As many of the fast food chain’s employees struggle to feed their families, the company suggests they “break food into pieces” to feel full; Israel and Saudi Arabia join forces against Iran; meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security is funding a $2.6 million mesh network surveillance grid that has its eye on us all.These discoveries and more below.

On a regular basis, Truthdig brings you the news items and odds and ends that have found their way to Larry Gross, director of the USC Annenberg School for Communication. A specialist in media and culture, art and communication, visual communication and media portrayals of minorities, Gross helped found the field of gay and lesbian studies.

McDonald’s Tells Workers to ‘Sing away stress,’ ‘Chew Away Cares’ and Go to Church

McDonald’s advises its low-wage workers to try “breaking food into pieces” to feel full, and urges them to “pack your bags” for vacation, “chew away cares” with gum, “keep the faith” by going to church, and “sing away stress.”

Grindr for Equality Demonstrates Strength in Numbers to Make a Difference in 2013

Grindr for Equality achieved tremendous strides in mobilizing 7+ million Grindr users across the globe to drive equality forward in 2013.

Drones, Tanks, and Grenade Launchers: Coming Soon to a Police Department Near You

Why are police departments across the country acquiring heavy-duty military equipment and weaponry?

Dear #Writer

The New York Times’s “Draft” column began about 18 months ago with an essay by the novelist Jhumpa Lahiri on the power of sentences.

Make Placement a Priority

When student debt surpassed credit card debt in 2010, exceeding the $1 trillion mark, higher education officials began focusing on how much college graduates owed after commencement — a whopping $26,600 on average, according to the latest statistics.

Cracks in Tepco’s 3/11 Narrative

“While I was with Tokyo Electric Power Co. (Tepco), a question was raised internally as to whether or not the measuring pipe installed at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, the diameter of which is about the same as that of a human thumb, can withstand an earthquake. But Tepco has yet to make clear whether or not the March 2011 earthquake damaged that pipe,” says Toshio Kimura, a former Tepco plant engineer.

New Mesh Network Documents Confirm Police Vehicle’s Real-Time Access To DHS Spy Cameras

Following bombshell documents released by Storyleak and Infowars uncovering Seattle’s expansive $2.6 million Homeland Security funded mesh network surveillance grid, new documents hidden deep inside the 2012 proposal request (# DIT-2996) give even greater detail into the government’s ability to track and database virtually any person.

Israel, Saudi Arabia Unite For Attack On Iran

Israel’s Mossad, along with Saudi officials, is working on contingency plans that could include an attack on Iran if its nuclear program is not curbed enough during the negotiations in Geneva this week, a new report has revealed.

Is China Destined to Democratize?

China is neither unfit for democracy, nor predisposed to political liberalism by its Confucian traditions.