[ Praise for Steven Salaita ]( http://www.kibush.co.il/show_file.asp?num=66001 ) from other teachers and from his students. Salaita was offered a job by the University of Illinois, which treacherously rescinded the offer a couple of weeks before the start of the school year.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#11_September_2014_%28Praise_for_Steven_Salaita%29

Former Israeli intelligence officials say [ Israel should agree to the Arab peace plan ]( http://www.kibush.co.il/show_file.asp?num=65998 ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#11_September_2014_%28Former_Israeli_officials_back_peace_plan%29

An Atheist US Air Force officer is [ suing for permission to take his oath of service without citing a deity ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/10/us-air-force-sergeant-reenlist-god-oath ) — something that the Air Force permitted until a year ago.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#11_September_2014_%28Atheist_US_Air_Force_officer_is_suing%29

The Secretary of Homeland Security says [ there is no reason to think ISIS wants to attack the US ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/10/jeh-johnson-dhs-chief-no-information-isis-attack-us-homeland ) . Don't be taken in by the exaggeration of politicians.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#11_September_2014_%28No_reason_to_think_ISIS_wants_to_attack_US%29

Inability to buy newsprint is [ forcing some Venezuelan newspapers to close ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/10/venezuela-el-impulso-stop-printing ) . It takes dollars to buy imported paper, and how many bolivares you have to pay for each dollar depends on your level of privilege.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#11_September_2014_%28Inability_to_buy_newsprint%29

As part of the modern American witch hunt, a woman was convicted of endangering a fetus because [ she took methadone prescribed by her doctor ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/10/new-jersey-mother-methadone-child-abuse-register ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#11_September_2014_%28The_modern_American_witch_hunt%29

12,000 wounded people in Gaza [ struggle to find medical treatment in the remaining hospitals ]( http://www.afp.com/en/node/2785846 ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#11_September_2014_%28Wounded_in_Gaza_struggle_to_find_medical_treatment%29

Israel has [ imprisoned a retired Palestinian professor ]( http://samidoun.ca/2014/09/action-alert-take-action-for-the-immediate-release-of-dr-yousef-abdul-haq/ ) , Yousef Abdul Haq, without charges. Abdul Haq has been active in organizing nonviolent resistance to the occupation. It's not the first time he has been imprisoned without charges.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#11_September_2014_%28Israel_imprisoned_retired_Palestinian_professor%29

The new plan for Detroit's water supply [ eliminates public accountability and paves the way towards future privatization ]( http://www.commondreams.org/views/2014/09/10/detroits-new-regional-water-authority-prelude-privatization ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#11_September_2014_%28New_plan_for_Detroit%27s_water_supply%29

Obama is trying to [ stretch presidential authority to cover air attacks anywhere in the world ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/11/obama-isis-syria-air-strikes-legal-argument ) . This is a dangerous precedent. Obama [ calls ISIS a "terrorist group" ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/11/barack-obama-tv-speech-on-isis-full-text ) , but I think that term is misleading. ISIS does not seem to have carried out any terrorist attacks against civilians. It is murderous and oppressive, but in a different form. I would call it a gang army. They have been [ known for many years in the eastern Congo ]( https://stallman.org/archives/2008-sep-dec.html#07%20November%202008%20%28War%20in%20the%20Congo%29 ) and other parts of Africa. Obama says he will employ the tactic of drone assassination against ISIS because [ it has been so successful in Yemen ]( https://stallman.org/archives/2014-mar-jun.html#10_March_2014_%28Drone_attacks_in_Yemen_stir_up_terror_and_hatred%29 ) and [ Somalia ]( https://stallman.org/archives/2013-nov-feb.html#28_January_2014_%28US_bomb_attack_in_Somalia%29 ) . The Islamist militias in those countries don't seem to have been defeated by years of drone assassinations. The current round of air strikes against ISIS don't pose the same problems because they take the form of close air support in field battles. It is easy to distinguish soldiers with heavy weapons from civilians, so mistakes are unlikely. If some civilians are hit, their relatives will understand that battle zones are dangerous places to be. But it appears that Obama expects the fight against ISIS to develop into an assassination campaign. If it does, it will generate support for ISIS.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#11_September_2014_%28Obama_trying_to_stretch_presidential_authority%29

The [ ban on chlorofluorocarbons ]( http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/sep/10/ozone-layer-recovery-report-shows ) is starting to reverse the former growth of the ozone hole.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#12_September_2014_%28Reversal_of_ozone_hole_growth%29

[ How Hillary Clinton's State Department Sold Fracking to the World ]( http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/sep/10/how-hillary-clintons-state-department-sold-fracking-to-the-world ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#12_September_2014_%28Clintons_push_for_fracking%29

