World problems/news ( Used to be Anybody concerned about Friday, then I changed it to concerned about world problems)

[TravelingChris]

I changed the title because more world problems are ongoing and important news is sometimes not a problem.

 

 

Edited October 15, 2023 by TravelingChris

[EmmaNZ]

…

Edited October 12, 2023 by EmmaNZ

[Melissa Louise]

I'm concerned about more anti semitism. We had edgy protestors shouting 'f the Jews' in front of the Opera House the other night, and a guy got arrested for harassing and stalking some Jewish school kids yesterday. I believe there is another protest here tomorrow - I hope the flares and slurs are left at home.

That's mainly what I'm worried about.

It wouldn't surprise me if something else in the world took place, because there are a lot of extremists out there, and some of them are unhinged, but I'm not anticipating it either. 

 

 

 

Edited October 12, 2023 by Melissa Louise
Removed anything political

[EmmaNZ]

….

 

Edited October 12, 2023 by EmmaNZ

[Melissa Louise]

No, but shouting 'f the Jews' is.

 

 

 

[Ausmumof3]

Not specifically. But I am concerned about the likely increase in extremism and terrorism based on current circumstances. 

[EmmaNZ]

…

Edited October 12, 2023 by EmmaNZ

[Melissa Louise]

Lies?

The Opera House debacle was reported by the ABC, The Guardian and the NSW Police.

No conspiracy (and suggesting there is a Western conspiracy to lie and produce propaganda in service of the Jewish people - that's pretty much classic antisemitism).

Anyway.

@TravelingChris, I wouldn't fret about Friday.

You might also want to ask for the thread to be locked - on several threads now, mods have explained we can discuss this in Politics only.

 

 

 

 

[Lecka]

No.  The OKC bombing was on the anniversary of Waco, and I used to worry about that anniversary.  But time has passed and I don’t worry about it any more.  
 

I feel like there are too many things to worry about that are so unlikely, to realistically worry about them.  
 

We are volunteering with refugees right now, too, and they have really been somewhere dangerous, and their extended family is still there.  They came here to live somewhere safe.  That is reality.  
 

I’m sorry it’s a concern and I’m glad (and think it’s appropriate) that police departments are taking precautions.  
 

 

[YaelAldrich]

I'm Jewish and I'm worried. Several of my non Jewish friends are telling us not to go out. We will take precautions but not hide!

[JennyD]

No.

FWIW, I am Jewish and spend a lot of time in Jewish spaces.  While I am sick over the events in Israel and very anxious for friends and family there, when it comes to my immediate family's own personal safety, I am far more concerned about our own homegrown whackaloons than I am about Hamas.   

And while I am glad that our community invests a lot in security (see above, re local whackaloons), my actual biggest Jewish-related safety concern is someone getting hit by a car crossing the street at the horrendously unsafe intersection in front of one of the synagogues/schools. 

 

Edited October 12, 2023 by JennyD

[Heartstrings]

I’m concerned in a general way but not personally.  

[Mrs Tiggywinkle Again]

Hamas is not representative of the majority of a specific religion anymore than the extremist whackadoodals claiming Christianity are representative of my Christian beliefs or those of people I know.

My great grandparents came over from Czechoslovakia in the early 19th century. The stories of the parts of my family that didn’t get to come to the US is horrifying—pogroms, death camps.  There is nothing new under the sun.

Edited October 12, 2023 by Mrs Tiggywinkle Again

[YaelAldrich]

1 hour ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle Again said:

Hamas is not representative of the majority of a specific religion anymore than the extremist whackadoodals claiming Christianity are representative of my Christian beliefs or those of people I know.

My great grandparents came over from Czechoslovakia in the early 19th century. The stories of the parts of my family that didn’t get to come to the US is horrifying—pogroms, death camps.  There is nothing new under the sun.

This might be true that bad things were happening for many groups of people in the past. This is today and this is relevant to the people being targeted. 

