We Deserve Better: A New Social Media Bill of Rights
I believe that the time has come for a new Social Media Bill of Digital Rights. Just as the original Bill of Rights protected individual freedoms from government overreach, we need fundamental protections for our digital communities from corporate control and surveillance capitalism.So what could such a Social Media Bill of Rights include?
- The right to privacy & security: The ability to communicate and organize without fear of surveillance or exploitation.
- The right to own and control your identity: People and their communities must own their digital identities, connections and data. And, as the owner of an account, you can exercise the right to be forgotten.
- The right to choose and understand algorithms (transparency): Choosing the algorithms that shape your interactions: no more black box systems optimizing for engagement at the expense of community well-being.
The right to community self-governance: Crucially, communities of users need the right to self govern, setting their own rules for behavior which are contextually relevant to their community. (Note: this does not preclude developer governance.)- The right to full portability – the right to exit: The freedom to port your community in its entirety, to another app without losing your connections and content.
ActivityPub is of course mentioned.
We Deserve Better: A New Social Media Bill of Rights
Earlier this year, I was a part of a CNN documentary, Twitter: Breaking the Bird, which gave memuch pause for reflection about the state of social media and how we got here. This year alonewe’…Techdirt
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Linux Breaks 5% Desktop Share in U.S., Signaling Open-Source Surge Against Windows and macOS
Linux Breaks 5% Desktop Share in U.S., Signaling Open-Source Surge Against Windows and macOS
Linux has surpassed 5% desktop market share in the US (5.03% in June 2025), per StatCounter, driven by privacy concerns, rising costs of Windows/macOS, and user-friendly distros like Ubuntu.Ryan Gibson (WebProNews)
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US losing ground to China due to Trump’s policies, Democrats warn
The United States is losing strategic ground to China due to US President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the global stage and transactional approach to foreign policy, a Democrat-authored report has warned.
Surveying Trump’s first six months in office, the report warns that his tenure has “significantly undermined” Washington’s ability to compete with China.
The report highlights staff reductions at the US Department of State and the “chaotic gutting” of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the US Agency for Global Media – which oversees Voice of America and Radio Free Asia – as moves that have weakened US power and influence.
US losing ground to China due to Trump’s policies, Democrats warn
Sentiment towards the US is deteriorating even among Washington’s closest allies, according to Pew survey data.Erin Hale (Al Jazeera)
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What if Ukraine falls? This is no longer a hypothetical question – and it must be answered urgently
What if Ukraine falls? This is no longer a hypothetical question – and it must be answered urgently
Europe offers platitudes, Trump dithers, and Ukraine and its extraordinary people stand on the brink. Nato must step up, says Guardian foreign affairs commentator Simon TisdallSimon Tisdall (The Guardian)
It has been evident since the dying days of 2023, when its counteroffensive stalled, that Ukraine is not winning.
"not winning" hm... I wonder if there might possibly be another way to say that?
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Linux smashes through five per cent desktop share in the US
For the first time ever, Linux has clawed its way past the five per cent desktop market share barrier in the United States so maybe 2025 is finally the much predicted year of Linux on the desktop.StatCounter’s latest figures for June 2025 show Linux holding 5.03 per cent of the US desktop market. That might sound modest, but it is a massive milestone for the open-source faithful who have been banging on for decades that Linux would one day break through. Even more satisfying, Linux has now overtaken the “Unknown” category in the stats, a small but symbolic victory that shows the growth is no longer being ignored or misattributed.
It took a grinding eight years for Linux to crawl from one to two per cent by April 2021. Another 2.2 years were needed to hit three per cent in June 2023. From there it snowballed, taking only 0.7 years to cross four per cent in February 2024 and just four months later Linux is through five per cent.
Analysts say AI workloads, the backlash against surveillance-heavy proprietary platforms, and the never-ending trainwrecks of Apple have made Linux a more attractive option for ordinary users. Microsoft’s increasingly locked-down Windows 11, with its forced online accounts and hardware restrictions, has not helped either.
I guess Apple and MS are finally finding out.
Linux smashes through five per cent desktop share in the US
2025 really is the year of Linux on the desktop For the first time ever, Linux has clawed its way past the five per cent desktop market share barrier in the United States so maybe 2025 is finally the much predicted year of Linux on the desktop.Nick Farrell (Fudzilla)
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Sectarian tension, Israeli intervention: What led to the violence in Syria?
The recent violence in Suwayda began after Bedouin armed groups kidnapped a Druze trader on the road to Damascus on July 11, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a United Kingdom-based monitor.
The abduction quickly turned into more widespread violence between the two communities – which have a longstanding rivalry due to land disputes – eventually dragging in Syrian government forces.
Syria’s new government has been attempting to impose its authority after a 14-year civil war and the end of half a century of al-Assad family rule. However, it has found it difficult to do so in Suwayda, partly because of Israel’s repeated threats against the presence of any government forces in the province, which borders the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
Sectarian tension, Israeli intervention: What led to the violence in Syria?
Israel continues to bomb Syria, ostensibly to support Druze forces in the southwest, even after ceasefire is declared.Mat Nashed (Al Jazeera)
uBlock Origin is forever disabled in Chrome. Why it happened and what to use instead
uBlock Origin is forever disabled in Chrome. Why it happened and what to use instead
uBlock Origin got forever disabled in Chrome due to the browser's transition to MV3. What does it mean for the extension's many users and what are the alternatives?Ekaterina Kachalova (AdGuard)
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I've read about this, haven't tried it. Says it's a chromium-based browser with ad-block.
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GitHub - uazo/cromite: Cromite a Bromite fork with ad blocking and privacy enhancements; take back your browser!
Cromite a Bromite fork with ad blocking and privacy enhancements; take back your browser! - uazo/cromiteGitHub
UK online safety law is going to change the way we use the internet
UK online safety law is going to change the way we use the internet
The UK's Online Safety Act is intended to stop children from accessing pornography online, but its potential implications are much wider reachingMatthew Sparkes (New Scientist)
You mean this Bill Gates?
GATES, GMOs & GEOENGINEERING
In 2006, the BMGF (Bill and Melinda Gate's Foundation) donated $100 million and formed an alliance with the Rockefeller Foundation to help spur a “green revolution” in Africa, with a major focus being to encourage the use of pesticides and “advanced” (i.e. GMO) seeds.
In 2010, the BMGF purchased 500,000 shares in Monsanto, the world’s largest producer of GMO food as well as pesticides like glyphosate (Roundup), making it abundantly clear that this so-called benevolent charity is up to something other than eradicating disease and feeding the world’s poor.
Since 2015, the BMGF has donated a total of $15 million to two global campaigns aimed at “ending world hunger” by encouraging small farmers around the world to use GMOs.
