Google and Apple app highlighted by 2 Saudis

The two sisters fled Saudi Arabia and appealed for international protection earlier this month (Georgia Sisters)    Maha and Wafa al-Subaie, who are seeking asylum in Georgia after fleeing their family, said on Wednesday that Absher, a Saudi government e-services app, was bad for women as it supported the kingdom's strict male guardian system. "It gives men control over women," said Wafa, 25.  "They have to remove it," she added, referring to Google and Apple.

Absher, which is available in the Saudi version of Google and Apple online stores, allows men to update or withdraw permissions for female relatives to travel abroad and to get SMS updates if their passports are used, according to researchers.  https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/pull-inhuman-women-monitoring-app-runaway-saudi-sisters-tell-tech-giants

is this Urumqi, Toronto or on Dubai or your town?

the AI gAme is not your standard hype

  One drive factor of the stampede toward artificial inelligence is the concept of some expert elite running the planet, perhaps through covert deal-making or through misrepresentations or through 100 other nefarious means, variously hyped to sell, ensnare, cajole, deceive.  Yes, behind 5G is AI. 
  Behind Hitler were many peculiar forces.  Edwin Black wrote IBM and the Holocaust, 2000, in order to pin down some of this.  
-r, mt. shasta
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10-24-18   An interesting thing happened recently in the ongoing saga that is Google’s attempt, through its subsidiary Sidewalk Labs, to build a private, fully surveilled micro-city inside of Toronto.  The privacy expert Google had hired to assuage concerns over the dangers of a neighborhood built to collect data on its inhabitants, has stepped down.  ­­https://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/273283/smart-cities-for-dumb-humans

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11-13-18    (AI) “smart city,” known as Quayside,  in Toronto, has faced fierce public criticism since last fall, when the plans to build a neighborhood “from the internet up” were first revealed.  Quayside represents a joint effort by the Canadian government agency Waterfront Toronto and Sidewalk Labs, which is owned by Google’s parent company Alphabet Inc., to develop 12 acres of the valuable waterfront just southeast of downtown Toronto.

In keeping with the utopian rhetoric that fuels the development of so much digital infrastructure, Sidewalk Labs has pitched Quayside as the solution to everything from traffic congestion and rising housing prices to environmental pollution.  The proposal for Quayside includes a centralized identity management system, through which “each resident accesses public services” such as library cards and health care.  An applicant for a position at Sidewalk Labs in Toronto was shocked when he was asked in an interview to imagine how, in a smart city, “voting might be different in the future.”  https://theintercept.com/2018/11/13/google-quayside-toronto-smart-city/

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any freight-car loads of lumber going this year into California?  Guess. 

when you make application with the words I AM

  Oh that students or any individuals who know the I AM Presence could but realize that there is no greater consciousness, no greater activity the conscious volition can set into action than the recognition and acceptance of the I AM Presence….There is no other statement or group of words in existence that actually sets such power into motion to accomplish any given purpose to which the conscious attention is directed as does this mighty expression.  This is why Jesus the Christ coupled it with the most important statements that he made….

  Here let me caution and assure you with great emphasis that no matter who or what you are, what place you may be in from the growth standpoint, when you make application with the words I AM you positively cannot fail to accomplish that to which you apply them if you will hold fast with unwavering determination….Go forth with  certainty in your hearts, always being aware:  “I AM the conquering, victorious Presence in any achievement I desire, that I AM now the full dominion of every application that I make, that I AM the Presence always within every demand, supplying and fulfilling it.”…the proper attitude is to joyously take the stand that “I AM the Presence which enables me to see or hear with the inner sight and hearing,” and at no time let oneself become disturbed because another is using a faculty different from one’s own….At all times turn to your own I AM Presence and demand to know and see clearly the plan that you should follow.

-Saint Germain:  12-12-1932 via Messenger Guy Ballard, in his I AM Discourses

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  Beloved Jesus said “For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world but that the world through him might be saved.”  The secret of the Tree of Life is to be found, but the seeker must first surrender his personal sense, his sense of separation from God and from life so that the universal consciousness can flow into him.  Thus the breath of the Great Alchemist shall become his own….