Hamas isn't representative of Islam. But they are agitating in the name of Islam. It would be nice if fellow Muslims would say anything about Hamas' actions and goals not being representative of Islam.

[Carrie12345]

7 minutes ago, YaelAldrich said:

This might be true that bad things were happening for many groups of people in the past. This is today and this is relevant to the people being targeted. 

Hamas isn't representative of Islam. But they are agitating in the name of Islam. It would be nice if fellow Muslims would say anything about Hamas' actions and goals not being representative of Islam.

I guess I agree that it might be nice, but I can’t blame anyone trying to stay on the down low, given recent history. The rest of us CAN keep reminding people of the difference though!

[frogger]

1 hour ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle Again said:

Hamas is not representative of the majority of a specific religion anymore than the extremist whackadoodals claiming Christianity are representative of my Christian beliefs or those of people I know.

My great grandparents came over from Czechoslovakia in the early 19th century. The stories of the parts of my family that didn’t get to come to the US is horrifying—pogroms, death camps.  There is nothing new under the sun.

I agree that whackadoodals and Hamas are not representatives of a majority, I also know that they do influence many people (even if a small percentage) and those people can cause harm and it just sucks to be the person targeted or in the wrong place and the wrong time. 

You are right that it is not new but like I said, it still sucks.

[DawnM]

I have global concerns.   I am not as worried where I am right now, but I could see various factions being affected globally.   Remember when the extremists were attacking American Embassies overseas?   I fear it will be something like that, small attacks in many areas targeting Jews first and then Gentiles.   And I don't think it will be just one day.   I  think we are going to start seeing more and more of this.   Will it be WW3?   I have no idea.

[Idalou]

No

[prairiewindmomma]

Situational awareness….I am less worried about Hamas doing things on US soil and more worried that other antisemitic individuals/groups will choose that day to do things. Most of the buildings my friends and extended family go to have had security since 2014. They are choosing to have their normal schedule, but there is a cumulative emotional weight after each attack or threat, iykwim.

[saraha]

Nvm I found what I was looking for

Edited October 12, 2023 by saraha

[YaelAldrich]

29 minutes ago, saraha said:

Does anyone have some kind of link to hamas calling for action tomorrow? I want to send something to my older kids to help them be careful tomorrow 

I'll give you what I have but I'll be honest. If I were a non-Jew, not living in an urban area with lots of Muslims I wouldn't give this another thought. I DON'T think all or even many Muslims will take up the call. But all that is needed is one. But if I lived in Iowa or North Dakota, this wouldn't even make a little bit of change in my day.

Edited October 12, 2023 by YaelAldrich
Added my thoughts

[TravelingChris]

9 hours ago, Melissa Louise said:

I'm concerned about more anti semitism. We had edgy protestors shouting 'f the Jews' in front of the Opera House the other night, and a guy got arrested for harassing and stalking some Jewish school kids yesterday. I believe there is another protest here tomorrow - I hope the flares and slurs are left at home.

That's mainly what I'm worried about.

It wouldn't surprise me if something else in the world took place, because there are a lot of extremists out there, and some of them are unhinged, but I'm not anticipating it either. 

 

 

 

Yes, I am very concerned about the anti-Semitism.   I have seen the videos of the protests in Sydney.  But with this call out to JIhadists, it is all the more scary.

 

[TravelingChris]

4 hours ago, Lecka said:

No.  The OKC bombing was on the anniversary of Waco, and I used to worry about that anniversary.  But time has passed and I don’t worry about it any more.  
 

I feel like there are too many things to worry about that are so unlikely, to realistically worry about them.  
 

We are volunteering with refugees right now, too, and they have really been somewhere dangerous, and their extended family is still there.  They came here to live somewhere safe.  That is reality.  
 

I’m sorry it’s a concern and I’m glad (and think it’s appropriate) that police departments are taking precautions.  
 

