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Daily Headlines

Whistleblower Summit & Film Festival Announces Slate of Films and Screenplays for 11th Annual Film & Writing Competition By Michael McCray The Whistleblower Summit & Film Festival Announces the 2023 Slate of Films and Screenplays for 11th Annual Film & Writing Competition Pentagon Papers Whistleblower to be Remembered During 11th Annual Event Featuring Film Screenings, Screenplay Contest, and a Tribute to Famed Whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg at the National Press Club. Read More >>

Stop Blaming Mass Shootings on Mental Illness By Robert Weiner Despite the fact that most mass shootings are carried out by people without a diagnosed mental illness, it is still commonly used as a defense for these deadly massacres. Not only is it a misconception that mental health is a primary factor in most of these violent crimes, but these claims demonize the 57.8 million Americans who suffer from one or more mental illnesses. Read More >>

Putin: So Weak He Can Hardly Stand Up! By Philip Kraske After the Wagner comedy, everyone says Putin is weaker and weaker and weaker. It's amazing that he can get out of bed in the morning. Read More >>

A strange U-turn on the road to Moscow By Bob Gaydos Prigozhin's dramatic Saturday dash for Moscow with his Wagner fighting forces electrified and captured the attention of the world only to fizzle out just as TV commentators were getting used to the words Russia and revolution in the same sentence. Just as dramatically as it had begun, it was over. What happened? Read More >>

The Industrial Revolution: Truth and Consequences By Thomas Knapp "The Industrial Revolution and its consequences," reads the opening lines of "Unabomber" Ted Kaczynski's notorious manifesto, "have been a disaster for the human race." Personally, I'm a fan of the Industrial Revolution. Read More >>

Can State Legislatures Affect Voters' Decisions? SCOTUS Eliminates Possibility Justices Kavanaugh, Barrett, and Roberts joined liberal colleagues in overruling a suit that could have radically altered voters' decisions in general elections.  According to Abha Khanna, a lawyer who represented the plaintiffs: "In its most extreme form, the Independent State Legislature Theory could have weakened the foundation of our democracy, removing a crucial check on state legislatures and making it easier for rogue legisl... Read More >>

Balfour's Big Blunder and Today's Israel By Elayne Clift As a Jewish American, like many others, I am heartbroken by what is happening to Palestinians because of the excessively rightwing government now in power in Israel, a country that was founded because of atrocities committed against them. Read More >>

The staged Wagner coup and what is next for Putin By Mark Lansvin Was the Wagner Group coup staged? And where does Russian President Vladimir Putin see himself in five years because things aren't looking great for him. Read More >>

The Rosenberg Case is Closed. Time to Open the Books. By Thomas Knapp It's been 70 years since the executions of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg on charges of spying for the Soviet Union. ... But we still don't know the whole truth, and not everyone who's interested in the truth has forever to wait around for it. Read More >>

"Journalism" Today: Selling You #Nazis By Joe Giambrone So-called "journalists" are in full spin mode, trying to obfuscate away the plague of Ukrainian Nazis. Now that the photos and videos are E-V-E-R-Y-W-H-E-R-E, cannot be contained, and the lies told about it are O-B-V-I-O-U-S, the CIA's fallback position is to make them the good kind of Nazis. Read More >>

Deepfake Porn is Creepy, Disgusting ... and Speech/Expression By Thomas Knapp As creepy as deepfake porn -- essentially using software to e.g. put a recognizable facsimile of a person's head "on" the body of an actor in a pornographic video -- may be, it's inescapably fiction and expression, and entitled to the same protection as other fiction and expression. Read More >>

The Titan Submarine Implosion - A Probable Fatigue Crack Ruptured the Viewport to Instantly Destroy the Vessel By Robert A. Leishear, PhD, PE, ASME Fellow Fatigue properties of plastics are not well known, and this lack of knowledge likely resulted in implosion of the plastic viewing portal on the Titan Submarine. Fatigue is a complex failure mechanism in all materials, and the likelihood is questionable that fatigue was adequately investigated before submerging this submarine over and over. Most engineers do not well understand this complex failure mechanism. Read More >>

