New Social Media platform with no shadow banning

This will be a sticky post for a few days. Newer content will be below this post.

UPDATE:

A few people have asked how this forum works.

Its very much like Twitter from what I can see. 

The left arrow under a toot is for a reply. The two arrows in a square is essentially a retweet. To put that post on your own timeline to your own followers/ (Please everyone start following others!) and the three dots give you a new menu.

Once again, we are trying this idea. To start a version of Twitter or FB but that is not silicon valley, not controlled or even centrally based.

At the moment, this is ours, although the plan is to ‘federate’ this “pod” with many others, and we hope that many of our friends and colleagues will start their own pods and federate with us making this even more vibrant, robust and bulletproof.

The reason this has not taken in the past, is that people prefer playing on established social media sites, despite the fact that they are being highly abused by them in numerous ways, such as shadow banning, deleting your posts for you, suspending you for anti-narrative views etc.

But the criticality of our situation now is such, that people are willing to put a little bit of effort into making a new honest and censorship-free thing work.

So I am asking as many of my readers as are willing, to please follow this link and set up an account.

It is important to note that the reply email from the system WILL go to your junk mail so please look there for it.

I am also asking, and this is the hard part… follow some people there so its fun, and participate. I am happy to say that there is now some activity already with a few people who I asked to join and start. One of them is a Hungarian translator and tipster who sends in a lot of our news links. There are also our German translators there and a few others with good content and ideas.

You can find people just by using the search field and entering @V and enter and you will get me, or @ followed by any letter to find the people who’s names start with that letter.

Once you have followed a few, the chain reaction should start and we can have a fun, free and productive social media site where no one attenuates your likes or retweets, which Mastodon calls, “Boosts”.

It is an honest platform.

So PLEASE sign up for step one, and remember to actually USE it. My feeling is that after a few days of doing so, it will be fun and productive enough to keep you using it without my nagging.

And it is censorship free. But rational and natural rules apply, like if you are too offensive no one will follow you, and if you plan a crime, the police will investigate you. But it is censorship free.

Join us.

About Eeyore

Canadian artist and counter-jihad and freedom of speech activist as well as devout Schrödinger's catholic

66 Replies to “New Social Media platform with no shadow banning”

  1. Done. Incidentally, it didn’t go to spam. Perhaps that has something to do with the fact that I run my own email :-).

    • It did not go to my spambox either, and I do not run my own email, come to think of it, I run very few “my owns” when it comes to tech. 😉

    • well, I didn’t any email confirmation, but when I tried again to join, it said my user name and email account were already in use. And yes, I checked my junk folder

      • Try using your account. It may be up and running. If not, tell me the userna,e and Ill approve it manually.

  2. A Noah’s Arc for the not too distant future. Or at least a dinghy to Vlad Tepes, the main Arc….how I see it.

    See you there, as soon as I can work out the “technic”

  3. I grabbed the user name “Michelle” for the obvious reason as soon as I read the above. Her email address is a “unique” and describes who she is and I had to grab that one also years ago as soon as I could.

    But I do not have(nor want) access to her email account to confirm this. In addition, her address begins with a capital letter and the entry page keeps making it a lower case letter. as far as I can see she has received no new mail but in the last couple of hours.

      • I tried 24 hours ago. I never got the confirmation link in my email box (including junk mail and all other forms of whatever inbox mail). I’m thinking is it sent via iPhone or whatever? If yes, well… I don’t and refuse to have these devices.

  4. I am sorry to be the dissonant voice here, but I would like to point out that the Mastodon project is not exactly keen on protecting free speech:

    https://reclaimthenet.org/mastodon-blocks-gab/

    The problem that I see is that the makers of the mobile apps that can be used to access Mastodon-federated websites can blacklist unwanted instances. But I could be missing something here, so feel free to correct me if that is the case.

    • I don’t know enough about all this to say with authority what the deal is. But certainly the operator of each pod can set what limits they like, which has nothing to do with mastodon.

      BUT

      If Mastodon itself won’t federate with Gab it may be because Gab violated their copyright in terms of the code they used to set it up and, assuming that is the case, I don’t really know, they may have a reason to block it that has nothing to do with freedom of speech.

      Again, though, I don’t know for sure.

  5. Great for you to start anything new that is counter to the heavily censored platforms

    I like your site
    I don’t want any following
    I don’t personally care if I am the only person
    Who thinks as I do
    I like flying under the radar
    I enjoy venting about articles you publish
    I don’t want to follow anyone ever….

