And another day of what they mean, banning oil, a Jan. 6 conviction, MO seeking to prevent women from leaving state to get an abortion, Covid risk for children, Covid and brain damage, ID upping the ante on hating trans people, a teacher’s strike in Minneapolis, the USPS and so much more comes to a close:
“Barr is literally saying he can’t mentally grasp the idea that voting for a Democrat would be a better alternative to voting for someone he directly observed trying to hijack American democracy. Someone, please make a commercial featuring this broken man: This Is Your Brain on Partisanship.” -- Amanda Carpenter
"What's the point of being on this Earth if you're to try to be someone you're not?" -- Zaya Wade
“Never forget that Mitch McConnell killed filibuster to confirm 3 Trump justices to take away voting rights but Manchin & Sinema refused to reform filibuster to protect voting rights.” — Ari Berman
Deaths
US: 987,615 (+3595 over two days)
World: 6,036,186 (+15,765 over two days)
Cases
US: 81,012,955 (+95,433 over two day)
World: 449,980,099 (+3,315,013 over two days)
International Women's Day: Dramatic deterioration in respect for women's rights and gender equality must be decisively reversed. Catastrophic attacks on human rights and gender equality over the past twelve months have lowered protection for and upped threats against women and girls across the globe, Amnesty International said today. On International Women’s Day, the organization called for bold action to reverse erosions of human rights for women and girls. “Events in 2021 and in the early months of 2022 have conspired to crush the rights and dignity of millions of women and girls. The world’s crises do not impact equally, let alone fairly. The disproportionate impacts on women’s and girls’ rights are well-documented yet still neglected, when not ignored outright. But the facts are clear. The Covid-19 pandemic, the overwhelming rollback on women’s rights in Afghanistan, the widespread sexual violence characterizing the conflict in Ethiopia, attacks on abortion access in the US and Turkey’s withdrawal from the landmark Istanbul Convention on Gender Based Violence: each is a grave erosion of rights in its own terms but taken together? We must stand up to and stare down this global assault on women’s and girls’ dignity.”
How To Know When They Mean It. Breaking ‘Against Trump’ means opposing him through a general election. Understand this: People like Barr, Christie, Haley, and Pence will offer their criticisms when there is a whiff of opportunity—either in the form of speaking fees, book sales, or the ability to test future political prospects...For most of the operators, the mental hurdle of putting country over party is, as Barr put it, “inconceivable.” If being a good Republican means voting for a twice-impeached, insurrection-inciting, Putin-praising, 2020 loser . . . then so bet it. As long as that’s the case, the idea that any Republican has “broken” with Trump should be on hold until they answer the following two questions. Is America better off today with Joe Biden as president rather than Donald Trump? If Donald Trump is the Republican presidential nominee in 2024, will you vote for President Biden? A buck gets you ten that they’ll balk and refuse to answer. Not because it’s an unreasonable question given the circumstances, but because of what it would do to damage their GOP credentials. -- Their actions are so much louder than their useless little words.
Biden bans Russian oil, warns of higher prices at US pumps. President Joe Biden announced Tuesday the U.S. will ban all Russian oil imports, toughening the toll on Russia’s economy in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine, but he acknowledged it will bring costs to Americans, particularly at the gas pump.
Republicans cheer Russian oil ban and jeer Biden for rising gas prices. Congressional Republicans are championing President Joe Biden’s decision to ban Russian oil imports to the U.S., a highly anticipated move that could continue to push gas prices to record highs. But in the same breath, GOP leaders — eager to win back the House and Senate this fall — are trying to capitalize by blaming Biden and his energy policies for Americans paying more at the pump. -- Fucking disgusting.
Rift emerges among NATO allies as U.S. rejects Poland’s offer on jets for Ukraine. In a rare sign of disunity among NATO allies, the Defense Department on Tuesday rejected an unexpected offer by Poland to have the U.S. take custody of Soviet-era fighter jets that would be transferred to Ukraine in its fight against Russia. U.S. officials said they were blindsided by Poland's announcement, which differed from a previous proposal to have Warsaw deliver the MiG-29 jets to Kyiv directly. "We will continue to consult with Poland and our other NATO allies about this issue and the difficult logistical challenges it presents, but we do not believe Poland’s proposal is a tenable one," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said in a statement.
