Category: Communities of Practice

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Penguin: State Department Implodes Over Book

02 Diplomacy, 07 Other Atrocities, 08 Wild Cards, 10 Security, Budgets & Funding, Cultural Intelligence, Government, Journalism/Free-Press/Censorship, Secrecy & Politics of Secrecy
Who, Me?

Sounds like somebody I know. Maybe he got to Hillary in the end?

How the State Department Came After Me

For telling the truth about what I saw in Iraq.

Peter Van Buren

Foreign Policy, 29 September 2011

I never intended to create this much trouble.

Two years ago I served 12 months in Iraq as a Foreign Service Officer, leading a Provincial Reconstruction Team. I had been with the State Department for some 21 years at that point, serving mostly in Asia, but after what I saw in the desert — the waste, the lack of guidance, the failure to really do anything positive for the country we had invaded in 2003 — I started writing a book. One year ago I followed the required procedures with State for preclearance (no classified documents, that sort of thing), received clearance, and found a publisher. Six months ago the publisher asked me to start a blog to support the book.

And then, toward the end of the summer, the wrath of Mesopotamia fell on me.

Continue reading “Penguin: State Department Implodes Over Book”

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Patrick Meier: Real Time Crisis Map of Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) Attrocities in Central Africa

Advanced Cyber/IO, Blog Wisdom, Geospatial, Hacking, Non-Governmental, Policies
Patrick Meier

Real Time LRA Crisis Map Tracks Mass Atrocities in Central Africa

My colleagues at Resolve and Invisible Children have just launched their very impressive Crisis Map of LRA Attacks in Central Africa. The LRA, or Lord’s Resistance Army, is a brutal rebel group responsible for widespread mass atrocities, most of which go completely unreported because the killings and kidnappings happen in remote areas. This crisis map has been a long time in the making so I want to sincerely congratulate Michael Poffenberger, Sean Poole, Adam Finck, Kenneth Transier and the entire team for the stellar job they’ve done with this project. The LRA Crisis Tracker is an  important milestone for the fields of crisis mapping and early warning.

Continue reading “Patrick Meier: Real Time Crisis Map of Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) Attrocities in Central Africa”

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Mini-Me Greek Default both Inevitable and Necessary

01 Poverty, 03 Economy, 07 Other Atrocities, 08 Wild Cards, 11 Society, Budgets & Funding, Civil Society, Commerce, Commercial Intelligence, Counter-Oppression/Counter-Dictatorship Practices, Ethics, Government, IO Deeds of Peace, Money, Banks & Concentrated Wealth, Power Behind-the-Scenes/Special Interests, Strategy
Who? Mini-Me?

Mini-Me:  Not only is the Greek default both inevitable and necessary, it may be the best possible catalyst for a new financial system combined with a massive global legal attack on Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and others that–with the full complicity of the US Government–“exploded” the global economy.  Cases are starting to pop up that include racketeering charges (triple damages).  My best guess is that Goldman Sachs, the IMF, the World Bank, and the Federal Reserve will cease to exist within 4-6 years.

YouTube: The Greek Debt Crisis Explained in Four Minutes

Why Greece Should Default on Debt and Leave the Euro

 

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Pilots Take Wall Street Protests to “Next Level”

01 Poverty, 03 Economy, Civil Society, Corporations, Money, Banks & Concentrated Wealth
700+ pilots protest on Wall Street!

NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 27: Over 700 hundred Continental and United pilots, joined by additional pilots from other Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) carriers, demonstrate in front of Wall Street on September 27, 2011 in New York City. The pilots want to draw attention to the lack of progress on negotiations of the pilots' joint collective bargaining agreement ahead of the one-year anniversary of the corporate merger close date of United and Continental airlines.

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Event: Sept 29 NYC, Open Society, Who Controls the Message? Producing and Distributing Media Content in the Digital Age

Journalism/Free-Press/Censorship, Media, Money, Banks & Concentrated Wealth
source page

Drawing on the Open Society Foundations' research into the worldwide impact of new and digital media, this forum will discuss the role that these evolving forms of media can play in the development and strengthening of democratic societies.

The discussion will consider questions such as:

  • Who owns today’s media? Is ownership concentration harmful to diversity—or essential for creativity in a globalized marketplace?
  • How can digital media help or harm public interest journalism?
  • Is editorial independence being strengthened or undermined?
  • Is the freedom of online media undermined by new gatekeepers?
  • How are citizens responding? Is digital media increasing activism and participation? Or is it overwhelming and numbing people with a cascade of ever-more information?
  • What is the overall impact of these changes and issues on democracy?

With panelists from Morocco, Spain, and the United States, this event promises international insights into a global issue.

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Dead federal retirees are paid $120 million annually

Government

The federal government pays out millions of dollars to dead people each year — including deceased retired federal workers, according to a new report.

In the past five years, the Office of Personnel Management has made more than $601 million in benefits payments to deceased federal annuitants, according to the agency’s inspector general. Total annual payouts range between $100 million and $150 million.

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Event: Oct 6 Wash DC, Oct 2011 Protest to Occupy DC

Civil Society

(Source) “Starting on October 6, 2011, thousands of concerned Americans will assemble in Freedom Plaza, in Washington DC to take control of our country and our lives. We will occupy the plaza and hold a People's Assembly where we come up with just and sustainable solutions to the crises we face and demand that these solutions be presented and that the people's needs be addressed. We will plan and engage in creative acts of civil resistance and demand that our inherent rights and freedoms be protected, and that our children have a chance to live in peace,to breathe clean air, and to grow edible natural food.”

“Will you stand with us and denounce the systems and institutions that support endless war and unrestrained corporate greed ?”

Also see:
October 2011 list of organizers

Comment: It's interesting how often the graphic of the raised fist has been used as mentioned in this video “The Revolution Business.”