  As I prepare you for more advanced efforts made on your behalf and on behalf  of humanity it is essential that I endow you to the best of my ability through spiritual means with the vision of what God is.  Even in Our higher octaves it is impossible for Us who are yet in a lesser individualized state to realize the fullness of who and what the Greatest Alchemist is.  But we can approach the Holy of holies, we can draw nigh by transcending ourselves even as He is ever transcending Himself, being changed from glory unto glory by the one Universal Spirit.   

-Saint Germain:  Pearls of Wisdom 13:16

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  Unfortunately the activities of darkness upon the earth are many.  These are lodged in the hearts of men in the moldering and sometimes smoldering karmic pile that is a bric-a-brac of consciousness, eaten with moths and maintaining no tender regard for the young children of the world or for life itself.  There is a continual attempt by the shadow of banality to extend its rule over the minds of men and to create the crassness of materialism and shame.  How frequently this will take the form of maligning the very teachers who would serve the needs of humanity and the spreading abroad of malicious gossip, jealousy and envy against their every attempt to serve the needs of humankind.

  Again and again the Covenants of Asha (purity) have been broken.  Again and again the young people have been misled by misguided social zealots who, in Christ’s name and through many of the churches, would substitute for the sacred eucharist, the very living body of Christ truth, a social gospel compounded in the evil minds of those men whose goal is world domination. 

  Now We know that mankind are beginning to realize that the world is in the grips of a very terrible force that seeks to utilize for the destruction of civilization the communications media and the great inventions brought forth by the masters through the scientists of the world for the benefit of man.  The youth are being corrupted and the more mature are witnessing an erosion of their own values.  These are the effects of the activities of the brothers of the shadow who have no power except that which men give to them as they seek to distort the values that have been the bulwark of civilization.

  Remember, beloved ones, true values of the Spirit are always held invulnerable, locked within the human soul, placed there by God and His Son, the eternal Christos.  Beware then of those who are wolves in sheep’s clothing who would becloud the Sun of diving beauty that is the great Pentecost of communion between man and God.    

-Maha Chohan:  Pearls of Wisdom 13:21

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     -Shasta 

Saudi Arabia cruelties; Uighurs

5-1-19   Alia al-Hathloul is the sister of Loujain al-Hathloul, a Saudi women's rights activist who has been in prison for almost a year for "aiming to undermine the security, stability and national unity of the kingdom" through contacts with NGOs, journalists and diplomats.  Her trial and that of ten other activists is currently taking place in Riyadh.  Alia al-Hathloul tells FRANCE 24 that her sister has been tortured and sexually abused during her detention.
https://www.france24.com/en/20190501-interview-alia-loujain-al-hathloul-saudi-arabia-jailed-rights-activist-torture-sexual-abuse
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4-27-19   a new controversy is brewing over one of the kingdom's most controversial practices: Its mass-beheadings of men convicted of 'terrorism' charges, typically members of the Shiite minority living in the eastern part of the kingdom.

  Saudi Arabia has long practiced execution by beheading.  But this year the mass extermination of 37 of mostly Shiite men this week provoked condemnation from the UN and other human rights organizations, as several teenage boys were executed for crimes as seemingly petty a sending Whatsapp messages about government demonstrations.

  One particularly disturbing case was recounted in the UK's The Sun tabloid.  Abdulkareem al-Hawaj was just just 16 when he was arrested.  Just a schoolboy at the time, he was detained and accused of being a "terrorist" for sending texts online about an anti-government demonstration.

  Before making his 'confession', Abdulkareem, a Shiite Muslim who was 21 at the time of his execution, was reportedly brutally tortured.  With his hands chained above his head he was beaten and electrocuted.  Amnesty International denounced his trial as a farce, since he was denied access to proper defense counsel.  Police also reportedly threatened to kill his family if he didn't confess to his crimes.  

                   -Abdulkareem al-Hawaj

  But Abdulkareem wasn't the only man executed this week over seemingly minor offenses committed when he was a teenager.  Mujtaba al-Sweikat, was a teenager who was set to begin his studies at Western Michigan University when he was arrested for attending an anti-government protest.  Then just 17 years old, Sweikat was badly beaten after his arrest, including being repeatedly bludgeoned on the soles of his feet, before he "confessed" to crimes against the state.  Human rights organizations said he was tortured and convicted during a "sham trial.”  His university tried to intervene, insisting that he had 'great promise', but the government ignored their protests.

