Society's ChildS


Propaganda

When censorship is crowdsourced: Who can say what increasingly under mob rule

Jonathan Kay
Quillette
Sun, 09 Sep 2018 00:01 UTC
censorship crowdsource
Editor's note: The text that follows is adapted from a speech delivered recently by the author to the Montreal Press Club.

On the op-ed page of The New York Times, former Central Intelligence Agency general counsel Jeffrey Smith recently argued that Donald Trump's decision to revoke the security clearance of former CIA director John Brennan "violated Mr. Brennan's First Amendment right to speak freely." It's an intriguing thesis. And, being a former lawyer who once wrote long law school essays about constitutional freedoms, I read it with keen interest.

But I also felt a twinge of nostalgia as I parsed Smith's lawyerly arguments. Notwithstanding the nature of Mr. Trump's treatment of Mr. Brennan, the gravest threats to free speech in democratic countries now have little or nothing to do with government action (which is what Constitutions serve to restrain). And with few exceptions, public officials now sit as bystanders to the fight over who can say what.

Comment: See also:

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Pocket Knife

7 people injured in Paris knife attack


RT
Mon, 10 Sep 2018 09:08 UTC
Paris policemen
© Gonzalo Fuentes / Reuters
At least seven people have been injured, four seriously, in Paris after a man attacked people with a knife and an iron bar at two separate locations. The attacker is believed to be an Afghan national.

In an initial incident, the attacker wounded three people in front of a cinema in the 19th arrondissement late on Sunday evening. A group of men playing petanque tried to stop him by throwing a heavy iron ball used in the popular French game, according to Le Parisien.

"He had an iron bar in his hand which he threw at the men chasing him, then he took out a knife," a security guard at the cinema recalled after the initial attack.
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Cardboard Box

Swedish election: Social Democrats finish first but one in five voters backs 'far-right' party

Jane Dalton
The Independent
Sun, 09 Sep 2018 23:13 UTC
far right voters sweden
© Getty ImagesYoung members and supporters of the far-right Sweden Democrats react to the results of the exit polls at their party election centre
Anti-immigration nationalist party would be second-largest in parliament

Nearly a fifth of Swedish voters have backed the far-right Sweden Democrats in the country's general election but the anti-immigration group lags behind the ruling party, an exit poll suggests.

The poll had the nationalist Sweden Democrats on 19.2 per cent support but found the ruling Social Democrats gained the backing of more than a quarter - 26.2 per cent - of the public.

If the exit poll results carry over to the official count, the Sweden Democrats would be the second-largest party in parliament.

Comment: Background from RT:
Swedish Moderates' leader, Ulf Kristersson, whose opposition center-right bloc virtually tied with the ruling center-left coalition has urged PM Stefan Lofven and his government to resign.

"This government has run its course... Now it should resign," Kristersson told a party rally, after preliminary election results showed his opposition coalition in a tie with its centre-left rivals.

Kristersson, who is the center-right Alliance's candidate for prime minister, said that the election results have shown their rivals are "unlikely" to find enough support in parliament, and that he will hold discussion with partners on how to form a new Swedish government.


Earlier, the leader of the anti-immigrant Sweden Democrats, Jimmie Akesson, indicated he was ready for potential coalition talks, but challenged Kristersson to choose between seeking support from his party and PM's Social Democrats.


"We increase our seats in parliament and we see that we will gain huge influence over what happens in Sweden during the coming weeks, months and years," Akesson told a party rally, adding that he was ready for cooperation will all parties, especially the center-right.

However, both of the main parties have previously said that they will not form a coalition with Akesson's faction, meaning that a minority government, grand coalition or prolonged political crisis are all on the table.

The leader of Sweden's Liberal Party, Jan Bjorklund, reiterated his rejection of any cooperation with SD. "I want an Alliance government, but it will not happen in cooperation with the Sweden Democrats," Bjorklund said Sunday.


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Eye 2

SOTT Focus: Gaslighting the Public: Brit Elites Go Full Patrick Hamilton

Neil Clark
Sputnik
Wed, 05 Sep 2018 16:57 UTC
Britain parliament building
© Agence France-Presse/John D McHugh
Repeat after me: Jeremy Corbyn is Enoch Powell. John McCain is Mother Teresa. Frank Field is Clement Attlee. Gordon Brown is 'one of the towering campaigning politicians of the last 50 years' .

We're expected to believe some pretty absurd things at the moment, aren't we?

Patrick Hamilton's 1938 play Gas Light, in which a wicked, manipulative husband gets his wife to doubt her memory and her sanity was meant to be thrilling entertainment, ideal fare for a foggy autumnal evening.

Instead, it's become a 21st-century instruction manual for the elites.

All kinds of psychological pressure is being exerted on us to accept things we know simply can't be true.
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Fire

Islamic State bombs oil pipeline in western Iraq - blaze still uncontained

Nehal Mostafa
Iraqi News
Sun, 09 Sep 2018 19:12 UTC
oil pipeline Kirkuk
© ReutersThe first half of 2017 witnessed the export of 24 condensates shipments and 24 gas liquids shipments
An oil pipeline has been exploded, on Saturday evening, causing huge fire, which has not been controlled yet, a Kurdish security official said on Sunday.

Speaking to BasNews, Idris Refaat, of the security troops in Kirkuk, said "Islamic State blew up a pipeline used for transferring crude oil in west of Kirkuk, late on Saturday, using two bombs."