Interestingly, while the BMGF is heavily promoting GMO to farmers, at the same time it’s investing in the ‘Doomsday Crop Diversity Vault,’ a seed bank located in Norway. Other investors include the Norwegian government, the Rockefeller Foundation, and major GMO seed and agrichemical companies.
Food for thought … Why is the BMGF pushing GMO seeds (which destroy the plant seed varieties) while at the same time investing tens of millions of dollars to preserve every seed variety known in a bomb-proof doomsday vault near the remote Arctic Circle “so that crop diversity can be conserved for the future”? Think about it.
Since 2007, Gates has been personally funding and closely involved in the Fund for Innovative Climate and Energy Research (FICER), based at Harvard University, which carries out research into the possibility of blocking the sun in order to mitigate global warming, using chemicals or particles of metals such as aluminum.
In 2012 FICER announced their intention to spray sun-reflecting sulphate particles into the atmosphere to artificially cool the planet, and they also contemplated using aluminum for the same purpose.
That’s right, it’s no longer a “conspiracy theory” folks. Those ‘criss cross’ lines in the sky aren’t funny shaped clouds and they aren’t normal exhaust from planes. They are chemical trails (aka “chemtrails“) being intentionally sprayed into the atmosphere. Heck, there are actually multiple patents on this technology.
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A Latvian politician known for his anti-Russian views was wounded in Ukraine
A Latvian politician known for his anti-Russian views was wounded in Ukraine
The head of the Ogre region of Latvia, Egils Helmanis, was wounded in Ukraine. This was reported by Patriks Griva, the press secretary of the Ogre region, in a video message, according to Sputnik.newsmaker newsmaker (English News front)
A Stoccolma la scomparsa dei contanti ha creato vari problemi
A Stoccolma la scomparsa dei contanti ha creato vari problemi
Per esempio alle donne vittime di violenza domestica, ma non soloIl Post
Subaru Telescope Discovers "Fossil" of the Early Solar System
The Subaru Telescope has made an exciting discovery: a small body beyond Pluto, with implications for the formation, evolution, and current structure of the outer solar system.The object officially designated 2023 KQ~14,~ was found as part of the survey project FOSSIL (Formation of the Outer Solar System: An Icy Legacy), which takes advantage of the Subaru Telescope's wide field of view. The object was discovered through observations taken in March, May, and August 2023 using the Subaru Telescope.
![](https://poliverso.org/photo/preview/640/53348658 "Subaru Telescope Discovers "Fossil\" of the Early Solar System | Obsevation Results | Subaru Telescope")
Subaru Telescope Discovers "Fossil" of the Early Solar System | Obsevation Results | Subaru Telescope
The Subaru Telescope has revealed a fourth member of the sednoids, a group of small bodies with peculiar orbits around the outer edge of the Solar System that includes Se...Subaru Telescope
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Microsoft saved $500 million using AI — after slashing over 15,000 jobs in 2025
Microsoft saved $500 million using AI — after slashing over 15,000 jobs in 2025
While AI may not be the direct cause of Microsoft’s recent layoffs, it’s already delivering impressive productivity gains — saving $500 million in the call center alone last year.Kevin Okemwa (Windows Central)
Dutch MPs want citizens to own the copyright to their faces
A majority of Dutch MPs are backing a proposal to give citizens the copyright to their body, facial features, and voice to prevent people from creating AI-generated deepfakes and putting them online.
Denmark has already announced it will extend copyright law to ensure people maintain the right to their own person and GroenLinks-PvdA, VVD, NSC and D66 MPS now want to follow suit.
They have also called for action against big tech companies that do not act against the dissemination of deepfakes on their platforms.
Obando said any case against big tech companies would be a “challenge” and may turn into a battle of “David against Goliath”. “An individual would have to take on an often anonymous perpetrator or a big tech platform,” he said.
Privacy watchdog Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens (AP) is calling on people who are the victims of sexually suggestive deepfakes to report them so it can impose fines and other measures.
Duursma and Obando both warned that the new legislation could compromise freedom of expression. However, parody and satire using deepfakes would still be allowed under the proposed rules.
Twitter founder Jack Dorsey pumps $10 million into a nonprofit to build Nostr-based social media apps
Jack Dorsey pumps $10 million into a nonprofit focused on open-source social media | TechCrunch
Jack Dorsey backs nonprofit 'and Other Stuff' with $10M to build open social technology.Sarah Perez (TechCrunch)
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Hackers Are Finding New Ways to Hide Malware in DNS Records
New ways, but they are really creative!
https://www.wired.com/story/dns-records-hidden-malicious-code/
Robots on the Front Line: Ukraine’s Unmanned Land Vehicles Transforming Ground Warfare
Robots on the Front Line: Ukraine’s Unmanned Land Vehicles Transforming Ground Warfare
Ukraine has emerged as the global leader in integrating unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) into frontline combat.Matthew Parish (www.lvivherald.com)
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Liberating clients from servers, without throwing out baby with bathwater
"With targeted FEPs and pioneering implementations like Flowz, the Fediverse can break free of proprietary client APIs and monolithic client/server implementations and empower a new wave of social web innovation."
@stevebate
stevebate.net/activitypub-clie…
This is such a valuable insight! There are 2 extremes in decentralised social app dev, one where an app is just a dumb terminal for a particular server, and then the inverse, pure P2P apps with no server. But there is a middle ground. Apps can be a focus of UX development, and access different servers as needed to provide functionality that's impractical (if not impossible) to do with pure P2P networks.
ActivityPub Client API: A Way Forward | Steve Bate
The ActivityPub Client-to-Server (C2S) protocol was envisioned as a cornerstone of the decentralized social web, along with the Server-to-Server (S2S) protocol.Steve Bate
I may bring an additional more top-down design perspective into consideration and to ideate on, but please let me know if that is better addressed in a separate topic.
What if we "Liberate people from clients, apps and servers"?
If the "fediverse facilitates online communication and social interaction between people", then the ActivityPub protocol specifies how to implement an abstraction on top of servers and clients in order to provide "a distributed network of addressible actors for the exchange of social activities". This abstraction no longer relies on the notion of servers and clients, though for certain social networking use cases you may opt to re-introduce them (.. but then they live as concepts in this higher level of abstraction).
Though conceptually the ActivityPub spec didn't prescribe this, the dominant abstraction for "joining the fediverse" in the present day involves "select an app, select a server that hosts your app of choice, and use a client that supports that app, to access it". In other words, currently fediverse offers a predominantly app-centric view of the world. But this need not be the only view that is supported, and I advocate a shift towards having a fediverse of mixed apps & services, and elaborate a service-oriented view e.g. as a compliant AP protocol extension.
