

HSBC to charge for holding deposits

HSBC wrote to the banks that will be affected this week and will introduce the negative interest rates on August 1.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/hsbc-to-charge-for-holding-deposits.html

Climate Blockbuster: New NASA Data Shows Polar Ice Has Not Receded Since 1979

Global warming alarmists claimed Arctic ice cap would be gone by now, but sea ice is 5% above 35 year average.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/climate-blockbuster-new-nasa-data-shows.html

You Be the Judge

Exclusive: An Australian news show bristled at being caught broadcasting misleading images designed to prove Russian President Putin was responsible for shooting down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 last July. The program says it simply opted for “a wide shot” to give its audience the fuller “layout,” reports Robert Parry. By Robert Parry The Australian news show…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/you-be-judge.html

Los Angeles City Council Raises Minimum Wage to $15 an Hour

Under the plan, pay will gradually increase for the lowest paid workers over the next five years and reach the top mark by 2020.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/los-angeles-city-council-raises-minimum.html

How Government Inaction Ended the Depression of 1921

By the time the federal government even began considering intervention, the crisis had ended.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/how-government-inaction-ended.html

Obama set to speed arms shipments, training for Iraq tribes

Officials indicated Obama was ready to ramp up assistance to Sunni tribes that dominate the province around Ramadi.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/obama-set-to-speed-arms-shipments.html

Call of Duty increases risk of Alzheimer’s disease

University of Montreal study finds video game players navigate the screen using a key area of the brain.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/call-of-duty-increases-risk-of.html

Christians, Now Is Probably A Good Time To Stop Watching “Game of Thrones”

Over the course of the last couple of years, I’ve gotten many emails from people asking my opinion of Christians watching “Game of Thrones.”

Here it is.

Of course, “Game of Thrones” isn’t the whole issue, just one example. In general, many of us have become pretty permissive and lackadaisical about the media we choose to consume, and I think it’s a worthy and important thing to discuss. I’m bringing it up now because, apparently, the show aired another explicit rape scene this past weekend, and now even some progressives and secularists are awakening to the fact that it’s probably not healthy or constructive to feast your eyes on violence and sex every day of your life.

One important note: I know people take their entertainment very, very seriously, and any attempt to offer a moral critique of any show or movie will always result in accusations of being “holier than thou.” But to reiterate what I say in this post, I’m not holier than anyone. I struggle with guarding myself against problematic media content just as much as you do. I’ve always been a big movie fan, and though I don’t watch TV shows as often, there are some that I really enjoy quite a bit. Unfortunately, some of the most talented writers and actors dedicate themselves to producing some of the worst garbage. But the garbage is put together really well and sometimes has a compelling story around it, so the temptation to watch can be strong.

I get that. But that doesn’t change the reality of the situation. GoT might be a well made show, but it’s also a pornographic, morally debased show. The porn and moral debasement aren’t less harmful just because the people who put it all together are exceptionally skilled. If anything, that only make it more harmful. Here’s why:

Click here to read.

The post Christians, Now Is Probably A Good Time To Stop Watching “Game of Thrones” appeared first on The Matt Walsh Blog.


from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/christians-now-is-probably-good-time-to.html

China: Five months pregnant woman ordered to have abortion

"CCP is telling women how many children they can have and then enforcing that limit through forced abortion and forced sterilization..."
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/china-five-months-pregnant-woman.html

Wisconsin Sheriff: ‘It Is a Myth That Police Kill Black Males in Greater Numbers Than Anyone Else’

Milwaukee County, Wis., Sheriff David Clarke on Tuesday addressed what he called a “myth” that police kill more black males than any other race.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/wisconsin-sheriff-it-is-myth-that.html

Why Europe Will Lead the Charge to Eliminate Cash – The Next Step in Global Meltdown

Europe will lead the world into this Economic Totalitarianism because government is now desperate to retain the Euro.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/why-europe-will-lead-charge-to.html

Tuesday, May 19, 2015

Obama Administration Issues 184 Major Rules Costing $80 Billion Annually

Number of major new regulations in Obama’s first six years is twice as many as in Bush’s first six years.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/obama-administration-issues-184-major.html

White House Offers Plan To Save Bees

Plan calls for restoring 7 million acres of bee habitat in the next five years...
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/white-house-offers-plan-to-save-bees.html