    I keep reading your website not because I follow you
    Or personally agree with what you say

    I like the substance…that could change

    I appreciate that you have published many of my swearing rants
    Over the years…..
    I suffer from writers Tourettes
    Happy Thanksgiving

    • I’m not a natural follower either, Morticiaa.
      Nor do I want to lead.
      Keeping score – likes, retweets/toots – would be a distraction for me.
      …..
      Anyway, the site doesn’t like me.
      It simply refuses to send me a confirmation email.
      …..
      …..
      Blogs can be a format for genuine conversation. Finding great new sources, thoughtful responses. I first signed up at places like Conservative Treehouse to post Eeyore’s interviews with Brad Johnson. Then more, when on topic. Also – and always – I share GoV material.

        • I’m hardly pressed for time. It’s just that sometimes I feel overwhelmed by all the bad news that keeps coming in and how little our side seems to be aware of it. I think the Chinese and the Iranians, the Pakistanis and the Cubans, and whomever else are beating the hell out of us in an all-out covert psychological warfare attack and I think they have us infiltrated to the point that they have now established a sort of dynasty of Manchurian Candidates in the White House, no less, along with our media and judiciary and moviemakers and politicians who all seem to be reading from the exact same script all the time, right down to the specific choice of words…

          If we let the bad guys win there will be no more freedom of speech on the internet or anywhere else and everything we Westerners have believed for centuries will be entirely lost. But if you dare to fight back you’re called an extreme right-wing white supremacist racist conspiracy theory nutbar, and everybody laughs at your tinfoil helmet…

          I think the recent Afghanistan failure along with the Southern border failure is ten times as serious as people think. Between Obama and Biden the United States has lost practically all of its hard-won international prestige and influence, and that’s a very bad development…

          I also think that the Chinese hated Donald Trump more than any other man and I think they fired him from his job and replaced him with their man. They can now hire and fire US Presidents at will.

          You see, I think they are winning hands down and I just can’t handle sitting there waiting for the roof to cave in while we talk non-stop about climate change and LGBTSZ and rape culture and systemic racism as the US President declares that the greatest danger we face is white people and their damn evil hegemonious culture…

          The left led us into World War II with their asinine refusal to see the truth about the world and they are doing it again against the newest crop of Hitlers and Mussolinis that they once again refuse to even see…

  6. https://www.foxnews.com/media/watters-world-investigates-nancy-pelosis-315-million-in-assets

    Talk about hiding in plain sight. If you believe she attained 300 million dollars because her husband is just that good at picking stocks then I’ve got a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you. It’s obvious that her political position would give her access to potential insider-trading information by the bucketful. All they’d need to do is be extremely careful not to incriminate themselves and then just quietly buy the stocks and roll in the dough.

    These swamp creatures can’t live without an ocean-front mansion with a tennis court in the Hamptons, a townhouse in Manhattan, and at least a hundred mil in the bank. And all you have to do to get all this free money is to work your way up to “elite” status and then start pulling off secret deals and pulling in money by the millions. The entire system is as corrupt as Bangladesh or Mexico any day of the week. They’re all doing it, and they don’t like the way Donald Trump keeps vowing to go after them and “Drain the Swamp”…

    • That’s what my favorite cousin says, Chris. She gets overwhelmed and depressed by the exact same things you describe. When it all comes together like a jackboot to the face, she’s got to turn off.

      It certainly is bleak out here.

      I’m fighting my own defeatism all the time. It’s not just observing enemy infiltration, even domination. It’s watching helplessly as we destroy our house with our own miserable hands.
      To coin a phrase.

      I try to put fear and anger aside, keep it in a mental box. It doesn’t always work, but I make a conscious effort to scroll past my “triggers”. No matter how tempting the clickbait, I abstain entirely from sites that make me sick. I’m also gliding past articles crafted to confirm my pessimism. The enemy strikes from both sides.

      I switch focus to something substantive, outside the range of the enemy’s cognitive weapons. Yes, they’ve won this stage of the war, but we’ve not yet begun to fight.

      The map, the facts. The correlation of forces favors the Good Guys in North America. We have the overwhelming tactical advantage when we decide to say: Stop this ride, I want to get off.

      • They polled young Americans and asked them who was the greatest historical villain and the majority of them skipped right over Hitler and Stalin and Mao and went straight to George W Bush and Dick Cheney. Apparently, the majority of young Americans think that the Republicans are literally worse than the Nazis and have done things worse than murder six million Jews and 25 million Russians along with 30 million or so other deaths and unlimited destruction of property. They are actually so ill informed that they literally think that is true.

