General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsWhat do we do now? Seriously.
Now we know the Russians are in this up to their elbows.
We know they are influencing our election, advancing certain people with the goal of destroying American Democracy and controlling who leads us.
So what steps can and should be taken to stop them from doing that?
We can't get any measures through Congress because Moscow Mitch is blocking them. Those who are benefiting clearly don't have any interest in trying to fix it.
So what CAN we do? DU brains, what can we do?
ck4829
(34,977 posts)Why is nothing being done to damage the Russian cyber-infrastructure doing this?
The US could probably severely damage or even shut down Russia's internet capabilities within days.
Squinch
(50,774 posts)clear answer if anyone in our government had the will to do it.
But they don't.
Maraya1969
(22,441 posts)Putin and Trump.
Squinch
(50,774 posts)he were the guy a lot of Democrats wouldn't trust it.
Maraya1969
(22,441 posts)Squinch
(50,774 posts)I think he would do it appropriately, but I think a lot of Democrats would disagree with me.
He has a lot of baggage, but I do think he is a patriot.
Prue
(139 posts)You ask a great question because we actually do have a department that has top notch cyber personnel. The issue isn't what can we do but will Trump allow it to be done. That is why Trump firing Maguire and replacing him with one of his flunkies is so detrimental and critical. America's cyber protectors can be ordered to stand down.
Squinch
(50,774 posts)going on under the surface to combat this, but it just seems like anyone who would be doing that has been kneecapped ever since 2016.
You're right. The structure is there. I just hope there are some stealthy patriots working on this inside that structure.
Prue
(139 posts)We are not lacking in brave career officials. They have shown us they are willing to come forward. It's the republicans in Congress that have made their efforts pointless. I'm sure there will be much that comes out after this Administration and it's enablers are sidelined but unfortunately the damage will have been done.
Darn - now I'm depressed. lol
Zoonart
(11,750 posts)bronxiteforever
(9,287 posts)Gidney N Cloyd
(19,781 posts)It sounds like this was to shut down any direct manipulation of the polls on election day, maybe messing with tallies. Stopping the trolls from influencing voters's minds over the course of the election season is more complicated.
Feb. 26, 2019, 3:52 PM CST
By Courtney Kube and Ken Dilanian
President Donald Trump personally signed off on a U.S. military cyber operation that blocked internet access for a Russian troll farm during the 2018 midterm election, multiple sources briefed on the matter told NBC News. The action by U.S. Cyber Command against the Internet Research Agency (IRA) first reported Tuesday by The Washington Post marks the most aggressive known move to date by the Trump administration to combat Russian election interference.
The IRA has been charged by special counsel Robert Mueller with interfering in the 2016 election. Financed by a Kremlin-connected oligarch, Yevgeniy Prigozhin, the St. Peterburg-based company employed Russians who posed as Americans on social media and sought to sow division in U.S. politics by launching and amplifying extreme messages at the far ends of the political spectrum, according to federal prosecutors.
U.S. intelligence agencies are believed to be closely monitoring the activities of the IRA, but it's far more difficult for the government and private social media companies to deal with the broader phenomenon of social media manipulation. Bots and trolls have been avoiding detection by creating less original content and merely amplifying extremist messages from politicians and other legitimate sources, Hultquist said.
The military operation against the IRA was part of a larger effort by Cyber Command, led by Gen. Paul Nakasone, to strike against attempts to interfere in U.S. politics ahead of the midterm elections, the sources said.
Laelth
(32,017 posts)-Laelth
democratisphere
(17,235 posts)Indict drumpf, his family, his administration and all of his political hacks, convict and sentence to the MAX. Completely dismantle and reconstruct the American Healthcare System.
milestogo
(16,829 posts)democratisphere
(17,235 posts)Squinch
(50,774 posts)fair choice, solid candidates with different things to recommend them. Minimal drama.
Then we choose between them and unite.
For the sake of the country, any candidate who is in the least bit marginal needs to drop out, but I don't think any of them will.
Codeine
(25,586 posts)Bloomberg has infinite cash. Bernie runs on bottomless hubris. Were fucked.
Squinch
(50,774 posts)hacking the hackers.
He'd get it done. This WOULD cease to be a problem.
And I'd give Bernie a title like "commander of we the people" which he'd like, and then have Liz and Joe duke it out.
pwb
(11,205 posts)The meek inherit loss.
Squinch
(50,774 posts)in2herbs
(2,942 posts)race citing for his reason that he is re-positioning his power to expose rump in the Hunter Biden affair. The remaining candidates gain more election momentum with these two out and with the followers of these two coalescing around one candidate --- a Democrat.
