This Blog is created to stress the importance of Peace as an environmental directive. “I never give them hell. I just tell the truth and they think it’s hell.” – Harry Truman
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March 26, 2018 By Morgan Gstalter Senate Majority LeaderMitch McConnell(R-Ky.) (click here) announced a new bill on Monday that would legalize hemp as an agricultural product. The Hemp Farming Act of 2018 would legalize hemp, removing it from the federal list of controlled substances and allowing it to be sold as an agricultural commodity, according toWKYT. "Hemp has played a foundational role in Kentucky's agriculture heritage, and I believe that it can be an important part of our future," McConnell said in a statement....
Press Release: Madison, WI – Standing in solidarity (click here) with the students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and taking inspiration from the 54 mile Selma to Montgomery march for civil rights, students in Wisconsin will be embarking on a four day, 50 mile March for Our Lives event. March for Our Lives: 50 Miles More will begin in Madison where participants of five separate Wisconsin March for Our Lives events (Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay, West Dallas, and Appleton) will meet on March 24th. Students from across the state will then embark on the 50 mile trek to Speaker Paul Ryan’s hometown, Janesville, WI. Students are urging Paul Ryan, as Speaker of the House of Representatives, to lead Congress in taking immediate action to save lives by enacting sensible gun reform....
March 26, 2018
By Hayley Miller
Dozens of Wisconsin (click here) high school students are spending their spring breaks this week walking more than 50 miles to House Speaker Paul Ryan’s (R-Wis.) hometown of Janesville to deliver a message: Pass meaningful gun reform legislation now.
A group of students from Shorewood High School, roughly four miles north of Milwaukee, organized the march to call out Ryan for blocking gun legislation reform and to demand lawmakers take immediate action to curb gun violence.
“We started 50 Miles More to keep the national demand for gun reform going after the March 24th March for Our Lives events are over,” according to the movement’s website. “Our generation has grown up watching school shootings destroy lives and then get swept out of the spotlight. We refuse to let this happen again.”...
March 26, 2018 By Michael D. Shear and Maggie Haberman Washington — After 61 weeks in the White House, (click here) President Trump has found two people he won’t attack on Twitter: Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal. The verbose commander in chief has posted more than 2,900 times on Twitter since taking office, using the term “FAKE NEWS” to describe everything from the Russia inquiry and allegations of chaos in the White House to harassment accusations, the size of his inaugural crowds and heated arguments with world leaders. But he has been uncharacteristically silent in recent days — to the relief of his advisers — as a pornographic film star and a Playboy model described intimate details of sexual encounters with Mr. Trump. Stephanie Clifford, known in pornographic films as Stormy Daniels, said Sunday night on CBS’s “60 Minutes” that she once spanked the president with a copy of Forbes magazine bearing his face on the cover. The fact that the president has not given oxygen to the headlines, however, does not mean that he is content....
March 26, 2018 By Emanuella Grinberg and Amir Vera Governor Jeff Colyer (click here) 64 years ago a young girl from Topeka brought a case that ended segregation in public schools in America. Linda Brown's life reminds us that sometimes the most unlikely people can have an incredible impact and that by serving our community we can truly change the world. ...By the time of the ruling, (click here) Linda Brown was in junior high, a grade level that had been integrated before the 1954 court ruling. The family moved to Springfield, Missouri, in 1959. Oliver Brown died two years later, and his widow moved the girls back to Topeka. Linda Brown went on to attend Washburn and Kansas State universities and had a family....She also worked on the speaker circuit and as an educational consultant. From the Topeka Capital-Journal:
...Brown’s sister, (click here) Cheryl Brown Henderson, founding president of The Brown Foundation, confirmed the death. She said the family would not comment on her sister’s death. Peaceful Rest Funeral Chapel of Topeka will handle arrangements.
Linda Brown’s father, Oliver Brown, became the lead plaintiff in the Brown v. Board case after attempting to enroll her in 1951 in the all-white Sumner Elementary School near the family’s home in Topeka....