        How can we “begin to fight” when the enemy has already convinced our youth that there is nothing to fight for and that we are evil and do not deserve to exist. Then they ask them about socialism and they immediately soften up and start saying how fair and humane it is, unlike that nasty “unfettered” capitalism that always places greed ahead of the common good…

        And you know who is fundamentally behind all this disaster? The God Damn Teachers’ unions, that’s who. They control the Democrat Party and they are unbelievably well-funded, focused, and ideologically left and they are constantly pissed off that the world does not see them a “the best and the brightest” even if they did get As in high school. And they are constantly furious over the way the world sees them as not-as-smart as lawyers, doctors, accountants, and business executives. That standing slight puts them in a constant state of pique and they always seek vengeance for it…

        • The teachers’ unions are following the Teamsters model. Gangsters, extortionists. Good fit with the Demonrats.

          Boston-area public schools are notorious. Not only loony-left, but incubators of terrorists. Major league killers.

          I don’t know anybody who sends their kids to public school. Lots & lots of private schools. A variety of religion-affiliated schools – Catholic or Jewish – but parents still have to be careful.

          The Sikhs I know send their kids to the same [nominal] Catholic school as a friend of mine from Uganda. Accepts based on top exam scores, tuition on a sliding scale.

    • AND –
      I get away from it all every Sabbath, every week. Plus holidays that are mostly 2-day affairs.

      I’m online until the very last minute before candlelighting.
      Don’t wanna shutdown!
      Then I forget all about what was so compelling, what kept me pinned to the screen.

    • Catherine Austin Fitts

      Mafia of the powerful

      Filmmaker Robert Cibis questions the former US vice-minister and investment banker Catherine Austin Fitts about the mechanisms of the interplay between politics and finances.

      She reveals how massive systemic corruption leads to the replacement of democracy with orders and control, subtly at first and obviously in the Corona crisis.

      Finally, the two discuss the simple stance that can be taken to minimise further damage.

  7. Unvaccinated US troops still number in ‘hundreds of thousands’ despite looming deadlines – reports

    Hundreds of thousands of US military service members remain unvaccinated or only partially vaccinated against Covid-19 despite looming mandate deadlines, as rates vary significantly across individual services.
    In August, members of the US military services were informed that immunization against Covid-19 would be required as part of new directives from President Joe Biden. According to data analyzed in a Washington Post report, however, inoculation rates among America’s more than two million soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines are lagging in many areas.

    Deadlines for individual services vary, but many are facing a situation where only weeks remain to get thousands of personnel to agree to being jabbed. The Marine Corps and Navy are both facing November 28 deadlines, but the former has a 72% vaccination rate, while the latter has a much higher 90% rate. The Air Force, on the other hand, has just three weeks to get approximately 60,000 personnel fully jabbed.

    The rate in the active-duty Army stands at 81%, though it’s the Army Reserve and National Guard that have truly lagged. Those branches, which number over 500,000 people, have vaccination rates of approximately 40%. Those on active-duty are facing a December 15 deadline, but Guard and Reserve members do not have to comply until June 30.

  8. THIS is the government’s priorities?’: California mandates gender-neutral aisles in toy stores

    California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed a law requiring large toy retailers to provide gender-neutral toy sections in their stores. Critics say it’s government overreach, and that Newsom has bigger issues to fix.
    The bill, signed into law by Newsom on Saturday, will require toy retailers and chains with more than 500 employees to display toys traditionally marketed at girls or boys together in a special area of floor space. This area can be “labeled at the discretion of the retailer,” according to the bill’s text.

    The bill describes the traditional labeling of toys, for example dolls for girls, trucks and guns for boys, as making “it more difficult for the consumer to compare the products and incorrectly impl[ying] that their use by one gender is inappropriate.”

  9. The Body Language Guy – Justin Trudeau Apology Analysis: Fake or Real
    Justin Trudeau apologized for going to the beach on Canada’s National Day For Truth and Reconciliation, a VERY important day for the country’s indigenous communities. Both his body language and his choice of words revealed a lot about his personality.

    Basically, JT’s “apology didn’t make the cut”

    • It’s unfortunate that the national Indigenous day for Truth and Reconciliation dropped the element of truth, and reconciliation was replaced by perpetual grievance and reparations.

  10. https://twitter.com/i/status/1447574752726499332

    Look at these absolutely disgusting Baizou idiots. The bad guys have managed to convert countless millions of formerly straight-thinking freedom-loving Westerners into so many pathetic little muppets singing silly chants and making fools out of themselves with stupid anti-Western protests. There simply weren’t this many out-and-out idiots around in the 1950s. These fools have been purposely created by people who don’t like us very much. They must laugh themselves to tears at videos like this in China. “Look at what fools the American Baizou are. They will be easy to defeat in war because they will probably shoot themselves in their confusion… White people are so, so, so darn stupid… Haha ha ha…”.

