The Alyona Show - 12/05/11 - MSM: Doesn't get Int'l Elections ..............

The Alyona Show - 12/05/11



It seems like the mainstream media has finally realized that there's a covert war being waged against Iran. From deaths of nuclear scientists to bombing of missile facilities, to now, a US drone being brought down over Iranian air space. Then, yesterday 31 people were arrested at the OccupyDC camp after a wooden structure was set up which park police said was unsafe. Once again, we saw police trying to tell the media, to go away. Also a new investigation by ProPublica has revealed racial disparities detected in the presidential pardon system. And then don't miss our happy hour.





MSM: Doesn't get Int'l Elections



Before the elections we saw the mainstream media immediately begin cheering the Egyptian revolution and completely forgetting that it was us, who had propped up Mubarak for decades. Now that the Muslim brotherhood won the elections, all that evil has been forgotten, and everyone's moved on. Now is Russia, where elections were held yesterday and numerous news reports have only had one singular perspective when it comes to covering the elections in Russia yesterday, that Putin's party suffered a major blow. And that's about it; they stop there without real analysis.





US Covert War w. Iran, Not so Covert


Iran claimed to have in its possession an RQ-170 Sentinel drone that was taken down while flying over its air space. At first, ISAF released a statement that the drone "to which the Iranians are referring may be a U.S. unarmed reconnaissance aircraft that had been flying a mission over western Afghanistan late last week". Today, FOX reported that US military sources confirmed Iran had the drone. Why does nobody seem to care about where the authority for this type of covert war, even comes from? Robert Farley blogger at Lawyers Guns And Money discusses.





OccupyDC Raided



Yesterday at Occupy DC after protesters set up a large wooden structure, police came in and ruled the structure unsafe for occupancy and began removing protesters from it, which resulted in a standoff that took hours. Overall, 31 people were arrested. While the encampment at large is still there and was not evicted, we once again saw what has become a disturbing trend across the country, police telling media, to go away. RT's Jenny Churchill has the details.





Manning Wants Obama, Clinton to Testify



PFC Manning is set to appear in a military hearing on December 16 in Fort Meade Maryland. The defense is building a high-profile list of witnesses to appear before the military jury, including President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Manning's defense attorney, David Coombs, has filed a report saying that both Obama and Clinton could provide evidence that could help Manning in this Article 32 hearing which would determine if his case should be referred for a full-scale court martial.





You said it, I read it



Alyona takes the time to respond to some of her viewer comments. First is from a viewer who watched our story about the weak FTC settlement with Facebook, which did not actually roll back any of the privacy incursions Facebook has already made. Next is from a viewer who watched the interview with Firedog Lake's David Dayen on whether or not there was the political will needed to save the EU. Plus more from our viewers.





Befriend a Congressman, Get a Pardon



ProPublica has released an extensive report, statistically analyzing nearly 500 pardon applicants during the Bush administration, and found that white applicants, were nearly four times as likely to receive pardons as all minorities combined. Applicants with a member of Congress in their corner were three times as likely to win a pardon as those without such backing, and marital and financial stability of applicants plays a heavy role in the final decision. Is this just another sign that our justice system isn't exactly fair? Kevin Zeese, President of Common Sense for Drug Policy weighs in.





Tool Time: Trump, 'Ron Paul is a Joke'?!



Donald Trump has been chosen to host a GOP debate on December 27th in Iowa. But John Huntsmann and Ron Paul both declined the invite, so while on the TODAY Show, Trump didn't waste much time bashing Huntsmann and Paul and said Paul was a joke. But a recent Des Moines Register poll shows Ron Paul is in second place with 18%, and is actually in front of Mitt Romney who has 16% support of Iowa caucus-goers.





Happy Hour: Kepler-22b, Earth's Twin Discovered



RT's Jenny Churchill and Reason's Mike Riggs are on happy hour tonight to talk about a gun ad that compares Obama to Hitler and Stalin, the most extensive car crash, calls for the US Ambassador to Belgium to step down after he makes "anti-Semitism" comments, and a new planet that's being called "Earth 2.0".

The Alyona Show - 12/02/11 - MSM: BART Now Controls Your Cell Phone ........

The Alyona Show - 12/02/11



We'll take a look at the latest jobs numbers released. Unemployment drops below 9% as over 300 thousand people leave the labor pool. Then, should the Occupy Wall Street movement be Occupying the ballot box? Krist Novoselic, bassist and co-founder of the band Nirvana argues just that. Then, we'll ask once again which religious group in US places God above country. And then don't miss our happy hour segment.






