If you have been wondering about the effectiveness of the social media ban of under 15 year olds, this study got you :)

Spoiler: 92%+ of kids age 14-15 in #Australia still use it 🥳

Meanwhile IMO forced verification of users had a much better success rate 😉

Source:
https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w35162/w35162.pdf

#Privacy #ageverification #IDverification #Study #Data #Science #Survey #Tech #SocialMedia #Technology #Internet #Censorship #Authoritarianism #MassSurveillance #Surveillance

Alt...

Screenshot of graphic from this study of Australia's social media ban: https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w35162/w35162.pdf Percent of banned 14-15-year olds (b) Compliance rate, April versus June 2026 Usage rate: 64% April, 92% June Implied compliance: 27% April, 6% June Notes: Figure 5 reports self-reported past-7-day use of any banned platform.

A world without privacy is also a world without intimacy, without individuality, without diversity, and without democracy.

Certain politicians have clearly expressed they want a world without privacy.

We cannot let them have it passively. We must fight back for our rights. Now.

Or we will lose them.

#Privacy #MassSurveillance #Authoritarianism #AgeVerification

The goal isn't to protect children,
the goal is to de-anonymize every comment and action on the internet, associating it with a legal ID, by eventually requesting official identification from every adult using a computer.

Some politicians have already stated this plainly.

This leads to censorship of anyone criticizing their government.

This leads to repression of marginalized people, especially immigrants, people of color, and trans and gender diverse people.

This leads to self-censorship of any comments or actions that could be interpreted against the system. Such as speaking out against fascism and authoritarian surveillance, or defending human rights publicly.

This leads to total control of the population and its tools of communications.

This leads to the end of democracy, centralizing power even more in the hands of a few.

Do not let them do this to us.

#MassSurveillance #AgeVerification #Authoritarianism #HumanRights

”History is absolutely full of societies becoming more authoritarian. And because they’re more authoritarian, people rebel, not despite because it’s an obscenity.”
—Roger Hallam, Democracy Necessitates Resistance (w/ Roger Hallam) | The Chris Hedges Report
#authoritarianism #democracy

This is one of the most chilling manipulative lie I have read in a while. And I have read a lot of chilling manipulative lies from that American administration:

“When the leftist protests that we are violating his rights, understand that he is lying to try to persuade people who are not closely following the political scene that some injustice has been perpetrated against him. We must stay the course and be completely unflinching in the pursuit of justice against these enemies of civilization.”

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/16/political-violence-event-trump-marco-rubio

#USpol #Fascism #Authoritarianism

RE: https://infosec.exchange/@briankrebs/116925212300259838

Slow hand wave to everyone who told us were were being hyperbolic and “he can’t because the Constitution says…” as if the Constitution were anything more than ink on paper without anyone to enforce it.

Their actions for this entire Trump 2.0 have been completely unconcerned with the unpopularity of their agenda because they don't intend to allow elections to remove them from office.

I remind my American friends, removing this fascist regime only gets harder from here. Do not look away. Organize. Act.

The power is with the people.

#Trump #Fascism #Authoritarianism #Elections #Democracy #Republicans #USA

Martin Seeger boosted

BrianKrebs » 🌐 2026-07-15
@briankrebs@infosec.exchange

WaPo reports the POTUS is expected to make a televised address tonight in which he will argue that foreign intelligence threats have undermined the security of our elections -- and specifically the one he lost in 2020 -- and that this means the federal government should take over elections which are managed by each individual state. The president has tried to hold up every major recent action by Congress in order to cajole them into approving a new law that would require proof of citizenship and and ID to vote in this year's mid-term elections.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/07/14/trump-plans-prime-time-speech-2020-election-allegations/

Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va) just issued a statement outlining the facts about the 2020 election and the current election infrastructure. I'm pasting part of it here because it's a good resource for anyone following along and for reporters who have to write about this unfortunate chapter in our nation's history. It's also a preemptive rebut to and probably a preview of what we'll hear from the president this evening.

"Foreign adversaries routinely seek to influence U.S. elections. They spread disinformation, amplify political divisions, intimidate voters, incite violence, and attempt to undermine Americans’ confidence in democratic institutions.

What foreign adversaries have not done, according to repeated public, unclassified assessments from the U.S. Intelligence Community, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the FBI, the Senate Intelligence Committee, and bipartisan state election officials, is alter vote totals, hack voting machines to change election outcomes, or compromise the integrity of the 2020 presidential election. The clearest pattern across recent elections is not successful vote manipulation – it is sustained influence operations, aided and abetted by domestic actors, designed to convince Americans that their elections cannot be trusted.

These facts matter because conspiracy theories about stolen elections cannot become a pretext for weakening our democratic system or stripping states and local election officials of their longstanding constitutional role in administering elections. The answer to foreign threats is to strengthen election security, support state and local officials, and combat foreign influence operations – not to “take over” or federalize election administration based on claims that have been repeatedly investigated and debunked.

Reporters have a unique responsibility at this moment. The press is the only profession expressly protected by the Constitution because the Founders understood that an informed public depends on a free and independent press willing to separate fact from fiction and hold those in power accountable. Regardless of the source seeking to amplify false narratives about American elections, journalists should approach extraordinary claims with the same rigor they would apply to any other allegation: demand credible evidence, consult the extensive public record, engage subject-matter experts with experience tracking foreign intelligence operations, and provide audiences with the full context of repeated findings from the Intelligence Community, federal cybersecurity officials, bipartisan state election administrators, audits, recounts, and the courts. Careful, evidence-based reporting is one of the strongest defenses against efforts to undermine confidence in American democracy. To that end, we have assembled the following reference guide to help reporters quickly evaluate some of the most common claims about election security against the extensive public record developed by the Intelligence Community, CISA, the FBI, bipartisan state election officials, audits, recounts, and the courts.

Claim: China interfered in the 2020 election to help Biden.

Facts: Under the leadership of then-Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe, the Intelligence Community assessed that China considered but did not deploy influence efforts intended to change the outcome of the 2020 presidential election. By contrast, the IC assessed that Russia conducted influence operations aimed at denigrating Biden and supporting Trump, and that Iran conducted efforts to undercut Trump and sow division. The Intelligence Community, Department of Justice, and Department of Homeland Security all agree that there was no changing of votes or compromise of the integrity of election infrastructure in the 2020 election. Even the Minority View included in the public 2020 Intelligence Community Assessment – which assessed that China may have undertaken some modest influence operations – concurred with the overall IC assessment that there was “no information suggesting China tried to interfere with election processes.”

Claim: Venezuela, Dominion, or Smartmatic hacked voting machines.

Facts: In November 2020, President Trump’s own CISA, working alongside state and local election officials from both parties, declared the 2020 election “the most secure in American history.” CISA stated there was “no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes, or was in any way compromised,” and highlighted the extensive safeguards built into U.S. elections, including paper records, audits, recounts, certification, and pre-election testing.

Claim: Georgia proves the machines were wrong.