    Oh… and those people in the video are exactly what is wrong with this and many other countries. Without these Baizou fools “protesting” all the time, things would generally be operating quite smoothly. They are by far our biggest problem and threat… Notice that they don’t have Baizou in Hungary or Poland…

        • I live just outside a hamlet, kinda remote, the helicopter used to come over once a year to transport people to larger hospital. Last 3 weeks it has come over my house 12 times at least. We have lost 11 people in our little area lately. Most in 50s and 60s. Sudden deaths. I hate the sound of the helicopter now. I have been shunned by many because I have not got the vaccine and never will. My body my choice. I depend on Vlad to know what is going on in the world. I do not trust the media at all anymore.

          Some of my family are vaccinated and acting like I am the enemy. I live far from them and I worry about their mentaI health. I would love to drive to Florida and see my grandchildren but the arrogant, misfits Trudeau and Premier dunce Ford are preventing so much.

          I stacked 7 cords of wood, smashing each piece down hard, feel better and not ready to give up the fight.

          Things are bad but I am a tough old woman who had great training, slumming with politicians for many years.

  11. TFNT10: Myocarditis deception. Sept. 30, 2021. This 15 mins. video explains what the real myocarditis rates are based on the VAERS data. The rates are as high as 1 in 318 for 16-year-old boys an elevation of over 1,000 times weekly baseline. Nobody is measuring the troponin levels after vaccination; these can stay elevated for weeks and can be an indicator of sub-clinical myocarditis. The bottom line is that the CDC should have caught this earlier, and it’s much worse than they have led people to believe. There is still a lot we don’t know about the troponin levels and how long they stay elevated. The vaccines should be halted for kids on this data, but they just look the other way.
    Myocarditis damage is permanent, heart damage is irreparable.
    Dr. Charles Hoffe, in an interview with journalist Laura Lynn Tyler Thompson, explained the damage the cytotoxic spike protein causes in the body, including the heart, which was illustrated in this video. https://www.bitchute.com/video/uD98ksu0PzQg/
    Hoffe explains the vaccine damage in a panel discussion with other doctors. https://www.bitchute.com/video/9044YEdCFOfm/
    Pathologist Dr. Ryan Cole explains the damage the vaccines cause to the heart at time mark 8:22. He said once a heart cell is damaged, it cannot be repaired. https://rumble.com/vkopys-a-pathologist-summary-of-what-these-jabs-do-to-the-brain-and-other-organs.html

  12. Australia: Lockdowns and Location Apps | John Anderson | The JBP Podcast – S4: E:50

    This episode was recorded on September 9th.

    Dr. Jordan Peterson and John Anderson exchange ideas about the freedom of conscience, policies, and mandatory vaccines. Dr. Jordan shares his experience with policies while Anderson shares tips on conducting proper debates while commenting on the governmental debates. See how Australia connects to their discussion and how social media came into play.

    John Anderson is a sixth-generation farmer and grazier from New South Wales, who spent 19 years in the Australian Parliament. After serving in politics, Anderson launched a web-based interview program, Conversations with John Anderson, featuring interviews with public intellectuals. He continues to serve the interests of Australia’s rural and regional communities.

    Find more John Anderson on his website https://johnanderson.net.au/
    Check out his YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/JohnAnderso
    Check out his Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/johnandersonao
    Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/JohnAndersonAO/

    ————————————
    Shownotes
    ————————————

    ? [00:00] Dr. Peterson introduces this week’s guest, John Anderson.
    ? [03:32] “The problem with fighting fire with fire is that you end up burning.” Dr. Peterson
    ? [03:54] What’s happening in Australia and the west?
    ? [04:26] John’s tips for proper debates.
    ? [06:17] How Anderson views Australia’s regime.
    ? [06:40] China’s imposed threat on Australia.
    ? [09:09] John quoting Henry Kissinger on freedom.
    ? [09:47] The legality of mandatory vaccines in western culture and the blitz story during WWII in Britain.
    ? [11:48] Anderson’s analogy of democracy.
    ? [14:31] Dr. Peterson’s advice on policies.
    ? [16:05] The lockdowns in Australia.
    ? [22:07] Dr. Peterson’s perspective towards proper political force on vaccinations.
    ? [21:26] The cost of safety.
    ? [25:29] John’s opinion on debates.
    ? [26:56] Breaking down trust in the government.
    ? [31:53] How governmental debates should be conducted.
    ? [37:21] Freedom of Conscious.
    ? [43:10] The best rationale for mandatory vaccines.
    ? [53:01] Lockdowns and the dangers of mandating medical procedures.
    ? [59:46] The power of social media and John’s thoughts on moving forward.
    ? [01:02:19] Social media and John’s podcast.
    ? [01:06:47] Anderson’s thoughts on freedom and governments.
    ? [01:10:15] Australian politicians’ understanding of social media.

