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Segami
Segami's Journal
Segami's Journal
August 27, 2014
Before Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told the world (or at least the readers of Politico) his plan to cripple the government or force a shutdown, he told the secret Koch brothers-hosted gathering of millionaire and billionaire Republican donors about the plan. Presumably, he wouldn't have publicly unveiled it without their approval. But that's not all McConnell had to say to the Kochs' little cabal:
"We're not going to be debating all these gosh darn proposals"? Wait a minute, I thought Mitch McConnell supposedly had high-minded objections to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's refusal to debate every single poison pill amendment Republicans try to attach to bills as a delay tactic. That's certainly what he says when he goes crying to the press about how Republicans just had no choice but to filibuster a wildly popular bill because they weren't allowed to eat up weeks of the Senate calendar with dozens of amendments gutting the bill in question and repealing Obamacare. But in fact his plan is that "we're not going to be debating all these gosh darn proposals" like the minimum wage, unemployment insurance, and student loans? How interesting. Political reporters, are you taking note?
And, I mean, heaven forbid the Senate debate the minimum wage. After all, it was raised in 2009—a mere five years ago—and is the princely sum of $7.25 an hour, which is almost above the poverty threshold for a family of three. My God, what more could you people want! McConnell seems actually outraged anyone would dare even talk about the idea that if you're working, you should be able to support a family on what you earn. Then there's student loans—debt that can't be discharged even in bankruptcy or, in some cases, in death. Good to know that one of McConnell's top priorities is keeping America's college students and graduates burdened by debt and high interest rates. Do you hear that, middle-class parents? Because the Koch brothers and their fellow ultra-rich Republican donors sure do.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/08/27/1324941/-McConnell-promises-GOP-donors-he-ll-shut-down-debate-on-minimum-wage-student-loans
SECRET RECORDING Shows McConnell Making BIG Promises To BIG Donors If GOP Takes Senate
Before Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told the world (or at least the readers of Politico) his plan to cripple the government or force a shutdown, he told the secret Koch brothers-hosted gathering of millionaire and billionaire Republican donors about the plan. Presumably, he wouldn't have publicly unveiled it without their approval. But that's not all McConnell had to say to the Kochs' little cabal:
And we're not going to be debating all these gosh darn proposals. That's all we do in the Senate is vote on things like raising the minimum wage (inaudible)—cost the country 500,000 new jobs; extending unemployment—that's a great message for retirees; uh, the student loan package the other day, that's just going to make things worse, uh. These people believe in all the wrong things.
"We're not going to be debating all these gosh darn proposals"? Wait a minute, I thought Mitch McConnell supposedly had high-minded objections to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's refusal to debate every single poison pill amendment Republicans try to attach to bills as a delay tactic. That's certainly what he says when he goes crying to the press about how Republicans just had no choice but to filibuster a wildly popular bill because they weren't allowed to eat up weeks of the Senate calendar with dozens of amendments gutting the bill in question and repealing Obamacare. But in fact his plan is that "we're not going to be debating all these gosh darn proposals" like the minimum wage, unemployment insurance, and student loans? How interesting. Political reporters, are you taking note?
And, I mean, heaven forbid the Senate debate the minimum wage. After all, it was raised in 2009—a mere five years ago—and is the princely sum of $7.25 an hour, which is almost above the poverty threshold for a family of three. My God, what more could you people want! McConnell seems actually outraged anyone would dare even talk about the idea that if you're working, you should be able to support a family on what you earn. Then there's student loans—debt that can't be discharged even in bankruptcy or, in some cases, in death. Good to know that one of McConnell's top priorities is keeping America's college students and graduates burdened by debt and high interest rates. Do you hear that, middle-class parents? Because the Koch brothers and their fellow ultra-rich Republican donors sure do.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/08/27/1324941/-McConnell-promises-GOP-donors-he-ll-shut-down-debate-on-minimum-wage-student-loans
August 27, 2014
Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been a conservative enabler on economic issues masquerading as a democratic politician for a long time now so it's nice to see he's starting to get some heat from the NY Times, who are not endorsing him in the September primary.
