>DOUGH
https://apnews.com/article/fact-checking-586448883875
No truth to claims Zelenskyy, Soros are cousins
https://www.georgesoros.com/2022/02/26/we-must-stand-with-ukraine-as-they-stand-with-us/
We Must Stand with Ukraine, as They Stand for Us
February 26, 2022
I have witnessed Ukraine transform from a collapsing part of the Soviet Union to a liberal democracy and an open society. It has faced countless acts of Russian aggression, but has persisted. Brave Ukrainians are now on the frontline and risking their lives. The horrible images coming out of Ukraine remind me of war torn Budapest in 1944 and the siege of Sarajevo in 1993. It is important that both the transatlantic alliance (the United States, Canada, the European Union, and the United Kingdom) but also other nations do whatever is in their power to support Ukraine in its time of existential threat. Putin’s actions are a direct attack on the sovereignty of all States that were once in the Soviet Union, and beyond. Russia is in clear violation of the United Nations charter and should be held accountable. Allowing Putin to succeed on his quest will send a message across the world that nations can simply be created or dissolved by brute force. We must stand with Ukraine, as they stand for us.
https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-business-europe-philanthropy-george-soros-a27f14f4d1859468f09ef788606135a6
A new fund directs its support to Ukraine’s long-term needs
The humanitarian needs of more than 10 million displaced Ukrainians have quickly become staggering. Yet Mark Malloch-Brown, president of the Open Society Foundations, warns that longer-term problems resulting from Russia’s invasion will grow ever larger if they aren’t sufficiently addressed now.
Experts report an “unprecedented” outpouring of aid for food, medicine and other essential needs of Ukrainians. Comparatively few donations, though, have been earmarked for maintaining Ukraine’s culture or democratic foundations.
To address that cause, Open Society Foundations has launched the Ukraine Democracy Fund with a $25 million pledge, in hopes of raising $100 million. The foundations, launched by billionaire investor George Soros, are now one of the world’s largest funders of democracy, human rights and justice groups.
“Keeping their civil society alive absolutely is the key bit,” said Malloch-Brown, who has also served as the United Nations deputy secretary general. “Otherwise, it’s a hollow victory. If you neglect or lose that civil society piece, you’ve lost what this was ultimately all about.”
https://nypost.com/2022/04/21/why-spotify-dropped-its-deal-with-barack-and-michelle-obama/
Why Spotify dropped its deal with Barack and Michelle Obama
The Obamas are searching for a new home for their podcasts after Spotify reportedly declined to offer the former first couple a new contract because they didn’t make enough personal appearances on the streaming service.
Barack and Michelle Obama are reportedly in talks with several companies, including Amazon’s Audible and iHeartMedia, on a deal that will likely be worth tens of millions of dollars, according to Bloomberg News.
The ex-president and the former first lady, who co-own the production company Higher Ground, will reportedly decide on their podcasting platform of choice sometime within the next few weeks.
Higher Ground is said to be seeking an arrangement that would allow it to release shows on several platforms simultaneously.
One of the sticking points in negotiations with Spotify was the Swedish company’s insistence on an exclusive licensing deal.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-20/obamas-to-leave-spotify-seek-multimillion-dollar-deal-elsewhere
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-61183062
Mariupol steelworks: 'We have wounded and dead inside the bunkers'
One of the last Ukrainian defenders in Mariupol has told the BBC that the besieged steelworks where they are holed up is largely destroyed above ground and civilians are trapped under collapsed buildings.
Speaking from the Azovstal plant - the last part of Mariupol not under Russian control - Svyatoslav Palamar from the controversial Azov regiment said defenders had repelled waves of Russian attacks.
"I always say that as long as we are here, Mariupol remains under control of Ukraine," he said.
Earlier President Vladimir Putin called off a planned Russian assault on the steelworks - a maze of tunnels and workshops - and ordered his troops to seal it off instead.
"Block off this industrial area so that a fly cannot pass through," he said.
Much of Mariupol has been destroyed in weeks of heavy Russian bombardment and intense street fighting. Taking the Sea of Azov port is a key Russian war aim and would release more troops to join a Russian offensive in the eastern Donbas region.
Capt Palamar said the Russians had fired on the steel plant from warships and dropped "bunker-busting" bombs on it.
The BBC has not been able to verify any of his account. But it tallies with testimony earlier this week from a Ukrainian marine commander also in the steelworks, who said fighters were outnumbered and running out of supplies.
"All the buildings in the territory of Azovstal are practically destroyed. They drop heavy bombs, bunker-busting bombs which cause huge destruction. We have wounded and dead inside the bunkers. Some civilians remain trapped under the collapsed buildings," Capt Palamar said.
The Azov regiment was originally a far-right neo-Nazi group that was later incorporated into Ukraine's National Guard. Its fighters along with a Marine brigade, border guards and police officers are the last Ukrainian defenders left in the city.
When asked how many Ukrainian defenders remained in Mariupol, Capt Palamar answered simply "enough to repel attacks".
