The jailers of the 19th century — even in the pre-Civil War South — largely abandoned the practice of imprisoning people for falling into debt as counterproductive and ultimately barbaric. In the 1970s and ’80s, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed that incarcerating people who can’t pay fines because of poverty violates the U.S. Constitution.
Apparently, though, some states and county jails never got the memo. Welcome to the debtors’ prisons of the 21st century.
Guilty of Being Poor
Nazis and Soviets Acted as One
"The Soviet Story" by young Latvian documentary filmmaker Edwins Snores argues that the Nazi and Communist regimes were mirror images and collaborated to an unexpected degree.
Snores says Hitler and Stalin had a secret agreement for the division of Europe; that Hitler gave Stalin permission to invade Nazi ally Finland and Stalin aided in the Nazi invasion of Norway. When the Luftwaffe bombed Poland, their planes were guided by navigational beams from Kiev. Communist parties in Europe were instructed to sabotage opposition to the Nazis and French Communists addressed their Nazi occupiers as "comrades."
Rape, beatings and bribery: Iraqi police out of control
In this vast and largely unaccountable security apparatus, with almost a million people in uniform, corruption is rife. One of the most common ploys is to arrest innocent people and then charge hundreds or even thousands of dollars for them to be released.
“The Iraqi security forces are out of control,” Abu Aliya said. “If you quarrel with a simple soldier, even one out of uniform, he will arrest you and your family. This is happening everywhere, all the time.”
TVNL Comment: How many people does George W. Bush says that he "freed?" There is your Bush style freedom...it is called freedom to run a tyrannical world!
TOP CANCER SCIENTIST KILLED BY CHEMICALS
“I understand the car had a phenomenal amount of chemicals inside. Whoever got there first would have taken one look inside and got back at great speed. It would seem he’s made sure he didn’t survive it.” Dr Friedman had three children, Aidan, Douglas and Iona. The family were last night unavailable for comment.
Dr Friedberg’s colleagues yesterday paid tribute to him as an eminent scientist who made an “exceptional contribution” in his field, and as a “warm and kind” colleague. The respected researcher spearheaded breakthroughs on how proteins cause, and hinder, the treatment of breast and lung cancer.
ACLU: US Attorney OK'd GPS to track cell phones
The American Civil Liberties Union says the U.S. Attorney's Office for New Jersey under Christopher Christie, now a GOP gubernatorial candidate, tracked the whereabouts of citizens through their cell phones without warrants.
AP Exclusive: Secret tally has 87,000 Iraqis dead
A previously undisclosed Iraqi government tally obtained by The Associated Press shows that at least 87,215 Iraqis have been killed in violence since 2005.
An in-depth AP review shows the total for the entire war exceeds 110,000 Iraqis. That figure is based on the government tally and counts of casualties from earlier years from hospital sources and media reports.
TVNL Comment: Operation Iraqi Murder!
World first for strange molecule
A molecule that until now existed only in theory has finally been made.
Known as a Rydberg molecule, it is formed through an elusive and extremely weak chemical bond between two atoms. The new type of bonding, reported in Nature, occurs because one of the two atoms in the molecule has an electron very far from its nucleus or centre.
Bush-Era Rule Grants FBI Unprecedented Investigative Powers
Veterans groups and conservatives roared last week when news broke that the FBI was targeting veterans in a broad probe of extremist groups. But little noise was made in December, when the Bush administration quietly granted the FBI wide-ranging authority to investigate individuals or groups, regardless of whether they are suspected of criminal activity.
Fructose-Sweetened Beverages Linked to Heart Risks
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