• Category Archives News and Politics

  • Mitt Romney vows to ban pornography by installing a filter on every U.S. PC

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Before he was the presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney was just a guy giving a speech, trying to woo conservative voters. In 2007 Romney exposed some of his more extreme positions while speaking during a town hall meeting in Ottumwa, Iowa at the Hotel Ottuma. One such position which Mitt rarely discloses now is his deep desire to make it mandatory for pornography filters to be added to all new computers entering The United States.

    In specific Romney said, “I want to make sure every new computer sold in this country, after I’m president, has installed on it a filter to block all pornography.” He went on to say that he would do it for the children. The full video is in the left-hand margin of this article.

    Full article: http://www.examiner.com/article/mitt-romney-vows-to-ban-pornography-by-installing-a-filter-on-every-u-s-pc


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  • Ron Paul Still Not Endorsing Mitt Romney, Refusing to Withdraw From Race

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul says he still hasn’t made up his mind whether to endorse presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney. This is causing considerable angst among Romney supporters and making it more difficult for Romney to present a united front at the Republican National Convention in Tampa next month.

    “I have not made a decision” about backing Romney, Paul told Fox Business News.

    Many Paul supporters are libertarians who don’t consider Romney sufficiently conservative, and an endorsement by Paul could be seen by them as an act of betrayal.

    Paul, who is retiring as a GOP representative from Texas, technically remains in the presidential race even though Romney has locked up the nomination. This refusal to withdraw is causing some hard feelings among party regulars, many of whom don’t want Paul to be given a speaking slot at the convention.

    Paul’s refusal to endorse Romney is a contrast to his son Rand, a U.S. senator and conservative favorite from Kentucky, who has admitted that his father has no chance to win the GOP nomination and has backed Romney.

    Another source of concern among establishment Republicans is the fact that Paul supporters and libertarian voters are planning a series of rallies, speeches, and concerts in and around Tampa in the days leading up to the convention to draw attention to their views and celebrate Paul’s career. The concern is that many of them will get stirred up and stage protests against the GOP or Romney if Paul and his delegates aren’t treated with respect or if their views are ignored in the GOP platform.

    Full article: http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/Ken-Walshs-Washington/2012/07/23/ron-paul-still-not-endorsing-mitt-romney-refusing-to-withdraw-from-race


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  • Super-Silent Owl Drone Will Spy on You Without You Ever Noticing

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    For spy tools, drones are pretty easy to spot. And hear, because they’re as loud as a gut-busting rock concert. But now the intelligence community’s research division, Iarpa, plans to start designing a silent drone inspired by quiet, creeping, flying owls.

    Iarpa has reportedly awarded a $4.8 million contract to Connecticut firm D-Star Engineering to develop the ultra-quiet drone, Aviation Week reports. It’s the next step in developing a workable drone as part of the agency’s Great Horned Owl Program, which the agency hopes will let the military collect intelligence “without anyone knowing you are there,” (.pdf) according to an agency briefing.

    Sound, after all, is the number one signature “that gives away the location of low-altitude UAVs and gives away their presence.” Which sort of defeats the point of having a secret surveillance eye in the sky. In some cases, you might want people to know you’re watching. At other times, you want to sneak up quietly.

    But it’s hard to do without sacrificing payload. The added weight of sensors, and the ability to operate for longer periods, comes with trading out stealthiness. Drones powered by batteries: They’re quiet, but can’t stay in the air for long. Then there’s the added noise caused by airflow generated from propellers, and noise from gasoline or diesel engines (not counting batteries), with their moving pistons, turbofan and gears.

    Iarpa wants to keep these efficent and relatively noisy engines for normal flight. But when the drone needs to be stealthy, its operator would switch to battery power, like a hybrid car.

    Full article: http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2012/07/owl/


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