7/21/2018

a social media tale

chris   zuka is a racist i have blocked on social media.  i don't generally block people.  but this woman is just a nightmare.

after i blocked her, she got 1 of her friends to send me a private message and supposedly i don't like her because she's pretty.

huh?

1st, that wouldn't be an issue if she was gorgeous.  2nd, uh, pretty?  she's not even plain.  she's got bad adult acne.  she keeps posting photos of her when she was a teenager and had anorexia.  she's wearing a bikini and sporting ribs and thinks she was pretty then.

she was not.

and all of those years of her eating disorder?

she has veneers.  and she smiles and shows her gums.  and?  her gums are black from her eating disorder.

the veneers look fake especially on top of her fake gums.

i replied back to chris' friend, 'okay.'

but she really thinks she's beautiful.

and she seems to think that she can do or say anything as a result.

but she keeps making these comments that were troubling to me and racist.

and some 1 she works with - or worked with - latonya? - is stupid and dumb and the comments about this woman - who is african-american - were especially racist.

so i just blocked her.

and we've never met in real life - i live on nantucket and she lives somewhere in texas.  so  i did not think it would be the end of the world.

but apparently, it was.  after i sent 'okay' she had all these other people i.m.  some rude woman named stephany and she was whining about mean people - all i did was block her.  but this crazy woman named stephany is whining about how her mother betrayed her and dumped her off on her dad when she was a kid 'because she didn't love me because i had a huge scar on my face' and how this was worse than that.

excuse me?

your own mother doesn't love you and dumps you and this is worse then my blocking chris?

drama queen.

really, how does my blocking chris equal worse than some mother dumping her disfigured child when the child was 7?

oh.  and stephany? chris had posted about her.  'i'm the blonde girl and stephany's the mexican.'

chris did this whole rant about how some woman at work objected to that which she had attached to a drawing of herself and stephany.

so, chris zuca gets blocked and dropped by me and it's a whole drama. 

in the old days of smail mail, if i'd have dropped her newsletter, it would have been so much simpler. i only friended her because she asked and was 'friends' with 2 other people i had as friends.


let's close with c.i.'s 'Iraq snapshot:'


Friday, July 20, 2018.  More protests today as the silence on Iraq largely continues.


I don't normally do this, but I will openly criticise H.M. Government for not producing any statement on Iraq, the protests have been going on for days now, and we've said not a word. People are dying, and it is clear some form of comment is needed. Even an expression of concern.






There's a great deal of silence about what's taking place in Iraq.  Many governments are silent, western media is largely silent.  The people are attacked and various bodies reveal their true colors.  It's not a 'news' story that the Iraqi government is attacking the Iraqi people.  It's not a 'human rights' issue either so the governments can be silent as well.

What you see is the silence of the corrupt and the guilty.

Remember when Goody Whore used to boast that she delivered "the war and peace report" on DEMOCRACY NOW?

The attacks have gotten one damn headline all week.  That's it.  So much for war and peace and alleged concern for the people of the world.  Those who remember the so-called Arab Spring, if they know reality, are aware that it actually started in Iraq and, long after the media had moved on from Egypt, the protests continued in Iraq.

Iraq got little coverage then.  In part because Nouri al-Maliki was attacking journalists.  Well, he was attacking Iraqi journalists.  There was no excuse for the silence from non-Iraqis.

What is their excuse?  They're slaves to their corporate masters?

That would certainly describe those yapping and howling from the kennels of THE WASHINGTON POST.  They're so indignant daily, those E.J.s and Clarences and Ruths and the lesser names.  But they're not so righteous that they will leave Jeff Bezos' payroll, right?  They care so much about the world.  They care so much about fairness and equality . . . except when it comes to their own pay check.  They want that pay check.  Screw the workers for Amazon -- Jeff certainly does.  Someone needs to knock them off their high horse and remind them that as long as Jeff pays slave wages to Amazon workers and as long as they work for Jeff, they are just as guilty.





Oh all around the marketplace
The buzzing of the flies
The buzzing and the stinging
Divinely barren
And wickedly wise
The killer nails are ringing

Enter the multitudes
In Exxon blue
In radiation rose
Tragedy
Now you tell me
Who you gonna get to do the dirty work
When all the slaves are free?
(Who're you gonna get)

-- "Passion Play (When All The Slaves Are Free)," written by Joni Mitchell, first appears on her NIGHT RIDE HOME


The protests are going on today.

