Martell Spy
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Posts posted by Martell Spy
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Microsoft can close its Activision merger, federal judge rules
https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/11/tech/microsoft-activision-merger-judge/index.html
QuoteTuesday’s ruling, however, gave Microsoft the benefit of the doubt because the FTC failed to prove the combined company would have the incentive to keep “Call of Duty” exclusive to Microsoft-owned platforms such as Xbox. Corley outlined eight factors that bolstered Microsoft’s defense, including that Microsoft stands to make more money by making “Call of Duty” available on as many platforms as possible.
“The FTC has not identified a single document which contradicts Microsoft’s publicly-stated commitment to make Call of Duty available on PlayStation (and Nintendo Switch),” the opinion said, despite agency lawyers’ access to nearly one million company documents and 30 depositions.
Corley added that the licensing agreements Microsoft has signed showed that public scrutiny of the deal “has paid off,” further reducing the need for court interventio
- Darryk and Ser Not Appearing
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Tuberville refuses to denounce White nationalism in military, doubles down on past comments
https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/11/politics/tommy-tuberville-white-nationalism-cnntv/index.html
QuoteRepublican Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama on Monday doubled down on his comments on White nationalism, saying it was an “opinion” that White nationalists are racist.
During an interview on CNN’s “The Source with Kaitlan Collins,” Tuberville repeatedly defended his previous comments. When Collins stated the definition of a White nationalist is someone who believes that the White race is superior to other races, Tuberville said, “Well, that’s some people’s opinion.”
When asked what his opinion was, Tuberville said, “My opinion of a White nationalist, if someone wants to call them White nationalist, to me is an American.”
Speaking on an individual level, Tuberville added, “If people think a White nationalist is a racist, I agree with that.”
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4 hours ago, James Arryn said:
Lemme guess, it was really all about state’s rights?
Yeah, once you remove the motive it's a real wildcard. Anyone could have done it for any reason. Maybe old testament Jesus got pissed off.
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Outrage as Republican says 1921 Tulsa massacre not motivated by race
Oklahoma superintendent Ryan Walters decried for comments on 1921 massacre in which hundreds were killed by white mobshttps://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jul/08/oklahoma-republican-tulsa-race-massacre
QuoteThe state official in charge of Oklahoma’s schools is facing calls for impeachment, after he said teachers should tell students that the Tulsa race massacre was not racially motivated.
In a public forum on Thursday, Ryan Walters, Oklahoma’s state superintendent of public instruction, said teachers could cover the 1921 massacre, in which white Tulsans murdered an estimated 300 Black people, but teachers should not “say that the skin color determined it”.
Walters is a pro-Trump Republican who was elected to oversee Oklahoma education in November. He has consistently indulged in rightwing talking points including “woke ideology” and has said critical race theory should not be taught in classrooms. Republicans have frequently conflated banning critical race theory with banning any discussion of racial history in classrooms.
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Michael Imperioli forbids ‘bigots and homophobes’ from watching his work following Supreme Court ruling
https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/02/entertainment/michael-imperioli-supreme-court/index.html
QuoteActor Michael Imperioli has something to say about the Supreme Court’s Friday ruling in favor of a Christian web designer who refuses to create websites to celebrate same-sex weddings.
“I’ve decided to forbid bigots and homophobes from watching The Sopranos, The White Lotus, Goodfellas or any movie or tv show I’ve been in,” Imperioli said in the caption of a post on his Instagram page Saturday, adding “Thank you Supreme Court for allowing me to discriminate and exclude those who I don’t agree with and am opposed to. USA! USA!”
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They dumbed down the the RPG mechanics in Fallout 4. And the main story is very much a railroad. I'm a big Fallout fan and I do play 4, but it is kind of a let down. It's a better game on next gen though, combat is crisper.
Fallout New Vegas has tons better side quests. Just one example you help this npc and if you make certain choices you end up murdering a weapon shop owner. And not only that you can loot and sell everything, and it's a lot. I haven't been 4 yet, as I keep putting it down, but I have seen nothing approaching anything like that. 4 seems to be all about finding this kid and you had better like doing that. The combat and looting is nice though.
I just killed the Courser, actually. First time I got this far. Been pushing through my annoyance with the main story.
But yeah, you can enslave a man in Fallout New Vegas. You can feed a man to cannibals. I can't imagine Fallout 4 letting you do anything even remotely near that controversial.
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Supreme Court limits LGBTQ protections in dispute over services for same-sex weddings
The high court ruled that a Christian web designer has a right to offer design services for opposite-sex weddings while refusing those services for same-sex weddings.Supreme Court strikes down Biden’s student debt relief plan
In a 6-3 decision, the court’s conservative majority ruled that Biden’s effort to erase roughly $400 billion of student debt was an illegal use of executive power. -
Putin says Wagner fighters can sign up with defense ministry, return to families or move to Belarus
https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/russia-ukraine-war-news-06-26-23/index.html
QuoteRussian President Vladimir Putin on Monday thanked the Wagner Group fighters who made the "right decision" and halted their advance.
