Americans keep looking away from the election's most alarming story...

[VOX]

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/opinions/americans-keep-looking-away-from-the-elections-most-alarming-story/2016/11/25/83533d3e-b0e2-11e6-8616-52b15787add0_story.html?client=safari
Per the WaPo, 11/25/16:
Americans keep looking away from the election’s most alarming story-

In assessing Donald Trump’s presidential victory, Americans continue to look away from this election’s most alarming story: the successful effort by a hostile foreign power to manipulate public opinion before the vote.
 U.S. intelligence agencies determined that the Russian government actively interfered in our elections. Russian state propaganda gave little doubt that this was done to support President-elect Trump, who repeatedly praised Vladimir Putin and excused the Russian president’s foreign aggression and domestic repression. Most significantly, U.S. intelligence agencies have affirmed that the Russian government directed the illegal hacking of private email accounts of the Democratic National Committee and prominent individuals. The emails were then released by WikiLeaks, which has benefited financially from a Russian state propaganda arm, used Russian operatives for security and made clear an intent to harm the candidacy of Hillary Clinton.


From the Russian perspective, the success of this operation can hardly be overstated...
<snip>

[VOX]

1. The humiliating self-kick, as this is sinking like an anvil. N/t

[Auntie Bush]

40. K&R

[suegeo]

71. kick back up n/T

[NobodyHere]

2. The most alarming story

Is that tens of millions of people actually voted for Trump

[we can do it]

4. True

[TreasonousBastard]

63. Yes!

[Snarkoleptic]

3. kickski

[KT2000]

5. the party of Putin

used to be against anything Russia but now it is embraced as normal. He is pushing his way through Europe as well.

[LisaL]

7. He is very ambitious, and it doesn't seem Russia is enough for him.

[rurallib]

9. "party of Putin" is a meme that should be pushed hard

sure would be nice if anyone in corporate media would bother to do even a minor story on this.

NPR? NPR? Time to wake up. You"re going to lose your subsidy anyway.

[elmac]

14. When my russian flag arrives that I ordered

I will be flying it high here in trump country for the next 4 years. Trying to educate the dummies around here who voted for him.

[LakeArenal]

16. They'll probably out Confederat Flag you 10 to 1

[War Pigs]

48. Hell yea Marine me too!!!

light cruiser and guided missile destroyer Boiler Tech here. The Russian flag goes up as soon as my current house sells. Found some pretty red bumper stickers Trump Putin- Make Russia Great Again complete with the gold hammer sickle and star. USA and Union made I'm gonna have a blast with some strategic public placement of those babies!!!! It's going to be fun watching this thin skinned a-hole shredded from limb to limb over not doing a blind trust and showing us his loser taxes

[Wounded Bear]

6. Second time in my life that a Pres election was directly influenced by foreign events...

Reagan won largely on the Iran hostage crisis. Trump won on emails available because of Russian hacking.

The problem with people that are easily manipulated is that they are pathologically unable to tell when they are being manipulated. They typical Repub voter is, yes, easily manipulated. They appear to want to be that way, or else they'd ask for solutions a bit more complicated than bumper sticker rhetoric.

Hillary had reams of info on her program ideas to create jobs. Trump just yelled Jobs! as loud and as often as he could. He won.

It's why they get angry when you try to point out how gullible they are. Like the line from Men in Black, "People think they have a pretty good bead on things."

[radical noodle]

12. Nixon sabotaged the Vietnam peace talks

to help win the 1968 election.

[Snoopy 7]

68. USA"

So it doesn't seem to bother anyone that the USA has been meddling and even placing "presidents" all over the world for over 60 years. Now if it happened to us(?) then isn't that a lot like KARMA? I don't want any other country manipulating our elections but, we have private company voting machines which we can not request recounts or tally information from due to "proprietary information". These companies can do as they want when ever they want, who needs to worry about Russia...

[Dustlawyer]

70. People steeped in Fox News and RW hate radio are made to be angry and afraid.

People that are angry and afraid will not listen to reason, that is why facts don't matter to them, they already know better. The propaganda on the left is more disingenuous. They do not report certain stories and we pretend that our candidates are not subject to being bought off by Big Business. Who we finally have a candidate who has our best interests at heart we go with the media who ridicule him. We overlook dirty tricks being played to hamper his candidacy by our own Party and justify it to ourselves in whatever way we choose, but justify it we did!

