michael_martinez

michael_martinez, 5 months ago to random

These photos illustrate why the #IDF has been forced to attack apartment buildings in #Gaza. #Hamas militants are firing on the Israelis from these "apartments" (the room in these photos is almost empty, except for armed men who were killed by an airstrike).

Notice how the Hamas militants are not wearing uniforms. The IDF must carefully evaluate any men who appear to be dressed in civilian clothing.

The pictures were recovered from bodycams on the slain militants.

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/syw9yskup

michael_martinez, 5 months ago to random

Those calling for #ceasefirenow are obviously ignoring the fact that #Hamas doesn't want a real cease fire.

There WAS a cease fire on October 6.

Hamas could end this war immediately by surrending and releasing all remaining hostages.

Hamas is NOT a "resistance". They are not freedom fighters.

They are a blood-thirsty, warmongering organization with only 1 objective: to destroy Israel.

Hamas kills #Palestinians who resist their oppression.

If you don't condemn Hamas and call for their immediate unconditional surrender, not only are you supporting a continued war, you are supporting #terrorism and #genocide

Refusal to place the blame for #Gaza's thousands of deaths on Hamas is compliance with Hamas' strategy and support for their war.

michael_martinez, 5 months ago to Russia

I don't see enough people asking why all these people who are outraged by Israel's bombing in #Gaza don't express similar anger toward #Russia over its indiscriminate bombing and shelling of Ukrainian civilians.

I don't agree with Netanyahu's policies or strategies. I don't support the indiscriminate killing of civilians, even in a zone like Gaza where #Hamas has built hundreds of tunnels under homes, schools, and hospitals and intentionally uses the civilian population as human shields to maximize casualties.

Nonetheless, if you're going to be outraged over civilian deaths, I think you should express similar outrage over the intentional deaths in Ukraine (and we might as well mention the intentional deaths of civilians occurring throughout Africa, where Al Qaeda/ISIS-linked militant groups continue to attack villages and small cities).

michael_martinez, 1 month ago to USpolitics

This is too rich not to share.

"U.S. Congresswoman Suspected of Having 'Russian Handlers' After Transcarpathia Amendment"

FROM THE ARTICLE: "Political pundit ‘Jay in Kyiv’ responded: 'The amendment that Marjorie Taylor Greene just proposed to sabotage the Ukraine bill is something that is such a nuanced Russian disinfo narrative that it could have only come directly from her Russian handlers.'

'The notion that Hungarians are being persecuted in Ukraine is insane BUT it’s being pushed by both Orban (who was promised a piece of Ukraine by Putin) and Russian disinfo machine. For an American to suggest this really confirms she is being handled.'"

#uspolitics #ukraine #russia

https://2paragraphs.com/2024/04/u-s-congresswoman-suspected-of-having-russian-handlers-after-transcarpathia-amendment/

michael_martinez, 7 months ago to random

#Hamas stores weapons and ammunition under hospitals and schools inside #gaza

That's a war crime.

Hamas plants roadside bombs inside Gaza to kill Palestinians as they flee away from Israel's bombing.

That's a (Hamas) war crime.

Hamas sent over 1,000 militants into Israel to rape, burn, and torture Israeli civilians.

That's a war crime.

Hamas continuously fires rockets into Israel without any attempt to target them toward military installations or troops.

That's a war crime.

Don't talk about war crimes in Gaza if you're going to conveniently omit any mention of Hamas' war crimes.

Hamas started this war. Hamas is keeping the war going. Anyone who refuses to acknowledge that Hamas is culpable is supporting war crimes.

michael_martinez, 7 months ago to random

Hey #cdrama fans, do you tend to agree with the "top 100 historical dramas" list on MyDramaList?

I can't watch all of these shows but I was wondering if it's really a good guide for people interested in historical fantasy-type epics from Chinese TV.

https://mydramalist.com/list/1R8aMAw3

michael_martinez, 7 months ago to Tolkien

Just followed some profiles with #tolkien and #cdrama in their keywords but I'm not sure who I should be following.

I may unfollow some folks in the next few days.

Please don't take it personally.

michael_martinez, 10 months ago to random

The notion that a page should be "no more than 3 clicks from the home page" is absolute nonsense dreamed up by SEO "experts" who don't understand how the Web works.

michael_martinez, 2 months ago to journalism

I suppose the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Web team are not (yet) in the Fediverse, but I hope they one day fix this problem. MSN has a similar issue. Or maybe it's a bug in the Mastodon software, but I see a lot of news story shares in the Fediverse that look like this.

