No Agenda Episode 648 - "Centrifuge Him!"

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No Agenda Episode 648 - "Centrifuge Him!"
  No Agenda Episode 648 - "Centrifuge Him!"
    Centrifuge Him!
    Direct [link] to the mp3 file
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  Cover Art
    Art By: Sir Nussbaum
    See All The Art in the Generator
  Credits
    Centrifuge Him!
    Executive Producers: Sir Timothy Loudermilk, Sir Steven Pelsmaekers Grand Duke of Belgium & France, Sir Don Tomaso Di Toronto, Sir Wire of the Hidden Jewel James Pyers, Sir David Foley Grand Duke of the United States, Sir Sam Leung Baron of the No Agenda Round Table,
    Associate Executive Producers: Marco Straus, Brian Ferguson, Sir Dr Sharkey
    Become a member of the 649 Club, support the show here
    Sign Up for the newsletter
    Knighthoods: Timothy Loudermilk -> Sir Loudermilk, Jeff Yerkey -> Sir Jeff of the Magnetic Fields
    Art By: Sir Nussbaum
    ShowNotes Archive of links and Assets (clips etc) 648.noagendanotes.com
    New: Directory Archive of Shownotes (includes all audio and video assets used) nashownotes.com
    The No Agenda News Network- noagendanewsnetwork.com
    RSS Podcast Feed
    Get the No Agenda News App for your iPhone and iPad
    Get the NoAgendDroid app for your Android Phone
    Torrents of each episode via BitLove
    New! BitTorrent Sync the No Agenda Show

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      Presidential Proclamation - Labor Day, 2014
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 06:07
        The White House
        Office of the Press Secretary
        For Immediate Release
        August 29, 2014
        LABOR DAY, 2014
        - - - - - - -
        BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
        A PROCLAMATION
        On Labor Day, we honor the legacy of our working women and men who have played a defining role in the American story and all those who carry forward our Nation's proud tradition of hard work, responsibility, and sacrifice. From assembly lines to classrooms, across highways and steel mills, American workers strengthen the foundation of our country and demonstrate that our economy grows best from the middle out.
        For generations, working Americans have fought to build a better life for their families and a better future for their country. United in the cause of dignity and justice in the workplace, they organized for the workplace protections that have helped build the largest and most prosperous economy in the world, including the 40-hour workweek, overtime pay, and safe working conditions. Each hard-won victory, from laws establishing collective bargaining to those guaranteeing a minimum wage, has helped raise standards of living for people across our Nation and provided them with opportunities to climb the ladder of success.
        In the same spirit of strength and resilience, Americans today have battled back from a financial crisis, a weakening economic foundation, and the worst recession of our lifetimes. We have brought manufacturing jobs back to America, invested in skills and education, and begun to lay the groundwork for stronger, more durable economic growth.
        But we still have more work left to do to reverse the forces that have conspired against working Americans for decades. As we seek to strengthen our economy and our middle class, we must secure a better bargain for all -- one where everyone who works hard in America has a chance to get ahead. I am committed to boosting economic mobility by empowering our workers and making sure an honest day's work is rewarded with an honest day's pay. My Administration is fighting for a fair minimum wage for every employee because nobody who works full-time should ever have to raise a family in poverty. We must also eliminate pay discrimination so women receive equal pay for equal work, combat unfair labor practices, and continue to defend the collective bargaining rights our parents and grandparents fought so hard for.
        As we celebrate Labor Day, we reflect on the efforts of those who came before us to increase opportunity, expand the middle class, and build security for our families, and we rededicate ourselves to moving forward with this work in our time. We stand united behind our great American workforce as we lay the path for economic growth and prosperity.
        NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 1, 2014, as Labor Day. I call upon all public officials and people of the United States to observe this day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities that honor the contributions and resilience of working Americans.
        IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of August, in the year of our Lord two thousand fourteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-ninth.
        BARACK OBAMA
      Presidential Proclamation -- National Wilderness Month, 2014
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 06:06
        The White House
        Office of the Press Secretary
        For Immediate Release
        August 29, 2014
        NATIONAL WILDERNESS MONTH, 2014
        - - - - - - -
        BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
        A PROCLAMATION
        Fifty years ago, a forward-thinking Nation came together, a President put pen to paper, and a great society secured an enduring gift for future generations. Signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson on September 3, 1964, the Wilderness Act and the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act began a new era of American conservation. Together, they set aside an initial 9.1 million acres of Federal land for the use and enjoyment of the American people and recognized our obligation to preserve a piece of our original and unspoiled splendor for posterity. For the first time, our Nation defined vast stretches of our continent as wilderness and codified the simple premise that when we take something from the earth, we have a responsibility to give something back. On the anniversary of this environmental milestone, we reflect on our rich tradition of stewardship, which has preserved the wild and scenic places we enjoy today, and renew our commitment to advancing our country's legacy of conservation in our own time.
        Our Nation's wilderness shaped the growth of our country and the character and spirit of our people. Early pioneers explored its expanse as they pushed westward, and its natural bounty sustained settlers who found new land and new opportunities for prosperity. Today our vast wilderness -- which has grown to more than 109 million protected acres -- provides laboratories for our researchers and classrooms for our students pursuing new frontiers of science, medicine, and technology. This land is the habitat for our Nation's diverse flora and fauna and refuge for Americans of all ages. And it supports recreation and tourism that strengthen our economy.
        My Administration continues to pursue a conservation agenda for the 21st century. During my first year as President, I designated over 2 million acres of wilderness and more than 1,000 miles of rivers. And earlier this year, I established the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument, marking the eleventh time I have used my Executive authority to protect our pristine landscapes and historic and cultural heritage.
        America's open spaces stretch from rocky mountain tops to windswept tundras, but they are also found between city blocks and at the end of country roads. In small towns and urban centers across our Nation, my Administration is working to reconnect Americans to our natural beauty. To empower local communities to protect and utilize these natural resources, we launched the America's Great Outdoors Initiative. For decades, the Land and Water Conservation Fund has supported these efforts by making critical investments to increase access to the outdoors for hunting and other recreation, protect our country's iconic features -- from National Parks to Civil War battlefields -- and advance over 40,000 local projects establishing everything from baseball fields to community green spaces. But 50 years after President Johnson signed the Fund into law, it is set to expire without action from the Congress. I have called for the full and permanent funding of this vital tool of environmental stewardship, and I continue to work to make it easier for families to spend time outside no matter where they live.
        Today, our outdoor spaces are more precious than ever, and it is more important than ever to come together and protect them for the next generation. During National Wilderness Month, we draw on the audacity and vision of previous generations of environmental stewards and resolve to do our part to preserve our planet for our children and for their children.
        NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 2014 as National Wilderness Month. I invite all Americans to visit and enjoy our wilderness areas, to learn about their vast history, and to aid in the protection of our precious national treasures.
        IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of August, in the year of our Lord two thousand fourteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-ninth.
        BARACK OBAMA
      Presidential Proclamation - National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, 2014
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 06:08
        The White House
        Office of the Press Secretary
        For Immediate Release
        August 29, 2014
        NATIONAL CHILDHOOD OBESITY AWARENESS MONTH, 2014
        - - - - - - -
        BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
        A PROCLAMATION
        Childhood obesity is one of the most urgent health issues we face in the United States. Nearly one in three American children are overweight or obese, putting them at risk for many immediate and long-term health problems -- including high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. As a Nation, we have a responsibility to ensure our children have every chance to fulfill their potential, and that starts by providing them with the opportunities to make healthy choices. Recent data show progress is possible: obesity rates have fallen by 43 percent among children ages two to five years old. But we must remain committed to improving the health of kids of all ages. This month, we build on our progress and raise awareness of the benefits of healthy eating and active living so our children can lead prosperous and productive lives.
        First Lady Michelle Obama's
        Let's Move! initiative is striving to ensure every young person has a chance at a healthy childhood. For more than 4 years, Let's Move! has brought together stakeholders across the public and private sectors to encourage and expand access to physical activity and nutritious foods -- two components of a healthy lifestyle. Across America, more communities have gained access to healthy and affordable food and the information needed to make more nutritious choices. Businesses are marketing healthier foods to kids, and families are buying healthier products.
        Family members, caregivers, and other role models can also play a critical role in helping children make healthy choices. Those who support our kids can model healthy behaviors by staying active and preparing healthy meals at home. Families can plant kitchen gardens, cook together, and encourage lifestyle choices that support a healthy weight.
        My Administration is working to make sure the hard work parents and caregivers are doing to teach kids healthy habits will not be undone outside the home. We have fought to improve the overall quality of school meals, and as students return to school this fall, they will have more opportunities than ever before to make healthy choices -- including changes in foods offered in vending machines and a la carte lines. This past year, my Administration announced a new proposal to prohibit items that cannot be sold or served in schools from being marketed in schools. These measures build on the progress already made by the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, which this year will allow more than 22,000 schools across the country to qualify to serve free, healthy breakfasts and lunches for all their students.
        Each American has an important part to play as we build healthier communities for young people across our Nation. During National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, we continue our work to provide every child with healthy food, active play, and a good example to follow. By committing to a healthy lifestyle for our families and eating right ourselves, we can help turn the tide against childhood obesity across our country.
        NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 2014 as National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month. I encourage all Americans to learn about and engage in activities that promote healthy eating and greater physical activity by all our Nation's children.
        IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of August, in the year of our Lord two thousand fourteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-ninth.
        BARACK OBAMA
      Presidential Proclamation - National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, 2014
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 06:08
        The White House
        Office of the Press Secretary
        For Immediate Release
        August 29, 2014
        NATIONAL CHILDHOOD CANCER AWARENESS MONTH, 2014
        - - - - - - -
        BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
        A PROCLAMATION
        Each year, pediatric cancer interrupts the childhood and limits the potential of thousands of young Americans. It is estimated that almost 16,000 of our daughters and sons under the age of 20 will be diagnosed with cancer this year, and it remains the leading cause of disease-related death for children. This month -- in honor of these young patients, their loved ones, and all those who support them -- we rededicate ourselves to combating this devastation.
        Critical research has led to real progress in the fight against pediatric cancer. Improvements in treatment and increased participation in clinical trials have helped decrease mortality rates for many types of childhood cancer by more than 50 percent over the past 30 years. These gains remind us of the importance of supporting scientific advances, and give us hope for a future free from cancer in all its forms. My Administration continues to invest in long-term research efforts that will build on this progress. As part of this commitment, earlier this year I signed the Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act, which established the 10-Year Pediatric Research Initiative Fund. I continue to call on the Congress to invest the millions of dollars available in this Fund to support the urgent medical innovation that could lead to life-changing breakthroughs.
        As we continue to pursue medical advances, the Affordable Care Act is improving families' access to quality, affordable health coverage. Childhood cancer can occur suddenly, with no early symptoms, and regular medical checkups can help detect pediatric cancer at an early stage. The Affordable Care Act helps millions of families access this essential medical care, and new protections eliminate annual and lifetime dollar limits on coverage. Insurance companies are also prohibited from denying coverage due to a history of cancer, or any other pre-existing condition, and from denying participation in an approved clinical trial for any life-threatening disease.
        During National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, our Nation comes together to remember all those whose lives were cut short by pediatric cancer, to recognize the loved ones who know too well the pain it causes, and to support every child and every family battling cancer each day. We join with their loved ones and the researchers, health care providers, and advocates who support them as we work toward a tomorrow where all children are able to pursue their full measure of happiness without the burden of cancer.
        NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 2014 as National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. I encourage all Americans to join me in reaffirming our commitment to fighting childhood cancer.
        IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of August, in the year of our Lord two thousand fourteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-ninth.
        BARACK OBAMA
      Presidential Proclamation -- National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, 2014
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 06:07
        The White House
        Office of the Press Secretary
        For Immediate Release
        August 29, 2014
        NATIONAL OVARIAN CANCER AWARENESS MONTH, 2014
        - - - - - - -
        BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
        A PROCLAMATION
        Ovarian cancer is the most deadly of all female reproductive system cancers. This year nearly 22,000 Americans will be diagnosed with this cancer, and more than 14,000 will die from it. The lives of mothers and daughters will be taken too soon, and the pain of this disease will touch too many families. During National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, we honor the loved ones we have lost to this disease and all those who battle it today, and we continue our work to improve care and raise awareness about ovarian cancer.
        When ovarian cancer is found in its early stages, treatment is most effective and the chances for recovery are greatest. But ovarian cancer is difficult to detect early -- there is no simple and reliable way to screen for this disease, symptoms are often not clear until later stages, and most women are diagnosed without being at high risk. That is why it is important for all women to pay attention to their bodies and know what is normal for them. Women who experience unexplained changes -- including abdominal pain, pressure, and swelling -- should talk with their health care provider. To learn more about the risk factors and symptoms of ovarian cancer, Americans can visit www.Cancer.gov.
        Regular health checkups increase the chance of early detection, and the Affordable Care Act expands this critical care to millions of women. Insurance companies are now required to cover well-woman visits, which provide women an opportunity to talk with their health care provider, and insurers are prohibited from charging a copayment for this service.
        For the thousands of women affected by ovarian cancer, the Affordable Care Act also prohibits insurance companies from denying coverage due to a pre-existing condition, such as cancer or a family history of cancer; prevents insurers from denying participation in an approved clinical trial for any life-threatening disease; and eliminates annual and lifetime dollar limits on coverage. And as we work to ease the burden of ovarian cancer for today's patients, my Administration continues to invest in the critical research that will lead to earlier detection, improved care, and the medical breakthroughs of tomorrow.
        Ovarian cancer and the hardship it brings have affected too many lives. This month, our Nation stands with everyone who has been touched by this disease, and we recognize all those committed to advancing the fight against this cancer through research, advocacy, and quality care. Together, let us renew our commitment to reducing the impact of ovarian cancer and to a future free from cancer in all its forms.
        NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 2014 as National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month. I call upon citizens, government agencies, organizations, health care providers, and research institutions to raise ovarian cancer awareness and continue helping Americans live longer, healthier lives. I also urge women across our country to talk to their health care providers and learn more about this disease.
        IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of August, in the year of our Lord two thousand fourteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-ninth.
        BARACK OBAMA
      Presidential Proclamation -- National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month, 2014
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 06:07
        The White House
        Office of the Press Secretary
        For Immediate Release
        August 29, 2014
        NATIONAL ALCOHOL AND DRUG ADDICTION RECOVERY MONTH, 2014
        - - - - - - -
        BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
        A PROCLAMATION
        Every day, courageous men and women take the first step toward reclaiming their lives from substance use disorders. We recognize the strength and resolve of these individuals who have committed to recovery, and we are reminded that in the face of great trials, Americans have always drawn on the power of hope, determination, and perseverance. During the 25th annual National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month, we celebrate those who are seeking treatment and those who have found pathways to healthy, rewarding lives, and we stand with the families, friends, and professionals who support them.
        For the more than 20 million Americans who struggle with substance use disorders, recovery is possible. Research shows addiction is a chronic disease of the brain which can be prevented and treated. However, the stigma associated with this disease -- and the false belief that addiction represents a personal failing -- creates fear and shame that discourage people from seeking treatment and prevents them from fully rejoining and contributing to their communities. This year's theme, "Join the Voices for Recovery: Speak Up, Reach Out," urges those who need help to ask for it, and it reminds us that prevention works, treatment is effective, and people can and do recover. Americans seeking help for themselves or their loved ones can call 1-800-662-HELP, or use the "Treatment Locator" tool at www.SAMHSA.gov.
        Substance use is a major public health concern, and my Administration is dedicated to promoting evidence-based strategies to combat it. Our 2014 National Drug Control Strategy promotes programs to stop substance use before it begins in our schools and workplaces. It supports policies that remove barriers and expand access to treatment, making recovery a reality for millions of people. And under the Affordable Care Act, more Americans are able to obtain quality, affordable health coverage, and companies participating in the Health Insurance Marketplace are required to cover mental health and substance use disorder treatment services as part of their essential health benefits.
        Recovery is a positive force that transforms individuals, families, and communities -- but often it is a long and difficult journey. This month, we come together to spread its promise, and remind everyone struggling with substance use that a better life is possible.
        NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 2014 as National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month. I call upon the people of the United States to observe this month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.
        IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of August, in the year of our Lord two thousand fourteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-ninth.
        BARACK OBAMA
      Presidential Proclamation -- National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, 2014
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 06:06
        The White House
        Office of the Press Secretary
        For Immediate Release
        August 29, 2014
        NATIONAL PROSTATE CANCER AWARENESS MONTH, 2014
        - - - - - - -
        BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
        A PROCLAMATION
        Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers among American men. They are fathers, brothers, and sons -- and this year, more than 230,000 of them are expected to be diagnosed with this disease. During National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, we honor all those whose lives have been touched by this disease, and we renew our commitment to reducing its devastating impact through more effective prevention, detection, and treatment.
        Since the mid-1990s, the mortality rate for prostate cancer has fallen, but too many men -- an estimated 29,000 this year -- will die from this disease, and even more are at risk. Increased awareness can help these men make informed choices about their health. While the exact causes of prostate cancer remain unknown, medical research has identified well-established risk factors with which men should be familiar, including age, family history, and race. I encourage all men, especially those at higher risk, to talk with their doctors about how prostate cancer could affect them.
        My Administration continues to invest in critical research to help better prevent this disease and treat it with fewer side effects, and to further our understanding of the disproportionate impact prostate cancer has on African-American men. As part of the Affordable Care Act, more options for quality, affordable health coverage are available and new protections are in place, expanding access to life-saving care for millions of Americans, including those impacted by prostate cancer. Insurance companies can no longer deny coverage due to a pre-existing condition, such as cancer, or deny participation in an approved clinical trial for any life-threatening disease. And men fighting prostate cancer are no longer faced with annual or lifetime dollar limits on coverage that could disrupt their treatments.
        Even as we continue the urgent work of improving care, too many lives will be disrupted and too many families will experience the pain of prostate cancer. But we must remain steadfast in our commitment to ease the burden of this disease, and every day we must continue to work toward a future free from cancer in all its forms.
        This month, as we come together to raise awareness about prostate cancer, we remember those we lost to this disease. Let us support the patients who continue to battle this cancer each day and the families who stand by their side, and recognize the tireless work of our Nation's health care providers, researchers, and advocates.
        NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 2014 as National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. I encourage all citizens, government agencies, private businesses, non-profit organizations, and other groups to join in activities that will increase awareness and prevention of prostate cancer.
        IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of August, in the year of our Lord two thousand fourteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-ninth.
        BARACK OBAMA
      Presidential Proclamation -- National Preparedness Month, 2014
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 06:07
        The White House
        Office of the Vice President
        For Immediate Release
        August 29, 2014
        NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS MONTH, 2014
        - - - - - - -
        BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
        A PROCLAMATION
        In times of emergency, our Nation pulls together --neighbors support each other, communities react with compassion, and afterward, our country emerges stronger and more resilient. But before emergencies occur, we must make sure we are ready to respond, and it is every American's responsibility to be prepared. There are simple but important steps we can all take to ensure we know what to do and have what we need in the event of a crisis. National Preparedness Month is an opportunity to talk with our families, friends, and colleagues about the risks in our communities and to practice our responses in all the places we regularly visit.
        Emergencies -- from hurricanes and wildfires to cyber and terrorist attacks -- can strike anywhere at any time. Americans should be familiar with local threats and hazards and take steps to reduce their devastating impacts. Families should assemble a disaster supplies kit well in advance and have a plan to reconnect after a tragedy. To make sure you are ready in the event of a crisis and to learn more about the types of disasters common in your area, visit www.Ready.gov or www.Listo.gov.
        In regions affected by disaster, my Administration invested billions of dollars during the immediate aftermath to support a rapid response. We bolstered coordination with our local, State, tribal, and territorial partners to cut through red tape and kept our commitment to rebuild stronger and fully recover together. We are harnessing our Nation's innovative spirit to develop new tools and technologies that will empower survivors and better inform Americans before, during, and after an emergency. My Administration also launched America's PrepareAthon! to assist with increasing local readiness. Through this initiative, communities across our country will participate in the second national day of action on September 30, providing Americans of all ages with resources and opportunities to increase their preparedness.
        Our Nation also faces longer wildfire seasons, more severe droughts, heavier rainfall, and more frequent flooding in a changing climate. That is why, as part of my Climate Action Plan, we are committed to building smarter, more resilient infrastructure that can withstand more frequent and more devastating natural disasters and to supporting our communities as they prepare for these impacts.
        When and where emergencies occur are beyond our control -- but how we prepare and how we respond are up to us. This month, we honor the heroes who put the needs and lives of others before their own and rush to help in times of tragedy: our emergency responders and other extraordinary Americans who are prepared to act in critical moments. Let us resolve to be ready for any crisis and work to inspire a new generation of Americans, vested with the knowledge and experience to protect themselves, their families, and their communities in the face of any challenge.
        NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 2014 as National Preparedness Month. I encourage all Americans to recognize the importance of preparedness and work together to enhance our national security, resilience, and readiness.
        IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of August, in the year of our Lord two thousand fourteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-ninth.
        BARACK OBAMA
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      Family Dinner
      Koch Brothers!
      Tea Party!
      Burgers & Bullets!
      Remco Political Editor has not seen Foley video
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      She said yes!
        Adam & John,
        Thank you for doing the proposal sumita was totally blown away. She said yes!
        It was perfect and we have the memory recorded forever. Pretty damn cool.
        Picture attached.
        With love
        Bhaskar & Sumita
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      Was enjoying the beauty of the SMTP protocol and system
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      The problem with Snowden isn't the secrets he exposed, but the ability to label people as conspiracy theorists because "if it were so horrible in government, someone would say someting about it"
      Get labled a traitor!
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    Ebola
      DefenseLINK News: Secretary Cohen With Senators Nunn and Lugar - April 28, 1997
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 10:58
        Updated: 14 Jan 2003DoD News BriefingSecretary of Defense William S. CohenMonday, April 28, 1997 - 8:45 a.m. EDT
        Cohen's keynote address at the Conference on Terrorism, Weapons of Mass Destruction, and U.S. Strategy at the Georgia Center, Mahler Auditorium, University of Georgia, Athens, Ga. The event is part of the Sam Nunn Policy Forum being hosted by the University of Georgia. Secretary Cohen is joined by Sen. Sam Nunn and Sen. Richard G. Lugar.]Secretary Cohen: Senator Nunn, thank you very much. As Senator Nunn has indicated, he and I have worked for many years together, along with Senator Lugar. The two of these gentlemen I feel are perhaps the most courageous and visionary to have served in the Senate. They were largely responsible, of course, for adopting the so-called Nunn/Lugar legislation.
        I'll comment on that later during the course of the morning, but I've had occasion to meet with a number of Russian counterparts, and as we go through various translations of the communications that we're having, the two words they are able to articulate very clearly, they say 'Nunn/Lugar, Nunn/Lugar. So they know exactly what that means, and that means the Cooperative Thre'at Reduction Act that these two gentlemen were indispensable in shepherding through the United States Congress.
        It was Nunn/Lugar I that dealt with the reduction of nuclear weapons between the United States and the Soviet Union in terms of trying to come to grips with how we helped the Russians dismantle hundreds of their nuclear weapons, and also helped them with their destruction of chemical weapons. But they, of course, have looked beyond simply that particular relationship, which is very important, but also looking to the future that we face as far as the rise of terrorism -- both international and domestic; and finding ways in which the Department of Defense can become involved in helping local states and local agencies to deal with the threat of terrorism which is quite likely to increase in the coming years.
        It's a pleasure for me to be here. Both Senator Nunn and Senator Lugar are close friends and I look forward to, I think, a very productive seminar. Once again demonstrating that although Senator Nunn has left public service in the Senate, he has not left public service as far as the nation is concerned.
        It's a pleasure for me to be here, Sam.
        Senator Nunn: Thank you very much, Bill.
        . ..Let me ask if there are any questions for Secretary of Defense Cohen.
        Q: The dual containment policy in Iran and Iraq, do you think that's conducive to regional stability in that region? And do you think can cause further terrorism in the United States? That type of containment policy in the Middle East.
        A: I think Secretary Albright articulated our policy as far as dealing with Iraq, that it's clear that we have been unable to strike any kind of a productive relationship with Saddam Hussein, and as soon as Saddam Hussein is no longer the head of that government, that there's new regime that follows him, that we will look forward to finding ways in which we could engage them in a much more productive fashion, particularly after they comply with all of the UN sanctions. There's an eagerness on our part to do that. But I think as long as he remains in office as the head of that state, it's unlikely that we could have anything but the current policy in place, with very little prospects for relief.
        With respect to Iran, I think Iran continues to present a long term threat to the region. They are acquiring and have acquired weapons of mass destruction, substantial levels of chemicals and we believe biological weapons as well. They have made an effort to acquire nuclear capability. So I think that our policy of dual containment is the right one, and we are going to encourage our allies to support that one.
        Q: What does it mean that Clinton (inaudible) proliferation?
        A: To the extent that we see the level of communication available today, the Internet and other types of interwoven communicative skills and abilities, we're going to see information continue to spread as to how these weapons can be, in fact, manufactured in a home-grown laboratory, as such. So it's a serious problem as far as living in the information age that people who are acquiring this kind of information will not act responsibly, but rather act in a terrorist type of fashion.
        We've seen by way of example of the World Trade Center the international aspects of international terrorism coming to our home territory. We've also seen domestic terrorism with the Oklahoma bombing. So it's a real threat that's here today. It's likely to intensify in the years to come as more and more groups have access to this kind of information and the ability to produce them.
        Q: How prepared is the U.S. Government to deal with (inaudible)?
        A: I think we have to really intensify our efforts. That's the reason for the Nunn/Lugar II program. That's the reason why it's a local responsibility, as such, but the Department of Defense is going to be taking the lead as far as supervising the interagency working groups, and to make the assessments as to what needs to be done. So we're going to identify those 120 cities and work with them very closely to make sure that they can prepare themselves for what is likely to be a threat well into the future.
        Q: Let me ask you specifically about last week's scare here in Washington, and what we might have learned from how prepared we are to deal with that (inaudible), at B'nai Brith.
        A: Well, it points out the nature of the threat. It turned out to be a false threat under the circumstances. But as we've learned in the intelligence community, we had something called -- and we have James Woolsey here to perhaps even address this question about phantom moles. The mere fear that there is a mole within an agency can set off a chain reaction and a hunt for that particular mole which can paralyze the agency for weeks and months and years even, in a search. The same thing is true about just the false scare of a threat of using some kind of a chemical weapon or a biological one. There are some reports, for example, that some countries have been trying to construct something like an Ebola Virus, and that would be a very dangerous phenomenon, to say the least. Alvin Toeffler has written about this in terms of some scientists in their laboratories trying to devise certain types of pathogens that would be ethnic specific so that they could just eliminate certain ethnic groups and races; and others are designing some sort of engineering, some sort of insects that can destroy specific crops. Others are engaging even in an eco- type of terrorism whereby they can alter the climate, set off earthquakes, volcanoes remotely through the use of electromagnetic waves.
        So there are plenty of ingenious minds out there that are at work finding ways in which they can wreak terror upon other nations. It's real, and that's the reason why we have to intensify our efforts, and that's why this is so important.
        Q: What is response to (inaudible)?
        A: We hope we will have access to the defector. In fact I was recently in South Korea and talked with various officials in South Korea. As soon as they complete their own interrogation of this defector, we will have access to that individual. But much of what he has said to date is reflected in the writings that he prepared last year. This is prior to his defection. One would not expect a potential defector to be writing about anything other than what the official doctrine or dogma is of the North Korean government at that time. He is saying essentially what we have known for a long, long time. Namely, that North Korea poses a very serious threat against South Korea, and potentially even Japan, by virtue of having the fourth largest army in the world, by having 600,000 or more troops poised within 100 kilometers of Seoul, of possessing many SCUD missiles, also the potential of chemically armed warheads, the attempt to acquire nuclear weapons. So we know they have this potential, and the question really is going to be what's in their hearts and minds at this point? Do they intend to try to launch such an attack in the immediate, foreseeable future? That we can only speculate about, but that's the reason why we are so well prepared to defend against such an attack to deter it; and to send a message that it would be absolutely an act of suicide for the North Koreans to launch an attack. They could do great damage in the short run, but they would be devastated in response. So we're hoping we can find ways to bring them to the bargaining table -- the Party of Four Talks -- and see if we can't put them on a path toward peace instead of threatening any kind of devastating attack upon the South.
        Q: . ..a little bit about the situation in (inaudible)?
        A: I really don't have much more information than has been in the press at this point. The Department has not been called upon to act in this regard just yet, so I'm not at liberty to give you any more information than you already have.
        Q: . ..the Administration's plans to expand NATO to more European countries. Is there a terrorism element? Or will expanding NATO help you in any way in terms of (inaudible)? Or is it really unrelated?
        A: I think the two are unrelated. There is a legitimate debate that will take place in terms of the pace of enlargement or whether there should be enlargement. Secretary Albright and I testified last week before the Senate Armed Services Committee, and it was a very, I think, productive debate. It's something that Senator Nunn, I think, feels very strongly about as well. The two of us, I think, found ourselves on the Senate Floor last year saying it was time for the American people to start debating this issue. So it's very important and there will be legitimate differences of opinion, but it's important that we bring this to the Senate for full debate and disclosure, and bring it to the American people. But I doubt if it's related to the spread of terrorism whatsoever.
        Senator Nunn: Thank you very much.
    Caliphate!
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      Terror Laptop of Doom!
      Found: The Islamic State's Terror Laptop of Doom
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 10:29
        Keith Alexander, the recently retired director of the National Security Agency, left many in Washington slack-jawed when it was reported that he might charge companies up to $1 million a month to help them protect their computer networks from hackers. What insights or expertise about cybersecurity could possibly justify such a sky-high fee, somewondered, even for a man as well-connected in the military-industrial complex as the former head of the nation's largest intelligence agency?
        The answer, Alexander said in an interview Monday, is a new technology, based on a patented and "unique" approach to detecting malicious hackers and cyber-intruders that the retired Army general said he has invented, along with his business partners at IronNet Cybersecurity Inc., the company he co-founded after leaving the government and retiring from military service in March. But the technology is also directly informed by the years of experience Alexander has had tracking hackers, and the insights he gained from classified operations as the director of the NSA, which give him a rare competitive advantage over the many firms competing for a share of the cybersecurity market.
        The fact that Alexander is building what he believes is a new kind of technology for countering hackers hasn't been previously reported. And it helps to explain why he feels confident in charging banks, trade associations, and large corporations millions of dollars a year to keep their networks safe. Alexander said he'll file at least nine patents, and possibly more, for a system to detect so-called advanced persistent threats, or hackers who clandestinely burrow into a computer network in order to steal secrets or damage the network itself. It was those kinds of hackers who Alexander, when he was running the NSA, said were responsible for "the greatest transfer of wealth in American history" because they were routinely stealing trade secrets and competitive information from U.S. companies and giving it to their competitors, often in China.
        Alexander is believed to be the first ex-director of the NSA to file patents on technology that's directly related to the job he had in government. He said that he had spoken to lawyers at the NSA, and privately, to ensure that his new patents were "ironclad" and didn't rely on any work that he'd done for the agency -- which still holds the intellectual property rights to other technology Alexander invented while he ran the agency.
        Alexander is on firm legal ground so long as he can demonstrate that his invention is original and sufficiently distinct from any other patented technologies. Government employees are allowed to retain the patents for technology they invent while working in public service, but only under certain conditions, patent lawyers said. If an NSA employee's job, for instance, is to research and develop new cybersecurity technologies or techniques, then the government would likely retain any patent, because the invention was directly related to the employee's job. However, if the employee invented the technology on his own time and separate from his core duties, he might have a stronger argument to retain the exclusive rights to the patent.
        "There is no easy black-and-white answer to this," said Scott Felder, a partner with the law firm Wiley Rein LLP in Washington, adding that it's not uncommon for government employees to be granted patents to their inventions.
        A source familiar with Alexander's situation, who asked not to be identified, said that the former director developed this new technology on his private time, and that he addressed any potential infractions before deciding to seek his patents.
        But Alexander started his company almost immediately after stepping down from the NSA. As for how much the highly classified knowledge in his head influenced his latest creation, only Alexander knows.
        In the interview, Alexander insisted that the cybersecurity technology he's inventing now is distinct enough from his work at the NSA that he can file for new patents -- and reap all the benefits that come with them. A patent prohibits any other individual, company, or government agency from using the underlying invention without a license from the patent holder.
        But even if Alexander's new technology is legally unique, it is shaped by the nearly nine years he spent running an intelligence colossus. He was the longest-serving director in the history of the NSA and the first commander of the U.S. Cyber Command, responsible for all cybersecurity personnel -- defensive and offensive -- in the military and the Defense Department. From those two perches, Alexander had access to the government's most highly classified intelligence about hackers trying to steal U.S. secrets and disable critical infrastructure, such as the electrical power grid. Indeed, he helped to invent new techniques for finding those hackers and filed seven patents on cybersecurity technologies while working for the NSA.
        Alexander used his influence to warn companies that they were blind to cyberthreats that only the NSA could see, and that unless they accepted his help, they risked devastating losses. Alexander wanted to install monitoring equipment on financial companies' websites, but he was rebuffed, according to financial executives who took part in the discussions. His attempts to make the NSA a cyber-watchdog on corporate networks were seen as a significant intrusion by government into private business.
        Few, if any, independent inventors have seen such detailed, classified information about the way hackers work and what classified means the government has developed to fight them, all of which gives Alexander a competitive advantage in his new life as a businessman. That insider knowledge has raised eyebrows on Capitol Hill, where Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) has publicly questioned whether Alexander is effectively selling classified information in exchange for his huge consulting fee. (Bloomberg reported that the figure dropped to $600,000 after the $1 million figure raised hackles in Washington and among computer-security experts.)
        Alexander said that his new approach is different than anything that's been done before because it uses "behavioral models" to help predict what a hacker is likely to do. Rather than relying on analysis of malicious software to try to catch a hacker in the act, Alexander aims to spot them early on in their plots. Only the market will tell whether his approach is as novel as he claims. (One former national security official with decades of experience in security technology, and who asked to remain anonymous, said the behavioral-model approach is highly speculative and has never been used successfully.)
        The former NSA chief said that IronNet has already signed contracts with three companies -- which he declined to name -- and that he hopes to finish testing the system by the end of September.
        "We've got a great solution. We've got to prove that it works," Alexander said. "It will be another way of looking at cybersecurity that gives us greater capabilities than we've had in the past."
        Asked why he didn't share this new approach with the federal government when he was in charge of protecting its most important computer systems, Alexander said the key insight about using behavior models came from one of his business partners, whom he also declined to name, and that it takes an approach that the government hadn't considered. It's these methods that Alexander said he will seek to patent.
        Alexander said that if he determines that he needs to use technology or methods that the NSA has patented, he will pay for a license, including for anything he helped to invent while he was in office and for which he doesn't own the rights. During his time at the NSA, Alexander said he filed seven patents, four of which are still pending, that relate to an "end-to-end cybersecurity solution." Alexander said his co-inventor on the patents was Patrick Dowd, the chief technical officer and chief architect of the NSA. Alexander said the patented solution, which he wouldn't describe in detail given the sensitive nature of the work, involved "a line of thought about how you'd systematically do cybersecurity in a network."
        That sounds hard to distinguish from Alexander's new venture. But, he insisted, the behavior modeling and other key characteristics represent a fundamentally new approach that will "jump" ahead of the technology that's now being used in government and in the private sector.
        Alexander said he was persuaded to start a security business and apply for patents after hearing from potential customers, including company executives, who said they were worried about hackers who could steal or even erase the proprietary data on their companies' computers. Alexander said they were particularly worried about threats like the Wiper virus, a malicious computer program that targeted the Iranian Oil Ministry in April 2012, erasing files and data.
        That will come as a supreme irony to many computer security experts, who say that Wiper is a cousin of the notorious Stuxnet virus, which was built by the NSA -- while Alexander was in charge -- in cooperation with Israeli intelligence. The program disabled centrifuges in a nuclear plant in Iran in a classified operation known as Olympic Games. The United States has never acknowledged its involvement.
        The United States isn't the only government capable of building data-erasing malware. Iran is building a formidable cyber-army, U.S. intelligence officials say, and is believed to be behind a 2012 attack on an oil company in Saudi Arabia that erased data from more than 30,000 computers. Iranian hackers also launched a series of cyberattacks on major U.S. bank websites the same year, intelligence officials say. The strike took Washington by surprise because it was so sophisticated and aggressive. The hackers hijacked data centers consisting of thousands of computers each and used them to flood the bank websites with digital traffic, causing them to crash.
        Brendan Smialowski / AFP
      Harald Doornbos - Wikipedia
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 13:37
        Harald Doornbos (1967) is een Nederlandsejournalist. Sinds zijn voormalige werkgever De Waarheid ophield te bestaan, is hij voornamelijk werkzaam als verslaggever in het buitenland. In die hoedanigheid bezocht en woonde hij in onder meer Turkije, Libanon, Kroati, Bosni, Kosovo en Albani.
        Doornbos werkte onder meer voor NOS Radionieuws, de VNU dagbladengroep en persbureau Geassocieerde Pers Diensten. Hij studeerde aan de Academie voor Journalistiek en twee jaar politicologie aan de Universiteit van Amsterdam.
        The Hunting Party[bewerken]Doornbos werd wereldnieuws doordat hij en vier andere journalisten in 2000 in Sarajevo besloten op eigen gelegenheid op zoek te gaan naar de toen nog voortvluchtige oorlogsmisdadigerRadovan KaradÅ¾iÄ‡. Ze hadden geruchten gehoord dat hij zich in de buurt schuil zou houden en wilden een artikel maken onder het mom '24 uur op zoek naar KaradÅ¾iÄ‡'. Deze tocht werd een veel serieuzere onderneming dan de bedoeling was omdat hun verhaal dat ze journalisten waren niet werd geloofd en ze in plaats daarvan werden aangezien voor geheime agenten van de CIA.
        De Amerikaan Scott Anderson maakte ook deel uit van het reisgezelschap en schreef hun belevenissen in 2000 op als verhaal in het Amerikaanse tijdschrift Esquire, onder de titel How I Spent My Summer Vacation. Dit artikel vormde in 2007 de basis voor de losjes daarop gebaseerde film The Hunting Party. Doornbos schreef het verhaal zelf nooit op, omdat hij vond dat een dergelijk verhaal op een betere fundering moest rusten dan die hij kon leveren.
        Doornbos heeft zelf een klein bijrolletje in The Hunting Party, als niet bij naam genoemde journalist.
        Egypte en Libi[bewerken]Doornbos versloeg de protesten in Egypte in 2011. Op 3 februari kreeg hij tijdens zijn werk het idee bijna gelyncht te worden, toen hij samen met zijn Libanese vrouw, die ook journalist is, in een auto zat. Op Twitter verwoordde hij het aldus: "Uit auto getrokken door meute. Letterlijk bijna strot doorgesneden, ontzet door soldaten. Ok nu, maar dit is te veel van het goede."[1]
        Ook tijdens de opstand in Libi, op 4 maart 2011, hadden Doornbos en zijn vrouw een benauwd moment in een auto. Ze reden samen met twee Libische gidsen in een rebellenkonvooi nabij Ras Lanoef, toen het vuur op hen werd geopend. Naar eigen zeggen reden ze in een hinderlaag van troepen van Qadhafi en waren het angstaanjagende momenten.[2]
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      Foley
        Gadahffi Video
          FOLEY GADAFFI VIDEO-Here's what James Foley meant to us | GlobalPost
            Link to Article
            Archived Version
            Sat, 30 Aug 2014 10:13
            James Foley reporting in Tripoli, Libya in August 2011. (Courtesy of Jonathan Pedneault)
            BOSTON '-- The scene is pure adrenaline.
            First, you hear panicked rebels crying ''Allahu Akbar'' '-- God is great.
            Foley knows better than to turn off the camera, in case there's more action, or the worst happens. As he runs for his life, the image goes berserk: anxious breathing, a stampede of feet, the ground twisting this way and that as his arms pump. You can almost feel Jim's death grip on the camera.
            Seconds later: the brief, screeching whistle of the incoming shell.
            The dull thwack of impact.
            The image cuts to a scene in a truck, speeding from the front. Hapless Libyan rebels on foot run madly to escape the advancing troops of Col. Muammar Gaddafi.
            Jaws dropped as we watched. Hearts hammered. Yet we were all in the safety of GlobalPost's editorial offices.
            ''Holy shit,'' someone muttered as the video wrapped.
            That was April of 2011. We published the video under the title, ''Who are the Libyan rebels?''
            As always, we urged Jim to exercise caution. In the end, he made it out of Libya, but only after spending 44 days as a prisoner of Gaddafi's regime, and only after witnessing his friend South African photographer Anton Hammerl take lethal gunfire from the dictator's forces.
            Foley was unstoppable, however. He came back to the US, caught his breath and helped raise money in New York City to support Hammerl's widow and three children. Then he jumped back on a plane to cover the final hunt for Gaddafi, in the dictator's hometown of Sirte.
            Those were rough days. For several weeks, Peter Bouckaert, Human Rights Watch's director of emergency research, slept alongside Foley ''in a refrigerated truck with a bunch of smelly rebels,'' Bouckaert recalls. ''The night before Gaddafi was killed we literally had Grad rockets flying over our heads all night.'' The next morning, the two men witnessed a battlefield strewn with more than a hundred bodies, a ''scene of absolute devastation,'' as Bouckaert put it. (The following night, they were lucky enough to discover in their luggage a bottle of Johnny Walker Black that they had forgotten about. Bouckaert confirms that the contents didn't last.)
            ''Jim couldn't bear to watch from afar as the rebel tide finally turned against Gaddafi,'' recalls Solana Pyne, his video editor at GlobalPost. On that last day in Libya, ''rebels claimed Gaddafi had been killed in a firefight, but Jim found eyewitnesses who confirmed the despot had in fact died at the hands of his former subjects.''
            That scoop would change the narrative of Gaddafi's demise, and prompt United Nations officials to call for a war crimes investigation. It would also win the prestigious Overseas Press Club award for Foley and for colleague Tracey Shelton, who obtained the video of Gaddafi's final moments.
            Not one to embrace accolades, Foley celebrated the recognition in his own way. Jim enjoyed a practical joke, and when GlobalPost Editor Thomas Mucha returned to his hotel room after the award ceremony, he found himself taking the brunt of Foley's humor. ''Every chair in the room was upside down. My bed was upside down. The desk lamps were upside down. Pillows were scattered everywhere,'' Mucha says. ''Foley, of course, had broken in to 'rearrange the place to my liking.'''
            *****
            When war broke out in Syria in 2011, it quickly became clear that journalists would take a heavy toll in the fighting, and even be directly targeted. The story was too vital to ignore, but GlobalPost's editors were anxious for the safety of our correspondents working there. Middle East Editor Pete Gelling took to sleeping with his cell phone under his pillow again '-- a habit he'd started when Foley was in Libya.
            Foley was able to file some incredible journalism from Syria '-- gut wrenching tales of lives annihilated by the violence.
            But on Thanksgiving day in 2012, near the Turkish border after reporting from the war zones near Aleppo, he was captured by armed militants, a fact that remained under media blackout to improve his chances of release. For more than a year, his whereabouts were unknown to us and his family.
            As the world now knows, he was ultimately turned into a pawn of terrorist propaganda. On Tuesday, Aug. 19, a grisly video emerged of an Islamic State militant decapitating him in the desert.
            Aside from being a dedicated correspondent, Jim Foley was a dear friend to GlobalPost. Between stints in war zones, he had worked for months as an editor at our Boston headquarters '-- although it quickly became clear that wasn't where he wanted to be. His fearless war coverage was integral to our quest to tell stories no one else covers.
            He will remain an inspiration to all of us.
            In Jim's work ''I hear his love and passion for journalism,'' writes Mexico senior correspondent Ioan Grillo. ''He brought fresh, human voices to help us understand one of the most important issues on the planet. I am proud to have my work alongside Jim Foley's at GlobalPost.''
            *****
            Having met such a grim fate, however, questions inevitably arise.
            Why would he do it? Why would he put his life at risk? Why would he subject his adoring friends and family to the anguish of knowing he could end up dead '-- especially after he had come so close to it already?
            In Jim's case, it was about altruism, about telling the stories that needed to be told. In the words of Bishop Peter A. Libasci who spoke at his memorial service, Jim risked his life ''so that we may open our eyes.'' He was appalled by the suffering across the Middle East, and particularly in Syria, where many thousands had died by the time he was captured.
            ''He cared deeply about his colleagues and the stories he was covering,'' says Bouckaert, who became a close friend after working to get Foley released from the Libyan prison. ''Journalism is a world with a lot of testosterone and machismo, and Jim was the exact opposite.''
            ''In a field full of painfully massive and destructive egos, Jim had none whatsoever,'' says Peter Gelling, his editor at GlobalPost.
            Seeing Jim wallpapered across the world's media for the past week, sweat and dust on his rugged face, donning dark shades in the desert sun and brandishing a black video camera as if it were an M16 '-- you could be forgiven for sensing an oversized ego.
            On the contrary, Jim was quiet, humble, and at times somewhat awkward. He often spoke slowly, as if struggling to get the words out '-- but when they came out, he always had something to say.
            ''In a field full of painfully massive and destructive egos, Jim had none whatsoever,'' says Gelling, who edited his work for GlobalPost.
            You could say Foley was a journalist's journalist; that would be a compliment to the rest of the profession.
            Although tenacious and driven in his reporting, Jim wore none of his adventures or accomplishments as a badge. Around the office, dressed in jeans, running shoes and an XL polo shirt, you rarely got the sense he was the guy who had seen so much, who had weathered a Taliban ambush and prison in Libya.
            ''He did not see himself as important,'' recalls Gelling. ''He hated being the subject of the story after his captivity in Libya. All that mattered to him was the people he wrote about. Telling their stories accurately led him to take risks. But this was why I loved working with Jim Foley.''
            *****
            Friends remember Jim as sweet and caring. But ''selfless'' is the adjective used most often in describing him.
            His approach was so unorthodox that colleagues who worked with him in war zones sound almost mystified by his generosity. ''He was so brave,'' remembers Shelton. But ''he wasn't like normal journalists who brag about their own stories. He was always the first to praise you.'' She says when the duo won the Overseas Press Club award for GlobalPost, he was always ''talking up my contribution to the award.''
            Jim's reporting style also impressed his editors. "James had a very raw, riveting approach to his work," says Mark Scheffler, senior video producer at the Wall Street Journal who previously held the same position with GlobalPost.
            "He wanted to be immersed in the moments he was covering, often at tremendous risk to himself," Scheffler adds. "What James ended up showing were humans under duress and populations under siege '-- and the dignity with which they carry on through the fighting. I don't always know what drove James to the extreme places he went to. I just know that what he found when he got there helped us come away more moved and more knowledgeable than we were before. He was true grit."
            Jim had character. He was impossible not to like, or at least to sympathize with. That fact no doubt helped explain the deep kinship GlobalPost Founder and CEO Phil Balboni developed for Jim and his family '-- a bond that drove Balboni to work tirelessly for nearly two years, at a seven-figure cost, to save him.
            "Jim was the kind of extraordinarily brave and dedicated journalist you might be lucky to work with once or twice in a career," says Balboni, a lifelong journalist. "He believed that telling the human stories in these conflicts was vitally important and his respect and affection for his subjects set his work apart."
            The Jim Foley that we knew was willing to risk everything to tell the stories of people whose language he barely spoke, whose faith he didn't share '-- so the world wouldn't ignore the slaughter in Syria. He was driven to do what he could to expose the appalling crimes he witnessed against Syria's civilians. He was no criminal, terrorist or spy.
            ''He simply cared about the story, and the people behind these stories. And that's why we loved him,'' says Thomas Mucha, GlobalPost's editor.
            To us, who Jim was and what he stood for '-- that's what makes his brutal execution so cold-blooded.
            *****
            ''Jim lost his life doing what he thought was so very important '-- telling real stories of real people in a troubled world,'' notes Mucha. ''And while his death is still incomprehensible to many of us, his dedication to this high principle of journalism gives us at least a little bit of comfort.''
            The stories Foley told were as insightful as they were unique. ''He was not the kind of guy who would just show up for a week or two, write a story and add it to his resume,'' Bouckaert says. ''He really wanted to delve deeply into these crises and understand them.''
            In Foley, his editor Peter Gelling found a kindred spirit. ''Jim and I shared a desire to tell stories about how the decisions of the powerful affected the lives of the ordinary '-- stories that are rarely told because they are too dangerous to tell. He was better at that than most because he was compassionate. Strangers would feel immediately comfortable opening up to him, even in the most harrowing conditions.''
            Foley had a previous career as a teacher in Phoenix, and friends say he brought to war reporting the skills of controlling a classroom, interacting with people and crossing cultures.
            As a teacher, ''He was this East Coast white guy, trying to speak Spanish,'' says former student Carlos Garcia. ''His Spanish was terrible,'' Garcia adds, but he earned respect and admiration just for trying. Garcia, who now works for Verizon, credits Foley with ''pointing a lot of us in the right direction,'' in a school district where drugs, crime and teen pregnancy were the norm.
            ''Jim knew how to get the reporting details that make a story come alive,'' Editor Thomas Mucha says.
            Foley's journalism gave voice to people the world may never otherwise know: shy, gentle gun-wielding men who had left mundane jobs as welders or accountants to fight for freedom against Gaddafi, or Syrian mothers who lost their sons to Bashar al-Assad's merciless crackdown. His videos had an understated pacing, with telling details '-- a rebel's toe sticking out through worn boot leather, for example, or a soldier struggling to fire a weapon he couldn't handle.
            ''Jim knew how to get the reporting details that would make a story come alive: the vernacular and mannerisms of US soldiers fighting in Afghanistan; the way Libyan rebels in the desert used homemade artillery and RPGs; how rebels and civilians of Syria's bloody civil war fought, suffered and grieved,'' observes Mucha. ''He never complained about how much work that really takes to pull off. Time and again he would go back into the field and back to his sources to get those details. And time and again that dedication and work ethic paid off.''
            And then there were moments of sheer mayhem.
            The Gaddafi assault in Libya was hardly the first time Foley was nearly seared by the heat of combat. On a US military embed in Afghanistan's hostile Kunar Province, Taliban fighters ambushed his convoy. As always, Foley is right up there with the action, lying on his back, filming a 19-year-old Army private gunning from the turret just a few feet away. Then you hear the dull whack of a bullet slamming into his helmet (at 1:55 in the video).
            ''Ahhh shit,'' cries the private.
            ''Are you hit?'' hollers a voice from inside the vehicle.
            ''In the head,'' he responds.
            Foley continues filming. There's no evidence that his hands are shaking.
            On Location Afghanistan: A firefight in Kunar Province from GlobalPost on Vimeo.
            For sure, like most war correspondents, Jim was seduced by the adrenaline, by getting close to the action and witnessing life at its most extreme.
            Violence ''does a strange thing to you,'' he told an audience at the Medill School of Journalism after being released from prison in Libya. ''It doesn't always repel you. Sometimes, as you know, it draws you close. ... It's a strange sort of force.''
            Foley was feeling that force on the morning of April 11, 2011, when he passed the last checkpoint near the front lines outside Brega, Libya, along with journalists Clare Morgana Gillis, Manu Brabo and Anton Hammerl. He later shared his recollections of that day in a GlobalPost interview.
            ''This doesn't look safe,'' he quoted Hammerl as saying. ''This seems a little crazy. The adrenaline was starting to race.'' Then a group of young teenagers in a car warned the reporters ''Gaddafi forces 300 meters away.''
            ''I didn't want to be the guy that said, let's turn around,'' Foley said, the regret visible on his face. ''I didn't want to do that.''
            Because Gaddafi forces had typically targeted the roads that rebels used to attack, the journalists strayed off into the desert. ''That was a huge, huge mistake,'' Foley said. Almost instantly, two heavily armed Gaddafi pickup trucks came over the rise, guns blazing. Moments later, Hammerl lay bleeding in the sand. The others were beaten and taken captive. They never saw their friend again.
            When he worked at GlobalPost's office, Foley seemed haunted by that incident. He spoke of the responsibility he felt for Anton's death, about how Anton's children would never know him. ''We made mistakes, and it could have been any of us who were killed. But Anton was killed,'' he later told the BBC.
            It would be easy to speculate that Foley's selflessness in Syria '-- his willingness to put the needs of other prisoners above his own '-- stemmed from this guilt, from a yearning to make things right after the Hammerl tragedy.
            Garcia, his former student, argues that's just the way Jim was.
            Foley coached the school's basketball team, and Garcia says he would dig into his own wallet to make sure the students had things the school couldn't afford. There was no gym available, so Foley arranged for them to play at a local YMCA. ''We couldn't afford buses, so Mr. Foley would carpool: He'd put us in his car, take us to the gym, and go back and get another bunch of guys.'' The team came in second place, Garcia recalls. ''We presented him with a plaque because he put so much effort into it.''
            Foley's style may have been rugged, fearless, and not exactly fine-tuned for corporate success. But he made an impact, and he left a legacy that will endure with all of us at GlobalPost, and with many others around the world.
            After his death, a group of men from Kafranabel, Syria paid him tribute.
            We couldn't agree more.
            http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/americas/140827/what-james-foley-meant-to-us
          Gaddafi sodomized: Video shows abuse frame by frame | GlobalPost
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            Sat, 30 Aug 2014 10:13
            WARNING: IMAGES BELOW ARE PARTICULARLY GRAPHIC AND UPSETTING.
            SIRTE, Libya '-- An analysis of video obtained by GlobalPost from a rebel fighter who recorded the moment when Col. Muammar Gaddafi was first captured confirms that another rebel fighter, whose identity is unknown, sodomized the former leader as he was being dragged from the drainpipe where he had taken cover.
            A frame by frame analysis of this exclusive GlobalPost video clearly shows the rebel trying to insert some kind of stick or knife into Gaddafi's rear end.
            Full coverage: Death of Muammar Gaddafi
            GlobalPost correspondent Tracey Shelton said there is some question as to whether the instrument was a knife from the end of a machine gun, which Libyans call a Bicketti, or some kind of stick.
            This latest video discovery comes as international and human rights groups call for a formal investigation into how the former Libyan leader was killed. In video clips that have emerged of his capture, Gaddafi can be seen injured but alive. Later he is seen with what appears to be gunshot wounds to his head and chest. According to the Geneva Conventions, however, abuse of prisoners under any circumstance is not permissable.
            Related: Gaddafi to be buried in "secret desert location"
            Here is a frame by frame look at the attack. Below the frames is video decoding the cell phone footage of the capture. And, finally, at the bottom is the full video. You can see the attempt to sodomize Gaddafi at the 16 second mark.
            WARNING: Extremely graphic
            DECODING MUAMMAR GADDAFI'S CAPTURE:
            FULL VIDEO OF MUAMMAR GADDAFI'S CAPTURE:
            http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/middle-east/111024/gaddafi-sodomized-video-gaddafi-sodomy
          The Overseas Press Club Foundation | Overseas Press Club of America
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            Sat, 30 Aug 2014 10:22
            Graduate and undergraduate students, studying at American colleges and universities, or Americans studying abroad, who aspire to become foreign correspondents, are invited to apply for one of fourteen scholarships or internships to be awarded by the Overseas Press Club Foundation.
            Winning an OPC Foundation scholarship or internship is more than a cash award. Winners are invited to join the Overseas Press Club family. They are encouraged to network and keep the organization apprised of their career moves. The Foundation pays travel and living expenses for interns in foreign bureaus at such leading news organization as the Associated Press and Reuters, among others, and at foreign English-language media companies like the South China Morning Post and Cambodia Daily. In many cases, winning a prestigious OPC Foundation award has helped launch careers.
            The judges require that applicants submit a Cover Letter, Resume and Writing Sample. The applicant's name and school should appear at the top of each page. The Writing Sample of approximately 500 words should concentrate on an area of the world or an international issue that is in keeping with the applicant's interest. It can be in the form of a story, news analysis or a traditional essay. Recent winners have written on such diverse topics as playing black jack on the Trans-Siberian Railroad, political activism in Morocco, and social upheaval in China. Applicants are also encouraged to submit essays showing a strong understanding of, or interest in, global economic issues such as trade, finance, emerging markets, immigration or environmental impacts.
            The Cover Letter should be autobiographical in nature addressing such questions as how the applicant developed an interest in this particular part of the world, a story pitch, or how he or she would use the scholarship to further journalistic ambitions. The judges respond well to applications showing strong reporting skills, color, and understanding or passion.
            Winners will be contacted in December so that arrangements can be made for them to attend the Foundation Scholarship Luncheon in February 2015 in New York City. Recipients are expected to attend.
            You may email, fax or mail your application. Email is preferred.
            For more information, contact Jane Reilly, Executive Director, by e-mail (select Foundation/Scholarship) or call 201-493-9087.
            Email:e-mail (select Foundation/Scholarship)Fax:
            201-612-9915
            OPC Foundation Website:
            Mail:William J. HolsteinPresident Overseas Press Club Foundation40 West 45 Street New York NY 10036
          Digital First Media Announces Partnership With GlobalPost | GlobalPost
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            Sat, 30 Aug 2014 10:21
            Please support our site by enabling javascript to view ads.
            New York, NY'-- Digital First Media, which operates MediaNews Group, Journal Register Company and Digital First Ventures, announced today a content partnership with the world news site GlobalPost.
            The partnership will provide Digital First Media access to all content produced by GlobalPost's growing network of more than 50 journalists across the globe.
            ''In a short time, GlobalPost has built one of the industry's leading sources of international news. GlobalPost's vast network of in-country journalists provide perspective that makes the world's news local and they provide the context so readers understand the impact on all areas of our lives,'' said Jim Brady, Editor-in-Chief of Digital First Media.
            Since it was founded in 2009, GlobalPost's reporting has spanned more than 50 countries each month and has been recognized with multiple prestigious media awards including a Peabody Award, two Edward R. Murrow Awards, and the Overseas Press Club Award for Breaking News in 2011 for its reporting on the fall of Gaddafi. GlobalPost's ''On Location'' video reports '' a collection of 75 video reports from 34 nations '' earned both the Peabody and the Murrow awards.
            ''It is an honor for us and a milestone for our syndication efforts to partner with Digital First,'' said GlobalPost's President and CEO, Philip S. Balboni. ''We are excited about the opportunity to have our reporting available to their sixty million news consumers each month through a vast array of daily newspapers and multiplatform products. This is a great opportunity to extend the reach of the important content that our journalists in every corner of the globe create every day.''
            The agreement with GlobalPost is part of Digital First Media's strategic initiative to provide its audience with the highest-quality and most diverse story selection across all platforms.
            http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/business/130122/digital-first-media-announces-partnership-globalpost
          The 74th Annual OPC Awards | Overseas Press Club of America
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            Archived Version
            Sat, 30 Aug 2014 10:18
            From left: Tom Brokaw, Richard Engel of NBC and Tom Gjelten of NPR
            MEDIA CONTACT: Tamara Boorstein (347) 628-8983 or tamara.boorstein@gmail.com
            Syria and China Lead in Top International Stories of the Year at the 74th OPC AwardsTom Brokaw Receives Lifetime Achievement Award; Diane Foley, mother of James Foley, will light the candle in memory of the Journalists Killed and Missing in ActionWatch the Acceptance SpeechesNEW YORK, April 24 '-- 2012 saw key international press coverage originating from Syria and China. Those two countries dominated the annual awards from the Overseas Press Club, with both the Associated Press and National Geographic capturing three prizes each.
            Syria dominated the breaking news categories, with reporters and photographers taking home a large number of awards for their coverage of that dangerous conflict. Other stories focused on China's government and state-owned enterprise corruption, as well as corporate espionage.
            Tom Brokaw, anchor of NBC News from 1982 to 2004, will receive the President's Award for lifetime achievement. Diane Foley, mother of James Foley, who was kidnapped in Syria on Thanksgiving day last year, will light the candle in memory of journalists who have died in the line of duty in 2012 and in honor of those injured, missing and abducted.
            Other news organizations winning awards include The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, Bloomberg Businessweek, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, CNN, Harper's, CBS News, WGBH, WBEZ, Bloomberg News and Agence France-Presse. Recognizing the changed media landscape, 2012 is the first year that the OPC incorporated the online media platform into many of its awards previously designated only for the print medium.
            Raja Abdulrahim of The Los Angeles Times won the prestigious Hal Boyle Award for best newspaper reporting from abroad for her series "Inside Syria," a vivid and powerful series of reports from inside Syria range from bomb making lessons to kidnapping and government tactics.
            The Robert Capa Gold Medal Award, which honors press photography requiring exceptional courage and enterprise, went to Fabio Bucciarelli, whose combat images from Syria were published by Agence France-Presse.
            "Covering the world has never been more dangerous and that is reflected in the stories that were prominent in the awards this year," said OPC President Michael Serrill. "We pay tribute to the men and women at the forefront of covering news around the world.''
            There were also tales from more remote corners of the world. Especially noteworthy is a combination print, radio and video package by WBEZ and ProPublica that uncovers for the first time details of the military massacre that destroyed a village in Guatemala 30 years ago.
            There were 441 entries in this year's competition.
            Citation recipients >>
            Complete list of winners >>
            Watch the Acceptance Speeches >>
          Overseas Press Club - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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            Archived Version
            Sat, 30 Aug 2014 10:16
            The Overseas Press Club of America (OPC) was founded in 1939 in New York City by a group of foreign correspondents.[1] The wire service reporter Carol Weld was a founding member. The club seeks to maintain an international association of journalists working in the United States and abroad, to encourage the highest standards of professional integrity and skill in the reporting of news, to help educate a new generation of journalists, to contribute to the freedom and independence of journalists and the press throughout the world, and to work toward better communication and understanding among people. The organization has approximately 500 members who are media industry leaders.
            Every April, the OPC holds a dinner to award excellence in journalism for the previous year. The awards are juried by industry peers. The organization also has a foundation that distributes scholarships to college students who want to begin a career as a foreign correspondent. Many scholarship winners secure international assignments at some of the most prestigious news outlets in the world.
            In April 2008, the OPC relaunched its website to include community features for members like forums, commenting, page sharing through email/print/download and RSVP and bill pay functions.
            Notes and references[edit]^About the OPC^http://opcofamerica.org/awards/awards-recipients^"OPC Adds 6 New Online Categories to Awards Roster", Overseas Press Club of America, 7 December 2010. Retrieved 19 December 2010.See also[edit]External links[edit]
          site:overseaspressclubfoundation.org globalpost - Google Search
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            Sat, 30 Aug 2014 11:31
            .filled,.y>.preload{display:none}.y.yf,.y.ys,.yf>.filled,.yi>.filled,.yp>.preload{display:block}]]>
            Screen reader users, click here to turn off Google Instant.
        The Ground Truth - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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          Sun, 31 Aug 2014 10:50
          This article is about the documentary. For the technical term, see ground truth.The Ground Truth (also known as The Ground Truth: After the Killing Ends) is a 2006 documentary film about veterans of the Iraq War. It was directed and produced by Patricia Foulkrod.
          Synopsis[edit]The film addresses the issues many soldiers face upon their return from the War in Iraq, including problems with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and an inability to meld back into "normal" society. The film includes footage of soldiers in Iraq and personal interviews with about two dozen people directly affected by the war (either veterans or family members/friends of veterans). The veterans, both men and women, speak of their experiences before, during, and after the war. The veterans speak about recruitment and training, combat, their returns home, facing their families, and their difficulties in making the necessary changes needed to fit back into society. The Ground Truth was released in theatres on September 15 of 2006 and released on DVD on September 26 of the same year. People can sign up to host screenings of the film online at The Ground Truth or view a low-resolution copy online, see bottom.
          About the soldiers and veterans[edit]The soldiers give their accounts of being in the U.S. military and stationed in Iraq. They focus on their experiences before, there, and the dealings afterwards. Before stationed, they joined the military forces and went through basic training. In basic training they mention such concepts as desensitization and depersonalization. The accounts given for the experiences in Iraq consist of the injuries to their physical bodies and to their own mentality. After they were discharged, they have to face and adapt back to the world they lived in before being stationed. Many mention the idea of post traumatic stress disorder, while also the adaptations made to their injuries; such as an amputated limb.
          The accounts[edit]Robert Acosta is a specialist in the U.S. Army and felt his time in the army saved him from facing time in prison. He lost his right hand and part of his right foot in Iraq in a grenade explosion.
          Charles Anderson served in the U.S. Navy from 1996-2005, serving time in Iraq in 2003. When discharged he was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Upon his return from the war, Anderson became actively involved in the anti-war effort and publicly supported increased government-provided care for veterans returning from Iraq.
          Aidan Delgado was a specialist in the U.S. Army Reserve. Delgado served in Iraq in 2003 and was discharged in 2005. After finishing his service in Iraq, he became active in an anti-war program where he spoke publicly about what he felt to be the truth about Iraq. He also became a member of Iraq Veterans Against the War and the Buddhist Peace Fellowship.
          Kelly Doughtery served as a medic and military policewoman in the U.S. Army National Guard. Kelly spent a year in Iraq from 2003-2004. After returning home, she became the co-founder and Southwest Coordinator for Iraq Veterans Against the War. She also gave worldwide speeches expressing her views on the war.
          Jim Driscoll helped found Vets4Vets, an organization which provides peer support for veterans.
          Sean Huze served as a corporal in the U.S. Marine Corps. He served in Iraq in 2003. Upon his dischange, he was awarded a Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, Certificate of Commendation, the Combat Action Ribbon, the Presidential Unit Citation, the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon. After his return he became involved in theatre and used dramatic art and expression to address the issue of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. He founded and is currently the artistic director for The VetStage Foundation, a non-profit theatre company for veterans.
          Denver Jones was a U.S. Army after serving in DS, Dessert storm and re-enlisted initially in Army Reserve/NG (with the rank of PFC (rank) to serve in Iraq after the attacks on 9/11. Denver lost his higher rank status, due to prior service rules at the time, and his determined desire to serve, as soon as possible. During his service he was involved in a PLS.(type of combat transportation vehicle accident, which shattered his lower spine as well as receiving head injury, severe enough to bust two molars and brain damage. These injuries resulted in loss of use of his bladder and bowels, as well as the use of his Legs. The accident left him completely disabled. Jones suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder after his return from Iraq. Jones also has other disabilities as well as being divorced due to his Injuries, However he chooses not to ask for credit by reporting his awards and various MOS.(military Job classification)
          Joyce and Kevin Lucey became involved in the anti-war effort after their son (Jeffery Lucey '' a 23 year-old veteran of the Iraq war) committed suicide. Jefferey had spent five months in Iraq in 2003, and fought in the Battle of Nasiriyah. He suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder after the war.
          Camilo Mej­a is a sergeant in the U.S. Army National Guard and fought in Iraq for a period of six months. After his return to America, he began to speak publicly about his experiences and disagreement with the War in Iraq.
          Demond Mullins enlisted in the U.S. Army National Guard and served five years. He was deployed to Iraq for one year in 2004. After his return he joined Iraq Veterans Against the War.
          Perry O'Brien was discharged as a conscientious objector (CO) after spending eight months in Afghanistan with the 82nd Airborne. He later founded Peace-Out, a website offering assistance to soldiers wishing to obtain CO status. He also became a member of Iraq Veterans Against the War and Veterans for Peace.
          Paul Rieckhoff served as a platoon leader in Iraq. After returning home, he joined the anti-war effort by trying to spread word of what he felt are the true conditions soldiers in Iraq face. He is the creator of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.
          Stephen L. Robinson is a former Airborne Ranger and instructor at Ranger School. From September 2001 to January 2006, he served as Executive Director of the National Gulf War Resource Center. Robinson has been recognized as an expert on chemical and biological weapons and on Gulf War Illness. He served in the Gulf War, and also on the Veterans Affairs Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Illnesses, and also as a Special Advisor for Vietnam Veterans of America. Robinson also became involved as the Government Relations Director for Veterans of America.
          Awards and critical acclaim[edit]At the 2006 Sundance and Nantucket Film Festivals, critics hailed The Ground Truth as "powerful" and "quietly unflinching." The film has caused a great deal of critical controversy, mostly over its dealings with the sensitive subject of the Iraq War. The film has also been mentioned/critiqued in notable sources such as Newsweek, Time Magazine, The New Yorker, USA Today, and the New York Times. The film was one of 15 on the Oscar "short list" for the 2007 Academy Award Nominations.
          Associated organizations[edit]10% of proceeds from the sale of The Ground Truth DVDs go to Operation Helmet. Other associated organizations include Iraq Veterans Against the War, AMVETS, Appeal for Redress, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, the National Center for PTSD, the National Veterans Foundation, Purple Hearts Project, Soldiers Project, US Vets, Veterans for America, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Wounded Warrior Project, Vets 4 Vets, and several faith-based and student organizations.
          Credits[edit]Director: Patricia Foulkrod;Producor: Patricia Foulkrod;Executive Producers: Jodie Evans, Carl Linderum, Victor Scherb, Louise J. Wannier, Andrew Mysko, *Jon Faiz Kayyem, Dal LaMagnaCinematographer: Reuben Aaronson;Editor: Rob Hall;Released by: Focus Films;Running time: 88 minutes;Rating: ROriginal Music by David Hodge. The Ground Truth was filmed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California; *Iraq; and Venice L.A., California.DVD release information:ASIN B000HA4WSYExternal links[edit]
        Ground truth - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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          Archived Version
          Sun, 31 Aug 2014 10:48
          Statistics and Machine Learning[edit]In machine learning, the term "ground truth" refers to the accuracy of the training set's classification for supervised learning techniques. This is used in statistical models to prove or disprove researchhypotheses. The term "ground truthing" refers to the process of gathering the proper objective data for this test. Compare with gold standard (test).
          Bayesian spam filtering is a common example of supervised learning. In this system, the algorithm is manually taught the differences between spam and non-spam. This depends on the ground truth of the messages used to train the algorithm; inaccuracies in that ground truth will correlate to inaccuracies in the resulting spam/non-spam verdicts.
          Meteorology[edit]Ground truth is a term used in remote sensing; it refers to information collected on location. Ground truth allows image data to be related to real features and materials on the ground. The collection of ground-truth data enables calibration of remote-sensing data, and aids in the interpretation and analysis of what is being sensed. Examples include cartography, meteorology, analysis of aerial photographs, satellite imagery and other techniques in which data are gathered at a distance.
          More specifically, ground truth may refer to a process in which a pixel on a satellite image is compared to what is there in reality (at the present time) in order to verify the contents of the pixel on the image. In the case of a classified image, it allows supervised classification to help determine the accuracy of the classification performed by the remote sensing software and therefore minimize errors in the classification such as errors of commission and errors of omission.
          Ground truth is usually done on site, performing surface observations and measurements of various properties of the features of the ground resolution cells that are being studied on the remotely sensed digital image. It also involves taking geographic coordinates of the ground resolution cell with GPS technology and comparing those with the coordinates of the pixel being studied provided by the remote sensing software to understand and analyze the location errors and how it may affect a particular study.
          Ground truth is important in the initial supervised classification of an image. When the identity and location of land cover types are known through a combination of field work, maps, and personal experience these areas are known as training sites. The spectral characteristics of these areas are used to train the remote sensing software using decision rules for classifying the rest of the image. These decision rules such as Maximum Likelihood Classification, Parallelepiped Classification, and Minimum Distance Classification offer different techniques to classify an image. Additional ground truth sites allow the remote sensor to establish an error matrix which validates the accuracy of the classification method used. Different classification methods may have different percentages of error for a given classification project. It is important that the remote sensor chooses a classification method that works best with the number of classifications used while providing the least amount of error.
          Ground truth also helps with atmospheric correction. Since images from satellites obviously have to pass through the atmosphere, they can get distorted because of absorption in the atmosphere. So ground truth can help fully identify objects in satellite photos.
          Errors of commission[edit]An example of an error of commission is when a pixel reports the presence of a feature (such as trees) that, in reality, is absent (no trees are actually present). Ground truthing ensures that the error matrices have a higher accuracy percentage than would be the case if no pixels were ground truthed.
          Errors of omission[edit]An example of an error of omission is when pixels of a certain thing, for example maple trees, are not classified as maple trees. The process of ground truthing helps to ensure that the pixel is classified correctly and the error matrices are more accurate.
          Military usage[edit]In US military slang, "ground truth" is used to describe the reality of a tactical situation as opposed to what intelligence reports and mission plans assert the reality to be. The term is reflected in the title of the 2006 Iraq War documentary The Ground Truth and is used in military publications, for example Stars and Stripes saying "Stripes decided to figure out what the ground truth was in Iraq."
          The military usage of the term is long-standing but its origins are obscure. It is plausible but difficult to prove that "ground truth" began life as military terminology and then was applied to other domains such as remote sensing control.
          External links[edit]
        Bake Family Trust - GroundTruth
          - google for "The Bake Family Trust"
          - spot this in results (pdf): https://apps.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-326537A1.doc
          - it's about construction of a new transatlantic fiber link, very last paragraph says:
          Emerald, an Ireland corporation, is a majority-owned subsidiary of Aqua Ventures International FZE (Aqua Ventures), a United Arab Emirates
          company. See Letter from Robert E. Stup, Jr., counsel to Emerald Networks Holdings Limited, to Marlene H. Dortch, Secretary, FCC, dated
          April 8, 2014, at 1. Aqua Ventures owns over 70% of, and controls, Emerald. The Bake Family Trust directly owns 100% of Aqua Ventures.
          The sole, indirect owner of Aqua Ventures is Christopher Paul Bake, a Dutch citizen. Mr. Bake is the sole beneficiary of the trust. Dominion
          Fiduciary Trust Limited, a company incorporated under the laws of the Bailiwick of Jersey, is the trustee of the Bake Family Trust. No other
          person or entity holds a ten percent or greater ownership interest in Emerald. Id.
          - google for Christopher Paul Bake
          - chairman at vitol: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitol
          - owns aqua sailing team: http://www.teamaqua.org/en/team/sailing_team.php?idContent=1
          - was 'exposed' here: http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2012/oct/21/conservatives-links-fossil-fuel-lobbyists
        Fears grow over Conservatives' links to fossil fuel lobbyists | Environment | The Guardian
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          Archived Version
          Fri, 29 Aug 2014 08:38
          Anti-fracking campaigners in Southport last year. Environmental groups are increasingly concerned over links between Conservative ministers and fossil fuel companies. Photograph: Mar Photographics/Alamy
          Government backing for new forms of gas extraction such as "fracking" are under acute scrutiny after a sacked energy minister warned against "betting the farm" on them and green groups expressed alarm at links between the fossil fuel lobby and the Tories.
          The Observer has established that two key executives of the energy trading giant Vitol, whose boss has given more than £500,000 to the Conservatives, were personal shareholders in a company bringing "hydraulic fracturing", commonly known as fracking, and a related technology, coal bed methane (CBM) extraction, to the UK.
          But doubts are growing over whether such technologies can deliver the cheap energy prices the gas lobby claims.
          Writing for the Observer, former energy minister Charles Hendry, who lost his job in the reshuffle, warns that shale gas "cannot bring the UK the same benefits as in America, where consents are much easier and prices are kept artificially low by the lack of export facilities".
          After a week in which David Cameron staked his credibility on reducing energy bills, Hendry writes: "We may face a golden age for gas, but don't assume it will be cheap. Last year's energy price rises owed more to rising global wholesale gas prices than anything else, so betting the farm on shale brings serious risks of future price rises."
          The previously unpublicised interests of two Vitol executives, Bob Finch, its head of trading, and Christopher Bake, managing director of Vitol, Dubai, in "unconventional gas extraction" assets suggests they believe it could be a major source of energy.
          Alan Duncan, the international development minister, worked for Vitol in the 1990s and was a consultant for another company part-owned by Vitol.
          Ian Taylor, its chief executive, who has donated around £550,000 to the Conservatives, was a guest at an intimate dinner party with David Cameron in his Downing Street flat last November. Weeks after the private dinner - for people who had donated more than £50,000 to the Tories - it emerged that Vitol had supplied oil to rebels in Libya. The revelation prompted suggestions the deal had been brokered by the Foreign Office, a claim comprehensively rejected by Vitol.
          Last month, Vitol admitted it had bought and sold Iranian fuel oil. The Swiss-based company said: "A Bahraini subsidiary company purchased a spot cargo of fuel oil from a non-Iranian counterparty in July 2012. The fuel oil delivered ... was of Iranian origin. Vitol Group companies no longer purchase any product of Iranian origin."
          Joss Garman, a campaigner with Greenpeace, said: "Call me cautious, but these don't sound like the kind of people we want to be entrusting with our land, countryside and climate. The government urgently needs to kick the UK's gas habit in order to stabilise energy bills."
          Lord Browne, the former chief executive of BP and now chairman of Cuadrilla, one of the UK's main shale prospectors, is an adviser to the government. He is also managing director of Riverstone Holdings, which has oil and gas investments in the North Sea. Ben Moxham, who worked for Browne at BP and Riverstone, is now Cameron's energy adviser.
          A Cuadrilla site in Lancashire was forced to suspend test fracking in 2011 after two small earth tremors. In April a panel of experts appointed by the government ruled that test fracking could continue under stringent conditions.
          Finch and Bake, along with two venture capital firms, acquired a 16% stake in a company called Dart Energy after selling it to a company called Greenpark that has a licence to conduct exploratory fracking at a site on the Anglo-Scottish border. Finch no longer has an interest in Dart, according to Vitol. Next February, Dart plans to start drilling 22 CBM wells on the bank of the river Forth, the largest venture of its kind in the UK.
          Dart is a member of the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association, which employs Australian lobbyists Crosby Textor. A former Crosby Textor lobbyist, Guy Robinson, is special adviser to the environment secretary, Owen Paterson. Paterson, accused by green groups of being a climate-change sceptic, has voiced support for fracking, describing shale reserves as "one unexpected and potentially huge windfall".
          Both fracking and CBM extraction are fiercely opposed by environmental groups. Fracking involves injecting fluid under high pressure to crack rocks underground and release the natural shale gas. The technique is banned in several countries, including France.
          ' This story was amended on 2 November 2012 to remove incorrect references to the Vitol Group being a shareholder in Dart Energy and to include Vitol's denial that the Foreign Office brokered a deal to supply oil to Libyan rebels
        James Foley Video Had A Change Of Actor '' Expert Points Out - International Business Times
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          Archived Version
          Sat, 30 Aug 2014 04:55
          A forensics expert points out hints that the James Foley beheading video was edited to give way to a change of actor.
          Whiles experts has no doubt that Foley was actually killed, they were one in saying that the video showing his execution was edited to suit whatever purpose it wants to serve.
          According to Ross Patel, a forensic expert, the change in stature of the man masked in black was a giveaway that there is another man or a second militant that acted the part. The second man could be the actual killer.
          Patel pointed out that an obvious edit made it possible to conceal the appearance of the second man.
          "There's definitely a change of actor. There are noticeable, there are subtle but there are also noticeable changes in their build, their physical appearance," the expert said.
          Patel suggested that for investigators to track down the man in the video, the measurements of his face can be compared through databases of passport photos.
          Patel was keen to observe that the knife being held by the man in the video has dimensions and style different from the knife left beside Foley's dead body and decapitated head. Furthermore, the man's pistol was holstered underneath his left armpit which suggests that he was right handed. However, the beheader who appeared in the video was left-handed.
          Curiously, the whole footage appeared to be edited using "slick post-production techniques," according to an international forensic science company, which requested not to be named.
          "I think it has been staged. My feeling is that the execution may have happened after the camera was stopped," the company's analysis of the video published by The Times reads.
          Video experts, who had also spoken with The Times, observed that some portions of the video have play-acting.
          In the instance that Foley's beheading video was elaborately edited using advance equipments, it will be logical to ask next as to how and where the ISIS gets its funding.
          The group owns cash amounting to $2 billion amassed from private donations, taxes, ransoms and stolen millions of money from big infrastructures that the group had been seizing, The Guardian reports.
          There is no way to determine the exact amount of funding that the group is getting, according to Australian National University's Middle East terrorism expert Dr Rodger Shanahan.
          Shanahan said that it is a known fact that the group is amassing money from the Gulf to Syria, or their sales of oil from the locations that they now control. But as for the exact amount of money coming in, no one can definitely know "unless you're privy to their books of account."
          Calling itself as a caliphate means that the group has its capacity to do everything that a government does as "the notion of holding dams is as much about claiming to be a government as it is about revenue raising," he said.
          To contact the editor, e-mail:
      Man Murdered, Cock and Balls Cut Off and Put in His Dead Mouth | Best Gore
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        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 08:20
        I was gonna say that Brazil is like Mexico already, but Brazil is so messed up, it doesn't need to mimic anyone. Mexico would still be my first guess if you told me that there was a murdered man with cocks and balls cut off and shoved up his dead mouth, but Brazil would still slide as close second.
