Image is of the Cuban flag and the Pride flag on the Havana Health Ministry building.


Inspired by a highly upvoted recommendation by @Commiejones@hexbear.net:

We need to kill the Mega Posting Wars meme. It wasn’t very funny to start with and now I get the feeling some people are taking it way too seriously. Clogging up the news thread with bullshit just to try to out post the trans mega is just dumb and annoying.

The News Megathread is now under trans martial law:

  1. Loving trans people on this site and elsewhere is strictly mandatory.

  2. Posting about the “comment wars” between the trans and news megathreads is now strongly discouraged inside the news megathread. No shame in it - I also recently made jokes about it - but though they were almost always just jokes, it was unrelated to current events and was beginning to feel more like padding the comment count instead of trying to improve the quality of the thread. If you want to boost comments and engagement here, then post articles and analysis!


The COTW (Chemical of the Week) label is designed to spur discussion and debate about a specific chemical every week in order to help the community gain greater understanding of the domestic situation of often-understudied chemicals. If you’ve wanted to talk about the chemical or share your experiences, but have never found a relevant place to do so, now is your chance! However, don’t worry - this is still a general news megathread where you can post about ongoing events from any country.

The Chemicals of the Week are Estrogen and Testosterone! Feel free to chime in with books, essays, longform articles, even stories and anecdotes or rants.

Please check out the HexAtlas!

The bulletins site is here!
The RSS feed is here.
Last week’s thread is here.

Israel-Palestine Conflict

If you have evidence of Israeli crimes and atrocities that you wish to preserve, there is a thread here in which to do so.

Sources on the fighting in Palestine against Israel. In general, CW for footage of battles, explosions, dead people, and so on:

UNRWA daily-ish reports on Israel’s destruction and siege of Gaza and the West Bank.

English-language Palestinian Marxist-Leninist twitter account. Alt here.
English-language twitter account that collates news (and has automated posting when the person running it goes to sleep).
Arab-language twitter account with videos and images of fighting.
English-language (with some Arab retweets) Twitter account based in Lebanon. - Telegram is @IbnRiad.
English-language Palestinian Twitter account which reports on news from the Resistance Axis. - Telegram is @EyesOnSouth.
English-language Twitter account in the same group as the previous two. - Telegram here.

English-language PalestineResist telegram channel.
More telegram channels here for those interested.

Various sources that are covering the Ukraine conflict are also covering the one in Palestine, like Rybar.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

Examples of Ukrainian Nazis and fascists
Examples of racism/euro-centrism during the Russia-Ukraine conflict

Sources:

Defense Politics Asia’s youtube channel and their map. Their youtube channel has substantially diminished in quality but the map is still useful. Moon of Alabama, which tends to have interesting analysis. Avoid the comment section.
Understanding War and the Saker: reactionary sources that have occasional insights on the war.
Alexander Mercouris, who does daily videos on the conflict. While he is a reactionary and surrounds himself with likeminded people, his daily update videos are relatively brainworm-free and good if you don’t want to follow Russian telegram channels to get news. He also co-hosts The Duran, which is more explicitly conservative, racist, sexist, transphobic, anti-communist, etc when guests are invited on, but is just about tolerable when it’s just the two of them if you want a little more analysis.
On the ground: Patrick Lancaster, an independent and very good journalist reporting in the warzone on the separatists’ side.

Unedited videos of Russian/Ukrainian press conferences and speeches.

Pro-Russian Telegram Channels:

Again, CW for anti-LGBT and racist, sexist, etc speech, as well as combat footage.

https://t.me/aleksandr_skif ~ DPR’s former Defense Minister and Colonel in the DPR’s forces. Russian language.
https://t.me/Slavyangrad ~ A few different pro-Russian people gather frequent content for this channel (~100 posts per day), some socialist, but all socially reactionary. If you can only tolerate using one Russian telegram channel, I would recommend this one.
https://t.me/s/levigodman ~ Does daily update posts.
https://t.me/patricklancasternewstoday ~ Patrick Lancaster’s telegram channel.
https://t.me/gonzowarr ~ A big Russian commentator.
https://t.me/rybar ~ One of, if not the, biggest Russian telegram channels focussing on the war out there. Actually quite balanced, maybe even pessimistic about Russia. Produces interesting and useful maps.
https://t.me/epoddubny ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/boris_rozhin ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/mod_russia_en ~ Russian Ministry of Defense. Does daily, if rather bland updates on the number of Ukrainians killed, etc. The figures appear to be approximately accurate; if you want, reduce all numbers by 25% as a ‘propaganda tax’, if you don’t believe them. Does not cover everything, for obvious reasons, and virtually never details Russian losses.
https://t.me/UkraineHumanRightsAbuses ~ Pro-Russian, documents abuses that Ukraine commits.

Pro-Ukraine Telegram Channels:

Almost every Western media outlet.
https://discord.gg/projectowl ~ Pro-Ukrainian OSINT Discord.
https://t.me/ice_inii ~ Alleged Ukrainian account with a rather cynical take on the entire thing.


