News and Headlines: In The news, Politics, World news, Commentary/Opinion.
In The News:
Lawyer: Over 150 Minneapolis officers seeking disability
He said many officers he represents were at a precinct that police abandoned as people were breaking in during the unrest.
Some officers feared they wouldn’t make it home, he said, and wrote final notes to loved ones. People in the crowd ultimately set fire to the building.
PERA is primarily a retirement plan, in which members and employers contribute funds.
Members who become disabled can receive a disability benefit until age 55, at which time retirement benefits kick in.
A high percentage of those on duty disability do not return to the job, Anderson said.
New Orleans Statues Toppled From Their Bases, Another Vandalized With Spray Paint
Across town, a statue of philanthropist John McDonogh was also found knocked off of its pedestal.
According to ABC News, McDonogh built up a fortune as a merchant and plantation owner and at one point owned 200 slaves.
After his death, he bequeathed most of his money to building schools for white children and freed Black children in New Orleans and Baltimore; indeed, in the Crescent City alone, his bequest was responsible for building at least 30 schools.
Another statue of McDonogh elsewhere in the city had been torn down earlier this month, its bust thrown into the Mississippi River.
After Ford employees demanded the company stop making police vehicles, the CEO clapped black with logic, common sense
According to auto news site Jalopnik, a contingent of black and white employees at Ford Motor Company recently penned a letter airing their grievances over the company’s relationship with numerous police departments in America — about two-thirds of police vehicles in the country are Fords.
In the letter, the employees argued that Ford, by building vehicles used by police, is actively sustaining racism and oppression in America.
Inevitably, Hackett caught wind of the letter, or at least its sentiment, and addressed the issue in an office memo.
Here’s an example: “The issues plaguing police credibility have nothing to do with the vehicles they’re driving.” One would think such a notion would be obvious, but evidently it needed to be explained.
Video/Pics: USS Theodore Roosevelt, the Navy aircraft carrier sidelined by coronavirus outbreak, returns to San Diego
USS Theodore Roosevelt, a Navy aircraft carrier on what would have been a routine deployment before the coronavirus sickened more than 1,000 of its sailors, returned from its tumultuous, 31,835-nautical-miles passage to its homeport in San Diego on Thursday, July 9.
“I am incredibly proud of the Theodore Roosevelt Strike Group and all they’ve accomplished over the deployment,” Rear Adm. Doug Verissimo, commander Carrier Strike Group 9, said.
“They operated in a variety of complex environments ranging from how to respond to an international pandemic to operating safely throughout the Indo-Pacific, including the South China Sea.”
Eagles’ Malik Jackson Defends DeSean Jackson, Calls Louis Farrakhan ‘Honorable’
Almost no one in the NFL spoke up to condemn Jackson’s posts. Even Jeffrey Lurie, the Eagles’ Jewish team owner who just finished a documentary on anti-Semitism, has been silent since the team’s initial response, about the hate in his own organization.
Worse, at least two athletes have spoken up to defend DeSean Jackson’s anti-Semitic posts.
On Wednesday, former NBA player Stephen Jackson (no relation) said that DeSean Jackson was “speaking the truth” about Jews.
And today another NFL player has come to DeSean’s defense.
Chinese Real Estate Company At Center Of FBI Investigation Raked In Millions From PPP Loans
Shenzhen New World Group, owned by Chinese billionaire Wei Huang, received the lump sum over two separate loans for hotels operating in Los Angeles.
The group’s chairman is also however, accused by federal prosecutors of bribing Los Angeles City Council member Jose Huizar with $260,000 in poker chips and $600,000 to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit.
In June, Huizar was arrested for allegedly accepting an estimated $1.5 million in bribes to assist developers on downtown projects which includes at least 19 trips to Las Vegas between March 2012 and 2017.
Prosecutors accuse a developer of footing the bill for “flights on private jets and commercial airlines; stays at luxury hotels; expensive meals; spa services; event tickets to concerts, shows, and sporting events; escort and prostitution services; and other gifts.”
New York Times Utterly Botches Reporting On Defense Contracts In Attempt To Smear Trump Campaign
After publishing an article smearing the Trump administration for corruption, the New York Times issued a correction that invalidated its entire premise.
The Times presented this as evidence of lobbyists’ “outsize influence” in Washington and “the hollowness of Mr. Trump’s 2016 campaign pledge to ‘drain the swamp.’
This seems to be a pattern for the New York Times, and much of the mainstream media, wherein it reports false information that cuts against Republicans and conservatives, only later to issue little-seen corrections to fix their erroneous “reporting” after having already influenced public opinion.
NBC Contributor Reveals He Never Tested Positive For COVID After Network Followed His Alleged Recovery
After NBC News extensively followed the COVID-19 case of its own on-air contributor Dr. Joseph Fair, the virologist and epidemiologist revealed he tested negative for coronavirus as well as negative for the WuFlu antibodies, meaning he never had the virus.
