#but the mask mandates are still currently law even if those of us who are vaccinated could technically be safe without em | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

dontmeantobepoliticalbut · 3 years

Text

President Joe Biden on Thursday announced a number of new steps his administration will take to try to get more Americans vaccinated and slow the spread of coronavirus, including requiring that all federal employees must attest to being vaccinated against Covid-19 or face strict protocols.

The new measures come amid a rise in Covid-19 hospitalizations and deaths in the US. The vast majority of those individuals with severe cases of Covid-19 are unvaccinated.

"This is an American tragedy. People are dying -- and will die -- who don't have to die. If you're out there unvaccinated, you don't have to die," Biden said during remarks at the White House. "Read the news. You'll see stories of unvaccinated patients in hospitals, as they're lying in bed dying from Covid-19, they're asking, 'Doc, can I get the vaccine?' The doctors have to say, 'Sorry, it's too late.'"

In his sternest approach yet to pushing Americans to get vaccinated, the President bluntly argued that if you are unvaccinated, "You present a problem to yourself, to your family and to those with whom you work."

Biden said every federal government employee and on-site contractor will be asked to attest to their vaccination status.

Employees who have not been vaccinated "will be required to wear a mask on the job no matter their geographic location, physically distance from all other employees and visitors, comply with a weekly or twice weekly screening testing requirement, and be subject to restrictions on official travel," the White House said ahead of Biden's speech.

The federal employee vaccination requirement is not a mandate, officials have insisted, and most federal employees who do not get vaccinated will not lose their jobs as a result, CNN previously reported.

But the decision nonetheless marks a pivot away from encouraging Americans to get vaccinated in their own time and stepping toward placing the onus on unvaccinated individuals.

Other efforts the administration debuted Thursday to incentivize vaccinations included expanding paid leave for employees who take time off to get themselves and their family members vaccinated. Biden said employers would be reimbursed. He also called on states, territories, and local governments to do more to incentivize vaccination, including offering $100 to Americans getting vaccinated, paid for with American Rescue Plan funding.

"I know that paying people to get vaccinated might sound unfair to folks who got vaccinated already. But here's the deal: if incentives help us beat this virus, I believe we should use them. We all benefit," Biden said.

The President also announced that he is ordering the Department of Defense "to look into how and when they will add Covid-19 to the list of vaccinations our Armed Forces must get."

"Our men and women in uniform, who protect this country from grave threats, should be protected as much as possible from getting Covid-19," he said. "I think this is particularly important because our troops serve in places throughout the world, many where vaccination rates are low and disease is prevalent," Biden added.

All military and civilian Defense Department personnel will be asked to attest to their vaccination status, the department said Thursday evening. Those unable or unwilling to do so will "be required to wear a mask, physically distance, comply with a regular testing requirement and be subject to official travel restrictions," Jamal Brown, deputy Pentagon press secretary, said in a statement.

The department is also considering adding the Covid vaccine to the list of required vaccines for military personnel.

"Secretary (of Defense Lloyd) Austin will begin consulting our medical professionals, as well as the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to determine how and when to make recommendations to the President with respect to adding the COVID-19 vaccines to the full list of requirements for military personnel," Brown said.

The President on Thursday also called on school districts nationwide to host at least one pop-up vaccination clinic over the coming weeks in an effort to get more kids 12 and older vaccinated.

Responding to reporter questions after his remarks, the President said he didn't know yet whether the federal government had the power to require vaccines. "It's still a question whether the federal government can mandate the whole country" require vaccines, he said, adding that he expects the vaccines will be fully approved by the US Food and Drug Administration by the fall.

But soon after the President's speech, White House Covid-19 Response Coordinator Jeff Zients told CNN's Wolf Blitzer the administration is not considering a nationwide Covid-19 vaccine requirement.

"That's not an authority that we're exploring at all," Zients said on "The Situation Room."

On Monday, the Justice Department determined that federal law doesn't prohibit public agencies and private businesses from requiring Covid-19 vaccines -- even if the vaccines have only emergency use authorization so far. Biden's aides had previously said they do not believe he has the power to require all Americans to get shots. But his oversight of the federal workforce, they believed, can be a powerful model to other employers considering their options on requiring vaccines.

But several groups representing federal workers across the government are already raising concerns about the requirement for their personnel, including groups representing federal law enforcement officers, IRS managers and members of the US Border Patrol, among others.

Other groups, like the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, have come out in support.

The goal of the requirement, Biden aides have said, is to render being unvaccinated so burdensome that those who haven't received shots will have little choice other than to get them. It's an approach being tested by leaders in Europe, including French President Emmanuel Macron, who required either proof of vaccination or a negative test at public venues. And some states, including New York, have also said government employees must either prove they've been vaccinated or be tested weekly.

The White House had previously indicated it would support private companies' decisions to mandate Covid-19 vaccinations, but Biden took it a step further on Thursday, saying that he'd like to see companies, states and schools move in the direction of requiring Covid-19 vaccination.

Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the CDC, said Wednesday on CNN that health passes for the fully vaccinated, such as those used in parts of Europe, "may very well be a path forward."

But the President appeared to put that responsibility on businesses -- not the federal government -- on Thursday.

"My guess is that if we don't start to make more progress, a lot of businesses and a lot of enterprises are going to require proof (of vaccination) or you're not going to be able to participate," Biden said.

The prevalence of the highly contagious Delta variant in the US and low vaccine uptake have led to the federal government to take a number of steps to further mitigate the spread of Covid-19.

Zients told Blitzer that the FDA is certain that Americans don't need boosters right now, but it will continue to monitor the data.

"If they do decide that Americans need boosters, we are ready," he said. "We have the supply, and people will be able to get a booster shot -- if it's needed -- in a fast and efficient manner."

Earlier this week, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended everyone -- including vaccinated individuals -- wear masks indoors in areas of substantial or high Covid-19 transmission. The agency also recommended masks for all K-12 children in schools, even those who have been vaccinated.

The Department of Veterans Affairs also recently announced it would require frontline health care workers to be vaccinated over the course of the next two months.

During his remarks on Thursday, Biden acknowledged frustrations over the nation's slow bounce back and the renewal of restrictions.

"We have the right plan. We're coming back. We just have to stay ahead of this virus," Biden said. "I know this is hard to hear. I know it's frustrating. I know it's exhausting to think that we're still in this fight. And I know that we hoped this would be a simple, straightforward line without problems or new challenges. But that isn't real life. (We're) coming out of the worst public health crisis in 100 years. The worst economic crisis since the Great Depression."

The latest data from the CDC indicates that 49.4% of the total US population is fully vaccinated. And despite a previous downward slope in the pace of vaccinations, 389,963 people are now initiating vaccination each day, according to the current seven day average.

This is the highest it's been in more than three weeks, but it's still lower than the pace set by millions who were receiving shots every day earlier this year.

30 notes · View notes

route22ny · 3 years

Link

Politicians and pundits often like to compare the COVID-19 pandemic to a war. Nothing in most of our lifetimes has had the society-changing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic — and this kind of feels like the way that our parents say their parents described the Great Depression or World War II.

But World War II ended in a singular moment. Treaties were signed and people rushed into the streets in jubilation. The COVID-19 pandemic, which has plagued our lives for the last 14 months, won't end in a singular moment. There'll be no major "pandemic peace treaty," no all-out party. Perhaps, at best, there'll be a bunch of little ones. And that forces us to ask: How will this end?

The virus isn't going to disappear.

Our vaccines are incredibly safe and effective. For those who are vaccinated, they are a ticket back to "normal" life. Indeed, though rushed and poorly messaged, the CDC's guidance allowing vaccinated people to go unmasked both indoors and outdoors is based in strong science. Evidence has demonstrated that the risk of serious infection in the real world is astoundingly low, and that the viral load in the nasopharynx of vaccinated people is lower — likely explaining the reduced risk of transmission.

Yet, some people aren't getting vaccinated. And worse, the distribution of vaccinations isn't even. If, for example, unvaccinated people were evenly distributed in the population, the probability that they would be exposed to the virus if 70% of eligible people were vaccinated would be quite low. After all, 70% of the people around them would be vaccinated and therefore far less likely to pass the virus on. That's how herd — or community — immunity works. The problem though is that just like the virus itself, the behavioral scourge of vaccine rejection spreads from person to person in localized communities. So those who are unvaccinated are more likely to live among others who are unvaccinated, increasing their collective probability of infecting each other.

The likely scenario is that while communities with high vaccine uptake will get to a point where outbreaks are small, self-delimited, and rare — other communities that remain poorly vaccinated will continue to experience larger, more common, and more deadly outbreaks. And the virus will remain a looming concern in the U.S.

The other issue is viral evolution. New seasonal variants will likely spread among us every fall and winter akin to seasonal flu, which kills tens of thousands of Americans every year. Some COVID seasons will be milder, some far deadlier. And just like the flu, we'll likely need annual boosters against it.

Some things change.

But the virus isn't the pandemic's only ingredient — just the foundational one. For people who never got sick, COVID-19 still changed their lives. There is, of course, no singular pandemic experience. For millions of low-income "essential" workers, the pandemic meant fearing every day that you might be infected at work, or worse, bring the virus home with you to infect someone you love. For millions of healthcare workers, the pandemic meant watching your patients die without their loved ones as you struggled to manage the overflow. For others privileged enough to work from home, the pandemic meant endless days of Zoom calls while your kids tried to learn across from you at the dinner table.

As I wrote previously, work from home is going to be a much more common feature of American life. Small businesses, major corporations, and even some government agencies have found that their workers are surprisingly productive from home — and have reconsidered plans to come "back" to work in the office. And workers themselves have found they like using their own bathroom and eating out of their own fridge at lunch.

Indeed, as many workplaces begin to plan to come back to the offices, workers are pushing back. After Apple CEO Tim Cook sent a note to Apple employees requiring them to be back in the office on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays beginning in September, Apple employees circulated a letter in response:

"We ask for your support in enabling those who want to work remotely / in location-flexible ways to continue to do so, letting everyone figure out which work setup works best for them, their team, and their role — be it in one of our offices, from home, or a hybrid solution. We are living proof that there is no one-size-fits-all policy for people. For Inclusion and Diversity to work, we have to recognize how different we all are, and with those differences, come different needs and different ways to thrive. We feel that Apple has both the responsibility to recognize these differences, as well as the capability to fully embrace them. Officially enabling individual management chains and individual teams to make decisions that work best for their teams roles, individuals, and needs — and having that be the official stated policy rather than the rare individual exceptions — would alleviate the concerns and reservations many of us currently have."

Other companies, like Dropbox, have preempted this demand simply by offering work from home options permanently.

Beyond employee preference, companies attempting to go back to a brick-and-mortar office space will face the question of risk tolerance. As we well know, some eschewed any sort of pandemic protection — be it a mask or a vaccine — from the jump. Others, despite being fully vaccinated, remain hesitant to share enclosed space. How to navigate lower risk tolerances remains a serious challenge. Part of making workplaces safe may mean mandating vaccines, which has prompted serious pushback in the courts of law and public opinion by anti-vaxxer activists who want to use the pandemic as another line of attack. Navigating these challenges is, in part, what is pushing more and more employers to offer alternative working arrangements. Needless to say, some alterations to working conditions because of the pandemic are likely here to stay.

Other things stay the same (again).

Some pandemic experiences were universal. For children, the pandemic has been a catastrophe. Not only has learning lagged, but children have been robbed of valuable socialization and milestones. Indeed, the consequences have been far worse for poorer students, disproportionately children of color, for whom access to quality WiFi and reliable computers are limited. All indications suggest that kids will be back to school in the fall as vaccinations among teachers and students press on.

Access to other people and the venues in which we enjoyed their company was limited if available at all. Restaurants, concert venues, theme parks, theaters — even stores and shopping malls — had limited access.

But that's changing. Prompted by the CDC's new guidelines for vaccinated people, many of these venues have rushed to reopen, and Americans are slowly but surely taking advantage. Flight traffic is increasing. Last week, LAX, one of the country's busiest airports, logged a 2021 record. And businesses can't hire people fast enough to accommodate their needs.

Though worries about COVID-19 exposure — particularly for children who cannot yet be vaccinated — persist. Yet as cases continue to fall, and vaccines are approved for younger and younger children, these, too, will subside.

The doomsday scenario.

But there remains a possibility that experiences of the pandemic we haven't had since last fall come crashing back. Cases climb, hospitals fill up, and thousands more Americans die. And that's a resistant strain.

We've now identified several variants of the virus that are more transmissible, and some more deadly, than the original garden-variety ("wild type") virus we experienced through most of 2020. Thankfully none of them have fully evaded our vaccine-mediated immunity. Yet.

Every single unvaccinated person presents an evolutionary opportunity for the virus. And even as the U.S. and other high-income countries approach a virus-stifling level of vaccination, the rest of the world continues to lag. Some countries have yet to get their first vaccines. New variants with frightening capabilities continue to emerge in these countries. Indeed, last week a new variant with aspects of the Alpha variant and the Delta variant emerged in Vietnam. So even as vaccine manufacturers roll out boosters to protect against the growing plethora of new variants, a doomsday scenario, where a more transmissible, lethal variant evolves, becomes more likely.

