An EBT Crisis?

Chesterton · Monday at 3:42 PM

bèlla said:
Sorry Ches, I didn’t mean to confuse you.

Yes, it’s possible the post is Ai and we‘re seeing it more frequently.

I'm not saying it is for sure, but it could be another in a long line of race hoaxes. Make a video of someone being an entitled demander, use photoshop to make it look fake, then blame "white supremacists" for their evil ways, while simultaneously casting doubt on the veracity of all the actual entitled demander videos.

bèlla said:
The scene features a woman with 7 children in a chaotic environment. I don’t know if sympathy is what the viewer would feel. I think it paints her in a negative manner as the stereotypical welfare mother living off the system.

Hmm, I only counted 5 kids, but I get you. I didn't really think of that, maybe because I'm Orthodox. We're generally supporters of having big families.

bèlla said:
The more fakes we have the more people will distrust what they see and won’t know what’s real. The only way to combat it is by verifying our identity. I’d liken it to the checkmark you see on X. If you had that by your name the reader would know you’re who you say you are.

The article I shared mentions a company that created a device that does that. It’s used in several countries but hasn’t taken off here as of yet. It was developed by Sam Altman of OpenAi.

There are AI blockers that can block your browser from showing you AI images, or at least alert you when you're about to view AI generated content. I don't currently have one installed, but the reviews I've read say they're not 100% foolproof, but will catch the majority of AI.

I wonder if anyone reading this who has an AI blocker would mind finding that original video and reporting back to us whether it's AI or not? If you do, I will personally reward you with riches beyond any measure, or a Winner rating, one or the other.

camille70 · Monday at 4:17 PM

Chesterton said:
Are we sure this is AI generated? If the prompters have racist intent, why would they put children in the video, which makes the mom a much more sympathetic character?

Did you listen to the video? The commentary points out the discrepancies in the background. The kid with half an arm, the two kids morphing together, the kids frozen in the background, the same women being used in various videos.

If you watch enough videos you can tell anyway. Usually the background isn't sharp. There is no texture to the videos, no pores in the skin, no texture or fibers to the clothes like denim or cotton. Text on books and newspapers aren't readable. Usually the size scale is off in some manner. Often people have missing or extra limbs, like the supposed pics of Trump a few years back, surrounded by black people and one had 6 fingers or two thumbs. Everything looks like it is shot through a filter when even cheap phones are now 4k.

No, the video does not make her more sympathetic. It's to target white people with a message they are taking care of able bodied single welfare moms who keep having kids they can't afford and who live like animals in filthy homes. Ghetto and entitled. It's dehumanizing and degrading.

Edit: often they also hope to inspire a trend where real people will make such videos. There are people who intentionally make controversial videos for clicks and views. They earn money.

camille70 · Monday at 4:20 PM

bèlla said:
There’s a bigger agenda behind the fakes to force us to verify our identity before we come online. We’re not anonymous anyway but a home can have multiple people. Scanning your retina will resolve that and your activity will be tied to a user number. That’s how we’ll get to thought crimes. They’ll mine the data and create a profile.

But you can’t get to that point without a problem. If you create enough fakes people will complain and demand a solution which they already have. You don’t know who did it and a lot of these channels are backed by firms or created by them instead. So you make some rage bait that gets a lot of clicks, stirs the pot and gets people upset while you make a profit.

~bella

The GOP passed a bill prohibiting regulation of ai for 10 years precisely because they don't want people to be able to trust what they see.

Chesterton · Monday at 5:32 PM

Either I'm doing something wrong, or something's weird. I found the poster of the original video. The screenshot of his page is not the same screenshot your video shows. He or she has posted only about 5 AI videos, but not the one in question. None of the videos really feature humans much. I'm not signed up with TikTok, so maybe a non-member gets shown a different page? I don't know. Anyway, I can't find the original video.

camille70 said:
Did you listen to the video? The commentary points out the discrepancies in the background. The kid with half an arm, the two kids morphing together, the kids frozen in the background, the same women being used in various videos.

I read through your post, and the only point I think has merit is the frozen kids. Very strange for three people to be looking almost motionless for that many seconds. But did you read post #63?

camille70 said:
No, the video does not make her more sympathetic.

It does for me.

camille70 said:
It's to target white people with a message they are taking care of able bodied single welfare moms who keep having kids they can't afford...

