Pentagon Aims to Partner With ADL And SPLC, Spy On Military Members For 'Extremism'

The Pentagon under Biden-appointed Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is working to partner with the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Anti-Defamation League and spy on members of the military for signs of "extremism," according to documents leaked to The Intercept.

The ADL has been at the forefront of internet censorship and criminalizing speech as "hate" while the disgraced SPLC is best known for aggressive fundraising and compiling a "hate map" of "extremist" Christians and conservatives which left-wing extremists use as a hit list.

"On April 9, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced the establishment of the Countering Extremism Working Group, which would 'receive information from both internal and external Subject Matter Experts,' who would serve as consultants," The Intercept reports.

"The document, which was provided to The Intercept by a Pentagon source on condition of anonymity to avoid professional reprisal, is not dated, but the source said that it was disseminated late last month. The document states, 'The Countering Extremism Working Group (CEWG) would like to partner with experts on counter extremism and counter terrorism to better understand the scope of the problem and inform the 90-day report for the Secretary of Defense. These experts may come from advocacy groups, academia, and other areas that contribute the to the fight against terrorism."

The document lists Heidi Beirich, formerly of the SPLC, Lecia Brooks and Susan Corke currently of the SPLC, as well as Mark Pitcavage and Ryan Greer of the ADL.

The Intercept was also leaked documents showing the Pentagon is planning to spy on members of the military to see if they hold "extremist political views" – First Amendment be damned.

"While it is unclear which of the individuals or groups mentioned in the Pentagon document will end up consulting, there are signs that some already have been doing so," The Intercept said. "Mark Pitcavage, a senior research fellow at the Anti-Defamation League, thanked the Army War College for inviting him to speak on extremism in tweets posted yesterday."

"As part of the Biden administration's crackdown on domestic extremism, the Pentagon plans to launch a pilot program for screening social media content for extremist material, according to internal Defense Department documents reviewed by The Intercept, as well as a source with direct knowledge of the program," The Intercept reports.

"An extremism steering committee led by Bishop Garrison, a senior adviser to the secretary of defense, is currently designing the social media screening pilot program, which will “continuously” monitor military personnel for 'concerning behaviors,' according to a Pentagon briefing in late March. Although in the past the military has balked at surveilling service members for extremist political views due to First Amendment protections, the pilot program will rely on a private surveillance firm in order to circumvent First Amendment restrictions on government monitoring, according to a senior Pentagon official. Though the firm has not yet been selected, the current front runner is Babel Street, a company that sells powerful surveillance tools including social media monitoring software."

Revolver News reported last week that Bishop Garrison has called "the entire concept of free speech itself in the information age a 'digital black plague' that will usher in a 'modern day dark age' if not reigned in by censorship."

As we learned earlier this week with the firing of Space Force Commander Matthew Lohmeier, the Pentagon's new definition of "extremism" consists of opposing the DoD teaching soldiers that "our country" and "whites are inherently evil."

You're an "extremist" if you don't think being raised by "two moms" and "marching for equality" is a qualification to run our Patriot Missile Defense Systems.

The "moderates" are our leaders who want to eliminate free speech, eliminate "whiteness," criminalize dissent, strip Americans of their rights over their political views and conduct an ideological purge of the military!

http://www.informationliberation.com/?id=62250

Belarus Silences Independent Media, Jails Journalists

On accusations of tax fraud, authorities in Minsk have blocked popular media outlet Tut.by, and have raided their offices, according to the Belarussian Association of Journalists (BAJ), who decried the move in a statement.

The move is a “continuation of the authorities' targeted policy of restricting the dissemination of uncensored information in the country,” said the BAJ statement.

“The authorities' references to economic violations, which allegedly led to persecution, have been actively used for many years to justify repressive measures against human rights defenders, the media, and independent trade unions,” the Tuesday statement said.

In 2018 and 2019 several Tut.by journalists and editors were detained and one convicted over their involvement in accessing the records of Belarus’s state owned news agency, BELTA.

“To understand what Tut.by is, you have to understand that their audience was 3.6 million people out of nine million people in Belarus,” said Natalia Belikova, head of international projects at the Press Club Belarus, told OCCRP Wednesday. “It’s the largest and most respected media outlet in Belarus.”

“There is no other such media in the post-Soviet space,” she added. “It’s like shutting down the BBC, a real loss for our nation.”

The pressure on journalists has only intensified in the wake of nationwide protests against the government of sixth-term president Alexander Lukashenko, which arose out of Belarus’s disputed August 2020 election results.

Since December 22, 2020, Yulia Slutskaya, the founder of the Press Club Belarus, and three other members including her son Pyotr, a photographer, have been languishing in a Minsk prison. In late April their pre-trial detention was extended a third time.

Like Tut, the Belarussian government has accused Slutskaya of tax evasion. However, according to a statement by BAJ, in the months since her detention, no investigative efforts have been pursued by authorities.

“We know from their relatives and lawyers that prison conditions are harsh. There is black mold in Yuliya's cell. Pyotr shares a cell with 22 other inmates,” said the BAJ, adding that the inmates never received any warm clothes in the freezing cells this winter.

According to Viasna, a Belarussian NGO which tracks political repression in the country, Yulia and the other Press Club members are among the 396 political prisoners held by the Belarussian government.

“We were a platform that helped others highlight their issues and stir up dialogue amongst various actors inside Belarus,” said Belikova. “We truly believe this is the reason why our colleagues are behind bars, because the current Belarussian regime and authorities has not shown any signs of being willing to start a dialogue with anyone.”

https://www.occrp.org/en/daily/14446-belarus-silences-independent-media-jails-journalists

NC Judge Charged With Assault, Accused of Nearly Hitting Black Lives Matter Protesters With His SUV

In today’s episode of Don’t Let Your White Fragility Get Yo’ Ass in Trouble, a North Carolina judge will find himself on the other side of the gavel next month, as he received a summons Friday to appear in criminal court after he was accused of nearly hitting Black Lives Matter protesters with his SUV in downtown Fayetteville earlier this month.

The Washington Post reports that Cumberland County Judge John M. Tyson has been charged with assault with a deadly weapon and will have to go to court in his own county to answer for his alleged crime.

The court summons came after 23-year-old Myah Warren, an activist who was among those participating in a demonstration within the closed portion of the street an SUV is seen driving on in surveillance video, identified Tyson to a Cumberland County magistrate judge as the man who nearly hit her and others.

From the Post:

Warren told The Washington Post on Monday that she believes Tyson was intentionally trying to harm protesters based on his track record as a judge.