        I don't know about you, but no matter how pissed off I'd get with someone, even if I were to quarter him alive while blow torch slowly burns hole up his rectum, I would still refrain from touching his Johnson. I can imagine dissecting the shit out of girl's clit, but I'm not feeling anyone's junk, not even if I had rubber gloves on. Clearly, the murderer of this fellow felt otherwise.
        Photos are from February 2, 2012. Body of a man with hands and feet tied with a rope and penis with balls severed and placed in mouth was discovered in Distrito de Livramento, in the city of Santa Rita, Paraibe, Brazil.
        The victim was identified as 37 year old Rem­lson Martins. He was strangled to death with a rope. 10 years ago, Rem­lson Martins was arrested on suspicion of molesting his 10 year old niece. He was an alcoholic and not very popular among the locals because of his alleged sexual advances towards children.
        It sounds like the community came together to murder the suspected child molester. That doesn't make them any better, does it? Besides, whoever castrated the man, must have touched his junk. Maybe the cutter put the severed cock in his mouth before stuffing victim's face with it. If you're going gay, may as well go all in.
        Props to drccoco and many others who sent these photos to me. Go Brazil:
        What People Searched For To Land Here:gore gaypenis removalman cockfemale genital mutilation picsfemale circumcision photos videogallery penisfemale circumcision photos picturespenis galleriesboys penÄ±s pÄ±csdicks. Bookmark the
        .
      Mexican Drug Cartel Execution - Penis and Balls Cut Off Before Beheading | Best Gore
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 08:19
        Another one from the Mexican Drug Cartel videos series originally published by Blog del Narco '' this time it's an execution of a man who is seen hanged naked upside down while his captors cut off his penis and balls, behead him with a machete and bit by bit mutilate his entire body by cutting each limb at each main joint.
        The assailants wear military fatigues with blue t-shirts and masks over their faces. Each is also armed with an assault rifle (graciously provided by the Obama administration through Project Gunrunner '' Fast and Furious anyone? But then again, he'd also armed the terrorists in Libya and presently arming extremists in Syria so what's a few armed gangs south of the US border?). Most of the cutting and chopping is done by two of the captors while about half a dozen others stand guard forming a gruesome visual background to the execution.
        While his penis and balls are being cuts off, the upside down man wriggles a lot knowing what horrors are coming to him. However as soon as the beheading starts, the wriggling stops. As if losing a penis was much scarier than losing a head. Though, the more he twitched, the more pain he must have brought upon himself as instead of delivering a few well targeted chop chops at the Johnson, the captors had to slash about his crotch with a blade for a long time. Luckily for the victim, he was already dead when the dismemberment started.
        As with most beheadings, the tool used to decapitate the captive doesn't seem overly sharp. Certainly appears as dull as the machete used by La Guera Loca. Perhaps Obama should hook the cartels up with Arkansas Stone?
        The festive background music you hear in this video is what they refer to in Mexico as Narcocorrido. From what I understand, Narcocorrido songs celebrate illegal activities of the drug cartels and praise murder, torture and other such doings of the Narcos. Seems like an appropriate choice for a video of a guy getting castrated.
        Many thanks to Chuck Ufarley and countless others who poked me to post this video.
        What People Searched For To Land Here:castration videoscartels executioncastration torturebeheading and dismembermentcock and ballguy cuts off ballsmexican cartel rapemexican cartel beheading liveleakmexican drug cartel cutting off ballsman cuts off balls. Bookmark the
        .
      Man's body found with private part in mouth : Kaieteur News
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 08:14
        - Post mortem shows man was stabbed twice, beaten
        The Post mortem done on the body of Ray Holder of South Turkeyen, East Coast Demerara, revealed that he died of two stab wounds to the chest. The man's body was found with his penis severed and stuffed into his mouth.
        Dead: Ray Holder
        The examination was done by Dr Nehaul Singh on Saturday in the Potaro-Siparuni area, Mahdia.The 29-year-old miner went missing two Saturdays ago. His body was discovered by a fisherman after it washed ashore in Mahdia.According to the man's mother, Lalita Takoordyal, when they visited the area her son's face appeared to be eaten by fish or shrimp as a result of the body being hidden.The mother explained that the police even tried to convince relatives that Holder had drowned.She reflected that Holder left for the interior on Mashramani night (February, 23). ''A bus driver tell we that he got a call from the people that he worked with that they just find he body and they (were) going to bury him (last Tuesday) because he is badly decomposed.''Adding that her son has been working with the dredge owner for over a year, the mother said that the owner of the dredge has her number. She said that ''since the night her son left for the interior the ''boss man called three times and told me to let Ray go to the bus driver that night for the man to carry him up in the bush.''According to the dead man's father, Aubrey Bobb, ''When we go there we ain't even ask nobody nothing, and they tell we 'they cruel ya son bai, they beat he up and make he whole back, black and blue, then they stab he'''.''The man said the people he does work with got two dredges and both work 24-hrs a day and they does work this boy hard'...They said not to let down the story because they kill ya son on the landing and they turn up the music high so nobody couldn't hear since he was drinking there and friendly with a Amerindian girl and that's why they kill he'...They even cut off his penis and put it in his mouth,'' the father added.''The person that I really angry with about the entire thing is the girl that this thing is surrounding; she can say exactly what happened and the police can't say they don't have a case!'' the father exclaimed.
        Lalita Takoordyal
        Adding that it is now confirmed that the man was murdered, relatives said they are calling for an in-depth investigation. He further noted that his son's body should have been transferred to the city and not buried in Mahdia. Holder was buried on the spot where the post mortem was done.The father of the dead man noted that he visited Eve Leary headquarters and spoke to the police officials yesterday about the circumstances surrounding his son's demise. He is expecting the authorities to act accordingly.
        Related content...
      -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      Legacy of Ashes Quote
        John/Adam,
        I am reading Legacy of Ashes at the moment and a passage really jumped out at me that I felt was important to note given our current predicament in the middle east...
        The president [Eisenhower] said he wanted to promote the idea of an Islamic jihad against godless communism. "We should do everything possible to stress the 'holy war' aspect," he said at a September 1957 White House meeting attended by Frank Wisner, Foster Dulles, assistant secretary of state for the Near East William Rountree, and members of the Joint Chiefs.
        This book should be required reading for any No Agenda producer. It is a fantastic testament to the follies our intelligence agency has mucked around in for decades and what has clearly led to our current state of the world.
        Thank you so much for the book recommendation so many shows back. I see that Tim Weiner just released a similar tome for the FBI last year. It's next on my list.
        ---
        Andrew
      Could U.S. strikes on Iraq spur Jordan’s homegrown ISIS?
      -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      Jordan to fall to ISIS, surround Israel, then all hell breaks loose
      ISIS Threatens to Invade Jordan, 'Slaughter' King Abdullah
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 08:25
        The recent victories in Iraq and Syria by the terrorists of ISIS -- said to be an offshoot of al-Qaeda -- have emboldened the group and its followers throughout the Middle East. Now the terrorists are planning to move their jihad not only to Jordan, but also to the Gaza Strip, Sinai and Lebanon.
        Failure to act will result in the establishment in the Middle East of a dangerous extremist Islamic empire that will pose a threat to American and Western interests.
        "The danger is getting closer to our bedrooms." '-- Oraib al-Rantawi, Jordanian political analyst
        Islamist terrorists in Iraq and Syria have begun creeping toward neighboring countries, sources close to the Islamic fundamentalists revealed this week.
        The terrorists, who belong to The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria [ISIS -- known as DAESH in Arabic] and are said to be an offshoot of al-Qaeda, are planning to take their jihad to Jordan, Lebanon, the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula -- after having already captured large parts of Syria and Iraq, the sources said.
        The capture this week by ISIS of the cities of Mosul and Tikrit in Iraq has left many Arabs and Muslims in the region worried that their countries soon may be targeted by the terrorists, who seek to create a radical Islamist emirate in the Middle East.
        According to the sources, ISIS leader Abu Baker al-Baghdadi recently discussed with his lieutenants the possibility of extending the group's control beyond Syria and Iraq.
        One of the ideas discussed envisages focusing ISIS's efforts on Jordan, where Islamist movements already have a significant presence. Jordan was also chosen because it has shared borders with Iraq and Syria, making it easier for the terrorists to infiltrate the kingdom.
        Jordanian political analyst Oraib al-Rantawi sounded alarm bells by noting that the ISIS threat to move its fight to the kingdom was real and imminent. "We in Jordan cannot afford the luxury of just waiting and monitoring," he cautioned. "The danger is getting closer to our bedrooms. It has become a strategic danger; it is no longer a security threat from groups or cells. We must start thinking outside the box. The time has come to increase coordination and cooperation with the regimes in Baghdad and Damascus to contain the crawling of extremism and terrorism."
        The ISIS terrorists see Jordan's Western-backed King Abdullah as an enemy of Islam and an infidel, and have publicly called for his execution. ISIS terrorists recently posted a video on YouTube in which they threatened to "slaughter" Abdullah, whom they denounced as a "tyrant." Some of the terrorists who appeared in the video were Jordanian citizens who tore up their passports in front of the camera and vowed to launch suicide attacks inside the kingdom.
        A Jordanian ISIS terrorist wearing a suicide bomb belt and holding his Jordanian passport declares his willingness to wage jihad in an ISIS video. (Image source: All Eyes on Syria YouTube video)
        Security sources in Amman expressed deep concern over ISIS's threats and plans to "invade" the kingdom. The sources said that King Abdullah has requested urgent military aid from the U.S. and other Western countries so that he could foil any attempt to turn Jordan into an Islamist-controlled state.
        Marwan Shehadeh, an expert on Islamist groups, said he did not rule out the possibility that ISIS would target Jordan because it views the Arab regimes, including Jordan's Hashemites, as "infidels" and "apostates" who should be fought.
        The recent victories by ISIS terrorists in Iraq and Syria have emboldened the group and its followers throughout the Middle East. Now the terrorists are planning to move their jihad not only to Jordan, but also to the Gaza Strip, Sinai and Lebanon.
        This is all happening under the watching eyes of the U.S. Administration and Western countries, who seem to be uncertain as to what needs to be done to stop the Islamist terrorists from invading neighboring countries.
        ISIS is a threat not only to moderate Arabs and Muslims, but also to Israel, which the terrorists say is their ultimate destination. The U.S. and its Western allies need to wake up quickly and take the necessary measures to prevent the Islamist terrorists from achieving their goal.
        Failure to act will result in the establishment in the Middle East of a dangerous extremist Islamist empire that will pose a threat to American and Western interests.
        Related Topics: Palestinian Authority | Khaled Abu Toamehreceive the latest by email: subscribe to the free gatestone institute mailing list
      Jordan faces new test from ISIS gains in neighboring states | News , Middle East | THE DAILY STAR
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 08:08
        AMMAN: He had a good job and a loving family, but it wasn't enough for a 25-year old Jordanian who abandoned his life of privilege in Amman to join ISIS, the group that has seized swaths of Iraq and Syria.
        Handsome, courteous and highly regarded in his profession as a radiologist, the man, whose name has been withheld for security reasons, disappeared in early August after the Eid al-Fitr holiday. He did not tell his family where he was going.
        He later called his parents from an undisclosed location to say he had ''forsaken his life for the glory of Islam,'' a relative said. ''His father is heartbroken, and his mother is in hospital from shock,'' he said.
        He is among the first known cases of Jordanians joining ISIS since the group declared a ''caliphate'' in June after dramatic territorial gains.
        His story points to the widening support for ISIS among Jordanian Islamist fundamentalists inspired by its recent advances in countries neighboring Jordan. With that support come new risks for a U.S. ally mostly unscathed by the Middle Eastern turmoil of recent years.
        Jordan's powerful intelligence services appear to be deploying their full range of tools to counter the threat. King Abdullah has said the country has never been better prepared to face the radical threat sweeping the region.
        The gains by ISIS have sparked a fierce debate among Jordanian Islamists from the ultra-orthodox Salafist movement on whether to back the group, whose brutality has been criticized even within radical Islamist circles.
        But buoyed by territorial gains, ISIS sympathizers appear to be winning the argument.
        ''Many youths have changed their distorted view of [ISIS] after they saw their actions on the ground, their achievements, and how the West has ganged up against it,'' a well-known Jordanian militant told Reuters under the assumed name Gharib al-Ikhwan al-Urduni.
        Since the civil war erupted in neighboring Syria in 2011, hundreds of Jordanians have joined an insurgency against President Bashar Assad. More than 2,000 men, ranging from underprivileged youths to doctors and '' in one case '' an air force captain, have abandoned Jordan for jihad in Syria, according to Islamists close to the subject.
        At least 250 of them have been killed there.
        But the recent accomplishments by ISIS are helping to galvanize support like never before among radical Islamists who dream of erasing borders across the Muslim world to establish a pan-Islamic nation.
        It raises the prospect of yet more Jordanians crossing the border to fight, but also the risk of ISIS sympathizers striking in Jordan itself '' a country that has suffered Islamist militancy before, notably bomb attacks on Amman hotels by Al-Qaeda-linked militants during the U.S. occupation of Iraq.
        The appearance of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, calling for the support of Muslims in the pulpit of a mosque in the Iraqi city of Mosul last June acted like a magnet for young Jordanian Islamists.
        ''Their dream was setting up the caliphate, and now they see it being achieved. This made people consider very seriously joining, especially since [ISIS] had officially invited them,'' said Bassam Nasser, a Jordanian Islamist scholar.
        The roots of ISIS can, in one sense, be traced to Jordan. It was Abu Musab Zarqawi, a Jordanian, who founded the Iraqi arm of Al-Qaeda that would eventually mutate into ISIS, which has now been disavowed by the famous terrorist group.
        In the impoverished Jordanian town of Zarqa, Zarqawi's birthplace and a traditional stronghold of Islamist fundamentalists, support for ISIS was on full display during Eid prayers that marked the end of Ramadan in late July.
        Scores of men dressed in the kind of Afghan-style clothing often worn by radical Islamists waved the black ISIS flag as they gathered in an open field to listen to Jordanian Islamist Sheikh Amer Khalalyeh praise the group.
        ''O Baghdadi, you who has spread terror in the hearts of our enemies, enlist me as a martyr,'' chanted the sheikh over a microphone. The footage was captured in a video posted on YouTube.
        In the assessment of one senior regional security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, Jordan could be home to ''hundreds if not thousands of potential sympathizers'' who could turn into ''potential sleeper cells and time bombs.''
        The roots of radicalization in Jordan mirror those commonly cited as its primary cause across the Middle East and include a lack of political liberty and economic opportunity.
        King Abdullah, a steadfast U.S. ally who has safeguarded his country's peace treaty with Israel, is seeking to ease concerns in Jordan about the threat posed by ISIS.
        ''I am satisfied with the preparations of the armed forces and security agencies. We had planned for surprises several months ago and we were ahead of others. I can assure you '' politically, security-wise and militarily our position today is stronger than in the past,'' he told politicians.
        In an indirect reference to ISIS, he warned Jordanians not to fall prey to outside parties seeking to exploit their grievances.
        In recent weeks, the Jordanian intelligence services have tightened security around sensitive government areas, stepped up surveillance of Islamist fundamentalists and arrested activists seen as a threat, diplomats and officials say.
        At least a dozen people have been arrested for expressing support for ISIS on social media.
        Jordan's approach to confronting the risk has set it apart from some other Arab states. Its dependence on sophisticated intelligence gathering rather than arbitrary arrests have been credited for sparing Jordan the kind of vendetta-fuelled Islamist insurrections seen in states such as Egypt and Syria.
        The authorities last month released a prominent Islamist scholar, an influential figure in militant circles, who is one of the leading Islamist opponents of ISIS.
        Sheikh Abu Mohammad al-Maqdisi's release has added an influential voice to the debate, but also revealed divisions among Jordan's previously cohesive hard-line Islamist community of ultra-orthodox Salafists.
        Maqdisi has mocked Baghdadi's caliphate and expressed outrage at the brutality unleashed by ISIS.
        ''It is giving our jihad a bloody texture that we cannot accept. These images of decapitations are painful. This is something we cannot accept, nor Allah. Mercy with the infidels dominated during the spread of Islam,'' he said this month in an audio message.
        That has triggered an avalanche of attacks by ISIS supporters who have shown none of the deference usually reserved for senior scholars such as Maqdisi. They say he was released not because he had served out his five-year jail term, but with a specific remit to attack ISIS.
        The row has sparked verbal and physical conflict. Two radical Islamists who spoke out against decapitations and indiscriminate killings of Shiites by ISIS were recently physically beaten by the group's supporters.
        The ISIS flag was also raised in June by supporters in the historically volatile city of Maan, a tribal stronghold of over 50,000 people about 250 kilometers south of the capital.
        Here, crosscurrents of crime, smuggling and tribal disaffection are a combustible mix for the Jordanian government, resented for neglecting the area's development. That has provided fertile ground for Islamist recruitment.
        But Mohammad Shalabi, a militant Salafist from Maan who has encouraged Islamists to go to Syria to fight, said Jordan was not a target for ISIS, which now calls itself the Islamic State.
        ''The Islamic State ... has no interest in targeting Jordan. When I have not consolidated my presence firmly enough in Iraq and Syria I cannot move to Jordan,'' said Shalabi, also known as Abu Sayyaf. He spent 10 years in prison for militancy including a plot to attack U.S. troops in Jordan.
        Shalabi, a respected figure by locals in the city who mediates with tribal chiefs in disputes with the authorities, said his followers had no interest in destabilizing Jordan, unless the government provoked them. ''If we felt, God forbid, that injustice is going to befall us or that the circle of injustice is expanding, we will not sit with our hands tied.''
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      ISIS Says It's Burning Marijuana Fields In Syria
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 10:05
        The Islamic State militant group released a video on Tuesday purporting to show its fighters burning down a marijuana field in a town it captured in north Syria.
        In the clip, which appears to be shot in the town of Akhtarin and was uploaded to YouTube by an ISIS supporter on Tuesday, the fighters denounce the evils of drug-taking, before appearing to chop down bushes and setting them ablaze.
        The militants claim they discovered the farm after having captured Akhtarin from the Free Syrian Army, a rival group of opposition fighters in Syria, in recent weeks. The militants claim the farm owner fled over the nearby border with Turkey.
        Syria Deeply reported in July that some farmers in north Syria have turned to pot-growing in a desperate bid to make an income amidst Syria's devastating civil war.
        But the farmers have come under threat from radical Islamist fighters, such as the militants of the Islamic State, who consider drugs against Islamic law.
        The Islamic State group, earlier known as ISIS, is known to impose a harsh interpretation of Islamic law in areas under its control in Iraq and Syria, and has banned cigarettes, alcohol and drugs. A United Nations commission said on Wednesday that the group's systematic abuse of civilians, including public executions and training child fighters, may amount to crimes against humanity.
      CLEAR EVIDENCE: #ISIS and other terror elements have been infiltrating Anonymous for over 2 years'... JESTERS COURT '' OFFICIAL BLOG
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 09:55
        '... but they're still to dumb to realize it.
        ''The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses '' behind the lines'... '' ~ Muhammad Ali
        #ISIS went online viral. Now, do you want to know who's fueling it? Here we go then. I'm gonna try and not groan on here. But this is important. Most of you know I've been going on VERY VOCALLY for years about how the so-called 'hacktivist' collective 'Anonymous' and their little wannabe offshoots have been ripe for infiltration by foreign terrorist organizations, hell I've written numerous blog posts on it; Here's one of the better ones. A few others of you out there will remember my spat with 'TEAM POISON', one of the many splinter groups of anonymous. They basically phone bombed the UK's Anti-Terror hotline a few times. Some of their number were apprehended and I wrote a lovely blog post all about that shit, when it happened in 2012. You can catch up with that here.
        So lets cut to the chase, 'TEAM POISON', one of the numerous 'Anonymous' offshoots, posted videos at the time in 2012 onto Youtube, under their own account, of recordings of them TROLLING the UK's MI6 Anti-Terror hotline (and MI6 trolling them back by all accounts). In one such video posted by themselves they overlaid their 'demands'. To be precise, it was this video (just in case it gets pulled, I've grabbed a screenshot below):
        .
        .
        If you skip to 41 seconds in, you'll notice they overlaid their little blurb. Remember, this video, as of writing is still there, uploaded by them, at the time on April 11th 2012. I urge you to skip to 41 seconds in and hit pause.
        Just in case the video gets pulled, here's a screenshot of the same pause, click here to enlarge:
        Now enlarge it with this link.
        Why?
        In the third highlighted paragraph they talk about one 'Adel Abdul Bary' '' remember this is back in 2012. That name might ring a bell with some of you. They are referring to a man who, and I quote: ''is believed to have been an associate of Osama bin Laden's and was allegedly involved in the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings. He was extradited to the U.S. in 2012.'' (Source)
        So what, they are just kids right? '' WRONG.
        This Adel Abdul Bary (Snr) they talk about 2 years ago, is in fact the FATHER of one 'Abdel-Majed Addel Bary' (Jnr), who is the BRITISH 'RAPPER' turned JIHADI executioner, who beheaded James Foley a couple weeks ago in Syria. (Source) This same lunatic also publically ''declared his allegiance to Anonymous'' prior to murdering a US Journalist. (Source)
        Incidently, the TEAM POISON guy, doing the talking in the above video, is TRiCK, AKA Junaid Hussein also from UK, who also recently went to fight for ISIS around June this year. (Source)
        So there it is, and I hate smart-asses too, that's why I hate to say it, but I was right the first time.
        Not so fucking 'lulzy' now is it?
        Tell me again how these @LizardSquad anonymous/lulzsec offshoot wannabes, who keep posting pro ISIS crap are not a threat to US National Security?
        Also lets be clear. Anons and their lulzy offshoot wannabes sure as fuck weren't targeted for their non-existent tech skills. They were 'recruited' because they are a relatively large and 'leaderless' gaggle of immature directionless shitbirds, who any element of terror with a catchy 'op' name, knew were pliable and would carry their message for them, much like a herd of lemmings. Except along the way, this time they 'recruited' at least one (very likely more) bonehead failed 'rapper' executioner, who came from that same gaggle of directionless, flockless, feckless morally bankrupt shitbirds known as anonymous. Their members are famous for being desperate for individual 'fame' and in-fighting about it (hence the offshoots). Because that's what Anonymous and it's offshoots clearly attract.
        Henceforth '' Abdel-Majed Bary (Jnr) had no problem slicing off the head of a US journalist, on camera.
        '.... And there's me thinking one of the original 'mandates' of 'Anonymous' et all, was freedom of the press and speech. They got pwned.
        Again #ISIS went online viral on OUR SOCIAL MEDIA and now you know who's fuelling it. But, WE don't need viral, cuz together we can do EPIDEMIC.
        J don't sleep. I simply wait.
        SIDENOTE: The rumors ARE true. I did do the ALS Association Ice-Bucket Challenge for charity a couple of days ago, and a camera was rolling and here's the FOOTAGE.
        Peace.
        J
        PS: I can't think of an appropriate video ending as I usually do. I'll think of something.
        UPDATE - I FOUND A CLOSING VIDEO (You might remember it):
        Related Posts
      As Obama Admits 'We Don't Have a Strategy' for ISIS in Syria, Nets Obsess Over President's Suit | MRCTV
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 14:14
        [For more, see NewsBusters.] Although all three networks covered Barack Obama's admission on Thursday that "we don't have a strategy" for responding to Islamic militants in Syria, ABC, CBS and NBC journalists were really animated by the President's tan suit. GMA news reader Amy Robach on Friday enthused, "Finally this morning, some presidential critics are saying, 'yes, we tan!'" Over on NBC's Today, Dylan Dreyer lectured Twitter on the superficiality of such a topic: "President Obama had a very important press conference. He was talking about all sorts of world issues. So of course social media was focused on those world issues, right? Of course not."
      ISIS Crosshairs
        some fun results indeed!
        Sir-G, Bt.
        Current Results include:
        - Report: Pope Francis Is 'In The Crosshairs Of ISIS'
        - Is Israel in ISIS' crosshairs? - CNN Video - Breaking News
        - Peter Brookes: ISIS has US in crosshairs | Fox News Video
        - whos-next-in-isis-crosshairs
        - The Iraqi Minorities in ISIS's Crosshairs
        - Vatican scoffs at threats that Pope Francis is “in the crosshairs” of ISIS
        Note: looking for 'crotch hairs' doesn't find anything interesting.
      Man waving ISIS flag threatens police with bomb in Chicago
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Source: Twitchy » US Politics
        Fri, 29 Aug 2014 02:27
        A man who had an ISIS flag waving from his vehicle reportedly threatened police with a bomb after he was pulled over in Southwest Chicago Wednesday.
        A blog post on the Chicago Sun-Times reports:
        Emad Karakrah, 49, was charged with felony counts of disorderly conduct and aggravated fleeing; and a misdemeanor count of driving on a never-issued license, according to Chicago Police. He was also issued three traffic citations.
        Someone called police after seeing a ''suspicious person'' driving a silver Pontiac southbound in the 7700 block of South Kedzie at 9:18 a.m. with an ISIS flag waving out the window, according to a police report.
        Officers attempted to pull over the vehicle, but the driver took off, according to the report. The officers called for assistance, and another officer pulled the vehicle over after it went through several red lights.
        The man told police during his arrest that there was a bomb in the car and he would detonate it if they searched the vehicle, according to the report.
        Update:
        ABC 7 Chicago has released the man's mugshot.
      The Yale Law Journal - Forum: Citizenship, Passports, and the Legal Identity of Americans: Edward Snowden and Others Have a Case in the Courts
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Fri, 29 Aug 2014 22:58
        In this Essay, Professor Patrick Weil reexamines the constitutional function of the passport in relation to American citizenship. The State Department recently developed a policy of passport revocation whereby some Americans are transformed into de facto stateless persons, like Edward Snowden, or are prohibited from living abroad as citizens, like dozens of Yemeni Americans. In the Yemeni Americans' case, the State Department confuses the legality of passports and naturalization. Revoking Snowden's passport violates the right for a citizen to possess a passport confirming his or her legal identity'--including citizenship'--while abroad. This passport function, recognized since 1835, is one of the privileges and immunities of American citizens protected by the Fourteenth Amendment. The Supreme Court has never authorized its suspension by the executive for national security reasons, unlike the other function of a passport'--the right to travel. New technologies offer a way to distinguish between these two functions and to make effective a constitutional right.
        On June 22, 2013, Edward J. Snowden, a Hawaii-based computer specialist and contractor for the National Security Agency (NSA), had his passport revoked by the United States State Department. While working for the NSA, Snowden had secretly downloaded classified documents detailing NSA surveillance operations. By May 20, 2013, Snowden had left Hawaii for Hong Kong, where he started releasing the top-secret material in his possession to the press.
        On June 14, the U.S. Justice Department filed criminal charges against Snowden in federal district court. The following day, the Justice Department formally requested that Hong Kong authorities issue a provisional arrest warrant for Snowden. Eight days later, on the very morning'--Hong Kong time'--that his passport was revoked, Mr. Snowden was able to board a flight to Moscow. He remained in Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport's transit zone until August 1, 2013, when Russian authorities granted him a one-year temporary asylum along with an identity document.
        The State Department reaffirmed that Snowden remained an American citizen. However, according to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, Snowden only remained eligible for a ''limited validity passport good for direct return to the United States.'' The State Department had thus effectively voided Snowden's U.S. passport. Only if and when he decides to return to the United States will the State Department grant him an official document permitting his return to the U.S.; it will not grant him a passport of the common kind, which allows a U.S. citizen to remain abroad.
        Snowden's is not the only passport of an American citizen that the U.S. State Department has recently revoked. According to the Washington Post, the State Department revoked the passports of a few dozen'--if not a hundred'--Yemeni Americans after arguing that because these individuals were illegally naturalized, their passports were also obtained illegally.
        From an analysis of historical and legal precedents, it seems clear that the State Department has acted in violation of the Constitution in each of these cases. The revocation of Snowden's passport violates a privilege and immunity of American citizenship, protected by the Privileges or Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment'--namely a U.S. citizen's ability to keep a passport while abroad as a document proving her legal identity and citizenship. This is a function of the U.S. passport that the Supreme Court has recognized since 1835. The revocation of the passports of the Yemeni Americans is similarly suspect. If the U.S. State Department contests the legality of their naturalization, their cases should be brought to court on the claim that there is good cause to revoke their citizenship. The cases do differ; Snowden's citizenship is uncontested while the citizenship of the Yemeni Americans in question seems contestable. But in both instances, when prevented from directly revoking or attacking the citizenship of American citizens'--which is staunchly protected de jure by Supreme Court jurisprudence and relevant statutes'--the State Department has developed a strategy of attack whereby Americans are transformed into de facto stateless persons (as in the case of Snowden) or individuals who are no longer able to live abroad as U.S. citizens (like the Yemeni Americans). It is time for the courts to intervene and set the rules by clarifying the link between U.S. citizenship and a U.S. passport.
        I. snowden's passportAt first glance, Supreme Court jurisprudence seems to offer support for the Obama Administration's position in Snowden's situation. In a 1981 case, Haig v. Agee, the Court upheld the revocation of ex-CIA agent Philip Agee's passport. Agee, who was living in West Germany at the time, had traveled extensively to other countries in order to publicize the activities of undercover CIA agents, triggering government action against him. The Court affirmed the authority of the Secretary of State to revoke a passport when the holder's activities in foreign countries were causing serious damage to national security.
        Agee attacked the Secretary's action on statutory grounds'--Congress had never authorized the Secretary of State to revoke passports, either by an express delegation or by ''an administrative practice sufficiently substantial and consistent to warrant the conclusion that Congress had implicitly approved it.''Agee prevailed in the district court and court of appeals on the basis of that argument. He further claimed that his passport should be returned on three constitutional grounds, described by the Supreme Court as:
        [F]irst, that the revocation of his passport impermissibly burdens his freedom to travel; second, that the action was intended to penalize his exercise of free speech and deter his criticism of Government policies and practices; and third, that failure to accord him a prerevocation hearing violated his Fifth Amendment right to procedural due process.
        The Court backed the government's right to revoke Agee's passport for national security reasons. Denying his constitutional claims, it stated that the freedom to travel abroad was subordinate to national security and foreign policy considerations. It saw no foundation for his First Amendment claim and his request for a prerevocation hearing.
        Yet, in so deciding, the Court dealt with only one dimension of the American passport: the one that guarantees American citizens the freedom to travel, i.e., to leave U.S. territory and to cross foreign borders and territories.
        The Court did not discuss a second dimension of the passport, which was first clearly distinguished and recognized in an 1835 Supreme Court decision, Urtetiqui v. D'Arcy. The Court in Urtetiqui stated:
        [A passport] is a document, which, from its nature and object, is addressed to foreign powers; purporting only to be a request, that the bearer of it may pass safely and freely; and is to be considered rather in the character of a political document, by which the bearer is recognised, in foreign countries, as an American citizen; and which, by usage and the law of nations, is received as evidence of the fact.
        In Agee, the Supreme Court reaffirmed that distinction by quoting the entirety of this paragraph. The executive branch itself noted this dual function of a passport; responding to a question raised by Justice Rehnquist during the oral argument, U.S. Solicitor General Wade McCree asserted that a passport ''serves two purposes. First, the purpose of identifying the bearer as a citizen or a national of the issuing nation; and second, to request free passage for him from a foreign nation as well as the efforts of the foreign nation to facilitate his travel.''
        The 1981 Court did not deal with the second function of the passport'--namely, to be ''recognised, in foreign countries, as an American citizen'' and to ''identify[] the bearer as a citizen or a national of the issuing nation.'' Agee did not invoke it, and Chief Justice Burger'--who only included answers to Agee's constitutional claims in the final stages of writing the majority opinion'--did not raise the issue sua sponte.
        The majority opinion in Agee was hotly debated within the Court, provoking a strong dissent by Justice Brennan. For him, the right to travel out of the United States had been recognized as ''an important personal right included within the 'liberty' guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment'' which could only be curtailed by Congress in the exercise of its lawmaking function. He feared that the Agee decision ''has handed over too much of that function to the Executive.''Brennan's criticism is not the point of my argument; let us concede that the revocation of a passport is a necessary executive power insofar as it provides a means to restrict freedom of travel across borders for security reasons. It is not as convincing, however, that, for security reasons, an American citizen should be deprived of her right to a legal identity as an American citizen, the second function of a passport.
        While stating that ''there is only a constitutional 'freedom' to travel internationally'--a freedom that may be curtailed within the contours of due process of law,'' the Court also reaffirmed in Haig v. Agee a constitutional ''right'' to interstate travel.For the Court this distinction was important: the right to travel abroad was a freedom that could be subjected to due process or legislative limitation. The right to travel within the United States was an absolute right before which both the executive and the legislative powers had to bow. I believe that if the Court had inquired further, it would have also affirmed a constitutional right for an American travelling or residing abroad'--that of keeping his or her passport as a valid identity document. If asked today by Edward Snowden, for example, the Court would have to confirm that it is his absolute right not to be deprived of his legal identity as an American citizen. This absolute right can first be deduced from the absolute protection afforded to him by his status as a citizen.
        This absolute protection was affirmed by the Supreme Court in 1967 inAfroyim v. Ruskand has received additional confirmation in subsequent cases.In the preceding decades, citizenship was conditional: starting in 1906, naturalized citizens who would return to reside in their country of origin would be denaturalized. Starting in 1907, American women marrying foreigners would lose their citizenship. Later, under the 1940 Nationality Act, Americans could and did lose their citizenship if they voted in foreign elections, escaped the draft, or remained six months or longer within any foreign state of which he or either of his parents was ever a national'--adding to a list which already included denationalization for Americans who became citizens of a foreign state. Between 1945 and 1967, more than 100,000 Americans, mostly native-born, were denationalized.Citizenship was less protected than liberty, life, or property, for denationalization was legally possible without due process.
        In 1967, inAfroyim, the Supreme Court secured American citizens against deprivation of their citizenship, on the basis of a literal reading of the Fourteenth Amendment.Justice Black concluded the majority opinion by affirming:
        We hold that the Fourteenth Amendment was designed to, and does, protect every citizen of this Nation against a congressional forcible destruction of his citizenship, whatever his creed, color, or race. Our holding does no more than to give to this citizen that which is his own, a constitutional right to remain a citizen in a free country unless he voluntarily relinquishes that citizenship.
        Since then, the Citizenship Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment has been interpreted as a right that is granted absolute protection. Adopted in 1868, the Fourteenth Amendment states first that all persons born or naturalized in the United States are citizens of the United States. Then it continues with the following sentence: ''No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States.'' These privileges and immunities were narrowly defined in the 1873 Slaughter-HouseCases,a decision that provoked and continues to provoke great controversy. Many scholars have claimed that the Court did not fulfill the original purpose of the Fourteenth Amendment. Nevertheless, the Constitution affirms some privileges and immunities of American citizens and'--however narrowly defined by the Court in the Slaughter-HouseCases'--even this minimalist conception turns out to be consequential.
        The privileges and immunities of citizens of the United States, Justice Miller wrote for the majority, are those which ''ow[e] their existence to the Federal government, its National character, its Constitution, or its laws.'' Miller then enumerated these privileges and immunities, and it is possible to distinguish the ones he defines as owed to the Constitution'--namely, the rights guaranteed by the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments, as well as rights to peaceably assemble, petition for redress of grievances, and claim the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus'--from those owed to the federal government and to its national character'--for example, the right to freely access the nation's seaports and to use the navigable waters of the United States.All these privileges and immunities are said to protect American citizenship from any abridgment by the states.
        Yet, in his majority opinion, Justice Miller also deals with the privileges and immunities of the American citizen abroad, in a foreign land, which arise not in relation to his or her state, but rather to the federal government of the United States:
        Another privilege of a citizen of the United States is to demand the care and protection of the Federal government over his life, liberty, and property when on the high seas or within the jurisdiction of a foreign government. Of this there can be no doubt, nor that the right depends upon his character as a citizen of the United States.
        One century later, in Afroyim, Justice Black agreed that the main consequence of the denationalization of a citizen is to ''take from him the privileges of a citizen.'' This tied privileges and immunities to the status of being a citizen of the United States, now protected absolutely and independently of any crime or illegal act committed by the citizen. The privileges of American citizens abroad'--like the privileges of an American citizen within the United States'--seem to have different sources. When the Court mentions the right of a citizen ''to demand the care and protection of the Federal government over his life, liberty, and property,'' it is as much a reference to the U.S. Constitution as a reference to the national character of the United States, given that the basic protection of one's government belongs ''to those privileges and immunities which were, in their nature, fundamental; which belong of right to citizens of all free governments.''
        The protection by the federal government of life, liberty, and property is a constitutional right subject to due process. The rights of protection and care while abroad, part of the privileges and immunities of citizens of all free governments, have evolved over time. I believe that the right to possess basic identity documents detailing one's date and place of birth, along with names and surnames, has become an absolute right, as much a fundamental human right developed throughout the twentieth century as a constitutional one stemming from Afroyim.
        II. developments in international human rights support the protection of the legal identity of americansAmong the numerous rights proclaimed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on December 10, 1948, the ''right to a nationality'' guaranteed in Article 15 has become one of the most respected and protected.
        When a person lacks citizenship, the international community provides a proxy: protection of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and rights in the country of residence fulfill the functions nationality plays in linking an individual with a nation-state. The international community does not provide an analogous proxy in situations where other rights are denied, for example, when due process is lacking or gender discrimination is obvious.
        Beginning in 1922, some international agreements provided refugees with a certificate that served as both a travel and identity document'--like a passport. Under Article 28 of the 1951 UNHCR Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, contracting states are required to issue travel documents to refugees, ''unless compelling reasons of national security or public order otherwise require.''
        But the 1951 convention provides in Article 27 that ''[t]he Contracting States shall issue identity papers to any refugee in their territory who does not possess a valid travel document.'' This is an absolute obligation. There is an exception to the required provision of travel documents: security reasons. There is no exception to the obligation to provide identity documents: all contracting states must issue identity papers to any refugee in their territory who does not possess a valid travel document. This means that the United States is obliged to deliver identity documents to foreign refugees who are in its jurisdiction and lack them.
        The right to be provided identity papers when abroad is expressed by the fact that when a human being does not possess a nationality or the protection of a state that can provide identity papers, the international community has agreed to enter into an absolute obligation to provide them. Should not this obligation, traditionally fulfilled by nation-states voluntarily for all their citizens who happen to have lost their passport while abroad, be considered a fortiori imposed on the signatory states'--including the United States'--for their own citizens?
        When the United States canceled the validity of Snowden's American passport, thereby stripping him of an identity document, it set the stage for a humiliating paradox: an identity documentaffirming and certifying his American citizenship (by listing his place of birth and citizenship) has been delivered to Snowden by the Russian authorities.
        The individual right to be recognized before the law found in Article 6 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as well as a child's right to be registered with a name and a nationality at birth found in Article 7 of the Convention of the Rights of the Child, offer further foundations for the duty to issue identity documents in international law. By doing so, the United States would fulfill the normal obligation of all states toward their own citizens, especially those states that are democracies. The ability of an American citizen to keep a legal identity has become one of the privileges and immunities of American citizens as defined in the Slaughter-House Cases because it now constitutes a ''right of citizens of all free countries.''
        This principle can also be deduced from Afroyim. In the early twentieth century, Edwin Borchard'--drawing on eighteenth-century legal thinker Emerich de Vattel's The Law of Nations'--addressed the question of the protection of the citizen living abroad. He believed that, at least in his pre-World-War-II era, states had the right, but not the obligation, to protect the interests of their citizens while abroad. This right seemed to be derived from the nature of national sovereignty: because the interests of a citizen were also the interests of the state, the state had the right to vindicate those interests abroad whenever it thought doing so was necessary.
        Yet Afroyim has reversed this classical conception of sovereignty. In his majority opinion, Justice Black'--after having conceded that all nations possess an implied attribute of sovereignty'--stated that ''[o]ther nations are governed by their own constitutions, if any, and we can draw no support from theirs. In our country the people are sovereign and the Government cannot sever its relationship to the people by taking away their citizenship.'' It is on the basis of the sovereignty of the citizen'--a sovereignty limited to the status of citizenship itself and to certain privileges and immunities stemming from it'--that American citizenship has become absolutely secured. However, since Afroyim, the Supreme Court has not ruled on a case that would allow the Justices to bring the privileges and immunities of the U.S. citizen up to date with this new understanding of citizenship. Is it not time for the Courtto read the Privileges or Immunities Clause and the Slaughter-House jurisprudence in the spirit of Afroyim'--i.e., to declare as an absolute right the possession by all Americans abroad of a document attesting to their legal identity, a right to which the executive and legislative powers must defer?
        Being identified as an American citizen abroad is a function of the U.S. passport, recognized as such by the Supreme Court since 1835. This function is especially important when, once a passport has been issued permitting an American citizen to travel abroad, its full revocation would lead to a situation wherein its previous bearer could not be recognized as an American citizen in foreign countries. A valid passport is the only identity document requested from any citizen of the United States leaving North America, and has been since 1978. It is the ultimate and definitive proof of citizenship and identity under international law; other identity documents such as driver's licenses and birth certificates are not necessarily available or recognized abroad.
        At the time of the Urtetiqui decision in 1835, the State Department could claim that it was difficult to distinguish within a handwritten passport between the freedom to travel and the right to an identity document. In 1981, at the time of Haig v. Agee, it was also difficult to revoke the freedom to travel without seizing the passport. This is no longer the case. The technology of the passport has been significantly transformed and now permits one to distinguish quite easily within the passport between the freedom to travel and the right to bear a legal identity. The biometric passport emerged as a global standard following the implementation of stricter border security measures after the September 11 attacks. More and more states have developed versions of this technology. It is equipped with a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chip that contains the biometric information of the passport holder. Biometric data are physiological and behavioral characteristics of the individual, including fingerprints, voice, and typing patterns, that serve to identify her within a certain population.
        Even when not issuing biometric passports, all member states of the International Civil Aviation Organization, a United Nations specialized agency, have achieved their goal of ''global interoperability,'' understood as the capability of inspection systems (whether manual or automated) in different states throughout the world to exchange data, to process data received from systems in other states, and to utilize that data in inspection operations in their respective states on Machine Readable Travel Documents (MRTDs).It is therefore easy for the executive to suspend the first function of a passport'--the right to travel'--and to make this information available throughout the world without revoking the passport as a document that permits its bearer to prove her identity and to be recognized as an American citizen. If a fundamental right of any American citizen is at stake in the distinction of the different functions of a passport, and if no technical issue can be raised as an obstacle for the fulfillment of this right, the time has come for the courts to consider the issue.
        When Chief Justice Burger wrote the majority opinion in Haig v. Agee, he at first did not deal with the constitutional issues raised in the case; he did so later, reluctantly, and in the opinion of Justice Powell, with a ''summary'' treatment. The revocation of Snowden's passport could offer the Court an opportunity to finally examine the different dimensions of a passport in a new constitutional and technological context. This is especially true given that Snowden's case is one among an increasing number of cases where the State Department seems to have confused a passport policy with citizenship itself.
        III. the yemeni americans in yemen In recent months, a significant number of U.S. citizens residing in Yemen have been summoned to the U.S. embassy in Sana'a.When they leave, it is without their passport'--which has been confiscated and revoked. The ACLU and other civil rights organizations have recently warned that the U.S. embassy in Yemen has pressured American citizens to surrender their passports and sign confessions without the advice of an attorney.
        The reproach directed at Yemeni Americans by consular officers is that they'--or their parents, years earlier'--misinformed U.S. authorities about some factual elements regarding their identities, dates of birth, last or first names, and so forth. It seems that ''[m]any Yemenis have a patronymic, tribal or geographic name that identifies their origin, which is often shortened for convenience when they immigrate to the U.S. and when they fill their application for naturalization. That's what embassy officials used to claim fraud was committed.''
        Asked about this situation, a State Department official stated that they ''provide fair process to every individual that enters U.S. Embassy Sana'a, while upholding [their] obligations under the law,'' adding that ''[t]he Department has authority to deny and revoke a U.S. passport under certain conditions, including those involving false identity.''
        If reports from the Washington Post, Al Jazeera, and the ACLU are accurate, it seems that the State Department is confusing its power to revoke a U.S. passport with the possibility of revoking one's naturalization. Deprived of their passport, these Yemeni Americans are not without identity documents, as they are most often dual citizens and therefore also Yemeni; they are instead illegally deprived'--de facto'--of their American citizenship.
        If a passport has been delivered listing the same information contained in an individual's naturalization certificate, it is not attesting to a false identity'--instead, it lists one's identity as a naturalized citizen. Therefore, the passport is valid and remains so for as long as the individual remains an American citizen. If the State Department has some doubt regarding the validity of the naturalization, the case must be brought to court. When the power to naturalize was transferred by the Immigration Act of 1990 from the courts to the Attorney General, another provision of the same Act transferred to the Attorney General the power ''to correct, reopen, alter, modify, or vacate an order naturalizing the person.'' But in 2000, in Gorbach v. Reno, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the exclusive statutory competence of the courts to revoke citizenship. Following this decision, the Department of Homeland Security has not attempted to resume the use of administrative denaturalization. Since 2001, only several dozen naturalized Americans have lost their citizenship, through judicial proceedings, largely because they committed different kinds of fraud during the naturalization process. This small number is in part explained by Kungys v. United States,in which the Court refused to uphold the denaturalization of Juozas Kungys because the government had not shown that his misrepresentation concerning the date and place of his birth were facts that, if known, would have warranted denial of citizenship.
        This is not the first time in its history that the State Department has exercised discretionary power over passports as a proxy for nationality policy. The 1907 Expatriation and the Protection of Citizens Act contained a provision stating that a residence of two years in the foreign state of origin by a naturalized citizen, or of five years in any other foreign state, would allow the government to assume that he or she ''has ceased to be an American citizen.'' The provision transformed some instances of denaturalization from a judicial to an administrative procedure. Furthermore, there was no longer a time limit placed on penalizing the maintenance of a residence abroad. Soon thereafter, Attorney General George Wickersham held that the new law had been enacted not to deprive naturalized Americans living abroad of their citizenship; rather, it was meant only to relieve the State Department of the burden of protecting them after an extended stay abroad. In the years following the Wickersham opinion, under the Taft and Wilson Administrations, this remained the Justice Department's interpretation of the 1907 Expatriation Act.
        Starting in 1911, the State Department rebelled against the Department of Justice's interpretation, de facto denaturalizing naturalized Americans residing abroad simply by refusing to deliver them a passport. In the 1924 decision United States v. Gay, the Supreme Court endorsed the Justice Department's approach and described the presumption of loss of citizenship based on foreign residence as ''easy to preclude, and easy to overcome.'' In 1926, the State Department subsequently reached a truce with the Justice Department. ''The presumption that a naturalized American living abroad had ceased to be an American citizen would no longer exist 'upon his return to the United States and his reestablishment here in good faith of a permanent residence.'''
        The State Department, waiting for an occasion to reestablish the scope of denaturalization of foreign-born Americans residing abroad, found it in the Nationality Act passed in October 1940, steeped in the climate of fear caused by the outbreak of World War II in Europe. Sections 404-06 of the Act applied an automatic loss of citizenship to naturalized citizens residing as few as two years in their country of origin or five years in any other foreign countries during any time after their naturalization.Congress went far beyond foreign-born Americans by deciding to denationalize different categories of native-born Americans perceived to be un-American. During the period from 1940 until Afroyim v. Rusk in 1967, when the revocation of one's passport followed as a consequence of the loss of citizenship, the State Department did not stop using its passport power as its citizenship policy. In 1959, the State Department tried to challenge the validity of a certificate of citizenship of the son of a naturalized American born in Germany. The Immigration and Naturalization Service considered the certificate valid. The Attorney General issued an opinion in which he stated that Congress, in providing for the issuance of the certificate of citizenship to the former, meant ''to deprive all other administrative officers of the United States of the power to put in issue the citizenship status recognized by a certificate regular on its face.'' And he added, ''[t]o rule that the Department of State may deny a passport . . . on the ground of non-citizenship although he is in possession of a certificate duly issued would mean that the same treatment might be accorded the thousands of persons holding like certificates.''
        However, in the years following Afroyim, during which time U.S. citizenship has become more and more protected and the incidence of denaturalization has declined, the State Department might once again be tempted to use the revocation of a citizen's passport as a proxy for revoking naturalization. Such a claim is reinforced by the argument that the same office charged with delivering passports should have the power to revoke them. When asked in 2000 to determine the constitutionality of the 1990 Immigration Act's delegation of the power to denaturalize to the Attorney General rather than the federal courts, the Ninth Circuit, sitting en banc, stated:
        [T]here is no practical sense in supposing that, because the Attorney General can naturalize, she needs to have the power to denaturalize. The former power is typically exercisedwholesale, the latter retail. An administrative agency is usefulfor performing large numbers of repetitive, routine tasks (from the agency's viewpoint, not the new citizen's), such asnaturalization, that do not take away important liberties fromindividuals. But administrative agencies, accustomed to treata case as ''one unit in a mass of related cases,''are dubious instruments for performing relatively rare acts catastrophic to the interests of the individuals on whom they areperformed.
        The same reasoning could apply to the State Department, which is in charge of delivering millions of passports every year. The significance of this logic extends well beyond the cases that have recently come to light. At least those Yemeni Americans subject to State Department action had their cases taken up by some lawyers and NGOs. Other Americans abroad do not have similar access to legal counsel and may not know that they have grounds for legal appeal should they feel that their status as American citizens is unfairly contested. This further underscores the need for clarification by the courts.
        ConclusionThe State Department seems to be abusing its power with passport revocation'--unknowingly in the case of Snowden, as the Department could at first glance rely on a jurisprudence that seemed until recently to favor executive power, and willfully in the case of the Yemeni Americans. It therefore seems that it is time for courts confronted with passport revocations to reexamine the constitutional function of the passport and its status in relation to American citizens who, since Afroyim, have gained more protection over their citizenship in relation to the state'--including in relation to the Secretary of State. Today it is commonplace to say that new technologies infringe upon civil liberties'--they often do. However, in the case of passports and the essential right of Americans to maintain a legal identity, new technologies offer an avenue to protect that very right. By affirming both that a passport belongs among the privileges and immunities of an American abroad and that the Secretary of State cannot revoke a passport as a matter of administrative routine, courts could make the passport an almost inalienable auxiliary of the American citizen abroad: the symbol and substance of an irreducible citizenship which the Supreme Court has already proclaimed.
        Patrick Weil is a Visiting Professor of Law at Yale Law School and a senior research fellow at the French National Center for Scientific Research (C.N.R.S.) in the University of Paris 1, Pantheon-Sorbonne. His most recent book is The Sovereign Citizen: Denaturalization and the Origins of the American Republic (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2013). Among his other recent publications are From Conditional to Secured and Sovereign: The New Strategic Link Between the Citizen and the Nation-State in a Globalized World, 9 Int'l J. Const. L.615(2011)and (with Son-Thierry Ly) The Anti-Racist Origins of the American Immigration Quota System, 77 Soc. Res. 45 (2010).
        I would like to thank especially Daniel Hemel, Yaman Salahi, and Michael Wishnie, as well as Atossa Araxia Abrahamian, Michel Dejaegher, Giorgios Dimitropoulos, Owen Fiss, Itamar Mann, Gerald Neuman, Noah Rosenblum, and Eugene Rusyn for their numerous and decisive contributions to this Essay. I am most grateful to Idriss Fofana and Nicholas Handler, my research assistants at Yale Law School, for their invaluable creativity and reactivity. At the Yale Law Journal, Benjamin Farkas has been a fantastic editor and discussion partner, Benjamin Eidelson encouraged me to submit a proposal and then, together with Ryan Thoreson, has worked behind the scenes. Thanks to all.
        Preferred citation: Patrick Weil, Citizenship, Passports, and the Legal Identity of Americans: Edward Snowden and Others Have a Case in the Courts, 123 Yale L.J. F. 565 (2014), http://yalelawjournal.org/forum/citizenship-passports-and-the-legal-identity-of-americans.html.
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    F-Russia
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      Poland's Tusk to be new Haiku Herman
        Hello Adam,
        reasons why selfie woman from Denmark didn't get the job:
        - she is social democrat / left and the Italian woman is social / democrat too
        But polish guy Tusk is conservative / slightly right : 2 left impossible: quota is: 1 left wing + 1 right wing
        - Italian woman had secured job for foreign minister due to heavy lobbying of Italians
        But 2 women in these 2 jobs impossible : quota is: 1 man + 1 woman
        - eastern EU members are p*ssed off that the best EU jobs in Brussels only west EU gets so
        Quota for east/west EU is: 1 from west EU, one from east EU. Poland has exactly the same number of votes in EU as Spain. Polish guy tusk is in office as prime minister since 2007 - 7 years - so he knows personally all other prime ministers etc
        HOWEVER: it is indeed surprising because:
        - Polish guy Tusk speaks very poor English and zero French. Only good German he speaks.
        By now in this job good French was totally required. He promised to "polish his English by December" (he said it in English after nomination so audio quote available - if you can't find audio quote let me know and I will find)
        - he is anti-Russian and as most polish is strong pro-USA (however other major party in Poland is even stronger pro-USA so he is more pro-EU than pro-USA) - it is surprising that in times of conflict with Russia such guy picked. Hover the Italian woman is even more pro-USA as she is member of some Italy-USA thing and also anti Russian.
        - in Poland only Sikorski (pOlish foreign minister, educated in UK, married to American ) is known as having international competence and high intelligence. This Tusk guy is rather primitive village boy from Cassubia. But leaked tapes of Sikorski screwed his chances so Tusk took opportunity.
        - he is anti global warming, anti carbon credits
      Statement by NSC Spokesperson Caitlin Hayden on European Council Meeting
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 05:34
        The White House
        Office of the Press Secretary
        For Immediate Release
        August 30, 2014
        We welcome the European Council's consensus today to show strong support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity and to prepare further sanctions for consideration in coming days. We are working closely with the EU and other partners to hold Russia accountable for its illegal actions in Ukraine, including through additional economic sanctions. We remain committed to supporting Ukraine as it seeks a diplomatic resolution to the crisis and call on Russia to immediately remove its military, including troops and equipment, from Ukraine and end its illicit support to the separatists.
        ###
      Statement by the Press Secretary on the Election of a New European Council President and High Representative
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Source: White House.gov Press Office Feed
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 05:33
        The White House
        Office of the Press Secretary
        For Immediate Release
        August 30, 2014
        The President congratulates Prime Minister Donald Tusk of Poland on his election as President of the European Council, and Foreign Minister Federica Mogherini of Italy on being chosen as High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. As we advance security and prosperity around the world, the United States has no more important partner than Europe. We look forward to working closely with President Tusk and High Representative Mogherini, as well as Commission President Juncker and all of the new Commissioners.
        ###
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      EU set to slap new sanctions on Russia - Yahoo News
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 06:24
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      Obama, Merkel Consider Additional Sanctions Against Russia
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Source: RIA Novosti
        Fri, 29 Aug 2014 02:26
        WASHINGTON, August 29 (RIA Novosti) '-- US President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel agree that the United States and the European Union should consider imposing additional sanctions on Russia due to the situation in Ukraine, the White House said in a statement.
        In a telephone conversation, the leaders expressed concern with reports regarding the crisis in Ukraine and both agreed that given the recent developments, the United Stated and the European Union should consider additional sanctions against Russia, said in the statement.
        Both the US president and the German Chancellor also confirmed their readiness to continue to search for a diplomatic solution to the conflict.
        The United States, the European Union and some other Western countries imposed the first round of sanctions after refusing to recognize the legitimacy of Crimea's reunification with Russia in March.
        As the Ukrainian crisis escalated, the United States pressed for its Western allies to follow its lead. Switzerland, Canada, Australia and Japan caved in to the US sanctions push and drew up their own blacklists. Several other rounds of anti-Russian sanctions have followed since.
        Moscow has repeatedly warned that sanctions will have a boomerang effect, and will negatively affect the economies of the countries imposing them.
        In August, Russia introduced protective measures, banning the import of agricultural and food products from countries that had imposed sanctions on Russia, unjustifiably blaming Moscow for meddling in Ukraine's internal affairs.
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      Ukraine's Agent Of Suicide: ''Winter'' | Real Jew News
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 06:31
        Ukraine Articles
        Ukraine's Agent Of Suicide:''Winter''By Brother Nathanael KapnerAugust 30, 2014(C)
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        IT'S GOING TO BE a long, cold winter for DC's puppet regime in Ukraine. And Putin can sit back and watch the snow fly.With winter approaching and the Novorossiyans winning in East Ukraine, the stooges who run Ukraine's dysfunctional government are in a panic attempting to bring Europe into ''full scale war'' with Russia.
        And the Jew-ruled idiots who are leading Europe into ruin, namely Merkel, Hollande, Cameron, and Tusk are touting the Jewish script: More sanctions. More Nato troops on Russia's western border.
        It's right out of the playbook of the Jew-run US Treasury and Jew-ridden US State Department where Christ-hating Jews: Jacob Lew, David Cohen, Victoria Nuland, (born Nudelman), and Robert Kagan find life not worth living unless they make life miserable for Christian Russia.
        Enter Yats the Yid, Nuland's Yiddishee banker boy, with his lie that ''Russia plans to cut gas to Europe this winter.''
        No wonder Nudelman loves Yats. He's a liar just like Nuland and her fellow Jews who own the Western world's main stream media.
        Whenever a Jew like Yats speaks, one must decode the encrypted Jew-meaning of the words.
        So when Yats the Yiddela spews, ''Russia plans to cut gas to Europe,'' what he really means is, ''Kiev plans to siphon Gazprom's gas and steal Europe's energy resource'...for at least the 4th time in two decades.
        Russia is bending over backwards to ensure gas deliveries continue to Europe. Gazprom is cooperating with the EU in every possible way to make sure enough natural gas goes into storage facilities in Europe, at Gazprom's own expense.
        Both Russia and the EU are in negotiations trying to get Ukraine to pay what it owes for gas, despite the Jew-owned media's 'hate Russia love Ukraine' campaign.
        (As for Ukraine's dream of energy independence by ''reverse flow'' of natural gas supplies from Europe, just wait until these EU countries get stiffed by Kiev. It wouldn't be the first time Kiev doesn't pay their gas bill.)
        But Yats and Jewry's lame 'prez' Poroshenko'--he fears assassination by the ultra-nationalists who run Kiev's internal security and military'--can't get their story straight.
        Both claim that separatists are sabotaging Ukraine's economic stability yet Kiev is bombing Eastern Ukraine, bringing key industries to a halt and crippling coal-based electricity production.
        NO GAS AND NO COAL for Kiev means a long, cold winter. Europe will get their gas but Kiev's goons will be chopping wood.
        Does Jewry care? Naah.
        Let the ukies freeze so long as commerce stretching from ''Vladivostok to Lisbon'' is fractured and Europe zaps its last hope for economic revival: Trade with the Russian bear.
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        Brother Nathanael @ August 30, 2014
      Russia denies plans to block gas flows to Europe
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 06:41
        The warning came less than 24 hours after a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Petro Poroshenko as well as Europe's main energy diplomat Guenther Oettinger, which included talks to secure Russian gas flows during the peak demand winter.
        Read MoreUkraine's Poroshenko talks tough ahead of meetings with Merkel, Putin
        Although Russian officials and state-controlled gas company Gazprom were not immediately available for comment, a Russian source said it would be more likely that Ukraine would start taking gas intended for the EU to meet its own demand than for Russia to cut off supplies to Europe.
        "It's unlikely that Russia would cut gas supplies. Ukraine will start siphon off it itself, as it has been the case in the past," a senior source at the Russian Energy Ministry said.
        "We have a Plan B for the worst-case scenario. But we don't expect to need it," European Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger said in Ungheni, Moldova on Wednesday.
        Third cut in a decade
        Russia halted gas supplies intended for Ukraine in June over a pricing dispute, but has continued supplies via the country that are contracted to customers in the EU, which make up around 80 percent Gazprom's gas sales.
        Russian gas flows to Ukraine have now been halted three times in the past decade, in 2006, 2009 and 2014, due to price disputes between Moscow and Kiev, and flows to the EU were disrupted in 2006 and 2009 after Ukraine took some of the gas intended for the EU to meet its own winter demand.
        European and Ukrainian power and gas providers have been preparing for a potential Russian supply cut by injecting as much gas as possible into storage over the low demand spring and summer seasons, and there have also been improvements to infrastructure that would allow Ukraine to receive some gas from within the EU.
        "The government has amassed 15 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas in storage," Yatseniuk said, and the government has plans to boost storage to 25 bcm.
        "Europe now has 16.52 bcm (31.2 percent) more gas in storage compared to the same time last year," research firm Energy Aspects said, but added that "based on recent average rates of injection, Ukraine will only fill its storage to around 52 percent of capacity come the start of withdrawal season."
        Due to a lack of alternative supplies, analysts say Ukraine and central and southeastern European countries with no alternative to Russian gas supplies via Ukraine would not be able to cope with a winter gas cut without large-scale energy supply disruptions.
        Russian gas is key
        Russia is Europe's biggest supplier of oil, coal and natural gas, meeting around a third of demand for all those fuels, according to Eurostat data, and receives in return some $250 billion a year, making up around two-thirds of government revenue.
        Last year, half of Russian gas exports to the EU were shipped via Ukraine.
        Gazprom declined immediate comment and the Energy Ministry was not immediately available to comment.
        Read MoreUkraine may have an energy problem besides nat gas
        While buyers can switch oil and coal suppliers relatively quickly and easily, Europe receives most of its gas through pipelines that are fed by only one supplier, Gazprom, in annual exports worth $80 billion.
        "Our main concern, no doubt, is gas. We have ongoing ... negotiations between the Russian Federation and Gazprom on one hand and Ukraine and (Ukraine's gas company) Naftogaz and our European Commission," Oettinger said after meetings with Ukrainian and Russian officials during the night of Tuesday and Wednesday.
        "On Friday we will be in Moscow for the next trilateral consultation between the Russian Federation/Gazprom and Ukraine/Naftogaz with the EU as a moderator of important process," he added.
        The latest gas pricing dispute is closely intertwined with a bigger standoff between Moscow and Kiev.
        Ukraine's Moscow-leaning president Viktor Yanukovich fled his country following weeks of street clashes by people angry that he had rejected an association agreement with the EU.
        Moscow subsequently annexed Ukraine's Crimea peninsula in March, while pro-Moscow separatists have staged an insurgency in the east of the country.
        Read MoreRussian defense ministry denies any incursion into Ukraine
        The area where the fighting is concentrated, known as the Donbass, is a major source of coal for Ukraine.
        Yatseniuk said the government has been trying to diversify coal supplies as "Russia and their mercenaries are bombing and destroying mines". Russia has denied any involvement in the conflict.
      Talks to broker Ukraine - Russia gas deal break down - News - News - Voice of Russia UK, Voice of Russia - UK Edition
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 06:36
        EU energy chief Gunther Oettinger held talks with Russian energy minister Alexander Novak which came after an escalation in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
        However both sides insist that politics will have no part to play in trying to get Ukraine to pay what it owes for gas and Russia's commitments to providing Europe with energy.
        Russia has indicated it has a number of concerns associated with transporting gas to the EU, with fears the gas pipes, which pass through Ukraine, may be tampered with.
        Close to 40 percent of the EU's energy supplies are imported from Russia, with concerns over whether adequate amounts will be transported to the EU in the coming months.
        Political analyst Dmitry Babic believes this will be an important topic of discussion during negotiations.
        "I think it's a huge issue. In the '90s when Ukraine ran out of funds, it just sifted off Russian gas through the pipelines and left it for itself. It did it again in 2009, but now Russia is very much in control of its own supplies, so if this gas is stolen- the gas destined for Europe- Russia is not going to be able to make up for it.''
        He also believes Russia's decision to cut gas deliveries to Ukraine in June were justified, despite serious concerns that Ukraine won't have enough energy resources for the upcoming winter.
        ''Ukraine has an outstanding debt of '‚¬5 billion for the Russian gas that it already consumed, and Russia stopped supplying gas to Ukraine in June because Ukraine refused to pay. Ukraine insists that Russia fulfil the terms of the agreement struck with Mr Yanukovych at the beginning of the year. Russia says this was with Mr Yanukovych, not with you, so you should pay the price agreed according to the contract signed in 2009 with Mrs Timoshenko.''
        Although the EU and Russia were initially unable to come to an agreement over gas supplies, Babich said he is confident that an arrangement can be reached, and believes that both parties will want to continue negotiations.
        ''I would say that both the EU and Russia are interested. I don't know what Mr Oettinger and Mr Novak have up their sleeves. They will probably try to find some alternative route for the gas. They could supply the gas through the Polish and Belorussian territory. The north stream is fully operative right now, while the south stream is a big problem because the EU says it won't allow its construction until Russia agrees to allow all of the intermediary companies to use this tube. However Russia says that will only the companies that have invested in this project may use it.''
        Despite recent sanctions and trade embargoes being imposed on both sides, and the NATO accusing Russia of interfering with Ukrainian national matters, Babich believes this won't have an impact on the discussions over gas supplies.
        ''I think both sides are ready to forget about politics, and it seems to have been agreed that gas negotiations have nothing to do with the situation in Ukraine with the civil war in the east. The problem is that Ukraine doesn't want to pay for the gas that it has been getting from Russia. So now the big issue is that there is not enough gas in the Ukrainian storage to allow for a safe passage through to Europe. You need about one-fifth more gas in the Ukrainian storages than what is currently available. This is another issue Mr Oettinger discussed with Mr Novak in Moscow. I think they will probably try to bypass Ukraine via Poland and the Baltic Sea.
        ''Both sides agreed that they wouldn't mention the war and the political differences. Right now, because of the civil war in Ukraine, 11 million people are suffering in the east of the country. If there are cuts to the Russian gas supplies to the EU, 400 million people will suffer. So I think there is a desire on both sides to keep politics out of these gas negotiations."
        (VoR)
      ITAR-TASS: Economy - Russian gas piped through Ukraine as contracted
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 06:43
        MOSCOW, June 23. /ITAR-TASS/. Russian natural gas is piped to Europe across Ukraine in contracted volumes, Gazprom spokesperson Sergei Kupriyanov said on Monday, June 23.
        Over the past 24 hours, about 205 million cubic meters of gas were transported through Ukraine and about 185 million cubic meters a day last week, he said, adding that daily transit had increased by 10%The Russian Energy Ministry said no illegal siphoning of the gas had been registered in Ukraine. However, Gazprom earlier quoted the Central Dispatch Office of the fuel and energy sector as saying that Ukraine had been siphoning gas since June 19.
        On June 16, Gazprom started supplying gas to Ukraine on a prepaid basis, whereby it will get as much gas as it has paid for. If it takes gas without paying for it, it will disrupt its transit to Europe.
        Rainer Seele, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Wintershall, told ITAR-TASS earlier that his company (which imports Russian gas to Germany) had received the European Commission's guarantees that in the event of transit problems in Ukraine the Commission would provide broader access to the OPAL pipeline.
        According to Seele, there is enough gas in European storage facilities to avoid negative consequences during winter should there be problems with the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine.Gazprom Export, the exporting branch of the Gazprom company, said it would use European underground gas storage (UGS) facilities to smooth over fluctuations in gas demand next winter and does not count on the Ukrainian gas transportation system.
        Gazprom is ready to increase the supply of gas to European underground gas storage facilities during winter at its own expense, Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller said.
        ''We are ready to increase the supply of gas to the European Union's underground gas storage facilities at our own expense,'' he said.
        Miller said Gazprom was prepared to invest in the development of underground gas storage facilities in Europe.
        The gas supply support agreement between Gazprom Export and Ukrtransgaz was rarely used and accounted for no more than several hundredth of a percentage of transit volumes. The bulk of the gas supplies across Ukraine are regulated by the contract between Gazprom and Naftogaz of Ukraine. The termination of the agreement between Gazprom Export and Ukrtransgaz will not affect the reliability of gas deliveries via Ukraine, the Russian company said.
        Naftogaz of Ukraine said that Gazprom Export had stated its intention to terminate the agreement with Ukrtransgaz from June 23. The Ukrainian company said the decision ''has no economic justification and increases the risk of Gazprom's failure to perform its obligations to European consumers''.
      Nord Stream - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 06:47
        Nord StreamLocation of Nord Stream
        LocationCountryRussian Federation, GermanyCoordinates60°31'²44'"N28°4'²21'"E>> / >>60.52889°N 28.07250°E>> / 60.52889; 28.07250>> (Portovaya Compressor Station)54°8'²24'"N13°38'²23.28'"E>> / >>54.14000°N 13.6398000°E>> / 54.14000; 13.6398000>> (Landing in Lubmin)General directioneast''west''southFromVyborg, RussiaPasses throughBaltic SeaToGreifswald, GermanyGeneral informationTypeNatural gasPartnersGazprom, E.ON, Wintershall, Gasunie, GDF SuezOperatorNord Stream AGContractorsSaipem, Allseas, Ramb¸ll, Environmental Resource Management, Marin M¤tteknik, IfA–, PeterGaz, DOF Subsea, Intec Engineering, Tideway BV, Royal Boskalis Westminster, EUROPIPE, OMK, Sumitomo, EUPEC PipeCoatings, Rolls-Royce plc, Dresser-Rand Group, Siirtec Nigi SPACommissioned8 November 2011 (1st line)8 October 2012 (2nd line)Technical informationLength1,222 km (759 mi)Maximum discharge55 billion cubic metres per year (2012'')Diameter1,220 mm (48 in)Number of compressor stations1Compressor stationsVyborgNord Stream (former names: North Transgas and North European Gas Pipeline; Russian: ÐÐµÐ²ÐµÑÐ½Ñ‹Ð¹ ÐÐ¾Ñ‚Ð¾Ðº, Severny potok) is an offshore natural gaspipeline from Vyborg in the Russian Federation to Greifswald in Germany. It is owned and operated by Nord Stream AG. The name occasionally has a wider meaning, including the feeding onshore pipeline in the Russian Federation, and further connections in Western Europe.
        The project, which was promoted by the government of Russia and agreed to by the government of Germany, was seen as controversial for various reasons, including increasing European energy dependence on Russia and potential environmental damage.[1]
        The project includes two parallel lines. The first line of the pipeline was laid by May 2011 and was inaugurated on 8 November 2011.[2][3] The second line was laid in 2011''2012 and was inaugurated on 8 October 2012. At 1,222 kilometres (759 mi) in length, it is the longest sub-sea pipeline in the world, surpassing the Langeled pipeline.[4][5]
        The original pipeline project started in 1997 when Gazprom and the Finnish company Neste (in 1998 merged with Imatran Voima to form Fortum, and 2004 separated again to Fortum and Neste Oil) formed the joint company North Transgas Oy for construction and operation of a gas pipeline from Russia to Northern Germany across the Baltic Sea.[6] North Transgas cooperated with the German gas company Ruhrgas (became later part of E.ON). A route survey in the Exclusive Economic Zones of Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Germany, and a feasibility study of the pipeline was conducted in 1998. Several routes were considered including routes with onshore segments through Finland and Sweden.[7]
        On 24 April 2001, Gazprom, Fortum, Ruhrgas and Wintershall adopted a statement regarding a joint feasibility study for construction of the pipeline.[8] On 18 November 2002, the Management Committee of Gazprom approved a schedule of project implementation. In May 2005, Fortum withdrew from the project and sold its stake in North Transgas to Gazprom. As a result, Gazprom became the only shareholder of North Transgas Oy.[6][9]
        On 8 September 2005, Gazprom, BASF and E.ON signed a basic agreement on the construction of a North European Gas Pipeline. On 30 November 2005, the North European Gas Pipeline Company (later renamed Nord Stream AG) was incorporated in Zug, Switzerland. On 9 December 2005, Gazprom started construction of the Russian onshore feeding pipeline. On 4 October 2006, the pipeline and the operating company were officially renamed Nord Stream AG.[10] After establishment of Nord Stream AG, all information related to the pipeline project, including results of the seabed survey of 1998, were transferred from North Transgas to the new company, and on 2 November 2006, North Transgas was officially dissolved.[11]
        The environmental impact assessment started on 16 November 2006 with notification sent to Russia, Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Germany, as parties of origin (the countries whose exclusive economic zones and/or territorial waters the pipeline is planned to pass through), as well as to Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia as affected parties.[12] The final report on transboundary environmental impact assessment was delivered on 9 March 2009.[13]
        On 19 March 2007, Nord Stream AG mandated Italian company Snamprogetti, a subsidiary of Saipem, for detailed design engineering of the pipeline.[14] A letter of intent for construction works was signed with Saipem on 17 September 2007 and the contract was concluded on 24 June 2008.[15][16] On 25 September 2007, the pipe supply contracts were awarded to the pipe producers EUROPIPE and OMK, and on 18 February 2008, the concrete weight coating and logistics services agreement was awarded to EUPEC PipeCoatings S.A.[17][18] The supply contracts for the second line were awarded to OMK, Europipe and Sumitomo Heavy Industries on 22 January 2010.[19] On 30 December 2008 Rolls-Royce plc was awarded a contract to supply gas turbines driving centrifugal compressors and on 8 January 2009, Royal Boskalis Westminster and Tideway were awarded a joint venture seabed dredging contract.[20][21]
        The agreement to take N.V. Nederlandse Gasunie to the consortium as the fourth partner, was signed on 6 November 2007.[22] On 10 June 2008, Gasunie was included in the register of shareholders.[23] On 1 March 2010, French energy company GDF Suez signed with Gazprom a memorandum of understanding to acquire 9% stake in the project.[24] The transaction was closed in July 2010.[25]
        In August 2008, Nord Stream AG hired former Finnish prime minister Paavo Lipponen as a consultant to help speed up the application process in Finland and to serve as a link between Nord Stream and Finnish authorities.[26]
        On 21 December 2007, Nord Stream AG submitted application documents to the Swedish government for the pipeline construction in the Swedish Exclusive Economic Zone.[27] On 12 February 2008, the Swedish government rejected the consortium's application which it had found incomplete.[28][29] New application was filed later. On 20 October 2009, Nord Stream received a construction permit to build the pipeline in the Danish waters.[30] On 5 November 2009, the Swedish and Finnish authorities gave a permit to lay the pipeline in their exclusive economic zones.[31] On 22 February 2010, the Regional State Administrative Agency for Southern Finland issued the final environmental permit allowing construction of the Finnish section of the pipeline.[32][33]
        On 15 January 2010 construction of the Portovaya compressor station in Vyborg near the Gulf of Finland began. [34][35] The first pipe of the pipeline was laid on 6 April 2010 in the Swedish exclusive economic zone by the Castoro Sei vessel. In addition to Castoro Sei, also Castoro 10 and Solitaire were contracted for pipe-laying works.[36] Construction of the pipeline was officially launched on 9 April 2010 at Portovaya Bay.[37]
        The laying of the first line was completed on 4 May 2011 (the last pipe put in place), while all underwater works on the first line were completed on 21 June 2011.[5][38] In August 2011, Nord Stream was connected with the OPAL pipeline.[39] First gas was pumped into the first line on 6 September 2011.[40]
        The pipeline was officially inaugurated by the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and French Prime Minister Fran§ois Fillon on 8 November 2011 at the ceremony held in Lubmin.[2][3][41] Initially, the pipeline was able to deliver 27.5 billion cubic metres (970 billion cubic feet) of gas annually, but this capacity was doubled once the second pipeline was finished.[42] Construction of the second line was completed in August 2012 and it was inaugurated on 8 October 2012.[43][44][45]
        In August 2012, Nord Stream AG applied to Finnish and Estonian governments for route studies in their exclusive economic zones for the third and fourth lines.[46]
        Technical featuresEditRussian onshore pipelineEditConstruction of the feeding pipeline in Russia (Gryazovets''Vyborg gas pipeline) began on 9 December 2005 in the town of Babayevo in Vologda Oblast. It was completed in 2010. This pipeline is operated solely by Gazprom.[47] It is a part of the integrated gas transport network of Russia connecting existing grid in Gryazovets with the coastal compressor station at Vyborg.[48] The length of this pipeline is 917 kilometres (570 mi), the diameter of the pipe is 1,420 millimetres (56 in), and working pressure is 100 standard atmospheres (10 MPa), which is secured by six compressor stations. The Gryazovets-Vyborg pipeline, parallel to the branch of the Northern Lights pipeline, also supplies gas to the Northwestern region of Russia (Saint Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast).[47] A branch pipeline in Karelia will connect this feeding pipeline with Finland.[49]
        Baltic Sea offshore pipelineEditThe Nord Stream offshore pipeline is ordered and operated by Nord Stream AG.[12][22] It runs from Vyborg compressor station at Portovaya Bay along the bottom of the Baltic Sea to Greifswald in Germany. The length of the subsea pipeline is 1,222 kilometres (759 mi), of which 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) in Russian inland, 121.8 kilometres (65.8 nmi) in Russian territorial waters, 1.4 kilometres (0.8 nmi) in the Russian economic zone, 375.3 kilometres (202.6 nmi) in the Finnish economic zone, 506.4 kilometres (273.4 nmi) in the Swedish economic zone, 87.7 kilometres (47.4 nmi) in the Danish territorial waters, 49.4 kilometres (26.7 nmi) in the Danish economic zone, 31.2 kilometres (16.8 nmi) in the German economic zone, 49.9 kilometres (26.9 nmi) in German territorial waters and 0.5 kilometres (0.31 mi) in German inland.[50] The pipeline has two parallel lines, each with capacity of 27.5 billion cubic metres (970 billion cubic feet) of natural gas per year. Pipes have a diameter of 1,220 millimetres (48 in), the wall thickness of 38 millimetres (1.50 in) and a working pressure of 220 bars (22 MPa).[12]
        Nord Stream AG is studying viability of building the third and fourth lines.[46]
        Western European pipelinesEditThe Western European part of the project includes two transmission pipelines in Germany. The southern pipeline (OPAL pipeline) runs from Greifswald to Olbernhau near German-Czech border. It connects Nord Stream with JAGAL (connected to the Yamal-Europe pipeline), and STEGAL (connected to the Russian gas transport route via Czech and Slovak republics) transmission pipelines. The Gazelle pipeline, put into operation in January 2013,[51] links the OPAL pipeline with South-German gas network.
        The western pipeline (NEL pipeline) will run from Greifswald to Achim, where it will be connected with the Rehden-Hamburg gas pipeline.[52] Together with the MIDAL pipeline it will create the Greifswald''Bunde connection. Further gas delivery to the United Kingdom will be made through the planned connection between Bunde and Den Helder, and from there through the offshore interconnector Balgzand''Bacton (BBL Pipeline).
        Gazprom has also bought an abandoned mine (Hinrichshagen Structure) in Waren, which is planned to convert into the largest underground gas storage in Europe with capacity of 5 billion cubic metres (180 billion cubic feet).[53][54]
        Supply sourcesEditCosts and financingEditAccording to Gazprom, the costs of the onshore pipelines in Russia and Germany are around '‚¬6 billion.[59] The offshore section of the project is expected to cost '‚¬8.8 billion.[60] 30% of the financing was raised through equity provided by shareholders in proportion to their stakes in the project, while 70% came from external financing by banks.[61]
        There are two tranches.[62][63] The first tranche for a '‚¬3.9 billion includes a 3.1 billion, 16-year facility covered by export credit agencies and a '‚¬800 million, 10-year uncovered commercial loan to be serviced by earnings from the transportation contracts. A '‚¬1.6 billion is covered by French credit insures company Euler Hermes, a '‚¬1 billion by the German Untied Loan Guarantee Programme UFK, and a '‚¬500 million Italian Export Credit Agency SACE SpA. Loans to be provided by 26 commercial banks. Cr(C)dit Agricole is documentation bank and bank facility agent. Soci(C)t(C) G(C)n(C)rale is intercreditor agent, Sace facility agent, security trustee and model bank. Commerzbank is Hermes facility agent, UniCredit is UFK facility agent, Deutsche Bank is account bank and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation is technical and environmental bank.[61][62] The financial advisers were Soci(C)t(C) G(C)n(C)rale, Royal Bank of Scotland (ABN Amro), Dresdner Kleinwort (Commerzbank), and Unicredit.[64][65] The legal adviser to Nord Stream was White & Case and legal adviser for the lenders was Clifford Chance.[62]
        ContractorsEditThe environmental impact assessment was carried out by Ramb¸ll and Environmental Resource Management. The route and seabed surveys were conducted by Marin M¤tteknik, IfA–, PeterGaz and DOF Subsea.[66][67]
        Work preliminary front-end engineering was done by Intec Engineering.[68] The design engineering of the subsea pipeline was done by Snamprogetti (now part of Saipem) and the pipeline was constructed by Saipem.[14][16] Saipem gave sub-contract to Allseas for laying more than 1/4 of both the pipelines. The seabed was prepared for the laying of the pipeline by a joint venture of Royal Boskalis Westminster and Tideway.[21] The pipes were provided by EUROPIPE, OMK, and Sumitomo.[17][19] Concrete weight coating and logistics services were provided by EUPEC PipeCoatings S.A. For the concrete weight coating new coating plants were constructed in Mukran (Germany) and Kotka (Finland).[18] Rolls-Royce plc supplied eight industrial aeroderivativegas turbines driving centrifugal compressors for front-end gas boosting at the Vyborg (Portovaya) gas compressor station.[20]Dresser-Rand Group supplied DATUM compressors and Siirtec Nigi SPA provided a gas treatment unit for the Portovaya station.[69][70]
        For the construction period, Nord Stream AG created a logistic center in Gotland. Other interim stock yards are located in Mukran, in Kotka, in Hanko (Finland) and in Karlshamn (Sweden).[18]
        Project companyEditMain article: Nord Stream AGThe Nord Stream offshore pipeline is operated by the special purpose company'--Nord Stream AG. Nord Stream AG was incorporated in Zug, Switzerland on 30 November 2005. Shareholders of the company are the Russian gas company Gazprom (51% of shares), German gas companies Winthershall and E.ON Ruhrgas (both 15.5%), the Dutch gas company Gasunie (9%), and the French gas company GDF Suez (9%).[12][22] The Managing Director of Nord Stream AG is Matthias Warnig and the chairman of the shareholders' committee is German ex-chancellor Gerhard Schr¶der.
