Die Welt, Germany Obama: Hillary Clinton's Even More Polarizing Foil TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "President Obama will best serve Hillary Clinton by acting as a foil - as a contrast. By comparison with Obama, the potentially polarizing Clinton becomes a wholesome alternative for a wide variety of voters. ... Meanwhile, her party's leftist idealists and their backers will seriously not want to stand on the sidelines when a woman could become president - and right after an African-American achieved it.” — COLUMNIST Daniel-Dylan Bohmer

LESS POLARIZING BY COMPARISON?

WikiLeaks, Financial Times, U.K. WikiLeaks Publishes Hacked Sony E-mails; Explains Why "WikiLeaks has posted the entire hack of the Sony Database in searchable format to offer a 'rare insight into the inner workings of a large, secretive multinational corporation. The work publicly known from Sony is to produce entertainment; however, Sony's Archives show that behind the scenes the firm is an influential corporation, with ties to the White House, with an ability to impact laws and policies, and with connections to the United States military-industrial complex.” — WIKILEAKS Press Release SONY HACK: WIKILEAKS STRIKES AGAIN

Reuters, U.K. The E.U. Accuses Google of Abusing Web Search Power "The European Union accused Google of cheating consumers , competitors by distorting search results to favor its own shopping service, after a five- year investigation that could change the rules for doing business online.” — REPORTERS Julia Fioretti and Alastair Macdonald

SHOULD GOOGLE BE FINED OR DISMANTLED?

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Hillary Reinforces 'Quasi- Feudal System' in America TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "America increasingly belongs to the millionaires and billionaires. A quasi-feudal system has formed in which the fate of a man and his future position in life are determined at birth. A handoff from the Bushes to the Clintons would confirm that the unhealthy process is occurring not only in finance but politics as well. ... To my surprise, Americans, at least those that support the Democrats, don't seem to mind. I have to admit to a personal bias here, as I do not understand the reasons for Clinton's dominance.” — COLUMNIST Mariusz Zawadzki JEB AND HILLARY: TIME TO STEP ASIDE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Former Blackwater Guards Sentenced for Massacre of Unarmed Iraqi Civilians "In killing and maiming unarmed civilians, these defendants acted unreasonably ... In combination, the sheer amount of unnecessary human loss and suffering due to the defendants' criminal conduct on Sept. 16, 2007, is staggering.” — U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE

NO MERCT FOR BLACKWATER GUARDS

Deutsche Welle, Germany Hillary's Baggage Curbs Enthusiasm "Her first presidential loss to an initially unknown outsider named Obama hit her hard. It never left her and it noticeably shapes the the current campaign. ... the Clinton team should contemplate the fact that the announcement of her candidacy hasn't triggered major voter enthusiasm.” —CORRESPONDENT Gero Schliess IS POWER ITS OWN REWARD?

UK, Canada, Israel, China Editorial Reaction to the Hillary Campaign Launch Views from around the world have begun to emerge about her timing, her gender, her experience, her baggage and every aspect of what makes her such a political lightning rod. As usual, the British are first out of the gate with opinion rather than only straight news coverage, with other English-language media coming next, and soon, no doubt, more reaction from around the world in every language possible. — MANAGING EDITOR William Kern

HILLARY CLINTON: COY NO MORE

Telegraph, The Observer, U.K. Castro Praises Obama but Attacks U.S. Policy In his remarks at the Summit of the Americas in Panama, Cuban leader Raul Castro is making an interesting distinction between President Obama, who is of course president of the United States, and U.S. foreign policy, which Castro says Obama wasn't responsible for. Here are two columns from The Telegraph and The Observer that highlight the comments by Raul Castro. — MANAGING EDITOR William Kern LIKE THE MAN; NOT THE POLICIES?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Prepares to Meet President Nicolas Maduro "As the two antagonistic leaders prepared to meet face to face at the Summit of the Americas, they used preliminary events in the host nation Panama to project their differing perspectives.” — CORRESPONDENT Jonathan Watts

CAN AN ACCOMMODATION BE FOUND?

Chosun Ilbo, Russia Today, Reuters, Ukraine Today, New York Times South Korea, U.K., Russia, U.S. Czech Leader, Stung by Critics, Quits Victory Day Plans in Moscow Controversy over plans by Czech President Milos Zeman to accept Russia's invitation to 2015 Victory Day celebrations has been raging all week, culminating today. — MANAGING EDITOR William Kern CZECH PRESIDENT 'GROUNDED'

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Hints at Cuba Breakthrough; Kerry, Cuba Counterpart Talk "Cuba expected to be struck from list of state sponsors of terrorism, while Kerry and Cuba Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez counterpart sit down for highest-level talks in more than five decades.” — CORRESPONDENT Jonathan Watts

U.S.-CUBA ICE MELTING PROCEEDS

TELEGRAPH: Guantanamo Residents:
'How can Cuba Talk to the U.S. While
they are Occupying Our Land?'

Daily Mail, U.K. Tsarnaev's Mom: 'U.S. is the Real Terrorist; My Boys are the Best' "America is the real terrorist and everyone knows that. My boys are the best of the best.” — Zubeidat Tsarnaev A MOTHER'S PAIN AND SCORN

The Telegraph, U.K. Cuban Dissident Arrested on Arrival for Summit of the Americas in Panama "Rosa Maria Paya, one of Cuba's most high-profile dissidents, has been arrested on arrival in Panama, ahead of a historic meeting this week between Barack Obama and Raul Castro.” — CORRESPONDENT Harriet Alexander

CRACKDOWN AT AMERICAS SUMMIT

TELEGRAPH: Guantanamo Residents:
'How can Cuba Talk to the U.S. While
they are Occupying Our Land?'

BBC, Daily Mail, Telegraph, U.K. VIDEO AND TEXT: British Reaction to Rand Paul's 2016 Presidential Launch "Mr. Paul doesn't sound like your average Republican presidential candidate, and at times his event didn't look much like a traditional Republican presidential kick-off. Very early on, he criticised both Republicans and Democrats for being creatures of a political establishment unresponsive to the people who elected them.” — BBC CORRESPONDENT Anthony Zurcher CAN IDEALS SURVIVE CAMPAIGNING?

FAZ, Germany U.S. Army March Encounters Surprising Czech Opposition TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "leftists wanted to block the convoy's passage and on social media called for the use of force. … A complaint was even filed with the attorney general's office in Brno against Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka, Foreign Minister Lubomir Zaoralek and Defence Minister Martin Stropnicky. They are being accused of 'high treason' for approving passage for the American convoy.” — CORRESPONDENT Karl-Peter Schwarz

CZECHS LESS CERTAIN OF WHO TO SUPPORT

Le Monde, France Iran Nuclear Deal: By Far the Least Appalling Option TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The burden of sanctions has without doubt brought Iran to the negotiating table, but has in no way deterred the country from boosting its capacity for uranium enrichment - which is the path to obtaining a nuclear weapon. ... In this case, the status quo will not suffice. To wait is to take the risk of allowing an Islamic Republic working day in and day out to enrich more fissile material for military purposes.” — EDITORIAL, Le Monde IRANIANS HOPE FOR BETTER FUTURE

Le Monde, France How a Mandatory IAEA Mechanism Saved the Nuclear Talks with Iran TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Another issue was the demand that without clear assurances of the total absence of a military dimension to the Iranian nuclear program, U.N. sanctions should not be touched. In any event, diplomats judged that without the approval of the International Atomic Energy Agency, these cannot be lifted, and that is a process that is likely to take several years at a minimum.” — CORRESPONDENT Yves-Michel Riols NUCLEAR DEAL WAS FUDGED ...

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. LIVE BLOG: Iran Nuclear Talks: Obama Hails Deal; Iranian People Celebrate Obama: ‘It is a good deal’ -- ‘Key parameters’ for nuke deal with Iran reached -- Deal to be done by 30 June -- E.U. and U.S. will terminate economic sanctions -- Fordow to be nuclear physics site. —GUARDIAN Live Blog IRAN ERUPTS IN CELEBRATION

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany Hegemon without a Plan: 'God Help the Middle East' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "President Obama's wavering and procrastination and his back and forth between threats, retreats and interventions has severely damaged U.S. credibility. ... One requires a remarkable set of eyes to discern a strategy in all this rather than a frantic, haphazard and event-driven mess. ” — COLUMNIST Hubert Wetzel OBAMA: HOPELESSLY FLOUNDERING?

Daily Mail, U.K. UKIP Candidate Ousted; Called for Israel to 'Do an Eichmann' on Obama "UKIP candidate Jeremy Zeid called for President Obama to be kidnapped by the Israelis like Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann for declassifying a document in Israel's once undeclared nuclear program.” —REPORTER John Stevens IS THIS STEPPING OVER THE LINE?

The Record, Scotland, U.K. Germanwings: Officials Admit Cell Phones Found; Passengers may have Called Loved Ones "If none of the mobile phones and notably none of the SIM cards found at the scene have not been analysed – because the fact is that the data can be retrieved – that suggests a problem with the investigation'” —REPORTER Frederic Helbert of Paris Match SHOULD MEDIA HAND OVER THE VIDEO?

The Telegraph, U.K. Tabloids are Told to 'Hand Over' Video of Final Moments before Germanwings Crash "French authorities initially denied the existence of the clip, which allegedly relays in a 'few seconds' scenes of chaos and passengers screaming 'My God' in several languages. But they are now calling on anyone in possession of such a film to 'hand it over to investigators.'” —REPORTERS Henry Samuel, Rory Mulholland

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Facebook 'Tracks All Visitors, Breaching European Union Law' "Facebook tracks the web browsing of everyone who visits a page on its site even if the user does not have an account and even when they have explicitly opted out of tracking in the E.U., research commissioned by the Belgian data protection agency shows.” —REPORTER Samuel Gibbs CAUTION: YOU ARE BING FOLLOWED

The Telegraph, U.K. Tabloids are Told to 'Hand Over' Video of Final Moments before Germanwings Crash "French authorities initially denied the existence of the clip, which allegedly relays in a 'few seconds' scenes of chaos and passengers screaming 'My God' in several languages. But they are now calling on anyone in possession of such a film to 'hand it over to investigators.'” —REPORTERS Henry Samuel, Rory Mulholland SHOULD MEDIA HAND OVER THE VIDEO?

Italia Chiama Italia, Italy Trial of Knox and Sollecito: Black Eye for Italian Justice TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "So this is what we have come to: more often than not it seems that sentences have already been formulated, whether based on mere conjecture and/or because they have been decided on the spot, from the first few minutes.” — COLUMNIST Leonardo Cecca

VINDICATED - BUT FOUR YEARS LOST

Paris Match, France Exclusive: Video Reveals Final Moments Before Germanwings Disaster "Paris Match has obtained a video taken during the final seconds of the ill-fated Germanwings flight 4U9525 and found among the wreckage by a source close to the investigation. Its origin - a cellphone - was clear. The scene was so chaotic that it was hard to identify people, but the sound of the screaming passengers made it clear that they were well aware of what was about to happen.” —NEWS ITEM, Paris Match FOUND: VIDEO FROM THE CRASH

Russia Today, Russia Lavrov: Chance Iran Deal 'Pretty Good' if No One 'Raises Stakes' "We have an opportunity to realize our chances if no side to the talks tries to raise the stakes at the last moment to get something more instead of keeping a balance of interests.” — RUSSIAN Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov IRAN TALKS: POINT OF AGREEMENT?

REUTERS: Expected Iran
Nuclear Deal 'Worse than
Israel Feared': Netanyahu

The Observer, U.K. Eight Years on, Italy asks: So who was it that Killed Student Meredith Kercher? "It has also never been clear how the pair, who had claimed to be having sex, smoking cannabis and watching the French film Amelie at the time of the murder, became accomplices of Rudy Guede, the then 21-year-old drifter who is now the only person to have been convicted of Kercher's murder.” —NEWS ITEM, The Guardian IF NOT KNOX, SOLLECITO - THAN WHO?

Izvestia, Russia Victory Day 2015: Hollande, Cameron and Obama won't be Missed! TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIA "Our greatest festival will stay with us through the centuries. Hollande, Cameron and Obama - not to mention leaders of 'New Europe' - are no more than ripples in the water. Their presence will not add to the honor of May 9th, and their absence will not diminish its joy.” — COLUMNIST Maksim Sokolov

RUSSIA SPURNS RUSSIA'S SPURNERS

The Telegraph, U.K. Amanda Knox will Return to Italy; in line for Millions in Compensation for Jailing "Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito, both jailed for the murder of British student Meredith Kercher, may claim millions in compensation after Italy's top court cleared them unreservedly. ... In the latest twist, the pair were both acquitted by judges at Rome's supreme court. The five judges said that there was insufficient evidence.” —NEWS ITEM, The Telegraph OUT OF THE FIRE - OFF TO THE BANK?

RUSSIA TODAY: Snowden
Talks Surveillance, Privacy
with Swedish Lawyers

de Volkskrant The Netherlands No Hillary, Don't Do It! TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "Let me come straight to the point the Dutch way - straightforward and without lame excuses: Please retire. Forget your presidential ambitions. Enough is enough. Please don't do it.” — COLUMNIST Charles Groenhuijsen

A PLEA TO HILLARY FROM THE DUTCH

The Local, Sweden Swedish MPs Meet Snowden in Moscow "We discussed his journey and he gave us a nuanced accounting of how mass surveillance operated and what doesn't . ... He also gave us his point of view on what comprise effective anti-terrorism measures and what doesn't. ... I am impressed by his courage.” — Sweden MP Jakop Dalunde THE NEXT STOP FOR SNOWDEN?

RUSSIA TODAY: Snowden
Talks Surveillance, Privacy
with Swedish Lawyers

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Iran-Saudi Proxy War in Yemen Explodes into a Region-Wide Crisis “The Saudi decision to unveil the international coalition in Washington suggests that the Obama Administration, rather than the Riyadh regime, may be the driving force behind the intervention in Yemen.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

The Telegraph, U.K. Amanda Knox Awaits Top Italy Court Ruling on Kercher Murder Verdict "The European Commission has warned E.U. citizens that they should close their Facebook accounts if they want to keep information private from U.S. security services, finding that current Safe Harbour law does not protect citizen's data.” — REPORTER Samuel Gibbs FACEBOOK: STATE SPYING TOOL

Diario de Noticias, Portugal The U.S.-Israel Unraveling: A Sign of 'Deep Transformation' TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "We're witnessing divisions so deep that it's hard to find anything relevant passing between Israel and the United States. ... Countries like Israel, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt look with great suspicion at a U.S. orientation in favor of Iran and easing of sanctions in exchange for transparency on uranium enrichment or 'unofficial' coordination in the battle against the Islamic State.” — COLUMNIST Bernardo Pires De Lima

A SIESMIC SHIFT BIGGER THAN ISRAEL

Guardian Unlimited, U.S. E.U. Warns Citizens to 'Leave Facebook if You Don't Wish to be Spied On' "The European Commission has warned E.U. citizens that they should close their Facebook accounts if they want to keep information private from U.S. security services, finding that current Safe Harbour law does not protect citizen's data.” — REPORTER Samuel Gibbs FACEBOOK: STATE SPYING TOOL

Diario de Noticias, Italy Evidence at Hand that Muslims are Indeed Capable of Democracy TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "The democratic experience of the Arab world remains a fragile one. ... Nevertheless, the Arab world and Islamic worlds are not synonymous. . It's not hard to find examples of democracy in Islamic states.” — COLUMNIST Leonidio Paulo Ferreira

DEMOCRACY: A LITTLE OPTIMISM

France 24, France LIVE FEED: Germanwings Flight Intentionally Crashed March 26, 2015 This is France 24's live feed with coverage of the crash Germanwings flight 4U9525. French prosecutors has announced that the aircraft was intentionally crashed by ci-pilot. — LIVE FEED, Frrance 24 GERMANWINGS: SHOCK REVELATION

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. LIVE BLOG: Germanwings Co-Pilot 'Crashed Aircraft' "The co-pilot of the Germanwings jet that crashed in the French Alps deliberately forced the plane into the descent that led to the disaster, the prosecutor said. He pressed a button that accelerated the Airbus A320's descent when alone in the cockpit. 'It was a voluntary action.'” —GUARDIAN Live Blog PLANE CRASHED INTENTIONALLY

Guardian Unlimited, U.S. With U.S. Backing, Saudi Arabia Launches Yemen Air Strikes on Houthies "White House confirms support for the military effort, claiming international mandate to end the 'widespread instability and chaos' that drove out Yemeni president.” — CORRRESPONDENTS Dan Roberts. Kareem Shaheen IT'S WAR AGAIN - NOW IN YEMEN

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Charged with Desertion, Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl May Get Life in Prison "The longest-held U.S. prisoner of war of the post-9/11 era will be charged with misbehavior before the enemy and desertion and faces a potential penalty of life in prison. A court martial proceeding for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl will be a dramatic fall from grace for a soldier whose release after five years in Taliban captivity was a priority for Obama.” — CORRESPONDENT Spencer Ackerman BERGDAHL: DRAMATIC FALL FROM GRACE

Der Standard, Austria Austrian Lawmakers 'Terminate Silence' Over NSA Spying TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden warned of how U.S. intelligence works with E.U. nations that filter out traffic belonging to their citizens. However, because of states that collaborate with it, the U.S. is able to obtain data on all E.U. citizens. Llawmakers are in broad agreement that it is unacceptable for foreign spies to illegally intercept, store and monitor data of Austrian, European citizens.” — COLUMNIST Fabian Schmid NOW: AUSTRIAN NSA COMMITTEE

Corriere Della Sera, Italy Jewish No More?: Netanyahu's Victory is a Loss for Israel TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "Israel hasn't won, because little or nothing has changed. In fact, the country may now be pushed into a dangerous self isolation as the region is boiling over with ancient tensions and bloody recent conflicts. ... Arabs living in the country may now be capable of silencing all their divisions and united as a third political party in the Knesset. It may be a sign of the future when in the absence of two states the majority in Israel is no longer Jewish.” — COLUMNIST Antonio Ferrari

BIBI: THREAT TO THE JEWISH STATE?

Deutsche Welle, Germany U.S. Threatened Germany w/ Intelligence Cuttoff Over Granting Snowden Asylum "They said they would stop notifying us of plots and other intelligence matters.” — VICE CHANCELLOR Sigmar Gabriel U.S. THREAT OVER SNOWDEN ASYLUM OFFER

The Telegraph, U.K. America's Longest-Serving Innocent Prisoner Receives $1m for 39 Years in Prison "Ricky Jackson and two brothers were convicted on the basis of the testimony of a 13-year-old boy who said that he witnessed the killing of Harold Franks. The boy, Eddie Vernon, was on a bus a block away with other children at the time. He later recanted his account.” — CPRRESPONDENT Philip Sherwell RECIEVES $25,000 PER YEAR BEHIND BARS

The Economist, U.K. The Price of Bibi's Comeback "Next month the Palestinian Authority will join the International Criminal Court, where it will seek to indict of Israel for war crimes, both over the conduct of last summer's war in Gaza and Jewish settlements in the occupied territories. ... Netanyahu will need American help to fend off the pressure, but Israeli diplomats fear that Obama may be less willing to fight on Israel's behalf, or will seek to extract a price.” — ANALYSIS, The Economist BIBI FACES SHORTAGE OF U.S. SUPPORT

Daily Mail, U.K. Hollywood Producer Returns Home for First Time Since Her Arrest in Death of 'Blind' Sister "Producer Jill Blackstone had initially been charged with murder of her sister Wendy, but the LA District Attorney dropped the charges and released her Wednesday. Yet many questions remain over her partially blind and deaf sister's death. Wendy was found on Saturday in the home's garage, apparently asphyxiated by carbon monoxide gas. ... Also found at the scene was a hand- written suicide note police determined had been written by Jill, and the bodies of their three dogs.” — CORRESPONDENT Andy Tillet MYSTERY SURROUNDS DEATH OF PRODUCER'S SISTER

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Snubs Netanyahu; Criticizes 'Divisive Rhetoric' "The White House has made clear its dismay at Prime Minister Netanyahu's sweeping victory in the Israeli polls with a stinging rebuke of 'divisive rhetoric' used by the Israeli leader in the closing stages of the election. ... Furthermore, Obama has not called to congratulate him on his victory.” — CORRESPONDENTS Paul Lewis and Alan Yuhas FACING THE ELECTION AFTERMATH

Der Standard, Austria NSA Spying on Austrian Firms and People 'Takes on Whole New Dimension' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "In addition to the Austrian Web provider, the document discloses other targets, such as members of the Philippine government, the largest Saudi ISP, a Pakistani cyber security firm as well as a resort hotel in Honduras in which the United Fruit Company receives South American official delegations. With this variety of examples from the spy programs under Upstream, the NSA-author of the presentation will have wanted to demonstrate the best possible range of targets.” — REPORTERS Fabian Schmid and Markus Sulzbacher

SNOWDEN HITS JUST KEEP ON COMIN'

Le Figaro, France Christians, Muslims and the Destruction of Ancient Sites TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "It mustn't be forgotten that in 16th century Protestantism, there was an iconoclastic rage that went on to wreak havoc on our cultural heritage. ... This is not to suggest a hazardous equivalence between Calvinism and radical Islam, but the Islamists are falling back on an a religious tradition that was defeated by Christianity.” — JOURNALIST, PHILOSOPHER Gerard Leclerc ICONS AND IDOLATRY: BATTLE RENEWED

Financial Times, U.K. U.S. Lashes Out at U.K. for Joining China-Backed Bank "Brits are used to syrupy American tributes to the 'special relationship' that binds the countries together, but this week, we heard rather different sound:: frustrated growls.” — COLUMNIST Gideon Rachman GROUND SHIFTS IN WORLD FINANCE

REUTERS: Abbott says Australia will
Soon Decide Whether to Join AIIB
THE TELEGRAPH: U.K. Must
Resist Taking Sides as U.S., China
fight for Financial Supremacy

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Boko Haram-ISIS Alliance: Likely Just a 'Cry for Help' “The alliance is unlikely to amount to much immediate collaboration on joint operations. It may, in fact, be more of a cry for help, given the recent string of defeats Boko Haram has sustained in recent days.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Landmark Report Calls for Major Overhaul of U.K. Surveillance Laws "Britain’s laws governing the espionage agencies and mass surveillance require a total overhaul to make them more transparent, comprehensible and up to date, parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee said in a landmark report that was prompted by the Snowden revelations.” — REPORTERS Patrick Wintour and Rowena Mason A SLAP AT MASS SURVEILLANCE

Reuters, U.K. P5+1 Discuss the End of Iran Sanctions; Plan Could Render U.S. Republican Efforts Moot "Secretary of State Kerry told Congress that an Iran nuclear deal wouldn't be legally binding, meaning the next U.S. president may choose not to implement it - a point emphasized in an open letter by Republican senators to Iran's leaders. ... But a Security Council resolution on a nuclear deal with Iran could be legally binding. That could undercut attempts by Republicans to unravel an agreement. ” — REPORTER Louis Charbonneau

Elsevier, The Netherlands Study: Alarming Number of Muslims in Europe Back Islamist Extremism TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "It's like mopping the floor next to a fire hose: national security is in constant danger. This is a group who are not concerned with laws of secular Western societies. ... This will not be resolved through dialogue while immigration from Muslim nations merrily goes on. Halting it is the first necessary step. This is an inconvenient truth we must heed.” — COLUMNIST Afshin Ellian

EXTREMISTS: HOW MANY ARE THERE?

Die Tageszeitung, Germany Defeating Disembodied Spies in the Digital Age TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "How can we understand why people, who in their gardens protect their vegetable beds from view with well-tended hedges, aren't upset by the fact that there's an entity for which no screening exists - an entity that sees all and hears all? To be able to understand and criticize this is the most urgent task of people today. ” — COLUMNIST Daniel Kretschmar THE DIGITAL PYNOPTYCON

The Telegraph, U.K. Jimmy Wales, Wikimedia Suing NSA and DOJ Over Mass Spying Operations "'The harm to Wikimedia and the hundreds of millions of people who visit our Web sites is clear: Pervasive mass surveillance has a chilling effect,' Mr Wales wrote. 'It stifles freedom of expression and the free exchange of ideas that Wikimedia exicts to enable.'” — Wikimdedia CEO Jimmy Wales

SURVEILLANCE FIGHT: IT 'AIN'T OVER'

The Register, U.K. U.K. Foreign Secretary Wants to 'End Debate' Over Mass Surveillance "This debate cannot be allowed to run on forever. ... We need to have it, address the issues arising from it and move on, sooner rather than later.'” — UK Foriegn Secretary Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond

Gazeta, Russia To Reshape Global Order, Russia Needs Help of Other Disgruntled Peoples, States TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIA "This suggests that the United States is not trustworthy. This kind of letter is unprecedented and undiplomatic. ... It letter suggests that U.S. lawmakers not only don't understand international law but are not fully cognizant of the nuances of their own Constitution in terms of presidential powers in the conduct of American foreign policy.” — Fyodor Lukyanov, Chief Editor at Russia in Global Affairs CAN PUTIN BREAK OUT OF THE BOX?

GUARDIAN: Miffed Brits
Undermine German NSA Probe;
Refuse to Share Intelligence
DEUTCHE WELLE: Fiasco Over
New Headquarters Exposes
German Spies to Ridicule
CRYPTOME: Guardian Web Site
Redacts GCHQ TEMPORA Slide

Bild, Germany ISIS Launches 'Kilafahbook': The Facebook for Terrorists TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "They have shared their cruel deeds on the Web in order to attract the world's attention. Now the jihadists are pushing their use of social networking further. ... Islamic State seeks to improve on its online success: three days ago it launched its own social network called 'Kilafahbook'!” — NEWS ITEM, Bild

ISLAMIC STATE SKIRTS WEST'S CONSTRAINTS

Die Welt, Germany Mystery Again Hits the Bundestag's NSA Committee of Inquiry TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The Bundestag Committee investigating the NSA spying scandal may itself have been spied on. There are suspicions that the so-called encrypted phone of Committee Chair Patrick Sensburg may have been hacked. ... An ominous course of events forms the backdrop of these suspicions. ... A detailed analysis will take several weeks. So any involvement by intelligence services is only conjecture. ” — REPORTER Manuel Bewarder NSA INVESTIGATOR HACKED?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.S. Women Caught Carving Names into Roman Colosseum "The Californians snuck off from their tour group on Saturday and began carving in their initials with a coin. They managed a 'J' and an 'N' around 8cm high, then took a selfie with their handiwork.” — REPORTER Rosie Scammell

WHAT NOT TO DO ON THE ROAD

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. European Commission President Calls for European Union Army "The European Union needs its own army to help address the issue that it is not 'taken entirely seriously' as a global force, the president of the European commission has said. ... Jean-Claude Juncker said such a move would help the E.U. persuade Russia that it's serious about defending its values in the face of the threat posed by Moscow. ” — REPORTER Andrew Sparrow

IHS James, U.K. Saudi Arabia Now Biggest Arms Importer; American Arms Makers Benefit Most "The top beneficiary of the strong Middle Eastern market remains the United States, with $8.4 billion worth of Middle Eastern exports in 2014, compared to $6 billion in 2013.” — STUDY, IHS Jane's

U.S. LEADS WORLD IN ARMS PROFITS

Le Monde, France Monopolistic Internet Giants Threaten the Global Economy TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "If artificial intelligence allows us to envisage less expensive production, will that be financially beneficial to the entire population, or just the priests of the Internet and the major corporations? ... It's hard to see what use civil servants, insurance agents, translators, brokers, salespersons, teachers and (why not?) attorneys, doctors and pharmacists will be in two or three decades: all these jobs are being progressively replaced by artificial intelligence. All that will remain are modest manual or low- paid trades of artists and craftsman.” — PHILOSOPHER Pierre Desjardins

WILL 'FREE' DATA RUIN THE WORLD?

Sol, Portugal Boris Nemtsov Murder: Why We Prefer U.S. to Vladimir Putin's Russia TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "Portugal benefits from being allied with the United States and not Russia. How come? ... Here in Portugal, only those older than 50 recall not being allowed to vote or freely express political opinions. They're privileged storytellers since they can tell the young what it's like to live in today's Russia. What we take for granted here can be a death s entence elsewhere. We're not interested in allies like that, and fortunately we don't need them either. ” — COLUMNIST Eduardo Ferreira THE WEB: LIKE AIR AND WATER?

Trouw, The Netherlands Netanyahu: 'An Eye for Danger; Blind to Solutions' TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "A belief in the demonic intentions of his enemies explains Netanyahu's actions - and not just about Tehran, but all enemies; from Hezbullah via Hamas to Fatah and the Palestinian president. By only seeing them as apocalyptic forces spurred on by religious hatred of the Jews, he excludes the possibility that his adversaries might act rationally and be willing to compromise. That makes negotiations pointless.” — COLUMNIST Stevo Akkerman

NETANYAHU: BLINDED BY ANTAGONISM?

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands Netanyahu has More 'Right to Speak' than Obama Ever Will TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "Open conflict over a deal with Iran between Washington and Jerusalem is the greatest gift both parties can give their enemies. What makes Obama's stubbornness even more worrisome is that his track record in the Middle East is not a good one. ... Netanyahu is rightly worried. Owing to his accuracy in predicting events in the Middle East he has a right to speak like no one else. That is precisely why the Jewish state stands alone like never before; and all because of a speech, the one area Obama has truly excelled.” — HISTORIAN Dirk-Jan van Baar

NETANYAHU: SMARTER THAN THE WEST?

Le Monde, France FCC Backs American Net Neutrality: Europe Should Be 'Inspired' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The first state intervention by Washington in the history of the Internet, it reflects the fact that government cannot leave the ubiquitous digital revolution to regulate itself, and without a basic set of common rules that are fair and democratic. ” — EDITORIAL, Le Monde THE WEB: LIKE AIR AND WATER?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: The Killing of Boris Nemtsov and West's Risky Spinning of the Russia Story MARCH 2, 00:24:22 How credible are charges in Western media that Putin is behind the killing of Russia opposition leader Boris Nemtsov? Not very, according to the panel on this edition of CrossTalk, the flagship debate program of Russia Today. The panelists also look at Western media coverage of Russia - and how wrong it is.Hosted by American Peter Levelle, guests include NSA whistleblower Ray McGovern, a 27 year veteran of the agency who once prepared the President's Daily Brief and chaired National Intelligence Estimates; writer Gilbert Doctorow of The Nation magazine; and U.K. journalist Neil Clark. — CROSSTALK ON RT ASSASSINATION: RUSSIA HATERS GONNA HATE?

FAZ, Germany Justifiable Fear of a Creeping Police State TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "Is the theft of SIM card codes a surprise to anyone? If even the American and British spy agencies are so unscrupulous, others will be even more so. Given this desire on the part of states and an equally strong desire in the private sector for international surveillance, it seems almost hopeless to think that they could one day be curbed by the force of law. ” — COLUMNIST Jasper von Altenbockum LAND OF THE FREEDOM-LESS?

Deutsche Welle, Germany AWOL U.S. Soldier, Rejected by Berlin, Appeals for Asylum to European Court of Justice "Following the court's verdict, the case will move back to the German judges. If they grant Shepherd asylum, it would certainly set a precedent for follow-on cases from other conscientious objectors - as well as lay the ground for diplomatic friction between Berlin and Washington.” — REPORTER Volker Wagener ANDRE SHEPHERD: WAS IRAQ A WAR CRIME?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Is Netanyahu Out to Foment War with Iran? “The prime minister's attacks on the U.S. government may be brinkmanship – but they could be genuine attempts to goad Obama into military action.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

Deutsche Well, Germany American Sniper Plays on the Stereotypes of German Audiences "Germany is befuddled, as always, by the unbridled patriotism of their North American friends. Here, the military isn't a source of pride, and combat deaths aren't widely discussed.” — COLUMNIST Jochen Kurten GERMANS SAY THEY'RE 'BEFFUDDLED'

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands West Must Grasp: For Islamic State, 'End of Days' has Begun TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "According to IS, the prophesied period of the second Caliphate has now begun. Importantly, this also marks the start of the 'End of Days,' which is accompanied by a massive, apocalyptic clash between forces of the Caliphate and non-believers.” — ANALYST Adjiedj Bakas

HE END IS NIGH: BUT FOR THEM - OR US?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Shuttering Department of Homeland Security would be a 'Good Idea' "George W Bush's creation is inefficient, wasteful and disrespectful of citizen privacy. If Republicans want to shut it, Democrats should let them.” — COLUMNIST Trevor Timm KILL HOMELAND SECURITY

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Sikorski Blames CIA Prison Controversy on 'Excessively Zealous' Leaders in Warsaw TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "There are consequences to the excess zeal with which our policy decisions were made years ago. ... Poland is the only state in which the matter is being investigated. ... It is a reminder for us that secret things should remain secret. Polish authorities acted out of higher necessity, but were overzealous.” — SEJM MARSHAL and former Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski

POLAND AND CIA: TOO EAGER TO PLEASE?

Russia Direct, Russia A Never Seen Sustained Plunge in Russian Views of the United States "The most unpleasant statistic is not even its duration. The graphs show that the portion of those disgruntled with America grew from crisis to crisis (53 percent, 66 percent, 67 percent, 78 percent). More disheartening, each time the slice of Russian society feeling unquestioned goodwill toward the U.S. shrank.” — COLUMNIST Ivan Tsvetkov ENMITY GROWS MORE PERMANENT

Russia Direct, Russia Hungary Called Russia's 'Trojan Horse' in Europe " Putin’s visit to Budapest shows that he's shaking hands in Europe, and not only as part of the peace process in Minsk, but that he is accepted in a European capital far from being the worst.” — COLUMNIST Alexander Gushchin

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA and GCHQ Hack Sim Card Database; Billions of Cellphones Vulnerable "The stolen encryption keys would enable the spy agencies to monitor mobile communications without the approval or knowledge of telecom firms and foreign governments. ... the hack would allow spies to put an aerial up on the embassy in Berlin and hear anyone's calls in the area.” — COLUMNIST Dominic Rushe

Liberation, France American Sniper Emits 'Foul Odor' of Propaganda TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Your method of simplifying history and turning your character into a legend in a binary world is disturbing. Unlike Paul Greengrass' Green Zone, American Sniper does nothing to address the issue of the lie that led to this war, preferring to celebrate its hero. You cannot therefore avoid the suspicion that this is a propaganda film. But perhaps you take that as a compliment. Good for you.” — COLUMNIST David Carzon AMERICAN SNIPER: U.S. PROPAGANDA?

Irish Examiner, Ireland Russians Angry Over Michael Fallon Claim it Threatens Baltics "In comments to reporters traveling with him to Sierra Leone, Mr. Fallon compared the threat from President Putin to the Islamic State and warned that NATO had to be ready to respond to further aggression in 'whatever form.'” — REPORTER Gavin Cordon

TIMES OF LONDON: Ukraine
Truce Collapses; Pro-Russia
Rebels Claim 'Thousands Die'
BBC NEWS: House of Lords says
U.K., E.U. 'Badly Misread' Russia
GUARDIAN: Leaders Discuss
Crumbling Ukraine Ceasefire

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. In their Anti-Putin Cynicism, Western Diplomats Making the Crisis Worse "If ceasefire holds, the Minsk agreement offers Russia a dignified way of accepting Ukraine as an independent state. The Kremlin needs this small measure of diplomatic ambiguity, not petulant accusations that it is acting in bad faith.” — COLUMNIST Mary Dejevsky

TOO SUSPICIOUS OF PUTIN?

Liberation, France Chaos: End 'Foolhardy' Western Interventions TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Westerners never made good on the foolhardy interventions of recent decades. Whether it is the Americans in Iraq or more recently the Europeans in Libya, it's clear that military action is pointless unless accompanied by a political solution. The case of Libya is a glaring example. For lack of a political roadmap it ended in disaster. The result: less than 350km from the Italy coast, jihadists of the Islamic State now threaten to create a caliphate, letting it be known loud and clear by staging the macabre beheadings of 21 Coptic Christians.” — COLUMNIST Alexandra Schwartzbrod CAN THE WEST STOP ITSELF?

E.U. Observer, Belgium European Court Rejects Appeal By Poland of CIA Rendition Case Verdict "The court said Poland failed to launch a proper investigation into human rights violations on two individuals who had been tortured at the CIA black site/ prison camp in 2002 and 2003.” — REPORTER Nikolaj Nielson

POLAND TO PAY CIA DETAINEES

THE PORTUGAL NEWS:
E.U. Reopens Probes
Into 'Illegal' CIA Flights

Rzeczpospolita, Poland With 'Nuclear Taboo' Broken, Putin Threatens the Whole of Humanity TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "Russian saber-rattling is aimed at intimidating the global public. The idea is to make the world believe in the determination of Russia, which, to achieve its political ends, will not shrink from the use of nuclear arms. ... Chancellor Merkel's declaration in advance that she is opposed to arming Ukraine is political suicide for the European Union as a political entity. ... Whether the West will respond in kind to Putin's threat to use nuclear arms is an open question. What's certain is that if after WWII, Western politicians behaved like Mrs. Merkel and Mr. Hollande, the world today would consist of one big Soviet Union.” — COLUMNIST Janusz Rolicki EAST EUROPE STATE OF ALARM

Diario de Noticias, Portugal The '50 Shades' of DHK TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "It was the will of the program gods that 50 Shades of Grey would be released in thousands of movie theaters around the world just as Dominique Strauss- Khan is performing in another theater - a courtroom - in Lille, France. This shows that reality always exceeds the imagination.” — COLUMNIST Ferreira Fernandes

DSK: JUST A SHAMELESS 'LIBERTINE'

Polityka, Poland Ukraine War Buries Russian Dream of Pan-Slavic Union TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "The Ukraine war buried the myth of a Slavic community of nations, a political dream concocted by Tsarist Russia in order to consolidate its influence abroad. The Russians can't imagine Ukrainians going their own way - behaving like free people guided by their own dreams and interests rather than the Russian conceptions of Ukraine.” — COLUMNIST Adam Szostkiewicz PAN-SLAVIC UNIFICATION DEAD?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Spy Agency Interest in Weather Modification Worries Climatologist "Alan Robock, a climate scientist at Rutgers University has asked secretive government agencies to be open about their interest in radical work that explores how to alter the world climate.” — SCIENCE EDITOR Ian Sample

IS THE WEATHER MANIPULATED?

Daily Mail, U.K. U.S. Climatolgist says CIA Fears Hostile Nations are Triggering Weather Events "I'd learned of lots of things the CIA had done that haven’t followed the rules and that wasn’t how I wanted my tax money spent. ... I think this research has to be open and global, so there isn't any question of using it for hostile purposes.” —Professor Alan Robock

News, Switzerland The Dictator Challenge: Europe's Ultimate Test TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The logic of aggression demands that the attacker persevere as long as potential gains exceed the costs. That Russia feels harassed may well be, but it isn't as if NATO invaded Poland, the Baltic States and the former Czechoslovakia. If Europe doesn't know what it stands for, it will inevitably be crushed between power blocs rather than being one itself. The 'dictator syndrome' will likely be Europe's ultimate test.” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer IS EUROPE UP TO THE CHALLENGE?

Le Figaro, France West's Abandonment of Persecuted Christians a Grave 'Strategic Error' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "America should set as a strategic priority the defense of Christians across the world. From Pakistan to Iraq, Nigeria to Egypt and from Algeria to Indonesia, there are over 150 million Christians under persecution. By favoring the cult of democracy over the freedom of religion, the West committed a strategic error. Like it or not, all nations of the world associate Christians with the West. That it has not made defending them a strategic priority has only earned it contempt from rivals, enemies.” — CORRESPONDENT Renaud Girard

CHRISTIANS: STRATEGIC INATTENTION?

The Moscow Times, Russia If the Minsk Deal Unravels, West Will Share the Blame "In deciding to expand during the euphoric years after Soviet collapse, the West neglected one of the basic rules of realistic global policy - the rule of the balance of power.” — COLUMNIST Ivan Sukhov UKRAINE CRISIS: FAULT ON BOTH SIDES

Yezhednevny Zhurnal, Russia Before Our Eyes: Russia Becomes 'Global Pariah' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "As the years have passed, Russia has come less to represent civilized states than the rogue ones, and to defend rogue states and their interests before the civilized states. ... The West has forgotten how it co-existed with the Soviet Union through the use of deterrence. Now it will have to remember.” — DEPUTY EDITOR Alexander Golts PEACE AT HAND - OR COLD WAR ll?

Der Spiegel, Germany Nuclear Specter: 'Threat of War Higher than in Cold War' "Trust has been eroded to the point of almost being destroyed. You got a war going on right in the middle of Europe. You got a breakdown of the conventional forces treaty, you got the INF (Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces) Treaty under great strain, you got tactical nuclear weapons all over Europe. It is a very dangerous situation.” — FORMER U.S. SENATOR Sam Nunn

IS IT TIME FOR NEW 'RED PHONES'?

DER SPIEGEL: Leon Panetta:
'Missile Defense Should be
Put Back on the Table'

Guardian, White House, U.K., U.S. VIDEO AND TEXT: Obama, Apple CEO Time Cook, Clash at Cybersecurity Summit TWO NEWS REPORTS AND TWO VIDEOS Despite his failure to reform the NSA after years of leaks demonstrating the damage mass surveillance has done to American society, its standing in the world, and the reputation of one of our most successful industries, the president pushed for information- sharing 'like never before' between the U.S. intelligence bureacracy and industry. The absurdity of the scene wasn't lost on Apple CEO Tim Cook. — APPLE CEO Tim Cook Pre-Empts Obama SHOCK: TECH GIANTS DO RIGHT

Le Monde, France U.S. Poodle No More: Sarkozy Questions U.S. Motives in the Ukraine TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The separation between Russia and Europe is a tragedy. That the Americans may welcome it is their right and their problem. We don't want a revival of the Cold War between Europe and Russia. ... Crimea chose Russia ... we can't reproach them for it.” —Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy SARKOZY ADOPTS RUSSIAN LINE

BBC, Russia Today, U.K., Russia VIDEO AND TEXT: BBC Report Supports Kremlin Account of Kiev Massacre BRITISH AND RUSSIAN NEWS REPORTS In a story that goes a long way to substantiate the Kremlin narrative on the night that triggered the current crisis in Ukraine, the BBC aired this story yesterday which refutes claims by Maiden protest organizers that government riot police shot first, triggering a massacre that killed 75 people and sealed the fate of President Viktor Yanukovych. To sum up - Yanukovych did not order riot police to shoot protesters, but protesters began shooting them. — REPORTS from Britain, Russia MORE HOLES IN WESTERN NARRATIVE

Der Spiegel, Germany Fukushima Fallout: Poisoned Sailors of USS Ronald Reagan Sue TEPCO & Co. for Justice "The complaint is 100 pages long and contains the names of 247 sick sailors and details about reactor construction, water samples taken, Navy tactics and Japanese politics. It assails company greed just as it does the negligence of those who built the Fukushima reactors - and goes on to censure the politics and cynicism of humankind.” —COLUMNIST Alexander Osang SICK SAILORS SUE REACTOR MAKERS

Guardian, Euronews, RT, U.K., France, Russia VIDEO AND TEXT: Cease Fire Deal in Minsk: False Dawn or Real Way Out? TWO NEWS REPORTS, THREE VIDEOS While reports on details remain sketchy, reports sayt President Putin did indeed pressure pro- Russia rebels to sign on to the deal. In this post is analysis from the Guardian, video from Russia Today with President Putins's comments, Euronews coverage of a briefing by Ukraine President Poroshenko, German Chancellor Merkel and French President Hollande, and a news report on the deal from Euronews. — REPORTS from Europe, Russia UKRAINE: BACK FROM THE BRINK?

Die Welt, Germany Minsk: Merkel's Last Chance to Prevent U.S. Arms for Ukraine TRANSLATED FROM GERMANY "In plain language ... if Merkel's crisis diplomacy fails Ukraine will receive weapons. What all of us will then have to pay, who knows? Not even McCain.” —COLUMNIST Sascha Lehnartz ARE WE ON THE 'EDGE OF THE ABYSS'?

Daily Mail, Guardian, BBC, U.K. In London, Scott Walker Stumbles Over Evolution Issue and Foreign Affairs Britain is not proving to be fertile ground for Republican aspirants for the White House. A week after New Jersey Governor Chris Christie stumbled and fell over 'Measles-gate' and just over three years since Mitt Romney's epic gaffes on the Olympics and other issues, now Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, during a talk at U.K. think tank Chatham House, would not say whether he believes in evolution, and refused to answer questions about foreign policy which, for an aspirant to the U.S. presidency on foreign soil - is exceedingly odd. Here are three write-thrus from the British press. — ANOTHER ILL-FATED TRIP TO U.K. SCOTT WALKER: ROOKIE MISTAKES?

France 24, France VIDEOS: Dominique Strauss Kahn: High End Pimp or Clueless John? FOUR NEWS SEGMENTS FROM FRANCE In 2011, the one-time chairman of the IMF and candidate for the French presidency was arrested in New York on seven counts of rape, false imprisonment and other charges. In the end his accuser was paid off and he left the United States. Now though, a man who once hobnobbed with the global elite is on trial in Paris for 'pimping.' He is one of 14 defendants accused of holding profitable sex parties in Lille, Paris and Washington, where DSK was head of the IMF. — DSK COVERAGE FROM FRANCE24 'FEMON' MEMBERS ASSAULT DSK

Die Welt, Germany Munich Security Conference: the U.S. and Germany Clash Over Salmon Appetizers TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "For all the diplomatic pleasantries and the cozy Bavarian hospitality, there is a topic this night that angers and divides the camps. German rejection of sending weapons to Ukraine. Defense Minister Von der Leyen and Secretary John Kerry greet each one another only in passing. While over the past year, despite even the NSA affair, there were photos of a charmingly smiling Kerry and a beaming von der Leyen, frosty silence now reigns.” — COLUMNIST Anna von Bayern NON-MILITARY CLASH AT SUMMIT DINNER

Barbadillo, Italy Germany's Anti-Muslim Movement Spawns an Anti-America Offshoot TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "Born out of a group of local Pegida supporters, the group began with a large protest of about 1,000 people and in days it had already collected over 20,000 Facebook likes. At the center of the protests is the 'Americanization' of Germany, not only culturally and linguistically, but socially and economically, and with slogans directed against a Merkel government judged guilty for going ahead with negotiations to sign TTIP, legislation that provides for mass privatization and great legal advantages for the Stars and Stripes multinationals settled on the old continent.” —COLUMNIST Cristiano Puglis ANTI-AMERICANISM UP IN GERMANY

The Independent, U.K. British News Executive Faces Credibility Crisis Over NBC Anchor's Lies "A deep unease has taken hold at NBC News since Brian Williams, its nightly news anchor, came under attack for making up a story about his life-and-death escape in Iraq. Caught in the maelstrom is Deborah Turness, a Briton who left ITV to become the president of NBC News just eighteen months ago.” — COLUMNIST David Usborne THE BRIAN WILLIAMS SCANDAL

Le Monde, France War or Peace?: Putin Alone Will Make Choice TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The Ukrainian affair will move toward a shaky equilibrium with the merit of stopping the cycle of violence, or in one of those patterns Europe knows only too well, into a wider confrontation - war at the heart of the continent between Russia and the West with Ukrainians in the middle. ... Really, though, it all depends on a singl man: Vladimir Putin.” —EDITORIAL, Le Monde AS USUAL: ALL EYES ON VLADIMIR PUTIN

Guardian Unlimited, 60 Minutes, U.K., U.S. TEXT-VIDEO: Biggest Leak in Banking History Exposes Monumental Wrongdoing FOUR NEWS REPORTS, ONE VIDEO The now legendary criminality of the world's big banks, in this case Swiss Bank HSBC, has been exposed in mind- boggling fashion by whistleblower Herve Falciani, who is now being referred to as ' Snowden of banking.' — GREENSPAN IS BACK MASSIVE BANK CRIMINALITY EXPOSED

BBC News, U.K. AUDIO: Greenspan Predicts Greece will Exit Eurozone; Likely Demise of the Euro FEBRUARY 8, 2015 Former Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board Alan Greenspan, a smart man who was spectacularly wrong on the greatest economic crisis in our lifetimes and in terms of the amount of private equity wiped out perhaps in history, is now predicting the Greece will exit the eurozone, which will likely be the death knell of the euro unless there is full U.S.-style political unification. Greenspan spoke to the BBCs North American bureau chief Mark Mardell. — GREENSPAN IS BACK IS THE EUROZONE ABOUT TO DIE?

Le Temps, Switzerland Arming Ukraine: Obama's Well-Founded Hesitations TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "To understand the Russia policy of THE Obama Administration when it comes to the conflict in Ukraine, ask yourself what the policy would have been with Republican hawk John McCain in the White House. ... If Obama is hesitating, it's because he doesn't like war, and prefers to fight them at a distance (as with drones and air strikes in Iraq). He has other priorities.” —COLUMNIST Stephane Bussard ARMING UKRAINE: SOLUTION OR MISTAKE?

Temoignages, France (Reunion) TTIP: French Lawmakers Reject Trade Deal's 'Non- State' Dispute Resolution TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The currently proposed mechanism is extremely dangerous. American companies could attack our country because it has banned genetically modified organisms, or declared a moratorium on shale gas fracking, or banned BPA (Biphenyl A, a carbon- based synthetic compound used in a variety of common consumer goods).” — European MP Yannick Jadot OPPOSITION BUILDS TO TRADE DEAL

Munich Security Summit, Germany VIDEOS: Merkel and Biden Clash Over Arming Ukraine; Talking Heads Debate the 'Collapsing World Order' SEVEN VIDEOS FROM MUNICH People on which the world's leading powers rely to develop policies in the military/security sphere discuss the crisis in Ukraine, the battle against Islamic State, and a variety of other challenges dominating the world. These are the most significant videos from the Munich Security Conference. —COVERAGE FROM GERMANY MERKEL: AGAINST ARMS FOR UKRAINE

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. I Have Seen the Secrets of TTIP, and it's Built for Companies, Not Citizens "As a member of the European Parliament, I am party to the transatlantic trade deal's inner workings. I'm sworn to secrecy, but this much I can say: Trans- Atlantic treaty is undemocratic.” — European Green Party MP Molly Scott Cato

UK LAWMAKER SPILLS THE BEANS

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Not 'Sales' of Weapons to Ukraine, but 'Gifts' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "This conflict will go on - Russia hasn't realized its goal: the subjugation of Ukraine. The Kremlin is the aggressor. Russian troops are on the territory of a neighbor and are shooting its soldiers. No Western country denies this - even those that would lift sanctions against Moscow tomorrow. So why is there this reluctance to support the other side - the victim of increasing aggression from over the border?” — COLUMNIST Jerzy Haszczynski

HEADING OFF WEAPONS SALES?

Le Figaro, France 'Raising the Stakes,' Putin Draws America Back to Europe's Side TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "In Moscow and Europe, the ideological battle to discredit the West is in full swing. Suddenly, concern and distress has gripped Washington over a Russian question it thought had disappeared from the radar.” — COLUMNIST Laure Mandeville

KERRY BUCKS UP UKRAINIANS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA-GHCQ Surveillance Regime Ruled Unlawful for the Years 2007-2014 "The regime that governs the sharing between U.K. and U.S of electronic communications intercepted in bulk was illegal until last year, a secretive British tribunal has ruled.” — REPORTER Peter Walker

U.K. TRIBUNAL TRAPPED IN ILLOGIC

GUARDIAN: Spy Agency Strategy
was Working - Until Secretive
Tribunal Blasted a Hole in It

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Today is a 'Great Victory' Against the NSA, GCHQ, and the Surveillance State "Not a single British spy has been held accountable for mass surveillance, unlawful spying or snooping on private emails and phone calls. ... Until today. ... In years to come we will look back on today as an essential win against the surveillance state.” — REPORTER Peter Walker

BELATED ADMISSION OF WRONGDOING

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Attempts to Sell 'Weak' NSA Reform to Congress - and Merkel "Many of the new 'restrictions' are so broad as to be practically meaningless, such as the 6 new criteria under which bulk phone collection remains permissible: ranging from fighting spies, terrorists and nuclear weapons proliferation to 'criminals', hackers and loosely defined threats to the military. American spies, emboldened by declining pressure from Congress and a clutch of new terrorist threats to worry about, they are in no rush to fundamentally alter the elaborate surveillance apparatus the scale of which was first revealed by Edward Snowden.” — CORRESPONDENT Dan Roberts SELLING NO CHANGE - AS CHANGE

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Challenging U.S. Elites on Ukraine, Netanyahu, Iran, Terror, Equating RT with ISIL TWELVE SEGENTS FROM RUSSIA TODAY RT looks at the policies of the U.S. national security state with Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson, Secretary of State Colin Powell's chief of staff; Alan Dershowitz on terrorism and why Europe is now being targeted; the seeming admission by President Obama last weekend that yes - the United States was deeply involved with toppling the democratically- elected government in Ukraine; whether the political elite in Israel and the United States will ever accept peaceful co-existence with Iran; whether the global economic system is 'rigged' in favor of the planet's wealthy; what the major media refuses to acknowledge of Greece - that the banks and states judging the country as bankrupt as the government of Greece is. —AMERICA ACCORDING TO RT END-RUN AROUND MAINSTREAM MEDIA

Le Monde, France Encryption: U.S. Internet Giants in 'Open Conflict' w/ Western Democracies TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "For a little over 18 months, the U.S. Internet giants have been in open conflict with governments of the Western democracies. ... Shaken by the Snowden Affair, certain CEOs of these companies privately explain that 'back doors' would be a gateway to unlimited intrusion by the the authorities and a threat to individual freedom.” — COLUMNIST Sylvie Kauffmann BACKING DEATH FOR ENCRYPTION

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Chris Christie Begins Visit to Britain at Football Match "With a political career based entirely within New Jersey, Christie must seek to show himself as a leader of broader experience, especially if the Democrat candidate ends up being Hillary Clinton, the former American secretary of state.” — REPORTER Peter Walker

CHRIS CHRISTIE CROSSES THE POND

DAILY MAIL: Chris Christie
Kicks Off British Trade Visit
with Trip to Premier League

Corriere Della Sera, Italy American Sniper: 'Eroticism of War' Rankles its Critics TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "In Iraq Chris Kyle doesn't find deer - he finds men. The substance is the same though. Only the reasons for his actions differ ('I do it to protect my friends). In any event, the thin, impalpable smile that the sniper keeps on his face in a context so dramatic - and his 'addiction' to battle that manifests during his time off at home suggest a relationship that is far from ambiguous about the 'eroticism of war.' And it is this, perhaps, which so disturbs some, scandalizes many, and satisfies the rest.” — COLUMNIST Paolo Salom POLARIZES AND SATISFIES

Der Spiegel, Germany NSA Fingered as Source of Trojan Horse 'Regin' that Targeted PCs around World "The new analysis provides clear proof that Regin is in fact the cyber-attack platform belonging to the Five Eyes alliance, which includes the U.S., Britain, New Zealand, Canada and Australia.” — REPORTERS Marcel Rosenbach, Hilmar Schmundt, Christian Stocker

DO WHAT WE SAY, NOT WHAT WE DO

Der Speigel, Germany Trade Pact Endangered: Europeans Fear Wave of Litigation from U.S. Firms "The main sticking point is special rights provided to investors, who would be able to challenge nations in special dispute settlement panels that would bypass national courts. ” — REPORTER Christoph Pauly WIN FOR OPPONENTS OF 'UNFAIR' TRADE

FAZ, Germany Auschwitz is Part of German Identity - for Immigrants as Well TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "What's required is a common consensus on the community's most important value, which is at the heart of [Germany's] Basic Law: human dignity. Anyone who has the desire to understand why that is the very highest legal value of our Constitution, what this term truly means and the obligations that come with it, must study the past. That includes not only studying the Auschwitz death camp, but enlightening others about it as well. Neither can be overlooked in courses on integrating our new citizens.” — COLUMNIST Berthold Kohler

ANTISEMETISM AND INTEGRATION

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany The West Ignores Yemen at its Peril TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "A storm is brewing in Yemen. Shiite militias, Sunni tribes, al-Qaeda, Iran and Saudi Arabia are all in the mix in the Middle East's poorest country. ... The geopolitically- and religiously- charged nature of this local conflict only makes finding a solution more complicated. ... As the recent attack on Charlie Hebdo made clear, the West should not ignore what seems like a distant crisis in Yemen.” — COLUMNIST Paul-Anton Kruger HOUTHIS: WHY SHOULD WE CARE?

Le Figaro, France Doubts about the Loyalty of Saudi Forces Trigger American Reassessment TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The assassination by ISIL commanders of a Saudi general sent to the northern border to assess the loyalty of units judged unreliable reveals the scale of the problem. The attack across the border against General Oudah al-Belawi was very well planned and based on specific data from within the military.” — A Source Close to U.S. intelligence

SAUDI ROLE IN 9-11 AN ISSUE AGAIN

The Telegraph, U.K. Iraq Invasion 2003: The 'Bloody Warnings' Tony Blair Ignored "They had no plan for what would happen after the invasion. ... The approach was, ‘The Americans are heading this up. They will have a detailed plan. We need to follow them. ... The civil war and violent chaos that followed the war created the conditions for the Islamic State to grow." — Dr. George Joffe, Cambridge University TONY BLAIR: DULY WARNED

Sol, Portugal If We Surrender to Xenophobia, the Terrorists will Win TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGIESE "There are clear shared interests between the fanatical Islamists and xenophobic, extremist European forces. Each will tend to radicalize the other in a scenario of 'civil war' that aligns with the objectives of this organiztion of global intolerance and barbarity.” — COLUMNIST Vicente Jorge Silva

NOT GIVING IN TO TERRORISM

World Economic Forum, Switzerland VIDEO: In Tech We Trust - or We Don't Can confidence in the cloud be restored? This panel, which addresses the collapse in trust after the largest tech companies allowed users to be secretly spied upon have damaged not only their reputations, but confidence in the cloud, which is what the future of the high tech revilution now depends upon. This panel includes Internet founder Tim Berners-Lee, BBC World News presenter Nik Gowing, CEO of Liberty Global Michael T. Fries, CEO of salesforce.com Marc R. Benioff, German lawmaker Gunther H. Oettinger and Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer. — PANEL: In Tech We Trust

VIDEO PANEL: The Future
of the Digital Economy with
Google CEO Eric Schmidt

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Davos Oligarchs are Right to Fear the World they’ve Made “Escalating inequality is the work of a global elite that will resist every challenge to its closely vested interests.” — COLUMNIST Seumas Milne DAVOS: A SELFISH CLIQUE?

World Economic Forum, Switzerland VIDEO: What's Up Next for the Climate with Al Gore January 21, 00:28:00 This is in essence a new version of An Inconvenient Truth. Mr. Gore presents the latest research into climate change and the danger of not responding to it, including to critical infrastructure. This time Gore comes armed not just with slides but some very interesting video to back up the evidence. — Al Gore on the Climate EVEN MORE INVCONVENIENT TRUTHS?

The Telegraph, U.K. Almost a Dozen French Troops 'Defect' to ISIL "Most of the former soldiers, reportedly numbering around ten, including ex-paratroopers and French Foreign legionnaires, are said to be fighting for ISIL." — CORRESPONDENT Henry Samuel FRENCH DEFENSE MINISTER ADMITS

RFI: French Consider
Reviving Nazi Purge
Law for Terror Offenses

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland New Surveillance Powers? 'We Must Demand Proof' of their Effectiveness TRANSLATED FROM POLAND "All indications are that the attack on satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo will provide a pretext for introducing further limits on our civil liberties - a new order the victims of which are unlikely to be terrorists. These tools have evidently failed. ... We have a right to a thorough justification for measures that will limit our rights and freedoms. In our democratic debate, we must demand evidence of their effectiveness." — PANOPTYKON FOUNDATION DIRECTOR Katarzyna Szymielewicz

WIDESPREAD DOUBTS ON SURVEILLANCE

Irish Times, Ireland Surveillance Should Not Be Permitted Without 'Reasonable Suspicion' "Some measures under consideration are so sweeping they would allow the monitoring of private communications of every citizen. They should instead focus on targeting those reasonably suspected of intending to carry out attacks or spurring others to do so." — EDITORIAL, Irish Times

Izvestia, Russia Russia Must Hold Out or Land on the 'Dustbin of History' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN " If we can get through the next year, we will not break, we will not give in, we will not beg for a 'fun' pain-free death. We will be masters of the circumstances, including even Europe. However, if we break we'll be thrown onto the dustbin of failed civilizations. We'll be left to rot, with smoke coming off the pile and rats crawling all over us." — WRITER Egor Kholmogorov

RUSSIA HUNKERS DOWN FOR THE LONG HAUL

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Ex-MI6 Chief: Snowden Ruined 'Compact' Between Tech Firms, Spy Agencies "Informal co-operation that worked well between most technology firms and communication companies and security services broken by the Snowden files hasn't been repaired." — FORMER MI6 Chief Sir John Sawers SAWERS: ADMITTING THE OBVIOUS

PRESS GAZETTE: Every British
National Newspaper Editor Urges
Cameron to HALT Spying on Journalists

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. GCHQ Intercepted, Stored E-Mails, Data of Journalists from Leading Global Media Why do we keep hammering away at the issue of mass surveillance? ... A document released from the Snowden documents today shows the routine interception of e-mails and data from leading journalists and investigative reporters and their storage in an archive easy to access by GHCQ agents. — COLUMNIST James Ball SO MUCH FOR THE 'FREE' PRESS

News, Switzerland Now: Shameful Backing Away from Freedom of Expression TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "No one is forced to read Charlie Hebdo, no one is forced to look at its cartoons. Because we and every damned Salafist in Switzerland have the right to look away. That we have as a senior state representative who is a member of the appeasement block, for which free expression is labeled with a 'but,' is itself enough to make one want to vomit." — COLUMNIST Bartosz Weglarczyk

SWISS POLITICIAN: BLAMING THE VICTIMS?

Le Petite Journal, France VIDEO: French TV Show 'Le Petite Journal' Rips Fox News for False 'No Go Zone' Claims THREE VIDEOS FROM FRANCE AND U.S. You might recall a few days ago we posted a commentator on Fox News claiming that there are areas of France and Britain. ... Now French TV has broadcast a mashup of Fox News figures repeating again and again similar erroneous claims, and spoke to people living in these non-Muslim 'no go' areas, and asked its viewers to bury Fox News in e-mail complaints. — FINALLY - FOX APOLOGIZES FOX NEWS EUROPE BACKLASH

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. New Oxfam Report: Half of Global Wealth Held by Wealthiest 1% "The message is that rising inequality is dangerous. It is bad for growth and it is bad for governance. We see a concentration of wealth capturing power and leaving average people voiceless and their interests uncared for [by leadership]." — Winnie Byanyima, Oxfam Executive Director

BBC News, U.K. AUDIO: Blasphemy - What is it to Islam? January 17, 2015; 00:53:00 What is blasphemy in Islam and how does that compare to other religions? Owen Bennett Jones is joined by the Bishop of Bradford, Paul Marshall of the Hudson Institute, Professor Yvonne Sherwood of Kent University, Australia columnist Waleed Aly and journalists Audrey Carville in Dublin, and Omar Waraich and Nick Cohen to debate the meaning of blasphemy today. — CHALLENGING FREE SPEECH AN AWKWARD AY IN PARIS

Der Spiegel, Germany The NSA Preps America for Cyber Battle Future Beyond collecting every shred of data from every user on the Internet in order 'to keep us safe' - what else is the NSA up to? For Germany's Der Spiegel, a team that includes the maker of the documentary on Edward Snowden 'Citizien Four' Laura Poitras and a leading critic of NSA activity Jacob Appelbaum put together this report on how the NSA is buinding the sytems and capability for unprecedented cyber warfare. — REPORTERS Laura Poitras, Jacob Appelbaum, Aaron Gibson, Claudio Guarnieri, Marcel Rosenbach, Andy Muller-Maguhn, Leif Ryge, Hilmar Schmundt and Michael Sontheimer

NSA PREPARES THE BATTLEFIELD

France 24, France VIDEOS: After Absence from Unity Rally, Kerry 'Shares Hug' with Paris; Trots Out James Taylor January 16, 2015; 01:02:31 Talk about shameless, Secretary of State John Kerry's visit to France today takes the cake. An effort to place a raw steak on the black eye of U.S. foreign policy after the White House decided not to send a senior official to the demonstration of unity in Paris that drew leaders from around the world and almost two million people to the streets of the city, Kerry pulled out all the stops make up for America's absence - and some he should not have pulled out. Much of the time he speaks flawless French - which the locals do like quite a bit. — SHAMELESS OR CLUELESS? AN AWKWARD DISPLAY IN PARIS

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Europe Unprepared for Next Inevitable Terrorist Attack TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "The E.U. needs to start preparing for the next such event, because it will certainly come. Europe needs to find new impetus in the fight against terror. Ten years have passed since the horrid attack on the London underground, and our vigilance has diminished." — COLUMNIST Bartosz Weglarczyk

A POTENTIAL WAVE OF TERRORISM

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Google Glass is Dead; Device to be Rethought and then Remarketed "Google has tried to present this announcement as just another step in the evolution of an amazing innovation. But make no mistake - Google Glass is dead, at least in its present form. ... Google will now have to deal with a disgruntled community of Explorers who paid a large sum for a device which they must have believed would eventually evolve into something more useful." — TECH CORRESPONDENT Rory Cellan-Jones

GLASS IS DEAD: LONG LIVE PRIVACY?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Pope Francis: Climate Change 'Manmade'; Free Speech Not 'Absolute' "'If my friend Dr. Gasparri says a curse word against my mother, he can expect a punch. It's normal. It’s normal. You cannot provoke. You cannot insult the faith of others. You cannot make fun of the faith of others.' ... 'I don't know if [human activity] is the only cause, but mostly, in great part, it is man who has slapped nature in the face.'" — POPE Francis

FRANCIS ON FREE SPEECH LIMITS

The Independent, U.K. Paris Attacks: Don't Blame the Atrocities on Security Failures "The failure that has put all the world in danger is at the level of politics - not security. It was political leaders who got rid of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, Muammar Gaddafi in Libya and have tried to displace Bashar al-Assad in Syria without thinking through the likely consequences." — COLUMNIST Patrick Cockburn

WARS STUPIDLY WAGED?

Russia Today, Russia U.S.-German Double Agent Perloined and May Have Sold Spy List "The list contains the identities of agents working at Germen embassies across the globe, in addition to those accompanying army missions in Afghanistan, Mali, Lebanon and Sudan. ... It remains unclear if Markus R. has sold this particular document to any intelligence or spy agency." — NEWS ITEM, Russia Today

HAVE GERMAN AGENTS BEEN OUTED?

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Assimilating Muslims in E.U.: 'It May be too Late' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “It may be that in states where entire neighborhoods and soon entire towns are Muslim, it is already too late. In those places, politicians and activists may be unable to prevent a genuine conflict between civilizations." — COLUMNIST Jerzy Haszczynski EUROPE'S FAILURE TO INTEGRATE

Publico, Portugal After Paris: Still Pursuing the Revolution of Voltaire TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "The 18 century was not just about the idealized Enlightenment, but a revolution of underground, sensual and satirical ideas - which is still with us today. It would be better if there were no fanatics and no martyrs for freedom. But as there are, it is important to remember that love is stronger than hate." — COLUMNIST Rui Tavares

VOLTAIRE: AHEAD OF HIS TIME, AND OURS

FOX, BBC4, Guardian, Sky News, U.K., U.S. VIDEO and TEXT: British Heap Scorn on Gaffe-Prone FOX News Commentator TWO VIDEOS; THREE COLUMNS One of America's most error-prone and Pavlovian 'terrorism experts,' Steven Emerson, a regular guest on FOX News, put his foot more deeply into his mouth than usual, referring to Birmingham, Britain's second-largest city, as a 'Muslim- only city' where non-Muslims 'don't go'. There has been a veritable eruption of derision in Britain to his comments, and a twitter hashtag dedicated to skewering him and the network that employs him. — WHIPPING UP MORE FEAR OF TERROR FOX COMMENTATOR GAFFE DERISION

Sol, Portugal A Religious War ... or a Political One? TRANSLATED PORTUGUESE "It is time to consider that there is nothing innocent about all the references to a 'religion of violence.' The most bloodthirsty regimes of the 20th century were 'secular and republican.'" — COLUMNIST Rui Tavares

RELIGION AS DISGUISE

Guardian, Ecologist, Agri.eu, U.K., Belgium GM Crop Companies to Crack Open E.U.; U.K. MPs Probe TTIP The European Parliament is about to vote on a measure written by Monsanto, DuPont, and their bought and paid for legislators) to look like a way of further restricting the use of GM crops, but in fact will result in their wider use throughout the E.U. Even if the motives of the people behind the measure couldn't be more obvious, passage of the measure seems assured. Then some good news: Due to massive public pressure, U.K. lawmakers have been forced to launch an probe into whether and how the secretly-negotiated TTIP will 'weaken rules to protect food and the environment.' — NEWS ITEMS ON GMOS, TTIP SYSTEM RIGGED AGAINST PEOPLE

Le Monde, France De Villepin: Let France 'Resist the Spirit of War' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The feeling of unforeseeable, pervasive and sudden violence arouses a desire for security that will be impossible to fulfill. Experience teaches us that terrorist attacks encourage the renunciation of democratic values and amid concerns for our own security the sacrifice of the liberties of others at home or abroad. The spiral of suspicion created in the U.S. by the Patriot Act and the legitimization of torture or illegal detention has today plunged that country into the loss of its moral compass." — FORMER PRIME MINISTER Dominique de Villepin

MILITARY RESPONSE DEAD END

Kurier, Austria After Paris, Freedom Writ Large is at Stake TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Immigrants of the Muslim faith need to know that they have to accept our achievements if they wish to stay here. These include equality and equal treatment of men and women as well as the separation of church and state. As a Christian, one might find cartoons of the pope or Jesus repellent, but censorship is the beginning of the end of freedom." — COLUMNIST Helmut Brandstatter CAN E.U. MUSLIMS INTEGRATE?

Daily Mail, U.K. America 'Snubs' Historic Rally for Unity in Paris "Heads of state from every major European power, including British Prime Minister David Cameron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, joined French President Francois Hollande. But the U.S.A. was MIA." — REPORTERS Ashley Collman, David Martosko, Michael Zennie

THE WHITE HOUSE TAKES A PASS

Corriere Della Sera, Italy 'Europe's 9/11': If this is Islam, here's What We'd Like TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “If Islam is this, then we want the opportunity to criticize it as we like, as we've learned to criticize Christianity, Buddhism and many other things. We want the opportunity not risk our lives for that." — COLUMNIST Ernesto Galli della Loggia THE RIGHT TO MOCK

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. We Must Not Stop Laughing at these Murderous Clowns However much their murderers may identify themselves as the victims of mockery, they have also identified themselves as on the side of power, electing to act as agents avenging the injured feelings of the most Powerful Being in the Universe." — CARTOONIST Martin Rowson

HOLDING DEAR TO THE RIGHT TO MOCK

Die Welt, Germany Charlie Hebdo Massacre: It is Time to 'Impose the Enlightenment' on Islam TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “This is precisely the demand that must be imposed on Islam if it really wants to be part of Europe. Things needn't go as far as laughing at caricatures of Mohammed, but it will certainly have to go almost that far. What exactly would imposing the Enlightenment mean for Islam? In addition to realizing religious tolerance (this will never exist in Islam as long as apostasy is thought worthy of punishment), full equality for women, a clear precedence of secular over religious law, and above all: goodbye to Islam as a notion as a basis the world order." — COLUMNIST Jochen Bittner A MOMENT OF TRUTH FOR EUROPE?

Guardian, PBS, U.K., U.S. Will More Surveillance Powers 'Keep Us Safe'? We are all watching events in Paris with a combination of heartbreak, concern for the future and outrage. Sadly, there are those among our own leaders who are more than willing to use the fear these attacks have conjured to persuade us to give up even more of our precious and diminishing civil liberties, they claim - 'to keep us safe.' — MI5 POWER GRAB DIMINISHING CIVIL LIBERTIES

Der Spiegel, Germany Je Suis Charlie: We Must Stand Together in the Face of Violence "If the armed attack on Charlie Hebdo leads to increased self-censorship on the part of satirists and critics of Islam, then terror will have won. But it will also have won if every faithful Muslim now falls under suspicion." — COLUMNIST Stefan Kuzmany

NO TO SELF-CENSORSHIP

France 24, Guardian, BBC, France, U.K. LIVE BLOGS-LIVE VIDEO: French Police Have Charlie Hebdo Suspects Cornered January 9, 2015 We appear close to the end game on the Charlie Hebdo drama, as French police and security forces have surrounding a printing shop in a small town north of Paris. — LIVE VIDEO AND BLOG WILL IT BE 'MARTYRDOM' AFTER ALL?

Le FIgaro, France War has Come to France - and France Must Win it TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Since yesterday, euphemisms are no longer appropriate: This is war, a real war that has been declared on us: the war of Muslim fanaticism against the West, Europe and the values of democracy. Ultimately, it isn't this nation or that being targeted, but a way of life, values, civilization - ours - in which women are equal, rights of conscience are a non-negotiable, and freedom of expression an absolute imperative. " — COLUMNIST Alexis Brezet ISLAMISTS AND THE RIGHT TO MOCK

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Charlie Hebdo: Now's the Time to Uphold Freedoms and not Give in to Fear
FREEDOM'S WAGES	“There can be no doubt that Charlie Hebdo was testing the boundaries of taste and religious tolerance. But that is the burden free speech has to bear in a democracy. The U.S. bore it recently with its satire on North Korea's leader; and it was the risk Charlie Hebdo took - knew it was taking.” — COLUMNIST Simon Jenkins

Guardian, France 24, U.K., France LIVE BLOG-LIVE VIDEO: Coverage of Terrorist Attack on French Satire Magazine Charlie Hebdo January 7, 2015 This is the Guardian's LIVE BLOG of Tweets, text, photos and video and France 24's LIVE VIDEO FEED of this morning's attack on the offices of French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, in which at least 12 people are dead, 10 seriously injured; the attackers on the run. — LIVE VIDEO AND BLOG ATTACK ON FREE SPEECH IN FRANCE

Sol, Portugal 2015: On World War and Russia Sanctions TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "U.S. and NATO continue to antagonize Moscow and Obama has approved new sanctions. ... In August 1941, the Americans cut oil sales to Japan, which is how Tokyo obtained about 75 percent of its supply. Then they then froze its financial assets. Pearl Harbor came just four months later." — COLUMNIST Jaime Nogueira Pinto

SLEEPWAKING TO WAR?

Le Monde, France NATO Out: Ghani Looks to Beijing for Help with Pakistan and the Taliban TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Pakistan hosts the headquarters of the insurrection - and although it officially denies it, with the goal of promoting its anti-India interests in Afghanistan. And China, Pakistan's nuclear godfather, has influence that Mr. Ghani would like to see used to bring Islamabad to a better disposition toward Kabul. There is some coherence in this triangle and it is natural for Mr. Ghani to try and play it. … The new Afghan president holds a trump card: the departure of the bulk of the NATO troops reinforces his room to maneuver.” — CORRESPONDENT Frederic Bobin WILL CHINA HELP THE AFGHANS?

Sol, Portugal The Confounding Tyranny of History TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "Confronted with the past, we tend to rationalize everything that happened as if it perforce had to have. The great religions - with a provident and all-providing God, and the great historical determinism of, for example, Marxism, pushed people onto these paths ... codified in seductive prose with the subtle threat that thoes who ignore history are doomed to repeat it. ... From this tendency to rationalize also comes the temptation to seek the roots of the present in the past, not admitting to the possibility of alternatives and neglecting the potential future of paths marginalized by the march of history." — COLUMNIST Jaime Nogueira Pinto

HISTORY: DOOMED TO REPEAT IT?

Daily Mail, Daily Mirror, U.K. President Clinton, Other Notables, May Be Ensnared in Prince Andrew Scandal Rumors of perverse sexual practices among the world's elite forever circulate but are rarely documented. Just when the British Royal family and former President Bill Clinton appeared to have restored their public images so well, an unseemly scandal involving Jeffrey Epstein, an American jet setter and sex offender, has reemerged and threatens to ensnare Prince Andrew, perhaps President Clinton and other high profile figures in the U.S. and U.K. — TABLOID NEWS ITEMS SEX SCANDAL: JUST IN TIME FOR 2016?

Evenimentul Zilei, Romania In 'Heroic' America, Values Come Before Self Defense TRANSLATED FROM ROMANIA "The wish of Americans to respond to those trained precisely to deny fundamental rights to anyone who falls into their hands and, moreover, who have no purpose other than to kill Americans and terrorize their country, is downright heroic." — COLUMNIST Sever Voinescu

THE VALUE OF SELF-CRITICISM

Russia Today, U.K. VIDEO: New Year Address - Reunification with Crimea a Landmark in Nation's History Dec. 31, 00:05:55 "Love for one's Motherland is one of the most powerful and enlightening feelings. It has found its reflection in our fraternal aid to the residents of Crimea and Sevastopol, after they made the firm decision to return to their native home. This event will remain a landmark in national history." — PRESIDENT Vladimir Putin PUTIN 2015: NO SIGNS OF CRACKING

Deutshe Welle, Germany Kim Dotcom's Encypted MegaChat Poses Threat to Microsoft's Skype "No U.S. based online service provider can be trusted with your data' ... Skype has no choice. It must provide the U.S. Government with backdoors. — NEWS ITEM, Deutshe Welle MEGACHAT: SURVEILLANCE NO MORE?

THE TELEGRAPH: 'Lizard
Squad' Man Arrested in
PlayStation Network Hacking

Jornal De Negocios, Portugal Hackers and Sony: Last Nail in Privacy's Coffin? TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "Although many people find the topic of cybercrime exciting and consider it of little relevance, imagine instead that Sony was an airline. Instead of using bombs to bring down planes the same can be achieved by breaking into an aircraft's computer system. ... We need to change our thinking.” — COLUMNIST David Bernardo NO CHRISTMAS FOR SONY OR KIM

Die Welt, Germany Infrastructure and Sony Hacking: A Digital 9/11 TRANSLATED FROM GERMANY "Sony may have been a practice run for attacks on telecoms and electrical grids in other nations. ... As long as water runs from the tap and electricity is available from the wall, very few will understand the risks and dangers a digital attack on infrastructure by a hostile power represents.” — COLUMNIST Ulrich Clauss HACKS AND INFRASTRUCTURE ATTACK

Der Spiegel, Germany Snowden Documents on Taliban Drug War, Drone Kill Gone Wrong, Kill List Der Spiegel posted fascinating documents from Snowden classified 'Highest Classification Top Secret' on drugs and the Taliban war, the CIA kill list and the Drone program, and an 'unprecedented' operation conducted by Afghan, German forces targeting a 'narcotics trafficker, IED facilitator and a leading Taliban commander' — DOCUMENTS FRON NSA CRYPT LOOK INSIDE AFGHAN DRONE WAR

DER SPIEGEL: Prying Eyes: Inside
the NSA's War on Internet Security
MASHABLE: The Interview Now
Sony's Biggest Online Film Ever

Daily Mail, U.K. Hackers Release Cache of 13,000 Passwords, Credit Cards of Playstation, Xbox and Users of Amazon.com "A gang of internet hackers claiming an affiliation with shadowy anarchist group Anonymous is claiming it has leaked the details of over 13,000 users of Playstation, Xbox and online shopping sites that include Amazon.” — REPORTER Darren Boyle MORE HACKERS TARGET BELEAGURED SONY

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NATO, U.S. 'End Combat Operations' in Afghanistan "After 13 years of war, NATO ended its combat operations in Afghanistan on Sunday, leaving the Afghan army and police in charge of security in a nation plagued by continued fighting, a ferocious insurgency and a rising tide of military and civilian casualties." — CORRESPONDENT Sune Engel Rasmussen AFGHANISTAN WAR: DONE AND DONE?

DEUTSCHE WELLE: Top German
Commander - Afghanistan
Mission was 'Successful'

Russia Today, Russia Russia's Revised Military Doctrine Lists U.S. and NATO as Central Threats "New sections of the doctrine outline the threat Russia sees in NATO's expansion and military buildup and the fact that the alliance is taking upon itself 'global functions realized in violation of international law.” — Ukraine Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk IS NATO A THREAT TO RUSSIA?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The Giants of Rock are Leaving the Stage: Their Music Never Will “No doubt: as they go, these people take an entire culture with them, and by around 2030 our understanding of rock’s essence will be synonymous with recorded music, old footage, and the overwhelming sense of art that no generation could top.” — COLUMNIST John Harris

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA Waits Until Christmas Eve to Reveal a Decade's of the Agency's Mistakes "Certain parts of the documents that really vindicate some of the things Snowden said when he first described the NSA surveillance in terms of the ability of analysts to conduct queries of raw internet traffic - without authorization.” — COLUMNIST Nicky Woolf

Le Figaro, France 2014: Another Year Colored By America's Post 9-11 Terror Fear TRANSLATED FROM FRANCE "The uproar over America's use of the torture is an echo of revelations just a year ago of the Snowden case. In both cases, the world discovered the extent of the ravages caused by the 'global war against terrorism' declared by George W. Bush after the September 11 attacks." — COLUMNIST Pierre Rousselin

WILL 2015 BE AN IMPROVEMENT?

Der Spiegel, Germany Ukraine Premiere: Putin 'Needs New Annexations' "Appeasement has never worked and it won't work with Putin. ... If 85 percent of Russians support the annexation of Crimea and the aggression against Ukraine, that is a very bad sign. The post-Soviet legacy is a heavy burden: Most Russians want to have the empire back. The only way it is possible to make that happen is to seize [additional] foreign territories.” — Ukraine Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk NATO: UKRAINE MAKES ITS MOVE

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Kremlin Propagandists Take Audiences for 'Idiots with no Recall' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "The basic canon of Kremlin propagandists is to give voice only to their own people, meaning Russia’s rulers and their entourage as well as select foreigners suffering under the yoke of the E.U. The Kremlin propagandists - and their daily toil gives us an abundance of examples - take their public for complete idiots who don't even recall what they heard a moment before, let alone any longer.” — COLUMNIST Waclaw Radziwinowicz RUSSIA MEDIA: WORSE THAN OURS?

BBC News, U.K. VIDEO: Notable Global Deaths December 24, 2014 2014 is coming to an end and its a time may people tally, measure and describe what happened in the last 12 months. — COMMENTS BY Seymour Hersh 2014: THE YEAR IN NOTABLE DEATHS

Le Monde, France Sony's Only Hope of Redemption: Post 'The Interview' for World TRANSLATED FROM FRANCE "It has been 25 years since the Ayatollah Khomeini issued a religious 'fatwa' enjoining Muslims around the world to kill august British writer Salman Rushdie. The reason?His novel, The Satanic Verses, was insulting to Islam. The case of The Interview involves a similar threat. As suggested by our British colleagues at The Financial Times, Sony must in turn respond by utilizing the Web and making the The Interview accessible to anyone who wishes to see it and putting it online." — EDITORIAL, Le Monde

CAN CHICKEN-HEARTED SONY EVER RECOVER?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. North Korea Demands Joint Investigation into the Sony Hack 'or Else' "North Korea has proposed holding a joint inquiry with the US into the hacking of Sony Pictures, claiming it can prove it did not carry out the massive cyber-attack.” — REPORTER Jon Sopel IS PYONGYANG JUST BLUFFING?

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland This is No Time to Ease Up on Putin TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "We can liaise with an authoritarian Russia, but not at the expense of the independence and territorial integrity of the states of Europe. Tightening the screws on Putin is less risky to us than consenting to a watering down of our principles. Moscow has already shown us how painful it is when she takes advantage of our weaknesses." — COLUMNIST Tomasz Bielecki

CORNERING PUTIN?

BBC News, U.K. Demise of 'The Interview': A Comedy of Terrors - in Four Acts "Having watched the trailer for The Interview, I'm going to say it's not a film I would normally rush to see. ... But after Sony's decision to can it (for now), I am now determined to watch - and buy tickets for my friends, too. But like any good drama, it has developed over three acts growing progressively more sinister as it goes along. There is a potential Act Four - more of which later. So readers, here's my synopsis so far.” — REPORTER Jon Sopel HACKERS HALT U.S. FREE SPEECH

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The U.S. Embargo is Disappearing; So, Too, Must Cuba's Dictatorship "Now this long-lasting foreign policy outrage is finally having a rendezvous with common sense, enemies of the embargo need to talk a lot more loudly about democracy in Cuba." — COLUMNIST Owen Jones

CASTROS: TIME FOR RAUL TO GO

REUTERS: As U.S.-Cuba Ties
Warm, Fuming Venezuela
President is Left in the Cold
GUARDIAN: As Door Opens
to Cuba, Debate Over Sanctions
vs. Engagement Starts Anew

L'Osservatore Romano, Vatican Vatican Communique on Restored U.S.-Cuba Ties "The Holy Father wants to express his warm congratulations for the historic decision taken by the Governments of the United States of America and Cuba to establish diplomatic relations, with the aim of overcoming, in the interest of the citizens of both countries, the difficulties which have marked their recent history.” — Vatican Communique U.S. CUBA TIES: THE POPE TAKES A BOW

Reuters, U.K. Secret Canada Talks, Vatican Talks, Led to Cuba Breakthrough "Months of talks in Canada and the Vatican involving one of Obama's closest aides, culminated when Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro spoke by phone for nearly an hour and gave final assent to steps that could end a half-century of enmity and suspicion.” — REPORTERS Warren Strobel, Lesley Wroughton POPE'S INFLUENCE ON DISPLAY

ECONOMIST: U.S. and
Cuba: At last, a Thaw

Trouw, The Netherlands Why Respect for U.S. has 'Disappeared' in Many Parts of World TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH ""The justifiable invasion of Afghanistan was followed by an invasion of Iraq under false pretenses; a massive program of secret prisons was set up; Guantanamo became a symbol of U.S. injustice, and finally there was the damaging NSA affair. ... Time after time it became clear that the United States broke the law. ... and global terrorism went into high gear." — COLUMNIST Rob de Wijk

MAKING, BREAKING THE LAW

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The Interview Review: Stoned, Anally Fixated – and Funny "Starring James Franco and Seth Rogen, the film behind the hack that rocked Hollywood is a tasteless but amusing comedy on assassinating Kim Jong-un.” — COLUMNIST Jordan Hoffman A FUNNY MOVIE YOU CANNOT SEE

GUARDIAN: The Interview's
New York Premiere Cancelled
in the Wake of Hacker Threats

Rzeczpospolita, Poland U.S. Senate Torture Report: A 'Matter of Life or Death' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "I consider a lesser evil ethically SUPERIOR to a greater one; and that I have a natural right to defend myself and my loved ones, as well as my countrymen, from death BY ALL MEANS. If a war prisoner has information that can save lives - especially many lives - I, Stanislaw Remuszko, will not hesitate to use 'unconventional methods' to get that information.” — COLUMNIST Stanislaw Remuszko CAN THIS TORTURE BE EXCUSED?

Polityka, Poland Poland's CIA Black Site and Phillip Seymour Hoffman TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "In the film A Most Wanted Man, recently-deceased Phillip Seymour Hoffman plays a German agent who, although he doesn't trust the Americans, is obliged to cooperate with them. ... Were our decision- makers supposed to assume that the American secret services were there to commit torture?” — COLUMNIST Marek Ostrowski HOFFMAN'S CHARACTER LIKE POLAND?

Guardian, BBC, Daily Mail, Der Speigel, TedX, The Intercept, ITAR-TASS, Top Level Telecoms, UK, U.S., Russia, Norway Sony Hack 'Torture', U.K. Robo-Cops, Liars, and Surveillance Blast "It's time to catch up on the latest on mass surveillance, hacking and government cyber lies and wrongdoing." — LIES, SPIES AND TORTURE

PARSING OFFICIAL LIES AND PR

RT, Russia China Offering Iraq Help Against ISIL 'from the Air' "Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim Jafari says his China counterpart, Wang Yi, has made an offer to help Iraq fight ISIL militants." — Colonel Tim Collins, Retd.

Guardian, BBC News, U.K. Torture, Guantanamo, Uruguay, FBI, the Pope and Angelina Jolie Coverage of the arrival of six Guantanamo inmates in Uruguay. Then Cori Crider, attorney for a man who spent 12 years in Guantanamo without ever being charged with a crime, tries to convey the insanity of the system she has had to work in - and how little Americans are permitted to know about it. Angelina Jolie weighs in on America's responsibility on the issue of torture. Abu Zubaydah's defense lawyer writes that after being subjected to every form of torture 'legalized' by the U.S. government without ever being charged with a crime, it is time to charge him or let him go. Then coverage of a hearing cancellation you probably haven't heard about: on how the FBI infiltrated the legal defense teams of Guantanamo inmates. Finally, the Pope wants the United States to 'find a humanitarian solution' to deal with the remaining Guantanamo inmates. — A Roundup of Coverage

OUTCRY: TORTURE AND GUANTANAMO

The Independent, U.K. CIA Torture: Once Again Language is Distorted to Hide U.S. State Wrongdoing
ASSAD'S BOON	“I condemn the vile semantics of the CIA and Pentagon. Not just that old, wolfish, obscene phrase 'collateral damage', but the language of torture. ... Or, as the lads who torture for us call it, 'enhanced interrogation techniques.'” — COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

GUARDIAN: Senior Commander
Spills Beans about al-Baghdidi
BBC NEWS: Jihadist Violence
'Killed 5,000 in November'

Le Monde, France Torture: the 'Ticking Time Bomb' Fallacy TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "On the screen, a clock counts down. Whether in French Algeria or Bush's America, the purpose of this fiction is always the same: to establish not only that torture is 'acceptable,' but that it is morally 'required.' ... Anti-terrorism and information professionals, FBI and CIA interrogators and even the scriptwriters of the TV show 24 recognized in the 2000s that it's something that never occurs.'” — Dr. Jean-Baptiste Jeangene Vilmer, Science Po, Paris ANOTHER FALLACY ON TORTURE

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Germany On Torture, the Kremlin Should Lead by Example! TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The Russian Foreign Ministry's commissioner for human rights, Konstantin Dolgov, called for the publication of the entire 6,700 page report and for all the perpetrators to be brought to justice. Well said! Should Washington hesitate, Moscow could lead the way as a shining example in this area.” — COLUMNIST Berthold Kohler TORTURE: WHO IS RUSSIA TO TALK?

The Telegraph, U.K. Senior Army Official Warn New Constraints Hamper Interrogations "The effect of the ambulance- chasing lawyers and the play- it-safe judges is that we have got to the point where we have lost our operational capacity for tactical questioning. That in itself brings risks to the lives of the people we deploy." — Colonel Tim Collins, Retd.

PUSHBACK ON TORTURE REPORT?

Daily Mail, U.K. 'Put Blair, Straw on Trial for Torture,' says Diplomat Fired for Blowing Whistle on Abuse "My career was destroyed by politicians who wanted to hide their complicity in human rights abuses. To complete the process, they then trashed my reputation with smears about my personal life." — Craig Murray, Former UK Ambassador to Uzbekistan

The Observer, U.K. Come Clean on British Links to CIA Torture, MPs Tell U.S. Senate "The head of the powerful Commons intelligence and security committee demands that the U.S. hand over its archive documenting Britain's role in the CIA’s abduction and torture program." — REPORTERS Mark Townsend, Jamie Doward

The Telegraph, U.K. George Tenet: Torturer-in-Chief? "While the CIA report's damning conclusions have impelled quite a coterie of potentially implicated individuals to cry foul, including ex-Vice President Dick Cheney and other ex- CIA chiefs, it is Tenet who stands most visibly in the dock.” — COLUMNIST David Usbourne TENET: MOST WANTED?

Deutsche Welle, Germany Russia, China, Iran, Should Also Publish Torture Reports "U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture Juan Mendez lauds the U.S. Senate report, and wants Russia, China and Iran to release their own." — NEWS ITEM, Deutsche Welle

News, Switzerland In Praise of the American Senate CIA Torture Report TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "A state report exposing torture as useless and counterproductive is an odd aberration, as it puts certain circles in that state in a bad light, making it clear that such practices are not what they pretend them to be. Yet it also shows that in our societies the capacity remains to practice self-criticism and depart from the wrong path. That's in stark contrast to totalitarian regimes that get ever-more bogged down in their own insanity, only to sink in their own ashes or drag the world down with them. ... Therefore, such a report is to be welcomed, because the alternative is far worse - and to hell with George W. Bush and Dick Cheney.” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer EXPUNGING EVIL WITH SELF-CRITICISM?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Court Rejects Attempt to Permit Mr. Snowden to Testify in Germany "If Edward Snowden were to be allowed to enter Germany, the clamour for him to be able to stay would be strong and resistance from government authorities would most likely be met with civil unrest." — REPORTER Kate Connolly

Polityka, Poland President Kwasniewski: 'Sadist' CIA Should Be Shuttered; Denies Knowledge of Torture Practices TRANSLATED FROM POLAND "It was a matter of 'higher necessity' We didn't do it on a whim. We didn't intend to accommodate sadists! ... This is a genuine catastrophe for the United States, the CIA and George W. Bush. We agreed to closer cooperation believing that America, which is a democratic country, would honor the law. We had no basis to believe that the U.S. authorities would accept, support and then cover up its illegal activities.” — FORMER PRESIDENT Aleksander Kwasniewski KWASNIEWSKI THROWS BUSH UNDER THE BUS

RADIO POLAND: Kwasniewski
says Poland Received CIA
Money Since Early 1990s

El Pais, Spain CIA Torture Report: Now is Obama's Chance to Shutter Guantanamo TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH "America cannot present itself as a pioneer of freedom as long as its most important globally- active organization is constantly committing atrocities. President Obama will never have a better excuse to close Guantanamo. This was one of his first campaign promises, and six years later is has yet to be fulfilled.” — EDITORIAL, El Pais A MOMENT OF OPPORTUNITY?

Financial Times, U.K. CIA Report is a Strike Back Against America's Deep State "American political life functions on two separate planes. We see the surface world of gridlock and hyper- partisanship and noisy cable TV. But less often glimpsed is a national security state whose influence goes on administration after administration, Republican or Democrat, that seems to evade the constraints of political scrutiny. ... That is the context for the release of the long-awaited and excruciatingly detailed Senate report on CIA torture of detainees after 9/11.” — COLUMNIST Geoff Dyer FIANNCIAL TIMES STATES THE OBVIOUS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.S. Ordered to Explain Withholding of Iraq and Afghan Torture Photos "Said to be more disturbing than the infamous Abu Ghraib photos that sparked a global furor in 2004, the imagery is the subject of a lawsuit that both the Bush and Obama Administrations, backed by the U.S. Congress, have strenuously resisted." — REPORTER David Ackerman

EVEN WORSE THAN ABU GHRAIB?

The Mirror, U.K. Iraq War 'Biggest Cover-Up of Our Time'; Families Still Wait for Results of Chilcot Inquiry "As the United States comes clean on its use of torture, questions are being asked about why Britain continues to suppress Sir John Chilcot's report." — REPORTERS David Collins, Jack Blanchard

WHY WON'T BRITAIN RELEASE IRAQ REPORT?

United Nations, Intl. Territory U.N. Human Rights Rapporteur: Individuals Behind CIA 'Criminal Conspiracy' Must Face Penalties' "It is now time to take action. Individuals responsible for the criminal conspiracy revealed in the report must be brought to justice, and must face criminal penalties commensurate with the gravity of their crimes. International law prohibits granting immunities to public officials who have engaged in acts of torture. This applies not only to the actual perpetrators but also to officials within the U.S. government who devised, planned, authorized such crimes.” — Ben Emmerson, U.N. Special Rapporteur on Counter-Terrorism and Human Rights SHOULD BUSH, CHENEY, BE PUT ON TRIAL?

Le Monde, France FLASHBACK: Report Confirms CIA Prisons in Poland, Romania TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Poland, Romania agreed to equip the installations on these sites with the most advanced forms of security and secrecy, and they gave absolute guarantees of non- interference. ... NATO is, the platform through which the United States obtained the necessary permission and protection needed for the CIA's secret actions." — Dick Marty, Author of Council of Europe Report on CIA Activities in Europe TORTURE REPORT FALLOUT

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. CIA Torture Report: Europe Must Come Clean about its Own Complicity "The CIA's activities would not have been possible without the help of Britain and 20 other European nations. ... Under President Bush the CIA used a web of European airports and bases for its extraordinary rendition flights, secretly transferring terror suspects over borders for interrogation.” — COLUMNIST Natalie Nougayrède MOMENT OF TRUTH FOR EUROPE

GUARDIAN: CIA Report
- Global Reaction Roundup
GUARDIAN: Torture Report
Could Unravel Prosecution
of Alleged 9/11 Masterminds

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Torture: America's Shame and Disgrace "In the 70s, the CIA reacted to criticism by pulling down the shutters and building up the secret state further. Today, Americans face the task of stopping a repeat. The moral and practical authority of the democratic system around the world depends in no small part on them succeeding." — EDITORIAL, Guardian

FINALLY: THE CIA TORTURE

GUARDIAN: Shock and Anal
Probe: Reading Between
Redactions in Torture Report
ECONOMIST: The CIA
and Torture - a Hard
Pill to Swallow
INDEPENDENT: America's
Day of Shame
TELEGRAPH: CIA Lied
to White House and
Britain to Justify Torture
TELEGRAPH: What did
Tony Blair and Jack
Straw Know of CIA Torture?

