What's in the news, whats' not

First, what is in the news?

Violent teens kill someone "just because." Yep, that is news.

Teens charged as adults in shooting

Cops: Man slain by teens, just because

A random act of violence has left a promising 23-year-old college baseball player dead, a family devastated and two countries rattled. FULL STORYFULL STORY

• Photos: See victim, suspects
• Sobbing dad reacts to death
• Victim collapsed on side of road

 

Random violence and dangerous street criminals? Yep, that is news.

 

Gunman with AK-47 fires inside school

Photos: Georgia school shooting

Farmer kills escaped inmate

 

What about widespread corporate crime? The links between corporate offenders and our own government? The policies they created that allow it to occur? The people they hire to "regulate" (cough cough) the offenders?

 

Nope, not in the news. Unless you look at alternative sources such as Truthout. For example:

 

Not Too Big to Jail: Why Eliot Spitzer Is Wall Street's Worst Nightmare

By Ellen Brown, Web of Debt | News Analysis

Eliot Spitzer in Union Square, New York, July 8, 2013. (Photo: Timothy Krause)Before Eliot Spitzer’s infamous resignation as governor of New York in March 2008, he was one of our fiercest champions against Wall Street corruption, in a state that had some of the toughest legislation for controlling the banks. It may not be a coincidence that the revelation of his indiscretions with a high-priced call girl came less than a month after he published a bold editorial in the Washington Post titled “Predatory Lenders’ Partner in Crime: How the Bush Administration Stopped the States from Stepping in to Help Consumers.” The editorial exposed the collusion between the Treasury, the Federal Reserve and Wall Street in deregulating the banks in the guise of regulating them, by taking regulatory power away from the states.

Read more...

 

 

 

 

Just more evidence for the importance of independent media!

Comparing the top stories from TV stations with newspapers! ...

I guess you can still find it in the newspapers....

Washington Post's top stories:

Divided on Egypt, Arab leaders vie for influence

Liz Sly 6:43 PM ET

Saudi Arabia is leading an effort by Persian Gulf monarchies to back the country’s new military leaders, putting the kingdom at odds with the United States.

• Deadly conflict continues in Egypt

Mubarak may be released within days, lawyer says

Mary Beth Sheridan

The possibility of the former Egyptian dictator’s release injects a volatile new element into the political crisis.

• Timeline: Egypt's rocky revolution

 

New York Times' top stories:

 

Secret Memo to Chinese Party Warns Against Western Ideas

A document released to Communist Party cadres enumerated what it called subversive social currents, including Western-inspired notions of human rights, that must be fought.

 

Egyptian Court Is Said to Order Mubarak’s Release

While the authorities could find a way to keep former President Hosni Mubarak in detention and his release did not appear imminent, the development risked adding a volatile new element to Egypt’s crisis.   

 

Meanwhile, over at CNN:

 

Photos of Prince George released

Four-legged friends featured

Kensington Palace released two photos of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge with their newborn son, Prince George. FULL STORY

• Photos: The royal baby
• William: About that car seat ...
• Prince William talks fatherhood

 

 

And over at Fox:

 

ObamaCare Launch Triggers Scams

• AP
• Consumer confusion about the October launch of ObamaCare is creating a feeding frenzy for scammers looking to swindle unsuspecting Americans.
• FOX NEWS FIRST: Obama Tries to Drop Second Term Jitters
• HOWARD KURTZ: Jack Germond Speaks Out on 'Crap' Journalism
• Filings Show Caroline Kennedy Could Be Worth Up to $500M
• Emails Reportedly Show White House Cooperation on Stuxnet Leak Book

Never before in my life have I seen clearer evidence of the problem with mainstream television (and their websites) news organizations.

Washington Post identifies death of 4th Amendment

You know that the National Security Agency is spying on you, right?

It's been all over the news, consistent with the media's role as the Fourth Estate (watchdog of the powerful).

Now we're starting to get a sense of how big this problem is. See here:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/nsa-broke-privacy-rules-thousands-of-times-per-year-audit-finds/2013/08/15/3310e554-05ca-11e3-a07f-49ddc7417125_story.html

But this is just the tip of the iceberg. In fact, the NSA is capturing every single phone call and email from the US overseas. Every single one! Including content!

Given that the 4th Amendment protects against unreasonable search and seizure and requires that the government demonstrate in court that it has probably cause to search a person or place or property--and since the government is NOT doing this in its national security spying programs--we can thus conclude the 4th Amendment no longer exists (at least in these cases).

And think of all those people out there scared to death that the 2nd Amendment is being threatened because "the government is coming to get our guns" (even when there is literally no law or program in place that does this).

