Society's Child

Battle for the soul: Russia to spend over $130 million on making 'spiritual and moral' content for internet-loving youngsters

RT
Tue, 17 Aug 2021 20:37 UTC

Concerned Russian government officials have announced they will invest billions of rubles in winning over young people with righteous, wholesome content online. A new fund is being made available to back the saintly project.

Moscow's federal treasury revealed on Tuesday that an extra seven billion rubles will be handed over to the Institute for the Development of the Internet by the end of the year, taking its funding to a total of 10 billion rubles (over $135 million).

That cash, the authorities say, will be used to bankroll "the production of state-backed content, including material aimed at the formation of civic identity and spiritual and moral values among young people." The institute has described its mission as acting as an interface between the government and internet giants, and shaping the formation of the online world in Russia.

'Prepare for the worst': Like Bin Laden, Taliban is another 'American project' & 'US scam against Muslims' - Chechnya's Kadyrov

Jonny Tickle
RT
Tue, 17 Aug 2021 19:39 UTC

The capture of Afghanistan by the Taliban is "another American scam against Muslims." That's according to Ramzan Kadyrov, the leader of Russia's Chechnya region, who suggested that the terrorist group is controlled by Washington.

Speaking on a video posted by one of his sons, Adam, Kadyrov urged everyone to be on guard.

"America has come up with another scam against Muslims. They said they would never get out of [Afghanistan], and now they've abandoned everyone and run away," Kadyrov said. "Imagine, for decades, people have been dying there. Five years ago, there were already more than two million civilians killed!"

According to the Chechen leader, the Taliban is an American project and is not to be trusted. He compared the group to Bin Laden, the former leader of Al-Qaeda, who Washington funded in the war against the Soviet Union in the 1980s.

Plymouth shootings: Police reviewing decision not to declare terror attack as incel link probed

Lizzie Dearden
Independent, UK
Mon, 16 Aug 2021 19:20 UTC

Jake Davison named as Plymouth shooter

Police are reviewing the decision not to label the Plymouth shootings a terror attack as investigators probe the gunman's interest in the "incel" movement.

Devon and Cornwall Police said the initial decision that Jake Davison's killings were not a terrorist incident was made by the National Counter Terrorism Policing Network following a referral from local officers.

"The status of this will be kept under continual review, and a further referral made should new information come to light," a spokesperson added.

"We are aware of Davison's interest and engagement with the incel movement and his use of various online platforms, and this forms a key strand within the ongoing police investigation."

British law defines terrorism as violence that is designed to influence the government or public in order to advance a "political, religious, racial or ideological cause".

Security agencies are discussing whether to include violence undertaken by supporters of the incel movement - a misogynistic online subculture of people who label themselves "involuntary celibates" - in the definition.

Thai protesters blasted with water cannon, as they gather for 3rd straight day to demand prime minister's resignation

RT
Tue, 17 Aug 2021 19:14 UTC

© Sirachai Arunrugstichai/Getty Images
Protesters throw pink paint toward the police while being sprayed with water cannon in downtown to protest against violence from law enforcement toward anti-government protesters on August 17, 2021 in Bangkok, Thailand.

The Thai police force deployed a water cannon on Tuesday to disperse anti-government protesters who'd gathered in central Bangkok to call out Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha over his handling of the Covid pandemic.

Clashes between protesters and police broke out near the national police headquarters and outside the Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha's residence on Tuesday, as authorities sought to control a crowd of activists calling for the government to step down over a growing Covid outbreak.

Footage circulating on social media showed authorities spraying a crowd of protesters with a water cannon. Witnesses claimed that activists responded by initially standing their ground and throwing paint and water bottles before retreating through the streets.

Comment: See also:

Woke Hollywood is trying to boycott Johnny Depp, but he'll never be canceled in the court of public opinion

Charlie Stone
RT
Tue, 17 Aug 2021 18:20 UTC

MGM is dithering over a US release for Johnny Depp's new film 'Minamata', a move he believes is driven by attempts to cancel him over his relationship with Amber Heard. But the wider movie-going public are more forgiving.

