6/9 newspurge: for what it's worth

9/11 updates:
world trade center i-beam unveiled at bagram*
mosque plan near 9/11 site is 'indecent,' says ex-muslim*
seismic signals reveal explosives were used at the wtc on 9/11*
video: crosstalk on 9/11 - whodunit?*
airline sorry for osama boarding pass*
british airways under fire for fake bin laden boarding pass*
debkafile reports osama hiding in iran*
dr bowman talks '9/11 truth to power'*
new ground zero deal gives plaintiffs $712.5m*
queen elizardbeast to visit ground zero next month*

econocrash:
the prepper movement:
growing network preparing for world's end*
geithner rushes to sabotage german derivatives ban; schäuble preps new moves against speculators*
wall street operative geithner rebuffed in berlin on mission to make world safe for derivatives*
US stocks, oil, euro tumble; dow ends worst may since 1940*
US economic collapse top 20 countdown*
europe’s coming summer of discontent*
warning signs of full spectrum collapse are everywhere*

feds to issue new medical marijuana policy

from ap: Pot-smoking patients or their sanctioned suppliers should not be targeted for federal prosecution in states that allow medical marijuana, prosecutors were told Monday in a new policy memo issued by the Justice Department.

Under the policy spelled out in a three-page legal memo, federal prosecutors are being told it is not a good use of their time to arrest people who use or provide medical marijuana in strict compliance with state law.

The guidelines issued by the department do, however, make it clear that federal agents will go after people whose marijuana distribution goes beyond what is permitted under state law or use medical marijuana as a cover for other crimes.

The memo advises prosecutors they "should not focus federal resources in your states on individuals whose actions are in clear and unambiguous compliance with existing state laws providing for the medical use of marijuana."

The new policy is a significant departure from the Bush administration, which insisted it would continue to enforce federal anti-pot laws regardless of state codes.

update: denver westword to hire marijuana critic
from cbs4denver: The store has a television lounge and a pool table, and snacks and acupuncture are free for customers who drop up to $130 an ounce on 16 varieties of marijuana. But a reviewer of the business warns the decor looks a little cliche, what with the Grateful Dead posters on the wall and the Mexican-blanket tablecloths. The medical marijuana review business is booming as states like Colorado and California have seen an explosion in the number of pot shops. A Denver alternative newspaper recently posted an ad for what some consider the sweetest job in journalism - a reviewer of the state's marijuana dispensaries and their products.

police state int'l: the g20 crackdown & occupying US

military attacks US citizens with sound weapons & tear gas at g20*
video: orwellian militarized police state in pittsburgh*
g20 protesters in pittsburgh hit with 'oc vapor & smoke'*
security nerve center established at secret spot for g20*
ny gov announces natl guard support for g20 meeting*
lebanon, penn guardsmen on g20 duty*
soldiers & sailors conference allows organizers to vent about g20*
terror probe puts US mass transit systems on alert*
terror probe widens in US*
media hypes terror plot, despite no one charged with terror*
video: fbi terror alert: police warned to patrol hotels, stadiums & subways*
US indicts denver man in bombing conspiracy*
nyc terror plot suspect charged with conspiracy to detonate bombs*
afghan immigrant charged with conspiracy to use wmd*
illinois man charged in plot to bomb federal offices*
US troops now occupying america*
missouri state rep dixon opposes closing miac*
only 3 of 763 patriot act 'sneak-and-peek' requests in fy2008 involved 'terror'*
american police force: web sites offer hints about jail company*
'panamax 2009' tests pandemic outbreak in exercise*
fort knox tests mettle during mock attack*
military to conduct air assault training into troy, tenn*
marines train in kentucky: urban exercises in advance of deployment*
newly declassified files detail massive fbi data-mining project*
uk billboards equipped with license plate spycams*
law shielding cops faces court challenge*
video: spycam catches cops playing wii during raid*
video: fbi looking for 'anti-govt' perp in death of census worker*
online conspiracy theorists latch onto census gps units*
video: utah rep refuses tsa shakedown*

