The Evening Blues - 6-26-19



eb1pt12


The day's news roundup + tonight's musical feature: Guitar Crusher

Hey! Good Evening!

This evening's music features blues singer and guitarist Guitar Crusher. Enjoy!

Guitar Crusher - The Monkey

"Nanny nanny boo boo, neener, neener, neener"

-- unknown


News and Opinion

Donald Trump elevates the discourse of nations:

Trump threatens ‘obliteration’ after Iran suggests he has a ‘mental disorder’

The Iranian and US presidents have traded insults, with Hassan Rouhani suggesting that Donald Trump suffered from a “mental disorder” and Trump once more threatening Iran with “obliteration”.

The very personal exchange was reminiscent of similar verbal clashes between the US and North Korean leaders in late 2017, and underlined the volatility of US foreign policymaking in the present standoff in the Gulf. Trump has swung between dire threats and offers of talks without preconditions, while ramping up sanctions.

The worsening confrontation became significantly more personal this week when the US imposed sanctions on Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, and eight military commanders, and threatened measures against the foreign minister, Javad Zarif.

On Tuesday, Rouhani responded by describing the US president as “afflicted by a mental disorder” and said the sanctions against Khamenei were “outrageous and idiotic” – especially as the 80-year-old cleric has no overseas assets and no plans to ever travel to the US.

The insult was an echo of Kim Jong-un’s broadside against the US president in September 2017, when he called Trump a “mentally deranged US dotard”. The slanging match between Trump and Kim ultimately gave way to summitry and claims of mutual affection (with Trump even claiming they “fell in love”). The path to a diplomatic breakthrough with Iran, however, looks far more complicated.

'They Despise Diplomacy, and Thirst for War': Iran Accuses Trump Administration of Closing Path to Peace With New Sanctions

Iranian officials warned Tuesday that U.S. President Donald Trump's new economic sanctions targeting Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and top diplomat Javad Zarif could vanquish the possibility of peaceful negotiations and move the two nations closer to an unnecessary military conflict. "Imposing useless sanctions on Iran's supreme leader and the commander of Iran's diplomacy is the permanent closure of the path of diplomacy," said Abbas Mousavi, spokesman for Iran's Foreign Ministry. "Trump's desperate administration is destroying the established international mechanisms for maintaining world peace and security."

In a televised speech on Tuesday, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani called Trump's economic penalties "outrageous and idiotic" and pointed to sanctions against Zarif as evidence that the White House is entirely uninterested in diplomacy. "You sanction the foreign minister simultaneously with a request for talks?" Rouhani said.

The Trump administration's decision to escalate economic warfare against Iran came after weeks of soaring tensions, which nearly resulted in an all-out military conflict last week after President Donald Trump approved airstrikes against several Iranian targets. Trump called off the strikes at the last minute, but observers said the close brush with war underscored the need for immediate deescalation and diplomacy—not more aggressive posturing and sanctions.

After Trump chose the latter course on Monday, Zarif—who helped lead negotiations of the nuclear accord that the U.S. president violated last yeartweeted, "it's now clear that the B-Team is not concerned with U.S. interests—they despise diplomacy, and thirst for war." The "B-Team" is Zarif's name for a group of officials comprised of U.S. national security adviser John Bolton, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Iran-US tensions: European governments urge restraint

Bipartisan House duo unveils amendment to block Iran strike without Congress's approval

A bipartisan pair of congressmen, including a vocal ally of President Trump, on Tuesday unveiled a measure to prevent the president from conducting a military strike against Iran without congressional approval.

The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) amendment, offered by Reps. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), would prohibit funding for U.S. military action against Iran unless Congress has declared war or enacted another specific statutory authorization. ...

Democrats in the Senate are also pushing for a vote on an amendment to that chamber’s version of the NDAA that would block funding for a military strike on Iran without congressional approval.

Senate Republicans, though, appear unlikely to give the amendment a vote, leaving Democrats to decide whether they will take the uncommon step to prevent Republicans from cutting off debate on the bill.

U.S. Cyberattack on Iran Just Put a Target on American Businesses

President Donald Trump came within minutes of starting another war in the Middle East last week when he ordered, and then abruptly canceled, a missile strike against Iranian bases. Instead, he launched another strike: a long-planned cyberattack, designed to quietly cripple Iran’s missile defense systems. Anonymous U.S. officials claimed an instant victory, although Iran insists it failed to penetrate its systems. The impact of last week’s attacks may remain up for debate, but a consensus among security experts is abundantly clear: Tehran will hit back, targeting both U.S. government sites and private companies with rudimentary but effective cyberattacks.


