Neuralink, Iran Escalation, Media Collapse, Border Standoff, ICJ Ruling
The People's News for the People's Coin 1/24-1/30
Hey everyone,
This news digest covers the following stories from the past week:
1. Neuralink’s first patient
2. The US foreign policy establishment’s escalation with Iran
3. Corporate media’s collapse
4. The border standoff between Texas and the Biden Administration
5. The ICJ’s finding about genocide in Palestine
Don’t miss videos, memes, and news bites at the end!
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Neuralink’s First Patient
On Monday, Elon announced that Neuralink had implanted its first brain chip in a human patient.
He explained the chip, called Telepathy, will allow disabled patients to communicate through digital devices.
Eventually, Neuralink hopes to restore movement to people through a combination of brain chips and artificial limbs.
He has also talked about using the technology to give sight to the blind.
Reaction to the news of the first Neuralink implant was divided.
Technological optimists viewed the news as a positive step toward a merger of human and digital intelligence, known as the merge.
Some influencers otherwise supportive of Elon expressed distrust about digital augmentation of the human experience.
A middle view argued that mastery of the technology is necessary on pragmatic grounds.
Elon has advocated for brain chips as the solution to the problem of alignment: by tying the development of Artificial Intelligence to the human body, he hopes to ensure that AI doesn’t develop an anti-human bias and drive humanity toward extinction.
What do you think: Do the potential benefits of Neuralink merit the risks? Or is there something inherently wrong about merging humans with machines?
For a deep dive on Neuralink for the layperson, check out this article
Iran Escalation
On Sunday, three American service members were killed and 25 injured as a result of a “suicide” drone strike at a US base in Jordan, near the Syria border.
After the strike, President Biden blamed Iran for supplying the weapons used for the attack: “While we are still gathering the facts of this attack, we know it was carried out by radical Iran-backed militant groups operating in Syria and Iran.”
Military escalation in the Middle East has been seen by many as an inevitable outcome since the US pledged full support to back Israel after Hamas’s 10/7 attack.
The Iran situation adds to a growing list of conflicts on President Biden’s plate, both at home and abroad.
The attack set off a political debate over the appropriate US response to the drone strike.
On the neoconservative right, the response was swift and unambiguous, with Lindsey Graham, Nikki Haley, Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton, Texas Senator John Cornyn, and others calling for retaliatory strikes against Iran as a show of strength.
In opposition, Tucker Carlson represented the America First agenda with a mega-viral post calling the neoconservative warmongers “Fucking lunatics.”
Elon, who frequently represents the moderate perspective in political debates, chimed in by highlighting a meme about Graham’s love of war.
He also posted a satirical article about Graham in response to a post by David Sacks urging the US to think about its long-term strategy in Iran.
Trump used his platform to express condolences to the families of servicemen, contrasted his policy on Iran with the Biden Administration, and called for “an immediate return to “PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH.”
On Monday, with US military retaliation looking increasingly probable, Carlson published an interview with Washington state politician Joe Kent about the possibility of war with Iran.
Kent urged the US to stay out of conflict with Iran by arguing that those pushing for war do not represent the American people: “The foreign policy establishment is absolutely destroying the United States of America. They’re attempting to make us sacrifice our republic for an empire that does nothing for the American people.”
Later in the day, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, “I would argue that we have not seen a situation as dangerous as the one we're facing now across the region since at least 1973.” Many interpreted Blinken’s comments as justification for American intervention.
Yesterday, more reports suggested the United States was preparing to launch a counterstrike on Iranian proxies, while Biden insisted he did not want to start a wider war in the Middle East.
The looming conflict dominated the memesphere over the weekend and into this week.
Many were evergreen memes recycled from Ukraine, Israel, Yemen, and other conflicts.
What do you think: Is war with Iran inevitable? Do the people making the decision represent the will of the American public?
For more coverage of the conflict with Iran, Glenn Greenwald’s podcast System Update explored why American presence in the Middle East benefits Israel more than America, and argued that escalating with Iran is reckless.
Corporate Media Crumbles
Layoffs have rocked the media industry to start the year.
