Tuesday, November 07, 2017

Censorship

They're going after WSWS and other sites.

It's all an attempt to control us and disinform us.

  Retweeted
  Nov 2
Stop scapegoating Russia for America's divisions—and stop using Moscow as an excuse for restrictions on speech.
7 replies63 retweets74 likes
 
 
 



They don't want us to think or question, just nod along accordingly.

Tired of it?

It's only going to get worse if you don't speak out.

  Retweeted
  Nov 2
Twitter colluded with DNC to try and get Hillary elected. They even admit it. This is the real collusion, but media not interested.
Twitter brags that it censored 50% of tweets during the election although < 2% came from Russian speakers
11 replies183 retweets236 likes
 
 
 



It wasn't Russia, kids.


Here's C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot:"


Monday, November 6, 2017.  Carrying the load.




"Back In My Arms Again" by Diana Ross & the Supremes is one of the 19 number one pop songs (BILLBOARD US singles chart) that Diana Ross has sang on.  November 19th, she'll be on the live broadcast (ABC) of The American Music Awards to perform and to receive the American Music Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Motown (Classic) issued the following:

To coincide with entertainment superstar Diana Ross receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award at the American Music Awards on 19 November, Motown/UMe will release a new collection of some of the the legend’s best-loved hits, Diamond Diana: The Legacy Collection, two days earlier.
The 15-song album features such giant singles as “Upside Down,” “Love Hangover,” “The Boss,” a nod to her years with the Supremes in “You Can’t Hurry Love” and her chart-topping duet with Lionel Richie, “Endless Love.” It also offers a new dance remix of her anthemic “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.”
“I send this special gift to you all,” says Ms. Ross. “This collection of songs is from my heart to yours and I send my love and thanks and appreciation to you for my joyous amazing journey, it’s so much fun.” The American Music Awards show will pay tribute to Diana Ross’ achievements in, and lasting impact on, the worlds of music, film, television, fashion and popular culture.
Order Diamond Diana: The Legacy Collection here.
The track listing for the album is as follows:
I’m Coming Out
More Today Than Yesterday
The Boss
It’s My House
Endless Love *
Upside Down
You Can’t Hurry Love **
Touch Me In The Morning
Love Hangover
Take Me Higher
It’s My Turn
Why Do Fools Fall In Love
Ain’t No Mountain High Enough
Reach Out And Touch (Somebody’s Hand)
Ain’t No Mountain High Enough – The ANMHE ‘Diamond Diana’ Remix
* with Lionel Richie
** with The Supremes


In Friday's snapshot, we noted that Iraqi lawmakers were again trying (as they had in 2014) to lower the age of marriage for Iraqi girls to nine-years-old.

Is that a fun topic?

No, it's not.

But there are some topics that if women won't cover them, no one will.

Take Diana Ross.  She's had 19 number one hits on the pop chart in the US.

19.

Not eighteen.

Now that we're counting "We Are The World" (she's one of the soloists on the track) others will.  Someone has to get the ball rolling.  In addition, she has 11 other number ones beyond that (she's hit number one with other songs on other US charts and other international charts -- some might want to argue it's 13 because "The Boss" and "It's My House" and "No One Gets The Prize" all count as one number one hit on the 1979 US dance chart).

Diana Ross' award is a big deal.  Yes, Diana is a friend (as disclosed before) but this is a really big deal.  And were it Barbra Streisand, I think we'd be hearing about it every day.  Despite that Diana has been bigger on the singles chart than Barbra ever could dream of being, we're not getting the coverage of this that it deserves.

It's true of the proposed Iraqi law as well.  Since Friday, two more people have noted the new law -- both women.  We'll again note the KRG representative to the US.


  23 hours ago
If this becomes law, it will be a huge backward step for Iraq, a catastrophe for women and girls
63 replies363 retweets417 likes






Meanwhile Ahmed Rasheed (REUTERS) types, "Iraq’s Supreme Federal Court ruled on Monday that no region or province can secede, strengthening the government’s hand as it seeks to prevent a repeat of September’s Kurdish independence vote."

Big deal, the Baghdad based court -- one of the most corrupt in the world -- sided with the current prime minister.

What a shocker.

Others attempted to report it better -- including noting that there's no article in the Iraqi Constitution that allows for secession.

There's also no article in the Constitution that doesn't allow for it.

More to the point, Robert Ford's "America Never Understood Iraq: As the Kurdish crisis continues to spiral, a former diplomat laments a history of missed opportunities"  (THE ATLANTIC) notes:

From the beginning, the Kurdish negotiators in the constitution talks were nervous. Since the imposition of a no-fly zone in 1992 during the reign of Saddam Hussein, the Kurdish Region has had its own government, defended on the ground by its peshmerga fighters. In 2005, Barzani emphasized to us that the Kurdish Region ought to be able to choose independence, but would join the new Iraqi republic nonetheless. Largely at the Kurds’ insistence, the preamble to the Iraqi constitution states that the Iraqi people could “decide freely and by choice to unite our future.” In the negotiations, the Kurds stressed the inclusion of the word “freely.” They appreciated its implicit meaning: they chose freely to join Iraq, and they could choose freely to leave.


It's the preamble, not an article.

'Reporters' can be dense.

But they also tend to reward thuggery.

Has anyone in the press stood up to thug Hayder al-Abadi (his sash reads "prime minister of Iraq") since Ned Parker left Iraq?

No.

