CSULA Embraces Free Speech After Threat of Lawsuit – legal Insurrection (blog)

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This is another win for Ben Shapiro and Young Americas Foundation.

The Daily Caller reported:

California University Embraces Free Speech After Threatened With Lawsuit

A university has updated its free speech policies following a lawsuit filed by a conservative speaker whose event was almost cancelled at the school.

Ben Shapiro, Editor-in-Chief of The Daily Wire and his partner organization, Young Americas Foundation, sued California State University, Los Angeles, after a virtual riot broke out at his scheduled speaking engagement. Shapiro was met by a mob of violent protesters who had blocked entrances to the event, physically attacked attendees, and blocked entrances to the speech, according to The Daily Wire.

Shapiro and Young Americas Foundation dismissed the lawsuit after the school made some changes to its free speech policies, as noted in The Daily Signal.

California State University, Los Angeles, pledged to not impose any fees, including security fees, based upon the viewpoint of the speech at future events. The school also pledged to not unilaterally refuse to schedule or cancel any scheduled event based upon the viewpoint of the speech that is to take place, adding that it will enforce terms of its Administrative Policy on Time, Place, and Manner of Free Expression P007 in a viewpoint-neutral manner, as reported by Young Americas Foundation.

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CSULA Embraces Free Speech After Threat of Lawsuit - legal Insurrection (blog)

JNU’s Umar Khalid hosts a seminar on Atheism with Dawkins & Harris, says ‘A’theism means One God – Firstpost (satire)

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New Delhi: JNUs Umar Khalid is all set to unleash his atheist ideas onto the nation. In that line, he has hosted a seminar on Atheism with global atheist stalwarts, Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris.

Umar Khalid shot to fame last yearwhen as a student of JNU, he and Kanhaiyya shouted Bharat tere tukde hoge, which resulted in a surge of outrage from his co-ideologists from journalist and political spheres. While Umar Khalid was targeted for his religion, he shot back saying that he is an Atheist. It has been a year since and Umar was blamed for not sharing anything related to Atheism in his Facebook timeline.

To put an end to all controversy around my atheism, I am hosting this session, said Umar from the seminar stage. Richard Dawkins was seated on his left and Sam Harris was seated on his right. Today, I am going to discuss atheism. I call upon my brothers and sisters of India to walk out of their Hinduismand embrace atheism. Before our other members could open their mouth, let me explain what my Atheism is.

Taking a look at the audience from left to right, Umar uttered these words, Atheism is a combination of two words A and Theism. It means there can be only one God. And He is watching us every day. And there can be only one Prophet(saw).

Turning back to Dawkins and Harris, Umar bent his head and asked, Do you agree to what I say?. Both of them looked shocked and shook their heads from left to right. Umar continued, Let me explain. Take 5th chapter, 23rd page, 432nd verse, 2nd line. What does it say? It says Immediately, the crowd went into cheer as goatee grew out of Umars chin. His glasses rim turned more translucent and a skull cap came out of nowhere. It was not Umar Khalid but Zakir Naik they saw there on the stage. While Umar was turning into Zakir, the seminar was turning into a seminary.

A conch blew from somewhere and Umar Khalid who is now Zakir Naik kept on growing in size uttering verses after verses. With his head touching ceiling, he then turned to the atheist duo, Do you not see who I am, O Infidels?, after which Harris and Dawkins ran from the stage to Delhi airport.

A visibly cheerful fan of Umar shouted from the audience, If a Zakir Naik is banned from India, thousands of Zakir Naiks will come out.

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JNU's Umar Khalid hosts a seminar on Atheism with Dawkins & Harris, says 'A'theism means One God - Firstpost (satire)

NASA’s Hubble telescope captures image of UGC 12591 galaxy – BGR India

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The Hubble space telescope has captured an image to showcase an incredible massive galaxy, UGC 12591, that lies just under 400 million light-years away from the Earth. The galaxy and its halo together contain several hundred billion times the mass of the Sun four times the mass of the Milky Way, NASA said in a statement on Friday. It also whirls round extremely quickly, rotating at speeds of up to 1.8 million kilometers per hour, it added.

UGC 12591 sits somewhere between a lenticular and a spiral. It lies in the westernmost region of the Pisces-Perseus Supercluster, a long chain of galaxy clusters that stretches out for hundreds of light-years ? one of the largest known structures in the cosmos. Observations with Hubble are helping astronomers to understand the mass of UGC 12591, and to determine whether the galaxy simply formed and grew slowly over time, or whether it might have grown unusually massive by colliding and merging with another large galaxy at some point in its past, NASA said. The Hubble Space Telescope is collaboration between NASA and European Space Agency (ESA).

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NASA's Hubble telescope captures image of UGC 12591 galaxy - BGR India

Ex-NATO commander says Russia, China will surpass U.S. military … – New York Daily News

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Ex-NATO commander says Russia, China will surpass U.S. military

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Sunday, March 5, 2017, 11:42 AM

A prominent retired general said Sunday that the U.S. military was in decline and indicated that not even President Trump's proposed $54 billion increase in defense spending was likely to prevent it from soon being surpassed by those of Russia and China.

Former NATO Commander Gen. Wesley Clark, a Democratic presidential candidate in 2004, told John Catsimatidis on the "Cats Roundtable" radio program on AM 970 in New York that, "if you look at what's happened over 25 years, the United States has mostly put its military modernization on warm idle."

"We've looked at what we need. But we have not bought the stuff that is cutting-edge We are spending our money on ordinance, on bombers, on missiles that are blowing holes in the ground and sometimes hitting terrorists," he said. "But Russia, they have produced a new generation of armored forces."

Clark said the Russian military has tanks "we'd like to have in 2030."

James Clapper shuts down Trumps claim that Obama ordered wiretap

"We are that far behindThat's worrisome," he said, adding that the U.S. is also "behind on the nuclear side."

U.S. air, satellite and drone systems are "all vulnerable to electro-magnetic pulse and electromagnetic warfare disruption."