Despite having appeared on NBC and MSNBC almost a dozen times to discuss his recovery from the virus, neither network has still released a correction on air.
As Krakauer points out, this story about Fair’s illness still has yet to be corrected.
Fair said he planned to take another antibody test.
Researcher charged with illegally using U.S. grant funds to develop scientific expertise for China
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A rheumatology professor and researcher with strong ties to China has been ordered held without bond to face a charge of grant fraud for not disclosing that he was engaged in a sophisticated scheme to use approximately $4.1 million in grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop China’s expertise in the areas of rheumatology and immunology.
He is also charged with making false statements about maintaining employment in China at the same time he was employed at universities in the United States, including The Ohio State University.
When he was arrested, he was carrying three large bags, one small suitcase and a briefcase containing two laptops, three cellular telephones, several USB drives, several silver bars, expired Chinese passports for his family, deeds for property in China and other items.
US Army listed ‘MAGA’ as a white supremacist statement, then retracted
The graphic in question shows a hierarchical pyramid with the top section of the pyramid describing “Overt White Supremacy (Socially Unacceptable)” and a line indicating a transition to more socially accepted forms of “Covert White Supremacy.”
Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan is positioned in that lower group of white supremacist terms.
The graphic also includes terms like “All Lives Matter” and “Assuming good intentions are enough” as other forms of covert white supremacy.
On Thursday, the Army issued a response statement, indicating the controversial graphic was copied from a non-government website and sent in error as the military branch prepared to launch its “Your Voice Matters” listening tour.
The Army statement claimed it had “immediately recalled” the graphic, though it was unclear how the recall occurred given the graphic were distributed via email.
NYC First Lady Chirlane McCray says it would be ‘utopia’ for NYC to have no cops
McCray, who was with her husband Mayor de Blasio when she spoke, made the comments to Time magazine just days after Minnesota lawmakers vowed to dismantle the Minneapolis police department, which has come under harsh criticism for the police custody death of George Floyd.
“That would be like nirvana, a utopia that we are nowhere close to getting to,” McCray told Time, referring to the possibility of a police-free metropolis.
But McCray, who’s looking at a run for Brooklyn Borough President, noted that implementing such a drastic change in the Big Apple would be much more challenging than doing it in Minneapolis.
Trump: Fauci ‘Made a Lot of Mistakes’ During Pandemic
“Dr. Fauci is a nice man, but he’s made a lot of mistakes,” Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity after he was asked about the states.
“A lot of them said don’t wear a mask, don’t wear a mask,” the president added. “Now they are saying wear a mask. A lot of mistakes were made, a lot of mistakes.”
The president was possibly referring to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) advice that it’s not recommended for people to wear face protection early on in the pandemic.
In April, the agency reversed course and issued guidance that people should wear non-medical masks in public.
Defense Secretary Orders Investigation Into Media Leaks Amid Russian ‘Bounty’ Reports
“The illegal leaks are terrible. They’re happening across the government, particularly in the Defense Department,” he added.
Esper also told lawmakers, “To the best of my recollection I have not received a briefing that included the word bounty” in reference to the killing of U.S. troops.
However, Esper later confirmed that he had seen the report but not “until February, when it came out in an intelligence piece of paper,” and that both he and the head of U.S. Central Command and the commander of all U.S. troops in Afghanistan looked into the matter and neither thought the reports about Russian bounties were credible.
Tucker: City of Seattle tells white employees to work on undoing their whiteness
White employees were informed that their so-called ‘white’ qualities were offensive and unacceptable.
Goya Foods CEO reacts to backlash over praising Trump
Goya Foods President and CEO Bob Unanue calls the criticism hypocritical since he also appeared with President Obama at the White House.
Deceased cat gets voter registration application in the mail
When Ron Tims checked his mail Wednesday he found something addressed to Cody Tims. Cody doesn’t get much mail. Cody is a cat.
Carol Tims says she understands that in this election year there’s a huge push to get people to the polls.
“There’s a huge push but if they’re trying to register cats, I’m not sure who else they’re trying to register. I’m not sure if they’re trying to register dogs, mice, snakes,” said Tims.
The Secretary of State’s Office says the application did not come from their office. They say third party groups often use mailing lists to get names and addresses. They released a statement saying:
Trump’s New Hampshire rally postponed because of Tropical Storm Fay
“The rally scheduled for Saturday in Portsmouth, New Hampshire has been postponed for safety reasons because of Tropical Storm Fay.
It will be rescheduled and a new date will be announced soon,” said Tim Murtaugh, the Trump 2020 communications director
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters Friday it will be delayed by a week or two.
Politics:
Trump expected to commute Roger Stone sentence, days before prison term set to begin
The president, as recently as Friday morning, has said he was “looking at” offering Stone clemency, saying he was “very unfairly treated.”
Trump, for weeks, has signaled he could be open to granting Stone clemency — tweeting last month that Stone was “a victim of a corrupt and illegal Witch Hunt, one which will go down as the greatest political crime in history. He can sleep well at night!”
