Category Archives: Antifa

Some technologists hope that one day we will develop a superintelligent AI system that people will be able to have conversations with. Ask it a question, and it will offer an answer that sounds like something composed by a human expert. You could use it to ask for medical advice, or to help plan a holiday. Well, that's the idea, at least.

In reality, were still a long way away from that. Even the most sophisticated systems of today are pretty dumb. I once got Metas AI chatbot BlenderBot to tell me that a prominent Dutch politician was aterrorist. Inexperimentswhere AI-powered chatbots were used to offer medical advice, they told pretend patients to kill themselves. Doesnt fill you with a lot of optimism, does it?

Thats why AI labs are working hard to make their conversational AIs safer and more helpful before turning them loose in the real world. I justpublished a storyabout Alphabet-owned AI lab DeepMinds latest effort: a new chatbot called Sparrow.

DeepMinds new trick to making a good AI-powered chatbot was to have humans tell it how to behaveand force it to back up its claims using Google search. Human participants were then asked to evaluate how plausible the AI systems answers were. The idea is to keep training the AI using dialogue between humans and machines.

In reporting the story, I spoke to Sara Hooker, who leads Cohere for AI, a nonprofit AI research lab.

She told me that one of the biggest hurdles in safely deploying conversational AI systems is their brittleness, meaning they perform brilliantly until they are taken to unfamiliar territory, which makes them behave unpredictably.

It is also a difficult problem to solve because any two people might disagree on whether a conversation is inappropriate. And even if we agree that something is appropriate right now, this may change over time, or rely on shared context that can be subjective, Hooker says.

Despite that, DeepMinds findings underline that AI safety is not just a technical fix. You need humans in the loop.

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How DeepMind thinks it can make chatbots safer - MIT Technology Review

Transport authorities in Beijing have begun tracking the emotions and health of long-distance bus drivers in an attempt to 'improve safety'.

According to the Beijing Public Transport Consortium, drivers have been issued with electronic bracelets that can monitor everything from their blood pressure and sleep patterns to their feelings.

Local newspaper 'Baijing Daily' reports that the agency delivered 1800 bracelets to drivers. It's not clear what brand the smart wristbands are but they reportedly measure biometrics in 'real time' to detect anxiety, sickness, and overall fitness.

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In a statement on Chinese social network Weibo, the company said: "The distribution of bracelets is a technological means to strengthen the physical and mental health of drivers."

The initiative follows a bus accident last week in the city of Guiyang which killed 27 people.

The devices in question have previously been used in China to monitor body temperature after travelling in order to keep track of coronavirus cases.

They're also being used to track people charged of minor crimes to 'reduce arrests', according to the Chinese Public Prosecutor's Office.

The move has been criticised in China for invading employees' privacy and being a potential source for 'discrimination' against drivers.

It's not clear whether bus drivers will be forced to wear the bracelets or not.

The Chinese government routinely uses surveillance of its citizens. This year authorities unveiled the 'Iron Cage' system which uses AI to gather data on people and spot crimes 'before they even happen'.

Leaked documents obtained by the New York Times showed that Beijing authorities is building profiles of its citizens using data on their criminal records, background, and 2.5 billion facial recognition images to keep tabs on them.

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Beijing bus drivers to have their 'emotions tracked' by government using AI bracelets - Daily Star

Good Monday morning!

Dennis Malloy and Judi Franco, the 101.5 hosts best known for being suspended after calling then-Attorney General Gurbir Grewal Turban Man, have some other opinions theyd like to share.

Both believe that teachers should not be criminally charged for having sex with students if the kids are above the age of consent. In this case, theyre referring to a 24-year-old Hamilton teacher who allegedly had sex with a 17-year-old student. (h/t to New Jersey Monitors Sophie Nieto-Munoz for drawing attention to this).

In many cases where this happens with a male teacher, the female student is not some shy wilting flower that was taken advantage of, Malloy wrote. ....Lets not be nave and pretend that the sexual power of a young woman, or a woman of any age for that matter, is an immensely powerful force in the world.

The ironic thing is that these radio personalities, and NJ 101.5 more broadly, have sought to whip up panic and paranoia about New Jerseys sex ed curriculum often using false or misleadingly incomplete information in part because students will learn how to identify body parts that play a role in human sexuality, or because theyll learn about sexual orientation and gender identity.

Keep in mind that one of the arguments sex ed advocates make to support the teaching of frank lessons is that it will help kids learn what is appropriate adult behavior and what is not.

I would be curious to see a poll question about which would alarm New Jersey parents more: Kids learning about gender identity, or repealing the law that makes it a crime for teachers to have sex with students.

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WHERES MURPHY? At Cooper Hospital in Camden at 3 p.m. More on that below.

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ODD HOSPITAL BEDFELLOWS George Norcross, Gov. Phil Murphy and former Gov. Chris Christie will be among the dignitaries at Cooper University Health Care for a major announcement (a $2 billion expansion) this afternoon at 2:45. Im pretty sure that, despite their history, theyll be all smiles. But I do wonder if the current governor will bring up the states recent bond upgrades. Also present: Camden Mayor Vic Carstarphen, Rep. Donald Norcross, Cooper co-CEOs Kevin ODowd and Anthony J. Mazzarelli, and Kelly Ripa. The latter isnt as strange as it sounds. Kelly Ripas dad is Camden County Clerk Joe Ripa, and she often raises money both for the hospital and the South Jersey Democratic machine.

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A PROBLEM TO SOLVE Legislation designed to prevent another Jan. 6 introduced by N.J. congressman, by NJ Advance Medias Jonathan D. Salant: Legislation aimed at plug loopholes that Donald Trump and his allies sought to use in an unsuccessful effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election has been introduced by a New Jersey congressman. The bill by Rep. Josh Gottheimer would update the 1887 Electoral Count Act to make it clear that the vice president cant reject certified electoral votes and state legislatures cant reject the will of their voters.