Bernie was clear he was going to break up the MSM if elected. We sided with the MSM who we normally have no respect for since they are all owned by TPTB.

[BlueCaliDem]

8. Here's another KICK & R! eom

[yardwork]

10. Let's kick it every day.

[mopinko]

11. they cant admit is because they cant admit that we do this to our own people

ALL.THE.FUCKING.TIME.

if i were noam chomsky, i would buy my tombstone now.
it would say-

I TOLD YOU SO.

[DK504]

13. Sooooo

Where is the AG, the head of the CIA, NSA, DNC and the rest of the alphabet soup that claims to be "intelligence" and "justice" agencies? Just curios. Then of course there is the media that can't stay far enough away from the story that our country was hijacked.

[suegeo]

15. Important thread on Twitter documenting the Russian interference

https://twitter.com/sarahkendzior/status/801789084574302212

Get the articles now, print them out, save them to hard drives, etc. before they take the internet away from us.

[chowder66]

17. Kick. nt

[Squinch]

18. You are

[Squinch]

19. right, this thread

[Squinch]

20. is sinking like a stone and

[Squinch]

21. it's an unbelievably important issue.

[Squinch]

22. So kick.

[suegeo]

31. OK I will KICK n/t

[JI7]

23. it's a sign of the fucked up media which is more kardashian level reality show

than serious news reporting

[Squinch]

24. The strange thing is that I think it is dropping because everyon agrees on it. I don't think

there is a lot of disagreement about the fact that a foreign power just fucked with our election. But I also think no one knows what to do with that.

But thank you for the OP.

[Squinch]

25. And one last one to bring it to 25.

[bdamomma]

26. K&R

[Dream Girl]

27. I will never forget Angela Mitchell clutching printouts of podestas email

She was so excited, she was trembung with excitement. It was truly disgusting.

[oasis]

44. Andrea sickens me. I hope the Clinton machine digs up a

worthwhile incident that will force her to retire from "journalism".

[neverforget]

28. Our media sucks or they're in on it.

Party of Putin indeed.

[JHan]

29. Even David Frum is alarmed..

And that speaks volumes.

[JHan]

30. Congrats America,

Trump is Putin's newest useful tool,

and you can't even say you're gonna get jobs back out of it.

[nini]

32. The average repuke doesn't care

Remember when they'd side with Putin over Obama? They love Putin because he hated Obama.

Putin is their new hero.

[Madam45for2923]

33. We need to take this seriously b/c repercussions are endless if we don't.

[FailureToCommunicate]

34. K & R

[randr]

35. The fact that this issue will never be discussed by the Maggot voting scum

is proof of how much they disdain our Nation.

[hay rick]

36. K&R

[They_Live]

37. K & R

[LittleBlue]

38. Putin is the greatest geopolitical mastermind of this century

Even at the height of Soviet power, no Russian leader ever put a puppet in the White House.

No other leader wagers so much on risky, potentially fatal gambles and wins so consistently. His country was diplomatically isolated with sanctions, now he's probably reversed both. All of the other heads of state that oppose him are either lame ducks or already gone. Hollande- dead man walking, probably replaced by one of two pro-Russian candidates (Fillon or Le Pen). Obama- lame duck who will be replaced with Trump. Cameron- gone and politically buried due to Brexit.

You have to tip your hat to him. He won.

[cry baby]

39. k&r

[Auntie Bush]

41. K&R

[Yavin4]

42. The need to feel and be racially superior to other groups outweighs all other rational thought

and even basic human needs. Some folks would eschew education and health care if that meant that other groups would get it as well.

So, it does not surprise me in the least that they'd let a foreign government interfere with our election so long as that government was acting on their behalf.

[Ninga]

43. K&R!!!!

[doc03]

45. I don't get it, I have thought from the beginning that was the most

disturbing issue in the entire election. I would think the CIA, FBI and whatever other alphabet agency would be on this like
some kind of national emergency and it seems to be going nowhere. I mean if a candidate for president conspires with a foreign
government to get elected isn't that treason?

[Lisa0825]

46. And the GOP was complicit in it, which makes them traitors. nt

[McCamy Taylor]

47. This is indeed what is most alarming. And the blackmail potential is enormous

since the people committing the crimes on Trump's behalf are foreign and therefore can not be charged. That means every time they want something from him they can threaten to spill the beans.

