The Guardian published a leaked FISA court order that made Verizon give up phone information about all of their customers’ calls. The order said that Verizon must on an “ongoing, daily basis” give the NSA information on all telephone calls in its systems. This includes calls made entirely domestically, and is regardless of whether the callers are suspected of any crime. The document was top secret before it was illegally leaked to the Guardian. Verizon was not allowed to disclose the existence or content of the order, indicating that other phone companies might also be under such broad orders. Continue reading “NSA Phone Data Mining”
Category: Adam Goldfein Show
North Korean Tensions Escalate
Tensions on the Korean peninsula continue to escalate in the aftermath of the February nuclear tests by North Korea. North Korea has announced plans to restart a nuclear reactor that was shut down in 2007 as part of an international aid deal. In the past week, the U.S. has sent B-52s, B-2s, and F-22s over South Korea in recent annual military drills as a show of force. Additionally, the U.S. has positioned two guided missile destroyers in South Korean waters. Continue reading “North Korean Tensions Escalate”
Navy Yard Shooting
After Aaron Alexis killed 13 people in Washington D.C., questions began to fly about his possible mental illness. Defense Secretary Hagel said that “red flags” were missed which resulted in Alexis having security clearance to get into the navy yard. Alexis had complained that he was being followed by three individuals who were using “some sort of microwave machine” to send vibrations through his hotel room ceiling, causing him insomnia. Earlier this year he sought treatment from the Department of Veteran’s Affairs for paranoia and other concerns. Continue reading “Navy Yard Shooting”
Millennial Generation is in for a Rough Road
The Millennial Generation, those born between 1980 and 2000, has had the privilege of starting their careers amidst the worst recession since the great depression. Likewise, they have the highest youth unemployment rate of any generation since then and diminished prospects for the future. Despite being the most highly educated generation, youth (age 19-29) unemployment was at 13.1% in January 2013. Only 47.6% of those in that age bracket worked full time. Continue reading “Millennial Generation is in for a Rough Road”
Should Sexual Orientation be a Protected Class?
There have been vocal requests for President Obama to sign an Executive Order which would ban employer discrimination based on sexual orientation for all Federal employees and contractors. Obama publicly supported such an action in both the 2008 and 2012 elections, but has yet to issue an order. The order would make, for the purposes of federal employees and contractors, sexual orientation a protected class, such as race, religion, sex, etc. Continue reading “Should Sexual Orientation be a Protected Class?”
Memories We Never Forget
Everyone has those moments in life that they replay over and over again in their heads. Sometimes it is the presentation we bumbled, and sometimes it’s the awkward date we went on. Sometimes it is missing the game winning field goal. Other times it’s darker and more lasting, a traumatic event that we carry around like a scar. It isn’t the memory that haunts us, but the feelings connected to it. Continue reading “Memories We Never Forget”
Medicated America
The United State of America is the most heavily medicated country in the world. With 3.5 billion drugs or more prescribed each year, Americans buy more drugs per person than any other country. About 34% of American adults take at least one prescription drug and 11.5% take 3 or more, according to a 2012 Forbes report. This amounts to around 130 million Americans each month. Continue reading “Medicated America”
Massive Banking Fraud at LIBOR
If you think fixing boxing matches is bad, this one will blow you away. Over the past decade, major banks have been submitting false data to the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) in order to manipulate it and make huge profits. UBS, which is the largest bank in Switzerland, agreed to pay $1.5 billion in fines to international regulators for their role in the LIBOR scandal. By the way, UBS is on the list of the 29 “global systemically important banks.” It’s too big to fail. Continue reading “Massive Banking Fraud at LIBOR”
Mali: Is the U.S. Getting Involved in Another War?
Monday the United States signed a status-of-forces agreement with Niger that would allow the U.S. to fly drones from Nigerian air strips into neighboring Mali. Additionally, the U.S. is letting France use three of its air tankers for troop transport and mid-air refueling. The U.S. role in Mali is currently limited to support and intelligence gathering, with Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta indicating that a ground troop presence is unlikely. Continue reading “Mali: Is the U.S. Getting Involved in Another War?”
Making Babies
There are approximately 4 million live births in the U.S. each year, but getting there isn’t easy. Each year there are 600,000 miscarriages and 26,000 stillbirths. Additionally, 875,000 Americans experience one or more pregnancy complications. Of the babies born, 467,000 are born prematurely. Sadly, 27,864 infants die before their first birthday. So what can you do to improve your chances of making a healthy baby? Continue reading “Making Babies”
Ronin Pen 