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Over 100 million smartphones are tracking their owners’ every step, Android developer Trevor Eckhart claimed, thanks to software that comes preinstalled on phones from most major carriers. During a security demonstration revealed on Monday, Eckhart showed how software developed by Carrier IQ tracks virtually everything a user does -- going as far as logging individual keystrokes and button presses. The company claims it helps its customers improve quality and performance “by counting and measuring operational information in mobile devices.” Security experts call it spyware.

RIO GRANDE VALLEY, Texas - Every day students in Texas public schools pledge allegiance to the flags of the United States and Texas. But when a teacher in a Rio Grande Valley high school assigned students to stand and pledge allegiance to the Mexican flag and sing Mexico's national anthem, one student refused. The resulting controversy has one East Texas lawmaker wanting changes in the state's curriculum on how culture and patriotism are taught in schools. 15-year-old Brenda Brinsdon entered her sophomore year at McAllen ISD's Achieve Early College High School just wanting to do well in her classes.

Is it me or are we really going to hell in a hand basket? I'm sick of of all the BS and why don't we all do TAKE BACK AMERICA rally in the the October 2012 time frame? Seriously.. We had the Tea Party, we had gathering of Eagles, we had the Glen Beck, rally, why noy a SERIOUS TAKE BACK AMERICA RALLY in October 2012? Bring the silent majority to the front, HAMMER the opposition just before the elections?

Stocks closed in negative territory in thin, shortened trading Friday as investors were reluctant to go long ahead of the weekend and amid ongoing worries over the euro zone. The Dow and S&P posted their worst Thanksgiving week since the Great Depression on a percentage basis. The Dow Jones Industrial Average erased their gains to finish lower, led by H-P [HPQ 25.39 -0.39 (-1.51%) ] and Chevron [CVX 92.29 -1.46 (-1.56%)]. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq also ended lower, logging a seventh consecutive decline. Some traders are watching for 1,150 on the S&P as the next key level. The...

To get to city hall, you drive up I-75, past the empty Silverdome where the Detroit Lions used to play, and into a nondescript concrete municipal building. The city clerk was laid off a few days ago, but the door to her office hangs open. The mayor, Leon Jukowski, gives me a brief tour of the desks where people no longer work. Cubicles sit empty, little tchotkes and calendars left behind when their owners were laid off. “At one time we had 800, 900 city employees,” says Jukowski. “We have 150 now. And we have the same services that we...

What we instead need are more free markets and more liberty – for history has shown that this is the way for our country’s restored greatness – both as a nation but also for the general populace. To that end, we will be rallying on December 3rd at 11:30 a.m. on the West Steps of the Colorado State Capitol to show support for free market capitalism. Additionally, we will be having a charity drive for a charity to be determined to help show that voluntary contributions – not forced altruism at the hand of the government – is the most...

“Workers of the World Unite” Karl Marx, the infamous German political philosopher had a vision. Marx, together with Joseph Engles predicted and even called for the dismantling of capitalist economic systems worldwide into a socialist and ultimately classless communist World. 24thState will be asking the question of the late Mr. Marx, “How is that working out for you?” CP USA In a series of columns, we will expose the 5th column in the United States. We will name names and expose the ties from David Axelrod, who just visited St. Louis referring to some GOP presidential contenders as “nutty folks“,...

OK we're not allowed to source to Bloomberg, but this one is worth alluding to, just with a few facts: America and the commie Chinese began "trade talks" today. That means, America once again gives crap away, with nothing in return. The "trade talks" (which mean America gives crap away, with nothing in return) are being held in the commie Chinese city of Chengdu; ironically in a hotel with a clothing store named "Amornini". Which features, according to the article summarized for this thread: "a bird logo that closely resembles that of the Milan-based Giorgio Armani SpA fashion house. "...

IT’S THE CORRUPTION, STUPID General George Washington was the first President of the United States and had warned against warring political "factions" Barack Obama leads the most corrupt Administration in U.S. history. Nevertheless, rather than addressing his corruption directly, the Republican Party ignores it, hoping to defeat Obama in the 2012 election by highlighting the “policy” differences between the political parties. That decision should surprise no one. The Republicans are less corrupt than the Democrats only because they are more inept at the task. November 6, 2012 will be less an election than an auction of the nation’s wealth, callously...

Canada is counting on China to be a key investor in Alberta's oil sands projects and a big customer for crude that would flow through a proposed Northern Gateway Pipeline. Federal Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver is half-way through his visit to China to drum up customers for the country's forestry and oil sectors. And he told reporters in a conference call from Shanghai Wednesday that he's spent a lot of time talking about increased Chinese investment in Alberta's growing oil sands. "On the oil sands our interests are aligned. China wants to diversify its sources of oil and we...