And so, we can't take for granted that this is a truly global pandemic. And until the rest of the world receives what they need to "end" this pandemic, we won't see our end either.

***

Dr. Abdul El-Sayed is a physician, epidemiologist, public health expert, and progressive activist who served as Detroit's health director and ran for governor in 2018. He is the author of Healing Politics: A Doctor's Journey Into the Heart of Our Political Epidemic and Medicare for All: A Citizen's Guide, as well as the newsletter The Incision. Get more at incision.substack.com.

#covid-19 pandemic #coronavirus vaccination #delta variant #public health #abdul el-sayid

21 notes · View notes

atheistforhumanity · 4 years

Text

Secret Police in America

We have been saying that Trump is a dangerous figure that does not respect democracy from day one, and now we face the worst possible threat. This of course ties closely to the militarization of police, which the right wing has been working on for years. In this post I’m going to break down secret police and how they exist right now. There is a lot to unpack here, so I’m going to break this up into a short Q and A style.

What are secret police?

What makes a security for secret, and separate from normal police, is chiefly the lack of identity. These actors wear masks, carry no identification, will not respond to questions, and will never be identified to the public. They also will not be identified to local police authorities. This means the public has zero ability to hold them accountable for abuse or misconduct. Secret police are also characterized by lack of oversight. The public usually has no information on who these people take their orders from.

Why are secret police bad?

The number one reason is that these parties act outside of the scope of the law. That sounds strange, because it’s hard to imagine law enforcement being illegal. However, the key difference is that normal police operate on rules and regulations that have requirements for action, but secret police act solely on whim and have no clear requirements to justify them taking action (more on that further down). Secret police have only ever been maintained in authoritarian/fascist states. It is impossible for a secret police force to be maintained within a true democracy. The reason for this being that democracies are based on the concept of public accountability over government and representative action. Secret police are literally the opposite of this model. Furthermore, the motivation and purpose of secret police is completely anti-democratic. Secret police have never existed to maintain law and order. They are purely enforcers of a leader’s political agenda and meant to strike fear into those who decent. This is why we see them pop up during a major protest and why Trump has threatened to send them to other cities “run by liberal democrats.” Historically, we can clearly see that a leader uses secret police when their policies and actions are in extreme opposition to the people and there is heavy political resistance. These leaders have given up on winning politically or maintaining order and protecting civil rights. They choose control over human rights and democracy.

Are secret police legal?

Secret police generally start out as an illegal force that violates it’s citizen’s rights and later becomes legalized when an authoritarian gains more power. The secret police’s actions in America are 100% illegal and their very creation is is anti-democratic. Their actions are illegal because they violate the 4th Amendment, which prevents law enforcement from making seizures without probable cause or warrants. Trump’s legal defense of them right now is that they are operating under the rule that can “arrest” anyone if they believe that a felony has happened or will take place. The key here is that they do not require probable cause, only the suspicion of a crime. Also, the Trump admin has stripped away the proviso for this group that their actions cannot be solely on First Amendment activity. This literally means these men are being told they can “arrest” people for protesting. This, of course, is completely illegal. This is why none of the representatives of the people of Portland or Oregon want these forces in their city or state.

How did Trump create this secret police force?

The how of this is intertwined with the militarization of police forces. It was ten years ago when I first protested police militarization online and on my college campus. Now we are facing the worst case of police militarization. The core of this creation has to do with the DHS. Over the course of Trump’s presidency, he has fired or pushed out every single Presidential appointed leader in the DHS. As he usually does with other institutions, he only partially filled the gaps and with inexperienced loyalists. The agency has been acting with a shortage of leadership and a lack of oversight for some time now. Trump has made use of this and altered the already broad purview of the DHS to create his Domestic Security Force, or secret police. This secret police force is made up of DHS agents, CBP officers, and DEA agents. Trump also altered the mandates of the DEA to allow them supplement other law enforcement and conduct covert surveillance. This is particularly concerning, because the language used makes it sound if the DEA is combatting some terrorist or drug cartel force, but in actuality the subjects in these new mandates are the American people. Customs and Border Patrol agents have been pulled into this because of Trump’s political ties to the agency and their support for him. In the past, Trump has ordered CBP officers to break the law and turn back asylum seekers, and even said he would use his pardon power to protect them. This is not the only time Trump has urged illegal behavior and promised pardons. He, of course, has pardoned several criminals already.

So now we have a mixture of DHS, CBP, and DEA agents in non-identifying military fatigues snatching up citizens off the streets without any clear indication a law has been broken, and not going through any of the law enforcement regulations, such as reading of rights, official declaration of arrest, use of warrants, and observing constitutional rights.

What Comes Next? What is being done?

The ACLU if fighting a legal battle for our democracy. They are suing the federal agents and trying to argue their legality. All of this happens as Democrats are about to reveal their sweeping bill on police reform, in reaction to protests around the country. This bill, however, will not directly effect the secret police situation. For that we need congressional action. What our representatives are doing right is arguing. They are currently locked in debate about the legality of the secret police and about money. Earlier in the year, funding for several agencies connected to domestic security ended, and now congress is trying to decide who should be refunded and how much they should receive. The main argument circles around the DHS, which is the main body of the secret police force. Shockingly, our representatives are failing us in dramatic fashion. There is no consensus rejecting the secret police or against further funding them. If more funding is given to the DHS and other agencies then that will mean Trump gains that much more resources for his secret police force, if something is not done. Furthermore, congress is currently debating giving the DHS powers vastly expand their powers of surveillance and use dragnet tactics with computer data. Basically, this would mean they would track internet activity for anyone in favor of protests and then use these secret police to “arrest” them. It is as scary as it sounds, and people like myself would come under danger.

What Can You Do?

This is a very critical time because our representatives are about to make decisions that could reign in this illegal power or could strengthen it. They will be making this decision with a presidential election coming up in mere months. The best thing everyone can do is call their house representative and tell them how passionately you are against the creation of this police force and make it clear their decision will effect your vote in November. That’s the power of Democracy, and it’s still the best weapon we have!

Thank you for reading. If you have any questions just ask.

#us politics #secret police #portland #police brutality #law enforcement #fascism #Trump #democracy #liberal #progressive #take action

144 notes · View notes

didanawisgi · 2 years

Text

🚨🚨🚨 If anyone needs a vaccine mandate objection letter, this is a template for anyone to use…🚨🚨🚨

Employer Letter Example: Vaccine Mandate Objection

No authorship claim or copyright asserted...A letter that also came to me via a route like a letter in a bottle.

Dear Boss,

First, I request a religious exemption. "Each of the manufactures of the Covid vaccines currently available developed and confirmed their vaccines using fetal cell lines, which originated from aborted fetuses. ( https://lozierinstitute.org/an-ethics-assessment-of-covid-19-vaccine-programs/ ) For example, each of the currently available Covid vaccines confirmed their vaccine by protein testing using the abortion-derived cell line HEK-293. ( https://lozierinstitute.org/an-ethics-assessment-of-covid-19-vaccine-programs/ ) Partaking in a vaccine made from aborted fetuses makes me complicit in an action that offends my religious faith. As such, I cannot, in good conscience and in accord with my religious faith, take any such Covid vaccine at this time. In addition, any coerced medical treatment goes against my religious faith and the right of conscience to control one’s own medical treatment, free of coercion or force. Please provide a reasonable accommodation to my belief, as I wish to continue to be a good employee, helpful to the team.

Equally, compelling any employee to take any current Covid-19 vaccine violates federal and state law, and subjects the employer to substantial liability risk, including liability for any injury the employee may suffer from the vaccine. Many employers have reconsidered issuing such a mandate after more fruitful review with legal counsel, insurance providers, and public opinion advisors of the desires of employees and the consuming public. Even the Kaiser Foundation warned of the legal risk in this respect. (https://www.kff.org/coronavirus-covid-19/issue-brief/key-questions-about-covid-19-vaccine-mandates/)

Three key concerns: first, informed consent is the guiding light of all medicine, in accord with the Nuremberg Code of 1947; second, the Americans with Disabilities Act proscribes, punishes and penalizes employers who invasively inquire into their employees' medical status and then treat those employees differently based on their perceived medical status, as the many AIDS related cases of decades ago fully attest; and third, international law, Constitutional law, specific statutes and the common law of torts all forbid conditioning access to employment, education or public accommodations upon coerced, invasive medical examinations and treatment, unless the employer can fully provide objective, scientifically validated evidence of the threat from the employee and how no practicable alternative could possible suffice to mitigate such supposed public health threat and still perform the necessary essentials of employment. As one federal court just recently held, the availability of reasonable accommodations like accounting for prior infection, antibody testing, temperature checks, remote work, other forms of testing, and the like suffice to meet any institution’s needs in lieu of masks, public shaming, and forced injections of foreign substances into the body that the FDA admits we do not know the long -term effects of.

For instance, the symptomatic can be self-isolated. Hence, requiring vaccinations only addresses one risk: dangerous or deadly transmission, by the asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic employee, in the employment setting. Yet even government official Mr. Fauci admits, as scientific studies affirm, asymptomatic transmission is exceedingly and "very rare." Indeed, initial data suggests the vaccinated are just as, or even much more, likely to transmit the virus as the asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic. Hence, the vaccine solves nothing. This evidentiary limitation on any employer's decision making, aside from the legal and insurance risks of forcing vaccinations as a term of employment without any accommodation or even exception for the previously infected (and thus better protected), is the reason most employers wisely refuse to mandate the vaccine. This doesn't even address the arbitrary self-limitation of the pool of talent for the employer: why reduce your own talent pool, when many who refuse invasive inquiries or risky treatment may be amongst your most effective, efficient and profitable employees?

This right to refuse forced injections, such as the Covid-19 vaccine, implements the internationally agreed legal requirement of Informed Consent established in the Nuremberg Code of 1947. (http://www.cirp.org/library/ethics/nuremberg/ ). As the Nuremberg Code established, every person must "be able to exercise free power of choice, without the intervention of any element of force, fraud, deceit, duress, overreaching, or other ulterior form of constraint or coercion; and should have sufficient knowledge and comprehension of the elements of the subject matter involved as to enable him to make an understanding and enlightened decision" for any medical experimental drug, as the Covid-19 vaccine currently is.

Second, demanding employees divulge their personal medical information invades their protected right to privacy, and discriminates against them based on their perceived medical status, in contravention of the Americans with Disabilities Act. (42 USC §12112(a).) Indeed, the ADA prohibits employers from invasive inquiries about their medical status, and that includes questions about diseases and treatments for those diseases, such as vaccines. As the EEOC makes clear, an employer can only ask medical information if the employer can prove the medical information is both job-related and necessary for the business. (https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/questions-and-answers-enforcement-guidance-disability-related-inquiries-and-medical). An employer that treats an individual employee differently based on that employer’s belief the employee’s medical condition impairs the employee is discriminating against that employee based on perceived medical status disability, in contravention of the ADA. The employer must have proof that the employer cannot keep the employee, even with reasonable accommodations, before any adverse action can be taken against the employee. If the employer asserts the employee’s medical status (such as being unvaccinated against a particular disease) precludes employment, then the employer must prove that the employee poses a “safety hazard” that cannot be reduced with a reasonable accommodation. The employer must prove, with objective, scientifically validated evidence, that the employee poses a materially enhanced risk of serious harm that no reasonable accommodation could mitigate. This requires the employee's medical status cause a substantial risk of serious harm, a risk that cannot be reduced by any another means. This is a high, and difficult burden, for employers to meet. Just look at the all prior cases concerning HIV and AIDS, when employers discriminated against employees based on their perceived dangerousness, and ended up paying millions in legal fees, damages and fines.

Third, conditioning continued employment upon participating in a medical experiment and demanding disclosure of private, personal medical information, may also create employer liability under other federal and state laws, including HIPAA, FMLA, and applicable state tort law principles, including torts prohibiting and proscribing invasions of privacy and battery. Indeed, any employer mandating a vaccine is liable to their employee for any adverse event suffered by that employee. The CDC records reports of the adverse events already reported to date concerning the current Covid-19 vaccine.(https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/safety/vaers.html )

Finally, forced vaccines constitute a form of battery, and the Supreme Court long made clear "no right is more sacred than the right of every individual to the control of their own person, free from all restraint or interference of others." (https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/141/250)

With Regards,

Employee of the Year,

Thomas Paine

#covid-19 vaccine #religious exemption

2 notes · View notes

rantsandravings · 3 years

Text

Anti-Vax Reasoning

The most common arguments I hear from anti-vaxxers are that they don't trust that the vaccine is safe, that the severity of COVID-19 is just a hoax used to make us all submit to government crackdown and lose our freedoms, or my personal favorite: that the government is putting something in the vaccines to track us... as if they can't do that with our cellphones already.

To those afraid of losing their freedoms because businesses are requiring masks or vaccines for entry, I ask: do you also feel your freedoms are being squashed by the requirement to wear pants in a public establishment? After all, pants don't actually serve a health purpose the way masks do; they're simply required because of societal norms about presentability. Aren't you mad that these places are "forcing" you to wear trousers for no good reason? Doesn't it piss you off that the government has actually made laws against public nudity, limiting your freedom to live as you were born to? Or are you totally okay with pants being required just for "decency" ...but being asked to wear a mask for 15min inside of a store so that you don't accidentally infect other people with a deadly disease is crossing the line?

