AUSTRIA WANTS TO BAN ONLINE ANONYMITY, AND URGES THE WORLD TO FOLLOW IN ITS FOOTSTEPS

Convinced that Mark Zuckerberg doesn't quite yet have enough user data, Austria is now considering a new law that would require large internet platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to register their users, effectively banning anonymity on social media sites. The new law would be targeted at depriving "those behind hate posts of anonymity," according to The Local.

Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said: "Unfortunately there have been an increasing number of clear violations, denigrations and humiliations online in the past under the cover of anonymity. That's why we need a framework for more responsibility online."

But isn't the anonymous denigration and humiliation of others a founding principle of the internet, and part of what makes it great?

The law, if passed, would go into effect in 2020 and would make it mandatory for users of popular social media sites to register their users. The platforms would have flexibility on how they register their users, but Austria seeks to give its authorities access to a user's identity in the event of "hate postings or on suspicion of other laws being broken".

The report didn't say what, exactly, qualified as a "hate posting".

Gernot Bluemel, minister in charge of EU affairs, art, culture and media said: "The online space should not be a space without laws." He continued, saying that Austria aimed to set a precedent for other countries in the matter.

In Austria, the law would have to be approved by both MPs and the European Commission to ensure that it is in line with EU guidelines that stipulate that member states cannot regulate a platform provider more strictly than its country of origin. The law would only apply to internet platforms with a reach of more than 100,000 users or a turnover of more than 500,000 Euros in Austria. It would also apply to platforms that get more than 50,000 Euros in state aid.

Opposition parties claim such a law would restrict online freedom and hand over even more data to giants like Facebook, whose track record with user privacy is spotty, to say the least. Earlier this year, French President Emmanuel Macron earlier this year caused controversy by suggesting a similar law.

So next time you're traveling through Austria and thinking about leaving that snarky comment on a YouTube video about the Green New Deal or new vegan steak recipes, think twice.

https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-04-13/austria-wants-ban-online-anonymity-and-urges-world-follow-its-footsteps

>Austria seeks to give its authorities access to a user's identity in the event of "hate postings or on suspicion of other laws being broken".

They can't see how this could backfire??

This is a slippery slope.

Turkish Lira Tumbles On Soaring Unemployment, "Absolute Shitshow" Investor Meeting

The collapse in the Turkish lira is accelerating this morning, with the USDTRY rising above 5.80 for the first time since last October and CDS pushing to September highs, as the Turkish economy continues to slide ever deeper into recession, with the country on Monday reporting that a whopping 366,000 people became unemployed in the last month, sending the country's jobless rate to the highest level in a decade.

With Ankara trapped, unwilling to let the lira devalue on fears of capital outflows even as inflation surges while the economy is urgently in need of a weaker currency, unemployment rose far more than forecast, rising to 14.7% in January - the highest since 2009…

… from 13.5% a month earlier, according to Turkstat data; the number of people without jobs has reached 4.7 million people, with youth unemployment jumping to 26.7%, the highest on record.

As Bloomberg summarizes "the severity of the job losses despite a last-ditch spending blitz by the government underscores the economic challenges facing Turkey after it entered its first recession in a decade following a currency rout last year that touched off inflation."

The most recent dismal economic data comes at a time when Erdogan's undisputed control over Turkey appears to be slipping following the recent local elections, where many of the municipalities won by the opposition from the ruling party were those where unemployment is running in double digits, official data show. As such, the political headache for the "executive president" is only set to grow as the country finds itself deeper and deeper in what is rapidly developing as a full-blown economic depression.

Meanwhile, investors were also concerned by ongoing speculation that the ruling AKP will challenge the Istanbul election outcome which saw Turkey's most important city flip control to the opposition, after Erdogan’s candidate lost the mayoral race in Turkey’s largest city to Ekrem Imamoglu, a blow for Islamists who had controlled Istanbul since 1994. “We are going to ask for fresh elections in Istanbul by using our right to make an extraordinary objection,” said Ali Ihsan Yavuz, a deputy head of the AKP.