Everyone: [ call on Google, Microsoft and others ]( http://forecastthefacts.org/disruptdenial/ ) to stop supporting global heating denialists.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#12_September_2014_%28Urgent%3A_Stop_funding_global_heating_denial%29

Jabhat al-Nusra [ released the 45 Fijian peacekeepers ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/11/jabhat-al-nusra-releases-hostages-fijian-syria ) that it took prisoner two weeks ago. The job of these peacekeepers was to separate Syrian and Israeli forces. I think that no forces currently separate al-Nusra from the Israeli border.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#12_September_2014_%28Fijian_peacekeepers_released%29

In Pennsylvania, fracking causes illness in [ 40% of the households within 1km of a frackwell ]( http://www.commondreams.org/news/2014/09/10/research-shows-frightening-correlation-between-fracking-and-rates-illness ) . Fracking [ probably contributes even more to global heating than coal ]( https://www.stallman.org/archives/2014-mar-jun.html#17_April_2014_(Fracking_emmissions_much_worse_than_predicted) ) . Fracking should be banned, so that as we cut down coal mining, it is not replaced by another fossil fuel.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#12_September_2014_%28Illness_caused_by_fracking%29

The UN has [ allowed corporations' interests to pervade the climate summits ]( http://www.commondreams.org/news/2014/09/10/grassroots-groups-denounce-corporate-takeover-un-climate-summit ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#12_September_2014_%28Corporations_at_climate_summits%29

A Florida teacher is risking dismissal by [ refusing to spend a week administering a standardized computerized test ]( http://www.commondreams.org/news/2014/09/10/putting-job-risk-kindergarten-teacher-refuses-administer-standardized-test ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#12_September_2014_%28Teacher_risks_dismissal_for_kids%29

The US has [ declined to show whatever evidence it has ]( http://www.commondreams.org/views/2014/09/10/malaysia-airlines-whodunnit-still-mystery ) about who shot down flight MA-17. I find it implausible anyone intentionally fired at an airliner. Thus I believe that rebels fired at what they thought was a Ukrainian government plane.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#12_September_2014_%28US_evidence_about_flight_MA-17%29

Fear of Ebola is [ making Sierra Leone life crazy ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/11/ebola-virus-sierra-leone ) . In Liberia, MSF's treatment center is [ full ]( http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/sep/11/ebola-treatment-centre-liberia ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#12_September_2014_%28Fear_of_Ebola_in_Sierra_Leone%29

43 veterans of Israel's military intelligence (equivalent to the NSA in the US) [ denounced their work as a system of oppression and political manipulation ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/12/israeli-intelligence-reservists-refuse-serve-palestinian-territories ) rather than a matter of national security. The [ full text ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/12/israeli-intelligence-veterans-letter-netanyahu-military-chiefs ) of their letter. Quotes from their personal testimonies: The fact people were innocent was not at all relevant.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#12_September_2014_%28Israeli_intel_vets_speak_out%29

Turkey has [ increased internet censorship ]( http://www.euronews.com/2014/09/12/turkish-president-erdogan-tightens-grip-on-internet/ ) . Internet censorship was one of the early signs that Erdogan was going to attack human rights in Turkey.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28Turkey_has_increased_internet_censorship%29

Global heating effects threaten agriculture, and the more diverse agriculture is, the better it can withstand those effects. Big agribusiness monoculture is [ driving agriculture in the wrong direction ]( http://www.commondreams.org/views/2014/09/11/safety-diversity-adapting-unpredictable-climate-change ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28Global_heating_effects_threaten_agriculture%29

A Russian military vehicle was [ spotted in Ukraine ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/12/armoured-russian-vehicle-inside-ukraine ) . The soldiers running it said they were Russian mercenaries. Then they repainted it to disguise its origin.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28Russian_military_vehicle_spotted_in_Ukraine%29

Russia sent [ another convoy of "humanitarian aid" into Ukraine ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/13/vladimir-putin-wants-destroy-ukraine-says-arseny-yetseniuk ) without Red Cross inspection. I am sure they are carrying ammunition. If not, Putin would have had the Red Cross inspect them so he could refute such accusations.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28Russia_sent_another_convoy_of_humanitarian_aid%29

Presenting a feasible program of investment to [ reduce US greenhouse gas emissions by 40% by 2030 ]( http://www.bostonreview.net/forum/robert-pollin-build-green-economy ) . It's doable, but the fossil fuel companies don't want it to be done. They intend to to force us to stay on track to global catastrophe.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28Reducing_US_greenhouse_gas_emissions%29

