Manfred Schmid
@geode535.bsky.social
Pinned
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
Did Trump’s DOJ really think dropping hundreds of blacked-out pages counted as complying with the law?
I know it’s a bunch of unqualified folks with no backbone over there, but this is next-level.
I know it’s a bunch of unqualified folks with no backbone over there, but this is next-level.
December 20, 2025 at 3:02 AM
Did Trump’s DOJ really think dropping hundreds of blacked-out pages counted as complying with the law?
I know it’s a bunch of unqualified folks with no backbone over there, but this is next-level.
I know it’s a bunch of unqualified folks with no backbone over there, but this is next-level.
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
As the world marks Human Rights Day on December 10, activists in #Turkmenistan, one of the world’s most repressive countries, continue to pay a devastating price for defending those rights.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/12...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/12...
Turkmen Activists Remain Unjustly Imprisoned
As the world marks Human Rights Day on December 10, activists in Turkmenistan, one of the world’s most repressive countries, continue to pay a devastating price for defending rights.
www.hrw.org
December 9, 2025 at 11:11 AM
As the world marks Human Rights Day on December 10, activists in #Turkmenistan, one of the world’s most repressive countries, continue to pay a devastating price for defending those rights.
www.hrw.org/news/2025/12...
www.hrw.org/news/2025/12...
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
Kazakhstan joins the ranks of countries that ban so-called LGBT "propaganda." The gov claims this law doesn't violate international treaties ratified by #Kazakhstan, but - make no mistake - it does.
vlast.kz/novosti/6765...
vlast.kz/novosti/6765...
Парламент Казахстана принял поправки о запрете «пропаганды ЛГБТ» - Аналитический интернет-журнал Власть
Тамара Вааль, Астана, Власть В четверг в ходе пленарного заседания сенат в двух чтениях одобрил закон «О внесении изменений и дополнений в некоторые законодательные акты Республики Казахстан по вопр...
vlast.kz
December 18, 2025 at 8:56 AM
Kazakhstan joins the ranks of countries that ban so-called LGBT "propaganda." The gov claims this law doesn't violate international treaties ratified by #Kazakhstan, but - make no mistake - it does.
vlast.kz/novosti/6765...
vlast.kz/novosti/6765...
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
The tightening of border controls and freedom of movement is truly a global phenomenon. Kyrgyzstan has tightening rules for Kazakh citizens with hundreds of Kazakhstanis, including students, now stranded at the border.
kaktus.media/doc/537255_v...
kaktus.media/doc/537255_v...
В КР ежедневно не пропускают порядка 450 граждан Казахстана. Студенты опасаются отчисления
Граждане Казахстана, обучающиеся в Кыргызстане, опасаются отчисления из вузов из-за прогулов ввиду того, что они не могут пересечь границу. На КПП ежедневно увеличивается количество непропущенных каза...
kaktus.media
December 18, 2025 at 2:03 PM
The tightening of border controls and freedom of movement is truly a global phenomenon. Kyrgyzstan has tightening rules for Kazakh citizens with hundreds of Kazakhstanis, including students, now stranded at the border.
kaktus.media/doc/537255_v...
kaktus.media/doc/537255_v...
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
EU Member States prohibit return of Russian central bank assets in EU to Russia until Russian hostilities no longer disrupt EU economy www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/pre...
December 12, 2025 at 6:49 PM
EU Member States prohibit return of Russian central bank assets in EU to Russia until Russian hostilities no longer disrupt EU economy www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/pre...
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
Well, there's a photo I never expected to see in my life. Noam Chomsky palling around with Steve Bannon.
December 12, 2025 at 9:18 PM
Well, there's a photo I never expected to see in my life. Noam Chomsky palling around with Steve Bannon.
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
Lifting what sounds like most sanctions on Belarus--if that is what happened as the Belarusian sources are claiming--is a very high price to pay
BREAKING: Belarus has released 123 prisoners, including opposition leader Maria Kalesnikava and Nobel Peace Prize-winning rights activist Ales Bialiatski, in a deal brokered by the U.S.
Read more: www.themoscowtimes.com/2025/12/13/b...
Read more: www.themoscowtimes.com/2025/12/13/b...
