Home · News · News Feb 2018 · Feb 12 2018
Monday February 12, 2018

U.S. Secretly Negotiated With Russians Buy Stolen NSA Documents -- and the Russians Offered Trump-Related Material, Too
TheIntercept | James Risen | 02/09/18

The United States intelligence community has been conducting a top-secret operation to recover stolen classified U.S. government documents from Russian operatives, according to sources familiar with the matter. The operation has also inadvertently yielded a cache of documents purporting to relate to Donald Trump and Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election.

Over the past year, American intelligence officials have opened a secret communications channel with the Russian operatives, who have been seeking to sell both Trump-related materials and documents stolen from the National Security Agency and obtained by Russian intelligence, according to people involved with the matter and other documentary evidence. The channel started developing in early 2017, when American and Russian intermediaries began meeting in Germany. Eventually, a Russian intermediary, apparently representing some elements of the Russian intelligence community, agreed to a deal to sell stolen NSA documents back to the U.S. while also seeking to include Trump-related materials in the package. ... Read more

Jeremy Scahill -> Jim Risen Goes Inside the NSA's Secret Channel to Russia | TheIntercept | 02/12/18 | 1hr

Trump's $4 Trillion Budget Proposal Unveiled: Here Are The Main Highlights
ZeroHedge | author | 02/12/18

... While we await the full release, Bloomberg has noted that Trump's FY19 budget proposal calls for $1.7t in cuts to mandatory spending and receipts and a 2% yearly reduction in non-defense discretionary budget after 2019. As part of the mandatory spending, the budget projects $237 billion in savings from Medicare over 10 years. ...

Or summarized:

  1. Budget request calls for $716b for defense and includes a 2.6% pay raise for troops
  2. $80b in IT and cyber- funding as well as $210m for a technology modernization fund
  3. Nearly $17b in opioid-related spending in 2019, including $10b in new funding for HHS
  4. Requests $18b for border wall construction
Read more

The military says there have been 32 nuclear accidents over the years, the DOE say we have had over 1,000.
Command and Control Documentary 2017 | PBS | 12/01/17 | 1:13:09
911
Click to zoom in 911
Wall Street and Banksters
Click to zoom in Wall Street and Banksters
Capitol Punishment: The Hard Truth About Washington Corruption From America's Most Notorious Lobbyist

The name Jack Abramoff is synonymous with Washington scandal, but the fascinating facts of his case are either largely unknown or wildly misunderstood. His memoir will serve as a corrective - an engrossing, informative work of political nonfiction that is also a gripping real-life thriller. The biggest surprise twist comes in the form of Abramoff himself, a smart, funny, charming, clear-eyed narrator who confounds every expectation of the media's villainous portrait. He's a perfect bundle of contradictions: an Orthodox Jew and upstanding family man with a staunch moral streak, caught in multiple scandals of bribery and corruption with an undercurrent of murder. Abramoff represented Indian tribes whose lucrative casinos were constantly under threat from proposed changes in law; though he charged the tribes many millions, he saved them billions by ensuring votes to support the livelihoods of their reservations. Much of Jack's share was funneled not into his own coffers, but to charities. Abramoff on the front pages could not be further from the Jack Abramoff who's ready to tell his honest and compelling story.
How Lobbying Works in Government: Jack Abramoff on Law School, Money, Gifts, Travel, Finance (2011) | FilmArchives | | 1:25:23
Democracy Now! U.S. and World News Headlines for Monday, February 12 [17:00]
Democracy Now! U.S. and World News Headlines for Monday, February 12 (FULL) | 59:02
Note: on the full 59:02 video look for small white (or black) circles on the Progressbar they denote the different news stories. You can move the pointer on the Progressbar to jump to each story, and around the video.
  1. Headlines
  2. Scores of Democratic Lawmakers Join GOP to Back Budget Bill with No Protection for DREAMers
  3. Olympics Begin with Unified Korean Team Marching Together as Trump Continues to Threaten N. Korea
  4. Lawrence Wilkerson: I Helped Sell the False Choice of War with Iraq; It's Happening Again with Iran
Bob Pollan -> Unregulated Financial Markets Created a Stock Bubble | TRNN | 02/12/18 | 15:28
Bill Black -> Federal Government Abdicates Responsibility for Investigating Massive Equifax Data Theft | TRNN | 02/12/18 | 12:44
Economist Patrick Bond -> Corporate Looting: Sub-Saharan Africa Loses $100B A Year | TRNN | 02/12/18 | 14:42
Koch Bros Will Reap Hundreds of Millions From Tax Cuts | TYT | 02/11/18 | 3:33
Kellyanne's 'Opioid Cabinet' Ignoring Experts | TYT | 02/09/18 | 9:33
The1a.org
The Courts Draw The Line For Gerrymandering | 1a.org | 02/12/18 | 1hr
The state Supreme Court threw out Pennsylvania's old maps, ruling they violated the state's constitution and favored one party over another (in this case, the GOP). Control over district lines is so valuable in the Keystone state, one lawmaker suggested booting out unfriendly judges to maintain the old maps. But instead, a new set of maps has been introduced, and The Washington Post says they're "just as gerrymandered" as the last maps.

