Madam45for2923
Madam45for2923's JournalFact-Checking The Ukrainian Revolution from 2014.
In 2008, while covering the Republican Convention, I bumped into Amy Goodman of DemocracyNow!, and I was star struck. When Russia Today announced that Julian Assange would get his own show, I thought that was brilliant and couldn’t wait to watch it. One of my more interesting email newsletter subscriptions comes from CounterPunch, a political website in Portland, Oregon—that lovable hipster Narnia. But now that my mainstays in alternative media are covering the revolution in Ukraine—a part of the world I have lived in and researched extensively for years—it’s left me heartbroken, and wondering: If Russia Today, DemocracyNow!, and Counter Punch are spreading misinformation about Ukraine, what else have they been wrong about? By sharing their articles in the past, have I helped them blur the truth?
Ukraine has a history of being the victim of media conspiracy. In 1933, the Western mainstream media deliberately covered-up Stalin’s genocide famine in Ukraine that starved to death many millions. Stalin, a great statistician himself, cited 10 million dead. Eugene Lyons, a reporter for UPI in Moscow, confessed to the cover-up in his tell-all memoir Assignment in Utopia. It was reviewed by Orwell and helped inspire ideas for 1984, namely the slogan: 2+2=5.
Before reading this article, had you heard of the famine? There’s a reason why most people still don’t know that many millions of Ukrainians were starved to death by their government in a single year; the Western media, confined to Moscow, was successful in ignoring “the rumors.” In one notorious instance some of the world’s most influential foreign reporters ganged up on a brave, young, independent journalist named Gareth Jones, by publishing articles full of lies that contradicted Jones’ fearless eye-witness reporting. The media’s silence or flat-out denials helped the Kremlin keep the truth of the famine locked behind the Iron Curtain. It eventually became reserved to the world of academia, where it was debated for generations.
Today the alternative media is the Kremlin’s little helper. Many Americans are infuriated with our government’s NSA spying and wars-for-profit, and obviously rightfully so. But their anger toward American neocons seems projected onto a revolution that would inspire free thinkers and freedom fighters. If only they could forgive The New York Times for Judith Miller, they would trust the incredible reporting the paper is doing on the ground in Ukraine. Yes, corporate media is fiercely generic and prefers covering shiny celebrity objects; but its ability to afford fact-checkers and travel budgets can lead to some damn good reporting.
Here’s what you need to be aware of as the situation in Ukraine develops:
Any article that links to Russia Today (RT) to cite a “fact” was written by a lazy journalist. It’s well-known that Russia Today was started by the Russian government, which has a history of imprisoning and killing investigative journalists.
Continues in link: http://thoughtcatalog.com/andrea-chalupa/2014/02/fact-checking-the-ukrainian-revolution/
Beyond a Reasonable Doubt: Putin Attacked the U.S. Election
I. Allegations of Russian interference. Elected officials have been calling for an investigation into Russian interference since the summer of 2016, but their calls were largely unheeded. In August, Senator Harry Reid requested that the FBI investigate Russian state interference as well as ties between Russia and members of Trump’s campaign team, including former campaign manager Paul Manafort, a well-known political operative who had previously acted on Putin’s behalf in Ukraine. In October, Reid wrote again to FBI director James Comey and declared: “In my communications with you and other top officials in the national security community, it has become clear that you possess explosive information about close ties and coordination between Donald Trump, his top advisors, and the Russian government…The public has a right to know this information.”
After the election, political leaders from multiple parties have reiterated Reid’s call for an investigation. Green Party candidate Jill Stein backed a vote recount effort due to voting irregularities in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, while cybersecurity experts stressed the need for an audit due to the likelihood of Russian hacks. Republicans Lindsay Graham and John McCain have both called for a forceful investigation of Russian election interference as well as a general inquiry into Russian corruption. Democrats including Chuck Schumer, the future Democratic Senate Minority Leader, have reiterated this call, backed by a number of their Democratic colleagues. President Obama and the Clinton campaign have also stressed the need for an investigation.
Over the summer, 17 intelligence agencies concurred that Russia was behind the hacking of the Democratic National Committee.