In the service-oriented view - and in a paradigm shift towards app-free computing - there wouldn't necessarily be "Instances" as we have today, but parties that are positioned as fediverse access providers. You can compare this to the telecom sector, providing the plug in your house to deliver TV, phone and internet services at your doorstep.
When relating that to a good software with ActivityPub C2S support, I can envision that people after gaining access and becoming fedizens, can easily discover, obtain and wire services together in interesting ways that support their social networking use cases and needs. And dynamic UI/UX that supports that, based on service configuration and protocol (control) data exchange.
Cybersecurity Impacts of US Government Cuts - Security Now
Texas has long been under threat from the launches and explosions of SpaceX rockets. Now Hawaii is emerging as another possible victim
Inside Elon Musk’s plan to rain SpaceX’s rocket debris over Hawaii’s pristine waters
Texas has long been under threat from the launches and explosions of SpaceX rockets. Now Hawaii is emerging as another possible victimDara Kerr (The Guardian)
Massistant - new tool used by Chinese government to spy on seized phones
Chinese authorities are using a new tool to hack seized phones and extract data | TechCrunch
Researchers warned that Chinese residents, and visitors to China, should be aware of the tool's existence and the risks it poses.Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai (TechCrunch)
Thursday, July 17, 2025
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Russia’s war against Ukraine
Ukrainian emergency service workers extinguish a fire in three houses after Russian shelling on the city of Kostiantynivka, Donetsk Oblast, on July 16, 2025. (Diego Herrera Carcedo/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Ukraine’s parliament dismisses prime minister and his cabinet. The move comes after President Volodymyr Zelensky tapped First Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko to replace Shmyhal after he had held the office for more than five years.
Zelensky unveils new cabinet nominees in major government reshuffle. “Today, I have already signed documents to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine regarding Denys Shmyhal as the new defense minister,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said.
Patriot missiles bound for Ukraine already being shipped, Trump says. “They’re already being shipped,” U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters when asked about Patriot missiles and other weaponry. “And in all cases, the United States gets paid back in full.”
Putin unfazed by Trump’s threats, plans to fight on in Ukraine, Reuters reports. According to Reuters, Russian President Vladimir Putin sees no reason to back down. Instead, the undisclosed sources say the Russian leader is confident that Russia’s military and economy can withstand additional Western pressure.
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France, Italy reportedly opt out of US-NATO arms deal for Ukraine. France declined to join the plan because of President Emmanuel Macron’s push for European nations to strengthen their own defense industries by purchasing domestically produced arms, Politico reported, citing French officials.
‘We are doubling the Ukraine Facility’ — EU proposes 100 billion euros for Ukraine aid fund in 2028–2034 budget. The proposed package doubles the current Ukraine Facility budget of 50 billion euros, which was approved in February 2024 and runs through 2027.
‘No one has been briefed’ — Europe blindsided by Trump’s Ukraine weapons deal. U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposed weapons deal for Ukraine caught NATO allies off guard, with European diplomats saying they weren’t consulted ahead of the announcement, Reuters reported on July 16.
After rejecting ceasefire, Russia calls on West to ‘pressure’ Ukraine toward negotiations. “Many statements have been made, many words of disappointment have been spoken, but we want to hope that pressure is being exerted on the Ukrainian side,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.
Read our exclusives
Ukraine war latest: Mass attack hits cities overnight as Ukrainians brace for 50 more days of Russian terror
Explosions rocked Ukrainian cities overnight on July 16 as Russia once again launched waves of drones and missiles across the country.
Photo: State Emergency Service/Telegram
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Ukraine’s new ground drones are hitting the battlefield in ever-increasing numbers
Ukraine’s use of unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) has accelerated in recent months, a development experts say could help ease pressure on infantry as Kyiv struggles with ongoing recruitment problems and losses.
Photo: Serhii Mykhalchuk / Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images
Learn more
Azov is where you can learn to defend your homeland from Russia
Today, the International Battalion of the Azov Brigade is the best place for foreign citizens to gain firsthand experience and learn the rules of modern warfare.
Photo: Elizabeth Servatynska / Azov Media / Getty Images
Human cost of Russia’s war
Russia drops 500-kg bomb on shopping center in Donetsk Oblast — killing 2, injuring 28. Russian forces dropped a 500-kilogram (1,100-pound) aerial bomb on a shopping center in Donetsk Oblast, killing at least two people and injuring 27 others, regional officials reported July 16.
Latvian mayor injured in Russian strike while delivering aid in Ukraine. The mayor of the Latvian town of Ogre, Egils Helmanis was injured while delivering vehicles and other support to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Russian double-tap attack injures 5, including emergency workers, in Nikopol. Russian first-person-view (FPV) drones initially struck a cargo truck, causing a fire and injuring two civilians. Soon after, as emergency workers were working on site, another Russian drone targeted the scene, injuring three emergency workers, the State Emergency Service said.
Missing Russian Mi-8 helicopter found crashed in Far East, all 5 onboard dead. The aircraft, operated by the airline Vzlyot, disappeared on July 14 during a flight from the remote settlement of Okhotsk to the city of Magadan, according to the state news agency TASS.
US-founded extremist group claims killing of Ukrainian security service colonel in Kyiv. In a statement, the local affiliate — known as White Phoenix — praised its “comrades” for the July 10 killing of the colonel. Sources in the counter-terrorism field consider the group’s claim credible, the Guardian reported.
Latvian PM on Trump’s NATO deal and new Russia sanctions
International response
‘Unbearable’ — EU’s Kallas raises alarm over Russia’s escalating chemical warfare in Ukraine. “Again, it shows that Russia wants to cause as much pain and suffering as possible so that Ukraine would surrender,” top EU diplomat Kaja Kallas said at a press conference during a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels. “It is really unbearable,” she added.”
US State Department fires Russia and Ukraine analysts in recent layoffs, NYT reports. It remains unclear how many analysts of the department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR) were fired, and the arm retains employees who specialize in Russia and Ukraine, the NYT reported.
‘Call the Ayatollah’ — Senator Graham warns Putin as he backs Trump’s 50-day Russia ultimatum. “If (Russian President Vladimir) Putin and others are wondering what happens on day 51, I would suggest they call the Ayatollah,” Senator Lindsey Graham wrote on X.
EU slaps new sanctions on Russia over hybrid threats, disinformation. The new restrictive measures target actors involved in what the EU described as “Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference” (FIMI), a term encompassing activities such as cyberattacks, disinformation, and manipulation of infrastructure and public opinion.