It was the NY Times that exposed Cuomo for allegedly hindering his own ethics commission on corruption in Albany:
cont'
http://crooksandliars.com/2014/08/kicking-cuomo-curb
KICKING Cuomo To The Curb
"..It's about time Gov. Andrew Cuomo is taking heat for being a backstabbing, triangulating "centrist" in the wretched No Labels mold.."
Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been a conservative enabler on economic issues masquerading as a democratic politician for a long time now so it's nice to see he's starting to get some heat from the NY Times, who are not endorsing him in the September primary.
More than four years ago, while announcing his campaign for governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo stood in front of the Tweed Courthouse in downtown Manhattan and said Albany’s antics “could make Boss Tweed blush.”
New York had had enough corruption, he said, and he was going to put a stop to it. “Job 1 is going to be to clean up Albany,” he said, “and make the government work for the people.”
Mr. Cuomo became governor on that platform and recorded several impressive achievements, but he failed to perform Job 1. The state government remains as subservient to big money as ever, and Mr. Cuomo resisted and even shut down opportunities to fix it. Because he broke his most important promise, we have decided not to make an endorsement for the Democratic primary on Sept. 9.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/27/opinion/editorial-governor-cuomo-ethics-reform-hinders-endorsement-zephyr-teachout.html?_r=0
New York had had enough corruption, he said, and he was going to put a stop to it. “Job 1 is going to be to clean up Albany,” he said, “and make the government work for the people.”
Mr. Cuomo became governor on that platform and recorded several impressive achievements, but he failed to perform Job 1. The state government remains as subservient to big money as ever, and Mr. Cuomo resisted and even shut down opportunities to fix it. Because he broke his most important promise, we have decided not to make an endorsement for the Democratic primary on Sept. 9.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/27/opinion/editorial-governor-cuomo-ethics-reform-hinders-endorsement-zephyr-teachout.html?_r=0
It was the NY Times that exposed Cuomo for allegedly hindering his own ethics commission on corruption in Albany:
But a three-month examination by The New York Times found that the governor’s office deeply compromised the panel’s work, objecting whenever the commission focused on groups with ties to Mr. Cuomo or on issues that might reflect poorly on him.
Ultimately, Mr. Cuomo abruptly disbanded the commission halfway through what he had indicated would be an 18-month life. And now, as the Democratic governor seeks a second term in November, federal prosecutors are investigating the roles of Mr. Cuomo and his aides in the panel’s shutdown and are pursuing its unfinished business.
Before its demise, Mr. Cuomo’s aides repeatedly pressured the commission, many of whose members and staff thought they had been given a once-in-a-career chance at cleaning up Albany. As a result, the panel’s brief existence — and the writing and editing of its sole creation, a report of its preliminary findings — was marred by infighting, arguments and accusations.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/23/nyregion/governor-andrew-cuomo-and-the-short-life-of-the-moreland-commission.html
Ultimately, Mr. Cuomo abruptly disbanded the commission halfway through what he had indicated would be an 18-month life. And now, as the Democratic governor seeks a second term in November, federal prosecutors are investigating the roles of Mr. Cuomo and his aides in the panel’s shutdown and are pursuing its unfinished business.
Before its demise, Mr. Cuomo’s aides repeatedly pressured the commission, many of whose members and staff thought they had been given a once-in-a-career chance at cleaning up Albany. As a result, the panel’s brief existence — and the writing and editing of its sole creation, a report of its preliminary findings — was marred by infighting, arguments and accusations.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/23/nyregion/governor-andrew-cuomo-and-the-short-life-of-the-moreland-commission.html
cont'
http://crooksandliars.com/2014/08/kicking-cuomo-curb
August 27, 2014
Mitt Romney has insisted that he is not going to run for president again in 2016, but acknowledged on Tuesday that the situation could technically change. On Hugh Hewitt's radio show, Romney reiterated that he is not going to run for president, according to audio recorded by Mediaite. Hewitt then pressed Romney, asking him if he would change his mind if "circumstances change."