MSM: BART Now Controls Your Cell Phone



While the Newt Gingrich, Herman Cain tit for tat seemed to be one of the top stories for the mainstream media, they totally missed a story that will affect millions of people. Yesterday the board members of Bay Area Rapid Transit or BART, with the help of the FCC, voted unanimously to give themselves the power to turn off cell phone service in their transit stations whenever they see fit. The policy limits temporary shutdowns for the "most extraordinary circumstances." They say anything that poses a danger to public safety, destruction of BART property, or "substantial disruption of service".





300,000 Give Up Job Search



According to figures released by the U.S. Labor Department, the unemployment rate went down from 9% to 8.6% its lowest level in two and a half years. But 315,000 people dropped out of the labor force altogether, meaning that right now, just 64% of Americans are actively participating in the work force which is a historic low. WSJ's Kelly Evans explains.





Senate OKs Indefinite Detention of Americans



Politicians on Capitol Hill have been working hard on a $662 billion defense bill, and more importantly, one provision written within this legislation, the indefinite detention language. Senator Dianne Feinstein attempted to change the wording, to prevent indefinite detention of Americans without a trial, however that was voted down and Senator Mark Udall tried to remove the provision altogether, arguing that more research needs to be done on the issue, which was also voted down.





Krist Novoselic: #OWS Beyond the Occupation



As we already know, Occupy encampments in dozens of cities have been dismantled by police. So with this forced change in the Occupiers strategy, where does the movement go from here? Krist Novoselic, bassist and co-founder of the groundbreaking band Nirvana and the Chair of Fair Vote: The Center for Voting and Democracy discusses how Occupy Wall Street should engage in the electoral process.





Ally Financial Wants Your Location



As reported by the Huffington Post, Ally Financial now wants to know where you are and they're requesting to track costumer's location when they go to Ally's "Find ATM" page. Now of course Ally denies intentions of selling that location data to a third party advertiser for profit, and says they are just trying to make help costumers find an ATM more easily.





Evangelicals, National Security Threat?



A Gallup poll released this summer showed that 93% of Muslim-Americans believe that the Muslim community in the US is loyal to America. According to a Pew Research Poll which showed among evangelicals in the US, 70% see themselves first as Christians rather than as Americans, while 22% say they are primarily American. Talk radio host David Sirota discusses.





Tool Time: Gingrich: Poor Kids are Lazy



GOP Presidential Candidate Newt Gingrich while in Iowa, returned to the income inequality issue that's plaguing the country, and he once again called for child labor laws to be repealed. But apparently according to Gingrich, all poor kids are lazy, and will only end up making money by engaging in illegal activities.





Happy Hour: "Women for Herman Cain"



RT's Andrew Blake and Alex Seitz-Wald, with ThinkProgress.org join happy hour to talk about 'Women for Herman Cain", religious people trusting atheists about as much as they trust rapists, a Jewish group that won't let Ron Paul into their debates and a high school student who fought Michele Bachmann on gay marriage.





Viral Spiral: Pancake Rap



In this Viral Spiral; A man raps about his breakfast, a pig walks on it's front legs, people find a new use for a leaf blower, a woman dances in a treadmill, a box does the opposite of what is expected, a fire alarm goes off during a CBS news cast, and a pool playing chihuahua.

The Alyona Show - 12/01/11 - MSM: GOP Prez Race, About the $$

We'll look at how economic turmoil has weakened democratic institutions from Europe to the United States. Then, we'll dive into the latest developments from the Occupy Movement across the country. While hundreds of protesters from Occupy LA remain in police custody under $5,000 bail, the NYPD is back at it again blocking press and corralling protesters and at Obama fundraiser. Next, we'll ask if evangelicals put religion above country. And then don't miss our happy hour.





MSM: GOP Prez Race, About the $$



It seems like many of these GOP Presidential Candidates have no intention of running for President, yet they continue to happily collect money from supporters, and attention the press that willingly gives it to them, a fact MSNBC's Chuck Todd seems very comfortable with. What the mainstream media should be mentioning is that Herman Cain has put stops on his book tour ahead of stops in primary states or what about the fact that he's spent almost no time or money in Iowa. Even current frontrunner Newt Gingrich has kept a schedule that rotates between book tour and campaign tour. We'll show you the similarity between this and some reality TV stars.