Analysts expect Iran to focus on easier targets, namely; U.S. infrastructure like oil, gas and electricity companies and private industry.


After U.S. and Israeli hackers launched a crippling Stuxnet attack on the Natanz uranium enrichment facility in 2010, Iran responded with a spread of rudimentary attacks on major U.S. banks over an 18-month period. The DDoS attacks wreaked havoc on JP Morgan, Bank of America, and Capital One, leaving hundreds if thousands of customers unable to access their accounts for hours-long stretches over multiple days. The attacks also affected the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq. ...

As the recent spike in ransomware attacks has shown, there are numerous government and private companies vulnerable to outside attacks.

Assange legal advisor: Pentagon spearheaded pursuit of WikiLeaks founder

Further evidence has emerged that the American military is playing a central role in the US pursuit of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange over his role in exposing its war crimes and neo-colonial operations in the Middle East and around the world. Geoffrey Robertson, a senior legal advisor to Assange, revealed in a radio interview that he was told by senior figures in the previous US administration of Barack Obama that the Pentagon was spearheading the campaign to secure the WikiLeaks founder’s extradition to the US. Robertson made the comments in an interview last Thursday with Phillip Adams on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s “Late Night Live” program.

The lawyer noted that the open US persecution of Assange began in 2010, in response to WikiLeaks’ publication of US army documents and videos revealing extrajudicial killings in Iraq and Afghanistan, and other violations of international law. ... Robertson stated that during this period, he had spoken with “high connections in the Obama administration.” He told Adams: “I said to them, do you really want him because there are dangerous precedents here for the New York Times and for newspapers around the world?” The lawyer said the officials responded: “We don’t want him, but the Pentagon does, and the Pentagon may eventually get their way.”

In reality, the Obama administration viciously persecuted Assange, Manning and WikiLeaks. ... The central role of the American military chiefs in the campaign against Assange, however, is no doubt true. It is another demonstration that Assange would not receive anything resembling a fair trial or due process if he were extradited to the US. The US military and the Central Intelligence Agency, which also has played a role in the pursuit of Assange, are both implicated in torture programs and other human rights violations.

Robertson issued a warning about the plans of the Trump administration. “What is intended by the current regime,” is that Assange “dies in an American supermax” prison, he said.

Brexit: Johnson says Britain will leave EU on 31 October 'do or die'

Boris Johnson has hardened his position on leaving the EU “do or die” by the end of October, as hardline Eurosceptics extended their influence on his faltering campaign to be prime minister.

Johnson first doubled down on his commitment to leaving on 31 October in an interview with Talkradio, saying he was in no way reneging on his firm pledge. “We are getting ready to come out on 31 October. Come what may,” he said. Asked to confirm this, he added: “Do or die. Come what may.”

He then said he would scrap Theresa May’s withdrawal agreement and seek a completely new deal before then, as minor changes would not satisfy him. “I mean more than a change,” he said. “It’s got to be, we need a new withdrawal agreement – if we’re going to go out on the basis of a withdrawal agreement.”

Not only has the EU said it will not reopen the withdrawal agreement, but the timetable would be extremely tight as parliament is in recess over the summer and then sitting for about 10 days before party conference season begins. MPs return midway through October, just a few weeks before the deadline.

Robert Mueller to testify before House committees in July

The special counsel Robert Mueller has agreed to testify before Congress next month.

Mueller agreed to testify before the House judiciary and House permanent select committee on intelligence in an open session on 17 July, the chairmen of the committees announced on Tuesday.

Conservatives Are Nudging the Supreme Court to Dismantle Affordable Housing Policies

When it comes to conservatives and the U.S. Supreme Court, abortion and labor rights are often considered among their prime targets. Brett Kavanaugh’s ascension to the court last fall, though, opened the road for a host of other challenges for which conservatives have quietly been laying the groundwork for years. This month, the Pacific Legal Foundation, a conservative law firm based in California, made moves on one of those fronts, asking the Supreme Court to take up a case challenging the constitutionality of inclusionary zoning — a popular tool cities and states employ to increase affordable housing and promote residential integration.

Inclusionary zoning generally works by requiring real estate developers to reserve a certain number of units in new housing complexes for tenants who live on more modest incomes; some jurisdictions also allow developers to alternatively pay a fee so the city can construct more affordable housing elsewhere. Conservatives argue that the policy effectively violates a provision of the Fifth Amendment that says private property cannot be taken without just compensation.