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/romney-2016-circumstances-change
LOL!!- Romney: I'm Not Running In 2016, But 'Circumstances Can Change'
Mitt Romney has insisted that he is not going to run for president again in 2016, but acknowledged on Tuesday that the situation could technically change. On Hugh Hewitt's radio show, Romney reiterated that he is not going to run for president, according to audio recorded by Mediaite. Hewitt then pressed Romney, asking him if he would change his mind if "circumstances change."
"..I’m not going there, Hugh. I know you’re going to press, but you know, this is something we gave a lot of thought to when early on I decided we’re not going to be running this time. And again, we said look, I had the chance of running. I didn’t win. Someone else has a better chance than I do," Romney responded. "And that’s what we believe, and that’s why I’m not running. And you know, circumstances can change, but I’m just not going to let my head go there..."
http://www.mediaite.com/online/romney-on-2016-run-circumstances-can-change/
http://www.mediaite.com/online/romney-on-2016-run-circumstances-can-change/
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/romney-2016-circumstances-change
August 26, 2014
If it sounds simple, it is! You scan the barcode of your favorite mouthwash with your phone’s camera and BuyPartisan tells you, in graph form, which parties the company donates to by percentage. Here’s a screen grab from the LA Times:
According to Colbert, “We’re trying to make every day election day for people.” And you know what? As crazy as it sounds, that’s not the worst idea I’ve heard. The more people get involved in politics, the worse Republicans do. This, of course, is the reason behind all of the GOP’s numerous voter suppression schemes from cutting early voting to Voter ID laws. It’s also the reason the right spends so much time and effort to discourage people from getting involved by making politics as ugly as possible. So ugly, in fact, that the average voter would rather stay home and bury their head. The less people are engaged, the better Republicans do.
cont'
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2014/08/26/new-phone-app-lets-you-buy-liberal-at-the-supermarket/
New Phone App Let’s You BUY LIBERAL At The Supermarket
Would you like to know where your money is going when you pick up a box of cereal or a bottle of salad dressing? Would you like to know if you’re putting money into the pockets of a corporation that’s spending millions to make your life miserable? Would you like to know if you’re accidentally helping fund the campaigns of Republicans dedicated to turning the country into a third world hellhole of bigotry and hate?
Well, there’s an app for that!
BuyPartisan, a free smartphone application developed by former Capitol Hill staffer Matthew Colbert, gives users the chance to learn more about the political leanings of the makers of supermarket items.
By compiling campaign finance data from the top Fortune 500 companies and matching it with their products, the app lets consumers scan their groceries and immediately find out which political party stands to profit most from the sale.
http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-buy-partisan-20140825-story.html
By compiling campaign finance data from the top Fortune 500 companies and matching it with their products, the app lets consumers scan their groceries and immediately find out which political party stands to profit most from the sale.
http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-buy-partisan-20140825-story.html
If it sounds simple, it is! You scan the barcode of your favorite mouthwash with your phone’s camera and BuyPartisan tells you, in graph form, which parties the company donates to by percentage. Here’s a screen grab from the LA Times:
According to Colbert, “We’re trying to make every day election day for people.” And you know what? As crazy as it sounds, that’s not the worst idea I’ve heard. The more people get involved in politics, the worse Republicans do. This, of course, is the reason behind all of the GOP’s numerous voter suppression schemes from cutting early voting to Voter ID laws. It’s also the reason the right spends so much time and effort to discourage people from getting involved by making politics as ugly as possible. So ugly, in fact, that the average voter would rather stay home and bury their head. The less people are engaged, the better Republicans do.
cont'
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2014/08/26/new-phone-app-lets-you-buy-liberal-at-the-supermarket/
August 25, 2014
Well, there you go. The "means what he says and says what he means" Chris Christie has built up support for his presidential run by setting up an arrange where Wall Street bankers could skim large fees off the top of pension funds, and then turned around and blamed state retirees for the shortfall. This kind of expensive nonsense is what we always get when voters are naive enough to put Republicans in charge:
Gov. Chris Christie's administration openly acknowledged that more New Jersey taxpayer dollars were going to land in the coffers of major financial institutions. It was 2010, and Christie had just installed a longtime private equity executive, Robert Grady, to manage the state's pension money. Grady promoted a plan to put more of those funds into riskier investments managed by Wall Street firms. Though this would entail higher fees, Grady said the strategy would "maximize returns while appropriately managing risk."
