If journalism and the press are "the first draft of history," as many reporters and media like to say, then many more of them and their organizations need to have the temerity, intellectual honesty, and integrity to call out what happened in Washington, DC and simultaneously...

...in other places across the country on January 6, 2021, exactly what it was, coordinated domestic terrorist attack, insurrection, and rebellion. There is a constitutional break down in progress, and in some ways it seems that journalism is part of the constitutional crisis.

With all of the reportation around the Black Lives Matters marches and the violence and vandalism that was attempted to be seeded, the news media had absolutely no hesitation in reporting out the incidences while leaving plenty of space for doubt...

...even when it was crystal clear that peaceful marchers had nothing to do with the negative incidents. Sabotage was the specific goal, and the saboteurs were Proudboys and other racist, anti-government, anti-democratic elements aligned with Trump. But equivocating analysis.

...and false equivalency in reporting persists. Thus, unhelpful even harmful dialogue, discussion and propaganda has been permitted to persist to color the goals and objectives of the marchers, unfairly sway public opinion, and stunt some of the progress of that movement.

It's been a long time since I said it, and who knows if there'll be a chance to do so in the future. So here goes:
I've learned more by being on Twitter than I could have imagined, and it was possible only because so many excellent people say so many amazing things. So thank you

New in the Industrial Law Journal "Belief vs. Action in Ladele, Ngole and Forstater" by Professor Robert Wintemute, Kings College London

https://t.co/jNYucKvKKa

Wintemute asks "Did the Employment Tribunal correctly distinguish the claimant’s belief from hypothetical (speculative, future) harmful action that might involve
discrimination against, or harassment of, a transgender co-worker or customer? "

He considers the case of Ladele - a registrar whose religious belief meant she would not conduct same sex weddings - her belief could not be accommodated, because she had chosen to act on it in a way that caused harm to others.

And Ngole, a student social worker who won his case " I never advocated any hate...towards people who are in same sex relationships. ... I never stated that people in same sex relationships should be treated differently.."

Wintemute notes "Ms Forstater was not dismissed because of her treatment of any transgender person, such as a co-worker or a customer of her employer..but because of her co-workers’ intolerance of her unfashionable (to them) belief that, in some situations, sex matters"

10 Most Impactful Books Of My Life

1. Love Yourself Like Your Life Depends On It by @kamalravikant

Kamal is honest, open, and authentic. But what I love most about this book is that it actually works.

2. Conscious Living by @GayHendricks

My life changed dramatically from August 2019 to August 2020. This book helps explain why: I started to follow the principles in this book without even realizing it.

3. A New Earth: Awakening To Your Life’s Purpose by @EckhartTolle

Recommended to me by an Uber driver in October 2019. Couldn’t put it down. The first “spiritual” book that clicked for me.

4. Resilience by @EricGreitens

Incredible writing, timeless lessons, historical examples. I can’t remember the last time I annotated this much in a book. Wisdom from so many different sources. Highly, highly recommended.

Linux code injection paint-by-numbers.

Can we launch a process that looks one way to (superficial) auditors but is, in fact, entirely different? (Think process hollowing and the like on Windows).

Firstly, how are processes created and what does related auditing look like?

The most common pattern is fork() → execve(). Where the fork() syscall create a duplicate of the running process context and execve() overlays a copy of the target program onto that context.

After calling fork(), we’ll have two processes, the original one and a new - duplicated - one (with a new pid).

Control will return from fork() to both process instances. In the child process, the return value will simply by 0, in the parent it will hold the pid of the child.

Thus we can determine whether we are running in the child context and call execv() accordingly, while allowing the parent to continue.

Now, let’s take a look at where the auditing hooks lie. From calling execve(), we’ll eventually land up in exec_binrpm().

On this day in history three years ago, ICE detained immigrant rights leader #RaviRagbir, and police arrested community members protesting this injustice. A reminder that when people stand up for immigrant rights, they are not treated with kid gloves. 1/

Ravi Ragbir, Jean Montrevil, and @NewSanctuaryNYC stood up against cruel and inhumane deportation policies. For that, they were surveilled, arrested, detained, and transferred to an immigration prison in FL in January 2018. 2/

Jean, co-founder of @NewSanctuaryNYC and congregant of @judsonchurchnyc was deported to Haiti on Jan.16, 2018, after coming to the U.S. as lawful permanent resident more than 30 years ago. ICE's actions separated him from his four U.S. citizen children. 3/

ICE continues to pursue Ravi's deportation (as recently as this Friday the government filed papers to try to get rid of the federal lawsuit staying Ravi's deportation). Ravi continues to fight for his freedom and stand up for immigrant rights. 4/

