When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
America
The Alpha Males and Females are Back, Err, Umm, Maybe Not So Much
Behold, the ride of the Virginkyries!
(Image 1: Alpha Company, 3rd KEK Battalion, 4th Chan Brigade, 75th Alex Jones Regiment)
I like how the guy with the Gadsden flag in the back left is trying to use it to shield himself from the photographer. Most likely because he didn’t tell his parents he was going to the rally and they think he’s in the basement playing video games.
Also, obligatory:
(Image 2: A comic book character yells at a depiction of Stephen Miller)
Consider this an open thread for your #SecondCivilWarLetters comments.
Open thread!
The Alpha Males and Females are Back, Err, Umm, Maybe Not So MuchPost + Comments (114)
The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Confirms the US Intelligence Community’s Assessment’s Findings on Russian Interference in the 2016 US Elections
The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI) has issued an unclassified, preliminary, summary report that confirms the Intelligence Community’s Assessment that Russia did interfere in the 2016 presidential election and did so in support of the President and his campaign. Let’s start with the Conclusion.
Conclusion
Finally, the Committee notes that, as is the case with all intelligence questions, information continues to be gathered and analyzed. The Committee believes the conclusions of the ICA are sound, and notes that collection and analysis subsequent to the ICA’s publication continue to reinforce its assessments. The Committee will remain vigilant in its oversight of the ongoing challenges presented by foreign nations attempting to secretly influence U.S. affairs.
From the report:
Initial Findings
Summary
The Committee finds that the Intelligence Community met President Obama’s tasking and that the ICA is a sound intelligence product. While the Committee had to rely on agencies that the sensitive information and accesses had been accurately reported, as part of our inquiry the Committee reviewed analytic procedures, interviewed senior intelligence officers well-versed with the information, and based our findings on the entire body of intelligence reporting included in the ICA.
The Committee finds the difference in confidence levels between the NSA and the CIA and FBI on the assessment that “Putin and the Russian Government aspired to help President-elect Trump’s election chances” appropriately represents analytic differences and was reached in a professional and transparent manner.
In all the interviews of those who drafted and prepared the ICA, the Committee heard consistently that analysts were under no politically motivated pressure to reach any conclusions. All analysts expressed that they were free to debate, object to content, and assess confidence levels, as is normal and proper for the analytic process.
As the inquiry has progressed since January 2017, the Committee has seen additional examples of Russia’s attempts to sow discord, undermine democratic institutions, and interfere in U.S. elections and those of our allies.
And now we get to the important parts:
Russian Efforts to Influence the 2016 Election
The ICA states that: Russian efforts to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election represent the most recent expression of Moscow’s longstanding desire to undermine the U.S.-led liberal democratic order, but these activities demonstrated a significant escalation in directness, level of activity, and scope of effort compared to previous operations1 .
• The Committee found that this judgment was supported by the evidence presented in the ICA. Since its publication, further details have come to light that bolster the assessment.
• The ICA pointed to initial evidence of Russian activities against multiple U.S. state or local electoral boards. Since the ICA was published, the Committee has learned more about Russian attempts to infiltrate state election infrastructure, as outlined in the findings and recommendations the Committee issued in March 2018.
• While the ICA briefly discussed the activities of the Internet Research Agency, the Committee’s investigation has exposed a far more extensive Russian effort to manipulate social media outlets to sow discord and to interfere in the 2016 election and American society.
Russian Leadership Intentions
The ICA states that: We assess Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an influence campaign in 2016 aimed at the U.S. presidential election. Russia’s goals were to undermine public faith in the U.S. democratic process, denigrate Secretary Clinton, and harm her electability and potential presidency. We further assess Putin and the Russian Government developed a clear preference for President-elect Trump2 .
• The Committee found that the ICA provided a range of all-source reporting to support these assessments.
• The Committee concurs with intelligence and open-source assessments that this influence campaign was approved by President Putin. • Further, a body of reporting, to include different intelligence disciplines, open source reporting on Russian leadership policy preferences, and Russian media content, showed that Moscow sought to denigrate Secretary Clinton.
• The ICA relies on public Russian leadership commentary, Russian state media reports, public examples of where Russian interests would have aligned with candidates’ policy statements, and a body of intelligence reporting to support the assessment that Putin and the Russian Government developed a clear preference for Trump.
The ICA also states that:
We also assess Putin and the Russian Government aspired to help President-elect Trump’s election chances when possible by discrediting Secretary Clinton and publicly contrasting her unfavorably to him3.
• The Committee found that the ICA provided intelligence and open source reporting to support this assessment, and information obtained subsequent to publication of the ICA provides further support.
• This is the only assessment in the ICA that had different confidence levels between the participating agencies -the CIA and FBI assessed with “high confidence”and the NSA assessed with “moderate confidence”-so the Committee gave this section additional attention.
The Committee found that the analytical disagreement was reasonable, transparent, and openly debated among the agencies and analysts, with analysts, managers, and agency heads on both sides of the confidence level articulately justifying their positions.