La Stampa, Italy Grand Jury Eruption in U.S. has Little to do with Racial Issue TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "The loss of status among the middle class, the decline in well-paid jobs for people without a degree and the ease of employing illegal immigrants sets Whites and Blacks against one another.” — COLUMNIST Gianni Riotta ARE WE MISSING THE POINT?

Guardian, CIA, C-SPAN, U.K., U.S. LIVE BLOG: Reaction to CIA Torture Report; U.N. Call to 'Prosecute Architects' Now, after months of debate, inter- agency wrangling and CIA spying on the Senate, the 6,000 page version of the CIA torture report has been released. This is global coverage of reaction and analysis of the report. — COVERAGE OF REACTION, ANALYSIS

FINALLY: THE REPORT ON CIA TORTURE

Russia Today, Guardian, Russia, U.K. VIDEO-TEXT: Seymour Hersh: Democracies 'Led by People who Push for War'; Created False Narrative Hard to Alter TWO VIDEOS, ONE COLUMN Hersh asserts: The Bush Administration 'Surge', which included funding jihadis, was a major contributing factor in the formation of the Islamic State -- That the Syrian Army will be the force that defeats IS -- U.S. is obviously working in coordination with the Iranian and Syrian Air Forces -- Moderate Syrian rebels that U.S. wants to support have already cut deals with Bashar al-Assad. — COMMENTS BY Seymour Hersh EXPOSING LIES AND DISINFORMATION

Daily Mail, Guardian, U.K. VIDEO-TEXT: Royals Meet Jay Z, Beyonce, LeBron, Hillary, Chelsea, Obama It's time again for the adventures of Duke William and Duchess Kate in New York. In 24 hours, they managed to take in a basketball game and meet Jay Z, Beyonce, LeBron James, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton, President Obama; William gave a speech at the World Bank, Kate visited a Children's center in Harlem and according to videos below, managed to change her clothes about a jillion times. — ADVENTURES of Will and Kate

ROYAL COUPLE IN NY: DAY TWO

NZZ, Switzerland NATO's Blunted 'Spearhead' TRANSLATED GERMAN "As Germany rejects military provocations toward Russia, it is not unlikely that at the last moment, it will suspend its participation.” — COLUMNIST Eric Gujer SHIELD - BUT NO SPEAR?

Guardian Unlimited-BBC, U.K. VIDEO, TEXT: Prince William, Dutchess Kate Arrive in the Big Apple For those inerested in the topic - and we know you're out there, this is coverage from Britain on the visit of the The Duke and five -months pregnant Duchess of Cambridge to New York, this is British coverage of the event, with text from the Guardian and video coverge from the BBC on the three-day royal visit. — REPORTER Lauren Gambino

ROYAL COUPLE IN THE BIG APPLE

Polityka, Poland 'Say No to GMOs; Reject TTIP': Almost 60 Million Americans Warn Europe TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "I don't recall ever having gotten a letter from so many people at once, and you likely can't either. Step by step, talks between the E.U. and U.S. on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership are mearing an end. Sadly, we do not know the details because the talks are being held in extreme secrecy. ... The Americans have already lost their battle against biotech corporations. Now they are warning us about the effects of adopting American rules under the guise of TTIP treaty.” — COLUMNIST Jacek Zakowski GMOs: A CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Another Night of Protest Over White Cop's Acquittal for Death of Eric Garner "Demonstrations touched off in cities including New York, Washington DC, Chicago, Boston, Cleveland, Oakland Miami and Phoenix. ... In New York City, demonstrators staged 'die-ins' at Macy's and Grand Central." — REPORTER Lauren Gambino

ANOTHER NIGHT OF PROTEST IN NY

NYT, The Register, RT, U.S., U.K., Russia SPY BLAST: Assange's Hope; Swedes Award Snowden; Web Freedom Drops; U.K. OKs Data Theft; Cell Nets Breached, CAPCHAs Dead? Amid the onrush of events and the blizzard of misinformation and infotainment, it is easy to forget that we continue to be relentlessly spied upon morning noon and night, so here's the latest Worldmeets.US spy post. — WE'RE STILL BEING SPIED UPON SPIES, LIES AND HOPE FROM ASSANGE

Marriane, France French Failure to Deliver Mistrals to the Russians 'Impolitic and Masochistic' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Without denying the vigor of the Russian reaction in Ukraine, we must put things into context, as this crisis stems from elements of a different nature: the profound corruption of the Ukrainian elite, pro- and anti-Russian combined; the over twenty-year uninterrupted expansion of NATO toward Russia when a helping hand is what was needed; the atavistic suspicion of the Baltic states and the Poles vis-à-vis Moscow, the American propensity to play on E.U. divisions." — Olivier Zajec, French Institute of Strategy and Conflict

SALE OF MISTRALS TO RUSSIA ON HOLD

Euronews, France VIDEO: National Front Leader Le Pen: I Admire Putin's 'Cool Head' Resisting New Cold War Dec. 1, 00:08:53 "I admire his cool head. Because there is a Cold War being waged against him by the E.U. at the behest of America, [Russia] is defending its own interests." — National Front Leader Marine Le Pen MARINE LE PEN BUCKS BRUSSELS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Google Glass Review: Useful – but Overpriced and Socially Awkward "Short of the price, which is no small matter, the key problem with Glass is the reaction of people around the wearer. It feels socially inappropriate much of the time – if not for you, then for your audience. The biggest disadvantage was that my family and friends refused to be seen with me while wearing them. They aren't technology-obsessed in the same way I am, but there was no way to convince them. It was either them or Glass." — REPORTER Samuel Gibbs

A SHORT-CUT TO PARIAH STATUS

GUARDIAN: Billion-dollar Apple
iPod Anti-Trust Suit Gets Under Way

Komsomolskaya Pravda, Russia Gorbachev: West 'Resigned' to Crimea's Return to Russia TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "I remember the 1990 Paris Summit. Europe was an example of how to build a new world order and a new relationship. The Americans - and Bush senior, talked about it. And I spoke about it. My good friend Pope John Paul II said at the time that we needed a more equitable world order that was more humane and safer. ... And one wonders how people could object to their own decisions. It all began with the fact that the U.S. suddenly started talking about the creation of a 'new empire.' An over empire, a super empire. Alas, God and fate had put the task before them. Yes, they thought their time had come." — Former Soviet Union President Mikhail Gorbachev

GORBY GAUGES WESTERN LEADERS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Bill Cosby, Ferguson and the Dubious Politics of Personal Responsibility
COSBY-FURGUSON	“The cases are unrelated, but there are parallels. The power of the accused is set against the credibility of the victim.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

News, Switzerland 'Birkenstock Racism' and Europe's Moralizing Over the Upheaval in Ferguson TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "If suddenly indignant voices are raised to condemn this injustice - that is proper. However, in the face of what's going on in Europe at the moment, an undercurrent of hypocrisy is unmistakable." — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer

RACISM AND THE PERILS OF EMPIRE

The Telegraph, U.K. As Crude Oil Crashes, Saudis Play with Fire in Shale-Price Showdown
END OF OPEC?	“If the aim is to shake out the weakest shale producers in the U.S., Saudi Arabia and the core OPEC states are taking a huge political gamble by letting oil prices crash to $66.” — COLUMNIST Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

Trouw, The Netherlands If the Jews Gave up Stoning, Can Muslims Give Up Beheading? TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "To use Jews as an example for Muslims may upset some people, but I do it because it is instructive. In the sacred books of the Jews, gross, uncivilized passages are also to be found. Jews who fail to observe the Sabbath, for example (and perhaps work on that day) must, according to the Torah, be stoned. ... But not a one Jew anywhere in the world would seek to apply this Toranic precept. Even the most religious Jews realize that that such a thing would be utter nonsense." — Dr. David Pinto, Inter-Cultural Institute

CAN ISLAM FORSAKE BEHEADING?

Le Point, France President Obama Continues American Tradition of Sparing Turkeys from Dinner Table TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "This year's birds from a farm in Virginia, both plump and white, were transported under police escort to the W, where for two days they were treated with kid gloves. And that's no figure of speech. The turkeys are housed in a suite with views of the White House, are force-fed organic soy and cranberries as they gobble in the rooftop panoramic bar waiting to be presented to President Barack Obama." — COLUMNIST Louise Couvelaire

TURKEY PARDONS: A TIME-HONORED TRADITION

Le Figaro, France Ferguson 'Tarnishes the Image of an Entire Nation' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "This verdict may well have been rendered by a jury made up of Blacks and Whites who, according to all the experts, did their job, but African-American communities don't believe in their country's justice system. Ferguson is very far-removed from the post-racial America dreamed of by Obama. … In Missouri suburbs like this, the population is 70 percent Black, but the police, like the mayor, are hegemonically White, tarnishing the image of an entire nation." — COLUMNIST Francois Sergent

HOW TO RESTORE OFFICIAL CREDIBILITY

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Russia Feels Double- Crossed Over Ukraine – What will Putin Do? “There is no doubting the depth of anger in Moscow over what it sees as the double-cross in Kiev – or the visceral fear in the capitals of Europe that Russia may react militarily.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

SIMON TISDALL: Finland Back on Red
Alert Over AN Expansionist Russia
SIMON TISDALL: Iran Nuclear
Talks Extension Raises
Risk of Cataclysmic Failure

United Nations News, Intl. Terr. U.N. Human Rights Chief 'Deeply Concerned' about 'African-American Killings' "I am deeply concerned at the disproportionate number of young African Americans who die in encounters with police officers, as well as the disproportionate number of African-Americans in U.S. prisons and the disproportionate number of African Americans on Death Row." — U.N. COMMISSIONER for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein

HUMAN RIGHTS CHIEF: U.S. HAS PROBLEM

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. LIVE BLOG: Michael Brown Killing: Mass Protests after Decision by the Grand Jury "Family of Michael Brown to hold news conference ... Ferguson is struck by violence and arson after decision ... Grand jury declines to indict Ferguson officer Darren Wilson ... Wilson killed unarmed teenager last August." — CORRESPONDENT Tom McCarthy

NATIONAL GUARD MOVES INTO TOWN

DAILY MAIL: Protests Break Out
Across 90 Cities; March in Anger
BBC NEWS: Ferguson Decision
- Darren Wilson's Testimony
BBC LIVE BLOG: Ferguson Riots
- Ruling Sparks Night of Violence

Le Monde, France Cli-Fi Invades Sci-Fi: A Deluge of Catastrophe for Readers, Filmgoers TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Today, the range of apocalyptic fiction is expanding to include a new sub-genre of science fiction that is all the rage: Cli-Fi, also known as 'climatic fiction.' Americans, however, are among the most ardent climate-change skeptics on the planet. However, this doubt is losing momentum." — COLUMNIST Louise Couvelaire

DISASTER FOR FUN AND PROFIT

FAZ, Germany The Kremlin Media War: All-Channel Propaganda TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The authorities are using their nearly cpmplete media control to build a parallel universe in which Russia is under attack by the West. ... The goal is to disseminate the supposedly-suppressed 'Russian point of view.' This has nothing to do with journalism, i.e.: a genuine attempt to seek truth." — CORRESPONDENT Friedrich Schmidt

US AND THEM: LIES AND PROPAGANDA

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Iranian Nuclear Negotiations: Deadline Extended Six Months “We have worked long and hard not just over these past days but for months. This takes time. The stakes are high and the issues are complicated and technical. Each decision affects other decisions, and each decision deeply affects national security and international interests." — SECRETARY OF STATE John Kerry IRAN NUKES: AND THE TALKS GO ON

BBC, Guardian Unlimited, U.K. LIVE BLOGS: Nation Holds Breath as Ferguson Awaits Decision of Grand Jury Here are two live blogs from Britain, which include tweets, photos, videos, many from the scene, on the decision, to be announced within the next few hours, over whether to charge police officer Darren Wilson over the death of teenager Michael Brown. Missouri Governor came close to saying the authorities are expecting the worst. — REPORTER Spencer Ackerman

NATIONAL GUARD MOVES INTO TOWN

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Out of North Korea: Matthew Miller says 'I Wanted to Stay' “Snapshots of pages torn from Miller's notebook were shown by state media, after his trial, revealing statements he now describes as strategic lies to help him remain in North Korea. In it, entries appeared to show support for removing 'the American military from South Korea' and included claims that Miller was a 'hacker' with some involvement with Wikileaks." — REPORTER Nate Thayer MILLER: 'FORCED' OUT OF NORTH KOREA

Corriere Della Sera, Italy Pope Francis' Secret Service: Confronting the ISIS Threat TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "Pope Francis wanted to stop in Kurdistan, an area bordered by Syria, Turkey, Iraq and Iran. He intended to issue an appeal from there on behalf of Middle East Christians being massacred by Islamic jihadis. The secret service stopped him. ... He's not a very 'manageable' pope. ... It seems that even his entourage jokes with him about death threats. 'Holy Father, haven't they killed you yet today?' they ask him, overcoming their reverence to express really acute fears." — CORRESPONDENT Massimo Franco

PROTECTING A FLESH-PRESSING POPE

ITAR-TASS, RT, Russia Russia: U.S. Seeks Russia, Syria, 'Regime Change'; U.S. Rejects Anti-Nazi Resolution "Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov has made a series of comments relating to Western plans for regime change in Russia, and in relation to the battle against ISIL - against Syria. ... Then, the Russian media is giving blanket coverage to the rejection by the U.S., Canada and Ukraine of a Russia-tabled U.N. resolution 'condemning attempts to glorify Nazism and deny Nazi crimes." — NEWS ITEMS, ITAR-TASS, RT TO TOPPLE OR NOT TO TOPPLE ...

Financial Times, U.K. FED asks Whether it is too Close to Banks! "The Federal Reserve board is conducting a major review of how the regulator and its reserve banks supervise large financial institutions, amid mounting criticism that it is to close to and too lenient with the Wall St. groups it oversees." — REPORTER Gina Chon TOO LENIENT ON BANKS? ... NAAH!

ARD Television, Germany VIDEO: Putin Explains Russian Actions to German Public TV Nov. 18, 00:31:33 "NATO and America have military bases scattered all over the globe, including in areas close to our borders, and their number is growing ... Moreover, just recently it was decided to send special forces, again in close proximity to our borders. You have mentioned various [Russian] exercises, ship movements, flights and so on. Is all of this going on? Yes, it is indeed." — RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin PUTIN OFFERS THE RUSSIAN NARRATIVE

BBC NEWS: Putin's Spokesperson
Tells BBC 'We have our Red Lines'

AWD News, U.K. 'Mutiny' Reported in Saudi Royal Air Force Over Strikes on ISIL "Saudi military intelligence has reportedly arrested two senior F-16 pilots who refused to fly missions, after they expressed their utmost resentment at Saudi Arabia's alliance with America. ... White House officials and the CIA informed the Saudis that some of their U.S.-trained pilots were jettisoning their bombs and ammunition over inconsequential or totally unpopulated areas and then returning to their Saudi bases." — NEWS ITEM, AWD News REJECTING THE HOUSE OF SAUD?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.S. Senate Rejects NSA Reform so Weak Even NSA Backed It If fear mongering were a sport, American politicians would win championships year after year. Not too surprisingly, the Senate yesterday rejected a NSA reform bill that was so watered down, even National Intelligence chief James Clapper, who lied to the Congress and the American people about the scale of the surveillance being carried out - supported it. — REPORTER Spencer Ackerman

EVEN FIENSTIEN BACKED DEFEATED BILL

GUARDIAN: NSA Reform:
Surveillance Supporters may
have Dug their Own Grave
LE MONDE DIPLOMATIQUE:
Snowden's Success

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Putin Questions U.S. 'Democratic Values', U.S. Media Failure; Body Language at G20 Summit Russia Today posted a number segments worth watching today, including an interview with the Editor in chief of the journal Defense & Foreign Affairs who calls out the manistream media for failing to put the Ukraine crisis into context; coverage of yesterday's speech by Vladimir Putin on the debasement of 'democratic values' by the U.S.; and a look at G20 body language. — OUTSIDE OF THE BOX WHAT DEMOCRATIC VALUES?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Brooklyn Woman Bleeding from Face, Nose and Mouth, may have had Ebola Virus "There are new fears of a possible Ebola outbreak in New York City after a woman who was being monitored for the deadly virus dropped dead Tuesday afternoon. ... according to a source on the scene, the woman, who had traveled to Guinea three weeks ago, died at a hair braiding shop in the Brownsville area of Brooklyn.'" — REPORTER Chris Spargo

AN EBOLA CASE IN BROOKLYN?

DAILY MAIL: Ebola Reaches
India: Man's Sperm has
Traces of the the Virus

Le Figaro, France Kremlin's Demands for New International Security System Can't be Ignored TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "In the annexation of Crimea and the manifest destabilization of Ukraine, there is a very clear message that Western leaders pretend not to hear: the international order on which European ties are built no longer works. Russia, struck with sanctions by a West that is unlikely to be seen fighting for Sebastopol, has turned to China and Iran. Europe is clinging to its grand principles and not realizing that it would do better to bring them into line with reality - before it's too late." — COLUMNIST Pierre Rousselin

TIME FOR WEST TO PAY MORE HEED?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. First Snowden. Then Tracking You on Wheels. Now Spies on Plane: Ubiquitous Surveillance "You might ask: Where did U.S. Marshals – the fugitive-chasing agents of Tommy Lee Jones lore – obtain the authority to launch this mass surveillance operation at all? That’s unclear, but thanks to some digging by the Twitter surveillance crowd shortly after the Journal published its story, we know the marshals are far from the only U.S. agency using these 'dirtboxes.'" — COLUMNIST Trevor Trimm

MASS SURVEILLANCE: NOWHERE TO HIDE

GUARDIAN: Facebook, Google,
Apple, et.al., Lobby for Curbing
Givernment Mass Surveillance
REUTERS: Google Glass Future
'Clouded' as Early Believers Lose Faith
GUARDIAN: White House
Announces Push for Next
Generation of Weapons

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. David Cameron Warns of Looming 'Crash' in G20 Closing Remarks "Six years after the financial crash that brought the world to its knees, warning lights are once again flashing on the global economic dashboard. ... As the global economy faces greater uncertainty, it is more important than ever that we send a clear message to the world that Britain will not waver on paying its debts." — PRIME MINISTER David Cameron GORBY: RUSSIAN SOFT POWER

GUARDIAN: Cameron's Economic
Warning Lights: Dark Days Ahead?

Daily Mail, U.K. 20th Hijacker Moussaoui: 'Saudi Prince Paid for 9/11 Pilots' Flying Lessons "The Saudi government has flatly denied any involvement in 9/11. ... officials in Oklahoma federal court have said that Moussaoui's requests to be allowed to speak in open court and to be assigned government lawyers will likely be denied, since his claims have nothing to do with existing cases." — REPORTER Kieran Corcoran

9-11: THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS

The Telegraph, U.K. Challenging Gorbachev: Russia is the One with a Cold War Mentality "If Gorbachev really thinks that after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Russia should have been granted a veto over NATO membership for its former satellite states then that is an example of the very Cold War mentality he was supposed to reject." — FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT David Blair GORBY: RUSSIAN SOFT POWER

MOSCOW TIMES: Putin's Early
Departure from G20 a 'Mistake'
GUARDIAN: Lift-Off of Sputnik
News Agency - What Russia's New
Media Brand Thinks of the World
GUARDIAN: Putin Leaves G20
after Browbeating Over Ukraine

20 Minutes, Ukraine Why Russians 'Will Want to Return Crimea' to Ukraine TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "If large-scale military hostilities were to break out with Russia fighting a considerable portion of the world, it would likely face a coalition, the combined military, economic and demographic strength of which would surpass Russian forces by at least 16-18 times. The outcome of such a confrontation is easy to forecast. Russia would be defeated and its economic and infrastructure capacity utterly destroyed." — FORMER PUTIN ECONOMIC ADVISER Andrei Illarionov

WILL RUSSIANS 'SEE THE LIGHT'?

Guardian Unilimited, U.K. Pentagon 'Considers' Sending American Troops to Battle ISIL "General Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, indicated to the U.S. House Armed Services committee that ISIL's strength relative to the Iraqi Army may be such that he would recommend abandoning Obama’s oft- repeated pledge against returning U.S. ground troops to combat in Iraq.'" — CORRESPONDENTS Raya Jalabi, Spencer Ackerman ALL ACCORDING TO PLAN?

THE TELEGRAPH: 'Moderate' Syria
Rebels Defecting to ISIL; Blame
'Lack of U.S. Support and Arms'

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Secret Talks, a Personal Letter: How U.S.-China Climate Deal was Done "A visit to Beijing by Kerry and a missive from Obama were key turns in a 9-month negotiation between world’s top polluters." — REPORTER Suzanne Goldenberg

XI- OBAMA: SIGNING DEAL IN BEIJING

Die Welt, Germany Republicans May Give 'Lame Duck Procrastinator' the Backbone He Needs TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The Republican Congress will no doubt try and motivate Mr. Obama to more assertive action in areas where the 'great procrastinator' has only reluctantly committed to. If over the next two years both political camps find their way back to a tradition of bipartisanship in foreign policy, Obama's recent course correction toward more global engagement could become the distinguishing feature of Barack Obama's last two years." — COLUMNIST Clemens Wergin

APPLYING REPUBLICAN PRESSURE

Le Figaro, France Xi and Putin: United in Face of Western Critics TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "According to a survey by Touch Today, after the annexation of Crimea, Putin's poll ratings in China reached 92 percent. ... Perhaps Chinese are reassured to see that 'Xi Dada' or the 'Xi the Great,' isn't the only great power leader of concern to the world. Like Putin, he's skilled in the cult of personality and cultivates authoritarianism in order to rule with an iron rod." — COLUMNIST Patrick Saint-Paul

XI AND PUTIN: HANGING TIGHT

Guardian Unilimited, U.K. MH17: Australia PM tells Vladimir Putin to 'Consider Apology, Compensation' Citing that the U.S. 'apologised and made appropriate restitution' for shooting down Iran Air Flight 655 in 1988, Australia Prime Minister Tony Abbott has confronted Putin at the APEC Summit, saying that he had information that the missile that shot down MH17 last summer 'had come out of Russia, was fired from inside eastern Ukraine and was then returned to Russia.' — CORRESPONDENT Daniel Hurst ABBOTT: WHISTLING IN THE WIND?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Net Neutrality: Cable Industry 'Stunned' by Obama' Proposals "'The cable industry strongly supports an open Internet, is building an open Internet, and strongly believes that over-regulating the fastest growing technology in our history will not advance the cause of Internet freedom.' Translation: 'The industry believes in something we are actively working to undermine.'" — National Cable and Telecommunications Association President Michael Powell MICHAEL POWELL: CASHING IN

Financial Times, U.K. China is 'No Refuge' from Obama's Woes Financial Times columnist Edward Luce is of the opinion that unlike with past U.S. presidents who got whipped in midterm elections, taking refuge abroad - in this case in China - is unlikely to bring relief. — COLUMNIST Edward Luce OBAMA: A 'DIMINISHED FIGURE'

BBC News, U.K. Reagan's Apology to Thatcher over Grenada Invasion was Recorded Up until now, it has been widely believed that after the debacle of the Watergate tapes which brought down Richard Nixon, such recordings were stopped. It now appears that many of Reagan's conversations were recorded, this one with Margaret Thatcher being just one of them. — REVEALED: The Reagan Tapes BUGGING OF THE WHITE HOUSE

Deutsche Welle, RT, Euronews, France 24 VIDEOS: Germany Marks Demise of the Berlin Wall It has been an intense 48 hours in the city of Berlin, with people from around the world and key players from recent history all converging there to celebrate 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. This post consists of coverage from Deutsche Welle, RT, Euronews and France 24. The fall of the Wall effectively marked the end of the old Cold War. I say old, because as Mikhail Gorbachev notes in speeches he gave over the past few days, the world has likely embarked on a new one. — CELEBRATING FALL OF THE WALL BERLIN: A LOOK FROM EUROPE

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Obama's Defeat: Two Years of a U.S. Turned Inward TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "This is bad news for the world. America's enemies from Russia to Pyongyang need no longer worry about U.S. threats. Putin knows that Obama's hands are tied. Over the next two years the major U.S. political parties will set the stage for the 2016 presidential campaign. Regardless of who runs, bith Republicans and Democrats will do things designed only to help their candidate and diminish the chances of their rival. For the next 24 months America will be, sadly, focused mostly on itself." — COLUMNIST Bartosz Weglarczyk

24 MONTHS OF PARALYSIS?

BBC News, U.K. North Korea Frees U.S. Men Miller and Bae “The leadership in North Korea would certainly see value in offering an olive branch to the U.S. just as President Obama prepares to sit down with China President Xi Jinping in Beijing." — CORRESPONDENT Charles Scanlon NORTH KOREA FREES AMERICANS

Rossiya Segodnya, Russia U.S. Midterms: Prepare for More War, More Spying, Rigged Trade "The most dangerous benefactor of a Republican Congress is the U.S. military-industrial complex. More defense spending means more war (and more war means more defense spending)." — COLUMNIST Daniel Zubov

WHAT WITH THE ELEPHANT BRING?

Le Monde, France Midterm Fallout: Obama Weakened on Iran and the International Stage TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Convinced that America is a manifestation of 'the good,' Republicans need a force that embodies absolute evil. They have found it in the person of the Islamic Republic of Iran. On this issue, as on the issue of Israel-Palestine negotiation, Republicans are aligned with the positions of Netanyahu." — EDITORIAL, Le Monde

DEAL WITH IRAN IMPOSSIBLE?

RIA Novosti, Russia Oliver Stone Meets Snowden; Wants to Make Putin Biopic "I met him [Snowden]. We are working on the script. We hope to shoot early next year, we've been working on it for almost a year now and we're very pleased it's coming along. ... We had no plans to make a film [a scripted feature] on Putin. I would love to do an interview with him because he has a different point of view that Americans don't hear.'" — DIRECTOR Oliver Stone STONE: SNOWDEN AND PUTIN

The Telegraph, U.K. Prison Threat for 90-Year Old Who Fed the Homeless "The police are doing the bidding of the very wealthy, and trying to sweep the poorest of the poor under the rug. ... it's outrageous, but I have been fighting for 23 years to feed the homeless and spent 50 years fighting for civil rights in this country." — HOMELESS ADVOCATE Arnold Abbott

DROP THAT PLATE RIGHT NOW!

Deutsche Welle, Germany Gorbachev Defends Putin; says U.S. 'Wants to Meddle' "I am absolutely convinced that Putin protects Russia's interests better than anyone else. Russia agreed to new relations, [and] created new structures for cooperation. Everything would be great but not everyone in the United States liked it.'" — Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev 25 YEARS AFTER WALL CAME DOWN

FAZ, Germany War and Data Security: 'Everyone is Threatened' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "We are seeing a dramatic loss of confidence. The revelations of Edward Snowden, surveillance by the NSA and other incidents have changed our thinking - on security policy as well. On a government level, this leads many countries to expand the offensive potential of cyber technology. We return to the old motto: Attack is the best defense. But I fear that this is not correct in this case. Cyber protection is a matter of national security, which is why: The best defense is a better defense." — Deutsche Telekom CEO Timotheus Hottges

WAR BEGINS TO IMPINGE ON THE WEST

Trouw, The Netherlands Assange and Snowden have 'Surrendered their Freedom for Nothing' TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "If their leaks had achieved anything, it would have been worth the price. Assange has mainly ensured that coded diplomatic messages have more limited distribution and content, so his whole idea of more openness has been shattered. ... Snowden's NSA leaks have ensured that, here too, security has been tightened and fewer people have access to secrets. ... Given the reaction to their revelations, I expected to see violent protests against breaches of privacy and this type of government power. It looks like Assange and Snowden have surrendered their freedom for nothing." — COLUMNIST Rob de Wijk

WAS IT ALL FOR NAUGHT?

Dziennik, Poland Polish Passions Flare after Warsaw Reject's Polanski Extradition TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "In the United States, where they prey on Polanski as if he were a war criminal or drug gang boss, prosecutors and judges are elected officials. Just imagine a judge from, let's say, California, not having the opportunity to get on newspaper first pages without a case like that of Roman Polanski. Let's catch him, let's hang his head on our the walls of our offices!?" — Writer Janusz Glowacki

SHOULD POLANSKI BE LET OFF?

Daily Mail, U.K. Navy Seal Who Shot bin Laden Comes Forward "People are asking if we are worried that ISIL will come and get us since Rob is going public. I say I'll paint a huge target on my front door and say come on and get us." — FATHER of Navy Seal Rob O'Neill

COMING OUT DESPITE PENTAGON

Daily Mail, U.K. Memo to Lame Duck Obama: It's Time to Man Up, Eat Crow and Take Tea with the Enemy "You're not just a lame duck this now, you're a limbless canard whose head has been so badly garroted that it now dangles perilously from your neck like a buckled crane. If you want to avoid a seemingly inevitable legacy as The Great Disappointment, you need to man up and start being a proper leader." — COLUMNIST Piers Morgan

MORGAN UNLEASHES ON OBAMA AGAIN

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.S. Midterms: Wave of Defeats Leave Democrats 'Reeling' The scale of the Democrats' defeat in the U.S. midterm elections became apparent on Wednesday. ... their Republican opponents on the verge of securing their largest majority in the House of Representatives since the World War II era. — CORRESPONDENT Paul Lewis

CRIST: NOW GONE FOR GOOD?

Trouw, The Netherlands Assange and Snowden have 'Surrendered their Freedom for Nothing' TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "If their leaks had achieved anything, it would have been worth the price. Assange has mainly ensured that coded diplomatic messages have more limited distribution and content, so his whole idea of more openness has been shattered. ... Snowden's NSA leaks have ensured that, here too, security has been tightened and fewer people have access to secrets. ... Given the reaction to their revelations, I expected to see violent protests against breaches of privacy and this type of government power. It looks like Assange and Snowden have surrendered their freedom for nothing." — COLUMNIST Rob de Wijk

WAS IT ALL FOR NAUGHT?

The Independent, U.K. Finland Warns Europe 'at Gates of New Cold War' in Wake of Russian Activity "Advisers to Putin have previously warned that Putin wants to 'regain Finland,' and Finnish President Niinisto said his country would be 'very decisive' in erms of response.'" — CORRESPONDENT Adam Withnall

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Republicans Didn't Win as Big as You Think - and Obama Didn't Lose
NO BIG DEAL?	“Polling shows the public backs Obama on key issues - not Republicans. ... The problem is that few people have any confidence that Mr. Obama will actually get anything done.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

Azeri-Press Agency, Azerbaijan Russia Considers Banning U.S. Dollar "If the bill is approved, Russian citizens will have to close their dollar accounts in Russian banks within a year and exchange their dollars in cash to Russian rubles or other currencies. Failure to do so will result in their accounts being frozen and fined." — NEWS ITEM, Azeri Press Agency

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. LIVE BLOG: Senate Control Handed Back to Republican Party --- Senate and House results -- State of the states -- key races to watch across the U.S. -- Immigration failure will lead to 'civil war' among of Democratic lawmakers. — LIVE UPDATES ALL DAY

2014: A REPUBLICAN WAVE

Le Monde, France Midterms: Obama Weakened When World Needs U.S. Most TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "One thing is certain: on our mangled planet, a weakening of the president of the United States is not good news. What other world power could send in the cavalry when things go awry? China? Putin's Russia - which loathes Western values? The United Nations, whose chronic impotence is famous?" — Journalist Dominique Simonnet, Historian Nicole Bacharan

WORLD WITHOUT U.S. LEADERSHIP

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland U.S. Midterms: The Sins of Obama - Real and Imagined TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "Obama - who had promised to lessen inequality - has indeed disappointed. He also has bad luck, as this year has been a bad one around the world. ... For all these misfortunes Obama is blamed, even if it remains extremely questionable whether he could have done anything to prevent or more effectively counteract them." — COLUMNIST Mariusz Zawadzki

SAD STATE OF AFFAIRS: OBAMA'S FAULT?

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands 'iGay': Apple Does it Better than the Church of Rome TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "Tim Cook is the pope of the digital church, the vicar of Steve Jobs on earth. He sells his products on all continents and with his outspoken statement he now includes a small message of tolerance with every iPad and iPhone the company sells." — COLUMNIST Bert Wagendorp

COOK: A PUBLIC STAND FOR EQUALITY?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. GHCQ Chief Calls U.S. Tech Giants 'Network of Choice' for Terror "Privacy has never been an absolute right and the debate about this should not become a reason for postponing urgent and difficult decisions. ... To those of us who have to tackle the depressing end of human behaviour on the internet, it can seem that some technology firms are in denial on misuse." — GHCQ Chief Robert Hannigan

GHCQ: PRIVACY MEANS TERROR

GUARDIAN: New GCHQ
Chief Spouts Fiery Rhetoric
but Agenda Remains Same

Daily Mail, U.K. Ten Reasons Bluffing, Boring, Blame-Pointing Obama Can Expect a Deserved' Beating "Like most of the world, I was entranced by this dynamic young senator. He seemed so fresh, vibrant, eloquent and smart. ... He's gone from being a shining, youthful beacon of audacious hope to a greying, defeatist purveyor of disappointment." — COLUMNIST Piers Morgan

MORGAN UNLEASHES ON JILTED OBAMA

Publico, Portugal Sweden and Finland: Military 'Impotence' Meets Russian Bear TRANSLATED PORTUGUESE Will Sweden and Finland abandon their historic neutrality to join NATO? In Stockholm, the case of of the 'ghost submarine' dominated the week. ... What worries Swedes is their military impotence. In December 2012, the commander of the armed forces shocked the nation by declaring that in the event of an attack, the army would only be able to defend the country for a single week?" — COLUMNIST Jorge Almeida Fernandes

WHAT IS PUTIN THINKING?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. SpaceShip Two Crash Casts Doubt on Space Tourism, Branson Says “We owe it to our test pilots to find out what went wrong. And once we find out - if we can overcome it, we will make absolutely certain that the dream lives on." — Sir Richard Branson CASTING A SHADOW OF DOUBT

Komsomolskaya Pravda, Russia Russia's Dissolution Over Ukraine War? Ridiculous! TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN To prevent such a breakup, one- time presidential economic adviser Andrey Illarionov says Crimea must be returned to Ukraine - as it is the 'rightful owner.' Mr. Illarionov recognizes self-determination, but only for the 'indigenous population,' which in the case of Crimea he believes to be the Crimean Tatars.' The Native Americans in the USA , too, don't possess their homeland. Nor do the Australian aboriginals. And then, of course, the state of Israel should ten not exist." — COLUMNIST Alexandr Grishin

RUSSIA WAR OF WORDS OVER UKRAINE

Financial Times, U.K. Mr. Obama Can Learn from George W. Bush “In Germany, students in elementary school recieve mandatory lessons on the Holocaust. In South Africa, a Truth and Reconciliation Commission bore witness to Apartheid. ... It is time for America to shine a light on its relationship with the native Indians." — COLUMNIST Edward Luce PREPARING FOR A 'THUMPIN'

The Local, Spain Spain's Security Chief: ISIL Wants Ebola 'Weapon' "Jihadists with connections to the extremist force ISIL discuss on Web forums how they could use Ebola as a weapon against the U.S. and the Western world in general." — Spain Security Chief Francisco Martinez TERRORIST 'CHATTER' ABOUT EBOLA

Die Tageszeitung, German Fear Mongering Media Turns the 'Home of Brave' into the 'Home of Afraid' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The elite uses fear mongering to consolidate existing structures. This has worked wonderfully well in the past - see the surveillance state.' ... Somehow it alll seems incongruous: In their national anthem, Americans sing the praises of the 'land of the free and the home of the brave.' At the moment, though, they are afraid of each other and the world. ... Is this the 'home of the brave?" — COLUMNIST Konrad Ege

PANIC IN THE LAND OF THE FREE

NATO, Daily Mail, Guardian, RT Belgium, U.K., Russia Russian Aircraft Over Europe: Scare Mongering or Legitimate Concern? Over recent days, Western media have been sounding the latest alarm - this one about Russian aircraft over Europe. Is there something to these concerns? Should the media and public officials be alarming the public over them? Or is there some other agenda? Here is the Daily Mail's latest 'five alarm fire' report on the issue, and reposts from Russia Today. — Russian and Brtish Reports FEAR MONGERING OR NEWS?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. How Will Cinema Deal with the Islamic State? "IS, the extremist group now controlling large swathes of Iraq and Syria, is also making story-telling in the region even more logistically hard, as well as giving filmmakers tales they don't want to tell." — REPORTER Emma Jones

ISALMIC STATE AT THE MOVIES

BBC NEWS: Roman Polanski
Freed in Poland after U.S.
Extradition Request

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Putin 'Believes What He Wants to Believe' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "However strange, it seems that the Russian president himself believes what the Kremlin's propagandists say on TV. Moreover, it's as if he also believed that his guests - famous Western experts and policy makers - were ready to accept the point of view of Rossiya 1 … A good number of them would likely agree that Washington, as they say in Russia, 'broke some trees,' and is responsible for a good deal of nonsense. But the view of Russia as an empire of the good - few are ready to accept. … Vladimir Putin lives in a reality he himself created - and that is very dangerous.'" — COLUMNIST WacLaw Radziwinowicz

PUTIN PUZZLES THE WEST

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. GCHQ Views Data Without a Warrant, Government Admits "Newly released documents from the British government reveal a lack of oversight for how it sifts communications data collected by NSA and other foreign governments." — CORRESPONDENT James Ball

SPY MACHINE OUT OF CONTROL

Andrew Marr Show, BBC News VIDEO: Jon Stewart on His Film 'Rosewater' W/ BBC's Andrew Marr OCT. 18, 00:05:28 Jon Stewart on his directorial debut - Rosewater. With him is Maziar Bahari, whose life the film is based on. Stewart and Bahari discuss repression in the Muslim world and the absurdity of U.S. Middle East policy and U.S. news coverage. — JON STEWART ON THE ANDREW MARR SHOW STEWART: 'INCOHERENT' US POLICY

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Did Vladimir Putin Seek Poland-Russia Partition of Ukraine? Hardly Likely TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "Why invite someone to feast on a neighbor's body if one can have it all to oneself?'" — COLUMNIST Waclaw Radziwinowicz

POLAND-RUSSIA: UNLIKELY ALLIES

Warsaw Voice, Poland Poland Appeals Human Rights Ruling on CIA 'Black' Prison, Torture "The judges said Poland failed to stop the 'torture and inhuman or degrading treatment" to which the applicants were subjected by the CIA during their detention in Poland.'" — UK Defense Secretary Michael Fallon

Publico, Portugal Erdogan's Pandora's Box: U.S. and Turkey on 'Collision Course' TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "Contrary to the view of Turkish President Erdogan, Obama refuses to turn the military campaign against IS into one to speed the fall of the Assad regime. For Erdogan and his prime minister - Ahmet Davutoglu, Islamic State is a 'lesser devil' when compared with Assad. Analyst Soli Ozel writes: 'Davutoglu is saying that IS is the product of rage - and if the source of that rage goes, namely the Syrian regime, then such groups will also go.'" — COLUMNIST Jorge Almeida Fernandes

DISAGREEING ON THE ENEMY

BBC News, U.K. Britain and United States End Afghanistan 'Combat Operations' "Mistakes were made militarily, mistakes were made by the politicians at the time and this goes back 10, 13 years. ... Clearly the numbers weren't there at the beginning, the equipment wasn't quite good enough and we've learned an awful lot from the campaign. ... But don't let's ignore what has been achieved.'" — UK Defense Secretary Michael Fallon

ARE COMBAT OPERATIONS 'OVER'?

ITAR-TASS, Russia French to Decide on Mistral Assault Ship Sale to Russia in November ITAR-TASS reports that the French Defense Ministry has told French Daily Liberation that it would decide on the already-delayed deivery of the first of two Mistral copter carrier/amphibious assault ships France sold to Russia in Novevember. Paris, after feverish lobbying by the U.S., delayed the $1.5 billion sale in September, but has never said it would cancel the sale. — NEWS ITEM, ITAR TASS

WILL FRENCH SELL TO RUSSIA?

ITAR-TASS: Russia to Sue
France If Mistral Not Delivered
MOSCOW TIMES: Russia
to Build Own Helicopter
Carriers after Mistral Deliveries

Gazeta, Russia Eight Months of War: Gains and Losses in the Ukraine Campaign TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIA "What has Russia gained? Russia, apparently, has gained Crimea. Although formally it will be a long time before the legitimacy of the annexation is recognized by the world, morally at least - the peninsula is registered as Russia's. The overall economic losses from Russia's rejection of the coup d'etat in Ukraine are significant. Political victory is not yet apparent, although, as we know, in politics, in contrast with the economy, one must play 'the long game.'" — EDITORIAL, Gazeta

RUSSIA IN UKRAINE: NO REGRETS

Daily Mail, U.K. U.S. Ebola 'SWAT' Teams to Rush 'Wherever' New Victims are Identified "The CDC Ebola Response Teams will consist of 10-20 people who can be sent to any hospital with a new case is lab-confirmed, or even before, if health officials believe a person is very likely to be infected with the virus." — COLUMNIST David McCormack

SWAT TEAMS FOR A VIRUS?

REUTERS: Pentagon Begins to
Train Ebola Rapid-Responders

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Zuckerberg in Beijing, Impresses Students with Q&A in Mandarin "Zuckerberg enjoys immense popularity in China, despite the inability of the country's Web users to access Facebook. While Zuckerberg’s Mandarin was far from fluent, during the 30-minute session he was at times charmingly idiomatic." — REPORTERS Alex Her, Jonathan Kaiman

THE LANGUAGE OF THE REALM

Le Figaro, France Apple-Facebook-Google: Egg Freezing Programs are a Peril to Humanity TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Over and above the intrusion into the private lives of their employees, I think we need to discuss the manipulation of life itself! Google, for example, currently invests in extensive research into defeating death. Now they want to interfere with the question of birth. Is there nothing that can resist Google? I want to add that the couple, even life itself, will no longer be able to resist, either. We are observing a stupefying seizure of power by these companies, which are meddling with the future of humanity." — PHILOSOPHER, THEOLOGIAN Bertrand Vergel

TECH GIANTS: PLAYING GOD?

News, Switzerland Apple and Facebook Frozen Eggs: 'Eugenics' by Any Other Name TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The rhetoric calls to mind the debates on 'scientific progress' in the 1930s. Any woman would reject state-sponsored eugenics - God forbid! On the other hand, eugenics practiced by the private sector - well that's another story!" — COLUMNIST Regula Stampfli

EGGS: HITLER WOULD BE ENVIOUS

FAZ, Germany Employee Eggs and the 'Cold' New World Order TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "Have fun, yes, but please - no reproduction! Because then female employees wouldn't be free for a few weeks. That is why now these generous brave new world corporations are offering to pay to freeze the egg cells of their employees - so they remain fully-functional as long as possible and give birth as late as possible. ... Even if everyone calls it a fad - just a friendly invitation from an employer to please set aside the desire to have children, it makes East Germany's Family Policy seem almost humane." — COLUMNIST Reinhard Mueller

EGS TODAY - ORGANS TOMORROW?

Politico, Polskie Radio, ITAQ TASS FALLOUT: Poland Speaker says Vladimir Putin Wanted to Split Ukraine w/Poland "In 2008, Putin wanted us to become participants in this partition of Ukraine. ... This was one of the first things that Putin said to my prime minister, Donald Tusk, when he visited Moscow." — POLISH SPEAKER and House Speaker Radoslaw Sikorski

RADOSLAW SIKORSKI: POLAND'S JOE BIDEN

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Ebola Exposing America's Fear; Obama's Vulnerability
EBOLAMANIA	“The virus is a metaphor for all that conservatives loathe, and sees the president’s policies under renewed attack.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

Der Spiegel, Germany German Intelligence Claims Pro-Russian Militia Downed MH17 "The BND chief said Ukrainian photos were manipulated and there are details indicating this. He also told the panel that Russian claims the missile had been fired by Ukrainian soldiers and that a Ukraine fighter had been flying near the passenger jet were false." — NEWS ITEM, Der Spiegel

PUTIN AND RUSSIA: HANDS CLEAN?

ITAR-TASS: Duma Foreign
Affairs Committee Chief says BND's
MH17 Report Exonerates Russia

Izvestia, Russia Deputy Chair of Duma Defense Committee: 'U.S. Needs War in New Russia' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "NATO needs Novorossiya [New Russia] as a springboard to reach Russia's 'soft underbelly. Today they [the West] have one goal - to draw Russia into the Ukraine conflict. This way they could continue their policies and we would be injured or dead." — Deputy Chairman of Duma Defense Committee Franz Klintsevich

RUSSIANS PREPARE FOR U.S. ATTACK

La Stampa, Italy Of Oil and Ethnic Cleansing: Allow Me to Explain the Turks TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "The Kurds are a people who numerically have a stronger claim on statehood than the mere 5 million Palestinians, but unlike the Palestinians, lack a public voice because Allah decreed they be born and live on a sea of oil - a sea from which flows a river of dollars to many, but above all to the Iranians and Iraqis." — COLUMNIST Mimmo Cándito

THE DARK SIDE OF ATATURK

Reuters, U.K. NSA 'Reviews' Deal Between Tech Chief and Keith Alexander "Under the arrangement, which was confirmed by Alexander and current officials, the NSA's Chief Technical Officer Patrick Dowd, is allowed to work up to 20 hours a week at IronNet Cybersecurity Inc., the private firm led by Alexander, his former boss." — REPORTERS Warren Strobel, Mark Hosenball

TRADING ON U.S. SECRETS?

Trouw, The Netherlands 'Our Allies Were Our Biggest Problem' TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "Vice President Joe Biden, known for his loose tongue, accidentally spoke the truth last week. The poor man had to grovel for his candor, but he was absolutely right. ... the sheikhs and princes eagerly use Islam to give their authority a spiritual touch - but sooner or later it turns against them." — COLUMNIST Stevo Akkerman

UTTERING THE TRUTH HURTS

Die Zeit, Germany NSA Committee of Inquiry Threatened w/ Criminal Charges TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "Committee members are prohibited from quoting secret documents and from making public specific events mentioned in them. But they see it as their duty to ensure that contoversial incidents are investigated and that the public is told about maladministration." — NEWS ITEM, Die Zeit

LAWMAKERS SQUELCHED?

Politka, Serbia Putin Interview: 'West's Attempt to Blackmail Russia is Futile' TRANSLATED FROM SERBIAN "Seventy years ago, our nations, for humanity's sake, united to defeat the criminal ideology of hatred that threatened the very existence of our civilization. ... Today it is important that people in all our nations and continents remember the consequences that can result from the belief in one’s exceptionality." — Vladimir Putin, President of Russia

PUTIN WARNS ABOUT SANCTIONS

Trouw, The Netherlands Vietnam Lesson: 'Elephant Cannot Defeat Mosquitoes' TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "The main lesson of the Vietnam War, even before it ended with the humiliating withdrawal of the Americans in 1975, was that the most powerful country on earth proved incapable of utilizing its superior military strength to impose its will on a faraway nation. The interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq confirmed that conclusion. ... The elephants can kill every mosquito they can trample upon, but in the marshes, the swarm of mosquitoes are quickly renewed." — COLUMNIST Hans Goslinga

HAS AMERICA LEARNED ANYTHING?

Diario Economic, Portugal The Enduring Significance of FDR's Four Freedoms TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "Nearly 70 years after Roosevelt's death, his broad idea of freedom is not only about the autonomy of the individual, but a condition for realizing human achievement, and is as important today as it was when it was formulated." — COLUMNIST Vital Moreira

FREEDOM FROM WANT AND FEAR

Publico, Portugal Misnomer 'Islamic State' Highlights Dangerous Society-Wide Deception TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "This manipulation of names and concepts is everywhere to be seen and poisons media discourse, discredits political discourse and creates a profound sense of powerlessness among citizens. ... The question is: if the Mafia names itself 'Sicilian Cultural Association' and Goldman Sachs renames itself 'Congregation of Barefoot Carmelites of Wall Street,' should the media use such designations? Or should it consider that the message conveyed by the designation is at odds with with - shall we call it the truth of the matter?" — COLUMNIST Jose Vitor Malheiros

ISLAMIC STATE: WHAT'S IN A NAME?

World's Apart, Russia Today VIDEO: Islamic State: Can the Kurds Be Relied Upon? Fadi Hakura, manager of the Turkey Project at Britain's Chatham House, one of Britian's leading think tanks, talks to host Oksana Boyco about whether the Iraqi Kurds will be able to spearhead a ground offensive against the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq - and in the face of Turkey's opposition and their own desire for an independent state. — RT'S World's Apart ASKING TOO MUCH OF THE KURDS?

Die Zeit, Germany BND Data Officer Tells How Work with NSA Trumps German Law TRANSLATED FROM GERMANY "According to the BND's Data Protection Officer Dr. F., BND chief Schindler sees satellite data as existing largely in a legal vacuum as it is gathered from space where German data regulations do not apply." — REPORTER Lisa Caspari

THE LONG ARM OF THE NSA

The Independent, U.K. ISIL: U.S. Strategy is in 'Tatters' as Militants March On "American-led air attacks are failing. A U.S. failure to save Kobani, if it falls, will be a political as well as military disaster. ... Western Baghdad is now under serious threat." — COLUMNIST Patrick Cockburn

ALL ACCORDING TO PLAN?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K., Cuba 'Leads on Ebola' as the West Frets Over Border Security "Big hitters such as China or Brazil, or former colonial powers such France and the U.K., haven't been stepping up to the plate. Instead, the single biggest medical force on the Ebola frontline has been a small island: Cuba. ... That a nation of 11 million people and a GDP of $6,051 per capita, is leading the effort says much of the international response." — CORRESPONDENT Monica Mark

ALL TALK AND LITTLE ACTION?

GUARDIAN: Ebola - 'Fear Itself' the
Primary Issue for America and Europe
GUARDIAN: JFK Airport First in the
U.S. to Screen Passengers for Ebola
GUARDIAN: Ebola is Frightening; So
are Prejudices Outbreaks Provoke
OBSERVER: Forget Page Views
- Difficult Stories Need to be Told
OBSERVER: For Immediate Help,
Ethics of Research Must Change

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands Let's Not 'Lose Our Heads' Over IS Barbarity TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "In the miracle year of 1989, the Berlin Wall fell and common sense had prevailed. A quarter century later, we need to take care not to lose our heads. The world seems more and more like an open air prison. Progress now consist of turning it into a closed one." — HISTORIAN Dirk-Jan van Baar

A FEW WORDS ABOUT BARBARITY

Guardian, Intercept, RT, U.K., Russia, U.S. Snowden: His Girl, His Movie Opening, Greenwald at TED With Edward Snowden's girlfriend 'coming out' and showing herself by his side in the new film about his life, Glenn Greenwald making an appearance at TED, and a number of other major surveillance-tied items breaking in the last 24 hours, we've put it all together for you here. — SURVEILLANCE BUNDLE

A SNOWDEN WEEKEND

Die Presse, Austria Use of Terrorists as Foreign Policy Tool Ensnares the Turks TRANSLATED FROM GERMANY "If President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had entered into some blind arrangement with the Islamists, it was an unparalleled mistake. Proving once again what happens when one tries to do business with a madman like Baghdadi, he recently threatened to kill Erdogan." — COLUMNIST Duygu Oezkan

BITTEN BY TERRORISM BUG

Die Welt, Germany IS: America Finds Itself in Israeli Shoes TRANSLATED FROM GERMANY "It's almost as if there were a standard that the West applies only to Israel - and then quickly forgets when their own country is in a fight with terrorists. This could be called hypocrisy." — COLUMNIST Clemens Wergin

THE KILLING OF 'HUMAN SHIELDS'

Diario Economico Portugal Ebola's Threat to the Economy and Society TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "In a disaster scenario, Ebola can cause millions of deaths, but, before that happens, it would cause such a panic that it would devastate the minimal trust which forms the foundation on which the economy and society run. ... When we observe a performance like that of the Spanish authorities, we learn that at the level of political and health incompetence, anything is possible." — COLUMNIST Joao Cardoso Rosas

THE DANGER OF PUBLIC PANIC

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. A Nobel Peace Prize Favorite, Snowden to 'Appear' at Britian's Observer Ideas Event "We need to figure out how (and whether) societies can restore effective democratic control over our security agencies and whether the technology that has enabled comprehensive surveillance can serve to protect privacy." — OPEN UNIVERSITY Professor John Naughton

HEADY TIMES FOR SNOWDEN

Die Welt, Germany The New York Times' 'Strange Take' on Israel "Public Editor Margaret Sullivan lays out why she thinks columnist David Brooks should have revealed that his son is in the Israeli army. What her argument boils down to is that any connection to Israel taints a columnist morally, because she evidently believes that Israel itself is a morally stained country. With a little bit of imagination and research, she might have discovered that this is exactly how many anti-American Europeans and others view the United States." — COLUMNIST Clemens Wergin

Russia Today, Russia 'Putin the Peacemaker' T-Shirts Go on Sale in NYC Designer Shop "The Peacemaker collection, designer Julius Kasinskis says, is set to show a different, non-mainstream attitude in regard to Russia's president." — AUTHOR Nicholas Carr

ONLY IN NEW YORK?

Le Figaro, France Stopping Putin and IS: Neither a Cold War, Nor a War on Terror TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Those familiar with recent history know that the world has changed dramatically and are wary of deceptive parallels. Be that as it may, the temptation remains to cling to experiences already lived through. ... Obama pretends that he doesn't want to reprise Iraq or Afghanistan, yet he repeats many of Bush's failings." — COLUMNIST Pierre Rousselin

REFIGHTING THE LAST WAR

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Robots Really are Coming for your Job, and You Can Do Nothing About It "The U.S. supreme court ruled that corporations are people. And now the corporations want to replace people with bots. Guess who wins?" — AUTHOR Nicholas Carr

FIRMS ARE 'PEOPLE,' BUT PREFER ROBOTS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. National Crime Agency Would Restore Us to Soviet-Style Surveillance
SPY-CRAZY	“There is no threat to national security that justifies the kind of erosion of civil liberties NCA Chief Bristow seeks.” — COLUMNIST Simon Jenkins

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Chief of 'Britain's FBI' says Public Must Give Up Freedoms for Safety "It is necessary to win 'the public consent to losing some freedoms in return for greater safety and security . Snowden's revelations have damaged public confidence in our ability to access and use data in an appropriate way." — National Crime Agency Director Keith Bristow

NOT ENOUGH MASS SURVEILLANCE?

The Observer, U.K. 'In 1976 I Discovered Ebola, Now I Fear an Unimaginable Tragedy' "This isn't just an epidemic any more. This is a humanitarian catastrophe. We don't just need care personnel, but experts in logistics, trucks, jeeps and foodstuffs. Such an epidemic can destabilize entire regions." — Dr. Peter Piot

EBOLA: THE THREAT TO INDIA

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany Obama's ' Experiment' Proves Only America Can Maintain Order TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "Obama clearly recognizes now that the United States is indispensable as guardian of a basic level of global order, but doesn't want to assume all the responsibility - not to mention costs alone." — COLUMNIST Nicolas Richter

OBAMA: LEARNED HIS LESSON?

CrossTalk, Russia Today VIDEO: Making Sense of 'Washington's Mischief' OCT. 3, 00:24:12 In this edition of Peter Levelle's CrossTalk, the panel attempts to make sense of American foreign policy and lack of debate over the latest war within the United States. Guests include Prfessor of History at King's College Joseph Loconte, CounterPunch columnist Jason Hirthler, and author and radio host David Swanson - an all- American panel by the way. Note is taken of the fact that ISIL is a 'product' of American foreign policy - a statement of fact that one will never encounter in the coopted U.S. mainstream media. — CROSSTALKING U.S. Foreign Policy WHERE'S THE DABATE ON WAR?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.S. Reroutes Flights to Prevent Catastrophic Stampede of Walruses "The Federal Aviation Authority has re-routed flights, and local communities have called on bush pilots to keep their distance in an effort to avoid setting off a panic that could see scores of walruses trampled to death." — SCIENCE CORRESPONDENT Suzanne Goldenberg

FAA IN WALRUS PROTECTION ROLE

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Argentina President Blames a 'U.S. Plot' for Debt Woes "I'm not naive, this is not an isolated move by a senile judge in New York,' said Fernández. 'Because vultures look a lot like the eagles of empires,' referring to the bald eagle, the national symbol of the United States." — CORRESPONDENT Uki Goni

LOOKING FOR SOMEONE TO BLAME?

Der Spiegel, Germany Germany's Ramshackle Military at Odds with its Global Aspirations "Recent reports suggest the country's weapons systems are in such disrepair that Berlin actually has very little to offer its partners." — NEWS ITEM, Der Spiegel

SO MUCH FOR GERMAN 'POWER'

Le Figaro, France Outcome of Anti-ISIL War Depends on New Shiite-Sunni Dynamic TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The rallying of four Arab states, which have joined the American Air Force, thereby legitimizing the bombing campaign on Syrian territory, is above all symbolic. ... The important thing is that the five are Sunni and seem finally to have realized that they have given birth to a monster to wage a war against the Shiite axis directed by Tehran. The extreme complexity of the overlapping conflicts in the region makes any outcome uncertain. One must hope that the barbarity of ISIL brings a profound enough response to trigger a new dynamic." — COLUMNIST Pierre Rousselin

WILL MUSLIMS COME TO THEIR SENSES?

Ouest, France Globalization Makes it Easier to Address Climate Difficulties TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The formula remains far from resolved. Yet at the dawn of this new century, it seems the globalization of trade and information will inevitably lead to the finding of shared solutions. Common sense says that both should be focused on reducing inequality and repairing our ecosystems." — EDITORIAL, Ouest

A GLOBALIZED SOLUTION?

The Telegraph, U.K. A New U.S. threat to British, European, and American Data Privacy As if they haven't damaged the market positions of American tech firms enough, data-sucking U.S. authorities are at it again, this time by suborning the likes of Microsoft, Apple and Google to allow U.S. authorites access to e-mails and other data held in what is know as the 'Cloud'. — NEWS ITEM, Telegraph AMERICA: LAND OF MASS SPYING

Die Tageszeitung, Germany Climate Summit & Merkel's 'Cerebral Circuitry Overload' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The lament over Merkel's absence ignores the fact that her absenteeism is an expression of chronic climate policy fatigue. ... The complexity of the issue seems to overwhelm our cerebral circuitry." — COLUMNIST Manfred Kriener

TOO MUCH INFORMATION?

Le Figaro, France The Workings of the Islamic State Laid Bare TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "prisoners have told of having been sodomized shortly after their arrival. With humiliations like these, IS seeks to regress these fighters to the condition of animals to prepare them for committing the worst atrocities. And as these sessions have been filmed, the man thus abused will be disowned by his family, if ever he leaves the ranks of IS." — COLUMNIST Georges Malbrunot

IS: HOW TO GENERATE BARBARITY

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. British Lawmakers Vote to Approve Air Strike Against Iraq 524 to 43 Government wins vote by to 542 to 43 – Cameron: ISIS needs to be destroyed in Syria as well as Iraq -- Miliband: 2003 war means U.K. has responsibility to act now -- Read full motion on which MPs voted -- Cameron and Miliband's speeches and summary of events. — REPORTERS Andrew Sparrow, Claire Phipps BRITS TO RETURN TO BOMB IRAQ

De Morgen, Belgium The War on Terror 'Delusion' Lives On TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "May the question be asked whether the intention to eliminate the leaders of IS or 'chop off the head of the dragon' is a good strategy? One cannot escape that the successful attack on Osama bin Laden failed to halt the fundamentalist terrorism he wrought. Under the contrary - the idea that you can stop to this barbarism with even more repression, more weapons and more bombing may prove to be a very expensive delusion." — COLUMNIST Yves Desmet

MORE WAR: WILL IT WORK?

Le Monde Diplomatique, France The 'New Cold War' "Moscow will not allow Ukraine to become a rear base for its enemies. Russia's people, inflamed by nationalist propaganda that is more extreme than Western brainwashing (and that's saying something), won’t have it." — COLUMNIST Serge Halimi CAN ANYTHING BREAK THE ICE?

Breaking the Set, Russia Today VIDEO: Chris Hedges on Climate Corporatism and the Need for Civil Revolt SEPT. 24, 00:09:14 "We have undergone a corprate coup d'etat in slow motion. Our political system is now a form of legalized bribery. ... If you defy corprate interests, these very powerful forces step in ... and when they do they destroy you." — JOURNALIST Chris Hedges HEDGES: CALL FOR CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE

The Independent, U.K. Chelsea Manning: 'Make ISIL Fall on Own Sword'
BOMBOOZLED	“Degrade and destroy? The West should try to disrupt the canny ISIL militants into self- destruction, because bombs will backfire.” — WHISLEBLOWER Chelsea Manning

The Independent, U.K. America's Attacks on ISIL a Likely Boon to Bashar al-Assad
ASSAD'S BOON	“In his Damascus home, the Syrian leader can reflect that the most powerful country - which only last year wished to bomb him into oblivion – now seeks to bomb his enemies into into the same oblivion.” — COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

TELEGRAPH: Syria Strikes:
Obama Undergoes
'Damascene Conversion'
SPECTATOR: Michael Fallon
says U.K. Should Reconsider
Military Action in Syria

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Live Blog: U.S. Air Strikes Begin Against ISIL in Syria "This is the Guardian's always good -place-to-start Live Blog of the initiation of U.S. and allied attacks on Islamic State targets inside Syria. It includes text, video and tweets from around the Internet." — REPORTER Matthew Weaver

THE BOMBING OF SYRIA BEGINS

Multiple Sources, Europe, Asia, Latin America LIVE BLOG: U.N. Climate Summit Opens in New York This is the Guardian's live coverage of all the action and climate-heating gases being generated at the U.N. in New York, as the world's leaders gather to tell us what they intend to do about climate change. Quoting U.N. 'Messenger of Peace' Actor Leonardo DiCaprio in his message to world leaders: 'You can make history, or you can be vilified by it.' — GUARDIAN LIVE BLOG HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS MARCH

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Live Blog: U.S. Air Strikes Begin Against ISIL in Syria "This is the Guardian's always good -place-to-start Live Blog of the initiation of U.S. and allied attacks on Islamic State targets inside Syria. It includes text, video and tweets from around the Internet." — REPORTER Matthew Weaver

THE BOMBING OF SYRIA BEGINS

BBC NEWS: LIVE BLOG:
U.S. Begins Air Strikes on
Islamic State Targets in Syria

Multiple Sources, Europe, Asia, Latin America VIDEOS: Coverage of People's Climate March ELEVEN VIDEOS FROM AROUND THE WORLD This is coverage of People's Climate Marches in New York and other cities from Britain's Telegraph, Russia Today, CCTV China, Reuters, Free Speech TV, TeleSurof Venezuela, the U.N., Euronews of France). — 11 NEWS SEGMENTS HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS MARCH

News, Switzerland Islamic State: Preventing the 'Conquest of Rome' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The well-known megalomaniacal fantasies of IS jihadists, allegedly supported by former generals of Saddam, suggest this: The wet dream of some of the murderers seems to be the conquest of Rome by the Caliphate. ... The calculus is apparently to provoke an armed escalation and ultimately, an end -of-the-world style holy war." — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer

PLANNING THE REEDUCATION OF IRAQ

Le Soir, Belgium Beheadings: The Devious ISIL Trap TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH " The greater and more brutal the West's response, the more these jihadis from Hell hope to fuel a potent feeling of 'double standards' across Sunni-Muslim lands based on the fact that for three years, the international community has passively stood by the martyrdom of a nation - the Sunni majority in Syria." — COLUMNIST Baudouin Loos

IS: GETTING THE WEST'S GOAT?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.S. Won't Commit to Climate Change Aid for Poor States at Summit "'We're putting a lot of pressure for them [wealthier countries] at the summit on the 23rd,' U.N. envoy and former Irish president Mary Robinson told the Guardian on the sidelines of a meeting of the U.S. Agency for International Development. But she added: 'I know the U.S. is not going to commit because I have asked.'" — Special U.N. Envoy on Climate Change Mary Robinson

U.N. ENVOY CALLS OUT WHITE HOUSE

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Assange on Secret Talk with Google CEO Eric Schmidt SEPT. 21, 00:24:15 Wikileaks Assange talks about a meeting with Google CEO Eric Schmidt and others, how Google uses its search engine and gears its business to actively support U.S. 'imperialist' policies, calls Google Glass the realization of an Orwellian horror because it places Google between your eyes and the world, and describes the impact Google has had on WikiLeaks. — NEWS SEGMENTS, Russia Today GOOGLE: AN ARM OF THE U.S. GOVERNMENT?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. LIVE BLOG: Climate March - People Around the World March to Demand Action "Tens of thousands of people across 150 countries take to the streets to march for action on climate change. Dubbed the People’s Climate March, it has been flagged as the biggest global call-to-action on climate change in history, they demand thet world leaders take action on climate change as they prepare for a U.N. summit in New York on Monday." — REPORTERS Melissa Davey, Adam Vaughan and Amanda Holpuch

CLIMATE: TO ACT OR NOT TO ACT?

Izvestia, Russia Russians Must Prepare for Lengthy Stand-Off with U.S. TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "If Russia endures, in five to ten years, the critical foundations of U.S. influence will wane. A new system of payments and a reserve banking system, international banks, reserve currencies and financial centers will emerge, thereby accelerating flight from the dollar." — REPORTER Arnaud Focraud

HUNKERING DOWN, COME WHAT MAY

News, Switzerland Hedge Funds and Mega- Drought: When Private & Public Spheres Collide TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "Suppose a mere ten-year drought was to begin in Los Angeles, also impacting the Central Valley and Sacramento. It would soon spread through Las Vegas and Phoenix, all the way to West Texas. A horror scenario? Yes - unless you happen to be owner of the water rights." — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer

WHO SHOULD HAVE THE WATER?

leJDD, France The Islamic State: What Paris Summit Failed to Resolve TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "If all the world agrees that the eradication of ISIL also involves Syria, the question remains no less thorny, because an intervention in that country, unlike in Iraq, happens to require the agreement of its regime." — REPORTER Arnaud Focraud

WHAT WAS RESOLVED?

Publico, Portugal Caution: Captain America's Weapons-Based 'Recovery' May Be Hazardous to You TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "Fifty years after decolonization, the elites that rule the roost in the West have learned nothing from history, and continue to look at the world through neo-colonial glasses as thick as the bottoms of coke bottles! — COLUMNIST Manuel Loff

IS WAR OUR ONLY FORM OF 'GROWTH'?

Der Spiegel, Germany NSA 'Mapping Entire Internet' and 'All Devices Connected to It'; Spies on German Telekom "Treasure Map is the mandate for a mass raid on the digital world. It aims to map the Web, and not just the large traffic channels likes telecommunications cables. It also seeks to identify all devices across which our data flows, so-called routers. ... Furthermore, every single end device connected to the Internet somewhere in the world - every smart phone, every tablet and computer - is to be made visible." — Reporters Andy Muller-Maguhn, Laura Poitras, Marcel Rosenbach, Mike Sontheimer, Christian Grothoff NO PRIVACY FOR ANYONE, ANYTIME

Het Parool, The Natherlands 'Zionists Planned ISIS': Justice Official's Tweet Reflects Wider Problem TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Apparently, there are things that aren't allowed to be said in this regard,' suspended Justice official Yasmina Haifi tells NPO Radio 1. She was in the news due to her tweet: 'ISIS has nothing to do with Islam. It's part of a plan by Zionists who are deliberately trying to blacken Islam's name.' The New Dutch Islamic Party goes the extra mile in a tweet that equates Zionism with the IS, and is defended under free speech rights.” —Ibrahim Wijbenga of the Christian Democratic Party

MAKING POLITICAL INROADS IN EUROPE

Quadriga - DW, Germany VIDEO: 'Incompetent Europe' Needs the U.S. 'World Police' SEPT. 11, 00:12:39 This clip from Deutsche Welle's Quadriga program reflects the chaotic nature of this moment in history. Former Financial Times and International Herald Tribune columnist Judy Dempsey & German public radio reporter Burkhard Birke speak on whether the world still needs the U.S. 'world police.' Both believe that is does. — NEWS SEGMENTS, Russia Today AMBIVALENT BUT WITHERING CRITICISM

BBC News, U.K. Islamic State Crisis: World Leader Pledge to Support the Iraqis "Iran, Saudi Arabia, regional superpowers, back opposing sides in Syria. They will look closely to see if U.S. actions indirectly help their rival. ... Many argue that the British and Americans tore open sectarian scars when they invaded Iraq, and now risk making matters even worse." — CORRESPONDENT Jeremy Bowen IS: THE CONFLICTED ALLIANCE

BBC NEWS, U.K. VIDEO: David Cameron's Entire Response to Death of Aid Worker David Hains SEPT. 14, 00:06:09 "We will do all within our power to hunt down these murderers and ensure they face justice, however long it takes. ... they have planned and continue to plan, attacks across Europe and in our country." — PRIME MINISTER David Cameron DAVID CAMERON: 'DRAIN THIS POISON'

Hertener Allgemeine, Germany 'Generation 9-11': The End of Innocence for Americans and Us All TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "In terms of the consequences of September 11th, there is much in common between the 30 to 40 years olds in both the U.S. and Germany. The 9-11 generation, which ranges in age from the early thirties to early forties, is now marked by personal fears. There are massive feelings of insecurity due to collective experience of violence on September 11." — Sociologist and researcher Dr. Daniela Schiek

9-11: DISTURBING A GENERATION

Irish Times, Ireland 'War is Madness' Pope Says; 'WWIII has Begun' "In our world, behind the scenes, there are interests, geopolitical strategies, lust for money and power, and there is the manufacture and sale of arms, which seem to be so important." — POPE Francis IS THE END REALLY 'NIGH'?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Two American Senators Live on Remote Island for Reality TV Program "The two say they approached the network about creating the series, Rival Survival, in part because of their frustrations with American partisan politics." — CORRESPONDENT Amanda Holpuch REALITY TV MEETS U.S. SENATE

Le Figaro, France As Shown Again in Iraq, the French Must Reject 'Subjection' to America TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "This beneficial and necessary alliance should not be turned into subjection to America - in a systematic alignment of our diplomacy with hers. ... This spirit of independence was found again in the brave 2003 speech by Dominique de Villepin at the U.N., imploring the United States not to invade Iraq - and again, history proved him [and France] a hundred times correct." — COLUMNIST Renaud Girard

A CALL FOR FRENCH INDEPENDENCE

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Using Terorrism as a Tool Means More Terrorists "Governments sought use of extremist groups as proxies in battles for regional hegemony, or as a sectarian tool pitting Shiite against Sunni and Sunni against Shiite." — FORMER FBI Special Agent Ali Soufan THE TRUTH DRIBBLES OUT

Financial Times, U.K. VIDEO: At Saudi Meet, U.S. and Arab leaders Discuss the ISIL Threat SEPT. 12, 00:03:37 FT reports that Sunni Arabs find it 'hypocritical' Obama wants their help after he failed to act against Syria last year, but that they realize they 'have to play along to a certain extent'. The report also says that NATO-member Turkey has already said it will not take part in military action against Islamic State. — CORRRESPONDENT Simeon Kerr LIMP RESPONSE FROM SUNNIS

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Russian Coverage: President Obama's Speech on Use of Force Against ISIL FIVE VIDEO SEGMENTS Five news segments from RT dealing with President Obama's speech on the use of military force against the Islamic State and on the territory of Syria. — NEWS SEGMENTS, Russia Today OBAMA SPEECH: WITHERING CRITICISM

Der Standard Austria ECB Move Tempts Collapse of Global 'House of Cards' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Central banks have turned the global economy into an enormous house of cards that will sooner or later come crashing down. Rather than slamming on the brakes, they are carelessly upping the ante.” —FINANCIAL COLUMNIST Andreas Schnauder

ECB CHIEF DRAGHI ROLLS THE DICE

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama's Dilemma: U.S. Appetite for Power and Aversion to Political Risk
ITS LOSE-LOSE	“Americans want him Mr. Obama 'do something' about catastrophes abroad while withdrawing from the role of world policeman. ... It is running low on carrots, and it has broken its stick.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

Daily Mail, U.K. White House Denies Sotloff Claims 'Moderate' Syrians Sold Son to Islamic State "These so-called moderate rebels that people want us to support, one of them sold him probably for between $25,000 and $50,000." —Sotloff Family Spokesman Barak Barfi

Le Figaro, France Beware Perpetuation of NATO Through Fanning Flames Against Russia TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Whatever responsibility the Syrian regime bears for the emergence of the Islamic State, the priority is no longer ousting a bloody dictator, but preventing the creation of a jihadist state at the heart of the Arab world with networks leading straight into European suburbs. ... The absence of a strategy, however, mustn't lead NATO to exacerbating a conflict with Russia simply to perpetuate itself.” —COLUMNIST Pierre Rousselin

DOTH NATO PROTEST TOO MUCH?

BBC HARDtalk, U.K. VIDEOS: Presidents of Ukraine and Georgia TWO HARDTALK VIDEOS What does the president of Georgia, which was invaded and lost territory to Russia in 2008, think NATO and Ukraine should do, give the current tensions in Ukraine? What does Ukraine's president think of the NATO Summit? Hardtalk speaks to both men. — BBC HARDtalk LEADERS AGGRIEVED BY INVASION

Stop TTIP, Germany VIDEO: Citizens Initiative to STOP Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership 01:09:49 What's wrong with the largest 'free for multinationals' trade agreement in history now being negotiated in secret by governments owned and operated by companies that stand to benefit most from the treaty? This video from the European Citizens' Initiative against TTIP explains why the treaty is rotten for the public and agencies meant to protect them. — When Free Trade isn't Free SHINING A LIGHT ON TTIP TALKS

Die Zeit, Germany Islamic State Barbarism has Ignites Long-Absent Muslim Soul-Searching TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The triumphant march of ISIL has shocked the Middle East. Barbarians rage in the heart of the Fertile Crescent. Here the alphabet was invented, the first poems written, here lie the oldest cultural and political roots of humanity. This archaic barbarism that may irreparably destroy the ancient polyglot texture of the Middle East, has sparked a broad and self-critical debate among commentators, scholars, politicians, and citizens." — COLUMNIST Martin Gehlen

CAN THINGS CHANGE IN ISLAM?

Ukraine Orthodox Church, Ukraine Ukraine Orthodox Church Patriarch: Putin 'New Cain'; 'Under influence of Satan' "For all the blood that was shed at your will, and the evil done by your your order, your punishment will be the same as the punishment of the liar and fratricide Cain - the curse and eternal damnation." — Patriarch Filaret of Ukrainian Orthodox Church CHURCH CHIEF: PUTIN GOING TO HELL

Le Figaro, France The 'Caliphate Effect': New Horizons for Global Jihad TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "If ISIL doesn't always win people over, it inspires - everywhere. The largest Muslim country in the world, Indonesia, has become alarmed by the growing popularity of IS in certain segments of the population. And here, in Europe, an unprecedented wave of global jihadists is rising up. Their return from the front promises to be painful." — COLUMNIST Arnaud de La Grange

ISLAMIC STATE POPULARITY IS GROWING

BBC, VAZ, U.K. and Italy VIDEOS: NATO Summiteers Eat, Drink, Talk, Shop for Arms, Watch RAF Aircraft EIGHT VIDEO SEGMENTS Precious little of significance ever happens at these events, except people get to know one another, which is important on some level. Although invariably, an ungodly amount of money is spent on food, security, enabling the delegates to ignore protesters, and here, the crass opportunism of the weapons industry pandering to NATO leaders on the cusp of a two wars is truly embarrassing. — Behind Scenes at NATO Summit NATO SUMMITEERS HOBNOBBING

Russia Today, Russia Russian Media on NATO Summit, Ukriane Crisis NINE VIDEO SEGMENTS This is another of our regular media narrative comparisons on the Ukraine crisis. With the NATO Summit now going on in Wales, take a dip into the storyline being offered the public by Russia's English- language broadcaster, RT. — CROSS TALK DEBATE TRUSTING WESTERN INTELLIGENCE

BBC, France24, DW, Euronews European Media on NATO Summit and Ukriane Crisis TWENTY VIDEO SEGMENTS This is the latest Worldmeets.US media narrative comparisons on the Ukraine crisis. This post shows the narrative of Europe from the BBC, France 24, Deutsche Welle and Paris-based Euronews. — PRESSURE ON HIGH IN WALES RUSSIA SANCTIONS OVER UKRAINE

BBC, Guardian, U.K. LIVE BLOGS: NATO Summit in Wales - E.U. to Announce New Sanctions on Russia

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NATO Summit: Where Tanks and Fighter Jets are 'Par for the Course' "One of the more incongruous sights at the NATO summit is of military hardware strewn on the greens and bunkers of the Celtic Manor golf resort. ... Parked near one of the holes, close to a sign warning: 'Danger: Golf In Progress from Right', are an armored personnel carrier, a tank and a fighter aircraft." —CORRESPONDENT Ewen MacAskill CRASS WEAPONS COMMERCIALISM

Die Welt, Germany West Must Not Allow Kiev to 'Internationalize War' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "Shall we die for Ukraine? ... That Ukrainian president Poroshenko and his officials are now talking of an invasion does, of course, have a political backdrop: He wants to involve the West in the conflict. ... The United States and European Union should not give him his wish." — COLUMNIST Ludwig Greven

HOW FAR TO GO TO DEFEND UKRAINE?

Novosti, Russia France Puts Off Delivery of First Mistral-Class Copter Carrier to Russia "Russia's recent actions in east Ukraine violate the principles of European security. The president of the republic stated that despite prospects for cease- fire, which is yet to be achieved and put into practice, present circumstances do not allow the delivery of the first helicopter carrier by the French republic." — National Security Council of France

NOVOSTI: Industry and Trade
Minister: Russia Believes Mistral
Delivery Contract to Be Fulfilled
GUARDIAN: France Halts Delivery
of Warship in Protest Over Russia
Role in Ukraine

Gazeta, Russia FLASHBACK: Only with U.S. Help Can 'Northern Civilization' Be Saved TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "We must permit our minds to let go of memories, tormented as we are by past grievances, and understand that only with the United States can the E.U. & Russia save northern civilization." — AMBASSDOR to NATO Dmitriy Rogozin

THE CHANGING WINDS OF POLITICS

Cross Talk, Russia Today Ukraine in Retreat: Western Narrative Threatens Peace SEPTEMBER. 3, 00:24:41 The panel discusses the diametrically- opposed narratives over Ukraine, and the 'fact deprived' way Western media depicts unfolding events in the region. — CROSS TALK DEBATE MORE FULL OF CRAP?: RUSSIA OR WEST?

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands Despite Horror of Beheading, 'Glorifying Terrorism' Should Not Be Made Criminal Offense TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "CDA Party leader Buma has asked that the glorification of terrorism be criminalized. The occasion was publication of disgusting photos of the beheading of James Foley, and parodies depicting other 'victims.' ... Would such a criminalization be legally possible - and would it improve matters? ... Many potential suspects would simply 'enjoy' being convicted. So much free publicity (and if convicted - martyrdom)." — ATTORNEY Feer Verkade

TIME FOR LAWS AGAINST FREE SPEECH?

Cross Talk, Russia Today VIDEO: How Much of a Threat is Islamic State? SEPTEMBER. 1, 00:26:59 Is the Islamic State being built into a monolithic enemy for the purpose of preparing the American people for another war/military intervention? Or is this media demonization just a way for policy makers to cover their butts - just in case something does happen? — CROSS TALK DEBATE IS: A TRUMPED-UP THREAT?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. LIVE BLOG: The Murder of Journalist Steven Sotloff Video purports to show beheading of second U.S. journalist -- Release falls two weeks after killing of U.S. journalist James Foley -- 'A few' Americans still held by group -- U.S. State department: 'We are sickened'. — REPORTER Tom McCarthy

ANOTHER TERRORIST MANIPULATION

British Media, U.K. A-List Hacker 'On the Run'; 'Paid in Bitcoin' The Daily Mail reports that the culprit, who said he leads a band of hackers, is on the run, and accoridng to the Mirror, he was paid in Bitcoin for some of the nude photos of celebrities he stole from the iCloud. —MULTIPLE SOURCES

2014 HACKED iCLOuD CAPER

La Stampa, Italy Caliphate and Kobe Bryant: Between Mafia and Sharia TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "More than a Caliph, Al Baghdadi has the personality of the Godfather. ... As he fights, rebuilds homes, profits from crime and recruits terrorists, Baghdadi would be laughing at the 'jayvee team putting on Kobe Bryant jerseys' - if anyone took the time to translate the naive text of the very cultured New Yorker magazine." — COLUMNIST Gianni Riotta

BAGHDADI: MAD BUT NO AMATEUR

Cross Talk, Russia Today VIDEO: How Much of a Threat is Islamic State? SEPTEMBER. 1, 00:26:59 Is the Islamic State being built into a monolithic enemy for the purpose of preparing the American people for another war/military intervention? Or is this media demonization just a way for policy makers to cover their butts - just in case something does happen? — CROSS TALK DEBATE IS: A TRUMPED-UP THREAT?

Der Spiegel, Germany 'Two-Faced': Turkey is NSA 'Partner and Target' "Turkey is itself the target of intense surveillance even as it works closely with the U.S. One NSA document describes the country bluntly as both a 'partner and target.'" — REPORTERS Laura Poitras, Marcel Rosenbach, Michael Sontheimer, Holger Stark BOTH ARE SPYING ON TURKEY

British Media, U.K. Nude Photos and Data on 100 A-Listers Leaked by iCloud Hacker '4chan' “An anonymous hacker gained access to private photos on the Hunger Games actress’s mobile phone, and those of 100 others, via Apple storage system iCloud.” —MULTIPLE SOURCES

A-LISTER NUDES APPLE I-HACKED

BBC NEWS: 'Cloud' Concerns
After Celebrity Picture Leaks

Financial Times, U.K. Republicans Must Regain Foreign Policy 'Realism'
QUICK TO SHOOT	“Instinctive militarism is now the Republican way; force is answer to every question.” — COLUMNIST Edward Luce

La Stampa, Italy Reagan Sets 'Acid Test' for Crisis-Beset Obama TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "Above all, he lacks the talent which Gorbachev maintained was most important in a U.S. president: Barack Obama does not enjoy, deep down, the trust of the American people. That is why all the players in the Mideast - allied, neutral, and deadly adversaries, feel free to act against the U.S." — COLUMNIST Gianni Riotta

OUTMATCHED BY THE GIPPER?

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany Ukraine War: A 'Hopeless Struggle' for the Lost East TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “As long as the Kremlin denies it runs the show in eastern Ukraine, honest talks cannot be conducted. ... So what's left for President Poroshenko and Kiev officials to do? They must prepare the people, for better or worse, for the fact that part of the Donbas region, which is still in the hands of pro- Russian militia forces, is lost.” —COLUMNIST Cathrin Kahlweit

PUTIN GIVES NO GROUND IN MINSK

The Independent, U.K. Barack Obama Refuses to Decide: Fails to Act
NO BITE OBAMA	“Instead of a strategy to deal with ISIL and Russia, the presidency offers veiled threats.” — COLUMNIST Janet Daley

OBSERVER: Britain's Best
Defense to the Terror
Threat is Global Action
GUARDIAN: Critics Hit
Out at Ashdown's Criticism
of 'Kneejerk' Response

Economist, U.K. NATO Summit is Mr. Putin's Wake-Up Call "The meeting on September 4th will not have to spend time agonising over what the 65-year-old alliance is for." — ECONOMIST Analysis TURNING POINT ON UKRAINE?

GUARDIAN: E.U. Leaders
Deliver Sanctions Ultimatum
to Russia Over Ukraine

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Economic Warfare: RIP the Free Market New World Order
IRON CURTIAN II?	“Russia is facing damaging economic sanctions, but this also brings down the final curtain on capitalism's apparent victory in 1989.” — COLUMNIST Larry Elliott

The Independent, U.K. Meet the Frankenstein of Saudi Arabia and Qatar, or as We Know Them, ISIL
ISIL SLIPS LEASH	“After spending billions, Saudi and Qatari Wahhabists are finding that money cannot and has not, purchased loyalty.” — COLUMNIST Paul Vallely

Liberation, France France has its Own 'Ferguson' Problem TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Commentators have urged the American authorities to fight discrimination more vigorously. How about the French authorities? There may not be enough Black members of the American police, but does France have enough Muslims in the French police? ... Ferguson is in fact not that exotic.” —COLUMNIST Laurent Joffrin

NO BETTER THAN FERGUSON?

Keiser Report - RT, Russia VIDEO: 'Les Miserables' ... Ferguson and Bank Fraud AUGUST 26, 00:25:46 In this episode, Max Keiser & Stacey Herbert highight the connection between the crisis in Ferguson and the massive political and bank fraud that continues with impunity in the United States and beyond. An excellent episode of pathos and righteous indignation. — THE KEISER REPORT FERGUSON MAY SIGNAL A TREND

Der Spiegel, Germany Violence in Ferguson: Some Worry 'Things Will Never Change' “We're like animals to them, ones they can shoot down like deer. The police know that most of us can't even afford a lawyer. ... People are completely powerless.” — BLACK RESIDENT of Ferguson Missouri

LOST HOPE OR NEW TRACTION?

BBC News, U.K. NSA and GCHQ 'Leak Tor Bugs', Developer Says "British and American intelligence agents attempting to hack the 'dark Web' are being deliberately undermined by colleagues, it has been alleged by Tor." — TOR OFFICER Andrew Lewman TOR: IT'S SPY VS. SPY

THE INTERCEPT: Surveillance
Engine - How the NSA Built
Its Own Secret Google
BBC HARDTALK VIDEO:
Web Bringing Capitalism to End,
says Economist Jeremy Rifkin

Vatican News, Holy See Pope Francis Calls Parents of Journalist James Foley “In the midst of their irreplaceable loss, the parents of slain journalist James Foley were called by Pope Francis, who consoled them after their loss and offered his prayers.” — REPORTER Lydia O'Kane

POPE REACHES OUT TO FOLEYS

VATICAN NEWS: Pope Sends
Letter of Condolence to Family
of Slain Journalist James Foley
VATICAN NEWS: Iraqi Patriarch
Appeals to the World: 'Don't be
Indifferent to Our Suffering'

Le Nouvel Observateur, France Beheading Shows 'Weakness'; Video Should Not Be Viewed TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “We all must take this barbaric killing which has been so grotesquely exhibited by those who committed it for what it is: an admission of weakness and impotence, a pathetic attempt to loosen a military vise. Not looking at what the barbarians want us to see is a way of saying, modesty - no, we won't take part in this macabre game.” —WAR CORRESPONDENT Jean-Paul Mari

IS THIS A TIME FOR SELF-CENSORSHIP?

The Observer, U.K. Failure to Address Root Causes of al-Qaeda Led to Rise of Islamic State
ROOT CAUSES	“The causes that led to the rise of ISIL are all too familiar - and the Americans have contributed their share to them.” — DUBAI ANALYST Hassan Hassan

Berliner Zeitung, Germany Zeal to Punish Snowden, and Assange, Criminalizes Keeping Public Informed TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “A shift in political consciousness is taking place in the democracies, especially in the United States, which may lead to a situation in which it will not only be possible to eliminate the right to well- informed participate in society, but to criminalize that participation.” —COLUMNIST Patrick Bahners

U.S. UNFRIENDLY TO THE TRUTH

The Independent, U.K. ISIL: Talk of 'Apocalyptic' Threat is Simply Childish
FEAR MONGERS	“Chuck Hagel and Martin Dempsey were pure Hollywood. They only needed Tom Cruise. ... Who writes this God- awful script? Can’t the U.S. Defence Secretary and his joint chiefs chair do any better?” — COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

The Independent, U.K. West Poised to Join with President Assad "The U.S. has already covertly assisted the Assad regime by passing on intelligence about the exact location of jihadi leaders through the BND, the German intelligence service, a source tells The Independent. This may explain why Syrian planes and artillery have been able on occasion to target rebel troops, headquarters accurately." — COLUMNIST Patrick Coburn

ASSAD: THE DICTATOR SURVIVES

Frankfurter Rundschau, Germany U.S. Police Now 'Auxiliary Troops of War on Terror' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “After the mass murders of Sept. 11, the solution was for every police station to be prepared for the worst. Just as the U.S. wages its wars like criminal actions by the world police, local police back home are drafted as auxiliary troops in the war on terror.” —COLUMNIST Patrick Bahners

WHAT ARE POLICE EQUIPPED TO DO?

Gazeta, Russia Western Sanctions Show Russians Cost of Independence TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "The sanctions show clearly to all that the rules favor the West. If that's how it is, then so be it. If you want to use them - then learn them. If you don't want to use them - that's your choice, but just know what you will be deprived of. Sanctions imposed by the West, and the ones we've imposed in return, will prompt people in advance to what this would cost them personally." — COLUMNIST Andrei Desnitsky

DEALING WITH SANCTIONS

Der Spiegel, Germany German Spies, U.S. Torture, the Islamic State, Ukraine War CIA's former point man defends waterboarding; Can ISIL be defeated by Americans, Europeans, Kurds, Iranians?; Berlin cries then spies; and the forgotten Ukraine war. — FROM DER SPIEGEL

ROUNDUP FROM DER SPIEGEL

Polityka, Poland 'Drunk' Over Crimea, Sanctions will Bring Russia to its Senses TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "In the long run, Russia can not live as is in a besieged fortress and with its global reputation in tatters. For its own modernization and development, it is Russia who needs Europe and the U.S.- and not the other way round. In Russia, where Putin enjoys strong support today, forces will emerge that will understand that." — COLUMNIST Marek Ostrowsk

WILL THE RUSSIANS BUCKLE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. James Foley's Murder Will See Calls for Military Action - Which is What ISIL Wants
PROVOCATION	“The 'war on terror' has made jihadism stronger than ever. ISIL is being gladly assisted by those in the West who portray it as a pure and unique evil which must be onliterated, granting the militant group the mystique it so craves.” — COLUMNIST Owen Jones

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Outrage Over Beheading of U.S. Journalist: Live This is the Guardian's live blog of coverage, inculding text, tweets and video, of the global reaction to the beheading killing of U.S. journalist James Foley. — LIVE BLOG, Guardian

BITTER END FOR A GOOD REPORTER

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. ISIL Nightmare is Not a 'Holy War,' it is an Unholy Mess
POWER VACUUM	“It isn't religious zealotry but the collapse of state power that makes the clash in Iraq feel like a return to the dark ages.” — COLUMNIST Jonathan Freedland

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Ferguson: Violence of the State has Created Violence of the Street
RACE ERUPTION	“Nobody in their right mind wants additional violent protests. But, as Reverend King said, 'a riot is the language of the unheard'” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

Polytika, Poland 'Collective Orgasm' Over Crimea Pushes Putin Into Invasion TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “The Russian president, an ex-KGB officer, is hostage to his own cult, which is having a collective orgasm over Crimea. He cannot show the country, which stands firmly behind him, any form of weakness. Will he unflinchingly lead another generation of young Russians to their deaths?” —COLUMNIST Adam Szostkiewicz

ALARMED OR PROPHETIC?

Izvestia, Russia Convoy: If Russian Patriotism is a Threat to Business - So be it TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “The interests of business and those of the nation very often do not coincide. When the mood, passion, love and indignation of the people boil, then one must sacrifice the interests of business.” —COLUMNIST Eduard Limonov

PRICE OF RUSSIAN PATRIOTISM

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany U.S. Wields German Spying on Hillary as Post-Snowden Cudgel TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The United States has begun to use information provided by [German double agent] Markus R. in its dispute over U.S. espionage in Germany. Clinton's intercepted phone call is being taken as proof that the Germans were also spying on the United States." — REPORTER COLUMNIST Georg Mascolo

HOW MUCH DO GERMANS SPY?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Julian Assange Plans to Leave Ecuador Embassy in London August 18, 00:26:30 "Throughout this entire time I have not been charged. Europe is meant to be a place where the rule of law is respected, and basic rights are respected ... but somehow a situation has developed where basic rights we thought were universally held are no longer respected." — WIKILEAKS' Julian Assange ASSANGE TO MAKE BID TO ESCAPE

Le Soir, Belgium Ebola: The Luxury of Indifference is Gone TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "At first, the sick and hopeless, were people who were distant, poor, and superstitious. So they died, and no one spoke of them again. Today, being indifferent to the suburbs of the world and which face the greatest crises, is not only morally wrong, but a political mistake. It is also a luxury we can no longer afford." — COLUMNIST Colette Braeckman

EBOLA: WHEN NO ONE IS DISTANT

Die Tageszeitung, Germany Suicide as a Taboo: The 'Judas Iscariot' of Crime TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The number of victims of AIDS, violence and natural disaster - none compare with the number of suicide victims. ... It isn't discussed. ... It's no coincidence that the person who committed the worst crime - the betrayer of God Judas - hung himself.” —COLUMNIST Wolfgang Prosinger

WHY NO DISCUSSION OF SUICIDE?

Le Monde, France France and the West Must Help Middle East Pick Life Over Death' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "It is the dawn of a decisive moment when the region swings to one side or the other. Our role is to help it choose life over death. ... Today, resort to unilateral strikes is not a solution. The action cannot be taken without a U.N. resolution. We must not continually repeat the same mistakes. ... Let us remember that even without American unilateral intervention in 2003, there would not have been such a boulevard for totalitarian forces in Iraq." — FORMER FOREIGN MINISTER Dominique de Villepin

THIS TIME, NO FRENCH VETO

Liberation, France Belated Action in Iraq Must be Coordinated TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "This tragedy, which has been building for months, first had to hit the minority Christians for Obama to finally find that, 'the United States cannot look away,' at atrocities committed by the Islamic State. It's never too late, of course. One need only read reports from Najaf and Sadr City to understand the extent of the chaos in the region and the imperative to finally begin to act." — COLUMNIST Alexandra Schwartzbrod

HOPING FOR BETTER RESULTS

The Independent, U.K. Racial Equality in America Suffers a Violent Setback “The residual poison of racial segregation and discrimination has still not been purged from American society.” — EDITORIAL, The Independent

EQUALITY PROVES ELUSIVE

BBC HARDTalk, U.K. VIDEO: Robin Williams INTERVIEW CONDUCTED IN 1999 SERIOUS QUESTIONS FOR WILLIAMS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Robin Williams' Divine Madness Will No Longer Disrupt World's Sadness
CRUEL WORLD	"Is it melancholy to think that a world that Robin Williams can't live in must be broken? To tie this sad event to the overarching misery of our times? ... Suicide among the middle- aged rose inexplicably in 1999 and has been rising ever since. Could this be a condition of our era?" — COMEDIAN Russell Brand

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Robin Williams: the Sadness of a Clown that Couldn't be Fixed
NO SOLUTION	“Physical illness the medical profession understands. It knows what to do when the body malfunctions and what not to do. Mental illness, if illness is the right word, seems lost in some dark age.” — COLUMNIST Simon Jenkins

Gazeta, Russia 'Successful' Russia Sanctions Would be Nightmare for West TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “After several years, Europe and the West may end up dealing with a nation that is so firmly in the throes of anti- American and anti-Western sentiment that the Soviet Union will seem like a close ally by comparison.” —COLUMNIST Georgy Bovt

TOPPLING PUTIN: IS THAT THE GOAL?

The Economist, U.K. Prostitution and the Web: 'More Bang for Your Buck' "As paid-for sex becomes readily and discreetly available online, more people will buy it. Greater awareness may develop that not all sex workers are the victims of exploitation. ... The internet has disrupted many industries. The oldest one is no exception." — The Economist PROSTITUTION: COMING OF AGE?