Four years later, New Jersey has secured only half the promised results. The state has sent more pension money to big-name Wall Street firms like Blackstone, Third Point, Omega Advisors, Elliott Associates and Grady's old firm,The Carlyle Group.
Additionally, the amount of fees the state pays financial managers has more than tripled since Christie assumed office. New Jersey is nowone of America’s largest investors in hedge funds.The “maximized returns” have yet to materialize.
Between fiscal year 2011 and 2014, the state’s pension trailed the median returns for similarly sized public pension systems throughout the country, according to data from the financial analysis firm, Wilshire Associates. That below-median performance has cost New Jersey taxpayers billions in unrealized gains and has left the pension system on shaky ground. Meanwhile, New Jersey is now paying a quarter-billion dollars in additional annual fees to Wall Street firms -- many of whose employees have financially supported Republican groups backing Christie’s reelection campaign.
Those who originally opposed the state's shifting of pension funds into hedge funds, private equity, venture capital, real estate and other “alternative investments” see the below-average returns as no accident but an inevitable byproduct of the strategy: The Christie administration has effectively taken money from retired state workers and delivered the cash to Wall Street money managers.
http://www.ibtimes.com/gov-christie-shifted-pension-cash-wall-street-costing-new-jersey-taxpayers-38-billion-1667622
http://crooksandliars.com/2014/08/gov-christie-shifted-pension-cash-high
Gov. Christie SHIFTED Pension Cash To High Risk Funds, COST TAXPAYERS $3.8 BILLION
"...Remember that old Republican slogan, "Running government like a business"? And how it always ended us costing us money?.."
Well, there you go. The "means what he says and says what he means" Chris Christie has built up support for his presidential run by setting up an arrange where Wall Street bankers could skim large fees off the top of pension funds, and then turned around and blamed state retirees for the shortfall. This kind of expensive nonsense is what we always get when voters are naive enough to put Republicans in charge:
Gov. Chris Christie's administration openly acknowledged that more New Jersey taxpayer dollars were going to land in the coffers of major financial institutions. It was 2010, and Christie had just installed a longtime private equity executive, Robert Grady, to manage the state's pension money. Grady promoted a plan to put more of those funds into riskier investments managed by Wall Street firms. Though this would entail higher fees, Grady said the strategy would "maximize returns while appropriately managing risk."
Four years later, New Jersey has secured only half the promised results. The state has sent more pension money to big-name Wall Street firms like Blackstone, Third Point, Omega Advisors, Elliott Associates and Grady's old firm,The Carlyle Group.
Additionally, the amount of fees the state pays financial managers has more than tripled since Christie assumed office. New Jersey is nowone of America’s largest investors in hedge funds.The “maximized returns” have yet to materialize.
Between fiscal year 2011 and 2014, the state’s pension trailed the median returns for similarly sized public pension systems throughout the country, according to data from the financial analysis firm, Wilshire Associates. That below-median performance has cost New Jersey taxpayers billions in unrealized gains and has left the pension system on shaky ground. Meanwhile, New Jersey is now paying a quarter-billion dollars in additional annual fees to Wall Street firms -- many of whose employees have financially supported Republican groups backing Christie’s reelection campaign.
Those who originally opposed the state's shifting of pension funds into hedge funds, private equity, venture capital, real estate and other “alternative investments” see the below-average returns as no accident but an inevitable byproduct of the strategy: The Christie administration has effectively taken money from retired state workers and delivered the cash to Wall Street money managers.
http://www.ibtimes.com/gov-christie-shifted-pension-cash-wall-street-costing-new-jersey-taxpayers-38-billion-1667622
http://crooksandliars.com/2014/08/gov-christie-shifted-pension-cash-high
August 25, 2014
According to Frank Thorp of NBC News, the contract for the law firm that Boehner hired to represent the House in his lawsuit against President Obama will cost taxpayers $500/hour.