  • JamesConeZone [they/them]@hexbear.net
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    14 days ago

    From a CNN article about the school shooter

    Gray’s parents’ relationship started out with promise. In July 2011, shortly after he was born, his parents bought a small farm in Barrow County, Georgia, outside of the college town of Athens. They planned to “create a non-profit, therapeutic riding school for local, under-privileged children,” his mother, Marcee Gray, who worked in industrial engineering, later wrote in a LinkedIn post. But those plans were derailed in part because her husband, Colin Gray, had at least three “major” back surgeries, she wrote. The couple, who had three children, later sold the farm in 2019, according to property records.

    Bankrupted by medical debt with no support network. Turned to drugs and fascism. Horrible thinking that universal healthcare could have literally prevented this.

  • MolotovHalfEmpty [he/him]@hexbear.net
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    UK anti-terror police & intelligence services detained journalist Richard Medhurst recently and have now arrested Palestine activist and Gaza linked journalist on terrorism charges.

    She gave the details of her impossible to abide by bail conditions in an interview someone else had to set up as she’s forbidden from travelling, touching any electronic device.

    I’ve had to remove the link entirely. The female journalist in question Sarah Wilkinson. Her Twitter account seems to be being run by a friend or her son now and you can search out the couple of interviews she’s given so far

    Sorry for the rubbish links. Xcancel just 403s for me and none of the four Hexbear recommended YouTube link alternatives work. All either don’t work at all or are not allowing new users / posts. If the links are too tricky or you don’t have time to watch the 30-45min interview here’s the key points.

    • First thing in the morning her home was raised by anti-terror police who wouldn’t identify themselves, some even wearing balaclavas to hide their identities
    • They claimed a warrant exists but would not show it or tell her what was contained in it as anti-terror legislation says they don’t have to
    • She wasn’t allowed to dress, call anyone, or get her medication (she suffers from Crohn’s disease).
    • The tightness of the cuffs caused injuries to her hands but weren’t loosened
    • They ransacked her house and physically restrained her son, including throwing him up against the wall.
    • They confiscated any and all electronic items, phones, and computers, as well as files, address books and more. These are the items that were on the official itemized list they provided her.
    • They also stole money, personal items, and her passport, taking them without listing them.
    • Taking her passport without itemising it guarantees she cannot meet the terms of her bail as she is required to turn it in on a future date. Her bail conditions also stop her applying for a replacement. The penalty for not being able to hand it in is likely to be 5 years in prison without a trial or legal representation.
    • She also cannot travel, including buying any form of train or bus ticket despite living in a rural village, seeming including to her required ‘check ins’ on future dates.
    • They deliberately desecrated her parents’ ashes, spreading them so she couldn’t retrieve them all, and damaged the urn.
    • They loaded her into an unmarked black van, cuffed but unsecured and gave her a rough ride.
    • They deliberately drove 45 minutes in the wrong direction, away from the police station they said they were taking her to. At this point she seriously considered that she might be being kidnapped as they still hadn’t shown her a warrant or verifiable ID and were hiding their identities.
    • While being held, they denied her any medication meaning that she also couldn’t eat, essentially denying her food or drink.
    • They eventually brought her a cup of tea and said she could have her meds as soon as she’d drank it. When she did, they then denied her meds again in an apparent attempt to make her ill.
    • When she demanded to see a doctor they eventually sent in someone they claimed was a nurse. However, she seemed to have little to no medical knowledge, didn’t seem to actually know anything about Crohn’s disease despoite claiming to and couldn’t even spell it when asked to. She did not appear to be a qualified medical professional and wouldn’t give any details of her qualifications.
    • They tried to deny her access to a lawyer, claiming she didn’t have that right until she repeatedly demonstrated that she knew she did under Section 12 of the law. They eventually relented for the interrogation.
    • She gave a no comment interview, but the questions they asked over several hours were apparently very interesting. They were riddled with racist comments and questions that implied Palestinian’s weren’t human, they repeatedly asked her “why she would value Palestinians over people like us” which she took to mean white and/or Zionist.
    • She also says that her interrogators frequently used talking points, language, and tactics that organisations like the IDF and Shin-Bet do.
    • Most notable was their interrogation and demand that she give details of the people in Gaza that she works with via a charity that digs wells and provides water. They wanted names, locations, contact details, phone numbers etc. Naturally she refused as she suspects they would be then given to Israel to use for targeting purposes.
  • MolotovHalfEmpty [he/him]@hexbear.net
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    france-cool France has raided the home of and arrested Imane Maarifi, a French nurse who returned from working in Gaza and has been speaking out at protests and the media about the situation there. She’s supposedly charged with the crime of making public insults in relation to an Israeli investment and real estate fair being held in Paris this weekend.

  • CoolerOpposide [none/use name]@hexbear.net
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    China being better at capitalism than western nations will never not be funny.

    Capitalists simply being incapable of improving their own game as a result of not being able to use a socialist analysis will never not be funny.

    The fact that China’s socialist analysis of capitalist development is to simply throttle the capitalist system where possible before it becomes self-destructive and less efficient will never not be funny.