When it comes to vaccination requirements, they're nothing new. In fact, public schools helped eradicate smallpox in the U.S. by requiring students to be vaccinated. Schools currently require a number of vaccines for attendance and have done so since the late 1800s, so tacking on the COVID-19 vaccine to the list doesn't take away any more freedom than is already taken away by requiring the polio, measles, tetanus, pertussis, and other vaccines.

In 1905, the Supreme Court of the United States sided with Massachusetts in Jacobson v. Massachusetts and then upheld the ruling years later in the 1922 case Zucht v. King, stating that "it is within the police power of a state to provide for compulsory vaccination." So even though it's only schools, private businesses, and large venues for concerts and sporting events enacting vaccine requirements at the moment, it is completely legal for a city or state to require vaccination and impose a fine on those who refuse.

When you live in a society as a part of a community, you have an obligation to that community. Requiring vaccines or masks does not take away your individual freedom (you can still choose not to go to those places), but it does protect the rest of your community members. I think Americans revere individualism so much that we forget that our actions can also affect those around us. That's why you're not allowed to park your car in the middle of the street or burn garbage in your backyard or throw toxic waste in the river: those acts affect more than just you. The mask and vaccine mandates aren't there to force you to protect yourself, they're there to protect those around you.

The best argument I've heard against getting the COVID-19 vaccine is that people think it's unsafe. Granted, there's tons of evidence to the contrary. But given the fact that the U.S. government has forcibly sterilized black women, performed experiments on the LGBTQ community, and committed other atrocious acts against marginalized groups, I can understand some hesitancy among marginalized communities. However, this isn't a shot being forced on you in a prison cell or mental institution, and you're not being given the shot by government employees. The COVID-19 shots are administered by health professionals at your local convenience store or shopping center, and they're not trying to harm you.

If safety is your greatest concern, the vaccine is your best bet as it is the only effective treatment we have for combating COVID-19. Regardless of how you feel about getting the vaccine, please don't turn to ivermectin, hydroxychloroquine, oleandrin, bleach, or any other internet remedy you find to cure yourself. That is the exact opposite of pursuing safety.

The contents of the vaccines are safe and the vaccines have undergone numerous trials to determine their effectiveness and certify their safety. For those awaiting full FDA approval, you'll only have to wait a couple more days.

#covid vaccine #covid-19 #safety #vaccine safety #Ivermectin #hydroxychloroquine #covid-19 treatments #misinformation #antivaccine

2 notes · View notes

laele25 · 3 years

Text

I hate September 11th

I don’t live anywhere near NYC nor have I been further east than Indianapolis in my entire 45 years of life. But I still remember that day. Remember the news programs repeatedly showing those damn planes hit those towers. Repeatedly showing the towers collapsed. Repeatedly showed us the dust clogged streets and telling us about all the lives lost. Showing us the wreckage in Pennsylvania and one entire side of the Pentagon just gone. Showing people wandering around wounded, lost, and covered in dust or looking for lost loved ones. If you were old enough to remember that day, those images are burned into your memory. The news made sure they were inescapable and we were all repeatedly traumatized by them for months afterwards. I don’t need to see them again, I haven’t forgotten. How could any of us ever forget? What they never show is the 900,000 people killed over the last 20 years in the name of the ‘war on terror’. They don’t showed the 38 million people displaced. They don’t show the American Muslims (and brown Americans who looked Middle Eastern enough for racists) who were harassed, threatened, and ostracized for something they had nothing to do with. They don’t show the victims of white supremacists who cite fear of ‘Sharia Law’ and terrorists as reasons to attack innocent people. They barely talk about about the soldiers killed and wounded and traumatized in the forever wars. Now it’s the 20th Anniversary and all the fake patriots are going to try to use it as an excuse to go back to Afghanistan and Iraq and wherever else they think are brown people who hate us and have oil to bomb again. Or whatever else they want to bleat as they piss on the lives sacrificed for Americans to have the illusion of national security. At the expense of our own personal freedoms. You don’t hear these anti-maskers bitching about the TSA, the department of Homeland Security spying on people. Now they’re demanding people’s social security numbers and social media information if they’re even questioned by the police. Those are apparently not government overreach, but mask mandates so a 9/11′s worth of Americans don’t die every damn day of a preventable disease is. 9/11 is done. It’s been 20 years. We’ve lived in fear for no reason for 20 years and destroyed so many lived and nations and wasted so much money trying to make ourselves feel better about it. And considering the current crisis, I don’t even want to fucking hear the words. I have nothing but sympathy for the people who were directly affected by the attacks. But they are not the ones waving the flag and talking about remembering when they really mean ‘kill all the Muslims because of this’. I hope today is a day where the people who lost loved ones can remember them fondly today. They deserve that. This day is for them and them alone in my opinion. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I am going to avoid all news and social media for today because if I actually have to watch those planes crash into that building and think about all the suffering since then, I may actually break something.

1 note · View note

dreaminginthedeepsouth · 3 years

Link

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

July 29, 2021

Heather Cox Richardson

The ripples of the explosive testimony of the four police officers Tuesday before the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol continue to spread. Committee members are meeting this week to decide how they will proceed. Congress goes on recess during August, but committee chair Bennie Thompson (D-MS) suggested the committee would, in fact, continue to meet during that break.

Committee members are considering subpoenas to compel the testimony of certain lawmakers, especially since the Department of Justice on Tuesday announced that it would not assert executive privilege to stop members of the Trump administration from testifying to Congress about Trump’s role in the January 6 insurrection. This is a change from the Trump years, when the Department of Justice refused to acknowledge Congress’s authority to investigate the executive branch. This new directive reasserts the traditional boundaries between the two branches, saying that Congress can require testimony and administration officials can give it.

Further, the Department of Justice yesterday rejected the idea that it should defend Congress members involved in the January 6 insurrection. Representative Eric Swalwell (D-CA) sued Alabama Representative Mo Brooks, as well as the former president and Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani, for lying about the election, inciting a mob, and inflicting pain and distress.

Famously, Brooks participated in the rally before the insurrection, telling the audience: “[W]e are not going to let the Socialists rip the heart out of our country. We are not going to let them continue to corrupt our elections, and steal from us our God-given right to control our nation’s destiny.” “Today,” he said, “Republican Senators and Congressmen will either vote to turn America into a godless, amoral, dictatorial, oppressed, and socialist nation on the decline or they will join us and they will fight and vote against voter fraud and election theft, and vote for keeping America great.”

“[T]oday is the day American patriots start taking down names and kicking ass!” he said. He asked them if they were willing to give their lives to preserve “an America that is the greatest nation in world history.” “Will you fight for America?” he asked.

To evade the lawsuit, Brooks gave an affidavit in which he and his lawyers insisted that this language was solely a campaign speech, urging voters to support Republican lawmakers in 2022 and 2024. But he also argued that the Department of Justice had to represent him in the lawsuit because he was acting in his role as a congress member that day, representing his constituents.

Yesterday, the Department of Justice declined to take over the case, pointing out that campaign and electioneering activities fall outside the scope of official employment. It goes on to undercut the idea of protecting any lawmaker who participated in the insurrection, saying that “alleged action to attack Congress and disrupt its official functions is not conduct a Member of Congress is employed to perform.” This means Brooks is on his own to defend himself from the Swalwell lawsuit. It also means that lawmakers intending to fight subpoenas are going to be paying for their own legal representation.

If the committee does, in fact, start demanding that lawmakers talk, Brooks is likely on the list of those from whom they will want to hear. Trying to bolster the new Republican talking point that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) should have been better prepared for the insurrection (this is a diversion: she has no say over the Capitol Police, and she did, in fact, call for law enforcement on January 6), Brooks told Slate political reporter Jim Newell that he, Brooks, knew something was up. He had been warned “on Monday that there might be risks associated with the next few days,” he said. “And as a consequence of those warnings, I did not go to my condo. Instead, I slept on the floor of my office. And when I gave my speech at the Ellipse, I was wearing body armor.” “That’s why I was wearing that nice little windbreaker,” he told Newell. “To cover up the body armor.”

Brooks is not the only one in danger of receiving a subpoena. Representative Jim Jordan (R-OH) admitted on the Fox News Channel that he spoke to the former president on January 6, although he claimed not to remember whether it was before, during, or after the insurrection. He tried to suggest that chatting with Trump on January 6 was no different than chatting with him at any other time, but that is unlikely to fly. Jordan also repeatedly referred to Trump as “the president,” rather than the former president, a dog whistle to those who continue to insist that Trump did not, in fact, lose the 2020 election.

Meanwhile, it looks more and more like Republicans, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), are eager to change the subject. McCarthy today tried to walk back his previous blaming of Trump for the events of January 6, trying instead to tie Pelosi to the riot. He told reporters that when he said on January 6 that “[t]he President bears responsibility for Wednesday’s attack on Congress by mob rioters” and that Trump “should have immediately denounced the mob when he saw what was unfolding,” he made the comment without “the information we have today.” Then he tried to blame Pelosi for the Capitol Police response.

McCarthy seems unable to figure out how to handle the changing political dynamic and is continuing to shove the octopus of his different caucus interests into the string bag he’s holding only by promising that the Republicans will win in 2022. To that end, he is essentially walking away from governance and focusing only on the culture wars.

In addition to pulling the Trump Republicans off the select committee on the insurrection, he also pulled all six of the Republicans off a key committee on the economy, the Select Committee on Economic Disparity and Fairness in Growth. At a time when voters in all parties are concerned with the huge divergence in income and wealth in this country, a divergence that rivals that of the 1850s, 1890s, and 1920s, members of this committee could make names for themselves.

Ohio Republican Warren Davidson was one of those removed from the committee; he told Cleveland media he had been “looking forward” to participating and would “gladly rejoin” the committee if McCarthy relented, but it was Ohio Democrat Marcy Kaptur, still on the committee, who got the headline and the approving story.

Instead of this productive sort of headline, Representatives Matt Gaetz (R-FL), Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), and Louie Gohmert (R-TX) staged an event in which they tried to visit the accused January 6 rioters at a Washington, D.C., jail. Refused entry, Gohmert told the press: “We’re in totalitarian, Marxist territory here. This is the way third-world people get treated.”

McCarthy and fellow Trump supporters are trying to get their own headlines by opposing new mask mandates as the Delta variant of coronavirus is gathering momentum across the country. On Tuesday, the attending physician for the United States Congress, Dr. Brian Monahan, reinstated the use of masks in the House of Representatives and recommended it in the smaller Senate. On Wednesday, Pelosi required the use of masks in the House, and reminded members that they would be fined for refusing to wear them. All of the Democrats in the House are vaccinated; it appears that only about half of House Republicans are.

Today, House Republicans launched a revolt against mask use. They are trying to adjourn the House rather than gather with masks. Chip Roy (R-TX), said "This institution is a sham. And we should adjourn and shut this place down.” Representatives Greene, Lauren Boebert (R-CO) and Andy Biggs (R-AZ), all maskless, gave Roy a standing ovation. Today, a group of House Republicans without masks posed for cameras as they tried to gain entrance to the Senate.

Consolidating around Trump after his November loss was always a gamble, but increasingly it looks like a precarious one. Just this week, the former president tried to sabotage the infrastructure deal, and 17 senators ignored him. In Texas, on Tuesday, Trump’s ability to swing races was tested and failed when the candidate he backed—even pumping a last-minute $100,000 into the race—lost.

McCarthy has promised to win in 2022 with culture wars rather than governing, and that looks like an increasingly weak bet. But make no mistake: the ace in his vest remains the voter suppression laws currently being enacted across the country.

—

Notes:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/andrewsolender/2021/07/29/mccarthy-walks-back-saying-trump-bears-responsibility-for-capitol-riot/

Chris Cioffi @ReporterCioffiNOW: large maskless group of House GOP members has just crossed onto the Senate side and asked to enter the Senate Chamber. 1,507 Retweets3,942 Likes

July 29th 2021

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/jan-select-committee-meet-steps-move-subpoenas/story

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/prime/where-things-stand-july-28-2021-jim-jordan-confirms-talked-trump-jan-6

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/jul/27/trump-officials-testify-us-capitol-attack-house-doj

https://www.npr.org/2021/07/26/1020786560/a-lawsuit-against-jan-6-rally-speakers-forces-doj-to-consider-whos-legally-immun

https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.228356/gov.uscourts.dcd.228356.20.0_7.pdf

https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/21018141/7-27-21-us-response-mo-brooks.pdf

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/07/republican-mo-brooks-insurrection-lawsuit-doj.html

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/07/mo-brooks-body-armor-jan-6-rally.html

https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/27/politics/republicans-withdraw-economic-disparity-and-fairness-in-growth-committee/index.html

https://www.cleveland.com/open/2021/07/new-select-committee-on-economic-disparities-is-shunned-by-republicans-but-not-by-toledo-democratic-rep-marcy-kaptur.html

https://www.rollcall.com/2021/07/28/mask-mandates-return-to-the-capitol-white-house/

https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/28/politics/republican-reaction-covid-mask-congress/index.html

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2021/07/24/donald-trumps-pac-makes-last-minute-ad-buy-for-susan-wright-in-district-6-congressional-race/

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2021/07/27/jake-ellzey-leading-trump-backed-susan-wright-in-race-to-replace-the-late-ron-wright-in-congress/?outputType=amp&__twitter_impression=true&s=03

https://thehill.com/homenews/house/565562-gop-reps-gaetz-green-and-gohmert-turned-away-from-jail-to-visit-jan-

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

#political #Heather Cox Richardson #Letters From An American #capital insurrection #January 6 2021 #corrupt GOP #culture wars #criminal GOP

1 note · View note

theastrophilearchitect · 3 years

Text

Falcon and the Winter Soldier series commentary.