The brave people that work to remove danger from the lives of people are sincere heroes for their willingness and dedication. They didn't know exactly what they were walking into, but, they went anyway. They would not know what they walked into for at least 48 hours later. March 26, 2018 Julian Borger, Patrick Wintour and Heather Stewart More than 20 western allies (click here) have ordered the expulsion of dozens of Russian diplomats in response to the nerve agent attack in the UK, in a show of solidarity that represents the biggest concerted blow to Russian intelligence networks in the west since the cold war. Over 100 Russian diplomats alleged to be spies in western countries are being told to return to Moscow, in a coordinated response to the use of a chemical weapon in the attempted murder ofSergei Skripal, a former Russian intelligence official, and his daughter, Yulia, in Salisbury on 4 March. In a sombre statement in the House of Commons, Theresa May welcomed what she said was “the largest collective expulsion of Russian intelligence officers in history”....
How are those talks coming on the Korean Peninsula, Vladimir? Trying to guarantee Kim there are ways of dismantling the USA missile defense system? You know, ever since that appearance on Larry King Live when he was with CNN and there was no lag between questions and answers I had a suspicion you had access into at least commercial airwaves. Now, it is military, huh? Well, given Stuxnet was successful, I bet there was a digital signature captured with it, huh?
The Patriot Missile System is not new to Saudi Arabia. They have had these missiles since the Iraq invasion. So, what happened here? My first guess is Russia. If Russia can prove the US missile system is inferior in some way, that means countries will turn to Russian arms. But, who sold ballistic missiles to the Houthis? Airports were the targets (click here). ...The coalition has launched thousands of airstrikes on the Iran-aligned Shiite Houthis, in attempts to roll back rebel gains and reinstate Hadi in the capital Sanaa. Houthis have launched hundreds of ballistic missiles toward Saudi cities, with most of them intercepted by Saudi air defense forces. The war has so far killed more than 10,000 Yemenis, mostly civilians, and pushed the Arab country to the brink of mass famine. Whoever is helping with the delivery of Houthi missiles are now hacking into Saudi defenses. Why are the launchpads still intact in Yemen? Anti-aircraft? I would think the Saudis can 'track back' the ballistic missile launches and remove the launch site. Maybe that is just too much guesswork. If I were the Saudis I'd start guessing. I bet real money the Israeli misfire wasn't a misfire at all. March 26, 2018 The accidental firing (click here) of Israel's missile defense system reflects the growing tensions surrounding Gaza. The system may have been calibrated to a higher-than-usual level of sensitivity. So much for an Iron Dome. I could simply have missed it, but, it seems to me there are fewer incursions into Gaza by Israel since the Iron Dome was instituted. Playing with Israel's air defense is really a bad idea. I don't believe in coincidence. March 26, 2018
Saudi air defenses (click here) shot down seven ballistic missiles fired by Yemen's Houthi militia on Sunday, with debris killing a man in what was the first death in the capital during the Saudi-led coalition's three-year military campaign in Yemen. Saudi forces destroyed three missiles over northeastern Riyadh shortly before midnight, as well as others fired at the southern cities of Najran, Jizan and Khamis Mushait, the coalition said in a statement carried by state news agency SPA. Two videos from Saudi Arabia published overnight seem to indicate a serious malfunction in the Patriot missiles that were supposed to intercept the incoming ballistic missiles fired by Yemeni rebels at the capital Riyadh....
Sunday, March 25, 2018
Spring Break I also want to show steadfast support for Ms. Clifford with her 60 minutes interview, Sunday Night. Mr. Trump is no different than other producers who have used women they employed or wanted to employ. Why is it other producers suffer a greater fate than Trump? We know Trump at the least took his feeling of entitlement into beauty pageants’ dressing rooms, including teens. He has committed the same sexually assaultive acts as others. Ms. Daniels graciously stated it was business decision rather than assault. She was used to making such business decisions. Her business was adult entertainment. Where does Trump have license to take advantage of a young mother trying to break into a more mainstream identity. Women in adult entertainment are excellent business women. “Celebrity Apprentice” would have been perfect to pivot to a different career and identity. I guess Trump is right, he can grab a woman wherever and whenever he wants and this is more proof of the same. Trump took advantage of Ms. Clifford’s hopes. The threats against her are outrageous, dangerous and foolish. Who did it!?! They knew what they were doing. She was alone with her infant daughter in a public parking lot and completely helpless. He was a professional and followed her previous to his approach of her. Someone knows who it was. He used Trump’s name. Who was it a gambler with a debt or a client of a criminal attorney? Who was it! It was no mistake and someone knows who did this! ....................
