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cyberbenb · 10 months

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How Russian propaganda “destroys” Western weapons in Ukraine

Today, Ukrainian achievements on the battlefield often depend on the supply of high-quality and important weapons from Western partners, which allow for the implementation of a successful counteroffensive. Throughout the duration of the full-scale war, Ukrainians have launched several effective campaigns calling on Western partners to provide weapons such as the Leopard tanks or F-16 aircraft. Of course, all this has not left Russian propaganda indifferent and has invigorated the generation of new fakes and disinformation. Ahead of every deployment of a Western system capable of potentially changing the dynamics on the battlefield or influencing the outcome of the war, Russian officials have consistently initiated a propaganda campaign. These efforts typically involve declarations of the invincibility of the Russian army, emphasizing its ability to effortlessly neutralize and dismantle Western weapon systems.

Defense Minister of Ukraine Oleksii Reznikov recently made an announcement regarding the signing of a Memorandum on F-16 training of the Ukrainian Air Force by 11 partner countries. This development strongly suggests that Ukraine will receive the much-needed F-16 planes in the foreseeable future, similar to the successful acquisition of Western tanks, long-range missiles, HIMARS systems, and various other contemporary weapons systems, which were eventually granted to Ukraine despite initial doubts and refusals from the Allies. As the arrival of F-16 planes draws closer, it is crucial for Ukraine and its Allies, who will be providing the aircraft, to be prepared for potential Russian disinformation campaigns and fabricated visual materials depicting the supposed “successful shooting down” of F-16s by the Russian army.

In December 2023, prior to the provision of Patriot systems to Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin made a statement insinuating the perceived limitations of the Patriot system. He remarked: “Patriot is a rather old system… Do they want to provide the Patriots? We will crack the Patriots like nuts.” Yet the only Russian force capable of effectively “cracking” those “nuts” is Russian propaganda. In May 2023, Russian media, along with the speaker of the Russian army, propagated misleading information by claiming that “a high-precision strike from the Kinzhal hypersonic missile system had successfully destroyed a U.S.-made Patriot anti-aircraft missile system within the city of Kyiv.” Later, three U.S. officials told CNN that the damage to a Patriot air defense system following a Russian missile attack near Kyiv was, in fact, minimal.

Occasionally, Russian propaganda manages to destroy weapons that were never actually delivered or deployed in Ukraine. In January 2023, a video started circulating on social media, featuring Russian Defense Ministry spokesperson Igor Konashenkov asserting that Ukraine had lost 17 infantry fighting vehicles, including four U.S.-made Bradleys, during battle. In reality, the United States had only offered those vehicles to Kyiv a week prior to Konashenkov’s false statement, and they had not yet been delivered.

At times, Russian lies extend to such an extreme level that Russia manages to not only undermine and destroy all Western systems that Ukraine has received but also inflict “damage” beyond what was originally supplied. As an example, on Jan. 3, 2023, the Russian Defense Ministry claimed a successful destruction of 2 HIMARS launchers in Kramatorsk, Donetsk region, thereby bringing the total number of HIMARS destroyed by the Russian army to 27. In reality, Ukraine had officially received only 20 HIMARS from its allies at that time. In response to this claim, U.S. National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby stated that he could not verify any reports of U.S.-supplied heavy artillery systems being destroyed by Russia in Ukraine.

In another instance, Russia went as far as claiming the destruction of German-made Leopard tanks with a low-quality grainy black-and-white video provided as alleged evidence. The video displayed several vehicle silhouettes being struck by a missile launched from a Russian Ka-52 helicopter, resulting in an explosion. A voice speaking in Russian then exclaimed: “It’s a direct hit!” Once again, the reality was quite different. The vehicles targeted by the anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) from the Russian helicopter were not tanks but agricultural equipment — a sprayer and a combine.

Russia leverages its propaganda to craft an image of the invincible might and superiority of its armed forces and weaponry, often contrasted against Western nations. Through deliberate messaging, Russia seeks to create a perception of dominance and superiority in order to bolster its military reputation. But its propaganda often relies on exaggerations and false claims, which are quickly debunked by credible sources and independent investigations. Today, Ukraine and the global community have become more adept at recognizing and countering disinformation, making it harder for Russian propaganda to gain traction.

Author: Artem Miniailo

Editor: Kvitka Perehinets

Design: Vladyslav Rybalko

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kneedeepincynade · 11 months

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As always,where the west lies,Assange tells the true

The post is machine translated

Translation is at the bottom

The collective is on telegram

⚠️ IL PREZIOSO CABLOGRAMMA DI WIKILEAKS DI JULIAN ASSANGE RACCONTA UNA REALTÀ DIVERSA DEL 04/06/1989 RISPETTO ALLA PROPAGANDA OCCIDENTALE ANTI-CINESE ⚠️

🐰 Attenzione! Nessuno nega (prima che arrivi qualche accusa infondata) la morte di persone in Cina in quel giorno, durante la rivolta violenta istigata dagli USA, come scrive anche Thomas Hon Wing Polin, per COUNTERPUNCH, nell'articolo "Tiananmen: the Empire’s Big Lie", dove però ricorda come la metà di coloro che morirono furono Soldati e Poliziotti, alcuni dei quali bruciati vivi dai "manifestanti pacifici" 😡

🤔 Veniamo ora a WIKILEAKS, dello straordinario Julian Assange, dove un cablogramma dell'Ambasciata degli USA a Pechino (Luglio 1989) rivelò le testimonianze oculari di un Diplomatico Latinoamericano e di sua moglie: «Potevano entrare e uscire dalla Piazza diverse volte, e non sono stati molestati dalle truppe» ❗️

➡️ Dal Cablogramma: «Sono potuti entrare ed uscire dalla Piazza diverse volte e non sono stati infastiditi dalle truppe. Essendo stato con gli studenti presso il Monumento agli Eroi del Popolo fino al ritiro definitivo, il diplomatico ha dichiarato che non vi sono state sparatorie di massa contro gli studenti nella Piazza o al Monumento» ❗️❗️❗️

🥳 Viva Assange! Assange LIBERO! 💕

🌸 Iscriviti 👉 @collettivoshaoshan

⚠️ THE PRECIOUS WIKILEAKS CABLOGRAM OF JULIAN ASSANGE TELLS A DIFFERENT REALITY OF 04/06/1989 THAN THE WESTERN ANTI-CHINESE PROPAGANDA ⚠️

🐰 Attention! Nobody denies (until some unfounded accusations arrive) that people died in China on that day, during the violent uprising instigated by the USA, as Thomas Hon Wing Polin also writes, for COUNTERPUNCH, in the article "Tiananmen: the Empire's Big Lie" , where, however, he recalls how half of those who died were Soldiers and Policemen, some of whom were burned alive by "peaceful protesters" 😡

🤔 We now come to WIKILEAKS, by the extraordinary Julian Assange, where a cable from the US Embassy in Beijing (July 1989) revealed the eyewitness accounts of a Latin American diplomat and his wife: «They could enter and exit the Square several times, and they were not harassed by the troops» ❗️

➡️ From the Cablegram: «They were able to enter and exit the Square several times and were not bothered by the troops. Having been with the students at the Monument to the People's Heroes until the final withdrawal, the diplomat stated that there were no mass shootings against the students in the Square or at the Monument" ❗️❗️❗️

🥳 Long live Assange! Assange FREE! 💕

🌸 Subscribe 👉 @collettivoshaoshan

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e-o-t-w · 1 year

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Eyes on the world #133

Ci lasciamo alle spalle un’altra settimana in questo frizzante 2023.

Ci sono temi per tutte le tasche anche stavolta: dal conflitto ucraino al terremoto in Turchia e Siria, passando per un’inchiesta dall’elevato potenziale fino alle ultime dall’Italia.

