Commentary from Citizens for Legitimate Government

News of the World phone hacking whistleblower is found dead at home --'Police investigations into this incident are ongoing.' --Mr Hoare blew the whistle on the phone hacking scandal during an investigation by The New York Times last September. 18 Jul 2011 A former News of the World reporter who was the first to allege that Andy Coulson knew phone hacking was taking place at the paper was today found dead at home. Sean Hoare's body was found on a extraordinary day when a Met police chief resigned over the phone hacking scandal, four senior officers were facing questions and the Prime Minister was forced to call an emergency session of Parliament. He was discovered at 10.40am at his home in Watford, Hertfordshire.

News of the World phone-hacking whistleblower found dead --Death of Sean Hoare - who was first named journalist to allege Andy Coulson knew of hacking - not being treated as suspicious 18 Jul 2011 Sean Hoare, the former News of the World showbusiness reporter who was the first named journalist to allege that Andy Coulson was aware of phone hacking by his staff, has been found dead. Hoare, who worked on the Sun and the News of the World with Coulson before being dismissed for drink and drugs problems [Yeah, right!], was said to have been found at his Watford home.

The Sun's website 'hacked by LulzSec' --Lulzsec Twitter feed crowed: "We have joy we have fun, we have messed up Murdoch's Sun". 19 Jul 2011 The Sun's website appears to have fallen prey to hackers who redirected viewers to a fake news story claiming Rupert Murdoch had been found dead at his home. The hacking group LulzSec took credit for the attack on Twitter, saying: "We have owned Sun/News of the World". The group is believed to have been responsible for bringing down the websites of the CIA, the US Senate and Britain's Serious and Organised Crime Agency.

Phone Hacking: Second Police Resignation 18 Jul 2011 One of the Metropolitan Police's most senior officers, John Yates, has resigned over the phone-hacking scandal the day after his boss also stood down - as the police watchdog confirmed it is investigating four officers. The assistant commissioner came under increasing pressure over his failure to fully look at fresh claims that the News Of The World (NOTW) illegally accessed voicemails. Mr Yates admitted last week that he had not gone through bin bags full of evidence when deciding whether to reopen the phone-hacking investigation.

Second Scotland Yard official resigns amid phone-hacking scandal 18 Jul 2011 Following the resignation of his boss, Scotland Yard chief Paul Stephenson, a second senior British police officer quit Monday amid the phone-hacking scandal that has reached into the highest levels of public life in Britain. Assistant Commissioner John Yates was under heavy pressure for his ties with the News of the World and his decision not to reopen an investigation into hacking allegations at the now-defunct tabloid two years ago.

Ex-CIA official faces lawsuit over drones 18 Jul 2011 The relatives of US drone victims in Pakistan have filed a complaint seeking an international arrest warrant for a former CIA official, John Rizzo. The complaint lodged with police in the capital Islamabad calls on the Interpol and the US to issue an international arrest warrant against Rizzo over civilian deaths. “We have lodged the complaint for (issuance) of international arrest warrants for John A. Rizzo, a CIA official, over the killings of civilians," AFP quoted the lawyer of the victims as saying.

3 US-led troops killed in Afghan blast 18 Jul 2011 At least three US-led foreign soldiers have been killed in a bomb explosion in eastern Afghanistan amid the rising death toll for NATO forces in the war-ravaged country. NATO announced in a statement that the explosion occurred on Monday, but did not provide further information about the incident, the Associated Press reported.

Maliki may bypass parliament for 3,000 U.S. 'trainers' 18 Jul 2011 Iraq wants the United States to supply several thousand 'trainers' for its military but is unlikely to ask Washington to extend its troop presence beyond a year-end deadline, Iraqi security and political sources say. Nuri al-Maliki, who is also acting defense and interior minister, may opt to bypass parliament and have his ministries sign agreements with Washington for 2,000-3,000 U.S. trainers, sources said... The lawmaker, who is close to Maliki, said the 3,000 U.S. trainers would need security, technical and logistic support which could raise the contractors' total to around 5,000.

American soldier killed in central Iraq --Soldier's death is fifth US military fatality in Iraq this month 19 Jul 2011 An American soldier has been killed in a non-combat incident in central Iraq, the US military has announced. In a brief statement released on Monday, the US military said that the soldier was killed a day earlier, without giving details about how and where the incident took place.

TEPCO acts as typhoon heads for Fukushima 19 Jul 2011 Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) is rushing to install a cover over a building at its crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant to shield it from wind and rain as Typhoon Ma-on approaches Japan. Work on the cover for the turbine building of the No 3 reactor started yesterday, said TEPCO general manager Junichi Matsumoto. The transfer of tainted water for storage in a barge docked next to the plant was halted, spokesman Satoshi Watanabe said. The eye of Ma-on, categorised as "extremely strong," was about 1,200km from the Fukushima plant, according to the website of the Japan Meteorological Agency, which issued warnings for floods and high waves along the southern coast from Okinawa to Tokyo.

Japan plans to ban Fukushima beef over radiation concerns 18 Jul 2011 Japan's government is set to suspend all cattle shipments from Fukushima as concerns over radiation-tainted beef escalate. Senior Vice Health Minister Kohei Otsuka said beef from surrounding areas may also be affected. It comes after 136 cows were found to have consumed feed affected by radioactive caesium. This is the latest health scare linked to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant damaged by the March earthquake.

