5: Have anti-terror laws gone too far?
Amnesty International studied the situation in 14 countries over two years, and concluded that European governments are increasingly restricting freedoms in disproportionate and discriminatory fashion through states of emergency, mass surveillance and so-called administrative measures.
France passed new survelliance laws after the Charlie Hebdo newspaper office shooting in January 2015.
After the Bataclan theatre attacks in November of the same year, a state of emergency was declared – and has been extended ever since.
And France is not alone. Amnesty International says European countries are “drawing inspiration from each other’s regressive counterterrorism measures”.
Hungary now gives its president the power to ban meetings, restrict movement and freeze assets in the event of a declared emergency.
Germany has given police the right to monitor non-EU citizens communicating with someone in Germany which the UN says unfairly targets foreigners.
But while attacks by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and similar armed groups have garnered the most media attention, and the greatest number of arrests under new laws, research by the European police agency, EUROPOL, indicates that attacks by separatist groups are far more common.
Aljazeera
4: This White Chicago Cop Isn’t Surprised His Department Is Accused of Routine Brutality
The feds last week accused Chicago cops of regularly using excessive force on citizens. Here’s what one white cop patrolling the city’s tough South Side is expecting under Donald Trump.
On Friday, as a sort of criminal justice swan song for Barack’s Obama administration, the feds unveiled a scathing report about policing in the president’s hometown of Chicago. Given the Windy City just saw its most violent year in decades—with over 750 people killed by gun violence in 2016—and was rocked by protests over police killings of people of color, the report’s conclusions didn’t exactly come as a shock. But it will be left to the Trump administration, and a Justice Department likely helmed by Alabama US Senator Jeff Sessions, to compel any changes in how Chicago cops treat their fellow citizens.Vice News
3: NOTORIOUS MERCENARY ERIK PRINCE IS ADVISING TRUMP FROM THE SHADOWS
ERIK PRINCE, AMERICA’S most notorious mercenary, is lurking in the shadows of the incoming Trump administration. A former senior U.S. official who has advised the Trump transition told The Intercept that Prince has been advising the team on matters related to intelligence and defense, including weighing in on candidates for the Defense and State departments. The official asked not to be identified because of a transition policy prohibiting discussion of confidential deliberations.
On election night, Prince’s latest wife, Stacy DeLuke, posted pictures from inside Trump’s campaign headquarters as Donald Trump and Mike Pence watched the returns come in, including a close shot of Pence and Trump with their families. “We know some people who worked closely with [Trump] on his campaign,” DeLuke wrote. “Waiting for the numbers to come in last night. It was well worth the wait!!!! #PresidentTrump2016.” Prince’s sister, billionaire Betsy DeVos, is Trump’s nominee for education secretary and Prince (and his mother) gave large sums of money to a Trump Super PAC.
The Intercept
2: 2016 hottest year ever recorded – and scientists say human activity to blame
2016 was the hottest year on record, setting a new high for the third year in a row, with scientists firmly putting the blame on human activities that drive climate change.
The final data for 2016 was released on Wednesday by the three key agencies – the UK Met Office and Nasa and Noaa in the US – and showed 16 of the 17 hottest years on record have been this century.
Direct temperature measurements stretch back to 1880, but scientific research indicates the world was last this warm about 115,000 years ago and that the planet has not experienced such high levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere for 4m years.
The Guardian
1: Chelsea Manning’s Attorneys: Obama’s Commutation Will Help Save Life of Jailed Army Whistleblower
In one of his final acts in office, President Obama shortened the sentences of 209 prisoners and pardoned 64 individuals on Tuesday. The list included Army whistleblower Chelsea Manning, who is now set to be freed on May 17, after Obama reduced her sentence from 35 years to seven. According to her attorneys, she is already the longest-held whistleblower in U.S. history. Manning leaked more than 700,000 classified files and videos to WikiLeaks about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and U.S. foreign policy. She has been subjected to long stretches of solitary confinement and denied medical treatment related to her gender identity. We speak with Nancy Hollander, Manning’s appellate attorney, and Chase Strangio of the ACLU, who represents Manning in a lawsuit against the Pentagon for denial of medical care related to her gender dysphoria.
Democracy Now
