Sunday, June 7, 2020

And another “out of control” day in America comes to a close:

"A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual doom." — Martin Luther King, jr.

Deaths

US: 112,469 (+373)

World: 406,126 (+4032)

Countdown: 149 days.

Trump's evident character flaws leave him unable to meet the historic moment. Empathy, courage, vision, decency, candor -- these traits have yielded the presidential moments that resonate through history. The evident absence of those qualities in Trump leaves him uniquely ill-equipped to handle the intertwined challenges of a public health pandemic, economic collapse and racial conflict that the nation now faces. The results have inflamed enmity, division and hardship across the nation. — And that’s why we resist. It goes way beyond politics. It’s about human decency.

As Trump gives in to his baser instincts, some cities look for policing changes. The Trump campaign's efforts to incite fear and amplify falsehoods created a striking contrast with the images of thousands of protesters of all races walking together in solidarity at huge demonstrations in DC, New York, Chicago and Los Angeles -- a reminder that the nation is now at an inflection point.

Black Lives Matter protests for U.S. racial justice reach new dimension. U.S. protests sparked by George Floyd’s fatal encounter last month with Minneapolis police crossed a new threshold as weekend rallies demanding racial justice stretched from Washington, D.C., to an east Texas town once a haven for the Ku Klux Klan. — There is hope.

Nine members of Minneapolis' city council — a veto-proof majority — say they'll start the process of defunding and dismantling the police department. — Hmmm.

Democrats grapple with U.S. protesters' demand to defund the police. — I’m not convinced this is the answer. 

“It’s Been Time:” Why the Campaign to Defund Police Is Finally Catching On. Defunding the police, which might at first read as a seemingly radical proposition in the United States, is a reform many criminal justice activists have been fighting for a long time.

Attorney General Barr says America's law enforcement system is not racist. — A racist never sees their racism. 

Poll: 80 percent of voters say things are out of control in the U.S.

A Republican state senator in Virginia is facing backlash from members of her own party after she said that the removal of Confederate statues is an "overt effort to erase all white history." — Idiot.

Colin Powell endorses Joe Biden for president. “I cannot in any way support President Trump this year.” — He didn’t vote for Trump in 2016, either. He’s like the only honorable Republican left. 

Brazil takes down COVID-19 data, hiding soaring death toll.

Minneapolis agrees to ban police chokeholds following death of George Floyd. The Minneapolis City Council voted for immediate reform in its police department, including the ban on police chokeholds and requiring officers to intervene anytime they see unauthorized use of force.

A third of Americans surveyed engaged in risky cleaning behaviors during the Covid-19 pandemic. People have put bleach in their food. Others have gargled or inhaled it. And some have washed their bodies with household cleaning and disinfectant products. — WTF people?

2 viruses -- COVID and racism --devastate the black community and threaten America's stability. Black Americans have died from the coronavirus at a much higher rate than other racial groups. And for as long as anyone can remember, they have also been the victims of police brutality and killings -- also at a disproportionate rate.

Videos Show Cops Slashing Car Tires at Protests in Minneapolis. In a city upended by protests about police brutality after the death of George Floyd, many assumed protesters were to blame. But videos reveal a different culprit: the police.

The cops who killed Breonna Taylor are still free.

U.S. Marine Corps to remove displays of Confederate battle flag.

J.K. Rowling accused of transphobia after mocking 'people who menstruate' headline.

ESPN's Bruce Lee '30 for 30,' 'Be Water,' shows how much racism stole from him and audiences.

Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.

Until next time, my friends. Stay safe and stay sane. Good night.