This is the Pacific Legal Foundation’s third attempt to bring an inclusionary zoning challenge before the Supreme Court. Its previous efforts, in 2015 and 2017, were both dismissed, but legal experts say that with Kavanaugh now seated on the high court, it is more likely the case will find an audience — and be resolved in favor of conservatives. ...

Inclusionary zoning is a land-use policy, first developed in Montgomery County, Maryland, in the 1970s, as a way to foster mixed-income communities. Since it was enacted, the inclusionary zoning policy in Montgomery County has been used to build more than 11,000 new affordable units. By the end of 2016, according to Grounded Solutions Network, 886 jurisdictions in 25 states and Washington, D.C., had also adopted inclusionary zoning policies. And it’s still spreading: This past spring, the New Orleans City Council passed a mandatory inclusionary zoning law to boost affordable housing in the city’s most desirable neighborhoods.

If you're going to San Francisco, be sure to wear some flowers in your hair... there's an overprivileged asshole running around with a watering can for them.

Video appears to show man dumping water on homeless woman in San Francisco

San Francisco is reckoning with new reports of harassment and attacks on its homeless community, after video emerged of a person dumping a bucket of water on a homeless individual from the roof of a building.

The footage, which spread on social media this week, showed someone standing on a roof of a two-story building and throwing water on a person and their belongings on the street directly below. One witness told the Guardian it was clear the dousing on Sunday afternoon was intentional, and another local resident said he had witnessed a similar dumping incident targeting a homeless person on the same street a week prior.

“It was an attack,” said Richard Alexander Caraballo, who saw the incident from the window of an apartment across the street. “He just came out of nowhere … It was upsetting to see that happen as if it was his right to do that.” ...

Neither of the people in the video have been identified. A San Francisco police spokesperson said authorities were “aware of the incident” but that no victim had come forward to file a complaint.

“This incident is indicative of the extreme level of class hatred against poor folks in San Francisco, especially hatred against unhoused residents,” said Leslie Dreyer, a local artist and organizer. She works with the Coalition on Homelessness on the Stolen Belonging project, which has been documenting raids on homeless people and incidents of the city and others trashing the belongings of people camped on the streets. “It’s just awful … There is so much hatred toward them, and they know it.”

A group of San Francisco residents in a wealthy neighborhood recently raised funds for a lawsuit to try and block a new homeless shelter from opening in the area.

Worth a full read. The greedy 1% propagandist bastards are at it again:

NYT Presents Social Security Cuts as ‘Solution’ to Problem of Social Security Cuts

It’s hard to improve on economist and FAIR contributor Dean Baker’s observation that corporate media’s calls for cuts to programs for the elderly under the neutral-sounding guise of “reform” are about as predictable as the sunrise. As illustrated by the New York Times’ alarmist 1,581 word report (6/12/19) by Jeff Sommer, headlined “Social Security Is Facing Its First Real Shortfall in Decades,” another favorite media euphemism for cuts to Social Security is “solution.”

And not just any “solution”; it has to be “bipartisan,” too, in order to beat back the caricature of crazy leftists intent on bankrupting the country with their fiscal irresponsibility, even though there is no evidence that bipartisanship in itself produces better legislation (FAIR.org, 2/3/09).

Sounding the alarm of a “slow-moving crisis,” the Times warned readers that the most successful anti-poverty program in the United States is going to start drawing on its $2.9 trillion trust fund next year—for the first time since 1982—in order to keep paying out full benefits until 2034 or 2035. If nothing is done, the Times projects that benefits after that point would be cut by an average of 20 percent, and up to 25 percent in later years, because of the “long-known basic math problem” of insufficient numbers of younger people to replace the thousands of Baby Boomers retiring each day. (Actually, Social Security’s long-term problems have relatively little to do with the Baby Boom, most of whom will be dead by 2040.)

The Times declared the need for a “political solution,” and suggested that the “bipartisan effort” by Republican President Ronald Reagan and Democratic House Speaker Tip O’Neill in the 1980s—which it framed it as something that was “needed” to overcome a similar “crisis” in their time, after Reagan’s budget director’s proposal for immediate cuts to retiree benefits backfired—“gives some clues for a possible solution today.” In case readers don’t get the hint that bipartisan cuts to Social Security are necessary, the report ended with quotes from John Cogan—described as “a professor of public policy at Stanford,” not as a senior fellow at the right-wing Hoover Institute—talking about how impending benefit cuts will make a bipartisan compromise “possible,” and a former Social Security trustee claiming that we “undoubtedly” need a “combination of increased taxes and reduced benefits,” because otherwise the “eventual solution will be much more painful.”

