Moon of Alabama Brecht quote
January 30, 2022

The MoA Week In Review - OT 2022-009

Last week's posts at Moon of Alabama:

> Kiev realised that Berlin and Paris would not insist on it complying with the Minsk agreements. President Zelensky said he didn’t like the Package of Measures, but it was nonetheless important, because it keeps Western sanctions on Russia in place. That’s all there is to it: nothing but crude cynicism. Ukraine realises that it can do anything now.

Vladimir Zelensky and his regime are being used (primarily by the Americans) to escalate tensions and to engage their underlings in Europe, who are playing along with the Americans as they pursue their Russophobic undertakings. The future of Ukraine is not Washington’s main goal in this particular case. It is important for the United States to escalate tensions around the Russian Federation in order to “close” this issue and then “deal with” China, as US political scientists are saying. How do they plan to “close” it? I have no idea. If there are any reasonable political strategists still out there, they must realise that this road leads nowhere. <

---
Other issues:

Iran:

Bought and paid:

'Russiagate':

Use as open thread ...

Posted by b on January 30, 2022 at 14:40 UTC | Permalink

Comments
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The genocide being committed against the Uyghurs is enough evidence for me of China's mal-intent on the world stage.

Posted by: D0ng | Jan 30 2022 14:50 utc | 1

The genocide being committed against the Uyghurs is enough evidence for me of China's mal-intent on the world stage.
Posted by: D0ng | Jan 30 2022 14:50 utc | 1

Just as well there is only one of you then.

Posted by: John Cleary | Jan 30 2022 15:19 utc | 2

ding dong - do you realize where you are? don't make a fool of yourself. not that it matters. you already have. the Uyghur thing has been manufactured by the west to vilify China. not a big fan of any government, but China has lifted billions out of poverty. literally. you might want to go to ZeroHedge ( i am a fan of them ) to find fellow sinobashers.

Posted by: lex talionis | Jan 30 2022 15:20 utc | 3

Biggest story this week has to be the party thrown by truckers in Ottawa. They threw a party and everybody came. It is a national party. Official number from Ontario Provincial Police is 2.3 million showed up. In temps well below zero F. The number of truckers present exceeded number of truckers in Canada. Smaller parties in every city and town across the nation.

With rare and partial exceptions this blog continues to worship at the altar of official information from NYT, WaPo, Atlantic, NPR and so forth. That is over. All the above are telling you absolutely nothing happened in Canada.

For those fixated on ‘foreign affairs”, yes, this will affect NATO. Trudeau is finished. Coward 19.

The covid story has always been about power. Naked state power. Never a medical story. If you want to know anything about anything you will find different media. No one watches CNN. Literally no Canadian is watching CBC. No one but state functionaries.

Posted by: oldhippie | Jan 30 2022 15:27 utc | 4

Re: Responsible Statecraft article on China and Russia relationship

The fact is that China is happy to stay in the background as others take the brunt of the US' economic (and other) forms of hostilities.

I am sure Chinese leaders were thrilled that Biden is so focused on Ukraine now as opposed to Taiwan.

Note that I'm not saying China is like Erdogan/Turkey - a partner of convenience only and utterly unreliable.

What I am saying is that China has consistently and carefully stuck to the background.

Whether it is to continue growing its economy and enrich itself via trade to the US and Europe, to operate relatively unimpeded in SE Asia, Africa and elsewhere, to grow its technological and military capabilities or some combination thereof - impossible to say unless you're Central Committee.

Posted by: c1ue | Jan 30 2022 15:27 utc | 5

The genocide being committed against the Uyghurs is enough evidence for me of China's mal-intent on the world stage.

Posted by: D0ng | Jan 30 2022 14:50 utc | 1

The what? 🤡

Radio Free Asia has entered the chat

Posted by: Misotheist | Jan 30 2022 15:33 utc | 6

Cui bono?

LONDON/MOSCOW, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Europe needs to diversify its energy supplies, the head of NATO said on Sunday, as Britain warned it was "highly likely" that Russia, a major natural gas supplier, was looking to invade Ukraine.

Russia has massed some 120,000 troops near its neighbour and demanded the western defence alliance pull back troops and weapons from eastern Europe and bar Ukraine, a former Soviet state, from ever joining the Western defence alliance.

Posted by: librul | Jan 30 2022 15:33 utc | 7

It interesting to note that as Germany pushes back on the USA's "Russia is about to invade" narrative, the US State Department, has come out and said that if Russia invades Ukraine the it will shutdown the Nordstream II pipeline.

Now the US has nothing to do with the Nordstream II pipeline Russia owns it and Germany wants the gas piped in it, on top of this bold assertion by the US State Department, it will after it shuts down the pipeline arrange delivers of far more expensive liquid gas from the US to Europe.

Just who the hell do the American government and it military machine think they are, they are not the world's police force deciding which country can do deals with other countries. The USA is only in Europe to expand its wealth and military bases, I wish EU and European leaders would wake up to this and keep the USA at arms length before its too late and another disastrous war breaks out.


https://consortiumnews.com/2022/01/28/a-war-only-america-britain-seem-to-want/

Posted by: Republicofscotland | Jan 30 2022 15:42 utc | 8

@Republicofscotland | Jan 30 2022 15:42 utc | 7

It interesting to note that as Germany pushes back on the USA's "Russia is about to invade" narrative, the US State Department, has come out and said that if Russia invades Ukraine the it will shutdown the Nordstream II pipeline.
Remember that The idea with NATO is the keep the Americans in, the Russians out and the Germans down. Once you realize that things start to make sense.

Posted by: Norwegian | Jan 30 2022 16:02 utc | 9

Remember that The idea with NATO is the keep the Americans in, the Russians out and the Germans down. Once you realize that things start to make sense.

Posted by: Norwegian | Jan 30 2022 16:02 utc | 8

Yes, it is always about that. We are happy to keep the British down too, but they don't require any coercion. The main thing is to have lots of bases and stuff to piss money away on. Does not matter too much where they are as long as they are not subject to US laws, so there is no accountability.

Posted by: Bemildred | Jan 30 2022 16:11 utc | 10

@Republicofscotland #7
Nord Stream 2 capacity is 55 bcm.
The amount of Russian gas that transited Ukraine in 2020 was 55.5 bcm, and Gazprom paid Ukraine $2 billion to do so.
It is 100% transparent why the US Deep State and politicians are so adamantly against NS2. Even discounting Burisma/Hunter Biden, there is a lot of Ukrainian lobbyist money, directorships etc planted to protect Ukraine's interests.