Erdogan’s refusal to concede defeat in Turkey’s commercial hub has been condemned by political opponents as an attack on Turkey’s democratic foundations. Among the vocal critics of the AKP’s reaction to losses at the ballot box was Mustafa Sonmez, an economist known for opposing the government’s policies.

Sonmez was detained on Sunday and later released after being questioned largely over his tweets over his tweets following the vote, according to his lawyer, Husniye Aydin. In his latest posts on Twitter, Sonmez criticized authorities for not recognizing the opposition’s candidate as the winner of Istanbul’s mayoral race.

Making matters worse for Lira bulls, there is little hope for any near-term turnaround: “The rise in unemployment will continue - albeit at a slowing pace,” said Muammer Komurcuoglu, an Istanbul-based economist at IS Investment. “A sharp monthly deterioration in job creation continues to take place across all the sub-sectors. We are seeing very clearly the impact of the economic slowdown on unemployment.”

But beside the collapsing Turkish economy, which was to be largely expected following last summer's financial crisis, what has mostly spooked investors is that even as Turkey rolled out a recapitalization plan for state banks, the program unveiled by Treasury & Finance Minister Berat Albayrak last week has underwhelmed investors.

In fact, as Axios reports, Turkish Finance Minister Berat Albayrak - Erdogan's son-in-law who replaced 2 highly respected ministers, despite having virtually no qualifications - held a closed-door meeting with hundreds of investors during the IMF-World Bank meetings in Washington last week, "and some who attended called it the worst they've ever had with a high-ranking government official."

"It was an absolute shit show," one emerging market fund manager who attended the meeting told Axios. "I've literally never seen someone from an administration that unprepared," another investor said.

https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-04-15/turkish-lira-tumbles-soaring-unemployment-absolute-shitshow-investor-meeting

This appears to have huge implications for Asia Minor… When countries (with leaders such as Erdogen) experience this kind of economic collapse it usually creates the perfect storm for war.

Hillary Clinton jabs Mnuchin, IRS chief on Tax Day over Trump returns

Hillary Clinton used Tax Day to take a jab at Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig over their refusal to release President Trump’s tax returns.

“Millions of Americans will put tax checks in the mail today. Meanwhile, the secretary of the treasury and head of the IRS continue to refuse to turn over Trump's tax returns to Congress for reasons even they can't clearly articulate,” the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee and former secretary of State tweeted Monday.

House Ways & Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal (D-Mass.) had requested Trump’s tax returns by April 10, but the Treasury Department missed that deadline.

Mnuchin said at the time that the department was discussing the issue with the Justice Department "to ensure that our response is fully consistent with the law and the Constitution.” Mnuchin has said he would supervise the Treasury’s review "to ensure that taxpayer protections and applicable laws are scrupulously observed, consistent with my statutory responsibilities."

Neal later imposed a new deadline of April 23, telling Rettig "none of the concerns raised can legitimately be used to deny the committee's request."

Trump broke with tradition among presidents and presidential candidates and declined to release his returns, citing an ongoing IRS audit.

Last weekend, acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney said Democrats would “never” see Trump’s tax returns and said the issue had already been litigated in the 2016 presidential election.

https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/438900-hillary-clinton-jabs-mnuchin-head-of-the-irs-on-tax-day

'Tradition' is usually a method of control… or at least is has been in 'the church'. Not a fan of using tradition as a means to an end.

AS U.S. WITHDRAWS, CIA DIRECTOR HASPEL VISITS AFGHANISTAN

Just as the U.S. armed forces are stepping out of Afghanistian, the CIA is stepping in. CIA director Gina Haspel visited the Central Asian country where the U.S. forces have been fighting for 18 years.

Her mission: maintaining or even expanding the U.S. intelligence presence there.