    The quote “The last capitalist we hang shall be the one who sold us the rope.” is being proven true by China’s path of development every single day, and the fact that capitalists just can’t stop themselves from selling ropes to China will never not be funny.

  • Al_Sham [she/her]@hexbear.net
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    Yemeni journalist writes:

    A commercial ship in the Bab el-Mandeb strait, lists its identification as: “Free Palestine”. Next time they should write “Commander Yahya Sinwar is everyone’s uncle”.

    (twitter link)

  • miz [any, any]@hexbear.net
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    Majority of Israelis think sympathy for Gaza civilians should be censored on social media | The Cradle

    Nearly 60 percent of Israelis believe social media posts showing sympathy for civilians in the Gaza Strip should be restricted, according to a poll published by Haaretz newspaper on 5 September.

    The poll was conducted in March by the Pew Research Center.

    Fifty-nine percent of Israelis “think posts expressing sympathy for civilians in Gaza should be restricted, while 41 percent think posts criticizing the government should be censored,” according to the poll.

    The poll also shows that 92 percent of Israelis believe posts inciting violence should be restricted, 87 percent say posts expressing support for Hamas must be censored, and 72 percent want graphic footage from the war removed.

  • Redcuban1959 [any]@hexbear.net
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    A white beluga, known for being accused of being a “Russian spy”, was found dead on Saturday (31) in Risavika Bay, Norway. Hvaldimir, a combination of the word “hval” (whale in Norwegian) and Vladimir Putin’s name, was found in 2019 wearing a belt marked “Equipment St Petersburg”, which led to speculation about its origin and its use as a Russian spy apparatus.

    WTF?

  • Wertheimer [any]@hexbear.net
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    All Harris supporters are now Russian bots

    “Firstly, (US President Joe) Biden recommended all his supporters support Ms. Harris,” Putin said during a question and answer session at Russia’s Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok. “Here, we are going to do that too, we’re going to support her,” he added, with a wry smile.

    “She laughs so contagiously that it shows that everything is fine with her,” the Russian leader said. “(Former US President Donald) Trump has imposed as many sanctions on Russia as any president has ever imposed before, and if Harris is doing well, perhaps she will refrain from such actions.”

  • FunkyStuff [he/him]@hexbear.net
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    4 day old news
    Muslim voters evenly split between Jill Stein and Kamala Harris, new poll finds
    Link to the actual survey and CAIR report

    A new poll conducted this week shows that the majority of Muslim voters in the United States are evenly split on who they plan to vote for as president in the upcoming November election, with roughly 60 percent planning to choose either third-party candidate Jill Stein or Vice President Kamala Harris.

    The new survey, part of a report published on Thursday by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (Cair), shows that the majority of Muslim-American voters have decided against voting for either Republican candidate Donald Trump or the Democratic candidate, Kamala Harris.

    Twenty-nine percent of those Muslim voters polled said they were planning to cast their votes for Stein, leader of the Green Party who has made ending Israel’s war on Gaza and its occupation of the West Bank a key policy priority.

    “We’re grateful for the strong support of Muslim voters who share with us an ironclad determination to end genocide in Gaza, as well as the endless wars in the Middle East, and the discrimination and injustice faced by our Muslim neighbours, immigrants and refugees,” Stein said in a statement provided to Middle East Eye.

    “We urge all people of conscience to resist the propaganda telling you to hold your nose and vote for genocide. If you vote for genocide, you are actively consenting to it and enabling it. Don’t let them talk you out of your humanity. Stopping genocide is the moral imperative of our time.”

    Another 29 percent said they are planning to vote for Harris, who some Muslims and pro-Palestinians have claimed has been more sympathetic to Palestinians but has so far said she would maintain support for Israel and has rebuffed demands for an arms embargo on Israel.

    The poll also showed that around 11 percent of Muslim voters surveyed are planning to vote for Donald Trump, while four percent are choosing third-party candidate Cornel West and 16 percent are still undecided.

    The survey consisted of responses from more than 1,000 registered Muslim voters and was conducted after the Democratic National Convention in Chicago last week. The survey is part of a larger Cair report chronicling the political attitudes of Muslim voters. This report included an additional survey that polled 2,850 Muslim voters between May and July, prior to Biden dropping out of the race.

    “Our latest survey reveals that American Muslim voters are highly engaged in the upcoming presidential election, open to supporting a diverse range of candidates and political parties, and deeply dissatisfied with the current state of the nation, particularly US support for the war on Gaza,” Cair national director Nihad Awad said in a statement.

    Side note: Quote from the CAIR survey report

    HIGHLIGHTS & IMPLICATIONS

    Strong Stance of Human Rights: Respondents showed strong support for global human rights issues, such as the situation of Rohingya and Uyghur Muslims and the genocide occurring in Gaza. This strong support indicates a high level of awareness and concern for international human rights among the Muslim community in the U.S.

    OPPORTUNITY: Advocacy groups should leverage this support to push for more robust U.S. foreign policies that address human rights abuses globally [emphasis mine]

    Is this a spin to get Muslim outrage over Gaza to feed into more support for Imperialist policy? Does this work out, or is it too transparently cynical?