"I thank those soldiers and commanders of the Wagner Group who made the only right decision — they did not go for fratricidal bloodshed, they stopped at the last line," Putin said in an address to the nation.
He also said those fighters would have the "opportunity to continue serving Russia by entering into a contract with the Ministry of Defense or other law enforcement agencies, or to return to your family and friends. Whoever wants to can go to Belarus."
During the address to the nation, Putin did not mention Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin by name. -
Up to ep. 7. And yeah ep. 7 was a real highlight of the season and ep. 6 was quite harrowing and triggered my own anxiety problem.
SpoilerRichie staging was fantastic in general. I did not expect him to have that level of discipline. A well-needed course correction for the character. I had written him off as a lost cause last season.
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House Freedom Caucus faces an internal purge push
At least two hardliners have discussed trying to boot members who no longer meet the group’s standards, according to three Republicans with knowledge of the talks.https://www.politico.com/news/2023/06/23/house-freedom-caucus-members-00103296
QuoteWhile the members suggesting a purge did not specify the people they want to remove, they are signaling that one target of any ejection push is Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.). Some in the Freedom Caucus have focused on Greene, who’s become a close ally of Speaker Kevin McCarthy, to illustrate their fears that certain group members are too aligned with GOP leaders and too outwardly critical of the group when it splits on certain issues.
The risk of an outside-the-tent conservative becoming too friendly with the establishment isn’t the only problem that Freedom Caucus purists have identified, though. Internal Freedom Caucus critics are talking about targeting a handful of members beyond Greene, too, whom they see as violating group standards by being inactive.
- Mindwalker and Tywin et al.
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Josh Marshall of Talking Points Memo observed that Leo seems to have used his extensive network to set up relationships between judges and donors in a reinforcing ecosystem.
That's a really strange way to meet people that are "Just friends."
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Justice Samuel Alito Took Luxury Fishing Vacation With GOP Billionaire Who Later Had Cases Before the Court
https://www.propublica.org/article/samuel-alito-luxury-fishing-trip-paul-singer-scotus-supreme-court
QuoteSinger was more than a fellow angler. He flew Alito to Alaska on a private jet. If the justice chartered the plane himself, the cost could have exceeded $100,000 one way.
In the years that followed, Singer’s hedge fund came before the court at least 10 times in cases where his role was often covered by the legal press and mainstream media. In 2014, the court agreed to resolve a key issue in a decade-long battle between Singer’s hedge fund and the nation of Argentina. Alito did not recuse himself from the case and voted with the 7-1 majority in Singer’s favor. The hedge fund was ultimately paid $2.4 billion. -
34 minutes ago, Tywin et al. said:
I think this is usually the problem with the judicial system. So many lawyers, DAs and prosecutors are afraid to lose.
I suspect Garland is much more afraid of actually getting a former President convicted of anything more than a documents case. And that's also why he was hired.
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What is really hard is getting a conviction if you never indict in the first place because it's too hard. Not indicting, or stopping at what's already been done is the 100 percent chance that Trump completely walks with a slap on the wrist (barring some crazy result on the douments cases)
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27 minutes ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said:
If he appeals a criminal conviction… Trump should still be incarcerated while that appeal is made.
He should have been indicted for staging a coup. Still waiting on that one.
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Enjoyed the movie, but it was hard to follow at times. It was weird because they did a great job at simplying it at certain points, but it got very convuluted at others. (And at a high speed so no time to think it out before the action proceeds)
Glad Keaton as Batman was more than a cameo as that was the main reason I was going to the movie.
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Former Trump Defense secretary brands him a security threat
“It’s just irresponsible action that places our service members at risk, places our nation’s security at risk,” Mark Esper said.https://www.politico.com/news/2023/06/18/mark-esper-secrets-trump-classified-00102541
QuotePainting him as a security risk, former Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Sunday added his voice to those critical of former President Donald Trump for his handling of classified information after his presidency.
Esper, who served in Trump’s Cabinet, said: “People have described him as a hoarder when it comes to these type of documents. But clearly, it was unauthorized, illegal and dangerous.”
Speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Esper compared Trump’s legal case — he was recently indicted on 37 charges related to his post-presidency handling of secret documents — to that of Jack Teixeira, a Massachusetts Air National Guard member accused of posting secret and sensitive military documents on social media. Teixeira was indicted Thursday.
“We have a case playing out right now in Massachusetts where that young airman from the Massachusetts National Guard is being charged on similar types of accounts under the Espionage Act for taking and retaining unauthorized documents that affected our national defense,” Esper told host Jake Tapper. -
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I am truly not convinced the people outside ARE dead though - my previous thoughts were - they initially collapse and that still shot is then taken and manipulated somehow to remain the same whereas now I’m not sure…we’ve seen that the footage changes by day and night.
Haven't read the book either.
Yeah, I don't think they are dead either, or at least not when they left. It does seem to be hinting that the images are manipulated. But the whole cleaning thing really is what makes me believe that. Why do they always clean? Like, it's 100 percent that they do this. They send these people out to die and as their last act they meekly do the thing they are told to do? There's some weird ritual to it as well. It seems the point of it is to create unity, but I don't find it plausible.
