The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted sweeping new internet regulations in a narrow 3-2 vote along <a href="https://twitter.com/Andreafreedom76/status/1724897121403322617" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">party lines</a>. Commissioner Brendan Carr, who publicized his strong opposition to the rules, was only able to garner the support of one fellow commissioner.<div class="raw-html-embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">BREAKING NEWS. As feared, the FCC has authorized Biden's Woke Takeover of the Internet. FCC ADOPTS RULES TO PREVENT AND ELIMINATE 'DIGITAL DISCRIMINATION' "The Federal Communications Commission has adopted final rules to prevent digital discrimination of access to… <a href="https://t.co/UDXhx4hmIF">pic.twitter.com/UDXhx4hmIF</a>— Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) <a href="https://twitter.com/kylenabecker/status/1724875095250784478?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 15, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> </div>Senate oppositionIn a press release following the vote, U.S. Senate Commerce Committee Ranking Member Ted Cruz (R-Texas) <a href="https://www.commerce.senate.gov/2023/11/sen-cruz-reacts-to-fcc-s-vote-to-finalize-digital-equity-pla" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">blasted</a> the FCC for adopting regulations that usher in “affirmative action and race-based pricing” for internet service: &nbsp;<blockquote>Despite admitting there’s ‘little to no evidence’ of discrimination by telecommunications companies, Democrats are hoping to convince the American people that broadband Internet is so racist they need to plow ahead with government-mandated affirmative action and race-based pricing. [Emphases added].</blockquote>Cruz went on to accuse the federal agency of “Orwellian” tactics in passing overzealous&nbsp;regulations under the guise of promoting equity. He continued, “The only beneficiaries of this Orwellian ‘equity’ plan are overzealous government regulators who want to control the Internet.”Cruz was joined in his opposition to the new rules by 27 other senators, each of whom <a href="https://www.commerce.senate.gov/services/files/25A46EEF-7441-460C-9C23-2C9121A6BBDD" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">co-signed</a> a letter to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, a few days before the vote, imploring her to abandon the planned rules in favor of ones which would serve the public, not the government.<blockquote>As you approach the statutory deadline for issuing rules to implement this section, we strongly urge you to reconsider your Draft Order.&nbsp;Instead, do your job: Follow the statutory text, implement rules that will incentivize rather than deter private investment, and promote rather than undermine the goal of ubiquitous broadband. [Emphases added].</blockquote>No other way?Rosenworcel <a href="https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/fcc-adopts-rules-eliminate-digital-discrimination-communities-poor-104922915" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">released</a> a statement defending her vote in favor of the rules:<blockquote>The digital divide puts us at an economic disadvantage as a country and disproportionately affects communities of color, lower-income areas, and rural areas.We know broadband is essential infrastructure for modern life, and these rules will bring us one step closer to ensuring everyone has access to the internet, no matter who they are or where they live. [Emphasis added].</blockquote>The chairwoman even used COVID to defend the FCC's power grab. She wrote, “[Poorer, less white neighborhoods were found to have received lower investment in broadband infrastructure] especially . . . during the pandemic.”Rosenworcel did not explain, though, why the billions of taxpayer dollars already spent on digital equity did not achieve that goal. Nor did she explain why the FCC needed to adopt a 218-page order, entitled “<a href="https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-397997A1.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Preventing Digital Discrimination</a>” instead of a simple one-sentence rule such as this, “ISPs shall not charge marginalized communities more than the average rates in the same region unless justified by non-discriminatory factors.”The government could even pay the entire average <a href="https://www.cnet.com/home/internet/consumer-reports-study-of-broadband-costs/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">$900</a> annual cost of high speed internet service using some of the at least $60,000 it <a href="https://www.budget.senate.gov/newsroom/budget-background/america-spent-enough-on-federal-welfare-last-year-to-send-60-000-to-each-household-in-poverty" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">spends</a> yearly on each family receiving welfare.