Ravi and Jean were not the only ones targeted for speaking out. 18 community members, including NYC elected leaders @JumaaneWilliams and @ydanis, were arrested during the protest against ICE's actions that occurred 3 years ago today. 5/

Let's talk about this North Dakota attempt to legislate around Section 230 and create a civil right of action for users censored by social media sites. CC @mmasnick

Forget, for a moment, that this law, if it passed would immediately be deemed void as preempted by Section 230 (Federal law is supreme over state law where they conflict, and this would create an express conflict). This bill is a really good example of why this stuff is hard

Here's the key provision of the bill. The various highlighting on these versions shows areas we'll touch on

First of all, let's look at the last of those images. There's no question that this would target conduct immune under federal law - and, in fact, if 230 were repealed nobody could ever be liable under this law (since it only reaches immune conduct). So it's incredibly stupid.

But again, put that aside. Let's look at the substance.

First of all, who gets to decide whether content fits into these highlighted categories? Do they actually think that the government will get to decide what counts as "otherwise objectionable"?

The Authority Figure Defense

My latest for the Washington Post with @reichellaw

https://t.co/QwdXVmXXuk

The Public Authority Defense will make it harder for the Trumps, Giuliani, and pals to squirm out of facing consequences.

1/

Here’s how the defense works. If the chief of police tells you that you could ignore “no parking” sign, you could evoke the Public Authority Defense.

You could point your finger at the authority figure who invited you to commit the illegal act.

The spotlight then turns to the authority figure: Did the chief of police have the authority to waive the parking restriction?

If not, was it reasonable for you to believe that he did?

See where this is

Each day, more evidence emerges that Trump and other elected officials instigated this riot.

Every day, more evidence emerges that the lies told by people like @tedcruz, @HawleyMO, and @KellyannePolls led to the

The public authority defense doesn’t mean the rioters are off the hook: They can still be arrested, charged and brought to trial.

But depending on the circumstances, a defense like this one can mitigate or even eliminate their culpability or lessen their punishment.

5/

Thread-
What do the Dems need to do on a policy front?
cc @speakerpelosi, @joebiden, @senschumer

1. Do or Do not. There is no try. - Yoda

For starters they need to get shit done. No more talking. Make people's lives better immediately.

Some claim there's no difference
1/

between R's and D's. And for some people, it's kinda true. Dems TRY and make the average person's life better and R's stop them, but the net effect is - no difference.

So, for starters Dems must actually do some good things: $2,000 stimulus checks, vaccine deployment,

2/

student loan forgiveness, health care expansion, more $ for education, LGBT protections, environmental reforms etc...

But HOW you might ask?

2. Think like the Turtle.

Dems get all caught up in process and policy and procedure. They think every legislative change needs 3
3/

months of hearing and testimony. Don't get me wrong. That is a good way of coming up with fair and effective public policy. But, it's time to get shit done fast.

McConnell has lobbyists write bills at 3 am and moves them through committee by noon. He can push dozens of

4/

judicial nominees through in an afternoon. Why? Cause he knows it's about just delivering for his constituents. Dems worry about losing marginal seats in the next election...

5/

Right, I did some reading and here’s what likely happened with Parler. Lots of crossed wires here.

First up: someone noticed that Parler uses sequential integers in the API endpoint to get content.

An API endpoint is just a URL with a value added onto the end that tells the system what you want to get back.

Using sequential integers means that a hacker can set up an automated script to start at 1 and count up, trying API calls over and over again, to get back content from Parler.

Parler apparently had no restrictions on this API endpoint, which frankly blows my mind as a web dev.

If you had a working URL, it just spat out whatever it had whether you were logged in or not.

It seems that EVERYTHING that had been uploaded - video, photos, text posts - was accessible whether it had been deleted or restricted in the app itself. Even uploaded photos of licenses etc etc.

I cannot describe how amateur hour this is, if true.

#AWeekToRemember Thread:

I stumbled across this when I was re-reading old Drops, like we were advised to by 17, and I'll explain why I think this week starting today, is the WEEK TO REMEMBER.

We're all chomping at our bit for arrests.
Most of us have been waiting for awhile now, and ever since President Trump's personal acct was permanently suspended from Twitter, we can almost taste the arrests coming.

Ok, "A Week To Remember" - keep in mind, this would be President Trump's last week in office in his 1st term, thus also why #AWeekToRemember.

• Drop 1357:
- WHAT must happen pre 11.11?
- 11.11 provided as strategic marker.
- Strength = Military
- Justice = Tribunals

I'll explain.

