March 2024 - cypherpunks - lists.cpunks.org

The just war doctrine of crypto munitions
by pro2rat＠yahoo.com.au 07 Mar '24

07 Mar '24

Cryptoanarchist revolutionaries use WMDs like the Galleanist used dynamite. These are their stories. https://actforfree.noblogs.org/2024/03/04/the-good-war-of-italian-immigrant… Bloomberg twinks go fuck yourself

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Fwd: OpenAI Fires Back at Musk Allegations With Trove of Emails
by Gunnar Larson 06 Mar '24

06 Mar '24

OpenAI Fires Back at Musk Allegations With Trove of Emails https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-03-06/openai-responds-to-musk-… OpenAI fired back at a lawsuit filed against it by Elon Musk in a blog post Tuesday, using the billionaire’s own emails to show he backed the company’s plans to become a for-profit business and that he insisted it raise “billions” of dollars to be relevant compared with Google.

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Re: FOIL #2022-090560 Appeal (Apple Card Records)
by Gunnar Larson 06 Mar '24

06 Mar '24

Ms. Tomczak: Hope you are enjoying a good day. xNY.io - Bank.org heard from NY-DFS yesterday on two matters via email. We appreciate your office's continued innovation approach to our communications with NY-DFS. Ms. Tomczak, however, we did not receive an update yesterday on our dignified Apple Card records request launched two years ago. xNY.io - Bank.org is concerned that any further delay in receiving these Apple Card records could impact our global business enterprise. When does NY-DFS anticipate any potential update on the Apple Card records request in the spirit of innovation? Thank you, Gunnar -- Gunnar Larson xNY.io | Bank.org MSc - Digital Currency MBA - Entrepreneurship and Innovation (ip) G(a)xNY.io +1-917-580-8053 On Tue, Feb 13, 2024, 12:07 PM Gunnar Larson <g(a)xny.io> wrote: > Dear Ms. Tomczak: > > Concerning the Apple Card records mentioned in your letter dated July 25, > 2023, today xNY.io - Bank.org kindly seeks an update on this important > matter. > > Mitigating all risk, we do not want the Apple Card scenario to further > complicate excess D&O matters at xNY.io - Bank.org. As I understand it, the > Eastern District of New York has a deferred agreement with Apple Card that > NY-DFS' character and fitness guidelines require xNY.io - Bank.org to > respect. > > We are not exactly sure on the deferred agreement's expiration date, it > may have been within the last two weeks. If the date has expired, xNY.io - > Bank.org would need NY- DFS to further facilitate a copy of correspondence > with the Eastern District of New York, given the nature of federal and > international law expressed by the deferred agreement (fun fact, I was a > founding producer of the UN's Audio Visual Library of International Law). > > Does NY-DFS have an update on the Apple Card concern? > > If not, can you please provide xNY.io - Bank.org confirmation that NY-DFS > has communicated with the Eastern District of New York and that we are not > party to the deferred agreement's scope of influence by EOD tomorrow, > February 14, 2024? > > Thank you, > > Gunnar > > -- > Gunnar Larson > xNY.io - Bank.org > 917-580-8053 > > > On Fri, Nov 10, 2023, 4:52 PM Gunnar Larson <g(a)xny.io> wrote: > >> Ms. Tomczak: >> >> Hope you are well. Can you please update xNY.io - Bank.org on our Apple >> Card records request? >> >> Ms. Tomczak, this matter has been going on over 600 days. It involves a >> D&O condition of the past Superintendent. We have a similar problem >> concerning another D&O matter that Ms. James and Ms. Harris are aware of. >> >> Mitigating all risk, we do not want the Apple Card scenario to further >> complicate excess D&O matters at xNY.io - Bank.org. As I understand it, the >> Eastern District of New York has a deferred agreement with Apple Card that >> NY-DFS' character and fitness guidelines require xNY.io - Bank.org to >> respect. >> >> We are not exactly sure on the deferred agreement's expiration date, it >> may have been within the last two weeks. If the date has expired, xNY.io - >> Bank.org would need NY- DFS to further facilitate a copy of correspondence >> with the Eastern District of New York, given the nature of federal and >> international law expressed by the deferred agreement (fun fact, I was a >> founding producer of the UN's Audio Visual Library of International Law). >> >> Does NY-DFS have an update on the Apple Card concern? If not, can you >> please provide xNY.io - Bank.org confirmation that NY-DFS has communicated >> with the Eastern District of New York and that we are not party to the >> deferred agreement's scope of influence by EOD, Monday November 13, 2023? >> >> Have a great weekend and Happy Veterans Day. >> >> Thank you, >> >> Gunnar >> >> Gunnar Larson >> xNY.io - Bank.org >> 917-580-8053 >> >> >> >> >> On Mon, Oct 16, 2023, 12:06 PM Tomczak, Christine (DFS) < >> christine.tomczak(a)dfs.ny.gov> wrote: >> >>> Hello Mr. Larson, >>> >>> >>> >>> I will check into this. Sorry for the delay. >>> >>> >>> >>> Christine >>> >>> >>> >>> Christine M. Tomczak >>> >>> Assistant Counsel >>> >>> >>> >>> New York State Department of Financial Services >>> >>> 1 State Street, New York, New York 10004 >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> *From:* Gunnar Larson <g(a)xny.io> >>> *Sent:* Monday, October 16, 2023 9:35 AM >>> *To:* Tomczak, Christine (DFS) <christine.tomczak(a)dfs.ny.gov> >>> *Subject:* Re: FOIL #2022-090560 Appeal >>> >>> >>> >>> *ATTENTION: This email came from an external source. Do not open >>> attachments or click on links from unknown senders or unexpected emails.* >>> >>> >>> >>> Dear Ms. Tomczak: >>> >>> >>> >>> Hope this email finds you well. >>> >>> >>> >>> Concerning the Apple Card records mentioned in your letter dated July >>> 25, 2023, today xNY.io - Bank.org kindly seeks an update on this >>> important matter. >>> >>> >>> >>> Please let us know when the time is convenient for you. >>> >>> >>> >>> Sending you the best wishes. >>> >>> >>> >>> Thank you very much, >>> >>> >>> >>> Gunnar >>> >>> >>> >>> Gunnar Larson >>> >>> xNY.io - Bank.org >>> >>> 917-580-8053 >>> >>> >>> >>> ue, Jul 25, 2023, 2:54 PM Tomczak, Christine (DFS) < >>> christine.tomczak(a)dfs.ny.gov> wrote: >>> >>> Dear Mr. Larson, >>> >>> >>> >>> See attached letter. >>> >>> >>> >>> Best regards, >>> >>> >>> >>> Christine Tomczak >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> Christine M. Tomczak >>> >>> Assistant Counsel >>> >>> >>> >>> New York State Department of Financial Services >>> >>> 1 State Street, New York, New York 10004 >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>>