"We build very sophisticated systems, but they have very obvious vulnerabilities," he said.

Last month, news emerged that Trump's proposed budget would make deep cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency and a host of other federal agencies while boosting military spending by $54 billion

Trump's understanding of national security probes is troubling

But not even that would suffice, Clark contended.

"Unfortunately, the new $54 billion (that would be) going into the Defense budget doesn't really deliver sufficient funds to meet the need," he said. "We need more money than that on a sustained basis."

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Ex-NATO commander says Russia, China will surpass U.S. military ... - New York Daily News

Report flags NATO’s naval shortfalls vis-a-vis Russia – DefenseNews.com

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LONDON -- NATO has been urged to rethink its maritime strategy to address the re-emerging contest with Russia for supremacy in the North Atlantic, a paper by one of Europes top military think tanks says. If NATO does not have effective control of the North Atlantic, or at least the ability to deny Russia naval access to this maritime domain, Russia could block or disrupt U.S. reinforcement to Europe," the Royal United Services Institute said in the paper to be published in London on Monday. Titled, "NATO and the North Atlantic: Revitalising Collective Defence," the paper draws on views from leading experts, including Adm. James Stavridis, the Supreme Allied Commander between 2009 and 2013. Until now most of NATOs strategic response to Moscows aggression has been in the air and land sectors, but now senior ex-military officers writing in the survey are saying the alliance has to respond on the maritime front as well.

NATO must put the North Atlantic Ocean back on its agenda," retiredU.S.Gen. Philip M Breedlove, the Supreme Allied Commander Europe until last year, wrote in the survey's foreword.

Britain said mid-2016 it was buying nine of the jets and Norway later announced it too would become an operator of the aircraft with an order for five aircraft.

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Report flags NATO's naval shortfalls vis-a-vis Russia - DefenseNews.com

Aircraft based in San Antonio take part in major NATO operation along Russian border – mySanAntonio.com

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Photo: JERRY LARA, San Antonio Express-News

Aircraft based in San Antonio take part in major NATO operation along Russian border

RIGA, Lativa The 22 soldiers in a chilly, darkened seating area toward the rear of the C-5M Super Galaxy bounced and jerked as its rear wheels hit a rain-slicked runway in this small Baltic country bordering Russia.

Air Force Reserve Capt. Mike Raggio of San Antonio adjusted the rudder to align the 28-wheel landing gear with the center line. Thrust reversers slowed the aircraft to an approach speed, then it rolled to a stop and the soldiers began unloading three UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters.

RELATED:The U.S. is putting tanks and troops right in Russia's backyard

The arrival here of the 10th Mountain Division's 2-10 Assault Helicopter Battalion last week was mostly unnoticed in the United States. But it was a major event in Latvia , a member of NATO and a former Soviet republic whose Russian border neighborhood has grown increasingly tense in recent years.

The battalion, ferried from Fort Drum, New York by the giant transport planes based at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, is part of a brigade that has sent 2,200 soldiers to Latvia, Germany and Romania for a nine-month training tour.

That deployment is part of Operation Atlantic Resolve, a multinational mission whose American footprint throughout Europe is 5,800 soldiers so far, including a 400-strong 1st Armored Division aviation regiment from Fort Bliss.

Added to the 70,000 U.S. troops permanently assigned to Europe, Atlantic Resolve is NATO's biggest military buildup along Russia's borders since the Cold War, military observers say.

Its a message to Moscow in the wake of a resurgent Russias annexation of the Crimea in 2014, combat clashes within Ukraine and support for other pro-Russian separatists in nations once part of the Soviet Union.

RELATED:Trump wary of Russian deal; new advisers urge tougher stand

Estonia, a neighbor of Latvia, accused Russians of kidnapping a senior security official in 2014; Russia said it detained him on the Russian side of the border. Russian President Vladimir Putin has positioned nuclear-capable missiles in Kaliningrad, a piece of Russia that borders Poland and Lithuania, and has sent warships armed with cruise missiles to the Baltic Sea. And Russian warplanes have buzzed NATO aircraft this year.

So the arriving Super Galaxies and the Blackhawks they unloaded were a welcome sight to Latvians unnerved by President Trump's criticism of NATO, particularly its member nations that aren't paying their share to support the alliance. In a pre-inauguration interview with the Times of London and Bild, a German newspaper, Trump stunned some observers by saying NATO was obsolete, because it was designed many, many years ago.

Trump also hinted during last years campaign that he might not honor the alliances Article V, which treats an attack on one member nation as an attack on all. But Vice President Mike Pence and Defense Secretary James Mattis, at a recent conference in Europe, tried to reassure NATO of Americas commitment while making it clear its nations had to meet their financial obligations.

Soldiers in the 10th Mountain Division wouldnt address Trumps comments but said their deployment should be a clear signal to Russia and its worried neighbors.

Messaging is very important. And that's our goal, to reassure in the Baltic region our NATO and our partner forces and allies of the commitment, said Capt. Lewis Hudson, 28, of Silver Spring, Maryland, a pilot and commander of an assault helicopter company now based in Latvia.

Weve thought about the message, added the battalions commander, Lt. Col. Joshua Ruisanchez, 40, of Ro Piedras, Puerto Rico. And its simple: Its truly our commitment and resolve to the NATO countries.

Part of the reassurance, he said, comes from the size and power of the training force, by sending an entire combat aviation brigade over to Eastern Europe to demonstrate what NATO commanders call interoperability among member nations armed forces.

You've got the British, the French, the Germans, the Canadians, so we'll be operating with them, with much of the 10th Mountain brigade, joined by the Fort Bliss contingent,based in Germany and working with the partner nations, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Hungary and Poland, Ruisanchez said. We'll be a task force the moment we hit ground.

As his soldiers waited in an adjacent room at Fort Drum to board their Riga-bound flights, Hudson spoke of them as helicopter air assault professionals.

We want to be able to help (the Latvians) be able to work alongside us to the same level of proficiency that our forces are, he said.

