Who Guards Corrections Corporation of America as it Guards Our Immigration Prisons?

Amplify’d from www.alternet.org

A federal prosecutor is likely investigating claims that CCA used inmate violence to force prisoners to snitch on one another or be moved to extremely violent units.

In November, the Associated Press reported that a video obtained by its reporters showed Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) prison guards watching prisoners fight in an Idaho prison, ignoring the pleas of the prisoner being beaten, Hanni Elabed. While this was not an immigration detention facility, CCA operates many detention facilities under contract from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). ICE needs to look closely at this incident and others reported this year and reassess whether it will continue to risk housing immigration detainees in CCA facilities. Read more at www.alternet.org

 

See this Amp at http://bit.ly/gzkWa5

Chicago Cop Who Oversaw Torture of Over 100 Prisoners Awaits His Sentence

Amplify’d from www.alternet.org

Infamous Police Commander Who Oversaw Torture of Over 100 Prisoners Awaits His Sentence

The depressing Jon Burge saga in Chicago reinforces the notion that racial bias is part of the institutional gene pool of the nation’s police departments.

G. Flint Taylor should be basking in the glow of vindication as he awaits the January 20 sentencing of Jon Burge, the retired Chicago police commander convicted for lying about a ring of torturing cops he led. Read more at www.alternet.org

 

See this Amp at http://bit.ly/eSk69t

Are Right-Wing Libertarian Internet Trolls Getting Paid to Dumb Down Online Conversations?

Amplify’d from www.alternet.org

There are daily attempts to control and influence content in the interests of the state and corporations: attempts in which money talks.

They are the online equivalent of enclosure riots: the rick-burning, fence-toppling protests by English peasants losing their rights to the land. When MasterCard, Visa, Paypal and Amazon tried to shut WikiLeaks out of the cyber-commons, an army of hackers responded by trying to smash their way into these great estates and pull down their fences. Read more at www.alternet.org

 

See this Amp at http://bit.ly/gVnddp

How Glenn Beck’s Twisted Worldview Goads Disturbed People into Acts of Violence

Amplify’d from www.alternet.org

Glenn Beck’s inflammatory rhetoric has been tied to a number of violent attacks and threats against Beck’s targets and other public figures.

Radio and TV personality Glenn Beck plays a unique and extraordinary role in our political discourse. He’s an entertainer who once referred to himself as a “rodeo clown.” He’s a self-appointed “educator” whose books and “university” are miseducating millions of Americans with false claims about American history and a distorted view of our Constitution.

See more at www.alternet.org

 

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/ia5p

7 Rock Songs Exploited for Commerce and Conservatism

Amplify’d from www.alternet.org

When political songs are used to hawk goods and right-wing agendas, the song can get ruined by association.

Since the U.S. government doesn’t support artists like most first-world countries, musicians are increasingly filling their duckets with cross-promo deals from companies. While outside-the-mainstream artists and the towers of commerce have historically had a tenuous relationship, in the choked-income era of the mp3–where it’s increasingly difficult for even prominent groups to make a living off recorded music–more and more musicians have been letting marketers use their tunes for a check. Read more at www.alternet.org

 

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/glg6

5 Ways to Deal With Your Conservative Relatives This Thanksgiving

Amplify’d from www.alternet.org

How does one deal with the conservatives at the family table while avoiding a massive food fight? Stay calm and relaxed, and follow these simple guidelines.

Maybe your brother-in-law works on Wall Street and declares he wants to see the Bush tax cuts extended indefinitely as he scoops himself a generous portion of mashed potatoes. Or perhaps your aunt mentions, while checking on the turkey, that Sarah Palin is her role model and she can’t wait to follow her Rupert Murdoch-sponsored book tour from city to city. Or maybe, over a slice of pumpkin pie and coffee, your grandfather suggests that the Tea Party’s ideas aren’t half bad, and he likes that Rand Paul fella because he’s really getting the government out of people’s Medicare. Read more at www.alternet.org

 

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/g6ud