(photo: Shrieking Tree) It is with great excitement that I welcome you to The Dissenter, a Firedoglake blog that will cover civil liberties and digital freedom issues. It will feature regular coverage of the torture scandal that continues to wear on and the ongoing US government war on WikiLeaks, along

On Wednesday, Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona renewed his push for the creation of a temporary Senate committee to investigate WikiLeaks and the hacktivist group Anonymous that would be called the Committee on Cyber Security and Electronic Intelligence Leaks.

Screen shot from the trailer of Inception     10. Black Swan   Using the ballet “Swan Lake” as a backdrop, this film intensely brings to life the reality that performers can often lose their selves when performing. Directed by Darren Aronofsky (Requiem for a Dream, The Wrestler), Nina Sayers

On December 6th, Chicagoans came out for an Emergency Response Rally organized by the Committee to Stop FBI Repression to support activists who have been targeted by the FBI in the past months. Those present stood in the cold and condemned U.S. attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, who has been directing the FBI to expand its repression of activists in Chicago.

Weeks after the FBI raided their home, two Chicago
activists, Stephanie Weiner and Joe Iosbaker, stood before a crowd of about 150
Chicagoans gathered outside the Dirksen Federal Building and declared during a
press conference they, and twelve others who were subpoenaed, have no intention to go before any grand juries and participate in a “fishing expedition.”

On the day before Thanksgiving, members of single payer advocacy organizations gathered for a press conference to voice strong concerns with a Democratic health bill that they feel fails to address the biggest problems with health care in America.

John Nichols writes that there’s nothing to worry about from Scott Walker’s fairly large vote support in this week’s recall primaries in Wisconsin. Walker didn’t have a serious challenger on the ballot and there was a contested race for the Democratic nominee on the other side. And yet Walker came

The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division has filed suit against Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, alleging discriminatory police conduct against Latino citizens. Federal authorities allege that Arpaio and his office have unconstitutionally and unlawfully targeted Latinos during traffic stops and during crime suppression operations. DOJ alleges that MCSO (Maricopa County

We’re still in the posturing phase of the fiscal cliff situation, and now we have another data point. Harry Reid has come out and said pretty forcefully that he will not roll back the trigger, the automatic cuts to defense and discretionary spending due at the end of the year,

A day after announcing himself evolved on marriage equality, President Obama heads to Hollywood for a fundraising dinner at George Clooney’s house that promises to raise a whopping $15 million. The campaign turned the event into a raffle, where a small donor could win “dinner with Barack and George,” and

The Florida Supreme Court heard oral arguments in an important case that could have wide-ranging implications for foreclosures in that state. The case, Roman Pino v. Bank of New York Mellon, could invalidate the ability of banks to refile documents in situations where the initial documents they filed to foreclose

The third-place party in the Greek elections, PASOK, has been given the opportunity to form a new government, after the first two parties failed in their efforts. Nobody expects PASOK to be successful, meaning that new elections will ensue, probably on June 17. By that time, decisions will need to