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Posts Tagged ‘propaganda’

We’re having to evacuate from our own country.  –  Sergei Troshin

Secret Squirrel (#1202)

These wannabe Stasi will be lucky if a guilty conscience is the worst consequence of this ugly violation of their daughter’s trust:

A few years ago, we gave our daughter, now 18, a stuffed bear for her birthday.  At the time, we had recently discovered she had a boyfriend whom she was hiding from us…[so] we [decided] to [spy on her while pretending we weren’t]…breaking her trust…[by] install[ing] a hidden camera inside the eye of the stuffed bear.  Our daughter is now in college, and we overheard her telling her roommate how grateful she was for our trust in her…We have been racked with guilt ever since.  How can we tell our daughter about the camera without destroying our relationship with her?  Should we tell her at all?

Thou Shalt Not (#1299)

Will progressives ever stop cheering police violence in the name of “public health”?

New Zealand’s new…coalition government is abandoning a [new]…plan to [expand the drug war by criminalizing] smoking for future generations, in a move [criticized by] health experts [who think they have the right to enforce their diktats with police violence]…the [scheme]…would [have] gradually raise[d] the legal age so that anyone born on or after Jan. 1, 2009, would…[forever] be [criminalized for] buy[ing] tobacco [regardless of age].  The New Zealand [drug war expansion inspired a monkey see-monkey do parade, with]…England…Ireland…Wales…[and] Hong Kong [already in line behind the prohibitionist bandwagon]…

The Cop Myth (#1350)

Why are people surprised when cops treat family members like they treat others?

 An Oklahoma City [cop with a long history of domestic violence] has been arrested again, but this time [for]…child abuse….Kristopher Gellenbeck…and…his…ex-wife…were exchanging their three children, ages 8-15, when he…began yelling at her and…pushed their oldest son out of the way to get to her.  The…[boy] grabbed Gellenbeck by the shirt in an effort to pull him away from his mother…[he then responded by attempting to] strangle…the…[boy.  But when] he…[saw she] was dialing 911…he…stopped strangling their son and ran towards her, grabbing her phone and “smashing” both of her hands against the window…“I never felt safe being around Kristopher, but I tried to do the correct thing and allow him to still see his children…[but they] have told me numerous times they do not want to go over to his house because they are afraid of him…I truly believe that if he gets close to use again, he can kill us,” Gellenbeck’s ex-wife wrote to a judge…In 2021, [Gellenbeck] was…charge[d with]…kidnapping…[and] domestic assault a[fter he broke into her house, tried to steal] her [entire] security camera system…grabbed her phone and [then held her prisoner for a while in her own home]…

Vulture Watching (#1364)

The psychopaths who rule Texas blame doctors for being afraid of prison or wanton destruction of their livelihoods:

Lawyers [for] Texas…[bizarrely argue] that women should sue their doctors, not the state, [because politicians inserted themselves and the police into the doctor-patient relationship]…Beth Klusmann of the Texas Attorney General’s Office [claimed] that [every possible life-threatening condition in pregnancy is invariably recognizable due to]…“a woman is bleeding…[and] has amniotic fluid running down her legs”…Zurawski v. Texas was brought by 22 women who[m]…state law…forced…to carry nonviable and dangerous pregnancies to term…many…were denied care because, despite the severity of the damage that the nonviable pregnancy was doing their body…they weren’t quite sick enough for it to be clearly life threatening.  Forty businesses have also signed a brief in support of the suit — arguing that ambiguities in the law have…cost…nearly $15 billion in lost revenues, and businesses and employees leaving the state…the 2021 law flew in the face of a long history of doctors being allowed to determine when abortion was necessary to preserve the health of the mother under state law — even when the procedure, in general, was not legal…

Monsters (#1392)

Never forget that this started with censorship of internet porn:

Russia’s Supreme Court has declared what it calls “the international LGBT public movement” an extremist organisation and banned its activities across the country…even though no such organisation exists as a legal entity.  The hearing was held behind closed doors, [and]…nobody from “the defendant’s side” had been present…Sergei Troshin, a municipal deputy in St Petersburg who came out as gay last year, [said]…”I think this will mean that anyone whom the state considers an LGBT activist could receive a long prison sentence for ‘participating in an extremist organisation’…There is panic in Russia’s LGBT community.  People are emigrating urgently…We’re having to evacuate from our own country”…

Cops lost no time in proving the panic justified:

Russian security forces raided gay clubs and bars across Moscow Friday night, less than 48 hours after the country’s top court banned what it called the “global LGBTQ+ movement” as an extremist organization…

Served Cold (#1393)

This just keeps getting better:

…Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes…us[ed] “unconstitutional suppression” of [Suzanne Whitehead’s] rights to free speech after she tried to tell the truth about Tim Ballard and Operation Underground Railroad…[her new] lawsuit alleges Reyes “apparently believes” Ballard is the “chosen one” and…[therefore] treats Ballard as if he’s above the law…Reyes [even] wrote a [“very self-aggrandizing”] scene [for a proposed] sequel to the [propaganda] film…Sound of Freedom…[which] reinforces how Reyes covers for Ballard and fails to disclose financial conflicts…Whitehead says Reyes’ “political credibility” allowed the Attorney General to act as a “blocker, quashing complaints against Ballard and OUR with the cover of the top law enforcement officer in the state of Utah”…

To Molest and Rape (Still Another Rapist Roundup)

Cops should not be allowed anywhere near legal minors:

