Home Blog Page 3302

Mehdi Hasan, who ranted against non-Muslims, goes on a tirade against Modi and Hindutva, but his propaganda was impeccable: Here is why

Nupur J Sharma
-
0
Mehdi Hasan, who ranted against non-Muslims, goes on a tirade against Modi and Hindutva, but his propaganda was impeccable: Here is why

While dictating the book Mein Kampf, Adolf Hitler came up with the term “big lie”. The “big lie” is essentially one of the key techniques of propaganda where the proponent makes up a big enough lie that people believe to be the truth, simply because they think nobody could possibly make up such a colossal lie. Historians believe that Joseph Goebbels and the Nazi party used this technique to turn the sentiment against the news, to a point where the sentiment turned into an excuse for mass murder and genocide.

Arguably, the Nazi regime was the pinnacle of what a truly believable propaganda onslaught looks like. As unbelievable as it is, the Germans at the time truly believed that they were fighting for their freedom and the preservation of their identity. What made an entire nation follow one of the most grotesque mass murderers? A cult that murdered millions of Jews?

Joseph Goebbels was the Propaganda Minister for Hitler’s Third Reich and over the years, several studies have been conducted to understand the basic principles followed by him, that made his propaganda so successful. One of the theories by Jowett & O’Donnell saw that Goebbels based his propaganda on the following principles:

  • Avoid abstract ideas – appeal to the emotions.
  • Constantly repeat just a few ideas. Use stereotyped phrases.
  • Give only one side of the argument.
  • Continuously criticize your opponents.
  • Pick out one special “enemy” for special vilification.

Simple, yet powerful ideas that subjugated an entire nation to endorse genocide.

To be clear, there is still no agreed-upon definition of fascism itself. Every scholar has defined it on the basis of their own understanding and one can safely assume, that the modern-day interpretation of fascism is, ironically, the product of another propaganda blitzkrieg that has been unleashed upon the world.

While the global Left has tried their best to paint indigenous communities as “fascists” by arbitrarily calling them “right-wing”, the real proponents of Goebbels-esque propaganda aren’t the mythical global right-wing or indigenous people looking to merely survive in an age of globalism and nation-states, but the Left and the Islamists who wish to establish some sort of cultural and religious (respectively) hegemony that threatens to destabilise the world.

Mehdi Hasan – the perfect disciple of Goebbels

A classic example of the perfect Goebbels-esque propaganda was the recent diatribe by Mehdi Hasan. Hasan is a presenter at MSNBC and recently, the quintessential “moderate Muslim” got triggered against Modi, Hindu, Hindutva, Hindu Nationalism and anything that the brown heathens were doing without the explicit consent of the West, the Islamists, the Globalists and the Left.

We will get to Hasan’s video in just a moment. But before we do, some context is the need of the hour. Hasan himself, who masquerades as a “moderate Muslim”, has been known to be a rabid Jihadi. It is, of course, par for the course for such Jihadis to be co-opted by corporate media like the MSNBC, because they fulfil the dual, diabolical end of uniting the Left and the Islamists.

In the past, he has claimed that non-Muslims live like animals and equated homosexuals with paedophiles. He has since then apologized for his remarks but in light of his recent conduct, it appears the apology was ‘Taqiyya’. The practice of ‘Taqiyya’ is a religiously sanctioned lying or deceiving non-Muslims in order to present oneself as not a true believer in Islam.

Not only that, Hasan has attempted rather feverishly in the past to deny that Islam has a problem of radicalism. Not only does Hasan deny the links of Radical Islam with Islam, he completely denies that Radical Islamic terrorists are in any manner even inspired by Islam and teachings in the Quran. Not merely that, he even mocks the idea that Islam has a problem and that Radical Islamic terrorists are driven to murder people in the name of Allah. It’s a complete whitewashing and denial of reality.

This itself establishes what a great propagandist Hasan truly is. He focuses on abstract ideas about Islam having nothing to do with Radical Islam (without addressing the actual verses from the Quran that call for the beheading of Kafirs etc), he constantly repeats this trope of Islam being peaceful, he refuses to discuss the ideas floated by critics of Islam, he broad brushes critics as Islamophobes, so on and so forth. Almost effortlessly, he checks all the boxes that Goebbels would have wanted him to check.

This is what makes him the perfect candidate to spread the propaganda that clearly has the blessings of the global Left, the Muslim brotherhood and evidently, ally channels like MSNBC.

Mehdi Hasan and his Goebbal-esque propaganda on MSNBC

In the video, Hasan starts by talking about ‘right-wing’ regimes like that of Russia. He says that Putin has ties to far-right groups in Russia and beyond. Interestingly, while Hasan claims that Russian mercenaries are far-right groups (white supremacists), he fails to mention that the Azov battalion in Ukraine is proven Nazis. Zelensky himself admitted that they were. The selective quoting of the facts would against make Goebbels proud.