It’s currently 07.28am on Friday the 19th of March 2021, and the first episode of Falcon and the Winter Soldier is now on Disney+. For WandaVision, I re-watched the series for a review when it ended, but for this one, I’m going to go as I watch them the first time.

This isn’t going to be run-down, or a play-by-play, just any comments I happen to have. I’ll give some context, but this will generally make more sense if you’ve seen the show.

I’ve actually avoided most of the trailers for this show, but it follows Sam Wilson (AKA Falcon, played by Anthony Mackie) and Bucky Barnes (AKA the Winter Soldier, played by Sebastian Stan) after the events of Avengers: Endgame, after the (death?) of Steve Rogers, the original Captain America, who passed the title to Sam.

Let’s get into it.

Episode One: ‘New World Order’ I hate this title, and I’m scared. This episode is 49 minutes long, and I’m expecting the series in total to have roughly the same six-hour runtime of WandaVision, but that’ll be in fewer episodes because WandaVision started in a comedy format, with shorter episodes. Let’s go.

Cue the Marvel intro.

No, no, no, no, no, no. He’s dressing for a funeral. Fuck.

Nope, no funeral. At least not right now.

And he jumps out of a plane with no parachute. Steve Rogers who? I mean, at least he has wings. Steve’s just an idiot. Where’s Bucky?

Okay, this plane break-in is a really fun sequence. Yes, shields, thank you. Sam’s already smarter than Steve. He’s rescuing a Captain Vascant, and I honestly thought he said Captain Croissant. It would make sense. The people on the plane French.

This sequence, flying through a gorge, really reminds me of a game I used to play at a bowling alley arcade. These damn swerves. They’re so satisfying.

I can’t get the WandaVision episode three theme song out of my head. This show was meant to come before WandaVision, but I saw a chronology timeline that claimed this takes place after it.

I’m really not into huge action sequences--I find them to be the most boring part of any superhero movie, but this is a good one. It is, however, ten minutes long. Still no Bucky.

Ahhhh Rhodey!!! Rhodey’s here! (From Iron Man, but then he’s also in the Avengers movies, so you should probably know who he is.)

Oh, Sam’s giving the shield to the Smithsonian.

Excuse me, he chose not to become Captain America??

Welp, there’s Bucky. Being murderous. EXcuse me??? What did he just say???? Fuck off. I thought the Wakandans helped him :(

Never mind. It was a nightmare. So he’s meant to be being a law-abiding citizen, and failing. He’s in therapy, and she is calling him out.

Bucky just asked out a girl, and it feels so wrong, but that just shows how immersed I am in the #stucky ship.

So Sam’s widowed sister is trying to get a bank loan, and they’re real idiots. The bankers, that is. They’re having a go because Sam didn’t have any income in the last five years--gee, I wonder why.

Sam just got a text from Torres--a member of the air force, who he’s working with--and the text ends with ‘#important’. I get the feeling the writers don’t understand no-one uses hashtags in texts.

Newsflash, and the mayor’s announcing a new Captain America, and it’s... show me the face. Show me the face. Who the fuck is that?

Alright, well, and cut to seven minute-long credits. Well. I have questions. A good episode, though nothing exceptional. And just like the early WandaVision episode, no credit scene.

Episode Two: ‘The Star-Spangled Man’ Released March 26th, this episode also has a 49 minute runtime, and the title is clearly referencing the ‘new’ Captain America. I say ‘new’ because even though I don’t know who this guy is yet, fuck him. Anyway.

There’s a guy in some kind of locker room, who I’m assuming is the new Captain America, who was apparently a football player. I just want to know if they pulled more super soldier shit. The captions say his name is John Walker.

Cue the Marvel logo... with some weird-ass music. Okay, it’s just a... dancing marching band, at the Captain America presentation. They’ve given him a new symbol, like an A turned into a five-pointed star. Apparently he’s the first person to ever receive three Medals of Honour, run missions in counterterrorism and hostage rescue, and he has some fancy-ass physicality. This guy seems alright, but I’m just mad they didn’t tell Sam what they were going to do with the shield. At least he likes Steve.

God, Steve would be pissed. Ay, Sam and Bucky are finally in a scene together!

My favourite trope: ‘I’m doing this with you!’ ‘No, you’re not.’ [cut to them doing the thing together].

Bucky followed Sam on a mission to Munich, Germany, to do with the Flag Smashers, a free border organisation mentioned in episode one. They’re just glaring at each other, and I love it. God, I love their dynamic.

This has ‘What’s our plan of attack?’ ‘The plan? Attack’ vibes. And Bucky just jumped out of a fucking plane without a parachute. Steve Rogers who? (I think I made that joke in my episode one commentary about Sam. They take so much after their father.)

Sam made a joke about Bucky becoming White Panther after Wakanda, and apparently he’s now the White Wolf. I’m pretty sure that’s a comic book alias, but this is its first MCU mention.

OOOOh, the action sequences in this are fun. And there’s a kid in the back of the bad guys’ truck. Why’s she smiling?

And she just blasted Bucky out onto the road. Wonderful. She’s also a Flag Smasher. Yes, Sam! Yes!

Maybe don’t drive your lorries side by side in the same direction on a two-way road? Just a thought?

And roll in John Walker. You’d think they’d be having a harder time staying stood on lorries travelling this fast.

And Captain America has a fucking gun. No. No. Steve just used a frisbee! Don’t do this, Walker, you bastard.

So apparently the Flag Smashers are all super soldiers. That doesn’t bode well. I don’t think Walker is, though.

And this suit does nothing for his ass. It just isn’t America’s.

So they all rolled off the lorries, and the bad guys got away. Walker rolled up beside Sam and Bucky in a military vehicle, and they’re just refusing to get in.

‘Just ‘cause you carry that shield, it doesn’t mean you’re Captain America.’ THANK YOU.

‘You ever jump on top of a grenade?’ ‘Yeah. Actually, I have. Four times.’ You fucking what? Why? That doesn’t sound like Steve’s dumbassery, this sounds like genuine heroics. Disgusting.

And they finally got in the car. So the Flag Smashers want to put things back how they were during the Blip.

‘Does [Bucky] always just stare like that?’ ‘You get used to it.’ !!!!!!

‘I’m not trying to replace Steve.’ Really? Because it sounds like you are.

I hate that the subtitles are calling him Captain America. He seems like a fine guy, but really?

So apparently there was a super soldier in the Korean War.

Great. Police racism, demanding to see Sam’s ID but not Bucky’s, until the other policeman points out they’re Avengers. Wonderful. And they’re now arresting Bucky for missing his court-mandated therapy.

Also, I didn’t even acknowledge the fact Bucky got a haircut somewhere before the show stars. I was conscious of it, but I didn’t even think to say anything because I’m just used to seeing Sebastian Stan with short hair.

So John Walker got Bucky out. And Bucky’s therapist is forcing him and Sam into a session. HA, she’s giving them couple’s therapy. This is intense. She made them do some soul-gazing shit, and they started having a staring contest!

AND they’re going to go see Zemo, the villain from Captain America: Civil War. I knew he was in this show, but they’re just going to willingly have a conversation with him?? And again, no credit scene.

This was definitely a better episode than the first--the first honestly felt kind of unnecessary, and I think they just wanted to put the new Captain America at the end of an episode to build tension as a cliffhanger, which is a little annoying but does make sense.

I’m going to be constantly comparing this show to WandaVision, but it’s a lot less mysterious than WandaVision. Mystery isn’t necessary for a show to be good; there’s just a stark contrast between the two shows in that aspect.

Episode Three: ‘Power Broker’ Released April 2nd, this episode has a 53 minute runtime. We open with an ad for the Global Repatriation Council, apparently an organisation focused on helping those who were Blipped reintegrate, though I’m really confused what this has to do with anything--it’s not like the ads in WandaVision, because this is the first we’ve had. I guess the GRC must show up in this episode, but I don’t really think the ad is necessary.

I don’t want to give a rundown of this show like I did with WandaVision, so I’m just going to mention which scene each comment is for.

They’ve really given Zemo an atmospheric cell. Also, this bitch, saying the words that turned Bucky into the Winter Soldier. This bitch and his audacity. Now he’s sorry? That’s hilarious.

Why in fuck’s name does Bucky want to break Zemo out??? I’m really with Sam on this one. What is Bucky’s point here?

And now they’re breaking him out. Wonderful. Nope, never mind, just a... imagining? Nope. He did it. Zemo’s out. This seems like a bad idea. He’s going to betray them. That’s just how stories work.

Ah. Snake gut cocktail. Lovely.

I hate that Bucky’s pretending to still be the Winter Soldier. Hate it. And now Zemo’s trying to sell him. No. Good writing, sure, but still.

Love the ‘kill them’, then gets shot. Love it.

SHARON! YAY! I don’t even like Sharon that much, mostly because her romance with Steve was weird, but yay!

Sam: *takes off his shirt* Sharon: Much better.

‘The bionic staring machine.’ I mean, Sam’s not wrong, but still.

I can’t tell if this song, where they’re walking through this place with pistols, is just background music or actually playing, but I love it. Okay, it’s real. It has Umbrella Academy vibes.

Nope. Zemo has his mask. I don’t trust this. There he goes. Wait. He didn’t betray them? Why? It might just be poor comprehension, but I’m confused.

‘You’re not gonna move your seat up, are you?’ ‘No.’ Bucky gets his revenge on Sam.

So a woman showed up at the end, head shaven, and, according to the subtitles, spoke Wakandan. I think it’s the woman who came with T’Challa in Captain America: Civil War, but i’m not completely sure.

But, hey, that’s episode 3. I didn’t enjoy it as much as episode 2, because, mad as I am they replaced Cap, so far, I quite like John Walker’s character, and I think it’s a really interesting plot line. This was still better than episode 1 though, which just felt like set-up.

Episode Four: ‘The Whole World is Watching’ This episode was released April 9th, this morning, with a 53-minute runtime, and I’ve already been told John Walker does something unredeemable in this episode, so I’m scared. Let’s go.

And we have an explosion, kids. It’s a previously on, never mind. I don’t remember the explosion, but it’s fine. Okay, yeah, the woman at the end of the last episode was the woman from Civil War. I need to look up her name.

Oh, yep, her name’s Ayo, and she’s a member of the Dora Milaje. Lovely.

Jesus, we’re in Wakanda. Why am I scared? Six years ago. Bucky in Wakanda. Right. With Ayo. I hate seeing him cry, God.

Back to present day. Of course she’s mad about Zemo. I’d also be mad about Zemo. I am mad about Zemo. She gave him a time limit--I think time limits are fun. Build tension. They’re great.

God, Zemo walking down a street full of children singing Baa Baa Black Sheep is so... 80s. Maybe don’t offer sweets to children you don’t know?? Like?? I mean his tactic’s working. Unlike Sam’s. This bitch just turned the children against Sam and Bucky. As you do.

And they have more serum. I’m going to be honest, the supersoldier thing’s pretty elitist, unless they intend to make everyone in the world a supersoldier. I can’t help but see a capitalist versus socialist metaphor here, but then I find those in literally everything.

I do like Walker’s character--he’s entertaining--but as a person, no thank you. I also really like the fact Karli Morgenthau is British, but not quite in the way most British characters in US shows. I fit the stereotypical accent, but you don’t really see other English accents in American shows.

Walker you little bitch, you said he had ten minutes. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Don’t guilt-trip Bucky, you shit. And here we go.

I hate the fact this episode mean’s we’re already 2/3 of the way through the series.

And Zemo’s absolutely going to take that serum. Nope. He’s smashing it. I mean, that’s one way. Not the way I expected, but still. And he missed one. Walker’s going to take it. I know he is. And he pocketed it. Yep.

Okay, I would absolutely take the serum if I were offered it. I bet Walker’s going to take it at the end of the episode, though. Who has a bow??

And he’s the Dora Milaje. Pff, it wasn’t even an arrow; it was a spear. I’m with the Dora Milaje in this scenario, absolutely. Love that Sam and Bucky are just stood there, doing nothing. What’s the point of Lemar Hoskins? He doesn’t do anything.

Don’t unbolt Bucky’s arm, you ass.

And Zemo’s gone. Now, who could’ve seen that coming?

Why the hell is Karli calling Sam’s sister??

Sharon put a tracker on Walker? Smart.

Well, we found Zemo. God, I miss Steve.

Did Karli just kill Hoskins??

And Walker just smashed this guy’s head in. Lovely. What a Captain America thing to do. Ooh, the bloody shield’s kind of a vibe though.

So that’s episode 4, and oh my lord.

Episode Five: ‘Truth’ 16th April, and... crap, it’s 07.26, of course, the episode’s not up yet. Will return in like half an hour.

