Wednesday, January 4, 2017

Tuesday, January 3, 2017

What are the 15 warning signs of impending tyranny? As tyrants take control of democracies, they typically:

1. Exaggerate their mandate to govern -- claiming, for example, that they won an election by a landslide even after losing the popular vote.

2. Repeatedly claim massive voter fraud in the absence of any evidence, in order to restrict voting in subsequent elections.

3. Publicly criticize anyone who criticizes them, labeling them “enemies.”

4. Turn the public against journalists or media outlets that criticize them, calling them “deceitful” and “scum.”

5. Hold few if any press conferences, preferring to communicate with the public directly through mass rallies and unfiltered statements.

6. Tell the public big lies, causing them to doubt the truth and believe fictions that support the tyrants' goals.

7. Blame economic stresses on immigrants or racial or religious minorities, and foment public bias and even violence against them.

8. Attribute acts of domestic violence to “enemies within,” and use such events as excuses to beef up internal security and limit civil liberties.

9. Threaten mass deportations, registries of religious minorities, and the banning of refugees.

10. Seek to eliminate or reduce the influence of competing centers of power, such as trade unions and opposition parties.

11. Appoint family members to high positions of authority.

12. Surround themselves with their own personal security force rather than a security detail accountable to the public.

13. Put generals and other military commanders into top civilian posts.

14. Make personal alliances with foreign dictators.

15. Draw no distinction between personal property and public property, profiteering from their public office.

Be warned. 20 days to go. And a Happy New Year.

TEN (10) ENVIRONMENTAL STRUGGLES YOU CAN SUPPORT IN 2017

STANDING ROCK TO THE WORLD: 10 INDIGENOUS AND ENVIRONMENTAL STRUGGLES YOU CAN SUPPORT IN 2017

January 2, 2017 8:11 am by Stiv

http://countercurrentnews.com/2017/01/standing-rock-to-the-world-10-indigenous-and-environmental-struggles-you-can-support-in-2017/

10 INDIGENOUS AND ENVIRONMENTAL STRUGGLES YOU CAN SUPPORT IN 2017

THE PLACES THAT NEED HELP MOST, AND ALL WAYS TO SUPPORT THEM.

The Black Snake is not yet dead. Far from it. The corporations behind the Dakota Access pipeline made it clear that they “fully expect to complete construction of the pipeline without any additional rerouting in and around Lake Oahe.”

The winter camps will stand their ground as long as DAPL construction equipment remains on Oceti Sakowin treaty land. We can all continue to support them by emailing or calling the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at 202-761-8700 to ask when it will open the Environmental Impact Statement process to public comment. We can also keep pressure on the banks to divest with our international campaign to #DefundDAPL.

But while international attention has been on the Standing Rock Sioux and the #NoDAPL struggle, the Obama and Trudeau administrations have approved several other pipeline projects slated to run across indigenous territories from Canada to the U.S. and Mexico. The struggle to protect sacred lands from climate change, toxic pollution, and the fossil fuel industry continues to rage around the world.

In the year ahead, it is our hope that the energy and love we have received in our struggle against the Dakota Access pipeline can also be extended to other indigenous communities in their local battles. Here are ten struggles you could consider donating to, volunteering time for, or supporting in other ways:

1. Trans-Pecos pipeline and Comanche Trail pipeline – Texas – Chihuahua, Mexico

In May 2016, the Obama administration approved two pipeline projects by Energy Transfer Partners, the same company behind DAPL. The Trans-Pecos and Comanche Trail pipelines would carry fracked gas from Texas into Mexico, where it will supply the Mexican energy grid. The Two Rivers camp is a resistance camp being erected in the face of the Trans-Pecos pipeline. Support their legal defense fund and camp fundraiser. Or support the efforts of No Trans Pecos Pipeline, the Big Bend Conservation Alliance, and the Frontera Water Protection Alliance as they organize against these pipelines.