Punishing Poland for US Crimes

While former U.S. officials continue to deny torturing “war on terror” detainees – and President Obama fails to enforce any meaningful accountability – countries from the old Soviet bloc are confronting their complicity in the CIA’s crimes, writes Nat Parry. Nat Parry It is one of the great ironies of the U.S.-led “war on terror”…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/punishing-poland-for-us-crimes.html

Drivers Say Insurance Device Put Them In Danger On The Road

"I had to yank the car to the right to safely pull it into a parking lot since it didn’t have any power steering or power brakes.”
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/drivers-say-insurance-device-put-them.html

Alarming Surge In Murders And Shootings In Baltimore

Police hesitant to crack down after six officers were charged in the death of Freddie Gray.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/alarming-surge-in-murders-and-shootings.html

FBI: No evidence of firearm damage to train

FBI on the scene assisting in the National Transportation Safety Board's investigation.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/fbi-no-evidence-of-firearm-damage-to.html

On Iraq/Torture, Still in Denial

Ex-senior CIA official Michael Morell is making the rounds promoting a new book and recycling old excuses about the Bush administration’s innocence in invading Iraq (just bad intel, you know) and torturing prisoners (the lawyers said it was okay) – and dodging pointed questions, as Sam Husseini discovered. By Sam Husseini On Monday, I questioned…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/on-iraqtorture-still-in-denial.html

Police cash confiscations still on the rise

Assets seized can be anything from airplanes to headphones and clothing, but the vast majority is cash.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/police-cash-confiscations-still-on-rise.html

Rex Murphy: ‘White privilege’ on the march

To even set up white privilege as a category is prima facie racist. It is to reduce the sum of a person, his dignity, his drive, his worth and his soul to the color of his skin.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/rex-murphy-white-privilege-on-march.html

Study: Boys who smoke cannabis ‘are four inches shorter’

New study finds that youngsters who regularly smoked marijuana are far shorter than their non-smoking peers.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/study-boys-who-smoke-cannabis-are-four.html

UK Anti-Terror ‘Prevent’ Strategy Under Scrutiny

An investigation by the UK Police and Crime Committee is underway, looking at the effectiveness of Britain’s terror prevention strategy. British Prime Minister David Cameron announced last September that any British jihadists returning from Iraq and Syria would be forced to attend ‘deradicalization’ programs. Speaking in the House of Commons, Mr Cameron said: “Adhering to […]
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/uk-anti-terror-prevent-strategy-under.html

Civil Asset Forfeiture About More Than Fighting Drugs

The problem of civil asset forfeiture is now so serious that the Canadian government has warned its citizens not to carry cash into the United States...
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/civil-asset-forfeiture-about-more-than.html

World Trade Body Rejects Country of Origin Labels on Meat

'The ruling is a victory for the U.S. meat industry, which has said the labels are burdensome.'
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/world-trade-body-rejects-country-of.html

Piers Morgan Calls for War

Claims with zero evidence terror group will "launch big attacks inside America."
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/piers-morgan-calls-for-war.html

Saudi Arabia’s Nuclear Bluster

Saudi Arabia and Israel keep ratcheting up the pressure to kill the deal for constraining Iran’s nuclear program with the latest gambit a renewed Saudi threat to obtain its own nuclear capability if the Iran deal isn’t scrapped, a warning that may be more bluster than believable, writes Jonathan Marshall. By Jonathan Marshall As if…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/saudi-arabias-nuclear-bluster.html

Fake Evidence Blaming Russia for MH-17?

Exclusive: Pointing the finger of blame at Russian President Putin for the Malaysia Airlines shoot-down last July, an Australian news show claims to have found the spot where the Russian BUK missile battery made its getaway, but the images don’t match, raising questions of journalistic fakery, writes Robert Parry. By Robert Parry An Australian television…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/fake-evidence-blaming-russia-for-mh-17.html

Texas Legislators Reduce Penalty For Guns At Airports

CHL holders who are stopped by security will be allowed to put their guns in their vehicles or check it with their luggage.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/texas-legislators-reduce-penalty-for.html

GCHQ spies given immunity from anti-hacking laws

British intelligence officers now exempt from prosecution for hacking under the Computer Misuse Act.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/gchq-spies-given-immunity-from-anti.html