Diario de Noticias, Portugal Africa Cannot Be Left to Washington and Beijing TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE “Obama, son of a White woman from Kansas and a Kenyan man, has special reasons to promote this strategic approach, but the truth is that America knows that as the leading power, it cannot remain aloof to the development of the continent.” —EDITORIAL, Diario de Noticias

OBAMA: SHMOOZING AFRICA

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. 1914: The Great War has Become a Nightly Pornography of Violence
WAR PORN?	“The centenary has been seized as a military propaganda ploy. The So-called lessons learned have been either ignored or utterly forgotten.” — COLUMNIST Simon Jenkins

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: 100 Years Since Outbreak of World War I NINE VIDEOS FROM EUROPE, ASIA It was 100 years ago today that Germany and Austria mobilized and formally began World War I, also known for a time as the 'war to end all wars.' About 17 million people were killed as a direct result of the hostilities. Ceremonies were held around Europe and as far as Singapore. — EUROPEANS REMEMBER THE 'WAR TO END ALL WARS'

Le Figaro, France Gaza: The Roadmap to Peace Must Be 'Imposed' on Combatants TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Hope of eradicating the Islamist militants by force makes no sense. Other, even more extremist fighters, would take the place of Hamas. It is essential for Western diplomats to take that decision, impose it on Israel, and stop playing the game of the Islamists and their allies in the Arab world.” —COLUMNIST Pierre Rousselin

DEALING WITH A BLOOD FEUD

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Former NSA Chief Sued for 'Get Rich Quick Scheme' AUGUST 3, 00:02:13 Former NCA chief General Keith Alexander is being sued for blatantly using his knowledge of America's secrets to earn $1 million a month since leaving office. — Ethics of 'Public Service' GOLD INLAID REVOLVING DOOR

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Multinationals 'Abandoning America' AUGUST 4, 00:25:46 Max Keiser and his partner Stacy Herbert look at one of the most profound issues of our time: how the major coroprations companies no longer have nationalities, in other words, an allegiance to any particular country. — Disloyal Multinationals FIRMS: 'NO USE BEING AMERICAN'

Der Spiegel, Germany Israel Pulls an NSA on Kerry: Eavesdrops on Mideast Conversations “Israeli intelligence snooped on telephone conversations by Secretary of State John Kerry. The government then used the information obtained from the calls during talks on the conflict in the Gaza strip.” — REPORTER Fabian Reinbold

SPIES: GOOD FOR THE GANDER?

BBC News, U.K. AUDIO: Wars, Lies and Audiotape: The Vietnam War AUGUST 4, 00:58:00 "What we know today is that the incident that was reported to have taken place in the South China Sea off the Vietnamese coast didn't ever happen." — GRAND DADDY OF MODERN FALSE FLAGS VIETNAM: NOW WE KNOW

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands Drop Trade Barriers with Russia, Don't Raise Them! TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “If we want to build bridges to the Russian people, we should counter restrictions on the free movement of people and goods, abolish visa requirements and remove import tariffs on Russian goods. The gap between 'us and them' is precisely what nationalists like Putin prefer.” —Imre Wessels of the Dutch Libertarian Party

TIME TO LOWER OUR TRADE GUNS?

La Stampa, Italy Washington and Jerusalem: Forces Beyond their Control TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "Of all the wars we don't know how to settle, none will so scandalize future generations like the one that has been raging between Israel and the Arabs since 1948. Because after hasty Nobel Peace Prizes for the martyr Rabin, Arafat and Obama, after all of the conferences, demonstrations, and an abundance of tomes, the old fairy tale of 'two peoples, two states' always wins applause from the well-intentioned, and earns good grades for university degree thesis, but on the ground, in the West Bank, Gaza and Jerusalem, it is an impossible equation." — COLUMNIST Gianni Riotta

WHAT'S A WANING SUPERPOWER TO DO?

Reuters, U.K. Health Worsening, Ebola Patient Heads to Atlanta “The CDC is unaware of any Ebola patient ever being treated in the U.S., but five people in the past decade have entered the U.S. with either Lassa or Marburg Fever, hemorrhagic fevers likeo Ebola.” — REPORTERS Colleen Jenkins, Julie Steenhuysen

PATIENT TO U.S. FOR TREATMENT

BBC NEWS: Growing Concerns
Over 'In Air' Transmission of Ebola

Gazeta, Russia MH17: Guilty Rebels 'Worse for Moscow than KAL-007' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "Attempts to avoid economic collapse in the country could pull us into a full- scale war, possibly even a nuclear war. the threat of total geopolitical defeat, and to all of Russian civilization, which is what this is, would push us to act." — COLUMNIST Georgy Bovt

WHAT IF PUTIN'S HOLD IS THREATENED?

Izvestia, Russia MH17: West's Version of Events Only Hearsay, Subterfuge, Hysteria TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIA " The only question is - who did it? ... What is in doubt? First, the way the aircraft dramatically changed course. Second, the airline lost over the Indian Ocean in April, the fate of which remains unknown. Third, the desire of the Kiev authorities to ensure that such incidents continued to take place." — COLUMNIST Maxim Kononenko

VLADIMIR PUTIN: CLEAN HANDS?

Guardian, BBC, U.K. Surveillance Reform or Spy Whitewash?; We Internet Lab Rats THREE COLUMNS This is today's surveillance- related post, in which we deal with the NSA 'reform' legislation, and the way it has become the common practice for Internet sites to 'experiment' with your emotions by deliberately lying to you about what your information is being used for. — NSA 'REFORM'; WEB LAB RATS THE BATTLE FOR YOUR MIND

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Sara Firth, Ex-RT Correspondent, Debates Jon Stewart on State Versus Corporate Media JULY 30, 00:07:00 "In this country, there are news networks that just promote their own agenda and if the truth happens to be a part of it, gee, what a nice bonus." — JON STEWART TO SARA FIRTH PROPAGANDA: CORPORATE V. STATE

Guardian, Russia Today, U.K., Russia Struck by Huge Fine Today, Russia Faces Enhanced Western Sanctions Tomorrow THREE COLUMNS AND ONE VIDEO Today was a monumentally bad day for Russia and Putin. Not only does it appear that 'tier three' sanctions from the E.U., and U.S. appear imminent, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague, a global institution that appears to have real teeth, has ruled that the Russian government must pay a whopping $50 billion to the shareholders of bankrupt oil firm Yukos. — PUTIN'S BAD DAY PAIN OF SANCTIONS TO COME

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands MH17: 'Mousey' Merkel Disappoints the Dutch TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "Alied support for Holland has up to now amounted to almost nothing. ... but the biggest disappointment are the mousey efforts of Angela Merkel. There are times that call for clarity and leadership. Perhaps she couldn't defy those in German politics and finance who lobby on behalf of Russia's government." — COLUMNIST Paul Brill

SANCTIONS: WAITING FOR MERKEL

Le Figaro, France Gaza, MH17: France Pays the Price for its Moribund Diplomacy TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Pro-Palestinian riots show France's failure to assimilate large segments its Muslim population. It is time to for us to proactively respond to the consequences and with both hands, commit to the search for a way to stabilize the Middle East. The Mistral affair (sale of assault ships to Russia) gives France a special responsibility to act.” —COLUMNIST Pierre Rousselin

NO, THIS ISN'T GAZA - ITS PARIS ...

BBC HARDtalk, U.K. VIDEO: Conflicting Views about the Crisis in Gaza and the State of Israel THREE VIDEOS FROM JULY, 2014 For those who haven't seen BBC's HARDtalk, it is a program meant to put its guests on the spot with a barrage of questions they might find hard to answer. HARDtalk recently questioned Israeli-born historian Ilan Pappe, Hamas chief Khaled Mashal, and Israel's former defense minister Danny Danon. — BBC HARDtalk ARE ISRAELI ACTIONS DEFENSIBLE?

Elsevier, The Netherlands MH17: Dutch Should Avoid America's Post-911 Reaction TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Few dare to say it: in a way, the hopeless tragedies in Afghanistan and Iraq haven't made the loss of 3,000 lives on September 11, 2001 any less pointless.” —COLUMNIST Lodewijk Pessers

MH17: ANGER MANAGEMENT

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. If We Can Have 'Just War,' Why Not 'Just Terrorism'? "Oliver Cromwell, for instance, would almost certainly be a terrorist. Come to think of it, so, too, would Moses and his famous (and very violent) run- in with the Egyptian state." — PRIEST, Dr. Giles Fraser MOSES: TERRORIST OUTLAW?

Der Spiegel, Germany Israel's Former Security Chief: 'Israel Today an Instrument of Hamas' “From the beginning, the so- called Kerry initiative was a joke. We are currently very near the point of no return. The number of settlers is increasing and a solution to the problem is already nearly impossible logistically, even if the political will were there.” —FORMER SHIN BET Chief Yuval Diskin

THE UGLY TRUTH ABOUT GAZA

CNN, Russia Today, U.S. VIDEO: CNN's Chris Cuomo vs. Russia Today's Peter Lavelle on the MH17 Propaganda War JULY 23, 00:10:51 If you wanted to distill the conflict between Western corporate media and Russia's state-run media over MH17, it would be hard to do better. — CORPORATE VS STATE MEDIA STATE V COPPORATE MEDIA CLASH

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland The West's Sliding Scale of Suffering is a Gift to Putin TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Something is wrong with the West if it answers the chaos of Putin with cynicism. If we, people of the West, retain even a shred of reason and decency, we should return to our idealism, which asserts that dignity is the common right of all human beings, and that the suffering of innocents is always a scandal.” —PHILOSOPHER Jaroslaw Makowski

ARE SOME LIVES BETTER THAN OTHER?

Hope X Summit, U.S. VIDEO: Edward Snowden and Daniel Elsberg at the HOPE X Hacker's Summit JULY 23, 01:26:31 They discuss how the intelligence services compile information on everyone online, and Snowden urges the assembled geeks to develop platforms to make the activities of users harder to track. — SNOWDEN-ELSBERG AT HOPE X AN EXTRAORDINARY ENCOUNTER

Elsevier, The Netherlands As Dutch Mourn Our Dead, Russians Should Mourn their State TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “It's sad to note that the Russia of Leo Tolstoy and Anna Akhmatova is once again held hostage by a barbaric tyrant. Today we mourn the Dutch victims. The people of Russia must also mourn the barbarism that has seized the Russian state.” —COLUMNIST Afshin Ellian

DIGNITY FOR DEAD - AT LAST

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands MH17: E.U. Must 'Slam its Fists' on the Table TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “ Here and there, calls are even being made for the Netherlands' military and F16s to be sent to Ukraine to teach the separatists a lesson. Understandable as that may be, that road cannot be taken. ... Now is the time for Europe to adopt and implement the economic sanctions Obama announced against Russia. The E.U. has to coalesce themselves and with U.S.” —COLUMNIST Hans Wansink

WILL E.U. BACK SANCTIONS?

Elsevier, The Netherlands Securing MH17 Victims: Dutch Have Elite Troops for a Reason! TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Prime Minister Rutte must threaten the use of Dutch elite troops to build pressure on the rebels and Vladimir Putin. And if he makes such a threat, he must be prepared to deploy them. It is bizarre that Dutch journalists are able to enter the crime scene, while crash investigators and the forensic specialists are stuck for days on end.” —COLUMNIST Eric Vrijsen

DUTCH MULL UKRAINE INTERVENTION

CNN, Russia Today, U.S. VIDEO: CNN's Chris Cuomo vs. Russia Today's Peter Lavelle on the MH17 Propaganda War JULY 23, 00:10:51 If you wanted to distill the conflict between Western corporate media and Russia's state-run media over MH17, it would be hard to do better. — CORPORATE VS STATE MEDIA STATE V COPPORATE MEDIA CLASH

Hope X Summit, U.S. VIDEO: Edward Snowden and Daniel Elsberg at the HOPE X Hackers Summit JULY 23, 01:26:34 They discuss how the intelligence services compile information on everyone online, and Snowden urges the assembled geeks to develop platforms to make the activities of users harder to track. — SNOWDEN-ELSBERG AT HOPE X AN EXTRAORDINARY ENCOUNTER

Der Spiegel, Germany Keeping Spies at Bay: Germany Ratchets Up Counterintelligence “Slowly, Foreign Ministry officials are beginning to grapple with the meaning of '360 degree' counter- intelligence. That requires defending yourself not just from the usual suspects like Russia or China, but even our closest allies, notably the U.S.” —REPORTERS Melanie Amann, Nikolaus Blome, Matthias Gebauer, Roland Nelles, Gordon Repinski, Jorg Schindler, Severin Weiland

BATTENING DOWN THE HATCHES

Der Spiegel, Germany U.S. 'Loses Patience' with Europe: Wants Tough Russia Sanctions "But many E.U. leaders believe that sufficient action was taken at a summit last week when they expanded sanctions largely focused on banning travel and blocking foreign bank accounts of Putin-friendly oligarchs." — COLUMNIST Gregor Peter Schmitz NOBODY BUYING SANCTIONS?

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Obama Sanctions on Russia are the 'Only Real Sanctions' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "It is significant that the only country doing anything to directly defend Ukraine is the United States, which has no interests there whatsoever. ... Many say that new U.S. sanctions are still too weak, but one must recall that they're the only real sanctions we have, and they create jangled nerves among Moscow politicians, while the Russian stock exchange and ruble have noth tumbled sharply. ... Therefore, they work." — COLUMNIST Mariusz Zawadzki

OBAMA: TOUGHEST WESTERN LEADER?

Le Figaro, France BRICS Show New Power with Bretton Woods Alternative TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “The creation of a common BRICS reserve fund and a development bank, based in Shanghai and managed by India, is an open challenge to Bretton Woods, which was created in July 1944 based on the twin pillars of the IMF and World Bank.” —COLUMNIST Pierre Rousselin

MOVE OVER BRETTON WOODS?

Washington Post, U.S. U.S. Hunt for Snowden 'Much More Intense than Initially Acknowledged "The burst of activity during that period, including in the White House, a diplomatic scramble and the decision to force a foreign leader's plane to land - was far more extensive than American officials admitted at the time." — REPORTER Greg Miller U.S. DESPERATION OVER SNOWDEN

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands MH17: The Death Knell of Pro-Russian Separatists TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “If the seperatists are indeed responsible for downing the Malaysia Airlines plane, the Kremlin will then face a hard choice. It can drop the rebels, close the borders to weaponry and volunteers, and then watch the Ukrainian army quash the revolt. That would be a bitter pill for Putin. The alternative, however, is also unattractive: a return to the days of Cold War.” —COLUMNIST Kiril Benediktov

PUTIN'S DIPLOMATIC HOBSON'S CHOICE

The Observer, U.K. MH17: 'Ordinary Russians Horrified and Frightened' "Ordinary Muscovites express horror at the tragedy even as they entertain the wildest conspiracies imaginable." — Natalia Antonova, Moscow News MH17: RUSSIANS SHOCKED AND CONFUSED

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Government Agents 'Directly Involved' in Most High-Profile U.S. Terror Plots “Some of the controversial U.S. 'sting' operations 'were made or led by informants,' bordering on entrapment by law enforcement. Yet the courtroom difficulties of demonstrating entrapment are significant, which is one one reasonsthe stings persist.” —CORRESPONDENT Spencer Ackerman

DISPENSING WITH RULE OF LAW

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Can State-Run Media be Called Real 'Journalism'? JULY 20, 00:28:00 Aidan White, Director of the UK- based Ethical Journalism Network, takes on Russia Today host Oksana Boyko, in an exchange over the value of state-controlled media. White draws a clear distinction between networks that at least occassionally, challenge their own governments, and those like Russia Today that just about never do. — RUSSIA TODAY'S WORLD'S APART STATE-RUN MEDIA SLAM DOWN

VICE, RUPTLY, U.S., Russia VIDEOS: Graphic Reporting from Ukraine Disaster Zone JULY 18, TWO VIDEOS On July 17, a Malaysia Airlines aircraft carrying 298 people was shot down. This is footage from the scene of the crash, and the reaction of residents who witnessed the tragedy firsthand. — UNCENSORED REPORTING FROM EAST UKRAINE HEARTRENDING FACTS ON THE GROUND

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Live - Malaysia Air Crash: Flight Recorder Found as Anger at Russia Mounts "Barack Obama threatened to 'increase the costs' on Russia if Moscow fails to deescalate the situation in Ukraine, as U.S. and other Western officials said there was mounting evidence that Russia-backed separatists downed the Malaysia Air jet." — COMPILED BY Matthew Weaver and Alan Yuhas RAISING THE PRESSURE IN UKRAINE

Izvestia, Russia Abandoning Pro-Russia Fighters 'Unforgivable' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “we cannot pretend that the war happening now right on our border is not our war. ... They are killing our brothers and sisters. They are killing those who want to be part of Russia. By turning away from them and absolving ourselves of the need to defend them, we only help our enemies, and that is unforgivable.” —COLUMNIST Kiril Benediktov

WILL RUSSIA BACK THE REBELS?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. VIDEO: Edward Snowden on His Fate, Journalism, NSA Snooping Procedure JULY 17, 00:13:59 Snowden opens by explaining how journalists, doctors, lawyers, and anyone who needs to protect the confidentiality of their client must adjust to the mass surveillance we are all living under. He also talks about the possibility of ending up in Guantanamo 'in chains,' and the type of behavior exhibited by NSA analysts when encountering the private e-mails, videos and photos of innocent Americans and others. — INTERVIEW WITH EDWARD SNOWDEN SNOWDEN: LIFE WITHOUT PRIVACY

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.N.'s Senior Human Rights Official: 'Snowden Should Be Protected' "We owe a great deal to him for revealing this kind of information. Those who disclose human rights violations should be protected: we need them. ... I see some of it here in the case of Snowden, because his revelations go to the core of what we are saying about the need for transparency and consultation. We owe a great deal." — U.N. HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS Navi Pillay CALL TO END SNOWDEN PROCEEDINGS

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: GHCQ and NSA: Hacking Skype, Private E-Mails, Online Polls JULY 16, 00:02:45 The latest Snowden documents show the everything we say and do, and every e-mail we send, is being recorded for later use. As far as these agencies are concerned, every person we interact with and everything we buy or express an interest in is fair game for monitoring and furture legal action against us. — RUSSIA TODAY NEWS VIDEO SURVEILLANCE RUNNING AMOCK

Deutsche Welle, Germany VIDEO: German World Cup Bash; Gaza Crisis; American Spy Scandal JULY 16, 00:42:34 This is the latest edition of DW's weekly news magazine Agenda. DW journalist Brent Goff hosts DW Sports Reporter Jefferson Chase, journalist and security affairs analyst Thomas Wiegold, and Palestinian-American political analyst Akram Baker. — DEUTSCHE WELLE'S AGENDA FOOTBALLING, GAZA AND SPIES

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Judge in Sweden Rules to Uphold Arrest Warrant on WikiLeaks' Assange "The court believes that there is probable cause for the crimes of which he is accused. ... He has chosen himself to go into the embassy and ... the court does not believe that the deprivation of his liberty is such as to be disproportionate to the charges." — Judge Lena Egelin

ASSANGE: NO FREEDOM TODAY

Russia Today, Russia Russia to Re-Open Cuban 'Mega-Base' to Spy on U.S. The facility in Lourdes, a suburb of Havana just 250km from the continental U.S., was opened in 1967. At its Cold War peak, it was the largest signal intelligence center Moscow operated in a foreign nation, with 3,000 people. — NEWS ITEM, Russia Today RUSSIAN MILITARY RETURN TO CUBA

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Germany 'May Revert to Typewriters' to Counter U.S. Spying "The head of the Bundestag's inquiry into NSA activity said in an interview that he and his colleagues were seriously thinking of ditching e-mail in favor of lo-tech typewriters." — CORRESPONDENT Philip Oltermann

DRIVING OUR 'FRIENDS' BACKWARD

Frankfurter Rundschau, Germany America's Growing 'Hostility' Toward German Democracy TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "If Berlin no longer wishes to be made a fool of by its 'friends,' it must assert its independence by sending a clear signal. Offering Asylum to Edward Snowden would be our revenge." — COLUMNIST Christian Schluter

THE ANGER BUILDS IN BERLIN

Multiple Sources, Germany, UK, US Snowden Condemns UK 'Emergency' Surveillance Bill; U.S. Spying Roundup TEN NEWS ITEMS FROM AMERICA, EUROPE In addition to the esionage crisis in Germany, this is a big week for surveillance in Britain. Not only did the UK government ram through new powers for state surveillance, but a special week- long hearing is being conducted on whether GHCQ, Britain's version of the NSA, routinely violates the human rights of UK citizens. — COVERAGE, Spy Scandal Secrecy, and the Security State MASS SURVEILLANCE IN THE NEWS

El Pais, Spain Five Hundred Years of Migration to America TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "Every great financial crisis leads not only to a bank and business bankruptcies, but a string of social catastrophes that are expressed in the loss of jobs, drops in family income for the most affected, and psychological pain. That is just what happened after the global crisis that broke out in September 2008. One of the consequences in Spain was increased migration, especially to other European nations, but also to America." — HISTORIAN Carlos Marichal Salinas

500 YEARS OF MIGRATION

Le Figaro, France Mideast Turmoil Could Rally Neocons to Hillary TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Hillary recognizes the mistake she made when she approved the war in Iraq, but has stayed very cautious on the subject. ... A number of neoconservatives would be ready to rally behind her, especially if the Republican Party of Reagan and McCain were to choose as its candidate the very isolationist Senator Rand Paul of of the state of Kentucky.” —COLUMNIST Pierre Rousselin

OUTFLANKING BOTH EXTREMES?

Multiple Sources, Germany, UK, US VIDEOS AND TEXT: Germany Demands from U.S. Public Promise Not to Spy; Spies, Lies, Skulduggery Update FOURTEEN VIDEO SEGMENTS AND NEWS ITEMS There has been a lot to report on the subject of spying and lying today, so we have packaged it all together for you, staring with breaking news that Germany is demanding that the U.S. provide an unequivical promise to curtail all of its spying in Germany. — COVERAGE, Spy Scandal Secrecy, and the Security State WILL THE U.S. PROMISE NOT TO SPY?

Le Figaro, France ISIL Fighters as 'Mad as the Nazis or Reds' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Their dream is as mad as that of the classless world that the communists dreamed of or the Third Reich, but one must remember that the Reds of Trotsky and Lenin defeated the White Russian armies financed by the West. ... The United States should go much further to reconcile with Iran." — Senior International Reporter Renaud Girard

INSANE, YES - BUT DANGEROUS

The Telegraph, U.K. Nate Silver's Failure as Celebrated as Brazil's Collapse “The world may still be reeling from last night's World Cup semi-Final between Germany and Brazil, but none more so than Nate Silver the celebrated statistician of fivethiryeight blog.” —REPORTER Jocelyn Spottiswoode

LIES, DAMN LIES AND ...

Multiple Sources, Germany, Russia, UK VIDEOS AND TEXT: Fallout Continues after U.S. Mole Gets Exposed By Germans SEVEN VIDEO SEGMENTS AND NEWS ITEMS This is a roundup of today's reaction to news that a mole, paid by the CIA, has been exposed in the German intelligence Service, the BND, who was spying on the deliberations of German lawmakers investigating NSA mass surveillance in Germany. — COVERAGE - CIA Mole's Arrest SO MUCH FOR 'TRUST' BETWEEN ALLIES

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany NSA Committee in Bundestag Blasts Music ... Just to be Safe! TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Before the secret session of the NSA Committee of Inquiry's hearing on Thursday began, a big metal box was put where all phones and tablet computers were placed, and Chairmain Patrick Sensburg turned on some music. Edvard Grieg's Piano Concerto in A Minor was heard - just to be safe.” —REPORTERS John Goetz, Hans Leyendecker, Georg Mascolo, Fred Obermaier

ANGER: NSA SPIED ON COMMITTEE

Izvestia, Russia For Russia, Crisis in Iraq is 'Lucky Break' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "In order to get the situation fully under control, America will have to turn its attention from Ukraine. That will give us some breathing space and the opportunity to regroup our forces. ... As cynical as it sounds, Iraq is a lucky break." — COLUMNIST Svetlana Lurye

OBAMA: TWISTED INTO KNOTS

De Morgen, Belgium Aided by America and Europe, ISIS Poses a Mortal Threat to Iran TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Fourteen hundred years ago, Caliph Omar, like ISIS today, invaded the Persian empire with thousands of fanatical fighters. ... ISIS is the most backward form of Sunni Islam, but reflects a new political impetus. Behind the smoke, I see America, the U.K. and Europe, providing this violent group with the time it needs to expand the limits of its caliphate into Iranian lans.” —COLUMNIST Kader Abdollah

A HIDDEN AMERICAN HAND?

Multiple Sources, Germany, Russia, Ireland VIDEOS AND TEXT: NSA Scandal Part II - German Spy was Working for America TEN VIDEO SEGMENTS AND NEWS ITEMS In what has renewed German outrage over NSA mass surveillance and brought new impetus to efforts to offer Edward Snowden Asylum in Germany, America's ambassador to Berlin has been summoned by the German Foreign Ministry to explain what Washington was doing paying a German intelligence officer to spy on the German legislature. — COVERAGE, Double Agent's Arrest NSA SPYING SCANDLE ERUPTS ANEW

ARD, Germany NSA Targets the 'Privacy-Conscious' “Merely searching the Web for the privacy-enhancing software tools outlined in the XKeyscore rules causes the NSA to mark and track the IP address of the person doing the search.” —INVESTIGATORS J. Appelbaum, A. Gibson, J. Goetz, V. Kabisch, L. Kampf, and L. Ryge

The Register, U.K. Cryptome: Remaining Snowden Docs to Be Released to Avert an 'Unspecified U.S. War' “July is when war begins unless it is headed off by Snowden full release of crippling intel. After war begins there won't be any chance of release. Warmongers are on a rampage. So, yes, the citizens holding Snowden docs will do the right thing.” —Whistlebloing Site Cryptome

DOCUMENT DUMP TO PREVENT WAR?

La Repubblica, Italy What the U.S. Declaration of Independence Should've Said TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "I wonder if many of the issues that plague us - all of the things we often complain about in columns like this, are due to the unfortunate wording of the July 4th, 1776 Declaration of Independence ... which established that 'all men are endowed with the Right to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.' ... The fact is happiness, like complete fullness, or the feeling of walking on air, is transient, episodic, and short lived." — COLUMNIST Umberto Eco

OVERDOING THE 'PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS'?

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Sikorski Wins By Telling the 'Truth' about U.S. Ties TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Fears that Sikorski's comments would spoil our ties with America or damage his personal influence in Washington are exaggerated. Americans have very high self esteem, and no critical judgments by foreigners are able of shaking their complacency of themselves.” —COLUMNIST Mariusz Zawadzki

BLUNT HONESTY OVER DIPLOMACY

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Americans Love Loving America. So Why Does July 4th Feel ... British? "Every year around this time, as a Brit living in the US, I'm aware that the funhouse mirror through which both nations regard each other is even weirder and more distorting than usual: America celebrates its independence from from Britain, and Britain looks on at on at the July 4th pageantry, half-mocking, half-envious." — COLUMNIST Emma Brockes

BRITISH ARE TORN BY JULY 4TH

BBC News, U.K. World Cup 2014: Why the United States Will Conquer World Football “The factors for footbal success are a big population, a strong economy, and a fervent fan base. For years, the U.S. has had two out of three - a big population from which to draw top talent and the cash to support a training infrastructure and elite football community. But with little interest from most Americans, talented athletes and cash went elsewhere.” —CORRESPONDENT Kate Dailey

THE NEXT FOOTBALL SUPERPOWER?

Telegraph, U.K. Sunni Tribal Leader Tells Why He's Sticking with ISIS - for Now "We can fight ISIS and al-Qaeda whenever we want to, but now we're fighting for our lands and tribes. We are not responsible for ISIS. Look what Maliki has done – look at the two million refugees. He has destroyed and killed. Where was the world?" — CORRESPONDENTS Richard Spencer and Carol Malouf

ISIS: THE BETTER OF TWO EVILS?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Live Blog: Belgium v USA “I know there are some Americans out there who are relatively new to the game of 'soccer,' so lest there be any confusion after your heroic, magnificent, triumphant defeat at the hands of Germany, be aware that if you lose tonight's match you are definitely out of the tournament.” —CORRESPONDENT Barry Glendenning

WORLD CUP: DO OR DIE TO CONTINUE

Swiss Info, Switzerland Swiss Banks to 'Tell All' Under FATCA "As of July 1, banks around the world will be required to supply Washington with regular updates on clients liable to pay U.S. tax. This means Switzerland’s much- vaunted tradition of bank secrecy is now at an end." — COLUMNIST Armando Mombelli

IRS: HANDS ACROSS THE WORLD

Komsomolskaya Pravda, Russia Jihadi MANPADS: History Teaches 'Precisely Nothing' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “The fact that thousands of Islamists in the spirit of al-Qaeda are battling Bashar al-Assad is something that the United States finds a little confusing.” —COLUMNIST Georgy Bovt

WHY BE KILLED BY YOUR OWN ARMS?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. World Cup Fever Really Has Hit America: Ann Coulter Thinks Football is Socialist "Determined to preserve American exceptionalism against a rising tide of baguette-munching ball-juggling pinko Europhile hippy surrender- communism, Ann Coulter has come to the rescue: 'Any growing interest in soccer,' she wrote, 'can only be a sign of the nation's moral decay.'" — COLUMNIST Dan Hancox

'SOCCER INVASION' IN AMERICA

Berliner Morgenpost, Germany Berlin Reveler Pandemonium: Team Germany Outplays USA TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Although a lot of black, red and gold face paint was washed away in the rain over the course of the evening, joy and euphoria prevailed. ... When the final whistle was blown, arms, flags and rain ponchos flew into the air. Others opted for full-body painting at a booth where spray guns enveloped scantily clad people in a fog of color.” —NEWS ITEM, Berliner Morgenpost

GERMANS GO WILD: DEFEAT TEAM USA

Newsweek Polska, Poland Has President Putin Orchestrated Poland's Eavesdropping Scandal? TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "What are the interests of the Kremlin in having the Polish government, its Parliament, its secret services, and its diplomacy, unable to mobilize themselves, and their foreign partners in aiding Ukraine, and instead, attacking one another? What can Putin gain by knowing that for at least six months, Polish politicians will be kept off the field in Ukraine, instead ensconced in a domestic political brawl? The answers are obvious." — COLUMNIST Jakub Korejba

SCREWING POLAND TO WIN UKRAINE?

Soccer Fusion, U.S. German Press Predicts German Win, Makes Fun of U.S. Obesity and Debt; Post Game Roundup “BILD published a list of the top 5 things Americans did better than Germans. That list included 'wiretapping,' 'Being fat,' and 'running up debts.' Ouch.” —COLUMNIST Brian Blickenstaff

US-GERMANY: PRE, POST MATCH COVERAGE

Publico, Portugal Americans Show Up Portugal's 'Team of the Lame' TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "To say that Portugal has physical problems would be like saying Iraq has a security problem. ... If the other teams didn't run, we might even win." — COLUMNIST Joao Miguel Tavares

WORLD CUP: A JOYOUS TIE

Sol, Portugal Postmortem: Portugal 'Physically Unready;' Poor Teamwork vs. USA TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE The team is physically unprepared. ... The head doesn't work, and only in case of emergency does it feed the body with 'fuel'. There is no idea of playing the game with this team: it is each doing his own thing, and in case of trouble, 'let's see where Ronaldo is.' — SPORTS COLUMNIST Rui Antunes

WORLD CUP: NO JOY IN PORTUGAL

News, Switzerland As Iraq Reerupts, 'Media Mad Cow Disease' Takes Hold in the United States TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “No matter what these liars and political scam artists claim: It was the falsified 'evidence' about weapons of mass destruction, the Bush Administration's almost moronic war planning, the utter lack of a concept in the aftermath of military victory, and the mad fantasies of omnipotence held by Bush and his cabinet, which have led us directly to today's situation.” —COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer

WHY ASK THESE MEN WHAT TO DO?

The Telegraph, U.K. Saddam's Men Return to Power in City Once Held by United States "In Tal Afar, once held up as an example of US military success, the machine guns and armored vehicles left by U.S. troops are now being used by the very insurgents they sought to defeat. — CORRESPONDENTS Ruth Sherlock, Carol Malouf

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Poland and Germany Show Russians No Wiggle Room TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “The Russians wanted the talks, because they feel the burden of isolation that befell them after the annexation of Crimea and their stirring up of east Ukraine. The object of this phase of the game was not to soften or to convince Lavrov. The ministers were there to keep channels of communication with Russia open.” —COLUMNIST Bartosz T. Wielinski

RUSSIA: FEELING THE PINCH?

FAZ, Germany To Save Iraq, Itself, West Must Drop War on Assad TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The Iraqi army is unable to beat back the jihadists, nor is Syria's. ... The West has to ask itself why it stood by so long and watched while allies delivered weapons (and money) to Syria, both of which ended up in the hands of extremists. It is high time for the West to recognize what's at stake in Syria, and change its policy. — COLUMNIST Rainer Hermann

IRAN: THE LAST BEST HOPE FOR IRAQ?

Worldmeets.US, United States AUDIO: Iraq, Kirkuk, Lawrence of Arabia June 15, 00:30:54 Having trouble making sense of what has happened in Iraq? Tune into tonight's edition of Worldmeets.US Radio News. In addition to shaming America's shameful, shameless corporate media, Managing Editor William Kern examines the history of how our nation got here and what the U.S. should to do next. — MANAGING EDITOR William Kern NOT WHAT LAWRENCE HAD IN MIND

The Telegraph, U.K. Iraq Oil Shock Could 'Kill' World Economic Recovery, Experts Say "The entire global recovery, which is still fragile, could stall and we could even slip into recession in some regions." — COLUMNIST Andrew Critchlow

Rzeczpospolita, Poland If Iraqis Don't Fight for Iraq, Neither will U.S. TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “The argument against U.S. intervention is the same as that in Crimea: since Iraqi troops obviously don't want to die for Mosul, why should Americans soldiers do it?” —COLUMNIST Bartosz Weglarczyk

IRAQI PEOPLE CAN'T GET A BREAK

UPI, U.S. Iraq Shuts Social Media Sites to Prevent Use by Militants "It is speculated that access was blocked to prevent militants overtaking Iraq by using the sites." — REPORTER Ed Adamczyk

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. 'Discreetly' - U.K., U.S. to Sign Deal for 'Enhanced' Nuke Warhead Cooperation “The pact ... does not have to be debated or voted on in parliament. Though the agreement is part of U.S. law, it has no legal status in Britain.” —CORRESPONDENT Richard Norton-Taylor

E.U. Observer, Belgium Germany Backs France on Russia Warship Contract "Germany has defended France's plan to deliver a warship to Russia despite U.S. criticism of the move." — REPORTER Andrew Rettman

GUNS AND BUTTER - OR REALPOLITIK?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: France National Front Leader Marine Le Pen on the E.U. Polls, TTIP, and Ukraine June 9, 00:27:08 "We are for leaving NATO, France leaving NATO, we have a Gaullian vision of what international politics must be like, we are for developing our relations with Russia, without breaking ties with the Americans." — FRENCH NATIONAL FRONT LEADER Marine Le Pen THE NEW EUROPE - NOT LIKE THE OLD

Der Spiegel, Germany U.N. Peace Envoy on Western Mujahadeen and Syria Turning Into a Middle Eastern Somalia "There are several thousand non-Syrians. My goodness! These are your nationals that are training in Syria and that are part of ISIS, which believes in building an Islamic state all over the world, first in Berlin. That's a threat to you, isn't it?" — U.N. Envoy Lakhdar Brahimi

THE TERROR EMINATING FROM SYRIA

Sunday People, U.K. REPORT: Snowden Fooled Into Going to Russia; U.S. Tricked into Cancelling His Passport “They [Russian spies] did not approach him until he went to Hong Kong, when agents persuaded him that President Putin's Russia was the best place for him to seek asylum in a nation of his choice. It was a trick and he fell for it.” —Ex-KGB Major Boris Karpichkov

SNOWDEN, U.S., 'TRICKED' BY KREMLIN?

News, Switzerland All's Disquiet on the Western Front TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "In 2014, a sober westward glance from the beaches of Normandy would make clear that it has been a long time since a savior and assister came from that direction. The financial crises of 2001 and 2008, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and now the dismantling of civil rights by the NSA and the planned TTIP, show that Europeans, rather than benefitting, are far more likely to choke on genetically modified corn soup served up by powerful U.S. financial lobby groups. — COLUMNIST Regula Stampfli

WHOSE SIDE IS THE U.S. ON?

Asharq Al Awsat, U.K. Obama Just What We Feared: An 'Upmarket' President Jimmy Carter “some of us feared he would be an upmarket version of Jimmy Carter. Today, that fear has been realized. It is difficult to ascertain why Obama behaves as he does. Is he motivated by a deep resentment of America absorbed in his youth? Or is he handicapped by lack of experience? He may really believes that by abdicating leadership, the U.S. will win love instead of respect.” —REPORTER Amir Taheri

PSYCHOANALYZING OBAMA

Die Welt, Germany NATO Badly Divided on Stationing Troops in East Europe; Facing Moscow TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "NATO members from the Baltics and East Europe are calling for a lasting and visible presence of combat troops and up-to-date equipment in Eastern Europe. Many southern European states and Germany say this is too much. — COLUMNIST Christoph B. Schultz

D-DAY 2014: AN ALLIANCE DIVIDED

France24, Euronews, Russia Today, BBC, DW VIDEOS: Ukraine and D-Day: Views from Europe and Russia 13 VIDEOS D-DAY AND UKRAINE When French President Francois Hollande invited Russia President Putin to 70th anniversary events for the D-Day landings, he didn't know how significant it would be. With a world watching, did gathering Putin and Western leaders break the tension over Ukraine? Here is a series of reports from European and Russian media on the event and the event's aftermath. — BROADCASTS FROM EUROPE D-DAY EVENTS: AFTERMATH

Euronews, France VIDEO: D-Day - 70th Anniversary of the Normandy Landings June 6, 03:30:00 Ceremony in Ouistreham, France, marking the 70th Anniversary of the World War II D-Day invasion with Hollande, Putin, Obama and other world leaders. — D-Day Parade 2014 A WORLD DIVIDED - AGAIN

VIDEO: Obama and Hollande
Mark 70th Anniversary of D-Day

Ukrayinska Pravda, Ukraine In Defeating 'Russian Disease,' Will the Ukraine Lose its Soul? TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "Liberalism and tolerance invite defeat, whereas cruelty gives us a chance to succeed. The truth though, is that this would not only be a victory over Putin, but over our own humanity. If Ukraine does manage to withstand the Russian onslaught, how will it differ from it?" — COLUMNIST Michael Dubinyansky

UKRAINE: INFECTED WITH 'RUSSIAN DISEASE'?

The Register, U.K. GHCQ's 'Beyond Top Secret' Middle East Internet Spy Base “After these details were withheld, the government opted not to move against the Guardian last year for publishing above-top-secret information at the lower level designated 'Strap 1.'” —REPORTER Duncan Campbell

WHAT GUARDIAN DIDN'T PUBLISH

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Obama's Chance to Make Up for Missteps Toward Poland TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "Obama himself has disappointed us before. But Russian aggression has changed both the U.S. and Obama, who is less afraid of a geopolitical confrontation than West Europeans. Obama may have cared little for our security, but our European allies have cared even less. The Germans in particular provide ample proof that their neighbor's fate is less vital than keeping Putin happy." — COLUMNIST Jerzy Haszczynski

A FRIEND IN NEED - A FRIEND INDEED?

Direct Matin, France Mr. Obama's D-Day Option: Indifference or Interference? TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Only two years remain of Mr. Obama's mandate to judge his capacity to accept the idea that sometimes, 'indifference can be more dangerous than interference.” —COLUMNIST Jean-Marie Colombani

WHERE OBAMA AMBIGUITY MEETS THE ROAD

Trouw, The Netherlands Obama's Hammer and Bush's Nails TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "Who's going to contradict Obama when he says that even the greatest army in the world isn't the solution to everything? ... That's good news for those who only see the mistakes of U.S. action over the past 60 years, but such people must also answer this: what other country can stop the even bigger culprits?'" — COLUMNIST Stevo Akkerman

PERLEXED WEST POINT CADET?

BBC, Reuters, White House VIDEOS: President Barack Obama in Poland SEVEN VIDEOS ON OBAMA'S VISIT This is the anniversary not only of Poland's accession to NATO, but Poland's historic elections of 1989, and the anniversary of D-Day, which is coming up in a few days. Here is what we have been able to put together so far. We will add more video to this post as it becomes available. — Footage of Obama's Visit OBAMA IN EAST EUROPE BOOST

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Carbon Cutting Plan Wins Plaudits and Predictions of Doom Will Obama's executive order on on capping carbon pollution make any real difference? Judging from the reaction from former Vice President Gore ('the most vital step on climate change in U.S. history') to Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell (a 'dagger in the heart of the middle class') it certainly will have an impact. — CARNON EMISSIONS COVERAGE

MAKING SENSE OF EMISSIONS PLAN

BBC News, U.K. Mullah Omar Celebrates Prisoner-Swap 'Victory' “Photos of Taliban militants embracing their comrades released from Guantanamo seemed designed to enrage Republican opponents of President Obama who saw the deal as soft on terrorism.” —CORRESPONDENT David Loyn

TALIBAN RELEASE: FAIR SWAP?

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Under Putin, Soviet 'Morality' Crawls Out from its Grave TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "In the Soviet Union there was also great concern for morality. Pink Floyd was forbidden for 'meddling in the Soviet Union's foreign policy (Afghanistan)', The Talking Heads for 'voicing the myth of the Soviet military threat.' Tina Turner was banned simply for 'sex,' and poor Julio Iglesias was outlawed for 'neo-fascism.'" — COLUMNIST Irena Lasota

PUTIN: BACK TO THE FUTURE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA Shows E-Mail Exchange with Snowden to Debunk Claims he Raised Concerns “The NSA has disputed Edward Snowden's insistence that he tried to raise his concerns about its surveillance practices internally before he decided to go public.” —REPORTER Dan Roberts

NSA: MORE DIMINISHED CREDIBILITY

Latvijas Avize, Latvia In Latvia and Europe, Naive Hopes that Russia Will Change Live On TRANSLATED FROM LATVIAN "Literally on the eve of the Crimea Anschluss, Riga indulged in 'opening the floodgates' of money and influence from the East. ... 'Russian World' is not anathema to the West, and may even prove a very lucrative event. Aggression in Ukraine surprised some of our influential people and made them a little uncomfortable. Yet they are convinced that sooner or later, all will continue as usual, and they will want to step in the same river twice.'" — COLUMNIST Uldis Smith

THE BALTICS: EASY ON RUSSIA?

Netzpolitik, Germany German Officials Face Prosecution for Reading Snowden Media Coverage TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “German officials - including the government - can't read matrial leaked by Snowden regarding the mass surveillance of digital communications. If they do so anyway, they are then liable for prosecution. ... We wonder how the federal government intends to protect us from espionage if it isn't permitted to find out about it. Perhaps, however, that is the whole idea.” —COLUMNIST Lluis Bassets

OFF LIMITS TO GERMAN OFFICIALS

News Hour, BBC AUDIO: Obama's Foreign Policy; Maya Angelou; Mass Terrorism Trial in China MAY 28, 00:55:00 This is the network's initial overview of President Obama's speech today on the future of U.S. foreign policy, at the West Point Military Academy. The summary of the message, according to U.S. editor Mark Mardell: 'Just because we have the best hammer, doesn't mean every problem is a nail.' — BBC NEWS HOUR, MAY 28 VERDICT FROM BBC: SAME OLD SAME OLD

El Pais, Spain Global Outlaws Find Comfort Behind Russia -China Double Veto TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “The veto power of the five permanent members of the Security Council is the victor's spoil of the Second World War. .. In a multipolar world, the persistence of the veto in the hands of a Sino-Russia alliance is encouragement to regimes like that of Assad, which are given a free hand to act against his their populations.” —COLUMNIST Lluis Bassets

U.N. VETO POWER A BOON TO ASSAD

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany Americans 'Unprepared' for Opposition to TTIP Free Trade Agreement TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "Protests in Germany focus on the prospect of previously forbidden products from the United States having to be permitted into the E.U. (like chlorinated chicken and GMO corn). Even more important is the question of investor protection. According to plans for TTIP, investors would be able to turn to international courts for arbitration when one may feel they have been discriminated against. For many critics, these courts are an attack on the rule of [national] law." — COLUMNIST Nikolaus Pipe

EUROPE PUSHES BACK AGAINST TTIP

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Why Should Poland Thank Putin? Let Us Count the Ways TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “We have a historic opportunity to bring the European Union and the United States closer together. Allies who grew apart as the Cold War faded, we began to compete more than search for commonalities. Much was said about renewing the trans- Atlantic Alliance, but the facts were different. Let Berlin's shock and outrage over the disclosure of NSA spying be a symbol of this tendency.” —COLUMNIST Michal Kobosko

POLES SEE BRIGHT SIDE IN UKRAINE

Izvestia, Russia 'Envy of the Gods': Obama 'Unfit to Lead' Great Power TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “It isn't politically correct to say, but this is the way it is: the impression is that a weak, unpopular, unsuccessful president is trying to wound a strong, successful, and very popular president.” —COLUMNIST Vladimir Zharkhin

IS EMOTION RUNNING U.S. POLICY?

Economist, U.K. China and Russia: 'Best Frenemies' "Whereas China's power is growing, Russia is in decline - corroded by corruption and unable to diversify its economy off of natural resources. China's government will expect the Kremlin to recognise this historic shift - which is a recipe for Chinese impatience and Russian resentment." — COMMMENT, Economist PUTIN BOWS TO XI'S CHINA

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Watered Down NSA Mass Surveillance Bill Passed By House “In order to preserve the core operations of the the intelligence and law enforcement agencies, the administration insisted on broadening some authorities and lessening restrictions. Some of the changes raise justifiable concerns. I don't blame people for losing trust in their government, because the government has violated their trust.” —CONGRESSMAN Jim Sensenbrenner

NSA REFORM FALTERS IN CONGRESS

THE LOCAL, GERMANY:
NSA Panel Invites U.S.
Tech Chiefs as Witnesses
WORLD BULLETIN: E.U.
Urges U.S. to Move Faster
to End Internet Monopoly

Le Figaro, France For Vladimir Putin, Conchita Wurst is a Tool Like No Other TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Unlike the Cold War and Soviet propaganda, Vladimir Putin doesn't need to slavishly relay his message through the communist parties of the West. It's enough for him to score points directly with a large chunk of the population that does not swoon before the singing of Conchita Wurst, and who don't see the defense of homosexual marriage or the advertising of more unbridled sexual behavior as a priority for our civilization, which is struggling to deal with other pressing issues." — COLUMNIST Pierre Rousselin

A THREAT TO THE WEST?

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland New Space Race Will Benefit the American and Russian Programs TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Paradoxically, sanctions and the end of space-level cooperation may bring not only losses, but benefits for both countries. Cut off from access to Russian engines, space industry in the United States will be incentivized, accelerating the process of decoupling the transport of American astronauts to ISS aboard R ussian rockets. For their part, the Russian Academy of Sciences points to the creation of a lunar base.” —SCIENCE COLUMNIST Karol Wójcicki

IS THIS THE END OF A SPACE ERA?

Cicero, Germany Americans Warming to Warren: the 'Anti-Hillary' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "New York's largest bookstore is filled to the brim. Many arrived hours before the reading. While Warren talks, questions written on pieces of paper are collected. What's the most asked question, the moderator wants to know. 'Whether or not I'm running for president,' the senator says. In response, a woman shouts, 'Run, Liz, run!' and applause breaks out. Warren smiles and shakes her head. 'No, I'm not running,' she says. The audience responds in unison, 'Awww!'" — WRITER, PUBLISHER Dr. Eva C. Schweitzer

ELIZABETH WARREN: CAN SHE WIN?

Altri Mondi, Italy Knox Trial Shows in Italy, the Guilty Fare Better than Innocents TRANSLATED FROM ITALY "When the worst kind of clients for defense attorneys are the innocent, [rather than go to trial] one is better off pretending to have come down with an illness and being resigned to long therapy with an uncertain outcome, whatever the truth may be." — COLUMNIST Giorgio Dell'Arti A FRUITLESS SEACH FOR JUSTICE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. In Ukraine, U.S. is Dragging Us Toward War Against Russia
IS U.S. HELPING?	“The U.S. role in Ukraine, and its backing for the regime's neo-Nazis, has tremendous implications for the rest of the world.” — CORRESPONDENT John Pilger

Cicero, Germany The United States is the Only Guarantor of German Liberty TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "Let us not kid ourselves. In the final analysis, every free person in this world has only one protector and defender: The United States of America. Those with doubts should put themselves in the protection of Russia or China - whose intelligence services act no differently than those of the United States, by the way." — COLUMNIST Alexander Grau A SPIRITED DEFENSE OF THE UNITED STATES

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. E.U. Court Backs 'Right to Be Forgotten': Google Must Amend Results on Request “The European court judges ruled that under the E.U. data protection laws Google has to erase links to two pages on La Vanguardia's Web site from the results produced when Gonzalez's name is put into the search engine of the company.” —COLUMNIST Alexander Prokhanov

GOOGLE BUISINESS MODEL UPENDED

GUARDIAN: The 'Right to be
Forgotten' Ruling Creates
Quagmire for Google, et. al.

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Glenn Greenwald: 'The Day We Revealed Edward Snowden to the World' "In the hours after his name became known, the entire world was searching for the NSA whistleblower, and it became vital that his location in Hong Kong stay secret. In an extract from a new book, No Place to Hide, Greenwald recalls the dramatic events surrounding the moment Ed Snowden revealed himself." — JOURNALIST Glenn Greenwald GREENWALD PUBLISHES BOOK

Izvestia, Russia Preparing 'Stalin's Eleventh Blow': Victory Day and the New War Against Fascism TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “As a gift for our patience and stoicism, for our labor and our faith, the Lord sent us Crimea. Russian people once divided by our enemies, united again by victory's embrace. ... Even as we celebrate the sacred victory of '45, we hear the treads of enemy tanks in eastern Ukraine, where the bodies of militia are mutilated, the heads of Russians crushed. A new battle against fascism is now inevitable.” —COLUMNIST Alexander Prokhanov

RUSSIAN NATIONALISM IN FULL BLOOM

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland The End of American Empire? Get Serious! TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "The facts are quite different - even if China will probably eventually overtake America, for now its GDP is half that of the United States. ... Ukraine is not an American ally, has little impact on the global economy, and has no natural resources. Why should U.S. troops die for Ukraine? Only a few years ago, Americans almost spent more on arms than the rest of the world combined. Five-year bonds are now sold at negative interest - meaning that, taking inflation into account, investors can expect a small loss in five years, but they are buying Treasuries anyway." — COLUMNIST Mariusz Zawadzki HARBALL ON THE GLOBAL COURT

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Victory Day Parade in Moscow and Over Crimea MAY 9, 01:10:26 The annual Victory Day parade, a show of military might through the heart of Moscow, marks 69 year since the defeat of the Nazis, which ended World War II. — Footage of the 2014 V-Day Parade VLADIMIR PUTIN'S PUTTIN' ON A SHOW

RUSSIA TODAY: Russian
Air Force Victory Day
Celebrations Over Crimea

The Guardian, U.K. Google and Facebook, write FCC to Demand 'True Net Neutrality' "The letter says the FCC rules shouldn't permit 'individualized bargaining and discrimination,' the companies said. '[The FCC must] take the necessary steps to ensure that the Internet remains an open platform for speech and for commerce.'" — REPORTER Harriet Salem WEB GIANTS VS. CABLE BEHEMOTHS

GUARDIAN: Bill to Reduce
Surveillance Clears House
Judiciary Committee

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany Bundestag Opposition Threatens to Sue for Release of NSA Files TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The Committee of Inquiry shouldn't turn itself into a fig-leaf for a government that is only pretending to cooperate. Any limitations on the clarification of facts in the espionage scandal, whether commected to comprehensive access to files or obtaining testimony from Edward Snowden will be unequivocally rejected.” —Green Bundestag Leader Katrin Goring-Eckardt

GERMAN GREENS TAKE A STAND

News, Switzerland Barack Macbeth's 'Murder' of Net Neutrality TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "Inequality as usual in the U.S., and and now on the Net as well. You think that's unimportant, irrelevant, and the 'normal course of events?' You are so wrong." — COLUMNIST Regula Stampfli OBAMA'S SHAKESPEAREAN TRAGEDY?

Worldmeets.US, United States AUDIO: Is U.S. Troop Return a Raw Deal for the Philippines? A Talk with Jarius Bondoc May. 5, 00:32:43 Join us as we speak to Philippine radio host and columnist Jarius Bondoc about how the Philippines fits into America's Asia Pivot. Mr. Bondoc has spoken out in opposition to the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement with the U.S., which was signed during President Obama's Asia tour, and which will give U.S. forces nearly unlimited access to Philippine bases for military operations. — MANAGING EDITOR William Kern U.S. TROOPS TO RETURN TO PHILIPPINES

Duetche Welle, Germany Merkel and Obama: Together Against Putin - for the Moment "The NSA spy scandal remains a sore point, and despite the common message to Putin, there remain differences on new sanctions against Russia." — COLUMNIST, Gero Schließ SANCTIONS AND NSA STILL DIVIDE

Duetche Welle, Germany VIDEO: Evaluating E.U. Enlargement; Ukraine as a Buffer for Poland May 2, 00:42:33 Poland has made great efforts to woo Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova to act as a buffer zone between itself and Russia. That is precisely what Russia says it is doing to create a buffer between itself and NATO-E.U. — Quadriga, Duetche Welle DIGGING DEEPER ON THE UKRAINE

The Telegraph, U.K. 'Shocking' U.S. Jobs Data Impugns Recovery, FED Monetary Tapering
ALARM BELLS?	“Friday's figures are a warning that America's recovery may be losing momentum. ... Bond tapering by the FED may be doing more harm than expected.” — COLUMNIST Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

Boulevard Voltaire, France Even Now, Anything Goes for the Old Ku Klux Klan! TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The 'affairs' of Frazier Glenn Miller and Donald Sterling show, if there was any need to do so again, the incredible hypocrisy of American society which is supposedly 'post-racial' or, as Bush Jr. called it, 'color blind.' Between the lying of the White racists, who do precisely the opposite of what their ideology has always peddled, and elites who, in private, spew out the worst insanities, one realizes that the multicultural varnish is really extraordinarily thin." — COMMENT Boulevard Voltaire RACISM IN AMERICA: NOW WORSE?

Novaya Gazeta, Russia NATO 'Never Promised' Not to Expand Eastward TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “If the Russian politicians accusing the West of deception have any kind of documentary evidence of promises not to expand NATO east it would be a good time to show it.” —COLUMNIST Alexander Chursin

RUSSIANS CALLING OUT RUSSIANS

Komsomolskaya Pravda, Russia Ukraine Crisis: Russia Cannot Dispense with Using the Dollar TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "The results of our own actions would surpass the most malicious intentions of those now preparing economic sanctions against Russia." — COLUMNIST Georgiy Bovt THE DOLLAR: STILL NO ESCAPING IT

Deutsche Welle, Germany Merkel to Washington: Tough Challenges for a Troubled Friendship “Angela Merkel has addressed Congress and been awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom on her U.S. visits. This time, however, her visit to America is overshadowed by crises, with an ally that has become a stranger.” —NEWS ITEM, Deutsche Welle

THE CHALLENGE OF SHOWING UNITY

DER SPIEGEL: NSA What? Spy
Scandal Unlikely to Dominate
Merkel's Visit to America
DER SPIEGEL: Bad Taste -
Ex-Chancellor Shroeder
Parties with Putin
DER SPIEGEL: Foreign Minister
Steinmeier: 'Russia is Playing
a Dangerous Game'
DER SPIEGEL: No Love for
Sanctions - Ukraine Crisis a
Tightrope Walk for Business

Economist, U.K. What Would America Fight For? "Americans understandably chafe at the ingratitude of a world that freeloads on the economic, diplomatic and military might of the U.S. Americans themselves, however, also enjoy the exorbitant privilege of operating in a system that, broadly, suits them well." — COMMMENT, Economist CAN AMERICA BE COUNTED ON?

The Independent, U.K. Clayton Lockett: If Massacres Don't Change Gun Laws, then this Won't Change Executions
SHAMEFUL	“If any execution violated the U.S. Constitution's ban of 'cruel and unusual punishment,' it was that of Clayton Lockett.” —COLUMNIST Rupert Cornwell

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Amanda Knox: Consider the Facts So She Gets the Retrial She Deserves "The longer Italy's courts consider the Meredith Kercher case – and we have now had three trials, six presiding judges, two hearings before the Italian high court and a third on the way – the more the country's institutions of justice have covered themselves in shame." — COLUMNIST Andrew Gumbel CAN AMANDA KNOX RECIEVE JUSTICE?

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Thank Mr. Putin for NATO's 'Second Wind' TRANSLATED FROM POLAND “Let us rejoice that NATO has not only caught a second wind, but it has literally recovered a reason to exist. Yesterday's landing of Americans from the highly-respected 173rd Airborne Brigade is a sign of the new defensive order in Europe. It was not us who forced that order into being, but we will benefit from it.” —COLUMNIST Bartosz Weglarczyk

THANKS ALOT, VLADIMIR PUTIN?

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany Weakening Russian Influence Requires Europe Energy Union TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "Today, there is almost no other area of European politics more dominated by nationalism and disunity than energy policy. ... We might also ask ourselves in the case of energy, if a coalition of the willing shouldn't take the first step, without waiting for the stallers and obstructionists. This, too, would help reduce dependence on Russia." — COLUMNIST Ulrich Schaefer CAN E.U. SWALLOW MORE UNIFICATION?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: U.S. Media is 'Hesitant' to Confront Official Narrative April 28, 00:24:22 "The last thing they are interested in is an honest debate. They will pick and select truths, facts and even incidents that are not facts to perpetuate the narrative that they seek to disseminate." — Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Chris Hedges HEDGES ON THE JOB OF A JOURNALIST

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: CrossTalk - Containment 2.0? April 28, 00:27:42 Two of America's leading foreign policy scholars who deal with Russia, Stephen Cohen, John Mearsheimer. Both agree that the NATO expansion and a failure to recognize Russia's strategic interests are at the root of the crisis in Ukraine — TALKING COINTAINMENT 2014: THE NEW CONTAINMENT

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.S. Judge says Microsoft 'Must Release' European Data on its Dublin Servers "Microsoft said: 'A U.S. prosecutor cannot obtain a U.S. warrant to search someone's home located in another country, just as another country's prosecutor cannot obtain a court order in her home country to conduct a search in the United States. ... We think the same rules should apply in the online world." — OFFICIAL Microsoft Statement MICROSOFT: SAYING NO TO THE U.S.?

Worldmeets.US, United States AUDIO: Whale Wars and Cultural Conservation: A Talk with Simon Wearne Apr. 26, 00:30:42 Join us for a conversation about whaling, environmental group Sea Shepherd, and conservation of whales, with cinematographer and Wakayama University scholar Simon Wearne. Mr. Wearne, who filmed the first season of the acclaimed Whale Wars program, is now a scholar studying traditional whaling and Japan's whale culture. — MANAGING EDITOR William Kern WHALE WARS AND WHALE CULTURE

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. UK Parents Told American Teacher Molested Children "Every kid who went on the trips is asking, 'Was it me?' Chances are that some of our kids have been victimized but we still don't know ." — Mother of potential victim A CHILLING TALE OF MOLESTATION

Gazeta, Russia Ukraine: Setting the Table for a Newer World Order TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Everyone senses that something has gone wrong, and there is an instinctive desire to return to a situation when everything was understood and functioned: the salutary 'bullet-free war' which was cold, eternal, and ours. More time will have to pass before we all understand that this isn't possible.” —COLUMNIST Fyodor Lukyanov

THEATER, DIPLOMACY, WORLD ORDER

Der Spiegel, Germany Russian Opposition Singing Kremlin's Tune on Ukraine "Russian President Vladimir Putin, the man ostensibly rushing to the aid of Russians in Ukraine, is the hero of the day. Finally, Russians seem to believe, he is paying the West back for years of humiliation." — CORRESPONDENTS Christian Neef and Matthias Schepp RUSSIAN OPPOSITION GETS INTO LINE

Komsomolskaya Pravda, Russia Ukrainian Guerilla War is Quickly Approaching TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “We see all the elements of a people's movement, which is impossible to operate from the outside. ... When the police and army are unreliable, and when the ranks of the security forces more closely identify with the rebels than with those giving orders, the authorities will have no choice but to use the right-wing militants.” —COLUMNIST Boris Kagarlitsky

ARE THESE THE UKRAINE GUERILLAS?

La Stampa, Italy Pope Calls for End to 'All War; All Conflict' "May the risen Jesus put an end to all war and every conflict, whether great or small, ancient or recent ... and the scourge of hunger." — POPE Frances END TO WAR: COULD IT HAPPEN?

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Jay Carney and the Kremlin's Propaganda Victory Over the West TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “For too long, the West has paid little attention to Russian propaganda. The symbol of this could be the home of White House press secretary Jay Carney. ... In his kitchen, professionally framed, hang Soviet propaganda posters from World War II. ... It's time to say enough is enough.” —COLUMNIST Bartosz T. Wielinski

KITCH AND THE CARNEY FAMILY

The Telegraph, U.K. Google Inc: The World's Unelected Superpower "America is an oligarchy. Instead of looking out for the majority of the country’s citizens, the U.S. government is governed by the interests of the wealthy and the powerful - particularly of Google." — COLUMNIST Katherine Rushton GOOGLE INC.: TOO MUCH POWER?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Vladimir Putin's 'Q&A with the People' April 17, 03:28:59 "I remind you that the Russian Federation Council has given the president the right to use the armed forces in Ukraine. I hope that I won't have to." — PRESIDENT Vladimir Putin THE PUBLIC QUESTIONS PUTIN

BBC News, U.K. Deal to 'De-Escalate' Ukraine Crisis Struck in Geneva "There is agreement that all illegal military formations in Ukraine must be dissolved, and that everyone occupying buildings must be disarmed and leave them." — NEWS ITEM, BBC News SO HAS THE DANGER PASSED? KERRY PRESS CONFERENCE LAVROV PRESS CONFERENCE

FAZ, Germany To Beat Putin, West Needs More Armor, Not Empathy TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “To meet aggression with empathy is to give into aggression - which means you lose. But who does that? Well - we do. Security risks cannot be addressed with measures to improve the atmosphere, but with armor. The good years are over, the West must upgrade its military.” —COLUMNIST Volker Zastrow

WILL EUROPEANS 'BULK UP' FOR BEAR?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Putin Talks Ukraine, and Answers Query from Snowden FIVE NEWS SEGMENTS Five clips of Putin's annual 'Web conference with ordinary people' - and ex-NSA employee Edward Snowden. — COVERAGE, UKRAINE CRISIS PUTIN ON TV WITH SNOWDEN

RAI Novosti, Russia CIA Chief Brennan's Visit to Kiev 'Initiates the Use Of Force' “The CIA chief's presence in Kiev is much more than coincidence. Brennan's trip was an attempt to prepare, encourage and initiate the use of force in Ukraine.” —News Item,RAI Novosti

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Coverage of the Ukraine Crisis, April 16 FOUR NEWS SEGMENTS These are news segments from state-funded non-profit Russia Today on the escalating crisis over pro-Russia Ukraine 'activists.' — COVERAGE, UKRAINE CRISIS THE CRISIS IN EASTERN UKRAINE

Daily Mail, U.K. Historians May Look Back on this as the 'Beginning of WWIII' “Russians are demolishing not just their own country - bankrupt, ill-run and beleaguered - but the post- war order which has kept most of Europe and us, here in Britain, safe and free for decades. Putin is striking at the West's heart. ” —COLUMNIST Edward Lucas

EUROPEAN VOICE: Ukriane
and the 'Wages of Weakness'

Libero Quotidiano, Italy Obama 'Turns the Nuclear Cheek' To Vladimir Putin TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "Obama isn't content to slip into the darkness of a historic setback that will inscribe him in history as leader of the Western superpower who aided the rebirth of the ambitions of the former Soviet empire. No! Surprisingly, Obama ordered the Pentagon to announce deep cuts to America's nuclear arsenal, FOUR YEARS EARLIER than required." — COLUMNIST Glauco Maggi OBAMA: UNILATERAL DISARMAMENT?

Der Spiegel, Germany 'We Will Shoot Back': All Eyes on Russia as Ukraine Begins Offensive in East “Many in the West believe that Russia is behind the separatist movement in eastern Ukraine. Kiev on Tuesday launched an offensive to retake control. But the biggest question still looms: Will Russia invade?” —REPORTERS Moritz Gathmann, Christian Neef, Wladimir Pyljow And Matthias Schepp

WILL VLADIMIR PUTIN GIVE THE ORDER?

DER SPIEGEL: 'A Partner
for Russia': Europe's Far
Right Flirts with Moscow

Izvestia, Russia Dmitry Kiselyov: Russia Has Taken the West's Place as Beacon of Free Expression TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "The West simply doesn't like seeing Russia on the upswing. That is the heart of the matter. ... All Western news agencies impose their own point of view. Take Reuters or the Associated Press. Both are in fact propaganda agencies. They shape the dominant narrative and talk of what their audiences ought to think." — Dmitry Kiselyov, TV Host, Chief at State Broadcaster Rossiya Segodnya RUSSIAN STATE MEDIA FEELING ITS OATS?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Pulitzer Prize Awarded for Guardian, Washington Post Coverage of NSA Activities “The Pulitzer committee praised the Guardian for 'revelation of widespread secret surveillance by the NSA, helping through aggressive reporting to spark a debate on the relationship between the government and the public over the issues of security and privacy.'” —CORRESPONDENT Ed Pilkington

TRIUMPH OVER NATIONAL SECURITY STATE

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Coverage of the Ukraine Crisis, April 14 FIVE NEWS SEGMENTS These ate news segments from state-funded non-profit Russia Today on the escalating crisis in over pro-Russia Ukraine 'activists.' — COVERAGE, UKRAINE CRISIS THE CRISIS IN EASTERN UKRAINE

European News Agencies European Broadcast Coverage of the East Ukraine Crisis, 4/14 SIXTEEN VIDEOS ON THE CRISIS Segments from the BBC, Deutsche Welle, France 24, EurActiv, Euronews on the crisis unfolding in the Eastern Ukraine. — E.U. NEWS OUTLETS UKRAINIAN ESCALATION

News, Switzerland Rice Grains, Compound Interest, and the Never- Ending Economic Crisis TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "There are no systems in the real world that show exponential growth: only bacterial cultures and unbridled atomic chain reactions come to mind. The first ends in collapse once the food supply is consumed, and the other in a nuclear explosion." — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer IS SYSTEM DOOMED TO FAIL?

The Register, U.K. ACLU Launches User- Friendly Database of Every Snowden Doc "The database is searchable by document title, category, or full-text content, giving anyone online access to delve through all the documents and find information on whatever previously secret government info-slurping they're interested in." — REPORTER Rik Myslewski

LA QUADRATURE DU NET: E.U.
Court of Justice Denounces
Mandatory Data Retention

Vedomosti, Russia Russians Unmoved By NASA's 'Cancellation' of Space Cooperation TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "Imposing any sanctions in the space field would set Russian and U.S. space exploration back a decade, and bring irreparable damage to all of civilization. ... The world powers completely understand the impossibility of adopting sanctions in this area." — Vladimir Solncev, CEO of rocket-maker NPO Energomash THE END OF 'SCIENCE FOR PEACE'?

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Lech Walesa: Europe 'Cannot Count on the United States' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “If NATO gives Ukraine away to Putin, what good is NATO? Let’s see what NATO is made of. It seems fine as long as things go well, but the moment something goes wrong, we are left alone in the hour of confrontation. ... The world cannot let Putin have his way, because it will end badly for us.” —FORMER PRESIDENT Lech Walesa

ARE THE EUROPEANS ON THEIR OWN?

Daily Mail, U.K. Kremlin Seeks to Turn Tables; Says West Sent Blackwater to Ukraine "Russia claims 150 Americans have been sent to Ukraine by a U.S. firm with historic links to Blackwater - the private security firm made famous by a mass shooting in Iraq." — REPORTER Dan Bloom UKRAINE: BLACKWATER REDUX?

Der Spiegel, Germany German Interior Minister: U.S. Spying is 'Boundless' "The information we've received thus far is insufficient. American surveillance measures are largely a result of its security needs, and are being implemented in an excessive and boundless fashion." — Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere

EUROPE ONLINE: Chair
of Germany's NSA Panel
Quits Over Snowden
THE LOCAL: NSA 'Ignores' Merkel's
Request to See Her Secret File

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Dr. James Lovelock: Climate Battle Lost; Prepare for Change "We're reaching an age in history where you can no longer predict the future with any hope of success. We should give up our vainglorious attempts to save the world. ... The idea of ‘saving the planet’ is a foolish extravagance of Northern ideologues and likely beyond our ability." — SCIENTIST Dr. James Lovelock PREPARING FOR THE WORST

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland The More NATO in Our Neck of the Woods ... the Better TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Putin's imperialism clearly shows that Poland and other nations of the former Soviet bloc were fully justified in their rush to join not only NATO, but the EU. ... If Putin is calculating the gains and losses of an intervention in eastern Ukraine, let him count on prolonged resistance by a Ukrainian army that has been strengthened by the West.” —COLUMNIST Tomasz Bielecki

WINNING PEACE, PREPARING FOR WAR?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. 'Fury' at Attack on Dianne Feinstein as 'Emotional' by Ex-CIA/NSA Director Hayden "Ron Wyden, member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said that Michael Hayden's attack on Feinstein was 'outrageous' and fit a pattern of 'misleading' the American public." — CORRESPONDENT Rory Carroll CIA VS. SENATE: SLAPDOWN CONTINUES

Yezhednevniy Zhurnal, Russia How Does a NATO Buildup Amount to Russian Victory? TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “For years, Putin and others argued that the central threat to our security came from the expansion of NATO and the deployment of bases to the Russian border. All these years there was no deployment. Now though, Russia will receive the full treatment: military bases on the border, the buildup of NATO forces, and the inclusion of new states into the bloc. All as a result of Russia's wonderful victory in Crimea.” —COLUMNIST Alexander Goltz

HAS RUSSIA LOST THE LARGER BATTLE?

La Repubblica, Italy U.S. Declaration of Independence: What it Should Have Said TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "I often wonder if many of the problems that plague us - the crisis of values, the surrender to the seductions of advertising, the craving to be on television, the loss of historic and individual memory, in brief, all the things we often complain about in columns like this, are due to the unfortunate wording of the Declaration of Independence of 1776." — ESSAYIST Umberto Eco TOO MUCH PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS?

Trouw, The Netherlands Clinton's Hitler-Putin Comment Highlights Weakness of Europe TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Putin's excuse that he 'only' wants to protect the Russian population in Crimea and elsewhere is an exact copy of Hitler's self-proclaimed role as patron to the ethnic Germans in Sudetenland and between Germany and East Prussia. With her historical analogy, Clinton therefore hit the nail on the head.” —HISTORIAN Patrick van Schie

JUST HYPERBOLE - OR TRUE?

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland 'Annexing' Crimea; 'Uniting' Jerusalem TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "When the U.N. General Assembly condemned the annexation of the Crimea, Israel was among the 58 countries that didn't participate in the vote. How is it possible that in a conflict which puts in doubt the global order, one of America's key allies remained neutral?" — COLUMNIST Mariusz Zawadzki SANCTIONS: WHY NO ISRAELI BACKING?

Gazeta, Russia Russians Bid Farewell to the West TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “We are now witnessing a rejection of the Western- democratic paradigm set back in the 1990s, which somehow survived from over 20 years. ... It is a paradigm of civilizational inferiority, certain that Russia can only evolve by copying Western standards, gradually transforming into a 'normal European country.” —COLUMNIST Pyotr Vlasov

RUSSIA'S NEW PARADIGM?

Handelsblatt, Germany 'Fissures' in Europe: Putin, Propaganda, and Patriotism TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The 'right to self-determination of peoples' that has been held up with such ceremonial pathos in Europe is an ambivalent category. In reality, Europe only wants the 'right to self- determination' for nations exactly as they currently exist. ... Not only does the Crimea crisis unmask Russia's heavy-handed superpower aspirations of Russia and its attention- hungry president, it also uncovers Europe's inner weaknesses, as well as the continent's ambiguities." — COLUMNIST Wolfram Weimer CRIMEA: RUSSIAN IN 1783. WHY ARGUE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Yahoo Unveils Encryption to Help Protect User Data "Alex Stamos, Yahoo's recently appointed chief information security officer, said his goal was to ensure 'all Yahoo traffic will be encrypted by default.'" — CORRESPONDENT Dominic Rushe

DER SPIEGEL: Spy Chief Reviews
Book on NSA: 'Most Germans
Don't Share These Concerns'

Financial Times, U.K. Miley Cyrus, Justin Timberlake, Caught Up in Russia Aanctions "A Helsinki venue due to host Cyrus, Justin Timberlake and other U.S. stars in the coming months is owned by a Finnish holding company controlled by Russians singled out for U.S. retaliation." — CORRESPONDENTS Courtney Weaver and Matthew Garrahan SANCTIONS A WRECKING BALL FOR CYRUS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Clapper Admits: NSA Performed Warrantless Searches on Americans NSA used a 'back door' to search Americans' communications -- Director of national intelligence confirms use of new legal rule -- Data collected under 'Prism' and 'Upstream' spying programs. — CORRESPONDENTS Spencer Ackerman, James Ball

CLAPPER: DIMINISHING CREDIBILITY

La Stampa, Italy Ukraine: Putin Capitalizes on Western Identity Crisis TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "Today the West is no longer sure of itself, has no moral courage, and is bereft of the spirit of sacrifice and cultural pride. That explains Putin's gamble, which is why China stands by diffidently as America and the European Union swing inanely between backing democracy and an impossible military response." — COLUMNIST Gianni Riotta WHAT DOES THE WEST STAND FOR?

Der Spiegel, Germany Fighting Words: Finance Minister Schauble Says Putin's Plans Reminiscent of Hitler “Hitler already adopted such methods in Sudetenland. ... That's something that we all know from history.” — Finance Minister Wolfgang Schauble

HARD TALK ON HITLER FROM BERLIN

DER SPIEGEL: The Sympathy
Problem - Is Germany a
Country of Russia Apologists?
DER SPIEGEL: NATO's Putin
Conundrum: Berlin
Considers Its NATO Options

Izvestia, Russia New Russia: Becoming the 'Empire the World Needs' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "You can kill an elephant with a needle if you find the deadliest place to stick it. ... International tribunals for Yugoslavia, Iraq and Afghanistan should be formed. I feel sorry for Obama, but ... the world needs a good empire, and Russia has every chance and basis for quickly becoming one." — COLUMNIST Seraphim Melentyev TALKING EMPIRE AND LOVING IT!

Rzeczpospolita, Poland A 'Puppet in Putin's Hands,' Edward Snowden Paved the Way to Ukraine Crisis TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Today, from the perspective of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, the purpose of the Snowden affair is clear. By revealing information that triggered European concern, Snowden was really a puppet in Putin's hands. With his revelations he was to stir protests in Europe against the U.S.-E.U. free trade deal.” —European MP Pawel Zalewski

SNOWDEN: SCUTTLING FREE TRADE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The Kremlin Lays Down its Own Red Line on Ukraine "After the Kerry-Lavrov talks, Russia repeated its demand that the U.S. and E.U. accept its proposal that Russian- speaking regions of east and southern Ukraine be given wide autonomous powers independent of Kiev as a condition for reaching an agreement." — CORRESPONDENTS Simon Tisdall, Shaun Walker U.S.-RUSSIA TALK TURKEY ON UKRAINE

Diario De Noticias, Portugal Russia and America: United in Flouting International Law TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE “Obama left out something essential and common to Washington and Moscow. That in both cases, the U.S. and Russia both do as they please and always act in accordance with their own geostrategic interests.” —EDITORIAL, Diario De Noticias

U.S. AND RUSSIA: TWO PEAS IN A POD?

La Stampa, Italy Mr. Obama's Worldly Charisma Pales Beside that of Pope Francis TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "Obama, given his history, embodied and still embodies hope. The hope embodied by the pope, however, placed in him by billions of men and women as a 'leader' without an army or empire, stands for something quite different: as a response not only to our penultimate questions about the meaning of life, but the ultimate ones as well." — COLUMNIST Michele Brambill THE PONTIFF AND THE PRESIDENT

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany Ukraine Crisis: 'Obama is No John F. Kennedy' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The G-7 countries are not meeting in a council of war, but rather a council of the perplexed. ... Obama is no John F. Kennedy, who was willing to 'pay any price, bear any burden,' to defend freedom in Europe. Sevastopol 2014 is not Berlin 1961. That's reassuring, but it's sobering.” —COLUMNIST Hubert Wetzel

OBAMA: NO KNIGHT IN ARMOR?

Corriere della Sera, Italy VIDEO: Obama Visits with Pope Francis THREE VIDEOS, THREE GALLERIES Three videos and three galleries of President Obama's visit to Rome and Vatican to meet the Pope. — OBAMA MEETS FRANCIS OBAMA WITH POPE FRANCIS

Vedomosti, Russia From Hitler to Putin: Crimea is 'Not the First Time' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Did the Russian government consider all the risks of this incredible venture? I am sure it did not. Just as Adolf Hitler didn't in his time. If he had, he would not have ended up in a bunker on April 1945 sheltering from Russian bombs, and he wouldn't have guzzled down a vial of poison. ... Friends! We have to think about what we're doing and stop.” —HISTORIAN, Dr. Andrei Zubov

A CRY FOR THE KREMLIN TO WAKE UP

Latvijas Avize, Latvia Latvia's Grey-Haired Legionnaires Never Fought for Germany TRANSLATED FROM LATVIAN "The delusion that German arms would bring freedom for Latvia ended long ago. The bitter pain of injustice dissipated after gazing in despair in the direction of Churchill or Roosevelt. ... Having already forded all circles of hell's humiliation, they have ascended to a far higher level to join with our Mother Latvia." — REPORTER Agris Liepins LEGACY OF TOTALITARIANISM

Knack, Belgium What Belgium Should Ask of Obama While He's Here TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “In Waregem, a site with the graves of hundreds of victims of bloodshed, it should be the perfect time for Di Rupo to ask for nuclear weapons to be removed from Kleine Brogel Air Base, and Di Rupo must ask Obama to put an end to the persecution of Mr. Snowden so he can travel to Europe.” —COLUMNIST Wouter De Vriendt

DUTCH REQUESTS FOR BARACK OBAMA

European, Russian News Agencies VIDEOS: Coverage of the Ukraine Crisis, March 26 SIXTEEN NEWS SEGMENTS, Mar. 26 This is a roundup of Ukraine- related coverage from BBC, Euractiv, Deutsche Welle, France 24, and Euronews — COVERAGE, UKRAINE CRISIS THE NARRATIVE ON UKRAINE

Belarusian Telegraph Agency, Belarus Lukashenko Warns: 'Crimea Sets a Dangerous Precedent' “ It is bad that the Russian Federation had to resort to these measures. ... States on the verge of production are getting off the nuclear leash. The consequences could be ... terrible. I would tell the West that Crimea is dangerous, but not because it is part of Russia. Precedents are important.” — BELARUS President Alexander Lukashenko

ALARM BELLS IN FORMER SOVIET STATES

FINANCIAL TIMES: Russian
Moves Unsettle Neighbors
in Central Asia and Caucasus

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Germany America and Germany: The 'Axis of Pragmatism' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The U.S. and Germany are looking for common ground. And that is as it should be. Who knows, perhaps Putin will permanently weld the estranged partners together. In any case, when it comes down to it, this partnership is truly indispensable." — COLUMNIST Klaus-Dieter Frankenberger AFTER CRIMEA: ALL PATCHED UP?

VATN, Italy VIDEOS: Hobnobbing at Nuclear Security Summit, and G-7, at The Hague FOUR VIDEOS OF THE CRISIS This is a series of videos from today's events surrounding the Nuclear Security and G7 in The Hague. These are all raw video, i.e.: no commentary. Just sights and sounds of leaders chatting. — WHEN LEADERS COLLIDE HANG OUT WITH WESTERN LEADERS

Die Zeit, Germany The Paler the West, the More Luminous is Putin TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "One might well ask whether we journalists aren't partly responsible for a caricature of the West that allows Putin to appear more luminous than he is. Did we really mean to demonize the U.S. during the surveillance affair? Did we write the E.U. to death during the euro crisis, not properly explaining the advantages of the West and our free Europe? For those who don't have an appreciation for the West, even someone like Vladimir Putin can become a luminary." — COLUMNIST Michael Thumann ARE WESTERN MEDIA HELPING PUTIN?

News Agencies, Russia, U.K., Germany VIDEOS: News Reports on Ukraine and Crimea, from Russia and Europe THIRTEEN VIDEOS OF THE CRISIS A collection of video content on the Ukraine/Crimea crisis from Russia Today, Germany's Deutsche Welle, and the BBC. — RUSSIAN, EUROPEAN NEWS NEWS COVERAGE OF THE CRISIS

The Times, Armenia Lawmaker Suggests Dividing Ukraine Among Romania, Poland, Russia and Hungary "It's just outrageous to think Poland would participate in the division of a friendly country and change its borders. ... any 'official' message must be directed to a psychiatrist." — Presidential Adviser in Poland, Tomasz Nalecz ZHIRINOVSKY'S UNTIMELY SUGGESTION

The Economist, U.K. Putin's New World Order: Not Better than the Old “Mr Putin's new order is built on revanchism, reckless disdain for the truth and the twisting of the law to mean whatever suits those who hold power. That makes it no order at all. ... Sadly, too few people grasp this. Plenty of nations resent American primacy and Western moralizing. But they would find Putin’s new order far worse.” — COMMENTARY, Economist

ECONOMIST: Explaining
American, European and
Russian Sanctions

Russia Today, Russia U.N. Envoy 'Lashes Out' at CNN's Christiane Amanpour “I wouldn’t be writing to you if you didn't choose to personally attack my daughter - your younger colleague - a Russian TV journalist. I am very proud of her. Not only is she a good journalist, but she strictly keeps her professional distance from me. ... Incidentally, I recall you married a State Department spokesman. How was your professional credibility in the course of your courtship?” — Russia Ambassador to the U.N., Vitaly Churkin AMANPOUR CALLED OUT BY CHURKIN

RUSSIA TODAY: Russian
Lawmakers ask Obama
to Sanction them All
RUSSIA TODAY: U.S. Sanction
on Drug Agency Chief
Scuttles Afghan Cooperation

tp24 Rubriche, Italy United States 'Too Young to Understand' Crisis in Crimea TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “Responding to the crisis in Crimea, the policy adopted by the West suggests a subjugation to Washington's intentions. Americans are less suited than we are to assess the situation in Europe. ... America lacks a deeper awareness in respect to situations that arise out of events that occurred centuries ago. U.S. democracy is too young to grasp it.” —COLUMNIST Leonardo Agate

IS AMERICA TOO IMMATURE TO HELP?

Der Spiegel, Germany Documents Show NSA Targeted China's Cisco Competitor Huawei “If it is true, the irony is that exactly what they are doing to us is what they have always charged that the Chinese are doing through us. ... If such espionage has been conducted, then the U.S. knows that the company is independent and has no unusual ties to any government. That knowledge should be relayed publicly to put an end to an era of mis- and disinformation” — Huawei Spokesman Bill Plummer

BLOOMBERG: Zuckerberg
Says Obama Steps on
NSA Spying Fall Short
THE INTERCEPT: Inside
NSA's Efforts to Hunt and
Hack System Administrators

Irish Times, Ireland If We Must Pick Sides Over Crimea, Let it be Russia “Obama’s interest in the region is dictated by US strategy for curbing Russian power. ... When it comes to double-talk, however, there is no contest. Putin is never going to be a match for Obama at talking out of both sides of his mouth.” —COLUMNIST Eamonn McCann

Komsomolskaya Pravda, Russia A Grateful Nation Cheers President Putin's Triumph TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "Russians are proud of the president. Western dissidents admire him on social media. Almost everyone who opposes American dictates supports Putin - which is a big achievement. ... Crimea is now ours!" — COLUMNIST Israel Shami IN RUSSIA, PUTIN'S POPULARITY SOARS

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Between Russia and the West: Ukraine's Insurmountable Task TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “The West will in no way risk a military conflict with Russia. No one should count on that,' says Stefan Meister of the European Council on Foreign Affairs. That means, however, that Yatsenyuk will have to face any further aggression from Russia alone. Another reef against which Yatsenyuk's team may crash.” —COLUMNIST Jedrzej Bielecki

CAN UKRAINE REGIME SURVIVE?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Russia Today on Ukraine, Mar. 20 THREE NEWS SEGMENTS This is a roundup of news items from Russia Today on the Ukraine crisis, March 20. — COVERAGE, RUSSIA TODAY MALCOLM FRASER: U.S. OUT OF LINE

Deutsche Welle, Germany 'This Cold War May Well Last Ten Years' “I don't think Vladimir Putin is capable of engaging in dialogue right now. All these phone calls from the West were made with good intentions, but they won't work. Merkel has also said that Putin lives in a different world. He is out of touch with reality.” — Eberhard Schneider of the E.U.-Russia Center

DEUTSCHE WELLE: Putin
Puts West to the Test
DEUTSCHE WELLE: U.S.
Will Respond Decisively
DEUTSCHE WELLE: The E.U.
Needs to Follow Through'
DEUTSCHE WELLE: Russia's
Periphery: Who's Next?
DEUTSCHE WELLE: Crimea
Headed for Rocky Transition
DEUTSCHE WELLE: China's Crimea
Dilemma: a Diplomatic Balancing Act
DEUTSCHE WELLE: German
Firms Fear Spiraling Sanctions

Polityka, Poland Putin's Goal Now: Delay New Elections in Ukraine TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "Russia's game now is clearly an effort to delay presidential and parliamentary polls in Ukraine. Most likely, it lacks a candidate to back and is counting on disputes among political factions. The goal of Moscow is to weaken the Ukrainian state, and Crimea is the first a stop on that road." — COLUMNIST Jagienka Wilczak BIDEN CALMS NERVOUS U.S. ALLIES

Frankfurter Rundschau, Germany The 'Silent Scandal' Over NSA Manipulation of German Law TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Last year when it was revealed that the NSA had even listened in on the the chancellor's cell phone, Angela Merkel said 'eavesdropping among friends just isn't done.' Now, former U.S. intelligence contractor Edward Snowden has, in a statement to the European Parliament, accused several E.U. countries of willing complicity in this. Yet things are now oddly quiet.” —COLUMNIST Stefan Braun

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Vladimir Putin's Message to West: Russia is Back “Putin's message was clear: after years of being cheated and dissed by the Western powers, Russia is back. The U.S. and friends could like it or lump it. But as the Ukraine crisis showed, Russia will no longer take it lying down.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

BBC News Hardtalk, U.K. VIDEO: Interview with Putin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov March 19, 00:24.50 BBC's Hardtalk lives up to its name, as host Stephen Sackur challenges Vladimir Putin's chief spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Russia's takeover of Crimea and actions in Ukraine. — BBC NEWS HARDTALK PUTIN'S MAN DEFENDS THE KREMLIN

Der Spiegel, Germany Ticking Timebomb: Moscow Destabilizing Eastern Ukraine "It's not only in Crimea where Vladimir Vladimir Putin is playing with fire, but also in eastern Ukraine. The majority of the people in the economically powerful region speak Russian and reject the new government in Kiev." —CORRESPONDENTS Uwe Klussmann, Matthias Schepp

RUSSIA VS. UKRAINE: IT ISN'T OVER

DER SPIEGEL: Crimea Sanctions -
E.U. Must Impose Stiffer Penalties
DER SPIEGEL: U.S. Experts Argue:
'We Shouldn't Threaten Putin'
DER SPIEGEL: Ukraine Defense
Minister Tell Der Spiegal - 'I Am
Prepared to Die for My Country'

European News Agencies European Broadcast Coverage of the Crisis in Ukraine, Mar. 19 SEVENTEEN VIDEOS ON THE CRISIS Segments from Euronews, France 24, EurActiv and the BBC on the unfolding crisis in Ukraine, Crimea. — MULTIPLE NEWS OUTLETS CONDEMNATION AND HYPOCRISY

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Abby Martin on Ukraine; Jesse Ventura; Afghanistan; CIA Spying on U.S. Senate; More THREE EPISODES Abby Martin's Breaking the Set covers censorship in corporate media; talks to Jesse Ventura; looks at Afghanistan, Ukraine, CIA spying in Senate, and More. — ABBY MARTIN BREAK THE SET CORPORATE MEDIA LOSES PLOT

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Ukraine Coverage Mar. 19 FIVE VIDEOS ON THE CRISIS Segments include Peter Levelle's CrossTalk; ex- Australia PM slams U.S. double standards; speech by Puitin, Gerald Celente calls sanctions 'propaganda'. — COVERAGE, Russia Today IS AMERICAN HYPOCRITICAL?

Neatkariga Rita Avize, Latvia Putin Clears Western Minds of Intelligence, Media 'Delusions' TRANSLATED FROM LATVIAN "Western politicians are largely hostage to the mess created by weak journalism and a superficial media. This has created an alarmingly false impression about Russia and its leaders. ... In these harsh times, Westerners should ask for advice from people like the Latvians, who long suffocated under the Soviet yoke." — COLUMNIST Maris Krautmanis U.S. MEDIA, SPIES, DROP THE BALL AGAIN

The Independent, U.K. 'Land Grab' Will Shut Russia Out of Ukraine "The seizure of Crimea has strengthened the hands of Ukraine's most anti-Russian elements and shattered the faith of Ukrainians who view the Russians as protectors, allies and even as brothers. — EDITORIAL, The Independent WHAT'S THE PRICE FOR CRIMEA?

Voice of Russia, Russia Gorbachev: 'Crimeans Correct Historic Error' “Crimea was annexed to Ukraine under Soviet law, meaning the Communist party did it without asking the people. Now they themselves have decided to correct thishistoric mistake.” — FORMER PRESIDENT Mikhail Gorbachev GORBY WEIGHS IN ON CRIMEA VOTE

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany Germans Must Now Back Sanctions - Even if they Hurt Us TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The German approach is only credible if threats now turn to sanctions not limited to symbolic acts. It isn't enough to cancel participation in the G-8 or German-Russian consultations. Sanctions must now be imposed on the regime in Moscow - even if they hurt us.” —COLUMNIST Stefan Braun

MOMENT OF TRUTH FOR EUROPE

Financial Times, U.K. Vladimir Putin's Goals Reach Far Beyond the Crimean Peninsula
MEANS AND ENDS	“What has been positive about the Ukraine crisis has been the unusual emergence of a 'case to be made' on both sides. For once we have seen a 'revolution' with some balanced news coverage.” — Dr. Andrey Zubov

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Let Georgia be Lesson for What Happens to Ukraine
GEORGIA REDUX?	“My country's ordeal in 2008 suggests that Crimea's referendum is a trick for Russia to cement its territorial and military grip.” —FORMER Georgia Prime Minister Mikheil Saakashvili

Diena, Latvia President Tells Lithuanians: Show Russia No Fear and be 'Ready to Shoot, Resist' TRANSLATED FROM LATVIAN "We know we are protected under Article V of the NATO Treaty, but the key is not to fear the aggressor - because that's what the aggressor wants. No matter how small the nation, we must not to repeat the historic mistake - if someone tries to occupy, we will have to resist, and we will have to shoot back." — Lithuania President Dalia Grybauskaite NERVES JANGLE IN THE BALTIC STATES

The Telegraph, U.K. Paranoia Leads Putin to Point of No Return "Its propaganda is apparently aimed at preparing the public to accept that there may be war, and that Russia will be fighting in a just cause. ... The West committed a major error in believing it could build its own security at the expense of Russia’s. It has created a situation in which Moscow feels marginalized and threatened. ... God forbid if Vladimir Putin decides Russians in Latvia and Estonia also require 'help'. — BBC Correspondent Angus Roxburgh IS IT ALL IN VLADIMIR PUTIN'S HEAD?

RTE, IRELAND: Russia Vetoes
U.N. Security Council Resolution
on Crimea; China Abstains

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The Web: Controlled by 14 People Who Hold 7 Secret Keys “It sounds like the stuff of science fiction: seven keys, held by individuals from all over the world, that control security at the Web's core.” —COLUMNIST James Ball

WHO THE HELL RUNS THIS THING?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. MH370: Radar Now Suggests Plane Deliberately Flew West Today's updates include so far: Malaysia open minded to claims plane changed course ... Search extended into Indian Ocean Operation now involves 57 ships 48 aircraft ... What to believe? Clarifying conflicting media reports ... Plane disappearances: a brief history ... Missing plane: one week on in pictures. — LIVE BLOG - Updates

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Crimea Crisis - Russia Today Coverage from March 12-14 TEN REPORTS ON THE CRISIS This is the Russian network's video content for Mar. 12-14 in days before this weekend's voting on whether Crimea should be annexed by Russia. — Coverage of Ukraine from Russia Today CHINA'S ROLE IN UKRAINE CRISIS

European News Agencies VIDEOS: European Video Coverage of Ukraine Crisis for March 13-14 FIFTEEN REPORTS ON THE CRISIS This is a round-up European Video Coverage of Ukraine, Mar. 13-14 from Euronews, the BBC and Deutche Welle. — NEWS REPORTS, Europe

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands Most Crimeans Don't Want Ukraine to Split TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "In December 1991, after the declaration of independence, a referendum was held on whether to proceed. More than ninety percent of the population voted in favor." — HISTORIAN Marc Jansen REFERENDUM DAY APPROACHES

El Diario Exterior, Spain Crimea Does Not Justify War TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “There will be tensions. Ukrainians will suffer the wound of national division. What is very unlikely is that a new European conflict will arise over Crimea. Perhaps one will emerge over the rest of Ukraine, but no one wants to play with fire.” —COLUMNIST Lluis Foixt

CASH CONQUERS ALL IN UKRAINE BATTLE

Netzwertig, Germany Will Facebook, Google Heed Snowden's Call for Automatic Encryption? TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The biggest drawback from the point of view of the Internet companies is likely commercial in nature: Almost all major players make their money with ads, which presupposes that users are as transparent as possible." — COLUMNIST Martin Weigert SNOWDEN: SETTING REFORM AGENDA?

Izvestia, The Russia Crimea: 'We Will Never Give Up What We've Won' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “As if they haven't enthusiastically poured enough oil on the fire this winter! Going to Kiev together and alone, whetting the appetite of the Euromaidan hooligans, Ashton, Nuland, Biden and McCain, as well as those lesser Polish, Baltic, and German beasts: how much effort did they put in to bring Euromaidan to power? We all witnessed it, didn't we? ” —COLUMNIST Eduard Liminov

MASTER CHESSMAN VLADIMIR PUTIN

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Battles to Contain CIA-Senate Feud in Wake of Feinstein Accusations "I am becoming convinced the CIA simply fears the interrogation report being made public, and I think it's time for the American people to get that information.'" — CORRESPONDENTS Dan Roberts and Spencer Ackerman

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands Recognize Russia's Legitimate Interests or Ukraine is Doomed TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “If the new government in Kiev is trying to accelerate its steering of Ukraine as a whole into the Western camp, it will lead to a split of the country. Muddling through on the edge of both European and Russian worlds is all that can prevent this.” —COLUMNIST Thomas von der Dunk

UKRAINE AND THE GREAT EAST-WEST DIVIDE

The Telegraph, U.K. New al-Qaeda Magazine Uses Malcolm X Quotes to Target Black Muslims "It mixes graphics, George W. Bush photos and warplanes launching missiles with a speech by African-American Muslim leader Malcolm X, in which he said: 'You can’t ever reach a man if you don't speak his language. If a man speaks the language of brute force, you can't come to him with peace.'" — CORRESPONDENT Rob Crilly

Der Spiegel, Germany Polish Foreign Minister Says: 'Moscow Needs Our Money' "The Ukrainians are our neighbors. They're fighting for the same things we did back in 1989 - for a country that is more democratic, less corrupt and which is European." — Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski POLAND: NO BACKING DOWN TO MOSCOW

DER SPIEGEL: Beyond Ukraine:
Russia's Imperial Mess
THE LOCAL: 'Bundestag
Should be Searched for Bugs'

Europe Online, Germany Snowden: Under U.S. Pressure, Germany Weakend Privacy Rules "Germany was pressured to modify its G-10 law to appease the NSA, and it eroded the rights of German citizens under their constitution. The ultimate result of the NSA‘s guidance is that the right of citizens to be free of unwarranted state interference is degraded and systems of mass surveillance are being constructed in secret within otherwise liberal states." — NEWS ITEM, DPA

News Agencies, Russia and E.U. VIDEOS: Media War on Ukraine Between the Westerners and Russia NINE VIDEOS ON THE CRISIS Could it be Rudyard Kipling was right when he said two centuries ago, 'East is East, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet'? For the sake of Ukrainians and civilization as such, let us hope not. In the meantime, let us once again look at the competing narratives via today's video content from Russia Today and then the European news agencies. — MANAGING EDITOR William Kern WAR OF WORDS OVER UKRAINE

Gazeta, Russia Crimea Annexation 'Too Costly for Russia to Bear' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "Russia is on the path that led to the collapse of USSR, when an economic crash made it impossible for it to maintain its sphere of influence as the central authority over such a gigantic territory. ... Permitting Crimea to live fundamentally better than it would have as a part of Ukraine is something we simply cannot afford." — EDITORIAL, Gazeta CAN RUSSIA EVEN AFFORD CRIMEA?