Okay, it’s past 8am, and the episode is...up. Lovely. It’s 60 minutes long, and I’m terrified, because someone told me about a theory that Bucky was going to die in this episode.

Lemar does seem to be dead, which is disappointing, because that would mean his entire character existed solely to motivate Walker to kill that guy, which isn’t very satisfying. Lemar Hoskins is a comic book character though, so who knows.

I mean. At least murderous Captain America is in anguish. He deserves it. Serious credit to the actor, by the way. Wyatt Russell got a lot of hate about his character, and I get why people don’t like the character, but he’s hugely interesting and Russell plays him so well.

So Lemar Hoskins is not dead. Doesn’t exactly put Walker in a good light. He’s obviously not going to give Sam the shield, for God’s sake.

Bucky just looks amazing with the short hair and the blue coat. It’s great. Love it.

And now Walker’s trying to kill Sam. Great idea. Did he take the serum already? Because that would explain why he’s become so brutish. Hold up. No, I don’t think he has. But who knows. Clearly not me.

Yep, trying to choke Sam. Very Captain America of you, John. And he tried to smash his head in. Thank God for Bucky. And Sam got the shield. Good.

There’s cat hair everywhere around me right now.

Well, that intro was very, very fun.

Did Sam just give up the wings...? Why...?

Glad, at least, that Walker’s no longer Captain America. Yep, yelling in a courthouse. Great way to warrant lenience. It’s the good-man-perfect-soldier balance again: Steve was always a good man first, where Walker’s first a soldier.

So Walker did take the serum. That makes sense. It exaggerates personal qualities, so Walker’s anger and... vengefulness.

Is Bucky actually going to kill Zemo? No. No, the gun’s empty. I’m not sure I get why Bucky would take out the bullets intentionally, but alright.

Hope Zemo has fun with the Dora Milaje.

This storyline with Sam’s sister is so wholesome compared to the rest of the show. So Bucky brought Sam something in a case, and I just want to know what is is. He said is was a gift from the Wakandans, so obviously tech of some kind. New wings?

I’m really confused as to whether or not Lemar Hoskins is dead. He seemed dead. Walker thought he was dead. Then this woman said he isn’t, but now Walker’s going to his family, so... yeah, I guess he is, and I just have really poor comprehension.

Sam’s nephews playing with the shield is adorable.

Aww, Sam’s learning how to use the frisbee. I know it’s more intense than that, but it’s literally a frisbee.

Soooooo the Flag Smashers are attacking the UN. As you do.

Credit scene! Credit scene! Walker’s hammering, making... something. A shield. Great. Wonderful. love how he thinks he can make a better one than Tony Stark. Sure. And that, my friends, wraps up episode 5, and marks us as 83% of the way through the show.

Episode Six: ‘One World, One People’ It’s April 23rd. And the last episode is up. Just going to finish the chapter of my audiobook first.

This title is very exciting, and the episode’s 51 minutes long. Let’s go.

Honestly, I’m not huge on shows this intense, but I am enjoying this, which I think is because a) I know the characters, and b) it’s only one episode a week.

Oh, hell yes. Falcon America. Honestly, costume looks kinda dumb. Awww, the subtitles are calling him Captain America.

This show hasn’t been nearly as exciting as WandaVision, because it lacks the mystery aspect. It’s definitely more for Marvel fans than the other series. What’s next? Loki? Yeah. I just googled it, and Marvel’s really putting out a lot this year. Which is probably because we had a year of nothing, but we’re getting four shows (WandaVision, FatWS, Loki, Hawkeye--which doesn’t yet have a definitive release) and four movies (Black Widow, Shang-Chi, the Eternals, and Spider-Man 3, which I wasn’t expecting until at least next year).

I feel like I just don’t have much to say about what’s happening, because it’s basically just a battle, which I’m never hugely interested in. I’m not really an action person.

Oh, and apparently Ms. Marvel’s this year, too.

Going through a list, clearly, and you mean to tell me we’re not getting Guardians Vol. 3 until six years after Vol. 2??

And fuck. Hey, Walker. In a costume that isn’t yours. Christ, Karli.

Honestly, I’m really fidgety because all I want to do is watch Shadow and Bone, because the entire series has been out for nine damn hours--I could’ve watched it all by now--but I’ve been busy, and I promised I’d watch it with somebody, and godddd.

We got a far-out shot of Walker dressed as Captain America just then, and I honestly thought it was Nebula. Anyway, offended that Walker dares to think he gets to wear that costume and follow up Steve Dumbass Rogers. Uh-uh.

GOD I just want to watch Shadow and Bone. Christ. I’m desperate. it’s on my Instagram, it’s on Tumblr... that’s it, but oh my God. I so hope it’s good. If it’s bad I’ll literally be distraught.

Oh, thank god. It has 94% on Rotten Tomatoes. Good.

No. Christ. God, I just want to watch it.

Screw it. I’ll finish this episode tomorrow. Byeeee.

Okay, I’m back. I watched all of Shadow and Bone. Let’s keep going!

So I did get about halfway through, yesterday, bar credits, so there’s that.

I love the symbolism of the new Falon/Captain America costume, but that doesn’t stop it from being really, really ugly.

Appreciate the speech about society being screwed up.

Why are they showing the prisoner transport? Something’s clearly going to happen. Did they just blow up the prison van??

And Walker got a new costume. That’s concerning. Give me the name, honey. US Agent. That’s bullshit.

So it is apparently his actual comic book name, but it’s still terrible.

And it said Captain America and the Winter Soldierrrrrrrr. Which is already a film. I mean, the film doesn’t have ‘and’ in it, but still. Anyway. Positive symbolism. Shall we check for a credits scene?

They’re pardoning Sharon. Huh. Nice.

There’s something ominous at play here. Great, so Sharon really is a villain here. That’s fun.

And that, my friends, wraps up Falcon and the Winter Soldier. I didn’t enjoy it as much as WandaVision, partly for the mystery, but mostly for sheer tone--this was much more your typical darker action film, where WandaVision was more light-hearted, even towards the end.

Regardless, this was a really interesting addition to the MCU, though may not be worth it if you’re not already invested.

2 notes · View notes

ahnsael · 3 years

Link

I would send this article to our casino’s owner, but...he’s a casino owner who has his finger on the pulse of the industry, so I’m sure he’s already aware.

But this also explains a survey we were asked to (anonymously) answer last week about our likelihood of getting the COVID-19 vaccine, and any additional information we felt we needed to make an educated decision. And I’m GLAD that the new Gaming Board chair is taking the virus into account.

To be clear, ANY agent of the Gaming Control Board has the power to fire me. And I often have to inform new hires that the Board has the authority to fire THEM, as well (there’s a guy who used to run my casino, before I worked there, who went on to run a newer local casino -- but one day he left his machine keys (which open the machine and access the menus) in a machine and walked away, and a Gaming Control agent walked in and saw those keys dangling from a lock. He essentially gave any guest who came by access to the machine’s insides and to its menu.

Gaming fired him on the spot. That’s how serious some violations can be.

My own casino has paid at least six fines for mask noncompliance. That was enforced by Gaming. Two of the violations were employees (one of which was a manager). And there’s a current manager who likes to take their mask off to speak, and I keep having to tell them to put their mask back on or I won’t respond to what they said. WE are the ones, as managers, responsible for enforcing these mandates, but if we, as managers, aren’t even following them ourselves, what hope do we have of getting guests to follow rules that we aren’t following ourselves? It ticks me off that I constantly have to remind this manager to keep their mask on.

The one thing that struck me as odd was that he called some of the current regulations “antiquated.” As he mentions, we used to be a mob-run business, seemingly above the law, and skimming (stealing money and hiding that money in the books) used to be commonplace. And I agree that a lot of Nevada casino regulations were put in place with that in mind.

But I always say that, with our mafia past, we need to work extra hard now to ensure no appearance of impropriety, and that the mafia past is truly behind us. So I like those regulations.

I’m not above updating, I just want to make sure that those old rules stay in place, at least as far as avoiding the perception that it’s the “same old Vegas” (even though I’m in a rural area, not Vegas).

He also doesn’t believe that gaming establishments have been a cause of further spread of the virus, and I disagree. It’s not to the same level as private gatherings (full disclosure: we host private gatherings in a separate room, but the normal fire marshall mandated occupancy under normal circumstances is 90 in that room, under the 25% capacity restrictions in place, that means no more than 22 people in that room, with ZERO room for discussion if they want a 23rd person in there -- it just is not going to happen), but...we are definitely contributing to the spread to some degree as an industry.

But the one constant problem we have is social distancing. Friends stand right next to each other. Vague acquaintances move chairs together in order to sit down next to each other. But if we say something, they lie and say they live together so it’s okay (some of our guests apparently live with 20-30 other people).

I don’t know about his “cashless wagering” ideas. We’re a small-town casino, and people are used to feeding the machines manually (some of them still lament the ability to insert coins instead of bills). And many of them are senior citizens who would balk at “touchless payments.” It’s also a LOT easier to spend money when money isn’t actually physically leaving your wallet. I think, even in markets like Vegas where I could see it working, it would lead to more problem gambling (and we are required to have pamphlets available for anyone who realizes they have a problem and want to seek help).

I welcome positive change. And hopefully, that’s where this will lead. So I was glad when he ended with “I’m not going to turn this industry upside down, I can’t do that, it would be a dumb thing to do, but I’m going try to make it better and the only way to do that is to change some things. So expect some change.”

I can support that, as long as the changes make sense and don’t erase the rules meant to prevent mafia-like tactics. Be fair to the casinos, and more importantly be fair to the gamblers.

#gambling #casinos #Nevada #work things

4 notes · View notes

petrichorparacosm · 3 years

Text

A Conspiracy Theorist’s Take On Coronavirus Conspiracy Theories

So, I am a lifelong Conspiracy Theorist. However, I am part of the often forgot about majority of theorists who don’t base their theories purely on internet hearsay and bigotry. Let’s talk COVID- 19, without that nonsense clouding the truth.

This post is U.S. centric.

I. Origins

I think that the virology lab in Wuhan had something to do with it, just because of how highly suspicious the location of the initial outbreak is. There are a few different possibilities:

a) it was a bio weapon in the later stages of development and was accidentally released;

b) it was a bio weapon in the early stages of development and its release was accidental or meant to be a test but got wildly out of hand;

c) it wasn’t a bio weapon but scientific negligence is what led to the initial outbreak;

d) it’s part of a bigger plan. We’ll get to that theory later

COVID- 19 is highly contagious and has produced several potent mutations, but the death rate is low. This supports either the non- bio weapon or early- stage bio weapon theory: if this was a late stage- bio weapon or an intention release of one, the death rate would be higher. I also don’t think that China would have intentionally released the virus in Wuhan, as this has garnered suspicion and negative attention. It would have made more sense to release it elsewhere, which is why I think it was either accidental or premature.

II. Masks

Three coexisting facts:

1. If the virus came from China, then the American government + corporate powers probably didn’t have a (direct) hand in it;

2. This doesn’t mean that the government + corporate powers aren’t taking advantage of the situation (they definitely are);

3. There is a historical precedent for wearing masks in public and avoiding gatherings during pandemics and epidemics (e.g., the Spanish Flu).

Masks are a conventional, reasonable strategy for avoiding affection. Whether there are organizations using mask mandates for their own purposes is an entirely separate matter, and should be treated as such.

Also, the theory that masks are step one in trying to force Islamic dress codes on us is an example of blatant misinformation used to distract from actual conspiracies + hate mongering used to divide us (the masses). I could give a lot of rebuttals to this bout of Islamophobic nonsense, but I’ll say this: If the malevolent powers that be in this country were, for some reason, interested in forcing Islamic dress codes upon us, our faces would not be their first concern. It would be our midriffs, arms, and legs, then head coverings. Face coverings are far from universal among Islamic communities.

III. Vaccines

This is where stuff gets more complicated. There are a lot of concerns and theories over the vaccine, some of which are more valid than others. There is, of course, the pre- pandemic anti- vaccination movement, which warrants its own discussion. As someone who acknowledges the science behind vaccines in general as sound, I approach this debate with the question “is there anything risky or nefarious about any of the vaccines?”

The most prevalent concerns tend to be :

A) the vaccines were rushed in production and testing and may be unsafe;

B) the vaccines contain a microchip to track us/influence our behavior;

C) the vaccines are designed to reduce or eliminate fertility (especially in women).

Unfortunately, A has no easy answer. The CDC has recently released data that suggests that the vaccine has a higher casualty rate than any other vaccine in the past 20 years, but this still only accounts for 2% of covid related death. To simplify: the COVID-19 vaccines have a high death rate for a vaccine, but a much lower death rate than actual COVID-19.

Of course, it doesn’t help that there’s no real way to verify these numbers, and many news sources either a) refuse to look in to it or b) staunchly believe that COVID was created for the sole purpose of making their lord and savior, Trump, look bad.

Regardless, waiting to get vaccinated is an understandable course of action even if, statistically, getting vaccinated reduces total risk.

Let’s track the history of B: the head of the Russian Communist party and a former Donald Trump advisor support the theory that the vaccines contain microchips to track the movement of the vaccinated, track who has been vaccinated, and possibly influence behavior.