It's been two weeks and the reality is that you have to to non-western media to find out what's happening.  With the exception of NPR, no US outlet has covered the story in a serious manner -- meaning more than a passing glance.  (CNBC did a good report yesterday that we'll note in a moment.  NPR has done several reports.)

AP has a video today.



Non-western outlets and voices have covered the protests repeatedly and powerfully.














The protests are continuing today.

! أحد يروي ملابسات استهداف أحد أصدقائه الخارجين في التي شهدتها ، بحرقة ودموع.

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Tear gas is apparently being used on the protesters above.

AL-ARABIYA reports, "The southern region of Iraq continued to face crisis as hundreds of people from Basra resumed demonstrations on Friday, protesting in front of the of the governorate’s office, demanding the resignation of the governor and the districts directors."



Amnesty International UK just issued (40 minutes ago) the following:


  

Iraq: internet cut to stop protesters posting images of security force attacks

Disabling of internet in south of country occurred shortly before security forces used live ammunition and tear gas against people protesting about unemployment
‘They cut off the internet so they can beat us’ - protester in al-Zubeir
Amnesty International has learned that the Iraqi authorities have disabled internet access shortly before the security forces have attacked - and in some cases killed - people protesting over unemployment and inadequate government services across the south of the country.
In the past week, witnesses in Basra governorate have reported to Amnesty that security forces have been using tear gas and live ammunition against peaceful protesters. At least eight people are reported to have died in the protests so far, according to the Iraqi Health Ministry. Witnesses also reported peaceful protesters being beaten with batons, cables and plastic hoses in violent attempts to disperse them. 
Trusted sources have told Amnesty they believe internet access is being deliberately cut off to prevent protesters and human rights activists from sharing images of the excessive force being used by security forces. One source in Baghdad told Amnesty: 
“When there is no internet, people are being beaten and killed because we can’t upload it. Iraqis now know the value of social media. We need it to raise our voice.”
Protests in Iraq erupted on Sunday 8 July and the internet was cut late at night on Thursday 12 July. Although access was mostly restored on Monday, the signal reportedly remains weak across the country and several social media platforms remain blocked.

One 21-year-old man from al-Zubeir, to the west of Basra city, told Amnesty he joined a demonstration last Sunday to protest against a lack of job opportunities in the area. He said a member of the Iraqi SWAT (Special Weapons and Tactics) forces confronted the protesters and started firing at them before chasing and beating them. He said:

“They wanted to beat everyone and left no-one without injury. One person was shot in the leg and I saw one person bleeding from his eye. As we retreated, one of them [SWAT] grabbed me and one beat me. When I struggled away, he threw the baton at me and broke my arm. They cut off the internet so they can beat us.”
Another human rights activist in Baghdad said: 
“This is now about more than water and electricity - they are breaking us. They are insulting us. Is there anything worse than being taken, beaten and broken, and thrown on the street? We did not call for violence. We are peaceful.”
The Iraqi Ministry of Defence has reported that some 274 security force members have been wounded in the protests.
Lynn Maalouf, Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Deputy Director, said: 
“Deliberately disabling the internet is a sinister restriction to the right to freedom of expression and strongly indicates that the authorities have something to hide. 
“We are closely monitoring the escalating situation across southern Iraq and are extremely worried by reports that security forces are beating, arbitrarily detaining and even opening fire on peaceful protesters.
“The Iraqi authorities must immediately put an end to the torture and other ill-treatment that has included beatings, harassment and intimidation of peaceful protesters by security forces and carry out prompt, independent and impartial investigations to bring all those responsible to justice.”

Arrested and tortured

According to information obtained by Amnesty, two protesters in Baghdad were arrested by armed men in civilian clothes - who said “We are from the authorities” - at around 8pm as they were leaving demonstrations in the city centre. The pair were dragged into a car before being blindfolded and taken to an unknown location. Later, they were beaten, Tasered and interrogated about those who had organised the protests and asked if they belonged to extremist groups. They were later forced to sign papers without being told what they contained, and then released.



Let's note CNBC, Natasha Turak reported on the protests yesterday and noted:

The protests come as a partial recount of Iraq’s election results is underway. The elections, which saw populist Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr win but failed to produce a clear majority for any party, had a record low turnout of 44 percent, reflecting much of the population’s disenchantment with politics.