Cornel West: The primaries call By Tom Gallagher Cornel West should take his presidential candidacy to the Democratic primaries. Read More >>

The CAC Purge By Carl Petersen The LAUSD recommends removing leaders of the CAC who included a proposal to assist students with Special Education needs on its agenda. Read More >>

The crimes of NATO soldiers in the Baltics reignites old discussions By Jonas Dringelis ince their accession to NATO in 2004, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania have seen the presence of NATO forces as an essential safeguard for their security. However, incidents involving NATO troops in recent years have sparked controversy, leading to renewed debates about their necessity. Read More >>

Tomgram: Stan Cox, Every Kind of Conflict, Everywhere, All at Once? By Tom Engelhardt Several times in recent weeks I've heard people suggest that Mother Nature has been speaking to us through that smoke endlessly drifting south from the still-raging Canadian wildfires. She's saying that she wants the coal, oil, and gas left in the ground, but I fear her message will have little more influence on climate policy than her previous ones did[...] Read More >>

Latest Articles

Film Review: Inside (2023) Review of the film Inside (2023). It has one character, Nemo, played by Willem Dafoe. Tough role deftly pulled off (for the most part). Read More >>

The Russian "BULLY BAIL" - A "Bully v Bully" Case Study" When bullies (like Putin/Prigozhin) ultimately engage each other, they both cowardly fold...BAIL Read More >>

Tomgram: Rebecca Gordon, Murderous Intentions One day when I was about six, I was walking with my dad in New York City. We noticed that someone had stuck little folded squares of paper under the windshield wipers of the cars parked on the street beside us. My father picked one up and read it. I saw his face grow dark with anger[...] Read More >>

Religious Violence is Intensifying in Palestinian West Bank "Revealed" religion, in this case Judaism, is the cause of religious violence in the Palestinian West Bank. Judaism, through its alleged Word of God the Hebrew Bible, teaches that all of that land was given to the Jews for a Jewish state. Read More >>

Lithuania became the prey for the U.S. The U.S. dragged Lithuania into complete dependence. Step by step Washington managed to convince country's leadership of the U.S.' indispensability. Read More >>

Retrieving our power Breath is what keeps us alive./ But, think about it -/ She breathed my lost-soul boy / Into my crown! Read More >>

School Board Member Will Look At Special Education Resolution Board District 7 representative Tanya Ortiz Franklin tells the Community Advisory Committee that she will follow up on the proposal to improve how LAUSD delivers Special Education services. Read More >>

Poem About the Rolling Pearlharbors The daze news can boggl the mind on any given Sunday. Wouldn't you agree? Read More >>

An opportunity to put lithium mining and unlimited growth on trial Just before I published "When Land I Love Holds Lithium" (June 10, 2023), about Max Wilbert's work to protect Thacker Pass, Nevada, from lithium mining, Lithium Nevada Corporation sued Max and six others for Civil Conspiracy, Nuisance, Trespass, Tortious Interference with Contractual Relations, Tortious Interference with Prospective Economic Advantage and Unjust Enrichment... Read More >>

When farmers choose to grow food, not tobacco, sustainable development wins Please consider the article. In line with legally binding global tobacco treaty and domestic efforts, several governments are making efforts to reduce tobacco cultivation and encourage farmers to transition away from tobacco, and rather grow food! Several farmers we interviewed share their successful experience of not growing tobacco and rather growing food. Read More >>

Free pass Playing is only fun / If there is no one standing / Outside the game looking on. Read More >>

Crime Statistics Show That the World Is Getting Safer Multiple recent data reports show lower crime rates in the US and beyond, evidence that the world is getting safer. Jeff Asher, of AH Datalytics, penned an analysis in The Atlantic with crime information from 2023 so far, finding a "sharp and broad decline" in murder rates. The preliminary numbers indicate that the country "may be experiencing one of the largest annual percent changes in murder ever recorded." Read More >>

