Latest news with #Blockade
Washington Post
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Israeli allies unleash strong rhetoric over Gaza, but actions so far are limited
LONDON — Three allies of Israel used words like 'abhorrent' and 'monstrous' this week to describe the country's actions in Gaza . The leaders of Britain, France and Canada — consistent defenders of Israel's right to strike back at Hamas after its October 2023 attack — now express dismay at the high civilian death toll in Gaza and the monthslong blockade of supplies that has led to famine warnings .
New York Post
18-05-2025
- Business
- New York Post
Get rich quick crypto ‘gurus' are targeting teens and fleecing them through ‘rug pulling'
Cryptocurrency titans make it seem easy for anyone to get rich off digital coins, and anyone who isn't making millions in their free time is wasting an opportunity. Crypto really is the financial Wild West. There are almost no regulations or rules in digital coins as there are on the real-world currency exchanges and stock markets. That makes it all too easy for everyone from hardened criminal gangs to petty grifters to take advantage of anyone they can reach. All too often, this comes in the form of a friendly face and the well-worn promise that you can ' get rich quick.' To anyone over 30, those three words will immediately set off alarm bells. But in today's TikTok and Instagram-driven world of influencers and finfluencers (the financial 'advice' equivalent), they have flashy new ways of dressing it up. The latest vehicle for roping people, all too often younger men and teenagers, is are so-called meme coins. Created from thin air with names which appeal to the public – playing off celebrities, politicians, trends or grabby mascots – they make big money for their creators and the influencers who peddle them, but usually nothing for those who invest. 'The easiest way to make money is to deploy a meme coin, run it and then sell as soon as you see [profits],' Sahil Arora, who's launched over 100 of these coins and claims he's earned millions, told The Post. 12 12 The crypto security firm Blockade says most of the meme coins are scams, designed to have no lasting value. Like others of his ilk, straight-talking Arora profits through a process known as 'rug pulling.' A coin is issued, prices rise quickly as people invest, then Arora, who, as the creator, keeps a large percentage of the coins, sells at or near the currency's height. 12 He makes money; those who have put money into the coin lose; he essentially 'pulls the rug out' from under them. 'This is the biggest casino on Earth right now,' enthused Dubai-based Arora, who bragged about being called a 'super villain.' 'If you don't get rugged by me, you're probably going to get rugged by someone else. So, you might as well get rugged by a person with a track record of some success rather than getting rugged by a random person on the Internet,' he bafflingly claimed. 12 Other, more recognizable influencers who have faced allegations of promoting meme coins and then leaving followers high and dry include Paul 'Ice Poseidon' Denino, Faze Kay, and Haliey 'Hawk Tuah Girl' Welch. Denino has been accused of promoting a coin and walking away with $300,000, which his followers invested. He said, 'I did make $300,000, but it was not at the expense of any fans or holders.' Faze Kay is one of several influencers accused of promoting a pump-and-dump scheme for a token called Save the Kids. He tweeted that he had 'no ill intent promoting any crypto alt coins.' Welch achieved quick fame as the Hawk Tuah Girl and had her name attached to a crypto that earned millions for so-called 'snipers'. These are people who use bots to monitor the rise of a meme coin and sell as soon as it is close to peaking. Welch's coin $HAWK lost 95% of its value in minutes. According to Welch's manager, she had no involvement in the scheme. To back it up, he pointed out she was cleared of any wrongdoing by the SEC and other government agencies, and she is also not named in a class action lawsuit against the coin's operators. While crypto is a growing industry and there are genuine alternative currencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, which have stabilized and held their value, many more are just scams. 'You get 'influencers' who are given [crypto] tokens in exchange for promoting them,' Kyle Chassé, a veteran crypto investor who will be appearing on an upcoming streaming show, 'CryptoKnights,' told The Post. 'It should always be disclosed that these people are being paid to promote the coin. But not everybody has the moral compass to do that.' People who follow the influencers see them promoting a coin and buy into promises that it will 'go to the moon' – crypto speak for gaining huge amounts of value. 'Everyone anticipates the price going up, and it does, because there is a big [group of people] buying into it,' a crypto consultant who goes by the name Cryptony (who asked that his real name not be used) told The Post. 