The State Department is squinting very hard not to see the conflicts of interest in its environmental evaluation of the Keystone XL pipeline. A very narrow investigation saw nothing wrong.

The sophisticated way to rig an investigation is to decide precisely what to investigate, how, and who will do it, so as to assure the desired result. I think this result reflects a decision to approve the pipeline no matter what level of obtuseness and dishonesty it may require.

The US government says it will keep companies suggestions for reforming NSA surveillance secret — for privacy's sake!

These suggestions are probably worthless, because they are about details of implementing a minor change that would not really restore our privacy rights. (That's why Obama proposed it.)

Nonetheless, the hypocrisy of citing privacy as a reason when the whole point is wholesale trampling of Americans' privacy stinks.

The European Commission, which opposes network neutrality, is using a tricky plan to outfox the MEPs that support it.

A US appeals court twisted copyright law to justify banning the video, "The Innocence of Muslims".

The video is full of bigotry and intolerance, and is of no value in my opinion. However, the pressure to censor it reflects bigotry and intolerance too, and courts should not cater to this.

Above all, we must never surrender freedoms to rescue hostages taken by the enemies of freedom, and that's in effect what the plaintiff's situation was.

The UK government ordered a disabled woman to look for work even though she is in a coma.

Deciding whether someone is disabled or capable of working calls for care and thought, if it is to be done right. However, the right-wing government would rather treat it as a no-brainer. Indeed, the job could be done exactly to the government's liking by a woman in a coma. Just tell her to "push this button if the person really is disabled."

Since the state wants to reexamine disabled people frequently, this could provide work for every comatose person in the UK.