Will Voters Strike A Blow Against Institutionalized Corruption? Los Angeles City Councilman Curren Price is facing corruption charges. Now his long-time Deputy Chief of Staff wants a seat on the council. Read More >>

Visit France as a Tourist-Risk Fraud and False Imprisonment in Jail-Luxury Tours France and Hotel Le Pavillon Des Lys An international internet crime wave unfolds. The crime wave extent is unknown. For example, on a recent tour to France, my wife and I were defrauded of more than $27,000, and I was threatened with false imprisonment in jail unless I immediately paid another $5,000 in cash. The tour operator, Luxury Tours France, falsely claimed that payment was not received. $23,000+ was fraudulent charged to my credit card. My bank agreed. Read More >>

Absolute hypocrisy on the part of "official" Washington US Secretary of State Antony Blinken after robust discussions w/ Chinese President Xi Jingping wants Beijing to press N. Korea to engage in dialogue and end its dangerous behavior. The question is which country allied with Washington could get it to engage in dialogue and end its dangerous behavior? Read More >>

Sears Roebuck and Co. and the Stony Brook U. Sch. Of Med.: A Reminisce This column is not about politics. It is about my various connections, since childhood, with what once was the greatest retailing company in the United States, Sears Roebuck. I had fun writing this one. I hope that you will have some fun reading it. Read More >>

Rough crossing This little house has bones./ It was moved years ago / from the far end of the island, Read More >>

Daniel Ellsberg: Master of War, Champion of Peace This is a goodbye appreciation piece for the value Daniel Ellsberg brought to the public with his revelations about secret government workings. Read More >>

Group Narcissus (Poem) Another poem about the monsters amongst us, coming out of the deep thaw of history to bring us all back to the dog days of the Dark Ages. But they bark like royalty. Read More >>

No Truth, No Facts, No Reality = No Democracy With the rise of the Trump MAGA cult, democracy (or at least the version of it we have here) is in real danger. The appetite for a fascist-style authoritarian government is stronger than ever. Those of us who fear a MAGA power-grab need to step up to save our flawed democracy. If we don't, the results would be devastating. Read More >>

Is China Outmaneuvering the U.S.? China is marching ahead on several fronts developing a global role in a challenge to the US. Is the US willing to respond? Read More >>

Uncrossing our eyes There is a little girl coloring at the children's table / Out of sight a few steps up behind the art books./ She is with her father, talking, talking, talking. Read More >>

Tomgram: Robert Lipsyte, RIP Jim Brown, Hero and Monster Jim Brown was a monster, not only as a wrecking-ball running back on the football field but also as a prime example of an ever more popular obsession with people (mostly men) whose admirable achievements are shaded by despicable behavior (mostly directed at women). He died last month at 87 and his obituaries, along with various appraisals of his life[...] Read More >>

Lithuania's phosphate fertilizer producer Lifosa: Road to Nowhere Lithuania's Kedainiai-based phosphate fertilizer producer Lifosa suffers great losses. AB Lifosa is one of the largest and most modern fertilizer manufacturers in Europe. The company is situated in K--dainiai, the geographical center of Lithuania. Lifosa mainly produces phosphate fertilizers for soil enrichment and fertility. Read More >>

Choosing Humanity Only your personal choices reflect humanity. Giving up that responsibility to others or allowing it to be done solely by computers or artificial intelligence is abdicating our most basic humanity and will lead to a spiritual emptiness and a devolution of what humanity means. Read More >>

US sanctions are drowning Syrians This article talks about the ship full of Syrian refugees that went down with 750 refugees on it and the role of the U.S sanctions on Syria Read More >>

Martin Luther King, Jr., and Walter J. Ong, Jr. (REVIEW ESSAY) The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968; Ph.D. in theology, Boston University, 1955) and the Reverend Dr. Walter J. Ong, Jr. (1912-2003; Ph.D. in English, Harvard University, 1955) were prophetic voices, each in his own distinctive way. Even though neither man discussed the other's work, I show here one way to connect certain aspects of their thought that I hope may be helpful in our contemporary American culture. Read More >>

