ET Williams

The Doctor of Common Sense

Blog

by

Confirmed: Trump transition members were under surveillance during Obama administration

Hell Yes This Piece Of Shit Wiretapped Trump Tower

Members of the Donald Trump transition team, possibly including Trump himself, were under U.S. government surveillance following November’s presidential election, House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) told reporters Wednesday.

Nunes said the surveillance appeared to be legal but that he was concerned because it was not related to the FBI’s investigation into Russia’s meddling in the election and was widely disseminated across the intelligence community.

“I have seen intelligence reports that clearly show that the president-elect and his team were, I guess, at least monitored,” Nunes told reporters. “It looks to me like it was all legally collected, but it was essentially a lot of information on the president-elect and his transition team and what they were doing.”

Nunes said he is heading to the White House later Wednesday to brief Trump on what he has learned, which he said came from “sources who thought that we should know it.” He said he was trying to get more information by Friday from the FBI, CIA and NSA.

Nunes described the surveillance as most likely being “incidental collection.” This can occur when a person inside the United States communicates with a foreign target of U.S. surveillance. In such cases, the identities of U.S. citizens are supposed to be kept secret — but can be “unmasked” by intelligence officials under certain circumstances.

Nunes said his new information appears to show that additional members of the Trump transition team — beyond former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn — were unmasked. This means they were identified in U.S. intelligence reports.

He said the information that he had seen and was disseminated across the intelligence community appeared to him to have “little or no apparent intelligence value.”

http://www.politico.com/story/2017/03/devin-nunes-donald-trump-surveillance-obama-236366

by

Mock Slave Auction Outrages Parents!

These Idiots have Lost their Minds

MAPLEWOOD, N.J. (CBSNewYork) — When it comes time for fifth graders to learn about the history of colonization and slavery, it’s always a sensitive subject.

As CBS2’s Jessica Layton reported, parents like Tracey Jarmon-Woods said it became even more painful after what took place in a 5th grade classroom at her son’s school in Maplewood.

“There was a sale of a black child by white children in the classroom,” Tracey Jarmon-Woods said, “If you’re demoralized — sold on a block in 2017 — it may affect you the rest of your life.”

A mock slave auction earlier in the month was hotly discussed during after school pickup outside Jefferson Elementary School, and later at a board of education meeting.

“I’m disgusted, really disgusted a child was bought. That doesn’t make any sense,” one parent said.

“We’re always in damage control, and it’s getting absurd honestly,” student BOE member Filip Saulean said.

In a letter sent to parents, the principal said the impromptu reenactment of a slave auction by students was done while the teacher was out for a medical procedure and a substitute was in charge of the class.

“The activity was not part of the curriculum, not part of the teacher’s assignment, not condoned by the classroom teacher, and not authorized by the district,” the statement said.

It’s not the first time the district has come under fire for its  curriculum on colonization. Around the same time as the mock slave sale, controversial posters at another district school — South Mountain Elementary — offended several parents.

“We have to do better for our children,” Elissa Malespina said.

On Monday night, Superintendent Dr. John Ramos addressed the incidents.

“There was no intent to be provocative or demeaning,” he said, “The context is important to know.”

A school social worker will speak with 5th graders at Jefferson Elementary on Tuesday.

The district said it is planning a town hall event with parents and their kids on the topic as well.

Mock Slave Auction Stokes Tempers At Maplewood Elementary School

by

Pope Claims Social Media is a Major Distraction

 

Could Pope Francis have a Point?

Vatican City (AFP) – Pope Francis on Tuesday warned young people to resist the lure of “false” versions of life presented on social media or reality TV shows.

Instead, the Internet generation needs to write their own histories, become masters of their destiny and establish real connections with their past, the 80-year-old pontiff says in a video message for World Youth Day, on April 9.

“Many people say that young people are distracted and superficial. They are wrong!” Francis says.

“Still, we should acknowledge our need to reflect on our lives and direct them towards the future.

“In the social media, we see faces of young people appearing in any number of pictures recounting more or less real events, but we don’t know how much of all this is really ‘history’, an experience that can be communicated and endowed with purpose and meaning,” he said.

“Television is full of ‘reality shows’ which are not real stories, but only moments passed before a television camera by characters living from day to day, without a greater plan.

“Don’t let yourselves be led astray by this false image of reality! Be the protagonists of your history; decide your own future.”

The tone of Francis’s comments partly reiterated a speech at last year’s World Youth Day in which he told teens not to let themselves become “couch potatoes”.