Thorp tweeted:
Frank Thorp V ✔ @frankthorpNBC
Contract for BakerHostetler to handle GOP lawsuit vs. Pres Obama "agrees to pay...at a blended rate of $500 per hour for...attorney time."
2:37 PM - 25 Aug 2014
Democratic Campaign Committee Chairman Steve Israel ripped Boehner in a statement, “This outrageous waste of taxpayer dollars is yet another reminder of House Republicans’ misguided priorities. Only in John Boehner’s world does it make sense to pay lawyers $500 per hour to work on a partisan lawsuit while refusing to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 for hardworking Americans trying to feed their families.” This is an absurd waste of money. House Republicans have been blocking an extension of unemployment benefits for the long-term unemployed since January because they claim that it is too expensive, but the Speaker is spending more on one hour of legal representation that it would cost in many parts of the country to give an unemployed American their benefits back for a week.
The cost of Boehner’s lawsuit against President Obama has been a closely guarded secret. House Republicans have repeatedly refused to say how much the lawsuit will cost in total, but it is estimated that it will add up to millions of dollars. People need to remember that this frivolous lawsuit represents everything that House Republicans stand for.
cont'
http://www.politicususa.com/2014/08/25/john-boehners-lawsuit-obama-cost-taxpayers-500hour-attorney-fees.html
John Boehner’s LAWSUIT Against Obama Will COST TAXPAYERS $500/HOUR In Attorney Fees
"..Taxpayers should be outraged. It was revealed today that John Boehner’s lawsuit against President Obama will cost the American people $500 an hour in attorney fees..."
According to Frank Thorp of NBC News, the contract for the law firm that Boehner hired to represent the House in his lawsuit against President Obama will cost taxpayers $500/hour.
Thorp tweeted:
Frank Thorp V ✔ @frankthorpNBC
Contract for BakerHostetler to handle GOP lawsuit vs. Pres Obama "agrees to pay...at a blended rate of $500 per hour for...attorney time."
2:37 PM - 25 Aug 2014
Democratic Campaign Committee Chairman Steve Israel ripped Boehner in a statement, “This outrageous waste of taxpayer dollars is yet another reminder of House Republicans’ misguided priorities. Only in John Boehner’s world does it make sense to pay lawyers $500 per hour to work on a partisan lawsuit while refusing to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 for hardworking Americans trying to feed their families.” This is an absurd waste of money. House Republicans have been blocking an extension of unemployment benefits for the long-term unemployed since January because they claim that it is too expensive, but the Speaker is spending more on one hour of legal representation that it would cost in many parts of the country to give an unemployed American their benefits back for a week.
The cost of Boehner’s lawsuit against President Obama has been a closely guarded secret. House Republicans have repeatedly refused to say how much the lawsuit will cost in total, but it is estimated that it will add up to millions of dollars. People need to remember that this frivolous lawsuit represents everything that House Republicans stand for.
cont'
http://www.politicususa.com/2014/08/25/john-boehners-lawsuit-obama-cost-taxpayers-500hour-attorney-fees.html
August 25, 2014
"EDGIER"??...............GOOD LUCK!!...
When he takes over as moderator of "Meet the Press" next month, Chuck Todd will be charged with reversing the Sunday morning show's sagging ratings. If his boss has anything to say about it, he will also be expected to bring more "edge" to the struggling program. In an interview with the New York Times published Monday, NBC News president Deborah Turness offered her diagnosis for what's plaguing "Meet the Press":
Todd was tapped as the new moderator for "Meet the Press" earlier this month, ending a tumultuous period for David Gregory, who had overseen the show's steady decline since he took over for the late Tim Russert in 2008.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/meet-the-press-edge-deborah-turness-chuck-todd
BWHAHAHAHAHA!!- NBC News President Wants An EDGIER 'Meet The Press'
"EDGIER"??...............GOOD LUCK!!...
