Happy Friday, friends! Grab a cup of coffee or tea and settle into the Golden Gaia News Roundup! Simply click on the links to take you to the articles I’ve selected if you want to read more.
We begin with a focus on the Hong Kong Occupy Central demonstrations and then jump around from there. Here we go!
Hong Kong Occupy Central Demonstrations
The Hong Kong protest was begun by university students and joined by Occupy Central in response to a proposed vetting process of political candidates by Communist Beijing, before elections in the international business center, which came under Chinese control in 1997. It has morphed into a pro-democracy movement with much polarization, but the most distinct aspect of the protest, as with the protest in Turkey in 2013, is the use of social media in shaping public perception.
Why is Hong Kong protesting?-BBC News China
Both sides in this struggle are trying to stay one step ahead of the game, with media and technology blackouts used by the Chinese government and grass roots and off the grid technology implemented on the fly by Occupy Central leadership. The inhibitions are creating a forced evolution in the use of social media and global solidarity rallies are flooding Facebook.
Fake app targets activists’ smartphones-Patrick Boehler and Cedric Sam for South China Morning Post
Instagram appears blocked in China-BBC News Technology
Hong Kong’s ‘off-grid’ protesters-Sam Judah for BBC Trending
‘Global Solidarity with Hong Kong’ Facebook Support-James Griffiths for South China Morning Post
One Facebook group is creating an art installation sharing messages of solidarity to be viewed by protestors in Hong Kong. The messages can be left by anyone who wishes to support the movement.
Stand By You-Solidarity and Support
Moving on….
Things aren’t always as they seem when you get equipment from the Pentagon.
Sometimes it’s nice to get things for free, but what happens when you want to return it? Local law enforcement departments are scrambling to return Pentagon funded combat gear in the aftermath of the Ferguson debacle. Seems the Pentagon would rather keep these military items in circulation than take them back.
Police Can’t Get Rid of Their Pentagon-Issued Combat Gear-Molly Redden for Mother Jones
Please Mr. President, just release all those documents.
In most cases, the US government releases classified documents after 50 years, with few exceptions. This has not been the case with information pertaining to the assassination of John F. Kennedy and related Secret Service misconduct, and many are tired of this. Also includes links to a White House petition to release the classified materials for increased transparency around this event, which may shed light on the Cold War with Cuba.
Obey the Law and Share JKF and Secret Service Records – Thom Hartmann and Lamar Waldron for Alternet
Is the Supreme Court a supreme failure? A scholar shares his thoughts.
Erwin Chemerinksy, an expert in US Constitutional law, is publishing The Case Against the Supreme Court this month. Here, he speaks on the foundations of the Supreme Court, it’s evolution and where it has gone horribly wrong in supporting business above the rights of the people and upholding the Constitution. He also makes some bold suggestions for holding the Court accountable to its ultimate ruler, the Constitution of the United States.
The Supreme Court Has Failed-Erwin Chemerinksy for Politico Magazine
Got cash? These people do!
Meet the top ten list from the new Forbes 400 which ranks the wealthiest individuals in America. The combined net worth of this group is $2.29 Trillion. To put this into perspective, or show the absolute disparity of this number, the Gross National Product of the United States updated on 10/1/2014 by Trading Economics is 16,180.70 Billion. What would be wonderful to see is their philanthropy spending and the charities that they support.
The 10 Wealthiest People In America-Megan Willett of Business Insider
Don’t like Facebook? Hello Ello!
A Vermont bike store owner developed a social network for his friends called Ello. It began with 90 users and a pledge to eschew advertising and share user data. Ello opened to the public on August 7, 2014 and receives about 31,000 requests per hour to use it’s services. Dubbed the Anti-Facebook, they plan on monetizing the site by selling Apps to users. Contains interesting comments about what marketers believe are consumers’ feelings related to advertising and data mining.
‘Anti-Facebook’ platform Ello attracts thousands-Zoe Kleinman of BBC News Technology
It may be impossible to imagine a world without Facebook, as it is a giant in social media, but there are plenty of social networking platforms that disappeared over the years, many created by industry leaders.
Five Social Network Flops-Hannah Francis of The Sydney Morning Herald
I hope you have a wonderful day. If you have any articles you want to share with our wonderful group, or suggestions going forward, please go to the Contact Us form and hit “News Tips” and it will show you what to do. Thanks so much!
Be Well. Be Joy. Be Love!
Alex