#webdesign #journalism #mastodon #fediverse #ajc #msn

michael_martinez, 10 months ago to scifi

New #cdrama review posted on the SF-Fandom forums: "Michael's Thoughts: Legend of YunXi".

#scifi #fantasy

https://forums.sf-fandom.com/thread-36968.html

michael_martinez, 13 days ago to SEO

Looks like it's now time to start blocking accounts that abuse the #seo hashtag on Mastodon.

What do I consider to be "abuse"?

Irrelevant content, frequent self-promotional advertisements for services, stuff like that.

michael_martinez, 7 months ago to random

@searchliaison @johnmu Gentlemen, this appears to be an unintended consequence of removing crowd sourcing from Google SERPs. It's a desktop search result.

michael_martinez, 7 months ago to Israel

#Hamas and #islamicjihad have fired thousands of rockets toward #Israel since October 7.

Over 400 of them landed inside the Gaza strip itself.

#Palestinians are killing Palestinians

It's heartbreaking to see that Palestinian lives mean nothing to the terrorist groups that use them as human shields and propaganda tools.

It's disappointing to see so many people in the West agonizing over Palestinian deaths and saying nothing about the ongoing rocket attacks. They wouldn't be dying and suffering if Hamas and Islamic Jihad weren't doing this.

None of the anti-Israel rants have suggested any way to end the violence.

• Clearly not attacking Gaza didn't do any good.

• Clearly not occupying Gaza for 18 years didn't do any good.

• Clearly you can't negotiate a lasting peace with an organization whose sole purpose for existence is to destroy Israel and kill all Jews everywhere.

https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-military-says-no-evidence-direct-hit-gaza-hospital-2023-10-18/

michael_martinez, 8 months ago to SEO

Please reshare to help me get visibility.

I'm working with a company that has been receiving SERPwoo reports for tracking branded queries. They've been told that SERPwoo is shutting down operations next month. The company would like to find an alternative platform that provides reports similar to SERPwoo's multi-colored sentiment tracking. The screen capture below gives you an idea of what that looks like. These reports are perfect for brand and reputation SERP tracking.

Please do not suggest Looker Studio. Not happening.

Thanks in advance.

#seo #webmarketing #analytics #brandmarketing

michael_martinez, 8 months ago to random

All the crap content that Web marketers have stopped sharing on Twitter has now migrated to LinkedIn.

michael_martinez, 7 months ago to random

You don't have to be a fan of the Seattle Seahawks to appreciate the creativity of this video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wygbRaEDnRI

michael_martinez, 7 months ago to Palestine

"Hamas’s Genocidal Intentions Were Never a Secret - The Atlantic"

#palestine #israel #hamas #PalestineIsraelconflict #genocide

via MSN: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/understanding-hamas-s-genocidal-ideology/ar-AA1i0jaZ

Original: https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2023/10/hamas-covenant-israel-attack-war-genocide/675602/

michael_martinez, 7 months ago to random

There is, of course, a misinformation machine working quietly to disrupt social media across the world. But I also get the impression that many people here in the United States think the situation in Gaza is like the situation in the West Bank.

Their words reveal a general ignorance of the history of Palestine and Israel.

The settlements issue for which Israel has been criticized by many parties is only occurring in the West Bank.

Israel withdrew all settlements from the Sinai and Gaza years ago. They seized the Sinai from Egypt in the 1973 Yom Kippur War (after Egypt participated in a massive attack on Israel). For several years Israel constructed settlements in the Sinai, but after the Camp David Accords the Israeli settlements were dismantled and the Sinai was returned to Egypt.

A similar situation unfolded in Gaza. Israeli settlers seized land in Gaza and the Israeli Defense Forces maintained a presence there.

But in 2003 then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's son convinced his father that long term peace would only be achieved if Israel withdraw from Palestinian lands. Gaza was a first step.

The Israeli settlements were dismantled and all troops withdrawn by 2005. Gaza literally became self-governing under the aegis of the Palestinian Authority (which was dominated by the Fatah movement).

But then Gaza held elections in 2006, and Hamas swept the Gaza elections and they subsequently drove Fatah out of power. Fatah had become unpopular at the time because they were accused of corruption.

So Hamas came in and turned Gaza into an armed camp. They literally occupied Gaza (imposing their own dictatorial control over the Palestinians of Gaza). And after that time Hamas began building up its military power and occasionally attacked Israel (without provocation).

Meanwhile, former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Ohlmert offered Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas complete recognition and independence for the West Bank in 2008. That included withdrawing all settlements and even building a tunnel between Gaza and the West Bank.

But Abbas didn't trust Ohlmert's offer, even though the Israeli PM told him "you won't get an offer like this again for 50 years".

