Native Americans Take Lead in Tar Sands Resistance

Native American tribes in the United States have taken the lead in opposing the expansion of the Athabasca Tar Sands in Alberta, Canada, engaging in civil disobedience to the point of arrest and attempting to physically block shipments of construction equipment from passing through their native lands.

Revised U.S. Stance on Marijuana Will Be Felt Beyond Borders

The U.S. Justice Department on Thursday issued surprise guidance directing its attorneys not to sue states that have moved to decriminalise the recreational use of marijuana, so long as those states implement strict regulatory regimes.

Argentina Seeks to Restructure Debt Held by Vulture Funds

As a sign of Argentina’s willingness to repay its bondholders, President Cristina Fernández introduced a bill for a new swap of the foreign debt held by “holdout” creditors who refused earlier restructurings after the country’s late 2001 default.

U.S. Executives’ Pay on “Inexorable Upward Climb”

Three years after the passage of landmark legislation aimed at strengthening regulation of major U.S. companies, one of the most criticised disparities characterising today's corporate culture – the outsized compensation offered to top executives – continues to grow.

U.S. Court Ruling Boosts Vulture Funds at Developing World’s Expense

A recent U.S. court ruling over a fight between Argentina and its creditors on Wall Street will increase global poverty by making it easier for "vulture funds" to seize the assets of indebted nations, according to anti-debt campaigners who are urging the U.S. government to overturn the decision.

New York’s Stop and Frisk Tactic Leaves Lasting Mark

A colourful mural occupies the full left side facade of a three-storey house on the corner of Irving and Gates Avenue in the Brooklyn neighbourhood of Bushwick. It depicts a group of youths taking cellphone footage of an arrest scene. Above it, a message reads, "You have the right to watch and film police activities."

U.N.’s New Phone Network Vulnerable to Surveillance

The U.S. National Security Agency's (NSA) surveillance and telephone data collection programme has come under heavy fire for violating privacy laws, even as the U.N.'s new telephone network appears vulnerable to hackers and eavesdroppers.

Q&A: Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood Is Not Going Away

Almost 1,000 Egyptians have died, according to official count, since Aug. 14 when Egypt's armed forces began cracking down on Muslim Brotherhood-led protests against the military ouster of President Mohamed Morsi. That number well exceeds the 846 people officials say died during the 18 days of protests that ended Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule in January 2011.

ACLU Reveals FBI Hacking Contractors

James Bimen Associates of Virginia and Harris Corporation of Florida have contracts with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to hack into computers and phones of surveillance targets, according to Chris Soghoian, principal technologist at the American Civil Liberties Union's Speech, Privacy and Technology Project.

Eavesdropping on the Whole World

How do U.S. intelligence agencies eavesdrop on the whole world? The ideal place to tap trans-border telecommunications is undersea cables that carry an estimated 90 percent of international voice traffic.

U.S. Selling Cluster Bombs Worth 641 Million to Saudi Arabia

Arms control advocates are decrying a new U.S. Department of Defence announcement that it will be building and selling 1,300 cluster bombs to Saudi Arabia, worth some 641 million dollars.

Glimmerglass Taps Undersea Cables for Spy Agencies

Glimmerglass, a northern California company that sells optical fibre technology, offers government agencies a software product called "CyberSweep" to intercept signals on undersea cables.

U.S. Major Holdout on Landmark Maritime Labour Convention

A landmark international agreement on labour standards for seafarers came into effect this week, marking the first comprehensive international effort aimed at ensuring safe and decent working conditions for the world’s 1.5 million-plus maritime labourers.

Washington’s Worries Grow Over Saudi Ties

As the administration of President Barack Obama continues wrestling with how to react to the military coup in Egypt and its bloody aftermath, officials and independent analysts are increasingly worried about the crisis's effect on U.S. ties with Saudi Arabia.

Spying Scandal Engulfs Other U.S. Agencies

Earlier this month, Reuters revealed that a special division within the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has been using intelligence intercepts, wiretaps, informants and a mass database of telephone records to secretly identify targets for drug enforcement actions.

Manning Supporters Vow to Fight 35-Year Sentence

Bradley Manning, the army private whose leaks of classified information and subsequent prosecution have been the subject of fierce international debate for over three years, was sentenced to 35 years in military prison Wednesday, but his legal team and supporters say they will fight the sentence.

More Countries Turn to Faltering U.S. Prison Privatisation Model

Countries in nearly every region of the world are continuing to turn to a U.S.-led model of prison privatisation despite mounting evidence that such systems are often neither cost-efficient nor able to provide adequate services.

U.S. Task Force Urges Climate Change Preparations

The United States government is recommending new preparations aimed at protecting vulnerable communities from climate change-related disasters, a year after a major hurricane devastated swaths of the country’s East Coast.

The Role of the State in Developing Countries under Attack from New FTAs

Two new trade agreements involving the two economic giants, the United States and the European Union, are leading a charge against the role of the state in the economy of developing countries.

Critics Push to Stall New Obama “Social Cost of Carbon” Calculations

The U.S. Department of Energy has announced it is accepting a petition from a conservative advocacy group critical of a recent substantial increase to official calculations of the so-called “social cost of carbon”.

New U.S. Military Anti-Assault Measures Deemed Insufficient

The U.S. secretary of defence has unveiled a series of new directives aimed at cracking down on an epidemic of sexual assaults in the armed forces, an issue that has seized the very top levels of the military brass in recent months.