police state int'l: skills, drills, dissent & detention

new york drill for possible nuke war*
terror drill: 'new york, you have a problem'*
georgia security drill next week expected to slow down ft gordon traffic*
training by military/civilian police from colorado/texas builds skills at peterson afb*
wisconsin fire dept & army team up for hazmat drill*


video: massachusettes police depts get heavy artillery*

admin plans to replace controversial real id initiative*
unmanned blimps: the new spy in the sky*
defense department sees protests as terrorism*
dod training manual describes protest as 'low-level terrorism'*
pentagon multiple choice: dissenting americans are terrorists*
nc state student accused of creating a 'monster'*
nc 'highway monster artist' faces charges over sculpture*
traffic cone monster has artist in a jam*
mcmenacing? denver cop pulls out pistol after fast food is slow*
email surveillance renews concerns in congress*
holder urges congress to pass 'hate crimes' legislation*
proposed new law would let canadian police snoop on what you do online*
green nazis: environmentalism in the 3rd reich*
man dead after 28 tasers by australian police*
'outraged' former aussie cop says tasers can kill*
uk court allows first juryless criminal trial*
aclu & ron paul sue tsa over 'illegal' detention*

mockingbird media & embedded messages

cia/cnn talk show host tom braden dead at 92
from cnn: Tom Braden, the creator and co-host of CNN's "Crossfire," which pioneered the talk-show format that pitted a conservative against a liberal, died Friday at age 92. Daughter Susan Braden said he died of natural causes at his home in Denver, Colorado. In 1982, Braden took "Crossfire" to CNN from a local station in Washington and served as the program's host "from the left" until 1989. "Many people believe that Tom created the genre of political talk shows and debate programs that has now been copied and copied and copied," said Sam Feist, CNN's political director and senior executive producer of political programming...

Born in Greene, Iowa, Braden graduated from Dartmouth in spring 1940, when the Germans overran France. He volunteered to join the British army, said his good friend and conservative sparring partner, Pat Buchanan. After fighting in the African desert, Braden joined the U.S. Office of Strategic Services when the United States joined the fight, then joined the CIA, Buchanan said.


operation mockingbird: cia media manipulation

embedded tv messages brought to you by the bill gates foundation?
from inspired economist: The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has developed a well-deserved reputation for funding innovative programs revolutionizing solutions for social issues. Navigating a path that only for-profit businesses dare venture down, the Gates Foundation funds a wide range of ground-breaking programs that challenge traditional peer-approved thinking on vaccines, agro-farming and many other treatment oriented-solutions. Yesterday, however, a New York Times article yesterday covered yet another strategy that they are pursuing, collaborative message placement in mainstream television programming. These are not your average PSA’s (public-service-announcements) donated by networks but rather longer-term initiatives that strive to create plot lines that will help disseminate accurate information on topics that are widely misunderstood. The objective is to use entertainment content as a vehicle for educating mainstream audiences on topics such as HIV/AIDS and education in the hopes of influencing public views and behaviors.

'progressive' talk radio dies in florida

nytimes threatens to shut down boston globe
from dpa: The New York Times Co has threatened to shut down the Boston Globe unless the Globe's unions agree to 20 million dollars in cost-cutting measures, it was reported Saturday. The demands were made during a 90-minute meeting between Times and Globe executives and the newspaper's 13 unions, the Globe reported. The concessions include pay cuts, terminating the company's pension contributions and eliminating lifetime job guarantees, according to Daniel Totten, president of the Boston Newspaper Guild - the Globe's biggest union. The Globe, which began publishing in 1872, was sold to the New York Times Co in 1993.

quiznos' restaurant chain airs controversial commercial

and behold a big blue horse: many in denver just say neigh

from nytimes: Airports can be tense and testy places in the best of times. At Denver International Airport, you can add glow-in-the-dark eyes to the list of triggers for a traveler’s angst.

A statue of a giant male horse - electric-eyed, cobalt blue and anatomically correct - was installed in February 2008 on the roadway approach to the terminal, and it is freaking more than a few people out.