Meno chiacchiere, più fatti. Cominciamo 👇

🇺🇦 NOVITÀ SU PETROLIO E GAS, LA SITUAZIONE IN MOLDAVIA, GLI ULTIMI ATTACCHI: LA SETTIMANA IN BREVE

(1) Qualche novità importante dal conflitto tra #Ucraina e #Russia, pronto a raggiungere i 12 mesi di durata il prossimo 24 febbraio. Partiamo dal #petrolio. Venerdì scorso il vice premier russo Alexander Novak ha reso noto che la Russia taglierà del 5% la sua produzione complessiva di petrolio (pari a circa 500 mila barili al giorno) a partire da marzo. La mossa è da intendersi come una ritorsione nei confronti del tetto fissato il 5 dicembre scorso dai paesi del #G7, più UE e Australia. In sostanza, oltre al prezzo di 60 dollari al barile non è consentito acquistare il petrolio russo. Tuttavia, la riduzione della produzione comporterà un aumento dei prezzi di quello in circolazione, già salito del 2,5% subito dopo l’annuncio. Altre dichiarazioni che hanno portato “agitazioni” varie sono arrivate dal leader di Forza Italia Silvio Berlusconi, che domenica scorsa ha accusato il presidente ucraino #Zelensky di essere l’unico responsabile dell’attuale situazione in virtù del suo attacco diretto alla regione del #Donbass. Mykhailo Podolyak, principale consigliere di Zelensky, ha risposto riferendosi a Berlusconi come un “agitatore” per conto della propaganda russa. Diversi esponenti della maggioranza si sono affrettati a smentire le parole del leader e a ribadire la propria posizione nei confronti del conflitto, che nel frattempo non perde di spinta. Tra questa e la scorsa settimana gli attacchi russi sono andati avanti, colpendo obiettivi e infrastrutture energetiche soprattutto in Donbass, a Kiev, Zaporizhzhia e Kharkiv. Un ulteriore aspetto – altrettanto inquietante – della guerra in corso si è aggiunto martedì, quando la presidente della #Moldavia Maia Sandu ha denunciato l’esistenza di un piano russo per creare instabilità nel suo paese, con l’aiuto di agenti sotto copertura (per lo più soldati russi, bielorussi, serbi e montenegrini), in quello che si potrebbe definire a tutti gli effetti un colpo di stato. La prima ministra moldava Natalia Gavrilita si era dimessa la scorsa settimana ed è stata sostituita dal segretario del Consiglio di sicurezza moldavo Dorin Recean. L’incarico non è casuale, vista la sua esperienza in materia di sicurezza nazionale. A preoccupare è soprattutto la situazione in #Transnistria, una regione filorussa non riconosciuta a livello internazionale che si trova tra la Moldavia e la stessa Ucraina. Secondo molti analisti, un eventuale attacco partirebbe proprio da quell’area e potrebbe mettere in ginocchio un paese totalmente dipendente dalla Russia sotto diversi aspetti (importazione di gas ed esportazione del vino in primis). Se a questo aggiungiamo anche le dimensioni limitate dell’esercito moldavo, è facile comprendere come questa possa essere una facile preda per la Russia. In chiusura torniamo un attimo sul tema #gas: mercoledì è entrato in vigore anche il tetto europeo al suo prezzo, esattamente come accaduto con il petrolio. Per adesso si rivelerà inutile dal momento che si è tornati ai livelli del 2021, molto al di sotto del prezzo stabilito dall’UE.

🇹🇷🇸🇾 ARRIVANO I PRIMI AIUTI IN TURCHIA, MA SI CONTINUA A SCAVARE. OLTRE 100 ARRESTI PER ABUSI EDILIZI

(2) Torniamo al confine tra #Turchia e #Siria, dove ancora si fa la conta dei giganteschi danni fatti dal terremoto di qualche settimana fa. Lentamente si comincia a parlare di cosa avrebbe aiutato a limitare i danni e sotto la lente c’è ancora lui, il presidente turco #Erdogan. Il suo governo non è riuscito – negli ultimi 20 anni – ad adeguare case, condomini ed edifici pubblici alle norme di sicurezza base di un territorio flagellato da terremoti e, in generale, in una posizione ad alto rischio. Solo nel 2018 è stata aggiornata la legislazione sismica, ma nel frattempo sono stati portati avanti molti condoni che hanno messo in regola edifici abusivi e mal costruiti. Anche i controlli in tal senso, nell’arco degli anni, hanno lasciato a desiderare e oggi aggiorniamo quotidianamente un bilancio che sembra non aver fine. I morti dal sisma hanno superato le 40 mila unità, tra Turchia e Siria, dalla quale arrivano notizie con il contagocce. Proprio in tema di abusi edilizi, lo scorso weekend sono stati emessi 113 mandati d’arresto per accuse legate alla costruzione di molti edifici andati distrutti e il vicepresidente turco Oktay ha annunciato l’apertura di un’inchiesta proprio per far luce sugli abusi edilizi. Nel frattempo – per fortuna – sono arrivati i primi aiuti dal mondo, con gli Stati Uniti che hanno temporaneamente sospeso per sei mesi una sanzione diretta alla Siria e più precisamente al presidente Assad. Adesso sarà possibile effettuare transazioni legate a iniziative umanitarie senza passare da un apposito ufficio, istituito ad hoc negli scorsi anni per controllarle e approvarle. Ma c’è di più. Il territorio della Siria controllato dai ribelli è stato autorizzato a ricevere gli aiuti dal governo centrale stesso, con l’apertura di canali specifici dai quali far entrare convogli gestiti dalle Nazioni Unite. Al momento risultano essere però insufficienti per la popolazione locale, dilaniata dalla guerra civile oltre che dal sisma di inizio mese.

👥 PROFILI FALSI E FAKE NEWS PER INFLUENZARE PIÙ DI 30 CAMPAGNE ELETTORALI: IL PUNTO SULL’INCHIESTA

(3) Una grossa inchiesta giornalistica portata avanti da testate del calibro del Guardian, Le Monde e Der Spiegel ha fatto luce sul cosiddetto Team Jorge, una società attiva nel campo dell’hackeraggio informatico capace di influenzare decine di elezioni in ogni parte del mondo anche attraverso la diffusione di fake news. L’israeliano Tal Hanan (noto appunto come Jorge) è l’uomo a capo della società ed è stato incontrato in gran segreto da tre giornalisti sotto copertura, che a loro volta si sono finti potenziali clienti. Hanan ha presentato loro i servizi dell’azienda, mostrando il “portfolio” dei suoi interventi in ben 33 campagne elettorali a livello presidenziali (27 delle quali vinte). Il Team Jorge si servirebbe di un software chiamato #Aims (Advanced Impact Media Solutions), capace di creare decine di migliaia di account falsi – seppur molto dettagliati e “credibili” – sui principali social media e di diffondere contenuti di disinformazione con l’obiettivo di influenzare l’opinione pubblica. Hanan ha spiegato ai finti clienti di riuscire a entrare facilmente negli account Gmail e Telegram di persone influenti (politici in primis) e di poterli usare a proprio piacimento, inviando – ad esempio – messaggi capaci di creare discordia tra alleati, aumentare le divisioni e manomettere campagne elettorali. L’inchiesta non è – al momento – riuscita a far chiarezza su quanto detto da Hanan, le cui dichiarazioni non risultano semplici da verificare in modo indipendente, ma in alcuni casi è possibile che episodi a noi noti siano stati influenzati proprio dal Team Jorge. Sembra inoltre che ci siano state contrattazioni con Cambridge Analytica, la società che prelevò dati di milioni di utenti #Facebook per influenzare l’elezione di Donald Trump nel 2016 e il referendum su Brexit dello stesso anno. Dopo aver preso atto dell’inchiesta. Facebook ha cancellato numerosi account generati attraverso Aims. Non è escluso che nelle prossime settimane possano venir fuori ulteriori dettagli sul tema.