In 2024, Business Insider, The LA Times, Sports Illustrated, TIME, Forbes, and Condé Nast hve all announced significant firing campaigns.
The wave of layoffs comes on the heels of a brutal 2023 for corporate media, in which the New York Times lost $30M and cut 74 jobs and the Washington Post lost $100M and cut 240.
Washington Post reporter Taylor Lorenz, a defender of legacy media, bemoaned the decline in media institutions in a viral video last Wednesday.
Several factors are causing the media shakeup.
At an economic level, Internet advertising has made print and TV journalism steadily less profitable over the last two decades. It’s more efficient for advertisers to target customers through social media rather than run ads in newspapers or on TV.
As advertising dollars have fled legacy outlets for the Internet, once austere media institutions lowered journalistic standards and published more click-baity content.
Competing for eyeballs on the Internet has also caused legacy news to become more politicized. Many outlets have dropped any pretense of objectivity and embraced emotion-driven political perspectives.
The LA Times is the most egregious offender in this respect, publishing a slew of woke and divisive articles so over-the-top that the headlines have become memes used to illustrate the media’s ideological bias.
Similarly, Sports Illustrated’s decision to feature transgender and obese models on covers of recent swimsuit issues likely alienated its subscriber base by force feeding a niche political agenda to an otherwise non-partisan audience.
The decline of corporate media has set the stage for a golden age of independent citizen journalism online. More than any other website or app, 𝕏 is poised to capture this market.
As a platform, 𝕏 is favored by independent journalists for defending free speech during a time of growing censorship.
Its Subscription and ad revenue sharing programs allow writers to monetize their work without relying on an institution for a paycheck.
The arrival of 𝕏 Payments later this year, and the anticipated release of pay-per-article, should give journalists even more ways to fund their work.
At the core of 𝕏’s appeal is that it gives individuals the power to determine the news narrative.
Like any narrative, the news narrative has its own arc, emotional tone, and protagonists.
The corporate narrative’s predominant emotion is fear. Its narrative arc suggests that civilization and democracy is in a state of perpetual decline.
Protagonists are chosen on the basis of adherence to a narrow political agenda; bad guys are anyone who opposes it.
This narrative is orchestrated by a handful of well connected insiders and gatekeepers.
Newscasters, journalists, and pundits who amplify the narrative are given a platform. Those who dissent are shown the door, or are denied a voice in the first place.
More than advertising space or prestige, control of the news narrative is the media’s most valuable commodity. Its strongest opprobrium is reserved for figures who threaten control.
𝕏 gives regular people more control over which narratives they prefer.
For example, a growing segment of 𝕏 favors a narrative of techno-optimism, which holds that civilization is not in decline but on the rise due to exponential advances in technology. Populist narratives, which advocate divesting the elites of power and returning it to regular people, also tend to do well on 𝕏.
𝕏 users have the ability to vote on the narratives they find most compelling, either passively through likes and clicks, or actively through authorship of posts and articles.
In this way, truth arises organically as the sum of millions of interactions big and small, an emergent property of an endlessly active hive mind.
Ironically, this is a far more democratic and egalitarian approach than a system managed from the top by a handful of unaccountable editors, gatekeepers, and advertisers deciding what counts as newsworthy or true.
Social media has been chipping away at the corporate news narrative for years. Now the confrontation has reached a tipping point: look for more big news stories about the news in 2024.
What do you think: is the decline in legacy media institutions dangerous to democracy? Or is it a necessary development to clear the way for better things to come?
Texas Border Standoff
Last week, the US Southern border crisis turned into a standoff between Texas and the Biden Administration.
It started on Wednesday, when Texas Governor Greg Abbot posted a letter to social media declaring an invasion under the Texas Constitution and invoking the state’s right to defend itself.
The letter was a response to escalating disagreement between Texas and the Biden Administration over the latter’s failure to enforce immigration law at the border.
Abbott’s response was widely praised on 𝕏. Elon applauded the letter and again accused the federal government of encouraging illegal immigration.
The letter set off a cascade of conservative state governors issuing statements expressing solidarity with Texas.
When the dust settled, 25 states had issue statements of support, with many pledging to send troops to help Texas protect its border.