2. Copper One Rivière Doré Mine – Quebec, Canada

The Algonquins of Barriere Lake have set-up a land protection camp at a proposed mining site in the heart of their territory, where core sample drilling for the Rivière Doré copper mine is scheduled to begin at any time. They have been camped for weeks to protect the headwaters of the Ottawa River, which could have catastrophic downstream effects if mined. The staked area is abundant with lakes, wetlands, and waterways and is also a crucial hunting and fishing area for Barriere Lake families. See their urgent call to action here and donate to the campaign or get involved here.

3. Sabal Trail pipeline – Alabama – Georgia – Florida

The Sabal Trail pipeline, a 515-mile natural gas pipeline project, is being constructed from Alabama to Georgia to Florida. It threatens one of the largest freshwater aquifers in the world. The Sacred Water Camp and Water Is Life Camp are ongoing camps in need of supplies, experienced organizers, and other people. An upcoming mass civil disobedience event is inviting all to mobilize in Florida. Get in touch here or donate to support the camps. Also support the organizing efforts of the SPIRET Foundation and Bobby C. Billie, one of the clan leaders and spiritual leader of the Council of the Original Miccosukee Simanolee Nation Aboriginal Peoples, in their efforts to hold regulatory agencies accountable for support of the pipeline. Contact organizers Shannon Larsen or email Beth Huss.

Keep up to date with events with all groups statewide at the Water Protector Alliance calendar.

4. Line 3 pipeline – Alberta, Canada to Superior, Wisconsin

Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently announced the government’s approval of the massive Line 3 pipeline project, designed to transport tar sands oil from the mines of Hardisty, Alberta, to Superior, Wisconsin, through the heart of Anishinaabe territory and some of the most beautiful lakes and wild rice beds in the world. The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs is challenging the Trudeau government’s approval of Line 3. Follow and support Honor the Earth’s work, learn about ongoing resistance to Line 3, and follow community members’ opposition to the pipeline here.

5. Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain pipeline – Alberta to British Columbia, Canada

The expansion of Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain pipeline, also approved by Canada’s federal government, would transport tar sands oil from northern Alberta to the British Columbia coast. The Sacred Trust is an initiative of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation and a mandate to stop this project. You can donate here through RAVEN (Respecting Aboriginal Values and Environmental Needs) or Join their mailing list to follow this campaign and receive updates.

6. Pilgrim pipeline – New York and New Jersey

The Ramapough Lunaape Nation, a community in the Ramapo Mountains currently face the threat of the Pilgrim pipeline, which would transport Bakken crude oil from Albany, New York, to Linden, New Jersey. Meanwhile, Spectra Energy continues to expand its pipeline network so that more fracked natural gas can be transported and ultimately exported out of the country. Read about the history of the Ramapough Lunaape here, follow the developments at Split Rock Prayer Camp, and follow ongoing efforts to resist continued Spectra expansion with the FANG Collective and Resist Spectra.

7. Petronas/Pacific Northwest Terminal – Prince Rupert, British Columbia

The Petronas/Pacific Northwest Terminal is a proposed liquefied natural gas plant on traditional Lax Kw’alaams territory Lax U’u’la (Lelu Island) at the mouth of the Skeena river near Prince Rupert, British Columbia. Plans call for a 48-inch diameter submarine pipeline to be dredged into estuary sediment to supply fracked gas from Treaty 8 territory. Ten Indigenous nations and 60,000 people in the Skeena watershed rely on fish there for food, commercial fishing, and cultural identity. The Lelu Island Camp has been set up on Lax Kw’alaams traditional territory to stop this terminal from being built without consent.

8. Diamond pipeline – Oklahoma – Arkansas – Tennessee

Arkansas Rising is a collective of guardians working through direct action to stop the Diamond pipeline, a 20-inch diameter pipeline that would run 440 miles from Cushing, Oklahoma, to Memphis, Tennessee. The pipeline would cross more than 500 waterways, including five major watersheds. Construction has already begun. Donate to their efforts here.