🇮🇹 ULTIME DALL’ITALIA: REGIONALI IN LAZIO E LOMBARDIA, IL PROCESSO RUBY TER, IL DECRETO MILLEPROROGHE

(4) Infine un piccolo focus sulle ultime elezioni regionali, tenutesi lo scorso weekend in Lazio e Lombardia, e su qualche altra questione in sospeso. A trionfare è stata la coalizione di destra alla base del governo nazionale guidato da Giorgia #Meloni, che ha superato le aspettative in termini di risultati. In entrambe le regioni hanno avuto la meglio i loro candidati (Francesco Rocca per il Lazio e Attilio Fontana per la Lombardia, tutti e due sopra il 50% delle preferenze), con particolare merito da assegnare a Fratelli d’Italia, che in pochi anni è riuscito a imporsi come il partito più votato anche a scapito di realtà ormai consolidate nel tempo (es. la Lega in Lombardia, i cui voti si sono dimezzati sostanzialmente). Fontana è riuscito a confermarsi nonostante la discutibile gestione della pandemia, specialmente nei primi mesi, mentre Rocca ha riportato il centrodestra a capo della regione Lazio dopo 10 anni di leadership di centrosinistra, capitanata da Nicola Zingaretti (diventato nel frattempo anche segretario del Partito Democratico). Tuttavia, il dato che più è saltato all’occhio – come accade sempre più spesso ultimamente – riguarda l’astensionismo. L’affluenza è stata tra le più basse di sempre: hanno votato solo il 37,2% degli aventi diritto nel Lazio e il 41,7% in Lombardia. Solo l’Emilia-Romagna nel 2014 (37,7%) si è avvicinata a dati così negativi. Molti parlano della vicinanza con le ultime elezioni politiche come possibile motivazione dell’elevato astensionismo, ma anche la scarsità di temi e di – conseguente – coinvolgimento dei cittadini sembrano aver fatto la loro parte. Fontana ad esempio ha pressoché rinunciato alla campagna elettorale nelle ultime settimane, riuscendo a ottenere un risultato persino migliore delle aspettative. Non solo state solo le elezioni gli unici punti di interesse della settimana. Si è aperto anche il processo “Ruby ter”, che vede il leader di Forza Italia Silvio #Berlusconi imputato per corruzione in atti giudiziari. In sostanza, era accusato di aver dato denaro a dei testimoni affinché dichiarassero il falso durante i precedenti processi Ruby e Ruby bis, con al centro Karima El Mahroug (chiamata Ruby Rubacuori dai media). Berlusconi è stato assolto in primo grado perché “il fatto non sussiste”. Il presidente del tribunale di Milano ha spiegato che le ragazze oggetto della presunta corruzione non erano da considerarsi testimoni (bensì indagati), venendo così a mancare i reati di falsa testimonianza contestati. In tutto ciò, la presidenza del Consiglio aveva deciso di non costituirsi più parte civile (decisione presa dal governo Gentiloni nel 2017) e – di conseguenza – di non richiedere alcun risarcimento a Berlusconi per i danni d’immagine alle istituzioni. Infine, entro il 27 febbraio dovrà essere convertito in legge il decreto #Milleproroghe, appena approvato dal Senato. Visti i tempi molto stretti (il testo va ancora approvato alla Camera) è probabile che non subirà alcuna modifica. Al suo interno si trovano diverse norme delle quali il governo non è riuscito a occuparsi, rimandandone quindi la scadenza. Alcune di queste sono al centro di parecchie critiche, come ad esempio la proroga fino a fine 2024 delle concessioni pubbliche agli stabilimenti balneari (prolungamento che va contro una sentenza del Consiglio di Stato, che mise come ultimo limite possibile il 2023). Lo smartworking per i lavoratori fragili o con figli minori di 14 anni sarà prolungato invece fino a fine giugno, così come le agevolazioni per ottenere un mutuo introdotte dal governo Draghi per gli under 36 (valide fino al 30/06 invece che al 31/03). Oltre ciò, un’altra proroga riguarderà il sistema “payback” usato dalle regioni per recuperare l’eccesso di spesa sanitaria; in sostanza, le aziende che producono dispositivi medici dovranno restituire quanto di più (ingiustificatamente) hanno ricevuto dagli enti locali a causa di stime errate. Queste avranno entro il 30 aprile per restituire ben 2,2 miliardi di euro in totale (riferiti agli anni dal 2015 al 2018).

Andiamo dritti verso le brevi, ricche anche questa settimana 👇

🇪🇺 La scorsa settimana è andato in scena il Consiglio Europeo, che ha riunito i principali capi di governo dell’#UE per discutere di immigrazione e aiuti di stato. Nel primo caso è stato chiesto ufficialmente alla Commissione Europea di destinare fondi ai paesi dell’Europa orientale affinché rafforzino le infrastrutture a protezione delle frontiere (senza fare riferimenti alle costruzioni di muri, iniziale richiesta dei suddetti paesi), ma è stata rimandata ogni decisione sul tema delle ONG e delle loro attività. Nel secondo caso invece, al fine di aumentare la competitività nei confronti di aziende americane (su tutte), i paesi più ricchi hanno chiesto di rilassare alcuni divieti in tema di aiuti che uno stato può fornire ad aziende private locali. Anche in questo caso la risoluzione del caso è stata rinviata al prossimo Consiglio di marzo.

🚗 Sempre in Europa, il Parlamento ha approvato definitivamente il divieto di vendere nuove automobili a benzina o diesel dal 2035. La proposta era stata presentata nel 2021 e rientra nel piano di riduzione delle emissioni del 55% entro il 2030, con l’obiettivo di raggiungere la neutralità carbonica entro il 2050.

🇶🇦 L’eurodeputato Andrea Cozzolino, indagato nel caso di sospetta corruzione che mette in mezzo il Parlamento Europeo, Qatar e Marocco, è stato arrestato dalla Guardia di Finanza di Napoli su richiesta della procura federale belga. Insieme a lui è finito in manette per lo stesso motivo Marc Tarabella, altro deputato di origini italiane. Qualche settimana fa a entrambi era stata revocata l’immunità parlamentare.

💥 Continuano a essere abbattuti oggetti che hanno sorvolato Stati Uniti e Canada negli ultimi giorni. Uno – non identificato – è stato abbattuto sul nord dell’Alaska, un secondo nella regione dello Yukon (Canada) e un terzo sul lago Huron (tra Canada e USA). In tutti i casi si trattava di oggetti molto più piccoli del pallone spia cinese e parecchio più vicini alla terraferma, ma John Kirby (portavoce del Consiglio per la sicurezza nazionale statunitense) ha fatto sapere che non sono state trovate prove sulla loro presunta natura spionistica.

👩‍⚖ L’anarchico Alfredo #Cospito, che da ormai quattro mesi sta facendo uno sciopero della fame contro il 41-bis al quale è sottoposto, è stato trasferito al reparto di medicina penitenziaria dell’ospedale San Paolo di Milano. La scorsa settimana la Corte di Cassazione ha depositato una richiesta per annullare il regime di 41-bis e verrà utilizzata nell’udienza del 24 febbraio, dove sarà la stessa Corte a decidere se confermarlo o revocarlo. Il ministro della Giustizia Nordio aveva respinto l’istanza di revoca, ma adesso le possibilità che vada in porto sono aumentate. Nel frattempo Andrea #Delmastro, il sottosegretario alla Giustizia che aveva riferito informazioni riservate al deputato Giovanni Donzelli, è indagato dalla procura di Roma per rivelazione di segreto d’ufficio.

🆕 Restando in tema Corte di Cassazione, Margherita Cassano ha assunto la carica di nuova presidente. È la prima volta nella storia che una donna ricopre questo incarico in Italia. La nomina sarà vincolata a una seconda votazione che avverrà il 1° marzo (in presenza del presidente della Repubblica Sergio Mattarella), considerata ormai una formalità.

🏈 Nella notte tra domenica e lunedì è avvenuto l’attesissimo Super Bowl 2023 tra i Kansas City Chiefs e i Philadelphia Eagles. Il match è stato parecchio avvincente e deciso solo grazie a un calcio piazzato trasformato da Harrison Butker (Chiefs) a 8 secondi dal termine. A nulla è bastata la prestazione monstre di Jalen Hurts (Eagles, 3 touchdown). A brillare, nonostante l’infortunio alla caviglia rimediato in partita, è ancora Patrick Mahomes, quarterback di Kansas City al suo secondo Super Bowl. Degna di nota anche l’esibizione di Rihanna nel corso dell’intervallo.

🇮🇱 Lo scorso lunedì il governo israeliano ha alimentato nuovi potenziali conflitti con i palestinesi autorizzando e istituendo nove colonie in Cisgiordania (territorio occupato dal 1967 e che i palestinesi stessi rivendicano). Questi insediamenti, che la Corte Suprema israeliana considera illegali dal 1979, vengono tollerati e supportati dal governo come fossero città israeliane a tutti gli effetti. Secondo la comunità internazionale, questa azione allontana sempre più il rilassamento delle tensioni tra le parti. Come se non bastasse, il parlamento israeliano ha approvato una legge che consentirà di revocare la cittadinanza a coloro che vengono condannati per terrorismo o ricevono finanziamenti dall’Autorità Nazionale Palestinese, ovvero l’organo che governa i territori palestinesi.

