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Blue Planet

A slice of Russia and America's political cultures compared: Internet censorship

Gordon M. Hahn
GordonHahn.com
Wed, 13 Jul 2022 12:00 UTC
russia us american flag
© Getty Images / mashabuba
A few years ago I wrote an article on the Obama-Trump 'one-two punch' to America's political culture. I argued that Obama's rule and the Trump reaction to it would damage America's political culture of rule of law, comity, and practical compromise. Approximately a year ago I wrote articles about the authoritarianization or 'Putinization' of America and also looked at political culture among other aspects of American politics and their decay under mounting Democrat Party (DP) authoritarianization. Now we have very firm evidence of these trends.

For example, a new Pew Research opinion survey demonstrates that DP members and supporters now support authoritarian censorship by an overwhelming majority. Asked whether "(t)he U.S. government should take steps to restrict false information online, even if it limits freedom of information," among Democratic and Democratic leaning partisans, 40% agreed in 2018 and now an astonishing 65% or just under two thirds of Democrats want the government to censor speech. Among Republicans (those whom DP partisans and supporters are now routinely calling 'fascist,' 'white supremacists', and 'populist' Trumpers) the percentages were 37 in 2018 and now 28 in 2021. When asked whether big tech companies should censor, 76% of Democrats answer affirmatively, while only 37% of Republicans do so. It is important to note that this poll was taken in a context of continuing Big Tech censorship and similar censorship of the Republican Party and of its presidential candidate and his supporters during the 2020 elections on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and other such fora and the Joe Biden administration.
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Megaphone

Panama's inflation strikes and protests continue into second week despite gas price cap, gov't to meet with protesters

Tyler Durden
Zero Hedge
Fri, 15 Jul 2022 12:00 UTC
Panama protest
© Rogelio Figueroa/AFP/Getty ImagesInflation protestors damaged a police car in Panama City
In yet another example of the destabilizing effects of inflation, economically-disruptive protests and strikes in Panama have entered a second week, despite extraordinary moves by President Laurentino Cortizo.

What began with a strike by teachers fed up with a higher cost of commuting has mushroomed into a wider movement with more aggressive tactics, including blockades of Panamanian ports and major highways. Panama's Maritime Chamber said the highway roadblocks have caused "financial losses in the millions for the maritime and logistics industries."

Construction workers announced they would impose a 24-hour strike on Wednesday. Panama Canal unions voiced their solidarity, but are prohibited by law from striking themselves. Students, and impoverished indigenous people from the western part of country, have also joined the protests.
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Newspaper

Discontent rising among Japan's farmers as surging feed and fuel costs threaten to throw many out of business


Reuters
Mon, 27 Jun 2022 09:56 UTC
Rice farmer
© REUTERS/Daniel LeussinkRice farmer Kazuyuki Oshino chats with his son-in-law at a rice field, in Tendo, Yamagata prefecture, northern Japan.



Comment: Note this article is from a few weeks ago, but it's notable in light of what's happening with farmers across much of the West, particularly the farmer's protests in the Netherlands.


In response to Reuters questions, a spokesperson for the LDP did not directly address the issue of the party's support among farmers. The spokesperson said the LDP was striving to ensure all citizens understand its policies, not only those involved in agriculture, and referred Reuters to its election manifesto, which includes a pledge to ease the impact of higher fuel, feed and fertiliser prices, without providing further details.

"The surge in energy and commodity prices are a worry," Toshiaki Endo, the chair of the LDP's election strategy committee and a lower-house representative from Yamagata, told party supporters in April. "We're in for an extremely tough fight."

Public support for Kishida recently fell to a four-month low of 48.7 per cent and more than 54 per cent disapprove of his handling of inflation, a Jiji Press poll showed this month.

Comment: Also check out SOTT radio's: NewsReal: Fourth July Mass Shooting, Abe Shinzo Assassination, Rebuilding Ukraine



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Pirates

JPMorgan manipulated gold market to make money from hedge funds, ex trader tells jury

Tom Schoenberg
Bloomberg
Thu, 14 Jul 2022 12:35 UTC
Bullion gold
© David Gray/Bloomberg , BloombergFILE PHOTO: A worker handles ABC Bullion one kilogram gold bars at the ABC Refinery smelter in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, on Thursday, July 2, 2020.
Big hedge funds like Moore Capital Management and Tudor Capital Corp. were so important to JPMorgan Chase & Co. that its precious-metals traders routinely manipulated gold and silver markets to get the best prices on client orders, a former trader for the bank told a Chicago jury.

"They brought in a huge volume of trading, which made the bank a lot of money and our team a lot of money," John Edmonds, a former trader on JPMorgan's precious metals desk, said Wednesday when asked about Tudor. He made similar statements about Moore Capital. "Knowing that they're trading in the market and what they're doing" was valuable information for the bank, he said.

Edmonds worked on the JPMorgan precious-metals desk for more than a decade and pleaded guilty in 2018 to conspiracy and commodities fraud related to "spoof" trading. He is testifying against his former boss, Michael Nowak, the longtime head of the trading desk, gold trader Gregg Smith and hedge funds salesman Jeffrey Ruffo. They're accused of thousands "spoof" trades in which huge orders were placed and quickly canceled in the hope of moving prices up or down so they could complete desired trades.
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Cult

Syringe attacks puzzle European authorities


RT
Tue, 12 Jul 2022 10:29 UTC
Syringe
© Unsplash / Mat Napo
After a wave of assaults in France, the disturbing phenomenon has spread to Spain.