Its a relationship and a message that doesnt ring hollow when you show up and you're a capable force and then train them to become their own capable forces, said Sgt. Maj. Ronnie Littler, 42, of Tucson, Arizona.

Different kind of mission

Something else was being demonstrated speed of assembly, a byword of the integration of Army and Air Force operations, exemplified by the battalions airlift, Hudson said.

That's what the Air Force really provides, for the Army to be able to go into (Europe) expeditiously, Hudson said. In less than eight hours we can go from the East Coast to anywhere in Europe and start setting up our forces to support any NATO country that needs the support and reassurance, and to help deter any aggression, regardless of where it comes from.

The battalions 1,800 troops were moved to Riga in a combination of military and civilian contract aircraft. The Lackland-based transports moved the heavy stuff three Blackhawks per C-5 flight.

The missions high geopolitical profile is unusual for the Air Force Reserve's 433rd Airlift Wing, which spans the globe in any given month without fanfare, supplying the military from South Korea to Afghanistan.

Raggio, 30, became a command pilot at the unusually young age of 26. Starting Tuesday, his C-5 twice flew the 8.5 hours from Fort Drum to Riga weighing 720,000 pounds at each takeoff and was to stop at Ramstein Air Base in Germany on the way home.

By the time theyre done, the planes 14 crew members will have crossed the Atlantic four times and burned 120,000 gallons of jet fuel over 20,080 miles.

The fuel economy? Six gallons per mile.

Nothing ever goes quite as planned for the Alamo Wing, a unit with a long history of flying the C-5, whose cargo bay is longer than the Wright Brothers first flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The Super Galaxy can be as temperamental as it is big.

Given the potential for mechanical issues and revised orders, airmen tell their families never to count on them returning on time. The make frequent grocery runs while en route to buy more food than theyll likely need. And they have rituals and superstitions.

Master Sgt. Eric Mungia, 33, stops at the Little Taco Factory in Kirby before a mission and always orders huevos rancheros, a side of bacon and black coffee.

And the crew wont jinx things by putting on flight suits at the hotel until the alert order has been given to head to the air base unless were in Hawaii and I want to stay longer, said Master Sgt. Will Jalomo, 45, of Lytle, the primary C-5 loadmaster on this trip.

This time the five pilots, five loadmasters, two engineers and two flying crew chiefs fell behind schedule on the first day, thanks to a faulty electrical circuit and the idiosyncrasies of international air travel a 15-minute diplomatic clearance window over southern Norway.

One of the three Black Hawks brought to the plane wasnt on Mungias original plan. As loadmaster, he had to determine its weight and compute its center of gravity, as he does for each item. It ensures a safe flight and saves fuel.

A mistake can be disastrous. A 2013 crash of a Boeing 747-400 cargo aircraft carrying a load of improperly secured Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles killed all seven crew members at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan.

They blamed it on a load shift, said Maj. Jeremy Hooper, a veteran pilot with the wing who began flying in the ninth grade and took the next load of MRAPs out of Bagram following the incident. After seeing that, I wanted to hold Loadmaster Appreciation Week because if they dont do their job correctly, were all dead.

C-5 history in San Antonio

Motorists on Texas 151 or fans at a San Antonio Missions home game who see a lumbering C-5 taking off or landing at Lackland might know its one of eight M model planes assigned to the 433rd. More powerful and fuel efficient versions of the old C-5A, they arrived last June.

The wing came to the now-closed Brooks AFB in 1955, moved to Kelly AFB five years later and became part of Lackland after Kellys closure.

A lot of people in San Antonio think we do touch-and-goes, and nothing else, said one loadmaster, Tech. Sgt. Bryan Stone, referring to takeoff and landing runs done by the wings 733rd Training Squadron. Stone, 34, is a firefighter and paramedic in civilian life.

The 356th Airlift Squadron logged 220 sorties last year, while the 68th Airlift Squadron flew nearly twice as many, flying anywhere American troops may be posted.

Hooper, 37, flies Boeing 767 jets for Delta Air Lines and has 5,500 hours in civilian and military aircraft. He can tell you how long the C-5 has been flying in San Antonio because his dad, then-Maj. Victor Hooper, flew one of the first A models into Kelly in 1984.

Raggio, a Dallas native who flew in Afghanistan and Iraq, now flies for American Airlines in civilian life, manages every facet of the C-5 mission, from mapping out each legs flight plan and fuel requirements to contingency planning and caring for the crew.

Mungia takes pride in helping carry out national policy, and not just here in Latvia. He is due to fly to Kuwait later in the month, and after that to Afghanistan.

We have some pilots and some loadmasters who say, I remember when I used to fly with your dad, and now some fly with their own kids, who are loadmasters, engineers or pilots, Mungia said. So its a family affair.

sigc@express-news.net

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Aircraft based in San Antonio take part in major NATO operation along Russian border - mySanAntonio.com

Don’t be fooled by Trump’s claim about whipping NATO into shape – Vox

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Donald Trumps rhetoric on NATO during Tuesday nights congressional address seemed to offer something new to the public one of only a few parts of the speech that did. His words on the military alliance sounded a bit more optimistic than usual, but it turns out that Trumps good cheer about NATO mainly served to make a self-congratulatory claim of leadership that isnt true.

We strongly support NATO, an alliance forged through the bonds of two world wars and the Cold War and defeated communism, he said to hearty applause from Congress.

As he has many times in the past, he called for NATO member countries to fulfill their financial obligations to the post-World War II military alliance. But this time, he was feeling better about that prospect. Why? According to him, his tough talk on NATO members pulling their weight had already begun to inspire them to clean up their acts and start contributing more to their defense budgets just 40 days into his presidency.

Now, based on our very strong and frank discussions, they are beginning to do just that, he said. "In fact, I can tell you, the money is pouring in."

"Very nice," he added.

The only problem is, NATO members decisions to start increasing their defense spending began before Trump entered office.