Moving on, Hasan then talks about India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Saying that Modi is “hell-bent” on re-creating the “lost Hindu kingdom” one likes to call “Hindu Rashtra” and is “far-right” and “supremacist”. What Hasan primarily tries to do here is, in a sleight of hand, equate Hindu nationalism with white supremacists to make a larger, global point that Ostriches in the USA can comprehend. Hasan is dishonest enough to not mention how White Supremacists use ‘curry ni**ers’ as a racist derogatory slur for Hindus. He won’t mention the fact that Hindus are hated just as much as Muslims by White Supremacists. Beyond that, Hasan is also dishonest in his evaluation of facts and how indigenous people choose to survive in an ever-changing world.

For a country that was partitioned on the basis of religion and still faces a huge threat from Radical Islam and Christian Evangelism, Hindu Nationalism is the only recourse. Given that Hasan follows Islam, it is natural for him to equate Hindu Nationalism with Abrahamic nationalism – whether Islamic or Christian – and being a journalist, one does not really expect him to understand nuanced differences. Abrahamic religions functions on the principles of absolutes and universal truths and their nationalism revolve around either the Ummah or similar concepts where the world needs to be covered to their religion and by force, made to believe in their One True God. The tenets of Hinduism itself don’t match with the Abrahamic line of thinking and therefore, Hindu nationalism is a concept far divorced from Abrahamic tenets of global dominion. To club Hindu Nationalism with White Supremacy, which is an ideology based on race, is utterly dubious.

Muslims “literally” on the verge of genocide in India, MK Gandhi, Godse and Golwalkar: How Hasan made Goebbels proud

In his video, Hasan goes on to talk about how Muslims and Christians are “literally” on the verge of genocide, and this vague linguistic jugglery is exactly what Goebbels would endorse. How are they “literally” on the verge of a genocide? Nobody really knows. Given that lakhs of Muslims regularly take to the streets to riot and sloganeer against Hindus. Recently, we saw multiple attacks in multiple states across India against Hindus as they took out their religious processions peacefully, as we see the ongoing trial in the Delhi anti-Hindu Riots where Muslims and Leftists conspired to teach Hindus a lesson. One really does not know how they are LITERALLY on the verge of a genocide. But the turn of phrase serves a great purpose overall. It convinces those listening that he is being honest. The word “literally” and the emphasis on it gives the impression that there are actually incidents of mass murders of Muslims happening as he speaks in India. A simple message that alludes to emotions, repeats the same message over and over again, does not wade into specifics but drives home the point beautifully.

To drive his point home further, he alludes to Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (he calls him a Mahatma). He reminds people that Gandhi was murdered by a Hindu extremist – Godse. Now, just like fascism, there is no universally accepted definition of ‘extremism” either. As such, a Jihadi like Hasan is free to use it to define the Kafirs that he so feverishly hates. After all, one of the greatest methods of propaganda is to accuse the other of what you are doing yourself. Extremism, essentially, is a broader term as compared to terrorism. Therefore, as such, the global community is free to bracket anything they don’t agree with as “extremism”. What is extreme? Nobody really knows due to the subjective nature of the term. Would flat earthers find modern scientists extremists? Perhaps yes. Would the Church think of abortion laws as extremist opinions? Absolutely. Would Mehdi think that Hindus believing that they have a right to survive and preserve their religion, culture and identity beyond the confines of Abrahamic values? Hell yes.

When Godse murdered Gandhi, one has to remember that India was going through a churn that the world had not seen. A nation had been torn into two by Ummah enthusiasts, much like Hasan himself. Divided on the basis of religion, elements like Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi watched over as Hindus were butchered in thousands and lakhs. One recalls the Malabar genocide of Hindus by Moplah Muslims after the Khilafat movement found endorsement from him, the Direct Action Day, the Noakhali genocide and the Hindus butchered in newly formed Islamic Pakistan. Godse was a political assassin who murdered Gandhi because he could no longer stand smelling the blood of his own brethren. Did Godse commit a crime? Yes. Was Godse an extremist or Hindu terrorist who killed Gandhi because his religion ordained him to do so? No. The Left, however, including Islamists like Hasan would use Godse to demonise a people who were butchered and persecuted by Islamists through millennia, with the held of leaders like Gandhi who chased the mythical religious brother that became the sole responsibility of Hindus.

To demonise the Hindus and any organisation that remotely works for Hindus, Mehdi Hasan then goes on to propagate an oft-repeated lie – another Goebbels tactic. He claims that RSS founder, Golwalkar, praised Hitler. In his profuse writings, letters, articles, statements and interviews, there doesn’t seem to be a single sentence which declares Guruji’s admiration for Hitler. Not one. Yet libraries of articles and books repeat the lie to run down the world’s biggest mass organization. This ocean of lies floats on a mere two paragraphs which appeared in Guruji’s maiden book in 1938, “We, Our Nationhood Defined”. The book has never been reprinted since 1947. In neither of these paragraphs did Golwalkar call for a genocide. The one para where he remotely spoke about Hitler has to be viewed in the context of 1938 when Hitler was widely popular across the globe for transforming Germany. It is important to remember that this was written before the Holocaust took place. However, these nuances would be missed by Hasan.

