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#conflictofinterest — Public Fediverse posts

Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #conflictofinterest, aggregated by home.social.

  1. Cat Zakrzewski: "For months, Katie Miller* has denounced ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini in nearly 500 posts. She did not tell her followers that she holds a more than $1 million stake in their top competitor, Elon Musk's xAI."
    #AI #ConflictOfInterest.
    * Wife of Stephen Miller.

  2. Cat Zakrzewski: "For months, Katie Miller* has denounced ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini in nearly 500 posts. She did not tell her followers that she holds a more than $1 million stake in their top competitor, Elon Musk's xAI."
    #AI #ConflictOfInterest.
    * Wife of Stephen Miller.

  3. Cat Zakrzewski: "For months, Katie Miller* has denounced ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini in nearly 500 posts. She did not tell her followers that she holds a more than $1 million stake in their top competitor, Elon Musk's xAI."
    #AI #ConflictOfInterest.
    * Wife of Stephen Miller.

  4. Cat Zakrzewski: "For months, Katie Miller* has denounced ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini in nearly 500 posts. She did not tell her followers that she holds a more than $1 million stake in their top competitor, Elon Musk's xAI."
    #AI #ConflictOfInterest.
    * Wife of Stephen Miller.

  5. Michael Ranger brings us the latest of Corb Lund's Citizen Initiative.



    While the Citizen Initiative Act is used to bring dangerous and unconstitutional petitions forward, like those in favour of Alberta Separation, the UCP arguably have conflicts of interest that can lead to "issue fixing" surrounding the Act due to how much power it holds over Elections Alberta. The UCP controls the selection for the very same offices that manage the Citizen Initiative Act, and other critical pieces of legislation intended to regulate the Politician. The UCP controls the resources available to Elections Alberta to investigate offences.

    As noted by the CBC’s Michelle Bellefontaine, in “Alberta government ignores AG’s offer to stay on 2 more years, starts search for replacement”,

    >The motion to begin a search for an auditor general was passed by the five UCP MLAs who make up the majority on the standing committee on legislative offices that overseas the office of the auditor general, the chief electoral officer, the ombudsman and public interest commissioner, the ethics commissioner and the information and privacy commissioner.
    >
    Committee member Scott Cyr, who is the MLA for Bonnyville-Cold Lake-St. Paul, introduced the motion to set up an auditor general search committee near the end of a contentious meeting.
    >
    >Cyr, and four of his UCP MLA colleagues — Nolan Dyck from Grande Prairie, Chelsae Petrovic from Livingstone-Macleod, Jackie Lovely from Camrose and Chantelle de Jonge from Chestermere-Strathmore — voted in favour of the motion.

    https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/auditor-general-wylie-alberta-9.6965562

    The UCP has also moved goal posts concerning Elections Alberta's ability to investigate offences and the time limits. According to the Globe's "A watchdog curtailed", by Tom Cardoso and Carrie Tait:

    >Marc Mayrand, a retired public servant and Elections Canada’s chief electoral officer from 2007 to 2016, said the timelines established by the Alberta government are “not realistic.”
    >
    >“I’ve never seen an investigation completed within a year of the commission of an offence,” he said. “It would be extremely difficult to imagine an acceptable rationale for such a short time period. Twelve months from the commission of an offence – it’s almost unimaginable to think that it can be done.”

    The article also includes a table of other provinces and their time limits on Election offences, some of whom have no time limit.

    https://kopitalk.net/c/canada/p/381433/alberta-justice-minister-curtailed-election-regulator-when-sam-mraiche-was-under-investi

    https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-alberta-justice-minister-sam-mraiche-investigation/

    https://archive.ph/bXXb9

    When Canadians recall that the UCP also tightly controls the funding to this very same Watchdog, there's a real fear that foxes are in the henhouse.

    Global's Jack Farrell and Lisa Johnson, in "Province denies Elections Alberta’s request for $13.5 million to handle recall petitions", explored the issue of Elections Alberta requesting additional funding to properly carry out recall petitions and Citizen Initiatives. The UCP issued a chilling reminder to Chief Electoral Officer, Gordon McClure, who controls the purse strings, and who he answers to. I would suggest this does raise questions about the Chief Electoral Officer's independence, and why would such an Officer not consider resigning from the appearance of political interference.

