Facebook will help Trump by letting political ads contain lies

I rarely use Facebook because of the harm they are doing to our elections. Also, Zuckerberg met with Trump recently. I guess he’ll let Trump’s campaign post lies in return for not breaking Facebook up or some deal like that.

Facebook board member and billionaire investor Peter Thiel has reportedly extended his influence over CEO Mark Zuckerberg and was key in the controversial decision to continue accepting political ads ahead of the 2020 election and to not fact-check them. https://t.co/CTar3SEWNG
— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) December 18, 2019

Republican billionaire Peter Thiel, a member of Facebook's board, has convinced Zuckerberg to stand by his decision to allow politicians to lie in Facebook

Thiel, Zuckberberg and Trump had dinner at the White House in Octoberhttps://t.co/hn2Dn2NGTg
— Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) December 17, 2019

"An explosive new study reveals that political misinformation is running rampant on Facebook as the 2020 election approaches… The study found that most negative misinformation (62%) was about Democrats or liberals…" https://t.co/b5AXLOFYIe
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) November 6, 2019

Think your Thanksgiving was rough? Imagine having to explain to family members that your company isn’t responsible for destroying democracy. Story w/ ⁦@MikeIsaac⁩ on how FB made a chat bot to help their employees get their angry uncle off their back. https://t.co/MiEB46cfVc
— Sheera Frenkel (@sheeraf) December 2, 2019

[Stammering, stumbling] "Uh no; I mean, I don't think that that's …. that's … I think some of the stuff that people talk about or think gets discussed in discussions are not really …. how that works. [Voice speeds up] I also want to respect that it was a private dinner." https://t.co/Lrpayq8fnS
— David Frum (@davidfrum) December 2, 2019

Facebook says that a post from QAnon supporter Danielle Stella, a congressional candidate running against Ilhan Omar, that calls for Omar to be hung "doesn't violate our Community Standards." She was suspended last night on Twitter for the same post. https://t.co/EGs0Jh4JbH pic.twitter.com/mPgU9cYqm7
— Alex Kaplan (@AlKapDC) November 27, 2019

1. The Trump campaign is blanketing Facebook today w/a claim that has been debunked by its official fact-checking partners.

If a non-candidate tried to run this ad it would be taken down

But because Facebook exempts candidates from fact-checking, users are being misinformed pic.twitter.com/1LPSp0zby2
— Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) November 26, 2019

Stunning story that shows how Facebook worked overtime for Trump — crafting digital strategy, creating custom code, and experimenting with different ways to maximize pro-Donald content. https://t.co/1EhbK1js8Z
— Noah Shachtman (@NoahShachtman) November 23, 2019

The top 10 "impeachment" @Facebook posts over the past 24 hours in terms of # of interactions come from:

1. Donald J Trump
2. Fox News
3. Fox News
4. Donald J Trump
5. Fox News
6. Daily Wire
7. Daily Wire
8. Fox News
9. Donald J. Trump
10. Fox News https://t.co/bLyPf9xheN
— Will Ragland (@citizenwillis) November 21, 2019

This is deeply concerning for reasons that have nothing to do Russia or Democratic ad spend https://t.co/NtDXYxnoMe
— Dan Pfeiffer (@danpfeiffer) November 21, 2019

>> @b_fung: "Facebook has become a fertile breeding ground for disinformation about Congress's impeachment inquiry, according to a new report by the civil society group Avaaz." https://t.co/SaOjNC8yUP
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) November 6, 2019

Why does Mark Zuckerberg refuse to hold Donald Trump to the same standards he would a toothpaste company? https://t.co/iymKG4goeE
— Slate (@Slate) October 31, 2019

.⁦@MikeIsaac⁩ obtained a letter signed by hundreds of Facebook employees protesting the company’s decision to allow politicians to lie in ads https://t.co/Juusd4EHL5
— Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) October 28, 2019

my latest—let’s just be honest abt what’s going on ; https://t.co/xDf9qyJrlT
— Eric Boehlert (@EricBoehlert) October 27, 2019

Facebook is deleting pro-vaccine information from health departments and medical providers, while letting anti-vaccine conspiracy theories stay up. https://t.co/GeefeAy4h5
— Caroline Orr (@RVAwonk) October 26, 2019

Facebook lists Breitbart as a “trusted” news source?! https://t.co/PPvmJzlsQ1
— Jennifer Cohn (@jennycohn1) October 25, 2019

Trump judges update 12/18/19

They just keep forcing through conservative judges after having blocked Obama nominees.

The Senate confirmed 13 new judges this week.

Donald Trump has now picked 185 judges:

—133 district court judges
—50 circuit court judges
—2 Supreme Court justices

That’s more than 1/5th of the federal bench.

