[Aljazeera] A Nigerian social media influencer who called himself Ray Hushpuppi and flaunted a lavish lifestyle supported by laundering millions of dollars was sentenced Monday in Los Angeles to more than 11 years in federal prison.
Ramon Abbas, 40, was also ordered by a federal judge to pay $1.7m in restitution to two fraud victims, according to a statement from the United States Department of Justice.
Abbas was "one of the most prolific money launderers in the world," Don Alway, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles office, said in the statement. Don sez Abbas has 'been on their radar' since 1983.
Prosecutors said Abbas and a Canadian man laundered money from various online crimes including bank cyberheists and business email compromise, or BEC, a prolific crime in which crooks hack into email accounts, pretend to be someone they’re not, and fool victims into wiring money where it doesn’t belong.
In 2019, he helped launder some $14.7m stolen by North Korean hackers from a bank in Malta, funnelling the money through banks in Romania and Bulgaria, prosecutors said. Got to love a Wraith ride.
He also helped launder millions of pounds stolen from a British company and a professional football club in the United Kingdom, got a New York-based law firm to transfer nearly $923,000 to a criminal account, and acknowledged in a plea agreement that he helped defraud someone in Qatar who sought a $15m loan to build a school, federal prosecutors said.
[The Hill] If you were patiently waiting for Monday night’s Powerball numbers to be drawn, you’ll have to wait a little while longer. Water line rupture down in B1 ?
A technical error has caused a delay in Monday’s numbers being drawn, a games spokesperson said during the scheduled drawing at 10:59 p.m. ET.
Additional details have not yet been made available.
According to the California Lottery, Monday’s drawing has been delayed “due to participating lottery needing extra time to complete the required security protocols.”
“Powerball has strict security requirements that must be met by all 48 lotteries before a drawing can occur,” the California Lottery wrote on Twitter. “When the required security protocols are complete, the drawing will be performed under the supervision of lottery security officials and independent auditors.”
In a tweet shortly after 12:30 AM ET, the California Lottery explained an issue in another state is causing the delay. They added that “there is currently no estimated time for the drawing.” Credibility and trust: once lost are verrry hard to get back
Posted by: 3dc ||
11/08/2022 01:17 ||
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Link ||
[11134 views]
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#1
So election officials are running the lottery now
[Daily Caller] A psychologist is accusing Google of manipulating American citizens to influence the outcome of the November midterm elections.
Robert Epstein and his research team from the American Institute for Behavioral Research and Technology have been monitoring online political content being sent to voters in swing states. As part of the research, the team is looking into search engine results on Google and Bing, messages displayed on Google’s homepage, tweets sent by Twitter, email suppression on Gmail, auto-play videos suggested on Google-owned YouTube, and so on.
The study found over 1.9 million "ephemeral experiences" that Google and other firms were using to "shift opinions and voting preferences," Epstein wrote in a Nov. 6 article for the Daily Caller. "Ephemeral experiences" are short-lived content that immediately disappears without leaving a trace after user consumption. But wait! The good professor has a plan underway!
"Carefully crafted search suggestions that flash at you while you are typing a search term can turn a 50/50 split among undecided voters into a 90/10 split with no one knowing they have been manipulated," Epstein writes.
"A single question-and-answer interaction on a digital personal assistant can shift the voting preferences of undecided voters by more than 40 percent." Fortunately, Rantburgers are not undecided.
Ahead of the 2022 election, "a high level of liberal bias" is being seen in Google search results in swing states like Arizona, Florida, and Wisconsin, Epstein wrote. Search results from Bing did not indicate such bias. Bing must have yet-undetected means of bias.
In multiple swing states, liberal news sources make up 92 percent of auto-play videos being sent to YouTube users, which can potentially shift "hundreds of thousands of votes" on Election Day, he warned.
Back in 2020, Epstein and his team collected 1.5 million ephemeral experiences from 1,735 field agents which were "sufficient, in theory," to shift over 6 million votes to Joe Biden’s favor. Epstein had supported Biden at the time, he said.
He found that Google sent more voting reminders to moderates and liberals than conservatives, which Epstein calls a "brazen and powerful manipulation." Well, I never said Gurgle was stoopid.