When he takes over as moderator of "Meet the Press" next month, Chuck Todd will be charged with reversing the Sunday morning show's sagging ratings. If his boss has anything to say about it, he will also be expected to bring more "edge" to the struggling program. In an interview with the New York Times published Monday, NBC News president Deborah Turness offered her diagnosis for what's plaguing "Meet the Press":
Her new vision for “Meet the Press” includes adding a regular panel of journalists who will question guests, something of a return to the venerable show’s original format. “The show needs more edge,” she said. “It needs to be consequential. I think the show had become a talking shop that raked over the cold embers of what had gone on the previous week. The one-on-one conversation belongs to a decade ago. We need more of a coffeehouse conversation.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/25/business/media/nbc-news-president-rouses-the-network.html?_r=1
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/25/business/media/nbc-news-president-rouses-the-network.html?_r=1
Todd was tapped as the new moderator for "Meet the Press" earlier this month, ending a tumultuous period for David Gregory, who had overseen the show's steady decline since he took over for the late Tim Russert in 2008.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/meet-the-press-edge-deborah-turness-chuck-todd
August 25, 2014
Lindsey Graham shrieks about so many threats and he's always so wrong that you really have to wonder whether these Sunday talk shows are really trying to have a discussion, or simply cast characters for an ongoing Beltway sitcom. (I suspect the latter.) Via TPM:
Really, I'm so tired of this warmongering. Yes, any terrorist organization can hit the U.S. -- despite the years of extreme, expensive methods pushed by defense handmaidens like Lindsey Graham as the solution. I'd prefer we went back to a country that, at least on paper, put civil liberties first. If we're going to get hit, I'd rather we just learn to live with it instead of trying to turn us all into a nation of wide-eyed bed wetters.
http://crooksandliars.com/2014/08/lindsey-graham-isil-going-attack-us-so-we
Lindsey Graham: ISIL Is Going To Attack Us So WE NEED TO START ANOTHER WAR
"..It seems like the Depends just aren't working for Lindsey anymore..."
Lindsey Graham shrieks about so many threats and he's always so wrong that you really have to wonder whether these Sunday talk shows are really trying to have a discussion, or simply cast characters for an ongoing Beltway sitcom. (I suspect the latter.) Via TPM:
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) offered a stark warning about the ongoing threat of the Islamic terrorist group ISIS during an appearance on CNN on Sunday.
"It's about time to assume the worst," Graham said on CNN's State of the Union on Sunday.
Graham added that ISIS is no longer a minor or amateur terrorist organization.
"They're not the JV team anymore," Graham said. "They're the most prominent terrorist organization in the world but they're not the only one. They're in competition with the other terrorist groups and the gold medal will be awarded to the one that can hit America."
Graham continued that the threat posed by the group, which has prompted the United States to conduct a series of airstrikes in Iraq against the militants, should receive a proportionate response from the United States.
"We should, in my view, look at ISIL as a direct threat to the United States, a direct threat to the region that cannot be accommodated," Graham said. "We are now directly threatened by ISIL." Graham added that the response to ISIL should be proportionate to the threat the group has been posing.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/lindsey-graham-isis-jv-team-assume-the-worst
"It's about time to assume the worst," Graham said on CNN's State of the Union on Sunday.
Graham added that ISIS is no longer a minor or amateur terrorist organization.
"They're not the JV team anymore," Graham said. "They're the most prominent terrorist organization in the world but they're not the only one. They're in competition with the other terrorist groups and the gold medal will be awarded to the one that can hit America."
Graham continued that the threat posed by the group, which has prompted the United States to conduct a series of airstrikes in Iraq against the militants, should receive a proportionate response from the United States.
