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Photo by: joanneleon. August, 2013.
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Manning takes stand, apologizes for hurting U.S.
"I'm sorry that my actions hurt people. I'm sorry that it hurt the United States," he said.
[...]
At least 46 international journalists and 78 spectators were in attendance. Many spectators wore black "truth" T-shirts.
The United States hurt the United States.
Bradley Manning Did Not Hurt the United States
While the legal strategy of Manning’s attorney at this point—as it would be for any attorney—is to convince the judge to reduce Manning's sentence as much as possible, the public should know: Bradley Manning didn't actually hurt the United States.
For years now, the government may have attempted to paint a dire picture of WikiLeaks’ potential impact, but they’ve also admitted, quietly but repeatedly, that the results have been more embarrassing than harmful.
Even when the WikiLeaks hysteria was in full swing, government officials from the State Department have briefed Congress on the impact of the Wikileaks revelations, and have said that the leaks were "embarrassing but not damaging." U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said that, while some of the information may have been embarrassing, “I don’t think there is any substantive damage.”
Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates has admitted the leaks caused no serious damage, telling Congress that the reactions to the leaks were "significantly overwrought." He went on to say: “Is this embarrassing? Yes. Is it awkward? Yes. Consequences for U.S. foreign policy? I think fairly modest.’’
This video refers to Tuesday's proceedings.
Bradley Manning trial: Security ramps up while testimonies wind down
The court-martial of Army Private first class is in the homestretch as the defense called witnesses to testify during the sentencing phase of the trial for the second day on Tuesday. Attorneys for the admitted WikiLeaks source are questioning the soldiers who worked alongside Pfc. Manning during his deployment to Iraq to see what kind of mental state he was in when he leaked hundreds of thousands of classified files before being arrested in 2010.
Hundreds Dead in Egypt As Military Forces Carry Out Third Crackdown on Pro Morsi Forces
US maintain ties to Egyptian military as pressure mounts on Egyptian military to halt brutal crack down on the Muslim Brotherhood
Guardian liveblog on Egypt.
Cairo: Egyptian PM defends crackdown as death toll rises
Hazem Beblawi says Egypt cannot move forward without security, and interior minister says protesters incited violence
A Guide to the Deceptions, Misinformation, and Word Games Officials Use to Mislead the Public About NSA Surveillance
It’s been two months since President Barack Obama first said that he welcomes a debate about NSA surveillance, which he once again reiterated last week at his press conference. Unfortunately, it’s very hard to have a real debate about a subject when the administration constantly and intentionally misleads Americans about the NSA’s capabilities and supposed legal powers.
Infamously, the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) James Clapper was forced to apologize for lying to Congress about whether the government was collecting information on millions of Americans, but that was merely the tip of the administration’s iceberg of mendacity and misdirection. At this point, it seems nothing the government says about the NSA can be taken at face value.
Unease at Clinton Foundation Over Finances and Ambitions
And concern was rising inside and outside the organization about Douglas J. Band, a onetime personal assistant to Mr. Clinton who had started a lucrative corporate consulting firm — which Mr. Clinton joined as a paid adviser — while overseeing the Clinton Global Initiative, the foundation’s glitzy annual gathering of chief executives, heads of state, and celebrities.
The review set off more than a year of internal debate, and spurred an evolution in the organization that included Mr. Clinton’s daughter, Chelsea, taking on a dominant new role as the family grappled with the question of whether the foundation — and its globe-spanning efforts to combat AIDS, obesity and poverty — would survive its founder.
Now those efforts are taking on new urgency. In the coming weeks, the foundation, long Mr. Clinton’s domain since its formation in 2001, will become the nerve center of Hillary Rodham Clinton’s increasingly busy public life.
This fall, Mrs. Clinton and her staff will move into offices at the foundation’s new headquarters in Midtown Manhattan, occupying two floors of the Time-Life Building. Amid speculation about her 2016 plans, Mrs. Clinton is adding major new initiatives on women, children and jobs to what has been renamed the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation.
The Telegraph, writing about the NYT article on the Clinton Foundation.
The New York Times takes down the Clinton Foundation. This could be devastating for Bill and Hillary
The NYT runs the scoop in its usual balanced, inoffensive way – but the problem jumps right off the page. The Clintons have never been able to separate the impulses to help others and to help themselves, turning noble philanthropic ventures into glitzy, costly promos for some future campaign (can you remember a time in human history when a Clinton wasn't running for office?). And their "Ain't I Great?!" ethos attracts the rich and powerful with such naked abandon that it ends up compromising whatever moral crusade they happen to have endorsed that month. That the Clinton Global Initiative is alleged to have bought Natalie Portman a first-class ticket for her and her dog to attend an event in 2009 is the tip of the iceberg. More troubling is that businessmen have been able to expand the profile of their companies by working generously alongside the Clinton Foundation.
Oliver Stone in Tokyo: 'We Need Edward R. Murrow'
Q: Edward R. Murrow said fifty years ago when he headed USIA: Truth is the best propaganda. That is what you are getting at here. How do you awaken people to wanting to go back and learn this history that is so crucial?
Oliver Stone: I come at this as a dramatist. Pete comes at it as a historian. We cross-fertilized all these five years. The best way is to tell an exciting story. I think that's what we've done. I think this documentary is the fastest documentary with the most amount of information I've seen. There are no talking heads. There's no reaffirming. I've taken all the techniques from JFK and used them in this film. We also use movie clips and wonderful music, but it's essentially a movie going experience to be watched in the theater.
You're right about Edward R. Murrow, the ghost of Edward R. Murrow. We need Edward R. Murrow. Where is he now? He's in our documentary. He's interviewing Truman and he gets some of the best stuff ever from Truman. You see Truman's attitude about it (the atom bomb.) When Truman says to Murrow, 'I never lost a night's sleep over it.' It's just heartbreaking that Truman is incapable of any empathy for the victims or empathy for anybody except for his cronies.
Excitement. Danger. Tell the truth. People are a sucker for the truths. The problem with U.S. history in my opinion is that it's sabotaged. It's like a Disney movie.
Action
Stop Watching Us.
The revelations about the National Security Agency's surveillance apparatus, if true, represent a stunning abuse of our basic rights. We demand the U.S. Congress reveal the full extent of the NSA's spying programs.
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A rather Orwellian London poster
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