“He’s a well-known racist,” she said, referring to a case in which Tyson rejected the notion of race being a factor in the killing of a Black man who was fatally struck by a White man’s shotgun at a 2016 party.

The city released a 12-minute video of the incident Friday, which shows the SUV that Tyson allegedly drove cruising along the downtown area. Almost 10 minutes later, the same vehicle is seen driving in a closed-to-traffic inner lane painted “Black Lives Do Matter.” The vehicle made a quick stop in the lane before getting back in open traffic lanes.

It’s unclear how close the SUV was to Warren or other protesters.

Warren alleges that Tyson drove around the area once in his state-owned vehicle when no one was in his way. The second time, she said, he sped up and tried to hit the group but he ended up jumping the curb.

Imagine being so triggered by the mere words “Black lives do matter” that you feel the need to add to the sentence, “but not to my front bumper they don’t!” I mean, we’ve all likely had to tell a white man to “stay in your lane” before, but not like this.

According to the Fayetteville Observer, a motorist had called 911 before the incident to report protesters blocking traffic in the street and surrounding his car.

From the Observer:

Emergency scanner traffic recorded about the time includes a call for an officer to go to the area near the Market House.

“Caller advises there are subjects in the roadway blocking traffic,” the dispatcher said. “I think it was possibly going to be five to 10 subjects.”

The caller said people in the street at the Market House were blocking traffic, according to an audio of the 911 call released Friday by the police department.

The caller says the people in the street are coming around his car, according to the audio. The dispatcher asks if the caller wants to make contact with police officers when they arrive.

“No, I just need them to come and get the people out of the street,” the caller said. “OK. Thank you.”

The dispatcher asks how many people are involved.

“Probably five or 10,” the caller said.

http://www.stationgossip.com/2021/05/nc-judge-charged-with-assault-accused.html

House Approves $1.9B to Bolster Capitol Security After Riot

WASHINGTON — The House on Thursday narrowly approved $1.9 billion to bolster security at the Capitol after the Jan. 6 insurrection, as Democrats pushed past Republican opposition to harden the complex with retractable fencing and a quick-response force following the most violent domestic attack on Congress in history.

The bill's 213-212 passage came a day after the House approved the formation of an independent commission to investigate the deadly mob siege by President Donald Trump’s supporters, who battled police to storm the building in a failed attempt to overturn Democrat Joe Biden’s election.

The two measures now face an uncertain outcome in the evenly divided Senate as most Republicans objected to both — and as some liberal Democrats opposed the security money.

“We have a major political party in the country that’s ignoring it — we're trying to solve a problem, they clearly don’t want to sit down and talk about it,” said Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Ohio, chairman of an appropriations subcommittee handling legislative branch security.

House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Rosa DeLauro recalled her own experience being trapped in the House gallery that day as the attackers tried to break in, calling her husband to tell him she was OK after Capitol Police told her to duck on the floor.

“This bill is not about politics, it’s not about settling scores,” DeLauro said. “It’s about ensuring that every person who comes into the Capitol is safe and is protected.”

Though some Republicans supported the measure, most voted against it, arguing that it is too expensive and that no fencing is needed. Many of them said they should be spending money on border security, not Capitol security.

Rep. Lance Gooden, R-Texas, argued that Democrats would rather spend money on a wall "around this building in D.C.” than they would on finishing a border wall advocated by Trump.

Some Democrats opposed the added security measures as well. Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar said just before the vote that she had “not been convinced of the importance of the money.”

Months in the making, the emergency spending package incorporates the recommendations from an outside panel of experts to beef up security after the violent mob attack.

Already, National Guard troops have been protecting the building for months and public access is severely limited. Though razor-wire-topped fencing that stood as a stark reminder of the siege has been removed, an extended perimeter fence remains in place, cutting off access to the lush grounds that have been popular with visitors.

The bill includes money for new fencing — either retractable or “pop in,” according to Democrats — that would protect the grounds while removing the current perimeter. The legislation says the money cannot be used to install permanent above-ground fencing, reflecting the wishes of most members of Congress that the area should be open to the public.

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2021/05/20/house-approves-19b-bolster-capitol-security-after-riot.html

Former Managing Director and Two Former Loan Officers Plead Guilty for Roles in Widespread Bank-Fraud Scheme

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/former-managing-director-and-two-former-loan-officers-plead-guilty-roles-widespread-bank

Serial Numbers Missing Between Original & Duplicate Ballots in Arizona Election Audit Official Says

The plot continues to unfold in Arizona as over 100 Democrat lawyers and the Department of Justice are doing all they can to try to prevent the Maricopa County audit from continuing. It’s obvious there was foul play now in the 2020 elections, they are now working overtime to try to stop the audit, but Arizona isn’t having it.

Now officials say that the serial numbers are missing between original and duplicate ballots in the Arizona audit.

“We are struggling as to how we’re going to be able to match up” ballots that couldn’t be read by machines, Ken Bennett says.

The Liaison between Senate Republicans who authorized the audit and country officials told a hearing this week that serial numbers were missing on damaged ballots that were duplicated so they could be read by vote tabulation machines.

Former Arizona Secretary of State Ken Bennett’s team uncovered the error just a few days ago, he told Senate President Karen Fann and Judician Committee Chair Warren Peterson.

Each damaged ballot and its associated duplicate ballot are supposed to have the same serial number to ensure they are only counted once.

He also claims he has found batches of damaged ballots without the serial numbers that are on the duplicates, violating state law.

“We are struggling as to how we’re going to be able to match up” those damaged and duplicated ballots, Bennett said.

The corrupt Maricopa County officials have made it clear that they will not work with auditors the Senate Republicans hired, thus proving even more so that fraud was intended in this election.

This is a developing story.

https://thedcpatriot.com/serial-numbers-missing-between-original-duplicate-ballots-in-arizona-election-audit-official-says/

Trudeau and Biden push forward with Internet censorship

New open letter asks Trudeau to stop plans to harm the internet

https://theduran.com/trudeau-and-biden-push-forward-with-internet-censorship/

Defamation suit accuses Twitter of 'selective enforcement' of censorship policies

Shop owner at center of Hunter Biden laptop controversy accuses social media company of "false and defamatory statements."

A defamation lawsuit against social media giant Twitter is accusing the company of unevenly enforcing its internal censorship policies depending on the political slant of the content in question.

The lawsuit was filed by Colorado resident John Paul Mac Isaac, a computer repair store owner who last year was thrust into the scrum of the bitter U.S. presidential race as it neared its end in October.