German Quantum Systems takes 10% ownership in Ukrainian defense robotics firm Frontline. German-Ukrainian defense technology company Quantum Systems has acquired a 10% stake in Frontline, a Ukrainian defense robotics firm, Quantum Systems announced in a press release on July 16.
Russian authorities call for urgent tax increase to save national budget. Moscow needs to urgently raise more money as shrinking oil and gas revenues and a worsening economic outlook continue to strain the federal budget, a senior Russian lawmaker warned on July 16.
In other news
Home of deceased Ukrainian pilot ‘Juice’ searched over anti-corruption activist’s case, media reports. Lilia Averianova, the mother of late MiG-29 pilot Andrii “Juice” Pilshchykov, told Suspilne that investigators came to the Kharkiv apartment on July 11 and demanded entry, threatening to break down the door.
4 Ukrainians make Forbes’ ranking of wealthiest immigrants in US. Ukraine entered the top ten countries by the number of billionaire immigrants, with four Ukrainians securing spots on Forbes’ ranking of America’s wealthiest immigrants and their combined fortunes totaling $25.3 billion, Forbes Ukraine reported on July 15.
Ukraine parliament backs nearly $10 billion defense budget increase in first reading. Ukraine’s parliament approved a Hr 412.4 billion ($9.8 billion) increase in defense spending in the first reading, Ukraine’s Finance Ministry announced in a press release on July 16.
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Ukraine parliament backs nearly $10 billion defense budget increase in first reading
Ukraine's parliament approved a Hr 412.4 billion ($9.8 billion) increase in defense spending in the first reading, Ukraine’s Finance Ministry announced in a press release on July 16.Yana Prots (The Kyiv Independent)
Advertisers win, users lose in an Instagram spinoff: Meta could be forced to sell Instagram if a court rules it’s an illegal monopoly.
New Stanford research into likely advertising effects suggests a split wouldn’t be good for users.
Advertisers win, users lose in an Instagram spinoff
Meta could be forced to sell Instagram if a court rules it’s an illegal monopoly. New Stanford research into likely advertising effects suggests a split wouldn’t be good for users.news.stanford.edu
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pignastico aggiornamento sulla via della persistente miglioranza! (aggiornamenti Pignio)
È incredibile e pazzesco quanto in questi giorni sto migliorando infinitamente il mio Pignio, anziché marcire spiritualmente (…per quanto continuando a farlo fisicamente perché, se pur posso programmare in giro, è chiaramente più comodo e produttivo farlo a casina). Soprattutto, penso di aver risolto diversi problemi in un colpo solo stavolta, quindi miao!!! Poi oh, […]
octospacc.altervista.org/2025/…
pignastico aggiornamento sulla via della persistente miglioranza! (aggiornamenti Pignio) - fritto misto di octospacc
È incredibile e pazzesco quanto in questi giorni sto migliorando infinitamente il mio Pignio, anziché marcire spiritualmente (...per quanto continuando a farlminioctt (fritto misto di octospacc)
Fossil discovery reveals ancient giant marine reptile relied on stealth while hunting in darkness
Fossil discovery reveals ancient giant marine reptile relied on stealth while hunting in darkness
A new study has uncovered evidence that a giant marine reptile from the Early Jurassic period used stealth to hunt its prey in deep or dark waters – much like owls on land today.University of Manchester
UK government secretly paid foreign YouTube stars for ‘propaganda’
UK government secretly paid foreign YouTube stars for ‘propaganda’
Revealed: Media agency Zinc Network has contract to recruit social media influencers across Europe.Martin Williams (Declassified Media ltd)
The fact that One Trillion is as easy to say as One Million is a travesty. It's great for coming to terms with astronomic scales, but it really hampers the average person in understanding just how much wealth a single plane of people hold.
This is my favorite attempt to show just how much wealth they're actually talking about. It's a bit biased towards phones, and it dates itself a bit, but it certainly makes an impression.
Wealth, shown to scale
Wealth inequality in the United States is out of control. Here we visualize the issue in a unique way.hmijail.github.io
I was wrong about robots.txt
I was wrong about robots.txt
Recently, I wrote an article about my journey in learning about robots.txt and its implications on the data rights in regards to what I write in my blog. I was confident that I wanted to ban all the crawlers from my website.Evgenii Pendragon
Meta shareholders vs Mark Zuckerberg in $8 billion lawsuit
ABC News
ABC News provides the latest news and headlines in Australia and around the world.Ahmed Yussuf (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
Oxford University Press to stop publishing China-sponsored science journal amid concerns of unethical standards on DNA collection
Oxford University Press (OUP) will no longer publish a controversial academic journal sponsored by China’s Ministry of Justice after years of concerns that several papers in the publication did not meet ethical standards about DNA collection.
A statement published on the website of Forensic Sciences Research (FSR) states that OUP will stop publishing the quarterly journal after this year.
FSR is a journal that comes from China’s Academy of Forensic Science, an agency that sits under the Ministry of Justice. The academy describes FSR as “the only English quarterly journal in the field of forensic science in China that focuses on forensic medicine”. It has been published by OUP since 2023.
Several papers published in FSR have attracted criticism because they study genetic data from Uyghurs and other heavily surveilled ethnic minorities in China. Critics say subjects in the studies may not have freely consented to their DNA samples being used in the research and that the studies could help to enhance the mass surveillance of those populations.
One study, published in 2020, analysed blood samples from 264 Uyghurs in Ürümqi, the capital of the Xinjiang region in north-west China. The paper states that the people giving the samples consented to the research and that their data was anonymised.
The lead author on the study is affiliated with China’s state security apparatus via the Xinjiang Police College, which provided a research grant.
[...]
Yves Moreau, a professor of engineering at the University of Leuven in Belgium who focuses on DNA analysis, first raised concerns about OUP’s relationship with FSR and about several studies. He said he was grateful for OUP’s decision but that the brief public statement on the matter “fails to address the important issues at stake”.
[...]
In recent years there has been increasing scrutiny about the ethical standards of genetic research papers from China. Last year, a genetics journal from a leading scientific publisher retracted 18 papers from China due to concerns about human rights.
The concerns centre on whether or not vulnerable populations in China can freely refuse to participate, especially when researchers come from organisations, such as the police, affiliated with state security. There are also concerns that this kind of forensic DNA sampling could produce research that enhances the mass surveillance of those populations.
Moreau said: “Forensic genetics is an area where specific caution is needed because this is the research that powers police DNA identification and databases. While DNA identification is a valuable technique to help solve crimes, it can raise privacy and ethical issues.” He added that the mass surveillance of minorities in Xinjiang and Tibet made China a particularly challenging country to enforce international norms about ethical research and human rights.
[...]