Thursday afternoon, Trump wrote, “We encourage all willing States to deploy their guards to Texas to prevent the entry of Illegals, and to remove them back across the Border.”
RFK Jr also sided with Texas, citing the Biden Administation’s failure to secure the border as justification for states no choice to take action.
Abbott’s letter was a response to a Supreme Court decision earlier in January which ruled that Texas had to allow the Biden Administration access to border territory in Eagle Pass.
Previously, the federal DHS appealed to the Supreme Court to get permission to remove barbed wire barriers erected by Texas to deter immigrants.
Vivek argued that Texas was not defying the Supreme Court by declaring an emergency or putting up more barbed wire.
Charlie Kirk agreed, saying Texas was engaging in calculated brinksmanship with the federal government.
Thursday, the Biden Administration reportedly gave Gregg Abbot a Friday deadline to remove razor wire from the border
On Friday, the Biden Administration’s deadline passed without Texas removing its barriers.
Abbott explained the decision: "The Executive Branch of the United States has a constitutional duty to enforce federal laws protecting States...President Biden has instructed his agencies to ignore federal statutes.”
Biden retaliated by freezing permits for new liquified natural gas (LNG) exports, a decision that disproportionately impacts Texas and effectively acts as a sanction on the state’s economy.
The Biden Administration spokesperson explained the decision in terms of climate change, and Biden released a video with similar justification: “Today’s pause on new natural gas export approvals recognizes the climate crisis for what it is: the existential threat of our time.”
Abbot responded, "Biden’s decision to freeze LNG exports threatens Texas—and America. This reckless decision is a gut punch to the hard-working men and women in the energy industry. It also could cause some countries to rely upon dirty coal as opposed to cleaner burning natural gas."
Later in the day, Biden released a statement calling on Congress to pass legislation to protect the border that would allow him to exercise “new emergency authority.”
Elon wrote back, arguing that no new legislation is needed and that the Biden Administration simply needs to stop allowing any migrant to claim asylum-seeking status without proof.
In another exchange below Biden’s post, Elon said, “the fundamental problem is that anyone can claim asylum with zero proof, which means all of Earth can come to America.”
Meanwhile, Abbott appeared on Tucker Carlson, where he revealed that at least 10 states were preparing to send troops to Texas and that he was prepared for the possibility of conflict with federal authorities.
In another episode, Tucker reported on a trucker convoy heading to Texas to raise support for border protection.
Over the weekend, the standoff eased out of the spotlight as attention turned to the Middle East, but the story continued to develop.
Monday night, Abbott posted polling data showing the overwhelming majority of Americans support Texas’s efforts to close the border.
Elon continued to highlight posts about the situation, including a report of volunteer groups instructing migrants on how to speak to border patrol to be given asylum…
…and a list of actions taken by the Biden administration to make it easier to enter the US illegally.
Tuesday, Biden again called on Congress to pass new border legislation, telling reporters, “I've done all I can do. Just give me the power. I’ve asked from the very day I got into office. Give me the border patrol, give me the people, the judges, give me the people who can stop this.”
In another viral clip, a Democratic California congressman went on the offensive, claiming "The Donald Trump and MAGA plan for the border” included “Alligator moats, bombing northern Mexico, shooting migrants in the legs, and electrifying the fence and putting spikes on them."
Over the last week, the border standoff grew into a massive story, and the only thing that slowed it down was escalation with Iran. Here are some other highlights:
Tucker argued open borders was an electoral strategy
Elon posted alarming footage of the border
Bill Ackman posted a letter about the FBI’s concern of terrorists crossing into the US
Biden undid Trump border protection first day in office
Obama in 2005: “We all agree on the need to better secure the border…we simply can not allow people to pour into the United States undetected, undocumented, unchecked, and circumventing the line of people...who are waiting lawfully”
Trump said, "Within moments of my inauguration, we will begin the largest domestic deportation operation in American history. We have no choice.”