Notice that even though the Times mentions that Democrats in Congress have a plan to expand benefits through higher taxes on the wealthy, which the chief actuary of Social Security says would “eliminate the program’s financial shortfall,” that is never presented as a “solution”; that word is reserved for things that would be “painful” or “unpalatable but inevitable” for Social Security beneficiaries, like “reduced benefits” or slowing the growth in “real benefits promised to future recipients.” ...

The Times report especially failed to inform readers on the remarkable injustice of cutting Social Security benefits, in view of where the funding gap came from. Although the Times correctly notes that Social Security benefits are progressive, giving more benefits to those with greater need, it doesn’t note that the payroll taxes which finance Social Security are regressive, because every working American pays the same percentage up to $132,900, while income above that amount is exempt from further payroll taxes (Guardian, 4/15/13). This regressive aspect, coupled with the rise in income inequality over the past four or five decades, explains a significant portion of the Social Security shortfall (Center for American Progress, 2/10/15).

DHS Whistleblower Who Spoke Out Against Obama-Era Immigration Jails Condemns Conditions on Border

Mexico’s Southern Border Is Now Packed With Troops Trained for the Drug War, Not a Humanitarian Crisis

The soldiers sped through the dusty backroads of this Southern Mexico town in two military trucks. Many of them had come from the front lines of a decade-long war against drug cartels. Just recently they were hunting drug traffickers and training for battle. Now, wearing the same type of ballistic vests and helmets and gripping the same semi-automatic rifles, they roam from town to town in search of a new target: undocumented migrants.

They comprise the vanguard of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s frenetic push to shore up border security or face U.S. President Donald Trump's wrath in the form of damaging economic tariffs. But Mexico’s rush to appease Trump is raising fears of overreach: The National Guard was designed to cope with Mexico's bloody drug war and soaring violence. Murders in Mexico rose by at least 15 percent in 2018, breaking a new, deadly, record — and they are on path to climb even higher this year.

Now, the guard’s deployment has alarmed many migrant activists and security experts, who say that troops trained to fight powerful criminal organizations are ill-fit to handle a humanitarian crisis. They warn that deploying the military to go after non-violent migrants could lead to serious human rights abuses, while taking away resources from other pressing security problems.

“What you have is the military being deployed for immigration enforcement. They are not trained to do this,” said Alejandro Hope, a security analyst in Mexico City. “You are dealing with children, women, families. My guess is that a lot of mistakes will be committed in the process, like excessive use of force.”

AOC Joins Other Progressives to Vote Against Dems on Funding Bill for DHS, Call for Abolition of ICE

Weed Is Now Legal in Illinois

Illinois, the sixth most populous state in the nation, just became the 11th state to legalize recreational marijuana use.

Signed into law by Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Tuesday, it marks the second time, following Vermont, that weed legalization was passed by the Legislature rather than by voters at the ballot box. Vermont was first, but the Illinois law establishes statewide distribution regulations, legalizing the sale of cannabis, right out of the gate.

Illinois’ law will let people have licenses to grow and sell cannabis, as well as allow adults 21 and older to possess and consume it. It allows residents the purchase and possession of up to one ounce of weed and non-residents up to 15 grams. ...

But as for the 800,000 people in Illinois with criminal records for purchasing or possessing a maximum of 30 grams of marijuana, the bill may mean their records are cleared. However, the governor said people with records of committing violent crimes won’t be able to receive pardons for weed possession.



the horse race



Warren Tops MoveOn Straw Poll for First Time With Double-Digit Lead Over Both Sanders and Biden

Results from a straw poll by progressive group MoveOn of its members released Tuesday show Sen. Elizabeth Warren trouncing the rest of the Democratic field in the presidential primary, 21 points ahead of her closest rival, Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Warren, of Massachusetts, claims 37.8 percent of the poll's voters, while Sanders, of Vermont, came in second with 16.5 percent. Former vice president Joe Biden, who is seen as a more conservative candidate, came in third at 14.9 percent with MoveOn's progressive supporters; Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg rounded out the top four with 11.9 percent. The rest of the field were in the single digits. Warren, California's Sen. Kamala Harris, Buttigieg, and Sanders were the top four candidates for the poll's "second choice" option.