Recall how Iran ran Bush foreign policy in both Bush regimes, father and son. Recall that the best and easiest way to prop up oil prices for Russia is for the US to invade Iran. Recall that Iran has proof about Hostages for Votes--which they will probably release if we go to war with them.

Since the CIA loves the Bush family, I feel it is their duty to stop Trump/Putin, before they drag us into a war with Iran---and destroy the Bush family. I never thought I would say this, but there is someone in politics worse than W.----his name is Trump.

[UCmeNdc]

49. Agree

[UCmeNdc]

50. It seems that the average American cannot face the fact that they have been fooled

I think Americans cannot face the fact that another country is manipulating them. Even the security agencies like the NSA, FBI, CIA are running away from this fact.

[JI7]

51. forget the average American. look at the fucking media which is not reporting on it

[UCmeNdc]

52. You are correct. Amazing a gigantic story like this and zero reporting

What is going on in the USA?

[Coyotl]

53. America is a racist, confederate flag waving, gun loving, country is the big scary part.

Not some bot army in Russia tweeting bullshit.

[byronius]

54. There's a few hundred 1950's American generals spinning in their graves right now.

And betrayed by the standard bearers of their own goddamned ideology! My god, Patton would faint!

Russia may seem to have won the battle; they will lose the war. Bet on it.

[secondwind]

55. K&R

[MFM008]

56. how about a hostile FBI as well

???????????????????????????????????????????????????

[uponit7771]

58. 1

[Lucinda]

57. KNR

[MaeScott]

59. K and R. nt

[Puzzler]

60. Agreed... and we can rest assured that ...

Trump is somewhat less likely to start WW3 with Russia. That's so comforting... now if we could just get the Chinese
to pull some of Trump's puppet strings too, then we could all live in a blissful state of peace and harmony, or something...

(extreme sarcasm)

-Puz

[UCmeNdc]

61. I still think DU was part of this Russian attack

[WiffenPoof]

62. Completely Agree

I remember telling my wife that this whole Russian hacking thing is so not being covered. For me it wouldn't matter if the hacking was against the Republicans or the Democrats. It is the most outrageous thing that happened during the election. So little was said in the media. But if Trump took a dump, it was covered from the urge to the flush. Disgusting.

Some of it might be due to a generational thing. At 63, I'm old enough to have lived through the Cold War and diving under my desk at school fearing the bomb. The younger generation doesn't have this experience and may not appreciate the fact that Russia was a sworn enemy.

Regardless, I'm stunned that this story garnered so little coverage.

[Mike Nelson]

64. Yes...

...and Trump publically asked for the Russians help in defeating Hillary Clinton.

[Ligyron]

65. OK, doing my part.

K to the R!

[TomVilmer]

66. Sorry - I am still not buying this story!

Clinton lost the election, and there are lots of good internal US reason for that. To blame Putin is giving him all too much credit and power, and giving your own country way too little. Yes, Russia is trying to influence elections in other countries by nasty means, like USA also always have. But I have seen no clear evidence for any major actions from his side, that made a big difference. I do not care what official US Intelligence groups are claiming, since there has been sharing us no evidence at all - and they lost all credibility before the Iraq wars. Show me some real facts, and I will happily reconsider this!

[Fast Walker 52]

67. what kind of facts do you want exactly?

there's pretty good evidence for hacking and fake news propaganda emanating from Russia. Of course, there's no evidence Putin is directly linked to it, but of course he would maintain distance. The important point is why would Russian hackers do this? Well, clearly it benefits Russia and Putin's goals. And you can't deny Trump ran a pro-Russia campaign and had many links with Russian oligarchs in his campaign.

[TomVilmer]

69. Stuff that not are rumors, thanks...

I have heard, that what people in USA does, is not always controlled by the president. It might be a surprise, but same goes for Russia. In USA, the Alt Right folks and others did similar stuff, without being directed by Putin. 4chan does it mostly for cheap laughs, and Romanian hackers did same for good money.

Not everything is a conspiracy, and just because some hackers lives in Russia, they are not automatically controlled by the Kremlin. Trump is so vain, that he wrongly believed a translation of one of Putin's remarks to be bright as in intelligence, when in Russian it really is flamboyant. It is very hard to see the benefit for Russia to get a president Trump, who want a so much bigger military machine, than Clinton did.