The next country of “Sunday Might” is actually a group of countries that called themselves "European Community" when 1998. So I will continue to explore the advances by other countries while the USA has done dearly little to advance the retreat of the Climate Crisis. Until later.
March 2008 Every day, (click here) more than 115 Americans die after overdosing on opioids.The misuse of and addiction to opioids—including prescription pain relievers, heroin, and synthetic opioids such as fentanyl—is a serious national crisis that affects public health as well as social and economic welfare. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that the total "economic burden" of prescription opioid misuse alone in the United States is $78.5 billion a year, including the costs of healthcare, lost productivity, addiction treatment, and criminal justice involvement.... Attorney General Jeff Sessions must end his ranting about marijuana. (click here) There is an epidemic of opioid use and abuse in the USA. As reported by the USA Government there are minimally 115 Americans dying everyday. They are brothers, sisters, children, fathers and mothers and they are in profound need of a legal alternative to an opioid addiction. The introduction of legalized use of marijuana can be that alternative to opioids. Most addicted to opioids have chronic pain. The idea it has to be illegal is nonsense and a hideous idea from the days when Wall Street was worried about competition with alcohol. Well, marijuana might be competition for Wall Street if it were being sold in the corner grocery along with beer, wine and cigarettes, but, it is not. Most marijuana for sale in the USA is sold in a specialty store where it is monitored and grown under tight scrutiny for quality. Legalized marijuana in the USA has no FENTANYL! Legalized USA marijuana can control pain among other ailments. Enough is enough, Attorney General Sessions. How many White Supremacists have the AG put behind bars so far? March 23, 2018 By Robert Weisman Many baby boomers (click here) can call up the hazy memories. They’re relaxing with friends in a college dorm room. The music is blasting, the cinder-block walls are plastered with groovy neon posters, and a cloud of marijuana smoke fills the air. Most abandoned that kind of scene decades ago once they started jobs and families. But with the kids grown, retirement looming, and the legal sale of recreational pot set to start in Massachusetts this summer, some are ready to resume the party — or a 21st-century version of it. “I can see going over to somebody’s house for a party and there’ll be a joint passed around,” said Jim Kerr, 64, of Lexington, a lawyer who plans to retire from his Boston firm later this year. “Or people will be munching on brownies. I’m sure that will happen.”...
Bank robbery (click here) Airport stabbing suspect now considered a terrorist (click here) Good news at the university; rally for better pay and job security. (click here) Flint Water Crisis March 22, 2018 By Zahra Ahmad Flint -- State officials (click here) say the third round of water sampling at Flint schools has been completed. Test results from sampling conducted during the weekend of March 17 have not yet been analyzed, according to Department of Environmental Quality spokeswoman Tiffany Brown. However, the DEQ said in a March 22 release that 96 percent of water samples collected from Flint Community Schools that have been analyzed are within the federal lead action level of 15 ppb. When the results are analyzed, the DEQ has said it will consider those and other water testing results before making recommendations for the state's role in Flint water going forward, including state-funded bottled water. Testing began in Flint Community Schools in January.... This is getting a little silly. If these two deaths were isolated and there were no others, I'd entertain the idea CO-MORBITIES would have weighed heavier in the deaths, but, these are two of many. This is the Mayo Clinic: Legionnaires' disease (click here) is a severe form of pneumonia — lung inflammation usually caused by infection. Legionnaires' disease is caused by a bacterium known as legionella. You can't catch legionnaires' disease from person-to-person contact. Instead, most people get legionnaires' disease from inhaling the bacteria. Older adults, smokers and people with weakened immune systems are particularly susceptible to legionnaires' disease. The legionella bacterium also causes Pontiac fever, a milder illness resembling the flu. Separately or together, the two illnesses are sometimes called legionellosis. Pontiac fever usually clears on its own, but untreated legionnaires' disease can be fatal. Although prompt treatment with antibiotics usually cures legionnaires' disease, some people continue to experience problems after treatment.... I also believe there is just one person