Haters of this work say that “Blue Mustang,” as it is formally known, by the artist Luis Jiménez (killed in 2006 when a section of the 9,000-pound fiberglass statue fell on him during construction), is frightening, or cursed by its role in Mr. Jiménez’s death, or both. Supporters say the 32-foot-tall horse is a triumph, if only as a declaration of Denver’s courage to go beyond easy-listening-style airport art that many cities use like visual Dramamine to soothe travelers’ nerves...

“It’s definitely achieved its purpose of being memorable,” said Rachel Hultin, a real-estate broker in Denver who started a page on Facebook last month to vent her horse anxieties, byebyebluemustang.com, and found herself at the center of the debate...

The original design called for a pull-off from the airport road, with benches and ample room to contemplate the statue from all angles. After the terrorist attacks of 9/11, however, the parking area idea was shelved for security reasons. That makes “Blue Mustang” literally unapproachable...

“In the process of being personally attacked through e-mail, and through learning more about the piece, I’ve shifted gears from, ‘I don’t think it’s appropriate,’ to ‘Let’s try and understand it,’” she said.

But the controversy has also stirred up people in other ways. Conspiracies have floated around the Internet for years about secret bunkers or caverns beneath the terminals at the Denver airport. Symbols of Freemasonry are also said to abound on airport floors and walls.

“It’s brought out the conspiracy theorists who think there are aliens living under the airport,” said Patricia Calhoun, the editor of Westword, an alternative weekly paper in Denver that is helping organize a “Blue Mustang” poetry slam in April to share horse haiku as part of National Poetry Month.

rocky mountain news, colorado's oldest paper, folds after 15oyrs

from washington times: The Rocky Mountain News, the oldest newspaper in Colorado, will publish its last edition Friday after owners failed to secure a buyer for the financially strapped daily, making it the latest casualty in an increasingly shaky newspaper industry. Rich Boehne, chief executive officer of owner E.W. Scripps Co., blamed the decision on a plummeting newspaper market hit hard by the advent of the Internet and declining readership. "Denver can't support two newspapers any longer," said Mr. Boehne in a newsroom announcement Thursday. "It's certainly not good news for you, and it's certainly not good news for Denver." The tabloid known as the "Rocky" was just two months shy of its 150th anniversary, during which time it won four Pulitzer Prizes. The Rocky lost $16 million in 2008 despite a 2001 joint-operating agreement aimed at propping up Denver's two daily newspapers, the Rocky and the Denver Post. Scripps announced Dec. 4 that it would put the Rocky up for sale. Although one buyer emerged in mid-January, the company concluded that the buyer was "unable to present a viable plan" for the paper, according to a statement Thursday.

goodbye, colorado

40,000 swarm farm to gather free food

and the panic grows, this time in platteville, colorado...
from washington post: A farm couple got a huge surprise when they opened their fields to anyone who wanted to pick up free vegetables left over after the harvest - 40,000 people showed up. Joe and Chris Miller's fields were picked so clean Saturday that a second day of gleaning - the ancient practice of picking up leftover food in farm fields - was canceled Sunday. "'Overwhelmed' is putting it mildly," Chris Miller said. "People obviously need food." She said she expected 5,000 to 10,000 people to show up Saturday to collect free potatoes, carrots and leeks. Instead, an estimated 11,000 vehicles snaked around cornfields and backed up more than two miles. About 30 acres of the 600-acre farm 37 miles north of Denver became a parking lot. Miller said they opened the farm to the free public harvest after hearing reports of food being stolen from churches. It was meant as a thank-you for customers.

update: hard times & long lines for southern californians
from latimes: Some sought a cart of groceries the week before Thanksgiving, others sought a way to keep from losing their homes in the new year. By the thousands, a diverse group of Southern Californians converged on two events Saturday aimed at helping families in hard economic times. The problems, and the aid offered, were vastly different. But both reflected the worries and needs of many. In Montebello, nearly 5,000 turned out for a food giveaway, a number that stunned organizers who had tried to keep it a low-key event, targeting publicity to several churches and schools...

