Trump says Saudi explanation on Khashoggi’s death credible

ROTFLMAO!!! President Donald Trump said on Friday that Saudi Arabia’s explanation for how journalist Jamal Khashoggi died at its consulate in Istanbul was credible.

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The Issues That Russian Operatives Used to Divide Americans, in Their Own Words – The New York Times – Our own hunger to reinforce our biases – they just fed them with lies we wanted to hear.

A criminal complaint offered a rare view into how Russian operatives tried to disrupt the American political process, including the midterm elections.

Jamal Khashoggi is dead, Saudi Arabian state television confirms

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  • Fight broke out between Khashoggi and those who met him consulate, announcement said
  • Gen Ahmed al-Asiri is sacked from intelligence position

Saudi Arabia has said the journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who disappeared after visiting the country’s consulate in Istanbul on 2 October, is dead.

Related: Don’t let my friend Jamal Khashoggi’s death be for nothing | Wadah Khanfar

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bellingcat – Did Far-Right Internet Chatter Inspire An Arson Attack on Refugees in Toronto? – bellingcat

The “Campaign” Begins in Earnest On July 25, 2018, The Daily Caller, a right-wing news site part-owned by Tucker Carlson, published an article: “Trudeau’s Border Control Plan: Place Illegals in Hotels.” The next day Tucker Carlson himself covered the refugee situation at the Toronto East Radisson on Fox News. The video clip of the coverage uploaded to Fox’s YouTube account titles the segment, “Trudeau’s immigration solution: put illegals in hotels.”

Source: bellingcat – Did Far-Right Internet Chatter Inspire An Arson Attack on Refugees in Toronto? – bellingcat

A World of Latino Creativity Taking Place in San Diego

By Marielena Castellanos

Latino arts and culture events are in full swing throughout the county, with several worth seeing. Eight acclaimed films from Mexico will be shown on the big screen at North Park’s Digital Gym Cinema. In Carlsbad, telenovelas take centerstage in a play exploring death, grieving, and language and cultural barriers. In Fallbrook, the theme of “Sanctuary,” escaping violence and finding a safe place to live are the inspiration of an art exhibit.

The Media Arts Center San Diego’s Digital Gym Cinema, which also organizes the San Diego Latino Film Festival each year, is co-presenting a traveling film festival known as the Hola Mexico Film Festival. Eight of the most popular and acclaimed recently released movies in Mexico will be featured at festival running from October 19 – October 25. Each film is presented in Spanish with English subtitles. A list of the complete program is available on the Digital Gym Cinema’s website: https://digitalgym.org. Regular admission tickets cost $11, student, senior, and veteran tickets $8.50, and Digital Gym Cinema Member tickets $7.50.

Moises Esparza, programing manager for the Media Arts Center San Diego, commented on the Hola Mexico Film Festival in San Diego, “We are proud to be the official headquarters of this selection.”

Esparza also pointed out some of this year’s highlights, “Hola Mexico is full of movies never before released in our city as “Sacudete las penas” and “Eras mi pasión”, and also includes several titles such as “Los adioses” and VUELVEN that were among the highlights of the recent edition of the San Diego Latino Film Festival.”

“The selection is unforgettable and we are sure that it will please all those who love movies from Mexico,” Esparza added.

Oscar winner Guillermo del Toro has hailed “Vuelven,” and said it is one of the best Mexican films in recent years. The dark fantasy is a heartfelt genre which tells the story of a young 10-year-old who has three wishes, one of those is for her missing mother to return. The film takes off when that wish is granted.

“Sacúdete las penas bailando” is a story of passion and freedom. Set in the 1950s, the film tells the story of prisoner Pepe Frituras, the most famous dancer from Mexico condemned to spend his time behind bars. It takes place at the Lecumberri Palace, once one of the most dangerous prisons in Mexico, also known as the “Black Palace,” which housed a number of famous personalities including muralist David Alfaro Siqueiros, who also painted a mural at the prison.

The festival also includes the award-winning film, “Oso Polar,” a road trip movie about three friends from childhood who relive laughs, hurts, and hates as adults which was shot with an iPhone 5.

Director Marcelo Tobar said the idea to film the movie on a cell phone came by accident, and in an interview with the television program “Excelsior Informa” said when it comes to film his production proves “There is no ‘it can’t be done.’”

In Carlsbad New Village Arts’ (NVA) Teatro Pueblo Nuevo continues with the San Diego premiere of “Guadalupe in the Guest Room,” a play written by rising playwright Tony Meneses and directed by NVA’s Associate Artistic Director Nadia Guevara. The play runs until October 28, 2018.

It tells the story of two people with nothing in common, but a shared grief over a family member, who bond in the most unexpected ways. It’s described as a deeply moving and very funny celebration of life, new beginnings, and the healing power of telenovelas.

The play first premiered in 2015 Guevara explained and added she was, “Excited to produce the West Coast premiere of it at New Village Arts, as part of the Teatro Pueblo Nuevo initiative designed to put the Latinx narrative center stage.”

“The play’s themes of grief, loss, and family are universal, but the magic of the telenovela coming to life and offering healing, humor and understanding offered that bit of magic that I love to explore as a theatre-maker,” Guevara said.