ANOTHER ANTIFA MEMBER? Toms River man, 59, charged with assaulting cop in Jan. 6 riot at Capitol, by The Asbury Park Press Erik Larsen: More than 20 months after the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, a Toms River man is the most recent suspect to be rounded up in the ongoing investigation. Salvatore Vassallo, 59, faces federal charges of assaulting, resisting or impeding law enforcement officers with a dangerous weapon and for interfering with an officer during a civil disorder; both are felonies. He also has been charged with five related misdemeanor offenses. Vassallo was arrested in Toms River on Wednesday. He had been an unidentified figure at the scene No. 338 in seeking information photos whom the FBI had sought to identify with the publics help. After an initial appearance in federal court in New Jersey, Vassallo was released pending a future court date in Washington, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Columbia.

TRENTON-MADENew Jersey has become an exporter of candidates, by New Jersey Globes David Wildstein: New Jersey makes and the world takes, at least when it comes to raising candidates and then exporting them to other states. This year in Pennsylvania, two Republican statewide candidates are Jersey Boys: Dr. Mehmet Oz grew up in New Jersey and despite moving to run for the U.S. Senate last year, remains a registered voter at his family home in Cliffside Park; and gubernatorial nominee Doug Mastriano grew up in Hightstown his mother and grandmother both held local public office and he voted in New Jersey through 2010. Democratic U.S. Senator Mark Kelly, the retired astronaut who is seeking re-election in Arizona, grew up in West Orange. Herschel Walker, the GOP U.S. Senate candidate in Georgia, lived in Verona in the 1980s and 1990s while playing professional football. The Democratic U.S. Senate candidate in North Carolina, former state Supreme Court Justice Cheri Beasley, lived in New Brunswick for four years while attending Rutgers University in the 1980s.

THE ADS 2022 ad watch: Inflation attacks sharpen while Trump extremism gets debut in NJ midterms,by The Records Charles Stile: Congressional candidates running in this fall's midterms have sharpened their television and social media attacks over the past week as the race begins in earnest and as increasingly popular mail-in voting will begin Sept. 24. That early start has brought new intensity to the September phase of the campaign. What used to be the early going has become the middle innings of a must-win playoff game. Republicans who have cast themselves as inflation fighters strolling down supermarket aisles are now framing soaring prices as a result of Democratic Party waste and pork-barrel corruption. Their Democratic rivals, meanwhile, are weaponizing the image of former President Donald Trump as they paint their GOP challengers as future foot soldiers in the service of MAGA extremism.

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BED AND BREAKING THE LAW Jersey City cites homeowner advertising ultimate bed and breakfast, spa and event space, by The Jersey Journals Ron Zeitlinger: A one-family home on a quiet Jersey City street tucked between Kennedy Boulevard and West Side Avenue has been cited as an illegal bed-and-breakfast, Airbnb, spa and commercial event venue space, city officials said The property is operated by SG&A, an LLC owned by Stacy Garvin, who says he is working with the city officials to comply with city regulations. He said many of the issues are the result of not being aware of rules and regulations regarding the opening and operating of the business, called BathHaus The BathHaus website advertises the capacity to lodge and host up to 24 guests and '150-200 guests for events inclusive of our outdoor space. Ideal for brunches / art exhibitions / birthday parties. .... casino parties / private spa and yoga sessions and more.

CHECK BACK TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS TO HIS PENSION Veteran cop who misused police resources will lose $168K job, officials say, by NJ Advance Medias Chris Sheldon: A Freehold Township Police lieutenant admitted Friday that he illegally accessed information from a police computer database for personal use, authorities said. John Todd, 58, a 27-year veteran of the department, pleaded guilty to computer theft, according to a statement from the Monmouth County Prosecutors Office. An investigation by the agency revealed that on Feb. 23, Todd contacted a police dispatcher asking for personal information about an unidentified person from the Criminal Justice Information System (CJIS), the office said. The CJIS exists strictly for law-enforcement purposes. Todd then passed the information along to a third party, who was not a police officer, investigators said. No other details about Todds actions were released by the office.

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SECAUCUS NO EVIL Moshe knew of cache of guns found at Hudson Regional Hospital, police report says, by POLITICOs Daniel Han: Hudson Regional Hospital owner and chair Yan Moshe allegedly knew about the cache of firearms that were discovered inside the hospital marketing director's unlocked office closet in July, according to a police report obtained by POLITICO. Secaucus police discovered 11 handguns and 27 long guns during a search of the hospital on July 18 after a bomb threat had been called in. The threat was later determined to be a hoax. Reuven Alonalayoff, the hospital's marketing director, was arrested and charged in August with one count of illegal possession of an assault firearm and two counts of possession of a high-capacity magazine. He is scheduled to appear before Judge Galis-Menendez in Hudson County at 9 a.m. Monday. According to the police report, a secretary at the hospital told authorities Moshe was aware the weapons were being stored on site. According to the employee, Moshe, Alonalayoff and cleaning staff had access to the room where the guns were kept, according to the report.

JERSEY DEVIL Creepy local legend turned gay icon: Why queer people of Pinelands love the Jersey Devil, by The Courier-Posts Aedy Miller: For Americana songwriter Jessye DeSilva, the Jersey Devil serves as a double metaphor for growing up queer in South Jersey. In their song The Devil in New Jersey,DeSilva, who is in their 30s, compares the creatures desire for safety while being persecuted to getting outed as a teenager in Vincentown Themes of familial exile, persecution on religious grounds, staying out of sight for safety. Its no wonder DeSilva and many other queer people empathize with folkloric creatures, or cryptids, such as Mothman, a humanoid creature in West Virginia folklore; Bigfoot, or our own JD.