        Transportation contractsEditOn 13 October 2005 Gazprom's export arm Gazprom Export signed a contract with German gas company Wingas, a joint venture of Gazprom and Wintershall (subsidiary of BASF), to supply 9 billion cubic metres (320 billion cubic feet) of natural gas per year for 25 years.[71] On 16 June 2006 Gazprom and Danish DONG Energy signed a 20-year contract for delivery of 1 billion cubic metres (35 billion cubic feet) Russian gas per year to Denmark, while DONG Energy will supply 600 million cubic metres (21 billion cubic feet) natural gas per year to the Gazprom's subsidiary, Gazprom Marketing and Trading, in the United Kingdom.[72] 1 October 2009 the companies signed a contract to double the delivery to Denmark.[73]
        On 29 August 2006 Gazprom and E.ON Ruhrgas signed an agreement to extend current contracts on natural gas supplies and have signed a contract for an additional 4 billion cubic metres (140 billion cubic feet) per year through the Nord Stream pipeline.[74] On 19 December 2006, Gazprom and Gaz de France (now GDF Suez) agreed to an additional 2.5 billion cubic metres (88 billion cubic feet) gas supply through the Nord Stream.[75]
        ControversyEditThe pipeline project was criticized by some countries and environmental organizations (such as the World Wide Fund for Nature).[76][77][78][79][80] At the same time, the European Commission energy commissioner office confirmed that the EU supports the project "as an additional source of gas supplies from Russia".[81]
        Political aspectsEditOpponents have seen the pipeline as a move by Russia to bypass traditional transit countries (currently Ukraine, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Belarus and Poland).[82] Some transit countries are concerned that a long-term plan of the Kremlin is to attempt to exert political influence on them by threatening their gas supply without affecting supplies to Western Europe.[83][84] The fears are strengthened by the fact that Russia has refused to ratify the Energy Charter Treaty. Critics of Nord Stream say that Europe could become dangerously dependent on Russian natural gas, particularly since Russia could face problems meeting a surge in domestic as well as foreign demand.[85][86][87] Following several Russia''Ukraine gas disputes, as well as foreign policy towards Eastern Europe, it has been noted that the gas supplies by Russia can be used as a political tool.[88] The Swedish Defence Research Agency study, conducted by Robert L. Larsson, counted over 55 incidents since 1991, most with "both political and economic underpinnings".[86][87] In April 2006 RadosÅ‚aw Sikorski, then Poland's defence minister, compared the project to the infamous 1939 Nazi-Soviet Molotov''Ribbentrop Pact. [89] In his book The New Cold War: Putin's Russia and the Threat to the West, Edward Lucas states that "though Nord Stream's backers insist that the project is business pure and simple, this would be easier to believe if it were more transparent."[86] In the report published by the Fridtjof Nansen Institute, Norwegian researcher Bendik Solum Whist notes that Nord Stream AG was incorporated in Switzerland, "whose strict banking secrecy laws makes the project less transparent than it would have been if based within the EU".[86] Secondly, the Russian energy sector "in general lacks transparency" and Gazprom "is no exception".[86]
        The Russian response has been that the pipeline increases Europe's energy security, and that the criticism is caused by bitterness about the loss of significant transit revenues, as well as the loss of political influence that stems from the transit countries' ability to hold Russian gas supplies to Western Europe hostage to their local political agendas.[90] It would reduce Russia's dependence on the transit countries as for the first time it would link Russia directly to Western Europe.[85] According to Gazprom, the direct connection to Germany would decrease risks in the gas transit zones, including the political risk of cutting off Russian gas exports to Western Europe.[91]
        Security and military aspectsEditSwedish military experts and several politicians, including former Minister for DefenceMikael Odenberg, have stated that the pipeline can cause a security policy problem for Sweden.[92] According to Odenberg, the pipeline motivates Russian navy presence in Swedish economic zone and the Russians can use this for military intelligence should they want to.[93] Finnish military scholar Alpo Juntunen has said that even though the political discussion over Nord Stream in Finland concentrates on the various ecological aspects, there are clearly military implications to the pipeline that are not discussed openly in Finland.[94] More political concerns were raised when Vladimir Putin stated that the ecological safety of the pipeline project will be ensured by using the Baltic Fleet of the Russian Navy.[95] German weekly Stern has reported that the fibre optic cable and repeater stations along the pipeline could theoretically also be used for espionage. Nord Stream AG asserted that a fibre-optic control cable was neither necessary nor technically planned.[96]
        Deputy Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of Gazprom Alexander Medvedev has dismissed these concerns, stating that "some objections are put forward that are laughable'--political, military or linked to spying. That is really surprising because in the modern world ... it is laughable to say a gas pipeline is a weapon in a spy war."[97]
        German Bundeswehr asked Nord Stream to change the planned route because the pipeline is laid close to a sea testing ground near R¼gen, which is actively used for naval exercises.[98]
        Economic aspectsEditRussian and German officials have claimed that the pipeline leads to economic savings due to the elimination of transit fees (as transit countries would be bypassed), and a higher operating pressure of the offshore pipeline which leads to lower operating costs (by eliminating the necessity for expensive midway compressor stations).[99] According to Ukrtransgaz, the Ukrainian gas transportation system operator, Ukraine alone will lose natural gas transit revenues up to $720 million per year.[100] Gazprom has stated that it will divert 20 billion m3 of natural gas transported through Ukraine to Nord Stream.[101]
        Opponents say that the maintenance costs of a submarine pipeline are higher than for an overland route. In 1998, former Gazprom chairman Rem Vyakhirev claimed that the project was economically unfeasible.[102] This estimation may not be valid anymore as the price of natural gas and construction costs have changed since then.
        As the Nord Stream pipeline crosses the waterway to Polish ports in Szczecin and ÅšwinoujÅ›cie, there were concerns that it will reduce the depth of the waterway leading to the ports.[103][104][105] However, Polish prime minister Donald Tusk as also several experts have confirmed that the Nord Stream pipeline does not block the development plans of Swinoujscie and Szczecin ports.[105][105]
        Environmental aspectsEditBefore construction there were concerns that during construction the sea bed would be disturbed, dislodging World War II-era naval mines and toxic materials including mines, chemical waste, chemical munitions and other items dumped in the Baltic Sea in the past decades, and thereby toxic substances could surface from the seabed damaging the Baltic's particularly sensitive ecosystem.[106][107][108][109] Swedish Environment Minister Andreas Carlgren demanded that the environmental analysis should include alternative ways of taking the pipeline across the Baltic, as the pipeline is projected to be passing through areas considered environmentally problematic and risky.[110] Sweden's three opposition parties called for an examination of the possibility of rerouting the pipeline onto dry land.[109] Finnish environmental groups campaigned to consider the more southern route, claiming that the sea bed is flatter and so construction would be more straightforward, and therefore potentially less disruptive to waste, including dioxins and dioxin-like compounds, littered on the sea bed.[111] Latvian president Valdis Zatlers said that Nord Stream was environmentally hazardous as, unlike the North Sea, there is no such water circulation in the Baltic Sea.[112]Ene Ergma, Speaker of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia), warned that the pipeline work rips a canal in the seabed which will demand leveling the sand that lies along the way, atomizing volcanic formations and disposing of fill along the bottom of the sea, altering sea currents.[113]
        The impact on bird and marine life in the Baltic Sea is also a concern, as the Baltic sea is recognized by the International Maritime Organization as a particularly sensitive sea area. The World Wide Fund for Nature requested that countries party to the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission (HELCOM) safeguard the Baltic marine habitats, which could be altered by the implementation of the Nord Stream project.[79] Its Finnish branch said it might file a court case against Nord Stream AG if the company did not properly assess a potential alternative route on the southern side of Hogland. According to Nord Stream AG, this was not a suitable route for the pipeline because of the planned conservation area near Hogland, subsea cables, and a main shipping route.[78] Russian environmental organizations warned that the ecosystem in the Eastern part of the Gulf of Finland is the most vulnerable part of the Baltic Sea and assumed damage to the island territory of the planned Ingermanland nature preserve as a result of laying the pipeline.[113] Swedish environmental groups are concerned that the pipeline is planned to pass too closely to the border of the marine reserve near Gotland.[114] Also Greenpeace is concerned that the pipeline would pass through several sites designated marine conservation areas.[115]
        In April 2007, the Young Conservative League (YCL) of Lithuania started an online petition entitled "Protect the Baltic Sea While It's Still Not Too Late!", translated into all state languages of the countries of the Baltic region.[116] On 29 January 2008 the Petitions Committee of the European Parliament organized public hearing on petition introduced by the leader of YCL '' Radvile Morkunaite. On 8 July 2008, the European Parliament endorsed by 542 votes to 60 a non-binding report calling on the European Commission to evaluate the additional impact on the Baltic Sea caused by the Nord Stream project.[117] The Riigikogu made a declaration on 27 October 2009, expressing "concern over the possible environmental impacts of the gas line" and emphasizing that international conventions have deemed "the Baltic Sea in an especially vulnerable environmental status".[80]
        Russian officials described these concerns as far-fetched and politically motivated by opponents of the project. They argued that during the construction the seabed will be cleaned, rather than endangered. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has claimed that Russia fully respects the desire to provide for the 100% environmental sustainability of the project and that Russia is fully supportive of such an approach, and that all environmental concerns would be addressed in the process of environmental impact assessment.[118]
        Concerns raised, that originally Nord Stream AG planned on rinsing out the pipeline with 2.3 billion liters of a solution containing glutaraldehyde, pumped afterward into the Baltic Sea. Nord Stream AG responded that glutaraldehyde would not used, and even had the chemical been used, the effects would have been brief and localized due to the speed with which the chemical breaks down once it comes in contact with water.[119]
        One of the raised problems was that the Baltic Sea and particularly Gulf of Finland was heavily mined during World War I and II, with many mines still on the sea.[115] According to Marin M¤tteknik around 85,000 mines were laid during the First and Second World Wars, of which only half have been recovered. A lot of munitions have also been dumped in this sea.[120] Critics of the pipeline voiced fears that the pipeline would disturb ammunition dumps. In November 2008 it was reported that the pipeline will run through old sea mine defense lines and that the Gulf of Finland is considered one of the most heavily mined sea areas in the world.[121] Sunken mines, which have been found on the pipeline route, lay primarily in international waters at a depth of more than 70 metres (230 ft). Nord Stream AG detonated the mines underwater.[121]
        Ethical issuesEditThe former Chancellor of Germany, Gerhard Schr¶der, and the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, were strong advocates of the pipeline project during the negotiation phase. International media alluded to a past relationship between the Managing Director of Nord Stream AG, Matthias Warnig, himself a former East German secret police officer, and Vladimir Putin when he was a KGB agent in East Germany.[122][123][124][125] These allegations were denied by Matthias Warning, who said that he had met Vladimir Putin for the first time in his life in 1991, when Putin was the head of the Committee for External Relations of the Saint Petersburg Mayor's Office.[125][126]
        The agreement to build the pipeline was signed ten days before the German parliamentary election. On 24 October 2005, a few weeks before Schr¶der had stepped down as Chancellor, the German government guaranteed to cover '‚¬1 billion of the Nord Stream project cost, should Gazprom default on a loan. However, this guarantee expired at the end of 2006 without ever having been needed.[127] Soon after leaving the post of Chancellor of Germany, Gerhard Schr¶der agreed to head the shareholders' committee of Nord Stream AG. This has been widely described by German and international media as a conflict of interest,[128][129][130] the implication being that the pipeline project may have been pushed through for personal gain rather than for improving gas supplies to Germany. Information about the German government's guarantee was requested by the European Commission. No formal charges have been filed against any party despite years of exhaustive investigations.[127]
        In February 2009, the Swedish prosecutor's office started an investigation based on suspicions of bribery and corruption after a college on the island of Gotland received a donation from Nord Stream. The 5 million Swedish kronor (US$574,000) donation was directed to a professor at Gotland University College who had previously warned that the Nord Stream pipeline would come too close to a sensitive bird zone.[131] The consortium has hired several former high-ranking officials, such as Ulrica Schenstr¶m, former undersecretary at the Swedish Prime Minister's office, and Dan Svanell, former press secretary for several politicians in the Swedish Social Democratic Party.[132] In addition, the former Prime Minister of Finland, Paavo Lipponen, had worked for Nord Stream as an adviser since 2008.[133]
        Land-based alternativesEditOn 11 January 2007, the Ministry of Trade and Industry of Finland made a statement on the environmental impact assessment programme of the Russia-Germany natural gas pipeline, in which it mentioned that alternative routes via the Baltic states, Kaliningrad and/or Poland might theoretically be shorter than the route across the Baltic Sea, would be easier to flexibly increase the capacity of the pipeline, and might have better financial results.[134] There were also calls from Sweden to consider rerouting the pipeline onto dry land.[109] Poland had proposed the construction of a second line of the Yamal''Europe pipeline, as well as the Amber pipeline through the Baltic states and Poland as land-based alternatives to the offshore pipeline. The Amber project foresees laying a natural gas pipeline across the Tver, Novgorod and Pskov oblasts in Russia and then through Latvia and Lithuania to Poland, where it would be re-connected to the Yamal''Europe pipeline.[7] Latvia has proposed using its underground gas storage facilities if the onshore route were to be used.[112] Proponents have claimed that the Amber pipeline would cost half as much as an underwater pipeline, would be shorter, and would have less environmental impact.[135] Critics of this proposal say that in this case it would be more expensive for the suppliers over the long-term perspective, because the main aim of the project is to reduce transit costs.[136] Nord Stream AG has responded that the Baltic Sea would be the only route for the pipeline and it will not consider an overland alternative.[137]
        World War II gravesEditA former member of the European Parliament from Estonia, Andres Tarand has raised the issue that the Nord Stream pipeline could disturb World War II graves dating from naval battles in 1941. A Nord Stream spokesman has stated that only one sunken ship is in the vicinity of the planned pipeline and added that it wouldn't be disturbed.[138] However, on 16 July 2008 was announced that one of DOF Subsea's seismic vessels during a shoot for the planned Nord Stream pipeline in Finland's exclusive economic zone in the Gulf of Finland, discovered the wreck of a submarine with Soviet markings, believed to have sunk during World War II.[66]
        In addition to the wreck of the Soviet submarine, there are sunken ships on the route of Nord Stream in the Bay of Greifswald and in the Gulf of Finland. The ship in the Bay of Greifswald is one of 20 sunk in 1715 by the Swedish navy to create a physical barrier across the shallow entrance to the Bay of Greifswald coastal lagoon.[139] The sunken ship in the Gulf of Finland probably belonged to the fleet of Peter I of Russia, headed to Finland in 1713 under the Tsar's personal command.[140] There are plans to raise both wrecks.[citation needed]
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        OPAL pipelineOPAL pipeline near WeiŸenborn, Saxony
        Map of OPAL pipeline
        LocationCountryGermanyGeneral directionnorth-southFromGreifswald (Lubmin)ToOlbernhauRuns alongsideGerman eastern borderGeneral informationTypenatural gasPartnersWingasE.ONOperatorOPAL NEL TRANSPORT GmbHCommissioned2011Technical informationLength470 km (290 mi)Maximum discharge35 billion cubic metres (1.2—10^12 cu ft) per yearDiameter1,400 mm (55 in)The OPAL (Ostsee-Pipeline-Anbindungsleitung) is a natural gas pipeline in Germany alongside the German eastern border. The OPAL pipeline is one of two projected pipelines connecting the Nord Stream pipeline to the existing pipeline grid in Middle and Western Europe, the other one being the NEL pipeline.
        The 470-kilometre (290 mi) long pipeline runs from Lubmin near Greifswald to Olbernhau near German-Czech border.[1] It connects the Nord Stream pipeline with the JAGAL (distributes gas from the Yamal-Europe pipeline), and the STEGAL (distributes gas from the Central-European Russian gas transit system (Transgas) via Czech and Slovak republics) pipelines in Germany. On the German-Czech border the pipeline will be connected with the planned Gazela Pipeline, to connect gas export pipelines in the Czech Republic.[2]
        Technical featuresEditThe diameter of the pipeline is 1,400 millimetres (55 in) and it has an operating pressure up to 100 bars (10,000 kPa).[1] The capacity of the pipeline is 35 billion cubic metres (1.2 trillion cubic feet) of natural gas. The compressor station in Radeland, Brandeburg, is built by Siemens.[3]
        The pipeline cost around '‚¬1 billion. The construction was completed in 2011 and in August 2011 Nord Stream was connected with the OPAL pipeline.[4]
        RegulationsEditOn 25 February 2009, the Germany's energy regulator exempted the OPAL pipeline from network access and transit fees regulation for 22 years after its launch.[5] However, the exemption from competition regulations may breach EU regulations, and The Economist reports that the EU are investigating [6]
        Project companyEditThe pipeline was constructed and is being operated by OPAL NEL TRANSPORT GmbH, a subsidiary of Wingas.[7] 20% of the company is owned by E.ON Ruhrgas.[5]
        ReferencesEditExternal linksEdit
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      Prisoners of war must at all times be protected, particularly against acts of violence or intimidation and against insults and public curiosity.
      Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War, 75 U.N.T.S. 135, entered into force Oct. 21, 1950.
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        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 13:14
        Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War, 75 U.N.T.S. 135, entered into force Oct. 21, 1950.
        Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War, 75 U.N.T.S. 135, entered into force Oct. 21, 1950.PART IGENERAL PROVISIONS
        Article 1The High Contracting Parties undertake to respect and to ensure respect for the present Convention in all circumstances.
        Article 2In addition to the provisions which shall be implemented in peace time, the present Convention shall apply to all cases of declared war or of any other armed conflict which may arise between two or more of the High Contracting Parties, even if the state of war is not recognized by one of them.
        The Convention shall also apply to all cases of partial or total occupation of the territory of a High Contracting Party, even if the said occupation meets with no armed resistance.
        Although one of the Powers in conflict may not be a party to the present Convention, the Powers who are parties thereto shall remain bound by it in their mutual relations. They shall furthermore be bound by the Convention in relation to the said Power, if the latter accepts and applies the provisions thereof.
        Article 3In the case of armed conflict not of an international character occurring in the territory of one of the High Contracting Parties, each party to the conflict shall be bound to apply, as a minimum, the following provisions:
        1. Persons taking no active part in the hostilities, including members of armed forces who have laid down their arms and those placed hors de combat by sickness, wounds, detention, or any other cause, shall in all circumstances be treated humanely, without any adverse distinction founded on race, colour, religion or faith, sex, birth or wealth, or any other similar criteria.
        To this end the following acts are and shall remain prohibited at any time and in any place whatsoever with respect to the above-mentioned persons:
        (a) Violence to life and person, in particular murder of all kinds, mutilation, cruel treatment and torture;
        (b) Taking of hostages;
        (c) Outrages upon personal dignity, in particular, humiliating and degrading treatment;
        (d) The passing of sentences and the carrying out of executions without previous judgment pronounced by a regularly constituted court affording all the judicial guarantees which are recognized as indispensable by civilized peoples.
        2. The wounded and sick shall be collected and cared for.
        An impartial humanitarian body, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, may offer its services to the Parties to the conflict.
        The Parties to the conflict should further endeavour to bring into force, by means of special agreements, all or part of the other provisions of the present Convention.
        The application of the preceding provisions shall not affect the legal status of the Parties to the conflict.
        Article 4A. Prisoners of war, in the sense of the present Convention, are persons belonging to one of the following categories, who have fallen into the power of the enemy:
        1. Members of the armed forces of a Party to the conflict as well as members of militias or volunteer corps forming part of such armed forces.
        2. Members of other militias and members of other volunteer corps, including those of organized resistance movements, belonging to a Party to the conflict and operating in or outside their own territory, even if this territory is occupied, provided that such militias or volunteer corps, including such organized resistance movements, fulfil the following conditions:
        (a) That of being commanded by a person responsible for his subordinates;
        (b) That of having a fixed distinctive sign recognizable at a distance;
        (c) That of carrying arms openly;
        (d) That of conducting their operations in accordance with the laws and customs of war.
        3. Members of regular armed forces who profess allegiance to a government or an authority not recognized by the Detaining Power.
        4. Persons who accompany the armed forces without actually being members thereof, such as civilian members of military aircraft crews, war correspondents, supply contractors, members of labour units or of services responsible for the welfare of the armed forces, provided that they have received authorization from the armed forces which they accompany, who shall provide them for that purpose with an identity card similar to the annexed model.
        5. Members of crews, including masters, pilots and apprentices, of the merchant marine and the crews of civil aircraft of the Parties to the conflict, who do not benefit by more favourable treatment under any other provisions of international law.
        6. Inhabitants of a non-occupied territory, who on the approach of the enemy spontaneously take up arms to resist the invading forces, without having had time to form themselves into regular armed units, provided they carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war.
        B. The following shall likewise be treated as prisoners of war under the present Convention:
        1. Persons belonging, or having belonged, to the armed forces of the occupied country, if the occupying Power considers it necessary by reason of such allegiance to intern them, even though it has originally liberated them while hostilities were going on outside the territory it occupies, in particular where such persons have made an unsuccessful attempt to rejoin the armed forces to which they belong and which are engaged in combat, or where they fail to comply with a summons made to them with a view to internment.
        2. The persons belonging to one of the categories enumerated in the present Article, who have been received by neutral or non-belligerent Powers on their territory and whom these Powers are required to intern under international law, without prejudice to any more favourable treatment which these Powers may choose to give and with the exception of Articles 8, 10, 15, 30, fifth paragraph, 58-67, 92, 126 and, where diplomatic relations exist between the Parties to the conflict and the neutral or non-belligerent Power concerned, those Articles concerning the Protecting Power. Where such diplomatic relations exist, the Parties to a conflict on whom these persons depend shall be allowed to perform towards them the functions of a Protecting Power as provided in the present Convention, without prejudice to the functions which these Parties normally exercise in conformity with diplomatic and consular usage and treaties.
        C. This Article shall in no way affect the status of medical personnel and chaplains as provided for in Article 33 of the present Convention.
        Article 5The present Convention shall apply to the persons referred to in Article 4 from the time they fall into the power of the enemy and until their final release and repatriation.
        Should any doubt arise as to whether persons, having committed a belligerent act and having fallen into the hands of the enemy, belong to any of the categories enumerated in Article 4, such persons shall enjoy the protection of the present Convention until such time as their status has been determined by a competent tribunal.
        Article 6In addition to the agreements expressly provided for in Articles 10, 23, 28, 33, 60, 65, 66, 67, 72, 73, 75, 109, 110, 118, 119, 122 and 132, the High Contracting Parties may conclude other special agreements for all matters concerning which they may deem it suitable to make separate provision. No special agreement shall adversely affect the situation of prisoners of war, as defined by the present Convention, nor restrict the rights which it confers upon them.
        Prisoners of war shall continue to have the benefit of such agreements as long as the Convention is applicable to them, except where express provisions to the contrary are contained in the aforesaid or in subsequent agreements, or where more favourable measures have been taken with regard to them by one or other of the Parties to the conflict.
        Article 7Prisoners of war may in no circumstances renounce in part or in entirety the rights secured to them by the present Convention, and by the special agreements referred to in the foregoing Article, if such there be.
        Article 8The present Convention shall be applied with the cooperation and under the scrutiny of the Protecting Powers whose duty it is to safeguard the interests of the Parties to the conflict. For this purpose, the Protecting Powers may appoint, apart from their diplomatic or consular staff, delegates from amongst their own nationals or the nationals of other neutral Powers. The said delegates shall be subject to the approval of the Power with which they are to carry out their duties.
        The Parties to the conflict shall facilitate to the greatest extent possible the task of the representatives or delegates of the Protecting Powers.
        The representatives or delegates of the Protecting Powers shall not in any case exceed their mission under the present Convention. They shall, in particular, take account of the imperative necessities of security of the State wherein they carry out their duties.
        Article 9The provisions of the present Convention constitute no obstacle to the humanitarian activities which the International Committee of the Red Cross or any other impartial humanitarian organization may, subject to the consent of the Parties to the conflict concerned, undertake for the protection of prisoners of war and for their relief.
        Article 10The High Contracting Parties may at any time agree to entrust to an organization which offers all guarantees of impartiality and efficacy the duties incumbent on the Protecting Powers by virtue of the present Convention.
        When prisoners of war do not benefit or cease to benefit, no matter for what reason, by the activities of a Protecting Power or of an organization provided for in the first paragraph above, the Detaining Power shall request a neutral State, or such an organization, to undertake the functions performed under the present Convention by a Protecting Power designated by the Parties to a conflict.
        If protection cannot be arranged accordingly, the Detaining Power shall request or shall accept, subject to the provisions of this Article, the offer of the services of a humanitarian organization, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, to assume the humanitarian functions performed by Protecting Powers under the present Convention.
        Any neutral Power or any organization invited by the Power concerned or offering itself for these purposes, shall be required to act with a sense of responsibility towards the Party to the conflict on which persons protected by the present Convention depend, and shall be required to furnish sufficient assurances that it is in a position to undertake the appropriate functions and to discharge them impartially.
        No derogation from the preceding provisions shall be made by special agreements between Powers one of which is restricted, even temporarily, in its freedom to negotiate with the other Power or its allies by reason of military events, more particularly where the whole, or a substantial part, of the territory of the said Power is occupied.
        Whenever in the present Convention mention is made of a Protecting Power, such mention applies to substitute organizations in the sense of the present Article.
        Article 11In cases where they deem it advisable in the interest of protected persons, particularly in cases of disagreement between the Parties to the conflict as to the application or interpretation of the provisions of the present Convention, the Protecting Powers shall lend their good offices with a view to settling the disagreement.
        For this purpose, each of the Protecting Powers may, either at the invitation of one Party or on its own initiative, -propose to the Parties to the conflict a meeting of their representatives, and in particular of the authorities responsible for prisoners of war, possibly on neutral territory suitably chosen. The Parties to the conflict shall be bound to give effect to the proposals made to them for this purpose. The Protecting Powers may, if necessary, propose for approval by the Parties to the conflict a person belonging to a neutral Power, or delegated by the International Committee of the Red Cross, who shall be invited to take part in such a meeting.
        PART IIGENERAL PROTECTION OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 12Prisoners of war are in the hands of the enemy Power, but not of the individuals or military units who have captured them. Irrespective of the individual responsibilities that may exist, the Detaining Power is responsible for the treatment given them.
        Prisoners of war may only be transferred by the Detaining Power to a Power which is a party to the Convention and after the Detaining Power has satisfied itself of the willingness and ability of such transferee Power to apply the Convention. When prisoners of war are transferred under such circumstances, responsibility for the application of the Convention rests on the Power accepting them while they are in its custody.
        Nevertheless if that Power fails to carry out the provisions of the Convention in any important respect, the Power by whom the prisoners of war
        were transferred shall, upon being notified by the Protecting Power, take effective measures to correct the situation or shall request the return of the prisoners of war. Such requests must be complied with.
        Article 13Prisoners of war must at all times be humanely treated. Any unlawful act or omission by the Detaining Power causing death or seriously endangering the health of a prisoner of war in its custody is prohibited, and will be regarded as a serious breach of the present Convention. In particular, no prisoner of war may be subjected to physical mutilation or to medical or scientific experiments of any kind which are not justified by the medical, dental or hospital treatment of the prisoner concerned and carried out in his interest.
        Likewise, prisoners of war must at all times be protected, particularly against acts of violence or intimidation and against insults and public curiosity
        Measures of reprisal against prisoners of war are prohibited.
        Article 14Prisoners of war are entitled in all circumstances to respect for their persons and their honour.
        Women shall be treated with all the regard due to their sex and shall in all cases benefit by treatment as favourable as that granted to men.
        Prisoners of war shall retain the full civil capacity which they enjoyed at the time of their capture. The Detaining Power may not restrict the exercise, either within or without its own territory, of the rights such capacity confers except in so far as the captivity requires.
        Article 15The Power detaining prisoners of war shall be bound to provide free of charge for their maintenance and for the medical attention required by their state of health.
        Article 16Taking into consideration the provisions of the present Convention relating to rank and sex, and subject to any privileged treatment which may be accorded to them by reason of their state of health, age or professional qualifications, all prisoners of war shall be treated alike by the Detaining Power, without any adverse distinction based on race, nationality, religious belief or political opinions, or any other distinction founded on similar criteria. PART III
        CAPTIVITY
        SECTION I
        BEGINNING OF CAPTIVITY
        Article 17Every prisoner of war, when questioned on the subject, is bound to give only his surname, first names and rank, date of birth, and army, regimental, personal or serial number, or failing this, equivalent information.
        If he wilfully infringes this rule, he may render himself liable to a restriction of the privileges accorded to his rank or status.
        Each Party to a conflict is required to furnish the persons under its jurisdiction who are liable to become prisoners of war, with an identity card showing the owner's surname, first names, rank, army, regimental, personal or serial number or equivalent information, and date of birth. The identity card may, furthermore, bear the signature or the fingerprints, or both, of the owner, and may bear, as well, any other information the Party to the conflict may wish to add concerning persons belonging to its armed forces. AS far as possible the card shall measure 6.5 x 10 cm. and shall be issued in duplicate. The identity card shall be shown by the prisoner of war upon demand, but may in no case be taken away from him.
        No physical or mental torture, nor any other form of coercion, may be inflicted on prisoners of war to secure from them information of any kind whatever. Prisoners of war who refuse to answer may not be threatened, insulted, or exposed to any unpleasant or disadvantageous treatment of any kind.
        Prisoners of war who, owing to their physical or mental condition, are unable to state their identity, shall be handed over to the medical service. The identity of such prisoners shall be established by all possible means, subject to the provisions of the preceding paragraph.
        The questioning of prisoners of war shall be carried out in a language which they understand.
        Article 18All effects and articles of personal use, except arms, horses, military equipment and military documents shall remain in the possession of prisoners of war, likewise their metal helmets and gas masks and like articles issued for personal protection. Effects and articles used for their clothing or feeding shall likewise remain in their possession, even if such effects and articles belong to their regulation military equipment.
        At no time should prisoners of war be without identity documents. The Detaining Power shall supply such documents to prisoners of war who possess none.
        Badges of rank and nationality, decorations and articles having above all a personal or sentimental value may not be taken from prisoners of war.
        Sums of money carried by prisoners of war may not be taken away from them except by order of an officer, and after the amount and particulars of the owner have been recorded in a special register and an itemized receipt has been given, legibly inscribed with the name, rank and unit of the person issuing the said receipt. Sums in the currency of the Detaining Power, or which are changed into such currency at the prisoner's request, shall be placed to the credit of the prisoner's account as provided in Article 64.
        The Detaining Power may withdraw articles of value from prisoners of war only for reasons of security; when such articles are withdrawn, the procedure laid down for sums of money impounded shall apply.
        Such objects, likewise the sums taken away in any currency other than that of the Detaining Power and the conversion of which has not been asked for by the owners, shall be kept in the custody of the Detaining Power and shall be returned in their initial shape to prisoners of war at the end of their captivity.
        Article 19Prisoners of war shall be evacuated, as soon as possible after their capture, to camps situated in an area far enough from the combat zone for them to be out of danger.
        Only those prisoners of war who, owing to wounds or sickness, would run greater risks by being evacuated than by remaining where they are, may be temporarily kept back in a danger zone.
        Prisoners of war shall not be unnecessarily exposed to danger while awaiting evacuation from a fighting zone.
        Article 20The evacuation of prisoners of war shall always be effected humanely and in conditions similar to those for the forces of the Detaining Power in their changes of station.
        The Detaining Power shall supply prisoners of war who are being evacuated with sufficient food and potable water, and with the necessary clothing and medical attention. The Detaining Power shall take all suitable precautions to ensure their safety during evacuation, and shall establish as
        soon as possible a list of the prisoners of war who are evacuated. .;
        If prisoners of war must, during evacuation, pass through transit camps, their stay in such camps shall be as brief as possible.
        SECTION 11
        INTERNMENT OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        Chapter IGENERAL OBSERVATIONS
        Article 21The Detaining Power may subject prisoners of war to internment. It may impose on them the obligation of not leaving, beyond certain limits, the camp where they are interned, or if the said camp is fenced in, of not going outside its perimeter. Subject to the provisions of the present Convention relative to penal and disciplinary sanctions, prisoners of war may not be held in close confinement except where necessary to safeguard their health and then only during the continuation of the circumstances which make such confinement necessary.
        Prisoners of war may be partially or wholly released on parole or promise, in so far as is allowed by the laws of the Power on which they depend. Such measures shall be taken particularly in cases where this may contribute to the improvement of their state of health. No prisoner of war shall be compelled to accept liberty on parole or promise.
        Upon the outbreak of hostilities, each Party to the conflict shall notify the adverse Party of the laws and regulations allowing or forbidding its own nationals to accept liberty on parole or promise. Prisoners of war who are paroled or who have given their promise in conformity with the laws and regulations so notified, are bound on their personal honour scrupulously to fulfil, both towards the Power on which they depend and towards the Power which has captured them, the engagements of their paroles or promises. In such cases, the Power on which they depend is bound neither to require nor to accept from them any service incompatible with the parole or promise given.
        Article 22Prisoners of war may be interned only in premises located on land and affording every guarantee of hygiene and healthfulness. Except in particular
        cases which are justified by the interest of the prisoners themselves, they shall not be interned in penitentiaries.
        Prisoners of war interned in unhealthy areas, or where the climate is injurious for them, shall be removed as soon as possible to a more favourable climate.
        The Detaining Power shall assemble prisoners of war in camps or camp compounds according to their nationality, language and customs, provided that such prisoners shall not be separated from prisoners of war belonging to the armed forces with which they were serving at the time of their capture, except with their consent.
        Article 23No prisoner of war may at any time be sent to or detained in areas where he may be exposed to the fire of the combat zone, nor may his presence be used to render certain points or areas immune from military operations.
        Prisoners of war shall have shelters against air bombardment and other hazards of war, to the same extent as the local civilian population. With the exception of those engaged in the protection of their quarters against the aforesaid hazards, they may enter such shelters as soon as possible after the giving of the alarm. Any other protective measure taken in favour of the population shall also apply to them.
        Detaining Powers shall give the Powers concerned, through the intermediary of the Protecting Powers. all useful information regarding the geographical location of prisoner of war camps.
        Whenever military considerations permit, prisoner of war camps shall be indicated in the day-time by the letters PW or PG, placed so as to be clearly visible from the air. The Powers concerned may, however, agree upon any other system of marking. Only prisoner of war camps shall be marked as such.
        Article 24Transit or screening camps of a permanent kind shall be fitted out under conditions similar to those described in the present Section, and the prisoners therein shall have the same treatment as in other camps.
        Chapter IIQUARTERS FOOD AND CLOTHING OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 25Prisoners of war shall be quartered under conditions as favourable as those for the forces of the Detaining Power who are billeted in the same area. The said conditions shall make allowance for the habits and customs of the prisoners and shall in no case be prejudicial to their health.
        The foregoing provisions shall apply in particular to the dormitories of prisoners of war as regards both total surface and minimum cubic space, and the general installations, bedding and blankets.
        The premises provided for the use of prisoners of war individually or collectively, shall be entirely protected from dampness and adequately heated and lighted, in particular between dusk and lights out. All precautions must be taken against the danger of fire.
        In any camps in which women prisoners of war, as well as men, are accommodated, separate dormitories shall be provided for them.
        Article 26The basic daily food rations shall be sufficient in quantity, quality and variety to keep prisoners of war in good health and to prevent loss of weight or the development of nutritional deficiencies. Account shall also be taken of the habitual diet of the prisoners.
        The Detaining Power shall supply prisoners of war who work with such additional rations as are necessary for the labour on which they are employed.
        Sufficient drinking water shall be supplied to prisoners of war. The use of tobacco shall be permitted.
        Prisoners of war shall, as far as possible, be associated with the preparation of their meals; they may be employed for that purpose in the kitchens. Furthermore, they shall be given the means of preparing, themselves, the additional food in their possession.
        Adequate premises shall be provided for messing.
        Collective disciplinary measures affecting food are prohibited.
        Article 27Clothing, underwear and footwear shall be supplied to prisoners of war in sufficient quantities by the Detaining Power, which shall make allowance
        for the climate of the region where the prisoners are detained. Uniforms of enemy armed forces captured by the Detaining Power should, if suitable for the climate, be made available to clothe prisoners of war.
        The regular replacement and repair of the above articles shall be assured by the Detaining Power. In addition, prisoners of war who work shall receive appropriate clothing, wherever the nature of the work demands.
        Article 28Canteens shall be installed in all camps, where prisoners of war may procure foodstuffs, soap and tobacco and ordinary articles in daily use. The tariff shall never be in excess of local market prices.
        The profits made by camp canteens shall be used for the benefit of the prisoners; a special fund shall be created for this purpose. The prisoners' representative shall have the right to collaborate in the management of the canteen and of this fund.
        When a camp is closed down, the credit balance of the special fund shall be handed to an international welfare organization, to be employed for the benefit of prisoners of war of the same nationality as those who have contributed to the fund. In case of a general repatriation, such profits shall be kept by the Detaining Power, subject to any agreement to the contrary between the Powers concerned.
        Chapter IIIHYGIENE AND MEDICAL ATTENTION
        Article 29The Detaining Power shall be bound to take all sanitary measures necessary to ensure the cleanliness and healthfulness of camps and to prevent epidemics.
        Prisoners of war shall have for their use, day and night, conveniences which conform to the rules of hygiene and are maintained in a constant state of cleanliness. In any camps in which women prisoners of war are accommodated, separate conveniences shall be provided for them.
        Also, apart from the baths and showers with which the camps shall be furnished, prisoners of war shall be provided with sufficient water and soap for their personal toilet and for washing their personal laundry; the necessary installations, facilities and time shall be granted them for that purpose.
        Article 30Every camp shall have an adequate infirmary where prisoners of war may have the attention they require, as well as appropriate diet. Isolation wards shall, if necessary, be set aside for cases of contagious or mental disease.
        Prisoners of war suffering from serious disease, or whose condition necessitates special treatment, a surgical operation or hospital care, must be admitted to any military or civilian medical unit where such treatment can be given, even if their repatriation is contemplated in the near future. Special facilities shall be afforded for the care to be given to the disabled, in particular to the blind, and for their rehabilitation, pending repatriation.
        Prisoners of war shall have the attention, preferably, of medical personnel of the Power on which they depend and, if possible, of their nationality.
        Prisoners of war may not be prevented from presenting themselves to the medical authorities for examination. The detaining authorities shall, upon request, issue to every prisoner who has undergone treatment, an official certificate indicating the nature of his illness or injury, and the duration and kind of treatment received. A duplicate of this certificate shall be forwarded to the Central Prisoners of War Agency.
        The costs of treatment, including those of any apparatus necessary for the maintenance of prisoners of war in good health, particularly dentures and other artificial appliances, and spectacles, shall be borne by the Detaining Power.
        Article 31Medical inspections of prisoners of war shall be held at least once a month. They shall include the checking and the recording of the weight of each prisoner of war. Their purpose shall be, in particular, to supervise the general state of health, nutrition and cleanliness of prisoners and to detect contagious diseases, especially tuberculosis, malaria and venereal disease. For this purpose the most efficient methods available shall be employed, e.g. periodic mass miniature radiography for the early detection of tuberculosis.
        Article 32Prisoners of war who, though not attached to the medical service of their armed forces, are physicians, surgeons, dentists, nurses or medical orderlies, may be required by the Detaining Power to exercise their medical functions in the interests of prisoners of war dependent on the same Power. In that case they shall continue to be prisoners of war, but shall receive the
        same treatment as corresponding medical personnel retained by the Detaining Power. They shall be exempted from any other work under Article 49.
        Chapter IVMEDICAL PERSONNEL AND CHAPLAINS
        RETAINED TO ASSIST PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 33Members of the medical personnel and chaplains while retained by the Detaining Power with a view to assisting prisoners of war, shall not be considered as prisoners of war. They shall, however, receive as a minimum the benefits and protection of the present Convention, and shall also be granted all facilities necessary to provide for the medical care of, and religious ministration to prisoners of war.
        They shall continue to exercise their medical and spiritual functions for the benefit of prisoners of war, preferably those belonging to the armed forces upon which they depend, within the scope of the military laws and regulations of the Detaining Power and under the control of its competent services, in accordance with their professional etiquette. They shall also benefit by the following facilities in the exercise of their medical or spiritual functions:
        (a) They shall be authorized to visit periodically prisoners of war situated in working detachments or in hospitals outside the camp. For this purpose, the Detaining Power shall place at their disposal the necessary means of transport.
        (b) The senior medical officer in each camp shall be responsible to the camp military authorities for everything connected with the activities of retained medical personnel. For this purpose, Parties to the conflict shall agree at the outbreak of hostilities on the subject of the corresponding ranks of the medical personnel, including that of societies mentioned in Article 26 of the Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field of August 12, 1949. This senior medical officer, as well as chaplains, shall have the right to deal with the competent authorities of the camp on all questions relating to their duties. Such authorities shall afford them all necessary facilities for correspondence relating to these questions.
        (c) Although they shall be subject to the internal discipline of the camp in which they are retained, such personnel may not be compelled to carry out any work other than that concerned with their medical or religious duties.
        During hostilities, the Parties to the conflict shall agree concerning the possible relief of retained personnel and shall settle the procedure to be followed.
        None of the preceding provisions shall relieve the Detaining Power of its obligations with regard to prisoners of war from the medical or spiritual point of view.
        Chapter VRELIGIOUS INTELLECTUAL AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES
        Article 34Prisoners of war shall enjoy complete latitude in the exercise of their religious duties, including attendance at the service of their faith, on condition that they comply with the disciplinary routine prescribed by the military authorities.
        Adequate premises shall be provided where religious services may be held.
        Article 35Chaplains who fall into the hands of the enemy Power and who remain or are retained with a view to assisting prisoners of war, shall be allowed to minister to them and to exercise freely their ministry amongst prisoners of war of the same religion, in accordance with their religious conscience. They shall be allocated among the various camps and labour detachments containing prisoners of war belonging to the same forces. speaking the same language or practising the same religion. They shall enjoy the necessary facilities, including the means of transport provided for in Article 33, for visiting the prisoners of war outside their camp. They shall be free to correspond, subject to censorship, on matters concerning their religious duties with the ecclesiastical authorities in the country of detention and with international religious organizations. Letters and cards which they may send for this purpose shall be in addition to the quota provided for in Article 71.
        Article 36Prisoners of war who are ministers of religion, without having officiated as chaplains to their own forces, shall be at liberty, whatever their denomination, to minister freely to the members of their community. For this purpose, they shall receive the same treatment as the chaplains retained by the Detaining Power. They shall not be obliged to do any other work.
        Article 37When prisoners of war have not the assistance of a retained chaplain or of a prisoner of war minister of their faith, a minister belonging to the prisoners, or a similar denomination, or in his absence a qualified layman, if such a course is feasible from a confessional point of view, shall be appointed, at the request of the prisoners concerned, to fill this office. This appointment, subject to the approval of the Detaining Power, shall take place with the agreement of the community of prisoners concerned and, wherever necessary, with the approval of the local religious authorities of the same faith. The person thus appointed shall comply with all regulations established by the Detaining Power in the interests of discipline and military security.
        Article 38While respecting the individual preferences of every prisoner, the Detaining Power shall encourage the practice of intellectual, educational, and recreational pursuits, sports and games amongst prisoners, and shall take the measures necessary to ensure the exercise thereof by providing them with adequate premises and necessary equipment.
        Prisoners shall have opportunities for taking physical exercise, including sports and games, and for being out of doors. Sufficient open spaces shall be provided for this purpose in all camps.
        Chapter VIDISCIPLINE
        Article 39Every prisoner of war camp shall be put under the immediate authority of a responsible commissioned officer belonging to the regular armed forces of the Detaining Power. Such officer shall have in his possession a copy of the present Convention; he shall ensure that its provisions are known to the camp staff and the guard and shall be responsible, under the direction of his government, for its application.
        Prisoners of war, with the exception of officers, must salute and show to all officers of the Detaining Power the external marks of respect provided for by the regulations applying in their own forces.
        Officer prisoners of war are bound to salute only officers of a higher rank of the Detaining Power; they must, however, salute the camp commander regardless of his rank.
        Article 40The wearing of badges of rank and nationality, as well as of decorations, shall be permitted.
        Article 41In every camp the text of the present Convention and its Annexes and the contents of any special agreement provided for in Article 6, shall be posted, in the prisoners' own language, at places where all may read them. Copies shall be supplied, on request, to the prisoners who cannot have access to the copy which has been posted.
        Regulations, orders, notices and publications of every kind relating to the conduct of prisoners of war shall be issued to them in a language which they understand. Such regulations, orders and publications shall be posted in the manner described above and copies shall be handed to the prisoners' representative. Every order and command addressed to prisoners of war individually must likewise be given in a language which they understand.
        Article 42The use of weapons against prisoners of war, especially against those who are escaping or attempting to escape, shall constitute an extreme measure, which shall always be preceded by warnings appropriate to the circumstances.
        Chapter VIIRANK OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 43Upon the outbreak of hostilities, the Parties to the conflict shall communicate to one another the titles and ranks of all the persons mentioned in Article 4 of the present Convention, in order to ensure equality of treatment between prisoners of equivalent rank. Titles and ranks which are subsequently created shall form the subject of similar communications.
        The Detaining Power shall recognize promotions in rank which have been accorded to prisoners of war and which have been duly notified by the Power on which these prisoners depend.
        Article 44Officers and prisoners of equivalent status shall be treated with the regard due to their rank and age.
        In order to ensure service in officers' camps, other ranks of the same armed forces who, as far as possible, speak the same language, shall be assigned in sufficient numbers, account being taken of the rank of officers and prisoners of equivalent status. Such orderlies shall not be required to perform any other work.
        Supervision of the mess by the officers themselves shall be facilitated in every way.
        Article 45Prisoners of war other than officers and prisoners of equivalent status shall be treated with the regard due to their rank and age.
        Supervision of the mess by the prisoners themselves shall be facilitated in every way.
        Chapter VIIITRANSFER OF PRISONERS OF WAR AFTER THEIR ARRIVAL IN CAMP
        Article 46The Detaining Power, when deciding upon the transfer of prisoners of war, shall take into account the interests of the prisoners themselves, more especially so as not to increase the difficulty of their repatriation.
        The transfer of prisoners of war shall always be effected humanely and in conditions not less favourable than those under which the forces of the Detaining Power are transferred. Account shall always be taken of the climatic conditions to which the prisoners of war are accustomed and the conditions of transfer shall in no case be prejudicial to their health.
        The Detaining Power shall supply prisoners of war during transfer with sufficient food and drinking water to keep them in good health, likewise with the necessary clothing, shelter and medical attention. The Detaining Power shall take adequate precautions especially in case of transport by sea or by air, to ensure their safety during transfer, and shall draw up a complete list of all transferred prisoners before their departure.
        Article 47Sick or wounded prisoners of war shall not be transferred as long as their recovery may be endangered by the journey, unless their safety imperatively demands it.
        If the combat zone draws closer to a camp, the prisoners of war in the said camp shall not be transferred unless their transfer can be carried out in adequate conditions of safety, or if they are exposed to greater risks by remaining on the spot than by being transferred.
        Article 48In the event of transfer, prisoners of war shall be officially advised of their departure and of their new postal address. Such notifications shall be given in time for them to pack their luggage and inform their next of kin.
        They shall be allowed to take with them their personal effects, and the correspondence and parcels which have arrived for them. The weight of such baggage may be limited, if the conditions of transfer so require, to what each prisoner can reasonably carry, which shall in no case be more than twenty-five kilograms per head.
        Mail and parcels addressed to their former camp shall be forwarded to them without delay. The camp commander shall take, in agreement with the prisoners' representative, any measures needed to ensure the transport of the prisoners' community property and of the luggage they are unable to take with them in consequence of restrictions imposed by virtue of the second paragraph of this Article.
        The costs of transfers shall be borne by the Detaining Power.
        SECTION 111
        LABOUR OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 49The Detaining Power may utilize the labour of prisoners of war who are physically fit, taking into account their age, sex, rank and physical aptitude, and with a view particularly to maintaining them in a good state of physical and mental health.
        Non-commissioned officers who are prisoners of war shall only be required to do supervisory work. Those not so required may ask for other suitable work which shall, so far as possible, be found for them.
        If officers or persons of equivalent status ask for suitable work, it shall be found for them, so far as possible, but they may in no circumstances be compelled to work.
        Article 50Besides work connected with camp administration, installation or maintenance, prisoners of war may be compelled to do only such work as is included in the following classes:
        (a) Agriculture;
        (b) Industries connected with the production or the extraction of raw materials, and manufacturing industries, with the exception of metallurgical, machinery and chemical industries; public works and building operations which have no military character or purpose;
        (c) Transport and handling of stores which are not military in character or purpose;
        (d) Commercial business, and arts and crafts;
        (e) Domestic service;
        (f) Public utility services having no military character or purpose.
        Should the above provisions be infringed, prisoners of war shall be allowed to exercise their right of complaint, in conformity with Article 78.
        Article 51Prisoners of war must be granted suitable working conditions, especially as regards accommodation, food, clothing and equipment; such conditions shall not be inferior to those enjoyed by nationals of the Detaining Power employed in similar work; account shall also be taken of climatic conditions.
        The Detaining Power, in utilizing the labour of prisoners of war, shall en sure that in areas in which prisoners are employed, the national legislation concerning the protection of labour, and, more particularly, the regulations for the safety of workers, are duly applied.
        Prisoners of war shall receive training and be provided with the means of protection suitable to the work they will have to do and similar to those accorded to the nationals of the Detaining Power. Subject to the provisions of Article 52, prisoners may be submitted to the normal risks run by these civilian workers.
        Conditions of labour shall in no case be rendered more arduous by disciplinary measures.
        Article 52Unless he be a volunteer, no prisoner of war may be employed on labour which is of an unhealthy or dangerous nature.
        No prisoner of war shall be assigned to labour which would be looked upon as humiliating for a member of the Detaining Power's own forces.
        The removal of mines or similar devices shall be considered as dangerous labour.
        Article 53The duration of the daily labour of prisoners of war, including the time of the journey to and fro, shall not be excessive, and must in no case exceed that permitted for civilian workers in the district, who are nationals of the Detaining Power and employed on the same work.
        Prisoners of war must be allowed, in the middle of the day's work, a rest of not less than one hour. This rest will be the same as that to which workers of the Detaining Power are entitled, if the latter is of longer duration. They shall be allowed in addition a rest of twenty-four consecutive hours every week, preferably on Sunday or the day of rest in their country of origin. Furthermore, every prisoner who has worked for one year shall be granted a rest of eight consecutive days, during which his working pay shall be paid him.
        If methods of labour such as piece-work are employed, the length of the working period shall not be rendered excessive thereby.
        Article 54The working pay due to prisoners of war shall be fixed in accordance with the provisions of Article 62 of the present Convention.
        Prisoners of war who sustain accidents in connection with work, or who contract a disease in the course, or in consequence of their work, shall receive all the care their condition may require. The Detaining Power shall furthermore deliver to such prisoners of war a medical certificate enabling them to submit their claims to the Power on which they depend, and shall send a duplicate to the Central Prisoners of War Agency provided for in Article 123.
        Article 55The fitness of prisoners of war for work shall be periodically verified by medical examinations at least once a month. The examinations shall have particular regard to the nature of the work which prisoners of war are required to do.
        If any prisoner of war considers himself incapable of working, he shall be permitted to appear before the medical authorities of his camp. Physicians or surgeons may recommend that the prisoners who are, in their opinion, unfit for work, be exempted therefrom.
        Article 56The organization and administration of labour detachments shall be similar to those of prisoner of war camps.
        Every labour detachment shall remain under the control of and administratively part of a prisoner of war camp. The military authorities and the commander of the said camp shall be responsible, under the direction of their government, for the observance of the provisions of the present Convention in labour detachments.
        The camp commander shall keep an up-to-date record of the labour detachments dependent on his camp, and shall communicate it to the delegates of the Protecting Power, of the International Committee of the Red Cross, or of other agencies giving relief to prisoners of war, who may visit the camp.
        Article 57The treatment of prisoners of war who work for private persons, even if the latter are responsible for guarding and protecting them, shall not be inferior to that which is provided for by the present Convention. The Detaining Power, the military authorities and the commander of the camp to which such prisoners belong shall be entirely responsible for the maintenance, care, treatment, and payment of the working pay of such prisoners of war.
        Such prisoners of war shall have the right to remain in communication with the prisoners' representatives in the camps on which they depend.
        SECTION IV
        FINANCIAL RESOURCES OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 58Upon the outbreak of hostilities, and pending an arrangement on this matter with the Protecting Power, the Detaining Power may determine the maximum amount of money in cash or in any similar form, that prisoners may have in their possession. Any amount in excess, which was properly in their possession and which has been taken or withheld from them, shall be placed to their account, together with any monies deposited by them, and shall not be converted into any other currency without their consent.
        If prisoners of war are permitted to purchase services or commodities outside the camp against payment in cash, such payments shall be made by the prisoner himself or by the camp administration who will charge them to the accounts of the prisoners concerned. The Detaining Power will establish the necessary rules in this respect.
        Article 59Cash which was taken from prisoners of war, in accordance with Article 18, at the time of their capture, and which is in the currency of the Detaining Power, shall be placed to their separate accounts, in accordance with the provisions of Article 64 of the present Section.
        The amounts, in the currency of the Detaining Power, due to the conversion of sums in other currencies that are taken from the prisoners of war at the same time, shall also be credited to their separate accounts.
        Article 60The Detaining Power shall grant all prisoners of war a monthly advance of pay, the amount of which shall be fixed by conversion, into the currency of the said Power, of the following amounts:
        Category I: Prisoners ranking below sergeant: eight Swiss francs.
        Category II: Sergeants and other non-commissioned officers, or prisoners of equivalent rank: twelve Swiss francs.
        Category m: Warrant officers and commissioned officers below the rank of major or prisoners of equivalent rank: fifty Swiss francs.
        Category IV: Majors, lieutenant-colonels, colonels or prisoners of equivalent rank: sixty Swiss francs.
        Category V: General officers or prisoners of equivalent rank: seventy-five Swiss francs.
        However, the Parties to the conflict concerned may by special agreement modify the amount of advances of pay due to prisoners of the preceding categories.
        Furthermore, if the amounts indicated in the first paragraph above would be unduly high compared with the pay of the Detaining Power's armed forces or would, for any reason, seriously embarrass the Detaining Power, then, pending the conclusion of a special agreement with the Power on which the prisoners depend to vary the amounts indicated above, the Detaining Power:
        (a) Shall continue to credit the accounts of the prisoners with the amounts indicated in the first paragraph above;
        (b) May temporarily limit the amount made available from these advances of pay to prisoners of war for their own use, to sums which are reasonable , but which, for Category I, shall never be inferior to the amount that the Detaining Power gives to the members of its own armed forces.
        The reasons for any limitations will be given without delay to the Protecting Power.
        Article 61The Detaining Power shall accept for distribution as supplementary
        pay to prisoners of war sums which the Power on which the prisoners depend may forward to them,
        on condition that the sums to be paid shall be the
        same for each prisoner of the same category, shall be payable to all prisoners
        of that category depending on that Power, and shall be placed in their separate accounts, at the
        earliest opportunity, in accordance with the provisions
        of Article 64. Such supplementary pay shall not relieve the Detaining Power
        of any obligation under this Convention.
        Article 62Prisoners of war shall be paid a fair working rate of pay by the detaining authorities direct. The rate shall be fixed by the said authorities, but shall at no time be less than one-fourth of one Swiss franc for a full working day. The Detaining Power shall inform prisoners of war, as well as the Power on which they depend, through the intermediary of the Protecting Power, of the rate of daily working pay that it has fixed.
        Working pay shall likewise be paid by the detaining authorities to prisoners of war permanently detailed to duties or to a skilled or semi-skilled occupation in connection with the administration, installation or maintenance of camps, and to the prisoners who are required to carry out spiritual or medical duties on behalf of their comrades.
        The working pay of the prisoners' representative, of his advisers, if any, and of his assistants, shall be paid out of the fund maintained by canteen profits. The scale of this working pay shall be fixed by the prisoners, representative and approved by the camp commander. If there is no such fund, the detaining authorities shall pay these prisoners a fair working rate of pay.
        Article 63Prisoners of war shall be permitted to receive remittances of money addressed to them individually or collectively.
        Every prisoner of war shall have at his disposal the credit balance of his account as provided for in the following Article, within the limits fixed
        by the Detaining Power, which shall make such payments as are requested. Subject to financial or monetary restrictions which the Detaining Power regards as essential, prisoners of war may also have payments made abroad. In this case payments addressed by prisoners of war to dependants shall be given priority.
        In any event, and subject to the consent of the Power on which they depend, prisoners may have payments made in their own country, as follows: the Detaining Power shall send to the aforesaid Power through the Protecting Power a notification giving all the necessary particulars concerning the prisoners of war, the beneficiaries of the payments, and the amount of the sums to be paid, expressed in the Detaining Power's currency. The said notification shall be signed by the prisoners and countersigned by the camp commander. The Detaining Power shall debit the prisoners' account by a corresponding amount; the sums thus debited shall be placed by it to the credit of the Power on which the prisoners depend.
        To apply the foregoing provisions, the Detaining Power may usefully consult the Model Regulations in Annex V of the present Convention.
        Article 64The Detaining Power shall hold an account for each prisoner of war, showing at least the following:
        1. The amounts due to the prisoner or received by him as advances of pay, as working pay or derived from any other source; the sums in the currency of the Detaining Power which were taken from him; the sums taken from him and converted at his request into the currency of the said Power.
        2. The payments made to the prisoner in cash, or in any other similar form; the payments made on his behalf and at his request; the sums transferred under Article 63, third paragraph.
        Article 65Every item entered in the account of a prisoner of war shall be countersigned or initialled by him, or by the prisoners' representative acting on his behalf.
        Prisoners of war shall at all times be afforded reasonable facilities for consulting and obtaining copies of their accounts, which may likewise be inspected by the representatives of the Protecting Powers at the time of visits to the camp.
        When prisoners of war are transferred from one camp to another, their personal accounts will follow them. In case of transfer from one Detaining Power to another, the monies which are their property and are not in the currency of the Detaining Power will follow them. They shall be given certificates for any other monies standing to the credit of their accounts.
        The Parties to the conflict concerned may agree to notify to each other at specific intervals through the Protecting Power, the amount of the accounts of the prisoners of war.
        Article 66On the termination of captivity, through the release of a prisoner of war or his repatriation, the Detaining Power shall give him a statement, signed by an authorized officer of that Power, showing the credit balance then due to him. The Detaining Power shall also send through the Protecting Power to the government upon which the prisoner of war depends, lists giving all appropriate particulars of all prisoners of war whose captivity has been terminated by repatriation, release, escape, death or any other means, and showing the amount of their credit balances. Such lists shall be certified on each sheet by an authorized representative of the Detaining Power.
        Any of the above provisions of this Article may be varied by mutual agreement between any two Parties to the conflict.
        The Power on which the prisoner of war depends shall be responsible for settling with him any credit balance due to him from the Detaining Power on the termination of his captivity.
        Article 67Advances of pay, issued to prisoners of war in conformity with Article 60, shall be considered as made on behalf of the Power on which they depend. Such advances of pay, as well as all payments made by the said Power under Article 63, third paragraph, and Article 68, shall form the subject of arrangements between the Powers concerned, at the close of hostilities.
        Article 68Any claim by a prisoner of war for compensation in respect of any injury or other disability arising out of work shall be referred to the Power on which he depends, through the Protecting Power. In accordance with Article 54, the Detaining Power will, in all cases, provide the prisoner of war concerned with a statement showing the nature of the injury or disability, the circumstances in which it arose and particulars of medical or hospital treatment given for it. This statement will be signed by a responsible officer of the Detaining Power and the medical particulars certified by a medical officer.
        Any claim by a prisoner of war for compensation in respect of personal effects, monies or valuables impounded by the Detaining Power under
        Article 18 and not forthcoming on his repatriation, or in respect of loss alleged to be due to the fault of the Detaining Power or any of its servants, shall likewise be referred to the Power on which he depends. Nevertheless, any such personal effects required for use by the prisoners of war whilst in captivity shall be replaced at the expense of the Detaining Power. The Detaining Power will, in all cases, provide the prisoner of war with a statement, signed by a responsible officer, showing all available information regarding the reasons why such effects, monies or valuables have not been restored to him. A copy of this statement will be forwarded to the Power on which he depends through the Central Prisoners of War Agency provided for in Article 123.SECTION V
        RELATIONS OF PRISONERS OF WAR WITH THE EXTERIOR
        Article 69Immediately upon prisoners of war falling into its power, the Detaining Power shall inform them and the Powers on which they depend, through the Protecting Power, of the measures taken to carry out the provisions of the present Section. They shall likewise inform the parties concerned of any subsequent modifications of such measures.
        Article 70Immediately upon capture, or not more than one week after arrival at a camp, even if it is a transit camp, likewise in case of sickness or transfer to hospital or another camp, every prisoner of war shall be enabled to write direct to his family, on the one hand, and to the Central Prisoners of War Agency provided for in Article 123, on the other hand, a card similar, if possible, to the model annexed to the present Convention, informing his relatives of his capture, address and state of health. The said cards shall be forwarded as rapidly as possible and may not be delayed in any manner.
        Article 71Prisoners of war shall be allowed to send and receive letters and cards. If the Detaining Power deems it necessary to limit the number of letters and cards sent by each prisoner of war, the said number shall not be less than two letters and four cards monthly, exclusive of the capture cards provided for in Article 70, and conforming as closely as possible to the models annexed to the present Convention. Further limitations may be imposed only if the Protecting Power is satisfied that it would be in the interests of the prisoners of war concerned to do so owing to difficulties of translation caused
        by the Detaining Power's inability to find sufficient qualified linguists to carry out the necessary censorship. If limitations must be placed on the correspondence addressed to prisoners of war, they may be ordered only by the Power on which the prisoners depend, possibly at the request of the Detaining Power. Such letters and cards must be conveyed by the most rapid method at the disposal of the Detaining Power; they may not be delayed or retained for disciplinary reasons.
        Prisoners of war who have been without news for a long period, or who are unable to receive news from their next of kin or to give them news by the ordinary postal route, as well as those who are at a great distance from their homes, shall be permitted to send telegrams, the fees being charged against the prisoners of war's accounts with the Detaining Power or paid in the currency at their disposal. They shall likewise benefit by-this measure in cases of urgency.
        As a general rule, the correspondence of prisoners of war shall be written in their native language. The Parties to the conflict may allow correspondence in other languages.
        Sacks containing prisoner of war mail must be securely sealed and labelled so as clearly to indicate their contents, and must be addressed to offices of destination.
        Article 72Prisoners of war shall be allowed to receive by post or by any other means individual parcels or collective shipments containing, in particular, foodstuffs, clothing, medical supplies and articles of a religious, educational or recreational character which may meet their needs, including books, devotional articles, scientific equipment, examination papers, musical instruments, sports outfits and materials allowing prisoners of war to pursue their studies or their cultural activities.
        Such shipments shall in no way free the Detaining Power from the obligations imposed upon it by virtue of the present Convention.
        The only limits which may be placed on these shipments shall be those proposed by the Protecting Power in the interest of the prisoners themselves, or by the International Committee of the Red Cross or any other organization giving assistance to the prisoners, in respect of their own shipments only, on account of exceptional strain on transport or communications.
        The conditions for the sending of individual parcels and collective relief shall, if necessary, be the subject of special agreements between the Powers concerned, which may in no case delay the receipt by the prisoners of relief supplies. Books may not be included in parcels of clothing and foodstuffs. Medical supplies shall, as a rule, be sent in collective parcels.
        Article 73In the absence of special agreements between the Powers concerned on the conditions for the receipt and distribution of collective relief shipments, the rules and regulations concerning collective shipments, which are annexed to the present Convention, shall be applied.
        The special agreements referred to above shall in no case restrict the right of prisoners' representatives to take possession of collective relief shipments intended for prisoners of war, to proceed to their distribution or to dispose of them in the interest of the prisoners.
        Nor shall such agreements restrict the right of representatives of the Protecting Power, the International Committee of the Red Cross or any other organization giving assistance to prisoners of war and responsible for the forwarding of collective shipments, to supervise their distribution to the recipients.
        Article 74All relief shipments for prisoners of war shall be exempt from import, customs and other dues.
        Correspondence, relief shipments and authorized remittances of money addressed to prisoners of war or despatched by them through the post office, either direct or through the Information Bureaux provided for in Article 122 and the Central Prisoners of War Agency provided for in Article 123, shall be exempt from any postal dues, both in the countries of origin and destination, and in intermediate countries.
        If relief shipments intended for prisoners of war cannot be sent through the post office by reason of weight or for any other cause, the cost of transportation shall be borne by the Detaining Power in all the territories under its control. The other Powers party to the Convention shall bear the cost of transport in their respective territories.
        In the absence of special agreements between the Parties concerned, the costs connected with transport of such shipments, other than costs covered by the above exemption, shall be charged to the senders.
        The High Contracting Parties shall endeavour to reduce, so far as possible, the rates charged for telegrams sent by prisoners of war, or addressed to them.
        Article 75Should military operations prevent the Powers concerned from fulfilling their obligation to assure the transport of the shipments referred to in Articles 70, 71, 72 and 77, the Protecting Powers concerned, the Inter
        national Committee of the Red Cross or any other organization duly approved by the Parties to the conflict may undertake to ensure the conveyance of such shipments by suitable means (railway wagons, motor vehicles, vessels or aircraft, etc.). For this purpose, the High Contracting Parties shall endeavour to supply them with such transport and to allow its circulation, especially by granting the necessary safe-conducts.
        Such transport may also be used to convey:.
        (a) Correspondence, lists and reports exchanged between the Central Information Agency referred to in Article 123 and the National Bureaux referred to in Article 122;
        (b) Correspondence and reports relating to prisoners of war which the Protecting Powers, the International Committee of the Red Cross or any other body assisting the prisoners, exchange either with their own delegates or with the Parties to the conflict.
        These provisions in no way detract from the right of any Party to the conflict to arrange other means of transport, if it should so prefer, nor preclude the granting of safe-conducts, under mutually agreed conditions, to such means of transport.
        In the absence of special agreements, the costs occasioned by the use of such means of transport shall be borne proportionally by the Parties to the conflict whose nationals are benefited thereby.
        Article 76The censoring of correspondence addressed to prisoners of war or despatched by them shall be done as quickly as possible. Mail shall be censored only by the despatching State and the receiving State, and once only by each.
        The examination of consignments intended for prisoners of war shall not be carried out under conditions that will expose the goods contained in them to deterioration; except in the case of written or printed matter , it shall be done in the presence of the addressee, or of a fellow-prisoner duly delegated by him. The delivery to prisoners of individual or collective consignments shall not be delayed under the pretext of difficulties of censorship.
        Any prohibition of correspondence ordered by Parties to the conflict, either for military or political reasons, shall be only temporary and its duration shall be as short as possible.
        Article 77The Detaining Powers shall provide all facilities for the transmission, through the Protecting Power or the Central Prisoners of War Agency provided for in Article 123, of instruments, papers or documents intended for prisoners of war or despatched by them, especially powers of attorney and wills.
        In all cases they shall facilitate the preparation and execution of such documents on behalf of prisoners of war; in particular, they shall allow them to consult a lawyer and shall take what measures are necessary for the authentication of their signatures.
        SECTION VI
        RELATIONS BETWEEN PRISONERS OF WAR AND THE AUTHORITIES
        Chapter ICOMPLAINTS OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        RESPECTING THE CONDITIONS OF CAPTIVITY
        Article 78Prisoners of war shall have the right to make known to the military authorities in whose power they are, their requests regarding the conditions of captivity to which they are subjected.
        They shall also have the unrestricted right to apply to the representatives of the Protecting Powers either through their prisoners' representative or, if they consider it necessary, direct, in order to draw their attention to any points on which they may have complaints to make regarding their conditions of captivity.
        These requests and complaints shall not be limited nor considered to be a part of the correspondence quota referred to in Article 71. They must be transmitted immediately. Even if they are recognized to be unfounded, they may not give rise to any punishment.
        Prisoners' representatives may send periodic reports on the situation in the camps and the needs of the prisoners of war to the representatives of the Protecting Powers.
        Chapter IIPRISONER OF WAR REPRESENTATIVES
        Article 79In all places where there are prisoners of war, except in those where there are officers, the prisoners shall freely elect by secret ballot, every six months, and also in case of vacancies, prisoners' representatives entrusted with representing them before the military authorities, the Protecting Powers, the International Committee of the Red Cross and any other organization which may assist them. These prisoners' representatives shall be eligible for re-election.
        In camps for officers and persons of equivalent status or in mixed camps, the senior officer among the prisoners of war shall be recognized as the camp prisoners' representative. In camps for officers, he shall be assisted by one or more advisers chosen by the officers; in mixed camps, his assistants shall be chosen from among the prisoners of war who are not officers and shall be elected by them.
        Officer prisoners of war of the same nationality shall be stationed in labour camps for prisoners of war, for the purpose of carrying out the camp administration duties for which the prisoners of war are responsible. These officers may be elected as prisoners' representatives under the first paragraph of this Article. In such a case the assistants to the prisoners' representatives shall be chosen from among those prisoners of war who are not officers.
        Every representative elected must be approved by the Detaining Power before he has the right to commence his duties. Where the Detaining Power refuses to approve a prisoner of war elected by his fellow prisoners of war, it must inform the Protecting Power of the reason for such refusal.
        In all cases the prisoners' representative must have the same nationality, language and customs as the prisoners of war whom he represents. Thus, prisoners of war distributed in different sections of a camp, according to their nationality, language or customs, shall have for each section their own prisoners' representative, in accordance with the foregoing paragraphs.
        Article 80Prisoners' representatives shall further the physical, spiritual and intellectual well-being of prisoners of war.
        In particular, where the prisoners decide to organize amongst themselves a system of mutual assistance, this organization will be within the
        province of the prisoners' representative, in addition to the special duties entrusted to him by other provisions of the present Convention.
        Prisoners' representatives shall not be held responsible, simply by reason of their duties, for any offences committed by prisoners of war.
        Article 81Prisoners' representatives shall not be required to perform any other work, if the accomplishment of their duties is thereby made more difficult.
        Prisoners' representatives may appoint from amongst the prisoners such assistants as they may require. All material facilities shall be granted them, particularly a certain freedom of movement necessary for the accomplishment of their duties (inspection of labour detachments, receipt of supplies, etc.).
        Prisoners' representatives shall be permitted to visit premises where prisoners of war are detained, and every prisoner of war shall have the right to consult freely his prisoners' representative.
        All facilities shall likewise be accorded to the prisoners' representatives for communication by post and telegraph with the detaining authorities, the Protecting Powers, the International Committee of the Red Cross and their delegates, the Mixed Medical Commissions and with the bodies which give assistance to prisoners of war. Prisoners' representatives of labour detachments shall enjoy the same facilities for communication with the prisoners' representatives of the principal camp. Such communications shall not be restricted, nor considered as forming a part of the quota mentioned in Article 7 1.
        Prisoners' representatives who are transferred shall be allowed a reasonable time to acquaint their successors with current affairs.
        In case of dismissal, the reasons therefor shall be communicated to the Protecting Power.
        Chapter IIIPENAL AND DISCIPLINARY SANCTIONS
        I. General provisions
        Article 82A prisoner of war shall be subject to the laws, regulations and orders in force in the armed forces of the Detaining Power; the Detaining Power shall
        be justified in taking judicial or disciplinary measures in respect of any offence committed by a prisoner of war against such laws, regulations or orders. However, no proceedings or punishments contrary to the provisions of this Chapter shall be allowed.
        If any law, regulation or order of the Detaining Power shall declare acts committed by a prisoner of war to be punishable, whereas the same acts would not be punishable if committed by a member of the forces of the Detaining Power, such acts shall entail disciplinary punishments only.
        Article 83In deciding whether proceedings in respect of an offence alleged to have been committed by a prisoner of war shall be judicial or disciplinary, the Detaining Power shall ensure that the competent authorities exercise the greatest leniency and adopt, wherever possible, disciplinary rather than judicial measures.
        Article 84A prisoner of war shall be tried only by a military court, unless the existing laws of the Detaining Power expressly permit the civil courts to try a member of the armed forces of the Detaining Power in respect of the particular offence alleged to have been committed by the prisoner of war.
        In no circumstances whatever shall a prisoner of war be tried by a court of any kind which does not offer the essential guarantees of independence and impartiality as generally recognized, and, in particular, the procedure of which does not afford the accused the rights and means of defence provided for in Article 105.
        Article 85Prisoners of war prosecuted under the laws of the Detaining Power for acts committed prior to capture shall retain, even if convicted, the benefits of the present Convention.
        Article 86No prisoner of war may be punished more than once for the same act, or on the same charge.
        Article 87Prisoners of war may not be sentenced by the military authorities and courts of the Detaining Power to any penalties except those provided for in
        respect of members of the armed forces of the said Power who have committed the same acts.
        When fixing the penalty, the courts or authorities of the Detaining Power shall take into consideration, to the widest extent possible, the fact that the accused, not being a national of the Detaining Power, is not bound to it by any duty of allegiance, and that he is in its power as the result of circumstances independent of his own will. The said courts or authorities shall be at liberty to reduce the penalty provided for the violation of which the prisoner of war is accused, and shall therefore not be bound to apply the minimum penalty prescribed.
        Collective punishment for individual acts, corporal punishments, imprisonment in premises without daylight and, in general, any form of torture or cruelty, are forbidden.
        No prisoner of war may be deprived of his rank by the Detaining Power, or prevented from wearing his badges.
        Article 88Officers, non-commissioned officers and men who are prisoners of war undergoing a disciplinary or judicial punishment, shall not be subjected to more severe treatment than that applied in respect of the same punishment to members of the armed forces of the Detaining Power of equivalent rank.
        A woman prisoner of war shall not be awarded or sentenced to a punishment more severe, or treated whilst undergoing punishment more severely, than a woman member of the armed forces of the Detaining Power dealt with for a similar offence.
        In no case may a woman prisoner of war be awarded or sentenced to a punishment more severe, or treated whilst undergoing punishment more severely, than a male member of the armed forces of the Detaining Power dealt with for a similar offence.
        Prisoners of war who have served disciplinary or judicial sentences may not be treated differently from other prisoners of war.
        II. Disciplinary sanctions
        Article 89The disciplinary punishments applicable to prisoners of war are the following:
        1. A fine which shall not exceed 50 per cent of the advances of pay and working pay which the prisoner of war would otherwise receive under
        the provisions of Articles 60 and 62 during a period of not more than thirty days.
        2. Discontinuance of privileges granted over and above the treatment provided for by the present Convention.
        3. Fatigue duties not exceeding two hours daily.
        4. Confinement.
        The punishment referred to under (3) shall not be applied to officers.
        In no case shall disciplinary punishments be inhuman, brutal or dangerous to the health of prisoners of war.
        Article 90The duration of any single punishment shall in no case exceed thirty days. Any period of confinement awaiting the hearing of a disciplinary offence or the award of disciplinary punishment shall be deducted from an award pronounced against a prisoner of war.
        The maximum of thirty days provided above may not be exceeded, even if the prisoner of war is answerable for several acts at the same time when he is awarded punishment, whether such acts are related or not.
        The period between the pronouncing of an award of disciplinary punishment and its execution shall not exceed one month.
        When a prisoner of war is awarded a further disciplinary punishment, a period of at least three days shall elapse between the execution of any two of the punishments, if the duration of one of these is ten days or more.
        Article 91The escape of a prisoner of war shall be deemed to have succeeded when:
        1. He has joined the armed forces of the Power on which he depends, or those of an allied Power;
        2. He has left the territory under the control of the Detaining Power, or of an ally of the said Power;
        3. He has joined a ship flying the flag of the Power on which he depends, or of an allied Power, in the territorial waters of the Detaining Power, the said ship not being under the control of the last named Power.
        Prisoners of war who have made good their escape in the sense of this Article and who are recaptured, shall not be liable to any punishment in respect of their previous escape.
        Article 92A prisoner of war who attempts to escape and is recaptured before having made good his escape in the sense of Article 91 shall be liable only to a disciplinary punishment in respect of this act, even if it is a repeated offence.
        A prisoner of war who is recaptured shall be handed over without delay to the competent military authority.
        Article 88, fourth paragraph, notwithstanding, prisoners of war punished as a result of an unsuccessful escape may be subjected to special surveillance. Such surveillance must not affect the state of their health, must be undergone in a prisoner of war camp, and must not entail the suppression of any of the safeguards granted them by the present Convention.Article 93Escape or attempt to escape, even if it is a repeated offence, shall not be deemed an aggravating circumstance if the prisoner of war is subjected to trial by judicial proceedings in respect of an offence committed during his escape or attempt to escape.
        In conformity with the principle stated in Article 83, offences committed by prisoners of war with the sole intention of facilitating their escape and which do not entail any violence against life or limb, such as offences against public property, theft without intention of self-enrichment, the drawing up or use of false papers, the wearing of civilian clothing, shall occasion disciplinary punishment only.
        Prisoners of war who aid or abet an escape or an attempt to escape shall be liable on this count to disciplinary punishment only.
        Article 94If an escaped prisoner of war is recaptured, the Power on which he depends shall be notified thereof in the manner defined in Article 122, provided notification of his escape has been made.
        Article 95A prisoner of war accused of an offence against discipline shall not be kept in confinement pending the hearing unless a member of the armed forces of the Detaining Power would be so kept if he were accused of a similar offence , or if it is essential in the interests of camp order and discipline .
        Any period spent by a prisoner of war in confinement awaiting the disposal of an offence against discipline shall be reduced to an absolute minimum and shall not exceed fourteen days.
        The provisions of Articles 97 and 98 of this Chapter shall apply to prisoners of war who are in confinement awaiting the disposal of offences against discipline.
        Article 96Acts which constitute offences against discipline shall be investigated immediately.
        Without prejudice to the competence of courts and superior military authorities, disciplinary punishment may be ordered only by an officer having disciplinary powers in his capacity as camp commander, or by a responsible officer who replaces him or to whom he has delegated his disciplinary powers.
        In no case may such powers be delegated to a prisoner of war or be exercised by a prisoner of war.
        Before any disciplinary award is pronounced, the accused shall be given precise information regarding the offences of which he is accused, and given an opportunity of explaining his conduct and of defending himself. He shall be permitted, in particular, to call witnesses and to have recourse, if necessary, to the services of a qualified interpreter. The decision shall be announced to the accused prisoner of war and to the prisoners' representative.
        A record of disciplinary punishments shall be maintained by the camp commander and shall be open to inspection by representatives of the Protecting Power.
        Article 97Prisoners of war shall not in any case be transferred to penitentiary establishments (prisons, penitentiaries, convict prisons, etc.) to undergo disciplinary punishment therein.
        All premises in which disciplinary punishments are undergone shall conform to the sanitary requirements set forth in Article 25. A prisoner of war undergoing punishment shall be enabled to keep himself in a state of cleanliness, in conformity with Article 29.
        Officers and persons of equivalent status shall not be lodged in the same quarters as non-commissioned officers or men.
        Women prisoners of war undergoing disciplinary punishment shall be confined in separate quarters from male prisoners of war and shall be under the immediate supervision of women.