  13. Spencer Fernando
    For Canada’s “Leaders”, Its about Compliance, Not Health
    The undeniable reality.
    Have you noticed how events in Canada have really moved in only one direction?

    Compliance at all costs.

    The trend has been clear:

    More and more control, more and more threats of punishment, and more and more demands for compliance.

    Draconian national vaccine mandate
    At one point, the idea of a vaccine mandate was seen as a ‘conspiracy theory.’

    Funny how nearly every ‘conspiracy theory’ has turned out to be a prediction.

    And so it is with the national vaccine mandate, the new draconian measure being implemented by the Liberals.

    Starting November 30th, all travellers on planes on Via Rail trains will have to show proof of vaccination.

    In disturbing language, Chrystia Freeland described the measures this way:

    She said the national vaccine mandate is “to ensure a minority of people cannot sabotage Canada’s economic recovery and cannot allow the fourth wave or other variants to cause real problems for us all.”

    Note what is left out of the vaccine mandate?

    Proof of immunity/proof of being virus-free.

    If the goal was to truly ensure that the virus wasn’t spreading on planes or trains, it would be sufficient to simply have people present a negative test.

    That’s it.

    Individuals who had previously had Covid can also demonstrate proof of immunity.

  14. Majority Of Canadians Want Trudeau Gone, Replaced With New Leader

    “A majority (55%) of Canadians believe Justin Trudeau should resign as the leader of the Liberal Party, and begin a process where a new leader can be chosen and who would replace the Prime Minister until the next election was called.”

  15. Why California’s Move To Ban Gas-Powered Generators (And Lawn Equipment) Could Leave Californians In The Dark

    California legislators have not only cut ties with reality—failing to see that they’re heading for ever more blackouts—they also want to cut their citizens’ last lifeline to reliable power when blackouts inevitably occur.

    “Excuse me,” says your landscaper. “The mower’s out of juice. Mind if I plug in?” You look from the immobile machine to your half-cut lawn. “Outlet’s over there,” you tell him. “But let’s knock $20 off your fee? What are we up to now, 25 cents a kilowatt-hour?”

    Welcome to the future. Welcome to California.

    The state, committed to net-zero emissions by 2045, is moving to ban sales of gas-powered landscaping equipment as early as 2024. This is not the first attempt. Politicians tried and failed to do the same in 2003. Since then, though, more than half of homeowners in the state have swapped out their consumer-grade equipment for “zero emission equipment” (ZEE), meaning, battery-powered weed whackers, leaf blowers, hedge clippers, chainsaws, and even lawn mowers.

    Electric, Because It’s . . . Quiet?
    Many make the switch because, although lower-powered and less reliable (do batteries ever die at the right time?), battery-powered equipment is less noisy. That’s what prompted Mayor Stewart Welch of Mountain Brook, Alabama to begin switching his town’s tools over to electric. The bellow of leaf blowers disturbed his tennis game with a friend who, as chance would have it, had previously complained about the town’s noisy equipment. The city has spent $18,000 over the last year outfitting its public works crew with electric trimmers, blowers, and more.

    According to Stanley Black & Decker, sales of the company’s electric yard equipment jumped 75 percent between 2015 and 2020. But, although lots of people are making the switch of their own accord, they’re not doing it fast enough, according to California’s legislative assembly.

    Stop and Recharge
    The biggest holdouts are those who do landscaping for a living, and for good reason. I searched Husqavarna’s site high and low for battery run time info for its 550iBTX, which one landscaper reviewed as “The best electric blower on the market.” For $469? Not bad, I thought. After lots of web searching about the battery, I gave up and contacted support. Turns out, it does not come with one. The lowest-priced option will cost landscapers an extra $300 and lasts between thirty and sixty minutes. The one the associate recommended, though, costs $969 (yes, more than double the cost of the blower) and “lasts up to 3.5 hours,” he told me. That’s if you run it in “normal” mode, which is half the power of Husqavarna’s $459 gas blower; boost mode saps the power faster and is about 33 percent less powerful than the gas blower.

    Some landscapers make electric work, and not just those whose equipment is paid for by taxpayers, as in Mountain Brook. Chris Regis, owner of Florida-based lawn care company Suntek, is able to charge customers between 10 and 20 percent more for all-electric lawn care. He says, “There are people who don’t care and say, ‘I just don’t want the noise.’” All power to them. That’s exactly how free markets work.

    Given the numbers above, though, it would take a lot of lawns to make up one’s initial investment with only a 10 or 20 percent upcharge. But Regis’s investment is far greater. He has outfitted the company’s vans with solar panels for recharging batteries on the go—each van costing about $100,000. Reflecting on how much longer the same work now takes him, Jimi Layne of Mountain Brook’s crew asked, “Are we looking at dollars and cents?”