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Coinbase Asks Judge To Ignore SEC Win Over 'Empty Chair'
by Gunnar Larson 06 Mar '24

06 Mar '24

Coinbase Asks Judge To Ignore SEC Win Over 'Empty Chair' <https://www.law360.com/compliance/articles/1810306?nl_pk=ab5ce197-c1fb-4d8e…> By Aislinn Keely Coinbase on Tuesday told the New York federal judge who's refereeing a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission enforcement action brought against the cryptocurrency exchange to disregard a default judgment in another SEC case that found certain crypto trades on public exchanges to be securities transactions. 3 documents attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/compliance/articles/1810306?nl_pk=ab5ce197-c1fb-4d8e…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/compliance/articles/1810306?nl_pk=ab5ce197-c1fb-4d8e…>

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Perkins Coie Joins In On BigLaw's China Closures
by Gunnar Larson 06 Mar '24

06 Mar '24

Perkins Coie Joins In On BigLaw's China Closures <https://www.law360.com/mergersacquisitions/articles/1810018?nl_pk=a34c25b5-…> By Aebra Coe Perkins Coie LLP has become the latest of several large law firms to shutter an office in China, with the planned closure of the firm's Shanghai office affecting two lawyers and two patent consultants, Law360 Pulse confirmed Tuesday. Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/mergersacquisitions/articles/1810018?nl_pk=a34c25b5-…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/mergersacquisitions/articles/1810018?nl_pk=a34c25b5-…>

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Fwd: SpaceX Corporation Board of Directors One Rocket Road Hawthorne, California 90250 Sales@SpaceX.com Re: Potential SpaceX Interlocking Directors’ Intent to Manipulate Markets
by Gunnar Larson 06 Mar '24

