All posts by nedhamson

Activist, writer, researcher, addicted to sharing information and facts.

Illinois Surpasses 700K COVID Cases With 7,574 More Reported Friday – NBC Chicago

Source: Illinois Surpasses 700K COVID Cases With 7,574 More Reported Friday – NBC Chicago

Sweden’s coronavirus plan failed to stop the virus, and a vaccine may not be enough to ‘rescue’ them, experts warn – ABC News

Sweden’s idea of not following conventional coronavirus measures led to a death rate triple that of its neighbours, and even though a vaccine could be close, the country may need the kind of measures it tried to avoid throughout the pandemic.

Source: Sweden’s coronavirus plan failed to stop the virus, and a vaccine may not be enough to ‘rescue’ them, experts warn – ABC News

Unreliable sources Fake quote attributed to future U.S. Secretary of State spreads from Wikipedia to the Russian media — Meduza

Before U.S. president-elect Joe Biden formally announced Antony Blinken as his pick for Secretary of State, an anonymous Wikipedia editor took it upon himself to edit Blinken’s Wikipedia page. The editor beefed up the section on his attitude towards Russia and its President Vladimir Putin, throwing in a quote attributed to Blinken for good measure. The quote was quickly picked up by Russian and Ukrainian media and it spread across social networking sites. But as it turns out, Antony Blinken never actually spoke those words.

On November 24, the quote caught the attention of Wikipedia’s moderators. They deleted it as an incorrect citation and the author who added it to the article was blocked for a month.

However, by that time, the fake quote had already spread across Russian-language media and social networks. Gazeta.ru published an article containing the quote on November 23 and it was cited word-for-word in several Ukrainian publications (including reprints on Russian state media websites). The quote was also featured on Politekspert — in 2017, RBK journalists uncovered that this website belongs to a media holding linked to the so-called “troll factory” that investigative journalists have, in turn, connected to Russian billionaire Evgeny Prigozhin. On social media, this quote was also picked up by patriotic bloggers from both Russia and Ukraine.

Source: Unreliable sources Fake quote attributed to future U.S. Secretary of State spreads from Wikipedia to the Russian media — Meduza

Things don’t have to fall apart The world needs to stop war crimes in Ethiopia – The Economist Nov 26, 2020 — Just Sayin’

Atrocities are mounting in Tigray. Outsiders should press both parties to talk Nov 26th 2020 FIRST, THE police and militia shut the roads out of Mai Kadra, a farming town in Ethiopia’s northern province of Tigray. Then they went from door to door, checking ID cards and singling out non-Tigrayans. They destroyed SIM cards to stop people phoning for help. […]

Things don’t have to fall apart The world needs to stop war crimes in Ethiopia – The Economist Nov 26, 2020 — Just Sayin’

Outsiders need to convince them otherwise. First, the UN and African Union (AU) should make it clear that those who commit war crimes will be held accountable. Independent investigators should be allowed in to determine what happened at Mai Kadra. Non-combatants must be spared. Humanitarian corridors should be opened to allow aid to flow.

If Ethiopia commits grave war crimes, the UN and AU should also impose an arms embargo. This would not stop the killing entirely—the region is awash with guns and machetes. But halting the flow of artillery shells and bombs would dampen it and send a clear signal to both parties.

Donors should rethink their support for Ethiopia, which relies on aid. Western powers are hesitating for fear of being accused of neocolonialism. The AU is reluctant to act because of its policy of not interfering in its members’ internal affairs. But if nothing is done, Ethiopia will slide deeper into crisis. It could even break apart, like Yugoslavia in the 1990s. Good neighbours should apply pressure now to prevent such a catastrophe. ■

Misinformation Has Created a New World Disorder – Claire Wardle September 1, 2019 — Just Sayin’

Our willingness to share content without thinking is exploited to spread disinformation Credit: Wesley Allsbrook As someone who studies the impact of misinformation on society, I often wish the young entrepreneurs of Silicon Valley who enabled communication at speed had been forced to run a 9/11 scenario with their technologies before they deployed them commercially. […]

Misinformation Has Created a New World Disorder – Claire Wardle September 1, 2019 — Just Sayin’

Online misinformation has been around since the mid-1990s. But in 2016 several events made it broadly clear that darker forces had emerged: automation, microtargeting and coordination were fueling information campaigns designed to manipulate public opinion at scale. Journalists in the Philippines started raising flags as Rodrigo Duterte rose to power, buoyed by intensive Facebook activity. This was followed by unexpected results in the Brexit referendum in June and then the U.S. presidential election in November—all of which sparked researchers to systematically investigate the ways in which information was being used as a weapon.

‘Imagine if Every Girl in Egypt was Educated’: Meet Activist Jana Amin | Egyptian Streets

Currently, she works as a research intern at the Middle East Initiative at the Harvard Kennedy School, where she explores conspiracy belief, and has previously carried out other important research works on the media representation of Muslim women, where she curated an exhibit at the American University in Cairo titled “Princess Fawzia and the Duality of Egyptian Women.” “I really believe that young women in the Middle East will help break generational cycles of inequality. We have to find more ways to also include them in peacemaking processes and amplify their voice, because once you have young women in the decision-making process, collectively, our society becomes better and stronger,” she says, “I am working to turn this into real action.”

Source: ‘Imagine if Every Girl in Egypt was Educated’: Meet Activist Jana Amin | Egyptian Streets

Tips to Reduce Anxious Feelings

Be Inspired..!!

Anxiety is often a long-term issue. To keep anxiety from coming back, you need to learn to control your overall anxiety symptoms, and that’s not something that happens overnight. There is no magic pill for curing anxiety forever, nor is there a therapy that is 100% effective after one session. Everyone has frightening or anxious moments. This particular feeling can be detrimental to you because it may stop you from living a normal life.

Here are some tips to deal effectively with this uncomfortable emotion :

  • Music – Put on calming music to change our emotions. Music & singing reduces overwhelm quickly and makes everything feel better.
  • Go Outside – Eat outside, sit on a balcony, or sit in a local park, & just breathe in the fresh air.
  • Breathe – Focus attention on inhaling & exhaling. Do it standing, sitting or lying down. Each time we breathe, we come back to…

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