The Supreme Court’s starring role in democracy’s demise
The Boston Globe – September 6, 2020 – Carol Anderson
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/09/07/opinion/supreme-courts-starring-role-democracys-demise/
With democracy hanging in the balance in 2020, the Supreme Court is clearly playing a decisive and destructive role. Unfortunately, we’ve been here before… It will take another mass movement, another Voting Rights Act, and perhaps another constitutional amendment before the unequivocal right to vote is recognized in the United States. What it (and we) can’t take, however, is another seven decades of judicial tomfoolery to make that happen.
Our Long, Forgotten History of Election-Related Violence
The New Yorker – September 6, 2020 – Jelani Cobb
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/09/14/our-long-forgotten-history-of-election-related-violence
The United States is considered one of the most stable democracies in the world, but it has a long, mostly forgotten history of election-related violence. In 1834, during clashes between Whigs and Democrats in Philadelphia, an entire city block was burned to the ground. In 1874, more than five thousand men fought in the streets of New Orleans, in a battle between supporters of Louisiana’s Republican governor, William Kellogg, and of the White League, a group allied with the Democrats. And the nation’s record of overlooking the violent prevention of Black suffrage is much longer than its record of protecting Black voters.
Act now or coronavirus will sentence more prisoners to death, say experts
The Guardian – September 8, 2020 – Jessica Glenza
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/08/coronavirus-prisons-jails-us
Jails and prisons continue to be among the largest clusters of Covid-19 in the United States, and experts believe disease will continue to spread inside them and out into the surrounding community without more concerted containment efforts – chief among them, releasing people from confinement.
Harvest of shame: Farmworkers face coronavirus disaster
Politico – September 8, 2020 – Helena Bottemiller Evich, Ximena Bustillo and Liz Crampton
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/08/farmworkers-coronavirus-disaster-409339
The pandemic’s impact on farmworkers underscores how a worst-case scenario can develop when an essential but extremely vulnerable workforce is ignored. The Trump administration has repeatedly declined to impose mandatory safety requirements for agricultural workplaces. No federal assistance has been designated to help farmers obtain personal protective gear for their laborers, like it has for other essential workers like nurses and police officers… We cannot end this pandemic for our country if we do not end the pandemic in every community,” Ruiz said. “All it takes is one high-risk, vulnerable community without a containment strategy in place, for one outbreak to cause another surge.
Trump Thinks He’ll Be Better Off as Things Get Worse
The Washington Post -September 7, 2020 – Timothy Snyder
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/09/07/trump-thinks-hell-be-better-off-things-get-worse/
It would be a mistake to overestimate Trump’s ethics (non-existent) and to underestimate his political talent (considerable). He beat down the Republican establishment and defeated a favored opponent in 2016. Four years ago, he knowingly took advantage of foreign interference in the campaign. Back then, Americans wondered whether the Russian intervention was about Trump or about chaos. It was about both… The worse, the better: from the Leninists to the Putinists, one tyrannical tactic has remained the same — let people suffer, transform the anger into killing, blame an invisible conspiracy for your own deeds, and then try to pick up the pieces.
Aztec Politics: Trump sacrificed 200K by Downplaying Covid-19 to save the Stock Market from Panic
Informed Comment – September 10, 2020 – Juan Cole
https://www.juancole.com/2020/09/politics-sacrifice-downplaying.html
One old trick of politicians, ever since the rise of modern nationalism, is to identify whatever interest they are trying to promote with “the country.” That is why the political essayist of 18th century Britain, Samuel Johnson, opined that “patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel.” He didn’t mean actual love of country but rather the instrumental use of it for nefarious purposes. In a society like ours, run by and for the super-wealthy, it is the upper echelons of the business classes that are usually meant by “what is good for the country.” The actual country, in which half the households make less than $78,000 a year, is almost never the referent among politicians of the word “country.”… Now, dear reader, you know what the “country” was that Trump did not want to “panic.” It was the 1 percent… The Aztecs practiced ritual human sacrifice in the belief that it would “reverse drought and famine.” Trump and the Republican Party have sacrificed many more in a year than the Aztecs ever dreamed of, not to ward off drought but to ward off a fall in the price of securities.