[Florida cop] Aurelio Gerald Rodriguez…was arrested in [early] November…for…physical and sexual abuse [of]…3 girls who were related to him [in some unexplained fashion].  The girls are 9, 16 and 18 now and report that the abuse began [for the eldest] when [she] was…10 [and the second when she was 7]….[beside] the…grooming…and [molestation] he…[would talk about] their “sexual needs”…[and] his [own] needs.  The girls described being always afraid of him because he was “angry and mean” to them while the [molestation]…occurred more times than they can estimate…The oldest girl said they were silent because they were afraid he would not let them see their mother, something…he…apparently controlled.  The…molestation persisted…until he was [arrested]…in November…

Given the situation and relative ages, I’m guessing he’s their grandfather.  This one is also related to his victim:

Justin Sigmon…[is a typical and representative] Virginia [cop]…On May 25, 2023, he departed from…Miami on a Carnival cruise ship…and…[was] filmed in the ship’s dining room with a 9-year-old girl…described as his “relative” sitting on his lap while he persistently moved his hands to her inner thighs and genital area.  The girl was seen pushing his hand away numerous times and he persisted…[even when] she crossed her legs…the molestation lasted about 10 minutes…and when the girl got up, he is seen touching and covering his own crotch for some time.  This was recorded by a bystander and…confirmed by the ship’s surveillance cameras.  He was charged in Florida with a federal crime when the ship docked on June 3, 2023…[and] convicted by a jury [on November 17th]…Sentencing was set for Jan. 12…

This one doesn’t appear to be related to his victim, but given the obfuscation it’s hard to tell:

A[n nonymous London cop] has been [sacked] for [molesting]…an underage runaway [of unspecified age or gender]…who was reported missing…he…”exploited and abused” the [victim] after making contact with them on social media…on 16 August 2019…he…[even] allowed them to stay [at his place] on 26 August without informing police or social services…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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Neither [journalists]nor politicians nor rich people get to decide what any given individual thinks is worth risking his life for; the only person who gets to decide that is the individual himself.
– “With Folded Hands (#445)

The capacity of politicians to pretend that being proven wrong actually means they were right is a kind of nauseating marvel.
–  “Count the Idiocies

Humans don’t need a government certificate to be sexual beings, and…sex is…not some pretty fairy-tale rainbow magic that mystically appears in a burst of pastel hearts when two people of the “correct” age fall in love.  –  “Infantilization

There is not and in fact cannot be any such thing as “legitimate” authority, whether that authority is chosen by elections, lots, birth, examining goat entrails, or pulling swords out of lakes.  –  “Illegitimate

Posturing politicians…claim to be the champions of “the people”, but in actuality those “people” are no more than a source of power to them, as interchangeable, expendable and disposable as lumps of coal thrown into a furnace.
–  “The Grand Illusion

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[Prison officials] do not give a shit about…medical care. Not one shit.  –  Deborah Ujevich

Schadenfreude

It’s heartening to see so many rescue industry profiteers exposed as the sociopaths they are:

The founder of the International House of Prayer of Kansas City, a [rescue industry] organization, is facing serious allegations of [sexual] misconduct…Mike Bickle has led the organization since its founding in 1999…three former IHOPKC leaders said the allegations…[were] “credible and long-standing”…they tried to bring the allegations…to Bickle…[but] “were repeatedly rebuffed by Mike Bickle and we were refused any sort of meeting…Instead, Mike used manipulating and intimidating tactics towards the victims to isolate them and discredit them”…For years, [IHOPKC] has come under criticism by ex-staffers and former followers who accuse it of being cult-like…In 2012, a park ranger found follower Bethany Deaton, 27, dead in the backseat of a minivan…just weeks after her wedding…a group of young people [had lived] together under the strict control of Bethany’s husband, Tyler Deaton.  Most of the group, whose members…used sex as part of their religious experience, had come to Kansas City to be part of IHOPKC

Checklist (#1014)

The government scheme to cut sex workers off from the healthcare system isn’t dead yet:

St. Joseph’s Health [in New Jersey is subjecting its]…Emergency Department staff members…[to] in[doctrination]…designed to detect [sex workers] and…facilitate the[ir] prosecution…[blah blah] tools to engage with victims…increasing…27.6 million people worldwide…Homeland Security…[fascist] partnership…raise awareness…survivor once trapped in trafficking…psychological control…training the emergency team…to identify…victims [us]ing [scientific criteria like a “feeling of sadness“]…

The Lesser of Two Evils (#1176)

Maybe the Church should delineate acceptable ways for clergy to meet their sexual needs:

A Catholic bishop in southern Poland has resigned after a sex worker passed out at a clandestine orgy allegedly hosted by one of his clergy.  Grzegorz Kaszak, the bishop of Sosnowiec, had been under pressure…for several weeks after details of the all-male sex party were released to the press…[it] is alleged to have been held at the rectory of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Angels church in Dabrowa Gornicza…at the end of August…a…sex worker fell unconscious under the influence of “psychotropic substances”, a[nd]…another man…rang the local ambulance service for help…

Law of the Instrument (#1216)

Picture what you’d think of as “sex trafficking”, then compare it to this:

A [Nebraska] teen [has been charged with] sex trafficking two teen girls…Cody Holum, 17, is charged as an adult…[for] threaten[ing] to share nude photos of…[a] 16-year-old [girl]…if she did not allow him to sexually assault her….despite telling him no, Holum came to her work and sexually assaulted her…[when cops rooted throug his computer, they] found conversations between Holum and a second [girl]…where he allegedly threatened to harm her if she did [not]…send him sexually explicit photos and videos of herself…

This shitty behavior is usually referred to by the idiotic term “sextortion” rather than the even more idiotic term “sex trafficking”.