🇺🇸 Nikki Haley, ex deputata e governatrice del South Carolina, si è candidata per le primarie del 2024 del Partito Repubblicano. Nel 2016 faceva parte di coloro che si opponevano alla scalata di Donald Trump alla Casa Bianca, per poi essere nominata ambasciatrice americana presso le Nazioni Unite e cambiando sostanzialmente idea sul suo conto. La sua figura si posiziona comunque come terza scelta dopo lo stesso Trump (candidatosi ufficialmente qualche mese fa) e Ron DeSantis, governatore della Florida e presumibilmente primo sfidante dell’ex presidente (anche se ancora non si è pronunciato in proposito).

✝ I risultati di una nuova inchiesta sugli abusi subiti da minori per mano della Chiesa cattolica sono stati diffusi in Portogallo, dove il clero sarebbe colpevole di ben 4.815 casi accertati. Le testimonianze raccolte parlano di avvenimenti risalenti a un periodo che va dal 1950 al 2022 e che, molto probabilmente, sono arrotondati per difetto. Hanno riguardato principalmente bambini tra i 10 e i 14 anni, con un bilanciamento quasi netto tra maschi e femmine (52%-48%), con i sacerdoti ad aver compiuto gli abusi nel 77% dei casi. L’inchiesta partì su richiesta di Papa Francesco con l’obiettivo di studiare il problema della pedofilia nella Chiesa. In Italia un’inchiesta simile ha prodotto risultati scarsissimi, essendo stati diffusi solo i risultati relativi agli anni 2020 e 2021.

🚄 Un treno deragliato qualche settimana fa nel nord-est dell’Ohio sta dando ancora parecchi problemi ai residenti. 50 dei 141 vagoni del mezzo sono usciti dai binari e hanno provocato un incendio alimentato dalle sostanze pericolose che trasportavano. Secondo l’Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), quelle maggiormente disperse nell’aria e nei corsi d’acqua sono: cloruro di vinile, fosgene e cloruro di idrogeno e acrilato di butile. Queste hanno reso l’aria irrespirabile e capace di procurare danni alla salute in caso di eccessiva esposizione, costringendo gli abitanti nel raggio di 2-3 km a essere evacuati. Dopo pochi giorni e diversi controlli, l’EPA ha dato l’ok per tornare nelle rispettive abitazioni, ma la situazione non è parsa ancora sotto controllo.

🇬🇧 Dopo 8 anni da prima ministra della Scozia, Nicole #Sturgeon ha fatto sapere che rassegnerà le proprie dimissioni. In una conferenza stampa avvenuta mercoledì, ha annunciato di non avere le energie necessarie per portare a termine le sfide e affrontare le difficoltà che l’incarico comporta. La Sturgeon si riferisce al blocco imposto dalla Corte suprema scozzese di poter effettuare un nuovo referendum sull’indipendenza dal Regno Unito.

👜 In seguito alla morte dello stilista Virgil Abloh nel novembre 2021, la carica di direttore creativo della linea d’abbigliamento maschile di Louis Vuitton è rimasta vacante. Martedì la casa di moda ha annunciato che il posto è stato assegnato alla popstar statunitense Pharrell Williams, già noto nel settore grazie alle sue collaborazioni con Moncler, Chanel e Adidas.

🎶 Marco Mengoni ha trionfato nella 73^ edizione del Festival di #Sanremo con la canzone “Due vite”. Al secondo posto si è classificato Lazza con “Cenere”, mentre il gradino più basso del podio se l’è aggiudicato Mr Rain con “Supereroi”.

🇨🇳 Forti proteste continuano ad agitare la #Cina, specialmente le città di Wuhan e Dalian. Motivo delle agitazioni i recenti tagli alla sanità locale, in particolar modo alle spese mediche di cui i pensionati possono beneficiare grazie al servizio sanitario pubblico. Per il momento né polizia né autorità in generale hanno commentato le manifestazioni, partecipate da centinaia di persone.

⚽ Sempre in Cina, piccola news curiosa a tema sport. D’ora in poi le squadre che vorranno iscriversi alla Chinese Super League (massimo campionato di calcio maschile) dovranno obbligatoriamente avere anche una squadra femminile, che a sua volta faccia parte di una delle prime 3 divisioni del campionato nazionale.

🇪🇸 Il tentativo fatto dalla Scozia alla fine è andato in porto in Spagna. Si parla della “Ley Trans” appena approvata, che consentirà di autodeterminare la propria identità di genere già a partire dai 16 anni. Non saranno quindi più necessari trattamenti ormonali e diagnosi mediche/psicologiche per attestare la “disforia di genere”, ma basterà una semplice dichiarazione della persona interessata (senza nemmeno certificato medico). Inoltre, è stata anche approvata in via definitiva una legge che consentirà a chi ha compiuto 16 anni di poter abortire senza il consenso dei genitori e la possibilità di chiedere a chi soffre di dolori mestruali un congedo da lavoro dai 3 ai 5 giorni.

Alla prossima 👋

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salvo-love · 1 year

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Autorità per le Garanzie nelle Comunicazioni

https://mediasetinfinity.mediaset.it/video/fuoridalcoro20222023/italia-senza-regole-le-stazioni-della-vergogna_F312336201001C02

Questa notte a #LineaNotte di #MaurizioMannoni e di #PatriziaSenatore del #Tg3lineanotte ho sentito questo commento dell'editorialista del #corrieredellasera l'ineccepibile e buonista 🤔😒🫤🤨 di turno @GoffredoBuccini che considera e commenta che la stretta di #Piantedosi sulle #ONG ha il solo scopo di blandire l'elettorato e nessuna possibilità di intervenire sulla situazione migratoria e quindi in pratica è solo un finto contentino per tenere calmi gli elettori di #centrodestra. Si potrebbe pure essere d'accordo con queste tesi portate avanti dai falsi buonisti dei giornali, dei tg e dei giornalisti al soldo del PD (soprattutto quei TG del servizio pubblico della Rai, che spesso fanno propaganda politica per la sinistra e a spese degli italiani che pagano il canone Rai, invece di fare informazione seria con imparzialità). C'è un grosso problema però, che a questi piace accogliere e fare beneficenza con i soldi, che gli italiani NON hanno, e poi dimenticano o ignorano volutamente che fine fanno questi clandestini o finti migranti ( non certo approdano ad un futuro migliore ) e quali enormi problemi di #sicurezza o meglio insicurezza creano agli italiani; guardate questo video, che, in tutta l'Italia, riassume un po' quale vita migliore e ambita raggiungono queste persone arrivate e sbarcate in Italia, illuse da scafisti, giornalisti, immigrazionisti e politici italiani, che si occupano e preoccupano solo di farli arrivare in Italia e poi si disinteressano e dimenticano che fine fanno:: questa la chiamano accoglienza e integrazione !!!🫤🤨😒🤔🤔⬆️⬆️⬆️⬆️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬆️🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🫤🫤🤨🫤🤨

https://www.libero.it/tv/immigrati-arrivi-da-record-le-citta-sono-al-collasso_ms1442588

https://mediasetinfinity.mediaset.it/video/fuoridalcoro20222023/italia-senza-regole-le-stazioni-della-vergogna_F312336201001C02

Firmato Matteo Carlo Maria Feltri de : Una seria e sana informazione.it

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beardedmrbean · 1 month

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#doge #le debunking propaganda has arrived

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crazy-so-na-sega · 2 years

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9 Settembre 2022

di Gianluca Marletta!

La sconfitta nella battaglia di Balakleya-Kupyansk (non è ancora chiara l’ entità delle conseguenze, ma è chiaro che si tratta da una sconfitta) mette la Russia davanti al fallimento della strategia dell’ impegno limitato e la costringerà presto a scelte difficili. I Russi in Ucraina sono circa 100.000, gli ucraini mobilitano quasi un milione e mezzo di soldati, armati da TUTTO L’Occidente. È evidente che la Russia sarà costretta ad utilizzare tutto quello che finora NON ha utilizzato (non solo in termini di uomini ma soprattutto di armi…). La Russia può contare su quasi due milioni di militari, 7000 ordini nucleari e …altre armi non convenzionali mai dichiarate (immaginate cosa, se riuscite ad immaginarlo). È probabilmente quello che desidera l’Occidente (non i popoli occidentali che al massimo desiderano uno spritz, ma i loro veri Padroni visibili o meno): un coinvolgimento drammatico di gran parte del Vecchio Mondo in un conflitto devastante (con gli USA alla finestra, in attesa che Europei, Slavi, Mediorientali e Asiatici si facciano a pezzi fra loro – questo è il vero Great Reset, altro che le cretinate di Davos). In questi giorni, 15 cargo iraniani sono atterrati a Mosca, via Armenia. Probabilmente, la VERA GUERRA sta per iniziare solo adesso.