Oxford University Press to stop publishing China-sponsored science journal
Move follows concerns about papers in Forensic Sciences Research not meeting ethical standards on DNA collectionAmy Hawkins (The Guardian)
July Quiz Answers
Here are the answers to this month’s six quiz questions. If in doubt, all should be able to be easily verified online.
Biology
- What is the fastest land animal? The cheetah
- How many hearts does an octopus have? 3
- Gentoo, Adelie and Macaroni are all species of what? Penguin
- What comic strip’s joke name for the row of spikes on a stegosaurus’s tail, the “thagomizer,” ended up becoming the official name? The Far Side
- Which fruit did many people in the Western world think was poisonous until 1820? Tomatoes
- What is the natural compound present in green plants that gives them their colour? Chlorophyll
Answers were correct when questions were compiled in late 2024.
Addio a Enrico Valenti, il creatore di Uan
Addio a Enrico Valenti, il creatore di Uan
Nato a Milano nel 1954, è stato il creatore di Uan, il celebre pupazzo rosa che ha animato i pomeriggi di intere generazioni di ragazzi tra gli anni ’80 e ’90Gayburg
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Paolo Borsellino: un eroe di ieri di cui l’oggi ne ha bisogno impellente
Indice dei contenuti
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- Come la mafia coinvolge i giovani oggi
- Cosa attira i giovani verso la mafia
- Come si potrebbe contrastare il fenomeno
- Paolo Borsellino: un eroe di ieri, di cui l’oggi ne ha bisogno impellente
- Chi era Paolo Borsellino?
- Collaboratori di giustizia fondamentali:
- Perché fu un processo storico?
- Le sentenze
- Le conseguenze
- Eredità
- L’attentato di via D’Amelio
- L’attentato: cosa accadde il 19 luglio 1992
- Le vittime:
- La dinamica e i misteri
- I misteri irrisolti:
- Ipotesi sulla trattativa Stato-Mafia
- Conseguenze e memoria
- Simbolo di coraggio
“Se la gioventù le negherà il consenso, anche l’onnipotente e misteriosa mafia svanirà come un incubo. ”
Il rapporto tra la mafia contemporanea e i giovani è un tema complesso e di grande attualità. Oggi le organizzazioni mafiose (come Cosa Nostra, ‘Ndrangheta, Camorra, Sacra Corona Unita, e altre realtà emergenti) continuano ad adattarsi ai cambiamenti sociali, economici e culturali, e purtroppo riescono ancora a coinvolgere i giovani in vari modi.
Come la mafia coinvolge i giovani oggi
1. Reclutamento nei quartieri disagiati
In molte aree ad alta marginalità sociale, la mafia offre ai giovani una “scorciatoia” per ottenere soldi, status e potere. Viene sfruttata la mancanza di opportunità lavorative e l’assenza dello Stato.
2. Lavori illegali e microcriminalità
I ragazzi possono essere coinvolti in attività come spaccio di droga, estorsioni, furti, e usura. Spesso iniziano con piccoli incarichi, per poi essere progressivamente integrati nella struttura mafiosa.
3. Uso dei social media
Alcune mafie stanno usando TikTok, Instagram e Facebook per mostrare una vita di lusso, ostentare ricchezza e potere, e attrarre giovani in cerca di riconoscimento o rispetto.
4. Coinvolgimento indiretto
Altri giovani, pur non essendo affiliati, sono “consumatori” del sistema mafioso: comprano droga, frequentano locali controllati dalla mafia, oppure accettano “favori” in cambio di silenzio.
Cosa attira i giovani verso la mafia
Mancanza di alternative: lavoro, cultura, tempo libero
Modelli negativi: l’idea del “boss” come vincente
Assenza di fiducia nelle istituzioni
Fascinazione per il potere e il denaro facile
Come si potrebbe contrastare il fenomeno
1. Educazione alla legalità
Progetti scolastici, testimonianze di vittime o pentiti, iniziative di antimafia sociale e culturale sono fondamentali per formare coscienze critiche.
2. Lavoro e inclusione sociale
Offrire vere opportunità (borse di studio, sport, cultura, impresa giovanile) è il modo migliore per togliere manodopera alla criminalità.
3. Esempi positivi
Testimoni come don Luigi Ciotti (Libera), associazioni, cooperative sui beni confiscati dimostrano che un’alternativa è possibile.
Paolo Borsellino: un eroe di ieri, di cui l’oggi ne ha bisogno impellente
Paolo Borsellino è stato un magistrato italiano, nato a Palermo il 19 gennaio 1940 e assassinato dalla mafia il 19 luglio 1992 in via D’Amelio, sempre a Palermo. È considerato, insieme a Giovanni Falcone, uno dei simboli più importanti della lotta alla mafia in Italia.
Chi era Paolo Borsellino?
Professione
Magistrato, giudice istruttore, poi procuratore aggiunto presso la Procura di Palermo.
Impegno: Si è dedicato con determinazione al contrasto di Cosa Nostra, l’organizzazione mafiosa siciliana.
Collaborazione con Falcone: Faceva parte del cosiddetto “pool antimafia”, insieme a Falcone e altri magistrati, che avviò importanti indagini sui vertici mafiosi.
La vita privata di Paolo Borsellino era semplice, riservata e profondamente segnata dal senso del dovere, dalla famiglia e dalla fede. Nonostante fosse un uomo pubblico per il suo impegno contro la mafia, nella sfera personale rimase sempre molto discreto e legato agli affetti più intimi.
Famiglia
Moglie: Paolo Borsellino era sposato con Agnese Piraino Leto, figlia di un magistrato. I due si conobbero da giovani e si sposarono nel 1968.
Figli: Ebbero tre figli: Lucia Borsellino, ex assessore alla Sanità in Sicilia, oggi impegnata in progetti legati alla legalità.
Manfredi Borsellino, funzionario di Polizia, oggi Dirigente della Polizia di Stato. Fiammetta Borsellino, attivista per la verità sulle stragi del ’92, molto impegnata nella memoria del padre.
Vita quotidiana
Borsellino viveva a Palermo, in una condizione di grande pressione: la sua vita era sotto costante sorveglianza a causa delle minacce della mafia.
Era molto legato alla madre, che abitava in via D’Amelio – proprio dove avvenne l’attentato.
Nonostante il lavoro impegnativo, cercava di preservare momenti di normalità con la sua famiglia, spesso anche con ironia e umanità.
Fede e valori
Paolo Borsellino era una persona di profonda moralità e valori cattolici. Aveva un forte senso dello Stato, della giustizia, della responsabilità. Si dichiarava credente e viveva il proprio lavoro come una missione civile e morale.
Credeva nella forza dell’esempio, soprattutto verso i giovani.
