Monday, August 3, 2020

And another day where Trump admits Republicans can’t win without suppressing the vote comes to a close:

“I just wanted you to know that this is me trying.” — Taylor Swift

Deaths

US: 158,929 (+564)

World: 697,188 (+4394)

Cases

US: 4,862,174 (+48,622)

World: 18,443,484 (+208,548)

Countdown: 92 days.

WHO warns that, despite strong hopes for a vaccine, there might never be a “silver bullet” for COVID-19, and the road to normality would be long.

Trump vows challenge to Nevada bill expanding mail-in voting. President Trump on Monday vowed to challenge a bill approved Sunday by the Nevada legislature that would expand mail-in voting in the state for the November general election. Trump accused Gov. Steve Sisolak (D), who is expected to sign the bill into law, of using the novel coronavirus to “steal” the election and make it “impossible” for Republicans to win in Nevada. — He can’t do anything, of course. But he did say the words out loud. More people voting means it would be “impossible” for Republicans to win. Republicans have known this for years. Hence gerrymandering, closing polling locations, voter ID laws. It’s all to make it difficult for people to vote. So difficult that people won’t. Particularly the people that will not vote for a Republican.

Senate GOP divided over whether they'd fill Supreme Court vacancy. But not all Republicans are committed to the idea after McConnell and then-Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) blocked Merrick Garland, President Obama’s nominee to replace Scalia, from even getting a hearing.

Democrats warn GOP: Don't fill a Supreme Court vacancy in 2020 or we'll retaliate. Democrats are warning Republicans not to fill a possible Supreme Court vacancy this year after denying President Barack Obama the chance in 2016, saying it would embolden a push on the left to add seats to the court whenever they regain power.

New York prosecutor seeking President Trump's tax returns cites reports of 'protracted criminal conduct' at the Trump Organization.

U.S.-German ties are bad under Trump — if Biden wins he may struggle to repair them. "This is the most important U.S. election in the history of Germany," one former ambassador said. “During the Trump administration, few places have recoiled with as much horror as Germany, once a vital friend that the White House now berates with open hostility...Trump is about as unpopular there as anywhere on the planet. Many fear that if he is re-elected, he would not only trash what's left of Berlin's ties with Washington but deal a death blow to the concept of the West itself.”

Fox News tied a Portland shooting to protests. In fact, it happened miles away. That same night, a couple of thousand protestors gathered in downtown for the 65th straight night of protests in Portland against systemic racism and police violence after the killing of George Floyd. The Multnomah County Justice Center, the frequent focal point of protests, is about 5 miles from where the shooting took place in Montavilla.

Police in Tampa Bay get millions in military gear. Do they need it? Since 1997, the Defense Department has supplied surplus military-grade equipment for free or cheap to the Tampa Police Department, the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office and some 8,000 law enforcement agencies nationwide, according to records obtained from the federal Defense Logistics Agency.

COVID-19 long-term toll signals billions in healthcare costs ahead.

K-12 schools and colleges can reopen, but safety should come first, Fauci says. -- Um...no.

Georgia's largest school district has confirmed that around 260 employees have either tested positive for Covid-19 or have been exposed.

U.S. teachers protest school reopenings, coronavirus cases down in South, West. 

The White House is now requiring random testing—a screening procedure that had been voluntary—of those in the President's Executive Office staff, a White House official says.

Homeownership is supposed to be the gateway to the American dream. Black Americans have been denied access. Despite Jones' good credit score, low debt-to-income ratio, better-than-average income and several thousand dollars of savings, lenders who immediately expressed interest stopped or went quiet when they got to two questions. What was her ZIP code? Answer: 90220. That's Compton, 29 percent Black, 68 percent Latino. Was she married? Answer: No. Federal law prohibits lenders from using the answers to those questions to determine a borrower's ability to repay a loan...Advocates, scholars and officials say one of the clearest examples of that ongoing discrimination exists in the housing market, where the gap in homeownership rates between Black and white Americans is wider than it was before the Civil Rights movement.

Trump fires Tennessee Valley Authority chair over compensation, outsourcing. Trump made the announcement as he signed an executive order that aims to prevent federal agencies from unfairly replacing U.S. workers with lower-cost foreign labor.

Trump directed controversial Pentagon pick into new role with similar duties after nomination failed.

Democrats subpoena State Department aides in probe of IG's firing.

Philadelphia Eagles head coach Doug Pederson tests positive for Covid-19. -- I preach every year to stop watching the NFL. I might not have to preach it this year.

Gun Sales Smash July Record, 2020 Sales Already Exceed All of 2019. Gun sales surged in July to an all-time record for the month, according to data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and industry forecasters, with Americans purchasing an estimated total of 2 million new firearms. Gun manufacturers are struggling to keep up.

Another fake Pelosi video goes viral on Facebook.

Illinois community leaders want to abolish history lessons in schools. An Illinois lawmaker and community leaders are calling for the immediate removal of history books and suspension of history lessons in their school districts because they say current materials and lesson plans "lead to white privilege and a racist society."

US officials seek limits on “habitat” for imperiled species. The Trump administration is moving to restrict what land and water areas can be declared as “habitat” for imperiled plants and animals — potentially excluding locations that species could use in the future as climate change upends ecosystems.

This Algorithm Might Make Facial Recognition Obsolete. In 2020, it’s worth assuming that every status update and selfie you upload online can eventually make its way into the hands of an obscure data-mining third party, into the hands of national authorities, or both.

Scientists inspired by 'Star Wars' create artificial skin able to feel. The ACES, or Asynchronous Coded Electronic Skin, is made up of 100 small sensors and is about 1 square centimeter in size.

Human sperm roll like 'playful otters' as they swim, study finds, contradicting centuries-old beliefs. Now, using state-of-the-art 3D microscopy and mathematics, a new study says we have actually been the victims of "sperm deception."

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

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