YOU MAY SOON NO LONGER KNOW YOUR FELLOW COMMUTERS PREFERRED DEODORANT BRANDS Longer trains are coming as the first of 72 new PATH rail cars arrives, by NJ Advance Medias Larry Higgs: The first of 72 new blue and silver PATH rail cars which were ordered in 2017 and 2018 and are part of a fleet that will make longer trains possible arrived in Port Newark Sunday, as more workers resume commuting back to offices. The first two cars were unloaded after being transported by ship from Japan and were trucked to Kawasakis Yonkers, New York facility for finishing work and testing. The new cars will increase the current fleet of PA-5 cars by 20%, officials said The added cars will allow PATH to run longer, nine-car trains on the Newark-World Trade Center Line in conjunction with a project to lengthen platforms in five New Jersey stations, expected to be completed by the end of 2022. Both are part of the larger $1 billion PATH Improvement Plan announced on June 20, 2019

DO NOT DRINK THIS WATER. IT WILL NOT GIVE YOU SUPERPOWERS Radioactive water release from Oyster Creek nuclear plant concerns environmentalists, by The Asbury Park Press Lauren Oglesby: Water with "low-level" amounts of radiation recently was discharged from the defunct Oyster Creek nuclear power plant, according to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which oversees radiation-related activity at the plant. Holtec International released about 24,000 gallons of water from the facility as part of its ongoing decommissioning activities, NRC spokesman Neil Sheehan said in an email. The water was slowly released starting Sept. 7 and took two days to complete, he said The water releases are regulated by both the NRC and the federal Environmental Protection Agency in order to protect the public, he said. Staff at the power plant have performed such releases of low-level radioactive water throughout the facility's operating life, said Sheehan and Holtec spokesman Joseph Delmar Janet Tauro, New Jersey chair of the environmental organization Clean Water Action, said the water release signaled a lack of transparency on the part of Holtec. The public was not alerted to when the releases would occur, said Tauro, who learned about the release while researching Holtec's decommissioning work at the defunct Pilgrim Power Station in Massachusetts. They (Ocean County residents) werent given the opportunity to ask questions.

THE BENCH Criminal complaint lodged against judge after litigant rushed to hospital, by Above the Laws Joe Patrice: There appears to be a criminal complaint against New Jersey Judge Daniel R. Lindemann for assault. According to a document filed by one of the litigants before him, this complaint has been referred to a neighboring county and has already been assigned to a judge in that courthouse. That matter is still pending, but stems from a series of incidents, the most serious of which ended with a litigant representing herself taken to the emergency room after the judges interrogation triggered the litigants heart condition forcing her to pass out and be taken by EMTs to the emergency room amid fears of severe organ failure Yet, Judge Lindemann seems committed to forging ahead with a trial next week The AGs office is potentially intervening in the matter! But the court wants to do the trial before the AG investigation concludes? Im struggling to imagine a district judge moving forward with a civil trial after the DOJ indicated that it was investigating whether one sides actions amounted to crimes. Thats just batty.

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NJ 101.5 hosts stand up for teachers who have sex with students - POLITICO

Trans activists became aggressive and violent at a "Let Women Speak" event in Bighton, UK on Sunday, resulting in three being arrested on suspicion of crimes including sexual assault, assault & obstruction. JK Rowling posted her support of the women, saying "I see the Be Kind brigade are once more hiding behind their black masks, throwing smoke bombs, screaming 'scum' at women speaking up for their sex-based rights and howling abuse at lesbians for not doing dick."A militant group of trans protestors largely part of "Reclaim Pride Brighton," some with their identities concealed by Antifa-style black masks, interrupted a public gathering of women's rights activists from the Let Women Speak group, who argue that women are "adult human females," and that lesbians can't be male and aren't attracted to them, according toPost Millennial editor-at-large Andy Ngo.

Trans activists descended on the women's gathering, hurling insults and becoming aggressive to the point where police needed to intervene. The counter-protestors dressed in black, decked out with masks on trans pride flags tried to shout over talks from women's rights activists, yelling "Transwomen are women," and "TERFS f*ck off!"

Let Women Speak organizer Kellie-Jay Keen, otherwise known as "Posie Parker," was interrupted with threats during her speech, requiring police presence between her and the trans extremists, one of which held a sign that read Combat TERF hate along with an image of a firebomb.

Before the event, Reclaim Pride Brighton posted a flier calling for trans activists to "make it clear she is not welcome."

"I have been called a Nazi for saying I dont think women have penises. Once you can portray someone as the most heinous person in society a Nazi I guess anything goes," said Keen to Daily Mail."Sadly, its not unusual for trans activists to issue threats about women wanting to talk about our rights. JK Rowling is a prime example of that."

As one trans-identified person was being arrested, several other protestors on the anti-women speaking side attempted to physically pry them away from police. According to Ngo, the militant arrested was identified as Charlie Turner, also known as Bliss Winters, a transwoman with a criminal history.

"Harry Potter" author JK Rowling, who has frequently been critical of radical gender ideology, has slammed the pro-trans protesters for "throwing smoke bombs" and "howling abuse at lesbians."

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Trans extremists and Antifa try to shut down women's rights event in England - The Post Millennial

White nationalists keep showing up in the hearings of the U.S. House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection.

Evidence is mounting that white nationalist groups who want to establish an all-white state played a significant role in the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol that left five dead and dozens wounded.

Thus far, the hearings have documented how the Proud Boys helped lead the insurrectionist mob into the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C, journalist James Risen wrote in the Intercept.