The MoveOn poll targets the left-leaning progressives that make up its supporters. Nonetheless, the group's federal endorsement manager Allison Pulliam said in a statement, the poll's findings indicate the Democratic Party faithful are beginning to coalesce around a small number of top-tier candidates. ...

Tuesday also marked the release of a national poll from Emerson Polling that found Biden still leading the pack of Democrats with 34 percent. Sanders was close behind at 27 percent while Warren, in contrast to her strong showing among MoveOn voters, was a distant third at 14 percent.

Federal Judges Send 2020 Census Lawsuit Back to Lower Court

A lawsuit that alleges a 2020 census question pushed by the Trump administration violates minorities’ rights will be sent back to a federal court in Maryland so new evidence can be considered, U.S. appeals judges ruled Tuesday.

The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision comes a day after U.S. District Judge George Hazel of Maryland suggested in an opinion that racial discrimination and partisan power plays could be the underlying motives in asking everyone in the country about citizenship status.

'Shocking Blow to the Queens Democratic Machine' as Progressive Tiffany Cabán Declares Victory in District Attorney Race

Overcoming united opposition from New York City's powerful Democratic political machine, 31-year-old progressive public defender Tiffany Cabán declared victory in the race for Queens district attorney Tuesday night after running on a platform of decarceration, ending cash bail, decriminalizing sex work, and cracking down on predatory lenders. ...

While Cabán's establishment-backed opponent Melinda Katz—the Queens borough president who benefited from a torrent of campaign cash from the real estate industry—did not concede defeat Tuesday night, Cabán's campaign expressed confidence that the remaining ballots will not be enough to swing the election.

As of this writing, Cabán is ahead by just over 1,000 votes with 99 percent of precincts reporting. If Cabán wins, she is heavily favored to defeat Republican Daniel Kogan in the November general election. ...

Cabán's apparent primary victory was described as an "earthshaking political upset" and immediately drew comparisons to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's (D-N.Y.) stunning win last year over powerful Wall Street-backed Rep. Joe Crowley. Crowley, who is now a lobbyist, backed Katz with funds from his campaign committee while Ocasio-Cortez joined other progressive lawmakers and activists in supporting Cabán, who used her campaign ads to rail against the "corrupt Queens political machine" that "get[s] rich off foreclosures."

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate who also endorsed Cabán, celebrated the progressive public defender's apparent win as "a victory for working people everywhere who are fighting for real political change and demanding we end cash bail, mass incarceration, and the failed war on drugs."

"Tiffany Cabán took on virtually the entire political establishment," Sanders tweeted, "and built a grassroots movement."



the evening greens


Sunrise Movement Rallies Outside Democratic National Committee Headquarters Over Climate Change Debate Failure

About 100 young activists with the Sunrise Movement rallied outside the Democratic National Committee headquarters on Tuesday, demanding the party to reverse its ban on holding a climate change debate among the 2020 presidential candidates. Activists have been calling for a full presidential debate dedicated to climate change as the issue has become a top priority for voters, pushing candidates to develop and release detailed policy proposals in the process. In addition to the protest in Washington, D.C., they’re calling on supporters to sign a petition demanding a climate debate. ...

The DNC is not only refusing to hold a debate but threatening to bar any candidates who participate in a third-party climate debate on their own from future DNC debates. DNC Chair Tom Perez said in a Medium post earlier this month that the party would not hold any issue-specific debates because it could not allow individual candidates to dictate the terms of debate. His position came in response to Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, who has made climate change the centerpiece of his presidential campaign and has called for a climate-centric debate.

“If we change our guidelines at the request of one candidate who has made climate change their campaign’s signature issue, how do we say no to the numerous other requests we’ve had?” Perez wrote. “How do we say no to other candidates in the race who may request debates focused on an issue they’ve made central to their own campaigns?”

France falls short on emission targets, says climate council

France failing to tackle climate emergency, report says

France is falling behind on tackling the climate emergency despite ambitious promises to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, a new report has found, saying Paris is worryingly far from delivering its goals. The stark warning from France’s independent advisory council on climate comes at a key moment, as the eurozone’s second-biggest economy attempts to present itself as a world leader on the climate emergency.

The centrist president, Emmanuel Macron, who sought to counter Donald Trump by promising to “make our planet great again”, has tried to encourage other European nations to aim for neutral carbon dioxide emissions across the EU by 2050.

