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House Democrats Release Russia-Linked Facebook Ads From 2016 Election

The Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee have shared some of the Facebook ads placed by Russian operatives during the 2016 presidential election.

From Talking Points Memo:

Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee posted Wednesday a selection of the Facebook ads purchased by Russia-linked accounts as the committee’s hearing on how Russia exploited social media during the 2016 election got under way.

The committee Dems posted screenshots of the ads, as well as some of the the meta data associated with the ads, such as the amount of impressions the ads made and to which demographics the ads were targeted. Examples of Russia-purchased ads on Instagram, which is owned by Facebook, were among the ads released.

Some of the ads released Wednesday did not mention presidential candidates by name, but rather weighed in on political issues, be it pushing anti-Muslim or anti-immigrant sentiments, or mimicking the Black Lives Matters or LGBT rights movements.

Check out some of the ads below. More at the link above.

Yeah, I can see if these were targeted at folks on the fence about Hillary or Trump, these might have had some sway in folks decision-making on election day.

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Hump Day Round-Up

Med student Marco (above via Instagram) works 12 hour days and STILL gets to the gym. And that’s why he looks the way he does 🙂

#CallMeSlacker

Some eye candy to get you over Hump Day.

Or, Hunk Day. Whichever you prefer 🙂

A post shared by Francesc Gascó (@pakozoic) on Oct 12, 2017 at 5:45am PDT

A post shared by Steve Raider (@steve_raider) on Oct 29, 2017 at 10:29am PDT

A post shared by Steve Peña (@therealstevepena) on Oct 31, 2017 at 8:09pm PDT

A post shared by Fitness Model (@lonypizarro) on Oct 31, 2017 at 7:06pm PDT

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Enrollment For Affordable Care Act Begins Today

Today begins the enrollment period for the Affordable Care Act.

If you don’t get health insurance through your work, Medicare, Medicaid or some other means, you have until December 15 to enroll.

From the Human Rights Campaign:

Despite reckless efforts by Donald Trump, Mike Pence, and some congressional Republicans, the Affordable Care Act remains the law of the land. Millions of Americans will continue to have access to quality health insurance and cannot be denied if they have a preexisting medical condition such as cancer, HIV, or high blood pressure.

If you currently have coverage through one of the ACA marketplaces, you have the opportunity to renew or choose a new one during the open enrollment period. Some Americans aren’t sure if they can enroll, but many are eligible for the affordable options it makes available. Financial assistance may also be available, depending on your income level. All the details can be found at Healthcare.gov.

Unfortunately, the Trump administration has limited the enrollment period and cut funding for outreach to individuals who may need health insurance. Many LGBTQ people rely on the Affordable Care Act for life-saving care, and HRC is ensuring that you know the facts about open enrollment and how to #GetCovered.

Again, the deadline for enrollment through HealthCare.gov is December 15.

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HBO’s John Oliver Spotlights Anti-LGBTQ Past Of Alabama GOP Senate Nominee Roy Moore

HBO’s John Oliver spotlights the anti-LGBTQ past of infamous Alabama U.S. Senate candidate and noted bigot Roy Moore.

“Listen to Roy Moore’s feelings on homosexuality, because as bad as you assume they are: they’re actually worse,” says Oliver.

Watch below:

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Survey: 29% Of The World Thinks Homosexuality Should Be Criminalized

Via Gay Times:

More than one in four people (28.5%) believe that those in same-sex relationships should be ‘charged as criminals’, according to a new survey of over 100,000 people across 77 countries and territories around the world.

Unsurprisingly, the 2017 ILGA-RIWI Global Attitudes Survey showed that there were major differences in views towards sexual and gender minorities in different regions.

45% of respondents in the 15 African countries surveyed agreed that people who engage in same-sex relationships should be charged as criminals, by far the highest percentage around the world.

Elsewhere, 36% of respondents from the Middle East agreed with that sentiment, compared to 15% of respondents from Australia and New Zealand, and 19% from North America, South America, and Western Europe.

In the UK, one in six (17%) people said they believe that same-sex couples should be charged.

Of the 77 countries that were polled for the survey, 25 continue to hold laws which make being LGBT a crime.