Facts: Georgia’s post-election audit showed the opposite. Because the presidential margin was so close, the state conducted a full manual tally of all presidential paper ballots. The Georgia Secretary of State, a Republican, reported that the audit confirmed the original machine count accurately identified the winner, with differences within the expected range of human hand-counting error.

Claim: Foreign interference means votes were changed, or elections are illegitimate.

Facts: This claim conflates two different concepts. The IC has repeatedly warned that foreign adversaries conduct influence operations, including hack-and-leak operations, disinformation campaigns, and efforts to undermine confidence in U.S. democracy. But those assessments distinguish influence from interference such as alteration or manipulation of ballots, vote tabulation, or voter registration.

Claim: Foreign actors can easily flip a federal election.

Facts: Both the Senate Intelligence Committee and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) have said the decentralized nature of U.S. election infrastructure makes large-scale manipulation very difficult to carry out without detection through intelligence collection, audits, cybersecurity monitoring, and physical security controls. This assessment was reaffirmed by DOJ and DHS in a joint report on the 2020 U.S. Federal Elections – a report mandated by Executive Order 13848, which was signed by President Trump himself in 2018. Indeed, federal funding – much of which took place through appropriations bills under President Trump’s first term – helped shore up the security of state and local election systems in advance of the 2020 U.S. Federal Elections.

Claim: States cannot be trusted to administer elections.

Facts: The Founding Fathers thought otherwise, assigning the responsibility for election administration to states in the Constitution. As a result, elections are administered by more than 8,000 state and local jurisdictions, making centralized or outcoming-shaping fraud extraordinarily difficult. Election security relies on multiple independent safeguards – including but not limited to paper ballots or voter-verifiable paper records, bipartisan poll workers, post-election canvasses, audits, recounts where appropriate, and certification by state and local officials. The federal government’s role has historically been to provide intelligence, cybersecurity assistance, and voluntary best practices through agencies like CISA, the FBI, and ODNI (notably, resources the current administration has curtailed) – not to run or “take over” elections. A bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee investigation recommended more support for state and local election officials, not replacing them with a federally controlled election system.

Claim: Dead people or non-citizens voted in large numbers, or there are more ballots than registered voters.

FACTS: These discrepancies are usually attributable to clerical or data issues, and while there are occasional isolated cases, multiple comprehensive studies have found that noncitizen voting is vanishingly rare. Notably, under President Trump’s influence, many GOP-led states have withdrawn from the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC) – the nationwide clearinghouse to assist states in improving the accuracy of voter rolls.

Claim: Mail-in ballots or ballot drop boxes are inherently insecure.

FACTS: CISA notes that states employ multiple, overlapping safeguards for mail-in and drop-box voting, including voter signature verification or other voter validation methods, ballot tracking, secure ballot handling and chain-of-custody procedures, ballot reconciliation, and post-election audits. The specific safeguards vary by state, but they are designed so that no single control is solely responsible for protecting election integrity. Importantly, mail-in voting has traditionally been a critical method of ensuring that military personnel can exercise their right to vote and has been commonplace in many states for over a decade.

The factual record is clear: Foreign adversaries try to influence Americans and undermine confidence in our elections, but unclassified government assessments and state audits have not shown that China, Venezuela, or any foreign actor hacked voting machines or changed vote totals in 2020. The real threat is not that Americans’ votes were secretly flipped; it is that foreign adversaries and domestic actors continue to spread false claims designed to make Americans doubt legitimate election results."

#Maine rejects #JusticeDepartment’s request for all #voters’ personal info, list of election officials

Secretary of State #ShennaBellows' responded to the request by telling the DOJ to "go jump in the Gulf of Maine."

by Dylan Tusinski, July 29, 2025

AUGUSTA — "Maine is denying the U.S. Department of Justice access to its voter registration records, state officials said Tuesday, rejecting an unprecedented request for sensitive voter data that the Trump administration has now delivered to all 50 states.

"A letter late last week to Secretary of State Shenna Bellows and signed by Deputy Assistant U.S. Attorney General Michael Gates claims Maine had roughly 11,000 voters with duplicate registration. It requested the state’s entire voter registration list dating back to November 2022 'to ensure that ineligible voters are being removed.'

"The state has 14 days to respond to the letter dated July 24.

"Bellows, who is also a Democratic candidate for governor, said in a press conference Tuesday the Trump administration is overstepping its bounds, empowering false narratives and 'trying to change the topic away from the Epstein files.'

" 'Article 1 of the Constitution places the states — not President Trump, not the federal government — in charge of federal elections,' she said. 'The DOJ doesn’t get to know everything about you just because they want to.'

"Bellows’ office is coordinating with Maine’s Office of Attorney General to draft a formal response, she said.
The Maine Republican Party has previously claimed widespread voter fraud across the state, but a subsequent investigation by Bellows’ office concluded this month and found those claims were baseless. Just because someone is registered to vote in two different towns doesn’t mean they intended to vote twice. Often, it simply means that they moved between elections.

"A spokesman for Maine Senate Republicans declined to comment on the DOJ’s request or Bellows’ response. Other Maine GOP officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment Tuesday.

"In addition to #VoterRegistration information, the DOJ also has requested the names of local election officials as well as information about noncitizens, felons, and deceased people’s alleged participation in Maine elections following President Donald Trump’s repeated false claims that the 2020 election was rigged and stolen from him.

" 'Please provide a description of the steps that Maine has taken, and when those steps were taken, to identify registered voters who are ineligible to vote as well as the procedures it used to remove those ineligible voters from the registration list,' the DOJ’s letter reads.

"The DOJ has not publicly said why they are seeking voter records across the country. Asked about the request to Maine and other states, spokesperson Pierson Furnish replied in an email 'No comment.'

"The first Trump administration similarly made requests to view all Americans’ voter information in 2017. Then-Secretary of State Matt Dunlap said at the time he would release voters’ names, ages, residences and districts with the government, as allowed by Maine law.

"The American Civil Liberties Union [#ACLU] of Maine said the DOJ’s actions both now and then are part of 'a clear pattern of intimidation' and applauded Bellows’ refusal to share voters’ information.

" 'This letter also fuels #FalseNarratives that sow distrust in our elections. Maine elections are safe, secure, and accessible, and that’s why Maine consistently has some of the highest voter turnout,' said Samuel Crankshaw, the group’s communications director. 'Our government should focus on helping more people exercise their fundamental rights.'

Maine’s voter turnout is reliably high compared to other states and more Mainers voted in 2024 than in any election before, according to state voting data.

"The Justice Department initially reached out to swing states like #Michigan, #Arizona and #Wisconsin, where local election clerks have reported federal agents requesting broad access to the states’ #RegistrationRolls and #VotingMachines.

Now, Bellows said all 50 states have received similar letters. #Maine, #Minnesota and #NewHampshire are the only states to have rejected the requests so far."

