Occupy Banksters & Crony Capitalism & GREED

'Inequality is bad for everyone': Robert Reich fights against economic imbalance
PBS Newshour | author | 10/11/13

Economics correspondent Paul Solman talks to Robert Reich about "Inequality for All," a documentary about the former labor secretary's personal crusade to explain to Americans why everyone should care about the nation's growing economic disparity and divisiveness. ... Read more
'Inequality is bad for everyone': Robert Reich fights against economic imbalance (10/11/13) [6:40]

U.S. Drone Strike Kills Nearly a Dozen Civilians Traveling to Wedding in Yemen
AlterNet | Alyssa Figueroa | 12/13/13

On Thursday, a U.S. drone strike hit a convoy traveling to a wedding in Yemen, killing about a dozen civilians. The New York Times reports 11 deaths, while other reports state 17. A recent AFP report states that two of the victims were on the Yemeni government's list of wanted Al Qaeda suspects, while most of the others have been confirmed as civilians.

This reiterates the sentiment heard in villages throughout Yemen. Mohamed al-Qawli, the brother of an innocent drone victim in Yemen, told Reuters: "These (drone) strikes create more terrorism. In our area there was never anyone linked to al Qaeda. After the strike, everyone in the area started listening to al Qaeda types, exchanging videos on mobile phones." ... Read more

Bill Moyers: 'We Are This Close to Losing Our Democracy to the Mercenary Class'
AlterNet | Bill Moyers | 12/12/13

I met Supreme Court Justice William Brennan in 1987 when I was creating a series for public television called In Search of the Constitution, celebrating the bicentennial of our founding document. By then, he had served on the court longer than any of his colleagues and had written close to 500 majority opinions, many of them addressing fundamental questions of equality, voting rights, school segregation, and -- in New York Times v. Sullivan in particular -- the defense of a free press.

Those decisions brought a storm of protest from across the country. He claimed that he never took personally the resentment and anger directed at him. He did, however, subsequently reveal that his own mother told him she had always liked his opinions when he was on the New Jersey court, but wondered now that he was on the Supreme Court, "Why can't you do it the same way?" His answer: "We have to discharge our responsibility to enforce the rights in favor of minorities, whatever the majority reaction may be." ... Read more

Uruguay's President Rips Into U.N. Official Over Marijuana Law: 'Stop Lying'
HP | Roque Planas |12/13/13

José "Pepe" Mujica shot back on Friday at the president of the International Narcotics Control Board, a U.N. agency, for saying that his administration refused to meet with the agency's officials before legalizing marijuana this week.

Mujica batted down the criticism, insisting that his administration is open to discussing the law and accusing the INCB President Raymond Yans of applying a double standard by criticizing Uruguay, even as U.S. states pass laws to legalize recreational marijuana consumption. ... Read more

NSA Official: Snowden Has 'The Keys To The Kingdom'
HP | Ashley Alman | 12/16/13

However, the sentiment is not unanimous among high-ranking NSA officials. Rick Ledgett, the NSA official leading the task force to assess the damage done by Snowden's leaks, disagrees with Alexander.

"My personal view is, yes, it's worth having a conversation about," Ledgett told CBS. "I would need assurances that the remainder of the data could be secured and my bar for those assurances would be very high. It would be more than just an assertion on his part."

Ledgett said some of the most worrying documents in Snowden's possession are those that would provide a "roadmap" for other nations to protect themselves from U.S. surveillance efforts.   To an adversary, Ledgett said, "It is the keys to the kingdom." ... Read more