Friday, March 01, 2019
Headlines for March 1, 2019
Headlines with an * are the ones we managed to fit in in our allotted time slot.
Worst, Most Misleading & Funniest Headlines for March 1, 2019
Why Venezuela’s Chavistas are fiercely loyal to Maduro, despite economic crisis
A good and rare article acknowledging that support for the government exists in Venezuela, but with a serious flaw in the headline. Chavistas aren’t loyal to Maduro, they’re loyal to the Bolivarian movement, or Chavismo if you prefer. Chavismo is a social movement, not a person. That’s what “the West” doesn’t understand (or pretends not to).
Trump’s Other ‘National Emergency’: Sanctions That Kill Venezuelans
This particular "National Emergency" was first declared by Obama four years ago (https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2015/03/09/executive-order-blocking-property-and-suspending-entry-certain-persons-c); Trump has simply extended it, just as Bush, Obama and Trump have extended the "National Emergency" with respect to Cuba which Clinton declared 23 years ago (https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/WCPD-1996-03-04/pdf/WCPD-1996-03-04-Pg394.pdf)
Article does get around to mentioning the Obama declaration and sanctions, in the 12th paragraph: “The sanctions imposed by the Obama administration in March 2015 (which also declared a “national emergency”) also had a very serious impact. This is well-known in financial institutions, but generally not reported in the major media.”
Marco Rubio’s awkward message to Venezuela’s Maduro: Dictators get killed
Referencing Rubio’s implied threat that Maduro will go the way of Gaddafi, sodomized and lynched in the streets — I wouldn’t go with “awkward”...maybe threatening or violent? Or just “sick”.
Similar threats from armchair warrior Lindsay Graham against DPRK: “If negotiations fail, it would be time to end the nuclear threat from North Korea – one way or the other.” and against Kim Jun Un himself, beginning his CPAC address by saying: "Speaking of Rocket Man, he couldn't be here. And if he doesn't get a deal with Trump he won't be anywhere much longer."
WaPo Quietly Deletes Branson's Venezuela Concert From Article After 'Fake' Attendance Figures Exposed
The article went from talking about 200,000 people at Richard Branson’s pro-coup concert, to just mentioning the “massive” concert, to not mentioning it at all, thanks to the concert being exposed as only 20,000, not 200,000.
China targeting American kindergartners for influence operations
In these “Confucian” programs, the teachers conduct "cultural and language classes at pre-schools, kindergartners, and middle schools, high schools," according to a subcommittee investigator. But the instructors take care to avoid mention of controversial subjects such as the Communist crackdown on the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.
‘Something is in those vaccines’: Lawmaker says mandatory measles shots are ‘Communist’
Yup, Communists are coming to make sure your children are healthy! Hide!
Here’s the sort of information that could have been in polling data shared by Paul Manafort
After the usual unsupported statement that Kilimnik is “believed by government investigators to have links to Russian intelligence,” we read all sorts of speculation about demographics and “cross-tabs”, and then finally in the next to last paragraph we read this:
“We do know, though, that there’s no evidence that Russia actually embarked on a sophisticated campaign targeting closely tailored groups in small demographic areas — the sort of thing that polling would allow. There was no explosion of new targeting in the weeks after Aug. 2, 2016. July, August and September, in fact, were a lull in the Russian targeting efforts.
“None of that changes the claim made by Mueller’s team in court, though, that questions about Manafort potentially passing polling data to Kilimnik are at “the heart” of Mueller’s probe. They certainly are.”
Or, maybe "Russia" wasn't "targeting" the election after all, and the whole Mueller probe and DNI report are just nonsense!
On ousting Maduro, only Venezuela’s opposition appears to favor a bolder approach
"Bold" = "Asking the U.S. and Colombia to do your dirty work for you, since you lack the support in Venezuela to do it yourself"
Is Venezuela lurching toward war?
As someone on Twitter out it, this is like asking if that bug is lurching toward your windshield.
U.S. Urges New Venezuela Elections. One Obstacle: Russia.
This refers to the UN resolution introduced by the US, subsequently vetoed by Russia (as well as China). But the headline (and article) neglects to mention the *real* obstacle — that President Maduro is firmly in control of the Venezuelan government, and that all elements of the government which would be required to conduct such an election (like the electoral commission) firmly reject this solution. So a resolution urging an election, even if it passed, would be a pyrrhic victory.