In Van Nuys, about 2,000 homeowners attended a workshop promoted as Home Preservation Day. But this was not about how to lay tile or install plumbing. A bank had mailed notices to homeowners in trouble with their mortgages, and Saturday offered them a chance to rework the terms of their loans. Bankers had hoped 100 would turn out, and planned for 200. Loan counselors had time to meet with a fraction of homeowners and some were turned away.

americans’ food stamp use nears all-time high
from washington post: Fueled by rising unemployment and food prices, the number of Americans on food stamps is poised to exceed 30 million for the first time this month, surpassing the historic high set in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina. The figures will put the spotlight on hunger when Congress begins deliberations on a new economic stimulus package, said legislators and anti-hunger advocates, predicting that any stimulus bill will include a boost in food stamp benefits. Advocates are also optimistic that President-elect Barack Obama, who made campaign promises to end childhood hunger and whose mother once briefly received food stamps, will make the issue a priority next year. “We soon will have the most food stamps recipients in the history of our country,” said Jim Weill, president of the Food Research and Action Center, a D.C.-based anti-hunger policy organization. “If the economic forecasts come true, we’re likely to see the most hunger that we’ve seen since the 1981 recession and maybe since the 1960s, when these programs were established.”

experts warn of food shortages
from george washington: The headline of an article on Bloomberg warns "Food Prices Will Rise, Causing Export Bans, Riots". Leading economist Nouriel Roubini warns of possible food riots. The Financial Times points out that farmers rely on credit, and credit is drying up. One of the top experts on derivatives, economist Nassim Nicholas Taleb, warns that supermarkets may not be able to borrow against their inventory, and will thus be forced to shut down. I hope they're wrong. But when experts like Roubini and Taleb warn of a potential problem, I have to listen.

undercover cops were among the unruly at dnc

staged terror takes many forms...
from denver post: When a Jefferson County deputy unleashed pepper spray at unruly protesters on the first night of the Democratic National Convention, he did not know that his targets were undercover Denver police officers.

Now the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado is questioning whether that staged confrontation by police pretending to be violent inflamed other protesters or officers during the most intense night of the four-day event. (Read the ACLU's letter to the Office of the Independant Monitor - 228kb PDF)

The protest occurred Aug. 25 at 15th Street and Court Place near Civic Center. Police ultimately arrested 106 people, the highest number of arrests in a single day during the convention.

According to a use-of-force police report obtained by the ACLU, undercover Denver detectives staged a struggle with a police commander to get pulled out of the crowd without blowing their cover. The commander knew they were working undercover, and the plan was to pull them out of the crowd and pretend they were under arrest so protesters would be none the wiser.

A Jefferson County deputy, unaware of the presence of undercover police,
thought that the commander was being attacked and used pepper spray on the undercover officers.

flashbacks: ‘top secret’ weapons to be used at political conventions & police accused of using provocateurs at summit

selection '08: obamessiah & the dnc charade/parade

satire: portrayal of obama as elitist hailed as step forward for african americans*

not satire: barack obama not a US citizen*
84k+ pack invesco to hear obama's speech*
obama's speech by numbers*
obama's risky stadium gig*
mccain 'conservatives' attempt to paint obama as marxist bombthrower*
sleepwalker mccain: will lock up pot smokers but regularly uses powerful sleeping pills*
in denver, police & protesters try to prepare for each other*
legal observers document strong police presence at dnc anti-war protest*
denver’s ironic treatment of homelessness during the dnc*
dhs to use controversial fusion centers during conventions*
recreate 68 'self defense' training at the dnc*
dnc hall surrounded by steel cage*
dnc police bulletin: people with city maps could be planning violence*
no more razor wire at denver convention holding cells (since the public found out about it)*
'freedom cages' coming to denver; ss, cia, military plans to suppress protest at dnc*
video: malkin says dnc protesters ‘want brush with torture’*
audio: malkin entourage admits alex jones did not say “kill malkin”*
security turns US conventions into $100m fortresses*
police informer exposed*
video: denver police violence at the dnc*