As CNN reports, NATO members that were failing to live up to their agreement to spend at least 2 percent of GDP on defense made a commitment to do so back in 2014. And they began to take steps toward that commitment (which only five of 28 members currently fulfill). In 2015, the alliances overall defense spending rose for the first time in 20 years. In 2016, 22 of 28 NATO members saw an increase in their defense budgets, CNN notes.

In other words, NATO members had already begun to pick up their defense spending under then-President Barack Obama, who had himself persistently called for NATO members to meet their required contributions. Theres no evidence at the moment that Trump has done anything to accelerate that dynamic. In fact, the foreign minister of Germany the richest country in Europe cast doubt on the reality of a 2 percent target on Wednesday, and described it as more of a goal than a binding obligation.

Its not the first time Trumps tried claiming undeserved credit for improving NATO. Last year, during the campaign, he argued that his criticism of NATO as ill-suited to combat terrorism caused the organization to ramp up counter-terrorism efforts. That was also untrue.

The presidents slightly more sanguine rhetoric on NATO Tuesday might be an attempt to move past his administrations threatening and inconsistent positioning on the issue.

By claiming that NATO is getting back into shape, Trump could be trying to create a basis to pivot from being coercive on NATO funding to being a bit more traditionally whiny about it, as previous administrations have been. And along the way, he gets to claim credit for achieving something he had no role in.

Then again, its important to not read too much into any remark Trump makes. One of his few consistent traits is that he is utterly inconsistent, and his administrations attitude toward NATO fits that pattern perfectly. Well have to take his position on this issue just as the USs allies in Europe do: day by day.

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Don't be fooled by Trump's claim about whipping NATO into shape - Vox

GUEST COLUMN: 2nd Amendment currently being misinterpreted … – Port St. Joe Star

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Hugh Taylor | Special to the Daily News

Re: Column, Feb. 14, Why did the Constitution need the Second Amendment?

With guns being as much of a problem as they are, I am interested in learning more about the matter and what can be done about it. The history set forth in the recent column in your paper by Dr. Mark Hopkins is the best that I have read and provides an excellent starting point in understanding the matter.

I personally feel that the Second Amendment only permits gun ownership when a citizen is an active member of an organized (controlled and structured) militia. I think the Second Amendment is currently being misinterpreted.

My training in the USMC taught me that a gun in the hands of an untrained person is nearly worthless as a tool of self-defense and provides only a feeble and false sense of security to the untrained. The present interpretation of this amendment not only provides the public with a false sense of security, but also is causing the loss of freedom and many unnecessary deaths.

People now have to be careful about when and where they go. Laws need to be enacted that protect citizens from the use of guns and the sale of inappropriate weapons (hunting guns excluded). These laws should include search and seizure of weapons that are possessed in the public domain along with stiff fines for violation.

We need a Wyatt Earp. Where is he now? You may remember he required that people check their guns into the sheriffs office when they came to town (Wichita, Kansas) in the late-1800s and that stopped the bloodshed there.

This guest column is from Hugh Taylor, a snowbird from Overland Park, Kansas.

Editors Note

Guest editorials and columns that regularly appear in this space are not intended to reflect a particular stance of the Northwest Florida Daily News but rather share expanded viewpoints from other media outlets and our readers. To be considered for publication, guest editorials and columns from readers cannot be longer than 500 words and must be submitted by email to letters@nwfdailynews.com. Please put Guest Editorial or Guest Column in the subject line.

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GUEST COLUMN: 2nd Amendment currently being misinterpreted ... - Port St. Joe Star

First Amendment applies to Trump, too – Bradenton Herald

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Bradenton Herald
First Amendment applies to Trump, too
Bradenton Herald
After reading Mr. James Frazier's Feb. 28 letter to the editor Trump's scorn of media disturbing, I have a question: Is the letter rhetoric or is he saying everyone is protected by the First Amendment except the president of the United States ...

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First Amendment applies to Trump, too - Bradenton Herald

ACLU, courts’ ungodly interpretation of First Amendment – Visalia Times-Delta

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SAM LUKES 12:01 a.m. PT March 5, 2017

The First Amendment, contained within the Bill of Rights, was initiated on Dec. 15, 1791 and states: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

For far too long now, these noble tenets have steadily undergone a massive, full scale assault by insolent judges/lawmakers who insist upon delegating their own preconceived, egregious opinions and indecorous ideologies which they unashamedly dictate from the bench.

Contrary to popular opinion, the Founding Fathers of our Judeo-Christian influenced republic, never intended a separation of church and state. They simply wanted to make sure that government would not compel or infringe upon its citizenry to adhere to a federally imposed, national religion. Hence, believers in God could choose to follow their religious beliefs without being forced to submit to biased governmental regulations. Atheists, agnostics, etc., are granted freedom to decide otherwise.

George Washington transcribed in his Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation: Use no Reproachful Language against any one neither Curse nor Revile. Remarkably, at the time, he was not yet 16 years old! Years later, as acting general of the Continental Army, on Aug. 3, 1776, he imposed a written order to his troops for them to refrain from using profanity.

Today, misguided attorneys and judges have soundly disregarded and rejected President Washingtons advice, deceitfully interpreting that the First Amendment protects all manner of profanity, including any number of vile idiosyncrasies, perverted sexual innuendos, and so forth.

The filthiest, most prurient books, songs, movies, plays, documentaries, television shows, internet sites, i.e., are all protected under the deceptive guise of freedom of speech. Jesus Christ condemns all such provocative behavior, labeling those misdirected individuals as poisonous snakes who bringeth forth evil things (Matthew 12:34-36). He warns that every idle word (which anyone speaks), if not repented of, will be brought into full judgmental account in HIS future courtroom. He further admonishes: For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned (Matthew 12:37).

Those rappers whose songs contain unbridled profanity and certain sexually charged wording in the lyrics, beware. Miscreants who advocate filthy, degenerative speech, whose conversations are laced with flippant cursing, have been deceived into believing that they have a right to disregard common decency and to irresponsibly throw all caution to the winds. To reiterate ... beware.