Russian Cyber Operations
The ICA states that: Russia’s intelligence services conducted cyber operations against targets associated with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, including targets associated with both major U.S. political parties. We assess Russian intelligence services collected against the U.S . primary campaigns, think tanks, and lobbying groups they viewed as likely to shape future U.S. policies. In July 2015, Russian intelligence gained access to Democratic National Committee (DNC) networks and maintained that access until at least June 2016.4
• The Committee found this judgment supported by intelligence and further supported by our own investigation. Separate from the ICA, the Committee has conducted interviews of key individuals who have provided additional insights into these incidents.
1 Intelligence Community Assessment: Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions in Recent U.S. Elections, 6 January 2017. P.ii. (NOTE: all page numbers referenced are from the Unclassified I CA)
2 Intelligence Community Assessment: Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions inRecent U.S. Elections, 6 January 2017. P.ii. 3 Intelligence Community Assessment: Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions in Recent U.S. Elections, 6 January 2017.P.ii.
4 Intelligence Community Assessment: Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions in Recent U.S. Elections, 6 January 2017. P.2.
Much more at the link. Or just click here for the report: SSCI ICA ASSESSMENT_FINALJULY3
Right now the Man from Lajes begins planning for his next gambit…
Stay clandestine.
Open thread!
The Elders Have Authorized a Public Service Announcement for Alex Jones: There is No Civil War Planned for Independence Day 2018, Just the Global Conspiracy Round Robin Softball Tournament and Picnic!
On behalf of the Elders, I have been authorized to inform Alex Jones, using this platform, that there is no Civil War scheduled for Independence Day. Instead we have, as per tradition, scheduled the annual Global Conspiracy for World Domination round robin softball tournament and picnic.
BREAKING: Democrats Plan To Launch Civil War On July 4th https://t.co/38AWiUFaag
— Alex Jones (@RealAlexJones) July 1, 2018
The Elders would like Mr. Jones to know that his claim of a Civil War is #Fake News! And since he is not responding via the device we had his dentist implant in the filling in his left, front, bottom molar when he had his wisdom tooth removed, we have had to resort to this manner of communication. Also, Mr. Jones, please see your dentist soon so we can have that thing serviced. Thanks!
Anyhow, as we do every year, at the recreational facilities at our undisclosed location (because it’s part of the global conspiracy for world domination, duh!), we will be having our annual round robin softball tournament and picnic. And let me tell you what a pain in the tuchas that is. Every year, EVERY FREAKING YEAR, it’s the same thing. The Illuminati sign up to bring the sides. And every year, EVERY FREAKING YEAR, they screw them up. How hard is it to make decent cole slaw? All you’re doing is shredding red and white cabbage with carrots, salting and peppering to taste, mixing it all together with the good mayonnaise and cider vinegar, and then tying it together with celery salt. How hard is that? If you can’t make cole slaw, how can we expect you to run your part of the global conspiracy? Don’t even get me started on their potato salad, macaroni salad, baked beans, and macaroni and cheese. How do you screw up baked beans? Open can, pour into baking pan. Mix with good stone ground mustard, brown sugar, and a shot or two of bourbon to taste. And make one batch without the fatback for those who don’t eat pork or meat. Nope, they just open the can, pour into a pot, and heat it up. Weak!!! SAD! Low Energy!!!!
As for the Bilderbergers. Masters of the Financial Universe my tuchas!!! Cheap bastards is more like it. They’re even worse than the Illuminati. I get it, if you splurge all the time, you’ll fritter away your fortunes, but these cheapskates sign up to bring the cups, plates, plastic flatware, and napkins every year. And they can’t even be bothered to get the solo cups and the decent plastic plates. No they get the styrofoam coffee cups and the flimsy, poorly wax treated paper plates. And sporks. I get the KFC connection, but really order some plastic flatware from Amazon for crying out loud!
The Trilateral Commission always brings the crappy, store bought chemical cake deserts! For Deity’s sake, every decent grocery store actually has a bakery if you can’t be bothered to go to a stand alone bakery. The good news is the Freemasons are good at setting up and running that nice brick grill every year. And we finally got the Romneys – all 300 of them including the Romney-McDaniels – to stop bringing the jello salad. We told them that the Pope was allergic to gelatin (Don’t tell anyone…) Also, he brings the good chiarascura and chimchurri. All Benedict every brought was sauerkraut. The Reptiloids just bring their own food because they have specific dietary restrictions…
Sorry, where was I? Oh yes: Attention Alex Jones! There is not a planned Civil War scheduled to kickoff on Wednesday. Please lie down in a cool dark room for a nap. And if that doesn’t help, please seek professional help before you get someone so worked up they decide to take the 2nd Amendment out for a walk and kill someone. Or lots of someones. And don’t forget to see your dentist soon, so we can get that receiver in your molar fixed. In fact we’re going to upgrade you and put one in the molar on the other side so you can receive our transmissions in stereo. For no extra charge. And have a nice day!
Stay suspicious.
We now return you to your regularly scheduled web browsing.
Open thread!
Last Post Of Reader Photos From Saturday’s Demonstrations
These photos are from readers whose nyms I missed or who are lurkers.