        Article 98A prisoner of war undergoing confinement as a disciplinary punishment, shall continue to enjoy the benefits of the provisions of this Convention except in so far as these are necessarily rendered inapplicable by the mere fact that he is confined. In no case may he be deprived of the benefits of the provisions of Articles 78 and 126.
        A prisoner of war awarded disciplinary punishment may not be deprived of the prerogatives attached to his rank.
        Prisoners of war awarded disciplinary punishment shall be allowed to exercise and to stay in the open air at least two hours daily.
        They shall be allowed, on their request, to be present at the daily medical inspections. They shall receive the attention which their state of health requires and, if necessary, shall be removed to the camp infirmary or to a hospital.
        They shall have permission to read and write, likewise to send and receive letters. Parcels and remittances of money, however, may be withheld from them until the completion of the punishment; they shall meanwhile be entrusted to the prisoners' representative, who will hand over to the infirmary the perishable goods contained in such parcels.
        m. Judicial proceedings
        Article 99No prisoner of war may be tried or sentenced for an act which is not forbidden by the law of the Detaining Power or by international law, in force at the time the said act was committed.
        No moral or physical coercion may be exerted on a prisoner of war in order to induce him to admit himself guilty of the act of which he is accused.
        No prisoner of war may be convicted without having had an opportunity to present his defence and the assistance of a qualified advocate or counsel.
        Article 100Prisoners of war and the Protecting Powers shall be informed as soon as possible of the offences which are punishable by the death sentence under the laws of the Detaining Power.
        Other offences shall not thereafter be made punishable by the death penalty without the concurrence of the Power upon which the prisoners of war depend.
        The death sentence cannot be pronounced on a prisoner of war unless the attention of the court has, in accordance with Article 87, second paragraph, been particularly called to the fact that since the accused is not a national of the Detaining Power, he is not bound to it by any duty of allegiance, and that he is in its power as the result of circumstances independent of his own will.
        Article 101If the death penalty is pronounced on a prisoner of war, the sentence shall not be executed before the expiration of a period of at least six months from the date when the Protecting Power receives, at an indicated address, the detailed communication provided for in Article 107.
        Article 102A prisoner of war can be validly sentenced only if the sentence has been pronounced by the same courts according to the same procedure as in the case of members of the armed forces of the Detaining Power, and if, furthermore, the provisions of the present Chapter have been observed.
        Article 103Judicial investigations relating to a prisoner of war shall be conducted as rapidly as circumstances permit and so that his trial shall take place as soon as possible. A prisoner of war shall not be confined while awaiting trial unless a member of the armed forces of the Detaining Power would be so confined if he were accused of a similar offence, or if it is essential to do so in the interests of national security. In no circumstances shall this confinement exceed three months.
        Any period spent by a prisoner of war in confinement awaiting trial shall be deducted from any sentence of imprisonment passed upon him and taken into account in fixing any penalty.
        The provisions of Articles 97 and 98 of this Chapter shall apply to a prisoner of war whilst in confinement awaiting trial.
        Article 104In any case in which the Detaining Power has decided to institute judicial proceedings against a prisoner of war, it shall notify the Protecting Power as soon as possible and at least three weeks before the opening of the trial. This period of three weeks shall run as from the day on which such notification reaches the Protecting Power at the address previously indicated by the latter to the Detaining Power.
        The said notification shall contain the following information:
        1. Surname and first names of the prisoner of war, his rank, his army, regimental, personal or serial number, his date of birth, and his profession or trade, if any;
        2. Place of internment or confinement;
        3. Specification of the charge or charges on which the prisoner of war is to be arraigned, giving the legal provisions applicable;
        4 . Designation of the court which will try the case, like wise the date and place fixed for the opening of the trial.
        The same communication shall be made by the Detaining Power to the prisoners' representative.
        If no evidence is submitted, at the opening of a trial, that the notification referred to above was received by the Protecting Power, by the prisoner of war and by the prisoners' representative concerned, at least three weeks before the opening of the trial, then the latter cannot take place and must be adjourned.
        Article 105The prisoner of war shall be entitled to assistance by one of his prisoner comrades, to defence by a qualified advocate or counsel of his own choice, to the calling of witnesses and, if he deems necessary, to the services of a competent interpreter. He shall be advised of these rights by the Detaining Power in due time before the trial.
        Failing a choice by the prisoner of war, the Protecting Power shall find him an advocate or counsel, and shall have at least one week at its disposal for the purpose. The Detaining Power shall deliver to the said Power, on request, a list of persons qualified to present the defence. Failing a choice of an advocate or counsel by the prisoner of war or the Protecting Power, the Detaining Power shall appoint a competent advocate or counsel to conduct the defence.
        The advocate or counsel conducting the defence on behalf of the prisoner of war shall have at his disposal a period of two weeks at least before the opening of the trial, as well as the necessary facilities to prepare the defence of the accused. He may, in particular, freely visit the accused and interview him in private. He may also confer with any witnesses for the defence, including prisoners of war. He shall have the benefit of these facilities until the term of appeal or petition has expired.
        Particulars of the charge or charges on which the prisoner of war is to be arraigned, as well as the documents which are generally communicated to the accused by virtue of the laws in force in the armed forces of the Detaining Power, shall be communicated to the accused prisoner of war in a language which he understands, and in good time before the opening of the trial. The same communication in the same circumstances shall be made to the advocate or counsel conducting the defence on behalf of the prisoner of war.
        The representatives of the Protecting Power shall be entitled to attend the trial of the case, unless, exceptionally, this is held in camera in the interest of State security. In such a case the Detaining Power shall advise the Protecting Power accordingly.
        Article 106Every prisoner of war shall have, in the same manner as the members of the arrned forces of the Detaining Power, the right of appeal or petition from any sentence pronounced upon him, with a view to the quashing or revising of the sentence or the reopening of the trial. He shall be fully informed of his right to appeal or petition and of the time limit within which he may do so.
        Article 107Any judgment and sentence pronounced upon a prisoner of war shall be immediately reported to the Protecting Power in the form of a surnrnary communication, which shall also indicate whether he has the right of appeal with a view to the quashing of the sentence or the reopening of the trial. This comrnunication shall likewise be sent to the prisoners' representative concerned. It shall also be sent to the accused prisoner of war in a language he understands, if the sentence was not pronounced in his presence. The Detaining Power shall also immediately communicate to the Protecting Power the decision of the prisoner of war to use or to waive his right of appeal.
        Furthermore, if a prisoner of war is finally convicted or if a sentence pronounced on a prisoner of war in the first instance is a death sentence, the Detaining Power shall as soon as possible address to the Protecting Power a detailed communication containing:
        1. The precise wording of the finding and sentence;
        2. A summarized report of any preliminary investigation and of the trial, emphasizing in particular the elements of the prosecution and the defence;
        3. Notification, where applicable, of the establishment where the sentence will be served.
        The communications provided for in the foregoing subparagraphs shall be sent to the Protecting Power at the address previously made known to the Detaining Power. Article 108
        Sentences pronounced on prisoners of war after a conviction has become duly enforceable, shall be served in the same establishments and under the same conditions as in the case of members of the arrned forces of the Detaining Power. These conditions shall in all cases conform to the requirements of health and humanity.
        A woman prisoner of war on whom such a sentence has been pronounced shall be confined in separate quarters and shall be under the supervision of women.
        In any case, prisoners of war sentenced to a penalty depriving them of their liberty shall retain the benefit of the provisions of Articles 78 and 126 of the present Convention. Furthermore, they shall be entitled to receive and despatch correspondence, to receive at least one relief parcel monthly, to take regular exercise in the open air, to have the medical care required by their state of health, and the spiritual assistance they may desire. Penalties to which they may be subjected shall be in accordance with the provisions of Article 87, third paragraph.
        PART IVTERMINATION OF CAPTIVITY
        SECTION I
        DIRECT REPATRIATION AND ACCOMMODATION IN NEUTRAL COUNTRIES
        Article 109Subject to the provisions of the third paragraph of this Article, Parties to the conflict are bound to send back to their own country, regardless of number or rank, seriously wounded and seriously sick prisoners of war, after having cared for them until they are fit to travel, in accordance with the first paragraph of the following Article.
        Throughout the duration of hostilities, Parties to the conflict shall endeavour, with the cooperation of the neutral Powers concerned, to make arrangements for the accommodation in neutral countries of the sick and wounded prisoners of war referred to in the second paragraph of the following Article. They may, in addition, conclude agreements with a view to the direct repatriation or internment in a neutral country of able-bodied prisoners of war who have undergone a long period of captivity.
        No sick or injured prisoner of war who is eligible for repatriation under the first paragraph of this Article, may be repatriated against his will during hostilities.
        Article 110The following shall be repatriated direct:
        1. Incurably wounded and sick whose mental or physical fitness seems to have been gravely diminished.
        2. Wounded and sick who, according to medical opinion, are not likely to recover within one year, whose condition requires treatment and whose mental or physical fitness seems to have been gravely diminished.
        3. Wounded and sick who have recovered, but whose mental or physical fitness seems to have been gravely and pemmanently diminished.
        The following may be accommodated in a neutral country:
        1. Wounded and sick whose recovery may be expected within one year of the date of the wound or the beginning of the illness, if treatment in a neutral country might increase the prospects of a more certain and speedy recovery.
        2. Prisoners of war whose mental or physical health, according to medical opinion, is seriously threatened by continued captivity, but whose accommodation in a neutral country might remove such a threat.
        The conditions which prisoners of war accommodated in a neutral country must fulfil in order to permit their repatriation shall be fixed, as shall likewise their status, by agreement between the Powers concemed. In general, prisoners of war who have been accommodated in a neutral country, and who belong to the following categories, should be repatriated:
        1. Those whose state of health has deteriorated so as to fulfil the conditions laid down for direct repatriation;
        2. Those whose mental or physical powers remain, even after treatment, considerably impaired.
        If no special agreements are concluded between the Parties to the conflict concemed, to detemmine the cases of disablement or sickness entailing direct repatriation or accommodation in a neutral country, such cases shall be settled in accordance with the principles laid down in the Model Agreement conceming direct repatriation and accommodation in neutral countries of wounded and sick prisoners of war and in the Regulations conceming Mixed Medical Commissions annexed to the present Convention. Article 111
        The Detaining Power, the Power on which the prisoners of war depend, and a neutral Power agreed upon by these two Powers, shall endeavour to conclude agreements which will enable prisoners of war to be interned in the territory of the said neutral Power until the close of hostilities.
        Article 112Upon the outbreak of hostilities, Mixed Medical Commissions shall be appointed to examine sick and wounded prisoners of war, and to make all appropriate decisions regarding them. The appointment, duties and functioning of these Commissions shall be in conformity with the provisions of the Regulations annexed to the present Convention.
        However, prisoners of war who, in the opinion of the medical authorities of the Detaining Power, are manifestly seriously injured or seriously sick, may be repatriated without having to be examined by a Mixed Medical Commission.
        Article 113Besides those who are designated by the medical authorities of the Detaining Power, wounded or sick prisoners of war belonging to the categories listed below shall be entitled to present themselves for examination by the Mixed Medical Commissions provided for in the foregoing Article:
        1. Wounded and sick proposed by a physician or surgeon who is of the same nationality, or a national of a Party to the conflict allied with the Power on which the said prisoners depend, and who exercises his functions in the camp.
        2. Wounded and sick proposed by their prisoners' representative.
        3. Wounded and sick proposed by the Power on which they depend, or by an organization du ly recognized by the said Power and giv ing as s i stance to the prisoners.
        Prisoners of war who do not belong to one of the three foregoing categories may nevertheless present themselves for examination by Mixed Medical Commissions, but shall be examined only after those belonging to the said categories.
        The physician or surgeon of the same nationality as the prisoners who present themselves for examination by the Mixed Medical Commission, likewise the prisoners' representative of the said prisoners, shall have permission to be present at the examination.
        Article 114Prisoners of war who meet with accidents shall, unless the injury is self-inflicted, have the benefit of the provisions of this Convention as regards repatriation or accommodation in a neutral country.
        Articie 115
        No prisoner of war on whom a disciplinary punishment has been imposed and who is eligible for repatriati on or for accommodation in a ne utral country, may be kept back on the plea that he has not undergone his punishment.
        Prisoners of war detained in c on necti on with a j udicial prosec uti on or conviction and who are designated for repatriation or accommodation in a neutral country, may benefit by such measures before the end of the proceedings or the completion of the punishment, if the Detaining Power consents.
        Parties to the conflict shall communicated to each other the names of those who will be detained until the end of the proceedings or the completion of the punishment.
        Article 116The costs of repatriating prisoners of war or of transporting them to a neutral country shall be borne, from the frontiers of the Detaining Power, by the Power on which the said prisoners depend.
        Articie 117
        No repatriated person may be employed on active military service.
        SECTION 11
        RELEAS E AND REPATRIATION OF PR I S ONER S OF W AR
        AT THE CLOSE OF HOSTILITIES
        Article 118Prisoners of war shall be released and repatriated without delay after the cessation of active hostilities.
        In the absence of stipulations to the above effect in any agreement concluded between the Parties to the conflict with a view to the cessation of hostilities, or failing any such agreement, each of the Detaining Powers shall itself establish and execute without delay a plan of repatriation in conformity with the principle laid down in the foregoing paragraph.
        In either case, the measures adopted shall be brought to the knowledge of the prisoners of war.
        The costs of repatriation of prisoners of war shall in all cases be equitably apportioned between the Detaining Power and the Power on which the prisoners depend. This apportionment shall be carried out on the following basis:
        (a) If the two Powers are contigu ou s , the Power on wh ich the prisoners of war depend shall bear the costs of repatriation from the frontiers of the Detaining Power.
        (b) If the two Powers are not contiguous, the Detaining Power shall bear the costs of transport of prisoners of war over its own territory as far as its frontier or its port of embarkation nearest to the territory of the Power on which the prisoners of war depend. The Parties concerned shall agree between themselves as to the equitable apportionment of the remaining costs of the repatriation. The conclusion of this agreement shall in no circumstances justify any delay in the repatriation of the prisoners of war.
        Article 119Repatriation shall be effected in conditions similar to those laid down in Articles 46 to 48 inclusive of the present Convention for the transfer of prisoners of war, having regard to the provisions of Article 118 and to those of the following paragraphs.
        On repatriation, any articles of value impounded from prisoners of war under Article 18, and any foreign currency which has not been converted into the currency of the Detaining Power, shall be restored to them. Articles of value and foreign currency which, for any reason whatever, are not restored to prisoners of war on repatriation, shall be despatched to the Information Bureau set up under Article 122.
        Prisoners of war shall be allowed to take with them their personal effects, and any correspondence and parcels which have arrived for them. The weight of such baggage may be limited, if the conditions of repatriation so require, to what each prisoner can reasonably carry. Each prisoner shall in all cases be authorized to carry at least twenty-five kilograms.
        The other personal effects of the repatriated prisoner shall be left in the charge of the Detaining Power which shall have them forwarded to him as soon as it has concluded an agreement to this effect, regulating the conditions of transport and the payment of the costs involved, with the Power on which the prisoner depends.
        Prisoners of war against whom criminal proceedings for an indictable offence are pending may be detained until the end of such proceedings, and, if necessary, until the completion of the punishment. The same shall apply to, prisoners of war already convicted for an indictable offence.
        Parties to the conflict shall communicate to each other the names of any prisoners of war who are detained until the end of the proceedings or until punishment has been completed.
        By agreement between the Parties to the conflict, commissions shall be established for the purpose of searching for dispersed prisoners of war and
        of assuring their repatriation with the least possible delay.
        SECTION 111
        DEATH OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 120Wills of prisoners of war shall be drawn up so as to satisfy the conditions of validity required by the legislation of their country of origin, which will take steps to inform the Detaining Power of its requirements in this respect. At the request of the prisoner of war and, in all cases, after death, the will shall be transmitted without delay to the Protecting Power; a certified copy shall be sent to the Central Agency.
        Death certificates in the form annexed to the present Convention, or lists certified by a responsible officer, of all persons who die as prisoners of war shall be forwarded as rapidly as possible to the Prisoner of War Information Bureau established in accordance with Article 122. The death certificates or certified lists shall show particulars of identity as set out in the third paragraph of Article 17, and also the date and place of death, the cause of death, the date and place of burial and all particulars necessary to identify the graves.
        The burial or cremation of a prisoner of war shall be preceded by a medical examination of the body with a view to confirming death and enabling a report to be made and, where necessary, establishing identity.
        The detaining authorities shall ensure that prisoners of war who have died in captivity are honourably buried, if possible according to the rites of the religion to which they belonged, and that their graves are respected, suitably maintained and marked so as to be found at any time. Wherever possible, deceased prisoners of war who depended on the same Power shall be interred in the same place.
        Deceased prisoners of war shall be buried in individual graves unless unavoidable circumstances require the use of collective graves. Bodies may be cremated only for imperative reasons of hygiene, on account of the religion of the deceased or in accordance with his express wish to this effect. In
        case of cremation, the fact shall be stated and the reasons given in the death certificate of the deceased.
        In order that graves may always be found, all particulars of burials and graves shall be recorded with a Graves Registration Service established by the Detaining Power. Lists of graves and particulars of the prisoners of war interred in cemeteries and elsewhere shall be transmitted to the Power on which such prisoners of war depended. Responsibility for the care of these graves and for records of any subsequent moves of the bodies shall rest on the Power controlling the territory, if a Party to the present Convention. These provisions shall also apply to the ashes, which shall be kept by the Graves Registration Service until proper disposal thereof in accordance with the wishes of the home country.
        Article 121Every death or serious injury of a prisoner of war caused or suspected to have been caused by a sentry, another prisoner of war, or any other person, as well as any death the cause of which is unknown, shall be immediately followed by an official enquiry by the Detaining Power.
        A communication on this subject shall be sent immediately to the Protecting Power. Statements shall be taken from witnesses, especially from those who are prisoners of war, and a report including such statements shall be forwarded to the Protecting Power.
        If the enquiry indicates the guilt of one or more persons, the Detaining Power shall take all measures for the prosecution of the person or persons responsible.
        PART VINFORMATION BUREAUX AND RELIEF SOCIETIES
        FOR PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 122Upon the outbreak of a conflict and in all cases of occupation, each of the Parties to the conflict shall institute an official Information Bureau for prisoners of war who are in its power. Neutral or non-belligerent Powers who may have received within their territory persons belonging to one of the categories referred to in Article 4, shall take the same action with respect to such persons. The Power concerned shall ensure that the Prisoners of War Information Bureau is provided with the necessary accommodation, equipment and staff to ensure its efficient working. It shall be at liberty to employ prisoners of war in such a Bureau under the conditions laid down in the Section of the present Convention dealing with work by prisoners of war.
        Within the shortest possible period, each of the Parties to the conflict shall give its Bureau the information referred to in the fourth, fifth and sixth paragraphs of this Article regarding any enemy person belonging to one of the categories referred to in Article 4, who has fallen into its power. Neutral or non-belligerent Powers shall take the same action with regard to persons belonging to such categories whom they have received within their territory.
        The Bureau shall immediately forward such information by the most rapid means to the Powers concemed, through the intermediary of the Protecting Powers and likewise of the Central Agency provided for in Article 123.
        This information shall make it possible quickly to advise the next of kin concerned. Subject to the provisions of Article 17, the information shall include, in so far as available to the Information Bureau, in respect of each prisoner of war, his surname, first names, rank, army, regimental, personal or serial number, place and full date of birth, indication of the Power on which he depends, first name of the father and maiden name of the mother, name and address of the person to be informed and the address to which correspondence for the prisoner may be sent.
        The Information Bureau shall receive from the various departments concerned inforrnation regarding transfers, releases, repatriations, escapes, admissions to hospital, and deaths, and shall transmit such information in the manner described in the third paragraph above.
        Likewise, information regarding the state of health of prisoners of war who are seriously ill or seriously wounded shall be supplied regularly, every week if possible.
        The Information Bureau shall also be responsible for replying to all enquiries sent to it concerning prisoners of war, including those who have died in captivity; it will make any enquiries necessary to obtain the information which is asked for if this is not in its possession.
        All written communications made by the Bureau shall be authenticated by a signature or a seal.
        The Information Bureau shall furthermore be charged with collecting all personal valuables, including sums in currencies other than that of the Detaining Power and documents of importance to the next of kin, left by prisoners of war who have been repatriated or released, or who have escaped or died, and shall forward the said valuables to the Powers concerned. Such articles shall be sent by the Bureau in sealed packets which shall be accompanied by statements giving clear and full particulars of the identity of the person to whom the articles of the parcel. Other personal effects of such prisoners of war shall be transmitted under arrangements agreed upon between the Parties to the conflict concerned.
        Article 123A Central Prisoners of War Information Agency shall be created in a neutral country. The International Committee of the Red Cross shall, if it deems necessary, propose to the Powers concerned the organization of such an Agency.
        The function of the Agency shall be to collect all the information it may obtain through official or private channels respecting prisoners of war, and to transmit it as rapidly as possible to the country of origin of the prisoners of war or to the Power on which they depend. It shall receive from the Parties to the conflict all facilities for effecting such transmissions.
        The High Contracting Parties, and in particular those whose nationals benefit by the services of the Central Agency, are requested to give the said Agency the financial aid it may require.
        The foregoing provisions shall in no way be interpreted as restricting the humanitarian activities of the International Committee of the Red Cross, or of the relief Societies provided for in Article 125.
        Article 124The national Information Bureaux and the Central Information Agency shall enjoy free postage for mail, likewise all the exemptions provided for in Article 74, and further, so far as possible, exemption from telegraphic charges or, at least, greatly reduced rates.
        Article 125Subject to the measures which the Detaining Powers may consider essential to ensure their security or to meet any other reasonable need, the representatives of religious organizations, relief societies, or any other organization assisting prisoners of war, shall receive from the said Powers, for themselves and their duly accredited agents, all necessary facilities for visiting the prisoners, distributing relief supplies and material, from any source, intended for religious, educational or recreative purposes, and for assisting them in organizing their leisure time within the camps. Such societies or organizations may be constituted in the territory of the Detaining Power or in any other country, or they may have an international character.
        The Detaining Power may limit the number of societies and organizations whose delegates are allowed to carry out their activities in its territory and under its supervision, on condition, however, that such limitation shall not hinder the effective operation of adequate relief to all prisoners of war.
        The special position of the International Committee of the Red Cross in this field shall be recognized and respected at all times.
        As soon as relief supplies or material intended for the above mentioned purposes are handed over to prisoners of war, or very shortly afterwards, receipts for each consignment, signed by the prisoners' representative, shall be forwarded to the relief society or organization making the shipment. At the same time, receipts for these consignments shall be supplied by the administrative authorities responsible for guarding the prisoners.
        PART VIEXECUTION OF THE CONVENTION
        SECTION I
        GENERAL PROVISIONS
        Article 126Representatives or delegates of the Protecting Powers shall have permission to go to all places where prisoners of war may be, particularly to places of internment, imprisonment and labour, and shall have access to all premises occupied by prisoners of war; they shall also be allowed to go to the places of departure, passage and arrival of prisoners who are being transferred. They shall be able to interview the prisoners, and in particular the prisoners' representatives, without witnesses, either personally or through an interpreter.
        Representatives and delegates of the Protecting Powers shall have full liberty to select the places they wish to visit. The duration and frequency of these visits shall not be restricted. Visits may not be prohibited except for reasons of imperative military necessity, and then only as an exceptional and temporary measure.
        The Detaining Power and the Power on which the said prisoners of war depend may agree, if necessary, that compatriots of these prisoners of war be permitted to participate in the visits.
        The delegates of the International Committee of the Red Cross shall enjoy the same prerogatives. The appointment of such delegates shall be submitted to the approval of the Power detaining the prisoners of war to be visited.
        Article 127The High Contracting Parties undertake, in time of peace as in time of war, to disseminate the text of the present Convention as widely as possible in their respective countries, and, in particular, to include the study thereof in their programmes of military and, if possible, civil instruction, so that the principles thereof may become known to all their armed forces and to the entire population.
        Any military or other authorities, who in time of war assume responsibilities in respect of prisoners of war, must possess the text of the Convention and be specially instructed as to its provisions.
        Article 128The High Contracting Parties shall communicate to one another through the Swiss Federal Council and, during hostilities, through the Protecting Powers, the official translations of the present Convention, as well as the laws and regulations which they may adopt to ensure the application thereof.
        Article 129The High Contracting Parties undertake to enact any legislation necessary to provide effective penal sanctions for persons committing, or ordering to be committed, any of the grave breaches of the present Convention defined in the following Article.
        Each High Contracting Party shall be under the obligation to search for persons alleged to have committed, or to have ordered to be committed, such grave breaches, and shall bring such persons, regardless of their nationality, before its own courts. It may also, if it prefers, and in accordance with the provisions of its own legislation, hand such persons over for trial to another High Contracting Party concerned, provided such High Contracting Party has made out a prima facie case.
        Each High Contracting Party shall take measures necessary for the suppression of all acts contrary to the provisions of the present Convention other than the grave breaches defined in the following Article.
        In all circumstances, the accused persons shall benefit by safeguards of proper trial and defence, which shall not be less favourable than those provided by Article 105 and those following of the present Convention.
        Article 130Grave breaches to which the preceding Article relates shall be those involving any of the following acts, if committed against persons or property protected by the Convention: wilful killing, torture or inhuman treatment, including biological experiments, wilfully causing great suffering or serious injury to body or health, compelling a prisoner of war to serve in the forces of the hostile Power, or wilfully depriving a prisoner of war of the rights of fair and regular trial prescribed in this Convention.
        Article 131No High Contracting Party shall be allowed to absolve itself or any other High Contracting Party of any liability incurred by itself or by another High Contracting Party in respect of breaches referred to in the preceding Article.
        Article 132At the request of a Party to the conflict, an enquiry shall be instituted, in a manner to be decided between the interested Parties, concerning any alleged violation of the Convention.
        If agreement has not been reached concerning the procedure for the enquiry, the Parties should agree on the choice of an umpire who will decide upon the procedure to be followed.
        Once the violation has been established, the Parties to the conflict shall put an end to it and shall repress it with the least possible delay.
        SECTION 11
        FINAL PROVISIONS
        Article 133The present Convention is established in English and in French. Both texts are equally authentic. The Swiss Federal Council shall arrange for official translations of the Convention to be made in the Russian and Spanish languages.
        Article 134The present Convention replaces the Convention of 27 July 1929, in relations between the High Contracting Parties.
        Article 135In the relations between the Powers which are bound by The Hague Convention respecting the Laws and Customs of War on Land, whether that of July 29, 1899, or that of October 18, 1907, and which are parties to the present Convention, this last Convention shall be complementary to Chapter II of the Regulations annexed to the above-mentioned Conventions of The Hague.
        Article 136The present Convention, which bears the date of this day, is open to signature until February 12, 1950, in the name of the Powers represented at the Conference which opened at Geneva on April 21, 1949; furthermore, by Powers not represented at that Conference, but which are parties to the Convention of July 27, 1929.
        Article 137 The present Convention shall be ratified as soon as possible and the ratifications shall be deposited at Berne.A record shall be drawn up of the deposit of each instrument of ratification and certified copies of this record shall be transmitted by the Swiss Federal Council to all the Powers in whose name the Convention has been signed, or whose accession has been notified.
        Article 138The present Convention shall come into force six months after not less than two instruments of ratification have been deposited.
        Thereafter, it shall come into force for each High Contracting Party six months after the deposit of the instrument of ratification.
        Article 139From the date of its coming into force, it shall be open to any Power in whose name the present Convention has not been signed, to accede to this Convention.
        Article 140Accessions shall be notified in writing to the Swiss Federal Council, and shall take effect six months after the date on which they are received.
        The Swiss Federal Council shall communicate the accessions to all the Powers in whose name the Convention has been signed, or whose accession has been notified.
        Article 141The situations provided for in Articles 2 and 3 shall give immediate effect to ratifications deposited and accessions notified by the Parties to the conflict before or after the beginning of hostilities or occupation. The Swiss Federal Council shall communicate by the quickest method any ratifications or accessions received from Parties to the conflict.
        Article 142Each of the High Contracting Parties shall be at liberty to denounce the present Convention.
        The denunciation shall be notified in writing to the Swiss Federal Council, which shall transmit it to the Governments of all the High Contracting Parties.
        The denunciation shall take effect one year after the notification thereof has been made to the Swiss Federal Council. However, a denunciation of which notification has been made at a time when the denouncing Power is involved in a conflict shall not take effect until peace has been concluded, and until after operations connected with the release and repatriation of the persons protected by the present Convention have been terminated.
        The denunciation shall have effect only in respect of the denouncing Power. It shall in no way impair the obligations which the Parties to the conflict shall remain bound to fulfil by virtue of the principles of the law of nations, as they result from the usages established among civilized peoples, from the laws of humanity and the dictates of the public conscience.
        Article 143The Swiss Federal Council shall register the present Convention with the Secretariat of the United Nations. The Swiss Federal Council shall also inform the Secretariat of the United Nations of all ratifications, accessions and denunciations received by it with respect to the present Convention.
        IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, having deposited their respective full powers, have signed the present Convention.
        DONE at Geneva this twelfth day of August 1949, in the English and French languages. The original shall be deposited in the Archives of the Swiss Confederation. The Swiss Federal Council shall transmit certified copies thereof to each of the signatory and acceding States.
        Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War, 75 U.N.T.S. 135, entered into force Oct. 21, 1950.
        Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War, 75 U.N.T.S. 135, entered into force Oct. 21, 1950.PART IGENERAL PROVISIONS
        Article 1The High Contracting Parties undertake to respect and to ensure respect for the present Convention in all circumstances.
        Article 2In addition to the provisions which shall be implemented in peace time, the present Convention shall apply to all cases of declared war or of any other armed conflict which may arise between two or more of the High Contracting Parties, even if the state of war is not recognized by one of them.
        The Convention shall also apply to all cases of partial or total occupation of the territory of a High Contracting Party, even if the said occupation meets with no armed resistance.
        Although one of the Powers in conflict may not be a party to the present Convention, the Powers who are parties thereto shall remain bound by it in their mutual relations. They shall furthermore be bound by the Convention in relation to the said Power, if the latter accepts and applies the provisions thereof.
        Article 3In the case of armed conflict not of an international character occurring in the territory of one of the High Contracting Parties, each party to the conflict shall be bound to apply, as a minimum, the following provisions:
        1. Persons taking no active part in the hostilities, including members of armed forces who have laid down their arms and those placed hors de combat by sickness, wounds, detention, or any other cause, shall in all circumstances be treated humanely, without any adverse distinction founded on race, colour, religion or faith, sex, birth or wealth, or any other similar criteria.
        To this end the following acts are and shall remain prohibited at any time and in any place whatsoever with respect to the above-mentioned persons:
        (a) Violence to life and person, in particular murder of all kinds, mutilation, cruel treatment and torture;
        (b) Taking of hostages;
        (c) Outrages upon personal dignity, in particular, humiliating and degrading treatment;
        (d) The passing of sentences and the carrying out of executions without previous judgment pronounced by a regularly constituted court affording all the judicial guarantees which are recognized as indispensable by civilized peoples.
        2. The wounded and sick shall be collected and cared for.
        An impartial humanitarian body, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, may offer its services to the Parties to the conflict.
        The Parties to the conflict should further endeavour to bring into force, by means of special agreements, all or part of the other provisions of the present Convention.
        The application of the preceding provisions shall not affect the legal status of the Parties to the conflict.
        Article 4A. Prisoners of war, in the sense of the present Convention, are persons belonging to one of the following categories, who have fallen into the power of the enemy:
        1. Members of the armed forces of a Party to the conflict as well as members of militias or volunteer corps forming part of such armed forces.
        2. Members of other militias and members of other volunteer corps, including those of organized resistance movements, belonging to a Party to the conflict and operating in or outside their own territory, even if this territory is occupied, provided that such militias or volunteer corps, including such organized resistance movements, fulfil the following conditions:
        (a) That of being commanded by a person responsible for his subordinates;
        (b) That of having a fixed distinctive sign recognizable at a distance;
        (c) That of carrying arms openly;
        (d) That of conducting their operations in accordance with the laws and customs of war.
        3. Members of regular armed forces who profess allegiance to a government or an authority not recognized by the Detaining Power.
        4. Persons who accompany the armed forces without actually being members thereof, such as civilian members of military aircraft crews, war correspondents, supply contractors, members of labour units or of services responsible for the welfare of the armed forces, provided that they have received authorization from the armed forces which they accompany, who shall provide them for that purpose with an identity card similar to the annexed model.
        5. Members of crews, including masters, pilots and apprentices, of the merchant marine and the crews of civil aircraft of the Parties to the conflict, who do not benefit by more favourable treatment under any other provisions of international law.
        6. Inhabitants of a non-occupied territory, who on the approach of the enemy spontaneously take up arms to resist the invading forces, without having had time to form themselves into regular armed units, provided they carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war.
        B. The following shall likewise be treated as prisoners of war under the present Convention:
        1. Persons belonging, or having belonged, to the armed forces of the occupied country, if the occupying Power considers it necessary by reason of such allegiance to intern them, even though it has originally liberated them while hostilities were going on outside the territory it occupies, in particular where such persons have made an unsuccessful attempt to rejoin the armed forces to which they belong and which are engaged in combat, or where they fail to comply with a summons made to them with a view to internment.
        2. The persons belonging to one of the categories enumerated in the present Article, who have been received by neutral or non-belligerent Powers on their territory and whom these Powers are required to intern under international law, without prejudice to any more favourable treatment which these Powers may choose to give and with the exception of Articles 8, 10, 15, 30, fifth paragraph, 58-67, 92, 126 and, where diplomatic relations exist between the Parties to the conflict and the neutral or non-belligerent Power concerned, those Articles concerning the Protecting Power. Where such diplomatic relations exist, the Parties to a conflict on whom these persons depend shall be allowed to perform towards them the functions of a Protecting Power as provided in the present Convention, without prejudice to the functions which these Parties normally exercise in conformity with diplomatic and consular usage and treaties.
        C. This Article shall in no way affect the status of medical personnel and chaplains as provided for in Article 33 of the present Convention.
        Article 5The present Convention shall apply to the persons referred to in Article 4 from the time they fall into the power of the enemy and until their final release and repatriation.
        Should any doubt arise as to whether persons, having committed a belligerent act and having fallen into the hands of the enemy, belong to any of the categories enumerated in Article 4, such persons shall enjoy the protection of the present Convention until such time as their status has been determined by a competent tribunal.
        Article 6In addition to the agreements expressly provided for in Articles 10, 23, 28, 33, 60, 65, 66, 67, 72, 73, 75, 109, 110, 118, 119, 122 and 132, the High Contracting Parties may conclude other special agreements for all matters concerning which they may deem it suitable to make separate provision. No special agreement shall adversely affect the situation of prisoners of war, as defined by the present Convention, nor restrict the rights which it confers upon them.
        Prisoners of war shall continue to have the benefit of such agreements as long as the Convention is applicable to them, except where express provisions to the contrary are contained in the aforesaid or in subsequent agreements, or where more favourable measures have been taken with regard to them by one or other of the Parties to the conflict.
        Article 7Prisoners of war may in no circumstances renounce in part or in entirety the rights secured to them by the present Convention, and by the special agreements referred to in the foregoing Article, if such there be.
        Article 8The present Convention shall be applied with the cooperation and under the scrutiny of the Protecting Powers whose duty it is to safeguard the interests of the Parties to the conflict. For this purpose, the Protecting Powers may appoint, apart from their diplomatic or consular staff, delegates from amongst their own nationals or the nationals of other neutral Powers. The said delegates shall be subject to the approval of the Power with which they are to carry out their duties.
        The Parties to the conflict shall facilitate to the greatest extent possible the task of the representatives or delegates of the Protecting Powers.
        The representatives or delegates of the Protecting Powers shall not in any case exceed their mission under the present Convention. They shall, in particular, take account of the imperative necessities of security of the State wherein they carry out their duties.
        Article 9The provisions of the present Convention constitute no obstacle to the humanitarian activities which the International Committee of the Red Cross or any other impartial humanitarian organization may, subject to the consent of the Parties to the conflict concerned, undertake for the protection of prisoners of war and for their relief.
        Article 10The High Contracting Parties may at any time agree to entrust to an organization which offers all guarantees of impartiality and efficacy the duties incumbent on the Protecting Powers by virtue of the present Convention.
        When prisoners of war do not benefit or cease to benefit, no matter for what reason, by the activities of a Protecting Power or of an organization provided for in the first paragraph above, the Detaining Power shall request a neutral State, or such an organization, to undertake the functions performed under the present Convention by a Protecting Power designated by the Parties to a conflict.
        If protection cannot be arranged accordingly, the Detaining Power shall request or shall accept, subject to the provisions of this Article, the offer of the services of a humanitarian organization, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, to assume the humanitarian functions performed by Protecting Powers under the present Convention.
        Any neutral Power or any organization invited by the Power concerned or offering itself for these purposes, shall be required to act with a sense of responsibility towards the Party to the conflict on which persons protected by the present Convention depend, and shall be required to furnish sufficient assurances that it is in a position to undertake the appropriate functions and to discharge them impartially.
        No derogation from the preceding provisions shall be made by special agreements between Powers one of which is restricted, even temporarily, in its freedom to negotiate with the other Power or its allies by reason of military events, more particularly where the whole, or a substantial part, of the territory of the said Power is occupied.
        Whenever in the present Convention mention is made of a Protecting Power, such mention applies to substitute organizations in the sense of the present Article.
        Article 11In cases where they deem it advisable in the interest of protected persons, particularly in cases of disagreement between the Parties to the conflict as to the application or interpretation of the provisions of the present Convention, the Protecting Powers shall lend their good offices with a view to settling the disagreement.
        For this purpose, each of the Protecting Powers may, either at the invitation of one Party or on its own initiative, -propose to the Parties to the conflict a meeting of their representatives, and in particular of the authorities responsible for prisoners of war, possibly on neutral territory suitably chosen. The Parties to the conflict shall be bound to give effect to the proposals made to them for this purpose. The Protecting Powers may, if necessary, propose for approval by the Parties to the conflict a person belonging to a neutral Power, or delegated by the International Committee of the Red Cross, who shall be invited to take part in such a meeting.
        PART IIGENERAL PROTECTION OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 12Prisoners of war are in the hands of the enemy Power, but not of the individuals or military units who have captured them. Irrespective of the individual responsibilities that may exist, the Detaining Power is responsible for the treatment given them.
        Prisoners of war may only be transferred by the Detaining Power to a Power which is a party to the Convention and after the Detaining Power has satisfied itself of the willingness and ability of such transferee Power to apply the Convention. When prisoners of war are transferred under such circumstances, responsibility for the application of the Convention rests on the Power accepting them while they are in its custody.
        Nevertheless if that Power fails to carry out the provisions of the Convention in any important respect, the Power by whom the prisoners of war
        were transferred shall, upon being notified by the Protecting Power, take effective measures to correct the situation or shall request the return of the prisoners of war. Such requests must be complied with.
        Article 13Prisoners of war must at all times be humanely treated. Any unlawful act or omission by the Detaining Power causing death or seriously endangering the health of a prisoner of war in its custody is prohibited, and will be regarded as a serious breach of the present Convention. In particular, no prisoner of war may be subjected to physical mutilation or to medical or scientific experiments of any kind which are not justified by the medical, dental or hospital treatment of the prisoner concerned and carried out in his interest.
        Likewise, prisoners of war must at all times be protected, particularly against acts of violence or intimidation and against insults and public curiosity
        Measures of reprisal against prisoners of war are prohibited.
        Article 14Prisoners of war are entitled in all circumstances to respect for their persons and their honour.
        Women shall be treated with all the regard due to their sex and shall in all cases benefit by treatment as favourable as that granted to men.
        Prisoners of war shall retain the full civil capacity which they enjoyed at the time of their capture. The Detaining Power may not restrict the exercise, either within or without its own territory, of the rights such capacity confers except in so far as the captivity requires.
        Article 15The Power detaining prisoners of war shall be bound to provide free of charge for their maintenance and for the medical attention required by their state of health.
        Article 16Taking into consideration the provisions of the present Convention relating to rank and sex, and subject to any privileged treatment which may be accorded to them by reason of their state of health, age or professional qualifications, all prisoners of war shall be treated alike by the Detaining Power, without any adverse distinction based on race, nationality, religious belief or political opinions, or any other distinction founded on similar criteria. PART III
        CAPTIVITY
        SECTION I
        BEGINNING OF CAPTIVITY
        Article 17Every prisoner of war, when questioned on the subject, is bound to give only his surname, first names and rank, date of birth, and army, regimental, personal or serial number, or failing this, equivalent information.
        If he wilfully infringes this rule, he may render himself liable to a restriction of the privileges accorded to his rank or status.
        Each Party to a conflict is required to furnish the persons under its jurisdiction who are liable to become prisoners of war, with an identity card showing the owner's surname, first names, rank, army, regimental, personal or serial number or equivalent information, and date of birth. The identity card may, furthermore, bear the signature or the fingerprints, or both, of the owner, and may bear, as well, any other information the Party to the conflict may wish to add concerning persons belonging to its armed forces. AS far as possible the card shall measure 6.5 x 10 cm. and shall be issued in duplicate. The identity card shall be shown by the prisoner of war upon demand, but may in no case be taken away from him.
        No physical or mental torture, nor any other form of coercion, may be inflicted on prisoners of war to secure from them information of any kind whatever. Prisoners of war who refuse to answer may not be threatened, insulted, or exposed to any unpleasant or disadvantageous treatment of any kind.
        Prisoners of war who, owing to their physical or mental condition, are unable to state their identity, shall be handed over to the medical service. The identity of such prisoners shall be established by all possible means, subject to the provisions of the preceding paragraph.
        The questioning of prisoners of war shall be carried out in a language which they understand.
        Article 18All effects and articles of personal use, except arms, horses, military equipment and military documents shall remain in the possession of prisoners of war, likewise their metal helmets and gas masks and like articles issued for personal protection. Effects and articles used for their clothing or feeding shall likewise remain in their possession, even if such effects and articles belong to their regulation military equipment.
        At no time should prisoners of war be without identity documents. The Detaining Power shall supply such documents to prisoners of war who possess none.
        Badges of rank and nationality, decorations and articles having above all a personal or sentimental value may not be taken from prisoners of war.
        Sums of money carried by prisoners of war may not be taken away from them except by order of an officer, and after the amount and particulars of the owner have been recorded in a special register and an itemized receipt has been given, legibly inscribed with the name, rank and unit of the person issuing the said receipt. Sums in the currency of the Detaining Power, or which are changed into such currency at the prisoner's request, shall be placed to the credit of the prisoner's account as provided in Article 64.
        The Detaining Power may withdraw articles of value from prisoners of war only for reasons of security; when such articles are withdrawn, the procedure laid down for sums of money impounded shall apply.
        Such objects, likewise the sums taken away in any currency other than that of the Detaining Power and the conversion of which has not been asked for by the owners, shall be kept in the custody of the Detaining Power and shall be returned in their initial shape to prisoners of war at the end of their captivity.
        Article 19Prisoners of war shall be evacuated, as soon as possible after their capture, to camps situated in an area far enough from the combat zone for them to be out of danger.
        Only those prisoners of war who, owing to wounds or sickness, would run greater risks by being evacuated than by remaining where they are, may be temporarily kept back in a danger zone.
        Prisoners of war shall not be unnecessarily exposed to danger while awaiting evacuation from a fighting zone.
        Article 20The evacuation of prisoners of war shall always be effected humanely and in conditions similar to those for the forces of the Detaining Power in their changes of station.
        The Detaining Power shall supply prisoners of war who are being evacuated with sufficient food and potable water, and with the necessary clothing and medical attention. The Detaining Power shall take all suitable precautions to ensure their safety during evacuation, and shall establish as
        soon as possible a list of the prisoners of war who are evacuated. .;
        If prisoners of war must, during evacuation, pass through transit camps, their stay in such camps shall be as brief as possible.
        SECTION 11
        INTERNMENT OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        Chapter IGENERAL OBSERVATIONS
        Article 21The Detaining Power may subject prisoners of war to internment. It may impose on them the obligation of not leaving, beyond certain limits, the camp where they are interned, or if the said camp is fenced in, of not going outside its perimeter. Subject to the provisions of the present Convention relative to penal and disciplinary sanctions, prisoners of war may not be held in close confinement except where necessary to safeguard their health and then only during the continuation of the circumstances which make such confinement necessary.
        Prisoners of war may be partially or wholly released on parole or promise, in so far as is allowed by the laws of the Power on which they depend. Such measures shall be taken particularly in cases where this may contribute to the improvement of their state of health. No prisoner of war shall be compelled to accept liberty on parole or promise.
        Upon the outbreak of hostilities, each Party to the conflict shall notify the adverse Party of the laws and regulations allowing or forbidding its own nationals to accept liberty on parole or promise. Prisoners of war who are paroled or who have given their promise in conformity with the laws and regulations so notified, are bound on their personal honour scrupulously to fulfil, both towards the Power on which they depend and towards the Power which has captured them, the engagements of their paroles or promises. In such cases, the Power on which they depend is bound neither to require nor to accept from them any service incompatible with the parole or promise given.
        Article 22Prisoners of war may be interned only in premises located on land and affording every guarantee of hygiene and healthfulness. Except in particular
        cases which are justified by the interest of the prisoners themselves, they shall not be interned in penitentiaries.
        Prisoners of war interned in unhealthy areas, or where the climate is injurious for them, shall be removed as soon as possible to a more favourable climate.
        The Detaining Power shall assemble prisoners of war in camps or camp compounds according to their nationality, language and customs, provided that such prisoners shall not be separated from prisoners of war belonging to the armed forces with which they were serving at the time of their capture, except with their consent.
        Article 23No prisoner of war may at any time be sent to or detained in areas where he may be exposed to the fire of the combat zone, nor may his presence be used to render certain points or areas immune from military operations.
        Prisoners of war shall have shelters against air bombardment and other hazards of war, to the same extent as the local civilian population. With the exception of those engaged in the protection of their quarters against the aforesaid hazards, they may enter such shelters as soon as possible after the giving of the alarm. Any other protective measure taken in favour of the population shall also apply to them.
        Detaining Powers shall give the Powers concerned, through the intermediary of the Protecting Powers. all useful information regarding the geographical location of prisoner of war camps.
        Whenever military considerations permit, prisoner of war camps shall be indicated in the day-time by the letters PW or PG, placed so as to be clearly visible from the air. The Powers concerned may, however, agree upon any other system of marking. Only prisoner of war camps shall be marked as such.
        Article 24Transit or screening camps of a permanent kind shall be fitted out under conditions similar to those described in the present Section, and the prisoners therein shall have the same treatment as in other camps.
        Chapter IIQUARTERS FOOD AND CLOTHING OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 25Prisoners of war shall be quartered under conditions as favourable as those for the forces of the Detaining Power who are billeted in the same area. The said conditions shall make allowance for the habits and customs of the prisoners and shall in no case be prejudicial to their health.
        The foregoing provisions shall apply in particular to the dormitories of prisoners of war as regards both total surface and minimum cubic space, and the general installations, bedding and blankets.
        The premises provided for the use of prisoners of war individually or collectively, shall be entirely protected from dampness and adequately heated and lighted, in particular between dusk and lights out. All precautions must be taken against the danger of fire.
        In any camps in which women prisoners of war, as well as men, are accommodated, separate dormitories shall be provided for them.
        Article 26The basic daily food rations shall be sufficient in quantity, quality and variety to keep prisoners of war in good health and to prevent loss of weight or the development of nutritional deficiencies. Account shall also be taken of the habitual diet of the prisoners.
        The Detaining Power shall supply prisoners of war who work with such additional rations as are necessary for the labour on which they are employed.
        Sufficient drinking water shall be supplied to prisoners of war. The use of tobacco shall be permitted.
        Prisoners of war shall, as far as possible, be associated with the preparation of their meals; they may be employed for that purpose in the kitchens. Furthermore, they shall be given the means of preparing, themselves, the additional food in their possession.
        Adequate premises shall be provided for messing.
        Collective disciplinary measures affecting food are prohibited.
        Article 27Clothing, underwear and footwear shall be supplied to prisoners of war in sufficient quantities by the Detaining Power, which shall make allowance
        for the climate of the region where the prisoners are detained. Uniforms of enemy armed forces captured by the Detaining Power should, if suitable for the climate, be made available to clothe prisoners of war.
        The regular replacement and repair of the above articles shall be assured by the Detaining Power. In addition, prisoners of war who work shall receive appropriate clothing, wherever the nature of the work demands.
        Article 28Canteens shall be installed in all camps, where prisoners of war may procure foodstuffs, soap and tobacco and ordinary articles in daily use. The tariff shall never be in excess of local market prices.
        The profits made by camp canteens shall be used for the benefit of the prisoners; a special fund shall be created for this purpose. The prisoners' representative shall have the right to collaborate in the management of the canteen and of this fund.
        When a camp is closed down, the credit balance of the special fund shall be handed to an international welfare organization, to be employed for the benefit of prisoners of war of the same nationality as those who have contributed to the fund. In case of a general repatriation, such profits shall be kept by the Detaining Power, subject to any agreement to the contrary between the Powers concerned.
        Chapter IIIHYGIENE AND MEDICAL ATTENTION
        Article 29The Detaining Power shall be bound to take all sanitary measures necessary to ensure the cleanliness and healthfulness of camps and to prevent epidemics.
        Prisoners of war shall have for their use, day and night, conveniences which conform to the rules of hygiene and are maintained in a constant state of cleanliness. In any camps in which women prisoners of war are accommodated, separate conveniences shall be provided for them.
        Also, apart from the baths and showers with which the camps shall be furnished, prisoners of war shall be provided with sufficient water and soap for their personal toilet and for washing their personal laundry; the necessary installations, facilities and time shall be granted them for that purpose.
        Article 30Every camp shall have an adequate infirmary where prisoners of war may have the attention they require, as well as appropriate diet. Isolation wards shall, if necessary, be set aside for cases of contagious or mental disease.
        Prisoners of war suffering from serious disease, or whose condition necessitates special treatment, a surgical operation or hospital care, must be admitted to any military or civilian medical unit where such treatment can be given, even if their repatriation is contemplated in the near future. Special facilities shall be afforded for the care to be given to the disabled, in particular to the blind, and for their rehabilitation, pending repatriation.
        Prisoners of war shall have the attention, preferably, of medical personnel of the Power on which they depend and, if possible, of their nationality.
        Prisoners of war may not be prevented from presenting themselves to the medical authorities for examination. The detaining authorities shall, upon request, issue to every prisoner who has undergone treatment, an official certificate indicating the nature of his illness or injury, and the duration and kind of treatment received. A duplicate of this certificate shall be forwarded to the Central Prisoners of War Agency.
        The costs of treatment, including those of any apparatus necessary for the maintenance of prisoners of war in good health, particularly dentures and other artificial appliances, and spectacles, shall be borne by the Detaining Power.
        Article 31Medical inspections of prisoners of war shall be held at least once a month. They shall include the checking and the recording of the weight of each prisoner of war. Their purpose shall be, in particular, to supervise the general state of health, nutrition and cleanliness of prisoners and to detect contagious diseases, especially tuberculosis, malaria and venereal disease. For this purpose the most efficient methods available shall be employed, e.g. periodic mass miniature radiography for the early detection of tuberculosis.
        Article 32Prisoners of war who, though not attached to the medical service of their armed forces, are physicians, surgeons, dentists, nurses or medical orderlies, may be required by the Detaining Power to exercise their medical functions in the interests of prisoners of war dependent on the same Power. In that case they shall continue to be prisoners of war, but shall receive the
        same treatment as corresponding medical personnel retained by the Detaining Power. They shall be exempted from any other work under Article 49.
        Chapter IVMEDICAL PERSONNEL AND CHAPLAINS
        RETAINED TO ASSIST PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 33Members of the medical personnel and chaplains while retained by the Detaining Power with a view to assisting prisoners of war, shall not be considered as prisoners of war. They shall, however, receive as a minimum the benefits and protection of the present Convention, and shall also be granted all facilities necessary to provide for the medical care of, and religious ministration to prisoners of war.
        They shall continue to exercise their medical and spiritual functions for the benefit of prisoners of war, preferably those belonging to the armed forces upon which they depend, within the scope of the military laws and regulations of the Detaining Power and under the control of its competent services, in accordance with their professional etiquette. They shall also benefit by the following facilities in the exercise of their medical or spiritual functions:
        (a) They shall be authorized to visit periodically prisoners of war situated in working detachments or in hospitals outside the camp. For this purpose, the Detaining Power shall place at their disposal the necessary means of transport.
        (b) The senior medical officer in each camp shall be responsible to the camp military authorities for everything connected with the activities of retained medical personnel. For this purpose, Parties to the conflict shall agree at the outbreak of hostilities on the subject of the corresponding ranks of the medical personnel, including that of societies mentioned in Article 26 of the Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field of August 12, 1949. This senior medical officer, as well as chaplains, shall have the right to deal with the competent authorities of the camp on all questions relating to their duties. Such authorities shall afford them all necessary facilities for correspondence relating to these questions.
        (c) Although they shall be subject to the internal discipline of the camp in which they are retained, such personnel may not be compelled to carry out any work other than that concerned with their medical or religious duties.
        During hostilities, the Parties to the conflict shall agree concerning the possible relief of retained personnel and shall settle the procedure to be followed.
        None of the preceding provisions shall relieve the Detaining Power of its obligations with regard to prisoners of war from the medical or spiritual point of view.
        Chapter VRELIGIOUS INTELLECTUAL AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES
        Article 34Prisoners of war shall enjoy complete latitude in the exercise of their religious duties, including attendance at the service of their faith, on condition that they comply with the disciplinary routine prescribed by the military authorities.
        Adequate premises shall be provided where religious services may be held.
        Article 35Chaplains who fall into the hands of the enemy Power and who remain or are retained with a view to assisting prisoners of war, shall be allowed to minister to them and to exercise freely their ministry amongst prisoners of war of the same religion, in accordance with their religious conscience. They shall be allocated among the various camps and labour detachments containing prisoners of war belonging to the same forces. speaking the same language or practising the same religion. They shall enjoy the necessary facilities, including the means of transport provided for in Article 33, for visiting the prisoners of war outside their camp. They shall be free to correspond, subject to censorship, on matters concerning their religious duties with the ecclesiastical authorities in the country of detention and with international religious organizations. Letters and cards which they may send for this purpose shall be in addition to the quota provided for in Article 71.
        Article 36Prisoners of war who are ministers of religion, without having officiated as chaplains to their own forces, shall be at liberty, whatever their denomination, to minister freely to the members of their community. For this purpose, they shall receive the same treatment as the chaplains retained by the Detaining Power. They shall not be obliged to do any other work.
        Article 37When prisoners of war have not the assistance of a retained chaplain or of a prisoner of war minister of their faith, a minister belonging to the prisoners, or a similar denomination, or in his absence a qualified layman, if such a course is feasible from a confessional point of view, shall be appointed, at the request of the prisoners concerned, to fill this office. This appointment, subject to the approval of the Detaining Power, shall take place with the agreement of the community of prisoners concerned and, wherever necessary, with the approval of the local religious authorities of the same faith. The person thus appointed shall comply with all regulations established by the Detaining Power in the interests of discipline and military security.
        Article 38While respecting the individual preferences of every prisoner, the Detaining Power shall encourage the practice of intellectual, educational, and recreational pursuits, sports and games amongst prisoners, and shall take the measures necessary to ensure the exercise thereof by providing them with adequate premises and necessary equipment.
        Prisoners shall have opportunities for taking physical exercise, including sports and games, and for being out of doors. Sufficient open spaces shall be provided for this purpose in all camps.
        Chapter VIDISCIPLINE
        Article 39Every prisoner of war camp shall be put under the immediate authority of a responsible commissioned officer belonging to the regular armed forces of the Detaining Power. Such officer shall have in his possession a copy of the present Convention; he shall ensure that its provisions are known to the camp staff and the guard and shall be responsible, under the direction of his government, for its application.
        Prisoners of war, with the exception of officers, must salute and show to all officers of the Detaining Power the external marks of respect provided for by the regulations applying in their own forces.
        Officer prisoners of war are bound to salute only officers of a higher rank of the Detaining Power; they must, however, salute the camp commander regardless of his rank.
        Article 40The wearing of badges of rank and nationality, as well as of decorations, shall be permitted.
        Article 41In every camp the text of the present Convention and its Annexes and the contents of any special agreement provided for in Article 6, shall be posted, in the prisoners' own language, at places where all may read them. Copies shall be supplied, on request, to the prisoners who cannot have access to the copy which has been posted.
        Regulations, orders, notices and publications of every kind relating to the conduct of prisoners of war shall be issued to them in a language which they understand. Such regulations, orders and publications shall be posted in the manner described above and copies shall be handed to the prisoners' representative. Every order and command addressed to prisoners of war individually must likewise be given in a language which they understand.
        Article 42The use of weapons against prisoners of war, especially against those who are escaping or attempting to escape, shall constitute an extreme measure, which shall always be preceded by warnings appropriate to the circumstances.
        Chapter VIIRANK OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 43Upon the outbreak of hostilities, the Parties to the conflict shall communicate to one another the titles and ranks of all the persons mentioned in Article 4 of the present Convention, in order to ensure equality of treatment between prisoners of equivalent rank. Titles and ranks which are subsequently created shall form the subject of similar communications.
        The Detaining Power shall recognize promotions in rank which have been accorded to prisoners of war and which have been duly notified by the Power on which these prisoners depend.
        Article 44Officers and prisoners of equivalent status shall be treated with the regard due to their rank and age.
        In order to ensure service in officers' camps, other ranks of the same armed forces who, as far as possible, speak the same language, shall be assigned in sufficient numbers, account being taken of the rank of officers and prisoners of equivalent status. Such orderlies shall not be required to perform any other work.
        Supervision of the mess by the officers themselves shall be facilitated in every way.
        Article 45Prisoners of war other than officers and prisoners of equivalent status shall be treated with the regard due to their rank and age.
        Supervision of the mess by the prisoners themselves shall be facilitated in every way.
        Chapter VIIITRANSFER OF PRISONERS OF WAR AFTER THEIR ARRIVAL IN CAMP
        Article 46The Detaining Power, when deciding upon the transfer of prisoners of war, shall take into account the interests of the prisoners themselves, more especially so as not to increase the difficulty of their repatriation.
        The transfer of prisoners of war shall always be effected humanely and in conditions not less favourable than those under which the forces of the Detaining Power are transferred. Account shall always be taken of the climatic conditions to which the prisoners of war are accustomed and the conditions of transfer shall in no case be prejudicial to their health.
        The Detaining Power shall supply prisoners of war during transfer with sufficient food and drinking water to keep them in good health, likewise with the necessary clothing, shelter and medical attention. The Detaining Power shall take adequate precautions especially in case of transport by sea or by air, to ensure their safety during transfer, and shall draw up a complete list of all transferred prisoners before their departure.
        Article 47Sick or wounded prisoners of war shall not be transferred as long as their recovery may be endangered by the journey, unless their safety imperatively demands it.
        If the combat zone draws closer to a camp, the prisoners of war in the said camp shall not be transferred unless their transfer can be carried out in adequate conditions of safety, or if they are exposed to greater risks by remaining on the spot than by being transferred.
        Article 48In the event of transfer, prisoners of war shall be officially advised of their departure and of their new postal address. Such notifications shall be given in time for them to pack their luggage and inform their next of kin.
        They shall be allowed to take with them their personal effects, and the correspondence and parcels which have arrived for them. The weight of such baggage may be limited, if the conditions of transfer so require, to what each prisoner can reasonably carry, which shall in no case be more than twenty-five kilograms per head.
        Mail and parcels addressed to their former camp shall be forwarded to them without delay. The camp commander shall take, in agreement with the prisoners' representative, any measures needed to ensure the transport of the prisoners' community property and of the luggage they are unable to take with them in consequence of restrictions imposed by virtue of the second paragraph of this Article.
        The costs of transfers shall be borne by the Detaining Power.
        SECTION 111
        LABOUR OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 49The Detaining Power may utilize the labour of prisoners of war who are physically fit, taking into account their age, sex, rank and physical aptitude, and with a view particularly to maintaining them in a good state of physical and mental health.
        Non-commissioned officers who are prisoners of war shall only be required to do supervisory work. Those not so required may ask for other suitable work which shall, so far as possible, be found for them.
        If officers or persons of equivalent status ask for suitable work, it shall be found for them, so far as possible, but they may in no circumstances be compelled to work.
        Article 50Besides work connected with camp administration, installation or maintenance, prisoners of war may be compelled to do only such work as is included in the following classes:
        (a) Agriculture;
        (b) Industries connected with the production or the extraction of raw materials, and manufacturing industries, with the exception of metallurgical, machinery and chemical industries; public works and building operations which have no military character or purpose;
        (c) Transport and handling of stores which are not military in character or purpose;
        (d) Commercial business, and arts and crafts;
        (e) Domestic service;
        (f) Public utility services having no military character or purpose.
        Should the above provisions be infringed, prisoners of war shall be allowed to exercise their right of complaint, in conformity with Article 78.
        Article 51Prisoners of war must be granted suitable working conditions, especially as regards accommodation, food, clothing and equipment; such conditions shall not be inferior to those enjoyed by nationals of the Detaining Power employed in similar work; account shall also be taken of climatic conditions.
        The Detaining Power, in utilizing the labour of prisoners of war, shall en sure that in areas in which prisoners are employed, the national legislation concerning the protection of labour, and, more particularly, the regulations for the safety of workers, are duly applied.
        Prisoners of war shall receive training and be provided with the means of protection suitable to the work they will have to do and similar to those accorded to the nationals of the Detaining Power. Subject to the provisions of Article 52, prisoners may be submitted to the normal risks run by these civilian workers.
        Conditions of labour shall in no case be rendered more arduous by disciplinary measures.
        Article 52Unless he be a volunteer, no prisoner of war may be employed on labour which is of an unhealthy or dangerous nature.
        No prisoner of war shall be assigned to labour which would be looked upon as humiliating for a member of the Detaining Power's own forces.
        The removal of mines or similar devices shall be considered as dangerous labour.
        Article 53The duration of the daily labour of prisoners of war, including the time of the journey to and fro, shall not be excessive, and must in no case exceed that permitted for civilian workers in the district, who are nationals of the Detaining Power and employed on the same work.
        Prisoners of war must be allowed, in the middle of the day's work, a rest of not less than one hour. This rest will be the same as that to which workers of the Detaining Power are entitled, if the latter is of longer duration. They shall be allowed in addition a rest of twenty-four consecutive hours every week, preferably on Sunday or the day of rest in their country of origin. Furthermore, every prisoner who has worked for one year shall be granted a rest of eight consecutive days, during which his working pay shall be paid him.
        If methods of labour such as piece-work are employed, the length of the working period shall not be rendered excessive thereby.
        Article 54The working pay due to prisoners of war shall be fixed in accordance with the provisions of Article 62 of the present Convention.
        Prisoners of war who sustain accidents in connection with work, or who contract a disease in the course, or in consequence of their work, shall receive all the care their condition may require. The Detaining Power shall furthermore deliver to such prisoners of war a medical certificate enabling them to submit their claims to the Power on which they depend, and shall send a duplicate to the Central Prisoners of War Agency provided for in Article 123.
        Article 55The fitness of prisoners of war for work shall be periodically verified by medical examinations at least once a month. The examinations shall have particular regard to the nature of the work which prisoners of war are required to do.
        If any prisoner of war considers himself incapable of working, he shall be permitted to appear before the medical authorities of his camp. Physicians or surgeons may recommend that the prisoners who are, in their opinion, unfit for work, be exempted therefrom.
        Article 56The organization and administration of labour detachments shall be similar to those of prisoner of war camps.
        Every labour detachment shall remain under the control of and administratively part of a prisoner of war camp. The military authorities and the commander of the said camp shall be responsible, under the direction of their government, for the observance of the provisions of the present Convention in labour detachments.
        The camp commander shall keep an up-to-date record of the labour detachments dependent on his camp, and shall communicate it to the delegates of the Protecting Power, of the International Committee of the Red Cross, or of other agencies giving relief to prisoners of war, who may visit the camp.
        Article 57The treatment of prisoners of war who work for private persons, even if the latter are responsible for guarding and protecting them, shall not be inferior to that which is provided for by the present Convention. The Detaining Power, the military authorities and the commander of the camp to which such prisoners belong shall be entirely responsible for the maintenance, care, treatment, and payment of the working pay of such prisoners of war.
        Such prisoners of war shall have the right to remain in communication with the prisoners' representatives in the camps on which they depend.
        SECTION IV
        FINANCIAL RESOURCES OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 58Upon the outbreak of hostilities, and pending an arrangement on this matter with the Protecting Power, the Detaining Power may determine the maximum amount of money in cash or in any similar form, that prisoners may have in their possession. Any amount in excess, which was properly in their possession and which has been taken or withheld from them, shall be placed to their account, together with any monies deposited by them, and shall not be converted into any other currency without their consent.
        If prisoners of war are permitted to purchase services or commodities outside the camp against payment in cash, such payments shall be made by the prisoner himself or by the camp administration who will charge them to the accounts of the prisoners concerned. The Detaining Power will establish the necessary rules in this respect.
        Article 59Cash which was taken from prisoners of war, in accordance with Article 18, at the time of their capture, and which is in the currency of the Detaining Power, shall be placed to their separate accounts, in accordance with the provisions of Article 64 of the present Section.
        The amounts, in the currency of the Detaining Power, due to the conversion of sums in other currencies that are taken from the prisoners of war at the same time, shall also be credited to their separate accounts.
        Article 60The Detaining Power shall grant all prisoners of war a monthly advance of pay, the amount of which shall be fixed by conversion, into the currency of the said Power, of the following amounts:
        Category I: Prisoners ranking below sergeant: eight Swiss francs.
        Category II: Sergeants and other non-commissioned officers, or prisoners of equivalent rank: twelve Swiss francs.
        Category m: Warrant officers and commissioned officers below the rank of major or prisoners of equivalent rank: fifty Swiss francs.
        Category IV: Majors, lieutenant-colonels, colonels or prisoners of equivalent rank: sixty Swiss francs.
        Category V: General officers or prisoners of equivalent rank: seventy-five Swiss francs.
        However, the Parties to the conflict concerned may by special agreement modify the amount of advances of pay due to prisoners of the preceding categories.
        Furthermore, if the amounts indicated in the first paragraph above would be unduly high compared with the pay of the Detaining Power's armed forces or would, for any reason, seriously embarrass the Detaining Power, then, pending the conclusion of a special agreement with the Power on which the prisoners depend to vary the amounts indicated above, the Detaining Power:
        (a) Shall continue to credit the accounts of the prisoners with the amounts indicated in the first paragraph above;
        (b) May temporarily limit the amount made available from these advances of pay to prisoners of war for their own use, to sums which are reasonable , but which, for Category I, shall never be inferior to the amount that the Detaining Power gives to the members of its own armed forces.
        The reasons for any limitations will be given without delay to the Protecting Power.
        Article 61The Detaining Power shall accept for distribution as supplementary
        pay to prisoners of war sums which the Power on which the prisoners depend may forward to them,
        on condition that the sums to be paid shall be the
        same for each prisoner of the same category, shall be payable to all prisoners
        of that category depending on that Power, and shall be placed in their separate accounts, at the
        earliest opportunity, in accordance with the provisions
        of Article 64. Such supplementary pay shall not relieve the Detaining Power
        of any obligation under this Convention.
        Article 62Prisoners of war shall be paid a fair working rate of pay by the detaining authorities direct. The rate shall be fixed by the said authorities, but shall at no time be less than one-fourth of one Swiss franc for a full working day. The Detaining Power shall inform prisoners of war, as well as the Power on which they depend, through the intermediary of the Protecting Power, of the rate of daily working pay that it has fixed.
        Working pay shall likewise be paid by the detaining authorities to prisoners of war permanently detailed to duties or to a skilled or semi-skilled occupation in connection with the administration, installation or maintenance of camps, and to the prisoners who are required to carry out spiritual or medical duties on behalf of their comrades.
        The working pay of the prisoners' representative, of his advisers, if any, and of his assistants, shall be paid out of the fund maintained by canteen profits. The scale of this working pay shall be fixed by the prisoners, representative and approved by the camp commander. If there is no such fund, the detaining authorities shall pay these prisoners a fair working rate of pay.
        Article 63Prisoners of war shall be permitted to receive remittances of money addressed to them individually or collectively.
        Every prisoner of war shall have at his disposal the credit balance of his account as provided for in the following Article, within the limits fixed
        by the Detaining Power, which shall make such payments as are requested. Subject to financial or monetary restrictions which the Detaining Power regards as essential, prisoners of war may also have payments made abroad. In this case payments addressed by prisoners of war to dependants shall be given priority.
        In any event, and subject to the consent of the Power on which they depend, prisoners may have payments made in their own country, as follows: the Detaining Power shall send to the aforesaid Power through the Protecting Power a notification giving all the necessary particulars concerning the prisoners of war, the beneficiaries of the payments, and the amount of the sums to be paid, expressed in the Detaining Power's currency. The said notification shall be signed by the prisoners and countersigned by the camp commander. The Detaining Power shall debit the prisoners' account by a corresponding amount; the sums thus debited shall be placed by it to the credit of the Power on which the prisoners depend.
        To apply the foregoing provisions, the Detaining Power may usefully consult the Model Regulations in Annex V of the present Convention.
        Article 64The Detaining Power shall hold an account for each prisoner of war, showing at least the following:
        1. The amounts due to the prisoner or received by him as advances of pay, as working pay or derived from any other source; the sums in the currency of the Detaining Power which were taken from him; the sums taken from him and converted at his request into the currency of the said Power.
        2. The payments made to the prisoner in cash, or in any other similar form; the payments made on his behalf and at his request; the sums transferred under Article 63, third paragraph.
        Article 65Every item entered in the account of a prisoner of war shall be countersigned or initialled by him, or by the prisoners' representative acting on his behalf.
        Prisoners of war shall at all times be afforded reasonable facilities for consulting and obtaining copies of their accounts, which may likewise be inspected by the representatives of the Protecting Powers at the time of visits to the camp.
        When prisoners of war are transferred from one camp to another, their personal accounts will follow them. In case of transfer from one Detaining Power to another, the monies which are their property and are not in the currency of the Detaining Power will follow them. They shall be given certificates for any other monies standing to the credit of their accounts.
        The Parties to the conflict concerned may agree to notify to each other at specific intervals through the Protecting Power, the amount of the accounts of the prisoners of war.
        Article 66On the termination of captivity, through the release of a prisoner of war or his repatriation, the Detaining Power shall give him a statement, signed by an authorized officer of that Power, showing the credit balance then due to him. The Detaining Power shall also send through the Protecting Power to the government upon which the prisoner of war depends, lists giving all appropriate particulars of all prisoners of war whose captivity has been terminated by repatriation, release, escape, death or any other means, and showing the amount of their credit balances. Such lists shall be certified on each sheet by an authorized representative of the Detaining Power.
        Any of the above provisions of this Article may be varied by mutual agreement between any two Parties to the conflict.
        The Power on which the prisoner of war depends shall be responsible for settling with him any credit balance due to him from the Detaining Power on the termination of his captivity.
        Article 67Advances of pay, issued to prisoners of war in conformity with Article 60, shall be considered as made on behalf of the Power on which they depend. Such advances of pay, as well as all payments made by the said Power under Article 63, third paragraph, and Article 68, shall form the subject of arrangements between the Powers concerned, at the close of hostilities.
        Article 68Any claim by a prisoner of war for compensation in respect of any injury or other disability arising out of work shall be referred to the Power on which he depends, through the Protecting Power. In accordance with Article 54, the Detaining Power will, in all cases, provide the prisoner of war concerned with a statement showing the nature of the injury or disability, the circumstances in which it arose and particulars of medical or hospital treatment given for it. This statement will be signed by a responsible officer of the Detaining Power and the medical particulars certified by a medical officer.
        Any claim by a prisoner of war for compensation in respect of personal effects, monies or valuables impounded by the Detaining Power under
        Article 18 and not forthcoming on his repatriation, or in respect of loss alleged to be due to the fault of the Detaining Power or any of its servants, shall likewise be referred to the Power on which he depends. Nevertheless, any such personal effects required for use by the prisoners of war whilst in captivity shall be replaced at the expense of the Detaining Power. The Detaining Power will, in all cases, provide the prisoner of war with a statement, signed by a responsible officer, showing all available information regarding the reasons why such effects, monies or valuables have not been restored to him. A copy of this statement will be forwarded to the Power on which he depends through the Central Prisoners of War Agency provided for in Article 123.SECTION V
        RELATIONS OF PRISONERS OF WAR WITH THE EXTERIOR
        Article 69Immediately upon prisoners of war falling into its power, the Detaining Power shall inform them and the Powers on which they depend, through the Protecting Power, of the measures taken to carry out the provisions of the present Section. They shall likewise inform the parties concerned of any subsequent modifications of such measures.
        Article 70Immediately upon capture, or not more than one week after arrival at a camp, even if it is a transit camp, likewise in case of sickness or transfer to hospital or another camp, every prisoner of war shall be enabled to write direct to his family, on the one hand, and to the Central Prisoners of War Agency provided for in Article 123, on the other hand, a card similar, if possible, to the model annexed to the present Convention, informing his relatives of his capture, address and state of health. The said cards shall be forwarded as rapidly as possible and may not be delayed in any manner.
        Article 71Prisoners of war shall be allowed to send and receive letters and cards. If the Detaining Power deems it necessary to limit the number of letters and cards sent by each prisoner of war, the said number shall not be less than two letters and four cards monthly, exclusive of the capture cards provided for in Article 70, and conforming as closely as possible to the models annexed to the present Convention. Further limitations may be imposed only if the Protecting Power is satisfied that it would be in the interests of the prisoners of war concerned to do so owing to difficulties of translation caused
        by the Detaining Power's inability to find sufficient qualified linguists to carry out the necessary censorship. If limitations must be placed on the correspondence addressed to prisoners of war, they may be ordered only by the Power on which the prisoners depend, possibly at the request of the Detaining Power. Such letters and cards must be conveyed by the most rapid method at the disposal of the Detaining Power; they may not be delayed or retained for disciplinary reasons.
        Prisoners of war who have been without news for a long period, or who are unable to receive news from their next of kin or to give them news by the ordinary postal route, as well as those who are at a great distance from their homes, shall be permitted to send telegrams, the fees being charged against the prisoners of war's accounts with the Detaining Power or paid in the currency at their disposal. They shall likewise benefit by-this measure in cases of urgency.
        As a general rule, the correspondence of prisoners of war shall be written in their native language. The Parties to the conflict may allow correspondence in other languages.
        Sacks containing prisoner of war mail must be securely sealed and labelled so as clearly to indicate their contents, and must be addressed to offices of destination.
        Article 72Prisoners of war shall be allowed to receive by post or by any other means individual parcels or collective shipments containing, in particular, foodstuffs, clothing, medical supplies and articles of a religious, educational or recreational character which may meet their needs, including books, devotional articles, scientific equipment, examination papers, musical instruments, sports outfits and materials allowing prisoners of war to pursue their studies or their cultural activities.
        Such shipments shall in no way free the Detaining Power from the obligations imposed upon it by virtue of the present Convention.
        The only limits which may be placed on these shipments shall be those proposed by the Protecting Power in the interest of the prisoners themselves, or by the International Committee of the Red Cross or any other organization giving assistance to the prisoners, in respect of their own shipments only, on account of exceptional strain on transport or communications.
        The conditions for the sending of individual parcels and collective relief shall, if necessary, be the subject of special agreements between the Powers concerned, which may in no case delay the receipt by the prisoners of relief supplies. Books may not be included in parcels of clothing and foodstuffs. Medical supplies shall, as a rule, be sent in collective parcels.
        Article 73In the absence of special agreements between the Powers concerned on the conditions for the receipt and distribution of collective relief shipments, the rules and regulations concerning collective shipments, which are annexed to the present Convention, shall be applied.
        The special agreements referred to above shall in no case restrict the right of prisoners' representatives to take possession of collective relief shipments intended for prisoners of war, to proceed to their distribution or to dispose of them in the interest of the prisoners.
        Nor shall such agreements restrict the right of representatives of the Protecting Power, the International Committee of the Red Cross or any other organization giving assistance to prisoners of war and responsible for the forwarding of collective shipments, to supervise their distribution to the recipients.
        Article 74All relief shipments for prisoners of war shall be exempt from import, customs and other dues.
        Correspondence, relief shipments and authorized remittances of money addressed to prisoners of war or despatched by them through the post office, either direct or through the Information Bureaux provided for in Article 122 and the Central Prisoners of War Agency provided for in Article 123, shall be exempt from any postal dues, both in the countries of origin and destination, and in intermediate countries.
        If relief shipments intended for prisoners of war cannot be sent through the post office by reason of weight or for any other cause, the cost of transportation shall be borne by the Detaining Power in all the territories under its control. The other Powers party to the Convention shall bear the cost of transport in their respective territories.
        In the absence of special agreements between the Parties concerned, the costs connected with transport of such shipments, other than costs covered by the above exemption, shall be charged to the senders.
        The High Contracting Parties shall endeavour to reduce, so far as possible, the rates charged for telegrams sent by prisoners of war, or addressed to them.
        Article 75Should military operations prevent the Powers concerned from fulfilling their obligation to assure the transport of the shipments referred to in Articles 70, 71, 72 and 77, the Protecting Powers concerned, the Inter
        national Committee of the Red Cross or any other organization duly approved by the Parties to the conflict may undertake to ensure the conveyance of such shipments by suitable means (railway wagons, motor vehicles, vessels or aircraft, etc.). For this purpose, the High Contracting Parties shall endeavour to supply them with such transport and to allow its circulation, especially by granting the necessary safe-conducts.
        Such transport may also be used to convey:.
        (a) Correspondence, lists and reports exchanged between the Central Information Agency referred to in Article 123 and the National Bureaux referred to in Article 122;
        (b) Correspondence and reports relating to prisoners of war which the Protecting Powers, the International Committee of the Red Cross or any other body assisting the prisoners, exchange either with their own delegates or with the Parties to the conflict.
        These provisions in no way detract from the right of any Party to the conflict to arrange other means of transport, if it should so prefer, nor preclude the granting of safe-conducts, under mutually agreed conditions, to such means of transport.
        In the absence of special agreements, the costs occasioned by the use of such means of transport shall be borne proportionally by the Parties to the conflict whose nationals are benefited thereby.
        Article 76The censoring of correspondence addressed to prisoners of war or despatched by them shall be done as quickly as possible. Mail shall be censored only by the despatching State and the receiving State, and once only by each.
        The examination of consignments intended for prisoners of war shall not be carried out under conditions that will expose the goods contained in them to deterioration; except in the case of written or printed matter , it shall be done in the presence of the addressee, or of a fellow-prisoner duly delegated by him. The delivery to prisoners of individual or collective consignments shall not be delayed under the pretext of difficulties of censorship.
        Any prohibition of correspondence ordered by Parties to the conflict, either for military or political reasons, shall be only temporary and its duration shall be as short as possible.
        Article 77The Detaining Powers shall provide all facilities for the transmission, through the Protecting Power or the Central Prisoners of War Agency provided for in Article 123, of instruments, papers or documents intended for prisoners of war or despatched by them, especially powers of attorney and wills.
        In all cases they shall facilitate the preparation and execution of such documents on behalf of prisoners of war; in particular, they shall allow them to consult a lawyer and shall take what measures are necessary for the authentication of their signatures.
        SECTION VI
        RELATIONS BETWEEN PRISONERS OF WAR AND THE AUTHORITIES
        Chapter ICOMPLAINTS OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        RESPECTING THE CONDITIONS OF CAPTIVITY
        Article 78Prisoners of war shall have the right to make known to the military authorities in whose power they are, their requests regarding the conditions of captivity to which they are subjected.
        They shall also have the unrestricted right to apply to the representatives of the Protecting Powers either through their prisoners' representative or, if they consider it necessary, direct, in order to draw their attention to any points on which they may have complaints to make regarding their conditions of captivity.
        These requests and complaints shall not be limited nor considered to be a part of the correspondence quota referred to in Article 71. They must be transmitted immediately. Even if they are recognized to be unfounded, they may not give rise to any punishment.
        Prisoners' representatives may send periodic reports on the situation in the camps and the needs of the prisoners of war to the representatives of the Protecting Powers.
        Chapter IIPRISONER OF WAR REPRESENTATIVES
        Article 79In all places where there are prisoners of war, except in those where there are officers, the prisoners shall freely elect by secret ballot, every six months, and also in case of vacancies, prisoners' representatives entrusted with representing them before the military authorities, the Protecting Powers, the International Committee of the Red Cross and any other organization which may assist them. These prisoners' representatives shall be eligible for re-election.