December 13, 2025 at 1:52 PM
Lifting what sounds like most sanctions on Belarus--if that is what happened as the Belarusian sources are claiming--is a very high price to pay
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
This was a dumb thing to do, but the article gets a lot wrong.
This was not a "device" in the nuclear weapons sense of an explosive without a delivery vehicle. It was not an explosive at all.
I'll write a post. #nukesky
This was not a "device" in the nuclear weapons sense of an explosive without a delivery vehicle. It was not an explosive at all.
I'll write a post. #nukesky
How Did the C.I.A. Lose a Nuclear Device in the Himalayas? (Gift Article)
A plutonium-packed generator disappeared on one of the world’s highest mountains in a covert mission that the U.S. will not talk about.
www.nytimes.com
December 13, 2025 at 1:45 PM
This was a dumb thing to do, but the article gets a lot wrong.
This was not a "device" in the nuclear weapons sense of an explosive without a delivery vehicle. It was not an explosive at all.
I'll write a post. #nukesky
This was not a "device" in the nuclear weapons sense of an explosive without a delivery vehicle. It was not an explosive at all.
I'll write a post. #nukesky
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
In late 2020 a Chinese man called Guan Heng travelled to Xinjiang with our BuzzFeed map of detention facilities to provide ground truth for our work - he provided the first corroborating evidence for many sites.
He escaped to the US - then ICE detained him.
www.wsj.com/world/china/...
He escaped to the US - then ICE detained him.
www.wsj.com/world/china/...
ICE Holding Chinese Man Who Documented Uyghur Camps
Heng Guan is awaiting an immigration hearing on Monday that could lead to his removal from the U.S. and ultimately land him back in China, according to his lawyer and a New York-based activist group.
www.wsj.com
December 13, 2025 at 3:17 PM
In late 2020 a Chinese man called Guan Heng travelled to Xinjiang with our BuzzFeed map of detention facilities to provide ground truth for our work - he provided the first corroborating evidence for many sites.
He escaped to the US - then ICE detained him.
www.wsj.com/world/china/...
He escaped to the US - then ICE detained him.
www.wsj.com/world/china/...
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
“An increasing number of “crazy rich” clients are commissioning dozens, or even hundreds, of U.S.-born babies with the goal of “forging an unstoppable family dynasty,” he said.” www.wsj.com/us-news/chin...
The Chinese Billionaires Having Dozens of U.S.-Born Babies Via Surrogate
Videogame executive Xu Bo, said to have more than 100 children, and other elites are building mega-families—testing citizenship laws and drawing on nannies, IVF and legal firms set up to help them.
www.wsj.com
December 14, 2025 at 4:15 PM
“An increasing number of “crazy rich” clients are commissioning dozens, or even hundreds, of U.S.-born babies with the goal of “forging an unstoppable family dynasty,” he said.” www.wsj.com/us-news/chin...
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
Neo-royalism DRINK
“An increasing number of “crazy rich” clients are commissioning dozens, or even hundreds, of U.S.-born babies with the goal of “forging an unstoppable family dynasty,” he said.” www.wsj.com/us-news/chin...
The Chinese Billionaires Having Dozens of U.S.-Born Babies Via Surrogate
Videogame executive Xu Bo, said to have more than 100 children, and other elites are building mega-families—testing citizenship laws and drawing on nannies, IVF and legal firms set up to help them.
www.wsj.com
December 14, 2025 at 5:10 PM
Neo-royalism DRINK
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
Sarah Rogers, the State Department official who hectored Europeans about free speech, is seen here with a far-right German AfD deputy, Markus Frohnmaier, whom two Kremlin documents obtained by @spiegel.de described as "a parliamentarian under our absolute control."
spiegel.de/politik/ausl...
spiegel.de/politik/ausl...
December 14, 2025 at 5:03 PM
Sarah Rogers, the State Department official who hectored Europeans about free speech, is seen here with a far-right German AfD deputy, Markus Frohnmaier, whom two Kremlin documents obtained by @spiegel.de described as "a parliamentarian under our absolute control."
spiegel.de/politik/ausl...
spiegel.de/politik/ausl...
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
Die gleiche Geste wie 2020. María Kalesnikava ist endlich frei.