Southern Iraq has lived in relative stability compared to the country’s northwest, which endured more than four years of brutal Islamic State (IS) occupation until it was largely defeated by Iraqi and coalition forces at the end of 2017. Because of this, regional experts say, residents expect more from their representatives.


The recounts?  The actual counting is done.  They have to be certified and announced.  On Arabic social media, the general feeling is there's no real change in the tallies or that would be announced already.

Earlier this week, ,Ammar al-Hakim -- who?  He has too many affiliations.  He's heading Wisdom -- a new grouping.  He's one of the National Alliance leaders (the press has called him the leader and we've repeated it here to get angry e-mails from others insisting their boss is also a leader so we are saying he's "one of") and he was the leader of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq following his father's death in 2009.  He stepped down in 2017.  He's long been a favorite of the CIA.  He's long wanted to be prime minister of Iraq.  Earlier this week, Ammar insisted that the protests demanded that Iraq form a government and do so quickly.

Currently, Hayder al-Abadi is prime minister until a new prime minister is named.  However, Iraq has no president.  Fuad Masum has stepped down from his post.  There is question as to how much standing the Parliament has currently.  The new Parliament has yet to convene.

So it's Hayder.  And his Cabinet.  That he keeps meeting with as they plan how to 'deal with' the protesters.

Hayder's also been attempting to sway Massoud Barzani to allign with him (Barzani heads the KDP -- the political party that got the most votes in the KRG).  Former prime minister and forever thug Nouri al-Maliki is also trying to woo Barzani.  Nouri's bravado is amazing considering the long history of bad blood between the two.  (Which doesn't mean Barzani won't team with Nouri.  He might be able to forgive the threats Nouri made on him -- arrest among others -- when Barzani gave asylum to Iraqi Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi.)

While Ammar insists that the government must form immediately to quell the protests (not sure how announcing a new government does that, but okay), Shi'ite cleric, movement leader and big winner in the May 12th elections Moqtada al-Sadr feels differently.

-Sadr calls for delay in formation of government as he backs protests sweeping south




Samer al-Atrush (TELEGRAPH OF LONDON) reports:

It was not immediately clear whether Sadr's comments amount to his bloc calling off the talks after he wrote on Twitter that factions "have to suspend all political dialogues for forming coalitions and until they meet protesters’ rightful demands".
The protests may be used by Sadr, who had backed previous demonstrations against the government, to gain an upper hand in the negotiations after the May 12 election marred by allegations of fraud. The talks have dragged on since, making little headway.



The following community sites -- plus PACIFICA EVENING NEWS -- updated:












  • 7/19/2018

    iraq

    so they finished re-counting ballots in iraq.

    what did it accomplish?

    nothing but delays.  the country still has no government.

    after the recount is official, the iraqi parliament will hold its `1st real meeting.

    the article i linked to tells you they will nominate someone to be prime minister and then, 30 days later, that will be that.

    is that how it works?

    not according to the country's constitution.

    once named prime minister designate, you have 30 days to form your government.

    not a partial government.

    if you can't, per the constitution, the parliament names some 1 else.

    of course all rules were broken for thug nouri al-mliki.

    he was allowed to break the rules in november and december of 2010, for example.

    so does the law even matter in iraq anymore?

    apparently not - look at how prime minister hayder al-abadi has used the military to crush the protesters. 

    innocent civilians.  attacked by the thugs our government has trained.

    outrageous.

    let's close with c.i.'s 'Iraq snapshot:'

    Thursday, July 19, 2018.  Protests continue in Iraq.  As the US media remains uninterested, let's remember what happened last time the US media ignored attacks on protesters in Iraq.


    In Iraq, the protests continue.  The protesters are still greeted with violence from the government that claims to represent them.  This despite the support for the protesters from Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani and Shi'ite cleric and movement leader Moqtada al-Sadr.

    The government of using armored vehicles and guns to stop the protests and the people who are asking for their simple human rights!


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    Protesting over the lack of jobs, lack of water, lack of electricity and so much more means they are targeted with violence.


    Iraqi people are protesting against the corruption of the government, there is no electricity in most of the cities no public service and over 40% of the young people are unemployed .
     
     



    That's an interesting photo above.  It is even more interesting if you pull back a little.

    This picture speaks volumes
     
     




    The bravery of the two protesters is even more evident if you pull back just a little.


