Monday, October 21, 2024

Monday, October 21, 2024

And another day of being honest, Republicans wanting election misinformation, selfies and voting, DeSantis threatens television stations, Trump’s plans will end Social Security, and Kroger implementing facial recognition in their stores comes to a close:

“Trump's proposed economic and tax policies, which largely benefit the rich, would drain the Social Security Trust Fund in just six years. He's going to take a lifetime of earned benefits away from working people and gift them to the wealthy. It's reverse Robin Hood.” — Robert Reich


“How in the fuck are we going to deprogram 20% of America's population?” — Mayo


Let’s Be Honest, Trump’s Running As a Fascist. The agenda Trump is presenting in these interviews and rallies—political violence, suspension of the Constitution, suspension of civil liberties, unchecked presidential power, censorship of the media, imprisonment of opposition leaders, execution of people for nonviolent crimes, and legal immunity for the president and his thugs—isn’t just close to fascism. It is fascism.


How Republicans pushed social media companies to stop fighting election misinformation. The shift took place against the backdrop of a yearslong intimidation campaign led by Republican attorneys general and state and federal lawmakers aimed at forcing social media companies to platform falsehoods and hate speech and thwarting those working to study or limit the spread of that destabilizing content. Those efforts coincided with the rise of a vocal cadre of elite Silicon Valley reactionaries, an increasingly ideological group that bristles at notions of corporate social responsibility. The people involved are among the world’s wealthiest and most influential, with the power to shape the products and services used by billions. And they are growing more politically assertive — warning government leaders to back off or face millions of dollars in campaign contributions to their opponents and laying down political manifestos that serve as litmus tests for startup founders who need funding.


Musk’s $1 million swing-state voter lottery falls into legal gray area, experts say. Elon Musk’s daily $1 million lottery for registered swing state voters who sign his super PAC’s petition falls into a legal gray area and could potentially violate election law.” — Musk is trash. Don’t buy a Tesla. And if you already have, get rid of it. The man’s a menace to society.


Selfies and Voting, What Could Go Wrong? A Lot This Election Year. Sharing a ballot selfie on social might seem like a bit of fun, but that picture might actually be illegal where you live.


Florida official says DeSantis’s office ordered him to threaten TV stations over abortion ads. John Wilson, general counsel for the Florida Department of Health, wrote in a sworn affidavit that officials from Gov. Ron DeSantis’s (R) office pushed him to threaten television stations with criminal prosecutions if they did not take down ads in support of a Florida abortion rights measure. Wilson, who resigned from his position on Oct. 10, wrote in the affidavit that he received prewritten letters directing him to send the threatening letters under his name on behalf of the Florida Department of Health.


Ron DeSantis Is Deploying “Asshole Politics” to Stop Florida’s Abortion Referendum. That’s because Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis is using the power of his administration to threaten the initiative. He’s appointed people to the Financial Impact Estimating Conference—a panel responsible for gauging potential costs of ballot measures—that required the amendment be accompanied by language stating, without evidence, that access to abortion may cost taxpayer dollars. State law enforcement has also been sent to question Floridians who signed the petition for Amendment 4 to appear on the ballot. He’s enlisted a state agency to create a misleading website about abortions in Florida. Local news channels playing an advertisement supporting Amendment 4 have also been threatened with prosecution over the alleged violation of Florida’s sanitary nuisance law, which is generally used to combat health risks like the improper disposal of human waste or dead animals. Later, on Oct. 21, the Miami Herald reported that the marching orders to threaten the media outlets with legal action came from top DeSantis deputies. — Yes, DeSantis is an asshole. Which is actually an insult to assholes.


Trump has promised to protect Social Security. His proposals could lead to benefit cuts in 6 years. Trump’s platform would drain critical tax revenue from Social Security’s trust funds, leading them to run out of money by 2031 – three years earlier than currently projected, according to a new analysis from the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonpartisan government watchdog. That would force a roughly 30% cut in benefits unless Congress acts.


Kroger’s Plan to Use Facial Recognition Raises Concerns About Surge Pricing. News leaked over the summer that grocery giant Kroger was partnering with Microsoft to use electronic shelf labels, shortened in the grocery industry as ESLs, as part of an AI push to institute dynamic pricing at its grocery stores. The plan also includes so-called Enhanced Display for Grocery Environment (EDGE) shelf displays that would reportedly include cameras to capture customer information, including images of faces to better tailor ads...Tlaib is worried that ESLs will allow Kroger’s stores to “use customer data to build personalized profiles of each customer” in such a way that it will be able to “determine the maximum price of goods customers are willing to pay.”


RIP Paul Di’Anno. He was 66.


Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.


Until next time, my friends. Stay safe and stay sane. Good night.


No comments:

Post a Comment