Ald. Bob Bauman proposed recently that Milwaukee bars and taverns be required to install surveillance cameras to keep an eye on potentially unruly customers on their entire premises.

It seems like a logically Orwellian thing to do, to keep bar-related tomfoolery under Milwaukee’s thumb. But that doesn’t mean we should be comfortable with city eyes on parking, sidewalks, stairways and every other cubic inch of Friday night.

The good proles of Milwaukee won’t take too kindly to that for a couple of reasons. (more…)

KARACHI — A plot to stage a coup against Pakistan’s President General Pervez Musharraf soon after his recent return from the US has been uncovered, resulting in the arrest of more than 40 people.

Most of those arrested are middle-ranking Pakistani Air Force officers, while civilian arrests include a son of a serving brigadier in the army. All of those arrested are Islamists, contacts in Rawalpindi, where the military is based, divulged to Asia Times Online.

Gee, I wonder why… they emphasize that it was “Islamists” who were responsible, just in case you had any doubts (and if you don’t, you’re an idiot). (more…)

A recent study showed that almost one in ten teenagers and one in twenty adults would be willing to have a microchip implanted to pay shop bills and help to prevent card or identity fraud and muggings.

The retail industry in the UK is the latest to look at the applications of biometric payment methods. These include fingerprint and iris recognition, along with a personalised microchip, which could be inserted under the skin. A quick scan of the arm would indicate a customer’s bank details so that a payment could be made.

Why not just have a barcode tattoed on your forehead? (more…)

WASHINGTON — America’s population is on track to hit 300 million on Tuesday morning, and it’s causing a stir among environmentalists.

People in the United States are consuming more than ever — more food, more energy, more natural resources. Open spaces are shrinking and traffic in many areas is dreadful.

But some experts argue that population growth only partly explains America’s growing consumption. Just as important, they say, is where people live, what they drive and how far they travel to work.

Henry Kissinger is probably turning in his grave (he’s not dead, but we can hope). (more…)

The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously to impose financial and weapons sanctions on North Korea for its claimed nuclear test in a resolution that Pyongyang’s envoy swiftly rejected as “gangster-like”.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe immediately said Tokyo would consider further punitive steps against the reclusive communist state, while a top Russian envoy was to arrive in Seoul on Sunday for talks.

Sanctions against a leader who could not possibly care less that his people are living in abject poverty…way to put your foot down guys. Look where sanctions against N. Korea have gotten us…the definition of insanity is to do the same thing over and over and expect different results. (more…)

The Bush administration on Friday appealed a federal judge’s ruling this summer that a controversial post-September 11, 2001, domestic spying program was illegal.

The Justice Department, in documents filed with a federal court in Cincinnati, argued that President George W. Bush had acted within the law in authorizing the surveillance of domestic wiretaps of international telephone calls.

No he didn’t…hence the judge’s ruling.

In its appeal, the government stated that the federal judge’s ruling “dismantles a tool that already has helped detect and disrupt al Qaeda plots.”

Sure…like that black Christian group in Florida or those cellphone salesmen? Or the countless others you’ve arrested through entrapment techniques and are forced to release weeks later due to lack of evidence? Is that what they mean by “Al Qaeda cells”, anyone with a SprintNextel licensing agreement? Bush might have been able to immunize himself against war crimes charges with the Military Commissions Act (hopefully that won’t stick) — but time is running out for him on the illegal warrantless wiretapping of Americans, assuming the Democrats can win either the House or Senate (I have my doubts, with Diebold & Co. counting the paperless ballots). (more…)

An anti-war demonstration in Akron that drew 200 people last year also drew the attention of military officials investigating the protesters for “potential terrorist activity.'’

The release of documents, reported Friday by The New York Times, revealed the federal government had maintained records on the “Stop the War Now'’ rally held in Akron on March 19, 2005, as well as dozens of other demonstrations held across the country. (more…)

Police chiefs are considering using unmanned surveillance drones to hover over problem estates as part of plans for Britain’s first “yob squad” to tackle anti-social behaviour.

Merseyside Police’s new Anti-Social Behaviour Task Force, already known locally as “the yob squad”, will have an annual budget of £1 million, and a staff of 137 drawn from the fire service as well as the police. Its leader is promising to bring an “Al Capone approach” to anti-social behaviour, using “any lawful means necessary”. Task force leaders are in discussions with the Civil Aviation Authority about the feasibility of sending surveillance drones to hover over problem estates. (more…)

NEW YORK — There is no voice left in Manuel Checo’s voice. He speaks in a granular rasp that fades, occasionally, to whispery puffs of air. Sometimes, for periods as long as two days, he is unable to speak at all.

When that happens, Checo carries a pad of paper with him so he can scribble down notes if he needs something. But for the most part, he will simply disappear into his rented room, ignoring his cellphone when it rings. (more…)

Lately, one conversation has been dominating the 9/11 truth web sites and blogs: Is the past weeks episode of South Park a hit piece or not? I shall put this debate to rest. Last night I had the opportunity to watch the episode again during its re-airing. (more…)

Beijing health and education authorities plan to monitor the risk behavior of students in the hope of reducing violence, unprotected sex and Internet and drug addiction.

The urban youth risk behavior monitoring plan will target 10 to 24-year-old students in elementary school and universities, the Beijing News reported Saturday. (more…)

Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations Sunday urged the Security Council to take tough measures against “demented” Iran for its nuclear program in the wake of North Korea’s declared atomic test.

“The international community should learn the lessons of what occurred in North Korea,” Danny Gillerman told army radio. “North Korea was only the preview. Iran will be the feature film, which, if no one takes serious action, will be projected throughout the whole world.” (more…)

A FOX News poll conducted October 10-11 shows some seriously bad news for President Bush: 49% think Bush intentionally misled the country about WMD’s in Iraq (44% think he provided Americans with the best prewar intelligence); 66% think Republicans try to make the war in Iraq seem like it’s going better than it really is; 73% think it’s time Iraqis take on the burden of securing their own country and let the US troops start coming home; 41% think we should end involvement in Iraq, as opposed to 39% who think it should be continued. But you won’t find any of that information on the FOX News poll homepage. (more…)

WASHINGTON — President Bush keeps revising his explanation for why the U.S. is in Iraq, moving from narrow military objectives at first to history-of-civilization stakes now.

Initially, the rationale was specific: to stop Saddam Hussein from using what Bush claimed were the Iraqi leader’s weapons of mass destruction or from selling them to al-Qaida or other terrorist groups.

But 3 1/2 years later, with no weapons found, still no end in sight and the war a liability for nearly all Republicans on the ballot Nov. 7, the justification has become far broader and now includes the expansive “struggle between good and evil.” (more…)

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - A paralegal and a military lawyer who brought forward allegations about prisoner abuse at the Guantanamo Bay detention center have been ordered not to speak with the press, lawyers and a military spokeswoman said Saturday.

Marine Lt. Col. Colby Vokey, who represents a detainee at the U.S. naval base in eastern Cuba, filed a complaint with the Pentagon last week alleging that abuse was ongoing at the prison. He attached a sworn statement from his paralegal, Sgt. Heather Cerveny, in which she said several Guantanamo guards bragged in a bar about beating detainees, describing it as common practice. (more…)