&nbsp;And assuming that it is the government's job to ensure high speed internet access for all, the government could itself choose to fund broadband infrastructure for the 18 million plus rural Americans who cannot get the high speed service at any price. The government would merely need to <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/articles/the-benefits-and-costs-of-broadband-expansion/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">close</a> the gap between the FCC’s 2018 estimate of an $80 billion price tag for installing the necessary infrastructure to achieve universal access and the billions already allocated. This would at least avoid the extensive regulation of the internet industry in the possibly illegal book-length order it adopted.Illegal abuse of powerSenator Cruz and his colleagues warned Rosenworcel, in their letter, that the new rules were both an abuse of power and unlawful, since they allow the FCC to penalize private businesses for discrimination even in the absence of actual discrimination, despite Congressional legislation limiting penalties to cases of actual discrimination:<blockquote>The corresponding rules—buttressed by the theory that the lack of actual discrimination somehow authorizes the FCC to redefine digital discrimination to expand its authority—turn section 60506 [of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act] on its head and constitute a major abuse of the agency’s power.&nbsp;First, your Draft Order’s “disparate impact” standard of liability is unlawful. [Emphases added].</blockquote>Commissioner Carr similarly wrote that, “Congress never contemplated the sweeping regulatory regime that President Biden asked the FCC to adopt,” as previously <a href="https://frontline.news/post/fcc-to-vote-today-on-sweeping-unprecedented-expansion-of-internet-control-under-guise-of-inclusion" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">reported</a> by Frontline News. Under the analysis of the senators and Carr, the new rules could be overturned by the judiciary since they conflict with Supreme Court civil rights precedent as well as violating free speech protections.Not just ISPsThe senators' letter went on to warn that the new rules will "subject an untenably broad array of broadband business decisions to intrusive regulation." Commissioner Carr agrees. He specifically <a href="https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-398244A1.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">warned</a> that land owners, construction crews, marketing agencies and even banks may be penalized under the rules.&nbsp;Opposite of congressional intentThe senators concluded that the net effect of the regulations will be not to lower internet prices in rural areas but to discourage providing services in those areas altogether:<blockquote>The idea these regulations will not impact rural deployment defies credulity:&nbsp;If practically every business decision is subject to potential liability, companies will inevitably shift resources that would have otherwise been spent on deployment and innovation to hiring more lawyers and asking the FCC “mother-may-I.” &nbsp;</blockquote>Industry executives agree. USTelecom, a broadband industry group, <a href="https://themarkup.org/still-loading/2023/11/15/fcc-approves-rules-to-prevent-digital-discrimination" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">posted</a> this warning on its website in the name of its president and CEO, Jonathan Spalter: “However well-intentioned, the FCC’s draft rules create a regulatory structure that could stifle investment and force providers to divert limited capital away from deployment.”Race based price controlsDespite Hoover Institute <a href="https://www.hoover.org/research/saying-no-again-wage-and-price-controls" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">findings</a> that "price controls don’t work, period," the senators noted “the Draft Order makes clear that broadband prices are fair game for scrutiny.” Carr adds that Gongress never gave the FCC the power to issue these price controls:&nbsp;<blockquote>The FCC arrogates to itself the power to review and determine the lawfulness of promotional pricing and discounts. It even puts the use of credit checks squarely in the cross hairs. Of course, Congress did not give the FCC the power to do any of this—the agency just creates it out of whole cloth. [Emphases added].</blockquote>Race issues may not be limited to pricing. The NGO Diversity for Social Impact, for example, <a href="https://diversity.social/digital-equity/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">promotes</a> the notion that websites must be “easy to use” for all:<blockquote>Digital equity has been further defined as “the capability of individuals and households to participate in, and benefit from, digital opportunities.” . . .Not everyone has the skills necessary to use technology effectively. This can leave them at a disadvantage when competing for jobs or participating in online communities. . . .