Links - 4th June 2018 (1)

This is how Google will collapse - "Google was a driving force in the technology industry ever since its disruptive entry in 1998. But in a world where people despised ads, Google’s business model was not innovation-friendly, and they missed several opportunities to pivot, ultimately rendering their numerous grand and ambitious projects unsustainable. Innovation costs money, and Google’s main stream of revenue had started to dry up."

Canadian Hijab Hoax: Are We Ignoring a Disturbing Reality? - "Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was quick to arrive at the scene to posture and wax eloquent at how sad he felt over the ‘attack’ on the poor girl... The same humanity, however, was lacking last year when a Canadian Muslim man was caught beating his daughter for taking off her hijab after leaving home. The father was accused of physically torturing his daughter for more than a year over the issue. But the Canadian Prime Minister offered no public sympathy in response to the incident. The public never heard her side of the story, and the incident passed without spectacle or fanfare. The girl sought refuge in the police and revealed that her father had attacked her with a weapon for exercising her choice to not wear the religious modesty garment. Prime Minister Trudeau, despite posturing as a feminist, never condemned the father nor gave any statement defending the girl’s right to not wear religious gender-based dress. Nor did any champion of women’s rights come forward to support the victim. Instead, there was resounding pin-drop silence over the incident–no ‘Motion 103’ tabled in the Canadian Parliament in favour of her right to say no to the hijab or any other religious practice. Evidently, this is not the first example of duplicity brought on by a desire to parade one’s victimhood... Meanwhile in the UK, the public downplayed serious death threats and harassment of a British hijabi girl who was captured on video dancing outside a market in Birmingham, UK. For her alleged transgression against the hijab (a symbol of Islamic modesty that her twerking had allegedly blemished, according to her accusers), the video was posted on social media. After it went viral, the girl was subjected to online harassment, vitriol, and threats. Eventually she was compelled to make a public apology for ‘dishonouring’ the hijab."

Leaked Intelligence Documents Show Greater Threat of Islamic Terror than Government Admits - "Leaked documents from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) show that the intelligence service is far more concerned with Islamic terrorism behind closed doors than the left-wing Trudeau government will admit in public. One of the documents, a report from a committee hearing in October of 2016, states: “The Service has never before faced a terrorist threat of the scope, scale and complexity of Sunni Islamist-inspired terrorism”... Trudeau provoked widespread criticism last month after he commented that returning fighters “can be an extraordinarily powerful voice for preventing radicalisation in future generations”. While the Liberal government has focused on deradicalisation, announcing plans to use “poetry and podcasts” to do so, CSIS warns that “Returnees may respond in a number of different ways – from returning to regular life, radicalizing others, or financing and facilitating the travel of others, to attack planning.”... Liberal MP for St. Catherines Chris Bittle also received criticism after he referred to anti-Islamic State protestors as “white supremacists”."

FUREY: New docs reveal CSIS foreign fighter concerns - "At no point in the document – or any of the other related CSIS material the Sun received – is there talk of deradicalization... Some of the sections in the note are similar to remarks previously made by senior CSIS officials in public testimonies but others appear to be fresh revelations. The top level note also shows that the words used by CSIS in documents can differ from the language employed in public statements."

Canada: Leaked intelligence documents show greater threat of Islamic terror than government admits - "Some other points of concern about the Trudeau government:
Trudeau is in violation of conflict of interest rules over lavish vacations that he and his family took at the Agha Khan’s Island, and that Canadians paid for. It emerged that a $15-million grant from Canada went to the endowment fund of the Aga Khan’s Global Centre for Pluralism. Now Trudeau is pretending to be sorry about it.
Trudeau paid out jihadist Omar Khadr 10.5 million dollars for shoddy treatment in Gitmo; Trudeau made up silly excuses and said he also felt the frustration of Canadians when questioned about it.
Trudeau also accused the Conservative party of “Islamophobia” for inquiring about jihad terrorism.
He’s met privately with Joshua Boyle, a suspicious former Taliban captive who is also now up on 15 criminal charges.
He has heavily and passionately advocated for returning Islamic State fighters and welcomed any immigrants rejected by America.
His government has been trying to reopen relations with the Iranian regime, with his Iranian MP Majid Jowhari starting a petition to do so.
His sharia-supporting MP Omar Alghabra represented Canada at the 44th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. Since when is Canada an OIC state?"

