Al Qaeda’s most significant victory in the Syrian war was achieved this week in the Iraqi arena.

Al Qaeda’s most significant victory in the Syrian war was achieved this week in the Iraqi arena. Its Iraq and Syrian branch (ISIS), under the command of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, resoundingly defeated the Iraqi army which two weeks ago launched a major offensive to relieve the country of the jihadist grip. Baghdadi’s troops were able to throw back the Iraqi army’s crack 7th and 1st divisions and keep going to capture large sections of Ramadi and Falluja, the key Sunni cities of western and central Iraq.

This victory enabled ISIS to forge a territorial chain of control stretching from Ramadi in central in Iraq, 110 km west of Baghdad, all the way to the northern Syrian town of Al-Raqqah, 160 km from Aleppo.

It also brought the Iraqi military offensive to a standstill. Soldiers downed arms and fled and units still intact started falling back toward Baghdad, dumping their heavy weapons to hasten their retreat.

DEBKAfile’s military sources report that Al Qaeda owes much of its victory to the decision of the Sunni tribes of western Iraq to join and spearhead its counter-attack on Iraqi forces. After smashing whole Iraqi units in the two cities, these tribal militias opened the door for the ISIS jihadists to march in.

Ironically, the tribal militias backing al Qaeda are the same “Awakening” groups which the US army sustained and armed for the battle to root out Al Qaeda from western Iraq during the 2005-2007 landmark “surge” campaign devised by Gen. David Petraeus.
That surge wheel has clearly turned round in favor of al Qaeda. Iraq’s military downfall is the worst it has suffered since the US invasion of the country in 2003 and al Qaeda’s greatest Middle East battlefield triumph, following which its commander Al-Baghdadi has vowed to proclaim the first Middle East caliphate stretching between western Iraq and eastern Syria.
This development has many critical ramifications:

1. There is no military force in the region capable of going into Iraq and stopping al Qaeda’s advance, which was allowed to happen in consequence of the US army’s precipitate exit from the country three years ago.
2. Al Qaeda’s fortunes in Syria, Lebanon and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula have received a major boost. The Sinai affiliates in particular are in close touch with Al Baghdadi.
3. The hook-up between them exacerbates the terrorist threat hanging over Israel, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.

4. The Nusra Front, Al Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate, has acquired strategic depth in Iraq. Its leader Abu Mohammad al-Julani (Golani) is expected to announce that his movement will join the new Islamist state.

5. A merger of the Iraqi and Syrian al Qaeda branches could draw in a host of sympathetic Middle East Islamist groups.

6. The ISIS victory in Iraq represents a humiliating setback for Tehran, which heavily backed the Iraqi army offensive led by its pro-Iranian prime minister Nouri al-Maliki for cleansing the country of the violent Al Qaeda presence.
7. The US, by its decision to send weapons to the Iraqi army for its engagement with al Qaeda, was shown to have backed the losing side.
8. The Iraqi army used up all its reserves for this offensive. Its only remaining option now is to fall back to Baghdad and regroup for the defense of the capital.

9. For Syrian President Bashar Assad and his Hizballah ally, Hassan Nasrallah, the Iraqi military debacle was the worst possible news. It struck them at the tipping moment of the Syrian war. Just as they gained the advantage over the rebel movement, they were confronted with a fresh war arena against al Qaeda now invigorated by its Iraq victory.

Credit to DEbka File

Gov SWAT Teams Target “Rugged Individuals” Who Grow Their Own Food, Produce Their Own Electricity

The dream of many Americans is to get out of the hustle and bustle of the daily city grind. And what better dream to have then to move your family outside of city limits to the countryside so that you can grow your own food, produce your own electricity with solar power, and live outside the purview of an ever expanding government apparatus?

That was the goal for hundreds of residents living on the outskirts of Los Angeles. Many own their land outright and have been living on it for decades without so much as a peep from their local government. They’ve built their homes using whatever means they had available to them. They planted their own fruits and vegetables. They even set up their own personal power production stations using solar panels and miniature wind farms.

And they’ve lived peacefully without violating the rights of those around them and leaving a very small “carbon footprint” to boot. For all intents and purposes, they achieved a life of independence and freedom.

But the tentacles of tyranny are everywhere and no one is protected from their grasp.