The new batch fits the trend: young conservatives, mostly 40s/50s.
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) December 20, 2019

While the House has been focused on impeachment, the Senate just advanced TEN of Trump's judges.

Only Dems to vote for LESS THAN HALF:

Mazie Hirono: 0/10
Kirsten Gillibrand: 2/10
Ed Markey: 2/10
Brian Schatz: 3/10
Chuck Schumer: 3/10
Jeff Merkley: 4/10
Ron Wyden: 4/10
— Jonathan "Boo and Vote" Cohn (@JonathanCohn) December 19, 2019

While the rest of Washington focused on impeachment proceedings, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell forced a deal with Democrats to expedite 11 federal district judge nominations https://t.co/zbyyf6dcOi
— CNN (@CNN) December 18, 2019

Why do they support Trump? It’s about the judges. McConnell held seats open for years during the Obama administration, hoping for this opportunity. Democrats need to wise up about the courts as an issue in Presidential/Senate races. https://t.co/t5PP6O82zF
— Joyce Alene (@JoyceWhiteVance) December 18, 2019

Pres. Trump and Senate Majority Leader McConnell have seated a 174 federal judges in just 3 years and they're on track to seat more – shaping the courts for years to come. https://t.co/00YuGvOoiU
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) December 17, 2019

BREAKING: As the House prepares to vote on impeachment this week, @senatemajldr just moved forward on THIRTEEN more of Trump’s judicial nominees, including three who refused to say that #BrownvBoard was correctly decided.

If confirmed by the Senate, they will serve for life. pic.twitter.com/o0QeEIETVh
— Vanita Gupta (@vanitaguptaCR) December 16, 2019

Trump has made the federal courts whiter and more male. Nearly two-thirds of his judicial nominees have been white men, more than twice their share of the U.S. population. Trump has not nominated a single African American appellate judge. https://t.co/82bYnWmmbo
— Kristen Clarke (@KristenClarkeJD) December 16, 2019

Trump tells his Fox town hall that partly thanks to McConnell Obama left him 142 judicial vacancies (104) and that usually you're left 0 and if you get even 1 you're lucky (not even close to true). https://t.co/VGz6lbgnGt pic.twitter.com/Hc8C42bxGr
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) March 5, 2020

Wild Honey – The Beach Boys (1967)

Wild Honey was the Beach Boys album after Smiley Smile which had the singles “Good Vibrations” and “Heroes and Villains”. Wild Honey is less ambitious but still had two great singles – “Wild Honey” and “Darlin'” (although lyrics to “Darlin'” are clichés sometimes). I have also included their cover of Stevie Wonder’s “I Was Made to Love Her”. Carl Wilson has the lead vocal on all three songs and pushes the limits of his voice.

On this day in 1967, the Beach Boys released Wild Honey, their 13th studio album. The low-fi sound included a slightly-detuned piano, which Brian said made it sound “more like a twelve-string guitar, to get a more mellow sound – I loved what it did to the sound of the record.” pic.twitter.com/UnIj436KHR
— Brian Wilson (@BrianWilsonLive) December 18, 2019

Pitchfork on 1967 – Sunshine Tomorrow which includes the first stereo mix of Wild Honey

Today in 1967, The Beach Boys single Wild Honey bw Wind Chimes was released on @CapitolRecords pic.twitter.com/SUCwl0jMPb
— Beach Boys Legacy (@beachboyslegacy) October 18, 2024

Georgia voter suppression

Georgia, North Carolina, Florida, Wisconsin, Arizona, Texas…The list goes on. Wherever Republicans control the legislature, they pass suppression laws aimed at young and minority voters. We will keep fighting in court, but in 2020 #VoteDemocrat. https://t.co/UxeZt0AqEb
— Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) December 14, 2019

Incredible @ajc story measuring the impact of closing polling places in Georgia. "Precinct closures and longer distances likely prevented an estimated 54,000 to 85,000 voters from casting ballots on Election Day last year." https://t.co/wGxxmRSXSK pic.twitter.com/cChend96QI
— Sam Levine (@srl) December 13, 2019

Here’s the thing: poll closures was only ONE limitation for GA voters. This does not account for 4-5 hour lines, rejected absentee ballots, uncured provisional ballots, and faulty voting machines. The election was stolen. Invest in voter protection NOW. https://t.co/7AhuDNX05C
— Hillary Holley (@HillaryHolley4) December 14, 2019

"This election is about who counts in the state." Our Daily episode last year was prescient https://t.co/yIwPmZRfKs
— Steadman™ (@AsteadWesley) December 13, 2019

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp must now answer for why he (as secretary of state) & election board members rigged the 2018 election in ways that targeted low-income people & minorities, in order to deprive them of their right to vote.