Note for example the Vindman twins: Alexander was the one who leaked from National Security Council to get Trump in trouble, and who is now busy making the CNN rounds promoting war.
Yevgeny is less visible but is also on the National Security Council still.

There's Alexandra Chalupa: she was the finger pointer at Manafort. She's DNC literally. She's admitted to working with the Ukrainian embassy.

Then we have Douglas Schoen. Worked for (Bill) Clinton's 1996 campaign. Dougie got $40K/month as an unregistered lobbyist by Viktor Pinchuk, an Ukrainian steel magnate. Pinchuk later donated $13.1 million to the Clinton foundation, at which time Schoen did officially register as a Pinchuk paid lobbyist for foreign powers.
Pinchuk wasn't married to the Clintons, either - he paid $150K for a Trump appearance by video at an event in Kiev, but that clearly didn't go anywhere.
These are just 3 of the more public examples of "Ukrainian interference in US politics".

Posted by: c1ue | Jan 30 2022 16:16 utc | 11

The 50th anniversary of Bloody Sunday seems to have passed practically unnoticed in the press.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FKSNbj0XMAAq0m9?format=jpg

Posted by: too scents | Jan 30 2022 16:27 utc | 12

The way to bet:

The Coronavirus Will Surprise Us Again

To understand how the coronavirus keeps evolving into surprising new variants with new mutations, it helps to have some context: The virus’s genome is 30,000 letters long, which means that the number of possible mutation combinations is mind-bogglingly huge. As Jesse Bloom, a virologist at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, told me, that number far, far exceeds the number of atoms in the known universe.

Scientists try to conceptualize these possibilities in a “fitness landscape”—a hyper-dimensional space of peaks and valleys. The higher peaks the coronavirus discovers, the “fitter,” or better at infecting people, it becomes. The more the virus replicates, the more mutations it tries out, the more ground it explores, and the more peaks it may find. To predict what the coronavirus could do next, we would simply need to know the topography of the entire fitness landscape—which, maybe you’ve guessed, we do not. Not at all. Not even close. “We don’t actually know what peaks are out there. We didn’t know the Omicron peak was out there,” says Sarah Otto, an evolutionary biologist at the University of British Columbia. “We can’t really guess what more is possible.”

What we can say is that the overwhelming majority of mutations will make a virus less fit (valleys) or have no effect at all (ridges), but a very small proportion will be peaks. We don’t know how high those peaks are or exactly how frequently they appear. When Delta took over the world, it seemed like it would sweep all other lineages away. “I would have for sure thought the next variant was going to come from Delta,” says Katia Koelle, a biologist at Emory University. Then Omicron popped up on a distant peak, in a direction no one had thought to look.

Posted by: Bemildred | Jan 30 2022 16:32 utc | 13

I briefly crossed paths yesterday with a "trucker party" in my town - far from Ottawa. Many more persons associated or participating with the event than I anticipated seeing, and a far more diverse cross-section of Canadian society than one might have expected as the mainstream media had been presenting a caricature of raving "white supremacists" and "far-right activists".

I don't share the level of alarm over pubic health measures as the people protesting yesterday, but I did question policies which served to actively reduce front-line heath care workers and transport of food and other necessary products (through arbitrary mandates). I also believe the deliberate stoking of division across the population - by politicians and media - over public health policies and related matters, could potentially result in serious long-term damage to the social fabric.

Posted by: jayc | Jan 30 2022 16:45 utc | 14

Bemildred @ 12

The primary variants thus far are alpha, beta, delta, omicron. Alpha was discovered in China. Beta was discovered in South Africa. Delta was discovered in India. Omicron was discovered in South Africa.

Two of four were discovered in South Africa. Neither originated in South Africa. Stored samples predating the SA discoveries have been found in many countries. Why South Africa for two of four?

Because there are two (2) researchers in SA who actually do their job. “Sequencing” in US and most places means get a big pile of money from a sponsor. Buy big laboratory equipment. Rent space and hire staff. Put out press releases. Doing actual work is optional. Staff who know what they are doing are troublemakers.

Stop reading The Atlantic. Just stop.

Posted by: oldhippie | Jan 30 2022 16:55 utc | 15

Posted by: Bemildred | Jan 30 2022 16:32 utc | 12

Well, I can tell you first hand another mutation is taking the lead. 3 months ago I came over omicron variant, along with some of my house folks, identical symptoms with a week apart. Nasty but not serious, extremely contagious.

And few days ago, behold, another one. This time we took even more care, minimal contact with people etc., yet 2 of us got the fewer with few days apart. I am betting my money it is new variant they will "find out" in following months.

Posted by: Abe | Jan 30 2022 16:58 utc | 16

@Abe | Jan 30 2022 16:58 utc | 15

I am betting my money it is new variant they will "find out" in following months.
Rest assured the most competent people are on the case to prevent it.

Posted by: Norwegian | Jan 30 2022 17:17 utc | 17

And few days ago, behold, another one. This time we took even more care, minimal contact with people etc., yet 2 of us got the fewer with few days apart. I am betting my money it is new variant they will "find out" in following months.

Posted by: Abe | Jan 30 2022 16:58 utc | 15

Yep. Sorry for your illness. If they want to stop communicable diseases, they are going to have to stop all the travel and shipping of things back and forth, limit all the commmunication going on; or take the Chinese approach. But in any case, do a much better job of stopping it from communicating itself. So far, I think we have a lot of experts who don't really know what they are talking about, although I am sure they are well educated. The problem is that a lot jobs and retirements depend on things the way the are. In the meantime, protect yourself if you can.

Posted by: Bemildred | Jan 30 2022 17:22 utc | 18

Stop reading The Atlantic. Just stop.

Posted by: oldhippie | Jan 30 2022 16:55 utc | 14

Well, I almost never do.

Posted by: Bemildred | Jan 30 2022 17:24 utc | 19

re: The Atlantic
I used to blog on the Atlantic, including countering Jeffrey Goldberg's wrongful articles on Iran with actual facts. So I was banned from The Atlantic blog (of course).
Jeffrey Goldberg is now the editor of The Atlantic.

Posted by: Don Bacon | Jan 30 2022 17:36 utc | 20

Seems the Five Eyes/NATO are caught with their dicks in their collective hand as Ukraine surrenders to Russia. Now it's time for desperate hail mary false flags to provoke a kinetic response.

As others have said the purpose of the Atlantic treaty is to keep both Russia and Germany under the control of the Imperial Crown. Germany is occupied territory, and Russia close to that end with the strategy of putting nukes on its borders.

The USA's chronic profit-driven failure to improve the human condition risks collateral damage on a biblical scale. The USA-gang is long on vainglory and short on common sense. Perhaps there is comfort in the old adage, "The bigger they are..."

