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FN Herstal’s New Ultralight Machine Gun: EVOLYS
For a few weeks, the Belgian company FN Herstal have been promoting an event called: “A New Chapter Begins“. As you know, the company already provides an extensive range of firearms for use in the ground role, or mounted on vehicles, ships and aircraft from 5.56mm cal to .50 cal machine guns. From the images […]
The post FN Herstal’s New Ultralight Machine Gun: EVOLYS appeared first on The Firearm Blog.
Silicon Valley Algorithm Manipulation Is The Only Thing Keeping Mainstream Media Alive
This article was originally published by Caitlin Johnstone at Caitlin Johnstone.com.
The emergence of the internet was met with hope and enthusiasm by people who understood that the plutocrat-controlled mainstream media were manipulating public opinion to manufacture consent for the status quo. The democratization of information-sharing was going to give rise to a public consciousness that is emancipated from the domination of plutocratic narrative control, thereby opening up the possibility of revolutionary change to our society’s corrupt systems.
But it never happened. Internet use has become commonplace around the world and humanity is able to network and share information like never before, yet we remain firmly under the thumb of the same power structures we’ve been ruled by for generations, both politically and psychologically. Even the dominant media institutions are somehow still the same.
So what went wrong? Nobody’s buying newspapers anymore, and the audiences for television and radio are dwindling. How is it possible that those same imperialist oligarchic institutions are still controlling the way most people think about their world?
The answer is algorithm manipulation.
Here’s @YouTube‘s CEO openly admitting to:
1) Ranking corporate news higher in YT’s algorithim
2)Suppressing independent news/politics channels
3)Suppressing people creating content “from their basement” (THE ORIGINAL PURPOSE of YT)This is scandaloushttps://t.co/B8G2AYvBul
— Jordan (@JordanChariton) April 22, 2021
Last month a very informative interview saw the CEO of YouTube, which is owned by Google, candidly discussing the way the platform uses algorithms to elevate mainstream news outlets and suppress independent content.
At the World Economic Forum’s 2021 Global Technology Governance Summit, YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki told Atlantic CEO Nicholas Thompson that while the platform still allows arts and entertainment videos an equal shot at going viral and getting lots of views and subscribers, on important areas like news media it artificially elevates “authoritative sources”.
“What we’ve done is really fine-tune our algorithms to be able to make sure that we are still giving the new creators the ability to be found when it comes to music or humor or something funny,” Wojcicki said. “But when we’re dealing with sensitive areas, we really need to take a different approach.”
Wojcicki said in addition to banning content deemed harmful, YouTube has also created a category labeled “borderline content” which it algorithmically de-boosts so that it won’t show up as a recommended video to viewers who are interested in that topic:
“When we deal with information, we want to make sure that the sources that we’re recommending are authoritative news, medical science, et cetera. And we also have created a category of more borderline content where sometimes we’ll see people looking at content that’s lower quality and borderline. And so we want to be careful about not over-recommending that. So that’s a content that stays on the platform but is not something that we’re going to recommend. And so our algorithms have definitely evolved in terms of handling all these different content types.”
Progressive commentator Kyle Kulinski has a good video out reacting to Wojcicki’s comments, saying he believes his (entirely harmless) channel has been grouped in the “borderline” category because his views and new subscribers suddenly took a dramatic and inexplicable plunge. Kulinski reports that overnight he went from getting tens of thousands of new subscriptions per month to maybe a thousand.
“People went to YouTube to escape the mainstream nonsense that they see on cable news and on TV, and now YouTube just wants to become cable news and TV,” Kulinski says. “People are coming here to escape that and you’re gonna force-feed them the stuff they’re escaping like CNN and MSNBC and Fox News.”
It is not terribly surprising to hear Susan Wojcicki admit to elevating the media of the oligarchic empire to the CEO of a neoconservative publication at the World Economic Forum. She comes from the same elite empire management background as all the empire managers who’ve been placed in charge of mainstream media outlets by their plutocratic owners, having gone to Harvard after being literally raised on the campus of Stanford University as a child. Her sister Anne is the founder of the genetic testing company 23andMe and was married to Google co-founder Sergey Brin.
