Wednesday, August 19, 2020

And another day of bombshells, damage, conspiracies, approaches, stigmas, old guards, quitting work, dress codes, obscene amounts of money, and more comes to a close:

“Do not let them take away your power. Do not let them take away your democracy.” -- Barack Obama

Deaths

US: 176,337 (+1263)

World: 790,977 (+6639)

Cases

US: 5,700,931 (+44,957)

World: 22,577,641 (+271,737)

Countdown: 76 days. Vote early!

The Senate just dropped a massive Russia bombshell (and most people missed it). Whatever the reason, the public's reaction (or lack thereof) was entirely out of step with the details that were contained in the fifth (and final) release of the Intelligence Committee's report. What was in those documents was deeply damning for President Donald Trump -- and his attempts to dismiss the entire investigation into Russia's meddling in the 2016 campaign as a hoax...Especially when you consider that what the report makes very clear is that Trump's campaign chairman was a) working with a Russian intelligence officer b) seeking to share proprietary campaign data with him and c) attempted to sway public opinion about which country actually had meddled in the US election. And that Stone, whose prison sentence was commuted by Trump last month, was designated by the campaign to find out what he could about the information that had been hacked by the Russians and when WikiLeaks planned to release it. And that the two Russians from infamous Trump Tower meeting had more ties Russian intelligence than we previously knew. And that Russia continued through this year to muddy the waters about its interference in the 2016 election. -- Trump has normalized apathy. We will all suffer for it.

The post office backed off, but the damage is already done.

Facebook on Wednesday banned about 900 pages and groups and 1,500 ads tied to the pro-Trump conspiracy theory QAnon, part of a sweeping action that also restricted the reach of over 10,000 Instagram pages and almost 2,000 Facebook groups pushing the baseless conspiracy theory that has spawned real-world violence.

Laura Loomer, the anti-Muslim congressional candidate praised by Trump, explained. Laura Loomer calls herself a “proud Islamophobe.” She is famous for spreading conspiracy theories about mass shootings. Last night, she just won a Republican primary in Florida — and Trump is cheering her on. “This is not an isolated problem. A closer look at Loomer, in particular, reveals that the causes of this rot run deeper than Trump and are very likely to continue remaking the Republican party after he’s gone.” — This is the  Republican Party.

Reimagined Virtual Roll Call Steals The Show. What could easily have been a logistical and technical nightmare became an unexpected fan favorite part of Tuesday night’s convention programming: the roll call of states and territories.

Americans misperceive the risks of death from coronavirus, research shows. Recent research shows, however, that Americans have a significant misunderstanding of the risk of death from COVID-19 when it comes to different age groups. 

Trump, Pence campaign events signal lax approach to virus.

Trump needs suburban voters. But they aren't who he thinks they are.

Cleared by doctors, but not by the public: After COVID-19, survivors face stigma. “I feel like I have a scarlet letter on my chest."

The old guard is still in charge at the Democratic convention. He bet that the Democratic electorate, no matter its impulse for fresh blood or progressive policies, would feel more comfortable with a known-commodity nominee who would be hard for President Donald Trump to label as a risky alternative. He won, and now he's presenting himself and his party to Republicans and independents as the safe pick Democrats saw.

Working mothers are quitting to take care of their kids, and the US job market may never be the same.

Portland police declare riot after protesters try to burn building. It must be defeated.

A federal judge in Texas has blocked a school district from enforcing a dress code policy that prohibited a Black teenager from keeping his locs.

Apple is now worth $2 trillion, making it the most valuable company in the world. -- At $3600 an hour ($1 per second), it would take around 64,000 years to accumulate $2 trillion. Think about that.

750 million genetically engineered mosquitoes approved for release in Florida Keys.

Germans must walk their dogs twice a day, new law will say. The country’s agriculture minister, Julia Klöckner, has said she is introducing the new law based on evidence that many of the nation’s 9.4 million dogs are not getting the exercise or stimuli they need.

Scientists harvest eggs from near-extinct northern white rhino.

A 'dent' in Earth's magnetic field puzzles scientists. Scientists have known about the weak spot in Earth’s magnetic field for several decades, but new research suggests that the South Atlantic Anomaly is growing.

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

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