 

I am not worried for myself.  I am concerned for others,   

[prairiewindmomma]

The 2014 Jewish Community Center shooting happened in Kansas.  I don't think living in a rural Midwest state as a Jew is necessarily a free pass. To be fair, both synagogues and mosques have been targets of hate crimes in Kansas. The 2016 Garden City (population 28,000) mosque incident comes to mind.

There's a lot of hate to go around. 😞 

[YaelAldrich]

11 minutes ago, prairiewindmomma said:

The 2014 Jewish Community Center shooting happened in Kansas.  I don't think living in a rural Midwest state as a Jew is necessarily a free pass. To be fair, both synagogues and mosques have been targets of hate crimes in Kansas. The 2016 Garden City (population 28,000) mosque incident comes to mind.

There's a lot of hate to go around. 😞 

Once again though that's a JEWISH community center (yes, I know plenty of non-Jews use them and in fact I believe the dead from that incident were non-Jews). JCCs don't get built with no Jewish community LOL.

If you don't frequent a Jewish (or Muslim) space AND you live in a place with few (none) Jews I would not freak out. 

Edited October 12, 2023 by YaelAldrich

[Heartstrings]

13 minutes ago, YaelAldrich said:

If you don't frequent a Jewish (or Muslim) space AND you live in a place with few (none) Jews I would not freak out. 

This has been my thinking.  I don’t live near a large Muslim or Jewish population so it’s not likely to impact me.  Unless some white supremacist gets ideas, but they aren’t likely to take orders from Hamas.   They do tend to act as general chaos agents though so that’s a possibility.  

Im more worried globally.  What fresh hell might be unleashed.   

[TravelingChris]

3 hours ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle Again said:

Hamas is not representative of the majority of a specific religion anymore than the extremist whackadoodals claiming Christianity are representative of my Christian beliefs or those of people I know.

My great grandparents came over from Czechoslovakia in the early 19th century. The stories of the parts of my family that didn’t get to come to the US is horrifying—pogroms, death camps.  There is nothing new under the sun.

I know that Hamas is not representative of a specific religion. In all the years of watching terrorist attacks, one of the most moving docudrama films I watched was about these monks in Libya and all the Muslims who tried to save them. I am not a black-and-white thinking person.  And since I am a more analytical type of thinker< I know that Hamas was not just killing Jews- they called a Philippina nurse and an Indian nurse.  They beheaded a Thai gardener.   My original degree was in economics, but my subsequent degrees were in CJ, and since I am so disabled, one thing I can still do is read and watch. In fact, I watched a very good documentary on Netflix about the Nov 13th, 2015 attack in Paris--outside a soccer stadium, lots of restaurants and cafes, and ending with the Bataclan massacre.  It is called Nov 13 attack on Paris.

When anybody says they cannot believe what happened, I keep thinking I can.  Since I was little, I remember thinking about how pounding rain sounds like soldiers marching in - my parents and one grandparent were extremely lucky to survive the gulags they were put into during WW2.  Almost all the Polish whom the Russians captured died.  And the later 60s and 70s were full of horrible terrorist attacks.I have just kept informed all of these years- including criminal behavior- which is horrific.  One job I applied for before becoming an Immigration Inspector was a coroner's investigator in San Bernardino County, CA.  I was one of the very top candidates, but I am glad I never got the job- it involved helicopter rides at times, and I have never been on one and think I may have freaked out about it.

[Carrie12345]

24 minutes ago, YaelAldrich said:

Once again though that's a JEWISH community center (yes, I know plenty of non-Jews use them and in fact I believe the dead from that incident were non-Jews). JCCs don't get built with no Jewish community LOL.

If you don't frequent a Jewish (or Muslim) space AND you live in a place with few (none) Jews I would not freak out. 

My son is a non-practicing, non-descript Jew with a not very descriptive name in a not so major city, but in a relatively Jewish state. I’m not “come home” worried, but I can’t say that I’m NOT worried.