    ‘Expensive and Unreliable, Please’
    That’s an even more pertinent question in California, where energy prices are the highest in the continental US. (23.11 cents per kilowatt-hour, as of June 2021). Gas is more expensive there, too, in large part because of penalizing policies, but researchers predict electricity prices can only rise in the golden state, thanks to a host of factors. Prices are high, in part, because the size of the state increases transmission costs, as do wildfires on mismanaged public lands that have knocked out critical infrastructure, requiring replacement.

    But the biggest contributor to high prices is the state’s push to adopt wind and solar, which require big upfront investments but nonetheless necessitate a reliable backup for when the sun’s not shining and the wind’s not blowing.

    This problem came to the fore in 2020 when, for two days, California’s three big energy companies instituted rolling blackouts across the state because the grid could not meet demand. It was a self-inflicted wound. Given the state’s environmental restrictions, many coal-fired power plants are being decommissioned, and thanks to irrational fears, they’re not being replaced with clean, reliable nuclear energy, either.

    Instead, taxpayers are being forced to subsidize massive investments in “renewables,” and power companies make up much of the state’s inevitable shortfalls by buying energy from more reliable, fossil-fuel plants in neighboring states. Unfortunately for Californians, on August 14, 2020, when the sun set and solar farms went offline, these companies realized they had miscalculated how big that shortfall would be. Western states were in the grip of a heat wave, and as Californians reached for the AC dials, they lost power altogether.

    A Deadly Mistake
    Losing power is no minor inconvenience, particularly when you live in what is naturally a desert, and especially when it’s more than 100 degrees outside. It’s not just that people can’t charge their Teslas or their ZEE mowers. One 2020 study concluded that more than 5,500 Americans lose their lives due to extreme heat annually. Climate-related deaths are a key indicator of low climate resilience, the ability of a locale to deal with extreme temperatures and weather. And, of course, climate resilience is directly dependent on plentiful, affordable, reliable energy.

    But, increasingly, that is what California is doing away with in favor of expensive, unreliable energy. Unsurprisingly, the poor suffer the most. Research done in 2020 shows that many in Los Angeles can’t afford air conditioners, and many who have them can’t afford to run them because electricity prices are so high. In fact, accounting for cost of living, California has the highest poverty rate in the country, in large part because energy prices are so high. This, not in spite of the state’s adoption of “cheap” and “reliable” renewables, but because of it—because solar and wind are not cheap nor reliable and require a backup that is.

    Cutting the Lifeline
    Yet, with startling shortsightedness, the state assembly has sent Governor Gavin Newsom a bill that will effectively eliminate a go-to backup: gas-powered generators. The bill (AB-1346) lumps gas-powered generators in with the offending landscaping equipment and all other “small off-road engines,” referring to them as SOREs. It “encourages” the California Air Resources Board (the state’s own sort of EPA) to “adopt cost-effective and technologically feasible regulations to prohibit engine exhaust and evaporative emissions from new small off-road engines” and to consider “expected availability of zero-emission generators.”

    Such generators do exist, but they are far more expensive, generate far less power, and most need to be recharged after just a few hours. Consider the GOAL ZERO YETI 3000X. It costs $3,400, and an additional $250 kit enables you to use it as a battery backup for your home. After all that, you can power a single refrigerator for less than 2.5 days, and that of course drops if you want to power, say, a few lightbulbs. By contrast, a Duromax XP10000HX can power your whole home—lights, appliances, and A/C system—continuously, running on either gasoline or propane, and it costs $1,400.

    When the power went out last August, says Collin Blackwell of Eldorado Hills, California, “We went out and bought an $800 generator, so that way we could have the fridge powered up in the garage at least and be able to have food and everything in the house.” Mark Galloway of Cameron Park said he lives in a mountain community where losing power is fairly common. “You should have something, so having the backup generator and things like that—I think it’s on you to really take care of that,” he said. “It’s not like it’s something that you can’t plan for.”

    But, if AB-1346 is signed into law, going out and buying an $800 generator will no longer be an option.

    California legislators have not only cut ties with reality—failing to see that they’re heading for ever more blackouts—they also want to cut their citizens’ last lifeline to reliable power when these blackouts inevitably occur. California is committing energy suicide, and given that people rely on energy for just about everything, we shouldn’t be surprised by the toll this will take on human life.

  16. It’s still sending me in circles. Every day, over and over.
    No confirmation email to junk or inbox.
    It won’t let me signin as registered.
    ….Brick wall….
    It’s like convincing robots that you’ve had covid, don’t need a vaxx.

