Awe may promote altruistic behavior

Inducing a sense of awe in people can promote altruistic, helpful and positive social behavior according to research published by the American Psychological Association. “Our investigation indicates that awe, although often fleeting and hard to describe, serves a vital social function. By diminishing the emphasis on the individual self, awe may encourage people to forgo strict self-interest to improve the …

Let’s talk about Hillary Clinton and the Historical Record – Nomi Prins

On March 10th, after eight days of anticipation, media and political uproar, the world fell privy to Hillary Clinton “breaking her silence” (aside from the stray tweet beforehand) regarding her decision to conduct government business from her personal clintonmail.com email address while Secretary of State – for ‘convenience’ purposes. There are basically two opinion camps that have formed around email-gate. …

The American Military Uncontained – William J. Astore

It’s 1990. I’m a young captain in the U.S. Air Force.  I’ve just witnessed the fall of the Berlin Wall, something I never thought I’d see, short of a third world war.  Right now I’m witnessing the slow death of the Soviet Union, without the accompanying nuclear Armageddon so many feared.  Still, I’m slightly nervous as my military gears up …

The Ethical Demise of the American Psychological Association – GEOFF GRAY

The conscience of the American Psychological Association (APA) is slowly dying as it facilitates torture, cheats its own members, and hussles junk science boondoggles to the defense industry. But the APA wasn’t always this way. Founded in the late 19th century by the intellectual giant William James and others, it had a proud history of advancing the science of psychology, …

America’s God Complex – Rev. WILLIAM E. ALBERTS

American presidents reverently end their speeches with the audience-approving Benediction, “God bless America.” What they are really communicating is that God favors America. That, today, America is God’s chosen people. Even more! They are equating America with God. Which— in the magical twinkle of a rationalizing mind’s eye—means that America isGod—white America, that is. As political leaders like to assert: America is today’s embodiment of …

Hillary Clinton: Elitist, Imperialist, Politician Extraordinaire – ROBERT FANTINA

The Democratic Party continues its illicit love affair with presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, when asked about then Senator Clinton’s vote authorizing President George Bush’s disastrous and murderous invasion of Iraq, said this: “Elections are about the future. They’re not about what happened 13 years ago. They’re about the future, and that’s really what people want …

American Psychological Association Bolstered C.I.A. Torture Program, Report Says – JAMES RISEN

The American Psychological Association secretly collaborated with the administration of President George W. Bush to bolster a legal and ethical justification for the torture of prisoners swept up in the post-Sept. 11 war on terror, according to a new report by a group of dissident health professionals and human rights activists. The report is the first to examine the association’s …

A Psychedelic History of the CIA – JEFFREY ST. CLAIR and ALEXANDER COCKBURN

On June 17, 1999 the state of Texas put to death by lethal injection John Stanley Faulder, a Canadian who had been convicted in 1977 of murdering Inez Phillips, an oil heiress. Faulder’s case received more press attention than most executions these days, mainly because the Canadian government tried to intervene on his behalf and urged Texas governor George W. …

Judith Miller’s Blame-Shifting Memoir

U.S. intelligence veterans recall the real story of how New York Times reporter Judith Miller disgraced herself and her profession by helping to mislead Americans into the disastrous war in Iraq. They challenge the slick, self-aggrandizing rewrite of history in her new memoir. MEMORANDUM FOR: Americans Malnourished on the Truth About Iraq FROM: Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS) SUBJECT: A New “Miller’s …

Nuclear Threat Escalating Beyond Political Rhetoric

As a new cold war between the United States and Russia picks up steam, the nuclear threat is in danger of escalating – perhaps far beyond political rhetoric. Randy Riddel, a former senior political affairs officer with the U.N. Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) told IPS he pities the general public. “They’re being fed two competing narratives about nukes,” he …