[TravelingChris]

2 minutes ago, Heartstrings said:

This has been my thinking.  I don’t live near a large Muslim or Jewish population so it’s not likely to impact me.  Unless some white supremacist gets ideas, but they aren’t likely to take orders from Hamas.   They do tend to act as general chaos agents though so that’s a possibility.  

Im more worried globally.  What fresh hell might be unleashed.   

Yes, that is it.   But also, be aware that other Hamas and Iranian pronouncements of just these last few days are basically Christians and everybody is a target.  Do you think they like Hindus, Sikhs,  Buddhists, etc?  They hate LBG  etc people.  They hate moderate Muslims, who condemn the attacks.  The Pulse attack was an anti-gay one by a Jihadist.   

Just this year, we had a lone wolf Jihadi ambush on Police officers in Fargo, ND. More locally, a number of years ago, we had a lone wolf who shot and killed military recruiting places in Chattanooga,.

[YaelAldrich]

You know what the Israelis did when Hamas said they were going to fire rockets at 9pm? They went on their balconies and sang the Israeli National Anthem as a big fat FU. That's the definition of chutzpah and why Israel will win.

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/syxh3sxwt

[Heartstrings]

17 minutes ago, YaelAldrich said:

You know what the Israelis did when Hamas said they were going to fire rockets at 9pm? They went on their balconies and sang the Israeli National Anthem as a big fat FU. That's the definition of chutzpah and why Israel will win.

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/syxh3sxwt

I don’t think there is any doubt Israel will win, they have the 4th largest military in the world and are going up against a terrorist cell in a small area.  I think the question is can they win without the rest of the world also getting involved, starting WW3, and what the human toll will be.   

Edited October 12, 2023 by Heartstrings

[YaelAldrich]

Just now, Heartstrings said:

I don’t think there is any doubt Israel will win, they have the 4th largest military in the world and are going up against a terrorist cell in a small area.  I think the question is can they win without the rest of the world also getting involved, starting WW3, and what the human toll will be.   

I'm not going to go into this aspect any more because - politics. I (and other Jews) will think quite differently than you on this matter. Winning and WINNING are two different things.

[Heartstrings]

1 minute ago, YaelAldrich said:

I'm not going to go into this aspect any more because - politics. I (and other Jews) will think quite differently than you on this matter. Winning and WINNING are two different things.

I suppose I’d need to know what would be considered winning then.  Which…politics, fine.  

[Corraleno]

 

Also keep in mind that Hamas is relatively small (they are not even the largest party on the West Bank), they are just one of many Islamist groups, and a call to fight or protest from a member of one group is not necessarily going to rally members of other groups. Obviously the current events in Israel and Gaza can be a source of unrest and potential justification for violence in the US and Europe (and we have plenty of home-grown anti-Semites), but I don't think this particular statement from Meshaal is a reason to stay home, cancel flights, avoid public transport, etc., the way it is being portrayed in some media outlets.

Edited October 13, 2023 by desertflower
Political

[bolt.]

I seriously doubt that Hamas is as influential, worldwide, as it imagines itself to be.

I also feel like we need better info than unsubstantiated twitter-x claims about what supposed leaders of Hamas have allegedly called for. That kind of data is simply clickbait, and I wouldn't trust it any further than I could throw it. Apparently, there's a seed of actual data behind the clickbait, but the Reuters article describes a much more believable story. Social media is not news. Social media is people using hot topics to drive their own popularity. We should never take it seriously, nor reward such tragedy-scavengers with the clicks they crave. Just because some of the players in this tragedy are extremists, doesn't mean that every extreme rumor about them is true.