Google itself also uses algorithms to artificially boost empire media in its searches. In 2017 World Socialist Website (WSWS) began documenting the fact that it, along with other leftist and antiwar outlets, had suddenly experienced a dramatic drop in traffic from Google searches. In 2019 the Wall Street Journal confirmed WSWS claims, reporting that “Despite publicly denying doing so, Google keeps blacklists to remove certain sites or prevent others from surfacing in certain types of results.” In 2020 the CEO of Google’s parent company Alphabet admitted to censoring WSWS at a Senate hearing in response to one senator’s suggestion that Google only censors right-wing content.
Google, for the record, has been financially intertwined with US intelligence agencies since its very inception when it received research grants from the CIA and NSA. It pours massive amounts of money into federal lobbying and DC think tanks, has a cozy relationship with the NSA and has been a military-intelligence contractor from the beginning.
We should be extremely alarmed that the Atlantic Council—funded by NATO and the state department and Gulf monarchies and weapons companies—is telling Facebook who to delete https://t.co/7N6fDjDSHR pic.twitter.com/W2zLmx1MKI
— Rania Khalek (@RaniaKhalek) August 25, 2018
Then you’ve got Facebook, where a third of Americans regularly get their news. Facebook is a bit less evasive about its status quo-enforcing censorship practices, openly enlisting the government-and-plutocrat-funded imperialist narrative management firm The Atlantic Council to help it determine what content to censor and what to boost. Facebook has stated that if its “fact-checkers” like The Atlantic Council deem a page or domain guilty of spreading false information, it will “dramatically reduce the distribution of all of their Page-level or domain-level content on Facebook.”
All the algorithm stacking by the dominant news distribution giants Google and Facebook also ensures that mainstream platforms and reporters will have far more followers than indie media on platforms like Twitter since an article that has been artificially amplified will receive far more views and therefore far more clicks on their social media information. Mass media employees tend to clique up and amplify each other on Twitter, further exacerbating the divide. Meanwhile left and antiwar voices, including myself, have been complaining for years that Twitter artificially throttles their follower count.
If not for these deliberate acts of sabotage and manipulation by Silicon Valley megacorporations, the mainstream media which have deceived us into war after war and which manufacture consent for an oppressive status quo would have been replaced by independent media years ago. These tech giants are the life support system of corporate media propaganda.
The post Silicon Valley Algorithm Manipulation Is The Only Thing Keeping Mainstream Media Alive first appeared on SHTF Plan – When It Hits The Fan, Don’t Say We Didn’t Warn You.
Gear Up: New Survival Gear for May 2021
Tyrant Designs | S&W Shield Extended Magazine Release
COLORS: Various, including Blue, Gold, and Red
MSRP: Starting at $25
URL: tyrantcnc.com
In a life-and-death situation, having a second magazine full of ammo won’t do you any good if you can’t eject the first empty magazine efficiently from your firearm. That’s why Tyrant Designs has come out with this extended magazine release for the popular Smith & Wesson M&P Shield. By extending the length and increasing traction with a crosshair pattern, this sturdy component increases purchase and adds control to your relo.comads so you can press the release quickly without having to grope for it. Not just for show, this upgrade can boost both your gun’s aesthetics and performance. It can be installed in seconds without any tools. Designed and made in the USA, this mag release fits both the 9mm and .40-caliber versions of the M&P Shield, as well as the newer Shield 2.0.
5.11 Tactical | Field Watch 2.0
COLORS: Black, Kangaroo
MSRP: $170
URL: 511tactical.com
Loyal readers will know that an analog wristwatch can offer many improvised survival functions — way more than we have room here to describe. But rest assured, the Field Watch 2.0 will perform admirably both in the backcountry and big city. It retains the best elements from the original Field Watch but adds two important features: a clear date window and phosphorescent Super-LumiNova hands (to see in dark conditions). They’re well protected thanks to a chip- and scratch-resistant mineral crystal display, a 44mm stainless steel case with a matte ion-plated finish, and a stainless steel screw-in backing. While the 22mm-wide nylon NATO band is a tad long for our liking, it’s sturdy and flexible. Plus, the watch is water-resistant up to 100 meters.
