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Category: Politics

Trolling, memes and deepfakes: How AI is thickening the fog of war

Trolling, memes and deepfakes: How AI is thickening the fog of war

Gretel Kahn reports for Reuters Institute: War has never been fought only on the ground. Clausewitz’s concept of the “fog of war” once described the uncertainty and confusion that cloud battlefield decision-making. Errol Morris’ 2003 documentary made the phrase a shorthand for the moral and informational ambiguities of modern conflict. But in the digital age, where war is also filmed, edited and promoted online, the fog is getting thicker and wars, more difficult to cover. The conflict between the United…

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John Roberts believes in an America that doesn’t exist

John Roberts believes in an America that doesn’t exist

Jamelle Bouie writes: Descriptive representation, as it is known, is not perfect; race alone does not guarantee that a lawmaker will act in the interest of his or her community. But the record suggests that in places where racial polarization is the norm, where the legacy of Jim Crow segregation shapes the political and social landscape, the opportunity provided by a majority-minority district can mean the difference between some representation and none at all. For the Roberts court, however, these…

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FBI investigating leaks to journalist who wrote explosive article on Kash Patel: Sources

FBI investigating leaks to journalist who wrote explosive article on Kash Patel: Sources

MS NOW reports: The FBI has launched a criminal leak investigation focusing on an Atlantic magazine journalist who wrote a deeply unflattering account last month of Director Kash Patel’s work habits, two people familiar with the matter told MS NOW. The sources said the so-called insider threat investigation is highly unusual because it did not stem from a disclosure of classified information and because it is focused on leaks to a reporter. The agents involved are part of an insider…

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As oil prices stay high, China extends its domination of the wind power industry

As oil prices stay high, China extends its domination of the wind power industry

The New York Times reports: As the war in Iran threatens to choke off oil and gas supplies from the Persian Gulf, China is seizing the moment to extend its dominance in wind power. Across China, hilltops are dotted with wind turbines, and long rows of them span many miles in western deserts. Ultrahigh-voltage power lines carry electricity thousands of miles to the energy-hungry factories along China’s coast. Last year, China installed three times as much wind power capacity as…

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Gasoline costs 50% more in the U.S. than it did before the Iran war

Gasoline costs 50% more in the U.S. than it did before the Iran war

The Associated Press reports: The price of a gallon of regular gasoline climbed 31 cents in the past week, spiking to an average of $4.48 per gallon Tuesday, according to AAA, hitting the wallets of drivers after rising 50% since the war with Iran began. The main reason drivers are paying more at the pump is because of the global energy crisis caused by the Iran war. The price of crude oil, which is the main ingredient in gasoline, has…

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Trump accuses Pope Leo of endangering Catholics by opposing war against Iran

Trump accuses Pope Leo of endangering Catholics by opposing war against Iran

The Wall Street Journal reports: President Trump escalated his public feud with Pope Leo XIV, accusing the pontiff of endangering Catholics by opposing U.S. military action against Iran. The president’s latest broadside against the pope could complicate Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s visit to Rome later this week, where he is due to meet with Pope Leo in a bid to reset U.S.-Vatican relations after months of growing tensions. The Chicago-born pontiff has become one of the most outspoken critics…

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VA conducted internal investigations into employees who attended vigil for Alex Pretti

VA conducted internal investigations into employees who attended vigil for Alex Pretti

CNN reports: For days after the killing of Alex Pretti by federal immigration officers in Minneapolis, fellow workers for the Department of Veterans Affairs held vigils at health centers nationwide, partly in protest and partly to pay their respects. Becky Halioua, a recreational therapist and union leader at the Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center in Augusta, Georgia, said she felt “it was important to acknowledge him, as a brother of our organization.” “It’s scary for me to think about a…

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Congress is doing little to prepare for job losses caused by AI

Congress is doing little to prepare for job losses caused by AI

The New York Times reports: Economists aren’t sure if or when artificial intelligence will cause widespread job losses. But they do agree on one thing: The federal safety net isn’t ready for such a shock. The nearly century-old unemployment system, which provides out-of-work Americans with up to 26 weeks of benefits in most states, is unlikely to cover many of the workers who are most at risk of being displaced by A.I., labor experts warn. Job-retraining programs and other forms…