Fed Loans: Worst 'Crony Capitalism... in History'



It turns out Too Big to Fail doesn't just apply to banks, it applies to entire regions of the world. Take the Eurozone, 17 countries that banded together under the umbrella of a single currency, the Euro. Well in the next week or so we'll know if it is indeed too big or too powerful to fail. But if it doesn't there are some major changes on the horizon like what we've already seen in Greece. Austerity measures including cuts to everything from jobs to social programs to well, as it turns out, freedoms. Economic Analyst Gonzalo Lira discusses.





Assange Dumps 'Spy Files'



Wikileaks is up and running again, and founder Julian Assange has dumped another massive leak of information, this time regarding surveillance. He has detailed the "spy files", shedding light on a $5 billion industry that is in high demand among governments around the world. Wikileaks detailed in their press conference the surveillance companies that have been secretly selling their products to governments with dictators and military regimes.





OWS Goes After Democrats



For the first time last night demonstrators with the Occupy Wall Street movement targeted an event for the president. It was a big fundraiser for President Obama in NYC. In what is becoming an all too familiar scene, much of the media was kept as far away as possible. And in Los Angeles, the Occupy encampment outside city hall was raided and destroyed by police who also arrested nearly 300 people. Discussing this is Ryan Devereaux with Democracy Now!





Show & Tell: Secret Fed Loans



Last time we asked if Dodd-Frank would have been stronger if Congress would have known the truth then about the size of the Federal Reserve's loans to US banks. Find out what are viewers are saying. Now, we spoke about OWS protesting Democratic fundraisers across the country, from an Obama fundraiser last night in NYC, to plans to protest a Pelosi fundraiser in Washington DC. So do you think it is a good move for OWS to be protesting politicians who have expressed support for the movement?





Tool Time: Fox too 'Aggressive' For Romney!



After an interview with FOX News, GOP candidate Mitt Romney was so upset after the interview was over that he complained repeatedly to Bret Baier about his line of questioning. But that's what the press does they grill you on your stance about important issues like immigration and abortion. In fact, he pretty much dodges any question that comes his way!





Happy Hour: Huntsman's Daughters Bring Sexy Back?



RT's Lauren Lyster, Jim Hanson blogger at BlackFive.net join happy hour tonight to talk Jon Huntsman daughters' song on Youtube, people preferring 'Merry Christmas' over 'Happy Holidays' for store signs, a Kentucky church banning interracial couples, a new anti-piracy video out by the Fed and get this, according to the DC police knowing your rights is an indication of criminal activity.





GOP Shills For Oil on Keystone XL



Republican Senator Lugar proposed a bill which would override the Obama Administration's review of the social and environmental impact of the XL Keystone Pipeline. The bill would put an end to the State Department review so that TransCanada can start building the pipeline ASAP. It would require the Obama administration to approve the pipeline within 60 days and put a stop to all further review.

Full Show -12/8/11 Occupied Amendment & Saving American Democracy Amendment

Full Show -12/8/11 Occupied Amendment & Saving American Democracy Amendment



Florida Congressman Ted Deutch explains in detail his OCCUPIED Amendment (Outlawing Corporate Cash Undermining the Public Interest in our Elections and Democracy).

Full Show - 12/7/11. Buddy Roemer and the Lone Liberal Rumble - Why Corporations are on the run - Would you feed your kids rat poison? ALEC would... - The Good, The Bad & The Very Very Unasinously Ugly - Greg Palast has a secret file to share - Crazy Alert! Battleground New Hampshire! - Lone Liberal Rumble - Why are firefighters watching homes burn down in TN? - Hartmann discovers Gov. Buddy Roemer's conservative worldview

Full Show - 12/7/11. Buddy Roemer and the Lone Liberal Rumble



Republican Presidential candidate Buddy Roemer gives his insight on the current state of the American economy and ideas for restructuring the national tax rate, healthcare system and state legislation. Later in the show, Thom debates his two conservative guests in the Lone Liberal Rumble.





Hartmann discovers Gov. Buddy Roemer's conservative worldview



Gov. Buddy Roemer, 2012 Republican candidate for President joins Thom Hartmann to talk about money in politics, healthcare and Government.





Lone Liberal Rumble - Why are firefighters watching homes burn down in TN?