9. Atlantic Sunrise pipeline and Sunoco Mariner East 2 pipeline – Pennsylvania

The Atlantic Sunrise pipeline is a proposed high-pressure 42-inch diameter pipeline to carry fracked gas from Marcellus Shale to U.S. markets to the south. Members of Lancaster Against Pipelines and supporters have built a blockade, nicknamed “The Stand,” on a farm in Conestoga in Lancaster County in the path of a proposed route. They are refusing to grant right of way to the project and have said they will occupy it if construction begins. Visit the Clean Air Council for more information, find the schedule for public input here, and keep an eye out for an upcoming mobilization at Pennsylvania Against Atlantic Sunrise. The Sunoco Mariner East pipeline is a proposed natural gas liquid pipeline that would cross four states. The construction permits for the pipeline could be granted any day. Stay updated at Juniata Watershed People Before Pipelines. Energy Transfer Partners and Sunoco Logistics are parent corporations of the Dakota Access pipeline and will be merging in the first quarter of 2017.

10. Bayou Bridge pipeline – Louisiana

In 2017, Bold Louisiana is organizing to stop the proposed Bayou Bridge pipeline in Louisiana, a state that is experiencing climate devastation and coastline loss at an average rate of one football field of land every hour. This pipeline, a sister and end point to the Dakota Access pipeline, would run from Lake Charles to St. James, Louisiana. Support their efforts, follow their progress, or go to Baton Rouge to disrupt the Bayou Bridge public hearing on January 12.

#NoDAPL #TwoRiversCamp #NoTPPL #NoCTPL #BarriereLake #StopSabalTrail #StopLine3 #StopKM #StopETP #WaterIsLifeCamp #SacredWaterCamp #StopSpectra#StopPilgrimPipeline #SplitRockCamp #NoLNG #ArkansasRising #StopDiamondPipeline #NoASPL #LancasterAgainstPipelines #NoMarinerEast #NoBayouBridge

AND WE’LL SUGGEST THREE MORE: SUPPORT THE LONG-RUNNING RESISTANCE OF PROTECT MAUNA KEA ON THE BIG ISLAND OF HAWAII, THE UNIS’TOT’EN CAMP IN BRITISH COLUMBIA, AND SAVING OAK FLAT! AT THE SAN CARLOS APACHE INDIAN RESERVATION IN ARIZONA.

From: Sacred Stone Camp

Standing Rock: Honest Support Sites & Scammers

Most of you are aware that I support the Water Protectors @ Standing Rock & across our Unci Maka.

If you are wanting to support them as well, I am providing addresses of those who are actually helping the Protectors as well as an article on the scammers.

Standing Rock Medic & Healer Council
Packages for the Standing Rock Medic & Healer Council
can be sent to
220 E Rosser Ave, #1251,
Bismarck, ND 58502

http://standingrock.org/

https://www.facebook.com/kandi.mossett

https://www.facebook.com/paulette.winder

http://www.ocetisakowincamp.org/donate
http://sacredstonecamp.org/faq/

http://www.ienearth.org/stand-with-standing-rock-no-dapl/

Belcourt Hardware and Lumber (Located on Turtle Mountain Reservation – Belcourt, ND) is willing to take orders over the phone and deliver supplies to camp. They have everything from gloves, shovels, propane tanks, building supplies, wood, tents, coffee, chain saws, ETC. They can get anything you need for camp and they support Standing Rock and the Water Protectors. They would like to bring a load down on SATURDAY.

Please call Lenny or Joey at 701-477-0560 today to place your orders. Thank you Belcourt Hardware and Lumber!

Oceti Sakowin Camp, P.O. Box 298, Cannon Ball, ND 58528.

