This is a special hobby-horse of mine because most people think "rubber bullets, how bad could it be?" No, these are not like the little foam Nerf bullets these are big honking chunks of destruction. More people need to be aware and these "non-lethal" (ha) bullets need to be banned.
Yes. The Israelis have been using rubber bullets on Palestinians for many years. That's how come I know how horrible they are. You're right that the terminology sounds so benign. But the term has stuck and I don't suppose there's any way of changing how the media refer to the damnable things.
Embattled at Home, Trump Finds Himself Isolated Abroad, Too. [Click] “After years of snubs and American unilateralism, European allies have stopped looking to the president for leadership, and are turning their backs on him.” Even Boris Johnson and Trudeau Jr.
OHIO: As of Wednesday afternoon, there have been at least 36,792 confirmed or probable cases in the state, 2,299 deaths, and 6,251 hospitalizations, according to the Ohio Department of Health.
Biden Has Changed—For the Better [Click] “If one of the ultimate purposes of protest is to push politicians, Biden has shown that he is willing to be pushed.” Well, there is time to consider that.
Joe Biden Names His Enemies [Click] “In a speech today, the vice president portrayed this week’s events as a turning point for America—and as a binary choice in visions for its future.”
Yeah, well, you'll forgive my skepticism. That's not to say, of course, that if he turns over a new leaf and keeps it turned I wouldn't be mightily pleased, just that it will take a lot to convince me.
You and me both, Cat. I voted to re-elect Nixon, thinking it might be possible for the leopard to change its spots. I was wrong and swore not to make the same mistake again.
VT on WEDS: 990/55 (+2/ 0) 111 active cases Recovered: 879 ( 0) In Hospital 0 ( 0) Tests 37,195 (+576)
Tomorrow will see a big jump in the number of cases, as there has been a cluster outbreak in a minority community in Winooski (two towns from us). Expect the number to jump by about 10-20.
COVID-19 cases in Massachusetts as of June 2, 2020 (from the Mass. Department of Public Health) Confirmed cases of COVID-19 101,163
The details are available in a PDF, but I don't do well with PDF. Also, the figures seem to be updated at 4:00 P.M. So, we'll have to wait a while to get today's up-to-date numbers.
A new Fox News poll in Ohio finds Joe Biden leading Donald Trump in the presidential race, 45% to 43%.
A new Fox News poll in Wisconsin shows Joe Biden leading Donald Trump in the presidential race, 49% to 40%.
A new Fox News poll in Arizona finds Joe Biden leading Donald Trump in the presidential race, 46% to 42%. In the U.S. Senate race, Mark Kelly (D) leads Sen. Martha McSally (R), 50% to 37%.
Trump’s Own Polling Shows Him Well Behind June 3, 2020 By Taegan Goddard
“President Trump is facing the bleakest outlook for his re-election bid so far, with his polling numbers plunging in both public and private surveys and his campaign beginning to worry about his standing in states like Ohio and Iowa that he carried by wide margins four years ago,” the New York Times reports.
“In private polling conducted by Mr. Trump’s campaign, the president is now well behind Mr. Biden, according to people briefed on the most recent round of results. Several public surveys this week have found Mr. Trump trailing Mr. Biden, the former vice president, by double-digit margins, including a Monmouth University poll published on Wednesday that showed Mr. Biden ahead by 11 percentage points.”
BREAKING NEWS: Former Secretary of Defense James Mattis just released a scathing statement denouncing Donald Trump for dividing the nation, accusing him of ordering the U.S. military to violate the constitution. -------
“I have watched this week’s unfolding events, angry and appalled. The words “Equal Justice Under Law” are carved in the pediment of the United States Supreme Court. This is precisely what protesters are rightly demanding. It is a wholesome and unifying demand — one that all of us should be able to get behind. We must not be distracted by a small number of lawbreakers. The protests are defined by tens of thousands of people of conscience who are insisting that we live up to our values — our values as people and our values as a nation.
When I joined the military, some 50 years ago, I swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution. Never did I dream that troops taking that same oath would be ordered under any circumstance to violate the Constitutional rights of their fellow citizens — much less to provide a bizarre photo op for the elected commander-in-chief, with military leadership standing alongside.