Rarely is the political ideology of a news organization more clear

... than this:

CNN:

Al Qaeda on Egypt: 'I told you so'

Al-Zawahiri has seen it before, Bergen writes

Al Qaeda's Egyptian-born leader is surely seeing the unrest there as a chance to exploit, writes CNN's Peter Bergen.FULL STORY

• NEW Security Council to meet
• Obama urges calm | Watch
• Bloody fighting in streets | Photos

 

Fox:

 

Obama Under Fire as Egypt Erupts

• Reuters
• As death toll exceeds 500 in Egypt and no clear end-game in sight, Obama faces criticism for 'incoherent' policy insisting US stay neutral despite both aiding and condemning military-backed government.
• Egypt Authorizes Use of Deadly Force After Defiant Protesters Torch Buildings
• Coptic Christian Churches, Buildings Targeted in Egypt for Second Straight Day
• US Cancels Military Exercises With Egypt, Obama Condemns Crackdown
• PHOTOS: Deadly Clashes in Egypt

Now, read the stories and compare and contrast the "hook" used to grab your attention, the context provided (or not provided), and especially the main point each is trying to make.

Oh no, not the po po!

This is not typical behavior by police officers.

Which is precisely why it is news.

And of course, it is news because it is negative in nature.

But it should be news, because it is so outrageous that it demands our attention.

An article by Dan Fastenberg describes what happened one morning in Dekalb County, Georgia:

"According to CBS Atlanta, it all began late in the evening of Friday, June 26, when a group of eight officers from DeKalb County in Georgia reportedly appeared at Natania Griffin's house at 1:30 a.m., and threatened to break inside while banging on the door with the gusto of actual intruders.

"Griffin's 23-year-old son Donovan Hall whipped out his cellphone and videotaped the incident, later posting the 19 minutes of footage to YouTube. On the video, men can be heard making statements like, 'I am going to kill you,' 'I am going to tase your a**,' and, 'I wish I could cane both of y'all' when the family resisted the men. Griffin can be heard breaking into hysterics while shrieking, 'If I'm dead in the morning, you'll know why. Do not trust DeKalb County police.'

You can watch a short clip of the incident at the above link, and of course there is more on Youtube.

So why did eight officers come banging on the door of a peaceful house in a peaceful neighborhood in the middle of the night when people were sleeping?

According to the article, the police came to arrest Griffin for "not paying a $1,000 civil fine that was 15 days late."

Wow, heck of a use of resources there, no? And why not arrest him, if need be, when he goes to the store or something?

Unfortunately, the story will create the misconception that this is how police tend to behave (which they don't).

But fortunately, it will shed light on the fact that there are police who, in violation of the Law Enforcement Code of Ethics, do take their job far too personally and take out their frustrations on innocent people like this family.

You know it's a slow news day when ...

... this is your LEAD story!

Calif. Gender Law: Boys Are Boys,
Girls Are Girls ... and Vice Versa?

• 

 

I don't know what Fox News is trying to do here, but I suspect it is merely trying to shake up its mostly conservative audience. That is, what is more of a challenge to a traditional, status quo audience than learning that a governor (of California no less) is supposedly letting boys go into the girls' bathroom at their choosing!

 

Never mind the fact that the bill only covers transgender children--not all children.

 

But seriously, is this really news? Like the top news story of the day?

 

Here are their other top stories (voted ID law being challenged in North Carolina, will the federal government track our driving, and violent crime!):

 

VOTER ID FIGHT
ACLU Lawsuit Challenges North Carolina Voting Law

• Hillary Clinton Calls for Election Reform in Speech

• FEDS ALONG FOR RIDE?
  Proposed Rule May Put 'Big Brother' in Your Car

  
  
  
  • VIDEO: Proposals Would Put Black Boxes in All Cars

• TRAIL OF KILLINGS
  FBI: Alaska Serial Killer Tied to at Least 11 Deaths

  
  
  
  • Wisconsin Teen Gets Life in Prison for Killing Great-Grandmother
• Calif. Kidnap Suspect Shot at FBI Agents Before Being Killed

BIG NEWS in criminal justice policy

Every once in a while, there is a day like this:

Holder calls for scaled-back mandatory minimum sentences

Draconian. Excessive. Counterproductive.

These are the words from the top law enforcement official in the United States about one facet of the drug war.

The Justice Department will no longer pursue mandatory minimum sentences for "certain low-level, nonviolent drug offenders," Attorney General Eric Holder said Monday.

Holder told the American Bar Association's House of Delegates in San Francisco that the United States should not stop being tough on crime, but he noted that while the nation is "coldly efficient" in jailing criminals, it "cannot simply prosecute or incarcerate" its way to becoming safer.

 

 

 

And New York's stop-and-frisk policy unconstitutional, judge rules.

 

Racially biased. Unreasonable. Unconstitutional.

 

That is how a federal judge characterized New York City PD's stop and frisk policy.

