10 reasons the U.S. is no longer the land of the free

After protesting SOPA and PIPA for 24 hours, it makes sense to outline which freedoms of ours have already been taken away.

From The Washington Post: "In the decade since Sept. 11, 2001, this country has comprehensively reduced civil liberties in the name of an expanded security state. The most recent example of this was the National Defense Authorization Act, signed Dec. 31, which allows for the indefinite detention of citizens. At what point does the reduction of individual rights in our country change how we define ourselves?"

More here.

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The Rebellion Magazine

Banned SNL Skit: Conspiracy Theory Rock!

Via Warming Glow: The “Schoolhouse Rock”-spoofing clip, written by Robert Smigel, is about media deregulation; it shows a Mickey Mouse-headed octopus eating the ABC logo, with lyrics about how PCBs from GE are killing us but you never hear about it because the electric giant owns NBC. The most unsettling line: “Let them dump toxic waste where the young ones play/GE made the bullets that shot JFK.” What would Jack Donaghy think about that?

Lorne Michaels cut the clip out of syndication because he claimed “it wasn’t funny.” That’s only a half-truth, of course, considering “SNL” airs on NBC.

More here.

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The Rebellion Magazine

Happy New Year: You can now be detained indefinitely without trial

From The Daily What: President Obama today quietly signed into law the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012, which contains controversial provisions requiring military custodyfor any non-citizen suspected of terrorism and affirming the president’s authority to indefinitely detain any supporter of al-Qaeda “or associated forces, irrespective of citizenship.

In a signing statement, the President said he had “serious reservations” about the bill, and criticised lawmakers for interfering with the work of counterterrorism professionals.

“Moving forward, my administration will interpret and implement the provisions described below in a manner that best preserves the flexibility on which our safety depends and upholds the values on which this country was founded,” the statement said.

The Obama administration was successful in striking down a provision that would have removed the ability of the executive branch to override the military custody requirement. Additionally, US citizens and legal immigrants may not be subjected to military custody under the revised bill.

However, an amendment to explicitly exclude American citizens and lawful residents from indefinite detention was rejected by Congress.

“My administration will not authorize the indefinite military detention without trial of American citizens,” Obama said. “Indeed, I believe that doing so would break with our most important traditions and values as a nation.”

The President’s personal stance aside, in addition to creating myriad difficulties for counterterrorism agents working with suspected terrorists to gain information, the NDAA provisions leave the door wide open for future presidents to indefinitely detain American citizens without trial.

[ap / think / aclu.]

Support The Daily What.

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Documentary: Thrive

Via Thrive Movement: "Thrive is an unconventional documentary that lifts the veil on what's really going on in our world by following the money upstream. Uncovering the global consolidation of power in nearly every aspect of our lives. Weaving together breakthroughs in science, consciousness and activism, Thrive offers real solutions, empowering us with unprecedented and bold strategies for reclaiming our lives and our future."

Watch it free here.

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The Rebellion Magazine

The Capitalist Network That Runs The Globe

From New Scientist: "As protests against financial power sweep the world this week, science may have confirmed the protesters' worst fears. An analysis of the relationships between 43,000 transnational corporations has identified a relatively small group of companies, mainly banks, with disproportionate power over the global economy." More here.

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The Rebellion Magazine

Meet Your Strawman!

By Infomatic Films: "The story of how everyone has a strawman created for them at birth and how it is used to collect revenue for your government."



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5 Projects You Won't Believe the US Government Is Working On Read more: 5 Projects You Won't Believe the US Government Is Working On

From Cracked: "The mad inventor from the James Bond movies, Q, is real. Only there are lots of him, and they have a lot more money at their disposal. In the real world, they're called DARPA -- the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency." List here.

Big Brother is bigger than we ever thought.

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The Rebellion Magazine

The War Against Free Speech

From the New York Times: "Pakistani Journalist Found Dead After Criticizing Pakistan’s Chief Intelligence Agency"

From The Daily What: "Openly lesbian Syrian blogger Amina Arraf, who fearlessly wrote about her country’s political turmoil at A Gay Girl in Damascus under the nom de plume Amina Abdallah, was abducted last night by armed men while on her way to a meeting in Damascus."

From Fast Company: "The Iranian government is planning to wall-off much of the country’s online access. A high-ranking Iranian official has their new solution: A “Halal Internet” that will run as a nationwide intranet and be subject to extensive censorship."

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The Rebellion Magazine

There’s a Secret Patriot Act, Senator Says

From Wired: "You think you understand how the Patriot Act allows the government to spy on its citizens. Sen. Ron Wyden says it’s worse than you know."

More here.

Update from CNN: "The vote on the measure to extend the Patriot Act provisions for four years passed easily on a 72-23 vote."

More here.

A government comprised of secrets that passes laws to know the people's secrets is not a government to be trusted.

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The Rebellion Magazine

Are We Training Kids To Believe That Total Surveillance Is Normal?

From Disinfo: Via TED Talks, Cory Doctorow discusses how parents’ and schools’ constant and total monitoring of kids’ internet usage and conversations trains young people to accept a complete lack of privacy, and total disclosure of their lives, as normal and good. Are today’s parents raising their children in a manner that plays into the hands of Big Brother?

Peace and Love,

The Rebellion Magazine