Some of my own actions as a peace activist might benefit Putin's goals, since I work for peace and against the military. But I have also been in demonstrations in front of the Russian Embassy when they make wars. I am fighting against USA as a military power. I am trying to break NATO by quoting the official purpose for the organization: "... to settle any international dispute in which they may be involved by peaceful means ...".

I could myself write stuff like: "Hillary Clinton's legacy in Iraq, Libya, and Syria has produced only turmoil and suffering". and "The current strategy of toppling regimes, with no plan for what to do the day after, only produces power vacuums that are filled by terrorists." But that is weird statements from Trump, though I never in any way believed he would act accordingly - since his constant contradictions, and actual action now tells the opposite story.
Does this prove I am controlled by Putin?

[Fast Walker 52]

72. are you an American?

it doesn't sound like it.

[LisaL]

74. That's for sure.

[TomVilmer]

75. Thanks?!

[UCmeNdc]

77. Why do you have a weird reply?

That's for sure,

Is a weird way to answer, unless English is your second language and Russian is your first.

[TomVilmer]

82. Because of very unfriendly answers...

I am sorry, but my Russian language skills is quite bad. And I might be a bit sensitive, but I do feel that the three answers here are quite xenophobic. I have nice support for my views by those of my friends who comes from USA, and they could and would have written the same words I did. So telling me that those views are un-American are just silly in so many ways.

My English might not be very good either, but I am actually trying to understand this subject. I understand the urge to cling to explanations, where this election was stolen. Some of them are real - like all the voter suppression stuff. But the Russian angle seems to be so overblown in proportions, and is a bigger danger for our lives than the election of Trump.

A cyber attack from a foreign government is an act of war. If there was proof of that, it is time to work for peaceful solutions, before USA and Russia blows up our world about it. But no proof has been given, only words from the same Intelligence groups, who gave us the war in Iraq.

And it seems that the main reason people from the Democratic side believes them this time, is that it kind of helps to explain the defeat of Clinton. But get back to work, and start to look at this new strange world with Trump in front. He understands even less, but if somebody is threatening his Twitter account, he might react with the full power of all that military working for him...

[Fast Walker 52]

87. Thanks for the explanation. I see your point.

I would say right now we are sensitive to anyone- but especially non-Americans- seeming to question whether there were Russian hackers. But I'm glad you explained your position better here.

[suston96]

73. Our Constitution and its periphary of voting laws......

.....do not protect our elections!

Too easy for those who want to do so to interject and corrupt the election processes at all levels.

What next?

[2naSalit]

76. K&R!!!

[Bettie]

78. If there is one thing that Russia learned under their version of Communism

it is Propaganda. How to put it forward and how to make it "true" in people's minds.

Add to that a 25+ year PR campaign against Clinton and yeah, it worked...sort if, yet she STILL got many more votes than their puppet.

[Baitball Blogger]

79. I know. The irony is glaring.

They call us Communists, while they couldn't win an election without Communist interference.

[Chemisse]

80. Yes - it's appalling, and yet it's met with apathy.

I think Trump has raised the bar pretty high and it takes a lot to shock to people now. Plus this has been pretty evident for a while, so as the pundits said a lot this season, it's "baked in the cake."

[nbsmom]

81. What happened with the FISA warrant?

The one that was supposedly issued around 11/7? The one that was presumably going to ascertain exactly what was going on between the server in Trump Tower and the two banks in Russia? http://www.salon.com/2016/11/10/moscow-calling-donald-trumps-campaign-was-in-contact-with-russian-agents/

[flying_wahini]

83. K&R

I am surprised that Putin is not shouting out from the rooftops how he beat us .

[red dog 1]

84. K&R...Thanks for posting

Ultimately, it was President Obama's decision not to take action regarding Russian cyberattacks against the US.
He had to know..his own intelligence agencies told him months ago.


Although this is "after the fact"..it is still worth reading.
"NSA Chief Says Russia Hacked The 2016 Election"
http://www.democraticunderground.com/12512619985


As Harry Truman wisely said: "The buck stops here."

[DallasNE]

85. Can't Overlook How Russian Propaganda Used Facebook

For its fake news stories. One story says that the fake news stories had 301 million "looks" on Facebook.

Zuckerberg tried to dismiss it by saying both sides did it. Excuse me, Mark, but Russia only worked for one side and the name was Trump.

[niyad]

86. k and r