Based on July 12, 2022, testimony from a former Oath Keepers member, the white nationalist group coordinated with the Three Percenters, another group of white nationalists, and the Proud Boys in mobilizing their extremists groups to rally in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, as asked by President Trump in his Dec. 16, 2020, tweet.

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As a cultural anthropologist who has studied these movements for over a decade, I know that membership in these organizations is not limited to the attempted violent overthrow of the government and poses an ongoing threat, as seen in massacres carried out by young men radicalized by this movement.

In 2020, for instance, the Department of Homeland Security described domestic violent extremists as presenting the most persistent and lethal threat to the people of the United States and the nations government.

In March 2021, FBI Director Christopher Wray testified to Congress that the number of arrests of white supremacists and other racially motivated extremists has almost tripled since he took office in 2017.

Jan. 6 was not an isolated event, Wray testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee. The problem of domestic terrorism has been metastasizing across the country for a long time now, and its not going away anytime soon.

The Southern Poverty Law Center, a nonprofit civil rights group, tracked 733 active hate groups across the United States in 2021.

Based on my research, the internet and social media have made the problem of white supremacist hate far worse and more visible; its both more accessible and, ultimately, more violent, as seen on Jan. 6 at the U.S. Capitol and the shooting deaths of ten Black people at a Buffalo grocery story, among other examples.

In the 1990s, former KKK leaders including David Duke rebranded white supremacy for the digital age.

They switched KKK robes for business suits and connected neo-Nazi antisemitic conspiracies with broader anti-Black, anti-immigrant and anti-Islamic racism.

From the 1990s to the late 2000s, this movement largely built discreet online communities and websites peddling racist disinformation.

In fact, for years one of the first websites about Martin Luther King Jr. that a Google search recommended was a website created by white nationalists that spread neo-Nazi propaganda.

In 2005, the white nationalist website Stormfront.org had 30,000 members which might sound like a lot. But as social media expanded, with both Facebook and Twitter opening to anyone with an email address in 2006, its views got a lot more attention. By 2015, 250,000 people had subscribed to become members of Stormfront.org.

Between 2012 and 2016, white nationalists on Twitter saw a 600% increase in Twitter followers. They have since worked to bring white supremacism into everyday politics.

The Tech Transparency Project, a nonprofit tech industry watchdog group, found that in 2020 half of the white nationalist groups tracked by the Southern Poverty Law Center had a presence on Facebook.

Without clear regulations preventing extremist content, digitalcompanies, in my view, allowed for the spread of white nationalist conspiracies.

Racist activists used algorithms as virtual bullhorns to reach previously unimaginable-sized audiences.

White nationalist leaders, such as Richard Spencer, wanted an even bigger audience and influence.

Spencer coined the term alt-right to this end, with the goal of blurring the relationship between white nationalism and white conservatism. He did this by establishing nonprofit think tanks like the National Policy Institute that provided an academic veneer for him and other white supremacists to spread their views on white supremacy.

This strategy worked.

Today, many white nationalist ideas once relegated to societys fringes are embraced by the broader conservative movement.

Take, for instance, the Great Replacement Theory. The conspiracy theory misinterprets demographic change as an active attempt to replace white Americans with people of color.

This baseless idea observes that Black and Latino people are becoming larger percentages of the U.S. population, and paints that data as the result of an allegedly active attempt by unnamed multiculturalists to drive white Americans out of power in an increasingly diverse nation.

A recent poll showed that over 50% of Republicans now believe in this conspiracy theory.

In 2016, during Trumps presidential campaign, Vice Magazine co-founder Gavin McInnes formed the Proud Boys to further the goals of the alt-right by protecting white identity with the use of violence if necessary.

Proud Boys members are affiliated with white nationalist ideas and leaders, but they deny any explicit racism. Instead, they describe themselves as Western chauvinists who believe in the supremacy of European culture but also welcome members of any race who support this idea.

Along with pro-gun militias such as the Oath Keepers and Three Percenters, the Proud Boys are an experiment in spreading white nationalist ideas to an online universe of potentially millions of social media users.

Data from manifestos posted online by white nationalist groups shows that many mass shooters share a few common characteristics they are young, white, male and they spend significant time online at the same websites.

The alleged shooter in the killing of 10 Black people in a predominantly Black neighborhood in Buffalo on May 14, 2022, described his reason as wanting to stop what he feared as the elimination of the white race.

His fears that people of color were replacing white people came from 4chan, a social media company popular among the alt-right.

In 2019, nine African American church members were murdered in Charleston by a young white man who became radicalized through Google searches that led him to openly white supremacist content.

Massacres in a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, and at a synagogue in Poway, California, all took place after the shooters began spending time on 8chan, an imageboard popular with white supremacists and the home of QAnon posts.

For many of these individuals, the most important part of their radicalization was not about their home life or personality quirks, but instead about where they spent time online.

The reasons men join groups like the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers and even some liberal groups is less clear.

A former Proud Boy member offered one reason: They want to join a gang, Russell Schultz told CNN on Nov. 25, 2020. So they can go fight antifa and hurt people that they dont like, and feel justified in doing it.

Antifa is a loose-knit group of usually nonviolent activists who oppose fascism.

Other former extremist group members describe seeking camaraderie and friendship, but also finding racism and antisemitism.

But more than any other issue, racial demographic changes are providing recruitment opportunities for white nationalists, many of whom believe that by the year 2045 white people will become the minority in the United States.

In July 2021, the most recent date for which statistics are available, the U.S. Census Bureau notes that of the estimated population of 330 million American citizens, 75.8% are white, 18.9% are Hispanic, 13.6% are Black and 6% are Asian.