Google also "turned off all manipulations" in the 2020 Georgia Senate races after three Republican senators sent a letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai which discussed Epstein’s findings on manipulation (pdf). Political bias in Google search results "dropped to zero" after the letter, he pointed out. Or they altered their methods.
In an April interview with EpochTV’s "American Thought Leaders," Epstein also talked about online platforms using surveys to "help" users decide whom to vote for. In such surveys, users are given a quiz and the platforms tell them how good a match they are for specific candidates.
In an experiment, Epstein’s team found that they were able to shift a significant number of people’s voting preferences to the candidate that was presented as being their best match. Amazing! The computer helped me to decide to vote (D)!
"Opinion matching is a fantastic way to manipulate people because you can shift people very, very, very dramatically, and they have no clue. They do not suspect any kind of bias or manipulation."
About 96 percent of donations from Silicon Valley firms, including Google, go toward the Democratic Party, he added. Now that's news you can use!
Posted by: Bobby ||
11/08/2022 08:39 ||
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[11130 views]
Top|| File under: Tin Hat Dictators, Presidents for Life, & Kleptocrats
#1
Interesting. See, came across an ad for a Big Food company who used to advertise a special 5 for $5 sandwiches. This used to be good for a couple meals.
Today, bragging about their special, it is now 4 for $10 and I'm telling you, last time I ate there it was more bread than filling.
#2
Oh, another Big Food place makes the Making Hay off Bad Economy, this one sells chicken.
"Our box meal is still $6!!!" No reason to yell about it other than expenses keep going up.
And is it the same size? Fast food place I try to eat at on a yearly trip had little potato things, a big size was about 2 cups worth. Now, it is 1 cup. Menu item sizes remain, but prices are up 30-50% depending on ingredients.
But I'm just seeing things right. Supposed to rejoice my gasoline is only 2x more than it used to be instead of 2.5x.
But a talking paperclip makes me forget Da Governess tried shutting down my business on sending the National Guard to take over meat processing, choke agricultural activities.
[PJ] On Sunday night, Jack Dorsey, the founder and former CEO of Twitter, seemed to suggest that Elon Musk is to blame for tracking codes being automatically added when sharing tweets.
"These tracking additions when sharing a tweet are a step backwards," Dorsey tweeted, then suggested that they be removed entirely.
There’s just one huge problem with Dorsey’s implying that these tracking codes are new, and therefore a brainchild of new CEO Elon Musk: They’re anything but new. These tracking codes have been used for at least a year, if not longer. I’ve been deleting tracking codes from the URLs of embedded tweets from my articles at PJ Media for a long time now, whether it’s just a traffic source tracking parameter or the tracking token cited above by Dorsey.
Twitter users quickly pointed out that these tracking tokens have been around for a while, and were actually introduced while he was CEO.
So, this has me wondering, did Dorsey not realize that this had happened while he was CEO, or did he actually try to pull a fast one by suggesting that Musk was embracing Big Brother?
[The Firearm Blog] CZ has announced the "Order of the White Lion" edition of the CZ 75 pistol, which will be manufactured over the next year. As you can see from the images, the CZ 75 Order of the White Lion edition pistol is decorated with Czech national symbols, like the linden tree leaves and the double-tailed lion. The pistol grips are made from birch root. Hoo boy! I can hear the "White supremaciss!" screeching now.
If the limited edition of 100 pieces isn’t special enough, you can bid for the very first CZ 75 of the series in a special online event by the Artslimit auction portal of the Kodl Gallery.
This limited edition pistol also comes with its special case.
The Order of the White Lion is the highest state honor for both Czech citizens and foreigners for outstanding services to the Czech Republic, eminent contributions to the defense and security of the state, and for enhancing the nation’s international reputation. It is a continuation of a Czechoslovak order of the same name created in 1922.
To commemorate the centennial of the Order of the White Lion, the Office of the President of the Republic commissioned a hand-engraved, 100-piece edition of the legendary CZ 75 pistol from Ceska zbrojovka ("CZ"), the Czech Republic-based subsidiary of Colt CZ Group and a long-term partner of the Czech Armed Forces.