Mac Isaac previously ran the computer repair business — the Mac Shop — at which President Joe Biden's son Hunter in April 2019 dropped off a computer for repairs. Biden allegedly never returned to pay for or retrieve the computer. In December of that year the FBI seized the computer, though prior to that seizure Mac Isaac had made a copy of the data from Biden's laptop.

The contents of that copy — including controversial emails appearing to depict foreign business entanglements involving Joe Biden — were eventually detailed by the New York Post in October of last year. Yet Twitter swiftly clamped down on the story, claiming that the report ran afoul of its guidelines forbidding the publication of hacked and/or revealing documents.

Mac Isaac in the lawsuit claims that Twitter's "specific intent" was to "communicate to its users … that [Mac Isaac] is a hacker and/or hacked the published materials."

The negative attention brought by the controversy resulted in Mac Isaac receiving "threats to his person and property," the lawsuit claims. Mac Isaac eventually "had to close his business" as a result.

The suit claims that Twitter "seemingly makes policy decisions based on whether the topic impacts a more liberal-leaning topic versus a more conservative-leaning topic."

It cites several examples such as a September 2020 report on then-President Trump's tax returns that relied on leaked government documents; that story was not censored by Twitter.

The social media company did, on the other hand, last month censor a New York Post report about the million-dollar Los Angeles home of avowed Marxist and Black Lives Matter co-founder Patrisse Cullors.

The latest filing in the suit is an amended complaint. Mac Isaac's lawyer Brian Della Rocca said the amended filing was done in part to underscore what Mac Isaac claims is Twitter's injurious conduct against him.

"With our amended complaint, we hope to clear up any confusion Twitter may have as to how it defamed John Paul Mac Isaac," Della Rocca told Just the News.

Reached via email, a spokeswoman for Twitter declined to comment on the case.

https://justthenews.com/nation/defamation-suit-accuses-twitter-selective-enforcement-censorship-policies

Oregon Becomes First State Requiring Vaccination Police to Check Vaccination Identification Before Entering any Business or Workplace Without Mask

“Papers, Comrade!”

Some said it wasn’t legal, others said private companies and businesses would not do it, well, regardless of legality – Oregon is doing it:

OREGON – Oregon has lifted its mask mandate for people who have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus, but is requiring businesses, workplaces and houses of worship to verify the vaccination status of individuals before they enter buildings without a mask.

This statewide mandate, one of the first of its kind in the country, raised concerns that the procedure of verifying vaccinations could be too cumbersome for workers.

[…] The Oregon Health Authority said in new guidance on Tuesday that effective immediately, businesses would be required to continue to enforce mask requirements unless they had established a policy to confirm proof of vaccination using a card or photo of one before individuals can enter the building without a mask.

Gov. Kate Brown, a Democrat, said last week that Oregonians who were fully vaccinated no longer needed to wear masks in most public settings, except in places like schools, public transit and health care settings.

But she quickly noted that businesses would have “the option” of lifting mask requirements only if they instituted verification. “Some businesses may prefer to simply continue operating under the current guidance for now rather than worrying about vaccination status, and that’s fine,” she said. (read more)

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/2021/05/20/oregon-becomes-first-state-requiring-vaccination-police-to-check-vaccination-identification-before-entering-any-business-or-workplace-without-mask/

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/2021/05/20/oregon-becomes-first-state-requiring-vaccination-police-to-check-vaccination-identification-before-entering-any-business-or-workplace-without-mask/

Some Simple Lies Out of Washington: Who Is the Terrorist and Who Is the Victim?

There is no American interest that is served by allowing Israelis to kill Palestinians, Phil Giraldi writes.

There have been few surprises coming out of the violence that has erupted in Palestine and Israel. Israel, firmly in control of much of the media in the U.S. and Western Europe has chosen to depict it in simple terms: the Palestinian “terrorist” group Hamas has attacked the Jewish state which has taken proportionate steps to defend itself. This simplistic rendition of a much more complicated series of interactions has been picked up by many of the talking heads that pass for political commentary in the United States as well as by the completely corrupted Washington politicians.

Comments expressing any sympathy for the decades long plight of the Palestinians have been as scarce as the proverbial hens’ teeth, though such sentiment is growing even in Congress as Israeli killing of civilians increases. In fact, initially I could only find five statements coming from Democrats that in any serious way regretted the suffering being inflicted on Arab civilians in Gaza, in Jerusalem and on the West Bank. One consisted of remarks by Senator Elizabeth Warren regarding the series of thefts of Palestinian homes that sparked the recent violence. She tweeted “The forced removal of long-time Palestinian residents in Sheikh Jarrah is abhorrent and unacceptable. The Administration should make clear to the Israeli government that these evictions are illegal and must stop immediately.” Senator Bernie Sanders also made the case for Palestinian suffering in a hard-hitting New York Times op-ed entitled “The U.S. Must Stop Being an Apologist for Netanyahu.” He describes the Israeli Prime Minister as having “cultivated an increasingly intolerant and authoritarian type of racist nationalism.”

There also was Alexandria Ocasio Cortez’s brief rebuke to New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Yang, who had tweeted “I’m standing with the people of Israel who are coming under bombardment attacks, and condemn the Hamas terrorists. The people of NYC will always stand with our brothers and sisters in Israel who face down terrorism and persevere.” AOC responded “Utterly shameful for Yang to try to show up to an Eid [Ramadan] event after sending out a chest-thumping statement of support for a strike killing 9 children.”

A much stronger comment came from Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, who is of Somalian descent, who decried her own party’s unwillingness to confront the reality of the issue. She tweeted “No mention of Sheikh Jarra. No mention of the al-Aqsa raid. No mention of the 13 innocent children killed in air strikes. No mention of the ongoing occupation of millions in an open-air prison. You aren’t prioritizing human rights. You’re siding with an oppressive occupation.” Omar was subsequently accused by no less than ex-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo of being “anti-Semitic.”

https://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2021/05/20/some-simple-lies-out-washington-who-is-terrorist-and-victim/

U.S. Blocks Another UN Gaza Statement, As Russia Tells Israel More Civilian Casualties “Unacceptable”

On May 19th, the US, once again, said it opposes a proposed UN Security Council resolution calling for a ceasefire in the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.

France drafted the most recent resolution after the U.S. blocked at least four attempts to have the council issue a press statement calling for an end to the violence, giving the same reason. Diplomats said all other council members supported the statement.

A press statement requires agreement by all 15 council members, but a resolution requires only at least nine “yes” votes and no veto by the United States or any of the four other permanent members.