Posted by: gottlieb | Jan 30 2022 17:50 utc | 21

Supposedly Covid test kits will be mailed to anyone who wants one, at a physical address. You probably could guess where the kits come from.
. . .from DOD, Jan 14

iHealth Labs Inc., Sunnyvale, California, was awarded a $1,275,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for COVID-19 rapid antigen tests. Bids were solicited via the internet with 20 received. Work will be performed in Sunnyvale, California, with an estimated completion date of March 14, 2022. American Rescue Plan Act funds awarded in 2022 in the amount of $1,275,000,000 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity (W58P05-22-C-0009). (Awarded Jan. 13, 2022). . .here

. . .actually Sunnyvale is not the origin, that was covered up by the Pentagon

BEIJING, Jan 14 (Reuters) - China's Andon Health Co Ltd (002432.SZ) said on Friday it has signed a contract worth $1.28 billion with the U.S. Army Contracting Command to supply COVID-19 self-test kits. . .here

. . .The origin has been noticed in an Arizona town.

CASA GRANDE — As Pinal County residents begin to receive their at-home COVID test kits from the U.S. government as part of a nationwide testing push, some have noticed the kits have traveled a long way to get to the desert, possibly from across the Pacific Ocean.
“I cannot believe that we, the U.S. government, would be sending Chinese-made test kits to the American public,” said Casa Grande Mayor Craig McFarland, who received his at-home kits earlier this week. McFarland confirmed the brand he’d received was from the Chinese company iHealth.
“This is unbelievable and beyond astounding,” McFarland said in an email to PinalCentral and numerous others, adding that he’d like to see an investigation into where the kits were coming from and why they weren’t produced in the United States. . .here

Posted by: Don Bacon | Jan 30 2022 17:51 utc | 22

Well illness is not such a problem, it is annoying and uncomfortable for us youngish, old ones can have complications from common flu too, so it is them that are risky group.

As far as vaccines and lock downs and all, what they are doing it is so politicized and with nefarious motives it is pointless to talk about it, as it has no medicinal benefits.

Posted by: Abe | Jan 30 2022 17:55 utc | 23

@Posted by: Norwegian | Jan 30 2022 17:17 utc | 16

It takes seriously deranged mentality to keep clown like bojo as a head of state. Not to mention that even most backward African dictatorships laugh at GB because of him.

Posted by: Abe | Jan 30 2022 18:03 utc | 24

I typed ‘Canada” into the search tab of one of the most popular news sites in South Africa www.iol.co.za and this is the selection headlines that come up:

https://www.iol.co.za/search?q=Canada

The silence is deafening!


Posted by: Down South | Jan 30 2022 18:16 utc | 25

the sheer volume of propaganda in the US is staggering. Lie after lie after lie. I think it may be worse than Iraq but maybe that's recency bias. but I know that the Russia has a well developed nuclear deterrent, unlike Iraq, and THAT is not recency bias. the psychopathic mfers are willing to risk a nuclear war to pad their bottom line next quarter.

Posted by: pretzelattack | Jan 30 2022 18:18 utc | 26

Oldhippie @3, the lame stream may have missed it, the twitter world did not. Ending vaccine mandates will put a dent in the pockets of those heavily invested in Acuitas and Arbotus...nudge,nudge. Seems romance has been stormy in the Hallowed Hall, relationships can be that way, eh. Esp if the public find out you hung with dead blackmailers and princely felons on sandy beaches. Didn't take long for Mrs G to bail once it became public the old man flew on naughty jets.

Cheers

Posted by: sean the leprechaun | Jan 30 2022 18:18 utc | 27

Go Canada!

With that I'd like to give the floor to Special Agent Strait McCool of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Posted by: Scotch Bingeington | Jan 30 2022 18:22 utc | 28

China is coming out of its shell a bit in terms of attempting to have global influence and not just sit in the background, but China is still mercantilist and haggling in business deals even with its few allies. IMHO Russia should be careful putting all its eggs in that basket, and I think that’s the only reason Putin puts up with constant lectures and sniping from Germany etc. Russia needs another large market besides China, and only Western Europe fits the bill. America is way too hostile, other countries like India, S Korea, Japan are too small even in aggregate.

Posted by: Sean | Jan 30 2022 18:24 utc | 29

Posted by: oldhippie | Jan 30 2022 16:55 utc | 14

Dore has an interview with Bhattacharya and Kulldorff on his Rumble site that should be listened to.

Posted by: Blue Dotterel | Jan 30 2022 18:24 utc | 30

Another selection of headlines at another popular internet news site in South Africa when I search “Canada”

https://www.news24.com/news24/search?query=Canada

Same story as above.

Posted by: Down South | Jan 30 2022 18:33 utc | 31

Had to share
precision extraordinaire
Top Secret

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7jsVsUNWsM

Posted by: ld | Jan 30 2022 18:37 utc | 32

Scotch Bingeington 27
Video is not available in my country.... Canada

Posted by: ld | Jan 30 2022 18:41 utc | 33

Blue dotterel @ 29

I tried. Lots of 404 and then one where I have to give??? money. Direct link maybe?

Posted by: oldhippie | Jan 30 2022 18:55 utc | 34

As a Canadian I take special offence in b ignoring our historic moment.
This convoy has sparked similar convoys around the globe. Their facebook page has thousands of posts from EVERYWHERE cheering us on. All throughout Europe Africa United States South America and even Israel are following suit and you have zero to say.
this site has sunk to new levels and I am being generous.
At this point for me MOA belongs to the commenters... the ones that don't get banned for wrong think.
I can only hope that Google is putting the screws to you like everyone else.
Very sad my favourite blog

Posted by: ld | Jan 30 2022 19:08 utc | 35

Some people may have heard about Hedy Lamarr and the development of the torpedo.

The truth is a lot more interesting

The Real History of Hedy Lamar and the Torpedo via The History Guy on youtube

Posted by: c1ue | Jan 30 2022 19:09 utc | 36

The purpose of the last month or two of Russia invasion looks to be designed to get sanctions legislation through in UK and US.
https://www.nj.com/politics/2022/01/bill-to-punish-russia-if-it-invades-ukraine-is-on-the-1-yard-line-menendez-says.html
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/uk-plans-to-broaden-scope-of-sanctions-it-could-apply-to-russia-truss/ar-AATii9a?ocid=BingNewsSearch

I guess once those are through there will be some sort of incident so they can be used.