Supreme Court Strikes Down Maryland Income Tax Law

The 5-4 ruling is expected to have significant implications for more than 5,000 taxing jurisdictions across the country.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/supreme-court-strikes-down-maryland.html

What Everybody Ought to Know About Nazi Propaganda Films

“Forbidden Films: The Hidden Legacy of Nazi Film,”  is a documentary that considers the legacy of the Third Reich’s propaganda films. Movies have been used for quite some time as vehicles for propaganda messages and are extremely powerful because many of the most dangerous messages can simply bypass the rational faculties of the viewer.  For those interested in viewing clips of the films combined with insightful commentary, this may be just the thing. Just remember that America has her own propaganda films from WWI and WWII

Review: ‘Forbidden Films’ Details Nazi Propaganda

http://ift.tt/1Hfv7iYVia nytimes.com “Jud Suss” is among 40-odd Nazi productions that cannot be exhibited in Germany without the presence of scholarly context. The director of “Forbidden Films,” Felix Moeller, provides that context with this survey of the Nazis’ film output, which was pro-German and anti everyone else – Jews, French, British, Polish. He layers clips from the films with reactions from German professionals (a historian, a filmmaker), audiences today (German and Israeli) and, shrouded in shadow, neo-Nazis.

It’s a sober treatment of sobering material. If the Nazis have been viewed as especially horrific because they arose within a highly developed Western culture, their propaganda films in turn offer the shock of seeing a popular modern form of art and entertainment being employed to incite and justify hatred and violence. Mr. Moeller, who also directed a film about the director of “Jud Suss,” seems to lean toward not suppressing these films, but even their nuance-free scenes of chest-thumping Nazi pilots and homeland-loving hausfraus remain uncomfortable to watch.

This is a documentary fascinated with and fearful of cinema’s potency, but it’s also devoted to the idea of open discourse, a stance that underlines the urgency of thinking about film critically.

The post What Everybody Ought to Know About Nazi Propaganda Films appeared first on PropagandaGuard.


from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/what-everybody-ought-to-know-about-nazi.html

Right-Wing Pressure in Academia

Exclusive: The American Right has gained substantial control of U.S. media but academia remains a juicy target as a vulnerable, last bastion of liberal thought and rationality, thus a key battlefield in the “culture wars,” writes James DiEugenio. By James DiEugenio In 1951, at the height of Sen. Joe McCarthy’s hunt for disloyal Americans, William…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/right-wing-pressure-in-academia.html

The War on Cash is Here!

Cashless society allows total government control over your life.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/the-war-on-cash-is-here.html

Obama combats police militarization by limiting supply of military-style gear

Surprise announcement will ban government from providing items such as armored vehicles, high-power firearms and grenade launchers to local police.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/obama-combats-police-militarization-by.html

Why Organic Is The Way To Go

Organic, natural, and eco-friendly building materials from reputable, trusted suppliers is a must for protecting your health.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/why-organic-is-way-to-go.html

Explosive New Documents Reveal Obama, Clinton Spin And Lies On Benghazi

Administration knew about gun running, knew attack was planned, not spontaneous, knew rise of ISIS was a threat.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/explosive-new-documents-reveal-obama.html

Saudi Arabia ‘could buy Pakistani nuclear weapon’

Decision to purchase 'off the shelf' nuclear device has already been made, newspaper quotes US defence official as saying.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/saudi-arabia-could-buy-pakistani.html

Obamacare: Doctors Turning Away From Individual Treatment in Favor of “Population Care”

Obamacare treats not for the patient in particular, but for the patient on average, globally, or in the abstract.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/obamacare-doctors-turning-away-from.html

Unilever boss urges world leaders to reduce carbon output

“It’s clear that, increasingly, the business community is aware of the costs of climate change."
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/unilever-boss-urges-world-leaders-to.html

Goldman Can Now Predict The Price Of Oil In 2020

Many were so amused by Goldman's epic inaccuracy of being wrong by about 80% just a few months out.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/goldman-can-now-predict-price-of-oil-in.html

The Secret Corporate Takeover

The real intent of these provisions is to impede economy and protect citizens.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/the-secret-corporate-takeover.html