Israeli Military Orders [ Criminal Investigations into Gaza Attacks ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/10/israeli-military-criminal-investigations-gaza-attacks ) . This is a promising development if they do an honest job, but I fear its purpose is only to deflect criticism.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28Criminal_Investigations_into_Gaza_Attacks%29

Australia's supreme court placed [ constitutional limits on imprisonment of asylum seekers ]( http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/sep/11/high-court-verdict-spells-the-end-for-australian-immigration-detention-as-we-know-it ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28Constitutional_limits_on_imprisonment_of_asylum_seekers%29

In Boston: rally at 3pm on Oct 1, at WGBH headquarters (1 Guest St), to [ remove a Koch brother from the WGBH board ]( http://act.forecastthefacts.org/survey/Koch_wgbh_rsvp_survey14 ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28Urgent%3A_Remove_Koch_brother_from_WGBH_board%29

Apple is redesigning iThings to help companies communicate users' personal data from one to another, and [ enable them to manipulate users better ]( http://www.theguardian.com/media-network/media-network-blog/2014/sep/11/apple-ios8-iphone6-iwatch-brands ) . This page shows the perverse viewpoint of someone who is on the companies' side and presents this malice as an advance. They are also now designed to [ make it harder for victims to keep control of their budgets ]( http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/oliver-burkeman-column/2014/sep/11/apple-pay-bank-account-iphone-payment-technology ) . It is a truism that "if you don't pay, you're the product." But now we see that, with proprietary software, you are often the product even if you do pay.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28Apple_redesigning_iThings%29

Almost 250 teachers at Boston University have [ called on the university to divest from fossil fuel companies ]( http://www.commondreams.org/news/2014/09/11/wake-call-sounded-climate-university-faculty-launch-largest-divestment-effort-date ) . It is clear that conservation measures in Boston University itself will have only a tiny influence on world fossil fuel consumption. In a market system, if A decides not to buy some commodity, the price goes down and B or C buys more. We need to change the parameters of the system itself. The direct financial effect of divestment by Boston University alone would also be small, but this approach has a better chance to turn into a movement by many universities, and that could intern influence policies to change the parameters.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28Divest_from_fossil_fuel_companies%29

It appears that the NSA [ intercepted the Thinkpad keyboard that Andrea Shepard, a Tor developer in Seattle, had ordered from Amazon ]( http://www.storyleak.com/tor-developer-fears-nsa-interception-amazon-purchase/ ) . Presumably this was to sabotage it. I wonder if people have studied this keyboard to see what the NSA changed. If you are any sort of activist, don't order a computer by mail yourself. Have a friend order it, after discussing the plan in person with no mobile phones around.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28NSA_interception_of_mail_packages%29

People have called Belarus "Europe's last dictatorship", but [ Russia has more or less become equal to it ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/12/belarus-no-longer-europe-last-dictatorship ) . Regardless of what organizations it may join, Azerbaijan is not in Europe. It is in the Middle East.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28Dictatorship_in_Russia%29

The University of Sydney [ disinvited two Sri Lankan NGOs from an international human rights event ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/12/sydney-university-bows-to-request-from-sri-lankan-military-and-police ) , caving to pressure from Sri Lanka's brutal government.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28University_of_Sydney_disinvites_NGOs%29

[ Seven Key Points from Obama's Isis Speech And What They Actually Mean ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/11/obama-isis-speech-problems-key-points-mean ) . I disagree with the article on the conclusion of the first point. If it's a question of fighting threats to the US, it does not follow that the US should only fight the worst one. But this is a side issue, since it's relevant only if you believe that the most important thing about ISIS is whether it threatens the US directly. The second point's conclusion is simply wrong. There is nothing "preventive" about responding to a continuing armed attack. However, the other five points are valid.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28Key_points_from_Obamas_Isis_speech%29

Citing BP for "gross negligence" hardly did justice to the company's [ persistent pattern of safety violations around the world ]( http://us4.campaign-archive1.com/?u=33e4ec877eed6a43863a4a92e&id=ada8fe3866&e=8283eff9b8 ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28Citing_BP_for_gross_negligence%29

San Diego's "school police" has [ acquired a mine-resistant armored vehicle ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/11/san-diego-school-police-mrap-armored-carrier ) . They must think students will riot against whatever follows the [ Common Core ]( https://stallman.org/archives/2013-may-aug.html#20_August_2013_(Education_Standards) ) and might turn to improvised explosive devices.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#13_September_2014_%28School_police_get_armored_vehicle%29

