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FEATURES
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08.02.2025
Activists Brand Tesla Vehicles With 'Swasticar' Stickers
A UK group called Everyone Hates Elon is branding hundreds of Tesla vehicles in London with stickers saying "don't buy swasticars," according to a Novara Media Instagram post.
Newsweek has reached out to Tesla via email, and to Everyone Hates Elon via social media for comment.
Musk, the richest man in the world and a close ally of President Donald Trump, has grown increasingly unpopular in the U.K. after using his platform X to push far-right political movements, and attack elected U.K. politicians. Activists are using the salute Musk made at Trump's inauguration to hit back by trying to taint his brand with a reference to the Third Reich's swastika symbol.
07.02.2025
The Palestine Laboratory - Episode 2
Exposing how Israel's sales of military technology is aiding state control around the world.
In Episode 2 of "The Palestine Laboratory", journalist and author Antony Loewenstein investigates how surveillance and military technology developed by Israel and tested on Palestinians is marketed abroad. He finds out how the latest Israeli technology is being used to monitor refugees and migrants in Greece and along the US-Mexico border.
Loewenstein visits Mexico to explore its use of Israeli spyware and travels to India to find out how a thriving arms trade is fostering close links between the two nations. In South Africa, he uncovers a hidden aspect of the country's history which saw a secret relationship between the apartheid-era government and Israel centred on a clandestine arms trade and shared values.
07.02.2025
Peter Beinart: "Being Jewish After The Destruction Of Gaza"
We speak to Jewish Currents editor-at-large Peter Beinart about his new book, Being Jewish After The Destruction Of Gaza: A Reckoning which is "addressed to my fellow Jews" and criticizes what he characterizes as the increasing privileging of Zionism as a part of Jewish identity. "The Jewish community is structured to basically make the existence of a Jewish state, a state that privileges Jews over Palestinians, sacred, elevat[ing] ethnonationalism - a Jewish state - over Judaism itself," Beinart says. In response, he challenges the erasure of Zionism's explicitly colonial roots and political myths about majoritarian rule, arguing for the acceptance of more critical stances toward the state of Israel within Jewish communities.
06.02.2025
Internet Enshittification: Here Are Some Of The Worst Offenders
Two years ago, a Canadian writer named Cory Doctorow coined the phrase "enshittification" to describe the decay of online platforms. The word immediately set the Internet ablaze, as it captured the growing malaise regarding how almost everything about the web seemed to be getting worse.
"It's my theory explaining how the Internet was colonized by platforms, why all those platforms are degrading so quickly and thoroughly, why it matters, and what we can do about it," Doctorow explained in a follow-up article. "We're all living through a great enshittening, in which the services that matter to us, that we rely on, are turning into giant piles of shit. It's frustrating. It's demoralizing. It's even terrifying."
Doctorow believes there are four basic forces that might constrain companies from getting worse: competition, regulation, self-help, and tech workers. One by one, he says, these constraints have been eroded as large corporations squeeze the Internet and its denizens for dollars.
05.02.2025
Dread Zeppelin: A Song Of Hope (Full Documentary, 2024)
This long-awaited documentary film chronicles the unlikely journey of the '90s cult sensation, Dread Zeppelin, a band known for their revolutionary mashup of Led Zeppelin’s music with a reggae beat, led by the unforgettable 300-pound Elvis impersonator, Tortelvis.
05.02.2025
Muzzle Velocity
Focus is the fundamental substance of democracy. It is particularly the substance of opposition. People largely learn of what the government is doing through the media - be it mainstream media or social media. If you overwhelm the media - if you give it too many places it needs to look, all at once, if you keep it moving from one thing to the next - no coherent opposition can emerge. It is hard to even think coherently.
If you're always consumed by the next outrage, you can't look closely at the last one. The impression of Trump's power remains; the fact that he keeps stepping on rakes is missed. The projection of strength obscures the reality of weakness. Don't believe him.
You could see this a few ways: Is Trump playing a part, making a bet or triggering a crisis? Those are the options. I am not certain he knows the answer. Trump has always been an improviser. But if you take it as calculated, here is the calculation: Perhaps this Supreme Court, stocked with his appointees, gives him powers no peacetime president has ever possessed. Perhaps all of this becomes legal now that he has asserted its legality. It is not impossible to imagine that bet paying off.
But Trump's odds are bad. So what if the bet fails and his arrogations of power are soundly rejected by the courts? Then comes the question of constitutional crisis: Does he ignore the court's ruling? To do that would be to attempt a coup. I wonder if they have the stomach for it.
