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Florida Governor sues 2 Democratic strongholds over election 'theft' as recount looms


RT
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 10:48 UTC
Republican US Senate candidate Rick Scott
© Reuters/Joe SkipperRepublican US Senate candidate Rick Scott at his midterm election night party in Naples, Florida, US November 6, 2018.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott, a Republican candidate for Senate, has filed lawsuits against Broward County and Palm Beach County election supervisors, accusing them of trying to rob him of election victory with heaps of new ballots.

Scott's advantage over his Democratic opponent, Bill Nelson, has dwindled to just over 15,000 votes as of Thursday evening, a far cry from a comfortable lead of 57,000 votes projected for him as the polls closed on Tuesday evening.

With the recount odds growing every minute, Scott blamed Florida election officials in two Democratic-leaning counties for tampering with the vote by counting indiscernible ballots in favor of Democrats, and other transgressions.

In the first lawsuit, filed by Scott jointly with the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) against Broward County, the sitting governor alleges that the county's Supervisor of Elections, Brenda Snipes, violated the law because she was "unwilling to disclose records revealing how many electors voted, how many ballots have been canvassed, and how many ballots remain to be canvassed."
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Bad Guys

New US sanctions target Russian hotel in Crimea acknowledged as world's best


RT
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 15:18 UTC
Mriya Resort & Spa
© mriyaresort.com
The latest US sanctions against Russia have hit four Crimean hotels, including Mriya Resort & Spa that is ranked as the world's best holiday hotel and resort by the prestigious World Travel Awards.

On Thursday, US Treasury department broadened the list of previously introduced Ukraine-related sanctions against Russia. The new list includes two Ukrainians, a Russian officer, and nine entities. The punitive measures were initially introduced in response to the reunification of the Crimean peninsula with Russia after a regional referendum in 2014. Washington had also accused Moscow of meddling with Ukrainian internal policy and fueling the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

Russia's Mriya Resort & Spa is located 25 kilometers from the Crimean city of Yalta. The complex was built with the financial support of Russia's state-controlled lender Sberbank and is used to host the Yalta International Economic Forum.
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Oscar

Pentagon propaganda: 'Top Gun' used to 'rehabilitate the military's image' after Vietnam


Spy Culture
Thu, 08 Nov 2018 00:00 UTC
Top Gun movie
The late Cold War classic Top Gun is one of the most well-liked military movies of all time. It's combination of romance, comedy and never-seen-before aerial action was made possible by extensive support from the DOD, particularly the US Navy. It is credited with significantly boosting military recruitment, but it also had another mission.

The DOD's database on its collaborations with Hollywood says the film 'clearly portrayed the Navy in a very positive light', but it's the next comment that bothers me. The entry goes on, 'Film completed rehabilitation of the military's image, which had been savaged by the Vietnam war.'
Top Gun military propaganda

Comment: The military industrial complex works closely with Hollywood to ensure a steady distribution of propaganda to shape popular opinion using maximum 'artistic license' regarding facts. Very little, if anything, made in Hollywood is without an agenda:

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Red Flag

Russia & China invest in infrastructure; US instead spends on military

Eric Zuesse
Sott.net
Tue, 06 Nov 2018 11:41 UTC
china belt and road
China's "Belt and Road Initiative" is famous as an extension of their domestic infrastructure investments, but Russia is also investing heavily in infrastructure. Both countries need to do it in order to improve the future for their respective populations, and both Governments have avoided the Western development model of going heavily into debt in order to pay for creating and maintaining infrastructure. Both are, in fact, exceptionally low-debt Governments.

According to the "Global Debt Clock" at Economist, China has a public debt/GDP of 17.7%, and Russia's is 8.0%. For comparison, America's is 93.6%. (Others are: Germany 85.8%, Spain 91.2%, Italy 122.6%, Greece 147.1%, India 54.2%, Pakistan 47.0%, and Brazil 55.0%.)

The United States isn't going into public debt in order to finance building or maintenance of infrastructure, but instead to finance expansions of its military, which is already (and by far) the world's largest (in terms of its costs, but not of its numbers of troops).
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Smoking

New law tightens rules against promoting tobacco in Turkey


Daily Sabah
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 05:14 UTC
No smoking sign
© Zest Magazine
A parliamentary committee approved amendments to health laws that provides major momentum for Turkey's fight for tobacco control.

Amendments, one of the most comprehensive regulations after a landmark smoking ban in 2009, impose a ban on use or promotion of tobacco products on TV, TV series, films, music videos, films screened in cinemas and theater plays as well as on social media and other internet venues. The sale of tobacco products in facilities where health and education services are offered, such as universities, will also be banned.

Another revolutionary amendment is plain packaging. Instead of colorful packs deemed to encourage smoking by critics, cigarettes will come in packs with anti-smoking messages and messages indicating what smoking does to human health will cover 85 percent of the pack. All packs will be of standard size and will not have the logo of the company or type of cigarettes. Only a small space will be allocated on packs for placement of the brand. Violating the rules will be punishable with fines.

Comment: See also: Lies, Damned Lies & 400,000 Smoking-related Deaths: Cooking the Data in the Fascists' Anti-Smoking Crusade

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Mr. Potato

Daily Beast takes heat on Twitter after implying Kremlin plot helped unseat Dem. senator


RT
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 14:15 UTC
Claire McCaskill
© REUTERS/Sarah Conard
Democratic US Senator Claire McCaskill conceded the election to Republican Josh Hawley.
The Daily Beast tried to pin the failure of Claire McCaskill to retain her senatorial seat on Russian meddling. Angry commenters instantly cited a number of far more mundane reasons, like her trying to court Republicans.

In this week's midterm elections, Missouri's incumbent Democratic Senator McCaskill lost to Republican Attorney Josh Hawley by nearly six percent, and will now depart the Senate after being there for over a decade.

The Daily Beast, an outlet famously fond of finding Russian meddling wherever possible, apparently blamed Russian hackers for her defeat, tweeting a link to its July report about an alleged Kremlin plot.
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Stop

FDA to ban sale of flavored e-cigarettes

Nathaniel Weixel
The Hill
Thu, 08 Nov 2018 18:20 UTC
FDA ban on e-cigarettes
© Getty Images
The Food and Drug Administration is planning to ban flavored e-cigarette products, a drastic step in response to a dramatic increase in vaping among teenagers.

According to The Washington Post, FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb is expected to announce a ban on the sale of flavored e-cigarettes, which represent the majority of vaping products sold, in convenience stores and gas stations across the country. The announcement could come as soon as next week.

The agency will also impose new rules to curb illegal sales of e-cigarettes products to minors, including age-verification requirements on online sales, according to the Post.

The FDA did not respond to a request for comment from The Hill.

Gottlieb has threatened a ban on flavored e-liquids if five of the products' largest manufacturers can't come up with adequate plans to help keep e-cigarettes out of the hands of those under the age of 18.
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Bizarro Earth

Egypt proposes burqa ban sparking debate over security and freedoms


RT
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 10:18 UTC
burqa
© Reuters / Leonhard FoegerDemonstrators covering their faces participate in a protest called "The traditional clown's walk against the burqa ban" in Vienna, Austria October 1, 2017.
A pending Egyptian law that would prohibit face veils in public places has rekindled the debate over anti-terror measures and their limits on individual freedoms. RT sought out opposing views on the controversial proposal.

Burqa bans are already enforced in seven European countries, but now Muslim-majority Egypt is considering similar legislation, in hopes of preventing terrorists from using the religious garment to conceal their identities - or suicide bombs.

"There have been instances in Egypt and elsewhere where men pretending to be women wore the burqa, so it's for security," Adel Darwish, author and historian, told RT. But others saw the issue differently, noting that terrorists use all types of clothing to avoid detection.

Comment: For fascinating insight into the changing (and manipulated) attitudes of the burqa in Egypt, check out this speech from former President Nasser where he laughs off the idea of Egyptian women being forced to wear the burqa - he was subsequently overthrown with thanks to the usual Western intel agencies:

See also: Also check out SOTT radio's: Behind the Headlines: Confessions of an Economic Hitman: Interview with John Perkins

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Bad Guys

Sickening! Saudi Arabia says it 'stands with' suffering Yemeni children


RT
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 13:40 UTC
Saudi stand with Yemen people tweet
© Twitter / Saudi Arabia's Foreign Ministry
Who do you think cares about Yemeni children facing starvation amid the Saudi-led armed intervention? Rights groups, relief agencies? Saudi Arabia insists it's them.

Three years into the Yemen war, Saudi Arabia, which spearheaded the 2015 military intervention, says it "stands" with Yemenis. "Your children - our children," reads a really questionable poster released in a tweet by the ministry.

To support their claim, the post, bearing the 'We Stand with Yemen' hashtag, features smiling faces of children along with emblems of Saudi government agencies, such as Communication and Media Center and the Foreign Ministry itself.

Comment: Also see: NewsReal: Saudi Arabia: A Wretched Hive of Scum And Villainy, Fully Supported by The West

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NPC

NYT claims sharing RT on social media makes you part of a 'vast Kremlin conspiracy'


RT
Fri, 09 Nov 2018 11:24 UTC
Rick Sanchez
© RT
Cybersecurity 'experts' writing for the New York Times have claimed that online Russian "influence operations" targeted the US midterm elections in October. The proof? Lots of people posted links to RT's content.

Indeed, that is the only evidence of Russian social media "interference" offered in an op ed written by Jonathan Morgan and Ryan Fox, who co-run a cybersecurity company which "monitors disinformation."

Picking apart this spurious reasoning, Rick Sanchez, who hosts The News on RT America, painted a slightly less dramatic picture of what it's actually like work at the network. Spoiler: No bots or spying involved.
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