From a partisan standpoint, in other words, the new map is almost exactly like the old one. Under the existing map, Democratic House candidates have routinely received roughly 50 percent of the statewide popular House vote but only five of the state's 18 House seats. The new map is unlikely to change that.


State Republicans deny this is a partisan tactic. And since the state constitution gives lawmakers the power to draw maps, why shouldn't the controlling party do so? After all, both sides can benefit from having control over the maps.

But this could change soon. The Supreme Court is considering two cases that will likely determine the future of political mapping. These decisions could not only shift the balance of power in Washington, they could fundamentally change how politics are practiced across the country.


President Donald Trump Support Takes Hit After Rob Porter's Abuse Allegations | Morning Joe | MSNBC | 02/12/18 | 11:49
Why Chief of Staff John Kelly's Days In The White House Could Be Numbered | Morning Joe | MSNBC | 02/12/18 | 8:31
Rattner: Country's Budget Deficits Headed For $2 Trillion | Morning Joe | MSNBC | 02/12/18 | 6:04
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
One Week Older: Trump Should Totally Talk To Mueller | Stephen Colbert | 02/09/18 | 4:27
The Daily Show with Trevor Noah
Of Course Trump Wants to Throw Himself a Military Parade | Trevor Noah | 02/08/18 | 5:53
Late Night with Seth Meyers
Trump Wants a Military Parade, Lies About Immigration | Trevor Noah | 02/08/18 | 9:51

02.12.2018. 13:23



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Lindsey Graham Mashups
Lindsey Graham

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said the quiet part aloud on why he’s still so close to former President Donald Trump: because we can use him for our goals. "President Trump has gotten people who wouldn't give me or Romney or anybody else the time of day. They believe he is on their side," the senator told the America First Agenda Summit crowd on Tuesday in Washington, D.C.

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Environment & Climate Change
Environment

The term "climate change" is often used to refer specifically to anthropogenic climate change (also known as global warming). Anthropogenic climate change is caused by human activity, as opposed to changes in climate that may have resulted as part of Earth's natural processes.

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AI - Artificial Intelligence | Machine Learning | Deep Learning
AI - Artificial Intelligence

AIArtificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence demonstrated by machines, as opposed to the natural intelligence displayed by animals including humans. AI research has been defined as the field of study of intelligent agents, which refers to any system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its chance of achieving its goals.

The term "artificial intelligence" had previously been used to describe machines that mimic and display "human" cognitive skills that are associated with the human mind, such as "learning" and "problem-solving". This definition has since been rejected by major AI researchers who now describe AI in terms of rationality and acting rationally, which does not limit how intelligence can be articulated.
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Quantum mechanics | AI - Artificial Intelligence
Quantum mechanics

Quantum mechanics is a fundamental theory in physics that provides a description of the physical properties of nature at the scale of atoms and subatomic particles.  It is the foundation of all quantum physics including quantum chemistry, quantum field theory, quantum technology, and quantum information science.
Classical physics, the collection of theories that existed before the advent of quantum mechanics, describes many aspects of nature at an ordinary (macroscopic) scale, but is not sufficient for describing them at small (atomic and subatomic) scales. Most theories in classical physics can be derived from quantum mechanics as an approximation valid at large (macroscopic) scale.
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Economy, Wall Street and Banksters

Wall Street and Banksters

Wall Street is an eight-block-long street running roughly northwest to southeast from Broadway to South Street, at the East River, in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. Over time, the term has become a metonym for the financial markets of the United States as a whole, the American financial services industry (even if financial firms are not physically located there), or New York-based financial interests.

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Intelligence Agencies/Deep State?

Intelligence Agencies/Deep State?

An intelligence agency is a government agency responsible for the collection, analysis, and exploitation of information in support of law enforcement, national security, military, and foreign policy objectives. Means of information gathering are both overt and covert and may include espionage, communication interception, cryptanalysis,.

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Daniel Ellsberg | Pentagon Papers
Daniel Ellsberg

Daniel Ellsberg and Paul Jay explore Ellsberg's latest book, The Doomsday Machine: Confessions of a Nuclear War Planner. In the introduction to the book, Ellsberg writes: "No policies in human history have more deserved to be recognized as immoral or insane. The story of how this calamitous predicament came about and how and why it has persisted over a half a century is a chronicle of human madness".

