x01 Archives

New Zealand becomes latest country to propose social media ban for children www.independent.co.uk
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New Zealand was set to introduce legislation proposing a ban on social media for children under the age of 16, prime minister Christopher Luxon announced on Monday.

Under the plan, tech firms face penalties of up to 10 per cent of their global revenues if they fail to comply.

The proposed law would mandate that platforms implement reasonable age-verification measures, utilising digital identity documents, facial technology, and existing account data.

SpaceXAI Unveils Grok Bot To Work Like A Team Of AI Agents www.ndtv.com
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SpaceXAI is rolling out new artificial intelligence software that’s designed to act like a team of AI agents fielding assignments throughout the day, marking the latest bid by Elon Musk’s company to keep pace with Anthropic PBC and OpenAI.

The new product, called Grok Bot, is designed to seamlessly handle a wide range of professional work. The tool can sign into various apps and websites, retain information from prior tasks and enable bots to share details and context with each other, the company said Tuesday.

The product is part of Musk’s broader push to catch up in the AI race after slipping behind in the fast-growing market for AI agents. SpaceXAI, as Musk’s AI outfit is now known, released its first coding agent in May to compete with Anthropic’s offerings, followed by the new Grok 4.5 built with Cursor.

SpaceX reached a $60 billion agreement in June to acquire Cursor, an AI coding startup. Cursor emerged as a key player in tech’s so-called vibe coding era, as demand surged for tools that can write and debug software programming.

Push to oust US ambassador from Canada expands – and ‘51st state’ could take up the issue in fall www.independent.co.uk
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Russia, Ukraine working toward new large POW exchange — ombudswoman – Russian Politics & Diplomacy tass.com
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MOSCOW, August 26. /TASS/. Russia and Ukraine are currently working to agree on lists for another “quite large” prisoner of war exchange, Russian human rights commissioner Yana Lantratova told TASS.

“We are preparing another quite large [POW] swap, with lists being agreed,” Lantratova said.

A previous major POW exchange took place on August 19 when Russia returned 103 servicemen from the Kiev-controlled territory and handed over 103 prisoners of war to Ukraine. The Pervy Informatsionny television channel of Belarus reported on August 24 that Russia and Ukraine carried out a ten-for-ten prisoner exchange in Belarus’s southeasternmost Gomel Region.

 

Scores of people kidnapped from a mosque as armed groups attacked multiple villages in Nigeria abcnews.com
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A number of people were kidnapped from a mosque in a spree of abductions at several villages in Nigeria ‘s north-central Niger state, police said Saturday.

The assailants attacked a mosque in Kpenya village after attacks in a string of villages in the remote Borgu Local Government Area of Niger state Friday, police spokesperson Wasiu Abiodun said.

Such attacks are common in Nigeria, where multiple armed groups operate, killing and kidnapping people for ransom. The groups sometimes clash in competition with each other. No group has claimed responsibility for the Friday attacks.

Abiodun did not provide figures but said no lives were lost in the Friday attacks, and said the military was deployed to the area. Residents said scores of people were abducted, with some estimating between 60 and 80 people were kidnapped. A search for survivors was underway Saturday.

Borgu area council chairman Abdullahi Mohammed Nasir said at least 60 people were kidnapped and an unspecified number of people sustained gunshot injuries while trying to escape the gunmen.

“People were abducted while praying at a Juma’at mosque on Friday,” Nasir said. “That was when the bad people came and surrounded the mosque and took them away.”

Zubairu Umar Talba, a youth leader in the Dekara area in Borgu, told The Associated Press that his 85-year-old father was among those who were taken. “Nobody can tell you the exact number of people abducted because, so far, about 80 of our people have been abducted and many have fled the area,” he said.

Trump Says Navy Has Cleared Iranian Mines From Strait of Hormuz › American Greatness amgreatness.com
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President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that the U.S. Navy has cleared all remaining mines from international waters in the Strait of Hormuz, while warning Iran that any attempt to deploy new mines will draw an immediate military response.

