Top U.S. and World News Headlines for Thursday, December 11

Published on Dec 11, 2014
Visit http://democracynow.org to watch the full daily independent, global news hour. This is a summary of top news headlines from the U.S. and around the world on Thursday, December 11, 2014. Go to the Democracy Now! website to read the complete transcript, search the vast news archive, and to make a donation to support our daily, non-profit news program.

In this video, you’ll learn about these top news headlines:

White House Faces Calls to Prosecute, Fire CIA Officials for Torture

U.N. Human Rights Commissioner: U.S. Has Obligation to Prosecute Torturers

U.S. Hands over Control of Afghanistan’s Bagram Prison After Torture Findings Released

Psychologist Who Helped Devise Torture Methods Defends CIA Program

APA: Hold Psychologists Accountable for Creating Torture Program

Threat of Gov’t Shutdown Renewed as Dems Oppose Wall St. Deregulation Added to Spending Bill

Medical Students, Activists Stage Nationwide “Die-Ins” over Eric Garner Decision

Hip Hop Artists Nas, Common, Q-Tip Present Demands for Justice in Garner Case

Obama Admin Given Deadline to Decide on Whether to Jail NYT Reporter in Leak Case

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From the Streets to the Suites, Protesters Call for Climate Justice at Corporate Gathering in Lima

democracynow

Published on Dec 11, 2014
http://democracynow.org – In Peru, thousands marched in Lima on Wednesday calling on world leaders at the United Nations climate summit to do more to tackle climate change. After the main march, hundreds headed across town in a spontaneous action against a corporate meeting called the World Climate Summit. Democracy Now! producer Renée Feltz filed this report from the streets.

Watch all our reports from the U.N. climate summit in Lima, Peru on our website:
http://www.democracynow.org/topics/li…

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Adapting to a changing climate

climateconference

Published on Dec 11, 2014

A new video documentary by the UNFCCC Adaptation Committee aims at raising awareness on climate change adaptation. The 20 minute documentary “Adapting to a changing climate” introduces viewers to the topic of climate change adaptation, weaving in inspiring stories of adaptation action and interviews with experts.

Experts:
Christina Chan, Co-Chair, Adaptation Committee
Juan Hoffmaister, Co-Chair, Adaptation Committee
Christiana Figueres, Executive Secretary, UNFCCC

HE Lucille Sering, Secretary of the Climate Change Commission of the Philippines
HE Tumusiime Rhoda Peace, Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture of the African Union
Ms Mary Robinson, UN Special Envoy for Climate Change
Professor Lord Nicholas Stern, academic and author of the “Stern Review”
Ms Bianca Jagger, Chair of the Human Rights Foundation.

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Torture Is Not an American Value

The Big Picture RT

Published on Dec 11, 2014

Republicans on Fox News are freaking out about the Senate Intelligence Committee’s torture report – but for all the wrong reasons.

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The Scientific Buddha: Past, Present, Future – “Building a Better Buddha”

Yale University

Published on Dec 11, 2014

October 7, 2008 The Future of the Past
Donald Lopez is Arthur E. Link Distinguished University Professor of Buddhist and Tibetan Studies at the University of Michigan and chair of the Department of Asian Languages and Cultures. He has written extensively on aspects of religions of Asia, and his books include Prisoners of Shangi-La: Tibetan Buddhism and the West; The Story of Buddhism; and Buddhism and Science: A Guide for the Perplexed. Professor Lopez also serves as chair of the Michigan Society of Fellows.

In exploring the relationship between religion and science, some have argued that among the world’s religions, Buddhism is the most compatible with science. Over the course of his lectures, Professor Lopez examines the origins of the association of the Buddha with modern science, considers what is at stake in that association and suggests new directions for the role of the Buddha in scientific research.

Yale University

Published on Dec 11, 2014

October 2, 2008 Building a Better Buddha

Donald Lopez is Arthur E. Link Distinguished University Professor of Buddhist and Tibetan Studies at the University of Michigan and chair of the Department of Asian Languages and Cultures. He has written extensively on aspects of religions of Asia, and his books include Prisoners of Shangi-La: Tibetan Buddhism and the West; The Story of Buddhism; and Buddhism and Science: A Guide for the Perplexed. Professor Lopez also serves as chair of the Michigan Society of Fellows.

In exploring the relationship between religion and science, some have argued that among the world’s religions, Buddhism is the most compatible with science. Over the course of his lectures, Professor Lopez examines the origins of the association of the Buddha with modern science, considers what is at stake in that association and suggests new directions for the role of the Buddha in scientific research.