&nbsp;We need to ensure that the internet is where people can find the information they need. This means creating websites and online resources that are easy to use and available in multiple languages. . . .Design technology in a way that is easy for everyone to use. [Emphases added].</blockquote>This could be interpreted to mean that websites that are more readily understood by high income people would be in violation of digital equity.First Amendment doesn't cover websites?Indeed, podcaster Glenn Beck reported on Carr's opposition and concluded that the government is in fact limiting free speech protections for online activity.<div class="raw-html-embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">According to FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, the Biden administration is planning to hand the administrative state 'effective control of all internet services.' Team Biden claims this for ‘digital equity’, but if all this is true, it could be the END of free speech online. <a href="https://t.co/3xbwPcJUin">pic.twitter.com/3xbwPcJUin</a>— Glenn Beck (@glennbeck) <a href="https://twitter.com/glennbeck/status/1721984826486480901?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 7, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> </div>Carr likewise wrote that the draft of the new rules “reads like a planning document drawn up in the faculty lounge of a university’s Soviet Studies Department.”Carr published a nine page dissent to the adoption of the new rules, referring to them on X as "an unlawful power grab that gives the government a roving mandate to micromanage nearly every aspect of how the Internet functions.”<div class="raw-html-embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Today, the FCC voted in favor of President Biden’s plan for “digital equity.” I dissented because the plan amounts to an unlawful power grab that gives the government a roving mandate to micromanage nearly every aspect of how the Internet functions.<a href="https://t.co/eLuQRb1xld">https://t.co/eLuQRb1xld</a> <a href="https://t.co/ENZqCDRPVx">pic.twitter.com/ENZqCDRPVx</a>— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) <a href="https://twitter.com/BrendanCarrFCC/status/1724954306133000613?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 16, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> </div>Pretext for regulating everythingThe Washington Examiner <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/fcc-commissioner-calls-biden-equity-plan-for-internet-control-sweeping-unprecedented-and-unlawful/ar-AA1juX0b" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">quoted</a> additional critics of the regulations:<blockquote>Former FCC policy adviser Evan Swarztrauber said of Biden's plan, "To call it 'extreme' or 'radical' doesn't do this proposal justice.""Biden is turning 'digital discrimination' into a pretext for regulating everything. For equity," Phil Kerpen, president of American Commitment, said of the Biden plan for the FCC. [Emphasis added].</blockquote><div class="raw-html-embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">The <a href="https://twitter.com/FCC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FCC</a> is claiming the power to control every aspect of broadband infrastructure and the industry itself. To call it "extreme" or "radical" doesn't do this proposal justice. It includes price controls, forced buildout of broadband regardless of ROI, and more. <a href="https://t.co/b7HMYW1sDD">https://t.co/b7HMYW1sDD</a>— Evan Swarztrauber (@SayreEvan) <a href="https://twitter.com/SayreEvan/status/1721645417526341951?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 6, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> </div>See our previous coverage of Big Tech and the internet:<ol><li><a href="https://aflds.org/news/post/googles-self-interest-attack-on-aflds/">Google exploits immunity to attack AFLDS</a></li><li><a href="https://aflds.org/news/post/google-openly-censors-aflds/">Google suppresses AFLDS</a></li><li><a href="https://www.frontline.news/post/awaken-with-jp-shadow-banned">AwakenWithJP shadow banned</a></li><li><a href="https://frontline.news/post/elong-musk-shocks-twitter-users">What is Elon Musk thinking?</a></li><li><a href="https://frontline.news/post/state-department-targeting-dr-gold-aflds-cited-by-judge-who-blocked-biden-censorship">State Department targeting Dr Gold, AFLDS cited by judge who blocked Biden censorship</a></li><li><a href="https://frontline.news/post/law-professor-first-amendment-protects-government-s-free-speech-not-yours">'Law professor': First Amendment protects government's free speech, not yours</a></li><li><a href="https://frontline.news/post/fcc-to-vote-today-on-sweeping-unprecedented-expansion-of-internet-control-under-guise-of-inclusion">FCC to vote today on 'sweeping, unprecedented' expansion of internet control under guise of 'inclusion'</a></li></ol>