06 Mar '24

---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Gunnar Larson <g(a)xny.io> Date: Sat, Feb 24, 2024, 11:12 AM Subject: SpaceX Corporation Board of Directors One Rocket Road Hawthorne, California 90250 Sales(a)SpaceX.com Re: Potential SpaceX Interlocking Directors’ Intent to Manipulate Markets To: <cypherpunks(a)cpunks.org> https://docs.google.com/document/d/1lv9Wt6y1ld4bNap0z3epIxttEGiP_oVpfxH0GTS… May 21, 2022 BY ELECTRONIC MAIL SpaceX Corporation Board of Directors One Rocket Road Hawthorne, California 90250 Sales(a)SpaceX.com Re: Potential SpaceX Interlocking Directors’ Intent to Manipulate Markets Dear SpaceX Board of Directors: >From our New York headquarters, xNY.io - Bank.org, PBC embodies the notion that rather than a merry-go-round, the process of change and innovation is like a slide. Today’s memo aims to notify the SpaceX Corporation of concern of potential market manipulation that could impact cross-border digital asset innovation, free speech in the United States of America, the global ESG economy and Moon exploration. We do not see this as a stereotypical democrat versus republican battle (as Mr. Musk alludes). We see this as a risk arbitrage matter for xNY.io - Bank.org’s profit (subject to regulatory approval). Some may argue a scheme to leverage the protection of “free speech” has led to Twitter deal advisors attempting a $44B LBO market manipulation exercise. Further cause for reasonable concern is warranted if similar intent is at play in the form of Tesla’s ESG scam claim. xNY.io - Bank.org indicators signal risk of possible intent to manipulate public and private markets prompting clarification of the SpaceX Corporation’s intent concerning Moon exploration and exploitation as a ESG digital asset vault. To be very clear, SpaceX directors should understand xNY.io - Bank.org’s work to protect cross-border digital asset innovation was born before Twitter's prospective LBO. Our concern specific to the intent of Twitter’s LBO deal makers is party to our work in New York to usurp Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan Chase board directors who may be potentially engaged in similar market manipulation referenced here: 1. xNY.io - Bank.org | DOJ Memo #4 - Goldman Sachs Deferred Prosecution Agreement. 2. xNY.io - Bank.org | Memo #2 - JPMorgan Chase Board of Directors ESG Marketplace Manipulation. 3. xNY.io - Bank.org’s work also includes research into oil and nickel marketplace manipulation as an ESG concern. The Twitter LBO includes Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan Chase operating as deal advisors. As referenced above, claims of Twitter robot scams and claims of Tesla ESG scams display a pattern of questionable intent. xNY.io - Bank.org asks SpaceX to clarify your board's intent concerning the Moon and any connection to USDD (now in Moon phase). SpaceX directors may agree that the Moon can also be defined as one of the most valuable ESG digital asset vaults known to modern humanity. Protecting the Moon from explo8itation is fundamental to Space exploration. SpaceX is party to any potential Twitter deal maker advisors that may exercise questionable intent risking the Moon’s ESG vault potential. xNY.io - Bank.org is concerned with interlocking directorate syndicates that include SpaceX, Tesla, PayPal, Goldman Sachs and BitGo. This setup breeds a galaxy of third and fourth party risk(s) at the demise of pure cross-border digital asset innovation. Twitter robots are not the focus of the Orlando Police Department Pension Fund, who suggests that Twitter’s LBO is suspected of questionable intent as potentially illegal. - Mr. Musk’s ingenuity as an entrepreneur is historic and greatly respected as a model inside our organization. As a Gates Scholar and Blockchain Scholar holding international law distinction(s) The concept of the Moon being an ESG digital asset vault is logic USDD seemingly embodies. - For obvious reasons, we seek SpaceX’s board to confirm if the intent behind your CEO’s Twitter LBO and Tesla ESG claims and if SpaceX is party to a USDD type matter given your syndicate’s close association with USDP. xNY.io - Bank.org kindly asks the SpaceX Corporation board of directors to respond within 15 days of receipt of this correspondence. Default in the form of no response within 15 days is not an extortion technique on our part. Rather, it is a design benefit in disclosing our intent post 15 days to ask for approval to engage New York’s False Claims Act in response to SpaceX, Tesla, PayPal and Meta interlocking directors potentially engaging in digital asset marketplace manipulation (exemplified by USDP and USDD) that may exploit Space and Moon exploration at xNY.io - Bank.org, PBC’s overall expense. Respectfully yours, Gunnar Larson | xNY.io <http://www.xny.io> - Bank.org <http://bank.org>, PBC MSc <https://www.unic.ac.cy/blockchain/msc-digital-currency/?utm_source=Google&u…> - Digital Currency MBA <https://www.unic.ac.cy/business-administration-entrepreneurship-and-innovat…> - Entrepreneurship and Innovation (ip) G(a)xNY.io +1-646-454-9107 CC: Tesla Board of Directors Twitter Board of Directors Goldman Sachs Board of Directors JP Morgan Chase Board of Directors

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SpaceX Corporation Board of Directors One Rocket Road Hawthorne, California 90250 Sales@SpaceX.com Re: Potential SpaceX Interlocking Directors’ Intent to Manipulate Markets
by Gunnar Larson 06 Mar '24