claim that protesters carried rocks is disputed *
denver police hit protesters with pepper spray from cannons, arrest 100*
anti-abortion protesters arrested in denver*
abc reporter arrested in denver taking pictures of senators, big donors*
denver police arrest abc producer photographing contributors*
pelosi heckled everywhere she goes*
cindy sheehan catches phone bugger in the act at dnc*
'9/11 truth' activists march through denver*
protesters denied access to attorneys, forced to march in leg shackles, aclu charges*
city defends ’secret jail’ built for dnc*
company acknowledges voting machine error*
giuliani visits terrorism exhibit near dnc*
video: the man the democrats should have nominated*

video: ron paul says 'there's no difference' between mccain & obama*

video: protestors prepare for republican convention*

denver police investigate plot to kill obama at dnc

from wcco: CBS station KCNC-TV in Denver has learned at least four people are under arrest in connection with a possible plot to kill Barack Obama at his Thursday night acceptance speech in Denver. All are being held on either drug or weapons charges. KCNC-TV Investigator Brian Maass reported one of the suspects told authorities they were "going to shoot Obama from a high vantage point using a ... rifle … sighted at 750 yards." Law enforcement sources tell Maass that one of the suspects "was directly asked if they had come to Denver to kill Obama. He responded in the affirmative."


update: obama plot wasn't credible threat, police say
from ap: Authorities are investigating whether a man arrested with rifles, ammunition and drugs in his truck made statements threatening Barack Obama, but emphasize he never posed a "credible threat" to the candidate or the Democratic National Convention.

Federal and local authorities had scheduled a news conference for Tuesday afternoon, but U.S. Attorney Troy Eid downplayed the case.

"We're absolutely confident there is no credible threat to the candidate, the Democratic National Convention, or the people of Colorado," Eid said in a statement.

and now, a word from zbigniew brzezinski's daughter...


possible obama assassination plot gets little US coverage
from global research: Oddly, an apparent plot to assassinate Barack Obama during his acceptance speech in Denver that led to four arrests on Sunday is getting very little coverage in the US MSM. It would appear that a blackout is now in force on this story in the US MSM. Both Ha'aretz and the Jerusalem Post covered the story detailing the FBI arrests of four subjects now in custody.

Unsubstantiated reports from Moscow allege that the plot was foiled after the FSB intercepted documents in Georgia describing a project code-named: "Operation Drago" -- an assassination plot that was allegedly engineered by a rogue element of high-ranking Israeli military officials.

The Russian report described the plot that involved a disinformation ploy to set up the members of an outlaw motorcycle gang, the 'Sons of Silence,' as expendables to mislead investigators from the actual perpetrators of the operation. The outlaw bikers arrested by the FBI are described as Neo-Nazis.

Ironically, Obama's opponent, John McCain, made a blatant appeal to the racist right by appearing at the massive outlaw biker rally at Sturgis, South Dakota, an annual convention of Neo-Nazis, white supremacists and anti-semites.

Lebanese television is now covering the story of the Denver assassination plot.

Some of the international reports describe the confessions of one the suspects to his part in the plot to assassinate Obama that was scheduled to take place during his acceptance speech at Invesco Field this Thursday by using a high-powered rifle from a high vantage point that would have provided a clear and unobstructed shot at the podium.

Yahoo has covered the story, but its reports do not contain the rich detail of the accounts published by foreign news agencies.

update: obama ‘murder plot suspect’ interviewed
from raw replay: A gunman who allegedly threatened Barack Obama was never a “credible threat” to the White House hopeful, US authorities have said. This video is from ITN, broadcast August 27, 2008.


update: nazi link in plot to assassinate obama
from scotsman: The three men arrested over a reported plot to kill the US Democratic presidential candidate, Barack Obama, have ties to the white supremacist group Aryan Nations, police said last night.

Shawn Robert Adolf, 33, Nathan Johnson and Tharin Gartrell are all said to have links to the group. Adolf – his real name according to police – and the others were arrested on weapons charges after an apparent move to assassinate Mr Obama during his party's convention in Denver this week.