Also feeding the theory is the fact that Bill Gates wanted to give the vaccinated “digital certificates” to identify themselves, and was at one point playing with the idea of injecting people with a “special ink” to make an “invisible tattoo” that would be used to identify the vaccinated without the use of records.

I trust none of these individuals, as each have their own agendas. What makes me skeptical of this theory is that the U.S. government + the corporate powers already track all of us through cell phones and security cameras (fun fact: the U.S. has more surveillance cameras per person than China).

When I took the vaccine out of necessity, I took meticulous notes before and afterwards, documenting my thoughts, opinions, and patterns of behavior. I have not noted any changes.

Finally, C. This one is difficult to prove or disprove, because

1) most people who get vaccinated aren’t going to immediately start actively trying to have babies;

2) fertility rates have been steadily declining for decades;

3) although changes in menstration have been reported after vaccination, the vast majority experienced this as a short term side effect only (I.e, their cycles went back to normal). I had no change in my cycle, nor did my mother.

I will say that I’m not interested in ever giving birth, which is one reason I’m not worried about this- I’m much more inclined to worry about current humans that theoretical future humans.

Now, one thing to note is that reducing the population so drastically is a counterintuitive move for the elites. Less workers = each individual worker is, statistically, less disposable. Less consumers = less consumption.

The only way this theory could be true and make sense is if it’s just the lead up to something else, like lab- based, expensive reproduction to mostly avoid the above, kill off the “undesirables,” and put people in debt whenever they want kids, functionally putting them further under corporate control.

If this was the plan, than the Global Powers That Be (assuming that this was the result of collusion and not China’s attempt at a bio weapon) definitely weren’t ready yet: that kind of technology is available, but not nearly efficient or cost- effective for them to avoid the worker- shortage pitfall yet. Just look at how corporate America has nearly buckled under its own weight at the current shortage of minimum wage workers!

TLDR; the vaccine came from the Wuhan lab and was either a prematurely released bio weapon, the result of epidemiological negligence, or the lead up to some grand conspiracy to control human reproduction, which would be a stupid move on the part of the government- corporate- military complex, and would have required global cooperation and coordination.

Sources/references:

#covid #covid 19 #covid vaccine #vaccines #masks #fertility #surveilance #bill gates #conspiracy #conspiracy theories #long post #us #politics

0 notes

newstfionline · 3 years

Text

Monday, May 10, 2021

Higher Prices Leave Consumers Feeling the Pinch (WSJ) Americans accustomed to years of low inflation are beginning to pay sharply higher prices for goods and services as the economy strains to rev back up and the pandemic wanes. Price tags on consumer goods from processed meat to dishwashing products have risen by double-digit percentages from a year ago, according to NielsenIQ. Some consumers are feeling stretched. Costs are rising at every step in the production of many goods. Prices for oil, crops and other commodities have shot up this year. Trucking companies are paying scarce drivers more to take those materials to factories and construction sites. As a result, companies are charging more for foods and consumer products including foil wraps and disposable cups. And consumers are therefore paying more.

As US reopens, campuses tighten restrictions for virus (AP) About a year into mask mandates, nasal swabs and remote classes, the atmosphere turned tense at the University of Vermont as the school cracked down on rules for social distancing and face coverings amid a spike in student COVID-19 cases. Students were handed hundreds of citations for violations like standing in another student’s doorway or walking maskless to a hallway restroom, igniting a student-led petition that blasted “strict and inhumane living conditions.” “You start to feel suffocated like I’m afraid to leave my room,” freshman Patrick Welsh said in an interview on campus. Even as restrictions relax across much of the United States, colleges and universities have taken new steps to police campus life as the virus spreads through students who are among the last adults to get access to vaccines. Administrators say they’ve needed to act urgently to avoid risking an early end to the semester or sending infected students home and spreading COVID-19. In recent weeks, the University of Michigan punished hundreds of students for missing mandatory virus testing by deactivating their access cards to nonresidential buildings, and Cornell University announced that students would lose access to campus Wi-Fi, course materials and facilities for missing virus tests. The University of Chicago locked down residence halls for seven days and shifted classes online after finding more than 50 cases in a matter of days.

Pandemic gives boost as more states move to digital IDs (AP) The card that millions of people use to prove their identity to everyone from police officers to liquor store owners may soon be a thing of the past as a growing number of states develop digital driver’s licenses. With the advent of digital wallets and boarding passes, people are relying more on their phones to prove their identity. At least five states have implemented a mobile driver’s license program. Three others—Utah, Iowa and Florida—intend to launch programs by next year, with more expected to follow suit. Mobile licenses will give people more privacy by allowing them to decide what personal information they share, state officials say. The licenses offer privacy control options that allow people to verify their age when purchasing alcohol or renting a car, while hiding other personal information like their address. Having a mobile driver’s license will allow people to update their license information remotely without having to go to a state’s Department of Motor Vehicles or waiting for a new card in the mail, said Lee Howell, state relations manager at the American Automobile Association. Industry leaders say safeguards will prevent anyone’s information from being stolen, but some critics argue that having so much personal data on a phone is too risky.

Why an Estimated 100,000 Americans Abroad Face Passport Problems (NYT) About 9 million U.S. citizens currently live abroad, and as the light at the end of the pandemic tunnel finally appears, immigration lawyers estimate more than 100,000 can’t get travel documents to return to the United States. Despite the State Department making headway on a massive backlog of passport applications in the early months of the pandemic, many consulates and embassies abroad, plagued by COVID-19 restrictions and staffing reductions, remain closed for all but emergency services. Travel is restarting, but for American expats who had a baby abroad in the past year or saw their passport expire during the pandemic, elusive appointments for documents are keeping them grounded. “It’s a real mess,” said Jennifer Minear, an immigration attorney and the president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. “It’s a giant, multilayered onion of a problem and the reduction of staff as a result of COVID at the consular posts has really thrown the State Department for a loop.” Michael Wildes, the managing partner of the law firm Wildes & Weinberg, PC, which specializes in immigration law, estimates that the number of stranded Americans abroad is in the hundreds of thousands.

Scotland’s pro-independence leader promises another bid to break from U.K. after election boost (Washington Post) First Minister Nicola Sturgeon promised Saturday to push ahead with another Scotland independence referendum after her party gained a strong showing in Scottish Parliament elections, setting up a potential clash with Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Sturgeon said that an independence referendum was the “will of the country,,” with her Scottish National Party and pro-independence allies taking a majority of the 129 seats after all the votes were counted. That will probably boost calls to redo a 2014 independence referendum, which could lead to the crackup of the United Kingdom under the strains of Brexit and its deep divisions.

‘Freedom’ fiestas: Spaniards celebrate end of COVID curfew (Reuters) Exhilarated Spaniards danced in streets, chanted “freedom” and partied on beaches overnight as a COVID-19 curfew ended across most of the nation. In scenes akin to New Year’s Eve celebrations, hundreds of mainly young people gathered in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol square to applaud the clock striking midnight while in Barcelona revellers headed to the beach with drinks in hand. Police in Barcelona had the strange task of moving people on after the last curfew began at 10 p.m., only to let them back at midnight when it ended for good.

Putin reviews Russian military might as tensions with West soar (Reuters) President Vladimir Putin reviewed Russia’s traditional World War Two victory parade on Sunday, a patriotic display of raw military power that this year coincides with soaring tensions with the West. The parade on Moscow’s Red Square commemorating the 76th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two featured over 12,000 troops and more than 190 pieces of military hardware, including intercontinental ballistic missile launchers, and a fly-past by nearly 80 military aircraft under cloudy skies. This year’s parade precedes parliamentary elections in September and comes at a time when Moscow’s relations with the West are acutely strained over issues ranging from the conflict in Ukraine to the fate of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.

Death toll soars to 50 in school bombing in Afghan capital (AP) The death toll in a horrific bombing at a girls’ school in the Afghan capital has soared to 50, many of them pupils between 11 and 15 years old, the Interior Ministry said Sunday. The number of wounded in Saturday’s attack has also climbed to more than 100, said Interior Ministry spokesman Tariq Arian. Three explosions outside the school entrance struck as students were leaving for the day, he said. The blasts occurred in a mostly Shiite neighborhood in the west of the capital.

China says most rocket debris burned up during reentry (AP) China’s space agency said a core segment of its biggest rocket reentered Earth’s atmosphere above the Maldives in the Indian Ocean and that most of it burned up early Sunday. Harvard astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell, who tracked the tumbling rocket part, said on Twitter, “An ocean reentry was always statistically the most likely. It appears China won its gamble.” People in Jordan, Oman and Saudi Arabia reported sightings of the Chinese rocket debris on social media, with scores of users posting footage of the debris piercing the early dawn skies over the Middle East.

Palestinians fear loss of family homes as evictions loom (AP) When Samira Dajani’s family moved into their first real home in 1956 after years as refugees, her father planted trees in the garden, naming them for each of his six children. Today, two towering pines named for Mousa and Daoud stand watch over the entrance to the garden where they all played as children. She and her husband, empty nesters with grown children of their own, may have to leave it all behind on Aug. 1. That’s when Israel is set to forcibly evict them following a decades-long legal battle waged by ideological Jewish settlers against them and their neighbors. The Dajanis are one of several Palestinian families facing imminent eviction in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of east Jerusalem. It also highlights an array of discriminatory polices that rights groups say are aimed at pushing Palestinians out of Jerusalem to preserve its Jewish majority. The Israeli rights group B’Tselem and the New York-based Human Rights Watch both pointed to such policies as an example of what they say has become an apartheid regime. Settler groups say the land was owned by Jews prior to the 1948 war surrounding Israel’s creation. Israeli law allows Jews to reclaim such lands but bars Palestinians from recovering property they lost in the same war, even if they still reside in areas controlled by Israel. Israeli rights groups say other families are also vulnerable, estimating that more than 1,000 Palestinians are at risk of being evicted.

#headlines #news

1 note · View note

lewis98omigod · 4 years

Text

Digital Activism week 6

In 2019 and 2020, not only have we heard lots of tragic news among celebrities and athletes, but also especially in 2020, the most devastating issue everyone encounters is the Covid-19 pandemic which has totally disrupted our daily lives and now we all start practicing the new normality which consists of 3 elements, 1-metre distance, put on face masks and wash hand frequently after back home from outdoor. However, if we broaden out horizon in terms of global news, we probably realize that some nations are suffering not only just purely pandemic thing, but also some ongoing protests against the government. For instance, In Hong Kong the protest still persists although has it been quelled temporarily due to the fear among Hong Kongers over the upcoming Chinese Security Law which is mandated typically for Hong Kong Special Administrative Region since Hong Kongers are concerned about the high possible of the restriction of freedom of speech towards them. Likewise, in the US, lots protests are going on over the issue of police brutality, especially the incident of George Floyd who was dead due to suffocation while his neck was being knelt on by one of the police officers although the public attempted to stop this tragic but it proved futile. This tragic has sparked anger among the Black community and soon, a series of protests took place across the nation. In this topic, we will look into how digital activism works in reflecting upon the rampant issue.

Digital Activism towards long hour working culture among Japanese workers

This drama entitled “ Watashi, Teiji de Kaerimasu “, which means I Will Not Work Overtime, Period! in English. It was released in 2019 and soon had drawn international attention for its criticisms of Japanese corporate life. The story plot revolves around the lead female role as an office worker, whom she decides that she will never work overtime, and regularly leaves work at the official end of the day. Since then, she has conflict with other employees, who usually stay at work until much later. Besides that, long-hour working culture has traumatized her ever since she was young when her father whose corporate life meant that he did not spend time with his family. Her bosses at the company, who see her refusal to work overtime as a lack of commitment to the company and its clients. Her situation is complicated by the arrival of an ex-boyfriend who joins the company. She gradually convinces her fellow workers to go home on time in order to save their health and relationships, but ends up breaking her original commitment, which results in her hospitalization and the demise of her own relationship with her fiancé. In overall, this drama has highlighted how long-hour working culture affects the health and family relationship of workers as they tend to have little time to spend with their family which end up suffering an inharmonious household. In some cases, we have heard news about Japanese office workers died due to fatigue and the increased divorce case in Japan is getting more common as husband never spends time with family after busying with tons of workloads.

According to Brasor (2019), The most common complaint from white-collar employees at Japanese companies is about the meaning of “quitting time.” The feeling is that even if a worker has finished their tasks for the day, it is considered bad form to leave the office before their colleagues or supervisors do. There are, of course, no established rules that dictate such conduct, and it can be perceived as a custom but even after three decades of debate over the question of unnecessary overtime and lost productivity in the Japanese workplace, there is still great hesitancy on the part of employees to go home “on time.”

Furthermore, a survey conducted by Japanese government showed that around one quarter of Japanese companies require employees to work more than 80 hours of overtime a month. Sarcastically, those extra hours are often unpaid. Japanese workers on average didn’t use 10 of their paid vacation days, and 63 percent of Japanese respondents felt guilty for taking paid leave.