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Nukes
Nukes

Nuclear weapons have come a long way and come in all types of different sizes. Some are relatively small while others are enormous, so big they boggle the mind at what they can be capable of, i.e. the Soviet 'Tsar Bomba' is/was 3,000 times greater than the Hiroshima bomb.

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Rana Foroohar and Fall of American Business
Rana Foroohar

Ms. Foroohar says financialization delivers stagnant wages, inequality and economic crisis; the Financial Times columnist and author of "Makers and Takers" says the financial sector represents only 7 percent of the U.S. economy, but takes around 25 percent of all corporate profit while creating only 4 percent of all jobs.

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The Untold History of the United States by Oliver Stone & Petere Kuznick

The Untold History of the United States by Oliver Stone & Petere Kuznick | 2014 | 10 Episodes

Oliver Stone and American University historian Peter J. Kuznick began working on the project in 2008. Stone, Kuznick and British screenwriter Matt Graham cowrote the script. It covers "the reasons behind the Cold War with the Soviet Union, U.S. President Harry Truman's decision to drop the atomic bomb on Japan, and changes in America's global role since the fall of Communism." Stone is the director and narrator of all ten episodes.

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Kuznick Interviews

Kuznick Interviews

Historian Peter Kuznick says Eisenhower called for decreased militarization, then Dulles reversed the policy; the Soviets tried to end the cold war after the death of Stalin; crazy schemes involving nuclear weapons and the Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba put the world of the eve of destruction - with host Paul Jay

The Untold History of the United States by Kuznick, Peter.mobi | Book | 6.99 MB

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China Valley of Tunnels

China Valley of Tunnels

A report written by a Georgetown University team led by Phillip Karber conducted a three-year study to map out China’s complex tunnel system, which stretches 5,000 km (3,000 miles). The report determined that the stated Chinese nuclear arsenal is understated and as many as 3,000 nuclear warheads may be stored in the underground tunnel network.

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911
911

On September 11, 2001, 19 terrorists attacked the Unites States. They hijacked four airplanes in mid-flight. The terrorists flew two of the planes into two skyscrapers at the World Trade Center in New York City. The impact caused the buildings to catch fire and collapse. Another plane destroyed part of the Pentagon (the U.S. military headquarters) in Arlington, Virginia. The fourth plane crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Officials believe that the terrorists on that plane intended to destroy either the White House or the U.S. Capitol. Passengers on the plane fought the terrorists and prevented them from reaching their goal. In all, nearly 3,000 people were killed in the 9/11 attacks.

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The Vietnam War

The Vietnam War

Ken Burns and Lynn Novick's ten-part, 18-hour documentary series, THE VIETNAM WAR, tells the epic story of one of the most consequential, divisive, and controversial events in American history as it has never before been told on film. Visceral and immersive, the series explores the human dimensions of the war through revelatory testimony of nearly 80 witnesses from all sides--Americans who fought in the war and others who opposed it, as well as combatants and civilians from North and South Vietnam. Ten years in the making, the series includes rarely seen and digitally re-mastered archival footage from sources around the globe, photographs taken by some of the most celebrated photojournalists of the 20th Century, historic television broadcasts, evocative home movies, and secret audio recordings from inside the Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon administrations.

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Trump's Mashups
Trump's Mashups

Donald Trump talks a lot, but what is he actually saying? VICE News' "Trump Talk" mashup series tries to answer that. And, we're happy to say, it was just nominated for two Webby Awards. Now you can watch all the nominated videos.

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Trump's Sexcapades
Trump's Sexcapades.

Jessica Leeds (1980s)
Kristin Anderson (1990s)
E. Jean Carroll (1995 or 1996)
Lisa Boyne (1996)
Cathy Heller (1997)
Temple Taggart McDowell (1997)
Karena Virginia (1998)
Mindy McGillivray (2003)
Jennifer Murphy (2005)
Rachel Crooks (2005)
Natasha Stoynoff (2005)
Juliet Huddy (2005 or 2006)
Jessica Drake (2006)
Ninni Laaksonen (2006)
Cassandra Searles (2013)
Allegations of pageant dressing room visits(1997)
Mariah Billado,
Victoria Hughes,
and three other Miss Teen USA contestants
Bridget Sullivan (2000)
Tasha Dixon (2001)
Unnamed contestants (2001)
Samantha Holvey (2006)

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Trump's Speeches | Rallys |Interviews
Trump's Speeches | Rallys

Donald Trump talks a lot, but what is he actually saying? Watch Trump at some of his rallys and see what you think.

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