"We should, in my view, look at ISIL as a direct threat to the United States, a direct threat to the region that cannot be accommodated," Graham said. "We are now directly threatened by ISIL." Graham added that the response to ISIL should be proportionate to the threat the group has been posing.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/lindsey-graham-isis-jv-team-assume-the-worst
Really, I'm so tired of this warmongering. Yes, any terrorist organization can hit the U.S. -- despite the years of extreme, expensive methods pushed by defense handmaidens like Lindsey Graham as the solution. I'd prefer we went back to a country that, at least on paper, put civil liberties first. If we're going to get hit, I'd rather we just learn to live with it instead of trying to turn us all into a nation of wide-eyed bed wetters.
http://crooksandliars.com/2014/08/lindsey-graham-isil-going-attack-us-so-we
August 21, 2014
WARNING: Viewer discretion is advised.
This is absolutely insane!
Earlier this afternoon the Huffington Post identified 25 year old Kajiemi Powell as the man who was killed by St. Louis police on August 19, 2014. Video footage of the shooting has just been uploaded to youtube by kwmu.
The man doing the filming was following Powell because he had just taken two cans of soda from the store. Powell was standing by the side of the road. The two cans of soda were sitting on the sidewalk near him. The person doing the filming identifies Powell saying “That’s the guy who just stole two cans of soda from the store.”
A few others begin to gather around the scene. Then the police show up. From what can be seen and heard on the video, it appears that the officers gunned down Powell in broad daylight. Witnesses can be heard saying “They just killed him.”
“They shot him”
“They’re at it again.:
“He’s dead and they’re cuffing him?”
“The man is dead.”
Most importantly, at least two witnesses can be heard saying: “He didn’t have a gun.”
cont'
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2014/08/20/breaking-video-footage-of-st-louis-cops-gunning-down-kajiemi-powell/
BREAKING: Video Footage Of St. Louis Cops GUNNING DOWN Kajiemi Powell
WARNING: Viewer discretion is advised.
This is absolutely insane!
Earlier this afternoon the Huffington Post identified 25 year old Kajiemi Powell as the man who was killed by St. Louis police on August 19, 2014. Video footage of the shooting has just been uploaded to youtube by kwmu.
The man doing the filming was following Powell because he had just taken two cans of soda from the store. Powell was standing by the side of the road. The two cans of soda were sitting on the sidewalk near him. The person doing the filming identifies Powell saying “That’s the guy who just stole two cans of soda from the store.”
A few others begin to gather around the scene. Then the police show up. From what can be seen and heard on the video, it appears that the officers gunned down Powell in broad daylight. Witnesses can be heard saying “They just killed him.”
“They shot him”
“They’re at it again.:
“He’s dead and they’re cuffing him?”
“The man is dead.”
Most importantly, at least two witnesses can be heard saying: “He didn’t have a gun.”
cont'
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2014/08/20/breaking-video-footage-of-st-louis-cops-gunning-down-kajiemi-powell/
August 20, 2014
Like many other news websites, Common Dreams has been plagued by inflammatory anti-Semitic comments following its stories. But on Common Dreams these posts have been so frequent and intense they have driven away donors from a nonprofit dependent on reader generosity. A Common Dreams investigation has discovered that more than a thousand of these damaging comments over the past two years were written with a deceptive purpose by a Jewish Harvard graduate in his thirties who was irritated by the website's discussion of issues involving Israel.
His intricate campaign, which he has admitted to Common Dreams, included posting comments by a screen name, "JewishProgressive," whose purpose was to draw attention to and denounce the anti-Semitic comments that he had written under many other screen names. The deception was many-layered. At one point he had one of his characters charge that the anti-Semitic comments and the criticism of the anti-Semitic comments must be written by "internet trolls who have been known to impersonate anti-Semites in order to then double-back and accuse others of supporting anti-Semitism"--exactly what he was doing. (Trolls are posters who foment discord.)
The impersonation, this character wrote, must be part of an "elaborate Hasbara setup," referring to an Israeli international public-relations campaign. When Common Dreams finally confronted the man behind the deceptive posting, he denied that he himself was involved with Hasbara. His posting on Common Dreams illustrates the susceptibility of website comment threads to massive manipulation. As another illustration, he even audaciously tricked the white-supremacist Vanguard News Network, posing as "DeShawn S. Williams," a "Pro-White/Black, anti-jew." On Vanguard, where this African-American persona posted more than 1,400 times, he encouraged the malevolence of Frazier Glenn Miller, the neo-Nazi accused of killing three people whom he believed were Jews outside a Jewish community center and retirement home in Kansas in April. The character Williams was engaged in a comment thread more than 200 times with Miller, whose screen name was Rounder.