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Technocracy

US News

fascism

'Democrats [say] Internet so racist they need affirmative action and race-based pricing' - Senator Cruz

Update: FCC approves 'Orwellian equity plan to control Internet' in narrow 3-2 vote

<h2>Move over book burning, hello de-platforming?</h2>Closed out of your Facebook or Instagram account? Maybe your website suddenly disappeared, or your YouTube channel was demonetized or deleted? Perhaps you lost access to thousands of hours of posts and videos you produced, and your years of work were gone in an instant? That's de-platforming; the modern version of book burning, a “punishment” for going against the mainstream narrative. And, the censorship doesn't stop with social media, it includes PayPal accounts and more.<h3>Getting up again</h3>How do individuals who went afoul of the globalists, who didn't keep quiet and let others do their thinking for them, respond when they find themselves de-platformed by social media companies and other services? Here's what London Real's Brian Rose, Americas Frontline Doctor founder Dr. Simone Gold, and independent researcher James Roguski did to pick themselves up and continue their work despite the heavy-handed censorship they experienced.Brian RoseWhen London Real YouTuber Brian Rose publicly began trying to understand COVID-19 and its countermeasures, he soon found his entire life seemingly deleted from the internet by the social media giants.&nbsp;Not only did he lose all his years of work, amounting to thousands of videos which he had uploaded to the internet. He also lost access to his Paypal account, and more, because in his search for the truth about the pandemic; his counter-narrative interviews with David Icke were too dangerous for the globalists to allow. &nbsp;In his below documentary, Rose&nbsp;recounts his experiences and how he ultimately started a channel of his own. He explains that he was wholly unprepared for what happened on May 3, 2020, even though he knew that many would want to stop the interview (@about 3:36):<blockquote>Over the past few weeks, our entire world has been transformed. Everything we took for granted has now been taken away and our freedoms have been replaced with fear. All those rights we fought centuries for have been handed over without a second thought.&nbsp;We all process fear in different ways. I cope by immersing myself in my work and today my job is to ask questions. One million people will be watching and they all want answers.&nbsp;Countless others are trying to stop this from happening. At any moment they can walk through that door or lock this broadcast. I'm scared but I don't know what else to do. I prepared my whole life for a moment like This. But nothing would prepare me for what happened next. . .</blockquote>&nbsp;<div class="raw-html-embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">WATCH THE MOVIE THAT YouTube DOES NOT Want YOU TO SEE (and SHARE IT Far And Wide ) <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LondonReal?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LondonReal</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeWillNotBeSilenced?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeWillNotBeSilenced</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/StopCensorship?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#StopCensorship</a> <a href="https://t.co/txcVpjPDWz">https://t.co/txcVpjPDWz</a>— Brian Rose, Founder &amp; Host of London Real (@LondonRealTV) <a href="https://twitter.com/LondonRealTV/status/1796285778517221575?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 30, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>&nbsp;Dr. Simone GoldDr. Simone Gold, founder of <a href="https://www.aflds.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">America's Frontline Doctors</a>, was one of the first doctors to understand that how she was being told to treat COVID patients wasn't normal. Very alarmed at what was taking place she, along with other doctors, held the “<a href="https://www.whitecoatsummit.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">White Coat Summit</a>” on July 27, 2020, as well as a press conference on the Supreme Court steps. As she tweeted below, the press conference went viral, garnering millions of views before Big Tech and Big Media took the video down.She concluded by explaining their purpose and the result:<blockquote>Our fight was to show America the propaganda vs the truth, and then we were censored.</blockquote>&nbsp;<div class="raw-html-embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Our press conference in front of the Supreme Court on July 27th, 2020 was a turning point in the fight against COVID Tyranny. After 20 million views in 8 hours, Big Tech colluded to wipe the video from online platforms. We knew in this moment that we would win the fight. <a href="https://t.co/9CP0Ogpnfp">pic.twitter.com/9CP0Ogpnfp</a>— Dr. Simone Gold (@drsimonegold) <a href="https://twitter.com/drsimonegold/status/1610416861723729921?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 3, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Dr. Gold continues to <a href="https://aflds.org/about-us" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">advance</a> the mission of America's Frontline Doctors, to protect medical freedom and civil liberties.'James RoguskiIndependent researcher James Roguski who, <a href="http://jamesroguski.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">according</a> to his website, has been calling out lies and propaganda for decades, found years of work gone when the company that hosted most of his websites terminated his account for what they said were “terms of service” violations. It did not deter him from continuing his work, either.<blockquote>They deleted many of my websites, but they ignited my passion to burn even brighter. I now have most of my work on Substack.&nbsp;</blockquote>Roguski is interested in building a holistic alternative to the WHO and <a href="https://jamesroguski.substack.com/about" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">recruits</a> others to join him.<blockquote>The old system is crumbling, and I intend to help speed its demise, but we must build its replacement quickly.If you are fed up with the government, hospital, medical, pharmaceutical, media, industrial complex and would like to help , then feel free to contact me directly anytime.</blockquote>&nbsp;The information contained in this article is for educational and information purposes only and is not intended as health, medical, financial or legal advice. Always consult a physician, lawyer or other qualified professional regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition, health objectives, or legal issues.&nbsp;Related articles:<ul><li><a href="https://frontline.news/post/covid-sceptics-won-out-globalists-fear-an-increasingly-disbelieving-public" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">'COVID skeptics won out' — Globalists fear an increasingly disbelieving public</a></li><li><a href="https://frontline.news/post/colorado-governor-signs-off-on-bill-establishing-state-ministry-of-truth-students-atarget-of-new-law">Colorado governor signs off on bill establishing state 'ministry of truth'? Students a target of new law</a></li></ul>

