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Tag: American politics

US Stalling Release Of Thousands Of Torture Photos Worse Than Abu Ghraib

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

Next month, the U.S. government will return to court again to prevent the release of thousands of photos of military personnel torturing detainees at Abu Ghraib and other sites in Iraq and Afghanistan that have been described as more horrific than the infamous Abu Ghraib torture photos.

It’s the latest round in a protracted legal battle that began in 2004 when the American Civil Liberties Union filed a suit demanding the release of some 2,000 photographs which were withheld by the government after it released the infamous images of Abu Ghraib, the Iraqi prison where U.S. soldiers tortured prisoners.

One photo is said to depict a mock execution, while another reportedly shows the body of a farmer shot who was by an American soldier while he was handcuffed.

Spike In Anti-Muslim Hate Crimes Reflects America’s ‘Tremendous’ Bigotry Problem

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

America seems to be in the grips of an epidemic of hate and bigotry unseen since 9/11, and, once again, innocent Muslims are the target of threats and outright violence.

Mainstream media and social media have been flooded with troubling reports of Islamophobia across the country in recent weeks.

Ibrahim Hooper, communications director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, told MintPress News, “We’ve seen a tremendous spike in anti-Muslim bigotry in our society fomented by individuals like Donald Trump, Ben Carson, Rick Santorum and others. We’ve seen a spike in hate crimes as well.”

The Color Of Terrorism: Who Gets Charged And Why?

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

What constitutes terrorism? Recent mass shootings in the United States, including those in San Bernardino, California, and Colorado Springs, have renewed a debate about how to define these disturbing and deadly incidents.

One part of the argument hinges on how journalists refer to these crimes in the media, with some, such as Jack Jenkins, arguing that Robert Louis Dear, the shooter who killed three people and wounded nine at a Planned Parenthood Clinic in November, is clearly a terrorist. By contrast, Kevin Gosztola observes that the term terrorism is essentially meaningless due to misuse.

Beyond how the media discusses mass killings, another factor is when and how courts decide to bring terrorism charges against a suspect. On Nov. 30, a Colorado court charged Dear with first-degree murder, but it could take weeks or months longer before Dear could face additional charges, including terrorism, amid an ongoing federal investigation. At the same time, the shooting in San Bernardino is already being treated as terrorism by federal investigators.

Over Half Of Americans Now Support Cannabis Legalization

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

Keith Stroup, founder of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, or NORML, noted in an Oct. 30 article for Alternet that a majority of Americans support marijuana legalization.

Quoting a recent Gallup poll, he reported, “Among those poll respondents age 18 to 34, 71 percent endorse legalization. Among respondents age 35 to 49 years of age, 64 percent support legalizing marijuana. Among those age 65 and up, support fell to 35 percent, but this too reflected a sharp increase in support.”

Of the 23 states which offer some form of access to medical marijuana, four states plus the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis for recreational use.

It’s Not Just Roads And Bridges: US Courthouses Are Crumbling, Too

Posted in Austin, Journalism, and MintPress News

Just as many American roads are crumbling and bridges are badly in need of repair, the legal infrastructure of the country — specifically, its courthouses — is also endangered by age and overcrowding.

Starting this week, early voters in Travis County, Texas, are deciding on a bond that would fund the construction of a new family courthouse to replace an existing 84-year-old structure in downtown Austin, the Heman Marion Sweatt Travis County Courthouse, with a larger and more modern facility. And, like Austin, cities from Seattle to Miami have struggled with how to accommodate aging buildings alongside other budget issues like the growing cost of policing.

MintPress News spoke with Tyler Buckingham, assistant campaign manager from New Courts For Families, the campaign in support of the $287,275,000 bond that would fund the construction of a new courthouse complex on a downtown lot already owned by the state’s capital city. Buckingham explained that while accessible, safe courthouses are crucial to a democratic society, the issue can sometimes go overlooked by the media or politicians.

DEA Chief Admits Marijuana Is Less Dangerous Than Heroin, But Won’t Reschedule

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

Despite ample evidence pointing to the therapeutic, non-addictive qualities of marijuana, the new head of the Drug Enforcement Agency wants to keep it legally classified alongside heroin and other highly addictive substances.

“If we come up with a medical use for it, that would be wonderful. But we haven’t,” declared Chuck Rosenberg, the acting head of the Drug Enforcement Agency, in a Sept. 5 interview with Fox News.

This surprising denial of medical science came in response to a question posed by James Rosen, the chief Washington correspondent for the network. He asked Rosenberg whether it was time to remove marijuana from Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, considering two of the past three presidents of the United States have admitted to using the substance recreationally.