Accuse others of doing what you do yourself: How Mehdi Hasan tried to paint Hindus as international pariahs

So far in the video, Hasan stuck to local examples, misinterpreted, simplified, lied about, but local Indian examples nonetheless. But his aim is much larger, as we get an indication from his video. He wants to paint Hindutva, Hindus and pariahs Internationally. Citing local examples just would not suffice, now, would it? Hasan follows the footsteps of Goebbels and craftily accuses Hindus of what his co-religionists do on a daily basis – create havoc in the world and unleash violence in the name of their religion.

Anders Breivik killed 77 people in July 2011 in Norway. He was a white supremacist who harboured hate toward Muslims. A few paragraphs in his 1,500-page manifesto spoke about Hindutva. Hasan in his video talks about Brevik and claims that Hindutva does not only affect local Hindus but has influenced “some of the worst people” across the world, including Brevik. If Hasan were to be believed, the hundreds and thousands of Islamic terrorists have nothing to do with Islam but Brevik, who isn’t even a Hindu or a proponent of Hindu Nationalism, is representative of Hindu Nationalism at large.

As preposterous as this argument is, it is made with a clear intent of turning Hindus into global pariahs and at the same time, shielding Islamists. You see, when there is a section of the population that can be painted with the same attributes of the tribe you seek to protect, the focus decisively shifts to the new threat that is being laid out right in front of our eyes. Islamic terrorists have nothing to do with Islam because Islam is a religion of peace, however, Brevik, has everything to do with Hindu nationalism because to turn Hindus into global pariahs, Hasan needs to draw parallels that the global community can identify with. The world knows Islam through terrorists like Osama and ISIS. What does one do to absolve Islam? Create a parallel monster – Hindus, Godse, Golwalkar, Brevik, RSS and of course, Modi.

Keep the message simple. Create a “big lie” that nobody would think anybody could lie about. Keep repeating the same message, even if its a lie, over and over again. Demonise a people so their genocide becomes an acceptable norm – exactly what Hasan and his compatriots try to do on a regular basis.

Pick out one special “enemy” for special vilification, propagated Goebbels, and Hasan does just that – Modi, Modi, Modi

After spouting simple punchlines for sub-par IQ Americans to understand, like “Hinduism Good, Hindutva not-so-good”, and “this is a group and an ideology that is really scary”, Hasan shifts his focus on PM Modi. What seems to really scare Hasan is the fact that Indians, the dirty heathens, have the right to exercise their democratic power. Expressing absolute horror at the fact that PM Modi has met with substantial electoral success, Hasan goes on to allude that “it comes as no surprise” that PM Modi is affiliated with the RSS. For us in India, this is a mundane fact, however, for the West, after Hasan vilifies RSS and paints it as a group that runs parallel to ISIS and White Supremacist groups, that affiliation can sound rather jarring.

Frankly, even though Hasan’s propaganda deserves to be despised and debunked, one can’t help but marvel at the efficacy.

What he essentially ended up doing was first demonise RSS with baseless lies and propaganda, then say that PM Modi is a “fascist” since he is affiliated with the RSS. To substantiate his point, he goes on to cite the Gujarat riots and the fact that the US had blacklisted Modi after the said riots. He, of course, does not mention that the Supreme Court of India gave PM Modi a clean chit and said that his name was dragged in with no proof whatsoever. He fails to mention that before the Gujarat riots, over 50 Hindus were burnt alive by a Muslim mob. None of this is mentioned because the truth is antithetical to the Nazi-esque propaganda that Hasan wishes to spread.

Hasan then goes on to repeat the usual tropes of lynchings (only Muslim ones, which are few and far between. Forget the Hindus who are regularly lynched and murdered, they are dispensable. Who can take an objection to righteous Muslim lynching dirty Nazis like the Hindus, yes?), hate crimes, hate speech etc. He also talks about the latest Jahangirpuri incident. Not the violence that was unleashed by the Muslim mob against the Hindus, but the fact that “Muslim homes were razed by the Modi government”. He does not mention that Hindu encroachments were razed too and he, of course, does not mention that his co-religionists had prior to that, attacked a Hindu religious procession. In his diatribe, Hasan even claims that “parts of a mosque” were destroyed, painting a very different picture from the reality – that only a gate, that was illegally encroaching on public land – was bulldozed. No part of the mosque was touched.

The most egregious lie – Modi wants to put Muslims who came to India generations ago from Bangladesh in concentration camps

The most egregious lie that Hasan mentions in his video is perhaps that PM Modi and his government want to put those Muslims in concentration camps, who came to India generations ago from Bangladesh. Now, this lie has been debunked so many times that one feels rather weary in repeating the details. The NRC exercise in Assam was one mandated by the Supreme Court of India where all illegal occupants needed to be recognised and weeded out of the nation. Assam has a long history of conflict due to the influx of illegal migrants. Hasan would do well to read about how that conflict is the legacy of Indira Gandhi, that even led to the Nellie massacre, and how it was Rajiv Gandhi who signed the Assam Accord. Clause 6 of the Assam Accord is what is sought to be implemented and a large part of that is ensuring that illegals, who have altered the culture and demography of Assam, are sent packing to where they came from.

