News You Can Use

[freedomforall]

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

George Soros lost nearly $1 billion in weeks after Trump win: Report

[freedomforall]

Could this ever happen?

Rosie O’Donnell calls for ‘imposing martial law’ to stop Trump’s inauguration

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Pelosi: Were It Not for Obama, $19,951,756,200,280 Debt Would Be Higher

(CNSNews.com) – House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said on Friday that were it not for "the work" of President Barack Obama, the federal debt would have increased even more than the $9 trillion that it has increased over the eight years of his presidency.

“Absent the work of President Obama this national debt would be even higher,” Pelosi said at her weekly briefing with reporters at the Capitol when asked about the increase in the federal budget under Obama.

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Andrea Bocelli backs out of singing at Trump's inauguration after receiving death threats | Daily Mail Online

Blind tenor Bocelli announced he would not sing at this Friday's celebration 
Widely reported it was because fan said they would boycott his concerts
Revelation came as another singer, Jennifer Holliday, last night pulled out 

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STARK INEQUALITY: OXFAM SAYS 8 MEN AS RICH AS HALF THE WORLD

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) -- The gap between the super-rich and the poorest half of the global population is starker than previously thought, with just eight men, from Bill Gates to Michael Bloomberg, owning as much wealth as 3.6 billion people, according to an analysis by Oxfam released Monday.

Presenting its findings on the dawn of the annual gathering of the global political and business elites in the Swiss ski resort of Davos, anti-poverty organization Oxfam says the gap between the very rich and poor is far greater than just a year ago. It's urging leaders to do more than pay lip-service to the problem.

If not, it warns, public anger against this kind of inequality will continue to grow and lead to more seismic political changes akin to last year's election of Donald Trump as U.S. president and Britain's vote to leave the European Union.

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Earth’s atmosphere can be turned into massive surveillance system using LASERS, scientists discover

British firm unveils research which shows that the atmosphere could be used to spy on ordinary citizens in unprecedented detail

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AS ROBOTS TAKE JOBS, EUROPEANS MULL FREE MONEY FOR ALL

PARIS (AP) -- I am, therefore I'm paid.

The radical notion that governments should hand out free money to everyone - rich and poor, those who work and those who don't - is slowly but surely gaining ground in Europe. Yes, you read that right: a guaranteed monthly living allowance, no strings attached.

In France, two of the seven candidates vying to represent the ruling Socialist Party in this year's presidential election are promising modest but regular stipends to all French adults. A limited test is already underway in Finland, with other experiments planned elsewhere, including in the United States.

Called "universal income" by some, "universal basic income" or just "basic income" by others, the idea has been floated in various guises since at least the mid-19th century. After decades on the fringes of intellectual debate, it became more mainstream in 2016, with Switzerland holding a referendum - and overwhelmingly rejecting - a proposed basic income of around $2,500 per month.

[Joel]

https://factba.se/

Mission
The veracity of news and the source of news is under debate. Fiction masquerading as fact. Rumor and innuendo passed as news. Established facts questioned as conflicting with belief. Stephen Colbert coined a term that was humorous at the time: Truthiness.

Factba.se does not engage in news or interpretation. Instead, our goal is to make available, unedited, the entire corpus of an individual's public statements and recordings. We will locate, transcribe, index and make available this information to the public, linking directly to the originating source.

You will not find news stories on Factba.se. What you will find, almost instantly, is everything a person has ever said on a particular topic, with links to the primary source. Transcripts. Books. Videos. Appearances. Court filings. If we can locate it on the Internet, it will be tagged, indexed and searchable.

What we will not engage in is debate, or characterizations of comments. The pertinent information, with links to core materials, will be provided. Where the information is not free (such as books), we will follow the Google Books model: highlight the appropriate piece allowed under law, and link to where the source can be obtained.

We are testing this concept right now with the President-elect, though we plan to expand to cover other world leaders and people of note.

We want to hear from you. If there's a problem, let us know. If we're missing key information, please share it. This is a growing process.

Skip the spin. Go right to the source.

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Obama rushes to fill dozens of federal jobs before leaving office | New York Post

President Obama rushed to fill nearly 100 federal government vacancies during a frenzy of appointments in his final few weeks in office.

Since the new year, Obama has named 72 people to federal job openings and nominated another 17 for positions requiring Senate confirmation, according to CBS reporter Mark Knoller.

On Monday night, Obama announced appointments for 27 officials to government positions and named two to jobs requiring Senate confirmation.

