Category: Domestic Affairs,

From February 3, 2020: The Trump administration has made the US less ready for infectious disease outbreaks like coronavirus

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Over the past three years the administration has weakened the offices in charge of preparing for and preventing this kind of outbreak.

…It has slashed funding for the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and its infectious disease research. For fiscal year 2020, Trump proposed cutting the CDC budget by US$1.3 billion, nearly 20% below the 2019 level.

…Every year since taking office, Trump has asked for deep cuts into research on emerging diseases – including the CDC’s small center on emerging and “zoonotic” infectious diseases.

…It manages laboratory, epidemiologic, analytic and prevention programs, and collaborates with state and local health departments, other federal government agencies, industry and foreign ministries of health.

In 2018, Trump tried to cut $65 million from this budget – a 10% reduction. In 2019, he sought a 19% reduction. For 2020, he proposed to cut federal spending on emerging infectious and zoonotic diseases by 20%. This would mean spending $100 million less in 2020 to study how such diseases infect humans than the U.S. did just two years ago.

…The overall level of appropriations for relevant CDC programs is still 10% below what the U.S. spent in 2016.

…in 2018 the administration disbanded its own global health security team, which was supposed to make the U.S. more resilient to the threat of epidemics. 

…[The Trump administration] eliminated the National Security Council’s global health security and biodefense directorate, and reshuffled its team of world-class infectious disease experts. In response, two highly respected leaders in the field – Rear Admiral Tim Ziemer, the NSC’s senior director for global health security and biodefense, and Homeland Security adviser Tom Bossert – left the White House.

…Containing the first major Ebola epidemic in 2014-2016, which killed 11,000 people in West Africa, required an enormous global effort. Only 11 patients were treated for Ebola in the U.S., but that was because President Obama took the threat seriously, appointing an “Ebola czar” to coordinate U.S. preparedness and assistance.

The Trump administration has made the US less ready for infectious disease outbreaks like coronavirus

hmmm

From May 23, 2017: Trump’s plan to destroy the US science budget [Foreshadowing Alert!]

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His full budget proposal for the 2018 fiscal year requests that billions of dollars be slashed from the agencies tasked with funding and conducting research that drives innovation and keeps Americans healthy and safe.

…Trump intends to cut nearly $5.8 billion in funding from the National Institutes of Health — about 18 percent of the agency’s total budget. It also cuts hundreds of millions of dollars from infectious disease programs at the CDC, and an additional $841 million from the National Science Foundation, which funds basic scientific research.

… The budget proposal calls for $333 million in cuts to three CDC programs aimed at curbing the spread of infectious diseases.

…An additional $136 million in cuts for the CDC Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response — about 10 percent of the office’s budget. This is the CDC office that responds to public health emergencies like outbreaks, epidemics, or “chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear threats.”

An 18 percent cut of $76.3 million to the CDC’s Center for Global Health, which coordinates international public health efforts aimed at eradicating infectious and chronic diseases worldwide.

…Apparently the Trump administration doesn’t believe in protecting American jobs when they’re science jobs. 

Here’s Trump’s plan to destroy the US science budget – The Verge

Aggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggh!

From Feb 11, 2018: How will CDC cuts affect health programs abroad and at home? [Overt Foreshadowing Alert!]

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have recently lost hundreds of millions of dollars in funding cuts, including a $750 million cut in December. On Friday, President Trump signed a bill that slashed $1.35 billion from its Prevention and Public Health Fund over the next 10 years.

…December’s tax reform law stripped $750 million dollars from the program, moving that money to the childhood Health Insurance Program, or CHIP, instead. And this week, President Trump signed a bill cutting $1.35 billion from the PPHF over the next 10 years. In addition, funding is not being renewed for global health initiatives which monitor outbreaks overseas[emphasis: Peanut Gallery]

…[PPHF is] a program to promote public health and also keep public and private healthcare costs from rising.