Radiation concerns for Japan's beef supply --Cases of contaminated vegetables, tea, milk, seafood and water have already increased anxiety, despite assurances from officials that the levels are not dangerous. 17 Jul 2011 Japan's second-biggest retailer said on Sunday it had sold beef from cattle that ate nuclear-contaminated feed, the latest in a series of health scares from radiation leaking from a quake-crippled nuclear power plant. Aeon Co said it had sold the contaminated beef at a store in Tokyo and at more than dozen stores in the surrounding area, as radiation continues to spill from the Fukushima nuclear power plant.

Radiation detected in Northwest rainwater 12 Jul 2011 A Seattle nuclear watchdog group is accusing the federal government of failing to keep the public informed of radiation from the Fukushima nuclear disaster. "The level that was detected on March 24 was 41 times the drinking water standard," said Gerry Pollet from Heart of America Northwest. He reviewed Iodine 131 numbers released by the Environmental Protection Agency last spring. "Our government said no health levels, no health levels were exceeded. When in fact the rain water in the Northwest is reaching levels 130 times the drinking water standards," said Pollet.

Chavez begins second stage of cancer treatment in Cuba 18 Jul 2011 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Sunday began the second stage of treatment against cancer in Cuba, after arriving in the island nation Saturday night. Chavez received two surgeries in Cuba in June to remove a pelvic abscess and a cancerous tumor. Chavez's leave for treatment was officially approved by the Venezuelan parliament and part of his duties have been delegated to Vice President Elias Jaua and Minister of Planning & Finance Jorge Giordani.

Cain: I'd Attack Iran if It 'Messes with Israel' 18 Jul 2011 Republican presidential candidate [sociopath] Herman Cain says he would attack Iran to prevent it from acquiring nuclear weapons or to respond to aggression against Israel. Asked if he agreed with former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton's contention that the "only realistic alternative... is to use force preemptively against Iran's nuclear weapons [sic] program" since diplomacy has failed, Mr. Cain said he did, with one caveat. "There would be some other pieces of information I would need before I gave that order, but I'm saying that would be Option B," Mr. Cain said during an interview with editors and reporters at The Washington Times.

Psycho alert: Tea party debt plan to go to vote in House 18 Jul 2011 The next step in the weeks-long saga over how to increase the government's borrowing cap is to let House tea party forces try it their way. A Republican "cut, cap and balance" plan set for a House vote Tuesday would condition a $2.4 trillion increase in the so-called debt limit on an immediate $100 billion-plus cut from next year's budget and adoption by Congress of a constitutional amendment to require a balanced budget.

Speculation mounts that Warren may run for Senate 18 Jul 2011 President Barack Obama's [insane, cowardly] decision not to pick Elizabeth Warren to head a new consumer protection agency is pumping up speculation that Warren might challenge Republican Sen. Scott Brown, a top Democratic target in 2012. And some Massachusetts Democrats say the president's decision came not a moment too soon. The liberal group Progressive Change Campaign Committee, which backed Warren to head the consumer protection agency, on Monday began a draft effort to persuade Warren to run for Senate.

California inmates on third week of hunger strike risk injury, death 18 Jul 2011 After nearly three weeks, more than 300 California inmates are still refusing to eat in what's become a long-running protest against conditions in prison isolation units. According to the federal receiver and Corrections Department officials, 338 inmates were still refusing food as of Sunday at 3 p.m. This included inmates at Calipatria, California Correctional Institute, Corcoran and Pelican Bay. Corrections spokeswoman Terry Thornton says the department has no plans to scrap policies that keep prison gang members in SHUs for indefinite stretches.

More polar bear cubs die as Arctic ice melts 18 Jul 2011 Polar bear cubs forced to swim long distances with their mothers as their icy Arctic habitat melts appear to have a higher mortality rate than cubs that didn't have to swim as far, a new study reports. Previous reports have noted individual animals swimming hundreds of miles (kilometers) to reach ice platforms or land, but this is one of the first to show these swims pose a greater risk to polar bear young.

13 deaths in Midwest tied to heat wave 18 Jul 2011 The heat was on Monday for millions of Americans from the Upper Midwest to Texas and Oklahoma, where roads buckled and poultry farmers deployed fans and watered rooftops to protect flocks. The National Weather Service put 18 states stretching from North Dakota to Texas and East to Ohio under a heat warning, watch or advisory. It said as many 13 deaths in the past week in the Midwest could be blamed on the effects of the heat. When humidity was factored in, the heat index made it feel as hot as 110 degrees in a broad swath of the nation.

Heat wave hardest on nation's poorest communities 18 Jul 2011 With much of the nation in the grip of a broiling heat wave, few people are hit as hard as the poor, and few places are poorer than the ramshackle communities along the Texas-Mexico border known as "colonias." The misery was widespread Monday, with the worst conditions blanketing a broad band from Texas to Minnesota and Dakotas. Seventeen states issued heat watches, warnings or advisories. And the heat index easily surpassed 100 degrees in many places: 126 in Newton, Iowa; 120 in Mitchell, S.D.; and 119 in Madison, Minn... In towns large and small, the withering heat was cruelest to those who could not afford air conditioning.

Tropical Storm Dora Expected to Reach Hurricane Strength 19 Jul 2011 Tropical storm Dora formed south of Guatemala on late Monday morning, forecasters said, and the storm is expected to reach hurricane strength by late Tuesday. Forecasters at the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) have been following the weather system since Saturday morning when it emerged as a low pressure system off the coast of Costa Rica, producing scattered thunderstorms over portions of Central America. It quickly became better organized on Sunday and Monday morning.

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