police state updates: portland patsy & the dhs psa's

'portland patsy' as impetus for rejoining terrorism task force*
teen arrested in oregon car bomb plot led 2 lives*
was fbi grooming portland suspect for terror?*
tension grows between cali muslims, fbi after informant infiltrates mosque (or: fbi plants informant in mosque to incite violence; muslims report him to fbi)*
fbi paid ex-con $177k to entrap muslims*
another 'bomb plotter' arrested, this time in baltimore*
al-qaeda's latest weapon: poison perfume*
video: geraldo says recent domestic terror plots are fake*
camden, nj's massive police layoffs cause concern for public safety in US '2nd most dangerous city' (cache)*
house passes amnesty citizenship plan for illegal youth in 'dream act', but senate dems don't have the votes*
video: white house speechwriter's standup routine about tsa & defrocked priests wins prize*
video flashback: cnn reporter on watchlist after criticizing tsa*
tsa subjects indian ambassador to US to glass cage, enhanced groping*
orlando airport considers dumping tsa screeners*
fingerprint scans raise worries in north carlina*
man's un-requested verichip & associated tumor removed?*
video: wal-mart running public service announcement from dhs on telescreens*

obamessiah updates: polls, policies & the bow debate

obama popularity below 50% for first time
from afp: President Barack Obama's job approval rating has dipped below 50 percent nationally for the first time, as Americans worry about the war in Afghanistan, a new poll released Wednesday found. The Quinnipiac University poll showed 48 percent of Americans approve of the way Obama is handling his job as president, compared to 42 percent who disapprove. The president also scored low marks from Americans on his handling of the situation in Afghanistan, with just 38 percent saying they approved of his approach, but a majority did say it was the "right thing" for US troops to be in the country.

poll: US likes obama personally but not his policies*
In US, 12mn illegal immigrants may gain legal status*
white house plan on immigration includes legal status*
amnesty urges obama to 'redouble' efforts over guantanamo*
top white house lawyer resigns*
who was greg craig?*
obama's deep bow in japan causes debate*
video: obama bends to japanese royalty*
contrast: 46 other world leaders did not bow to japanese emperor*
video: michael moore says democrats' healthcare bill is giveaway to insurance industry*
video: obama critic rev. mannings says dhs visited him*
1000s throng to palin as she begins book tour*
video: gop state senator casts obama as a terrorist*

4/09 newspurge

obamessiah & the apostles of war
poll finds nation most polarized in decades under obama*
cybersecurity bill gives obama dictatorial power over internet*
setting the stage for obama’s control over the internet: electricity grid in US penetrated by spies*
will bill give obama control of internet?*
just like bush, obama moves to block challenge to wiretapping program*
video: obama sides with bush on wiretaps*
turkey foiled plot to assassinate obama*
syrian man arrested in plot to assassinate obama*
gates pushes for radical overhaul of pentagon arsenal*
senators wary of purported fcs cutbacks*
obama wants another $83b for afghaniraq*
pentagon accused of pig victimization:
or, darpa blows up pigs to test armor*
white house hit by swarm of bees*
US 'committed' to ratifying law of sea convention: clinton*
red cross says medics joined cia 'torture' sessions*
cia 'no longer' using secret prisons, claims director*
obama pushes to make 12m illegal immigrants legal*
americans denounced as terrorists while criminals embraced*
obama looks at climate engineering*
the govt is already 'geo-engineering' the environment*
method to cool earth’s rapid warming is for emergency use only*
obama’s plan to 'geo-engineer' the planet mirrors cfr policy documents*
obama lies about bow to king abdullah*
10 holy cross priests object to obama invitation*

police state int'l
virginia fusion center releases 'homegrown terrorism' document*
complete list of other miac reports*
100s of troops relocating to ft hood*
infowars story on illegal tennessee checkpoint prompts action by governor*
phoenix police raid home of blogger critical of them*
coast guard feeds hungry in philly*
fbi raids dallas isp over a single user*
tsa detains official from ron paul group*
audio: tsa interrogates ron paul staffer*
'mothers act' will bring forced psychological testing*
fema publishes reorganization details*
beck fails miserably in debunking facts on fema camp infrastructure*
US natl security documents to be used in jfk terror plot trial*
video reveals g20 police assault on ian tomlinson moments before he died*
riot cops killed newspaper seller at g20*
buildings burn, teargas flies outside strasbourg nato summit*
60th nato summit in strasbourg marred by street battles & arson*
black bloc provocateurs set strasbourg hotel on fire*
uk residents challenge google camera*
uk id cards closer than ever*
uk's top counterterrorism officer resigns after security blunder*
how a scotland yard slip forced terrorism raids in britain*
election in moldova instigates rioting mob demanding recount*
moldova: bloggers cover protests better*
activist charged for inciting 'twitter revolution'*
moldova: twitter or color revolution?*
video: who’s behind 'peaceful' moldovan outrage?*