A: It guaranteed his win.https://t.co/zvZEhhmOcl
— Wes Jordan✌💙 (@wesley_jordan) December 11, 2019

Wisconsin voter suppression

I won the race for governor by less than 30,000 votes. This move pushed by Republicans to remove 200,000 Wisconsinites from the voter rolls is just another attempt at overriding the will of the people and stifling the democratic process. https://t.co/SQDjdsQ6HW
— Tony Evers (@Tony4WI) December 13, 2019

A right-wing lawsuit triggered a 200,000-voter purge in Wisconsin yesterday. But we still have same-day registration in this state. So now our job is to organize harder than they can suppress. https://t.co/jDF89Xn7Mr
— Ben Wikler (@benwikler) December 14, 2019

State judge orders huge purge of voters in predominantly Democratic areas in Wisconsin. https://t.co/MIy5WpFVR6
— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) December 14, 2019

7% of Wisconsin’s registered voters could now be purged from voter rolls. Milwaukee & Madison account for 14% of state’s registered voters but 23% of purge list. This could have big impact on 2020 election https://t.co/e19GNQurjj
— Ari Berman (@AriBerman) December 13, 2019

Good thread to follow up on my tweet earlier on the WI court case https://t.co/HM8uNNbkGd
— Jonathan Robinson 🤘 (@jon_m_rob) December 14, 2019

another point of view

Covers: Always on My Mind

The most famous version of “Always on My Mind” is by Willie Nelson. It was co-written by Wayne Carson who also wrote “The Letter” which was a hit for the Box Tops.

The effect of climate change on baseball

Climate change has hit the Lone Star State, and the Texas Rangers baseball team is feeling the heat.

⚾️That's why they're ditching their old field for a $1.2 billion air-conditioned stadium https://t.co/5qCfZnTGMf
— Bloomberg Opinion (@bopinion) October 2, 2019

I think Baltimore, where I live, will have this problem eventually. It was sure hot this summer. Rain could be a problem too. You also have to wonder how it affects the players and the game. Doesn’t the ball travel further in hot weather?

I am guessing that the next Baltimore stadium will have a dome (and be in the suburbs).

I think you will see more domed stadiums in the future to counteract the heat and rain.

Could Climate Change Affect the Future of Baseball?

How Will Rising Temperatures Change Baseball?

Whether it’s a change in the baseballs themselves, better analytics or more robust player training, many have speculated about what could be behind the upward trend in MLB home runs.

But new research has raised another potential factor: climate change. https://t.co/m5KEwX63kn
— CNN (@CNN) April 7, 2023

NEW: Baseballs are flying further in a warmer #climate a new study finds. By @KashaPatel https://t.co/EC3ZyCntTl
— Juliet Eilperin (@eilperin) April 7, 2023

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Game Day MLB (@thegamedaymlb)

Covers: Land of 1000 Dances

The original version of “Land of 1000 Dances” was by Chris Kenner in 1962. There are well known covers by Cannibal & the Headhunters and Wilson Pickett.

A version by the Walker Brothers is in the 2021 film Last Night in Soho.

Trump and farmers

Trump has shafted farmers with his trade wars but many support him anyway. Could that have something to do with white nationalism?

Farmers were given $32 billion bail-out just last year largely due to the anti-conservative trade war started and lost by @realDonaldTrump https://t.co/CDs4vjEzzt
— stuart stevens (@stuartpstevens) August 16, 2020

Farmers stick with President Trump over trade: "We've gone this far" https://t.co/NLcUdE7yAx pic.twitter.com/Gsmiy5TpXZ
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) December 7, 2019

Half of the Trump administration’s latest trade-war bailout for farmers went to just a 10th of recipients in the program https://t.co/ldqL7oi8vR
— Catherine Rampell (@crampell) November 30, 2019

South Dakota farmer Chris Dykshorn took his own life, despondent over what the trade war and flooded fields had done to his family's finances. A chilling, gut-wrenching @anniegowen piece that must be read by all. https://t.co/WeowUpeZX8
— Damian Paletta (@damianpaletta) November 9, 2019

Gulp…

“Almost 40% of projected farm profit this year will come from trade aid, disaster assistance, federal subsidies and insurance payments, according to the report, based on Department of Agriculture forecasts. That’s $33 billion of a projected $88 billion in income.” https://t.co/xziDPhxoHl
— Shawn Donnan (@sdonnan) October 30, 2019

Billionaire West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice’s farming company took in $121,398 in soybeans subsidies and $3,602 for corn — despite the fact that the median payments for the federal program designed to aid farmers are $6,438 and $152, respectively.https://t.co/Ab6htatHld
— Axios (@axios) October 18, 2019

Make Brazil Great Again?