06 Mar '24

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1lv9Wt6y1ld4bNap0z3epIxttEGiP_oVpfxH0GTS… May 21, 2022 BY ELECTRONIC MAIL SpaceX Corporation Board of Directors One Rocket Road Hawthorne, California 90250 Sales(a)SpaceX.com Re: Potential SpaceX Interlocking Directors’ Intent to Manipulate Markets Dear SpaceX Board of Directors: >From our New York headquarters, xNY.io - Bank.org, PBC embodies the notion that rather than a merry-go-round, the process of change and innovation is like a slide. Today’s memo aims to notify the SpaceX Corporation of concern of potential market manipulation that could impact cross-border digital asset innovation, free speech in the United States of America, the global ESG economy and Moon exploration. We do not see this as a stereotypical democrat versus republican battle (as Mr. Musk alludes). We see this as a risk arbitrage matter for xNY.io - Bank.org’s profit (subject to regulatory approval). Some may argue a scheme to leverage the protection of “free speech” has led to Twitter deal advisors attempting a $44B LBO market manipulation exercise. Further cause for reasonable concern is warranted if similar intent is at play in the form of Tesla’s ESG scam claim. xNY.io - Bank.org indicators signal risk of possible intent to manipulate public and private markets prompting clarification of the SpaceX Corporation’s intent concerning Moon exploration and exploitation as a ESG digital asset vault. To be very clear, SpaceX directors should understand xNY.io - Bank.org’s work to protect cross-border digital asset innovation was born before Twitter's prospective LBO. Our concern specific to the intent of Twitter’s LBO deal makers is party to our work in New York to usurp Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan Chase board directors who may be potentially engaged in similar market manipulation referenced here: 1. xNY.io - Bank.org | DOJ Memo #4 - Goldman Sachs Deferred Prosecution Agreement. 2. xNY.io - Bank.org | Memo #2 - JPMorgan Chase Board of Directors ESG Marketplace Manipulation. 3. xNY.io - Bank.org’s work also includes research into oil and nickel marketplace manipulation as an ESG concern. The Twitter LBO includes Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan Chase operating as deal advisors. As referenced above, claims of Twitter robot scams and claims of Tesla ESG scams display a pattern of questionable intent. xNY.io - Bank.org asks SpaceX to clarify your board's intent concerning the Moon and any connection to USDD (now in Moon phase). SpaceX directors may agree that the Moon can also be defined as one of the most valuable ESG digital asset vaults known to modern humanity. Protecting the Moon from explo8itation is fundamental to Space exploration. SpaceX is party to any potential Twitter deal maker advisors that may exercise questionable intent risking the Moon’s ESG vault potential. xNY.io - Bank.org is concerned with interlocking directorate syndicates that include SpaceX, Tesla, PayPal, Goldman Sachs and BitGo. This setup breeds a galaxy of third and fourth party risk(s) at the demise of pure cross-border digital asset innovation. Twitter robots are not the focus of the Orlando Police Department Pension Fund, who suggests that Twitter’s LBO is suspected of questionable intent as potentially illegal. - Mr. Musk’s ingenuity as an entrepreneur is historic and greatly respected as a model inside our organization. As a Gates Scholar and Blockchain Scholar holding international law distinction(s) The concept of the Moon being an ESG digital asset vault is logic USDD seemingly embodies. - For obvious reasons, we seek SpaceX’s board to confirm if the intent behind your CEO’s Twitter LBO and Tesla ESG claims and if SpaceX is party to a USDD type matter given your syndicate’s close association with USDP. xNY.io - Bank.org kindly asks the SpaceX Corporation board of directors to respond within 15 days of receipt of this correspondence. Default in the form of no response within 15 days is not an extortion technique on our part. Rather, it is a design benefit in disclosing our intent post 15 days to ask for approval to engage New York’s False Claims Act in response to SpaceX, Tesla, PayPal and Meta interlocking directors potentially engaging in digital asset marketplace manipulation (exemplified by USDP and USDD) that may exploit Space and Moon exploration at xNY.io - Bank.org, PBC’s overall expense. Respectfully yours, Gunnar Larson | xNY.io <http://www.xny.io> - Bank.org <http://bank.org>, PBC MSc <https://www.unic.ac.cy/blockchain/msc-digital-currency/?utm_source=Google&u…> - Digital Currency MBA <https://www.unic.ac.cy/business-administration-entrepreneurship-and-innovat…> - Entrepreneurship and Innovation (ip) G(a)xNY.io +1-646-454-9107 CC: Tesla Board of Directors Twitter Board of Directors Goldman Sachs Board of Directors JP Morgan Chase Board of Directors