responsible for this tragedy and that is the Republican Governor Rick Snyder. He ordered the assignment of an emergency manager to Flint after his legislature changed the meaning of emergency manager. More than likely Mr. Skidmore and Mr. Snyder had ailments before they contracted Legionella. But, the symptoms were made worse and life threatening when they were infected with the bacteria. This happens when older people are exposed to disease. It happens every year with the flu. It is always advised older Americans receive the flu vaccine every year to protect from serious illness and potential death. The primary reason for death is not their ailments, but, Legionella bacteria causing an infection that killed them. The reason this is being discussed at all is because the wrong people are on trial. March 23, 2018 By Ron Fonger Flint -- A doctor (click here) says he believes two men who Flint water prosecutors say died from Legionnaires' disease actually died of other ailments and says the public shouldn't necessarily have been warned of outbreaks of the disease. Dr. Jeffrey Band, former chief of infectious disease at Beaumont and a tenured faculty member at Oakland University, said he thinks Robert Skidmore died of progressive heart disease and John Snyder died from acute respiratory distress syndrome during the Flint water crisis. Band's comments came during the 18th day of the preliminary examination of Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Director Nick Lyon, who faces charges of involuntary manslaughter and misconduct in office in Genesee District Court. Witnesses have said previously that Skidmore and Snyder's deaths were at least partly related to Legionnaires' disease, and prosecutors claim Lyon bears responsibility for both deaths for failing to warn the public of outbreaks of the disease.... Why would anyone ever believe there was no ground for lawsuits about poisoned water? March 19, 2018 By Lawrence Hurley Washington - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday (click here) gave the green light to two class-action lawsuits filed by residents of Flint, Michigan who are pursing civil rights claims against local and state officials over lead contamination in the city’s water supply.....
20 March 2018 By Barbara Bibbo ...United Nations officials (click here) condemned the continued arbitrary detention of Palestinian children by Israel saying the practice has become "systematic and widely spread".
A series of UN reports presented at the Human Rights Council shows how the living conditions of Palestinians across the West Bank and Gaza have dramatically worsened over the past year, and how children are bearing the brunt of the Israeli occupation, said Kate Gilmore, the UN deputy high commissioner for human rights.
"The past year saw hundreds of Palestinian children detained by Israel, some without charge under administrative detention," Gilmore said, addressing the council in Geneva on Tuesday.
"The impact of the conflict on the lives of children is entirely unacceptable. In this year alone, six children have been shot and killed in the context of protests."... President Abbas needs to take some solace in knowing reporting agencies do care and try to bring about change for the Palestinian people and their children. Perhaps, the people of Palestine will be recognized as people and not simply people carrying knives. There are arrangements that can be made to bring humanitarian supplies to Gaza and the West Bank, the question is when will the Palestinians see relief? Never? Starvation is a human rights abuse in case some in the Middle East forgot that fact. 19 March 2018 ...Introducing his second report, (click here) Mr. Lynk said it focused on the right to health. He regretted that the Government of Israel continued to refuse cooperation with the Special Rapporteur. His report addressed two themes, of which the first was the deteriorating human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territories. He was deeply disturbed by the plight of the Palestinian children. Under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the deprivation of the liberty of a child had to be used as the last resort. Yet the deprivation of liberty of Palestinian children by Israel was institutionalized, systematic and widely spread. His second concern was Gaza, which was moving to a situation of calamity as a result of the comprehensive blockade imposed by Israel since 2007 on land, sea and air, which amounted to collective punishment. Turning to the right to health, Mr. Lynk said Israel made many of the critical decisions affecting the disfiguring state of health in Gaza, which was on the verge of collapse. An occupying power had the duty under international law to ensure that the right to health was fulfilled during the period of occupation, making Israel in profound breach of the right to health....
