Russian Bots Linked To Viral Twitter Attacks On 'Hateful' Dems

[TomCADem]

This year, you may have less interference of the direct hack and leak variety, but there may be more indirect influence in the support of fringe candidates who attack less Russia friendly candidates, as well as efforts to depress Democratic turnout such as another #WalkAway campaign pushed by Russian bots and highlighted by RW media.

https://www.salon.com/2018/07/09/russian-bots-are-back-walkaway-attack-on-democrats-is-a-likely-kremlin-operation/

In what may be an early onslaught of Kremlin-linked Twitter attacks ahead of the U.S. midterm elections, Russia bots appear to be fueling a wave of criticism targeting Democrats over alleged intimidation in political confrontations and a lack of “civility,” according to bot trackers.

Attacks with the hashtag #WalkAway purport to be from a “grassroots” wave of one-time Democrats who have left the party in part because they say they are so incensed by the hateful and divisive behavior of party members. The message is to “walk away” from ugly confrontations, “intolerance” and hate — and from the Democratic Party.

But the hashtag has been connected to Russian bots. It has ranked as the third or fourth most popular Kremlin-linked hashtag for days, according to bot tracking by the Hamilton 68 site run by the bipartisan Alliance for Securing Democracy, which keeps tabs on Russian activity on the American internet.

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The aim of such a campaign is to manipulate public opinion by “gaming online algorithms” to rocket content to the top of internet searches, noted Arc Digital. Fox News and other conservative outlets in turn have helped amplify the message by reporting on the #WalkAway “movement.”

[JDC]

1. Twitter is shit

[PatrickforO]

2. This fits in with other rhetoric I've seen. I saw some 'information' from polls

that said more than 50% of the American people are afraid of violence from 'people who do not like Trump's policies.

This is why all of us need to get out on Twitter, the Hill, and other sites to correct this misinformation.

When we point out right wing terrorism, for instance, we see the first response from rw trolls is, "well, what about Antifa?"

Whataboutism is a really big technique with these pieces of human rubbish. Oh, the emails, the uranium scandal, Antifa and so on.

I always start with, "Well that is an excellent example of whataboutism, but what we're talking about here is..." Works for me.

As to Antifa, I'm not inclined to be particularly negative about them because they are out in the streets fighting against fascism. I think civil disobedience works to a huge degree, but an African American colleague said a very interesting thing in the context of a discussion on the merits of non-violent civil disobedience versus the violent acts of Antifa.

Oh, I had brought up provocateurs, COINTELPRO and so on, and she nodded. But, she said, think about this. MLK, Malcolm, Medgar Evers and many others were killed for acts of non-violent civil disobedience. We only really got the changes when the Panthers started carrying weapons and we rioted.

Now, don't get me wrong - I am not advocating violence, but it is food for thought because the oligarchs are doubling down on the old 'divide and conquer' strategy. They want to get rid of the democracies and replace them with white nationalist theocracies while at the same time they take more and more and more wealth from all of us.

When I read bullshit like Americans are worried about violence from the left, folks, that's Russian crap. As I say, we are being manipulated into civil war. Those racist fucks started it in 1861 and LOST at a cost of 620K lives. Hitler started his Thousand Year Reich in 1933 and by 1945 Russian troops were fighting through the ruins of Berlin. They LOST again, this time at the cost of 60 million lives. Now these pieces of human excrement are rising up again. How many lives, pray tell, will it cost us all THIS TIME???????

It is ALWAYS about greed of a few and everyone else just wanting enough.

People are getting pretty angry. I am. I'm sick of seeing people suffer and die because of the fucking greed-heads. Unions getting busted. People in cages. Forever wars. Rampant inflation. Massive national debt. Massive student debt. Crappy, rationed healthcare with financially crippling copays if you're lucky enough to even have it. The world on the road to uninhabitability.

This coming election is the last hope, I think, to restore any kind of sanity by peaceful means.

So be active, and VOTE. Please. I'm too old for this shit.

[NYMinute]

3. This rhetoric helps someone

and it must have been formulated with American help.

Does anyone suspect David Sirota and company?

[hedda_foil]

4. No.

[TomCADem]

5. Samantha Bee: Russian Bots and Trolls

Basically, if you are willing to attack a free media and the integrity of U.S. elections, you might start trending.

[betsuni]

6. K&R