Read more:
https://www.pressherald.com/2025/07/29/maine-rejects-justice-departments-request-for-lists-of-all-voters-election-officials/

Archived version:
https://archive.md/K91De

#District13 #MaineResists #MinnesotaResists #NewHampshireResists #Authoritarianism #Fascism #USPol #GovernmentOverreach #BigBrother #CharacteristicsOfFascism

#Maine Secretary of State says she’s been #doxed after standing up to #ICE

By WGME-TV Staff | Sinclair National Desk

PUBLISHED: February 2, 2026 at 2:22 PM EST | UPDATED: February 3, 2026 at 8:53 AM EST

"Maine Secretary of State and gubernatorial candidate #ShennaBellows says she has been doxed after coming out against Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

"Bellows says her home address and personal contact information were spread online. She says this has led to herself and members of her family receiving threats.

"But for Bellows, this is not the first time she has been targeted. She says she was #swatted in 2023 for calling to remove President Donald #Trump from the ballot.
Bellows insists it’s a scare tactic, and that she will not give in to fear.

" 'Unfortunately, when I spoke out against #ICE and when I refused to allow ICE to have access to undercover license plates because a government agency and law enforcement should identify themselves as a government entity and law enforcement if they are going to be arresting people in the streets,' Bellows said."

Read more:
https://www.baltimoresun.com/2026/02/02/maine-secretary-of-state-says-shes-been-doxed-after-standing-up-to-ice/

Archived version:
https://archive.ph/lSUJS

#MaineResists #ResistICE #ResistFascism #USPol #DefundICE #ICESucks #ICEOut #TrumpSucks
#Authoritarianism #Fascism

@Dialectician

In this region - Queensland - 2026 has seen return of bans by Authoritarians

#Authoritarianism #Queensland
#Palestine #Solidarity

Alt...

Sign text: in red lettering on a black and white keffiyeh/scarf background From The Brisbane River To Moreton Bay I’m Not Doing What You SAY ! Image a sign carried by a keffiyeh wearing protester ( Protest at the State government, police enforced ban on public showing or uttering of the slogan “From The River To The Sea Palestine Will Be Free” Also on sign is a “watermelon” red green and black ie. like the Palestine 🇵🇸 flag )

Alt...

Banner text: “Here We Joh* Again To Crisafulli’s Police State” Image on the banner: a Queensland Police Officer / a German S.S. Nazi military police officer. * Joh Bjelke Petersen was the authoritarian 1970s/1980s Qld state premier who infamously banned street marches and was resisted by generations of civil disobedience activists. Note Crisafulli is the 2026 authoritarian Premier of Qld who has banned Palestine solidarity slogans In the photograph behind the banner are 2026 para-military Queensland Police

https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2026/07/why-sunrise-movement-reorganized-to-fight-authoritarianism/

#authoritarianism #climatecrisis #fossilfuels #Minneapolis #SunriseMovement

The German government now intends to put into law to punish Germans with up to 5 years in jail if they deny Israel's "right to exist".

Such a law would of course very likely violate the German constitution, like virtually everything the current German government does these days. And Germany already has a law that protects anyone from incitement and hate against the group they belong to, including jews. A law that specifically protects Israel no matter what Israel does serves of course only to suppress valid criticism of genocide and Israel's hard-right course who currently want to attack Iran *again*. In a country that respects its own constitution, this planned law would never even have been proposed.

Hat tip to @mago.

As I write this, Germany's foreign minister, Johann Wadephul, is on visit in Israel, Germany's "good and close friend", to "keep communications channels open" as public hostility towards Israel increases.

And Germany's minister of the interior, Alexander Dobrindt, and the federal presidents of Germany's police have had multiple visits in Israel, Germany's "natural partner", to start training each other's police and to learn from Israel how it controls a population in an apartheid state using technology and AI (the real, working all-too-well AI, like computer vision, not the LLMs that are sold to us as "AI").

https://www.nd-aktuell.de/artikel/1201039.bundesrat-existenzrecht-israels-bundesrat-will-leugnung-des-existenzrechts-israels-bestrafen.html

#Israel #Germany #surveillance #authoritarianism

“Our #journalists report the facts & advance the American public’s right to know how their government is operating & their taxpayer dollars are being used,” McCraw wrote. “This brazen act should be seen as nothing more than an attempt to prevent the public from knowing what is happening in their country by intimidating journalists from doing their jobs.”

#law #Constitution #FreePress #journalism #FourthEstate #democracy #Trump #autocracy #authoritarianism #dictatorship #fascism #MafiaState

The #subpoenas contain few specifics, asking only that the #journalists testify “in regard to an alleged violation of federal criminal law.” They were issued by #JayClayton, the #USattorney in Manhattan. Clayton, who leads one of the country’s most prominent law enforcement offices, was recently nominated by #Trump to serve as director of national intelligence [ #DNI ].

#law #Constitution #FreePress #journalism #FourthEstate #democracy #authoritarianism #dictatorship #fascism #MafiaState

#Trump has long been a harsh critic of the #news #media. But in his second term in office, he has moved aggressively to use the immense powers of the federal government in his efforts to attack the #press.

Earlier this year, the #DOJ sought to compel testimony from #journalists at The Wall Street Journal & The Washington Post. The DOJ withdrew the #subpoenas after both news organizations fought back in sealed filings.

#law #Constitution #FreePress #journalism #authoritarianism #MafiaState

FWIW, Mussolini didn't "make the trains run on time." He just ordered the Italian press to write that the trains were running on time.

That's how authoritarianism works. Fascist sympathisers in other countries fell for it.

#authoritarianism #hegemony #history #Italy

Why Isn’t News of #Trump Building Vast #ConcentrationCamps Being Treated as a #NationalEmergency?

History shows us that once a nation builds a #MassDetention apparatus, it never remains limited to its original targets. Wake up, people.

by #ThomHartmann, Feb 05, 2026

Excerpt: "The British originated the term '#ConcentrationCamp' to describe facilities where '#rebel' or 'undesirable' civilians were held in #SouthAfrica during the #SecondAngloBoerWar (1899–1902) to control and punish a #rebellious population.

"They were facilities where the 'bad elements of society' were 'concentrated' into one location so they could be easily controlled and would lose access to society and thus could not spread their messages of #resistance against the #BritishEmpire.

"Future generations of Americans—our children and grandchildren—won’t ask us whether #ICE followed civil detention statutes: they’ll want to know why we allowed concentration camps to exist in America at all.

"The Germans adopted the term in 1933 when #Hitler took power and created his first camp for #communists, #socialists, #UnioLleaders, and, by the end of the year, Hitler’s #PoliticalOpponents. They Germanized the phrase into '#Konzentrationslager' and referred to the process of their incarceration as 'protective custody.'

"The first camp was built at #Dachau just weeks after Hitler became Chancellor in 1933, and by the end of the year there were around 70 of them operating across the country."