Society has regressed to such a mindless low that naked entertainers(?), who shamelessly perform in nightclubs/strip clubs, bars and like venues, are given a free pass for displaying their blatant nudity (shades of artful freedom of expression?). Whereas, astonishingly, a construction worker on a hot summer day, who can no longer wait in a long line to access a lone Porta Potty, can be arrested for indecent exposure when seen urinating behind a shed, tree or lumber pile!

In certain states, such offenders can be charged with lewd and lascivious behavior, and their names even added to a sex offender registry for relieving themselves. Give me a break! These judges would do well to realize that God Himself, became humanities permanent clothier, regardless of mans inane societal laws that grant immunity to wanton nude exposure (Genesis 3:21).

It is becoming alarmingly clear that we are witnessing a seemingly dishonest press/media, who, all too often, deliberately lie or decide to omit or misconstrue ones words or actions out of context. Such shameful conduct is hardly what freedom of the press was meant to represent. Likewise, those clueless mobs who destructively demonstrate, loot or engage in violent, angry protests and assaults, are not assembling peaceably under the true intent and meaning of the First Amendment.

One of the reasons America has gotten itself into such a spiteful, demeaning state of circumstances, is that it has foolishly allowed the American Civil Liberties Union to dictate to the courts, their atheistic, humanist agenda, directed against decent values which were once nobly instilled in traditional families, and likewise included in churches, schools, government, and even in the military. The ACLU (Arrogantly Championing Lucifer's Underground) MY personal acronym has haughtily, godlessly, erroneously determined: The First Amendment is based upon the belief that in a free and democratic society, individual adults must be free to decide for themselves what to read, write, paint, draw, see and hear.

Compare this insipid, flawed ideology with Proverbs 14:12: There is a way which seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death (eternally). That is precisely why Jesus instructed his true followers to live their lives in accordance to Gods Living Word (Matthew 4:4), and the reason why the Apostle Paul refers to the worldly proud who profess to be wise, as becoming mere fools (Romans 1:22).

Seemingly, worldwide events are rapidly beginning to occur which reveal our present generation might very well be the one wherein the minute hand of the noted doomsday clock, is inching closer and closer to the midnight hour with each notorious, infamous tick. Unfortunately, prophetic perilous times await (2 Timothy 3:1-5) as the entire globe may be witnessing, with careless disregard and abandon, the infant stages of reaping what they have brazenly sown towards their Creator.

Sam Lukes is a resident of Visalia

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ACLU, courts' ungodly interpretation of First Amendment - Visalia Times-Delta

First Amendment Says Manga Used As Cause For Digital Device Searches – Crunchyroll News

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This weekend, comic creators and fans gathered in Seattle for the 15th Emerald City Comic Con (or ECCC). The notable event on the comic calendar featured a talk by Charles Brownstein, executive director of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, an American non-profil that aims to protect the First Amendment rights of comics creators, publishers, and retailers covering legal expenses. Along with addressing concerns about banning books in libraries, he raised a remarkable problem for manga.

According to comic/geek media site Bleeding Cool,Brownsteinmentioned that the CBLDF is currently working on a message to the US congress in regards to people having to give up their passwords on electronics devices such as phones and laptops for searchs.

The site reports

He gave an example that if you had manga on your laptop, the Feds use manga as a code word for porn, giving them the right to search your laptop. Brownstein mentioned this was becoming unconstitutional for traveling Americans, and that they are constantly fighting against that.

Noteworthy in CBLDF's history with manga, in 2012 the organization was at New York Comic Con toraise funds andawareness of a casein whichan American citizen faced criminal charges in Canada for manga brought into the country on his laptop. For those who could not make it to this important talk,full audio andlengthy articleCBLDF's Defending Manga panel was posted online.

As his laptop booted, a custom official noticed a manga/anime drawing of a provocatively posed girl appeared on the screen. The agents saw my wallpaper and their eyes lit up when they saw an art book page, of a girl in summer. Ryan was quick to add, She wasnt nude or anything.

Still, the agent said, in a serious tone, You should really not bring this stuff into this country.

Ryan nodded, still unconcerned. Two hours later, I was put into detention. The customs officials kept asking Ryan about the images on his computer. The customs agents really had no idea what they were looking at or what to do.

Of particular concern was an image entitled The 48 Positions: Moe Style. The image was a parody image of The 48 Sumo Positions, done as The 48 Sex Positions. The Moe style of animation features a style of cute characters and was brought to prominence in series like Sailor Moon. The image Ryan had featured tiny super-deformed images of characters doing the act these images did not even have genitalia. Brownstein interjected that Its clear to us what this was. But, the inspectors believed the characters to be four-year-olds. Still, he stressed that this was not a photograph with real people in it, No children were hurt in the creation of this drawing.

The aims of the CBLDF are described:

CBLDF provides legal and educational resources to protect the freedom to read comics. The organization is a partner in Banned Books Week, the Kids Right to Read Project, Free Comic Book Day, and other national institutions that support intellectual freedom and literacy. CBLDFs work extends from courtrooms to classrooms to conventions, and CBLDF defends the freedom to read by providing letters of support in book challenges, challenging unconstitutional legislation, and delivering lectures and programs about current and historical censorship to audiences all over the world.

via Bleeding Cool

------ Scott Green is editor and reporter for anime and manga at geek entertainment siteAin't It Cool News. Follow him on Twitter at@aicnanime.

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First Amendment Says Manga Used As Cause For Digital Device Searches - Crunchyroll News

U-B upholding the First Amendment | Letters To Editor | union … – Walla Walla Union-Bulletin

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There is the smell of freshly brewing coffee in the air. The sun is just starting to come up. It is Sunday morning! Thump! Yes, Yes!

That is the sound I was waiting to hear! The Union-Bulletin newspaper being delivered to my front door.

Coffee cup in hand I go retrieve the paper from my front porch. I flip through the sections to my favorite part of the paper, the Perspective section.

