RationalWiki:What is going on in the blogosphere?/February 2017

February 2017
There’s a new automated propaganda machine driving global politics. How Cambridge Analytica, a private company of which Steven Bannon is a board member, contributed to the victory of Trump in the election and what big data analysis will mean for the future of democracy. To assess how badly disoriented incoming patients are, emergency room doctors often ask the same set of questions: What is your name? Where are we? What is the date? Who is the president of the United States? [http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/medical_examiner/2017/02/one_doctor_s_experience_telling_patients_trump_is_president.html Since January 20, a WTF?! response has become common when people are told the identity of the new POTUS.] Dinesh D'Souza's crappy political hit piece, "Hillary's America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party," wins the 2017 Razzie for Worst Picture. Besides worst picture, "Hillary's America" also won worst actor and director for Dinesh D'Souza (who played himself), and worst actress for the unnamed person who played Clinton. The Razzies website follows up in a good-natured way by featuring a flattering mugshot of D'Sousa. A dumb idea: Salon deleting the Todd Nickerson pedophilia articles. P.S.: I've started a petition for Salon to bring them back. Please sign. Thank you! Laurie Penny covers the downfall of Milo, live from the scene. Bring popcorn. A video compilation showing Bill Maher's racist bigotry over the years. Update: Here he is defeding a 35-year-old who raped a child; he goes as far as to say that their relationship was loving and that our society oppressed. Jacobin tells us to "Free Tibet". The Grauniad on "populist correctness", aka the right's tendency to get triggered by whatever doesn't fit their worldview. Under Trump, Gamergate no longer has any role independent of the alt-right, says Vice. Ken Johnston poses as an astronaut + comments by James Oberg. President Trump in the words of candidate Trump (YouTube link). National Review discovers what it calls the "tough guy right". Apparently, Alex Jones can and indeed has declined, says Vice. Reason: "Ashton Kutcher Claims He Helped Cops Save Way More Sex-Trafficking Victims Than Authorities Say They've Found" How a user account of prolific conservative Daniel John Sobieski, 68, tweets 1000 times a day including while he sleeps with the help of bots. How Israeli tech firms sneakily do business in Gulf Arab states and its potential to lead to peace deal between these long time arch rivals. Kremlinology revitalized: "We’ve fucked up so much that it’s made us afraid of victory; faced with an enormous and implacable enemy, there are people who are now convinced that its power is infinite.(...) If Steve Bannon’s pants fell down tomorrow and he tottered crying into a muddy pond, there would be someone ready to announce that actually, this made him even more omnipotent than he was before." A brief history of all the things so-called president Donald Trump has declared "so-called", including judges, journalists, leaders, climate change and the popular vote.