How the son of a CIA deputy director set out to backpack around the world and to save the planet — but ended up in the Russian army and died in the war in Ukraine
“He Was Forging His Own Hero’s Journey When He Was Tragically Killed in Eastern Europe” (archived)
Tag: Nepal
Are Chinese Soldiers Fighting In Ukraine?
Are Chinese Soldiers Fighting In Ukraine?
Ukraine has not yet even proven the month’s old claim of the presence of North Korean soldiers fighting for Russia on Russian soil. Now they are making the much more provocative claim that Chinese soldiers are fighting for Russia on Ukrainian soil.
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A Socialist, Feminist, and Transgender Analysis of “Sex Work” (2020)
The question of women’s liberation is central to any revolutionary project, and thus so is the question of “sex work.” Esperanza Fonseca’s contribution, although coming from a Maoist political orientation with which we often have differences, [1] makes the stakes of this debate crystal clear, as she combines personal experience, public policy research, and historical materialism to argue that Marxists cannot uphold what she calls “sex-trade-expansionary feminism.”
Content Warning: Descriptions of rape.
…
The right of the subordinated classes of men to buy access to women’s bodies has been used historically to break class solidarity in order to maintain the dominant social relations of the time. This was true in feudal Europe and remains true today: when proletarian and petit bourgeois men get to buy women too, they develop a false consciousness and build solidarity with bourgeois men of their own gender rather than aligning with women of their own class. And because the overthrow of capitalism is only possible by the overthrowing of the bourgeoisie, prostitution serves two great purposes: (1) allows bourgeois men access to a reserve army of women for their pleasure, and (2) prevent class consciousness and thus helps stop the proletariat from organizing as a class.
A Socialist, Feminist, and Transgender Analysis of “Sex Work” (2020)
Negotiating the Tide: The Vital Role of Bilateral Talks between PH & CN in Steering Through the SCS Dispute
The statement of Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro just this week, where he said that entering into bilateral negotiations over the dispute in the South China Sea (SCS) between the Philippines and China will just be playing into China’s playbook, is quite perplexing. Teodoro says bilateral talks with China on the issue over the SCS dispute will only hamper and strangle the Philippines’ rights and position. This is one of the reasons why the Philippines is seeking multilateralism.
Negotiating the Tide: The Vital Role of Bilateral Talks between PH & CN in Steering Through the SCS Dispute
Biden Admin Awards Over $4 Million In Grants To Programs That Target “Misinformation” + Notes
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 »Was Tulsi Gabbard Ever Anti-War?! [no]
Knew the majority, of this, but hadn’t put it all together in one place. New, to me, was her support of the Kurdish militias. I’ll probably duplicate this, onto its own page, where I can add more to it at a later date!
Ex-Dem Tulsi Gabbard Responds When Asked About Possibly Being Trump’s VP
The 42-year-old made an appearance on Fox News’ “Hannity” and admitted her secret ambition to be Trump’s running mate in the 2024 presidential election.
Research Notes:
Read More »Xi, Assad announce China-Syria strategic partnership
Cooperation to help improve livelihood of Syrian people after turmoil
Xi, Assad announce China-Syria strategic partnership
Related:
Leaders of Syria and China announce strategic partnership as part of Asian Games diplomacy
Assad’s visit parallels in some ways that of Russian President Vladimir Putin last year for the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics.
AP trying to draw parallels between Russia-Ukraine and China-Taiwan.
Ukraine’s baby factories rake in record profits amid chaos of war
While average Ukrainians suffer amid NATO’s proxy war against Russia, business is booming for the surrogate baby industry, which requires a steady supply of healthy and financially desperate women willing to lease their wombs to affluent foreigners.
Ukraine’s baby factories rake in record profits amid chaos of war
Related:
Archived: How Ukraine’s Surrogate Mothers Have Survived the War
To Be Updated: USAID is sponsoring YouTube channels
How Democracy Can Win: The Right Way to Counter Autocracy
The most important step the United States can take to counter foreign influence campaigns and disinformation is to help our partners promote media and digital literacy, communicate credibly with their publics, and engage in “pre-bunking”—that is, seeking to inoculate their societies against disinformation before it can spread. In Indonesia, for example, USAID has worked with local partners to develop sophisticated online courses and games that help new social media users identify disinformation and reduce the likelihood that they will share misleading posts and articles.
The United States has also helped Ukraine in its fight against the Kremlin’s propaganda and disinformation. For decades, USAID has worked to enhance the media environment in the country, encouraging reforms that allow greater access to public information and supporting the emergence of strong local media organizations, including the public broadcaster Suspilne. After Russia’s initial invasion of Ukraine in 2014, our work expanded to help the country’s local journalists produce Russian-language programming that could reach into Kremlin-occupied territories, such as Dialogues With Donbas, a YouTube channel that featured honest conversations with Ukrainians about life behind Russian lines. We also helped support the production of the online comedy show Newspalm, which regularly racks up tens of thousands of views as it skewers Putin’s lies. And even before Moscow’s full-scale invasion began in February 2022, we worked with the government of Ukraine to stand up the Center for Strategic Communications, which uses memes [memetic warfare], well-produced digital videos, and social media and Telegram posts to poke holes in Kremlin propaganda.
I still need to look into Newspalm. I’ll update if I find anything. As I don’t know Ukrainian, or Russian, I’m using Google translate for the following information. Note, this is all speculation!
Speculation:
Read More »There’s Something About Tulsi
Interesting information about Tulsi’s connections (it’s a long one)! See the bottom for her connections to other Intelligence Agencies and the WEF. H/T: The Popular Show (they mentioned the Twitter thread, towards the end of the video, but didn’t expound on it).
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Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 
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