'The rich get richer,' said Cryptony. 'For one person to make money, another person has to lose money. That's where it comes from.' 12 But, he added, 'some influencers are using these opportunities to build up their brand, rather than purely to make money from meme coins.' Aiming for the young and naïve, 'there's an entire class of influencers who have built their entire net worth and become very wealthy by essentially showing off a lifestyle: Their private jets, their fancy cars,' said Chassé. 'They're saying, 'Yeah, if you just watch my channel, you can be like me.'' Anyone can even launch their own coins for a few hundred dollars via platforms such as Such was the case for one teenager who launched three coins on the platform and made $50,000 in less time than it would take to sit for a geometry exam. 12 But he did it through executing 'a hard rug pull' — in anyone else's language, scamming. While young men seem most susceptible to all this, as crypto investor Charlene Woods told The Post, 'They don't care how old you are. They're robbing people they don't meet and never looking them in the eye. If they did, it might weigh on their conscience.' Glenn Titus, a 41-year-old butcher from Oregon, can relate. He invested in multiple coins that have been rugged. 'There were some I lost hundreds on,' he told The Post. In the former scenario, he explained, 'People [online] make it sound good, and the price keeps going up. Then suddenly you can't sell what you have. They pretty much clean out the money and everybody's screwed.' 12 Acknowledging that he can't do anything except be more careful in the future, Titus admitted, 'I'm pretty pissed off, honestly.' Now, he said, 'I stick with the Bitcoin kind of stuff.' Among the red flags to look for, according to Chassé, are those who show off their wealth online. 'You have to wonder where the money came from,' he said.
New York Post
17-05-2025
- Business
- New York Post
Get rich quick crypto 'gurus' are targeting teens
Cryptocurrency titans make it seem easy for anyone to get rich off digital coins, and anyone who isn't making millions in their free time is wasting an opportunity. Crypto really is the financial Wild West. There are almost no regulations or rules in digital coins as there are on the real-world currency exchanges and stock markets. That makes it all too easy for everyone from hardened criminal gangs to petty grifters to take advantage of anyone they can reach. Advertisement 12 According to the crypto security firm Blockade, most meme coins are scams. Mike Guillen/NY Post Design 12 Sahil Arora has launched over 100 meme coins and, he says, he has earned millions of dollars. @sahilsays/Instagram All too often, this comes in the form of a friendly face and the well-worn promise that you can 'get rich quick.' To anyone over 30, those three words will immediately set off alarm bells. But in today's TikTok and Instagram-driven world of influencers and finfluencers (the financial 'advice' equivalent), they have flashy new ways of dressing it up. Advertisement The latest vehicle for roping people, all too often younger men and teenagers, is are so-called meme coins. Created from thin air with names which appeal to the public – playing off celebrities, politicians, trends or grabby mascots – they make big money for their creators and the influencers who peddle them, but usually nothing for those who invest. 'The easiest way to make money is to deploy a meme coin, run it and then sell as soon as you see [profits],' Sahil Arora, who's launched over 100 of these coins and claims he's earned millions, told The Post. 12 Crypto millionaire Sahil Arora is upfront about rug pulling and walking away with hefty profits. Courtesy of Sahil Arora Advertisement 12 Sahil Arora told The Post that people call him a 'super villain.' Courtesy of Sahil Arora The crypto security firm Blockade says most of the meme coins are scams, designed to have no lasting value. Like others of his ilk, straight-talking Arora profits through a process known as 'rug pulling.' A coin is issued, prices rise quickly as people invest, then Arora, who, as the creator, keeps a large percentage of the coins, sells at or near the currency's height. Advertisement 12 Cryptony, the online user name of a crypto consultant, told The Post that 'the rich get richer' with meme coins. Courtesy of cryptony He makes money; those who have put money into the coin lose; he essentially 'pulls the rug out' from under them. 'This is the biggest casino on Earth right now,' enthused Dubai-based Arora, who bragged about being called a 'super villain.' 'If you don't get rugged by me, you're probably going to get rugged by someone else. So, you might as well get rugged by a person with a track record of some success rather than getting rugged by a random person on the Internet,' he bafflingly claimed. 