22 March 2018 By Guma el-Gamaty In apress conference held in Tunis on Monday 19 March, (click here) an official from the Libyan Popular Front party, Ayman Abu Ras, who claimed to be speaking on behalf of Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, said that the 47-year-old son of the country's late dictator will run for president in the next Libyan election. The following day, however, the Zintan militia that has been holding Saif al-Islam captive since 2011, the Abubakr al-Siddiq brigade, said on its official Facebook page that Saif al-Islam denied he had ever authorised anyone to make such a statement on his behalf.... Syria will be back as a "big deal." The fact of the matter is the Syrian Civil War is almost over. Nearly half a million people later, Assad has nearly reclaimed the country. I would not expect more fighting from any rebels. The fate of the refugees lies in the hands of the UN and hosting countries. The Sunnis now in refugee camps will not be allowed back into the country. If I am reading the tea leaves correctly. Assad pulled off one of the greatest redistribution of a population in history. I don't believe even pre-history has seen such slaughter and displacement. I expect the Shia Crescent to have been resolved to the singular countries of Syria, southern Iraq and Iran. If this is the reality, the Sunni countries may want to consider asking Shia if they want to immigrate to these lands. That leave the Houthis and Yemen. With Eric Prince in Yemen compliments of the UAE, the Houthis may also be called up as a displaced population and reapportioned back to Iran, southern Iraq and Syria. Ah, yes, Israel and Palestine. That is Bolton's favorite subject because it gets the public's attention. The facts are there are extremists in the Executive Branch and they are going to drown out any and all attempts at a Palestinian state. ...The Palestinians' absence (click here) from the White House meeting was a continuation of their boycott of the Trump administration, due to his recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. A lot of people wonder about the American president. Tweets and comments about a range of issues suggests a lack of connection with what is politically conventional. The resignations and his firing of key aides indicates to some commentators that the man with minimum experience and knowledge about public policy is intent on surrounding himself with yes-people. Saying yes to someone who does not know, and seems unstable in his expressions of the moment, isn't the way to run a world power.... The Trump administration can't seem to get the idea, unilateral talks aren't going to achieve any feasible to peace, but, what do I know, if Donald Trump says it happened, then it must be so. The focus is always Gaza, because of Hamas, but interestingly enough is the fact the Palestinians of Gaza when survive rocket attacks and bulldozers, they do well. ...Two important measures of health indicate that Gaza is in better shape than many countries.
Life expectancy for women at 75.9 years and for men at 72.5 put Gaza above 87 countries in the case of women and 95 countries in the case of men.
Infant mortality in Gaza is 16.6 per 1,000 live births, which makes it better than 97 countries.... Other than Bolton's rhetoric, I wouldn't expect too much from the National Security Office. There is one thing I do expect though, silence on Russia and the 2018 elections, unless of course Putin decides to change American party affiliations more than he has before. Then the National Security Office will be all over Russia for interfering in the election and costing the Republican cronies, primarily the Kochs, more money than expected.
He is a FOX News adviser. Yes, still yet another one. But, beyond that he and Trump are perfect for each other, they are both big mouths. Murdoch must be happy, his salaried employee list is getting shorter. Why not put them on the White House payroll and save some money. Bolton is not a hawk, he is an extremist. His only tactic is to scream and yell, "The sky is falling." He was never respected at the United Nations and he won't be anywhere else there is international involvement. All these folks will be ignored because they aren't in their positions to WORK, they are there to carry Republicans in 2018 elections. With that said, I remember when Bolton was at the UN as ambassador. They would give him a room all by himself to make a speech. No one came and no one listened. He won't derail the peace process on the Korean Peninsula because he doesn't matter. And where the General needed a Senate confirmation hearing because he was military, Bolton won't have that hurdle. I would expect more scare tactics of the National Security Office. Do we still use the color spectrum for terrorist threat? Well, expect that to be a real 'thing' again. What else? Think of all the radically stupid things that occurred with "W" and wait for it...it will be back. Here is a good excuse for Bolton as to why all the old terror alerts aren't used anymore, "Well, it is because there were generals in this job and they simply don't have the sensitivity for the public." March 23, 2018 By Jennifer Rubin Following (click here) the “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything” adage, Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) put out an effusive statement thanking outgoing national security adviser H.R. McMaster for his service: “General McMaster has served our nation incredibly well for 34 years, and I thank him for the work he has done in leading the National Security Council,” Corker wrote on Twitter. “It has been a privilege to work with him on some of the most pressing issues facing our country.”...
After 40 years of design and constructio, the metro station "Spartak." For those that are attending and arriving by jet, prior notification to President Putin can result in a safe landing. I doubt the take off will be challenging, but, one never knows when it comes to Russian cities.