[Heartstrings]

Speaking of social media, has everyone seen the warnings about Hamas planning on releasing gruesome videos of hostages onto social media this weekend?  They are warning everyone to take social media off of your kid's phones or tablets for the weekend so they don't see something they shouldn't.  It's expected to be too much for YouTube, etc. to take it all down fast enough, even YouTube kids might not be safe because things can slip through. 

https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/11/tech/tiktok-social-media-israel-hostage-videos/index.html#:~:text=Schools in Israel%2C the UK,been seized in recent days.

 

[Carrie12345]

23 minutes ago, Heartstrings said:

Speaking of social media, has everyone seen the warnings about Hamas planning on releasing gruesome videos of hostages onto social media this weekend?  They are warning everyone to take social media off of your kid's phones or tablets for the weekend so they don't see something they shouldn't.  It's expected to be too much for YouTube, etc. to take it all down fast enough, even YouTube kids might not be safe because things can slip through. 

https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/11/tech/tiktok-social-media-israel-hostage-videos/index.html#:~:text=Schools in Israel%2C the UK,been seized in recent days.

 

I intend to keep my not so little kids off the most susceptible platforms this weekend. (Family discussion tonight.) 

I don’t know if/what will be put where, but I had to put myself on a brown-out because of news content that I couldn’t mentally handle. I’d rather be safe than sorry.

[TravelingChris]

20 minutes ago, bolt. said:

I seriously doubt that Hamas is as influential, worldwide, as it imagines itself to be.

I also feel like we need better info than unsubstantiated twitter-x claims about what supposed leaders of Hamas have allegedly called for. That kind of data is simply clickbait, and I wouldn't trust it any further than I could throw it. Apparently, there's a seed of actual data behind the clickbait, but the Reuters article describes a much more believable story. Social media is not news. Social media is people using hot topics to drive their own popularity. We should never take it seriously, nor reward such tragedy-scavengers with the clicks they crave. Just because some of the players in this tragedy are extremists, doesn't mean that every extreme rumor about them is true.

I didn't clickbait anything.  No, I do not speak Arabic.  And no, I cannot understand what he says and have to rely on translations.   And I am not canceling anything.  

But I do go on social media and other media to see reality.  I am greatly heartened by the people who are decrying the anti-semitism and the horrific acts of terror. 

As I said, I am a realist and have an interest in crime and criminals since I was a small child.  When 9/11 happened, I was horrified.,  But it was not a complete surprise for me-  the plot to fly airliners into tall buildings, important buildings was mentioned in reporting on  Ramzi Yousef back in the early 90's who is in prison for the 1993 WTC bombing.

[TravelingChris]

https://news.sky.com/story/stansted-airport-raf-jets-intercept-kenya-airways-flight-diverted-to-london-airport-12983307

The plane was first intercepted by French authorities and then by UK.  Met by armed police.

[Corraleno]

18 minutes ago, Heartstrings said:

Speaking of social media, has everyone seen the warnings about Hamas planning on releasing gruesome videos of hostages onto social media this weekend?  They are warning everyone to take social media off of your kid's phones or tablets for the weekend so they don't see something they shouldn't.  It's expected to be too much for YouTube, etc. to take it all down fast enough, even YouTube kids might not be safe because things can slip through. 

https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/11/tech/tiktok-social-media-israel-hostage-videos/index.html#:~:text=Schools in Israel%2C the UK,been seized in recent days.

 

According to the article, this warning appears to come from one parent's post on social media, saying that their school in Tel Aviv warned about it. Have there been any official warnings from the Israeli government about this?

Also, I'm not sure how this is different from the many many other horrible and gruesome images and video that are available on social media all the time. Kids can easily access graphic videos of people being shot, beaten, hit by cars, etc., not to mention videos of dead or dying soldiers with horrible injuries, dead Ukrainian civilians with signs of torture, etc.

I think the odds of really graphic images and videos making it into the average American's FB or Instagram feed is pretty low. Twitter/X is more likely to let gruesome images through, as they already do with material from Ukraine. Reddit, too, although it's easier to avoid seeing things on Reddit by not clicking anything with a NSFW tag.

