The US Department of Justice (DOJ) reports 2.2 million people are in our nation’s jails and prisons and another 4.5 million people are on probation or parole in the US, totaling 6.8 million people, one of every 35 adults. We are far and away the world leader in putting our own people in jail. Most of the people inside are poor and Black. …
When Is a Felony Not a Felony? When You Are a Bank – Alexis Goldstein
Good news, America: We can now get guilty pleas from banks! Bad news, America: That’s only because guilty pleas from banks are now absolutely meaningless. Last week, JP Morgan, Citigroup, Barclays, and Royal Bank of Scotland pled guilty to felony charges of conspiring to manipulate currency prices, and UBS pled guilty to manipulating benchmark interest rates. Regulators and prosecutors found …
The NSA’s Technotyranny: One Nation Under Surveillance – John Whitehead
We now have a fourth branch of government.As I document in my new book Battlefield America: The War on the American People, this fourth branch came into being without any electoral mandate or constitutional referendum, and yet it possesses superpowers, above and beyond those of any other government agency save the military. It is all-knowing, all-seeing and all-powerful. It operates beyond …
Corrupt FIFA Has Clinton Foundation Ties; World Cup Host Qatar Gave Millions – Jackie Kucinich
Both Bill Clinton and his family’s charity have been tied to soccer’s governing body, as well as Qatar’s disastrous World Cup bid. And just like that, another Clinton Foundation donor is in the news. The Clinton global charity has received between $50,000 and $100,000 from soccer’s governing body and has partnered with the Fédération Internationale de Football Association on several …
The Big Banks Are Corrupt – And Getting Worse – Richard eskow
The Justice Department’s latest settlement with felonious big banks was announced this week, but the repercussions were limited to a few headlines and some scattered protestations. That’s not enough. We need to understand that our financial system is not merely corrupt in practice. It is corrupt by design – and the problem is growing. Let’s connect the dots, using news …
IN THE SAME WEEK, THE U.S. AND U.K. HIDE THEIR WAR CRIMES BY INVOKING “NATIONAL SECURITY” – GLENN GREENWALD
Colonel Ian Henderson was a British official dubbed “the Butcher of Bahrain” because of atrocities he repeatedly committed during the 30 years he served as chief security official of that Middle Eastern country. His reign of terror began in 1966 when Bahrain was a British “protectorate” and continued when the post-“independence” Bahraini King retained him in the same position. In 1996, The Independent described him as …
Latest Guilty Pleas Prove Big Bank Criminality ‘Rampant,’ But Jail Time Non-Existent – Deirdre Fulton
In the wake of Wednesday’s announcement that five global financial institutions have agreed to plead guilty to multiple crimes and pay about $5.6 billion in penalties for manipulating foreign currencies and interest rates, corporate watchdogs are reiterating the call to ‘break up the banks’ in light of their ongoing malfeasance. As with other recent settlements, Wednesday’s news provides further evidence to …
A statistical study of first-year college rape
Beginning in the fall when they arrived on campus and continuing through the following summer, 18.6 percent of freshmen women surveyed at a university in upstate New York in 2010 endured at least one — completed or attempted rape, according to a new study that is the is the first to examine the risk of sexual attack on first-year women …
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 …
Guilty as Charged: Duke Energy to Pay Record Fine for Coal Ash Crimes – Deirdre Fulton
Duke Energy pleaded guilty on Thursday to environmental crimes and has agreed to pay a record $102 million in fines and restitution for years of illegal pollution, ignored warnings, and poorly maintained infrastructure. U.S. District Court Judge Malcolm Howard said it is the largest federal criminal fine in North Carolina history. But some environmentalists insist the punishment is insufficient, given …