In Bob Woodward’s ‘Rage,’ a Reporter and a President From Different Universes
The New York Times – September 9, 2020 – Jennifer Szalai
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/09/books/review-rage-donald-trump-bob-woodward.html
The Trump that emerges in “Rage” is impetuous and self-aggrandizing — in other words, immediately recognizable to anyone paying even the minimal amount of attention… The universe that Woodward comes from is where the old-school establishment is still venerated, and where Woodward thinks he can ask a president windy, high-minded questions like “What are your priorities?” and “What’s in your heart?” in the hopes that he’ll get some profound material for his book… What if the real story about the Trump era is less about Trump and more about the people who surround and protect him, standing by him in public even as they denounce him (or talk to Woodward) in private — a tale not of character but of complicity?
Seven reasons to vote every Republican out of office
The Washington Post – September 10, 2020 – Jennifer Rubin
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/09/10/seven-reasons-voting-every-republican-out-office/
We have heard and seen Trump publicly slur American prisoners of war, ridicule commanders as warmongers and enlist the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in a political stunt in which peaceful protesters were forcibly cleared outside the White House. We have heard him publicly call the late Republican senator John McCain a “loser.” We have seen unrebutted reports of Trump’s contempt for military personnel (“suckers,” “babies”) and his aversion to including wounded veterans in a parade. Republicans have supported a commander in chief unfit to lead men and women in uniform… Knowing that the virus was an airborne, deadly disease, he continued to hold rallies without social distancing or a mask requirement. His actions almost certainly contributed to the death toll of 187,000 Americans — tens of thousands of lives might have been saved by prompt, effective leadership. Republicans have indulged his prevarications and still refuse to hold him responsible for the deaths and economic ruin that have occurred on his watch. In short, Republicans have put their own political survival above the lives of Americans.
Hold The Line | A Guide to Defending Democracy
Hold the Line Guied – Hardy Merriman, Ankur Asthana, Marium Navid and Kifah Shah
https://holdthelineguide.com/
The list of potential and real challenges we face is long. Whether it’s cuts to the US Postal Service; malfunctioning voting equipment; voter suppression; misinformation; intimidation at the polls; violence among political supporters; or the President improperly using the powers of the executive branch and possibly refusing to accept defeat; we are witnessing ongoing actions that destroy our democracy bit by bit. We the People need to prepare ourselves to take on these threats swiftly, strategically, and in ways that protect the Constitution and restore accountability. This guide is designed to help people from all walks of life take action to ensure that the election is free and fair, and that the results are respected.
Humans are decimating wildlife, and the pandemic is a sign, report says
The Washington Post – September 10, 2020 – Karin Brulliard
https://www.washingtonpost.com/science/2020/09/10/wildlife-population-plunge/
Humanity’s expansion, consumption and transformation of land and sea have caused wildlife populations to plunge over five decades, signaling a “broken” relationship with nature that helped trigger the global coronavirus pandemic, a report says… World Wildlife Fund officials emphasized one catastrophic consequence of the declines is now before our eyes. The coronavirus pandemic, caused by the sort of “spillover” of a zoonotic virus that is becoming more common as humans expand their footprint, should be viewed as “an SOS signal for the human enterprise,” the report says. The report “provides unequivocal evidence that nature is unraveling and that our planet is flashing red warning signs,” wrote Marco Lambertini, director general of WWF International. “Covid-19 is a clear manifestation of our broken relationship with nature and highlights the deep interconnection between the health of both people and the planet.”
‘Children are going hungry’: Why schools are struggling to feed students
NPR – WHYY – September 8, 2020 – Cory Turner
https://whyy.org/npr_story_post/children-are-going-hungry-why-schools-are-struggling-to-feed-students/
Six months into schools’ pandemic-driven experiment in distance learning, much has been said (and debated) about whether children are learning. But the more urgent question, for the more than 30 million kids who depend on U.S. schools for free or reduced-price meals, is this: Are they eating? The answer, based on recent data and interviews with school nutrition leaders and anti-hunger advocates across the country, is alarming. Among low-income households with children who qualify for free or reduced-price school meals, only about 15% have actually been getting those meals, says Lauren Bauer, a researcher at the Brookings Institution.
Police Encounters During Mental Health Crises Don’t Have to Be Violent
Yes! Magazine – September 10, 2020 – Jennifer Sarrett
https://www.yesmagazine.org/opinion/2020/09/10/police-disability-daniel-prude/
One lesson from the history of American mental health care is that reforming just one problematic aspect of the system doesn’t work. To serve this population’s needs, other institutions—from education to housing—must also be made more flexible, responsive, and accessible. Just as shuttering institutions 60 years ago solved little, simply targeting police responses won’t suffice now, either.