It is pertinent to mention here that every nation has the paramount right to protect the interest of its citizens and India is no different. What Hasan basically wants is for India to assume that every individual within its borders is an Indian citizen without any proof or verification. Would the USA, a country this brown-noser calls his own, do the same? One thinks not. There are no concentration camps that Muslims are being pushed into and there is no nationwide NRC yet. But if there were to be one, nobody can fault a nation trying to ensure that its borders are not illegally penetrated.

Mehdi Hasan’s rant is rancid, but it will work, just like Nazi propaganda

Mehdi Hasan’s diatribe was rancid, laced with lies and selective quoting of events – yes. But it was also impeccable. He kept his messaging rather simple and used incidents that can easily be identified by his global audience. Gandhi is one name that would invoke a strong reaction and by saying that he was assassinated by a Hindu terrorist, almost immediately, Hasan broad brushes all Hindus as extremists at the very least, wreaking havoc against Liberals and Secular, peace-loving individuals for decades. He mentions Hitler and RSS in the same sentence to drive the point home further. It does not matter that it was a downright lie.

To make these points, he uses equally rabid and propaganda peddling outlets like TheWire and NDTV. What’s more? He gets Rana Ayyub, an Islamist accused of money laundering, to lend credence to his own lies.

Hasan followed every principle outlined by Goebbels – he appealed to emotions, kept the messaging simple, repeated the same ideas over and over and used stereotyping language that can be easy to internalise, he chose one special enemy – Modi and selectively quoted incidents presenting only one side of the picture.

Hindus have to come to terms with the fact that while op-eds such as this one would continue to debunk the rampant campaign against Hindus on a global scale, the Liberal-Islamist propaganda is believable and Hindus are being dehumanised to an extent where their genocide would be acceptable – much like the Jews.

Maharashtra: Man playing music on Bluetooth speaker in his own house booked for playing ‘loudspeaker’ in front of a mosque during Azaan time

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Maharashtra: Man playing music on Bluetooth speaker in his own house booked for playing ‘loudspeaker’ in front of a mosque during Azaan time

Amidst the Mosques-Loudspeaker controversy that has grappled parts of the country, starting from Maharashtra, a bizarre case has surfaced in Aurangabad. The city Police have registered a case against Kishore Malkunaik, a resident of Amrutsai Plaza Society for playing music on a Bluetooth speaker in his house, while Azaan was playing in the Mosque in front of his house.

It all started when on the evening of April 23, Kishore Malkunaik who works as a Railway Police sub-inspector was celebrating his wife’s birthday with his family of four. The sub-inspector, who lives on the fourth floor in the B-Wing of Amrutsai Plaza Housing society in Aurangabad decided to play music on a Bluetooth speaker, which was kept on the window sill in his house. Around the same time, at 7 in the evening, Azaan was being played from the mosque in front of Malkunaik’s house.

Malkunaik’s music apparently ‘disturbed’ some residents living in the society. As reported by News daily Divya Marathi, Residents Sheikh Shafiq, Sheikh Shabbir, Imran Khan, Mudassir Ansari and others called the control room of Satara Police station to lodge a complaint against Kishore Malkunaik. Inspector Surendra Malale with his team of sub-inspectors, hawaldars rushed to the site to check the situation. The police reached outside the Safa Mosque in the Silk Mill area and subsequently investigated the house of Malkunaik.

The Police team found a Bluetooth speaker kept in the window of the bedroom of the accused’s house. After a brief interrogation, Malkunaik admitted to having played music during the Azaan time. The Police have reportedly confiscated the speaker and have filed a complaint against Malkunaik. Kishore Malkunaik who works as a Railway Sub-Inspector has been booked under IPC sections 505 (B) and (C) intending to incite any class or community of persons to commit any offence against any other class or community and Maharashtra Police clause 135.

The case is being further investigated by Satara Police station sub-inspector Karale, and if the charges are proven, the accused could be jailed for up to three years. Currently, Malkunaik is looking forward to applying for bail in a local court. Talking about the incident, he said, “On April 23, all of a sudden Police came around 8:30 in the night while we were celebrating inside our home. Imagine how much noise a Bluetooth speaker would make?” he asked. He informed that the case was registered against him the next day.

“We are living for a long time now in this society. Many Muslims live in the vicinity, and we never had issues with each other. And yet a controversy is created if I play music in my house…this is unacceptable. There is indeed a larger conspiracy behind this!” Kishore Malkunaik alleges. The Malkunaik couple who was looking forward to spending a happy time with the family was only relieved at 1 in the night after a prolonged interrogation at the police station.

While according to the accused he never played a ‘loudspeaker’ in front of the mosque during Azaan, he was booked by the police for doing the same.