He said that civilians were in separate locations away from fighters. They were in basements containing 80-100 people each but it was unclear how many civilians there were in total as some buildings had been destroyed and fighters could not reach them because of shelling. Entrances to some of the bunkers were blocked by heavy concrete slabs that only heavy machinery could move, he said.
"We keep in touch with those civilians who stay in places that we can get to. We know that there are small children there as young as three months old," he said.
The fighter appealed for civilians to be given safe passage out of the steelworks and called for a third country or an international body to act as a guarantor for their safety.
"These people have got through a lot already, through war crimes. They don't trust Russians, and they are scared," he said, adding that they feared torture and murder at the hands of Russian troops or deportation to Russia through so-called filtration camps.
Elderly civilians in the steelworks were in need of medicine while there were also about 500 seriously wounded fighters who were not getting the care they needed - including major surgery such as amputations.
"After 52 days of blockade and heavy fighting we are running of medicines. And then we also keep unburied bodies of our fighters whom we need to bury with dignity in Ukraine-controlled territory," he said.
Capt Palamar said Ukrainian defenders also wanted to secure their own evacuation if possible - but there could be no question of surrender.
"As for surrender in exchange for the safe way out for civilians, I hope we all know whom we are dealing with. We definitely know that all guarantees, all statements of the Russian Federation are worth nothing."
>The Azov regiment was originally a far-right neo-Nazi group that was later incorporated into Ukraine's National Guard.
Sean Penn
John Depp
weird names
>"As for surrender in exchange for the safe way out for civilians, I hope we all know whom we are dealing with. We definitely know that all guarantees, all statements of the Russian Federation are worth nothing."
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-59103568
YouTube removes occultist who influenced murderer of two sisters
An occultist who influenced a murderer of two sisters has been removed from YouTube, after a BBC investigation.
Danyal Hussein, 19, killed Bibaa Henry and Nicole Smallman in a park in Wembley, north London, in June 2020.
He was active on an occult forum run by American EA Koetting - whose writings have encouraged murder - until hours before his arrest, the BBC revealed.
Hussein was jailed for life on Thursday and must spend at least 35 years in prison.
The trial heard of a "demonic" pact in which he committed to sacrificing women in return for money and power.
Koetting had more than 85,000 followers on Youtube and thousands more on Facebook, which has already removed him from its platforms.
The BBC first passed on evidence relating to him to the social media giants in August.
The online forum, of which Hussein was a member, was run by the self-styled "black magician" Koetting - who provided instructions for demonic pacts.
The BBC showed parallels between Koetting's public instructions and Hussein's actions, including how the pact document was signed and what the killer requested.
Koetting is from Utah in the US and his real name is Matthew Lawrence. He has convictions for drugs and weapon possession offences.
One of his texts, which he recently promoted on YouTube, advises people to study terrorist methods and quotes the Moors Murderer Ian Brady, who tortured and killed five children in the 1960s.
The text was written for an American Satanist group, Tempel ov Blood, which is part of the Order of Nine Angles - an organisation linked to multiple UK terrorism cases.
A spokesperson for YouTube said: "Hate and violence have no place on YouTube, and we are deeply saddened by this terrible incident.
Our strict policies prohibit content or links to content that incites violence, and after careful review, we have removed the channel in question."
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-53141759
Order of Nine Angles: What is this obscure Nazi Satanist group?
The group lionises the Nazi era and dates its calendar from the birth of Adolf Hitler, but its supernatural belief system goes beyond anything normally associated with right-wing extremism.
Its short-term goal is to undermine what it caricatures as a decadent Judeo-Christian society, with an emphasis placed on real-world acts, the aim being a new imperial civilization based a cruel mixture of Social Darwinism, Satanism, and Fascism.
Adherents are encouraged to secretly infiltrate organisations such as the military or Christian churches in order to destabilise them from within.
Those who progress through the ONA's hierarchical ranks are required to undertake various tasks, including forming their own small groups to prove their leadership abilities, with the result that a decentralised network of associated bodies exists throughout various countries.
There is a total rejection of ethics and some key texts even discuss ritual sacrifice, both symbolic and actual.
Figures such as the British murderer Ian Brady are celebrated, being viewed as people who have operated outside normal moral boundaries - the transgression of which is a constant theme for the group.
One small US-based associate body - which has its own publishing house - was banned from mainstream social media last year. Its members had posed at the sites of various notorious rapes and murders, celebrating the perpetrators in the process.
Some followers also express enthusiasm for Islamist jihadist violence.
All this real-world activity is supposed to have a supernatural effect, opening up a gateway into the world for evil energies.
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-tyne-50397477
Durhamteen neo-Nazi became 'living dead'
The youngest person to be convicted of planning a terrorist attack in the UK identified potential targets in his hometown, began drafting a "guerrilla warfare" manual and tried to obtain a chemical used in terrorist bombings. But the case also focused on the radicalisation process itself, hearing the 16-year-old's preparations for an attack involved a deliberate effort to dehumanise himself and become like the "living dead".