Read more:
https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/why-isn-t-news-of-trump-building-vast-concentration-camps-being-treated-as-a-national-emergency

#USPol #WakeUpPeople #HistoryRepeats #Fascism #Authoritarianism #DetentionCenters
#PrivatePrisons #CriminalizingDissent
#SilencingDissent #CharacteristicsOfFascism #DepartmentOfHomelandInsecurity

More of this, please...!

Three-Time #Trump Voter Calls C-SPAN to Apologize for 'Supporting This Rotten, Rotten Man' | Common Dreams

“This is not a decent man. This is not an honest man. He openly takes bribes. He’s pathetic as a president.”

Jessica Corbett
Feb 06, 2026

"As polling shows Americans are increasingly unhappy with President Donald Trump’s #authoritarianism, economy, and overall performance during his first year back in power, some of his voters are speaking out about feeling 'swindled' and having buyer’s remorse, including one who called into C-SPAN on Friday."

Read more:
https://www.commondreams.org/news/trump-voters-regret

#TrumpRegrets #USPol #WakingUp #ExMAGA #Fascism #WakeUpPeople #GOP

I'm afraid to say it, but I think this is where we are heading...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0ZI9vQfr4Q

#MadMaxBullshit #ClimateCrisis #Polycrisis #MadKings #ModestMouse #TimeInABox #MadKingTrump #Dystopia #Authoritarianism #Wasteland #FridayNightJukebox #FridayNightMusicVideos #FridayNightMusic

#AntiDemocraticUK #UKpol

#CISOMarketplace channel

#AgeVerification #VPNs #tech

#authoritarianism

https://m.youtube.com/shorts/8AAqLlx9r-Y

"There's a reason you separate military and the police. One fights the enemies of the state, the other serves and protects the people. When the military becomes both, then the enemies of the state tend to become the people." -- #CommanderWilliamAdama, #BattlestarGalactica , 2003.

#NationalGuard #ICE #BattlestarGalaticaQuotes #EnemiesOfTheState #Fascism #Authoritarianism

Alt...

A man with greying hair wearing glasses and looking intent. He is wearing a uniform. Next to him are the words: There's a reason you separate military and the police. One fights the enemies of the state, the other serves and protects the people. When the military becomes both, then the enemies of the state tend to become the people.

Next up, REM's #RadioFreeEurope! Their first single, released in 1981

"Beside yourself if radio's gonna stay
Reason, it could polish up the gray
Put that, put that, put that up your wall
That this isn't country at all"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ac0oaXhz1u8

#80sMusic #RevolutionDanceParty #Authoritarianism #USPol #TrumpSucks #BadDOGE #REM #FridayNightMusicVideos #FridayNightMusic #MusicVideos #FridayNightVideos #JukeboxFridayNight

#Mainers in kayaks protest Chief Justice #JohnRoberts near his island home

by Stephen Betts, Midcoast Villager
July 19, 2025

"#Kayakers who say they oppose the direction the U.S. Supreme Court has taken the country took to the water Saturday morning to protest near the seasonal home of Chief Justice John Roberts Jr.

"The flotilla launched its kayaks from the new public landing in Port Clyde and paddled a few hundred yards to Roberts’ home on Hupper Island.

"The chief justice and his wife Jane Roberts purchased the home in June 2006. He typically spends time at the seasonal home after the high court recesses for the summer. Their chief residence is in Chevy Chase, Maryland.
Signs voicing opposition to the #SupremeCourt’s rulings were brought in the kayaks, and others lined the waterfront.

"Signs referred to rulings that they said harm the #LBTQ community, the overturning of campaign spending limits for #corporations in the #CitizensUnited case in 2010, the overturning of a woman’s right to #abortion in 2022, and more recent rulings that grant the president immunity from actions taken while president.

"Organizer Susan MacNeil-Densmore said earlier this week she is affiliated with the organization #AudacityCAT (#CreativeActionTogether) which has been active locally working to resist #authoritarianism, but said the event was not really part of any specific organization."

Source:
https://www.bangordailynews.com/2025/07/19/midcoast/mainers-kayaks-protest-chief-justice-john-roberts-island-home/

Archived version:
https://archive.ph/LQqrV

#SCOTUS #ProtectTransKids
#reproductiverights #Maine #GBLTQRights #CorruptSCOTUS #Corporatocracy #NoVacationsDuringDeportations

#Trump administration targets #Maine again, this time on #transgender policy in schools

The U.S. #DepartmentOfEducation. which Trump wants to abolish, is investigating whether dozens of Maine school districts are violating or misusing federal privacy laws and infringing on parents’ rights.

by Eric Russell, March 28, 2025

"The Trump administration is once again targeting Maine over its policies on transgender youth.

"The U.S. Department of Education – an agency the president is trying to abolish – announced Friday it has initiated an investigation into Maine’s Department of Education over allegations that school districts in the state are violating the Family Educational Rights Privacy Act (#FERPA).

"Specifically, the federal agency says school districts are allowing officials to create 'gender plans' that support a transgender student’s identity but then not making those plans available to parents.

"A similar investigation was launched in #California this week.

[...]

"Schools in Maine have been caught in a legal gray area between respecting student privacy and parents’ rights to be informed when it comes to children’s expression of gender identity while at school. Many youth live in families whose members might not be supportive of their gender identity.

"The Trump administration already has been investigating Maine for allowing #TransgenderAthletes to compete, something that is allowed under the #MaineHumanRightsAct but defies an executive order the president signed in February. This month, the administration found that Maine violated the federal law known as #TitleIX and warned that if the state didn’t make changes, it would risk referral to the U.S. Department of Justice and the potential loss of tens of millions of dollars in federal funding.

"The announcement from the U.S. Department of Education this week also warns that if any Maine district is found in violation of the federal privacy act, it could lose federal funding. It’s unclear how that will play out, though, because Trump is trying to eliminate the education department at the federal level.

"A spokesperson for the Maine Department of Education did not immediately respond Friday to questions about the investigation. A spokesperson for the Maine Attorney General’s Office declined to comment.

"Trump and his supporters have elevated transgender rights as the biggest battle in the country’s culture war and believe their messaging is a political winner, even beyond traditional party lines.

"In addition to his executive order barring transgender girls or women from competing in athletics, Trump signed another that says the federal government would only recognize two genders, male and female, a move some advocates said was designed to erase transgender individuals from existence.

"Many states, Maine included, have strong protections for transgender individuals."

Read more:
https://www.pressherald.com/2025/03/28/trump-administration-targets-maine-again-this-time-on-transgender-policy-in-schools/

Archived version:
https://archive.md/b6gpf
#MainePol #USPol #MaineResists #ProtectTransYouth #TrumpIsABully #Education #Authoritarianism #Fascism #CharacteristicsOfFascism #TransRightsAreHumanRights

“What The Filton Six Destroyed”

by Nida Jafri in The Canary

@thecanaryuk
@uk_politics
@palestine@fedibird.com
@Palestine@masto.ai
@palestine@lemmy.ml
@iran
@iraq
@palestinenews

“Over the course of two years – following an unusual arrest under counter-terror powers, eighteen months on remand, a first trial, a second trial, and two separate proceedings against Charlotte Head’s barrister – it has become increasingly difficult to believe that the government is prosecuting the Filton 25 for property damage. It is prosecuting the concept of direct action.