What is also becoming clearer is that the spread of white nationalism endangers the idea of a democratic nation where racial diversity is considered a strength, not a weakness.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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White nationalism, fueled by social media, is on the rise and attracting violent young white men - Arizona Mirror

The Antifa group was ordered to either disperse or face getting arrested. Theres a certain verbiage we have to say, its a script that we read from, said Captain Novak.

On January 2 of 2021, a Patriot March in San Diego was announced on social media, to begin at 2 pm on January 9 at the foot of Crystal Pier in Pacific Beach. The flier billed it as a peaceful protest, but in the end, it was not peaceful: members of the activist group Antifa clashed violently with the Patriot March protesters before they even began marching.

In December of 2021, prosecutors in District Attorney Summer Stephans office charged at least seven people on the Antifa side in connection with the events of that day. And in June of this year, those charges were dropped in favor of a grand jury indictment that included 29 felony counts, including the conspiracy to commit riot. The indictment came after the grand jury heard 13 days worth of testimony about the events surrounding that day, including testimony from police who were on the scene.

Captain Matt Novak told the grand jury that in his 28 years as a police officer, he had never experienced that level of rioting. He said that he had responded to more than 25 protests since Febuary of 2020 in his areas of command, which included downtown San Diego. Usually, that meant shutting down streets and walking alongside the demonstrators in order to maintain public safety. His experience with counter-protestors? Sometimes one or two people would come by to heckle the group. He noted that when 300-400 Black Lives Matter supporters had marched down Pacific Beachs Garnet Avenue, the event was very peaceful, all individuals coming to peacefully protest through the area. No problems.

This time, he said, We did have some indication that Antifa might be coming vague intel about people coming down from Los Angeles. However, I didnt expect any more from Antifa than I had at any of the other [protests]. He put his SWAT team on standby near (but not next to) the rallys start point, and put 20 patrol officers off to the side. In addition, he arranged for nine motor officers, eight bike officers, and an additional 22 officers in case they were needed. We dont want to intimidate anybody, and what we dont want to do is deplete the entire city of officers, because were still responsible for the entire city.

An Antifa Twitter account called SDAGAINSTFASH sent out messages the night before the rally, including this: Plan to arrive an hour early to already have [Patriot] meet point occupied. Antifa apparently wanted to assemble first on the spot, so that arriving Patriots would have to walk toward them. The MAGATS dont plan to be there before 2, so hopefully well have a decent crowd for them to approach.

Captain Novak said he was just finishing giving a briefing to his officers at around 12:30 pm when he heard over the radio, Hey, theres some crowds down here. He was at Belmont Park, a little south of the pier at that moment, still trying to stage his officers.

Then he heard, There are people dressed in black.

Which immediately tells me a lot, said Novak, that we may have Antifa black bloc there.

Then he heard, Theres a fight at the pier.

It started earlier than we thought it would, said Novak. Radio reports described black bloc persons moving in small groups over several blocks. Witnesses heard some of them directing their comrades, Keep moving, keep moving. Police had access to a helicopter, but it did not arrive until about an hour after the first radio calls about trouble, about 1:34 pm.

Sergeant Ross Bainbridge, a 17-year veteran of the SDPD, was scheduled to begin his shift that day at 2 pm, but he told the grand jury he got caught in heavy traffic trying to get to the beach. The prosecutor asked, Why didnt you use lights and siren to pass through traffic?

He replied, They hadnt called for an emergency response at that point. So I was listening to the [radio] calls as it was transpiring and it was obvious that things werent going well rather quickly, as we were getting updates on the crowd being agitated, and a large crowd. And I could sense there was not enough cops where they needed them, and that things were kind of happening more quickly than they had anticipated. I think the idea was that all of this was going to happen later in the afternoon, and it happened earlier than they expected. Sgt. Bainbridge didnt make it to the designated staging area at Belmont Park before his order changed, They changed it to, everybody respond Code Three, which is lights and sirens, back up to Hornblend and Mission. When he arrived at about 2:15 pm, there was already a line of officers spanning the street. He put on his riot gear, which includes a special helmet, a riot baton, and a gas mask, and got into the line facing the Antifa group. He said they were aggressive: They had basically formed their own spanning line in front of us and had refused to back up or move.

Officer Jonathan Swankosky was also in the line, and he described the initial launch of projectiles. It just started off with rocks here and there, and eggs, bottles, trash can lids, sticks, anything commonly found or seen thats throwable and not secured.He saw people in an alley trying to roll out a dumpster into the middle of the roadway, but added, I dont know if that was going to be pushed towards us. Then he saw a glass bottle coming at him. It broke on the ground next to him; a shard of glass flew up and cut his hand. The crowd had become hostile towards the police and were attacking us, he said.

Captain Novak said that after Antifa had gathered, police had been able to form a line to block them. He ordered another police line to form in front of the Patriot group, thus creating a buffer zone between them. He said he was in the center, between the two police lines, and that the Patriots yelled at Antifa across the buffer zone, but did not throw anything or commit any violent acts. The Antifa group, meanwhile, used shields and skateboards and people up front to protect themselves and to block our view. So people in the back are throwing objects and we cant see where they come from. At first, the captain was not wearing riot gear. I had my officer go get it for me when I had those rocks bounce next to me, he said. The grand jury saw bodycam footage showing police getting struck by rocks, glass bottles, eggs, and water bottles. As soon as we stabilized in this area and we started receiving the bottles, the rocks, and the eggs had started hitting our officers, I called an unlawful assembly, Novak testified.

The Antifa group was ordered to either disperse or face getting arrested. Theres a certain verbiage we have to say, its a script that we read from, said Novak. He directed a motor officer to use his radio so the whole crowd could hear. The official statement was read three times in both English and Spanish. Then the police helicopter repeated the order. Altogether, the official riot declaration was made more than nine times.

