Sunday, April 11, 2021

And another day of abandoning the idea of America, corporate leaders meeting, MI surges, an outbreak at a Canadian ski resort, NV GOP censures, racism in VA, targeting abortion, and banning ornamental grass comes to a close:

“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” -- Nelson Mandela

Deaths

US: 575,829 (+236)

World: 2,949,279 (+10,239)

Cases

US: 31,918,591 (+48,611)

World: 136,630,352 (+629,240)

No, the GOP and the Dems Haven’t Actually Swapped Brains. This is where the performance veers from absurdist comedy to something much darker. Having abandoned both principles and traditional conservative sensibilities, some of the right seem ready to abandon the very idea of America. — Read the rest.

First-of-its-kind meeting draws more than 100 corporate leaders to discuss state voting laws. The corporate leaders "recognize that they need to step up to the plate and are not fearful of these reprisals," he added. "They're showing a disdain for these political attacks. Not only are they fortifying each other, but they see that this spreading of disease of voter restrictions from Georgia to up to possibly 46 other states is based on a false premise and its' anti-democratic."

Michigan's COVID cases surge to alarming levels, but Gov. Gretchen Whitmer rejects new mandates. With her state battling the biggest surge of new COVID-19 cases in the nation, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says she will not issue new mandates to blunt the outbreak, relying instead on the common sense of a citizenry now experienced in struggling with the deadly virus for over a year.

Canada ski resort linked to largest outbreak of P1 Covid variant outside Brazil. Whistler, in British Columbia, has nearly 200 of 877 confirmed cases in the province but officials have only a murky idea of how widely variant has spread. P1 is believed to be a highly infectious mutation of the virus that appears to be more fatal among young people and has the ability to reinfect victims. In Brazil, the P1 variant – along with myriad policy failures – has ushered in a total collapse of the country’s healthcare system.

Nevada GOP censures elections official who defended results. Nevada’s Republican Party voted to censure the secretary of state, accusing her of failing to fully investigate allegations of fraud in the 2020 election. She says there was no widespread fraud and that her own party is attacking her for refusing to “put my thumb on the scale of democracy.”

Police accused of threatening, pulling gun on Black Army lieutenant during Virginia traffic stop. Virginia police pulled guns on a Black Army officer during a traffic stop and threatened to execute him in a parking lot, according to the serviceman's lawsuit and video of the encounter. -- This was pure racism by Virginia police.

'White Lives Matter' rallies flop as hardly anyone shows up. The poor showing underscores how the nation’s unpopular and disorganized extremist movements have been driven underground by increased scrutiny from the media, law enforcement and far left activists who infiltrate extremists’ private online spaces and disrupt their attempts to communicate and organize. -- This probably has more to do with racists not wanting to be identified than anything else.

Some GOP-led states target abortions done through medication. About 40% of all abortions in the U.S. are now done through medication — rather than surgery — and that option has become all the more pivotal during the COVID-19 pandemic...Abortion opponents, worried the method will become increasingly prevalent, are pushing legislation in several Republican-led states to restrict it and in some cases, ban providers from prescribing abortion medication via telemedicine.

Las Vegas pushes to become first to ban ornamental grass. A desert city built on a reputation for excess and indulgence wants to become a model for restraint and conservation with a first-in-the-nation policy banning grass that nobody walks on.

Earth's most beloved creatures headed toward extinction under current emissions, study shows.

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

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