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Censorship

Globalism

How three individuals got up again after being de-platformed

Who's afraid of Big Bad Tech? 

A British vigilante group known as the “Blade Runners” is receiving widespread support from British taxpayers as it continues to destroy climate surveillance cameras across London.<h2>The ULEZ mandate</h2>By order of London Mayor Sadiq Khan, the city is peppered with ultra-low emission zones (ULEZs), areas accessible only to low-emission vehicles. Cars that do not meet the city’s environmental standards are charged £12.50 ($16) for entering the ULEZ. Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras positioned around the zones read license plates and check them against the vehicles’ make and model in real time. If a vehicle does not meet the environmental threshold, a fine is levied against the car owner.&nbsp;The ULEZ climate mandate has drawn heavy&nbsp;<a href="https://frontline.news/post/london-hundreds-protest-against-climate-mandates">protests</a> from residents, including&nbsp;<a href="https://frontline.news/post/british-veteran-launches-hunger-strike-as-unrest-grows-over-climate-mandates">hunger strikes</a> and refusals to pay fines. Taxpayers have also taken to disabling the ANPR surveillance cameras which Transport for London (TfL), the city’s transportation department, said will be used both for climate and law enforcement.<h2>Taxpayers cheer the ‘Blade Runners’</h2>Since the climate restrictions were expanded last year, the Blade Runners have taken to disabling and destroying hundreds of cameras. Between April and September 2023, Metropolitan Police recorded 200 reports of cameras being stolen and 595 reports of cameras being vandalized.TfL began placing black boxes around ULEZ camera wirings to protect them from being cut, but taxpayers found other ways to disable the cameras — like removing them completely.<div class="raw-html-embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"> MUST SEE: Blade Runners topple THREE ULEZ cameras in a coordinated strike… The people are fighting back! <a href="https://t.co/Yvr2Xr7Lun">pic.twitter.com/Yvr2Xr7Lun</a>— David Morgan #StayFree (@david_r_morgan) <a href="https://twitter.com/david_r_morgan/status/1802726912050995623?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 17, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>In response, the city&nbsp;<a href="https://frontline.news/post/london-taxpayers-attack-surveillance-vans-in-continued-revolt">deployed</a> mobile surveillance vans mounted with ANPR cameras across London in the hopes of evading attacks, but Blade Runners soon began targeting those as well. Some surveillance vans have been spotted covered in graffiti with their tires slashed, while others have been completely covered in tarp.Last month, 21 cameras were destroyed in the hours after Sadiq Khan was re-elected mayor of London, the&nbsp;Daily Mail&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13538797/Moment-Blade-Runner-uses-power-tool-cut-ULEZ-camera-traffic-light-latest-attack-Sadiq-Khans-hated-scheme.html">reported</a>. Last weekend, Blade Runners used power tools to topple a ULEZ camera and traffic lights to the delight of some fellow taxpayers. In a video that was posted to social media, passing cars can be heard honking in support.The video received over 37,000 likes. Comments on the post were largely supportive, with users writing that, “When tyranny becomes law, rebellion becomes duty,” and “Fair play to them, it's a complete scam that does nothing.”Blade Runner Matt Hardy told the&nbsp;Daily Mail&nbsp;that the Blade Runners are “people pissed off about the tyranny reigning over us and getting out and doing things about it – real votes, real boys here.”<h2>‘These cameras are not about the climate. They are about control’</h2>British actor and influencer Laurence Fox said this week he was just given back his electronic devices by police after being arrested earlier this year for cheering on the Blade Runners:<blockquote>These cameras are not about the climate. They are about control. They are the primary infrastructure for all sorts of things that ideologues like the midget dictator [Sadiq Khan] would like to impose upon us.I can now finally say the word ‘Bladerunners’ again. One of the ridiculous restrictions on free speech imposed by the police.It’s a dreadful shame to see so many of these cameras dying suddenly. I’m not at all thrilled about it. Just because I am smiling like a Cheshire Cat, it doesn’t mean that I am over the moon that these scameras continue to topple in high winds.&nbsp;Vive la résistance!</blockquote><div class="raw-html-embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">POLICE UPDATE Following 6 coppers bursting into my house earlier this year to arrest me for saying how pleased I was that the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ULEZ?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ULEZ</a> scam was meeting such robust resistance, this morning the <a href="https://twitter.com/metpoliceuk?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@metpoliceuk</a> were ordered by the magistrate to hand back all my devices, including my…— Laurence Fox (@LozzaFox) <a href="https://twitter.com/LozzaFox/status/1803030521095622912?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 18, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div> &nbsp;

