New York Times CEO Calls On Social Media Giants To Subsidize Mainstream Media

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Print media in the United States is now largely a failed business model that has been in secular decline for years. While print media’s failure is largely attributed to technological shifts that have changed consumers’ media consumption behaviors, we would argue that biased reporting and a complete lack of journalistic integrity at many “real news” outlets facilitated the decline. The American population has rejected the notion of paying for “journalistic integrity” only to get hyper-partisan, leftist, manufactured narratives in return.
That said, Mark Thompson, the President and CEO of the New York Times, is convinced that Silicon Valley’s social media and search giants are to blame for failing print newspapers around the country. And, like any good liberal, Thompson’s first reflex to fix failing businesses is to provide subsidies…and apparently he thinks the tech titans should pay those subsidies.
But we also know that here in Detroit and almost every other city in America, many of our colleagues – who do not have the national and international opportunity of The Times, or our successful digital subscription model – are having a much harder time. Their ability to deliver real news – about city hall and the state legislature, about local schools and businesses, as well as about America and the world – is under direct economic threat.
Here too I believe that the search and social media platforms could play a role. The advertising which once paid for professional journalism across this country and the rest of the western world is now migrating to them. Far from helping, if anything initiatives like Facebook Instant Articles, which host news stories natively, seem to make it even hard for responsible publishers to get their business models to work.

This post was published at Zero Hedge on Dec 13, 2016.

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THIS REALLY JUST HAPPENED: HOUSE PASSED BILL ALLOWING GOVERNMENT TO MICROCHIP CITIZENS WITH ‘MENTAL DISABILITIES’

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Editor’s Note: While this quietly passed under the guise of helping parents and guardians of children and adults with developmental disabilities and autism, you can clearly see where this program can be abused by the authoritarians in power. They didn’t put this program under the control of the Department of Health and Human Services… they put it under the control of the Department of Justice. Just as Rep. Gohmert points out in the video below, it’s because they specifically wanted it to be expanded there.
Buckle up folks… we’re in for a bumpy ride.
Though the bill only targets those with conditions such as Alzheimers and autism, critics say the bill’s passage will open a ‘pandora’s box’ of invasive government surveillance.


This post was published at The Daily Sheeple on DECEMBER 13, 2016.

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IT JUST GOES DEEPER AND DEEPER — Richard Sauder

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The following video was published by SGTreport.com on Dec 13, 2016
Author Richard Sauder returns to SGT Report to discuss deep underground bases in around Washington DC, and across the country. We discuss many topics in this dynamic interview which is likely to become the seventh out of my last eleven videos to be deemed “not advertiser friendly” by big brother at You Tube.

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College Student Arrested After Carrying “Weapons” Into Trump Tower

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A 19-year-old college student was arrested Monday night after carrying a backpack full of weapons into Trump Tower, the New York Daily News reports.
Wang showed up at Trump Tower about 6:35 p.m. Monday and tried to get in at a checkpoint. When his bag set off the metal detector, the Secret Service moved in and asked him to open it. The Secret Service found an M-100 firework, a Swiss Army knife, a flashlight, handcuffs, an 8-foot black rope, a clear water gun, a laptop and a garrote, which of course is a wire that can be used to strangle someone.

This post was published at Zero Hedge on Dec 13, 2016.

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Soc Gen: India Move to Cashless Society Hurting Economy

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On December 7, the Reserve Bank of India, going against consensus expectations, did not cut interest rates – underlying the assumption that the Indian economy, in the midst of moving to a cashless society, was doing fine, was doing just fine. This assumption is incorrect, says a December 12 Societe Generale report. Also incorrect is the assumption that ‘demonetization’ will achieve its goal of curbing the black market in India. It’s not happening and the economy is suffering as a result, a trend that the bank says could last to the first quarter of 2017 and beyond.
Moving to cashless society benefits the banks, as non-performing loans are problematic
What is the primary goal of the demonetization of India? To listen to official sources, and here a tale of the need to reign in the black market, terrorist and criminal activity along with tax evaders and counterfeit currency. They did this by using the ‘element of surprise.’
On the day of the US presidential election, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced his nation was banning more than 80% of its cash currency and a series of logistical nightmares and outrage among its citizens followed. Those holding common notes are being told to exchange their cash for what they tout as a more secure system.