The fire, according to Idris, "has not be put out yet."
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Wolf

HIV-positive prison officer found guilty of sexually assaulting multiple inmates

John Vibes
The Free Thought Project
Sun, 09 Sep 2018 19:02 UTC
Alex Wouts
34-year-old Alex Wouts was recently found guilty of sexually assaulting three inmates on multiple occasions where he worked at the Fox Lake Correctional Institution. To make matters even worse, Wouts was HIV positive and had unprotected sexual contact with these men, knowingly putting them at risk.

DNA evidence confirmed the accusations against Wouts, including samples taken from inmates underwear.

Wouts was found guilty of five counts of second-degree sexual assault by correctional staff. He was sentenced to 35 years in prison. In addition to his sentencing, Wouts is also ordered to register as a sex offender upon release.

Dodge County Assistant District Attorney James Sempf called Wouts a "serial rapist" during sentencing.

"The corrosive nature of the disparity in the power dynamic is a factor in what makes this offense so serious. The defendant can fairly be classified as a serial rapist," Sempf said.
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Star of David

Israel NGO: Settlers, soldiers team up for 'joint assaults' on Palestinian village


Middle East Monitor
Fri, 07 Sep 2018 11:45 UTC
Urif face off
© Operation Dove/FacebookIsraeli forces stand between Israeli settlers and Palestinians.
Israeli soldiers are joining settlers in attacks on a Palestinian village in the occupied West Bank, according to human rights NGO B'Tselem.

The village of 'Urif, which is located near Nablus, lies in close proximity to the notorious settlement of Yitzhar, established in 1983. All Israeli settlements are illegal under international law, and described by international human rights groups as part of an inherently discriminatory regime.

According to B'Tselem, the Palestinian residents of 'Urif "have been suffering for years from repeated attacks by settlers", with most attacks taking place "in farmland close to the village water tower, which is situated some 500 metres from its easternmost homes". In recent months, moreover, the Israeli human rights group "has documented three attacks by settlers in the area, some of which included the active participation of soldiers".

In March, "settlers assaulted residents of the village", while the Israeli occupation forces "who accompanied them shot and killed one resident and injured a boy aged 14". In April, settlers cut down 57 trees on 'Urif's land and vandalised vehicles.

In June, "settlers injured a shepherd and assaulted other residents, while soldiers joined in the attack, injuring another resident," B'Tselem added.

Comment: Israel's routine prescription of terror, torture and destruction.

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Handcuffs

2 Afghans arrested over man's death in east German brawl, more Chemnitz protests expected


RT
Sun, 09 Sep 2018 18:13 UTC
flowers for dead german
© Sebastian Willnow/Global Look PressFlowers and candles left in remembrance in the playground in Köthen, Saxony-Anhalt
Police have arrested two Afghan nationals suspected of killing a 22-year-old man in the eastern town of Kothen, Germany. It comes just two weeks after another German was stabbed to death in Chemnitz.

The circumstances surrounding the incident that occurred on Saturday evening remain unclear. The killing may have followed a dispute between the two Afghans and two Germans, Die Welt reports. It is thought that the German victim died as the result of a brain hemorrhage.

Some witnesses saying that the two suspects had previously been involved in an argument with another compatriot and a German woman. The row apparently related to who got the woman pregnant, according to Bild. The two Germans than intervened in a dispute and one of them was beaten to death.

Comment: Previously:

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Eye 1

Killers in the cubicle: A shocking number of killers murder their co-workers

Rene Chun
The Atlantic
Mon, 01 Oct 2018 17:28 UTC
Killers in the workplace
© James Graham
Here's an icebreaker for the next office party: The third leading cause of workplace death-behind "falls to a lower level" and "roadway collisions with other vehicles" - is homicide.

This sobering data point comes courtesy of the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics study on fatal occupational injuries. What's behind all this shooting (the leading m.o. of workplace murderers, according to the study) and "stabbing, cutting, slashing, piercing" (the runner-up category)? News reports point to doomed love triangles and disgruntled co-workers. Another cause, however, has been largely overlooked: fraud. Imagine a boss who kills his assistant to keep a Ponzi scheme afloat, or a crooked accountant who poisons an especially thorough auditor. In the world of CFEs (certified fraud examiners), these offenses have their own, pulpy label: red-collar crime.

Frank S. Perri, a CFE and defense attorney who teaches forensic accounting at DePaul University, coined the term after working on a murder case in 2005, an embezzlement scam that ended with a salesman - Perri's client - convicted of smashing his partner's skull with a claw hammer. Perri says his client was well-spoken and had no known history of violence or arrests. That's part of why he was so dangerous. "Research shows the more that people reflect our own image, the more we are inclined to give them what is called an 'implied credibility,' " he told me. "But these people can be very predatory."
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Boat

Russian naval forces conclude 'drills' in Mediterranean - will remain to oversee Idlib liberation

Paul Antonopoulos
Fort Russ News
Sun, 09 Sep 2018 16:57 UTC
Russia navy mediteranean
© Fort Russ News
The Russian Navy held on Saturday exercises using the RBU-6000 anti-submarine rocket launchers and depth charges as part of large-scale military exercises in the Mediterranean Sea.

The ships also carried out attacks on mock targets and underwater surveillance.

"These exercises are necessary to understand to what extent we are prepared to use new equipment installed on our ships," said Captain Andrei Soloshin, chief of staff of the vessels involved in training.

A NATO vessel observed maneuvers from 12 miles away.

Large-scale military exercises lasting a week began on September 1 with the participation of more than 25 ships from the North, Baltic, Black Sea and Caspian Flotilla fleets, as well as 30 naval aircraft.
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