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The Freedom Of Expression Versus The Right To Privacy - Considerations - Human Rights - Worldwide
by Gunnar Larson 06 Mar '24

06 Mar '24

Subject: The Freedom Of Expression Versus The Right To Privacy - Considerations - Human Rights - Worldwide --- https://www.mondaq.com/human-rights/1426622/the-freedom-of-expression-versu… Worldwide: The Freedom Of Expression Versus The Right To Privacy - Considerations 21 February 2024 As an essential attribute of democracy, freedom of expression is legitimised through a range of both national and international instruments. In the European Convention on Human Rights (hereinafter - the Convention) this concept was reinforced in Article 10. In the case of Handyside v. the United Kingdom, we observe the importance given by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) to this principle - "freedom of expression constitutes one of the essential foundations of a [democratic] society, one of the basic conditions for its progress and for the development of every man". In the same case, the European Court emphasised that freedom of expression is applicable not only to "information" or "ideas" that are favourably received or regarded as inoffensive or as a matter of indifference, but also to those that offend, shock or disturb; such are the demands of that pluralism, tolerance and broadmindedness without which there is no "democratic society". Freedom of expression is not an absolute right and, as the Court showed in Morice v. France, it is accompanied by exceptions that require a strict interpretation, and the need to restrict it must be convincingly established. Any interference with the applicant's right to freedom of expression needs to be conclusively and unequivocally motivated by the court, considering the principle of proportionality. In addition, it is necessary to argue that this interference is a necessary one in a democratic society. Thus, if in the exercise of the right to express one's opinion some unjustified insult is resorted to infringing the right to a good reputation, the court is called to take into account all aspects of the case, including analysing whether the main purpose of the value judgement was rather to raise public awareness of a matter of public interest, even if expressed in an exaggerated or provocative manner, rather than denigrate. We are in the presence of a violation of Article 10 of the Convention when the reasons invoked by the national courts cannot be considered relevant and sufficient to justify the interference with the right to freedom of expression of an applicant and when this interference is disproportionate in relation to the legitimate aim pursued. In the Marunić v. Croatia case, the European Court decided that there was a violation of Article 10 of the Convention, finding that the interference with the applicant's freedom of expression in the form of summary dismissal was not necessary in a democratic society to protect the reputation and rights of the society in question. In this case, the applicant, director of a municipal company providing services of public interest, was summarily dismissed following public statements in which she defended herself, statements made a week after the president of the company criticised her activity in an article of the press. The dismissal decision was motivated by the fact that her statements to the press harm the company's reputation. The applicant complained that her statements to the press were made only to refute the false accusations against her and that her dismissal violated her right to freedom of expression. The Court held that, although the obligation of loyalty, reserve and discretion normally prevents employees from publicly criticising the employers' activity, in the present case the essential element is the appearance in the press of the other member of the company's management and the public criticism of the activity of the applicant. Under these conditions, she could not remain silent and not defend her reputation in the same way. It would be regarded as stretching the duty of loyalty to request otherwise. The internal laws of the member-states may require the proof of the veracity of the statements made publicly, and this does not seem to contravene Article 10. On the contrary, such measures are intended to prevent gratuitous personal attacks, with unnecessarily hurtful comments, that is, without any valid justification. In the case of Axel Springer AG v. Germany, it was shown that the quality of public personality of the person whose reputation protection is weighed against the restriction of freedom of expression plays an important role. This being a sufficiently well-known actor, and the fact that he had been arrested in public and actively sought to come to the fore by revealing information about his private life in a series of interviews, meant that his legitimate belief that his private life will be effectively protected was limited. We observe a similar perspective in the case of Axel Springer AG v. Germany (no. 2), where the Court noted that the case concerned aspects of public interest and that the former chancellor, insofar as he had occupied one of the highest political positions of the Federal Republic of Germany, had a duty to show a much greater degree of tolerance than a private person. In the constant jurisprudence of the Strasbourg Court it is highlighted that the limits of acceptable criticism are greater towards a politician than towards a private person. Politicians unavoidably and knowingly expose themselves to the scrutiny of their every word and deed by the public and must therefore display a greater degree of tolerance for criticism. In the decision of Mladina D. D. In Ljubljana v. Slovenia, the Court likewise emphasised that the limits of acceptable criticism are greater in relation to a politician, particularly as he himself had made controversial public statements, than in relation to a private person. Both the context in which the editor's article was written (an intense political debate) and the style used (similar to the parliamentarian's provocative behaviour and comments) were not sufficiently taken into account by the national courts. Therefore, the article was not a gratuitous personal attack on the MP, but a reply to the MP's own public remarks. Consequently, it was concluded that the domestic courts had not struck a fair balance between the competing interests of protecting the reputation or rights of the parliamentarian and the publisher's right to freedom of expression. In Reznik v. Russia the applicant complained that his right to freedom of expression had been disproportionately restricted. The European Court ruled that it was indeed violated Article 10 of the Convention, finding that the applicant did not exceed the limits of acceptable criticism, that his statement was based on a sufficient factual basis and that the Moscow Court, which convicted him of libel, did not base its decision on an acceptable assessment of the relevant facts. In particular, the tribunal did not maintain any balance between the need to protect the petitioners' reputation and the public interest. Furthermore, although the applicant was ordered to pay only a small sum of money as compensation, the initiation of a libel suit