Iran placed mines in the strategically critical waterway during its ongoing conflict with the United States and Israel, disrupting maritime traffic through one of the world’s most important energy corridors.

“I have just been informed by the United States Navy that all mines have been removed and/or detonated from within the International Waters of the Strait of Hormuz,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Trump warned Tehran that the United States would enforce a “Zero Tolerance” policy against renewed mining operations.

“Iran has been notified that any ship or boat placing new mines will be immediately and systematically destroyed,” Trump said.

Sudanese medical group accuses rebel group of killing 27 people abcnews.com
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Ethnic clashes in southern Sudan have killed 27 people, including four children, a local medical group said

CAIRO — Four children were among at least 27 people killed in the latest ethnic clashes in southern Sudan, a local medical group said on Tuesday.

The killings were carried out by the rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM-N) in Qardud and Abu Hamama, areas inhabited by the Otoro tribe in South Kordofan, according to the Sudan Doctors Network, which monitors casualty numbers in the war-torn East African country.

Earlier this year, intense fighting erupted between forces linked to SPLM-N and the Otoro tribe, which is a minority group in the Nuba Mountains of South Kordofan.

The ethnic standoff, first instigated by land disputes, adds another layer to the country’s ongoing civil war which broke out in April 2023 between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The attacks have forced many people to flee toward Abu Hitan, a nearby village and Kadugli, the largest town in South Kordofan, said the doctors.

The Sudan Doctors Network said in a statement on Facebook that it stressed “that targeting unarmed civilians, including women and children, on ethnic grounds constitutes an explicit violation of international humanitarian law.”

Zambia suspends vote count nationwide amid reports of violence, ballot theft www.france24.com
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Zambia suspended vote counting nationwide on Friday following reports of violence in some districts, the electoral commission said.

The copper-rich southern African nation went to the polls on Thursday in an election focused on economic hardship.

President Hakainde Hichilema, who has been in power since 2021, faced off against his main challenger among the 14 contenders – Brian Mundubile, a 55-year-old former minister in the previous Patriotic Front (PF) government.

Zambia voters weigh Hichilema’s economic record

‘Not an isolated incident’: Russian drones stalk Ukraine’s civilians in ‘human safaris’ www.france24.com
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First, he freezes, caught off guard. Then the young Ukrainian cyclist begins to backpedal awkwardly, his eyes never leaving the Russian drone that hovers ahead of him. It moves closer, and he swings his leg over the bike and tries to run. He doesn’t make it.

Even though the footage, posted Friday on the official Telegram account of the 3rd Army Corps of the Russian armed forces, cuts off before the moment of impact, the video’s description leaves no doubt of the outcome. The Russian soldiers congratulate themselves on having taken out an “enemy combatant” in the Ukrainian district of Kramatorsk, not far from the front line in the northern Donetsk region.

Two years of ‘human safaris’

But the cyclist was visibly unarmed, wearing civilian clothes and looked like any other young man riding his bike down a country road. Independent Russian media outlet Astra quickly accused the Russian military of trying to pass off an unarmed cyclist as a Ukrainian combatant.

The video spread swiftly across social media as influential accounts, including prominent Kremlin critic and former world chess champion Garry Kasparov, reposted the footage to denounce the Russian military’s apparent cruelty.

Teen allegedly used ChatGPT for ‘ideas’ about ‘killing his family.’ Now he’s charged with murdering mother, brother. www.theblaze.com
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A Massachusetts teenager used ChatGPT for “ideas” and “fantasies” about “killing his family” — and now the 17-year-old is charged with murdering his mother and brother, the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office said.

Arjun Aravind of Acton has been charged with two counts of murder, two counts of assault and battery on a household or family member, two counts of assault and battery, use of a vehicle without authority, and theft of a motor vehicle in connection with the deaths of his 14-year-old brother, Siddharth Aravind, and his 45-year-old mother, Sudha Venkatesan, according to Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan and Acton Police Chief Douglas Sturniolo.