So, yeah. We all suspected the White House was going to punt on this one, but now we've got the official excuse story as to why they're choosing to delay the approval of the Keystone pipeline. The Obama administration said Thursday it is delaying approval of a massive oil pipeline until it can study new potential routes that avoid environmentally sensitive areas of the state of Nebraska, an action that likely puts off a decision until after the 2012 election. The announcement by the State Department means Calgary-based TransCanada Corp. will have to figure out a way to move the...

Once again, the real news in France is conveniently not being reported as it should. To give you an idea of what’s going on in France where there are now between 5 and 6 million Muslims and about 600,000 Jews, here is an email that came from a Jew living in France. Will the world say nothing – again – as it did in Hitler’s time? “I am a Jew — therefore I am forwarding this to everyone on all my e-mail lists. I will not sit back and do nothing. Nowhere have the flames of anti-Semitism burned more furiously...

The tar sandhills near Mills in north central Nebraska, through which the Keystone XL pipeline is planned to be built. The woman seated before the row of suited state legislators in her red Husker team hoodie was choking on tears. She had grown up on a farm in Nebraska. Her parents had grown up on farms, in the days before electricity and running water, and now she said generations of toil and sweat could be destroyed in an instant by a $7bn pipeline project. A leak from the pipeline, which would run from the tar sands of Alberta to the...

I’m a day late on this but it’s too intriguing not to blog. You can read the actual letter, which is exceedingly tame, on Mike Simpson’s website. Among the signatories: …Ron Paul. The bad news? If this happens, some people might be paying a little more. The good news? We’ll never have to read another “time for a grand bargain” column from Tom Friedman again. Dude, I think we should take the deal. A group of 40 House Republicans for the first time Wednesday encouraged Congress’s deficit reduction committee to explore new revenue as part of a broad deal that...

Senate votes down Obama jobs measure By Josiah Ryan - 11/03/11 03:26 PM ET For the third time in four weeks, Senate Republicans on Thursday voted in unison to block a piece of President Obama's jobs package. The GOP senators were joined by one Democrat, Sen. Ben Nelson (Neb.), and Independent Sen. Joe Lieberman (Conn.) in rejecting a procedural motion on legislation that would spend $60 billion on transportation infrastructure programs. The vote was 51-49. The spending was offset with a new tax on income earned above $1 million that Republicans oppose. Many Republicans, including Sen. Jeff Sessions (Ala.), said...

Texas Governor Rick Perry raised more than a few eyebrows when his campaign floated the idea that there might be better “time management” agenda items than flying around to an endless series of primary debates. Speaking as one of the people who has to watch – and write about – all of these dog and pony shows, I admit that I had a bit of sympathy for the concept. But it drew a lot of additional fire on his campaign, and now it seems that we’ll at least be seeing Rick at some of them. Rick Perry plans to participate...

Equality: The Girl Scouts of Colorado says it's working to support transgender children, their families and the volunteers who serve them I had no idea! Silly me...when I grew up I thought there were distinctions between boys and girls; but this isn't that. It's about "inclusiveness" for fear of being stigmatized with the dirty-word labels, sexist/bigoted/racist/xenophobic/homophobic: The Girl Scouts of Colorado has flip-flopped on a decision not to let a 7-year-old boy join their organization, now saying he is welcome even though he’s not a girl. Bobby Montoya plays with Barbie dolls and My Little Ponies. He’s a boy, but...

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) indicated at a press briefing Thursday that the House Republican leadership is not ruling out the possibility that it will support a balanced budget amendment that does not cap federal spending as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product or require a supermajority in Congress to increase taxes. The legislation to increase the federal debt limit--that Boehner negotiated with President Barack Obama in August--requires both houses of Congress to vote on a balanced budget amendment before the end of the year. However, the legislation does not specify what type of balanced budget amendment must be considered...

After a series of poor debate performances in the early months of his presidential campaign, Texas Gov. Rick Perry is backing off the upcoming GOP debate schedule, committing to just one of the next three events between now and Nov. 15. Perry has struggled in the five debates he has attended since he joined the race in mid-August. At one, he fumbled an attempt to cast rival Mitt Romney as a flip-flopper. At another, bickering between Romney and Perry drew criticism that the candidates were acting juvenile. Perry hinted at his frustration with the debates earlier this week when he...

With the most recent GOP presidential primary "debate" just concluded, it's clear that the frontrunner is none other than ... you guessed it, Barack Hussein Obama. The incessant bickering bullpucky and petty assaults among most of the GOP wannabes is undoubtedly a source of great glee for the Obama campaign.