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Nuclear Roulette Update
by Stephen Lendman
Multiple P5 + 1 talks were held. Almaty, Kazakstan ones are the latest. Nothing gets accomplished. Washington obstructionism prevents it. Israel does so covertly.
Netanyahu reacted as expected. Bluster substitutes for reason. "(T)here are no measures that will make Iran heed the demands of the international community aside from military sanctions against it," he said.
America's Draconian Computer Fraud and Abuse Act
by Stephen Lendman
It's an anti-hacking law. It criminalizes accessing computer systems "without authorization."
"(E)xceeds authorized access" terminology was left undefined. Misinterpretations and abuse followed. Overzealous prosecutors take full advantage.
In 1984, CFAA was enacted. It was amended numerous times. It's primarily a criminal law. At issue are seven types of offenses.
Big Loss for Fat Cat Executives Out of … Switzerland!
Michael Collins
Swiss voters struck a blow against corporate executives and the culture of greed that has driven senior executive salaries into the stratosphere, with little regard for work or company performance. Last year, the head of Credit Suisse made 1,800 times more than the lowest paid workers in the company. A 200 to 1 executive to average-worker-salary ratio is not uncommon among the top Swiss firms. The number of executives pulling down a million a year in salary has quadrupled over the past few years.
Voters made their opinion known this weekend with their overwhelming approval of a constitutional amendment that grants shareholders in publicly traded Swiss companies the full right to elect board members annually and to determine the salaries of executives and board members. It also removes incentives to sell public companies. Swissinfo.ch described the second provision, one that will end the gravy train that CEOs ride when they sell their companies or get fired by new owners: "Upfront payments, termination pay and bonuses when companies are bought or sold are forbidden. Proxy voting is also not allowed."
Corporate governance reform advocates campaigned without success for this in the United States and won a small victory in Great Britain. But this is a first in terms of scope, clarity, and impact. The legislation will govern Credit Suisse, UBS, Nestle, Novartis, and Swiss Re.
Time to be Honest about Jobs, Reality Begs for Serious Solutions
By Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers
After his State of the Union, President Obama took a jobs tour to call for growth in the manufacturing base where only 6% of US jobs exist. This was a charade. It would be like a president touring horse, buggy and blacksmiths in search of jobs when Henry Ford was mass producing cars.
Real manufacturing output today is near an all-time high. What’s dropped precipitously in recent decades is manufacturing employment.
The technology of automation and robotics is ending manufacturing jobs. The president was on a quest for jobs where none exist, will not exist and should not exist. The US with 4% of the world’s population is responsible for 20% of manufacturing output. More manufacturing is not coming to the United States.
University of Ottawa Racism, Censorship and Abuse of Power
by Stephen Lendman
In June 2008, Allan Rock became university president. He's a former Canadian politician and UN ambassador. He's a pro-Israeli flack. He supports its worst crimes.
His administration is unprincipled. It's marked by secrecy, political censorship, abuse of power, and repudiation of fundamental university values.
He targets academic and speech freedoms. He violates Canadian law.
Profile of Imperial Lawlessness
by Stephen Lendman
Israel is second only to America in imperial lawlessness. Both nations partner in high crimes too grave to ignore.
Neither admits fault. One conflict leads to others. Both nations are modern-day Spartas. They live by the sword. Perhaps one day they'll perish by it. Humanity may not last that long.
State terror is official policy. Palestinians suffered for decades.Professor Yehuda Bauer is Hebrew University's Institute of Contemporary Jewry Professor Emeritus.
The ex-pope and the holiness myth
Mary Shaw
So now Pope Benedict XVI has retired, and the cardinals will be choosing a new leader.
Meanwhile, sentimental Catholics and others have been praising the now-former pontiff. They call him a holy man. However, in looking back through his record, I see much that is downright unholy.
Perhaps most obvious is his role in the cover-up of clergy sex abuse.
Sequester Chicken
by Stephen Lendman
On March 1, $85 billion in automatic sequestered cuts are scheduled. Congress may or may permit them. Obama calls instituting them dire. On February 19, he said.
"(They) won't help the economy, won't create jobs, will visit hardship on a whole lot of people."
He spent four years benefitting bankers, war profiteers, other corporate favorites, and super-rich elites. He did so at the expense of middle America. Others most disadvantaged suffered more.
Accountability Now
by Stephen Lendman
State terrorism is official Israeli policy. Torture and cold-blooded murder define it. Arafat Jaradat is Israel's latest victim. He died wracked in pain Saturday.
Israel attributed it to cardiac arrest. Shin Bet claimed no detectable health problems during interrogation. Accusations of torture were dismissed. Coverup and denial don't wash.
Plight of Palestinians in Israeli Prisons
By Khalid Amayreh
Journalist — Occupied Palestine
Samer Eisawi has been on an intermittent hunger strike for 212 days. (Reuters)
As the agony of hunger-striking Palestinian inmates continues unabated, the Israeli government has surprised observers with a secretly-adopted new set of laws. The laws allow for the re-arrest and indefinite incarceration of Palestinian political and resistance prisoners released in a deal brokered by Egypt nearly a year and a half ago.
The Israeli justice system is widely thought to be a mere rubber stamp in the hands of the powerful security establishment, especially the domestic intelligence agency known as Shin Bet.
The Failure of the Israeli Justice System
Palestinian lawyers and human rights activists have called the Israeli feat "scandalous and immoral." The Palestinian Authority (PA) minister for Prisoners’ Affairs Issa Karakei'a described the disclosed Israeli laws as "an immoral act befitting thieves and gangsters."
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