SOG Specialty Knives & Tools | Pentagon XR
OAL: 8.38 inches
MSRP: $175
URL: sogknives.com
SOG isn’t exactly what it used to be … and that’s a good thing! The Pentagon XR is a prime example of how the company has remade itself in the past year by refocusing on functionality over flash, and quality of products over quantity of sales. This folder’s spear-point blade is made of CTS-XHP, a premium stainless steel that has great corrosion resistance, toughness, and edge retention. These attributes make it effective for daily carry, professional use, or hard field use. Plus, the knife features SOG’s XR Lock, dual thumb-studs, a flipper tab, and a reversible pocket clip — all of which allow for ambidextrous, one-handed operation. Add in the ergonomic G10 handle, and the Pentagon XR is a top-performing, versatile folding knife that helps elevate SOG’s folding-blade lineup beyond many of its production-knife peers.
Maven Outdoor Equipment Company | CM.1
DIMENSIONS: 5.1 by 2 by 1.75 inches
MSRP: $150
URL: mavenbuilt.com
Whether it’s finding an injured hiker during a search-and-rescue mission or more mundane tasks like checking out what’s going on in your neighborhood, the ability to see at a distance can sometimes be vital. But when you want something more compact than binoculars or a riflescope (especially if it’s a non-shooting scenario), then a monocular is the way to go. Maven’s CM.1 offers you a mid-level optic solution that fits into your jacket pocket while giving you ample magnification with its 8×32 configuration. With its compact polymer frame and multi-coated ED glass, the CM.1 provides a clear, high-contrast image, strong color fidelity, and a substantial field of view. It’s also waterproof and fog-resistant, and comes with lens caps and a microfiber storage bag.
Mystery Ranch | Tech Holster
COLORS: Black, Coyote, Foliage
MSRP: $29
URL: mysteryranch.com
The Mystery Ranch Tech Holster is a convenient and portable place to stow your expensive smartphone or GPS unit outside of your pants pocket, helping you avoid the fear of it getting wet or cracked. Made of 500-denier Cordura fabric and a water-resistant YKK zipper, this padded pouch can be attached to your belt, PALS webbing, a pack’s shoulder strap, a binocular harness, or any MOLLE-compatible gear. The main compartment also has a separate section for cable storage, while an external front pocket can be accessed one-handed via an adjustable elastic closure with pull tab. One caveat: If you’re rocking a massive phablet (e.g. iPhone 12 Pro Max, Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra, etc.), it might not fit in this holster, which has external dimensions of 7 by 4.5 by 2 inches.
Gear Aid | Fire Strand 550 Paracord
WEIGHT: 4.58 ounces
MSRP: $12
URL: gearaid.com
Cordage is an underrated piece of kit. When people prep their bug-out gear, most of the attention tends to go to water, food, fire-starting, and weapons. But rope or a strong string can make all the difference in certain situations, e.g. tying down your gear to your off-road rig. That’s why the Fire Strand 550 Paracord could come in handy. This seven-strand nylon cord is strong enough for all sorts of tasks, from tensioning tarps to making an improvised boot lace. But it has a hidden bonus: It can be unraveled to reveal a wax-coated fire strand for sparking campfires. The fire strand can also double as a fishing line or thread. Plus, it comes with a non-climbing plastic carabiner.
Outdoor Research | Merino Work Gloves
COLORS: Black, Tan/Grizzly Brown
MSRP: $110
URL: outdoorresearch.com
While the snow has melted in most places in North America, there’s still no reason you shouldn’t have a sturdy and warm pair of work gloves for chilly springtime nights or heavy-duty tasks that require a bit more paw protection. As the name denotes, the Merino Work Gloves are made partly of Outdoor Research’s Alpen-Wool — a blend of wool, nylon, and polyester that provides warmth, moisture-wicking, and odor-resistance. This is paired up with deerskin, which gets softer with use but maintains long-term durability. Moreover, the gloves have a pre-curved construction and elasticized wrist for a better fit, as well as touchscreen compatibility so you don’t have to remove the gloves to use your mobile device.