The penetration of the Arctic Vortex is fairly clear where it exists over the USA. This is the fourth such storm to hit the east coast of the USA in three weeks. That is brutal for the people exposed to the chronic cold due to high winds. In the top picture, the center of the mid-latitude vortex causing all the extreme weather is over southern Ohio. It can be seen in the temperature map of Ohio below and right. See the circulating vortex? Athens, Ohio is under the center of the vortex. The wind there is 3 to 11 mph out of the northwest. Consequently, due to lower wind speeds at the center, the temperatures are higher and in the 36 to 61 degrees Fahrenheit range. Yes, while Boston is suffering in the 20s, the temperature in Athens, Ohio will increase as the center circulation is small and brings in warmer air from the west. Yes, this is a heating planet and it is very odd in its manifestation to the public, but, it is real and it is dangerous. Why is it cold? Because icefields normally rock solid are melting and giving off their "coldness" to the air rather than remaining with the water/ice. Everyone knows when they are thirsty on a hot summer day the first thing they reach for is a cold drink, sometimes with ice in the drink to keep it cold. People also know as they sip the drink the ice melts. Sometimes it is not a big deal if the drink is slightly diluted with water, but, sometimes it is. At any rate, the ice does not stay ice when exposed to heat. The ice GIVES OFF COLDNESS and that is transferred, in this case, to the drink. In the case of Greenland, the COLDNESS is transferred to the air where it mixes with warmer air causing high winds and instability in the air masses; hence; a severely dangerous storm. Climate Change Indicators: Sea Surface Temperatures (click here)
The air has been really warm with vortexes slapping it up against the ice that is Greenland. The air cools, but, at the cost of the ice. Woods Hole, Massachusetts ocean temperature is 37.8 degrees Fahrenheit (click here). That temperature is above freezing and it will melt ice that touches the water. Albeit slowly, but, it will melt. The problem causing the climate crisis is that the ocean waters are warm and the cold temperatures are never cold enough to maintain ice structures of Earth. In different words, Earth is unable to compensate for the heat due to high levels of greenhouse gases. The other complication of such high density greenhouse gases is ocean acidification. That is happening as well. 14 March 2018 Excessive rates of carbon dioxide (click here) affect the health of key micro-organisms in the oceans, potentially undermining the base of critical marine food chains, according to new research by US scientists....
...Phytoplankton are not only a key food source for global fisheries, they are also important to the removal of CO2, much like how trees absorb the greenhouse gas from the atmosphere.
In a paper published on Thursday in Nature, the team demonstrated how the microscopic plants require carbonate ions to acquire iron from the water to grow.... The above research has been conducted since 2004. It is consistent and duplicated year after year. The plankton are vital to Earth's oxygen and to the food web for fisheries. These are solid facts based in solid science by some of the best minds in the world. It is true. June 7, 2004 ...Robert Frouin, (click here) a research meteorologist with the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, California, said understanding the process by which phytoplankton obtains ocean nutrients is important to understanding the link between the ocean and global climate....
As CO2 levels rise, the oceans have less carbonate, affecting phytoplankton's ability to secure sufficient nutrient iron for growth. In fact, the concentration of sea surface carbonate ions are on course to drop by half by the end of this century....
November 6, 2017 ...Included in the new paper (click here) are some of the most detailed data yet on the depths of the canyons and fjords scarring the Greenland coast, which carry water in from the sea to lap against the ice. The results suggest that the western and northern regions of Greenland are most exposed to the influence of ocean water. Out of 139 ocean-touching glaciers the team identified, they also found that 67 rest in waters 200 meters (about 650 feet) or more below sea level, where warm water is typically found—at least twice as many as previously thought. And, worryingly, the research suggests that as these glaciers melt and retreat backward, the shape of the seabed will continue to expose many of them to warm ocean water for hundreds of miles as the ice moves inland....
Terms and Conditions are a set of rules and guidelines that a user must agree to in order to use your website or mobile app. It acts as a legal contract between you (the company) who has the website or mobile app and the user who access your website and mobile app.
According to the entry by Facebook's General Council Paul Grewal, there was nothing untoward about the usage of Cambridge Analytica.
Update on March 17, 2018, 9:50 AM PT: The claim that this is a data breach is completely false. Aleksandr Kogan requested and gained access to information from users who chose to sign up to his app, and everyone involved gave their consent. People knowingly provided their information, no systems were infiltrated, and no passwords or sensitive pieces of information were stolen or hacked.
Originally published on March 16, 2018:We are suspending Strategic Communication Laboratories (SCL), including their political data analytics firm, Cambridge Analytica, from Facebook. Given the public prominence of this organization, we want to take a moment to explain how we came to this decision and why....