        In camps for officers and persons of equivalent status or in mixed camps, the senior officer among the prisoners of war shall be recognized as the camp prisoners' representative. In camps for officers, he shall be assisted by one or more advisers chosen by the officers; in mixed camps, his assistants shall be chosen from among the prisoners of war who are not officers and shall be elected by them.
        Officer prisoners of war of the same nationality shall be stationed in labour camps for prisoners of war, for the purpose of carrying out the camp administration duties for which the prisoners of war are responsible. These officers may be elected as prisoners' representatives under the first paragraph of this Article. In such a case the assistants to the prisoners' representatives shall be chosen from among those prisoners of war who are not officers.
        Every representative elected must be approved by the Detaining Power before he has the right to commence his duties. Where the Detaining Power refuses to approve a prisoner of war elected by his fellow prisoners of war, it must inform the Protecting Power of the reason for such refusal.
        In all cases the prisoners' representative must have the same nationality, language and customs as the prisoners of war whom he represents. Thus, prisoners of war distributed in different sections of a camp, according to their nationality, language or customs, shall have for each section their own prisoners' representative, in accordance with the foregoing paragraphs.
        Article 80Prisoners' representatives shall further the physical, spiritual and intellectual well-being of prisoners of war.
        In particular, where the prisoners decide to organize amongst themselves a system of mutual assistance, this organization will be within the
        province of the prisoners' representative, in addition to the special duties entrusted to him by other provisions of the present Convention.
        Prisoners' representatives shall not be held responsible, simply by reason of their duties, for any offences committed by prisoners of war.
        Article 81Prisoners' representatives shall not be required to perform any other work, if the accomplishment of their duties is thereby made more difficult.
        Prisoners' representatives may appoint from amongst the prisoners such assistants as they may require. All material facilities shall be granted them, particularly a certain freedom of movement necessary for the accomplishment of their duties (inspection of labour detachments, receipt of supplies, etc.).
        Prisoners' representatives shall be permitted to visit premises where prisoners of war are detained, and every prisoner of war shall have the right to consult freely his prisoners' representative.
        All facilities shall likewise be accorded to the prisoners' representatives for communication by post and telegraph with the detaining authorities, the Protecting Powers, the International Committee of the Red Cross and their delegates, the Mixed Medical Commissions and with the bodies which give assistance to prisoners of war. Prisoners' representatives of labour detachments shall enjoy the same facilities for communication with the prisoners' representatives of the principal camp. Such communications shall not be restricted, nor considered as forming a part of the quota mentioned in Article 7 1.
        Prisoners' representatives who are transferred shall be allowed a reasonable time to acquaint their successors with current affairs.
        In case of dismissal, the reasons therefor shall be communicated to the Protecting Power.
        Chapter IIIPENAL AND DISCIPLINARY SANCTIONS
        I. General provisions
        Article 82A prisoner of war shall be subject to the laws, regulations and orders in force in the armed forces of the Detaining Power; the Detaining Power shall
        be justified in taking judicial or disciplinary measures in respect of any offence committed by a prisoner of war against such laws, regulations or orders. However, no proceedings or punishments contrary to the provisions of this Chapter shall be allowed.
        If any law, regulation or order of the Detaining Power shall declare acts committed by a prisoner of war to be punishable, whereas the same acts would not be punishable if committed by a member of the forces of the Detaining Power, such acts shall entail disciplinary punishments only.
        Article 83In deciding whether proceedings in respect of an offence alleged to have been committed by a prisoner of war shall be judicial or disciplinary, the Detaining Power shall ensure that the competent authorities exercise the greatest leniency and adopt, wherever possible, disciplinary rather than judicial measures.
        Article 84A prisoner of war shall be tried only by a military court, unless the existing laws of the Detaining Power expressly permit the civil courts to try a member of the armed forces of the Detaining Power in respect of the particular offence alleged to have been committed by the prisoner of war.
        In no circumstances whatever shall a prisoner of war be tried by a court of any kind which does not offer the essential guarantees of independence and impartiality as generally recognized, and, in particular, the procedure of which does not afford the accused the rights and means of defence provided for in Article 105.
        Article 85Prisoners of war prosecuted under the laws of the Detaining Power for acts committed prior to capture shall retain, even if convicted, the benefits of the present Convention.
        Article 86No prisoner of war may be punished more than once for the same act, or on the same charge.
        Article 87Prisoners of war may not be sentenced by the military authorities and courts of the Detaining Power to any penalties except those provided for in
        respect of members of the armed forces of the said Power who have committed the same acts.
        When fixing the penalty, the courts or authorities of the Detaining Power shall take into consideration, to the widest extent possible, the fact that the accused, not being a national of the Detaining Power, is not bound to it by any duty of allegiance, and that he is in its power as the result of circumstances independent of his own will. The said courts or authorities shall be at liberty to reduce the penalty provided for the violation of which the prisoner of war is accused, and shall therefore not be bound to apply the minimum penalty prescribed.
        Collective punishment for individual acts, corporal punishments, imprisonment in premises without daylight and, in general, any form of torture or cruelty, are forbidden.
        No prisoner of war may be deprived of his rank by the Detaining Power, or prevented from wearing his badges.
        Article 88Officers, non-commissioned officers and men who are prisoners of war undergoing a disciplinary or judicial punishment, shall not be subjected to more severe treatment than that applied in respect of the same punishment to members of the armed forces of the Detaining Power of equivalent rank.
        A woman prisoner of war shall not be awarded or sentenced to a punishment more severe, or treated whilst undergoing punishment more severely, than a woman member of the armed forces of the Detaining Power dealt with for a similar offence.
        In no case may a woman prisoner of war be awarded or sentenced to a punishment more severe, or treated whilst undergoing punishment more severely, than a male member of the armed forces of the Detaining Power dealt with for a similar offence.
        Prisoners of war who have served disciplinary or judicial sentences may not be treated differently from other prisoners of war.
        II. Disciplinary sanctions
        Article 89The disciplinary punishments applicable to prisoners of war are the following:
        1. A fine which shall not exceed 50 per cent of the advances of pay and working pay which the prisoner of war would otherwise receive under
        the provisions of Articles 60 and 62 during a period of not more than thirty days.
        2. Discontinuance of privileges granted over and above the treatment provided for by the present Convention.
        3. Fatigue duties not exceeding two hours daily.
        4. Confinement.
        The punishment referred to under (3) shall not be applied to officers.
        In no case shall disciplinary punishments be inhuman, brutal or dangerous to the health of prisoners of war.
        Article 90The duration of any single punishment shall in no case exceed thirty days. Any period of confinement awaiting the hearing of a disciplinary offence or the award of disciplinary punishment shall be deducted from an award pronounced against a prisoner of war.
        The maximum of thirty days provided above may not be exceeded, even if the prisoner of war is answerable for several acts at the same time when he is awarded punishment, whether such acts are related or not.
        The period between the pronouncing of an award of disciplinary punishment and its execution shall not exceed one month.
        When a prisoner of war is awarded a further disciplinary punishment, a period of at least three days shall elapse between the execution of any two of the punishments, if the duration of one of these is ten days or more.
        Article 91The escape of a prisoner of war shall be deemed to have succeeded when:
        1. He has joined the armed forces of the Power on which he depends, or those of an allied Power;
        2. He has left the territory under the control of the Detaining Power, or of an ally of the said Power;
        3. He has joined a ship flying the flag of the Power on which he depends, or of an allied Power, in the territorial waters of the Detaining Power, the said ship not being under the control of the last named Power.
        Prisoners of war who have made good their escape in the sense of this Article and who are recaptured, shall not be liable to any punishment in respect of their previous escape.
        Article 92A prisoner of war who attempts to escape and is recaptured before having made good his escape in the sense of Article 91 shall be liable only to a disciplinary punishment in respect of this act, even if it is a repeated offence.
        A prisoner of war who is recaptured shall be handed over without delay to the competent military authority.
        Article 88, fourth paragraph, notwithstanding, prisoners of war punished as a result of an unsuccessful escape may be subjected to special surveillance. Such surveillance must not affect the state of their health, must be undergone in a prisoner of war camp, and must not entail the suppression of any of the safeguards granted them by the present Convention.Article 93Escape or attempt to escape, even if it is a repeated offence, shall not be deemed an aggravating circumstance if the prisoner of war is subjected to trial by judicial proceedings in respect of an offence committed during his escape or attempt to escape.
        In conformity with the principle stated in Article 83, offences committed by prisoners of war with the sole intention of facilitating their escape and which do not entail any violence against life or limb, such as offences against public property, theft without intention of self-enrichment, the drawing up or use of false papers, the wearing of civilian clothing, shall occasion disciplinary punishment only.
        Prisoners of war who aid or abet an escape or an attempt to escape shall be liable on this count to disciplinary punishment only.
        Article 94If an escaped prisoner of war is recaptured, the Power on which he depends shall be notified thereof in the manner defined in Article 122, provided notification of his escape has been made.
        Article 95A prisoner of war accused of an offence against discipline shall not be kept in confinement pending the hearing unless a member of the armed forces of the Detaining Power would be so kept if he were accused of a similar offence , or if it is essential in the interests of camp order and discipline .
        Any period spent by a prisoner of war in confinement awaiting the disposal of an offence against discipline shall be reduced to an absolute minimum and shall not exceed fourteen days.
        The provisions of Articles 97 and 98 of this Chapter shall apply to prisoners of war who are in confinement awaiting the disposal of offences against discipline.
        Article 96Acts which constitute offences against discipline shall be investigated immediately.
        Without prejudice to the competence of courts and superior military authorities, disciplinary punishment may be ordered only by an officer having disciplinary powers in his capacity as camp commander, or by a responsible officer who replaces him or to whom he has delegated his disciplinary powers.
        In no case may such powers be delegated to a prisoner of war or be exercised by a prisoner of war.
        Before any disciplinary award is pronounced, the accused shall be given precise information regarding the offences of which he is accused, and given an opportunity of explaining his conduct and of defending himself. He shall be permitted, in particular, to call witnesses and to have recourse, if necessary, to the services of a qualified interpreter. The decision shall be announced to the accused prisoner of war and to the prisoners' representative.
        A record of disciplinary punishments shall be maintained by the camp commander and shall be open to inspection by representatives of the Protecting Power.
        Article 97Prisoners of war shall not in any case be transferred to penitentiary establishments (prisons, penitentiaries, convict prisons, etc.) to undergo disciplinary punishment therein.
        All premises in which disciplinary punishments are undergone shall conform to the sanitary requirements set forth in Article 25. A prisoner of war undergoing punishment shall be enabled to keep himself in a state of cleanliness, in conformity with Article 29.
        Officers and persons of equivalent status shall not be lodged in the same quarters as non-commissioned officers or men.
        Women prisoners of war undergoing disciplinary punishment shall be confined in separate quarters from male prisoners of war and shall be under the immediate supervision of women.
        Article 98A prisoner of war undergoing confinement as a disciplinary punishment, shall continue to enjoy the benefits of the provisions of this Convention except in so far as these are necessarily rendered inapplicable by the mere fact that he is confined. In no case may he be deprived of the benefits of the provisions of Articles 78 and 126.
        A prisoner of war awarded disciplinary punishment may not be deprived of the prerogatives attached to his rank.
        Prisoners of war awarded disciplinary punishment shall be allowed to exercise and to stay in the open air at least two hours daily.
        They shall be allowed, on their request, to be present at the daily medical inspections. They shall receive the attention which their state of health requires and, if necessary, shall be removed to the camp infirmary or to a hospital.
        They shall have permission to read and write, likewise to send and receive letters. Parcels and remittances of money, however, may be withheld from them until the completion of the punishment; they shall meanwhile be entrusted to the prisoners' representative, who will hand over to the infirmary the perishable goods contained in such parcels.
        m. Judicial proceedings
        Article 99No prisoner of war may be tried or sentenced for an act which is not forbidden by the law of the Detaining Power or by international law, in force at the time the said act was committed.
        No moral or physical coercion may be exerted on a prisoner of war in order to induce him to admit himself guilty of the act of which he is accused.
        No prisoner of war may be convicted without having had an opportunity to present his defence and the assistance of a qualified advocate or counsel.
        Article 100Prisoners of war and the Protecting Powers shall be informed as soon as possible of the offences which are punishable by the death sentence under the laws of the Detaining Power.
        Other offences shall not thereafter be made punishable by the death penalty without the concurrence of the Power upon which the prisoners of war depend.
        The death sentence cannot be pronounced on a prisoner of war unless the attention of the court has, in accordance with Article 87, second paragraph, been particularly called to the fact that since the accused is not a national of the Detaining Power, he is not bound to it by any duty of allegiance, and that he is in its power as the result of circumstances independent of his own will.
        Article 101If the death penalty is pronounced on a prisoner of war, the sentence shall not be executed before the expiration of a period of at least six months from the date when the Protecting Power receives, at an indicated address, the detailed communication provided for in Article 107.
        Article 102A prisoner of war can be validly sentenced only if the sentence has been pronounced by the same courts according to the same procedure as in the case of members of the armed forces of the Detaining Power, and if, furthermore, the provisions of the present Chapter have been observed.
        Article 103Judicial investigations relating to a prisoner of war shall be conducted as rapidly as circumstances permit and so that his trial shall take place as soon as possible. A prisoner of war shall not be confined while awaiting trial unless a member of the armed forces of the Detaining Power would be so confined if he were accused of a similar offence, or if it is essential to do so in the interests of national security. In no circumstances shall this confinement exceed three months.
        Any period spent by a prisoner of war in confinement awaiting trial shall be deducted from any sentence of imprisonment passed upon him and taken into account in fixing any penalty.
        The provisions of Articles 97 and 98 of this Chapter shall apply to a prisoner of war whilst in confinement awaiting trial.
        Article 104In any case in which the Detaining Power has decided to institute judicial proceedings against a prisoner of war, it shall notify the Protecting Power as soon as possible and at least three weeks before the opening of the trial. This period of three weeks shall run as from the day on which such notification reaches the Protecting Power at the address previously indicated by the latter to the Detaining Power.
        The said notification shall contain the following information:
        1. Surname and first names of the prisoner of war, his rank, his army, regimental, personal or serial number, his date of birth, and his profession or trade, if any;
        2. Place of internment or confinement;
        3. Specification of the charge or charges on which the prisoner of war is to be arraigned, giving the legal provisions applicable;
        4 . Designation of the court which will try the case, like wise the date and place fixed for the opening of the trial.
        The same communication shall be made by the Detaining Power to the prisoners' representative.
        If no evidence is submitted, at the opening of a trial, that the notification referred to above was received by the Protecting Power, by the prisoner of war and by the prisoners' representative concerned, at least three weeks before the opening of the trial, then the latter cannot take place and must be adjourned.
        Article 105The prisoner of war shall be entitled to assistance by one of his prisoner comrades, to defence by a qualified advocate or counsel of his own choice, to the calling of witnesses and, if he deems necessary, to the services of a competent interpreter. He shall be advised of these rights by the Detaining Power in due time before the trial.
        Failing a choice by the prisoner of war, the Protecting Power shall find him an advocate or counsel, and shall have at least one week at its disposal for the purpose. The Detaining Power shall deliver to the said Power, on request, a list of persons qualified to present the defence. Failing a choice of an advocate or counsel by the prisoner of war or the Protecting Power, the Detaining Power shall appoint a competent advocate or counsel to conduct the defence.
        The advocate or counsel conducting the defence on behalf of the prisoner of war shall have at his disposal a period of two weeks at least before the opening of the trial, as well as the necessary facilities to prepare the defence of the accused. He may, in particular, freely visit the accused and interview him in private. He may also confer with any witnesses for the defence, including prisoners of war. He shall have the benefit of these facilities until the term of appeal or petition has expired.
        Particulars of the charge or charges on which the prisoner of war is to be arraigned, as well as the documents which are generally communicated to the accused by virtue of the laws in force in the armed forces of the Detaining Power, shall be communicated to the accused prisoner of war in a language which he understands, and in good time before the opening of the trial. The same communication in the same circumstances shall be made to the advocate or counsel conducting the defence on behalf of the prisoner of war.
        The representatives of the Protecting Power shall be entitled to attend the trial of the case, unless, exceptionally, this is held in camera in the interest of State security. In such a case the Detaining Power shall advise the Protecting Power accordingly.
        Article 106Every prisoner of war shall have, in the same manner as the members of the arrned forces of the Detaining Power, the right of appeal or petition from any sentence pronounced upon him, with a view to the quashing or revising of the sentence or the reopening of the trial. He shall be fully informed of his right to appeal or petition and of the time limit within which he may do so.
        Article 107Any judgment and sentence pronounced upon a prisoner of war shall be immediately reported to the Protecting Power in the form of a surnrnary communication, which shall also indicate whether he has the right of appeal with a view to the quashing of the sentence or the reopening of the trial. This comrnunication shall likewise be sent to the prisoners' representative concerned. It shall also be sent to the accused prisoner of war in a language he understands, if the sentence was not pronounced in his presence. The Detaining Power shall also immediately communicate to the Protecting Power the decision of the prisoner of war to use or to waive his right of appeal.
        Furthermore, if a prisoner of war is finally convicted or if a sentence pronounced on a prisoner of war in the first instance is a death sentence, the Detaining Power shall as soon as possible address to the Protecting Power a detailed communication containing:
        1. The precise wording of the finding and sentence;
        2. A summarized report of any preliminary investigation and of the trial, emphasizing in particular the elements of the prosecution and the defence;
        3. Notification, where applicable, of the establishment where the sentence will be served.
        The communications provided for in the foregoing subparagraphs shall be sent to the Protecting Power at the address previously made known to the Detaining Power. Article 108
        Sentences pronounced on prisoners of war after a conviction has become duly enforceable, shall be served in the same establishments and under the same conditions as in the case of members of the arrned forces of the Detaining Power. These conditions shall in all cases conform to the requirements of health and humanity.
        A woman prisoner of war on whom such a sentence has been pronounced shall be confined in separate quarters and shall be under the supervision of women.
        In any case, prisoners of war sentenced to a penalty depriving them of their liberty shall retain the benefit of the provisions of Articles 78 and 126 of the present Convention. Furthermore, they shall be entitled to receive and despatch correspondence, to receive at least one relief parcel monthly, to take regular exercise in the open air, to have the medical care required by their state of health, and the spiritual assistance they may desire. Penalties to which they may be subjected shall be in accordance with the provisions of Article 87, third paragraph.
        PART IVTERMINATION OF CAPTIVITY
        SECTION I
        DIRECT REPATRIATION AND ACCOMMODATION IN NEUTRAL COUNTRIES
        Article 109Subject to the provisions of the third paragraph of this Article, Parties to the conflict are bound to send back to their own country, regardless of number or rank, seriously wounded and seriously sick prisoners of war, after having cared for them until they are fit to travel, in accordance with the first paragraph of the following Article.
        Throughout the duration of hostilities, Parties to the conflict shall endeavour, with the cooperation of the neutral Powers concerned, to make arrangements for the accommodation in neutral countries of the sick and wounded prisoners of war referred to in the second paragraph of the following Article. They may, in addition, conclude agreements with a view to the direct repatriation or internment in a neutral country of able-bodied prisoners of war who have undergone a long period of captivity.
        No sick or injured prisoner of war who is eligible for repatriation under the first paragraph of this Article, may be repatriated against his will during hostilities.
        Article 110The following shall be repatriated direct:
        1. Incurably wounded and sick whose mental or physical fitness seems to have been gravely diminished.
        2. Wounded and sick who, according to medical opinion, are not likely to recover within one year, whose condition requires treatment and whose mental or physical fitness seems to have been gravely diminished.
        3. Wounded and sick who have recovered, but whose mental or physical fitness seems to have been gravely and pemmanently diminished.
        The following may be accommodated in a neutral country:
        1. Wounded and sick whose recovery may be expected within one year of the date of the wound or the beginning of the illness, if treatment in a neutral country might increase the prospects of a more certain and speedy recovery.
        2. Prisoners of war whose mental or physical health, according to medical opinion, is seriously threatened by continued captivity, but whose accommodation in a neutral country might remove such a threat.
        The conditions which prisoners of war accommodated in a neutral country must fulfil in order to permit their repatriation shall be fixed, as shall likewise their status, by agreement between the Powers concemed. In general, prisoners of war who have been accommodated in a neutral country, and who belong to the following categories, should be repatriated:
        1. Those whose state of health has deteriorated so as to fulfil the conditions laid down for direct repatriation;
        2. Those whose mental or physical powers remain, even after treatment, considerably impaired.
        If no special agreements are concluded between the Parties to the conflict concemed, to detemmine the cases of disablement or sickness entailing direct repatriation or accommodation in a neutral country, such cases shall be settled in accordance with the principles laid down in the Model Agreement conceming direct repatriation and accommodation in neutral countries of wounded and sick prisoners of war and in the Regulations conceming Mixed Medical Commissions annexed to the present Convention. Article 111
        The Detaining Power, the Power on which the prisoners of war depend, and a neutral Power agreed upon by these two Powers, shall endeavour to conclude agreements which will enable prisoners of war to be interned in the territory of the said neutral Power until the close of hostilities.
        Article 112Upon the outbreak of hostilities, Mixed Medical Commissions shall be appointed to examine sick and wounded prisoners of war, and to make all appropriate decisions regarding them. The appointment, duties and functioning of these Commissions shall be in conformity with the provisions of the Regulations annexed to the present Convention.
        However, prisoners of war who, in the opinion of the medical authorities of the Detaining Power, are manifestly seriously injured or seriously sick, may be repatriated without having to be examined by a Mixed Medical Commission.
        Article 113Besides those who are designated by the medical authorities of the Detaining Power, wounded or sick prisoners of war belonging to the categories listed below shall be entitled to present themselves for examination by the Mixed Medical Commissions provided for in the foregoing Article:
        1. Wounded and sick proposed by a physician or surgeon who is of the same nationality, or a national of a Party to the conflict allied with the Power on which the said prisoners depend, and who exercises his functions in the camp.
        2. Wounded and sick proposed by their prisoners' representative.
        3. Wounded and sick proposed by the Power on which they depend, or by an organization du ly recognized by the said Power and giv ing as s i stance to the prisoners.
        Prisoners of war who do not belong to one of the three foregoing categories may nevertheless present themselves for examination by Mixed Medical Commissions, but shall be examined only after those belonging to the said categories.
        The physician or surgeon of the same nationality as the prisoners who present themselves for examination by the Mixed Medical Commission, likewise the prisoners' representative of the said prisoners, shall have permission to be present at the examination.
        Article 114Prisoners of war who meet with accidents shall, unless the injury is self-inflicted, have the benefit of the provisions of this Convention as regards repatriation or accommodation in a neutral country.
        Articie 115
        No prisoner of war on whom a disciplinary punishment has been imposed and who is eligible for repatriati on or for accommodation in a ne utral country, may be kept back on the plea that he has not undergone his punishment.
        Prisoners of war detained in c on necti on with a j udicial prosec uti on or conviction and who are designated for repatriation or accommodation in a neutral country, may benefit by such measures before the end of the proceedings or the completion of the punishment, if the Detaining Power consents.
        Parties to the conflict shall communicated to each other the names of those who will be detained until the end of the proceedings or the completion of the punishment.
        Article 116The costs of repatriating prisoners of war or of transporting them to a neutral country shall be borne, from the frontiers of the Detaining Power, by the Power on which the said prisoners depend.
        Articie 117
        No repatriated person may be employed on active military service.
        SECTION 11
        RELEAS E AND REPATRIATION OF PR I S ONER S OF W AR
        AT THE CLOSE OF HOSTILITIES
        Article 118Prisoners of war shall be released and repatriated without delay after the cessation of active hostilities.
        In the absence of stipulations to the above effect in any agreement concluded between the Parties to the conflict with a view to the cessation of hostilities, or failing any such agreement, each of the Detaining Powers shall itself establish and execute without delay a plan of repatriation in conformity with the principle laid down in the foregoing paragraph.
        In either case, the measures adopted shall be brought to the knowledge of the prisoners of war.
        The costs of repatriation of prisoners of war shall in all cases be equitably apportioned between the Detaining Power and the Power on which the prisoners depend. This apportionment shall be carried out on the following basis:
        (a) If the two Powers are contigu ou s , the Power on wh ich the prisoners of war depend shall bear the costs of repatriation from the frontiers of the Detaining Power.
        (b) If the two Powers are not contiguous, the Detaining Power shall bear the costs of transport of prisoners of war over its own territory as far as its frontier or its port of embarkation nearest to the territory of the Power on which the prisoners of war depend. The Parties concerned shall agree between themselves as to the equitable apportionment of the remaining costs of the repatriation. The conclusion of this agreement shall in no circumstances justify any delay in the repatriation of the prisoners of war.
        Article 119Repatriation shall be effected in conditions similar to those laid down in Articles 46 to 48 inclusive of the present Convention for the transfer of prisoners of war, having regard to the provisions of Article 118 and to those of the following paragraphs.
        On repatriation, any articles of value impounded from prisoners of war under Article 18, and any foreign currency which has not been converted into the currency of the Detaining Power, shall be restored to them. Articles of value and foreign currency which, for any reason whatever, are not restored to prisoners of war on repatriation, shall be despatched to the Information Bureau set up under Article 122.
        Prisoners of war shall be allowed to take with them their personal effects, and any correspondence and parcels which have arrived for them. The weight of such baggage may be limited, if the conditions of repatriation so require, to what each prisoner can reasonably carry. Each prisoner shall in all cases be authorized to carry at least twenty-five kilograms.
        The other personal effects of the repatriated prisoner shall be left in the charge of the Detaining Power which shall have them forwarded to him as soon as it has concluded an agreement to this effect, regulating the conditions of transport and the payment of the costs involved, with the Power on which the prisoner depends.
        Prisoners of war against whom criminal proceedings for an indictable offence are pending may be detained until the end of such proceedings, and, if necessary, until the completion of the punishment. The same shall apply to, prisoners of war already convicted for an indictable offence.
        Parties to the conflict shall communicate to each other the names of any prisoners of war who are detained until the end of the proceedings or until punishment has been completed.
        By agreement between the Parties to the conflict, commissions shall be established for the purpose of searching for dispersed prisoners of war and
        of assuring their repatriation with the least possible delay.
        SECTION 111
        DEATH OF PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 120Wills of prisoners of war shall be drawn up so as to satisfy the conditions of validity required by the legislation of their country of origin, which will take steps to inform the Detaining Power of its requirements in this respect. At the request of the prisoner of war and, in all cases, after death, the will shall be transmitted without delay to the Protecting Power; a certified copy shall be sent to the Central Agency.
        Death certificates in the form annexed to the present Convention, or lists certified by a responsible officer, of all persons who die as prisoners of war shall be forwarded as rapidly as possible to the Prisoner of War Information Bureau established in accordance with Article 122. The death certificates or certified lists shall show particulars of identity as set out in the third paragraph of Article 17, and also the date and place of death, the cause of death, the date and place of burial and all particulars necessary to identify the graves.
        The burial or cremation of a prisoner of war shall be preceded by a medical examination of the body with a view to confirming death and enabling a report to be made and, where necessary, establishing identity.
        The detaining authorities shall ensure that prisoners of war who have died in captivity are honourably buried, if possible according to the rites of the religion to which they belonged, and that their graves are respected, suitably maintained and marked so as to be found at any time. Wherever possible, deceased prisoners of war who depended on the same Power shall be interred in the same place.
        Deceased prisoners of war shall be buried in individual graves unless unavoidable circumstances require the use of collective graves. Bodies may be cremated only for imperative reasons of hygiene, on account of the religion of the deceased or in accordance with his express wish to this effect. In
        case of cremation, the fact shall be stated and the reasons given in the death certificate of the deceased.
        In order that graves may always be found, all particulars of burials and graves shall be recorded with a Graves Registration Service established by the Detaining Power. Lists of graves and particulars of the prisoners of war interred in cemeteries and elsewhere shall be transmitted to the Power on which such prisoners of war depended. Responsibility for the care of these graves and for records of any subsequent moves of the bodies shall rest on the Power controlling the territory, if a Party to the present Convention. These provisions shall also apply to the ashes, which shall be kept by the Graves Registration Service until proper disposal thereof in accordance with the wishes of the home country.
        Article 121Every death or serious injury of a prisoner of war caused or suspected to have been caused by a sentry, another prisoner of war, or any other person, as well as any death the cause of which is unknown, shall be immediately followed by an official enquiry by the Detaining Power.
        A communication on this subject shall be sent immediately to the Protecting Power. Statements shall be taken from witnesses, especially from those who are prisoners of war, and a report including such statements shall be forwarded to the Protecting Power.
        If the enquiry indicates the guilt of one or more persons, the Detaining Power shall take all measures for the prosecution of the person or persons responsible.
        PART VINFORMATION BUREAUX AND RELIEF SOCIETIES
        FOR PRISONERS OF WAR
        Article 122Upon the outbreak of a conflict and in all cases of occupation, each of the Parties to the conflict shall institute an official Information Bureau for prisoners of war who are in its power. Neutral or non-belligerent Powers who may have received within their territory persons belonging to one of the categories referred to in Article 4, shall take the same action with respect to such persons. The Power concerned shall ensure that the Prisoners of War Information Bureau is provided with the necessary accommodation, equipment and staff to ensure its efficient working. It shall be at liberty to employ prisoners of war in such a Bureau under the conditions laid down in the Section of the present Convention dealing with work by prisoners of war.
        Within the shortest possible period, each of the Parties to the conflict shall give its Bureau the information referred to in the fourth, fifth and sixth paragraphs of this Article regarding any enemy person belonging to one of the categories referred to in Article 4, who has fallen into its power. Neutral or non-belligerent Powers shall take the same action with regard to persons belonging to such categories whom they have received within their territory.
        The Bureau shall immediately forward such information by the most rapid means to the Powers concemed, through the intermediary of the Protecting Powers and likewise of the Central Agency provided for in Article 123.
        This information shall make it possible quickly to advise the next of kin concerned. Subject to the provisions of Article 17, the information shall include, in so far as available to the Information Bureau, in respect of each prisoner of war, his surname, first names, rank, army, regimental, personal or serial number, place and full date of birth, indication of the Power on which he depends, first name of the father and maiden name of the mother, name and address of the person to be informed and the address to which correspondence for the prisoner may be sent.
        The Information Bureau shall receive from the various departments concerned inforrnation regarding transfers, releases, repatriations, escapes, admissions to hospital, and deaths, and shall transmit such information in the manner described in the third paragraph above.
        Likewise, information regarding the state of health of prisoners of war who are seriously ill or seriously wounded shall be supplied regularly, every week if possible.
        The Information Bureau shall also be responsible for replying to all enquiries sent to it concerning prisoners of war, including those who have died in captivity; it will make any enquiries necessary to obtain the information which is asked for if this is not in its possession.
        All written communications made by the Bureau shall be authenticated by a signature or a seal.
        The Information Bureau shall furthermore be charged with collecting all personal valuables, including sums in currencies other than that of the Detaining Power and documents of importance to the next of kin, left by prisoners of war who have been repatriated or released, or who have escaped or died, and shall forward the said valuables to the Powers concerned. Such articles shall be sent by the Bureau in sealed packets which shall be accompanied by statements giving clear and full particulars of the identity of the person to whom the articles of the parcel. Other personal effects of such prisoners of war shall be transmitted under arrangements agreed upon between the Parties to the conflict concerned.
        Article 123A Central Prisoners of War Information Agency shall be created in a neutral country. The International Committee of the Red Cross shall, if it deems necessary, propose to the Powers concerned the organization of such an Agency.
        The function of the Agency shall be to collect all the information it may obtain through official or private channels respecting prisoners of war, and to transmit it as rapidly as possible to the country of origin of the prisoners of war or to the Power on which they depend. It shall receive from the Parties to the conflict all facilities for effecting such transmissions.
        The High Contracting Parties, and in particular those whose nationals benefit by the services of the Central Agency, are requested to give the said Agency the financial aid it may require.
        The foregoing provisions shall in no way be interpreted as restricting the humanitarian activities of the International Committee of the Red Cross, or of the relief Societies provided for in Article 125.
        Article 124The national Information Bureaux and the Central Information Agency shall enjoy free postage for mail, likewise all the exemptions provided for in Article 74, and further, so far as possible, exemption from telegraphic charges or, at least, greatly reduced rates.
        Article 125Subject to the measures which the Detaining Powers may consider essential to ensure their security or to meet any other reasonable need, the representatives of religious organizations, relief societies, or any other organization assisting prisoners of war, shall receive from the said Powers, for themselves and their duly accredited agents, all necessary facilities for visiting the prisoners, distributing relief supplies and material, from any source, intended for religious, educational or recreative purposes, and for assisting them in organizing their leisure time within the camps. Such societies or organizations may be constituted in the territory of the Detaining Power or in any other country, or they may have an international character.
        The Detaining Power may limit the number of societies and organizations whose delegates are allowed to carry out their activities in its territory and under its supervision, on condition, however, that such limitation shall not hinder the effective operation of adequate relief to all prisoners of war.
        The special position of the International Committee of the Red Cross in this field shall be recognized and respected at all times.
        As soon as relief supplies or material intended for the above mentioned purposes are handed over to prisoners of war, or very shortly afterwards, receipts for each consignment, signed by the prisoners' representative, shall be forwarded to the relief society or organization making the shipment. At the same time, receipts for these consignments shall be supplied by the administrative authorities responsible for guarding the prisoners.
        PART VIEXECUTION OF THE CONVENTION
        SECTION I
        GENERAL PROVISIONS
        Article 126Representatives or delegates of the Protecting Powers shall have permission to go to all places where prisoners of war may be, particularly to places of internment, imprisonment and labour, and shall have access to all premises occupied by prisoners of war; they shall also be allowed to go to the places of departure, passage and arrival of prisoners who are being transferred. They shall be able to interview the prisoners, and in particular the prisoners' representatives, without witnesses, either personally or through an interpreter.
        Representatives and delegates of the Protecting Powers shall have full liberty to select the places they wish to visit. The duration and frequency of these visits shall not be restricted. Visits may not be prohibited except for reasons of imperative military necessity, and then only as an exceptional and temporary measure.
        The Detaining Power and the Power on which the said prisoners of war depend may agree, if necessary, that compatriots of these prisoners of war be permitted to participate in the visits.
        The delegates of the International Committee of the Red Cross shall enjoy the same prerogatives. The appointment of such delegates shall be submitted to the approval of the Power detaining the prisoners of war to be visited.
        Article 127The High Contracting Parties undertake, in time of peace as in time of war, to disseminate the text of the present Convention as widely as possible in their respective countries, and, in particular, to include the study thereof in their programmes of military and, if possible, civil instruction, so that the principles thereof may become known to all their armed forces and to the entire population.
        Any military or other authorities, who in time of war assume responsibilities in respect of prisoners of war, must possess the text of the Convention and be specially instructed as to its provisions.
        Article 128The High Contracting Parties shall communicate to one another through the Swiss Federal Council and, during hostilities, through the Protecting Powers, the official translations of the present Convention, as well as the laws and regulations which they may adopt to ensure the application thereof.
        Article 129The High Contracting Parties undertake to enact any legislation necessary to provide effective penal sanctions for persons committing, or ordering to be committed, any of the grave breaches of the present Convention defined in the following Article.
        Each High Contracting Party shall be under the obligation to search for persons alleged to have committed, or to have ordered to be committed, such grave breaches, and shall bring such persons, regardless of their nationality, before its own courts. It may also, if it prefers, and in accordance with the provisions of its own legislation, hand such persons over for trial to another High Contracting Party concerned, provided such High Contracting Party has made out a prima facie case.
        Each High Contracting Party shall take measures necessary for the suppression of all acts contrary to the provisions of the present Convention other than the grave breaches defined in the following Article.
        In all circumstances, the accused persons shall benefit by safeguards of proper trial and defence, which shall not be less favourable than those provided by Article 105 and those following of the present Convention.
        Article 130Grave breaches to which the preceding Article relates shall be those involving any of the following acts, if committed against persons or property protected by the Convention: wilful killing, torture or inhuman treatment, including biological experiments, wilfully causing great suffering or serious injury to body or health, compelling a prisoner of war to serve in the forces of the hostile Power, or wilfully depriving a prisoner of war of the rights of fair and regular trial prescribed in this Convention.
        Article 131No High Contracting Party shall be allowed to absolve itself or any other High Contracting Party of any liability incurred by itself or by another High Contracting Party in respect of breaches referred to in the preceding Article.
        Article 132At the request of a Party to the conflict, an enquiry shall be instituted, in a manner to be decided between the interested Parties, concerning any alleged violation of the Convention.
        If agreement has not been reached concerning the procedure for the enquiry, the Parties should agree on the choice of an umpire who will decide upon the procedure to be followed.
        Once the violation has been established, the Parties to the conflict shall put an end to it and shall repress it with the least possible delay.
        SECTION 11
        FINAL PROVISIONS
        Article 133The present Convention is established in English and in French. Both texts are equally authentic. The Swiss Federal Council shall arrange for official translations of the Convention to be made in the Russian and Spanish languages.
        Article 134The present Convention replaces the Convention of 27 July 1929, in relations between the High Contracting Parties.
        Article 135In the relations between the Powers which are bound by The Hague Convention respecting the Laws and Customs of War on Land, whether that of July 29, 1899, or that of October 18, 1907, and which are parties to the present Convention, this last Convention shall be complementary to Chapter II of the Regulations annexed to the above-mentioned Conventions of The Hague.
        Article 136The present Convention, which bears the date of this day, is open to signature until February 12, 1950, in the name of the Powers represented at the Conference which opened at Geneva on April 21, 1949; furthermore, by Powers not represented at that Conference, but which are parties to the Convention of July 27, 1929.
        Article 137 The present Convention shall be ratified as soon as possible and the ratifications shall be deposited at Berne.A record shall be drawn up of the deposit of each instrument of ratification and certified copies of this record shall be transmitted by the Swiss Federal Council to all the Powers in whose name the Convention has been signed, or whose accession has been notified.
        Article 138The present Convention shall come into force six months after not less than two instruments of ratification have been deposited.
        Thereafter, it shall come into force for each High Contracting Party six months after the deposit of the instrument of ratification.
        Article 139From the date of its coming into force, it shall be open to any Power in whose name the present Convention has not been signed, to accede to this Convention.
        Article 140Accessions shall be notified in writing to the Swiss Federal Council, and shall take effect six months after the date on which they are received.
        The Swiss Federal Council shall communicate the accessions to all the Powers in whose name the Convention has been signed, or whose accession has been notified.
        Article 141The situations provided for in Articles 2 and 3 shall give immediate effect to ratifications deposited and accessions notified by the Parties to the conflict before or after the beginning of hostilities or occupation. The Swiss Federal Council shall communicate by the quickest method any ratifications or accessions received from Parties to the conflict.
        Article 142Each of the High Contracting Parties shall be at liberty to denounce the present Convention.
        The denunciation shall be notified in writing to the Swiss Federal Council, which shall transmit it to the Governments of all the High Contracting Parties.
        The denunciation shall take effect one year after the notification thereof has been made to the Swiss Federal Council. However, a denunciation of which notification has been made at a time when the denouncing Power is involved in a conflict shall not take effect until peace has been concluded, and until after operations connected with the release and repatriation of the persons protected by the present Convention have been terminated.
        The denunciation shall have effect only in respect of the denouncing Power. It shall in no way impair the obligations which the Parties to the conflict shall remain bound to fulfil by virtue of the principles of the law of nations, as they result from the usages established among civilized peoples, from the laws of humanity and the dictates of the public conscience.
        Article 143The Swiss Federal Council shall register the present Convention with the Secretariat of the United Nations. The Swiss Federal Council shall also inform the Secretariat of the United Nations of all ratifications, accessions and denunciations received by it with respect to the present Convention.
        IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, having deposited their respective full powers, have signed the present Convention.
        DONE at Geneva this twelfth day of August 1949, in the English and French languages. The original shall be deposited in the Archives of the Swiss Confederation. The Swiss Federal Council shall transmit certified copies thereof to each of the signatory and acceding States.
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      TUMBLR-NATO!!!-NEW SATELLITE IMAGERY EXPOSES RUSSIAN COMBAT TROOPS INSIDE UKRAINE
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 12:36
        Discussing all things related to the United States and NATO
        38 notes
        August 28, 2014(from SHAPE Public Affairs)
        Mons, BELGIUM '' NATO released new satellite images on Thursday, 28 August 2014, that show Russian combat forces engaged in military operations inside the sovereign territory of Ukraine. The images, captured in late August, depict Russian self-propelled artillery units moving in a convoy through the Ukrainian countryside and then preparing for action by establishing firing positions in the area of Krasnodon, Ukraine.
        Dutch Brigadier General Nico Tak, director of the Comprehensive Crisis and Operations Management Centre (CCOMC), Allied Command Operations said the images confirmed what NATO and its Allies had been seeing for weeks from other sources.
        "Over the past two weeks we have noted a significant escalation in both the level and sophistication of Russia's military interference in Ukraine,'' said Brigadier General Tak. "The satellite images released today provide additional evidence that Russian combat soldiers, equipped with sophisticated heavy weaponry, are operating inside Ukraine's sovereign territory,'' he said.
        These latest images provide concrete examples of Russian activity inside Ukraine, but are only the tip of the iceberg in terms of the overall scope of Russian troop and weapons movements.
        "We have also detected large quantities of advanced weapons, including air defence systems, artillery, tanks, and armoured personnel carriers being transferred to separatist forces in Eastern Ukraine,'' said Brigadier General Tak. "The presence of these weapons along with substantial numbers of Russian combat troops inside Ukraine make the situation increasingly grave,'' he said.
        Also released were images showing substantial activity inside Russia in areas adjacent to the border with Ukraine. NATO believes this activity is being conducted in direct support to forces operating inside Ukraine, and is part of a highly coordinated and destabilising strategy.
        "Russia is reinforcing and resupplying separatist forces in a blatant attempt to change the momentum of the fighting, which is currently favouring the Ukrainian military," Brigadier General Tak said. "Russia's ultimate aim is to alleviate pressure on separatist fighters in order to prolong this conflict indefinitely, which would result in further tragedy for the people of Eastern Ukraine," he added.
        The source of the images is an independent firm named Digital Globe. The images have not been altered or changed by NATO. Additional information has been added to identify locations, dates and equipment. DigitalGlobe images can be independently verified: http://www.digitalglobe.com
        Story by SHAPE Public Affairs Office
        Image 1 shows Russian military units moving in a convoy formation with self-propelled artillery in the area of Krasnodon, Ukraine, well inside territory controlled by Russian separatists. The image was captured on 21 August 2014. There is confidence the equipment is Russian, since Ukrainian units have not yet penetrated this far into separatist controlled territory.
        Image 2 shows Russian self-propelled artillery units set up in firing positions near Krasnodon, Ukraine. They are supported by logistical vehicles which are likely carrying extra ammunition and supplies. This configuration is exactly how trained military professionals would arrange their assets on the ground, indicating that these are not unskilled amateurs, but Russian soldiers. Russian artillery systems like these have recently shelled Ukrainian positions outside the city of Luhansk in conjunction with a separatist counteroffensive to attempt to break the Ukrainian siege of the city.
        Image 3 includes two pictures (left and right) and shows a military deployment site on the Russian side of the border, near Rostov-on-Don. This location is approximately 31 miles or 50 kilometres from the Dovzhansky, Ukraine border crossing.
        The image on the left was captured on 19 June 2014 and shows the area to be mostly empty at this time. The image on the right was taken two months later on 20 August 2014 and shows the same location. Russian main battle tanks, armored personnel carriers, cargo trucks and tented accommodations can all be clearly seen. This is one example of the multiple encampments that Russia has positioned near its border with Eastern Ukraine. Many of these forces are deployed within a few kilometers of Ukraine, and are capable of attacking with little warning, and could potentially overwhelm and push-back Ukrainian units. Russia has also moved significant numbers of combat aircraft and helicopters to airfields along the border. Russian unmanned aircraft routinely cross into Ukrainian airspace.
        Some equipment from these locations is moved across the border and is used to resupply and equip separatist forces operating in Ukraine. For months, Russia has provided separatist fighters with heavy equipment in the form of tanks, armored vehicles, artillery, and multiple rocket launchers. Air defense systems have also been provided to separatists, even following the downing of Malaysian airlines flight MH17.
        Image 4, captured on 23 July 2014, depicts what are probably six Russian 153mm 2S19 self-propelled guns located in Russia near Kuybyshevo. This site is situated 4 miles, or 6.5 kilometres, south of the Ukraine border, near the village of Chervonyi Zhovten. The guns are pointed north, directly towards Ukrainian territory (see North indicator on image). See image 5 for an overview of where these guns are situated in relation to Ukrainian territory.
        Image 5 shows a wider overview including the position of the self-propelled guns from image 4. Note the North indicator on this image, and remember that the guns are orientated in this location. It is clear that from this location, it would be impossible NOT to fire into Ukrainian territory. This is clearly NOT an exercise; these guns are being used to support separatist forces operating in the territory of Ukraine.
        Filed under ukrainerussianato
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    NWO
      Henry Kissinger on the Assembly of a New World Order - WSJ
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 08:28
        Updated Aug. 29, 2014 12:04 p.m. ET
        The concept of order that has underpinned the modern era is in crisis, writes Henry Kissinger. Above, a pro-Russian fighter stands guard at a checkpoint close to Donetsk, Ukraine in July. European Pressphoto Agency
        Libya is in civil war, fundamentalist armies are building a self-declared caliphate across Syria and Iraq and Afghanistan's young democracy is on the verge of paralysis. To these troubles are added a resurgence of tensions with Russia and a relationship with China divided between pledges of cooperation and public recrimination. The concept of order that has underpinned the modern era is in crisis.
        The search for world order has long been defined almost exclusively by the concepts of Western societies. In the decades following World War II, the U.S.'--strengthened in its economy and national confidence'--began to take up the torch of international leadership and added a new dimension. A nation founded explicitly on an idea of free and representative governance, the U.S. identified its own rise with the spread of liberty and democracy and credited these forces with an ability to achieve just and lasting peace. The traditional European approach to order had viewed peoples and states as inherently competitive; to constrain the effects of their clashing ambitions, it relied on a balance of power and a concert of enlightened statesmen. The prevalent American view considered people inherently reasonable and inclined toward peaceful compromise and common sense; the spread of democracy was therefore the overarching goal for international order. Free markets would uplift individuals, enrich societies and substitute economic interdependence for traditional international rivalries.
        In the Middle East, religious militias violate borders at will. Getty Images
        This effort to establish world order has in many ways come to fruition. A plethora of independent sovereign states govern most of the world's territory. The spread of democracy and participatory governance has become a shared aspiration if not a universal reality; global communications and financial networks operate in real time.
        The years from perhaps 1948 to the turn of the century marked a brief moment in human history when one could speak of an incipient global world order composed of an amalgam of American idealism and traditional European concepts of statehood and balance of power. But vast regions of the world have never shared and only acquiesced in the Western concept of order. These reservations are now becoming explicit, for example, in the Ukraine crisis and the South China Sea. The order established and proclaimed by the West stands at a turning point.
        First, the nature of the state itself'--the basic formal unit of international life'--has been subjected to a multitude of pressures. Europe has set out to transcend the state and craft a foreign policy based primarily on the principles of soft power. But it is doubtful that claims to legitimacy separated from a concept of strategy can sustain a world order. And Europe has not yet given itself attributes of statehood, tempting a vacuum of authority internally and an imbalance of power along its borders. At the same time, parts of the Middle East have dissolved into sectarian and ethnic components in conflict with each other; religious militias and the powers backing them violate borders and sovereignty at will, producing the phenomenon of failed states not controlling their own territory.
        The challenge in Asia is the opposite of Europe's: Balance-of-power principles prevail unrelated to an agreed concept of legitimacy, driving some disagreements to the edge of confrontation.
        The clash between the international economy and the political institutions that ostensibly govern it also weakens the sense of common purpose necessary for world order. The economic system has become global, while the political structure of the world remains based on the nation-state. Economic globalization, in its essence, ignores national frontiers. Foreign policy affirms them, even as it seeks to reconcile conflicting national aims or ideals of world order.
        This dynamic has produced decades of sustained economic growth punctuated by periodic financial crises of seemingly escalating intensity: in Latin America in the 1980s; in Asia in 1997; in Russia in 1998; in the U.S. in 2001 and again starting in 2007; in Europe after 2010. The winners have few reservations about the system. But the losers'--such as those stuck in structural misdesigns, as has been the case with the European Union's southern tier'--seek their remedies by solutions that negate, or at least obstruct, the functioning of the global economic system.
        The international order thus faces a paradox: Its prosperity is dependent on the success of globalization, but the process produces a political reaction that often works counter to its aspirations.
        A third failing of the current world order, such as it exists, is the absence of an effective mechanism for the great powers to consult and possibly cooperate on the most consequential issues. This may seem an odd criticism in light of the many multilateral forums that exist'--more by far than at any other time in history. Yet the nature and frequency of these meetings work against the elaboration of long-range strategy. This process permits little beyond, at best, a discussion of pending tactical issues and, at worst, a new form of summitry as "social media" event. A contemporary structure of international rules and norms, if it is to prove relevant, cannot merely be affirmed by joint declarations; it must be fostered as a matter of common conviction.
        The penalty for failing will be not so much a major war between states (though in some regions this remains possible) as an evolution into spheres of influence identified with particular domestic structures and forms of governance. At its edges, each sphere would be tempted to test its strength against other entities deemed illegitimate. A struggle between regions could be even more debilitating than the struggle between nations has been.
        The contemporary quest for world order will require a coherent strategy to establish a concept of order within the various regions and to relate these regional orders to one another. These goals are not necessarily self-reconciling: The triumph of a radical movement might bring order to one region while setting the stage for turmoil in and with all others. The domination of a region by one country militarily, even if it brings the appearance of order, could produce a crisis for the rest of the world.
        A world order of states affirming individual dignity and participatory governance, and cooperating internationally in accordance with agreed-upon rules, can be our hope and should be our inspiration. But progress toward it will need to be sustained through a series of intermediary stages.
        To play a responsible role in the evolution of a 21st-century world order, the U.S. must be prepared to answer a number of questions for itself: What do we seek to prevent, no matter how it happens, and if necessary alone? What do we seek to achieve, even if not supported by any multilateral effort? What do we seek to achieve, or prevent, only if supported by an alliance? What should we not engage in, even if urged on by a multilateral group or an alliance? What is the nature of the values that we seek to advance? And how much does the application of these values depend on circumstance?
        For the U.S., this will require thinking on two seemingly contradictory levels. The celebration of universal principles needs to be paired with recognition of the reality of other regions' histories, cultures and views of their security. Even as the lessons of challenging decades are examined, the affirmation of America's exceptional nature must be sustained. History offers no respite to countries that set aside their sense of identity in favor of a seemingly less arduous course. But nor does it assure success for the most elevated convictions in the absence of a comprehensive geopolitical strategy.
        '--Dr. Kissinger served as national security adviser and secretary of state under Presidents Nixon and Ford. Adapted from his book "World Order," to be published Sept. 9 by the Penguin Press.
      7 reasons women will lead the new world order - MarketWatch
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 10:10
        International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde.''Men are losing their grip,'' wrote Jennifer Homans in her New York Times review of ''The End of Men and Rise of Women,'' Hanna Rosin's bestseller. ''Patriarchy is crumbling. We are reaching 'the end of 200,000 years of human history and the beginning of a new era' in which women, and womanly skills and traits, are on the rise.'' Warning guys, this is the last gasp of your male-dominated patriarchy.
        Women will rule the future. Men hate it, are trapped in the past. Driven by tribal urges to fight change, hold onto ancient symbols of power. Like Don Quixote tilting at windmills. Even more than chasing hot market tips, today's men frantically search for past glory ... in purple pills for ED, Low-T, aging cosmetics, magic solutions to belly fat ... playing fantasy football over a six-pack ... yearn for the freedom of America's 19th century Wild West ... hero-worship icons like John Wayne ... the good old days when old-guy paternalism ruled.
        Even today's conservative war on women, the drive to control women's reproductive rights, comes from deep in the collective conscious of the male brain, as men feel threatened by this historic power shift.
        Yes, ''a new matriarchy is emerging'' says Homans. ''For the first time in history, the global economy is becoming a place where women are finding more success than men ... run by young, ambitious, capable women ... taking matters into their own hands.''
        Yes, it's a guy thing, after 200,000 years women make men feel powerlessBut the real tragedy is that today's threatened male ego is also sabotaging America's economy and our status as a world power. How? By fighting a losing battle to hold onto the old vestiges of their ancient macho-dominated patriarchy, the weak male ego is making matters worse, manifest in the GOPs seeming endless, self-destructive, do-nothing partisan political wars that at their core simply confirm how patriarchy is crumbling. First, their childish strategy opposing a black male president. Now their fear a woman could win the presidency, even lead till 2024. No wonder the ancient male brain is in panic mode.
        Yes, history is changing, fast: There were only four women in my University of Virginia Law School graduating class. Now it would be half women. Same with other professions. So here's how we see the single biggest global trend that's defining the 21st century: How women are replacing men as leaders in America and around the world. Here's a summary of the seven elements of this rapidly emerging trend as identified in Fortune, the New York Times, Time magazine, money manager Jeremy Grantham and other sources:
        1. The female brain is naturally wired with long-term strategic visionMoney manager Jeremy Grantham says our male-dominated patriarchal culture has created ''an army of left-brained immediate doers.'' Wall Street, Corporate America and Silicon Valley's social-media commandos all think short term, discounting to zero longer-term social costs, like climate change and resource depletion, while ignoring reality, that we're living on a planet incapable of feeding the 10 billion predicted within a generation
        Grantham predicted a global crash back in 2006. Now he warns of a possible 50% market collapse by 2016. Till then, the Fed's misguided cheap-money policies will just keep pushing the S&P500 to 2,250. Why? The short-term thinking brains of our male-dominated capitalist world (closing process, quarterly earnings, annual bonuses) are not psychologically wired to solve the world's bigger long-term problems. The female brain is better designed.
        2. Changing job needs are empowering women, leveling the playing fieldMen raised in macho cultures with traditional values feel even more threatened as women gain equality and power. As Homans put it in the Times: ''The end of men is really the end of a manufacturing-based economy.'' Six million lost jobs since 2000, mostly men, creating a vacuum. As a result, ''a new matriarchy is emerging: For the first time in history, the global economy is becoming a place where women are finding more success than men ... run by young, ambitious, capable women ... taking matters into their own hands.''
    Moral Self License
      -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      ALS numbers being emailed around
        Ice Bucket Challenge donations are nearing $100 MILLION. Where is that money going?
        According to the ALS Foundation, not towards ALS. Over 73% of all donations raised are going to fundraising, overhead, executive salaries, and external donations. Less than 27% is actually used for the purpose donated for.
        Here's the breakdown of the ALS Foundation's Base Executive Salaries:
        Jane H. Gilbert – President and CEO –$339,475.00
        Daniel M. Reznikov – Chief Financial Officer – $201,260.00
        Steve Gibson – Chief Public Policy Officer – $182,862.00
        Kimberly Maginnis -Chief of Care Services Officer – $160,646.00
        Lance Slaughter -Chief Chapter Relations and Development Officer – $152,692.00
        Michelle Keegan – Chief Development Officer – $178,744.00
        John Applegate – Association Finance Officer – $118.726.00
        David Moses – Director of Planned Giving – $112,509.00
        Carrie Munk – Chief Communications and Marketing Officer – $142,875.00
        Patrick Wildman – Director of Public Policy – $112,358.00
        Kathi Kromer – Director of State Advocacy – $110,661.00
      My Take:
        First thing I did when this started is to pull their form 990. It's like all these non profits that raise awareness for more research to be done. The Autism people have the ALS people beat by miles.
        $100m is a drop on the bucket compared to $6billion for Haiti. The slaves texted their donation, sent cash, not water or blankets.. Clinton stole at least some of that money and now the Haitians are shutting themselves to death.
        No One Cares about the money.
        Once the moral self license is written, one can only receive scorn and be accused of being petty when pointing out the obvious scam.
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      This is what Tesla owners are doing while you sleep | Opower
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Thu, 28 Aug 2014 13:02
        By day'...electric vehicles are taking the world by storm: their sales aredoublingevery year, their fuel efficiency isoff the charts, and some of them can evenacceleratefrom 0-60 mph about as fast as you can say Elon Musk.
        By night'...the electric vehicle (EV) community continues to make waves. While you are in bed dreaming about how some day you too might own an electric car, many EV owners are doing something dramatic; something unusual; something that is reshaping the energy landscape.
        They are using gobs of electricity.
        Today we once again crack open Opower's energy data storehouse (the world's largest, spanning more than 50 million households worldwide) '' this time to examine the energy usage behavior of an increasingly important segment of utility customers: electric car owners who charge their car in the wee hours of the night.
        To fuel our analysis, we evaluated anonymous data from about 2,000 night-charging EV owners in the western US (see Methodology) '-- a region where Teslas, Nissan Leafs, and other plug-in electric cars abound.
        Our statistical findings suggest how vastly EV owners' energy profiles can deviate from normal; why the timing of EV charging is so important; how solar panels fit into the picture; and what it all means for utilities, their customers, and the future of the electric grid.
        After a long day, it's time for a good night's chargeThe wee hours have in recent years gained traction as a popular time for EV owners to recharge their vehicles.
        In the hourly usage curves below, you can see that the EV owners in our dataset (light blue) exhibit a massive spike in electricity use beginning at midnight, shooting up to around 4 times the average level.
        Why the huge usage bump at midnight sharp? The answer hinges on incentives and utilities' ability to shape consumer behavior.
        Specifically, many EV owners in the western region (upwards of 60%, according to one California study) '-- and all the EV owners considered in our analysis '' have signed up with their utility to get highly discounted electricity between midnight and 7am, in exchange for a daytime price hike. The sudden surge on the right side of the graph above suggests the behavioral effectiveness of this framework: when EV owners enroll in a time-of-use rate plan, they operate in alignment with it.
        Offering an off-peak rate plan tends to be a savvy move by utilities: it helps them prevent power-hungry electric cars from overtaxing the electric grid during the day, when system-wide demand is already on the high side. As we've previously examined on this blog, high electric demand in the afternoon hours is notorious for destabilizing the power grid.
        That's why utilities in numerous states '-- ranging from California to Texas to Georgia '-- have been quick to introduce targeted customer engagement programs and off-peak charging incentives that help smooth the integration of EV's into their territory. Last month, Minnesota became the first state to roll out a statewide approach for promoting night-time EV charging.
        We've seen above that EV owners who have an incentive to charge their car at night understandably exhibit abnormal electricity usage during those hours. What may be more surprising is what happens after the sun rises'...
        After the sun rises, electric car owners are still differentIt's morning, around 7am. Teslas have been charged, the time-of-use electricity price for participating EV households has cranked up, and the hourly electric usage from those households has diminished.
        Despite the marked reduction in usage however, EV rate plan subscribers continue to out-consume their peers even during the waking hours. Between 7am and midnight, they use an average of 21% more electricity from the grid than the typical single-family household.
        EV owners' outsized grid electricity consumption during the waking hours appears to register at specific times of day, namely in the morning and evening. For a visual perspective, look at the hourly usage curves from earlier, which show that EV rate subscribers' grid electric usage during the edges of the day (i.e. 7am-9am and 5pm-midnight) are relatively high, but usage during midday is actually below normal.
        Why? Consider a couple key factors that may help explain EV owners' distinctive usage pattern during the waking hours:
        1) EV owners appear to have larger electricity needs, especially when at home.
        People are more likely to be home in the morning and evening; EV owners may be especially likely to use more power at those times because they have bigger homes as well as bigger amenities (see below); it's also entirely plausible that some EV owners may occasionally charge their EV during those times, even though their time-of-use rate plan discourages this kind of behavior.
        2) EV owners are much more likely than their peers to own solar panels.
        One recent survey among west-region utility customers found that 32% of EV owners had installed rooftop solar, which drastically reduces their grid electric consumption during the sunny middle of the day. Likewise, we discovered that many EV households' afternoon solar generation routinely exceeds their own needs: our regional analysis shows that 1 in 13 EV rate plan subscribers regularly spin their electric meter backwards via solar, compared to just 1 in 86 typical households.
        Thanks to their surplus solar generation, EV owners who are also solar super-users actually consume a tad less total daily grid electricity than the typical utility customer.
        In light of EV rate plan subscribers' unique behavioral and household profile, it's striking that having a sufficiently large solar rooftop can make them '' from the perspective of total daily grid electric usage '' look pretty darn normal.
        More after-midnight action is on the wayEV rate plan subscribers '' with their huge night-time charging spike, bigger and fancier homes, and elevated grid electric consumption in the morning and evening '' are a distinctive sort of energy user.
        And it appears that there are many more of them on the way. Last month, eight US states announced a market development plan to put 3.3 million zero-emission vehicles on their roads by 2025. This month, Tesla CEO Elon Musk released his company's patents to catalyze the growth of the broader EV industry. Meanwhile, states and utilities are taking bold steps to support off-peak charging options that play nicely with the power grid and make EV fueling more affordable.
        Utilities will play a central role in shaping how the EV landscape unfolds in the coming decades. As an increasing number of EV owners begin to plug in, utilities are in an important position to advise them and guide their behavior (e.g. toward night-time charging) in a way that helps smoothly integrate EV's into the modern electric grid '' in parallel with other critical trends like distributed solar generation, changes in energy prices, and new controls on power plant emissions.
        As for what more and more Tesla owners will be doing while you sleep, just remember: it's happening in the garage.
        Graphics by: Waleed Al-Alami
        Special thanks to: Meggie Bonner, Emily Bailey, Alessandro Orfei, Aaron Tinjum, and Casey Davis-Van Atta
        Follow @OpowerOutlier on Twitter
        Methodology:
        Data used for this analysis stems from single-family residences with hourly electric meters, located in a western US region characterized by high penetration of plug-in electric vehicles.
        All utility service points fall within a common area bounded by a 100-kilometer radius. Usage statistics are annual per-household averages based on hourly electricity consumption data measured between May 1st, 2013 and May 1st, 2014.
        Electric Vehicle, or ''EV'' households (n=1,996) are defined as utility customers enrolled in an electric vehicle rate plan that promotes night-time charging commencing at 12am. Among these customers, the mean start month for rate plan enrollment is October 2012. Energy data for these households specifically reflects usage following the date of their enrollment in the EV rate plan.
        Solar EV Households evaluated for this analysis are defined as customers who exhibit an annual average negative usage read (i.e. routinely spin their electric meter backwards by generating solar electricity in excess of on-site demand) for the 12pm-1pm measurement interval.
        Typical Households (n=996,465) are defined as customers enrolled in a standard rate plan with no time-of-use component. This group is certain to contain EV owners who are not enrolled in an electric vehicle rate plan. However, the relative scarcity of EV's within the broader population at this time implies that their usage patterns have a negligible impact on baseline group statistics.
        Data Privacy: All data analyzed here are anonymous and treated in strict adherence to Opower's Data Principles.
        Author's note: The analysis and commentary presented above solely reflect the views of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of Opower's utility partners.
      -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      Hilary Swank Struggles with ALS in First Trailer for 'You're Not You' | FirstShowing.net
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 09:19
        by Ethan AndertonAugust 28, 2014Source:EW
        Awareness of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gherig's disease) has been raised exponentially thanks to the online charity trend of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, with donations going to the ALS Association, aiming to find a cure for the disease that attacks the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movement. All the talk about support to fight disease is mere coincidence as a film called You're Not You is on the way featuring Hilary Swank as a famous pianist who suddenly finds herself diagnosed by the disease, and hires an unconventional assistant, Emmy Rossum, to help her cope. It looks pretty conventional and very melodramatic, but also pretty uplifting on some level, I guess. Watch!
        Here's the first trailer for George C. Wolfe's You're Not You, originally from EW:
        You're Not You is directed by George C. Wolfe (Nights in Rodanthe) and written by Jordan Roberts (3, 2, 1...Frankie Goes Boom) &Shana Feste (Country Strong). The film follows Kate (Hilary Swank), a woman who has been immobilized by ALS (aka Lou Gehrig's disease) and Bec (Emmy Rossum), the aimless and self-absorbed college student she hires to be her caregiver in spite of her husband's (Josh Duhamel) objections. What was supposed to be a part-time job becomes a life-changing experience for Bec as her relationship with Kate transforms her into a young woman with confidence and ambition. Marcia Gay Harden, Jason Ritter and more also star in the film eOne releases on VOD and in theaters October 10th.
        Find more posts inTo Watch, Trailer
        Discover more on ZergNet:
      -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Vaccine$
      Gardasil Colombia
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Thu, 28 Aug 2014 13:02
        BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) -- A mystery illness has overwhelmed a small town in northern Colombia as scores of teenage girls have been hospitalized with symptoms that parents fear could be an adverse reaction to a popular vaccine against cervical cancer.Authorities say they still don't know what caused more than 200 girls in El Carmen de Bolivar to come down with symptoms ranging from fainting to numbness in the hands and headaches. Some have hinted that the town of 95,000 near Colombia's Caribbean coast could be experiencing a rare case of mass hysteria.Parents are on edge however because all the girls, ranging in ages from 9 to 16, were injected in recent months with the vaccine Gardasil. On Wednesday, residents marched peacefully to demand a thorough investigation.Francisco Vega, the town's mayor and a trained physician, told The Associated Press that illnesses first appeared at the end of May and have been steadily increasing since. Over the weekend 120 girls were rushed to hospitals, collapsing the town's limited medical facilities. None of their symptoms were life-threatening and all have since been released, he said.Echoing the assurances of national health and toxicology experts, who have traveled to the town to collect blood samples and investigate possible environmental hazards, he said there's no evidence the vaccine, which has undergone extensive testing and regulation globally, is to blame.Meanwhile, Health Minister Alejandro Gaviria is criticizing hyped coverage by the media for stirring panic, saying concerns about their vaccine, which has been applied to 2.9 million women in Colombia, are baseless."On one side we have the weight of scientific evidence and on the other are opinions and moral prejudices," he told W Radio on Wednesday, adding the cervical cancer claims the lives of more than 3,000 women every year in Colombia.Veronica Trulin, head of communications in Latin America for Merck, said all lots of the vaccine, including the ones sent to Colombia, meet all required quality and safety standards."We don't comment on speculation about our products," she said in an email---Follow Joshua Goodman on Twitter: (at)APjoshgoodman
      By end of August, CVS will offer Narcan without prescription to counter opiate overdoses | News - Rhode Island news right now | Providence Journal
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 05:17
        WOONSOCKET, R.I. '-- CVS Pharmacy announced that it would offer the opiate antidote Narcan without a prescription at all of its 60 pharmacies in Rhode Island by the end of month.
        Narcan, also known as naloxone, offers immediate help for anyone overdosing from an opiate such as heroin or a prescription painkiller such as OxyContin. If given in time, Narcan can reverse an overdose by restoring breathing.
        ''Over half of our pharmacies are now under a collaborative agreement that allows them to dispense Narcan without a prescription,'' CVS spokesman Michael DeAngelis said Friday. ''It's part of our commitment to combat prescription drug abuse. We think it's a great public service.''
        The Walgreens pharmacy chain began a similar program more than a year ago, thanks to an agreement among the Board of Pharmacy, a Miriam Hospital doctor and the drugstore.
        The two drug giants are responding to a surge in recent deaths in Rhode Island due to opiate drug overdoses. According to a Butler Hospital website, Rhode Island ranks among the highest in the country in illicit drug use, including the non-medical use of prescription pain relievers and per capita overdose deaths.
        In the first four months of 2014, 90 Rhode Islanders died from accidental drug overdoses, a 23-percent increase from the 73 drug overdoses reported during the same period last year.
        In August, Butler and Kent hospitals began distributing Narcan to patients at risk of an opiate drug overdose. The Rhode Island State Police added Narcan to their toolbox in early May.
        The collaborative agreement is with Dr. Josiah Rich, an infectious disease specialist at the Miriam Hospital. Once a pharmacist completes the training program, he or she signs the agreement with Rich.
        DeAngelis referred to this process as a blanket prescription.
        ''It's pretty straight forward,'' Rich said. ''We teach people how to recognize a drug overdose, to call 911 and how to administer Narcan.''
        Narcan can be administered as a nasal spray or an injection. CVS will offer both, but the nasal spray is expected to be much more widely used. CVS pharmacists are currently undergoing training on how to help customers properly administer the drug, DeAngelis said.
        ''It will be like getting a flu shot,'' he said. ''You will be able to walk in and not need a prescription.''
        Rich said, however, that a single dose of Narcan may not be enough. He also said that as Narcan wears off, the individual may experience withdrawal symptoms, such as nausea and vomiting.
        ''We strongly encourage people to seek medical care,'' he said.
        Rich applauded CVS for making a commitment to deal with a serious medical crisis in Rhode Island.
        ''Here in their home state, with one of the most devastating public epidemics to hit, they are stepping up to the plate and rolling this out,'' he said. ''This is a critically important tool to prevent overdose deaths.''
        Rich said he hopes that if the effort is successful here, CVS will consider expanding it to other states.
        WOONSOCKET, R.I. '-- CVS Pharmacy announced that it would offer the opiate antidote Narcan without a prescription at all of its 60 pharmacies in Rhode Island by the end of month.
        Narcan, also known as naloxone, offers immediate help for anyone overdosing from an opiate such as heroin or a prescription painkiller such as OxyContin. If given in time, Narcan can reverse an overdose by restoring breathing.
        ''Over half of our pharmacies are now under a collaborative agreement that allows them to dispense Narcan without a prescription,'' CVS spokesman Michael DeAngelis said Friday. ''It's part of our commitment to combat prescription drug abuse. We think it's a great public service.''
        The Walgreens pharmacy chain began a similar program more than a year ago, thanks to an agreement among the Board of Pharmacy, a Miriam Hospital doctor and the drugstore.
        The two drug giants are responding to a surge in recent deaths in Rhode Island due to opiate drug overdoses. According to a Butler Hospital website, Rhode Island ranks among the highest in the country in illicit drug use, including the non-medical use of prescription pain relievers and per capita overdose deaths.
        In the first four months of 2014, 90 Rhode Islanders died from accidental drug overdoses, a 23-percent increase from the 73 drug overdoses reported during the same period last year.
        In August, Butler and Kent hospitals began distributing Narcan to patients at risk of an opiate drug overdose. The Rhode Island State Police added Narcan to their toolbox in early May.
        The collaborative agreement is with Dr. Josiah Rich, an infectious disease specialist at the Miriam Hospital. Once a pharmacist completes the training program, he or she signs the agreement with Rich.
        DeAngelis referred to this process as a blanket prescription.
        ''It's pretty straight forward,'' Rich said. ''We teach people how to recognize a drug overdose, to call 911 and how to administer Narcan.''
        Narcan can be administered as a nasal spray or an injection. CVS will offer both, but the nasal spray is expected to be much more widely used. CVS pharmacists are currently undergoing training on how to help customers properly administer the drug, DeAngelis said.
        ''It will be like getting a flu shot,'' he said. ''You will be able to walk in and not need a prescription.''
        Rich said, however, that a single dose of Narcan may not be enough. He also said that as Narcan wears off, the individual may experience withdrawal symptoms, such as nausea and vomiting.
        ''We strongly encourage people to seek medical care,'' he said.
        Rich applauded CVS for making a commitment to deal with a serious medical crisis in Rhode Island.
        ''Here in their home state, with one of the most devastating public epidemics to hit, they are stepping up to the plate and rolling this out,'' he said. ''This is a critically important tool to prevent overdose deaths.''
        Rich said he hopes that if the effort is successful here, CVS will consider expanding it to other states.
      Focus Autism Releases Findings on 2003 CDC Autism Study '' Higher Autism Rate Among African-American Boys Receiving MMR Shot Earlier than 36 Months
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 11:41
        Focus Autism releases their findings of a possible reduction in the sample size of a major 2003 study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This sample size reduction negates statistically significant findings from the study.
        _______________________________________________________________________________________
        Watchung, NJ (PRWEB) August 19, 2014
        A top research scientist working for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) played a key role in helping Dr. Brian Hooker of the Focus Autism Foundation uncover data manipulation by the CDC that obscured a higher incidence of autism in African-American boys. The whistleblower came to the attention of Hooker, a PhD in biochemical engineering, after he had made a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for original data on the DeStefano et al MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) and autism study.
        Dr. Hooker has viewed highly sensitive documents related to the study via Congressional request from U.S. Representative Darrell Issa, Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
        Dr. Hooker's study, published August 8 in the peer-reviewed scientific journal Translational Neurodegeneration, shows that African-American boys receiving their first MMR vaccine before 36 months of age were 3.4 times more likely to develop autism vs. after 36 months.
        In the study, Dr. Hooker notes how a statistically significant relationship between the age the MMR vaccine was first given and autism incidence in African-American boys has not yet been made public by CDC researchers.
        According to Dr. Hooker, the CDC whistleblower informant '-- who wishes to remain anonymous '-- guided him to evidence that a statistically significant relationship between the age the MMR vaccine was first given and autism incidence in African-American boys was hidden by CDC researchers. Data was gathered on 2,583 children living in Atlanta, Georgia who were born between 1986 and 1993. However, CDC researchers did not include any children that did not have a valid State of Georgia birth certificate '' reducing the study's sample size by 41% . Dr. Hooker explains that by introducing this discretionary criteria into the analysis, the cohort size was sharply reduced, eliminating what would have been a higher statistical finding. This minimized the strong MMR-autism link in African American boys. When asked if there could be any scientific basis for excluding children born outside of Georgia, Dr. Hooker responded, ''I know of none, and none has been provided by the authors of the DeStefano study.''
        The results of the original CDC study first appeared in the journal Pediatrics, which receives financial support from vaccine makers through advertising and direct donations, according to a CBS News report. The DeStefano et al study is widely used by the CDC and other public health organizations to support a claim that there is no link between vaccines and autism '' a neurological disorder on the rise among children.
        Dr. Hooker states, ''Based on the scientific findings, the CDC failed to report the relationship between the age of first MMR vaccine and autism incidence in African-American boys as early as 2003. This data is important and would allow the public to make decisions based on full disclosure of vaccine risks.''
        Dr. Hooker concludes that further study is needed to determine why this specific effect (3.4-fold increase when MMR is administered prior to 36 months) is seen exclusively in African-American males, and determine whether delaying the first MMR vaccination should be advised for this population. A link between vaccines (including the MMR) and autism has been acknowledged in cases compensated by the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program.
        According to David Lewis, Ph.D., former senior-level microbiologist with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Office of Research & Development, skewing scientific data to support government policies should be considered a major problem at federal agencies, including EPA, CDC, and USDA. Lewis, who was terminated by EPA after publishing papers in Nature that questioned the science the agency used to support certain regulations, believes top-down pressure on federal scientists and researchers working on government-funded projects in academia jeopardizes public health.
        ''I've found working for the government is no different than working for corporations. You either toe the line or find yourself looking for another way to make a living,'' Lewis says. ''No one would be surprised if Merck published unreliable data supporting the safety of its products. Why would anyone be surprised that the CDC or any agency would publish skewed data to conclude that the vaccines it recommends are safe? Scientists need a better system, where scientists are free to be honest.'' Accordingly, Focus Autism suggests that the CDC be held accountable to release all vaccine safety data in order to allow for independent, unbiased analysis.
        The Focus Autism Foundation is dedicated to providing information to the public that exposes the cause or causes of the autism epidemic and the rise of chronic illness '-- focusing on the role of vaccinations.
        See the published press release
        See Dr. Brian Hooker's full paper
    Shut Up Slave!
      Feds Creating Database to Track 'Hate Speech' on TwitterWashington Free Beacon | Washington Free Beacon
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Thu, 28 Aug 2014 12:12
        $1 Million study focuses on internet memes, 'misinformation' in political campaigns
        AP
        BY:Elizabeth HarringtonAugust 25, 2014 3:30 pm
        The federal government is spending nearly $1 million to create an online database that will track ''misinformation'' and hate speech on Twitter.
        The National Science Foundation is financing the creation of a web service that will monitor ''suspicious memes'' and what it considers ''false and misleading ideas,'' with a major focus on political activity online.
        The ''Truthy'' database, created by researchers at Indiana University, is designed to ''detect political smears, astroturfing, misinformation, and other social pollution.''
        The university has received $919,917 so far for the project.
        ''The project stands to benefit both the research community and the public significantly,'' the grant states. ''Our data will be made available via [application programming interfaces] APIs and include information on meme propagation networks, statistical data, and relevant user and content features.''
        ''The open-source platform we develop will be made publicly available and will be extensible to ever more research areas as a greater preponderance of human activities are replicated online,'' it continues. ''Additionally, we will create a web service open to the public for monitoring trends, bursts, and suspicious memes.''
        ''This service could mitigate the diffusion of false and misleading ideas, detect hate speech and subversive propaganda, and assist in the preservation of open debate,'' the grant said.
        ''Truthy,'' which gets its name from Stephen Colbert, will catalog how information is spread on Twitter, including political campaigns.
        ''While the vast majority of memes arise in a perfectly organic manner, driven by the complex mechanisms of life on the Web, some are engineered by the shady machinery of high-profile congressional campaigns,'' according to the website.
        ''Truthy'' claims to be non-partisan. However, the project's lead investigator Filippo Menczer proclaims his support for numerous progressive advocacy groups, including President Barack Obama's Organizing for Action, Moveon.org, Greenpeace, the Sierra Club, Amnesty International, and True Majority.
        Menczer, a professor of informatics and computer science at Indiana University, links to each of the organizations on his personal page from his bio at the Center for Complex Networks and Systems Research.
        The government-funded researchers hope that the public will use their tool in the future to report on other Twitter users.
        ''Truthy uses a sophisticated combination of text and data mining, social network analysis, and complex networks models,'' the website adds. ''To train our algorithms, we leverage crowdsourcing: we rely on users like you to flag injections of forged grass-roots activity. Therefore, click on the Truthy button when you see a suspicious meme!''
        The project also seeks to discover why certain Internet memes go viral and others do not. Funding is not expected to expire until June 30, 2015.
    SDR
      BBC News - IMF's Christine Lagarde 'under investigation'
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Thu, 28 Aug 2014 11:59
        27 August 2014Last updated at 12:46 ET French authorities have formally opened a negligence investigation into Christine Lagarde, the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
        She has been questioned about her role in awarding 400m euro (£318m; $527m) in compensation to businessman Bernard Tapie in 2008. She denies wrongdoing.
        Ms Lagarde, 58, was finance minister in President Nicolas Sarkozy's government at the time of the award.
        Mr Tapie supported Mr Sarkozy in the 2007 presidential election.
        He was once a majority shareholder in sports goods company Adidas but sold it in 1993 in order to become a cabinet minister in Francois Mitterrand's Socialist government.
        Mr Tapie sued Credit Lyonnais over its handling of the sale, alleging the partly state-owned bank had defrauded him by deliberately undervaluing the company.
        'No resignation'His case was later referred by Ms Lagarde to a three-member arbitration panel which awarded the compensation.
        Investigators suspect he was granted a deal in return for his support of Nicolas Sarkozy.
        Ms Lagarde said last year that her decision to refer Mr Tapie's long-running dispute with Credit Lyonnais to a panel of judges was "the best solution at the time".
        Although being placed under formal investigation does not necessarily lead to charges, the development could raise questions about the rest of her term at the IMF, which is due to end in 2016.
        She told AFP news agency she had no intention of resigning from the IMF.
        Her lawyer, Yves Repiquet, told Reuters news agency he would personally appeal against the French magistrates' decision, which means Ms Lagarde would not need to return to Paris.
        Ms Lagarde says she is returning to Washington, where she will brief the IMF board on the recent development.
        She replaced Dominique Strauss-Kahn as IMF managing director in 2011.
        Mr Strauss-Kahn - also a former French minister - resigned following his arrest in New York on charges of sexual assault that were later dropped.
        Ms Lagarde belongs to the same opposition UMP party as Nicolas Sarkozy, who has also been placed under formal investigation on suspicion of seeking to influence judges who were looking into his affairs.
        Mr Sarkozy was detained for questioning in July - the first time a former French head of state has been held in police custody.
        He is hoping to challenge again for the presidency in 2017 and the allegations are seen as a blow to his hopes of returning to office.
      SCO POWWOW-Russian troops enter China for military drills - English pravda.ru
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 24 Aug 2014 02:57
        On August 19, Russian troops arrived to the area of "Peace Mission 2014" military drills of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
        According to RT, the drills will be held on the Chinese military range Zhurihe, from 24 to 29 August. The troops of five SCO member states will take part in the drills: Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and China. In total, the drills will involve more than 7 thousand troops.