Which part of the ‘rules-based order’ justifies what the world did in Afghanistan: Dr Jaishankar shows the mirror to the West once again

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Which part of the ‘rules-based order’ justifies what the world did in Afghanistan: Dr Jaishankar shows the mirror to the West once again

Indian External Affairs Minister Dr Jaishankar once again exposed the hypocrisy of the West when it comes to defending the rules-based order in the rest of the world. Answering questions at the ongoing Raisina Dialogues conference in Delhi, Dr Jaishankar pointed out how Europe simply advised India to just do more trade when the same rules-based order was under threat in Asia. Now when it is in Europe’s interests, they have started talking about this rules-based order.

Ever since Russia started its “special military operation” inside Ukraine, Indian External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar has been facing questions on the Indian stand on the conflict on every occasion. Despite making the Indian stand in favor of peace in the region clear on every such occasion, the questions on the conflict continue to follow the Indian EAM. The ongoing Raisina Dialogues conference in Delhi was no different as the question of Ukraine conflict was once again raised in front of the minister.

Addressing questions from the audience on Ukraine, Dr. Jaishankar once again stated that India has a very clear position on the conflict in Ukraine which emphasizes an urgent cessation of fighting and a return to diplomacy and dialogue.

The Indian External Affairs Minister said, “When rules-based order was under challenge in Asia, the advice we got from Europe was- do more trade. At least we are not giving you that advice. We should find a way of returning to diplomacy and dialogue.”

Raising the question of Afghanistan as well, Dr. Jaishankar asked which part of rules-based order justifies the world’s actions in Afghanistan. He pointed out how the entire civil society in Afghanistan was thrown under the bus by the world last year.

Andhra Pradesh: Islamists attack Hanuman Shoba Yatra in Nellore with beer bottles; BJP demands ‘bulldozer justice’ against miscreants

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Andhra Pradesh: Islamists attack Hanuman Shoba Yatra in Nellore with beer bottles; BJP demands ‘bulldozer justice’ against miscreants

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday demanded ‘bulldozer justice’ against the miscreants who attacked the Hanuman Shobha Yatra on Sunday in Nellore, Andhra Pradesh. Slamming the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy-led government over the incident, BJP national secretary and Andhra Pradesh co-in charge Sunil Deodhar said that the state Chief Miniter had long tested the patience of Hindus and the BJP.

“Alarming Situation witnessed by Hindus yesterday in Nellore when stone-pelting happened from Illegal mosque on ‘Hanuman Sobha Yatra’ also beer bottle was thrown on idol! Shame! Mr @ysjagan How long are you going to test the patience of Hindus? AP need #buldozerjustice @HMOIndia,” he wrote on Twitter.

Earlier today, MLC Vakati Narayana Reddy also stated on Twitter that the youths from the Mosque in the city of Nellore made uncivilized gestures when the Hanuman Jayanti procession was passing peacefully from the Nellore district court road. He alleged that some people from the masjid premises tried to instigate the participants of the procession.

Sharing the video on social media, he highlighted the Islamist slogans raised by the miscreants and their act of disturbing the peace during the procession. “These were the slogans made from the other side while the procession was marching peacefully. This is the situation of our Hindus in the country that belongs to Hindus. Hindu Gods are abused. If we consider peace and secularism now, we will not be able to even walk on the roads. Let’s turn around. It’s time to let the world know that our country is a Hindu country”, the tweet in the local language roughly read.

Hanuman procession attacked in Andhra Pradesh’s Nellore

According to the reports, the Hanuman Jayanti procession in the city of Nellore was initiated from TTD Kalyana Mandapam to the Stonehouse Pet area. More than 15,000 Hindus had participated in the peaceful procession. When the procession was peacefully passing through the district court road, the Islamists from the nearby mosque attacked the procession by pelting stones and glass bottles.

The Islamists also threw beer bottles at the statue of Lord Anjaneya (Hanuman). They displayed uncivilized signals and raised Islamist slogans at the procession and disrupted the peace and harmony during the event. However, the Police efficiently handled the situation as the organizers of the procession had taken the authorized permission for carrying out the Shobha Yatra.

BJP national secretary and Andhra Pradesh co-in charge Sunil Deodhar on April 26 also noted that the Mosque built near the Nellore District Court was illegal and that the state government should bulldoze off the illegal construction. He referred to the anti-encroachment drive that recently took place in Delhi’s Jahangirpuri and other states like Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat, and said that houses and properties of those involved in the communal clashes should be razed down.

Also, MLC Reddy mentioned that the land where the masjid stood belonged to the public works department and was encroached upon a few years back. According to the reports, the High Court had given an eviction order four years back but the officials had failed to implement the directions yet. Reddy warned that Hindus will not stay silent if such an incident happens again. He said that he would file a contempt petition in the court of law against the anti-social elements in the city.

BJP meanwhile has taken serious objection to the incident and has handed over a representation to the district collector asking to maintain communal harmony in the city.

Wokes in India and elsewhere proceed to lose their minds after Elon Musk buys out Twitter

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Wokes in India and elsewhere proceed to lose their minds after Elon Musk buys out Twitter

Hours after Tesla CEO Elon Musk acquired Twitter Inc. in a $44 billion dollar bid, left-liberals, both in India and across the globe, had a prolonged meltdown on the micro-blogging platform.

