Adventures of a Gonzo Journalist
Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News
Donald Trump is known for voicing his negative opinions of the media, and the Republican nominee’s supporters are increasingly reflecting those sentiments with bizarre and sometimes threatening behavior toward reporters covering his rallies.
Hillary Clinton also has a history of attacking press freedom, though more through supporting the prosecution of whistleblowers and backing repressive Middle Eastern regimes than through the kind of open contempt expressed by her opponent.
Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News
Attention climate change deniers: Every month in 2016 has brought new evidence that climate change is real and having measurable, harmful effects on the planet and its people.
July was the hottest month since meteorologists began recording weather data, according to both NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
To understand how rapidly Earth is warming, consider this: This year’s record-breaking temperatures shattered records set just last year, when July 2015 was the hottest month ever recorded.
Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News
The recent bombing of a hospital in northwestern Yemen has drawn international outrage and new criticism of the Saudi-led, U.S.-backed forces fighting there, but it’s just the latest in a slew of war crimes committed over the past 15 years in the name of the U.S.-backed global war on terror.
Nineteen people were killed and 24 were injured in the Aug. 15 bombing, which struck Abs Hospital in northwestern Yemen. Among the dead was Abdul Kareem al Hakeemi, a staff member of Doctors Without Borders (frequently referred to by its French name, Médecins sans Frontières, or MSF).
It was the fourth and deadliest bombing of an MSF-supported hospital since the attacks on Yemen began in early 2015, leading the NGO to evacuate its six hospitals in the region three days later.
Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News
In addition to highlighting the growing impact of climate change on everyday Americans, historic flooding in Louisiana shows the deadly effects of long-term U.S. policies that include climate change denial, support for fossil fuels, and neglect of infrastructure.
At least eight people died, some 40,000 homes were damaged, and about 30,000 people were evacuated as flood waters rose earlier this month after heavy rains that began on Aug. 11. A dozen parishes in the state are considered federal disaster areas.
Both the national media and President Barack Obama have been criticized for being slow to respond to the floods. Some have even suggested that the flooding was underestimated because floods, unlike major weather events like hurricanes, aren’t given names.
Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News
According to whistleblower Edward Snowden, a recent leak of secret NSA hacking tools reflects an escalation in tensions between Russia and the United States. For others, though, it highlights concerns about what, if any, privacy is afforded to the general public.
The NSA whistleblower lit up Twitter on Tuesday with suggestions of “Russian responsibility” in the recent release of the NSA tools, noting that it could be a response to accusations by the Hillary Clinton campaign that Russian hackers leaked internal Democratic National Convention emails.
The suite of hacking tools, which were leaked by a group calling themselves the Shadow Brokers, consists of complex “malware” programs, malicious software designed to secretly take over targeted networks by exploiting security vulnerabilities in commercially available, widely used internet software.
Posted in Journalism, MintPress News, The Establishment, and Truthout
Lauri Love is facing extradition, and potentially torture in U.S. prisons, if he is extradited from the U.K. for allegedly taking part in an Anonymous hacking operation in retaliation for the death of Aaron Swartz. On Wednesday, I appeared on Black Tower Radio to discuss the Love case, along with my coverage of the Green Party Convention and the need for electoral reform. I also briefly discussed an upcoming article for The Establishment about how veterans treat themselves with cannabis.
