All posts by nedhamson

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

NYC Schools Updates: COVID Case At Staten Island Middle School Forces 50 Staffers To Quarantine – Gothamist

Source: NYC Schools Updates: COVID Case At Staten Island Middle School Forces 50 Staffers To Quarantine – Gothamist

Fifty staffers, including teachers, at a public school in Staten Island have been ordered by the city Department of Education to quarantine for 14 days after another employee tested positive for the coronavirus.

The DOE’s School Ventilation Report shows that of the 87 exhaust fans at the school, only 25 were found to be operating. Also, five of six fans are operational, and, of the 115 classrooms with windows, 92 of them have windows that are inoperable.

White House chief of staff knocks FBI director over testimony on election fraud

Whitehouse habituated to cannibalism – eating those who tell the truth without making nice to President first.

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White House chief of staff Mark Meadows on Friday criticized FBI Director Christopher Wray over his testimony to Congress that he has not seen evidence of widespread voter fraud in a major election.”With all due re…

Facebook suspends fake Russian accounts, warns of US vote threat

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Facebook said on Thursday it has dismantled three networks of fake accounts which could be used by Russia’s intelligence services to leak hacked documents as part of efforts to disrupt the upcoming US election.

The company said the networks had about 97,000 followers when combined. It added that the accounts were linked to Russian intelligence and people associated with a St Petersburg-based organisation accused by the US of working to sway the 2016 presidential vote. Moscow has repeatedly denied allegations of election meddling.

“Our team watches for the threats and trends that we need to be ready for and one that we are very aware of … is a hack-and-leak operation, particularly in the next 6-8 weeks. We want to make sure that the accounts are down to prevent their ability to pivot them to facilitate a hack-and-leak around the US election”, said Facebook’s head of cybersecurity policy, Nathaniel Gleicher.

Earlier this month, Facebook said that a Russian influence operation posed as an independent news outlet to target left-wing voters in the US and Britain.

Microsoft this month said it has recently alerted one of US Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden’s main election campaign advisory firms that it had been targeted by suspected Russian state-backed hackers.

Putin’s attempt to explain away the poisoning of Alexei Navalny to France failed badly and helped unite Europe against him, intelligence sources say

via aleksey godin

An attempt by Russian President Vladimir Putin to explain in a call with France how Alexei Navalny was poisoned in Russia went so badly that it seriously set back his relations with Europe, intelligence sources told Insider.

According to French media, Putin spoke with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, last week about Navalny, the opposition leader who was poisoned with the nerve agent Novichok in late August and evacuated to Europe for treatment.

Putin is said to have suggested during the call that Navalny might have poisoned himself in an elaborate attempt to discredit Russia.

Intelligence sources characterized the explanation as so inept and insulting that it severely set back the already strained relations between Russia and European nations.

A French security official, who asked for anonymity as he does not have permission to speak on the record, said the exchange outraged Macron, who is usually wary of directly confronting Russia.

Navalny

The Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny and his family members at the Charité hospital in Berlin, Germany. Reuters

“There is cynicism from European leaders on Putin when it comes to these events,” the official said.

“But Macron has a huge ego and considers himself someone that you cannot bulls—. He expected to be told that it was some internal issue, potentially some illegal operation by an underling that is being investigated, perhaps suggesting the possibility some Chechens [did it] without his knowledge or approval.”

The source described past conversations as “unsatisfactory but just plausible enough to make it more difficult to confront him.”

“Macron got on the call expecting this typical behavior, and instead he’s fed total nonsense about Navalny giving himself a deadly agent only found in the most secure Russian military stockpiles.

“We understand that silly, confusing, and often contradictory messages like these are how Putin handles things domestically — but to the president of France?”

The French official added that Macron was “furious.”

“He will make his own decisions on how to handle this, but the consequences he is threatening could become much stronger support for Merkel taking action on Nord Stream if that’s how the Germans decide to proceed,” the official said, referring to German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Nord Stream 2, an undersea gas pipeline aiming to link Russia with Germany.

Political tensions between Russia and the West have repeatedly threatened to derail the pipeline project. Merkel has come under intense pressure to use Nord Stream 2 as leverage to extract answers from Russia.

“Macron’s view is you cannot lie to the president of France as if he is some Russian peasant,” the source said.

Merkel Putin

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Putin in Moscow in January. Kremlin Press Office / Handout/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

German security officials refused to comment on the situation when asked by Insider.

But a central European counterintelligence official who works closely with Germany on Russian issues said he believes Europe might see no alternative but to act. The source also spoke anonymously, as he is not authorized to speak publicly.

“Macron and Merkel have plenty to occupy themselves with politically right now, and both find themselves angry that they’ve been put in this position by Putin and even angrier that he is handling it with such disdain for them,” the official said.

Blaming Germany and Navalny for removing evidence infuriated Merkel, and suggesting Navalny did it himself probably gave Macron an aneurysm.

“But my sense from talking with German colleagues is that the US election matters figures into everyone’s calculations quite strongly.”

The source added that “a strong, united coalition of Germany, France, and other EU members can confront Putin, but it’s all much stronger and more effective if the president of the United States is a committed participant.”

“There’s currently little confidence in the US as a partner in such an effort,” the source said, “but that could change after the election.”

Eye health : 6 important tips 🙌 – The 3H:health,happiness,healing

What is this fuss about blue light on eyes? Blue light is a significant component of sunlight. Blue light is beneficial as it maintains our circadian rhythm, the natural wake and sleep cycle. It also makes us alert, boost energy and elevates our cognitive functions in the daytime.

Source: Eye health : 6 important tips 🙌 – The 3H:health,happiness,healing

Distruzione dell’estrazione dell’oro nella foresta pluviale amazzonica – “Quando abbatti gli alberi assalti gli spiriti dei nostri antenati. Quando cerchi minerali, perfori il cuore della Terra…” | Barbara Crane Navarro

Destruction of gold mining in the Amazon rainforest – “When you cut down the trees you assault the spirits of our ancestors. When you look for minerals, you pierce the heart of the Earth Source: Distruzione dell’estrazione dell’oro nella foresta pluviale amazzonica – “Quando abbatti gli alberi assalti gli spiriti dei nostri antenati. Quando cerchi minerali, perfori il cuore della Terra…” | Barbara Crane Navarro

How right-wing extremists, libertarians and evangelicals built Quebec’s movement against COVID-19 restrictions | CBC News

The anti-mask movement has drawn a wide range of figures into its orbit, including right-right extremists, evangelical pastors, libertarian radio hosts and conspiracy theorists.
— Read on www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/quebec-anti-mask-movement-qanon-covid-19-1.5737040