[Corraleno]

18 minutes ago, TravelingChris said:

https://news.sky.com/story/stansted-airport-raf-jets-intercept-kenya-airways-flight-diverted-to-london-airport-12983307

The plane was first intercepted by French authorities and then by UK.  Met by armed police.

Seems like it was a false alarm: "Officers carried out enquiries and established there was nothing of concern on board. The plane has been handed back to the airport which has remained operational throughout."

[Heartstrings]

7 minutes ago, Corraleno said:

According to the article, this warning appears to come from one parent's post on social media, saying that their school in Tel Aviv warned about it. Have there been any official warnings from the Israeli government about this?

Also, I'm not sure how this is different from the many many other horrible and gruesome images and video that are available on social media all the time. Kids can easily access graphic videos of people being shot, beaten, hit by cars, etc., not to mention videos of dead or dying soldiers with horrible injuries, dead Ukrainian civilians with signs of torture, etc.

I think the odds of really graphic images and videos making it into the average American's FB or Instagram feed is pretty low. Twitter/X is more likely to let gruesome images through, as they already do with material from Ukraine. Reddit, too, although it's easier to avoid seeing things on Reddit by not clicking anything with a NSFW tag.

 The warnings seem to be coming from schools, but the threat of videos being released is coming from Hamas, at least according to Forbes.  If the videos are being released it’s not a huge leap to warn that kids might see it.   
 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexandralevine/2023/10/11/fearing-hamas-execution-videos-schools-urge-families-to-delete-tiktok-and-instagram/?sh=6d6ada4f557f

 

“A Hamas spokesperson has warned that the organization will post murders of civilians it has captured if Israel targets people in Gaza without warning.” “

 

[Melissa Louise]

6 hours ago, YaelAldrich said:

I'm Jewish and I'm worried. Several of my non Jewish friends are telling us not to go out. We will take precautions but not hide!

I'm sorry.

I know schools here and elsewhere are doing things like allowing students to alter uniform etc to be less identifiable, in terms of precaution, but that's been all week and not in relation to Friday.

[Melissa Louise]

3 hours ago, TravelingChris said:

Yes, I am very concerned about the anti-Semitism.   I have seen the videos of the protests in Sydney.  But with this call out to JIhadists, it is all the more scary.

 

I'm in a major city and I live 2 min drive away from a suburb where men were out on the streets with fireworks, celebrating Hamas' massacre of Jewish people.

Friday for me as someone who isn't Jewish or working at any major landmark is a usual day for me. I will go to work etc. 

I am not worried about this for myself or for family.

Yes, something could happen (the risk is very low) but something could happen any day.

For Jewish targets, well, I hope the NSW Police have got their **** together by now and are providing the protection needed.

~

Separately, yes, calling for violent terrorist action can have real world impacts.

Look at what happened to Rushdie. At Charlie Hebdo.

At a global level, it's not ideal.

 

 

 

Edited October 12, 2023 by Melissa Louise

[Melissa Louise]

20 minutes ago, Heartstrings said:

 The warnings seem to be coming from schools, but the threat of videos being released is coming from Hamas, at least according to Forbes.  If the videos are being released it’s not a huge leap to warn that kids might see it.   
 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexandralevine/2023/10/11/fearing-hamas-execution-videos-schools-urge-families-to-delete-tiktok-and-instagram/?sh=6d6ada4f557f

 

“A Hamas spokesperson has warned that the organization will post murders of civilians it has captured if Israel targets people in Gaza without warning.” “

 

I know kids are consuming content related to this they shouldn't, because I heard older boys yesterday in the playground making jokes about some of the videos that have come out of the last week, and had to speak to them about it. Totally desensitized 12 year olds. It's sad.

