Welcome to The Breakfast Club! We’re a disorganized group of rebel lefties who hang out and chat if and when we’re not too hungover we’ve been bailed out we’re not too exhausted from last night’s (CENSORED) the caffeine kicks in. Join us every weekday morning at 9am (ET) and weekend morning at 10:30am (ET) to talk about current news and our boring lives and to make fun of LaEscapee! If we are ever running late, it’s PhilJD’s fault.
This Day in History
The hydrogen-filled airship Hindenburg explodes and crashes; Psychologist Sigmund Freud and actor-director Orson Welles born; Roger Bannister is the first athlete to run a mile in fewer than four minutes.
Breakfast Tunes
Something to Think about over Coffee Prozac
We’re born alone, we live alone, we die alone. Only through our love and friendship can we create the illusion for the moment that we’re not alone.
Breakfast News
France passes new surveillance law in wake of Charlie Hebdo attack
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/may/05/france-passes-new-surveillance-law-in-wake-of-charlie-hebdo-attackThe French parliament has overwhelmingly approved sweeping new surveillance powers in the wake of the terrorist attacks in Paris in January that killed 17 people at the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and a kosher grocery in Paris.
The new bill, which allows intelligence agencies to tap phones and emails without seeking permission from a judge, sparked protests from rights groups who claimed it would legalise highly intrusive surveillance methods without guarantees for individual freedom and privacy.
Despite Civil Liberties Uproar, Canada Set to Ram Through Mass Surveillance Bill
Canada’s House of Commons on Tuesday is poised to pass Bill C-51, a so-called “anti-terror” law, despite widespread outcry from civil liberties advocates who say the legislation would allow law enforcement to spy on civilians and violate Canadians’ constitutional rights with little or no accountability.
The bill, introduced by the Conservative Party and backed by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, would give up to 17 government agencies access to Canadian citizens’ private information, including their financial status, medical history, and religious and political beliefs. The Canadian Security Intelligence Service would also be authorized to spy on Canadians and foreign nationals living in the country, while the Royal Canadian Mounted Police would be granted increased power to make preventive arrests.
Watch What You Say: Snowden Docs Reveal NSA’s Spoken Word Archive
In addition to vacuuming up troves of emails, web searches, and other written records, the United States’ National Security Agency (NSA) had devised a way to collect spoken communication as well, according to documents from the leaked archive of NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden and reported on Tuesday by The Intercept.
In a top secret government document from 2006, NSA analysts discussed the development of what they called “Google for Voice,” which automatically recognizes spoken content, such as in phone calls, “by creating rough transcripts and phonetic representations that can be easily searched and stored,” Intercept journalist Dan Froomkin reports.
Further, a second document also from 2006 describes, as Froomkin writes, “extensive use of keyword searching as well as computer programs designed to analyze and ‘extract’ the content of voice conversations, and even use sophisticated algorithms to flag conversations of interest.
Greek government takes aim at creditors over stalled bailout talks
Greece’s government has blasted its creditors for holding back progress on bailout talks, laying the blame squarely on differences between the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.
Racheting up the pressure on the two bodies, the anti-austerity Syriza government said conflicting strategies and opposing views were not only impeding negotiations but injecting “a high level of danger” into the talks at a time when the country’s finances had hit rock bottom.
New oil-train safety rules will put public back in the dark
Details about rail shipments of crude oil and ethanol will be made exempt from public disclosure under new regulations announced by the U.S. Department of Transportation on Friday.
The department will end its requirement, put in place a year ago, that required railroads to share information about large volumes of Bakken crude oil with state officials.
Instead, railroads will share information directly with emergency responders, but it will be exempt from the Freedom of Information Act and state public records laws, the way other hazardous materials such as chlorine and anhydrous ammonia are currently protected.
Firefighters’ Union Says New Oil-By-Rail Rules Fall Short
The largest union representing firefighters in North America said Tuesday that a new Department of Transportation rule for transporting oil by rail does not go far enough to enable firefighters to respond effectively in the case of an accident.
Released on Friday, the new rule from the Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration and the Federal Railroad Administration covers trains carrying oil and other highly flammable liquids. It includes new standards for how tank cars used to transport those liquids must be constructed, and it changes requirements for routing and speed. The DOT’s description of the new rule also notes that it requires railroads to provide state, local and tribal governments with “a railroad point of contact for information related to the routing of hazardous materials through their jurisdictions.”
It’s that information-sharing part of the rule that has the union concerned. Its general president, Harold Schaitberger, wrote in an email that because time is so critical when responding to accidents, emergency personnel need information about what a train is carrying up front, instead of just having a point of contact to find out later.
Suppressing Science For Monsanto? Groups Demand Investigation of USDA
More than 25 farmworker, environmental, and food safety organizations sent an open letter on Tuesday to the U.S. Department of Agriculture demanding that the agency investigate reports that its scientists are facing retaliation and suppression of their research on controversial neonicotinoid insecticides that pose a danger to pollinator and human health.