But the Filton 25’s alleged action has also exposed something larger: the convergence of drone warfare, artificial intelligence, and industrialised killing that is reshaping warfare in the 21st century”

https://www.thecanary.co/uk/analysis/2026/06/29/what-filton-destroyed/

#Press #SocialMedia #UK #PalestineAction #PalestinianGenocide #Filton25 #Elbit #ElbitSystems #DirectAction #JudgeJohnson #MI6 #Labour #Starmer #Prisecution #Proscription #AbuseOfPower #Authoritarianism #Dictatorship

Jennifer Rubin: Words & Phases: ‘A Golden Age’ and a ‘Great America State Fair’?!

#america250 #corruption #trump #authoritarianism #TheContrarian
https://www.contrariannews.org/p/words-and-phases

Like I say, this Government wants to lock up critics.....not the Racists, the Critics of the Government. Minorities can go to hell....

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/jun/29/uk-state-threats-bill-could-pull-british-journalists-into-terror-prosecutions-experts

#UKPol #UKPolitics #Terrorism #Authoritarianism #Labour #PalestineAction

"At the same time that gutter bigotry & #authoritarianism is openly promoted & celebrated, the fascists doing the celebrating also praise themselves for opposing what they claim is the fascist menace of anti-fascists...

In fact, they craft narratives to prove that they are in fact the heroes, the resistance, and they do it with genocidal rhetoric from a position of autocratic imperial power"
https://www.the-reframe.com/the-submerged-story/

#GOP #Politics #Fascism #Trump #Corruption #Racism #Bigotry #News #US #USA

Alt...

Text from article: At the same time that gutter bigotry and authoritarianism is openly promoted and celebrated, the fascists doing the celebrating also praise themselves for opposing what they claim is the fascist menace of anti-fascists. At the same time that heroic resistance to authoritarian bigotry is criminalized and vilified and suppressed by authoritarian bigots, the fascist bigots doing the criminalizing and vilification also celebrate themselves for their brave resistance against oppressive authoritarianism and fascism. Racist fascists and bigots are very proud of their racism and fascism and bigotry, yet at the same time they are violently opposed to being called racists or fascists or bigots. In fact, they craft narratives to prove that they are in fact the heroes, the resistance, and they do it with genocidal rhetoric from a position of autocratic imperial power, while billionaires pose as populist men of the very people they crush. These are people who very much want to be permitted to be as they are without paying the cost of being seen as they are, and they appear willing to threaten and persecute and harm and kill anyone committing the crime of perceiving them accurately. Musk recently threatened to sue U.S. Representative Ro Khanna for pointing out that Musk is a racist mass murder—which he absolutely is. Pointing out racist mass murder carries a high cost these days. Committing racist mass murder? That’s just capitalism, baby! That's what makes you the trillions with the trippy-T.

The #Trump admin imposed #sanctions last year against Kimberly Prost, a Canadian judge at the #InternationalCriminalCourt. Now, she & 2 other judges are suing Trump & his admin, claiming the penalties exceeded his authority.

The case, filed in the Southern District of New York on Wednesday, is the latest effort to challenge what many experts have described as the Trump admin’s efforts to undermine #InternationalLaw.

#law #ICC #imperialism #authoritarianism #tyranny
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/24/world/europe/trump-sanctions-judges-lawsuit.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share

How new protest laws are impacting political demonstrations

More than a dozen states have passed laws regulating protests in recent years, raising concerns among free-speech advocates.

By Akilah Johnson,
January 2, 2026

Excerpt: "While serving in the Florida state legislature, #RandyFine helped pass legislation that provides some protection under certain circumstances to drivers who hit #protesters blocking #roadways. In Congress, the Republican representative has introduced a similar bill — what he calls the '#ThumpThumpAct' — for drivers who may encounter protesters in other parts of the country.

" 'When the consequences for inappropriate behavior are severe enough, people will stop doing it,' Fine said. 'Blocking roads is a form of political terrorism. They should get run over.'

"Florida is one of more than a dozen states that have cracked down on protests in recent years, passing laws that often equate political demonstrations with riots in ways that #FirstAmendment experts say could be illegal.

"Since 2017, 23 states have passed at least 55 laws to address how and when people can protest, according to the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law, which tracks such statutes. The laws do such things as mandate at least 30 days in jail for rioting — often loosely defined as a group involved in tumultuous or potentially violent behavior — restrict protests on college campuses, and imprison and fine people who block sidewalks, streets and highways.

"Some lawmakers like Fine want federal legislation that mirrors those efforts. Among the 16 pending federal bills are proposals to tighten restrictions on protesting near federal judges, jurors or court staff; strip #nonprofits of their tax status for certain #protest-related activities; and block people convicted of rioting from small business aid.

"First Amendment advocates warn that the patchwork of state laws, pending federal bills and court battles risk rewriting the rules of public demonstrations. There are already laws to prosecute violent behavior, making these new efforts unnecessary, they say.
There have been few arrests or prosecutions under the recently passed protest laws, but free-speech advocates say the measures can be used to control or dissuade would-be demonstrators.

" 'What we have consistently seen is lawmakers responding to protest movements by introducing new laws that restrict the #RightToProtest,' said Elly Page, senior legal adviser for U.S. programs at the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law."

Read more:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2026/01/02/anti-protest-laws-randy-fine/

Archived version:
https://archive.ph/yyFNm

#AntiProtestLaws #USPol #ProtestLaws
#Project2025 #Authoritarianism #Fascism #SilencingDissent #CriminalizingProtest #BlockingTraffic

From 2021... This started before #Trump, but things are way worse now!

#AntiProtestLaws Threaten #Indigenous and #Climate Movements

“#CriticalInfrastructure” laws in over a dozen states wrongly invoke national security to justify targeting #PipelineProtesters.

Kaylana Mueller-Hsia, March 17, 2021

"In 2016 as a member of Congress, #DebHaaland stood for four days in solidarity with protesters at the #StandingRockSioux Reservation against construction of the #DakotaAccessPipeline. Today, as the first #NativeAmerican to be the secretary of the interior — the first to lead any cabinet department — she has the opportunity to support the #FirstAmendment rights of the protesters she joined in the past.

"With her authority over energy development on federal lands, Haaland can be a voice for Indigenous and climate movements facing an urgent threat: the rapid spread of laws to protect 'critical infrastructure' that single out activists.

"Since 2016, 13 states have quietly enacted laws that increase criminal penalties for trespassing, damage, and interference with infrastructure sites such as oil refineries and pipelines. At least five more states have already introduced similar legislation this year. These laws draw from national security legislation enacted after 9/11 to protect physical infrastructure considered so 'vital' that the 'incapacity or destruction of such systems and assets would have a debilitating impact on security, national economic security, national public health or safety.'