Posted by: Peter AU1 | Jan 30 2022 19:13 utc | 37

omg Bemildred, wtf was that?

either troll / fake or you need a break because that post at 12 is some very stupid shit trying really hard to not sound stupid

Posted by: Rae | Jan 30 2022 19:17 utc | 38

Interesting that while here and at Off-Guardian commenters are discussing the Canadian truckers' convoy, there is nothing on a similar convoy going to Canberra today. Truckers from around Australia started travelling to Canberra as early as Friday. They are bound to arrive in Canberra some time this morning for a massive protest against mandatory vaccinations for truck drivers crossing state boundaries.

Posted by: Jen | Jan 30 2022 19:19 utc | 39

Oldhippie @ 14:

All letters of the Greek alphabet (with the exception of xi, AFAIK) up to and including Omicron have been used to name all known variants making a splash somewhere in the world. The Lambda variant was found in South America (Peru?) last year and briefly made global headlines.

Omicron was found in Sth Africa because a doctor there reported it. The Netherlands later admitted Omicron had been circulating among the Dutch some time (weeks?) before the Sth African doctor's report.

Sth Africa and India were being used to trial COVID-19 vaccines back in 2020. There is a possibility that new variants are arising because of natural selection pressure on the virus coming from the vaccines.

Posted by: Jen | Jan 30 2022 19:31 utc | 40

5 guns west by humorless vaxxers. say it isn't so.

Posted by: Bo Robinson | Jan 30 2022 19:34 utc | 41

Banned by humourless vaxxers.

Posted by: Banned by B | Jan 30 2022 19:35 utc | 42

There is anecdotal evidence that the new variant of Omicron, which is now dominant in Denmark and a few other places, is reinfecting many recent patients of the first Omicron wave, possibly driving the observed reversal in the downward trend of cases in the last weeks in that country as well as Britain.

The anti-lockdown/antimask/antivax crowd, contrary to their image of themselves, have been on the side of the establishment all along, and the establishment is delivering for their return to normal. We now live in a world not with the ever more distant (and meaningless) prospect of COVID-19 herd immunity, but one where it's "normal" that 10% of the population is sickened at any given time and the hospital system no longer functions properly.

The only exception continues to be China, and a few other pockets of sanity around the world.

Posted by: Cesare | Jan 30 2022 19:57 utc | 43

Posted by: oldhippie | Jan 30 2022 18:55 utc | 33
I think b has banned Dore's sites or maybe rumble. Just type Jimmy Dore in your non-Google, perferably DuckDuckGo search engine, and scroll down until you see the Jimmy Dore Show and note that is the rumble one. Once in the site, there will be a list of the recent shows. It is titled "Doctor's Against Fauci", but there is more than that.

Posted by: Blue Dotterel | Jan 30 2022 20:01 utc | 44

Posted by: Cesare | Jan 30 2022 19:57 utc | 42

John Campbell thinks the data is not completely in, but looks as if trending better.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9utczapsmI

By the By, Campbell was "fact checked" by the BBC :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bza1gAc8sOA

Posted by: Blue Dotterel | Jan 30 2022 20:11 utc | 45

878,472 deaths by Covid in US (Hopkins) this morning. (2 years)
416,800 deaths in WWII by the US. (4.5 years)
Vietnam US? 58,220 over many years.

Posted by: Duncan Idaho | Jan 30 2022 20:21 utc | 46

Posted by: oldhippie | Jan 30 2022 15:27 utc | 3

Please post a link your claim of an OPP (Ontario Provincial Police) crowd size estimate of 2.3 million.
That's roughly 6% of the entire population of Canada....lol.
I call BS....at best 5-7 thousand on Saturday and the Sunday morning "prayer meeting" drew less than a 100.
Stop with the BS.....just stop.

Posted by: BS outer | Jan 30 2022 20:30 utc | 47

More from the history guy:

While the Cuban missile crisis was going on, the US actually nearly went to war with China on behalf of India. As I've noted before, China and India have fought each other very recently...

1962: The Sino-Indian conflict by the History Guy on Youtube

I knew about this, but I did not know that Nehru of India had actually requested US military intervention - specifically bombing of Chinese by the US Air Force. China chose to stop the war before this actually happened.

But of course, no mention of this in the history taught to the kiddies.

Posted by: c1ue | Jan 30 2022 20:32 utc | 48

Actually I was wrong:
883,993 deaths in US this morning.
We have 12-52 thousand flu deaths per year.

Posted by: Duncan Idaho | Jan 30 2022 20:33 utc | 49

Posted by: oldhippie | Jan 30 2022 15:27 utc | 3

“ Biggest story this week has to be the party thrown by truckers in Ottawa. They threw a party and everybody came. It is a national party.”

Absolutely true.

Another big story this week is the Woke hysteria against Spotify because Joe Rogan dared to interview Robert Malone. Neil Young and Joni Mitchell are removing their music from the platform in protest. Young and Joni of the 60s would be ashamed of Young and Joni of now.

But here we are with the Left crying for censorship and deplatforming of anything that goes against the Fauci and the big Pharma narrative.

Keep on trucking…

Posted by: DG | Jan 30 2022 20:47 utc | 50

Some time back….mid 2021 I saw something “on the internet” that showed the variants, listed by Greek alphabet and the future date at which they would appear.
I didn’t save, as it was an unsourced “conspiracy theory”, which, of course has become complacency fact.
The variant “xi” was quickly dropped as the association with the Chinese president inflamed the “Chinese wuflu, lab theory” narrative, which “they” (who?) didn’t want pursued.
Since seeing this “leaked timeline”, I have watched the “variants” emerge and regretted not keeping the “nonsense” for reference.
I did save a pic of the genome “family tree” of variants, which shows omnicron is not a “dependent” of the other variants, but is from the original sarscov2 strain.
A (probably poor) analogy: With ivf…a fertilised egg is stored, and 10 generations of a family later, the egg is brought to term. It’s related, but is actually genetically the same as greatx9 grandparents…
I anticipate some quibbles with my attempt at an explanation…. but my point is, the virus family tree I saw showed a very odd anomaly in where omnicron “fits”.

Posted by: Melaleuca | Jan 30 2022 20:53 utc | 51

Keep on trucking…

Posted by: DG | Jan 30 2022 20:47 utc | 49

If you insist, DunGroaning


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9lmCpIzhFo

Posted by: John Cleary | Jan 30 2022 21:10 utc | 52

@Melaleuca #50

You can see that Omicron appears to have separated early, but so also did Delta. I really don't feel competent to interpret the chart but there is a sample from a 61-year-old woman in Guayaquil Ecuador from March of 2020, very early. And that seems to be linked to a sample in Moscow from early February (so infection would have been quite early).

https://nextstrain.org/ncov/gisaid/global

Posted by: Billb | Jan 30 2022 21:13 utc | 53

thanks b... i am curious like Id about whether you might cover this topic of the truckers in canada... it seems noteworthy, however temporary it seems... like DG's saying, which was embodied in a song by the grateful dead as memory serves - Grateful Dead - Truckin'

@ ld | Jan 30 2022 18:37 utc | 31.. that was pretty amazing.. thanks for sharing! another part of me finds it a waste of energy and talent, as i don't think of it as music, so much as something else - military in nature... following orders... falling in line with others, kind of thing...