Elon said its was inevitable that citizen would be asked to house illegal immigrants in private residences
Damon Imani released a hilarious open border meme
House Republicans unveiled articles of impeachment for DHS Secretary Mayorkas
Elon said the # of illegal immigrants is closer to 20M than the reported 6M-12M
Of course, border memes stayed red hot throughout the standoff. Here are a few winners:
The ICJ’s Israel-Palestine Ruling
On Friday, the UN’s International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued an emergency ruling that Israel had committed acts of genocide against Palestinians in its response to Hamas’s 10/7 attack.
A 17-judge panel ruled 15-2 that “some allegations against Israel appear to fall under the Genocide Convention” and “Palestinians appear to be a protected group under the convention.”
It also established data to quantify the extent of Israel’s 10/7 response: “The Israeli campaign led to the deaths of about 25,000, the injury of about 60,000, and the displacement of a large number of citizens."
The ICJ is the highest court of the UN. The genocide claim was brought by South Africa, whose President Cyril Ramaphosa compared Israel’s treatment of Palestinians to his own country’s apartheid regime.
The court stopped short of ordering a ceasefire, leading to debate over the ruling’s impact.
Critics of Israel pointed out that the ruling is unlikely to change Israel’s approach to Palestine, even as it hurts its standing among other nations.
Edward Snowden claimed the reason the ICJ didn’t order ceasefire is because it would be unable to enforce such a ruling as long as the US is backing Israel.
The ruling also provoked a strong reaction from the pro-Israel political faction in the West.
The US State Department responded to the ruling by claiming that the genocide allegation is “baseless.” Israeli officials accused ICJ of anti-semitism.
On Sunday morning in widely circulated clip, Nancy Pelosi said calls for a ceasefire were “Mr. Putin’s message”, pro-Palestinian protestors were “connected to Russia”, and some of the groups supporting Palestine should be investigated by the FBI
The day after the ICJ’s ruling, Israel accused United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) of being linked to Hamas.
Israel alleged that roughly 10% of UNRWA’s 13,000 employees are members of Hamas, and 12 employees participated in the 10/7 attacks
The accusation’s timing the day after the ICJ ruling led some to question Israel’s motivation.
Still, the claim caused several Western countries to suspend funding to UNRWA, leading to doubts about whether the organization would be able to continue distributing food, water, and medicine to Palestinians in Gaza.
What do you think: Is Israel committing genocide? Or are Israel’s accusers acting out of anti-Semitism?
Top Videos
1. Ice Cube tells Bill Maher the same investors who own prisons also own record labels, and promote criminality in music to fill up prisons:
2. RFK Jr argued that the disparity between independent and institutional media most affects baby boomers. Elon commented on the video, “He’s right.”
3. The Heart-Brain connection:
4. Julian Assange on how we live in a ‘media-ocracy’, where what is politically possible is defined by the media environment:
5. Mike Benz on how NATO developed the field of “cognitive security” to justify running psychological operations on its own citizens:
6. A montage of Trump talking about the border:
7. Did Nazis make contact with aliens?
8. Predictive programming from a religious perspective.
Dogey Treats: News Bites
Elon’s Businesses
In an interview with Ben Shapiro, Elon discussed the broadening of the Overton Window.
Elon responded to another report that xAI was seeking investors to raise capital by denying the claim
Fidelity marked up the value of its shares in 𝕏 11% during December.
The first human received a Neuralink implant on Sunday. Elon suggested that Neuralink was the only way for humanity to rein in AGI and avoid being at the mercy of machine intelligence.
A Delaware judge voided Elon’s performance-based compensation plan with Tesla, Elon contemplated moving Tesla to Texas.
US Politics
The Biden Campaign criticized Elon Musk for 𝕏’s content moderation policies about election fraud.
The New York Times published an article about the Biden campaign’s expectation of an endorsement from Taylor Swift, confirming speculation that Swift is expected to play a significant role in the 2024 election. Vivek suggested the Super Bowl would be rigged to bring more attention to Swift.
Snopes was forced to retract a fact-check about President Biden after a strong response on 𝕏. Elon wrote, “ “Snopes is a political psy-op” – Fact check true”
Hilary Clinton said right-wing extremists are planning to steal the 2024 election. She also made a post about Barbie, Margot Robie, and the Oscars. Elon posted a meme about Barbie.