"Many industry sectors are designated critical infrastructure, including food and agriculture, energy, water and wastewater, and communications, but most state critical infrastructure laws focus more narrowly on oil and gas #pipelines. While protecting critical infrastructure is a legitimate government function, these laws clearly target environmental and Indigenous activists by significantly raising the penalties for participating in or even tangentially supporting pipeline trespassing and property damage, crimes that are already illegal. Many laws are modelled on draft legislation prepared by the American Legislative Exchange Council, also known as #ALEC, a powerful lobbying group funded by #FossilFuel companies like #ExxonMobil and #Shell.

"Central to the new critical infrastructure laws are increased criminal penalties and vague, broad definitions that could discourage protest and particularly, nonviolent civil disobedience. Many laws make any 'damage' to or 'interference' with a facility deemed critical infrastructure a felony. Under #Ohio’s law, trespass with the purpose of 'tampering' with a facility is a third degree felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine. In Indiana, a felony conviction is applied for any facility trespass, a crime that is typically a misdemeanor or fine.

"Vague language like 'damage,' 'tamper,' and 'impede' in critical infrastructure laws makes it unclear if, for example, knocking down #SafetyCones and starting a fire next to a natural gas facility are the same under the law. Many critical infrastructure laws do not clarify if they apply only to land a company fully owns or also to pipeline easements, which run through both public and private lands. At least some laws apply to both. Only a week after Louisiana’s critical infrastructure law was enacted, opponents of the Bayou Bridge pipeline were charged with trespassing for boating on public waters on the border of a pipeline easement.

"The combination of overly broad language and steep penalties in critical infrastructure laws make it likely that future activists and supporting organizations will be discouraged from exercising their First Amendment-protected protest rights. A lawsuit brought in response to the #BayouBridge charges will test the laws for the first time on First Amendment grounds.

"Many of these laws even extend beyond the protesters. In a proposed law in #Minnesota, anyone who 'recruits, trains, aids, advises, hires, counsels, or conspires' someone to trespass without a 'reasonable effort' to prevent the trespassing is guilty of a gross misdemeanor. In #Oklahoma organizations that conspire with perpetrators are liable to be fined up to $1 million. These laws may infringe on the freedom of association protected under the First Amendment. Indeed, the Supreme Court ruled that the illegal actions of a few individuals do not implicate an entire group.

"The criminalization of environmental protest is fueled by federal security agencies and oil and gas companies, who are often major political donors. For years, the Department of #HomelandSecurity and the Federal Bureau of Investigation have labelled activists at infrastructure sites as #DomesticTerrorists and violent extremists in order to justify further #surveillance and #policing. Government documents have been released that detail the FBI’s focus on '#AnimalRights / #EnvironmentalExtremism,' describing even #NonviolentProtesters as #extremists.

"At Standing Rock, a private security firm [#Blackwater] hired by the pipeline companies consistently referred to protesters as 'terrorists' while working with law enforcement. Ahead of the #KeystoneXLPipeline protests in 2018, #DHS agents held an '#AntiTerrorism training' for state and local authorities. In contrast, members of the #FarRight militant group the #ThreePercenters have established a significant presence at oil and gas plants with little law enforcement reaction.

"To be sure, as the recent power outages in Texas showed so vividly, the United States needs reliable energy. But it’s questionable whether pipeline construction sites that could feasibly be moved or replaced with renewable energy sources should legitimately be considered 'vital' to the energy grid. Furthermore, a singular focus on this aspect of security comes at the cost of others. Whose essential resources do pipeline projects protect and whose do they threaten? Black Americans are disproportionately likely to live near natural #GasPipelines and experience higher #CancerRisk due to unclean air. An oil spill from the Dakota Access Pipeline could devastate the #SiouxTribe’s water source. Meanwhile, on some reservations, 10 percent of households lack electricity and as many as 40 percent of households must haul water and use outhouses. The well-being of these communities must count too.

"The rise in critical infrastructure laws may foreshadow more anti-protest legislation to come. A similar wave of anti-protest laws has already begun in response to the 2020 #BlackLivesMatter protests. State legislators contemplating critical infrastructure laws should bear in mind that laws that criminalize trespassing and protect the safety of construction workers and law enforcement already exist. Critical infrastructure laws don’t fill an unmet need — they only raise the penalties for specific groups of people. Courts adjudicating #FirstAmendment challenges in the coming years should recognize that these laws are overbroad and impose disproportionately severe penalties that chill freedom of assembly and association.

"As secretary of the interior, Haaland promises to uplift the voices of Indigenous and climate protesters in the Biden administration. State legislators, law enforcement, and the fossil fuel industry should follow suit and listen to these activists rather than suppressing constitutionally protected activity under the guise of national security."

Source:
https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/anti-protest-laws-threaten-indigenous-and-climate-movements

#BrennanCenter #Authoritarianism #Fascism #NoDAPL #NoKXL #PipelineProtests #WaterIsLife #ACAB #ErikPrince #BigOilAndGas #Oiligarchy #CorporateColonialism #EnvironmentalRacism #WaterIsLife #AirIsLife #ExxonLied #Blackwater #StandWithStandingRock #StandingRockSioux

#SupremeCourt Lets #Trump Enact His #Authoritarian Agenda on Its ‘#ShadowDocket’

The right-wing-dominated Supreme Court keeps greenlighting Trump’s most authoritarian actions without even bothering to give us an explanation

By Mike Sacks, July 27, 2025

https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/political-commentary/trump-supreme-court-shadow-docket-emergency-agenda-1235394694/

Archived version:
https://archive.ph/xAZk2

#USPol #Trump #Authoritarianism #Fascism #NaziRegime #ResistTheRegime #SCOTUS #SCOTUSIsCompromised #ImpeachClarenceThomas #ImpeachBrettKavanaugh #ErikPrince #OligarchCamp #TrumpIsAFascistDictator #CharacteristicsOfFascism

WTF!!! #DHS Tells #Police That Common #Protest Activities Are ‘Violent Tactics’

DHS is urging law enforcement to treat even #skateboarding and #livestreaming as signs of violent intent during a protest, turning everyday behavior into a pretext for police action.

By Dell Cameron, Jul 10, 202

"The #DepartmentOfHomelandSecurity is urging local police to consider a wide range of protest activity as violent tactics, including mundane acts like riding a #bike or livestreaming a police encounter, WIRED has learned.

"WIRED has made this article free for all to read because it is primarily based on reporting from Freedom of Information Act requests [#FOIA]. Please consider subscribing to support our journalism.

"Threat bulletins issued during last month’s '#NoKings' #protests warn that the US government’s aggressive immigration raids are almost certain to accelerate domestic unrest, with DHS saying there’s a 'high likeliness' more Americans will soon turn against the agency, which could trigger #confrontations near federal sites.

"Blaming intense media coverage and backlash to the US military deployment in #LosAngeles, DHS expects the #demonstrations to 'continue and grow across the nation' as #protesters focused on other issues shift to #immigration, following a broad 'embracement of #AntiICE messaging.'