Heather Cirmo, Conservative Strategist & Neil McCabe, Human Events Online joins Thom Hartmann. Why are firefighters watching homes burn down in Tennessee? I'll ask my panel of Conservatives if this is what a Libertarian Paradise looks like in tonight's Lone Liberal Rumble





Crazy Alert! Battleground New Hampshire!



Just how many candidates are running & why.





Greg Palast has a secret file to share


Greg Palast, investigative journalist and author of Vulture's Picnic: In Pursuit of Petroleum Pigs, Power Pirates, and High-Finance Carnivores. Who are the Vultures? Who are the Petroleum Pigs?
Who are the Power Pirates? Who are the High-Finance Carnivores?




The Good, The Bad & The Very Very Unasinously Ugly



The Good! U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg. After a tumultuous weekend between Occupy DC and police - the movement scored a small victory this week. The Bad! Dick Morris. The toe-sucker was on GOP TV's Fox and Friends this morning and confirmed all our suspicions about the role Fox so-called News plays in picking the next Republican Presidential nominee. And the very, very ugly...Rick Perry. With Governor Good Hair's campaign now completely derailed - Perry cut a new political ad in Iowa trying to remake himself as the ultimate culture warrior.





Would you feed your kids rat poison? ALEC would...



Marie Diamond, Think Progress joins Thom Hartmann. In our "What is the shadowy right wing think tank knows as ALEC up to now" news - we focus on the issue of rat poison. For those of you who don't know - ALEC - short for the American Legislative Exchange Council - is an organization made up of right-wing politicians - lobbyists - and corporate CEOs - who all meet together to write legislation that benefits primarly the top 1%. That legislation is then given to state legislatures - where it is promptly passed by the very same Republican lawmakers who join in on the ALEC meet-ups with corporate fatcats and lobbyists. For example, ALEC is the driving force behind the new voter ID laws - it's behind state blanced budget amendments that make it impossible to raise taxes on the rich - and it's behind the war on the EPA. And now - ALEC is pushing back against new regulations intended to prevent children from getting sick from rat poison. That's right - when it comes down to children and rat poison - ALEC sides with rat poison.





Why Corporations are on the run



For the first time in over three decades in America - corporate power is on the run. The final section of Unequal Protection is entitled, "Let us Begin" & end with a quote by John F. Kennedy who said, "All this will not be finished in the first 100 days. Nor will it be finished in the first 1,000 days, nor in the lifetime of this administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin." Thanks to the Occupy Wall Street movement - the fight against corporate personhood has kicked into high gear. And if the history of the past 200 years of steady progressive change in this country is any predictor of the future, "We the People" will win. Go to movetoamend.org.

Full Show - 12/6/11. OWS: From the Street to Foreclosed Homes

Thom talks with journalist, Sarah Seltzer and Deputy Director of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment, Christina Livingston about the protesters of Occupy Wall Street's decision to shift their focus from occupying city streets to occupying the homes of people at risk of foreclosure.

Hartmann: The number of zeroes in your bank account is a "get out of jail free" card

People are getting away with murder - or at the very least manslaughter - today in America. Alpha Natural Resources - the company that owns the Massey mine in West Virginia that exploded last year - has agreed to pay out a $209 million settlement for the crimes that lead to the death of 29 miners. That's 29 people killed - as a result of gross corporate negligence - and no one is going to jail over it. The company is simply writing a check - and sweeping it under the rug. Even though federal investigators found that Massey executives kept two sets of books to hide all the safety violations at the mine - and even though critical methane monitors were intentionally disabled before the explosion under the orders of management - no one will be held accountable for the death of James Rooney - or Timmy Davis - or Josh Napper - or Rick Lane - or Gary Quarles.

Hartmann: What do Marx and Kermit the Frog have in common?

Dan Gainor, Business & Media Institute, joins Thom Hartmann. What do Karl Marx and Kermit the Frog have in common? Well if you ask GOP TV - they're both commies!

Hartmann: The Good, The Bad, and the Very Very Inexpugnably Ugly

The Good! Ruth Porat. Porat is Morgan Stanley's Chief Financial Officer - but she is no bankster. The Bad! Congressman Peter King. Tomorrow, as Chairman of the House Homeland Security, King will hold his fourth hearing on the threat of American Muslims - this time he's focusing on Muslims in the military. That's because at the Economist Magazine's World in 2012 festival over the weekend - Porat slammed rising wealth inequality in America and the low taxes rich people have to pay. And the very, very ugly...The City of London Police. Last week - the London Police sent out a flyer to local businesses entitled "Terrorism/Extremism update." The flyer included information regarding the threat of terrorism - noting that the threat is "substantial." Included on the list of threats: Al Qaeda, FARC in Columbia, and extremists in Belarus...oh, and also Occupy London.