There is no ban on words at the CDC. - "if reality is indeed in danger here, it’s not because of Donald Trump. The story of the language rules at CDC has quickly broken free of underlying facts. Despite what you may have heard, the alleged “ban” of seven words does not reveal a secret “War on Science” carried out by thought police in Washington; nor is it some evil plot to “enforce a political and ideological agenda,” as the Washington Post editorial board suggested. A more sober measure of this soggy crumb of news—one that’s, well, evidence-based rather than reflexive—suggests it should be understood as a byproduct of the Trump administration’s much-less-secret war on science funding. It appears that the ban is an attempt by bureaucrats to save their favorite projects from unforgiving budget cuts. That explanation would be consistent with what’s been reported to this point. According to CDC Director Brenda Fitzgerald, “There are no banned, prohibited or forbidden words at the CDC—period.” Meanwhile, anonymous sources at the Department of Health and Human Services told the National Review’s Yuval Levin this week that any language changes did not originate with political appointees, but instead came from career CDC officials who were strategizing how best to frame their upcoming budget request to Congress. What we’re seeing, his interviews suggest, is not a top-down effort to stamp out certain public-health initiatives, like those that aim to help the LGTBQ community, but, in fact, the opposite: a bottom-up attempt by lifers in the agency to reframe (and thus preserve) the very work they suspect may be in the greatest danger... What we’re seeing from the CDC is not an effort to suppress unwelcome research, but rather an effort to conceal it under euphemism... it’s the scientists who have been using doublespeak to manipulate their bosses, not vice-versa. Yet journalists have reported on these middle-management directives as if they were new and shocking evidence of the Trump administration’s sneaky plan to interfere with scientific research... directed euphemisms are the norm in Washington: Barack Obama’s budget team, for example, swapped out the “global war on terror” for what it called “overseas contingency operations”... Same goes for all that news—so much news—about the Trump administration’s efforts to excise every use of “climate change” or “global warming” from its official websites. We’ve heard these words have been “purged” from WhiteHouse.gov; that they’ve been “deleted” from NIH.gov; that they’ve been “scrubbed” from EPA.gov. If we claim those purges and deletions are informative, then what should we make of the fact that one can still find those phrases, climate change and global warming, on several of the sites from which they’ve supposedly been erased?"
If the press lies, evidently it's still fascist to say that

Obama bans terms `Islam` and `jihad` from U.S. security document - "President Barack Obama's advisers will remove religious terms such as "Islamic extremism" from the central document outlining the U.S. national security strategy"
What banning words really looks like

As a Muslim, I am Shocked by Liberals and Leftists - "My father was brutally tortured -- justified by some of the fundamentalist Islamic laws of the ruling governments in both Iran and Syria. The punishment extended to my mother, my family, and other relatives, who were tormented on a regular basis. What was even more painful was, upon coming to the West, seeing the attitude of many people who label themselves liberals and leftists, towards radical Islam... sympathizing with all kinds of Islamist practices and radical Islam seems to fit a wider narrative of bashing the West and white people for "imperialism, colonialism, and any sense of superiority". Unfortunately that view fails to take into account that there have been no greater imperialists the Muslim armies; they conquered Persia, the great Christian Byzantine Empire in Turkey, North Africa and the Middle East, virtually all of Eastern Europe, most of Spain, and Greece. As, in Islam, one is not allowed to attack except to defend the prophet Muhammed or Islam, extremist Muslims need to keep either finding or creating supposed attacks to make themselves appear as victims. Many liberals, not knowing the background, buy into this claim. By siding with the "other", they probably feel a moral superiority: they are helping a cause, championing the "other" and rescuing a "victim"! But this moral superiority is both superficial and misplaced. It is more like that of the proverbial boy who murders his parents and then asks the judge for mercy because he is an orphan."