04.02.2025
Can Anyone Stop President Musk?
Here's a quick recap. While putative President Donald Trump was busy alienating allies through tariffs and wasting water in California - real mad king hours - Musk pushed out the head of the FAA. Then the reports came fast and thick: Federal employees received a "fork in the road" email highly reminiscent of Musk's Twitter ultimatum, encouraging them to resign, sent from an insecure server. A bunch of goons, some of them actual teenagers, reportedly got access to the US Treasury systems (Read-only, reportedly, for now). Longtime civil servants were locked out of the personnel systems that, by the way, house the personal data for government employees. Musk's lackeys are in control of the Office of Personnel Management and the General Services Administration. They've gotten ahold of classified information, and are now shutting down the US Agency for International Development (USAID). Musk said he "spent the weekend feeding USAID into the wood chipper."
Did I get everything? Probably not. For instance, Musk has made statements that he "deleted" a department, but since he's a known liar, that may not be true. Between whatever Musk is posting about on X, the pace at which events are occurring, and the general confusion among government employees, giving a full summation of events is impossible. Perhaps between the time this is published and you read it, there will be more bullshit.
03.02.2025
The Palestine Laboratory - Episode 1
Uncovering how Israel profits from surveillance technologies using occupied Palestinian territories as a testing ground.
Israel punches way above its weight when it comes to arms sales. The 97th country by population, it is the ninth largest arms dealer in the world with a $13bn military-industrial complex.
"Plenty of countries sell weapons," says award-winning journalist Antony Loewenstein, "but what makes Israel's industry unique is the mix of weapons, surveillance technology and architectural techniques that combine to create a comprehensive system for controlling 'difficult' populations and are based on years of experience in Palestine."
03.02.2025
The Trust Fall: Julian Assange
Despite being detained, silenced and hidden from public view in maximum security Belmarsh Prison, multi-award-winning Australian journalist and publisher Julian Assange has become one of the loudest voices for free speech of our times. He has also risked everything to bring truth to light.
The disclosures of WikiLeaks and Assange from 2010 onwards ignited a firestorm of controversy and a relentless ongoing pursuit by the most powerful Empire on the planet.
The Trust Fall: Julian Assange examines the meaning and significance of the insights that WikiLeaks shared with the world, the resulting behaviour of the governments involved, the extraordinary personal risk taken by Assange, and the wider fundamental issues around press freedom that affect all of us and our right to know.
Filmed over two years on three continents and in ten cities, the film features an array of luminaries including Daniel Ellsberg, John Pilger, Tariq Ali and Chris Hedges, with the insights of experts including Jennifer Robinson, Jill Stein, Stefania Maurizi and Nils Melzer, in addition to reflections of Assange's family including Stella Assange, John Shipton and Gabriel Shipton.
Examining the motives of this peace activist and innovator, this astounding, shocking and inspiring film invites viewers to embark on a journey of understanding, where the circumstances are unprecedented, and the destination unexpected.
02.02.2025
Media Roots Radio: Trump II, Gaslighting US Into Fascism
Abby & Robbie Martin discuss the blind-siding intense nature of the first month of Trump's 2nd term in office, the Gaza cease-fire agreement & Elon Musk's brazen Hitler-y display on inauguration day.
01.02.2025
Guerilla Warfare Lessons From Gaza: Why Resistance Survived Genocide
The Palestinian resistance has defied overwhelming military force in Gaza, adapting and surviving despite Israel’s strategy of genocide and starvation. What does this war teach us about asymmetric warfare, military resilience, and the future of anti-colonial resistance? Why has Israel failed to eliminate Palestinian fighters despite its apocalyptic destruction of Gaza? And how has the regional Axis of Resistance, from Yemen to Lebanon, reshaped the battlefield?
31.01.2025
'Everything I Say Leaks' Says Zuckerberg In Leaked Meeting Audio
At an all hands meeting inside Meta Thursday, Mark Zuckerberg did not address Meta's $25 million settlement with Donald Trump that will see the company paying $22 million for the eventual establishment of the Trump Presidential Library. But Zuckerberg did say that he had to be increasingly careful about what he says internally at Meta because "everything I say leaks. And it sucks, right?"
Meta made changes to the question-and-answer section of the company all hands meeting because of the leaks, Zuckerberg said, according to meeting audio obtained by 404 Media.
"I want to be able to be able to talk about stuff openly, but I am also trying to like, well, we're trying to build stuff and create value in the world, not destroy value by talking about stuff that inevitably leaks," he said. So rather than take direct questions, the company used a "poll" system, where questions asked beforehand were voted on so that "main themes" of questions were addressed.