First I read the editorial, then I look at the political cartoons, followed by Our Readers Opinions and individual columnists. During the reading and digesting of the material I go from agreeing to disagreeing, happy to sad, to disbelief and mad.

In my Sunday morning pursuit of knowledge I have sharpened my skills as a citizen of our wonderful country.

I would like to praise the Union-Bulletin for upholding the United States Constitutions First Amendment! You folks in the press are the light that burns away the darkness so the truth is illuminated by your piercing rays!

Please keep asking the tough questions and follow them up! Just a note to say I appreciate you and our country needs you now more than ever!

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U-B upholding the First Amendment | Letters To Editor | union ... - Walla Walla Union-Bulletin

Constant attacks on press chip away at 1st Amendment | Letters to … – The Intelligencer

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The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, and ensures that there is no prohibition on the free exercise of religion, no abridging the freedom of speech, no infringing on the freedom of the press, no interfering with the right to peaceably assemble, and no prohibition against the petitioning for a governmental redress of grievances.

I am becoming more and more alarmed at the present administrations attack on our sacred First Amendment rights. I preface this letter with this amendment because I feel few Americans know or even care about the words contained within it.

During the most recent presidential campaign, and most glaringly in the first month of this administration, a constant demonizing of the press and the inference that the press cannot be trusted are becoming more unnerving every day. Recently, White House press secretary Sean Spicer spun his press conference restriction of not inviting four high-profile news outlets, stating that the room was "just too small." President Trump revealed in a tweet not one hour later that the press restriction was due to Trumps personal belief that these outlets reports fake news or are failing.

Clearly, Trump is seeking to control the press corps, limiting it to those he believes will write the news he wants written. No other president in modern history has attempted to squash the press like this.

Republican Sen. John McCain said in a recent interview with Chuck Todd of Meet the Press, "I hate the press. I hate you especially. But the fact is we need you. We need a free press. We must have it. It's vital." The Arizona senator, who was just re-elected to another six-year term, added that in order to preserve democracy, a free and many times adversarial press is essential. Thats how dictators get started, he continued. They get started by suppressing a free press; in other words, a consolidation of power. When you look at history, the first thing that dictators do is shut down the press.

This constant attack on the press is the first step at the chipping away of our First Amendment and our democracy. We live in a 24/7 social media culture. It is our responsibility to weigh carefully what is said and videotaped and then held up against the untruths that seem to follow. We cannot become indifferent or complacent when a threat such as this occurs.

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Constant attacks on press chip away at 1st Amendment | Letters to ... - The Intelligencer

Justice Dept. drops Playpen child porn case to prevent release of Tor hack – ZDNet

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(Image: file photo)

Justice Dept. lawyers are asking a federal court to drop a case against a dark web child porn site because it says it cannot reveal how it used a browser exploit to target thousands of unsuspecting visitors to the site.

A court filing posted late on Friday in Washington state said that because the government is "unwilling to disclose" how it carried out the hacks, it has "no choice but to seek dismissal" of the case.

"The government must now choose between disclosure of classified information and dismissal of its indictment. Disclosure is not currently an option," said the filing.

However, the government's attorneys are asking the case to be reopened once the exploit is no longer classified.

The case, proven to be of the most controversial indictments in recent history, focused on Jay Michaud, a school administrator from Vancouver, WA, who was arrested in July 2015 for viewing child porn images.

Michaud was accused of accessing over a hundred threads on Playpen, a dark web site accessible over the Tor anonymity network, which hosted child abuse imagery for thousands of users.

Feds discovered the server was hosted in the US, and obtained a search warrant that seized the server.

But instead of pulling down the website, the FBI continued to run the website for almost two weeks, as part of efforts to discover the identities of others who accessed the site.

The FBI used a "network investigative technique" -- a hacking tool that in any other hands than the feds would be considered malware -- to deanonymize the users of the Tor browser, a widely used app for easy access to the dark web, during its 2015 investigation into the website.

Little is known about the hacking tool, but it was known to be able to gather real-world information on Playpen visitors, such as IP addresses -- details of which should have been protected by Tor.

But the government refused to reveal the full source code of the exploit in court, and so the judge tossed out the evidence, rendering a significant set-back to the government's case.

Given that the Tor browser uses much of the same code as Firefox, it's long believed that the vulnerability is a zero-day flaw affecting the browser.

In May, Mozilla filed a brief in the Playpen defendant's case asking the FBI to privately disclose the flaw in order to fix the bug that it says would affect the security of "hundreds of millions of users."

A judge is expected to rule on the case in the coming weeks.

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Justice Dept. drops Playpen child porn case to prevent release of Tor hack - ZDNet

Cryptocurrency: Major Coins Are Booming | Eastern Daily News – Eastern Daily News

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Back in 2009 when the first Cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, was announced, no one thought this industry would reach these heights. The truth is, the Cryptocurrency community has grown a lot over the past eight years. After Bitcoin was released many developers have come out with new digital currencies. Right now there are hundreds, if not thousands of them, out there. Cryptocurrency users have also increased almost exponentially. At the moment, many industries are accepting digital currencies as forms of payment. Merchants and retailers have also not been left behind, they have realized that Cryptocurrencies can be viable alternatives to fiat currencies.

According to Coin Market Cap, Cryptocurrency Market Capitalization has reached an all-time high of more than US $24 billion. The main drivers to this all-time high milestone are the major coins right now namely Bitcoin and Ethereum. Dashhas also been causing waves lately, as it has gained more than $70 million this week alone, therefore rising to number three among all Cryptocurrencies. Cryptocurrency users, since the beginning of the year, have been on a spending spree and these three coins have benefited a lot from this because they have attracted adoption based on different use cases.