We must reject any thinking of our cities as a “battlespace” that our uniformed military is called upon to “dominate.” At home, we should use our military only when requested to do so, on very rare occasions, by state governors. Militarizing our response, as we witnessed in Washington, D.C., sets up a conflict — a false conflict — between the military and civilian society. It erodes the moral ground that ensures a trusted bond between men and women in uniform and the society they are sworn to protect, and of which they themselves are a part. Keeping public order rests with civilian state and local leaders who best understand their communities and are answerable to them.
James Madison wrote in Federalist 14 that “America united with a handful of troops, or without a single soldier, exhibits a more forbidding posture to foreign ambition than America disunited, with a hundred thousand veterans ready for combat.” We do not need to militarize our response to protests. We need to unite around a common purpose. And it starts by guaranteeing that all of us are equal before the law.
Instructions given by the military departments to our troops before the Normandy invasion reminded soldiers that “The Nazi slogan for destroying us…was ‘Divide and Conquer.’ Our American answer is ‘In Union there is Strength.’” We must summon that unity to surmount this crisis — confident that we are better than our politics.
Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people — does not even pretend to try. Instead he tries to divide us. We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort. We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership. We can unite without him, drawing on the strengths inherent in our civil society. This will not be easy, as the past few days have shown, but we owe it to our fellow citizens; to past generations that bled to defend our promise; and to our children.
We can come through this trying time stronger, and with a renewed sense of purpose and respect for one another. The pandemic has shown us that it is not only our troops who are willing to offer the ultimate sacrifice for the safety of the community. Americans in hospitals, grocery stores, post offices, and elsewhere have put their lives on the line in order to serve their fellow citizens and their country. We know that we are better than the abuse of executive authority that we witnessed in Lafayette Square. We must reject and hold accountable those in office who would make a mockery of our Constitution. At the same time, we must remember Lincoln’s “better angels,” and listen to them, as we work to unite.
Only by adopting a new path — which means, in truth, returning to the original path of our founding ideals—will we again be a country admired and respected at home and abroad.”
Trump at Odds with Every Living [former] President June 3, 2020 By Taegan Goddard
“Four U.S. presidents spoke this week about systemic racism and injustice. They used their platforms to illuminate the humanity in all Americans and to decry the dehumanization of some. And they summoned the nation to confront its failures, make change and come together,” the Washington Post reports.
“A fifth U.S. president spoke instead this week about using military force to dominate Americans who are protesting racial injustice. He declared winners and losers among state and city officials trying to safeguard their streets. And, with his reelection campaign in mind, he sought to apply a partisan political lens to the national reckoning over racial inequities.”
Juan Williams: Black Voters Are Coming for Trump [Click] “These are dark days, but black voters’ profile and power have never been this high. They have the chance to lead the nation to recovery. Civil rights leaders, who pushed for the 1965 Voting Rights Act and had their blood spilled to register black voters, dreamed of this moment.”
A couple of comments on the last thread.
ReplyDeletePolice marching with protesters: how some cities got it right and others didn't [Click] “New Jersey produced some striking images as protests elsewhere descended into violence but relied on trust previously being built”
ReplyDeletehttps://twentytwowords.com/rubber-bullets-are-actually-huge-and-not-as-harmless-as-you-might-think/?add_slides=99&utm_content=buffer62c3a&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&utm_campaign=22
ReplyDeleteThis is a special hobby-horse of mine because most people think "rubber bullets, how bad could it be?" No, these are not like the little foam Nerf bullets these are big honking chunks of destruction. More people need to be aware and these "non-lethal" (ha) bullets need to be banned.
Yea, verily!!!
DeleteYes. The Israelis have been using rubber bullets on Palestinians for many years. That's how come I know how horrible they are. You're right that the terminology sounds so benign. But the term has stuck and I don't suppose there's any way of changing how the media refer to the damnable things.
DeleteI believe they were used in Ireland too.
DeleteEmbattled at Home, Trump Finds Himself Isolated Abroad, Too. [Click] “After years of snubs and American unilateralism, European allies have stopped looking to the president for leadership, and are turning their backs on him.” Even Boris Johnson and Trudeau Jr.
ReplyDeleteAndisanyonesurprised?
DeleteGoFundMe:
ReplyDelete$93K raised so far to rebuild Gandhi Mahal restaurant in Minneapolis
About 13 MILLION dollars raised so far for George Floyd funds
Thanks for the info, Alan. I made a modest donation to the restaurant fund. Do you have a link for the George Floyd fund?