MyMedic | Auto Medic – Stormproof First Aid Kit
COLORS: Black, Red
MSRP: $150
URL: mymedic.com
Stormproof is a recently released line of portable first aid kits that are meant to be stowed in various types of vehicles. The Auto Medic edition of Stormproof is (naturally) ideal for those driving four-wheeled transportation. It has key items for almost any emergency you might encounter while on the road, including a window-breaker, seatbelt cutter, EMT shears, and a pen light. If your ride breaks down in the middle of nowhere, there’s a survival blanket and hand warmers. For cuts and scrapes, there’s a microMend Cut Kit and various bandages. The whole package fits inside a weatherproof bag, which features MOLLE loops for easy attachment and modular mesh pockets on the inside for customization.
Real Avid | Gun-Max Gun Oil
NET WEIGHT: 12 ounces
MSRP: $13
URL: realavid.com
The last thing you want to happen to your firearm in a life-and-death situation is to press the trigger and not hear a bang. Like anything else worth maintaining (e.g. your health, your relationships), this kind of failure can certainly happen if you neglect your guns. Cleaning and lubing them regularly is an essential part of extending their life spans and having them be ready when they’re most needed. Gun-Max Gun Oil helps make that easier, thanks to its powerful inhibitors (which displace moisture to prevent corrosion) and anti-friction additives (which bond to metal surfaces for extended lubrication). Unlike other CLPs or gun oils, this comes in a smartly designed can. Its flip-up nozzle has two positions: “up” for precise applications and “down” for a wider spray.
Lioncrest Publishing | 100 Deadly Skills: Combat Edition
PAGES: 330 pages
MSRP: $25
URL: 100deadlyskills.com
Clint Emerson knows a thing or two about being violent when needed. He retired as a Navy SEAL with more than 20 years of service and founded Escape the Wolf, a company that focuses on crisis management for global companies. His best-selling 2015 book, 100 Deadly Skills, taught readers how to escape and evade dangers while at home or abroad. Now he’s back with 100 Deadly Skills: Combat Edition, a self-defense manual that includes everything from empty-hand combatives and surviving a multi-threat ambush to knife-throwing and drawing and shooting a handgun. Each skill isn’t just explained and illustrated; there are also QR codes that take you to a video for each concept.
Nutrient Survival | Chocolate Chip Cookie-Meals
SERVINGS PER CONTAINER: 15
MSRP: $25
URL: nutrientsurvival.com
Long gone are the days when survival food had to look like gray oatmeal and taste like old cardboard. Forget hardtack or MREs (aka Meals Refusing to Exit). Nowadays food prep technology has become so advanced that you can have chow that doesn’t just last a long time but also tastes delicious. The Chocolate Chip Cookie-Meals from Nutrient Survival are proof. These morsels have no artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives yet come packed with 14 vitamins, 14 minerals, Omega-3, Omega-6, fiber, and protein. One serving (two cookies) gives you 220 calories, 10 grams of fat, and 8 grams of protein. Plus, they have a shelf life of 18 months. They’re great morale boosters in a post-SHTF scenario or just as a satisfying everyday snack.
Gregory Mountain Products | Supply Duffel 90
COLORS: Brick Red, Obsidian Black
MSRP: $110
URL: gregorypacks.com
This bag is so rugged and roomy that it could play double duty as a bug-out bag. But the Supply Duffel 90 is better suited as a camp/travel pack, a large gym/training bag, or as a vehicle emergency kit because of its rectangular shape, 420-denier nylon body, and flat Kevlar bottom panel for hard-core durability. Its main, lockable #10 YKK zipper can be opened or closed via a jumbo T-Grip zipper pull, while its side zippered pocket can transform into a storage pouch for the entire duffel when not in use. If you do need it to haul gear while on the move, there are grab handles on either end, padded handle wrap for suitcase carry, and an adjustable and removable strap for cross-body carry.
Find More Gear and Reviews on OFFGRID
- Axes, Knives, and Lume-Patches, New Gear from January 2021.
- Layering your EDC Survival Gear.
- Judging Survival Gear: Quantity or Quality?
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The post Gear Up: New Survival Gear for May 2021 appeared first on RECOIL OFFGRID.
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