SXSW Festival, U.S. VIDEO: Edward Snowden at U.S. Tech Conference Mar. 10, 01:01:28 "NSA, the global mass surveillance that's occurring in all these nations ... they're setting fire to the future of the Internet ... The people who are in this room right now, you GUYS are the fire fighters - and we need you to help us fix things." — Edward Snowden SNOWDEN IN AMERICA - VIRTUALLY

Frankfurter Rundschau, Germany Finding a Win-Win Scenario With Putin TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "His self-confidence, once wounded and now boosted, makes him unpredictable - but offers an opportunity. Just as a Russian diplomatic masterstroke prevented a military intervention in Syria, the E.U. and United States can take on the job of obliging the Kremlin to restrain itself as well." — COLUMNIST Viktor Funk HOW TO PREVENT A NEW WAR

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Ukraine, Crimea Wrap-Up for March 10 SEVEN VIDEOS ON THE CRISIS This is Russia Today' weekend coverage of the Ukraine crisis that highlights the differing narratives in the East and West, Western media bias, the issue of whether U.S. media is a tool of America's well-connected. — Weekend Coverage from Russia Today CHALLENGING WEST'S NARRATIVE

European News Agencies VIDEOS: Crimea Wrap Up - March 10, European Media NINE VIDEOS ON THE UKRAINE CRISIS E This is our weekend wrap up of European video coverage of the Ukraine crisis from France24, Deutche Welle, and the BBC. — NEWS REPORTS, Europe CRIMEA'S TATARS IN DISTRESS

Russia Today, Oxford, SXSW Festival Morning Surveillance Blast Abby Martin, Julian Assange, and Edward Snowden on mind control, and NSA mass surveillance. — VIDEO AND TEXT MARTIN, ASSANGE, AND SNOWDEN

E.U. OBSERVER: Trade Talks
'Honeymoon' Over, Business
Chiefs Warn European Union

Der Standard, Austria Offer Putin Crimea in Exchange for Kosovo Recognition TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The West has something to offer Putin: international recognition of Crimea's return to Russia. This way it may demand that the process be legal and orderly, based on a supervised referendum. In return, Russia could finally recognize the independence of Kosovo, whose succession followed the same principle of self-determination of peoples and ethnic groups as Russia's Crimea policy." — COLUMNIST Eric Frey PLAYNG REALPOLITIC WITH PUTIN

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Bitcoin Raises Lots of Questions, but Finding Satoshi Nakamoto Doesn't Answer Them “The important answers about the cryptocurrency won't come from chasing a man in a Prius around LA.” —CORRESPONDENT James Ball

BITCOIN'S CREATOR? SO WHAT?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Putin Defends Actions in Crimea Following U.S., E.U. Sanctions, Live Blog Putin says Crimea moves legitimate - Response follows announcements of sanctions by U.S. and E.U. - Putin and Obama hold one hour phone call - Sanctions follow Crimean moves to become part of Russian Federation. — LIBE BLOG - Text, Tweets, Pics, Video

EL Pais, Spain Making Russia Feel the Pain for Taking Crimea TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “The U.S. and E.U. warn that the taking of Crimea will have 'consequences,' but they have failed to outline what those consequences might be. ... The message to Moscow must be clear: we cannot maintain normal relations with Russia as long as it doesn't maintain normal relations with its neighbors. Without this, there can be no business as usual.” —COLUMNIST Jose Ignacio Torreblanca

CAN PUTIN BE MADE TO 'PAY'?

Sol, Portugal Ukraine May Awaken 'Ghosts of the Great War' TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "With a nationalist pride boosted by the Winter Olympics ... the sudden collapse of Yanukovych's pro-Moscow regime left Russia looking like a wounded bear. As if that weren't enough humiliation for the Russians, then came the cowardly and embarrassing flight of its allied dictator." — COLUMNIST Vicente Jorge Silva EUROPE WATCHES WITH CONCERN

Reuters, U.K. E.U.-U.S. Trade Talks Face 'Growing Hostility', E.U. Ministers Warn "We're grappling with people who are anti-European, who are anti-American, who are anti-free trade, who are anti- globalization and who are anti- multinational corporations." — Finland Trade Minister Alexander Stubb MULTINATIONAL POWER GRAB?

E.U. OBSERVER: Trade Talks
'Honeymoon' Over, Business
Chiefs Warn European Union

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Ron Paul Calls U.S. 'Hypocrite' on Ukraine; RT Roundup TWO VIDEOS ON THE CRISIS "For us to lecture anybody about violating sovereignty - what about the sovereignty of Iraq and Afghanistan and Yemen and North Africa. ... this drive to be involved and to expand and protect the American empire - that's where we get into trouble.' — Ex-Congressman Ron Paul UKRAINE: AMERICAN HYPOCRISY?

European News Agencies European Roundup of Content on Developments in the Ukraine, Mar. 6-7 NINE VIDEOS ON THE CRISIS European reaction to today's Ukraine developments from the BBC, France 24, EurActiv. — NEWS REPORTS, Europe MARCH 6-7 EUROPE VIDEO UPDATES

Russia Today, Russia Russia Today Hits Back Over American Staff Controversy "Standing out from the crowd is hard, sometimes unbearable. I wish the best of luck to those who can’t take it. To those who continue to do their best for RT, who know they are right even if the whole world says no. I have to say I’m proud of you. IMMENSELY PROUD." — RT Editor-in-Chief Margarita Simonyan WAGING THE MEDIA WAR

Liberation, France Putin is Gambling on European Cowardice TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Ukrainians, their leaders and people alike, have not yet yielded to provocations. Europeans must show the courage and determination to face down a man who knows only the language of force, and always bets, often with good reason, on the fear of his enemies." — COLUMNIST Francois Sergent CAN EUROPEANS STAND UP?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Ukraine: Emergency Talks on Russia in Crimea – Live Blog "E.U. leaders in Brussels to meet Ukraine’s new prime minister; E.U. freezes assets of 18 Ukrainians accused of embezzlement; Paris talks between John Kerry and Sergei Lavrov break up; Russia says action 'does not create atmosphere for dialogue;' the U.N. Security Council to discuss Ukraine." — GUARDIAN LIVE BLOG

European News Agencies VIDEOS: European News Roundup on the Ukraine SEVEN VIDEOS ON THE CRISIS European reaction to today's Ukraine developments from E.U. countries - seven videos — NEWS REPORTS, Europe NERVOUS NEGOTIATIONS IN PARIS

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Western Media and Official 'Propaganda' in the Ukraine Conflict THREE VIDEOS This is today's RT coverage of developments, much of which is an attack on U.S. media 'propaganda' against Russia. — RUSSIA TODAY COVERAGE THE TRUTH OR PROPAGANDA?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: American Russia Today Staff Mount 'Mutiny' VIDEOS AND TEXT Yesterday, we posted RT Host Abby Martin come out against Moscow's military action in Ukraine. Today, one of RT's American anchors, Liz Wahl, went one step further than Martin, taking to the air to publicly resign over what she called RT's whitewashing the actions of Vladimir Putin.' — RT ANCHOR QUITS ON AIR INTEGRITY OVER PROPAGANDA?

de Morgan, Belgium Putin Knows: No One in the West is Willing to Die for Sebastopol TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “What has Ukraine's economy got to offer that outweighs European energy dependence on Russian oil and gas? In the cynical game called geopolitics, every European and American leader knows that no one in the West is willing to die for Sebastopol. Putin knows that.” —EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Yves Desmet

WHICH SIDE IS THE MORE CYNICAL?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Ukraine has Revealed a New World of Western Impotence
BRIIGHT SIDE?	“What has been positive about the Ukraine crisis has been the unusual emergence of a 'case to be made' on both sides. For once we have seen a 'revolution' with some balanced news coverage.” — COLUMNIST Simon Jenkins

Komsomolskaya Pravda, Russia Crimea: Next Puerto Rico? TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “The United States has a state-to- state agreement with Puerto Rico (Puerto Rico has wide autonomy on many issues, but is de facto under U.S. jurisdiction). ... Why wouldn't this be acceptable for Crimea? Now more than ever, we must consider all possible options, because the situation is developing faster than newspapers can report.” —COLUMNIST Georgiy Bovt

WHAT'S NEXT FOR THE CRIMEA?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Putin Speaks; Abby Martin Comes Out Against 'Invasion' FOUR VIDEOS ON THE CRISIS "What Russia did is wrong ... military intervention is never the answer. ... I will not sit here and apologize and defend any military aggression. The coverage I've seem from all sides of the media spectrum is truly disappointing and rife with disinformation.' — HOST Abby Martin RUSSIA TODAY COVERS UKRAINE

European News Agencies European Reaction to Ukraine - UK, France, Belgium and Germany VIDEO AND TEXT ON THE CRISIS European reaction to today's Ukraine developments from E.U. countries, video and text. — NEWS REPORTS, Europe KERRY ARRIVES IN UKRAINE

Assorted Outlets, Global Ukraine Cartoons from Around World With the world and world media sobering up after 5 days of hysteria, here is a selection of comic relief.

UKRAINE CRISIS COMIC RELIEF

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Ukraine Crisis: John Kerry, NATO Must Calm Down and Back Off
CHILL OUT?	“It is not too late to show wisdom. Putin's movements in Crimea are of questionable legality. But their illegality is a lot less clear-cut than that of the U.S.- led invasion of Iraq, or of Afghanistan.” —COLUMNIST Jonathan Steele

Financial Times, U.K. Russia is in No Position to Fight a New Cold War "This contrast between 1968 and now underlines why talk of a new Cold War is off. The context of Crimea in 2014 is far different from Czechoslovakia in 1968." — COLUMNIST Gideon Rachman

PUTIN IN UKRAINE: STOP WORRYING?

European Agencies, Mainland VIDEOS: European Media on the Crisis in Ukraine FIVE VIDEOS ON THE CRISIS This is a selection of video on the Ukraine crisis from France 24, EurActiv in Belgium, and Deutche Welle in Germany. — NEWS REPORTS, Europe MAINLAND EUROPE ON UKRAINE

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: U.S. and West 'Have the Lost Plot'; 'Hypocrisy' in Ukraine FIVE VIDEOS ON THE CRISIS A series of videos from Russia Today highlighting the Russian position on Ukraine. The U.S. is called hypocritical and the E.U. is called 'lost' in terms of making sense on Ukraine. One speaker says their geopolitical plans 'never seem to work' - and they 'never seem to learn.' — NEWS REPORTS, Russia Today UKRAINE: THE RUSSIAN CONTEXT

British News Agencies, U.K. Britain Reacts with Alarm to Russian 'Invasion of Ukraine' British media expect a U.S.-Russia face- off. Will Putin make Obama look weak? Can Obama 'find a way to frustrate Putin? It's a lost weekend for NATO leaders, who have suddenly realized that Putin intends to assert Russian influence over Crimea, where the Black Sea Fleet has been located since the mid-1800s. — British Coverage of the Crisis

FRAMING THE UKRAINE AS OBAMA V. PUTIN

The Telegraph, U.K. Apple CEO Tim Cook Faces-Off with 'Climate Denier' Investors "If you want me to do things only for ROI [the return on investment] reasons, you should get out of this stock. When we work on making our devices accessible to the blind, I don't consider bloody ROI [return on investment.]" — NEWS REPORTS, Novosti TIM COOK: KEEP YOUR MONEY

Worldmeets.US Radio, United States AUDIO: 'El Chapo,' Piers Morgan, Venezuela Chaos, Robots and Surveillance Mar .3, 00:31:14 This week - we examine Mexican views on the recapturing of the notorious 'El Chapo' Guzman - and whether it will help end the drug- related bloodletting in that nation; Venezuela and Brazil coverage of the turmoil in Caracas; a word on Ukraine; the media tsunami that ensued on both sides of the Atlantic when CNN canceled British host Piers Morgan's nightly program; our roundup of surveillance news from France, Britain and the Netherlands, including how millions of Web cams using Yahoo have been spied on, and how robots will outsmart us by 2029. — MANAGING EDITOR William Kern A LOOK BACK A THE WEEK THAT WAS

Novosti, Russia Putin Tells Obama Russia Will Take Action In Event of Violence in the Ukraine "Vladimir Putin told U.S. President Obama in a telephone conversation Sunday that Moscow reserved the right to protect its own interests and those of Russian speakers in the event of violence in Crimea." — NEWS REPORTS, Novosti ON PHONE FOR AN HOUR AND A HALF

Russia Today, Russia VIDEOS: Content on Ukraine FOUR VIDEOS ON THE CRISIS This is a raft of content on Ukraine from Russia Today, and much of it tilts toward the Kremlin's view that what's going on in Ukraine is for the most part the result of Western trouble-making and subterfuge. — NEWS REPORTS, Russia Today GORBACHEV EXPRESSES SHOCK

The Telegraph, U.K. Ukraine 'Invasion' Begins as Obama Warns Moscow “Russian troops were on the move inside Ukrainian territory on Friday, prompting President Barack Obama to warn Moscow that 'there will be costs for any military intervention.'" — CORESPONDENT Kim Sengupta

KREMLIN MOVES TO MAINTAIN INFLUENCE

Le Nouvel Observateur, France Nothing 'Wacky' about Merkel's 'Courageous' E.U. Internet Program TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "To commit herself as she has shows courage and political skill ... The massive use of American digital solutions, (Google, Apple, Microsoft, etc.) is the royal path by which the NSA has managed to conduct large-scale spying on the world. Merkel wants to compete by encouraging the emergence of European digital champions so as not to be too dependent on the U.S." — SCHOLAR Maxime Pinard MERKEL: LAUGH AT YOUR OWN RISK

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Yahoo Webcam Images of Millions Collected by GCHQ “Yahoo reacted furiously to the news when approached by the Guardian. Yahoo denied any prior knowledge of the program, accusing the agencies of 'a whole new level of violation of our users' privacy. ... Rather than collecting webcam chats in their entirety, the program saved a image every 5 minutes from users' feeds.” — REPORTERS Spencer Ackerman and James Ball

YAHOO MESSENGER CAMS COMPROMISED

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands People Unwilling to Pay for Privacy Doomed to Lose It TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "When WhatsApp was bought by Facebook, it led to a wave of indignation. People feared for their privacy, because Facebook uses different terms of use. There is an old economic law: if it costs nothing, it's worth nothing. When we pay nothing for our privacy, we indicate the limited value we attach to it.=." — SCIENCE WRITER Chris Jongeneel FACEBOOK, WHATSAPP AND PRIVACY

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands Government Seeks to 'Wash its Hands' of False NSA Spying Accusation TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "Home Affairs Minister Plasterk barely survived a no-confidence vote after it became apparent that he had misinformed the House. He had previously stated that the NSA had intercepted the telephone data of 1.8 million Dutch, while in fact, it was the Netherlands itself that had done this. Insiders say Dutch Military Intelligence Director Pieter Bindt mentioned something about Dutch eavesdropping 'in passing,' while in the process of discussing 'other business." — REPORTERS Jan Hoedeman and Natalie Righton NOT NSA: DUTCH SPY ON DUTCH

British News Agencies, U.K. British React with Gusto to CNN Firing of Piers Morgan “CNN's decision to pull the plug on Piers appears to be largely due to cultural differences. Americans, it seems, don't take kindly to a self- important Brit telling them how to run their country and ratings for the prime-time show were as miserable as the English weather.” — COLUMNIST Arwa Mahdawi

U.K. REACTS TO PIERS MORGAN FIRING

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Orders Pentagon: Prepare for Full Pullout from Afghanistan "Defense Secretary Hagel said Tuesday that it was prudent 'to ensure adequate plans are in place to accomplish an orderly withdrawal by the end of the year should U.S. not keep any troops in Afghanistan after 2014.'" —CORRESPONDENTS Spencer Ackerman and Dan Roberts

THE MOMENT OF TRUTH ARRIVES?

Dutch News, The Netherlands Dutch Surveillance Scandal: Not NSA, But Dutch Agents, Tapped 1.8 Million Citizens “Given Minister Plasterk's admission that it was not the NSA tapping 1.8 million Dutch telephone calls and text messages, but the Netherlands' own intelligence services, one can't help but recall Rumsfeld’s baffling 2002 'unknown unknowns' briefing.” — COLUMNIST Garry Piggott

DUTCH MINISTER'S RUMSFELD MOMENT

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Gorbachev Says E.U., U.S. Aides Should Be 'Bulldozed' from Ukraine Feb .25, 00:01:02 Mikhail Gorbachev express alarm over recent events in Ukraine, strengthening Putin's domestic hand - whatever he wishes to do. — NEWS REPORT, Russia Today GORBACHEV EXPRESSES SHOCK

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. What the Hell is Barack Obama's Presidency For?
DISAPPOINTMENT	“While posing as the ally of the immigrant he deports people at a faster clip than any of his predecessors; while claiming to be a supporter of labor, he champions trade deals that undercut U.S. jobs and wages.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Russia Feels Double- Crossed Over Ukraine – but What Will Putin Do? “Ukraine's future security, political cohesion and territorial integrity depend on how Putin reacts to the toppling of his ally President Viktor Yanukovych.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

The Observer, U.K. Google's Ray Kurzweil: Robots will Outsmart Human Beings By 2029 “They'll be able to understand what we say, learn from experience, crack jokes, tell stories, flirt. Kurzweil believes that, by 2029, computers will be able to do all the things that humans do. Only better.” — CORRESPONDENT Carole Cadwalladr

PREDICTING A STICKY WICKET

El Pais, Spain Uruguay President Tells U.S., Europe to Exclude Military from Drug Fight TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH "The less contaminated with corruption the armed forces become, the more secure you will be. The armed forces are like a bulldog you must be kept safe and secure in the background, but without spoiling it or giving it too much affection, and hoping never to have to set it loose." — CORRESPONDENT Dino Capelli and Reuters MUJICA TALKS DECRIMINALIZATION

Worldmeets.US, United States AUDIO: CNN Out of Venezuela; Hollande in America; Amanda Knox & Italy's Justice System Feb .24, 00:30:47 Tune in with Worldmeets.US Managing Editor William Kern, as we examine whether the CIA is encouraging unrest in Venezuela; why Ukraine is burning; corrupt business people fleeing China's crackdown on corruption for American shores; how French President Francios Hollande's state visit to the U.S. is a boon to multinationals; Mexico's La Jornada on why the annual Three Amigos Summit was another act of Mexican 'submission' to its North American partners; and our weekly roundup of surveillance news. — MANAGING EDITOR William Kern

CCTV and C-SPAN, China and U.S. VIDEOS: China Angry Again Over White House Dalai Lama Meeting China's annual tirade about the U.S. president meeting the Dalai Lama is in full swing this morning. This year, though, there's a subtle change. China's state TV has a U.S. branch, complete with an American host, which struggles mightily to make Beijing's stance on its 1959 invasion and subsequent treatment of Tibetans appear sane. Here is a selection from CCTV America, and the Dalai Lama's appearance yesterday at the American Enterprise institute, where the 'wolf in sheep's clothing' threatening the 'split the Chinese nation' talks 'happiness and free markets.' — ASSORTED VIDEOS ON MEETING GETTING UNDER BEIJING'S SKIN

Financial Times, U.K. Edward Snowden Leaks VI Spur New Privacy Industry “The Snowden leaks revealing U.S. mass surveillance have helped kick- start a new privacy industry as firms rush to fulfil a rising demand for products that protect privacy.” —CORRESPONDENT Hannah Kuchler

BBC and Euronews, U.K. and Belgium VIDEO: Venezuela Threatens to Expel CNN Over Coverage of Anti-Government Protests "Enough war propaganda, I won't accept war propaganda against Venezuela. If they don't rectify themselves, out of Venezuela! — PRESIDENT Nicolas Maduro POST CHEVEZ STRUGGLE BOILS

Espreso, Ukraine LIVE FEED: Kiev's Independence Square This is a live feed of Kiev's Independence Square in Ukraine, the epicenter of what is increasingly looking like a civil war between Western and Eastern leading halves of Ukraine. Violence has again erupted between protesters and government forces, after a tenuous truce fell apart yesterday evening. — REUTERS Live Feed UKRAINE: EAST VERSUS WEST

Oxford Mail, U.K. VIDEO: Edward Snowden Praises Chelsea Manning at Sam Adams Awards "In the last year the White House told us 95 million records were classified and withheld from the public. That’s more than any year on record. ... How can we vote without evidence of true cost of the wars in which we're involved, instances of public corruption, official corruption in nations we support, ally ourselves with, or national participation in torture programs, rendition programs and unambiguous war crimes? All were exposed in the Manning leaks. — FORMER CIA Analyst Ed Snowden OXFORD: SNOWDEN PRAISES MANNING

Mediapart, France Hollande in United States: Multinational Lobbyist Tool TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Globalization and its accompanying multilateral free-trade agreements gnaw away, a little more every day, at the democratic foundations of societies. Elected institutions are bypassed when they aren't outright violated by ad hoc agreements that establish their own rules of operation.” —COLUMNIST Jean-Luc Gasnier

FRENCH JOURNOS' OVAL OFFICE SELFIES

Independent, Ireland Couples Now Cite Facebook as Major Cause of Break-Ups "Therapists at top charity Relationships Ireland say that as many as 80 percent of marriages they are trying to save have fallen apart partly because of a growing trend of couples spending more time texting and posting status updates than talking to one another." —REPORTER Nick Bramhill

L'Humanite, France With Obama, Hollande Plots 'Economic War' on Behalf of Multinationals TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Under the TTIP, a multinational that considers our regulations an impediment to its capacity to exploit people and nature at its discretion would be given the opportunity to sue states before special tribunals designed by and for multinationals. Thus, neither parliaments nor governments will decide on laws. Multinational corporations would create their own rights. This is a program for a dictatorship at the beck and call of industry and finance, without the need for helmeted generals.” —FRENCH EUROPEAN MP Patrick Le Hyaric

HOLLANDE: IN UNCLE SAM'S POCKET?

Diritto, Italy After Amanda Knox, it's Back to the Drawing Board for Italian Justice System TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "Try explaining to an American that a defendant can be convicted, then acquitted, and convicted again. ... The moral of the story: I haven't a clue (like everyone else) of what happened that night when a girl was killed, but I know for certain that in the court of justice, after seven years, no certainty has been reached." — COLUMNIST Davide Giacalone ITALY'S MIXED UP SYSTEM OF JUSTICE

BBC, U.K. Can Europe Go Own Way on Data Privacy, as Merkel Suggests? “Europe may soon operate its own cordoned-off portion of the internet if proposals by German Chancellor Angela Merkel win wider support.” — BBC NEWS ITEM

START IF WEB BALKANIZATION?

GUARDIAN: Where is Microsoft's
Bing Transparency Report?
GUARDIAN: Reporters Who
Broke NSA Story Receive
the George Polk Award
RT, RUSSIA: Merkel's Call
'Nonsense'; Pan-European
Internet is Already Here
FINANCIAL TIMES: Why Berlin
Must Not Erect a Data Qall

Sol, Portugal Portugal in Turmoil: Wolf of Wall Street Unmasks Us All TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE "Evil is scariest when it assumes forms that contemplate no guilt whatsoever. ... We need to look at this. ... In Portugal, our PhDs and post-docs, people atop the academic pyramid with tenure, are having their pensions cut, and don't even have a right to unemployment pay. I return to the issue because ... this is the most shameful example of how low the state has sunk." — COLUMNIST Luis Osorio THE WOLF HITS HOME IN PORTUGAL

Izvestia, Russia 'Free Press' Won't Spoil Putin's Sochi Experience TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Comparing the Olympics press of the summer of 1980 to the winter of 2014, one cannot help but conclude that today's press is a lot angrier. Perhaps this is due to the persona of Vladimir Putin, who is perceived as the engine and culprit behind the Sochi metamorphosis - far more than Leonid Brezhnev was in 1980. ” —COLUMNIST Maxim Sokolov

PUTIN: UNMOVED BY WEST'S CARPING

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Bing Censors Chinese Language Search Results for U.S. Users "Microsoft's search engine Bing seems to be censoring information for Chinese language users in the U.S. in the same way it filters results on the Chinese mainland." — REPORTER Dominic Rushe BING: PRO-BEIIJING SEARCH?

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland On 'Snowdenistas' and Russian Spies: Rebutting Edward Lucas TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “The Russians would more likely have paid him lots of money to keep a low profile and conceal his opinions. True, spies like Aldrich Ames, Robert Hanssen, or Earl Edwin Pitts, never pitched their revelations to newspapers, but rather passed them secretly to their handlers. ... If evidence of Snowden’s guilt does appear, I will condemn him as a spy. But even that wouldn't change my positive evaluation of what he's done. ” —COLUMNIST Wojciech Orlinski

CLAPPER AND BRENNAN: SPIES WILL BE SPIES

AFP, BBC, France 24, C-SPAN, Euronews, the Daily Show VIDEOS: White House State Dinner for Francios Hollande This is video coverage of the 7th state dinner thrown by the Obama White House, Britain, France, uncut video from C-SPAN, and from The Daily show. — VIDEO COVERAGE FROM FRANCE 24, AFP, EURONEWS, BBC, DAILY SHOW WHITE HOUSE STATE DINNER FOR FRANCE

De Morgen, Belgium Olympics in Sochi: Now a 'Symbol of Intolerance' TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “From the free expression of the Pussy Riot women, to draconian measures against Russia's muzzled press, to the anti-gay laws and unbelievable anti-gay violence: a lot of people in the world have woken up and are defending the principle that has long been legally established here - discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is not permissible, and that gays and lesbians have exactly the same rights as heterosexuals, including on matters of love and marriage.” —Editor in Chief Yves Desmet

GAYS AND THE SOCHI OLYMPICS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Shirley Temple Obituary "The cherubic child star of the 1930s returned to public life as an American diplomat and logtime Republican dies at 85." — COLUMNIST Ronald Bergan TEMPLE: THE ORIGINAL MEGASTAR

GUARDIAN: Screen
Legend - Shirley Temple
GUARDIAN: Shirley Temple
- a Career in Movie Clips

Daily Mail, U.K. Virgin Atlantic Using Google Glass to Check in Passengers "Next time you arrive at the airport, the person checking you in may know your name, destination and even your food choices before you say a thing." — REPORTER Victoria Woollaston GOOGLE GLASS: NO TURNING BACK

Daily Mail, U.K. Massive Blackmail of Barclays Customers Tied to Data Leak "The data ‘gold mine’ which contains customer earnings, savings, mortgages, health, insurance policies, passport and national insurance numbers - is worth millions on the black market, allowing them to be targeted for financial scams." — BY Ian Gallagher, Simon Watkins, Stephanie Condron BARCLAYS: TOO BIG TO FUNCTION

The Telegraph, U.K. Post-Superbowl Porn Study Proves 'Chilling' "It was conclusive proof that most men turn to porn not when they are happy, but when they are at their most vulnerable. ... and it showed that porn barons meticulously compile data on their users. If men who watch porn think they themselves are not being watched, they're mistaken." — REPORTER Martin Daubney GETTING REAL ABOUT SPYING

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Richard Stallman: 'If We Don't Fight Surveillance, We'll Lose Our Democracy' Feb. 6, 00:28:05 "There are others who say using digital technology means total surveillance, just surrender to it. But since that surrender means no democracy anymore, because whistleblowers who tell us what the state is doing will be caught, and they have to flee to places like Russia in order not to be caught, that means it's too much of a sacrifice. We've got to keep our democracy, and that means we have got to limit surveillance." — INTERVIEWED BY Oksana Boyko STALLMAN ON FREEDOM AND SPYING

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Facebook=Spybook? Feb .8, 00:30:18 How has Facebook redefined what we call 'community'? What kind of relationship Facebook should have with government? And, what can we expect in the next decade? — HOSTED BY Peter Lavelle FACEBOOK'S PLACE IN THE WORLD

RUSSIA TODAY VIDEO: Is
this a New Cold War?

Der Tagesspiegel, Germany Why Facebook Won't Be Permitted to Die TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Now with more than 1.2 billion users and corresponding amounts of data, Facebook can now be referred to as only banks have been: too big to fail. How would one go about closing down such a huge network? What would happen to the massive data that makes Facebook so valuable?” —COLUMNIST Christian Tretbar

HAS FACEBOOK JOINED CITIBANK?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Sochi Sour Grapes: the Western Media Takes Gold Medal in 'Buzz Killing' Feb .8, 00:30:18 Are Western media outlets unfairly criticizing preparations for and the general conduct surrounding the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi? This report from Russia Today looks at the issue. Russia today is non-profit funded by the Russian government. — HOSTED BY Anastasia Churkina IS WESTERN MEDIA UNFAIR ON SOCHI?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: 'Tigers, Flies and Naked Officials' Flee China for U.S. Feb. 8, 00:25:45 Are crooked businessmen fleeing China for American shores - where there is no crackdown on curruption? Max Keiser and his parner Stacy Herbert take on that issue, and others such as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, on this week's Keiser Report. — The Keiser Report UNITED STATES OF CURRUPTION?

Worldmeets.US, United States AUDIO: An Interview with Death Penalty Abolitionist Sandrine Ageorges-Skinner Feb .8, 00:30:18 Listen to our talk with Sandrine Ageorges-Skinner, one of the world's leading advocates for the abolition of the death penalty. Sandrine has dedicated decades fighting state execution, both in her native France, in the United States, and around the world. — MANAGING EDITOR William Kern ADVOCATE FOR SOCIETY'S OUTCAST

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany America's Espionage Obsession: 'To Understand isn't to Tolerate' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The rubble of 9-11 hasn't been carted away. The intelligence services have suffered an unimaginable humiliation. Now President Bush is pressuring Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. It smells like war. In Germany, the Schroder-Fischer government picks up the scent, while here at home, the odor is of election defeat. Schroeder senses anti-U.S. sentiment early on. ... Does that suffice as a motive for eavesdropping? 'You bet' the Americans would say, 'absolutely.' From their point of view, Gerhard Schroeder was no longer a reliable ally.” —COLUMNIST Stefan Kornelius

IRAQ WAR SPYING ON GERMANS REVEALED

BBC News, U.K. VIDEO: Angela Merkel Condemns E.U. Insult By American Diplomat "The chancellor finds these remarks totally unacceptable and wants to emphasize that [E.U. foreign policy chief] Ashton is doing a great job." — Spokesman for Chancellor Angela Merkel MORE ANGST TOWARD WASHINGTON

Der Spiegel, Germany Iraq War Critic: NSA Targeted Gerhard Schroder's Mobile “The reports cite unnamed U.S. government and NSA insider sources claiming that Schroder was declared a target for monitoring due to his critical position on U.S. preparations for the Iraq War.” — NEWS ITEM, Der Spiegel

MORE GERMAN-U.S. FRICTION

Kiev Post, Ukraine AUDIO: U.S. State Department Officials Caught Bad-Mouthing European Union Over Ukraine Feb .6, 00:04:10 "The U.N. envoy will help glue this thing and to have the U.N. glue it. And you know, fuck the E.U. ... Exactly ... and I think we got to do something to make it stick together, because you can be sure that if it does start to gain altitude, the Russians will be working behind the scenes to torpedo the initiative." — Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland speaking to U.S. Envoy to Ukraine, Geoffrey Pyatt AMERICAN 'DIPLOMACY' IN THE RAW

KIEV POST: Ukraine Opposition
Leader Describes Torture; Says
was Forced to Say he Was U.S. Spy
FINANCIAL TIMES: Leaked
Recording from Ukraine Reveals
U.S. Exasperation with E.U.

La Stampa, Italy Amanda Knox, Italian Justice, and 'Conviction at All Costs' TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “Convicted, then acquitted, and then convicted again. And at every stage of appeal, the evidence becomes ever more slender, clinging to a small trace of Amanda's DNA on a kitchen knife that she may have used to slit her friend's throat or chop an onion. ... No one wants to show humility and confess that the truth at times slip away.” —COLUMNIST Charles Poncet

IS ITALIAN JUSTICE RELIABLE OR FAIR?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. In Afghanistan and Pakistan, the Taliban Seem to be Winning “What is clear is that the Taliban, whether by crafty design or thanks to Karzai's dysfunctional relationships, have managed to complicate, if not wreck, Barack Obama's 2014 withdrawal scenario.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

Belfast Telegraph, Northern Ireland Amanda Knox's 'Spin' Shouldn't Deny Justice to Meredith Kercher “The Knox PR campaign has been clever from the start. A fortune spent has yielded up sympathetic coverage, in America especially, for that martyred victim of injustice once known as Foxy Knoxy. ” — COLUMNIST Lindy McDowell

AMANDA KNOX: TRUTH OR PR SPIN?

CORRIERE DELLA SERA, ITALY:
Grounds for Reinstating the
Knox-Sollecito Murder Verdict
AKI, ITALY: Justice Minister
Orders Probe into Knox Judge
TELEGRAPH: Meredith Kercher: A
Crime that Defies All Assumptions

FAZ, Germany Kerry Thinks it's Back to Business as Usual? 'What a Miscalculation!' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "In the Bundestag this week, the chancellor said trust was being 'destroyed.' Among partners and friends, this is the worst-case scenario. A statement like that hasn't been made since sparks flew between Gerhard Schroder and George W. Bush over the war in Iraq. A divisive element has taken root in the relationship - and it grows wider by the week." — COLUMNIST Thomas Gutschker BACK TO BUSINESS? NO SUCH LUCK

L'Hebdo, Switzerland Barack Obama has Been an 'Unspeakable Disgrace' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Mr. Obama appeared to be liberal: torture, Guantanamo, the obsession with security, the shameful methods of Dick Cheney, would soon be no more than a sad memory. ... What disappointment awaited such liberal hopes! An absolute disgrace. ... A complete disgrace. An unspeakable disgrace. A monumental disgrace!” —COLUMNIST Charles Poncet

OBAMA: AMERICAN MESSIAH NO MORE

Daily Mail, U.K. The Final Days of Philip Seymour Hoffman Reflected Trouble Ahead "The shocking new details reveal that the Oscar winner - who was found dead Sunday on a bathroom floor with a needle sticking out of his arm - had a drug problem that had escalated far and above what had previously been thought." — REPORTERS Sara Nathan, Joshua Gardner, Helen Pow, Sophie Jane Evans, James Nye HOFFMAN: A PREDICABLE DEATH?

The Telegraph, U.K. Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman, Found Dead “Hoffman was not a famously sunny interviewee, his self- loathing a trait in life as on screen. As a young actor he was addicted to heroin before going clean for 23 years.” — iEDITOR Oliver Duff

HOFFMAN: HEROINE OVERDOSE

VIDEO: Philip Seymour Hoffman:
Hurt, Coogan, Costner and Bacon
Pay Tribute (BBC NEWS, U.K.)

VIDEO: Philip Seymour Hoffman's
Last Public Comments at Sundance
(Showbiz Raw, U.S.)

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Judge in Amanda Knox Case in Hot Water Over Remarks "The remarks, unusual in a country where courts generally don't talk about cases before publishing their written reasoning, were reportedly described as 'inopportune' by the the judges' governing body, CSM." — CORRESPONDENT Lizzy Davies

GUARDIAN: Amanda Knox
Extradition: U.S. Leaders
to Play a Critical Role

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. How Edward Snowden Went from Loyal NSA Man to Whistleblower “Society really seems to have developed an unquestioning obedience towards spooky types ... Did we get to where we are today via a slippery slope that was entirely within our control to stop? Or was it a relatively instantaneous sea change that sneaked in undetected because of this pervasive state secrecy?” — Edward Snowden, 2010

READ BOOK EXCERPTS HERE

GUARDIAN: Snowden Files Excerpt: Is
Edward Snowden a Prisoner in Russia?

Der Speigel, Germany Formula 1 Mogul Pleased After Defeating Google Over Sex Party Photos "There's something very wrong with Google. Technologically, they're brilliant, sensational. But morally, its management is utterly adolescent. The company is so big and so arrogant, they do what they like, thinking they're above the law." — Ex-Formula 1 Chief Max Mosley CHALLENGING GOOGLE AND WINNING

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. VIDEO: Guardian Editors Use Power Tools to Destroy Snowden Data Feb .1, 00:02:17 On July 20, 2013, in basement of the Guardian's office in Kings Cross, with two GCHQ officials watching, Guardian editors destroyed memory sticks and hard drives on which encrypted files leaked by NSA contractor Edward Snowden were stored. — GUARDIAN FOOTAGE BRITAIN'S ABSURD SPY OVERREACH

BBC NEWS: After Watching
TV Drama, Cameron Renews
Push for 'Snooper Charter'

WProst24, Poland Assigning Blame for 'Poland's Guantanamo' TRANSLATED FROM POLAND "Like a child rather than a man, former Prime Minister Miller is pointing at former President Kwasniewski to take the blame for CIA prisons in Poland. A man wouldn't act like that. Only a coward and liar would do that! ... Miller should be charged with violating the Constitution and selling the sovereignty of Poland for mere $15 million, in other words, for the establishment of a Polish Guantanamo Bay." — COLUMNIST Andrzej Rozenek CIVIL WAR OVER CIA BLACK SITE

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Amanda Knox Vows to Fight Murder Conviction 'to End' “I'm going to fight this until the very end. ... This really has hit me like a train. I did not expect this to happen. ... I really expected so much better from the Italian justice system. They found me innocent. How can they say it's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt?” — REPORTERS Lizzy Davies, John Hooper and Adam Gabbatt

ITALIAN COURT REINSTATES CONVICTION

THE MIRROR: Knox Ex-Boyfriend
Raffaele Sollecito Arrested in Austria

News, Switzerland Question for New Republic: Who Gives a 'Fart' about What Ed Snowden Thinks? TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Does it really matter whether he's a horrible person or a loving family man - like Heinrich Himmler, who exchanged banalities with his wife in between murders? ... What is relevant is not 'who' exposed the surveillance of the NSA monster, but that it was exposed at all.” —COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer

SNOWDEN'S PERSONALITY: DO WE CARE?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Obama's SOTU- Brainwashing Update Jan .30, 00:05:30 Martin examines President Obama's latest State of the Union address, calling him out for using 'platitudes' and making 'empty promises.' — BREAKING THE SET UNMAINSTREAM LOOK AT SOTU

RUSSIA TODAY VIDEO: Whale
Wars Captain on Dolphin
Slaughter Sabotage

The Telegraph, U.K. Next Recession Will Push West's Economic System Over Edge Into Inflation
TIGHTENING G2	“One country after another is having to tighten into weakness. The longer this goes on, and the wider it spreads, the greater the risk that it will metamorphose into a global deflationary shock.” — COLUMNIST Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Angry Birds Site Defaced with 'Spying Birds' Spoof After NSA 'Leak' Reports “The hack was in response to the revelation that the Angry Birds apps, among others, were leaking personal data through advertising networks on which U.K. and U.S. intelligence agencies were spying.” — REPORTER Samuel Gibbs

ANGRY BIRDS HACKED FOR SPYING

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. America Lifts the Veil on Obama's Guantanamo Detainee Review Process “Tuesday's session, streamed on to a flatscreen TV in a Department of Defense office building outside of Washington, provided the first public peek into a process that the Obama White House ordered begun in 2011 to help clear the detention facility’s remaining population.” — CORRESPONDENT Spencer Ackerman

CLOSING GUANTANAMO - FOR REAL?

GUARDIAN: For First Time, Defense
Lawyers in Terrorism Case Granted
Access to FISA Surveillance Evidence
GUARDIAN: Al-Qaeda Faction
in Syria 'Contemplates' U.S.
Attack, Espionage Officials Say

Guardian Unlimited U.K. Raul Castro Tells CELAC Summit: Fight Poverty; Lock Out United States "Castro's speech listed a series of Latin American grievances that involve the United States, directly or indirectlydirectly or indirectly, attempting to unify the 33 countries at the summit against their neighbor to the north, which was not invited." — NEWS ITEM, Guardian CELAC: ALL ABOUT UNITED STATES

The Telegraph, U.K. The State of the Union 2014: Obama Pledges to Go it Alone
SOTH: DEMEANING?	“The royal decrees matched the spirit of the occasion. As the years go by, the State of the Union more and more resembles a cross between Versailles and the Emmys.” — COLUMNIST Tim Stanley

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. State of the Union Scorecard: Guardian Staff Grade Obama's “Guardian reporters and editors assess President Obama's performance on key issues, from climate change to foreign policy.” — GUARDIAN REPORTERS RATHING THE 2014 SOTU

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. State of the Union Confirms Only that Union is in a State
THE 2014 SOTU	“The speech was less Martin Luther King (''The arc of history is long but bends toward justice') and more Rodney King ('Can we all get along?'), was far more plaintive and far less polemical than usual.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland On CIA Prisons, Poland Sold Out for 'Pathetically Paltry' 15 Million Dollars TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Why did our U.S. ally sucker punch us on this occasion? ... The Polish authorities simply made Polish territory available to the U.S., not knowing what it would be used for. ... For our loss of virtue, or rather, our reputation as a defender of human rights and promoter of freedom and solidarity, we reportedly received $15 million - a pathetically small amount.” —COLUMNIST Pawel Wronski

WAS POLAND'S VIRTUE SOLD TO CIA?

ARD Media, Germany VIDEO: Edward Snowden Speaks to German Public Jan. 26, 00:30:21 "These people, U.S. government officials, have said they would love to put a bullet in my head or poison me when I come out of the supermarket and then watch me die in the shower. ... If there is information at Siemens that's beneficial to U.S. national interests - even if it doesn't have anything to do with national security – then they'll take that data nevertheless." — EDWARD SNOWDEN FIRST TV INTERVIEW IN RUSSIA

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA and GCHQ Target 'Leaky' Phone Apps like Angry Birds, Maps, to Scoop Up User Data “• U.S. and U.K. spy agencies piggyback on commercial data • Details can include age, location and sexual orientation • Documents also reveal targeted tools against individual cellular phones.” — REPORTER James Ball

EVEN GAME PLAYING ISN'T SAFE FROM SPIES

GUARDIAN: Politicians are Failing
Us, says Google CEO Eric Schmidt

Die Welt, Germany Hienrich Himmler: Insight Into the Orderly World of a Top Nazi Mass Murderer “U.S. troops occupying Himmler's family home opened the safe there and took his private papers. Almost seven decades later, most of that material is now accessible to the general public for the first time.” — CORRESPONDENTS Spencer Ackerman, Dan Roberts THE HIENRICH HIMMLER PAPERS

DIE WELT: Himmler's
Letters, Diary, Surface

Deutche Welle, Germany VIDEO: Ed Snowden Tells German TV, 'The U.S. Wants Me Dead' Jan. 26, 00:02:29 "These people, and they are government officials, have said they would love to put a bullet in my head or poison me when I come out of the supermarket, and then watch as I die in the shower.” — EDWARD SNOWDEN SNOWDEN DEFENDS ON GERMAN TV

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Presidential Advisory Board Concludes NSA Mass Phone Data Collection Violates Law “The Executive Branch agensy has rebuked President Obama over his defense of the NSA's gathering of Americans' phone data, concluding that the agency's collection of every U.S. phone record on a daily basis violates the legal restrictions of the statute cited to authorize it - section 215 of the Patriot Act.” — CORRESPONDENTS Spencer Ackerman, Dan Roberts OBAMA'S SHARP REBUKE FROM WITHIN

FREESNOWDEN.IS: Live
Q&A with Edward Snowden
GUARDIAN: Facebook will
Lose 80 Percent of its Users
by 2017, say Princeton Study

The Local, Norway Future U.S. Envoy Displays Total Ignorance of Norway “America's next ambassador to Norway has committed a jaw- dropping diplomatic error before he even begins, describing politicians from the Progress Party, which has seven ministers, as 'fringe elements' that 'spew hatred.'” — NEWS ITEM, The Local

OBAMA BUNDLER GOES TO OSLO

Le Temps, Switzerland Wikipedia's 'Invisible Hand': More Right-Wing than Left TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The encyclopedia's success is based on the promise of making progress through self-regulating market of free contributions. Participating individuals pursue their own goals, sometimes in competition, but they contribute to the general interest. Free competition leads to the gradual elimination of error. Just as in economics, the 'invisible hand' of Adam Smith will always guide the online encycolpedia toward increasingly reliable information." — DIGITAL HUMANITIES PROFESSOR Frederic Kaplan SMITH'S INVISIBLE HAND GUIDES WIKIPEDIA

World Economic Forum, Switzerland VIDEO: The Big Brother Problem Jan. 23, 01:01:24 Panelists include Senator Patrick J. Leahy, Israeli corporate strategist Orit Gadiesh, Harvard Law professor Jonathan Zittrain, Secretary General of Amnesty International Salil Shetty, Microsoft General Counsel Bradford L. Smith, VimpelCom [telecom] CEO Augie K. Fabela, Palantir Technologies President [U.S.] Shyam Sankar.” — DAVOS Panel Discussion WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM AT DAVOS

VIDEO: The New Digital Context (Davos, Switzerland)

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Google's Eric Schmidt Denies Knowledge of NSA Data Tapping of Company “Had we been briefed, we likely couldn't have acted on it, because we'd have known about it. I've declined briefings [from the U.S. government] about this because I don't want to be constrained.” — GOOGLE CEO Eric Shmidt SMIDT: IMPLAUSIBLE DENIABITITY?

GUARDIAN: At Davos, Independent
Commission to Investigate Future
of Internet Announced
GUARDIAN: Google Glass Deemed
'Inappropriate' by Cinema Chain AMC

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. OXFAM: 85 Richest People as Wealthy as Poorest 3.5 Billion “It is staggering that in the 21st Century, half the world population – that's three and a half billion people - own no more than a tiny elite whose numbers [85] could fit on a double-decker bus.” — Winnie Byanyima, CEO, OXFAM

CHASM BETWEEN RICH AND POOR

Die Welt, Germany A Toothless NSA? Not Under Barack Obama! TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “For observers in Germany and Latin America, with memories of the Gestapo, the Stasi, and military dictatorship, these revelations are dramatic. But from a U.S. perspective, the drama doesn't come close to approaching the criminal CIA and FBI activity of the 1960s.” — COLUMNIST Hans Zippert NSA REFORM SPEECH: NO SURPRISES?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama's NSA 'Reforms': Little More than a PR Bid to Mollify the Public
FAUX NSA REFORMS	“By design, his plans will do little more than maintain rigidly in place the very bulk surveillance systems that have sparked such controversy and anger.” — COLUMNIST Glenn Greenwald

GUARDIAN: U.S. Tech Firms
Make Eleventh-Hour Attempt
to Halt Tax Avoidance Reform

Die Welt, Germany Merkel 'Outraged' She Will Be Ignored by NSA TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The chancellor immediately called in the U.S. ambassador to express her indignation. ... According to Merkel, she has a right to be heard, and she doesn't understand why the German chancellor is being treated less favorably than a Taliban leader or Kim Jong-un.” — COLUMNIST Hans Zippert AN END TO SPYING ON MERKEL?

Izvestia, Russia The News War Over U.S. and Japan Use of Biological Weapons TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "Although the fact of U.S. biological weapons testing is hardly surprising, the question arises - why has Japan released this type of evidence now? ... This is how Japan is showing its discontent with U.S. actions after Abe's visit to Yasukuni." — CORRESPONDENT Konstantin Volkov JAPAN TAKES JAB AT THE U.S.

Deutche Welle, Germany Actions Must Follow Obama's Words on NSA, Germans Say “It was only a change of rhetoric, not a change of heart. Mass surveillance will continue. ... That's why it's important for Europe to keep up the pressure and make clear that data security is an important asset for every European Union citizen.” — Green E.U. MP Jan Philipp Albrecht GERMANS LEFT UNIMPRESSED

DEUTCHE WELLE: Barack
Obama's Missed Moment
DEUTCHE WELLE: Obama Seeks
to Placate Germany over NSA

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany Germans Say Americans 'Lied' About No Spy Deal TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "'The Americans have lied to us,' a senior official said. ... The U.S. refusal to sign an agreement with any substance comes unexpectedly for Berlin. In August, the word was that America had provided verbal assurances. According to these, there would be 'no mutual spying, no industrial espionage, and no infringement of national law.' These supposed assurances seem to have vanished into thin air." — REPORTERS Hans Leyendecker and Georg Mascolo HARD FEELING REMAIN OVER SPYING

Die Zeit, Germany 'Polar Vortex' is No Match for New York Cockroach TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “In the northeast U.S., it was even colder than the South Pole. In New York, there was a temperature drop temperature of nearly 30 degrees - to 3 degrees Fahrenheit at the beginning of the week. So - was that too much for the cockroaches? ... 'No,' says Dominic Evangelista, a doctoral candidate in biochemistry at Rutgers University.” — COLUMNIST Dena Kelishadi COLD NO MATCH FOR NY CRAWLERS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA is Collecting Millions of Text Messages Daily in 'Untargeted' Global Sweep “The NSA collects 200 million text messages a day from across the globe, using them to extract data including location, contacts and credit card details, according to revealed top-secret documents.” — REPORTER James Ball

NO TEXT SAFE FROM NSA PRYING EYES

GUARDIAN: NSA Reform Included
in $1.1 Trillion Spending Measure
GUARDIAN: Snowden to Join
Free Press Foundation Board
NY TIMES: N.S.A. Devises Radio
Path Into Computers - Even Offline

News, Switzerland The Polar Vortex: To Get Warm - Move to Alaska! TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “After the last few years, what we can say with certainty is that climate conditions on our planet are shifting increasingly toward extremes: floods of the century, storms of the century, heat of the century, droughts and cold of the century, have become standard protocol, with the resulting damage rising steadily as well. ... If one must go from Tennessee to Alaska to warm up, it should be apparent that something is terribly wrong” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer NEW REASONS TO MOVE NORTH

The Moscow Times, Russia Kremlim Expulsion of U.S. Reporter Seen as a Bid to Protect Russia's Image "Whatever the actual reasons for Satter's entry ban, Russia's image will likely deteriorate further as a result, as many English-language media have already characterized the situation as another attempt by the Kremlin to silence its critics." — REPORTER Ivan Nechepurenko PUTIN: SHOOTING RUSSIA IN FOOT?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.S. Polar Vortex a Potential Side Effect of Global Warming “Deep freeze that is gripping America may be connected to shrinking Arctic sea ice caused by manmade climate change.” — SCIENCE EDITOR Andrew Freedman NEW - UNPREDICABLE- NORMAL

The Observer, U.K. Real CES Takaway: More Connected - Less Privacy "Firms routinely sell us devices that they can alter remotely, and they insist that they, not we, own the data we create as we use them. If we don't turn this around, and soon, the corporate privacy and security scandals we've seen to date will look mild. Does industry hear, or will it blithely move on?" — COLUMNIST Dan Gillmor CES 2014: KISS PRIVACY GOODBYE

Financial Times, U.K. The Tide is Rising for American Libertarians “What does it mean for the Democrats? In terms of social values, libertarians are almost identical to liberals. Smoking pot and same-sex marriage both meet with big approval. The same is not true of guns.” — COLUMNIST Edward Luce RIGHT AND LEFT - THE STARS ALIGN

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands Don't Believe the Hype Over the NSA Quantum Computer TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "There is no real news here, and no quantum computer. So why all the fuss? ... There is something else at play: the science-fiction factor. You can imagine it already: underground bases a la James Bond, where men in white suits tinker with an enigmatic, humming machine. ... Seriously, a lot more James Bond films will premiere before the arms race against the hackers produces winners or losers." — COLUMNIST Maarten Keulemans WHY GET WORKED UP INTO A LATHER?

Trouw, The Netherlands Iraq's Sectarian Disaster - Courtesy of Rumsfeld & Co TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Can the mutual bloodshed in Iraq honestly be credited wholly to the Yankees? Isn't the battle between Sunnis and Shiites the result of a schism that goes back to the 7th century? Did they really need the encouragement of the Americans to beat each other's brains out or cut off one another's heads?.” — COLUMNIST Stevo Akkerman 'UNKNOWNS' COME HOME TO ROOST

Reuters, U.K. European Bankers Use The Wolf of Wall Street to 'Mingle with Clients' "Bankers across Europe are filling cinema seats for a sneak peek at 'The Wolf of Wall Street,' booking out theatres and rolling out the red carpet for clients eager to see a movie about excesses in their own high-flying industry." — REPORTER Mia Shanley BANKERS WATCH BANKERS MISBEHAVE

Izvestia, Russia The 'Cure' for Terrorism: Forbid All News Coverage TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “In order to prevent terrorists from achieving their main goal - leading the news of the day - the time has come to abandon the principle of informing the public about acts of terrorism. ... We must use the authority of the state to withhold data about terror attacks to protect the security of our citizens.” — Oleg Matveyichev, former vice governor of Volgograd Oblast SHOULD YOU BE ALLOWED TO SEE THIS?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Ex-Canada Defense Chief Says Aliens will Help Humanity if We 'War Less' Jan. 5, 00:20:00 "Apollo astronaut Edgar Mitchell, who came to Toronto a few years ago and had with dinner with us, agreed there were something around two and twelve species, but the latest reports I’ve been getting are that there are about 80 species - and some of them look just like us. ... they could walk down the street and you wouldn’t know you passed one." — Former Canada Defense Minister Paul Hellyer EXAMINING THE LEGAL BASIS

Elsevier, The Netherlands European Justice Commissioner Seeks a 'United States of Europe' TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "European Commissioner for Justice Viviane Reding wants the European Union to create something akin to the United States, with two houses - parliament and senate, which would serve as a check on political union. The two chambers would provide oversight of the European Commission, which would form [a directly-elected] government." — REPORTER Servaas van der Laan IS EUROPE PREPARED FOR TRUE POLITICAL UNION?

Die Welt, Germany American Idealism 'More Honest' than Germany's TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “You meet far more Germans who despise America than Americans who reproach Germany. Americans can hardly believe that a powerful nation like Germany doesn't have a more capable intelligence service. Are there alternatives to continuing and even strengthening transatlantic ties? Of course there are. The trouble is, all of them are far worse.” — COLUMNIST Ansgar Graw REBUILDING GERMAN-AMERICAN TRUST

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA Comment Doesn't Deny Spying on U.S. Lawmakers "In its statement, which comes as the NSA gears up for a make-or- break legislative battle over the scope of its surveillance powers, the agency pointed to 'privacy protections' which it says it keeps on all Americans' phone records." — REPORTERS Spencer Ackerman and Martin Pengelly NO ONE EXEMPT FROM ALL SEEING NSA

Gazeta, Russia Putin's Punished Orphans Now in the Global Spotlight TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “There is information on 196 children who had already been matched with potential American parents, but were not permitted to unite with them. 95 of them, despite the promises of our leaders, remained in orphanages at the end of the year. ... 95 children who could already have been with a family for an entire year. That's a lot by any measure. I believe that posturing in the international arena is not worth ruining the life of even a single child.” — COLUMNIST Elena Alshanskaya KREMLIN VICTIMIZES U.S.-BOUND ORPHANS

Chaos Communication Congress, Germany VIDEO: EFF Lawyer Kurt Opsahl: Everything We Know about NSA Spying Dec. 30, 01:03:16 "Electronic Frontier Foundation attorney Kurt Opsahl explains what we now know about how the programs operate and the laws and regulations the U.S. asserts allows the NSA to spy on Americans and non-Americans." — Kurt Opsahl, Electronic Frontier Foundation EXAMINING THE LEGAL BASIS

CHAOS COMMUNICATION
CONGRESS: Spying, Even Now, is
'Worse than Worst Nightmares'

CHAOS COMMUNICATION
CONGRESS: The Philosophy of Hacking

CHAOS COMMUNICATION
CONGRESS: The Exploration and
Exploitation of SD Memory Cards

Le Temps, Switzerland What is There to Fear from Google Robots? TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “I love robots. ... Yet I must confess: to see Boston Dynamics join Google's fleet sends shivers up my spine. What is the firm going to do with its acquisition and seven other robotics firms it has bought? Data collection? Delivery? Help support the next generation? ... The discomfort with the takeover of Boston Dynamics reflects a fear of being defeated in the race for eternity.” — COLUMNIST Jonas Pulver MEET THE SOLDIER OF TOMORROW

Die Welt, Germany The Pope's Un-Christian Rejection of the Richest TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The church does not praise all to the same degree; but has contempt for no one. With the exception of bankers, it appears. ... Poverty is not a consistent symbol for strength of character, nor is wealth always synonymous with hard-heartedness." — COLUMNIST Torsten Krauel HAS POPE FRANCIS GONE TOO FAR?

Der Spiegel, Germany NSA's Secret Toolbox: Unit Offers Espionage Gadgets for All Needs “The NSA has a secret unit that produces specialized equipment ranging from spyware for computers and cell phones to listening posts and USB sticks that work as bugging devices.” — Jacob Appelbaum, Judith Horchert, Ole Reissmann, Christian Stocker, Jorg Schindler, Marcel Rosenbach NSA'S VERSION OF 'Q' REVEALED

DER SPIEGEL: Shopping
for Spy Gear: Catalog
Advertises NSA Toolbox

Der Spiegel, Germany NSA 'Intercepts' PC's to Install Back Doors “If a target person, agency or firm orders a computer or related accessories, for example, TAO can divert the shipping delivery to its own secret workshops. ... At these so-called 'load stations,' agents carefully open the package in order to load malware or install hardware components that can provide backdoor access to the intelligence agencies.” — REPORTERS Laura Poitras, Jacob Appelbaum, Marcel Rosenbach, Holger Star, Christian Stocker, Jorg Schindler

Computer World, The Netherlands Like this One, 2014 will be Year of Edward Snowden TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “All of the nearly 7 billion people who are not American have zero rights or protections in the eyes of the NSA (and U.S. law), and are therefore by definition suspect. ... In many other countries, feigned outrage is a major element. ... But the underlying sentiment is actually envy: we want this as well. In the Netherlands, another side of this is becoming clear: jealousy.” — COLUMNIST Andreas Udo de Haes A PLANETARY LOSS OF INNOCENCE

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Ex-U.K. Intelligence Officer: 'World Sleepwalks Into an Orwellian Horror' Dec. 24, 00:25:46 "We’re sleepwalking toward a dystopian society here, because it’s not just phone calls, these e-mails that are intercepted. If you walk down the street, cams follow you, if you drive on main roads your car is registered as cameras pick up your license plate, your sat-nav can be traced, your mobile phone can be traced, your use of data-cards can be traced – all of this can be traced." — Former British Military Intelligence Officer Mike Smith NSA STATUS QUO UNDER ATTACK

The Telegraph, U.K. Younger Users: Facebook Seen as 'Dead and Buried' “Young people now see the site as 'uncool' and keep their profiles purely to stay in touch with older relatives for whom it stays popular.” —REPORTER Matthew Sparkes FACEBOOK'S AGING USER PROFILES

Der Spiegel, Germany Snowden on How GCHQ Monitors Germany, Israel and the European Union "Documents from Edward Snowden show that Britain's GCHQ targeted Europe, German, Israeli leaders." — REPORTERS Laura Poitras, Marcel Rosenbach and Holger Stark

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Max Keiser on Big Oil's Declaration of Santa as a 'Terrorist' Dec. 24, 00:25:46 Max Keiser and Stacy Herbert discuss the no Ho, Ho, Ho this Christmas, with Canada claiming Santa's workshop in the race to secure oil and mineral reserves in the Arctic; Max interviews former energy regulator Chris Cook, about the middlemen who dominate the energy market. — HOSTS Max Keiser, Stacey Herbert ITS CHRISTMASTIME IN THE ARCTIC

El DIario Exterior, Spain Why in Mandela's Name, Obama Rightly Slapped Dictator Raul Castro TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH "Cuban newspaper Granma didn't reprint Barak Obama's speech in South Africa. It was a humiliation for Raul Castro. After the protocol handshake, Obama explained that the name 'Mandela' should not be taken in vain." — COLUMNIST Carlos Alberto Montaner THE HANDSHAKE AND THE SLAP

Yezhednevniy Zhurnal, Russia The U.S. Delegation to Sochi: A Boycott By Any Other Name TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “The non-appearance of Obama will not deprive athletes of their dreams, but it does send a clear message to our leaders about how they are perceived throughout the world. We tell fairy tales about how anti-gay laws are not anti-gay, that they're against some unintelligible propaganda and target only pedophiles. In decent countries, they know perfectly well who these laws target.” — COLUMNIST Anton Oryekh THE NON-BOYCOTT BOYCOTT

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Max Keiser: 'World Shuns American Companies thanks to NSA Surveillance Dec. 23, 00:25:46 "Saab shares soared by over 30% on this news, meaning the markets had not yet priced in this collaprsing U.S. empire as a result of the NSA spying scandal - even if we have reported that IBM sales were collapsing and the likes of IBM. ... Becuase of the NSA infiltration of products with spying technology, items that incorparate them are rendered worthless.” — HOSTS Max Keiser, Stacey Herbert HOW SURVEILLANCE IS SINKING AMERICA

EU Parliament, Belgium VIDEO: Glenn Greenwald Tells E.U. that U.S. Seeks to 'Eliminate All Privacy' Nov. 18, 01:25:00 The E.U. Parliament Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs questions Glenn Greenwald as part of its probe into the electronic mass spying on E.U. citizens. It runs just over an hour and thiety minutes. — GREENWALD ANSWERS EUROPEAN LAWMAKERS ELIMINATING ELECTRONIC PRIVACY

Die Welt, Germany Al-Qaeda and the Nazis: 4,481 Days that Terrorized the World TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "For the same length of time Osama bin Laden's face has been with us as the embodiment of al-Qaeda and as the physical symbol of a movement willing to commit mass murder - Hitler, too, terrorized the world, and compelled it to defend itself." — COLUMNIST Torsten Krauel TWO REIGNS OF TERROR: 4,481 DAYS

Financial Times, U.K. NSA Fallout: Brazil Snubs Boeing; Saab Wins Jet Deal “Analysts said the contract may be the biggest casualty yet for the U.S. in a bitter dispute with Brasília over revelations from former NSA analyst Edward Snowden of extensive spying by Washington in Brazil, including on President Dilma Rousseff and staff.” — CORRESPONDENT Carola Hoyos and Joe Leahy

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama's Review Panel: 'Strip NSA of Phone Data Collection' “The NSA should be banned from seeking to undermine the security of the Internet and stripped of its power to collect phone records in bulk, a White House review panel recommended on Wednesday.” —CORRESPONDENTS Dan Roberts and Spencer Ackerman ANOTHER BLOW TO THE EMBATTLED NSA

GUARDIAN: Comprehensive
Review of Today's Coverage
of NSA Review Panel Report
GUARDIAN: NSA Review Panel
Stops Short of Seeking
Concrete Surveillance Reforms

The Telegraph, U.K. Gulag Survivor Calls on Dennis Rodman to Make Kim Jong-un 'Hear the Cries of his People' “I can't presume to tell you to cancel your trip to North Korea .. It is your right to drink fancy wines and enjoy yourself in luxurious parties, as you reportedly did in your previous trips to Pyongyang. But as you have a fun time with the dictator, please try to think about what he and his family have done before and continue to do.” — PRISON CAMP SURVIVOR Shin Dong-hyuk IMPASSIONED PLEA TO DENNIS RODMAN

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Raise a Glass to Peter O'Toole: The Last of the 60s Hellraisers “As with his peers and drinking buddies Richard Burton, Richard Harris and Oliver Reed, much of his best work seems to have been done under the influence. ... 'We heralded the 60s,' he once said. 'Me, Burton, Richard Harris – we did in public what everyone else did in private then, and does for show now. We drank in public ... and we knew about pot.'” —REPORTER Dominic Rushe WORLD SAYS GOODBYE TO PETER O'TOOLE

Izvestia, Russia Duma Lawmakers Promise 'Retaliation' if United States Expands the Magnitsky List TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “[It is likely the U.S. will expand the list]. This is attested to by the hostile acts of U.S. prosecutors, who allege that our diplomats have been involved with spying and a medical insurance scam. It seems to me that there has been a wave of anti-Russian hysteria aroused by our decision over Edward Snowden. The expansion of the Magnitsky list is a reprisal by the Americans [over Snowden].” — Senator Igor Morozov, Federation Council Foreign Affairs Committee MAGNITSKY MURDER CASTS SHADOW

Der Spiegel, Germany Tale of Two Cities: America's Bipolar Climate Tomorrow “In America, two very different worlds have come into existence along the same coastline. In one of those worlds, people pay attention to climate predictions. In the other, they don't. While New Yorkers believe they have to do something against global warming, because it could spell the city's demise, the citizens of New Bern would rather put their faith in God's creation.” —CORREESPONDENTS Marc Hujer and Samiha Shafy CAN ALL THE SCIENCE BE WRONG?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA Review to Leave Spying Programs Largely Unchanged: Reports “The group was searching for ways to make the most modest pivot necessary to continue business as usual.” — Sascha Meinrath, Open Technology Institute SURVEILLANCE REFORM UNLIKELY

GUARDIAN: You, Me and
Edward Snowden – We've All
Been Let Down by the E.U.
GUARDIAN: Under New
Law, French Can Monitor
Internet Users in Real Time
DER SPIEGEL: Edward
Snowden Will Make Video
Appearance Before E.U.

The Telegraph, U.K. Ten Years After Saddam's Capture, Iraq Still Bleeds “Friday's anniversary of Saddam's arrest sees the country struggling with a resurgent al-Qaeda and a death rate double that of a decade ago.” —CORREESPONDENT Colin Freeman IRAQ'S UNENDING BLOODSHED

Die Tageszeitung, Germany Google, Facebook, Microsoft, et. al., Mount 'Disingenuous' Anti-Surveillance Campaign TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The major Internet companies - from Google to Microsoft to Facebook - are launching a campaign against spy agency programs. Seem disingenuous? Exactly. That such corporations are demanding limits on data collection is a bad joke.” — EDITORIAL, Die Tageszeitung HAVE THE TECH GIANTS GOTTEN RELIGION?

Guardian Unlmited, U.K. Putin Defends Anti-Gay Laws; Says Russia is a 'Bastion of Conservatism' “In the global arena, Russia is a defender of conservative values against an assault of genderless and fruitless so-called tolerance.” —PRESIDENT Vladimir Putin PUTIN: NO APOLOGIES TO LGBT

Kommersant, Russia U.S. and China Agree to Split the 21st Century TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “During Vice President Biden's visit to China, we have seen the realization of the idea of global governance carried out by two major powers - America and China. It is crucial that the two sides should act as equal players in this. ... Beijing has long been pushing the United States in this direction, and Joe Biden's visit has allowed China to take another step toward its implementation.” — COLUMNIST Sergei Strokan

Guardian Unlmited, U.K. Mandela Memorial Sign Language Interpreter Accused of Faking it “I was upset and humilated. He made up his own signs. What happened at Mandela's memorial service is truly disgraceful thing to see – it should not happen at all. What happened today will be forever aligned with Mandela and the deaf community, thanks to this fake interpreter.” —Braam Jordaan, a deaf South African and board member of the World Deaf Federation ANC SIGN MAKER CALLED A 'FRAUD'

Der Spiegel, Germany Woman at the Window: Judging Snowden from the House Next Door “He's no hero ... He isn't just a threat to my security, but to that of the entire country and other countries, as well. He's a traitor, and should be tried, convicted and sent to prison. For the rest of his life. Just like other traitors. I'm sorry. The guy wanted to be famous. That's all he really wanted.” —SNOWDEN Neighbor Joyce Kinsey

NEIGHBOR: NO FAN OF SNOWDENS

DER SPIEGEL: Deutsche Telekom
CEO Says U.S. 'Should Abide by
European Privacy Rules'
DER SPIEGEL: Germnany: 'Tough
on Russia, Easy on America'

Guardian Unlmited, U.K. Surveillance of Personal Data is 'Theft,' Say the World's Leading Authors “More than 500 of the world's leading authors, including five Nobel lureates, condemn the scale of official surveillance revealed by the whistleblower Edward Snowden and warned that intelligence agencies are undermining democracy and must be curbed by new rules.” —REPORTERS Matthew Taylor and Nick Hopkins AUTHORS JOIN TECH COMPANIES

London Review of Books, U.K. Seymour Hersh: 'Whose Sarin was It?' “But in recent interviews with intelligence and military officers and consultants past and present, I found intense concern, and anger, over what was seen as deliberate manipulation of intelligence.” —REPORTER Seymour Hersh OF SARIN GAS AND FALSE FLAGS

Guardian Unlmited, U.K. Tech Firms Demand 'Global Government Surveillance Reform' “The balance in many nations has tipped too far in favor of the state and away from the rights of the individual, rights that are enshrined in our constitution. This undermines the freedoms we all cherish. It's time for change.” —Joint Letter from Apple, Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Yahoo, LinkedIn, Twitter, AOL

MINT, MACEDONIA: U.S. Agency's
New Logo is ... an Evil Octopus
EL PAIS, SPAIN: 'The Guardian'
Under Shadow of McCarthyism
GUARDIAN: Edward Snowden Voted
the Guardian's 'Person of the Year'

The Spectator, U.K. Jimmy Carter 'Talks Sense' about Mandela “No [Nelson Mandala cannot be compared to Jesus]. I look upon Jesus Christ as the Son of God, as God himself, and I certainly wouldn’t compare any human being with Jesus.” —PRESIDENT Jimmy Carter

JIMMY CARTER: HE'S NO JESUS

BBC NEWS: As it Happened:
Reaction to Mandela's Death
REUTERS: Obama, Bush and
Clinton Head for South Africa

E.U. Observer, Belgium Edward Snowden to Make Video Appearance at the E.U. Parliament “The meeting will be live- streamed but the statement will be recorded answers of our questions, which will we send to him in advance.” —German MP Jan Phillip Albrecht

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. WikiLeaks' Sarah Harrison: 'How Can You Take Pierre PayPal's Omidyar Seriously?' “If you [Omidyar] set up a new media organization which claims to seek to do everything for press freedom, but you join a blockade against another media organisation, then that's hard for us to take it seriously. But I hope that they stick to their promises.” — WIKILEAKS Staffer, Snowden Collaborator, Sarah Harrison

Le Monde, France Treaty with Iran: Superpower Pacts Provide Cause for Worry TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Military nuclear programs, having first become a topic of international treaties in 1963, have not been free of deceit and bad intentions. If we examine those signed not long ago between the United States and Soviet Union, but also those that extend to the world community, one must admit that behind the media smoke screen of signatures, one finds every kind of depravity imaginable." — HISTORIAN Jacques Villain WHAT HISTORY TELLS US ABOUT GENEVA DEAL

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. 'Global Bullshit Industry' Hijacks Holiday Season
SANTA ABUSE	“A global bullshit industry recruits the values with which we'd like the festival to be invested – to sell things no one wants.” —COLUMNIST George Monbiot

GUARDIAN: The Lies Behind the
E.U.-U.S. Transatlantic Trade Deal

British Parliament, U.K. VIDEO: Guardian Editor Alan Rusbridger Testifies Before Parliament on Snowden Files Dec. 3, 01:16:37 "Shooting the messenger is the oldest diversionary trick in the book. My experience is that when you speak to people and explain the issues, they are deeply interested. I can't think of any story in recent times that has ricocheted around the world like this and which has been more broadly debated in parliaments, courts, NGOs.” — GUARDIAN Senior Editor Alan Rusbridger GUARDIAN EDITOR: FACE OFF WITH 'THE MAN'

Izvestia, Russia A U.S.-Russia-China Alliance Offers Iran, Israel a Way Out TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “"The U.S., Russia and China may act as guarantors of Iranian security if it meets the terms of the Geneva deal. All of their authority, both political and military, should be deployed to defend the Islamic Republic against possible outside aggression. Of course, such a guarantee should also be extended to the state of Israel.” — COLUMNIST Kiril Benediktov

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Guardian Editor Rusbridger Faces Lawmakers: Live “• Editor defends paper over Snowden leaks • Some people 'may have committed an offence' - police • Summary of Rusbridger's testimony • Read story: Guardian 'will not be intimidated'.” — REPORTER Paul Owen

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Snowden Revelations Prompt U.N. Probe into Mass Surveillance “The U.N.'s senior counter- terrorism official wil launch an investigation into the surveillance powers of U.S. and U.K. intelligence agencies.” — REPORTERS Nick Hopkins and Matthew Taylor

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Accusation that Guardian Aided Terror by Publishing Snowden Docs 'Outrageous'
PROBE COMING	“The astonishing suggestion that this sort of responsible journalism can be equated with aiding and abetting terror needs to be scotched decisively.” — U.N. Special Rapporteur Ben Emmerson QC

Le Figaro, France European Journalist Battles for U.S.-Style Magnitsky Act TRANSLATED FROM FRANCE “The rights of those guilty of violent abuses of human rights, whoever and wherever they are, will have their dirty money seized and travel in democratic countries restricted, particularly in the U.S. and Europe, where they like spending their cash.” — COLUMNIST Jean-Sebastien Stehli CHALLENGING RUSSIA ON HUMAN RIGHTS

BBC News, U.K. Pope Francis: Liberals Love his Trickle-Down Takedown “Pope Francis made headlines when he called on the Catholic Church to be more decentralized and to focus on the poor. Few likely expected the pontiff to take a shot at supply- side economics and 'trickle-down theories' by name, however.” —REPORTERS Anthony Zurche

WAS JESUS CHRIST A SUPPLY-SIDER?

Alquds Alarabi, United Kingdom Unintended Consequences of Nuclear-Defanged Iran TRANSLATED FROM ARABIC “Iran, after abandoning its military nuclear program, will be able to focus its efforts on asserting its influence in the region and being a regional power - at the expense of its main rival: Saudi Arabia. ... In response, the Gulf States are closing ranks and giving greater support to their allies in the face of rising Iran.” — EDITORIAL, Alquds Alarabi TEHRAN: PLAYING THE LONG GAME

NRC Handelsblad, The Netherlands NSA Infected Over 50,000 Networks Worldwide with Theft-Enabling Software “The malware can be controlled remotely and be turned on and off at will. The ‘implants’ act as digital ‘sleeper cells’ that can be activated with a single pushbutton.” —REPORTERS Floor Boon, Steven Derix, Huib Modderkolk

NSA: POISED TO FOR DATA THEFT

GUARDIAN: NSA 'Collected
Details of Online Sexual
Activity' of Muslim Radicals
THE LOCAL: Britain,
China and Russia also
'Tapped Merkel's Phone'
GAURDIAN ANIMATION: NSA
Surveillance Made Simple

De TIJD, Belgium Iran Nuclear Agreement Will be a Stepping Stone to Better Things ... Maybe! TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "For years, anything comparable to this would have been impossible - even as the economic blockade slowly suffocated Iran. ... Simple this is not. The past teaches us that Iran is not an easy negotiating partner - and the extent to which the religious regime could come round and give up a majority of its nuclear ambitions is questionable." — COLUMNIST Jean Vanempten ARE THE IRANIANS BACK IN THE PACK?

The Telegraph, U.K. China-Japan Rearmament is Keynesian Stimulus - Unless it All Goes Horribly Wrong
BUBBLING HOTSPOT	“Asia is on the cusp of a full-blown arms race. The escalating clash between China and almost all its neighbors in the Pacific has now crossed a threshold. All other economic issues at this point are becoming secondary.” — COLUMNIST Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

Boulevard Voltaire, France Dallas 1963: Why the FED Struck Back! TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “With almost suicidal political courage: he wants to gut the CIA, he wants to pull the military out of Vietnam, and most importantly, in June 4, 1963, he takes the incredible decision to restore monetary sovereignty to the state! When he signed the Executive Order 11110, he may have signed his own death warrant.” —EDITORIAL, Boulevard Voltaire

WAS FED BEHIND JFK'S DEATH?

Reuters, U.K. Spies Fear Snowden Stashed 'Doomsday Cache' in the Cloud "'The cache may contain documents generated by the NSA and other agencies and includes names of U.S. and allied intelligence agents, seven current and former U.S. officials and others briefed on the matter said. ... The passwords are in the possession of at least three different people and are valid for only a brief time window each day, they said." — CORRESPONDENT Mark Hosenball

The Telegraph, U.K. Iran Nuclear Agreement: Saudi Arabia Warns it Will Strike Out on its Own “Saudi Arabia claims it as kept in the dark by Western allies over Iran nuclear deal and if need be, it will strike out on its own.” —CORRESPONDENT Damien McElroy BACKLASH FROM PERSIAN GULF

GUARDIAN: Nuclear Agreement -
a Historic Deal Worth Defending
GUARDIAN: Secret Talks Helped
Forge Iranian Nuclear Deal

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Nuclear Disaster a 'Warning to World,' says TEPCO Boss “We tried to persuade people that nuclear power is 100% safe. That was easy for both sides. Our side explains how safe nuclear power is. The other side is the people who listen and for them it is easy to hear OK, it's safe, sure, why not? ... It is easy to say this is almost perfect so we don't have to worry about it. But we have to keep thinking: what if?” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany U.S. Consulate General in Frankfurt: American Spy Central on German Soil TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "'Consulate General' has the ring of glamorous balls, ceremonial welcoming addresses, or even of people who issue passports and visas. It doesn't sound like a control center for abductions, where the logistics of secret prisons planned, or that functions as a postal cover address for CIA operations and agents of the secret services." — REPORTERS Christian Fuchs, John Goetz, Frederik Obermaier, Bastian Obermayer, Tanjev Schultz FROM NEW BOOK 'THE SECRET WAR'

Der Spiegel, Germany Documents: The NSA Wanted To Collect Geolocation Data “The White House had to declassify NSA documents again. The papers show that the agency also wanted to collect and save mobile phone location information domestically and may already be doing so.” —REPORTER Christian Stocker

DER SPIEGEL: Berlin Makes
an Easy Target for Spies

Le Temps, Switzerland Europe's Price for Trade Talks Must Be End to U.S. Impunity TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Former Khmer Rouge cadres are now facing justice for crimes against humanity in Cambodia. In contrast, Henry Kissinger will never be bothered by judges. ... Must we wear blinders and limit ourselves to liberalizing trade, leaving Europe and the world to further suffer the influence of Washington, Wall Street and Hollywood? — COLUMNIST Christophe Germann SHOULD UNITED STATES BE ABOVE THE LAW?

Tagesschau, Germany Reports Expose America's 'Secret War' in Germany TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “A joint NDR-Suddeutsche Zeitung investigation shows that the U.S., in the battle against terrorism, organized kidnapping and torture in Germany. U.S. security forces, in the process, arrested suspects at German airports. According to the investigation, U.S. agents interrogated asylum-seekers and gathered information that may have played a role in determinin g drone targets. A secret torture prison was constructed at a CIA base in Frankfurt am Main.” —NEWS ITEM, Tagesschau

A NEW INTRUSION INTO GERMANY?

Der Spiegel, Germany Legal Issues Overwhelm Cornelius Gurlitt Art Find “A large number of works were removed from Gurlitt's flat, many of unknown origin. Attorneys from all over the world - about 100 so far - are filing claims to these artworks on behalf of their clients. The U.S. government is finding fault with Germany's approach to the case. Mr. Gurlitt, the supposed culprit, has been deprived of his collection, and yet he is not suspected of having committed a crime.” —REPORTERS Lothar Gorris, Ulrike Knofel, Conny Neumann, Sven Röbel, Fidelius Schmid and Michael Sontheimer

ART RECLUSE SPEAKS TO THE WORLD

DER SPIEGEL: Interview with
a Phantom - Cornelius Gurlitt
Shares Some of His Secrets

Die Tageszeitung Germany Claimants to Massive Nazi Looted Art Find are in for a Long Wait TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “It isn't clear where these paintings will go once the tax case has been resolved. The principles of the Washington Conference apply to public museums, collections, archives, and libraries, but not to private collections. ... Nor are museums that encounter modernist works that were expropriated from them in Gurlitt's collection able to claim restitution. As owner of the paintings, the German Reich could decide freely whether or not to part with its art, for any reason whatsoever” —NEWS ITEM, Die Tageszeitung

$1.35 BILLION: WHO OWNS IT?

News, Switzerland Swiss Asylum for Snowden Would Win Points in Berlin TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “For Angela Merkel and her party buddies, Snowden is a smoking hot potato they would prefer not even to touch. However, on its own, the desire for the information this person has, practically speaking, obliges one to take the informant in. ... Snowden could serve as a bridge - making German Socialists ... more well-disposed toward Switzerland. If Switzerland could do the right thing and make not just enemies but new friends - that would be a real change of pace.” —COLUMNIST Hermann Tertsch

WILL SWISS RUN INTERFERENCE?

Daily Mail, U.K. Massive Scientology Center with 'Super Power' Floor to Open in Clearwater, Florida “The opening of the building Sunday will mark the first time Scientologists have had a space to receive 'Super Power' training - developed by the religion's founder L. Ron Hubbard.” —CORRESPONDENT Ashley Collman

FLORIDA SUPER POWER CENTER OPENS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. New York Times Defends Guardian's Snowden Leaks “The New York Times has published similar material, believing that the public has a clear interest in learning about and debating the N.S.A.'s out- of-control spying on private communications. That interest is shared by the British public as well.” —EDITORIAL, The New York Times

FREE PRESS ENDANGERED IN BRITAIN?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. New York Stops to Listen as Lou Reed Memorial Floods City with His Music “New York without Lou Reed – it's unimaginable. ... He was a pioneer – even with what we're doing here.” —Lou Reed Mourner Brian Kaiser

WIFE LAURIE ANDERSON LISTENS TO LOU

ABC, Spain German 'Snowden-Mania' Puts All of Europe at Risk TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “A traitorous American spy and a hefty dose of German idealism has been injected into the veins of a society stirred up by media which is as populist as it is irresponsible. ... The Teutonic sentimentality feeding this defense of Snowden as an intrepid and romantic spy defying empire doesn't bode well.” —COLUMNIST Hermann Tertsch

GERMANS GETTING CARRIED AWAY?

Izvestia, Russia Moscow Tongues Wag Over the 'Downfall' of U.S. Envoy McFaul TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "During his tenure, McFaul has achieved nothing, and the relationship between the countries has become much more complex: the Magnitsky List, the Dima Yakovlev Law, Georgia, North Korea, Iran, Syria. ... Russia needs a professional. — Igor Morozov, Duma Committee for Global Affairs MCFAUL OUT AS AMBASSADOR?

Der Spiegel, Germany John McCain: NSA Chief 'Should Resign or be Fired' “They ought to be held accountable ... the head of the NSA, president, the Intelligence Committees in the Congress, all of these contractors we pay that were responsible for performing the background checks. There should be a wholesale housecleaning. Knowing how angry Angela Merkel was, President Obama should have apologized.” —SENATOR John McCain

MCCAIN WANTS HEADS TO ROLL AT NSA

DER SPIEGEL: Germany Warns
U.S. that Facilities Could be
Attacked Over NSA Anger
DER SPIEGEL: NSA Fallout -
Berlin Moves to Increase
Mobile Phone Security

Der Postillon, Germany U.S. Combat Drones Fly South for Afghan Winter TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "I usually enjoy watching this actually - from a safe distance, of course. ... I've already photographed a few General Atomics MQ-1 Predators, and the occasional MQ-1C Gray Eagle, as well as of a rare MQ-9A Reaper drone. It's just those damned stealth drones, like the Lockheed Martin RQ-170 Sentinel, that you can never get in front of the lens. At this rate, I'll never be able to fill up my drone album! — Amateur Ornithologist Khalid Bayat AFGHANISTAN 'BIRD' WATCHING

Reuters, U.K. Snowden Persuaded Other NSA Workers to Give up Passwords "Snowden used login credentials and passwords provided unwittingly by colleagues at a spy base in Hawaii to access some of the classified material he leaked to the media." — REPORTERS Warren Strobel, Mark Hosenball

De Volkskrant, The Netherlands Lawsuit Seeks to Halt Dutch 'Laundering' of NSA-Acquired Data TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “The NSA violates the law IN the Netherlands and then delivers information to the AIVD. The Service is then allowed to be secretive about the data's origins, ultimately laundering the data. Something like this is obviously not permissible. Our demand is simple: this practice must stop.” —Investigative Journalist Brenno de Winter

DUTCH MINISTER ON THE LINE

Guardian Unlimited U.K. NSA Leaks: U.K. Enemies are 'Rubbing their Hands with Glee', says MI6 Chief "The leaks from Snowden have been very damaging. They have put our operations at risk. It is clear our enemies are rubbing their hands with glee. ... Al-Qaeda is lapping it up." — Sir John Sawers, MI6 Chief SPY CHIEFS WARN OVER LEAKS

Die Welt, Germany Elections Topple Global Cliches about America TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Almost every preconceived notion we are accustomed to internationally was thrown overboard. To sum up: a leftie now governs New York, a Black man the White House, a White man Detroit, and a Republican New Jersey. Once again, we can forget all the cliches about America.” —COLUMNIST Eric Gujer

THUNDER ON THE CENTER-RIGHT

Savon Sanomat, Finland After Scandal, Obama is Far from Justifying His Nobel Peace Prize TRANSLATED FROM FINNISH "The spy scandal shaking THE world won't help any. It is interesting to consider what makes spying and data breaches by an agency like the NSA acceptable, but the intrusions of individual hackerss into state information systems such a serious infraction. — COLUMNIST Jari Tourunen LOVE: THE NEW SNOWDEN?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Tim Berners-Lee: Encryption Cracking by Our Spy Agencies is 'Appalling and Foolish' “The computer scientist who created the world wide web, has called for a 'full and frank public debate' on Web surveillance by the National Security Agency and its British counterpart, GCHQ, warning that the system of checks and balances to oversee the intelligence agencies failed.” —REPORTER Ed Pilkington

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Kerry May Bring Happy NSA Surprise for Poles TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "Now we'll be spared the hassle of having to submit to an often embarrassing conversation with the American consul. It will be enough for a Mr. Kowalski, in a telephone conversation with anyone - say his wife, to hint that he wants to go to America, and the NSA spy system will unerringly catch it, check what it has on the Kowalskis in its databases, and within 48 hours they will receive an answer from the Consulate via letter." — COLUMNIST Mariusz Zawadzki WILL SPIES PAY OFF FOR POLES?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Trade Deal with U.S. is a Full- Frontal Assault on Democracy
TRADE TALKS	“Brussels has remained quiet about a treaty that would let rapacious companies subvert our laws, our rights and national our sovereignty.” —COLUMNIST George Monbiot

DER SPIEGEL: U.S. Complaints of
German Exports are 'Unfounded'

Der Spiegel Germany Ten Essential Witnesses for Investigating NSA Surveillance in Germany TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "This week, the Parliamentary Oversight Committee will meet to discuss the latest revelations about the NSA's spying assault. At that point, a decision will be made as to whether to form a Bundestag committee of inquiry. Such a committee would be unpleasant for many of those involved. So who should be called as witnesses? Here are ten people who should be called by any such committee." — COLUMNIST Veit Medick GERMANS PONDER THEIR NEXT MOVE

DER SPIEGEL: Et Tu, U.K.? Anger
Grows over British Spying in Berlin
THE INDEPENDENT: Revealed - Britain's
'Secret Listening Post' in Heart of Berlin'
DER SPIEGEL: Germany's Quandary:
The Debate over Asylum for Snowden
DER SPIEGEL: Free Press? Guardian
Editor Laments 'Retrogressive' State
DER SPIEGEL: Codependent: Merkel's
Pragmatic Approach to NSA Scandal
DER SPIEGEL: Merkel Spying: It's
'Unlikely' White House Didn't Know

Der Spiegel Germany Without Our Own Internet, Germany and Europe Have No Genuine Sovereignty TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The notion of entering into a 'no-spy agreement' is absurd. The Americans are incapable of entering into an deal that demands self-restraint. There is no agreement in the world to which the U.S. intelligence services would adhere - we now know that much. ... In South America, the creation of their own network is being contemplated. That is also the correct path for Europeans." — COLUMNIST Jacob Augstein WEB BALKANIZATION CLOSES IN

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. CIA Made Doctors Torture Suspected Terrorists After Sept. 11, Taskforce Finds “The report of the Task force on Preserving Medical Professionalism in National Security Detention Centers concludes that after 9/11, health professionals working with the military and intelligence, 'designed and participated in cruel, inhumane and degrading treatemnt and torture of detainees.'” —HEALTH EDITOR Sarah Boseley

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. GCHQ and European Spy Agencies Work Together on Mass Surveillance “The Snowden papers unmask close technical cooperation and a loose alliance among British, German, French, Spanish and Swedish intelligence agencies.” —REPORTER Julian Borger E.U. SPIES DO SPYING TOGETHER

REUTERS: Glenn Greenwald's
Partner Accused of 'Terrorism'

The Observer, U.K. Is the Album Dead? Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus and Elton John Hit by Dramatic U.S. Sales Slump “Lou Reed's album sales may have risen 607% in the U.S. last week, one of many tributes to New York's rock 'n' roll poet of the streets, but that did little to dispel mood that has descended on the business.” —COLUMNIST Edward Helmore

REED'S PASSING: LAST GASP FOR ALBUMS?

Der Spiegel, Germany Transatlantic Ties Ought Not Be Jeopardized Over Spying “If Europeans want to salvage trans-Atlantic relations, they must accept doing so without an official, public apology.” — COLUMNIST Annette Heuser

BURNING DOWN THE HOUSE?

Le Monde, France War Weary West on the New Challenges of War TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Globalization produces deep divisions, some of which turn into a new type of war, in which states, as guarantors of international peace, must prepare themselves for, and accept, a number of challenges.” —RESEARCHER Gaidz Minassian

IS AVERSION TO WAR A DANGER?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Putin's Anointment by Forbes as Number One Hombre 'Jaw-Dropping' “The pint-sized Russian leader doesn't deserve this ego-boost. Putin's power is largely illusory – a false idol erected and fed by a phalanx of Kremlin cronies, and maintained through control of Russia's fast-depleting oil and gas revenues and an ever more repressive grip on civil society.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

NZZ, Switzerland NSA in Germany: Highly Toxic 'Outrage Cocktail' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The U.S. may want to recall a phrase accredited to Napoleon's Chief of Police Joseph Fouche: 'It was worse than a crime; it was an error.' Knowing Merkel's next move on the euro-crisis ahead of the media doesn't justify a transatlantic ice age.” —COLUMNIST Eric Gujer

CAN GERMAN-U.S.TIES BE MENDED?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA has Hurt Transatlantic Relations More than Any al-Qaeda Operative Could
NSA: AMOK?	“A spy outfit unchecked is an outfit that runs amok. It is like a man with a hammer who thinks all things are nails.” — DIE ZEIT PUBLISHER Josef Joffe

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Snowden's Letter to Angela Merkel - Live Coverage “German politician reveals content of letter from the NSA whistleblower to German chancellor whose cell phone he revealed had been monitored by the U.S. for a decade.” —REPORTER Paul Owen

GERMAN OVERTURES

GUARDIAN: British Debate
on NSA is Sadly Lacking

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. John Kerry Admits: Some U.S. Spying has 'Gone Too Far' “The president and I have learned of things that've been happening in many ways on auto-pilot, since the technology is there and the ability is there. ... In some cases, some of these actions reached too far and we are goin g to try to make sure it doesn't happen in future.” —SECRETARY OF STATE John Kerry

CONSIDERING NON-AMERICANS ...

GUARDIAN: NSA Lawyer: Agency
'Giving a Lot of Thought' to the
Privacy Rights of Overseas Citizens
FINANCIAL TIMES:
NSA Revelations Boost
Corporate Paranoia
GUARDIAN: Obama Halts NSA
Spying on IMF and World Bank
RUSSIA TODAY: Snowden 'Ready
to Testify' in Merkel Tapping Case

Le Monde, France After PRISM, Europe Must Protect 'Emerging Global Consciousness' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Today we can consider THE information revealed BY Edward Snowden and written about by Glenn Greenwald as the herald of a crucial turning point: the awakening of a global consciousness determined to confront the urgent need to regulate how personal data is harvested, stored and then utilized." — PHILOSOPHER Eric Sadin CONTROLLING OUR OWN DATA

El Pais, Spain NSA: For E.U., it's Better to be 'Heard than Ignored' TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “We in Europe have long complained that the U.S. hasn't been listening to us, that we're a dispensable continent, and that we no longer even show up on America's radar, inundated as it is with blips from the Asia-Pacific. Now we find that they're not only listening to us, they are massively spying on us.” —COLUMNIST Francisco G. Basterra

EUROPE: JUST HAPPY TO BE HEARD?

BBC News, U.K. The War of the Worlds at 75: Still Invading our Fears “What was the first mainstream movie to exploit 9/11 imagery for a horror-entertainment catharsis, after tacit agreement in Hollywood to pull back a bit? A certain film by Spielberg in 2005: War of the Worlds.” —COLUMNIST Jordan Hoffman STILL SETTING THE STANDARD

GUARDIAN: Google and Yahoo
'Furious' over reports that NSA
Secretly Intercepts Data Links

Der Spiegel, Germany Merkel Balks at E.U. Privacy Push “Chancellor Merkel has put on a good show of being outraged by U.S. spying. But, at the same time, she has impeded efforts to strengthen data security. Does she really want increased privacy, or is she more interested in gaining membership into the exclusive group of info- sharing countries known as the 'Five Eyes' club?” —CORRESPONDENT Gregor Peter Schmitz

READING MERKEL TEA LEAVES

DER SPIEGEL: NSA Scandal
- Parliamentary Spying
Inquiry Faces Challenges
GUARDIAN: Boris Johnson
Defends THE Guardian
Over NSA Revelations

Russia Today, Russia NSA Accused of Spying on Vatican Conclave “The American intelligence services allegedly wiretapped cardinals before they elected the new pope, Pope Francis.” —RUSSIA TODAY, News Item SNOOPING ON HOLY FATHER

GUARDIAN: Google and Yahoo
'Furious' over reports that NSA
Secretly Intercepts Data Links

El Pais, Spain Rather than Rajoy's Phone Calls, NSA Should Focus on John Kennedy's Assassin! TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “We shall see just how right the author of 1984 was, now that the All-Hearing Ear ix interested in Merkel's mobile phone and even conversations of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy. All told, the NSA would be better off focusing its efforts at home to see, at long last, who in the hell killed KFK!” —COLUMNIST Manuel Rivas

SHOULD AMERICA SPY ON THIS MAN?

BNR Nieuwsradio, The Netherlands The NSA Proves the Dalai Lama Wrong TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "The Dalai Lama once said, 'A lack of transparency results in suspicion and a deep sense of insecurity.' That's wrong (too bad). Snowden has shown that the United States abuses the availability of online data, and it is precisely that which leads to such suspicion of America." — COLUMNIST Ben van der Burg WRONG ON TRANSPARANCY?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Britney Spears Used By British Navy to Scare Somali Pirates “In an excellent case of 'here's a sentence you won't read every day,' Britney has emerged as an unlikely figurehead in the fight against pirates.” —REPORTER Tim Jonze

SPEARS: PIRATE FRIGHTENER

El Pais, Spain Conflicted Europe Must Defend Citizen Liberties TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH "One can't live in a democracy without guarantees of citizen rights, and without counter- weights to the extraordinary power of the secret services. Yet E.U. countries need the protective shield of the U.S. intelligence services - a fact that checks any desire to retaliate and cushions the blow of this crisis of misrust." — EDITORIAL, El Pais DENDING LIBERTY FROM THE FREE?