@ Rae | Jan 30 2022 19:17 utc | 37.. it seems to me bemildreds post @12 was the first in a stream of posts on covid related matters... for those who want to talk about that, it was an opening.. bemildred is a thoughtful poster... i don't understand why people have to speak harshly towards others who are just offering up something that think is worth sharing... that i don't understand..

whatever... keep in truckin'

Posted by: james | Jan 30 2022 21:16 utc | 54

To expand on what Posted by: c1ue | Jan 30 2022 16:16 utc | 10 wrote:

https://thegrayzone.com/2019/11/23/yes-ukraine-interference-in-the-2016-presidential-election/

Posted by: Tom_Q_Collins | Jan 30 2022 21:19 utc | 55

Blue Dotterel @ 43

Had the duck for a while, current version won’t even install until I get a newer computer with vast available memory. Or that is what I can discern. This is purely a black box to me. But thank you.

Used Yandex briefly and liked that a lot. No idea why it was just gone one day and google was back.

I need a 12 year old to make this device work.

Posted by: oldhippie | Jan 30 2022 21:28 utc | 56

John Cleary | Jan 30 2022 21:10 utc | 51

Lol, I remember that classic! Oh the times when the hypnotoob still had me caught unaware.

Have you ever watched the first episodes of Dr Who? Highly interesting themes. Possibly even more interesting is the observation of the contrast with his devoltution into a walking pr mannequin for gchq and their ilk. What the hell happened to the arts?

Your link brings me back to the Thatcher years. Amazing how much worse times have turned. The in yuor face bluntness has become much creepier, sinister and pervasive. An invisible evil.

Posted by: Lurk | Jan 30 2022 21:39 utc | 57

At this point for me MOA belongs to the commenters... the ones that don't get banned for wrong think.
I can only hope that Google is putting the screws to you like everyone else.
Very sad my favourite blog
Posted by: ld | Jan 30 2022 19:08 utc | 34

Oh, we do get banned for wrong think, particularly humor.

Posted by: Ru-Paul Simon LeGree | Jan 30 2022 21:45 utc | 58

oldhippie | Jan 30 2022 15:27 utc | 3
how many health care workers globally have died from the virus?

how many people have quit work over the virus?

how many kids will say "fuck you" to school tomorrow in the US? you won't hear that on the nightly news, that's for damn sure.

but "we got a great big convoy...ain't she a beautiful sight".

YAWN

Posted by: rjb1.5 | Jan 30 2022 21:50 utc | 59

This is a pretty good summary I've been using in conversations with my many propagandized acquaintances online.

https://fair.org/home/what-you-should-really-know-about-ukraine/

Intro:

As tensions began to rise over Ukraine, US media produced a stream of articles attempting to explain the situation with headlines like “Ukraine Explained” (New York Times, 12/8/21) and “What You Need to Know About Tensions Between Ukraine and Russia” (Washington Post, 11/26/21). Sidebars would have notes that tried to provide context for the current headlines. But to truly understand this crisis, you would need to know much more than what these articles offered.

These “explainer” pieces are emblematic of Ukraine coverage in the rest of corporate media, which almost universally gave a pro-Western view of US/Russia relations and the history behind them. Media echoed the point of view of those who believe the US should have an active role in Ukrainian politics and enforce its perspective through military threats.

The official line goes something like this: Russia is challenging NATO and the “international rules-based order” by threatening to invade Ukraine, and the Biden administration needed to deter Russia by providing more security guarantees to the Zelensky government. The official account seizes on Russia’s 2014 annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula as a starting point for US/Russian relations, and as evidence of Putin’s goals of rebuilding Russia’s long-lost empire. [continues at length]

Posted by: Tom_Q_Collins | Jan 30 2022 21:51 utc | 60

I feel like I've missed something. There seems to be a lot of complaining today of people allegedly being banned. I'm not aware of any regular to whom this has happened outside of "vk" for posting the entirety of articles in comments.

What's going on?

Posted by: Tom_Q_Collins | Jan 30 2022 21:53 utc | 61

Posted by: Lurk | Jan 30 2022 21:39 utc | 56

Hello Lurk, glad you enjoyed it.

On Dr Who, absolutely. A little story.

My primary school was near Surrey Lane, and very close to the banks of the Thames. One day our teachers gathered us all up and took us down to the river. And there was Dr Who (William Hartnell) being filmed by huge television cameras as he stood on the muddy bank. So exciting for a seven/eight year old.

It's the sort of memory that stays for life.

And yeah. After the coup to remove Harold Wilson in 1976 they have never looked back. Of course it was Thatcher who won the key victory in 1984/85.

What fools we were to give up all that we had gained. Bribed with our own money.

Posted by: John Cleary | Jan 30 2022 21:55 utc | 62

Very interesting interview with the half-brother of Justin Trudeau

Sit-down with Kyle Kemper, half brother and active critic of Justin Trudeau

Posted by: Norwegian | Jan 30 2022 21:56 utc | 63

DG | Jan 30 2022 20:47 utc | 49
i think Britain dropping all measures against the virus is a bigger story than this gaggle of truckers honking their horns and revving their engines. on a sunday.

but go back to your NASCAR. the loudness of the motors is what matters.

Posted by: rjb1.5 | Jan 30 2022 21:57 utc | 64

@ oldhippie | Jan 30 2022 21:28 utc | 55

Try to not use a "device" if you can. Any old thrift store pc will work with a recent linux. Linux is easier to install than microsoft govware. And it comes without a preinstalled NSAKEY (look it up).

If you manage to find that 12 year old, have him/her install the linux flavor of his/her liking on your pc, with "mozilla firefox" with the "ublock origin" and "decentral eyes" add-ons. Remember those three names.

Or try it yourself. If you manage to create an usb stick with an ubuntu installation image and get the pc to boot from it, all the rest is easy. If that is too difficult, just buy an usb stick and ask the hypothetical 12 year old to perform the above two hard tasks for you. The rest should be a matter of hitting the enter key a few times.

In terms of monetary value, what you pay to the 12 year old (be generous) and for the recycled pc, any new preinstalled store bought box or device will be more than three times more expensive. Don't listen to whatever c1ue claims. He obviously owns wintel stocks.