Sinceramente non saprei dire come vanno le operazioni militari. Può darsi che i russi abbiano subito una sconfitta nei pressi di Kupyansk. Certo è che a sentire e a credere alla propaganda Nato e a quella di Tele Kiev, le truppe ucraine dovrebbero essere arrivate nei sobborghi di Mosca. Ma ripeto: tutto è possibile.

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da un blog destrorso....tanto per mantenere la calma.....

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nordleuchten · 3 years

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The Champ de Mars Massacre

Your back is aching, your muscles ache. The past days, no, weeks, you have helped to level the Champ de Mars, you have helped to fill up the puddles, to raise tribunes - all that hard labour for this day. The 14th of July 1790. To the day one year prior you were amongst the crowd that stormed the Bastille. Today is the anniversary of your Revolution. Thousands upon thousands of people have gathered today to celebrate. Not just from Paris but from all over France. Every Department and every Province has send its people, has send representatives and soldiers - their banners fly in the breeze. You here the people shout and roar “Vive le roi! Vive la reine!” and you join in in the jubilation as does your beloved right next to you. “Vive le roi! Vive la reine!” The members of the National Assembly stand together on the Champ the Mars, the King is there as well with his family, an altar had been erected in the middle of the field. General La Fayette rides in on his white stallion. He is the Hero of Two Worlds, the knight of the Revolution, the champion of the people - or so you fought then.

It is a hot and sunny day in July once again - but a whole year has passed. It is the 17th of July, a Sunday, a holy day. People have gathered on the Champ de Mars and this time it is not in celebration. The people are angry, they feel betrayed. This year, in 1791, thousands upon thousands have gathered to sign a petition, a petition to put the king on trial for the crimes he had committed against his people. Everything seemed orderly enough at first but then the people spotted two men hiding under the altar that still stood there from the celebration of 1790. The crowed fought there were spies and so they decapitated them and put their heads on spikes. Everything went downhill from there on. Troops of the National Guard arrived, the mayor of Paris, Monsieur Bailly arrives, martial law is declared, the soldiers are firing at the crowed and miss, the crowed throw stones at the troops, the soldiers fire again - they hit their targets this time, You see people fall, women, and man and children - god, they are firing at the children too! The crowed dispenses, all is confusion and hurry now, your beloved is no longer by your side as you start to run. There is shouting about a cannon that is supposedly about to be fired. More people fall. As you hurry to safety, you turn around one last time and see General La Fayette standing by his National Guard as they fire into the crowed. Is that what has become of the peoples hero?

Within little more than a year La Fayette went from the zenith of his influence and popularity to a record low. In 1790, during the Fête de la Federation, his carefully put together image had been approved by the people of France. In 1791 however, with the Champ de Mars Massacre, his image began to suffer severely and he had in great parts lost the love of the people. Right when it happened, the events of July 17, 1791 were used for propaganda from ever party and every side. It was played-down, blown out of proportions, made into something it was not, numbers and details were changed to make one group look more or less guilty. What remained though was the fact that La Fayette was at the centre of the events. His exact role in the massacre as well as everything that happened that day is often hard to determine, exactly because the massacre was so heavily used for political and propaganda purposes at the beginning. So here is a little overview about the things we know or at least thing we know.

What Happened? - The Context:

The officials had expected large protests on the 14th of July, the anniversary of the Revolution but the 14th passed rather peaceful. On the 17th however, the atmosphere started to heat up. Barely a month before, from July 20 to July 21, the King, Louis XVI, the Queen, Marie Antoinette, their children and other immediate members of the Royal Family had tried to flee from Paris to Montmédy. The flight failed and they were recognised and stopped in Varennes-en-Argonnne and after that brought back to Paris. La Fayette and other government officials tried to present the events as an attempted kidnapping of the King - that was of course complete nonsense, there was no kidnapping whatsoever and everybody knew that. The flight to Varennes painted La Fayette in a particular bad light for two reasons. First, there had been rumours of a possible escape by the King long before the actual attempt was made. It was La Fayette, among others, who had time and time again sworn that the King would not attempt to flee. He had accepted the constitution, he had become a monarch under the constitution and would not betray the loyalty of the French people in such a fashion. Second, it was the National Guard under the command of La Fayette who was tasked with safeguarding the King - and making sure that he would not escape. Their failure shed a very bad light on La Fayette. At best his guard was undisciplined and he had not enough control over them. At worst, he was fully aware of the royal families’ plans and aided them by instructing the guardsmen to look the other way.

On July 17, a petition had been drafted and the people were called upon to assemble and to sign the petition. This endeavour was first backed by the Jacobins but leading members later withdraw the support of the Jacobins as they had been urged by Robespierre himself to so. It was too little and too late however, as many people in the crowd that day would have identified as Jacobins.

The undersigned Frenchmen, members of the sovereign people, considering that, in questions concerning the safety of the people, it is their right to express their will in order to enlighten and guide their deputies,

That no question has ever arisen more important than the King's desertion,

That the decree of 15 July contains no decision concerning Louis XVI,

That, in obeying this decree, it is necessary to decide promptly the future of this individual,

That his conduct must form the basis of this decision,

That Louis XVI, having accepted Royal functions, and sworn to defend the Constitution, has deserted the post entrusted to him; has protested against that very Constitution in a declaration written and signed in his own hand; has attempted, by his flight and his orders, to paralyze the executive power, and to upset the Constitution in complicity with men who are today awaiting trial for such an attempt,

That his perjury, his desertion, his protest, not to speak of all the other criminal acts which have proceeded, accompanied, and followed them, involve a formal abdication of the constitutional Crown entrusted to him,

That the National Assembly has so judged in assuming the executive power, suspending the Royal authority and holding him in a state of arrest,

That fresh promises from Louis XVI to observe the Constitution cannot offer the Nation a sufficient guarantee against a fresh perjury and a new conspiracy.

Considering finally that it would be as contrary to the majesty of the outraged Nation as it would be contrary to its interest to confide the reins of empire to a perjurer, a traitor, and a fugitive, [we] formally and specifically demand that the Assembly receive the abdication made on 21 June by Louis XVI of the crown which had been delegated to him, and provide for his successor in the constitutional manner, [and we] declare that the undersigned will never recognize Louis XVI as their King unless the majority of the Nation express a desire contrary to the present petition

What happened next could have come straight out of a comedy - were it not to trigger a bloodbath. The crowed that had assembled that day spotted two “suspicious man”. Now, we do not know who this men were or what they intended - in all likelihood they just sat there and tried to relax and sleep, maybe find some shade on such a hot day, maybe all they wanted was to get a peek under the skirts of the women who had assembled as well. They hide behind the altar that had been left from the Fête de la Federation and this behaviour prompted the crowd to assume that they were spies who wanted to denounce the people present. The crowed attacked the men, beheaded them and paraded their head around on spikes. The crowed, who had previously already worried the Parisian officials, now had committed two murders. It is from this point on, that things get a bit more tricky.

What Happened? - The actual Massacre:

We start this portion of the post with an excerpt from La Fayette’s Memoirs to form a basis.

The affair of the Champ de Mars has been misrepresented with an extraordinary degree of audacity ; it became the pretext for the sufferings to which the magnanimity of the virtuous Bailly was so long exposed in that capital to which he had devoted himself during the whole course of a very difficult magistracy, with an affectionate and enlightened zeal. (…)

The 14th of July the anniversary of the confederation was celebrated. All appeared tranquil. But the 17th of July, a meeting took place in the Champ de Mars, to sign the petition drawn up by Laclos, and corrected by Brissot.

Two invalids, who, from a feeling of idle curiosity, had concealed themselves under the altar of the country, were seized ; their heads were cut off, and placed on two pikes, to be exhibited through the streets of Paris. The commander-in-chief [La Fayette] hastened to the spot, with a detachment of national guards. The rioters, with some ringleaders at their head, formed a barricade around themselves with carts ; across one of these carts a man pointed a musket at the commander-in-chief, but it missed fire. The national guards, springing over the barricade seized the culprit, and dragged him towards the commander-in-chief, who ordered him to be set at liberty. It is well known that the jacobins imputed the deliverance of this assassin to a concerted scheme, until he came forward, himself to boast of his conduct at the bar of the convention. The people who surrounded the altar, and some of those who were in the Champ de Mars, promised the commander and two commissaries of the commons to separate, after having peaceably signed the petition, for no person had ever thought of opposing that signature.