against him was likely to have a chilling effect on his freedom of expression. The case of Rodriguez Ravelo v. Spain concerned language used by a lawyer in a written application that contained value judgments about a female judge and attributed reprehensible behaviour to her. The applicant complained about the conviction and the sentence imposed on the grounds that they represented a disproportionate interference with the exercise of his right to express himself freely in the context of his professional duties. The Court decided that Article 10 of the Convention was violated. Certainly, the applicant's conviction and sentence were provided for by law and the interference with the exercise of his right to freedom of expression had pursued the legitimate aim of protecting the judge's reputation and rights and maintaining the authority and impartiality of the judiciary. However, the Court found that the applicant's conviction could have a deterrent effect on lawyers called upon to defend their clients. The Spanish criminal courts therefore did not strike a fair balance between the need to maintain the authority of the judiciary and the need to protect freedom of expression. The punishment pronounced against the lawyer was therefore not proportionate to the legitimate aim pursued and was therefore not necessary in a democratic society. We observe that this sanction in the specific circumstances of the case were excessive. A case also worthy of attention is Morice v. France, in which the conviction of a lawyer, considering the observations presented in the press, for complicity in slander against investigating judges who had been recused from the judicial investigation regarding the death of a judge was targeted. The applicant argued that the conviction for complicity in defamation violated his right to freedom of expression under Article 10 of the Convention. It was not disputed in this case that the decision to convict the applicant constituted an interference with the exercise of his right to freedom of expression, as provided by law, to protect his reputation or the rights of others. The Court decided, however, that there was a violation of Article 10 of the Convention, noting that the conviction for complicity in slander pronounced against the applicant can be seen as a disproportionate interference with his right to freedom of expression and therefore was not necessary in a democratic society within the meaning of Article 10. At the same time, it should be noted that, considering his specific status and his position in the administration of justice, the Court considers that the lawyer cannot be assimilated to a journalist. Indeed, their respective places and missions in judicial debate are inherently different. The journalist must communicate, in compliance with his duties and responsibilities, information and ideas on all matters of general interest, including those relating to the administration of justice. In turn, the lawyer acts as an actor of the justice system, directly involved in its operation and in the defence of a party. Therefore, he cannot be assimilated to an external witness responsible to inform the public. Another important aspect to consider refers to the attestation of the existence of any element suggesting bad faith on the part of the person issuing public statements, as was shown in the judgement of Kanellopoulou v. Greece. At the same time, in this case the European Court established that the Greek courts did not place the applicant's statements in the specific context of the case, nor did they correctly consider the suffering felt by the applicant when she made the statements, in this case being the patient who endured the shortcomings of an operation conducted by a renown cosmetic surgeon. Therefore, we conclude that the consequences suffered by a person due to the actions of another plays a significant role when it comes to expressing their opinion publicly. Often there is an incidence between Article 10 (freedom of expression) with Article 8 (the right to respect for private and family life) of the Convention. In such situations, the incidence between these values must be balanced and analysed in relation to the concrete circumstances of the case, as well as the legitimate goal pursued by each of the parties, to avoid disproportionate sanctions. When we talk about the violation of Article 8 of the Convention, the consequences that may exist are discussed, such as: the stigmatization of an individual, which has a major impact on his honour and reputation and affects his private and family life; inability to continue working; being forced to leave his home or the community he belongs to, leading to his social exclusion; the suffering of extremely serious damages in terms of psychological and moral integrity, but also physical (aggression from other people, self-flagellation, suicide), etc. The gravity of such consequences must not be the subject of speculation, but a causal link between the statement and the effect will be proved in order to convince an impartial and independent court of the truth of such facts. In this sense the Petrenco v. Republic of Moldova case becomes relevant. At the time of the facts, the applicant was the president of the Association of Historians from the Republic of Moldova and a university professor. He complained that his reputation had been damaged because of the publication of claims in the official newspaper of the Moldovan government suggesting that he had collaborated with the KGB in his past. The European Court decided that Article 8 of the Convention was infringed, finding that the reasons invoked by the Moldovan courts to protect the right to freedom of expression of the newspaper and the author of the article in dispute were insufficient for the first against the right to respect the reputation of the applicant. The Court observed, in particular, that the article was published in the context of an animated debate of great public interest and that the applicant, who was a public figure, was obliged to tolerate greater public scrutiny and criticism than if he had been a private person. Therefore, the general tone of the article and the offensive language did not in themselves constitute a violation of the applicant's right to respect for his reputation. However, by suggesting that the applicant collaborated with the KGB as if it were an established fact, to the extent that it was mere speculation on the part of the author, the article overstepped the bounds of acceptable commentary in the context of a public interest debate. The courts are called upon to strike a fair balance between the relevant interests when two rights of equal importance, such as freedom of expression and respect for privacy, are brought before them, explaining at length and reasonably the reasons why one value takes precedence over the other in each individual case and subjecting the interference on any right to the test of proportionality. We believe that the right to verbalise observations or criticisms on a subject of general interest, even if in a harsh or even acidic manner, should not be restricted in a democratic society in the absence of relevant and absolutely justified reasons, especially if it is about value judgments, made in general terms and having a sufficient factual basis.