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Germany Say it isn't so, NSA! TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “As Obama's cool reaction shows, the government in Washington has apparently yet to grasp the extent of the damage it has caused and continues to cause in Europe. This has strained transatlantic relations - even severely strained.” —COLUMNIST Klaus-Dieter Frankenberger

The Telegraph, U.K. David Cameron 'Spies' Trouble
GLASS HOUSES	“Cameron pays tribute to British intelligence officers - but refuses to say whether his own calls have been bugged.” — COLUMNIST Michael Deacon

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. David Cameron Makes 'Veiled Threat' Over NSA and GCHQ Leaks “David Cameron has called on the Guardian and other newspapers to show 'social responsibility' in reporting on leaked NSA files to avoid high court injunctions.” —CORRESPONDENT Nicholas Watt THREAT OF PRIOR RESTRAINT

GUARDIAN: David Cameron's
Threat to Guardian: Veiled
Maybe, but Very Plain to See

Der Spiegel, Germany Embassy Snooping: The NSA's Secret Spy Hub in Berlin “The U.S. Embassy has not merely been promoting German-U.S. friendship. On the contrary, it is a nest of espionage. From the roof of the embassy, a special CIA-NSA unit can apparently monitor much of the cell phone communication in the government quarter. And there's evidence that agents based there targeted the cell phone Merkel uses most.” —NEWS ITEM, Der Spiegel

THE U.S. EMBASSY IN BERLIN

DER SPIEGEL: Americans
on Spying Scandal: 'Allies
Aren't Always Friends'

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA Oversight Dismissed as 'Illusory'; Anger Intensifies Within Europe and Beyond “With a program of this scope, it is obvious that any form of control becomes illusory when there are hundreds of millions of exchanges that are monitored and surveilled.” —Inter-American Human Rights Commissioner Felipe Gonzales

El Pais, Spain Mass Spying on Innocent Non-Americans Must End TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “The Obama White House cannot continue with a strategy of silence and obstruction in regard to the scandalous violation of individual rights that has been exposed. ... It is hard to accept that the fight against terrorism justifies a need to monitor the communications of millions of people in other nations.” —EDITORIAL, El Pais

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Spain Summons American Ambassador Over Claim NSA Tracked Millions Calls “El Mundo reported on Monday that it had seen an NSA document that showed the U.S. spy agency had intercepted 60.5 million calls in Spain between December 10, 2012 and January 8 of this year.” —CORRESPONDENT Paul Hamilos

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Europe's 'NSA Envy' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “I guarantee that European politicians are outraged by the scale of NSA espionage operations for one reason and one reason only: their own national intelligence agencies lack the chances and momentum possessed by the American NSA.” —COLUMNIST Bartosz Weglarczyk

IS IT ALL ABOUT JEALOUSY?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Caught in an Apparent Fib to Merkel “BILD reported that Obama was personally informed about U.S. surveillance against Merkel by the director of the NSA, Keith Alexander. Data gathered by U.S. spies in Berlin was not channelled through the NSA in Forte Meade, Maryland, but directly to the White House.” —CORRESPONDENTS Paul Lewis, Philip Oltermann

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. As Europe Erupts Over U.S. Spying, NSA Chief Says that Government Must Stop Media
LOOKING GLASSES	“How will U.S. and U.K. officials, in light of their conduct, maintain the pretense that they are free press defenders, and are in a position to lecture and condemn others for violations?” — COLUMNIST Glenn Greenwald

GUARDIAN: Leaked Memos
Reveal GCHQ Efforts to Keep
Mass Surveillance Secret

Die Zeit, Germany NSA Blackmail of Obama Himself Not Far-Fetched TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “One need not be a conspiracy theorist to raise the question: Isn't it possible that Mr. Obama might also be a victim of NSA eavesdropping? It wouldn't be the first time an intelligence agency developed a sense of omnipotence and set itself up as a 'state within the state.'” —COLUMNIST Martin Klingst

BLACKMAILING AND THE NSA

Polityka, Poland Allies or Enemies? American Intelligence Has Lost the Plot TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “It seems the American intelligence services lost any sense of proportion between the scale of the operation and the threats to security. There is also serious doubt as to whether U.S. operations have any legitimate basis in law, and they certainly confer no glory on the United States, which in its political rhetoric, emphasizes the values of democracy and rule of law.” —COLUMNIST Marek Ostrowski

IS U.S. INTELLIGENCE OFF COURSE?

Russia Today, Russia #StopWatchingUS Rallies Against Mass Surveillance; Marches on National Mall “This isn't about red or blue or party lines, and it definitely isn't about terrorism. This is about power, control, and trust in government ... It's about being able to live in a free and open American society ... Elections are coming and we're watching you ... They're public servants and not private investigators.” —STATEMENT, Edward Snowden MARCH AGAINST MASS SURVEILLANCE

DER SPIEGEL: 'Frenemies' -
Spying on Allies Fits Barack
Obama's Standoffish Profile
DER SPIEGEL: E.U. Summit
- Merkel's Delicate Dance
Over Spying Allegations

Trouw, The Netherlands U.S. Espionage? Don't Put Your Open Data in the Town Square! TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “In the Netherlands alone, 1.8 million phone calls were tapped. But we make it so easy for the U.S. We conveniently forget that we're the ones putting all of our business information in unlocked safes in the middle of the town square or the Dam [in Amsterdam]. And then we're surprised that thieves and secret services are poking around our data!” —PRIVACY AND SECURITY RESEARCHER Guido Van 't Noordende

WORLD CONSIDERS PROTECTING ITS DATA

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Germany, France Warn that NSA Spying Fallout Endangers Terror Fight “Germany and France are to spearhead a drive to try to force the Americans to agree to new transatlantic rules on intelligence services behavior.” —CORRESPONDENTS Sam Jones, James Ball COMING TO AN UNDERSTANDING

Le Nouvel Observateur, France NSA Espionage in France: 'Like Snooping on Family' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “This issue is secondary. Yes - it's annoying that someone close to you is spying, but we spy even in families. You may call the French reaction timid, I call it realistic.” —Philippe Moreau Defarges, Foreign Affairs Adviser to the French Government

JUST A SIGN OF BROTHERLY LOVE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Increasingly Isolated; Anger of U.S. Allies Grows “"The surveillance debate in the U.S. is focused on the constitution – and whether the privacy of U.S. citizens is compromised. There seems to b e minimal acknowledgement about the concern other countries have about the rights of their citizens.” —CORRESPONDENTS Dan Roberts, Paul Lewis

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA Monitored Calls of 35 World Leaders after U.S. Official Obtained Contacts • Agency was given more than 200 numbers by government official • NSA encourages departments to share their 'Rolodexes' • Surveillance produced 'little intelligence', secret emo acknowledges. —REPORTER James Ball CAN NSA BE PUT BACK IN ITS CAGE?

France 24, France Former French Spy Chief: 'France Also Spies on U.S.' “Spying on allies is all in a day's work, former head of France's domestic intelligence agency said on Thursday. France spies on the United States just as the United States spies on France.” — CORRESPONDENT Tony Todd SPIES SPY ON THE SPYERS SPYING

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The NSA files – Germany Summons U.S. Ambassador Over Merkel Phone – Live • E.U. summit may discuss U.S. surveillance • German fight comes after French anger over spying • Full coverage of all NSA and Snowden developments live —COMPLILED By Paul Owen

Der Spiegel, Germany 'Out of Hand': Europe Furious Over U.S. Spying Allegations “The newest charges of U.S. spying have unleashed a torrent of criticism and concern in Europe. If suspicions unearthed by Der Spiegel that the U.S. tapped Chancellor Merkel's cell phone turn out to be true, their may be huge trans-Atlantic ramifications.” —REPORTER Charly Wilder MERKEL'S PHONE HACK RALLIES EUROPE

DER SPIEGEL: Germany
Summons U.S. Ambassador
Over NSA Surveillance
DER SPIEGEL: Merkel's
Phone - Spying Suspicions
Put Obama in a Tight Spot

Der Spiegel, Germany Merkel Calls Obama: Wants NSA to Stop Tapping Her Phone “Chancellor Anjela Merkel phoned President Obama on Wednesday to discuss suspicions that she may have been targeted by U.S. intelligence for years.” —REPORTERS Jacob Appelbaum, Holger Stark, Marcel Rosenbach, Jorg Schindler GERMANY RAISES THE HEAT

GUARDIAN: E.U. Parliament
Demands Freeze of SWIFT
Pact Over NSA Surveillance
DEUTCHE WELLE: America Abused
the Spirit of SWIFT Agreement
GUARDIAN: Breakthrough
on Data Privacy Rules Raises
Pressure on E.U. Leaders
BBC NEWS: Merkel Calls Obama
about 'U.S. Spying on her Phone'
GUARDIAN: Snowden files
- Guardian Should be
Prosecuted, says Tory MP
GUARDIAN: Bugging Friends is
Unacceptable, Warn Germans

Le Monde, France 'How NSA Spies on France' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “The phone communications of French citizens are, in fact, intercepted on a massive scale. ... These papers describe the techniques used to illegally capture secrets or simply the private lives of French people.” —REPORTERS Jacques Follorou and Glenn Greenwald

REAL 'SHOCK' OR POLITICAL KABUKI?

Le Monde, France Fighting 'Big Brother' “At a time when the power of new technology has made a planet-wide 'Big Brother' possible, it is urgent to discuss the impact of this on liberty.” — COLUMNIST Natalie Nougayrede

LE MONDE: NSA Wiretapped
French Diplomats in America
LE MONDE: French Phone
Networks in NSA Crosshairs'
LE FIGARO: French Human
Rights Groups Demand
Judicial Inquiry into NSA

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands Snowden Docs Expose NSA Christmas Holiday Loophole! TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “On December 24 and December 31, the NSA tapped not one person in the Netherlands. Apparently, most spies are at home over Christmas and New Year's Eve. That would be the best time to call friends in Pakistan.” —COLUMNIST Michael Persson

JOHN KERRY ABSORBS AN ANGRY PARIS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. White House Admits: French Surveillance Revelations Raise 'Legitimate Questions' “The president and President Hollande discussed disclosures in the press, some of which ... raise legitimate questions for our friends and allies about how these capabilities are being employed.” —WHITE HOUSE Statement

KERRY IN PARIS TO PATCH THINGS UP

Der Spiegel, Germany E.U. Digital Czar Hits Back at Post-Snowden Criticism “When people post everything on Facebook then ask me to protect their privacy, I have to say: Take responsibility yourself! ... I just want to say that people shouldn't be naive and assume that their online data is secure. They need to take measures to protect it.” — E.U. DIGITAL AGENDA Commissioner Neelie Kroes

Dutch News, The Netherlands NSA Tapped 1.8 Million Dutch Phones in Month “VVD MP Klaas Dijkhoff said the news that the U.S. is obtaining phone data in the Netherlands on such a scale is 'disappointing.' 'If it was the Chinese or Russians, no-one would be surprised,' he is said. 'But this is an ally and that makes it extra disappointing.'” —DUTCH NEWS News Item

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Public Indifference is the Real Enemy in NSA Affair “At one point I thought that the level of public complacency about the revelations was a reflection simply of ignorance. ... what is more alarming is how relaxed so many of my professional peers appear to be about all this.” —PROFESSOR John Naughton, Open University

U.S. GETS DRESSING DOWN IN PARIS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. France Summons U.S. Envoy Over NSA Surveillance Claims “According to Le Monde, documents show that NSA was targeting not only terrorist suspects but also politicians, businesspeople and members of the Hollande Administration under a program codenamed US-985D.” —COLUMNIST Sam Jones

Der Spiegel, Germany System Failure - American Democracy Nears its Limits “Its political architecture was not designed for long-lasting blockades and extortion, the likes of which are enthusiastically practiced by the Tea Party for most of the last four years. The US's founding fathers proposed a system of checks and balances, not checks and boycotts.” —COLUMNISTS Sebastian Fischer, Marc Pitzke

NON-REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY?

Der Spiegel, Germany Fresh Leak: NSA Accessed Mexican President's E-mail "The NSA has been systematically eavesdropping on the Mexican government for years. It hacked into the president's public e-mail account, and gained deep insight into policymaking and the system." — REPORTERS Jens Glüsing, Laura Poitras, Marcel Rosenbach, Holger Stark

Die Welt, Germany Yellen Holds the Key to Dollar's Decline TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The U.S. economy is huge, but so are the debts America has accumulated over the decades. This year, the 317 million Americans will produce goods and services valued at roughly $16.7 trillion, according to IMF estimates. However, federal, state, and local government debt is already higher than that, amounting to almost $17 trillion. ... All experts agree that the future of the dollar critically depends on the new head of the FED.” —COLUMNIST Daniel Eckert

THE END OF DOLLAR DOMINANCE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. International Herald Tribune: Newspaper of Americans Abroad “Generations of Americans traveling to Europe before, during and after the two world wars, swapping the competitive, tight-laced rigours of the materialist, capitalist, God-fearing USA for the sophisticated languor, louche-ness and chic of the French capital, the Herald reported, reflected and symbolized the quintessential experience of embracing foreignness, specifically that of the Frenchs.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. E.U. is Finalizing Rules to Halt Data Transfer to U.S. “All those U.S. companies that dominate the tech market and the Internet want access to our goldmine, an internal market with over 500 million potential customers. If they want to access it, they will have to play by our rules.” —Viviane Reding, E.U. Commissioner for Justice

Le Temps, Switzerland Budget Deadlock Again Suggests Racism Behind Opposition to Obama TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The advent of the first Black president of the United States, elected for the first time in November 2008 and re-elected last year with a majority of the electoral college and popular vote, has already resulted in the manifestation of quite a number of heinous events. The current budget crisis reflects a new level of contempt for Obama." — COLUMNIST Stephane Bussard JUST POLITCS, OR SOMETHING MORE?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: David Cameron has 'Declared War' on Investigative Journalism Oct. 17, 00:06:40 BRITISH 'EMPIRE' STRIKES BACK

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. So America's Skewed Democracy Lurches Toward its Next Crisis
NO SOLUTION	“To the rest of the world and much of America, this is yet another dangerous folly. The fact that the nation did not default should come as cold comfort. The fact that we are even talking about it defaulting is a issue.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

Newsweek Polska, Poland In Poland and America, Religion Propels Right TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “At roughly the same time, the U.S. Republican Party and Poland's biggest right- wing party became hostage to ideological extremists and radicals. Why are right- wing radicalization and ideology present to such an extent both countries? It so happens that for both, religion plays a big role in public life.” —COLUMNIST Tomasz Lis

MEET THE TED CRUZ OF POLAND

The Telegraph, U.K. Obama Wins Shutdown Showdown. His Prize is Lame Duck Presidency
A PYRRHIC WIN?	“What has Obama really won? He has his precious healthcare reform and he gets the government open again. Tomorrow, however, he'll still have the same gridlocked political system that he had the night before.” — COLUMNIST Tim Stanley

ECONOMIST: America's
Not So Dangerous Game

Telegraph, U.K. Afghan Fury as U.S. Seizes 'Spy at Top of the Taliban' "Mehsud was forcibly abducted while heading to a secret rendezvous with America’s allies in Afghanistan’s top spy agency, the National Intelligence Directorate. ... The mission to seize Mehsud amounted to a dramatic breach of trust among the allies." — CORRESPONDENTS Damien McElroy, Rob Crilly

Yezhednevniy Zhurnal, Russia Sochi 2014: Russia to Take Gold in Spying on Visitors TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "Many foreigners, who won't use Russian servers, likely hope that their data will be protected by modern encryption methods of Western companies. In fact, this will provide few advantages. ... Foreign citizens, for a period of a couple of weeks while at the Olympic Games, will be in the same situation that Russians have experienced every day for years." — REPORTERS Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan SOCHI 2014: MOVE OVER NSA

Telegraph, U.K. The Sun is Setting on Dollar Supremacy, and with it, American Power "A serious alternative to the dollar is still a long way off, but the latest shenanigans on Capitol Hill have given the search frenewed momentum." — CCOLUMNIST Jeremy Warner

Russia Today, Russia Glenn Greenwald Calls Canadian Spying 'Aggressive, Insidious "There is a huge amount of stuff about Canada in these archives because Canada works so closely with NSA.” — JOURNALIST Glenn Greenwald

Trouw, The Netherlands The Left and the Right: Equal Opportunity Immigrant Killers TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “We have never seen an ideology or religion on trial before a court of law on charges of murder. It is invariably people who must be held accountable. ... To point a cowardly finger at 'the left' or any other political entity or notion is ridiculous. ... If one has a serious accusation to make, it should be taken to a prosecutor, who would reject it, because prosecutors cannot call to account 'the left' or 'the right.'” —COLUMNISTS Ewoud Clay and Jan Jaap de Ruiter

WHO IS KILLING THE FLEEING REFUGEES?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Assange Says Snowden Safer than Those Covering Him Oct. 12, 00:33:57 "You have a situation in which the United States has mapped out the whole community structure, the relations between every individual who has any chance of holding any influence in Latin America. And is able to shift and play off different parties against one another..” — WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange ASSANGE SETS THE STAGE

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Snowden in Moscow; Accepts Sam Adams Award Oct. 12, 00:04:02 "We have an executive at the Department of Justice that's unwilling to prosecute high officials who lied to Congress and the country on camera, but they'll stop at nothing to persecute someone who told them the truth. And that's a fundamentally dangerous thing to a democracy.” — Edward Snowden SNOWDEN ACCEPTS AWARD

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: 'Snowden a Hero' to Emulate: Steve Wozniak Oct. 11, 00:00:54 "If there were anything in my life I could do that would be equivalent to his achievements, I would do it. I am very glad he is exists among us and he is a hero. And I hope that if I were in the same situation, I'd have the courage to do the same thing.” — Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak WOZNIAK CALLS SNOWDEN A 'HERO'

Financial Times, U.K. Search Battle Against Google Moves to Brazil "Brazil's antitrust regulator said the alleged violations by Google, 'if proven, may prevent the entry and development of competitors in the Brazilian online search market, as well as increase Google's already quite elevated market influence.'" — COMMENTARY, Economist

FINANCIAL TIMES: 'Dutch
Sandwich' Grows as Google
Shifts €8.8bn to Bermuda

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Hillary Clinton: We Need to Talk Sensibly About Spying "We need to have a sensible adult conversation about what is needed to be done, and how to do it, in a way that is as transparent as it can be, with as much oversight and citizen understanding as possible.” — REPORTERS Saeed Kamali Dehghan, Nicholas Watt, Alan Travis, Nick Hopkins HILLARY WEIGHS INTO SURVEILLANCE

Daily Mail, U.K. Calls Grow to Prosecute Guardian Over Spy Leaks “The Guardian has never denied sending family and personal data about intelligence agents across borders. This is illegal and it is a threat to agents and their families.” —Tory MP Julian Smith

DAILY MAIL EDITORIAL: 'Paper
that Helps Britain's Enemies'

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. World News Editors: 'What the Guardian is Doing is Important for Democracy' “Yesterday, Daily Mail described the Guardian as 'The paper that helps Britain's enemies'. We have shown that article to many of the world's leading newspaper editors. These is what they had to say.” —EDITORS of The New York Times, Der Spiegel, Haaretz, Le Monde, El Pais, Slate, The Hindu, Clarin, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Washington Post, Sueddeutsche Zeitung, La Repubblica, Dagens Nyheter, Aftenposten, La Stampa, Neue Zurcher Zeitung, Gazeta Wyborcza, Politiken, Buzzfeed, ORF, Tagesspiegel, Knight

WORLD EDITORIS GUARD GUARDIAN

GUARDIAN EDITORIAL: Spies and
Journalism: When Worlds Collide
GUARDIAN: Surveillance,
Democracy, Transparency
GUARDIAN FRONT
PAGES: The NSA Files
GUARDIAN: Patriot Act Author
Prepares Bill to Put NSA Bulk
Collection 'Out of Business'
GUARDIAN: Skype Under
Investigation in Luxembourg
Over its ties to the NSA

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Hamid Karzai's Latest Outburst at NATO is Sign of His Deep Frustration “With Western leaders and generals busily conspiring to declare the 12-year war a success ahead of next year's withdrawal, Karzai's words are a reminder that all is far from well - and that things could soon turn very messy.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

News, Switzerland 'Terror in a Teapot' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “For us in Europe, it's gratifying to know that the intelligence services have been forced to reduce their activity to a minimum and that our e-mails cannot be as thoroughly scanned - likewise those of Islamist terrorists. ... If everything proceeds as planned, new Tea Party icon Ted Cruz should soon be getting a congratulatory letter from al-Qaeda.” —COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer

WHY THE WORD 'TERRORIST'?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The Committee to Protect Journalists Issues Scathing Report on Obama Regime
ANTI-PRESS OBAMA	“The report offers a comprehensive survey of the ways the Obama presidency has ushered in a paralyzing climate of fear for journalists and sources alike, that severely threatens the news-gathering process.” — COLUMNIST Glenn Greenwald

GUARDIAN: Chelsea Manning
Rejects the 'Pacifist' Label

News, Switzerland U.S. Republicans Wage War on Profligate Hungry Kids TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “While Tea Party Republicans defend every tax loophole for the superrich as if it were a battle against the Nazis, all possible effort is made to make the poor even poorer.” —COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer

IS THIS THE PRICE OF 'FREEDOM'?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Father of Edward Snowden Lands in Moscow Oct. 10, 00:04:42 "I have no idea what his intentions are, but ever since he has been in Russia, my understanding is that he has simply been trying to remain healthy and safe and he has nothing to do with any future [news] stories.” — Lon Snowden, Father of Edward Snowden EDWARD SNOWDEN HAS A VISITOR

GUARDIAN: NSA Reform Under
Threat by 'Business-as-Usual Brigade',
Senator Ron Wyden Warns

Economist, U.K. America's Government Shutdown: This is No Way to Run a Country "The Republicans are setting a precedent that, if followed, would make the United States ungovernable. ... Washington will be permanently paralysed and America wil be condemned to a state of chronic uncertainty." — COMMENTARY, Economist SHUTDOWN PORTENDS GRIM FUTURE

ECONOMIST: Janet Yellen -
A New Hand on the Tiller

The Telegraph, U.K. Rejoice: The Yellen FED Will Print Money Forever
NEW FED CHAIR	“The FED will be looser for longer and will continue to print money until America's economy creates enough jobs to reignite wage pressures and inflation, and no matter the asset bubbles, or the collateral damage along the way.” — COLUMNIST Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

GuardIan Unlimited, U.K. Libyan al-Qaeda Suspect's Detention-at-Sea Raises Geneva Convention Issues "With every passing day that the U.S. holds its newest terrorism suspect in the brig of the USS San Antonio, the Obama White House dives deeper into the extra-legal murk that marked its predecessor." — CORRESPONDENT Spencer Ackerman AL-LIBY: ILLEGALLY DETAINED?

Die Welt, Germany Iran Reckons with the High Cost of Constructing a Nuke TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "Due to its gloomy economic state, Iran must fear renewed unrest. The mullahs are learning that nuclear bombs demand a very high price. How high? That depends on whether there is war, or non-war." — HISTORIAN Michael Sturmer WILL IT BE WAR - OR NON-WAR?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Government Shutdown is Playground Spat that Badly Damages U.S. Credibility
U.S. IMPLODES	“Since Republicans took over the House, they have forced the country from one self-imposed crisis to another with gay abandon, shameless guile, clueless zeal.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Republican 'Clowns' Turn U.S. into 'Laughing Stock' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "This is an ideological battle over the prerogatives of the federal government. The issue is quite interesting, but when the issue makes the most powerful nation in the world a laughing stock, the participants in the dispute cease being intellectuals and turn themselves into clowns." — COLUMNIST Bartosz Weglarczyk AMERICA SHOOTS ITSELF IN FOOT

Der Spiegel, Germany Shutdown Spectacle: 'America is Already Politically Bankrupt' “The main actors in this dispute, which involves many factors, both ideological and political, all took a huge risk and, unhindered, have proceeded to validate everyone who ever accused the political establishment of being rotten to the core.” —EDITORIAL, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

EDITORIAL SHOCK AT U.S. SHOWDOWN

Izvestia, Russia Global Call to Arms Against 'American Exceptionalism' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "In no case should Russians stand against this alone. They should be joined by the world's leading philosophers, church heads and representatives of all the world's religions, and, finally, the leaders of other nations around the globe." — COLUMNIST Boris Mezhuyev EXCEPTION TO EXCEPTIONALISM

Polityka, Poland Budget Extremists Unforeseen by America's Founding Fathers TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “The Founding Fathers didn't anticipate that their descendants would one day prove to be incapable of compromise. ... The game, led by a radical wing of Republicans, often referred to as the 'Tea Party,' is becoming increasingly dangerous. If the United States were a small economy, politicians like this would only be harming themselves with their inability to compromise. Too bad, the obstinacy on the part of Republicans could have implications for us all.” —COLUMNIST Cezary Kowanda

WHAT 'CHECKS AND BALANCES' MISSED

Deutche Welle, Germany Brazil Seeking Internet Independence from U.S. "The NSA spying scandal has woken Brazil out of its data protection doze. Plans are being made for an optical network to link 12 South American countries with Europe and Africa, and largely devoid of America." — NEWS ITEM, Deutche Welle

Newsnight, U.K. VIDEO: Glenn Greenwald on Edward Snowden, the NSA, GCHQ, Espionage Oct. 4, 00:14:08 "I hope we have learned the lesson after the Iraq War that government claims are not tantamount to the truth. I think it's a shock that government officials lie to journalists who don't seem to mind being lied to very much” — JOURNALIST Glenn Greenwald GREENWALD SOCKS IT TO THE MAN

Financial Times, U.K. IMF Chief: Global Economy Sees Change on 'Epic Scale' "Because the normalization of monetary policy affects so many markets and people across the globe, the U.S. has a special responsibility: to implement it [lifting the debt ceiling] in an orderly way, linking it to the pace of employment and recovery; to communicate clearly; and to conduct dialogue with others global participants." — IMF CHIEF Christine Lagarde

Independent, U.K. Has America Ever Been More Divided?
WORLD AGHAST	“Absurd, shameful, incomprehensible? Indeed. But that's the American way of government in this fall of 2013.” —COLUMNIST Rupert Corwell

ECONOMIST: Will Voters
Punish the Republicans?
TELEGRAPH: Barack Obama Presides
Over End of U.S. Superpower Status

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.S. Republicans and Iran's Mullahs "Republican leaders have complained that Obama was more interested in talking to Iran than to them about the budget. The comparison of Iran and the GOP might be closer than they think. As tens of thousands of civilian employees began to be laid off yesterday, the pragmatists are the Republicans who believe they are about to sign the biggest suicide note in their party's history." — EDITORIAL, Guardian

Le Figaro, France Tea Party Takes U.S. Hostage TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Republicans who never fail to delight at the idea of sabotaging a project of Barack Obama, also know they could pay dearly in the upcoming mid-term elections for their intransigence. ... Americans, even if unenthusiastic about health care, are allergic to blackmail.” —JOURNALIST Paulo Sotero

WILL THIS END BETTER THAN LAST TIME?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. David Cameron Uses American Shutdown to Justify Austerity "I know some people want to get away from the subject of deficit reduction, sorting out our economy and turning it around, but I think we will have lots of reminders over the coming months, like what's happening in America, that it's absolutely vital we grip it." — PRIME MINISTER David Cameron

TELEGRAPH: Dollar Falls
but Markets Steady as U.S.
Government Shuts Down

El Mundo, Spain The U.N.'s Yearly Show Again Plays a Vital Role TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH "' Meetings of the U.N. General Assembly are a superb pretext for the U.S. Secretary of state John Kerry to meet his Iranian counterpart. It's something they haven't done in 25 years. It is the same for President Rohani." — Inocencio Arias, Former Ambassador to the U.N. THE U.N.: IT STILL SERVES A PURPOSE

Die Zeit, Germany Yanks' Party System Better than Germans' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "When an American votes, he wants his party to win, which, after all, is why he votes for the party he wants. And lo and behold. After the election, at least 51% of Americans actually know their party won. That's simple arithmetic. ... When a German votes, he uses advanced probability to calculate: 'I want the SPD (German Social Democratic Party) to win, so I'll vote for the Green Party so they can form a coalition,' with the outcome being exactly what no one wanted: a grand coalition, for example." — COLUMNIST Eric T. Hansen TIME FOR GERMAN TO SWITCH?

GuardIan Unlimited, U.K. Obama Holds Historic Phone Call with Rouhani; Hints at End to Sanctions "President Rouhani's English- language Twitter account broke news of the phone call in a series of tweets that hinted at a remarkably swift rapprochement between the countries since the moderate cleric was elected in June." — REPORTERS Dan Roberts and Julian Borger CAN A PARTNERSHIP EMERGE?

Der Spiegel, Germany IPCC Report: 'Climate Change Inaction Must End' "The reports constitute the latest chapter in our attempt to adapt to climate change and prevent the continuing damage to the planet." — COLUMNIST Christoph Seidler

Izvestia, Russia World Can 'Thank' U.S. and Britain for Nairobi Terrorist Massacre TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIA "'The West, it appears, is not altogether clever, if it hoped to control the spread of these armed militants throughout the planet. One mustn't help the forces of evil use Islam for their own ends. You have already fed the beast, you European and American bastards. In the near future, we're all going to have it hard." — WRITER AND COLUMNIST Edward Limonov LIBYA ... KENYA ... AMERICA?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. IPCC Climate Change Report: Live Coverage and Reaction “The world is warming, and we are to blame. Already some of the results of this are 'unprecedented' and dangerous. If we continue to pour greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, the levels of warming will cause severe problems around the globe, and could soon be catastrophic.” — ENVIRONMENT REPORTER Fiona Harvey

GUARDIAN: The IPCC Climate
Change Report by the Numbers

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Senator Ron Wyden Tells Clapper: 'NSA Repeatedly Deceived American People'
NSA: OFF THE RAILS	“James Clapper lied to the Intelligence Committee, and not only wasn't he charged for that felony, he continues to be treated with reverence by the very Committee he deliberately deceived. That is all you need to know.” — COLUMNIST Glenn Greenwald

GUARDIAN UNLIMITED: Edward
Snowden's Leaks are Misguided – they
Risk Exposing Us to Cyber-Attacks
GUARDIAN: U.S. Spy Chiefs Urge Congress
to Preserve NSA Surveillance Programs

Guaridan Unlimited, U.K. Cold War Files Reveal that NSA Spied on Muhammad Ali, Martin Luther King Jr. "The United States has another secret eavesdropping scandal on its hands, but this time it goes back to the Johnson and Nixon administrations." — REPORTER David Usborne

U.N. Headquarters, Intl. Territory VIDEO: French President Francois Hollande at the U.N. General Assembly Sept .24, 00:19:41 "The U.N.'s honor comes from acting whenever people's freedom is denied. The UN's honor comes from acting whenever fundamental rights are compromised. The UN's honor comes from intervening when extremism threatens international security. The U.N.'s honor comes from acting to advance peace. And in Syria, the situation is urgent.” — President Francois Hollande HOLLANDE ISSUES MORAL CALL

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Senator Ted Cruz: Circus Performer
SHOWBIZ ...?	“His pseudo-filibuster over defunding the Affordable Care Act was doomed to fail, yet the Tea Party sees him as a lion. In truth, he's a clown.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA Reform Bill Would Trim Back Surveillance "The Intelligence Oversight and Surveillance Reform Act would prohibit the NSA's bulk collection phone records of Americans under the Patriot Act, the most controversial aspect of U.S. surveillance revealed by documents supplied by Edward Snowden." — REPORTERS Paul Lewis, Dan Roberts

GUARDIAN: To Reform the
NSA, Fire Officials Who Lie

Trouw, The Netherlands Now is the Moment for Obama to Earn his Nobel Peace Prize TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "Ultimately, If the game is played right, America and Russia may even resolve the Iranian nuclear issue. Obama will then go down in history as a deserving winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, while Russia's position will improve greatly." — COLUMNIST Rob de Wijk

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. This Time, West Must Not Turn its Back on Diplomacy
HOPE FOR PEACE?	"The opportunity to diplomatically resolve differences between Iran and the West, including the impasse over the nuclear issue, presented itself many years ago during my presidency. That was an opportunity missed." — FORMER Iran President Mohammad Khatami

GUARDIAN: Open Letter
to Obama from 500 Iranian
Intellectuals and Activists

Die Welt, Germany Clausewitz on Syria: Avoid War and a Loss of Political Control TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "'War is the continuation of politics by other means.' That is the core idea of the Prussian general. In fact - hw was warning against the loss of political control, which still applies today." — HISTORIAN Michael Sturmer CANNONBALLS, POLITICS AND GENERALS

The Observer, U.K. U.S. Gun Use is Out of Control. So Shouldn't World Intervene?
IS IT ONLY FAIR?	"As citizens of the world, maybe we should demand an end to the suffering of victims and their families – maiming and killing children – just as America does in every civil conflict on earth." — COLUMNIST Henry Porter

BBC News, U.K. Document Highlights Near- Detontion of Hydrogen Bomb Over South Carolina "One fell to the ground unarmed. But the second assumed it was being deliberately released over an enemy target - and went through all its arming mechanisms save one, and very nearly detonated over North Carolina." — NEWS ITEM, BBC

Liberation, France Obama and Hollande: 'Galactic Summiteers' Play to the Cameras TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Hollande speaks and Obama listens. ... But to whom is Hollande speaking? ... We'll never know. ... And Obama - is he actually listening? Presumably, cunning and wise to the rites of international conferences, the American president knows how to give every sign of paying close attention while thinking about something else entirely." — COLUMNIST Gerard Lefort IS THIS ACCOMPLISHING ANYTHING?

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Obama 'Leads from Behind', While Putin is Up in Front TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "This time, Putin has landed himself quite a juicy morsel. He is pitted against President Barack Obama and his secretary of state, John Kerry, a comical duo, who on the subject of Syria and relations with Moscow, behave like a pair of blind kittens." — COLUMNIST Marek Magierowski OBAMA: DIPLOMATIC SCHIZOPHRENIA?

Handelsblatt, Germany Hooked on 'FED Drugs', U.S. Overtakes Europe TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "It still appears that the U.S., at least, has survived the most dangerous self-experiment in economic history - because the last few decades have been just that: a self-experiment with financial anabolic steroids. Americans have tackled their problems better than Europeans." — DEKABANK Chief Economist Ulrich Kater QUANTITATIVE EASING: FEAR NOT?

Kommersant, Russia Putin's Plan Won't End Hatred Among Syrians TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "Recent events show that the level of hostility among ethnic and religious groups has gone so far that Syria's civil war will continue - whether Russia's plan to destroy Assad's chemical weapons succeeds or not." — COLUMNIST Andrei Odinets SYRIA'S STUBBORN DIVISIONS

Pravda, Russia McCain: 'Russians Deserve Better than Vladimir Putin'
PUTIN'S PAYBACK	"I am not anti-Russian. I'm pro-Russian, more pro-Russian than the regime that misrules you today. President Putin claims that his purpose is to restore Russia to greatness at home and among the nations. But by what measure has he done so?" — SENATOR John McCain

Der Spiegel, Germany Mad about Guns: America's Deadly Weapons Obsession "It feels familiar to the media, who reflexively transform the victims into heroes and the perpetrator into a telegenic outsider. It feels familiar to the politicians, who find only empty cliches. And it feels familiar to the nation, which mourns for a short time and then clicks away." — COLUMNIST Marc Pitzke WORLD LOOKS AND WONDERS - AGAIN

Der Spiegel, Germany E.U. Parliament 'Furious' about NSA Bank Spying; Ponders Halt to SWIFT "We parliamentarians have to show clearly where we stand. The NSA activities have been known now for 14 weeks, and one still can't see any real effort by the E.U. or U.S. to shed light on the situation." — CORRESPONDENT Gregor-Peter Schmitz

The Telegraph, U.K. As Jobs 'Evaporate,' Fed Recoils from 1937 Tightening Mistake
PLOT WORSENS?	“The American economy shed 347,000 jobs over the past two months, which is roughly comparable to the rate of loss seen during the Great Recession.” — COLUMNIST Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

TELEGRAPH: QE Now Little
More than a Confidence Trick

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Snowden is'Living Incognito in Russia' "Snowden is living under guard at a secret location in Russia, but is able to travel around the country freely without being recognized, according to his Russian attorney." — CORRESPONDENT Shaun Walker NEWS ON EDWARD SNOWDEN

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands Putin's Letter to Americans a Guilty Pleasure for the World TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH "Outside the West, many have read his epistle with pleasure: finally, Americans get a taste of their own medicine. ... he got to the core of the problem: the fact that America claims to derive separate rights due to its uniqueness - and doesn't understand that other people doubt its selflessness, because American principles often serve as a cover for U.S. interests." — COLUMNIST Luis Lema AMERICAN EXCEPTIONALISM UNPOPULAR

Der Spiegel, Germany 'Follow the Money': NSA Monitors Financial World "'By all appearances, NSA collects everything it can in the sensitive financial sector - at least that's the message of a presentation from April. The agency seeks access to 'bulk global financial data,' which is then fed into the Tracfin database, the presenter noted." — Laura Poitras, Marcel Rosenbach, Holger Stark NSA: COLLECTION OF FINANCIAL DATA

Daily Mail, U.K. Russian Politician Mocks Navy Yard Rampage with Remark on 'American Exceptionalism' "New shootout at Navy headquarters in Washington. Aa lone gunman and seven corpses. No one is even surprised anymore ... A clear confirmation of American exceptionalism." — Alexei Pushkov, Duma Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman

Komsomolskaya Pravda, Russia Obama's Syria 'Zugzwang' Clogs Economic Progress TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "Take, for example, mR. Obama's refusal to meet with Putin before the G20 because of the recent granting of temporary asylum to 'traitor' Snowden. This, of course, was combined with another bitter foretaste - that of needing to find a multilateral approach to Syria. ... Although the summit agenda included Syria, meeting organizers made it clear that it would only be discussed informally. ... Meanwhile, Obama headed to St. Petersburg with almost the sole intention of teaching bASHER Assad a lesson." — COLUMNIST Mikhail Znamenski HAS PRESIDENT OBAMA LOST THE PLOT?

Der Spiegel, Germany 'Follow the Money': NSA Spies on Global Payments "Spying is conducted by a branch called 'Follow the Money.' The collected information then flows into the NSA's financial databank, called 'Tracfin,' which in 2011 contained 180 million records. Some 84 percent of the data is from credit card transactions.." — NEWS ITEM, Der Spiegel

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Inside Mind of NSA Chief General Keith Alexander
DATA COWBOY	"His NSA peers see him as a 'cowboy' willing to play fast and loose with legal limits in order to construct a system of ubiquitous surveillance." — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

Le Temps, Switzerland The 'Obscene' Diplomatic Pirouette Over Syria War TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The surprise initiative is likely less improvised than it looks. It is a way for the Americans and Russians to escape a situation that for both, is akin to being caught in a great hornet's nest - even if for different reasons." — COLUMNIST Luis Lema DEBATE OVER FORMS OF MURDER

The Telegraph, U.K. Al-Qaeda Chief Calls on Followers to 'Bleed U.S.' with Small-Scale Strikes "'We should bleed America' economically by provoking' it to continue in its massive' expenditure on its security,' for America's weak point is' its economy, that has begun' to stagger due to the military' and security expenditures." — AL-QAEDA CHIEF Ayman al-Zawahiri THE SAME OLD - SAME OLD

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Changes to NSA Not Spoken of at Obama's Surveillance Review Panel, Attendees Say “My fear is it's a simulacrum of meaningful reform ... Its function is to bleed off the pressure, without getting to the meaningful reform.” — Sascha Meinrath, New America Foundation

GUARDIAN: NSA Shares Raw
Intelligence Data with Israel,
Including About Americans

Polska, Poland Foreign Minister Sikorski Hits Syria Nerve at Kremlin TRANSLATED FROM POLISH "Sikorski's words to some extent revealed Russia's game to Western readers, which is why the Kremlin reacted so strongly to his comments." — COLUMNIST Wojciech Rogacin

Die Welt, Germany The World Needs an America that 'Hunts Down Monsters' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "As was the case after the fall of the Roman Empire, most Americans will grasp how much the world benefited from the Pax Americana only after it no longer exists. The Pax Americana is the most liberal global order of all time, and its existence is useful to most states, including Russia and China.'" — COLUMNIST Clemens Wergin CAN WORLD DO WITHOUT U.S. INFLUENCE?

Swiss Info, Switzerland Struggling Swiss Banks Sweat Over U.S. Tax Bill "Now burdened by higher regulatory and compliance costs and diminishing fees, some struggling smaller boutique banks may tip over the edge after the latest Swiss–U.S. deal to settle the long-running tax row." — REPORTER Matthew Allen,

Sydsvenskan, Sweden As Friendly as U.S. and Sweden May Be, We Differ on Syria TRANSLATED FROM SWEDISH "Obama probably came to Stockholm with the hope of getting at least a few Nordic countries on the bandwagon. However, on behalf of Swedens's government, Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt politely but firmly said 'no thank you.'" — EDITORIAL, Sydsvenskan ITS LONELY AT THE TOP

Der Spiegel, Germany Brash American Nuclear Expert Scolds Fukushima CEO for Nuclear Chaos "'You do not know what you are doing,' Klein told company Chief Naomi Hirose to his face. 'You don't have a plan.' In accordance with Japanese custom, the chastized company CEO bowed his head and replied, 'I apologize for not being able to live up to your expectations." — CORRESPONDENT Marco Evers NUCLEAR PROGNOSIS: CRITICAL

The Independent, U.K. Once the West Set Out to Conquer the World
AMBITION'S END?	“Those days have gone forever. A series of defeats have done for colonialism, and its more virulent form, imperialism.” —- COLUMNIST Andreas Whittam Smith

BBC News, U.K. Reporter Glenn Greenwald to Testify at Brazil Spy Probe The Brazilian investigation commission wants to probe whether the alleged espionage on oil company Petrobras may have compromised the integrity of a major oil field auction in October." — NEWS ITEM, BBC

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Putin: Syria Chemical Weapons Handover Will Work 'Only' if U.S. Calls Off Strike Sept. 10, 00:02:19 "Of course, all of this will only mean anything if the U.S. and other nations backing it tell us that they're giving up their plan to use force on Syria. You cannot really ask Syria, or any other country, to disarm unilaterally while military action against it is continuing to be contemplated." — President Vladimir Putin MUST THE U.S FIRST STAND DOWN?

Der Spiegel, Germany NSA Affair: Germany Conducts Copter Flyover of U.S. Consulate "An unnamed government official stated that Germany wanted to send a message to Americans that it would not tolerate espionage technologies on German soil." — REPORTER Matthias Gebauer

The Independent, U.K. Would Best Name of U.S. Strike Be 'Operation Biffing Arabs'?
NOW AND THEN	“In 1983, America had taken sides in a civil war and was fully committed to preserving one bunch of Lebanese over another bunch of Lebanese. In the U.S., apparently, it made sense. Reagan had backed Gemayel and now Reagan's honor was at risk. I shall not speak of parallels.” — COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

El Seminal, Spain U.S. Targets Iran - this Time without Saddam's Sarin Gas TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH "'I am old enough to remember when Iraq, then a U.S. ally, employed gas against the Kurds in Hallabja, no one attacked Bagdad. ... As is clear to see, standards and norms are quite pliable. In fact, they are so pliable, that one suspects they are merely shameful justifications for designs that haven't been mentioned, at least to the public." — COLUMNIST Eduardo Arroyo AMERICA'S SELECTIVE MEMORY SYNDROME

Der Spiegel, Germany iSpy: How America's NSA Accesses Smartphone Data "The U.S. State Department stressed that Kerry was making a rhetorical argument about th deadline and the unlikelihood of Assad turning over Syria's chemical weapons stockpile." — REPORTERS Marcel Rosenbach, Laura Poitras, Holger Stark

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Assad Did Not Order Chemical Arms Attack, says the German Press “President Bashar al-Assad did not personally order last month's chemical weapons attack near Damascus that has triggered calls for U.S. armed intervention, and blocked numerous requests from his military commanders to use chemical weapons, newspaper Bild am Sonntag has reported.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. John Kerry Gives Syria Week to Give Up Chemical Weapons or Face Attack "The U.S. State Department stressed that Kerry was making a rhetorical argument about th deadline and the unlikelihood of Assad turning over Syria's chemical weapons stockpile." — REPORTER Patrick Wintour SYRIA SHOWDOWN ON A WEEK?

La Croix, France Putin Should Be Humble in the Face of Pope's Calls for Peace TRANSLATED FROM FRANCE "'War never again! Never again war!' was the call of Pope Francis, launched last Sunday from St. Peter's Square and repeated on Twitter ... The Russian president might be tempted to exploit these words - he who opposes armed action against the Damascus regime. He should not linger too long in triumph." — COLUMNIST Guillaume Goubert POPE'S CALL FOR PEACE: WIN FOR PUTIN?

Der Spiegel, Germany 'Failure On All Fronts': No Progress from G-20 Chiefs "The G-20 summit ended worse than expected on Friday -- with acrimony, division and name-calling over Syria. The conference, which was originally conceived as an economic forum, also failed to bring results on the recovery." — COLUMNIST Carsten Volkery DIPLOMATICALLY SPEAKING: DISASTER

Il Sole 24 Ore, Italy 'Once Upon a Time' ... We had Multilateralism "It's now fully official: global economic coordination is dead and buried, and nobody has even tried to resuscitate it. Its final death certificate was delivered by the G20 Summit in Saint Petersburg." — REPORTERS Pyotr Kozlov, Anastasia Kashevarova, and Elena Teslova

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA Encryption Story, Latin American Fallout and U.S./U.K. Attacks on Press Freedoms
LIES BEGET LIES	“One big problem the NSA-U.S. government generally have had since our reporting began is that their defenses offered in response to each story are quickly proven false by the next story, which just further undermines their credibility around the world.” — COLUMNIST Glenn Greenwald

DER SPIEGEL: Privacy Scandal -
NSA Can Spy on Smart Phone Data

Izvestia, Russia G20 Chairs 'Linguistically Rearranged' to Make Sure Putin and Obama Sit Apart TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "If there had been 'Russian seating,' Putin and Obama would have been sitting almost next to one another - separated only by Saudi Arabia King Abdullah, who also supports military operations against the Assad regime by the U.S. and its allies. So in the end, organizers settled on 'English seating.' This way, the Russian and U.S. leaders were separated by five heads of state: Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey and the United Kingdom." — REPORTERS Pyotr Kozlov, Anastasia Kashevarova, and Elena Teslova OBAMA-PUTIN: BAD CHEMISTRY

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Syria Divides Deepen at Dinner Hosted by Putin "A majority of leaders at the dinner were not in favor of any punitive action unless it is agreed by the U.N. Security Council, although strong calls for the UN to live up to its responsibilities were made by the Americans, the Turkish, Canadians, French and British." — CORRESPONDENT Patrick Wintour SYRIA DIGESTION INTERRUPTUS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.S. and British Spy Agencies Defeat Privacy and Security Measures on the Internet
PRIVACY IMPOSSIBLE?	"The methods include measures to ensure NSA control over the setting of encryption standards worldwide, supercomputer use to break encryption, and collaboration with tech firms and ISPs. ... Through these covert partnerships, NSA has inserted vulnerabilities into encryption software." — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

Le Monde, France French Opposition in Battle Over Need for a Syria Vote TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "We, as one of the major democracies concerned about the Syria issue, can't be the only country not to vote.' -- Ex-President Valery Giscard d'Estaing ... 'I am shocked that France is relying on the views of the American Congress, without any notice needing to be given to the French Parliament.' -- Former Education Minister Luc Chatel." — REPORTER Alexandre Lemarie TO VOTE OR NOT TO VOTE ON SYRIA

Moscow Times, Russia The Gay Rights Issue Winds Up on G20 Agenda "President Putin will likely find himself responding to Western criticism of Russia's anti-gay propaganda law at the Summit, as British Prime Minister Cameron has announced plans to raise the issue, and U.S. President Obama has scheduled a meeting with LGBT activists." — REPORTER Yekaterina Kravtsova SYRIA, RECESSSION, GAY RIGHTS?

The Local, Sweden With Obama Visiting the Country, 'It's Fun to Pretend Sweden Actually Matters' "Stockholmers to sound off about the visit, the president himself, and how Stockholm is handling the circus that always surrounds Obama." — NEWS ITEM, The Local STOCKHOLMERS OPINE ON OBAMA

THE LOCAL: Obama Stockholm Visit Blog
THE LOCAL: Obama to Push
Moscow Over Fate of Swedish
Holocaust Hero Wallenberg

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Syria Strike: President Obama Risks Being Pushed into Prolonged Campaign “For U.S. 'rightwingers,' months of frustration at perceived U.S. impotence are in danger of boiling over into violent action.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

DAILY MAIL: Pentagon Knew in 2012
it would take 75,000 Ground Troops
to Secure Syria's Chemical Weapons
GUARDIAN: Enough Playing Hamlet:
President Obama Needs to Act Now
GUARDIAN: Obama and Putin Set
for CollisionOver Syria at G20 Summit

El Pais, Spain Syria Attack is Barack Obama's Answer to a Tortuous Summer TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH "The debate between interests and principle was resolved in a single stroke: it preserves Obama's credibility and verbal assurances, and at the same time reasserts the continued fact of the U.S. superpower, wipes away his image as a weak leader, and sends a message to Iran that despite its nuclear program, his patience has its limits. In brief - that the United States does not utter woirds in vain." — COLUMNIST Francisco G. Basterra OBAMA GETS OVER HIS AVERSION TO WAR

LE FIGARO: Assad Warns
France Against Syria Attack
TELEGRAPH: ‘Unreliable’
British Officers Left Out
of U.S. Meetings on Syria
GUARDIAN UNLIMITED, U.K.: Obama
Going to Congress is 'Empty Gesture'

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. In Syria Crisis: Obama Wins Support of House Leaders for Strikes • Boehner, Cantor, Pelosi have made coordinated statements • Obama insists 'this is not Iraq' • Israel and U.S. test-fire missile system • Read the latest summary. — REPORTERS Matthew Weaver, Tom McCarthy OBAMA WORKS THE HALLS

Le Nouvel Observateur, France Why The West Can't Turn Back Now on Syria "After the chemical attacks, military intervention is a question of humanity, but also of realpolitik. That does not, however, mean it will resolve the situation in Syria." — EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Laurent Joffrin

Gazeta, Russia In Syria and Beyond, U.S. is Held Hostage to its Own Power TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "George Bush believed in the capacity of force to transform the world; Mr. Obama does not. Yet both behave identically, bereft of ideas and without a counterweight that would compel the Americans to restrain themselves. It is as if America is hostage to its own power, everyone waiting for confirmation of its immense ability to act." — COLUMNIST Fyodor Lukyanov IMPOTENSE OF HYPERPOWERS

Le Monde, France Cameron is Blameless. Parliament Voted 'No' to Unrepentant Tony Blair TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "It wasn't Cameron who was defeated. It was payback to Tony Blair. ... History has a way of flowing - within a democracy, at least - and choosing the moment for the exercise of expiation: this was the people, through their elected representatives, striking back at a government that outright deceived them." — COLUMNIST Alexandra Schwartzbrod ACTION POISONED BY 'INTELLIGENCE'?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. David Frost Dies Aged 74 "Frost, knighted in 1993, helped establish London Weekend TV and TV-am. He was famed for his political interviews, most notably with Richard Nixon in 1977, in which the U.S. president first conceded fault over Watergate." — REPORTER Peter Walker INTERVIEWS OF HISTORIC WORTH

BBC NEWS VIDEO: Sir David Frost
Dies After Suspected Heart Attack
BBC NEWS VIDEO: David Frost:
Editor Barney Jones Pays tribute
DAILY MAIL: Veteran Broadcaster
David Frost Dies after Heart Attack
on Queen Elizabeth Cruise Liner

Liberation, France Hollande and Obama: The 'Unlikely Alliance' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "Deprived of their British ally, repudiated Thursday by a House of Commons determined not to repeat the Iraq disaster, the two men, an unlikely alliance, are preparing their publics. A complete reversal of the situation when one recalls that Paris and Washington, just ten years ago, had ties nearly torn asunder over the Iraq intervention." — COLUMNIST Alexandra Schwartzbrod BLIND LEADING THE GASSED?

Argumenty i Facty, Russia False Flag in Syria: Action Only Hitler Could Admire! TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "All these damned lies, all these innocent victims, are required to achieve a singular purpose - to alter an objectionable political regime. Fans of Obama, Cameron, and Hollande should greet their idols with hand salutes and shouts of 'Sieg Heil!' - because given their acts, they've truly earned it." — COLUMNIST Andrei Sidorchik IS ATTACK ON SYRIA A SET UP?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. It Takes More Courage to Say there is Nothing Outsiders Can Do in Syria
STAYING OUT	“Human misery in Syria is agonizing to watch. However, intervention-lite is a bad idea for all but egos of politicians.” — COLUMNIST Simon Jenkins

The Telegraph, U.K. Saudis Offer Russia Secret Oil Deal if it Drops Assad "Our stance on Assad will never change. We believe that the Syrian regime is the best speaker on behalf of the Syrian people, and not those liver eaters." — PRESIDENT Vladimir Putin to Saudi Spy Chief Prince Bandar

The Economist, U.K. Assad: 'Hit Him Hard' “Present the proof, deliver an ultimatum and punish Assad for use of chemical weapons.” — COMMENT, The Economist

ECONOMIST: ALL IN ON SYRIA

TELEGRAPH: The United Kingdom
Stands Taller in the World Today
TELEGRAPH: Special Relationship
Will Long Outlive Obama's Anti-
British, Pro-French Presidency
TELEGRAPH: Ministers Face
Sack Over Syria Shambles
TELEGRAPH: Miliband: I'll
Do What's Right for Us,
not for the United States
INDEPENDENT: Syria Fallout:
Cameron 'Back to Square One' after
Humiliation on World Stage
DAILY MAIL: Chief Whip Under Fire
as Shambles in Commons is Exposed

The Independent, U.K. Syria: David Cameron's Fairly Honorable Defeat
U.K. WAR VOTE	“The issue of who murdered 1,430 civilians remains but, crucially, so too does our faith in the power of democracy.” — COLUMNIST Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

Der Spiegel, Germany NSA Spied On Al Jazeera "The encrypted information was forwarded to the responsible NSA departments for further analysis, according to the document, which did not reveal to what extent the intelligence agency spied on journalists of the media company." — NEWS ITEM, Der Spiegel

DER SPIEGEL: Boom Triggered
By NSA: German E-mail Firms
Report a Surge in Demand
GUARDIAN: Microsoft and
Google to Sue Over U.S.
Surveillance Requests
GUARDIAN: Assange Told
to Stop Using Embassy to
Tease Aussie Politicians

RUNNING ON FOREIGN GROUND

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. British Lawmakers Reject the Use of Force in Syria "The timing of the British vote, 272 to 285 against the government, was disastrous for Obama. Less than 30 minutes after the voting, senior intelligence officials began a call with congressional leaders, in an attempt to keep U.S. lawmakers on side." — REPORTERS Paul Lewis, and Spencer Ackerman ASSAD 'PUNISHMENT' PUT ON HOLD

Le Temps, Switzerland In Syria, Mr. Obama's Head Between 'Hammer and Anvil' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The impotence of the West and the Arab-Muslim world is matched only by the refusal of Russia and China to assume the responsibility of great powers. ... If force were to speak, the hope, meager as it may be, is that it gives new life into diplomacy." — COLUMNIST Stephane Bussard

Izvestia, Russia Syria Chemical Attack a Clumsy Atrocity By Islamists to 'Buy Time' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "The situation is similar to a phone call about a bomb planted in a school. The call - even if a prank played by a troublemaker, distracts from the real issue, making it necessary to verify and defer any intended action, i.e.: fighting, until later." — HISTORIAN Stanislav Khatuntsev THE RUSSIANS SAY 'NYET'

TELEGRAPH: Action on Syria -
August 28 as it Happened
ECONOMIST: Political Dispute in
Britain Stalls Strike on Assad
DER SPIEGEL: Merkel's
Empty Rhetoric on Syria

The Economist, U.K. Martin Luther King Speech was 'Deeply Conservative' “What is striking is something that is largely lost to modern rhetoric: King's constant evocation of ancient laws and values. With radica intent, King appealed to America with a deeply conservative speech.” — COMMENT, The Economist

MLK: EXTOLLING BIBLE TRADITION

ECONOMIST: Black America -
Has MLK's Challenge Been Met?
DAILY MAIL: America's Only
Black Senator Not Invited to
Speak at March on Washington

Kommersant, Russia The Kremlin Denies Seeking Out Snowden in Hong Kong TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "Informed Western officials confirm that Snowden spent time at Russia's Hong Kong consulate - and say they know how he ended up there: the Russians most likely extended an invitation through the Chinese, who were looking to get rid of the high- profile spy turned whistleblower." — REPORTERS Elena Chernenko, Aleksander Gabuev, and Kirill Belyaninov

The Independent, U.K. Does Obama Know He's Fighting with al-Qaeda?
FRENEMIES	“The men who killed so many thousands on 9/11 will be fighting alongside the nation whose innocents they so cruelly murdered exactly 12 years ago.” — COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Bitcoin Lobbyists Meet U.S. Officials Amid New Focus on Digital Currency “We view this as the beginning of an exchange about the proper role of law enforcement and government and government in this emerging space. Our hope is that this is the beginning of an open and transparent dialog between good-faith stakeholders to find common ground and create public-private partnerships.” — Patrick Murck, Bitcoin Foundation Counsel

Nezavisimaya Gazeta, Russia The Prohibitive Global Price of Poor U.S.-Russia Relations TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "The 'Snowden problem,' which some have tried to posit as a central issue in world politics, is not in fact detrimental to the fate of humanity. ... However, the threat of nuclear proliferation, the growing scale of regional conflicts, terrorism, the various manifestations of extremism - are ssuch a threat." — Former Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov NSA: PUTTING THINGS IN PERSPECTIVE?

Der Spiegel, Germany Codename 'Apalachee': How America Spies on Europe and the U.N. “The NSA has its own team stationed at the U.N., with each specialist disguised as a diplomat. A secret crew from Washington regularly comes to town to bolster the team's ranks before each General Assembly session.” — REPORTERS By Laura Poitras, Marcel Rosenbach, Holger Stark

NSA: ALLIES FEELING BETRAYED

DER SPIEGEL: Merkel Rival Calls
for Suspension of Trade Talks
DER SPIEGEL: Miranda Detention:
'Blatant Attack on Press Freedom'
TELEGRAPH: NSA Employees
Spied on their Lovers Using
Eavesdropping Program

The Independent, U.K. Newly-Freed Mubarak Should Feel at Home in Topsy-Turvy Egypt
EGYPT COUP	“A common rumor is that Obama has a Muslim brother, and that this is one reason the U.S. supposedly supported the Muslim Brotherhood.” —COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

Le Monde, France CIA, Other Foreign Troops Join Syrian Rebels In Major Operation Against Assad “The sources say that some 300 Syrians, as well as an unspecified number of Israeli, Jordanian and CIA commandos, crossed the border from Jordan into Syria on August 17 ... a second group entered Syria two days later.” — CORRESPONDENT Isabelle Lasserre

LE MONDE EDITORIAL: In
Syria, the Time to Act is Now
BBC NEWS: Barack Obama:
Syria Chemical Weapon
Claim a 'Grave Concern'

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Snowden say Britain 'Leaking Documents on Itself' to Smear Others
SMEAR OPS?	"Whistleblower says: 'I have never spoken with, worked with, or provided any journalistic material to the Independent." — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

INDEPENDENT: Britain's Secret
Mideast Internet Surveillance Base
Revealed in Edward Snowden Leaks

The Guardian, U.K. Snowden say Britain 'Leaking Documents on Itself' to Smear Others "It now appears that the British government is now seeking to create an appearance that the Guardian and Washington Post's disclosures are harmful, and they are doing so by intentionally leaking harmful information to The Independent and attributing it to others." — Former NSA Empolyee Edward Snowden

NOVOSTI: Bradley Manning – 'I am
Chelsea Manning. I am a Female'

Le Temp, Switzerland Why So Many Swiss are Giving Up U.S. Citizenship “As the number of those renouncing U.S. citizenship has shot up across the world, binationals in Switzerland have led the way in turning in their blue passports. But it's not just the banks. ” — Columnist Luca Bernadi

Novosti, Russia Russian Laws on Homosexuals Cheered by U.S. Conservatives "As U.S. gay rights groups protest Russian laws on gays, conservatives across the United States have quietly begun to align themselves with the Russian government in a rare union that defies a long history of animosity." — CORRESPONDENT Maria Young

NOVOSTI: Bradley Manning – 'I am
Chelsea Manning. I am a Female'

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. 'Sending a Message': What U.S. and U.K. are Attempting to Do
LASHING OUT?	“Conveying a thuggish message of intimidation is exactly what the U.K. and their superiors in the U.S. national security state are attempting to accomplish with virtually everything they are now doing on the NSA matter.” — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

GUARDIAN: U.S. Senators Warn
that NSA Revelations of Privacy
Breaches Just 'Tip of the Iceberg'
GUARDIAN: NSA Files - Why
the Guardian in London Destroyed
Hard Drives with Leaked Files

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. So the Innocent have Nothing to Fear? After David Miranda, We Know Where that Leads
THE BIG STICK	“'You've had your fun: now we want the stuff back.' With these words the British government embarked on the most bizarre act of censorship of the Internet age so far.” — COLUMNIST Simon Jenkins

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Groklaw Legal Site Shuts Over Fears of NSA E-Mail Snooping “Founder shuts award-winning site, saying concerns that messages could be read mean that 'there is now no shield from forced exposure'” — CORRESPONDENT Charles Arthur

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Manning Sentenced to 35 Years in Prison for WikiLeaks Disclosures • Manning to forfeit pay and to be dishonorably discharged • Prosecution had requested Manning serve 60 years in jail • Civil liberties campaigners lament 'sad day for all Americans' — CORRESPONDENT Paul Lewis MANNING COULD BE OUT IN TEN

GUARDIAN: Manning's Sentence: 35
Years for Exposing Us to the Truth

Tages Anzeiger, Switzerland Barack Obama in Egypt: 'Kissinger's Apprentice' TRANSLATED FROM GERMANY “It's as if in foreign policy, Mr. Obama apprenticed under Henry Kissinger. In no case will we 'stand by and watch a country go communist thanks to the irresponsibility of its people,' commented the great master on Salvador Allende's looming 1970 election victory in Chile. Replace 'communism' with 'Islamist' - and just like that, history repeats itself. Who would ever have imagined it?” — COLUMNIST Martin Kilian OBAMA: HENRY KISSINGER REDUX?

Der Spiegel, Germany Merkel and the NSA: The Scandal That Will Not Die "German officials are relying on the solemn statements of British and U.S. intelligence agencies. Yet it has turned a blind eye to the fact that the spreading of disinformation, the maintanance of secrets, bending the rules and using lies and deception are as integral to the game of spying as Parmesan cheese is to pasta Bolognese - even among spy agencies of democratic states." — REPORTERS Hubert Gude, Konstantin Von Hammerstein, Martin Hesse, Jorg Schindler and Marcel Rosenbach FACTS GET IN WAY OF CAMPAIGN

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The Danger All Reporters Now Face: David Miranda and Threats to Journalism “I wonder how many have truly understood the absolute threat to journalism implicit in the idea of total surveillance, when or if it comes – and, increasingly, it looks like 'when.' We aren't there yet, but it may not be long before it is impossible for journalists to have confidential sources.” — EDITOR Alan Rusbridger

GUARDIAN EDITORIAL: Detaining
of David Miranda: a Betrayal
of Both Trust and Principle
GUARDIAN: Detaining David
Miranda: Labour Demands
Review of Anti-Terror Powers
FINANCIAL TIMES: Guardian
Newspaper Ordered to Destroy
NSA Files, Editor Claims

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. VIDEO: 'Attempt at Intimidation Will Result in More Disclosures'
VENGEANCE?	“I'll be far more aggressive with my reporting now. ... I will publish many more documents - about Britian. I have many documents on Britain's spy system.” — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

Liberation, France Western-Sanctioned 'Butchery' in Egypt TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH "The West, which de facto supported the coup d'etat, must condemn this violent massacre, which will only bring further repression in its wake. Democrats and secular forces who now support this butchery are deluding themselves if they think - once in the military's way - they'll be spared." — COLUMNIST Francois Sergent WHAT IS THE WESTERN ROLE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Detaintion of My Partner was Failed Attempt at Intimidation
A LOW BLOW?	“His detention is a potent reminder of how governments lie when they claim to need powers to stop 'the terrorists', and how dangerous it is to vest unchecked power with political officials in its name.” — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

Der Spiegel, Germany West Dithers Over Taking Side in Egypt "Egypt's political unravelling puts the West in a tight spot. Its reaction to this week's massacre will affect its image in the Arab world for many years to come. So far, it has been anything but assertive." — CORRESPONDENT Erich Follath ISLAMISTS OR MILITARISTS?

DER SPIEGEL: West's Insincerity
and 'Fair Weather Diplomacy'
DER SPIEGEL: Spying on Its Own
- The NSA's Deep Bag of Tricks

Der Spiegel, Germany An American Stasi Spy Tells His Story "One of East Germany's top spies was actually an American soldier. Jeff Carney defected to the Communist state in 1983 and fed the notorious Stasi with reams of valuable data. Carney has now written a book about his life." — REPORTER Jurgen Dahlkamp

Reuters, U.K. China to Probe IBM, Oracle, EMC after Snowden Leaks “Now, thanks to their technological superiority, many of China's core data technology systems are esentially dominated by foreign hardware and software firms, but the PRISM scandal implies security problems.” — A Shanghai Securities News Source

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The Ethical Consistency of Bradley Manning's Apology
MANNING TRIAL	"Unlike the U.S. government's vindictiveness, Pfc Manning's expressions of regret are of a piece with his moral earnestness." — REPORTER Alexa O'Brien

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Google Admits: Don't Expect Privacy When Using G-Mail “People sending e-mail to any of Google's 425 million Gmail users have no 'reasonable expectation' that their communications are confidential, the internet giant has said in a U.S. court filing.” — CORRESPONDENT Dominic Rushe

Der Standard, Austria Oprah Winfrey and Our 'Oh-So-Civilized' Society TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "Swiss embarrassment certainly shows us several facets of discrimination and a state of mind that exists in places other than Switzerland: Black women, not dressed to the nines, not blessed with the dimensions of a Gucci coat rack, and who are demanding and difficult to boot - that's when people really like to vent their inner racist feelings." — COLUMNIST Petra Stuiber EUROPEAN RACISM ALIVE AND WELL?

Savon Sanomat, Finland Better For Finland that Obama Goes to Sweden TRANSLATED FROM FINNISH “Perhaps it's better that this time, the visitor stay with our neighbors. Although the days of Finlandization are behind us, it would not be good for Finland's leaders to become pawns in the diplomatic match between the superpowers.” — EDITORIAL, Savon Sanomat FINLAND: HOT POTATO AVERTED

Daily Mail, U.K. Oprah a 'Liar': Handbag Sales Girl in Switzerland Refutes Racism Charges "Sale assistant said she feels 'powerless' after the racism accusations. Oprah Winfrey claimed assistant refused to show her a handbag since it was 'too expensive' ... Speaking anonymously, shop worker calls claim 'absurd'" — CORRESPONDENT Allen Hall TOO RICH FOR OPRAH? $30,000

Yezhednevniy Zhurnal, Russia Ed Snowden: Kremlin Tool for Reducing U.S. Web Dominance TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “There are grounds for believing that the Kremlin is counting on Snowden for more gains in its geopolitical game to alter regulation of the Internet, which is understood to mean the struggle to reduce U.S. influence over the Web.” — COLUMNISTS Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan TIME FOR WORLD WEB REGULATION?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Michael Hayden, Bob Schieffer and U.S. Media's Reverence for National Security Officials
NSA INFLUENCE	"The former NSA chief is held up by the Face the Nation host as an objective authority when he is anything but that." — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

GUARDIAN: NSA Turning
the Internet into 'Total
Surveillance' System
DAILY MAIL: Virginia Town
Where WiFi, TV, Radio,
and Cell Phones are Banned

Der Spiegel, Germany Social Democrats Being Pulled into NSA Morass “It is despicable the way the government is trying to duck its responsibility by invoking September 11, 2001. ... The cooperation that was needed to clear up a horrific crime has nothing to do with the comprehensive surveillance of the data of our citizenry.” — Opposition Social Democrat Frank-Walter Steinmeier

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Mr. Obama is Not to Be Trusted on Foreign Policy
OBAMA LOST?	"Having declared an end to the War on Terror, the U.S. leader no longer has any idea of his country's global role." — COLUMNIST Janet Daley

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Germany Values of Amazon Would Be 'Sellout' of Journalism TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “We will soon see how Bezos deals with the 'values' of the Washington Post when his newspaper reports on Amazon. Maybe he really is the savior. He should go ahead and show us that he can do more than dictate knock down prices.” — COLUMNIST Michael Hanfeld BEZOS: JOURNALISTIC SAVIOR?

The Telegraph, U.K. Inside the Hyperloop: The Pneumatic Travel System Faster than Speed of Sound "The 'cross between Concorde, a rail gun and an air hockey table' will deliver passengers between American cities faster than sound." — CORRESPONDENT Nick Allen NEW AMERICAN INFRASTRUCTURE

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA Loophole Allows Warrantless Searches of American Citizens' E-mails, Phone Calls “The rule change allows NSA operatives to hunt for individual Americans' communications using their name or other identifying information.” — REPORTERS James Ball, Spencer Ackerman

GUARDIAN: NSA Surveillance -
The Long Fight to Close Backdoor
into American Communications
GUARDIAN: Edward Snowden
Not in Moscow, say Russians

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Lavabit E-Mail Service Shuts Itself Down Citing Government Interference "This experience has taught me one very important lesson: without congressional action or a strong judicial precedent, I would strongly recommend against anyone trusting their private data to a company with physical ties to the United States." — LAVABIT Chief Ladar Levisont THE NSA CHILL SETS IN

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. E-Mail Encryption Firm Shuts Itself Down; Warns Against Using U.S.-Based Companies
NSA BLOWBACK	"The American owner of the firm believes his Constitutional rights and those of his customers are being violated by the U.S. Government, but he is not allowed to talk about it." — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Putin the Hunter Loses his Quarry
RESET REDUX	“Snowden's asylum was only one factor. Obama cancelling the summit reflects reality that the U.S. -Russia 'reset' was genuinely finished.” — COLUMNIST David Hearst

Die Tageszeitung, Germany Manning Trial: Superficial Justice to Save U.S. Face TRANSLATED FROM GERMANY "The trial of Bradley Manning had to accomplish at least two things at once: The verdict had to be dramatic enough to deter whistleblowers; but also, also, it had to show that even at American military tribunals, everything is above board." — COLUMNIST Bernd Pickert MANNING TRIAL BACKFIRE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Justice Department to Probe DEA for Hiding NSA Data Use on Americans “Although such cases rarely involve national security issues, DEA agents using the tips are trained to 'recreate' the source of the criminal investigation to conceal its true origin from defense lawyers, prosecutors, judges.” — CORRESPONDENT Karen McVeigh

El Pais, Spain Bradley Manning Verdict a Warning to Any Future 'Heroes of Transparency' TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH "On that list of heroes there are two names: Edward Snowden and Julian Assange. Manning, Snowden and Assange represent a new phenomenon that exposes the weaknesses of the intelligence services, particularly those of the United States, which are unable to control those with access to the vast amount of data they process." — COLUMNIST Walter Oppenheimer PUTIN CATCHES FISH BUT WHAT KIND?

Der Spiegel, Germany NSA Aftermath: German Firms Scramble to Boost Nation's Data Protection “German companies have long suspected China and Russia of trying to steal their secrets. But the NSA scandal has turned their attention west, forcing them to worry about prying U.S. eyes and quickly boost security measures.” — News Item, Der Spiegel

DER SPIEGEL: 'Spy Rings'
in Germany: A Baker's Ode
to the NSA and Snowden
DER SPIEGEL: German
Transfers of Intercepts
Aid U.S. Surveillance

Sky News, U.K. Washington Post: Jeff Bezos Seeks Influence "Is the Washington Post now just a plaything for a digital age billionaire? Doubtful. You buy the Post and you buy influence. When you buy the Post and you buy potential." — FOREIGN AFFAIRS EDITOR Tim Marshall WHY DID JEF BEZOS BUY IT?

INDEPENDENT: Why Does Dot Com
King Want the Washington Post?

Kommersant, Russia Kremlin Cannot Promise to Lift 'Gay Propaganda' Ban at Sochi TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “This is the first time in history that the Olympic Games may be overshadowed by 'rainbows' and the 'dancing of sodomites.' The Olympic Games, as I understand them, is a sports event - not a sex deviant parade.” — DEPUTY Vitaly Milonov, St. Petersburg Assembly SHOULD RUSSIA HOST THE OLYMPIC GAMES?

KOMMERSANT: Anti-Gay
Crusader Pursues Madonna,
Lady Gaga for Tax Evasion

Frankfurter Rundschau, Germany PRISM: U.S. Peeps as Europe Sleeps TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The capacity for the unrestricted spying on communications has essentially forced us to regress to face- to-face conversation and snail mail. For our legal system, this is no less than a meltdown." — ATTORNEY and Pirate Party Bundestag Candidate Udo Vetter TIME FOR GLOBAL DEAL?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Members of Congress Denied Access to Basic Information about NSA
TOO SECRET?	“Documents provided by 2 House members demonstrate how they are regularly blocked from exercising any oversight over U.S. domestic surveillance.” — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

Der Spiegel, Germany Snapping Tina's Wedding: Paparazzi Turn to Drones "'When Tina Turner got married at her estate in Switzerland over the weekend, she wanted to keep paparazzi away. However, they used drones and other craft to get the shots they needed." — REPORTERS Martin U. Müller, Andreas Ulrich NO ESCAPE FOR TINA TURNER

Russia Today, Russia Ed Snowden has Job Offer, Awaits Reunion with Family, Girlfriend “Edward Snowden will be entitled to Russian citizenship after spending five years in the country, alhough the procedure has been sped up before for high-profile public figures like Gerard Depardieu.” — RUSSIA TODAY News Item SNOWDEN SETTLING DOWN?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama 'Open to NSA Surveillance Reform' at Meeting with Lawmakers "My focus was on the urgency of reform ... The false choices that you can have either security or liberty, I don't think, is a case that Americans would accept." — SENATOR Ron Wyden

GUARDIAN: U.S. Woman
Visited by Police after
Googling Pressure Cookers

BBC News, U.K. Anthony Weiner, Eliot Spitzer: the 'Death of Shame' “Sex scandals used to doom a politician. Now, they refuse to back down from evidence of dirty deeds. Have we now reached a new age of American politics?” — CORRESPONDENT Nick Bryant THE WILL TO POWER

Die Presse, Austria West's Hypocrisy and the Egyptian Tragedy TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "'Realpolitik' is not wrong per se. However, once adopted, one should have the courage to adhere to it. Of course, one is then in the uncomfortable position of having to support a government that has its opponents gunned down. Much indicates that the latter was the case - once again - over the weekend. Or one must stand by a commitment to democracy and human rights. Doing both together won't work." — COLUMNIST Helmar Dumbs HOW BEST TO HELP EGYPT

GUARDIAN: Manning Leak
Did Not Result in Deaths by
Enemy Forces, Court Told

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. LIVE BLOG: Ed Snowden Leaves Moscow Airport “• Snowden granted one-year asylum in Russia • Leaves airport in taxi with Wikileaks lawyer • Wikileaks: Snowden heading to 'safe and confidential place'.” — CORRESPONDENT Paulk Own

GUARDIAN: NSA Pays $150
Million in Funding for GCHQ

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The Bradley Manning Trial: Courtroom Artists's View from Inside and Out "Bradley Manning is a poor kid from Oklahoma who loves Lady Gaga, got into fights and flirted with a hacker who betrayed him. He's a human who did a heroic thing. In that mostly empty court at Fort Meade, other humans do the work of caring for each other, while waiting for world to notice." — UNNOFFICIAL Courtroom Artist Molly Crabapple A UNIQUE LOOK AT MANNING TRIAL

GUARDIAN: Manning Leak
Did Not Result in Deaths by
Enemy Forces, Court Told

Daily Mail, U.K. SECRET PAPERS: Reagan Got a 'Handbagging' Over U.S. Action in Grenada “I must ask you to think most carefully about this. I cannot conceal that I am extremely disturbed by your latest note. You asked for my advice. I have set it out and hope that even at this late stage you will take it into account before events become irrevocable.” — PRIME MINISTER Margaret Thatcher PALS CLASHED OVER GRANADA

GUARDIAN: National Archives:
Reagan Blindsided Thatcher
Over 1983 Grenada Invasion
GUARDIAN: National Archives:
Whitehall Prepared Queen's
Speech for Third World War

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. XKeyscore: NSA Collects 'Nearly Everything a User Does While on the Internet'
FULL SPECTRUM	• XKeyscore gives 'widest-reaching' collection of online data • NSA analysts require no prior authorization for searches • Sweeps up emails, social media activity and browsing history. — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

GUARDIAN: U.S. Senators Rail
Against Disclosed NSA PracticeS
BBC NEWS: Snowden's Father
Thinks Son Should Stay in Russia

The Independent, U.K. The Least We Owe 'Heroic' Bradley Manning is a Debate on American Foreign Policy “Manning revealed the sordid realities of war armchair warriors want sanitized.” — CORRESPONDENT Owen Jones

BBC NEWS: Manning Verdict a
'Relief' to Future Whistleblowers
BBC NEWS VIDEO: Assange Calls Bradley
Manning 'Quintessential Whistleblower'
BBC NEWS: Bradley Manning
Sentencing Hearing Begins

Izvestia, Russia Turning Mr. Snowden into Tool of Russian 'Soft Power' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN "In practice, defending Snowden and granting him asylum on Russian soil means defending values more often associated with American democracy than with Russia's recent policies. ... will Moscow manage to transform him into a tool of its own 'soft power'?" — COLUMNIST Natalia Demchenko RUSSIAN CONTORTIONS OVER SNOWDEN

BBC News, U.K. Inuits of Kivalina: First U.S. Climate Change Refugees “The sea has sustained them for countless generations but in the last two decades the dramatic retreat of the Arctic ice has left them desperately vulnerable to coastal erosion. No longer does thick ice protect their shoreline from the destructive power of storms.” — CORRESPONDENT Stephen Sackur U.S. CLIMATE CASUALTY

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Manning Verdict is a Shameful Moment in American History
VERDICT RELIEF?	“This is not so much the beginning of a slippery slope for a democratic nation as a headlong plummet. Bradley Manning's prosecution represents, in essence, a proxy war on watchdog journalism.” — COLUMNIST James Ball

GUARDIAN: The Manning Verdict
is Still Bad News for the Press

Die Tageszeitung, Germany Zimmerman Verdict Shows Neglect of Social Harmony in America TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “If social harmony was worth anything to America, 'stand your ground' would be ended, massive rates of gun ownership restricted, and deterrence no longer based on communities that are bristling with firearms.” — COLUMNIST Bernd Pickert JUSTICE AND SOCIAL HARMONY?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Major Opinion Shifts in U.S. and Congress on NSA Surveillance and Privacy
TIDE TURNS?	“For anyone who spent the post-9/11 years defending core liberties against assaults relentlessly perpetrated in the name of terrorism, polling data like this is certainly shocking.” — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

DAILY MAIL: Barnaby Jack, Famed
'White Hat' Hacker, Found Dead
REUTERS: 'White Hat' Coders
Attack Cars, to Release Code,
as Hackers Meet

De Morgan, Beligium U.S.-E.U. Meeting on NSA Spying a 'Sham' TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Insiders I spoke to over the last few days see the two-day meeting as a sham. Calling the Americans to order? Yeah right. As long as the European Union remains as dependent on U.S. intelligence as it is today, Brussels will never be master of its own house.” — AUTHOR Kristof Clerix EUROPE UPROAR OVER SPYING

La Repubblica, Italy With Robert Seldon Lady, America 'Humiliates' Italy TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN "For American diplomacy and for the White House, it's case is closed. Closed, with a smack in the face to Italy. Happily undisturbed and returning home undeterred by Italy's demand for his extradition is Robert Seldon Lady, the former CIA Milan station chief, sentenced to nine years in prison for the 'extraordinary rendition' of an Italian citizen named Abu Omar." — COLUMNIST Frederico Lampini RETURN OF EXTRAORDINARY RENDITION

Der Spiegel, Germany 'Anxious Continent': Walter Lacqueur on Europe's Decline “Freedom, human rights, and social justice are all wonderful things, and I don't want to minimize the many achievements of of European societies. But a role model? Europe is much too weak to play a civilizing or moral role in world politics.” — HISTORIAN Walter Lacqueur

DER SPIEGEL: NSA Spy Scandal:
Merkel Chief of Staff Says 'Data
Protection Being Upheld'
DER SPIEGEL: Three PRISMS?
Parliament Seeks Clarity in
NSA Espionage Scandal

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.S. Democrats 'Unmasked' as Prime Defenders of the NSA's Bulk Spying Programs
SPY ZEALOTS?	“The extraordinary events in the House of Representatives yesterday may be the most vivid illustration yet of this dynamic, and it independently reveals several other important trends.” — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

GUARDIAN: NSA Amendment's
Defeat Spurs Privacy Advocates

Telegraph, U.K. The Bradley Manning Trial: Leaker is 'Gleeful, Grinning' Traitor, says Prosecutor "Manning, who is a British-American dual national, will face verdicts in the coming days on 20 charges. In February he pleaded guilty to 10 lesser charges. A guilty verdict on the aiding-the-enemy charge could mean a life sentence for Manning." — CORRESPONDENT David Usborne AND NOW FOR THE VERDICT ...

Kommersant, Russia In Snowden's Wake, Duma Takes Up Russia's Online Vulnerability TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Snowden's attack on Google, Microsoft and other American Internet firms working with the intelligence services has found a welcome audience in Russia. And not just in the Kremlin, but Russia's IT sector.” — REPORTER Oleg Khokhlov DUMA DEBATES AMERICAN SPYING

BBC News, U.K. Scientists Warn: Arctic's $60 Trillion Methane Time Bomb "Researchers estimate that the climate effects of the release of Methanecould cost $60 trillion, roughly the size of the global economy. ... researchers examined the impact of the release of 50-gigatonnes of methane in a decade." — CORRESPONDENT Matt McGrath THE PRICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL IGNORANCE

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. A Narrow Defeat for Amash Amendment to Restrict NSA Snooping “First major challenge to NSA bulk collection of phone data defeated by only 217 votes to 205 in House of Representatives.” — CORRESPONDENT Spencer Ackerman

GUARDIAN: Blog on Attempted
Passage of Amash Amendement

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Edward Snowden Tells Lawyer He Wants to Stay in Russia Indefinitely July 24, 00:12:21 With documents enabling Edward Snowden to leave the Moscow Airport nearly in hand, a media frenzy has ensued. From Russia Today, his Russian lawyer told of Snowden's condition, his future plans, and that he brought him a change in clothes and books about Russian history and literature. — RUSSIA TODAY News Report SNOWDEN: FREE TO TRAVEL IN RUSSIA

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. White House Urges Congress to Reject Amendment to Limit NSA Phone Surveillance “The White House has forcefully urged the defeat of a measure to curb its wide-ranging collection of Americans' phone records, setting up a showdown with the House over domestic surveillance.” — CORRESPONDENT Spencer Ackerman

GUARDIAN: The Amash Amendment:
a Vital Shield from Unwarranted
NSA Surveillance of Americans

La Stampa, Italy Applying Machiavelli to the Internet Age TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “If you have the patience to reread the treatise of the Florentine theorist and diplomat, you will be impressed by how, in light of its perspective in terms of interests, power and strategy, little has changed since the turbulent days of Courts and Principates. ... That is, except for social media and the Internet.” — COLUMNIST Gianni Riotta APPLYING THE OLD TO THE NEW

ABC, Spain Fear of Vladivostok Escape for Snowden Drives U.S. Threats Against Venezuela TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “If Snowden left from Vladivostok, a Russian city on the Pacific coast, he could make just one stopover in Nicaragua, therefore avoiding having to overfly other countries.” — REPORTER Emili J. Blasco FEARING ASYLUM FOR SNOWDEN

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Policewoman Escorts Bob Dylan to Hotel After Not Recognizing Him “The 68-year-old singer was placed in the back of a patrol car and driven to a hotel where staff confirmed his identity. ... Dylan had told the 22-year-old officer his name - but she and her partner had no idea who he was.” — REPORTER Paul Thompson DYLAN: HIDES IN PLAIN SIGHT

Novosti, Russia Snowden Wins German Whistleblower Award “The award, established in 1999, is sponsored by the German branch of the International Association of Lawyers Against Nuclear Arms and the Association of German Scientists. ... the award money, amounting to 3,000 euros, will be passed to Snowden through his representatives. ... either a lawyer or a 'friendly' group” — NEWS ITEM, Novosti

NOVOSTI: Lansing Michigan
May Break with 'Sister City' St.
Petersburg Over Anti-Gay Law
NOVOSTI: Russia's Internet:
Regulation and Censorship
NOVOSTI: Russia, Self-Defense
and Death of Trayvon Martin

Izvestia, Russia Zimmerman Trial a Global Lesson in Justice Served TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “While it may appear that national outrage over the Zimmerman case proves the opposite, in actual fact, it strengthens this pattern. ... Such a trial is like a legal FAQ for those who, like me, is in need of one.” — COLUMNIST Alexander Genis A TRIAL OUTCOME TO CELEBRATE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. FISA Court Approves Mass Verizon Surveillance - Again
TOTAL RECALL	“The travesty calling itself 'the Manning court-martial', kangaroo tribunal calling itself 'the FISA court', and the emptiness of what the Obama DOJ calls 'your constitutional rights.'.” — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

Gazzetta del Sud, Italy Former CIA Station Chief Held in Panama Over Italy 'Rendition' “Former CIA Milan station chief Robert Lady has been detained in Panama over his role in abducting Muslim cleric Hassan Mustafa Omar Nasr in Italy in 2003. Lady has been sentenced to nine years in prison over the case.” — NEWS ITEM, Gazzetta del Sud OMAR: RENDITIONER'S REVENGE?

FLASHBACK-LA STAMPA: Italy
Must Gird for Repercussions
Over CIA Convictions
FLASHBACK-CORRIERE DELLA
SERRA: CIA Agents Convicted of
Kidnapping; Italy Officials Walk Free
FLASHBACK-CORRIERE DELLA
SERRA: Ex-Intelligence Chief,
CIA Agents Indicted for Kidnapping
FLASHBACK - LE MONDE DIPLOMATIQUE:
The Law Will Catch Up With
CIA's European 'Accomplices'
FLASHBACK-CORRIERE DELLA
SERRA: U.S. Must Fess Up to
CIA Kidnapping on Italian Soil
FLASHBACK-LA REPUBBLICA:
Italy's Spymasters Arrested
for Aiding CIA Kidnappings

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. White House Silent on Renewing NSA Data Collection Order “'This is unsustainable. It's outrageous, and must be stopped immediately," said Congressman John Conyers, a Michigan Democrat. 'Can I reasonably expect privacy in anything but maybe a letter I hand-deliver to my wife in a [secure facility]?' asked Blake Farenthold, a Republican from Texas.” — CORRESPONDENT Spencer Ackerman MOMENT OF TRUTH FOR NSA?

GUARDIAN: U.S. Tech
Companies Appeal to
Obama Over Secret
Provision of User Data
GUARDIAN: Europe Rejects
Google Solution to Battle
Over Unfair Search Results

Der Spiegel, Germany German Spy Agency at Odds with Defense Over PRISM Use in Afghanistan “In Germany, the scandal over NSA spying is getting odder by the day. A Defense Ministry memo suggests a claim that German army knew of PRISM in 2011 is true.” — CORRESPONDENT Matthias Gebauer

Moskovskij Komsomolets, Russia Snowden: Putin's Perfect 'Anti-Magnitisky' Weapon TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Snowden's presence gives Russia distinct opportunities, the likes of which the Kremlin could only have dreamed of a couple of months ago. ... Has Washington behaved as if it were a 'loyal friend and ally' to Moscow? No, no and no again.” — COLUMNIST Mikhail Rostov VENGEANCE OVER WHISTELBLOWER

Mediapart, France A New Weapon Born in America ... The 'Hoody TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Seeing a Black in a hoodie at nightfall, Zimmerman granted himself the right to gun him down. Because a hooded Black person at day's end is reason enough for force majeure. ... Once Trayvon was killed, George was quite annoyed to discover that the young man was unarmed. Fortunately, U.S. justice and its ferocious attorneys know how to set a precedent. God Bless America.” — COLUMNIST Cyril Vergne TEXTILE TO POLITICAL STATEMENT

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany Why U.S. Fears Djohar Tsarnaev More Than It Respects Ed Snowden TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “One month after Snowden's revelations, it looks as America fears Tsarnaev more than it respects Snowden. That may seem strange to Europeans, but 9/11 still exercises a powerful influence in the United States.” — COLUMNIST Nicolas Richter BENEATH THE AMERICAN HOOD

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Microsoft Pushes Attorney General to Lift Block on Public Information Sharing “After news of data cooperation between NSA and Microsoft, tech giant requests freedom to share information with customers.” — CORRESPONDENT Dominic Rushe

GUARDIAN: Google Glass
Hacked with Malicious Code
to Yield Pictures and Video
GUARDIAN: E-mail Exchange
Between Edward Snowden and
Former Republican Senator

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany American Vigilante Justice: When Amateurs Play Sheriff TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Many Americans feel safe only when they are permitted to carry a loaded weapon. ... The Zimmerman case shows where this can lead: Amateurs that have wild suspicions can patrol neighborhoods, overestimate every threat, and ultimately propagate the very insecurity they set out to contain.” — COLUMNIST Nicolas Richter ZIMMERMAN: CONVICTED ABROAD

The Independent, U.K. Race is a Constant in U.S. Life – as it is in Many Places
U.S. NOT ALONE	“Trayvon Martin's death proves race is still a factor in U.S. life - but name a country on earth with a significant racial minority that it is not.'” —COLUMNIST Rupert Corwell

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The Crux of the NSA Story in Single Phrase: 'Collect it All'
TOTAL RECALL	“The actual story that matters is not hard to see: the NSA is attempting to collect, monitor and store all forms of communication.” — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

DER SPIEGEL: U.S. Media
Gets Personal: Attacks
Messengers in NSA Affair

Der Spiegel, Germany Snowden Dances to Vladimir Putin's Tune “It was Putin's government, rather than Snowden himself, that had orchestrated the latter's appearance. It was the first time that Snowden had emerged from the depths of the airport since arriving over three weeks earlier.” — CORRESPONDENTS Marc Hujer, Christian Neef and Matthias Schepp JUST A RUSSIAN PLAYTHING?

DER SPIEGEL: NSA Mudslinging
Has Merkel on Defensive

Gazeta, Russia Chapman and Snowden Star: 'The Ghost of Sheremetyevo' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Sydney Pollock would be so excited if he still lived. The script of a thriller is there to be had, and I'm sure it is already being written. We haven't seen bugging like this since the war criminal Nazi regime. Isn't that so?” — COLUMNIST Natalia Gevorkyan FROM SPYING TO MOVIE STARDOM?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. 'Open Season on Black Boys' After Zimmerman Verdict
RACISM LIVES	“Let it be noted that on this day, July 13, it was deemed legal in the U.S. to chase and then shoot dead an unarmed young Black man on his way home from the store because you didn't like the look of him.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

La Stampa, Italy E.U. Will Rue Toppling Obama Over Snowden TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “If Europeans, as is now taking place with some leaders hunting for summer headlines, fall into the trap set by Putin and Chinese intelligence to rid themselves of Obama, they may perhaps get a small boost in image now, but in the long term, they are going to pay a very substantial price.” — COLUMNIST Gianni Riotta DOTH EUROPE PROTEST TOO MUCH?

Sheremetyevo Airport, Russia Edward Snowden Letter Summoning Human Rights Groups “The scale of threatening behavior has no precedent: never before in history have states conspired to force a sovereign president's plane to the ground to effect a search for a political refugee.” — Whistleblower Edward Snowden SNOWDEN: ASYLUM IN RUSSIA?

Guardian Unlimited U.K. Microsoft Handed the NSA Access to Encrypted Messages • Secret files show scale of Silicon Valley's cooperation on PRISM • Outlook.com encryption unlocked even before official launch • Skype worked to enable PRISM collection of video calls • Company says it is legally forced to comply. — REPORTERS Laura Poitras, Glenn Greenwald, Ewen Mac Askill, Spencer Ackerman and Dominic Rushe

Izvestia, Russia South vs. North: Snowden's Place in History is Assured TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Snowden is a catalyst for changes that have been smoldering below the surface for many years. The gaping chasm between north and south of the Western Hemisphere has long existed. But now at the very bottom of that fault line - a nuclear bomb has been detonated.” — COLUMNIST Kirill Benediktov SNOWDEN: NO MERE FOOTNOTE

Wiener Zeitung, Austria Edward Snowden is No Enemy of Our State! TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The screenwriters of Enemy of the State were incapable of coming up with the latest twist in the saga. ... Europe should have offered Snowden asylum. That would've been the right response to America’s attack on European interests. The fact that Russia of all places could be an asylum country for Snowden is yet another oddity in the bizarre Snowden thriller.” — COLUMNIST Thomas Seifert STRANGER THAN HOLLYWOOD

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Bradley Manning Defense Rests after Calling Just- 10 Witnesses to Testify “Last witness delivers blistering testimony warning that Bradley Manning is guilty of 'aiding enemy,' that all media could face charges.” — CORRESPONDENT Ed Pilkington DOES MANNING HAVE A CHANCE?

GUARDIAN: Bradley
Manning on Trial: Exploring
the Newest Developments

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Snowden: 'I Never Provided Data to China or to Russia' “With polls showing widespread American approval for him, the NSA whistleblower vehemently denies claims made by media.” — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

The Telegraph, U.K. Dangerous Days in Egypt "The Obama Administration must set aside its reservations and make sure interim leader Adly Mansour succeeds in his stated goal of steering Egypt back to the path of democracy. ... The alternative to this is too awful to contemplate." — EDITORIAL, The Telegraph

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Even Le Carre's Fiction Can't Do Snowden Justice
NON-FICTION	“Whistleblower and writer both finger the enemy as their own side. But the full horror of truth always outdoes the imagination.” — REPORTER Simon Jenkins

GUARDIAN: Europe Opens
Trade Talks with U.S. Amid
Ongoing Tensions Over Spying

Kommersant, Russia Snowden's Presence Could Stop Obama Trip to Russia TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “In the context of Putin's statement on an asylum deal for Snowden, an ultimatum [hand over Snowden for Obama to come] would seriously complicate relations between the two countries, and through no fault of the Russian Federation.” — UNIDENTIFIED Kremlin Source SNOWDEN'S IMPACT ON GLOBAL AFFAIRS

The Telegraph, U.K. Osama bin Laden was 'Stopped for Speeding' While on Run in Pakistan “The hunt for bin Laden might have ended eight years earlier had a traffic cop spotted the world's most wanted man in a car he had stopped for speeding.” — REPORTER Rob Crilly BIN LADEN'S CHARMED LIFE

Der Spiegel, Germany Snowden Interview: The NSA and Its Willing Allies This interview with Edward Snowden, was complied from encrypted e-mails. It was conducted before Snowden had fled the United States, and is fairly technical in nature. — DER SPIEGEL Interview

DER SPIEGEL: Diplomatic
Fallout: Experts Warn of
Trans-Atlantic Ice Age
DER SPIEGEL: Germany
Cooperates Closely with NSA

Der Spiegel, Germany Conditions at San Fran Airport May Have Invited Accident on Saturday “A stabilized arrival in the San Francisco has become practically impossible.It was only a matter of time before something like this happened. ... San Francisco International Airport has a particularly bad reputation.” — UNIDENTIFIED German Airline Pilot AIRPORT IN NEED OF AN OVERHAUL?

Le Monde, France French Big Brother is Watching You! TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “It isn't only the U.S. government that has developed a gigantic apparatus to spy on all of its citizens and beyond. Paris has done the same. ... In America, the system has a semblance of legislative and judicial scrutiny. That is nothing like France.” — EDITORIAL, Le Monde DGSE: WORSE THAN NSA?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The NSA's Indiscriminate Mass Spying on Brazilians
NSA LONG ARM	“As it does in many non-adversarial countries, the spy agency is collecting the communications of millions of people in Brazil in bulk.” — REPORTER Glenn Greenwald

GUARDIAN: Snowden is a
Whistleblower, Not a Spy
- but Do Our Leaders Care?

Izvestia, Russia 'Servile Europeans' Inflict Huge Insult on Bolivians TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “It appears that without our taking notice, a new age of lawlessness has begun. The slavish servility of Western countries to the United States is simply despicable. ... My God, these Europeans are such obsequious sons of bitches!” — COLUMNIST Edward Limonov WHITE HOUSE SHOWS HEAVY HAND

Der Standard, Austria Mass NSA Surveillance Implies 'Bizarre Presumption of Guilt' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The whole point of the PRISM story is not that U.S. intelligence is siphoning off the data of Europeans. Rather, it is that large portions of the Internet's traffic are monitored and evaluated, legally although illegitimately, under some bizarre presumption of guilt. While ostensibly for the sake of protecting freedom and democracy, any such protections are marginal at best. The opposite is more likely.” — COLUMNIST Christoph Prantner PRESUMPTIVE SEARCH AND SIEZURE?