12 Paul 'Ice Poseidon' Denino has been accused of promoting a meme coin that left investors high and dry. he said it was 'not at the expense of fans or holders.' @ice_poseiden/Instagram Other, more recognizable influencers who have faced allegations of promoting meme coins and then leaving followers high and dry include Paul 'Ice Poseidon' Denino, Faze Kay, and Haliey 'Hawk Tuah Girl' Welch. Denino has been accused of promoting a coin and walking away with $300,000, which his followers invested. He said, 'I did make $300,000, but it was not at the expense of any fans or holders.' Faze Kay is one of several influencers accused of promoting a pump-and-dump scheme for a token called Save the Kids. He tweeted that he had 'no ill intent promoting any crypto alt coins.' Advertisement 12 Faze Kay said that he had 'no ill intent promoting any crypto alt coins.' Welch achieved quick fame as the Hawk Tuah Girl and had her name attached to a crypto that earned millions for so-called 'snipers'. These are people who use bots to monitor the rise of a meme coin and sell as soon as it is close to peaking. Welch's coin $HAWK lost 95% of its value in minutes. According to Welch's manager, she had no involvement in the scheme. To back it up, he pointed out she was cleared of any wrongdoing by the SEC and other government agencies, and she is also not named in a class action lawsuit against the coin's operators. Advertisement 12 Haliey 'Hawk Tuah Girl' Welch was cleared by the SEC of any wrongdoing. Anadolu via Getty Images While crypto is a growing industry and there are genuine alternative currencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, which have stabilized and held their value, many more are just scams. 'You get 'influencers' who are given [crypto] tokens in exchange for promoting them,' Kyle Chassé, a veteran crypto investor who will be appearing on an upcoming streaming show, 'CryptoKnights,' told The Post. 'It should always be disclosed that these people are being paid to promote the coin. But not everybody has the moral compass to do that.' Advertisement 12 Kyle Chassé, a veteran crypto investor, advises being wary of influencers who are touting too many coins. Courtesy of kyle chasse People who follow the influencers see them promoting a coin and buy into promises that it will 'go to the moon' – crypto speak for gaining huge amounts of value. 'Everyone anticipates the price going up, and it does, because there is a big [group of people] buying into it,' a crypto consultant who goes by the name Cryptony (who asked that his real name not be used) told The Post. 'The rich get richer,' said Cryptony. 'For one person to make money, another person has to lose money. That's where it comes from.' Advertisement 12 Glenn Titus, a butcher in Oregon, learned his lesson after losing money in meme coins. Courtesy of Glenn Titus But, he added, 'some influencers are using these opportunities to build up their brand, rather than purely to make money from meme coins.' Aiming for the young and naïve, 'there's an entire class of influencers who have built their entire net worth and become very wealthy by essentially showing off a lifestyle: Their private jets, their fancy cars,' said Chassé. 'They're saying, 'Yeah, if you just watch my channel, you can be like me.'' Anyone can even launch their own coins for a few hundred dollars via platforms such as Such was the case for one teenager who launched three coins on the platform and made $50,000 in less time than it would take to sit for a geometry exam. 12 Crypto investor Charlene Woods believes that the anonymity of rug pulling makes it easier for people to do. @Charlenewoods/Instagram But he did it through executing 'a hard rug pull' — in anyone else's language, scamming. While young men seem most susceptible to all this, as crypto investor Charlene Woods told The Post, 'They don't care how old you are. They're robbing people they don't meet and never looking them in the eye. If they did, it might weigh on their conscience.' Glenn Titus, a 41-year-old butcher from Oregon, can relate. He invested in multiple coins that have been rugged. 'There were some I lost hundreds on,' he told The Post. In the former scenario, he explained, 'People [online] make it sound good, and the price keeps going up. Then suddenly you can't sell what you have. They pretty much clean out the money and everybody's screwed.' 12 Sahil Arora views meme coins as the biggest casino in the world. Courtesy of Sahil Arora Acknowledging that he can't do anything except be more careful in the future, Titus admitted, 'I'm pretty pissed off, honestly.' Now, he said, 'I stick with the Bitcoin kind of stuff.' Among the red flags to look for, according to Chassé, are those who show off their wealth online. 'You have to wonder where the money came from,' he said. Multiple people who spoke to The Post made clear that meme coins are the equivalent of gambling. However, said Chassé, 'at least in the casino, you know that maybe 60 percent of the time the house wins. In this [crypto] casino, the house is going to win 99 percent of the time.'