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Wall Street Mega Banks Have Created a Circular Firing Squad with Credit Derivatives and Capital Relief Trades – with the Fed’s Blessing
by Gunnar Larson 06 Mar '24

06 Mar '24

https://wallstreetonparade.com/2024/03/wall-street-mega-banks-have-created-… By Pam Martens and Russ Martens: March 6, 2024 ~ On June 11, 2015, the Office of Financial Research (OFR) released a sobering report on how banks were reducing their requirements to hold adequate capital against potential losses by engaging in non-transparent “capital relief trades” with potentially questionable counterparties. The OFR researchers summarized the problem as follows: “Capital relief transactions may have benefits to banks. But, even if real risk transfer is involved, these transactions can pose financial stability concerns by increasing interconnectedness, transforming credit risk into counterparty risk, and obscuring capital adequacy to investors and counterparties. And while bank supervisors have extensive data about banks, they may have less information about the nonbanks who are selling credit risk to those banks and ultimately bearing the risk of loss.” The Office of Financial Research was created under the Dodd-Frank financial reform legislation of 2010 to make sure that Wall Street mega banks could never again ravage the economy and financial system of the United States — as they did in 2008 – by engaging in reckless derivative trades and toxic bets. OFR describes its mission as follows: “Our job is to shine a light in the dark corners of the financial system to see where risks are going, assess how much of a threat they might pose, and provide policymakers with financial analysis, information, and evaluation of policy tools to mitigate them.” Buried in the June 2015 OFR report was a bombshell. When JPMorgan Chase was initiating hundreds of billions of dollars in risky derivative trades in London in 2012, using deposits from its federally-insured bank in the U.S., it was attempting to engage in tricked-up capital relief trades. The insanity of this gamesmanship resulted in $6.2 billion in losses at the bank; an investigation by the FBI; embarrassing Senate hearings; a scathing 300-page report by the U.S. Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations; charges of engaging in “unsafe and unsound” banking practices by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency; and the payment of $920 million in fines to its regulators. Credit derivatives are frequently used in capital relief trades. In an effort to curb the trillions of dollars in credit derivatives that the Wall Street mega banks are using for non-transparent purposes with non-transparent counterparties, on July 27 of last year the FDIC, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), and the Federal Reserve released a proposal to require higher capital levels at banks with $100 billion or more in assets; (only 37 banks would be impacted). Community banks will not be impacted at all by the new proposals according to the federal regulators. On September 12, 2023, the banking cartel made its anger and intention to push back known in a 7-page letter. The cartel demanded that the three federal agencies turn over all “evidence and analyses the agencies relied on” in making the proposal. One of the signatories to the letter was the Bank Policy Institute (BPI), whose Board of Directors consists of the CEOs of the biggest banks. BPI is Chaired by none other than Jamie Dimon, Chairman and CEO of the notorious London Whale bank, JPMorgan Chase. BPI next launched an ad campaign that grossly distorted what the increase in capital would do, claiming that it would harm working families. (The mega banks that will be most impacted are the same mega banks that blew up the U.S. economy in 2008; put millions of Americans out of work; left millions of working families in foreclosure; got a secret $29 trillion bailout from the Federal Reserve; and then used big chunks of that bailout money to lavish million-dollar bonuses on bank executives.) Sixteen days after the big bank cartel had posted its September 12, 2023 letter attacking the newly proposed increase in capital rules, the Federal Reserve issued a suspiciously timed announcement of how banks could game the newly-proposed capital rules, with the Fed’s blessing, through the use of a specific style of capital relief trade. The Fed wrote as follows: “In some synthetic securitizations, a Board-regulated institution transfers the risk of a reference portfolio of on-balance sheet exposures to a special purpose vehicle using a guarantee or credit derivative. The special purpose vehicle issues credit-linked notes to investors, and the Board-regulated institution takes the cash proceeds of the notes as collateral supporting the special purpose vehicle’s