 

A federal judge ruled Monday that the New York Police Department's controversial stop-and-frisk policy violates the Constitution, in part by unlawfully targeting blacks and Latinos.

Judge Shira A. Scheindlin, ruling on a class-action lawsuit, wrote that the policy violated plaintiffs' Fourth Amendment rights barring unreasonable searches, finding that police made at least 200,000

stops from 2004 to June 2012 without reasonable suspicion.

 

She also found evidence of racial profiling, violating plaintiffs' 14th Amendment rights guaranteeing equal protection.

 

So today is an amazing day in criminal justice policy news.

 

 

 

Maybe they've earned it, but ...

... trust in the media is lower than the military?

Seriously?

From a recent article:

There isn’t a whole lot of trust to in the U.S. news media.

Just 23 percent of Americans say they trust TV news a great deal or quite a lot, according to a recent Gallup poll, which is below other institutions such as banks (26 percent), public schools (32 percent) and the presidency (36 percent).

Newspapers were no better off; 23 percent also said they trust them either a great deal or quite a lot.

According to the poll, the nation’s most trustworthy institution is the military with 76 percent trusting it a great deal or quite a lot, followed by small businesses (65 percent).

That said, Americans’ distrust of the news media is nothing new. Confidence in TV news peaked at 46 percent in 1993, the first year Gallup asked the question. And the only time trust in newspapers was above the 50 percent threshold was in 1979, when 51 percent of those surveyed said they trusted papers.

In fact, trust in TV news is actually up this year from 21 percent in 2012. Trust in newspapers dipped, however, from 25 percent a year ago.

First, I get that the people don't trust the media, what with allegations of bias from both sides of the political aisle and lead stories like this everyday:

Florida man allegedly kills wife, posts photos to Facebook of dead body New York Daily News 25 minutes ago Written by Michael Walsh Relationship Status: Dead. A Florida man apparently fatally shot his wife in their home - and then posted on his Facebook page Thursday a grisly photo of her contorted body, along with a bizarre confession

What I don't get is the high trust in the military. Even with the confirmed accounts of torture, killing innocent civilians, burning Korans, urinating on dead bodies, widespread sexual assault, rampant racism, etc.?

But then, stories of such occurrences come from ... yep ... the media!

Three key facts about drugs (in the news)

1) Our current President is a self-admitted pot user and his druz czar Gil Kerlikowske says we cannot have a war on our own people (i.e., the drug war)

2) Our top law enforcement official in the US, Attorney General Eric Holder, says the drug war is too costly and not effective enough

3) Top scholarly experts across the political spectrum have concluded that the drug war is a massive failure.

Given this, you'd expect this to be top news, no?

And it is!

In the next few weeks, major sentencing reforms will be announced with regard to drug policy. I cannot wait!

Fraud is a crime but ...

... but "but" should be in CAPS. Like this, "BUT"

Because fraud is a crime BUT ...

* it is worse than theft, because it is a form of theft that tends to be committed by people who already have money, and usually lots of it ...
* it involves two wrongs rather than one (theft PLUS deceit or trickery)
* yet, it is rarely prosecuted by the US government, especially when it is committed by the powerful.

Case in point, from CNN today:

"The Department of Justice announced a civil lawsuit on Tuesday alleging that Bank of America defrauded buyers of mortgage-backed securities by lying about the quality of the home loans involved. The Securities and Exchange Commission also announced a parallel case."

Yes, Bank of America is alleged to have committed widespread fraud against the American people.

The same Bank of America that played a large role in the collapse of the US economy.

From the article:

"Bank of America's reckless and fraudulent origination and securitization practices in the lead-up to the financial crisis caused significant losses to investors," Anne Tompkins, the U.S. Attorney in the Western District of North Carolina, said in a statement. "Now, Bank of America will have to face the consequences of its actions."

Face the consequences? So people are going to prison, right?

Nope, they are being sued, in a civil court. Which means the company will work out a deal, pay a fine, and admit no wrongdoing. Sound like facing the consequences of its actions?

Which brings us back to the beginning of this post. Fraud is a crime. A violation of the criminal law. So how come no one is being arrested, prosecuted, and sent to prison?

The alleged harm caused? $100 million!!!

According to the FBI, the average bank robber, when successful (rarely), gains about $4,000.

Bank of America thus caused the equivalent of 25,000 bank robberies. Twenty-five thousand bank robberies!

And no one from the bank faces prison time. Even though the average bank robber will spend years in prison.

Does the media report this? Nope. Not even on CNN, which to its credit, is covering the case.

All this reminds me of a joke: How come rich people don't rob banks?

They own the banks.