A French government spokesman had said “very intense discussions” were taking place with the United States on Wednesday about the proposed resolution, which UN diplomats said calls for a ceasefire and humanitarian aid for Gaza.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Mission to the United Nations said later in the day:

“We’ve been clear and consistent that we are focused on intensive diplomatic efforts under way to bring an end to the violence and that we will not support actions that we believe undermine efforts to de-escalate.”

The White House said that U.S. President Joe Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he expected “a significant de-escalation today on the path to a ceasefire.”

But Netanyahu said later he was “determined to continue this operation until its aim is met.”

The aim was likely revealed in an interview that Netanyahu gave to CBS’ John Dickerson on May 16th.

Dickerson asked Netanyahu if his motivations for using disproportional force to kill Palestinian people, including civilians and children were to remain in power.

“You are under investigation for bribery, fraud, breach of trust,” Dickerson noted. “You’ve also had some difficult — four failed attempts to put together a government in the last 23 months. This leads to the criticism that your current actions are basically an effort to stay in power.”

“That’s preposterous,” Netanyahu insisted. He then gave a likely fabricated, but emotionally-charged story of how an Israeli soldier “died in his arms”.

“A few years later, my brother died while leading a rescue mission to release Israeli hostages,” he continued. “I’ve seen comrades fall, I’ve seen my brother fall. And I think anybody who knows me knows that I’ve never, ever subordinated security concerns, the life of our soldiers, the life of our citizens for political interests.”

“That’s just hogwash,” Netanyahu added.

“But this is a persistent criticism, Mr. Prime Minister,” Dickerson explained.

“It persists because I’ve been reelected five times,” Netanyahu remarked. “It persists because I beat every other candidate.”

Meanwhile, Russia warned Israel of engaging in further violence that costs civilians’ lives.

The escalating conflict is of “extreme concern” to the Kremlin, and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov urged Israel to carefully consider the actions they take.

“In a frank exchange of opinion on the situation in the Israeli-Palestinian relations, including the one in the Gaza Strip, the Russian side expressed extreme concern over the escalation of tensions and stressed the impermissibility of steps fraught with more civilian casualties,” Bogdanov told Alexander Ben Zvi, Israel’s ambassador in Moscow, according to state news agency TASS.

Russia’s “very closely monitoring the developments” in the area, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on May 19th. Peskov urged both parties to be “utterly cautious in their statements” so as to not “add fuel to the fire.”

Peskov also said Russia is willing to play host to conversations and was making “initiatives within its powers” to serve as a venue for direct contacts.

https://southfront.org/u-s-blocks-another-un-gaza-statement-as-russia-tells-israel-more-civilian-casualties-unacceptable/

Biden-Linked Investment Group Funded Chinese Military Proxy Guilty Of Stealing American Nuclear Technology

An investment firm directed by Democrat Presidential Candidate Joe Biden’s son Hunter funneled millions into China General Nuclear Power Corp, a state-owned power company guilty of stealing American nuclear technology for use by the Chinese Communist Party for decades.

In 2017, a naturalized U.S. citizen from Taiwan pleaded guilty to “conspiracy to unlawfully engage or participate in the production or development of special nuclear material outside the U.S.” per the Department of Justice (DOJ).

The DOJ charged Allen Ho, a consultant for China General Nuclear Power Company (CGN), with “assisting CGN in procuring U.S.-based nuclear engineers to assist with designing and manufacturing certain components for nuclear reactors” for nearly two decades.

He was sentenced to two years in prison and ordered to pay a $20,000 fine.

Ho was part of a company-wide scheme to steal and transfer American nuclear secrets – identified by the DOJ as posing “significant damage to our national security” – to the CCP-owned CGN.

These technologies likely saw use by the Chinese military, as the U.S. Defense Department has identified the company as a People’s Liberation Army (PLA) proxy.

Ho’s U.S. company Energy Technology International was also in on the ruse, headquartered in the former Veep’s place of residence: Wilmington, Delaware.

But CGN’s Biden links run deeper.

BHR Partners, a private equity firm where Hunter Biden served as director since its 2013 founding, was a $10 million cornerstone investor in CGN’s initial public offering (IPO). Occurring in 2014, the IPO was the second largest of the year and valued at over $3 billion.

The company still lists GCN as part of its portfolio.

BHR Partners was a joint venture between Rosemont Seneca Partners, an investment fund founded by Hunter Biden and Obama-era Secretary of State John Kerry’s stepson in 2009, and the state-owned Bank of China. The billion-dollar fund was notoriously birthed less than two weeks Hunter traveled to China alongside his father and then Vice President.

While Hunter pledged to divest of his stake in the company in 2019, the Daily Caller revealed he retained shares for months after his announcement. Now, it is alleged he still owns 10 percent of the fund.

While the Biden family was raking in millions from inking deals with Chinese state-owned enterprises – all the while bolstering the CCP’s military capabilities – the Trump administration was busy preserving and protecting American intellectual property and national security.

https://thenationalpulse.com/politics/biden-cgn-indicted/

World Governments Plan for COVID Booster Shots Next Winter

One of the big unanswered questions about the coronavirus is whether or not those who have received a full dose of the COVID vaccine will need a “booster shot” or not.

It’s a critical question because most of the world has yet to be vaccinated and a supply crunch may be on the way. If we all need a booster shot after about a year, that will only add to our supply woes.

The only way to know if we’ll need the booster is through the passage of time. No one knows how long the antibodies generated in the body by the COVID vaccine will be effective. Researchers are carefully following individuals who took part in the Stage 3 studies of vaccine efficacy to determine their further immunity.

There is also the question of the effectiveness of current vaccines against the numerous variants that are popping up all over the world. While there’s no doubt that the vaccines offer some protection against all the variants, a booster shot may prove to be necessary to strengthen the body’s immune response to being exposed.

Wall Street Journal:

Some public-health experts say talk of booster programs is premature, given the gaps in our knowledge about the virus and the vaccines that combat it, as well as the urgent need for shots in countries such as India where the virus is spreading rapidly. “We need to have data’’ to determine if and when third doses are needed, the European Medicines Agency’s head of biological health threats and vaccines strategy, Marco Cavaleri, said this month.

But others say governments are right to move fast rather than wait for these questions to be settled.

“There is no point planning it if you have already got a resurgence,” said David Salisbury, a former director of immunization programs in the U.K. who is now an associate fellow in global health at the international affairs think tank Chatham House.

The EU just ordered another 1.8 billion doses of the Pfizer vaccine while Great Britain is beginning a clinical trial to see the effect a third shot would have on the immune system. The Europeans are preparing for a booster shot program for next winter out of an abundance of caution at this point.