American journalist Anand Giridhardas had claimed, “What Elon Musk is doing is what plutocrats have been doing: using money to buy power and power to protect their money, taking control of media to rig the discourse and hedge against resentment, and branding themselves the solution to the very problem they are.”

Screengrab of the tweet

Law Professor-turned-Islamist Khaled Beydoun inquired whether the Tesla CEO would reinstate the Twitter accounts of separatists in Indian Kashmir, given that he is a ‘free speech absolutist.’

Contributing Editor at The Print, Shivam Vij, had tweeted, “Save Twitter from Elon Musk.”

Screengrab of the tweet

Amnesty International suggested that Twitter had turned ‘toxic’ after the takeover of the platform by Elon Musk.

Screengrab of the tweet

Berkley Professor Robert Reich claimed that Twitter’s acquisition by Elon Musk has nothing to do with the ‘freedom of others’. He alleged, “His goal is the freedom to wield enormous power without having to be accountable to laws and regulations, shareholders, or market competition—which is why he’s dead set on owning Twitter.”

Libs of TikTok pointed out how a teacher fed anti-capitalist propaganda used his position to brainwash students.

Enrique Sanchez running for public office in Rhode Island had tweeted, “Of course I explained to my students in all five of my classes today why Elon Musk buying off Twitter is the worse thing that could have happened. No individual and especially wealthy elites should be given these types of opportunities to buy off social media platforms.”

‘Chinese connections’ and other allegations

Reporter Melissa Chan insinuated that the acquisition of Twitter by the Tesla CEO will empower Chinese disinformation bots on the micro-blogging platform.

“Elon Musk has a Tesla factory in China and he wants to sell more cars there, as many China observers note. What happens if Beijing leans on him about say, an Uyghur or Hong Kong activist account? Or about Chinese disinformation bots leveraging this platform?” she had claimed.

Podcast host, Brian Tyler Cohen, accused Elon Musk of ingenuity and prioritising Twitter over solving world hunger.

“Elon Musk told the United Nations he would give them $6 billion to end world hunger if they showed him a detailed plan of how they would use the money. They called his bluff and gave him their plan— and then they never got the money. Now he’s buying Twitter for $45 billion,” he claimed.

Actor Jameela Jamil posted a tweet saying that she would no longer tweet after Elon Musk bought the social media company. “I fear this free speech bid is going to help this hell platform reach its final form of totally lawless hate, bigotry, and misogyny. Best of luck,” Jamil said in a tweet but she has since been a subject of mockery on Twitter with users claiming that she is too much of a narcissist and attention-seeker to abandon Twitter.

Propaganda and narrative building

Several Indian propagandists, miffed by Musk’s acquisition of Twitter, went on to use the opportunity for political vendetta.

Shiv Sena MP, Priyanka Chaturvedi, claimed that Indians are worried about Musk while the country is allegedly suffering from huge unemployment.

“Majority of India’s 900 Million Workforce Stop Looking for Jobs. The labour participation rate dropped from 46% to 40% in five years. Only 9% of Indian women are employed or looking for jobs. Let this not bother you, Elon Musk buying Twitter is the most important outrage,” she claimed.

Twitter user Rofl Gandhi 2.0 claimed, “Twitter doesn’t arrest people, Modi does. So free speech in India will be guaranteed only if Elon Musk buys Modi instead of Twitter. But unfortunately, he is already owned by a couple of other billionaires.” While the tweet might have been a sarcastic dig at PM Modi, it nevertheless reveals the perverse antipathy that left-wing trolls harbour for the nation’s Prime Minister and Indian businessmen that something as disconnected as the business deal of a social media giant is being used to further their petty political agenda that entails demonising Indian conglomerates who play a crucial role in powering India’s growth engine.

The prolonged meltdown of wokes on Twitter comes from the belief that their hegemony over ‘free speech’ would end after the takeover. The cabal, which actively censors individuals for not toeing their line of speech under the pretext of hate, is now threatened by their sudden loss of power. It is thus obvious for the disgruntled users to lament the ‘sudden collapse of a democratic platform’.

Elon Musk takes over Twitter Inc.

Elon Musk, who was already the largest individual shareholder of Twitter holding 9.2% of the company, had earlier stated that he had no faith in the current management and couldn’t fulfil Twitter’s true potential under them. He aimed to make the company private so that he could have full control over it and could direct Twitter to fulfil its full potential.

Twitter’s board had tried its best to resist Elon Musk’s takeover bid, including trying to trigger the poison pill strategy. However, the price Musk offered coupled with the mood of the majority of Twitter shareholders eventually forced the Twitter board’s hand.

Elon Musk, who is already the CEO of electric vehicle giant Tesla and SpaceX, co-founder of Neuralink and OpenAI as well as the founder of The Boring Company, is now the owner of the social media giant Twitter.

Following the takeover, Twitter Inc. has locked changes to its source code to prevent disgruntled employees from making unauthorised changes to the platform.

Disclaimer: An earlier version of this report had a tweet by Richard Hanania commenting on Musk’s intellect citing that he doesn’t even have a master’s degree. We understand that it was a satirical post. The line between reality and satire has blurred so much that we often see The Babylone Bee’s articles proving to be prophecies for the likes of CNN and NYT. The error is regretted.