Era descritto da chi lo conosceva come: Gentile, educato, molto riflessivo. Dotato di ironia sottile e forte autocontrollo. Un uomo di pochi amici intimi, ma fedeli.
Aveva una passione per la lettura e la storia, in particolare quella del Risorgimento e della Costituzione italiana.
Vita sotto scorta
Dopo l’assassinio di Falcone (maggio 1992), la sua vita cambiò radicalmente: Dormiva poco. Era consapevole di essere “un morto che cammina”, come disse ad amici e familiari.
Continuava comunque a lavorare con determinazione e coraggio, dicendo:
“Chi ha paura muore ogni giorno, chi non ha paura muore una volta sola.”
Il Maxi Processo
Tra i principali risultati del suo lavoro c’è il Maxi Processo di Palermo (1986-1992), il più grande processo penale mai celebrato contro la mafia, che portò a centinaia di condanne.
Il processo si basava anche sulle rivelazioni di Tommaso Buscetta, primo grande “pentito” di Cosa Nostra.
Il Maxi Processo di Palermo (1986–1992) è stato il più grande processo penale della storia italiana contro la mafia, in particolare contro Cosa Nostra, l’organizzazione criminale siciliana. È considerato una pietra miliare nella lotta alla mafia e un capolavoro di diritto e coraggio, voluto e portato avanti da magistrati come Giovanni Falcone, Paolo Borsellino, e altri membri del pool antimafia.
Cos’è stato il Maxi Processo?
Luogo: Palermo, all’interno dell’aula bunker del carcere dell’Ucciardone, costruita appositamente per motivi di sicurezza.
Inizio: 10 febbraio 1986
Fine: 30 gennaio 1992 (con la sentenza definitiva della Cassazione)
Durata: 6 anni
Imputati: 475 mafiosi
Capi d’accusa: Omicidio, traffico di droga, estorsione, associazione mafiosa, e altri reati gravi.
Protagonisti principali
Magistrati del pool antimafia: Giovanni Falcone, Paolo Borsellino, Antonino Caponnetto, Giuseppe Di Lello, Leonardo Guarnotta
Collaboratori di giustizia fondamentali:
Tommaso Buscetta, il primo vero “pentito” di Cosa Nostra, che rivelò l’organizzazione piramidale della mafia e i rapporti interni tra le famiglie.
Salvatore Contorno, altro pentito che confermò le rivelazioni di Buscetta.
Perché fu un processo storico?
Per la prima volta, la mafia fu trattata come un’organizzazione unica e strutturata, non come sommatoria di singoli reati. Si applicò l’articolo 416-bis del codice penale, introdotto nel 1982, che riconosce l’associazione mafiosa come reato specifico. Venne accertata l’esistenza della “Cupola”, cioè una struttura di vertice di Cosa Nostra.
Le sentenze
Primo grado (1987): 19 ergastoli
2665 anni di carcere complessivi
Appello (1990): alcune condanne ridotte
Cassazione (30 gennaio 1992):
Conferma quasi totale delle condanne
Presidente della Corte: Corrado Carnevale, inizialmente sostituito per sospette simpatie verso ambienti mafiosi
Il Maxi Processo si concluse con la conferma definitiva della sentenza: fu una vittoria storica dello Stato contro la mafia.
Le conseguenze
Totò Riina e i boss di Cosa Nostra non accettarono la sconfitta.
Pochi mesi dopo la sentenza definitiva, nel 1992, Falcone e Borsellino furono assassinati.
Le stragi furono viste come vendetta e intimidazione verso lo Stato.
Eredità
Il Maxi Processo dimostrò che la mafia si può combattere con le leggi e la giustizia. Ha ispirato nuove generazioni di magistrati, studenti e cittadini a credere nella legalità. Ancora oggi è un esempio studiato in tutto il mondo per come è stato organizzato, difeso e concluso.
L’attentato di via D’Amelio
Il 19 luglio 1992, Paolo Borsellino fu ucciso da un’autobomba parcheggiata sotto casa della madre. Nell’attentato morirono anche cinque agenti della scorta: Agostino Catalano, Emanuela Loi, Vincenzo Li Muli, Walter Eddie Cosina e Claudio Traina.
Solo 57 giorni prima, anche Falcone era stato assassinato con la moglie Francesca Morvillo e tre agenti della scorta nella strage di Capaci.
L’attentato di via D’Amelio, in cui fu assassinato Paolo Borsellino, è uno degli episodi più tragici e controversi della storia della lotta alla mafia in Italia. Avvenne il 19 luglio 1992, a Palermo, 57 giorni dopo la strage di Capaci, in cui era stato ucciso l’amico e collega Giovanni Falcone.
L’attentato: cosa accadde il 19 luglio 1992
Alle ore 16:58, una Fiat 126 imbottita con circa 100 kg di esplosivo saltò in aria in via Mariano D’Amelio, sotto casa della madre del magistrato. Paolo Borsellino stava andando a trovare la madre, accompagnato dalla sua scorta. L’esplosione fu devastante: il magistrato morì sul colpo, insieme a 5 agenti della scorta.
Le vittime:
Paolo Borsellino, 52 anni, Agostino Catalano, capo scorta, Emanuela Loi, 24 anni (prima donna della Polizia di Stato a cadere in servizio), Walter Eddie Cosina, Claudio Traina, Vincenzo Li Muli
L’unico agente sopravvissuto fu Antonio Vullo, che era rimasto in macchina.
La dinamica e i misteri
Come fu organizzato: La mafia fece parcheggiare la Fiat 126 sotto casa della madre di Borsellino giorni prima. L’auto fu rubata e preparata a Palermo con un telecomando a distanza. L’attentato fu pianificato con cura e precisione da Cosa Nostra, in particolare dal boss Totò Riina.
I misteri irrisolti:
Chi sapeva i movimenti di Borsellino? Solo pochi conoscevano i suoi spostamenti.
La sparizione dell’agenda rossa: nella borsa di Borsellino ritrovata integra non c’era il suo diario personale, sparito misteriosamente (vedi sopra).
Presenze “anomale” sulla scena del crimine: diversi testimoni parlarono di uomini in abiti civili o divise che presero oggetti dalla macchina.
Ipotesi sulla trattativa Stato-Mafia
Negli anni successivi, molti hanno ipotizzato che Borsellino fu ucciso perché sapeva troppo su una presunta “trattativa” tra pezzi dello Stato e Cosa Nostra, in cui si cercava un accordo per fermare le stragi in cambio di benefici per i mafiosi detenuti. Borsellino forse aveva scoperto qualcosa, e stava indagando. Questo potrebbe averlo reso ancora più pericoloso agli occhi della mafia – e forse anche di settori deviati delle istituzioni.
