WHO Issues ‘Important Advice’ To All UK Households As Mpox Spreads
The World Health Organization (WHO) has urged Britons to improve their hygiene practices as monkeypox spreads around the globe. The public health warning comes after WHO declared the infectious disease a global health emergency on […]
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“No Guarantee of Free Speech”: Musk Highlights Walz’s Anti-Free-Speech Beliefs
Twitter owner Elon Musk used his social-media platform to highlight the anti-free-speech beliefs of Kamala Harris’s running-mate Tim Walz.
Musk reposted a video Sunday morning in which Tim Walz told MSNBC’s Joy Reid that there must be limits to freedom of speech.
“I think we need to push back on this,” said Walz.
“There’s no guarantee to free speech on misinformation or on hate speech, and especially around our democracy.”
Musk offered no comment himself, but simply repeated Walz’s own words for emphasis. Musk also made the tweet his daily “pinned tweet” to ensure all of his 195.5 million followers see the tweet.
“No guarantee of free speech” – Walzpic.twitter.com/6JIHD5RWgW
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 25, 2024
The tweet was part of a streak of posts by Musk highlighting the fight for freedom of speech in the US and around the world.
A few hours earlier, Musk tweeted that “The 2nd amendment is the only reason long-term that the 1st amendment will be upheld.” He made a number of posts in response to the arrest of Telegram founder Pavel Durov in France, including one that read, “POV: It’s 2030 in Europe and you’re being executed for liking a meme.”
Musk also retweeted a video in which he explained to Bill Maher the importance of the First Amendment.
“I think we should be extremely concerned about anything that undermines the First Amendment,” Musk says in the video.
“There is a reason for the 1st Amendment. People came from countries where they could not speak freely—where saying certain things would get you thrown in prison.”
Walz Caught in Yet Another Lie
Kamala Harris’s running-mate, Tim Walz, has been called out for another blatant lie, after a claim that he was given an award by the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce was shown to be false.
When Walz first ran for Congress in 2006, his campaign website stated that he had been given an award for his contributions to the Nebraska business community. The website stated, “In 1993, Walz was named the Outstanding Young Nebraskan by the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce for his service in the education, military, and small business communities.”
The claim quickly drew a rebuke from the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce, which wrote Walz a letter stating bluntly that it had never given him any award.
A copy of the letter was obtained by Alpha News and published on Friday.
“We researched this matter and can confirm that you have not been the recipient of any award from the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce,” the letter from Barry Kennedy, president of the Chamber, states.
“I am not going to draw a conclusion about your intentions by including this line in your biography,” the letter continues.
“However, we respectfully request that you remove any reference to our organization as it could be considered an endorsement of your candidacy. It should be pointed out, however, that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has endorsed your opponent, Congressman Gil Gutknecht, for his support of small business issues.”
The claim was subsequently removed from Walz’s campaign website.
The Washington Free Beacon reports that this is not the only misrepresentation about his personal achievements made by Walz during the 2006 campaign. The Beacon notes that Walz claimed to have “earned the title of Nebraska Citizen-Soldier of the Year” in 1989, making it appear as if he was the sole recipient of the award, when in fact 52 National Guard reservists had that title bestowed on them that year.
Walz’s misrepresentations and outright lies have been a source of acute embarrassment for him since he was chosen as Kamala Harris’s running-mate this month. There has been a particular focus on claims of “stolen valor” over devastating lies about his military career, including his military rank at retirement and his service overseas. He has also lied about the conception of his children, claiming they were conceived using IVF, when the actual method was intrauterine insemination, and lied about a DUI arrest in 1995.
“Happy One Year Anniversary”: Trump Retweets Mugshot, One Year Later
Donald Trump took to Twitter yesterday to celebrate the one-year anniversary of his historic mugshot, taken in Fulton County Jail, Georgia.
“HAPPY ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY”, the former president tweeted.
HAPPY ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY! #MAGA https://t.co/3fuDs7F1dT
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 24, 2024
The mugshot was taken on 24 August 2023, in Fulton County Jail, Georgia, after Trump was indicted on racketeering and other charges by a grand jury.
