Addendae 7 cont'd
In Another Sign of Florida’s Democratic Decay, DeSantis Suspends an Elected Prosecutor
He’s done it before—and no one will stop him
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2023/08/ron-desantis-monique-worrell-prosecutor
Democratic Prosecutor Suspended by DeSantis Blasts Him as a “Weak Dictator”
Monique Worrell called out Ron DeSantis for targeting prosecutors elected by the people
https://newrepublic.com/post/174943/democratic-prosecutor-suspended-desantis-blasts-weak-dictator
Monique Worrell: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Draft:Monique_Worrell
#DeSantis #neofascism #MoniqueWorrell #FloridaLaw #MoniqueWorrell
Addendae 7 cont'd
The truth about Monique Worrell
https://popular.info/p/the-truth-about-monique-worrell
* In his executive order suspending Worrell, DeSantis cited his authority to remove state's attorneys
* during press conference announcing Worrell's ouster, DeSantis treated his removal of a duly elected official as a joke
* Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd shared the stage w. DeSantis
* held up placard with meme-inspired cartoon of Worrell in house on fire proclaiming “This is fine”
#DeSantis #neofascism #MoniqueWorrell
... cont'd 2/2
* theocrats of religious right / anti-government extremists overlap bit but remain distinct
* Claremont Institute isn't quite either of those things, yet they’re both & more
* nihilistic yearning to destroy modernity
* indispensable part of right-wing America’s evolution toward authoritarianism
https://persagen.com >> search: "Claremont Institute"
"alliance defending freedom"
"heritage foundation"
"viktor orban"
...
#theocracy #ClaremontInstitute #neofascism #neoconservatism
Addendae 1
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110538629015830843
* Pat Sajak served as board member at prominent conservative institutions like the Claremont Institute, which has fueled election-denialist claims re: 2020 election.
* After Trump refused to concede, Claremont fellow John Eastman did his best to help try to overturn the election.
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110588910567063914
Students for Fair Admissions amicus brief f. the Claremont Institute - gets funding f. the DeVos Foundation - was written by Trump coup attorney John Eastman
... cont'd 2/2
* theocrats of religious right / anti-government extremists overlap bit but remain distinct
* Claremont Institute isn't quite either of those things, yet they’re both & more
* nihilistic yearning to destroy modernity
* indispensable part of right-wing America’s evolution toward authoritarianism
https://persagen.com >> search: "Claremont Institute"
"alliance defending freedom"
"heritage foundation"
"viktor orban"
...
#theocracy #ClaremontInstitute #neofascism #neoconservatism
What the Hell Happened to the Claremont Institute?
California think tank now it platforms white nationalists, promotes authoritarianism
https://newrepublic.com/article/174656/claremont-institute-think-tank-trump
* Earlier in 2023 1,000 supporters of “National Conservatism” gathered in London
* speakers denounced “woke politics,” blamed immigration for rising cost of housing, said modern ills could be solved w. more religion & more (non-immigrant) babies
#ClaremontInstitute #neofascism #neoconservatism
... cont'd 1/x
* break room lined w. booths f. organizations such as
Viktor Orban–affiliated Danube Institute
U.K.-based conservative think tank Bow Group
The Heritage Foundation
legal powerhouse Alliance Defending Freedom (which is headquartered in Arizona but has expanded to include offices in nearly a half-dozen European cities)
* Michael Anton (Trump admin): senior fellow, Claremont Institute
#ClaremontInstitute #HeritageFoundation #ADF #AllianceDefendingFreedom #BowGroup #DanubeInstitute
What the Hell Happened to the Claremont Institute?
California think tank now it platforms white nationalists, promotes authoritarianism
https://newrepublic.com/article/174656/claremont-institute-think-tank-trump
* Earlier in 2023 1,000 supporters of “National Conservatism” gathered in London
* speakers denounced “woke politics,” blamed immigration for rising cost of housing, said modern ills could be solved w. more religion & more (non-immigrant) babies
#ClaremontInstitute #neofascism #neoconservatism
Addendae 1 cont'd 2/2
Thomas accepted more gifts from billionaire benefactors, new ProPublica report says
https://www.npr.org/2023/08/10/1193162713/clarence-thomas-supreme-court-gifts-disclosure
Justice Thomas' Corruption Demands Congressional Action
https://www.commondreams.org/newswire/justice-thomas-corruption-demands-congressional-action
“... It’s time for Congress to behave like a coequal branch of government and address corruption on the Supreme Court with the urgency it demands, including by passing the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act. ..."