The teenager chronicled his regression in a journal, writing "at one point or another I can look back and see if I was any different." Aged 14, he noted: "I wasn't always a fascist, my red pilling process was slower than most", adding that less than two years earlier he advocated "punk rock ideals and Marxism".
The trial heard much about his ideology: an amalgam of neo-Nazism, Satanism and misanthropy, allied to the belief that a collapse of civilisation should be "accelerated" through acts of violence and criminality.
He was first interviewed by police in autumn 2017, when his school reported a Twitter account he used to express support for the outlawed British neo-Nazi group National Action and pose for a photo with ex-English Defence League leader, Tommy Robinson.
The boy, who cannot be identified because of his age, promised to close the profile and spent time with the government de-radicalisation scheme, Prevent. But, rather than moderating his behaviour, he set out to immerse himself in extreme right-wing literature and online networks.
His immersion came at a time of exceptional depravity. National Action had been banned in 2016, but generated several small British spin-offs, some of which sought to imitate the militant American group, Atomwaffen Division.
The origins of this network were in an online neo-Nazi forum, but by the time it closed in 2017 fascists from around the world were already migrating to new platforms. These digital spaces promote an increasingly berserk world view that proclaims hatred of all, worships a pantheon of "saints" comprising various terrorists and murderers, and demands a commitment to the destruction of society through so-called "accelerationism".
Online channels can gain thousands of followers, all using a shared vocabulary and set of references, although there are disputes over people's ideological commitment or supernatural beliefs, in which Adolf Hitler is often regarded as a divinity.
Central influences include the American neo-Nazi James Mason, who has been convicted of indecent images offences involving a child, and several individuals associated with the occult organisation Order of Nine Angles - described by the prosecution as the "most prominent and recognisable link between Satanism and the extreme right".
The result is a culture in which deviancy and criminality are encouraged - sexual violence and paedophilia are constant themes - with anything justified as long as it is thought to destabilise society and defy what is characterised as slavish morality.
>Durham teen neo-Nazi became 'living dead'
The Durham teenager absorbed these ideas, reading any recommended books and discussing them in his journal, gradually following the logic of his ideology towards a planned attack. In October 2018, he wrote that earlier phases of his political activities, such as debating with others, had "accomplished nothing" and merely got him into trouble at school.
"And now here I am an accelerationist," he added.
The boy actively sought to alter himself in line with the texts he read, including the instruction "shed empathy" on a list of things to do. He adopted an online pseudonym, speaking constantly with other neo-Nazis, telling a forum that his Satanic belief system involved programming oneself to lose any feelings of guilt, becoming the living dead in the process.
"I believe there is primal enjoyment to be had in sadism," he wrote in his journal, stating: "How wonderful it is to be an amoral individual".
He searched for synagogues around the UK, wrote a list of local places in Durham "worth attacking", collected explosives manuals, and tried to secure a dangerous chemical from a fellow extremist in the USA.
When the boy was arrested outside his home in March, detectives found a coded note in his pocket, saying: "Killing is probably easier than your paranoid mind thinks. You're just not used to it. Most were caught because they got sloppy."
At trial, the boy denied being a neo-Nazi, saying his writings were an extremist "alter ego" created in order to shock others and find a sense of belonging online, ultimately generated by his feelings of social isolation. He told jurors his political beliefs were "centre right" and that he had a poster on his bedroom wall signed by Nigel Farage.
Prosecutors said the boy was lying to the jury about the fake "persona" and that his actions were not confined to diaries or the internet. They originally alleged that he sexually touched a child as part of his preparations for an attack, saying it was a deliberate "desensitisation technique", although claims about his sexual conduct were ruled inadmissible during pre-trial hearings.
According to police, eight terrorist plots inspired by right-wing ideologies have been stopped since March 2017. They say there is a "spectrum" of such ideologies that have the potential to generate violence, with the variant finally adopted by the Durham defendant regarded as perhaps the most extreme of all.
He is now the fourth teenager convicted of terrorism offences in the UK over the past year in which the same set of influences - accelerationism and Satanism - have been central.
One of the many troubling aspects of this case is that a child traversed the full spectrum of right-wing extremism before he had even left school.
Screenshot taken from The Quietus, probably originally from a chan forum. This is the real Satanic conspiracy, not the QAnon or SRA bullshit.
>Prosecutors said the boy was lying to the jury about the fake "persona" and that his actions were not confined to diaries or the internet. They originally alleged that he sexually touched a child as part of his preparations for an attack, saying it was a deliberate "desensitisation technique", although claims about his sexual conduct were ruled inadmissible during pre-trial hearings.
>https://twitter.com/JohnBasham/status/1517336275052867584
non-news apparatus and its members will be jettisoned like CNN+ in the coming days
About 350 of the 755 staff that worked for CNNplus will be laid off (with average 6 month severance).
https://twitter.com/brianstelter/status/1517489598708002816
Obama: "Right now, just like politics itself, just like our public lives, social media has a grimness to it. We’re so fatalistic about the steady stream of bile and vitriol that’s on there, but it doesn’t have to be that way…"
https://barackobama.medium.com/my-remarks-on-disinformation-at-stanford-7d7af7ba28af