1st trial in Capitol riot ends with conviction all counts. A Texas man was convicted on Tuesday of storming the U.S. Capitol with a holstered handgun, a milestone victory for federal prosecutors in the first trial among hundreds of cases arising from last year’s riot...The verdict could be a bellwether for many other Capitol riot cases. It could give Justice Department prosecutors more leverage in plea negotiations and discourage other defendants from gambling on trials of their own. -- Lock all those fuckers up.
‘Fascist fitness’: how the far right is recruiting with online gym groups. The far right is increasingly recruiting via online fitness groups, whose popularity soared during the pandemic, prompting fears that new members are being radicalised to commit acts of violence, new analysis shows.
Missouri lawmaker seeks to prohibit residents from obtaining abortions out of state. An unusual new provision, introduced by state Rep. Mary Elizabeth Coleman (R), would allow private citizens to sue anyone who helps a Missouri resident obtain an abortion out of state, using the novel legal strategy behind the restrictive law in Texas that since September has banned abortions in that state after six weeks of pregnancy...The measure could signal a new strategy by the antiabortion movement to extend its influence beyond the conservative states poised to tighten restrictions if the Supreme Court moves this summer to overturn its landmark precedent protecting abortion rights. -- Think about that. Think about what that really means, not just for abortion, but for just about everything. And, oh yeah. Fuck you if you think abortion should be illegal.
Send More Aid to Taiwan, Before It’s Too Late. There are decades when nothing happens. And there are weeks when decades happen. Vladimir Lenin may not have said that. But Vladimir Putin made it a reality.
Court rejects GOP redistricting plans in NC, Pennsylvania. In a victory for Democrats, the Supreme Court has turned away efforts from Republicans in North Carolina and Pennsylvania to block state court-ordered congressional districting plans. In separate orders late Monday, the justices are allowing maps selected by each state’s Supreme Court to be in effect for the 2022 elections. Those maps are more favorable to Democrats than the ones drawn by the states’ legislatures.
COVID-19 always leaves a trace, and in children there's a risk for even more. Unfortunately, recently-released research in children under 18 is not that encouraging. This new data, collected during the omicron surge, has significant ramifications for parents…But it doesn’t tell us the whole picture. The study did not evaluate the severity of disease experienced by these children. It did not explore the serious complications of COVID-19 infection in fully-vaccinated children. I am left wondering what these findings actually mean.
Even mild Covid is linked to brain damage, scans show. During at least the first few months following a coronavirus infection, even mild cases of Covid-19 are associated with subtle tissue damage and accelerated losses in brain regions tied to the sense of smell, as well as a small loss in the brain’s overall volume, a new British study finds. Having mild Covid is also associated with a cognitive function deficit. These are the striking findings of the new study led by University of Oxford investigators, one that leading Covid researchers consider particularly important because it is the first study of the disease’s potential impact on the brain that is based on brain scans taken both before and after participants contracted the coronavirus.
Florida to advise against COVID-19 vaccine for healthy kids, contradicting CDC. Florida’s Department of Health will recommend against coronavirus vaccination for “healthy children,” the state’s surgeon general said Monday, contradicting the guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other experts. Florida “is going to be the first state to officially recommend against the COVID-19 vaccines for healthy children,” state surgeon general Joseph Ladapo said at the end of a roundtable discussion on the virus response. Ladapo did not provide details such as who would qualify as a healthy child, or go into the reasoning for his decision.
Mask mandates go away in schools, but parent worries persist. Major school districts around the country are allowing students into classrooms without masks for the first time in nearly two years, eliminating rules that stirred up intense fights among educators, school boards and parents throughout the pandemic.