"There are a bunch of things that I think are value-destroying for me to talk about, so I'm not going to talk about those. But I think it'll be good. You all can give us feedback later," he added. "Maybe it's just the nature of running a company at scale, but it's a little bit of a bummer."
30.01.2025
Why Did Israel Deploy Hannibal Directive, Allowing Killing Of Own Citizens?
The Israeli army did deploy its so-called Hannibal Directive, which allows the military to use all necessary force to prevent the capture of soldiers, during the October 7 Hamas-led attacks on Israel, resulting in the loss of both civilian and military lives, an investigation by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz has found.
30.01.2025
Caroline Kennedy Attacks 'Predator' RFK Jr
The daughter of former President John F. Kennedy is speaking out against Health and Human Services Secretary designate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., lambasting her cousin as a "predator" with "dangerous" views on vaccination who is "unqualified to fill" the role.
Former US Ambassador to Australia Caroline Kennedy strongly urged senators in a video message posted on X to reject President Trump's nominee, the day before the first of two high-stakes Senate hearings.
29.01.2025
The Art Of Simple Sabotage
The rascally spies of OSS knew a thing or two about mischief making, especially when it came to undermining America’s enemies in World War II. One of their more imaginative ideas was to train everyday citizens in the art of simple sabotage.
Thus, the Simple Sabotage Field Manual was born.
This previously classified booklet describes ways to train normal people to be purposely annoying telephone operators, dysfunctional train conductors, befuddling middle managers, blundering factory workers, unruly movie theater patrons, and so on.
In other words, teaching people to do their jobs badly.
28.01.2025
Facebook Flags Linux Topics As 'Cybersecurity Threats'
Facebook is banning posts that mention various Linux-related topics, sites, or groups. Some users may also see their accounts locked or limited when posting Linux topics. Major open-source operating system news, reviews, and discussion site DistroWatch is at the center of the controversy, as it seems to be the first to have noticed that Facebook's Community Standards had blackballed it.
A post on the site claims, "Facebook's internal policy makers decided that Linux is malware and labeled groups associated with Linux as being 'cybersecurity threats.' We tried to post some blurb about distrowatch.com on Facebook and can confirm that it was barred with a message citing Community Standards.
DistroWatch says that the Facebook ban took effect on January 19. Readers have reported difficulty posting links to the site on this social media platform. Moreover, some have told DistroWatch that their Facebook accounts have been locked or limited after sharing posts mentioning Linux topics.
27.01.2025
Petition: Tighten The Rules On Political Donations
We want the government to: Remove loopholes that allow wealthy foreign individuals to make donations into UK political parties (e.g. by funnelling through UK registered companies).
Cap all donations to a reasonable amount.
Review limits on the fines that can be levied for breaking the rules.
We think that ultra-rich individuals or foreign state actors should not be able to use their money to give unfair advantage to a political party in order to further their own agenda.
26.01.2025
Naomi Brockwell: Privacy 101
In today's hyper-connected world, our personal information is being collected, shared, and sold - often without our knowledge or consent. But here's the good news: you can fight back. More people than ever are waking up to the importance of digital privacy and taking action to protect themselves.
The big challenge? Many people don't know where to begin. That's where this video comes in.
This Privacy 101 guide is designed for anyone just starting their privacy journey. I'll show you six of the easiest, most impactful steps you can take right now to safeguard your digital life - starting with the basics and building your confidence along the way.
25.01.2025
Trump Mixes Gaza Ceasefire With West Bank Mayhem
Steve Witkoff, the new special envoy to the Middle East on behalf of President Donald Trump, recently secured a Gaza ceasefire where Secretary of State Antony Blinken had proved insufficient to the task.
The Biden administration failed because it backed the Gaza genocide more than it was willing to put sufficient pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to halt the onslaught. Witkoff was reportedly more insistent.
For the moment, the Gaza ceasefire is largely holding, but now comes the feared quid pro quo of a quiet Trump-Netanyahu agreement carving up or seizing the West Bank. Certainly, Trump's next expected ambassador to Israel - Mike Huckabee - will offer little to no caution as he talks up Israel in what he terms "Judea and Samaria."
At best, Trump and Huckabee will inadvertently hasten a one-state solution with equal rights for all. At worst, Israeli apartheid will become even more entrenched for years to come.
Netanyahu and the settlers are poised to run roughshod through the West Bank. Indeed, settlers have already torched parts of Palestinian villages.
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