The Obama administration is soliciting recommendations for internal policy changes, or possibly even an executive order, that would be aimed at combating online piracy in the U.S. and abroad, Raw Story has learned.

A working paper (PDF) released this week with the National Bureau of Economics Research found that states that have passed controversial "Stand Your Ground" laws, such as the one George Zimmerman is using as his defense to charges that he killed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida this February, actually ended up seeing more homicides after the laws were passed.

A 22-year-old man in Waco, Texas was arrested on Monday after a bizarre episode in which police claim he tried to eat his family's dog in a "zombie style" attack.

The Global Commission on Drug Policy, an assemblage of former national leaders, policy makers and experts, has issued (PDF) that calls the war on drugs "the main reason" for the continuing HIV/AIDS epidemic around the world.

A 13-year-old girl in Utah had her ponytail cut off, was jailed for 30 days and was forced to undergo a strip search at the hands of juvenile justice officials, all because she allegedly helped a friend cut another little girl's hair.

Thirty-four women and men appear on camera in the documentary "Invisible War," which opens in theatres June 22, to discuss being raped in the military. Statistics flash on the screen: 20 percent of women are sexually assaulted while serving in the United States military. An estimated 500,000 women have been assaulted in the last 20 years. In fiscal year 2009, 3,230 women reported sexual assault, and the Department of Defense estimates that 80 percent of women never report -- meaning their own numbers indicate 16,150 women were assaulted that year. An estimated one percent of male servicemembers are sexually assaulted in the military each year, or around 20,000 men.

On Tuesday, a lawyer for President Barack Obama filed a compliant with the Federal Elections Commission over Karl Rove's organization, Crossroads GPS. Robert Bauer, the Obama campaign’s chief counsel, claimed the organization was unlawfully hiding its donors from the public by masquerading as a "social welfare" organization.

This morning, the conservative LGBT group GOProud released their entirely expected endorsement of GOP presidential contender Mitt Romney (R-MA). Executive Director Jimmy LaSalvia stated as part of their endorsement, "The truth is that gay people are living in the disastrous failed Obama economy too," and cited Obama's economic record as the reason for the group's endorsement.

While entire world may seem against Jerry Sandusky, the former Penn State football coach on trial for molesting 10 boys over the course of 15 years still has some very important people on his side: the slow-moving legislators of Pennsylvania.

(PDF) featured in the June 2012 print edition of the medical journal Clinical Biochemistry claims that tiny traces of certain baby soaps and shampoos can trigger drug test results showing the presence of marijuana, which can in some cases cause state authorities to remove a child from parental custody.

In the wake of the Citizens United ruling that allowed for unlimited and undisclosed corporate political spending, many progressives called for a constitutional amendment to overturn it. Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) is one of them, and he's not impressed by arguments that such an effort is too time-consuming or complicated. “Yes, it’s hard to amend the constitution, but it’s been done 27 times before so I feel our chances are pretty good," he told attendees at the Take Back the American Dream conference in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday.

Obama Girl is so 2008.

A group dedicated to the rights of food service workers called Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC) has released an annual list of national restaurants and how they treat employees.  A surprising number of U.S. restaurant chains fail to even meet the minimum requirements listed in the guide to be considered fair places to work or ethical places to eat.