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Governments struggling to retain trust of citizens, global survey finds | Technology | The Guardian

Survey spanning 40 countries reveals how officials are failing to keep up with changes in way voters gather information and form opinions

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Ads in two dozen cities offer protesters up to $2,500 to agitate at Trump inaugural - Washington Times

Donald Trump may have a point about paid protesters: Job ads running in more than 20 cities offer $2,500 per month for agitators to demonstrate at this week’s presidential inauguration events.
Demand Protest, a San Francisco company that bills itself as the “largest private grassroots support organization in the United States,” posted identical ads Jan. 12 in multiple cities on Backpage.com seeking “operatives.”
“Get paid fighting against Trump!” says the ad.
“We pay people already politically motivated to fight for the things they believe. You were going to take action anyways, why not do so with us!” the ad continues. “We are currently seeking operatives to help send a strong message at upcoming inauguration protests.”
The job offers a monthly retainer of $2,500 plus “our standard per-event pay of $50/hr, as long as you participate in at least 6 events a year,” as well as health, vision and dental insurance for full-time operatives.

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The Dangers of a "Universal Basic Income" | Mises Wire

Finland has announced that it is conducting a social policy “experiment” which deserves closer examination. Through 2017 and 2018, Finland will provide a guaranteed basic income of 560 euros to 2,000 randomly selected welfare recipients. This benefit will be subtracted from other, currently existing welfare benefits that participants may be receiving, and, crucially, the payments will continue regardless of any other income that is earned. If a participant of this program finds a job, the government will continue to pay them the 560 euros in addition to any other income.

The Finnish government hopes — and many believe — that this program will help to alleviate poverty as well as make inroads in reducing the country’s current 8.1 percent unemployment rate. This test trial is supposed to prove it, potentially opening the door for a full implementation of a universal basic income (UBI).

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U.S. Abortion Rate Falls to Lowest Level Since Row v. Wade

The annual abortion rate in the United States has dropped to its lowest level since the Supreme Court legalized abortion through its landmark Row v. Wade decision over four decades ago, according to a report published Tuesday.

The study by the pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute counted 926,200 abortions in 2014, representing a 12.5 percent drop from the 1.06 million abortions recorded in 2011. The decline was recorded nationwide, with the exception of six states where abortions rose over the three-year period, the Associated Press first reported.

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French told not to fear wolves roaming Paris streets as 'they only eat four-legged animals' - Mirror Online

French people have been told not to fear wolves roaming Paris streets - as "they only eat four-legged animals".

Parisians are frightened that the endangered beasts - which have fought back from near extinction in the 1930s - are now within howling distance of the capital.


Indeed the discovery of paw prints, messy droppings and late-night howls from wolves - a distant relative of the domestic pet dog - are reported to be a now frequent occurrence in the city's suburbs.

While they are known to normally hunt in packs - when they are notoriously most dangerous - only lone wolves have been spotted so far wandering its streets.

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Protester tries setting self on fire outside Trump’s D.C. hotel - NY Daily News

A man set a pile of debris ablaze and claims he tried torching himself across the street from the Trump International Hotel in Washington D.C. to protest the incoming “dictator” on Tuesday night.

The man was reportedly hospitalized with burns but did not appear hurt when explaining his motives to a reporter outside the real estate magnate’s hotel venture, which opened in October 2016.

“We have a dictator that has been elected,” the man told WRC-TV, just as his small fire erupted with what he described as “denatured alcohol.”

The firebug seemed startled by the small explosion but assured witnesses that the worst was over.

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Joe Biden's final speech at Davos

Vice President Joe Biden delivered an epic final speech Wednesday to the elites at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

The gist of his speech was simple: At a time of "uncertainty" we must double down on the values that made Western democracies great, and not allow the "liberal world order" to be torn apart by destructive forces.

Biden went after Russian President Vladimir Putin by name, saying he is using "every tool" in his power to whittle away the European project, and undermine Western democracies. Biden accused Putin of wanting to "roll back decades of progress."

Biden said Russia used "cyber aggression" to meddle in the U.S. election, an assertion supported by 17 U.S. intelligence agencies. He also warned that we will see further interference from Russia in the future and said the "purpose is clear" — that Putin wants to see a "collapse of the international order."

"Simply put, Putin has a different vision of the future," the vice president warned.

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Cartapping: How Feds Have Spied On Connected Cars For 15 Years

The rapid spread of connected devices that can listen and locate has been a boon for law enforcement. Any new technology hooked up to the web has the potential to become a surveillance device, even if it's original purpose was benign, as shown in a 2016 Arkansas murder investigation where Amazon was asked to hand over audio from a suspect's Echo.

But such information and much more, I've learned, has long been retrievable from cars. Indeed, court documents reveal a 15-year history of what's been dubbed "cartapping," where almost real-time audio and location data can be retrieved when cops order vehicle tech providers to hand it over.