Conseguenze e memoria
Lo shock dell’attentato spinse migliaia di cittadini a scendere in piazza, specialmente i giovani. Nacquero movimenti antimafia, come quello delle Agende Rosse fondato dal fratello Salvatore Borsellino.
Ancora oggi, la verità completa su via D’Amelio non è mai stata chiarita del tutto
Simbolo di coraggio
La strage di via D’Amelio ha trasformato Paolo Borsellino in un simbolo eterno della legalità e della lotta alla mafia. Le sue parole, le sue azioni e il suo sacrificio continuano a ispirare generazioni.
Oggi Paolo Borsellino è considerato un eroe nazionale.
Viene ricordato ogni anno, specialmente il 19 luglio, in eventi pubblici, scuole e manifestazioni civili.
A lui sono intitolate scuole, piazze, vie, e biblioteche in tutta Italia.
La sua figura è centrale nel racconto dell’Italia contro la mafia.
Libri consigliati:
“Gomorra” di Roberto Saviano
“Io non ho paura” Ammaniti
“La mafia spiegata ai bambini: l’invasione degli scarafaggi” di Marco Rizzo
“La mafia spiegati ai ragazzi” di Antonio Nicasio
#Borsellino #capaci #mafia #strage
Paolo Borsellino: un eroe di ieri di cui l’oggi ne ha bisogno impellente
Paolo Borsellino: un eroe di ieri di cui l’oggi ne ha bisogno impellente - Controinformazione - Il Mago di OzCristina Desideri (Magozine.it)
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Antony And The Johnsons – Cut The World (2012)
Antony Hegarty, un artista unico, come la sua voce malinconica, primo e più appariscente elemento di una personalità musicale sfaccettata e poliedrica, capace di far entrare l’ascoltatore nella sua sfera più intima e umana, con una naturalezza commovente, che va ben al di la del mero timbro vocale, per quanto esclusivo ed eccezionale... Leggi e ascolta...
Antony And The Johnsons – Cut The World (2012)
Antony Hegarty, un artista unico, come la sua voce malinconica, primo e più appariscente elemento di una personalità musicale sfaccettata e poliedrica, capace di far entrare l’ascoltatore nella sua sfera più intima e umana, con una naturalezza commovente, che va ben al di la del mero timbro vocale, per quanto esclusivo ed eccezionale. “Cut The World” è un album che raccoglie le registrazioni effettuate da Antony e i suoi The Johnsons, assieme all’Orchestra sinfonica nazionale di Copenhagen, grazie alla quale i brani editi sui quattro precedenti lavori in studio si rivestono di nuove atmosfere, suscitando nuove sensazioni... impattosonoro.it/2012/09/04/re…
Ascolta: album.link/i/531336560
Home – Identità DigitaleSono su: Mastodon.uno - Pixelfed - Feddit
Cut the World by Antony & The Johnsons
Listen now on your favorite streaming service. Powered by Songlink/Odesli, an on-demand, customizable smart link service to help you share songs, albums, podcasts and more.Songlink/Odesli
La Chiesa d’Inghilterra risarcirà un sopravvissuto alle cosiddette "terapie di conversione"
La Chiesa d’Inghilterra risarcirà un sopravvissuto alle cosiddette "terapie di conversione"
Per la prima volta nella storia, la Chiesa d'Inghilterra risarcirà una persona sopravvissuta ad una terapia di conversione.Gayburg
Gary’s Videos: A Relatable Journey of Discovery (and Frustration!)
Every time a new video from Gary – @garyhtech – comes out, regardless of the topic (which is mainly about BSDs, but not only), I already know I’ll have to take the time to watch it. The reason is very simple: his videos are fantastic. He records himself and comments while doing things, and in many situations, it feels like I’m watching myself. I tackle something new, and it doesn’t work, or I realize I’ve made a mistake and start reprimanding myself. Gary does all this on camera. Sometimes he succeeds, sometimes he doesn’t, but that’s not what matters… what really matters is the process and how he approaches it.
The latest video, published yesterday, is “FreeBSD User tries NetBSD! Is it much Different?”. And, in my opinion, it’s worth watching just for the title alone.
🧊 freezr 🥶 likes this.
China school expels woman for sex with Ukraine man that ‘hurts national dignity’
China university expels woman for casual sex with Ukraine man that ‘hurts national dignity’
21-year-old woman has one-night stand with Eastern European gamer, endures what many say is ‘excessive’ punishment.Fran Lu (South China Morning Post)
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TheAlbatross
in reply to crankyrebel • • •crankyrebel
in reply to TheAlbatross • • •TheAlbatross
in reply to crankyrebel • • •But why? There's no need for that for everything to make sense. Epstein was a wealthy financier who also was a sex trafficker of young people to the rich and famous. We know he worked with Trump and Trump has been confirmed to have been on the island where he pimped out the young people he trafficked.
He's a Mossad agent... why? Simply because he's Jewish? Bibi is pulling the strings.... why? Idk man this feels like some "Jewish conspiracy" bullshit with a thin veneer of "It's Bibi so it's anti-Zionist and that makes it fine".
This is a weird post and you should feel weird.
crankyrebel
in reply to TheAlbatross • • •Not because he is Jewish, but because he was a Zionist.
Jeffrey Epstein Rumored Mossad Connection Explained
Jeffrey Epstein Rumored Mossad Connection Explained
Nick Mordowanec (Newsweek)TheAlbatross
in reply to crankyrebel • • •I'm not sure the conspiracy minded ramblings of Tucker Carlson are something one has to bear in mind at any point in their lives.
Like, yeah, fuck Epstein, Trump, Bibi, and Zionism, but c'mon...
Let's pretend Epstein is confirmed as a Mossad asset, for a moment. It still isn't necessary for Bibi to be pulling the strings here for Trump to have plenty of reasons to want to shut down inquiry into Epstein's work. It's just conspiracy for conspiracy's sake.
Furthermore, I'm not sure what the point of this post is, other than promoting this conspiracy you've come up with. It's not funny and it just plays into antisemitic tropes but applies them to Zionists
SatansMaggotyCumFart
in reply to crankyrebel • • •davel
in reply to SatansMaggotyCumFart • • •They don’t resonate with us, nor do we pay them attention. The few instances where we agree are merely coincidental and usually for different reasons.
Consortium News, 2020: Epstein Case: Documentaries Won’t Touch Tales of Intel Ties
Epstein Case: Documentaries Won't Touch Tales of Intel Ties
Consortium NewsSatansMaggotyCumFart
in reply to davel • • •davel
in reply to SatansMaggotyCumFart • • •I know.