Recently, agents of the Los Angeles county government started paying visits to these rugged individualists. They claimed they were “here to help,” as one resident puts it. But, as is generally the case when the government comes knocking, they were there for exactly the opposite.

What was once a dream come true for many quickly turned into the new American nightmare.

Code enforcement agents for the county showed up in droves. But they didn’t come alone. Along with them came heavily armed “Nuisance Abatement Teams” who raided the homes and land of these peaceful residents as they would those of a terrorist.

(Pictured: Armored Nuisance Abatement Team – similar vehicles are in use across the United States)

The collection of rugged individualists who [want to live here] are being chased away.

Last year the county began performing unannounced inspections on his property.

Gallow says he cooperated with the county – clearing brush, then moving his shed, then getting rid of his motor home.

Finally, the county made a demand that shocked him.

“They told me… you have to get off the property. I said get off the property?’ They said ‘yeah, you can’t live here.’ ”

Gallow says county officials told him that neighbors, whom they would not identify, had complained about unsightly structures on his property.

He could keep his land, they told him, but would not be allowed to live on it.

“I said, for what? My closest neighbor is half a mile away. We’re not living in Beverly Hills here, this is my home. All of sudden you got police at my front door – bullet proof vests, guns, and then they surrounded the place. Everything I worked for was just melting away from me.”

“I don’t know where I’m going to go.”

Mr. Gallow is not alone. County enforcement officials with militarized Nuisance Abatement Teams in tow have made similar threats to other residents, ordering them to destroy everything on their properties and to get off their own land.

Watch this shocking, yet unsurprising account of the plight of these Americans who want nothing more than to be left alone:

In the new America, everyone is criminal.

 Credit to Infowars

Mixed Reactions to Cheerios Dropping GMOs

Heather Callaghan

Activist Post

A year ago at this time, Cheerios cereal company owned by General Mills had a serious mess on their hands. A campaign started by GMO Inisde, a part of Green America, created an uproar of consumer backlash at Cheerios' use of genetically modified ingredients. Meanwhile, General Mills had donated over a million dollars to fight GMO labeling.

An unstoppable (and rather humorous) flurry of anti-GMO consumer outcry splashed Cheerios' social media pages for weeks causing them to remove a Facebook application. When Cheerios tried to defuse the bomb, it got worse, no doubt because of their patronizing tone. Little did we know they really "we(')re listening."

Cheerios has announced that after some significant investment and research over the past year, its original flavor will use non-GMO ingredients. Not the other flavors because that would be "difficult, if not impossible."

General Mills spokesman Mike Siemienas said:

We switched from what we were using to non-GMO corn and non-GMO pure sugar cane.Below are echoes of the differing sentiments and reactions to Cheerios' new move. Some are hailing a victory, while others are unmoved for a few reasons.

GMO Free USA posted the following on their Facebook page, essentially asking for proof and noting the trace contamination:



Secondly, on Cheerios' FAQ page, where they made their announcement, they fully stand by GMOs and hold that they are safe.

Siemienas said:

There is broad consensus that food containing GMOs is safe, but we decided to move forward with this in response to consumer demand.Thirdly, a lot of food freedom advocates are pointing out the harmful non-GMO ingredients. The sugar. One lesser-known ingredient is trisodium phosphate - a common and strong cleaning agent. Also a stain remover, degreaser and food additive considered by the FDA as GRAS (generally recognized as safe). Thisarticle by natural nutritionist Evita Ochel goes into major health deficits of Cheerios. There is also the deceptive marketing of 'whole grains', added synthetic vitamins that our bodies don't recognize, and fillers like wood pulp.

For yet another reason, where I was among the harsh and unforgiving, pointing out last year that according to Ballot Pedia, General Mills donated $1,135,300 for No on Proposition 37 in an effort to keep their products from GMO labeling. General Mills is said to have undercut non-GMO advocates during Initiative 522 in Washington state recently.

General Mills, by the way, does own several organic cereal sub-companies. Hmm...

I deeply want consumers to know and think about the damaging effects that GMOs have on their intestinal health and, ultimately, their immune system - so any attempt to hide that information to manipulate profits is, to me, an abhorrent deception. Jefferey Smith of the Institute for Responsible Technology quotes a doctor-nutritionist who has seen nothing but recovery with patients after removing GMOs from their diets. I have had those very same conversations with specialists in the healthcare field.