Teatro Pueblo Nuevo (TPN) is New Village Art’s bilingual bicultural community outreach initiative created to honor Latinx culture and history in North County, which began its programming last year. It was spearheaded by Guevara who was featured in the San Diego Union Tribune as a “rising local theatre force.”

TPN’s first main stage production was in January of this year, CLOUD TECTONICS by Jose Rivera, and was met with critical acclaim. Herbert Sigüenza, co-founder of Culture Clash and voice of Pixar’s COCO, directed the show, and Nadia Guevara starred in the play.

A complete list of the dates and times of the play’s performances can be found on the New Village Arts website at http://www.newvillagearts.org. Ticket prices range from $33 to $36.

In the North County, the Fallbrook Library presents an exhibit with original artwork around the theme of “Sanctuary,” showcasing the works of Latino artists from Los Angeles and Tijuana.

Carol Zaleski, a member of the Friends of Fallbrook Library Board of Directors, said the exhibit addresses finding a safe place, a sanctuary, “In these times when violence and fear threaten many people in many parts of the world.”

The exhibit explores the political and social climate of fear that exists today in many countries because of war and conflict, and is forcing people to leave their homes, seek refuge and find sanctuary. It has been shown in other parts of California, including Pomona and Pasadena.

A reception will be held Friday, October 19, 2018 at the Fallbrook Library from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. to honor and meet the artists. Musica Sin Fronteras will perform Latin American music.

Food will also be provided. The exhibit is free to the public and runs through November 2, 2018.

Mario A. Hernandez, with LA Plaza de Culturas y Artes in Los Angeles and who was one of the curators of the exhibit said, “We chose to do a Latinx art exhibit with the Sanctuary theme in mind, because of the urge for artists to communicate and express current unfair political/global issues.”

“Through art, artists speak their minds and project their response to injustice. An art composition may communicate so many messages without saying a word.”

Oceanside Community Speaks Out Against Racist Board Game

By Ana Gomez Salcido

Recently, Oceanside Unified School District (OUSD) students at Cesar Chavez Middle School were allowed to create a board game on migration as part of a class project that was approved by an OUSD teacher that the community considered as cruel, hurtful, and humiliating.

This board game called “Deportation Time”, consisted of student players competing against each other to cross the U.S. border and reach a U.S. flag, while deporting each other during the game. The format of the board game makes serious issues, such as historically racist policies, appear apolitical and entertaining while simultaneously making a mockery out of the social conditions that migrant working families face in the community.

Many children in the Oceanside district come from mixed status families and have been hurt by the policies and practices that tear apart families and separates children from their parents by forceful physical removal from the communities in which they live.

According to members from the Human Rights Council of Oceanside (HRCO), MEChA de MiraCosta College, and other community members, this board game reinforces a culture of competition instead of solidarity and teaching teamwork, makes white supremacist political practices and policies seem humorous and innocent.

“The community sees this game as part of a systematic problem, there is a record of other incidents. Many of the HRCO members were OUSD students and we want to know what is this school district doing for the community,” said HRCO member, Karen Plascencia to La Prensa San Diego. “We don’t have anything against the teacher, or anything against the board game, we see this situation as a bigger problem.”

A group of community members went to the OUSD board meeting held last week, and asked for five demands so there isn’t another situation similar to the creation of “Deportation Time.”

The demands include staff development in the form of an annual mandatory Cultural Sensitivity Training for all OUSD teachers to be implemented, and provided by a non-profit organization. Another demand is that the superintendent must hold an annual public forum where the community can participate in open dialogue.

Also, all agendas and board meeting minutes must be provided in Spanish in conjunction with the release of the general agenda and minutes, with board meeting interpreters proficient in Spanish.

The demands also include a teacher committee on ethnic studies to be formed under the initial guidance of consultants recommended by the Statewide Ethnic Studies Now Coalition.

Lastly, the demands include that Know Your Rights informational forums are held on OUSD campuses to be advertised to all OUSD families, prioritizing those directly impacted by this issue in conjunction with programs like ELD and Migration Education.

HRCO, MECha de Miracosta, and other community members will gather with OUSD superintendent to talk about the five demands, on Monday, Oct. 29.

Killing of Reporter by Saudi Arabia is State-Sponsored Terrorism

By Arturo Castañares / Publisher and CEO

A Washington Post reporter disappeared after entering the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, two weeks ago.

Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi citizen but permanent resident of the U.S., went into the consulate to file paperwork so he could get married in Turkey, and was not seen again. Khashoggi’s fiancée was waiting outside and watched him walk in, and she says he never returned.

The first reports of Khashoggi’s disappearance came from unnamed Turkish intelligence sources that said they had audio and video evidence that Khashoggi had been killed in the consulate (The Turks have not released that evidence, most likely because it would also prove they have been spying on the Saudis.)

After two weeks of denials by the Saudi government, a new report by the Saudis is expected to admit Khashoggi was interrogated, tortured, and died inside the consulate in what seems like an interrogation gone bad.