Colt CZ Group is proud to announce that it will be the world’s first small arms producer to authenticate firearms with blockchain technology. For this special CZ edition, each unique Order of the White Lion pistol will be blockchain-authenticated in cooperation with the BlockTrust company and its Web3-as-a-Service platform.
"We believe blockchain can bring outstanding innovation to the commercial firearms industry. It will allow us to introduce new standards of authenticity, safety, and trust never seen before. We are proud to be leading the way with this technology as one of the largest manufacturers of firearms in the world. The non-fungible tokens bring to our customers a digital proof of ownership and assurance of authenticity of these unique collectibles, thus increasing their value. We are also proud to associate our first blockchain-authenticated product with the highest Czech state decoration, the Order of the White Lion," underlined Jan Drahota, CEO of Colt CZ Group.
Due to the high-demand for limited, hand-engraved special editions of pistols by CZ, Colt CZ Group has decided to give a fair chance to its customers worldwide to obtain the CZ 75 Order of the White Lion by making it available for purchase through an NFT (non-fungible token) auction process, for the first time in the history of the company. The physical firearms will be delivered to the holders of a winning digital auction certificate, as they are handcrafted over the coming year.
As the CZ 75 Order of the White Lion is a truly limited-edition firearm, Colt CZ Group has created a unique opportunity: Any purchaser can ensure they receive the next physical firearm created by topping up their bid to be first on the list for the serial number of their choice. Those interested to know more about the NFT auction, which will take place in the coming weeks, can register on this website: https://engravings.czub.cz/en/cz-75-white-lion/.
Colt CZ Group will donate part of the proceeds from the NTF auction and the bid top-ups to the collection account of the Embassy of Ukraine in the Czech Republic in support of the Ukrainian Army.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
11/08/2022 00:00 ||
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#1
Sure is a beaut. zdravím!
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
11/08/2022 0:56 Comments ||
Top||
#2
Beautiful artwork on an excellent hardware platform, but as one comment at the site states "a cz 75 has to look like a cz 75, giving it a Bling is like turning a Wulf in to a Pudel".
Posted by: Mullah Richard ||
11/08/2022 7:38 Comments ||
Top||
#3
The world always has room for another pretty barbecue pistol.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
11/08/2022 7:47 Comments ||
Top||
[GEOTV] Body language expert Judi James have taken a closer look at Princess Meghan Markle ...unlikable American former starlet married to the formerly likable Prince Harry. Chock full of lefty political opinions, Markle's most important characteristic is that she is Black, even though she doesn't look it. Her mother, y'see, is half black and her father is white, which would make her a quarter Black. Her half brother described her (to her husband, before their marriage) as a jaded, shallow, conceited woman that will make a joke of you and the royal family heritage. Once married, she was too good for the Royals and she and Harry decamped to Beverly Hills, kind of like the Clampetts did, thus making a joke of Harry and the royal family heritage... and Kate Middleton's relationship, saying they perform to stop rumours of a rift rather than signaling of any 'authentic friendship'.
James claimed that Kate, the Princess of Wales and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex lacked an "authentic friendship", in another dose of body language analysis with Express UK.
The expert said that, while they have appeared together as the "best of friends" since the last pictures showed them alongside Princes Harry and William, events since have produced "signal poses".
Posted by: Fred ||
11/08/2022 00:00 ||
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#8
My sense is that Kate is the key to keeping the Duchess of Sussex out of the realm. As her PR value slips and her middle-aged image becomes more ordinary, the Ginger Idiot and his bride will slide into d-list oblivion.
#9
It isn’t their job to be friends. It is their job to set a good example in public and not cause scandals. And to produce heirs and spares – nothing else is important.
#1
Rather lose 40 year old F-15s or 30 year old F-16s than F-22s in the initial missile barrage. In addition, the F-22s will be visiting squadrons, not based there and not as familiar with the territory.
[NYP] Republican voters in Eastern and Central Oregon are so fed up with liberal lawmakers that they want to break rank — and state lines — and become part of Idaho.
On Tuesday, two Oregon counties, Morrow and Wheeler, are set to vote on a ballot measure about whether to explore leaving the state. Since 2020, nine counties in Eastern Oregon have already voted to join the Greater Idaho movement.