Hartmann: NAACP Warns - Black Americans Could Lose Right to Vote

Hilary Shelton, NAACP joins Thom Hartmann. With the next election less than a year away - it's minority voters who are screwed. Over the last year - we've seen Republicans in state after state pass radical new voting rights laws - that according to the Brennan Center for Justice could disenfranchise as many as 5 million eligible voters. And it's minorities who could be hit the worst - as new photo ID requirements - restrictions against early voting - and disenfranchisement among convicted felons - adversely affect minority communities across the country But now - the NAACP is fighting back. This week - the organization is presenting evidence ot the UN High Commissioner on human rights - arguing that there is a concerted effort underway in America to deny minorities their right to vote. In addition - next year - the NAACP will send a delegation of legal experts to Geneva to call on the UN human rights council to take a stand against the right-wing war on voting in America.

Hartmann: Crazy Alert! The 99-snakes movement

Thom Hartmann's crazy alert.

Hartmann: Is Pres. Obama now channeling one of the first progressives - Teddy Roosevelt?

Has our President has finally heard the message of Occupy Wall Street loud and clear??

Hartmann: 99ers are taking back the Capitol

Catherine Murrell, communications coordinator for Stand Up Chicago w/Shani Smith & Andy Gebel both unemployed join Thom Hartmann. Thousands of unemployed Americans and activists from around the nation flocked right here to Washington, DC as part of their "Take Back The Capitol" day of action. In hopes of channeling what the Bonus Army did back in 1931 - today's patriots are setting up camp on the Washington Mall - and then occupying Congressional offices - lobbying firms - and expensive fundraisers. The message is simple and clear: Our government should work for the people - and not corporations and lobbyists.

Hartmann: Out of Zuccotti Park and into people's living rooms

Hartmann: Out of Zuccotti Park and into people's living rooms


Sarah Seltzer, Alternet & Christina Livingston, ACCE. The Occupy Wall Street movement has moved on to a new phase - fighting foreclosures by occupying people's homes. We'll have the latest on today's day of action around the nation - as patriots stand up to the Banksters stealing our homes. The Bankster-caused Housing crisis sucked $7.7 trillion in wealth out of the middle class - it's time to start getting that money back.

The Good, The Bad, and the very, very Excerebrosely ugly...

The Good! Jon Huntsman. Huntsman declined an invitation t o attend the Republican debate in Iowa at the end of the month hosted by Newsmax - and moderated by none other than The Donald. Eric Cantor. The House Majority Leader is the man behind the Republicans' "YouCut" initiative which allows American to vote online what programs of the federal government they'd like to see cut. On Eric Cantor's chopping block this week...Smokey the Bear. And the very, very ugly...Sheriff Joe Arpaio. When it comes to illegal immigration - Sheriff Joe is tough as nails. When it comes to child molestation though - he's as soft as a snuggie.

Hartmann: Fukushima...Has the China Syndrome now officially begun?

Paul Gunter, Beyond Nuclear joins Thom Hartmann. The crisis at Fukushima continues. Over the weekend - the crippled Japanese nuclear plant spewed even more highly radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean - roughly 45,000 liters in all. According to a French nuclear research institute - since the Fukushima nuclear crisis began in March - the plant has leaked more radioactive material into the ocean than has ever happened before in the history of the planet. And he claims that after more than 8 months since an earthquake and tsunami triggered this crisis - it's inevitable that nuclear fuel has leaked into the groundwater - meaning the "China Syndrome" is officially upon us. He also warned that if underground water gets overheated - it could trigger a hydrovolcanic explosion. So what does all this mean? Time to ditch nuclear power - the most expensive and dangerous form of energy on Earth.

Hartmann: 1%er - Tax me...I Don't Create Jobs

Nick Hanauer, Seattle based entrepreneur joins Thom Hartmann. And the tug of war continues on Capitol Hill over extending the payroll tax cut that will expire at the end of the month - but not everyone in the one percent supports the Republican's agenda of protecting the interests of the super-rich at the expense of the 99 percent. The clocking is ticking down on Capitol Hill and the GOP seems completely unconcerned that their latest game of chicken may well cost YOU over a thousand dollars.