Illegal devices that bypass vehicle emissions controls spread across US
The Guardian – September 9, 2020 – Eli Wolfe and Alexandra Tempus
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/sep/09/auto-car-emissions-defeat-devices-delete-kits
Thousands of tons of pollution spew into the air in the US from devices that proliferate online and in body shops… “The road to hell is often paved with good intentions,” stated one ad for a kit to remove federally required emissions controls from diesel trucks.
Scientists develop low-cost chip to detect presence and quantity of COVID-19 antibodies
Phys.org – September 8, 2020 – Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology
https://phys.org/news/2020-09-scientists-low-cost-chip-presence-quantity.html
Scientists at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST) have developed a rapid, reliable and low-cost antibody test.
Americans want climate change news. Media should give it to them
The Boston Globe – September 10, 2020 – Genevieve Guenther
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/09/10/opinion/americans-want-climate-change-news-media-should-give-it-them/
Perhaps television news producers fear that the American public has no appetite for climate reporting, given the onslaught of news about the COVID-19 pandemic, the Black Lives Matter protests, and the 2020 election. Yet new polling shows that the vast majority of Americans, including majorities of Republicans, actually want journalists to explain the connection between extreme weather and climate change… Television news anchors should mention the links to climate change in their segments on extreme weather — but then they should go further. They should report on the increasingly alarming findings of climate science and the ever more urgent symptoms of our feverish planet. And they, like all journalists, should find and report the links between climate change and stories in energy, politics, business and finance, immigration, real estate, health, travel, food, and even the arts.
The Former Prisoners Fighting California’s Wildfires
The Marshall Project – September 2, 2020 – Christie Thompson
https://www.themarshallproject.org/2020/09/02/the-former-prisoners-fighting-california-s-wildfires
I think there’s an element of redemption that happens when you’re a prisoner firefighter, because you’re getting thanked. Somebody’s calling you a hero. Every time we showed up at a fire and the people there saw us, I’m convinced we changed at least one mind. When people are in need, they don’t give a shit where you’re from or what your history is.
Growing Underwater Heat Blob Is Speeding Demise of Arctic Sea Ice
EcoWatch – September 6, 2020 – Tiffany Duong
https://www.ecowatch.com/arctic-sea-ice-heat-blob-2647460582.html
“There can be little doubt that the vast majority of Earth’s ice loss is a direct consequence of climate warming,” UK scientists from Leeds and Edinburgh universities and University College London researching the massive ice loss wrote in their review paper, The Guardian reported. One study from the University of Copenhagen determined that Arctic sea ice is melting faster than climate models had predicted because they use a “slow and steady” temperature increase model for the Arctic, but warming is actually happening at a more rapid pace, reported Barron’s. The Arctic is warming at least twice as fast as the rest of the globe, a different study found, and this is speeding sea ice loss… The downstream effect of this massive melt would be felt in ways that are still unknown. Previous studies have linked Arctic ice loss to a number of different global phenomena, such as changing ocean currents and extreme weather in California.
Labor Day 2020: The Power Shift
Robert Reich’s Blog – September 8, 2020
https://robertreich.org/post/628633969086382080
No other developed nation has nearly the inequalities of income and wealth found in the U.S., even though all have been exposed to the same forces of globalization and technological change. The three richest people in America have as much wealth as the bottom half of all Americans combined, even as 30 million Americans reported their households didn’t have enough food. American capitalism is off the rails. The main reason is that large corporations, Wall Street banks and a relative handful of exceedingly rich individuals have gained enough political power to game the system… The so-called free market has been taken over by crony capitalism, corporate bailouts and corporate welfare.
The Best and Worst of America – 9/11 and the Immediate Scenario
Justice Initiative – September 11, 2020 – Heather Gray
https://myemail.constantcontact.com/9-11—The-Best-and-Worst-of-America-.html?soid=1109359583686&aid=OgaSydNSw4I
I was there for an agriculture meeting. On that fateful day I met colleagues from Arkansas and South Carolina for a breakfast meeting at the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill. It was to be the start of a day-long session on sustainable agriculture with agriculture advocates and members of Congress. As we walked into Rayburn on the morning of 9/11 our world was transformed. It was a time when the best and worst in America rose to the surface.