Trump administration gives crooked Brazilian meatpacker another taxpayer-funded bailout despite bipartisan outrage https://t.co/IwhCKCOzlv
— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) January 10, 2020

If you're following along at home, conservatives are supporting a huge bailout for farmers, to offset a trade war, to buy off rural voters… https://t.co/qoT7ajUzDc
— Matt Lewis (@mattklewis) January 10, 2020

Update on Trump Judges – 12/13/19

Trump has made a lasting impact on the federal judicial system through his many appointments. McConnell blocked Obama from making appointments which created vacancies for Trump. Some of Trump’s appointments are unqualified but he doesn’t care. I don’t think Trump, who is clearly a criminal (based on payments to women, his foundation, Trump U, emoluments in addition to the Russia/Ukraine stuff), should be appointing judges.

McConnell confirmed as many circuit court judges this week as he did the entire last two years of Obama’s presidency.

It’s no accident that Trump inherited so many vacancies. All part of their plan to stack the courts with lifetime judges who’ll roll back our rights for decades. https://t.co/Xg6DTDpzsb
— Vanita Gupta (@vanitaguptaCR) December 13, 2019

This is as cynical and ugly as it gets. McConnell openly and giddily admits that he embarked on what he calls "the judges project" — deigned to keep federal judgeships vacant under the Democratic president and hold the #stolenseats so they could ONLY be filled by a Republican. https://t.co/2vvqmunPBm
— Joy Reid (@JoyAnnReid) December 13, 2019

The American Bar Association warned that VanDyke was too lazy to be a judge. The ABA's assessment was corroborated internal emails at VanDyke's workplace.

Rather than saying to Trump "can you send us someone who wants to work?" GOP senators attacked the ABA. https://t.co/3e4rIZHak5
— Ian Millhiser (@imillhiser) December 11, 2019

APPALLING: Senate Republicans just confirmed Lawrence VanDyke to the 9th Circuit – Trump’s 50th circuit court judge. Yes, FIFTY.

VanDyke has a TERRIBLE civil rights record and was rated Not Qualified by the ABA. Now he has a lifetime seat on a federal appeals court.

Wow.
— Vanita Gupta (@vanitaguptaCR) December 11, 2019

Devastating piece. Hard to fathom.https://t.co/m1P45LWiHc
— The Mr Sir Luke (@mrlukealexander) December 9, 2019

Trump is getting plenty of Democratic help in confirming these judges — the latest five were confirmed 76-13, 68-21, 88-4, 89-4, 64-29. https://t.co/dw7nchFL5p
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) December 6, 2019

It's like they're racing to place as many far-right wing judges as possible before impeachment lands in the Senate's lap. Never forget the real priority for the GOP: controlling the courts for a generation, so that the demographic & ideological change that's coming won't matter. https://t.co/jUZh2d9MGQ
— Joy Reid (@JoyAnnReid) December 5, 2019

The Senate confirmed EIGHT new federal judges this week, bringing Donald Trump's total to 170.

—120 on district courts
—48 on circuit courts
—2 on Supreme Court

Nearly all are in their 40s or 50s with lifetime appointments and positioned to shape American law for generations.
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) December 5, 2019

Senate Republicans are about to confirm Sarah Pitlyk to a district court in Missouri. She was rated not qualified and has a highly controversial record on reproductive rights. She should not have a lifetime seat on the federal bench. I'll vote against her nomination. #StopPitlyk https://t.co/RwPVN9k02q
— Senator Mazie Hirono (@maziehirono) December 4, 2019

Stunning: Sen. @ChrisCoons asked 11th Circuit pick Brasher for ONE example of a discriminatory voting restriction instituted after SCOTUS gutted the VRA. He said “I have not researched that issue. I have not researched the issue of voting law changes after Shelby County.”

What?!
— Vanita Gupta (@vanitaguptaCR) December 4, 2019

Today the Senate will vote on the nomination of Sarah Pitlyk to serve in a lifetime judgeship. Pitlyk once claimed that fertility treatments and surrogacy have “grave effects on society” and “disrespect motherhood”. She is unfit to serve. The Senate should reject her nomination.
— Ron Wyden (@RonWyden) December 4, 2019

This video is terrifying for many reasons. There's also this: McConnell’s tweet celebrating Trump’s circuit court picks ignores that – nearly 3 years in – Trump STILL hasn’t named a single Black circuit court nominee.

Trump-McConnell whitewashing of federal bench is outrageous. https://t.co/0JnxlcP9Nc
— Vanita Gupta (@vanitaguptaCR) November 25, 2019

It's all about enduring minority rule. @ejdionne puts the pieces together and explains exactly what's at stake. https://t.co/hfC17C5NA1
— David Daley (@davedaley3) November 25, 2019