econocrash
towards a global currency & world govt*
pentagon preps for economic warfare*
wells fargo expects record profit*
nyc mayor to cut 7k more jobs*
cities collapsing throughout the US*
survivalists 2.0: regular people get ready for the worst*
the art of survival: essential skills for the post-apocalyptic world*
sacramento tent-city an alternative to the control grid*
reality tv's latest wheeze: make US workers compete to keep jobs*
alleged iranian nuke smuggling plot involving nyc banks uncovered*
10,000+ overwhelm manchester job fair*
video: US is a puppet of private bankers*

cyber/space\war
growing threat from cyber attacks: US general*
spies penetrate US electric system*
power grid hackers probably got inside by attacking pc's*
cyberspies or solar storms: the real threat to US electrical grid*
spy satellite agency (nat'l reconnaissance office) head resigns*
cyber attacks surging on US power grid, worrying utilities*
sabotage attacks knock out phone service*
cable sabotage cripples internet for parts of silicon valley*

media/memes
tv suicide takes actor from 'house' to the white house*
the ap’s desperate attempt to outlaw search engine links*
video: hot new videogame consists solely of shooting people point-blank in the face*

history/mystery
3 nazi-confiscated works found at hearst castle*
video: knights templar hid the shroud of turin, says vatican*

biometric borders, lockheed, background checks & id

eu plans biometric border checks
from time: It is a very 21st century conundrum: how can modern, open democracies provide basic homeland security in a world with nearly limitless mobility? On Wednesday, the European Commission tried to answer that by unveiling a border management plan calling for fingerprinting all foreign visitors to the European Union.

lockheed secures contract to expand biometric database
from washington post: The FBI yesterday announced the award of a $1 billion, 10-year contract to Lockheed Martin to develop what is expected to be the world's largest crime-fighting computer database of biometric information, including fingerprints, palm prints, iris patterns and face images.

Under its contract to build Next Generation Identification, the Bethesda contractor will expand on the FBI's electronic database of 55 million sets of fingerprints and criminal histories used by law enforcement and other authorities. The aim is to make the query and results process quicker, more flexible and more accurate.

Lockheed built and maintains the fingerprint database.

dhs eases immigrant background checks
from mcclatchy: In a major policy shift aimed at reducing a ballooning immigration backlog, the Department of Homeland Security is preparing to grant permanent residency to tens of thousands of applicants before the FBI completes a required background check... However, advocates of stricter immigration enforcement accused DHS of creating security loopholes, rather than solving the backlog problem.

federal buildings become real id zones
from cnet: Starting May 11, Americans living in states that don't comply with new federal regulations could be barred from entering Washington D.C.'s visitor center and collecting the complimentary maps and brochures-unless they happen to bring a U.S. passport or military ID with them. That not-very-welcoming rule is part of a 2005 law called the Real ID Act, which takes effect in just over three months. It says that driver's licenses from states that have not agreed to Real ID mandates from the Department of Homeland Security, or which have not requested a deadline extension, can no longer be used to access "federal facilities."

immigration 'reform' bill blocked in senate

from raw story: President Bush suffered a major defeat Thursday as the immigration reform bill was defeated in the Senate. Although there had been strong conservative opposition to the bill, the president had been pushing for it hard the last few weeks.

"The Senate drove a stake Thursday through President Bush's plan to legalize millions of unlawful immigrants, likely postponing major action on immigration until after the 2008 elections," the Associated Press reports...

Bush, seeking to salvage the biggest domestic initiative of his final two years in office, called senators earlier in the morning seeking help.

However, supporters needed 60 votes in the 100-member Senate to keep the bill alive. Aligned against it were conservatives who derided the legislation as a grant of amnesty for illegal behavior and some Democrats who said it would leave a new group of temporary workers vulnerable to exploitation.

Supporters pointed to the bill's tougher border security and workplace enforcement measures, along with an immediate infusion of $4.4 billion to pay for them, as reasons to keep the bill alive for a final vote Friday.

The carefully crafted compromise was left for dead after a similar vote three weeks ago but was revived by Bush and Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid, who gave opponents more chances to change it.

related: sen. sessions releases list of 20 loopholes in the senate immigration bill