Torture Chamber (#1366)

Screws’ idea of prison health care is yelling “Stop faking!” at the sick and dying:

West Virginia…[politicians have] ban[ned]…any health care for incarcerated people that [screws and prison bureaucrats don’t] deem…“medically necessary”.  The policy leaves it to state [Torturing Caged Humans] Commissioner Billy Marshall—a [lifelong pig]…who has said incarcerated people are lying when they allege inhumane treatment by the state—to define “medically necessary” and makes clear that…his de[cisions]…supersede guidance from [actual] health professionals…

See No Evil (#1374)

Realistic cartoons are still cartoons, but that doesn’t matter to those who can’t tell fantasy from reality:

The Internet Watch Foundation…has found thousands of [computer]-generated images which are…criminal under UK law[, as are even the most cartoony porn cartoons if a cop decides they depict characters who are “children” within the fictive universe of the cartoon, regardless of what the creator says about these wholly-fictional characters.  Computers are]…being used to produce new images of real victims, de-age celebrities and unclothe children in ordinary photos to depict them in abuse scenarios…In a new study of a single dark web forum, the IWF found 2,978 [computer-]generated [porn cartoons]…

Stalkers in Blue (#1384)

Cops are sexual predators who often specifically target traumatized women:

A [Florida cop] has been arrested [for stalking, propositioning, and sending dick pics to]…a 17-year-old girl he met while responding to a domestic violence call…Jemiah Thomas…[talked the girl out of her] phone number…and [bombarded her with sexual messages]…In one message, Thomas told her he could be her “personal sheriff that handcuff you from time to time”…the girl…[told her] father[, who then reported]…Thomas…[and another cop caught him by fantasy role-play]ing as the [girl]…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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These kids have been helicoptered, snowplowed and bubble-wrapped.  –  Michele Borba

Not An Addiction (#342)

Sorry, crypto-moralists, but “addictive” is not a synonym for “yummy”:

[meta-analysis] from the University of Michigan [intentionally misuses the medical term “addiction” in order to make the clickbait declaration that] people can show signs of addiction to ultra-processed foods, which include ice cream, potato chips, and other products high in sugar and carbohydrates…Those addictions were on the same levels as the ones for alcohol and tobacco, the study [claime]d…co-author Alexandra DiFeliceantonio…pointed out that while you can give up smoking, drinking or gambling, you can’t stop eating[, which is exactly why applying the “addiction” model to foods is asinine and absurd]…dietician Erin Palinski-Wade [explained,] “Although foods rich in added sugar may stimulate the feel-good chemicals in the brain..sugar itself is not addictive in the way cocaine or another drug may be…eliminating it from the diet will not result in withdrawal symptoms or side effects as would happen from a true addiction”…

To paraphrase Jacob Sullum, “the study’s findings could just as truthfully be summarized as, ‘Research Shows That Alcohol and Tobacco Are No More Addictive Than Potato Chips’.”

I Spy (#1180)

Curiosity offends the state, comrade:

…the Colorado Supreme Court…conceded that [a] warrant [demanding Google report everyone who searched a particular address where a crime took place] was “constitutionally defective” because it lacked individualized probably cause…[but] ruled that [pigs could use the illegally-obtained information against their chosen target anyhow, because they pinky-swore they didn’t know it was wrong]…Justice Monica M. Márquez objected in [her] dissent….[that cops knew] they were engaged in a “fishing expedition”…”reverse-keyword warrants…are…a high-tech version of the reviled ‘general warrants’ that first gave rise to the protections in the Fourth Amendment”…

Creepy Coppers

Such convoluted language to distance other cops from a typical specimen:

A [typical and representative]…Cleveland [cop named]…Brandon N. Crites [has been] indicted on [charges] of receipt and distribution of child pornography…between 2022 and 2023…at least one image found in his possession involved a…prepubescent [child]…

Shame, Shame (#1321)

Bird-brains still believe realistic porn cartoons are the worst use for this technology:

Scroll through the livestreaming videos at 4 a.m. on Taobao, China’s most popular e-commerce platform, and you’ll find it weirdly busy.  While most people are fast asleep, there are still many diligent streamers presenting products to the cameras and offering discounts…But…many of these livestream influencers seem slightly robotic…they are AI-generated [“]clones[“] of the real streamers.  As technologies that create realistic avatars, voices, and movements get more sophisticated and affordable, the popularity of these deepfakes has exploded across China’s e-commerce streaming platforms…With just a few minutes of sample video and $1,000 in costs, brands can [“]clone[“] a human streamer to work 24/7…

Secret Squirrel (#1332)

As JD Tuccille wrote, “Kids will grow up to value freedom only if they’re raised in an environment where privacy and liberty are treated as normal and good“:

Teenagers have long balked at telling parents where they are.  Now, they’re asking their parents to track them…[helicopter parenting] and real-time news—with vivid images about the pandemic, war and other disasters—have heightened…anxieties among young people…Members of Gen Z, ages [5 to 22], say they use family location-sharing apps to bolster a sense of security.  Downloads of [a surveillance app named] Life360 doubled in the U.S. since 2021.  The app now has more than 33 million monthly active users in the U.S. and another 20 million internationally.  Even more teens share their location using Apple’s Find My, Google’s Family Link, Snapchat’s Snap Map and GPS-equipped smartwatches…

Feudalism Redux (#1371)

This unhinged mob-rule lunacy will spread like rot until struck down by a court:

[Fad laws that attempt to criminalize] pregnant Texas women from traveling through the [domains of showboating politicians] for an abortion in another state…[failed] in Amarillo…after…several members of the…City Council…questioned the legality of [these ordinances]…enforced through private lawsuits…these so-called abortion travel bans have questionable enforcement mechanisms, making them more like a ceremonial declaration than a legally binding statute.  In an opinion following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote “May a state bar a resident of that state from traveling to another state to obtain an abortion?  In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel”…

The Public Eye (#1374)

How are they verifying the recipients’ ages before they open it?

