Today's News: March 01, 2018

World News

Vladimir Putin unveils new nuclear weapons systems
Al Jazeera – Russian President Vladimir Putin has revealed new nuclear weapons he said could hit any target around the globe with little chance of interception.
Putin warned during his annual state of the nation speech on Thursday that an attack on Russia or any of its allies would elicit an immediate response from Moscow.
>> Related: Putin on new US nuclear stance: If attacked, Russia will use nukes

US threatens sanctions as Iraq eyes Russia’s S-400 missile system
RT – Having suffered two decades of US-led bombing campaigns, terrorist insurgency and sectarian violence, Iraq is now trying to protect its airspace. But the US threatens to slap it with sanctions if it buys Russian missile systems.

Far-right French politician Le Pen charged over grim ISIL photos
Al Jazeera – French authorities have filed preliminary charges against far-right politician Marine Le Pen on Thursday for the “distribution of violent images” on social media website Twitter.

U.S. News, Politics & Government

In A Landslide Victory The Strongest Anti-NDAA Bill In America Passes Out Of The Idaho House of Representatives
Activist Post – In a landslide victory, the Restoring Constitutional Governance Act, H473 passed out of the Idaho House of Representatives on Monday, 2/26/2018 with a final vote of 63-4-3. This legislation is the strongest in the nation as it explicitly prohibits the laws of war from being used on non-soldiers in Idaho, and Idaho citizens anywhere, and will punish any person, including federal or international agents, who attempts to utilize those powers.
Introduced by State Rep. Bryan Zollinger, H473 would ban the state of Idaho from enforcing sections 1021 and 1022 of the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act. These sections purport to give authority to the federal government to indefinitely detain anyone, anywhere – without charge or trial. This bill also covers indefinite detention without due process authorized under “any similar law or authority enacted or claimed by Congress or the President.”

Kroger Raises Age Limits on Gun Sales, Joining Walmart and Dick’s
New York Times – The Kroger Company will stop selling guns to customers under the age of 21, the grocery store chain said Thursday, joining two other major retailers who have raised age limits after last month’s school shooting in Florida.

Hope Hicks to Leave Post as White House Communications Director
New York Times – Hope Hicks, President Trump’s communications director and one of his longest-serving advisers, said Wednesday that she planned to leave the White House in the next few weeks.

Senate panel will hold March 14 hearing on lapses surrounding Parkland tragedy
Washington Post – A Senate committee this month will examine law enforcement breakdowns surrounding the school shooting in Parkland, Fla. Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said Thursday that the panel will hold a March 14 hearing to examine the role of federal and local authorities, as well as social-media companies, not preventing the attack.

US Prosecutors Charge Man for Sending Hoax Threat Letter to Trump Jr. – Reports
Sputnik – The letter, addressed to Donald Trump Jr., was opened by Vanessa Trump, wife of Donald Trump Jr. She was hospitalized after opening it on Feb. 12.
US Federal prosecutors have charged Daniel Frisiello, 24, of Beverly, Massachusetts, with two criminal counts for sending a series of threatening letters to Donald Trump Jr. The charges include mailing a threat to injure a person and false information and hoaxes to at least five addresses around the United States, according to the prosecutor’s office.

Christian College wins battle against contraceptive mandate
Activist Post – A federal district court ended a lengthy legal battle over the Obama-era contraceptive mandate last week, ruling that the government cannot force Wheaton College to provide birth control.
According to the decision, the judge ruled that the school “is entitled to a permanent injunction” after carefully reviewing the briefs submitted by all parties.

Economy & Business

Trump says U.S. to impose steel, aluminum tariffs next week
Reuters – U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday the United States will impose tariffs of 25 percent on steel imports and 10 percent on imported aluminum next week.
>> Related: Wall Street slips after Trump announces import tariffs

Energy & Environment

UK Weather: England is put on snow red alert
Daily Mail – Britain is facing a serious flooding threat as Storm Emma batters the coast after sub-zero weather, icy blasts and ‘blizzard-like’ conditions left drivers stranded for more than 13 hours and airport passengers stuck overnight. The Met Office has put England under an unprecedented red warning for snow, amid concerns that up to 1ft 8in could fall in the South West. At Glasgow Airport, British Red Cross workers provided blankets for stranded people.

