Politics And Current Events

[tifosi77]

"DeVos had not personally requested the protection", probably because her assistant did, or something, at her direction.

AG Sessions approved the security detail and tasked it to the USMS after DeVos was heckled and barred from entering a public school shortly after she was confirmed.

The amount spent on DeVos is roughly double what was spent on Pruitt's detail. But it should be remembered that a lot of the spend includes the salaries of agents or deputy marshals, so it's a bit misleading (they'd be getting paid, anyway, regardless of duty assignment).

[Willie Kool]

We're paying tens of millions to protect a billionaire from - us. It's an unprecedented, disgusting arrangement. If she's really that uncomfortable around common people, maybe she should pay for her own protection.

[dodint]

She should pay to protect herself from violent 'protestors'? Wow.

[tifosi77]

While it remains unclear who specifically made the request, former Attorney General Jeff Sessions granted the protection on February 13, 2017, a few days after DeVos was heckled and blocked by a handful of protesters from entering the Jefferson Academy, a public middle school in Washington. DeVos was confirmed as education secretary on February 7 of that year.

"The order was issued after the Department of Education contacted administration officials regarding threats received by the Secretary of Education," the Justice Department said in a statement. "The U.S.M.S. was identified to assist in this area based on its expertise and long experience providing executive protection."

They do not make clear if there were additional threats made, but what appears to have been the precipitating event was her being, quote, heckled, end quote.

I'm all for additional security for government officials when and where it is warranted. And perhaps the Dept of Education does not have its own enforcement arm, thus the deputy marshals. But on its face, it's a bit hinky.

[shafnutz05]

I mean...we've all seen the sht the mobilized Far Left has been doing over the last two years, right? Confronting the children of conservatives at their schools, doxxing, Congressional ballgame shootings, etc? Why do I feel like if the shoe was on the other foot we'd be hearing groans about just how unhinged the Right has become, and how sad it is that this much protection is needed?

I'm no fan of Devos, for the record.

[Freddy Rumsen]

BREAKING: Northern California sheriff says more than 1,000 now unaccounted for after fire, list being constantly updated.

https://mobile.twitter.com/AP/status/10 ... 6087992321

[tifosi77]

Why do I feel like if the shoe was on the other foot we'd be hearing groans about just how unhinged the Right has become, and how sad it is that this much protection is needed?

Because that is your station in life.

[AuthorTony]

I mean...we've all seen the sht the mobilized Far Left has been doing over the last two years, right?

No one else in the cabinet is afforded that level of protection. The last two Secs of Education received death threats and didn't get US Marshall protection as a result. I don't think this has anything to do with the far left as a whole and is something specific to Devos. I wonder if it might be kidnapping/ransom threats tied to her and her family's extreme wealth.

[Freddy Rumsen]

What does "extreme wealth" mean?

[tifosi77]

It means "Betsy Devos".

[AuthorTony]

Isn't her family's net worth something like $5 billion?

[Freddy Rumsen]

So, guilty of wrongthink?

I'll never understand this obsession with how much money someone has in regards to the value of their person.

[AuthorTony]

So, guilty of wrongthink?

[AuthorTony]

Not sure how you come up with anything in that realm if you actually read what I posted:

I wonder if it might be kidnapping/ransom threats tied to her and her family's extreme wealth.

I was hypothesizing that a potential reason for this unprecedented level of security might be due to having received kidnapping threats as she'd be a pretty big target due to her wealth. I was speculating on her value to potential kidnappers, not judging her and there's really no way you should have inferred that from my post unless you just wanted to be antagonistic.

[MR25]

So, guilty of wrongthink?

I'll never understand this obsession with how much money someone has in regards to the value of their person.

Ransom money. C'mon man.

[Factorial]

Was Freddy drinking last night?

[grunthy]

We all know Scott shouldn’t be spouting election fraud without an investigation. What do you all here think of Stacy Abrams saying democracy failed?

[AuthorTony]

https://www.npr.org/2018/11/17/66840812 ... icide-risk

A year ago, Facebook started using artificial intelligence to scan people's accounts for danger signs of imminent self-harm.

Facebook Global Head of Safety Antigone Davis is pleased with the results so far.

"In the very first month when we started it we had about 100 imminent response cases," which resulted in Facebook contacting local emergency responders to check on someone. But that rate quickly increased.

"To just give you a sense of how well the technology is working and rapidly improving ... in the last year we've had 3,500 reports," she says. That means AI monitoring is causing Facebook to contact emergency responders an average of about 10 times a day to check on someone

[Troy Loney]

We all know Scott shouldn’t be spouting election fraud without an investigation. What do you all here think of Stacy Abrams saying democracy failed?

I question the “we all know” part. Seems pretty clear that lots of people don’t know that.

[grunthy]

We all know Scott shouldn’t be spouting election fraud without an investigation. What do you all here think of Stacy Abrams saying democracy failed?

I question the “we all know” part. Seems pretty clear that lots of people don’t know that.

So don’t want to answer about Abrams then?

[Troy Loney]

Kemp’s shenanigans were well documented. I don’t have any problem with Abrams expressing disgust with the process in her state.

[grunthy]

Double standard.

[Troy Loney]

Seems like a pretty blatant conflict of interest to be in charge of an election you are running in.

[Willie Kool]

[shafnutz05]

There is most definitely a double standard. The courts have found that the law actually *was* violated in Florida, yet the media is acting like Trump and the GOP are crushing our democracy for pushing that issue. There are 100% shenanigans going on in Florida to try and shove Gillum into the governorship. Meanwhile, in Georgia, the only thing Abrams has done is complained about Kemp stealing the election and raising baseless claims with the same repeated talking points. Because remember folks, only Republicans "steal" elections.