Officer Swankosky saw one of the protestors with pepper spray in their hand, spraying it towards my officers. So he called that out to the SWAT team, which then deployed pepper balls powdered pepper spray at 3:25 pm, roughly one hour after the first declaration of unlawful assembly. Swankosky said that when that happens, It gets really hot. He said Antifa are experienced with police tactics, and they wear gloves, which enables them to handle the balls. They would typically throw it back at us. Antifa used shields and skateboards and a trash can lid to block the pepper balls.

Popping sounds could be heard in police bodycam video. Sergeant Bainbridge said that was the sound of SWAT shooting pepper balls. Pepper balls hit the ground and break, and a dust cloud rises to drive people away, he said. Or, if a rioter is holding an object and is ready to throw it, a pepper ball could be fired to directly hit that person to prevent him from throwing it, the sergeant testified. Reviewing the video, Bainbridge noted that one rioter was up closer to us, making that, like, punching motion or jabbing motion with his skateboard. The rioter retreated more slowly than the rest of his group, His gas mask is helping him defeat the pepper ball, the sergeant noticed. Then he said, Well, he was holding a skateboard, and it appears he dropped his skateboard and then grabbed his genitals afterwards, it looked like. The rioter then dropped to the ground.

Sergeant Bainbridge guessed that he was there an hour before he got the order to move forward and start taking people into custody.I know that its a big decision to make, he said, Its going to get pretty ugly. He said he attempted to make two different arrests. His attempts were not successful.The sergeant said he grabbed the Antifa member nearest him. Then, the rioters, from behind this person, grabbed onto them by both their arms and their legs. So they had several different people pulling this person away from me, and they were able to kind of pull him down and back into the crowd rather quickly. (He said he was unsure if the person was male or female.)

While Bainbridge was trying to make that first arrest, he saw another Antifa person rush him, I saw him coming towards me fast. His bodycam video was played: it showed a tall man with a stick, wearing all black and a helmet, and with a balaclava over his face. The attacker took hold of the sergeants riot baton.You can see that the suspect has got a grip on it, on the forward part of it. With his other hand, he brought his stick forward. Bainbridge said he took hold of this second person, but Antifa grabbed him away too, pulling him by his backpack. The sergeant could hear directions from the Antifa crowd: Somebody yelling like a command for them to back up. The attacker dropped his stick during the melee, and it disappeared under the police line. The stick was later collected by police and shown to the grand jury as evidence.

Besides the police bodycam video, there was also aerial video taken from the police helicopter, which eventually arrived. The video confirmed that the first arrest attempt was made at 3:32 pm, one hour after the first unlawful assembly declaration was made at 2:34 pm. The de-arrested persons could be seen changing clothes as they were pulled back through the Antifa crowd.

The police were there to protect the public, but several members of the public did get attacked. Later, some people complained bitterly that police officers who were on scene saw those individuals being attacked and did nothing. Captain Novak admitted that he has seen videos of his officers not responding to violence happening in front of them. We did pull some victims out of the crowd, but we werent able to get to some of them, he testified. The captain said that the police used military-style tactics, meaning, You have to work together as one entire team. You cant just have one officer or one team go off on their own, because what can happen is they can get drawn into something.

The next court date for all 11 defendants named in the indictment in downtown San Diego is September 8, 2022.

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A cop's eye view of the January 9 encounter with Antifa - San Diego Reader

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On Wednesday, August 25, 2022, a group known as The United People of Canada' or by the acronym TUPOC was set to be evicted by a bailiff at midnight, according to a source with links to the group.

The United People of Canada describes itself as a diverse, intergenerational fraternal organization. They attempt to build strong families and communities, and [solidify] a prosperous future for all Canadians.

Rebel News observations show that it is a freedom-oriented group that offers the opportunity for like-minded individuals to gather and spend time together. Some of the members participated in the Freedom Convoy back in February, peacefully protesting Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus COVID-19 mandates.

The media has been focusing on the fact residents in Ottawas Lowertown community are allegedly scared of TUPOC.

The details surrounding a potential eviction are very vague and unclear, as the media and TUPOC give two different versions of the story. The group claims they have an active lease of the property signed and also say the landlord refuses to accept the payment, despite having signed a lease.

The potential for an eviction caused Antifa-type groups online to be very excited, and organize a watch party/protest at the St. Brigids Church at midnight, saying that they would bring popcorn.

On August 25, a more tense situation occurred when an older man, who opposes TUPOC, allegedly hit a woman who was part of the freedom-oriented group with his truck while on the the groups private property.

Some action occurred towards midnight, not due to the eviction situation but because of the protesters.

Around 1:30 a.m., officers from the Ottawa Police Service arrived on scene, causing some protesters to leave the area. The situation calmed down, and most of the protesters left by 2:30 a.m.

I stayed and spoke with a lady to figure out what she had to say about these Antifa protesters accusations of the group being hateful and dangerous.

I also was on the ground during the second day, where more protesters showed up. To view the full, in-depth report of the situation, watch the video above.

Read the original post:

TUPOC in the spotlight: Antifa rallies amidst eviction threats - Rebel News

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nextech AR Solutions Corp. (Nextech or the Company) (OTCQB: NEXCF) (CSE: NTAR) (FSE: N29), a metaverse Company and leading provider of augmented reality (AR) experience technologies and services is pleased to announce the Company has launched upgrades to its augmented reality spatial mapping platform, ARway. As previously announced ARway is being spun out as a stand-alone public company marking what the Company believes will be the first publicly traded pure play spatial computing platform.