In a Vanguard post under the Williams screen name the commenter asked rhetorically, "Are left wing folks finally waking up to the jew?" He then referred the Vanguard online community to a thread of anti-Semitic comments on Common Dreams--most of which he had written himself under several screen names. A typical DeShawn Williams comment might include: "Israel is a stain on the world that needs to be expunged once and for all." Or: "The jews are the most racist people on earth. Just look at their Talmud. They consider the 'goyim' (non-jews) to be cattle whose only purpose on earth is to serve them." But on Common Dreams, DeShawn S. Williams was only one among dozens of screen-name characters this poster created. They seemed to be in competition to revile Jews. Here's how "HamBaconEggs," the site's most prolific anti-Semitic persona, began a conversation last October:
A few posts later the HamBaconEggs character was taken to task for his hatred of Jews by the JewishProgressive character, who responded to another (sincere) poster who had pointed out the anti-Semitism :
cont'
http://www.commondreams.org/hambaconeggs
The Double Identity Of An "Anti-Semitic" Commenter
Smearing a Progressive Website to Support Israel
Like many other news websites, Common Dreams has been plagued by inflammatory anti-Semitic comments following its stories. But on Common Dreams these posts have been so frequent and intense they have driven away donors from a nonprofit dependent on reader generosity. A Common Dreams investigation has discovered that more than a thousand of these damaging comments over the past two years were written with a deceptive purpose by a Jewish Harvard graduate in his thirties who was irritated by the website's discussion of issues involving Israel.
His intricate campaign, which he has admitted to Common Dreams, included posting comments by a screen name, "JewishProgressive," whose purpose was to draw attention to and denounce the anti-Semitic comments that he had written under many other screen names. The deception was many-layered. At one point he had one of his characters charge that the anti-Semitic comments and the criticism of the anti-Semitic comments must be written by "internet trolls who have been known to impersonate anti-Semites in order to then double-back and accuse others of supporting anti-Semitism"--exactly what he was doing. (Trolls are posters who foment discord.)
The impersonation, this character wrote, must be part of an "elaborate Hasbara setup," referring to an Israeli international public-relations campaign. When Common Dreams finally confronted the man behind the deceptive posting, he denied that he himself was involved with Hasbara. His posting on Common Dreams illustrates the susceptibility of website comment threads to massive manipulation. As another illustration, he even audaciously tricked the white-supremacist Vanguard News Network, posing as "DeShawn S. Williams," a "Pro-White/Black, anti-jew." On Vanguard, where this African-American persona posted more than 1,400 times, he encouraged the malevolence of Frazier Glenn Miller, the neo-Nazi accused of killing three people whom he believed were Jews outside a Jewish community center and retirement home in Kansas in April. The character Williams was engaged in a comment thread more than 200 times with Miller, whose screen name was Rounder.
In a Vanguard post under the Williams screen name the commenter asked rhetorically, "Are left wing folks finally waking up to the jew?" He then referred the Vanguard online community to a thread of anti-Semitic comments on Common Dreams--most of which he had written himself under several screen names. A typical DeShawn Williams comment might include: "Israel is a stain on the world that needs to be expunged once and for all." Or: "The jews are the most racist people on earth. Just look at their Talmud. They consider the 'goyim' (non-jews) to be cattle whose only purpose on earth is to serve them." But on Common Dreams, DeShawn S. Williams was only one among dozens of screen-name characters this poster created. They seemed to be in competition to revile Jews. Here's how "HamBaconEggs," the site's most prolific anti-Semitic persona, began a conversation last October:
A few posts later the HamBaconEggs character was taken to task for his hatred of Jews by the JewishProgressive character, who responded to another (sincere) poster who had pointed out the anti-Semitism :
cont'
http://www.commondreams.org/hambaconeggs
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