World News & Politics

The New American Apartheid

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Modern prisoners occupy the lowest rungs on the social class ladder, and they always have. The modern prison system (along with local jails) is a sort of ghetto or poorhouse reserved primarily for the unskilled, the uneducated, the powerless and, in increasing numbers it is being reserved for racial minorities, especially blacks, which is why we are calling this system the New American Apartheid.  This is the same segment of American society that have seen their incomes drastically reduced and have become more involved in drugs and the subsequent violence that extends from the lack of legitimate means of goal attainment (Fowles and Merva, 1996).

An argument could certainly be made that blacks, especially males, are superfluous and expendable in American society (that is, not really needed for corporate profits).  With the constant corporate downsizing and deindustrialization during the past couple of decades came the elimination of millions of occupations that used to lift minorities out of poverty.  Thus, some form of social control has been needed.  The criminal justice system currently fills this need (Parenti, 1999).  Consider these facts:

The World's Most Humble President Just Opened His House to 100 Syrian Refugee Children

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The news: One hundred children orphaned by the Syrian civil war could find a home in Uruguayan President José "Pepe" Mujica's summer retreat, "a mansion and riverfront estate surrounded by rolling pastures," according to Yahoo News. That would be a welcome sight for any of the hundreds of thousands of refugees displaced by Syria's political turmoil. 

New York Senate Committee to Vote on Medical Marijuana Bill Today

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Update: It passed!

ALBANY, NY — Today, the New York State Senate Health Committee will vote on the Compassionate Care Act– S.4406-B (Savino), marking the first time the New York state senate has taken up the issue in years.

The Compassionate Care Act is New York’s comprehensive medical marijuana bill and will help provide relief to thousands of New Yorker’s who are currently suffering with debilitating medical conditions such as, cancer, multiple sclerosis, severe seizure disorders, and other serious conditions.

Full article: http://www.thedailychronic.net/2014/32401/new-york-senate-committee-to-vote-on-medical-marijuana-bill-today/

This Just In: US Ruled by the Rich - FAIR.org

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GFP Note: Just in case anybody needs scientific proof that the U.S. is ruled by the elite, the people have no power in politics, and the mass media is little more than propaganda designed to enforce the status quo:

American democracy is no longer very democratic, according to a new university study (4/9/14; Perspectives on Politics, Fall/14). Instead, it's dominated by moneyed elites in a process where public opinion has little to no impact on policy. Released a month ago by Princeton's Martin Gilens and Northwestern's Benjamin I. Page, the study concludes:

Economic elites and organized groups representing business interests have substantial independent impacts on US government policy, while average citizens and mass-based interest groups have little or no independent influence.

The political scientists looked at more than 1,700 policies over 20 years to find out how public opinion translates into policy, and concluded that where economic elite views diverged from those of the public, the public had "zero estimated impact upon policy change, while economic elites are still estimated to have a very large, positive, independent impact."

Bracing news? The study went viral in social media, but has hardly shown up in the US corporate press. A month after its release there have been no network news mentions, nor has it appeared in the most influential newspapers–the New York Times, Washington Post and Los Angeles Times.

Read more here: http://www.fair.org/blog/2014/05/16/this-just-in-us-ruled-by-the-rich/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=this-just-in-us-ruled-by-the-rich

Marine mammals mysteriously dying in record numbers along West Coast

Isis Ra's picture

More sick and dying animals are washing up on the coast of California, with new reports indicating record numbers of young sea lions, seals, and other marine mammals being admitted to care shelters for rehabilitation. The Orange County Register reports that the only facility in the county licensed to care for marine mammals is now at capacity, and that other facilities all along the coastline are being similarly inundated.

Grey wolf appears in Iowa for first time in 89 years – and is shot dead

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DNA testing has confirmed that an animal shot in February in Iowa's Buchanan County was in fact a wolf, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. This is the first confirmed grey wolf (Canis lupus) in the US state since 1925.

Experts believe the wolf likely travelled south from Wisconsin or Minnesota, the latter of which has the largest wolf population in the lower 48.