"The bulletins—first obtained by the national security nonprofit #PropertyOfThePeople through public records requests—warn that officers could face assaults with fireworks and improvised weapons: #paint-filled fire extinguishers, smoke grenades, and projectiles like #bottles and #rocks.

"At the same time, the guidance urges officers to consider a range of #nonviolent behavior and common #ProtestGear—like #masks, #flashlights, and #cameras—as potential precursors to violence, telling officers to prepare 'from the point of view of an adversary.'

"Protesters on #bicycles, #skateboards, or even 'on foot' are framed as potential 'scouts' conducting reconnaissance or searching for 'items to be used as weapons.' #Livestreaming is listed alongside '#doxxing' as a 'tactic' for 'threatening' police. Online posters are cast as ideological #recruiters—or as participants in 'surveillance sharing.'

"One list of 'violent tactics' shared by the Los Angeles–based Joint Regional Intelligence Center—part of a post-9/11 fusion network—includes both protesters’ attempts to avoid identification and efforts to identify police. The memo also alleges that face recognition, normally a tool of law enforcement, was used against officers.

"Vera Eidelman, a senior staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union [#ACLU], says the government has no business treating #constitutionally protected activities—like #observing or #documenting police—as threats.

"#DHS did not respond to a request for comment."

Read more:
https://www.wired.com/story/dhs-tells-police-that-common-protest-activities-are-violent-tactics/

#ACAB #FusionCenters #Fascism #Authoritarianism #Resistance #Journalism #PoliceState #CriminalizingDissent #Protestors #Protest #USPol #CriminalizingProtest #Orwell #BigBrother #DoublePlusUngood #SurveillanceState #NaziPatrol #NineteenEightyFour

New 'Thought Policing' Bill May Let #Rubio Strip #Passports from #USCitizens Over Political Speech | Common Dreams

Stephen Prager
Sep 13, 2025

"#FreeSpeech advocates are sounding the alarm about a bill in the US House of Representatives that they fear could allow Secretary of State #MarcoRubio to strip US citizens of their passports based purely on political speech.

"The bill, introduced by Rep. #BrianMast (R-Fla.), will come up for a hearing on Wednesday. According to The Intercept:

:Mast’s new bill claims to target a narrow set of people. One section grants the secretary of state the power to revoke or refuse to issue passports for people who have been convicted—or merely charged—of material support for terrorism...

"The other section sidesteps the legal process entirely. Rather, the secretary of state would be able to deny passports to people whom they determine 'has knowingly aided, assisted, abetted, or otherwise provided material support to an organization the Secretary has designated as a foreign terrorist organization.'

"Rubio has previously boasted of stripping the visas and green cards from several immigrants based purely on their peaceful expression of #ProPalestine views, describing them as '#Hamas supporters.'

"These include Columbia protest leader #MahmoudKhalil, who was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (#ICE) after Rubio voided his green card; and #RumeysaOzturk, the Tufts student whose visa Rubio revoked after she co-wrote an op-ed calling for her school to divest from #Israel.

"Mast—a former soldier for the #IsraelDefenseForces who once stated that babies were 'not innocent Palestinian civilians' — has previously called for 'kicking terrorist sympathizers out of our country,' speaking about the Trump administration’s attempts to deport Khalil, who was never convicted or even charged with support for a terrorist group.

"Critics have argued that the bill has little reason to exist other than to allow the Secretary of State to unilaterally strip passports from people without them actually having been convicted of a crime."

Read more:
https://www.commondreams.org/news/rubio-thought-policing-bill

#ThoughtPolice #Orwellian #USPol #CharacteristicsOfFascism #FreeMahmoud #FreeRumeysa #WaterProtectors #FreePalestine #LandDefenders #SilencingDissent #Fasicsm #Authoritarianism

#Trump's attacks on media echo #authoritarians who silence dissent

By Justin Spike, Sept 18, 2025

"The tactics are similar to those used by leaders in other countries who have chipped away at speech freedoms and independent media while consolidating political power, including Hungarian Prime Minister #ViktorOrbán, a close Trump ally whose leadership style is revered by many conservatives in the U.S."

Read more:
https://apnews.com/article/trump-dictators-media-putin-russia-orban-hungary-2de4b920e9d7952eed132d38e1934ce5

#SilencingDissent #USPol #WorldPol #TrumpIsAFascist #Authoritarianism #Fascism #FascistCensorshipCzar #CharacteristicsOfFascism

#DOJ Deletes Study Showing #DomesticTerrorists Are Most Often #RightWing

Following Charlie Kirk’s assassination and the Trump administration’s promise to go after the “radical left” a study showing most domestic terrorism is far-right was disappeared.

by Emanuel Maiberg
Sep 16, 2025 at 12:25 PM

"The Department of Justice has removed a study showing that white supremacist and far-right violence “continues to outpace all other types of terrorism and domestic violent extremism” in the United States.

The study, which was conducted by the National Institute of Justice and hosted on a DOJ website was available there at least until September 12, 2025, according to an archive of the page saved by the Wayback Machine. Jason Paladino first reported that the study was removed. 404 Media noticed the removal after it was flagged by Daniel Malmer, a PhD student studying online extremism at UNC-Chapel Hill.

" 'The Department of Justice's Office of Justice Programs is currently reviewing its websites and materials in accordance with recent Executive Orders and related guidance,' reads a message on the page where the study was formerly hosted. 'During this review, some pages and publications will be unavailable. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.' "

Read more [paid members only]:
https://www.404media.co/doj-deletes-study-showing-domestic-terrorists-are-most-often-right-wing/

#USPol #Fascism #TrumpIsAFascist #FashPatel #Authoritarianism #MemoryHoled #MemoryHole #404Media #SilencingDissent #Antifa #Resistance
#CharacteristicsOfFascism

'Full force if necessary,' Trump says he's sending troops to Portland, #Oregon to protect ICE

#Trump said on social media he's sending troops to #PortlandOR to protect immigration facilities

Mayor #KeithWilson: “We did not ask for them to come. If the federal government isn’t here to lend us a hand, take a hike…it’s just a big show. The president has sent agents here to create chaos and riots in Portland. [Trump] wants to induce a violent exchange. Let’s not grant him that wish…Say no to an #authoritarian president.”

by Sarah D. Wire, September 27, 2025

" 'At the request of Secretary of Homeland Security [Secretary] #KristiNoem, I am directing Secretary of War, #PeteHegseth, to provide all necessary Troops to protect War ravaged Portland, and any of our #ICE Facilities under siege from attack by #Antifa, and other #DomesticTerrorists,' Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social Saturday. 'I am also authorizing Full Force, if necessary. Thank you for your attention to this matter!' "

Read more:
https://www.rawstory.com/portland-2674047457/

Archived version:
https://archive.ph/qfDTr

#USPol #authoritarianism #Clampdown #SilencingDissent #TrumpIsAFascist #CharacteristicsOfFascism

🚨 We all knew this would be coming... Don't like polluters? TOUGH SHIT! You're under arrest!!!