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Operation Epic Fury, meet Operation Colossal Blunder

Operation Epic Fury, meet Operation Colossal Blunder

Scott Anderson writes: America’s war with Iran has entered a calmer phase: diplomatic posturing, on-and-off-again negotiations and endless wrangling of a settlement. This, of course, is far preferable to the annihilation of Iranian civilization that President Trump was threatening just a few weeks ago. But it raises the question of just what has spurred this turnabout. The answer is rather straightforward. The American and Israeli bombing of Iran failed to provoke either a popular uprising against the regime in Tehran…

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Confusion in Strait of Hormuz leaves shipping firms guessing

Confusion in Strait of Hormuz leaves shipping firms guessing

The New York Times reports: Shipping companies said on Monday that President Trump’s offer to provide them safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz fell short of the sort of arrangements that would persuade them to make the trip. Mr. Trump said on Sunday that the United States would “guide” commercial vessels through the strait, which Iran has effectively closed since the war in the Persian Gulf started two months ago. But the president provided few details on how the…

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A radical court just called Trump’s abortion bluff

A radical court just called Trump’s abortion bluff

Naomi Cahn and Sonia M. Suter write: On Friday, the archconservative U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit issued a stunning nationwide injunction that directly affects one-fourth of all abortions in the United States. The opinion rejected an Food and Drug Administration regulation allowing people to buy mifepristone, a drug used for medication abortion and miscarriage management, by mail. This ruling applies nationally, even in states that haven’t banned abortion. On Monday, the Supreme Court issued a temporary hold,…

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Judge mulls contempt over DHS’ ‘patently false’ allegation in deportation case

Judge mulls contempt over DHS’ ‘patently false’ allegation in deportation case

Politico reports: A federal judge said Monday that the Trump administration had put her security at risk by posting a “patently false” allegation that she knowingly released an ICE detainee with an international warrant for murder. Justice Department attorney Kevin Bolan profusely apologized to Rhode Island-based U.S. District Judge Melissa DuBose for the press release posted last week by the Department of Homeland Security, which Bolan acknowledged “simply was not true.” Bolan said that he didn’t tell the judge about…

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An Ohio primary with a GOP candidate who was in ICE will test Trump’s mass-deportation push

An Ohio primary with a GOP candidate who was in ICE will test Trump’s mass-deportation push

Nick Miroff writes: In mid-January, while Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers and agents were battling protesters on the icy streets of Minneapolis, ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan abruptly quit. This was a week after an ICE agent shot and killed Renee Good; another protester, Alex Pretti, was slain nine days later. Sheahan, then 28, had been on the job for less than a year, but she did not resign in protest. She left to run for Congress in Ohio. Sheahan’s…

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After months of debating rate cuts, Fed shifts toward mapping out rate hikes

After months of debating rate cuts, Fed shifts toward mapping out rate hikes

The Wall Street Journal reports: The Federal Reserve’s internal debate over interest rates has turned a corner. Officials are no longer arguing about when to resume cutting. Instead, they are starting to talk about the conditions that would warrant a hike. The shift came further into view on Friday, when three Fed bank presidents released statements explaining why they had objected on Wednesday to language characterizing the central bank’s next likely move as a cut. Depending on how the economy…

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Why is the American media largely silent about Israel’s role in Trump’s decision to go to war?

Why is the American media largely silent about Israel’s role in Trump’s decision to go to war?

Jason Stanley writes: In an extraordinary article published on 7 April, the New York Times described how Donald Trump decided to go to war with Iran. It is highly unusual for the White House Situation Room to be used for in-person meetings with foreign leaders. But this time, the Situation Room was not just used for a meeting with a foreign leader. Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin, Netanyahu took over the presentation space, backed on a screen by the leader of…

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What Tucker Carlson means when he talks about Israel

What Tucker Carlson means when he talks about Israel

Peter Beinart writes: Tucker Carlson can read the room. In November 2016, just days after President Trump’s first election victory, he launched a prime-time show on Fox News largely devoted to the proposition that liberal elites were replacing white Americans and Europeans with Black and brown immigrants. Now, as many Americans sour on Israel, he’s in the vanguard once again. Over the last year or so, he’s become a leading champion on the right for abandoning America’s long-held support for…

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