  Harriet McCulloch, deputy director of Reprieve, a human rights organization, insisted both young men were killed for sharing information about a peaceful anti-government protest.

  "Many things can be used to justify a death sentence in Mohammed Bin Salman's Saudi Arabia, including 'disobedience against the King,’" "preparing banners with anti-state slogans" and "incitement via social media" are also offenses that potentially carry the weight of death.

  "Mujtaba al-Sweikat and Abdulkarim al-Hawaj were teenagers sharing information about peaceful protests on their mobile phones.  Saudi Arabia's western allies must act now, to prevent any more young people being killed for exercising their right to freedom of expression."

  Another young man, Munir al-Adam, was just 23 when he was arrested in 2012 at a government checkpoint.  During his interrogation his feet were so badly beaten that he was forced to crawl for days.  After losing hearing in one of his ears, he was rendered completely deaf after the horrific torture.  He told a judge that he agreed to sign the confession because he was exhausted by the brutal and relentless torture.

  The 37 murders were carried out in Riyadh, the Muslim holy cities of Mecca and Medina, central Qassim province and in the Eastern Province, the home of the Shiite minority.  After being beheaded, one of the men was reportedly crucified and his body was put on display as a message to other would-be dissidents.  That message?  This is what could happen to you and your loved ones if you dare speak out against the crown.  https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-04-27/saudi-arabia-tortures-and-beheads-16-year-old-sending-whatsapp-message
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NYLaw: Is there any evidence of violence used in these camps in order to “re-educate” the Uighur folks who are unfortunately subjected to internment? How badly are they being treated?

Sigal: Unfortunately, all the evidence suggests that violence is being used and that the conditions in the camps are very bad. There have been reports of torture and death. We know this from detainees who’ve made it out of the camps, and from former guards there. You can also get a sense of what goes on in the camps by examining the lists of equipment that the Chinese government agencies order for the camps — in one case, that included 2,768 police batons, 550 electric cattle prods, 1,367 pairs of handcuffs, and 2,792 cans of pepper spray.
  I haven’t seen the camps firsthand, but I’ve seen video from inside the camps and have seen Chinese government documents, construction bids, social media posts, etc. I really recommend checking out the work of scholars like Adrian Zenz and Timothy Grose,  Uighur activists like @uyghur_nur on Twitter, and on-the-ground reporters like Josh Chin of the Wall Street Journal.  Here’s one paper by Zenz that I think is especially illuminating.
https://www.vox.com/2019/4/30/18523056/china-uighur-muslims-sigal-samuel-ama
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Venezuela update

4-30-19   The Nicolas Maduro regime has reportedly blocked the Venezuelan people's access to independent news sources amid media coverage of government violence against protesters.

  Opposition leader and U.S.-recognized Venezuelan President Juan Guaido announced Tuesday that they had the military backing required to force Maduro from power after a 2018 election that was widely viewed by the international community as illegitimate.

  The pro-Maduro and opposition forces clashed throughout the day, with images and video of the video being broadcast both inside and outside of Venezuela. In one widely covered incident, a government military vehicle could be seen plowing through unarmed protesters.

  A CNN producer reported the network has been forcibly taken off the air within Venezuela on orders from the Maduro government.  The censorship comes after Maduro detained six Univision journalists in February because he didn't like a question by anchor Jorge Ramos. The journalists were released after three hours and expelled from the country.

  A BBC spokesperson confirmed that BBC Global has also been blocked in the country.  Privately owned Radio Caracas Radio also announced it had been shut down by the government but has continued to broadcast on the web platform Periscope. https://freebeacon.com/politics/maduro-regime-censors-cnn-bbc-after-coverage-of-violence-against-protesters/

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4-30-19  CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro said on Tuesday he had spoken with military leaders and they had shown him “their total loyalty,” after opposition leader Juan Guaido said he had the support of troops to oust Maduro.  https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-politics-maduro-idUSKCN1S61QW

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5-1-19   CARACAS, Venezuela — Dueling demonstrations ramped up Wednesday as thousands of Venezuelans took to the streets of Caracas after opposition leader Juan Guaidó called for the “largest march” in the country's history.