Haspel met with Afghan government officials including President Ashraf Ghani and the country’s intelligence chief, Masoom Stanekzai, according to sources familiar with the visit.

Haspel’s visit shows how hard it is to disengage from U.S. military interventions, even when the president favors it. The same dynamic is at work in Syria, where Trump’s withdrawal order has been modified to exempt a 400 (or is it 1,000) soldier contingent.

As in Syria, the Afghan withdrawal orders have not been fully executed.

… the timeline for the US military withdrawal from Afghanistan, which Trump repeatedly promised during his presidential campaign, remains unclear. Despite expectations that a drawdown would have begun by now, US contractors for the Defense Department have continued to see their contracts renewed this year.

Why build up the CIA? As CNN dutifully reports.

It’s also a national security priority to collect intelligence on terrorist groups operating in the area, including ISIS’s regional offshoot, especially along the Afghan-Pakistani border.

https://www.blacklistednews.com/article/72154/as-us-withdraws-cia-director-haspel-visits.html

Since she is our gal, this has the appearance of evidence collecting imo.

Industrial policy row masks deeper German struggle over post-Merkel era

BERLIN (Reuters) - After a brief ceasefire, Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats are fighting among themselves again over the future shape and leadership of their party as the chancellor stage-manages her exit as German leader.

The battle, ostensibly over a new industrial strategy led by Economy Minister Peter Altmaier, is symptomatic of a deeper struggle in the party over its future and has broken a truce agreed in December after a divisive leadership contest.

At stake are both the direction the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) takes as it starts to chart a course for the post-Merkel era, and the prospects of Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer - the new party leader and Merkel’s protege.

The debate pits supporters of a more interventionist industrial policy like Altmaier against CDU traditionalists who seek to limit the state’s role to creating the right legal framework for competition to flourish. They see this approach, known as “ordo-liberalism”, as key to Germany’s postwar economic revival.

Altmaier was forced on Friday to dismiss reports his job was under threat from Friedrich Merz, who narrowly lost out to Kramp-Karrenbauer in December’s run-off vote to decide the CDU leadership.

“This standoff is clearly about the future of the CDU,” said Carsten Nickel at Teneo Intelligence, a consultancy.

“Under Merkel, the party has focused on the new urban middle classes. The looming end of that era seems to be reinvigorating the more traditional parts of the CDU’s base such as small business owners,” added Nickel. “Merz is their hero.”

Altmaier, a close Merkel ally and formerly her chief of staff, annoyed the CDU’s free-market-loving base in February with plans for a more defensive industrial strategy that could see Berlin buy stakes in companies to prevent foreign takeovers.

His policy pivot was driven by concerns about Chinese firms acquiring German know-how, but by riling CDU traditionalists it has challenged Kramp-Karrenbauer to define her economic stance.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-politics-analysis/industrial-policy-row-masks-deeper-german-struggle-over-post-merkel-era-idUSKCN1RR1DZ

UK PM May says no-deal Brexit planning continues - spokesman

LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Theresa May has said the government will continue to plan for the possibility of a no-deal Brexit, her spokesman said on Monday.

May made the comment in an internal note to staff.

The European Union last week delayed Brexit until the end of October, averting, for now at least, the risk of an abrupt British departure from the bloc which investors fear would hurt the economy.

May’s spokesman also told reporters on Monday that the prime minister was not thinking about calling an early national election as a way to break the Brexit impasse in parliament.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-eu-may/uk-pm-may-says-no-deal-brexit-planning-continues-spokesman-idUSKCN1RR0YQ

Freaking May… The EU only wants the British monetary contribution.

CAIR-MN to protest President Trump, Omar Becomes the Victim

The Minnesota chapter of the Council of Islamic Relations will hold a peaceful protest in Burnsville, Minnesota today while the President speaks to the crowd. They stand with Omar.