But this time he implicitly addressed many aspects of social media culture that have caused concern to psychologists, from the photo-shopping of images to selective editing of events recorded online to project images of happiness and success that may not correspond to reality.

“To have a past is not the same as to have a history,” Francis said. “In our life we can have plenty of memories, but how many of them are really a part of our memory?

“How many are significant for our hearts and help to give meaning to our lives?”

In practical terms, Francis said young people could help to make more sense of their lives and their own past through time spent with grandparents, by keeping a daily journal and by spending a few minutes each evening contemplating the day’s events.

In this, he suggested, they should draw inspiration from the example of Mary, mother of Jesus.

“The young mother of Jesus knew the prayers of her people by heart. Surely her parents and her grandparents had taught them to her. How important it is for the faith to be passed down from one generation to another.”

https://www.yahoo.com/tech/pope-tells-young-resist-false-reality-social-media-165048243.html

by

Diddy Accused of Reverse Discrimination

A production team for Sean “Diddy” Combs’ Revolt ​TV ​is suing the ​cable ​and radio network, claiming reverse discrimination — saying they were fired for being old white men.

Douglas Goodstein and four producers, who’d previously worked for “The Howard Stern Show,” were hired by Revolt TV in January 2014.

The team produced ​its popular urban talk radio program “The Breakfast Club” that airs mornings on Power 105.1 FM.

But the producers, who are all white and over age 39, say they were “treated worse than other employees who were younger and African American.”

Executive Vice President Val Boreland “was always rude, condescending and dismissive towards the Goodstein Production Team,” the Manhattan civil suit ​claims.

“Ms. Boreland, however, treated the African-American staff in a much friendlier and respectful manner,” according to court papers.

Meanwhile, execs turned a blind eye to the behavior of “African-American employees who arrived to work intoxicated or hung over,” the suit says.

One production assistant “often came to work late, drunk and slept on the editing floor during work hours,” the suit says.

Yet he “suffered no repercussions for this behavior.”

Val Boreland’s brother and the assistant director of the show allegedly said that “Caucasians harbored racism against African-Americans” and called 53-year-old producer Todd Baker “old guy.”

“The animosity Mr. Boreland had towards Caucasians was clear,” the suit says.

When Baker complained about the lack of punctuality of the show’s guests, production manager Cherisse McKenzie allegedly said “he just did not understand the ‘culture’ of the show’s guests and on-air personalities.”

Her “response was clearly referring to African-American culture and/or African-American hip-hop culture, which she assumed Baker did not understand because he was Caucasian,” the suit says.

Baker insists he did “understand the guests’ attitudes, but he found them to be unprofessional in a television production setting.”

The team was fired in December 2014 and replaced with younger, inexperienced black employees, according to court papers. ​

Reps for Revolt did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

http://pagesix.com/2017/03/21/diddys-revolt-tv-sued-for-reverse-discrimination/

by

Robo-Cops Replacing Human Officers?

Dubai police robots  

Robot police were once sci-fi fantasy, but soon the real thing will be patrolling the streets of Dubai.

While the original RoboCop from the 1987 film, a superhuman cyborg law enforcer, could hunt down murderous criminals, the real-life version will be tackling more straightforward misdemeanours.

The first robot police officer will be on patrol in the wealthy United Arab Emirates city by May this year, Dubai Police have confirmed.

Members of the public will be able to report crimes to the multilingual police robot using a touchscreen on its chest.

The friendly robot, which can salute and shake hands, can also be used by members of the public to pay traffic fines and submit paperwork.

Dubai Police, who unveiled the prototype at the Gulf Information Technology Exhibition last year, want 25 per cent of its force to be robots by 2030.

Brigadier Abdullah Bin Sultan told Gulf News: “We are looking to have more robots in the future to handle policing.

“By 2030, we are keen to make robots around 25 per cent of the total police force.”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2017/03/20/real-life-robocops-will-soon-replace-human-police/

by

Polanski and his Mission to Resolve 40-year old sex Crime

Roman Polanski wants to resolve the sexual misconduct conviction that’s haunted him for 40 years and visit the Los Angeles grave of actress Sharon Tate, his wife murdered by the Charles Manson family in 1969.

The film director, a fugitive since 1978 when he left the U.S. a day before his scheduled sentencing, is asking a California court to close the books on the case with a recognition that Polanski already has spent far more time behind bars than what was promised by the judge who initially presided over his case.

