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Bill Binney resigned from the NSA in October 2001, after 30 years with the agency where he was viewed as one of their best analysts: he quit because he believed that Bush-appointed leaders in the Agency had chosen to respond to the challenge of electronic communications by building out illegal, indiscriminate mass-surveillance programs that left the country vulnerable to terrorists while diverting billions to private contractors with political connections.

After his resignation, Binney and his fellow whistleblowers faced retaliation from the NSA, as the agency prevented him from getting work as a private intelligence contractor and eventually staged a guns-drawn dawn raid on his home.

Binney has been a sharp, articulate, deeply knowledgeable critic of mass electronic surveillance ever since, refusing to be intimidated by the NSA despite the risks to himself.

In "A Good American," a new documentary that goes into widespread release today, director Freidrich Moser tells Binney's story from his early days as an intelligence analyst during the Vietnam War to his service as a codebreaker during the Cold War to his visionary program for conducting electronic surveillance with an emphasis on privacy and the rule of law. Binney and his fellow whistleblowers tell the story of how General Michael Hayden, then head of the NSA, sidelined their proposals in favor of a multibillion-dollar boondoggle called Trailblazer, which collapsed without ever shipping -- and how Hayden and his team refused to allow NSA analysts to work in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, literally locking them out of the building while they plotted ways to shift the blame for intelligence failures and use the attacks to build private, well-funded permanent civil service empires.

Oliver Stone called it a "prequel to Snowden," and that's true in more ways than one. Snowden cited the persecution of Binney as part of his rationale for taking his concerns to the press, rather than NSA channels.

Moser's documentary is riveting, enraging, and beautifully crafted, and it tells an important story. You can watch it today.

A Good American

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A Good American: a documentary about Bill Binney, an NSA ... - Boing Boing

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Navigating the Many Offers of Free Tax Help New York Times The Internal Revenue Service continues to offer the Free File program online, do-it-yourself tax preparation software from a dozen commercial vendors to low- and moderate-income filers. (Generally, this refers to people who earn less than $64,000 ... This is how much it will cost you to do your own taxesSTLtoday.com all 32 news articles »

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Navigating the Many Offers of Free Tax Help - New York Times

Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt has asked congressional leaders to take action to protect Second Amendment rights of Social Security beneficiaries, according to a news release.

A group of 13 state attorneys general, including Schmidt, Wednesday urged congressional leaders to repeal an overreaching federal regulation that they said denies certain Social Security beneficiaries the right to keep and bear arms, according to the release.

In late December 2016, the Social Security Administration under then-President Obamas direction published a final rule that broadened a previously narrow prohibition for those adjudicated as a mental defective or who have been committed to a mental institution to include numerous individuals that Congress never intended to cover with this exclusion, such as program beneficiaries with representatives or alternate payees, according to the release.

This new rule allows the Social Security Administration to designate an individual a mental defective by its own discretion and relies heavily on overly broad definitions included in previous guidance from the U.S. Department of Justice, according to the release.

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13 attorneys general seek Second Amendment protections | Local ... - Ottawaherald.com

Britain will continue to help tackle Europe's migrant crisis after Brexit, Theresa May will tell EU leaders today.

The prime minister is expected to use one-to-one talks with fellow leaders in Malta to insist she wants a "new, positive and constructive" relationship with the EU while remaining a "reliable partner" after Brexit.

Defence will also be high on the agenda at the gathering in Malta's capital Valletta, and Mrs May is expected to tell her counterparts they must boost spending following her talks with Donald Trump on his attitude towards Nato.

The summit will be her first chance to discuss Brexit face-to-face since she set out her plans and MPs began considering the Bill allowing her to trigger Article 50.

She is expected to underline her belief in a "strong" EU, arguing that it is in the interests of the UK and wider world for the bloc to succeed.

Legislation being fast-tracked through Parliament is aimed at giving Mrs May permission to begin the formal process of Brexit by the end of March.

The main focus of the leaders gathered in Valletta will be measures to tackle the ongoing migrant crisis in the Mediterranean.

Downing Street said Mrs May, who was involved in efforts to address the problem as home secretary, will stress that it remains a big issue for her.

"During the discussions the Prime Minister will stress that migration has been one of her political priorities during her time in Government - and remains so," a spokesman said.