Listen, timid little Hollywood producers: we all know that you don't actually have a Scooby Doo what films will work and what'll flop, and that you basically hang on to your jobs by your manicured fingernails. Focus groups and test audiences with Hoboken housewives ain't gonna save you. Neither will cocaine or Prozac. It's a lottery, a gamble: place your bets and spin that wheel.

Short term is all there is. Big, established names are the safest bets. Attach a Brad Pitt or a Leonardo DiCaprio or a George Clooney, and you're laughing all the way to the executive vice president's chair. It almost doesn't matter what's in the script.

And Johnny Depp is one of the biggest cinema names there is. So, listen - absolutely 100% for sure - Depp will survive his dance with the cancel-culture mob. He just will. You execs at Hollywood studio MGM, grow some gonads. Show some wisdom. Face down the self-righteous woke mob, take a stand... and release Depp's new film in the US.

Depp says Hollywood is 'boycotting' him and MGM is stalling over a US release date for his latest film 'Minamata' due to "an unpleasant and messy situation" over his split from his ex-wife. The movie's director claims the studio is trying to bury it.

Facebook bans Taliban-related content from its platforms

Vishwam Sankaran
Independent, UK
Tue, 17 Aug 2021 19:00 UTC

© AFP via Getty Images
Taliban fighters stand guard along a roadside near the Zanbaq Square in Kabul on August 16, 2021, after a stunningly swift end to Afghanistan’s 20-year war

Facebook says it has banned content supporting the Taliban on all of the company's platforms, including Instagram and Whatsapp, since it is a terrorist organisation under US law.

The tech giant's move came as the Taliban captured Afghanistan's capital Kabul on Sunday and declared the country an "Islamic Emirate" after president Ashraf Ghani abandoned the presidential palace and fled to Tajikistan.

The capital's takeover followed after the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan last month at the order of President Joe Biden, after almost 20 years of the military starting George W Bush's War on Terror in response to 9/11.

With Taliban using social media platforms to spread its messages, companies like Facebook and Twitter are faced with the challenge of regulating their content.

While Facebook does not make decisions regarding the recognition of governments, it said it "respects the authority of the international community."

Anti-woke Brits furious as council leaders approve plaque condemning 'national hero' Sir Francis Drake as a slaver

RT
Tue, 17 Aug 2021 18:29 UTC

Woke-weary Brits have slammed a local council decision to rebrand a statue of national hero Sir Francis Drake, who defeated the invading Spanish Armada, to underline his involvement in "horrific slave trading expeditions."

Late on Monday, the Telegraph and the Daily Mail reported that West Devon borough council had decided to erect a new informational plaque next to a statue of Sir Francis Drake to highlight the 16th century explorer's connection to slavery.

Despite there being just one letter to support the proposal and 89 objections, the council agreed that a plaque detailing the less heroic aspects of Drake's past must be erected by the monument to the esteemed naval commander in his hometown of Tavistock.

The inscription, as reported by the Daily Mail, highlights the "contrasts" of Drake's life, first noting him as the first Englishman to circumvent the globe and as a defender of the country against the Spanish Armada.

However, it also notes that the Tudor explorer had a darker past. "He was also involved in several horrific slave trading expeditions. Furthermore, as a privateer he looted and plundered Spanish towns and ships in Europe and throughout their Empire in the Americas."

Comment: The disproportionate power of the minority, which negates the claims of oppression by the majority, strikes again.

British MoD vacancy posting blows the lid on 'irregular' hacker branch with links to 'unique and specialised military unit'

RT
Mon, 16 Aug 2021 17:26 UTC

The UK Ministry of Defence disclosed the existence of its shadowy hacker outfit in a job ad that sought an "extraordinary talented electronics engineer" to deliver "prototype solutions" to a "unique and specialised military unit."