All three belong to Aryan Nations, according to Victor Ross, the police chief in Glendale, a suburb of Denver where one of the suspects was arrested. The other two were held in Aurora, another suburb. "We don't usually have that number of Aryan Nations people here," Mr Ross said. "It was suspicious to us. We turned everything over to the federal authorities."

the phony left/right paradigm parade begins!

get ready for provocateured violence, grandstanding
& all the bread & circus bullshit you can handle!

will authorities stage riots in denver?
from paul joseph watson: The major question hanging over the Democratic National Convention, which starts in Denver today, is whether or not authorities will follow the lead of previous mass protest events, and actively stage violence to justify a brutal crackdown on legitimate demonstrators. Last year after an incident during the SPP summit in Montebello Canada, Quebec provincial authorities were forced to admit that three rock-wielding mask-wearing “anarchists” were in fact police infiltrators used to gather information on protesters.

fuck fox news: reporter gets heckled by crowd
from youtube: Griff Jenkins in the middle of the Denver protests.


mccain & obama tied in polls as dems open convention
from dpa: The scramble for the White House was dead even between Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain, according to two separate polls released late Sunday, the eve of the opening of the Democratic nominating convention. The Gallup Poll showed each candidate with 45 per cent support from registered voters, while a CNN/Opinion Research Corp poll showed a 47-per-cent stalemate.

aclu: denver cops ‘amped up’ by anti-protester memo
from raw replay: CNN’s Joe Johns reported on security at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. John reported that the ACLU is “irate” at a memo that they say is causing police to get “amped up” to deal with protesters. This video is from CNN’s American Morning, broadcast August 25, 2008.

antiwar protesters hit denver streets

from raw replay: As Democrats prepare for the Democratic National Convention, anti-war protesters took to the streets of Denver to call for an end to the Iraq war. This video is from The Associated Press, broadcast August 24, 2008.

selection '08: mccain's evacuation, nader says hillary will be obama's vp & states abandoning touch screen voting

mccain offices evacuated over suspicious letters

from washington times: Two of Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign offices were evacuated Thursday after receiving suspicious letters, one of which contained an unidentified white powder. A government official said a letter sent to the office of the presumptive Republican presidential nominee near Denver contained powder, but was being treated as a hoax and was thought to have been sent by an inmate at a nearby jail in Arapahoe County. A letter sent to the office in New Hampshire did not contain powder, but aroused suspicions of staffers who were jittery after the Denver-area office received its letter. Secret Service spokesman Eric Zahren said the two letters are unrelated. Despite the likelihood of a hoax, staffers at all the Arizona Republican's campaign offices nationwide were told not to open letters. "Let's be cautious and not open mail tomorrow unless we clearly know the source," according to a campaign e-mail that was sent to staff members and obtained by The Washington Times. "Let's see what comes of this."

nader says obama will pick hillary
from conservative pulse: According to the Politico, Ralph Nader is telling people that he fully expects that Barack Obama will name Hillary Clinton as his running-mate in the next few days. Nader suggests that Obama can’t really pick anyone else, as all other available choices are uninspiring empty suits. “I don’t think he’s that dumb,” said Nader, commenting on widespread speculation that Obama’s choices are down to Sens. Joe Biden, Evan Bayh, or Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine. The smart pick, according to Nader, is Hillary Rodham Clinton. Nader phoned into Politico Tuesday afternoon to offer his prediction that a surprise nod to Clinton is actually what Obama has in store—never mind the talk of mistrust between the Clintons and Obama. “He just has to swallow hard and do what JFK did” in picking rival Lyndon Johnson in 1960, said the liberal activist and maverick presidential candidate.

many states abandoning touch screen voting
from raw replay: CBS’ Tony Guida reported that as the U.S. prepares for the upcoming presidential election, many states are abandoning the electronic touch screen ballots that have caused significant problems in the past. Rep. Rush Holt said that one third of ballots cast will be unverifiable. This video is from CBS’ Evening News, broadcast August 17, 2008.

news crew crashes denver’s dnc concentration camp

from raw story: During the 2004 Republican Nation Convention in New York City, over 1,700 protesters were taken into police custody in one of the most sweeping mass-arrests in US history. Many were held in Manhattan's Pier 57, inside a warehouse which was contaminated with lead and asbestos. Some were held for days, and without proper access to food, water, outside communication or legal counsel.