Minnesota Democrat Ilhan Omar claims that the President’s tweet blasting her comments about 9/11 has led to an increase in death threats against her. With Omar, an accomplished liar, it’s best to see the evidence before latching onto that claim.

The congresswoman recently told a CAIR audience that on 9/11, “some people did something,” and then went on to portray the real problem as the so-called backlash against Muslims.

THE PRESIDENT WAS BRILLIANT SO THEY MADE HER A VICTIM

The President saw her desecration and offense for what it was and gave the perfect response. What the President did was to brilliantly criticize her, using her own words. That’s why Democrats and the CAIR operatives have to belittle it. They will quarter no criticism and Omar must now be raised up to victim status.

“We will never forget,” was originally used to reference the Holocaust, which Omar minimizes as well.

Democrats and CAIR are now out in full force to make Omar the victim.

DIABOLICAL ISLAMOPHOBIA

Stereotyping Muslims for the actions of one faction of Islam is wrong — it’s xenophobia. Islamophobia is different and most Americans don’t know the difference. Islamophobia attempts to make every criticism of Islam, mainly the radical aspects of it, unlawful.

That is what Omar did with her tweet. She made criticism of her the offense and painted herself as an innocent victim. It’s the exact same thing she did by desecrating 9/11 and elevating backlash against Muslims, what little there was.

As Muslim anti-CAIR activist Dr. Ahmed said during a recent TV interview, radical Islamists like to equate Islamophobia with anti-Semitism and that is “diabolical.” [That is what Omar likes to do — conflate dissimilar things to make a lie palatable.]

Islamophobia is used to silence people, women throughout the world. It is unIslamic to not question Islam, Dr. Ahmed says.

https://www.independentsentinel.com/cair-mn-to-protest-president-trump-omar-becomes-the-victim/

>Islamophobia is used to silence people, women throughout the world. It is unIslamic to not question Islam, Dr. Ahmed says.

Do you feel it? The current has shifted and division is becoming a repulsive flavor to consume. Kek

>>6185343

>>6184953 ← Better for the eyes :)

Warren unveils 2020 plan to stop drilling on public lands

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), a 2020 Democratic hopeful, unveiled an ambitious proposal Monday aimed at protecting public lands and rolling back many of President Trump's environmental policies.

Warren included in her proposal, published on Medium, plans to immediately halt drilling offshore and on publicly owned lands, as well as restoring the original boundary lines for two national monuments shrunk under Trump.

Warren championed the goals as a way to “preserve wild, natural places for future generations.”

“We must not allow corporations to pillage our public lands and leave taxpayers to clean up the mess. All of us — local communities and tribes, hunters and anglers, ranchers and weekend backpackers — must work together to manage and protect our shared heritage,” Warren wrote.

The first step of her plan would be to place a moratorium on any new fossil fuel extraction on public lands or offshore, as a way to show a commitment to fighting climate change.

A US Geological Survey study released last fall found that public-land drilling contributes a quarter of all greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. Under Trump, large tracts of public land have been auctioned off, often at low prices. The administration also released in December a plan for lease sales in Alaska’s Arctic – a plan mandated by law through Congress. The plan could open up drilling as early as this summer.

Looking offshore, the Trump administration is currently considering ways to expand offshore drilling on the Atlantic coast, and is in the midst of working out ways to begin seismic testing for oil deposits.

“It is wrong to prioritize corporate profits over the health and safety of our local communities. That’s why on my first day as president, I will sign an executive order that says no more drilling — a total moratorium on all new fossil fuel leases, including for drilling offshore and on public lands,” Warren pledged.

“America’s public lands belong to all of us. We should start acting like it — expanding access, ending fossil fuel extraction, leveraging them as part of the climate solution, and preserving and improving them for our children and grandchildren,” Warren wrote.

https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/438905-elizabeth-warren-unveils-2020-plan-to-stop-drilling-on-public-lands

Now there's a winning platform… kek