The NY Post reported that the Trump team reached out to RFK Jr early on about serving as VP. RFK Jr said his campaign is “looking at” seeking the Libertarian PArty nomination. Dave Smith, a leader in the party, said RFK’s stance on the war in Gaza is disqualifying because “We are THE antiwar, non-interventionist party and that’s non negotiable.” A new Harvard/Harris poll showed RFK maintaining a massive lead in favorability over both Trump and Biden.
Evidence emerged of a Ukrainian arms firm embezzling $40M of US funds to support the war.
Minnesota congresswoman Ilhan Omar went viral for comments about using her position to direct US policy to serve Somalia. Vivek and Elon both suggested that all members of Congress should be required to disclose if they are dual citizens.
An IRS contractor was sentenced to five years in prison for leaking Trump’s tax returns to the press. Snoop Dogg said he has "nothing but love and respect" for Trump.
Trump trial
Trump’s defamation trial with his accuser E. Jean Carrol dominated political discussion throughout the week.
On the day of the verdict, Trump lawyer Alina Habba was threatened by the judge in the trial for attempting to show the jury slides with Carroll’s social media posts. Carroll was awarded $83M for Trump’s allegedly defamatory social media in which he denied Carrol’s accusation of sexual assault.
In The National Pusle, Raheem Kassam published a thorough deconstruction of the case:
Carroll “has accused multiple men of sexually assaulting or raping her throughout her life, including a babysitter’s boyfriend, a dentist, a camp counselor, an unnamed college date, an unnamed boss, and CBS chief executive Les Moonves.”
Carroll’s allegations mirror the plot of Law and Order: SVU, a show Carroll said she binge watches
Carroll’s legal effort being funded by LinkedIn founder and Jeffrey Epstein associate Reid Hoffman, who also provided funding for Nikki Haley’s campaign
The dress Carroll claimed to be wearing when Trump allegedly assaulted her in 1994 had not been made until 1995; Carroll refused to submit the dress for DNA evidence even though she claimed it was unwashed
After the case, it was revealed that Judge Kaplan failed to disclose worked with Carroll’s attorney as a mentor in the 90s.
Monday night, Rachel Maddow asked Carrol what she was going to do with “Trump’s money” to help women’s rights. Carroll responded, "go shopping, get completely new wardrobes, new shoes...Rachel, what do you want, penthouse?"
Global Financial System
China’s biggest property developer Evergrande was ordered by a Hong Kong court to begin liquidating its assets.
Vanguard released a report explaining why it is not offering Bitcoin ETFs to its clients: “It’s an immature asset class that has little history, no inherent economic value, no cash flow, and can create havoc within a portfolio.”
The Bank of International Settlements is moving into a new phase of its CBDC project, called Project Promissa. Britain is beginning design work on a digital pound.
Geopolitics
French farmers began a blockade in protest of EU policies, Media continued to ignore the protests. Michael Shellenberger’s Public published an article arguing that billionaires Pierre Omidyar and George Soros were funding media campaigns against the farmers’ protests.
Israel-Palestine
The Houthis struck a UK oil ship with a missile. Later, they promised Russia and China safe passage through the Red Sea. Glenn Greenwald said, “The seriousness of the new US war in the Red Sea and with Yemen has been vastly understated and under-covered.” Shpping rates are rising.
Health
The truth about vegetable seed oils.
The CDC drafted myocarditis alert about Covid vaccines but never sent it to avoid causing a panic.
A study found that Oreos were more effective at lowering cholesterol than statin drugs.
A peer-reviewed study found a strong safety signal for myocarditis associated with Covid-19 mRNA vaccines.
Misc
OpenAI’s ChatGPT explores the ways that AI could control the world.
James O’Keefe posted a photo of himself staring next to a gold replica of the Ark of the Covenant at Mar-A-Lago, and encouraged speculation about its significance. Speculation that the Ark was lent to Trump by Israel.
Vince McMahon resigned from the WWE after being accused of sexual assault and sex trafficking.
Ben Shapiro released his rap debut “FACTS”, which became the #1 song on iTunes and drew attention from Nicki Minaj.
Memes of the Week
Elon’s Memes
Thank You!
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