Silicon Valley venture capital blowing up the US defense industry
“I’m a propagandist, I’ll twist the truth, I’ll put forward only my version of it if I think that’s going to propagandize people to believe what I need them to believe.” – Palmer Luckey
Read More »
Ali Riaz to lead commission on constitutional reforms
The government yesterday named Professor Ali Riaz as head of the Constitutional Reform Commission, replacing Supreme Court lawyer Shahdeen Malik.
…
Prof Yunus announced the formation of six reform commissions in his address to the nation on September 11.
They were formed to reform the judiciary, the election system, the administration, the police, the Anti-Corruption Commission, and the constitution. Prof Yunus also named the chiefs of the commissions.
…
Ali Riaz, a Bangladeshi-American, is a distinguished professor of politics and government at Illinois State University, US. He was the chair of the Department of Politics between 2007 and 2017.
He is a nonresident senior fellow of the Atlantic Council and the president of the American Institute of Bangladesh Studies.
Related:
Atlantic Council, American Institute of Bangladesh Studies, BBC World Service, Claflin University (South Carolina), Illinois State University, ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute (Singapore), University of Hawai’i (East-West Center), University of Lincoln (U.K.), V-Dem Institute (funders), Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (2023 donors), Testified at U.S. Congress in 2013, 2015, and the US Commission on International Religious Freedom in 2008.
See Page 2 for more:
The government-funded research project’s mysterious removal of Azov’s profile was followed by a State Department decision to allow the controversial right-wing unit to receive U.S. military aid.
Neo-Nazi Azov Battalion profile quietly removed from Stanford extremist group list
Previously:
US Lifts Ban on Arming and Training Ukraine’s Neo-Nazi Azov Brigade
Biden Admin Awards Over $4 Million In Grants To Programs That Target “Misinformation”
The State Department has awarded the following five grants since September 1:
An $18,000 grant to the Albanian-based non-governmental organization (NGO) the Institute for Democracy, Media, and Culture* to ensure a “whole-of-society response to cyber incidents and misinformation.” The associated program began on September 1, 2023.
A $14,500 grant to Paraguay’s American Cultural Center [Centro Cultural Paraguayo Americano] that will be used to implement workshops that “seek to combat misinformation and promote responsible digital citizenship.” The associated program began on September 1, 2023.
A $15,000 grant to the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences at Udayana University to “raise digital literacy among selected amcors communities, journalists, and social media influencers to combat misinformation, pre-2024 general election.” The associated program is due to start on October 1, 2023.
A $50,000 grant to New York University to complete the implementation of a speaker series that supports “countering misinformation.” The associated program is due to start on October 1, 2023.
A $50,000 grant to the non-profit Digital Rights Nepal*** “to create a sustainable network of youth to promote digital rights, safer internet use and a collective resilience towards misinformation and disinformation.” The associated program is due to start on October 2, 2023.
***Digital rights are the new Internet Freedom (think Arab Spring).
Skeptical Notes:
Read More »President Joe Biden’s administration approved a $5 million grant for a university program that would help journalists who have been subject to “misinformation-driven harassment campaigns.”
Millions to Go to Journalists Targeted in ‘Harassment Campaigns’
Related:
[2022] Poynter seeks newsrooms to participate in pilot project fighting online harassment
Congress wants climate change strategies from the Biden administration. One research option looks dark.
White House floats research on blocking sun’s rays to slow global warming
Related:
Supercomputer Will Help Decide whether to Block the Sun
If the warmongering psychopaths keep egging on Russia, we won’t have to worry about climate change!
In the absence of official scrutiny of Washington’s spending spree on Ukraine, The Grayzone conducted an independent audit of US funding for the country. We discovered a series of wasteful, highly unusual expenditures the Biden administration has yet to explain.
All aboard the gravy train: an independent audit of US funding for Ukraine
Threats to international peace and security – Security Council, 9364th meeting
We’ve certainly been talking a lot about the “AI Doomers” who insist that AI is all too likely to destroy humanity. However, even people who aren’t fully on board with the existential threat of AI do often say that, at the very least, it’s going to destroy jobs for most people, potentially creating huge problems. For years now, people have been arguing for universal basic income, in large part, because they think that automation and AI will take away everyone’s jobs. I mean, it was a core plank of Andrew Yang’s silly run for President.
Studies Suggest That Rather Than Killing Jobs, AI Could Revive The Middle Class
Related:
[2017] “Another kick in the teeth”: a top economist on how trade with China helped elect Trump
David Autor believes both these things to be true: one, that Donald Trump’s diagnosis of trade with China as the source of woe for countless American workers was both accurate and a crucial part of his appeal on his march to the White House. And two, that Trump’s plan to help those workers by cracking down on trade is likely to backfire.
US government-funded Frontline PBS recently published a video regarding alleged Russian “war crimes” from early 2022.
Despite over half a year to gather evidence, the video report categorically fails to prove the Russian massacres of Ukrainian civilians.
References:
US-Funded Media Fails to Produce Evidence of Russian “War Crimes” (Odysee) via The New Atlas
Senate Passes $280 Billion Industrial Policy Bill Meant to Counter China
The CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 passed in a vote of 63-33, with 17 Republicans voting in favor. The over 1,000-page legislation includes $52.7 billion for direct funding for the construction and expansion of semiconductor manufacturing and $24 billion for tax incentives and other purposes.
The bill will authorize roughly $200 billion in science and technology research funding that will be spread across several government agencies over the next five years. The largest recipient of the research funds will be the National Science Foundation, which will receive $81 billion.
Related:
Third, the CHIPS Act actually has provisions designed specifically to restrict investments in China. These so-called “guardrails” require that companies taking federal dollars for American projects must also agree not to invest in state-of-the-art technology in China—not just with the federal dollars, with any dollars. Good-faith critics have raised fair concerns that these guardrails should be broader, tougher, and firmer. But any guardrails at all represent unprecedented restrictions on what U.S. companies can do in the People’s Republic. It’s one thing to say an ideal bill would hurt China even more; it’s quite another to try and claim that less-than-perfect restrictions count as “help.”
Pelosi’s Husband Dumped Up to $5M of Tech Stock Right Before Senate Passed CHIPS
Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 
You must be logged in to post a comment.