Society's Child

"Fact-checking" takes another beating

Matt Taibbi
taibbi.substack.com
Mon, 24 May 2021 22:15 UTC

The soul of rectitude testifies in the Senate

The news business just can't stop clowning itself. The latest indignity is an international fact-checking debacle originating, of all places, at a "festival of fact-checking."

The Poynter Institute is perhaps the most respected think tank in our business, an organization seeking to "fortify journalism's role in a free society," among other things through its sponsorship of the fact-checking outlet PolitiFact. A few weeks back, it held a virtual convention called the "United Facts of America: A Festival of Fact-Checking."

The three-day event featured special guests Christiane Amanpour, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Brian Stelter, and Senator Mark Warner — a lineup of fact "stars" whose ironic energy recalled the USO's telethon-execution of Terrance and Phillip before the invasion of Canada in South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut. Tickets were $50, but if you wanted a "private virtual happy hour" with Stelter, you needed to pay $100 for the "VIP Experience."

During the confab, PolitiFact's Katie Sanders asked Fauci, "Are you still confident that [Covid-19] developed naturally?" To which the convivial doctor answered, "No, I'm not convinced of that," going on to say "we" should continue to investigate all hypotheses about how the pandemic began:

Comment: See also:

Black Lives Matter activist Sasha Johnson 'shot at party as rival gangs clashed', says friend

Izzy Lyons and Gareth Davies
The Telegraph
Mon, 24 May 2021 12:38 UTC

A Black Lives Matter activist was shot in the head after being caught up in a drive-by shooting between "rival gangs", friends have said, which has left her fighting for her life in hospital.

Sasha Johnson, a mother of "two beautiful sons" and an anti-racism activist, was shot at 3am on Sunday in Peckham, south east London, near a house party.

Ms Johnson, who was on Monday in a critical condition, is a leading figure of the UK arm of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement and once likened the police to the Klu Klux Klan (KKK).

The incident is suspected to be the result of "gang violence ... or some type of dispute between two different groups," Ms Johnson's friends said on Monday.

The 27-year-old, who friends say had recently relocated to London from Oxford, was highly involved in the BLM movement last summer, which swept through the UK after the police killing of an unarmed blackman, George Floyd, in the US, exactly a year ago tomorrow, May 25.

Michigan governor apologizes for social distancing blunder

My Northwest
Sun, 23 May 2021 23:34 UTC

© AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster
In this Oct. 16, 2020 file photo, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer speaks at Beech Woods Recreation Center, in Southfield, Mich. Whitmer and six other people who risked their own health and safety to help and protect others during the coronavirus pandemic will receive special Profile in Courage awards next month, the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation announced Tuesday, May 4, 2021.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer apologized Sunday after apparently violating state-mandated social distancing guidelines at an East Lansing bar and grill.

It was the latest pandemic-related misstep for the Democratic governor, who waited weeks to disclose partial details of a private jet trip she took to visit her father in Florida after two of her top aides headed south as coronavirus cases surged in Michigan and residents were cautioned against traveling south for spring break.

A photo circulated on social media of Whitmer with a large group of unmasked people at an East Lansing bar-restaurant, The Landshark Bar & Grill, the Detroit Free Pres s reported Sunday. The Free Press reported that photo, which shows Whitmer seated with about a dozen, was posted on social media by one of the attendees, but later deleted.

"Throughout the pandemic, I've been committed to following public health protocols," Whitmer said in a statement Sunday. "Yesterday, I went with friends to a local restaurant. As more people arrived, the tables were pushed together. Because we were all vaccinated, we didn't stop to think about it. In retrospect, I should have thought about it. I am human. I made a mistake, and I apologize."

Comment: As has been demonstrated over and over again, the 'rules' don't apply to them. And when caught, they only need to pretend to be sorry while others take the fall (see story below).

-via Fox News:

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is facing a new round of questions about a much-criticized trip to Florida after revelations that the air travel company she chartered for the flight wasn't actually authorized to perform charter flights.

Whitmer has previously faced scrutiny over the March trip, which she initially lied about taking, and which came after she had cautioned Michigan residents against traveling out of state due to coronavirus concerns.

The Detroit Free Press raised new questions for Whitmer on Monday when the outlet published a report revealing Air Eagle, LLP - the air travel company that Whitmer chartered to visit her father in Florida - was not authorized by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to give charter flights.

[...]

Retired FAA Inspector Larry Williams told the paper that aircraft owners are allowed to bus them and their friends around for free under a Part 91 certificate but that any other passenger required the Part 135 certification.

Williams also said the flight would be considered a charter and that the revelation was "pretty serious" - carrying with it civil penalties for the plane owners and the pilot - and that the FAA made putting down unauthorized charter flights one of their priorities.

How about some civil penalties for Whitmer?

[...]

Michigan Republican Party communications director Ted Goodman told Fox News on Monday that the report was "concerning," but "not surprising."