Posted by: Lurk | Jan 30 2022 21:57 utc | 65

let's make a new graph: let's plot the number of convoys along with the number of covid deaths, per day.

sure sucks to be China. another big fat zero. no trucker convoys. if that ain't a NYT-worthy totalitarianism, what is?

Posted by: rjb1.5 | Jan 30 2022 22:02 utc | 66

@ Tom_Q_Collins | Jan 30 2022 21:53 utc | 60... you haven't missed anything... just the usual drive by complainers showing up, and maybe the odd regular, lol...

Rex Murphy: Should Justin Trudeau be deciding what views are 'acceptable'?

The prime minister's scornful dismissal of the truckers convoy makes me wonder: have those who rule us forgotten the basis of their rule?

Posted by: james | Jan 30 2022 22:03 utc | 67

how can you have 1.4 billion people and not have one of those beautiful, beautiful, freedom-loving convoys?

i wonder if China dumps the overwhelming majority of its annual antibiotic supply into its chickens, cows and pigs.

i talk to kids in China regularly and make sure to tell them as long as they maintain their scientifically-based national policy and national unity, they can just sit and watch the US get sicker and sicker and sicker. and more and more whiny, about freedumb.

Posted by: rjb1.5 | Jan 30 2022 22:07 utc | 68

Posted by: james | Jan 30 2022 22:03 utc | 66

Ah, OK. So the usual lol.

Posted by: Tom_Q_Collins | Jan 30 2022 22:09 utc | 69

rjb1.5

You seem to be very angry.
And you appear to direct your anger at the board as a whole.

Why?

Posted by: John Cleary | Jan 30 2022 22:16 utc | 70

@oldhipper #55
@Lurk #64
Since _NSAKEY was first found in a PC using Windows NT - i.e. pre 2000 - not really sure what Lurk thinks can be accomplished by purchasing a thrift shop PC. I guess you could use an IBM XT, if you can find one that works, but it won't even install a modern browser due to fundamental OS limitations.

These "Microsoft key" conspiracy theorists clearly have never actually worked in the guts of PCs. I've founded a cybersecurity company and have assisted with the arrest of over 300 cyber criminals - point being, I and people I work with/work for me have been working on/with PCs and Macs for decades and have never seen any evidence of this key nonsense.

Among the ways we would see:
Monitoring all internet packets coming in/out of target computers for weeks at a time (looking at malware/viruses/botnets).
Tearing down Bios programs looking for ways to crack them.
Performing forensic preservation and analysis of literally thousands of computers.
Doing fuzzing attacks on Windows versions to see what breaks.
Working with minimized Linux kernels in order to be able to boot from floppy and/or CD.

If you really want to know what NSAKEY does - read this Bruce Scheier overview on NSAKEY and Microsoft crypto suites from 1999

Nor am I very impressed with the suggestion to install Mozilla Firefox.
You should know that the creator of Mozilla, Brendan Eich, left Mozilla and founded Brave - and that Mozilla interoperates with Google in many, many ways.

So if you are paranoid, use Brave. And even then, recognize that there is an exceedingly low likelihood that your computer is not recognizable - which you can test by going to amiunique.org
Amiunique does nothing but look at browser stuff accessible by request by any web site you visit - and compares you with all the other people who have ever visited amiunique to tell you just how "recognizable" you are just from the freely accessible browser settings.

Posted by: c1ue | Jan 30 2022 22:22 utc | 71

ld | 32

Lol, no kidding? Of all countries...

Anyway, it's just a link to "Fugget About It", the cartoon show. Do you know it?

And do you think Trudeau might resign or something like that?

---

rjb1.5 | 65

Well, just go ahead. I'm sure you can tweak the numbers accordingly.

Posted by: Scotch Bingeington | Jan 30 2022 22:32 utc | 72

More weasel words from the Western corporate MSM:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/us-and-allies-debate-the-intelligence-on-how-quickly-putin-will-order-an-invasion-of-ukraine-e2-80-94-or-whether-he-will-at-all/ar-AATh4pb

"U.S. and allies debate the intelligence on how quickly Putin will order an invasion of Ukraine — or whether he will at all"

LOL

Posted by: Tom_Q_Collins | Jan 30 2022 22:41 utc | 73

Vaccines? Polio, I member seeing the results of that as a kid. Never see that now where there are polio vaccines. Somewhat milder bugs like chicken pox, measles and mumps that every school kid got is not seen now. Bugs that used to decimate herds of livestock unseen where the livestock is vaccinated. Even dogs, distemper parvo ect, dog is immune if vaccinated.

Then there's things like the flue shots, people who are susceptible as in serious illness get the shot and are much better for it, but no where is the flue shot mandatory.
We have been able to observe covid for a couple of years now and and certainly the earlier strains caused more serious illness and death than the flu.

It appears only about 20% of any given population is susceptible and a smaller percentage susceptible to serious illness. A number of genes have now been identified in relation to susceptibility.
Health condition, age, genes. Any doc that is actually into health and medicine rather than health fads and politics should be able to tell someone if they are definitely susceptible.
It is in that basis I think covid shots should be a matter of choice, no different to flue shots. No passes or any other bullshit is required for any other vaccination.

Covid is as real as the flu and it has a higher rate of serious illness and death, but it seems it has become a political disease that turns minds to mush.

Posted by: Peter AU1 | Jan 30 2022 22:43 utc | 74

Quite a week, b.

I had trouble with the Ritter link. Here is an archived version

https://archive.is/hiuUI#selection-3101.110-3101.125


There is an interesting Freudian slip:

Moscow has already engaged in so-called Normandy Format talks involving Russia, France, the UK and Ukraine over the ongoing crisis in Donbas.

Still fighting World War II?

Posted by: John Cleary | Jan 30 2022 22:48 utc | 75

On Ebay: a Manila Mint, 1 centavo coin that also reads United States of America.

A reminder that American foreign adventurism is not new

Manila Mint 1 centavo coin

The Manila Mint was the only US Mint authorized outside of the United States, and ran while the US fought the Filipinos who wanted independence until the Phillipines was granted independence from the US in 1946.

Posted by: c1ue | Jan 30 2022 22:48 utc | 76

@ c1ue | Jan 30 2022 22:22 utc | 70... what do you think the of thinkpad? i have a few geek friends that like them.. i have one with linux mint on it and brave browser, lol!

Posted by: james | Jan 30 2022 22:48 utc | 77

Posted by: c1ue | Jan 30 2022 22:22 utc | 70

What are the implications of being unique or not if tested at the link you mention?