The Saudis now say Khashoggi was tortured by unauthorized agents who accidentally killed him during a plan to capture and return him to Saudi Arabia, presumably to punish him for his outspoken opposition to the ruling family.

Khashoggi has been in self-imposed exile for years after constantly criticizing the Saudi King and Crown Prince for their roles in Qatar, Lebanon, and cracking down on reporters and critics.

Now he’s dead. They dismembered him. Inside their consulate. Then hid the evidence. And lied about it. But the King and Crown Prince didn’t know? That’s their story. And, for now, they’re sticking to it.

Khashoggi wasn’t just a reporter; he had been a vocal critic of the Kingdom for several years and may have been one of, if not the highest profile Arab critic of the Saudis.

On Twitter, Khashoggi had almost 2 million followers, the most among all Arab journalists.

Earlier this year, he launched a group called Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), aimed at promoting democratic and human rights causes throughout the Middle East.

DAWN was incorporated in Delaware, and Khashoggi was set to lead the group as an American-based international non-governmental agency.

A statement by the group earlier this year now seems like an ironic promise to lead by example.

“Victims of the Arab world’s authoritarian regimes seek leadership from the U.S. and DAWN intends to provide such leadership,” the statement reads.

If Khashoggi’s disappearance, interrogation, torture, death, and dismemberment happened as most people fear, no U.S. intelligence official believes it could have happened without the knowledge and approval of the Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman.

King Salman appointed Prince Mohammed bin Salman, his oldest son from his third wife, as his heir apparent in 2017, after the King was diagnosed with dementia.

MBS, as the Crown Prince is called, has labeled himself a reformer and instituted progressive policies like allowing women to drive and reopening movie theaters after having been banned for more than 25 years.

But, MBS has also taken some questionable actions that have raised concerns about equal justice and human rights violations.

Last year, soon after assuming power, MBS detained more than 200 princes and businessmen in a wide-ranging corruption investigation. The people were held at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel for three months until most of them paid back billions of dollars they had allegedly taken as bribes or in illicit business deals.

Later, MBS began a crackdown on women’s rights activists. 17 activists were arrested and two are still awaiting a court hearing later this month where they could face beheading. Human rights groups have protested the arrests and threats of death sentences for activists whose only “crime” is advocating for equal rights for women.

Critics of MBS maintain that, although he may be a progressive by Saudi standards, he is still too slow to adopt real reforms to protect women, children, and activists in one of the world’s richest countries.

Many still refer to the Saudi family as an authoritarian regime with enormous financial power that seems to deter criticism from the U.S. and other Western countries.

Saudi Arabia is still the world’s largest producer of crude oil, and has an outsized influence on global oil prices. This week, Saudis suggested they could impact oil prices if countries instituted sanctions over Khashoggi’s disappearance. Not since the 1973 oil embargo has Saudi Arabia linked its oil policy to political issues.

Additionally, the Saudi sovereign wealth fund, the kingdom’s main investment vehicle, wields huge power with its estimated $1.3 trillion, second in the world only to China’s fund.

A financial summit being held next week in the Saudi capital of Riyahd aimed at attracting foreign investment has lost several key sponsors and speakers because of the Khashoggi case, including the CEOs of Ford, Chase, Uber, and the WorldBank, as well as Fox Business News and even US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin just announced he won’t attend either.

And their business ties to American companies through purchases of military airplanes, bombs, weapons, and missile systems clearly weighs heavily on American politicians.

This week, when Khashoggi’s disappearance became news, President Donald Trump said he wasn’t sure how to respond because he didn’t want to disrupt a recent military arms deal worth up to $110 billion that will help Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Raytheon.

Although Trump said he believes both King Salman and the Crown Prince when they denied knowing anything about Khashoggi, other prominent Republicans in Washington are laying out more aggressive positions.

Many in Congress, including Senators Lindsey Graham and Marco Rubio have said that the U.S. must respond assertively if it turns out Khashoggi was murdered in the consulate.

In the past few days, the Turks have released pictures of one of MBS’s closest security aides arriving in Turkey on the day Khashoggi disappeared, and entering the same consulate just a few hours before him. That security aide later visited the Consul General’s home and then flew back to Saudi Arabia in a private jet that night.

In the end, the issue isn’t whether the U.S. can hold any Saudi official accountable for what happens in their own consulate; it’s about maintaining our moral authority to hold other countries accountable for human rights violations and, as in this case, the murder of a journalist to silence him and terrorize others.

Although freedom of the press is not universally protected, murdering a journalist to silence him must be condemned internationally and unanimously in this day and age.

The U.S. and other countries must demand a transparent investigation into Khashoggi’s murder to determine what happened and who’s the blame.

Anything short will chill media coverage around the world. All journalist will be at risk if this case goes unresolved. And other countries will think they too can take extreme measures to silence their critics.

This is not fake news.

This is terrorism.

The Arhuacos’ last stand in the heights of the Sierra Nevada

High up in the beautiful mountains of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in northern Colombia, stand the last remaining settlements of the Arhuaco Peoples. When the Spanish conquerors arrived, the Arhuaco chose to live in this remote and difficult to access location in the hopes of being able to live undisturbed and in accordance […]