This post was published at FinancialSense on 12/13/2016.

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Ron Paul: The War On “Fake News” Is A War On Free Speech

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Authored by Ron Paul via The Ron Paul Institute for Peace & Prosperity,
A major threat to liberty is the assault on the right to discuss political issues, seek out alternative information sources, and promote dissenting ideas and causes such as non-interventionism in foreign and domestic affairs. If this ongoing assault on free speech succeeds, then all of our liberties are endangered.
One of the most common assaults on the First Amendment is the attempt to force public policy organizations to disclose their donors. Regardless of the intent of these laws, the effect is to subject supporters of controversial causes to harassment, or worse. This harassment makes other potential donors afraid to support organizations opposing a popular war or defending the rights of an unpopular group. Many free speech opponents support laws and regulations forbidding activist or educational organizations from distributing factual information regarding a candidate’s positions for several months before an election. The ban would apply to communications that do not endorse or oppose any candidate. These laws would result in the only sources of information on the candidate’s views being the campaigns and the media.
Recently the Federal Election Commission (FEC) rejected a proposal to add language exempting books, movies, and streaming videos from its regulations. The majority of FEC commissioners apparently believe they should have the power, for example, to ban Oliver Stone’s biography of Edward Snowden, since it was released two months before the election and features clips of Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump discussing Snowden.

This post was published at Zero Hedge on Dec 13, 2016.

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Iran Lashes Out At US, Will Build Nuclear-Powered Boats In Retaliation To US Deal “Violation”

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Until now, Iran’s angry outbursts in response to alleged breaches of Obama’s nuclear deal as well as extensions of the Iran sanctions, have been relegated to verbal outbursts, culminating most recently with the threat by Iran’s defense minister Denghan that should Trump end Obama’s landmark arrangement with Iran, it would result in a war which “would mean the destruction of the Zionist regime (Israel) … and will engulf the whole region and could lead to a world war.”
Overnight, however, Iran moved beyond the merely verbal and in its first concrete response to last month’s decision by the US Congress to extend legislation making it easier for Washington to reimpose sanctions on Tehran, Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani ordered scientists from the national nuclear agency, and specifically Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, to prepare a project for development of both reactors for maritime use and fuel production for this purpose in three months.

This post was published at Zero Hedge on Dec 13, 2016.

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The CIA Has Always Been Incompetent

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One of the nicer side effects of the 2016 election has been the trashing of the reputations of US intelligence agencies, specifically the FBI and the CIA. During the election, of course, it became apparent that there was some sort of tug-of-war within the FBI which led James Comey to first declare that no “reasonable” prosecutor would ever go after Hillary Clinton. Then, as election day approached, Comey came back and, contrary to the usual protocol, waged a PR war against Clinton, implying that this time, new evidence suggests she is, in fact a crook. Naturally, the Democratic party has declared the FBI to be corrupt and has even accused FBI direct James Comey of covering up Russian crimes.
RELATED: “Abolish the FBI”
In the wake of the election, the CIA has now decided that the Russians were influencing the election and an attempt to cast doubt on the validity of the election itself. In response, Donald Trump simply dismissed the CIA as incompetent, declaring “These are the same people that said Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.” It is entirely possible that the Russians attempt to influence American elections. Unfortunately, the CIA is not exactly a reliable source from which to draw any conclusions.

This post was published at Ludwig von Mises Institute on December 12, 2016.

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When virtue is the greatest crime

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Who are they?
Behind their flaccid smiles is a roaring furnace of anger.
They believe love motivates them. Love, and the worship of some leader who stands for love.
This delusion can topple a society and a civilization.
They have been taught to be good. They been trained in that way, and they embrace their training as both a shield and a sword, as they set out to change the world.
There are millions of them.
Who are they?
They advocate ‘share and care’ without limit. This is their religion. For them, there is no ceiling on supporting those in need, and there are no negative consequences. There is no taking from Peter to pay Paul. It doesn’t exist.