Posted by: Paco | Jan 30 2022 22:50 utc | 78

re: c1ue | Jan 30 2022 19:09 utc | 35
"..Some people may have heard about Hedy Lamarr.."
.
.
www.imago-images.com/st/0141799028

Posted by: tucenz | Jan 30 2022 22:55 utc | 79

The only recorded 'international rules-based order' is the UN Charter.

Posted by: chet380 | Jan 30 2022 22:56 utc | 80

Kiev realised that Berlin and Paris would not insist on it complying with the Minsk agreements.


Did we not learn last week that Merkel ran to Putin and begged him to back off from the slaughter?


In my humble opinion Frau Merkel will be rated as the worst since the Nazi regime.


And I'm not at all surprised. Frau Merkel and Nicola Sturgeon have much in common.

Merkel owes everything to Helmut Kohl. He was her mentor. He helped her to the top.
He was a great Chancellor.

Yet when that snake Chirac put all of the dirt into the public domain she was the first to denounce him and to distance herself. And she went much further than necessary.

I have absolutely no doubt that there is much distasteful material to emerge about our Angela.

Posted by: John Cleary | Jan 30 2022 23:03 utc | 81

c1ue
And all

To me anything typed into, videoed, miked on a digital device is in a public, or at the very least, in a government space. I don't think it matters much what system is run, its just a matter of keeping various small time bandits out and free antivirus does that, free cleaners to clean the crap up periodically, but work on the understanding that whatever is connected to the internet, pc phone whatever is in government space. You can keep big brother out or at least some years ago you could but if big brother is quite interested in what you are doing, he will come and and have a look. Mostly a matter of keeping scammers out which is a piece of piss and being fully aware big brother is watching.

Posted by: Peter AU1 | Jan 30 2022 23:06 utc | 82

John Cleary 80
So called leaders of vassal states that would like to see something different walk on a razors edge. Something like a tight rope walker

Posted by: Peter AU1 | Jan 30 2022 23:16 utc | 83

I take your point, Peter.

It is impossible to be well meaning and honest AND successful in our system

Posted by: John Cleary | Jan 30 2022 23:27 utc | 84

This article details the reality of what Hudson has described is happening since 2008, "Beggars can’t be choosers: The ugly reality of the US housing market", and I know oh too many related stories. So, as you watch the big football games with their packed stadiums, know that there're lots of people who could once afford to attend the game but are now just trying to eke by. It's classic muckraking that was once published in the USA but is now almost extinct.

Posted by: karlof1 | Jan 30 2022 23:35 utc | 85

c1ue
And all

To me anything typed into, videoed, miked on a digital device is in a public, or at the very least, in a government space. I don't think it matters much what system is run, its just a matter of keeping various small time bandits out and free antivirus does that, free cleaners to clean the crap up periodically, but work on the understanding that whatever is connected to the internet, pc phone whatever is in government space. You can keep big brother out or at least some years ago you could but if big brother is quite interested in what you are doing, he will come and and have a look. Mostly a matter of keeping scammers out which is a piece of piss and being fully aware big brother is watching.

Posted by: Peter AU1 | Jan 30 2022 23:06 utc | 81

Yes, that is the correct answer.

Running Linux (which I do) almost certainly makes you more "unique" too. The reason I run Linux is to keep the garbage/spam/phishing level down. I run Chromium, private mode, no javascript (with exceptions) most of the time, that helps a lot. But it also makes me more recognizable. Firefox doesn't seem to let you turn javascipt off anymore, but I haven't poked around in the about:config stuff. It is clear from the ads I see that they often think I am my wife, lots of womens clothing.

Posted by: Bemildred | Jan 30 2022 23:35 utc | 86

Blue Dotterel

Found it with the Doctors Against Fauci clue. Thanks.

Computer discussions are just lost on me. Had a nice Mac Air that needed a battery. Whole string of kids said it could be replaced for $50 in fifteen minutes. Fine, take $100 and do it. None ever came through. Computer store said $400. Genius Bar said $600. So this is an iPad of unknown provenance that at least seems durable.

Looking out my back window I see a friends house. Musician. Also learned COBOL and FORTRAN in high school computer club almost 70 years ago. All his devices are homemade from free salvage. Can give demos of the amazing speed of his hardware. Homemade smartphone. Mostly self made programs and operating systems. Can he help a mortal? Nah. Says I need to learn assembler and COBOL first.

Wife needs a new PowerBook for work. Bear in mind all the editing software she needs is Apple only. Repeat editing is done on Apple. Looks like a sticker of $4000 which is a lot to old hippies. Try to find anyone who could help and all the experts fade into the wall mumbling. We tell all the self-proclaimed experts if you think it can be done for 1500 we will give you 2500. No takers.

Anyone watching video away from MSM knows that every city and town in Germany has had massive demos. Some of the smaller towns it looks like more than half the population comes out. Reporting in English form Germany would be nice, don’t expect it here.

Posted by: oldhippie | Jan 30 2022 23:45 utc | 87

Scott Ritter suggests Russia's concern is about its sphere of influence. Russia's concern is, and it has been stated as, the 5-7 minute decision making time to respond to nuclear armed missiles on its border.

"https://warontherocks.com/2022/01/why-intermediate-range-missiles-are-a-focal-point-in-the-ukraine-crisis/

https://warontherocks.com/2022/01/why-intermediate-range-missiles-are-a-focal-point-in-the-ukraine-crisis/

... Reintroducing theater-support missiles to Europe creates the potential for nuclear escalation, primarily based on a target nation’s inability to determine whether an incoming missile is armed with a nuclear warhead. This potential warhead ambiguity can lead to a nation misidentifying a missile in flight, creating a response dilemma that could lead to inadvertent escalation. This issue drives Russian policy. Recently, the Russian military newspaper Red Star invoked this dual-use missile dilemma in a controversial proclamation: “Russia will perceive any ballistic missile launched at its territory as a nuclear attack that warrants a nuclear retaliation.” Senior Russian military officers explained the dilemma in plain language: “there will be no way to determine if an incoming ballistic missile is fitted with a nuclear or a conventional warhead, and so the military will see it as a nuclear attack.” In June 2020, Putin signed an executive order outlining Russia’s basic nuclear strategy. Specifically, he described the four scenarios that would justify nuclear weapon use. In addition to a direct nuclear attack and the identification of an incoming ballistic missile, these included an attack “against critical governmental or military sites” that “undermine nuclear force response action,” and a conventional attack when the “existence of the state is in jeopardy.”