Lebanon under occupation, financial fraud and sectarian political corruption This is an interview with Lebanese Journalist Maher Al-Dana about the latest developments in Lebanon Read More >>

Electrical Delivery: The Poor and the Elderly Will Pick Up the Tab The second article in this series shows that because of the way electric bills are now computed, the natural evolution will be for rising prices paid mostly by the poor and the elderly. This argues for a change in how the bills are computed. Read More >>

Tomgram: Hartung and Gledhill, Throwing More Money at the Pentagon On June 3rd, President Joe Biden signed a bill into law that lifted the government's debt ceiling and capped some categories of government spending. The big winner was "" surprise, surprise! "" the Pentagon[...] Read More >>

Convention Fears Bogus? Why Article V fears are bogus, and why 75%+ approval does/will mathematically preclude extreme proposals from ever becoming law. If we have a convention, it will adjourn, and nothing will have changed in the Constitution. Read More >>

Crown Prince of Saudi is working towards a political solution for Syria This article talks about the role of Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman in solving the Syrian crisis Read More >>

Absurdities Read: Number 1 From time to time, I read articles defying any semblance of rationality. I squirm to respond but the online journal allows no comments. OEN is broadminded and kind enough to allow me its outlet for my responses to absurdities. I bear no malice toward the authors of absurdities. I honor their right to express their views publicly. Goodness knows, I am sure many people have considered my published views to be absurd... Read More >>

Film Review: Reality This is a film review of the new biopic, Reality. I question the importance of te document she sent to Intercept and whether she even qualifies as a whistleblower. Read More >>

The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King's 1967 Book (REVIEW ESSAY) Today is Juneteenth 2023. On this occasion, I want to set forth some further reflections on the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King's 1967 book Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community? (Harper & Row). The forces of chaos in American culture need to be countered. Read More >>

The head must follow what the hand writes Please consider this important article, which reminds of promises all 193 heads of governments made at the UN in 2018 (to work towards ending TB). Now, in coming September 2023, heads of all governments will meet again at UN to review progress on TB. Progress made on 2018 promises is FALLING SHORT of targets set for 2022. If we are to end TB by 2030 then we have to accelerate work to end TB manifold. Read More >>

China's involvement in Saudi-Iran detente signals shifting influence China's growing involvement in the Middle East amid waning American influence signals a significant shift in power in the region. Read More >>

Cruelty to Immigrants Is Cruelty to Children Some books shouldn't have to exist, but you're glad they do. This one describes a whole field of work "" using art-creation to help kids in Arizona and Southern California deal with trauma created by anti-immigrant policies and attitudes "" which shouldn't have to exist, but you're glad it does. The book is called Drawing Deportation: Art and Resistance Among Immigrant Children by Sylvia Rodriguez Vega. Read More >>

Thank You, Donald Trump. Yes, Really. As I write this, former US president Donald Trump's probably finishing up his morning shave routine and picking the suit he'll wear to his arraignment, later in the day, on 37 federal criminal charges relating to his possession and handling of "classified information" since leaving office. For this matter, if nothing else, Trump deserves the thanks of a grateful nation. Wait ... what? Yes, really. Read More >>

The Next Round of Arms Control? The story covers recent arms control efforts with China and Russia. Read More >>

Trump and Republicans: A tiring story Republicans, Trump is not one of you. He is Trump. Period. You created him. Your hypocrisy and cowardice have emboldened him and his ilk. He has sullied us all. And he has destroyed you. Read More >>

UFOs: I Want to Believe, But I Trust No One (Well, No One from the Government, Anyway) I truly do want to believe that at least some "Unidentified Aerial Phenomena" (aka UFOs) are spacecraft of extraterrestrial origin. But to really believe it, I'd need to see real proof, not just claims un-backed by physical evidence, no matter how seemingly credible the source. Read More >>

Finally, Some Good Arguments for the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact You've probably heard the expression "a solution looking for a problem." The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact isn't really such a thing. It's more like a problem looking for another problem. But, thanks to Washington Post columnist Jason Willick, I've finally found some reasons to like it. Read More >>