Science & Technology

DeepMind AI is learning to understand ‘thoughts’ of others
DailyMail – A new artificial intelligence that is learning to understand the ‘thoughts’ of others has been built by Google-owned research firm DeepMind. The software is capable of predicting what other AIs will do, and can even understand whether they hold ‘false beliefs’ about the world around them. DeepMind reports its bot can now pass a key psychological test that most children only develop the skills for at around age four.

New Orleans Residents Used As Secret Test Subjects For Pre-Crime Police Technology
The Daily Sheeple – Now, in an explosive report from The Verge, reporter Ali Winston details how innocent residents of New Orleans might have been swept up in a dragnet of data collection without their knowledge. According to Winston, the private global data collection and analysis corporation, Palantir Technologies, helped launch a secret software program in 2012 with New Orleans police to track connections between gang members. As Winston rightly highlights, Palantir was founded by the CIA’s venture capital firm, making the current findings exponentially worse for those who value civil liberties. Moreover, Winston documents the lengths that the partnership went to cover up the program’s disclosure, even to city council members.

Rental Cars To Use Facial Recognition To Spy On Your Vacation
Activist Post – Five days ago, IDEMIA announced their plan to install facial recognition cameras in rental vehicles. IDEMIA and Omoove are combining forces to spy on car renters everywhere.

Health

Are Krill Oil Benefits Even Better than Fish Oil Benefits?
Dr. Axe – Looking to shed a few pounds, improve your skin or keep your brain sharp? You may want to consider taking krill oil. High in both omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants, the potential krill oil benefits are pretty impressive. Krill oil is a supplement extracted from a species of Antarctic krill, which is a small, shrimp-like crustacean found in the Southern Ocean. Situated at the very bottom of the food chain, krill feed primarily on phytoplankton, or microscopic marine algae.
Krill oil contains a highly concentrated amount of omega-3 fatty acids, which have been linked to an extensive list of health benefits, from reduced inflammation to a decreased risk of chronic disease. (1) In addition to omega-3 fatty acids, krill oil also contains phospholipid-derived fatty acids as well as astaxanthin, a potent carotenoid revered for its antioxidant properties.
Krill Oil Benefits:

Fights Inflammation
Improves Heart Health
Keeps Skin Glowing
Benefits Brain Health
Supports Strong Bones and Joints
May Be Associated with Reduced Cancer Risk
Aids in Weight Loss

Top 6 Essential Oils for Cough
Dr. Axe – There are several essential oils for cough that have antispasmodic, expectorant, antiviral and antibacterial properties. Like my recommended essential oils for colds, these oils serve as a safe and effective way to get rid of your cough and other symptoms of a respiratory condition for good.
The 6 Best Essential Oils for Cough
These essential oils for cough are effective in two ways — they help to address the cause of your cough by killing toxins, viruses or bacteria that are causing the problem, and they work to relieve your cough by loosening your mucus, relaxing the muscles of your respiratory system and allowing more oxygen to get into your lungs. You can use one of these essential oils for cough or a combination of these oils.

Eucalyptus
Peppermint
Rosemary
Lemon
Oregano
Tea Tree

Pharma Co. Illegally Obtained Data on Kids to Sell Them Drugs They Didn’t Need—No One Jailed
The Free Thought Project – To illustrate just how much control the pharmaceutical industry wields over the US government, Aegerion Pharmaceuticals, the subsidiary of Novelion Therapeutics, Inc. was caught illegally obtaining patient data from children and not a single employee from the company will go to jail.
The company was in direct violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the only person facing consequences is the doctor who does not have the millions of dollars to pay off the state.
Dr. Eduardo Montana, 55, pleaded guilty this week to a misdemeanor charge that he wrongfully disclosed patients’ individual identifiable health information. He faces a year in prison, but he will likely get probation

Good News

Nonprofit group builds tiny homes for refugees in Parisian private gardens
The Christian Science Monitor – Finding accommodations is a major issue for the more than 220,000 refugees living in France. An architecture nonprofit is tackling the issue by building tiny houses that Parisians can use to host a refugee on their property.