American citizens are doing exactly that in too many cases. I've been around it in real life. White people are fed up with it. Black people are fed up with it. Hispanics, Asians, everyone's fed up with it.

camille70 said:
...and who live like animals in filthy homes.

The home is cluttered. I can't tell it's filthy.

bèlla · Monday at 8:18 PM

Chesterton said:
I'm not saying it is for sure, but it could be another in a long line of race hoaxes. Make a video of someone being an entitled demander, use photoshop to make it look fake, then blame "white supremacists" for their evil ways, while simultaneously casting doubt on the veracity of all the actual entitled demander videos.

That’s what I meant by stirring the pot. It incites mistrust and blame.

Chesterton said:
Hmm, I only counted 5 kids, but I get you. I didn't really think of that, maybe because I'm Orthodox. We're generally supporters of having big families.

The title said 7 kids. You counted them? ~lol

I was too outdone by the clutter.

Chesterton said:
There are AI blockers that can block your browser from showing you AI images, or at least alert you when you're about to view AI generated content. I don't currently have one installed, but the reviews I've read say they're not 100% foolproof, but will catch the majority of AI.

I wonder if anyone reading this who has an AI blocker would mind finding that original video and reporting back to us whether it's AI or not? If you do, I will personally reward you with riches beyond any measure, or a Winner rating, one or the other.

I haven’t tried them either and platforms can tell the difference. Sometimes I buy access to products in early development to support them and lock in the price for future updates. I picked up something for writing that had an Ai feature and mentioned detection. I just got a coupon for the site and I’ll poke around tomorrow and see if they have anything for browsers.

There’s a video I saved on the subject that included warnings for this reason. I can post it in the morning. I don’t know if you watched the movie Civil War. But it’s been suggested the footage they were seeing with the president was really Ai. I’ve seen the same with some leaders too and if I’m paying attention it’s obvious.

I posted an article about digital twins in the past and some of my associates use them. Make no mistake it’s here.

~bella

camille70 · Monday at 8:48 PM

Chesterton said:
Either I'm doing something wrong, or something's weird. I found the poster of the original video. The screenshot of his page is not the same screenshot your video shows. He or she has posted only about 5 AI videos, but not the one in question. None of the videos really feature humans much. I'm not signed up with TikTok, so maybe a non-member gets shown a different page? I don't know. Anyway, I can't find the original video.

I read through your post, and the only point I think has merit is the frozen kids. Very strange for three people to be looking almost motionless for that many seconds. But did you read post #63?

It does for me.

American citizens are doing exactly that in too many cases. I've been around it in real life. White people are fed up with it. Black people are fed up with it. Hispanics, Asians, everyone's fed up with it.

The home is cluttered. I can't tell it's filthy.

It may make you more sympathetic but that is not the case for many others. Its documented that white Americans are less likely to support aid when there are images of Black people used. This is often employed as a tool to get white Americans to vote against their own interests. I recommend the following video in full, but start at the 13 min mark if you dont want to watch the entire thing. The segment is only a couple of minutes.

There is also part 1.

And another good video.
Why do White Christians Vote Republican, and Black Christians Vote Democrat?

bèlla · Monday at 10:03 PM

camille70 said:
The GOP passed a bill prohibiting regulation of ai for 10 years precisely because they don't want people to be able to trust what they see.

Which goes back to my initial reply to @Chesterton. I said the fakes had a purpose and verification is the solution. I’ve been watching the company I mentioned in my response for years. Digital id is one form of tracking and verification is another.

~bella

bèlla · 2025-10-28T08:37:50-0500

@Chesterton

As promised, here’s a recent piece on how to spot Ai in videos.

~bella

Chesterton · 2025-10-28T10:41:23-0500

camille70 said:
The GOP passed a bill prohibiting regulation of ai for 10 years precisely because they don't want people to be able to trust what they see.

Unless you have a source for that claim, no, that's not why they passed it.

camille70 · 2025-10-28T10:52:33-0500

Chesterton said:
Unless you have a source for that claim, no, that's not why they passed it.

That's my opinion, but actually I was mistaken, it did not get passed, the senate removed it.

Chesterton · 2025-10-28T11:05:17-0500

camille70 said:
It may make you more sympathetic but that is not the case for many others. Its documented that white Americans are less likely to support aid when there are images of Black people used. This is often employed as a tool to get white Americans to vote against their own interests. I recommend the following video in full, but start at the 13 min mark if you dont want to watch the entire thing. The segment is only a couple of minutes.