In Denver, police are preparing what a local political organizer calls a 'concentration camp,' laying in wait for mass arrests anticipated during the upcoming Democratic National Convention.

On Wednesday, a Denver CBS affiliate sent a news crew to crash the police department's improvised detention facility, found in a warehouse owned by the city on the north-east side of town.

update: RAW STORY has obtained a letter from ACLU Colorado, sent to the Denver Police Department regarding the protest detention facility. Read it here.

we are change colorado check out dnc detention camps
from we are change colorado: At it again trying to show everyone the tyrannical government oppression, We Are Change Colorado exposes the detention camps built for the DNC protesters. We Are Change members attempted to go into the camp to get exclusive footage and talk to the guards but were strictly warned to stay away. They did manage to get some footage of the camp and detail some new information about its location and description.

cyanide psyop & the coming denver convention

pound of cyanide found in room where man died
from ap: About a pound of highly toxic sodium cyanide was found in a hotel room where a man's body was discovered, authorities said Wednesday. The Denver medical examiner was still awaiting test results to determine what killed Saleman Abdirahman Dirie, 29, of Ottawa. Police said they do not suspect foul play, and the FBI said there was no apparent connection to terrorism. Dirie's body was found Monday in The Burnsley All Suite Hotel. Investigators said he had been dead for several days. Fire officials said they found a bottle of the white powder in Dirie's room. Police said Wednesday it was cyanide.

false flag cyanide attack planned for the dnc?
from kurt nimmo: “We don’t have terrorist attacks here, we don’t have suicide bombers and I think that’s what people think of when they think about terrorism,” the FBI’s Jim Davis told Denver’s 9News last month. “There is clearly enough activity for us to be very busy in addressing potential threats.” Davis eluded to the usual suspects, specifically anarchists and protesters who will gather during the upcoming DNC. “I think there is some possibility of large scale protests, people who may have it in their mind to disrupt this convention.”

Is it possible anarchists or other terrorists – specifically, Muslims who hate us for our freedom — will disrupt the DNC with a cloud of cyanide gas? It appears the corporate media is preparing us for some sort of terrorist event during the convention...

Saleman Abdirahman Dirie was a member of the Canadian Somali community and manager of Ottawa’s Somali Center for Family Services. Police in Denver and the FBI may “not suspect foul play” and flatly declare that the case has no “apparent connection to terrorism,” however the mere mention of a dead man in possession of a large amount of sodium cyanide and hailing from a country that is predominately Muslim — in fact, Sunni Muslim, just like al-Qaeda — will no doubt result in a lot of hysterical speculation in the corporate media, regardless of what the FBI says at this point.

official says al-qaeda may attack during US election season
from ians: A top US counter-terrorism official has warned of a heightened risk of an Al Qaeda attack during the upcoming US election season with the terrorist outfit exploiting recent political turmoil in Pakistan to strengthen its sanctuary there. While intelligence officials are unaware of specific plans for attacks inside the US, they expect an increase in threats in the run-up to US elections, Ted Gistaro, the national intelligence officer for trans-national threats, has claimed in an assessment.

judge says denver can restrict protests at convention

from reuters: Protesters at the Democratic National Convention in Denver can be restricted to fenced-in areas, federal judge ruled on Wednesday, saying that security needs outweighed curbs on their rights.

A dozen groups who intend to protest at the August convention sued the U.S. Secret Service and the city of Denver over plans to confine their activities to a parade route and fenced-in zone, saying that their Constitutional rights to free speech were being violated.