WHY INTERMEDIATE-RANGE MISSILES ARE A FOCAL POINT IN THE UKRAINE CRISIS

BRENNAN DEVERAUX

JANUARY 28, 2022"

Posted by: Linda Wood | Jan 30 2022 23:45 utc | 88

@ John Cleary | Jan 30 2022 23:03 utc | 80

I have absolutely no doubt that there is much distasteful material to emerge about our Angela.

NSA already got this and this from Angela Merkel's phone.

Maybe she's an "Angel of Death" (oblique reference to On Her Majesty's Secret Service - thought you might appreciate that title)


Posted by: Lurk | Jan 30 2022 23:50 utc | 89

Since it's an O/T I was wondering if anyone (or b himself) knows why he hasn't yet branched out to Substack and monetize MoA or at least his own writings aside from the bar. Seems b could attract a large subscriber base like some others have done. It would probably pay pretty well, I'd subscribe.

Posted by: Tom_Q_Collins | Jan 30 2022 23:54 utc | 90

@Jen
After MU, I was expecting NU, but they skipped that before they skipped XI.

Posted by: Platero | Jan 30 2022 23:54 utc | 91

Something of a matrix of issues
1) Create wedge between Russia and Europe to impede growth in trade and political cooperation.
2) Because we need a crisis.
3) Because MIC needs the money.
4) To reinforce NATO treaty.
5) Because Biden needs a distraction.
6) To surround and malign Russia.
7) To pressure Ukraine to return to Minsk accord.
what else...

Then there would be seconary effects.
I imagine Russia is working a matrix also.
Seems to me that NS2 cannot happen barring a real leader in Germany and seems they are fresh out.

I wonder about all the intrigue by US/UK, is it not worrying?
China seems to just want to get past it - the Russia/China partnership seems rather opportunistic.

Posted by: jared | Jan 31 2022 0:04 utc | 92

@ Peter AU1 | Jan 30 2022 23:06 utc | 81

Agree a lot. If Big Brother is after you, all bets are off. But he has a million little brothers and pesky cousins. Why fill up the data mining treasure troves of the digital pirates of tomorrow?

Also c1ue, while I agree that firefox is a steaming pile of bugs, surely microsoft edge (nêe internet explorer), google chrome and apple safari are a much worse choice to entrust any personal data to. It's a matter of petty hackers abusing incidental vulnerabilities versus megacorporations systematically abusing any and all data patterns they can snatch. The petty hackers don't have multi million pr departments, that's another difference.

I am not arguing against brave browser. But in order for common people to get off the corporate browser cool aid, firefox is a good enough first step.

Posted by: Lurk | Jan 31 2022 0:07 utc | 93

The idiot parade in Canada is red neck racist trash. I know some of that ilk from high school. They are the worst of Canada. Racist, dumb rural white people with bad clothes and risible accents. Lots of dumb white suburban trash too. Rob Ford quality people. High school drop outs and open Nazis. These losers are the detritus of neoliberalism, human scum that latches onto fascism because it provides some kind of validation for their otherwise stupid lives of snowmobiles, hockey and crappy coffee culture at Tim Hortons. White cracker losers all around.

Posted by: Canada is lame | Jan 31 2022 0:13 utc | 94

@james #76
In general, the hardware is far less of an issue from a privacy standpoint than the software - including the operating system.
Yes, there have been some bios level viruses found but these have been exclusively nation state.

Posted by: c1ue | Jan 31 2022 0:14 utc | 95

@Paco #77
If your browser profile is unique as shown by amiunique - it means that obfuscation is irrelevant: You can be tracked by any and every web site you visit as a unique individual. Note I am not saying they know WHO you are, but they will know every time you visit, that you are a specific individual.
From that starting point, any and all other data can then be attributed. In real terms, it means your actual identity is trivially forthcoming.

Once enough behavioral data is attributed - it doesn't even matter that you change hardware or use pro grade obfuscation.

That's why anyone who really wants to be obscure - needs to poison the data feed rather than attempt to "prevent" information from getting out. That's where multiple people using a single computer, or multiple people sharing their behavior across all their respective computers, does hinder tracking a lot.

Posted by: c1ue | Jan 31 2022 0:20 utc | 96

Chinese New Year coming up Tuesday! Year of the tiger!!

Posted by: Don Bacon | Jan 31 2022 0:22 utc | 97

Ladies and Gentlemen 31st Jan 0:13 Klaus Schwab entered the chat

Posted by: Jezabeel | Jan 31 2022 0:23 utc | 98

Baghdad Bob's legacy lives on:

US to pressure Russia at UN Security Council over Ukraine as Moscow says it wants 'respectful' ties

The United States continues to ramp up diplomatic and financial pressure on Russia over Ukraine, promising to put Moscow on the defensive at the UN Security Council, as politicians say they are nearing agreement on "the mother of all sanctions".

Apparently, starting the First, Russia is chair of the UNSC, so USA is trying to get a meeting about Ukraine in for Monday.

Posted by: Bemildred | Jan 31 2022 0:29 utc | 99

@Peter AU1 #81
Do you understand how antivirus works?
The core of the process is that every file in your computer is hashed and sent to the AV operator. The AV operator has the capability to also grab the original file.
Does that sound secure to you?

As for viruses, malware and "small time operators": here's my view.
If you don't download a bunch of cracked movies/songs, or browse free/paid porn sites, or meander about the internet to tons of obscure half-assed, low audience web sites, and you are careful about clicking on any hyperlink in email (i.e. always hover and check the source link) - you do not need AV. I've never used it and have been successfully infected twice - and I knew it both times.

Lastly, government. If you have AV - you have already let the government into your computer - see above. There was an NSA contractor that was busted because the AV on his computer flagged the data he had illegally downloaded - which report "somehow" made its way to the government. There are so many things wrong with this story that it isn't even funny. The new OS's - MacOS as well as Windows - are nothing more than behavior and data acquisition vehicles. This is the only aspect which Linux is "superior", but the downside is that any Linux PC user has identified themselves as the 2%? 4%? which the government would look at first if they don't find what they are looking for in the PC/Apple space first.

But again, let's say the government is on your computer.

So what? If the government is on every computer in the English speaking world - they have an enormous amount of (mostly junk) data to sort through.

If they're coming for you directly, they have to follow the law so can't use this data directly (although it can inform their searches).

If they're looking for something that you're doing but not you specifically, they have to first figure out what they're looking for, then start filtering from the tens of millions of other people that are probably doing the same thing.

And we know just how competent these Western governments are at finding things...

The one and ONLY thing you can do to increase your privacy is data poisoning. All the rest is bullshit unless you are a digital forensics expert.

Posted by: c1ue | Jan 31 2022 0:32 utc | 100

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