The Republican Party of Virginia says it mailed out several thousand explicit political fliers to voters.  The envelopes read, “Do not open if you are under the age of 18,″ and “Warning: Explicit material enclosed.”  Inside the mailer…[were] two pieces of paper with censored quotes and screenshots from [Democratic candidate Susanna] Gibson’s public porn livestream…[both campaigns and both parties then flung competing barrages of monkey-poop at each other]…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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The implication is that [edible] manufacturers want to trick kids into getting high, although it’s not clear why that would be a sensible business strategy.  –  Jacob Sullum

Bottleneck

Worldwide, over 90% of whores prefer to work illegally than submit to “registration”:

The Dutch Cabinet’s plan to register sex workers…will…worsen their situation, the Dutch Data Protection Authority (AP) warned…The Cabinet’s proposal would allow municipalities to [demand]…sex workers…register their personal data, and to require businesses operating in the space to force their workers to do the same.  The Cabinet [justified] the [scheme by barfing out that all-purpose excuse for violating women’s rights, “]human trafficking[“, but in reality]…sex workers would wind up plying their trade underground “for fear of registration and loss of privacy.”  As a result, they would fall out of view of authorities…

Law of the Instrument (#974)

In a moral panic, ordinary business arrangements get spun into “exploitation” and “crime”:

[Mike Jeffries,] the ex-CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch and his British partner [Matthew Smith]…used a middleman to find young men for…events, [and now eight] of [them] allege…they were exploited or abused…the couple’s middleman denied any wrongdoing and said men went into these events “with their eyes wide open”.  Abercrombie & Fitch…[bloviated pearl-clutching nonsense against Jeffries to protect its] brand…Two former US prosecutors…have called for an investigation to determine whether charges for sex trafficking could be brought…

The Clueless Leading the Hysterical (#1185)

Why do so many morons refuse to grasp that nobody is going to give expensive cannabis edibles to their spawn for free?

It’s October, which means it is time for alarmist cops and credulous reporters to start [attempt]ing [to panic] parents about the purported menace of cannabis edibles in trick-or-treat bags.  KSNT…in Topeka, Kansas, got a jump on that annual rite last month, when it amplified a “community advisory” from the…[local cop shop] about “THC-infused gummies and snacks marketed to children ahead of the holidays”…

Without Let or Hindrance (#1303)

These abuses are finally getting the attention they’ve needed for a generation:

It’s hard to overstate how little mainstream news attention has been paid to…problems with the [“child welfare”] system, which…is more akin to law enforcement than social services, given its ability to surveil parents and hand down the ultimate punishment — terminating the legal bonds between parent and child.  Families ensnared in the system lack many basic due process rights in navigating a punitive bureaucracy, and they typically don’t receive a lawyer until the state seeks temporary or permanent custody of their child in court.  Regardless, children…aren’t actually made safer; the rates of maltreatment for children in foster care are abysmal, and research has repeatedly found that children who enter the system fare worse on multiple measures than children left in their homes…

Unsafe for Human Consumption (#1304)

If you didn’t foresee where this was going, you haven’t been paying attention:

A woman has been [condemn]ed to life in [a cage] after [a gang of whiny-baby cops had panic attacks while rooting through]…Jessica Thomas[‘ possessions without her permission after using]…a…traffic stop [as a pretext]…Douglas County sheriff Dan Coverley [spouted a lot of pseudoscientific nonsense about an “]increase in pressure from transporting the drugs from low elevation to high elevation[” somehow magically changing the physical and chemical properties]…of…fentanyl [so it would behave as cops imagine it does rather than as it actually does in the real world]…

Checklist (#1363)

Airlines:  do you really want to keep accepting liability for employees racially profiling passengers due to the government propaganda you force-feed them?

American Airlines has apologized to a Black musician who…was [harassed using the asinine pretext] that he was trafficking his own children, [based solely on their being] biracial…David Ryan Harris…and two of his children, Truman, 12, and Hendrix, 7, were flying…from Atlanta to Los Angeles on Sept. 15…[when an air hostess started peppering] his children [with nosy] questions…After the plane landed, Mr. Harris…and his children were [confronted] at the top of the jet bridge by an American Airlines employee and [a pack of] four [scowling cops]…They…were eventually allowed to continue on to the baggage claim area, but were not given an apology….[until] he p[ublicized the harassment on] Instagram…

Permanent Record (#1379)

I can’t feel sorry for someone whose job is ruining lives for violating arbitrary diktats when they get in trouble due to a similar diktat:

The Minneapolis Police Department is looking into a [female cop] who moonlights as an OnlyFans model.  [Local news] is not identifying the [cop, though they would never extend the same courtesy to any other sex worker]…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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They are holding my puppy for ransom.  –  Caleb Gibson

If Men Were Angels

“Pastor and sex offender” is a large and ever-expanding group:

…a [Florida] pastor [was arrested] after two underage girls described the sexual abuse they endured at his hands…Derrell Redding…abuse[d one young teen and one girl under 12, but]…in August…the two girls decided to tell their aunt and uncle…

Many of them are “youth pastors”:

A [California preacher named]…Nicholas Garrett Corl…was [arrested for molesting]…a child under 14…an employee from [his]…church [called the cops on him]…Corl…[is] Youth Pastor…teaches…classes, [and] is the athletics director and basketball coach…

