I was making $64/hr with one dependent, 150k in student loans w/ wild interest rates, 1 bedroom 1 bath rent, car payment on a Honda, 1 pet. I wasn't being frugal, yes, but literally was only saving like $3000 a year.
This was at, what I felt, was a class traitor job, so I left. Still struggling to find a full time job in my field that does not turn me into a class traitor 
Even if I were to have doubled my savings, that's still only $500 savings a month on a 125k salary. Shit is fucking wild out here.
Even when there is no prospect whatsoever of their being elected, the workers must put up their own candidates in order to preserve their independence, to count their forces, and to bring before the public their revolutionary attitude and party standpoint.
The single biggest lie Donald Trump has exposed is that this is a functional democracy
Its a country oppressed by a small group of it’s citizens
Donald Trump will return this country to it’s owners
I think it was in New York, so just a continuation of ‘they’re killing your pets’
Some of them will probably be on YouTube for free
Final Fantasy is a 1987 role-playing video game developed and published by Square.
I want game manuals back
A top Netanyahu aide was among those arrested and investigated over leaked and falsified documents.
>A mother whose son is being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza has accused Israel's government of “a cynical deception operation that is taken from dark regimes”, after it emerged a government spokesperson had been arrested for allegedly leaking documents that may have undermined a ceasefire and hostage release deal.
>It came after a court in Rishon LeZion said Eli Feldstein and three others were under investigation for feeding stories to European newspapers.
>Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Radio also reported a fifth arrest in connection with the probe, said to be a major in the military's intelligence branch information security department, tasked with preventing and investigating leaks. The Haaretz newspaper said all unnamed suspects were from this unit.
>Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has denied wrongdoing by his staff, but opposition figures and hostages' families have accused his government of sabotaging negotiations.
>The stories, given to Britain’s Jewish Chronicle and Germany’s tabloid Bild, were based on partial or false information and came at a crucial time for hostage negotiations.
>Speaking at a protest in Tel Aviv, Einav Zangauker, whose son Matan has been held by Hamas for over a year, said the stories “supported Netanyahu’s propaganda lies to torpedo the deal".
>The documents claimed Hamas was planning to smuggle Israeli hostages to Egypt - intent on scuppering any proposed ceasefire deal.
>Some commentators say the revelations were politically useful for Netanyahu’s hardline position on the talks, which have made almost no progress.
>Over 100 hostages out of 251 taken by Hamas on 7 October 2023 remain unaccounted for.
>After the stories were published in September, the IDF launched an inquiry to discover the source of the leaks.
>This eventually led to the arrest of Eli Feldstein, along with the three others, whose identities have not been revealed.
>Mr Feldstein had been working as a government spokesperson and was often seen accompanying the prime minister on visits. He had previously worked for the far-right Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, and before that he served as an IDF spokesperson.
>Following news of his arrest, two leading opposition politicians held a news conference.
>Benny Gantz, who until recently was in Netanyahu’s war cabinet, said that if sensitive security information was used for a "political survival campaign”, it would not only be a criminal offence, but "a crime against the nation".
>Speaking at the same event, the leader of the opposition, Yair Lapid, said that if the prime minister knew about the leaks, "he is complicit in one of the most serious security offences” and that if he didn’t know, he is not fit for office.
Let's see ol' Donny wriggle his way out of this one!
No matter what they tell pollsters, there is so much racism and misogyny in America that I'm going with Trump. Especially in places like Pennsylvania and Michigan.
Biden only beat him cause he was just another flavor of white guy.
Gin should never be consumed straight. I love gin but that is not the way.
I must ask you to reconsider your stance on gin
Did it get used as an excuse for a red purge?
Unlike what happened to the chuds, outside of a few perpetrators they're still just living life getting more radical.
I know anecdotes aren’t great evidence for climate change, and there are warm years, but normally I’d start seeing them in like late September! Just saw the first couple flocks today.
Hundreds of ballots damaged in fires that police believe are linked and vehicle involved has reportedly been identified
>Hundreds of early ballots cast for the US presidential election have been burned in two suspected attacks in Washington and Oregon, exacerbating tensions ahead of next Tuesday’s knife-edge contest.
>Firefighters went to the scene after smoke was reported coming from a ballot drop box in the city of Vancouver in Washington state at 6.30am on Monday, according to local media.
>KATU, a local television channel, reported capturing footage of responders releasing a pile of burning ballots to the grounds. The ballots continued to smolder after the flames had been doused.
>Hundreds of ballots were believed to have been inside when smoke was reported billowing from the box, which had last been emptied at 8am on Sunday. KATU reported that only a few of the ballots deposited there after that had been saved.