“It is imperative that the USDA maintains scientific integrity and does not allow for harassment, censorship or suppression of findings that counter the interests of industry,” states the letter, whose signatories include Farmworker Justice, Food & Water Watch, and Center for Biological Diversity.
The Fight To Release The Eric Garner Grand Jury Records Is Still Alive
With six Baltimore police officers facing criminal charges in the death of Freddie Gray, many New Yorkers still want to know why there were never any charges against police involved in the death of another unarmed black man: 43-year-old Eric Garner.
This week, an effort to answer that question reached one of New York’s highest courts.
The New York Civil Liberties Union and New York’s Legal Aid Society both filed briefs with the Appellate Division of the state Supreme Court on Tuesday, asking that records from the grand jury investigation into Garner’s death be released to the public. In addition, New York City Public Advocate Letitia James will be filing a brief Tuesday, a spokesman told The Huffington Post, and the NAACP is also expected to file a brief.
Donovan Wins Race for House Seat Grimm Vacated, A.P. Says
The Staten Island district attorney, Daniel M. Donovan Jr., whose office investigated the chokehold death of Eric Garner in a struggle with the police last year, easily won a special election for Congress on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press.
With 57 percent of the vote counted, Mr. Donovan, a Republican, had received nearly 60 percent of the vote compared with about 39 percent for Councilman Vincent J. Gentile, the Democratic candidate, in the race to represent a district covering Staten Island and parts of Brooklyn. The victory makes Mr. Donovan the lone Republican from New York City in the House.
US Ranks Worst Among Rich Nations in Maternal Death Rates
In a “rapidly urbanizing world,” the poorest mothers and children living in urban centers-in developing countries and Western nations alike-face similar obstacles and high risk of death, a new report by Save the Children has found.
State of the World’s Mothers: The Urban Disadvantage, published Monday, details the hardships faced by impoverished families living in urban areas around the globe that have contributed to a growing survival gap between the world’s rich and poor.
“Our report reveals a devastating child survival divide between the haves and have-nots, telling a tale of two cities among urban communities around the world, including the United States,” Save the Children president and CEO Carolyn Miles said while announcing the findings.
The U.S. ranked the worst among all developed nations for maternal risk of death.
Abstinence-Only Texas High School Hit By Chlamydia Outbreak; 1 In 15 Students Affected
An outbreak of chlamydia at a high school in Texas has forced administrators there to send a warning note home to parents.
District officials confirmed to CBS7 last Friday that the Crane Independent School District has seen 20 cases of the sexually transmitted disease in its high school, adding that letters have also been sent to the district’s junior high school as a precaution.
The station estimates 1 in 15 students at the school has contracted chlamydia.
The high school offers a three-day sexual education course once a year that emphasizes abstinence.
Monuments Men author secures return of five missing paintings to Germany
The “Monuments Men” movie is paying dividends – to the countries, families and museums that lost looted masterpieces during World War II.
At the State Department Tuesday the Monuments Men Foundation turned over custody of five recovered paintings to the Federal Republic of Germany to be returned to their owners.
Foundation Chairman Robert Edsel, who wrote the best-selling book – “The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History” – turned into a successful George Clooney-directed movie, announced the discovery and repatriation of the paintings. Victoria Nuland, Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, helped preside over the transfer of the artwork to German Ambassador Peter Wittig.
Obama Administration Approves Ferry Service To Cuba
The return of passenger ferry services between the United States and Cuba took a major step forward on Tuesday when the Treasury Department issued licenses to at least two U.S. companies.
One of the licenses was issued to Miami-based Baja Ferries USA, part of a major shipping group with passengers and cargo operations, including on Mexico’s west coast, according to the company.
Another license was issued to Puerto Rico-based America Cruise Ferries, according to a lawyer who handled the license application for the company.
Must Read Blog Posts
In wake of Garland shooting, don’t compare Pamela Geller to Charlie Hebdo Jon Green, AMERICAblog
White America refuses to understand the death of Freddie Gray Nick Len, AMERICAblog
TPP: The Fascism Issue Joe Firestone (aka letsgetitdone), New EConomic Perspectives
As FBI Considers Declaring State Secrets over Its Religion Training, ICE Releases Its Martyrdom Border Entry Questions Marcy Wheeler, emptywheel
Israel Fuels The Syrian Crisis With Aid To Al-Qaida Rebels CTuttle, FDL
Clinton Charity Hid More Foreign Donations Than First Realized Peter Van Buren, FDL
Saudi Arabia Committing War Crimes In Yemen With US Weapons DSWright, FDL
The Persecution and Assassination of the People of Greece as Performed by the Inmates of the Troika, Under the Direction of the Eurogroup Yves Smith, naked capitalism
Police Department Says It Will No Longer Be Accepting Motel 6’s Nightly Guest Lists Tim Cushing, Techdirt
Appeals Court Says Warrantless Phone Tracking Doesn’t Violate 4th Amendment Because ‘Third Party Doctrine’ Mike Masnick, Techdirt