…So in terms of tackling Ebola, there was a supplemental aid package that was passed to try to help build infrastructure in countries to tamp down the outbreak and actually prevent future outbreaks. And so now, what’s happening with cutting that funding, is that it’s actually creating more of a risk in the future. If there’s another outbreak that we don’t have that infrastructure to prevent the outbreak from spreading.[emphasis: Peanut Gallery]

…[Question:] If the PPHF goes away. How much of the overall CDC budget is it?

…[Answer] It’s 12 percent of the CDC budget. So in terms of the fund itself I think in 2017 the fund was allocated about $931 million and about $891 million of that went to the CDC for preventive programs.

How will CDC cuts affect health programs abroad and at home? | PBS NewsHour Weekend

sigh…

Trump budget chief holds firm boldface lies about the effect of cuts to the CDC budget amid virus outbreak because, yes they are that classless and delusional

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Money, Class, and Poverty,, Science and Stuff,Leave a comment

Trump’s 2021 budget request ….proposed cutting Health and Human Services funding by $9.5 billion, including a 15 percent cut of $1.2 billion to the CDC and a $35 million decrease to the Infectious Diseases Rapid Response Reserve Fund’s annual contribution.

Trump budget chief holds firm on CDC cuts amid virus outbreak | TheHill

hmmm

Health care workers getting sicker from coronavirus than other patients, expert says

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“Maybe it’s due to a higher dose of virus they’re receiving,” Hotez hypothesized in his Monday interview with CNN. 

Health care workers getting sicker from coronavirus than other patients, expert says – CNN

Whoa… that’s not good.

CNN’s fact checking is suspect these days. They run with too much sensationalist garbage to be taken at face value.

Why Sanders Isn’t Winning Over Black Voters

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Media and Culture,, Race,Leave a comment

Opinion | Why Sanders Isn’t Winning Over Black Voters – The New York Times

Ya gotta love it when an opinion piece starts out by referring to “assumptions” but doesn’t spell out what the assumption is or who holds it. It’s like: grab that glass of wine, reader, because this is going to be seven minutes of your life that you can’t get back.

“But consider a reason Mr. Sanders has done poorly among black voters that few are talking about: People with the most to gain by the numerous programs proposed by Mr. Sanders have also been the most disappointed by politics.”

Oh, for the love of Gaaa-uuughhh……. Really, few people are talking about it? By few, do you everyone who has a byline who has written about it? Because I will grant that they are not the sum total of the population. It might not be the first thing that gets brought up, but it sure as sh*t comes up pretty quick. I mean, where has the good doctor been? And who the eff have they been talking to?

Blah, blah, blah. Widespread and wholesale disenfranchisement is far from the only reason Bernie isn’t catching on in certain populations like older African-Americans.

Missed some opportunities? Is that what the kids on the street are calling a not-poor-super-super-white-guy-blinders-on reaction to #BLM? Dude brought some mayo with him on that one.

Oy!

Trump Administration Presses Cities to Evict Homeowners From Flood Zones

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Agree to use eminent domain to force people out of flood-prone homes, or forfeit a shot at federal money they need to combat climate change.

That choice, part of an effort by the Army Corps of Engineers to protect people from disasters, is facing officials from the Florida Keys to the New Jersey coast, including Miami, Charleston, S.C., and Selma, Ala. Local governments seeking federal money to help people leave flood zones must first commit to push out people who refuse to move.

…The Corps’ mission includes protecting Americans from flooding and coastal storms. It does that in different ways, including building sea walls, levees and other protections, and elevating homes. The Corps generally pays two-thirds of the cost, which can stretch into billions of dollars. The local government usually pays the rest.

As that risk grows because of climate change, the Corps has shifted toward paying local governments to buy and demolish homes at risk of flooding. The logic is that the only surefire way to guarantee the homes won’t flood again is if they no longer exist. But it also uproots people and can destroy communities.

As a result, federally funded buyouts have usually been voluntary; residents could decline. But at the end of 2015, the Corps said that voluntary programs were “not acceptable” and that all future buyout programs “must include the option to use eminent domain, where warranted.”

Trump Administration Presses Cities to Evict Homeowners From Flood Zones – The New York Times

What tha faaaah??! Aggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

They came for the U.S. on Instagram too

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Media and Culture,, Privacy,Leave a comment

Russia’s Internet Research Agency operated a vast network of accounts on Instagram that sought to infiltrate American identity groups, harden ideological divides and sow distrust in the American political system.