Carlson is hard to avoid. You don’t necessarily have to seek out his opinion to be aware of it. And I wouldn’t know how “left” OP is.
SatansMaggotyCumFart
in reply to davel • • •davel
in reply to SatansMaggotyCumFart • • •Limonene
in reply to TheAlbatross • • •Cowbee [he/they]
in reply to crankyrebel • • •The tail doesn't wag the dog. AIPAC and Israel have some level of counterinfluence over the US, but the US Empire is the hegemon, and Israel its vassel. Trying to paint the US as under the control of Israel is mostly an actually antisemetic dogwhistle, and plays into the idea that a Jewish cabal is controlling the world's Empire.
I know you probably aren't intending it that way, but it's important to correctly criticize the genocidal entity "Israel." Mis-analyzing the dynamics at play weakens our chances of rectifying them.
TheAlbatross
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •Cowbee [he/they]
in reply to TheAlbatross • • •Mrkawfee
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •Cowbee [he/they]
in reply to Mrkawfee • • •anarchoilluminati [comrade/them]
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •𝔽𝕩𝕠𝕞𝕥
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •Beautifully put. It is not that the US/EU are at the mercy of Israel, or are concerned to cut ties; they know fully well what they are doing. Israel is a colony for them to assert their power in the region. If the US/EU didn't exist, neither would Israel. If Israel didn't exist, they would just create another Israel in the region for their interest.
Its not just Israel, either. Most Arab states are puppets for them too, basically showing face to their populations anti-zionism, Arab unity and all that bullshit, but then turning around and dealing with Israel and "fighting arab extremism". After sykes-picot/invading nations/influencing revolutions/pouring endless money to far right insurgents, we are effectively neutered but our resources are open wide.
Especially the monarchies, while the royals live in unimaginable wealth the common people don't live lavishly, and poverty is a rampant problem. After sykes picot the British/US supported/installed these royal families, and crushed revolutions (like the dhofar rebellion/bahraini uprising etc). They are just shells for the imperialists to suck the resources out of the people.
Only a few politicians ever stood against this, mainly Nasser and Mossadegh come to mind. Mossadegh dared nationalize Iran's oil and got overthrown, then got a brutal pro-west monarchy installed. Nasser nationalized the Suez canal and got invaded by the UK/France/Israel.
Israel is just a colony for them to directly meddle in the region and keep the people in their place. This works exceptionally well, sadly. They prioritize profits over the people, leaving millions here to suffer.
I honestly believe the middle east will only ever be free once these bullshit Sykes-Picot borders are abolished, Israel no longer existing (not death to the population, to the apartheid state) and ending imperialist meddling in the region. That is a distant dream though 🥲
Whooh that was a lot to write lol, I was bored and saw this so thought might as well share this wall of text/infodump xd. Tl;dr: Israel is a western colony and the middle east is not truly independent.
If you're interested to start learning about this, I highly recommend starting at Sykes-Picot/WW1, specifically the battles against the Ottomans, and the Arab revolt, those events caused the creation of the modern middle east as we know it.
Cowbee [he/they]
in reply to 𝔽𝕩𝕠𝕞𝕥 • • •𝔽𝕩𝕠𝕞𝕥
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •No problem, sadly I don't have any good recommendations, but a book that has lots of praise is about the Sykes Picot agreement (JIC: it was a secret treaty by the British/French defining borders/spheres of influence in a purely economic POV, which caused the insane instability/wars/shuffling around minorities and people in the next century, agreed upon behind the backs of the Arabs who fought against the Ottomans after they were promised most of the land by the Brits/French) A line in the Sand: Britain, France and the Struggle that Shaped the Middle East. I've heard about
A Peace to End All Peace: The Fall of the Ottoman Empire and the Creation of the Modern Middle East too. Wikipedia is also a solid source about this stuff, it would also be good to research Arab nationalists/socialists and their works, since they've probably addressed most of this stuff too.
Honestly this is such a nuanced and shitshow of a topic, it's both funny and depressing at the same time lol. Good luck with your search! And have a good week
A Line in the Sand: Britain, France and the Struggle th…
GoodreadsCowbee [he/they]
in reply to 𝔽𝕩𝕠𝕞𝕥 • • •caligohollow
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •ScatterBrain
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •Both the meme and you are kinda wrong. Today, with Trump, Netanyahu does indeed hold influence on Trump, and has for some time. He likely has held influence on some democrats as well. This is because Israel and Russia both likely received blackmail material from Epstein, and are pressuring Trump with that blackmail today. This was always the stick to keep Trump in line. The meme is wrong because Netanyahu is happy with Trump, while Putin isn't. I believe it is much more likely that Putin is pushing the Epstein narrative now to replace a disobedient Trump with Vance, as Putin and Heritage can do a lot sans Trump. You will notice that the conservatives calling for the list now are generally pro Heritage Foundation, a Putin ally. President Vance is the plan now.
I don't hate Jews or Israel. I hate the far right party and Netanyahu.
KimBongUn420
in reply to ScatterBrain • • •It's actually you that is wrong. Your analysis is great man theory bs
LupineTroubles [he/him, they/them]
in reply to Cowbee [he/they] • • •I am not sure I agree with this fully, in the sense obviously Israel is a project of Western hegemony and that Israel exists and existed at behest of US and Europe as a foothold to keep the politics of the region volatile and easily influenced. So at a state level, Israel is beholden to US and the West not the other way around. However states don't exist as some sort of supranational hivemind that dictates politics and diplomacy purely with raison d'état, a state and its institutions are composed of people who themselves have direct influence on policy that can at times go against that raison d'état or just have obvious conflicts of interests that are navigated within circumstances of policy. I don't think at this stage anyone can deny that Israeli lobbies, chiefly AIPAC, has disproportionate influence over US politicians at legislative level, executive and judiciary is generally independent of this but house and senate seems to have reached a sort of critical mass of AIPAC-backed (directly funded and supported) candidates that essentially share a mission in Zionism and any which falls out of this line just has to fight against the establishment at very disadvantage terms.
So while I agree that the idea that Israel is somehow the ones that are pulling the strings are an antisemitic trope and ignoring the fact that Israel started as an European colonial project that was backed and supported by West for Western interests and directly tied to US policy in middle-east, and as Biden said once if it didn't exist it'd be necessary to invent it, we can't just ignore the undue and disproportionate influence that Israeli Zionist lobbies have in US politics especially at legislative level. Of course this is not just Israel, since there exists other lobbies such as Gulf lobby that are doing similar things and at times even seem to have more influence at executive but it is not quite at the level of AIPAC and the rest.
Avicenna
in reply to crankyrebel • • •