        "Today, the last echelon with personnel and military equipment of the Russian contingent of troops participating in joint military counterterrorism exercises "Peace Mission 2014 arrived in Zhurihe today, on August 19. In total, about 1,000 troops of the motorized infantry unit stationed in the town of Borzya of the Trans-Baikal Territory arrived to the territory of one of the largest military range grounds in Central Asia," the chief of the press service chief of the Eastern Military District of Russia, Colonel Alexander Gordeev told RIA Novosti.
        Russia tests monster Topol ballistic missile
      CRASH2: the roadsigns become so frequent, people can't see them for looking | The Slog.
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 09:35
        Despite a consensus expecting US disposable income to grow by 0.2% in July, it fell by 0.1% '' for the first time in six months. Having endured the jobless recovery, it looks like Americans might now be in for the cashless recovery.
        In Russia, the economy is rapidly weakening: inflation is high, the ruble is weak, interest rates are climbing, and disposable incomes have dropped.
        Eurozone inflation fell to its lowest level since November 2009 this August, as analysts warned that price growth in the currency bloc is ''worryingly low''. ''This is yet another bad indicator of the health of the eurozone economy'', said Luke Bartholomew, of Aberdeen Asset Management. Give that man a kupee doll.
        Meanwhile, Italy '' the country long targeted by The Slog as the real European basket case '' saw its consumer prices drop by the most since records began. It's the eurozone's third-largest economy'...and so firmly entrenched in recession, prices fell at twice the expected rate.
        In the UK, retail behemoth Tesco has issued another profit warning, and its intention to slash the dividend by 75%. That's a very big number indeed, and the company's bland statement blaming ''challenging'' trading conditions cannot hide the reality: Tesco is losing out bigtime to the bottom-rung discounters, particularly Lidl. Every Lidl helps, as they say'....but this sort of share loss and growth doesn't happen during an economic recovery.
        Neither does a stalled housing market. It is quickly becoming clear that, despite British Chancellor George Osborne's Help to Buy scam, UK house prices have stagnated: more than normal numbers of sales are falling through due to nervous buyers in the residential property market. UK values edged up by just 0.1% from July to August for the second month in a row. Vendors in England and Wales got around 96% of their asking price in August '' a third fall: if that level drops to 94%, sector analysts say price drops will accelerate.
        Global manufacturing output continues to engage reverse gear, as a result of which mining giants are staring at a $US30bn slump in revenue during the next 12 months. The price of iron ore has collapsed some 36% during 2014.
        Even those famous O'Neill Brics are somewhat out of true. The Brazilian economy was this afternoon declared officially to be in recession '' something of a bummer for Dilma Rousseff's re-election bid.
        Before these latest developments, dear Reader, you heard that German gdp shrank by 0.2%, the French economy flatlined for the second quarter running, in China an spectrum of indicators suggested faltering growth, and falling energy demand was beginning to make the Russian economy look not so much sick as poorly.
        And how, pray, have the markets, bourses and other misleading outcomes reacted?
        The Dow Jones was flat. The FTSE was up 0.2%. The French CAC 40 edged 0.34% higher. The Australian S&P/ASX 200 index gained 0.08% to 5,629. The European Euro Stoxx 50 added 0.42%. The German DAX rose 0.22%
        They're coming to take us away haha/ They're coming to take us away/To the funny farm/Where life is beautiful all the time
        Great stuff, Ward: 6.30 pm BST on a Friday is the perfect aperture for this kind of bad news. Ed
        Earlier at The Slog: All aboard for the Trojan Horse to BUPA
        Like this:LikeLoading...
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    LGGBTQQIAAP
      Rams outsports exerpt
        In one paragraph OutSports exonerates the Rams:
        We believe Sam was cut for purely football reasons and there is zero evidence that it had anything to do with him being gay. The Rams organization, from General Manager Les Snead to Coach Jeff Fisher to the players, treated Sam as just another player, even though they were aware of his historic nature. Snead and Fisher even attended the ESPYs in Los Angeles in July, where Sam received the Arthur Ashe Award for courage.
        In the next paragraph OutSports attempts to blackmail every other NFL team:
        Now that he is available to the other 31 teams, it will be interesting to see if any of the 4-3 teams in need of a pass rusher picks him up. If not, as we wrote Monday, homophobia will be a key reason.
        There you have it-- NFL rules provide any of the other 31 NFL teams 24 hours to put in a claim for Michael Sam (or any other player cut today) and Sam would go to the team that claimed him first. However if no team claims Michael Sam it is because the NFL is homophobic. (It couldn't possibly be because Michael Sam is too small and doesn't have the skills & abilities to be a successful defensive lineman in the NFL)
        If no team signs Michael Sam, the outrage machine will go into high gear at about the time you and JCD end Sunday's show.
      The Rams' decision to cut Michael Sam was never going to be based on homophobia. - Outsports
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 09:31
        Sam being cut by St. Louis was a "football decision." If he gets passed on by the 31 other teams, homophobia will be a reason.
        Must Reads Michael Sam sacks Johnny Manziel twiceCyd ZeiglerMichael Sam and Johnny Manziel, the two most talked about NFL rookies, met in a preseason game with Sam taking Manziel down.
        'The eagle has landed'Cyd ZeiglerThe exclusive behind-the-scenes story of how Michael Sam came out publicly.
        Updated Aug. 30, 2014
        Michael Sam has been cut by the St. Louis Rams, and it wasn't because of homophobia. However, if the other 31 NFL teams pass up on Sam in the next 24 hours, homophobia will play a role.
        Sam has proven he can play in the NFL. Only a couple other players have more sacks this preseason than his three. In a league that places a high value on pass rushers, and continues to develop rules that help passing offenses, guys like Sam are coveted. Sacks aside, he's played well or very well in each of his three preseason games. Various Rams beat reporters, including Jim Thomas and Bryan Burwell of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, have lauded Sam's performance. In limited preseason action he's racked up five tackles, in addition to the three sacks.
        And in case anyone tries to dismiss this because it's "just preseason," his first sack on Johnny Manziel was against 6-foot-6 offensive tackle Martin Wallace, who's been on the Browns roster for a year.
        Sam's done all of this with as much pressure on him as anyone else in the NFL has ever felt. If there was any doubt, Sam's ESPYs speech in July made it clear he knows the hopes of an entire national community rest on his shoulders.
        "This year I have a lot of experience being part of something bigger than myself," Sam said. "The way I see it, my responsibility at this moment in history is to stand up for everybody out there who wants nothing more than to be themselves openly."
        Just like his sack-fumble that won the Cotton Bowl for Missouri, Sam is thriving in a pressure-cooker '' an intangible every NFL coach would kill for in a player. Sam has earned a roster spot.
        However, with the Rams he was a victim of too much talent on the defensive line. The Rams drafted Sam with the hopes of keeping him on the roster. But there is more at work for a team than one player's performance. NFL rosters are, at the end of the day, a numbers game:
        1. An NFL team can only keep 53 players on their final roster. If the Rams could keep 100 players, Sam would be a shoo-in for a spot. They can't. He's not.
        2. NFL teams will generally keep eight to nine defensive linemen. Because of the restricted roster size, they can't have as many defensive ends '' or, for that matter, wide receivers or quarterbacks '' as they want. They have to make choices, and they have to have depth at every position. By keeping a 10th defensive lineman, they have one fewer offensive tackle or tight end. It's a numbers game.
        3. The Rams currently have eight veteran defensive linemen: Chris Long, Kendall Langford, Michael Brockers, Robert Quinn, William Hayes, Aaron Donald, Eugene Sims and Alex Carrington.
        4. Fisher kept nine defensive linemen, which meant undrafted rookie Ethan Westbrooks grabbed the last spot. Westbrooks has had a very strong camp and preseason. While Sam has seemed to get better each week, Westbrooks shined more the first two weeks. Westbrooks also brings versatility that Sam doesn't have: He can play tackle as well as end. For roster spots Nos. 51, 52 & 53, versatility is key.
        5. Sam's chances of demonstrating his versatility have come on special teams. He has played a good amount on the field-goal-blocking unit. On kickoff return in game one against the Saints, he looked hesitant and seemed to miss a block. "It's rare to find a defensive end playing special teams in the National Football League," Fisher said after week one. "They don't do it." He took at stab for a minute at a 3-4 outside linebacker, but the short stint didn't work out. Sam is a defensive end.
        Ultimately the Rams staff made a decision as to which ninth player '' Sam or Westbrooks '' would best fit their team on the field.
        What they didn't consider when making the decision is the fact that Sam is gay. Fisher and general manager Les Snead were sitting next to Sam when he was awarded the Arthur Ashe Courage Award by ESPN. As Fisher said, he was rooting for Sam.
        They did not choose to be the first NFL team to draft an openly gay player so they could be the first team to cut an openly gay player - it just happened that way.
        Yet there's a funny thing about that draft, something that could become a big source of contention again in a week: Each of the other 31 NFL teams passed up on him in May. If all 31 NFL teams pass up on Sam again, after proving himself on the field, it will be because of homophobia.
        As we said, pass rushers are at a premium and Sam can rush the passer quite well. Maybe not as a starter right away, but certainly as a valuable reserve. His three preseason sacks are as many as five teams have recorded.
        Teams passed up on him in the May draft for one of three reasons: 1. He just wasn't a fit for the scheme (3-4 teams like the Packers, Saints and Steelers); 2. They bought into the argument that he was too slow, too short and too weak to play the position in the NFL; or 3. They didn't want an openly gay player on their team.
        Reason No. 1 lets about half the teams off the hook (though one of them could take a flier on him if the Rams cut him).
        Sam has cleared up any concern about Reason No. 2. We don't know if he's an eventual starter or a career backup, but there's no question Sam can and will contribute to a team in a measurable way. Despite drafting some help at defensive end, some of those 4-3 teams that really suffered rushing the passer last year '' like Dallas, Oakland and Jacksonville '' could use Sam.
        As for reason No. 3, all the myths have been demolished. Sam has not been a distraction (You want distractions? Just tune into the Johnny Manziel Network, aka ESPN). Sam has fit in well with his teammates who enjoy his high energy and sense of humor. They especially loved him mocking Manziel's money gesture after his first sack Saturday. After a brief media flurry at the start of camp, Sam has been treated as just another player. That's a testament to Sam and to the Rams for managing the situation perfectly. If any team passes on him out of fear of "distractions," that's simply code for "we're uncomfortable with an openly gay player on our team."
        For each of those clubs where Sam would be a good fit '' probably about six to 10 NFL teams '' to pass up on him a second time, it would be impossible to argue homophobia didn't play a major, if not the deciding, role.
        This is a joint editorial by Jim Buzinski and Cyd Zeigler, the co-founders of Outsports.
      St Louis Rams cut Michael Sam, the first openly gay NFL player | Sport | The Guardian
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 04:50
        Michael Sam, the first openly gay player to be drafted by an NFL team, has been cut by the St Louis Rams.
        The Rams announced their final 53-man roster for the new season, which begins on Thursday, shortly before the 4pm eastern time cut-off and after a nervous Saturday for Sam and other NFL hopefuls.
        Using Twitter, Sam said: ''I want to thank the entire Rams organisation and the city of St Louis for giving me this tremendous opportunity and allowing me to show I can play at this level. I look forward to continuing to build on the progress I made here toward a long and successful career.
        ''The most worthwhile things in life rarely come easy, this is a lesson I've always known. The journey continues.''
        Sam could still play in the NFL this season, with another team. He could also return to the Rams as a practice-squad player.
        The Rams' head coach, Jeff Fisher, told a news conference there would be ''no challenges whatsoever'' for any team which picked up Sam.
        ''There's no challenge with respect to Mike Sam,'' Fisher said. ''He's not about drawing attention to himself. He kept his head down and worked and you can't ask anything more out of any player for that matter.''
        Fisher said Sam's failure to make the Rams roster was ''a football decision''.
        On Saturday, the defensive end attended the University of Missouri's season opener against South Dakota, shaking hands with well-wishers on the sideline. At the 4pm deadline he was introduced to the crowd; looking at his phone, he then walked to the locker room.
        The Rams' decision reopened a debate that has flowed around the NFL since Sam came out in public, in February. Then, the co-defensive player of the year in the Southeastern Conference, who had come out to his Missouri team-mates before the preceding college season, told the New York Times: ''I'm Michael Sam, I'm a football player, and I'm gay.''
        Soon after, speaking anonymously, eight NFL coaches and executives told Sports Illustrated they expect a significant drop in Sam's draft position.
        In May, Sam was picked by the Rams 34th in the final of seven draft rounds and 249th out of 256 picks overall, leading to further debate about whether his sexuality had influenced his lowly placing.
        A post-draft kiss with his boyfriend also led to controversy. A Miami Dolphins player, Don Jones, was disciplined by the league after tweeting ''omg'' and ''horrible'' after ESPN aired pictures of the kiss.
        At the time, coach Fisher called the pick a ''second historic moment'' for the Rams, who in 1946 signed the running back Kenny Washington, the first black player in American football's modern era.
        President Barack Obama said Sam's selection represented ''an important step forward in our nation's journey''. In July, Sam accepted the ESPY Arthur Ashe Courage Award, which is given by the sports network ESPN to ''individuals who have shown strength in the face of adversity and stood up for their beliefs''. Previous winners of the award include Muhammad Ali, Billie Jean King and Nelson Mandela.
        On Saturday Cyd Zeigler of Outsports.com used Twitter to say the Rams' decision to cut Sam was ''disappointing at best'', and added: ''Now the other 31 NFL teams are on the clock.''
        Michael Sam in uniform before the Rams' final preseason game, against the Miami Dolphins on Thursday.Photograph: Marc Serota/Getty ImagesSam, who told the press after his decision to come out that he was ''determined to be great'', played for the Rams during NFL preseason. After his first game, a 26-24 loss to the New Orleans Saints, he said: ''You know, I can play in this league. I can play in this league.''
        He played in the Rams' last preseason game, on Thursday, leading the team with six tackles in a 14-13 defeat by the Miami Dolphins. Afterwards, coach Fisher said: ''I didn't really see anything good nor bad out of him, but we'll look at the tape. But he played hard, got a lot of snaps.''
        Fisher added that he thought Sam ''can play in this league''.
    Furgeson
      NYTimes: Getting Ferguson Majority to Show Its Clout at Polls
        FERGUSON,
        Mo. — Down the street from where the body of Michael Brown lay for
        hours after he was shot three weeks ago, volunteers have appeared beside
        folding tables under fierce sunshine to sign up new voters. On West
        Florissant Avenue, the site of sometimes violent nighttime protests for
        two weeks, voter-registration tents popped up during the day and figures
        like the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson Sr. lectured about the power of the
        vote.
        In
        this small city, which is two-thirds African-American but has mostly
        white elected leaders, only 12 percent of registered voters took part in
        the last municipal election, and political experts say black turnout
        was very likely lower. But now, in the wake of the killing of Mr. Brown,
        an unarmed black 18-year-old, by a white Ferguson police officer, there
        is a new focus on promoting the power of the vote, an attempt to revive
        one of the keystones of the civil rights movement.
      Is the Criminal-Justice System Racist? by Heather Mac Donald, City Journal Spring 2008
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 12:06
        The race industry and its elite enablers take it as self-evident that high black incarceration rates result from discrimination. At a presidential primary debate this Martin Luther King Day, for instance, Senator Barack Obama charged that blacks and whites ''are arrested at very different rates, are convicted at very different rates, [and] receive very different sentences . . . for the same crime.'' Not to be outdone, Senator Hillary Clinton promptly denounced the ''disgrace of a criminal-justice system that incarcerates so many more African-Americans proportionately than whites.''
        If a listener didn't know anything about crime, such charges of disparate treatment might seem plausible. After all, in 2006, blacks were 37.5 percent of all state and federal prisoners, though they're under 13 percent of the national population. About one in 33 black men was in prison in 2006, compared with one in 205 white men and one in 79 Hispanic men. Eleven percent of all black males between the ages of 20 and 34 are in prison or jail. The dramatic rise in the prison and jail population over the last three decades'--to 2.3 million people at the end of 2007 (see box)'--has only amplified the racial accusations against the criminal-justice system.
        The favorite culprits for high black prison rates include a biased legal system, draconian drug enforcement, and even prison itself. None of these explanations stands up to scrutiny. The black incarceration rate is overwhelmingly a function of black crime. Insisting otherwise only worsens black alienation and further defers a real solution to the black crime problem.
        Racial activists usually remain assiduously silent about that problem. But in 2005, the black homicide rate was over seven times higher than that of whites and Hispanics combined, according to the federal Bureau of Justice Statistics. From 1976 to 2005, blacks committed over 52 percent of all murders in America. In 2006, the black arrest rate for most crimes was two to nearly three times blacks' representation in the population. Blacks constituted 39.3 percent of all violent-crime arrests, including 56.3 percent of all robbery and 34.5 percent of all aggravated-assault arrests, and 29.4 percent of all property-crime arrests.
        The advocates acknowledge such crime data only indirectly: by charging bias on the part of the system's decision makers. As Obama suggested in the Martin Luther King debate, police, prosecutors, and judges treat blacks and whites differently ''for the same crime.''
        Let's start with the idea that cops over-arrest blacks and ignore white criminals. In fact, the race of criminals reported by crime victims matches arrest data. As long ago as 1978, a study of robbery and aggravated assault in eight cities found parity between the race of assailants in victim identifications and in arrests'--a finding replicated many times since, across a range of crimes. No one has ever come up with a plausible argument as to why crime victims would be biased in their reports.
        Moving up the enforcement chain, the campaign against the criminal-justice system next claims that prosecutors overcharge and judges oversentence blacks. Obama describes this alleged postarrest treatment as ''Scooter Libby justice for some and Jena justice for others.'' Jena, Louisiana, of course, was where a D.A. initially lodged attempted second-degree murder charges against black students who, in December 2006, slammed a white student's head against a concrete beam, knocking him unconscious, and then stomped and kicked him in the head while he was down. As Charlotte Allen has brilliantly chronicled in The Weekly Standard, a local civil rights activist crafted a narrative linking the attack to an unrelated incident months earlier, in which three white students hung two nooses from a schoolyard tree'--a display that may or may not have been intended as a racial provocation. This entrepreneur then embellished the tale with other alleged instances of redneck racism'--above all, the initial attempted-murder charges. An enthusiastic national press responded to the bait exactly as intended, transforming the ''Jena Six'' into victims rather than perpetrators. In the seven months of ensuing headlines and protests, Jena became a symbol of systemic racial unfairness in America's court system. If blacks were disproportionately in prison, the refrain went, it was because they faced biased prosecutors'--like the one in Jena'--as well as biased juries and judges.
        Backing up this bias claim has been the holy grail of criminology for decades'--and the prize remains as elusive as ever. In 1997, criminologists Robert Sampson and Janet Lauritsen reviewed the massive literature on charging and sentencing. They concluded that ''large racial differences in criminal offending,'' not racism, explained why more blacks were in prison proportionately than whites and for longer terms. A 1987 analysis of Georgia felony convictions, for example, found that blacks frequently received disproportionately lenient punishment. A 1990 study of 11,000 California cases found that slight racial disparities in sentence length resulted from blacks' prior records and other legally relevant variables. A 1994 Justice Department survey of felony cases from the country's 75 largest urban areas discovered that blacks actually had a lower chance of prosecution following a felony than whites did and that they were less likely to be found guilty at trial. Following conviction, blacks were more likely to receive prison sentences, however'--an outcome that reflected the gravity of their offenses as well as their criminal records.
        Another criminologist'--easily as liberal as Sampson'--reached the same conclusion in 1995: ''Racial differences in patterns of offending, not racial bias by police and other officials, are the principal reason that such greater proportions of blacks than whites are arrested, prosecuted, convicted and imprisoned,'' Michael Tonry wrote in Malign Neglect. (Tonry did go on to impute malign racial motives to drug enforcement, however.) The media's favorite criminologist, Alfred Blumstein, found in 1993 that blacks were significantly underrepresented in prison for homicide compared with their presence in arrest.
        This consensus hasn't made the slightest dent in the ongoing search for systemic racism. An entire industry in the law schools now dedicates itself to flushing out prosecutorial and judicial bias, using ever more complicated statistical artillery. The net result? A few new studies show tiny, unexplained racial disparities in sentencing, while other analyses continue to find none. Any differences that do show up are trivially small compared with the exponentially greater rates of criminal offending among blacks. No criminologist would claim, moreover, to have controlled for every legal factor that affects criminal-justice outcomes, says Patrick Langan, former senior statistician for the Bureau of Justice Statistics. Prosecutors and judges observe the heinousness of a defendant's conduct, for example, but a number-crunching researcher has no easy way to discover and quantify that variable.
        Some criminologists replace statistics with High Theory in their search for racism. The criminal-justice system does treat individual suspects and criminals equally, they concede. But the problem is how society defines crime and criminals. Crime is a social construction designed to marginalize minorities, these theorists argue. A liberal use of scare quotes is virtually mandatory in such discussions, to signal one's distance from primitive notions like ''law-abiding'' and ''dangerous.'' Arguably, vice crimes are partly definitional (though even there, the law enforcement system focuses on them to the extent that they harm communities). But the social constructivists are talking about all crime, and it's hard to see how one could ''socially reconstruct'' assault or robbery so as to convince victims that they haven't been injured.
        Unfair drug policies are an equally popular explanation for black incarceration rates. Legions of pundits, activists, and academics charge that the war on drugs is a war on minorities'--a de facto war at best, an intentional one at worst.
        Playing a starring role in this conceit are federal crack penalties, the source of the greatest amount of misinformation in the race and incarceration debate. Crack is a smokeable and highly addictive cocaine concentrate, created by cooking powder cocaine until it hardens into pellets called ''rocks.'' Crack produces a faster'--and more potent'--high than powder cocaine, and it's easier to use, since smoking avoids the unpleasantness of needles and is more efficient than snorting. Under the 1986 federal Anti-Drug Abuse Act, getting caught with five grams of crack carries a mandatory minimum five-year sentence in federal court; to trigger the same five-year minimum, powder-cocaine traffickers would have to get caught with 500 grams. On average, federal crack sentences are three to six times longer than powder sentences for equivalent amounts.
        The media love to target the federal crack penalties because crack defendants are likely to be black. In 2006, 81 percent of federal crack defendants were black, while only 27 percent of federal powder-cocaine defendants were. Since federal crack rules are more severe than those for powder, and crack offenders are disproportionately black, those rules must explain why so many blacks are in prison, the conventional wisdom holds.
        But consider the actual number of crack sellers sentenced in federal court each year. In 2006, 5,619 were tried federally, 4,495 of them black. From 1996 to 2000, the federal courts sentenced more powder traffickers (23,743) than crack traffickers (23,121). It's going to take a lot more than 5,000 or so crack defendants a year to account for the 562,000 black prisoners in state and federal facilities at the end of 2006'--or the 858,000 black prisoners in custody overall, if one includes the population of county and city jails. Nor do crack/powder disparities at the state level explain black incarceration rates: only 13 states distinguish between crack and powder sentences, and they employ much smaller sentence differentials.
        The press almost never mentions the federal methamphetamine-trafficking penalties, which are identical to those for crack: five grams of meth net you a mandatory minimum five-year sentence. In 2006, the 5,391 sentenced federal meth defendants (nearly as many as the crack defendants) were 54 percent white, 39 percent Hispanic, and 2 percent black. But no one calls the federal meth laws anti-Hispanic or anti-white.
        Nevertheless, the federal crack penalties dominate discussions on race and incarceration because they seem to provide a concrete example of egregious racial disparity. This leads to a commonly expressed syllogism: crack penalties have a disparate impact on blacks; disparate impact is racist; therefore, crack penalties are racist. This syllogism has been particularly prominent recently, thanks to the U.S. Sentencing Commission's 2007 decision to lighten federal crack penalties retroactively in the name of racial equity.
        The press has covered this development voraciously, serving up a massive dose of crack revisionism aimed at proving the racist origins of the war on crack. Crack was never a big deal, the revisionist story line goes. But when Boston Celtics draft pick Len Bias died of a crack overdose in 1986, the media went into overdrive covering the crack phenomenon. ''Images'--or perhaps anecdotes'--about the evils of crack, and the street crime it was presumed to stoke'' circulated, as the New York Times archly put it in a December 2007 article. A ''moral panic'' (Michael Tonry's term) ensued about an imaginary threat from a powerless minority group. Whites feared that addicted blacks would invade their neighborhoods. Sensational stories about ''crack babies'' surfaced. All this hysteria resulted in the unnecessary federal crack penalties.
        Since the 1980s, the revisionist narrative continues, experts have determined that powder and crack show more pharmacological ''similarities than differences,'' in the Times's words, and that crack is no more damaging to fetuses than alcohol. The belief that crack was an inner-city scourge was thus a racist illusion, and the sentencing structure to quell it a racist assault. Or, as U.S. District Judge Clyde Cahill put it, in what one hopes is not a representative sample of the federal judicial temperament: ''Legislators' unconscious racial aversion towards blacks, sparked by unsubstantiated reports of the effects of crack, reactionary media prodding, and an agitated constituency, motivated the legislators . . . to produce a dual system of punishment.''
        Leave aside the irony of the press's now declaring smugly that the press exaggerated the ravages of crack. (The same New York Times that now sneers at ''images'--or perhaps anecdotes'--about the evils of crack'' ran searing photos of crack addicts in 1993 that included a woman kneeling before a crack dealer, unzipping his fly, a baby clinging to her back; such degraded prostitutes, known as ''strawberries,'' were pervasive casualties of the epidemic.) The biggest problem with the revisionist narrative is its unreality. The assertion that concern about crack resulted from ''unconscious racial aversion towards blacks'' ignores a key fact: black leaders were the first to sound the alarm about the drug, as Harvard law professor Randall Kennedy documents in Race, Crime, and the Law. Harlem congressman Charles Rangel initiated the federal response to the epidemic, warning the House of Representatives in March 1986 that crack had made cocaine ''frightening[ly]'' accessible to youth. A few months later, Brooklyn congressman Major Owens explicitly rejected what is now received wisdom about media hype. ''None of the press accounts really have exaggerated what is actually going on,'' Owens said; the crack epidemic was ''as bad as any articles have stated.'' Queens congressman Alton Waldon then called on his colleagues to act: ''For those of us who are black this self-inflicted pain is the worst oppression we have known since slavery. . . . Let us . . . pledge to crack down on crack.'' The bill that eventually passed, containing the crack/powder distinction, won majority support among black congressmen, none of whom, as Kennedy points out, objected to it as racist.
        These politicians were reacting to a devastating outbreak of inner-city violence and addiction unleashed by the new form of cocaine. Because crack came in small, easily digestible amounts, it democratized what had been a rarefied drug, making an intense high available to people with very little money. The crack market differed radically from the discreet phone transactions and private deliveries that characterized powder-cocaine distribution: volatile young dealers sold crack on street corners, using guns to establish their turf. Crack, homicides, and assaults went hand in hand; certain areas of New York became ''like a war zone,'' retired DEA special agent Robert Stutman told PBS's Frontline in 2000. The large national spike in violence in the mid-1980s was largely due to the crack trade, and its victims were overwhelmingly black inner-city residents.
        Though the elites are furiously rewriting crack history, many people who lived through it are not. In April 2007, Los Angeles prosecutor Robert Grace won the conviction of a crack dealer who had raped and strangled to death ten strawberries between 1987 and 1998. The ''crack epidemic was one of the worst things that happened to the black and brown community,'' Grace asserts. Matthew Kennedy managed an infamous public housing project in Watts during the crack epidemic. ''Some of us remember how bad it was,'' he says. When children avoid school for fear of getting shot by drug gangs, ''you've just lost that generation.'' Lawrence Tolliver has witnessed his share of shootings outside his South Central barbershop. ''Sometimes it was so bad you had to scout the horizon like a gazelle at a watering hole in Africa,'' he recalls.
        It takes shameless sleight of hand to turn an effort to protect blacks into a conspiracy against them. If Congress had ignored black legislators' calls to increase cocaine-trafficking penalties, the outcry among the groups now crying racism would have been deafening. Yes, a legislative bidding war drove federal crack penalties ultimately to an arbitrary and excessive point; the reduction of those penalties is appropriate. But what led to the crack-sentencing scheme wasn't racism but legal logic. Prosecutors rely on heavy statutory penalties to induce defendants to spill the beans on their criminal colleagues. ''An amazing public spirit is engendered when you tell someone he is facing 150 years to life but has the possibility of getting out after eight if he tells you who committed a string of homicides,'' says Walter Arsenault, who headed the Manhattan district attorney's homicide-investigation unit in the 1980s and 1990s.
        Race activists endlessly promote the claim that the draconian federal crack laws are sweeping up mere sad sacks with a little extra crack to spare. But anyone who fits that description is exempt from the federal sentencing scheme. Traffickers with only a modest criminal history who didn't injure others or have a gun when arrested can escape the mandatory federal sentences if they don't lie to the government about their offense (there is no requirement to rat out others). In 2006, only 15.4 percent of crack-cocaine defendants qualified for this safety-valve provision, compared with 48.4 percent of powder-cocaine offenders; in 2000, even fewer crack defendants qualified'--12.6 percent. Crack sellers seldom merit the escape clause because their criminal histories tend to be much more severe than powder sellers' and because they're more likely to have or use weapons. The congressional distinction between crack and powder sellers, it turns out, had a firm grounding.
        Equally misleading is the criticism that few crack ''kingpins'' can be found in federal prison. This is not surprising, because ''kingpins'' in the traditional sense'--heads of major drug-importing rings'--don't exist in the crack world. Crack is not imported but cooked up locally. Its supply and distribution scheme is more horizontal than vertical, unlike that of powder cocaine and heroin. Federal crack enforcement wasn't about stopping the flow of illegal drugs into the country; it was about stopping urban violence. And that violence was coming from street dealers.
        Critics follow up their charges about crack with several empirical claims about drugs and imprisonment. None is true. The first is that drug enforcement has been the most important cause of the overall rising incarceration rate since the 1980s. Yet even during the most rapid period of population growth in prisons'--from 1980 to 1990'--36 percent of the growth in state prisons (where 88 percent of the nation's prisoners are housed) came from violent crimes, compared with 33 percent from drug crimes. Since then, drug offenders have played an even smaller role in state prison expansion. From 1990 to 2000, violent offenders accounted for 53 percent of the census increase'--and all of the increase from 1999 to 2004.
        Next, critics blame drug enforcement for rising racial disparities in prison. Again, the facts say otherwise. In 2006, blacks were 37.5 percent of the 1,274,600 state prisoners. If you remove drug prisoners from that population, the percentage of black prisoners drops to 37 percent'--half of a percentage point, hardly a significant difference. (No criminologist, to the best of my knowledge, has ever performed this exercise.)
        The rise of drug cases in the criminal-justice system has been dramatic, it's important to acknowledge. In 1979, drug offenders were 6.4 percent of the state prison population; in 2004, they were 20 percent. Even so, violent and property offenders continue to dominate the ranks: in 2004, 52 percent of state prisoners were serving time for violence and 21 percent for property crimes, for a combined total over three and a half times that of state drug offenders. In federal prisons, drug offenders went from 25 percent of all federal inmates in 1980 to 47.6 percent of all federal inmates in 2006. Drug-war opponents focus almost exclusively on federal, as opposed to state, prisons because the proportion of drug offenders is highest there. But the federal system held just 12.3 percent of the nation's prisoners in 2006.
        So much for the claim that blacks are disproportionately imprisoned because of the war on drugs. But a final, even more audacious, argument maintains that incarceration itself, not criminals, causes crime in black neighborhoods. Because blacks have the highest prison rate, this argument holds, incarceration constitutes an unjust and disproportionate burden on them. This idea has gained wide currency in the academic world and in anti-incarceration think tanks. Columbia University law professor Jeffrey Fagan offered a representative version of the theory in a 2003 law review article co‚­authored with two public health researchers. Sending black males to prison ''weakens the general social control of children and especially adolescents,'' Fagan writes. Incarceration increases the number of single-parent households. With adult males missing from their neighborhoods, boys will be more likely to get involved in crime, since they lack proper supervision. The net result: ''Incarceration begets more incarceration [in] a vicious cycle.''
        A few questions present themselves. How many convicts were living in a stable relationship with the mother (or one of the mothers) of their children before being sent upstate? (Forget even asking about their marriage rate.) What kind of positive guidance do men who are committing enough crimes to end up in prison, rather than on probation (an exceedingly high threshold), provide to young people? Further, if Fagan is right that keeping criminals out of prison and on the streets preserves a community's social capital, inner cities should have thrived during the 1960s and early 1970s, when prison resources contracted sharply. In fact, New York's poorest neighborhoods'--the subject of Fagan's analysis'--turned around only in the 1990s, when the prison population reached its zenith.
        Fagan, like many other criminologists, conflates the effects of prison and crime. Neighborhoods with high incarceration rates suffer disproportionate burdens, he claims. Firms are reluctant to locate in such areas, decreasing job opportunities. Police pay closer attention to these high-incarceration zones, increasing the chance that any given criminal within them will wind up arrested. Thus, incarceration ''provides a steady supply of offenders for more incarceration.'' But if business owners think twice about certain communities, it's because they fear crime, not a high concentration of ex-convicts per se. It's unlikely that prospective employers even know the population of ex-cons in a neighborhood; what they are aware of is its crime rates. And an employer who hesitates to hire an ex-con is almost certainly reacting to his criminal record, even if he has been given community probation instead of prison. Likewise, if the police give extra scrutiny to neighborhoods with many ex-convicts, it's because those convicts commit a lot of crime. Finally, putting more criminals on probation, rather than sending them to prison'--as Fagan and others advocate'--would only increase law enforcement surveillance of high-crime neighborhoods.
        This popular ''social ecological'' analysis of incarceration, as Fagan and other criminologists call it, treats prison like an outbreak of infectious disease that takes over certain communities, felling people on a seemingly random basis. ''As the risks of going to jail or prison grow over time for persons living in those areas, their prospects for marriage or earning a living and family-sustaining wage diminish as the incarceration rates around them rise,'' Fagan says. This analysis elides the role of individual will. Fagan and others assume that once one lives in a high-incarceration'--that is, high-crime'--area, one can do little to avoid prison. But even in the most frayed urban communities, plenty of people choose to avoid the ''Life.'' Far from facing diminished marriage prospects, an upstanding, reliable young man in the inner city would be regarded as a valuable catch.
        No one doubts that having a criminal record'--whether it results in community probation or prison'--is a serious handicap. People convicted of crimes compete for jobs at a clear disadvantage with those who have stayed crime-free. But for all the popularity of the view that the system is to blame, it's not hard to find dissenters who believe that individuals are responsible for the decision to break the law. ''My position is not hard,'' says public housing manager Matthew Kennedy. ''You don't have to do that crime.'' Kennedy supported President Bill Clinton's controversial 1996 ''one-strike'' rule for public housing, which allowed housing authorities to evict drug dealers and other lawbreaking tenants on their first offense. ''I'm trying to protect the good people in my community,'' Kennedy explains. ''A criminal record is preventable. It's all on you.'' Kennedy has no truck with the argument that it is unfair to send ex-offenders back to prison for violations of their parole conditions, such as staying away from their gang associates and hangouts. ''Where do they take responsibility for their own actions?'' he wonders. ''You've been told, 'Don't come back to this community.' Why would you come back here? You've got to change your ways, change the habits that got you in there in the first place.''
        Though you'd never know it from reading the academic literature, some people in minority communities even see prison as potentially positive for individuals as well as for communities. ''I don't buy the idea that there's no sense to prison,'' says Clyde Fulford, a 54-year-old lifelong resident of the William Mead Homes, a downtown Los Angeles housing project. Having raised his children to be hardworking, law-abiding citizens, Fulford is a real role model for his neighborhood, not the specious drug-dealing kind posited by the ''social ecological'' theory of incarceration. ''I know a lot of people who went to prison,'' Fulford says. ''A lot changed they life for the better. Prison was they wake-up call.'' Is prison unavoidable and thus unfair? ''They knew they was going to pay. It's up to that person.'' What if the prisoners hadn't been locked up? ''Many would be six feet under.''
        Robert Grace, the Los Angeles prosecutor, is acutely aware of the fragility and preciousness of the rule of law. ''As a civilized society, we can't allow what's happening in Latin America to take over here,'' he says. ''Venezuela and Mexico are awash in appalling violence because they don't respect the law.'' Thus, when prominent figures like Barack Obama make sweeping claims about racial unfairness in the criminal-justice system, they play with fire. ''For any political candidate to make such claims out of expediency is wrong,'' Grace says. ''If they have statistics that back up the claim, I'd like to see them. But to create phony perceptions of injustice is as wrong as not doing anything about the real thing.''
        The evidence is clear: black prison rates result from crime, not racism. America's comparatively high rates of incarceration are nothing to celebrate, of course, but the alternative is far worse. The dramatic drop in crime in the 1990s, to which stricter sentencing policies unquestionably contributed, has freed thousands of law-abiding inner-city residents from the bondage of fear. Commerce and street life have revived in those urban neighborhoods where crime has fallen most.
        The pressure to divert even more offenders from prison, however, will undoubtedly grow. If a probation system can finally be crafted that provides as much public safety as prison, we should welcome it. But the continuing search for the chimera of criminal-justice bigotry is a useless distraction that diverts energy and attention from the crucial imperative of helping more inner-city boys stay in school'--and out of trouble.
        Punishment and Crime
        Those who tar the criminal-justice system as racist often make a broader claim: incarceration doesn't even lower crime, making the nation's skyrocketing prison rolls a particularly senseless injustice.
        Incarceration foes are right about one thing: the U.S. prison population has swollen dramatically over the last three decades. The per-capita rate of imprisonment increased three times from 1973 to 2000; the number of state and federal prisoners grew fivefold between 1977 and 2007, from 300,000 to 1.59 million. When inmates in jails are included, the total number in correctional facilities at the end of 2007 was 2.3 million, according to the Pew Center on the States. One in 100 adults is in custody.
        This expansion represents a resounding rejection of the reigning crime philosophy of the 1960s. The 1967 report of the President's Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice, a classic Great Society document, argued that society could reduce crime only by eliminating poverty and racism, ideally through government-funded social programs. Consistent with this theory, prison capacity began dropping during the sixties and only stopped falling during the late 1970s, when crime reached intolerable levels. Thereafter, the states started adding prison beds and passing laws to keep offenders locked up longer and to reduce judicial discretion to issue very lenient sentences.
        Few subjects have proved more contested in criminology than whether this prison buildup lowered crime'--and, if so, by how much. Anyone entering the thickets of incarceration studies should abandon all commonsense assumptions, such as that locking away, say, a burglar, would reduce burglary rates. Not so, say the criminologists, and at first glance, the crime data from the late-twentieth-century prison expansion seem to support them. Only after 1991 was the rise in incarceration consistently accompanied by decreasing crime rates; in the 1980s, crime went up and down, even as the prison population steadily grew. And now that crime is falling, the criminology world finds itself even more puzzled by why the prison population keeps increasing.
        Two of the most common theories as to why prison doesn't lower crime are logically weak and empirically ungrounded. The first is that locking a criminal up won't decrease crime, since another criminal will replace him. Yet while crimes meeting an illicit consumer demand may operate within a supply-and-demand framework, opportunities for violence and property crimes hit no natural ceiling. There are plenty of potential victims of violence and theft to go around; a potential robber need not wait for a competitor to go to jail before he can begin his own crime spree.
        The second theory to explain why prison doesn't work applies the law of diminishing returns to incarceration. As we lock up ever more people, we start scraping the bottom of the criminal barrel, the critics say. The prisoners we incarcerate become more innocuous than those picked up initially, so we get a diminishing bang for the buck for every new prisoner sent away.
        However impeccable the economic reasoning behind this claim, there is no empirical evidence for it. The diminishing-returns argument assumes that the universe of unapprehended and unincarcerated criminals is shrinking. It is not. The chances of getting caught and sent to prison remain extraordinarily low. The JFA Institute, an anti-incarceration advocacy group, estimated in 2007 that in only 3 percent of violent victimizations and property crimes does the offender end up in prison. In 2004, only 1.6 percent of burglars were in prison, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. The people in prison today, says statistician Patrick Langan, are ''not very different from prisoners in the past, in terms of their prior records.''
        In the overwhelming majority of cases, whatever the race of the convicted, prison remains what it has always been: a lifetime achievement award for persistence in criminal offending. Absent recidivism or a violent crime, the criminal-justice system will do everything it can to keep you out of the state or federal slammer. It can be disconcerting for the average law-abiding citizen to hear a prosecutor's typology of the crime universe: most thefts, for example, are considered ''nonserious crimes'' that do not merit prison sentences, unless they concern a huge amount of money or took place in the victim's presence. Steal an unoccupied car or burgle an unoccupied home and you'll probably get probation; hijack a car from a driver or stick up a pedestrian, however, and you'll probably go to prison.
        Columbia University law professor Dan Richman had a chance to test the ''harmless offenders in prison'' claim as chair of New York City's Local Conditional Release Commission. Richman studied the criminal profile of Rikers jail inmates in late 2004. Jails are supposed to be where the most ''innocuous'' lawbreakers end up'--those with misdemeanor convictions or sentences of less than a year. ''It struck me how serious the offenders were,'' he says. ''I'd come from the academy, where there's persuasive writing about over-incarceration. I had assumed there would be mostly first-time offenders in jail, but it wasn't true.'' About 40 percent of the inmates had prior felony convictions, Richman discovered, and the inmates' most recent offenses, which had put them in jail this time around, were usually serious. People in for assault would have pleaded down from attempted manslaughter; possession pleaded down from distribution. ''These weren't people who were there by accident,'' says Richman.
        One can also test the theory that locking away offenders doesn't lower crime by seeing what prisoners do when they get out. The Bureau of Justice Statistics studied the postprison careers of over 272,000 state prisoners released in 1994. Within three years, 67.5 percent of the group had been rearrested for 744,000 new felonies and serious misdemeanors. How many additional crimes they committed during those three years before getting arrested is unknown; estimates of the number of crimes that a typical unapprehended criminal commits per year range from zero to several hundred. And the ex-cons' post-release crime spree seems not to have resulted from the negative effects of prison itself, since convicts who spent the longest time behind bars had significantly lower rearrest rates than others.
        Not all criminologists and law professors dispute that prison lowers crime. University of Chicago economist Steve Levitt hypothesized in 1996 that had incarceration rates not risen sharply from 1971 to 1993, violent crime would have been 70 percent higher and property crime almost 50 percent higher. More typical estimates attribute 10 to 25 percent of the 1990s crime drop to incarceration. And Berkeley law professor Franklin Zimring rejected the diminishing-returns argument against incarceration in his 2007 book The Great American Crime Decline. The fact that crime started dropping consistently only at the end of the decades-long prison buildup makes perfect sense, he argued, since that's when the greatest number of criminals were off the streets.
        Heather Mac Donald is a contributing editor of City Journal and the John M. Olin Fellow at the Manhattan Institute. Her latest book, coauthored with Victor Davis Hanson and Steven Malanga, isThe Immigration Solution.
    NA-Tech
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      Join the Battle for Net Neutrality
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 09:38
        Big Cable wants to slow down the Internet? Fine.Let's show the world what a web without net neutrality would be like.Join our open, international call for action to protect Internet Freedom.
        Thanks! We'll send you developer updates!
        Cable companies are spending billions to gut net neutrality and create fast lanes and slow lanes on the Internet. We can't let this happen, but they're so powerful. To win, we need a response that pulls out all the stops and drives the maximum number of people to voice their support for net neutrality.
        On September 10th, sites across the web will display an alert with a symbolic "loading" symbol (the proverbial ''spinning wheel of death'') and promote a call to action for users to push comments to the FCC, Congress, and the White House. Major websites and services are lined up to push hard on this '-- it affects literally everyone who uses the Internet for work or pleasure. This is the moment to win this battle for the net.
        We need all hands on deck for this. Think about how best to get your audience's attention and join the Internet Slowdown with your site or mobile app. The spirit of the slowdown is that everyone can join in their own way, but we're providing tools to make it easy. If you're going to participate, tell the world ASAP. Announce it on your blog and twitter. Help get others to join. Got a question? Contact us.
        Oh it's on. September 10th.The Internet Slowdown starts at midnight eastern time on September 10th, and runs through midnight on September 11th. Whatever awesome stuff you've got planned, do it then! And remember: the goal is to drive as many emails and calls to Congress, the White House, and the FCC as possible.
        Sites: Get the codeThere's a bunch of different ways for sites to participate. The best way? Run this modal. The runner up? This alert. You can also change your site's logo (or one of its letters) to a spinning wheel of death or embed this action tool in a high traffic page. We've got widgets for Wordpress.com, and Wordpress (self hosted).
        NOTE: none of these tools will slow down your site; they just show a symbolic loading symbol. By default they link to battleforthenet.com, but you can change the URL if you like.
        Modal:To show the modal on September 10th, paste this code into the of your site. More info.
        Light banner:Paste this code into the of your site. More info.
        var _bftn_options = { animation: 'banner' }( Note: this will only show up on Sept 10th, and only once per user )Dark banner:Paste this code into the of your site. More info.
        var _bftn_options = { animation: 'banner', theme: 'dark' }( Note: this will only show up on Sept 10th, and only once per user )Apps: do a push notificationIf you have a mobile app, can you send just one push notification to your users? Tell them that ISPs are threatening to slow your app, and link them to https://www.battleforthenet.com.
        Share these images!We need as many people as possible to see this site, write Congress and the FCC, and keep fighting until we win. Can you post these images everywhere?
        Say you're in.Are you participating? Tell us so we can list you, announce it to the world, and invite others to join. Starting on 9/2 we'll be announcing which sites are in. Help us spread the word about the campaign by tweeting something like this or this. Want to show your support in real life? Get the Team Internet shirt (then post a photo, obv.)
        You're our only hope.This is the time to go big, visible, and strong - that's the only way we can actually win this fight. We all need to get as many people in our respective audiences motivated to do something. We can make this epic, but only if you help. We need companies to be frontrunners, leaders, and heroes on this, that's the key ingredient to raising the bar and making sure everyone goes big.
        We realize it's a big ask, but this is the kind of bad internet legislation that comes along (or gets this close to passing) once a decade or so. If it passes we'll be kicking ourselves for decades'--every time a favorite site gets relegated to the slow lane, and every time we have to rework or abandon a project because of the uncertain costs paid prioritization creates. Doing the most we can right now seems like the only rational step.
        Let us know if you're interested in principle, and if there's something you need from us to join: [email protected]
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      Bloomberg: Google Exec Headed to White House for Top Tech Job
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Source: Valleywag
        Fri, 29 Aug 2014 02:15
        According to the usual anonymous administration sources, Bloomberg is reporting that Megan Smith, VP of Google's shadowy R&D lab, will assume the role of Obama's top tech advisor:
        The CTO serves as a kind of White House chief geek-in-residence, tasked with overseeing the government's use of technology, including finding ways to create jobs and increase the use of broadband. Park helped to lead the effort to fix the much maligned Obamacare portal, HealthCare.gov.
        Smith joined Google in 2003. As vice president of business development, she oversaw many of its most important acquisitions, like Keyhole, the service that underlies Google Earth. She has led the company's philanthropic division, Google.org, and served as a co-host for Google's Solve for X forum, where distinguished thinkers and scientists brainstorm radical technology ideas with Google executives.
        Smith has been an oft-cited half of one of Silicon Valley's top power couples'--her wife is Kara Swisher'--though New York magazine reported their separation last month.
      Kara Swisher: Tech's Most Powerful Snoop -- NYMag
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 10:01
        The combination of access and toughness has made her a preeminent arbiter of status.
        Kara Swisher, center, talks with Jane Metcalfe, co-founder of Wired magazine, at a Fourth of July party in San Francisco.Photo: Bill McCulloughThe technology journalist Kara Swisher likes to call herself Sherlock Homo, but on a spring evening in Austin, where she'd come for the SXSW Interactive conference, she wasn't following any particular trail of clues. Padding through the crowd on the second floor of Perry's Steakhouse, where a venture-capital firm and a money-management firm were throwing a party, she'd chatted briefly with Steve Case, founder of AOL, who greeted her with the wary intimacy one might show a pit bull of uncertain loyalty. (Swisher's two books about AOL chronicled first its pioneering success and then its disastrous merger with Time Warner.) It wasn't until she ran into an investor named Tony Conrad that she scented blood.
        Swisher layers charm and aggression to truth-serum effect. When Conrad tried to embrace her, Swisher squirmed out of his grasp, saying, ''I just don't like being touched by you''; proceeded to flatter him as ''a scene-maker'' and ''very good venture capitalist''; then, for good measure, threw in: ''He also dresses like a lesbian, but it's okay.'' (This is a go-to Swisher barb; she told Twitter CEO Dick Costolo he dresses ''like Ellen.'') Conrad, who was wearing a quilted vest, appeared to take minimal umbrage. ''It's my biking gear, man,'' he said. A few minutes later, unbidden, he was proudly spilling the lucrative specs of his investment in the 3-D-printing company MakerBot. ''Oh my God,'' Swisher said.
        Conrad announced that he had a VIP party to attend elsewhere in the restaurant and left, but Swisher was undeterred. After a few minutes, she marched downstairs and approached a private dining room. Its curtains were drawn, but Swisher pushed open the door and strode blithely through.
        Around a U-shaped table, more than a dozen tech notables enjoying a meal with expensive wine looked up in surprise. They included Kevin Rose, a founder of Digg, and Gary Vaynerchuk, the social-media entrepreneur. Swisher, who was wearing jeans, black sneakers, and a Marmot jacket printed with the name of her startup website, Re/code, gestured toward Conrad, who'd taken a seat near the door, and announced, ''He told me the fancy people were here.'' Conrad reddened and denied it, but Swisher talked over him and made her way around the table, hugging Rose and insulting blogger turned venture capitalist MG Siegler to his girlfriend: ''I don't like him,'' she said. By the time she left 15 minutes later, the guests seemed to have forgotten she wasn't one of them.
        The creators of Silicon Valley, Mike Judge's show on HBO, salted its first season with cameos by real-life tech-world figures to enhance its verisimilitude, and in the June finale, which called for a journalist to grill an executive character, Swisher played herself: a short, defiantly unstylish reporter who wears aviator sunglasses indoors and asks blunt questions. ''Quite honestly, our very first choice was: We've got to get Kara Swisher,'' says Jonathan Dotan, the Valley insider the show's producers hired to help get the details right. ''She's iconic.''
        One of the reasons for Swisher's unusual status in the Valley is her longevity. Now 51, she began covering tech in the early '90s and was already a senior industry statesperson when the Web 2.0 generation was coming of age. People who are powerful today sought her advice when they were just starting out. She met Jeff Bezos when Amazon was in short pants, Marc Andreessen as Netscape was going public. She was at the pitch meeting for TiVo. ''It felt like you were meeting Tesla, all these people,'' she says.
        A second factor is her role as one of two impresarios of a leading Silicon Valley tech conference that she co-­founded and runs with her longtime business partner, the preeminent gadget reviewer Walt Mossberg; it's an event where Steve Jobs and Bill Gates came together onstage for a historic conversation, where Mark Zuckerberg broke out in such a sweat as he was pressed on privacy issues that he removed his ever-present hoodie, and where products like Flip and Slingbox and Jawbone and Sonos and Siri (before Apple bought it) made their debuts. For years, Swisher and Mossberg did this and blogged, under the rubric ­AllThingsD, which was the property of Dow Jones. In January, they went out on their own with their website and conference: Re/code.
        Above all, Swisher's power derives from her reporting'--driven, in turn, by her deep sourcing'--and from the sense, unnerving to executives, that she has a red phone with a direct connection to the perma-class of venture capitalists on Sand Hill Road who fund their companies and fill their boards and decide their fates. She has regularly broken news about big deals (Google trying to buy Groupon, Yahoo buying Tumblr) and major personnel moves (Facebook's hiring of Sheryl Sandberg, Microsoft's recent CEO search), and she dominates coverage of Yahoo (she broke the news of CEO Scott Thompson's r(C)sum(C) lies and his subsequent resignation and won a Loeb Award for live-blogging one of the company's earning calls). ''I love all my scoop children,'' Swisher told me. ''But consistency and persistence is really my aim. I try to get one really good one a week.'' The work she's most proud of is less ephemeral and more crusading: her ongoing scrutiny of Yahoo, the spotlight she's shone on the underrepresentation of women at the big tech companies, and, perhaps most personally, her reporting on the ethical laxity of TechCrunch founder Michael Arrington's journalism.
        Over the past decade, Arrington and Swisher have ostensibly been the two major power brokers of tech reporting, though each would recoil at being lumped together. Arrington, who was a Silicon Valley lawyer before he became a blogger, has always been reflexively pro-entrepreneur and took to heart the cynical maxim of venture capitalist John Doerr: ''No conflict, no interest.'' Online, as the traditional ethical standard of recusal gave way to a standard of disclosure, Arrington was an absolutist who believed you could do just about anything, so long as you were transparent. This included taking stakes in small companies even as he was writing about them. His staff joked about what a poor investor he was'--among his stinkers was DanceJam, MC Hammer's company'--but even they couldn't stomach it when he started an investment fund confusingly branded as CrunchFund.
        During Arrington's tenure at TechCrunch'--through its acquisition by AOL and his eventual dismissal by Arianna Huffington in 2011 following the CrunchFund fiasco'--Swisher was outspoken about Arrington's ''hopelessly corrupt'' ways as well as his so-called process journalism'--applying the iterative, throw-it-against-the-wall approach of software designers to reporting'--which she deems ''a fancy word for being willfully inaccurate.'' Arrington and Swisher publicly traded insults, with Arrington dubbing Swisher ''the chief whiner,'' and Swisher responding, ''Oooh, burn!'' She called Arrington ''Yertle the Turtle'' and said that ''being lectured in journalism ethics by Michael Arrington is like getting parenting tips from Britney Spears.''
        Arrington was also, until getting booted from TechCrunch, Swisher's chief rival for big scoops, and ''she and Mike Arrington hated each other more than anyone could,'' says Paul Carr, an ex''TechCrunch writer who now edits tech site PandoDaily. ''I think one of the reasons is they're actually very similar: people who consider themselves people you don't fuck with, who'll storm into rooms and demand answers, and when you hold them accountable they say, 'We don't answer to anyone.''…''
        The questions of propriety that clouded Arrington's work'--and those of other sites funded, unlike Re/code, with VC or tech money'--aren't wholly irrelevant to Swisher's. However much she may strive to stand apart from what she has called an ''insidious, logrolling, back-scratching ecosystem,'' she still runs a conference that depends on participation and high-priced attendance by the same people she writes about. Many of her subjects are centimillionaires and billionaires who seem typically to operate beyond the reach of press scrutiny, yet Swisher has become a power broker among them, in part by perfecting the art of reporting as hazing. A mutual source told another reporter about a phone call with Swisher: ''She said, 'I'm getting mad '... I'm getting madder '... I'm getting really mad.' They weren't giving her what she wanted. She was like: 'Just tell me.''…'' ''I'll just search my email for 'Kara' and 'stupid' and probably come up with three or four things,'' says Twitter's Costolo.
        All kinds of powers have been darkly imputed to Swisher. She's heard of current Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer holding a meeting in which she graphed the impact on Yahoo's stock price of various Swisher posts. In the past six months, Swisher has broken news of the ouster of two tech CEOs whose boardroom problems she'd assiduously covered: Mozilla's Brendan Eich, whose donation to anti-same-sex-marriage Proposition 8 she'd also first reported, and RadiumOne's Gurbaksh Chahal, who'd been arrested and charged with 45 felony counts related to beating his girlfriend. Chahal pled guilty to two misdemeanor counts of battery; later, in a tweet, he blamed Swisher for whipping up a frenzy on Twitter and forcing his dismissal (of which he'd learned from a Swisher post). ''It is a constant joke in the Valley when people write memos for them to say, 'I hope Kara never sees this,''…'' says Facebook's Sandberg.
        The combination of access and toughness has made Swisher a preeminent arbiter of status in a Silicon Valley where constant turmoil is taken as a sign of innovation and vitality. She isn't exactly Bob Woodward, soberly transcribing the as-he-thought-it aphorisms of Washington potentates, nor is she Hollywood's Nikki Finke, holed up in her secret lair and firing off incendiary, career-vaporizing emails. Instead, she might be the Valley's Walter Lippmann, who occupied a nexus of journalist, counselor, and kingmaker in a mid-century D.C. being remade by the arrival of a new imperial Establishment.
        People like talking to Swisher. She's both direct and playful, and I heard several stories of her personal generosity. She gives good text. ''I am a big proponent of being in touch with everyone even when I do not have a story to ask about,'' Swisher told me. ''Most reporters are so transactional, rather than strategic.'' Swisher emceed Sandberg's fund-raiser for (now-disgraced) Cambodian activist Somaly Mam. She has served as the Valley's update provider, via video interviews, on Brett Bullington, an investor who suffered a traumatic brain injury. As much as the Valley sees her as a reporter and a conference host, they know her as a connector (and, with the launch of Re/code, as a fellow entrepreneur). In Vanity Fair's 2012 ''New Establishment'' portfolio, in a photograph illustrating ''The Rise of Women in Silicon Valley,'' Swisher was one of six, sitting beside YouTube chief Susan Wojcicki. ''People are afraid of her, and they trust her,'' Barry Diller says. ''That's not an everyday combination.''
        It's a balancing act that Swisher doesn't always pull off. She and Andreessen, Netscape creator turned prominent venture capitalist, didn't speak for several years, because, she says, ''some company he was involved with, he thought I was too mean to it.'' After the disastrous onstage interview with Zuckerberg, Swisher says, she and Ron Conway, a prominent early-stage investor who'd backed Facebook, ''had a big falling out '... He thought we were unfair to him, 'cause we made him sweat.'' Swisher continues: ''Smart people know it's a longer game, and I'm still going to be here. At least I know the history and context. I'm not going to give them a break, but I'm going to be fair, even if it's not nice.''
        Kara Swisher at home in San Francisco with her dogs, Phineas and Leroy.Photo: Bill McCulloughAt the hillside home in San Francisco's Castro neighborhood that Swisher shared, until recently, with her wife, the Google executive Megan Smith, and their two sons (they've since separated after 15 years of marriage), a sign on the garage reads: IF YOU BLOCK THE DRIVEWAYS EVEN SLIGHTLY, VISUALIZE YOUR CAR BEING TOWED.
        Swisher has always treated the world as a thing to be confronted without apology. Even when she was a toddler, her mother had named her Tempesta. When she was 5, her 34-year-old father, an anaesthesiologist, died of a cerebral hemorrhage, and until Swisher reached that age, she was convinced that she was going to die young. ''There's a theory, and a great book,'' Swisher says, ''about how kids whose parents die can be very high-functioning people, because the worst thing happened to them and they got over it.'' Swisher's brothers are a doctor and lawyer. ''We work like dogs,'' Swisher says.
        Swisher arrived at Georgetown's School of Foreign Service thinking she might become a spy (her ringtone is the James Bond theme), but she was ''terrible at languages,'' she says, and ''being gay was an issue.'' Journalism seemed like an attractive alternative. While at Georgetown, she'd called up the Washington Post's metro editor to harangue him about the ''major errors'' in a story about a campus event (''It was like an eight-inch story,'' recalls the editor, Larry Kramer), and ended up stringing for the paper. There was a stint working for conservative pundit John McLaughlin, including ghostwriting his column for the National Review, an improbable job for a very liberal young woman (''He put in the right-wing invective''). Later, after McLaughlin was sued for sexual harassment, Swisher testified against him, and when the Post's Eric Alterman wrote about his office loutishness, he included Swisher's accusations (the case was eventually settled out of court). ''I essentially called him a pig, with my name attached,'' Swisher says. ''You have to stand up and not be embarrassed or victimized.'' When she subsequently saw McLaughlin at a party, she says, he told her, '''…'Most people in this town stab you in the back, but you stabbed me in the front, and I appreciate that'. I said, 'Anytime, you son of a bitch.' It was such a moment of fantasticness '... For an evil person, I got along with him rather well.''
        Swisher wound up at the Washington Post's business section, then a backwater, where she was assigned to the retail beat before David Ignatius, then the Post's business editor, asked Swisher, an early adopter of email (to communicate with her girlfriend in Russia), to cover a small company called AOL, which had its office behind a car dealership in Vienna, Virginia. Because the internet had grown atop Defense Department infrastructure, many of the early companies seeking to commercialize it were based around D.C., and Swisher found herself present at the revolution, with few other mainstream reporters on her beat.
        ''These people were very accessible,'' Swisher recalls of a younger Bezos and his cohort, ''and you met them before they were who they are now. When people get rich, people lick them up and down all day, so some of them morph into thinking that being licked up and down all day is their reality and that everything that comes out of their mouths are golden nuggets. Everyone starts to rewrite history, but if you knew them, and have some historical knowledge '...''
        Swisher took a leave of absence to write a book about AOL, whose executives all seemed to be on her AIM Buddy List. ''She would sit on instant messenger all day and harass the shit out of people,'' Andreessen says. ''She had the most extreme form of the thing where you play one source off the other. She'd say, 'Well, X says this,' and she'd word it in such a way that you'd get a sinking feeling, 'I'm fucked,' and rise to the occasion and tell her everything.'' By early 1999, the Industry Standard was calling Swisher ''the writer who has most influenced public opinion about the internet economy.''
        It was through a shared interest in AOL that she met Mossberg, who'd written a prescient column for The Wall Street Journal touting it as the future. He soon recommended her for a job covering the web out of the paper's San Francisco bureau, but a few years later, after Swisher became involved with Smith and Smith joined Google, Swisher saw that it was going to be a problem for her to cover tech when Google was clearly going to be a very important company in that sector. ''There's no disclosure long enough that I could do it in the newspaper,'' she says. (At AllThingsD, and now at Re/code, she has offered a long ''ethics statement,'' now 1,207 words, much of which focuses on her relationship with Smith, her recusal from personally covering Google, and the meticulous separation of their finances, including Swisher's legal renunciation of ''future rights'' to Smith's wealth in the event of her death'--''I'm the worst gold digger,'' Swisher says.)
        For a time, Swisher stopped covering the internet, and it was during this period that Swisher and Mossberg became partners. Mossberg has always been based in Washington, the better to represent consumers and not get too friendly with the industry whose gadgets he reviews, but he and Swisher would cross paths at soul-crushing tech conferences, and they became convinced that they could do better. No more dull slideshows and panels, no more speaker slots reserved for sponsors, no more vice-presidents from Cisco giving prepared speeches. Dow Jones already had a conference division, but Mossberg and Swisher were firm in their insistence that their conference be produced by the news division. It would be a different kind of news machine as much as a different kind of conference operation; they were going to do live journalism, interrogating the most compelling tech figures of the moment in front of an audience, breaking news and providing context. The first conference, in 2003, sold out and was profitable. It has only grown; every year since there has been a waiting list.
        Soon after the conference debuted, Mossberg convinced Dow Jones to let him and Swisher start a spinoff blog, AllThingsD, which could accommodate more innovative reporting (and longer disclosures) than the staid newsroom would brook. Like him, Swisher was a voice-y, opinionated writer, not an easy fit at the Journal. ''If there was ever someone born to be a blogger,'' Mossberg says, ''I think it would be Kara Swisher.'' Mossberg has played a significant role in Swisher's personal life as well, pressing her mother for years over her disapproval of Swisher's sexuality. When Swisher married Smith in Marin Country in 1999, her mother initially said she wasn't going to attend, and Swisher asked Mossberg to walk her down the aisle. (In the end, Swisher's mother showed up and helped her daughter get dressed; Mossberg encouraged her to take over his bridal-escort duties, but she demurred, watched the ceremony from off to one side, and later gave a ''great and moving speech,'' Swisher says, about how proud her father would have been of her.)
        Swisher and Mossberg's separation from Dow Jones was a long time coming. Over the years there was near-constant friction about the company's support for ­AllThingsD, much of it the inevitable chafing of entrepreneurs against the structures of a big corporation. ''Every time we wanted to add a reporter, it was six months of negotiations,'' Mossberg says. ''It was ridiculous.'' There were disputes over conference profit-­sharing, over issues of links and credit and resources. ''The staff of the Journal resented them because they were complaining all the time and going over people's heads, so the situation soured,'' a former colleague says. When Swisher and Mossberg suggested in 2012 that they might leave, the company didn't oppose them. AllThingsD was a roughly $12.5 million business, of which Dow Jones owned a third; even if the business grew to $30 million, a source says, ''you're talking peanuts in the end. The math just didn't get anyone very excited.''
        All journalism about power runs on trade-offs. Don't use my name, and I'll tell you what you want to know. Wait to run the story, and I'll speak only to you. If you're fair, I'll keep taking your calls. Silicon Valley is no different from Washington or Hollywood in this regard, but it's still much more of a clusterfuck: In the land of the 23-year-old multibillionaire, unlike in D.C., some of the most powerful, newsworthy people are peers of the young reporters covering them, and thus more likely to form social relationships; and unlike in Hollywood, journalists aren't automatically assigned lower social status than their subjects. Here, too, the investors backing tech media are often from the same industry they're supposed to be covering, a uniquely sunny industry that encourages puffery. Most tech-media outlets, being start-ups themselves, are sympathetic to entrepreneurs, and upstart tech media don't necessarily have the ethical proscriptions'--such as gift policies'--that traditional print institutions do.
        Which makes it all the more unusual that a writer sometimes characterized as snarky or bullying has thrived in a subculture that venerates rosy, self-­regarding idealism and that, in an industry that is constantly touting its transcendence of pedestrian mass media, a shoe-leather reporter should attain such stature. What's most curious about Swisher's role in the Valley is not whether her connections and conferences ­compromise her'--beyond grumbling about her Google conflict, not even her rivals can name a big story she's pulled up short on, and she's broken more big stories in the industry than anyone else'--but how she's managed to elevate herself into Silicon Valley royalty by writing about Silicon Valley royalty, often acerbically.
        Swisher turned 50 last year, and hundreds of people gathered in the Tonga Room at San Francisco's Fairmont Hotel for a birthday roast. Among those who got up to tweak Swisher were Facebook's Randi Zuckerberg (who serenaded her), Twitter's Costolo, Pinterest executive Joanne Bradford (who sits on Re/code's board), and ex-Yahoo chief Terry Semel. The event's inversion of power'--with tech muckety-mucks paying tribute to their putative watchdog'--raised a few eyebrows: ''Mike Arrington is in a refractory period,'' says one guest, ''but a couple of years ago he would have made a big stink and said, 'How could she do this?''…'' There were jokes about conflicts of interest and about Swisher's interview style, and ''lots of lampooning Kara's status and her drive, which borders on self-parody,'' according to the guest. But ''Yahoo was certainly the main theme,'' says Dave Goldberg, CEO of ­SurveyMonkey, who did a skit about Swisher and the company. There were jokes about her having bugged its bathrooms, about its email running slow because she was filtering it.
        Because of the fear she instills, or because she's just not going away, or because of what her admirers would say is her fairness, Swisher has managed to keep professional relationships and even friendships with people she's annihilated in print. During the unsuccessful CEO-ship of Yahoo co-founder Jerry Yang, her coverage could be sadistic'--posts had titles like ''Raise the Yangtanic, Again!'''--but Yang visited her in the hospital after she suffered a transient ischemic attack, a sort of stroke, last year (as did Al Gore), and it was Yang who suggested she and Mossberg approach Semel to invest in Re/code. Semel himself was hardly an obvious choice, given that when he ran Yahoo, Swisher called him ''box-office poison,'' among other things. This didn't stop him from becoming one of Re/code's two backers (the other is NBCUniversal News Group), ''which a lot of people thought was hilarious,'' Andreessen says, ''given how thoroughly she savaged the shit out of him. It's like PTSD or Stockholm syndrome.''
        One of Swisher's secrets may be her selective discretion. ''She knows way more than she ever writes,'' Goldberg says, ''because she doesn't have it really carefully confirmed, or because she doesn't want to write something that's going to be personally painful to someone but isn't relevant from a business standpoint.'' It was Swisher who was chosen to break the news last year of Sergey Brin's separation from his wife, Anne Wojcicki, but it was ''not something I wanted to do. They called, and at first we said no, but then they made a good point that there was a lot of stock involved.'' (Swisher assigned it to another reporter.) Even Yahoo's Mayer, who doesn't speak to Swisher, has been a beneficiary of her restraint. When Mayer was two hours late to a dinner with advertisers because she'd overslept a few weeks ago, Swisher says she declined to write about it ''unless it was in the context of a larger and well-reported piece on her struggles with advertisers,'' because it would be ''carrying water for her enemies.''
        Not that such magnanimity has led to any sort of d(C)tente. When Scott Thompson was CEO, the company produced multiple versions of documents to try to isolate who Swisher's sources were. Mayer has clamped down on leaks even more than her predecessors. ''Marissa hates Kara,'' says another reporter.
        Swisher dates Mayer's antipathy to her to an incident six years ago when she teased then''Valleywag editor Owen Thomas about not receiving an invitation to a Mayer-hosted Sex and the City movie-premiere party. ''She somehow figured out that I forwarded the invitation to him,'' Swisher says. ''So for some reason she's got it in her head that I leak to Valleywag all the time. I mean, honestly, the stuff I know about people, if I was their source, it would be a much better blog.''
        Swisher insists, in any case, that the animosity isn't mutual. ''She's one of these CEOs who likes to be lauded,'' Swisher says. ''Personally, I think she's remarkable. She's really accomplished and smart, but she's not perfect, and she wants to look perfect.''
        Just how hostile should the technology press be? This question, which Swisher has circled for most of her career, came into sharp focus at SXSW, where she was on a panel addressing the responsibilities of tech media in the surveillance era and titled ''Why Didn't a Tech Journalist Break PRISM?'' A co-panelist from the Guardian and the moderator both wore tiny plastic life-logging cameras around their necks that snap 120 images per hour. So, the moderator asked, why didn't you? ''We're terrible,'' Swisher said, to laughter, though ''we did tell you about the Lyft funding today.''
        Self-flagellation was a recurring theme, even though it would be silly to expect the national-security story of the decade to break in a California business publication. Swisher and fellow panelist Alexia Tsotsis, the co-editor of TechCrunch, spoke of the non-investigative nature of the bulk of their coverage'--fundings, job changes, new product features. Tsotsis was especially abject, suggesting that even if she'd received the Edward Snowden documents, she probably ''would have succumbed to the pressure of the Obama administration now''; TechCrunch ''is just a cheerleader,'' she said, and ''a lot of tech media is sort of in the pockets of the people we cover '... We're inviting them to our parties. We might be dating some of them. We are right in the middle, in the thick, of the tech industry.'' (Tsotsis dates a partner at General Catalyst, a venture-capital firm.) She noted that TechCrunch was entrepreneur-friendly from its inception and said she stays up nights worrying about sources getting fired: ''There's a part of me that's like: No, don't leak this to us!''
        ''I never say that,'' Swisher said.
        ''That's why you're better than us,'' Tsotsis said sweetly.
        Spencer Ackerman, a writer with the Guardian, stood up and said: ''It sounds like you've just gotten used to not having an oppositional journalistic culture.''
        ''I don't think we're completely non-oppositional,'' Swisher said. ''I don't think you can look at my history and say they love me to death in Silicon Valley.''
        ''A smart young person in the Valley thinks being a reporter is basically being a PR person,'' says one tech journalist. ''Like, We have news to share, we'd like to come and tell you about it.'' Reporters who write favorably about companies receive invitations to things; critics don't. ''They're very thin-skinned,'' says another reporter. ''On Wall Street, if you call them a douchebag, they've already heard 17 worse things in the last hour. Here, if you criticize a company, you're criticizing the spirit of innovation.''
        Swisher has branded herself largely around her efforts to avoid these traps. When she and Mossberg were seeking backers for Re/code, they were determined not to take venture-capital money, instead going after media partners. First at ­AllThingsD, and now at Re/code, their site has had the most robust disclosures in the industry.
        Being outspoken about the ethics of her peers has not endeared Swisher to them all. ''I don't buy into the meme of Kara Swisher the ass-kicker who says what she wants,'' says PandoDaily's Carr, ''like she's this honey badger who doesn't give a shit.'' There must, such thinking goes, be a price for all that access. How can Re/code cover Pinterest when one of its executives sits on its board? Even her friends take it as a given that Re/code's ability to cover Google aggressively is impeded by Swisher's relationship with Smith. ''Even if she writes disclaimers, she can't go after Google in the way she does other companies,'' Goldberg says. ''I think people understand why she can't do it '... It would be interesting to see, if Megan ever leaves Google, would it change?'' This question has been preempted by Swisher's separation from Smith; Swisher says it won't change her approach to Google.
        At the SXSW panel on tech media's failings, Swisher seemed just as hard on herself: ''More and more, as I've thought about our new endeavor, at some point, we're going to have to start pissing people off more. And I think about that a lot. Sometimes I see people and I think: Soon, I'm going to screw you. I do, I think that a lot more '... Things are going to have to start to get a little tougher.''
        *This article appears in the July 14, 2014 issue of New York Magazine.
      Google's Smith Is Top Candidate for U.S. Chief Technology Officer - Bloomberg
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 10:00
        Google Inc. (GOOG) executive Megan Smith is close to heading to the White House.
        Smith, 49, who was most recently a vice president at Google's X lab, is a top candidate for the role of U.S. chief technology officer, according to people with knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be identified because the process is private.
        Smith would become the third person to fill the CTO job, after Aneesh Chopra and Todd Park, who recently resigned and is returning home to California this month. Park will take on a new role for President Barack Obama's administration as a technology adviser based in Silicon Valley, the White House said yesterday.
        Courtney Hohne, a spokeswoman at Mountain View, California-based Google, declined to comment. A White House official declined to comment and Smith didn't return requests for comment.
        The CTO serves as a kind of White House chief geek-in-residence, tasked with overseeing the government's use of technology, including finding ways to create jobs and increase the use of broadband.
        Park helped to lead the effort to fix the much maligned Obamacare portal, HealthCare.gov. He also helped start the Presidential Innovation Fellows program, which teams government officials with private-sector individuals on various projects.
        ''I thank Todd for his service as my chief technology officer, and look forward to his continuing to help us deploy the best people and ideas from the tech community in service of the American people,'' Obama said in a statement.
        Smith joined Google in 2003. As vice president of business development, she oversaw many of its most important acquisitions, like Keyhole, the service that underlies Google Earth. She has led the company's philanthropic division, Google.org, and served as a co-host for Google's Solve for X forum, where distinguished thinkers and scientists brainstorm radical technology ideas with Google executives.
        Before joining Google, Smith was chief executive officer of Planet Out, a site for gay and lesbian Internet users. She got undergraduate and Masters degrees at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and has been active in the FIRST Robotics Competition, which inspires kids to get involved in the field of technology.
        To contact the reporters on this story: Brad Stone in San Francisco at bstone12@bloomberg.net; Brian Womack in San Francisco at bwomack1@bloomberg.net
        To contact the editors responsible for this story: Pui-Wing Tam at ptam13@bloomberg.net Jillian Ward
        Press spacebar to pause and continue. Press esc to stop.
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      Patent US7629918 - Multifunctional radio frequency directed energy system - Google Patents
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Tue, 26 Aug 2014 23:49
        TECHNICAL FIELDThe present invention relates generally to radio frequency directed energy (RFDE) systems, and more particularly to multifunctional type RFDE systems.
        BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONRadio frequency directed energy (RFDE) systems are known in the art for directing high power RF, microwave and/or millimeter wave electromagnetic energy to destroy or disrupt a target. Although RFDE systems typically serve as military weapons, RFDE systems need not be limited to weapon systems. For example, RFDE systems of the present invention may be used for non-military purposes such as destroying or disrupting foreign objects, contaminants, undesirable atmospheric conditions, or other types of targets.
        As for weapon systems, it is important to distinguish between an RFDE weapon system and an electronic warfare system. A primary difference between an RFDE weapon and an electronic warfare system is power and kill mode. An electronic warfare system makes use of a priori knowledge of a target it is designed to jam or disrupt. An electronic warfare system uses such a priori knowledge of a target's characteristics (e.g., frequency of operation, method of operation, etc.) to disrupt or confuse the target with ''finesse'', or a relatively low amount of power.
        On the other hand, an RFDE weapon system can go after a broad range of targets (electronics, biological, ordinance, structures, etc.) due to its relatively large radiated power. A priori knowledge of the intended target characteristics is typically not required because the RFDE weapon either burns-out or overwhelms its target by the shear amount of power it radiates.
        An ongoing problem with RFDE systems is targeting'--accurately pointing the RF directed energy beam at the intended target and establishing an accurate range from the system to the target. To date, the RFDE system targeting problem has been addressed by using what may be referred to as auxiliary add-on systems. These add-on systems could include a stand-alone radar system, a stand-alone laser range finder, stand-alone optical or infrared imaging system, etc. However, these add-on systems add significant cost to the RFDE system. In addition, these add-on systems add significant complexity by requiring calibration of the alignment between the RFDE system and the stand-alone targeting system.
        FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a typical RFDE system 10. In its simplest form, the system 10 includes a high power transmitter 12 transmitting thru a high power antenna 14. The transmitter 12 operates at RF, microwave or millimeter wave frequencies. The system 10 operates based on a prime power source 16, such as an AC mains, generator, high capacity battery system, etc. A power conditioning block 18 conditions power delivered from the power source 16 so as to be suitable for powering the transmitter 12. A cooling system 20 provides appropriate cooling to the power conditioning block 18 and the high power transmitter 12 as needed. A control block 22 provides appropriate control among the various sub-systems.
        The RFDE weapon system 10 further includes an antenna pointing system 24 for aiming the high power antenna 14, and thus the high power electromagnetic energy beam transmitted therefrom, at the target. The pointing system 24 typically is driven by coordinate data identifying the direction and range of the intended target. Such coordinate data is provided by a stand-alone targeting system 26. As is noted above, the targeting system 26 is an add-on often in the form of a stand-alone radar system, a stand-alone laser range finder, stand-alone optical or infrared imaging system, etc. As is also noted above, however, these add-on systems add significantly to the cost and complexity of the RFDE system.
        In view of the aforementioned shortcomings associated with conventional RFDE systems, there is a strong need in the art for an RFDE system which is not subject to the cost and complexity associated with conventional targeting systems.
        SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe RFDE system of the present invention eliminates the need for a separate, stand-alone targeting system by integrating a targeting system within the RFDE system itself. The RFDE system is multi-functional in that all or part of the RFDE system hardware that functions to direct high power electromagnetic energy also functions to obtain and provide targeting information to aim the high power electromagnetic energy beam. For example, the RFDE transmitter is not only used as the source of the directed electromagnetic energy, but is also used as a radar transmitter for targeting an object. A relatively simple radar receiver may then be added to the RFDE system. The cost of the overall system is substantially reduced since an expensive radar transmitter is not required.
        Moreover, the complexity of the system is reduced as calibration of the alignment between the RFDE system and a stand-alone targeting system becomes unnecessary.
        According to one aspect of the invention, a multi-functional RFDE system is provided. The RFDE system includes an RFDE transmitter and at least one RFDE antenna. The RFDE transmitter and antenna direct high power electromagnetic energy towards a target sufficient to cause high energy damage or disruption of the target. The RFDE system further includes a targeting system for locating the target. The targeting system includes a radar transmitter and at least one radar antenna for transmitting and receiving electromagnetic energy to locate the target. The RFDE system also includes an antenna pointing system for aiming the at least one RFDE antenna at the target based on the location of the target as ascertained by the targeting system. Moreover, at least a portion of the radar transmitter or the at least one radar antenna is integrated within at least a portion of the RFDE transmitter or the at least one RFDE antenna.
        According to another aspect of the invention, a method is provided operating an RFDE system. The method includes the steps of utilizing an RFDE transmitter and at least one RFDE antenna to direct high power electromagnetic energy towards a target sufficient to cause high energy damage or disruption of the target; utilizing a targeting system to locate the target, the targeting system including a radar transmitter and at least one radar antenna for transmitting and receiving electromagnetic energy to locate the target; aiming the at least one RFDE antenna at the target based on the location of the target as ascertained by the targeting system; and integrating at least at portion of the radar transmitter or the at least one radar antenna within, at least a portion of the RFDE transmitter or the at least one RFDE antenna.
        To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related; ends, the invention, then, comprises the features hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following description and the annexed drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative embodiments of the invention. These embodiments are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of the invention may be employed. Other objects, advantages and novel features of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the drawings.
        BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSFIG. 1 is a block diagram of a conventional RFDE system;
        FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a multi-functional RFDE system in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention;
        FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a multi-functional RFDE system in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention;
        FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a multi-functional RFDE system in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention;
        FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a multi-functional RFDE system in accordance with a fourth embodiment of the present invention;
        FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a multi-functional RFDE system in accordance with a fifth embodiment of the present invention;
        FIG. 7 illustrates a multi-functional RFDE system mounted within an aircraft in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;
        FIG. 8 illustrates a multi-functional RFDE system mounted within a wheeled vehicle in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and
        FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a multi-functional RFDE system incorporating a reflector-type antenna in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
        DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings, in which like reference numerals are provided to refer to like elements throughout.
        The RFDE system of the present invention integrates a targeting system, such as a radar targeting, system, into an otherwise conventional RFDE system. There are several ways that the targeting system can be integrated into the RFDE system as explained herein. The particular embodiments described below are meant to be merely exemplary. The present invention contemplates not only the particular embodiments described herein, but any system in which a targeting system is integrated in part or in whole within the RFDE system.
        Referring to FIG. 2, an RFDE system 30 is shown in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. Since many of the elements of the RFDE system 30 in FIG. 3 are similar to those in the conventional system 10 discussed above with respect to FIG. 1, only the relevant differences with be discussed herein for sake of brevity. In this particular embodiment, a portion of an otherwise conventional RFDE system (notably the high power transmitter 12 and/or the transmit antenna 14) forms part of the targeting system. Specifically, during a targeting mode, the high power RFDE transmitter 12 is controlled by the control block 22 to transmit standard radar tracking signals thru the antenna 14. The radar tracking signals may be any type of conventional radar signal such a pulse or continuous wave radar. The power level of the tracking signals may be a high powered signal, such as the RFDE signal itself, or a relatively low powered signal as more typical in radar tracking applications.
        In the embodiment of FIG. 2, a separate radar receiver 32 and radar receive antenna 34 are used in conjunction with the integrated RFDE/radar transmitter 12. In one embodiment, the RFDE high power output beam intended to destroy or disturb a target is transmitted using the RFDE/radar transmitter 12 and antenna 14. The radar receive antenna 34 receives portions of the RFDE output beam reflected by the target back towards the system 30. The radar receiver 32 processes the reflected return signals using conventional techniques in order to identify the location of the target. For example, the radar receiver 32 can be coherently linked to the transmitted RFDE output waveform (represented by line 36) so that Doppler processing can be achieved and the direction and range of the target identified.
        The radar receiver 32 provides the target location information to an integrated targeting system block 38 which feeds the location information to the antenna pointing system 24. Such operation allows the antenna 14 to be directed in both search and track radar functions.
        As will be appreciated, the RFDE system 30 in FIG. 2, as with the various other embodiments of the invention described herein, can operate in both an RFDE mode and a tracking mode. Both modes may be carried out simultaneously as described above, for example, where the high power electromagnetic energy output waveform of the RFDE system also serves as the radar tracking system transmit signal. Alternatively, the RFDE system 30 may switch between the RFDE mode and the tracking mode using a separate RFDE high power beam and lower power radar transmit signals, respectively. So long as the system 30 switches between the two modes rapidly enough so as not to lose track of the target, operation between RFDE mode and tracking mode may be time-division multiplexed.
        Typically the radar transmitter is one of the most expensive portions of a radar tracking system. Therefore, by using the RFDE transmitter 12 and antenna 14 to function as the radar transmitter and antenna for targeting, the cost of the targeting system can be drastically reduced. Also, using the radar return of the RFDE high power beam itself to determine the target location can substantially improve the beam pointing accuracy of the RFDE system 30. By using the RFDE high power beam to determine the location of the target, the power density on target will be maximized when standard radar tracking techniques are employed (e.g., monopulse, continuous scan, etc.).
        Those of ordinary skill will appreciate that the RFDE transmitter 12 can be any transmitter suitable for transmitting an RFDE high power beam. For example, the RFDE transmitter 12 may be a single or multiple tube source, or solid state source. Moreover, it will be appreciated that the antenna 14 can be any type of suitable high power antenna which can be mechanically and/or electronically pointed and scanned via the antenna pointing system 24. The transmitter/antenna can also be comprised of an active electronically steered array (AESA), for example, where an array of high power amplifiers/antennas is utilized. The radar receive antennas 34 can be any type of suitable antenna for receiving the radar return signals. As with the antenna 14, the radar receive antenna 34 is mechanically and/or electronically pointed and scanned via the antenna pointing system 24. The antenna pointing system 24 can be a mechanical gimbal or a beam steering computer controlling phase shifters in an electronically steerable array.
        FIG. 3 illustrates another embodiment representing how a tracking system can be integrated with an RFDE system. The embodiment of FIG. 3, as with the other embodiments described herein, shares many of the same elements as FIG. 2, and thus again only the relevant differences between the embodiments will be discussed for sake of brevity.
        Specifically, FIG. 3 illustrates an RFDE system 40 in which the power amplifier of the tracking system is integrated within the power amplifier of the RFDE system. More particularly, the RFDE transmitter 12 includes a low power RFDE signal source 42 operating at a first frequency and input to an adder 44. The output of the adder 44 is input to a power amplifier 46 which amplifies the output before being radiated by the transmit antenna 14. A low power radar signal source 48 at a second frequency is also input to the adder 44. In addition, the low power radar signal source 48 is input to the radar receiver 32 to provide for coherent processing. The adder 44 thus outputs the combined RFDE signal source and radar signal source to the power amplifier 46. The power amplifier 46 can be any suitable type of amplifier including, for example, an injection locked magnetron, a klystron, a solid-state amplifier, etc., or an array of any of these types of amplifiers in an AESA embodiment.
        In the embodiment of FIG. 3, a separate low power radar signal from the signal source 48 is used. This signal is combined with the RFDE signal from the RFDE signal source 42 prior to the combined signal being amplified by the power amplifier 46. The frequencies of the RFDE signal and the radar signal do not have to be at the same frequency. In fact, they can be completely independent of each other within the bandwidth constraints of the power amplifier 46 and the RFDE transmit antenna 14. It will be appreciated that significant isolation can be achieved between the RFDE and radar signals by filtering out the RFDE signal at the receive antenna 34 and/or radar receiver 32.
        Again, it will be appreciated that the RFDE system 40 of FIG. 3 may operate in an RFDE mode and a targeting mode. As in the other embodiments described herein, such modes may be carried out simultaneously or in time-multiplexed fashion. In the case where the RFDE signal source 42 and radar signal source 48 are different, one may consider such operation as frequency-multiplexed as will be appreciated.
        FIG. 4 illustrates yet another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the RFDE system 50 integrates the radar receive antenna into the same antenna 14 serving as the RFDE and radar transmit antenna. This is accomplished by means of a high power circulator 52 which routes the RFDE/radar transmit signals from the shared transmitter 12 through to the antenna 14. Reflected signals received by the antenna are routed by the circulator 52 to the receiver 32 for processing. In this example, as in the others discussed herein, the RFDE transmit signal may also be the radar transmit signal. The return signal is received by the same antenna 14 and coupled through the circulator 52 to the receiver 32. The radar system thus can provide target information feedback to the antenna pointing system 24.
        The high power circulator 52 can be problematic in that it can be difficult to design a circulator that can handle the typical total power radiated by an RFDE system. Nevertheless, with improvements in materials and technologies such a circulator may someday be commercially feasible. Furthermore, the embodiment of FIG. 4 certainly is very suitable for an AESA system where the output power is broken-up among an array of transmit elements as discussed in more detail below.
        In some integrated RFDE/targeting applications it may be desirable only to share the antenna between the RFDE and targeting systems. The RFDE system and the targeting system otherwise operate independently. An example of such an embodiment is shown in FIG. 5.
        Specifically, the embodiment of FIG. 5 illustrates a radar system 32'² which functions essentially independently of the RFDE system 60 with the exception of sharing a dual polarized antenna 14. The RFDE system transmits the RFDE high power beam from the transmitter 12 via the dual polarized antenna 14 using one polarization (e.g., vertical, right hand circular, etc.). The radar system 32'², with its own transmitter/receiver, transmits the radar transmit signal via the antenna 14 using the orthogonal polarization (e.g., horizontal, left hand circular, etc.). The reflected radar return signal received by the antenna 14 is processed by the radar system 32'² to provide target location information, again using conventional techniques. As in the other embodiments, the location information is provided to the integrated targeting system 38 which provides the information to the antenna pointing system 24. The embodiment of FIG. 5 can be used to provide tracking information and/or is especially suitable for providing range information for the RFDE system.
        FIG. 6 illustrates an embodiment in which AESAs or phased array antennas may be incorporated within the present invention. The embodiment of FIG. 6 is fundamentally the same as the embodiment of FIG. 3, with the exception that the power amplifier 46 is represented by an array of power amplifiers 46'² included with the RFDE/radar transmit AESA antenna 14. The radar receive antenna 34 may similarly comprise an AESA antenna.
        As is shown in FIG. 6, the combined signal from the adder 44 is input to a power splitter 72 within the AESA antenna 14. The power splitter 72 separates the signal and provides the split signal to respective phase shifters 74 and power amplifiers 46'² corresponding to respective radiator elements 14'² in the antenna 14. The antenna pointing system 24 may steer the antenna 14 by adjusting the phase of the phase shifters 74, as will be appreciated.
        Continuing to refer to FIG. 6, it will further be appreciated that the radar source 48 and RFDE source 42 can be at different frequencies and still radiate in the same direction. As long as the phase shifters 74 are selected to provide a true time delay (which is fairly common in the art), the antenna 14 may be steered concurrently for both frequencies.
        A multifunctional RFDE system of the present invention can be employed on a variety of platforms. For example, FIG. 7 illustrates an embodiment in which the system is employed on an aircraft. The combined RFDE/radar transmitter 12 and antenna 14 (not shown), for example, are mounted to radiate out the side of the aircraft. A pod is then mounted beneath the aircraft, containing the radar receiver 32 and receive antenna 34 (also not shown).
        FIG. 8 shows an embodiment in which the RFDE system of the present invention can be employed on a wheeled vehicle. For example, the RFDE and radar systems are mounted in the back of the vehicle and share a common antenna. One possible such system 80 is shown in FIG. 9. A high power RFDE source 12 radiates into a beam transport system comprised of mirrors (e.g., 82) suitable for the frequency of operation. A cross-polarized radar transmit signal from the radar system 32'² is then injected into the RFDE beam path by means of a beam combiner/splitter 84. The RFDE and radar transmit signal are then simultaneously transmitted from the common antenna 14, in this embodiment a reflector-type antenna. The radar return signal is received by the antenna 14 and directed back to the cross-polarized radar system 32'² via the mirrors 82 and beam combiner/splitter 84.
        Although the invention has been shown and described with respect to certain preferred embodiments, it is obvious that equivalents and modifications will occur to others skilled in the art upon the reading and understanding of the specification. For example, although the present invention has been described primarily in the context of a conventional radar based targeting system, other types of radar-like targeting systems which rely on the transmission and return of electromagnetic energy (e.g., laser-based, infrared, etc.) can also be used without departing from the scope of the invention.
        The present invention includes all such equivalents and modifications, and is limited only by the scope of the following claims.
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      Evidence Grows That Online Social Networks Have Insidious Negative Effects | MIT Technology Review
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 05:11
        A study of 50,000 people in Italy concludes that online social networks have a significant negative impact on individual welfare.
        Online social networks have permeated our lives with far-reaching consequences. Many people have used them to connect with friends and family in distant parts of the world, to make connections that have advanced their careers in leaps and bounds and to explore and visualize not only their own network of friends but the networks of their friends, family, and colleagues.
        But there is growing evidence that the impact of online social networks is not all good or even benign. A number of studies have begun found evidence that online networks can have significant detrimental effects. This question is hotly debated, often with conflicting results and usually using limited varieties of subjects, such as undergraduate students.
        Today, Fabio Sabatini at Sapienza University of Rome in Italy and Francesco Sarracino at STATEC in Luxembourg attempt to tease apart the factors involved in this thorny issue by number crunching the data from a survey of around 50,000 people in Italy gathered during 2010 and 2011. The survey specifically measures subjective well-being and also gathers detailed information about the way each person uses the Internet.
        The question Sabatini and Sarracino set out to answer is whether the use of online networks reduces subjective well-being and if so, how.
        Sabatini and Sarracino's database is called the ''Multipurpose Survey on Households,'' a survey of around 24,000 Italian households corresponding to 50,000 individuals carried out by the Italian National Institute of Statistics every year. These guys use the data drawn from 2010 and 2011. What's important about the survey as that it is large and nationally representative (as opposed to a self-selecting group of undergraduates).
        The survey specifically asks the question ''How satisfied are you with your life as a whole nowadays?'' requiring an answer from extremely dissatisfied (0) to extremely satisfied (10). This provides a well-established measure of subjective well-being.
        The survey also asks other detailed questions such as how often people meet friends and whether they think people can be trusted. It also asked about people's use of online social networks such as Facebook and Twitter.
        This allowed Sabatini and Sarracino to study the correlation between subjective well-being and other factors in their life, particularly their use of social networks. As statisticians they were particularly careful to rule out spurious correlations that can be explained by factors such as endogeneity bias where a seemingly independent parameter is actually correlated with an unobserved factor relegated to the error.
        They found for example that face-to-face interactions and the trust people place in one another are strongly correlated with well-being in a positive way. In other words, if you tend to trust people and have lots of face-to-face interactions, you will probably assess your well-being more highly.
        But of course interactions on online social networks are not face-to-face and this may impact the trust you have in people online. It is this loss of trust that can then affect subjective well-being rather than the online interaction itself.
        Sabatini and Sarracino tease this apart statistically. ''We find that online networking plays a positive role in subjective well-being through its impact on physical interactions, whereas [the use of] social network sites is associated with lower social trust,'' they say. ''The overall effect of networking on individual welfare is significantly negative,'' they conclude.
        That's an important result because it is the first time that the role of online networks has been addressed in such a large and nationally representative sample.
        Sabatini and Sarracino particularly highlight the role of discrimination and hate speech on social media which they say play a significant role in trust and well-being. Better moderation could significantly improve the well-being of the people who use social networks, they conclude.
        Facebook, Twitter, and others take note.
        Ref: arxiv.org/abs/1408.3550 : Online Networks and Subjective Well-Being
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      Pump And Dump VC Style: Kleiner Perkins' Gambit To Shear The IPO Sheep | David Stockman's Contra Corner
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Fri, 29 Aug 2014 03:00
        That was quick! Last November Snapchat was valued at $2 billion in the private VC market; by Q1 that had risen to $7 billion; and yesterday it soared to $10 billion. Gaining $8 billion in market value in just nine months is quite a feat under any circumstance'---but that's especially notable if you're are a company with no profits, no revenues and no business model.
        And, yes, that's not to mention the ''product'', either. Apparently, Snapchat's 100 million teenage and college users mostly swap pics of their private parts which vanish after 15 seconds'--''or so they think. In that respect, Snapchat's business challenge may not be lack of ''demand'', but whether its exhibitionist ''customers'' will be copasetic with sharing their 15 seconds of fame with advertisers.
        Time will tell, unfortunately. In the meantime, however, its evident that Snapchat's spectacular valuation rise is not about how to discount the potential value stream from monetizing dirty pictures. Instead, it reflects the crazy dynamics of late stage financial bubbles. And on that score, Wolf Richter has hit the nail squarely on the head, as usual.
        As he explains in today's post, Snapchat's spectacular valuation run-up is just a new and more sophisticated form of ''pump and dump''. In this instance, the venture capital firms involved have apparently invested trivial amounts of chump change in the two recent funding rounds in order to peg dramatically higher paper valuations in preparation for an imminent IPO. In numeric terms they have invested less than $30 million since last November, meaning that they have been able to leverage an $8 billion valuation gain at a ratio of 266:1.
        By strategically deploying less than $30 million, KPCB, and DST Global before it, have ratcheted up Snapchat's valuation from $2 billion to $10 billion. With the stroke of a pen, in a deal negotiated behind closed doors, they have created an additional $8 billion in ''wealth'' that is now percolating through the minds of employees with stock options and through the books of the early investment funds.
        To be sure, Wall Street has sponsored such market-rigging ploys since time immemorial. However, the true evil of rampant central bank money printing is that it vastly enables and amplifies such speculative ventures, while at the same time eviscerating the natural checks and balances against speculative manias which are embedded in honest financial markets.
        Specifically, zero money market rates (ZIRP) for 68 months running have unleashed carry trade gambling in the financial markets like never before. That's because professional Wall Street speculators can acquire risk assets and ''fund'' them on high leverage'-- through margin accounts, options trades or specifically crafted ''structured finance'' deals from their prime brokers'--- at tiny interest rates. The resulting ''spread'' is bubblicious'--especially when the Fed's implicit ''put'' under the stock averages fuels a rambunctious ''buy the dips'' psychology among traders.
        Under those circumstances'--which are rampant at the moment'--a gambler's wildest dream comes true. The carry cost side of a leveraged gamble is pinned at close to zero by the solemn commitment of the central bank, while the asset value side of the trade ratchets ever higher owing to the endless bid of the dip buyers.
        And its actually even better. The obvious effect of the Fed's incessant market coddling since at least the days of the LTCM bailout in September 1998, but especially since Bernanke went all-in September 2008, is that the natural short interest in the stock market has been punished, bloodied, and destroyed. Consequently, downside insurance on speculative portfolios (i.e. puts on the S&P 500) is dirt cheap, meaning aggressive traders can protect themselves against an unexpected (and unlikely) plunge in the broad market while barely denting their gains from high flying momo stocks in favored sectors like social media or whatever happens to be the flavor of the week.
        Needless to say, cheap downside insurance only enlarges and strengthens the bid for high flyers'---a dynamic that works wonders in the IPO market, especially. Accordingly, lunatic valuations have once again flourished in the new issues market as if its 1999-2000 all over again.
        And like then, the resulting devil's workshop environment incentivizes the smart money to concoct schemes to exploit the bubble'--like yesterday's 266:1 leveraging of Snapchat's valuation. That this will end in tears for the ''slow money'' IPO sheep who show up for the shearing, goes without saying.
        What needs remark, however, is the enormous damage that these kinds of financial deformations and distortions do to the real economy and the capitalist machinery of invention and enterprise. By all the historic evidence, Kleiner Perkins has been one of the greatest incubators of technological progress and business innovation in modern times. Surely it has better things to do, therefore, than run a crude 1920s style pump and dump scheme that will contribute nothing to society except painful losses for the retail investors who take the bait.
        So here's the thing. Free central bank money corrupts free markets absolutely'---that should be more than evident by now. But owing to the dense economic fog on her Keynesian windshield, Janet Yellen and her band on money printers in the Eccles Building remain clueless as to the monumental corruption that is being injected into financial markets by Fed policy.
        Would that Yellen should at least read Wolf Richter's excellent post on the present moment's most spectacular example of that. Better still, perhaps a trip back to San Francisco where bubble opulence ricochets thru the entire economy would be in order. She might discover that the median housing price has soared to more than $1 million; and that none of the inhabitants of the ''labor market'' that she is so vainly attempting to revive even qualifies for a standard mortgage.
        By Wolf Richter At Wolf Street
        How much does it cost to manipulate an entire market? Not much. And it's getting cheaper!
        It was leaked on Tuesday by ''people with knowledge of that matter,'' according to the Wall Street Journal, that VC firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers had decided in May to plow up to $20 million into message-app maker Snapchat, for a tiny portion of ownership. An undisclosed investor also committed some funds. The deal, which apparently hasn't closed yet, would give Snapchat a valuation of $10 billion.
        That's a big step up from November last year, when the valuation was $2 billion. At the time, the company had raised $130 million in three rounds of funding. By now that would be closer to $160 million, after it was also leaked that Russian investment firm DST Global had put some money into it earlier this year, boosting its valuation to $7 billion at the time, once again, ''according to two people familiar with the matter.''
        At a valuation of $10 billion, it joins the top of the heap: app makers Uber ($18.2 billion) and Airbnb ($10 billion), cloud storage outfit Dropbox ($10 billion), and Palantir, the Intelligence Community's darling ($9.3 billion).
        Unlike the others in that group, Snapchat is marked by the absence of a business model and no discernable revenues. But there is hope that it could eventually pick up some revenues by advertising to its 100 million or so users, mostly teenagers and college students, without turning them off.
        But in this climate, no revenues, no problem. Into the foreseeable future, the company will produce a thick stream of undisclosed red ink.
        But the investment was an ingenious move.
        For KPCB, a huge VC firm, the investment would amount to petty cash. Why did it do this deal? If it could exit at an enormous valuation of $20 billion, it would only double its money '' a paltry multiple, given the risks. It would only make $20 million, still petty cash. But there was a reason'....
        By strategically deploying less than $30 million, KPCB, and DST Global before it, have ratcheted up Snapchat's valuation from $2 billion to $10 billion. With the stroke of a pen, in a deal negotiated behind closed doors, they have created an additional $8 billion in ''wealth'' that is now percolating through the minds of employees with stock options and through the books of the early investment funds.
        Snapchat's new valuation isn't an isolated event. It's a product of all recent valuations, and it is itself now ricocheting around and is used to set the valuations at other startups. That's the multiplier effect. What seemed like an absurd valuation yesterday becomes the norm tomorrow, on the time-honored principle that once a valuation is already absurd, it no longer faces resistance from any rational limit. And nothing stands in the way for the multiplier effect to ratchet valuations ever higher.
        Nothing, except the potentially troublesome exit for these investors. Because, without exit, these paper gains will remain paper gains, and eventually will disintegrate into dust.
        To exit gracefully, investors can sell the company via an IPO mostly to mutual funds and ETFs that are stashed in retirement funds and investment portfolios. Or they can sell it to giants like Facebook or Google that can pay cash (borrowed or not) or print their own currency by issuing shares, both of which come out of the pocket of current stockholders. At the far end of both transactions are mostly unwitting retail investors.
        Inflating Snapchat's valuation by $8 billion with a few millions dollars rigs the entire IPO market that depends on buzz and hype and folly to rationalize these blue-sky valuations. Unnamed people ''knowledgeable in the matter'' who leak these valuations to the Wall Street Journal are an integral part of the hype machine: It balloons the valuations of other startups. And it creates that ''healthy'' IPO market where money doesn't matter, where revenues and profits are replaced by custom-fabricated metrics.
        The hope is that the IPO market remains ''healthy'' long enough for investors to be able to unload hundreds of these companies at crazy valuations. The hype surrounding these valuations is creating more enthusiasm about IPOs in a self-reinforcing loop. The hope is also that the broader stock market continues to soar so that potential acquirers can print more overvalued shares to acquire more overvalued startups so that the exists can come about. Under the motto: after us the deluge.
        The deluge will wash over retail investors.
        While it's possible that one or the other startup might become the next Facebook or Google, there are only a few Facebooks and Googles, but there are many startups whose business model and permanent lack of profits will eventually bring them down to reality, either in the portfolios of retail investors, or as a write-off by the acquirers, whose shares are also stuffed into the nest eggs of retail investors. Along the way, Wall Street extracts fees from all directions. That's the Wall Street money transfer machine. It smells like a rose when all stocks go up, but when the tide turns'.... OK, that won't ever happen.
        With fundamentals and economic realities having become totally irrelevant these days, economists are reassigned to tout stocks. Read'.... Economist: Stocks No Longer Risky, Will Go Up 'Steadily'
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      SANDVIK SHILL-UPDATED: Code Club cofounder resigns after being ordered not to criticize Google | PandoDaily
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        Archived Version
        Fri, 29 Aug 2014 02:53
        By David HolmesOn August 27, 2014
        [Update: A Google spokesperson reached out to say. "We have not asked Code Club or its board to refrain from criticisng us." Code Club also published a blog post stating, "We are not under any obligation to endorse any of the products or services of our corporate funders."]
        One of the founding members of Code Club, a volunteer-led organization that teaches programming to kids in the UK, has resigned after being told by its board not to criticize Google or any of the group's sponsors.
        In a blog post, Linda Sandvik writes, ''On Monday the 25th of August the Code Club board gave me an ultimatum, either I have to stop saying negative things about Code Club sponsors, or resign as a director. After careful consideration, I have handed in my resignation.''
        In February, Google invested £120,000 (or nearly $200,000 US) to help Code Club train 20,000 primary school teachers in programming. Apparently that cash also buys Google a board of directors that will never call the company out for its practices and policies. And despite Google's innocent ''what, me evil?'' attitude, there's plenty to take the company to task over, whether it's Google's complicity in mass NSA surveillance, its ties to government military contractors, or its support of think tanks backed by oil and gas magnates Charles and David Koch that have taken stances against women's and gay's rights, among other distasteful political positions.
        Shortly after Sandvik revealed her resignation, designer and social entrepreneur Aral Balkan said on Twitter that he had resigned from Code Club's board for the same reason.
        ''This is institutional corruption,'' he said. ''This is the danger posed by the monopoly of companies like Google. And it is affecting every aspect of society, including education.'' Balkan has written extensively on the corporate surveillance Google and Facebook conduct on its users, going so far as to call it ''Spyware 2.0.''
        Of course it'd be silly to demand that Google, just because it does some controversial things, should stop donating money to causes like education, or that philanthropic or civic organizations should refuse this money on the grounds that Google isn't always a saint. Sandvik herself admits she's a pragmatist when it comes to corporations '-- none of them are 100 percent good, and Google does ''some good things,'' she says.
        But if Google had attached strings to the cash, like a rule banning the board from expressing negative opinions (that, for what it's worth, are also shared by many Americans), then it's perfectly reasonable to question the company's motives here. What other strings have they attached to the program? Will every teacher and student have to sign up for the programming training through Google Plus? Would Google make an intellectual property claim on all the lines of code written by these kids? How about inserting a nice Cold War era-style ''You and the NSA'' propaganda video into the syllabus, to help children learn early on that privacy is a joke?
        How companies like Google and Facebook choose to spend their money has come under increased scrutiny of late. Facebook, despite claims that it supports diversity, donated $10,000 to an anti-gay rights politician last May, simply because he also supported open Internet initiatives. That came a year after Facebook came under fire for bankrolling two anti-environmental television ads to help win Republican support for immigration reform. And both Google and Facebook are members of the Technology Task Force belonging to ALEC, an organization that has produced some truly insidious mock legislation involving Voter ID laws that disenfranchise certain segments of the voting population, and Stand Your Ground laws like the one that kept George Zimmerman out of jail.
        Google also raised some eyebrows after transferring $1 million to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (which itself recently partnered with a group of rightwing extremists looking to dismantle basically every social safety net the US has). It wasn't so much the ''donation'' that attracted attention, but the way it was done, through a strange loop-hole that allows non-profit ''member supported'' organizations like the EFF to collect big corporate contributions.
        The long-term goals of tech firms like Google and Facebook extend beyond simply serving customers. There are government contracts to win, legislation to shape, and, in the service of reaching those goals, political sacrifices to be made that may go against the core beliefs of the tech community that builds and uses these services. That's why it's crucial to keep an eye on where this money goes and what interest it may serve to the corporation. Because while $200,000 may not be much to Google, it's a lot to Code Club '-- potentially enough to scare its board into capitulating to Google's every whim.
        David Holmes is Pando's East Coast Editor. He is also the co-founder of Explainer Music, a production company specializing in journalistic music videos. His work has appeared at FastCompany.com, ProPublica, the Guardian, the Daily Dot, NewYorker.com, and Grist.
      resignation.md
        Link to Article
        Archived Version
        Fri, 29 Aug 2014 02:51
        On Monday the 25th of August the Code Club board gave me an ultimatum, either I have to stop saying negative things about Code Club sponsors, or resign as a director. After careful consideration, I have handed in my resignation.
        I've had a great time working on Code Club, from inception and boozy planning with Clare to writing educational materials and seeing them used in the wild, most of all seeing what the kids make. I have really enjoyed user testing lessons with kids, and going around the world meeting like-minded people and enthusing about constructionism. I am lucky to have met so many people who love Seymour Papert as much as I do
      -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      Album Sales Hit A New Low | Billboard
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        Archived Version
        Fri, 29 Aug 2014 08:44
        As streaming gathers momentum, the U.S. music industry keeps breaking sales milestones -- the wrong kind. This week's 3.97-million album sales tally is the smallest weekly sum for album sales since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking data in 1991. It's also the first time weekly sales have fallen below four million in that time span. Last week was fairly slow for the top releases. The top album, Wiz Khalifa's Blacc Hollywood, debuted with sales of 90,000 units, a figure below the first-week sales of many other top debuts of 2014. Three other albums debuted inside the top 10 but averaged only 31,000 units apiece. And the Frozen soundtrack is no longer moving in excess of 100,000 units per week. To compare, a year ago this past week (ending Aug. 25, 2013), 4.88 million albums were sold. But sales have been losing steam all year. The weekly average number of album sales fell from 4.75 million units in the first quarter to 4.55 million units in the second quarter. In the first 8 weeks of the third quarter, the average has fallen further to 4.2 million. This decline is actually in line with historical trends. In 2013, average weekly album sales experienced a similar fate, falling from 5.7 million units in the first quarter to 5.23 million units in the second quarter and then 4.86 million units in the third quarter. This year, overall U.S. album sales are down 14.6 percent, while digital album sales are down 11.7 percent and track sales are down 12.8 percent.
        As more and more consumers transition from purchasing music to streaming tunes, it's natural to see album sales shrink. This year, there have only been five weeks where album sales were above 5 million. Larger retailers and CDs, vestiges of an older record business, have been hit the hardest. Through August 24th, CD sales are down 19.2 percent year-over-year while sales at mass merchants and chains have fallen 23 percent and 25.6 percent, respectively.
        Record label sales executives are not surprised by the latest downturn. "Sales have been going in the wrong direction all year," says one label sales head. "I guess its overdue, when you look at [the growth of streaming]." This year, label executives finally conceded something there were reluctant to acknowledge last year: Streaming is cannibalizing digital sales. Last year, when Billboard covered the then-historic lows in album sales last August, weekly sales had dipped below 5 million units for five weeks in a row. Weekly sales fared even worse in the following weeks, falling under five million units in 10 of the next 13 weeks. There was even another five-week run of below-five-million weekly sales from early October to early November.
        The five-million-unit mark has been almost unreachable in 2014. So far this year, weekly album sales have fallen below that threshold in 29 of 34 weeks and in each of the last 18 weeks. No weekly sales tally has exceeded 4.5 million units since the middle of June. "What can I say about this week's sales," says yet another distribution sales executive. "I remember when album sales fell under 10 million units and the industry reacted like it was a tragedy." There is yet more bad news about the sales trend. Since album sales began to slide in 2002, the lowest-placed weekly sales floor by the end of the year tends to become the new ceiling for sales in the following year. Past history teaches us that, if weekly sales continue to fall below the three million mark, next year's norm will be in the three to four million range. While some major label executives claim that revenue from streaming, which continues to grow, is offsetting declining digital sales revenue, not everyone agrees with that assessment. "This year the bottom fell out of digital sales to a degree that we never anticipated, which is why many companies are not meeting this year's revenue projections," laments one indie distribution executive.
        Additional reporting by Keith Caulfield
      -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    K-Word / Superfood
      Taraxacum - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 12:22
        Taraxacum// is a large genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. They are native to Eurasia and North and South America, and two species, T. officinale and T. erythrospermum, are found as weeds worldwide.[2] Both species are edible in their entirety.[3] The common name dandelion (//DAN-di-ly-Én, from Frenchdent-de-lion, meaning "lion's tooth") is given to members of the genus, and like other members of the Asteraceae family, they have very small flowers collected together into a composite flower head. Each single flower in a head is called a floret. Many Taraxacum species produce seeds asexually by apomixis, where the seeds are produced without pollination, resulting in offspring that are genetically identical to the parent plant.[4]
        Description[edit]The species of Taraxacum are tap-rootedbiennial or perennialherbaceous plants, native to temperate areas of the Old and New Worlds.[clarification needed]
        The leaves are 5''25 cm long or longer, simple and basal, entire or lobed, forming a rosette above the central taproot. The flower heads are yellow to orange coloured, and are open in the daytime but closed at night. The heads are borne singly on a hollow stem (scape) that rises 1''10 cm or more[2] above the leaves and exudes a milky latex when broken. A rosette may produce several flowering stems at a time. The flower heads are 2''5 cm in diameter and consist entirely of ray florets. The flower heads mature into spherical seed heads called "blowballs"[5] or "clocks" (in both British and American English)[6][7][8][9] containing many single-seeded fruits called achenes. Each achene is attached to a pappus of fine hairs, which enable wind-aided dispersal over long distances.
        The flower head is surrounded by bracts (sometimes mistakenly called sepals) in two series. The inner bracts are erect until the seeds mature, then flex downward to allow the seeds to disperse; the outer bracts are always reflexed downward. Some species drop the "parachute" from the achenes; the hair-like parachutes are called pappus, and they are modified sepals. Between the pappus and the achene, there is a stalk called a beak, which elongates as the fruit matures. The beak breaks off from the achene quite easily, separating the seed from the parachute.
        Seed dispersal[edit]A number of species of Taraxacum are seed dispersed ruderals that rapidly colonize disturbed soil, especially the common dandelion (T. officinale), which has been introduced over much of the temperate world. After flowering is finished, the dandelion flower head dries out for a day or two. The dried petals and stamens drop off, the bracts reflex (curve backwards), and the parachute ball opens into a full sphere.
        False dandelions[edit]Many similar plants in the Asteraceae family with yellow flowers are sometimes known as "false dandelions". Dandelions are very similar to catsears (Hypochaeris). Both plants carry similar flowers, which form into windborne seeds. However, dandelion flowers are borne singly on unbranched, hairless and leafless, hollow stems, while catsear flowering stems are branched, solid and carry bracts. Both plants have a basal rosette of leaves and a central taproot. However, the leaves of dandelions are smooth or glabrous, whereas those of catsears are coarsely hairy.
        Other plants with superficially similar flowers include hawkweeds (Hieracium) and hawksbeards (Crepis). These are readily distinguished by branched flowering stems, which are usually hairy and bear leaves.
        Classification[edit]The genus is taxonomically complex, with some botanists dividing the group into about 34 macrospecies, and about 2000 microspecies;[10] approximately 235 apomictic and polyploid microspecies have been recorded in Great Britain and Ireland.[11] Some botanists take a much narrower view and only accept a total of about 60 species.[10]
        Selected species[edit]Taraxacum albidum, a white-flowering Japanese dandelion.Taraxacum brevicorniculatum, frequently mis-identified as Taraxacum kok-saghyz, and a poor rubber producerTaraxacum californicum, the endangered California dandelionTaraxacum centrasiaticum, the Xinjiang dandelionTaraxacum platycarpum, the Korean dandelionTaraxacum japonicum, Japanese dandelion. No ring of smallish, downward-turned leaves under the flowerhead.Taraxacum kok-saghyz, Russian dandelion, which produces rubber[12]Taraxacum laevigatum, Red-seeded dandelion; achenes reddish brown and leaves deeply cut throughout length. Inner bracts' tips are hooded.Taraxacum officinale (syn. T. officinale subsp. vulgare), common dandelion. Found in many forms.Taraxacum ceratophorum, Northern dandelion[14]Cultivars[edit]'Am(C)lior(C) Coeur Plein' - Yields an abundant crop without taking up much ground, and tends to blanch itself naturally, due to its clumping growth habit.'Broad Leaved' - The leaves are thick and tender and easily blanched. In rich soils they can be up to 60 cm wide. Plants do not go to seed as quickly as French types.'Vert de Montmagny'- Long dark green leaves, some find them mild enough to be palatable without blanching. Vigorous and productive.[15]History[edit]Dandelions are thought to have evolved about thirty million years ago in Eurasia.[16] They have been used by humans for food and as a herb for much of recorded history.[17]
        The Latin name Taraxacum originates in medieval Persian writings on pharmacy. The Persian scientist Al-Razi around 900 (A.D.) wrote "the tarashaquq is like chicory". The Persian scientist and philosopher Ibn SÄnÄ around 1000 (A.D.) wrote a book chapter on Taraxacum. Gerard of Cremona, in translating Arabic to Latin around 1170, spelled it tarasacon.[18]
        The English name, dandelion, is a corruption of the French dent de lion[19] meaning "lion's tooth", referring to the coarsely toothed leaves. The plant is also known as blowball, cankerwort, doon-head-clock, witch's gowan, milk witch, lion's-tooth, yellow-gowan, Irish daisy, monks-head, priest's-crown and puff-ball;[20] other common names include faceclock, pee-a-bed, wet-a-bed,[21]swine's snout,[22] white endive, and wild endive.[23]
        "The English folk name for the plant "piss-a-bed" refers to the strong diuretic effect of the plant's roots.[24] In various north-eastern Italian dialects, the plant is known as pisacan ("dog pisses"), because they are found at the side of pavements.[25]
        In Swedish, it is called maskros ('worm rose') after the small insects (thrips) usually present in the flowers.[26]
        Properties[edit]Edibility[edit]Dandelions are found on all continents and have been gathered for food since prehistory, but the varieties cultivated for consumption are mainly native to Eurasia. A perennial plant, its leaves will grow back if the taproot is left intact. To make leaves more palatable, they are often blanched to remove bitterness.[17] or sauteed in the same way as spinach.[27] Dandelion leaves and buds have been a part of traditional Sephardic, Chinese, and Korean cuisine. In Crete, Greece, the leaves of a variety called Mari (Î'Î±ÏÎ¯), Mariaki (Î'Î±ÏÎ¹Î¬ÎºÎ¹) or Koproradiko (ÎšÎÏÏÎÏÎ¬Î´Î¹ÎºÎ) are eaten by locals, either raw or boiled, in salads. Taraxacum megalorhizon, a species endemic to Crete, is eaten in the same way; it is found only at high altitudes (1000 to 1600 m.) and in fallow sites, and is called pentaramia (ÏÎµÎ½ÏÎ±ÏÎ¬Î¼Î¹Î±) or agrioradiko (Î±Î"ÏÎ¹ÎÏÎ¬Î´Î¹ÎºÎ).[28]
        The flower petals, along with other ingredients, usually including citrus, are used to make dandelion wine. The ground, roasted roots can be used as a caffeine-free dandelion coffee.[29] Dandelion was also traditionally used to make the traditional British soft drink dandelion and burdock, and is one of the ingredients of root beer. Also, dandelions were once delicacies eaten by the Victorian gentry, mostly in salads and sandwiches.
        Dandelion leaves contain abundant vitamins and minerals, especially vitamins A, C and K, and are good sources of calcium, potassium, iron and manganese.[30]
        Medicinal uses[edit]Historically, dandelion was prized for a variety of medicinal properties, and it contains a wide number of pharmacologically active compounds.[31] Dandelion is used as a herbal remedy in Europe, North America and China.[31] It has been used in herbal medicine to treat infections, bile and liver problems,[31] and as a diuretic.[31]
        Food for wildlife[edit]Taraxacum seeds are an important food source for certain birds.[32]
        Dandelions are also important plants for northern hemisphere bees, providing an important source of nectar and pollen early in the season.[33] Dandelions are used as food plants by the larvae of some species of Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths). See List of Lepidoptera that feed on dandelions. They are also used as a source of nectar by the pearl-bordered fritillary (Boloria euphrosyne), one of the earliest emerging butterflies in the spring.
        Benefits to gardeners[edit]The dandelion plant is a beneficial weed, with a wide range of uses, and is even a good companion plant for gardening. Its taproot will bring up nutrients for shallower-rooting plants, and add minerals and nitrogen to soil. It is also known to attract pollinatinginsects and release ethylene gas which helps fruit to ripen.[34]
        Cultural importance[edit]Four dandelion flowers are the emblem of White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.[35] The citizens celebrate spring with an annual Dandelion Festival.
        The dandelion is the official flower of the University of Rochester and "Dandelion Yellow" is one of the school's official colors. The Dandelion Yellow is an official University of Rochester song.[36]
        Dangers[edit]Dandelion pollen may cause allergic reactions when eaten, or adverse skin reactions in sensitive individuals. Contact dermatitis after handling has also been reported, probably from the latex in the stems and leaves.[37] Due to its high potassium level, dandelion can also increase the risk of hyperkalemia when taken with potassium-sparing diuretics.[38] The consumption of dandelion leaves has also been implicated in occurrences of fasciolosis.[39]
        As a noxious weed[edit]The species Taraxacum officinale is listed as a noxious weed in some jurisdictions,[40] and is considered to be a nuisance in residential and recreational lawns in North America.[41] It is also an important weed in agriculture and causes significant economic damage because of its infestation in many crops worldwide.[40]
        As source of natural rubber[edit]Dandelions secrete latex when the tissues are cut or broken, yet in the wild type the latex content is low and varies greatly. Using modern cultivation methods and optimization techniques scientists in the Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology (IME) in Germany developed a cultivar that is suitable for commercial production of natural rubber. The latex produced exhibits the same quality as the natural rubber from rubber trees.[42] In collaboration with Continental Tires, IME is building a pilot facility. The first prototype test tires made with blends from dandelion-rubber are scheduled to be tested on public roads over the next few years.[43]
        See also[edit]References[edit]^Adrian John Richards (1985). "Sectional nomenclature in Taraxacum (Asteraceae)". Taxon34 (4): 633''644. JSTOR 1222201. ^ abLuc Brouillet. "Taraxacum F. H. Wiggers, Prim. Fl. Holsat. 56. 1780". Flora of North America. ^"Wild About Dandelions". Mother Earth News. ^J. Doll & T. Trower. "Dandelion". WeedScience. University of Wisconsin. Archived from the original on October 22, 2008. ^"blowball". McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E. The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. 2003. Retrieved 26 January 2013. ^[1]^[2]^"dandelion clock - Definition from Longman English Dictionary Online". Ldoceonline.com. Retrieved 2010-07-03. ^[3]^ abA. J. Richards (1970). "Eutriploid facultative agamospermy in Taraxacum". New Phytologist69 (3): 761''774. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8137.1970.tb02461.x. JSTOR 2430530. ^Richards, A.J. (1997). Dandelions of Great Britain and Ireland (Handbooks for Field Identification). BSBI Publications. p. 330. ISBN 978-0-901158-25-3. ^"Plants for a future: Taraxacum kok-saghiz". ^"Flora of North America". Efloras.org. Retrieved 2012-08-29. ^"Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute - Taraxacum ceratophorum". Retrieved 2013-08-29. ^"Dandelion cultivars". Edible Plants. January 27, 2011. Archived from the original on May 3, 2011. Retrieved 2012-08-29. ^"Gardening in Western Washington: Dandelions". Gardening.wsu.edu. 2003-05-04. Retrieved 2012-08-29. ^ abMcGee, Harold (2004). "A survey of common vegetables". On Food and Cooking: the science and lore of the kitchen. New York: Scribner. p. 320. ISBN 0-684-80001-2. ^Reported in An Etymological Dictionary of the English Language, by Walter W. Skeat (1888) (Downloadable at Archive.org). In An Etymology Dictionary of Modern English by Ernest Weekley (1921) it is reported that Arabic tarashaqun is derivable in turn from Persian talkh chakok, bitter herb (Downloadable at Archive.org).^S. Potter & L. Sargent (1973) Pedigree: essays on the etymology of words from nature. Collins New Naturalist series Volume 56^Britton, N. F.; Brown, Addison (1970). An illustrated flora of the northern United States and Canada: from Newfoundland to the parallel of the southern boundary of Virginia, and from the Atlantic Ocean westward to the 102d meridian. New York: Dover Publications. p. 315. ISBN 0-486-22644-1. ^"Common Dandelion_Family: Asteraceae". ^Loewer, Peter (2001). Solving weed problems. Guilford, Conn.: Lyons Press. p. 210. ISBN 1-58574-274-0. ^Jonas: Mosby's Dictionary of Complementary and Alternative Medicine. (c) 2005, Elsevier.^Taylor, Joseph (1819). Antiquitates curiosae: the etymology of many remarkable old sayings, proverbs and singular customs explained by Joseph Taylor (2nd ed.). T&J Allman. p. 97. Retrieved 25 May 2010. ^Anon. "Dandelion - far more than a weed". Frapez.com. Frapez soothie spa. Retrieved 30 May 2010. ^"Den virtuella floran: Taraxacum F. H. Wigg. - Maskrosor" (in Swedish). Linnaeus.nrm.se. Retrieved 2010-07-03. ^[4]^Kleonikos G. Stavridakis , ÎšÎ>>ÎµÏŒÎ½Î¹ÎºÎÏ‚ Î'. Î£ÏÎ±Ï…ÏÎ¹Î´Î¬ÎºÎ·Ï‚ (2006). Wild edible plants of Crete - Î— Î†Î"ÏÎ¹Î± Î²ÏÏŽÏƒÎ¹Î¼Î· Ï‡Î>>Ï‰ÏÎ¯Î´Î± ÏÎ·Ï‚ ÎšÏÎ®ÏÎ·Ï‚. Rethymnon Crete. ISBN 960-631-179-1. ^Castronovo Fusco, MA (2008-04-15). "Dandelion as underrated as underfoot". New Jersey On-Line. Retrieved 2011-03-07. ^"Dandelion greens, raw". Nutritiondata.com. Retrieved 2011-03-07. ^ abcdKatrin Sch¼tz, Reinhold Carle & Andreas Schieber (2006). "Taraxacum'--a review on its phytochemical and pharmacological profile". Journal of Ethnopharmacology107 (3): 313''323. doi:10.1016/j.jep.2006.07.021. PMID 16950583. ^D. L. Buckingham and W. J. Peach (2005). "The influence of livestock management on habitat quality for farmland birds". Animal Science81: 199''203. doi:10.1079/asc50700199. ^Pellett, Frank Chapman (1920). American Honey Plants; Together With Those Which Are of Special Value to the Beekeeper as Sources of Pollen. American Bee Journal Publication. p. 178. ISBN 1-152-86271-5. ^Anon. "Companion Planting for Vegetables & Plants". Country living and farm lifestyles. countryfarm-lifestyles.com. Retrieved 2011-03-07. ^"Welcome to Main Street White Sulphur Springs...Make it home". Wssmainstreet.org. Retrieved 2010-07-03. ^"Songs of the University of Rochester". Lib.rochester.edu. 2010-01-14. Retrieved 2010-07-03. ^Bill Church (2006). Medicinal Plants, Trees, & Shrubs of Appalachia '' A Field Guide. Lulu.com. p. 28. ISBN 978-1-4116-4486-1. [unreliable source?]^Lourdes Rodriguez-Fragoso, Jorge Reyes-Esparza, Scott W. Burchiel, Dea Herrera-Ruiz & Eliseo Torres (2008). "Risks and benefits of commonly used herbal medicines in Mexico". Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology227 (1): 125''135. doi:10.1016/j.taap.2007.10.005. PMC 2322858. PMID 18037151. ^Dieter A. St¼rchler (2006). Exposure: a Guide to Sources of Infections. ASM Press. p. 181. ISBN 978-1-55581-376-5. ^ abStewart-Wade, S.M.; S. Newmann, L.L.Collins, G.J. Boland (2002). "The biology of Canadian weeds. 117. Taraxacum officinale G.H. Weber ex Wiggers". Canadian Journal of Plant Science82: 825''853. doi:10.4141/P01-010. ^Richardson, Jonathan (1985). "In praise of the archenemy". Audubon87: 37''39. ^"Making Rubber from Dandelion Juice". sciencedaily.com. sciencedaily.com. Retrieved 22 November 2013. ^"Fraunhofer and Continental come together when the dandelion rubber meets the road". Retrieved 31 May 2014. External links[edit]
    IRS
      Lois Lerner's emails aren't missing after all, lawyers say | Mobile Washington Examiner
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        Archived Version
        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 09:58
        Attorneys for the Justice Department say that they have copies of every electronic message ever sent from Lois Lerner, a former top IRS official who is a key figure in a targeting scandal involving conservative groups that sought tax-exempt status. (AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke)
        Government lawyers have told a watchdog group suing over the Internal Revenue Service scandal that Lois Lerner's emails aren't missing after all.
        Attorneys for the Justice Department surprised Judicial Watch, a right-leaning watchdog group, on Friday by saying that they have copies of every electronic message ever sent from Lerner, a former top IRS official who is a key figure in a targeting scandal involving conservative groups that sought tax-exempt status.
        The IRS told Congress that thousands of Lerner's emails sent prior to 2011 were hopelessly lost thanks to a hard drive crash that left the data unrecoverable. A back-up system, they said, had also been erased. Officials told Congress about a half dozen IRS officials in addition to Lerner, some affiliated with the targeting, had also lost emails due to computer crashes.
        Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said Justice Department lawyers informed him that the federal government keeps a back-up copy of every email and record in the event of a government-wide catastrophe.
        The back-up system includes the IRS emails, too.
        ''So, the emails may inconvenient to access, but they are not gone with the [broken] hard drive,'' Judicial Watch spokeswoman Jill Farrell told the Washington Examiner.
        Judicial Watch is now seeking the release of the emails, which Justice Department lawyers say would be hard to find because of the significant size of the backup system.
        House lawmakers in May voted to hold Lerner in contempt of Congress for refusing to testify about accusations that she helped to orchestrate a targeting scheme against right-leaning and Tea Party groups applying for 501(c)(4) status.
        House Republicans investigating the matter subpoenaed Lerner's records and emails, but learned from the IRS in June that it had lost most of the emails she sent before 2011 because of the computer crash.
        According to Fitton, the attorneys told him the backup system would be ''too onerous to search,'' but acknowledged that Treasury Department inspectors were investigating it.
        ''This is a jaw-dropping revelation,'' Fitton said in a statement. ''The Obama administration had been lying to the American people about Lois Lerner's missing emails.''
        Justice Department officials have not yet responded to a request for comment by the Examiner.
        Editor's note: Judicial Watch is representing the Washington Examiner in the newspaper's federal lawsuit seeking access to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau records under FOIA.
      IRS Shocker: Filing Reveals Lois Lerner Blackberry Destroyed | New York Observer
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        Archived Version
        Wed, 27 Aug 2014 15:32
        Lois Lerner, the IRS head whose Blackberry was destroyed along with her hard drives. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images)
        The IRS filing in federal Judge Emmet Sullivan's court reveals shocking new information. The IRS destroyed Lerner's Blackberry AFTER it knew her computer had crashed and after a Congressional inquiry was well underway. As an IRS official declared under the penalty of perjury, the destroyed Blackberry would have contained the same emails (both sent and received) as Lois Lerner's hard drive.
        We all know by now that Lois Lerner's hard drive crashed in June 2011 and was destroyed by IRS. The emails of up to twenty other related IRS officials were missing in remarkably similar ''crashes,'' leading many to speculate that Lois Lerner's Blackberry perhaps held the key. Now, the Observer can confirm that a year after the infamous hard drive crash, the IRS destroyed Ms. Lerner's Blackberry'--and without making any effort to retain the emails from it.
        Judge Sullivan has had to pry information from the IRS to learn anything about Ms. Lerner's Blackberry. Now, with these latest revelations, I'm confident he's not finished.
        In two elusive and nebulous sworn declarations, we can glean that Ms. Lerner had two Blackberries. One was issued to her on November 12, 2009. According to a sworn declaration, this is the Blackberry that contained all the emails (both sent and received) that would have been in her ''Outlook'' and drafts that never were sent from her Blackberry during the relevant time.
        With incredible disregard for the law and the Congressional inquiry, the IRS admits that this Blackberry ''was removed or wiped clean of any sensitive or proprietary information and removed as scrap for disposal in June 2012.'' This is a year after her hard drive ''crash'' and months after the Congressional inquiry began.
        The IRS did not even attempt to retrieve that data. It cavalierly recites: ''There is no record of any attempt by any IRS IT employee to recover data from any Blackberry device assigned to Lois Lerner in response to the Congressional investigations or this investigation,'' according to Stephen Manning, Deputy Chief Information Officer for Strategy & Modernization.
        Lerner was issued another Blackberry for Valentine's Day 2012'--also after she came under fire for her targeting
        A Blackberry Q10 (KÄrlis DambrÄns '' Flickr: Licensed under Creative Commons/Wikimedia Commons)
        of conservative groups. The IRS still has that Blackberry. It's now in the possession of the Inspector General of the Treasury, but the new device would not have the data from the prior three years. That was most likely the point of getting the new device.
        According to Mr. Manning, however: ''standard IRS practice and policy in the collection of electronic data does not include collecting data from Blackberry devices because the email of a Blackberry user is collected through the process of collecting the contents of the user's Outlook mailbox files.'' Notably, the affidavit does not explain IRS standard procedure for handling the technology of individuals who are the subject of Congressional oversight hearings or of retrieving data on a Blackberry after its owner's computer has crashed. One would think that was a ''no-brainer.''
        This most recent revelation of destruction of evidence and refusal to retain data and documents despite a Congressional inquiry is beyond outrageous. It screams of guilt and creates a presumption in the law that the evidence would prove what those who were targeted and harassed claim. Judge Sullivan, like most Americans, wants the ''missing'' emails that we all know are there somewhere.
        Aside from the fact the IRS was required to keep hard copies, we now know they should exist on Blackberry servers as well as Google and perhaps others. Indeed, the Department of Justice has disclosed that they all should be on a government server'--as we suspected.
        Judge Sullivan has already appointed federal Magistrate Judge John Facciola to assist the parties in finding the emails on other devices. Between the two of them, they can demand production of the emails from the servers, and there are still more questions to answer.
        What are all the servers the emails went through? Blackberry is touted as the most secure, so surely the emails should be found there. All of the data on her current Blackberry should be provided immediately to Judge Sullivan, for whatever insight it might provide. There's no reason for the IRS to hold out on that. It should be given to Darrell Issa and Congress also. Nothing required in the production of the emails through the Blackberry could possibly hamper the Inspector General's investigation.
        And what about ''ghost'' email accounts? The IRS should be able to determine, or Judge Sullivan can, whether any of the officials whose emails are missing used personal accounts or other names for business emails they didn't want going through the federal system even though they were required to do so.
        One thing is clear: the IRS has no interest in recovering the emails. It has deliberately destroyed evidence and another direct source of the emails it claims were ''lost.'' It has been blatantly negligent if not criminal in faiing to preserve evidence and destroying it instead.
        Don't be surprised if Judge Sullivan decides it's time to order production of everything on that Blackberry, issue subpoenas to third party servers including Blackberry for the dates covered by the Blackberry the IRS destroyed, unleash Judge Facciola, allow Judicial Watch more discovery, prohibit the IRS from destroying anything else, and start a list of lawyers who would make a good special prosecutor.
    SnowJob
      The problem with Snowden isn't the secrets he exposed, but the ability to label people as conspiracy theorists because "if it were so horrible in government, someone would say someting about it"
    Agenda 21
      FARMERS ALMANAC PREDICTS COLD WIINTER
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        Archived Version
        Fri, 22 Aug 2014 10:16
        CONCORD, N.H. (AP) -- The Old Farmer's Almanac, the familiar, 223-year-old chronicler of climate, folksy advice and fun facts, is predicting a colder winter and warmer summer for much of the nation.Published Wednesday, the New Hampshire-based almanac predicts a "super-cold" winter in the eastern two-thirds of the country. The west will remain a little bit warmer than normal."Colder is just almost too familiar a term," Editor Janice Stillman said. "Think of it as a refriger-nation."More bad news for those who can't stand snow: Most of the Northeast is expected to get more snowfall than normal, though it will be below normal in New England.Before unpacking the parka, however, remember that "colder than average" is still only about 2 to 5 degrees difference.Some other regional highlights:- Florida's winter could be rainier than most years while other locales in the Southeast and central states will see less rain.- Summer will be warmer than usual in most places while a drop in rainfall in the country's midsection could hurt crop yields.- Despite some winter downpours in the west, the almanac says California's drought will likely continue.- Hurricane season isn't expected to be especially active though a major storm could hit the Gulf Coast in late August.For loyal readers of an almanac that also tracks to the minute every sunrise and sunset for the year, the timing of this year's publication may come as a surprise. Normally, it hits the stands in mid-September. In recent years, its younger cousin, the Maine-based Farmer's Almanac, has published in August and a competition of sorts has emerged, though Stillman said it had nothing to do with the earlier drop date."We've found that folks want the almanac as soon as the issue is done up, right as the growing season is done," she said. "It's also time to order oil, wood, salt for roads. We've had so many inquiries we just decided to get it into people's hands earlier."The almanac, which has about an 80 percent success rate in its forecasts, employs modern technology but still uses the "secret formula" that founder Robert Thomas devised in 1792. By combining the study of sunspots, prevailing weather patterns and basic meteorology, the almanac's weather staff comes up with a long-range forecast. The temperature deviations are based on 30-year averages compiled by government forecasters.The almanac also provides advice on planting, astronomy, food, love and trends.
      Stunning satellite images show summer ice cap is thicker and covers 1.7million square kilometres MORE than 2 years ago...despite Al Gore's prediction it would be ICE-FREE by now | Mail Online
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 08:52
        Seven years after former US Vice-President Al Gore's warning, Arctic ice cap has expanded for second year in rowAn area twice the size of Alaska - America's biggest state - was open water two years ago and is now covered in iceThese satellite images taken from University of Illinois's Cryosphere project show ice has become more concentratedBy David Rose for The Mail on Sunday
        Published: 17:04 EST, 30 August 2014 | Updated: 17:05 EST, 30 August 2014
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        The speech by former US Vice-President Al Gore was apocalyptic. 'The North Polar ice cap is falling off a cliff,' he said. 'It could be completely gone in summer in as little as seven years. Seven years from now.'
        Those comments came in 2007 as Mr Gore accepted the Nobel Peace Prize for his campaigning on climate change.
        But seven years after his warning, The Mail on Sunday can reveal that, far from vanishing, the Arctic ice cap has expanded for the second year in succession '' with a surge, depending on how you measure it, of between 43 and 63 per cent since 2012.
        To put it another way, an area the size of Alaska, America's biggest state, was open water two years ago, but is again now covered by ice.
        The most widely used measurements of Arctic ice extent are the daily satellite readings issued by the US National Snow and Ice Data Center, which is co-funded by Nasa. These reveal that '' while the long-term trend still shows a decline '' last Monday, August 25, the area of the Arctic Ocean with at least 15 per cent ice cover was 5.62 million square kilometres.
        This was the highest level recorded on that date since 2006 (see graph, right), and represents an increase of 1.71 million square kilometres over the past two years '' an impressive 43 per cent.
        Other figures from the Danish Meteorological Institute suggest that the growth has been even more dramatic. Using a different measure, the area with at least 30 per cent ice cover, these reveal a 63 per cent rise '' from 2.7 million to 4.4 million square kilometres.
        The satellite images published here are taken from a further authoritative source, the University of Illinois's Cryosphere project.
        They show that as well as becoming more extensive, the ice has grown more concentrated, with the purple areas '' denoting regions where the ice pack is most dense '' increasing markedly.
        Crucially, the ice is also thicker, and therefore more resilient to future melting. Professor Andrew Shepherd, of Leeds University, an expert in climate satellite monitoring, said yesterday: 'It is clear from the measurements we have collected that the Arctic sea ice has experienced a significant recovery in thickness over the past year.
        'It seems that an unusually cool summer in 2013 allowed more ice to survive through to last winter. This means that the Arctic sea ice pack is thicker and stronger than usual, and this should be taken into account when making predictions of its future extent.'
        The speech by former US Vice-President Al Gore (above) was apocalyptic. He said that the North Polar ice cap is falling off a cliff and could be gone in seven years
        Yet for years, many have been claiming that the Arctic is in an 'irrevocable death spiral', with imminent ice-free summers bound to trigger further disasters. These include gigantic releases of methane into the atmosphere from frozen Arctic deposits, and accelerated global warming caused by the fact that heat from the sun will no longer be reflected back by the ice into space.
        Judith Curry, professor of earth and atmospheric sciences at Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, said last night: 'The Arctic sea ice spiral of death seems to have reversed.'
        Those who just a few years ago were warning of ice-free summers by 2014 included US Secretary of State John Kerry, who made the same bogus prediction in 2009, while Mr Gore has repeated it numerous times '' notably in a speech to world leaders at the UN climate conference in Copenhagen in 2009, in an effort to persuade them to agree a new emissions treaty.
        The ice cap is falling off a cliff. It could be completely gone in summer in as little as 7 years from now
        Mr Gore '' whose office yesterday failed to respond to a request for comment '' insisted then: 'There is a 75 per cent chance that the entire polar ice cap during some of the summer months could be completely ice-free within five to seven years.'
        Misleading as such forecasts are, some people continue to make them. Only last month, while giving evidence to a House of Lords Select Committee inquiry on the Arctic, Cambridge University's Professor Peter Wadhams claimed that although the Arctic is not ice-free this year, it will be by September 2015.
        Asked about this yesterday, he said: 'I still think that it is very likely that by mid-September 2015, the ice area will be less than one million square kilometres '' the official designation of ice-free, implying only a fringe of floes around the coastlines. That is where the trend is taking us.'
        For that prediction to come true it would require by far the fastest loss of ice in history. It would also fly in the face of a report last year by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which stated with 'medium confidence' that ice levels would 'likely' fall below one million square kilometres by 2050.
        Politicians such as Al Gore have often insisted that climate science is 'settled' and have accused those who question their forecasts of being climate change 'deniers'.
        However, while few scientists doubt that carbon-dioxide emissions cause global warming, and that this has caused Arctic ice to decline, there remains much uncertainty about the speed of melting and how much of it is due to human activity. But outside the scientific community, the more pessimistic views have attracted most attention. For example, Prof Wadhams's forecasts have been cited widely by newspapers and the BBC. But many reject them.
        An area twice the size of Alaska was open water two years ago and is now covered in ice after the arctic ice cap has expanded for the second year in a row
        Yesterday Dr Ed Hawkins, who leads an Arctic ice research team at Reading University, said: 'Peter Wadhams's views are quite extreme compared to the views of many other climate scientists, and also compared to what the IPCC report says.'
        Dr Hawkins warned against reading too much into ice increase over the past two years on the grounds that 2012 was an 'extreme low', triggered by freak weather.
        'I'm uncomfortable with the idea of people saying the ice has bounced back,' he said.
        However, Dr Hawkins added that the decline seen in recent years was not caused only by global warming. It was, he said, intensified by 'natural variability' '' shifts in factors such as the temperature of the oceans. This, he said, has happened before, such as in the 1920s and 1930s, when 'there was likely some sea ice retreat'.
        Dr Hawkins said: 'There is undoubtedly some natural variability on top of the long-term downwards trend caused by the overall warming. This variability has probably contributed somewhat to the post-2000 steep declining trend, although the human-caused component still dominates.'
        Like many scientists, Dr Hawkins said these natural processes may be cyclical. If and when they go into reverse, they will cool, not warm, the Arctic, in which case, he said, 'a decade with no declining trend' in ice cover would be 'entirely plausible'.
        Peer-reviewed research suggests that at least until 2005, natural variability was responsible for half the ice decline. But exactly how big its influence is remains an open question '' and as both Dr Hawkins and Prof Curry agreed, establishing this is critical to making predictions about the Arctic's future.
        Prof Curry said: 'I suspect that the portion of the decline in the sea ice attributable to natural variability could be even larger than half.
        'I think the natural variability component of Arctic sea ice extent is in the process of bottoming out, with a reversal to start within the next decade. And when it does, the reversal period could last for several decades.'
        This led her to believe that the IPCC forecast, like Al Gore's, was too pessimistic.
        'Ice-free in 2050 is a possible scenario, but I don't think it is a likely scenario,' she concluded.
        GOOD NEWS FOR POLAR BEARS... The apparent recovery in Arctic ice looks like good news for polar bears.
        If there is more ice at the end of the summer, they can hunt seals more easily. Yet even when the ice reached a low point in 2012, there was no scientific evidence that bear numbers were declining, with their estimated total of 20,000 to 25,000 thought to be higher than in the 1970s, when hunting was first banned.
        In many Arctic regions, say scientists, they are in robust health and breeding successfully.
        Computer model predictions of decline caused by ice melt have also failed to come true. In 2004, researchers claimed Hudson Bay bear numbers would fall from 900 to fewer than 700 by 2011. In fact, they have risen to over 1,000.
        However, the main international bear science body, the Polar Bear Specialist Group, admits it has no reliable data from almost half of the Arctic, so cannot say whether numbers are falling or rising.
        Share or comment on this article
      Global warming 'hiatus' means heat is hiding in ocean - Yahoo News
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        Fri, 22 Aug 2014 10:21
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      Health Minister German outlaws fluoridation of all tap water | JPost | Israel News
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        Fri, 22 Aug 2014 11:10
        Contrary to the advice of public health and dentistry experts in her own ministry and academia, Health Minister Yael German has decided to prohibit the fluoridation of drinking water around the country. She also issued her decision Sunday in contravention of a letter written exactly two years ago by Prime Minister (and then-official health minister) Binyamin Netanyahu, who told Knesset Interior Committee chairman MK Amnon Cohen that he [Netanyahu] ''could not agree to the cessation of fluoridation'' of potable water. Netanyahu continued that municipalities had requested to continue their fluoridation of water and that they should be allowed to do so. The Health Ministry introduced mandatory water fluoridation in 1970 in cities, towns and settlements with over 5,000 residents, and indeed, 70 percent of Israelis have received fluoridated water delivered to their taps. But German opposed it as Meretz-Party mayor of Herzliya and stopped it in her city. Just weeks after entering office as health minister, she declared that she would stop fluoridation and, encountering fierce criticism from critics in leading Israeli schools of public health and dentistry and from her own ministry experts, she wavered and suggested as late as June that fluoridation could be an option instead of being outlawed. German's spokesmen said that only Ireland and Israel require fluoridation of drinking water, but her critics responded that everywhere else is it an option open to all local authorities except where barred completely only in Holland, Sweden and the Czech Republic. The Adin Committee (headed by Prof. Avner Adin) that looked into water quality standards had recommended that fluoridation not be mandatory but it also stated that it could instead be optional. The committee also stated that desalinated water -- which increasingly is making up for water shortages around the country -- be fluoridated. German reiterated on Sunday that she recognized the tasteless, colorless gas as very effective in reducing dental cavities, especially among children. But she added that instead of forcing all Israelis to consume fluoridated water to benefit children's teeth, the delivery system should be changed so each parent can decide and take action individually if they wanted their child to get dental protection. On August 26, regulations to halt all fluoridated will go into effect, and parents would have to act proactively to protect and improve their dental hygiene. The health minister maintained that according to the World Health Organization, there is a decline in dental caries in countries that do not have mandatory fluoridation. But her critics noted that high-income, homogeneous countries have fewer poor families and better dental habits than in Israel. Here, there are many large families including Arab, ultra-Orthodox and other children whose parents have a lower level of health education and cannot afford or are otherwise unable to protect their teeth and who require automatic delivery of fluoride in the drinking water. Prof. Arnon Afek, German's director-general whom she recently handpicked and who is an expert in pathology and medical administration (but not dentistry or public health), told The Jerusalem Post Sunday that he personally supported the health minister's decision to prohibit fluoridation. ''Mandatory fluoridation is medical treatment. Individuals have the right to decide if they want it or not. The question is not if fluoride is beneficial but how it should be delivered. We cannot force people. It is legitimate that experts in the field oppose the health minister's decision, but we have a policy,'' said the director-general. ''The ministry supported it for over 40 years, but this is a new era. The world has changed, and we can educate parents.'' Asked about the fact that most of the developed world has been adding vitamin D to all milk products, iodine to salt and folic acid to flour for decades due to their health benefits but that Israel has not yet done so, Afek said that if the ministry decided to do so, ''those who didn't want the supplements could choose not to consume these products. But with fluoridation of tap water, there is no free choice.'' German said only one-percent of water supplies are consumed via the tap, thus fluoridation of all potable water was ''a waste.'' Children should instead be encouraged to brush their teeth twice a day using fluoride toothpaste, she said, and dental clinics, health funds, kindergarten and elementary school teachers, the School Health Service and tipat halav (well-baby) clinics will aim at educating parents about fluoride. Prof. Itamar Grotto, chief of public health at the ministry, was on Sunday abroad on vacation and unable to comment. He avoided speaking publicly on the issue in recent months in light of the minister's position. But in a letter to then-ministry director-general Prof. Ronni Gamzu in May 2013, Grotto stated that he favored the option of fluoridation according to local needs and that desalinated sea water for drinking must be fluoridated. As late as June, Grotto said fluoridation of drinking water would be optional for municipal and local authority heads, but this was dashed by German's announcement on Sunday. German did not state how much money it has allocated for educating parents, teachers and public health nurses through all these institutions. the vast majority of countries with optional fluoridation and the handful that prohibit fluoridation have significant budgets for health education purposes. The Israel Dental Association representing the country's dentists issued a statement on Sunday stating that it supported the continuation of fluoridation via tap water. ''Fluoridation reduces and prevents dental cavities; cancellation of fluoridation [via the water supply] thus harms the dental health of Israeli residents,'' the IDA stated. The association of Arab dentists within the association has issued a strong call for fluoridation as their sector tends more to suffer from poor dental health that would be even worse without fluoride in the water. In a last-ditch effort to get German to change her mind, a group of high-level public health and dental medicine experts wrote a letter to the health minister on Sunday. ''The health ministry decided, in complete contravention to the views of public health experts -- including those in her office -- and many MKs, that her view is more important. She is the first-ever health minister not to listen to the advice of professionals and bring to her office ideology that is not based on scientific facts and irresponsible decisionmaking, to say the least.'' Among the signatories were Prof. Jonathan Mann (former dean and now head of community dentistry of the Hebrew University-Hadassah School of dental medicine; senior expert in dental epidemiology at the same school), Prof. Ted Tulchinsky, a former senior Health Ministry expert in public health; and Dr. Alon Livny, Prof. Avi Zini, Dr, Yuval Vered, Dr. Ilan Diamant, Dr. Sigal Mazor, Dr. Alex Haimov and many others.
        The experts noted that more than 400 million people around the world today consume and benefit from fluoridated tap water. They maintained that German's decision on the basis of the Adin Committee were ''inaccurate and even misleading and that it never recommended halting fluoridation but to offer it according to public needs in each location and creating suitable alternatives. The committee also urged that long-term epidemiological research be carried out over 10 years with Health Ministry funding.'' But the experts said that no such research was launched since the Adin Committee made the recommendation. The public health experts added that fluoridation prevents cavities and minimizes social gaps, and that German has totally ''ignored'' the Adin Committee's recommendation to fluoridate desalinated water. ''The minister's decision is amateurish and liable to cause long-term damage to Israeli children and adults, making their health situation poorer, especially on the economically and educationally disadvantaged.'' Every year, they continued, 500 children are brought to hospital emergency rooms for treatment of bodily complications of rotten teeth. Her decision ''is liable to increase this number many times over,'' the professors declared. ''Until she became minister, Israeli society enjoyed a dental and social Iron Dome'' that protected their teeth, but ''German canceled this.'' ''This is a sad day for public health, dental health and child health in Israel,'' added Tulchinsky, who is currently head of the School of Health Professions at Ashkelon College. The health minister is deliberately depriving mainly poor children especially those living in the south and north of the country from preventing 30 percent of dental caries. She is banning fluoridation despite worldwide proof of its cost effectiveness and safety.''
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      Buy a powerful vacuum cleaner before they are BANNED: New EU rules 'will outlaw best models in 10 days because they're not eco-friendly'
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        Source: WT Newsfeed
        Fri, 22 Aug 2014 16:46
        Five of the seven Which? 'Best Buy' vacuum cleaners banned from SeptemberEU says the rules will mean consumers will get better vacuum cleanersCritics claim new rule will not save energy because households will have to use their vacuum cleaners for longerManufacturers will have to regulate themselvesBy Rachel Rickard Straus for Thisismoney.co.uk
        Published: 04:31 EST, 21 August 2014 | Updated: 12:28 EST, 21 August 2014
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        Many of the best vacuum cleaners will be taken off the market from next month when a new EU rule comes into force banning the most powerful models
        Households that need a powerful vacuum cleaner should 'act quickly' before all of the models currently available sell out, consumer watchdog Which? warned.
        From September 1, manufacturers will not be able to make or import vacuums with a motor that exceeds 1,600 watts.
        Scroll down for video
        Floored logic: Critics say the new regulation will not save energy because households will only vacuum for longer to reach the same level of cleanliness
        But Which? warned that many of the best models, which appear in its Best Buy tables, have motor sizes that exceed this.
        Of seven awarded 'Best Buy' status since January 2013, five have motors of more than 1,600 watts, it said.
        The maximum wattage will be lowered even further to 900 watts by 2017. Current cleaners boast an average of 1,800 watts.
        The move has angered manufacturers, who say it will do nothing to make cleaners more environmentally friendly and will simply reduce efficiency in the home.
        THE VACUUM CLEANERS ABOUT TO BE SUCKED UP BY EC REGULATIONSFive of top selling vacuum cleaners on Amazon.co.uk that will be banned when new regulations come in
        1. Numatic HVR200A Henry A1 Bagged Cylinder Vacuum Cleaner. 1,200W.
        BANNED BY 2017
        2. Vax W90-RU-P Rapide Ultra 2 Pre-Treatment Upright Carpet and Upholstery Washer. 1,000W.
        BANNED BY 2017
        3. Vax U90-MA-R Air Reach Multicyclonic Upright Bagless Vacuum Cleaner. 1,200W.
        BANNED BY 2017
        4. Sebo X4EXTRA Automatic Upright Vacuum Cleaner. 1,300W.
        BANNED BY 2017
        5. Hoover Smart Pets SM1901 Bagless Upright Vacuum Cleaner. 1,900W.
        BANNED BY SEPTEMBER
        Critics say cleaners satisfying the new rule may use less power, but householders will have to use them for longer so they are likely to use the same amount of electricity in the long run.
        For the first time, vacuum cleaners will have ratings from A to G for energy use, cleaning performance on carpets and hard floors and dust emissions.
        But manufacturers will create their own labels and will be self-regulated. Which? warned that it is unclear whether the ratings will be tested at all by an independent third party.
        Specification: A sample of the label that manufacturers will put on all vacuum cleaners (Source: European Commission)
        It added that manufacturers that give themselves A ratings across the board often don't do so well in its own independent tests, while those that do not score as highly often do better in the Which? laboratories.
        Which? only offers its list of 'endangered' Best Buy vacuum cleaners to its paid subscribers.
        But popular cleaners still on sale at the moment which would be outlawed by the new rule include a Bosch Power All Floor Bagged Vacuum Cleaner, a Miele S6210 2000 Watt Bagged Cylinder Vacuum Cleaner and the Panasonic Bagged Upright Vacuum Cleaner Black 2000w.
        Despite his company not producing any vacuum over 1,400 watts, Sir James Dyson, the billionaire entrepreneur who pioneered 'bagless' vacuums, is also angered by the proposal.
        He says the eco-labels will be misleading because they will not take into account the cost and waste of vacuum bags and filters and will give an advantage to competitors who use 'bag' technology.
        He is seeking a judicial review of the proposal at the European Court of Justice.
        As many as 126 million vacuum cleaner bags were sent to landfill last year alone, according to Dyson, assuming that all the bagged vacuum cleaners use one bag a month. But the cost to households and the environment is not factored in to the new EU labelling.
        But the European Commission believes the new regulations will mean better vacuum cleaners for consumers.
        'As a result of the new EU ecodesign and labelling regulations, consumers will also get better vacuum cleaners,' European Commission spokeswoman for energy Marlene Holzner said in a blog.
        'In the past there was no legislation on vacuum cleaners and companies could sell poorly performing vacuum cleaners.
        Watch this guide on how to pick the best vacuum cleaner
        'Now, vacuum cleaners that use a lot of energy, that pick up dust poorly, emit too much dust at the exhaust of the vacuum cleaner, are noisy or break down pre-maturely will not be allowed on the market anymore.
        'This means a better cleaning experience and less time and money spent on vacuum cleaning.'
        The new measures will be extended to other appliances, including water pumps, water heaters and tumble dryers.
        THE SURPRISE 'ENERGY GUZZLERS' HIDING IN YOUR HOMEBeware of frosty shelves: An inefficient freezer can be a drain on households' energy consumption
        The European Commission is set to enforce rules that it says will make vacuum cleaners more energy efficient.
        But could you have other surprise energy guzzlers hiding in your home? Here are a couple of common culprits:
        A frosty freezer: When was the last time you defrosted your freezer?
        Unnecessary frost forces the freezer to work harder and so can push up energy bills.
        It won't add much on a daily basis, but it can add £100-£200 to bills over a year.
        Spotlights: We often think nothing of covering bathroom and kitchen ceilings with spotlights, but they can add a significant cost on to energy bills.
        One reader Kim Fox-Johnson discovered a few halogen spotlights in her kitchen were costing her almost £100 a year to run.
        She is now gradually replacing them with LED bulbs, which will cost her around £15 a year to run. Read more here.
        ...AND A WAY TO USE PEOPLE POWER TO FIGHT BACK ON ENERGY BILLS
        This is Money has joined forces with energyhelpline to launch The Energy Switch, which could help you save even more.
        Readers can team up with thousands of other people and use their collective power to negotiate a unique offer on their energy bills.
        This one-off special deal will give you the chance to switch to a cheaper supplier ahead of any winter energy price rises and turns the table on energy firms - rather than households having to hunt out a better price, they will be competing to offer you one.
        The last collective switch by energyhelpline saw 50,000 people sign up and those who switched save £221 on average.
        > Find out more about The Energy Switch and sign up here
        Share or comment on this article
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      Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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        Archived Version
        Thu, 28 Aug 2014 12:15
        Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes (1965/1973) (French: Propagandes; original French edition: 1962) is a book on the subject of propaganda by French philosopher, theologian, legal scholar, and sociologist Jacques Ellul. This book appears to be the first attempt to study propaganda from a sociological approach as well as a psychological one. It presents a sophisticated taxonomy for propaganda, including such paired opposites as political''sociological, vertical''horizontal, rational''irrational, and agitation''integration.
        The book contains Ellul's theories about the nature of propaganda to adapt the individual to a society, to a living standard and to an activity aiming to make the individual serve and conform. The work concerns propaganda as an inner control over an individual by a social force.
        Authorship[edit]During World War II, Ellul was a leader in the French resistance after being discharged as a professor from French universities by the Vichy regime.[1] After France's liberation, he became professor at the University of Bordeaux. He authored 58 books and numerous articles over his lifetime, the dominant theme of which has been the threat to human freedom created by modern technology. In 1947, Ellul was appointed chair of law and social history at the Institut d'(C)tudes politiques that increased his reputation as a social and political philosopher which led to the publication of his works in the United States.
        Background[edit]Propaganda has long been recognized as a general phenomenon in the modern world. As early as 1928, Edward Bernays recognized propaganda as a modern instrument to be utilized to produce productive ends and ''help bring order out of chaos''.[2] Since then, there has been great difficulty in determining what constitutes propaganda in our world and what the nature of propaganda is because it is a secret action. For a long time, propaganda was simplistically viewed as being able to modify sentiments and attitudes of an individual without their being conscious of such an attempt. This limited perspective of propaganda as being only able to influence the individual psychologically was prevalent from 1920 to around 1933. Once reassessed though more emphasis was placed on the intention of the propagandist and another objective of propaganda concerned with sparking an individual to action was recognized. ''The Institute for Propaganda Analysis, inspired by Harold Lasswell'' defined propaganda as ''the expression of opinions or actions carried out deliberately by individuals or groups with a view to influencing the opinions or actions of other individuals or groups for predetermined ends and through psychological manipulations''.[3]
        This definition seemed more accurate and was supported by others such as Goebbels, a German propagandist, who stated, "We do not talk to say something, but to obtain a certain effect."[4] Similarly F.C. Bartlett holds an accurate interpretation of the goal of propaganda as not merely as an instrument to increase political understanding of events, but to obtain results through action. Ellul supports the idea that propaganda is made primarily because of a will to action for the purpose of effectively arming policy made by the State. Leonard Doob, an American specialist, defined propaganda in 1948 as "the attempt to affect the personalities and to control the behavior of individuals towards desired ends."[5] Unending definitions show the uncertainty among specialists and the inability of definitions to encompass all that is propaganda. Just because the term propaganda cannot be defined with any degree of precision does not mean that attempts to define it should be abandoned.
        "Very frequently propaganda is described as a manipulation for the purpose of changing idea or opinions of making individuals 'believe' some idea or fact, and finally of making them adhere to some doctrine'--all matters of the mind. It tries to convince, to bring about a decision, to create a firm adherence to some truth. This is a completely wrong line of thinking: to view propaganda as still being what it was in 1850 is to cling to an obsolete concept of man and of the means to influence him; it is to condemn oneself to understand nothing about propaganda. The aim of modern propaganda is no longer to modify ideas, but to provoke action. It is no longer to change adherence to a doctrine, but to make the individual cling irrationally to a process of action. It is no longer to transform an opinion but to arouse an active and mythical belief."[6]
        Ellul does not dispute these traditional notions, however, in this book he argues that modern propaganda is viewed from an incomplete perspective. He holds that the main concern of propaganda through psychological influence is sparking action to a desired response by developing learned attitudes. Prior attempts to define propaganda failed to fully elaborate on the development of learned attitudes, thus ignoring the sociological influences of propaganda by placing more emphasis on the psychological influences. Ellul sustains that modern propaganda is based on scientific analyses of both psychology and sociology.
