Maybe Bernie wasn't a Putin Puppet after all
We've all been told that anyone who didn't support Hillary in 2016 was a treasonous Putin Puppet, and that goes double for those sexist, racist Bernie supporters.
Yet deep, deep down in a new Senate report, it turns out that Russian trolls weren't all that fond of Bernie supporters after all.
A new report has found that the 2016 election influence campaign carried out by Russia particularly targeted African-American voters, as well as supporters of Senator Bernie Sanders in an effort to suppress the votes of those who'd likely support than Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.
You have to go nearly to the bottom of the NY Times article to find this conclusion. The WashPost article doesn't mention it at all.
Let's compare that to headlines that we've been seeing for the last two years.
Politico: Sanders silent on claim that Russians backed him in 2016
Politico: Bernie Sanders promoted false story on reporting Russian trolls
USAToday: Indictment: Russians also tried to help Bernie Sanders, Jill Stein presidential campaigns
PeoplesView: Not Just Trump: How Bernie Sanders' Campaign Also Had Deeply Imbedded Russian Connections
With fake news like this, is it any wonder that liberals have gone bonkers?
Bernie Sanders also doesn't want to upset his buddy Putin. https://t.co/xC5lL51oY2
— Matt Murphy (@MattMurph24) June 15, 2017
@gzornick BECAUSE SANDERS WORKED WITH RUSSIA PLUS MORE.
— Vikkie Suie (@suievikkie) June 15, 2017
sanders took $$$ from the russian PAC, he needs to be investigated for his role in russiagate, like his spreading fake news & proaganda
— mark john junor (@markjunor3) June 15, 2017
Comments
OT: Looks like Obamacare was pro-for-profit health industry
not socialism after all
OMG *Laugh* That is simply priceless
Well, to quote one of the favorite phrases of neoliberals, be they Republican or Democrat, "The markets have spoken and they like the ACA... A LOT".
A lot of wanderers in the U.S. political desert recognize that all the duopoly has to offer is a choice of mirages. Come, let us trudge towards empty expanse of sand #1, littered with the bleached bones of Deaniacs and Hope and Changers.
-- lotlizard
I hope the Democratic wing of the Capitalist Party is happy.
Modern education is little more than toeing the line for the capitalist pigs.
Guerrilla Liberalism won't liberate the US or the world from the iron fist of capital.
Saying "Maybe" in the Essay Title Means
there is room for doubt.
Sanders' haters will latch on to that rather than anything that points to him NOT being a Russian puppet. Given how many of them still condemn him for honoring the agreement he had to sign to support the Democrat nominee in 2016 (the RNC had a similar agreement for their candidates that Trump said he would not honor), they will just ignore this. They tend to be as blind as the MSM and some independent outlets. Sanders certainly his his faults, but they tend not to be the ones that people shout from the rooftops.
Otherwise, thanks for pointing out that MSM continues to do its job for the state.
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass
Ha!
Japan’s best-selling calendar star revealed… as Putin
Scientists are concerned that conspiracy theories may die out if they keep coming true at the current alarming rate.
That is an awesome Christmas idea
Just looked on Amazon. There are dozens of choices.
And this picture is in at least 3 of them.
Send one to Trump
LOL, can you imagine the holiday tree at the White House buried in these calendar gifts to him.
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass
That would certain titilate the brain-washed.
And maybe
send one to Hillary and every democrat who has signed on to Russia Gate. Signed with love, Vlad.
Scientists are concerned that conspiracy theories may die out if they keep coming true at the current alarming rate.
LOL, I like it
Shouldn't leave out the press though. Might need a GoFundMe to cover everyone who is deserving of these.
Need to find another out as I do not recommend buying anything from Bezos.
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass
Oh, oh, oh ...
Let's pitch in and send one to Rachel Rachel Rachel.
Scientists are concerned that conspiracy theories may die out if they keep coming true at the current alarming rate.
Oh, yes, yes, yes = ) n/t
Someone will have to tell me how she reacts as I never watch her.
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass
The irony of the Senate report...
...(once you read the fine print) is that it's as much--if not MUCH more--about Russian Internet activity AFTER the 2016 election than it is about pre-November 2016 efforts. And, statistically, it really does NOT tell us much more about the lead-up to the 2016 election than has already been grossly distorted (propagandized) and over-exagerrated to date.
"Freedom is something that dies unless it's used." --Hunter S. Thompson
^^^
Looks like a gish gallop of stats and non-proven conclusion.
I looked at the report and what an onslaught of graphs. They have a lot of data on occurrences which I can't off hand see if they shaped the data to get the results they wanted. They essentially did a lot of counting.
However, the stats do not prove if IRA campaign actually worked. For example, I found no attempt to look at polls during the most intense periods of IRA activity. Surely, if the IRA were successful, poll numbers should have moved. There seems to be no attempt to objectively measure if all of this social media efforts resulted in changing election results. They try to squirm out of this by stating:
I may have missed their attempts to prove the onslaught had an effect, but I saw none. I did not see any statement that said "yes, we have proven that the IRA did change voters in WI so that Trump won the state." They look to assume that the numbers they generated must have had an effect.
Another thing. The IRA must have had a level of understanding of American demographics and voting trends and patterns that even eludes the most sophisticated American born and raised experts. The guy running IRA was mocked as a hot dog vendor. Everything I read about the IRA does not in any way indicate that Russians who never studied or visited America could have figured out which swing states were in play which even Americans missed. IRA and the hot dog guy were in effect media and social geniuses.
Proof? You want proof?
Look at all those leaders they kidnapped or assassinated. Look at all those regimes they set out to change. Look at all of their support for far-right dictators. Oh, wait . . . that is the US. Nevermind.
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.--Aristotle
If there is no struggle there is no progress.--Frederick Douglass
Most of the ads were placed after the election was over
60% I believe and the ones that were placed before were so silly and not even directed at either candidate or even voting for one or the other.
People are adding Mueller's indictment to his list of accomplishments, but it doesn't mean squat. The ham sandwich thing is true. And what is happening with his charges against one Russian company where the lawyer showed up? Last I heard about it was that Mueller's response was that giving it to them endangered national security.
Scientists are concerned that conspiracy theories may die out if they keep coming true at the current alarming rate.
This is beyond stupid!
Anyone who could write this should have their journalism license revoked. Anyone who believes it should have their brains scanned to see if they have one.
On a side note .. has anyone else noticed that just about every news website is talking about the Facebook ads that Russia placed? The election was two years ago so why are they back in the news all of a sudden? DK is also talking about them. The news is not new so are we being set up for something?
Scientists are concerned that conspiracy theories may die out if they keep coming true at the current alarming rate.
Cover for the Russia Hoaxers
...as Mueller moves on.
Hmm I'm not sure if that's it
As gulfgal points out in another essay here Mueller's original job was to find evidence of Trump's collusion with Vlad that swayed the election his way. The numerous articles posted everywhere are about how Russian ads got people to vote for Trump. I'm not adverse to him looking into other countries that have influenced our elections, but if he's only going to be focusing on what they did during the last one and pinning it on Trump that shouldn't fly with anyone even if they believe in Russia Gate.
Scientists are concerned that conspiracy theories may die out if they keep coming true at the current alarming rate.