Q: How do you write January Eleventh out as a date in America?

A: 01/11/21

Q: How do we usually shorten it when conversing & given the year is understood?

A: 01/11

Q: Can you see what I see?

A: Now, turn forward slash (/) upright.

Q: Now do you see?

A: 1111 = 11.11

MORNING BANTER

Most people could not handle being around me & my wife due to our ruthless banter. In my wife, I found my match. At 1st glance, my wife seems like a sweet choir girl who reads the bible all day, but she can play the dozens w/the best of them & takes no prisoners.

Ive said many times b4, like comedian Flip Wilson said, "When I met my wife she had a Sunday School face & I had Saturday Night thoughts." I was a frat boy running around campus half naked & she was an honor roll student athlete seduced by a bad boy who partied more than studied.

Many mouths drop at the shit I say in stand up, in speeches, articles & on social media, but if y'all could hear da shit my wife says to me, U would be on the floor howling. Supersensitive mafuckas cant crack our door seal. My wife don't give a fuck about my feelings & I LOVE IT.

So here's an excerpt from our recent morning banter. Now to set the stage, I need to give you a picture of my morning routine. I love nature, so in the morning before I have my 1st cup of coffee, I get up & refill all the bird feeders around our property & water the plants.

Oh & by the way yall dont wanna see me in that garden I'm a beast. Ive been trying 2 do a little winter greenhouse activity 2 see if I can grow certain flowers in the winter & I also have a couple of orchids that belonged 2 my cousin that were dying & I'm trying 2 nurse them back

Trump acting Secretary of Defense Chris Miller, allowed the National Guard deployment to be delayed by more than 4 hours, despite desperate please from the head of the Capitol Police and the Gov of Maryland

By the time the NG arrived, four people lay dead. Why did Miller and Lt. Gen. Walter E. Piatt, director of the Army Staff, block the deployment?

Piatt said “I don’t like the visual of the National Guard standing a police line with the Capitol in the background." But officials were pleading. The Capitol mob was inside, attacking...

We don't know what conversations they might have had with Trump et al. But let's look at SecDef Miller's background for a bit

Miller, who took office just a few weeks ago, after the Nov. election, served as a Green Beret in Iraq and Afghanistan. There's no indication that he served with anything other than distinction. But since helming the Pentagon, he gives signs of bring a devoted Trumpist

#TheGreatIndianWomen
#RealIcons
#RajmataJijabai mother of Shivaji, the bravest Maratha ever. She devoted her entire life for the country and religion. She had wished if a leader could be born who could unite Hindus and longed that her son would do it!

Jijabai wished so because she saw people falling into poverty in the once rich land and the culture being disintegrated. She felt angry seeing men around her, who couldn't protect the women and the children. They couldn't protect the country and their religion.

When she was pregnant, she used to say this prayer - "O Mother of the Universe, give me some of your strength. Put an end to the pride of the Marathas in the shameful service to the Muslims. Grant our lands independence. Grant that my wish be fulfilled, O Mother."

Every comfort was conferred upon her when she was pregnant but she wished for none of it. Her mind was full of thoughts and things she wanted to do, like wielding a sword, slaying the enemies, climbing to the tops of forts on hills, putting on armour and riding on horse..

So how easy was it for British & Canadian soldiers to keep clean and healthy in Normandy?

Couldn't be too hard, right? /1
#WW2 #SWW #History

You're an front line infantryman in a two man covered slit trench. Maybe 100m from the enemy

From dawn to dusk you're hunched underground, making the best of things in a covered trench 6' long, 3' deep and 2 1/2' wide or so.

With your mate crammed in there with you. /2

You know you're under constant observation by enemy observers and marksmen, who scan the ground looking to punish any foolish or unlucky opportunity target.

They may not get you, but their rounds may well kill or maim your friends. /3

Night offers a modicum of respite.

In darkness fresh, hot grub is bought up in large thermos flasks from the cooks in B Echelon. It's good hearty stuff.

The problem is the closer you are to the enemy, the more likely it'll be delayed or obliterated by an errant 155mm shell. /4

You can always tuck into food from your compo crates, which is fine, or 24 hour ration pack... or the famed emergency ration in a sticky spot.

The latter is really nice.

Chocolate laced with amphetamine or high dose of caffeine.

Yum. /5

01/11/2021 10:57 AM EST
Michael R. Pompeo, Secretary of State
Today, the United States is imposing sanctions on seven individuals and four entities that are part of a Russia-linked foreign influence network associated with Andrii Derkach, who was designated on September 10, 2020