Media “Builds Picture” of Unverified Abu Sayyaf Raid

Short of facts The Daily Beast allows the Pentagon to provide tantalizing details in terror adventure story.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/media-builds-picture-of-unverified-abu.html

The Value of Effective Government

The Framers of the U.S. Constitution envisioned an activist federal government that would help build the new country, including transportation infrastructure, but that history has been lost amid Tea Party revisionism that treats all constructive government actions as bad, a dilemma addressed by ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. By Paul R. Pillar The fatal crash…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/the-value-of-effective-government.html

New Military Spending Bill Expands Empire But Forbids Debate on War

On Friday the House passed a massive National Defense Authorization for 2016 that will guarantee US involvement in more wars.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/new-military-spending-bill-expands.html

Warning: You WILL be interrogated for driving within 100 miles of the Canadian border

Random checkpoints are being set up by U.S. Customs [DHS] agents in the northeast within 100 miles of the Canadian border.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/warning-you-will-be-interrogated-for.html

The DEA Strikes Again – Agents Seize Man’s Life Savings Under Civil Asset Forfeiture Without Charges

In one of the most uncivilized and preposterous loopholes in America, federal agents are allowed to steal citizens’ assets.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/the-dea-strikes-again-agents-seize-mans.html

The Debt To GDP Ratio For The Entire World: 286 Percent

Did you know that there is more than $28,000 of debt for every man, woman and child on the entire planet?
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/the-debt-to-gdp-ratio-for-entire-world.html

Sunday, May 17, 2015

William & Mary Honors War Criminal

Exclusive: Condoleezza Rice has crossed the threshold into esteemed celebrity – a welcomed speaker at this year’s College of William and Mary commencement – despite her record as the liar who sold the illegal war in Iraq and choreographed torture at CIA “black sites,” writes ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern. By Ray McGovern Nothing better illustrates the…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/william-mary-honors-war-criminal.html

Military pushes for emergency robots as skeptics worry about lethal uses

DARPA is keenly aware that the fast-moving technology raises “difficult societal, ethical and legal questions.”
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/military-pushes-for-emergency-robots-as_17.html

Foreclosure Crisis Increased Racial Segregation in U.S.

Black and Latino neighborhoods were three times as likely to be foreclosed on than those in white neighborhoods.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/foreclosure-crisis-increased-racial.html

Here’s how Rand Paul wants to change the economy

The economic platform of Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) is chock full of his libertarian convictions.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/heres-how-rand-paul-wants-to-change.html

What IS this strange sound from the sky?

Noise heard across the globe for nearly a DECADE - but nobody has an explanation.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/what-is-this-strange-sound-from-sky.html

JC Penney loses another $167 million – Wall Street cheers

This loss now brings JC Penney’s cumulative loss since 2011 to, drum roll please, $3.5 BILLION.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/jc-penney-loses-another-167-million.html

Sheriff tells reporters: Just glad the ‘unarmed’ guy we shot was white

A Kentucky sheriff speaking on the record went public this week with a statement that showed how far this country has gone into racial confusion.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/sheriff-tells-reporters-just-glad.html

FBI to probe whether crashed Amtrak train was hit or shot at

The FBI has been asked to investigate the possibility that the Amtrak train that crashed outside of Philadelphia was hit by a bullet or some other object.
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/fbi-to-probe-whether-crashed-amtrak.html

Friday, May 15, 2015

Special Needs Student Suspended for ‘Nerf Bullet’

“It’s mind baffling to me that someone would even take something as small as this to the highest extreme."
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/special-needs-student-suspended-for.html

The Phony ‘Bad Intel’ Defense on Iraq

Exclusive: Jeb Bush’s stumbling start to his presidential bid has refocused attention on Official Washington’s favorite excuse for the illegal, aggressive and disastrous war in Iraq – that it was just a case of “bad intelligence.” But that isn’t what the real history shows, as ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern recalls. By Ray McGovern Presidential aspirant…
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/the-phony-bad-intel-defense-on-iraq.html

N.C. Man Given 20 Years for Trying to Help ISIL

Man "attempted to provide support and services, including his own participation, to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant."
from Propaganda Guard
http://propagandaguard.blogspot.com/2015/05/nc-man-given-20-years-for-trying-to.html