 

 

[Corraleno]

9 minutes ago, Heartstrings said:

 “A Hamas spokesperson has warned that the organization will post murders of civilians it has captured if Israel targets people in Gaza without warning.” “

Right, but the warning was released Monday and they haven't followed through so far — is there a reason to think something is specifically going to happen this weekend? Like if the Israeli government is explicitly warning to stay off social media this weekend, then that suggests they are planning something that is likely to trigger Hamas to follow through on the threat. I'm just wondering where the designation of "this weekend" is coming from, because if there's not a specific reason to think it's going to happen on those days, then the warning is really to avoid social media for as long as this war continues, because it could happen at any time.

But like I said, this stuff is all over social media all the time anyway. ISIS was posting videos of beheadings a decade ago, Russian soldiers have been posting torture and execution videos (although those are generally removed from the big social media sites very quickly), there are already terrible images and video from the Hamas attack all over social media, and even mainstream news organizations often post really gruesome images. I just don't think "stay off social media this weekend" is going to keep people from seeing all the worst that humanity has to offer, because it's always going to be out there. And especially with older kids,I think that  insisting they delete apps or avoid media this weekend is probably more likely to make them go looking for what they "missed" later on.

[bolt.]

50 minutes ago, TravelingChris said:

I didn't clickbait anything.  No, I do not speak Arabic.  And no, I cannot understand what he says and have to rely on translations.   And I am not canceling anything.  

But I do go on social media and other media to see reality.  I am greatly heartened by the people who are decrying the anti-semitism and the horrific acts of terror. 

As I said, I am a realist and have an interest in crime and criminals since I was a small child.  When 9/11 happened, I was horrified.,  But it was not a complete surprise for me-  the plot to fly airliners into tall buildings, important buildings was mentioned in reporting on  Ramzi Yousef back in the early 90's who is in prison for the 1993 WTC bombing.

No, I certainly don't think you are clickbaiting us... but there's a ton of clickbait out there. Some 'sources' shared upthread were of unsubstantiated quality.

And I think a healthy automatic reaction to any social media person alleging to share information is, "I'm interested, but that's nowhere near enough data to convince me of anything. Let me see if I can find anything resembling that claim from a legitimate source." Social media data, to me, is "false until proven true" -- not the other way around. Because there's a ton of motive for people on social media to jerk me around with alarming-sounding claims. I would never go on social media to 'see reality'. The chances of anything on social media being 'reality' is below 50% to me (in the absence of other data).

A solid, reliable, fact-checked, ethical source of actual journalism is essential to a reasonable understanding of anything in world events. 'The press' is not infallible, but without it, we lack an important foundation.

(I too can be 'heartened' by the types of individual stories that come from social media sometimes. Especially when they express things I consider good things -- like resisting antisemitism and decrying acts of horror and terror. In that case, if they are true, that's great and even if they are not true, they function like parables to reinforce what good people can/could/should do in various cases. But even so, they should be fact-checked before heaping too much honour or popularity onto someone who could be making baseless claims of honourable actions.)

But, no, TravellingChris, I'm not meaning to suggest that you, yourself, are clickbaiting people. You're someone 'known' to us, and you aren't gaining anything from 'clicks' or engagement here. I know that you started the thread honestly to talk with people about something you wanted to talk about.

[Melissa Louise]

The warning I read from a UK school was more specific - it was that given some of our families know or are related to the families of hostages, do everything to avoid them coming across videos of those hostages being murdered on camera.

[JennyD]

50 minutes ago, Corraleno said:

According to the article, this warning appears to come from one parent's post on social media, saying that their school in Tel Aviv warned about it. Have there been any official warnings from the Israeli government about this?

Jewish day schools in the US have been sending out cautionary messages about monitoring kids' social media exposure since earlier this week,  and when I spoke with my kids one of them mentioned that the IDF had posted a message on Instagram about it.   

 

 

[Melissa Louise]

Domestic spy agency here warns that there is a risk of opportunistic violence related to upcoming protests and rallies.