    >“To say this is straining our organization from both a staffing and space perspective is an understatement,” said McClure.

    https://globalnews.ca/news/11511194/elections-albertas-recall-petition-funding/

    - #AbLeg #AbPoli #CdnPoli 134

    #EthicalFading #Corruption #UCP #ClimateDefense #CorbLund #ElectionsAlberta #water #AlbertaUnderSiege #WaterNotCoal #GordonMcClure #conflictofinterest #CitizenInitiativeAct

    https://kopitalk.net/c/[email protected]/p/931126/corb-lund-seeks-court-review-after-rejection-of-anti-coal-petition

    https://calgary.citynews.ca/2026/07/30/corb-lund-court-review-coal-petition/

  6. Corb Lund seeks court review after rejection of anti-coal petition

    Michael Ranger brings us the latest of Corb Lund’s Citizen Initiative.

    Country musician Corb Lund and his advocacy group Water Not Coal have launched a legal challenge against Elections Alberta, asking the courts to review the decision to reject a citizen-led initiative aimed at banning new coal mining projects on the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains.

    The court application follows Elections Alberta’s early July ruling that the petition failed to meet the threshold required under the province’s Citizen Initiative Act, despite organizers submitting more than 207,000 signatures in support of the proposal.

    Water Not Coal is arguing the decision was unfair and runs counter to the intent of the legislation designed to encourage public participation in democracy. The group alleges Elections Alberta applied overly strict standards when validating signatures, required voters to accurately recall details months after signing, and relied on a flawed statistical sampling process to determine whether enough signatures were valid.

    While the Citizen Initiative Act is used to bring dangerous and unconstitutional petitions forward, like those in favour of Alberta Separation, the UCP arguably have conflicts of interest that can lead to “issue fixing” surrounding the Act due to how much power it holds over Elections Alberta. The UCP controls the selection for the very same offices that manage the Citizen Initiative Act, and other critical pieces of legislation intended to regulate the Politician. The UCP controls the resources available to Elections Alberta to investigate offences.

    As noted by the CBC’s Michelle Bellefontaine, in “Alberta government ignores AG’s offer to stay on 2 more years, starts search for replacement”,

    The motion to begin a search for an auditor general was passed by the five UCP MLAs who make up the majority on the standing committee on legislative offices that overseas the office of the auditor general, the chief electoral officer, the ombudsman and public interest commissioner, the ethics commissioner and the information and privacy commissioner.

    Committee member Scott Cyr, who is the MLA for Bonnyville-Cold Lake-St. Paul, introduced the motion to set up an auditor general search committee near the end of a contentious meeting.

    Cyr, and four of his UCP MLA colleagues — Nolan Dyck from Grande Prairie, Chelsae Petrovic from Livingstone-Macleod, Jackie Lovely from Camrose and Chantelle de Jonge from Chestermere-Strathmore — voted in favour of the motion.

    https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/auditor-general-wylie-alberta-9.6965562

    The UCP has also moved goal posts concerning Elections Alberta’s ability to investigate offences and the time limits. According to the Globe’s “A watchdog curtailed”, by Tom Cardoso and Carrie Tait:

    Marc Mayrand, a retired public servant and Elections Canada’s chief electoral officer from 2007 to 2016, said the timelines established by the Alberta government are “not realistic.”

    “I’ve never seen an investigation completed within a year of the commission of an offence,” he said. “It would be extremely difficult to imagine an acceptable rationale for such a short time period. Twelve months from the commission of an offence – it’s almost unimaginable to think that it can be done.”

    The article also includes a table of other provinces and their time limits on Election offences, some of whom have no time limit.

    https://kopitalk.net/c/canada/p/381433/alberta-justice-minister-curtailed-election-regulator-when-sam-mraiche-was-under-investi

    https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-alberta-justice-minister-sam-mraiche-investigation/

    https://archive.ph/bXXb9

    When Canadians recall that the UCP also tightly controls the funding to this very same Watchdog, there’s a real fear that foxes are in the henhouse.

    Global’s Jack Farrell and Lisa Johnson, in “Province denies Elections Alberta’s request for $13.5 million to handle recall petitions”, explored the issue of Elections Alberta requesting additional funding to properly carry out recall petitions and Citizen Initiatives. The UCP issued a chilling reminder to Chief Electoral Officer, Gordon McClure, who controls the purse strings, and who he answers to. I would suggest this does raise questions about the Chief Electoral Officer’s independence, and why would such an Officer not consider resigning from the appearance of political interference.

    “To say this is straining our organization from both a staffing and space perspective is an understatement,” said McClure.

    https://globalnews.ca/news/11511194/elections-albertas-recall-petition-funding/

  7. #Nevada rancher cites ‘shroud of #secrecy’ at #LithiumMine

    By Scott Sonner, Associated Press
    Published Friday, Oct. 29, 2021

    RENO — “A Nevada rancher suing to block construction of the largest lithium mine in the U.S. says the government’s #environmental assessment of the project relies on a baseline set by a consultant for the #mining company with a conflict of interest that trivializes potential harm to water resources and #wildlife near the #Oregon line.

