Was Michigan School Shooting Terrorism? | Cyber Incident Reporting Setback | Corporate Climate Migration Has Begun, and more

Greater Manchester Police said as part of his “campaign of abuse towards the Jewish community”, Hesketh had created an alter-ego called George and dressed up for videos “in an attempt to caricature an offensive stereotype of a Jewish male, using a false voice”. A spokesman said Hesketh used a spare bedroom in his home to “create his obscene videos which focused on celebrating far-right terrorism and showing support for violence against Jewish people”. Counter terrorism police were alerted to his activity by Jewish protection charity The Community Security Trust (CST), which had expressed concerns about the nature of videos being uploaded to Hesketh’s profile between 2018 and 2020. The force spokesman said the videos had “a combined viewing figure of two million views.

Nearly 300 Allegations of Extremism in the Military Ranks Reported by Pentagon This Year Despite Failure to Standardize Complaint Procedures  (Caitlin Doornbos, Stars and Stripes)
The military branches reported nearly 300 allegations of extremism among troops between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30, though the Pentagon has yet to establish congressionally mandated reporting and tracking standards, according to a Defense Department inspector general report released Thursday. “The military departments reported a total of 294 allegations, 281 investigations and inquiries, 92 instances where action was taken, zero instances where no action was taken and 83 referrals to civilian law enforcement agencies,” according to the report. There were 137 allegations in the Air Force, 81 in the Army, 44 in the Navy and 32 in the Marine Corps, according to the report. All of them triggered investigations, except 13 in the Navy that did not require further inquiry. After completing investigations, the Air Force took action in 37 cases, the Army in 18 cases, Navy referred 27 for punishment — including one for prosecution — and the Marine Corps took action in 10 cases, according to the report. Extremism reporting is required by the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, which sets the Defense Department’s annual budget. It also required the Pentagon to establish oversight policies, processes and ways to report extremism in the ranks.

The Corporate Climate Migration Has Begun  (Andrew Freedman, Axios)
Companies large and small, some with longtime roots in their neighborhoods, are on the hunt for new real estate that is less prone to weather and climate extremes.
Why it matters: The corporate migration underway indicates vulnerable communities may see an exodus of large employers in the coming decades as oceans encroach. Inland areas prone to flooding or wildfires mare see similar challenges.

U.K. Foils Seven Late-Stage Plots Since March 2020  (Kylie Bielby, HSToday)
Counter Terrorism Policing (CTP) and the U.K. Intelligence Services have stopped seven late-stage terror attacks since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, leading senior police officers to warn the public not to let their guard slip during the festive period.
That takes the total number of foiled terrorism plots since March 2017 to 32 – with 18 related to Islamist extremism, 12 to Extreme Right Wing Terrorism and two to Left, Anarchist or Single Issue Terrorism.

DHS to Request Public Input on How the U.S. Government Can Prevent Family Separations at the U.S. Border  (DHS)
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced its request that the public provide recommendations on how to permanently protect against the prior administration’s practice of intentionally separating families at the border to deter others from migrating to the United States.

Election Denier Who Circulated Jan. 6 PowerPoint Says He Met with Meadows at White House  (Emma Brown, Jon Swaine, Jacqueline Alemany, Josh Dawsey and Tom Hamburger, Washington Post)
A retired U.S. Army colonel who circulated a proposal to challenge the 2020 election, including by declaring a national security emergency and seizing paper ballots, said that he visited the White House on multiple occasions after the election, spoke with President Donald Trump’s chief of staff “maybe eight to 10 times” and briefed several members of Congress on the eve of the Jan. 6 riot.
Philip Waldron, the retired colonel, was working with Trump’s outside lawyers and was part of a team that briefed the lawmakers on a PowerPoint presentation detailing “Options for 6 JAN,” Waldron told The Washington Post. He said his contribution to the presentation focused on his claims of foreign interference in the vote, as did his discussions with the White House.
A version of the presentation made its way to the White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows, on Jan. 5. That information surfaced publicly this week after the congressional committee investigating the insurrection released a letter that said Meadows had turned the document over to the committee.

America Worries about China’s Military Ambitions in Africa  (Economist)
China’s navy is eyeing the use of ports abroad, including on the Atlantic.

Cyber Incident Reporting Mandates Suffer Another Congressional Setback  (Tim Starks, Cyberscoop)
House and Senate negotiators have excluded provisions from a must-pass defense bill that would have mandated many companies to report major cyberattacks and ransomware payments to federal officials.