Last Sunday I awarded Marjorie Taylor Greene the Cuckoo Award for her hurricane conspiracy theory... well other right-wing nuts joined her in their crazy theories.
October 11, 2024A deluge of misinformation online about back-to-back hurricanes in the US has been fuelled by a social media universe that rewards engagement over truth.The scale and speed of false rumours about Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton has been unlike many of the frenzies I’ve investigated online before.Viral posts have ranged from seemingly innocuous questions about the legitimacy of forecasts and rescue efforts, to false claims - repeated by Donald Trump - that hurricane relief funds are being spent on migrants who entered the US illegally.Others spread false images of the wreckage - faked pictures of children fleeing devastation that were generated by artificial intelligence (AI), old clips showing different storms or computer-generated (CGI) videos. And then there were those who shared false and evidence-free conspiracy theories about the government manipulating - or “geo-engineering”- the weather.
These right-wing wackos are causing harm by spreading their lies, and the thing is that these off the wall accusations are causing people to be put into harms was and could results in deaths but they just don't care! I have to wonder if the media companies are more interested in profit than the truth.
I messaged dozens of accounts which shared false and misleading posts on X related to both hurricanes. Their accounts seemed to be able to go viral precisely because of changes made at X since Elon Musk became owner. While the blue-check used to be given out only to people who had been verified and vetted, users are now allowed to purchase these ticks. The algorithm, in turn, gives their posts greater prominence. They can also then profit from sharing posts, regardless of whether they are true or not.X’s revenue sharing policy means that blue-tick users can earn a share of revenue from the ads in their replies. On 9 October, the site announced that “payouts are increasing”, and accounts would now be paid based on engagement from other users who pay to get Premium membership, not the adverts in their responses.
$$$$$$
It’s true, most social media companies allow users to make money from views. But YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and Facebook have guidelines which allow them to de-monetise or suspend profiles that post content that spreads misinformation, and say they label posts when they are misleading. X does not have guidelines on misinformation in the same way.
$$$$$$
Although misinformation has always spread during natural disasters, there’s a crucial difference between now and previous storms. For one, the falsehoods being shared are spreading to more people – fewer than three dozen false or abusive posts were viewed 160 million times on X, according to the Institute of Strategic Dialogue think tank.They have also taken on a sharper political edge because of the impending US presidential election.
Folks, I want to point out that these are the folks who are supporting Trump! Trump has not refuted the theories and has doubled down with his own lies. CNN wrote.
Former President Donald Trump has delivered a barrage of lies and distortions about the federal response to Hurricane Helene.While various misinformation about the response has spread widely without Trump’s involvement, the Republican presidentia l nominee has been one of the country’s leading deceivers on the subject. Over a span of six days, in public comments and social media posts, Trump has used his powerful megaphone to endorse or invent false or unsubstantiated claims.The chief targets of his hurricane-related dishonesty have been Vice President Kamala Harris, his opponent in the November presidential election, and President Joe Biden.
The right-wing pendants will say anything to get votes, they don't care if anyone gets hurt as long as they get the votes.
NBC News also wrote about the lies...
On Wednesday, President Joe Biden shot down Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's false suggestion that hurricanes have come from geoengineering.By By Bruna HorvathOctober 10, 2024Baseless conspiracy theories about weather modification and false claims about disaster relief efforts have continued to spread on X in recent days, with misinformation about Hurricane Milton adding to a mountain of false rumors about Hurricane Helene and its aftermath.The spread has sparked a push from local and federal officials, along with some politicians, who have decried the spread of misinformation and outlandish claims about the origins of the storms.But that has done little to quell some of the loudest voices. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., who claimed on X last week that “they can control the weather,” has continued to imply that the hurricanes were part of a political plot. In another X post Greene made on Wednesday, she said that “everyone keeps asking, ‘who is they?’” and added that “some of them are listed on NOAA,” referring to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
You cannot trust the Republicans to tell the truth, some are willing to tell the truth but others are guilty by omission.
Since Hurricane Helene hit on Sept. 26, a slew of misinformation has been circulating regarding FEMA. In an Oct. 3 rally in Saginaw, Michigan, former President Donald Trump falsely claimed that federal emergency disaster money was given illegally to migrants in the U.S. Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, similarly falsely claimed on X that FEMA had used disaster funds to house migrants, a post that Elon Musk reposted among others regarding FEMA.