The American Civil Liberties Union, the American Friends Service Committee and others argued that the rules would keep them too far away from delegates to get their message across during the convention, which is scheduled for Aug 25-28 at the city's downtown Pepsi Center.

U.S. District Judge Marcia Krieger agreed that the protesters would suffer some infringement on their freedom of expression but said those interests had to be balanced with security concerns.

"The restrictions inhibit the plaintiffs' ability to engage in some forms of expressive conduct, (but) ... the plaintiffs have a wide variety of alternative means of expression that will allow them to effectively communicate their messages," Krieger wrote in her 71-page ruling.

related: nat'l guard rents 500+ hotel rooms for dnc

colorado 'fusion center' to gather intel during dnc

from colorado independent: Federal and state law enforcement officials will increase intelligence operations during the Democratic National Convention, overseeing an information war room that will be staffed around the clock with analysts who access a dozen databases while receiving reports of "suspicious activity" — activity that some civil libertarians claim could be nothing more than engaging in anti-war protests or photographing federal facilities that could be targeted for terrorist attack.

Central to the efforts is Colorado's “fusion” center, a place designed to facilitate intelligence sharing among federal, state and military agencies in an effort to prevent terrorism. But civil rights advocates fear that the Colorado Information Analysis Center, (CIAC) now housed in an inconspicuous office building in Centennial, a southern suburb of Denver, could enable unwarranted spying on Americans exercising their First Amendment rights at the convention.

Inside the building, intelligence analysts with the Colorado State Patrol, Colorado National Guard and Federal Bureau of Investigation take local reports of suspicious criminal activity and determine what merits further investigation.

denver area emergency responders train for dnc

from cbs4 denver: Emergency responders around the Denver area were working on drills over the weekend in the event of a major problem during the Democratic National Convention late next month.

Firefighters practiced on a staged accident involving a passenger bus on Interstate 70 in Golden. There were dozens of fake victims and emergency workers helping the wounded.

The Mile High Chapter of the American Red Cross was also preparing this weekend. It rolled out an advanced communications truck worth up to $350,000.

The truck can help local emergency teams stay in touch.

"You run worst case scenarios of downtown Denver needing to be evacuated," said Robert Thompson, spokesman for the Red Cross. "Well, we've never done that.

Thompson said shelter and food plans are in place. There will also be 500 Red Cross volunteers ready to help as needed.

police informants, infiltrators, protests & peace groups

police spied on activists in maryland
from washington post: Undercover Maryland State Police officers conducted surveillance on war protesters and death penalty opponents, including some in Takoma Park, for more than a year while Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. was governor, documents released yesterday show. Detailed intelligence reports logged by at least two agents in the police department's Homeland Security and Intelligence Division reveal close monitoring of the movements as the Iraq war and capital punishment were heatedly debated in 2005 and 2006. Organizational meetings, public forums, prison vigils, rallies outside the State House in Annapolis and e-mail group lists were infiltrated by police posing as peace activists and death penalty opponents, the records show. The surveillance continued even though the logs contained no reports of illegal activity and consistently indicated that the activists were not planning violent protests.

protesters & police educate & gear up for convention
from rocky mountain news: Dozens of protest groups are planning a full schedule of classes, concerts, marches and other actions during the Democratic National Convention, hoping to capture the world's attention and recruit new activists. They are both energized and organized, and most insist they are not looking for trouble. "We are completely peaceful," said Rob Weiland, a 37-year-old courier from Denver and member of the group We Are Change Colorado. "We follow the ideals of Ghandi." The organization will be videotaping other groups and police during the DNC, scheduled for Aug. 25 to 28.

fbi to descend on denver for dem event
from politics west: "Hundreds" of FBI agents will be in Denver during the Democratic National Convention, according to James Davis, the FBI special agent in charge of the Denver field division that oversees Colorado and Wyoming. The FBI is "responsible for gathering intelligence on, primarily terrorist activity, any possible terrorist activity with regard to the convention, and make sure we get that intelligence to our partner agencies so they can be prepared," according to a "Colorado Matters" interview that aired today on Colorado Public Radio. The audio is available here. (m3u)