DeleteHere's the principal one: https://www.gofundme.com/f/georgefloyd
DeleteThere's another one started by his brother, in North Carolina.
Oops—forgot to make it clickable;—here goes:
DeleteGeorge Floyd fund [Click]
Thanks.
Delete$12,327,950 raised of $1,500,000 goal
DeleteOHIO: As of Wednesday afternoon, there have been at least 36,792 confirmed or probable cases in the state, 2,299 deaths, and 6,251 hospitalizations, according to the Ohio Department of Health.
ReplyDelete6.25%
DeleteOldest and largest Maya structure discovered in southern Mexico [Click]
ReplyDeleteBiden Has Changed—For the Better [Click] “If one of the ultimate purposes of protest is to push politicians, Biden has shown that he is willing to be pushed.” Well, there is time to consider that.
ReplyDeleteJoe Biden Names His Enemies [Click] “In a speech today, the vice president portrayed this week’s events as a turning point for America—and as a binary choice in visions for its future.”
Yeah, well, you'll forgive my skepticism. That's not to say, of course, that if he turns over a new leaf and keeps it turned I wouldn't be mightily pleased, just that it will take a lot to convince me.
DeleteYou and me both, Cat. I voted to re-elect Nixon, thinking it might be possible for the leopard to change its spots. I was wrong and swore not to make the same mistake again.
DeleteVT on WEDS: 990/55 (+2/ 0)
ReplyDelete111 active cases
Recovered: 879 ( 0)
In Hospital 0 ( 0)
Tests 37,195 (+576)
Tomorrow will see a big jump in the number of cases, as there has been a cluster outbreak in a minority community in Winooski (two towns from us). Expect the number to jump by about 10-20.
COVID-19 cases in Massachusetts as of June 2, 2020 (from the Mass. Department of Public Health)
ReplyDeleteConfirmed cases of COVID-19 101,163
The details are available in a PDF, but I don't do well with PDF. Also, the figures seem to be updated at 4:00 P.M. So, we'll have to wait a while to get today's up-to-date numbers.
When you have the totals, I’ll do some math.
DeleteMay I assume that big number is total cases so far? How many have recovered?
Yes, presumably that's the total. As I said, the other numbers are inaccessible to me.
DeleteTry this link Cat:
Deletehttps://www.mass.gov/doc/covid-19-dashboard-june-3-2020/download
Massachusetts on WEDS:
Delete101,592 cases (+429 )
7152 (+68) deaths
Tests 614,133 (+8362)
7% death rate
Scroll down to see the (mostly blue) graph! Definitely seeing the curve come down! Yay!
(That is, scroll down at the link I posted.)
DeleteThe total I found is not as high as yours. Maybe it was from earlier the same day.
Former President Jimmy Carter's statement on the death of George Floyd [Click]
ReplyDeleteRand Paul Admits to Blocking Anti-Lynching Bill [Click]
Top news story four years ago… [Click]
Former Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin charged with second-degree murder in George Floyd death [Click] State Attorney General Keith Ellison also said 3 other former officers had been charged with aiding and abetting murder.
Mattis Denounces Trump [and military] as Threat to Constitution [Click]
ReplyDeleteA dangerous new factor in an uneasy moment: Unidentified “law enforcement officers” [Click]
ReplyDeleteVirginia governor to announce removal of Robert E. Lee statue in Richmond [Click]
A new Fox News poll in Ohio finds Joe Biden leading Donald Trump in the presidential race, 45% to 43%.
ReplyDeleteA new Fox News poll in Wisconsin shows Joe Biden leading Donald Trump in the presidential race, 49% to 40%.
A new Fox News poll in Arizona finds Joe Biden leading Donald Trump in the presidential race, 46% to 42%.
In the U.S. Senate race, Mark Kelly (D) leads Sen. Martha McSally (R), 50% to 37%.
All good!
DeleteWell, that certainly raises my spirits. Thanks, Alan.
DeleteTrump’s Own Polling Shows Him Well Behind
DeleteJune 3, 2020 By Taegan Goddard
“President Trump is facing the bleakest outlook for his re-election bid so far, with his polling numbers plunging in both public and private surveys and his campaign beginning to worry about his standing in states like Ohio and Iowa that he carried by wide margins four years ago,” the New York Times reports.