But the report handed to the prime minister, Édouard Philippe, on Tuesday night suggests that everyday life in France does not match the political promises. France needs to seriously strengthen its climate policies – particularly on transport, car use and building renovation – if it is to meet its commitments under the Paris climate agreement, the experts said.

‘Climate apartheid’: UN expert says human rights may not survive

The world is increasingly at risk of “climate apartheid”, where the rich pay to escape heat and hunger caused by the escalating climate crisis while the rest of the world suffers, a report from a UN human rights expert has said. Philip Alston, UN special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, said the impacts of global heating are likely to undermine not only basic rights to life, water, food, and housing for hundreds of millions of people, but also democracy and the rule of law.

Alston is critical of the “patently inadequate” steps taken by the UN itself, countries, NGOs and businesses, saying they are “entirely disproportionate to the urgency and magnitude of the threat”. His report to the UN human rights council (HRC) concludes: “Human rights might not survive the coming upheaval.”

The report also condemns Donald Trump for “actively silencing” climate science, and criticises the Brazilian president, Jair Bolsonaro, for promising to open up the Amazon rainforest to mining. But Alston said there were also some positive developments, including legal cases against states and fossil fuel companies, the activism of Greta Thunberg and the worldwide school strikes, and Extinction Rebellion. ...

Alston’s report on climate change and poverty will be formally presented to the HRC in Geneva on Friday. It said the greatest impact of the climate crisis would be on those living in poverty, with many losing access to adequate food and water. ...

The impacts of the climate crisis could increase divisions, Alston said. “We risk a ‘climate apartheid’ scenario where the wealthy pay to escape overheating, hunger, and conflict while the rest of the world is left to suffer,” he said. “When Hurricane Sandy wreaked havoc on New York in 2012, stranding low-income and vulnerable New Yorkers without access to power and healthcare, the Goldman Sachs headquarters was protected by tens of thousands of its own sandbags and power from its generator.”


Also of Interest

Here are some articles of interest, some which defied fair-use abstraction.

How often do you say to yourself, "I am surrounded by idiots!?" If you are in America, answer in the affirmative:

Majority Of U.S. Citizens Would Approve Preventive Nuclear Strike On North Korea

Survey: Americans Have Remarkably Ignorant Attitude Toward Nukes And North Korea

WaPo Doesn’t Want Voters to Know Medicare for All Will Cut Their Health Costs

Excellent:

Today’s Wall Street Has All the Hallmarks of Tulip Mania

Brazilian diplomats 'disgusted' as Bolsonaro pulverizes foreign policy

How a Fringe Muslim Cleric From Australia Became a Hero to America’s Far Right

Phase one of US Middle East peace plan greeted with scepticism

Racists With a Badge: How Police Are Dealing With Officers Spewing Hate Online

When NPR Is More Dangerous Than Fox News

How banning dangerous chemicals could save the US billions

Europe heatwave: record high of 45C (113F) expected in France


A Little Night Music

Guitar Crusher - Why, Oh Why

Guitar Crusher and the Houserocking Mellotones - Cuddle Up

Guitar Crusher - Itch With Me

Guitar Crusher - Hambone Blues

Guitar Crusher - I Can't Help It

Guitar Crusher - Weak For Your Love

Guitar Crusher - I Feel The Pain

Guitar Crusher - I've Got To Know

Guitar Crusher - Since My Baby Hit The Numbers

Guitar Crusher - Mean Old World

Guitar Crusher - Mama's Baby


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Evil takes the day off

Bank of America Corp. said it will stop lending to companies that run private prisons and detention centers.

“We have decided to exit the relationship’’ with companies that provide prisoner and immigration detention services, Vice Chairman Anne Finucane said in an interview. “We’ve done our due diligence that we said we would do at the annual meeting, and this is the decision we’ve made.’’

The bank decided to back away from the industry after a review by its environmental, social and governance, or ESG, committee, which included site visits and consultation with clients, civil rights leaders, criminal justice experts and academics. The Charlotte, North Carolina-based lender also met with its internal Hispanic and black leaders before coming to the decision.

The company will stop its activities in the industry as soon as it can, while meeting contractual obligations, said Finucane, who leads Bank of America’s ESG efforts.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. took a similar step in March, breaking off its relationship with the industry after deciding it was too risky, and Wells Fargo & Co. is also halting loans to the industry. Protesters have been urging bank executives to back away from the business, and shares of several prison companies slumped last week after presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren tweeted about her plan to terminate the

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@gjohnsit
a couple of investment banks are burnishing their image because of an E. Warren tweet? Is this how US social policy is altered? Highest incarceration rate per capita in the world. And the answer is no more easy money.