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The Voice Australia Winner Alfie Arcuri Releases Marriage Equality Anthem “Love Is Love”

Alfie Arcuri, the first openly gay winner of The Voice Australia, shares his latest single, “Love Is Love,” as the same-sex marriage mail-in survey is drawing to a close.

“I am a strong advocate for the gay and lesbian community and I perform and dedicate my time wherever and however I can. With the marriage equality debate currently underway in Australia, I wanted to write an uplifting anthem, as the campaign so far has been quite emotionally taxing on the community. I believe love has no boundaries – it transcends gender, age, sexuality, class, ethnicity and race and everyone should have the right to love whoever they want.”


 Here’s the video for “Love Is Love:”

And this is Arcuri’s latest single from the summer, “If They Only Knew.” The storyline is something I think a lot of folks can relate to.

According to interviews, the song is inspired by a past relationship. “I never actually wrote this song to be released because it is so personal,” said Arcuri.

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NYC: 8 Dead, 11 Injured In Lower Manhattan Terrorist Attack

A new terrorist attack today – this time in Lower Manhattan as a 29-year-old drove a rented truck down a bicycle path killing 8 and injuring at least 11 others.

From The New York Times:

Eight people were killed when a man drove 20 blocks down a bike path beside the Hudson River in Lower Manhattan on Tuesday afternoon before he crashed his pickup truck, jumped out with fake guns and was shot by a police officer, the authorities said.

Federal authorities were treating the incident as a terrorist attack and were taking the lead in the investigation, a senior law enforcement official said. Two law enforcement officials said that after the attacker got out of the truck, he was heard yelling, “Allahu Akbar,” Arabic for “God is great.”

Mayor Bill de Blasio said at a news conference, “Based on information we have at this moment, this was an act of terror, and a particularly cowardly act of terror aimed at innocent civilians.”

Two law enforcement officials said the driver of the truck, a 29-year-old man who came to the United States in 2010, was in grave condition. One official said he had rented the truck in New Jersey.

The motorist, driving south down the path in a Home Depot rental truck, hit numerous people as nearby Stuyvesant High School was letting out for the day, officials said. At least 11 people were injured, but officials were still working to assess the extent of the casualties.

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News Round-Up: October 31, 2017

(via Instagram)

Some news items you might have missed:

• Steve Pena (above) plans to “walk like an Egyptian” this Halloween. I’d follow his Pharaoh…

• Both chambers of Congress have now unanimously condemned Chechnya for anti-LGBTQ violence as President Trump and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson remain silent.

• In related news, Russia and Egypt are fighting to remove language in Principal 6 of the Olympic Charter which calls for banning discrimination based on sexual orientation. Both countries have been involved in anti-LGBTQ actions in past months.

• Marques Brownlee unboxes the new iPhone X – check out his thoughts below. Hubby Michael and I have both ordered the X as we haven’t upgraded our iPhones in years.

• While the majority of news outlets were covering yesterday’s indictments of three Trump campaign officials, several Fox News employees were embarrassed by their network’s obvious lack of coverage. At one point on Monday morning, Fox News was actually taking time to report on a hamburger emoji – “Look, the cheese is under the burger!!!”

• A new study indicates gay men (and straight women) are twice as likely to be attracted to guys with the same eye color as their father due to “sexual imprinting.” I do not fall into that category as my father had stunning ice blue eyes, but my hunky hubby Michael has beautiful brown eyes.

• No trick, total treat from 7-time Grammy Award winner Toni Braxton as she drops her new single, “Deadwood,” from her forthcoming album, Sex and Cigarettes, scheduled for a January release.

• One more Halloween post: “Super” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada arrived at work today dressed as “Clark Kent.” #WinnerWinnerWinner

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Russia-Linked Social Media Content Had Much Larger Reach Than Previously Believed

Prepared remarks sent to Congress ahead of today’s testimony by social media company representatives show the social media reach of Russian actors intending to disrupt the 2016 election was much larger than previously thought.

The New York Times quotes these figures from the prepared remarks:

• More than 126 million Facebook users saw Russian planted posts

• Over 131,000 messages on Twitter were published

• YouTube had over 1,000 videos uploaded to 18 channels associated with Russian agents

• 170 accounts on Instagram had posted about 120,000 pieces of Russia-linked content

The content was meant to inflame supporters and divide Americans during the presidential campaign.

Much more info at the New York Times.