Others don’t have a church of their own:

A [California] priest…[named] Rodolfo Martinez-Guevara…[h]as [been] arrested…[for] possessing “over 600 images of child sexual abuse material, including…prepubescent…boys”…Martinez-Guevara…is affiliated with the Missionaries of the Holy Spirit Religious Order…[but] has been removed from ministry by the archdiocese and his order…

The Mote and the Beam (#786)

The government’s latest sleazy trick: attacking with civil suits rather than criminal charges, because the burden of proof is reversed:

A lawsuit filed by the Los Angeles city attorney’s office targets a motel…with a [harassment campaign] that…[is intended to make political coin out of the moribund “]sex trafficking[” hysteria for the politically-ambitious but unimaginative] Hydee Feldstein Soto[, who bloviated mathematically-imbecilic talking points from over a decade ago but lacks the spine to admit she hates whores]…

Between the Ears (#1104)

“Smart” devices aren’t, part umpteen:

A company that makes a [male] chastity device…that can be controlled by a partner over the internet exposed users’ email addresses, plaintext passwords, home addresses and IP addresses, and — in some cases — GPS coordinates, due to several flaws in its servers, according to a security researcher…who…gained access to a database containing records of more than 10,000 users, thanks to two vulnerabilities…He…reached out to the company on June 17 alerting them of the issues in an attempt to get them to fix the vulnerabilities and protect their users’ data…[but] the company…[neither] fix[ed] the vulnerabilities…no[r] respond[ed]…Given that he wasn’t getting any answers, on August 23 the researcher defaced the company’s homepage in an attempt to warn the company again, as well as its users…Less than 24 hours later, the company removed the researcher’s warning and restored the website…but…did not fix the flaws, which remain present and exploitable…

Property of the State (#1245)

The government thinks it even has the right to leer at the inside of your body:

Scientists in Poland have…developed lab tests that can detect whether people have taken abortion pills—and those tests are already being used to investigate pregnancy outcomes under the country’s abortion ban…Advocates in the U.S. have told people for years that, if they had to go to the hospital after taking the pills by mouth, medical workers wouldn’t be able to tell…these drug tests could mean even more people criminalized by the healthcare system…Hospitals in the U.S. routinely test pregnant women for drugs without their consent, sometimes [abducting] their newborns and other children as a result…

Unsafe for Human Consumption (#1304)

“Fentanyl” is becoming another porcine pretext for harassing and robbing people:

Days after Irvine [California cops pretend] they saved a pit bull puppy from a fentanyl overdose…a preliminary drug test on the pup came back negative.  [Now]…the city [is demanding] more than $2,000…ransom…[from] Caleb Gibson, the dog’s owner, [who said]…“I’m a college student on financial aid, so I don’t have that kind of money to throw around”…[cops] maintain…that the animal had overdosed [despite the negative test]…the…[fact] that dogs are far less sensitive to the drug than humans…and…[the fact that] it is not possible for [humans or] animals to overdose simply from being exposed to the substance by touching or inhaling it, despite police [fantasies]…to the contrary…

Served Cold (#1359)

Surprising absolutely no one who understands McNeill’s Law:

Tim Ballard’s exit from Operation Underground Railroad…followed an investigation into…sexual misconduct involving seven women…the [rescue industry con art]ist, who appears to be preparing for a Senate run, invited women to act as his “wife” on…overseas missions [suposed]ly aimed at rescuing victims of sex trafficking.  He would then…coerce those women into sharing a bed or showering together, claiming that it was necessary to fool traffickers…The total number of women involved is believed to be higher than seven, as that would only account for employees, not contractors or volunteers…Ballard…[already has a] new [rescue industry] organization, the SPEAR Fund; and…the [Mormon] Church…[has] accused Ballard of inappropriately using the name of a church elder…“for Tim Ballard’s personal advantage and activity regarded as morally unacceptable.”

Spotlight (#1373)

While I’m pleased to see Asstoon fall, the surveillance company he founded will still be outing sex workers to the pigs without him:

Ashton Kutcher has resigned as chairman of the board of Thorn, the anti…sex [worker] organization he co-founded in 2009 with his then-wife Demi Moore.  His wife Mila Kunis, who served as an observer on the organization’s board, is also stepping down.  The move comes in the wake of outrage over their letters of support for Danny Masterson, who has been convicted of raping two women…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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It’s the fear that’s the point.  –  Neesha Davé

If Men Were Angels

“Pastor and sex offender” is a large and ever-expanding group:

A [typical and represntative] Green Bay [Wisconsin] pastor will spend at least 15 years in prison after…[buying porn from and sending dick pics to] a minor [of unspecified gender] in Venezuela.  Cory J. Herthel…[was turned in by an informant at his own] church…Herthel said he met the [minor] begging on the streets during a mission trip to Ecuador.  After…the [minor and their] mother returned to their native Venezuela, Herthel kept in touch…

A Tale That Grew in the Telling (#1021)

Americans disapprove of teaching kids about sex, but they’re all for filling their heads with stupid anti-sex propaganda:

The [San Diego] county Board of Supervisors [has] approved a policy to increase [“]human trafficking[” propaganda indoctrin]ation in public schools…[politicians led by fanatical prohibitionist] District Attorney Summer Stephan…[want all students from] kindergarten through 12 [brainwashed to fear sex and view women as moral imbeciles.  The politicians vomited out ancient, rancid nonsense about how “]San Diego is one of the nation’s 13 hot spots for human trafficking[“]…and [“]there are 8,000 victims per year in the county, with average age being 16[“]…

Hey, San Diego! 2013 just called and it wants its “sex trafficking” fantasies back.