>The elections auditor for Clark county, the local authority administering the boxes, said voters who had cast their ballots into it after 11am could seek new voting documents at a link on the county’s election web page.
>“There is absolutely zero place in our democracy for political violence or interference against our fellow citizens, election workers, or voting infrastructure … Our right to vote needs to be protected under all circumstances. We can’t yield to intimidation, and we must continue to stand up against unpatriotic acts such as this one,” said local congresswoman Marie Gluesenkamp Perez.
Lol
>She requested law enforcement be in place overnight at all ballot drop boxes in the county until election day, saying: “South-west Washington cannot risk a single vote being lost to arson and political violence.”
>The fire was reported after a similar incident in nearby Portland in Oregon, where police say an incendiary device was set off inside a ballot drop box close to a building hosting the Multnomah county elections division.
>Security staff extinguished the fire before police arrived. The device was deactivated and removed by the local bomb squad.
>The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) warned of ballot drop box destruction in a September memo obtained by Property of the People, a public records watchdog group. The agency said in an intelligence brief that election infrastructure will be seen as an “attractive target for some domestic violent extremists”, with drop boxes as a “soft target” because they’re more accessible.
>Social media posters in forums frequented by extremists have shared ideas for attacked drop boxes, the agency said, including “road flares, fireworks, petroleum fuel, linseed oil and white phosphorous, cement or expanding foam, bleach or other chemicals, and farm machinery”. Other methods could include putting up fake signs to claim a drop box is out of order, putting up decoy drop boxes or putting “timed explosives” into drop boxes. They have also discussed ways to avoid law enforcement detection.
>“Damaged ballot drop boxes could temporarily decrease voting opportunities and accessibility and intimidate voters from casting votes if safety concerns arise in the vicinity of a targeted or damaged ballot drop box,” DHS wrote in the intelligence brief. “Successful ballot drop box destruction could inspire others with related grievances to conduct similar actions.”
>The incidents came days after a US Postal Service mail box containing a small number of ballots was set on fire in Phoenix, Arizona, last Thursday.
>Police arrested a 35-year-old man who they said admitted to the crime while he was in custody. They also said he had told them his actions had not been politically motivated and he had committed the office with the purpose of getting himself arrested.
>The Guardian has reported that far-right election denial groups supporting Donald Trump have been monitoring election drop boxes as part of their activity in the run-up to next week’s poll, when officials are bracing themselves for disruption and challenges to the vote tallies.
What's up with the rate_limit_error I get in the red box at the bottom of my screen sometimes when trying to post an image? It seems pretty inconsistent for when it happens.
Is it related to !dprk-soldier ?
So I found out the other day that he is personally on a board of auditors that legitimately get to decide specific businesses for investigation. He asked me for suggestions the other day. I would love to hear some.
I would love it if people would forget these silly "material conditions" sometimes.
I think exploring your own vision of a better world is really healthy and hearing and discussing others' ideals is educational.
Yes, the world is ass and our pathways to FALGSC are basically nonexistent. I'm not saying people should be living in LaLa Land, but even with the way things are I just think it would be nice to hear people's aspirations! !blob-no-thoughts
So what's your unrealistic, niche, but admirable ideal?
Suspect, with guns and false VIP passes, apprehended by authorities about half-mile from entrance to Coachella rally
Sir, a third assassin has failed
Soon you will be forced to wear super uncomfortable footwear too! Hope your balance is good and you never need to run.
Reports from southern Lebanon suggest that Irish UNIFIL peacekeepers were involved in a tense standoff with the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) on the Lebanese-Israeli border, leading to a brief but intense exchange of fire. The incident took place near the village of Al-Qusayr, a key area patrolled by UNIFIL forces as part of their mandate to monitor the situation.
According to sources on the ground, Israeli forces, conducting operations in the border region, approached a UNIFIL checkpoint manned by Irish peacekeepers, ordering them to vacate the area in anticipation of a wider military engagement against Hezbollah positions. The Irish contingent, fulfilling their UN-mandated mission, refused to abandon their post, citing their duty to maintain peace and protect local civilians.
The situation escalated rapidly when a miscommunication occurred between the two forces, leading to warning shots being fired by the IDF. The Irish peacekeepers, believing they were under attack, returned fire in what officials described as a "controlled defensive response." The exchange, which lasted several minutes, saw light arms fire on both sides but no serious injuries were reported.