In the since-removed vacancy listing, posted on its recruitment site, the defense ministry (MoD) was looking to recruit an "intrepid problem solver" as a Computer Network Operations (CNO) Exploit engineer for MAB5 - an "irregular and unrecognisable" unit that is involved in "communications, electronics and technical surveillance."

Noting that solutions are "required in weeks," the advert states that the exploit engineer will need to have the "skills of a hacker" and an "inquisitive and probing mindset."

A "multi-faceted" skillset is apparently crucial as well since the ideal candidate is also expected to be a "consultant," "inventor," "designer," "fabricator," "report writer" and "analyst" (among other technical roles) all rolled into one.

According to the ad, around 80% of the workforce in MAB5's "un-military-like flat structure" are civil servants and the MoD's "most talented scientists and engineers." However, the unit is commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel rank officer - with the email address and phone number of a Lt. Col. Simon Perrett published as the point of contact for applicants.

Afghans reportedly plunge to their deaths after trying to cling to US military plane taking off from Kabul (unverified video)

RT
Mon, 16 Aug 2021 09:29 UTC

Several people have been killed after attempting to hold on to a plane ferrying evacuees out of Afghanistan's capital, reports say. It comes amid chaotic scenes of Afghans trying to escape Taliban-controlled Kabul.

Horrifying footage posted to social media purportedly shows at least two people falling to their deaths as a US military aircraft takes off from Kabul International Airport. In the video, at least two objects can be seen plunging to the ground as the jet gains altitude.

The Tehran Times claimed that two people were killed after they tried to "hold on" to the plane during takeoff. Other sources suggested that in fact 3 people plummeted to their deaths.

The great parent revolt

Katherine C. Gorka
RealClear Politics
Wed, 11 Aug 2021 00:00 UTC

As overreach in classrooms by progressive school administrators, nonprofits and the federal government has reached new heights, parents are stepping up to fight back.

Moms for Liberty, Informed Parents of California, EdFirstNC, NJ Parental Rights, No Left Turn in Education and Parents Against Critical Theory are just a few of the hundreds of new parent groups that have emerged across the country in recent months. Many parents have become education activists because of schools' failure to bring children back into the classroom or their continued imposition of mask mandates.

Others are engaging because of the content being taught. Whether it's age-inappropriate sex education, critical race theory, or anti-American history, parents are seeing more of what their children are learning — thanks to COVID's virtual learning — and they don't like it. As a result, parents are organizing, speaking out, and pushing back, and they are having a noticeable impact.

'' '' So if the NBA is going to do those things, I would honor it, but at the same time I would ask like, it doesn't seem logically consistent,"...

Demore

I bet there's Twatter comments saying, "Well, if she had just worn her mask......"

DeliciousTears

"No" should be sufficient reason.

DeliciousTears

..... However, Tsitsipas changed his views as a couple of days ago he revealed he's planning to take the vaccine before the season ends...... So I...

DeliciousTears

That cop deserves the harshest sentence and the other cops should be clamoring for it.

Demore

Society's Child

Battle for the soul: Russia to spend over $130 million on making 'spiritual and moral' content for internet-loving youngsters

'Prepare for the worst': Like Bin Laden, Taliban is another 'American project' & 'US scam against Muslims' - Chechnya's Kadyrov

Plymouth shootings: Police reviewing decision not to declare terror attack as incel link probed

Thai protesters blasted with water cannon, as they gather for 3rd straight day to demand prime minister's resignation

Woke Hollywood is trying to boycott Johnny Depp, but he'll never be canceled in the court of public opinion

Facebook bans Taliban-related content from its platforms

Anti-woke Brits furious as council leaders approve plaque condemning 'national hero' Sir Francis Drake as a slaver

British MoD vacancy posting blows the lid on 'irregular' hacker branch with links to 'unique and specialised military unit'

Afghans reportedly plunge to their deaths after trying to cling to US military plane taking off from Kabul (unverified video)

The great parent revolt

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