The Next Target (#1191)

It’s about goddamned time:

The American Civil Liberties Union [has] filed a formal complaint asking the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Mastercard for discriminatory practices against sex workers and adult content websites.  The ACLU filed the complaint along with sex worker collective Hacking//Hustling and a coalition of sex worker…and LGBTQ+ organizations…express[ing] its opposition to Mastercard’s 2021 policies for adult content websites using its credit card or payment options, and urged the FTC “to…put an end to these discriminatory and dangerous practices”…[includ]ing requirements such as pre-approval of all content before publication, forbidding certain search terms, and keeping records of age and identity verification for all performers…

Feudalism Redux (#1251)

Two forced-birth states are moving to legally reduce women to serfdom:

Alabama’s attorney general is insisting that he has the right to prosecute people who help pregnant women obtain out-of-state abortions…[absurdly claiming] such actions amount to criminal conspiracy.  [Steve] Marshall’s filing comes as part of a case involving the Yellowhammer Fund…an “abortion advocacy and reproductive justice organization”…[which] sued Marshall in July over [previous iterations of the same claim]…Marshall “specifically referenced the accessory liability and conspiracy provisions of Alabama law as the basis for prosecuting abortion funds”…

Texas prefers a more piecemeal version of its fashionable mob-rule approach:

More than a year after Roe v. Wade was overturned, many [authoritarian]s have grown frustrated by the number of people able to circumvent [totalitarian] laws — with some [wannabe tyrants] grasping for even [more draconian and unconstitutional] measures they hope will fully eradicate abortion nationwide.  That frustration is driving a new strategy in…cities and counties across Texas.  Designed by the architects of the state’s “heartbeat” ban that took effect months before Roe fell, [these] ordinances…[criminalize] transport[ing] anyone to get an abortion on roads within the city or county limits.  The laws [encourage and enable] any private citizen to sue a person or organization they [decide to accuse] of violating the ordinance.  [Prohibitionist fanatics] behind the measure are targeting regions along interstates and in areas with airports, with the [impossible and deranged] goal of blocking off the main arteries out of Texas and keeping pregnant women [trapp]ed within the confines of their…state.  These provisions have already passed in two counties and two cities, creating legal risk for those traveling on major highways including Interstate 20 and Route 84, which head toward New Mexico, where abortion remains legal and new clinics have opened to accommodate Texas women.  Several more jurisdictions are expected to vote on the measure in the coming weeks…

The Punitive Mindset (#1288) 

I’ve linked a number of articles about D&D in prison under this tag, but I’ve never before read one that actually brought tears to my eyes.  Journalist Keri Blakinger worked on this story about men playing the game on Texas’ death row for The Marshall Project for several years, so it seems to me only fair that anyone who cares about humanity should at least spend a few minutes reading it in its entirety.

The Puritan Recrudescence (#1344)

Politicians don’t even try to make their new laws Constitutional any more:

Free Speech Coalition and…a coalition of major adult platforms and creators…have been granted a preliminary injunction against the Texas antiporn law…The Court agreed…[that] the law violates First Amendment rights of creators and consumers…[and] has a chilling effect on legally-protected speech…[that] parental filters are a less restrictive and more effective method of protecting minors…[and that] the state does not have the right to compel speech in the form of…pseudoscientific “health” warnings…

Meanwhile, in Arkansas:

…the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas has halted enforcement of an Arkansas age verification law that…bans minors from using social media platforms…unless they prove they have parental consent…all social media users—including adults…would be forced to turn over official IDs in order to speak or access information online…the state [absurdly] suggested that all of social media should be treated like “a bar” for purposes of excluding minors…[Judge Timothy] Brooks [wrote]…”minors have no constitutional right to consume alcohol…By contrast, the primary purpose of a social media platform is to engage in speech, and…social media platforms contain vast amounts of constitutionally protected speech for both adults and minors…it is likely that many adults who otherwise would be interested in [using]…social media platforms will be deterred—and their speech chilled—as a result of the age verification requirements, which…will likely require them to upload official government documents and submit to biometric scans”…

Torture Chamber (#1346)

Americans’ sick lust for torture is turning ordinary prison sentences into death sentences:

As brutal heat waves continue to engulf large sections of the country, hundreds of thousands of prisoners are being forced to endure deadly temperatures inside heat-retaining steel or concrete facilities that offer little, if any, access to air conditioning or circulation…Despite its notoriously hot summers, Texas is one of at least 44 states that does not offer universal air conditioning in its prisons…70 percent of units in its prisons are entirely or partially uncooled…this year…dozens of incarcerated people have died due to cardiac-related or unknown causes in sweltering Texas prisons…[but] state officials [simply lie]…Texas…has not officially classified a prison death as heat-related since 2012, even as research has shown that intense heat is associated with an increased risk of mortality behind bars, including due to heart disease and suicide…[instead,] Texas…prison commissaries…raised the price of bottled water by 50 percent as temperatures spiked in June…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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Every politician, every prohibitionist, every social engineer and every naked ape with a title, uniform or badge is bound and determined to bring as many other people under his control as possible, and because this drive springs from his warped psyche you can be sure he will never relent as long as he remains above ground.  –  “Eternal Vigilance

If one is going to publish propaganda, one can’t be distracted by facts.  –  “Time Warp

When Coca-Cola, Disney, IBM, Google, Monsanto, Chase, Wal-mart or Kraft starts sending out gangs of thugs to rape, rob & murder people, then and only then will I be more concerned about them than I am about government.   –  “The Greater of Two Evils

