Tracker

Brazil Rioters Plotted Openly Online, Pitched Huge 'Party' MIAMI (AP) — The map was called “Beach Trip” and was blasted out to more than 18,000 members of a public Telegram channel called, in Portuguese, “Hunting and Fishing.” But instead of outdoor recreation tips, the 43 pins spread across the map of Brazil pointed to cities where bus transportation to the capital could be found for what promoters promised would a huge “party” on Jan. 8. “Children and the elderly aren’t invited,” according to the post circulated on the Telegram channel, which has since been removed. “Only adults willing to participate in all the games, including target shooting of police and robbers, musical chairs, indigenous dancing, tag, and others.” The post was one of several thinly coded messages circulating on social media ahead of Sunday’s violent attack on the capital by supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro looking to restore the far-right leader to power. It’s also now a potentially vital lead in a fledgling criminal investigation about how the rampage was organized and how officials missed clues to a conspiracy that, like the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol two years ago, appears to have been organized and carried out in plain view. And like the attack in the U.S., the Brazilian riots demonstrate how social media makes it easier than ever for anti-democratic groups to recruit followers and transform online rhetoric into offline action. On YouTube, rioters livestreaming the mayhem racked up hundreds of thousands of views before a Brazilian judge ordered social media platforms to remove such content. Misleading claims about the election and the uprising also could be found on Twitter, Facebook and other platforms. But even before Sunday’s riot, social media and private messaging networks in Brazil were being flooded with calls for one final push to overturn the October election of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva — something authorities appear to have inexplicably missed or ignored. Most of the online chatter referred to the planned gathering at Brasilia’s Three Powers Plaza as “Selma’s party” — a play on the Portuguese word for “selva,” a battle cry used by Brazil’s military. Participants were told to bring their own mask to protect against “pepper pie in the face” — or pepper spray fired by security forces. They also were told to dress in the green and yellow of Brazil’s flag — and not the red preferred by Lula’s Workers’ Party. “Get ready, guests, the party will be a blast,” the widely-circulated post said. “It was all in the open,” said David Nemer, a Brazil native and University of Virginia professor who studies social media. “They listed the people responsible for buses, with their full names and contact information. They weren’t trying to hide anything.”

Arkansas is safe now.

for anyone who cares, the stars and husbands of "The Real Housewives" of New jersey, LA and Salt Lake City have been arrested and charged with fraud in bilking fan-viewers of millions of dollars. This will leave only 47 other Real Housewives shows.

These are cowards. Once one is convicted or cuts a deal, the rest will stampede and spill all.

That would offend their base, or a good part of it who see laws as suggestions only. Donald Trump goes on conspiracy theory binge claiming to be a victim of the FBI and 'deep state' Former President Donald Trump released a video on Wednesday filled with conspiracy theories about President Joe Biden, Biden's son Hunter, COVID-19, and purported infiltration of social media platforms by undercover agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. First up was the so-called "Twitter files," a trove of documents that conservatives incorrectly claimed would expose collusion between liberals and Twitter to silence right-wing voices. Trump falsely alleged that the FBI helped Biden and the Democrats steal the 2020 election: "The now famous Twitter files have proven beyond all doubt that the corrupt officials at the FBI have been coordinating a massive censorship, surveillance, and propaganda campaign against the American people and frankly, against me. In the most recent and notorious example, the FBI worked to stop the truth from being told about the Biden family's criminality. They worked so hard to stop it from coming out. And the corruption prior to the 2020 election. They didn't want any bad information to come out about the Biden family. The fix was in. The election was rigged. But the censorship of the laptop from Hell is only the beginning of the story about the weaponization of government against free speech. We must have free speech in our country. We must have a fair and free press. As recent reporting shows, the FBI and other rogue agencies have been systematically colluding with former national security officials placed in high positions at Twitter and very likely other companies to advance their censorship regime, which is really in this case, to steal an election." Next, Trump complained about the blowback that anti-vaxxers faced for proffering bogus medical advice during the COVID-19 pandemic. Trump also railed against actions that were taken at the height of the crisis to protect the public – most of which occurred while he was the commander-in-chief: "This anti-American effort, and a very illegal effort at that, has been working to silence dissenting opinions on COVID and crucial issues on public health and on the election and elections in the future. They suppressed doctors and health experts who dared to question approved public health narratives. They censored voices who criticized school closures, lockdowns, and mandates, and they even banned people simply for stating proven scientific facts. And anything bad about China, they didn't want out." Trump accused Biden and the media of covering up his son Hunter's laptop, which Republicans insist contains evidence of corruption: "But anything bad about Biden and the Biden crime family, and that's what it was, just look at the laptop from Hell, they didn't want that coming out under any circumstances. What they wanted coming out was anything bad about your favorite president, me. Anything bad about Trump, put it out, even if it's not true. But this all had nothing to do with science. This had nothing to do with saving lives. It had everything to do with politics or a sick ideology." Trump then asserted that the "government" is scheming with "powerful corporations" to strip American citizens of their rights, and claimed that he had to be convinced about the existence of a sinister "deep state." Trump has, however, used that term to deflect from the numerous criminal investigations looming over him: "This was about government working with powerful corporations to seize power over you, the American people. And we can't let that continue. The Twitter files prove that we urgently need my plan to dismantle the illegal censorship regime – a regime like nobody's ever seen in the history of our country, or most other countries for that matter – to prosecute the perpetrators for their crimes and to restore free speech for all Americans."

Ironically, it was -22 in Moscow this morning. God has a sense of humour.

This is just an agreement for a tryout anyways. And probably a bit of money up front.

