Friday, July 20, 2018
Headlines for July 20, 2018
Headlines with an * are the ones we managed to fit in in our allotted 11 minutes.
Worst and Most Misleading Headlines (WAMMH) -- July 20, 2018
CANDIDATES FOR “WORST”/”MOST DISGUSTING”:
*U.S.-Led Coalition or Partners May Have Hit Syrian Area: Spokesman
US admits it "may have" conducted strikes in an area (Al Soussa) where, as the article puts it, dozens of "people" were killed in Syria. Note the headline doesn't even mention dead, just a Syrian "area". Meanwhile Newsweek was the only US media outlet to report the FULL story (BBC also did, but not CNN), which comes from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the major source for all Syrian casualty news, but apparently only when it comes to reporting those killed by the Syrian government. They report at least 54 killed including 28 civilians (more than half of the dead, even assuming the rest were indeed ISIS as alleged).
Checked back later in the week, nothing further in the Times and nothing whatsoever, in the Washington Post or CNN. #FakeNewsByOmission
Checked back later in the week, nothing further in the Times and nothing whatsoever, in the Washington Post or CNN. #FakeNewsByOmission
Burberry burns bags, clothes and perfume worth millions
#ThisIsCapitalism Burberry, the upmarket British fashion label, destroyed unsold clothes, accessories and perfume worth £28.6m last year to protect its brand. It takes the total value of goods it has destroyed over the past five years to more than £90m.
CANDIDATES FOR “MOST MISLEADING”:
*Senate votes unanimously against turning US officials over to Russia
*Former diplomat offered as barter
Establishment losing their minds over Michael Faul, talking about "turning him over to Russia" when the proposal is to have him (and Browder) questioned IN THE US by US officials with Russians present.
Officials: Russian firm used in Maryland voting systems
This is insane. ByteGrid is a thoroughly American company; there isn’t a single Russian involved in its operation. “A vendor that provides key services for Maryland elections has been acquired by a parent company with links to a Russian oligarch.” Or “The vendor, ByteGrid LLC, was purchased by a Russian investor in 2015 without knowledge of Maryland state officials.” Which is it?
Russian bots are using #WalkAway to try to wound Dems in midterms
But even Hamilton 68 says "The #walkaway movement, a campaign highlighting alleged discord among the left, got a boost this week from accounts linked to Russian influence operations." Not Russian "bots", but "accounts linked to Russian influence operations", accounts which are never disclosed.
And the data. #Walkaway was indeed the second most common hashtag they tracked, after #Brexit. Quantity? 114 in 48 hours, or 57 times a day. Among 600 accounts. So 1/10th of the accounts they are tracking used that hashtag once a day for the last two days. Wow, that’s some powerful “influence operation”. By the way two days prior, the second most “trending hashtag” among these same 600 accounts was #TreasonSummit. Is that really a hashtag “Russian bots” wanted to spread?
And the data. #Walkaway was indeed the second most common hashtag they tracked, after #Brexit. Quantity? 114 in 48 hours, or 57 times a day. Among 600 accounts. So 1/10th of the accounts they are tracking used that hashtag once a day for the last two days. Wow, that’s some powerful “influence operation”. By the way two days prior, the second most “trending hashtag” among these same 600 accounts was #TreasonSummit. Is that really a hashtag “Russian bots” wanted to spread?
Israel in turmoil over bill allowing Jews and Arabs to be segregated
The “turmoil” seems to be not the segregation itself, but that some people are worried that this reveal the true face of Israel a little too openly. The idea that segregation doesn’t already exist in abundance is simply preposterous, and not just the West Bank settlements either. Hebron, for example, is a perfect example, but there are hundreds of others.
Russia not attacking midterms on same 'scale or scope' as in 2016, Nielsen says
By that she means, not at all. There isn’t a shred of evidence for something she and many others have either been predicting or claiming was already (E.g., Dan Coats) happening for months now. Not a shred.
CANDIDATES FOR “FUNNIEST”:
*People are donating money to Kylie Jenner to help her become the world's youngest female billionaire
GoFundMe description: “This is heartbreaking. I don't want to live in a world where Kylie Jenner doesn't have a billion dollars. We must raise 100 million dollars to help her get to a billion, please spread the word, this is extremely important."
This is a spoof (although real) (or a scam, no indication of where the money goes) but some are donating $ (not including “Fat Jew” who started the campaign!) Total raised so far? $2271! A little bit short of the $100 million she needs.
Actually a classic capitalist story worth telling: “Jenner, 20, the youngest member of the Kardashian-Jenner American reality TV family, is the founder and sole owner of Kylie Cosmetics, the makeup company she runs largely from her black iPhone X, with the help of her mother Kris. Employing just seven full-time staff.
The business is almost totally outsourced. Jenner does not directly make her products, nor does she sell them. Jenner also does not have to worry much about the business’s finances or the day-to-day management of her 12 staff (seven full-time, five part-time). Those matters are outsourced to her mom or “momager” Kris Jenner, who manages all her children’s financial operations – in return for a 10% cut.
*Employers will do almost anything to find workers to fill jobs — except pay them more
From a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter with a regular column in the LA Times: “Of all the addictions that undermine stability in communities and society at large, surely one of the worst and most persistent is the addiction of corporate managements to pleasing their shareholders.
Billions of dollars are funneled to owners of capital in the form of dividends and stock buybacks, while laborers go begging for even the measliest wage increases.”
Billions of dollars are funneled to owners of capital in the form of dividends and stock buybacks, while laborers go begging for even the measliest wage increases.”