  Several thousand protesters supporting the opposition marched in a peaceful demonstration around Altamira square, with the four major avenues around the square surrounded by people.

Demonstrators expressed frustration with the worsening economic conditions and hoped a government led by the opposition could bring change.

  Hiter Nieves, 46, said he was marching "for the future of my country.  For my children and for my family," he said.  "We have been oppressed for so many years."

  Elizabeth Fernandez, 58, said she wanted to give a new government a chance and more economic opportunities for Venezuela's youth.   https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/venezuela-s-opposition-leader-guaid-urges-largest-march-history-n1000641

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Caracas (CNN)  Sometimes they wear Halloween-style masks.  Sometimes they show their faces.   But when the men dressed in black uniforms come, Venezuelans flee.   On March 18, the men came for Roney Muñoz.

  The 27-year-old worked as an engineer in Medellin, Colombia.  But the men caught him in Petare, a poor neighborhood of Caracas, where he was visiting with his wife Yarleidys Dias, 23, and their three children.

  They plucked Muñoz's 11-month-old daughter out of his arms, and then dragged him away, leaving the child behind, says Yarleidys.  "It was horrible, they had no compassion for our little girl, nothing.  They just took him as they struck him.  They put him on the van and they hit him, and they hit him, and they hit him," she says, wiping away tears.  The men never identified themselves; they just shoved Muñoz into an unmarked car and drove away.  Yarleidys never saw her husband alive again.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/04/30/americas/venezuela-special-action-force-faes-accused-deaths-intl/index.html

Jacob Boehme, etc.

The Word concerns the science of rhythmic vibrations and is the key to the equilibrium of all forces  and the harmony of eternal nature.   (At book’s finish he expressed this as:  Its secret lies in exact vibrations under mathematical and synchronous relations; its Law is equilibrium or eternal harmony.)

Conscience is the effort of the individual to adjust precept with practice

The kingdom of heaven is taken by force, but it is moral force or moral courage; and the first great battle is for the conquest of self

“He who can best work and best agree” is called a Master.  Service and harmony:  these are the sign-manuals of the real initiate.

-Mysttic Masonry by Jirah Buck, 1897, Robert Clarke Co., Cincinnati

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above:  Jacob Boehme, born 1575, German cobbler, mystic.

It stands to reason that, in the strict scientific sense, a thing cannot be demonstrated unless true….The riddle of the Sphinx of Life can be solved only by self-knowledge; and back of this are alway the aims, the ideals, the purposes and the conscious achievement that alone make life worth the living, to every individual….
this is the very genius of natural science--first, demonstration; second, realization; third, service--and these three are ONE.    -J. Buck:  MODERN WORLD MOVEMENTS, 1913, pp. 15, 18

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-Novo Clavis Esoterika by T. Hogan, 2016:    https://books.google.com/books?id=ZjG8DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA45&dq=jAcob+boehme+clAvis&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiDsoTCqfnhAhUvGDQIHbGVBnAQ6AEITzAI#v=onepage&q=jAcob%20boehme%20clAvis&f=false

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     -raven

how to kill the goose that laid the golden eggs

2-2-=2019    as it stands, Trump could add roughly the same amount of debt as Obama over two terms. 

Andy Kiersz/Business Insider 

 while the raw debt figures are astonishing, putting the accumulation in percentage terms provides a somewhat different picture.  Based on Treasury data and CBO projections: 

  The national debt grew by 15% through February 11 of Clinton's first term and ended up growing by 36% by the end of the 2000 fiscal year, the final full fiscal year of his presidency.  The debt grew by 12% during Bush's first 752 days and grew by 75% when the 2008 fiscal year came to a close. 

  Under Obama's first two years and change, the national debt grew by 33%, and it grew by 84% by the end of the 2016 fiscal year. The debt grew 10% in Trump's first 752 days and is projected to grow by 44% by the end of the 2024 fiscal year.   https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-national-debt-deficit-compared-to-obama-bush-clinton-2019-2

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Important:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_creditor_nations_by_net_international_investment_position_per_capita