Yikes

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joe shikspack's picture

@gjohnsit

it kind of makes you wonder. i had pretty much thought that there was just about nothing one could do to offend the conscience of a bank. presumably they are doing it in order to enhance their public relations profile. i wonder what they expect the payoff to be.

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There is a televised "debate" tonight starring B. Sanders, Indy (Dem), along with whole host of other wanna bees. Glad I don't own a TV anymore. How do scripted questions with a time limit response equate to a debate? Tune in and see! MSM still trying to be relevant. HA!

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joe shikspack's picture

@QMS

i will skip watching it tonight since i expect to read all about it tomorrow. i suspect that there will be non-stop spinning for a few days after this.

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enhydra lutris's picture

good for them, hope it hols up. Until we can force the government to provide basic services like housing, we must bribe/browbeat developers into doing it. Of course, the idea is anathema to them, their preferred clients and their banks, so it's probably doomed, but a good thing all the same while it lasts.

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That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

joe shikspack's picture

@enhydra lutris

yep, starting back in the 60's the scale of maryland developers projects got huge, to the point that they began building whole cities. it caused a bit of thinking about what that meant for different population groups.

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snoopydawg's picture

This is in regards to the guy who dumped water on the homeless woman.

“This incident is indicative of the extreme level of class hatred against poor folks in San Francisco, especially hatred against unhoused residents,”

Yep. This is just one more way to dehumanize a certain class of people and that's what we're seeing at the border with the kids being held in such deplorable conditions. If enough people accept what is happening to the children then what won't they accept? The worst thing that can be done is to children and that might be why it's happening. There are many people who don't give a rat's ass about children being separated and locked away from their parents because they are the "others". But if our government can get away with doing this then what's in store for the children of America? Congress already wants to gut social programs that 19 million children rely on and so what if they die? They are part of the "other" class right?

From that article to the one on social security.... I guess that is why I was seeing alarmist articles today about how bad the deficit is becoming. But congress can pull up 4.6 billion for Trump's wall out of the blue and $29 trillion to bailout the banks right? Or they can stop giving companies tax breaks and subsidies when they are already so f'cking rich and never seem to have to pay taxes. Bunch of billionaires asked to be taxed more, but how many of them hire lawyers to find every tax loophole they can?

Stop the world I want to get off.

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Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

joe shikspack's picture

@snoopydawg

yeah, when i saw yet another article about the growing inhumanity of rich people in san francisco, it really pissed me off. given that many of these are the people who are enabling the surveillance capitalist tech economy it gives you a really good idea of how much they care about the rest of us whose privacy they are destroying for profit.

i guess that it's good that so many of them have chosen to stay in one city rather than afflicting neighbors across the country with their physical presence.

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Unabashed Liberal's picture

logo, later this evening, regarding 'false' Debate claims about Social Security & Medicare. If there are any, that is.

Hey, maybe we'll get lucky, and the Candidates won't 'BS' us

Is this eye-catching, or what?

Pants On Fire.JPG

Wish the Debate started later, since it begins the same time as Kaity's last long walk, and, being a pup, we can't afford to get her off her schedule.

Mostly, interested in hearing what ol' Liz--supposedly, a H.S. and college 'champion' debater--has to say, and, from the more positive side, TG. IMO, Gabbard's quite well-spoken, so, can't imagine that she wouldn't hold her own against the likes of Warren. (not that they'll have an opportunity to challenge one another - doubt that's in the cards)

I'm going to be curious what the viewing audience is--in RL, we're the only folks we know (except 3 other people) who are even planning to watch. I've got last year's stats bookmarked, for comparison, once the figures come in.

Hey, we're sweltering here. Hope Everyone else is managing to stay cool. Hope to catch up with you Guys after the Debate.

But, just in case I don't finish enough 'work' for Mr M, I'll go ahead and wish Everyone a nice evening!

Bye

Pleasantry Mollie

“Dogs have given us their absolute all. We are the center of their universe. We are the focus of their love and faith and trust. They serve us in return for scraps. It is without a doubt the best deal man has ever made.
~~Roger Caras

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Everyone thinks they have the best dog, and none of them are wrong.

joe shikspack's picture

@Unabashed Liberal

great graphic!

it will be interesting to see who the grand bargaineers are this time around. i expect it from biden and some of the others, but i think that he might be the most bold about lying about it.

it's hot here, too. have a great evening!