‘At this time, based on the evidence that was found at the scene, it was apparent that blunt force trauma was used in some fashion on both individuals.’

Acton Police received a call shortly after 6:30 p.m. Tuesday from the suspect’s father, who had been unable to reach his family members and said a tutor who was expected at the family home on Martha Lane was unable to make contact with the residents upon arrival, officials said.

CHAOS IN LOS ANGELES: Antifa-Linked Mob Storms Catholic Church, Chases Conservative Activist Into Starbucks, and Douses Him in Blue Paint While Screaming “Nazi!” (VIDEO) www.thegatewaypundit.com
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Screenshot: Eoin Richard/X

Left-wing extremists and Antifa militants stormed the Precious Blood Catholic Church in Los Angeles on Saturday, August 23, where right-wing activist and free speech advocate Eoin Richard was hosting a peaceful free speech, anti-Islam rally.

The confrontation unfolded after Connolly, known publicly as Eoin Richard, organized a “Take Back LA” free-speech rally criticizing Islam.

Connolly originally advertised the August 23 demonstration outside the Islamic Center of Southern California on Vermont Avenue.

A pre-event advisory circulated by opponents described the gathering as a “far-right” rally and accused its organizers of targeting the Muslim community.

As counter-protesters gathered outside the Islamic center, Connolly reportedly redirected supporters to the nearby Precious Blood Catholic Church in Koreatown.

Lame-Duck House Democrat Files Articles of Impeachment Against Trump www.westernjournal.com
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Texas Democratic Rep. Al Green may be losing his seat in the House of Representatives, but he’s going out in exactly the same way he was when he was a congressman from a safe blue seat: as an embarrassment who would have been improved upon, governance-wise, by the singer Al Green.

In a move that has shocked no one that hasn’t been in a medically induced coma since Jan. 20, 2017, Green filed — again — articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump that were both quixotic and groundless.

This time, as if Green ever needs a reason, it’s because Trump has been, to use the exact language from Green’s articles of impeachment:

… abusing the powers of the presidency by operating United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) as his vicious, quota-driven, unaccountable paramilitary police forces, transgressing with anonymity and secrecy, assaulting people, committing and covering up unjustified killings of civilians (including Renée Good, Alex Pretti, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, and Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero) with impunity (acting as judge, jury, prosecutor, and executioner), terrorizing communities, and brazenly and wantonly devolving the United States democratic republic into an authoritarian regime, where unjustified killings and coverups by ICE and CBP are normalized.

The Senate Race In Alaska Is What A Rigged Election Looks Like thefederalist.com
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If you want to know what a “rigged” election looks like, look no further than the U.S. Senate primary race still underway in Alaska. As of this writing, the Republican incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan trails Mary Peltola, a Democrat and former member of the House, by about 5 points.

Some 30,000 votes are still uncounted, but it won’t change the fundamentals going into the November general election thanks to Alaska’s insane and fraudulent ranked-choice voting regime. In Alaska, the primary purpose of ranked-choice voting (or RCV) is to prevent conservative Republicans from winning statewide office and to keep Sen. Lisa Murkowski in Washington.

Full disclosure: I grew up in Alaska and live there now, and while I’m immensely proud to be from this great state and great land in the majestic northern marches of America, our voting system here is an embarrassment.

Ranked-choice voting, or RCV, replaced our party primary system with an open or “jungle primary” in which any resident of the state can sign up as a candidate and appear on the ballot. But we have RCV, which means after the primary the top four candidates advance to the general election, in which voters are supposed to rank their preferred candidates instead of simply choosing one.