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Pushback_Resistance

Climate Change

‘Pissed off about the tyranny reigning over us’

British taxpayers cheer vigilante group destroying climate cams

Fisker is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the electric vehicle (EV) company announced Tuesday.<h2>‘Like other companies in the electric vehicle industry’</h2>“Fisker has made incredible progress since our founding, bringing the Ocean SUV to market twice as fast as expected in the auto industry and making good on our promises to deliver the most sustainable vehicle in the world,” a spokesperson <a href="https://assets.ctfassets.net/cghen8gr8e1n/6W19OiEBJDVIFVEmo4feHA/df902c5cb2b067251a300efb0b35f611/Fisker-Filing-FINAL.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">said</a>.The California-based company added it is not the only EV maker that has been struggling to stay in business.“We are proud of our achievements, and we have put thousands of Fisker Ocean SUVs in customers’ hands in both North American [sic] and Europe. But like other companies in the electric vehicle industry, we have faced various market and macroeconomic headwinds that have impacted our ability to operate efficiently. After evaluating all options for our business, we determined that proceeding with a sale of our assets under Chapter 11 is the most viable path forward for the company.”Fisker’s collapse is the latest indication that the EV industry is folding due to sinking demand. Other EV industry players are also cutting their losses as they jump ship.<h2>Hertz</h2>In March, Hertz CEO Stephen Scherr&nbsp;<a href="https://www.motorfinanceonline.com/news/hertz-ceo-resigns-amid-ev-investment-setback/#:~:text=Scherr's%20departure%20coincides%20with%20Hertz's,electric%20vehicle%20(EV)%20rentals">resigned</a> after his bet on EVs cost the car rental giant its biggest quarterly loss since 2020. Hertz had been praised by the Biden administration for its ambition to convert 25% of its fleet to EVs by the end of this year. In January, however, the company announced it would instead be selling its 20,000 EVs — including Teslas — at heavily discounted prices and replacing them with gas-powered cars.<h2>Mercedes-Benz</h2>Mercedes-Benz also recently had to give up its ambition to only sell electric cars by 2030. Instead, EVs are expected to make up only 50% of the German carmaker’s sales over the next decade.<h2>Apple</h2>In February, Apple abandoned its multi-billion dollar effort to create an electric car. Despite being a decade in the works and employing 2,000 people, Project Titan was axed due to falling consumer demand.<h2>Aston Martin</h2>A lack of consumer demand is also partly to blame for Aston Martin&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13138123/Aston-Martin-puts-brakes-new-electric-supercar-2026-bosses-say-drivers-want-engines-throaty-roar.html">placing</a> its battery-operated “supercar” on hold until 2026.“Demand, certainly at an Aston Martin price point, is not what we thought it was going to be two years ago,” said Aston Martin Executive Chairman Lawrence Stroll.&nbsp;<h2>Ford</h2>In December, Ford slashed production of its flagship EV at its assembly plant in Dearborn, Michigan by half. The automaker cut the monthly production quote for the all-electric F-150 Lightning pickup truck from 3,200 units to 1,600 units per month.<h2>Biden administration continues to force EV production</h2>Nevertheless, the Biden administration in March issued new climate mandates aimed at forcing more EV production. The new rules from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) contain tight emissions standards that will&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/epa-electric-vehicles-emissions-limits-climate-biden-e6d581324af51294048df24269b5d20a">require</a> 56% of new vehicle sales to be fully electric by 2032, with an additional 13% required to be hybrids.