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dystopian's picture

Guitar Crusher was great... great player, great voice... awesome stuff man, THANKS!

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We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein

joe shikspack's picture

@dystopian

yep, he was one of those blues guys that found some success (at long last) in europe and is virtually unknown here.

have a great evening!

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GreatLakeSailor's picture

.
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Compensated Spokes Model for Big Poor.

GreatLakeSailor's picture

@GreatLakeSailor
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Compensated Spokes Model for Big Poor.

joe shikspack's picture

@GreatLakeSailor

sounds like i didn't miss much. Smile

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GreatLakeSailor's picture

@joe shikspack

in case Tulsi has the oppy, and takes it, to say something kickass.
Several funny twit feeds are plenty for me.

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Compensated Spokes Model for Big Poor.

Unabashed Liberal's picture

for this evening's debate--or, know a media outlet that will post it--please, let us know.

It was so boring, and, I have several more spreadsheets to work on, that I had to tune the Debate out. As far as I could tell, consisted of 'talking points' and platitudes. It was absolutely worthless, with a captial 'W.' Wink

Sometimes, stuff like this, is better consumed via print media. So, willing to read tonight's, and tomorrow's transcript, just so I know what's going on.

What's surprising (to me), this debate should have been the most interesting. After all, these folks are on the 'B' Team, or, at the so-called kiddie table, and, needed to be bold, take chances, and break out of the crowd.

Having said that, if any one of them did well--it was TG. IMO. She took on Tim Ryan, regarding our useless and immoral military engagements, with an emphasis on her time served in Afghanistan.

Tulsi definitely helped herself. (IMO)

That was about the only good thing about the Debate. I would like to read all of her comments, if we can dreg up a transcript. The rest of the discourse was absolutely garbage, though. (IMO)

BTW, there were no substantive questions about the social safety net--meaning, policy-related--about Medicare, MFA, UMFA, or Social Security. Heck, Social Security wasn't even mentioned!

Oh, guess I should give two of the Dudes credit for throwing out a few lines in Spanish--Booker and O'Rourke. Hey, at least they tried. And did okay.

Ok

Mollie

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Everyone thinks they have the best dog, and none of them are wrong.

joe shikspack's picture

@Unabashed Liberal

and post a link tomorrow if i run across it. have a great evening!

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Unabashed Liberal's picture

@joe shikspack

Mollie

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Everyone thinks they have the best dog, and none of them are wrong.

snoopydawg's picture

@Unabashed Liberal

in one of the threads on it and the format was just as ridiculous as it has been since the DNC took it over. No one gets to talk for more than a minute and then someone gets a 30 second follow up. There is no way people who want to learn about what people stand for can get a clue. But then that's why it setup that way isn't it? This is just kabuki BS, but this time people had to pay to get in. The moderators got champagne and caviar. LMAO!

Did anyone get to talk about climate change? For more than a minute? lol...Perez promised that it would be debated..LoL! Did Rachel ask anyone about Russia? lol!

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Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

Dawn's Meta's picture

@snoopydawg How did the League of Womens' [sp?] Voters lose the debate sponsorship? When? And was the same loss equalled on the Republican side?

I just hate what is going on with this. Fiddling while the planet burns and retired people loose pensions and possibly Social Security.

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A society grows great when old men plant trees in whose shade they know they shall never sit. Allegedly Greek, but more possibly fairly modern quote.

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TheOtherMaven's picture

@Dawn's Meta

TPTB messed with the rules, and the League of Women Voters said "OK, if that's how you want to run it, YOU run it!" And walked away.

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There is no justice. There can be no peace.

Unabashed Liberal's picture

@snoopydawg

Debate, so, don't know if Rachel asked about the Russia Ruse.

Chuck Todd did ask TG about her views on the LGBT Community.

I thought her answer was a decent one, although, it's being derided in some quarters.

Said I wouldn't, but, we're going to 'listen' (on XM) to tonight's Debate. Just can't take a chance on missing the convo about UMFA, Medicare, and/or Social Security. Smile

Have my trusty 'Pants On Fire' logo, ready--that is, if they touch on substantive policy. Heck, last night, they simply asked "are you in favor of MFA?" Ridiculous question. As though there's only one proposal, when they must know that some lawmakers are referring to 'Buy-In' Proposals, as MFA.

You nailed it--it's mostly Kabuki!

Have a good one!

Mollie

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Everyone thinks they have the best dog, and none of them are wrong.

joe shikspack's picture

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