  17. (Ottawa, October 7, 2021) The Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC) and the Digital Identity Authentication Council of Canada (DIACC) have penned a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on the advancement of identity management, security, and data privacy innovation.
    Specific goals of the collaboration include:

    – Accelerate the adoption of interoperable Digital Identity solutions and services that unlock economic opportunities for Canadian consumers and businesses
    – Support the adoption of the Pan-Canadian Trust Framework
    – Educate business legal and technical decision-makers, and participate in other educational opportunities
    – Seek opportunities of mutual interest for research and undertake other projects that are identified and agreed upon

    About DIACC
    The Digital ID and Authentication Council of Canada (DIACC) is a not-for-profit corporation of Canada that benefits from membership of public and private sector leaders committed to developing a Canadian digital identification and authentication framework to enable Canada’s full and secure participation the global digital economy. DIACC’s objective is to unlock economic opportunities for Canadian consumers, and businesses by providing the framework to develop a robust, secure, scalable and privacy-enhancing digital identification and authentication ecosystem that will decrease costs for governments, consumers, and business while improving service delivery and driving GDP growth. The organization leverages the agreed upon DIACC 10 principles for a Canadian and universal identity ecosystem to guide the DIACC initiatives.

    About ICTC

    The Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC) is a not-for-profit, national centre of expertise for strengthening Canada’s digital advantage in a global economy. Through trusted research, practical policy advice, and creative capacity-building programs, ICTC fosters globally competitive Canadian industries enabled by innovative and diverse digital talent. In partnership with an expansive network of industry leaders, academic partners, and policy makers from across Canada, ICTC has empowered a robust and inclusive digital economy for over 25 years.

  18. Digital Identify Authentication Counsel of Canada

    “DIACC is a growing council of members from Canada’s most forward thinking public and private sector organizations who are invested in securing a fully digital Canada.
    Member organizations range from small 1-5 person shops to large multinational corporations with over 15,000 employees. Represented are: provincial and federal governments, financial institutions, networks for payments and for identity verification, technology service providers, strategy and integration experts.

    DIACC welcomes membership from organizations that are interested in the success of verifiable digital identity to secure Canada’s role in the global economy. Complete our contact form to learn which type of membership fits your organization.”

    The DIACC is targeting all businesses (very small (1-5 people) and very large (15,000 people) to implement digital authentication systems. This would in essence force any person dealing with these companies to have a digital id.

    Board of Directors includes individuals working for:
    Accenture
    BMO
    Canada Post
    CIBC
    Desjardin
    Interac
    Province of Ontario
    Province of British Columbia
    Province of New Brunswick
    Manulife
    Secureky
    TD
    Telus
    Treasury Board

    There are over a hundred “sustaining members” detailed in the link

  19. Catholic Troops Can Refuse COVID Vaccine, Archbishop Declares

    Catholic U.S. troops should be allowed to refuse the COVID-19 vaccine based solely on conscientious objection and regardless of whether abortion-related tissue was used in its creation or testing, the archbishop for the military declared in a new statement supporting service members who are seeking religious exemptions.

    “No one should be forced to receive a COVID-19 vaccine if it would violate the sanctity of his or her conscience,” said Archbishop for the Military Services Timothy P. Broglio, in a statement released Tuesday.

  20. Report: ChiCom Infiltrators Of Conservative Party Association Spread Slave State’s Propaganda

    ‘Dangerous’: Chinese Conservatives Dismayed at Association’s Event Calling for O’Toole’s Resignation Over China Policy

    Some members of the Conservative Party in the Chinese community are expressing concern about a public event held by the Chinese Canadian Conservative Association that described leader Erin O’Toole’s policy on confronting the Chinese regime as a “hatred message on China,” with critics saying it’s the same line pushed by Beijing’s propaganda.

    On Oct. 7 Toronto, the Chinese Canadian Conservative Association (CCCA) held a public event demanding O’Toole’s resignation.

    “Mr. O’Toole, your hatred message on China is dangerous as that would easily to be (sic) translated into ‘anti-Chinese’ message,” reads a news release in English handed out at the event, which was mainly attended by Chinese community press.

  21. Mom Reports School To Police For Promoting Gay Porn Book To Children

    A concerned mom says she’s filed a police report against North Kingstown High School in North Kingstown, Rhode Island for promoting a book with gay pornography to minors in the school library.

    The pornographic book was published by Lion Forge Comics and is titled “Gender Queer: A Memoir.” It was authored and illustrated by Maia Kobabe, who uses the made-up pronouns of e/em/eir and whose work focuses on “anti-fascism,” according to a description on Amazon.