The mugshot has been called “an American moment,” by the Associated Press, and an “enduring image that will appear in history books long after Donald Trump is gone.”
According to Guardian writer Chris McGreal, “Trump’s hostility shines through as he turns his eyes up toward the camera above him and in his taut, downturned mouth… Dressed in a blue suit, white shirt and red tie, he makes no attempt to put on a smile like some of his co-defendants in their mugshots. The picture does not flatter but it does convey the message many of Trump’s supporters want to hear—belligerence.”
Trump has used the image for fundraising, and it was the first thing he Tweeted after being reinstated on Twitter by the platform’s new owner, Elon Musk.
The mugshot remained Trump’s sole post-reinstatement Tweet until this month, when the former president returned to full posting duties with a campaign video and a special message to the American people. He also appeared in a live Twitter interview with Elon Musk that reached hundreds of millions of people worldwide.
Israel Launches Strikes Against Lebanon
Israel has launched a series of heavy air attacks across neighbouring Lebanon in what it claims is a pre-emptive strike against Hezbollah, which launched rockets and drones at Israel.
The Israeli military claimed the airstrikes were necessary because Hezbollah was planning to launch rockets and missiles at Israel. Hezbollah then announced it had launched a series of retaliatory attacks on Israeli military positions, in response to the killing of one of the group’s founders, Fouad Shukur, in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut last month.
The exchanges threaten the possibility of an all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon that could draw in other regional players like Iran and also the United States. Intensified hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah could also scupper ongoing efforts to secure a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Hezbollah has said it will halt attacks on Israel if there is a ceasefire.
By mid-morning local time, Sunday, the Israeli and Hezbollah attacks appeared to have come to an end. The full extent of the damage is unknown, but it’s reported that both sides restricted their attacks to military targets.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the military had eliminated “thousands of rockets that were aimed at northern Israel” and urged citizens to adhere to directives from the Home Front Command.
“We are determined to do everything to defend our country, to return the residents of the north securely to their homes and to continue upholding a simple rule: Whoever harms us — we will harm them.”
Hezbollah said its attack involved more than 300 Katysuah rockets and a “large number” of drones. It said the operation was targeting “a qualitative Israeli military target that will be announced later” and “enemy sites and barracks and Iron Dome platforms.”
Hezbollah initially claimed the attacks were merely the first stage of a broader attack that would strike deeper into Israel, but then released a statement which said that “military operations for today have been completed.
In the US, a spokesman for the National Security Council said President Joe Biden was “closely monitoring events in Israel and Lebanon.”
The Pentagon said Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant, and “reaffirmed the United States’ ironclad commitment to Israel’s defense against any attacks by Iran and its regional partners and proxies.”
Iranian Hackers Targeted WhatsApp Accounts of Biden and Trump Staffers
The Iranian hacking group believed to have targeted the Democrat and Republican election campaigns also tried to hack the WhatsApp accounts of Biden and Trump staffers, according to Meta, the company that owns the messaging service.
Meta claim to have discovered a network of Iranian hackers who posed as tech-support agents for a number of different companies including AOL, Microsoft, Yahoo and Google. These fake tech-support agents sent suspicious WhatsApp messages to potential targets, who reported them.
In a statement released on Friday, Meta said the messages were targeted at individuals in the Middle East, the US and the UK, including political and diplomatic figures.
“We have not seen evidence of the targeted WhatsApp accounts being compromised, but out of an abundance of caution, we’re sharing our findings publicly, in addition to sharing information with law enforcement and our industry peers,” Meta said.
Earlier this month, Google also reported that the same Iranian group has attempted to gain access to the email accounts of around a dozen people linked to Biden and Trump. Microsoft has also released a warned about Iranian cyberattacks during the election.
The FBI stated this week that Iran is stepping up its efforts to interfere in the US presidential election. Intelligence officials have warned that Iran wants to trick voters, undermine US support for Israel and prevent the election of political candidates who are anti-Iran.
The Iranian regime has been linked to anti-Israel protests on American campuses. In July, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said there was evidence the Iranians were providing covert support to pro-Gaza groups, including financial support.
Iran has sworn personal revenge against Donald Trump after he sanctioned Iran and killed Iranian general Qassem Soleimani.