Bitcoin by far dominates the Cryptocurrency Market Capitalization, its market cap is $20,682,061,514 and thats 84.7% of the entire Cryptocurrency market cap. Bitcoin is now viewed by many as an addition to investment portfolios, its uniqueness makes it desirable to many investors since it reduces total risks while at the same time it has a potential to increase gains. At some time this week, Bitcoin surpassedgold parity and this proves how much it has been growing steadily, especially in 2017. This week, major investors have been talking about their optimismon the approval of the first US Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This is definitely very good news to Bitcoin users, especially those based in the US. Investors are really waiting on the SEC to give its final decision on this matter because, if approved, Bitcoins price is expected to increase.

Moving on to Ethereum, this coin was released in 2015, so its barely two years old, but it has risen to number two among all other Cryptocurrencies. It has grown so fast both in terms of price and value. Its pricehas almost doubled in the past two weeks i.e. up from around $10 to $19. Its market cap has also risen to more than $1.7 billion which is an all-time high. Ethereum is the second coin to reach the $1 billion mark after Bitcoin. The Ethereum community has always spoken of a flipping the point where its market cap surpasses Bitcoins. These are some bold words to say especially when you compare the numbers, but they argue that what Bitcoin can do, Ethereum can do better. I dont see how the two can be compared because they use different ideologies. Ethereum is concerned with a wider range not just money.

For details on Dash, and the reasons behind its rise read this article. Investingin Cryptocurrency, especially the major coins is something worth a try. Its clear 2017 promises big returns.

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Bitcoin Scam Site Warning Coinomia – The Merkle

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It has been a while since we last looked at bitcoin scam sites, even though they are even more common than ever before. Coinomia is another cloud mining Ponzi Scheme that aims to defraud users. The company makes some very bold claims which are not backed by any solid or credible evidence by any means. Avoid this company at all times and invest wisely.

A lot of companies who claim to be active in the world of bitcoin and cryptocurrency require a lot of budget to set up mining operations. That being said, it would appear there are so many companies active in the world of cloud mining bitcoin, even though there are very few legitimate offerings available. Coinomia is definitely not a legitimate mining company, as they provide no evidence whatsoever.

When one opens the Coinomia website, it becomes evident the company is trying to trick as many users into investing as possible. The company also claims to be mining since 2014, yet there is no proof of this claim being true by any means. It is possible this may have taken place under a different name, although it is unclear which company that would have been. Rest assured this is the first sign of Coinomia being a scam.

Users who sign up with Coinomia will get 3TH/s for signing up. Users who prefer to mine Ethereum will receive 0.58 MH/s of hashing power. It is rather unusual to see companies give away such large amounts of hashing power in exchange for US$100, as it requires a fair amount of hardware to provide these speeds. Then again, Coinomia has no mining hardware in the first place, and all of this free mining power only represents an update in the database.

To top it all off, the mining plan comes with 8% referral commission. The goal of Coinomia is to get users to invite as many people as possible to make sure the people running this cloud mining scheme can fill their pockets. More expensive plans are also available, ranging from US$1,000 to US$10,000. It is rather odd to see these prices not listed in BTC or ETH value, but then again, this is a scam site after all. More expensive plans result in higher referral commissions, which is absolutely bogus.

What is even more troublesome is how Coinomia positions itself as being a mining application, rather than a cloud mining company. They also claim any device or gadget can be used to mine cryptocurrency and earn these returns. That is a very strange business model, considering the company claims to have ASIC chips and mining equipment located in data centers around the world. If that is the case, why do users need to download this software? Very strange indeed.

Not much information can be found about the company itself either. Although Coinomia Technologies LTD has an office address listed on the website, it is doubtful that location houses any office related to this business. Moreover, there is no company registration number, although the team would probably be able to present a company number when requested. All it takes is a bit of cash and the paper is issued automatically. All things considered, it is best to steer away from Coinomia and not lose your money.

If you liked this article, follow us on Twitter @themerklenews and make sure to subscribe to our newsletter to receive the latest bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and technology news.

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Bitcoin Scam Site Warning Coinomia - The Merkle

Bitcoin Soars to a Record High – Bloomberg

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Bitcoin jumped to a new high Friday, a day after soaring past the price of an ounce of gold for the first time.

One unit of the virtual currency was trading above $1,292.71 at 7:30 a.m. in New York, compared with $1,226.89 for an ounce of gold. The metals had a terrible week, declining for the fourth time in five days.

The latest surge in bitcoins value has been attributed to tighter currency restrictions in countries such as China, India and Venezuela, as well as speculation about prospects under the Trump administration.

Bitcoin still has a lot to prove, John Butler, head of wealth services for GoldMoney, saidin an interview.

Were a long way from bitcoin establishing its properties as anything that could be considered to be a reasonably stable store of value, Butler said.The fact that its passing through gold is just arbitrary.

Chinas three biggest Bitcoin exchangessuspended withdrawalslast month after pressure from the Peoples Bank of China, which was concerned people were using bitcoin to move money out of the country, sidestepping official efforts to shore up the yuan.

Investors may also be betting on a more relaxed regulatory environment under U.S. PresidentDonald Trump. The U.S.Securities and Exchange Commissionis expectedto rule on a proposal for an exchange-traded fund based on the digital currency by March 11.

QuickTake Bitcoin and the Blockchain

Some people may be frontrunning what they see as the ETF demand down the road, Butler said.

In January, the volatile cryptocurrency passedits 2013 peak of $1,137. After the previous peak, it fell 53 percent in less than a month.

Commerzbank analystCarsten Fritschnoted the small size of the [bitcoin] market and low level of distribution, the lack of general understanding of the concept, the short history of bitcoins, their extreme price volatility and the high proportion of speculators.

With assistance fromEddie Van Der Walt.

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Bitcoin Soars to a Record High - Bloomberg

Average Bitcoin Transaction Fee Has Exceeded $1 – The Merkle

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The Bitcoin network has been congested for quite some time now, blocks have been full and the debate has been at a stalemate. As Bitcoins adoptions is rising, along with increased coverage in the media about the price breaking all time highs, the amount of transactions has been on the rise. This has contributed to an increase in the average fee paid as users need to pay more and more in order to get their transactions to confirm in a reasonable amount of time.