Liberals' Misguided Love Affair With Islam - Michael Brown - "I read about a pro-Hamas, anti-Israel rally led by feminists and LGBT activists, among others on the left. Why in the world would groups like this support Hamas, which would kill or imprison them for their beliefs (and their sexual or romantic proclivities)? And why would they oppose Israel, which would welcome them with open arms? (I’m not talking about religious Jews, who would certainly not welcome them. I’m talking about the population as a whole, which is quite “progressive.” Note also that it wasn’t the ultra-Orthodox Jews who were fighting Hamas, so the rally was not targeting them.)... Spencer wrote, “These students have been hoodwinked into thinking that ‘Islamophobes,’ rather than jihad terrorists, are killing people around the world.”... Spencer noted the biting irony of it all: “For example, one man held a sign that read ‘Queers Against Islamophobia.’ The crowd booed lustily when I attempted to read from Islamic authorities about Islam’s death penalty for homosexuality. Even to read from Islamic sources is hate, apparently, at the University at Buffalo -- unless, of course, one endorses such penalties rather than oppose them.”"

5 Strange Problems You Face When You're A Liberal Ex-Muslim - "Eiynah pointed out that if you Google the words "Muslim American Olympian," you'll get pages and pages of results about Ibtihaj Muhammad, a Muslim fencer who competed for America in Rio de Janeiro while wearing the hijab. You're far less likely to see any mention of Dalilah Muhammad, a Muslim woman who took home the gold in the 400m hurdles while wearing shorts and a sports bra. Both women are incredible athletes, and could probably crush us both metaphorically and physically, but it's weird that only one is thought of as the "Muslim American Olympian." Especially since for a lot of Muslim women, the hijab brings back painful memories. "I've seen the Morality Police hit my mother with a cane because her headscarf slipped. It's like, would we feel as comfortable celebrating purity balls that are held in the South?"... Eiynah doesn't like the term "Islamophobia": "Allowing any criticism of Islamic fundamentalism, homophobia, etc. to be labeled as 'Islamophobia' gives right-wing fundamentalist Muslims a chance to shield their religion from valid criticism. It's essentially the same thing right-wing Christians [do]. Think of the absurdity of the 'War on Christmas' to get a feel for how 'Islamophobia' sounds to us. That's why I prefer the more precise term 'anti-Muslim bigotry.' The problem is not theological criticisms of Islam or criticisms of literalist interpretations -- it is the generalizations, hatred, and fearmongering around Muslims." "Islam is not a monolith -- neither its adherents nor its critics," says Eiynah. "Just like Islam can be interpreted and practiced in a million different ways, so too can criticism of it come from different angles and politics"

The Trouble With How Liberals Talk About Terrorism - "Terrorists attack not just individuals but society, which makes mortality rates a poor measure of the danger terrorism poses. Falling objects “attack” neither... Obama’s stance on terrorism also contained a contradiction. He argued that the terrorist threat was much less severe than other challenges such as climate change and gun violence. But he didn’t scale back his counterterrorism policies to reflect that assessment"
Plus falling objects aren't trying to get weapons of mass destruction, and security services are not actively monitoring and disrupting falling objects, preventing them from killing more people than they otherwise would; the liberal response to Islamic terrorism is like saying that few people die from Measles in developed countries, so Measles can't really kill you and vaccination is a waste of time