Der Spiegel, Germany New Snowden Claims: German Intelligence 'are in Bed' with NSA "Snowden isn't buying the version given by leading German politicians and government figures that they were completely unaware of the spying programs. The contrary is true and the NSA are 'in bed together with the Germans,' Snowden said.” — DER SPIEGEL News Item

GUARDIAN: The NSA/GCHQ
Metadata Reassurances are
'Breathtakingly Cynical'
OBSERVER: U.S. Attempts
to Block Edward Snowden
'Bolsters' Case for Asylum

Der Tagesspiegel, Germany NSA: Angela Merkel Ignores Nightmare of 'Stasi Squared' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “German politicians either don't grasp or prefer not to grasp, what's at stake. We're dealing here with the workings of a 'Stasi' squared, a Big Brother such as the world has never known. ... Hollywood productions are nothing by comparison. to this program” — COLUMNIST Stephan-Andreas Casdorff GLOBAL OUTRAGE HAS NOT ABATED

Telegraph, U.K. Edward Snowden is Certainly a Traitor "In traditional accounts of Hell, sinners end up with punishments that fit their crimes. Rumour-mongers have their tongues cut out; usurers wear chains of burning gold. On this basis, it will be entirely fitting if Edward Snowden spends eternity in Moscow airport.” — COLUMNIST Charles Moore

GUARDIAN: U.S. Military
Blocks Entire Guardian Web
Site for Troops Abroad
GUARDIAN: Britain Blocks
Espionage Talks Between
America and Europe

Le Monde, France French Political Leaders Conduct 'Outrage Contest' Over NSA Surveillance TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Arnaud Danjean, chairman of the Security and Defense Subcommittee of the E.U. Parliament, criticized 'the European competition to be the most outraged by American spying, which he call naive and 'pathetic.'” — FRENCH Political Leaders HOLLANDE: FIEGHNING SHOCK?

Der Spiegel, Germany What's All the Fuss About U.S. Spying? "Having experienced dictatorships with notoriously effective intelligence systems, Germans are furious about NSA snooping. Now they want to put stricter rules in place.” — COLUMNIST Jan Fleischhauer WHAT SNOWDEN WROUGHT

DER SPIEGEL: Spying Scandal
Shakes Up German Elections
DER SPIEGEL: Spying Survey -
Trust in U.S. Lowest Since Bush

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Forcing Down Plane of Evo Morales was an Act of 'Air Piracy'
NSA CRISIS	“Denying the Bolivian president air space was a metaphor for the gangsterism that now rules world.” —COLUMNIST John Pilger

GUARDIAN: U.S. and Germany
to Hold Talks Over European
NSA Surveillance Concerns
GUARDIAN: Evo Morales
Threatens to Close
U.S. Embassy in Bolivia
GUARDIAN: European
Watchdogs Order Google
to Rewrite Privacy Policy
GUARDIAN: European Firms
'Could Quit U.S. Internet
Providers Over NSA Scandal' .
GUARDIAN: NSA Recruitment
Drive Goes Horribly Wrong

The Independent, U.K. When is a Military Coup Not a Military Coup? When it Happens in Egypt, Apparently
EGYPT COUP	“Stand by for the first U.S. delegation to visit after the coup-that- wasn;t. And you will know whether they believe there was a coup or not by the chaps they visit: in the army, of course.” —COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. One Brit's 'Envy' for U.S. Independence Day "While Americans toast their freedom from tyranny every summer, Britons get a royal wedding maybe every other decade, if we're lucky. ... It's not as though we of the old country couldn't find a good anniversary of our own to celebrate. We've got Magna Carta, after all. But can we expect Brits to hold 'habeas corpus street parties' for the 800th annaversary in 2015?” — CORRESPONDENT Matt Seaton WHY CAN'T BRITIAIN TOP THIS?

GUARDIAN: Why So Many
are Keen to Play Down
Debate on NSA Revelations
GUARDIAN: U.S. Government
Rests its Case in Bradley
Manning WikiLeaks Trial

Elsevier, The Netherlands Snowden's Actions are 'No Benefit to Society' TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “The result of the Snowden's action is an even more intense collective suspicion of each other, of businesses and of governments. In this era of extensive individualization, actions like his are of no benefit whatsoever to society.” — COLUMNIST Reinoud Ottervanger HAS SNOWDEN DAMAGED SOCIETY?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. America's Founders Would be Horrified at this United States of Surveillance ... "Once upon a time I would have signed a White House petition with no qualms. Now, however, a chilling thought occurs: what 'watch lists' will signing a petition like this put me on? NSA? IRS? It' s not a paranoid question now, in the United States of Surveillance.” — PROFESSOR, Dr. Dan Gillmor HAS AMERICA GONE OFF COURSE?

GUARDIAN: Why So Many
are Keen to Play Down
Debate on NSA Revelations
GUARDIAN: U.S. Government
Rests its Case in Bradley
Manning WikiLeaks Trial

The Spectator, U.K. The Men Who Lost America “The birth of the United States was a more complex - and less heroic - Odyssey than the one enshrined in American folklore.” — REVIEWER Andro Linklater THE TALE OF 1776

Der Spiegel, Germany NSA Spying on Germany: How Much Did Angela Merkel Know? "While the Chancellery appears to be outraged by the NSA's spying tactics in Germany, the opposition doubts the revelations came as a shock to Angela Merkel. How much did she know?” — COLUMNIST Philipp Wittrock WAS SHE REALLY CAUGHT BY SURPRISE?

DER SPIEGEL: How the NSA
Targets Germany and Europe
DER SPIEGEL: Germany
Rejects Asylum for Snowden
DER SPIEGEL: Bolivia Irate
Over Forced Landing

Liberation, France The NSA 'Panopticon' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “That this unimaginable mass of data may or may not be exploited seems like an after- thought, when compared to the brutal and irreversible infringement of what forms the foundation of democracy: the respect for privacy.” — COLUMNIST Nicolas Demorand AFTER SECRETS: WHAT NEXT?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Ecuador President: 'We Assisted Edward Snowden by Mistake' “A right of asylum request is one thing but helping someone travel from one nation to another - Ecuador has never done this. ... It was a mistake on our part.” — Ecuador President Rafael Correa JUST A MISUNDERSTANDING?

GUARDIAN: Obama Seeks
to Limit E.U. Fallout Over
U.S. Surveillance Claims
GUARDIAN: Snowden
Asylum: Nations Approached
and their Responses

News, Switzerland Humanity's Cyber- Hypocrisy Overload TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Today's cyber-hypocrisy is almost intolerable, and all who are justly outraged over mega snooping are advised to be suspicious of the powerful, and the powers, that make a show of being defenders and advocates of Net freedom.” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer ADVENTURES OF SNOWDEN

Der Spiegel, Germany Attacks from America: NSA Spied on E.U. Offices “The documents SPIEGEL has seen indicate that the E.U. offices to the United Nations was attacked in a manner similar to the way NSA surveillance was conducted against its offices in Washington.” — REPORTERS By Laura Poitras, Marcel Rosenbach, Fidelius Schmid and Holger Stark E.U. FINDS IT HAS BEEN SPIED ON

DER SPIEGEL: Partner and
Target: NSA Snoops on 500 Million
German Data Connections
DER SPIEGEL: Spying 'Out
of Control': E.U. Official
Questions Trade Negotiations
DER SPIEGEL: Growing Alarm:
German Prosecutors To Review
Allegations of U.S. Spying

The Observer, U.K. Orson Welles' Criticisms of Actors and Directors Discovered on Lost Tape “Laurence Olivier was 'stupid,' Spencer Tracy 'hateful,' Charlie Chaplin 'arrogant,' and he could not bear to look at Bette Davis. James Stewart was a 'bad actor,' Joan Fontaine had 'two looks, and that's it,' and Norma Shearer was 'one of the most minimally talented ladies to be on screen.” — ACTOR Orson Wells WELLS: A SALVO FROM BEYOND

GUARDIAN: Hollywood's Shameful
Refusal to Stand Up to Alec Baldwin
MIRROR: Michael Jackson
Paid $35 Million to Buy Silence
of at least 12 Young Boys

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Ecuador Cools on Snowden as Frustration Grows with Assange “President Rafeal Correa has revoked Snowden's temporary travel papers amid concerns WikiLeaks founder is 'running show.'” — CORRESPONDENTS Rory Carrol, Amanda Holpuch

GUARDIAN: Senators Accuse
Government of Using 'Secret
Law' to Collect Americans' Data
GUARDIAN: We Need Encryption
for Private Communications

Deutsche Welle, Germany 'NSA Spied on E.U. Institutions': Report “The NSA used bugs, phone taps and cyber-monitoring to obtain information from E.U. institutions in Washington, D.C., New York, and Brussels.” — Der Spiegel Report

RAI Novosti, Russia Agreeing to Disagree on Edward Snowden “Today the main enemies of the intelligence agencies – closed institutions by definitio n – are not other intelligence agencies, but open society. ... A new type of confrontation is taking shape in a world where nothing is secret anymore.” — COLUMNIST Fyodor Lukyanov

RAI NOVOSTI: From the Tsar
to Snowden, U.S.-Russian
Extradition Deal Quietly Died
RAI NOVOSTI: Russian Duma
Invites Snowden to Investigate
Russia Spying Allegations

BBC News, U.K. Voyager One Spacecraft Surfs Solar System's Edge “The particles streaming away from our star have reduced to a trickle at its present location, 18.5 billion km from Earth. ... Particles flying toward it from interstellar space, by contrast, have jumped in the past year.” — CORRESPONDENT Jonathan Amos ENTERING INTERSTELLAR SPACE

DAILY MAIL: American Foods
Banned in Other Countries

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Ecuador Rejects U.S. Trade Pact to Thwart Snowden 'Blackmail' “Ecuador does not accept pressure or threats from anyone, nor does it trade with principles or submit them to mercantile interests, important as those may be.” — ECUADOR Communications Secretary Fernando Alvarado

GUARDIAN: Glenn Greenwald
on the Personal Side of Taking
on the NSA - Personal Smears
GUARDIAN: How NSA
Continues to Harvest
Your Online Data
GUARDIAN: Edward Snowden's
Next Step: Live Q&A

Diario de Noticias, Portugal U.S. 'Summons World' to Renewed Cold War TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE “By putting Russia on the same level as 'authoritarian countries' aiding Edward Snowden escape, the United States is summoning the world to the distant days of the Cold War, without first clarifying whether or not the statements from the ex-NSA analyst have any basis in fact.” — EDITORIAL, Diario de Noticias PUTIN: A RELUCTANT ADVERSARY?

Gazeta, Russia Why Russia, China, Others, Love 'Poking America in the Eye' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “ This attitude toward the United States reveals the objective power of that nation. Only the genuinely strong are so widely hated. Only those who actually amount to something warrant such annoyance.” — EDITORIAL, Gazeta OBAMA: STILL BEHAN BUSH

GUARDIAN: U.S. Senators say
NSA Must Correct Inaccurate
Claims Over Privacy Protections
GUARDIAN: Whistleblowers
Will Continue to Leak State
Secrets, Warns AP Chief
EXPRESS: Pair Who Oppose
Ground Zero Mosque Banned
from Entry into Britian

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Snowden Affair Revives Politics of the Cold War “It is re-igniting America's suspicions of Russia and intensifying the anger felt toward China. Now Germany is looking at Britain and a new annex for European suspicion has begun to brew.” — COLUMNIST Kunal Dutta U.S. LEASHES OUT OVER LEAKS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. 'History will be Kind' to Edward Snowden “On the available evidence Snowden's almost certain motive for speaking out was far removed from anything like espionage, sedition or anti-Americanism. His effort to stay beyond the clutches of U.S. law may involve travel to countries with a poor record on free expression. But his choice of refuge does in itself make him a traitor.” — EDITORIAL, The Guardian

Handelsblatt, Germany Obama's 'Castles in the Air' Beat Reckless Wars TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Are we now any wiser about whether Obama is a friend of Germany? No. But should we be less happy with him as a result? Hardly. It is still better for a president to have perhaps illusory disarmament goals than to have one waging reckless wars. Step by step Obama is winding these down. That alone is really quite something.” — COLUMNIST Markus Ziener OBAMA: STILL BETTER THAN BUSH

Le Figaro, France America's Clueless Affront to President Hamid Karzai TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “This is a back step for an imbroglio that combines the hardness of the Taliban, the cunning of the Qataris, the cynicism of the Americans and the sensitivity of the Afghans. ... If the Taliban and Qataris had wanted to spit in the face of Hamid Karzai, they need have done nothing differently. Then the Americans, perhaps unwittingly, significantly worsened the insult against him.” — COLUMNIST Renaud Girard RIBBON CUTTING GOES HORRIBLY WRONG

Financial Times U.K. Google Says Tighter E.U. Search Rules Will Hurt Innovation “Not everyone can be at the top of search results ... There will always be someone who will not be at the top who will be unhappy and complain.” — COLUMNIST Richard Waters

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany Putin Radiates Power as Obama Sits Idly By TRANSLATED FROM GERMANY “Vladimir Putin has made his country a major factor in the world's bloodiest ongoing war, which has altered borders to an extent that is now hard to judge. The country hasn't been this strong since perhaps the end of the Cold War. And certainly, it has never had this much influence in the Middleast.” — COLUMNIST Stefan Kornelius PUTIN MAKES PRESENCE FELT

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Live Updates: Edward Snowden Missing after Failing to Fly to Cuba “The whereabouts of former NSA contractor whose leaks to The Guardian have caused global controversy a mystery, after he misses Cuba flight.” — REPORTERS Paul Owen and Tom McCarthy

DNA, France Obama Hits on Greatest Danger: The Way We Live TRANSLATED FROM FRANCE “The enemy is no longer a great power cemented in doctrinaire ideology. It is a way of life - our way. ... The danger is not from a nuclear conflagration that would fossilize all or part of our Earth. It is of an irreversible degradation of its capacity to accommodate the human species.” — COLUMNIST Jacques Fortier NUKES ARE LEAST OF OUR PROBLEMS

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany At the Brandenburg Gate, Victory Column Haunts President Barack Obama TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “That a feeling of disappointment set in the moment Barack Obama waved to the crowd and left the podium with his jacket slung over his shoulder has to do with the fact that he is being measured by a new bar. A bar he himself raised to impossible heights, for example during his Victory Column speech.” — COLUMNIST Matthias Kolb FIVE YEARS PROVE LIGHT YEARS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Edward Snowden Leaves Hong Kong for Moscow: Seeks Asylum in Ecuador “The NSA whistleblower has left Hong Kong on an Aeroflot flight to Moscow, days after the United States charged him with spying, with his eventual destination still unknown.” — REPORTER Peter Walker

Reuters, U.K. Saudis Role in Syria Driven by Fear of Shiite 'Full Moon' “Saudi Arabia's former intelligence chief, Prince Muqrin, once told U.S. diplomats the Middle East's Shiite Crescent, where Shiites hold sway was 'becoming a full moon' as Iran's influence spread. For the kingdom's Sunni rulers, that fear, revealed in a 2009 U.S. Embassy cable released by WikiLeaks, now focuses on Syria.” — CORRESPONDENT Angus McDowall THE BOTTOM LINE OF THE SYRIA CRISIS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Revealed: Top Secret Rules that Allow NSA to Use Data w/o a Warrant “FISA judges have signed off on broad orders that allow the NSA to make use of data 'inadvertently' collected from domestic U.S. communications without a warrant.” — REPORTERS Glenn Greenwald and James Ball

La Republique, France G-8 Appears Ready to Turn Screws on Apples and Amazons of World TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Undoubtedly, much can happen between now and the launch of this new global fiscal regulation, and it is maddening to see the delay, when one imagines the colossal sums being amassed by those benefiting from sheltering themselves from national taxes.” — COLUMNIST Jean-Michel Helvig READY TO SMASH TAX HAVENS?

El Diario Exterior, Spain In Arabic, Hebrew and English, the Meaning of 'Ceasefire' Varies Widely TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “The United States, and even the Israelis, have little or no idea how the Palestinians or the Arab world think. The concepts and use of language in the Arab world is diametrically distinct, and even opposite, to that of the West.” — COLUMNIST George Chaya ARAFAT: BADLY MISUNDERSTOOD?

Der Spiegel, Germany Mr. Sunshine: 'Yes We Can' Memories Flood Back on Feel-Good Trip “The government in Berlin is fully aware that nice snapshots with the U.S. president are like gold dust for the chancellor just three months before the September 22 general election.” — REPORTERS Florian Gathmann, Veit Medick, Philipp Wittrock A PLEASANT TIME HAD BY ALL?

DNA, France Snowden is Not the Issue TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Stealing huge amounts of entirely personal data at will, the NSA PRISM program is a major slap in the face for both democratic and republican ideals otherwise trumpeted to the world by the United States. Given the enormity of the issues, doubts about the motives of Mr. Snowden, the man behind the NSA revelations, are insufficient as a distraction.” — COLUMNIST Didier Rose

Daily Mail, U.K. Google's Ray Kurzweil: 'Digital Immortality' is 30 Years Away “Ray Kurzweil, engineering director at Google, believes we will be able to upload our entire brains to computers within the next 32 years - an event known as singularity. ... Our 'fragile' human body parts will be replaced by machines by turn of the century, which will make us effectively immortal.” — REPORTER Victoria Woollaston WILL HUMANS SOON LIVE FOREVER?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA PRISM a 'Game Changer' on Web Privacy, According to Marketing Services Giant “I think PRISM and what's happening in the U.S. will have a very significant impact, I think it is game changing. ... I think the privacy issue is going to be raised to a new level by this. It will alter people's views on privacy, and that goes even for younger people.” — REPORTER Mark Sweney WILL THE YOUNG TAKE UP PRIVACY FIGHT?

El Pais, Spain Powerless, Europe Must Nevertheless Stand Up to NSA Spying Program TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “Defending the rights of 500 million Europeans should be reason enough to mobilize E.U. authorities - even if they are in a powerless position.” — EDITORIAL, El Pais EUROPE CONSIDERS ITS OPTIONS

Telegraph, U.K. Obama Looks Like Leader Going through the Motions
FADED GLORY	“The impression is of a president who has run out of new things to say, struggling to redirect his 2nd term. He is lost on Syria, repeats himself on E.U. and hesitant on the changes in the Arab world.” —COLUMNIST Alex Spillius

Der Spiegel, Germany Soft Totalitarianism: Europe Must Protect Itself from America “Is President Obama a friend? Revelations about the vast spying of his government call that assumption into question. The European Union must protect the Continent from U.S.' reach for omnipotence.” — COLUMNIST Jakob Augstein GLOBAL REJECTION OF NSA

DER SPIEGEL: Trade
Deal Could See German
Exports to U.S. Double
DER SPIEGEL: Kennedy
to Obama: Evolving
Trans-Atlantic Ties
DER SPIEGEL: German PRISM
... Berlin Wants to Spy, Too
DER SPIEGEL: Justice Minister
- 'Security Is Not an End in Itself'

El Pais, Spain What Superman Tells us About America ... and About Ourselves TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Religion, with individual freedom, is the clay that the country is made of. In Superman there is Moses and Jesus. In the child whose parents removed him from of their planet to save him, and who arrives in another world as an orphan on a mission, there is something of Moses. In the son sent by the father to earth to incarnate as a man (Clark Kent), there is Jesus.” — COLUMNIST Alvaro Vargas Llosa WHY SUPERMAN ENDURES

BBC News, U.K. The Two Obamas in Belfast Avoid Syria “This was a tale of two President Obamas, the one with high dreams and the one who must deal with grubby reality.” — CORRESPONENT Mark Mardell

VIDEO: Obama 'Fever' Comes
to Belfast (BBC News, U.K.)

VIDEO: Obama and Putin G-8 Talks on
Syria 'Tense' (BBC News, U.K.)

VIDEO: G8 Summit 2013 First Day
Highlights (BBC News, U.K.)

VIDEO: Obama Speech in Belfast, About Not
Giving Up on Peace Process (RTE, Ireland)

VIDEO: Speech of Michelle Obama at the
Gaiety Theatre in Dublin (RTE, Ireland)

VIDEO: G-8 Police Operation the largest in
Northern Ireland History (RTE, Ireland)

Mediapart, France 'Autonomous Machines': The World Reawakens to U.S. Internet Dominance TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “These programs are becoming autonomous and activate one another. At first, they might suggest that human operators research, and eventually destroy, a particular individual or firm whose existence may be judged hostile to American interests. Very soon, they will themselves, without a clear mandate, take the decision to kill or incapacitate.” — COLUMNISTS Jean-Paul Baquiast and Christophe Jacquemin BACKING SNOWDEN IN HONG KING

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Britain's GCHQ Intercepted Communications of Foreign Politicians at G20 Summits “The revelation comes as Britain prepares to host another summit on Monday – for the G8 nations, all of whom attended the 2009 meetings which were the object of the systematic spying. It is likely to lead to some tension.” — REPORTERS Ewen MacAskill, Nick Davies, Nick Hopkins, and Julian Borger, James Ball ESPIONAGE BOMB GOES OFF AT G-8

GUARDIAN: NSA Targeted Dmitry
Medvedev at London G20 Summit
GUARDIAN: Putin Backs Assad;
Raps Cannibalistic Syrian Rebels

BBC News, U.K. Hassan Rouhani Wins Iran Presidential Poll “Mr. Rouhani's election is not necessarily the moment for a substantive change in Iran's policy, but that even a change in style may offer an opening to the U.S. and Security Council members.” — BBC NEWS Item CHANGE ... BUT HOW MUCH CHANGE?

BBC NEWS: Rouhani Victory
- Time for Iran Change?
TELEGRAPH: Who
is Hassan Rowhani?

Der Spiegel, Germany The E.U. Weakened Data Protection at U.S. Request “The European Commission bowed to U.S. lobbying in early 2012 and scrapped a data protection measure that would have significantly cut the NSA's ability to spy on Europeans.” — NEWS ITEM, Der Spiegel

Independent, U.K. Cameron Stands with Obama as U.S. Decides to 'Arm' Syria Rebels “The United States warned Bashar al-Assad's regime it had crossed a 'red line' by mounting deadly nerve-gas attacks against rebel fighters.” — CORRESPONDENTS Nigel Morris, David Usborne

GUARDIAN: U.S. Looks to
G8 Summit to Build
Consensus Over Syria
TELEGRAPH: 'Obama Doesn't
See Where He's Going'
DER SPIEGEL: Berlin Rules
out Arms for Syrian Rebels
GUARDIAN: Russia says
Syria No-Fly Zone would
Violate International Law

Le Monde, France French Lawmakers Scramble on News of NSA Surveillance TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Digital Economy Minister Fleur Pellerin spoke of 'great concern for our citizens and businesses,' but was anything but clear when asked her about France's possible diplomatic response to the affair.” — REPORTER Martin Untersinger FRENCH MINISTER ON THE FIRING LINE

Le Temps, Switzerland Last Resort for Confronting the 'Electronic Big Brother' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Fortunately, this Leviathan also has an Achilles heel: the individual. ... Their existence is, for now, the best guarantee that the nightmare of an Electronic Big Brother will not come.” — COLUMNIST Sylvain Besson MANNING: OUR 'LAST LINE OF DEFENSE'?

Media Part, France The NSA is Spying on Us! What a Surprise! TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “This flattered our pencil- pushing egos. We aren't as insignificant as we thought, we said to ourselves ... the NSA is interested in our full stops and commas, saves them, and computes and gives them a careful analysis.” — COLUMNIST Jean-Paul Baquiast AFTER THE PEEPING: WHAT NEXT?

Irish Examiner, Ireland NSA's 'Inevitable Intrusion' “Privacy is something all of us cherish, but surely we must be aware that once we go online we step into a world without boundaries or restraint - and unless we are careful, expose ourselves in regrettable ways.” — EDITORIAL, Irish Independent

ROSSIJSKAYA GAZETA:
What to Expect from Obama
and Putin AT G8 in Ireland
IRISH INDEPENDENT: Michelle
Obama will be in 'Class of her
Own in Trip to Dublin School
TELEGRAPH: Cameron
Bans Wives and Spouses
from Northern Ireland G8
GUARDIAN: Obama to
visit Belfast While in
Northern Ireland for G8

Le Monde, France NSA Surveillance Storm Builds Over Cloud Market TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “News of the NSA surveillance program comes at the worst possible moment for companies like Microsoft, for which the level of trust regarding private data has been diminished. ... The secret 'PRISM' program may be construed as a violation of the principles of Europe's Safe Harbor plan, [which protects the data security of Europeans], as the European Commission was not notified of such activity.” — COLUMNIST Guenael Pepin NSA EYES THREATEN CONFIDENCE IN CLOUD

FAZ, Germany Protect Us from Terrorism, and Government Snooping TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The individual Internet user is helpless against these changes. Therefore, firms that conduct their business using the lure of the Internet should be asked to do somthing. Data protection must urgently be incorporated into devices and software.” — COLUMNIST Carsten Knop CAN WE HAVE OUR CAKE AND EAT IT TOO?

Russia Today, Russia Putin: Government Surveillance 'Should Not Break the Law' “I can tell you that at least in Russia, you cannot just go and tap into someone's phone without a warrant issued by court. ... That's more or less the way a civilized society should go about fighting terrorism with modern-day technology.” — PRESIDENT Vladimir Putin NOW: PUTIN LECTURES OBAMA

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. World Leaders Seek Answers on NSA Data Collection Programs “If what we're reading is, either partially or wholly true, this is a question of very serious violations of European citizens' basic rights. ... [The technology giants] allowed access to E.U. citizen data without informing them, violating our rules on personal data.” — Franco Pizzetti, Internet Alliance Chairman, Italy

GUARDIAN EDITORIAL:
Snowden is 'More Conscientious
Objector than Common Thief'
GUARDIAN: Artist Ai Weiwei:
The U.S. is 'Behaving Like China'
GUARDIAN: Edward Snowden
- Russia Offers to Consider
Possible Asylum Request

Handelsblatt, Germany Mr. Obama's Data Nightmare is Ours TRANSLATED FROM GERMANY “Anyone who is not a U.S. citizen or living in the U.S. is under general suspicion of being a terrorist - and that includes the Chinese.” — COLUMNIST Axel Postinett 'FOREIGN' DISPLEASURE AT NSA

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Europe Now Demands Answers from Obama Over U.S. Surveillance “Officials in European capitals demanded immediate answers from their U.S. counterparts and denounced the practice of secretly gathering digital data on Europeans as unacceptable, illegal, a breach of basic rights.” — REPORTERS Dan Roberts, Ewen MacAskill, James Ball AND NOW COMES THE BACKLASH

DER SPIEGEL: Surveillance
with Global Implications

Suedostschweiz, Switzerland Exposed: Spy Powers that Mr. Obama Shouldn't Use TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “No 'scandal' investigation is required where none exists. However, a change in these scandalous laws, which so cheerfully place civil rights on the executioner's block of secrecy is urgently needed.” — COLUMNIST, Thomas J. Spang HAS OBAMA BETRAYED HIS IDEALS?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Edward Snowden: the Whistleblower Behind NSA Surveillance Leak “The 29-year-old behind the biggest intelligence leak in NSA history explains his motives, his uncertain future and why he never meant to hide in shadows.” — REPORTERS Glenn Greenwald, Ewen MacAskill, Laura Poitras ANOTHER LEAK TO REMEMBER

FINANCIAL TIMES: Backlash
over U.S. Spying Intensifies
DAILY MAIL: Intelligence
Officials Overheard Joking
of 'Disappearing' NSA Leaker
GUARDIAN: Edward
Snowden - Saving Us from
the 'United Stasi of America'
FINANCIAL TIMES: Hong Kong
'No Haven' for Edward Snowden

The Economist, U.K. The Reason We Fear Broad Surveillance “The first is the possibility of illegitimate pressure based on information we didn't intend to be made public. ... The second is the fear that a pattern of circumstantial activity will lead us to be falsely accused.” — THE ECONOMIST

ECONOMIST AUDIO: Columnists
Hold Discussion on 'Big Brother at Work'

REUTERS: Europeans
React 'Angrily' to News
of U.S. Surveillance
GUARDIAN: The NSA's
Secret Tool to Track
Global Surveillance Data
GUARDIAN: Live Blog
on NSA Tool Code Named
'Boundless Informant'
GUARDIAN: Like Apple,
Google and Facebook:
Obama is a 'Once Hip
Brand Tainted by PRISM'

Le Temps, Switzerland Exploring the Limits of Sino-U.S. Compromise TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “The great difficulty is this: the adjustment of forces between a previously dominant power - America; and the affirmation of an emerging power - China. Such a rebalancing cannot occur without friction. Miscalculations about intentions of a competitor has led to the worst kinds of disaster, as the twentieth century so unmistakably demonstrates.” — COLUMNIST Frederic Koller RIDING THE TIGER OF SINO-U.S. TIES

Neue Zuercher Zeitung, Switzerland Accept End to Bank Secrecy; Hand Over U.S. Citizen Data TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “For the game to continue, finding a definitive solution to the problem with the United States is essential. And for that to occur, data must be delivered and fines must be paid.” — Dr. Alfred Mettler, Professor of Finance SWISS DRAGGED FROM BANK SECRECY

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Orders U.S. to Draw Up Overseas Target List for Cyber-Attacks “Obama's move to establish a potentially aggressive cyber warfare doctrine will heighten fears over the increasing militarization of the Internet.” — REPORTERS Glenn Greenwald, Ewen MacAskill NOW THE FOREIGN POLICY ANGLE ...

GUARDIAN: Facebook and Google
Insist they Didn't Know of PRISM
Surveillance Program
GUARDIAN: Britain Gathering
Secret Intelligence Via Covert
NSA Operation Called 'PRISM'
GUARDIAN: Ministers
Challenged Over GCHQ's Access
to Covert U.S. Operation PRISM

Guardian Unimited, U.K. Nicaragua Awards China Firm Contract to Construct Panama Canal Alternative “The project will reinforce China's growing influence on global trade and weaken U.S. dominance over one of world's key shipping routes.” — REPORTER Jonathan Watts

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. NSA Collecting Phone Records of 'Millions' of Verizon Customers “The document shows for the first time that under Obama, the communication records of millions of U.S. citizens are being collected indiscriminately.” — COLUMNIST Glenn Greenwald WHITE HOUSE ADMITS THE OBVIOUS

GUARDIAN: Data on Citizens
has Been 'Collected for Years'
GUARDIAN: NSA Taps
into Internet Giants'
to Mine User Data

Daily Mail, U.K. Does a Shadowy Clique of Billionaires, Politicians and VIPSs Secretly Run World? “If only there was a global government and someone was in charge. ... The trouble is when you go to these events you realize no one is running anything - that's why the world is in such a mess.” — UNIDENTIFIED Former Bilderberg attendee

CAN THE BILDERBERGERS RUN THE WORLD?

GUARDIAN: Bilderberg
2013: Welcome to 1984
TELEGRAPH: The Bilderbergers:
Fiendish Plots are A-Hatching

The Telegraph, U.K. Michelle Obama Pulls Out of Summit with Xi Jinping “Her absence is likely to limit the role of China's first lady at the two- day California meeting, and may be interpreted by the face-conscious Chinese bureaucrats and general public as a deliberate snub.” — EDITORIAL, Le Monde CALIFORNIA SUMMIT LOSES SOFT POWER

BBC News, U.K. After Five Years, China Allows U.S. Man to Exit “Hu Zhicheng was detained in China in 2008 when a former business partner accused him of stealing commercial secrets.” — BBC NEWS ITEM

Le Monde, France Obama's 'Admission of Failure' is Attempt to Put Bush Era to Rest TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “After September 11, 2001 attacks, the U.S. placed too much emphasis on the need for security. Obama wants to restore the balance on the side of freedom. He's right, even if, as is often the case with President Obama, his speech remained extremely incantatory.” — EDITORIAL, Le Monde OBAMA: STILL CLEANING UP AFTER BUSH?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Hypocrisy Lies at Heart of Trial of Bradley Manning
VENGEANCE	“It is an outrage that soldiers who killed innocent remain free but that the man who exposed them is accused of 'aiding the enemy'.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

THE TELEGRAPH: Bradley
Manning, WikiLeaks and the
Secret Trial at Fort Meade

Rzeczpospolita, Poland The 'New Face' of Terrorism Demands Level-Headed Public TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “It is very difficult to track terrorists like the killers in London, the Tsarnaev brothers in Boston, or France's Toulouse assassin a year ago. There's is no doubt that there will be further attacks like the one in London - and not only in the U.S. or U.K. One cannot prevent them all. We simply need to learn to live with this new face of terrorism.” — COLUMNIST Matthias Rub TERRORISM GOES SMALL-SCALE AND LOCAL

Rue 89, France Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is Threat to Democratic Japan TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “A proven war criminal, the leader of Unit 731 avoided trial by negotiating his release with the Americans in exchange for the results of his experiments. ... The absence of justice for such a large number of Japanese imperial war crimes made possible the corruption of Japan's democracy and the impunity of Abe and revisionists like him across the country.” — COLUMNIST Stephanie Mot PRIME MINISTER ABE'S FLIGHT TO IGNOMINY

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Friend of Boston Bomber Killed By FBI During Questioining Father of Ibragim Todashev accuses agency of murder; shows autopsy photos during Moscow press conference. — BBC News Item NO COMMENT YET FROM THE FBI

Der Spiegel, Germany JFK: 'Fascinated' ... and Puzzled, by Hitler's Germany TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN "The Germans are really too good - that Is why people conspire against them ... they do it to protect themselves. ... The docility of German officials shows how easy it would be to seize power.” — John F. Kennedy, Writing in 1937 Germany ON THE ROAD WITH JFK

Der Spiegel, Germany 'Bandits in Uniform': The Dark Side of GIs in Liberated France "The liberators made a lot of noise and drank too much. They raced around in their jeeps, fought in the streets and stole. But the worst thing was their obsession with French women. They wanted sex - some for free, some for money, or by force.” — From Book: What Soldiers Do: Sex and the American GI in World War II France DUBUNKING TALE OF WHITE KNIGHTS

BBC News, U.K. To Avoid Execution, Sgt. Robert Bales to Plead Guilty to Afghan Murders “Sargeant Bales' defense team said they had determined the soldier would not be able to prove any claim of insanity or diminished mental capacity.” — BBC News Item PLEA ANGERS AFGHAN VICTIMS

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Larry King to Host Program on Russia Today May 29, 00:00:47 "I have interviewed every U.S. president since Nixon, and lest people forget, I also helped usher Ross Perot into America's national conversation during the 1992 presidential contest. I appreciate the importance of providing a platform to those with real alternative visions for our country’s future.” — TALK SHOW HOST Larry King KING GOES EAST - WAY EAST!

FAZ, Germany 'Hypnotized' Western Public Wakes Up to Obama Abuses TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “These are attacks on freedom of the press and vendettas against reporters who haven't stuck to the agenda and 'storyline' preferred by Obama and the White House. Is it a coincidence that Fox News reporter has appeared in the crosshairs of agents of the FBI.” — COLUMNIST Matthias Rub AP - IRS SCANDALS: CORRUPTION OF POWER?

The Independent, U.K. Hezbullah's War in Syria Threatens to Engulf Lebanon
SYRIA CRISIS	“It was, of course, inevitable. Only last month, I discovered men from Hezbollah protecting the Sayda Zeinab mosque in south Damascus. 'Don't say you saw me here,' one of them told me.” —COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

RUSSIA TODAY: Iran
Begins 'Mass' Deployment
of Long-Range MissileS

Daily Mail, U.K. Did JFK Secretly 'Admire' Hitler?: Book Reveals Former President's Praise for Nazis "President John Kennedy's travelogues and letters chronicling his wanderings through Germany before WWII, when Adolf Hitler was in power, have been unearthed and show him generally in favor of the movement that plunged world into the greatest war in history." — REPORTER Allan Hall NEWLY-REVEALED KENNEDY DOCUMENTS?

Wiener Zietung, Austria Human Cloning Nears: A 'Dream and a Nightmare TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The possibilities of such a future cannot be prohibited by law, nor indeed by moral taboo. Not every culture consider it a sin that Adam was tempted by Eve to sample the apple from the Tree of Knowledge.” — COLUMNIST Walter Hammerle ARE WE READY FOR HUMAN CLONES?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Echo Chamber of Mass Hysteria Aids Terrorists
MEDIA FRENZY	“Perpetrators of acts of terrorism thrive on publicity - so politicians and media need to stop giving it to them.” —COLUMNIST Simon Jenkins

GUARDIAN: Was London Killing
of British Soldier 'Terrorism'?

BBC News, U.K. Germany Tops World's Most Popular Nation Poll “More than 26,000 people were surveyed internationally for the poll. ... Canadians and Americans both give much lower ratings to the European Union. In the U.K., positive views of the E.U. are falling steadily and, for the first time, more Britons rate the E.U. negatively than positively.” — BBC NEWS Poll Results

Independent, U.K. Barack Obama Defends Drone Strikes - but He Moves to Rein them In
END OF WAR?	“The speech is a sweeping public reassessment of the evolving threat facing the United States.'” —COLUMNIST Rupert Corwell

ECONOMIST: 'War on Terror':
The Beginning of the End

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. President Obama: 'Perpetual War Will Prove Self-Defeating' •Obama speech on future of counter- terror• Obama defended controversial drones program•Announced measures to restart Guantanamo inmate releases. — Guardian Blog of Obama Speech PRESIDENT TO RELAX MILITARY STANCE

La Gaceta, Spain President Obama's Abuse of State Power Squelches U.S. Media TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “The steps taken by the Obama Administration never cease to amaze us. Its constant attacks on the right to life or the way it has used verbal manipulation to conceal the terrorist attack directed at the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi that killed the U.S. ambassador are good examples.'” — EDITORIAL, La Gaceta HAS BARACK OBAMA GONE TOO FAR??

Le Monde, France U.S. Diplomats Force-Feed 'Frankenfoods' to the World TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “It's appalling the State Department is complicit in supporting the biotech seed industry's goals, despite public and government opposition in several countries. American taxpayer's money should not go to furthering the goals of a few giant biotech companies.” — Ronnie Cummins, Director, Organic Consumers Association SHOULD OUR ALLIES EAT WHAT THEY LIKE?

Liberation, France Will the French Start Killing People 'the American Way'? TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Officially, France has acquired two U.S. Reapers for gathering data, but they will be easy to turn into killer drones. No official announcement or debate has been made about the conditions of the exchange. Will they be used to kill men from al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb across the Sahel - the American way? States have the right and duty to defend themselves, but drones operate in a legal vacuum unjustified by the 'war against terror.'” — COLUMNIST Alan Posener DRONES: WHAT IS WORLD GETTING INTO?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. E-Mail Messages Show U.K. Authorities Spoke of 'Framing' Assange “A message from September 2012, read out by Assange, apparently says: 'They want to arrest him on suspicion of XYZ ... It is definitely a fit-up. Their timing is too convenient coming right after Cablegate.'” — Government Communications Headquarters E-Mail PROVING JULIAN ASSANGE RIGHT?

GUARDIAN: Oliver Stone
Meets Julian Assange;
Praises Strength of Mind
GUARDIAN: The Man Who
'Nearly Broke the Internet'

Der Spiegel, Germany 'Cowboys on the Rhine': U.S. Firms Flout German Labor Law and Practices “Amazon plays according to its own rules, and thus finds itself in the best of company, with numerous other U.S. firms that find it hard to accept German 'social partnerships,' which is the traditional tie that exists between employees and employers.” — REPORTER Janko Tietz

Der Spiegel, Germany Barbie Dreamhouse Gets 'Fiery Welcome' From City of Berlin “For some, it is a dream in pink. For others, it is a a horrific case of misogyny. The Barbie Dreamhouse opened in Berlin last week, accompanied by protests and a crucified doll having been set alight on the cross.” — REPORTER Rainer Leurs BARBIE FALLS OUT OF FASHION

The Mirror, U.K. Oklahoma Tornado: Dozens Dead after 200mph Monster Twister Rips Through State “At least 51 are confirmed dead - including seven kids sheltering at a primary school in twister's path.” — REPORTER Nigel Atkins DEADLIEST TWISTER IN DECADES

News, Switzerland Jolie's 'Breasts of Media Contention' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “It's safe to say that these breasts of contention won't change our cultural debate, but they can serve as a wonderful example of how not to discuss other people - whether prominent or not, whether rich or poor.” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer MASS UNINFORMED OPINION

Die Welt, Germany Like U.S. and U.K., Europe Must Re-Embrace Keynes TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “If someone finds himself in a hole and continues to dig, it's called cognitive dissonance. It may be that in the long run, the ways of Angela Merkel are best. But in the long run, as Keynes said, 'we'll all be dead.'” — COLUMNIST Alan Posener KEYNES: WILL EUROPE HEED HIS ADVICE?

Le Monde, France Barack Obama's Shameful Crusade 'Against' Terror TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “With each passing day, it becomes clearer that America is far from witnessing the final dark hours of the war on terror - and that any suggestion otherwise is an illusion.” — Dr. Sylvie Laurent, Sciences-Po, Paris

Daliy Mail, U.K. 'Is this Still America?' Congressional Hearing Turns into IRS Siege "Acting IRS commissioner Steven Miller apologized to the House Ways and Means Committee on Friday. But members on both sides of the aisle were furious, and castigated him for the mismanagement and political gamesmanship the agency engaged in under his watch.” — CORRESPONDENT David Martosko CONGRESSIONAL FIRING SQUAD

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Russia Reveals Identity of CIA Moscow Chief After 'Spy's' Expulsion “Russia Federal Security Service spokesman breaches protocol as he accuses U.S. agency of crossing 'red line' in recruitment efforts.” — CORRESPONDENT Miriam Elder CIA RECRUITER FOILED IN RUSSIA?

RUSSIA TODAY: Cloak, Dagger
and a Blond Wig? Kremlin says
CIA Agent Nabbed in Moscow
RUSSIA TODAY: Kremlin
'Regrets' Renewed Americ
a-Russia 'Spy Scandal'
RUSSIA TODAY: 'America's
Shame, Moscow's Gain,'
Little Political Impact
RUSSIA TODAY: Russia-
U.S. Tango: Glass Half-
Full and Easy to Break
DAILY MAIL: Russia's
CIA Spy Bust 'Linked
to Boston Bombing'
THE TELEGRAPH: Spy
Disguise Looks Farcical
... that's Why they Work!
TELEGRAPH: Russia 'Surprised'
by 'Crude, Clumsy' U.S. Spying

Financial Times, U.K. Christie's Contemporary Art Auction Sets World Record at $495 Million "The remarkable bidding and record prices set reflect a new era in the art market, wherein seasoned collectors and new bidders compete at the highest level within a global market.” — AUCTIONEER Brett Gorvy POLLOCK-LICHTENSTEIN-BASQUIAT

Daily Mail, U.K. Physically Strong Men More Likely to Have Right-Wing Opinions “Weaker men more likely to support welfare state and wealth redistribution.” — Aarhus University Scientists ARE LEFT WINGERS 'GIRLY-MEN?'

Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, U.K. Deluded Cold War Powers Jabber About Syria Crisis TRANSLATED FROM ARABIC “The error in thinking that will become evident in the days to come is that the U.S. and Russia still think they're living in the Cold War, during which they ruled the world via telephone.” — COLUMNIST Emad El Din Adeeb TIME FOR U.S. AND RUSSIA TO WAKE UP?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Angelina Jolie and the Bravery of Choosing not to Have Ovaries Removed “To understand just how brave Angelina Jolie is, consider what she did not write in her op-ed in The New York Times: her decision to have a mastectomy and forgo an oopherectomy.” — COLUMNIST Masha Gessen OPERATION RISKIER THAN THOUGHT

Il Sole 24 Ore, Italy Bloomberg and the Violation of (Everyone Else's) Privacy "Bloomberg is an emblem of mystery. What a paradox for a man who made a business out of providing information. Nothing is written ... or documented. There are no publicly available budgets. But one thing is known: his Bloomberg LP—the group's flagship company - is legally based in the state of Delaware, where banking privacy is kept best.” — COLUMNIST Fabio Pavesi

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Digital Revolution? It's All a Gift to the Power of the State
BYE PRIVACY	“You can scream that no data is secure until you're blue in the face. Few seem to believe it. Governments and firms claim to respect data privacy, but they are babes in arms against nerds in attics, including those that they employ.” —COLUMNIST Simon Jenkins

GUARDIAN: Major Sea
Change in Media Discussions
of Obama and Civil Liberties
GUARDIAN: The Real Obama
Scandal: Fighting Illegal
Wars in Libya and Pakistan

Le Monde Diplomatique, France The Global Tyranny of the One Percent “The inequality machine is reshaping the whole planet: a globalized economy where the winner takes all; trade unions going to the dogs; and the lightest taxation is for those with highest income.” — COLUMNIST Serge Halimi

Russia Today, Russia Cloak, Dagger and a Blond Wig? Kremlin says CIA Agent Nabbed in Moscow “Bearing the hallmarks of a Cold War spy thriller, Russian intelligence says it has captured a CIA officer trying to flip a Russian intelligence operative.” — RUSSIA TODAY News Item CIA RECRUITER FOILED IN RUSSIA?

RUSSIA TODAY: Kremlin
'Regrets' Renewed Americ
a-Russia 'Spy Scandal'
RUSSIA TODAY: 'America's
Shame, Moscow's Gain,'
Little Political Impact
RUSSIA TODAY: Russia-
U.S. Tango: Glass Half-
Full and Easy to Break
DAILY MAIL: Russia's
CIA Spy Bust 'Linked
to Boston Bombing'
THE TELEGRAPH: Spy
Disguise Looks Farcical
... that's Why they Work!
TELEGRAPH: Russia 'Surprised'
by 'Crude, Clumsy' U.S. Spying

The Telegraph, U.K. Angelina Jolie's 'Giant Leap for Womankind' “By writing of her double mastectomy, Angelina Jolie has normalized the idea of life saving surgery and flagged the need to make genetic testing affordable.” — COLUMNIST Anjana Ahuja JOLIE: BOLDNESS AND HEROISM

The Economist, U.K. Republicans and Taxes: IRS 'Errs' “What bigger gaffe could the IRS commit than the singling out of groups that criticised the government for greater scrutiny? ... Happily, the White House doesn't seem to have been at all involved in this idiocy.” — ANALYSIS, Economist CITIZENS UNITED STRIKES

Liberation, France Dylan Considered 'Unworthy' of French Legion of Honor? TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “According to Le Canard Enchaine, Great Chancellor of the National Order of the Legion of Honor Jean- Louis Georgelin has rejected Bob Dylan's candidacy on the grounds he is 'unworthy' of the Legion. Could it be that the anti-establishment icon of Vietnam War protest and loose morals (he has long been addicted to heroin) displeases the chancellor?” — REPORTER Maxime Pargaud ARE FRENCH STILL IRKED ABOUT VIETNAM?

Le Figaro, France The Cleveland House of Horrors: Similar Cases from Around the World TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Before three young women named Amanda Berry, Gina Dejesus, and Michele Knight were found last Tuesday in a Cleveleland Ohio house, many other people declared missing and confined for years around the world have reappeared. Here are some of their stories.” — COLUMNIST Nicholas Demorand AMERICA, ITALY, AUSTRIA, JAPAN ...

Liberation, France The 'Bible of Insanity' Released in America TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “A society views itself in the mirror of its insanity, and this compendium can be read as a disconcerting plunge into the U.S. psyche. ... Diagnosing sketchy problems and treating them with real medications simply contributes to creating more illnesses ... Meanwhile, pharmaceutical companies will continue to patent addictive and lucrative molecules, taken in ever-increasing amounts.” — COLUMNIST Nicholas Demorand THE CATALAGUE OF INSANITY

Liberation, France The Dual Prerequisites for Syria Negotiations TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Can we still believe in a political solution in Syria in the context of an international conference? This faint hope involves a number of requirements. The first is to keep the current tyrant out of all the negotiations. The second is not to let the agenda for talks be dictated by a triumphant Vladimir Putin.” — COLUMNIST Fabrice Rousselot THE PERILS OF MORE SYRIA TALKS

Die Suedostschweiz, Switzerland Crimes of Ariel Castro: A Sign of America's 'Dysfunctional' Society TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The really shocking thing about the crime is how seamlessly it was integrated into the daily routine of a busy neighborhood. Unnoticed and unobserved. A symptom of a society that has proven itself to be at best ... dysfunctional.” — COLUMNIST Thomas J. Spang CRIME TOO BARBAROUS TO BELIEVE

The Mirror, U.K. Prince Harry Meets Michelle Obama; Receives Pop Star Welcome at White House “As the 28-year-old royal heartthrob entered, he was greeted by a roar and shouts of Harry! from crowd of 500 girls.” — REPORTER Chris Bucktin AMERICA GIRLS 'WILD ABOUT HARRY'

ITV: A Look Back at Royal
Visits to the United States
GUARDIAN: Prince Harry
Salutes Fallen U.S. Troops;
American Tour Continues
GUARDIAN: Is Prince
Harry Still a Bad Boy?

Financial Times, U.K. Chinese Petition Obama to Invade, on Poisoning and Best Flavor for Tofu “Two urge American military intervention: one to liberate the Chinese people and the other to liberate the people of Hong Kong. ... Another two raise environmental concerns.” — CORRESPONDENT Simon Rabinovitch

TELEGRAPH: China May Not Overtake
United States This Century After All

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Free Syrian Army Rebels Defect to Islamist Group “The well-resourced organization, which is tied to al-Qaeda, is luring many anti-Assad fighters away, say Free Army brigade commanders.” — CORRESPONDENTS Mona Mahmood and Ian Black

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany 'Crazy Bastards': Imprisonment Without Trial; and Without End TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Right-wing Senator Lindsey Graham said recently that the Guantanamo inmates are 'crazy bastards' - so dangerous that they should never be moved to the mainland. ... The injustice is not Guantanamo itself, but in the concept of imprisonment without trial and without end. After all, in nations under law, even those considered 'crazy bastards are entitled to a fair trial.” — COLUMNIST Nicolas Richter TRYING HARD ENOUGH TO CLOSE GUANTANAMO?

Der Spiegel, Germany Conspiracy Theories in Kyrgyzstan: Accounts Tie Bombers' Family to Mafia “The theories revolve around the friendship that Tamerlan's father had with Aziz Batukayev, a crime boss known as the 'Al Capone of Kyrgyzstan' who has been accused of being behind murders, gang war drug trafficking and prostitution.” — CORRESPONDENTS Marcus Bensmann, Matthias Schepp TAMERLAN: FROM BOY TO BOMBER

The Telegraph, U.K. Arming Syria's Rebels is Fraught with Danger “The Syrian opposition remains a disparate group - with forces affiliated to al-Qaeda gaining prominence and power.” — Shadow Foreign Minister Douglas Alexander

GUARDIAN: Yes, the U.N.
has a Duty to Intervene. ...
But When, Where and How?
INDEPENDENT [ROBERT FISK]:
After Israeli Air Strikes -
We are Now Involved in Syria

Liberation, France West's Inaction in Syria is What Creates Extremists TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “This Western impotence is precisely what creates these extremists. It is no surprise that the rebels believe the great powers wish to let Syrians to kill one another until their nation disappears as a state. For its failure to assist a country being murdered, the West will long pay a price.” — COLUMNIST FranCois Sergent WEST: HIDING BEHIND EXTREMISTS?

News, Switzerland Asymmetrical Horror: Media Double Standard on Victims of War, Terror TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Once we see the image of Martin Richards (especially parents of young children), it brings a lump to our throats, as we imagine what his death means to his father, his mother and his sister. ... It would just be too cumbersome and costly, risky and time-consuming, and above all, hard to cover the costs, to take a stand for the memories of any Muhammads, Saidas, Abduls and Aishas who were collateralized by a drone when playing somewhere in the Hindu Kush.” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer AMERICAN AND NON-AMERICAN LIVES

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Tamerlan Tsarnaev: Why Gun Control 'Terror Gap' Must Be Bridged “The discovery that Tamerlan Tsarnaev was on a national terrorism watch list has put the spotlight on one of the most glaring flaws in U.S. gun laws: that even suspected terrorists can legally buy weapons and even explosives. — COLUMNIST Ed Pilkington THE INSANITY OF U.S. GUN LAWS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. VIDEO: Guantanamo Bay Hunger Strikers 'Treated Like Animals' Apr. 30, 00:02:45 "They want it as miserable as possible to be on hunger strike. ... Sometimes they use tubes that are larger than necessary circumferance wise [to force feed them]. It's really like you would treat an animal. These men are real people. They've been held here for 12 years without being charged with any crime. They're seperated from their families. They have no end in sight. They are desperate.” — Guantanamo Attorney David Remes FAR BENEATH CIVILIZED BEHAVIOR

The Observer, U.K. Syrian Nerve Gas Claims Undermined by Eyewitness Accounts “As questions of arms control experts grow over evidence that the Assad regime has used chemical weapons on a limited scale on several occasions, one incident in particular has come under scrutiny.” — COLUMNIST Peter Beaumont

OBSERVER EDITORIAL:
We Must Not Rush to
Judge on Chemical Arms
INDEPENDENT: Sooner
or Later, We will
Have to Go Into Syria
TELEGRAPH: Al-Qaeda's
Battle for Control of Assad's
Chemical Weapons Plant

Tages Anzeiger, Switzerland American Student Overturns Europe's Austerity Applecart TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “ A student named Thomas Herndon recalculated figures from star economists Carmen Reinhart and Kenneth Rogoff, discovering that the pair had committed an embarrassing computing error. ... This means that the supposed scientific foundation on which austerity has been built, has collapsed. The '90-percent rule' has been made obsolete.” — COLUMNIST Philipp Lopfe AUSTERITY POLICIES 'OBSOLETE'

GUARDIAN: Reconsider
Austerity: Rogoff, Reinhart
Should Show Remorse

Wiener Zeitung, Austria The Brothers Tsarnaev: Outright Insanity would be Much Easier to Bear TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “It is possible - assuming the brothers are the culprits - that their actions were the result of insanity. In this case the tragedy would lose some of its potential to terrify - at least in the long term.” — WRITER Vadim Leventhal

Daily Mail, U.K. Boston Bombers' Defiant Mom Launches Bizarre Defense of 'Framed' Sons “Zubeidat Tsarnaeva was on the verge of hysteria when she told a press conference on Thursday that she does not accept that her sons carried out Boston attacks.” — Reporters Lydia Warren and Louise Boyle THE PERCEPTIONS OF A MOM IN PAIN

DER SPIEGEL: Boston Bombs Have
German Interior Minister 'Worried'

Izvestia, Russia Self-Loathing and the Boston Bombers TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Before embarking on an indiscriminate killing spree, the hero of Scorcese's Taxi Driver stands in front of a mirror and threatens his own reflection with a gun. ... the act of violence in the case of a lone terrorist is aimed not only at those around him, but at himself.” — WRITER Vadim Leventhal UNDERSTANDING LONE WOLVES

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany An Assault on America's Self-Confidence, Mythology TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “These explosions were meant to be heard around the world - and their full impact to develop psychologically. Now, with a single blow, America has been thrown back to the traumatic period of slavery and fear, a period that Obama had hoped to overcome.” — COLUMNIST Stefan Kornelius A WELL THOUGHT-OUT ASSAULT?

Daily Mail, U.K. Capture of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev in Pictures “'We got him!' Fugitive 'bomber' captured ALIVE after he was found hiding inside a BOAT in backyard of Boston home. Cops use flash-bang grenades and gas to flush out Tsarnev.” — REPORTERS Louise Boyle, James Nye, Simon Tomlinson, and Jill Reilly BOMBER SUSPECT CAUGHT ALIVE

GUARDIAN: Chechnya and
Boston Bombings: Link, If True,
Would be Unprecedented
GUARDIAN: Chechen Leader:
'The Roots of Evil Must be
Searched for in America'
ECONOMIST: Boston Bombings
- Immigration and Terror

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Father of Brothers Accussed of Boston Attack 'Sure' Sons are Innocent Apr. 19, 00:06:33 "What I can say is - I am really sure, I am like 100 percent sure - this is a set up. My two sons ... neither of them have ever talked about what they are saying now. My younger sons was raised in America since he was eight. My older son got into religious politics five years ago. He never talked about any jihad.” — --Zubeidat Tsarneva, Mother of Boston Bomb Suspects MOTHER OF SUSPECTS SPEAKS OUT

BBC NEWS VIDEO: Boston
Attacks - Suspects' Father
'Confident They're Innocent'

The Telegraph, U.K. House to House Search for Boston Bomber: Live “Live coverage after Boston police engage in a shoot-out with heavily- armed gunmen in Watertown following hijacking in Cambridge.” — CORRESPONDENTS Chris Irvine, Raf Sanchez

FACEBOOK RUSSIA: Thought to Be
Russia Facebook Page of Boston
Bomb Suspect Djohar Tsarnaev

Telegraph, U.K. Gun Control Loss: President Obama Really is Lame Duck “Nobody listens to what he says anymore, nobody is interested in winning his approval and nobody much cares if Obama thinks they have 'let the country down.” — COLUMNIST Tim Stanley

TELEGRAPH: Boston Bombs Show
How Internet Turned Kitchen
Utensils into Weapons of Terror
BBC NEWS: Boston Bombings:
Muslim Americans Await Bomber's ID
BBC NEWS: Obama,
America's 'Mourner in Chief'

FAZ, Germany We Get Knocked Down, But Get Back Up Again TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Without question, marathons will be better secured in the future. But whether a terrorist strikes doesn't only depend on the police. It also depends on how people react. The 78-year- old Bill Iffrig symbolizes the irrationality of sport, which can triumph even amidst terrorism.” — COLUMNIST Michael Reinsch DRIVE TO FINISH - NO MATTER WHAT

Polityka, Poland Anonymous Attacks and Vain Hopes for 'Absolute Security' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Murderers always find a weapon. It is impossible to establish absolute security in any community.” — COLUMNIST Marek Ostrowski THE SEARCH FOR SECURITY

Der Spiegel, Germany Show of Solidarity: Europe Outraged by Boston Attack “European leaders offered their condolences to the victims of the Boston Marathon attack, expressing widespread outrage at the attacks.” — Der Spiegel News Item

REVULSION ACROSS EUROPEAN UNION

DER SPIEGEL: Obama to Make First
Berlin Visit as President in June

Belfast Herald, Northern Ireland Northern Ireland Understands Pain, and Stands With Boston “While they can't understand why anyone would target their city on one of the major public holidays of the year, they will come to realise that the compassion, the heroism and the bonds created among citizens and strangers alike in the immediate aftermath of the explosions will always overcome the evil, the hatred and deviousness that characterizes those who are responsible.” — EDITORIAL, Belfast Herald

IRISH TIMES EDITORIAL: 'Dark
Forces' Behind Boston Murders
'Should Not Dictate Events'

Liberation, France From Boston Bombings to Guantanamo: Protecting Freedom When it Hurts TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Nations of human rights must defend themselves by respecting the values that their opponents seek to defile. ... The legitimate fight against terror must be handled without emergency legislation contrary to laws respecting freedom - including those of enemies of freedom. It is a matter of political morality - and the only way to defeat the terrorists.” — COLUMNIST Francois Sergent WHAT RIGHTS ARE DO THE KILLERS?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. After Bomb, Hysteria is the Boston Terrorist's Most Powerful Weapon
TERROR AIDS	“Such deeds are senseless murders, but they are not terrorism as such. What makes them terrorist rushing in to hand terrorists a megaphone.” —COLUMNIST Simon Jenkins

TELEGRAPH: Boston Bombings
- 'America the Vulnerable'
GUARDIAN: Boston Explosions
Reveal Two Sides of Twitter
BBC NEWS VIDEO: Obama's
Cautious Approach on Boston

Daily Mail, U.K. 'Murdered at the Marathon' “I saw at least six people down next to me. They protected me from the the blast. One lady expired. One gentleman lost both his (lower) limbs. Most injuries were lower extremities.” — Dr. Allan Panter, Witness to the Bostin Bombings

GUARDIAN UNLIMITED: Security
at London Marathon to be
Reviewed After Boston Attack
TELEGRAPH: After Boston
Blasts, Relatives of British
Runners Wait for News
GUARDIAN UNLIMITED: Boston
Marathon is Oldest in the World

L'Express, France Thatcher and Reagan: Pushed Globalization and Erroneous Deregulation TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Thatcher and Reagan deified the market. Because, according to them, it would have the benefit of never derailing since - miracle of miracles - it regulates itself! ” — EDITORIAL, Le Monde MISTAKEN ABOUT THE MARKETS?

Der Spiegel, Germany Afghanistan: NATO Now Committing Bald-Faced 'Murder' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “This is no game. Truth be told, it is murder. Because a senseless war can be called nothing but murder. ... But apparently, that is not a concern of Americans.” — COLUMNIST Jakob Augstein TIME TO END THE KILLING?

L'Express, France Guns in America: A 'Political Fiasco' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “The assault weapons ban - the type of semi-automatic rifle used so infamously in Newtown - was jettisoned last month. The complexity of the bill, in particular when it comes to the designation of 'assault weapons,' and industry pressure, for whom these toys, so similar to military M16s, are a cash cow to be milked, contributed along with the NRA to this alarming political retreat.” — COLUMNIST Philippe Coste WILL CONGRESS DO SOMETHING?

Financial Times, U.K. European Commission Rules Google Favors its Own Search Results “Alongside widely expected concessions to more clearly label Google’s own services, the U.S. group will also need to offer solutions that give more prominence to rival specialist search services.” — CORESSPONDENTS Alex Barker and Bede McCarthy

Express, U.K. China Warns it Will Not Allow War on its Doorstep; Even Iran calls for Calm “North Korea has been condemned by both China and Iran after the reclusive state issued a catalog of alarming threats against South Korea, Japan and the United States.” — REPORTER Charlotte Merideth

EXPRESS: Yokahama Mistakenly
Tweets North Fired Missile

FAZ, Germany Global Arms Pact is Little Threat to Industry of Death TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The state of our cursed globe in 2013 warrants no expectation of a quick end to the billion-dollar business of supplying instruments of death to oppressive regimes.” — COLUMNIST Andreas Ross WHO SELLS WHAT TO WHOM?

Helsingin Sanomat, Finland Steve Jobs and Biblical Job: Paradigms for Management TRANSLATED FROM FINNISH “After his death, Jobs became a test for business leaders as severe as the biblical Book of Job is for committed believers. ... According to the Book of Job, God is a tyrant who gave Satan a free hand to test Job.” — COLUMNIST Jaakko Lyytinen JOBS: GOOD MANAGER OR ANOMOLY?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Mikhail Gorbachev: 'The Margaret Thatcher I Knew' “I said to Margaret that I had no instructions from the Politburo to get her to join the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. ... She broke into laughter.” — Former Soviet Leader Mikhail Gorbachev THATCHER: A WORLD TRANSFORMED

TELEGRAPH: To Americans,
Thatcher Stood for Free
Markets and Free People
GUARDIAN: Thatcher and Reagan
were the 'Katherine Hepburn and
Spencer Tracy' of World Politics
GUARDIAN: Thatcher and Reagan
Remade Conservatism and West

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Margaret Thatcher, a Political Phenomenon “She was the first woman voted to lead a major Western power; the longest serving British prime minister in 150 years; the most dominant and the most divisive force in British politics in the second half of the 20th century. She was also a global figure, a star in America, a heroine in the once Soviet republics of central Europe, and a point of reference for leaders and politicians in France, Spain, Germany and Italy.” — COLUMNIST Anne Perkins MARGARET THATCHER DEAD AT 87

VIDEO OBITUARY: The Death of
Margaret Thatcher (Guardian, U.K.)

ECONOMIST: Margaret Thatcher
was a 'Cut Above the Rest'
TELEGRAPH: Thatcher was
Champion of Freedom for
Workers, Nations and World

Le Temps, Switzerland B-2s to Korea: Russia and China 'Are Not Wrong' to Be Worried TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Within hours, the United States is capable of destroying the military of their enemy. The message of the B-2s is addressed as much to Beijing as it is to Pyongyang. China is indeed the main challenger to the Pax Americana. Its rise - and not Pyongyang's arsenal - is the main source of concern for neighboring countries. ... The Russians and Chinese aren't wrong to warn of the risk of an uncontrollable spiral.” — COLUMNIST Frederic Koller SENDING SHIVERS; RAISING HACKLES

FAZ, Germany Does New Development Minister Explain North Korea's Verbal Barrage? TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Assuming that the military sees this as a threat to its hitherto unchallenged leadership, the war rhetoric might make some sense.” — COLUMNIST Peter Sturm ALL ABOUT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Anti-Drone Hoodie Helps Beat Big Brother “It's what I call anti-drone. ... That's the sentiment. The material in the anti-drone clothing is made of silver, which is reflective to heat and makes the wearer invisible to thermal imaging.” — FASION DESIGNER Adam Harvey ANTI-DRONE FASHION ARRIVES

Polityka, Poland Brought to a Rapid Boil: North Korea Threatens Attack on United States TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “The more dogged the regime becomes, the more grotesque the impression it makes. Must we take such buffoonery seriously? Unfortunately, we must. Nothing mobilizes people better than a powerful enemy - the same enemy that has been there for decades. That is why the regime must gradually raise the tension to prevent the nation from losing fear of the enemy.” — COLUMNIST Jedrzej Winiecki KIM JONG-UN: MAGNIFYING THREATS

Rzeczpospolita, Poland President Ronald Reagan: the 'Last Political Cowboy' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “If Reagan knew that weapons can bring peace - particularly in the hands of the 'good' cowboy - he also knew that government should stay away from the ranch. Reagan left behind a model of capitalism that promises prosperity for all, as well as a handful of catchy witticisms and scenes worthy of a good western.” — COLUMNIST Mariusz Max Kolonko REAGAN: FROM STAR WARS TO TAX CUTS

The Telegraph, U.K. Dionne Warwick: Dizzying Downfall of a Bankrupt Diva “As one of the top singers of the last century declares bankruptcy, Jacqui Goddard investigates how a star once earning $100,000 a month could be down to $1,000.” — CORRESPONDENT Jacqui Goddard WEALTH AND IRRESPONSIBILITY

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Iranian-Pakistan Gas Link Puts Gains in Pipeline for Zardari and Ahmadinejad “Gas pipeline offers Tehran a way out of isolation enforced by West's sanctions, while Islamabad can thumb its nose at the United States.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

The Telegraph, U.K. U.S. Warns North Korea of Increased Isolation if Threats Escalate Further “After Kim Jong-un declared that rockets were ready to be fired at U.S. bases in the Pacific - a reply to the U.S. flying two B2 stealth bombers to the Korean Peninsula – the White House blamed North Korea for the rise in tensions.” — CORRESPONDENT Ewen MacAskill

BBC NEWS, U.K.: Russian Foreign
Minister Fears Spiral in Tensions
GUARDIAN: North Korea Threatens
Attack on U.S.: What Happens Next?

Le Monde, France America's Iraq Legacy: Rambo Today, and the Terminator Tomorrow? TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “It is particularly worrisome to see a day approaching when Russia and China assume the same privileges as the United States. ... The Terminator is not far off. We could soon see fully autonomous robots, or drones, capable of deciding when to conduct a strike.” — COLUMNIST Marc-Olivier Bherer EARTH: A PLANET OF DRONES?

Russia Today, Russia 'Monsanto Protection Act' Slips Quietly through the American Congress “the provision’s success is viewed by many as a victory by companies like Syngenta, Cargill, Monsanto and affiliated PACs that have donated $7.5 million to members of Congress since 2009, and $372,000 to members of the Senate Appropriations Committee.” — Russia Today News Item

Polityka, Poland Obama in Israel: No Fuel for His Limo, or for Peace Talks TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “When the president's armored limo rolled out of a plane at Ben Gurion Airport, it turned out that it couldn't move: someone by mistake fueled it with diesel instead of gas. Similarly, despite Obama's assertions that Palestinians have a right to their own fatherland, there is no indication they will have one anytime soon. As of now, neither is there fuel for peace talks.” — COLUMNIST Roman Frister WILL WORDS BE FOLLOWED BY ACTION?

Die Welt, Germany Obama in Israel: Small Miracles Do Happen TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “President Obama's words were kind and comforting, especially when he spoke to Israeli youth. Yes - they were comforting for a society whose every deed and action is watched by a self-righteous global public that sets too high a bar. ... And then Obama pulled off a coup.” — COLUMNIST Andrea Seibel DIPLOMATIC WATER INTO WINE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Google's Eric Schmidt Warns of China Attempt to Control the Internet “You take notes as a journalists and you write those down – but where do those notes go? You don't have to answer for the Guardian, but how would you feel if the Chinese hacked into The New York Times and gone into all of its servers. How would you feel if you were a Chinese dissident? You'd be worried.” — GOOGLE CEO Eric Schmidt CHINA: CRACKDOWNS ABROAD

TELEGRAPH: Apple Plans iPhone
that Always Lands on its Feet

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Shows 'Emotional and Political Intelligence' with Jerusalem Address “Obama pulled off quite a trick - appealing to ordinary Israelis over the heads of their political leaders and cleverly borrowing a line from their national anthem to explain why Palestinians also deserve to be 'free people in their own land' - in Palestine.” — CORRESPONDENT Ian Black PLAUDITS FROM GREAT BRITAIN

VIDEO: Obama in Israel Presses
'Restart' Button (Economist, U.K.)

ECONOMIST: Obama in
Israel: A 'Corker of a Speech'
THE TELEGRAPH: 'Most Palestinians
Hate Obama'; U.S. President Gets
'Heated' Reception in West Bank
GUARDIAN: Obama Copters in;
Skips West Bank Daily Grind

Le Monde, France Obsequies for Chavez were Just a Warm-Up for Fidel's TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Revolutionary romanticism often fueled conflict during the Cold War, in which America opposed the allies of Soviet communism. ... In this sense, the obsequies for Chavez were just a general rehearsal for the chorus of lamentation that in some circles, Fidel Castro's inevitable disappearance are bound to bring.” — COLUMNIST Pierre Rousselin PREPARING FOR FUNERAL OF THE CENTURY?

BBC News, U.K. VIDEO: Children of the Palestinians Say that Obama Let them Down Mar. 20. 00:02:36 "President Obama might not like what they have to say.” — CORRESPONDENT Jon Donnison OUT OF THE MOUTHS OF BABES ...

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. LIVE COVERAGE: Barack Obama Arrives in Israel •Both leaders wear matching Israeli-blue neck ties • Topics: Palestinian territories, Iran and Syria • Netanyahu warns of 'enormous threats' in the region — GUARDIAN UNLIMITED LET THE DIPLOMATIC GAMES BEGIN!

Le Monde, France American Philanthropy is a Lesson for Europe TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “ It remains for the super-rich to atone for what is due to good fortune at least as much as to their extraordinary talents. ... These philanthropic gestures are not enough to make super-rich Americans admired, but they do make them a bit more bearable.” — ESSAYIST Guy Sorman CARNEGIE'S LESSON FOR EUROPE

The Independent, U.K. Defense Ministry Admits 'Afghan War Unwinnable' “British soldiers in Afghanistan are part of a campaign that attempted to 'impose an ideology foreign to the Afghan people' which was 'unwinnable', says a damning report by the Ministry of Defense.” — REPOTER Richard Cookson WESTERN ERROR-PAIN FOR AFGHANS

The Telegraph, U.K. Obama to Dine with First Black Ms. Israel; Snubs Settler Students “Mr. Obama's desire to meet Ms. Awnay is in stark contrast to a snub delivered to Israel's only settlement university, Ariel, in the West Bank. ... Student representatives from the university have been pointedly excluded from the president's keynote speech.” — CORRESPONDENT Robert Tait POLITICS OF THE HOLY LAND

TELEGRAPH: Obama to be
Limited to Strict Kosher Diet
on Passover Visit to Israel

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Tariq Ali: Hugo Chavez and Me
LEFT LIONS	“The late president will be remembered by his supporters as a lover of literature, a fiery speaker and a man who fought for his people and won.” —COLUMNIST Tariq Ali

THE SPECTATOR: 'Hugo
Chavez Dies. Pillocks Mourn'

Sky News, U.K. For Aurora Shooter, Insanity Plea Could Mean 'Truth Serum' “If he does, the judge has ruled, he might have to submit to a 'narco analytic interview.' A narcoanalytic interview is a decades-old process in which patients are given drugs to lower their inhibition.” — CORRESPONDENT Greg Milam HOLMES: PROVING HIS INSANITY

The Telegraph U.K. How Vatican Conclave Could Choose the First Superpower Pope “When the 115 cardinals from around the world parade into the Sistine Chapel on Tuesday to elect a new Pope, a once unthinkable scenario will overshadow their deliberations – a pontiff from North America.” — CORRESPONDENT Nick Squires IS IT TIME FOR AN AMERICAN POPE?

CATHOLIC HERALD: Is it
Time for an American Pope?
TELEGRAPH: Donald Wuerl:
America's Candidate for Pope?
GUARDIAN, U.K.: Pope Benedict's
Farewell is Lesson is one that
Americans Should Heed
THE SPECTATOR: A New
York Pontiff? Why I'm Betting
on Cardinal Timothy Dolan

Le Figaro, France Romney and the GOP: 'The Loser Syndrome' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Today the Republicans have lost all sense of who they are, of their core values, and out of the anger that possesses them, blaming everyone but themselves for their losses. And Romnet laments that minorities and young people didn't hear his message. He should have begun by not showing he despises them.” — COLUMNIST Jean-Sebastien Stehli MYSTERY OF NOT KNOWING WHY

Financial Times, U.K. Iraq War: A Display of Declining U.S. Power “The only winners were the forces the coalition of the willing sought to defeat.” — COLUMNIST David Gardner BUSH-BLAIR WRECKING CREW

Handelsblatt, Germany Why U.S. Dollar Will Remain Key Global Reserve Currency TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “What currency in the immediate future could replace the dollar as the reserve currency? The euro, the yen, and the yuan, at least, don't come into consideration, nor does any other currency.” — COLUMNIST Herbert Walter THINK DOLLAR IS ON THE WAY OUT?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Death of Chavez Brings Chance of Fresh Start for U.S. and Latin America “Hugo Chavez' departure furnishes Barack Obama with an opportunity to repair U.S. ties with Venezuela, but also with other Latin American states. In particular, the change of leadership in Caracas could unlock the eternal deadlock over Cuba.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Pentagon Probes Link Between U.S. Military and Iraq Torture Lairs “The allegations, made by U.S. and Iraqi witnesses, implicate U.S. advisers for the first time. It is also the first time that Gen. David Petraeus has been linked through counsel - to the abuses.” — CORRESPONDENTS Ewen MacAskill, Mona Mahmood

Novosti, Russia With Chavez' Death, Communist Chief Sees a U.S. 'Cancer' Plot “How did six Latin American leaders that had criticized U.S. policies and tried to create an alliance for more independent and sovereign states, fall with the same disease simultaneously?” — COMMUNIST PARTY CHIEF Gennady Zyuganov CAN CANCER BE 'CONTRACTED'?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Biden Assures AIPAC: 'Obama is Not Bluffing' Over Iranian Threat “The president of the United States cannot, and does not, bluff. President Barack Obama is not bluffing. Israel's security is in our naked self-interest, beyond the moral impertive.” — VICE PRESIDENT Joe Biden DOTH BIDEN PROTEST TOO MUCH?

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Oscars Show America Got its Groove Back TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “America once again needs to believe in itself. As Michelle Obama said during the Oscar ceremony, cinema has always guided the United States.” — COLUMNIST Barbara Hollender AFFLEK VS. KHOMEINI - ON FILM

Neue Zuercher Zeitung, Switzerland Europeans Clean Up - and Weigh in - at 2013 Oscars TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “European audiences watch the Oscars with greater interest than ever, because they are now better able to enter the discussion. In the past, most American films being honored hadn't yet been shown in Europe theaters, so viewers did not have a chance to understand the nominees. Now there are virtually no movies that haven't been shown in our theaters before the awards.” — COLUMNIST Susanne Ostwald EUROPE BRINGS HOLLYWOOD SUCCESS

Regiao de Leiria, Portugal Racism and the 'Obama' Pope TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE “What will happen when this possible Pope, Peter Turkson, visits Portugal? Where will this subtle racism that the U.N. says exists in Portugal be hidden? And the marketing campaigns by the Vatican? I can already predict a collage with the U.S. president. Posters at the Vatican - Photoshop presentations with the face of Obama in the white robe of the Pope - and vice-versa. The Vatican Obama will be an international superstar - and I can hardly wait.” — COLUMNIST Catarina Gomes HAS THE TIME COME FOR BLACK PONTIFF?

The Telegraph, U.K. U.S.S. Harry Truman Carrier on the Front Line of Obama's Battle Against U.S. Congress “The Truman's nuclear-fueled might is shackled by a rancorous new fight between President Obama and his Republican foes. The two sides are locked into an apparently endless fiscal confrontation over radically different political philosophies on the very role of government.” — CORRESPONDENT Philip Sherwell HARRY TRUMAN: WHICH WAY TO TURN?

Der Tagesspiegel, Germany John Kerry: Hopes for Recasting Europe's Image in American Eyes TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Thanks to his personal interest and experiences, Kerry can help clear up some common misconceptions. Many in the United States overestimate the importance of Asia and underestimate that of Europe. ... Kerry makes his inaugural visit at a time that presents an opportunity to reshape America's images of both Asia and Europe.” — COLUMNIST Christoph von Marschall CAN KERRY BOOST TRANSATLANTIC TIES?

Le Monde Diplomatique, France Iraq Ten Years On: The New Normal “Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's detractors have been growing as he has accumulated powers. ... the prime minister finds himself surprisingly isolated.” — COLUMNIST Peter Harling

The Telegraph, U.K. Manning's Sacrifice of Liberty Will Not Have Been Made in Vain “Bradley Manning faces spending the rest of his life in jail. It is not a sacrifice that should be made in vain. The fight for accountable, open global diplomacy must be stepped up in response. The U.S. military may lock away Manning, possibly for good. But whatever the verdict, for millions, he has already been vindicated.” — CORRESPONDENT Owen Jones WAS MANNING'S A WORTHY CAUSE?

Handelsblatt, Germany Nike's Front Men: 'Just Stop It!' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “In the case of Tiger Woods, caught having unappetizing extramarital adventures, Nike wasn't so fast to separate itself. ... Nike's relationship with Lance Armstrong, seven- time winner of the Tour de France, also lasted a long while. Too long, many thought. ... But in the case of Pistorius, this is the first time a disabled athlete has inspired a wide audience. ... Experts advise, before launching an ad campaign featuring a star, to play through many scenarios - including the worst-case ones. Then, in the event, one can faster and more ably respond.” — COLUMNIST Tobias Mandelartz HANDLING MISBEHAVING SPORTS STARS

Italia Chiama Italia, Italy Mr. Obama's Social-Democrat Middle Way is E.U.'s 'Way Out' TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “Obama is a Europe-style social democrat, not a revolutionary. ... There is a lot of talk about economic recovery in 2013. But if there is any, it will be in America, not in Italy, nor in Spain, nor in any other European country which is now at risk.” — COLUMNIST Ennio Caretto WHAT BARACK OBAMA IS - AND IS NOT

Der Spiegel, Germany Reprieve for Google and Bing: Berlin Waters Down Search Engine Legislation “When the 'Leistungschutzrecht' ancillary copyright law is sent to the Bundestag for approval Friday, where it is likely to pass, Google will have less to fear the future.” — DER SPIEGEL News Item GOOGLE: OFF THE HOOK IN GERMANY?

DER SPIEGEL: European Activists
Could Thwart U.S.-E.U. Trade Deal

The Telegraph, U.K. U.S. Prosecutors to Call Osama-Raid Navy Seal to Testify Against Manning “U.S. prosecutors are seeking to prove that al-Qaeda directly benefitted from access to the classified files Bradley Manning leaked to Assange's WikiLeaks.” — CORRESPONDENT Raf Sanchez

The Telegraph, U.K. Obama's 'New Head Boy' “John Kerry's relationship with Bashar al-Assad, cultivated on visits to Damascus in the years prior to the regime's bloody crackdown, will give European leaders hope that he might help break the deadlock, potentially even constructing an exit deal for the embattled Syrian leader.” — REPORTERS Peter Foster, Jon Swaine SECRETARY KERRY IN BRITAIN

VIDEO: John Kerry 'Lost' in London
Zoo During Childhood Trip (BBC News, U.K.)

VIDEO: Kerry in London for talks
with Cameron and Hague (BBC News, U.K.)

VIDEO: Secretary of State John
Kerry: 'Assad has to go' (BBC News, U.K.)

THE TELEGRAPH: Kerry Dissapoints
on Falkland Islands Question
THE TELEGRAPH: Even if
Iran Gets the Bomb, it Won't
be Worth Going to War
ECONOMIST: Defense Cuts and the
Sequestor: The Enemy Within

Alfahir, Hungary Turkey Shows 'How to Treat Your American Ambassador' TRANSLATED FROM HUNGARIAN “There's no counting the number of times Hungary has been kicked in the pants by the French administration, the German Bundestag, the European Union, Washington, and its place in Budapest, i.e.: the local American Embassy. ... On Wednesday, Turkey provided a worthy example of how to honorably rebut censure from abroad.” — EDITORIAL, Alfahir HOW TO GET THE BEST OF GOOD OLD U.S.

Die Zeit, Germany Unwarranted Pessimism Over Leaving Afghanistan TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Many Taliban have always said that they took up their arms to fight the occupiers and drive them out of the country. It is possible that now, many Taliban will lay down their arms since they have succeeded in achieving what they set out to do.” — COLUMNIST Ulrich Ladurner WILL PEACE COME TO AFGHANISTAN

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Oscars 'Snub' British Director Michael Winner “Oscar's 'In Memoriam' segment fails to include winner, despite his prolific Hollywood career.” — COLUMNIST Andrew Pulver BRITISH ANGST AT OVERSIGHT

Die Zeit, Germany German Amazon Should Not Be Boycotted ... It Should Be Broken Up! TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Even in a free market economy, the rules should be designed to prevent an online quasi-monopoly like Amazon from rising up in the first place. Or at least, to break them up when they do rise up.” — COLUMNIST Maximilian Probst AMAZON: TOO BIG TO LEAVE ALONE?

Corriere Del Ticino, Switzerland Infused with New Confidence, Obama Takes No Prisoners TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “His re-election for a second term has infused Obama with confidence. In less than four years, the president leaves the White House. He could from now on adopt the gait of a lame duck. After all, he never has to win the consent of the voters again. ... But his agenda is ambitious, and Obama will defend it with the air of one who has decided to attack and is able to look beyond the narrow politics of the moment.” — COLUMNIST Gerardo Morina GIRDED FOR BATTLE IN 2013 AND BEYOND

Der Spiegel, Germany Early Years of America an 'Attractive Precedent' for the Europe of Today “After the War of Independence, the United States looked a lot like the euro zone, with some states crippled by debt. In the end, under a proposal by Alexander Hamilton, the federal government assumed all the debt, thus securing the country's creditworthiness.” — COLUMNIST Christian Reiermann HAMILTON: A GUIDE FOR EUROPE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. With 30 Minutes to Go, Georgia Death Row Inmate Granted a Stay “Warren Hill, a mentally disabled prisoner, has been spared the death chamber 30 minutes before he was due to be executed by lethal injection in Georgia, despite a U.S. Supreme Court ban on executions of learning disabled.” — CORRESPONDENT Ed Pilkington IS THIS JUSTICE OR BARBARITY?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. China's Patience with North Korea Wears Thin after Latest Nuke Test “China summoned the North Korea envoy and delivered a stern protest, and the foreign ministry called for calm and denuclearization talks. But it stopped short of the harsh criticism it unleashed in 2006 when it described the North's first nuclear test as 'brazen.'” — CORRESPONDENT Tania Branigan PYONGYANG COURTS ISOLATION

The Telegraph, U.K. Iranian Commander Assassinated in Syria “He died at the hands of mercenaries and backers of the Zionist regime.” — Hezbullah Spokesman Ramezan Sherif

The Telegraph, U.K. North Korea Nuke Crisis 'Explodes' “The only realistic chance of heading off a potentially disastrous confrontation lies with officials in China.” — EDITORIAL, Telegraph PANIC OVER PYONGYANG?

INDEPENDENT EDITORIAL:
Pyongyang Throws Guantlet
Down for China's Leaders

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama's State of the Union: 'Fair Enough ... but Forgettable'
BORING SOUL	“As a speech, it was lousy. ... Too dull for a campaign speech, and too partisan for patriotic fanfare, it fell somewhere in between and it landed with a thud.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

The Guardian, U.K. Does Obama's 'Single-Digit' Civilian Death Claim Stand Up to Close Examination? “Most of the evidence suggests the White House's assertion is inaccurate – but hard data on drones is difficult to come by.” — CORRESPONDENT Ed Pilkington BRENNAN: DEFENDING USE OF DRONES

The New Statesman, U.K. Jemima Khan on Julian Assange: The Wikileaks Founder Alienated Allies “WikiLeaks – the mission of which is 'to produce a more just society based upon truth' – has been guilty of the same misinformation and obfuscation as those it sought to expose, while its supporters are expected to follow, unquestioningly, in blinkered, cultish devotion.” — WIKILEAKS SUPPORTER Jemima Khan JEMIMA: FAME RUINED ASSANGE

Tercera Informacion, Spain CELAC: 'The Big Loser is the U.S.; the Big Winner is Cuba' TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “One of the biggest winners in these summits is undoubtedly Cuba, which is represented by General Raul Castro. The idea that Castro has reached the presidency of an organization which encompasses all of Latin America and the Caribbean is something truly unexpected and exceptional. ...” — Former Nicaragua Vice President Jaime Morales Carazo CASTRO: PRESIDENT OF LATIN AMERICA?

Liberation, France French Foreign Policy ... a la George W. Bush TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “This is a preventative strike designed to prevent fresh aggressions. That is the theory. ... Is the seizure of power by Islamists really a 'threat to Europe,' according to the formulation of Angela Merkel? If it is, then why is France the only country intervening?” — PHILOSOPHER Tzvetan Todorov ARE FRENCH NEOCONS IN CHARGE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Mali Conflict: African and Western States Pledge $450 Million for Military Force “The African-led support mission in Mali has already seen troops arriving from several countries including Nigeria, and is expected to take over operations from France. But the needs of the sudden and laborious mission have mushroomed and the budget is likely to be $960 million.” — REPORTERS Angelique Chrisafis and Ian Traynor SOLDIERS FROM CHAD ON THE GROUND

Le Figaro, France France Alone in Mali; Allies in Hiding Behind U.S. and U.K. Inaction TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “If America had entered the dance, the situation would have been quite different, especially in London. But Mr. Obama doesn't want the U.S. in a new war. ... The result: many nations that generally align with the U.S. found in its absence of 'leadership' one more reason to do nothing.” — COLUMNIST Pierre Rousselin

Le Monde, France U.S. Migration Plans Set Example for French Politicians to Follow TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Even if France has long played a comparable role in Europe as a place of refuge and hope for migrants, the realistic change of heart by U.S. Republicans should by food for thought for French.” — EDITORIAL, Le Monde

News, Switzerland U.S. Death Star Petition a Foretaste of 'Spamocracy' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “These petitions serve as an example of what might occur in a purely online democracy. While the opportunity to address legitimate political interests in a more cost-effective manner would of course be fantastic, the risk of 'Death Star' initiatives would become a regular nuisance. ... Online democracy has the same disadvantages as spam emails.” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer A WASTE OF TIME FOR BUREAUCRACY?

Il Sole 24 Ore, Italy Making Sense of the West's Pointless Reliance on War TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “The more we have become aware of the insufficient effectiveness of the military instrument, the more we have relied on it, partly because the circumstances have allowed us to do so by virtue of our extreme logistical and technical superiority, and partly because in the absence of political superiority as extreme, we haven't known what else to do.” — COLUMNIST Vittorio Emanuele Pars

IS FORCE THE WEST'S ONLY RESPONSE?

Rceczpospolita, Poland Obama Must Be Told: Europe is Just as Important as Asia TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “One might even suggest that Obama profit from the program of his rival Romney. Someone should put it to him that the Old Continent is no less important than Asia. ... But is there anyone who can do it? Will European Union politicians muster the courage? Unfortunately, this is quite unlikely.” — COLUMNIST Piotr Koscinski WAS ROMNEY RIGHT ABOUT EUROPE?

Zurichsee-Zeitung, Switzerland American No More: Tina Turner to Become Swiss TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Today, the Zurichsee-Zeitung can report that the naturalization of the most famous rock singer of all time will be made public with an official announcement by the municipality of Kusnacht. ... Her interview with responsible representatives was conducted in German, and she continues to take German lessons. Tina feels quite at home in the region.” — REPORTER Christian Dietz Saluz

La Stampa, Italy Second Term Trials will Show Mettle of 'Enigmatic' Obama TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “The dossier on Obama's table pertains to the U.S. fiscal crisis, relations with China, the control of weapons of war on the U.S. market, and immigration reform. ... An American fiscal collapse and strategic conflict with China would be more than enough fill the second term of any United States president.” — COLUMNIST Gianni Riotta OBAMA: BESET BY DAUNTING OBSTACLES

De Volkskrant, The Netherlands Betting on Barack Obama to Quickly Show His Greatness TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “When you're the only man on earth mightier than Angela Merkel, and the most promise-laden president ever, one has to measure the time left to fulfill such high expectations within months. ... An American president during his first term is concerned mostly with securing a second, and of his second four years, he has about 23 months to grow into a great president - or a failure. To be very well aware of that, and to come out with a speech like Obama's on Monday: one has to be a tough cookie and huge optimist, too.” — COLUMNIST Bert Wagendorp

OBAMA EXPIRATION DATE CLOSES IN FAST

Trouw, The Netherlands Lance Armstrong and Diederik Stapel: Laying Waste to Postmodernism TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “In recent years, postmodernism has instilled in us that there is no such thing as truth. The concept is thought to be a leftover from the Enlightenment. So logically, it is difficult to accuse someone of lying, deceit or fraudulent behavior. If a concept has lost its right to exist, it is no longer possible to violate it. Without the truth, there are no lies.” — COLUMNIST Andreas Ruesch IS IT EVEN POSSIBLE TO TELL A LIE?

Le Temps, Switzerland Armstrong is Lucky He's Not a European TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “America is not Europe. With a great evangelical Christian tradition, it views things with equal intensity, but forgives more easily. It is less likely to bear grudges. It's no coincidence that America is described as the 'land of 2nd chances.'” — COLUMNIST Stephane Bussard

WILL AMERICANS FORGIVE?

The Telegraph, U.K. Eric Schmidt Daughter Lifts the Lid on Visit to 'Strange' North Korea “One problem: No one was actually doing anything. A few scrolled or clicked, but the rest just stared. More disturbing: when our group walked in, not one of them looked up from their desks. Not heads turned, no eye contact, and no reaction to stimuli ... They might as well have been figurines.” — Sophie Schmidt, Daughter of Google CEO Eric Schmidt

Le Figaro, France Obama Version II Ready to 'Return Blow for Blow!' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “The program for Barack Obama's second term will be put forward in his State of the Union speech. The president, who always sought to compromise with Republicans and was guided by one objective - his own defeat - has been replaced by a White House resident determined to return blow for blow. Finally!” — COLUMNIST Jean-Sebastien Stehli

THE OBAMAS COME OUT FIGHTING

Belfast Telegraph, North Ireland Obama's Toughest Battle is Upon Him “He must succeed with his social initiatives like reform of social security and medicaire - measures which could change the way Americans live and soften the devil-take- the-hindmost mentality which leaves so many people so impoverished in the richest country.” — EDITORIAL, Belfast Telegraph OBAMA: MAKING IT REAL

GUARDIAN: Barack Obama Accused
of Giving Partisan Inauguration Speech
ECONOMIST: Obama 'Ready to Fight

Economist, U.K. Barack Obama is from the Government, and He is Here to Help You “Obama wants to complete the Great Society project of such progressive forefathers as both Roosevelts and Lyndon Johnson, and make it sustainable in an America that has unprecedented global competition. How he plans to do that, when he must share power with fiercely hostile Republicans in Congress for the foreseeable future, is a more interesting question.” — COMMENT, The Economist AMBITION AND REALITY COLLIDE

Neue Zuercher Zeitung, Switzerland Obama II: Prepare for America's New Danger- Averse Global Course TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “There will be no more large- scale operations like those in Iraq and Afghanistan. Pressure on the Pentagon to economize will continue to grow. Land forces, in particular, will have to justify their existence. Faced with the choice of trimming social welfare or the military budget, President Obama will no doubt choose the latter.” — COLUMNIST Andreas Ruesch A MORE SELF-ABSORBED AMERICA?

THE TELEGRAPH: Biden was
VP Obama Needed. But
he Shouldn't Run in 2016
GUARDIAN: Climate Change
Moves to Forefront in Obama's
Second Inaugural Address
TELEGRAPH: Obama Needs
to Offer Global Leadership

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Shifts to the High Ground in Call for Collective Action
OBAMA II	“Obama's second address was a better speech than his first - and it showed him at his most combative and idealistic.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. For President Barack Obama, al-Qaeda is Our Problem Now
ABDICATION?	“There it is: a world made safe for U.S. trade and economic recovery, paid for by the peoples who have relied for too long on American military force. That, essentially, is the Obama foreign policy.” —COLUMNIST Janet Daley

Guardian Unlimited, Russia Kim Dotcom: Internet Cult Hero Spoils for a Fight w/U.S. Agencies “If the U.S. government says we are a mega-conspiracy, a mafia that created this to be a criminal network of pirates, they're completely wrong ... for them it was about shutting it down and dealing with it later on the fly. They are ... hacking the legal system.” — Kim Dotcom, Founder of Megauploads KIM DOTCOM: PUTS IT TO THE MAN

GUARDIAN VIDEO: Kim Dotcom
on Mega, Hollywood, the Internet
and Copyright Enforcement

Izvestia, Russia Russia Should Expand Ban on Adoptions By Americans to People in Other Nations TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Russia, which is rapidly becoming extinct, has no moral right to hand her children over to other nations. ... Moreover, the United States is full of orphans of its own, with astounding numbers being cited - around 600,000, according to estimates from the year 2009.” — WRITER AND POLITICIAN Eduard Liminov

THE BATTLE OVER RUSSIAN ORPHANS

The Independent, U.K. Armstrong Pedals Tales “What makes the Armstrong case so much more than the latest felling of a sport cheat's reputation is the extent to which he once bestrode the world of cycling. Armstrong dominated those around him, and he lied without conscience.” — EDITORIAL, The Guardian

WILL ANOTHER LIKE LANCE EMERGE?

THE TELEGRAPH: Armstrong Writes
Epitaph During Oprah Interview
GUARDIAN: The Questions
Oprah Winfrey Left Unanswered

Guardian Unlimited U.K. Oprah's Lance Armstrong Interview: No Nitpicking - It was Television History
CIRCUSES SELL	“Oprah began with the money shot, so it could only go downhill. But nevertheless, it is still up there with Frost-Nixon and Bashir-Diana.” —COLUMNIST Simon Hattenstone

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Message to Cameron Over E.U. Retreat Echoes Warning by Obama Team “A Britain on the sidelines of Europe, and even more out of Europe, would not be in the American interest and would not be in the interest of other major European partners.” — SENIOR DIPLOMAT Sir Nigel Sheinwald CAMERON: WORRYING HIS ALLIES

THE SPECTATOR: More Helpful
Advice for Cameron on Europe

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Presents Bold Gun Control Plan; NRA Vows 'Fight of Century' “Obama launched the biggest challenge in two decades to America's deeply ingrained gun culture, announcing a sweeping set of proposals to ban automatic weapons, limit magazines to 10 shots, require universal background checks, and better scrutinize mentally ill.” — CORRESPONDENTS Ewen MacAskill and Ed Pilkington PRESIDENT TAKES ON THE NRA

Neue Zuercher Zeitung, Switzerland Fiscal Cliff Deal Reveals Mr. Obama's 'Mediocrity' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “In narrow partisan terms, Obama can congratulate himself. He has achieved his goal - raising taxes on the highest earners for the first time in two decades. He has also managed to shove this deal down the throats of Republicans without having to offer wide-ranging cuts. But future historians will perhaps one day see Obama as a mediocre president who lacked the needed backbone to end this period of all-too-easy easy debt making.” — COLUMNIST Andreas Ruesch

OBAMA'S WIN: A LONG-TERM LOSS?