Firewood
Propane
Reliable 4wd trucks
Cargo vans
Body armor protector
Two-way radio transceiver
Instant heat therapy pack
Wool crewneck
Fire retardant blanket
Unflavored Milk of Magnesia
Wool blankets
Emergency blankets
Wool socks
Wool (no cotton) thermal underwear
Hand warmers
Safety goggles
Portable trauma kits
Straw bales
Herbal remedies
Tipis, liners, and poles
Yurts
Blankets and winter sleeping bags
Insulated boots, gloves, and other winter gear
Bulk food supplies
Heating stoves
Propane
Hay bales

https://www.buzzfeed.com/craigsilverman/facebook-scammers-profiting-from-standing-rock?utm_term=.my9P9qdGQ#.pa6bYrK38

These Big Native American Facebook Pages Are Actually Being Run By People In Kosovo & Vietnam

“They’re just capitalizing on struggle — it’s really crazy,” said one Native American artist.

Craig Silverman

BuzzFeed News Media Editor

As pipeline protesters at Standing Rock prepare to dig in for the winter, a growing network of dubious Native American Facebook pages is cashing in on the movement by selling stolen No DAPL T-shirt designs and by driving traffic to dubious clickbait websites, a BuzzFeed News investigation has found.

The owners of these pages and websites reside in faraway countries such as Vietnam and Kosovo, and they are capitalizing on online interest in Standing Rock, and Native American culture in general, to make money. BuzzFeed News identified more than 60 Facebook pages with more than 6 million fans that are generating money either by selling counterfeit Native American merchandise, or by driving traffic to ad-filled websites that in some cases have little or nothing to do with Native American issues.

Native designers say their work is being stolen and resold, and that some pages falsely claim to donate proceeds to the protesters at Standing Rock.

“They’re just capitalizing on struggle — it’s really crazy,” said Jared Yazzie, a Navajo who runs Oxdx, Native American clothing company in Arizona. He said some Facebook pages have even taken photos of his models and photoshopped different clothing on them.

“When they use my models I think that makes me the most angry,” he said.

Erica Moore with two people wearing one of her Standing Rock T-shirt designs. Erica Moore / Viainstagram.com

Erica Moore is a 23-year-old Native American who designed a series of T-shirts to help raise funds for the pipeline protesters. She said copies of her designs soon began showing up on Facebook and elsewhere.

“It’s a different story if they would ask our permission to use the design, but I’ve seen my designs being sold without my consent, and I’ve seen people trying to re-design my design in some way to make it their own,” she said. “It just isn’t right.”

BuzzFeed News tracked some of the worst offending Facebook pages to owners in Vietnam. Like If You Love Native Americans has almost 190,000 fans and is connected to a website registered to “Hoai Thu Ngo Thi” in Vietnam. It promotes its T-shirts by photoshopping them on celebrities such as The Rock, Johnny Depp, Mark Wahlberg, and others. Many of its recent posts about clothing comment on the Standing Rock protest, though there is no evidence that the people running the page donate any proceeds to the protesters.

BuzzFeed News messaged the page on Facebook and the person who replied introduced themselves as a woman in Michigan named Maria Torres who claims to be Native American on her Facebook profile. The profile appears to only have been created in March of this year and primarily shares merchandise being promoted by the Like If You Love Native Americans page. The account also reposts content and merchandise from a page called Wolves In Native American Culture which points to a domain name registered to the same person in Vietnam.

Asked how the page gets its designs, the person running the page responded, “The clothing and fashion design industry is highly competitive; it is full of individuals.”

The fake Maria Torres profile on Facebook. Facebook

After being told records show they are in fact located in Vietnam, the person admitted that’s where they are based, meaning the Maria Torres account is a fake created to promote its content and products. The person then denied stealing designs from Native artists.

“No steal their work,” they wrote in all caps. “I am an affiliate marketer search designs on that site an [sic] sell.”

The person said they simply find Native American T-shirts that have already been uploaded to SunFrog and collect them on one page, earning a commission each time they sell. SunFrog is one of several websites that enable anyone to to upload a design and then offer print-on-demand ordering for a range of clothing.

Kirk Yodzevicis, SunFrog’s general counsel, confirmed that people can create collections of existing designs uploaded to SunFrog, and said the company takes down any infringing designs and closes the related account. He pointed to a form on its website that anyone can use to make a claim.