Revelers at the Festival of San Fermin in Pamplona, Spain have reported being stuck with syringes in crowded public places. Little is known about the substances they've been injected with, but one curious detail in victim testimony may link the attacks with a spate of similar syringe assaults in France.

As crowds gathered in Pamplona to watch daredevils run with the bulls over the weekend, a more sinister threat was lurking on the sidelines. Four young people - three females and a male - told police that they felt a pinching sensation before being overcome with dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and cold sweats.

All four were taken to the hospital by their friends, El Mundo reported on Tuesday. None were separated from their friends, none suffered sexual abuse, and no toxic substances were found in samples from the victims.

While the national authorities have opened an investigation, police don't know who carried out the attacks or why. "There is nothing concrete and nothing clear at the moment," a police source told El Mundo. "We need more time."

Comment: See also:

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Eye 1

Pathological persistence? Amber Heard loses request for new trial and wrong juror investigation in Johnny Depp suit

David Ng
Breitbart
Thu, 14 Jul 2022 10:12 UTC
amber heard
© JIM LO SCALZO/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Amber Heard had another bad day in court.

The Aquaman star has failed in her attempt to overturn the $10 million verdict in the case, with a judge rejecting her requests for a new trial and an investigation into what her team claimed was a misplaced juror.

On Wednesday, Judge Penny Azcarte handed down her decision, saying there was no evidence of fraud or wrongdoing.

"The juror was vetted, sat for the entire jury, deliberated, and reached a verdict," wrote the Virginia judge. "The only evidence before this Court is that this juror and all jurors followed their oaths, the Court's instructions, and orders. This Court is bound by the competent decision of the jury."

Comment: See also:

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Brick Wall

NY Supreme Court rules state's quarantine and isolation orders unconstitutional

Jarryd Jaeger
The Post Millennial
Thu, 14 Jul 2022 08:58 UTC
new york supreme court
In February, New York Democratic governor Kathy Hochul enacted a new order that would allow health officials to enforce isolation and quarantine wherever they deemed it necessary.

On Friday, a New York Supreme Court judge struck down the rule after finding it to be in violation of state law.

Rule 2.13 of the law, titled "Isolation and Quarantine Procedures," reads as follows:

Comment: See also:

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Eye 1

Bring back mask mandates because pandemic "nowhere near over", WHO tells governments

Will Jones
The Daily Sceptic
Wed, 13 Jul 2022 08:00 UTC
WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom
The COVID-19 pandemic is "nowhere near over", warns WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, as he urges governments to reintroduce measures like face masks to "push back" against a rise in global Covid infections. GB News has more.
In a speech at a news conference in Geneva on Tuesday, the Director-General emphasised his "concern" over rising coronavirus cases, stating "further pressure" is being burdened on "health systems and health workers".

Commending the progress governments have made globally in tackling the pandemic, the WHO Director-General said: "Of course, there's been a lot of progress. We have safe and effective tools that prevent infections, hospitalisations and deaths. However, we should not take them for granted."

Noting the recent spike in hospitalisations of patients with coronavirus, he urged governments to "deploy tried and tested measures like masking, improved ventilation and test and treat protocols".

The WHO's emergency committee on the pandemic met on Friday via video-conference and determined the pandemic remains a matter of Public Health Emergency of International concern, the highest alarm the WHO can issue.

Acknowledging several "interlinked challenges" the committee stated how reduced testing made it increasingly difficult to monitor the spread of variants and how measures are reducing these.

He encouraged governments to "review and adjust" their COVID-19 protocol and response plans, in accordance with current epidemiology.
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Yellow Vest

Dutch farmers rise up against food system 'reset'

Dr. Joseph Mercola
Mercola.com
Wed, 13 Jul 2022 07:11 UTC
dutch farmers protest 2022
The Netherlands is currently in an uproar over the government's decision to reduce the number of livestock by 30% in an effort to halve its nitrogen and ammonia pollution by 2030.1 As a result of this "green" policy, many farmers will be driven out of business.2 As with current energy shortages, the resulting reductions in farming are said to be an "unavoidable" part of the Green Agenda to improve air, soil and water quality.3

The Dutch government has even appointed a new Minister of Nature and Nitrogen to oversee the climate goals.4 Provincial authorities now have one year to work out how they're going to meet the emission reduction targets.

In a public statement about the new emissions targets, the Dutch government admitted that "The honest message ... is that not all farmers can continue their business."5 Those who do continue will have to come up with creative solutions to meet the new emissions restrictions.


Comment: See also: Dutch farmers are fed up with totalitarianism rebranded as 'climate change'

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Gear

Rage Against the Machine has become the machine

Chris Queen
PJ Media
Wed, 13 Jul 2022 11:27 UTC
Rage Against the Machine
© Jeff Chiu
Confession: I've always hated the band Rage Against the Machine. Musically, I've never cared for any of that rap-rock stuff, but their politics was what really bothered me. While many of my peers either ignored the clear Marxist messages of Rage's music or missed it altogether, I saw right through it.

MTV featured glowing profiles of band members, especially founding guitarist Tom Morello, for their radical activism, which was often literally communistic, and their videos made no attempt to hide what their lyrics were expressing.

Rage has always cultivated an anti-authoritarian ethos. Witness the poetry that is one of their most famous songs, "Killing in the Name," a song whose outro consists of the line, "F*** you, I won't do what you told me" a whopping 16 times.

These days, their rhetoric more closely resembles this meme I saw on Twitter:

Rage Against the Machine
© Meme from Twitter

Comment: Leftist authoritarianism among rock stars? Reminds us of these stories:

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