Daniel Ellsberg: 'Pentagon Papers' Whistleblower, Pro-Democracy Hero (1931-2023) Daniel Ellsberg, who former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger called "The Most Dangerous Man in America" for revealing the secret history and nuclear threats of the U.S. war in Vietnam, left the living on Friday morning, June 16, due to inoperable pancreatic cancer. Read More >>

The Growth of Somethings Merriam-Webster defines growth as "something that has grown or is growing." It is obviously a very broad definition that encompasses all "somethings." The matter piqued my curiosity so I looked into it a bit and then wrote this brief piece. It examines growth on a continuum from good through bad to calamitous. Read More >>

China: An Unresolved Civil War A suggested mediation approach to ending the civil war in China. Read More >>

Three years after Galwan clashes, China-India border standoff continues The Galwan Valley clashes were the first deadly skirmish between the two militaries along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in five decades and they significantly strained the bilateral ties. Read More >>

The Racist Bone Connected To Da Head Bone The utterance, that exclusively comes from European-Americans, that "I don't have a racist bone in my body" is sickening. It is, also, insulting as hell. Read More >>

Climate Change and Possible Human Responses A future of frequent forest fires and flooding in a shrunken -- by sea water -- United States. It is also a future to be shared with most of the world as well, reminding us once again that the time to act is now. Read More >>

In 1967, Dr. King Diagnosed Trump and His White MAGA Supporters (REVIEW ESSAY) In 1967, the prophetic Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968; Ph.D. in theology, Boston University, 1955) published his last book, Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community? (Harper & Row). The prophetic Dr. King foresaw the chaos of Trump and his white MAGA supporters -- he likens them to the prodigal son. Read More >>

The Deep Dark State Is Coming (song) Song that weighs in on the weighty deep and darkening state we're in. Read More >>

Community College Board Delays Action on Charter School Lease Despite attempts by the North Valley Military Institute (NVMI) to rush the process, the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) trustees will take time to make an informed decision. Read More >>

The End of the World? I'm Taking Bets. Will the end be from A.I., viruses, global warming, or nuclear holocaust? Place yer bet and make a fortune. Read More >>

Reflections on America A commentary on America, divided into short sections, dealing with support for Israeli violence, Trump's indictment, Hunter's laptop and more. Read More >>

Trump Fatigue With the obvious exception of the virulant Trumpers, most everyone is getting pretty tired of Donald Trump. Will any of his many legal troubles derail his attempt to regain the Presidency? Read More >>

Sunflowers of Democracy "Democracy dies in darkness" - The Washington Post Read More >>

Tomgram: Engelhardt, Smoke Gets in Your Eyes As it turns out, it's never too late. I mention that only because last week, at nearly 79, I managed to visit Mars for the first time. You know, the red planet, or rather "" so it seemed to me "" the orange planet. And take my word for it, it was eerie as hell[...] Read More >>

New UN Report Reveals Disgusting Amounts of Misogyny - Could Religion Be a Cause?? The United Nations report on misogyny fails to mention a primary cause of misogyny - man-made religions! Reason and Deism are a cure for the misogynistic "revealed" religions. Read More >>

Lithuanian business faces threats from Lithuanian government Lithuanian officials continue to support initiatives and take political steps that worsen the situation in the European region and lead to deterioration of relations with neighboring states. Such official steps and statements influence not only international relations but also impact local population. Read More >>

New Report Highlights Military Background in Mass Killers Mass shooters are over three times as likely as the general population to have been in the military. Read More >>

Best News Links from the Web

No, AI does not pose an existential risk to humanity In the last few months, there have been a string of open letters from tech leaders warning that artificial intelligence could lead to a ‘profound change in the history of life on Earth’. According to some insiders, AI... Read More >>

MD Analyzes the State of the Doctor-Patient Relationship The U.S. healthcare system has become "an expensive, impersonal system that is not serving the best interests of either the nation or the people it purports to heal," according to Dr. Henry Buchwald, a revered doctor, surgeon, teacher, healthcare pioneer and... Read More >>