When someone signs on to social media to participate with family, friends and perfect strangers there are terms and conditions required to participate. The Terms and Conditions on Facebook requires the member to give absolute power to Facebook of any or all the information posted to it's platform. "Anything that has been digitized is not private and that is terrifying." Welcome to Facebook's ability to generate a profit. Did anyone thing for one minute their most intimate secrets, conversations and images would be confidential? NOT, LOL, LOL, LOL. The question really is, "Did Facebook give permission to Cambridge Analytica to HARVEST every aspect of facts without the members knowing?" The issue is not Cambridge Analytica per se; it is Facebook and the understood relationship with members it normally treats as a MARKETABLE COMMODITY were sold for a political machine. The difference between Facebook marketing their DEMOGRAPHICS of their membership to Wall Street for attempts to sell people stuff they would not otherwise think of buying and the sale of information to Cambridge Analytica; is the politics and potential hostile outcomes to elections where those politics are at play. The issue is FAIRNESS and elections. If Facebook wants to market their membership demographics, should that demographic information be free and given to those that qualify as candidates and political parities? The thing is this: Media MUST provide EQUAL TIME to all political parties. That is usually restricted to interviews or segments where one candidate has been able to communicate through media to the voters. This information in possession by Facebook, I believe, when used for political purposes should be DISCLOSED upon the use of the information, ie: Cambridge Analytica, when it becomes available to actual candidates and their parties. Facebook is media. It just is. It collects and sells demographic information and who knows what else information for profit. Do the rights agreed to, because members have to in order to have access; provide complete and exclusive rights to Facebook to do absolutely anything it wishes including INFLUENCING the outcomes of elections. I think not. The laws have always stated EQUAL access to media used for political purposes. The media is the media and Facebook is no different. So, when Facebook moved from providing demographics to Wall Street for marketing to politics the rules and ethnics are different. Where Facebook LOSES the argument they own the rights to all the information to do with as it pleases ENDS where Facebook provides a CHOICE in showing information on their front page or restricting CERTAIN people from viewing it. If a Democrat's identity is limited to "Friends Only" doesn't that mean their politics have restrictions as well? I think the ACTUAL APPLICATION of the way members use Facebook creates a CLEAR UNDERSTANDING, the relationship is LIMITED. Selling demographics for marketing purposes of goods and services can be done so by generalizing known data. But, marketing to Cambridge Analytica is very different. Cambridge was provided information to influence elections and Facebook was paid for it. I believe, Facebook's SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY in a democracy is to do everything possible to provide a fair and equal opportunity for any candidates when demographics are released FOR SALE or otherwise. I also believe if Facebook provided this service openly and equally to valid candidates and parties, it could deduct the value of VOLUNTEERISM. Assign a value to the parties and candidates and tax it off their taxes. They still pay taxes right? In providing free information to candidates and parties, Facebook could demand limited use of the information from those receiving it to protect it's ability to turn a profit. But, that is my take on this mess and it is always a mess. It is never clear because no one in a Wall Street company will do the ETHICAL thing so much as the GREEDY thing. It is the way it is. It is called Capitalism. In fact, it is not Capitalism at all, it is pure exploitation when ethics are disregarded. This didn't have to happen if Facebook practiced ethics in profit taking and placed the country before their profits.
Police discovered his identity and were hunting him down. Exceptionally good work. He was an extremist. It is exceptionally sad such a young man would take on the ideology of murder and terror to support his beliefs and attempt to inspire others. He was too young to be this rigid in his beliefs. It is one thing to carry far reaching beliefs about ideals, it is quite something else to refuse to live in a diverse society that has different ideals. He wanted power over lives and that is indescribably unfortunate.
March 21, 2018 The suspected (click here) Austin bomber described himself as a conservative and argued against same-sex marriage and abortion in a blog he maintained for a government class. Austin - The suspected Austin bomber (click here) is dead after detonating a bomb inside a car on Interstate 35 and after a SWAT officer fired at him, Austin Police Department Chief Brian Manley said. The bomber's name is Mark Anthony Conditt, 23. "This is the culmination of three very long weeks in our community," Manley said.... ...Officials filed a federal criminal complaint and arrest warrant against Conditt Tuesday night, charging him with one count of Unlawful Possession and Transfer of a Destructive Device. The complaint affidavit is sealed at this time.... Officials (click here) investigated near a vehicle (center) where the suspect in a series of bombing attacks blew himself up early Wednesday.
March 26, 2018