UNIFIL headquarters has launched an immediate investigation into the incident. UN officials have emphasized that their peacekeepers remain neutral and that the exchange of fire was an unfortunate misunderstanding in a high-tension environment. Both the Israeli government and the Irish peacekeepers have issued statements downplaying the event, with Israeli military spokespeople calling it a “localized issue” that was “quickly de-escalated.”
https://www.nature.com/articles/438406b
This is from 2005
>China claims to be well on the way towards vaccinating every domestic bird in the country against avian flu. The bold scheme — which would mean inoculating some 14 billion birds — was announced on 15 November and comes in response to outbreaks that animal-health officials say are dangerously widespread. On 16 November, China confirmed its first two human cases of bird flu, one of which was fatal.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8327827/
A new strain developed in 2013 and was essentially eradicated by developing a new vaccine for the birds.
Why aren't we doing so in the US??? We have an effective vaccine!
https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/24155545/bird-flu-vaccines-h5n1-avian-flu-cows
>However, despite seemingly having an effective vaccine in hand, as of late April, the USDA is still not pursuing bird flu vaccination as a disease control strategy. “While USDA is exploring the possibility of developing a poultry H5N1 vaccine to stock and use in an emergency, we are not moving forward with a HPAI vaccination program at this time,”
>The biggest sticking point is around trade. The US exported more than $5 billion in poultry meat and products on average every year for the past three years. The USDA enters into trade agreements with each individual country it trades with, explained Upali Galketi Aratchilage, a senior economist at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Each agreement outlines specific biosafety and production requirements that both countries agree to follow. The USDA said, in an email to Vox, that many of those agreements do not allow bird flu vaccination.
Every single bird that is infected gives the virus another million chances to mutate into something 100x worse than COVID. And we are not doing it because of the fucking cost to GDP.
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov has accused Tesla CEO Elon Musk of “remotely disabling” his Cybertruck, which had been sent to the frontline of Russia’s war in Ukraine.
What a time to be alive
>Kadyrov claimed Thursday that the vehicle, which he said had been outfitted with a machine gun and was “performing well in combat,” had been shut down, adding Friday that he had sent two additional Tesla Cybertrucks to the frontline.
>Since 2016, foreign interference in U.S. elections and civic life has been a major concern, with the U.S. government penalizing foreign actors for spreading "discord and chaos" through propaganda. Despite this stance, the US exhibits a double standard in its propaganda efforts.
>According to Responsible Statecraft, the recently passed HR 1157, the "Countering the PRC Malign Influence Fund," received bipartisan approval (351-36) and would allocate over $1.6 billion to the State Department and USAID to combat Chinese "malign influence" globally. This bill represents a significant increase in federal spending on foreign influence operations.
>The measure funds "independent media and civil society" as well as other information activities in other nations. The Global Engagement Center, which will most certainly play a significant role in enacting the law, spends more than half of its budget on such programs, and USAID, which will also play a leading role, prioritizes funds to foreign media and civil society organizations. HR 1157 would turbocharge these projects.
>In addition, the bill does not require that US government funding for overseas media be made known to those in other nations, thus making it possible that it will support covert anti-Chinese messages, similar to how the US accuses Russia of sponsoring anti-Ukraine messages by US media influencers.
>Responsible Statecraft notes that "malign influence" is a wide description. For example, program funding might be used to promote any attempt to emphasize the "negative impact" of Chinese economic and infrastructural investment in a foreign country. Alternatively, it might sponsor political messaging against Chinese contractors participating in the construction of a port, road, or hospital, as part of Beijing's global Belt and Road Initiative.
>A 2021 "vision document" from the First Special Forces Command at Fort Bragg offers insight into U.S. information operations. It describes a fictional scenario in the African country of Naruvu, where Special Forces discover a Chinese port investment.
>The 8th Psyop Group at Fort Bragg's Information Warfare Center (IWC) collaborates with local and U.S. partners to "discredit Chinese activities," leading to protests and unrest. The combined influence efforts and social media campaigns resulted in the Chinese company abandoning its port project.
>Skepticism towards U.S. and Chinese interference in foreign affairs can undermine genuine opposition to Chinese influence. For instance, U.S. support for Russian opposition in 2011 led to a backlash from Putin, restricting U.S. involvement in Russia.
>The proposed HR 1157 raises concerns that U.S. anti-Chinese propaganda could inadvertently influence American audiences without disclosing its funding sources. Historical examples, like the State Department's Global Engagement Center's actions against critics during the Trump administration, illustrate potential misuse.
>The bipartisan backing for HR 1157 highlights a Washington culture that may ignore the risks of engaging in covert activities similar to those it condemns in other countries.
Also maybe something about contradictions
Any chance we’re doing another debate watch party? I’m unsure how it got setup last time.
Sulvor [he/him, undecided] @hexbear.net The people must learn, one and all, how to use arms, they must belong, one and all, to the militia which is to replace the police and the standing army.
Lenin, A Proletarian Militia, 1917