Uttar Pradesh govt orders removal of illegal loudspeakers from religious places including mosques across state

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Uttar Pradesh govt orders removal of illegal loudspeakers from religious places including mosques across state

The Yogi Aditynath-led Uttar Pradesh government has ordered to remove illegal loudspeakers from religious places across the state. The move comes after the issue of loudspeakers on mosques is being debated in the country.

Last week, CM Yogi Adityanath issued a directive for restricting the volume of loudspeakers at religious places lies in residential areas. Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Awanish Awasthi has informed, “The order to remove illegal loudspeakers from religious places in the state was issued on Saturday. A compliance report (from the districts) in this regard has been sought by April 30.” In accordance with the order, local police have been ordered to make a list of places which violate the noise limit standards in the state.

Awasthi informed that the police have been directed to establish conversations with the religious leaders and thus ensure the removal of the unauthorised loudspeakers by coordinating with them. On Monday, Prashant Kumar, Additional Director General of Police (law and order) informed that as many as 125 loudspeakers have been brought down, and around 17,000 people have themselves reduced the volume on their loudspeakers involuntarily.

While Eid and the Hindu festival of Akshaya Tritiya are likely to fall on the same day in May, The CM has directed that usage of loudspeakers should not inconvenience others during religious processions of any kind, which should not be taken out without police permission.

“Although microphones can be used, make sure the sound does not come out of any premises. Other people should not face any problem,” asserted Yogi Aditynath during a review meeting on law and order with senior officials here last week. He said that everyone has the freedom to follow their method of worship according to their religious ideology. In the meeting, it was decided that no permission will be given to install loudspeakers at new sites.

Donald Trump not returning to Twitter even after Musk’s takeover, will stick to his personal platform TRUTH Social

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Donald Trump not returning to Twitter even after Musk’s takeover, will stick to his personal platform TRUTH Social

Ever since Elon Musk launched his successful Twitter takeover bid promising free speech on the platform, everyone was speculating whether it would mean the return of Donald Trump to Twitter. However, the former US President has put cold water on all such speculations by stating that he has no plans to go back to Twitter. Trump further stated that he is going to stick to his own social media platform, Truth Social, instead.

Speaking to Fox News, Donald Trump has confirmed he is not interested in returning to Twitter, even if the social media platform now led by Elon Musk reinstates his account. Speaking to the media network, Trump said, “I am not going on Twitter, I am going to stay on TRUTH.”

However, Trump did see Twitter takeover by Elon Musk as a positive development. “I hope Elon buys Twitter because he’ll make improvements to it and he is a good man, but I am going to be staying on TRUTH,” he said.

“The bottom line is, no, I am not going back to Twitter,” said Trump while stating that he prefers to take his platform TRUTH Social to new heights. “We’re taking in millions of people, and what we’re finding is that the response on TRUTH is much better than being on Twitter,” Trump said.

Trump also complained about the problem of bots and fake accounts on Twitter. Removing bots from the social media giant is one of the stated goals of the new owner Elon Musk.

“Twitter became very boring because conservatives were thrown off or got off the platform when I left,” Trump further said.

Trump will be ‘TRUTHing’ instead

Truth Social, formally launched in March, was started by Donald Trump after he was permanently suspended from Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat following the Capitol Riots on January 6, 2021. When Trump was asked whether the newly acquired Twitter could be a competition to TRUTH, he said, “It would be a positive development in the social media space. I think it is good. We want liberty and justice and fairness in our country, and the more we can have, the better.  I don’t view that as competition for what I am doing.”

While blaming Trump for inciting violence on the Capitol Hill, Twitter had permanently suspended Donald Trump’s account saying, “After a close review of recent Tweets from the @realDonaldTrump account and the context around them — specifically how they are being received and interpreted on and off Twitter — we have permanently suspended the account due to the risk of further incitement of violence.” 

Before his suspension from Twitter, Donald Trump was known for his sometimes angry, sometimes offensive, and sometimes totally bizarre tweets, sometimes at very odd hours of the day.

Kerala university distributes answer key instead of question papers to students, Governor seeks report over major exam goof-ups

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Kerala university distributes answer key instead of question papers to students, Governor seeks report over major exam goof-ups

On Tuesday, Kerala Governor, Arif Mohammad Khan sought a report from the universities of Kerala and Kannur in connection to the recent major exam goof up. According to the Raj Bhavan officials, the reports have been sought as part of a routine checkup as the Kerala Governor is the de facto Chancellor of the state universities.

“Action will be taken on the basis of the reports. This is a routine intervention of the Raj Bhavan in the university matters,” the official said. This is a day after the B.Sc Psychology exams held by the University of Kannur were cancelled as the question papers were a word-to-word copy of the previous year’s question sets.

According to the reports, three BA Philosophy exams scheduled in the last week by the University of Kannur were also cancelled for the same reasons. The action by Kerala Governor also comes in the backdrop of an exam goof up at the University of Kerala. In February this year, answer keys were distributed instead of the question paper during the BSc Electronics supplementary re-examination at the University.