And that us leads into,
Congressional leaders say new disaster spending legislation can wait until the lame duck.PoliticoBy Andres PiconOctober 10, 2024Hurricane Milton’s rampage is not swaying House Republican leaders who oppose returning to Washington to approve billions of dollars for disaster assistance.President Joe Biden on Thursday said lawmakers should return to Capitol Hill “immediately” from their preelection recess, echoing pleas from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers from the afflicted states.But despite questions about the solvency of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s disaster fund, House Speaker Mike Johnson and top appropriators insist the agency can manage just fine — for now — with the $20.3 billion that Congress freed up for it late last month. That money is for the fiscal year that ends next Sept. 30.“To be clear: Congress will act again upon its return in November to address funding needs and ensure those impacted receive the necessary resources,” Athina Lawson, a spokesperson for Johnson, said in a statement to POLITICO’s E&E News on Thursday.
Election politics are it worst! Their lies about President Biden spending the relief funds on immigrants... and the House does nothing to vote on FEMA funding!
CNNBy Kaanita IyerOctober 12, 2024Former President Donald Trump called Vice President Kamala Harris “retarded” while attempting to convince top Republican donors to pour more money in his campaign, The New York Times reported Saturday.According to the Times, the former president’s offensive remark came during a dinner with donors at his penthouse apartment last month. Among the donors present were Trump’s former education secretary Betsy DeVos and her husband, along with hedge fund manager Paul Singer, investment banker Warren Stephens and billionaire Joe Ricketts.To the group of wealthy donors, Trump argued that his administration’s tax policy was favorable to them and that they should be grateful and help his campaign more, according to the Times.Sources told the Times that Trump was frustrated with fundraising numbers as Harris continues to bring in more cash than his campaign.
But what gets me is fifty percent of the voters do not find this offensive!
Gov. Jared Polis said the GOP presidential nominee can’t seem to remember who he’s running against—which is “great” he said “because I support Kamala Harris.”Daily BeastJanna BrancoliniOct. 12, 2024Colorado Gov. Jared Polis alleged that GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump is suffering from “cognitive decline” and can’t seem to remember who he’s running against.Trump campaigned on Friday in Aurora, Colorado, where he called Polis a “coward” and a “fraud” and said immigrants from Venezuela have “invaded and conquered” the city after a video of six armed men inside an Aurora apartment complex went viral in August.A 25-year-old man was later shot and killed, and social media users claimed the video showed Venezuelan gang members had overtaken the building—a claim both Aurora police and the city’s Republican mayor have debunked.In fact, crime in Aurora has gone down 31 percent over the last two years, Polis told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins during an appearance on The Source. As for the personal insults, “I‘m glad he was talking about me because he’s not running against me. He’s running against Kamala Harris,” Polis said.
What does it say about his supporters that believe his one lie after another?
Vote a solid Blue! Vote Blue for truth, justice and the American way! Vote Blue for sanity.
Vote “Yes” on the Connecticut Ballot question!
Speaking of words hurting Trump calls for a heckle to be beaten up!
The remarks were part of a dark speech at a California rally where Trump called the U.S. an “occupied country.”The Washington PostBy Hannah Knowles and Marianne LeVineOctober 12, 2024Former president Donald Trump suggested that a heckler would later get “the hell knocked out of her” during an insult-laced speech here Saturday that portrayed a dark image of the country and demonized undocumented immigrants.As Trump called the Nov. 5 election a “chance to send a message,” he stopped his remarks and turned to the crowd.“Back home to mommy, she goes back home to mommy,” Trump said, resuming his speech and appearing to address a heckler. “‘Was that you darling?’ And she gets the hell knocked out of her. Her mother’s a big fan of ours, you know that right? Her father, her mother. You always have that.”
And this is repeated behavior, it is a common theme at his rallies.
It was not the first time Trump has used violent language to attack hecklers who interrupt his rallies. In 2016, after a heckler interrupted a Las Vegas rally, Trump told the crowd: “Here’s a guy throwing punches, nasty as hell, screaming at everybody else,” before adding: “I’d like to punch him in the face.” In Iowa during the same campaign, he also encouraged supporters to “knock the crap” out of potential hecklers.
To me that seems like incitement to violence!
Do you remember back in 2016, Trump told supporters at an Iowa rally to "knock the crap out of" anyone they saw preparing to throw a tomato, even offering to pay their legal fees? And in that same year he said about a protester being escorted out: "I'd like to punch him in the face." He also remarked that in "the old days," protesters would be "carried out on stretchers." He double down in North Carolina and it lead to a protester being punched by a Trump supporter at a rally. The attacker was later charged with assault!
We need to get out the vote! This election is really going to depend who can get their base to vote! There is no way to justify not voting. There no excusive for not voting. I'm coming back in person from Cape Cod to vote in person. So no Republican could exclude my absentee ballot!
Vote a solid Blue! Vote Blue for truth, justice and the American way! Vote Blue for sanity.
Vote “Yes” on the Connecticut Ballot question!
Vote Blue to keep a criminal out of office and in jail where he belongs. Vote Blue to save a life and the life you save might be your own.
No comments:
Post a Comment