As mentioned earlier, long-hour working culture has caused workers died due to fatigue. Taking a real-life case as an example, an employee of Japan’s largest advertising firm, Dentsu, jumped to her death in 2015. The cause was said to have been depression caused by overwork. The case generated widespread attention and renewed calls to change the long working hours and illegal unpaid overtime highly common in Japan. The aftermath of this issue has pressurized Dentsu’s CEO to resign over the controversy and the company was fined for violating labor standards as she had been reportedly forced to work 100 hours of overtime a month. After the death, Dentsu made changes within the company, including turning off lights in the office at 10 p.m. in an effort to force employees to leave (Saiidi 2018).

In conclusion, this drama portrays the long-hour working culture in Japanese society that has been rooted ever since. As we all know that, drama is the mirror of a society. Often we agree up to a point that dramas actually are delivering a message to the viewer about current society. As soon as the drama has been released, it has drawn the attention of Japanese government about the well-being of workplace and since then, lots of debate have been carried out in the parliament with an aim of enacting a law which can protect the employee’s well-being and revise the structure of traditional companies workforce as majority of traditional companies have a mindset is that employees should be always available at work and employees should be ashamed of applying holidays. Although work-life balance in Japan has yet to be achieved, but who knows in the future?

Reference list:

Brasor, P 2019, TBS drama misses an opportunity to shine a light on genuine workplace issues, The Japan Times, viewed 13 October 2020,

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/05/18/national/media-national/tbs-drama-misses-opportunity-shine-light-genuine-workplace-issues/

Saiidi, U 2018, Japan has some of the longest working hours in the world. It’s trying to change, CNBC, viewed 13 October 2020,

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/01/japan-has-some-of-the-longest-working-hours-in-the-world-its-trying-to-change.html#:~:text=CNBC%20Explains-,Japan%20has%20some%20of%20the%20longest%20working%20hours%20in%20the,extra%20hours%20are%20often%20unpaid.>.

#mda20009 #activism&protest #week 6

4 notes · View notes

excellentabraham · 4 years

Text

Why East Asians Were Sporting Masks Long Before COVID-19

My folks told Maine it completely and totally was to stay myself et al safe, she told Abraham. I would see others wear masks more than that, especially throughout the winter seasons.

As the coronavirus, widespread disease’s toll rises. Here’s what Americans will learn from countries like China, Japan, and South Korea about the standard mask. COVID-19 growing up in South Korea, Jamie Cho knew from childhood. What if she got sick, she had to place a mask on, although it absolutely was simply a standard cold.

The masks weren’t simply a medical accent, she said. For many, they served a business partner beauty-related purpose. One thing a lady would possibly place on to hide a makeup-less face. Whereas running errands or a K-Pop star would possibly wear to avoid being noticed by fans in connect airdrome.

Cho clearly remembers that once her family emotional to the big apple. Her mother told her that she had to prevent sporting masks publicly. As a result of people would assume she was unwell or would check up on her funny.

She was afraid of Maine’s seen more foreign. Then I already was at the time as a young traveling worker, the school student the same. Because of that, I’ve never worn a mask during a Western country before COVID-19

Hiding up is use to East Asian people like Cho. however, others haven’t taken this way simply to the U.S. Centers for sickness management and Prevention’s recommendation to wear a facial covering. The rules have incited a nationwide fight concerning public health and civil liberties.

A few Americans won’t wear covers, asserting its in opposition to their individual flexibility. The foremost strident within the anti-mask movement have known as them “unconstitutional,” autocratic” and “muzzles.”

Meanwhile, in East Asian countries. The bulk of the general public tailor quickly to mask-wearing. One thing specialists believe has contributed to lower COVID-19 death rates.

Naturally, there’s additional to the story than masks. Compared to the West, East Asian countries tend to possess a lot of lower rates of fat. A number one risk issue for serious COVID-19 cases.

Preliminary studies have additionally instructed. That East Asians might have designed up associate immunity to the virus given. The history of coronaviruses rising in East Asia.

But in light-weight of overwhelming proof supporting the efficaciousness of facial coverings. It’s most likely honest to mention the masks helped, too.

Because of the custom of sporting masks here. It wasn’t necessary for the govt to mandate mask sporting for a protracted time. As a result of the general public had already wide adopted their use, same Ria Sinha. A senior analysis fellow in the middle for the Humanities and drugs at the University of the port. (Sinha is presently leading a COVID-19 archive project.)

Just as the anti-mask movement in America goes back to the 1918-19 contagion pandemic. (yep, there have been protests over government ordinances then, too) Thus will the East Asian inclination to wear a mask.

In those pandemic years, mask-wearing was wide promote in Western nations and solely then export to Japan.

It stayed in Japan, however it disappeared within the West, same Mitsutoshi Horii. A faculty member of social science at the University of Shumei in Japan. Who’s presently performing at its overseas field at poet faculty in European nation.

In Japan, then and currently, individuals square measure usually involved. With the transmission mechanism of the virus, thus individuals wear masks within the hope of reducing the chance of infection.

Years later, once the contagion immunizing agent had been develop. The Japanese government same it absolutely was additionally vital to induce the shot than to wear a mask; nevertheless, overenthusiastic usage continued within the island country.

In China, the employment of face masks against epidemics was the practice even earlier. In 1910 and 1911, voters were inspire to wear masks to combat the plague natural event in a geographic region. By the time the plague abated, over sixty, individuals had died. In modern northeast China, creating it one of the world’s largest epidemics at the time.

Still, masks helped the country prevent additional deaths.

Even as with COVID-19, lockdowns, and travel restrictions were enforce to lower the infection rate.

Mask-wearing became obligatory, too, same Christos Lynteris, a senior lecturer. Within the department of anthropology WHO studies epidemics at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.

It was throughout that natural event that the mask was a tailor. For epidemic management functions and employed by doctors, nurses, health workers. And also the general public for the primary time, Lynteris told Abraham.

The creation of the counter plague cover was ascribe to Dr. Wu dialect Lien-Teh, a Cambridge-educated Chinese MD WHO light-emitting diode anti-plague operations on behalf of China within the region.

According to Lynteris, Wu’s masks were well-received internationally. The general public health initiative was coated by the press across the world. With pictures of mask-wearing plague fighters making a global sensation.

After the tip of that epidemic, Wu dialect continued. As China’s most senior medical scientist below the new republic, Lynteris same. He continued to develop the mask, that became an everyday epidemic management feature within the country over consequent 3 decades.

The mask itself became an emblem of medical contemporaneousness across East Asian countries, Lynteris same. Individuals don masks within the winter to shield themselves from the contagion. They slip one on within the spring to prevent pollinosis. The masks additionally offer protection from pollution and cut back the unfold of germs on jammed and poorly aerated subways.

There’s associate moral part, too. East Asians wear masks for his or her own health however chiefly out of respect for others.

Though the history of mask-wearing goes back a minimum of a century, consultants say the mask didn’t reach peak quality. In South Asian countries till the 2002-03 extreme sudden and serious lung-related disease widespread disease.

Extreme acute metabolism syndrome, additionally a coronavirus malady, lasted concerning six months. Because it unfolds to over countries in North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. Before it had been stop in July 2003.

SARS coagulated the standard mask as AN everyday staple, Sinha said. Once COVID-19 smitten, East Asians placed on a mask at their own volition.

The legacy of extreme intense breathing and lung-related sickness in 2003 brought about plentiful speedier take-up of cover wearing for private security. Once Coronavirus showed up, she said. It’s a sort of agreement folks respond by carrying masks.

As a group terribly early within the natural event. retailers were clean out, and masks were in brief offer. Queues to shop for masks were seen across Asia in the city, Asian country, and Japan, among others.

In city, wherever COVID-19 cases have remained low, by and enormous, masks area unit worn by nearly everybody. While not abundant government urging. In step with one study of one, participants, in March, ninety-nine reportable carrying face masks. Once exploit home up from sixty one within the 1st survey in Gregorian calendar month.

Before to COVID-19, if you didn’t use a mask publically areas. Whereas sick or throughout the peak of the contagious disease season.

You’d be at the receiving finish of over some dirty appearance. In step with Judy Yuen-man Siu, AN prof of social sciences at the city engineering school University. (Siu has watched and followed the utilization of mask-wearing. In the city within bad after-effects of the severe acute respiratory syndrome natural event.)

If you behave against the social norms in the city by failing to wear mask publically areas. You’d become a ‘deviant alternative,’ and therefore you would possibly receive dirty appearance from the general public, she said.

In a virulent disease, not carrying a mask in AN East country is seen.

As anti-social, unaccountable, and dangerous to oneself and to others, Lynteris aforesaid. In Japan, even their downy anti-coronavirus being, a cat named “Koronon, dons a mask.

Cover wearing may have flawlessly blended into the way of life. In East Asia, because a large portion of the nations have a collectivist bowed, Sinha said. Folks typically grade the cluster over the self. Swing on a face-covering once you’re sick or around vulnerable folks is an element and parcel of fine citizenship.

Western societies tend to be additional individualistic, stressing. The needs of the individual over the requirements of the cluster as an entire.

A mandate encroaches on my personal freedom; it’s my individual right to not wear one, AN anti-masker may say in response to the CDC’s public health recommendation.

While there’s actually diversity across East Asia relating. To however collectivist societies really area unit. The heritage of malady outbreaks and an additional civic-minded community is powerful,” Sinha aforesaid.

East Asian countries even have a bigger proportion of extended families. Than Western countries, which suggests folks area unit additional seemingly to adopt public health measures. If they comprehend it is for his or her own sensible, she added.

See More : Teachers Are Spending Their Own Money On School Supplies Due to COVID-19

The individual rights argument against masks features a long history.

Within the U.S. within the 1918 pandemic, there have been reports. From each town of mask slackers failing to adjust to the law throughout the pandemic, resulting in their arrests. In the city, the AN Anti-Mask League of 1919” was shape.

In 2020, the anti-mask sentiment is alive and well. Not in little half owing to mixed electronic communication on masks from officers. It wasn’t simply a provisioning challenge to secure enough masks; for months, scientists and doctors waffled concerning the utility of face coverings.

Many Western leaders ab initio side-eyed the mask gave the shortage of precedent on carrying them. Adopting masks would need a “big adjustment” in our country, Austria’s Chancellor Sebastian Kurz remarked.

In a Gregorian calendar month, since “masks area unit alien to our culture. President Trump finally slipped on a mask publically in July. When four months of resisting, however, he’s continue to voice his mask skepticism since.

Protests continue, however, six months into the pandemic, face masks area. The unit has seen because of the most powerful public health tool. The state has against the coronavirus, a minimum of till an immunizing agent is develop and cosmopolitan.

Government agency Director Henry Martyn Robert Redfield stressed that message whereas addressing U.S. lawmakers earlier on.

We have clear scientific proof they work, and that the area unit our greatest defense, Redfield aforesaid. I may even go up to now on say that this mask is additionally certain to defend. American state against COVID than after I take a COVID immunizing agent.

In alternative words, Americans may still get snug in masks. Since we’ll in all probability ought to wear them publically for the predictable future.

It might pay to appear on the and aspect concerning masks and take a page from East Asians, Horii said.

These times might encourage folks within the West to replicate upon their own norms and values, he said. Rather than asking why folks in the East Asia area unit carrying masks. We should always raise the folks within the West. Why they didn’t wear them till recently and why a number of them resist it. Japanese folks are doing it for a century!

Cho, the faculty student from Asian country, had stopped carrying masks since emigrating to the U.S. She’s over happy to wear one for as long as she has to currently.

She admits that her appearance at the anti-masker movement generally. And wonders why such a big amount of area unit wasting their energy on the difficulty.

Why protest over one thing that keeps yourself et al. safe? she aforesaid. Masks don’t seem to be political, and neither area unit the health and safety of others.

#Tagscovid-19 active cases in delhi covid-19 america covid-19 antibody test covid-19 ap covid-19 cases in india covid-19 delhi covid-19 india

3 notes · View notes

melvillaa · 3 years

Text

An Ode to 2020

Not really sure why I’m awake right now. If this was pre-marriage, I would have taken out my laptop to start typing, but it’s not and Bri is knocked tf out, so here we are. I guess this is the ode to 2020 post that I’ve been meaning to annotate for a while now.

This has been the most transformative year of my life. So many changes in more ways than one. Way more ways. Try like 20. A lot of crying (which I never do.... or maybe i just don’t admit to, lmao), a lot of introspection, a lot of uncomfortability (is that a word?), and a lot of change. A whole lot.

The year started off with optimism and ended with the same notion. Full of hope and wonder for the year set before me, I couldn’t wait for 2020 - it was supposed to be the year all my dreams came true.. and in a weird way, it was! It was the year I got married to the love of my life(!!!!!!), reached 5 years at my corporate job, relocated to a new home in a new city and area code. It was all that - but it wouldn’t be my life if it wasn’t that, plus a little pizzazz, lol.

It’s hard for me to give myself grace. Truly I think I am the hardest on myself. Always empathetic of others and their experiences, but always giving myself the short end of the stick. Living in a pandemic has been wild - but living through my huge life changes in the middle of a pandemic has proven to be even more wild. As a person who doesn’t necessarily love change, I’ve struggled to give myself grace in the midst of the huge life changes I’ve experienced. I’m damn proud of how far I’ve come and how strong I’ve been to withstand the trials that I battle without me really saying a word to a single soul. As a person, me typing this stuff out is me telling the world my story - even if no one reads it. This year changed my life.

Marriage.