So within the span of 3 years, the Palestinians of Gaza and the West Bank destroyed all hopes for a peaceful conclusion to their conflict with Israel.

Yes, there are Israeli troops in the West Bank, and settlers, and all that. But those issues can be resolved once the Palestinians and the Israelis reach an agreement.

Israel has made multiple overtures to the Palestinians. But the radical Palestinian groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad keep the conflict going because their goals don't include leaving Israel alone. They want to destroy Israel and they're never going to stop trying to do that.

So what's happening in Gaza isn't about some Israeli occupation. It's about a Palestinian occupation of Palestinian land.

Israel was forced to blockade Gaza because Hamas kept launching attacks against Israel. When humanitarian aid was sent unchecked into Gaza (including materials for building modern infrastructure), Hamas used that aid to construct tunnels and underground bases for the purpose of attacking Israel.

There is literally no hope for negotiation or peace between Israel and Hamas because Hamas has no interest in negotiation and peace with Israel, except to buy time to plan and prepare for their next attack on Israel.

It's a shame millions of people don't bother to learn history (or learn from it), but instead allow themselves to be swayed by online propaganda that has no basis in fact.

michael_martinez, 1 month ago to SEO

There's nothing quite like being deep in thought on a project when the old email alert comes on to tell me that yet another genius #SEO expert has updated Wikipedia's PageRank article with a long section of text announcing to the world that they're the greatest thing since sliced bread, and here's a link to their Website.

No matter how quickly I click on the link, by the time I get to the article it's already been reverted by someone else.

I'm seriously tempted, though, to request semi-protected status for that page. It's not like there's a lot of breaking news about PageRank any more.

michael_martinez, 6 months ago to scifi

I wrote a new #cdrama review for the SF-Fandom forums.

"Michael's Take: 'The Romance of Tiger and Rose'"

I was pleasantly surprised by the the complexity of the story.

#scifi #fantasy #cdramas

https://forums.sf-fandom.com/thread-37116.html

michael_martinez, 1 month ago to Israel

They should never have done this, but while this will only fuel more outrage toward #Israel, I stand by what I've said all along: if you don't condemn #Hamas for refusing to lay down arms and freeing all hostages, you are supporting #terrorism and #genocide

Hamas wants the war in #Gaza to continue. They know it feeds #antisemitism around the world and builds misguided sympathy for their cause - which is to destroy Israel and kill all Jews everywhere.

Ultimately, all of these deaths are Hamas' responsibility. This is what they wanted to happen.

And they've broken 5 previous "permanent" ceasefires. Anyone who thinks they would honor another one is a damned fool.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/03/israel-gaza-ai-database-hamas-airstrikes

michael_martinez, 1 month ago to Palestine

Consider me skeptical. This would be contrary to their stated purpose for existence (which is to destroy Israel and kill all Jews everywhere). It would be like saying the fox could move into a corner of the henhouse and everyone else will stop chasing it. To "disarm" does not mean "to disband and give up our goals."

CNN: Hamas officials say group willing to disarm if Palestinian state is established

#hamas #gaza #palestine #israel #gazawar

https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/25/middleeast/hamas-officials-say-group-willing-to-disarm-if-palestinian-state-is-established-mime-intl/index.html

michael_martinez, 24 days ago to Israel

The optics are simple: #Israel began moving civilians out of the way in Rafah and suddenly #Hamas caved on the #ceasefire agreement.

Hopefully they stop trying to kill each other for a while in #Gaza but the poor #Palestinians are still going to suffer.

Hamas did this. Everyone needs to keep reminding each other of that. This is all Hamas' fault.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/06/middleeast/hamas-agrees-ceasefire-proposal-israel-gaza-latam-intl/index.html

michael_martinez, 17 days ago to Israel

It's a clear sign of the antisemitism at the United Nations that they didn't blast this change out to every major news agency in the world.

"According to data published May 6, of the 34,735 people who have died in Gaza, more than 9,500 were women and more than 14,500 were children. Two days later, the United Nations reduced those figures to 4,959 women and 7,797 children killed while maintaining that the overall number of more than 35,000 deaths in Gaza remains unchanged."

#un #unitednations #israel #gaza #hamas #waringaza

https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2024/05/13/israel-thousands-flee-rafah/5461715634015/

michael_martinez, 6 months ago to SEO

I expect there will soon be a flood of #SEO blog posts and social media posts declaring that some smoking gun has been found at last. Having read through the latest #Google antitrust trial disclosures, I don't see much new information in the mix. But it will be interesting to see who ties all the dots together and what kinds of pictures they construct.

I've already read @ajkohn's 2 blog posts on the trial.