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Biden administration continues to force EV production

Electric car company files bankruptcy as EV market folds

For the last two years, British authorities have been testing AI-powered emotion recognition cameras on travelers in train stations, according to recently disclosed documents.<h2>What can the cameras see?</h2>In each of eight train stations around the UK, five to seven cameras or sensors scan the passing crowds. Using AI software from Amazon, the cameras use object recognition algorithms to spot criminal activity, trespassing, weapons, wet floors, overcrowding, and overstuffed trash cans.&nbsp;They can also alert authorities when passengers engage in “unusual behavior,” such as shouting, running, smoking, or skateboarding.&nbsp;A combination of existing cameras and newly installed smart cameras are being used for the surveillance project. All are equipped with Amazon’s Rekognition surveillance system.<h2>Emotional recognition</h2>Through a combination of facial and behavioral analyses, the Rekognition software allows officials to also <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/amazon-ai-cameras-emotions-uk-train-passengers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">analyze visitors’ emotions</a>. Internal documents note that the cameras can detect whether a passenger is “happy, sad [or] angry.” They can also recognize passenger satisfaction, which “could be utilized to maximum advertising and retail revenue.”<h2>Anti-social behavior</h2>Authorities can also detect passengers who exhibit “anti-social behaviour,” which&nbsp;<a href="https://www.met.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/asb/asb/antisocial-behaviour/what-is-antisocial-behaviour/">according</a> to London’s Metropolitan Police Service means “behaviour by a person which causes, or is likely to cause, harassment, alarm or distress to persons not of the same household as the person.”<h2>Social distancing, face masks, and demographics</h2>Other&nbsp;<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/24757655-usecases_dpas_review_managed_stations?responsive=1&amp;title=1">use cases</a> for the surveillance cameras include detecting whether passengers are keeping to social distancing rules and wearing face masks. The cameras can also scan for demographics by identifying people’s age profiles and “socio-economic classification,” which the documents note can create “revenue opportunities for better targeted advertising and product placement.”<h2>‘Quite a concerning step’</h2>The documents were obtained by Big Brother Watch, a civil rights and government watchdog group, in response to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request. Network Rail, a body within the Department of Transportation which manages most of the country’s train network, has been overseeing the surveillance project.&nbsp;“The rollout and normalization of AI surveillance in these public spaces, without much consultation and conversation, is quite a concerning step,” Jake Hurfurt, head of research and investigations at Big Brother Watch,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wired.com/story/amazon-ai-cameras-emotions-uk-train-passengers/">told</a> Wired.As of now, the surveillance systems do not use facial recognition technology, which analyzes faces and matches them against facial images stored in certain databases.

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