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(Credit: ceasefiremagazine.co.uk) Late last week, the US Senate Judiciary Committee agreed to the wording of an amendment that will likely have consequences for the future of journalism. The amendment comes partly in reaction to leaks from former NSA contractor Edward Snowden to Guardian journalist Glenn Greenwald. The bill is partly designed to make it harder for journalists, particularly bloggers, to conceal sources. Also at play is the media shield law defining a journalist. As part of the

(Credit: nationaljournal.com) With the US Congress returning to debate and vote on authorization to intervene in the Syrian civil war, at least one representative has drawn a primary challenge over his stance. As one of the Republican congressmen on record supporting President Barack Obama's proposed intervention in Syria, Illinois US Representative Adam Kinzinger has acquired a primary opponent because of his support for military action: Rockford tea party activist David Hale. Kinzinger firs

Remember mid-summer, when the reports circulated during the two very expensive special sessions of the Texas legislature called pretty much just to force through anti-abortion legislation?  Remember the sight of law enforcement confiscating feminine hygiene products which brought a heady mix of laughter at the expense of the LEOs and scorn for fear of tampons and other sanitary products? There was a serious side to that, which had everything to do with what received media attention - and what d

Image Source: classroom.synonym.com A March 2012 realignment report card assigned a failing grade in realignment progress to the Community Corrections Partnership of the county of San Diego. This was largely due to a planned expansion in local jail capacity to both the East Mesa and Las Colinas detention facilities which the Californians United for a Responsible Budget (CURB) deemed wasteful. Since then, East Mesa Detention Facility, originally a juvenile facility, has been renamed East Mesa R

Gage Skidmore / Flickr In the nearly 4 years since the massacre at Fort Hood, much attention has been paid to the shooter, with the victims being largely forgotten by the Obama administration and the mainstream media. But, now the former Major Nidal Hasan has been sentenced to death for the crimes he committed, one Texas lawmaker is seeking full benefits from the military for the victims. On August 18, Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) authored an op-ed in the Killeen Daily Herald calling for the sho

Predictably, media outlets worldwide are taking the debate of military action in Syria to the press and airwaves and just as with the responses from individuals, the various media outlets openly opine with a wide variety of reasons for either the benefit or the detriment of doing so. And, just as with the invasion of Iraq, the question of whether or not the US should take military action in Syria is generating a wide range of heated personal responses from around the globe. In the age of instan

Credit: defense.gov Despite the best efforts of the DoD and the VA, the number of suicides among active duty service members and veterans continues to rise, and now a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) has found that, contrary to popular belief, combat tours are not to blame for the rise. The study was conducted by various military medical groups and followed a group of more than 145,000 people between 2001 and 2008. The study found that there were sp

Mexican Army troops during a firefight in Michoacan // Credit: AP Mexico Those old enough to remember Prohibition in the United States remember it as a controversial and violent era.  The passage of the Eighteenth Amendment and Volstead Act by Congress in 1919 prohibited the manufacture and sale of “intoxicating liquor” for recreational use and Prohibition began in January 1920. The alcohol ban, long championed by the temperance movement, was enacted with the intention of simultaneously loweri

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kR4nn3B_XM4 Former Congressman Dr. Ron Paul held his second Ask Me Anything (AMA) Thursday on the social media network, Reddit. Timed to coincide with the launch of the liberty-minded politician's 'Ron Paul Channel,' which debuted last week, the AMA drew over 3,500 comments in the first hour. Dr. Paul answered questions with the user handle RonPaul_Channel. Within two hours the retired politician answered 36 questions. Predictably, questions of the 2016 president

Image credit: defense.gov Leaders from across the Department of Defense and Veteran's Administration came together last week at the Military Health System Research Symposium to discuss the state of mental health care for military members and veterans. The discussion turned to the National Research Action Plan (NRAP), the product of an executive order signed by President Obama last year mandating improved mental health care for service members, their families, and veterans. In response to the e