Petraeus says U.S. tried to avoid tipping off terrorists

Nov 162012
 

By Eric Schmitt (NY Times)  David H. Petraeus, the former director of the Central Intelligence Agency, told lawmakers on Friday that classified intelligence reports revealed that the deadly assault on the American diplomatic mission in Libya was a terrorist attack, but that the administration refrained from saying it suspected that the perpetrators of the attack were Al Qaeda affiliates and sympathizers to avoid tipping off the groups.

Mr. Petraeus, who resigned last week after admitting to an extramarital affair, said the names of groups suspected in the attack — including Al Qaeda’s franchise in North Africa and a local Libyan group, Ansar al-Shariah — were removed from the public explanation of the attack immediately after the assault to avoiding alerting the militants that American intelligence and law enforcement agencies were tracking them, lawmakers said.

via Petraeus Says U.S. Tried to Avoid Tipping Off Terrorists – NYTimes.com.

 November 16, 2012  Posted by at 9:19 pm Comments Off

Teacher told to train her breasts not to make milk from 7 a.m to 1 p.m.

Nov 152012
 

By Claudia Meléndez Salinas (Herald) A former teacher at the Carmelo School has filed a lawsuit against the school and the Carmel Unified School District for discrimination and wrongful termination for the school’s failure to accommodate her needs as a new mother.

In the lawsuit filed Oct. 30, Sarah Ann Lewis Boyle of Pacific Grove said her troubles with the Child Development Center began in September 2011. Boyle was due to come back to work on Oct. 3, 2011, and she told manager Laura Dunn she would need about 15 minutes between 9 and 11 a.m. every day to pump her breasts. Dunn reportedly told Boyle to start “training my breast not to make milk between the hours of 7 a.m. and 1 p.m.” so that she would not need to pump.

via Ex-Carmel teacher claims discrimination over breast feeding in lawsuit – MontereyHerald.com :.

 November 15, 2012  Posted by at 5:23 am Comments Off

Clueless Petraeus uses Gmail — the snoopiest mail system — for his personal account

Nov 102012
 

Never mind spies, Gmail reads everything you write so it can feed you the right ads.  –Jules Siegel

By Max Fisher (Washington Post) The beginning of the end came for CIA Director David Petraeus when Paula Broadwell, a younger married woman with whom he was having an affair, “or someone close to her had sought access to his email,” according to the Wall Street Journal’s description of an FBI probe. Associates of Petraeus had received “anonymous harassing emails” that were then traced to Broadwell, ABC’s Martha Raddatz reported, suggesting she may have found their names or addresses in his e-mail.

The e-mail account was apparently Petraeus’s personal Gmail, not his official CIA e-mail, according to the Wall Street Journal. That’s still a big deal: Some of the most powerful foreign spy agencies in the world would love to have an opening, however small, into the personal e-mail account of the man who runs the United States’ spy service. The information could have proved of enormous value to foreign hackers, who already maintain a near-constant effort to access sensitive U.S. data.

If Petraeus allowed his Gmail security to be compromised even slightly, by widening access, sharing passwords or logging in from multiple addresses, it would have brought foreign spy agencies that much closer to a treasure trove of information.

via Why David Petraeus’s Gmail account is a national security issue.

 November 10, 2012  Posted by at 9:49 pm Comments Off

Federal agents arrest 34 white supremacists

Nov 102012
 

By Sari Horwitz (Washington Post) Federal agents arrested dozens of members of the white supremacist Aryan Brotherhood of Texas on Friday and charged them with murder, kidnapping, racketeering and conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and cocaine.

A 43-page federal indictment unsealed by the Justice Department names 34 members of the violent organized crime group who have been charged, including four of its senior leaders.

“ABT uses extreme violence and threats of violence to maintain internal discipline and retaliate against those believed to be cooperating with law enforcement,” said Assistant Attorney General Lanny Breuer. “Through violence and intimidation, ABT allegedly exerts control over prison populations and neighborhoods, and instills fear in those who come in contact with its members.”

via Federal agents arrest 34 white supremacists | | The Bulletin.

 November 10, 2012  Posted by at 6:00 pm Comments Off

Romney’s business-friendly regulatory policy blamed for meningitis outbreak

Oct 302012
 

By Craig Unger (Salon) The fatal meningitis epidemic sweeping the United States can now be traced to the failure of then-Gov. Mitt Romney to adequately regulate the Massachusetts pharmaceutical company that is being blamed for the deaths.

At least 344 people in 18 states have been infected by the growing public health crisis and 25 have died so far.

But the epidemic may also play a role in the presidential campaign, now that state records reveal that a Massachusetts regulatory agency found that the New England Compounding Co., the pharmaceutical company tied to the epidemic, repeatedly failed to meet accepted standards in 2004 — but a reprimand was withdrawn by the Romney administration in apparent deference to the company’s business interests.

“It goes all the way up to Mitt Romney,” said Alyson Oliver, a Michigan attorney representing victims of the outbreak. According to Oliver, on at least six occasions, NECC was cited by authorities for failure to meet regulatory standards and almost subjected to a three-year probation. “It goes directly to the heart of what Romney says about regulation, ‘Hands off. Let the companies do their thing.’”

via Romney’s lax regulation may have fueled meningitis outbreak – Salon.com.

 October 30, 2012  Posted by at 8:51 am Comments Off
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