Addendae 1 cont'd
“Pay to Play:” Clarence Thomas Sold Republican Billionaires Access to Supreme Court
Stunning report reveals how Supreme Court justice used position to help an organization that introduced him to his Republican billionaire friends
Beyond Harlan Crow, Other Billionaires Funded Justice Thomas’s Luxury Vacations
3 additional ultra-wealthy business executives underwriting Thomas’s undisclosed trips for 3 decades
Clarence Thomas’s $267,230 luxury RV & Anthony Welters
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/05/us/clarence-thomas-rv-anthony-welters.html
* Prevost Marathon: $267,230
* Thomas told how he scrimped, saved to afford it
* partly underwritten by friend Anthony Welters
* Welters founded AmeriChoice: Medicaid services provider sold to UnitedHealthcare for $530 million in 2002
* Welters: https://www.law.nyu.edu/financialaid/jdscholarships/anbryce
Harlan Crow, Clarence Thomas
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110753142566473319
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110580597018243738
#ClarenceThomas #AnthonyWelters #JudicialMisconduct #SCOTUS #ethics
Addendae 1
Clarence Thomas’ 38 Vacations: The Other Billionaires Who Have Treated the Supreme Court Justice to Luxury Travel
* fullest account yet shows how Thomas secretly reaped benefits f. network of wealthy, well-connected patrons
* far more extensive than previously understood
#ClarenceThomas #SCOTUS #JudicialMisconduct #DefundBillionaires
Addendae 3
Montana voters rejected an anti-abortion measure. State GOP lawmakers passed a similar bill anyway
https://19thnews.org/2023/08/montana-lawmakers-anti-abortion-bill-voter-rejection
* following SCOTUS’ 2022-06 decision giving states power to ban abortion, voters in 6 states spoke on the issue
* in every case upheld abortion rights or rejected attempts to restrict them
* Ohio voters rejected GOP-led effort to make it more difficult to change state constitution
Addendae 1
Investigation into housing minister's chief of staff after scathing Greenbelt report
Special Report on Changes to the Greenbelt
https://www.auditor.on.ca/en/content/specialreports/specialreports/Greenbelt_en.pdf
* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenbelt_(Golden_Horseshoe)
* scathing Auditor General report blasted process/decisions regarding Greenbelt
* 7,400 acres of land removed from the Greenbelt
* 92% tied to 3 developers w. direct access to housing ministry
#Ontario #corruption #Greenbelt #capitalism #neoliberalism #PublicLand
Addendae 2
Bombshell Greenbelt report: One-on-one with Ontario's auditor general
* Greenbelt: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenbelt_(Golden_Horseshoe)
* A.G. report: https://www.auditor.on.ca/en/content/specialreports/specialreports/Greenbelt_en.pdf
* 30 square kilometers of land removed from Greenbelt
* 92% tied to 3 developers w. direct access to housing ministry
#Ontario #corruption #Greenbelt #capitalism #neoliberalism #PublicLand
Addendae 1
Investigation into housing minister's chief of staff after scathing Greenbelt report
Special Report on Changes to the Greenbelt
https://www.auditor.on.ca/en/content/specialreports/specialreports/Greenbelt_en.pdf
* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenbelt_(Golden_Horseshoe)
* scathing Auditor General report blasted process/decisions regarding Greenbelt
* 7,400 acres of land removed from the Greenbelt
* 92% tied to 3 developers w. direct access to housing ministry
#Ontario #corruption #Greenbelt #capitalism #neoliberalism #PublicLand
Addendae 1
Even in a democracy like Canada, journalists face efforts to keep information f. public
Media spend time/money fighting lack of access, publication bans, secret trials
https://www.cbc.ca/news/editorsblog/editor-blog-secrecy-media-journalists-1.6930933
* "Where secrecy or mystery begins, vice or roguery is not far off." Samuel Johnson (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Johnson)
* principles of openness/transparency underpin democratic ideals
* inaccessible information
* secrecy should always be exception to the rule
#journalism #media #democracy #HumanRights
m/w in the U.S. ... 🤨
NSA Lobbying Congress to Save a Phone Surveillance Loophole
The National Security Agency has urged top lawmakers to resist demands that it obtain warrants for sensitive data sold by data brokers
https://www.wired.com/story/nsa-ndaa-lobbying-privacy-loophole/
Discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36919225
https://persagen.com > search: "data brokers"
E.g. "Acxiom claims to have files on 2.5 billion people, with about 11,000 data points per consumer (quoted in Senate.gov)."