An atheist Muslim on what the left and right get wrong about Islam - "“The left is wrong on Islam. The right is wrong on Muslims.”... Do you know Jewish people who eat bacon? Almost all of my Jewish friends eat bacon. Now, does that mean that Judaism is suddenly okay with bacon? This is the difference between religion and people. You can’t say, hey, I have a lot of Jewish friends who eat bacon, so Judaism must be okay with pork... when I say that most Muslims I know are very peaceful and law-abiding, that they wouldn't dream of violence, that doesn't erase all of the violence and the calls for martyrdom and jihad and holy war against disbelievers in Islamic scripture. Most of my Muslim friends, both in Pakistan and here, had premarital sex and drank alcohol too. That doesn’t mean Islam allows either of those things. The hard truth is there is a lot of violence endorsed in the Quran, and there are other terrible things, as there are in the Old Testament... It’s dishonest to say that violent Muslim groups like ISIS are being un-Islamic... if you're a young Iraqi man and your family was bombed by the US, your reaction may be that you may become anti-American. You might say, okay, I'm going to fight these guys. But would your reaction to US foreign policy be to start enslaving and raping 9-year-old Yazidi girls? Or forcing local non-Muslim minorities to pay a tax or convert to Islam, or be crucified publicly, as commanded in the Quranic verses 9:29-30 and 5:33? Or beheading Shias or apostates who have left Islam? Or throwing gays off rooftops?... Step back and take a broader historical view. The contents of these texts haven’t changed — it’s the political and social and economic conditions that have changed. So the question then becomes what is it about these conditions that produces certain interpretations or leads to certain doctrines becoming more manifest?... When someone tells us they did something for political reasons, we accept it easily. “Sure, they did it for politics." When someone says, "I did this for money," we believe them. Even when people say, "I played Doom, the video game, and I listened to Marilyn Manson," we take it at face value and have all these cultural conversations about the role of video games and music in violence... Think of the [National Rifle Association] slogan, “Guns don’t kill people; people kill people.” The typical liberal response to that, and rightly so, is no, don’t downplay the deadliness of guns. You can’t take them out of the equation. Even if they’re just a tool or prop, they’re central to it. Now replace “guns” in that statement with “religion” or “beliefs.”... In Islam, the divinity and infallibility of the Quran is the only thing that every sect and denomination agrees on... I say that the first step to reform in Islam is rejection of infallibility. This seems outrageous to some. They say it’ll never happen. But it has happened in the past. Reform Jews today make up a majority of American Jews. None of them believe the Torah is the literal word of God anymore. But for a long time, that was the deal... This is why I say I believe in Muslim reform, not Islamic reform. I don’t think using mental gymnastics to reinterpret scripture is convincing. You can’t keep saying “kill” actually means “love,” or “beat your wife” is misinterpreted and actually means “kiss your wife,” and stay credible. In the internet age, everything is exposed. It's online, you can look it up in a dozen languages, multiple translations, the context and syntax and etymology of every word — any 12-year-old can dig that up today... Several white Western liberals have confided to me that they agree with what I say, but won’t say it themselves because they’re afraid they’ll be labeled bigots or Islamophobes. I call that “Islamophobo-phobia,” the fear of being called Islamophobic. It’s a great way to shut down the conversation and silence people with colonial or white guilt"

This Video Proves We All Share the Exact Same Travel Photos on Instagram

Sylvain ️🏻‍ on Twitter: "When you try to replicate a paper using the methods section… "

Bitter Feminists Go After The Hot Cheerleaders. Here Are Their First Victims. - "Formula One has officially canned their so-called "grid girls," the female models used in promotional tasks in the pit-lanes and starting grids before and after races. The organization said they will no longer continue the practice because it is "at odds with modern-day societal norms" and doesn't reflect their "brand values."

Lauren-Jade on Twitter - @laurenjadepope: "Get me on @thismorning so I can defend us #gridgirls Because of these feminists, they’ve have cost us our jobs! I have been a grid girl for 8 years and I have Never felt uncomfortable! I love my job, if I didn’t I wouldn’t do it! Noone forces us to do this! This is our choice!"
@JohnRobb1231: "Time this nonsense was dropped and good riddance! Formula One #GridGirls near naked in bikinis has no place in 2018 and #MeeToo - sad to see men & women bemoaning the demise as some sort of attack on sexuality or some claptrap like that."
@laurenjadepope: "1. Formula one grid girls do not wear bikinis. 2. We are there to advertise teams and sponsors so we have a purpose. 3. Women depend on this income, why should we lose our jobs because somebody has got their knickers in a twist. You deserve Ebola #goodriddance"
@JohnRobb1231: "No need for that. I understand that but there are other jobs you can do. A nurse, a teacher, a veterinarian, a tv presenter, if you apply yourself I'm sure you could do anything!"
@laurenjadepope: "I’m a qualified fashion & photographic make up artist and a qualified beautician. I’m an account manager in my 9-5 and I also run an online business. I also do this because I CHOOSE to do this. You could of been one of the above you listed, instead you chose to be a dick."
If a male feminist lectures a woman on her choices, is that anti feminist?
In this thread I learnt that Grid Boys have existed (but presumably they weren't popular enough to be widespread)

LALO DAGACH on Twitter - "Watching “progressives” slut-shame a Formula 1 Grid Girl on Twitter for doing a job she loves, is the most pathetic and backwards thing I’ve seen all day. Where are the #WearWhatYouWant feminists? Too busy trying on hijabs?"

F1 'grid girls' have lost their jobs but are fighting back on Twitter - "Cooper also implied that grid girls have been misrepresented and put together a photograph collage to highlight that women who work in her trade are not "scantily clad furniture" and that the outfits are more modest. For Michelle Westby, working as a promotional model in motorsports led to a successful career as a stunt driver and a drift racing driver"