Much of the group’s activity was concentrated among several dozen large accounts. …Many of the group’s accounts targeted specific identity groups, including African-Americans, gun-rights supporters and anti-immigration activists.

…In total, posts from Instagram accounts linked to the I.R.A. received [at least] 185 million likes during the two-year period reviewed.

…Many of the Russian posts focused on developing audiences among specific American identity groups, which could then be used to target them with content and advertising later on.

……These merchandise sales most likely were not lucrative for the I.R.A. Instead, researchers suggested, selling merchandise had two other benefits: first, it allowed Russians to collect names, addresses and other personal information from users; second, it allowed them to identify strong supporters of a cause, who could then be targeted with advertisements.

…Several of the I.R.A.’s most popular Instagram accounts focused on African-American themes and interests. One image, posted to the @blackstagram_ account in June 2017, showed a series of women’s legs, with skin tones ranging from light to dark. The caption read, “All the tones are nude! Get over it!” It received more than 250,000 likes and more than 6,000 comments.

…Another image, posted to an account called @army_of_jesus, encouraged users to “like if you believe,” and “keep scrolling if you don’t.” The account, which originally shared Kermit the Frog memes and jokes from “The Simpsons,” was later repurposed to target conservative Christians [after a following was built].

…In the days leading up to the 2016 election, some I.R.A.-linked Instagram accounts were used to seed doubts about the integrity of the election, and to accuse Democrats of trying to rig the vote in their favor. 

Russian Trolls Came for Instagram, Too – The New York Times

hmm

How Russia Spreads Fake News, Explained by a Former Troll

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The daily grind was simple: create fake accounts on social media and use them to post comments online as the bosses instructed.

…“We were not even allowed to say anything funny about Putin,” Bespalov says. “We would either talk positively about him or not at all.”

Apart from a few ideological employees who referred to themselves as “Putin’s trolls,” the staff at the factory was mostly indifferent to politics and motivated only by money, says Bespalov. They were paid to meet specific quotas for online comments, blogs and other posts on social media. They were given strict instructions on what issues to write about and how to spin the news of the day.

How Russia Spreads Fake News, Explained by a Former Troll | Time

hmmm

Has Putin already disrupted the 2020 elections?

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Media and Culture,, Southern Central Asia,Leave a comment

Meanwhile, intelligence officials tell Sen. Bernie Sanders, the leading candidate to unseat the president, that Russian bots have infiltrated his online army to sow discord in the Democratic Party.

…Not sure what to believe? Bingo. This fever of mistrust is the desired symptom of a powerful virus — a confidence-sapping worm of mutual suspicion — that Russia has planted in the operating system of American democracy. At little cost and with surprising ease, Vladimir Putin and his government have exploited partisanship and social media to serve Russia’s long-term goal of weakening the West by encouraging disorder and disunity. Already, eight months before Election Day, the virus is spreading virtually unchecked, because the very existence of a Russian chaos project has itself become a partisan wedge.

…Seizing opportunities on the lawless frontiers of social media, the Russian leader has stoked division, spread disinformation, fanned conspiracy theories and generally mind-gamed the American system.

…It’s ironic that Americans of all political stripes have contributed to Putin’s success — by failing to understand what he wants and why he wants it. 

…A unified United States, pursuing a bipartisan, pro-democracy foreign policy is Putin’s biggest fear. So, he has taken the risk of creating an operation specifically to sow discord through social media. Putin’s computer hackers look for any internal divisions and tensions that tend to erode American unity or discredit American leadership. Though he clearly favored Trump over Hillary Clinton in 2016, Putin doesn’t generally favor one point of view over another; he supports whichever candidates are most divisive and amplifies whatever arguments are most bitter. 

…So, too, history will eventually confirm the foundational fact of Putin’s deliberate hacking of the West. “The Russian Government interfered in the 2016 presidential election in sweeping and systematic fashion,” the Mueller report concluded. As spelled out in a detailed federal indictment of the Internet Research Agency, Russian agents employed by a Putin associate began in 2014 to sow inflammatory lies and truly fake news on social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. Their strategy was simple enough: Find divisive wedge issues and try to hammer the wedge deeper.