Several hours thus passed ; a detachment of the national guard had been stationed outside the Champ de Mars to watch over any hostile movements that might occur, and it was thought at the Hotel de Ville that all would pass quietly, when some persons came to denounce to the assembly the real projects of the rioters against the assembly itself. They intended doing what has been done since, on the 10th August, 31st May, and 4th prairial.

The national assembly decreed that the mayor of Paris should take measures to secure their safety, that of the Tuileries, and of the capital. It was in consequence of the unanimous injunctions of that same assembly that the mayor of Paris and the council of the commune published martial law. M Bailly sallied forth at the head of a battalion of grenadiers, which performed duty each day at the Hotel de Ville, to proceed, as a reserve corps, to the place in which public order was most disturbed ; the commander-in-chief, to whom information of this step was given, joined them on the road.

They presented themselves before the entrance of the Champ de Mars, and were received with a shower of stones ; some fire-arms were also used ; a pistol was fired at the mayor whom the ball narrowly missed, when he was on the point of making his proclamation. During this attack, the national guard fired in the air to avoid wounding any one ; but the assailants, emboldened by this moderation redoubled their attack against the municipal officers and national guards, of whom some were wounded, and amongst the number an aide-de-camp ; two volunteer chasseurs were killed ; the national guard then fired in earnest. The loss that ensued on the part of the assailants has been most grossly exaggerated ; the rioters were dispersed principally by the cavalry, who did not use their arms.

All the events that he describes, happened that way - it is however questionable if they happened exactly that way. What also comes to mind is La Fayette’s phrasing of the events: he wrote that the National Guard did certain things but never what his actual orders were. This vague language is quite crucial in understanding his part in the whole event. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

In short, while we can be reasonably sure that somebody did indeed shot at La Fayette, we can not be completely sure if that happened during the first or second encounter between the Guard and the crowed. La Fayette would not have gained much from placing the attack on him at an earlier hour so we are going to believe him with that. It is also unsure how much time exactly passed when La Fayette wrote “several hours”. But these details are rather minor and even if they were wrongly reported, do not change the outlook on the event as a whole. More interesting is the question about the declaration of Martial Law. La Fayette presents it as if he had nothing to do with it while other sources claim that he was among the men urging Mayor Bailly to do so.

On to the most interesting part. Who gave the order to fire and when was this order given?

La Fayette claims that the he and his guard were attacked with stones and that during this attack he ordered his men to fire warning shots into the air (in his memoirs he is not as clear about it as in earlier statements were he admitted that he ordered his men to fire into the air - but solely into the air). Other accounts say that the crowed only threw stones after the guardsmen had shot at them while again different sources claim that the soldiers never fired into the air but directly at the people. Whatever happened, at one point the Guard did indeed fire at the people. Now, La Fayette was eminent that he never gave that order - and I think I believe him. Such an action would not be typical for him. But who could have given the order? Some sources state that Bailly gave the order and because he was Mayor, the National Guard followed his order. Again, other reports state that nobody gave the order and that the soldiers just fired on their own.

I find all of these reports questionable. The most logical explanation would be that La Fayette, as commander-in-chief gave the command. But as I stated earlier, I have great trouble imaging that … maybe I am biased but I just can not see La Fayette giving such a command. I also do not believe that Bailly gave the order. I could imagine that the Guard shot on its own. Maybe one of the men was frightened and pulled the trigger, maybe even by accident or in an act of self-defence, and his comrades followed suite, thinking that there had been an order - then again, what are the probabilities of that happening?

Several sources mention that La Fayette tried to stop his troops as soon as he realised what had happened. One report even claimed that he physically put himself between the crowed and a cannon that was about to be fired. He did not however mention any of these actions in his Memoirs. If there was massacre on the civilian population and you tried to prevent or at least end this massacre, you would mention that in your Memories, would you not?

Where does of all of that leaves us? In the worst case, La Fayette actively ordered his guards to fire into a mostly unarmed civilian crowed. In the “best” case, La Fayette did not order the massacre himself but had too little control and influence over his own troops that he could not prevent the event from happening. Because, as Tom Chaffin put it in his book Revolutionary Brothers:

Whatever actually happened that day, the gunfire escalated into a lethal fusillade that left many demonstrators dead or wounded.

In any event, La Fayette was judged severely by the public.

The number of victims of the Champ de Mars massacre vary dramatically. Contemporary sources state that there were several thousand victims while modern scholars estimate the number of dead between 50 and 100 and the number of wounded between 100 and 1000. It is however next to impossible to ever be able to determine these numbers correctly.

The immediate public and political reactions on and after the 17th varied widely but were generally devastating for La Fayette. I may make an extra post about the reactions because otherwise this post would get too long. As a last thought, I want to quote from the Memoirs of La Fayette’s youngest daughter, Virginie, how she remembered that day.

The Jacobins raised on the 17th of July a considerable outbreak. The brigands commenced by murdering two men. Martial law was proclaimed. It is difficult to form an idea of my mother's mortal anguish while my father was in the Champ de Mars exposed to the rage of an infuriated multitude which dispersed crying out that my mother must be put to death and her head carried to meet him. I remember the fearful cries we heard, I remember the alarm of every body in the house, and above all my mother's joy at the thoughts that the brigands who were coming to attack her were no longer surrounding my father in the Champ de Mars. While embracing us with tears of joy, she took every necessary precaution against the approaching danger with the greatest calmness and above all with the greatest relief of mind. The guard had been doubled, and was drawn up before the house, but the brigands were very near entering my mother's apartment by the garden looking upon the place du Palais-Bourbon, and were already climbing the low wall which protected us, when a body of cavalry passed on the place and dispersed them.

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whentheynameyoujoy · 4 years

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Yup, Sure Was a Finale

I had an epiphany. The reason why I never re-watched the final two parts of Sozin’s Comet even though I’ve popped in episodes at random many times over the years isn’t that I can’t bear the sadness of seeing one of the best, most engaging narratives out there come to an end.

It’s simply that the finale isn’t all that good.

Some honorable mentions of what was enjoyable.

(+) This

Just this.

(+) The Church of Zutara has another convert

“Are you sure they don’t get together?” Hubster, 2020

(+) The tragedy of Azula

And the fact that it’s acknowledged as such. I hope Zuko will do his best to get her help and have a relationship with her…

(+) Sokka being a big bro

And the whole airship sequence in general. It’s wonderfully paced and plotted, with moments of humor, real stakes, Toph being both badass and a scared crying kid, Sokka strategizing and protecting, Suki saving the day, and non-benders being instrumental in thwarting the bad guy firebender’s plans. Would be shame if Bryke never portrayed them this capable ever again…

And now for the main course.

(-) Blink and its over

The wrap-up feels too quick (hashtag Needs More ROtK-style False Endings). A part of this is due to how fast the story goes from the thick of the action to hastily tying up a bunch of loose ends, but the larger issue is how Book 3’s uneven pacing comes home to roost. After spending half a season on filler episodes that at best subtly flesh out established characters while dancing around a huge lionturtle-shaped hole, and at worst contradict the theme of “no one is born bad” with “you’re a hot mess because your great-grandfathers didn’t get along too well”, the frantic “go go go” rush of the second half screeches to a halt with “they won and everyone was happy because now the right people have power and it will be all good from now on yup nothing more to deal with baiiiii”.

Yes, I know, it’s a kids’ show. But goddamn, this particular kids’ show has proven so many times it can do better than the expected tropiness. Showing the characters in their roles as builders of a new world was the least that could have been done.

Oh well!

(-) Ursa

We’ll never know. There will never be a story that delves into this. Yup. Shall forever remain but an intriguing mystery. Is good, though. Mystery is better than a story where Ursa shares her son’s penchant for forgetfulness. Imagine how embarrassing that would be. Speaking of which…

(-) What does Mai see in this jerkbender?

Look, I like to harp a lot on the mess of inconsistent writing that’s Mai but let’s unpack this scene from her perspective, shall we?

Zuko forgot about her! It totally slipped his mind that the one person who prioritized the safety of his dumb ass was rotting in the worst prison in the Fire Nation—because of him! And she was rotting there long enough after the final Agni Kai for the news of Zuko’s upcoming coronation to spread and her uncle to feel sufficiently secure to release her. But then the coronation scene is attended by every single member of Gaang & Friends that was imprisoned?