This post was published at Jon Rappoport on December 13, 2016.

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Has “Market Failure” Caused High Health-Care Prices?

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With premiums rising an average of 22 percent and as high as 116 percent on Obamacare’s 2017 government exchanges, it seems surreal to read journalists attributing the economic pathologies of US health care to market failure. Yet that is essentially the perspective being driven by the Associated Press and NBC with approving input from industry economists and consultants.
While not a new narrative, the most recent version begins with the observation that patient co-payments and deductibles have failed to control costs. According to a Mercer consultant, “It’s not human nature to be rational thinkers about health care cost decisions. … It will never be just like buying a lawnmower.”
In popular and academic literature, this is a common assertion that is never explained in much detail, never mind rigorously proven. And hilariously, it’s still regnant dogma even as American consumers, right before our very eyes, continue their abandonment/avoidance of Obamacare because of its increasing costs.
Myth: Health Care Is Important, so Health-care Prices Rise Faster than Other Goods The second factor posited as driving market failure is “purchase priority.” After food and shelter, consumers prioritize health-care purchases over other purchases, we are told. No evidence is provided for this claim either, other than a question from the Altarum Institute’s Charles Roehrig, “What good is a better house if you are too sick to enjoy it?”
But Roehrig’s witty question doesn’t settle anything. Clothing and transportation clearly holds purchase priority over health care. How can a patient gain access to a physician’s office, treatment center, pharmacy, outpatient clinic, or hospital without both? Yet the higher priority held by clothing and transportation in purchase patterns has not driven up their prices or costs to the levels of those found in health care.

This post was published at Ludwig von Mises Institute on Dec 13, 2016.

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Fight Fake News: 3 Social Media Platforms You Should Try Today

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‘If the CIA is actually stupid enough to believe this,’ Dr. Paul Craig Roberts wrote on his site last week, ‘the US is without a competent intelligence agency. Of course, the CIA didn’t say and doesn’t believe any such thing. The fake news stories in the presstitute media are all sourced to unnamed officials. Former British ambassador Craig Murray described the reports accurately: ‘bullshit.”
But onward anyway…
Last Thursday, Dec. 8, the U. S. Senate passed the Portman-Murphy Counter-Propaganda Bill as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
(Gee, that was quick!)
‘The bipartisan bill,’ Rob Portman’s senate page reads, ‘which was introducedby Senators Portman and Murphy in March, will improve the ability of the United States to counter foreign propaganda and disinformation by establishing an interagency center housed at the State Department to coordinate and synchronize counter-propaganda efforts throughout the U. S. government. To support these efforts, the bill also creates a grant program for NGOs, think tanks, civil society and other experts outside government who are engaged in counter-propaganda related work. This will better leverage existing expertise and empower local communities to defend themselves from foreign manipulation.’

This post was published at Laissez Faire on Dec 12, 2016.

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Is the Deep State at War–With Itself?

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This is a blatantly politicized “report” that is not supported by any evidence, nor is it supported by the other 16 intelligence agencies. The recent pronouncement by the C. I. A. that Russian hackers intervened in the U. S. presidential election doesn’t pass the sniff test–on multiple levels. Let’s consider the story on the most basic levels. 1. If the report is so “secret,” why is it dominating the news flow? 2. Why was the “secret report” released now? 3. What actual forensic evidence is there of intervention? Were voting machines tampered with? Or is this “secret report” just another dose of fact-free “fake news” like The Washington Post’s list of 200 “Russian propaganda” websites? 4. The report claims the entire U. S. intelligence community is in agreement on the “proof of Russian intervention on behalf of Trump” story, but then there’s this: “The C. I. A. presentation to senators about Russia’s intentions fell short of a formal U. S. assessment produced by all 17 intelligence agencies. A senior U. S. official said there were minor disagreements among intelligence officials about the agency’s assessment, in part because some questions remain unanswered.”

This post was published at Charles Hugh Smith on MONDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2016.

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