Developers and users have been long aware of the problem that faced Bitcoin when the amount of transactions exceeded the available space in the blocks. The mining fees will increase because more transactions are competing for the miners hash power.

While this is beneficial to miners, users have to pay higher transactions fees. That fee has been slowly rising until now, it finally has reached the levelof an old school financial institution. Checkout this chart that shows the rise of Bitcoin transaction fees over the past 2 months:

The good news is that SegWit activation is progressing alongas the current amount of nodes signaling it is hovering right around 30%. Furthermore, as the development of the Lightning network and other similar solutions progresses we may be able to fit much more transactions in the same amount of space.

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Cyber criminals go digital, lay bitcoin trap for investors – India Today

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Cases of fraud related to bitcoins are becoming more frequent, officer said.

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Bitcoin is a digital crypto-currency that is computer generated and not printed

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Experts also claim that people in India are mostly interested in buying bitcoins

As more and more investors take to digital currencies like bitcoin, leading to a sharp rise in their prices postdemonetisation, cyber criminals are also exploring innovative ways to pick virtual wallets.

Last week, a Delhi-based businessman lost Rs8.5 lakh to an alleged 'bitcoin miner', the term used for an agent who generates digital currency, who promised him 10 bitcoins with an assurance that the investment will rise twofold within next six months. The businessman chose not to file a complaint with police as digital currencies are not recognised by the RBI, even though there are varied views on its transactional legality.

"Cases of fraud related to bitcoins are becoming more frequent," a senior crime branch officer told Mail Today. This is partly because many global companies have started accepting digital currency. "This has attracted many new investors. However, cashing on its rising popularity, some scamsters are also running fraud set-ups," said the officer, requesting anonymity.

"After demonetisation in November 2016, demands of bitcoins have gone up in the country and what gold was to the previous generation, bitcoin is to today's tech-savvy investor," he said, adding that it will be a big nuisance to crack such case as these currencies are not tangible.

WHAT IS BITCOIN

Bitcoin is a digital crypto-currency that is computer generated and not printed or minted physically like a country's currency. The denomination is created and held electronically in a decentralised system which means no single person, bank or authority has any regulatory control over it. It works as conventional forms of currency and is traded worldwide.

According to leading Bitcoin trading exchanges in India, there has been an increase in its user base by 250 per cent in last one year. Scamsters are also reaching out to new investors for dealing into other crypto-currency than bitcoin which includes TimeKoin, OneCoin, LitecoinNuBits, Tether etc.

"It is a popular currency on the internet where anything can be bought using bitcoins such as drugs, arms, pornography.

Even hackers demand digital currency in ransomware attacks carried in India. But, tracking crypto-currency is difficult on the web and beyond a country's boundaries is impossible," said Triveni Singh additional Superintendent of Police (Uttar Pradesh STF).

"Apart from Bitcoin, there are other 2,000 plus lesser-known virtual currencies and there are several cases of fraud related to virtual currencies these days," said Hitesh Malviya, a bitcoin expert.

Experts also claim that people in India are mostly interested in buying bitcoins and not selling them in the market in order to increase its valuation. Cops also claim that after the demonetisation announcement, many traders exchanged 'black money' for bitcoins.

Also Read

EXPOSED: The unrestricted bitcoins bazaar that helps dispose illicit wealth during demonetisation

Bitcoin hits highest level post demonetisation

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Top 5 Safe Bitcoin Wallets – The Merkle

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The only way to properly store your bitcoin wealth is by using a safe wallet solution. It is hard to quantify what makes one wallet safer than the next, as users have their individual preferences and needs in this regard. However, there are some wallet solutions out there that take keeping funds safe to a whole new level.

On the software side of things, there are quite a few different bitcoin wallets to choose from. However, one of the primary wallets people use in this regard is Multibit, due to it being lightweight and easy to integrate with hardware solutions. Although Multibits interface looks rather traditional, the wallet receives regular updates to improve security. A convenient and secure software solution to store funds, that much is certain.

Any bitcoin wallet provider providing cold storage and multi-signature support deserves to be on the list of top secure bitcoin wallets. Armory checks the right boxes in this regard, as the software stores private keys in an offline computer. This makes it impossible to steal bitcoins, unless someone has access to the physical location of the computer. No one knows where this location may be, though. Moreover, giving users the chance to set up cold storage solutions themselves is a big bonus.

On the mobile front, there is a lot of competition for the crown of being the most secure wallet solutions available today. Mycelium has gotten a lot of support in this regard, as they are considered to be a must-have secure bitcoin storage application. Their HD wallet support, as well as an option to delete the private key from the device and integrate watch only accounts make Mycelium one of the top secure mobile bitcoin wallets.

Hardware bitcoin wallets have become quite popular over the past few years. That is only normal, as storing bitcoin in a secure manner becomes more important than ever. Hardware wallets are designed to facilitate secure funds storage, with quite a few companies launching their products in recent years. KeepKey is one of the top solutions in this regard, as the device requires users to manually approve every transaction. Moreover the device has PIN protection, adding an extra layer of security.

The Ledger line of hardware bitcoin wallets can not be ignored. The company prides itself on making affordable yet secure bitcoin wallet solutions. There is no reason to pay hundreds of dollars for a device when the same goal can be achieved with a device costing a fraction of the price. Dont let the cheap price fool you, though, as every one of Ledgers devices is more than capable of keeping your wealth safe.

All of Ledgers wallets come in the form of a USB-size, although there are minor differences between each type. The Ledger Nano S is by far the most popular hardware wallet, as it is capable of storing both Bitcoin and Ethereum. Moreover, users can complete wallet actions through the display on the device or by using the browser plugins. An affordable, robust, and secure line of products, that much is certain.

If you liked this article, follow us on Twitter @themerklenews and make sure to subscribe to our newsletter to receive the latest bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and technology news.

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Top 5 Safe Bitcoin Wallets - The Merkle