Marcus Aurelius: Marine Corps Bans Audible Farting in Afghanistan

Idiocy, Military
Marcus Aurelius

Washington – The United States Marine Corps has banned audible farting in Afghanistan because it is culturally offensive to civilians working with the military and members of the Afghan National Army.

The Military Times Marine Corps blog, Battle Rattle recently posted the news that “audible farting has been banned for some Marines downrange because it offends the Afghans.” The ban has caused a stir among former and current members of the military who question the reasoning behind the decision which has ignited a firestorm of comments from readers and fellow bloggers of Battle Rattle. Military soldiers have already been required to obey regulations ordering them to not curse around members of the Afghan army or the civilians they encounter while on patrol. They are also under orders to not discuss women or politics with people from Afghanistan. But for now, breaking wind could earn them an appearance before their superior officers. For the military that means no more gas blasters, bean bombers, flame-throwers or anal acoustics at night. The roar of morning thunder, air biscuits or flatulence by any name will no longer be tolerated. Anything but an inaudible passing of gas could get you in trouble if it's within earshot of an Afghani, according to Battle Rattle. Blogger Gina Cavallaro writesabout the ban on the offensive behaviour:

They’re not supposed to cuss because it could be misunderstood (that one goes out the window a lot). And they stay away from talking about politics, religion or girls because those topics could escalate into major disagreements (they can’t communicate anyway because of the language barrier). But farting? That’s practically a sport. Ok, it’s not soccer, but a good contest could open the door for cross-cultural exchanges, jokes and other gallows humor.

Jim Campbell expressed his outrage over the decision by senior military officials and wrote: “So now we understand that Muslims in Afghanistan are offended by the sound of anal gas explosions but are quite comfortable with, beheading, stoning, female genital mutilation, pedophilia, amputations, and hanging or burning homosexuals.”

Read full article.

Phi Beta Iota:  We do not make this stuff up.  Ten years into killing all these people, and we focus on farts now?  Perhaps the Marine Corps should spend more time acquiring a proper weapon for its infantry, and keeping the US Navy honest on brown water capabilities including non-existent naval gunfire support.

See Also:

1991 MCG Intelligence Support for Expeditionary Planners

1990 Expeditionary Environment Analytic Model

1989 Expeditionary Environment Briefing

2008 U.S. Naval Power in the 21st Century

Journal: Intelligence & Innovation Support to Strategy, Planning, Programming, Budgeting, & Acquisition

Reference: Intelligence Support to Small Arms Acquisition–A Brilliant Indictment

Chuck Spinney: Why Doesn’t Spain Understand that Integrity is Priceless?

03 Economy, Commerce, Corruption, Government
Chuck Spinney

One of core component's of the neoliberal agenda is privatization of state assets.  Attached is one countries reaction to the inequalities and economic distortions privatization introduces. CS Afloat in the Mediterranean

Piracy as good policy

by Serge Halimi

Le Monde Diplomatique, 1 May, 2012

The head of state, confident after electoral victory, tells the governor of the central bank what to do, introduces forex controls and announces that a key sector of the economy, sold off to private investors 13 years ago, is to be nationalised. Two members of the government are appointed to head this enterprise, now in public hands again, and its private owners are told to go. The European Commission, The Wall Street Journal and the Financial Times are furious about this “shabby act of economic piracy”. The Economist suggests that the “pirate state” should be excluded from the G20, and that its citizens (who voted in the head of state) must get visas to travel abroad.

This is not Europe. It is Argentina. As President Cristina Kirchner explained on 16 April when most of the assets of the Spanish multinational Repsol, majority shareholder in the Argentinian oil company YPF, were about to be nationalised: “We are the only country in Latin America, and I would say in the world, that doesn’t control its natural resources.” Public ownership is not as prevalent as she suggests — Total, BP, ExxonMobil and others are private companies — but she is thinking of earlier battles to recover common sources of wealth: Mossadeq’s nationalisation of British Petroleum in Iran in 1951, Nasser’s seizure of the Suez Canal for Egypt in 1956, Boumedienne’s acquisition of Elf and Total assets for Algeria in 1971, Putin’s seizure of the Yukos company in Russia in 2003 and Hugo Chávez’s takeover of PDVSA (Petroleum of Venezuela).