The U.S. is in pretty good shape with a 300-million-dose surplus by the end of 2021, even assuming every adult and child in the United States will have been vaccinated.

Some vaccines, such as for measles, mumps, and rubella, are given in childhood and last a lifetime. Others, like the vaccine for tetanus, require periodic booster shots.

Influenza, by contrast, mutates quickly and shots are tailor-made each year to protect people against circulating strains.

Exactly where the vaccines developed against Covid-19 fit on this spectrum isn’t yet clear. Some scientists are optimistic the vaccines will confer long-lasting immunity, while others aren’t so sure. Another issue is whether existing vaccines provide sufficient protection against variants of concern, such as those first identified in South Africa and India, and if they will stand up to any new variants that may yet emerge.

“We don’t have a full picture of what the pathway is to protection,” said Gigi Gronvall, an immunologist and associate professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

The U.S. government is spending billions of dollars in advertising trying to get the holdouts vaccinated. Imagine trying to convince 300 million people they need another jab? How much do you suppose that would cost?

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/rick-moran/2021/05/20/world-governments-plan-for-covid-booster-shots-next-winter-n1448394

>>13711548

Putin gives orders to envisage possible evacuation of Russians, CIS nationals from Gaza

The president gave instructions to the Foreign Ministry, the Foreign Intelligence Service and the Ministry for Emergency Situations to determine the concrete time frame and the format of their evacuation to Moscow

MOSCOW, May 20./TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an order on Thursday to envisage the possibility of the evacuation of Russian nationals and citizens of the former Soviet republics from the Gaza Strip who want to be evacuated.

"In view of a sharp deterioration of the situation in the Gaza Strip as a result of a military operation of the armed forces of the State of Israel, envisage the evacuation of citizens of the Russian Federation and citizens of the Commonwealth of Independent States’ (CIS) member states, staying in Gaza, expressing this wish," said the instruction uploaded to the portal of regulatory legal acts.

The president gave instructions to the Foreign Ministry, the Foreign Intelligence Service and the Ministry for Emergency Situations to determine the concrete time frame and the format of their evacuation to Moscow.

An exchange of missile strikes between Israel and the Palestinian radicals from the Gaza Strip began on May 10 following an outbreak of violence near the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem’s Old City in early May. According to the latest updates, the Palestinian side reports over 250 fatalities, while the Israeli side - at least 12.

https://tass.com/politics/1292063

World Health Org. calls for new global system of surveillance, more authority, and billions more in funding

The pro-abortion World Health Organization (WHO) has released a report calling for greater authority for itself in countries around the globe, a global surveillance system, as well as billions more dollars in financing for itself.

In a report released this month entitled, COVID-19: Make it the Last Pandemic, a group called the "Independent Panel" established by the WHO, analyzed the global response to the Wuhan Virus and delivered a strong message for international changes.

They state, "Our message is loud and clear: no more pandemics. If we fail to take this goal seriously, we will condemn the world to successive catastrophes."

"On the basis of its diagnosis of what went wrong at each stage of the COVID-19 response, the Panel makes […] seven recommendations directed to ensuring that a future outbreak does not become a pandemic. Each recommendation is linked directly back to evidence of what has gone wrong. To be successful they must be implemented in their entirety."

The panel is co-chaired Rt Hon. Helen Clark, former Prime Minister of New Zealand and H.E. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, former President of Liberia and Nobel Laureate and includes eleven other professionals from around the world.

Patrick Wood, Editor in Chief of Technocracy News told LifeSiteNews that, were the recommendations of the report to be implemented, “the top political leaders of each nation would become the puppets of the WHO, whenever it decides to declare a pandemic.”

“The WHO is not and never has been independent,” Wood continued. “Rather, it is a key agency of the United Nations and subservient to its ideology. It seeks additional authority over nations and needs money to accomplish it. Nobody prevents a virus from spreading, so the call for more funding is spurious at best. After contributing to the current crisis, they want to prevent the next one?”

Wood told LifeSiteNews that “total surveillance” is “the holy grail” of the “sustainable development” agenda, which he says can also be described as the “technocracy” agenda.

“This is a fast-track conduit/supply chain for Big Pharma to push its gene therapy shots and vaccines to a generally uninformed global citizenry,” Wood added.

Regarding the so-called “Independent Panel”, Wood said:

The panel of eleven is far from “independent”. Two are associated with the elitist Trilateral Commission, two with United Nations agencies, one member of the Communist Chinese Party who was a principal in the COVID outbreak in China and all are UN ideologues. To my knowledge and study, when the United Nations calls for “independent” or “high level” panels, they are signaling the exact opposite. Those elitist/ideologues who populate such panels always and only promote one thing: Sustainable Development in all its forms and control over society.

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/the-who-calls-for-a-new-global-system-of-surveillance-more-authority-and-billions-more-in-funding

The UN's Luciferian Connection

It sounds farfetched to say that humanity is being inducted into a satanic cult, but this is literally what is happening.

Satanic cults control and exploit their members by making them sick, physically and morally.

This is the hidden agenda behind the scamdemic and lockdowns, and the reason they will not end unless people defy covid protocols en masse.

Many applaud the United Nations for its public policy and efforts of humanitarian society…

However, the U.N. is a front for Luciferian agendas. This is seen by underlining Luciferian themes and esoteric teachings WITHIN the halls of the U.N. There is even an occult meditation room is hosted at the U.N.

People do not realize the influence Theosophists have had on the United Nations.

Theosophy, founded in the late 1800s by a Satanist Luciferian occultist named Helena Blavatsky. A group spawned from it under Alice Bailey called "Lucis Trust."

Lucis Trust, originally founded under the name "Lucifer Publishing" before changing its name, publishes esoteric occult works and promotes its 24 esoteric writings under its main education centers, the Arcane Schools and Findhorn Foundation.

Many prominent U.N. directors were Luciferians, such as Robert Muller and Maurice Strong, who initiated Agenda 21. They were practitioners of Theosophy, occult Luciferians, and drafted policies to initiate New Age through U.N. policies and directions, as the United Nations was developed to do. If you haven't, see my page on the UN 2020 summit explaining it in more detail.

David Spangler, Director of Planetary Initiative at the United Nations (department has since been removed from rosters), has said, "Lucifer comes to give us the final Luciferic initiation…that many people now and in the days ahead, will be facing - for it is an initiation into the New Age… No one will enter the New World Order unless he or she will make a pledge to worship Lucifer. No one will enter the New Age unless he will take a Luciferian initiation."