Ponietz
(2,905 posts)But that would require a wisdom and depth of character I have yet to witness.
monmouth4
(9,664 posts)Jamastiene
(38,187 posts)and hold them to doing something about it. That's the key. If we don't hold them to doing something about it, they might let it continue. I'm wondering why nothing has been done yet, or at least talked about more yet. It is a major thing affecting our country's leadership. We need to hold them to doing something about it. We KNOW the Republicans won't do anything about it already. So, that leaves our own. We need to get a majority of our own in Congress and the presidency and hold them to doing something about it.
We need more campaign regulations so money AND OTHER ACTIONS by foreign countries cannot enter our election processes. That is just one idea. We need better enforcement of current election laws as well. I'm still miffed by how the 9th Congressional District election in 2018 in NC was handled. Harris got away with a slap on the wrist. The entire GOP got away with it here.
We need a nationwide voting standard and nationwide voting laws. This current rag tag system of voting in this state one way and another state in another area another way ( remember the "butterfly ballots" ) and so many different rules in different states, and voting at so many different times for primaries is guaranteed to cause problems and leaves loopholes wide open for Russians or any other country to exploit. We are leaving ourselves open for it. No wonder it is happening.
Whatever we do, it wouldn't hurt to do it soon. Here we are steadily picking out a nominee, and fighting each other tooth and nail while we are at it, for an election that is not just probably, but most likely, already rigged. There is something wrong with that picture.
Squinch
(50,774 posts)before we can do all that.
Jamastiene
(38,187 posts)We should have been doing something about it sooner than now. Right now, everyone is in campaign/primaries fighting mode. In order for it to have done anything to help in this election coming up, it should have been at least worked on and planned way before now.
It is going to take a miracle to straighten out the mess created by Trump turned loose in the White House and courts* and everything else he has corrupted. You can bet everything he has touched has been corrupted. It is ALL he does.
What can we do to get out the vote harder than ever before to try to counteract the Russian/Republican lawbreaking? That is the only thing that might could do anything to help the election this year, imo, honestly.
*It could take a couple of generations to get the SCOTUS back to somewhat level alone.
2naSalit
(86,059 posts)that there will be uprisings before November. People have now been on edge for years and have had it with whole mess. If we don't present with numerous shows of our force, We the People force, we're going to loose evrything. I suspect it will take major strikes to show that WE are the ones who make shit work and WE aren'r having the bBS anymore. Unless we take stuff away from the bullies, they will crush us. Period.
Our elected officials are there to represent us and have limited powers. What we have is the power to organize major days of taking shit away from the bullies. We have good examples, though not large enough or plng enough, from Greta and the other protesters of note. What has been happening is that they get lots of fame but the pace of the offensive actions against them takes over and all that happens is that someone got famous for a while. We have to start shutting down vital operations for these fuckers ruining our country and our lives.
Remember the last government shut down that -45 was so proud to own? Remember what ended it? This can be done but we have to hurry. And that's all I have to offer as a suggestion for remedial action. If we put our heads together, we can get it done.
Hermit-The-Prog
(33,039 posts)Keep slugging away at getting people to understand what's going on and what's at stake.
Keep pushing for paper ballots everywhere, so the cheaters have to have "boots on the ground" to rig elections -- we can't afford to lose our distributed, multiple elections system to an electronic single-point-of-failure system.
Sugar Smack
(18,748 posts)Knowing next to nothing about how hacking actually works, I can't imagine how they'd do it.
Squinch
(50,774 posts)I'd say he could hire and run them, but if he did a lot of Democrats wouldn't trust it.
Maybe the DNC, I guess. But their record with computers isn't exactly stellar.
This is a good idea though. It seems like the only one that would do us any good in the short term.
If the right group backed it.
Sugar Smack
(18,748 posts)Specifically. I hadn't thought of him, but you're totally right.
dalton99a
(81,068 posts)using their spare change
Squinch
(50,774 posts)Ponietz
(2,905 posts)The door is open for every other country to participate. We have many more international allies.
Brainfodder
(6,423 posts)There is no way blob is re-electable . without a fix.
The most $ ever against a sitting president will probably be spent this time?
I agree we are in trouble, but it's just a few dozen assholes, we are huge in numbers.
MATH is fun!?!
Squinch
(50,774 posts)Brainfodder
(6,423 posts)and/or insist/assist it in getting done?
If stonewalled in just doing that, hit social media with pictures, video/audio.
MAKE A BIG STINK it deserves it!?!