“When we find out somebody stole a design they get their account shut down,” he said. He also said anyone who falsely claims to sell clothing in support of a cause will have their account closed and SunFrog will donate their earnings to charity.

Yodzevicis said SunFrog has seen an increase in infringing designs and false charity claims related to Standing Rock.

“Absolutely, no question about that,” he said. “Anytime there is any kind of an issue in the news that has some kind of passion about it you are gonna see people that are going to try and game the system.”

One of the bigger pages identified by BuzzFeed News is called Indigenous People of America and has over 750,000 fans. It shares a steady stream of news related to events in Standing Rock, but under many of its posts it also promotes the sale of a knockoff of a shirt created by actor Shailene Woodley to raise funds for Standing Rock. The page also regularly posts content from a website called TheIndigenousPeoples.com, which was only registered in early November and has its owner’s name hidden.

The only official seller of the Woodley shirt is Omaze, yet the design can be found for sale on many other online clothing sites as well as on Amazon. SunFrog removed a version of the shirt for sale on its site after being alerted to it by BuzzFeed News, though other copies of the design remain for sale on the site.

There is no evidence that any of these sellers donate money to Standing Rock, or that they had permission to sell Woodley’s shirt. (A rep for Woodley did not respond to a request for comment.)

Another big Facebook page hawking inauthentic Native American goods is Native American Indians, which has over 360,000 fans and promotes merchandise from a store called NativeThing.com. That website is registered to “Hoang Trung Hieu” of Vietnam. It’s the subject of a litany of online complaints from people who bought boots and other items under the impression that they were authentic Native designs and craftsmanship. Once they receive their order people realize it was made in China, gives off a noxious odor, and that the company subsequently refuses to accept returns.

“You get stuck with the smelly product you can’t wear,” wrote one woman on Facebook. “How many ways can you spell ‘screwed.’”

Many other pages pursue a similar strategy of building up an audience with Native content and then trying to sell them shirts and other items that are often rip-offs of Native designs. One newer page is called I Stand with Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and shares a steady diet of news about the protest mixed with constant pleas for people to show their support by buying shirts for the cause. The page did not respond to a question about whether it donates any money to the tribe.

Along with stealing the work of Native artists, and the likenesses of models and celebrities, some scammers even used a photo of the first Native American federal judge to create fake profiles to help spread their content.

Fake profiles featuring the photo of Judge Diane Humetewa. Facebook

Judge Diane Humetewa serves as a United States District judge of the United States District Court for the District of Arizona. Her photo has been used on at least three fake Facebook profiles, one of which lists its two only friends as two young men in Kosovo. One of the men did not reply to an interview request from BuzzFeed News, and the judge’s chambers declined to comment, citing the Code of Conduct for US Judges.

One of the largest networks of Native American Facebook pages initially identified by BuzzFeed News belonged to two young men in Kosovo. One of the men, a 25-year-old named Dardan, said in a Skype interview that he only owns “two or three” Native American Facebook pages. But when asked if it’s possible that he in fact owns 13 pages as well as a Native American group with more than 15,000 members, he smiled and said, “Maybe. It could be.”

At the time of the interview, their pages had close to 2 million fans. However, after speaking to BuzzFeed News all of their pages were taken offline.

Rather than selling Native American designs, the pages has been used to promote links to a single website, BuzzDuzz.net, where Dardan and a partner publish clickbait articles about a wide variety of topics, though rarely about Native Americans.

“Lately most of the content [on the Facebook pages] is not about Native Americans,” he said. “It’s hard to get content just about Native Americans and I don’t have time for that.”

Dardan did not respond to a subsequent Facebook message from BuzzFeed News asking why they had removed their Native American Facebook pages. BuzzDuzz is still publishing as of this writing.

Some of the Native American designers who spoke to BuzzFeed News said the non-Natives running the pages and selling stolen designs are making more money than they are.

Aaron Silva, a Native American and the co-founder of The NTVS clothing brand in Minnesota, said the dubious Native American sellers often have one or several large Facebook pages to use to promote the merchandise. Silva also said these pages spend money to create sponsored Facebook posts that promote the item for sale to large numbers of people.