"This new bombshell that Whitmer's plane was not authorized to fly is concerning, yet not surprising," Goodman said in a statement. "For Whitmer, it's always been, rules for thee, but not for me."

In a Monday statement to Fox News, Republican Governors Association spokesperson Chris Gustafson argued that the governor's "appalling lack of transparency surrounding her secret unvaccinated vacation to Florida is inexcusable."

New York rescinds requirement for children to wear masks

Brendan J. Lyons
Times Union
Mon, 24 May 2021 19:25 UTC

Following days of protests, state officials say children over 2 will be 'encouraged' to wear masks

New York will "encourage" but not require children aged 2 and older to wear masks in child care settings such as summer camps following days of protests about the directive, including from county officials who pledged they would not enforce the mandate.

The state health department and the Office of Children and Family Services issued a joint statement late Monday saying they had agreed to "revise guidance allowing child care providers to continue the practices and protocols that have been in place since the start of the pandemic by encouraging, not requiring, children aged 2-5 to wear masks, effective immediately."

Rensselaer County Executive Steve McLaughlin is among a multitude of county leaders who have issued public statements in recent days indicating they would buck the directive and urging the state to reconsider.

"Children have not been required to wear a mask during the first year of the pandemic, a move rooted and common sense and recognition of research showing children are less susceptible to COVID-19," McLaughlin wrote in a letter to Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo earlier Monday. He added that children experience less severe symptoms of the infectious disease and that requiring them to wear masks, sometimes for up to nine hours per day, would be a hardship.

Project Veritas exposé: Facebook whistleblowers expose LEAKED INTERNAL DOCS detailing new effort to secretly censor vaccine concerns on a global scale

Project Veritas
Mon, 24 May 2021 00:48 UTC

Two Facebook Insiders have come forward with internal company documents detailing a plan to curb "vaccine hesitancy" (VH) on a global scale.
The stated goal of this feature is to "drastically reduce user exposure" to VH comments. Another aim of the program is to force a "decrease in other engagement of VH comments including create, likes, reports [and] replies."
It was such a shocking revelation, that it moved not just one -- but two whistleblowers to come forward to Project Veritas, so the public could be made aware of this plan to stifle free speech.
One Facebook whistleblower said the company uses a tier system to determine how a comment should be censored or buried.
Comments that include "shocking stories" describing potentially or actually true events, or facts that can raise safety concerns" -- are demoted.
"True events or facts" that raise concern about Covid vaccinations are fair game to be demoted and hidden -- according to our source -- despite their authenticity or capacity to contribute to the public good.
"I have to do something," one of the Facebook insiders said.
Project Veritas reached out to a top Facebook Spokesperson about these documents and received only a brief and broad statement in reply, that failed to address our biggest questions regarding transparency.
"They're trying to control this content before it even makes it onto your page before you even see it," the other Facebook insider added. "If I lose my job, it's like, what do I do? But that's less of a concern to me."

Two Facebook Insiders have come forward to Project Veritas with leaked internal documents, showing the Big Tech giant's plan to police "Vaccine Hesitancy" (VH) through surreptitious "comment demotion."

The company has set up a tier system to rank comments on various scales, based on how much the statement questions or cautions against the Covid-19 vaccination.

Cork, Ireland granny who refuses to wear mask in shops jailed for weekend after appearing in court unmasked (Update)

Ann Mooney
The Irish Sun
Fri, 21 May 2021 07:34 UTC

A granny who refuses to wear a mask in shops has been jailed for the weekend.

Margaret Buttimer has appeared in court for a second time unmasked and was held in contempt by the judge who sent her to jail until Monday.

Despite efforts by her concerned family, her partner who wore a mask, the judge and her solicitor to persuade her to obey the law, Buttimer continues to ignore everyone and claimed she only answers to God.

The 66-year-old granny of The Cottage, St Fintan's Road, Bandon appeared before Bandon District Court after attending Clonakilty District Court earlier this week, charged with refusing to wear a mask at Dunnes Stores in the town on February 12 last. She was found guilty of the offence of not wearing a mask in breach of Covid-19 regulations.

Judge Colm Roberts was told that Buttimer abused the store manager when he asked her if there was a medical reason why she wasn't wearing a face covering.

She refused to answer the manager's questions before eventually telling him that she only answered to God.

Comment: Update:

Ms. Buttimer was fined for what she said to the store manager and was given a 3-week prison sentence which was suspended by the judge for two years.

Taking her lack of previous convictions and her age in to account, Judge Roberts imposed a three week prison sentence, which he suspended for a period of two years, and fined Buttimer €350 for verbally abusing the store manager, who she has apologised to.

Myanmar news site says American editor detained as he attempted to leave country

Reuters
Mon, 24 May 2021 13:59 UTC

An American editor of a news site in military-ruled Myanmar was detained on Monday as he attempted to take a flight out of the country, his news organisation said, the third foreign journalist held since a coup in February.