So what this tells me is that either a) the invasion force had the ability to break themselves out the whole time and for some reason decided not to exercise it until after the war was over, b) Zuko forgot about them as well and no one thought to remind him there were prisons full of POWs until Mai arrived, or, and that’s even better, c) Zuko took care to free every single resistance fighter while making sure Mai would be the one to stay behind bars.

Never thought I’d say this but Mai? Honey? You deserve so much better.

(-) “What does Katara want?”

Asked no one in the writers’ room ever, apparently.

This is not so much anti Cataang as anti romance stories that pay attention to the needs, opinions, and wants of only one partner in general. Over the previous 60 episodes, Katara actively expressed romantic interest in Aang exactly, wait for it,

Once.

And it got retconned out of relevance by the following two interactions where the possibility of a romantic relationship came up, making the Headband dance pretty easy to reclassify as just one of those examples where Aang “teaches” Katara to have fun (as if one of the main obstacles to her having fun wasn’t him constantly fooling around and offloading his duties). And because the writers not only didn’t succeed in portraying Katara’s internal state of mind, but also failed to root her reluctance to pursue a relationship in outside circumstances that could change, her sudden state of unconfused once Aang steps into the spotlight has a single canonical explanation that as much as approaches coherency.

The fact is, though, that trying to interpret canon Cataang from a Watsonian perspective is an exercise in foolishness. Because there is no Watsonian justification for the ship and never has been. Bryke simply conceived of Katara as nothing but a tropey prize for Aang, never saw her as anything beyond that, and were perfectly happy to go on and immortalize her as a passive broodmare for the rest of her life.

And I fully intend to die mad about it.

(-) Iroh dips

OK, it’s been long apparent that the show doesn’t intend to do anything about Iroh’s complicity in AzulOzai’s regime in any meaningful way, and that his sole motivation for doing anything whatsoever is Zuko whom he views as a replacement son which is supposed to be good for some reason. But the finale has him abandon even that, and instead turns him full-on YOLO, idgaf anymore. It really throws Iroh’s supposed love for Zuko into doubt when his last act in the entire show is to take a half-educated 16-year old with no political savvy or an heir to secure a dynastic continuity and plomp him on the throne of a war-mongering imperialist regime where the entirety of the militarist and ruling class is guaranteed to fight him tooth and nail for power.

(I sure hope Mai’s ready to start popping out babies by tea-time otherwise the whole country is fukd in about a week)

Christ, how hard would it be to have Iroh keep the throne warm for a few years while Zuko is getting ready to succeed him? Not only would it make the whole FN reformation bit quite likelier to occur, it would require Iroh’s hedonistic ass to actually sacrifice something for once. And not having Zuko ascend to power, instead spending some time bettering and educating himself first, would be a wonderful message that no matter what you endured and overcame, you never stop growing. A kids’ show, remember?

(-) The conquering of Ba Sing Se

Gee, I feel so blessed to have my attention diverted from battlefields which actually matter to an old dude vanity project I would have been perfectly happy to assume resolved itself off-screen.

The White Lotus in general just bugs me. I was fine with the individual characters and their overall passivity when they were portrayed as lone dissenters living under circumstances where it wasn’t really possible for any single person to mount a meaningful resistance. But as members of a far-reaching shadowy organization that’s left the real fight to a bunch of kids for 59 episodes straight and didn’t turn up until a perfect opportunity presented itself to take control of the largest city in the world and bask in the spotlight?

Yeah, no.

Similarly to the lionturtle-ex-machina, the White Lotus represents a huge missed opportunity for a season-long storytelling. Here’s just a brief list of what they could have been doing throughout Book 3:

orchestrating a Fire Nation uprising;

gathering those directly persecuted by AzulOzai’s regime to help Zuko keep his hold on power once he’s crowned;

establishing themselves as a viable alternative to Ozai;

sabotaging Fire Nation’s war efforts from the inside;

countering Fire Nation propaganda (Asha Greyjoy’s pinecones, anyone?);

running a supply network to alleviate the suffering of Earth Kingdom citizens.

Instead, they sit on their asses until the time comes to claim personal glory.

You know what, good on Bryke for making me conclude that in comparison, the Freedom Fighters were perfectly unproblematic, actually.

(-) Fire Lord Dead-by-Dawn

Yes, a kids’ show, I know! But ffs, this is the same kids’ show that came up with Long Feng and portrayed courtly intrigue, kingly puppets, secret police, spy networks, and information wars. Was it really too much of me to expect something other than “enlightened despot solves everything”? Especially if said enlightened despot has persisting anger issues, no personal support system, no base of followers, and no political experience whatsoever?

If Zuko’s actually serious about regaining the Fire Nation’s honor (i.e. by dismantling the country’s military machine, decolonizing the Earth Kingdom, paying reparations to everyone and their lemur, and funding any and all cultural restoration projects Aang and the SWT come up with), then there is no way, no way in the universe that he doesn’t face a civil war, deposing, and execution within a month.

One reason why his future as a Fire Lord seems rather bleak is that little’s been shown about the actual subjects of AzulOzai’s regime. While we get a vague reassurance that “no Toph, they’re not born bad” (le shockings), they largely remain a voiceless uniform mass of brainwashed clapping seals. What is their view on the Fire Nation’s crimes? Do they associate their condition with their country’s war-mongering? How will they react when Zuko starts dismantling the country piece by piece to rebuild it, bringing it to economic ruin? What will they do when noble Ozai loyalists come out of the woodwork and begin rounding them up under the banner of “Make the Fire Nation Great Again?”

I have no idea, and Zuko doesn’t either because he’s unironically more qualified to rule the Earth Kingdom than his own people.

You know what would have been better? Fire Lord Iroh, White Lotus pulling the strings to maintain the regime, and Crown Prince/People’s Champion Zuko travelling the Fire Nation with Aang and an army of tutors to promote the new boss, only to realize that absolute monarchy is kinda crap for the people he’s one day supposed to rule and gaining their support by ceding some power to them.

I’d laser holes into my TV due to how much I’d enjoy watching that.

(-) All hail Avatar Rock

Literally and metaphorically. Aang doesn’t sacrifice anything, gets everything, and the clever solution of going about getting said everything is handed to him on a silver platter, requiring no active participation on his part whatsoever.

He doesn’t work to unblock his chakras, spiritually or physically.

He only speaks to his past lives to get a pat on the back and a bow-tied solution he could mindlessly follow.

Energy-bending doesn’t require any sacrifice from him, leaves no lasting marks, and only serves for the narrative to praise him as the rare individual that’s unbendable and thus so very very special.

The most infuriating thing is, however, that Aang is clearly shown as being able to beat Ozai without either the Avatar state, or energy-bending.

And he chooses not to. From this moment on, Aang no longer fights to save the world. He fights to preserve his beliefs, going directly against the instructions of his past lives and effectively reneging on his duties as the Avatar.

Again.

It’s not like you can’t portray Aang’s faithfulness to his spiritual beliefs as the key to beating Ozai and saving the world. But that’s not what the show did. There is no link between Aang sparing Ozai and securing a better future, quite to the contrary—Ozai’s survival ends up being a massive problem for the continuation of Zuko’s rule, and consequently a threat to the world at large. His survival benefits Aang and no one else.

Aang’s spiritual purity and his status as a savior of the world are allowed to coexist only due to a deliberate stroke of a writer’s pen.

And I hate it.

Welp, nothing to do about it now except to bury myself up to my tits in fix-it fics I guess.

#atla #atla rewatch #meta #zutara #anti bryke #anti-kataang #anti-aang #anti-maiko

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saemi-the-writer · 3 years

Text

MT EPISODE REWRITING: DARK BLADE

Okay, this one is longer than the previous because I introduce some of my OCs and because the setting is different/takes longer than in canon. For continuity and character’s depvelopment’s sake, there will be more episodes like that, I hope you will enjoy them too. Btw, it’s one of my fav episode of the first season (mainly the akuma, I still find it very fun!)

Dark Blade, Miraculous team version!

(Takes place after Reflekta, early/mid-September)

Ms. Bustier announce to her class that the class rep election will be held in a week; she quickly reminds her students what the class rep role is, and their duties, before asking who would be interested in the job and/or the deputy. Chloé, Rose and Kim raise their hands for the class rep while Sabrina precises she goes for the deputy position. Ms. Bustier writes everything down and tell them they still have a whole week before the election and the bell rings. As the students get out, Alya notices that Marinette looks a bit down -jaded even- and asks her what’s wrong.