Bluenoses and control freaks want to seal all of society, even older adults who have no dependent spawn, into a worldwide nursery where everything conforms to their idea of what is “safe” for young children.  –  “Children’s World

“The statement ‘2000 QW7 is the size of Burj Khalifa’ is not-dissimilar in accuracy to the statement ‘A 2019 Honda Accord is the size of the bag of sugar in my cupboard’.”  –  “Assume a Sphere

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The potential for abuse is immense.  –  Patrick Toomey

License to Rape (#1249)

Apparently, pigs are only allowed to excuse sexual assault as a “search” if the victim is female:

…”squeezing a detainee’s penis hard is not a ‘proper part of a search,'” a federal appeals court has held.  The case, before the…8th Circuit, was brought by Wilbert Glover against Minnesota [screw] Richard Paul….[who sexually assaulted] Glover [in]…jail…in 2015…Paul responded by claiming that he “never touched [Glover’s] genitals”…and that even if he had, he was protected by qualified immunity.  The U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota rejected Paul’s argument, concluding “that Paul’s alleged actions violated [a male’s] clearly established constitutional right to be free from…sexual assault or abuse”…the appeals court…affirmed the district court’s ruling…

A Moral Cancer (#1306)

Crypto-moralists want people to believe they could live forever by simply eliminating every single pleasurable activity from their lives:

George Koob, director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism…[sez] the…USDA…might soon revise its dietary guidelines to recommend that adults consume no more than two alcoholic drinks per week.  Canada’s health [nann]ies recently shifted to that guideline …Currently, the federal dietary guidelines advise no more than two drinks per day for adult men and one drink per day for adult women…Thankfully, most Americans don’t give a shit what the federal guidelines…say.  Following [them]…would mean a joyless existence devoid of many fine drinks (particularly if you’re a woman), anything less than well-done steak, or eggs benedict.  Oh, and don’t forget to microwave your prosciutto!…

The Punitive Mindset (#1307)

If there’s anything more petty and warped than the mind of a prison official, I’m not sure what it might be:

A Florida prison refused to deliver copies of a local newspaper to an incarcerated subscriber…[under the bizarre pretext] that a puzzle game in the publication “may be used to create coded messages indecipherable by staff”…the “Celebrity Cipher”…[is] a syndicated word puzzle that appears next to the crossword.  Staff [preten]ed that the game violates a…rule prohibiting “publication[s] … written in code”…The Florida Press Association has asked the Literature Review Committee to reverse the [moronic] decision and allow incarcerated people to receive [newspapers because the ban is]…“arbitrary and irrational” and violates the First Amendment rights of the publisher and its incarcerated subscribers…

Pyrrhic Victory (#1341)

Tyrannies often start with sex workers, but never stop with us:

…it…seems to be that online [sex work] advertising is a surefire way to get flagged at the border…Some sites are seemingly safer than others.  Sex workers who advertised on Tryst, for example, never heard of the advertising platform mentioned by Border Control… it’s almost exclusively full-service sex workers being flagged, but there are examples of online creators being targeted, too…The ads reportedly don’t even need to be live in order to be flagged…It is unclear how the US government is identifying sex workers. It could be facial recognition, it could be advertising sites working with the government.  The fight right now is for transparency…some websites disclose that they co[llaborate with pigs and spooks], but…these statements are often buried in opaque terms and conditions, and no site is forthcoming in terms of speaking to the media…

I Spy (#1342)

In mass surveillance, fascism beats communism hands down:

Customs and Border Protection…has bought millions of dollars worth of software from a company that uses [error-prone algorithms] to detect “sentiment and emotion” in online posts…related to inbound and outbound travelers who the agency [imagin]es may threaten public safety, national security, or lawful trade and travel…the…company called Fivecast also offers “AI-enabled” object recognition in images and video, and detection of “risk terms and phrases” across multiple languages…the software…[surveils] big social platforms like Facebook and Reddit, but also…smaller communities like 4chan, 8kun, and Gab…Fivecast…[also says] the tool could be used against [sex workers]…which can include U.S. citizens…CBP has deployed multiple [algorithmic] systems…[of dubious] accuracy and utility…

Unsafe for Human Consumption (#1366)

Now that politicians are vomiting out the “magic fentanyl” myth, will the media finally back away from it?

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass falsely claimed that “touching fentanyl could kill you”…according to all reputable toxicology experts, fentanyl powder cannot penetrate the skin under casual circumstances.  And overdosing from inhaling fentanyl particles in the air is nearly impossible, despite news reports published by…[bootlicking local media from both “culture war”camps pretend]ing otherwise…

The Mob Rules (#1368)

Much more of this, please:

As more and more states pass [unconstitutional] laws targeting “pornographic material” in books and online, they are repeatedly running up against a problem:  The Bible has not just a few passages that could be considered indecent…Reddit users…in…Virginia…[are] encourag[ing] people to use the new law to file consumer complaints to Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares…[about] websites…[which a]re “failing in requiring age verification before accessing pornographic material” from the Bible…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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A facility didn’t kill my uncle; three deputies tased him while he was having a heart attack.  –  Sherilyn Sabo

St. James Infirmary

A program that did one thing well tried to be all things to all people:

St. James Infirmary…[i]s shutting down….[after] years…[of] mismanagement…Money was squandered, benefits went unpaid, and at one point the health clinic’s license allegedly lapsed, leaving medical providers in limbo…in the middle of the pandemic, staff on the ground saw problems spiral out of control.  Directors of the site quit or were pushed out…Shifts went severely understaffed…Brianna Singleton, a former nurse practitioner with St. James, [sai]d…the decision to take on housing programs dealt the organization a fatal blow.  “We were out of our depth…It felt like a magician pulling red flags out of their hat — they just kept coming”…