#NSA #surveillance #privacy #DataBrokers
Addendae 1
Long, very well written/important read for those concerned about
* internet privacy, surveillance, profiling
* data analytics, prediction
* state, corporate ownership, use of those data
Yandex Leak: How Russian Search Giant Uses Consumer Data
https://www.confiant.com/news/the-yandex-leak-how-a-russian-search-giant-uses-consumer-data
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37074177https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37074177
Yandex: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yandex
* Russian tech company; internet search ...
* [FSB] Federal Security Service: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Security_Service
* principal security agency of Russia
#Yandex #privacy
Paradigm Shifts in Artificial Intelligence
https://arxiv.org/abs/2308.02558
* Kuhn's framework of scientific progress (1962)
* useful framing of paradigm shifts in A.I. over 60 yrs
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/S/bo13179781.html
Thomas Kuhn: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Kuhn
* American historian; philosopher of science
* 1962 book "The Structure of Scientific Revolutions" influential in academic & popular circles
* introduced term: paradigm shift
#AI #ChatGPT #LLM #PhilosophyOfScience #history
🎵 Morning ☮-in #MorningPeaceIn
4 Non Blondes - What's Up (Official Music Video)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NXnxTNIWkc
Namaste 🙏 🕊
#MorningPeaceIn #4NonBlondes
Addendae 20
How dangerous are wet-bulb temperatures?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbcMvKpZ48w
With more humidity & heat in the forecast, climate experts sounding alarm about ‘wet-bulb’ temperature
Explainer: How is climate change driving dangerous wet-bulb temperatures?
* Wet bulb temperatures account for air temperature & moisture
* research suggests 31C (88F) could be lethal limit
* Humid tropics most at risk
#HeatStress #ExtremeHeat #WetBulbTemperature
Addendae 7
DeSantis Suspends 2nd Elected Prosecutor in Florida
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/09/us/desantis-orlando-prosecutor.html
* DeSantis accused Monique H. Worrell of leniency toward violent criminals
* 2nd time DeSantis taken drastic/exceedingly rare step of removing elected state attorney - both Democrats
* DeSantis heavily criticized for removing Andrew H. Warren, who signed statement w. 90 elected prosecutors across U.S. vowing not to prosecute people who seek/provide abortions
#DeSantis #neofascism #MoniqueWorrell #FloridaLaw
Addendae 7 cont'd
In Another Sign of Florida’s Democratic Decay, DeSantis Suspends an Elected Prosecutor
He’s done it before—and no one will stop him
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2023/08/ron-desantis-monique-worrell-prosecutor
Democratic Prosecutor Suspended by DeSantis Blasts Him as a “Weak Dictator”
Monique Worrell called out Ron DeSantis for targeting prosecutors elected by the people
https://newrepublic.com/post/174943/democratic-prosecutor-suspended-desantis-blasts-weak-dictator
Monique Worrell: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Draft:Monique_Worrell
#DeSantis #neofascism #MoniqueWorrell #FloridaLaw #MoniqueWorrell
... cont'd
Juno Awards: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juno_Awards
The Band - The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jREUrbGGrgM
[2023-08-07] 🎵 Morning ☮-in
The Weight - The Band
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110848927705948655
[audio] The Weight - The Band (lyrics)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFqb1I-hiHE
[live] The Band - The Weight
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-w9OclUnns
#MorningPeaceIn #TheBand #ClassicRock #RobbieRobertson
Addendae 1
Robbie Robertson, 80, Dies; Canadian Songwriter Captured American Spirit
As the chief songwriter and guitarist for The Band, he offered a rustic vision of his adopted country that helped inspire the genre that came to be known as Americana
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/09/arts/music/robbie-robertson-dead.html
#TheBand #ClassicRock #RobbieRobertson #RIP
Robbie Robertson, guitarist, songwriting force behind The Band dead at 80 😥
Write/co-wrote The Weight, The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down ...
https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/robbie-robertson-obit-1.6931772
* The Band inducted into Rock & Roll Hall of Fame 1994, 5 yrs after sim. honor at Canada's Juno Awards
* Robertson won additional 5 Junos
* Robertson feted toward end of career with Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame (2011), Canada's Walk of Fame (2014) honors
* Robertson one of 1st Indigenous rock stars
#RobbieRobertson #TheBand
... cont'd
Juno Awards: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juno_Awards
The Band - The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jREUrbGGrgM
[2023-08-07] 🎵 Morning ☮-in
The Weight - The Band
https://mastodon.social/@persagen/110848927705948655
[audio] The Weight - The Band (lyrics)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFqb1I-hiHE
[live] The Band - The Weight
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-w9OclUnns
#MorningPeaceIn #TheBand #ClassicRock #RobbieRobertson