That means you could potentially have two Republicans and one Democrat on the general election ballot, which all but guarantees the Democrat will win. And of course that’s exactly how Mary Peltola was elected in 2022. She ran in a special election to replace the late Rep. Don Young, a Republican who had held Alaska’s sole U.S. House seat for 49 years. The Republican vote split between Sarah Palin and Nick Begich (now a member of the House), and Peltola eked out a victory in the “second round” of vote-counting.

India police clash with protestors over jobs and exam transparency www.channelnewsasia.com
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PATNA, India: Indian students and unemployed youth clashed with police on Tuesday (Aug 25) as they marched towards the residence of the chief minister of the eastern state of Bihar, demanding access jobs and transparency in recruitment exams.

Police in Bihar, home to about 130 million people, used water cannons as a few thousand protestors broke through security barricades in the regional capital Patna, an AFP reporter saw.

The protests came a month after massive youth-led demonstrations in New Delhi forced the ouster of India’s education minister over alleged irregularities in conducting key competitive examinations.

Footage from local media showed demonstrators in Patna demanding access to government jobs, the cancellation of a key recruitment exam and changes to the examination format announcement by the government.

Local police accused some protestors of attacking security personnel.

“Police will identify those involved in stone pelting at police and will take action against them,” Patna police superintendent Kartikeya K Sharma told reporters on Tuesday.

The protests began last week with unemployed youth demanding jobs, but they later expanded to include calls for education reform.

 

Hasan Piker Sang About Charlie Kirk. The Crowd Cheered. That Says Plenty. – PJ Media pjmedia.com
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Most Americans are pretty good at leaving each other alone. Vote differently, worship differently, live differently, and go home to your family. But there are lines decent people recognize without needing a political consultant to explain them. Hurt children, brutalize women, or torment a grieving family.





Something basic in us recoils.

Hasan Piker found one of those lines Friday night in San Francisco and danced on it.

During a live performance of his Fears& podcast, Piker led a packed theater in a mocking rendition of “We Are Charlie Kirk,” a tribute song that appeared after Charlie Kirk was assassinated at Utah Valley University last Sept. 10.

His co-hosts laughed, the audience cheered and sang along, and Piker later posted a photo from the show with the caption, “Carried the flame tn.”

Jonathan Turley says what many of us are thinking:

What is exasperating is how hatemongers on the left want to enjoy hate speech while accusing others of hate and intolerance. They do so by excusing their actions or views by demonizing those who disagree. Democratic leaders continue the false claim that democracy is dying in America and that this may be our last free election. While made over multiple elections, the claim of the imminent death of democracy (unless they are elected) does not appear to register with their supporters.

Recently the rhetoric has reached hysterical levels. Florida Democratic Senate candidate Angie Nixon has compared Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to “modern-day slave catchers” and the government is “literally trying to kill us.”

It is a narrative that allows you to speak like a Nazi while claiming to be fighting Nazis.

Piker thrilled the crowd by mocking a murdered man over his faith and his death. It is more than being simply classless. It is commodifying rage. Piker is reportedly raking in a fortune as are other hatemongers like Jennifer Welch. They traffic in rage to a nation of rage addicts.

It is a scene that only reaffirms the work of Kirk who sought to expose the hate and intolerance of the left, particularly on our campuses. Kirk infuriated many by challenging them to debate. There is no room for reason in an age of rage. Those who try to introduce opposing views on campuses are cancelled or attacked.





The timing makes the performance even uglier. Turning Point USA is preparing to return to Utah Valley University on Sept. 10 for a memorial marking one year since Kirk was murdered there. 

From Newsmax:

The conservative youth organization said the “Freedom Built to Last” gathering will remember Kirk as a Christian husband and father, a free-speech advocate, and a leader who helped build a movement among young Americans.

“The gathering will honor Charlie as a faith-filled husband, father, and defender of free speech,” Turning Point said in Friday’s release, calling the event “a deliberate act of remembrance, and a call for students and supporters to continue his life’s work.”

The memorial will be held at UVU’s UCCU Center, about a five-minute walk from the amphitheater where Kirk was fatally shot while speaking to thousands of students during the opening stop of his “All-American Comeback Tour.”