Benjamin Crème, another prominent New Age "prophet," (Matrieya's Mission, p.128) insists that those who refuse to join in this World Initiation will find themselves in the minority and will have to "withdraw from this life."

Creme exhorts his followers to, "Be not afraid, therefore, when the 'men of cloth' raise their voices against the Great Lord, naming Him anti-Christ and arch-deceiver, for they know little of the laws which underlie their faiths and act and speak from ignorance and fear."

Luciferians defend Lucifer as the Great God, the giver of life.

As the Light-Bearer he enlightens men and provides knowledge. But in their view, Adonay (God) and Jesus Christ are the imposters to hold that light from us. And they will summon the great ancestors known as the "Ascended Masters" to open the door to the stage of the New Age in the "Age of Aquarius."

… In the meantime, consider what the U.N. actually supports and watch the pieces move towards that agenda. It represents Luciferians putting Lucifer on the throne for One World Government.

https://henrymakow.com/2021/05/un-lucifer-connection.html

Hillary’s Attorney Marc Elias, Her Campaign Manager John Podesta and Biden’s Chief of Staff Ron Klain Are Connected to Democrat Efforts to Stop the Maricopa Audit

Far-left ‘non-profit’ American Oversight is on the warpath suing for records the Democrat machine is after. But there is much more to this story.

The Washington Examiner reported on American Oversight yesterday and its recent actions in Arizona:

A left-leaning watchdog group on Wednesday sued the Arizona Senate for records pertaining to the “partisan” audit of the Maricopa County 2020 election.

The filing comes after American Oversight said in April it requested documents on Cyber Ninjas, the private firm conducting the inquiry, the audit’s funding and investigation techniques, and other matters. The organization said that by May 4, the Republican-led legislative body claimed there “are no more responsive documents to provide at this time because the Senate doesn’t have custody, control or possession of any of the records requested.”

In actuality, American Oversight is a slick, professional, well-funded Freedom of Information Act hit team, created to gather the intel needed to file an unending stream of lawsuits solely against Trump and the Trump administration. Already in 2021, and American Oversight is still doing its dirty work against President Trump, this time in Maricopa County.

We’ve reported on American Oversight previously:

As we noted in article above:

This NFP is yet another one from the Democrat stable which is a 510(c)(3) and, although it is required by law to be strictly nonpartisan and charitable, it is anything but. It is a well-funded, cold, and calculating legal hit team, initially designed to attack President Donald Trump.

In regards to the Maricopa audit currently in place, American Oversight declares:

The audit, which involves a hand recount of more than 2 million votes and will cost the state $150,000, is not based on any evidence of widespread voter fraud, in Maricopa County or elsewhere. In fact, an independent audit in February confirmed that the ballots in the county had been tabulated accurately and that there were no irregularities with the election equipment or software.

American Oversight doesn’t mention that not one single ballot was looked at in the audit they admire above. A few machines were looked at and taken apart and then the auditors claimed everything was fine. Maricopa County paid around $100,000 for these two audits they knew would declare everything was right with the 2020 election in the county.

But what also is startling are the entities behind American Oversight.

Right behind American Oversight is the secretive Democracy Forward and the Democracy Forward Foundation.

The real prize here is Democracy Forward.

Here’s how the crooked Democrats play their game:

American Oversight secures FOILs from entities they are after related to President Trump;

Democracy Forward then swoops in and begins the litigation;

Remember, THESE ARE “NONPARTISAN” NONPROFITS – by law these outfits must be non-partisan but clearly, they are not.

The Democrats’ most powerful and vicious law firm, Perkins Coie, and Marc Elias are absolutely behind Democracy Forward Foundation. A quick look at their 2018 makeup and you can see Hillary’s attorney, Elias, as well as Hillary’s campaign manager John Podesta and Biden’s current Chief of Staff Ron Klain.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2021/05/exclusive-hillarys-attorney-marc-elias-campaign-manager-john-podesta-bidens-chief-staff-ron-klain-connected-democrat-efforts-stop-maricopa-audit/

Ohio Democrat Compares Jan. 6 Riot to Benghazi Islamist Attack on US Consulate Where Terrorists Murdered 4 Americans after Obama Turned His Back on Them

Minnesota Black Lives Matter riots (left) and Benghazi terrorist attack (on right)

Democrats are pushing legislation to investigate the Jan. 6 riots at the US Capitol. 35 Republican lawmakers signed on to the legislation on Wednesday. Several Republican Senators have signaled they will support the investigation.

Four Trump supporters were killed during the “riot” including Ashli Babbit who was murdered by Capitol Police.

There will be no investigation of the BLM-Antifa riots last year that caused at least $1 billion in damages across the US.

On Thursday Democrat Tim Ryan compared the US Capitol riot to the Benghazi terrorist attack. Ryan did this while arguing for a commission to investigate the ‘insurrection’.

That’s how crazy Democrats are today.

Deceitful and unhinged.

Of course, several Republicans were agree with them and the rest will say nothing.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2021/05/ohio-democrat-compares-jan-6-riot-benghazi-islamist-attack-us-consulate-terrorists-murdered-4-americans-obama-turned-back/

Unrestrained Israeli Crimes Against Media Outlets and Palestinian Civilians

Israel’s demolition of a 12-storey tower block in Gaza, housing the US Associated Press (AP) news agency and Qatar’s Al Jazeera, forced the Biden administration to call for, at least some restraint in the aerial bombardment that has targeted other multi-storey buildings in the beleaguered Strip and killed dozens of Palestinian civilians. Israel’s tactic is to warn inhabitants of buildings to be taken down before missiles strike so they have time to get to safety while their possessions are blown to bits.

During a phone call to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, US President Joe Biden reiterated his support for “Israel’s right to self-defence”, condemned Hamas’ rocket attacks on Israeli cities and towns, and expressed concern over the deaths of “Israeli and Palestinian civilians” and the safety of journalists. Later, White House press secretary Jen Psaki tweeted that the Biden administration has “communicated to the Israelis that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility”. That is: Rather than the safety and security of Palestinian and international civilians living in Gaza.

Little wonder that after speaking to Biden, Netanyahu concluded he had a green light to proceed with its offensive and announced that Israel would carry on unhindered with its air, land and sea offensive against Gaza, eliciting Hamas’ response in flights of rockets from Gaza.

The AP, the main US global agency, had been based in the Jalaa tower for 15 turbulent years, including during Israel’s 2008-09 and 2014 all-out onslaughts on Gaza. Both the Associated Press and Al Jazeera chose this building because its height and location had given journalists an overall view of activity in the air and events on the ground during brief eruptions of violence and full-scale warfare.