A lot changes in a year's time - avalanches can begin with a snowflake. I'll never stand in the way of other people's efforts to either label GMOs, ban or remove them whether it's geared toward a private company or the government - or if it's done by the company itself. Whether it's considered by many a small victory or a huge overhaul. I used to say "why petition commodity companies?" Or, "I'm still not going to eat that..." But then, why would I also say certain ingredients are poison, should be removed and not given to school children? Or why make a big deal about hurting the pockets of the company, but without making a demand or pointing the way? And how much do we really want to lacerate companies that are trying to change? Yet, it is still desirable and action-inspiring to create those changes in the food system.

 

Consumer activism is what caused many food companies to desperately claim "Look! No more high-fructose corn syrup!" "No MSG!" "Gluten-free!" and so forth. Can they label? You bet. Can they remove and replace? We are now witnessing this.

Each large company that not only labels but goes beyond to remove genetically modified ingredients sends a strong message to other companies and to farmers. It becomes widely publicized, which causes the consumer to question their food. It might plug and eventually reverse the tide of GMO crops. It could change the direction of subsidies - the price manipulation that is responsible for making organic expensive and processed junk foods cheap. If Cheerios can find non-GMO ingredient sources, then other companies can too.

Most of all I think of how disheartening it must be for people who see the gates closing on their food choices. It can seem insurmountable to food freedom lovers who travel farther down the rabbit hole. Then there are people out of work, people who sincerely struggle to feed their families. The unwitting children in the public school system, patients in hospital beds and the elderly in nursing homes. Homeless people eating at shelters and victimless criminals caught up in the prison system who don't deserve cruel and unusual treatment. And health-conscious people who also store up preparedness foods but find themselves compelled to buy cheaper, processed boxed and canned goods. People on strict diet regimes struggling to reverse disease before it's too late.

At any rate, I hope the tide keep changing...

Also See:
Cheerios Removes App During Fury of Anti-GMO Backlash
Anti-GMO Consumers Won't Forgive Cheerios - Cheerios Finally Responds
Credit to Activist post

Justice Department Pays Linkedin $500,000 For Unlimited Access To Your Personal Information

The Justice Department is spending more than $500,000 to “enhance” its company profile on LinkedIn and increase its “brand awareness.”

The contract, awarded on Christmas Eve, gives the government “unlimited access” to each of the networking site’s 250 million users through LinkedIn’s “Recruiter” service.

The DOJ’s Criminal Division, which enforces federal criminal laws, will use LinkedIn Recruiter to post job advertisements and seek out potential employees. Carahsoft Technology Corporation, a government IT company, will receive $544,338 to administer the service, according to the award.

The contract will allow the division to “reach a large-scale professional network of existing and potential Criminal Division audiences,” the agency said.

“This will include an enhanced company profile within a large-scale, professional networking platform, and targeted online job advertising to attract highly-qualified Criminal Division employees and intern applicants as well as use the already existing Criminal Division presence,” the document said.

The DOJ’s procurement office stated that the contract will allow unfettered access to every user on LinkedIn, the “world’s largest professional network.”

“The LinkedIn services will … provide unlimited access to names and full profiles of all profiles in the LinkedIn database,” according to a description of the deal.

“No other vendor has access to this wealth of user information pertaining to professional backgrounds, experiences, achievements and aspirations, as well as other demographic information, on such a granular level,” the Justice Department said. “This will allow our ads to be served to qualified, potential applicants in a highly targeted manner.”

Doug Madey, corporate communications manager for LinkedIn, said the DOJ would use the recruiter product offered by his company. Recruiter Corporate, which costs $719.95 per month, allows companies to see the full profiles of every LinkedIn member.

Using LinkedIn will “provide a platform that gives the Criminal Division the opportunity to increase brand awareness beyond job advertisements, by engaging audiences and establishing relationships with users,” the DOJ said.

The Criminal Division currently has 906 followers on LinkedIn, and employs between 500 and 1,000 people.

The Justice Department said the contract would enable the division to weed out unqualified candidates for open positions, “freeing up staff time and workload.”

Other terms of the award include banning contract employees from text messaging while driving, and an affirmative action policy to employ and advance workers with physical or mental disabilities.

The DOJ did not respond to requests for comment

Credit to wealthydebates.com

Marijuana and the Bible

Expect INFLATION not DEFALTION in 2014