"People in Eastern Oregon are just different and have different views on crime, the Second Amendment, abortion, taxes and minimum wage [from the western portion of the state]," Matt McCaw, spokesman for Greater Idaho, told The Post. "The polarization with the western part of the state is real. When I meet with people and host meetings, there are a lot of complaints about the lack of representation. Eastern Oregon is just very conservative and has its own culture."
#4
The State of Jefferson Committees have performed poorly over the years, with some fears that the effort is being torpedoed from within. I can see why those OR counties are throwing in with Greater Idaho with their vote.
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
11/08/2022 14:45 Comments ||
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#5
Folks around here are starting to talk about a new state - East Dakota.
[GEOTV] Eleven former or serving French bishops have been accused of sexual violence, including a cardinal who has confessed to assaulting a minor more than three decades ago, a senior church body announced Monday.
Jean-Pierre Ricard, a long-standing bishop of Bordeaux who was made a cardinal by Pope Francis ...Argentine liberation theologist, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio. He was elected pope in 2013. Rather than setting up shop in Avignon, where he belongs, the first Jesuit Pope chose to reside in the Domus Sanctae Marthae guesthouse instead of the papal apartments. He is big on climate change, against consumerism, and in favor of throwing a blanket over homosexual activity within the clergy. He's not real sure about the Resurrection, about Christ's divinity, and a few other things that would have gotten him burned at the stake a few hundred years ago, but he's hot for a certain South American Earth Mother Goddess... in 2016, has admitted to a "reprehensible" act on a 14-year-old, the president of the Bishops' Conference of La Belle France, Eric de Moulins-Beaufort, told news hounds.
"Thirty-five years ago, when I was a priest, I behaved in a reprehensible way towards a girl of 14," Ricard wrote in a message to the Conference read out by de Moulins-Beaufort.
"There is no doubt that my behaviour caused serious and long-lasting consequences for that person," the cardinal said, adding that he had since asked the woman for forgiveness.
The public confession by Ricard, 78, was received "like a shock" by the Conference, de Moulins-Beaufort said.
All of the accused will face either prosecution or church disciplinary procedures, added de Moulins-Beaufort, the archbishop of the northeastern city of Reims.
French bishops are meeting in Lourdes in southwestern La Belle France for their autumn conference where they plan to discuss ways to improve their communication and transparency regarding historical sex crime allegations against the clergy.
The church was rocked last year by the findings of an inquiry that confirmed widespread abuse of minors by priests, deacons and lay members of the Church dating from the 1950s.
It found that 216,000 minors had been abused by clergy over the past seven decades, a number that climbed to 330,000 when claims against lay members of the Church are included, such as teachers at Catholic schools.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/08/2022 00:00 ||
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[11127 views]
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
[Aljazeera] A Nigerian social media influencer who called himself Ray Hushpuppi and flaunted a lavish lifestyle supported by laundering millions of dollars was sentenced Monday in Los Angeles to more than 11 years in federal prison.
[The Hill] If you were patiently waiting for Monday night’s Powerball numbers to be drawn, you’ll have to wait a little while longer.
The study found over 1.9 million "ephemeral experiences" that Google and other firms were using to "shift opinions and voting preferences," Epstein wrote in a Nov. 6 article for the Daily Caller. "Ephemeral experiences" are short-lived content that immediately disappears without leaving a trace after user consumption.
[PJ] On Sunday night, Jack Dorsey, the founder and former CEO of Twitter, seemed to suggest that Elon Musk is to blame for tracking codes being automatically added when sharing tweets.
...unlikable American former starlet married to the formerly likable Prince Harry. Chock full of lefty political opinions, Markle's most important characteristic is that she is Black, even though she doesn't look it. Her mother, y'see, is half black and her father is white, which would make her a quarter Black. Her half brother described her (to her husband, before their marriage) as a 
...Argentine liberation theologist, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio. He was elected pope in 2013. Rather than setting up shop in Avignon, where he belongs, the first Jesuit Pope chose to reside in the Domus Sanctae Marthae guesthouse instead of the papal apartments. He is big on climate change, against consumerism, and in favor of throwing a blanket over homosexual activity within the clergy. He's not real sure about the Resurrection, about Christ's divinity, and a few other things that would have gotten him burned at the stake a few hundred years ago, but he's hot for a certain South American Earth Mother Goddess...