AP chief Gary Pruitt pointed out, “The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened …We are shocked and horrified that the Israeli military would target and destroy the building housing AP’s bureau and other news organisations in Gaza.” He also argued that during the time AP was operating from the building, the agency did not believe, as Israel claimed as its pretext for the strikes, there were Hamas military or intelligence operatives based there.

https://www.globalresearch.ca/unrestrained-israeli-crimes-against-media-outlets-palestinian-civilians/5745809

After Widespread Civil Unrest in Israeli Cities, Over 90 Percent of Those Indicted Are Arabs

Most of the 170 people charged to date, mainly over attacks in mixed Jewish-Arab communities, are accused of being motivated by racism ■ In one case in Jaffa, an indictment for attacking a Jew doesn't mention racist motives

Over 90 percent of the Israelis charged with rioting as tensions spilled over in mixed Arab-Jewish cities during the current flare-up in Gaza are Arab.

Of the 170 people charged with such offenses in the past two weeks, 155 were Arabs and only 15 were Jewish. Almost all the offenses of those charged, some of whom are minors, are believed to have been motivated by racism.

The indictments include charges of rioting, assaulting police officers and damaging property. Many of the indictments were issued for events in which a number of the accused took part.

The courts have been asked to keep most of those charged in custody until the end of legal proceedings against them.

In one case, four Jaffa residents alleged to have beaten a Jewish man last week during rioting in the city were charged on Thursday with aggravated battery, but no racist motives were ascribed to their acts.

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-after-civil-unrest-in-mixed-israeli-cities-over-90-of-those-indicted-are-arab-1.9827153

>>13711750

and this is why the clowns have infiltrated this place with their nazi spam bakers and BV

US Accuses Officials in Northern Triangle of Corruption

A new U.S. State Department report “credibly alleged” that a number of current and former Central American politicians are corrupt or involved in narcotrafficking, many of them being tied to Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele.

The document lists 17 current and former politicians and officials from so-called Northern Triangle countries: El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala.

The list was sent to Congress last month and published on Tuesday at the request of California Representative Norma Torres.

“We cannot expect the people of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras to thrive at home while their elected officials are more focused on self-enrichment than serving the public,” Torres, a Democrat who chairs the Central America Caucus, said in a statement on Tuesday.

“This list is a strong step, but it is only the first step towards holding those officials accountable,” she said.

One of the most prominent officials on the list is Bukele’s cabinet chief, Carolina Recinos, who “engaged in significant acts of corruption,” the State Department said, without elaborating.

Also listed is Rogelio Rivas, who was El Salvador’s minister of security and justice until recently. Rivas allegedly awarded his own construction company several non-competitive contracts to build police stations and other buildings that fell under his official capacity and inflated the cost of materials, the document said.

Also included is current lawmaker Guillermo Gallegos, as well as two former lawmakers of El Salvador’s Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) party, Sigfrido Reyes and Jose Luis Merino, who all engaged in “significant acts of corruption.”

Reyes, for his part, “misappropriated public funds for personal benefit when he authorized and laundered fraudulent travel expenses,” the document said.

The list also contains the names of 12 Honduran and Guatemalan officials accused of corruption, embezzlement of government funds or having ties to drug trafficking organizations.

Bukele sarcastically dismissed the report saying he was “shocked” that El Salvador’s “friends” could not find a single instance of corruption inside the conversative opposition ARENA party.

“Maybe they think they are all saints,” he wrote on Twitter. “That’s why they insist we return them to power.”

Reyes, who sought exile in Mexico in 2020 after being criminally charged in El Salvador for corruption, called the accusations false.

The State Department “frequently lies to the world to meet its objectives. 18 years ago they swore that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. They are still searching for them!” he said on Twitter.

The list emerged just after the U.S. special envoy for Central America, Ricardo Zuniga, visited El Salvador and met Bukele after concerns about judicial independence in the country, Reuters reported.

The Biden administration has proposed a US$4 billion-strategy related to the three Northern Triangle countries in order to “address endemic corruption” and improve the rule of law, which it says would quell migrants from taking “the dangerous trek north” to the United States.

https://www.occrp.org/en/daily/14447-us-accuses-officials-in-northern-triangle-of-corruption

https://torres.house.gov/sites/torres.house.gov/files/documents/Report_CorruptActors.pdf

Biden’s US Supreme Court Commission Meets to Explore Broad Reforms

President Joe Biden’s commission to study potential changes to the U.S. Supreme Court held its first meeting on Wednesday and will have six months to issue a report on reforms including possibly expanding the number of justices, an idea touted by some liberal activists and Democratic lawmakers.

“We definitely have our work cut out for us,” commission co-chair Cristina Rodriguez said at the end of the virtual meeting that lasted less than half an hour.

Rodriguez, a Yale Law School professor who served in the U.S. Justice Department under Democratic former President Barack Obama, said the 36-member bipartisan commission will not provide recommendations but rather evaluate the “merits and legality” of specific reform proposals.

The other co-chair is Bob Bauer of New York University School of Law, who served as White House counsel under Obama.

Biden, a Democrat, signed an executive order on April 9 creating the commission to examine possible changes to the nation’s top judicial body including expanding beyond the current nine justices or applying term limits instead of lifetime appointments.

It also will study the scope of the court’s power, its authority to strike down congressional legislation, and how the justices select and decide cases. The commission will examine the court’s increasing use of the so-called shadow docket, an accelerated form of decision-making that can effectively resolve major disputes without oral arguments or signed rulings.

The court has a 6–3 conservative majority after Biden’s Republican predecessor Donald Trump made three appointments during four years in office.

Republicans have opposed the idea of expanding the number of justices, sometimes called “court packing.” The last time court expansion was seriously pursued was in the 1930s by Democratic President Franklin Roosevelt after a conservative court impeded his policies aimed at lifting America out of the Great Depression.

A group of liberal Democratic lawmakers last month introduced legislation that would expand the number of justices by four. The White House and some senior Democratic lawmakers balked at that legislation, preferring to let the commission do its work.

The number of justices has remained at nine since 1869, but Congress has the power to change that and has done so several times. Term limits would likely require a constitutional amendment, though some scholars have proposed ways to do it by statute.