I didn't really intend this thread to be about race, but okay. Anyway, I watched several minutes of the fist video from the 13 min. mark, and I have some problems with it, such as "correlation does not equal causation", and other things. I would watch all the videos, but the problem is, I may not focus on the parts you want me to focus on. I may focus on things you think are less important, or ignore things you think are important. Would want to tell me the points he makes that you might want to talk about?

Chesterton · 2025-10-28T11:07:14-0500

camille70 said:
That's my opinion, but actually I was mistaken, it did not get passed, the senate removed it.

You were right, really. It did get passed in the House.

Chesterton · 2025-10-28T11:17:38-0500

bèlla said:
@Chesterton

As promised, here’s a recent piece on how to spot Ai in videos.

~bella

You actually fell for that?! That entire video is AI!! Weren't you tipped off when the white guy told you his last name was Carrasco? [just kidding

]

I watched about half of it. The problem with some of that is there are a whole lot of different type of cameras, with different qualities, and different quality users, different lighting situations and compositions, etc. It's not uncommon for real-life things to look odd. Do you remember when it was being spread around that Michelle Obama was a man because on a TV appearance, for a moment it looked like her dress had a bulge in it down there? And that kid with half an arm in the EBT video - maybe he was born with half an arm, or lost it due to an injury. I don't know.

I have a barely relevant side note. The text on the thumbnail says "They Look Too Good". Joe Rosenthal took the famous photo of the American flag being raised on Iwo Jima during WWII. After a few days the, photo was in almost every American newspaper, and many people were angry. It was too good to be true. They just knew it was staged, fake, and thought it was done as propaganda for morale. Military brass even investigated and interrogated Joe. But it was a complete accident. Joe's response was to the effect that "I wish I had composed it. If I had composed that shot, I would absolutely not hesitate to take credit for it. But I didn't. It just happened."

bèlla · 2025-10-28T11:46:28-0500

Chesterton said:
I watched about half of it. The problem with some of that is there are a whole lot of different type of cameras, with different qualities, and different quality users, different lighting situations and compositions, etc. It's not uncommon for real-life things to look odd.

The goal for them is to make Ai indistinguishable with reality. That’s the problem. We can spend our time rooting out fakes or have a handful of trustworthy sources we rely on for information. Someone with a studio behind them will produce more convincing deceptions than amateurs.

Chesterton said:
Do you remember when it was being spread around that Michelle Obama was a man because on a TV appearance, for a moment it looked like her dress had a bulge in it down there? And that kid with half an arm in the EBT video - maybe he was born with half an arm, or lost it due to an injury. I don't know.

Yes. I saw a similar shot of Brigitte Macron today. ~lol

The unfortunate part of it all is the possibility. There was a time when we could emphatically say no way. But I can’t rule it out because there’s models on the runway that are the same. Androgyny is being pushed a lot.

~bella

camille70 · 2025-10-28T14:32:33-0500

Chesterton said:
I didn't really intend this thread to be about race, but okay. Anyway, I watched several minutes of the fist video from the 13 min. mark, and I have some problems with it, such as "correlation does not equal causation", and other things. I would watch all the videos, but the problem is, I may not focus on the parts you want me to focus on. I may focus on things you think are less important, or ignore things you think are important. Would want to tell me the points he makes that you might want to talk about?

I also am not interested in doing a deep dive into race. I didn't have really have a point beyond expounding upon my earlier comments regarding how such images can affect whether people are for or against certain benefits and aid. There have been various studies that have supported this. You may have a good heart and be sympathetic, but that's not the case for everyone. It's not even so much about having a good heart, it's about the stories and narratives people hear about others and believe when they don't have personal relationships and lived experiences to counter those narratives. Everyone thinks their one friend of xyz race is the exception to all the negative rules, they don't ever question if the rule is true in the first place.

The other two videos were just informative.

The commentary around here recently has been tame, but In the past there has been a lot of racial tension on this forum, especially during the height of the BLM movement, the Obama years, Trump’s first term and anytime there were racially charged news stories. I'm also seeing negative comments on social media from semi high profile people referring to SNAP beneficiaries as ghetto (always code for Black in modern usage), and an attempt to weaponize social media to turn public opinion against poor people in need.

In addition, those videos give some background on our country's history, including history around issues such as chain migration, which was originally intended to keep the majority of new immigrants from white countries. (I think that was mentioned in the last video, if not it's another one from their series.) Also, it addresses some of the stereotypes and narratives around out of wedlock births, and how the difference in stats between races is based more on economics than race. As well as how jobs leaving and public transportation being limited have affected some communities more than others.