They're a bunch of spineless cowards, throwing flowers in his path, pretending he's reasoned.

We've seen this nonsense before -- when thug Nouri al-Maliki was prime minister.

Hayder's persecuting the Kurds.

I feel sorry for the individuals experiencing the persecution.

But I'm well aware this is how you create Kurdish independence.

Keep attacking them, Hayder, they'll rebel.

When that happens, don't be surprised if other groups rebel.

Many Sunnis have already been talking about secession.

REUTERS hasn't covered it but do they cover anything these days?

No, they just roll over and bare their bellies like cowering dogs.

AL-MONITOR's covered it.

All these years later and the western media still provides cover for the Iraq War via their own ingrained dishonesty.


Kat's "Kat's Korner: Sam Smith delivers" went up Sunday and we'll note Sam's "Pray" which was inspired by Iraq.








I'm young and I'm foolish, I've made bad decisions
I block out the news, turn my back on religion
Don't have no degree, I'm somewhat naive
I've made it this far on my own
But lately, that sh*t ain't been getting me higher
I lift up my head and the world is on fire
There's dread in my heart and fear in my bones
And I just don't know what to say
Maybe I'll pray, pray
Maybe I'll pray
I've never believed, and you know, but I'm gonna pray 
You won't find me in church (No) reading the bible (No)
I am still here and I'm still your disciple
I'm down on my knees, I'm begging you please
I'm broken, alone, and afraid
I'm not a saint, I'm more of a sinner
I don't wanna lose, but I fear for the winners
When I try to explain, the words run away
That's why I am stood here today
And I'm gonna pray, pray
Maybe I'll pray, pray for a glimmer of hope
Maybe I'll pray, pray
Maybe I'll pray
I've never believed, and you know that I'm gonna
Won't you call me?
Can we have a one-to-one, please?
Let's talk about freedom
Everyone prays in the end
Everyone prays in the end
Won't you call me?
Can we have a one-to-one, please?
Let's talk about freedom
Everyone prays in the end
Everyone prays in the end
Oh, and I'm gonna pray, I'm gonna pray
I'm gonna pray, pray for a glimmer of hope
Maybe I'll pray, pray
Maybe I'll pray
I've never believed, and you know, but I'm gonna pray
"Pray," written by Sam Smith, James Napier, Timoth Mosley, Darryl Pearson, Larrance Dopson, Jose A. Valasquez, appears on Sam's new album THE THRILL OF IT ALL



Benjamin Butterworth (UK PINK NEWS) reported in October:

Singer Sam Smith says his song-writing has been inspired by Iraq.
The Oscar-winning performer spent time in Mosul, northern Iraq, to learn about injustices in the world while penning his latest songs. 
“I spent five days in Mosul and came back ­embarrassed that I had known so little about the world and other people’s lives,” he told Billboard magazine.
Mosul has faced intense warfare in the past 18 months, with 40,000 feared dead as Islamic State and Iraqi Government battled for control of the city.
It was only on 9 July 2017 that the Iraqi Prime Minister arrived in Mosul to announce victory over IS.
Sam continued: “I went back to that great Nina Simone quote, that it is important to speak about the times you live in.
“I hadn’t done that; I’d just written a bunch of songs about love.
“So I wanted to write about how I’m now starting to open my eyes, at 25, to what is going on in the rest of the world, and that it’s not always pretty.”
Homosexuality is illegal and punishable with execution in the country, and it voted against a UN motion calling for an end to executing gay people just last week. 


[Jim note: I came in and added lyrics to "Pray."  A few friends of C.I. called up to ask "what's going on" -- noting "she seems pissed."  She is.  She's sick of doing the heavy lifting.  "Put The Bitch In Her Place (Ava and C.I.)," from last week, for example, resulted in five reviewers from other publications e-mailing her and Ava that they were wrong about the book.  As C.I. told one -- in a phone call, "Excuse the f**k out of me but you didn't even read the book.  You're saying COURT & SPARK is Joni's biggest album, based on the book.  But the book notes that BLUE has outsold COURT & SPARK.  I really don't need your sexism and ignorance passed off as insight.  You skimmed the book and you missed how offensive it was -- including how it blamed Joni for the miscarriage and then spent pages -- plural! -- on how her 'poor' husband wasn't aware this was an issue and that he needed to cancel his trip to Europe.  Yes, he f**king needed to cancel that.  And if he wasn't smart enough to get that, in his 30s, then he's not smart enough to be married."  Ava told another reviewer that he clearly hadn't read the book because he missed all the sexism the author hurled at Joni Mitchell.  And they're right, it's a really bad book.  So there's the heavy lifting there.  And they also did heavy lifting on their TV piece they wrote yesterday -- whose thrust is that the show never should have been put on the schedule.  Equally true, Diana is a friend and C.I. is legitimately ticked off -- and I'd say she's right to be -- by the lack of coverage going into this AMA broadcast.  She was screaming yesterday at a Universal exec -- they own Motown now -- that they'd issued no statement.  She said, "Apparently, you only issue a statement when someone dies!"  She notes that Motown Classic -- under Universal -- has issued a statement but Universal has nothing -- "and it gives the impression that your a f**king piece of s**t label that doesn't honor your past or your artist. Who the hell would want to sign with Universal after that?"  So, yes, C.I. is pissed.  :D  For a number of reasons -- probably at me as well because she and Ava wanted new content up at THIRD last night and it's still not up.]

iraq iraq iraq iraq iraq Iraq
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