The UK government is [ trying to set up privatizations so that they are too expensive to cancel ]( http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/sep/11/poison-pill-probation-contracts-moj-serco-g4s ) . They act like raiders who have taken control of the state and intend to destroy as much as they can before they are chased out. The just response would be to impose a 200% tax on those businesses, or make it a crime to continue to exercise such a contract.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#14_September_2014_%28Expensive_UK_privatizations%29

[ Scientist Who Identified Ebola Virus Calls for "Quasi-Military Intervention" ]( http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/sep/11/scientist-identified-ebola-quasi-military-intervention-peter-piot ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#14_September_2014_%28Ebola_intervention%29

[ Stopping Climate Meltdown Needs the Courage That Saved the Ozone Layer ]( http://www.theguardian.com/environment/georgemonbiot/2014/sep/11/stopping-climate-meltdown-needs-the-political-courage-that-saved-the-ozone-layer ) . That means daring to tell powerful businesses to drop dead rather than let them kill us.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#14_September_2014_%28The_courage_that_saved_the_ozone_layer%29

The UN General Assembly [ voted to start negotiations ]( http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2014/09/10/un-bankruptcy-vote-could-stop-vulture-funds ) on a treaty to allow states to get rid of oppressive debt. The US was among 10 countries that voted against. Shame on you, Obama.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#14_September_2014_%28UNs_vote_on_stopping_oppressive_debt%29

US citizens: [ call on your senators ]( https://secure3.convio.net/fww/site/Advocacy?pagename=homepage&page=UserAction&id=1605&autologin=true ) to preserve the US law requiring food to be labeled by the country of origin.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#14_September_2014_%28Urgent%3A_Preserve_food_labeling_law%29

Most deforestation on Earth is done commercially, and [ half of it is done to get products to sell to the wealthy countries ]( http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2014/sep/11/tropical-forests-illegally-destroyed-commercial-agriculture ) . Deforestation in the Amazon [ jumped by almost 1/3 last year ]( http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/sep/11/amazon-deforestation-jumps ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#14_September_2014_%28Deforestation%29

[ This Is the Third World War — And This Time We Are on the Fringes ]( http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/belief/2014/sep/12/this-third-world-war-this-time-we-on-fringes ) . I think there is some truth in this, but it's not entirely true. Conflict between Shi'ites and Sunnis, like conflict between Catholics and Orthodox and Muslims in the former Yugoslavia, is not inevitable. It is stimulated or provoked by political parties that expect short-term gain, and many of them could theoretically be convinced to stop.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#14_September_2014_%28War%29

Zoe Quinn is the victim of a campaign of false criticism that was [ organized dishonestly from the beginning by people that wanted to do her harm ]( http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/sep/12/zoe-quinn-gamergate-online-hate-mobs-depression-quest ) . You can see something similar though smaller in the attacks against me that are posted in some forums. They not only make strained criticism, they also misrepresent the free software movement drastically (as you can see for yourself by comparing their statements with gnu.org).
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#14_September_2014_%28Campaigns_of_false_criticism%29

The leader of a gun control protest in Chicago is receiving [ death threats from US gun nuts, who call him a "terrorist" ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/12/chicago-priest-receives-death-threats-gun-control-rally-outside-store ) . He isn't one, but they and their threats are coming pretty close.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#14_September_2014_%28Gun_control_activist_threatened%29

A relationship where the woman says she is scared of the man [ should not be considered "normal" ]( http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/sep/12/oscar-pistorius-reeva-steenkamp-murder-normal-relationship ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#14_September_2014_%28Being_scared_of_partner_not_normal%29

China rents pandas to zoos for a lot of money as part of a general system of [ pressuring countries for trade advantage ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/13/edinburgh-zoo-pandas-tian-tian-china-pandanomics-birth-cub ) . Meanwhile, the habitat for wild pandas is being wiped out.
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#15_September_2014_%28China_rents_pandas_to_zoos%29

The Koch brothers are trying to [ buy control over universities' choice of professors, for political purposes ]( http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/12/koch-brothers-sought-say-academic-hiring-university-donation ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#15_September_2014_%28Universities%27_choice_of_professors%29

A Republican filibuster killed the constitutional amendment to [ stop companies from buying elections for Republicans ]( http://m.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2014/0911/Is-money-still-speech-Yes-as-constitutional-amendment-bid-fails-in-Senate ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#15_September_2014_%28Republican_filibuster%29

US citizens: call on Congress to remove the requirement for [ NIST to consult the NSA specially about encryption standards ]( http://act.credoaction.com/sign/nsa_backdoor ) .
Ссылка: https://stallman.org/archives/2014-jul-oct.html#15_September_2014_%28Urgent%3A_Encryption_standards%29