Moscow Times, Russia Thousands March in Russia Against U.S. Adoption Ban “The march was the most prominent expression of public anger so far against the heavily criticized measure, which took effect Jan. 1 after being passed by the Duma with overwhelming support and signed into law by President Vladimir Putin.” — REPORTERS Yekaterina Kravtsova, Natalya Krainova

The Observer U.K. Lance Armstrong, Human Weakness, and the Subtle Art of Public Confession
DOING IT RIGHT	“The disgraced cyclist will open his heart on Oprah this week, in a must-see TV moment. But seeking redemption after a public fall from grace is a complicated task. Just ask President Clinton and Tiger Woods.” —COLUMNIST Robert McCrum

GUARDIAN: Lab Director Denies
Helping Lance Beat Drug Tests
DAILY MAIL: Lance Armstrong
Whistleblower: 'I Don't Want to
Hear Any More of his Bullshit'
BBC NEWS: Armstrong Must
'Reveal Facts': Cycling Chief

The Independent, U.K. 'Confession' to Oprah Won't End Pursuit of Lance Armstrong “This is not like sitting before a judge or disciplinary hearing being properly questioned about the things he has done wrong. I doubt very much it will be a proper interrogation.” — British Cyclist David Millar

CAN ARMSTRONG 'COME CLEAN?'

The Scotsman, U.K. Obama Team Warns Britain Not to Flee E.U. “Predictably, the warning from Philip H. Gordon, Obama's point man in Europe, that Britain should remain in the E.U., has provoked howls of outrage.” — COLUMNIST George Kerevan

The Independent, U.K. Django Unchained and 'New Sadism' in Cinema “There is something disconcerting about sitting in a crowded cinema as an audience guffaws at the latest garroting or falls about in hysterics as someone is beheaded.” — COLUMNIST Geoffrey Macnab

CINEMA: OVERDOSING ON VIOLENCE?

The Independent, U.K. 'Scientologists Believe the Holocaust was Planned and Carried Out by Psychiatrists' “Scientologists believe psychiatry is Nazi pseudoscience. They hold that the Holocaust was planned and carried out by psychiatrists.” — AUTHOR John Sweeney SCIENTOLOGY VS. PSYCHIATRY

La Vanguardia, Spain Empire or Nation?: America's Internal Contradiction TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “The U.S. political class has accustomed us to watching as its disputes bring the global economy to the brink. ... This is a manifestation of the contradiction that has for so long differentiated U.S. political life. It is a conflict between the needs of a colossus that commands the global economy, and the dynamics of the political debate, carried on in terms that seem alien or even contrary to such imperial responsibilities.” — COLUMNIST Perez Menal

LONELY JOHN BOEHNER

Handelsblatt, Germany Political 'Fare Dodgers' Reject Fiscal Cliff Deal; Benefit from it Anyway TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Only the dissenters 'broke no promises.' And that could a very much to their advantage in the next election. They can present themselves to voters - and to the various hawks in their own party - as people of 'integrity.' But in reality, they have only maximized their own benefit while relying on the majority to pay the price for a result that will benefit them as well.” — COLUMNIST Frank Wiebe

De Morgen, Belgium If America can Finally Tax the Rich, Why Can't We? TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “In America, almost literally at the last second, a budget disaster has been averted. For the first time in 20 years, taxes on the highest incomes have been raised with some Republican support. The United States took 20 years before it dared do something about this trend and raised taxes on the wealthiest citizens. How much time will we need?” — COLUMNIST Yves Desmet

AMERICA: LESSON FOR THE E.U.?

Economist, U.K. Belated Fiscal Cliff Deal: America's E.U. Moment “While the foremost democracy in the West is paralyzed, China is forging ahead. ... This week Mr. Obama boasted he had fulfilled his mandate by raising taxes on the rich. In fact, by failing again to clear up America's fundamental fiscal trouble, he and Republicans build a Brussels on the Potomac.” — ECONOMIST Commentary AMERICAN EUROPEANIFICATION?

Daily Mail, U.K. Colombian Company Offers Bulletproof Clothing for Kids “The garments are lightweight and look like normal clothing, but they are capable of stopping a bullet from a pistol or submachine gun.” — DAILY MAIL News Item RIPPLES FROM SANDYHOOK ATTACK

Izvestia, Russia Putin 2012: At Zenith of Power, His Influence is Bound to Diminish TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “No doubt of it: Putin has arrived at the zenith of his power. ... But a Zenith is a summit - from there, things go down in all directions.” — POET Igor Karaulov PUTIN: ON HIS WAY DOWN?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Oliver Stone Asserts U.S. is an 'Orwellian State' Dec. 29, 00:14:47 “Obama has taken all the Bush changes and he basically put them into the establishment, he has codified them. It is an Orwellian state. It might not be oppressive on the surface, but there is no place to hide. Some part of you will end up in the database somewhere.” — FILMMAKER Oliver Stone SIZING UP AMERICAN FREEDOM

Daily Mail, U.K. 'Deport Me? ... If America Won't Change its Crazy Gun Laws, I May Deport Myself'
PLAYING DIRTY?	“This gun debate is an ongoing war of verbal attrition in America – and I'm just the latest target, advantage to gun lobbyists being I'm British.” —CNN Host Piers Morgan

Vedemosti, Russia Kremlin Shoots Itself in the Foot ... Again “The investigation into the death of lawyer Sergei Magnitsky adds new, tragic and absurd details every day.” — EDITORIAL, Vedemosti

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Piers Morgan is Right: America's Gun Laws Need Radical Overhaul
FRIENDS TALK	“Those calling for Piers Morgan's deportation are missing the point. Americans and Brits have always commented on each other's affairs.” —BRITISH MP Sarah Wollaston

Moskovskij Komsomolets, Russia Russian Press 'Duped', Ejected, as Bill Halting U.S. Adoptions Proceeds TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Imagine our surprise when, after waiting another hour- and-a-half in the hallway, the meeting ... ended! The press had been duped, and the discussion of the children's issue had been conducted without us. Like cockroaches, senators scurried out of the room, averting their eyes.” — REPORTER Mikhail Zubov

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Re-election and Events in Syria Dominate in 2012 “A rapidly accelerating interconnectedness was an inescapable fact of life across the planet. The Internet, social media, mobile telephony, instant digital publication and satellite communication ensured that events, both significant and trivial, benign and malign, were a shared global experience.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

Kommersant, Russia Russia's Image Smeared By Law Punishing Orphans TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “In 1985, U.K. singer Sting released a famous song called Russians. It was an impassioned plea to halt the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States. He sang, 'I hope the Russians love their children too.' Back then, the fact that the answer was 'yes' was taken for granted. Today, it looks far less obvious. ... In America and Europe, people simply cannot fathom that Russia's legislature could invent anything like the Dima Yakovlev Bill.” — COLUMNIST Konstantin Eggert

Izvestia, Russia Duma's Reaction to Magnitsky Bill Hurts Orphans - and Duma TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Photographs of poor suffering children who will now never see the American dream are migrating from blog to blog. The gut-wrenching, not Christmassy tales of the fate of orphans who couldn't be spirited away in time, are being passed around. Duma members have brought down an avalanche of bitter and angry questions on their heads.” — POET Igor Karaulov RUSSIA'S MOST VULNERABLE NOW PAWNS

Elsevier, The Netherlands In or Out of America, Laws Cannot Control Sick Minds TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “The question is, are such tragedies a result of America's very liberal gun laws? Up to last Friday, four of five shootings with the largest number of fatalities over the last thirty years and caused by 'lone gunmen' took place outside the United States. ... Sick minds cannot be controlled by laws.” — COLUMNIST Robbert de Witt

News, Switzerland Weapon Industry Profits or Innocent Lives: The Americans Must Choose TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Like a vampire in the sun, the pro-gun arguments crumble in the light of facts. Ultimately, the interests of a $1 billion industry that sells millions of guns in the U.S. anually must be weighed against innocent lives. A ban on assault rifles for private citizens must be the first consequence of this horror. Gun legislation, far less focused on commercial interests, must be the next.” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer PROFITS BEFORE SCHOOL SAFETY?

The Independent, U.K. Ready to Eat: First GM Fish for the Dinner Table “The AquAdvantage salmon is an Atlantic salmon engineered with two extra genes – one from the Pacific Chinook salmon and one from an eel-like species called the ocean pout – which together boost the fish growth hormones so it puts on weight year round.” — COLUMNIST Steve Connor THE BRAVE NEW FISH-EATING WORLD

Der Spiegel, Germany America's Approach to Guns Clear in Early Ads “it seems grotesque, but gunmakers in America once advertised their deadly products directly to teenage boys, marketing them as the perfect Christmas present. And if the wife resisted, Winchester had the answer.” — COLUMNIST Solveig Grothe A HISTORY OF U.S. GUN MARKETING

GUARDIAN: NRA Chief Breaks
Silence; Calls for Arms at Schools
BELFAST TELEGRAPH: It's
Time America Stood Up
to its 'Crazy Sons of Guns'
DEBKA FILE: Washington-Led
NATO Action Begins in Syria

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. This Sacred Text Explains Why America Can't Kick Gun Habit
DOGMATIC?	“In the case of the Second Amendment, a constitution designed to be a document of freedom instead imprisons the U.S., shackling it to an outdated rule that makes it easy to kill schoolchildren.” —COLUMNIST Jonathan Freedland

The Telegraph, U.K. Putin goes on Offensive Against the United States “Why does one country consider itself entitled to expand its jurisdiction to the entire world? ... Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib, people are kept in prison for years without being charged, they walk around in shackles like in the Middle Ages. ... They have legalized torture inside their own country. ... Can you imagine what it would be like if we Russians had at least something similar?” — RUSSIA PRESIDENT Vladimir Putin PUTIN OPENS ALL VERBAL GUNS ON U.S.

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Assange Christmas Address from Ecuador's Embassy in Great Britain Dec. 20, 00:10:58 “When our media is corrupt, when our acedemics are timid, when our history is filled with half-truths and lies, our civilization will never be just ... 2012 has been a good year. We have released nearly a million documents ... we have exposed the massive surveillance state.” — Assange Answers His Critics 2012: A GOOD YEAR FOR WIKILEAKS?

Frankfurter Rundschau, Germany America's Drone War: 'Without Legal Basis' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “When controlling a drone over Somalia from a U.S. military base, the inhibition threshold for pulling the trigger is extremely low. ... Drones inflict little political cost on the aggressor. A war that doesn't claim many victims of one's 'own' can be more easily justified to the population. So are drone missions designed to make armed intervention palatable to a war-weary society?” — COLUMNIST Barbara Lochbihler IS THIS HONORABLE - OR LEGAL?

Svenska Dagbladet, Sweden In Wake of Newtown, Swedes Must Rethink School Openness TRANSLATED FROM SWEDISH “It is past time to for America to tighten gun controls. Yet there are reasons for Swedes to turn the spotlight on ourselves. In Sweden, an open and accessible society are highly valued, and that includes our schools. Should we reconsider this? ... The answer may be a painful one.” — EDITORIAL, Svenska Dagbladet SWEDES ALSO WORRIED AFTER NEWTOWN

La Repubblica, Italy The Whole World is Newtown TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “There are 270 millions guns in America, and 40 percent of the population owns at least one. There are at least 650 million small arms circulating on our planet, one for every ten people, which kill at least 500,000 human beings a year. That's one death every 60 seconds: 300,000 a year in war, 200,000 in murders or suicides' — COLUMNIST Gianni Rufini NEWTOWN HIGHLIGHTS GLOBAL PROBLEM

Rzeczpospolita, Poland No One Dares Deny Americans their Guns TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “In the 21st century, the idea that one needs a machine gun at home to defend against a possible invasion may be an anachronism. ... But it doesn't matter. An American leader who advocates the removal of this right would have to change the U.S. Constitution.” — COLUMNIST Bartosz Weglarczyk

The Telegraph, U.K. Why I Would Carry a Gun in America “I had two ambitions when I was stationed in America. The first was to be proficient in Spanish. The second was to learn to shoot. ... to put it crudely, to know how a gun worked and to be able to shoot straight.” — COLUMNIST Mary Dejevsky

TELEGRAPH: Family of
British Victim Moved to
Newtown for a Quieter Life.
DAILY MAIL: 'Never Turn Your
Back on Adam': Nancy Lanza's
Chilling Directions to Babysitter

Liberation, France To Prove His Presidency, Obama Must Go Beyond an Assault Weapons Ban TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “It is past time for Obama to show he can act. Restoring the ban on the use of assault rifles would be a first step. But he must go further. He must initiate a national dialogue with Congress and throughout the country on gun control. ... Obama must seize this tragic moment and prove his presidency. This time, speeches will not do.” — COLUMNIST Fabrice Rousselot OBAMA: FIRE IN THE BELLY?

The Spectator, U.K. Why 2012 was Best Year Ever “It may not feel like it, but 2012 has been the greatest year in world history. That sounds extravagant, but it is proven by evidence. Never has there been less hunger, less illness or greater prosperity.” — EDITORIAL, The Spectator HUMANITY'S BEST YEAR?

Die Welt, Germany Turn Kindergarten into Fort Knox? ... Go Ahead! TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “I would often tell my astonished American husband how, at age four, the neighborhood children and I walked to kindergarten all by ourselves, and would describe Finn's school, with its strict rules, as a kind of military academy on 'Sesame Street.' ... Today I see things differently. As far as I'm concerned, they can turn his school into Fort Knox - and I take my hat off to the fact that to my son, the school manages to look as welcoming as Sesame Street.” — EDITOR Iris Anyali WHY SECURITY IS KING IN SCHOOLS

Fokgames, The Netherlands Newtown and Video Games: ... There is NO Connection! TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “It used to be Rock 'n' Roll that caused people to became 'psychotic,' and over recent years, the reason has become gaming. One moment of thought and self reflection would come in handy here: Doesn't this boy live in a good neighborhood - and are gun weapon really necessary? Nah, of course not! Let's all stay nice and stupid and blame those pixels on the PC screen!' — COLUMNIST Wesley Oudijk NEWTOWN: IS VIDEO GAMING TO BLAME?

The Observer, U.K. When it Comes to Guns and Violence, America is like a 'Failed State' “Obama has been presented with a historic opportunity. In the outpouring of anguish and horror over the shooting in Newtown, one is reminded of the public reaction in the U.K. to Dunblane, which saw two significant, incremental changes to British gun laws.” — EDITORIAL, The Observer

DAILY MAIL: Did Paranoid,
Gun-Crazed Mother Trigger
Son's School Killing Spree?
GUARDIAN EDITORIAL:
Americans and Guns: Shots
Heard Round the World

The Sun, U.K. End the Lunacy: Shock, Fury and Shame Over 'America's Dunblane' “ Horrified anti-gun campaigners said America’s citizens MUST now abandon their centuries-old right to bear arms in the wake of the Sandy Hook massacre. ... They begged President Obama to bring in strict gun control laws now to stop maniacs like Lanza having such easy access to weapons.” — REPORTER Tom Wells IS GUN CONTROL ON THE WAY?

RAI Novosti, Russia Obama Signs Magnitsky Act Targeting Russian Officials “In response to the Magnitsky Act, Parliament approved a draft bill targeting Americans alleged to have violated the human rights of Russians. The bill would see alleged American rights abusers banned from entering Russia, their Russian assets seized and their companies in Russia frozen.” — Novosti News Item THE MURDER/COVERUP IN RUSSIA

NOVOSTI: Putin Calls for 'Adequate'
Response to U.S. Magnitsky Act
NOVOSTI: Duma Okays
Russia's Answer to U.S. Blacklist

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. European Court of Human Rights Says CIA 'Sodomized, Tortured' German Citizen “America must apologize to Khaled el-Masri, victim of mistaken identity, kidnapped and beaten by the CIA.” — COLUMNIST Amrit Singh WRONGED MAN SEEKS JUSTICE FROM U.S.

FINANCIAL TIMES: Libyan
Wins 'Rendition' Payout from
British Secret Service

The Telegraph, U.K. Climate Change Compensation for Poor May Cost U.K. Billions “Other major economies like the U.S., China and Japan, refused to sign up to similar promises, leaving businesses in the U.K. and Europe at a disadvantage.' — CORRESPONDENTS Louise Gray, Richard Gray

Guardian Unlimited U.K. Break the Grip of Corporate Power to Secure Our Future
'PLUTOCRACY'	“Neoliberal dogma forbids the type of intervention called for to stop climate change. To save the earth, humanity must articulate a new kind of politics.” —COLUMNIST George Monbiot

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany Obama's 'No Change' Election Formula Will Work for Merkel TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Usually in America, the rule is that high unemployment and poor economic data invariably lead to a loss of power. That was evidently not the case with this election. In spite of the unfavorable economic data, voters had in the back of their minds that 'he prevented the worst.' — Dr. Karl Rudolf Korte, Universitat Duisburg-Essen OBAMA LESSON ON REMAINING ON POWER

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Assange: The Fugitive “The penetration of the East German Stasi was reported to be 10% of the population – one in 10 acted as informers – but Facebook penetration in countries like Iceland is 88%, and these people inform much more frequently and in much more detail than they ever were in the Stasi. And they're not even getting paid to do it!” — WIKILEAKS FOUNDER Julian Assange A CONVERSATION WITH ASSANGE

RAI Novosti, Russia Russian Officials Weigh Magnitsky Act Response “We should ask ourselves - is everything in order with human rights in the U.S.? There are U.S. officials who have been seen to be involved in, to put it bluntly, some extremely bad things.” — Sergei Mironov, Leader of 'A Just Russia'

INDEPENDENT: U.S. Starts New
'Cold War' Over Magnitsky Affair
INDEPENDENT: Britain Should
Pass its Own Magnitsky Act

Argumenty i Facty, Russia U.S. a 'Cancer on World' that Must Be Removed! TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “On our side are those who abhor American tyranny and European gay pride parades. The West is imposing its rules and values on the rest of the world. Figuratively speaking, U.S. hegemony is a cancer on the planet - and It must be removed before treating the headache that is the Islamic world or the cold that is China. No one says that the world after America will be ideal and harmonious. But the biggest threat will be gone.” — COLUMNIST Aleksandr Dugin WHO IS EVIL AND WHO IS GOOD?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: 'Everyone in U.S.' Under Virtual Surveillance Dec. 4, 00:12:35 "The FBI has access to the data collected - which is basically the e-mails of virtually everybody in the country. All Congressional members are under surveillance, too. No one is excluded. This can happen to anyone if they become a target for whatever reason ... retroactively going over every- thing they've done ... going back at least ten years.” — FORMER NSA OFFICIAL William Binney THE END OF RIGHT TO PRIVACY?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. John McAfee Confirms he is in Guatemala after Mag Exposes Location “Fugitive software pioneer John McAfee is on the run from Belize police, who say he is a person of interest in the murder of his Belize neighbor, Gregory Faull.” — REPORTER Amanda Holpuch

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.S. Republicans, Welcome to the Reality-Based World
GET A GRIP	“On election night, Dick Morris's head exploded, leaving shards of baseless braggadocio strewn across cyberspace. Reality will do that, sooner or later.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

OBSERVER: America's
Carbon Tax Offers Lesson
to Rest of the Planet

Economist, U.K. 'System Error': Governments Squabble Over Internet Rules “On Dec. 3rd officials from more than 150 countries, plus do-gooders, geeks and other interested parties, will meet in Dubai to argue over how to run the network - and fight over who should control it.” — ECONOMIST News Item DANGER AND PROMISE OF NEW RULES

Le Temps, Switzerland The Danger of America's Diminished Appetite for Military Interventions TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “A passive posture leaves the field open to more activist states, such as Iran, and regimes that use violence by bombing and strafing their own people, oblivious of the demands of decency and proportionality.” — COLUMNIST Shahram Chubin FEARS OF A MORE RETIRING AMERICA

BBC News, U.K. Sea-level Rise from Polar Ice Melt Finally Quantified “Melting of polar ice sheets has added 11mm to global sea levels over the past 20 years, according to the most definitive assessment.” — SCIENCE EDITOR David Shukman WILL THIS CONVINCE THE DOUBTERS?

BBC News, U.K. LSD Trial Man Frank Olson 'Killed' by CIA, His Sons Say “The sons of a CIA scientist who unwittingly took LSD and fell to his death in 1953 have sued the American government, saying that the CIA killed their father.” — BBC NEWS Item

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Julian Assange Warns 'Governments Plan Internet Takeover' Nov. 30, 00:08:44 "What's happened over the last ten years is the ever decreasing cost of intercepting data from each individual to the degree where now, it is cheaper to intercept every individual than it is to do so to individual people. ... The utopian alternative is to try and gain independence for the Internet - to declare its independence versus the rest of the world. ... that is really quite a very important ... considering the brute nature of states and their cronies.” — WIKILEAKS FOUNDER Julian Assange ASSANGE: BIG BROTHER TAKES OVER

The Independent, U.K. Witness in Magnitsky Affair Dies Mysteriously in Britian “The Independent has learned that Mr. Perepilichnyy was a key witness against the 'Klyuev Group,' a network of corrupt Russian officials and mob figures implicated in a series of multi- million pound tax frauds and the death in custody of the whistle-blowing Moscow lawyer Sergei Magnitsky. — REPORTERS Jerome Taylor, Cahal Milmo IS THIS YET ANOTHER KGB COVERUP?

Die Welt, Germany Obama's 'Impetuous' Visit to Burma Put Tehran on Notice TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “For America, this is also about taking a global stand. After the military coup of 1988, the Americans isolated Burma and imposed severe sanctions. Now Obama wants to make it clear to North Korea and the mullahs in Tehran that good behavior will bring big benefits.” — COLUMNIST Clemens Wergin WHY BURMA? TO SET EXAMPLE FOR IRAN

La Repubblica, Italy On Pot and Gay Marriage, America Overtakes Italy TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “Who knows? Maybe an jailed lawmaker will at last force parliament to act on the issue [of medical marijuana]. Those who buy cannabis for personal use from a drug dealer runs the risk of incurring a fine, while those who grow it, not wanting to deal with dealers, risk up to six years in jail. — Rita Bernardini, Italian Radical Party Lawmaker MARIJUANA: ROMANS LIGHT UP

La Vanguardia, Spain With Morsi, Obama's Diplomacy Better than Under Bush, Mubarak TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “The role played by Egypt's president, whose membership with the Muslim Brotherhood has facilitated relations with Hamas. But Morsi's military alliance with the United States has helped substantiate Obama's bid for newly-rejuvenated ties with the Islamic world, which he announced in his famous 2009 comments in Cairo.” — EDITORIAL, La Vanguardia AN EMERGING POWER COUPLE?

La Stampa, Italy Obama's Last Campaign TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “There are armchairs in which it is not good to sit for too long. 'We new men are no better than those who came before us,' confessed Emperor Hadrian. 'Power only serves to soil us.' — COLUMNIST Massimo Gramellini ABSOLUTE POWER CORRUPTS

La Stampa, Italy Why Adultery Sinks American Leaders - but Not Italian Ones TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “In our country, no one noticed that Petraeus was found guilty of adultery, and can you imagine an unfaithful Italian leader apologizing to his wife?” — COLUMNIST Angelo Benessia AMERICAN AND ITALIAN SENSIBILITIES

News, Switzerland General David Petraeus Stars in Desperate House Generals TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “After the first episodes of this drama series, we can fully disclose that U.S. generals are pitiful, helpless creatures, who are utterly defenseless against feminine charms. At least that's what one must assume after the first dramatic episodes. ... What else, one wonders, could possibly happen now? This is no simple matter for the script writers, but with parameters like this, adherence to reality is hardly necessary. — COLUMNIST Alain Frachon PETRAEUS: MULLING A SECOND SEASON

Le Monde, France Obama Continues Tradition of Sparing Turkeys from Oven TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “This year's birds from a farm in Virginia, both plump and white, were transported with police escort to the W, where for two days they were treated with kid gloves. And that's no figure of speech. The turkeys are housed in a suite with views of the White House, are force-fed cranberries and organic soy while gobbling in the rooftop panoramic bar waiting to be taken to Obama on Wednesday.” — CORRESPONDENT Helene Vissiere A REPRIEVE FOR INNOCENT

Le Monde, France U.S. Republicans Learn Again: American Jews are Not Israelis TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Once again the Nov. 6 election dealt a blow to the widely peddled myth that this is an electoral group with simplistic political behavior: that American Jews would back the candidate most swayed by Israeli politics. It has again been shown - nothing could be further from the truth. — COLUMNIST Alain Frachon ANOTHER PAINFUL LESSON RELEARNED

Telegraph, U.K. Barack Obama Blunders Again on the Global Stage “It is rather embarrassing, as well as sad, that the leader of the free world can’t even pronounce the name of the most famous human rights activist on earth. Or that he is so quick to appease the Burma regime by calling it 'Myanmar.'” — COLUMNIST Nile Gardiner IS OBAMA A CLUELESS STATESMAN?

The Independent, U.K. Hamas, Israel Open 'Gates of Hell' in Gaza Yet Again
FOOL CYCLE	“Is there nothing to stop this nonsense, this garbage war? Hundreds of rockets fall on Israel. True. Thousands of acres of land are stolen from Arabs – for Jews and Jews only. There isn't enough land left there now for a Palestinian state.” —COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

ECONOMIST: For Netanyahu,
Obama is 'Wrong American'
INDEPENDENT: 'Land of the
Flee': Why Americans are
Renouncing U.S. Citizenship

Kommersant, Russia Romney's 'Caveman Statements' No Longer a Worry for Kremlim TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “The reelection of U.S. President Barack Obama will allow many in Moscow to take a sigh of relief: the Cold War is canceled. This is, in fact, what the 2012 American presidential campaign means for Moscow.” — COLUMNIST Sergei Strokan WILL PUTIN PLAY BALL IN TERM TWO?

Les Echos, France China's Leadership Transition No Match Next to America's TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Referring to the multitude of U.S. citizens who went door to door canvassing for votes for their respective camps, despite the obstacles put in their way by institutions or forces of nature - Obama described in the most direct manner, the nobility of democracy. Men and women free to mobilize and express themselves and change the course of their destiny. That evening, America's 'soft power' won a KO over Chinese rule. — COLUMNIST Dominique Moisi A DIFFERENT KIND OF TRANSITION

Frankfurter Rundschau, Germany 'Thank You America': Now Mr. Obama Has to Deliver TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The world is still waiting for Nobel Peace laureate Barack Obama to earn his prize. But the American people made a good choice. ... Thank you.” — COLUMNIST Holger Schmale MAKING IT HAPPEN IN ROUND TWO

La Stampa, Italy Obama's Last Campaign TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “There are armchairs in which it is not good to sit for too long. 'We new men are no better than those who came before us,' confessed Emperor Hadrian. 'Power only serves to soil us.' — COLUMNIST Massimo Gramellini ABSOLUTE POWER CORRUPTS

La Stampa, Italy America's $5 Billion Election Race: A Sign of 'Nastier' Things to Come? TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “A first indicator of things to come can already be seen: even in the age of social media, election campaigns continue to pour most of their cash into television - and it seems they are becoming increasingly nasty” — COLUMNIST Marco Bardazzi

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Obama's Victory: 'Somehow, Poles will Have to Live with it' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Romney's declarations gave us more hope - but he lost. Unfortunately, Mr. Obama has a long track record of failing to satisfy the desires of Poles.” — COLUMNIST Andrzej Talaga POLISH WISHES DASHED BY OBAMA

Le Monde, France Obama Victory Exposes Hubris of Sarkozy and French Right TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “When Sarkozy's friend, Jean Michel Goudard, returning from a trip to the United States as summer turned to autumn, deemed the reelection of Barack Obama 'likely,' Sarkozy refused to believe him - even giving Goudard the cold shoulder for a few days. It was impossible. It had to be impossible. ... But yes! It was indeed possible!” — COLUMNIST Francoise Fressoz NO MORE EXCUSES FOR NICOLAS SARKOZY

The Independent, U.K. After the Battle, the Wake: Inquest and Drink for Reeling Romneyites “Critics are suggest Romney's campaign foundered at the hands of amateurs. Moreover, it will take some time to digest the depths of the catastrophe that befell them.” — COLUMNIST David Usborne HIGH HOPES; AN APPALLING END

INDEPENDENT: Obama
Readies to Build Bridges, but
First He Needs New Allies
GUARDIAN: One Final
Gaffe: 'President' Mitt's
Victory Web Site Goes Live
INDEPEDENT: Cameron
Gets Through to Obama -
but Only for Five Minutes

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The 'Tribal Grunts' of Left and Right Will Not Rescue Us
MONUMENTAL	“Never can the toolkit of political debate have been so empty and the task of understanding the world so titanic.” —COLUMNIST Simon Jenkins

Hospodarske Noviny, Czech Republic Obama's Reelection Means More Bad News for Europe TRANSLATED FROM CZECH “In purely pragmatic and political terms, as seen from the White House, why would the old/new president cultivate special ties with the old/sick continent? ... Consequently, in his second term, his views on Europe will be even more skeptical and detached.” — COLUMNIST Martin Ehl NOT ALL CHEERS IN EUROPE

Liberation, France After 'Giving Us a Scare', Barack Obama Wins Again TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Americans preferred to maintain the same imperfect balance and uncertain plans of the incumbent over the economic voodoo of his riskier Republican opponent. And rightly so.” — COLUMNIST Francois Sergent A VOTE OF FRENCH APPROVAL

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Wall St. Tumbles and 80,000 Greeks Protest After Obama Victory “The sale and speed of the rout has surprised traders. The looming U.S. fiscal cliff, the crisis in Europe, and the weak state of the global economy are being blamed.” — ESSAYIST R. Jay Magill, Jr.

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Mitt Romney Betrayed By Hardline Republicans “Tea Party zealots, homophobes and misogynists hijacked Romney's campaign – and threaten the Republican party's future.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall PRESIDENT OBAMA: WHY HE WON

TELEGRAPH VIDEO: Where Did it
All Go Wrong for Republicans?
GUARDIAN, U.K.: The U.S.
Election: a View from the Sofa
ECONOMIST: Obama's Win
Raises Questions for Republicans

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama's Second Victory is More Low Key, but in Some Respects, More Impressive
OBAMA REDUX	“The euphoria of 2008 has gone, but the U.S. president's second win is remarkable precisely because it isn't as symbolic.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

Le Nouvel Observateur, France Government Backing for Obama Not in the French National Interest TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “If Obama wins, the premier's statement would not lead the White House chief to favor Paris; and if Romney wins (and his chances aren't slim), the new president would be only too happy to give 'Frenchies' the cold shoulder. ... There is only one explanation for this curious 'vote.' They want to ride France's pro-Obama wave.” — EDITORIAL, Le Nouvel Observateur ALL IN FOR PRESIDENT OBAMA

Der Spiegel, Germany The Role of Sincerity in the American Elections “It might be nice to know that your dentist is generous, but it is irrelevant to the endeavor of cleaning your teeth. Is the same true of the role of sincerity in politics? The current campaign in the U.S. has seen candidates eager to portray themselves as being as sincere as possible. Voters shouldn't be led astray.” — ESSAYIST R. Jay Magill, Jr. DO THEY REALLY FEEL OUR PAIN?

The Telegraph, U.K. Nate Silver is 'Partisan and wrong.' Voters Will Decide, not The New York Times “In the history of presidential elections, has there ever been such an effort by one side to poll their way to victory? While the Republicans have spoken this season about jobs and debt – willing themselves to a moral victory – the Democrats have talked constantly about how well their candidate is polling.” — COLUMNIST Tim Stanley IS THIS MAN AN ELECTION THIEF?

TELEGRAPH: Hurricane Sandy:
President Obama Warns
of Liklihood of Fatalities
TELEGRAPH: Hurricane Sandy
- How Apple's Siri Screwed Up
TELEGRAPH: Hillary Clinton
and Michelle Obama: The
Queens of Washington D.C.
DAILY MAIL: She's on Her
Way! Hurricane Sandy 200
Miles from New Jersey Coast

Izvestia, Russia Russell Means Reminded World of ' Real America' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “I don't know what his life teaches Americans. But for me, he was the figure who links the America we know from history books to the America of today. ... Means made it possible to respect this country. It turned out that everything we loved about it as children was more than just a shadow on a film screen, but a physical reality.” — COLUMNIST Orhan Jemal RUSSELL MEANS: DEFINING 'AMERICAN'

Die Tageszeitung, Germany Planet 'Paralyzed' Before Power Transitions in the United States and China TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “It is appalling to see the world in suspended animation, just because the two most powerful nations are busy with themselves.” — COLUMNIST Dominic Johnson NAIL BITING OVER U.S. AND CHINA

Izvestia, Russia If Romney Wins: 'Russia- U.S. Ties Won't Sour, they Will Come to a Standstill' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Every claim Romney has made about Russia has been clearly laid out: it is a country standing in the way of America in settling the Iran issue; it is a country toward which America must show resolve and toughness. This is repeated time after time, because Romney in fact has no position on Russia, and has no idea what to do with it.” — COLUMNIST Fyodor Lukyanov A RUSSIAN 'VOTE' FOR OBAMA

ODIHR, Poland Texas' Threat to Arrest OSCE Election Observers Violates U.S. Obligations “The threat of criminal sanctions against OSCE/ODIHR observers is unacceptable. The United States, like all countries in the OSCE, has an obligation to invite ODIHR observers to observe its elections.” — Ambassador Janez Lenarcic, Director of OSCE Office of Democratic Democratic Institutions, Human Rights

La Stampa: Italy Europe Goes Missing in Obama- Romney Foreign Policy Debate TRANSLATED FROM ITALY “It's striking how American increasingly gazes across the Pacific rather than the Atlantic. Of course, Europe has been discussed in previous debates (almost always negatively) when dealing with economic issues. But when it comes to major global issues, in Washington's eyes, everything European is, at least for now, of secondary importance.” — COLUMNIST Marco Bardazzi

La Stampa, Italy No One Can Claim Americans Don't Have a Genuine Choice TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “No repeating the old cliche, 'Voting is pointless since nothing changes.' As in the 2013 elections in Germany and Italy, this time the results really matter. ... Americans will make their choice in freedom. It is a ritual that some snobs like to scorn as 'ideology,' but whose real name is 'democracy.'” — COLUMNIST Gianni Riotta A SOUND SYSTEM FOR PICKING LEADERS?

Polytika: Poland A Shattering Fall from Grace: 'Dr. Armstrong and Mr. Hyde' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “French fans had little love for the American - to put it mildly. They accused him of wicked deeds of doping. It turns out they were right.” — COLUMNIST Krzysztof Matlak

IRISH EXAMINER: Lance
Armstrong - Once Again,
Action 'Too Little, Too Late
GUARDIAN: Armstrong Loses
Titles as UCI President
Lashes Out at 'Scumbags'
DE VOLKSKRANT, NETHERLANDS:
Holier-Than Thou Critics have
Nothing on Lance Armstrong
CHALLENGES, FRANCE:
The High Cost of Lance
Armstrong's Downfall
LA STMPA, ITALY: Lance
Armstrong Gives Italy a
Sense of Legal Superiority
INDEPENDENT, IRELAND:
Lance Armstrong: 'Big
Reveal' of Cancer Jesus

Liberation, France Europe Draws Just a Single 'Derogatory Reference' in U.S. Presidential Debate TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “And where was Europe in all this? Not far from Australia in the battle for the position of most forgotten continent. ...” — COLUMNIST Lorraine Millot EUROPE LEFT OUT - ALMOST

Corriere Della Sera, Italy 'Obama Prototype': Rome's Black Emperor, Septimius Severus TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “Since 1776, when America proclaimed its independence, it has been considered the 'Second Rome.' ... Since 2008, the year Obama was elected America's first Black president, the country has had another reason to identify itself with ancient Rome. The Roman Empire, the most multiracial and multicultural in history, also had an Obama prototype: Septimius Severus, the Empire's first Black emperor.” — COLUMNIST Ennio Caretto BARACK OBAMA: NOT SO NOVEL?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Fires, Romney Falters, but 3rd Debate Fails to find a Flourish
OBAMA TKO	“The president did better than an unconvincing Romney – but it's hard to imagine this changed minds or won hearts.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

BBC NEWS: Global Poll Shows
Rest of World Favors Obama
GUARDIAN, U.K.: Trump
Primes Media for 'Bombshell'
TELEGRAPH: Presidential
Candidates Go to War in
Third and Final Debate
ECONOMIST: A Win for Obama

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama vs. Romney: Third Debate in Gifs “It's finished. Obama came off as more confident and coherent on foreign policy ... but Romney survived fairly unscathed. Obama less aggressive than the second debate. Romney less aggressive than the first. In all, a little dull.” — REPORTER Adam Gabbatt PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE GIFS

Independent, U.K. Legacy of Imperialism Still Haunts Every Street in City of Rome
U.S. - ROME	“It is difficult to disagree about the imperial power of America and the 'civilized' values we chaps are still trying to teach those chaps in the Arab world.” —COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

GUARDIAN: Obama Beats Romney
to Prize for Self-Deprecation
GUARDIAN: U.S. Election
Show is Lame, but the
Outcome May be Dramatic
GUARDIAN: Israel's Cranes
Reprove Obama's Failure
to Seek Two-State Solution
TELEGRAPH: Florida War
Veterans Split Between
Obama and Romney
TELEGRAPH: Mitt Romney
Must Exploit Benghazi
TELEGRAPH: Reliance
on Wall St. Funds Mute
Debate on Financial Rules

Yezhednevniy Zhurnal, Russia Why the Islamic Sauron Beats U.S. Mickey Mouse TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “The leader of a democratic country cannot, like Stalin, stigmatize Hitler today, and then sign a pact with him to divide Europe tomorrow. ... in terms of lies and violence, totalitarianism is more effective than democracy.” — COLUMNIST Yulia Latinina WHEN DESPOTS HAVE AN EDGE

Gazeta, Russia 'Cold War Reanimators' Like Romney are Poor Role Models for Europe TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “The black and white Cold War mentality looks all the more absurd in the context of the tectonic shifts taking place before our eyes ... Mitt Romney, who readily repeats his idea that Russia is America's leading foe, is the only such politician- reanimator of that ilk today.” — COLUMNIST Fyodor Lukyanov BATTLE FOR THE PRESIDENCY

Die Welt, Germany 'Enraged' at Soviets, Castro Used Ex-Nazis in Cuban Missile Crisis TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Castro wrote a sharp letter of protest about Moscow's giving in [to Kennedy]. The Cuban revolutionary also refused to return his heavy Soviet arms, blaming Stalin's envoy for betraying Cuba.” — REPORTER Sven Felix Kellerhoff SOVIET FEARS OVER CASTRO

Jyllands Posten, Denmark VIDEO: Danish Operative on Penetrating al-Qaeda; Locating Anwar al-Awlaki Oct. 16, 00:12:11 "The idea was to find someone [a wife] with the same mentality as him, so that both would be killed in a U.S. drone attack.” — Morton Storm , Undercover Danish Operative SETTING A TRAP FOR AL-QAEDA

FTD, Germany It is Beginning of the End for Bundeswehr's Afghanistan Mission TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “With 52 deaths so far, it has been the bloodiest deployment of German troops since the end of World War II. But it is over. ... skepticism is growing about what progress will remain once foreign troops have left.” — CORRESPONDENT Joachim Zepelin ENDING A HISTORIC DEPLOYMENT

Der Spiegel, Germany American Lobbyists Face Off with E.U. on Data Privacy “The U.S., Google and Facebook have begun a lobbying offensive against an E.U. data privacy law that would strengthen user rights to have personal data deleted.” — Der Spiegel News Item

La Stampa, Italy Lance Armstrong Gives Italy a Sense of Legal Superiority TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “With this sordid backdrop, there is a consolation. ... In Italy, the fight against doping makes no concessions: if Armstrong had lived in Italy, he may have been caught more quickly than he was in the United States.” — COLUMNIST Marco Ansaldo ITALY JUSTICE LOOKS ON WITH PRIDE

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama vs. Romney: Second Debate in Gifs “Romney has been rather pugnacious at points. Here he gestures towards the president when talking about the tragic events in Benghazi, Libya. But the strong posturing backfired.” — REPORTER Adam Gabbatt PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE GIFS

The Independent, U.K. Obama Went Aggressive - and Looked Offensive
OBAMA-ROMNEY	“Time and again, he interrupted both Romney and the moderator. He may not have sniggered and laughed out loud but there was an air of the Joe Biden playbook.” —COLUMNIST Janet Daley

INDEPENDENT: Fired-Up Obama
Takes Offensive in Crucial Debate

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Self-Assured Obama Recovers; Balances Style and Substance
BACK IN GAME	“Romney puts up fight against more decisive opponent but can't overcome the president's sharp delivery.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

DAILY MAIL: Obama Comes
Out Swinging in 'Ugly' Debate
TELEGRAPH: Romney
Called 'Flip-Flopper' by
Father's Former Aide
TELEGRAPH: Interactive
Graphic: U.S. Election
Super PAC Contributors
BBC NEWS: Barack Obama
'Did What he had to Do'
ECONOMIST: An Aggressive
Obama-Romney Rematch

The Telegraph, U.K. Computer Hacker that Sought U.S. UFO Data will Not be Extradited “The shock decision will be hailed as a big milestone for those who have campaigned against the perceived one- sided nature of Britian's extradition pact with the U.S.” — REPORTER Michael White UFO WIKILEAKER REPRIEVE

VIDEO: Interview with Gary McKinnon
on Why He Hacked Pentagon Computers

The Independent, U.K. List of 25 Richest People in History Has 14 Americans “Few will have thought, or even heard of, Mansa Musa I of Mali, an obscure 14th century African king who was today named the richest person in history.” — REPORTER John Hall JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany Mitt Romney and America's 'Medieval' Calvinist Upsurge TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Isn't Romney one of those people who gave us the worst economic crisis since 1929? Instead of unity and a sense of community, a self- righteous anger is directed at the victims of the crisis - at the losers, the penniless, the bankrupt, and the millions put into the street as a result of home foreclosures - and at the government, which has undertaken to assist them.” — COLUMNIST Andrian Kreye ROMNEY: TOO CRUEL TO BE KIND?

The Independent, U.K. Karadzic: 'I'm No Criminal – I was Saving the Innocent' “Mothers of victims of the Srebrenica massacre watching from the public gallery snorted in derision and shock, shouting out 'He's lying! He's lying!'” — CORRESPONDENT Peter Popham HOPING FOR GROUP AMNESIA

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands Holier-Than Thou Critics have Nothing on Lance Armstrong TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Anyone in a bicycle seat during those years with the aim of winning big races had little choice. Talent and training zeal weren't enough. ... It would be tempting and far too easy to consider doping to be the ultimate proof of depravity, and peddle our own versions of moral superiority from the comfort of our chairs.” — COLUMNIST Bert Wagendorp TOO HARD ON ARMSTRONG?

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland With Romney in Office, 'War More Likely to Happen' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Americans or Israelis will bomb Iran's nuclear facilities, but this won't finish it. Iran would inevitably fire rockets at Israel and ask its friends from Lebanese Hezbullah to do the same. What comes next is anyone's guess.” — COLUMNIST Mariusz Zawadzki READING THE TEA LEAVES

Der Spiegel, Germany Biden Bares His Teeth “If there were no Joe Biden, we journalists would have to invent one. His verbal slipups can't be beat. ... But at the debate, Biden put up exactly the kind of spirited fight that the Obama campaign needs.” — COLUMNIST Gregor Peter Schmitz

The Independent, U.K. 'Bunch of Malarky': Biden Goes on the Attack to Pull it Back for the Democrats
U.S. RUMBLE	“A boisterous Joe Biden led a riproaring counterattack on Republicans, using his debate with Paul Ryan to repeatedly criticize - and openly laugh at – his opponents' policies.” —COLUMNIST Rupert Cornwell

GUARDIAN: Biden and Ryan
'Fight to a Bloodied Draw'

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Joe Biden and Paul Ryan: Vice Presidential Debate as Seen in Gifs “Gifwise, it's definitely been Biden's night.” — CORRESPONDENT Adam Gabbatt THE VP DEBATE IN GIFS

Der Groene, The Netherlands The 'Nostalgic' Electorate TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Not only in America but across the West, many voters are in a state of confusion. They sense that relationships around the world are changing dramatically, to the detriment of Western power. They want to go back, and there are politicians who, with lots of empty promises, are at the beck and call of this nostalgic electorate.” — COLUMNIST H.J.A. Hofland AMERICANS: BACK TO THE FUTURE?

Sol, Portugal Western Apologists for Islamic Extremists are Just as Guilty TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE “What so puzzles me is the sight of Islamists invading embassies and killing people, all in the name of their religion, without a word from advocates of freedom.” — COLUMNIST Vitor Rainho FREEDOMS OF CONVENIENCE?

La Repubblica, Italy Game Change Debate: President Obama Comes Across as 'Non-Leader' TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “He kept his eyes down and flashed smiles too wide to have been sincere. Then he embarked on complicated explanations to justify his actions in the White House, which made him look like a president should never look: as if he were a 'non leader.'” — COLUMNIST Vittorio Zucconi

El Pais, Spain A President Romney Will Come to Regret Damaging Remark about Our Nation TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “If Romney is made president, the phrase 'I don't want to go down the path to Spain,' which he delivered at the worst time in Spain's recent history, will haunt him whenever he must have contact with our country.” — COLUMNIST Antonio Cano JUST WORDS SPOKEN IN HASTE?

Handelsblatt, Germany For Germany, a Romney Win 'Would Have its Advantages' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “In Germany four years ago, he would have been able to count on 80 to 90 percent of the vote. To Germans, after the leaden Bush years, the new president seemed hip, smart, empathetic, and liberal - and altogether more European than his predecessor. Today, German enthusiasm for Obama has cooled quite significantly .” — COLUMNIST Wolfram Weimer GERMANS WARMING TO ROMNEY?

El Mundo, Spain Romney Lies About State Expenditures in the U.S. and Spain TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “America has always spent between one and three percentage points less than Spain on the state, and that hasn’t changed ... under Obama, the U.S. is cutting government spending at a faster rate than Spain, and according to the IMF, this year the margin will again be less than it was in George Bush's last budget.” — COLUMNIST Pablo Pardo

El Semanal, Spain Spain Asserts that it has 'Little to Envy' in Regard to the American People TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “This is a country is too big not to be better understood by some. But don’t you worry, we will try to explain it to them. I think we have very little to envy when it comes to other peoples, and that includes the Americans. ... And by the way, we are also very proud of our welfare state.” — Deputy Prime Minister Monsyer Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría ROMNEY DRAWS SPANISH IRE

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Syria and Turkey: How Long can Great Powers Sit on their Hands? “The do-nothing hand-wringing favored by Turkey's allies may not be politically sustainable as the Syrian crisis spreads.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

El Pais, Spain Mitt Romney and Spain: Is Ours a Failing Brand? TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “Romney could have used other examples, but he didn't; he gave the example of Spain, and everyone seemed to understand the the subliminal message.” — COLUMNIST Antonio Estella SWIPE AT SPAIN HITS NERVE

The Telegraph, U.K. Romney's Debate Victory Spooks Mainstream Media “No longer can he be dismissed with a gag about a dog strapped to his car roof. This uptight rich guy could be the next president.” — CORRESPONDENT Tim Stanley THINGS GOING JUST AS PLANNED?

Le Figaro, France Pro-Obama Media Suffers Major Defeat TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Unable up to now to look at Obama as critically as they evaluate Romney, journalists will now have to take account of the a good performance a man they will not vote for.” — COLUMNIST Pierre-Yves Dugua 'IN THE TANK' FOR OBAMA?

Independent, U.K. Download, Print, Fire: U.S. Gun Rights Effort Utilizes 3D Technology “Imagine an America in which anyone can download and print a gun in their own home. They wouldn't need a background check, a license, or very much technical knowledge, just a 3D printer. That's the vision a cadre of dedicated libertarians are determined to make reality.” — CORRESPONDENT Alexander Hotz 'PRINTING' WEAPONS AT HOME

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.S. Debate: No Zingers, but Romney Finally Lifts Off
NEW HOPE	“ After a number of reboots and roll-outs he finally found his voice. He wasn't likeable, but he was believable. Fluent, strident, confident – he made his case.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

Independent, U.K. U.S. Presidential Debate: Obama and Romney Meet in First Contest – Live “So far from Mitt Romney there's been more waffle than zinger. But when you have a 'no details tax plan' that's what happens I guess.” — Ann Romney's Advice to Mitt GENTLEMAN: START YOUR ENGINES

de Volkskrant, The Netherlands Why Should We Care About U.S. Presidential Elections? TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “The importance of America has declined; a giant with feet of clay and a $16 trillion debt - a bankrupt country that has its hands too full with its own problems to remain involved with the world. ... Why should I care under which president the Americans live?” — COLUMNIST Bert Wagendorp IS THE WORLD LOSING INTEREST?

The Independent, U.K. Obama vs. Romney: The 'Greatest Political Showdown on Earth'
U.S. RUMBLE	“The largest, the longest, the costliest and the cruelest exercise in democracy on earth approaches its climax.” —COLUMNIST Rupert Cornwell

The Independent, U.K. Google's World Wide Web Wars “The giant of search engines has seen off its commercial rivals. Now it's locked in a series of increasingly fierce fights with many governments.” — COLUMNIST Peter Popham

Financial Times Deutschland, Germany Aung San Suu Kyi: 'She is No Saint' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Even if it sounds like blasphemy: she is no saint. The reverence that Suu Kyi is regarded with hides her weakness. It hampers an analysis of political mistakes and shortcomings.” — COLUMNIST Georg Fahrion TOO MUCH REVERENCE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Panetta Gets a 'Lukewarm' Welcome in New Zealand “Some local people seem a tad ungrateful. They have labeled Mr. Panetta, a former CIA chief, the 'warlord of the world' and say he should be arrested and sent for trial in The Hague. They pay no heed to Washington's 'anti-China' Asia-Pacific security agenda.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

Financial Times Deutschland, Germany Slip-Ups in Space: More Common than You Might Think TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “This glitch of a command sent to the wrong capsule address is just the latest chapter in a book full of misadventures in space.” — REPORTER Gerhard Hegmann MORE THAN MUSSED HAIR

Le Soir, Belgium Any Compromise on Free Expression would be 'Unbearable' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “We would rather side with the white knights who have the courage to stand up to dangerous extremists capable of setting their offices ablaze.” — COLUMNIST Didier Mamann

Independent, Ireland Bill Clinton Reveals he Could Run for President of Ireland “If I move to Ireland and buy a house, I can run for president of Ireland thanks to my Irish heritage. ... ” — FORMER PRESIDENT Bill Clinton CLINTON: MOVING ABROAD?

Komsomolskaya Pravda, Russia Pussy Riot Punks and the 'Innocence of Christians' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “We finally have an answer to the question of what would have happened to the feminist- punk band Pussy Riot if they had jerked their legs around and screamed in a mosque. It was provided by the tens of thousands of average Muslims who have destroyed U.S. embassies, instigated anti- American rioting and even killed an American envoy.” — COLUMNIST Alexandr Grishi WESTERN DOUBLE STANDARD?

News, Switzerland Obama May be Bad; Romney is Worse TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “There is one question one must ask in light of Romney, and some of the other clowns who vied for the Republican nomination: What's going on with Republicans? Isn't the party more out of touch with reality than the Democrats they denounce as elitist?” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer ROMNEY'S REPUBLICANS

Handelsblatt, Germany The 'Military Option' Poses Threat to Global Economy TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The next few months threaten to be dangerous. Several severe regional economic and political crises could combine into a mega- crisis, which will in turn create very serious global shockwaves.” — FORMER GERMAN DEFENSE MINISTER Joschka Fischer AUSTRAIN MUSLIMS PROTEST FILM

Le Monde, France Lesson to Learn: The Prophet Transcends All Films or Cartoons TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Is Islam so vulnerable, so fragile, so threatened wherever it is practiced? Can a work of fiction, a cartoon or a very bad film damage Muslim values and thought? In principle, no.” — COLUMNIST Tahar Ben Jelloun WHERE THE BATTLE BEGAN

Financial Times Deutschland, Germany 'We Germans Have a Hard Time Grasping Why People would Vote Mitt Romney' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “That a politician has voluntarily branded himself a cold-hearted capitalist is astonishing. ... We Germans have a very hard time understanding why Americans still want to vote for Romney.” — EDITORIAL, Financial Times Deutschland WEAPONS OF SELF-DESTUCTION?

BBC News, U.K. VIDEO: Pakistan Minister Offers $100,000 for Death of Filmmaker; Calls on al-Qaeda, Taliban to Act Sept. 22, 00:01:20 "I will pay whoever kills the makers of this video $100,000. If someone else makes other similar blasphemous material in the future, I will also pay those who kill him $100,000." — Pakistan Railway Minister Shafqat Jalil MINISTER PUTS OUT CONTRACT

DE TIJD, Belgium U.S. Mistaken to Buckle Under on Free Speech TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “The concern of the United States is understandable. Their troops on the ground are confronted with this violence. But it is extremely clumsy to respond to it with a call for censorship.” — COLUMNIST Jean Vanempten IS THIS A U.S. RETREAT?

France 24, France French Embassies Bracing for Backlash Over Cartoons “The order anticipates violent protest over the publishing of cartoons of The Prophet Muhammad by satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo. The obscene cartoons have renewed anger among Muslims after more than a week of deadly protest sparked by a U.S.-made video.” — FRANCE 24 News Item

La Stampa, Italy The Metamorphosis of First Lady Obama TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “At the convention, she left the stage to a standing ovation, with her head bowed, not overdoing it - aware, perhaps, that the true revolution can be found in her, a girl from the Black ghetto standing at the center of White power, and that the game is not yet over.” — COLUMNIST Mario Calabresi LONG WAY FROM CHICAGO

Der Standard, Austria For Now at Least, it's a No-Win Situation for the U.S. in the Muslim World TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Even if the 2011 revolutions saw no U.S. flags burning, the old regimes were hated and deprived of their legitimacy because they were said to be puppets of imperialistic policy. These resentments have not been healed. On the contrary, new resentments have been added: those of secularists and liberals who now accuse the United States of forging pacts with the ruling Islamists.” — COLUMNIST Gudrun Harrer CAN NOTHING BE DONE?

Rceczpospolita, Poland Romney is Better Choice for Poland TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “If as president, Romney acts on even of a sliver of his declarations, we would stand to benefit. And if he ends up being overwhelmed by reality and was unable to do so, we would lose nothing. With Obama, we know exactly where we stand.” — COLUMNIST Waldemar Kompala POLES: THE WRONG HORSE?

The Spectator, U.K. God, Guns, and Welfare: Conspiracy Theories of the U.S. Working Class “The old fear that democracy will allow the poor to fleece property owners has never disappeared. Of course, there is a grain of truth in it.” — COLUMNIST Nick Cohen HOW OUT OF TOUCH IS HE?

Izvestia, Russia President Obama: 'Not a God, But a Partner' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Putin finally realizes that the American political class will offer us no one better than liberal Barack Obama.” — COLUMNIST Jan Ross RUSSIA AND BARACK OBAMA

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. China and Japan: a 'Dangerous' Standoff Over Senkaku Islands “The Senkaku dispute is the latest episode in a long history of conflict – and the Americans are increasingly nervous.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. U.S. Suspends Joint Military Operations with Afghan Forces “The U.S. has suspended joint operations because of a collapse in trust after a surge in the number of Americans and other NATO soldiers killed by men they are fighting with or training.” — CORRESPONDENT Chris McGreal AFGHANS: ON THEIR OWN?

THE INDEPENDENT: U.K.
Defense Minister Called
to Explain Move; Accused
of Being Out of the Loop
GUARDIAN: MPs Question
Hague as NATO Halts
Afghan Joint Patrols

Der Spiegel, Germany Muslim Protests Show Limits of Free Speech “The conflict over the film Innocence of Muslims raises questions about how far the West is prepared to go in defending free expression.” — CORRESPONDENTS Lazar Backovic, Dieter Bednarz, Clemens Höges, Marc Hujer, Juliane Von Mittelstaedt, Christoph Reuter, Marcel Rosenbach, Alexander Smoltczyk, Bernhard Zand

THE INDEPENDENT: New
$500,000 Bounty Put on
Salmon Rushdie's Head
GUARDIAN: Hezbullah
Leader Warns U.S.
Over Anti-Islam Film

The Telegraph, U.K. New Video 'Could Kill' Mitt Romney's Chances of Becoming President “Romney's comment might contain a grain of truth. But it's also cruel and fatalistic.” — HISTORIAN Tim Stanley ROMNEY: STICK A FORK IN IT?

THE INDEPENDENT: Mitt
Romney: 'It's Not My Job
to Worry about the Poor'
GUARDIAN: Mitt Romney
Stands by Gaffe but says
Case Not 'Elegantly Stated'
GUARDIAN: Occupy Wall
Street Anniversary Marred
by Arrests, Weaker Support

The Telegraph, U.K. British Businesses are Taking an 'Unfair Whacking' from U.S.
TOO TOUGH?	“BP has made mistakes, but its endless battering from U.S. authorities is out of all proportion.” —LONDON MAYOR Boris Johnson

Frankfurter Rundschau, Germany Islam in Turmoil: Religion as 'Ersatz-Identity' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “All states in this Islam- influenced arc of crisis are in very precarious stages of development. They are all wavering between a 'path to modernization' in the American style, which was to some extent imposed in dictatorial fashion, and the search for an identity of their own - an identity that would at best draw from a history shaped by Islam as well as Euro-Christian values.” — COLUMNIST Stephan Hebel A NEW MUSLIM IDENTITY?

The Independent, U.K. Obama's Foreign Policy of Reconciliation in 'Tatters'
OFF COURSE?	“Obama seems to be rethinking his stance on U.S. interference in other lands. Will he let the voters know before the election?” —COLUMNIST Janet Daley

Die Zeit, Germany Romney's 'Nostalgia' Ill- Suited to Realities of a Fast-Changing World TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Compared to Romney and despite his flaws, Mr. Obama embodies an intelligent and engaged America. Unlike four years ago, he is no longer supported by global hopes for his victory, but concerns in the event of his defeat.” — COLUMNIST Jan Ross REPUBLICANS: OUT OF DATE?

The Telegraph, U.K. Taliban Hit U.S.- U.K. Afghan Base; 'Miss' Prince Harry “At least 2 U.S. Marines were killed in the strike on the base in Helmand Province, which houses American and British troops, among others.” — CORRESPONDENTS Sean Rayment, Ben Farmer FIREFIGHT NEAR PRINCE

Gazeta, Russia For the Kremlin, at Least Obama will Be Predictable TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Romney’s rhetoric is not the result of a long-held position, but a set of stereotypes not backed by his personal beliefs or attitudes. What course he would pursue if elected is therefore impossible to guess.” — COLUMNIST Fyodor Lukyanov DEVIL RUSSIA DOES NOT KNOW

Die Tageszeitung, Germany U.S. Muslim Unrest Raises Stakes of U.S. Election Even Higher TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “In the hottest phase of a U.S. campaign, the logic of action in Washington often shifts to winning short-term points. But ats stake is more than an Obama second term: If and how Obama succeeds could decide whether there is war or peace.” — COLUMNIST Bern Pickert NO HIGHER STAKES

Independent, U.K. 'Inside Story' of U.S. Envoy's Assassination “People from the security forces definitely let the attack happen because they were themselves offended by the film; they would absolutely put their loyalty to the Prophet over the consulate. The deaths are all nothing compared to insulting the Prophet.” — CORRESPONDENT Kim Sengupta CHRIS STEPHENS: LAST HOURS

News, Switzerland U.S. Election Mystery: Why Don't Americans Care about the World? TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The rest of the world does not appear exist for U.S. voters, although it is more and more clear that the interaction, feedback, and interconnectivity of the financial markets affect the American economy.” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer ARE OUR HEADS IN THE SAND?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Yale Scientists Find New Monkey Species in Congo “This was a totally unexpected find. We knew this was unusual and possibly unknown when we first saw the animal. But it was not until we had genetic and morphological analyses of our research team that we knew we really had a new species.” — Drs. John and Terese Hart THREATENED WITH EXTINCTION

The Independent, U.K. 'Provocateurs' in East and West Know: Politics and Religion Don't Mix
ILL INTENT	“It only takes a few loonies and seconds to kick off a mini war in the Muslim world.” —COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

THE TELEGRAPH: Arab Spring
Turns Sour for United States
TELEGRAPH: Ambassador Chris
Stevens: Man of Drive, Passion
TELEGRAPH: Obama Dispatches
the Marines to Hunt Killers
TELEGRAPH: Attack in Libya:
The Warning Signs were there
TELEGRAPH: Death of Ambassador
Chris Stevens Now an Election Row
INDEPENDENT: Fear and Loathing:
Another Unholy Row about Islam
INDEPENDENT: Murder of U.S.
Ambassador Proves Arab Spring
was Never What it Seemed
INDEPENDENT: Editorial: Obama
Must Measure his Response
GUARDIAN: U.S. Consulate
Attack in Libya Underlines
Threat of Salafi Islamists

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Libyan Attack: It Should Have Been Clear - Deposing Qaddafi was the Easy Part “The West has once again started a fire it cannot extinguish, with the revolution it fanned in danger of degenerating into chaos.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

Lesoir, Belgium America's Lost Hope: For the Most Part, Obama's Inexperience is to Blame TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “There is no mystery: Obama acceding to the US presidency devoid of executive experience, and equipped with just a single year as a U.S. senator, has paid for his inexperience and naivety.” — EDITORIAL, Lesoir IS OBAMA REALLY TO BLAME?

Daily Mail, U.K. 9-11: 'The Pain that Never Dies' “The 11th year, for me, it's the same as if it was yesterday ... It could be 50 years from now, and to me, it'll be just as important as year one was, or year five or year ten.” — 9-11 Responder Joe Torres ELEVEN YEARS LATER

Izvestia, Russia Romney Had Best Not Listen to Bush's 'Neocon Lunatics' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Romney uttered the words that if he wins, U.S. policy toward Russia will be less flexible. Those words, I suspect, evoked only an ironic grin from Putin.” — COLUMNIST Andranik Migranyan ROMNEY: MUCH LIKE BUSH?

The Telegraph, U.K. Brad Pitt: Why My Mom is Wrong about Barack Obama, Gay Marriage “Gay marriage is inevitable. The next generation, they get it. It is just a matter of time before it is a reality.” — ACTOR Brad Pitt PITT FAMILY SPLIT ON GAYS

Le Figaro, France Democrats in Combat Mode, but Now Face Joblessness Headwind TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “This bleak return to the economic realities of the moment was immediately seized on by Republicans. 'This report is a result of Obama's failed policies' proclaimed Paul Ryan' ... But Democrats at least reached some key objectives in Charlotte.” — CORRESPONDENT Laure Mandeville DID CONVENTION MATTER?

The Independent, Ireland Obama Health Care Law the 'Holy Grail' of American Politics “While near-universal health coverage is something we Europeans take for granted, it has been the Holy Grail of American politics for the past 70 years. After the failures of his predecessors, it was Mr. Obama who got healthcare over the line. For that alone his term deserves credit.” — EDITORIAL, Irish Independent

La Repubblica, Italy The Right to Vote Being Imperilled in America! TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “The U.S. right justifies this campaign by asserting a need to fight electoral fraud. But for the last 30 years, election malpractice in America has been negligible (the biggest case of 'electoral fraud' in history was perpetrated in 2000 by the U.S. Supreme Court, which robbed an election win from Al Gore).” — COLUMNIST Frederico Rampini IN THIS REALLY ABOUT FRAUD?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. President Obama's Speech Pedestrian - but Had to Be
JOB DONE?	“Fittingly, it was a pedestrian address: a very deliberate, methodical case for a second term. The best lines had been taken. His task was not to excite, but explain and engage.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

INDEPENDENT: Barack Obama
Urges Backers to Keep the Faith
TELEGRAPH: A Sadder, Wiser
Obama Addresses Foot Soldiers
INDEPENDENT: Obama - Give
Me Time and I'll Fix America
BBC NEWS: Obama's Rhetoric
is Clever but no Game Changer

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Democratic Convention Diary: A Barnstorming Stemwinder and a Missing Hillary Clinton “The fact-checkers were overwhelmed and reporters struggled for hyperboles to describe Bill Clinton's speech, but what became of Hillary?” — CORRESPONDENT Oliver Burkeman HILLARY: WATCHES FROM AFAR

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Election in the United States: Romney Gives Poland an Opening TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “It turns out that for the Romney camp, the issue of Poland is more vital than the Afghanistan War, China's economic growth or the situation in the Arab world - since these were utterly forgotten during his 35-minute speech acceptance speech. After the politician wins the election, we will need to hold him to his word.” — COLUMNIST Tomasz Deptula A POLISH VOTE FOR ROMNEY

The Independent, U.K. Bill Clinton Makes Speech that Obama Needed the Most
REVIVAL?	“Hugely popular, Clinton gave an address aimed squarely at fixing Barack Obama's blind spot with middle America.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

AUDIO: Bill Clinton's Speech
and His Luck (BBC News, U.K.)

VIDEO: The 'Big Dog' Adds His
Voice to Support Obama (BBC News, U.K.)

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Doesn't Need Bill Clinton's Support. ... He Needs his Luck “Clinton's presidency was a golden era of economic growth thanks to the luck of items beyond his control.” — COLUMNIST Richard Adams WILLHIS LUCK RUB OFF?

VIDEO: Bill Clinton: 'We must
Rre-elect Barack Obama' (BBC News, U.K.)

DER SPIEGEL: Obama's
Diverse Coalition Shows
Signs of Fracture
TELEGRAPH: Now the
Gloves Come Off in
U.S. Presidential Race
GUARDIAN: Democratic
Convention Erupts Over
Restored Jerusalem Policy
TELEGRAPH: Clinton's
Speech at the Democratic
Convention: How it Happened

Gazeta, Russia Why U.S. Republicans have No Foreign Policy TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Instinctively, Romney would like to return to the world's former two-pole model, when all was simple and clear. But today's biggest challenge is the fuzzy strategic situation and the blurred frontlines. It isn't clear who is on your side, who is right or wrong - or rather, the trouble is that allies and enemies often switch sides.” — COLUMNIST Fyodor Lukyanov RYAN AND FOREIGN POLICY

Der Spiegel, Germany The U.S. Election: 'Campaign of Lies' “In this year's U.S. poll, truth is in short supply. Both the Democrats and Republicans are now more unabashed in their lies than ever before.” — CORRESPONDENT Gregor Peter Schmitz

The Telegraph, U.K. Michelle Obama 'Comes Out Swinging' in Defense of Barack “Behind almost every line of this speech lionizing her husband’s rags-to-riches journey lurked the pale image of the Republican candidate, who was handed his privileged start in life on a silver platter.” — CORRESPONDENT Peter Foster MICHELLE MAKES THE CASE

INDEPENDENT: Democratic
Faithful Tune Out Economy
and Look to Michelle Obama
GUARDIAN: The Democratic
Convention: Joyless Reporters,
Competitive Candidates
TELEGRAPH: Echoes of Obama
Surround Rising Latino Star

The Independent, U.K. Michelle Obama Urges Voters to 'Renew their Vows' to the President
THE DEMS	“In the room, hope had never died and change was still going to come.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

Trouw, The Netherlands Apple vs. Samsung: In U.S., Even a Fart Can Have a Patent! TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Apple celebrates that the judgment has made it clear that stealing is prohibited. That is true. But that begs the question of what you can make your own property. The U.S. patent regime has ballooned so much that every fart can be patented. That is absurd.” — EDITORIAL, Trouw

La Stampa, Italy Can Charlotte Change Equation of Campaign Bereft of New Ideas? TRANSLATED FROM ITALY “America is in the limbo of an election campaign where political conflict conceals a scarcity of ideas and weak leadership. We will soon know if the conclave in Charlotte will be able to change that.” — COLUMNIST Maurizio Molinari FOUR DAYS FOR CHANGE?

Neviditelny Pes, Czech Republic If Romney Wins, He Can Keep His Radar! TRANSLATED FROM CZECH “The last thing any of us want is to go back to the awkwardness over the Brdy Forest. Therefore, we should insure that a reprise of the exhausting radar theater does not take place. ... Yes, someone should really say something to him.” — COLUMNIST Blahoslav Hruska ROMNEY: OUT OF TOUCH?

The Independent, U.K. Even Now, Democrats Eyeing 2016 Election
WHO NEXT?	“Win or lose on November 6, Obama will be history. He will have fought his last election.” —COLUMNIST Rupert Cornwell

INDEPENDENT: The Thrill
of 2008 is Dead; I can See
Romney in White House
INDPENDENT: Why
British Still Call War
of 1812 a 'Victory'

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Germany Non-Aligned Summit a 'Fiasco' for Iran Regime TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Difinitively, any fear that Egypt's Muslim Brothers seek an alliance with Iran's Shiites is a thing of the past.” — COLUMNIST Rainer Hermann MORSI: WINNING THE WEST?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Think Again. In a Few Months it Could be President Romney
CAN HE WIN?	“Romney's lack of charm may not matter. The Republicans believe he is the proven turnaround artist that the American economy really needs.” —COLUMNIST Jonathan Freedland

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Egypt Underlines Iran's Isolation at Summit of Non-Aligned Movement “Mr. Morsi's condemnation of Syrian regime at Tehran summit will boost Sunni unity at the expense of Assad's closest ally.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

GUARDIAN: Afghanistan: a
Ragged Retreat Threatens to
Turn into Slow-Motion Rout

Le Temps, Switzerland Honor Neil Armstrong: Let Us Begin a Manned Mission to Mars 'Now' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Children and adults who are passionate about space, adventure, and science in general, continue to dream. These are the huge waves that lift up humanity and spur the most promising progress and well-being for all. ... What we need is a new John Kennedy.” — Pierre Brisson, President of Mars Society Switzerland z WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR?

Der Standard, Austria Romney Victory would be a Poisoned Chalice TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Neither under Reagan or George W. Bush were the Republicans as right-wing as they are today. They're farther out of the U.S. mainstream than they have ever been. Romney would be even less able than Mr. Obama to find a way out of the budget stalemate that threatens to push the U.S. economy into recession in the next fiscal year.” — COLUMNIST Eric Frey ROMNEY: POISED TO WIN?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Romney Acceptance Speech a 'Bit of a Bust' “As if to make a point about the lack of enthusiasm, even as the balloons came down, more than a few delegates remained in their seats, as the Romney and Ryan families paraded on stage.” — CORRESPONDENT Richard Adams ITS MITT: ROMNEY NOMINATED

INDEPENDENT: Republicans Talk
the Talk - but their Foreign
Policy Would be No Different
TELEGRAPH: From his Mormon
Roots to a Lack of Faith in
Obama: Romney Makes Pitch
TELEGRAPH: Cameron
and Obama Cannot
Placate Voters Forever
DAILY MAIL: Ann Romney
'Pushed Mitt' to Consider
Condi Rice as Running Mate

Argumenty i Facty, Russia Edward Topol: 'America on Verge of a Civil War' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “In America, 95 percent of the population is historically used to living how they like, no matter what happens in government. For a long time, Americans couldn’t believe that they in fact elected a communist, and that Obama seriously planned to build socialism out of capitalism. But they are slow to place blame - they are a very trusting people.” — Edward Topol, former Communist Party journalist and U.S. resident END OF AMERICA AS WE KNOW IT?

DNA, France Romney's Daring Right Turn Gives America Clear Choice TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “And who cares if only yesterday, Romney himself, in his own state, put in place a health insurance scheme that tomorrow he indents to undo at the federal level, or that he has fought for the rights of both women and homosexuals.” — COLUMNIST Pascal Coquis ROMNEY'S RIGHT-WING RUBICON

Financial Times, U.K. This Election Could be the Republicans' Last Chance “An inability to attract the votes of ethnic minorities in general – and Hispanics in particular – is a big disadvantage to Republicans in this election, but one that the Romney-Ryan ticket could yet overcome. In future elections, it could be very well fatal.” — COLUMNIST Gideon Rachman

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Paul Ryan Sets Up Romney Stall but No One is Buying
RYAN MOJO?	“The running-mate had rousing words for the RNC but the main man is the least popular presidential nominee in 30 years.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

GUARDIAN: Republican National
Convention 2012 - Live Coverage

Komsomolskaya Pravda, Russia Support of Anti-Putin America for Pussy Riot 'Disgusting, Ridiculous' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “The entire period of Putin's rule has seen a continuous series of campaigns by the West's mass media, NGOs, and U.S. lawmakers against a president who is very popular among Russians.” — COLUMNIST Alexei Panki A WESTERN PLOT ON PUTIN?

Der Spiegel, Germany Unexploded American Bomb Found in Munich “Monday's find resulted in a mass evacuation in Munich's popular Schwabing district, only a short walk from the city's world-famous tourist attractions. Officials said Tuesday morning that stores and offices nearby would also have to remain closed.” — DER SPIEGEL NEWS ITEM WWII BOMBS ELUDE GERMANS

AP PHOTOS: WWII Bomb
Detonated by Germans

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Republican Delegates from Texas and Maine Protest 'Power Grab' Rules Change “It's rare at modern conventions to have such revolts, given how carefully orchestrated they have become. They are especially rare for Republicans, who are usually a highly disciplined political party.” — CORRESPONDENT Ewen MacAskill RON PAUL BACKERS REAR UP

News, Switzerland 'Legitimately Raped': An Idea Only the Iran Regime Could Love TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “That the hideous face of the party, with prudery, fear of God, women and foreigners at the top of its agenda, resembles more than anything that of the Iranian regime - their sworn and deadliest enemy (after Obama) - is to say the least ironic.” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer REPUBLICANS AND AKIN

BBC NEW, U.K. Rachel Corrie: Court Rules Israel Not at Fault for Death of American Activist in Gaza “Judge Oded Gershon said. Corrie had been protecting terrorists in a designated combat zone. 'She [Corrie] did not distance herself from the area, as any thinking person would have done.'” — CORRESPONDENT Jon Donnison BY ACCIDENT OR DESIGN?

GUARDIAN: Verdict Exposes
Israeli Military Mindset
GUARDIAN: Corrie's
Mother: 'I Know this
Won't be the End'
GUARDIAN: Rachel
Corrie Ruling 'Deeply
Troubling', says Family

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Republicans Must Change Romney from Forrest Gump into Tom Hanks
REDRAWING	“The RNC is a shell of its former electoral importance, so the Mitt Romney that's put on parade must be a humanized one.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

The Independent, U.K. 'The U.S. is the Major Player Against Syria and Rest are its Instruments’
ASSAD'S VIEW	“Assad's Foreign Minister gives his first interview to a Western reporter since conflict began.” —COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

Challenges, France The High Cost of Lance Armstrong's Downfall TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “They are going to ask him for all the money received from his Tour victories, and surely from the other races. He is going to have to repay almost all of the winnings he took in during his entire career.” — COLUMNIST Carlos Colon LANCE: SOON TO BE BROKE?

Nezavisimaya Gazeta, Russia Kremlin 'Suspends' Use of Tartus Naval Base in Syria TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Our naval base in Tartus will not support a military option. We cannot act militarily against countries that are supporting the Syrian opposition forces.” — Unidentified Russian Defense Ministry Source WILL RUSSIA GIVE UP TARTUS?

TELEGRAPH: Britain and
U.S. Plan Syrian Revolution
from Istanbul Office Block
DER SPIEGEL: German
Commentators Assert
Obama's Warning
'Will Not Deter Assad'

Malagahoy, Spain Let Us Not Trade Our Democracy for Assange and His Ilk TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “I trust democratic governments more than Assange and cyber- pirates, Wiki-spies or hackers.” — COLUMNIST Carlos Colon GARZON: DEFENDING ASSANGE

The Independent, U.K. Neil Armstrong, 'One of Great American Heroes of All Time', Dead at 82 “With 'one small step', he made history as the first man on the Moon. Now, on his death, a president, and the world, pay tribute.” — COLUMNIST Rupert Cornwell WHAT WAS - AND WHAT COULD BE

SUNDAY SUN, U.K.: Tributes from
British Scientists to Neil Armstrong
TELEGRAPH: Neil Armstrong's Legacy
was the 'Strength of Human Skill'
GUARDIAN: Man on Moon:
Moment of Greatness that
Defined American Century

Telegraph, U.K. 'Omens Not Good' for Republican Convention “Next week's Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida, might be a disaster. Literally.” — CORRESPONDENT Tim Stanley

VIDEO: Americans Still Seems
to Prefer Obama (Russia Today)

TELEGRAPH: Bob Dole
Urges Romney to Confront
Republican Right Wing

Le Figaro, France Obama Counters Romney Swiftboat 'Magic Bullet' TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “On the one hand, Romney complains about the harsh blows he receives from the campaign of 44; and on the other, he's not shy about using underhanded means himself. ... The holes in this documentary are so big that not laughing is a challenge. ... Yet another splash of cold water for Romney.” — COLUMNIST Jean-Sebastien Stehli CAN ROMNEY PULL A BUSH?

Yezhednevniy Zhurnal, Russia 'Politically Correct' 2012 Olympics Neared 'Fascism' TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “The Ministry of Goodness, ready with a red-hot iron to punish acts of a politically- incorrect boyfriend, turns out being quite tolerant of Nazism of a different sort. ... Lebanese athletes refused to practice in the same gym as the Israeli team. This is not just a bad Twitter joke or a boyfriend's Facebook post - it is pure racism.” — COLUMNIST Yulia Latinina IS IOC ROTTEN TO THE CORE?

The Telegraph, U.K. British Conservatives are 'Turned Off' by 'Extreme' Republicans “The Tea Party movement doesn't sit comfortably with most conservatives in the U.K. And the whole Bible-Belt thing; looking to God the whole time; the extreme anti- abortion approach; it just doesn't sit well with the Conservative Party at all.” — BRITISH MP Brooks Newmark

SKY NEWS: Romney's Gold
Standard Idea Is 'Madness'
YORKSHIRE EVENING POST:
Flaw in Republican Obsession
with ‘Objectivist’ Philosopher
GUARDIAN: Romney Financial
Documents: Sifting through
All of the 'Grubby Details'

The Independent, U.K. Is Lance Armstrong's Life Built on a Lie? “Can a man's achievements be great enough to stand in the face of claims that they are based on lies?” — COLUMNIST SIMON USBORNE HOAX OR UNFORGIVABLE INJUSTICE?

VIDEO: Past Statement of Lance
Armstrong on Drug Claims (BBC News, U.K.)

TELEGRAPH, U.K.:
Lance Armstrong 'Tipped
Off' Before Drug Tests

Independent, U.K. Police to Arrest Assange 'Under All Circumstances' if He Tries to Flee Embassy “A briefing note handed to officers orders them to make the arrest if he attempts to leave in a diplomatic bag or vehicle.” — REPORTER Kevin Rawlinson

RUSSIA TODAY: There Will Be
'No Special Treatment' for Assange

VIDEO: Ecuador President
Correa Insists on 'Safe Passage'
for Assange (BBC News, U.K.)

BBC News, U.K. VIDEO: Dan Rather Tells Brits, U.S. Conventions 'Irellevent' and 'Crude' Aug. 24, 00:03:22 "Who wants to hear a sort of wind festival, of nothing bust self-serving speeches, for days on end?” — JOURNALIST Dan Rather EVENTS OF A BYGONE ERA?

GUARDIAN: Romney Faces
the 'Speech of His Life'

Le Figaro, France 'Petty' Games within Games at the Ecuadorian Embassy TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “The address Julian Assange delivered from a balcony of the Ecuadorian Embassy is part of a much bigger and pernicious game that can be summarized in four points: The ambition of Correa, the risks of extradition to the U..S., British arrogance, and free speech in Ecuador.” — COLUMNIST Patrick Bele CORREA: CHAVEZ VERSION II?

The Independent, U.K. Getting Rid of Dubya Wasn't Enough. The U.S. Remains a Bully “It was a bad dream that went on for eight years, and no wonder much of the world is still breathing a sigh of relief. But American foreign policy these days escapes scrutiny. In part, that is down to a well-grounded terror of the only alternative to Barack Obama: the increasingly deranged United States right.” — COLUMNIST Owen Jones IRRETRIEVABLE BULLIES?

The Telegraph, U.K. Mitt Romney Met Todd Akin Doctor Jack Willke During 2012 Campaign “Romney met Jack Willke, the doctor credited with popularizing Todd Akin's views on rape and abortion, during the current election campaign, and told him they agree on 'almost everything.'” — COLUMNIST Jon Swaine MEDICAL KNOWLEDGE DEFECIT

Die Presse, Austria WikiLeaks: From 'Torch of Democracy' to an Anti-American 'Cudgel' TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “WikiLeaks set out to be a torch of democracy - but instead became a digital cudgel for U.S.- haters. ... And in view of the behavior of Julian Assange, one must to conclude that this was not mere coincidence - but was by design.” — COLUMNIST Michael Laczynski

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Don't Lose Sight of Why U.S. is Out to Get Julian Assange “Ecuador is pressing for a deal that offers justice to Assange's accusers – and essential protection for whistleblowers. ... with British and Swedish loyalty to the U.S. on the line, Assange shouldn't expect to leave the embassy any time soon” — COLUMNIST Seumas Milne WHAT IS WASHINGTON UP TO?

VIDEO: Assange Can't Stay
and Can't Go' (Russia Today)

VIDEO: Ecuador Warns Brits
it Would be 'Suicide' to Attempt
to Arrest Assange (BBC, U.K.)

VIDEO: Julian Assange Row:
South America Backs Ecuador (BBC, U.K.)

GUARDIAN: How South America
Sees the Julian Assange Case
TELEGRAPH: Sweden Prosecutors
'Censure' British Diplomat for
Naming an Assange Accuser

The Irish Times, Ireland It's Time We Finally Dispelled the Myth of 'Legitimate Rape' “It appears that Mr. Akin was born in the wrong century because the last time his archaic views were consensus opinion was back in the medieval era, when doctors thought women could only get pregnant if they derived pleasure from sex.” — COLUMNIST Colette Browne THE FACE OF REPUBLICANS?

TELEGRAPH: Women are Fed
Up with Male Politicians on Both
Sides of Atlantic Diminishing Rape
TELEGRAPH: Church and
State Separation Gone
Too Far, says Mitt Romney
TELEGRAPH: Ahead of Convention,
the Republican Party Endorses
Abortion Ban Without Exceptions
GUARDIAN: Is Niall Ferguson's
Newsweek Attack on Obama
'Embarrassing' and 'Unethical'?
TELEGRAPH: Akin's 'Legitimate
Rape' Remarks Threaten to
Engulf Mitt Romney Campaign

Dagens Nyheter, Sweden Sweden's Image Smeared by Missteps and Accusations of Assange and Defenders TRANSLATED FROM SWEDISH “The very negative image of the Swedish legal system that the case has disseminated around the world is unfounded. ... In retrospect, it is a pity that the prosecutor didn't avail himself of the opportunity of interrogating Assange in London.” — COLUMNIST Gianni Riotta ASSANGE'S DIPLOMATIC INCIDENT

The Telegraph, U.K. Top Gun Director Tony Scott Leaps to His Death from Los Angeles Bridge “Witnesses reported seeing the father-of-two calmly park his Toyota Prius near the bridge, climb a 10 foot fence and leap off 'without hesitation' just after noon.” — CORRESPONDENT Andrew Hough FAMILY ISSUES FOR SCOTT?

BBC NEWS VIDEO: Hollywood
in 'Shock' Over Scott Death;
Suicide Note Found in Car

BBC, U.K. Why Ecuador Offered Julian Assange Asylum “By granting him asylum, the government is trying to prove it really cares about freedom of opinion and freedom of the press, at a moment when Ecuador has been strongly criticised.” — COLUMNIST Mark Weisbrot ASYLUM GRANTED

VIDEO: Assange Criticizes
Attacks on Whistle Blowers by
Governments (Russia Today)

VIDEO: Ecuador Foreign
Minister Patino Explains Decision
to Grant Assange Asylum (BBC, U.K.)

VIDEO: Britain Threatens to 'Storm'
Ecuador Embassy to Sieze Assange (BBC, U.K.)

GUARDIAN: Julian Assange
Granted Asylum by Ecuador
- Live Coverage
TELEGRAPH: Timeline
of Swedish Sex Charges
Against Julian Assange
GUARDIAN: Assange 'Blows
Giant Raspberry' in Face
of Foreign Secretary Hague
ECONOMIST: Britain and
Ecuador: Asylum for Assange

Le Figaro, France Romney Seeks 'Back Door' Into the White House TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Every time Romney has had to deal with opposition, he has shrunk away and denied his own convictions to placate whoever was in front of him - like a little boy who just wants to please. This isn't exactly a demonstration of the strength of character expected from a U.S. president.” — COLUMNIST Jean-Sébastien Stehli

BBC News, U.K. Killer of John Lennon has Parole Hearing this Week “The former security guard, who has a history of mental illness, claims to have had a religious conversion in prison.” — BBC news item HAS CHAPMAN 'REFORMED'?

BBC NEWS, U.K. Assange Faces Arrest Before His Statement “Our correspondent says corridors and elevators inside the building, which is shared with Colombia, are communal and not part of the Embassy, so police in these areas could arrest Mr. Assange.” — CORRESPONDENT Andrew Plant ASSANGE CROWD SWELLS

GUARDIAN: Julian Assange
Granted Asylum by Ecuador
- Live Coverage
BBC NEWS: Americas Ministers
to Convene - Deal with Assange

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak Warns of Attack on Online Freedom, Talks of Dotcom; Assange “They are going beyond the bounds of what's right in order to convict ... the trouble is, we've developed what sort of rights you have against accusers, meaning the police and prosecutors ... presumption of innocence means the burden of proof is on the accuser ... and prosecutors and accusers have found a lot of ways to get around those rights. That's what bothers me. If they want to convict you of something you didn't do, they have an aweful lot of ways to do it.” — Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak OPEN INTERNET UNDER ATTACK

La Stampa, Italy The Olympic Games: Mirror of Our World TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “China is the new empire ushering the Asian century. America stands fast, with her space lab Curiosity landing on Mars and her Martian basketball dream team. Behind them, new entries made their debut: Egypt took the podium in fencing, Venezuela and South Korea made good showings, as did the tiny Caribbean isle of Grenada, which based on per capita population, took first place at the Games.” — COLUMNIST Gianni Riotta BETTER THAN BULLETS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Sioux Nation Campaigns to Buy Back Black Hills Siezed By United States “You may see the irony that the Sioux Nation, having put aside the $1 billion in compensation offered for the original theft, is now trying to buy back the land we believe always belonged to us. All the same, that is what we are doing: raising money to buy back our Native birthright.” — Dana Lone Hill, an Oglala Lakota Sioux BUYING BACK WHAT'S THEIRS?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Assange Asylum: Ecuador is Right to Stand Up to U.S. “The United States may paint itself as a promoter of human rights, but any right to make such a claim is long gone.” — COLUMNIST Mark Weisbrot

VIDEO: Protests in Ecuador,
Embassy on Guard (BBC News, U.K.)

VIDEO: Assange Will Not Be
No Safe Passage out of U.K.,
says Foriegn Secretary (BBC, U.K.)

VIDEO: Ecuador Foreign
Minister Patino Explains Decision
to Grant Assange Asylum (BBC, U.K.)

VIDEO: Britain Threatens to 'Storm'
Ecuador Embassy to Sieze Assange (BBC, U.K.)

GUARDIAN: Julian Assange
Granted Asylum by Ecuador
- Live Coverage
TELEGRAPH: Assange to
Issue Statement 'In Front' of
Embassy Haven on Sunday
GUARDIAN: Ecuador 'Wrong'
to Describe Charges Against
WikiLeaks Chief as 'Laughable'
DAILY MAIL: Scuffle Breaks
Out Between Supporters
of Assange and Police

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Paul Ryan and the Paradox of U.S. Politics “Amid greater polarisation, winning centrist independent voters is more vital than ever. Which makes Ryan as Romney's VP pick all the more baffling.” — CORRESPONDENT Peter Beaumont

GUARDIAN: Paul Ryan's
Faith in Ayn Rand is
a Political a Problem

News, Switzerland Ryan: Libertarian Trojan Horse May Throw Romney TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The question is whether Ryan's loyalty to a would-be President Romney will be stronger that his fealty toward his hallowed political positions. It is quite likely that this Libertarian 'consolation price' will be a huge loss for Romney.” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer A MODERN CATO THE YOUNGER?

Die Zeit, Germany An Ex-Mormon Missionary, Mitt Romney's European Gaffes Were Calculated TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “During missionary work, one gets to know Europeans in a way that they would rather not see themselves. ... If Romney does win the election in November , there will finally be a president who knows the Europeans.” — COLUMNIST and former Mormon Eric T. Hansen ROMNEY: NOT SO GAFFE PRONE?

The Observer, U.K. In Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney Makes Risky and Divisive Choice “The Republican candidate's running mate is proposing an economic strategy that could harm U.S. recovery.” — EDITORIAL, The Observer RYAN: SOLUTION FOR ROMNEY?

VIDEO: Mitt Romney Running Mate
Paul Ryan Unveiled in Virginia (BBC, U.K.)

VIDEO: Romney Slips Up Introducing
Ryan as 'Next President'(BBC, U.K.)

GUARDIAN: Romney Introduces
Paul Ryan as Part of 'Comeback
Team' Republican Ticket
TELEGRAPH: Mitt Romney's
Choice as Running Mate Just
Made the Election Interesting
ECONOMIST: Romney Makes his Choice

The Telegraph, U.K. U.S. Tourists Find Italy Hitler Wines 'Offensive' “This offends the memory of millions of people and risks compromising Italy's image.” — CORRESPONDENT Josephine McKenna

Daily Mail, U.K. Romney Said to Want David Patreus as VP “The ex-Massachusetts governor overtly dodged a question about Petraeus while speaking with reporters this afternoon.” — REPORTER Michael Zennie PATREAUS ENTERING ARENA?

Euromoney, U.K. Standared Chartered Bank Accused of Trading with Iran to Tune of $250 Billion “Standard Chartered – which has aggressively promoted its whiter- than-white corporate culture in recent years – is unlikely to ever fully recover from the damage.” — Unnamed Analysts

The Independent, U.K. Sikhs Call Attacks on Community 'Collateral Damage' of Sept. 11 “Underpinning everything is an outpouring of frustration, just short of anger, at what Sikhs in Oak Creek and other parts of the U.S. say is the+ assumption that because of their turbans and beards they are Muslims – with all the weight that carries since 9/11.” — CORRESPONDENT Chris McGreal

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Romney's Blunders Give Poland a Boost! TRANSLATED FROM POLAND “Let us not be picky – we found ourselves in America’s spotlight and came out with flying colors. This has value regardless of the outcome of the U.S. elections in November. Thank you, Mitt!” — COLUMNIST Mariusz Zawadzki POLAND COMES OUT AHEAD

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Mitt Romney's Biggest Weakness Exposed on His Sojourn to Poland TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Commentators who wrote that the visit of American presidential candidate Mitt Romney remains in the shadow of the Cold War and that he is doing everything possible to differentiate himself from Obama, whose gaze is more directed at the future, were right. This is Romney's biggest weakness.” — COLUMNIST Jacek Pawlicki

Daily Mail, U.K. Two Billion People Watch Usain Bolt's 100m Victory, None of them in America “NBC took the controversial decision to hold broadcasting the popular event to prime time, leaving millions of track and field fans outraged.” — DAILY MAIL NEWS ITEM AMERICA'S TAPE-DELAYED OLYMPICS

GUARDIAN: Brits Reduced
to Showing Michael Phelps
Victory Using Lego Figures
GUARDIAN: NBC's Best
Olympic Offerings?
Grab your iPad and PC

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Walesa on Romney: 'We are Alike' TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Mr. Romney has a sense of humor; he's sociable, professes similar values, is very close to his wife, and has five children. We are alike and are looking for similar solutions. This meeting gave me an idea of what direction the U.S. would take if Romney wins. But I'm not endorsing him.” — Former Poland President Lech Walesa AN ENDORSEMENT - ALMOST ...

The Telegraph, U.K. American Scientists Suspect Dolphins Form 'Elite Societies' “We sometimes think that traits such as culture are exclusively human, but a growing body of literature proves otherwise.” — Dr. Janet Mann of Georgetown University COULD DOLPHINS HAVE 'CULTURE'?

The Telegraph, U.K. Is Phelps the Greatest Athlete Ever? Sports Writers Debate “Winners and losers are chosen by facts, but our attachment to them is essentially an emotional one.” — British Sports Writers PHELPS: THE GREATEST ATHLETE EVER?

The Independent, U.K. #NBCFail: Backlash as Twitter Locks Out British Correspondent Guy Adams “The U.S. TV broadcaster NBC was at the center of a dispute last night after it persuaded Twitter to suspend a journalist from The Independent who criticised its Olympic coverage.” — REPORTER Sam Masters

INDEPENDENT: NBC Blames Twitter
for Lockout of British Journalist
INDEPENDENT: Twitter Backs Down
at Last - but Why Did I Get Banned?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. American 'Polymath' Gore Vidal Has Died at Age 86 “I am not at heart a playwright. I am a novelist turned temporary adventurer; and I chose to write television, movies, and plays for much the same reason that Henry Morgan selected the Spanish Main for his peculiar – and not dissimilar – sphere of operations.” — Writer, pundit, playright Gore Vidal A MAJOR LOSS TO AMERICAN LETTERS

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Ye Shiwen's World Record Olympic Swim 'Disturbing', says Top American Coach “The one thing I will say is that history in our sport will tell you that when we see something, and I will put quotation marks around it, 'unbelievable', history shows us that it turns out later on there was doping involved.” — —John Leonard, World Swimming Coaches Association YE SHIWEN'S ILL-GOTTEN GOLD?

GUARDIAN: Ye Shiwen Calmly Takes
More Gold as Drug Claim Storm Rages
GUARDIAN: Ye Shiwen's Father
Attacks the 'Arrogant West'
TELEGRAPH: U.K. Olympic
Association Chairman Calls
Doping Charges 'Regrettable'

Gazeta, Russia With Olympic Ban on Belarus Leader, West Initiates a New Era of Sport Politicization TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “This sets a precedent, not only for the history of the Olympics, but for the West's relations with the dictatorial regimes of the post-Soviet space.” — EDITORIAL, Gazeta WRONG TO BAN THIS MAN?

La Stampa, Italy Olympic Uniform Spat Reflects 'Hidden Strength' of America TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “Team USA is comprised of a union of distant cultures. If the symbolic Christmas song White Christmas was written by Jewish musician Izrail Moiseevic Bejlin, aka/Irving Berlin, why on earth shouldn’t one hear the Star Spangled Banner after being awarded an Olympic gold medal while wearing a uniform tailored by a Chinese seamstress? What could be more ‘American’? But don’t expect demagogues drugged by election-year politics to get this.” — COLUMNIST Gianni Riotta U.S. LAWMAKERS MISSING THE POINT?

The Independent, U.K. Carl Lewis on Romney: 'Some Americans Should Not Leave the Country' “"Every Olympics is ready, I don't care whatever he said. I swear, sometimes I think some Americans shouldn't leave the country. Are you kidding me, stay home if you don't know what to say.” — Carl Lewis, Ten Time U.S. Olympic Gold Winner

AMERICANS IN LONDON SPEAK

BBC VIDEO: Mitt Romney
in London: 'Blunderer and Chief'

INDEPENDENT: Even Carl
Lewis Thinks Mitt Should
Shut Up and Go Home
TELEGRAPH: If Romney Does Not
Like Us, We Shouldn't Care
GUARDIAN UNLIMITED: Oh, Mitt:
Those Romney Gaffes in Full
GUARDIAN: Romney's Olympic
Blunder Stuns No. 10 and
Hands Gift to Obama Campaign
DAILY MAIL: Mitt Romney's
Terrible, Horrible, No Good,
Very, Very Bad Day in London
TELEGRAPH: If Romney and Cameron
Don't Get On, it's Because Romney is
a Conservative and Cameron is Not
TELEGRAPH: Romney Would
Restore 'Anglo-Saxon' Ties
Between Britain and U.S.
TELEGRAPH: Mitt Romney
Questions Whether Britain
is Ready for Olympic Games
TELEGRAPH: Did they
Really Put Sarah Palin in
Charge of Olympic Flags?
GUARDIAN: Romney Visits
London While Stumbling
on 'Almost Every Front'

FOOT FIRMLY IN MOUTH

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Criticism of Poland's CIA Prison Discredits the Left TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “The death of al-Qaeda is not the only casualty of the war on terror. The leftist theory of the responsibility of the West for all of the world’s sins has also been rendered dead.” — COLUMNIST Tomasz Wróblewski

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Poland’s CIA Prison: ‘Little Boy Likes Torture; Wants to be Macho Man ’ TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “What's so amazing about the willingness of conservative fans to fight a ‘war on terror’ at the expense of basic civil liberties is not so much their lack of sensitivity, but their striking lack of imagination.” — COLUMNIST Adam Leszczynski POLAND'S POLITICAL CIVIL WAR

Elsevier, The Netherlands How in the West and East, Mass Murderers are Bred TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Whether you believe in the Joker or that 72 virgins await you in the afterlife - the delusions are similar. Only the men in the background differ.” — COLUMNIST Leon de Winter TWO KINDS OF MADNESS, MURDER

Le Figaro, France ‘Continue the Massacres; Protect Our Reelections’ TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Continue the massacres and protect our reelections. … There is little chance that we will hear Democrats or Republicans mention the word 'firearms' in their homilies. The slaughter can go on.” — COLUMNIST Jean-Sébastien Stehli U.S. LAWMAKERS AND FIREARMS

Liberation, France America and Guns: ‘How Many People Have to Die?’ TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “A sizable chunk of Poland's political right is protesting Madonnas show on August 1, from Solidarni 2010 to Law and Justice Party MP Artur Górski. I throw my support behind them, as I suspect that the singer is working on orders from Kremlin!” — COLUMNIST Bernd Pickert AMERICA MISGUIDED OVER GUNS?