Continue reading “Chuck Spinney: Why Doesn't Spain Understand that Integrity is Priceless?”

Eagle: Pentagon report says Defense Department whistleblowers have been left vulnerable to reprisals

Corruption, Government, Military
300 Million Talons...

Pentagon report says Defense Department whistleblowers have been left vulnerable to reprisals

By and Aaron Mehta | Center for Public Integrity, 5 May 2012

The Defense Department has inadequately protected from reprisals whistleblowers who have reported wrongdoing, according to an internal Pentagon report, and critics are calling for action to be taken against those who have been negligent.The report, dated May 2011, accuses the officials, who work in the Defense Department’s Office of Inspector General, of persistent sloppiness and a systematic disregard for Pentagon rules meant to protect those who report fraud, abuses and the waste of taxpayer funds, according to a previously undisclosed copy. The report was obtained by the Project on Government Oversight, a nonprofit watchdog group.

A three-person team of investigators, assigned to review the performance of the Directorate for Military Reprisal Investigations, concluded that in 2010, the directorate repeatedly turned aside evidence of serious punishments inflicted on those who had complained.The actions included threatened or actual discharges, demotions, firings, prosecutions and a mental health referral. At least one of the alleged reprisals was taken because the complainer had written to Congress, an act that Pentagon regulations say is a “protected communication” immune from retaliation. Some of the other whistleblowers had alleged discrimination, travel violations and “criminality,” the report states. Continue reading “Eagle: Pentagon report says Defense Department whistleblowers have been left vulnerable to reprisals”

DefDog: Turning Cyber-Confuse Into a Major Command (Sinkhole for Fraud, Waste, and Abuse)

Corruption, IO Impotency, Military
DefDog

They have gone completely insane…..

Military leaders seek higher profile for Pentagon’s Cyber Command unit

Senior military leaders are recommending that the Pentagon’s two-year-old cyberwarfare unit be elevated to full combatant command status, sending a signal to adversaries that the U.S. military is serious about protecting its ability to operate in cyberspace, officials said.

Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will recommend the change to Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta, said officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss classified matters. Final approval rests with President Obama. Little opposition is expected, though the timeline is uncertain.

Read more.

Phi Beta Iota:  Isolated successes not-with-standing, this is nuts.  What we should be doing is closing down NORTHCOM, SOUTHCOM and AFRICOM, rejiggering CENTCOM to be the originally intended global rapid readiness command, and squeezing the Pentagon's balls very very tightly until they can a) account for every penny and b) shift to open source everything.  DISA, NSA, and Cyber-Confuse remain disaster areas.  What would be interesting is a new Whole of Government approach in which OMB's search for common solutions turned decisively toward open source everything, and Robert Steele's concept for restructuring the US IC, turning NSA and NGA into the National Processing Agency, came together.

DefDog: FBI reportedly pressing for backdoor access to Facebook, Google

Government, Law Enforcement
DefDog

FBI reportedly pressing for backdoor access to Facebook, Google

engaget, 5 May 2012

Investigators at the FBI supposedly aren't happy that social networks like Facebook or Google+ don't have the same kind of facility for wiretaps that phones have had for decades. If claimed industry contacts for CNET are right, senior staff at the bureau have floated a proposed amendment to the 1994-era Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA) that would require that communication-based websites with large user bases include a backdoor for federal agents to snoop on suspects. It would still include the same requirement for a court order as for phone calls, even if US carriers currently enjoy immunity for cooperating with any warrantless wiretapping. As might be expected, technology firms and civil liberties advocates like the Electronic Frontier Foundation object to deepening CALEA's reach any further, and Apple is thought to be preemptively lobbying against another definition of the law that might require a government back channel for audiovisual chat services like FaceTime or Skype. The FBI didn't explicitly confirm the proposal when asked, but it did say it was worried it might be “going dark” and couldn't enforce wiretaps.

Eagle: Temple Mormons By Definition, Cannot Swear an Oath to Uphold the Consitution — Prophet Ubber Alles

Civil Society, Commerce, Corruption, Cultural Intelligence, Government
300 Million Talons...