Trump Threatens Schools Teaching People’s History
Zinn Education Project – September 8, 2020
https://www.zinnedproject.org/news/trump-threatens-peoples-history/
Last week, the Trump administration ordered government agencies to cancel spending on “un-American propaganda training sessions.” According to the memo that outlined the order, these un-American trainings can be identified by their inclusion of “critical race theory” or “white privilege,” or if they teach that “the United States is an inherently racist or evil country.” This Orwellian order was followed up the next day by the president (once again) tweeting angrily about The 1619 Project — this time because he got word that schools are incorporating the Project into course curricula. The struggle to define the past — and specifically the history of white supremacy in the United States — is not new. In his groundbreaking Black Reconstruction, W. E. B. Du Bois wrote of the “propaganda of history,” where truth was sacrificed to “the defense of white men” and to “buttress a lie.” The stakes, wrote Du Bois, could not be higher: “to establish Truth, on which Right in the future may be built.”… We are in the midst of an ongoing rebellion against white supremacy, a pandemic that disproportionately hurts people of color, and devastating weather events caused by the elites’ unchecked exploitation of the Earth (including its peoples). Now is no time to back down from teaching the truth. As Du Bois wrote, our future depends on it.
As West burns, green groups want climate change to be central to presidential debates
The Washington Post – September 11, 2020 – Dino Grandoni
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/09/11/energy-202-west-burns-green-groups-want-climate-change-be-central-presidential-debates/
A growing number of environmentally minded lawmakers and activists are calling on moderators to ask something — anything — about climate change during the presidential debates. The steady rise in global temperatures was almost entirely ignored during the televised debates between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton four years ago — and they do not want a repeat of that situation in 2020. The climate issue, they say, is more important than ever this year given the raging wildfires out West and the intense hurricane season in the Atlantic. “I’m not saying that the debates should only be about this or that they should primarily be about this,” said Rep. Mike Levin (D-Calif.). “What I am saying is: Don’t forget to talk about it,” the freshman lawmaker said over the phone from his home in Orange County, where he said nearby blazes turned the skies a dull orange earlier this week. “Because it’s no longer an issue that’s looming in the distance. It’s here. All I have to do is look out the window and see the threat.”
Previewing Next Week’s Census Bureau Data on Poverty, Income, and Health Insurance
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities – September 11, 2020 – Arloc Sherman and Matt Broaddus
https://www.cbpp.org/research/poverty-and-inequality/previewing-next-weeks-census-bureau-data-on-poverty-income-and
Next Tuesday’s release of Census Bureau data on health insurance, poverty, and income for 2019 will provide a record of conditions in the United States before the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting recession hit. Needless to say, those data will bear little resemblance to conditions today. Four points are worth noting in advance of the release of these data… Since the March 13, 2020 declaration of a national coronavirus emergency, however, much has changed.
Food Need Very High Compared to Pre-Pandemic Levels, Making Relief Imperative
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities – September 10, 2020 – Brynne Keith-Jennings
https://www.cbpp.org/blog/food-need-very-high-compared-to-pre-pandemic-levels-making-relief-imperative
Food insecurity has long been a problem for too many people, but extraordinarily high levels of need in the last several months have more than erased recent years’ slow, post-Great Recession gains. The number of families having difficulty affording food has exploded during COVID-19.
White Supremacists Are Invading American Cities To Incite a Civil War
Portside – September 3, 2020 – David Atkins
https://www.portside.org/2020-09-03/white-supremacists-are-invading-american-cities-incite-civil-war
Trump’s election theme is that Americans won’t be safe in a Biden presidency. The opposite is true. Americans won’t be safe as long as a white supremacist president is leading a movement of bigots to incite a civil war, and attempting to ensure that the majority of Americans with cosmopolitan, egalitarian values remain politically disenfranchised and under the thumb of those who fear and despise them.
Is Trump Planning a Coup d’État?
Portside – The Nation – September 10, 2020 – Sasha Abramsky
https://www.portside.org/2020-09-10/trump-planning-coup-detat
Democracies survive when all major players respect the ground rules. They crumble when significant players start to flout those rules—and get away with it. Gerson has concluded that Trump is only too willing to circumvent Supreme Court decisions, is perfectly capable of issuing illegal orders to the military to attack domestic political opponents, and would likely show no compunction in ignoring an election result that doesn’t go his way. Each time he’s gotten away with crashing through a democratic constraint, his ambitions have escalated. During the impeachment hearings, Trump’s lawyers argued that as president, he was above and outside the law. Postimpeachment, he has sought to implement this theory of governance.