Monday, June 20, 2022

And another day of the emerging paramilitary wing of the GOP, Eric Greitens wanting you to get a specific permit, election shock in France, waiting for ‘Day Zero’ for no water, extreme heat, the largest freshwater fish ever caught, and floating cities comes to a close:

“Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.” -- Voltaire

Deaths

US: 1,038,385 (+62)

World: 6,341,827 (+1100)

Cases

US: 88,054,080 (+50,007)

World: 544,853,490 (+554,194)

What do about the emerging paramilitary wing of the GOP. From Arizona, where state Sen. Wendy Rogers spoke approvingly of hanging political enemies at a white nationalist rally, to Oklahoma, where the GOP chair and candidate for Congress talked about putting Anthony Fauci in front of a firing squad, Republicans are frequently musing about committing violence against their political opponents…Writing in the conservative journal National Review eight years later, David French spelled out the argument in detail while defending the right of Americans to collect arsenals of high powered weaponry: “Citizens must be able to possess the kinds and categories of weapons that can at least deter state overreach, that would make true authoritarianism too costly to attempt.” What if this is backwards? Well-armed partisans emerge as the paramilitary wing of authoritarian parties, using violence and the threat of violence to vault the movement to power…however, we can’t laugh off all the menacing rhetoric, or the politicians playing gun cosplay, or the failed coup.

Republican Senate candidate Eric Greitens promotes hunting non-MAGA Republicans. He may take this video down, but if he hasn’t by the time you read this, check out his plea for you to “Order your RINO Hunting Permit today!” These people are fucking crazy. Vote Blue to avert fascism and save America’s republic.

Facebook removes GOP Senate candidate’s ‘RINO hunting’ video. Facebook on Monday removed a campaign video by Republican Missouri U.S. Senate candidate Eric Greitens that shows him brandishing a shotgun and declaring that he’s hunting RINOs, or Republicans In Name Only.

From fringe to mainstream: Far right breaks through in French election shock. Marine Le Pen's National Rally won 89 of the 577 seats in the National Assembly, a dramatic increase from its starting point of just eight and one of the most significant recent results for radical right-wing politics in Europe. Until now, voters across the political spectrum had largely held back the far-right challenge, but Le Pen's transformation of her party's image from fringe extremists to a normalized opposition has seemingly taken hold. -- A good portion of the world is looking to abandon democracy and embrace fascism.

Japan court says ban on same-sex marriage constitutional. A Japanese court ruled Monday that the country’s ban on same-sex marriage does not violate the constitution, and rejected demands for compensation by three couples who said their right to free union and equality has been violated.

'Day Zero': This city is counting down the days until its water taps run dry. Now much of the city is counting down to "Day Zero," the day all taps run dry, when no meaningful amount of water can be extracted. That's in around two weeks, unless authorities seriously speed up their response.

Sweltering streets: Hundreds of homeless die in extreme heat. Excessive heat causes more weather-related deaths in the United States than hurricanes, flooding and tornadoes combined...It’s a problem that stretches across the United States, and now, with rising global temperatures, heat is no longer a danger just in places like Phoenix.

Second heat wave expected to bring temps above 100 for 20% of people in US. In the coming week, about 70% of the US population will see temperatures in the 90s, and almost 20% of people in the country will experience temperatures greater than 100 degrees. Many major metro areas, including Minneapolis, Chicago, Nashville, Memphis, Dallas, New Orleans and Atlanta, may experience temps near or above 100. More than 100 high temperature records could be broken this week, mainly across the southern and eastern regions of the US.

A floating city in the Maldives begins to take shape. The threat of rising seas is leading to a new form of architecture -- one that floats. In the Maldives, a nation on the frontlines of climate change, a floating city big enough to house 20,000 people is being constructed…Designed in a pattern similar to brain coral, the city will consist of 5,000 floating units including houses, restaurants, shops and schools, with canals running in between. The first units will be unveiled this month, with residents starting to move in early 2024, and the whole city is due to be completed by 2027. The project -- a joint venture between property developer Dutch Docklands and the Government of the Maldives -- is not meant as a wild experiment or a futuristic vision: it's being built as a practical solution to the harsh reality of sea-level rise.

Largest freshwater fish ever caught hooked in Cambodia. A fisherman in northern Cambodia hooked what researchers say is the world’s largest freshwater fish — a giant stingray that scientists know relatively little about. The fisherman, 42, caught the 661-pound fish — which measured about 13 feet in length — near a remote island on the Mekong River in the Stung Treng area. A team of scientists from the Wonders of Mekong research project helped tag, measure and weigh the ray before it was released back into the river. The research group believes it was healthy when released and expects it to survive. The tag — which emits an acoustic signal — will allow researchers to track the fish’s movements and, they hope, learn more about its species’ behavior in the Mekong.

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

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