Another random option for what is happening. They are taken somewhere else.
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GOP’s booming support for guns is turning off millennial, Gen Z Republicans
About a quarter of young Republicans in one poll said they strongly or somewhat supported an assault weapons ban.QuoteOne poll conducted by Harvard’s political institute this spring found that a clear majority of young conservatives supported mandatory psychological exams for gun purchasers. A separate, recurring survey from YouGov concluded in March that Gen Z and millennial Republicans are more likely to believe in tougher gun laws than older Republicans and that young conservatives’ support for the idea has grown in the past year.
The generational disconnect suggests broader GOP opposition to gun restrictions will be a steady irritant inside a party already struggling to appeal to young voters.
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Cutting spending to increase the deficit. Brilliant.
The CBO projected that 2.1 billion more will be spent over a decade due to the work requirements deal. Literally different people are getting coverage as other people get cut.
Changes to food aid in debt bill would cost money, far from savings GOP envisioned
QuoteWASHINGTON (AP) — A Republican attempt to expand work requirements for federal food aid in debt legislation moving through Congress would increase federal spending by $2.1 billion over 10 years — far from the cuts GOP lawmakers had promised.
A compromise on the food aid requirements between House Republicans and President Joe Biden as the nation nears a disastrous government default may have backfired for the Republicans, who won the new work requirements in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for some able-bodied recipients in exchange for Democratic demands to drop work requirements for some other, more vulnerable recipients such as veterans and homeless people.
An estimate from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office released late Tuesday said that while the new work requirements in SNAP would save money, the added benefits pushed by Democrats would cost more — and add almost 80,000 people to the rolls in an average month.
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Are the Anti-Trump GOP Forces Starting to Implode?
A mission-control breakdown for DeSantis and smooth launch for Scott bode ill for those hoping to thwart the former president.QuoteSuch potential is what will make Scott appealing to victory-hungry Republicans. They’re also the sort of party regulars DeSantis will ultimately need as part of any coalition he forms to stop Trump. If such voters migrate to Scott, that task gets harder.
While Thune’s appearance, along with the veritable battalion of former Bush and Romney strategists working for Scott, signaled establishment acceptability, Ellison demonstrated why coalescence could prove difficult against Trump.
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Yep, lock the terrorist up.
Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes sentenced to 18 years in prison for plot to keep Trump in power
QuoteStewart Rhodes, the founder and leader of the Oath Keepers, was sentenced to 18 years in prison on Thursday for leading a far-reaching plot to keep then-President Donald Trump in power after he lost the 2020 election.
The sentence is the first handed down in over a decade for seditious conspiracy.
“What we absolutely cannot have is a group of citizens who – because they did not like the outcome of an election, who did not believe the law was followed as it should be – forment revolution,” District Judge Amit Mehta said before handing down the sentence. “That is what you did.”
“I dare say, Mr. Rhodes – and I never have said this to anyone I have sentenced – you pose an ongoing threat and peril to our democracy and the fabric of this country,” Mehta said.
The judge added: “I dare say we all now hold our collective breaths when an election is approaching. Will we have another January 6 again? That remains to be seen.”
Mehta said Rhodes, 58, has expressed no remorse and continues to be a threat.
“A seditious conspiracy, when you take those two concepts and put it together, is among the most serious crimes an American can commit,” the judge said. “It is an offense against the government to use force. It is an offense against the people of our country.”
Earlier on Thursday, Mehta ruled that Rhodes’ actions amounted to domestic terrorism.
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15 hours ago, RumHam said:
I also wonder if we'll ever see his spy who cooked Pershing's brain again. How did she even know the two groups of Mandalorians had teamed up?
Elia Kane. That is indeed a huge dangling thread that wasn't addressed. I'm sure it'll be addressed elsewhere, possibly in Ahsoka. I imagine she'll end up working for Thrawn if Gideon is indeed gone for good. Given she's still implanted with the New Republic she could also attain higher rank and cause even more chaos for them.
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Enjoyed the finale, but also obviously not blown away like the end of season 2. Good action and that's what this show does best. Really glad that Mando is going back to doing jobs as that is also what this show does best. I was really glad to see Mando and Grogu fight together as partners and it worked well. My main problem with Grogu in the past is he often gets used as a Hand of God in between having to be protected most of the time.
No Gideon body is really damn annoying. Especially since he probably has 200 other clones somewhere. So they have a million ways basically to bring him back.
The wrap up with the Mandalorians was easily the worst part of the ep. It's good it is wrapped up though. It was a lot like the rebels fleeing from the Hoth base for them. They were much better used in the pirate battle episode. They clearly wanted to focus on Mando/Grogu this ep which isn't a bad decision as it's their show, but the whole Mandalorian plot kind of concluded with a whimper.
US politics: just for you
in General Chatter
Posted · Edited by Martell Spy
I'm not sure if he's capable of that. Honestly I think he has gravel in the place of brains. And the reporters know this guy is an easy story. It's really distressing that he's a senator. It might be better if Trump really had put a horse into the Senate.