During an exclusive interview with Fox News this week, Stone said he was “praying” for Trump to intervene.
De Blasio allows BLM marches despite ban on mass gatherings
Commentary/Opinion:
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio says the protests are a historic moment of change that must be respected; reaction and analysis on ‘Outnumbered.’
Tucker: Team Biden releases its plan for America
Commentary/Opinion:
What’s their plan? They’d like to make the rest of the country very much like our biggest cities have become: squalid, dangerous, chaotic and unhappy.
Brazen Lying Is Media’s Latest Escalation In Campaign Against Trump
Commentary/Opinion:
This is an escalation by the media in their war against Trump, and one that does not bode well for the republic. You might say that they have always lied about their political opponents, and there is significant truth to that.
But even with their despicable anti-Brett Kavanaugh and Russia collusion hoax campaigns, they endeavored to tie their partisan activism to some fig leaf of news.
People who care about facts and truth must remember to seek out original sources rather than trust mendacious reporters and media outlets.
They must be on guard about the propaganda these outlets will be putting forth in the months to come as they become emboldened.
And they must take every opportunity to renounce the spreading of falsehoods by people who purport to be in a business of reporting facts.
Obama/Biden Block Investigations Into $5.3 Billion Missing | Rudy Giuliani | Ep. 52
Commentary/Opinion:
In this episode of Common Sense, Rudy Giuliani lays out how Ukraine revealed that 5.3 BILLION in foreign aid was unaccounted for.
The Obama/Biden administration blocked any investigation.
This episode is the tip of the iceberg, much more to come.
Virginia governor ceremoniously signs several gun control bills
The gun bills were approved in April and went into effect July 1.
The laws include expanded background checks, red-flag laws and laws that allow localities to impose stricter gun regulations than state and federal laws.
Northam called a special session on gun-control initiatives last July when the Senate and the House still were controlled by Republicans.
The session did not yield any votes, and the lawmakers quickly adjourned. In November, Democrats flipped both chambers from red to blue and passed most of Northam’s initiatives.
House Speaker Eileen Filler-Corn, D-Fairfax, said Republicans had blocked previous attempts for gun control in the committee process, often without a vote.
She credited the Democratic Party’s campaign message on gun laws as a major contributor to the party’s success in last year’s elections.
World News:
France ordered to fight pollution or pay millions in fines
The Council of State’s unusual ruling Friday came after the government failed to fulfill a 2017 order to reduce pollution in accordance with EU rules.
The national French government and local governments have announced multiple anti-pollution measures in recent years, and the Council found they met EU requirements in some regions but were insufficient in eight other regions.
Several environmental groups asked the Council of State to find a way to force the government to act.
In Friday’s ruling, it said the fines were necessary because of the “the importance of respecting EU law, the seriousness of the consequences on public health.”
France: Bus driver dies after ‘attack over face masks’ in Bayonne
Two other men were charged with failing to help a person in danger while a fifth man was charged with attempting to hide a suspect.
Mr Monguillot was set upon after he reportedly asked three of the men to put on face masks and also tried to check another man’s ticket.
Face masks are mandatory on public transport in France.
On Wednesday, thousands of people took part in a protest march in the city.
Regional bus services were severely disrupted as drivers refused to work following the incident.
North Korean Leader’s Sister Says Another US Meeting Isn’t Likely, Wants July 4th DVDs
In a statement via the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Kim said she and her brother sent well-wishes to Trump, but she stipulated that it’s not the right time to have their third meeting.
“It is still my personal opinion, however, I doubt that things like the DPRK-U.S. summit talks would happen this year,” she said, referring to North Korea’s official name.
“But I’m still questioning it. That’s because a surprise thing may still happen, depending upon the judgement and decision between the two top leaders (sic),” according to the agency.
Trump hasn’t yet to request a meeting with Kim.
Commentary/Opinion:
Black America: Before Y’all Sign On to BLM…
Systemic racism is a lie. Blacks are only 13% of the population. Therefore, white America voted for the first black president two times. Oprah is worth $2.6 billion. Can we please stop the systemic racism nonsense?
So there you have it. I have given you several easy to confirm truths to consider before signing on or joining the cheering team of BLM.
Some will still rather believe the 24/7 deceptions, distortions and lies of fake news media.
I believe there is an evil spiritual component attached to such willingness to be deceived. The Bible speaks of those who prefer to believe a lie over the truth. “Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail.” (Jeremiah 7:8)
But then, why should you believe me? I am nothing more than a self-hating, Uncle Tom, black Republican, Conservative, Christian, stupid n* , and a traitor to my race; seated firmly aboard Trump Train 2020.
Are The Police Racist?
Aug 22, 2016:
Are the police racist? Do they disproportionately shoot African-Americans?
Are incidents in places like Ferguson and Baltimore evidence of systemic discrimination?
Heather Mac Donald, a scholar at the Manhattan Institute, explains.