It is anticipated that ARway will begin trading in 2022 and that Nextech AR shareholders of record will receive a stock dividend of at least 3,200,000 shares on a pro-rata basis. It is expected that Nextech AR will still retain a majority share ownership in ARway after the spinout.

Nextech AR CEO Evan Gappelberg commented, I am confident that spatial computing is the technology industrys next big breakthrough, possibly the most important technology breakthrough in the 21st century because spatial computing merges many disruptive technologies including 3D models, augmented reality, VR, AI, and Web 3.0. He continued, Spatial computing expands the concept of traditional computing by adding a 3D objects location in space in relation to other objects or locations. During the first half of 2022 Nextech AR has been hard at work developing an integrated solution combining all our technology into one unified platform which allows us to leverage our technology, stay ahead of the curve and keep pushing the boundaries of what's possible with spatial computing. Im super excited to announce that we have integrated our ARitize 3D CMS into our ARway offerings. We now can combine spatial mapping, and insert thousands of 3D models into the spatial, creating an end-to-end solution for creators and brands that is unmatched anywhere. Not only does ARway provide immersive and engaging spatial experiences for consumers, but we can also provide valuable analytical data for brands and properties. With our ability to capture location intelligence for spatial maps, we can provide deep insights into customer behaviour and comprehensive location-based analytics. This will allow our clients to optimize their spatial maps to improve traffic, engagement and revenue, which is extremely valuable for enterprise customers who are now lining up for the full release of ARway.

ARway is a next-generation spatial computing platform for the real-world metaverse that drives new revenue for properties and brands with out-of-box augmented reality (AR) mapping solutions. The ARway offering consists of a no-code required Web Creator Platform, as well as the ARway Mobile App and the ARwayKit Software Development Kit (SDK). Creators can map, author, and publish various metaverse experiences ranging from AR wayfinding to an array of AR experiences for exclusive branded activations. With the ability for location-specific, interactive and immersive AR content and proximity marketing campaigns, user experiences are improved, user engagement is driven and brand value is maximized.

These new upgrades will launch version v.1.1 of ARway, and include updates to the Web Creator Platform, the ARway Mobile App and ARwayKit Software Development Kit (SDK).

The new upgrades are as follows:

Platform

ARway App and ARwayKit SDK:

The ARway offering has an unlimited number of use cases for augmenting physical spaces in the metaverse, consisting of indoor navigation with AR activations to improve the visitor experience in large and complex spaces. With value propositions spanning multiple industries and use cases, ARway opens Nextechs 3D/AR technology solutions to new substantial markets, for use by creators, brands, and companies.

Early adopters who have already signed up and are co-developing the platform with Nextech AR include:

Property Owners In:

Brands In:

About the ARway Offering

Web Creator Platform

The Web-based Creator Platform provides 'advanced' authoring capabilities compared to the mobile app, including the ability for creators to upload their own OBJ/GLB files, and create their own 3D objects. Placing content in a large area using only mobile app required the user to physically be in the specific location which was unscalable. The web studio allows the user to place and author content remotely and at scale.

Mobile App

With the ARway mobile app, anyone can spatially map their location within minutes using their smartphone, and populate it with interactive 3D content, augmented reality wayfinding, audio, text, images, and more. Nextech AR provides several pre-loaded 3D objects which creators can leverage to populate their metaverse. The platform has a Visual Position System (VPS) which Nextech refers to as Mapping and Localization where users can map and enable VPS in any area through the platform. Occlusion, depth sensing and segmentation are also available. Users can share their metaverse with others, creating a new level of immersive interactivity for social, branding, advertising, gaming and more metaverse experiences.

Download the Mobile AppApple iOs - click here Google Play Store - click here

ARwayKit SDK

The Software Development Kit contains code libraries and API information that allows developers to build their own mobile apps on both iOs and Android leveraging ARway technology. Creators will be able to develop white label and private label apps and access ARway APIs to author maps using the Web Creator Portal. The SDK features the latest and greatest of the ARway mobile app. To request early access to the ARwayKit SDK - click here

Create Your Own Metaverse!

Tutorial - click here Demo - click here Masterclass - click here

Nextech also announced today that an aggregate of 200,000 common shares of Nextech were issued to Hybrid Financial in settlement of indebtedness at a deemed price of Cdn$0.90 per share. The Shares will be subject to a statutory hold period expiring on Nov 21, 2022.

To learn more, please follow us on Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook, or visit our website: https://www.Nextechar.com.

About Nextech AR

Nextech AR Solutions is the engine accelerating the growth of the metaverse. Using breakthrough AI, Nextech AR is able to quickly, easily and affordably ARitize (transform) vast quantities and varieties of existing assets at scale making products, people and places ready for interactive 3D use, giving creators at every level all the essential tools they need to build out their digital AR vision in the metaverse. Our platform-agnostic tools allow brands, educators, students, manufacturers, creators, and technologists to create immersive, interactive and the most photo-realistic 3D assets and digital environments, compose AR experiences, and publish them omnichannel. With a full suite of end-to-end AR solutions in 3D Commerce, Education, Events, and Industrial Manufacturing, Nextech AR is in a unique position to meet the needs of the worlds biggest brands and all metaverse contributors.

Nextech funds the development of its AR and metaverse growth initiatives through its e-Commerce platforms, which currently generate most of its revenue. Nextech's e-commerce platforms include vacuumcleanermarket.com (VCM), infinitepetlife.com (IPL) and Trulyfesupplements.com (TruLyfe). VCM and product sales of residential vacuums, supplies and parts, and small home appliances sold on Amazon. These e-commerce platforms serve as an incubator for developing and testing Nextech's leading-edge AR, AI and machine learning applications for powering next-generation e-commerce technology.