A Los Angeles judge declined to rule Monday on Polanski’s request to be spared any further incarceration if he returns to the U.S. for sentencing. California Superior Court Scott Gordon said at a hearing he’ll issue a decision later.

“All we are asking for is a reassurance,” Polanski’s lawyer, Harland Braun, told the judge. “Mr. Polanski is not trying to bargain. Give us an indication that the court is saying, ‘We’re going to stick with our promise.’”

 Polanski, 83, fled Los Angeles on Jan. 31, 1978. He had been charged the previous year with six felony counts over allegations he drugged and raped a 13-year-old girl during a photo shoot at actor Jack Nicholson’s house. He pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor after the girl’s family asked prosecutors to avoid a jury trial.

Lawyers for the film director have been arguing for the last nine years that Judge Laurence Rittenband, who handled the case at the time, had promised Polanski that the 90 days he was ordered to spend in state prison for a diagnostic study would be his total time in custody.

‘Taste’ of Prison

“That was how it was done at the time,” Braun said at Monday’s hearing. “Give him a taste of state prison and put him on probation.”

According to former prosecutors and lawyers interviewed in the 2008 documentary “Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired,” Rittenband was about to renege on his promise after Polanski was released after only 42 days in state prison. The judge was concerned about negative press coverage if he were to let Polanski off lightly and was planning to issue a much stiffer sentence than he had first suggested, according to the documentary.

Roger Gunson, the lead prosecutor in the case, said in the film that the judge’s handling of Polanski’s pre-sentencing proceedings was a “sham.”

“I’m not surprised that he left under those circumstances,” Gunson told the filmmaker.

The Los Angeles district attorney opposes any attempt by Polanski to conclude the case without him first returning to the U.S.

‘Wealthy Celebrities’

“He’ll get a fair hearing when he returns to court,” Deputy District Attorney Michele Hanisee said at Monday’s hearing. “It is not in the interest of justice to give wealthy celebrities a different treatment than other fugitives.”

The prosecutor also told the judge Polanski had already been denied a previous bid to be sentenced in absentia, which was upheld on appeal.

Polanski’s renewed bid for closure comes after a Polish court rejected a U.S. extradition request, concluding he had already served any time in custody that was intended. The ruling, affirmed in December by the Polish Constitutional Court, followed a Swiss court’s refusal to extradite Polanski in 2010 because the U.S. had failed to provided requested documents.

The 2008 documentary prompted Polanski’s bid to have the case dismissed for judicial and prosecutorial misconduct. That attempt failed when another judge agreed with the district attorney that Polanski would have to come back to the U.S. if he wanted his request to be heard.

The victim, Samantha Geimer, has said she doesn’t want Polanski to spend any more time in prison. She joined Polanski’s request in December 2008 to have the case dismissed and has opposed the Los Angeles District Attorney’s attempt to extradite him.

“Her wishes are dismissed out of hand as if they aren’t relevant,” Braun said at Monday’s hearing.

Polanski had met Geimer through her mother in March 1977 when he was looking for young women to photograph for the French edition of Vogue. He took her to the house of Nicholson, who wasn’t home at the time, and gave her champagne and part of a quaalude pill during the photo shoot. He was initially charged with rape by use of drug and alcohol among other counts.

On Monday, Gordon pointed out that in the 1977 plea deal with the district attorney, “no promises whatsoever” were made to Polanski.

‘Marching Orders’

Braun contends the decisions by the Swiss and Polish courts since Polanski’s 2008 attempt to get the case resolved have changed the issues now before Gordon. He also argues that e-mails show that the judge who ruled against Polanski eight years ago was getting his “marching orders” from the court’s presiding judge.

The unresolved case prevented Polanski from returning to the U.S. to accept the best-director Oscar for his 2002 movie “The Pianist.” It also has kept Los Angeles prosecutors tracking his travels, including to Thailand and Israel, in the hopes of having him arrested in a country that would extradite him to the U.S.

Polanski came to the California in 1968 to make his first Hollywood movie, “Rosemary’s Baby.” He married Sharon Tate, who co-starred in his 1967 comedy “The Fearless Vampire Killers,” that year in London.

In 1969, while Polanski was working in London, Tate and four other people were murdered at Polanski’s home in Los Angeles by members of the Charles Manson family. Tate was pregnant with their child.

The case is People of the State of California v. Polanski, A334139, California Superior Court (Los Angeles).

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-03-20/polanski-once-again-seeks-to-resolve-40-year-old-sex-crime-case