As evidence that’s still classified but leaked to the media mounts, numerous intelligence specialists have confirmed Russian interference. NSA Director Admiral Michael Rogers has stated that Putin intentionally directly meddled in U.S. democracy to achieve a specific desired outcome. CIA officials have also confirmed that Russia purposefully intervened in the election with the specific intent of bringing Trump to power. Former CIA official Michael Morrell, who had warned of Russia’s intentions over the summer, called their operation “the political equivalent of 9/11.” On December 14, two senior intelligence officials said with “a high level of confidence” that Russian president Vladimir Putin was personally involved in the operation, and that the intelligence showing this attack against our electoral system and the integrity of our nation was carried by Kremlin officials at the highest levels of power.
In summary, leaders from the Democratic Party, the Republican Party, and the Green Party; intelligence officials from the CIA and the NSA; and the White House itself have stated that Russia interfered with the election. On November 10, Kremlin officials confirmed that it had indeed been in contact with the Trump campaign during the election. The only people involved in this situation who continue to maintain that Russia did not interfere with the election are Donald Trump and his backers.
II. The Motive. Since the end of the Cold War, Russia has been covered less by the media and until recently ceased to be a political priority of the U.S. government. As a result, it is difficult for non-specialists to understand the goals of Kremlin interference in the election. This section outlines the rationale for Russia’s actions, including:
Continues here: https://medium.com/alexandrachalupa/russias-interference-americans-have-a-right-to-know-a2aabd922129#.sjljvo48o
Zephyr Teachout lost in NY-19
I haven't seen any/many articles on this? Does anyone have any opinions?
I live in the district and voted for Will Yandic in the primary and for Zephyr Teachout in the general.
I also volunteered for Zephyr's campaign after she won the primary.
Any thoughts?
How d alt-right became racist: A short history of hate:b4 Trump, white nationalists flocked 2 R.Paul
What's now called the alt-right actually began as a conservative resistance — against George W. Bush
http://www.salon.com/2016/12/08/how-the-alt-right-became-racist-a-short-history-of-hate-part-1/
In our next installment, Ron Paul's presidential campaign becomes the breeding ground for 50 shades of cray-cray
http://www.salon.com/2016/12/09/how-the-alt-right-became-racist-part-2-long-before-trump-white-nationalists-flocked-to-ron-paul/
The GOP's endless battles over who is or isn't a "true conservative" created a movement it couldn't control
http://www.salon.com/2016/12/14/rise-of-the-alt-right-how-mainstream-conservatives-empowered-racism-and-engineered-their-own-destruction/
How d alt-right became racist: A short history of hate:b4 Trump, white nationalists flocked 2 R.Paul
What's now called the alt-right actually began as a conservative resistance — against George W. Bush
http://www.salon.com/2016/12/08/how-the-alt-right-became-racist-a-short-history-of-hate-part-1/
In our next installment, Ron Paul's presidential campaign becomes the breeding ground for 50 shades of cray-cray
http://www.salon.com/2016/12/09/how-the-alt-right-became-racist-part-2-long-before-trump-white-nationalists-flocked-to-ron-paul/
The GOP's endless battles over who is or isn't a "true conservative" created a movement it couldn't control
http://www.salon.com/2016/12/14/rise-of-the-alt-right-how-mainstream-conservatives-empowered-racism-and-engineered-their-own-destruction/
Tom Perez Career:
#TomPerez is an accomplished person. He's the Secretary of Labor but has done so much more. A few highlights. 1/Early on in his career, Perez worked for the DoJ in the Civil Rights division, prosecuting white supremacists. 2/
Perez then served as the Deputy Assistant AG for civil rights and led an inter-agency task force to protect workers from exploitation. 3/
He then served on Montgomery County council where he pushed legislation against predatory lending & introduced affordable drug initiative 4/
Perez worked on O'Malley's successful campaign for Governor of MD and then served as his Secretary of Labor. 5/
Perez then served as Assistant AG for Civil Rights under Obama, where one focus was eradicating discrimination against ppl with HIV. 6/
Among his other accomplishments as AAG, he oversaw training/implementation of the Hate Crimes Prevention Act and fought for LGBT rights. 7/
Perez fiercely fought against trans discrimination, police abuse of PoC, sued Sheriff Arpaio & fought against rollback of voting rights 8/
And during his tenure as Secretary of Labor, Perez has been an exemplary ally to unions and American workers. 9/
In sum, Tom Perez has a career-long record of fighting for *all* of us: black, brown, immigrant, woman, union member, LGBTQ. 10/
Tom Perez has been in our corner for doing the work. He's the right person at the right time to fight an evil he's been fighting for yrs 11/
https://twitter.com/SheWhoVotes/status/809158266764701696
Tom Perez Career:
#TomPerez is an accomplished person. He's the Secretary of Labor but has done so much more. A few highlights. 1/Early on in his career, Perez worked for the DoJ in the Civil Rights division, prosecuting white supremacists. 2/
Perez then served as the Deputy Assistant AG for civil rights and led an inter-agency task force to protect workers from exploitation. 3/
He then served on Montgomery County council where he pushed legislation against predatory lending & introduced affordable drug initiative 4/
Perez worked on O'Malley's successful campaign for Governor of MD and then served as his Secretary of Labor. 5/
Perez then served as Assistant AG for Civil Rights under Obama, where one focus was eradicating discrimination against ppl with HIV. 6/
Among his other accomplishments as AAG, he oversaw training/implementation of the Hate Crimes Prevention Act and fought for LGBT rights. 7/
Perez fiercely fought against trans discrimination, police abuse of PoC, sued Sheriff Arpaio & fought against rollback of voting rights 8/
And during his tenure as Secretary of Labor, Perez has been an exemplary ally to unions and American workers. 9/
In sum, Tom Perez has a career-long record of fighting for *all* of us: black, brown, immigrant, woman, union member, LGBTQ. 10/
Tom Perez has been in our corner for doing the work. He's the right person at the right time to fight an evil he's been fighting for yrs 11/
https://twitter.com/SheWhoVotes/status/809158266764701696
How Donald Trump's Business ties are already jeopardizing U.S. Interests / Eichenwald's newest
Donald Trump hasn’t been sworn in yet, but he is already making decisions and issuing statements to world leaders that radically depart from American foreign policy, all to the benefit of his family’s corporate empire. Because of this, the next president of the United States is already vulnerable to undue influence by other nations, including through bribery and even blackmail.
Given the vast scope of the clashes between the Trumps’ extensive business dealings and the interests of America, the president-elect vowed during the campaign to eliminate potential conflicts by severing ties to his company—yet, with only weeks to go until he takes the oath of office, he hasn’t laid out a credible plan. Trump’s sole suggestion to date—a “blind trust” run by his children—would not eliminate the conflicts, given that the money generated would still go to his family. Moreover, such a trust would be anything but blind: If Trump Tower Moscow goes under construction, Trump will see it while in Russia and know that his kids are making millions of dollars from it. That is why foreign leaders hoping to curry favor will do everything they can to help Trump’s family erect more buildings, sell more jewelry and make money through any means possible. Even if the family steps away from its company while Trump is president, every nation on Earth will know that doing business with the Trump Organization will one day benefit the family. The only way to eliminate the conflicts—sell the company, divvy up the proceeds—has been rejected by Trump, whose transition team refused to respond to any questions from Newsweek for this article.
Some of the most egregious conflicts that have emerged involve countries in Asia and its subregions, particularly the Philippines. Global policy on the Philippines has been fraught with tension since the election in May of Rodrigo Duterte as the country’s president. Duterte, who boasted to voters during the campaign that he had shot a fellow law school student for teasing him, has championed the killing of suspected criminals and street children by vigilante death squads. In 2015, he said that if he became president, up to 100,000 people suspected of links to illegal drugs could be killed. Just months after his election, Duterte said he was eager to lead a genocide of up to 3 million drug addicts. “I'd be happy to slaughter them,” he said. “At least if Germany had Hitler, the Philippines would have [me].” And in September, an admitted hit man testified to a Senate committee in the Philippines that Duterte presided over a killing campaign when he was mayor of Davao City.
As president, Duterte rapidly showed he was little concerned with the legal protections afforded to Filipinos suspected of crimes. During his first three months in office, 850 Filipinos were killed by death squads, apparently on little more than the suspicion that they were drug users and dealers. Since then, the estimated death toll has climbed to 4,500. The carnage has been condemned throughout the Western world; the Parliament of the European Union and two United Nations human rights experts have urged Duterte to end the massacre. One of the experts even appeared to suggest that Duterte and his government could be held legally accountable for committing mass murder in violation of international law. “Claims to fight illicit drug trade do not absolve the government from its international legal obligations and do not shield state actors or others from responsibility for illegal killings,” said Agnes Callamard, the U.N. special rapporteur on summary executions. In response to the denunciations, Duterte lashed out at the United States, threatening to align his country more with China.