performance on the guarantee or credit derivative. “Under the Board’s capital rule, a Board-regulated institution can recognize the credit risk mitigation of the collateral on the reference portfolio under the rules for synthetic securitizations provided that the requirements in section 41 or 141, as applicable (12 CFR 217.41, .141), are met and that the transactions satisfy the definition of ‘synthetic securitization’ (12 CFR 217.2, ‘synthetic securitization’).” All you need to know about the above two paragraphs is that the words “synthetic” and “special purpose vehicle” and “credit derivatives” played a central role in crashing Wall Street and the U.S. economy in 2008. The Federal Reserve has apparently learned nothing from the worst financial crash since the Great Depression. For the most hair-raising part of this story, let us back up to September 29, 2022 – almost exactly one year before the Fed gave its blessing to capital relief trades using credit derivatives. On that date the OFR issued a report that concluded: “When Choosing Counterparties, Banks Tend to Pick Riskier Ones.” The report was authored by Dasol Kim, a Research Principal at OFR, and Andrew Ellul, a Visiting Fellow at OFR and Professor of Finance at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business. In a blog post, they summarized their findings as follows: “In a recent working paper analyzing who banks chose as counterparties in the over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives market, the authors found that banks are more likely to choose riskier nonbank counterparties that are already heavily connected and exposed to other banks, which leads to an even more densely connected network. Furthermore, banks do not hedge these exposures, but rather increase them by selling rather than purchasing credit derivative swaps against these counterparties. Finally, the authors found that common counterparty exposures are correlated with systemic risk measures despite greater regulatory oversight following the 2008 financial crisis.” (Italic emphasis added.) The only common-sense way to think of this is that Wall Street has once again created a circular firing squad with the U.S. banking system and U.S. economy as collateral damage. For an idea of what can happen when a mega bank sells credit default swaps, consider how Howie Hubler, a star bond trader at Morgan Stanley, lost $9 billion. Hubler was one of those who made early derivative bets that the lowest-rated subprime bonds would fail during the 2007-2008 financial crisis using credit default swaps. He bought protection by purchasing credit default swaps on subprime debt. But because Hubler had to pay out premiums on these credit default swaps until the price collapse arrived, he sold $16 billion in credit default swaps on higher-rated debt, obviously to collect the premiums to offset what he was paying out while he waited. When the $16 billion turned out to be toxic as well, Morgan Stanley lost at least $9 billion. According to a government audit of the Fed’s secret loans to the Wall Street mega banks and their trading subsidiaries from December 2007 through early July 2010, Morgan Stanley was the second largest recipient (after Citigroup) of the Fed’s secret bailout loans. Morgan Stanley received a total of $2.04 trillion in cumulative loans from the Fed; Citigroup received $2.5 trillion in cumulative loans from the Fed. Federal regulators were caught napping in the lead up to the 2008 financial collapse. They are clearly still napping. According to the most recent trading and derivatives report from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency for the third quarter of 2023, just four commercial banks (JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup’s Citibank, Goldman Sachs Bank USA and Bank of America) hold 94 percent of all credit derivatives held at 4,600 commercial banks. If you want the quintessential definition of concentrated risk, this is it.

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Wells Fargo Accused Of Enabling Ex-Texas Atty's Fraud
by Gunnar Larson 06 Mar '24

06 Mar '24

Wells Fargo Accused Of Enabling Ex-Texas Atty's Fraud <https://www.law360.com/banking/articles/1810204?nl_pk=feb6bbba-7878-4d39-be…> By Lauren Berg Victims of a former San Antonio lawyer's multimillion-dollar fraud scheme claim his theft was enabled by Wells Fargo willfully turning a blind eye to the lawyer's misuse of trust accounts holding client funds, according to a lawsuit in Texas federal court that alleges the bank profited from this scheme. Complaint attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/banking/articles/1810204?nl_pk=feb6bbba-7878-4d39-be…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/banking/articles/1810204?nl_pk=feb6bbba-7878-4d39-be…>

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