In an era of optional mask wearing, Gov. DeSantis' outburst is a cautionary tale. He bullied students into removing their masks and, in the process, doubled down on claims about Covid that were unscientific and could lead to disproportionately harmful outcomes. -- DeSantis is a maggot infested piece of shit. You are too if you support him.
WHO says COVID boosters needed, reversing previous call. An expert group convened by the World Health Organization said Tuesday it “strongly supports urgent and broad access” to booster doses of COVID-19 vaccine amid the global spread of omicron, capping a reversal of the U.N. agency’s repeated insistence last year that boosters weren’t necessary for healthy people and contributed to vaccine inequity.
Idaho House committee approves bill to prohibit gender-confirmation medical treatment. Should Skaug’s bill pass, any person convicted of a violation of the law would be guilty of a felony, punishable by up to life in prison. -- You read that correctly. Fuck Skaug. And fuck you if you support this complete and total bullshit.
‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill: Florida Senate passes controversial LGBTQ school measure. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis has signaled he would sign the bill, which would ban “classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity” in primary schools. The measure bans “classroom instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity” in kindergarten through third grade. It also prohibits such teaching “in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students,” which critics say could be interpreted to extend to all grade levels. Parents can sue school districts for alleged violations. -- So many people get hurt when you vote Republican. Fuck the Florida GOP. And fuck you if you support this hateful fucking bill.
Disney employees furious the company won't denounce Florida's 'Don't Say Gay' bill. Siemon credits one of his middle school teachers for helping him understand that it was OK to be gay. Had there been a bill like the one being considered in Florida, Siemon says, "That would've never happened to me. I would've been left alone and scared. And LGBT kids are going to be left alone and scared and hurt by this bill." -- Evil flourishes when good people do nothing. Stand against this Florida atrocity that is happening before our very eyes.
Texas Children’s Hospital halts hormone therapies for transgender children in response to governor and AG’s recent actions. TCH said in a statement the hospital’s mission is “to create a healthier future for all children, including transgender children, within the bounds of the law.” -- Fuck Abbott and Paxton. And fuck you if you support them.
Mark Meadows might not have ever even lived in the place where he's registered to vote. Most allegations of voter fraud in the 2020 election have been roundly debunked by media outlets, election administrators, and the courts. But as it turns out, Meadows might have been speaking from firsthand knowledge. -- One literally can not make this shit up.
Minneapolis teachers go on strike after contract talks fail. Teachers in the Minneapolis School District walked off the job Tuesday in a dispute over wages, class sizes and mental health support for students coping with two years of the coronavirus pandemic, pausing classes for about 29,000 students and nearly 3,300 teachers in one of Minnesota’s largest school districts. -- We need to stop treating teachers and students like shit. Fuck you if you don’t support the things these teachers are asking for.
The Texas General Land Office discriminated against communities of color when it doled out federal relief funds after Hurricane Harvey, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development found. Despite catastrophic flooding, Houston didn't get a dime of the federal relief money that was distributed by the Texas General Land Office. -- Fuckers.
Senate passes sweeping bipartisan bill overhauling the US Postal Service. The Postal Service Reform Act – which cleared the House last month by 342-92 – would require retired postal employees to enroll in Medicare when eligible, while dropping a previous mandate that forced the agency to cover its health care costs years in advance. Those two measures would save the USPS nearly $50 billion over the next decade, according to the House Oversight Committee. The legislation would also require the USPS to create an online dashboard with local and national delivery time data.
Half of US adults exposed to harmful lead levels as kids. In a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on Monday, they estimated that half the U.S. adult population in 2015 had been exposed to lead levels surpassing five micrograms per deciliter — the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention threshold for harmful lead exposure at the time. The scientists from Florida State University and Duke University also found that 90% of children born in the U.S. between 1950 and 1981 had blood-lead levels higher than the CDC threshold. And the researchers found significant impact on cognitive development: on average, early childhood exposure to lead resulted in a 2.6-point drop in IQ.
Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.
Until next time, my friends. Stay safe and stay sane. Good night.
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