Here are 5 'key right-wing media takeaways' from Kevin McCarthy’s House speaker battle: report The new GOP-controlled U.S. House of Representatives got off to a chaotic start when Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California was rejected as House speaker in no less than 14 roll-call votes before he finally closed the deal with the 15th vote on Friday night, January 6. It was an uphill battle, but McCarthy now has the House speaker position he has spent years hoping for. Media Matters’ Matt Gertz, in a listicle published by Media Matters on January 10, offers five “key takeaways” on the role that right-wing media played when McCarthy was struggling to get the far-right “Never Kevin” holdouts to support him as House speaker. “After a historic week of messy party infighting,” Gertz observes, “the Republican-led House of Representatives has finally selected a speaker, passed a rules package, and gotten to work on its agenda of making the country safer for wealthy tax cheats. There are important lessons to learn from the chaos given the likelihood of future interparty rifts over the next two years — and the centrality of the right-wing media to the GOP.” The “takeaways” that Gertz offers in his listicle are: (1) “The GOP’s leaders are fueled by right-wing media,” (2) “Fox (News) is now the GOP establishment,” (3) The narratives of the right-wing press will form the core of the GOP agenda,” (4) “Fox’s competitors will use party fights to gun for the network’s market share,” and (5) “Tucker Carlson is the most influential right-wing media figure.” “Gaining prominence in the modern Republican Party virtually requires a willingness to rub elbows with the right-wing press,” Gertz explains. “New House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) spent the last several years cozying up to Fox hosts…. He also benefited from the backing of Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), the congresswoman from QAnon and an ally of Steve Bannon, and Jim Jordan (R-OH), whose regular Fox appearances helped him ascend from back-bencher to incoming House Judiciary chair.” Gertz adds, “Meanwhile, McCarthy’s most prominent opponents included Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who has gained prominence entirely on the basis of his courting of the right-wing media and reportedly sought jobs at Fox and its competitors, and Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO), another favorite of the fringe-right press. The right-wing media will be the key battleground for future fights between those sides.”

‘Putin’s Chef’ Humiliated by His Own Side After Bragging of Wagner Victory -Reuters The Kremlin finally seems to be trying to take Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin down a notch after the businessman has spent months using his band of mercenaries and ex-convicts to steal the spotlight in Russia’s war against Ukraine. A simmering feud between Prigozhin’s outfit and the regular Russian army spilled out into the open Wednesday, as Russia’s Defense Ministry publicly rebuffed claims made by “Putin’s chef” about a Wagner win in Ukraine’s Donetsk region. In an announcement late Tuesday, Prigozhin gleefully claimed his men had taken control of a salt mine town that Russian forces are hoping to use as a stepping stone to gain control of the highly coveted city of Bakhmut, a Ukrainian stronghold for months. “Wagner units have taken control of all the territory of Soledar,” Prigozhin said through his press service. “I want to emphasize that no units other than the Wagner fighters took part in the assault on Soledar,” he said. While Ukrainian authorities denied Prigozhin’s claim and said battles were still underway in the town—and that the selfie the Wagner boss posted supposedly from Soledar was not even in Soledar—Russia’s two dueling armies devolved into their own war within a war. Russia’s Defense Ministry shot down Prigozhin’s boast that his own men had single-handedly brought Putin a win, instead confirming Ukraine’s announcement that fighting was still underway in the town. Moreover, defense officials suggested Russian airborne units and assault teams are leading the charge. The Defense Ministry made no mention of Wagner whatsoever. The rebuff comes as praise for Prigozhin’s outfit hit a fever pitch among pro-Kremlin figures, and the notorious mercenary group threatened to outshine Putin’s regular soldiers on the battlefield. “Why is Wagner so successful, more successful than even the Russian army?” pro-Kremlin political analyst Sergei Markov wrote on Telegram early Wednesday. He went on to praise Prigozhin personally, calling him “very creative,” a “workaholic,” and someone who “comes up with bright, novel solutions.” “Prigozhin’s criminal past is a plus now, because world politics is criminalized,” he said, calling Prigozhin and Wagner “a national treasure.” Speculation about Prigozhin possibly vying for an official post in Russia’s government has mounted in recent months as his PR campaign for Wagner has gone into overdrive, with many wondering if he’s made it his personal mission to “win the damn war” for Putin so he could demand something in return. Despite Prigozhin butting heads with top defense officials and government officials, the Kremlin has largely allowed him to do as he pleases—but they seem to have fired their first warning shot this week in a sign of things to come. Putin’s appointment on Tuesday of a controversial colonel-general as the new ground forces chief was done “as a snub to Prigozhin,” a source close to Russia’s General Staff told the outlet iStories.

Ford will have to walk on water to be offered a contract. He oozes potential but so do a lot of others with a more extensive CV.

And break with long-standing tradition?

Why not have candidates commit themselves publicly during the election campaign as to what salary they will accept while in office, and then receive raises during and after serving at the same percentage as the average wage in the province or country if they are running federally?

The ‘Pill cam’ once swallowed, takes 2 photos every second as it passes through your digestive system. Whole new level of medical investigation. awesomerandom

It is the warmest winter in Europe for several decades. More bad news for Putin.

Soooo....we won't have to be afraid any more?

Trump is wearing black socks and underwear today as a sign of mourning.

Oh, no. It's time to find a scapegoat or scapegoats. It may come down to blaming the voters for not understanding the magnificence of the PC party and platform. Or, maybe the PCs just didn't communicate it well enough. "Doltness" is endemic to Alberta, particularly in the south.

Not hard to imagine at all. Ukraine would be no more and Trump would have been given all of Ukraine's considerable gas fields.

Diamond, Of Right-Wing Duo Diamond And Silk, Dies 'Unexpectedly' “The World just lost a True Angel and Warrior Patriot for Freedom, Love, and Humanity! Please respect the privacy of Diamond’s family! Memorial Ceremony TBA,” a post from the Diamond and Silk Twitter account on Monday read.