US News A judge grants qualified immunity to police officers who arrested and held a man for operating a parody Facebook account. [Link] The FBI conducted nearly 2 million warrantless searches using Russian cyber threats as an excuse. [Link] Lawmakers will likely increase the INDOPACCOM budget by $3 billion more than the White House requested. [Link] Venezuela Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with self-proclaimed Venezuelan President Juan Guaido and reaffirmed his claim to power. [Link] Russia Biden visits a Lockheed Martin plant producing Javelin missiles. [Link] Putin told French...
qualified immunity
News Roundup 3/23/2022
US News A police officer who tased a man in the genitals was denied qualified immunity. [Link] Julian Assange and Stella Moris marry in a UK prison as Assange faces extradition to the US. [Link] Colorado will divest from Unilever in its state pension fund because of Ben and Jerry’s decision not to sell ice cream in West Bank settlements. [Link] Foreign Policy The US and UK agree to lift steel and aluminum tariffs. [Link] The UK agreed to lift a three-year-old tariff on American whiskey. [Link] The UK plans to buy a ballistic missile radar and other equipment from the US for $700 million....
The Real Suffering Created By Biden’s Disorganized Afghan Exit – News Roundup 2/11/2022
A recently declassified Pentagon report on the US withdrawal from Afghanistan has renewed attacks against President Joe Biden from across the political spectrum. No doubt, the lack of foresight on the rapid collapse of the US-built Afghan government is inexcusable and created needless chaos. New reporting on the August 26 suicide bombing at the Kabul airport – an attack that killed more than 150 people – suggests that some victims may have died of gunshot wounds, rather than the explosion. While the Pentagon has acknowledged that American and British troops fired “a small number of...
News Roundup 2/10/2022
In place of a news story today, I co-authored an article on sanctions with Will Porter. Sanctions Set America on the Path to War, Claiming Lives with No Benefit Quick Links US News Colorado Springs pays $2.9 million to the family of De’Von Baliey. Bailey was murdered by being shot in the back by Colorado Springs police in 2019. [Link] The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals rejects a qualified immunity request from Ohio police officers who arrested a man for wearing a “fuck the police” shirt. [Link] In a terror assessment the Department of Homeland Security claimed mis- and mal-...
Don’t Forget About the West’s War Games – News Roundup 2/9/2022
The media is awash with stories hyping Russia’s troop buildup around Ukraine and the 30,000 soldiers deploying to Belarus for military drills. Yet, the corporate press has dedicated virtually no coverage to the ongoing series of NATO and Ukrainian war games simulating battles with Moscow. In a move not seen since the Cold War, the US placed the USS Truman aircraft carrier strike group under the command of NATO. The ship is currently a part of “Neptune Strike”' naval war maneuvers alongside French and Italian counterparts – what amounts to a massive NATO armada in the Mediterranean Sea. ...
News Roundup 1/4/2022
US News The city of Baltimore will pay out $8 million to the family of Malcolm Bryant. Bryant spent 17 years in prison for a murder he did not commit. [Link] A social worker was denied qualified immunity after fabricating statements. In a separate case, police officers were denied qualified immunity after fabricating evidence that led to James Dennis’s conviction for murder. [Link] The government opens an investigation into CBP spying on journalists. [Link] The US will not name the executives of Balfour Beatty Communities that were involved in a fraud scheme against the Pentagon and...
Weren’t the Police Supposed to Be Defunded or Something?
What should’ve been an obvious propaganda campaign/slogan to most, didn’t even turn into the conversation libertarians would’ve wanted to have: if you’re going to defund the police, or even replace them, what are you replacing them with? The overwhelming majority of people, even libertarians and anarchists, understand that a security force is essential for preserving the safety of one’s body and property. The question that should've been asked when the “Defund the Police” slogan was being chanted is, what is the minimum level of authority that should be afforded a security force while it...
News Roundup 10/13/21
US News A judge denied a Texas police officer qualified immunity after the officer removed a 14-year-old child from her home because she was alone. The child's mother was charged with felony abandonment, a jury found her not guilty. She is now suing the officer that traumatized her family. [Link] The US plans to allow vaccinated land travel to the US starting in November. Non-essential travel from Mexico and Canada has been restricted for over a year. [Link] US official Victoria Nuland failed to make progress during talks in Russia. The US and Russia are seeking to come to agreements on...
Teens Beg for Life as Cop Unloads (and Reloads) Pistol Into Car
When the entire dash cam footage was released, showing officer Allan Brown firing eleven shots into a vehicle—pausing only to reload—and firing another ten shots into the vehicle as the teens inside can be heard begging for their lives, the country was shocked. It is disturbing, to say the least. Yet despite the disturbing nature of the video, this week, in a split ruling by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, Brown was granted qualified immunity and he was exonerated. Christian Redwine, 17, was killed in the shooting and passengers Hunter Tillis and Hanna Wuenschel, two other teens,...
News Roundup 8/2/21
US News On March 22, the FBI raided US Private Vaults. The search warrant forbade the FBI from seizing safe deposit boxes, however, the FBI seized over 300 boxes. The FBI then filed civil asset claims for the belongings in the boxes, totaling $85 million. The FBI is demanding that anyone who would like their property back has to publicly identify themselves as the owner. [Link] A confidential informant told Texas police Lucil Basco was dealing meth. Police surveilled Mrs. Basco and pulled her over. Police then raided her home. When police realized they were in the wrong home, they...