One of the more recent examples can be found in a 2014 warrant that allowed New York police to trace a vehicle by demanding the satellite radio and telematics provider SiriusXM provide location information. The warrant, originally filed in 2014 but only recently unsealed (and published below in full), asked SiriusXM "to activate and monitor as a tracking device the SIRIUS XM Satellite Radio installed on the Target Vehicle for a period of 10 days." The target was a Toyota 4-Runner wrapped up in an alleged illegal gambling enterprise.

[Joel]

Julian Assange ready for US extradition, one of his lawyers suggests

WikiLeaks said last week that founder would agree to go to US if Chelsea Manning was freed

A lawyer for Julian Assange has indicated that the WikiLeaks founder is ready to face extradition to the US after Barack Obama commuted the sentence of US army whistleblower Chelsea Manning.

Assange has been holed up at the Ecuadorian embassy in London since claiming asylum there in 2012. He has refused to meet prosecutors in Sweden, where he remains wanted on an allegation of rape, which he denies. He has repeatedly said he fears extradition to the US on espionage charges if he leaves the embassy, though at the moment the only public extradition ruling against him comes from Sweden.

Assange welcomed Obama’s decision to free Manning, who passed 700,000 documents, videos, diplomatic cables and battlefield accounts to WikiLeaks. “Your courage and determination made the impossible possible,” Assange said in a statement thanking campaigners for their efforts to get her released.

He did not mention a pledge made last week that he would agree to US extradition if Obama granted clemency to Manning:

WikiLeaks
(@wikileaks)
If Obama grants Manning clemency Assange will agree to US extradition despite clear unconstitutionality of DoJ case https://t.co/MZU30SlfGK" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

January 12, 2017

But Melinda Taylor, who serves on Assange’s legal team, said he would not be going back on his word. “Everything that he has said he’s standing by,” she told the Associated Press.

The WikiLeaks Twitter accounted also suggested its founder was ready to go to the US:

WikiLeaks
(@wikileaks)
Assange is confident of winning any fair trial in the US. Obama's DoJ prevented public interest defense & fair jury. https://t.co/Mb6gXlz7QS" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

January 17, 2017

The White House insisted on Tuesday that Assange’s offer to submit to extradition if Obama “grants Manning clemency” did not influence the US president’s action.

“The president’s decision to offer commutation was not influenced by public comments by Mr Assange or the WikiLeaks organisation,” the White House official said. “I have no insight into Mr Assange’s travel plans. I can’t speak to any charges or potential charges he may be facing from the justice department.”

In his statement, Assange said Manning should never have been convicted and described her as “a hero, whose bravery should have been applauded not condemned”.

Assange went on to demand that the US government “immediately end its war on whistleblowers and publishers, such as WikiLeaks and myself”.

Another lawyer for Assange, Barry Pollack, did not address whether Assange intended to come to the US.

“For many months, I have asked the DoJ to clarify Mr Assange’s status. I hope it will soon,” he said in a statement. “The Department of Justice should not pursue any charges against Mr Assange based on his publication of truthful information and should close its criminal investigation of him immediately.”

The justice department has never announced any indictment of Assange and it is not clear that any charges have been brought under seal. The department, in refusing to turn over investigative documents sought by Manning under the Freedom of Information Act, has acknowledged that the FBI is continuing to investigate the publication of national security information on WikiLeaks arising from Manning’s disclosures.

“That investigation concerns potential violations of federal criminal laws, in the form of serious threats to the national security, and the investigation continues today,” department lawyers wrote in a court filing last year. “From the terms of her request, it is clear that Manning seeks to obtain documents concerning that investigation.”

Separately, the FBI is also investigating Russian meddling through hacking in the US presidential election. Hacked emails from top Democratic officials and Hillary Clinton campaign aides were posted on WikiLeaks in the final weeks of the presidential race.

With the commutation coming just days before Obama leaves office, any decision on whether to charge or seek to extradite Assange will now fall to the Trump administration.

[Joel]

Judge Andrew Napolitano Meets With President-Elect Trump for a Second Time

Judge Andrew Napolitano was seen again meeting with President-Elect Trump in Trump Tower this morning. Speculation centered around the Supreme Court vacancy has everyone on high alert, and the idea of the Judge meeting for a second time with Trump has Libertarians on edge that their dream might come true; a Napolitano appointment to the court.

From Fox News:

President-elect Donald Trump sat down with Fox News Senior Judicial Analyst Judge Andrew Napolitano on Tuesday, at Trump Tower, for advice on a potential nominee who could fill the empty Supreme Court seat following the sudden passing last February of Justice Antonin Scalia.

“The President-elect is focusing on his choices, or his choice, for the Supreme Court of the United States,” Napolitano told FOX Business Network’s Stuart Varney. “We discussed the judicial attitudes, judicial temperament, judicial ideology, and candidates for the court.”