December 13, 2025 at 3:59 PM
Die gleiche Geste wie 2020. María Kalesnikava ist endlich frei.
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
There hasn’t been enough appreciation for how thoroughly BENNIE THOMPSON humiliated FBI official GLASHEEN after he tried to sell the lie that ANTIFA is the top domestic terror threat.
The claim collapsed because it’s a cover.
Check my latest…
open.substack.com/pub/cwebbstu...
The claim collapsed because it’s a cover.
Check my latest…
open.substack.com/pub/cwebbstu...
December 14, 2025 at 5:16 PM
There hasn’t been enough appreciation for how thoroughly BENNIE THOMPSON humiliated FBI official GLASHEEN after he tried to sell the lie that ANTIFA is the top domestic terror threat.
The claim collapsed because it’s a cover.
Check my latest…
open.substack.com/pub/cwebbstu...
The claim collapsed because it’s a cover.
Check my latest…
open.substack.com/pub/cwebbstu...
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
“The United States uses economic power, including threats of high tariffs, to enforce its will, and no longer rules out the use of military force, even against allies.”
Danish Intelligence Report Raises Concerns About U.S.
www.nytimes.com
December 10, 2025 at 8:52 PM
“The United States uses economic power, including threats of high tariffs, to enforce its will, and no longer rules out the use of military force, even against allies.”
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
New research on Twitter (right before rebranding to X) shows right leaning accounts got outsized visibility from the algorithm & suggests this bias stemmed from different content production techniques (more sensational, outrage-bait) and from direct interaction w/ the new king of the platform: Musk.
Recently accepted at ICWSM: arxiv.org/abs/2512.06129 (w/ @kayladuskin.bsky.social, @katestarbird.bsky.social, and @emmaspiro.bsky.social)
We look at how algorithmic feeds affect Twitter account visibility. More visible accounts:
-Are agitators
-Get attention from Elon Musk
-Are not legacy verified
We look at how algorithmic feeds affect Twitter account visibility. More visible accounts:
-Are agitators
-Get attention from Elon Musk
-Are not legacy verified
Rabble-Rousers in the New King's Court: Algorithmic Effects on Account Visibility in Pre-X Twitter
Algorithmic effects on social media platforms have come under recent scrutiny, with several works reporting that right-leaning accounts tend to receive more exposure. In this paper, we expand upon thi...
arxiv.org
December 10, 2025 at 8:40 PM
New research on Twitter (right before rebranding to X) shows right leaning accounts got outsized visibility from the algorithm & suggests this bias stemmed from different content production techniques (more sensational, outrage-bait) and from direct interaction w/ the new king of the platform: Musk.
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
When I’m done writing my book I may take a crack at a “corruption is a first-order counterintelligence threat” story.
And US spies know it: CIA has used rampant corruption in places like China in the past to go on recruiting sprees. Mutatis mutandis.
And US spies know it: CIA has used rampant corruption in places like China in the past to go on recruiting sprees. Mutatis mutandis.
Days after FIFA awarded Trump a fake peace prize, DOJ moves to drop charges in FIFA corruption case www.nytimes.com/2025/12/10/n...
U.S. Moves to Drop Charges in International Soccer Corruption Case
www.nytimes.com
December 11, 2025 at 1:47 AM
When I’m done writing my book I may take a crack at a “corruption is a first-order counterintelligence threat” story.
And US spies know it: CIA has used rampant corruption in places like China in the past to go on recruiting sprees. Mutatis mutandis.
And US spies know it: CIA has used rampant corruption in places like China in the past to go on recruiting sprees. Mutatis mutandis.
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
Important reporting from @bloomberg.com's Zoltan Simon on alleged scenario-planning by Orban and ideas to avoid giving up power. Castling a la Putin would be a straight-up authoritarian move but one that's also fairly risky www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
December 11, 2025 at 2:00 PM
Important reporting from @bloomberg.com's Zoltan Simon on alleged scenario-planning by Orban and ideas to avoid giving up power. Castling a la Putin would be a straight-up authoritarian move but one that's also fairly risky www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
Super interesting reporting on Palantir‘s efforts to be used in Swiss governmental services and the military. They decided against it, because they worried Palantir was giving information to CIA and NSA and feared a loss of national sovereignty.
www.republik.ch/2025/12/08/w...
www.republik.ch/2025/12/08/w...