Forward-looking Statements

The CSE has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Certain information contained herein may constitute forward-looking information under Canadian securities legislation. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as, will be or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results will occur. Forward-looking statements regarding the completion of the transaction are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. Nextech will not update any forward-looking statements or forward-looking information that are incorporated by reference herein, except as required by applicable securities laws.

See the article here:

Nextech AR Announces New Updates to Its Real-World Augmented Reality Spatial Computing Platform, ARway - Business Wire

In the wake of another horrific mass shooting, right-wing media heavyweights have broken into their well-rehearsed song and dance numbers that blame such recurring tragedies on weed, antifa, antidepressants, video games, and even lectures from womenwhich is to say, everything except Americas stunningly lax gun laws.

On Monday, Robert Bobby Crimo III, a 21-year-old white male armed with a rifle similar to an AR-15, allegedly killed seven people at a Fourth of July parade held in Highland Park, Illinois, wounding an additional two-dozen-plus attendees. (Crimo has been charged with seven counts of first-degree murder, with more charges expected.) In Tucker Carlsons coverage of the rampage, the Fox News star revived Reefer Madnessesque arguments linking cannabis use to violence. Like Crimo, [a lot of young men in America] inhabit a solitary fantasy world of social media, porn, and video games, the host said. They are high on government-endorsed weed. Smoke some more! Its good for you. Theyre numbed by the endless psychotropic drugs that are handed out at every school in the country by crackpots posing as counselors. Carlson then blamed women for the violent rage exhibited by young men like Crimo. Of course theyre angry. The authorities in their livesmostly womennever stop lecturing them about their so-called privilege, he continued. Try to imagine an unhealthier, unhappier life than that. So a lot of young men in America are going nuts. Are you surprised?

About two hours later, Laura Ingraham pushed the same talking pointsor as she put it, mounting scientific evidence connecting violent behavior among young people to sustained cannabis useto explain away the shooting without mentioning guns. What can regular pot use trigger in young men in particular? Psychosis and other violent personality changes, the host said. As the faces of other mass shooters flashed onto the screen, Ingraham, who made the same argument following the Uvalde, Texas, shooting, suggested that stoned eyes are a clear warning sign exhibited by mass shooters: These are the eyes of some of the mass killers who have reportedly been regular pot users. Look at them.

Others have attempted to take a simpler route to paint Crimo as a leftist, essentially arguing, Well, hes tattooed his face, dyed his hair weird colors, and dressed as a woman to evade the police, so he must be antifa! If you look at antifa, thats how they look! said Fox News host Greg Gutfeld. Newsmaxs Greg Kelly made similarclaims on Tuesday. Take a look at himand quite frankly to me, Ive seen [his] type before, remarked Kelly. He looks a little antifa-ish, doesnt he?You know he was caught wearing womens clothing. Kelly went on to add that maybe, like leftists all over the place, [Crimo] liked wearing womens clothes, even though hes a he. (In May, similar bogus assertions were made about Salvador Ramos, the Robb Elementary School shooter. In what appeared to be an attempt to haphazardly pin Ramoss violent acts on their political enemies, conservative figures, including Representative Paul Gosar in a since deleted tweet, falsely claimed the shooter was trans or wore womens clothes.)

See the rest here:

Weed, Women, and Video Games: Right-Wing Media Blames Just About Everything but Guns for Highland Park Shooting - Vanity Fair

Authorities have identified Robert Crimo III as a suspect in a July 4 shooting in Highland Park, Illinois, that left seven people dead and more than two dozen injured.

With that news came a flurry of unverified and false images misleadingly suggesting that Crimo is associated with a number of social or political ideologies.

A July 4 Facebook post that published several images from Crimos supposed Instagram account includes a screenshot of Crimos page bearing a flag associated with antifa, a broad left-wing coalition of anti-fascist activists.

This post was flagged as part of Facebooks efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)

Although Crimo did have a larger online presence than the suspects in recent mass shootings in Buffalo, New York, and Uvalde, Texas, most of the 21-year-olds social media accounts have been deleted.

None of the images supposedly pulled from his social media accounts have been verified, and the evidence supporting their authenticity is thin.

First, the screenshot with the antifa flag was cropped to exclude a username. It also lacks timeline indicators;there are no dates or times shown in the photos.

Further, the account in the screenshot had little engagement. It had one follower and followed no other users a sign that the Instagram account may have been recently created.

Instagram did not immediately respond to PolitiFacts request for comment. The Lake County Sheriffs Office could also not be reached for comment, but spokesperson Chris Covelli said in a July 5 briefing that Crimoss online activity was still being reviewed.

The suggestion that Crimo had antifa ties also appeared in an article published by The Gateway Pundit, a conservative website that has spread misinformation in the past.

Most of the articles proof relies on screenshots of unverified accounts including screenshots used in the Facebook post and speculation.

For example, one image in The Gateway Pundits evidence collage depicts Crimo wearing a black beanie with the letter "A" on it, which the article claimed was short for antifa.

However, its well documented that Crimo referred to himself by the pseudonym Awake the Rapper, which also starts with "A." The article also made unsubstantiated assumptions about Crimos tattoos and their meaning.

We found no evidence from credible sources to corroborate claims that Crimo posted an antifa flag or that he has ties to the group. Information about Crimos political affiliation is also scarce.

Videos from Crimos now-deleted YouTube channel showed him cheering for former President Donald Trumps motorcade, according to NBC.

Our ruling

A Facebook post claimed that Crimo, the man apprehended for the mass shooting in Highland Park, had posted an antifa flag on Instagram.

The photo is unverified. And PolitiFact found no credible evidence to suggest that the account in the Facebook post belonged to Crimo or he had any ties to antifa.

We rate this claim False.

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No evidence ties Highland Park shooter to antifa - PolitiFact