This is the second meeting between Judge Napolitano and the President-electOpens a New Window. since the election.

“It was awesome to say the least,” he said. “Of course you know the President-elect has an opinion on everything quite literally.”

He added, “He has a very high opinion of this show. I will tell you that.”

Trump’s Supreme Court pick is expected to be among one of the most contested appointments of the new administration.

[Joel]

Assange: Manning Commutation Doesn’t Meet My Extradition Offer

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said Wednesday, via his lawyer, that President Obama’s commutation of Chelsea Manning’s sentence does not meet the conditions of his offer to be extradited to the U.S. in return for the Army leaker’s release. “If Obama grants Manning clemency Assange will agree to US extradition despite clear unconstitutionality of DoJ case,” WikiLeaks tweeted this year. However, according to a statement from his lawyer, “Mr. Assange welcomes the announcement that Ms. Manning’s sentence will be reduced and she will be released in May, but this is well short of what he sought. Mr. Assange had called for Chelsea Manning to receive clemency and be released immediately.” Assange has not been charged with a crime in the United States, but believes if he were to leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London, he could be extradited stateside for espionage-related charges. According to WikiLeaks, “Assange is still happy to come to the US provided all his rights are guarenteed [sic] despite White House now saying Manning was not quid-quo-pro [sic].”

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Conservative students ARRESTED for handing out Constitutions

Kellogg Community College is being sued after campus police arrested three conservative activists and college students while they were handing out pocket Constitutions and signing students up for a conservative student organization.
Administrators told the activists that asking students if they "like freedom and liberty" was disruptive because students "don't know that they can say 'see ya later.'"
The Alliance Defending Freedom has now filed a federal lawsuit against KCC, accusing the school of violating both the First and the Fourteenth Amendments.

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At Activist Training Camp, Protesters Prep To Disrupt Inauguration - Vocativ

Six days before Donald Trump’s inauguration, dozens of people — from college students to gray-haired hippies — gathered in a classroom at American University in Washington D.C. to listen a lawyer offer tips on how to handle getting arrested.

A woman in her late 30s raised her hand. She was worried that, since she’s a teacher, an arrest could get her fired and maybe hurt her chances at landing another job.

“We’ve had teachers get arrested,” the lawyer said. “It’s not the end of the world.” That’s likely reassuring, since for many of those in attendance, the kind of disruption that could end in arrest is the goal.

The morning’s legal training session was one of several classes offered by a group of anti-Trump activists calling themselves DisruptJ20 — “J20” standing for January 20. The event was a training camp of sorts for protesters aiming to “shut down” the nation’s capitol during president-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration on Friday.

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Videos Reveal Raging Cartel Violence in Mexico’s Cancun

For the second day in a row, the once peaceful Mexican beach resort city of Cancun has become the scene of raging cartel violence.

A series of simultaneous attacks at both the headquarters of the Quintana Roo State Prosecutors Office and the Police Communications Building (C-4) spread terror among the citizens of the resort city.  The attack was carried out by cartel gunmen on motorcycles who fired semi-automatic rifles and threw grenades at the buildings and into the streets.

One video taken by citizen journalists provides audio of the large scale gun battle as cartel gunmen and military forces clashed in the city streets.

[Joel]

Assange: Manning Commutation Doesn’t Meet My Extradition Offer

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said Wednesday, via his lawyer, that President Obama’s commutation of Chelsea Manning’s sentence does not meet the conditions of his offer to be extradited to the U.S. in return for the Army leaker’s release. “If Obama grants Manning clemency Assange will agree to US extradition despite clear unconstitutionality of DoJ case,” WikiLeaks tweeted this year. However, according to a statement from his lawyer, “Mr. Assange welcomes the announcement that Ms. Manning’s sentence will be reduced and she will be released in May, but this is well short of what he sought. Mr. Assange had called for Chelsea Manning to receive clemency and be released immediately.” Assange has not been charged with a crime in the United States, but believes if he were to leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London, he could be extradited stateside for espionage-related charges. According to WikiLeaks, “Assange is still happy to come to the US provided all his rights are guarenteed [sic] despite White House now saying Manning was not quid-quo-pro [sic].”

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Child sex slave sold into Belgian ring recalls abuse | Daily Mail Online

Anneke Lucas, 53, was sold into a murderous paedophile ring in Belgium at six
She was raped 1,700 hours before reaching the age of 12 during horrifying abuse
Children were scared into silence and members of the network killed those who threatened to go to the police
At the age of 11, it was decided she was 'of no use anymore' and was to be killed
But she was spared, fled Belgium and now spoken out about sickening ordeal