NSA collecting phone records of millions of Americans daily from The Guardian
In this exclusive story, which will stir privacy advocates, The Guardian reveals that the National Security Agency is collecting telephone records of Verizon customers and has been doing so since April under a top secret court order.

After Six Years of Bloodshed, Mexico’s Drug War Shows Little Sign of Waning from The Atlantic
Mexico’s drug war, which has been a pressing topic for extempers for a very long time, continues to rage on. This article provides an overview of the violence and why it has no end in sight.

Obama picks loyalist Susan Rice as national security adviser from Reuters
In a move that has been billed as an “in your face” appointment to Republicans, President Obama selected Susan Rice as his new national security adviser yesterday. President Obama wanted Rice to replace Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State, but that did not occur because of fallout over the Benghazi situation.

Two steps back from The Economist
Although Singapore has most of its population connected to the Internet, its government is attempting to impose a new media licensing requirement whereby all websites that dealt with news had to be licesned. Content that the government found to be in breach of established standards would also have to removed within 24 hours. Opponents argue that the legislation is designed to crack down on anti-government media options.

TSA reverses course, will keep knife ban in effect from The Washington Post
Although the Transportation Security Administration was going to ease rules on carrying knives on airplanes, it is backing off of the measure after opposition from Congress and segments of the airline industry.

U.S., Venezuela to Pursue “More Positive” Relations from The Latin American Herald Tribune
Although America’s relationship with Venezuela was tense under previous Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez, Secretary of State John Kerry is trying to mend fences and re-establish a better dialogue with one of the larger oil producers in the Western Hemisphere.

Poll finds overwhelming support for drone strikes from NBC News
Although some members of Congress appear to be anxious about drone strikes, most Americans seem to support the idea, with 66% of them favoring strikes against suspected members of Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups.

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