    It's again interesting how the protests in Iraq just do not matter to the United States.



    Dear I hope you’ve seen what’s happening in nowadays.. There is No Rights, Humanity, and no one is watching..
     
     


    The US media largely ignores them.  Whether it's corporate media or beggar media, they find something else to feign interest in.  They are the reason so many have died.  Not just in these protests going on now but in all the earlier protests since 2010.


    Protests in Basra city today.







    Why is Hayder al-Abadi, prime minister of Iraq, deciding to attack the Iraqi people a surprise?

    When Barack Obama installed Hayder al-Abadi in 2014 -- a fact even NPR acknowledged on air (it's MORNING EDITION earlier this year, if you need to look that up) -- it was known that he was Dawa -- Nouri al-Maliki's political party -- and that he was State Of Law (Nouri's political slate).  Barack was removing Nouri (finally) because his persecution had led to the rise of ISIS.  Why did anyone think that Hayder would be any different from thug Nouri?

    He's not.

    For all the people late to the party on ISIS this year, let's note something that they apparently do not know or else forgot.

    Hayder is attacking the protesters.

    Do we remember when Nouri started attacking the protesters?

    Those of us with functioning brains do remember.  What happened was ISIS showed up.  In public.  They showed up on the long highway into Baghdad where Anbar citizens were protesting and being targeted by Nouri.  They showed up and protected the persecuted.

    Nouri's War Crimes made a terrorist group (ISIS) look better by comparison.

    We have the worst government in the world We're living in a country where there are no human rights, no water , no electricity, no jobs ..etc We are suffering poverty in a time we have lots of sources but only the government people and their families are getting it
     
     



    Those valid statements above by Hanaa should be heard and responded to.  Instead, Hayder's attacking the people.

    Hayder's traveling down that same road Nouri did.  He needs to stop or be stopped.  (I'm not referring to murder, I'm referring to the international community speaking frankly and, if he continues this, they cut off aid.)  It's bad right now.


    GRAPHIC: one of the protesters killed by security forces in Basra (I post merely to document them):
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    But if it continues, it's going to get worse just as it did under Nouri.



    the government's action to this situation is: - cutting of the internet service. - shutting down the electricity power in a lot of cities -arresting and killing random people !!
     
     
     



    That main photo above we've noted before.  It's huge on Arabic social media.  Strange that the US media seems unconcerned and doesn't rush to inform Americans what is become a rallying point in the Arabic world.

    Hello world! people are getting shot for demanding water, electricity & other basic human needs in If you wanna show your support please use hashtag
     
     




    Look, over here, I'm waiving my hand and saying "Pay attention!"


    I was doing that when ISIS was rising in Iraq, before terms like "ISIS" were being used.

    I'm not a prophet.  I'm someone with common sense (at least a little).  Anyone with common sense can tell you that things are going to get worse if Hayder's attacks on the protesters continue.That's basic analysis.  I see that, as usual, whenever anything takes place in Iraq, 'analyst' Joel Wing just posts links.  That's because he requires months and months to form any sot of opinion -- and when he does, he's generally wrong.  Like he was about Barzani.  Over and over, Joel stalls and stalls and the events pass him by.  But because he offers conventional wisdom, he's treated as a seer.  He can't see beyond his own toes.



    Night protests begin in Najaf
     
     
    leaked videotape showing the protesters from Al-Shula city being held in disgrace at the Kadhimiya police station
     
     
    protest in the Alshula -baghdad and security forces used live ammunition
     
     



    ISIS never left.  It was not defeated.  People are starting to notice that and insisting it's creeping back (again, it never left and it never was defeated).

    AL BAWABA reports, "At least 10 people were injured in four bombings in Iraq’s oil-rich city of Kirkuk, police sources said on Wednesday. A spokesman of Kirkuk Police, Afsaryav Kamil, told Anadolu Agency that roadside bombs were planted by unknown persons."  THE NEW ARAB adds, "Anadolu news agency reported that four explosives were detonated, including one on the Baghdad road, but made no mention of mortar rounds."

    Because earlier this week, Liz Sly and Mustafa Salim (WASHINGTON POST) noted of Hayder al-Abadi's claims that ISIS has been defeated, "The government declared the Baghdad-Kirkuk road is now safe, and drivers and passengers who take the route say there are new checkpoints every kilometer."














    The following community sites -- plus Jody Watley and Cindy Sheehan -- updated: