Supreme Court hears Guantanamo habeas complaint against military tribunals; NIE position on Iran meshes with military intelligence...

5 December :: US Supreme Court hearing case of prisoners held at Guantánamo Bay naval base, without charge or due process, who now argue 2006 military tribunals legislation violates the US Constitution because it strips defendants of habeas corpus rights; LA Times reports "the detainees do not have lawyers and have no right to challenge the evidence against them" and that "Some of the men were picked up by bounty hunters in Afghanistan, who were paid $5,000 for turning over Arab men to U.S. soldiers"... Speculation emerges Pentagon used NIE to voice its opposition to White House Iran policy, as 9 of 16 US spy agencies that form NIE report are military; top Pentagon officials say no policy intervention in NIE, but that military intelligence looks at intent or threat level, not scientific knowhow, that Iran could eventually restart program, but war is not presently advisable... TIME reports unnecessary use of Social Security numbers rampant, puts consumers at serious risk of identity theft; private companies, utilities, and ISPs do not need a Social Security number, nor can they, by law, demand it; Verizon is listed as repeatedly insisting it is necessary to open an account, while their own website warns that giving out such information puts consumers at risk of identity theft; in November, the FTC released data showing that "in 2005, the last year for which there's data, 8.3 million Americans were victims — almost 4% of all adults in this country"... Bush to announce plan to freeze mortgage rates for 5 years, for homeowners at risk of losing homes as adjustable rates suddenly rise...

Rice admits US mishandled Arar case; US may have more contractors in Iraq than soldiers; UN says xenon in Canada proves 2006 DPRK nuke test...

25 October :: Sec. of State Condoleezza Rice admits to House human rights subcommittee that the US handling of the case of Maher Arar, was "by no means perfect, in fact it was quite imperfect", adding "we do absolutely not want to transfer anyone to a place where they might be tortured"; Arar is a Canadian citizen sent to Syria for interrogation where he was allegedly tortured for a year; in 2004, the Canadian government set up a commission of inquiry into the Arar case, its proceedings and fact-finding reports are available online... Reuters reports "For the first time in its history, the U.S. is fighting a war with more private contractors than military personnel. The ratio in Iraq is estimated at around 180,000 to 160,000"; escalating dependence on 'contractors' is worrying as it shows military limitations, and use of mercenaries is banned under int'l law... Iraq gov't drafting legislation to strip foreign security contractors of immunity from prosecution under Iraqi system; move would reverse decree by outgoing Coalition Provisional Authority, rule which many Iraqis blame for contractors' alleged abuses... Jim Rogers, who co-founded Quantum Fund, tells Telegraph US is "undoubtedly in recession"; consumer spending, housing market, transport costs, falling dollar undermining overall economy... UN researchers detect unusually high levels of radioactive noble gas Xenon, in northern Canada, say gas is trace evidence confirming 2006 nuclear test by DPRK; scientists said amount found suggests explosion was relatively small, and underground... Rumored deal to get Republican support for spending measures brings enough Democrat support to approve controversial judicial nominee to Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals; party leader, along with majority of Democrats, had opposed Leslie Southwick's nomination to a court that covers Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, because he's seen as weak on racial equality... Google to work with Nielson to pinpoint television viewing habits, help advertisers gather information on commercial viewing, better target ad dollars...

CIA chief defends detention, 'rendition' practices; APEC sets 'goal' to reduce greenhouse gas emissions...

8 September :: Gen. Michael Hayden, head of US CIA, has publicly defended detention and "extraordinary rendition" practices used by CIA in treatment of those captured in association with terror investigations; EU courts investigating abductions, illegal transport of prisoners, detention without judicial review, with evidence suggesting hundreds of clandestine flights related to such practices; lawsuits have been filed in Europe, US, Canada by former detainees who say they were abducted, flown to third countries, then later tortured... Leaders of APEC nations agreed in Australia yesterday to a "long-term aspirational goal" to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but have set no binding targets; major concern is how to bring China into a carbon-emissions regime without undermining its rapid industrial expansion...