Hmmmm, This Will Be Interesting

For those of us who try to get to the truth of a matter, and do our background research, having to wade through "conspiracy" theories, RWNJ websites, gossip and other MSM misinformation takes up most of our time. Usually the Newsmax, Breitbart, or anything with patriot, freedom, or christian in the moniker gives it away…

"Google could launch an effort to keep trolls and bad information at bay, with a program that would rank websites according to veracity, and sort results according to those rankings. Currently, the search engine ranks pages according to popularity, which means that pages containing unsubstantiated celebrity gossip or conspiracy theories, for example, show up very high."

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/page/315476_Anti-Science_Advocates_Are_Fre

"By checking pages against that database, and cross-referencing related facts, the research team believes the algorithm could assign each page a truth score. Pages with a high proportion of false claims would be bumped down in the search results."      http://www.wcvb.com/money/the-truth-according-to-google/31602880

It would be a help to be able to cross check facts, numbers, authors and their political relationships, and the history behind the current debates. And to "follow the money…." Only then are you able to form an intelligent opinion on any subject.

Of course there are certain portions of the citizenry who are opposed to such a thing…

“I worry about this issue greatly… My site gets a significant portion of its daily traffic from Google,” Anthony Watts, who runs a popular blog for climate change deniers, told FoxNews.com.

But in the end…

"it's not really true that the facts have a liberal bias. Or a conservative one. That line was a joke……... The truth is that facts don't have any bias at all; they just sit there and exist. It's we who have the biases."
http://tinyurl.com/lkesaru

I Suppose It's Just Optics….

edited or otherwise. 

We all know by now some version or other of the killing of a black Ferguson teenager by a white Ferguson policeman. We have all heard at least three versions of the police chief's explanation of the chain of events. We have all seen the military-type response to both the outpouring of grief, turned to rage, leading to looting that had nothing to do with the original shooting.

I am pretty sure that somewhere in the midst of all this racism, hatred, and feeling of frustration lies the truth. You can be sure of one thing: if a black policeman had shot and killed a white teenager (whether he was aware of an alleged crime or not) in a white neighborhood (middle-class or poorer…) the aftermath would have been different. And a LOT different if it had been an upperclass area……

Two of the autopsy reports are out: the first really saying nothing. The second one can be somewhat inconclusive except to discredit partially the witnesses belief Brown was shot in the back, but NOT disproving he had his hands up in surrender. Then there are the live tweets about the shooting hat the msm has not touched on. Hmmmmm.

The police department very co-incidently released a surveilance video along with the name (finally) of the shooter who has long since scooted out of town. They were asked not to, since tensions were already high…... I guess the cops were bent out of shape at being replaced by the Highway Patrol folks with a black leader. (My take on things, only)

They released only a portion of the video…..but not this part: 

2:00 PM - 17 Aug 2014

YouTube @YouTube

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/43740_Ferguson-_Down_the_Rabbit_Hole

Then add to the story that the police and others in charge are still attempting to thwart the media from doing their job…informing the public what is really happening…instead of hoping they will rely on sanitized press releases being put out by those "in charge."

http://tinyurl.com/mjcvspy     (Thanks, EZKOOL)

And the officials, and our government (local or otherwise) wonder why we have no faith or trust in them???

Get Thee Away From Me, Damned Truth !

You've got to hand it to the Republican Party...they have a way with words. Leaving them out, that is. Talking in circuitous routes. Reaching for an alternative reality much better suited for their aims. Knowing that their FOX watchers will latch on to it as sainted truth...and spread it like wildfire amongst fellow True Believers.

"The Romney campaign on Tuesday released a TV ad claiming President Barack Obama "gutted" the 1996 welfare reform law....."

"Under Obama’s plan, you wouldn’t have to work and wouldn’t have to train for a job," the ad said. "They just send you your welfare check" spoke the mighty Newt Gingrich, former erstwhile GOP presidential candidate.

Pressed by Anderson Cooper during an interview, Gingrich hemmed and hawed, saying, "I believe absolutely the Obama administration is filled with people who do not support the work requirement." He suggested he would have run "a much tougher ad" before finally admitting there is "no proof" for the basic premise of the spot.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/08/newt-gingrich-romney-welfare_n_1758461.html?utm_hp_ref=politics

The "truth" is finally presented as an afterthought, if at all.

Gee, I only wish there was someway "intelligent" people could check up those old facty-things. Somewhere, maybe on the interwebby machine.......

**UPDATE**

Good. The Obama camp is putting it out there!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWTPRrMW6Dk&feature=youtu.be

ALSO

Somehow, this just seems appropriate with the poop the GOP has been trying to sell us these days:

Fertilizer Company Goes Public with Romney Support

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company, "familiar as the producer of a ubiquitous plant fertilizer, is now a political player, donating $200,000 in June to the Restore Our Future super PAC supporting Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney," the Washington Post reports.

"That makes Miracle-Gro among the first public companies with well-known consumer brands to publicly enter the new world of campaign funding. That world has been reshaped by the 2010 Supreme Court decision Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, which allowed direct corporate spending on election campaigns."