The matter came to light when the evaluator of the BSc Electronics supplementary re-examination was handed over the answer sheet only with the answer key when he had specifically asked for the answer sheet, answer key, and the question paper. None of the students during the exam had reported that they were given the answer keys of ‘Signals and Systems’ instead of question papers.

On April 24, Khan condemned the incident that happened at the University of Kannur and said that higher education in the state of Kerala was affected though the school education ranked the best in the country. “This is a clear sign of incompetence. Somebody should take responsibility. The higher education sector in Kerala is in the doldrums, even though the school education is the best in the country. Someone should take moral responsibility for the mistakes”, he was quoted.

Reports mention that the confusion in the examinations held in universities comes as the Kerala Governor has indulged in a row with the state government over issues related to the administration of state universities, including the appointment of Vice-Chancellors.

Goa Electricity Board’s Twitter account shows the human behind the handle, winning hearts and empathy during a power outage

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Goa Electricity Board’s Twitter account shows the human behind the handle, winning hearts and empathy during a power outage

On Monday, the human side of the Goa Electricity Board Twitter account was displayed on social media after the state suffered electricity shut down due to heavy winds. The state citizens appreciated the act of the Board staffer who continuously kept on updating the minute to minute status of the electricity restoration process.

The saga that began on April 24 saw the Goa Electricity Board informing on Twitter that a fierce wind had taken down lines at various places due to the falling of tree branches. While the teams were already at the site with some of the contractors to speed up restoration work wherever possible and to the best extent, one of the employees of the Board kept the netizens engaged to keep them posted about the repairing work.

The unknown human face of the Board initially informed that the trees had damaged 5 spans linked to the 33 kv transmission line and that the power supply at Mapusa and Candolim had been disrupted. As the citizens continued to complain about the power cut, he said that he/she was also one of the electricity consumers and that they were also facing the same problem as the common public. “I also have no lights and would be anytime fading ways from you all until supply restored and mobile and laptop charged”, they tweeted from the Goa Electricity Board’s official account.

Screenshot from Twitter

They added that the concerned authority have been informed and the process of restoration of electricity had already begun. To a surprising response by one of the users, the person handling the account noted that no special service was being offered to them and that they were also suffering from the severe power cut. “I am also a consumer like you now out of office but only a dept person on twitter. No special service to me I go through the same route as you all to find better solutions and to pass it on if any”, the staffer stated.

While some of the users hailed the unknown employee for their honesty, others assumed that the account was hacked. The Board employee in an informal model of communication then informed that the account was not at all hacked and that all the responses shared were genuine.

Screenshot from Twitter

The users praised the employee for his/her sincere engagement with the people of Goa amid the breakdown. The person then said that they were just passing on the issue and information from the on-ground field workers and officials to the users and that the real hard work was being done by the line staff who were busy redressing the problem since Sunday.

Screenshot from Twitter

According to the recent updates, the falling of trees and branches on various transmission lines across the state have affected the electricity supply in areas like Dramapur, Panchwadi, Cuncolim and Candolim in Goa. The feeders, isolators and conductors have been damaged and the Goa Electricity Board staff is busy recharging the feeders and removing faulty isolators. However, supply has been fully restored to Panaji, Bambolim, Mapusa, Margao and Curchorem municipalities.

Reports mention that heatwaves across several parts of India have seen a 38-year-high rise in the demand for electricity for domestic purposes. At least 7 states, therefore, have decided to plan blackouts specifically to reschedule supply for the farming sector. The list includes Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Goa and Karnataka.

Jharkhand: Cricketer MS Dhoni’s wife raises voice against power crisis in state

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Jharkhand: Cricketer MS Dhoni’s wife raises voice against power crisis in state

Cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s wife Sakshi Singh Rawat on Monday took to Twitter to raise voice against the power crisis in Jharkhand.

In a tweet, she said that as a taxpayer of Jharkhand, she wanted to know the reason behind power crisis in the state since so many years. She added that they have been doing their part consciously making sure they save energy.

Many netizens pointed out how Jharkhand has been facing power crisis with power cuts lasting 12-16 hours a day in some parts of the state.

Some netizens also shared the details of the grievances they had shared with Jharkhand state officials regarding power cuts.

Similar sentiments were echoed by other netizens from Jharkhand.

Power crisis in Jharkhand

As per reports, the coal crisis in power plants has power crisis in Jharkhand because of which load shedding is done in many parts of the state. Load shedding means power supply of one area is cut off to ensure power supply in other area. Last week, except for cities like Ranchi and Jamshedpur, several areas experienced power cuts for many hours. Dhoni has a family home in Ranchi and now it seems the power crisis has reached the state capital as well.

Earlier in March as the summer set in, three power plants in the state tripped leading to power crisis in several parts of the state. Dhanbad, Jamshedpur, Lohardaga, Gumla. Even back then, load shedding of 10-12 hours was being carried out in some districts.

1...3,3013,3023,303...7,640Page 3,302 of 7,640