#FBI #Counterterrorism Agents Spent Weeks Seeking a #ClimateActivist — Then Showed Up at His Door

The visit suggests a possible FBI probe into #ExtinctionRebellionNYC as the Trump administration increases surveillance of #activist groups.

Jacqueline Sweet, February 12 2026

Excerpt: "Federal Bureau of Investigation agents, at least one of whom works on counterterrorism, went to the home of a former member of a #ClimateActivism group for questioning last week, potentially signaling a new escalation in the Trump administration’s promise to criminalize #nonprofits and #ActivistGroups as #DomesticTerrorists.

"Two FBI agents, one from New York’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, told a former member of Extinction Rebellion NYC they wanted to ask him about the group at his home upstate on Friday, an attorney for the group told The Intercept. The visit followed a prior attempt to reach him at his old address.

"The FBI’s apparent probe of Extinction Rebellion NYC comes as the Justice Department ramps up its surveillance of activists protesting immigration enforcement and the Trump administration creates secret lists of domestic enemies under Trump’s National Security Presidential #Memorandum7, or #NSPM7.

" 'I believe this to be a significant escalation of the criminal legal system against #XR and find it very troubling,' said Ron Kuby, the Extinction Rebellion attorney. 'This is usually the way we find out an actual investigation is underway and is often followed by other visits and other actions.'

"The former Extinction Rebellion member, who asked to remain anonymous out of fear for his safety, said that the visit came after a phone call in January from a special agent that he assumed was a scam.

" 'I was skeptical the phone call was really from the FBI, but after I declined to speak with the agent, she said that she was standing outside my door,' he said. She was actually at the activist’s former address, which he said made him additionally dubious. But last week, when the agents showed up at his current address, he said he saw the agent’s business card through his door."

Read more:
https://theintercept.com/2026/02/12/fbi-counterterror-extinction-rebellion/

Archived version:
https://archive.ph/4Nq3X

#USPol #ExtinctionRebellion #CriminalizingDissent #AntiProtestLaws #EPAFail #Polluters #Corporatocracy #CorporateColonialism #Oligarchy #EnvironmentalActivists #WaterIsLife #AirIsLife #NoMiningWithoutConsent #ResistFascism #Authoritarianism #Fascism #Orwellian #ThoughtCrime #BigBrother #NineteenEightyFour #SilencingDissent #SilencingFreeSpeech #CorporationsAreTheRealTerrorists

Ami Fields-Meyer: To Defeat #Authoritarianism, Start Here. I spent a year interviewing dissidents on five continents. Individual acts of courage matter more than you think.

#books #resistance #TheContrarian
https://www.contrariannews.org/p/to-defeat-authoritarianism-start

It saddens me that many people do not see far enough to understand well what we are losing while losing privacy rights and trivializing data protection. It is so much more than most think. This affects our intimacy, our safety, our social lives, our freedoms, and all our human rights.

It goes well beyond targeted advertising. Attacks on privacy lead to direct increases in authoritarianism and dictatorial governance.

We must care much more about it than we do now. It is critical to ourselves as individuals, but also to democracy and society as a whole.

#Privacy #Authoritarianism

RE: https://mas.to/@dfwsupportcommittee/116803423967594608

Solidarity with the #PrairielandDefendants @dfwsupportcommittee ✊️

"A group of Texas protesters convicted of terrorism charges received unusually harsh sentences of at least 50 years in prison on Tuesday in a closely watched case that was widely seen as a test case of the Trump administration’s efforts to crack down on dissent."

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jun/23/prairieland-ice-protesters-texas-sentenced

#USPol #authoritarianism

What the actual fuck???

This cannot stand

#GiftArticle

Alleged #antifa members in #Texas are sentenced for #ICE #protest


Eight people got #prison terms ranging from 30 to 100 YEARS for their roles in a PROTEST that turned violent outside an #immigration “detention center” [ #ConcentrationCamp ] last summer.

#law #US #Constitution #RightToProtest #democracy #Trump #authoritarianism #autocracy #dictatorship #fascism #tyranny #RESIST
https://wapo.st/4fX4q8x

[Thread] What's in my book piles these days? Let's take a look and find out...

#Bookstodon #AmReading #ReadWithPride #BannedBooks #ToBeBanned? #ReadWhileItsStillLegal #BigBrother #Fascism #Authoritarianism

Alt...

A pile of books on a wood coffee table. In the background is a folding table, a table with plants, and a pedestal with a statue of the Hindu god Shiva on top. Book titles: Antifa - The Anti-Fascist Handbook by Mark Bray No Spiritual Surrender - Indigenous Anarchy in Defense of the Sacred by Klee Benally Pagan Anarchism by Christopher Scott Thompson Steal This Book by Abby Hoffman Power by Richard Heinberg Earth For All - A Survival Guide For Humanity, A Report to the Club of Rome by Sandrine Dixson-Dedeleve, et al. Prairie Fire by The Weather Underground In These Times (Socialist 'zines)

Some *light* reading -- history and prophecy...

I read #FrankWaters "#TheBookOfTheHopi" many years ago, but misplaced my old copy. Refreshing myself on #HopiProphecy and what it all means for the times we are living in.

#EricCline's "#1177BC" has been a good read. I'm finding his chapter about a "perfect storm of calamities" to be relevant to the age we are living in now, especially with regard to #ClimateCrisis and #Polycrisis.

Graeber/Wengrow's "#TheDawnOfEverything" has taken me a while to get through... So much to take in. Learning about power and systems of power and their origins.

"The Occult Features of #Anarchism" by #EricaLagalisse also deals with systems of power -- and how #MutualAid is part of true autonomy (I agree).

#Bookstodon #AmReading #ReadWithPride #BannedBooks #ToBeBanned? #ReadWhileItsStillLegal #BigBrother #Fascism #Authoritarianism #DavidGraeber #DavidWengrow

Alt...

Four books on a table: The Book of the Hopi by Frank Waters. 1177 BC - The Year Civilization Collapsed by Eric Cline. The Dawn of Everything - A New History of Humanity by David Graeber and David Wengrow The Occult Features of Anarchism - With Attention to the Conspiracy of Kings and the Conspiracy of the Peoples by Eric Lagalisse.

Seriously, I cannot emphasize this enough Canadian friends:

Bill C-22 SHALL NOT PASS! ⛔️

If you are Canadian, you must contact your representative ASAP to tell them you strongly oppose Bill C-22.

We cannot have this kind of authoritarianism in Canada (or anywhere else frankly).

More information here: https://action.openmedia.org/page/188754/action/1

Contact your representative(s) directly without the form by finding their contact information here: https://www.ourcommons.ca/members/en/search

#BillC22 #Privacy #HumanRights #DigitalRights #Canada #Authoritarianism #MassSurveillance #CanPoli #CndPoli