The Iowa wolf, which was a 65-70 pound healthy female, was shot and killed in February of this year by a hunter who mistook it for a coyote. Although wolves remain a protected species in Iowa, the hunter was not cited, because he believed the animal to be a coyote and has cooperated with authorities, including bringing the wolf to them in the first place.

Full story: http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/may/12/grey-wolf-iowa-shot-dead

Pope Francis says he would baptise aliens: 'The doors of the Catholic Church are open to everyone'

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GFP: I don't think he's going to have much success spreading Catholicism to the stars, but it's good to see the Pope is preaching acceptance and sparking people's imaginations.

Pope Francis has said that he would be willing to baptise aliens if they came to the Vatican, asking “who are we to close doors” to anyone - even Martians.

In a homily yesterday dedicated to the concepts of acceptance and inclusion, Francis recalled a Bible story about the conversion of the first pagans to Christianity, according to reports on Vatican Radio.

He said Catholicism was a church of “open doors”, and that it was up to Christians to accept the Holy Spirit however “unthinkable” and “unimaginable” it appeared.

Full story: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/pope-francis-says-he-would-baptise-aliens-9360632.html

Giant Chinese 3D Printer Builds 10 Houses in Just 1 Day - The Unbounded Spirit

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A private company located in eastern China has printed ten full-size houses using a huge 3D printer in the space of a day. The process utilizes quick-drying cement, but the creators are being careful not to reveal the secrets of the technology.

China’s WinSun company, used a system of four 10 meter wide by 6.6 meter high printers with multi-directional sprays to create the houses. Cement and construction waste was used to build the walls layer-by-layer, state news agency Xinhua reported.

Read the full story here... (theunboundedspirit.com)

Verified Warnings From Former U.S. Presidents About the “Invisible Government” Running the U.S. With “No Allegiance To the People”

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Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”- George Santayana

Past presidents of the United States and other high profile political leaders have repeatedly issued warnings over the last 214 years that the U.S. government is under the control of an “invisible government owing no allegiance and acknowledging no responsibility to the people.”

According to six of our former presidents, one vice-president,  and a myriad of other high profile political leaders, an invisible government that is “incredibly evil in intent” has been in control of the U.S. government “ever since the days of Andrew Jackson” (since at least 1836).  They “virtually run the United States government for their own selfish purposes. They practically control both parties… It operates under cover of a self-created screen [and] seizes our executive officers, legislative bodies, schools, courts, newspapers and every agency created for the public protection.”

As a result, “we have come to be one of the worst ruled, one of the most completely controlled and dominated, governments in the civilized world—no longer a government by free opinion, no longer a government by conviction and the vote of the majority, but a government by the opinion and the duress of small groups of dominant men.”

The sources for the above quotes (and more) are listed below. All of the quotes in this article have been verified as authentic and have associated links to the source materials.  Also included below are statements made by David Rockefeller, Sr, former director of the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), and Federal Reserve Chairman’s Alan Greenspan and Ben Bernanke that appear to confirm some of the warnings.

Read the rest here... (consciouslifenews.com)

GMO Labeling Law Passes in Vermont!

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It was a good day in Montpelier yesterday, and not just because the sun was shining bright and warm. On May 8th, Governor Shumlin signed Vermont’s GMO labeling bill into law making Vermont the first state that will require labels on genetically engineered foods! The law will require labels on genetically engineered foods (also called genetically modified organisms, or GMOs) sold at retail outlets in Vermont, and will go in to effect on July 1st 2016. The law would also prohibit labeling products produced with genetic engineering as “natural”, “100% natural” or “all natural”.

The bill signing took place on a beautiful afternoon on the State House steps, was well attended, and was followed by a celebration accompanied by several musical performances and Ben and Jerry’s scooping free ice cream for all in attendance.

“This is not only a victory for the people of Vermont, it’s a victory for the millions of Americans who are demanding the right to know what’s in their food,” said VPIRG Consumer Protection Advocate Falko Schilling. “Today affirms that when the people stand up and speak with one voice meaningful change can happen.”

Full story here... (vtrighttoknowgmos.org)

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