Romney: Why It’s OK to Stick It to Him for Being a Mormon

Weekend Edition April 6-8, 2012

CounterPunch Diary
by ALEXANDER COCKBURN

Mitt Romney will be the Republican to face President Obama in the fall.  Tuesday night was the clincher, as the Mormon zealot won in Wisconsin, Maryland and Washington DC. He may stumble on, but the Catholic zealot Rick Santorum is finished.

It’s hard to detect any alluring feature in Romney’s psychic or political make-up, and I’m none too sure about Ann  Romney, who at this stage of the game is filling the role played by the late Elizabeth  Edwards in the Edwards campaign on its upward trajectory back in early 2008.

– – – – – – – –

Santorum got roughed up for actually espousing conservative Roman Catholic positions. For some reason Romney is being given a pass as a Mormon, as though his religion is of no consequence, as inconsequential a piece of  ideological baggage as Bill Clinton’s Baptist label. Columnists evidently feel it’s poor taste to suggest that a candidate’s religion might have some bearing on his conduct and that the candidate should be properly grilled on the matter.

No doubt in the upcoming campaign Romney will attack Obama for his associations with radicals, the lunatic idea —  most recently promoted by the late Andrew Breitbart — being that ex-Weatherfolk Bill Ayers and Bernadine Dohrn imparted to the eager Obama the left’s secret plan to take over the United States and put everyone in slave labor camps, have abortions and engage in unmentionable sexual practices.

Alas, the left never did have a plan – secret or overt — to take over the United States. Abortions and unmentionable sexual practices were a different matter.  Ayers’ and Dohrn’s actual role was obviously to help hook up the eager Obama with big Democratic Jewish money in Chicago, directing the attention of the latter to this well-mannered Harvard-educated black politician as someone to watch and assist.

The left never had a secret plan or much discipline. But the Mormons really do have secrets and a lot of discipline. Does Romney espouse Mormon doctrines about gays or not? About obedience to the Prophet or not? If not, then isn’t he a fake Mormon, without a shred of principle. Why should be believe him about anything? If yes, then where does that put his loyalties and priorities as someone hoping to be President of the United States and supposed upholder of the Constitution? (Of course Obama has shredded substantial portions of the Constitution without even the excuse of being a Mormon.)

What about Romney’s associations? He is no ordinary Mormon. By lineage, upbringing and personal decision he’s about as dedicated a Mormon as you can be – which is very dedicated indeed. I urge you to check out the piece by a former Mormon in our current newsletter, which delves into Mormon practices and points out that Romney attends a Mormon temple. Temples are only open to those members who adhere completely to the strict standards of Mormonism, including unwavering loyalty to the president of the church.

Continue reading “Eagle: Temple Mormons By Definition, Cannot Swear an Oath to Uphold the Consitution — Prophet Ubber Alles”

Eagle: Google Gives Law Enforcement Everything About You

Commerce, Corruption, Government
Click on Image to Enlarge

Cryptocomb has reviewed many of the documents uploaded by AntiSec from the Lake County Sheriff's Office.

One document in particular is most interesting as it confirms Google's diligence at responding to LE(Law Enforcement)requests for information of it's users. Cryptocomb will not post the document, as it appears to involve an active criminal investigation.

Google Provides Local LE/Federal LE with the following data of its users.

Users Email Address
Email Address Status (If it's in use or not)
Date/Time and IP Address used to create user account
User NickName
Real Name
Physical Address
Phone Numbers
Dates/Time/IP Address of User Logins

What Google services the member uses: Adsense Clicks, Bookmarks, Calendar, Checkout, Co-op, Docs, Gmail, Lso provider,
Mobile, Notebook, Personalized Homepage, Reader, Safe search, Search history, Sms auth, Spreadsheets, Strongauth, Talk, Toolbar,
Transliteration, Web history promo, Youtube.

If a member uses Googles Checkout, Google stores the users CC data, which includes all users personal information, Who the user pays, who pays them, how much money is involved in transaction, date/time of transactions.

It also appears that Google provides data on ALL of it's services to local/federal LE. LE has the ability to ask what youtube videos
a user posts and watches, what documents/URL's a user has translated, Document titles stored in a users GoogleDoc storage area (its
unknown if LE can request copies of a users documents, but we assume that they can), a users calender data, the list goes on and on.

Phi Beta Iota: Evidently all of this is done without a warrant being required, provided, or asked for.

Source: http://cryptocomb.org/