Speakers will include conservative talk-show host and Blaze Media founder Glenn Beck; Christian author Frank Turek, a friend and mentor to Kirk; and Turning Point Chief Field Officer Andrew Sypher.

Erika Kirk, Charlie’s widow and now CEO and board chair of Turning Point USA, will help lead an organization and a family into an anniversary nobody should ever have to mark.

Piker knew what he was mocking, and so did the crowd.





From Legal Insurrection:

The backlash from conservatives intensified as video of Piker’s disturbing display ricocheted across the internet Saturday.

Appalled by Piker’s deliberate mockery of the man who had once been his close friend and mentor, Turning Point spokesman Andrew Kolvet wrote, “Hasan Piker is engaging in pure, unadulterated evil. ‘Whoever gloats over disaster will not go unpunished.’ Proverbs 17:5”

Conservative firebrand Jack Posobiec noted in the X post below, “Here is Hasan Piker now mocking the murder of Charlie Kirk as we approach the 1 year anniversary of his assassination. The Bolsheviks will kill us all and they will laugh about it.”

Responding to Posobiec, Rep. Brandon Gill (R-TX) wrote, “These aren’t just people who disagree with us politically. They are enemies of everything that is good and holy about our civilization. And they will stop at nothing to destroy it.

His political record deserves attention because he’s no longer merely an internet provocateur shouting into a camera. Piker has said Hamas is “1,000 times better” than Israel, said he had no issues with Hezbollah, compared liberal Zionists to “liberal Nazis,” and previously apologized for calling ultra-Orthodox Jews “inbred.

Piker rejected accusations that he’s antisemitic and says he opposes anti-Jewish violence. His own words still leave a remarkable record for others to judge.





Michigan Democratic Sen. nominee Abdulrahman Mohamed El-Sayed chose to campaign with Piker at Michigan State University and the University of Michigan in April. El-Sayed defended the appearance as a way to reach young people who feel shut out of politics. 

He later won Michigan’s Democrat Senate primary, becoming one of the most prominent progressive nominees of 2026.

Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) hasn’t swallowed the Democrat Party.

Yet.

Very few Democrat candidates are members. Its growing influence, however, is becoming hard to dismiss. The organization says it has more than 100,000 members and has endorsed 150 candidates this year. Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland said Sunday that the DSA deserves a place in the debate over his party’s return.

The country remains far less enthusiastic. A July poll found only 27% of Americans believe democratic socialists have at least some good ideas, while 51% say they have few or none.

So Democrats eventually have to answer a difficult question. After a decade in which opposition to President Donald Trump became one of the party’s defining forces, what else has been allowed through the door?

Political movements reveal themselves partly through what they celebrate, tolerate, and refuse to condemn. The first anniversary of his murder is approaching. His widow, family, friends, and organization are preparing to remember him.





Hasan Piker gave his crowd a song while they gave him cheers.

Character sometimes announces itself very clearly.


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Girl Scouts Offers Muslim Faith Awards To Be Earned by Learning Pillars of Islam, Visiting Mosques gellerreport.com
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Nothing is sacred anymore.

Don’t buy their cookies.

Girl Scouts of America provides religious recognition awards for participants of various faiths, including Muslim-specific ones run by the National Islamic Committee on Girl Scouting. These involve practices like prayer, charity, and mosque visits, similar to programs for other religions. Critics called for boycotts, viewing it as a shift from the group’s American roots.

https://twitter.com/nataliegwinters/status/2091908255521845724?s=20

Girl Scouts of America offers Muslim badges to be earned by learning pillars of Islam, visiting mosques

The Girl Scouts’ faith materials identify the Islamic Committee on Girl Scouting and say it offers “Girl Scouts of the Islamic Faith” religious recognition awards, including medals.

Girl Scouts of America offers Muslim badges to be earned by learning pillars of Islam, visiting mosques