I think it’s great how many got out to the demonstrations. I love all the photos and signs. There will be more opportunities to use them.
I didn’t take a lot of pics at today’s rally and march for immigrant families and kids, but wanted to share a couple of them. A decent turn out in Olympia, WA today, tho smaller than past rallies. In photo #2 in the lower right in the black jacket is our own Rep. Denny Heck.
[I missed that the identification and comment were at the bottom of the email!] The spousal unit and I (lurking and occasionally commenting as The Very Reverend Crimson Fire of Compassion) joined the demonstration at Cape Girardeau’s Capaha Park. Yes, it’s a small crowd, but Cape NEVER has any kind of public protest, ever. This is deeply Republican country, and I was amazed at the level of support we received from people on the street. There was a voter registration booth, and I signed up to help get people registered, and to phone bank for our local Dems. We’re going to win this.
From juicer glaukopis in Dayton. I think around 600 were there, tho organizers say 769.
Terre Haute, Indiana
As they say in the newspaper business,
-30-
Last Post Of Reader Photos From Saturday’s DemonstrationsPost + Comments (23)
Still More Reader Photos From Demonstrations
From meander: A big crowd in San Francisco. The march took us from Dolores Park in the Mission District (in recent decades, the most Latin American part of San Francisco) to Civic Center. We turned off of Market Street at the Twitter headquarters. My photo of that location just happened to catch a sign calling to “End Twitler’s Internment Camps”.
From Mary (a long-time lurker): My favorite sign from the Portland OR rally. Guessing a couple thousand fired up folks.
From cynthia ackerman:
This is in The Dalles, Oregon today [yesterday].
About 150 in attendance, mostly gray-haired, 99% white, some young families.
This is a good turnout for Wasco County.
Followed by a smaller protest in front of the regional jail (NORCOR), which has a contract with ICE to house immigration detainees.
Three cheers for the dozen or so patriots who have been carrying on the jail protest DAILY for the last 426 days.
Feel their spirit, and send them some of yours!
From Barbara: Here is my single picture, at Lafayette Park in D.C.. It should give you an idea of how packed it was. The message was on the back of the t-shirt.
From mdblanche: The rally was smaller and not as organized in Providence [Rhode Island] than most of the other major rallies have been here recently and attendance was not helped by a rumor it had been canceled at the last minute (dirty tricks?). But there was no sign of any counter-protesters and the crowd was focused and determined. There were no prearranged speakers and everyone who wanted to say a few words had a chance to.
From Starfish: We had about 700 people at a rally at the Unitarian Universalist church in Boulder, CO. I was in the front row because I wanted to see Ingrid Encalada Latorre. She is the woman holding the blue phone in the photo. The church has been her sanctuary for a number of months. She is there to avoid being deported by ICE. You can see more pictures of her and her family here.
Jeanette Vizguerra, mentioned in the photos at the link, also took sanctuary in a church in Colorado for a number of months before ICE gave her a stay of deportation.
The speaker is Joe Neguse, the Democratic candidate for U.S. House District 2 for the state of Colorado. He is speaking because he is the son of Eritrean refugees.
From O. Felix Culpa in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Yesterday was also the Gay Pride celebration, so a vigil was held for the families at the State Capital in the evening.
One. More. Post.
Still More Reader Photos From DemonstrationsPost + Comments (7)
More Reader Photos From Demonstrations
From Bob from Riverview – longtime lurker. This is the Tampa rally.
From Mary G. “Attached is a photo of our protest signs for the March in Irvine, CA – we were late due to my fault and there were so many people there we couldn’t park, so I drove up and down and we waved them out the windows at the multitudes of marchers still arriving and the police.”
From Paul Wartenberg (not all the pics). “It was a drizzly afternoon, we had about 80-100 people and 7 puppies braving the weather.
“I personally only marched about half of this, one circle around downtown Lakeland (Florida) and my back started flaring up. It wasn’t as flashy or big as Tampa’s – we had a few couples who attended that one earlier in the day – but we got a good number of honking cars in support… and about three big trucks of jerkass drivers (I had to explain to some of my fellow protesters about Coal Rollers and to watch out for them)
“The fat boy in the Captain America t-shirt is me.
“There is video but my phone and computer are refusing to cooperate. I blame trump’s inhumane policies.”
From Ceci n est pas mon nym. “These are from our little Borough near Philly. I didn’t get to the big Philly rally, but attended this Interfaith Council event, led by a local rabbi. Drew quite a crowd (comparatively speaking).”
From lurker lafcolleen in Chicago. “Next to last picture is me and daughter ladder. The crowd pictures are from the edge of Daley Plaza, one looking North and one looking South. Some.good signage too!
“I remember in the heyday of the “grassroots” tea party rallies, someone pointing out the obvious mass market signage of the participants.
So now that is what I look for – and the March was PACKED with home made signs plus clothing with signs. I was wearing a shirt that simply said NO!”
From Sister Golden Bear: “I’ve been housebound with my dying mother today, but a friend shared this amazing sign from today’s downtown LA protest.”
More to come!