“These pages are taking our work and paying for the sponsored posts on Facebook and making tons of money off of us,” Silva said. “Just from the sponsored posts we do we’ll get maybe 1,000 to 2,000 likes and maybe generate 1,000 in sales off of like a $200 ad.”

He said he’s seen sponsored posts from dubious Native American pages that receive tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands, of likes and a large number of shares as well. “It tells me tons of people are seeing [the ad], and you can see in the comments that many people are buying,” he said.

BuzzFeed News found sponsored Facebook posts from the Native American Cultures page, which appears to only have been created in September, that fit Silva’s description. One of its current sponsored posts shows photos of Bernie Sanders and celebrities with the Shailene Woodley shirt. It asks people to “Support The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe” and to buy the shirt, but the link does not send people to her official sales page. This sponsored post for a stolen design has received over 125,000 reactions, 15,000 comments, and close to 18,000 shares as of this writing.

Another sponsored post from the page shows Johnny Depp with a Native shirt design photoshopped onto him. It had over 33,000 reactions, nearly 4,000 comments, and over 8,000 shares. These sponsored posts also help grow the number of fans for that page: When BuzzFeed News first found the Native American Cultures page roughly two weeks ago, it had just over 57,000 fans. It now has over 72,000.

To put this into perspective, the engagement for that page’s sponsored posts is significantly better than a legitimate sponsored Facebook post currently running from Woodley herself. It has close to 12,000 reactions, just over 500 comments, and 2,100 shares as of this writing. (It’s possible the other sponsored posts have been running longer, or have been backed with more money, in order to accrue more engagement.)

“Facebook prohibits advertisements, which includes boosted posts, that are deceptive, false, or misleading, including deceptive claims, offers, or business practices,” a Facebook spokesperson told BuzzFeed News. “We are looking into these claims and will take appropriate action.”

Silva tried to raise awareness about the fake Native pages by listing some of the worst offenders in a post on his company’s Facebook page. The comment thread was soon filled with people sharing other examples of suspect pages, and of designers talking about how they too had their work stolen.

Silva and others have also tried to contact T-shirt sites such as SunFrog and TeeChip to get their designs removed. They said the takedown forms and procedures take up a lot of their time.

“I’ve gotten a few of them removed that way but it’s so tedious,” he said.

Yodzevicis from SunFrog said their reporting form has only a few fields to complete and submissions are checked roughly every hour. He said anyone whose work has been stolen could simply email legal@sunfrog.com if they find the form too time consuming. He also said the company is working to implement a procedure whereby any money earned from a stolen design will be sent to the original artist.

“We are currently in the process of implementing a system wherein such funds, rather than being redirected to charity, can be claimed by an actual rights holder so they are actually compensated for their work and the use of their property,” he said.

Silva said Facebook is easier to deal with, but that it only removes the offending post rather than an entire page. (The company told BuzzFeed News it will remove an entire page in some circumstances.)

Yazzie has also tried directly contacting the Facebook pages that promote his stolen designs for sale. But at most he says they will delete the post with his design and just upload it again later.

“I’ve tried to send messages to one of the pages and at first I just got this automated message back, and then they replied with a lot of smiley face emojis back, which is kind of annoying,” he said. “They eventually blocked me from commenting on their page.”

It’s not lost on Yazzie and others that Native American culture and goods are yet again being appropriated by others for profit.

“It weighs heavy,” he said. “I hope people understand there is a livelihood behind [the designs]. The meaning that goes along culturally with the work is something we study and try to put out correctly.”

For his part, Silva is amazed at how so many people in different parts of the world have discovered that dubious Native American Facebook pages, websites, and merchandise can be a moneymaker.

“I wonder how they came across that working for them,” he said. “Did they try different ethnicities and cultures and see which one really hit?”

Craig Silverman is Media Editor for BuzzFeed News and is based in Toronto.

Contact Craig Silverman at craig.silverman@buzzfeed.com.