AIPAC and Bibi: The Reckoning
Faced with what will be its biggest legislative defeat ever -- the passage of the Iran deal, possibly by upholding Obama's veto -- AIPAC is lashing out, blaming Bibi.
An official from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the leading…
The Lessons NSA Teaches When It Conflates Use of Encryption with Terrorism
Just a few days after our Egyptian allies sentenced 3 Al Jazeera journalists to 3 years in prison, Turkey joined the club, charging 2 UK Vice employees and their Turkish fixer with terrorism. Today, Al Jazeera explained why the Vice journalists…
Even Tom Friedman...
Is now calling out those who claim Iran -- and not Saudi Arabia -- is the biggest sponsor of terrorism.
The Washington Post ran a story last week about some 200 retired generals and admirals who sent a letter to Congress “urging lawmakers…
In Historic Settlement, CA Dramatically Changes Its Solitary Confinement Practices
CA has long had a practice of putting gang affiliates in solitary confinement, not for any behavioral purposes, but to coerce people to inform on their gang-mates. Back in 2012, a group of prisoners -- Todd Ashker, Sitawa Nantambu Jamaa, Luis…
David Petraeus, Whose Greatest Aptitude Lies in Rewriting History
As always in stories involving David Petraeus, this story about his plan to work with al Qaeda to defeat ISIS involves some rewriting or forgetting of history. There's the fiction that what is usually called the surge but here is at least called…
John Yoo's Assistance in Starting Iraq War Might Help Obama Avoid an Iran War
Last week, Steven Aftergood released a January 27, 2003 OLC memo, signed by John Yoo, ruling that the Executive Branch could withhold WMD information from Congress even though 22 USC § 3282 requires the Executive to brief the Foreign Relations…
Did China and Russia Really Need Our Help Targeting Spook Techies?
LAT has a story describing what a slew of others -- including me -- have already laid out. The OPM hack will enable China to cross-reference a bunch of databases to target our spooks. Aside from laying all that out again (which is worthwhile,…
Under What Jurisdiction Did DHS Send Out an Army of Agents Against RentBoy?
The NYT had a great editorial that echoes my amazement that the Department of Homeland Security sent an army of agents to take down RentBoy.com this week.
It’s somewhat baffling, though, that taking down a website that operated in plain…
ESPN Is Gutless, Chris Mortenson Has Tiny Deflated Balls and Other Deflategate Trash Talk
Hi there! Been a while, hope this account still works and State Secrets or something has not overcome due process on this here blog.
So, here we are in the waning days of summer. I would have written more about the Formula One Circus but,…
Government Recently Released Information Proving Larry Klayman Has Standing
As I noted, the DC Circuit Court reversed Judge Richard Leon's injunction against the phone dragnet. The judges disagreed on whether Larry Klayman had standing -- because he is a Verizon Wireless but not Verizon landline subscriber, which…
DC Circuit Reverses Judge Leon Order Overturning Phone Dragnet
In a per curium decision, a DC Circuit panel including Janice Rogers Brown, Stephen Williams, and David Sentelle has reversed Judge Richard Leon's decision preliminary injunction against the phone dragnet. They reversed on standing (which…
Mankiw’s Tenth Principle: Society Faces A Short-Run Trade-off Between Inflation and Unemployment
The introduction to this series is here.
Part 1 is here.
Part 2 is here.
Part 3 is here.
Part 4 is here.
Part 5 is here.
Part 6 is here.
Part 7 is here.
Part 8 is here.
Part 9 is here.
Mankiw’s tenth principle of economics…
From George Zimmerman to Dylann Roof to Bryce Williams
In a manifesto sent to ABC today, Bryce Williams -- who shot several people on camera this morning before escaping then killing himself just before he was apprehended -- explained that the Charleston Church shooting had been his last straw.
In…
Chuck Schumer Got Results!
Motherboard has an interesting new detail on the Silk Road investigation from a mostly refused FOIA.
The few pages released show the following timeline:
June 1, 2011: Gawker publishes this story describing Silk Road.
June 5, 2011: Chuck…
Why Did the Feds Take Down RentBoy?
Yesterday, federal officers (overwhelmingly Department of Homeland Security, not FBI) busted the 7 people who run RentBoy.com, the largest online portal for male escorts. In doing so, they put 10,000 sex workers out of business -- or pushed…
Blumenthal, Booker Point to Unsuccessful Attack for Call for TSA in Trains
Richard Blumenthal and Cory Booker are using a thwarted attack on a train in Paris as reason to call for more TSA presence in trains.
Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) are urging the TSA to "to implement security…
Under CISA, Would Wyndham Be Able To Pre-empt FTC Action?
The Third Circuit just issued an important ruling holding that the Federal Trade Commission could sue Wyndham Hotels for having cybersecurity practices that did not deliver what their privacy policies promised. The opinion, written by Clinton…
Dick Cheney Prepares to Fearmonger Again on Aluminum Tube Day
On September 8, 2002, the paper copy of the NYT published this story:
More than a decade after Saddam Hussein agreed to give up weapons of mass destruction, Iraq has stepped up its quest for nuclear weapons and has embarked on a worldwide hunt…
How Does Duty to Warn Extend to Cyberattacks?
Steve Aftergood has posted a new directive from James Clapper mandating that Intelligence Community members warn individuals (be they corporate or natural persons) of a threat of death of seriously bodily harm.
This Directive establishes in…
The Questions the NCSC Doesn't Want to Answer
A few days ago the WaPo published a story on the OPM hack, focusing (as some earlier commentary already has) on the possibility China will alter intelligence records as part of a way to infiltrate agents or increase distrust.
It's notable…