Many of the present day political clashes have some roots in not wanting to help certain segments of our society. That's why so many people from other countries don't understand why things such as universal healthcare is controversial here. Aside from money and profits, which are HUGE, certain segments of our society don't deem other segments as "deserving" so they don't want everyone to benefit equally.

bèlla · 2025-10-28T16:10:10-0500

@camille70 and @Chesterton

Kudos to you both for a refreshing exchange centered on Christ that was honest and respectful. Maybe you’re our beacons. ;-)

~bella

Chesterton · 2025-10-28T19:53:21-0500

camille70 said:
There have been various studies that have supported this.

You could be right, but the portion of the video I watched did not support that.

camille70 said:
You may have a good heart and be sympathetic, but that's not the case for everyone. It's not even so much about having a good heart, it's about the stories and narratives people hear about others and believe when they don't have personal relationships and lived experiences to counter those narratives. Everyone thinks their one friend of xyz race is the exception to all the negative rules, they don't ever question if the rule is true in the first place.

"Lived experiences". I'm glad you brought that phrase up. Would you like to hear some of my lived experiences? I warn you, if I post them, it will probably sound to you like I'm a total white racist, but they are only honest anecdotes.

camille70 said:
The commentary around here recently has been tame, but In the past there has been a lot of racial tension on this forum, especially during the height of the BLM movement, the Obama years, Trump’s first term and anytime there were racially charged news stories. I'm also seeing negative comments on social media from semi high profile people referring to SNAP beneficiaries as ghetto (always code for Black in modern usage), and an attempt to weaponize social media to turn public opinion against poor people in need.

In addition, those videos give some background on our country's history, including history around issues such as chain migration, which was originally intended to keep the majority of new immigrants from white countries. (I think that was mentioned in the last video, if not it's another one from their series.) Also, it addresses some of the stereotypes and narratives around out of wedlock births, and how the difference in stats between races is based more on economics than race. As well as how jobs leaving and public transportation being limited have affected some communities more than others.

If you're not going to tell me specifically what's important in the videos, I'm not going to watch them

camille70 said:
Many of the present day political clashes have some roots in not wanting to help certain segments of our society.

Which political clashes are you referring to?

camille70 said:
That's why so many people from other countries don't understand why things such as universal healthcare is controversial here. Aside from money and profits, which are HUGE, certain segments of our society don't deem other segments as "deserving" so they don't want everyone to benefit equally.

I don't deem anyone "deserving" anything from other people. The Christian idea is that you love the unlovable, and give to the undeserving. But St. Paul said "if you don't work, you don't eat".

essentialsaltes · 2025-10-29T14:38:52-0500

Nithavela said:
Remember: when the looting starts, the shooting starts.

Barstow police to step up patrols at grocery stores with millions set to lose SNAP benefits

The Barstow Police Department said in a post on Facebook that it will be stepping up patrols around grocery stores, convenience stores and shopping centers.

Police added that the increased patrols are not in response to a specific incident but are a "preventive measure to maintain public safety, deter theft, and reassure the community that law enforcement is present and ready to help."

[Barstow is in San Bernardino County -- a redder part of CA that went for Trump in 2024 by 2 points; Harris won by 20% in the state.]

Elsewhere in Southern California, leaders are trying to provide impacted people with resources.

In light of the benefits delay, L.A. Care Health Plan, billed as the nation's largest publicly operated health plan, announced Tuesday it was providing $5.4 million to help provide food for impacted families. Of that amount, $5 million will go to the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank, YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles and Food Forward. The funding is expected to support 10,000 to 15,000 households in the county each week in November, according to the Health Plan.

The additional $400,000 will go toward advancing food security efforts and bolstering food distribution efforts in the county.

L.A. County officials have also allocated $10 million to the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank to expand its purchasing capacity, and to set up pop-up and drive-through distribution sites, in addition to the existing network of 940 pantries across the county.

Chesterton · 2025-10-29T15:14:02-0500

essentialsaltes said:
Elsewhere in Southern California, leaders are trying to provide impacted people with resources.

I've started a charity to help out. It's called Guns For Grocers.

An EBT Crisis?

Whats So Funny bout Peace Love and Understanding

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Barstow police to step up patrols at grocery stores with millions set to lose SNAP benefits​

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Barstow police to step up patrols at grocery stores with millions set to lose SNAP benefits