  22. Tom Mulcair: Freeland positioning herself to take over as Liberal leader

    SAINT-SAUVEUR, QUEBEC — A breathless account of Chrystia Freeland’s heroics in Ukraine published over the weekend must’ve put a smile on the face of our Deputy Prime Minister.

    According to the American university professor who wrote the glowing article, she was so darn good at what she did that she had the grudging admiration of the KGB, that couldn’t keep up with her! The stuff of real-life Marvel heroes…

    Let’s face it, Chrystia Freeland is positioning herself to take over as Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and this type of publicity is tailor-made to help her achieve that ambition.

    Much like Michael Ignatieff, Chrystia Freeland became almost famous south of the border with her writings and media savvy.

    Unlike Ignatieff, she’s actually got some experience in government having ably run key ministries and, most admirably, outfoxed Donald Trump during the renegotiation of NAFTA.

    If she succeeds, she’ll be taking over from one of the world’s major media figures, Justin Trudeau. A little bit of profile doesn’t hurt.

    Trudeau’s inexplicable decision to disappear for a vacation on the very day he’d set aside to commemorate truth and reconciliation was more than just a heartless move. It was so hurtful to his brand that many are wondering if it isn’t also a sign that he’s had the biscuit.

    We’ll no doubt have an avalanche of “progressive” promises as Trudeau swears in his new Cabinet and hands out mandate letters to the chosen few. It won’t really matter. Canadians have seen and heard enough.

    From purchasing a pipeline, to continuing to subsidize oil and gas companies, to skipping out of town on a new national holiday, to complacency with sexual misconduct in the military, the lecturing and moralizing tone of Trudeau simply doesn’t carry much weight anymore. Key progressive issues such as climate change, reconciliation and women’s rights will need a new champion, one without the credibility issues that Trudeau now drags with him.

    In fact, it’s Freeland’s presence during the worst of Trudeau, like the sacking of Jody Wilson-Raybould, that risks holding her back. She wasn’t content to just back Trudeau. When Wilson-Raybould resisted PMO interference in the prosecution of SNC Lavalin, Freeland attacked her for not being a team player!

    Freeland won’t get the top job without an examination of her role as Trudeau’s proxy and without a fight. There will be other contenders.

    The most obvious one is the genial and exceptionally accomplished Mark Carney. Earlier this year at an event at l’Université de Montréal, where I teach, he was brilliant, generous with his time, and able to do the entire gig in French. I was impressed that he’d somehow managed to keep up his knowledge of the language of Molière during his lengthy stint in London as Governor of the Bank of England. This guy’s got game.

    Carney recently published a work on values (very progressive) and is a world leader on the issue of climate change and economic transition. He is currently working at the highest level of the United Nations, deepening his contacts and developing experience and expertise in areas outside of central banking.

    This promises to be one heck of a battle.

    Freeland’s Russophobe bent may get her some good academic coverage but on the world stage it’s a problem. Minority rights, language rights and the fallout from secession are very real issues in the smouldering conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Canada could be playing a positive role with its own, admittedly much easier, experience with some of these issues. We are indeed due for an adult conversation about the reality in Crimea, which is not about to change. Freeland would have a great deal of difficulty ever playing that type of positive role, so convinced is she that Russia is the bad actor in every scene of this play.

    Canada has always prided itself on being able to punch above our weight. A middle power with good P.R. and lots of friends. We have tragically squandered our previously good relationship with China during the Meng/Trump debacle. Do we want to have another enduring enmity with a world power based on grievances of the past or are we capable of being part of the solution?

    Freeland is a cold warrior without the Cold War. Highly capable, she still carries with her the baggage of six years of Trudeau’s broken promises and lack of accomplishment. Carney is a respected player on the world economic stage with a sterling track record. He resisted the strong call to be part of Team Trudeau in last month’s election and would come at this with a skill set absolutely needed as we exit the pandemic.

    Not hobbled by any attachment to Trudeau’s paucity of concrete results, Carney could have the inside track. At the same time, his lack of experience in elected politics could prove decisive. Freeland is a battler who enjoys the cut and thrust of electoral politics. Carney is used to getting named to the top job. In politics, you have to fight hard to become a party leader. That difference will play out in their campaigns.

    Of the five political parties with MPs in the House, only the Liberals have never had a woman as leader. Trudeau will be doing everything he can to help Freeland get his job if and when he decides to pack it in. Last week she attended a press conference with Trudeau on vaccinations for civil servants even though it has nothing to do with her job as finance minister. He may have failed on key feminist promises but he’s going to try to leave Freeland’s leadership as part of his succession.

    Tom Mulcair was the former leader of the federal New Democratic Party of Canada between 2012 and 2017.