Amazon Requires Police to Shill Surveillance Cameras in Secret Agreement

by Scott Horton | Jul 30, 2019 | Blog

Amazon’s home security company Ring has enlisted local police departments around the country to advertise its surveillance cameras in exchange for free Ring products and a “portal” that allows police to request footage from these cameras, a secret agreement obtained by Motherboard shows. The agreement also requires police to “keep the terms of this program confidential.”

Dozens of police departments around the country have partnered with Ring, but until now, the exact terms of these partnerships have remained unknown. A signed memorandum of understanding between Ring and the police department of Lakeland, Florida, and emails obtained via a public records request, show that Ring is using local police as a de facto advertising firm. Police are contractually required to “Engage the Lakeland community with outreach efforts on the platform to encourage adoption of the platform/app.”

This is Your Security Force

by Scott Horton | Jul 30, 2019 | Blog

“Little girl, you don’t know what you’re getting into,” said the cops to the state rep. investigating the child molester.

68% Percent of Americans Would Reject Trump’s Mideast ‘Deal of the Century’

by Scott Horton | Jul 30, 2019 | Blog

Grant F. Smith:

To gauge U.S. public opinion about the “Peace to Prosperity” plan, IRmep put a national sample of American adults in the shoes of Palestinian refugees, notably the 750,000 forcibly expelled during Israel’s creation and their descendants living in Gaza, West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. When asked the purposefully ambiguous question, “If you were expelled & resettled into a resource restricted area, would you fight to return or forfeit legal claims for a new life under a promised economic development plan?” a solid 68 percent of Americans said they would fight to return.

Read the rest here.

Dan Coats Forced Out of DNI Spot Over Russia Garbage

by Scott Horton | Jul 29, 2019 | Blog

Good riddance.

He’s been replaced by a House GOP loyalist, rather than Bolton’s buddy Fred Fleitz, who’d been floated for it, thank goodness.

Pete Buttigieg: The Greatest Lesson I Learned in Afghanistan

by Scott Horton | Jul 29, 2019 | Blog

…Had NOTHING to do with war — any war! — at all.

You know what it is? You know. Don’t you? That’s right: We need National Service!

Two More US GIs Fragged By Afghan Soldier

by Scott Horton | Jul 29, 2019 | Blog

7/29/19

How do you ask someone to be the last man to die over something that everyone knew could never work in the first place?

Spy Culture on Top Gun and Military Censorship

by Steven Woskow | Jul 29, 2019 | Blog

The new Top Gun movie is coming out and you can be sure the military is all over it. According to Spy Culture, the military believed the original movie inspired the famous Tailhook scandal. Because of this, the Navy withdrew support for Top Gun 2 and thus the 20 year wait for a sequel.

Spy Culture is reporting that both Top Gun and Top Gun 2 have been heavily censored by the military.

The initial trailer for Top Gun 2 is out and their is already accusations that the patches on the jacket Maverick is wearing have been altered to appease Chines sensors.

it is certainly true that changes have been made to Hollywood films in order to gain access to the lucrative Chinese domestic market.

What every single report on Maverick’s jacket has failed to mention is that the military heavily censored the original Top Gun film, going line-by-line through the script and removing or changing anything they didn’t like.

As per usual, when it’s ‘them’ doing the censoring that’s a problem that demands reportage, but when it’s ‘us’ it gets overlooked. So strap into your cockpits, because the next few months of Top Gun: Maverick coverage are going to be a bumpy ride.

Year Zero: Growing up in Apartheid South Africa

by Tommy Salmons | Jul 29, 2019 | Blog, Year Zero

All of us experience history every day. Some events, 9/11 or Waco for example, are more transitional than others. In Episode 56 Tommy sits down with his wife Beatrix about life in South Africa during and after Apartheid. They discuss segregated schools being integrated, Mandella, the ’94 Rugby World Cup, farm murders, crime, economic strife, and how life in America compares.