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Larry Summers: Oil Prices Should Stay Down

Big Think

Published on Dec 11, 2014
The acclaimed economist talks oil prices, energy independence, and America’s unavoidable market vulnerability. Even though the United States is reeling in its reliance on foreign sources of oil, Summers says its link to the oil markets of Europe and Japan means an innate state of vulnerability.

Read more at BigThink.com: http://goo.gl/P7H4Xn

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Hearing on “The Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975”

EnergyCommerce

Published on Dec 11, 2014

The Subcommittee on Energy and Power held a hearing on Thursday, December 11, 2014, at 9:30 a.m. in 2123 Rayburn House Office Building. The hearing was titled “The Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975: Are We Positioning America for Success in an Era of Energy Abundance?” http://democrats.energycommerce.house…

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Jim Hightower | Trying to teach ethics to congress critters

Friday, December 5, 2014 |
Posted by Jim Hightower

Listen to this Commentary
http://jimhightower.com/node/8496#.VInS8XtDoc8

Do you – or anyone – really need a book of rules and a three-hour briefing on ethics in order to do your job ethically?

If you’re a congress critter, apparently so, for that’s what newly-elected members of the new Congress that’ll convene in January have just received. Nearly all of the newcomers rode to victory on a tsunami of inherently-corrupting corporate cash, but now they’re being instructed in a crash course on Capitol Hill ethics – not learning how to be ethical, but how to avoid ending up being investigated, indicted, or… in jail.

You see, in the rarefied air of Washington, one can be blatantly unethical, as long as your behavior has not technically been declared illegal. It’s a fine line, so this latest class of special-interest lawmakers were eager learners.

But, in practice, actually crossing that line is no barrier to congressional service. GOP Rep. Michael Grimm of Staten Island, for example, is back in Congress even though he was caught on tape threatening to throw a reporter off a balcony. The appropriately-named Grimm is also under indictment for 20 counts of accounting fraud. Errant Democrats can continue in office, too. Take Charlie Rangel of New York, who has been formally censured by Congress for a mess of ethics violations – but rather than going to The Big House, Rangel is back in the House of Representatives, reelected on November 4 with no Republican opposition.

There’s now a bipartisan move in the House to require annual ethics training for every lawmaker, claiming that this will enhance the public reputation of each member and of Congress itself. Dream on – who do they think they’re kidding? As Lyndon Johnson put it, “chicken manure can’t turn to chicken salad.” These so-called adults didn’t absorb basic ethics from thier kindergarten teachers, they sure won’t learn anything to improve their morality in a congressional classroom.

…(read more).

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Jim Hightower | The explosive greed of Americas 0.01-percenters

http://jimhightower.com/node/8500#.VInO1ntDoc8
Wednesday, December 10, 2014 |
Posted by Jim Hightower
Listen to this Commentary

In this season of mass commercialism, let’s pause to consider the plight of simple millionaires.

Astonishingly, they’re being abandoned by retailers that are now catering to the most lux of the luxury market. “Whether the product is yachts, diamonds, art, wine, or even handbags,” says Robert Frank, a chronicler of American wealth, “the strongest growth and biggest profits are now coming from billionaires and nine-figure millionaires, rather than from mere millionaires.” What this reflects is not the wealth divide between the 1-percenters and the rest of us, but a stunning concentration of America’s total wealth in the vaults of the ever-richer 0.01-percenters.

They are an extravagant moneyed aristocracy, sitting so high above our society that they largely go unseen. This exclusive club includes only two-hundredths-of-one-percent of American families, with each holding fortunes of more than $110 million. The riches of these privileged ones keep snowballing – their outsized share of our national wealth has doubled since 2002, and their holdings are expanding twice as fast as other 1-percenters.

Their growing control of wealth is distorting high-end consumerism, including such goods as private jets. Sales of your common millionaire-sized jets are down by two-thirds since the 2008 Wall Street crash. So, jet makers have shifted to the billionaire buyers, including some who are spending eye-popping levels of lucre to possess such pretties as their very own Boeing 777-300 – which normally carries 400 passengers.

…(read more).

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The Cross Examination of Dick Cheney – The Takeaway

Thursday, December 11, 2014
Dick Cheney attends 2013 Federal Law Enforcement Foundation Luncheon at The Waldorf Astoria on November 22, 2013 in New York City. (Ben Hider/Getty)

Attorney David Nevin serves as lead defense counsel for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, and he’s defended Mohammed at Guantanamo Bay since 2008. Here he tells The Takeaway what questions he would ask former Vice President Dick Cheney if he were to take the stand in KSM’s trial.

…(read more).

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