CNN v Fox News: Top Stories

Check out the top stories on CNN and Fox News today:

CNN:

Court-martial panel hears from Fort Hood defendant

The Army psychiatrist charged with killing 13 comrades and wounding more than 30 delivered his own opening statement in his court-martial today, declaring: "I am the shooter." FULL STORY

• No military executions in 50 years

 

THE LATEST

• NEW Americans ordered out of Yemen
• NEW George W. Bush gets heart stent
• Police: Grudge behind killings | Photos
• 'No word' for wife's boardwalk killing
• A-Rod banned, still plays | Lots of boos
• Hear A-Rod react to suspension
• Pete Rose: Come forward. Don't lie.
• California Amber Alert seeks 2 children
• Chelsea Clinton open for office run?
• NEW Bulger's fate in jury's hands
• From sexting with Weiner ... to porn

 

So on CNN it's terrorism, terrorism, crime, murder, baseball controvesry, an Amber Alert (crime?), political guesswork, crime, and porn.

 

And on Fox, it is terrorism, terrorism, terrorism, and sports nonsense:

 

Ft. Hood Gunman: 'Dead Bodies
Will Show War Is an Ugly Thing'

• AP
• ACTING AS HIS OWN ATTORNEY and delivering an unrepentant opening statement in his court martial, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan calls himself a 'mujahideen' and brazenly admits 'I am the shooter' in the Nov. 5, 2009, Fort Hood massacre that left 13 dead.
• EXCLUSIVE: Excerpts From Alleged Fort Hood Shooter's Sanity Hearing
• READ: Portions of Sanity Report on Maj. Nidal Hasan

• THREAT OR BLUFF?
  Concerns US Overreacting
  To Al Qaeda Intelligence

  
  
  
  • US Orders Evacuations in Yemen Amid Terror Threat, Drone Strikes
• Militants Shoot Down Yemeni Army Helicopter, 8 Dead

• GUN RANGE DANGER?
  FBI Says Exploding Targets Could Be Used as Bombs

  
  
  
  • Arkansas AG Says School Must Name Teachers in Gun Program

• BUNNING FOR BANNING
  Hall of Famer Says A-Rod Should Be Benched for Life

  
  
  
  • DR. ABLOW: A-Rod is Like America
• MLB Players' Use of PEDs Comes With Serious Health Risks
• A-Rod and Suspensions Put Latino PED Use in Spotlight
• Baseball World Reacts to Bans

Are you afraid yet?

As you know, terrorism is news, even when it does NOT happen.

Take today's lead story on Fox News. It is serves as a reminder of the threat, even as Americans go about their business with generally little thought or fear of terrorism.

'Specific' & 'Serious' Terror Threat

• AP
• The State Department announces that 19 embassies and consulates in the Middle East and Africa remain closed through Saturday as sources tell Fox News that the chatter that prompted travel warning was preceded by months of quiet.
• VIDEO: Embassy Closures Sending Wrong Message?
• Security Tightened Near US Missions
• VIDEO: 'Fox News Sunday' Panel Discusses Embassy Closures
• VIDEO: Rep. Trey Radel on Terror Threat  

You probably know--maybe even from this blog--about the freedoms we've lost as part of the war on terror. But a recent poll found that a majority of Americans do not worry about giving up their right to privacy, for example, as long as it will help prevent terrorism here.

The threat overseas is interesting, but one has to wonder why some people (e.g., Fox News commentators) get so upset about the loss of life in foreign countries (e.g., Benghazi, Libya) when the people who work there obviously know the dangerous conditions in which they work?

Check out how much Fox News has devoted to that story.

Incredibly, a large portion of Republicans as well as conservatives call this the largest scandal that has ever occurred in the nation, yet many do not even know in which country it occurred! See?

When CNN tries to cover elite deviance ...

... this is what it looks like:

'HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT'

Felons, fake patients revealed in rehab clinics

CNN and The Center for Investigative Reporting expose widespread fraud in the nation's largest Medicaid system. FULL STORY

• Frauds, felons and fakes
• Teens used as rehab scam pawns
• Crackdown at rehab clinics

 

... still focusing on the little people.

So, THIS is news?

Wanna' know what you might have missed on CNN?

This is from there "In case you missed it" section:

• Zimmerman pulled over in Texas
• Watch the dash cam video
• Baby got swag -- no, really
• From Iraq war to NFL cheerleader
• Prostitutes fight for $1.50 clients
• Biting into treat deadly for girl
• Cops: Boy and dad killed stepbrother
• 'Dismembered' guy stuns strangers
• Best, worst Woody Allen films EW

 

Nine links. Eight stories. Five that deal with crime or death.

 

Meanwhile, there is nothing on elite deviance and the lead story is about al-Qaeda.

 

Remember them?

 

So which of the following is more deadly?

 

A) Tobacco

B) Defective products

C) Hazardous working conditions

D) Al Qaeda terrorism

 

The answer: A. Then B. Then C. Then D.

 

Yet D is the lead story and there are none on A, B, or C.

 

Oh yeah, and then there is this:

 

Stay relevant CNN.