Torture Chamber 

Blaming torture and neglect on a building is brazen even by cop standards:

Between 2012 and 2016, the [East Baton Rouge Parish Prison] had a death rate more than twice the national average…Since 2012, there have been 59 fatalities in custody.  Jail staff have long…neglect[ed sick prisoners, leading to]…deadly lapses in medical treatment, and in 2016, the brutal treatment of people arrested and jailed for protesting the Baton Rouge police [murder] of Alton Sterling sparked a movement for jail reform.  The man who has overseen the jail for 15-plus years…Sheriff Sid Gautreaux, has often blamed the deaths on the building…[because he wants] a new, even larger facility, but voters have shot down requests for funding to build a new one.  The sheriff, [like most of his diseased ilk]…has…profit[ed from] his office, raking in significant campaign contributions from contractors during elections where he has…lacked a significant challenger.  This includes thousands of dollars in donations from a law firm that has represented Gautreaux and his co-defendants against plaintiffs whose loved ones have died in his jail…

Sex Rays (#1003)

I’m sure the people of Maui didn’t want her dirty whore money anyhow:

The OnlyFans model using her nude photos to raise money for Maui wildfire relief efforts can no longer crowdfund on GoFundMe…because the platform shut down her efforts.  Mariah Casillas, who goes by Lavagrll on social media, was sending nudes to folks who donated $10 to victims of the deadly Maui wildfires…The model raised over $7,400 in just a few days, but…GoFundMe [clutched its pearls, clucked about]…”prohibited conduct”…[and] refunded [all the money so the would-be donors got] her nudes for free [which I’m sure made the bluenoses at GoFundMe feel better].  She’s now taking her nude fundraiser over to OnlyFans…

Unsafe for Human Consumption (#1269)

If you didn’t see this one coming, you haven’t been paying attention:

[Louisiana politician] Liz Murrill…mixed two classic Republican strawmen — the drug war and abortion — into a single, unexpected and wholly unsubstantiated talking point: Nefarious drug pushers are lacing online abortion pills with fentanyl…In a…[radio interview] Murrill…[started by bloviating standard prohibitionist talking points, including the bogus] claim that cannabis is a gateway drug, [then declared that] the smell of marijuana is ruining American communities…“everywhere we go, we see these communities that are just being destroyed by the smell and…people are sleeping on the streets.  One thing leads to the other”…she [then]…claimed cannabis legalization has somehow been a boon for illegal fentanyl sales…and…then…pivoted to…abortion pills…Of course, there is no evidence that abortion pills are being mixed with fentanyl and they remain perfectly safe — and legal in most states…Ironically, Republicans have created a de facto gray market for abortion pills…if Murrill’s random musings about fentanyl and abortion pills were true, it would mean th[ey]…are responsible…since they made the pills illegal in the first place…

You Were Warned (#1341)

This is an extremely dangerous precedent:

TikTok’s Chinese parent company ByteDance has spent years negotiating a national security agreement with the Biden Administration that would avoid a ban on the short video app in the United States…that agreement…would give [the US] government…the authority to: examine TikTok’s U.S. facilities, records, equipment and servers with minimal or no notice; block changes to the app’s U.S. terms of service, moderation policies and privacy policy; veto the hiring of any executive involved in leading TikTok’s U.S. Data Security org; order TikTok and ByteDance to pay for and subject themselves to various audits, assessments and other reports on the security of TikTok’s U.S. functions; and, in some circumstances, require ByteDance to temporarily stop TikTok from functioning in the United States.  The draft agreement would make TikTok’s U.S. operations subject to extensive supervision by an array of independent investigative bodies…and…force TikTok U.S. to exclude ByteDance leaders from certain security-related decision making, and instead rely on an executive security committee that would operate in secrecy from ByteDance…

Dangerous Speech (#1348)

It’s almost like the judge is intentionally setting up another mistrial:

…federal Judge Diane Humetewa…shot down a defense suggestion that the prosecution not use the terms “sex trafficking” and “child sex trafficking” during the Aug. 29 trial of award-winning journalist Michael Lacey and four others, calling the position a “non-starter”.  Humetewa also overruled a defense objection to her proposed jury instruction on the First Amendment, despite the defense’s claim that the instruction’s wording does not comport with precedents set by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.  Most of the two-hour hearing dealt with establishing a jury pool of 110 persons, out of which 16 will be plucked to serve as 12 jurors and four alternates.  Humetewa said she added questions to the jury questionnaire aimed at finding out if potential jurors knew of the recent, tragic death of veteran newspaperman Jim Larkin and if it would affect their ability to be impartial…

The Widening Gyre (#1360) 

This time, the “sex trafficking” lie was told to divert blame for bad behavior:

The junior Marine charged with sexually assaulting a [14-year-old girl]…met [her] on a dating app where she told him she was 22…Pfc. Avery Rosario…is currently…charged with…sexual assault of a child over age 12…Rosario’s defense team argued that the Marine and two friends who witnessed his interactions with the girl all believed she was 22…[her] Tinder profile…said she was 21…In screenshots of direct message exchanges on Tinder and Instagram shown in court…she told him she was actually 22…The girl’s aunt posted a series of videos on TikTok saying the girl had been the victim of sex trafficking and was sold to the Marine [presumably by “traffickers”] for sex…But [after] she [was] seen in the hallway of the barracks…She made several contradicting statements to investigators…first giving them a false birthday.  She later told them she’d lied to the Marine about her age…she [later claimed she] had been sex trafficked and had come to the base to be rescued…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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