Despite universal condemnation of the ongoing slaughter of Filipinos, Trump signaled his approval of Duterte’s policies during a phone call on December 2. According to Duterte—an account that has gone uncontested by Trump—the president-elect endorsed his tactics as “the right way.” Duterte added: “[Trump] was wishing me success in my campaign against the drug problem.” (He also said Trump invited him to the White House, a courtesy not yet extended to Theresa May, the prime minister of Britain, America’s most important strategic ally.)
more: http://www.newsweek.com/2016/12/23/donald-trump-foreign-business-deals-jeopardize-us-531140.html
How Donald Trump's Business ties are already jeopardizing U.S. Interests / Eichenwald's newest
Donald Trump hasn’t been sworn in yet, but he is already making decisions and issuing statements to world leaders that radically depart from American foreign policy, all to the benefit of his family’s corporate empire. Because of this, the next president of the United States is already vulnerable to undue influence by other nations, including through bribery and even blackmail.
Given the vast scope of the clashes between the Trumps’ extensive business dealings and the interests of America, the president-elect vowed during the campaign to eliminate potential conflicts by severing ties to his company—yet, with only weeks to go until he takes the oath of office, he hasn’t laid out a credible plan. Trump’s sole suggestion to date—a “blind trust” run by his children—would not eliminate the conflicts, given that the money generated would still go to his family. Moreover, such a trust would be anything but blind: If Trump Tower Moscow goes under construction, Trump will see it while in Russia and know that his kids are making millions of dollars from it. That is why foreign leaders hoping to curry favor will do everything they can to help Trump’s family erect more buildings, sell more jewelry and make money through any means possible. Even if the family steps away from its company while Trump is president, every nation on Earth will know that doing business with the Trump Organization will one day benefit the family. The only way to eliminate the conflicts—sell the company, divvy up the proceeds—has been rejected by Trump, whose transition team refused to respond to any questions from Newsweek for this article.
Some of the most egregious conflicts that have emerged involve countries in Asia and its subregions, particularly the Philippines. Global policy on the Philippines has been fraught with tension since the election in May of Rodrigo Duterte as the country’s president. Duterte, who boasted to voters during the campaign that he had shot a fellow law school student for teasing him, has championed the killing of suspected criminals and street children by vigilante death squads. In 2015, he said that if he became president, up to 100,000 people suspected of links to illegal drugs could be killed. Just months after his election, Duterte said he was eager to lead a genocide of up to 3 million drug addicts. “I'd be happy to slaughter them,” he said. “At least if Germany had Hitler, the Philippines would have [me].” And in September, an admitted hit man testified to a Senate committee in the Philippines that Duterte presided over a killing campaign when he was mayor of Davao City.
As president, Duterte rapidly showed he was little concerned with the legal protections afforded to Filipinos suspected of crimes. During his first three months in office, 850 Filipinos were killed by death squads, apparently on little more than the suspicion that they were drug users and dealers. Since then, the estimated death toll has climbed to 4,500. The carnage has been condemned throughout the Western world; the Parliament of the European Union and two United Nations human rights experts have urged Duterte to end the massacre. One of the experts even appeared to suggest that Duterte and his government could be held legally accountable for committing mass murder in violation of international law. “Claims to fight illicit drug trade do not absolve the government from its international legal obligations and do not shield state actors or others from responsibility for illegal killings,” said Agnes Callamard, the U.N. special rapporteur on summary executions. In response to the denunciations, Duterte lashed out at the United States, threatening to align his country more with China.
Despite universal condemnation of the ongoing slaughter of Filipinos, Trump signaled his approval of Duterte’s policies during a phone call on December 2. According to Duterte—an account that has gone uncontested by Trump—the president-elect endorsed his tactics as “the right way.” Duterte added: “[Trump] was wishing me success in my campaign against the drug problem.” (He also said Trump invited him to the White House, a courtesy not yet extended to Theresa May, the prime minister of Britain, America’s most important strategic ally.)
more: http://www.newsweek.com/2016/12/23/donald-trump-foreign-business-deals-jeopardize-us-531140.html
K. Eichenwald: Trump team knows Newsweek story coming 2morrow about his business. They know what it.
Trump team knows @Newsweek story coming 2morrow about his business. They know what it says. They postpone announcing plans 4 business 2day.https://twitter.com/kurteichenwald/status/808474863820296192
My latest @Newsweek investigative cover story about Trump will be dropping tomorrow at 7:00 AM Eastern time at http://newsweek.com .
https://twitter.com/kurteichenwald/status/808459785490354176
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