Die Tageszeitung, Germany National Rifle Association: America's 'Deadliest' Lobby TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “It seems self-evident that it is the unrestricted access to these lethal instruments that produce criminals in the first place. If one is capable of simply walking into the nearest shop to secure everything needed for a mass- murder-in-waiting, the path from depression to blood-soaked headline is rendered easy.” — COLUMNIST Bernd Pickert THE POWER OF MONEY AND ILLOGIC

Rzeczpospolita, Poland Madonna: Singing Agent of Russian Imperialism! TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “A sizable chunk of Poland's political right is protesting Madonnas show on August 1, from Solidarni 2010 to Law and Justice Party MP Artur Górski. I throw my support behind them, as I suspect that the singer is working on orders from Kremlin!” — COLUMNIST Bartosz Weglarczyk MADONNA: IN 'BED' WITH PUTIN?

Izvestia, Russia Batman Shootings Elicit No Fear from Russian Film Execs and Analysts TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “America is a peculiar country, in which shootings happen in all sorts of places. In our country, movie theaters are the calmest of places to spend time Video pirates are more of a concern than terrorists for Russians.” — Alexei Ryazantzev, president of film distributor Karo Premiere PROFITS UNLIKELY TO BE AFFECTED

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Pressure Mounts for Tough Arms Control Treaty at U.N. “It is quite possible that in 20 years, people will be killed off systematically by unmanned devices, as opposed to drones, in which case there is still a person, albeit at a distance, behind the stick at the trigger.” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany Films Reflect Violence in Society - Not the Other Way Around TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “The Batman film reflects the brutal truth: the exhibitionism of violence it displays is taken directly from society itself.” — COLUMNIST Fritz Goettler IS THIS JUST ART REFLECTING LIFE?

Saarbruecker Zeitung, Germany Colorado: Bloody Acts Like this ‘Cannot Be Prevented’ TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “One thing can now be asserted: Bloody acts like these cannot be prevented. That's the frustrating realization at the end of the long bloody trail that winds through all continents, eras and societies.” — COLUMNIST Thomas Spang GUN LEGISLATION CANNOT BANISH EVIL

The Daily Mail, U.K. The 'Curse of Batman': Franchise Plagued By Tragic Mishaps, Death “Before the shooting spree, one of the biggest tragedies associated with the film was the death of Heath Ledger, who reprised the Joker in previous The Dark Knight.” BATMAN FRANCHISE SNAKE BIT?

News, Switzerland The X-47: Killing without ‘Scruple or Conscience’ TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “It is quite possible that in 20 years, people will be killed off systematically by unmanned devices, as opposed to drones, in which case there is still a person, albeit at a distance, behind the stick at the trigger.” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer PONDERING THE UNMANNED FUTURE

The Irish Examiner, Ireland Colorado: Life Imitates Art with Gruesome Results “What happened in Colorado is another grim warning of the consequences of an unbridled gun culture. This must not be allowed to foster in this nation.” —EDITORIAL, Irish Examiner TOO EASILY ARMED AND DANGEROUS?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. America Needs to Talk About Gun Control in the Wake of Colorado
GUN CONTROL	“The chorus of sympathy marks a stubborn refrain in a perennial American elegy. Different singers uttering different words - singing the same song.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

BBC VIDEO: Batman Cinema
Shooting: 12 Dead in Colorado

INDEPENDENT: Paris
Premiere of Batman Canceled

Daily Mail, U.K. Gunman in a Gas Mask Shoots 14 People Dead at U.S. Screening of Batman “Witnesses say he burst out of the emergency exit at the front of the theater, wearing body armor, and began firing into the audience as he made his way up the stairs, picking off his victims at random.” — CORRESPONDENT Jill Reilly A VERY 'DARK KNIGHT' IN DENVER

GUARDIAN: Denver Batman
Premier Shooting - Live Updates

Le Figaro, France Obama, Romney Luck Out: George W. Steps Back into the Breach! TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “It may be that the pitiful performance of Romney, the Republican nominee, may have restored his own confidence in himself – perhaps his terms were less disastrous than people said.” — COLUMNIST Veronique Saint-Geours BUSH HAS ADVICE ON ECONOMY

La Nouvelle Republique, France Madonna ‘Affronts’ French Right-Wing National Front TRANSLATED FROM FRANCE “Madonna, who converted to a branch of the Hebraic religion Kabala, long ago attacked the extreme French right - and more specifically Jean-Marie Le Pen - whom she associated with Hitler and George W. Bush in a set of images shown on stage during her 2006 world tour.” — NEWS ITEM, La Nouvelle Republique MADONNA's SWASTIKA POLITICS

Svoboda News, Russia Russian Senators Get Cold Shoulder on Capitol Hill Over Magnitsky Act TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “This unexpected visit shows the serious concern Moscow feels over how something akin to the Iron Curtain will soon block corrupt Russian politicians from the world and their favorite party destinations in the West.” — Journalist and political analyst David Satter RUSSIAN BIG-WIGS BRACE FOR HIT

The Telegraph, U.K. U.S. Refuses to Help Syrian Rebels Until after Elections “We cannot understand that a superpower ignores the killing of tens of thousands of Syrian civilians because of an election that a president may win or lose.” — Abdulbaset Sieda, Chairman of Syrian National Council

Moskovskij Komsomolets, Russia Russia's Opposition Must ‘Learn to Swim’, Not Write to U.S. State Department TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “The desire to use the U.S. Congress as a weapon in Russia’s domestic political struggle is largely a gesture of desperation on the part of our opposition. But I clearly feel a tinge of schadenfreude in all this: now let us see our enemies jump and weave as if walking across a hot skillet!” — COLUMNIST Mikhail Rostovsky

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. French Front National to Sue Madonna Over Use of Swastika Image “France's far-right Front National is to sue Madonna for using a picture of its leader Marine Le Pen with a swastika on her forehead.” — CORRESPONDENT Kim Willsher DEPICTING THE FRENCH RIGHT

Financial Times Deutschland, Germany Despise them if You Want to – But without Banks, Nothing Works TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Even though some would prefer to abolish them this day, without the banks, the system could not function. How could global transfers take place without them? How would companies raise capital for investment and to generate new jobs?” — CORRESPONDENT Jens Korte CAN'T LIVE WITH THEM ...

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Chief Justice John Roberts: a ‘Judas’ Who Sold America TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Of course, the honest solution would be not to treat people without money at all and let them die at the hospital door like animals. Alas, in our era, one can't count on total justice.” — COLUMNIST Mariusz Zawadzki TURNING ROBERTS TO THE 'DARK SIDE'?

The Telegraph, U.K. America's Olympic Uniform Debacle “This uniform debacle has me sniggering into my Union Jack handkerchief. These uniforms, which will be worn for one evening at the Opening Ceremony, have been criticised as too preppy (by definition, all- American), too European, and now far too Chinese for anyone’s liking. So, I wonder, what should American design look like?” — REPORTER Sophie Pitman TOO FRENCH - OR TOO CHINESE?

EURO NEWS: Political Storm
Over U.S. Olympic Team's
'Made in China' Uniforms
TELEGRAPH: U.S. Olympic
Uniforms Made in China

Tageblatt, Luxembourg LIBOR: Why the World Financial System Can't Work on Trust TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “If the financial system has demonstrated anything, it is that it cannot regulate itself. And how could it, in a system that continues to consider short term gain its greatest imperative? … Trust - even between banks - is gone. No matter. It was the wrong basis for the banking world anyway.” — COLUMNIST Sascha Breme TAKING BATHS WITH OUR MONEY

Politics.com, U.K. How Can We Allow Coke, McDonalds, at Olympics? “What we are now seeing come to fruition in London 2012 is a cynical marketing strategy that contradicts medical advice, weakens parents’ best efforts to encourage their children to eat healthy, and is likely result in greater obesity.” — Malcolm Clark of the Children’s Food Campaign THE BREAKFAST OF CHAMPIONS?

BBC NEWS: 'Ban Junk Food
Sponsors from Olympic Sports'
TELEGRAPH: Olympic Chief
Backs Olympic Sponsors
Coca-Cola and McDonald's

Der Tagesspiegel, Germany Untouchable Unscrupulous ‘LIBOR Cartel’ TRANSLATED GERMAN “It is more than likely that CEOs at the helm of this LIBOR-gang have little to fear but the loss of their reputations.” — COLUMNIST Harald Schumann

Trouw, The Netherlands Bob Diamond: Living Proof that Banks Can't be Trusted TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Banks are unable to at the same time tend to their responsibility to the public and engage in trade for their own gain. The balance will always be tipped in favor gain on the part of the banks.” — EDITORIAL, Trouw DIAMOND: HATED THEN; DESPISED NOW

Yezhednevniy Zhurnal, Russia The Magnitsky List: U.S. ‘Secret’ Weapon! TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Those devious yanks are pressing a most sensitive spot for Russian grandees: money. Kremlin officials want to safeguard the millions they swindled out of Russia. And, funnily enough, the safest place for the money is where all the silly things Putin hates - an independent judicary, rule of law, financial confidentiality - are all taken seriously” — COLUMNIST Alexander Goltz THE MAGNITSKY ACT HAS BITE

Telegraph, U.K. Law Cannot Curb Greedy Bankers, but Morals May “Why not do the wicked thing if it brings you personal gain? How far can you go providing an answer to that question without calling on something like a religious belief in the imperative to be good?” — COLUMNIST Janet Daley A BANKERS' RELIGIOUS REVIVAL?

TELEGRAPH: While Our
Politicians Score Points Over
LIBOR, Politics Itself Loses
INDEPENDENT: Heat Turned
Up on Global LIBOR Probes

Economist, U.K. The Republican Party is 'Screwing' Romney “Partisans are by nature Pavlovian, and simply can not help drooling when the bell rings. With health care, Republicans heard the dinging of the word 'tax' and thoughtlessly went on the attack.” — ECONOMIST Blog

Die Zeit, Germany Global LIBOR Scandal Entails a Monumental $350 Trillion in Loans TRANSLATED FROM GERMANY “Mistrust of banking sector is back. ... The manipulation of the LIBOR has proven that banks cannot be relied upon to carry out their tasks in a socially-responsible manner.” — COLUMNIST Till Schwarze NEAR UNIMAGINABLE THIEVERY

The Telegraph, U.K. IMF to Trim Growth Forecast as Crisis Deepens Worldwide “This is a global crisis. In today's interconnected world, we can no longer afford to look only at what goes on within our national borders. This crisis knows no borders.” — IMF CHIEF Christine Lagarde NO NATIONS STANDS IMMUNE

FAZ, Germany Scientology: ‘A State within Every State’ TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “In the U.S., Scientology has broken through any resistance and has long- since secured the support of leading figures in the entertainment industry and - above all - in the highest political circles, like the State Department.” — REPORTER Michael Hanfeld UNTOUCHABLE IN AMERICA?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. VIDEO: To Protest Money in Politics, Occupy Group Drops $5,000 from Hotel “The group's Web site states that it is 'time we declared independence from Citizens United" – citing the Supreme Court case which effectively ruled that corporations can make political contributions.” — REPORTER Adam Gabbatt

BBC, U.K. Why the War of 1812 Still Matters “The reasons for war included the British habit of forcing U.S. merchant sailors into Royal Navy and trade limits on the U.S. as a side-effect of Britain's long war with France.” — —REPORTER Joan Soley FIGHTING BRITISH HABITS

DER SPIEGEL: Germany Rejects
Obama's Criticism in Euro Crisis

Gazeta, Russia Good Guys vs. Bad Guys: Russia Today is the Latter TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “In the West, the rights of citizens are valued above all, and there is one set of laws for all, while in other states, people are treated like they are garbage, and the rule is ‘everything for my friends, but for all others - the law.’” — COLUMNIST Alexei Melnikov WHICH SIDE IS THE KREMLIN ON?

The Telegraph, U.K. Scientologist Spies Allegedly Deployed Against Katie Holmes “mysterious men were seen monitoring the street outside her home. The actress asked aides to take photographs of the alleged spies.” — NEWS ITEM

Izvestia, Russia Why the Kremlin Opposes Assad’s Immediate Ouster TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “When the Russian side objects to Western demands for Assad's immediate withdrawal, it isn't because Russia is fixated on his remaining as Srian president.” — COLUMNIST Andranik Migranyan RUSSIA: MORE PRAGMATIC ON SYRIA?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Why U.S. and Russia Want a Backroom Deal Over Syria “The scene is set for a Clinton- Lavrov meeting that may ring the Assad regime's death knell.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Progressives on Both Sides of Atlantic Must Work Against the Right TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Now is the time for a strong and progressive alliance among Socialists, Social Democrats and Italian Democrats on one side, and American Democrats on the other.” — Hannes Swoboda, President of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament TIME TO ASSAULT THE RIGHT?

Trouw, The Netherlands Health Care Result: Solidarity of Americans May be Strengthened TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “In a state where freedom of the individual is almost religiously worshipped, it has now been established that in certain cases, it is necessary and permitted under the Constitution to compel citizens to show solidarity with one another.” — EDITORIAL, Trouw FOR A MORE UNIFIED AMERICA?

Le Temps, Switzerland U.S. Health Law: Another ‘Moral Victory’ for Obama TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “This is a reward for Obama's moral stand and his personal commitment. The affirmation of reform by the Supreme Court on Thursday is historic.” — COLUMNIST Stéphane Bussard COURT LEAVES DECISION TO PEOPLE

L'Humanite, France U.S. Supreme Court Says ‘Yes We Care’ TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “This is a victory for Barack Obama. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is a reform of the U.S. health care system without precedent. In 2011, one in seven American citizens had no health coverage.” — REPORTER Charlotte Helias

Neue Zuercher Zeitung, Switzerland The Rio+20 Summit: A ‘Peculiar’ Conference TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Before it even began, the debate was over. ... Brazil wanted to avoid the chaos of the 2009 Climate Conference in Copenhagen, when the heads of state argued all night long over individual words. This was achieved.” — COLUMNIST Mark Hofmann RIO: PALE REFLECTION OF PAST

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Hyperbole and Health Care: Critics Respond to Supreme Court Decision “Right-wing pundits compare the ruling to September 11, the American Revolution and 'the end of U.S. democracy.” — BLOGGER Adam Gabbatt ANGER ON THE AMERICAN RIGHT

BBC NEWS: U.S. Supreme Court
Upholds Obama Health Reform
GUARDIAN: Why Health Care Reforms
Could Determine Future U.S. Politics
TELEGRAPH: U.S. Supreme Court
Delivers Major Win for President

La Stampa, Italy Obama Offers Putin an End Game Commitment on Syria TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “Barack Obama played the card of recognizing the importance of Russia-Syria ties. While not stated explicitly, this means that Moscow will be allowed to keep its base in Syria's port of Tartus.” — —COLUMNIST Maurizio Molinari PUTIN: THE ULTIMATE POKER FACE

Kommersant, Russia Israelis and Russians Bound Again by Battle Against Nazis TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “Your coming is a rare historic meeting. Full of pain. Full of pride. Bearing hope … Russia, which suffered from the blow of fascism, will not allow similar threats. Not the Iranian threat. Not the bloodshed in Syria.” — ISRAEL PRESIDENT Shimon Peres PUTIN: WILL THE ISRAELIS SWAY HIM?

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Mystery Unfolds of Poland's ‘Extraterritorial’ CIA Prison TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “The Americans just laughed at the agreement put before them to sign, because they didn't want to leave traces of violations of international law and their own constitution. They took us [on the Poland side] for amateurs.” — —UNNAMED informant on secret deal to allow CIA prison in Poland OFFICIALS CALLED TO ACCOUNT

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: World Tomorrow: Julian Assange and Guests, Noam Chomsky, Tariq Ali June 26, 00:26:49 "A surprise Arab drive for freedom, structural crisis in the West and new hope coming from Latin America. That's the modern world in the eyes of two of the left's most visionary figures, Noam Chomsky and Tariq Ali." THE WORLD'S SURPISE REVOLUTIONS

Der Spiegel, Germany Germany Firm to Clean Up Toxic Union Carbide Waste in Bhopal, India “Almost three decades later, toxic waste is still still stored on the site under very poor conditions. Now, a German government agency will now transport hundreds of tons of this hazardous material back to Germany for disposal.” — COLUMNIST Pawel Wronski

FTD, Germany ‘Europe Deserves its Humiliation’ TRANSLATED GERMAN “The rescue of the common currency is disintegrating amid bickering about national interests. … The world community is no longer open to such reactionary weakness on the part of Europeans.” — —EDITORIAL, Financial Times Deutschland CAN'T GET NO RESPECT

DER SPIEGEL: Germany Rejects
Obama's Criticism in Euro Crisis

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland America’s 'Trojan Horse' in Europe is About to Bolt TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “The feelings of Polish elites toward America are rapidly cooling. Our country, which in the past was ‘America's E.U. Trojan horse,’ is now galloping the other way.” — COLUMNIST Pawel Wronski TIME TO ASK: WHO LOST POLAND?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Scientist James Lovelock on the Shale Gas Issue and the Problem with 'Greens' “The greens use guilt. That shows just how religious the greens are. You can't win people round by saying they are guilty for putting CO2 in the air. We do now know what we are doing when it comes to CO2 [emissions], but you don't have to go right overboard like the greens shouting, 'You're guilty!'” — Scientist James Lovelock LOVELOCK CALL FOR COMMON SENSE

Gazeta, Russia U.S. is Neither Friend Nor Foe TRANSLATED RUSSIAN “When it comes to complicated, multi- layered relations between countries that were recently mortal enemies, one cannot expect cloudless skies.” — COLUMNIST Fyodor Lukyanov

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The Fast and Furious Scandal Turning into Obama's Watergate
GUNS & DRUGS	“The story is slowly unraveling and the public is catching up with the madness.” —COLUMNIST Tim Stanley

De Morgan, Belgium The Rio+20 Climate Flop: An Exercise the World Can Ill Afford TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “The more treaties are signed, the worse our planet’s situation gets. That’s not a witticism.” — COLUMNIST Steven Samyn CAN HUMANS TAKE ACTION?

Kommersant, Russia Tehran Twice Threatens to Walk Out of ‘Complicated and Difficult’ Negotiations TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “A diplomatic source explained that this was a 'much-used tactic ... that heightens the drama – and then the Iranians agree to something inconsequential.'” — —REPORTERS Yelena Chernenko and Vladimir Soloviev STRATEGIC TEMPER TANTRUMS?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Embassy Cables Did Not Harm America: Assange Will Not Be Extradited “I have never understood why Sweden – a neutral country with a tradition of harboring American draft dodgers and deserters – would be more likely to extradite Assange than the United Kingdom, which is a staunch American ally.” — Former Diplomat Peter Galbraith BLOWN OUT OF PROPORTION?

BBC NEWS: Ecuador Ruling
on WikiLeaks' Assange Due
on Thursday
GUARDIAN: Assange Risks Arrest
if he Leaves Ecuador Embassy
GUARDIAN: Assange Asylum
Move is a 'Tragedy' for his
Accusers, His Lawyer Says
GUARDIAN: Assange Seeks
Asylum at Ecuador Embassy
in London - Live Coverage
TELEGRAPH:Why do We
Buy Julian Assange's
One-Man Psychodrama?

Moskovskij Komsomolets, Russia Obama's ‘Hope’ Keeps Putin from ‘Window on Paradise’ TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “After two hours of discussion in Mexico with Putin, Obama looked exhausted. The mood between the two clearly testified to which of the two got the upper hand.” — CORRESPONDENT Viktoriya Prihodko A CONFERENCE ABSENT OF WARMTH

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. 'Furious' Greenpeace Moves to a 'War Footing' at Rio+20 “Only when decent men and women said enough is enough and no more and were prepared to put their lives on the line and go to prison if necessary, and that is where we are. We have to intensify civil disobedience.” — Greenpeace International Executive Director Kumi Naidoo WHAT PRICE SHOULD PEOPLE PAY?

GUARDIAN: Rio+20 Summit:
Opening Day Live Blog
BBC NEWS: Rio+20:
What's Changed Since
the Earth Summit?
GUARDIAN: Rio+20 Earth
Summit – in Pictures

Le Monde, France For Latinos, President Obama Renews the American Dream TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Who says the American dream no longer exists? … Thanks to Obama, the ‘DREAMers’ will be able to legalize their status.” — CORRESPONDENT Corine Lesnes

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. G20: Europe Community Leader Blames Eurozone Crisis on American Banks “Barroso says Europe leaders have not come to Mexico to receive lessons on how to handle the economy.” — CORRESPONDENTS Patrick Wintour, Ian Traynor and Helena Smith G20: 'WHO ARE YOU TO TALK?'

GUARDIAN: Don't Expect
Any Solutions from
Global Junket in Mexico
GUARDIAN: Obama to
Pressure Putin on Syria
GUARDIAN: Greek
Election, the Debt Crisis,
G20 Summit: Live

Kommersant, Russia Magnitsky Act Likely to Trigger 'Very Harsh Backlash' from Russia TRANSLATED FROM RUSSIAN “If something as outrageous as that happens, our reaction will be complex, multifaceted, and extremely harsh. ... the Kremlin could lash out with a series of retaliatory measures.” — Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov PREPARING FOR A NEW COLD WAR?

Dagens Nyheter, Sweden VIDEO: One of U.S. Air Force’s 'Most Wanted' Surfaces in Stockholm June 16, 00:07:32 "I've lost my faith. They use God’s name to start wars. When I came to Europe and asked for a pacifist church, nobody understood what I was talking about. There are no pro-war churches in Germany or Sweden.” — Air Force Deserter David A. Hemler ON THE RUN FOR 28 YEARS

La Stampa, Italy Will America’s ‘War on Two Fronts’ Be Against Germans and Chinese? TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “Washington is beginning to ask whether Germany's predominance in Europe is really compatible with an 'Atlantic West'. … And whether there is perhaps a danger that Merkel's Germany may be tempted to follow in China's path.” — COLUMNIST Vittorio Emanuele Parsi A WAR WITH TWO FRONTS?

Der Spiegel, Germany President of Dissapointment: How Obama Failed to Deliver “The White House is an impossible place to work, and it is said that those who hope to succeed there have to be made of the right stuff. Does Obama have it? Is he made for the office? Or is it one size too big?” — REPORTTERS Ullrich Fichtner, Marc Hujer, Gregor Peter Schmitz CAN THE CRISIS BE BLAMED ON OBAMA?

DER SPIEGEL: Former Reagan
Advisor Laments, 'Our Political
System Is Basically Dysfunctional'

Jornal de Noticias, Portugal Facebook’s Stock Downfall: The Unreliability of Virtual Friends TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE “The trend in the United States seems to mark the end of myth: that virtual friends are just as valued as real ones.” — COLUMNIST Manuel Tavares

Trouw, The Netherlands Conflict in Syria Now Threatens World Peace TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Military intervention outside the U.N., like the Iraq invasion, would expand the civil war into an international conflict - with devastating consequences.” — Jan Pronk, Former U.N. Envoy to Darfur HOW DANGEROUS IS SYRIA - TO US?

Novosti, Russia Putin Wants 'Documentary Guarantees' that Missile Shield Won't Target Russia “Statements like ‘do not be afraid, we promise that nothing is going happen’ are clearly insufficient in today's world. It is childish.” — Russian President Vladimir Putin SHOULD RUSSIA HAVE A GUARANTEE?

Der Spiegel, Germany Germans are Increasingly Disillusioned with Obama “Germans are disappointed in Obama's unilateralism; his use of force, particularly drone strikes; inaction with regard to Israeli-Palestinian situation and Obama's lack of effort in curbing climate change.” — COLUMNIST Bruce Stokes

FAZ, Germany Dalai Lama ‘Rambo’ TRANSLATED GERMAN “Pope John Paul II had connections with the CIA that were central to the Eastern Bloc collapsing without so much as a murmur. … In his early days, the other ‘Holiness’ also took advantage CIA funding and support.” — COLUMNIST Christian Geyer DALAI LAMA: OUT OF LINE?

La Repubblica, Italy Guerilla Files Exposed: ‘CIA Funding for the Dalai Lama’ TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “It isn’t that the Dalai Lama lied, but that up to now he certainly has not provided the whole truth of his ties to the armed resistance.” — CORRESPONDENT Andrea Tarquini DALAI LAMA: TEMPORAL VS. SPIRITUAL

Daily Mail, U.K. Google Unleashes Backpack Cam in Bid to Map Entire World “The device, a portable form of its Street View camera, can go ‘offroad’, able to photograph and map everywhere from the base of the Grand Canyon to the very summit of Mt. Everest.” — Reporters Vanessa Allen and David Gardner NO AREA LEFT UNRECORDED?

La Stampa, Italy Eurozone Torn, Even When it Comes to Disney Characters! TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “Italy seems to be walking its own path. While the winner outside our country’s borders is Mickey Mouse, the hero par excellence and top villain of the Disney Universe among the Italians is Captain Hook.” — CORRESPONDENT Adriana Marmiroli ITALY'S FAVORITE DISNEY HERO/VILLIAN

Dziennik, Poland Komorowski Thanks Obama for Helping Dispel ‘Vicious, and Unjustified Language’ TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Obama expressed his support for actions to eradicate painful phrases like this from the public dialogue. ... There is a lesson, not just for today but for the future. ... This should be seen as an opportunity to draw strong, new impetus, as well as a partner in our struggle to dispel this vicious, painful, and unjustified words from U.S. public discourse.” — Poland President Bronislaw Komorowski POLAND: DEATH CAMP CASE 'CLOSED'

RZECZPOSPOLITA: President Obama's
‘Death Camp’ Gaffe Did Poles a Favor
DZIENNIK: Every Pole Must
Protest Until Obama Apologizes
GAZETA WYBORCZA: ‘Polish’
Concentration Camps:
‘A Major Blunder for Obama’
RZECZPOSPOLITA: Prime Minister
Tusk Tells Obama: ‘These
Words Very Deeply Hurt All Poles’
GAZETA WYBORCZA: With Luck,
Obama’s ‘Polish Death Camp’
Gaffe will Put an End to the Issue

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Syria: Why Russia Has Changed Tack “Moscow's step toward backing Bashar al-Assad's dethronement owes a lot to Putin's unsentimental calculations of what is to Russia's national advantage.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

SIMON TISDALL: Arab Spring
Uprisings: The Scorecard

La Stampa, Italian Obama: Gay Marriage, Political Calculation and American Idealism TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “Whatever Europeans may think, how fascinating is the charisma of a Republic that for two and a half centuries, through defeat and triumph, has pursued equality and the happiness of guaranteeing universal rights for all, before God and the law?” — COLUMNIST Gianni Riotta EQUAL RIGHTS BATTLE GOES ON

The Mirror, U.K. Francios Hollande First French President to Visit British D-Day War Graves “Ranville Cemetery contains the graves of 2,564 British soldiers who died early on June 6, 1944 after landing by glider and parachute.” — REPORTER Adrian Shaw

The Telegraph, U.K. Barbara Walters Sorry for Helping Assad Aide “When confronted with the emails, which were obtained by the Syrian opposition, the 82-year- old ABC broadcaster admitted to a conflict of interest and expressed 'regret' for her actions.” — CORRESPONDENT Raf Sanchez

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Wisconsin Democrats Dealt a Bitter Blow in Courageous Battle
'SECOND' TERM	“Organized labor took a huge risk in mounting a challenge to Scott Walker and lost. But they shouldn't react with regret.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

BBC VIDEO: Republican
Governor Survives Wisconsin Recall

Der Spiegel, Germany Why the World Cannot Stop the Killing in Syria “The United States has lost the authority to restore peace after the turmoil of Iraq. Russia alone has the power to topple Assad and avert a civil war, but Putin has so fat refused to do so.” — COLUMNIST Ullrich Fichtner

Daily Mail, U.K. America's Mysterious Space Plane to Land after YEAR in Orbit - but What Did it Do? “Many sceptics think that the vehicle's mission is defence or spy-related. There are rumors that the craft has been kept in space to spy on China's new space station, Tiangong.” — REPORTER Rob Waugh AMERICA'S 'SECRET' SPACE PROGRAM

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: World Tomorrow: Julian Assange and Guests, Members of Cypher Punks June 5, 00:29:22 "Cyber threats, hacker attacks and laws officially intended to tackle internet piracy are in fact nfringing on people's right to online privacy. Assange hosts activists from the Cypherpunk movement to discuss the issue." THE INVISIBLE INTERNET WAR

Trouw, The Netherlands Across West, Populists on the Left and Right Find New Scapegoats TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Scapegoats and simplistic measures only serve to get voters on your side. The mobilizing effects, and not the genuine results, are considered most important.” — COLUMNIST Rob de Wijk WILL ANOTHER HITLER EMERGE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Tea Party and Occupy Activists Rub Shoulders at Bilderberg Protest “With protest entering its third day in good spirits, even police officers raise odd smiles holding the line.” — CORRESPONDENT Ryan Devereauxg

GUARDIAN: Bilderberg 2012 -
Real Men Don't Like Oligarchs

CHANNEL 8 NEWS, TEXAS:
Rick Perry Is Asked About
'His Tea Party' At Bilderberg

NZZ, Switzerland Massacre at Houla is No ‘Turning Point’ for Syria TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Under current conditions, it will be difficult and costly to determine what happened at Houla within a practical time frame. In the meantime, the atrocity continues to serves as fodder for additional war propaganda on both sides.” — COLUMNIST Martin Woker WHAT PRICE THE UNSPEAKABLE?

The Independent, U.K. Mubarak Will Die in Jail, No Thanks to Us
FACING FACTS	“The army runs Egypt today. And we Westerners like like armies. The U.S. likes armies.” —COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

BBC, U.K. Scars of Iraq War Haunt American Policy in Syria “This is all reminiscent of the 1990s and President Clinton's for action in Bosnia or Rwanda.” — CORRESPONDENT Mark Urban

Daily Mail, U.K. 'Beware Rerun of Panic of 2008': World Bank Chief Robert Zoellick “There will not be time for meetings of finance ministers to discuss the outlook and debate the politics. ... 'In panicked markets, investors flee to safe assets, sparking additional global flames.” — WORLD BANK President Robert Zoellick

Guardian Unlimited, Spain Bilderberg 2012: The Technocrats are Rising “It's all change at Bilderberg this year: a new chairman, new media and the Occupy Bilderberg movement knocking at the gates.” — GUARDIAN'S 'Man' at Bilderberg READY FOR OCCUPY BILDERBERG?

The Telegraph, U.K. The Real Dilemma on Syria: Can the West Go it Alone? “The massacre of the innocents in Houla has turned a simmering diplomatic dispute with Russia into an escalating clash.” — COLUMNIST David Blair

THE TELEGRAPH: U.S.
Raises Prospect of
Intervention in Syria

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany GM Prevails in Pitting European Workers Against One Another TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Not the best workers - but the cheapest - were the ones that won the bid. The GM Group is pursuing internal wage-dumping. … In GM's world, it is every man for himself.” — COLUMNIST Thomas Fromm AMERICAN-STYLE CAPITALISM?

Telegraph, U.K. Obama Insults Poles “Last night Obama caused huge offense in Poland by referring to a Nazi death camp in Poland as 'a Polish death camp' as he awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to a fighter of the Poland's Resistance.” — COLUMNIST Nile Gardiner

Financial Times, U.K. Rockefellers and Rothschilds Unite “The transatlantic union of 96-year-old David Rockefeller, and Lord Rothschild, 76 – two family patriarchs whose relationship spans five decades.” — Atlantic Council Report

THE ECONOMIST: Lord
Rothschild: Full of 'Gilt'

El Diario Exterior, Spain America’s ‘Unamerican’ Bout of Ethnic Neurosis TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “Nothing is more contrary to the nature of the United States than the classification of people by race, culture or gender. Nowhere in the U.S. Constitution, or in the 85 essays of The Federalist Papers (where Madison, Hamilton and Jay explain the reach and meaning of the document), is there the slightest allusion to anything but the rules and institutions by which the new republic would be governed.” — COLUMNIST Carlos Alberto Montaner A WORRY QUICKLY DIMINISHING

Daily Mail, U.K. Yes, Syria is Tragic, But U.K. Intervention Would be Madness “The truth about the violence in Syria is far more complex than Assad's enemies would have us believe.” — COLUMNIST John Bradley

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Before Syria Crisis Expands, Obama and NATO Should Act “Obama's 'shrug your shoulders' Syria policy, faithfully imitated by the Unitted Kindom and the rest of the do-nothing NATO crew, is no longer sustainable politically, strategically, morally.” — —COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

The Independent, U.K. The West is Horrified by Syria Childrens' Slaughter. But We Will Soon Forget
INDIGNATION	“We in the West will soon forget when another YouTube image of death flicks on our screens from the Syrian countryside. Or from Yemen. Or a new revolution.” —COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

INDEPENDENT: $33 Million
Raid on Pakistan Shows that, in
the End, Hypocrisy Will Win

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Massacre at Houla: U.S. Military Warns Syria as Obama Feels Pressure “There is always a military option. Military leaders are somewhat cautious about the use of force, because we're never sure of what comes out the other side. But that said, it may come to that point with Syria because of the atrocities.” — GENERAL Martin Dempsey, Chairman of U.S. Joint Chiefs DEMPSEY TAKES OUT BIG STICK

TELEGRAPH: Russia Refuses
to Alter Position on Syria

El Pais, Spain Ronald Reagan’s Blood: The Civil Relic with a Difference TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “Perhaps in the future, it may be used to clone the president who embodied neoliberalism. But then again, in the light of what is happening today, that might not be such a good idea.” — COLUMNIST Marcos Balfagon WHAT IS IT ABOUT THE U.S AND BLOOD?

DNA, France At Loggerheads Over Afghanistan, the Euro … and So Much More TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “It's astounding: NATO says it may take three years to retrieve from Afghanistan - a country without railway lines - the 122,000 tanks, 70,000 vehicles (carrier, armored, artillery …) and 140,000 troops of ISAF. That is, provided a convoy leaves every seven minutes, weather permitting, every day, along roads that are either tough or impossible.” — COLUMNIST Jean-Claude Kiefer THE LOGISTICS OF GOING HOME

Financial Times, U.K. America, Pakistan and that Dysfunctional Relationship “With anti-American sentiment still running high in Pakistan, fueled by ongoing drone attacks, politicians in the United States are getting even more strident in their criticism of Islamabad.” — COLUMNIST Geoff Dyer

Diario Economico, Portugal Utopia Lost?: European Dream is Over Without Far Greater Federalism TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE “Germans, still traumatized by the hyperinflation that brought Hitler to power, will not allow for additional inflation. … Will people and leaders exit their trenches and follow a common path? At this point there are more doubts than certainties.” — COLUMNIST Claudia Major IS IT CURTAINS FOR EUROLAND?

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany ‘Lost Nation’ of Germany: NATO’s Biggest Problem TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Germany is untrustworthy and its military weakness hurts the Alliance. ... The German position is also diametrically opposed to the needs of E.U. security.” — Vice Admiral Ulrich Weisser GERMANY LAGGING ON SECURITY

Le Monde, France French Journalists Cover the G8: YAWN! TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH Ever wonder what it’s like to cover a summit at a place like Camp David, with some of the most powerful people on earth? — EDITORIAL, Le Monde

Die Tageszeitung, Germany Group of Eight Now the ‘Clueless Eight’ TRANSLATED GERMAN “What Obama, Hollande and Merkel produced isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on. All of the platitudes and formulaic compromises are meant to cover up the fact that they have not the foggiest notion of how to fix the euro.” — COLUMNIST Eric Bonse WHY DO WE KEEP THE G8?

Le Monde, France Francois Hollande: French Socialist Visits Washington TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Thirty one years ago, the arrival of a socialist to power provoked astonishment and nervousness in Washington. A generation later, what a difference! Hollande was received by Obama on Friday. And no more prejudice toward France's left remains. ” — EDITORIAL, Le Monde

Le Monde, France Alleged Washington Gang Rape Victim Talks Against Dominique Strauss Kahn TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “I tried to get away but it was difficult because he was on top of me and was very heavy. … I kept saying I didn’t want to ... I didn’t scream, but said clearly several times aloud ... I tried to get away ... but Dominique Strauss-Kahn pinned me down.” — —‘Marion,’ Paid to party with DSK at Washington’s W Hotel DSK: ON CHARGES FOR RAPE IN U.S.

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: World Tomorrow: Julian Assange and Guest Ecuador President Correa May 22, 00:46:10 "The only country that can be sure never to have a Coup d'état is the United States - because it doesn't have a U.S. Embassy. .. I will always call a spade a spade. ... I will never let my country be affected by them [the U.S.]." — Ecuador President Rafael Correa CORREA: SPEAKING FOR LATIN LEFT

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Dire Straits for Europe Absent Less Nationalism and More Cooperation TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “A new European security pact should allow for the strengthening of Europe's defense identity … and as a result, address self-interest, nationalism and all they entail.” — —Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, European Parliament Member CAN EUROPE UNITE TO SAVE NATO?

Knack, The Netherlands Days of ‘Superfluous’ G-8 are Numbered TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “In 2012, holding in-depth discussions about global economic problems with the conspicuous absence of China, India, Brazil, Turkey, South Korea and the Saudis is decidedly unrealistic.” — COLUMNIST Johan van Overtveldt

The Independent, U.K. Megrahi is Dead. Now We'll Never Know the Truth about Lockerbie
DIRTY HANDS	“If he was wrongly convicted, what did he do in the service of his master? ... I've gone through these files and I long ago concluded that the were devastating.” —COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

INDEPENDENT: No Closure
for the Lockerbie Families

Die Zeit, Germany Price of NATO Survival: Diminished Sovereignty TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “NATO member states fear a loss of control. But they have no choice if they want to halt the military alliance's decay.” — COLUMNIST Claudia Major CAN NATO SURVIVE THESE TIMES?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Nato and G8 Summits: What Have we Learned? “World leaders will leave Chicago Monday night after some of the most intensive negotiations of the year on eradicating hunger to the eurozone crisis and ending the Afghanistan war. So what was the outcome?” — COLUMNIST Ewen MacAskill

GUARDIAN: U.S.-Pakistan Tensions
Deepen as Obama Snubs Zardari
GUARDIAN: Nato Protests:
How Big were the Crowds
of Demonstrators in Chicago?
INDEPENDENT: Obama, Cameron
Admit Afghans Face Terror
Threat after NATO Withdrawal

Die Welt, Germany Merkel Fires Obama; Takes Hollande to the Woodshed TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Merkel said that French and U.S. recalcitrance is getting on her nerves, and that sometimes even her patience runs short. She announced, ‘I have asked [German President] Gauck for Barack Obama's dismissal from the Oval Office. Obama was clearly taken by surprise and left the conference hall in tears.” — —COLUMNIST Hans Zippert GERMANS SPOOF GERMAN DOMINANCE

Le Monde, France Francois Hollande: French Socialist Visits Washington TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Thirty one years ago, the arrival of a socialist to power provoked astonishment and nervousness in Washington. A generation later, what a difference! Hollande was received by Obama on Friday. And no more prejudice toward France's left remains. ” — EDITORIAL, Le Monde

NATO TV, Brussels VIDEO: Protests Against NATO Summit in Chicago May 19, 00:05:36 "I'm protesting anythung that has anything to do with the military industrial complex. That is why I am here.” — Unnamed Protester in Chicago NATO SUMMIT BEGINS IN CHICAGO

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Germany Isolated Over Euro Crisis Plan at G8 “German Chancellor Merkel resisted pressure for fresh measures that would include looser monetary policy for the European Central Bank, enabling quantitative easing similar to that deployed by the FED and Bank of England.” — CORRESPONDENT Patrick Wintour G8 2012: A MUDDLED OUTCOME

BBC NEWS VIDEO:
Despite Informal Setting at
Camp David, Deals Prove Hard

GUARDIAN LIVE BLOG: G8
Summit and NATO Protests
in Chicago – Saturday May 19
GUARDIAN: Chicago Police
Accused of Planting Evidence
in 'Molotov Cocktail' Plot
GUARDIAN: Lack of New
Funding for Poverty Fight
at G8 Disappoints NGOs
GUARDIAN: G8 Leaders
End Summit with Pledge to
Keep Greece in Eurozone

Le Figaro, France Obama and Hollande Say What Merkel Doesn't Want to Hear TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “This Franco-American alliance threatens to thwart Angela Merkel, who wants Greece to hold a referendum on the euro alongside parliamentary polls.” — COLUMNIST Pierre Rousselin OPENING MERKEL'S PURSE

Moscow Times, Russia Why Putin Skipped Out on G8 Summit “Putin wants to avoid unwelcome questions that may arise such as electoral fraud, threats of preemptive strikes on American missile defense sites, etc.” — COLUMNIST Michael Bohm

RUSSIA TODAY VIDEO:
Demonstrators Descend on
Chicago for G8 'Showdown'

MOSCOW TIMES: Kremlin
Aide Tries to Smooth Over Flap
Over Putin's Absense from G8
RIA Novosti: President Putin
Signals Foreign Policy Shift

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Caught Between Competing Visions for Fixing Eurozone Crisis “Mr. Obama, first African- American president of the Harvard Law Review, was born in Kenya and raised in Indonesia and Hawaii.” — CORRESPONDENTS Patrick Wintour and Ewen MacAskill

Deutsche Welle, Germany Why Moscow says 'Nyet' to NATO Defense System “NATO member states want an anti-missile defense system in case of attack from Iran or North Korea - but Russia feels threatened and has warned it will retaliateto protect itself.” — COLUMNIST Roman Goncharenko VLADIMIR PUTIN IS NOT AMUSED

DEUTCHE WELLE:
NATO Summit to Debate
Global-Policeman Role

The Telegraph, U.K. Obama's Literary Agent is Found to Have said He was 'Born in Kenya' “Mr. Obama, first African- American president of the Harvard Law Review, was born in Kenya and raised in Indonesia and Hawaii.” — Booklet Describing Obama's First Book

The Sun, U.K. Donna Summers said to Have Blamed Lung Cancer on Sept. 11 Poison Cloud “My husband and I were walking down the street. I had this feeling. I said, ‘Honey, I feel terrorism, high on top the buildings.’ I knew something was going to happen. When it did, I flipped out.” — SINGER Donna Summer DONNA SUMMER: KILLED BY 9-11?

Der Spiegel, Germany Atlantic Council Slams Germany's NATO Role “Europe cannot remain a major force within the NATO Alliance if a country of Germany's size, location, and prosperity makes the kind of deep reductions in defense spending made by Chancellor Angela Merkel's government in 2011.” — Atlantic Council Report

DER SPIEGEL: Germany's NATO
Reputation Hits Rock Bottom
DER SPIEGEL: West's Afghan
Workers Fear NATO Withdrawal
TELEGRAPH: David Cameron
to Seek Obama's Backing for
Tapping Emergency Oil Reserves
DER SPIEGEL: G8 Summit
- Graphic Lessons in
Stimulus Versus Austerity
TELEGRAPH: G8 Summit
- Who's on the Guest List

BBC News, U.K. Monsieur Hollande: Obama's New Friend “The French, President Barack Obama likes to remind us, are America's oldest allies. France's new socialist President, Francois Hollande, may turn out to be a valuable new friend as well.” — CORRESPONDENT Marc Mardell G8 SUMMIT AT CAMP DAVID

The Telegraph, U.K. Obama's Literary Agent is Found to Have said He was 'Born in Kenya' “Mr. Obama, first African- American president of the Harvard Law Review, was born in Kenya and raised in Indonesia and Hawaii.” — Booklet Describing Obama's First Book

Le Figaro, France Gay Marriage Controversy Uncomfortable for Romney TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Now he sees gays turning their backs on him, not only because of Obama’s declaration on gays, but because he got rid of Richard Grenell, his openly-gay foreign policy spokesperson. No wonder he is doing everything he can to change the subject.” — COLUMNIST Jean Sébastien Stehli ROMNEY SEEKS TO CHANGE SUBJECT

News, Switzerland ‘Hate and Fear’ Dominate Opponents of Gay Marriage TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “They have no trouble attributing characteristics to them (insatiable sexual appetites, lifestyles marked by instability, amoral behavior) like those that were long used to denigrate relationships between White women and Black men.” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer BRISTOL PALIN WEIGHS IN ON MARRIAGE

Der Spiegel, Germany The Cost of Upgrading U.S. Nuclear Weapons 'Massive' “The Life Extension Program (LEP) for the B61 - of which there are between 160 and 200 in Europe - is considered difficult and vey expensive.” — CORRESPONDENT Markus Becker

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The 'Wrong Carlos': How Texas Sent to Death Innocent Man “Columbia law school study shows in shocking detail the flaws that led to the 1989 execution of Carlos DeLuna.” — COLUMNIST Ed Pilkington WHEN EXECUTION GOES AWRY

Gazeta Wyborcza, Polish Former President Kwasniewski Admits He Allowed CIA Prisons TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “If a CIA agent brutally mistreated a prisoner at the Marriott hotel in Warsaw, would you accuse the hotel management as being responsible for the actions of the CIA agent?” — Former Poland President Aleksander Kwasniewski IS POLAND RESPONSIBLE FOR CIA AVTIVITY?

leJDD, France Gay Marriage: Obama Puts His Finger to Political Wind TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Obama has a keen perception of these issues: he is never very far out in front, even while he maintains himself slightly ahead. I am betting that Obama will soon speak of a multi-religious America. ... That would be a new way of pushing back Republicans into their trenches.” — François Durpaire, author, historian on U.S. political life OBAMA: A SIGN OF THINGS TO COME?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Convicted Weapons Trafficker Viktor Bout Says U.S. Justice is Politicized May 13, 00:11:26 “The entire trial was very similar to the midevil trial of inquisition in which you must confeess that you did bad things. ... What is happening to me is purely political.” — Russian Businessman and Arms Trafficker Viktor Bout U.S. LEGAL SYSTEM OUT OF CONTROL?

France TV, France Is France Behind America on Same-Sex Marriage? TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “French law limits gay unions to something similar to civil unions, called ‘pacte civil de solidarité.’ No gay marriages, even if celebrated abroad, are recognized on its territory.” — COLUMNIST Camille Caldini

NU, The Netherlands Marriage in America: ‘Man, Woman and God’ TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Republicans argue that America will be a pool of irreversible moral decay if Obama's plans continue. That sounds idiotic to Europeans. Have the Netherlands been struck down by God’s wrath since we’ve allowed gay marriage? Well then!” — COLUMNIST Charles Groenhuijsen WILL OBAMA'S GAMBIT PAY OFF?

La Repubblica, Italy Guerilla Files Exposed: ‘CIA Funding for the Dalai Lama’ TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “It isn’t that the Dalai Lama lied, but that up to now he certainly has not provided the whole truth of his ties to the armed resistance.” — CORRESPONDENT Andrea Tarquini DALAI LAMA: TEMPORAL VS. SPIRITUAL

FAZ, Germany Dalai Lama ‘Rambo’ TRANSLATED GERMAN “Pope John Paul II had connections with the CIA that were central to the Eastern Bloc collapsing without so much as a murmur. … In his early days, the other ‘Holiness’ also took advantage CIA funding and support.” — COLUMNIST Christian Geyer DALAI LAMA: OUT OF LINE?

La Stampa, Italy Eurozone Torn, Even When it Comes to Disney Characters! TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “Italy seems to be walking its own path. While the winner outside our country’s borders is Mickey Mouse, the hero par excellence and top villain of the Disney Universe among the Italians is Captain Hook.” — CORRESPONDENT Adriana Marmiroli ITALY'S FAVORITE DISNEY HERO/VILLIAN

Dziennik, Poland Komorowski Thanks Obama for Helping Dispel ‘Vicious, and Unjustified Language’ TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “Obama expressed his support for actions to eradicate painful phrases like this from the public dialogue. ... There is a lesson, not just for today but for the future. ... This should be seen as an opportunity to draw strong, new impetus, as well as a partner in our struggle to dispel this vicious, painful, and unjustified words from U.S. public discourse.” — Poland President Bronislaw Komorowski POLAND: DEATH CAMP CASE 'CLOSED'

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Syria: Why Russia Has Changed Tack “Moscow's step toward backing Bashar al-Assad's dethronement owes a lot to Putin's unsentimental calculations of what is to Russia's national advantage.” — COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

SIMON TISDALL: Arab Spring
Uprisings: The Scorecard

La Stampa, Italian Obama: Gay Marriage, Political Calculation and American Idealism TRANSLATED FROM ITALIAN “Whatever Europeans may think, how fascinating is the charisma of a Republic that for two and a half centuries, through defeat and triumph, has pursued equality and the happiness of guaranteeing universal rights for all, before God and the law?” — COLUMNIST Gianni Riotta EQUAL RIGHTS BATTLE GOES ON

The Mirror, U.K. Francios Hollande First French President to Visit British D-Day War Graves “Ranville Cemetery contains the graves of 2,564 British soldiers who died early on June 6, 1944 after landing by glider and parachute.” — REPORTER Adrian Shaw

The Telegraph, U.K. Barbara Walters Sorry for Helping Assad Aide “When confronted with the emails, which were obtained by the Syrian opposition, the 82-year- old ABC broadcaster admitted to a conflict of interest and expressed 'regret' for her actions.” — CORRESPONDENT Raf Sanchez

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Wisconsin Democrats Dealt a Bitter Blow in Courageous Battle
'SECOND' TERM	“Organized labor took a huge risk in mounting a challenge to Scott Walker and lost. But they shouldn't react with regret.” —COLUMNIST Gary Younge

BBC VIDEO: Republican
Governor Survives Wisconsin Recall

Der Spiegel, Germany Why the World Cannot Stop the Killing in Syria “The United States has lost the authority to restore peace after the turmoil of Iraq. Russia alone has the power to topple Assad and avert a civil war, but Putin has so fat refused to do so.” — COLUMNIST Ullrich Fichtner

Daily Mail, U.K. America's Mysterious Space Plane to Land after YEAR in Orbit - but What Did it Do? “Many sceptics think that the vehicle's mission is defence or spy-related. There are rumors that the craft has been kept in space to spy on China's new space station, Tiangong.” — REPORTER Rob Waugh AMERICA'S 'SECRET' SPACE PROGRAM

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: World Tomorrow: Julian Assange and Guests, Members of Cypher Punks June 5, 00:29:22 "Cyber threats, hacker attacks and laws officially intended to tackle internet piracy are in fact nfringing on people's right to online privacy. Assange hosts activists from the Cypherpunk movement to discuss the issue." THE INVISIBLE INTERNET WAR

Trouw, The Netherlands Across West, Populists on the Left and Right Find New Scapegoats TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Scapegoats and simplistic measures only serve to get voters on your side. The mobilizing effects, and not the genuine results, are considered most important.” — COLUMNIST Rob de Wijk WILL ANOTHER HITLER EMERGE?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Tea Party and Occupy Activists Rub Shoulders at Bilderberg Protest “With protest entering its third day in good spirits, even police officers raise odd smiles holding the line.” — CORRESPONDENT Ryan Devereauxg

GUARDIAN: Bilderberg 2012 -
Real Men Don't Like Oligarchs

CHANNEL 8 NEWS, TEXAS:
Rick Perry Is Asked About
'His Tea Party' At Bilderberg

NZZ, Switzerland Massacre at Houla is No ‘Turning Point’ for Syria TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Under current conditions, it will be difficult and costly to determine what happened at Houla within a practical time frame. In the meantime, the atrocity continues to serves as fodder for additional war propaganda on both sides.” — COLUMNIST Martin Woker WHAT PRICE THE UNSPEAKABLE?

The Independent, U.K. Mubarak Will Die in Jail, No Thanks to Us
FACING FACTS	“The army runs Egypt today. And we Westerners like like armies. The U.S. likes armies.” —COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

BBC, U.K. Scars of Iraq War Haunt American Policy in Syria “This is all reminiscent of the 1990s and President Clinton's for action in Bosnia or Rwanda.” — CORRESPONDENT Mark Urban

Daily Mail, U.K. 'Beware Rerun of Panic of 2008': World Bank Chief Robert Zoellick “There will not be time for meetings of finance ministers to discuss the outlook and debate the politics. ... 'In panicked markets, investors flee to safe assets, sparking additional global flames.” — WORLD BANK President Robert Zoellick

Guardian Unlimited, Spain Bilderberg 2012: The Technocrats are Rising “It's all change at Bilderberg this year: a new chairman, new media and the Occupy Bilderberg movement knocking at the gates.” — GUARDIAN'S 'Man' at Bilderberg READY FOR OCCUPY BILDERBERG?

The Telegraph, U.K. The Real Dilemma on Syria: Can the West Go it Alone? “The massacre of the innocents in Houla has turned a simmering diplomatic dispute with Russia into an escalating clash.” — COLUMNIST David Blair

THE TELEGRAPH: U.S.
Raises Prospect of
Intervention in Syria

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany GM Prevails in Pitting European Workers Against One Another TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Not the best workers - but the cheapest - were the ones that won the bid. The GM Group is pursuing internal wage-dumping. … In GM's world, it is every man for himself.” — COLUMNIST Thomas Fromm AMERICAN-STYLE CAPITALISM?

Telegraph, U.K. Obama Insults Poles “Last night Obama caused huge offense in Poland by referring to a Nazi death camp in Poland as 'a Polish death camp' as he awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to a fighter of the Poland's Resistance.” — COLUMNIST Nile Gardiner

Financial Times, U.K. Rockefellers and Rothschilds Unite “The transatlantic union of 96-year-old David Rockefeller, and Lord Rothschild, 76 – two family patriarchs whose relationship spans five decades.” — Atlantic Council Report

THE ECONOMIST: Lord
Rothschild: Full of 'Gilt'

El Diario Exterior, Spain America’s ‘Unamerican’ Bout of Ethnic Neurosis TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “Nothing is more contrary to the nature of the United States than the classification of people by race, culture or gender. Nowhere in the U.S. Constitution, or in the 85 essays of The Federalist Papers (where Madison, Hamilton and Jay explain the reach and meaning of the document), is there the slightest allusion to anything but the rules and institutions by which the new republic would be governed.” — COLUMNIST Carlos Alberto Montaner A WORRY QUICKLY DIMINISHING

Daily Mail, U.K. Yes, Syria is Tragic, But U.K. Intervention Would be Madness “The truth about the violence in Syria is far more complex than Assad's enemies would have us believe.” — COLUMNIST John Bradley

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Before Syria Crisis Expands, Obama and NATO Should Act “Obama's 'shrug your shoulders' Syria policy, faithfully imitated by the Unitted Kindom and the rest of the do-nothing NATO crew, is no longer sustainable politically, strategically, morally.” — —COLUMNIST Simon Tisdall

The Independent, U.K. The West is Horrified by Syria Childrens' Slaughter. But We Will Soon Forget
INDIGNATION	“We in the West will soon forget when another YouTube image of death flicks on our screens from the Syrian countryside. Or from Yemen. Or a new revolution.” —COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

INDEPENDENT: $33 Million
Raid on Pakistan Shows that, in
the End, Hypocrisy Will Win

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Massacre at Houla: U.S. Military Warns Syria as Obama Feels Pressure “There is always a military option. Military leaders are somewhat cautious about the use of force, because we're never sure of what comes out the other side. But that said, it may come to that point with Syria because of the atrocities.” — GENERAL Martin Dempsey, Chairman of U.S. Joint Chiefs DEMPSEY TAKES OUT BIG STICK

TELEGRAPH: Russia Refuses
to Alter Position on Syria

El Pais, Spain Ronald Reagan’s Blood: The Civil Relic with a Difference TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH “Perhaps in the future, it may be used to clone the president who embodied neoliberalism. But then again, in the light of what is happening today, that might not be such a good idea.” — COLUMNIST Marcos Balfagon WHAT IS IT ABOUT THE U.S AND BLOOD?

DNA, France At Loggerheads Over Afghanistan, the Euro … and So Much More TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “It's astounding: NATO says it may take three years to retrieve from Afghanistan - a country without railway lines - the 122,000 tanks, 70,000 vehicles (carrier, armored, artillery …) and 140,000 troops of ISAF. That is, provided a convoy leaves every seven minutes, weather permitting, every day, along roads that are either tough or impossible.” — COLUMNIST Jean-Claude Kiefer THE LOGISTICS OF GOING HOME

Financial Times, U.K. America, Pakistan and that Dysfunctional Relationship “With anti-American sentiment still running high in Pakistan, fueled by ongoing drone attacks, politicians in the United States are getting even more strident in their criticism of Islamabad.” — COLUMNIST Geoff Dyer

Diario Economico, Portugal Utopia Lost?: European Dream is Over Without Far Greater Federalism TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE “Germans, still traumatized by the hyperinflation that brought Hitler to power, will not allow for additional inflation. … Will people and leaders exit their trenches and follow a common path? At this point there are more doubts than certainties.” — COLUMNIST Claudia Major IS IT CURTAINS FOR EUROLAND?

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany ‘Lost Nation’ of Germany: NATO’s Biggest Problem TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Germany is untrustworthy and its military weakness hurts the Alliance. ... The German position is also diametrically opposed to the needs of E.U. security.” — Vice Admiral Ulrich Weisser GERMANY LAGGING ON SECURITY

Le Monde, France French Journalists Cover the G8: YAWN! TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH Ever wonder what it’s like to cover a summit at a place like Camp David, with some of the most powerful people on earth? — EDITORIAL, Le Monde

Die Tageszeitung, Germany Group of Eight Now the ‘Clueless Eight’ TRANSLATED GERMAN “What Obama, Hollande and Merkel produced isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on. All of the platitudes and formulaic compromises are meant to cover up the fact that they have not the foggiest notion of how to fix the euro.” — COLUMNIST Eric Bonse WHY DO WE KEEP THE G8?

Le Monde, France Francois Hollande: French Socialist Visits Washington TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Thirty one years ago, the arrival of a socialist to power provoked astonishment and nervousness in Washington. A generation later, what a difference! Hollande was received by Obama on Friday. And no more prejudice toward France's left remains. ” — EDITORIAL, Le Monde

Le Monde, France Alleged Washington Gang Rape Victim Talks Against Dominique Strauss Kahn TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “I tried to get away but it was difficult because he was on top of me and was very heavy. … I kept saying I didn’t want to ... I didn’t scream, but said clearly several times aloud ... I tried to get away ... but Dominique Strauss-Kahn pinned me down.” — —‘Marion,’ Paid to party with DSK at Washington’s W Hotel DSK: ON CHARGES FOR RAPE IN U.S.

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: World Tomorrow: Julian Assange and Guest Ecuador President Correa May 22, 00:46:10 "The only country that can be sure never to have a Coup d'état is the United States - because it doesn't have a U.S. Embassy. .. I will always call a spade a spade. ... I will never let my country be affected by them [the U.S.]." — Ecuador President Rafael Correa CORREA: SPEAKING FOR LATIN LEFT

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland Dire Straits for Europe Absent Less Nationalism and More Cooperation TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “A new European security pact should allow for the strengthening of Europe's defense identity … and as a result, address self-interest, nationalism and all they entail.” — —Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, European Parliament Member CAN EUROPE UNITE TO SAVE NATO?

Knack, The Netherlands Days of ‘Superfluous’ G-8 are Numbered TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “In 2012, holding in-depth discussions about global economic problems with the conspicuous absence of China, India, Brazil, Turkey, South Korea and the Saudis is decidedly unrealistic.” — COLUMNIST Johan van Overtveldt

The Independent, U.K. Megrahi is Dead. Now We'll Never Know the Truth about Lockerbie
DIRTY HANDS	“If he was wrongly convicted, what did he do in the service of his master? ... I've gone through these files and I long ago concluded that the were devastating.” —COLUMNIST Robert Fisk

INDEPENDENT: No Closure
for the Lockerbie Families

Die Zeit, Germany Price of NATO Survival: Diminished Sovereignty TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “NATO member states fear a loss of control. But they have no choice if they want to halt the military alliance's decay.” — COLUMNIST Claudia Major CAN NATO SURVIVE THESE TIMES?

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Nato and G8 Summits: What Have we Learned? “World leaders will leave Chicago Monday night after some of the most intensive negotiations of the year on eradicating hunger to the eurozone crisis and ending the Afghanistan war. So what was the outcome?” — COLUMNIST Ewen MacAskill

Die Welt, Germany Merkel Fires Obama; Takes Hollande to the Woodshed TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “Merkel said that French and U.S. recalcitrance is getting on her nerves, and that sometimes even her patience runs short. She announced, ‘I have asked [German President] Gauck for Barack Obama's dismissal from the Oval Office. Obama was clearly taken by surprise and left the conference hall in tears.” — —COLUMNIST Hans Zippert GERMANS SPOOF GERMAN DOMINANCE

Le Monde, France Francois Hollande: French Socialist Visits Washington TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Thirty one years ago, the arrival of a socialist to power provoked astonishment and nervousness in Washington. A generation later, what a difference! Hollande was received by Obama on Friday. And no more prejudice toward France's left remains. ” — EDITORIAL, Le Monde

NATO TV, Brussels VIDEO: Protests Against NATO Summit in Chicago May 19, 00:05:36 "I'm protesting anythung that has anything to do with the military industrial complex. That is why I am here.” — Unnamed Protester in Chicago NATO SUMMIT BEGINS IN CHICAGO

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Germany Isolated Over Euro Crisis Plan at G8 “German Chancellor Merkel resisted pressure for fresh measures that would include looser monetary policy for the European Central Bank, enabling quantitative easing similar to that deployed by the FED and Bank of England.” — CORRESPONDENT Patrick Wintour G8 2012: A MUDDLED OUTCOME

Le Figaro, France Obama and Hollande Say What Merkel Doesn't Want to Hear TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “This Franco-American alliance threatens to thwart Angela Merkel, who wants Greece to hold a referendum on the euro alongside parliamentary polls.” — COLUMNIST Pierre Rousselin OPENING MERKEL'S PURSE

Moscow Times, Russia Why Putin Skipped Out on G8 Summit “Putin wants to avoid unwelcome questions that may arise such as electoral fraud, threats of preemptive strikes on American missile defense sites, etc.” — COLUMNIST Michael Bohm

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. Obama Caught Between Competing Visions for Fixing Eurozone Crisis “Mr. Obama, first African- American president of the Harvard Law Review, was born in Kenya and raised in Indonesia and Hawaii.” — CORRESPONDENTS Patrick Wintour and Ewen MacAskill

Deutsche Welle, Germany Why Moscow says 'Nyet' to NATO Defense System “NATO member states want an anti-missile defense system in case of attack from Iran or North Korea - but Russia feels threatened and has warned it will retaliateto protect itself.” — COLUMNIST Roman Goncharenko VLADIMIR PUTIN IS NOT AMUSED

DEUTCHE WELLE:
NATO Summit to Debate
Global-Policeman Role

The Telegraph, U.K. Obama's Literary Agent is Found to Have said He was 'Born in Kenya' “Mr. Obama, first African- American president of the Harvard Law Review, was born in Kenya and raised in Indonesia and Hawaii.” — Booklet Describing Obama's First Book

The Sun, U.K. Donna Summers said to Have Blamed Lung Cancer on Sept. 11 Poison Cloud “My husband and I were walking down the street. I had this feeling. I said, ‘Honey, I feel terrorism, high on top the buildings.’ I knew something was going to happen. When it did, I flipped out.” — SINGER Donna Summer DONNA SUMMER: KILLED BY 9-11?

Der Spiegel, Germany Atlantic Council Slams Germany's NATO Role “Europe cannot remain a major force within the NATO Alliance if a country of Germany's size, location, and prosperity makes the kind of deep reductions in defense spending made by Chancellor Angela Merkel's government in 2011.” — Atlantic Council Report

BBC News, U.K. Monsieur Hollande: Obama's New Friend “The French, President Barack Obama likes to remind us, are America's oldest allies. France's new socialist President, Francois Hollande, may turn out to be a valuable new friend as well.” — CORRESPONDENT Marc Mardell G8 SUMMIT AT CAMP DAVID

The Telegraph, U.K. Obama's Literary Agent is Found to Have said He was 'Born in Kenya' “Mr. Obama, first African- American president of the Harvard Law Review, was born in Kenya and raised in Indonesia and Hawaii.” — Booklet Describing Obama's First Book

Le Figaro, France Gay Marriage Controversy Uncomfortable for Romney TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Now he sees gays turning their backs on him, not only because of Obama’s declaration on gays, but because he got rid of Richard Grenell, his openly-gay foreign policy spokesperson. No wonder he is doing everything he can to change the subject.” — COLUMNIST Jean Sébastien Stehli ROMNEY SEEKS TO CHANGE SUBJECT

News, Switzerland ‘Hate and Fear’ Dominate Opponents of Gay Marriage TRANSLATED FROM GERMAN “They have no trouble attributing characteristics to them (insatiable sexual appetites, lifestyles marked by instability, amoral behavior) like those that were long used to denigrate relationships between White women and Black men.” — COLUMNIST Patrik Etschmayer BRISTOL PALIN WEIGHS IN ON MARRIAGE

Der Spiegel, Germany The Cost of Upgrading U.S. Nuclear Weapons 'Massive' “The Life Extension Program (LEP) for the B61 - of which there are between 160 and 200 in Europe - is considered difficult and vey expensive.” — CORRESPONDENT Markus Becker

Guardian Unlimited, U.K. The 'Wrong Carlos': How Texas Sent to Death Innocent Man “Columbia law school study shows in shocking detail the flaws that led to the 1989 execution of Carlos DeLuna.” — COLUMNIST Ed Pilkington WHEN EXECUTION GOES AWRY

Gazeta Wyborcza, Polish Former President Kwasniewski Admits He Allowed CIA Prisons TRANSLATED FROM POLISH “If a CIA agent brutally mistreated a prisoner at the Marriott hotel in Warsaw, would you accuse the hotel management as being responsible for the actions of the CIA agent?” — Former Poland President Aleksander Kwasniewski IS POLAND RESPONSIBLE FOR CIA AVTIVITY?

leJDD, France Gay Marriage: Obama Puts His Finger to Political Wind TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “Obama has a keen perception of these issues: he is never very far out in front, even while he maintains himself slightly ahead. I am betting that Obama will soon speak of a multi-religious America. ... That would be a new way of pushing back Republicans into their trenches.” — François Durpaire, author, historian on U.S. political life OBAMA: A SIGN OF THINGS TO COME?

Russia Today, Russia VIDEO: Convicted Weapons Trafficker Viktor Bout Says U.S. Justice is Politicized May 13, 00:11:26 “The entire trial was very similar to the midevil trial of inquisition in which you must confeess that you did bad things. ... What is happening to me is purely political.” — Russian Businessman and Arms Trafficker Viktor Bout U.S. LEGAL SYSTEM OUT OF CONTROL?

France TV, France Is France Behind America on Same-Sex Marriage? TRANSLATED FROM FRENCH “French law limits gay unions to something similar to civil unions, called ‘pacte civil de solidarité.’ No gay marriages, even if celebrated abroad, are recognized on its territory.” — COLUMNIST Camille Caldini

NU, The Netherlands Marriage in America: ‘Man, Woman and God’ TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH “Republicans argue that America will be a pool of irreversible moral decay if Obama's plans continue. That sounds idiotic to Europeans. Have the Netherlands been struck down by God’s wrath since we’ve allowed gay marriage? Well then!” — COLUMNIST Charles Groenhuijsen WILL OBAMA'S GAMBIT PAY OFF?

"The European Union accused Google of cheating consumers , competitors by distorting search results to favor its own shopping service, after a five-year investigation that could change the rules for doing business online.”

"In killing and maiming unarmed civilians, these defendants acted unreasonably ... In combination, the sheer amount of unnecessary human loss and suffering due to the defendants' criminal conduct on Sept. 16, 2007, is staggering.”

"Her first presidential loss to an initially unknown outsider named Obama hit her hard. It never left her and it noticeably shapes the the current campaign. ... the Clinton team should contemplate the fact that the announcement of her candidacy hasn't triggered major voter enthusiasm.”

"As the two antagonistic leaders prepared to meet face to face at the Summit of the Americas, they used preliminary events in the host nation Panama to project their differing perspectives.”

Controversy over plans by Czech President Milos Zeman to accept Russia's invitation to 2015 Victory Day celebrations has been raging all week, culminating today.

"Cuba expected to be struck from list of state sponsors of terrorism, while Kerry and Cuba Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez counterpart sit down for highest-level talks in more than five decades.”

"America is the real terrorist and everyone knows that. My boys are the best of the best.”

"Rosa Maria Paya, one of Cuba's most high-profile dissidents, has been arrested on arrival in Panama, ahead of a historic meeting this week between Barack Obama and Raul Castro.”

Obama: ‘It is a good deal’ -- ‘Key parameters’ for nuke deal with Iran reached -- Deal to be done by 30 June -- E.U. and U.S. will terminate economic sanctions -- Fordow to be nuclear physics site.

"President Obama's wavering and procrastination and his back and forth between threats, retreats and interventions has severely damaged U.S. credibility. ... One requires a remarkable set of eyes to discern a strategy in all this rather than a frantic, haphazard and event-driven mess. ”

"UKIP candidate Jeremy Zeid called for President Obama to be kidnapped by the Israelis like Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann for declassifying a document in Israel's once undeclared nuclear program.”

"If none of the mobile phones and notably none of the SIM cards found at the scene have not been analysed – because the fact is that the data can be retrieved – that suggests a problem with the investigation'”

"French authorities initially denied the existence of the clip, which allegedly relays in a 'few seconds' scenes of chaos and passengers screaming 'My God' in several languages. But they are now calling on anyone in possession of such a film to 'hand it over to investigators.'”

"Facebook tracks the web browsing of everyone who visits a page on its site even if the user does not have an account and even when they have explicitly opted out of tracking in the E.U., research commissioned by the Belgian data protection agency shows.”

"French authorities initially denied the existence of the clip, which allegedly relays in a 'few seconds' scenes of chaos and passengers screaming 'My God' in several languages. But they are now calling on anyone in possession of such a film to 'hand it over to investigators.'”

"So this is what we have come to: more often than not it seems that sentences have already been formulated, whether based on mere conjecture and/or because they have been decided on the spot, from the first few minutes.”

"We have an opportunity to realize our chances if no side to the talks tries to raise the stakes at the last moment to get something more instead of keeping a balance of interests.”

"It has also never been clear how the pair, who had claimed to be having sex, smoking cannabis and watching the French film Amelie at the time of the murder, became accomplices of Rudy Guede, the then 21-year-old drifter who is now the only person to have been convicted of Kercher's murder.”

"Our greatest festival will stay with us through the centuries. Hollande, Cameron and Obama - not to mention leaders of 'New Europe' - are no more than ripples in the water. Their presence will not add to thehonor of May 9th, and their absence will not diminish its joy.”

"Let me come straight to the point the Dutch way - straightforward and without lame excuses: Please retire.Forget your presidential ambitions. Enough is enough. Please don't do it.”

"We discussed his journey and he gave us a nuanced accounting of how mass surveillance operated and what doesn't . ... He also gave us his point of view on what comprise effective anti-terrorism measures and what doesn't. ... I am impressed by his courage.”

“The Saudi decision to unveil the international coalition in Washington suggests that the Obama Administration, rather than the Riyadh regime, may be the driving force behind the intervention in Yemen.”

"The European Commission has warned E.U. citizens that they should close their Facebook accounts if they want to keep information private from U.S. security services, finding that current Safe Harbour law does not protect citizen's data.”

"The European Commission has warned E.U. citizens that they should close their Facebook accounts if they want to keep information private from U.S. security services, finding that current Safe Harbour law does not protect citizen's data.”

"The democratic experience of the Arab world remains a fragile one. ... Nevertheless, the Arab world and Islamic worlds are not synonymous. . It's not hard to find examples of democracy in Islamic states.”

This is France 24's live feed with coverage of the crash Germanwings flight 4U9525. French prosecutors has announced that the aircraft was intentionally crashed by ci-pilot.

"The co-pilot of the Germanwings jet that crashed in the French Alps deliberately forced the plane into the descent that led to the disaster, the prosecutor said. He pressed a button that accelerated the Airbus A320's descent when alone in the cockpit. 'It was a voluntary action.'”

"White House confirms support for the military effort, claiming international mandate to end the 'widespread instability and chaos' that drove out Yemeni president.”

"They said they would stop notifying us of plots and other intelligence matters.”

"Ricky Jackson and two brothers were convicted on the basis of the testimony of a 13-year-old boy who said that he witnessed the killing of Harold Franks. The boy, Eddie Vernon, was on a bus a block away with other children at the time. He later recanted his account.”

"The White House has made clear its dismay at Prime Minister Netanyahu's sweeping victory in the Israeli polls with a stinging rebuke of 'divisive rhetoric' used by the Israeli leader in the closing stages of the election. ... Furthermore, Obama has not called to congratulate him on his victory.”

"Brits are used to syrupy American tributes to the 'special relationship' that binds the countries together, but this week, we heard rather different sound:: frustrated growls.”

“The alliance is unlikely to amount to much immediate collaboration on joint operations. It may, in fact, be more of a cry for help, given the recent string of defeats Boko Haram has sustained in recent days.”

"Britain’s laws governing the espionage agencies and mass surveillance require a total overhaul to make them more transparent, comprehensible and up to date, parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee said in a landmark report that was prompted by the Snowden revelations.”

"'The harm to Wikimedia and the hundreds of millions of people who visit our Web sites is clear: Pervasive mass surveillance has a chilling effect,' Mr Wales wrote. 'It stifles freedom of expression and the free exchange of ideas that Wikimedia exicts to enable.'”

"This debate cannot be allowed to run on forever. ... We need to have it, address the issues arising from it and move on, sooner rather than later.'”

"They have shared their cruel deeds on the Web in order to attract the world's attention. Now the jihadists are pushing their use of social networking further. ... Islamic State seeks to improve on its online success: three days ago it launched its own social network called 'Kilafahbook'!”

"The Californians snuck off from their tour group on Saturday and began carving in their initials with a coin. They managed a 'J' and an 'N' around 8cm high, then took a selfie with their handiwork.”

"The top beneficiary of the strong Middle Eastern market remains the United States, with $8.4 billion worth of Middle Eastern exports in 2014, compared to $6 billion in 2013.”

"The first state intervention by Washington in the history of the Internet, it reflects the fact that government cannot leave theubiquitous digital revolution to regulate itself, and without a basic set of common rules that are fair and democratic. ”

"Following the court's verdict, the case will move back to the German judges. If they grant Shepherd asylum, it would certainly set a precedent for follow-on cases from other conscientious objectors - as well as lay the ground for diplomatic friction between Berlin and Washington.”

“The prime minister's attacks on the U.S. government may be brinkmanship – but they could be genuine attempts to goad Obama into military action.”

"Germany is befuddled, as always, by the unbridled patriotism of their North American friends. Here, the military isn't a source of pride, and combat deaths aren't widely discussed.”

"According to IS, the prophesied period of the second Caliphate has now begun. Importantly, this also marks the start of the 'End of Days,' which is accompanied by a massive, apocalyptic clash between forces of the Caliphate and non-believers.”

"George W Bush's creation is inefficient, wasteful and disrespectful of citizen privacy. If Republicans want to shut it,Democrats should let them.”

" Putin’s visit to Budapest shows that he's shaking hands in Europe, and not only as part of the peace process in Minsk, but that he is accepted in a European capital far from being the worst.”

"The stolen encryption keys would enable the spy agencies to monitor mobile communications without the approval or knowledge of telecom firms and foreign governments. ... the hack would allow spies to put an aerial up on the embassy in Berlin and hear anyone's calls in the area.”

"In comments to reporters traveling with him to Sierra Leone, Mr. Fallon compared the threat from President Putin to the Islamic State and warned that NATO had to beready to respond to further aggression in 'whatever form.'”

"If ceasefire holds, the Minsk agreement offers Russia a dignified way of accepting Ukraine as an independent state. The Kremlin needs this small measure of diplomatic ambiguity, not petulant accusations that it is acting in bad faith.”

"The court said Poland failed to launch a proper investigation into human rights violations on two individuals who had been tortured at the CIA black site/prison camp in 2002 and 2003.”

"It was the will of the program gods that 50 Shades of Grey would be released in thousandsof movie theaters around the world just as Dominique Strauss- Khan is performing in another theater - a courtroom - in Lille, France. This shows that reality always exceeds the imagination.”

"Alan Robock, a climate scientist at Rutgers University has asked secretive government agencies to be open about their interest in radical work that explores how to alter the world climate.”

"I'd learned of lots of things the CIA had done that haven’t followed the rules and that wasn’t how I wanted my tax money spent. ... I think this research has to be open and global, so there isn't any question of using it for hostile purposes.”

"In deciding to expand during the euphoric years after Soviet collapse, the West neglected one of the basic rules of realistic global policy - the rule of the balance of power.”

"The separation between Russia and Europe is a tragedy. That the Americans may welcome it is their right and their problem. We don't want a revival of the Cold War between Europe and Russia. ... Crimea chose Russia ... we can't reproach them for it.”

"In plain language ... if Merkel's crisis diplomacy fails Ukraine will receive weapons. What all of us will then have to pay, who knows? Not even McCain.”

The now legendary criminality of the world's big banks, in this case Swiss Bank HSBC, has been exposed in mind- boggling fashion by whistleblower Herve Falciani, who is now being referred to as ' Snowden of banking.'

People on which the world's leading powers rely to develop policies in themilitary/security sphere discuss the crisis in Ukraine, the battle against Islamic State, and a variety of other challenges dominating the world. These are the most significant videos from the Munich Security Conference.

"As a member of the European Parliament, I am party to the transatlantic trade deal's inner workings. I'm sworn to secrecy, but this much I can say: Trans- Atlantic treaty is undemocratic.”

"In Moscow and Europe, the ideological battle to discredit the West is in full swing. Suddenly, concern and distress has gripped Washington over a Russian question it thought had disappeared from the radar.”

"The regime that governs the sharing between U.K. and U.S of electronic communications intercepted in bulk was illegal until last year, a secretive British tribunal has ruled.”

"Not a single British spy has been held accountable for mass surveillance, unlawful spying or snooping on private emails and phone calls. ... Until today. ... In years to come we will look back on today as an essential win against the surveillance state.”

"With a political career based entirely within New Jersey, Christie must seek to show himself as a leader of broader experience, especially if the Democrat candidate ends up being Hillary Clinton, the former American secretary of state.”

"The new analysis provides clear proof that Regin is in fact the cyber-attack platform belonging to the Five Eyes alliance, which includes the U.S., Britain, New Zealand, Canada and Australia.”

"The main sticking point is special rights provided to investors, who would be able to challenge nations in special dispute settlement panels that would bypass national courts. ”

"They had no plan for what would happen after the invasion. ... The approach was, ‘The Americans are heading this up. They willhave a detailed plan. We need to follow them. ... The civil war and violent chaos that followed the war created the conditions for the Islamic State to grow."

"There are clear shared interests between the fanatical Islamists and xenophobic, extremist European forces. Eachwill tend to radicalize the other in a scenario of 'civil war' that aligns with the objectives of this organiztion of global intolerance and barbarity.”

“Escalating inequality is the work of a global elite that will resist every challenge to its closely vested interests.”

This is in essence a new version of An Inconvenient Truth. Mr. Gore presents the latest research into climate change and the danger of not responding to it, including tocritical infrastructure. This time Gore comes armed not just with slides but some very interesting video to back up the evidence.

"Most of the former soldiers, reportedly numbering around ten, including ex-paratroopers and French Foreign legionnaires, are said to be fighting for ISIL."

"Some measures under consideration are so sweeping they would allow the monitoring of private communications of every citizen. They should instead focus on targeting those reasonably suspected of intending to carry out attacks or spurring others to do so."

"Informal co-operation that worked well between most technology firms and communication companies and security services broken by the Snowden files hasn't been repaired."

Why do we keep hammering away at the issue of mass surveillance? ... A document released from the Snowden documents today shows the routine interception of e-mails and data from leading journalists and investigative reporters and their storage in an archive easy to access by GHCQ agents.

"The message is that rising inequality is dangerous. It is bad for growth and it is bad for governance. We see a concentration of wealth capturing power and leaving average people voiceless and their interests uncared for [by leadership]."

"The E.U. needs to start preparing for the next such event, because it will certainly come. Europe needs to find new impetus in the fight against terror. Ten years have passed since the horrid attack on the London underground, and our vigilance has diminished."

"The failure that has put all the world in danger is at the level of politics - not security. It was politicalleaders who got rid of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, Muammar Gaddafi in Libya and have tried to displace Bashar al-Assad in Syria without thinking through the likely consequences."

"The list contains the identities of agents working at Germen embassies across the globe, in addition to those accompanyingarmy missions in Afghanistan,Mali, Lebanon and Sudan. ... It remains unclear if Markus R. has sold this particular document to any intelligence or spy agency."

“It may be that in states where entire neighborhoods and soon entire towns are Muslim, it is already too late. In those places, politicians and activists may be unable to prevent a genuine conflict between civilizations."

"The European Union accused Google
of cheating consumers , competitors
by distorting search results to favor
its own shopping service, after a five-
year investigation that could change
the rules for doing business online.”

"In killing and maiming unarmed
civilians, these defendants acted
unreasonably ... In combination,
the sheer amount of unnecessary
human loss and suffering due to
the defendants' criminal conduct
on Sept. 16, 2007, is staggering.”

"Her first presidential loss
to an initially unknown
outsider named Obama hit
her hard. It never left her
and it noticeably shapes the
the current campaign. ...
the Clinton team should
contemplate the fact that
the announcement of her
candidacy hasn't triggered
major voter enthusiasm.”

"As the two antagonistic leaders
prepared to meet face to face at
the Summit of the Americas, they
used preliminary events in the
host nation Panama to project
their differing perspectives.”

Controversy over plans by Czech
President Milos Zeman to accept
Russia's invitation to 2015 Victory
Day celebrations has been raging
all week, culminating today.

"Cuba expected to be struck
from list of state sponsors of
terrorism, while Kerry and
Cuba Foreign Minister Bruno
Rodriguez counterpart sit
down for highest-level talks
in more than five decades.”

"America is the real terrorist
and everyone knows that. My
boys are the best of the best.”

"Rosa Maria Paya, one of Cuba's
most high-profile dissidents,
has been arrested on arrival in
Panama, ahead of a historic
meeting this week between
Barack Obama and Raul Castro.”

Obama: ‘It is a good deal’ -- ‘Key
parameters’ for nuke deal with
Iran reached -- Deal to be done
by 30 June -- E.U. and U.S. will
terminate economic sanctions --
Fordow to be nuclear physics site.

"President Obama's wavering and
procrastination and his back and
forth between threats, retreats
and interventions has severely
damaged U.S. credibility. ... One
requires a remarkable set of eyes
to discern a strategy in all this
rather than a frantic, haphazard
and event-driven mess. ”

"UKIP candidate Jeremy Zeid
called for President Obama to
be kidnapped by the Israelis
like Nazi war criminal Adolf
Eichmann for declassifying a
document in Israel's once
undeclared nuclear program.”

"If none of the mobile phones and notably
none of the SIM cards found at the scene
have not been analysed – because the fact
is that the data can be retrieved – that
suggests a problem with the investigation'”

"French authorities initially denied the
existence of the clip, which allegedly
relays in a 'few seconds' scenes of chaos
and passengers screaming 'My God' in
several languages. But they are now
calling on anyone in possession of such a
film to 'hand it over to investigators.'”

"Facebook tracks the web
browsing of everyone who
visits a page on its site even
if the user does not have an
account and even when they
have explicitly opted out of
tracking in the E.U., research
commissioned by the Belgian
data protection agency shows.”

"French authorities initially denied the
existence of the clip, which allegedly
relays in a 'few seconds' scenes of chaos
and passengers screaming 'My God' in
several languages. But they are now
calling on anyone in possession of such a
film to 'hand it over to investigators.'”

"So this is what we have come to:
more often than not it seems that
sentences have already been
formulated, whether based on
mere conjecture and/or because
they have been decided on the
spot, from the first few minutes.”

"We have an opportunity to
realize our chances if no side
to the talks tries to raise the
stakes at the last moment to
get something more instead of
keeping a balance of interests.”

"It has also never been clear how
the pair, who had claimed to be
having sex, smoking cannabis and
watching the French film Amelie
at the time of the murder, became
accomplices of Rudy Guede, the
then 21-year-old drifter who is
now the only person to have been
convicted of Kercher's murder.”

"Our greatest festival will stay
with us through the centuries.
Hollande, Cameron and Obama
- not to mention leaders of
'New Europe' - are no more
than ripples in the water. Their
presence will not add to the
honor of May 9th, and their
absence will not diminish its joy.”

"Let me come straight to the point
the Dutch way - straightforward and
without lame excuses: Please retire.
Forget your presidential ambitions.
Enough is enough. Please don't do it.”

"We discussed his journey
and he gave us a nuanced
accounting of how mass
surveillance operated and
what doesn't . ... He also
gave us his point of view
on what comprise effective
anti-terrorism measures
and what doesn't. ... I am
impressed by his courage.”

“The Saudi decision to unveil
the international coalition in
Washington suggests that the
Obama Administration, rather
than the Riyadh regime, may
be the driving force behind
the intervention in Yemen.”

"The European Commission has
warned E.U. citizens that they
should close their Facebook
accounts if they want to keep
information private from U.S.
security services, finding that
current Safe Harbour law does
not protect citizen's data.”

"The European Commission has
warned E.U. citizens that they
should close their Facebook
accounts if they want to keep
information private from U.S.
security services, finding that
current Safe Harbour law does
not protect citizen's data.”

"The democratic experience
of the Arab world remains a
fragile one. ... Nevertheless,
the Arab world and Islamic
worlds are not synonymous. .
It's not hard to find examples
of democracy in Islamic states.”

This is France 24's live feed with
coverage of the crash Germanwings
flight 4U9525. French prosecutors
has announced that the aircraft
was intentionally crashed by ci-pilot.

"The co-pilot of the Germanwings
jet that crashed in the French Alps
deliberately forced the plane into
the descent that led to the disaster,
the prosecutor said. He pressed a
button that accelerated the Airbus
A320's descent when alone in the
cockpit. 'It was a voluntary action.'”

"White House confirms support
for the military effort, claiming
international mandate to end the
'widespread instability and chaos'
that drove out Yemeni president.”

"They said they would stop notifying us
of plots and other intelligence matters.”

"Ricky Jackson and two brothers were
convicted on the basis of the testimony
of a 13-year-old boy who said that he
witnessed the killing of Harold Franks.
The boy, Eddie Vernon, was on a bus a
block away with other children at the
time. He later recanted his account.”

"The White House has made clear its
dismay at Prime Minister Netanyahu's
sweeping victory in the Israeli polls
with a stinging rebuke of 'divisive
rhetoric' used by the Israeli leader in
the closing stages of the election. ...
Furthermore, Obama has not called
to congratulate him on his victory.”

"Brits are used to syrupy American
tributes to the 'special relationship'
that binds the countries together,
but this week, we heard rather
different sound:: frustrated growls.”

“The alliance is unlikely to amount
to much immediate collaboration
on joint operations. It may, in fact,
be more of a cry for help, given
the recent string of defeats Boko
Haram has sustained in recent days.”

"Britain’s laws governing the
espionage agencies and mass
surveillance require a total
overhaul to make them more
transparent, comprehensible
and up to date, parliament's
Intelligence and Security
Committee said in a landmark
report that was prompted by
the Snowden revelations.”

"'The harm to Wikimedia and the
hundreds of millions of people
who visit our Web sites is clear:
Pervasive mass surveillance has a
chilling effect,' Mr Wales wrote.
'It stifles freedom of expression
and the free exchange of ideas
that Wikimedia exicts to enable.'”

"This debate cannot be allowed
to run on forever. ... We need
to have it, address the issues
arising from it and move on,
sooner rather than later.'”

"They have shared their cruel deeds on
the Web in order to attract the world's
attention. Now the jihadists are pushing
their use of social networking further.
... Islamic State seeks to improve on its
online success: three days ago it launched
its own social network called 'Kilafahbook'!”

"The Californians snuck off
from their tour group on
Saturday and began carving
in their initials with a coin.
They managed a 'J' and an 'N'
around 8cm high, then took
a selfie with their handiwork.”

"The top beneficiary of the strong
Middle Eastern market remains the
United States, with $8.4 billion
worth of Middle Eastern exports in
2014, compared to $6 billion in 2013.”

"The first state intervention by
Washington in the history of the
Internet, it reflects the fact that
government cannot leave the
ubiquitous digital revolution to
regulate itself, and without a
basic set of common rules that
are fair and democratic. ”

"Following the court's verdict, the case
will move back to the German judges. If
they grant Shepherd asylum, it would
certainly set a precedent for follow-on
cases from other conscientious objectors
- as well as lay the ground for diplomatic
friction between Berlin and Washington.”

“The prime minister's attacks
on the U.S. government may
be brinkmanship – but they
could be genuine attempts to
goad Obama into military action.”

"Germany is befuddled, as always,
by the unbridled patriotism of
their North American friends.
Here, the military isn't a source
of pride, and combat deaths
aren't widely discussed.”

"According to IS, the prophesied period
of the second Caliphate has now begun.
Importantly, this also marks the start of
the 'End of Days,' which is accompanied
by a massive, apocalyptic clash between
forces of the Caliphate and non-believers.”

"George W Bush's creation is
inefficient, wasteful and
disrespectful of citizen privacy.
If Republicans want to shut it,
Democrats should let them.”

" Putin’s visit to Budapest shows
that he's shaking hands in Europe,
and not only as part of the peace
process in Minsk, but that he is
accepted in a European capital far
from being the worst.”

"The stolen encryption keys would
enable the spy agencies to monitor
mobile communications without the
approval or knowledge of telecom
firms and foreign governments. ...
the hack would allow spies to put an
aerial up on the embassy in Berlin
and hear anyone's calls in the area.”

"In comments to reporters
traveling with him to Sierra
Leone, Mr. Fallon compared
the threat from President
Putin to the Islamic State and
warned that NATO had to be
ready to respond to further
aggression in 'whatever form.'”

"If ceasefire holds, the
Minsk agreement offers
Russia a dignified way of
accepting Ukraine as an
independent state. The
Kremlin needs this small
measure of diplomatic
ambiguity, not petulant
accusations that
it is acting in bad faith.”

"The court said Poland failed to
launch a proper investigation
into human rights violations on
two individuals who had been
tortured at the CIA black site/
prison camp in 2002 and 2003.”

"It was the will of the program
gods that 50 Shades of Grey
would be released in thousands
of movie theaters around the
world just as Dominique Strauss-
Khan is performing in another
theater - a courtroom - in Lille,
France. This shows that reality
always exceeds the imagination.”

"Alan Robock, a climate scientist
at Rutgers University has asked
secretive government agencies
to be open about their interest
in radical work that explores
how to alter the world climate.”

"I'd learned of lots of things the CIA
had done that haven’t followed the
rules and that wasn’t how I wanted
my tax money spent. ... I think this
research has to be open and global,
so there isn't any question of using
it for hostile purposes.”

"In deciding to expand during the
euphoric years after Soviet collapse,
the West neglected one of the
basic rules of realistic global policy
- the rule of the balance of power.”

"The separation between Russia
and Europe is a tragedy. That
the Americans may welcome it
is their right and their problem.
We don't want a revival of the
Cold War between Europe and
Russia. ... Crimea chose Russia ...
we can't reproach them for it.”

"In plain language ... if Merkel's crisis
diplomacy fails Ukraine will receive
weapons. What all of us will then have
to pay, who knows? Not even McCain.”

The now legendary criminality of the
world's big banks, in this case Swiss
Bank HSBC, has been exposed in mind-
boggling fashion by whistleblower
Herve Falciani, who is now being
referred to as ' Snowden of banking.'

People on which the world's leading
powers rely to develop policies in the
military/security sphere discuss the
crisis in Ukraine, the battle against
Islamic State, and a variety of other
challenges dominating the world.
These are the most significant videos
from the Munich Security Conference.

"As a member of the European
Parliament, I am party to the
transatlantic trade deal's inner
workings. I'm sworn to secrecy,
but this much I can say: Trans-
Atlantic treaty is undemocratic.”

"In Moscow and Europe,
the ideological battle to
discredit the West is in full
swing. Suddenly, concern
and distress has gripped
Washington over a Russian
question it thought had
disappeared from the radar.”

"The regime that governs the
sharing between U.K. and U.S
of electronic communications
intercepted in bulk was illegal
until last year, a secretive
British tribunal has ruled.”

"Not a single British spy has been
held accountable for mass
surveillance, unlawful spying or
snooping on private emails and
phone calls. ... Until today. ...
In years to come we will look
back on today as an essential win
against the surveillance state.”

"With a political career based entirely
within New Jersey, Christie must seek
to show himself as a leader of broader
experience, especially if the Democrat
candidate ends up being Hillary Clinton,
the former American secretary of state.”

"The new analysis provides clear
proof that Regin is in fact the
cyber-attack platform belonging
to the Five Eyes alliance, which
includes the U.S., Britain, New
Zealand, Canada and Australia.”

"The main sticking point is special
rights provided to investors, who
would be able to challenge nations
in special dispute settlement panels
that would bypass national courts. ”

"They had no plan for what
would happen after the
invasion. ... The approach
was, ‘The Americans are
heading this up. They will
have a detailed plan. We
need to follow them. ...
The civil war and violent
chaos that followed the war
created the conditions for
the Islamic State to grow."

"There are clear shared
interests between the
fanatical Islamists and
xenophobic, extremist
European forces. Each
will tend to radicalize
the other in a scenario
of 'civil war' that aligns
with the objectives of
this organiztion of global
intolerance and barbarity.”

“Escalating inequality is
the work of a global elite
that will resist every
challenge to its
closely vested interests.”

This is in essence a new version of
An Inconvenient Truth. Mr. Gore
presents the latest research into
climate change and the danger of
not responding to it, including to
critical infrastructure. This time
Gore comes armed not just with
slides but some very interesting
video to back up the evidence.

"Most of the former soldiers,
reportedly numbering around
ten, including ex-paratroopers
and French Foreign legionnaires,
are said to be fighting for ISIL."

"Some measures under consideration
are so sweeping they would allow the
monitoring of private communications
of every citizen. They should instead
focus on targeting those reasonably
suspected of intending to carry out
attacks or spurring others to do so."

"Informal co-operation that worked
well between most technology firms
and communication companies and
security services broken by the
Snowden files hasn't been repaired."

Why do we keep hammering away at
the issue of mass surveillance? ... A
document released from the Snowden
documents today shows the routine
interception of e-mails and data from
leading journalists and investigative
reporters and their storage in an
archive easy to access by GHCQ agents.

"The message is that rising
inequality is dangerous. It
is bad for growth and it is
bad for governance. We
see a concentration of
wealth capturing power
and leaving average people
voiceless and their interests
uncared for [by leadership]."

"The E.U. needs to start preparing for
the next such event, because it will
certainly come. Europe needs to find
new impetus in the fight against terror.
Ten years have passed since the horrid
attack on the London underground,
and our vigilance has diminished."

"The failure that has put all
the world in danger is at
the level of politics - not
security. It was political
leaders who got rid of
Saddam Hussein in Iraq,
Muammar Gaddafi in Libya
and have tried to displace
Bashar al-Assad in Syria
without thinking through
the likely consequences."

"The list contains the identities
of agents working at Germen
embassies across the globe, in
addition to those accompanying
army missions in Afghanistan,
Mali, Lebanon and Sudan. ... It
remains unclear if Markus R. has
sold this particular document to
any intelligence or spy agency."

“It may be that in states where
entire neighborhoods and soon
entire towns are Muslim, it is
already too late. In those places,
politicians and activists may be
unable to prevent a genuine
conflict between civilizations."