Matt Taibbi gives an update on the predatory activities of Bank of America

Rolling Stone's Matt Taibbi is not shy when it comes to hitting back at Bank of America:

They're in deep trouble, but they won't die, because our current president, like the last one, apparently believes it's better to project a false image of financial soundness than to allow one of our oligarchic banks to collapse under the weight of its own corruption. Last year, the Federal Reserve allowed Bank of America to move a huge portfolio of dangerous bets into a side of the company that happens to be FDIC-insured, putting all of us on the hook for as much as $55 trillion in irresponsible gambles. Then, in February, the Justice Department's so-called foreclosure settlement, which will supposedly provide $26 billion in relief for ripped-off homeowners, actually rewarded the bank with a legal waiver that will allow it to escape untold billions in lawsuits. And this month the Fed will release the results of its annual stress test, in which the bank will once again be permitted to perpetuate its fiction of solvency by grossly overrating the mountains of toxic loans on its books. At this point, the rescue effort is so sweeping and elaborate that it goes far beyond simply gouging the tax dollars of millions of struggling families, many of whom have already been ripped off by the bank – it's making the government, and by extension all of us, full-blown accomplices to the fraud.

Continue ReadingMatt Taibbi gives an update on the predatory activities of Bank of America

Before you protest the latest U.S. massacre of innocents in Afghanistan . . .

Here's merely the latest reported massacre caused by U.S. troops in Afghanistan:

An American soldier opened fire on villagers near his base in southern Afghanistan Sunday and killed 16 civilians, according to President Hamid Karzai, who called it an "assassination" and furiously demanded an explanation from Washington. Nine children and three women were among the dead.
Perhaps you're considering going to Washington D.C. to protest this abominable behavior, especially since it has been reported that this massacre was done in your name (in that you are an American) and since the American soldiers doing the shooting were drunk, and because your government has no reason for this ten-year occupation of Afghanistan. Better watch your step if you decide to protest anywhere near the White House, near a building or grounds where the President or other person protected by the Secret Service is or will be temporarily visiting; or near a building or grounds so restricted in conjunction with an event designated as a special event of national significance. You see, according to a newly passed federal law [H.R. 347], you could be thrown in federal prison for up to a year, even if you aren't carrying a weapon and even if no one is injured as a result of your protest. If someone is injured as a result of the protest, you could (even though your own intentions were peaceful and you didn't cause any injuries) be thrown in federal prison for up to ten years. This law was signed by President Obama on March 8, 2012.

Continue ReadingBefore you protest the latest U.S. massacre of innocents in Afghanistan . . .

Due process sure ain’t what it used to be

Attorney General Eric Holder gave a speech this week, a speech which is the only known public justification for the administration's policy of assassinations of American citizens. The speech may be read in its entirety here. The real justifications are too secret to tell you about, so Holder had to summarize the complex legal arguments and distill them down to their legal essence. For those of you who don't have the time to read the whole speech, allow me to distill the arguments further. Holder's weighty legal analysis boils down to this: "we can do whatever we want, and nobody can tell us otherwise." [More . . . ]

Continue ReadingDue process sure ain’t what it used to be

Barack Obama’s sad record on secrecy

Josh Gerstein sums up Barack Obama's massively disappointing record on secrecy at Politico, including this passage:

“Obama is the sixth administration that’s been in office since I’ve been doing Freedom of Information Act work. … It’s kind of shocking to me to say this, but of the six, this administration is the worst on FOIA issues. The worst. There’s just no question about it,” said Katherine Meyer, a Washington lawyer who’s been filing FOIA cases since 1978. “This administration is raising one barrier after another. … It’s gotten to the point where I’m stunned — I’m really stunned.” David Sobel, senior counsel at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said that “despite the positive rhetoric that has come from the White House and the attorney general, that guidance has not been translated into real world results in actual cases. … Basically, the reviews are terrible.”

Continue ReadingBarack Obama’s sad record on secrecy

The higher principle involved in the U.S. persecution of Wikileaks

Rolling Stone's Michael Hastings recently interviewed Julian Assange, head of Wikileaks, who pointed out a huge problem with the government's legal position:

The U.S. government is trying to redefine what have been long-accepted journalistic methods. If the Pentagon is to have its way, it will be the end of national-security journalism in the United States . . . They're trying to interpret the Espionage Act to say that any two-way communication with a source is a collaboration with a source, and is therefore a conspiracy to commit espionage where classified information is involved. The Pentagon, in fact, issued a public demand to us that we not only destroy everything we had ever published or were ever going to publish in relation to the U.S. government, but that we also stop "soliciting" information from U.S. government employees. The Espionage Act itself does not mention solicitation, but they're trying to create a new legal precedent that includes a journalist simply asking a source to communicate information.
Here's one more quote from the above article:
When you shake something up, you have a chance to rebuild. But we're not interested in shaking something up just for the hell of it. I believe that if we look at what makes a civilization civilized, it is people understanding what is really going on. When Gutenberg invented the printing press, the end result was that people who knew something of what was going on could convey that information to others. And as a result of the Internet, we are now living in a time where it's a lot easier to convey what we know about our corner of the world and share it with others.

Continue ReadingThe higher principle involved in the U.S. persecution of Wikileaks