Russian trolls and computer “bots” spread phony reports of a Muslim terrorist attack in Louisiana. They stoked racial tensions after controversial police shootings. They touted a nonexistent outbreak of Ebola in Atlanta and fanned baseless rumors of Ku Klux Klansmen loose on a Missouri college campus. Such seemingly scattershot efforts in fact were aimed precisely: anything likely to divide Americans from each other, or divide Americans from the world, was a candidate for amplification. Shake, stir and repeat.

Has Putin already disrupted the 2020 elections? – The Washington Post

Speculating about Putin’s motivations and referring to these thoughts as if they were facts is a wee bit much there, Drehle…

That Uplifting Tweet You Just Shared? A Russian Troll Sent It

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Grow an audience in part through heartwarming, inspiring messages, and use that following to spread messages promoting division, distrust, and doubt.

…The quality of Russia’s work has been honed over several years and millions of social media posts. They have appeared on Instagram, Stitcher, Reddit, Google+, Tumblr, Medium, Vine, Meetup, and even Pokémon Go, demonstrating not only a nihilistic creativity, but also a ruthless efficiency in volume of production. 

…Professional trolls don’t go on social media to antagonize liberals or belittle conservatives. They are not narrow minded, drunk or angry.  …Your stereotypical trolls do exist on social media, but the amateurs aren’t a threat to Western democracy.

Professional trolls, on the other hand, are the tip of the spear in the new digital, ideological battleground. To combat the threat they pose, we must first understand them — and take them seriously.

…Professional trolls are good at their job. They have studied us. They understand how to harness our biases (and hashtags) for their own purposes. They know what pressure points to push and how best to drive us to distrust our neighbors. The professionals know you catch more flies with honey. They don’t go to social media looking for a fight; they go looking for new best friends. And they have found them.

Disinformation operations aren’t typically fake news or outright lies. Disinformation is most often simply spin. Spin is hard to spot and easy to believe, especially if you are already inclined to do so. 

…As good marketers, professional trolls manipulate our emotions subtly.

…“My cousin is studying sociology in university. Last week she and her classmates polled over 1,000 conservative Christians. ‘What would you do if you discovered that your child was a homo sapiens?’ 55% said they would disown them and force them to leave their home.”

This tweet, which suggested conservative Christians are not only homophobic but also ignorant, was subtle enough to not feel overtly hateful, but was also aimed directly at multiple cultural stress points, driving a wedge at the point where religiosity and ideology meet.

…Melanie’s audience was made up of educated, urban, left-wing Americans harboring a touch of self-righteousness. She wasn’t selling her audience a candidate or a position — she was selling an emotion. Melanie was selling disgust. The Russians know that, in political warfare, disgust is a more powerful tool than anger. Anger drives people to the polls; disgust drives countries apart.

…Effective disinformation is embedded in an account you agree with. The professionals don’t push you away, they pull you toward them. While tweeting uplifting messages, …[they also] distributed messages consistent with past Russian disinformation. Importantly, they highlighted issues of race and gender inequality.  …These tweets point to valid issues of concern …[but] they are framed [in a way which serves] Russia’s interests in undermining Americans’ trust in our institutions.

…These accounts also harness the goodwill they’ve built by engaging in these communities for specific political ends. …They attacked moderate politicians as a method of bolstering more polarizing candidates. 

…They attack issues from both sides, attempting to drive mainstream viewpoints in polar and extreme directions.

…Russia strategically employed social media to build support on the right for Trump and lower voter turnout on the left for Clinton.

…Russia’s goals are to further widen existing divisions in the American public and decrease our faith and trust in institutions that help maintain a strong democracy. [Their aim is to] encourage us to vilify our neighbor and amplify our differences because, if we grow incapable of compromising, there can be no meaningful democracy. 

That Uplifting Tweet You Just Shared? A Russian Troll Sent It – Rolling Stone

hmmmm