    “Bartell Ranch LLC wants a U.S. judge to order the Bureau of Land Management to provide documents, contracts and internal communications with all third-party consultants the agency used to reach its conclusion that #LithiumNevada Corp.’s mine won’t affect threatened species or significant scientific, cultural or historic resources.

    “The ranch filed a lawsuit in February challenging plans for the #ThackerPass mine it says would rob the ranch of its precious water rights.

    “The case has been consolidated with lawsuits subsequently filed in U.S. District Court in Reno by conservation groups and tribes alleging the mine would destroy critical #SageGrouse habitat and damage sacred tribal lands that were the site of a massacre in the 1860s.

    “The bureau hired its own independent consultant, ICF International Inc., to prepare the scientific foundation for a 2,700-page environmental impact statement required under the National Environmental Policy Act.

    “‘But it includes 1,300 pages of studies on groundwater pumping that established the models and baseline created by Tyler Cluff, a hydrogeologist in Reno for Canada-based Piteau Associates, according to the motion the ranch’s lawyers filed last week.

    “They say Cluff currently is serving as an expert for Lithium Nevada in a separate water right protest proceeding in which he’s relying on much of the same data and work he did for the mine’s final environmental impact statement.

    “’This unusual relationship between a third-party contractor for the NEPA analysis, Piteau, and LNC suggests that Piteau was not working for BLM on the FEIS in a neutral and independent capacity, but rather, was working directly for #LNC,' the motion states.

    “Piteau didn’t respond to emails and phone messages seeking comment.

    “The ranch’s lawyers say they’re seeking an order to obtain the documents because the bureau and Piteau have refused their requests to collect data at Piteau’s test wells and monitoring locations or turn over field data. They say it’s created a 'shroud of secrecy' over the basis for the mine’s approval.

    “'The entirety of the water resources analysis appears to have been entrusted to Piteau Associates, who appears to have worked mostly, if not exclusively, at the direction of LNC,' the motion said. It said the bureau didn’t verify Piteau’s field work and 'simply assumed it was reliable.'

    “Bartell’s own hydrogeologist strongly disputes the baseline water quantity and quality, and forage conditions.

    “'Piteau could have inputted faulty data into the models to generate a particular baseline and model outcomes to benefit their employer LNC,' it said. 'BLM’s decision to trust the NEPA process to parties like Piteau who may have a financial stake in the approval of the (mine) raises the specter of bad faith.'

    “The new filing seeks to add the field studies and samples to the court’s administrative record, which currently contains Piteau’s final reports and analysis 'but excludes nearly all drafts and communications from Piteau.'

    “'The environmental baseline is so insufficient that actual baseline conditions are hidden.'

    “The bureau has until Nov. 5 to respond to the latest filing.

    “A Justice Department lawyer representing the agency said in an email to the ranch’s lawyer last month the bureau wasn’t provided any field reports and 'relied on those contractors’ baseline reports, which are included in the EIS.'

    “'BLM has the expectation that contractors with appropriately credentialed staff will provide accurate data and conclusions in a professional manner,' Leilani Doktor wrote in the email attached as an exhibit to the ranch’s motion.

    “Lithium Nevada said in its latest filing last week that 'BLM fully analyzed and ensured compliance with water quality standards and appropriately adopted adaptive management.' It said earlier that the bureau conducted a comprehensive review based on its 'experience and expertise,' public comment and 'extensive data collected ... over years in coordination with state and federal environmental agencies.'

    “Doktor said the bureau considers the documents sought by the ranch 'internal and deliberative' material exempt from the administrative record. Third-party contracts are exempt because they 'are not materials considered during the decision-making process.'

    lasvegassun.com/news/2021/oct/

    #WaterIsLife #ConflictOfInterest #CulturalGenocide #EnvironmentalRacism #CorporateColonialism

  8. More than 140 fossil fuel and chemical industry lobbyists have been admitted to participate in the #INC3 #PlasticsTreaty talks meeting this week in Nairobi.

    That’s more participants than 70 countries combined.
    It is also greater than the 38 Scientists’ Coalition for an Effective Plastics Treaty participants.

    #BreakFreeFromPlastics #FossilFuels #ConflictOfInterest #GlobalPlasticsTreaty

    ciel.org/news/fossil-fuel-and-

  9. #Woodward currently represents #WaltNauta, one of the two Trump employees also #charged in the documents case, in addition to having previously repped the IT head, who is not named in Wed's filing.

    Prosecutors have said the employee is likely to testify at #trial, posing a potential #ConflictOfInterest for Woodward, who will face the prospect of a fmr client testifying against a current client. (& who is paid by the primary actor in the case)

    #law #legal #ethics #WitnessTampering #Taveras