December 11, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Super interesting reporting on Palantir‘s efforts to be used in Swiss governmental services and the military. They decided against it, because they worried Palantir was giving information to CIA and NSA and feared a loss of national sovereignty.
www.republik.ch/2025/12/08/w...
www.republik.ch/2025/12/08/w...
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
Call it the Huawei Effect: As American tech-industrial-surveillance giants are increasingly perceived as arms of the state, other countries will…increasingly perceive them as arms of the state. American global tech supremacy depended on the perception of this public-private sector boundary.
Super interesting reporting on Palantir‘s efforts to be used in Swiss governmental services and the military. They decided against it, because they worried Palantir was giving information to CIA and NSA and feared a loss of national sovereignty.
www.republik.ch/2025/12/08/w...
www.republik.ch/2025/12/08/w...
December 11, 2025 at 4:48 PM
Call it the Huawei Effect: As American tech-industrial-surveillance giants are increasingly perceived as arms of the state, other countries will…increasingly perceive them as arms of the state. American global tech supremacy depended on the perception of this public-private sector boundary.
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
Books about “Asian wife sharing.” Detailed descriptions of orgies. Scenes involving “ladyboys.”
That’s what @dfriedman.bsky.social discovered on a Goodreads page tied to the email address of a top Pentagon official and mentor to Pete Hegseth.
What came next was even wilder.
That’s what @dfriedman.bsky.social discovered on a Goodreads page tied to the email address of a top Pentagon official and mentor to Pete Hegseth.
What came next was even wilder.
I asked the Pentagon about Pete Hegseth's mentor. Then the threats started.
Journalism in the second Trump administration gets personal.
www.motherjones.com
December 11, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Books about “Asian wife sharing.” Detailed descriptions of orgies. Scenes involving “ladyboys.”
That’s what @dfriedman.bsky.social discovered on a Goodreads page tied to the email address of a top Pentagon official and mentor to Pete Hegseth.
What came next was even wilder.
That’s what @dfriedman.bsky.social discovered on a Goodreads page tied to the email address of a top Pentagon official and mentor to Pete Hegseth.
What came next was even wilder.
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
In his podcast Jaratman he interviews entrepreneurs, artists, economists and political analysts. I listen to it regularly to practice my Kyrgyz language comprehension. This is another major attack on freedom of speech in Kyrgyzstan.
December 11, 2025 at 10:53 AM
In his podcast Jaratman he interviews entrepreneurs, artists, economists and political analysts. I listen to it regularly to practice my Kyrgyz language comprehension. This is another major attack on freedom of speech in Kyrgyzstan.
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
It is being reported that Aibek Tenizbay, arguably the most popular Kyrgyz podcaster, has been abducted from his mother’s village outside of Bishkek. We’ll know more soon, but the assumption is that security services are responsible for his abduction.
kaktus.media/doc/536870_n...
kaktus.media/doc/536870_n...
Неизвестные задержали и увезли активиста Айбека Тенизбая
Родственники активиста Айбека Тенизбая сообщили, что его увезли мужчины, представившиеся сотрудниками силовых структур.
kaktus.media
December 11, 2025 at 10:03 AM
It is being reported that Aibek Tenizbay, arguably the most popular Kyrgyz podcaster, has been abducted from his mother’s village outside of Bishkek. We’ll know more soon, but the assumption is that security services are responsible for his abduction.
kaktus.media/doc/536870_n...
kaktus.media/doc/536870_n...
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
Whole of the American economy is now piracy.
December 10, 2025 at 10:30 PM
Whole of the American economy is now piracy.
Reposted by Manfred Schmid
Transnational far right www.politico.com/news/2025/12...
Young Republicans chapter plans to host far-right German leader after ‘I love Hitler’ chat
The New York Young Republican Club will host Markus Frohnmaier, an AfD deputy chair, at its annual gala after calling for a ‘new civic order’ in Germany.
www.politico.com
December 9, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Transnational far right www.politico.com/news/2025/12...