Liberal activists remain enraged that Trump was able to appoint three justices, including filling one vacancy after Senate Republicans blocked consideration of an Obama nominee in 2016, arguing that confirmation would be improper during a presidential election year. Last year, days before another presidential election, Senate Republicans speedily confirmed Trump’s final appointee, Amy Coney Barrett.

https://www.ntd.com/bidens-us-supreme-court-commission-meets-to-explore-broad-reforms_616050.html

https://twitter.com/Breaking911/status/1395458203878662146

Pedos protecting pedos the witness found her in bed with the child

'Finally some good news': Relief of court of Appeal judge's widow Lady Lavinia Nourse, 77, as she is found NOT GUILTY of sexually abusing a boy in the 1980s after denying claims as 'completely repulsive' and saying her accuser was 'obviously after money'

Lady Lavinia Nourse was married to Sir Martin Nourse, who died in 2017 aged 85

The 77-year-old was this afternoon cleared of abusing a young boy in the 1980s

Series of high profile figures appeared as character witnesses in her defence

Court of Appeal judge's widow Lady Lavinia Nourse was today cleared of historic sex offences after calling the claims 'completely repulsive' and saying her abuser was 'obviously after money'.

The 77-year-old wiped away tears as a jury found her not guilty of abusing a boy under the age of 12 in the 1980s.

The court heard how Lady Nourse's gilded life as the wife of one of the UK's most senior judges, Sir Martin Nourse, who wined and dined former Cabinet Ministers at their £2.75m county house came crashing down when the allegations were made against her.

She defiantly denied the historic offences had taken place, claiming that her accuser who is now an adult was 'very psychologically disturbed' and was trying to extort money from her, nearly three decades after they were said to have taken place.

Lady Nourse, from Newmarket in Suffolk, said that he only came forward to 'blackmail' her after her husband died aged 85 in 2017.

After she was cleared of all counts, she sat back down, slumped forward and rested her head on the desk in front of her with her arms folded around it.

As she left the Nightingale court, in the Knight's Chamber at Peterborough's cathedral, she told reporters: 'It's a happy result.'

She added: 'Finally some good news.'

Speaking after the result, Dame Mary Archer told MailOnline: 'I am delighted but not at all surprised that my friend Lavinia Nourse has been cleared of all the charges brought against, and that her ordeal finally is over.'

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9595725/Court-Appeal-judges-widow-Lady-Lavinia-Nourse-77-NOT-GUILTY.html

Mother-of-two, 26, had sex with 15-year-old schoolboy dozens of times after his parents helped her during lockdown then got hold of a mobile phone in jail and bombarded him with texts begging him to 'stick by her'

Lara Bardsley got close to boy and his family when her own relationship ended

Four-month affair discovered when his mother found love letters in his bedroom

Bardsley, from near Stockport, was jailed for six years after admitting charges

A mother-of-two had sex with a 15-year-old schoolboy dozens of times after his parents helped her during lockdown, then got hold of a mobile phone in jail and bombarded him with texts begging him to 'stick by her'.

Former care worker Laura Bardsley, 26, slept with the teen on several occasions after getting close to his family when her relationship with her long term partner began to crumble.

During the romance Bardsley swapped 'sexually-charged' texts with the boy saying how much she loved him, had a rendezvous at a pub with him - and when he was on his summer holiday, she wrote him a string of love letters.

She also Googled the search terms 'unprotected sex' and 'morning after pill' in the run up to an encounter at a hotel, and in one instance a neighbour spotted the pair kissing passionately through a kitchen window.

The four-month affair was discovered when the boy's mother found the love letters whilst cleaning his bedroom.

The boy initially declined to talk about the romance but later confessed when he started dating a 17-year-old girl and she became jealous.

Despite being repeatedly arrested, Bardsley kept hounding the boy and even acquired a mobile phone in jail so she could continued messaging him begging him to 'stick by her.'

At Minshull Street Crown Court, Manchester, Bardsley, of Reddish, near Stockport was jailed for six years after she admitted four charges of sexual activity with a child, harassment and possessing a prohibited item in prison.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9599359/Mother-two-sex-schoolboy-15-dozens-times-parents-helped-lockdown.html

Microsoft vs Indian Farmers: Agri-Stacking the System

Based on press reports and government statements, Microsoft would help farmers with post-harvest management solutions by building a collaborative platform and capturing agriculture datasets such as crop yields, weather data, market demand and prices. In turn, this would create a farmer interface for ‘smart’ agriculture, including post-harvest management and distribution.In April, the Indian government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Microsoft, allowing its local partner CropData to leverage a master database of farmers. The MoU seems to be part of the AgriStack policy initiative, which involves the roll out of ‘disruptive’ technologies and digital databases in the agricultural sector.

CropData will be granted access to a government database of 50 million farmers and their land records. As the database is developed, it will include farmers’ personal details, profile of land held (cadastral maps, farm size, land titles, local climatic and geographical conditions), production details (crops grown, production history, input history, quality of output, machinery in possession) and financial details (input costs, average return, credit history).

The stated aim is to use digital technology to improve financing, inputs, cultivation and supply and distribution.

It seems that the blueprint for AgriStack is in an advanced stage despite the lack of consultation with or involvement of farmers themselves. Technology could certainly improve the sector but handing control over to powerful private concerns will merely facilitate what they require in terms of market capture and farmer dependency.

Such ‘data-driven agriculture’ is integral to the recent farm legislation which includes a proposal to create a digital profile of cultivators, their farm holdings, climatic conditions in an area, what is grown and average output.

Of course, many concerns have been raised about this, ranging from farmer displacement, the further exploitation of farmers through microfinance and the misuse of farmer’s data and increased algorithmic decision-making without accountability.

The displacement of farmers is not lost on the Research Unit for Political Economy (RUPE) which, in a three-part series of articles, explains how neoliberal capitalism has removed peasant farmers from their land to facilitate an active land market for corporate interests. The Indian government is trying to establish a system of ‘conclusive titling’ of all land in the country, so that ownership can be identified and land can then be bought or taken away.

Taking Mexico as an example, RUPE says:

Unlike Mexico, India never underwent significant land reform. Nevertheless, its current programme of ‘conclusive titling’ of land bears clear resemblances to Mexico’s post-1992 drive to hand over property rights…The Indian rulers are closely following the script followed by Mexico, written in Washington.”

The plan is that, as farmers lose access to land or can be identified as legal owners, predatory institutional investors and large agribusinesses will buy up and amalgamate holdings, facilitating the further roll-out of high-input, corporate-dependent industrial agriculture – which has already helped fuel wide-scale financial distress among farmers and a deep-rooted agrarian and environmental crisis.

By harvesting (pirating) information – under the benign-sounding policy of data-driven agriculture – private corporations will be better placed to exploit farmers’ situations for their own ends: they will know more about their incomes and businesses than individual farmers themselves.

https://www.blacklistednews.com/article/79981/microsoft-vs-indian-farmers-agristacking-the.html