“Chloé is going to be class rep no matter what. She’s always been since 6th (first year of middle school) and it won’t change anytime soon.”

“Wait, you really think others want that blonde bully as a class rep?! She certainly doesn’t get my vote; Kim seems a better option even if he’s a bit dumb!”

“Yeah, if Kim maintains his candidacy. But the past two years, each time, all Chloé’s opponents gave up before the election, leaving her the only option. We didn’t have a choice.”

Alya is both shocked and annoyed to learn that, and the two discuss about it more before they split up to go home. They didn’t notice their teacher heard some of it. Once Marinette is home, she rushes to do her homework and finish her secret box, in case an akuma would appear in the evening or night. Tikki is a bit anxious that she writes all her secrets in her diary until she gets trapped in the box (like in canon). Marinette also assured her she wrote the part about her life as Ladybug in Chinese, so only her mom (or family on her mother side) could read it but they were little chance they’d get their hand on the diary or even want to read it. Before going dinnertime, Marinette confides in Tikki that she would have liked running for class rep, but she’s afraid she won’t have the time to do properly. Tikki tells her it will not hurt to try and that it would be a shame to leave the position to Chloé of all people, especially because she thinks that Marinette would be a great CP. Marinette feels a bit flattered but doesn’t change her mind (yet).

At dinnertime, she hears her parents talking about the incoming elections. They’re not really happy with either candidate, but they’d rather have Mr Bourgeois again as the mayor than Mr D’Argencourt. She listens with a distracted ear, choosing not to talk about the class rep elections.

Meanwhile, at the Agreste mansion, Gabriel and Nathalie have a similar conversation. Adrien listens carefully, curious about it since D’Argencourt is his fencing teacher. When Nathalie points out that D’Argencourt is too backward-looking (among other things) for her taste, it amuses Adrien who tells them that, indeed, his teacher has an old-fashioned way of speech and is sometimes too pompous. He imitates D’Argencourt shortly, making the two laugh a bit, then Gabriel reveals him that he had been seriously considering Adrien to change fencing lessons for a while because D’Argencourt tends to speak of politics too much in front of the children, imposing his point of view on them. “I am not paying him to spread his own propaganda.” While Adrien respects his teacher for his skills and enjoys fencing, he admits that he wouldn’t mind having a new -friendlier and more open-minded- teacher. Nathalie takes her tablet so they can show him the options they found.

As the week goes by, both Rose and Kim go to Ms. Bustier to tell her they withdraw their candidacy in turn. The teacher tries to change their mind, but when she realizes the two are really scared and were threatened/blackmailed, she stops. Ms Bustier is very upset, she speaks about it to some of her colleagues and the vice-principal (Damocles) only to hear that they can’t do much about it. The principal eats out of the mayor’s palm hand and so, he lets Chloé do whatever she wants. She goes to some of her students, asking them if they would be interested but they are either not interested at all or don’t want to confront Chloé. Only Adrien, Alya and Marinette answered “I am too busy, I won’t have the time to do it”. Marinette feels kinda sorry for her teacher who seems quite glum because of that, she starts having second thoughts. Tikki gives her a pep talk, then Marinette remembers that compared to Miss Tigri and the two giant snakes, Chloé seems ridiculous, which is why she manages to hold her ground and keep her seat, so she decides to go for it. Ms Bustier and her classmates are thrilled by her decision, whereas Chloé fumes and is already on the war path.

The following events are quite the same as canon then, all Marinette’s classmate congratulates her for her courage and have some requests for her. All of them are already planning to vote for her, Adrien too: he sees that Marinette will take her duty seriously. Then Chloé tries bribing them with albums and autographs of Jagged Stones. While Marinette rushes to the hotel, Sabrina goes to the bakery and uses the geometry book excuse; Sabine hesitates a bit because she doesn’t recognize Sabrina and cannot go and look for the book herself. Then, a young woman Sabrina doesn’t know speaks up:

“I can go and look for it with her, auntie!”

Sabrina is confused and wonders who that girl is, but Sabine, relieved at the sight of her niece, allows them to go. The girl introduce herself as Ryma -Marinette’s cousin- and the two climb to Marinette’s room. Sabrina is bothered by Ryma’s presence; she cannot search the room as she wishes nor talk to Chloé (who is hopping mad since Sabrina hung up on her in panic). However, she notices the diary in the box, and the moment Ryma turns her back on her, she rushes to take it. The two girls jump at the loud snap.

D’Argencourt is still bitter because he lost the elections and takes it out on his students, being harder and more demanding than usual. After showing off his move to Adrien, he makes his speech about his ancestor during his class (like canon). Adrien only listens out of politeness, eager for him to stop so he can go – plus, he (deep down) thinks D’Argencourt is a jerk, just like his ancestor. Gabriel comes to pick him up with his bodyguard, and while Adrien goes to change, Gabriel argues with D’Argencourt. The latter doesn’t take well that Gabriel wants his son to leave his “school”, nor how he cannot counter any argument Gabriel throws at him.

The fencer leaves only to be approached by Nadja Chamack and the sight of André Bourgeois’ picture is too much, he gets akumatized. Nadja and her cameraman are changed into knights, Gabriel and Adrien’s bodyguard see it and they both try to get Adrien to safety. They are changed as Adrien transforms and rushes out as Chat Noir.

Back at the hotel, Marinette feels a bit offended that her classmates (seem to) accept to be bribed; but when she asks them, most of them put it bluntly that they don’t intend on voting for Chloé.

“She will never keep her promises if she becomes class rep, so why should we keep ours?”

Marinette is left speechless, but she cannot blame them for making a false promise to her bully. Her phone rings, and she’s surprised to see it’s her cousin Ryma calling her. She gets more and more confused until Ryma arrives, pulling Sabrina behind her by her wrist.

“That girl was literally caught left-handed!” she tells Marinette, holding out Sabrina’s trapped hand for her to see.

Chloé runs to pull them all asides and is shocked as Ryma grabs her too then terrified by the older girl’s expression. Marinette tries to calm her cousin down, but they are interrupted by the akuma’s arrival. Like in canon, Marinette takes the lead, and they barricade the doors while Chat Noir and Pandora fight the knights outside, then she sneaks away when she can. Pandora is quite irritated as she fights off the knights and takes jabs at Dark Blade whenever she can, to both LB and CN’s surprise and amusement.

When the knights catapult themselves up, Chat Noir is the one who cries out “The flag! They are aiming for the flag!” and the three quickly climb up to prevent them from taking it. Pandora stations herself near the flag, fending them off (some Les Misérables references? Maybe!) while Ladybug uses her Lucky Charm. She gets a little bag full of itching powder and she throws it at Dark Blade after he tries to pull his move on Chat Noir (“Not twice!” yes, a Saint Seiya reference too sorry not sorry), CN uses his cataclysm on the sword and LB can capture the akuma and uses her miraculous healing.

The younger heroes have only a few minutes left, so after a group “pound it”, they leave. Pandora turns to D’Argencourt and offers to help him down the roof, but he is so rude and condescending to her that turns away. “Suit yourself, Messire. Good luck!” D’Argencourt stays stunned and huffs, trying clumsily to go down. A shadow appears behind him and reaches out:

“I think you would have been an amazing ruler, sir.” A smile. “We can help you restore your family’s former greatness, let us help you and together, we will lead the people of Paris to glory.”

D’Argencourt remains silent a moment, then takes the hand in his.

“Welcome among us, Armand D’Argencourt.”

The hands shake firmly.

Marinette sneaks back among her classmates, claiming she had been changed into a knight. Adrien does the same (and no one questions how and when he arrived at the hotel) before Chloé tries to make a scene, calling Marinette a quitter. It doesn’t last as Ryma butts in, still dragging a tearful Sabrina behind her; Marinette frees Sabrina’s hand and expose Chloé (well, she betrays herself but still). When Chloé tries to shift the blame on Sabrina, everyone rolls their eyes “yeah right, we know Sabrina is more your minion than friend.”. Although her victory is obvious, Marinette still makes a nice speech, showing them all that she does deserve to be class rep and gets a round of applause.

The following day, Marinette is officially the class president and Alya her deputy. She sees Ryma at the bakery later, who congratulates her. They both hug and Marinette thanks her again for defending her.

Adrien then joins his new fencing class and meets his new teacher, Laura Fleuret.

AN: Adrien’s new teacher is inspired by a real fencer Laura Flessel ; and if you wonder what Ryma looks like, here’s a reference)

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