Danny Fenster, 37, the managing editor of Frontier Myanmar, one of the country's top independent news sites, was detained at the main international gateway in Yangon while preparing to fly to Malaysia, Frontier said on Twitter.

It said he had been transferred to Yangon's Insein Prison.

Comment: See also: Myanmar anti-coup fighters retreat from town, US & Britain condemn military

School child abuse helpline receives hundreds of calls in first 6 weeks

James Carr
Schools Week
Mon, 24 May 2021 22:13 UTC

A helpline set up to report child abuse in education in the wake of the allegations posted to the Everyone's Invited website has been contacted over 350 times.

The Department for Education (DfE) commissioned the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) to set up the helpline to provide support for those who have experienced sexual abuse and harassment in education after thousands of abuse allegations were published online.

The NSPCC has received 353 calls between April 1 and May 16. Of these, 65 have been referred to external agencies such as the police and children's services.

Abuse by peers is most common

The NSPCC said that sexual abuse, exploitation and harassment by peers was the most common issue reported.

The helpline supports children and young people who want to share current and non-recent sexual abuse, as well as those who have witnessed such incidents.

It is also available for those who work within a school setting and need support, adults who previously experienced abuse and parents and carers who are concerned about their own or other children.

US Capitol doors on Jan. 6 were magnetically locked - someone inside Capitol security had to release lock to open doors

Jim Hoft
The Gateway Pundit
Mon, 24 May 2021 21:56 UTC

Last week a member of the Oath Keepers called The Gateway Pundit to tell us his story of the January 6th protests and riot. He is living in fear since the Jan. 6 protests at the US Capitol and wanted to get his story out.

The Oath Keepers is a non-partisan association of current and formerly serving military, police, and first responders, who pledge to fulfill the oath all military and police take to "defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic."

What he told us is truly shocking and has not been reported by the mainstream fake-news media.

This man wanted to remain anonymous. We spoke with Attorney Kellye Sorell about his story. He believes the government is planning to arrest him.

On January 6, he told us about the famous, not so famous, so-called "stack video" that was making the rounds in the fake news following the protests.

In the video you can see several Oath Keeper members march up the US Capitol steps, sing the National Anthem while they are facing the massive crowd.

Saudi Arabia bans unvaccinated from travel, gov't buildings, malls, in attempt to coerce uptake amongst citizens

Channel News Asia
Mon, 24 May 2021 13:05 UTC

© AP/Amr Nabil
People walk outside a COVID-19 vaccine centre at the old Jeddah airport in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, May 18, 2021.

Saudi Arabia is tightening the screws on vaccine sceptics, barring them from pilgrimages and overseas travel, and blocking access to universities, malls and offices in a contentious effort to boost inoculations.

So-called anti-vaxxers threaten to jeopardise global efforts to beat the COVID-19 pandemic, health experts say, but Gulf autocracies, including Saudi Arabia, are cranking up the pressure on those refusing to get vaccinated.

Comment: One isn't a 'skeptic' nor an 'anti-vaxxer' for choosing not to participate in the world's largest and possibly its most dangerous experimental medical trial that is already marred by endless reports of severe side effects and even death: Pfizer vaccine in Israel: Mortality rate 'hundreds of times greater in vaccinated young people'

Comment: It's hardly surprising that Saudi Arabia is one of the first in line to tighten the screws on its own people using the coronavirus as cover:

Those holding centres followed by release would be the ideal place to spread the next Bill Gates-of-Hell plandemic... Marburg "virus". Watch the...

Tiu

🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦This is YUGE CANADA!!! WORLD!!!🌎🌎🌎WATCH & SHARE WIDELY!!! 🙏🙏🙏 The President of the WORLD DOCTOR's Association announces COVID is a...

Cognitiu

Thanks Javed. So very much appreciate your input ⭐🌟⭐

LindaMay

The Great Southwest Airlines Rebellion [Link] #astrology

Javed

Double Clinton trouble today. [Link] [Link] [Link]

LindaMay

Society's Child

"Fact-checking" takes another beating

Black Lives Matter activist Sasha Johnson 'shot at party as rival gangs clashed', says friend

Michigan governor apologizes for social distancing blunder

New York rescinds requirement for children to wear masks

Project Veritas exposé: Facebook whistleblowers expose LEAKED INTERNAL DOCS detailing new effort to secretly censor vaccine concerns on a global scale

Cork, Ireland granny who refuses to wear mask in shops jailed for weekend after appearing in court unmasked (Update)

Myanmar news site says American editor detained as he attempted to leave country

School child abuse helpline receives hundreds of calls in first 6 weeks

US Capitol doors on Jan. 6 were magnetically locked - someone inside Capitol security had to release lock to open doors

Saudi Arabia bans unvaccinated from travel, gov't buildings, malls, in attempt to coerce uptake amongst citizens

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