Mrs May will pledge her commitment to the "long-term" challenge both before Brexit and afterwards.

Her aims involve trying to prevent migrants heading to Europe in the first place by supporting refugees close to the homes they have been forced to flee and deterring economic migrants from attempting the dangerous crossing.

Mrs May's approach also involves returning those who arrive in Europe with no right to remain.

The prime minister, who last week became the first foreign leader to meet Mr Trump since he entered the White House, will update European leaders on his views on Nato.

Mrs May said she had secured confirmation that Mr Trump was "100% behind Nato" as she appeared alongside the president in the White House.

Mr Trump's criticism of the alliance in the past has alarmed Europe, and some on the continent also have deep concerns about the controversial tycoon's policies.

But Mrs May will say Mr Trump's comments to her about Nato underline the importance of defence and security cooperation.

She will also deliver the message that Nato members need to step up their spending on defence.

The UK and US are among a handful of Nato members to meet the pledge of spending 2% of GDP on defence.

Downing Street said the prime minister will use the gathering to tell her counterparts they need to deliver on their commitments so the "burden is more fairly shared".

The Prime Minister is only expected to attend the first part of the summit in Malta, with leaders of the other 27 EU nations continuing their talks on Friday afternoon without her as they consider Brexit and the future of the bloc.

Last updated Fri 3 Feb 2017

The European Union summit will see leaders discuss the migrant crisis between Italy and Libya, defence and Nato, and Donald Trump.

Both countries have reached a deal in an effort to curb the number of migrants leaving Libya for European shores.

See the original post:
May to discuss migrant crisis and defence with EU leaders - ITV News

Theresa May will promise that UK efforts to tackle Europe's migrant crisis will continue after Brexit as she attempts to build alliances ahead of divorce talks with Brussels.

The Prime Minister will promise that the UK will remain a "reliable partner" and will use one-to-one talks with fellow leaders to insist she wants a "new, positive and constructive" relationship with the EU after Brexit, said Downing Street.

But she will also tell her counterparts that they must boost defence spending following her talks with Donald Trump on Washington's attitude towards Nato.

Mrs May is expected to use the gathering in Malta's capital Valletta to hold one-to-one talks with a series of EU leaders.

This will be her first chance to discuss Brexit face-to-face since she set out her plans and MPs began considering the Bill allowing her to trigger Article 50.

She is expected to underline her belief in a "strong" EU, arguing that it is in the interests of the UK and wider world for the bloc to succeed.

Legislation being fast-tracked through Parliament is aimed at giving Mrs May permission to begin the formal process of Brexit by the end of March.

The main focus of the leaders gathered in Valletta will be measures to tackle the ongoing migrant crisis in the Mediterranean.

Downing Street said Mrs May, who was involved in efforts to address the problem as home secretary, will stress that it remains a big issue for her.

"During the discussions the Prime Minister will stress that migration has been one of her political priorities during her time in Government - and remains so," a spokesman said.

Mrs May will pledge her commitment to the "long-term" challenge both before Brexit and afterwards.

Her aims involve trying to prevent migrants heading to Europe in the first place by supporting refugees close to the homes they have been forced to flee and deterring economic migrants from attempting the dangerous crossing.

Mrs May's approach also involves returning those who arrive in Europe with no right to remain.

The Prime Minister, who last week became the first foreign leader to meet Mr Trump since he entered the White House, will update European leaders on his views on Nato.

Mrs May said she had secured confirmation that Mr Trump was "100% behind Nato" as she appeared alongside the president in the White House.

Mr Trump's criticism of the alliance in the past has alarmed Europe, and some on the continent also have deep concerns about the controversial tycoon's policies.

But Mrs May will say Mr Trump's comments to her about Nato underline the importance of defence and security cooperation.

She will also deliver the message that Nato members need to step up their spending on defence.

The UK and US are among a handful of Nato members to meet the pledge of spending 2% of GDP on defence.

Downing Street said the Prime Minister will use the gathering to tell her counterparts they need to deliver on their commitments so the "burden is more fairly shared".

The Prime Minister is only expected to attend the first part of the summit in Malta, with leaders of the other 27 EU nations continuing their talks on Friday afternoon without her as they consider Brexit and the future of the bloc.

Go here to read the rest:
Theresa May: UK will still help tackle Europe's migrant crisis after Brexit - East Lothian Courier