        Summary of chapters[edit]Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes is divided into five substantive chapters discussing Ellul's analysis.
        Regardless of the State, propaganda should be viewed as situated at the center of the growing powers of governmental and administrative techniques.
        "Differences in political regimes matter little; differences in social levels are more important; and most important is national self-awareness. Propaganda is a good deal less the political weapon of a regime (it is that also) than the effect of a technological society that embraces the entire man and tends to be a completely integrated society. Propaganda stops man from feeling that things in society are oppressive and persuades him to submit with good grace."[7]
        Chapter One: Characteristics of PropagandaModern propaganda is a technique that requires an analysis of both environment and individual to be subjected to propaganda therefore it is based on scientific analyses of psychology and sociology. Sufficient understanding of these two areas creates the most effective propaganda and without the scientific research of modern psychology and sociology there would be no propaganda. ''Step by step the propagandist builds the techniques on the basis of his knowledge of man, his tendencies, his desires, his needs, his psychic mechanisms, his conditioning, and as much on social psychology as on depth psychology.''[8]
        Part One: External CharacteristicsPropaganda is first and foremost concerned with influencing an individual psychologically by creating convictions and compliance through imperceptible techniques that are effective only by continuous repetition. Propaganda employs encirclement on the individual by trying to surround man by all possible routes, in the realm of feelings as well as ideas, by playing on his will or his needs through his conscious and his unconscious, and by assailing him in both his private and his public life.[9] The propagandist also acknowledges the most favorable moment to influence man is when an individual is caught up in the masses. Propaganda must be total in that utilizes all forms of media to draw the individual into the net of propaganda. Propaganda is designed to be continuous within the individual's life by filling the citizen's entire day. It is based on slow constant impregnation that functions over a long period of time exceeding the individual's capacities for attention or adaptation and thus his capabilities of resistance. In order for propaganda to maintain encirclement, it must be exerted by an organization capable of influencing psychological channels that reach the individual. Psychological and physical actions are inseparable elements to propaganda, however, if no influence is exerted by an organization than there can be no propaganda because it cannot operate in a vacuum. The necessity for a physical organization limits propaganda enterprises and in order to be effective propaganda must work inside a group, principally inside a nation. Propaganda must first organize the masses in order to propagandize within the masses. In general, propaganda is a set of methods employed by an organized group that wants to bring about the active or passive participation in its actions of a mass of individuals, psychologically unified through psychological manipulations and incorporated into an organization.[10] Propaganda should no longer be viewed in terms of an orthodoxy but rather modern propaganda should be seen as an orthopraxy because it aims for participation not adherence. Participation can be active or passive: active if propaganda has been able to mobilize the individual for action; passive if the individual does not act directly but psychologically supports that action.
        2. Part Two: Internal CharacteristicsThe second major element that a propagandist must understand is the environment in which the individual operates, mainly the foci of interest of the public. An understanding of the conventional patterns and stereotypes that pre-exist in a milieu provide the propagandist with material from which to build off. Propaganda is not able to create something out of nothing and is confined to developing pre-existing material thereby expressing the fundamental currents of the society it seeks to influence. These currents include accepted structures such as collective sociological presuppositions and myths that are fundamental to society.
        "The Four Great Collective Sociological Presuppositions in the Modern World:
        That an individual's aim in life is happiness.That man is naturally good.That history develops in endless progress.That everything is matter.The Collective Myths:
        of Workof Happinessof the Nationof Youthof the Hero"[11]These currents reinforce society and hold man's major convictions and propaganda must voice this reality. Propaganda is concerned with timeliness since an individual is only moved to action if he is pushed towards a timely one by propaganda. Once it becomes history it inevitably becomes neutral and indifferent to the individual who is sensitive primarily to current news. ''Operational words'' are used to penetrate an individual's indifference. However they lose their value as immediacy passes as old facts are replaced by new ones. The ''current events man'' is carried along the current of news and caught in the events of today, losing interest in the events of yesterday. The indifferent are apolitical and without opinion, therefore they are outside of propaganda's grasp. Incidentally, there are also the undecided, people whose opinions are vague, who form the majority of citizens within the collective. These citizens are the most susceptible to control of public opinion that is dictated by propaganda. Lastly, this part discusses propaganda and truth or the ability of propaganda to relay something as true based not on the accuracy of facts but of reality. Propaganda veils the truth with falsehoods even though lying is generally to be avoided.
        3. Part Three: Categories of PropagandaPresented in this chapter is a sophisticated taxonomy for propaganda, including such paired opposites as political-sociological, vertical-horizontal, rational-irrational, and agitation-integration.
        Political vs. Sociological Propaganda: Political Propaganda involves techniques of influence employed by a government, a party, an administration, or a pressure group with the intention of changing the behavior of the public. The themes and objectives of this type of propaganda are of a political nature. The goals are determined by the government, party, administration, or pressure group. The methods of political propaganda are calculated in a precise manner and its main criteria is to disseminate an ideology for the very purpose of making various political acts acceptable to the people.[12] There are two forms of political propaganda, tactical and strategic. Tactical political propaganda seeks to obtain immediate results within a given framework. Strategic political propaganda is not concerned with speed but rather it establishes the general line, the array of arguments, and the staging of campaigns.
        Political propaganda reversed is sociological propaganda because the ideology is penetrated by means of its sociological context. Propaganda, as it is traditionally known, implies an attempt to spread an ideology through the mass media of communication in order to lead the public to a desired action. In sociological propaganda even media that are not controllable such as individual art work, films, and writing reflect the ideology allowing for an accelerated penetration of the masses and the individuals within them.[13]
        Sociological propaganda is a phenomenon where a society seeks to integrate the maximum number of individuals into itself by unifying its members' behavior according to a pattern, spreading its style of life abroad, and thus imposing itself on other groups. Essentially sociological propaganda aims to increase conformity with the environment that is of a collective nature by developing compliance with or defense of the established order through long term penetration and progressive adaptation by using all social currents. The propaganda element is the way of life with which the individual is permeated and then the individual begins to express it in film, writing, or art without realizing it. This involuntary behavior creates an expansion of society through advertising, the movies, education, and magazines. "The entire group, consciously or not, expresses itself in this fashion; and to indicate, secondly that its influence aims much more at an entire style of life."[14] This type of propaganda is not deliberate but springs up spontaneously or unwittingly within a culture or nation. This propaganda reinforces the individual's way of life and represents this way of life as best. Sociological propaganda creates an indisputable criterion for the individual to make judgments of good and evil according to the order of the individual's way of life. Sociological propaganda does not result in action, however, it can prepare the ground for direct propaganda. From then on, the individual in the clutches of such sociological propaganda believes that those who live this way are on the side of the angels, and those who don't are bad.[15]
        Vertical vs. Horizontal Propaganda: Vertical propaganda is similar to direct propaganda that aims at the individual in the mass and is renewed constantly. However, in horizontal propaganda there is no top down structure but rather it springs up from within the group. It involves meticulous encirclement that traps an individual involuntarily in dialectic. The individual is led unfailingly to its adherence by talking about the dialectic until the individual discovers the answer that was set up unconsciously for him to find. Schools are a primary mechanism for integrating the individual into the way of life.
        Rational vs. Irrational Propaganda: Propaganda is addressed to the individual on the foundation of feelings and passions which are irrational, however, the content of propaganda does address reason and experience when it presents information and furnishes facts making it rational as well. It is important for propaganda to be rational because modern man needs relation to facts. Modern man wants to be convinced that by acting in a certain way he is obeying reason in order to have self-justification. The challenge is creating an irrational response on the basis of rational and factual elements by leaving an impression on an individual that remains long after the facts have faded away. Individuals are not compelled to act based facts but rather on emotional pressure, the vision of the future, or the myth.
        Agitation vs. Integration propaganda: Propaganda of agitation seeks to mobilize people in order to destroy the established order and/or government. It seeks rebellion by provoking a crisis or unleashing explosive movements during one. It momentarily subverts the habits, customs, and beliefs that were obstacles to making great leap forward by addressing the internal elements in each of us. It eradicates the individual out of his normal framework and then proceeds to plunge him into enthusiasm by suggesting extraordinary goals which nevertheless seem to him completely within reach. However, this enthusiasm can only last a short duration so the objective must be achieved quickly followed by a period of rest. People cannot be kept at in a ''state of perpetual enthusiasm and insecurity''. Rebellion is incited by the propagandist who knows that hate is one of the most profitable resources when drawn out of an individual. Agitation propaganda is usually thought of as propaganda in that it aims to influence people to act. Integration propaganda, on the other hand, is a more subtle form that aims to reinforce cultural norms. This is sociological in nature because it provides stability to society by supporting the ''way of life'' and the myths within a culture. It is propaganda of conformity that requires participation in the social body. This type of propaganda is more prominent and permanent, yet it is not as recognized as agitation propaganda because it is more permanent manner. Basically, agitation propaganda provides the motive force when needed and when not needed integration propaganda provides the context and backdrop.
        Chapter Two: The Condition for the Existence of PropagandaThe nature of propaganda has changed over the course of time and yet it is evident that propaganda cannot exist without a milieu. The emergence of propaganda is interconnected with technology and scientific discoveries yet it can only appear and grow under certain conditions. Several events have occurred that have furthered propaganda by increasing its ability in depth and discovering new methods. Modern propaganda could not exist without the mass media or modern means of transportation which permit crowds of diverse individuals from all over to assemble easily and frequently.
        Part One: The Sociological ConditionsSociety must contain elements of both an individualist society and a mass society. Propaganda aims to capture both the mass and the individual at the same time through this dual type of society. A mass society is based on individuals that are reduced to ciphers based on what they have in common to others. First conditions for growth and development of modern propaganda: it emerged in Western Europe in the nineteenth century and the first half of the twentieth precisely because that was when society was becoming increasingly individualistic and its organic structures were breaking down. Individuals without natural organic local groups are defenseless and more likely to be caught up in a social current. On the other hand, a mass society has considerable population density in which local structures and organizations are weak, currents of opinion are strongly felt creating a certain psychological unity, and individuals are organized into large and influential collectives. Mass society is characterized by uniformity and material life despite differences of environment. Once a mass society is created, public opinion will begin to play a role to help individuals form their own personal opinion. Public opinion can only express itself through channels which are provided by the mass media of communication without which there could be no propaganda. Yet it is important that mass media be subject to centralized control in order to successfully form public opinion without any opposition. Again Ellul mentions that the individual must be caught in wide net of media through all channels. Once opinion has been formed, propaganda is able to reinforce it and transform opinion into action.
        2. Part Two: Objective Conditions of Total PropagandaPropaganda thrives off of what individuals have in common with others to develop patterns of behavior and modify cultural opinions. Total propaganda recognizes that within a nation individuals should all have in common a standard of living, a culture, and an ideology. The need of an average standard of living is that people must be able to afford to buy a radio, TV, a newspaper, or go to the movies. It is mostly concerned with the densest mass which is made up of average men and not the very rich or very poor. Poor cannot do this therefore they cannot be subjected to integration propaganda because the immediate concerns of daily life absorb all their capacities and efforts. The poor can only be subjected to agitation propaganda, excited to the point of theft and murder. But they cannot be trained by propaganda, kept in hand, channeled, and oriented. More advanced propaganda can influence only a man who is not completely haunted by poverty, a man who can view things from a certain distance and be reasonably unconcerned about his daily bread, who therefore can take an interest in more general matters.
        "For propaganda to be effective the propagandee must have a certain store of ideas and a number of conditioned reflexes that can only be acquired through peace of mind springing from relative security. The establishment of a mode of common life- all this leads to the creation of a type of normal man conveniently leads all men toward that norm via a multitude of paths. Propaganda's intent is to integrate people into the normal pattern prevailing in society bring about conformance to way of life. To sum up: The creation of normalcy in our society can take one of two shapes. It can be the result of scientific, psycho-sociological analysis based on statistics- that is the American type of normalcy. It can be ideological and doctrinaire- that is the Communist type. But the results are identical: such normalcy necessarily gives rise to propaganda that can reduce the individual to the pattern most useful to society."[16]
        ''Information'' Is an essential element of propaganda, which must ''have reference to political or economic reality'' to be credible. In fact, no propaganda can work until the moment when a set of facts has become a problem in the eyes of those who constitute public opinion.'' Education permits the dissemination of propaganda in that it enables people to consume information. Information is indistinguishable from propaganda in that information is an essential element of propaganda because for propaganda to succeed it must have reference to political or economic reality. Propaganda grafts itself onto an already existing reality through ''informed opinion''. Where no informed opinion with regard to political or economic affairs propaganda cannot exist making it an indispensable aspect. Propaganda means nothing without preliminary information that provides the basis for propaganda, gives propaganda the means to operate, and generates the problems that propaganda exploits by pretending to offer solutions. It is through information that the individual is placed in a social context and learns to understand the reality of his own situation. Information allows us to evaluate our situation feel our own personal problems are a general social problem thus enabling propaganda to entice us into social and political action. Information is most effective when it is objective and broad because it creates a general picture. With information quantity is better than quality, the more political or economic facts believed to be mastered by an individual, the more sensitive their judgment is to propaganda. In fact, only in and through propaganda do the masses have access to political economy, politics, art, or literature. The more stereotypes in a culture, the easier it is to form public opinion, and the more an individual participates in that culture, the more susceptible he becomes to the manipulation of these symbols.
        Chapter Three: The Necessity for PropagandaAll propaganda is based on a need, a dual need, first there is the need of state to make it and second there is the need of propagandee to receive it. These two needs compliment and correspond to each other in the development of propaganda. Propaganda is an expression of modern society as a whole.
        Part One: The State's NecessityThe State has the need to make propaganda to integrate citizens into its society, to disseminate information, and to increase participation and involvement of members of society. Sometimes the people want to take part in government affairs. However, the official leaders cannot disconnect themselves from what the people want. Being that the people in charge cant escape the people, bait must be presented to them. This acts as a disguise that must be there to hide what is really happening behind the scenes in the government . Citizens are aware that political decisions affect everybody and governments cannot govern without the support, presence, pressure, or knowledge of the people. Yet the people are incapable of making long term policy so opinion must be created to follow the government because the government cannot be led by opinion. All of this describes the "Mass-Government" relationship characterized by people demanding what has already been decided, in order to appear as though the government is actually caring about what the people need. The next part that the book discusses is psychological warfare. It is believed to be a peace policy that is used between nations as a form of aggression. This type of propaganda changes the public opinion of an opposing regime so that it can be in favor of their regime.
        2. Part Two: The Individual's NecessityThe individual needs propaganda to gain satisfaction as a member of society. Individuals want to be informed and to participate in the decisions of the state. Propaganda is the outlet through which individuals obtain the satisfaction of having contributed to the state. It is a necessary instrument of a state or institution to spread information to members of the group or society. But for propaganda to succeed it must respond to a need on the individual's part as well. The individual is by no means just an innocent victim of propaganda when in fact he provokes the psychological action of propaganda by not merely lending himself to it, but also from deriving satisfaction from it. It is strictly a sociological phenomenon, in the sense that it has its roots and reasons in the need of the group that will sustain it. The great role performed by propaganda is in its ability to give the people the involvement they crave or the illusion of it in order for the masses to be artificially satisfied. Individuals are faced with decisions which require a range of information that the individual does not and cannot have without propaganda. Thus, the individual is unable to accept that he cannot form opinion on his own and is caught between his desire and his inability. People are willing and likely to accept propaganda that allows them to artificially satisfy their desire to have an opinion by hiding their incompetence. The individual does not mind being given preconceived positions because otherwise he would realize that he does not understand the problems of the modern world. The individual would then realize that he "depends on situations of which he has no control" and have to face this reality. The individual cannot live in the state of this harsh reality so he derives satisfaction from the veil created by the ideology and the sense of values it provides. The individual need psychological and ideological reasons why he needs to be where he is and propaganda is the mechanism that the state uses for this very purpose.
        Chapter Four: Psychological Effects of PropagandaThe psychological effects of propaganda on an individual cannot be ignored. The individual undergoes profound changes while being propagandized mainly the diminishment of personal activity. "Propaganda furnishes objectives, organizes the traits of an individual into a system, and freezes them into a mold by standardizing current ideas, hardening the prevailing stereotypes, and furnishing thought patterns in all areas."[17] The individual is traumatized by the overwhelming force of propaganda that intensifies the prejudices and beliefs until eventually the individual has no control over his own impulses. It seeks to push the individual into the mass until his will fades entirely into that of the mass. Individuality is sacrificed for the greater cause of the nation by uniting him and blending him with others. Critical and personal judgment are subdued and replaced with ready-made attitudes and opinions. Discernment is made nearly impossible for the individual whose ability to judge is destroyed making him dependent on propaganda's ready-made opinions from then on. The individual can no longer exercise his own judgment and becomes honed into what propaganda tells him. He no longer expresses himself but his group once he accepts public opinion as his own. The artificial, impersonal public opinion created by propaganda is absorbed by the individual and he becomes filled with its conviction. When he is fully integrated in the social group and can no longer distinguish between himself and society than he has reached total alienation. In this process, the individual's personal inclinations lead to participation in the collective where he loses control and submits to external impulses. The individual is suppressed psychologically so that he can continue to live under the conditions in which society places him by providing an artificial and unreal reality that is the result of powerful propaganda.
        Chapter Five: The Socio-Political Effects"In the nineteenth century, the problem of opinion formation through the expression of thought was essentially a problem of contacts between the State and the individual, and a problem of acquisition of freedom. But today, thanks to the mass media, the individual finds himself outside the battle that is now between the State and powerful groups. The freedom to express ideas is no longer at stake in this debate but it has been replaced by mastery and domination by the State or some powerful groups over the formation of opinion. The individual is not in the battle because he is the stake and the battle will determine what voice he will be permitted to hear and which words will have the power to obsess him."[18]
        Part One: Propaganda and IdeologyAn ideology provides society certain beliefs and no social group can exist without the foundation of these beliefs. Propaganda is the means by which an ideology can expand without force. An ideology is either fortified within a group or expanded beyond the borders of a group through propaganda. However, propaganda is less and less concerned with spreading the ideology nowadays as it is with becoming autonomous. The ideology is no longer the decisive factor of propaganda that must be obeyed by the propagandist. The propagandist cannot be constrained by the ideology of his State but must operate in service of the state and be able to manipulate the ideology as if it were an object. The ideology merely provides the content for the propagandist to build off since he is limited to what already is present within the group, nation, or society. The fundamental ideologies are nationalism, socialism, communism, and democracy.
        2. Part Two: Effects on the Structure of Public OpinionPublic opinion is an instrument of propaganda that is disseminated through the mass media of communication to the masses. While most people view the formation of public opinion as being shaped itself by interaction between different viewpoints on controversial questions, this is incorrect because public opinion is delineated by propaganda as a ''truth'' which is either believed or not believed. Public opinion ceases to be controversial and can no longer form itself except through channels of mass media. No opinion can be held until it is communicated to the masses through mass media. Propaganda uses public opinion to externalize inner opinions of the organization to the masses that eventually produces conformity.[19]
        3. Part Three: Propaganda and GroupingIn regards to propaganda, there are two groups: the groups that make propaganda and the groups that are subjected to propaganda. In Ellul's view, there is a "double foray on the part of propaganda that proves the excellence of one group and the evilness of another at the same time to create partitioning". This creates isolation between groups by promoting allegiance to the group one is in and suppressing conversation between groups. The more they listen to their propaganda the stronger their beliefs and the greater their justifications for their actions. Partitioning takes place on many different levels including class, religious, political, national and blocs of nations. A superior group is able to affect the lesser groups, however, groups that have an equal amount of influence will only separate further from one another in that a members allegiance to a group develops closed mindedness. Well-organized propaganda is able to work with different elements that exist within a nation such as religion, political parties, and labor groups.
        4. Part Four: Propaganda and DemocracySince democracy depends on public opinion, it is clear that propaganda must be involved. The relationship between democracy and propaganda evidently presents a conflict between the principles of democracy and the processes of propaganda. The individual is viewed as the cornerstone of a democracy which is a form of government that is made ''for the people and by the people''. However, as discussed in early chapters Ellul described the masses are incapable of making long-term foreign policy and the government needs to make these decisions in a timely manner. This is where propaganda comes into play and projects an artificial reality to the masses to satisfy their need to participate in government while the decisions are really made behind the scenes. This was also describe earlier as the "mass-government" relationship. Democratic regimes develop propaganda in line with its myths and prejudices. Propaganda stresses the superiority of a democratic society while intensifying the prejudices between democratic and oppressive.
        Major themes[edit]Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes builds on prior notions of propaganda to demonstrate that while propaganda is psychological in nature it is just as much sociological in nature as well. Propaganda is not just embedded into the individual's psyche but also the cultural psyche. Propaganda works off the inner characteristics of both the individual and the society that the individual belongs. This thorough analysis made by Ellul illustrates that to downplay the importance of the sociological influences of propaganda to psychological ones is a dreadful error. Propaganda is more threatening when it begins to be recognized as sociological as well psychological in nature. Below are two major themes the first stressing the psychological aims of propaganda the second the sociological aims.
        "The Lonely Crowd"[edit]The "lonely crowd" is used by Ellul to distinguish the two inseparable elements of propaganda, the individual and the masses, which must be addressed by the propagandist at the same time. As an isolated unit, the individual is of no interest to the propagandist unless he is reduced to an average. It is crucial that the individual is never considered as an individual but always in terms of what he has in common with others. The individual is included and integrated into the mass because the propagandist profits from the process of diffusion of emotions through the mass, and at the same time, from the pressures felt by an individual when in a group.[20]
        In this setting, ''the individual caught up in the mass'', the individual's reactions are easier to provoke and psychic defenses are weakened. The individual must always be considered as a participant in a mass and similarly the mass must only be viewed as a crowd composed of individuals. When propaganda is addressed to the crowd, it must touch each individual in that crowd which is in fact nothing but assembled individuals. Conversely, the individual should not be viewed as alone as a listener, watcher, or reader because the individual is nevertheless part of an invisible crowd though he is actually alone. The most favorable moment to influence an individual is when he is alone in the mass, the structure of the mass is extremely profitable to the propagandist concerned with being effective.
        Fundamental currents in society[edit]"One cannot make just any propaganda any place for anybody."[21] While propaganda is focused on reaching the individual, it cannot only rely on building off what already exists in the individual. Propaganda must also attach itself to the pre-existing fundamental currents of the society it seeks to influence. The propagandist must know the current tendencies and the stereotypes among the public he is trying to reach. These are indicated by principal symbols of the culture the propagandist wishes to attack since these symbols express the attitudes of a particular culture. Individuals are part of a culture and are therefore psychologically shaped by that culture. The main task of propaganda is to utilize the conditioned symbols as transmitters of that culture to serve its purpose. Propaganda must be a reflection of the fundamental structures of society to be successful and not contradictory of existing opinions. A skillful propagandist does not try to change mass opinion or go against an accepted structure. Only a bad propagandist would make a direct attack on an established, reasoned, durable opinion, accepted clich(C), or fixed pattern. ''Each individual harbors a large number of stereotypes and established tendencies; from this arsenal the propagandist must select those easiest to mobilize, those which will give the greatest strength to the action he wants to precipitate.''[22]
        While propaganda cannot create something out of nothing, it does have the ability to build on the foundation already established. More importantly even though it does not create new material and is confined to what already exists, it is not necessarily powerless. ''It can attack from the rear, war own slowly, provide new centers of interest, which cause the neglect of previously acquired positions; it can divert a prejudice; or it can elicit an action contrary to an opinion held by the individual without his being clearly aware of it.''[23]
        Propaganda can gradually undermine prejudices and images in order to weaken them. These fundamental currents in society create the perfect atmosphere for sociological propaganda which influences the individual through his customs and unconscious habits. Sociological propaganda is a phenomenon where a society tries to unify its members' behavior according to a pattern. Essentially sociological propaganda is to increase conformity with the environment that is of a collective nature by developing compliance with or defense of the established order through long term penetration and progressive adaptation by using all social currents. The propaganda element is the way of life with which the individual is permeated and then the individual begins to express it in film, writing, or art without realizing it. This involuntary behavior creates an expansion of society through advertising, the movies, education, and magazines. "The entire group, consciously or not, expresses itself in this fashion; and to indicate, secondly that its influence aims much more at an entire style of life."[24] This type of propaganda is not deliberate but springs up spontaneously or unwittingly within a culture or nation. This propaganda reinforces the individual's way of life and represents this way of life as best.
        See also[edit]References[edit]^Ellul, Jacques. (1964) The Technological Society. New York: Vintage Books, from the translator's introduction by John Wilkinson, p.ix.^Bernays, Edward. "Propaganda". (1928)^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. xi-xii. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. x. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Origins of mass communications research during the American Cold War ... - Page 22 by Timothy Richard Glander - Language Arts & Disciplines - (2000)^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. 25. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1965). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p.i, xviii. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p.4. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p.11. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p.61. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. 39-40. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. 64 Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. 63. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. 62. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. 65. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. 106-108. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. 162-163. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Rivero (1957) "Technique de formation de l'opinion publique", L'Opinion Publique^Doob, Leonard (148). Public Opinion and Propaganda, Ch 5. Henry Holt and Company, New York.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. 7. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. 34. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. 37. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1973). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. 38. Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.^Ellul, Jacques (1965). Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes, p. 62.Trans. Konrad Kellen & Jean Lerner. Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 978-0-394-71874-3.Further reading[edit]
      Jacques Ellul - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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        Thu, 28 Aug 2014 12:13
        Jacques Ellul (French: [É›lyl]; January 6, 1912 '' May 19, 1994) was a French philosopher, law professor, sociologist, lay theologian, and Christian anarchist. Ellul was a longtime Professor of History and the Sociology of Institutions on the Faculty of Law and Economic Sciences at the University of Bordeaux. A prolific writer, he authored 58 books and more than a thousand articles over his lifetime, many of which discussed propaganda, the impact of technology on society, and the interaction between religion and politics. The dominant theme of his work proved to be the threat to human freedom and religion created by modern technology. Among his most influential books are The Technological Society and Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes.
        Considered by many a philosopher, Ellul was by training a sociologist who approached the question of technology and human action from a dialectical viewpoint. His constant concern was the emergence of a technological tyranny over humanity. As a philosopher and theologian, he further explored the religiosity of the technological society.
        In 2000 the International Jacques Ellul Society was founded by a group of former Ellul students. The society, which includes scholars from a variety of disciplines, is devoted to continuing Ellul's legacy and discussing the contemporary relevance and implications of his work.[1]
        Life and influences[edit]Ellul was born in Bordeaux, France on 6 January 1912 to Marthe Mendes (Protestant; French-Portuguese) and Joseph Ellul (initially Greek Orthodox, but then Voltarian by conviction; born in Malta of an Italo-Maltese father and Serb mother). As a teenager he wanted to be a naval officer but his father made him read law. He was married to Yvette Lensvelt in 1937.[2]
        Jacques was educated at the universities of Bordeaux and Paris. In World War II, he was a leader in the French resistance.[3] For his efforts to save Jews he was awarded the title Righteous among the Nations by Yad Vashem in 2001.[4] He was a layman in the Reformed Church of France and attained a high position within it as part of the National Council.[5]
        Ellul was best friends with Bernard Charbonneau, who wrote on similar themes. They met through the Protestant Student Federation during the academic school year of 1929''1930.
        Jacques Ellul had three primary sources of inspiration by the early 1930s who would influence his works henceforth: Karl Marx, S¸ren Kierkegaard, and Karl Barth. Ellul was first introduced to the ideas of Karl Marx during an economics lecture course taught by Joseph Benzacar in 1929''''1930; Ellul studied Marx and became a prolific exegete of his theories. During this same period, he also came across the Christian existentialism of Kierkegaard. According to Ellul, Marx and Kierkegaard were his two greatest influences, and the only two authors of which he read all of their work.[6] Also, he considered Karl Barth, who was a leader of the resistance against the German state church in World War II,[7] the greatest theologian of the 20th century.[8] In addition to these intellectual influences, Ellul also said that his father played a great role in his life and considered him his role model.[9]
        The influence of these ideologies has alternately earned him devoted followers and vicious enemies. In large measure and especially in those of his books concerned with theological matters, Ellul restates the viewpoints held by Barth, whose polar dialectic of the Word of God, in which the Gospel both judges and renews the world, shaped Ellul's theological perspective.[10] In Jacques Ellul: A Systemic Exposition Darrell J. Fasching claimed Ellul believed "That which desacralizes a given reality, itself in turn becomes the new sacred reality".[11]
        In 1932, after what he describes as "a very brutal and very sudden conversion", Ellul professed himself a Christian.[12] Ellul believes he was about 17 (1929''1930) and spending the summer with some friends in Blanquefort, France. While translating Faust alone in the house, Ellul knew (without seeing or hearing anything) he was in the presence of a something so astounding, so overwhelming, which entered the very center of his being. He jumped on a bike and fled, concluding eventually that he had been in the presence of God. This experience started the conversion process which Ellul said then continued over a period of years thereafter.[13]
        He was also prominent in the worldwide ecumenical movement, although he later became sharply critical of the movement for what he felt were indiscriminate endorsements of political establishments, primarily of the Left.[14] However, he was no friendlier in his assessment of those of the Right; he fashioned an explicitly anti-political stance as an alternative to both (see below).
        Ellul has been credited with coining the phrase, "Think globally, act locally."[15] He often said that he was born in Bordeaux by chance, but that it was by choice that he spent almost all his academic career there.[16]
        On 19 May 1994, after a long illness, he died in his house in Pessac, just a mile or two from the University of Bordeaux campus and surrounded by those closest to him. His wife had died a few years prior, on 16 April 1991.
        Theology[edit]While Ellul is perhaps most noted for his sociological work, especially his discussions of technology, he saw his theological work as an essential aspect of his career, and began publishing theological discussions early, with such books as The Presence of the Kingdom (1948).
        Although a son of the minority French Reformed tradition and thus a spiritual heir of thinkers like John Calvin and Ulrich Zwingli, Ellul departed substantially from Reformed doctrinal traditions, but unlike other European Protestant thinkers, utterly rejected the influence of philosophical idealism or romanticism upon his beliefs about God and human faith. In articulating his theological ideas, he mainly drew upon the corpus of works by the Swiss-German theologian Karl Barth and the critiques of European state Christianity made by Dane S¸ren Kierkegaard. Thus, some have considered him one of the more ardent expositors of dialectical theology,[17] which was in decline elsewhere in the Western theological scene during Ellul's heyday. Much like Barth, Ellul had no use for either liberal theology (to him dominated by Enlightenment notions about the goodness of humanity and thus rendered puerile by its na¯vet(C)) or orthodox Protestantism (e.g., fundamentalism or scholastic Calvinism,[18] both of which to him refuse to acknowledge the radical freedom of God and humanity) and maintained a roughly un-Catholic [19] view of the Bible, theology, and the churches.
        One particular theological movement that aroused his ire was that of secular theology (also called death-of-God theology), based on notions that traditional Christian conceptions of God and humanity are based upon a primitive consciousness, one that most civilized people have quite overcome. This line of thought affirmed the ethical teachings of Jesus but rejected the idea that he represented anything more than a highly accomplished human being. Ellul attacked this school, and practitioners of it such as Harvey Cox, as out of accord not with Christian doctrinal traditions, but reality itself, namely what he perceived as the irreducible religiosity of the human race, a devotion that has worshiped idols such as rulers, nations, and in more recent times, materialism, scientism, technology and economics. To Ellul, people use such fallen images, or powers, as a substitute for God, and are, in turn, used by them, with no possible appeal to innocence or neutrality, which, although possible theoretically, does not in fact exist. Ellul thus renovates in a non-legalistic manner the traditional Christian understanding of original sin and espouses a thoroughgoing pessimism about human capabilities, a view most sharply evidenced in his Meaning of the City (see bibliography below). Ellul stated that one of the problems with these "new theologies" was the following:
        ''In consequence of the desire to make the message (kerygma) valid for all, to see all men as in the presence of God, to increase the universality of the lordship of Jesus Christ, to insist on the value of mankind generally (to the detriment of the Christian), to insist on the value of the world (to the detriment of the Church), one comes to the point of denying whatever can only be specifically Christian.[20]''''The ultimate purpose of the whole death-of-God system is to justify a certain kind of behavior on the part of Christians in relation to society'--a kind of behavior that is dictated by conformism to the modern world. So a justificatory formula is manufactured; and alas, it often turns out that theology merely amounts to a justification of the behavior of pretend-Christians. The theology of the death of God reinforces this evil tendency. It justifies a sociological impulsion. That is the kind of theology it really is, unconsciously. Nor do the marvelous intellectual operations its proponents perform with every appearance of seriousness make it less profoundly false.[21]''Ellul espouses views on salvation, the sovereignty of God, and ethical action that appear to take a deliberately contrarian stance toward established, "mainstream" opinion. For instance, in the book What I Believe, he declared himself to be a Christian Universalist, writing "that all people from the beginning of time are saved by God in JesusChrist, that they have all been recipients of His grace no matter what they have done."[22] Ellul formulated this stance not from any liberal or humanistic sympathies, but in the main from an extremely high view of God's transcendence, that God is totally free to do what God pleases. Any attempts to modify that freedom from merely human standards of righteousness and justice amount to sin, to putting oneself in God's place, which is precisely what Adam and Eve sought to do in the creation myths in Genesis. This highly unusual juxtaposition of original sin and universal salvation has repelled liberal and conservative critics and commentators alike, who charge that such views amount to antinomianism, denying that God's laws are binding upon human beings. In most of his theologically-oriented writings, Ellul effectively dismisses those charges as stemming from a radical confusion between religions as human phenomena and the unique claims of the Christian faith, which are not predicated upon human achievement or moral integrity whatsoever.
        ''In the Bible, however, we find a God who escapes us totally, whom we absolutely cannot influence, or dominate, much less punish; a God who reveals Himself when He wants to reveal Himself, a God who is very often in a place where He is not expected, a God who is truly beyond our grasp. Thus, the human religious feeling is not at all satisfied by this situation.... God descends to humanity and joins us where we are.[23]''''...the presence of faith in Jesus Christ alters reality. We also believe that hope is in no way an escape into the future, but that it is an active force, now, and that love leads us to a deeper understanding of reality. Love is probably the most realistic possible understanding of our existence. It is not an illusion. On the contrary, it is reality itself.[24]''On technique[edit]The Ellulian concept of technique is briefly defined within the "Notes to Reader" section of The Technological Society (1964). It is "the totality of methods rationally arrived at and having absolute efficiency (for a given stage of development) in every field of human activity."[25] He states here as well that the term technique is not solely machines, technology, or a procedure used to attain an end.
        What many consider to be Ellul's most important work, The Technological Society (1964) was originally titled: La Technique: L'enjeu du si¨cle (literally, "The Stake of the Century").[26] In it, Ellul set forth seven characteristics of modern technology that make efficiency a necessity: rationality, artificiality, automatism of technical choice, self-augmentation, monism, universalism, and autonomy.[27] The rationality of technique enforces logical and mechanical organization through division of labor, the setting of production standards, etc. And it creates an artificial system which "eliminates or subordinates the natural world."
        Regarding technology, instead of it being subservient to humanity, "human beings have to adapt to it, and accept total change."[28] As an example, Ellul offered the diminished value of the humanities to a technological society. As people begin to question the value of learning ancient languages and history, they question those things which, on the surface, do little to advance their financial and technical state. According to Ellul, this misplaced emphasis is one of the problems with modern education, as it produces a situation in which immense stress is placed on information in our schools. The focus in those schools is to prepare young people to enter the world of information, to be able to work with computers but knowing only their reasoning, their language, their combinations, and the connections between them. This movement is invading the whole intellectual domain and also that of conscience.
        Ellul's commitment to scrutinize technological development is expressed as such:
        ''[W]hat is at issue here is evaluating the danger of what might happen to our humanity in the present half-century, and distinguishing between what we want to keep and what we are ready to lose, between what we can welcome as legitimate human development and what we should reject with our last ounce of strength as dehumanization. I cannot think that choices of this kind are unimportant.[29]''The sacred then, as classically defined, is the object of both hope and fear, both fascination and dread.[30] Once, nature was the all-encompassing environment and power upon which human beings were dependent in life and death, and so was experienced as sacred. The Reformation desacralized the church in the name of the Bible, and the Bible became the sacred book.[31] But since then, scientism (through Charles Darwin's theory of evolution) and reason (higher criticism and liberal theology) have desacralized the scriptures, and the sciences, particularly those applied sciences that are amenable to the aims of collective economic production (be it capitalist, socialist, or communist), have been elevated to the position of sacred in Western culture.[32] Today, he argues, the technological society is generally held sacred (cf. Saint Steve Jobs[33]). Since he defines technique as "the totality of methods rationally arrived at, and having absolute efficiency (for a given stage of development) in every field of human activity",[25] it is clear that his sociological analysis focuses not on the society of machines as such, but on the society of "efficient techniques":
        ''Modern technology has become a total phenomenon for civilization, the defining force of a new social order in which efficiency is no longer an option but a necessity imposed on all human activity.[34]''It is useless, he argues, to think that a distinction can be made between technique and its use, for techniques have specific social and psychological consequences independent of human desires. There can be no room for moral considerations in their use:
        ''Not even the moral conversion of the technicians could make a difference. At best, they would cease to be good technicians. In the end, technique has only one principle, efficient ordering.[27]''On anarchy and violence[edit]Ellul identified himself as a Christian Anarchist. Ellul explained his view in this way: "By anarchy I mean first an absolute rejection of violence."[35] And, "...Jesus was not only a socialist but an anarchist -- and I want to stress here that I regard anarchism as the fullest and most serious form of socialism." [36] For him, this meant that nation-states, as the primary sources of violence in the modern era, should neither be praised nor feared, but continually questioned and challenged.[37] For Ellul, human government is largely irrelevant in that the revelation of God contained in Scripture is sufficient and exclusive. That is, being a Christian means pledging absolute allegiance to Christ, which makes other laws redundant at best or counter to the revelation of God at worst. Despite the initial attraction of some evangelicals to his thinking because of his high view of Biblical texts (i.e., generally eschewing the historical-critical method), this position alienated some conservative Protestants. Later, he would attract a following among adherents of more ethically-compatible traditions such as the Anabaptists and the house church movement. Similar political ideas to Ellul's appear in the writings of a corresponding friend of his, the American William Stringfellow, and long-time admirer Vernard Eller, author of Christian Anarchy. Ellul identified the State and political power as the Beast in the Book of Revelation.[38][39]
        Jacques Ellul discusses anarchy on a few pages in The Ethics of Freedom[40] and in more detail within his later work, Anarchy & Christianity.[41] Although he does admit that anarchy does not seem to be a direct expression of Christian freedom, he concludes that the absolute power he sees within the current (as of 1991) nation-state can only be responded to with an absolute negative position (i.e. anarchy). He states that his intention is not to establish an anarchist society or the total destruction of the state. His initial point in Anarchy & Christianity is that he is led toward anarchy by his commitment to an absolute rejection of violence. However, Ellul does not entertain the idea that all Christians in all places and all times will refrain from violence. Rather, he insisted that violence could not be reconciled with the God of Love, and thus, true freedom. A Christian that chooses the path of violence must admit that he or she is abandoning the path of freedom and committing to the way of necessity.[42]
        During the Spanish Civil War Spanish anarchist friends of Ellul's soon-to-be wife came to France in search of weapons. He tried to get some for them through an old school friend of his and claimed that this was probably the one time in his life when he was sufficiently motivated to commit an act of violence. He did not go with the anarchists primarily because he had only recently met the woman that would become his wife and did not wish to leave her.[43]
        Ellul states in The Subversion of Christianity[44] that he thinks "that the biblical teaching is clear. It always contests political power. It incites to 'counterpower,' to 'positive' criticism, to an irreducible dialogue (like that between king and prophet in Israel), to antistatism, to a decentralizing of the relation, to an extreme relativizing of everything political, to an anti-ideology, to a questioning of all that claims either power or dominion (in other words, of all things political), and finally, if we may use a modern term, to a kind of "anarchism" (so long as we do not relate the term to the anarchist teaching of the nineteenth century)." [45]
        Ellul states in Violence that idealism serves to justify the use of violence, including:
        1. revolutionary idealism (viewing violence as a means to an end and/or violence under the mask of legality)
        2. generous idealism (leading to violence toward reconciliation and/or a blindness of the violence of one's enemy)
        ''...there is generous idealism of so many young men who risk imprisonment or death rather than participate in a war they condemn only because they idealize and whitewash their country's enemy. Those young men are heroes and fools both. They are repelled by the violence they see'--the massive, enormous violence that cries to heaven. And they are right. But seeing this highly visible violence, they forthwith make lambs, saints, and martyrs of its victims. For they close their eyes to what the enemy is really like, to his cruelty, his violence, his lies. They overlook his real intentions; they overlook the fact that he would use terrible violence if he won power. Poor young men, totally unknowing, uncomprehending, blind, perceiving only what is happening now! So they side with the enemy and countenance the enemy's violence. In France, before the Second World War, a great many people sided with the Nazis. Hadn't the Nazis, out of their generosity, protested against the violence done the Sudeten Germans, the Croats, the Germans of Danzig? Hadn't they declared that they would defend the rights of the poor and the unemployed, the victims exploited by the capitalists? Their admiration of the Nazis cost those people dearly. Again, after the war, many French people sided with communism, 'the party of the poor, the proletariat.' A few years later they were stunned by the declarations of the Twentieth Communist Congress and by Moscow's suppression of the Hungarian revolt. This is the kind of idealism that must be combated and radically condemned."''3. pacifist idealism (beliefs and lifestyles which are only possible within a larger violence-based society)
        4. Christian idealism (which is always concerned with the moral goodness of the human world). This leads to concepts of progressiveness and unreserved participation with good conscience in political or scientific action. "In their idyllic world, harshness, torture, and war seem abnormal and almost incomprehensible. But it is only gross, highly visible, undeniable violence that evokes this scandalized reaction. They deny the existence of masked, secret, covert violence'--insofar as this can be concealed...."[46]
        On justice[edit]Ellul believed that social justice and true freedom were incompatible. He rejected any attempt to reconcile them. He believed that a Christian could choose to join a movement for justice, but in doing so, must admit that this fight for justice is necessarily, and at the same time, a fight against all forms of freedom.[47]:404 While social justice provides a guarantee against the risk of bondage, it simultaneously subjects a life to necessities. Ellul believed that when a Christian decides to act it must be in a way that is specifically Christian. "Christians must never identify themselves with this or that political or economic movement. Rather, they must bring to social movements what they alone can provide. Only so can they signalize the kingdom. So far as they act like the others'--even to forward social justice, equality, etc.'--I say that there is no sense and nothing specifically Christian in acting like the others. In fact the political and revolutionary attitude proper to the Christian is radically different than the attitude of others; it is specifically Christian or else it is nothing.[42]:45''46
        In Violence Ellul states his belief that only God is able to establish justice and God alone who will institute the kingdom at the end of time. He acknowledges that some have used this as an excuse to do nothing, but also points out how death-of-God advocates use this to claim that "we ourselves must undertake to establish social justice".[42]:76 Ellul said that without a belief in a Father God, love and the pursuit for justice becomes selective for the only relation left is the horizontal one.[42]:6 Ellul asks how we are to define justice and claims that followers of death-of-God theology and/or philosophy clung to Matthew 25 stating that justice requires them to feed the poor. Ellul says that many European Christians rushed into socialist circles (and with this began to accept the movement's tactics of violence, propaganda, etc.) mistakenly thinking socialism would assure justice when in fact it only pursues justice for the chosen and/or interesting poor whose condition (as a victim of capitalism or some other socialist enemy) is consistent with the socialist ideology.[42]:76''77
        ''...Jesus Christ has not come to establish social justice any more than he has come to establish the power of the state or the reign of money or art. Jesus Christ has come to save men, and all that matters is that men may come to know him. We are adept at finding reasons-good theological, political, or practical reasons, for camouflaging this. But the real reason is that we let ourselves be impressed and dominated by the forces of the world, by the press, by public opinion, by the political game, by appeals to justice, liberty, peace, the poverty of the third world, and the Christian civilization of the west, all of which play on our inclinations and weaknesses. Modern protestants are in the main prepared to be all things to all men, like St. Paul, but unfortunately this is not in order that they may save some but in order that they may be like all men.[47]:254''255''Ellul states in The Subversion of Christianity that "to proclaim the class conflict and the 'classical' revolutionary struggle is to stop at the same point as those who defend their goods and organizations. This may be useful socially but it is not at all Christian in spite of the disconcerting efforts of theologies of revolution. Revelation demands this renunciation-the renunciation of illusions, of historic hopes, of references to our own abilities or numbers or sense of justice. We are to tell people and thus to increase their awareness (the offense of the ruling classes is that of trying to blind and deaden the awareness of those whom they dominate). Renounce everything in order to be everything. Trust in no human means, for God will provide (we cannot say where, when, or how). Have confidence in his Word and not in a rational program. Enter on a way on which you will gradually find answers but with no guaranteed substance. All this is difficult, much more so than recruiting guerillas, instigating terrorism, or stirring up the masses. And this is why the gospel is so intolerable, intolerable to myself as I speak, as I say all this to myself and others, intolerable for readers, who can only shrug their shoulders." [48]
        ''If the disciples had wanted their preaching to be effective, to recruit good people, to move the crowds, to launch a movement, they would have made the message more material. They would have formulated material goals in the economic, social, and political spheres. This would have stirred people up; this would have been the easy way. To declare, however, that the kingdom is not of this world, that freedom is not achieved by revolt, that rebellion serves no purpose, that there neither is nor will be any paradise on earth, that there is no social justice, that the only justice resides in God and comes from him, that we are not to look for responsibility and culpability in others but first in ourselves, all this is to ask for defeat, for it is to say intolerable things.[49]''On media, propaganda, and information[edit]Ellul discusses these topics in detail in his landmark work, Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes. He viewed the power of the media as another example of technology exerting control over human destiny.[50] As a mechanism of change, the media are almost invariably manipulated by special interests, whether of the market or the state.[51]
        Also within Propaganda Ellul claims that "it is a fact that excessive data do not enlighten the reader or the listener; they drown him. He cannot remember them all, or coordinate them, or understand them; if he does not want to risk losing his mind, he will merely draw a general picture from them. And the more facts supplied, the more simplistic the image".[52]:87 In addition, people become "caught in a web of facts they have been given. They cannot even form a choice or a judgment in other areas or on other subjects. Thus the mechanisms of modern information induce a sort of hypnosis in the individual, who cannot get out of the field that has been laid out for him by the information".[52]:87 "It is not true that he can choose freely with regard to what is presented to him as the truth. And because rational propaganda thus creates an irrational situation, it remains, above all, propaganda'--that is, an inner control over the individual by a social force, which means that it deprives him of himself".[52]:87
        Ellul agreed with Jules Monnerot who stated that "All individual passion leads to the suppression of all critical judgment with regard to the object of that passion".[52]:170
        ''The individual who burns with desire for action but does not know what to do is a common type in our society. He wants to act for the sake of justice, peace, progress, but does not know how. If propaganda can show him this 'how' then it has won the game; action will surely follow".[52]:209''In response to an invitation from Protestant associations, Ellul visited Germany two times (1934 and 1935). On the second visit he attended a Nazi meeting out of curiosity which influenced his later work on propaganda and its ability to unify a group.[53]
        To throw this wager or secular faith into the boldest possible relief, Ellul places it in dialectical contrast with Biblical faith. As a dialectical contrast to "La Technique," for instance, Ellul writes Sans feu ni lieu (published in 1975, although written much earlier.)
        On humanism[edit]In explaining the significance of freedom and the purpose for resisting the enslavement of man via acculturation (or sociological bondage), Ellul rejects the notion that this is due to some supposed supreme importance linked to humanity. He states that enslavement expresses how authority, signification, and value are attached to humanity and the beliefs and institutions it creates leading to an exaltation of the nation or state, money, technology, art, morality, the party, etc. The work of humanity is glorified.
        ''...man himself is exalted, and paradoxical though it may seem to be, this means the crushing of man. Man's enslavement is the reverse side of the glory, value, and importance that are ascribed to him. The more a society magnifies human greatness, the more one will see men alienated, enslaved, imprisoned, and tortured, in it. Humanism prepares the ground for the anti-human. We do not say that this is an intellectual paradox. All one need do is read history. Men have never been so oppressed as in societies which set man at the pinnacle of values and exalt his greatness or make him the measure of all things. For in such societies freedom is detached from its purpose, which is, we affirm, the glory of God.[54]''''Before God I am a human being.... But I am caught in a situation from which there is truly and radically no escape, in a spider's web I cannot break. If I am to continue to be a living human being, someone must come to free me. In other words, God is not trying to humiliate me. What is mortally affronted in this situation is not my humanity or my dignity. It is my pride, the vainglorious declaration that I can do it all myself. This we cannot accept. In our own eyes we have to declare ourselves to be righteous and free. We do not want grace. Fundamentally what we want is self-justification. There thus commences the patient work of reinterpreting revelation so as to make of it a Christianity that will glorify humanity and in which humanity will be able to take credit for its own righteousness.[55]''‰tude sur l'(C)volution et la nature juridique du Mancipium. Bordeaux: Delmas, 1936.Le fondement th(C)ologique du droit. Neuchtel: Delachaux & Niestl(C), 1946.The Theological Foundation of Law. Trans. Marguerite Wieser. Garden City NY: Doubleday, 1960. London: SCM, 1961. New York: Seabury, 1969.Pr(C)sence au monde moderne: Probl¨mes de la civilisation post-chr(C)tienne. Geneva: Roulet, 1948. Lausanne: Presses Bibliques Universitaires, 1988.The Presence of the Kingdom. Trans. Olive Wyon. Philadelphia: Westminster, 1951. London: SCM, 1951. New York: Seabury, 1967. Colorado Springs: Helmers and Howard, 1989.Le livre de Jonas. Paris: Cahiers Bibliques de Foi et Vie, 1952.The Judgment of Jonah. Trans. Geoffrey W. Bromiley. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1971. Wipf & Stock, 2011L'homme et l'argent (Nova et vetera). Neuchtel: Delachaux & Niestl(C), 1954. Lausanne: Presses Bibliques Universitaires, 1979.Money and Power. Trans. LaVonne Neff. Downers Grove IL: InterVarsity Press, 1984. Basingstoke, England: Marshall Pickering, 1986. Wipf & Stock, 2009La technique ou l'enjeu du si¨cle. Paris: Armand Colin, 1954. Paris: ‰conomica, 1990 & 2008The Technological Society. Trans. John Wilkinson. New York: Knopf, 1964. London: Jonathan Cape, 1965. Rev. ed.: New York: Knopf/Vintage, 1967. with introduction by Robert K. Merton (professor of sociology, Columbia University). This may be his best-known work; Aldous Huxley brought the French edition to the attention of an English publisher, and thus brought it to English readers. Theodore Kaczynski had a copy in his cabin and said he read it several times'--his "manifesto" addresses similar themes. See Alston Chase. 2003. "Harvard and the Unabomber: The Education of an American Terrorist," W.W. Norton & Co., p. 111, 331.Histoire des institutions. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France; volumes 1 & 2,L'Antiquit(C) (1955); vol. 3, Le Moyen Age (1956); vol. 4, Les XVIe''XVIIIe si¨cle (1956); vol. 5, Le XIXe si¨cle (1789''1914) (1956).Propagandes. Paris: A. Colin, 1962. Paris: ‰conomica, 1990 & 2008Fausse pr(C)sence au monde moderne. Paris: Les Bergers et Les Mages, 1963.False Presence of the Kingdom. Trans. C. Edward Hopkin. New York: Seabury, 1972.Le vouloir et le faire: Recherches (C)thiques pour les chr(C)tiens: Introduction (premi¨re partie). Geneva: Labor et Fides, 1964.To Will and to Do: An Ethical Research for Christians. Trans. C. Edward Hopkin. Philadelphia: Pilgrim, 1969.L'illusion politique. Paris: Robert Laffont, 1965. Rev. ed.: Paris: Librairie G(C)n(C)rale Fran§aise, 1977. La Table-ronde, 2004 & 2012The Political Illusion. Trans. Konrad Kellen. New York: Knopf, 1967. New York: Random House/Vintage, 1972.Ex(C)g¨se des nouveaux lieux communs. Paris: Calmann-L(C)vy, 1966. Paris: La Table Ronde, 1994 & 2004A Critique of the New Commonplaces. Trans. Helen Weaver. New York: Knopf, 1968. Wipf & Stock, 2012Politique de Dieu, politiques de l'homme. Paris: ‰ditions Universitaires, 1966.The Politics of God and the Politics of Man. Trans./ed. Geoffrey W. Bromiley. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1972. Wipf & Stock, 2012Histoire de la propagande. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France, 1967, 1976.M(C)tamorphose du bourgeois. Paris: Calmann-L(C)vy, 1967. Paris: La Table Ronde, 1998 & 2012Autopsie de la r(C)volution. Paris: Calmann-L(C)vy, 1969. Paris: La Table Ronde, 2008Autopsy of Revolution. Trans. Patricia Wolf. New York: Knopf, 1971. Wipf & Stock, 2012Contre les violents. Paris: Centurion, 1972.Violence: Reflections from a Christian Perspective. Trans. Cecelia Gaul Kings. New York: Seabury, 1969. London: SCM Press, 1970. London: Mowbrays, 1978. Wipf & Stock, 2012Sans feu ni lieu: Signification biblique de la Grande Ville. Paris: Gallimard, 1975.The Meaning of the City. Trans. Dennis Pardee. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1970. Carlisle, Cumbria, England: Paternoster, 1997.L'impossible pri¨re. Paris: Centurion, 1971, 1977.Prayer and Modern Man. Trans. C. Edward Hopkin. New York: Seabury, 1970, 1973. Wipf & Stock, 2012Jeunesse d(C)linquante: Une exp(C)rience en province. Avec Yves Charrier. Paris: Mercure de France, 1971. 2nd ed.: Jeunesse d(C)linquante: Des blousons noirs aux hippies. Nantes: ‰ditions de l'AREFPPI, 1985.De la r(C)volution aux r(C)voltes. Paris: Calmann-L(C)vy, 1972.L'esp(C)rance oubli(C)e. Paris: Gallimard, 1972.Hope in Time of Abandonment. Trans. C. Edward Hopkin. New York: Seabury, 1973. Wipf & Stock, 2012‰thique de la libert(C), 2 vols. Geneva: Labor et Fides, I:1973, II:1974.The Ethics of Freedom. Trans. and ed. Geoffrey W. Bromiley. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1976. London: Mowbrays, 1976.Les nouveaux poss(C)d(C)s. Paris: Arth¨me Fayard, 1973.The New Demons. Trans. C. Edward Hopkin. New York: Seabury, 1975. London: Mowbrays, 1975.L'Apocalypse: Architecture en mouvement. Paris: Descl(C)e, 1975.Apocalypse: The Book of Revelation. Trans. George W. Schreiner. New York: Seabury, 1977.Trahison de l'Occident. Paris: Calmann-L(C)vy, 1975.The Betrayal of the West. Trans. Matthew J. O'Connell. New York: Seabury,1978.Le syst¨me technicien. Paris: Calmann-L(C)vy, 1977. Paris : Le cherche-midi 2004 & 2012The Technological System. Trans. Joachim Neugroschel. New York: Continuum, 1980.L'id(C)ologie marxiste chr(C)tienne. Paris: Centurion, 1979.Jesus and Marx: From Gospel to Ideology. Trans. Joyce Main Hanks. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1988. Wipf & Stock, 2012L'empire du non-sens: L'art et la soci(C)t(C) technicienne. Paris: Press Universitaires de France, 1980.La foi au prix du doute: "Encore quarante jours . . ." Paris: Hachette, 1980.Living Faith: Belief and Doubt in a Perilous World. Trans. Peter Heinegg. San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1983. Wipf & Stock, 2012La Parole humili(C)e. Paris: Seuil, 1981.The Humiliation of the Word. Trans. Joyce Main Hanks. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1985.Changer de r(C)volution: L'in(C)luctable prol(C)tariat. Paris: Seuil, 1982.Les combats de la libert(C). (Tome 3, L'Ethique de la Libert(C)) Geneva: Labor et Fides, 1984. Paris: Centurion, 1984.La subversion du Christianisme. Paris: Seuil, 1984, 1994. Paris: La Table Ronde, 2001 & 2012The Subversion of Christianity. Trans. Geoffrey W. Bromiley. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1986. Wipf & Stock, 2011Conf(C)rence sur l'Apocalypse de Jean. Nantes: AREFPPI, 1985.Un chr(C)tien pour Isral. Monaco: ‰ditions du Rocher, 1986.La Gen¨se aujourd'hui. Avec Fran§ois Tosquelles. Lign(C): AREFPPI, 1987.La raison d'ªtre: M(C)ditation sur l'Eccl(C)siaste. Paris: Seuil, 1987Reason for Being: A Meditation on Ecclesiastes. Trans. Joyce Main Hanks. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1990.Anarchie et Christianisme. Lyon: Atelier de Cr(C)ation Libertaire, 1988. Paris: La Table Ronde, 1998Le bluff technologique. Paris: Hachette, 1988, 2004 & 2012The Technological Bluff. Trans. Geoffrey W. Bromiley. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1990.Ce que je crois. Paris: Grasset and Fasquelle, 1989.What I Believe. Trans. Geoffrey W. Bromiley. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1989.Ce Dieu injuste . . .?: Th(C)ologie chr(C)tienne pour le peuple d'Isral. Paris: Arl(C)a, 1991, 1999.An Unjust God ? A Christian Theology of Israel in light of Romans 9''11. Transl. Anne-Marie Andreasson-Hogg. Wipf & Stock, 2012Si tu es le Fils de Dieu: Souffrances et tentations de J(C)sus. Paris: Centurion, 1991.D(C)viances et d(C)viants dans notre soci(C)t(C) intol(C)rante. Toulouse: ‰r(C)s, 1992.Silences: Po¨mes. Bordeaux: Opales, 1995.Oratorio: Les quatre cavaliers de l'Apocalypse. Bordeaux: Opales, 1997.Sources and Trajectories: Eight Early Articles by Jacques Ellul that Set the Stage. Trans./ed. Marva J. Dawn. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1997.Interviews[edit]"A temps et contretemps: Entretiens avec Madeleine Garrigou-Lagrange". Paris: Centurion, 1981."In Season, Out of Season: An Introduction to the Thought of Jacques Ellul: Interviews by Madeleine Garrigou-Lagrange." Trans. Lani K. Niles. San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1982."Perspectives on Our Age: Jacques Ellul Speaks on His Life and Work". Ed. Willem H. Vanderburg. Trans. Joachim Neugroschel. Toronto: CBC, 1981. New York: Seabury, 1981. Concord, Ontario: House of Anansi, 1997."L'homme lui-mªme: Correspondance". Avec Didier Nordon. Paris: F(C)lin, 1992."Entretiens avec Jacques Ellul". Patrick Chastenet. Paris: Table Ronde, 1994."Jacques Ellul on Religion, Technology, and Politics: Conversations with Patrick Troude-Chastenet". Trans. Joan Mend¨s France. Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1998."Jacques Ellul on Politics, Technology, and Christianity: Conversations with Patrick Troude-Chastenet". Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock, 2005.See also[edit]References[edit]^"About IJES | International Jacques Ellul Society". Ellul.org. Retrieved 2013-11-30. ^Jacques Ellul and Patrick Troude-Chastenet. 1998. Jacques Ellul on Religion, Technology, Politics: Conversations with Patrick Troude-Chastenet, Scholars Press, pp. 2, 11.^Jacques Ellul. 1964 The Technological Society. Vintage Books, from the translator's introduction by John Wilkinson, p.ix.^"Righteous Among the Nations Recognized by Yad Vashem as of 1 January 2011 '' France" (PDF). Yad Vashem. 2011-01-01. Retrieved 2011-08-15. ^Jacques Ellul. 1981. Perspectives on Our Age, Seabury Press, p. 24.^Andrew Goddard. 2002. Living the Word, Resisting the World: The Life and Thought of Jacques Ellul,Paternoster Press, p. 16.^Timothy Gorringe. 1999. Karl Barth: Against Hegemony, Oxford University Press, p. 158.^Jacques Ellul and Patrick Troude-Chastenet. 1998. Jacques Ellul on Religion, Technology, Politics: Conversations with Patrick Troude-Chastenet, Scholars Press, p. 4.^Jacques Ellul and patrick Troude-Chastenet. 1998. Jacques Ellul on Religion, Technology, Politics: Conversations with Patrick Troude-Chastenet, Scholars Press, p. 92.^Geoffrey W. Bromiley. 1981."Barth's Influence on Jacques Ellul" in Jacques Ellul: Interpretive Essays Edited by Clifford G. Christians and Jay M. Van Hook. University of Illinois Press. pp. 32-51.^Darrell J. Fasching characterizing Ellul's thought in Jacques Ellul: A Systematic Exposition," E. Mellen Press, 1981. p. 35.^Jacques Ellul. 1981. Perspectives on Our Age: Jacques Ellul Speaks on His Life and Work, edited by William H. Vanderburg. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, p.14.^Jacques Ellul and Patrick Troude-Chastenet. 1998. Jacques Ellul on Religion, Technology, Politics: Conversations with Patrick Troude-Chastenet, Scholars Press, p. 5.^Andrew Goddard. 2002. Living the Word, Resisting the World: The Life and Thought of Jacques Ellul, Paternoster Press, p.41.^Randal Marlin. 2002. Propaganda and the Ethics of Persuasion. Broadview Press, p. 34.^Andrew Goddard. 2002. Living the Word, Resisting the World: The Life and Thought of Jacques Ellul, Paternoster Press, p. 37.^Jacob Van Vleet. 2014. Dialectical Theology and Jacques Ellul: An Introductory Exposition, Fortress Press, p. 45.^Andrew Goddard. 2002. Living the Word, Resisting the World: The Life and Thought of Jacques Ellul, Paternoster Press, 203-204. And, Jacques Ellul. 1989. What I Believe Eerdmans, pp. 167-187.^David W. Gill. 1982. "Jacques Ellul's View of Scripture," In The Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, 25:4.^Jacques Ellul. 1970. Prayer and Modern Man, Seabury Press, pp.118''119.^Jacques Ellul. 1969. Violence: Reflections from a Christian Perspective, Seabury Press, pp.78-79^Jacques Ellul. 1989. What I Believe, Eerdmans, p. 188.^Jacques Ellul. 1981. Perspectives on Our Age, Seabury Press, p. 95.^Jacques Ellul. 1981. Perspectives on Our Age, Seabury Press, p. 107.^ abJacques Ellul. 1964. The Technological Society, Translated by John Wilkinson. Random House, Note to the Reader, p. xxv.^Paul A. Taylor and Jan Harris. 2005. Digital Matters: The Theory and Culture of the Matrix, Routledge, p. 23.^ abJacques Ellul. 1964. The Technological Society, Translated by John Wilkinson. Random House, p. 79.^Jacques Ellul. 1989. What I Believe, Translated by Geoffrey W. Bromiley. Eerdmans, p. 136.^Jacques Ellul. 1989. What I Believe, Translated by Geoffrey W. Bromiley. Eeerdmans, p. 140.^Jacques Ellul. 1964. The Technological Society, Knopf, pp. 143-145. And, Jacques Ellul. 1975. "The Sacred Today," in The New Demons, Seabury Press, pp. 48-87.^Jacques Ellul. 1975. The New Demons, Seabury Press, p. 59.^Jacques Ellul. 1964. The Technological Society, Knopf. p. 142. And, Jacques Ellul. 1975. The New Demons, Seabury Press, pp. 58-78.^Brooks, Michael E. Death of Secular Saint Steve Jobs in a Theologically Devoid Culture The Christian Post Sept. 2, 2012^Darrell Fasching. 1981. The Thought of Jacques Ellul: A Systematic Exposition, Edwin Mellen Press, p. 17.^Jacques Ellul. 1991. Anarchy and Christianity, Eerdmans, p. 11.^Jacques Ellul. 1991. Anarchy and Christianity, Eeerdmans. p. 3.^In Anarchy and Christianity, Ellul argues that ideally Christians should follow the example of Jesus and his attitude toward the state. Ellul writes: "In ....Jesus' face-to-face encounters with the political and religious authorities, we find irony, scorn, noncooperation, indifference, and sometimes accusation. Jesus was the "essential" disputer." Jacques Ellul. 1991. Anarchy and Christianity, Eerdmans, p.71.^Ellul, Jacques (1988). Anarchy and Christianity. Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans. pp. 71''74. "The first beast comes up from the sea...It is given 'all authority and power over every tribe, every people, every tongue, and every nation' (13:7). All who dwell on earth worship it. Political power could hardly, I think, be more expressly described, for it is this power which has authority, which controls military force, and which compels adoration (i.e., absolute obedience)." ^Christoyannopoulos, Alexandre (2010). Christian Anarchism: A Political Commentary on the Gospel. Exeter: Imprint Academic. pp. 123''126. "Revelation" ^Jacques Ellul. 1973/74. ‰thique de la libert(C), Labor et fides. Translated by Geoffrey W. Bromiley as The Ethics of Freedom, Eerdmans, 1976.^Jacques Ellul. 1988. Anarchie et Christianisme, Atelier de Cr(C)ation Libertaire. Translated by Geoffrey W. Bromiley as Anarchy and Christianity, Eerdmans, 1988.^ abcdeJacques Ellul. 1969. Violence: Reflections from a Christian Perspective, Seabury Press, p. 137.^Jacques Ellul and Patrick Troude-Chastenet. 1998. Jacques Ellul on Religion, Technology, Politics: Conversations with Patrick Troude-Chastenet, Scholars Press, pp. 67-68.^Jacques Ellul. 1984. La Subversion de Christianisme, Editions du Seuil. Translated by Geoffrey W. Bromiley as The Subversion of Christianity, Eerdmans, 1986.^Jacques Ellul. 1986. The Subversion of Christianity, Eerdmans, p. 116.^Jacques Ellul. 1969. Violence: Reflections from a Christian Perspective, Seabury, pp. 115-125.^ abEllul, Jacques. The Ethics of Freedom. English version, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1976.^Ellul, Jacques. "The Subversion of Christianity" Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. 1986^Ellul, Jacques. "The Subversion of Christianity" Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. 1986. p170-171^Jacques Ellul. 1965. "Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes," Knopf, pp. 102-103.^Jacques Ellul. 1965. "Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes," Knopf, pp. 102-105; pp. 162-166.^ abcdeEllul, Jacques. Propaganda. English version published 1965.^France, Joan Mendes (trans.). 1998. Jacques Ellul on Religion, Technology, Politics: Conversations with Patrick Troude-Chastenet, Scholars Press, 63^Jacques Ellul. 1976. The Ethics of Freedom," Eerdmans, p. 251.'^Jacques Ellul. 1986. The Subversion of Christianity, Eerdmans, p.161.External links[edit]PersondataNameEllul, JacquesAlternative namesShort descriptionFrench sociologist, technology critic, and Christian anarchistDate of birthJanuary 6, 1912Place of birthBordeaux, FranceDate of death1994-05-19Place of deathPessac, France
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 13:00
      VIDEO-Montel Williams Resets CNN Ferguson Conversation With Warning about ISIS (Video)_
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 12:44
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      VIDEO-Czemu premier Donald Tusk Å›piewa Hey Jude - YouTube
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 12:16
      VIDEO-After Weeks of Silence, Hillary Clinton Spoke Out on Ferguson '-- and She Didn't Hold Back | Video | TheBlaze.com
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 12:08
        Story by the Associated Press; curated by Oliver Darcy.
        '--
        SAN FRANCISCO (AP) '-- Hillary Rodham Clinton says the fatal shooting of an unarmed Missouri teenager and the violent protests that followed resulted from frayed bonds of trust in his racially divided community.
        Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks at the Nexenta OpenSDx Summit, Thursday, Aug. 28, 2014, in San Francisco. Clinton discussed gun control, international relations and race inequality on Thursday. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
        Thursday's remarks in San Francisco were the former secretary of state's first comments about Michael Brown's Aug. 9 death in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson.
        As a potential Democratic presidential candidate, Clinton has been criticized for waiting so long to talk about the black teen's shooting by a white police officer.
        In a speech to a technology group, Clinton criticized the shooting and the numerous tense confrontations between protesters and heavily armed police.
        She says U.S. streets shouldn't look like war zones.
        '--
      VIDEO- What led two Americans from Minneapolis to jihad? - YouTube
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 11:27
      VIDEO-Brazil Dismantled a Deforestation Gang | VICE United States
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 09:10
        Things You Learn Designing Porn Banners for a Living
        I Went to a Ralian Cult Protest for Titties
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        Superstitious People Are Dismembering Albinos in Tanzania
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        Tim and Eric Tell Us About Their Greatest Fears
        We Asked a War Correspondent About the Origins of ISIS
      VIDEO-George Brandis has no clue about meta data - YouTube
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 09:06
      VIDEO-Al Qaeda magazine hints of looming attack; urges bombing of Vegas, military targets | Fox News
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        Sun, 31 Aug 2014 04:53
        A new English-language Al Qaeda magazine features a how-to article on making car bombs and suggests terror targets in the United States, including casinos in Las Vegas, oil tankers and military colleges, and implies that an attack is imminent.
        The online publication, called ''Palestine-Betrayal of the Guilty Conscience Al-Malahem'' and put out by the media arm of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP, calls for Muslims around the world to follow ''the recipe'' provided to set off car bombs in crowded venues. It includes a timeline of "selected jihadi operations" that the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), which first flagged the slickly-produced latest edition of the terror publication, finds chilling.
        ''The timeline concludes with the date 201?' and blank spaces and question marks for the photo and information of the next attack -- implying that it is coming soon.'' said MEMRI Executive Director Steve Stalinsky.
        There is a suggested list of targets for lone-wolf, or individually executed, terror attacks, including New York's Times Square, casinos and night clubs in Las Vegas, oil tankers and trains, the Georgia Military College, the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, and General Atomics defense contractor in San Diego.
        ''This recipe gives you the ability to make a car bomb even in countries with tight security and surveillance,'' one article reads, before providing a ''shopping list'' of supplies needed to make such a bomb, including cooking gas, oxygen gas, a barometer, decoration lamps and matches.
        There is also a list of targets in Britain including a military academy and the Marks and Spencers chain of department stores. The magazine calls for the stores to be hit on Friday during prayers so that Muslims won't be affected.
        Globally, AQAP calls for the targeting of tourist resorts frequented by Israelis, Britons and Americans.
        In a nine-page spread entitled, ''How to make a bomb in the kitchen of your mom,'' the magazine details a do-it-yourself, illustrated guide on assembling a pressure-cooker bomb similar to the ones used in the Boston Marathon bombings.
        ''My Muslim brother, before you start reading the instructions, remember that this type of operation if prepared well and an appropriate target is chosen and Allah decrees success for you, history will never forget it. It will be recorded as a crushing defeat on the enemies of Islam,'' the article says.
        The ''Palestine'' magazine is a spin-off of AQAP's Inspire magazine, which mainly encourages and instructs jihadi recruits to carry out lone-wolf attack in the West. This new magazine is meant to play upon the recent anti-Israel and anti-U.S. sentiments brought about by the conflict between Hamas and Israel.
        ''Both AQAP and IS, as well as every other Al-Qaeda branch and offshoot is relying on U.S. social media companies including Twitter and YouTube for their cyber-Jihad efforts,'' said Stalinsky, whose organization monitors the online and media activity of Jihadi groups and reported on the release of this publication.
        This list comes as U.S. intelligence investigates the increased chances of a terror attack on American soil as Islamic State militants continue on their rampage in Iraq and Syria.
        On Tuesday, the Pentagon confirmed reports of the death on a Syrian battlefield of American Douglas McCain, of San Diego, who was recruited to Syria to fight for IS.Now, the Free Syrian Army is reporting that a second American may have died in the same battle.
        ''There could be some envy by AQAP that IS is now getting all the headlines,'' Stalinsky said in response to the probability of an Al Qaeda-backed attack.
        Lisa Daftari is a Fox News contributor specializing in Middle Eastern affairs.
      VIDEO- 'For a good cause': Foreign fighters join anti-Kiev militia in E. Ukraine - YouTube
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        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 11:34
      VIDEO-EU to ban high-energy hair dryers, smartphones and kettles - Telegraph
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        Sat, 30 Aug 2014 05:55
        A study ordered by the European Commission, currently in draft form, has identified up to 30 electrical appliances including lawn mowers, smart phones and kettles that could be covered by the EU's Ecodesign directive outlawing high-wattage devices.
        G¼nther Oettinger, the German EU energy commissioner, said that legislation preventing consumers from buying high-wattage appliances was necessary to fight climate change.
        "We haven't got round to these devices yet, we want curb power consumption," he told Bild newspaper. "All EU countries agree that energy efficiency is the most effective method to reduce energy consumption and dependence on imports and to improve the climate. Therefore there needs to be mandatory consumption limits for small electrical appliances."
        The proposals will be a controversial flagship policy for Jean-Claude Juncker when he takes power as commission president in November in order to meet a binding target for energy savings of 30 per cent across the EU by 2030.
        EU bans on powerful vacuum cleaners and incandescent light bulbs have provoked a popular backlash across Europe including in traditionally pro-European countries such as Germany.
        On Monday many of the best vacuum cleaners available for sale in the UK will be banned as a result of the EU energy efficiency rules that prohibit the manufacture or importing any vacuums with motors above 1,600 watts.
        Tesco said sales of the most powerful vacuums had soared by as much as 94 per cent for some models after the Telegraph reported consumer group Which? urging shoppers to act quickly before they sold out forever.
        The draft EC-commissioned study says hairdryers' power input range from 900 watts to as much as 2,300 watts.
        It admits that ''of course, more powerful dryers may dry hair in a shorter time'' but says there is ''improvement potential'' to cut hair dryers' energy consumption by 30 per cent. This is based on a German scheme which awards energy efficiency labels to products which ''achieve power savings of at least 30 per cent compared to standard appliances''.
        Mark Coray, former president of the National Hairdressers' Federation, said curbing the power of hairdryers would simply mean blow-drying took longer.
        Mr Coray said he favoured a 2,100 watt hairdryer at his salon in Cardiff. ''You have a salon environment and somebody in their lunch-break wanting to have their hair done; you have time constraints. The more powerful, the faster the blow dry '' it's as simple as that.''
        He said one manufacturer had recently brought out a ''green'' hairdryer with a lower wattage of between 1,400 and 1,600 watts, but he was unimpressed by it. ''It gets very hot but it doesn't blow very fast,'' he said.
        Hairdressers liked to minimise the time they had to spend holding hairdryers because it could lead to repetitive strain injury, he added.
        Herbert Reul, a conservative German MEP, said: "The commission must stop their eco-design plans. It makes no sense to regulate the detail of energy consumption, the manufacture of each product in the EU and to tell the citizen what he has to buy.''
        Paul Nuttall MEP, UKip's deputy leader, said: "This is being done in the name of tackling climate change but the reality is it won't help one iota and will just make life harder for house-proud householders. I am perfectly sure grown-ups can decide which hair dryer, kettle or vacuum cleaner they want to buy without nannying EU interference."
        Marlene Holzner, the European Commission's energy spokesman, said: ''It's a big question mark if we go to regulate hairdryers at all. It's a study we have asked consultants to do. In the final report they will reduce 30 products to 20. In January 2015 we will look at these recommendations then select from this list what to regulate and how.''
      VIDEOS!!!-M of A - ISIS Trained By Whom?
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        Fri, 29 Aug 2014 02:41
        August 28, 2014
        ISIS Trained By Whom?Photos show gruesome Islamic State seizure of base
        Dressed in an orange jumpsuit against the backdrop of an arid Syrian landscape, ...
        Captives held by Islamic State were waterboarded
        At least four hostages held in Syria by the Islamic State, including an American journalist who was recently executed by the group, were waterboarded in the early part of their captivity, according to people familiar with the treatment of the kidnapped Westerners.
        Where, one wonders, did they learn such shit?
        Posted by b on August 28, 2014 at 08:18 PM | Permalink
        School of the Americas?Oh, wait...
        Posted by: citizen X | Aug 28, 2014 8:43:46 PM | 1
        the usa doesn't like the direct competition whether it be in water-boarding, grabbing assets, shifting borders - you name it..isis is much like the usa without the veneer of diplomacy and pretty words..
        Posted by: james | Aug 28, 2014 8:54:49 PM | 2
        My theory is that they got their lessons in how to be a righteous jihadi from YouTube ... CNN this morning had a story about an ISIS Jihadi summer camp "" CNN Exclusive: A 13-year-old witness to ISIS' beheadings, crucifixion in Syria""
        http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/28/world/meast/syria-isis-atrocities-boy/index.html?hpt=wo_c2
        This is a re-tread of several stories coming out of Pakistan 10 years ago ...
        Oh, and numerous instances of photos being recycled -- most notoriously a beheaded child photo:
        Others maintain that such claims are largely fiction and are just more of the usual exaggerated atrocity stories typically circulated as propaganda during wars to sway public opinion against one side (and in this case provide a prompt or justification for U.S. military intervention). For example, the picture of the decapitated girl shown above had been circulated two years earlier as an example of an atrocity committed by the Assad government in Syria when a helicopter gunship reportedly open fired on unarmed civilians.
        Read more at http://www.snopes.com/politics/war/isis.asp#6f9VALHxtsFDZD5Q.99
        Most crucifixions apparently are of corpses ... http://www.meforum.org/3833/syria-islamist-crucifixion
        oh, and these things have been going on for months .... possibly longer ...
        Posted by: Susan Sunflower | Aug 28, 2014 8:54:57 PM | 3
        This is one big PR campaign. Orange jumpsuits - I think someone already mentioned in another thread as well - is such a "dog-whistle" for the American people. It brings up memories not just from Guantanamo (though that is very important) but also to common criminality.
        Of course maybe its just a happy accident...
        Posted by: guest77 | Aug 28, 2014 9:00:45 PM | 4
        Sorry, but I'm just not going to look at gruesome photos but the NYT says they videotaped hours ...
        NYT: ISIS Said to Kill 150 Syrian Captives in 2 Days, Videotaping the Horror.
        Hours of video tape, but apparently they didn't release the executions (firing squad) just video of the dead bodies all in a row. The article actually discusses ISIS's use of the media. This incident is causing much protest by Assad supporters that the military is not doing enough -- enough to protect its own.
        Posted by: Susan Sunflower | Aug 28, 2014 9:26:40 PM | 6
        Oh, sorry to be serialing....
        The NYT article says -- bafflingly -- that they (ISIS soldiers) too the captives on a long forced march half naked (very hot) while taunting them ... and exhausting them .. brought them back to camp locked them in rooms, then beat them and then brought them out and lined them up and shot them execution style ... anyone else wondering why they expended all that time and effort before just shooting them all? No torture (I guess they'd had their fill)
        Yousef said the ISIS fighters made the soldiers run in the desert to tire them out, and then locked them in a room where they were beaten. ''Then we took them out and shot them,'' he said.
        Are these guys really a bunch of hyperactive, out of control speed freaks?
        Posted by: Susan Sunflower | Aug 28, 2014 9:39:19 PM | 7
        http://www.voltairenet.org/article185085.html
        Just ask Senator John McCain (R) - AZ. I am sure he knows how to deactivate the runaway "beast" ISIL.
        *As far as initial seed money for ISIL the msm might want to question former Viceroy to Iraq Paul Bremer.
        Posted by: really | Aug 28, 2014 9:42:27 PM | 8
        "Are these guys really a bunch of hyperactive, out of control speed freaks? "
        There have always been rumors of heavy drug use by these "Islamists" (Irony noted). No idea if it is true of course.
        Posted by: guest77 | Aug 28, 2014 10:34:17 PM | 9
      VIDEO-BBC News - Hoping to strike gold in the California wilderness
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        Fri, 29 Aug 2014 02:35
        In 2009, the US experienced its worst recession since the Great Depression. But as the value of the dollar fell, the price of gold was approaching a record high, quadrupling in value between 2005 and 2010.
        Around the same time, Brooklyn-based photographer Sarina Finkelstein learned that people, often in dire economic straights, were moving into the western wilds in an attempt to make their way as gold miners, just like the "Forty-Niners" of the original Gold Rush of 1849. So, she travelled west to look for them, and documented their lives over the course of four years.
        Finkelstein's new book, The New Forty-Niners, documents that new wave of gold seekers she found living on the banks of streams throughout the spectacular landscapes of California.
        Produced for the BBC by Colm O'Molloy
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