“In private polling conducted by Mr. Trump’s campaign, the president is now well behind Mr. Biden, according to people briefed on the most recent round of results. Several public surveys this week have found Mr. Trump trailing Mr. Biden, the former vice president, by double-digit margins, including a Monmouth University poll published on Wednesday that showed Mr. Biden ahead by 11 percentage points.”
Notes on the last thread, too.
ReplyDeleteFrom Common Defense
ReplyDeleteBREAKING NEWS: Former Secretary of Defense James Mattis just released a scathing statement denouncing Donald Trump for dividing the nation, accusing him of ordering the U.S. military to violate the constitution.
-------
“I have watched this week’s unfolding events, angry and appalled. The words “Equal Justice Under Law” are carved in the pediment of the United States Supreme Court. This is precisely what protesters are rightly demanding. It is a wholesome and unifying demand — one that all of us should be able to get behind. We must not be distracted by a small number of lawbreakers. The protests are defined by tens of thousands of people of conscience who are insisting that we live up to our values — our values as people and our values as a nation.
When I joined the military, some 50 years ago, I swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution. Never did I dream that troops taking that same oath would be ordered under any circumstance to violate the Constitutional rights of their fellow citizens — much less to provide a bizarre photo op for the elected commander-in-chief, with military leadership standing alongside.
We must reject any thinking of our cities as a “battlespace” that our uniformed military is called upon to “dominate.” At home, we should use our military only when requested to do so, on very rare occasions, by state governors. Militarizing our response, as we witnessed in Washington, D.C., sets up a conflict — a false conflict — between the military and civilian society. It erodes the moral ground that ensures a trusted bond between men and women in uniform and the society they are sworn to protect, and of which they themselves are a part. Keeping public order rests with civilian state and local leaders who best understand their communities and are answerable to them.
James Madison wrote in Federalist 14 that “America united with a handful of troops, or without a single soldier, exhibits a more forbidding posture to foreign ambition than America disunited, with a hundred thousand veterans ready for combat.” We do not need to militarize our response to protests. We need to unite around a common purpose. And it starts by guaranteeing that all of us are equal before the law.
Instructions given by the military departments to our troops before the Normandy invasion reminded soldiers that “The Nazi slogan for destroying us…was ‘Divide and Conquer.’ Our American answer is ‘In Union there is Strength.’” We must summon that unity to surmount this crisis — confident that we are better than our politics.
Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people — does not even pretend to try. Instead he tries to divide us. We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort. We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership. We can unite without him, drawing on the strengths inherent in our civil society. This will not be easy, as the past few days have shown, but we owe it to our fellow citizens; to past generations that bled to defend our promise; and to our children.
We can come through this trying time stronger, and with a renewed sense of purpose and respect for one another. The pandemic has shown us that it is not only our troops who are willing to offer the ultimate sacrifice for the safety of the community. Americans in hospitals, grocery stores, post offices, and elsewhere have put their lives on the line in order to serve their fellow citizens and their country. We know that we are better than the abuse of executive authority that we witnessed in Lafayette Square. We must reject and hold accountable those in office who would make a mockery of our Constitution. At the same time, we must remember Lincoln’s “better angels,” and listen to them, as we work to unite.
Only by adopting a new path — which means, in truth, returning to the original path of our founding ideals—will we again be a country admired and respected at home and abroad.”
Trump at Odds with Every Living [former] President
ReplyDeleteJune 3, 2020 By Taegan Goddard
“Four U.S. presidents spoke this week about systemic racism and injustice. They used their platforms to illuminate the humanity in all Americans and to decry the dehumanization of some. And they summoned the nation to confront its failures, make change and come together,” the Washington Post reports.
“A fifth U.S. president spoke instead this week about using military force to dominate Americans who are protesting racial injustice. He declared winners and losers among state and city officials trying to safeguard their streets. And, with his reelection campaign in mind, he sought to apply a partisan political lens to the national reckoning over racial inequities.”
Highly recommended essay:
ReplyDeleteJuan Williams: Black Voters Are Coming for Trump [Click] “These are dark days, but black voters’ profile and power have never been this high. They have the chance to lead the nation to recovery. Civil rights leaders, who pushed for the 1965 Voting Rights Act and had their blood spilled to register black voters, dreamed of this moment.”