I became a wife and entered the covenant of marriage. It really is true that you enter into a marital bliss that is full of love you don’t experience until you get married. It’s unlocking a next level of your relationship and discovering a new version of yourself ... yourself plus another human. There really are different levels of love that you are surprised to find out that you are capable of. It’s different than just being in a relationship with one another. Now we’re bound to each other under a different covenant - before the eyes of God, our family, our friends and the law. It’s weird filling out paperwork and realizing that legally I am no longer a Villaflor. Well technically I’ll always be a Villaflor (Melanie Rose Villaflor Argamaso to be exact, okurrrttttt). I stepped into this role of being a wife and all the “responsibilities” that came with it and also fully embraced the fact that I have a person to do life with who loves me more than himself, who is always thinking of me, always taking care of me, always looking out for me, and who genuinely takes responsibility for me. It’s weird. It’s things I knew of during our relationship, but in marriage it’s somehow personified.. magnified. Marriage is so cool. Maybe it’s cool for me because there’s been such an emphasis and importance placed on it ever since I was a little girl. Bri and I didn’t have the “modern relationship” where we lived together prior to marriage. Yea we slept over and had our own respective places, but to really enter into marriage where everyday it’s me and you, and we have a whole ass home and life together is really wild. I love it. Doing life with Bri is me truly seeing that this man really would give me the world if I asked for it. Anything I could ever want or need, he fulfills it. Everyone always asks me what I’ve learned about him since we got married, or what’s something new about Bri that I’ve discovered ... one thing is that this man and his hobbies are unmatched, bro loves him some cars, any moving vehicle really, lmao. But mostly, I see his heart. He always wants the best - for me and for himself and anyone he cares about, sometimes to a fault when he can’t attain perfection but so badly wants to achieve it. But most times he can .. and then some. I’ve never met someone so naturally good at so many things. Tactically advanced, street smart as hell, a risk taker with the ability to fix just about anything, a people person with an infectious personality who could probably resell a piece of lint if he had to. We’re a family now. A little family of two but we’re both at a place where we really wouldn’t mind unlocking another level of love if it were time to. (He asks me for a “grey” from @greyandmama on IG almost weekly 🥺🥴😂).

Wedding.

It seemed like I waited so, so long for our wedding - for it to come and go like the wind. But instead of a nice sea breeze, it came and went like a tropical storm (... literally 😂but more on that later!) I remember being so excited on New Years Day at the start of 2020 ... the anticipation of our wedding in the next five months and really the start of all of our wedding festivities would begin within the next month ... or so I thought.

I remember hearing about the coronavirus making landfall in the US around the holidays in 2019 and it was already steadily spreading across the US, but not quite as widespread as it currently is. I was going on a work trip to Florida towards the end of January and I remember wearing a mask in the airport and on the flight and I conducted my usual Lysol-ing of my entire space. Everyone was looking at me like I was insane but I really didn’t care, haha. A flight attendant asked me why I was wearing a mask and I replied that I just wanted to stay healthy for my family. (...Still true, lol.) I had no idea at this moment how significantly the coronavirus was going to disrupt our world, how normal mask wearing would be, and how disinfectant wipes would soon be the most prized commodity in 21st century homes.

February came like a rush - I started designing our wedding invitation suite which was something I had literally dreamed about. I had a vision from the very beginning and new exactly how I wanted everything to look down to the postage stamp. It reinforced a love for stationery design that I knew I had, but damn was I proud of the finished product. I was so meticulous about everything - from the fonts I used, the colors and hues of the paper, the thickness of the paper, the envelopes, the ink I used. It was so intricate, but it was the most fun I ever had while designing something. It didn’t feel like work at all, but it was pure love that I poured into those invitations. Bri’s bachelor party happened in early March and my bachelorette in Chicago (!!!) was supposed to happen at the end of March. The boys went to Jacksonville, Florida and were able to stay with Bri’s old roommate, Ace in his beautiful home. Coronavirus cases were on the upswing, especially in Florida and Atlanta. I was so freaked out. N95′s were no where to be found, but since Bri is a painter, he was able to score some through work. He wore one on the flight and literally got light headed due to lack of oxygen, lol. He had the time of his life in Florida while I poured my whole self into our invitations, lol. And as soon as the boys got back, the US started to shut down.

Everyone began to work from home and businesses started closing up shop. Star couldn’t make it to my bachelorette, so she schemed her way into getting me to pole dance with all the girls, hahaha. It was literally the night before everything was supposed to shut down. No indoor dining or bars were going to be open at midnight the following Monday, so I was super thankful that I was able to have a mini bachelorette experience in our own little backyard.

It was an anomaly to fly anywhere and airports became ghost towns. Each day we got a little closer to my bachelorette and myself and the girls were so excited. Itineraries were made, bickering ensued, flights were purchased, I bought outfits for every outing (... so much white, lol) Literally the only thing left for us to do was to actually fly to Chicago. Probably a week to a week and a half before we were supposed to fly out, Chicago issued a stay at home order and everything shut down. We had to make the difficult decision to cancel my bachelorette trip to Chicago and try to rebound and think of a plan B. The girls were so gracious. I’m so thankful for all the work they put in to try and make things work out for me. We tried to do a weekend trip to Ashville, NC but everything was so risky and there was so much unknown at this point. Covid mandates varied from state to state and things were quite literally changing by the day, the hour even. It just didn’t work out. Till this day I’m sad that I didn’t get to have the full bachelorette experience, but I’m still so, so thankfulI for my friends and the work that they put in to make everything feel as normal as possible.

Home.

Careers.

Relationships.

Ok I’ll reflect on these things later. I’m sleepy, lol.

1 note · View note

politicaltheatre · 4 years

Text

Dissent

We’ll know soon enough what kind of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett will be. Senate Democrats will stall the proceedings as much as they can and try to drag things out so a confirmation vote can’t be taken until after the election, but we must accept that the odds and senate protocols are against them.

Publicly, Democrats up and down the ticket are claiming that their fear is that a Barrett confirmation will kill the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in the middle of a pandemic, and they very well may be right. That, however, isn’t their true fear.

The one they’ll voice when Barrett gets in front of them and the TV cameras is that she would support her benefactor Donald Trump in any lawsuit his people file in their attempts to decide the election through the courts, which they most certainly will do.

Trump’s already said as much. It’s part of his campaign pitch. He’s boasting about it at rallies. He’s counting on it.

As stupid as he often appears, and as stupid as he is about so many things, Trump understands corruption. He lives it and breathes it. He is a bona fide expert in it, so we should listen.

What he, Mitch McConnell, and others who embrace corruption understand is what far too many of us refuse to admit, which is that there is no such thing as an independent judiciary, that there is no such thing as an impartial judge.

This is not to suggest that Judge Barrett is corrupt. The awful truth of it is that she doesn’t have to be. She is reliably right wing, which is more than enough.

Barrett clerked for Justice Antonin Scalia. Like her mentor, she believes that the law does not exist to protect the weak from the strong. It does not exist, in their world, to reduce or correct imbalances of power. It is, instead, an instrument and only that, one by which the capable may exercise their will over others.

As brilliant as he was and as brilliant as she may be, theirs is the law of the school debate team. To them, winning isn’t about being right, it’s about domination. You can be wrong, morally and reprehensibly, but know the law and know how to wield it as a weapon and you will dominate your opponent time and again.

It is the triumph of short term thinking. To those embracing this view, there is nothing beyond that victory, no consequence beyond it, and no effect on the world beyond it.

If you think they’re wrong, prove it. Challenge them. Bend precedent to your will. Apply the logic of allowable facts. Prepare better. Go for the jugular. Destroy your enemy or meekly and silently accept your defeat.

Theirs is a faithless law, even more so because it divorces the law from the humans its verdicts, opinions, and decisions affect.

It is strange, then, but not surprising that Republicans and their surrogates have preemptively sought to place resistance to Barrett’s nomination on her religion. Their hope is to obscure the beliefs that truly make her dangerous, the irony being that Catholicism is not truly at the root of it.

Yes, there are strains and sects of Catholicism that preach the virtues of authority and hierarchy. These are the ones that sided with the fascists in their rise to power in Europe and protected sexually abusive clergy for so very, very long.

There are, however, also dissenting branches, including the one currently led by Pope Francis, that preach compassion and the virtues of equality. It was the former that led to those centuries of abuse and institutional corruption; it is the latter, we should all hope Catholics and non-Catholics alike, that will redeem the Church of both.

So, while Barrett’s affinity for a brand of Catholicism that embraces authority and power as chief virtues may inform her legal opinions, it is not what motivates them. That motivation, again, would be an honest, sincere belief that the right to demand accountability resides exclusively with those who have the power to demand it and the resources to dominate those in their way.

Trump may not have thought this through as thoroughly as that. McConnell may not have either, for that matter. All McConnell cares about is having judges in place who will protect him and corrupt people in power just like him. All Trump cares about is having judges who will protect him and him alone.

Oh, and that this pick is big “fuck you” to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg and everyone who adores her still. Trump loves that, too.

What Ginsberg represented, more than simply being a woman with the gumption to tell men like Trump and McConnell that they were wrong, was the power of dissent.

Dissent is more than just an exercise in freedom of speech, it is an act of empowerment, both for those voicing their disagreement and for the institutions in which they voice them. The purpose of dissent is to improve the institution, to save it from the corruption that would bring it down.

Ginsberg believed that whatever was wrong in the United States, it could and should be saved. To suggest that something could and should be improved is not disloyal but courageous. To criticize an institution is not pessimistic but the opposite, because to criticize it you must believe than it has the ability to improve.

That wish for the institution to be saved and to succeed is essential to dissent. It cannot be dissent without it.

By that measure, a lot of kinds of protest are dissent, and a lot of others very much are not. Refusing to wear a mask in a store, for example, is not dissent. Driving your car through a protest is not dissent. Silencing a reporter is not dissent. Cheating on your taxes is not dissent (Actually, cheating on anything is not dissent. Breaking the rules just because you want to win is despicable).

All of these examples undermine the communities in which we live. They pit us against each other and as a result weaken the bonds we need as a society in order to survive.

So, dissent is essential, it is part of our immune system, and in a democracy it is everything.

The legal right to dissent is relatively new to the human experience. Just a few centuries ago, speaking out against an authority’s decision was almost (and literally) unheard of. The opinions and decisions of powerful men and women from monarchs and clerics down to local landowners were absolute. To challenge them was treason and heresy. The penalty for either was the same: a painful, public death.

Around the world today we see example after example of authoritarian regimes denying the right to dissent and punishing it. Whether they are nominally Capitalist, such as Russia or Turkey, or nominally Communist, such as China, suppression of dissent is what truly determines what kind of life those they rule must lead.

To be left wing - truly and properly left wing - is to hold oneself accountable to others because we want them to be accountable to us. The ability to voice and listen to dissent is what makes that work.

With every non-unanimous Supreme Court decision, there is a majority opinion and a minority, “dissenting” one. There may also be concurring opinions to either. They are published together. It is the majority opinion that rules, but the reason for the inclusion of the others is that they may persuade those reading them to change their minds. In this way, each voice on the Court matters, each mind, and each opportunity to influence the voices and minds of those the Court serves.

The Supreme Court is the last federal institution where majority rule still holds true. The Electoral College and Senate disproportionately favor rural, right wing voters and have increasingly done so for decades. That makes this appointment the natural result, and with it will come things the Left correctly fears.

Barrett may very well support overturning decisions on the ACA and Roe v Wade, but, perhaps more disturbingly, she may support overturning the decisions that equalized LGBT rights and banned forced prayer in schools.

Again, this will not be because she is Catholic but because she believes that those in power, be they school boards or business owners, have the right to decide who has rights within their schools and businesses and who does not. If you don’t like that, you’ll just have to gain power yourself, or find a new school, or a new job, or a new bakery.

It will likely be a long time before Justice Barrett has to write a dissenting opinion. It will take the retirement or death of at least one of the right wing justices, and that may not happen for a decade or more.

There has been talk of Democrats stacking the Court with left wing justices. This would be a tragic mistake. Even talking about it is a mistake. If the Democrats did it next year, the Republicans could do it when they took power, and so on, and so on, and so on.

Meanwhile, it would corrupt and erode any confidence in any legal opinion issued by the Supreme Court or any of the lower courts, and with that whatever last shred of trust Americans had in government would be gone.

The better solution, one long overdue, would be to fix the imbalance of power in the Electoral College and the Senate. This would be done by admitting the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico as states and by splitting California into two or three states.

Doing so would add eight or ten senators and at least two voting representatives. This would not only repair some of the imbalance between right wing and left wing voters in this country, it would make it easier to pass new amendments to the Constitution, such as preserving the right to abortion, mandating health care as a right, setting term limits for all federal judges, and eliminating the Electoral College once and for all.

There would be resistance to this, of course. There would be dissent. And those offering genuine dissent should always be listened to. We fail to do so at our own expense.

Dissent is one of the prices we pay for democracy. It is sloppy. It is chaotic. It takes work and it takes time. However, much like our own immune systems, it must be flexible and robust to withstand change and adapt to new conditions.

That is the world Ruth Bader Ginsberg fought for. That is the world we should fight for, too.

- Daniel Ward

2 notes · View notes