Morocco World
10-03-2025
- Politics
- Morocco World
A Genocide Deja-Vu: Israel Cuts Electricity Supply to Gaza Once Again
Rabat – A week after Israel cut off all humanitarian aid to Gaza, Israel's energy and infrastructure minister Eli Cohen announced yesterday, on March 9, that he signed an order to immediately cut off electricity to the enclave. Cohen confirmed that this decision is another effort to strong-arm Hamas into releasing the remaining Israeli hostages without abiding by the terms of the January 19 ceasefire agreement. 'Enough with the talk, it's time for Action!,' he wrote on X. After the end of the initial phase of this truce on March 1, Hamas urged Israel to move to the second phase of the agreement which entails the withdrawal of Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) from Gaza. However, Israel, with backing from the United States, initially refused, violating the original timeline and demanding that the first phase be extended until all Israeli hostages have been returned. They have also continued pressuring the Palestinian resistance group into capitulation through collective punishment, targeting Gaza's civilians yet again. Izzat al-Rishq, a member of Hamas's political bureau, issued a statement calling Israel's latest aggression 'cheap and unacceptable blackmail.' Hamas had shown readiness to kick off the second-phase negotiations in a meeting with Egyptian mediators in Cairo earlier on Saturday, and has called upon the mediators to ensure that Israel implements its side of the agreement. 'We call on mediators in Egypt and Qatar, as well as the guarantors in the US administration, to ensure that the (Israeli) occupation complies with the agreement… and proceeds with the second phase according to the agreed-upon terms,' said spokesman Hazem Qassem to AFP. This decision mirrors Israel's actions in Gaza following October 7, 2023 when Israel cut off electricity to Gaza leaving civilians and hospitals reliant on solar panels and fuel-powered generators. Tags: (Israel) Newsceasefireelectricity gazaGaza Blockade
CBC
25-02-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Blockade by Christine Lowther
West Coast activist Christine Lowther returns to her blockade years of the early nineties, marked by old-growth occupations, lie-ins and barricades on the frontlines of Vancouver Island's ancient temperate rainforests. In the early 1990s, ancient temperate rainforests on Vancouver Island became the stage for mass blockades against clearcut logging in Nuučaańuł territory. Until the more recent struggles at Fairy Creek, Clayoquot Sound hosted the largest act of civil disobedience in Canada. National news coverage at the time showed mothers with their babies, grandparents, business people, and many other unlikely activists standing on the logging road or locked to makeshift structures, risking arrest to defend these rare, evolved ecosystems. Christine Lowther was arrested in 1992 for lying across the Clayoquot Arm bridge while MacMillan Bloedel fallers tried to drive to work with their chainsaws. Blockade is her gripping, first-hand account of the joys, struggles, and victories of this historic movement. Drawing from her daily journals recorded at the time, Lowther recounts the vibrant and tense atmosphere of confronting police and loggers with nonviolent civil disobedience. She vividly describes creative direct actions—themed blockades, lock-downs, nighttime barricade building, occupations of ancient trees and government offices. Blockade contemplates the stark realities of the movement, including threats of police violence and the disturbing collusion between the RCMP and extraction corporations. Despite the powderkeg atmosphere, Lowther found wonder by kayaking the inlets and settling down to life in unceded Tlaoquiaht territory where she still gratefully resides. Blockade is a celebration of resilience and a powerful account of successful environmental activism. It highlights the continuing threat to old-growth forests, with a nod to Fairy Creek, and commends the June 18, 2024 announcement of 76,000 hectares of new conservancies in Clayoquot (Tlaoquiaht) Sound, nearly doubling the protected temperate rainforest within this iconic region. Thrilling, evocative, and necessary, Christine Lowther's Blockade showcases the need to defend remnant intact crucial ecosystems hand in hand with the Indigenous peoples whose ancestral gardens these lands are. It is a rallying cry of hope for all those who stand up for the natural world and a roadmap for future generations of defenders. (From Caitlin Press) Hazard, Home. She served as Tofino's poet laureate from 2020-2022.
