---

---

The day's news roundup + tonight's musical feature: Shakey Jake Harris

---

Hey! Good Evening!

This evening's music features Chicago blues harmonica player Shakey Jake Harris. Enjoy!

^{Shakey Jake Harris - Ragged and Dirty}

“Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.”

-- George Carlin

---

News and Opinion

'You Don't Got This': Peace Group Blasts NYC's New Nuclear Survival PSA

Peace advocates on Tuesday derided a New York City public service announcement meant to prepare residents for a nuclear attack as a 21st-century version of the absurd Duck and Cover civil defense film of the early Cold War era.

"So, there's been a nuclear attack," the narrator of the NYC Emergency Management video begins. "Don't ask me how or why, just know the big one has hit."

"So what do we do?" she continues before instructing viewers to "get inside, fast," "stay inside... and get clean immediately," and "stay tuned; follow media for more information."

"All right? You've got this," the woman assures viewers.

While New York City Mayor Eric Adams called the PSA a "great idea," some critics accused officials of unwarranted fearmongering amid increased nuclear tensions with Russia over its invasion of Ukraine and NATO's response.

Others lambasted the PSA as latest in a line of nuclear war informationals like the U.S. Civil Defense Administration's Duck and Cover and the British government's Protect and Survive films that offer little more than delusive contentment for millions of people who likely would not survive a full-scale thermonuclear attack.

"The reality is, if this comes to pass, you don't 'got this,'" tweeted the International Campaign to Ban Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), which was awarded the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize for its work leading to a landmark treaty outlawing nukes.

Calling the PSA "outrageously misguided," ICAN said it's difficult to get inside fast during a nuclear explosion "when, in a matter of seconds, houses up to 175 kilometers away from the epicenter crumble like they are made of cards."

"The PSA goes on to advise to 'stay inside, remove clothing, and shower,'" ICAN added. "As if taking a shower will be feasible during a nuclear attack, or effective to protect you against radioactive ash. And 'stay tuned'—as if communications infrastructure will be functional."

The United States and Russia have over 11,000 nuclear warheads in their combined arsenals. China, France, and Britain have hundreds of warheads each, while India, Pakistan, Israel, and North Korea each have between 50-165 nukes.

According to NukeMap, a single Russian 800 kiloton warhead airburst over midtown Manhattan would destroy or severely damage much of New York City and cause an estimated 4.5 million casualties.

A higher-yield weapon, like the five-megaton warheads atop China's Dong Feng-5 intercontinental ballistic missiles, would destroy most of the city while killing or wounding around eight million people. In an actual full-scale nuclear war, multiple warheads would likely be launched against a target as important as New York.

Millions of people not instantly incinerated or obliterated by the fireball—which is hotter than the sun's core—and immense blast wave of a nuclear explosion would suffer severe burns, blinding, lacerations, blunt-force injuries, and, for many, the slow death of radiation poisoning.

"The living," Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev reputedly said, "will envy the dead."

CIA Spooks, Neocons FREAK At Bolton Admitting Coup Plots

Groups Urge Voters to Call Lawmakers and Demand Cuts to Bloated Pentagon Budget

Progressive campaigners on Wednesday urged members of the U.S. public to contact their representatives and demand their support for a pair of amendments that would reduce the country's military spending, a call that comes as the House is set to vote on legislation that would hand the Pentagon more than $800 billion in the coming fiscal year.

"That's almost a trillion dollars—approaching the highest historical levels for U.S. military funding since World War II," the National Priorities Project (NPP) noted in an email. "That dwarfs spending on many other agencies responsible for social spending, combined."

NPP is calling on the House, narrowly controlled by Democrats, to attach two separate amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), sprawling legislation that could receive a vote in the lower chamber as soon as this week.

The first amendment, led by Reps. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) and Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), would claw back the $37 billion that the House Armed Services Committee recently voted to add to President Joe Biden's historically high military budget request for fiscal year 2023.

In its current form, the NDAA topline is $839 billion—a figure that includes $808.4 billion for the Pentagon and $30.5 billion for the Department of Energy, which oversees the country's nuclear arsenal.

Lee and Pocan are also spearheading a second NDAA amendment that, if approved, would cut $100 billion from the current topline military spending level of $782 billion.

"Call your representative directly TODAY, or call the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121," NPP wrote in its email. "Urge them to vote 'yes' on both amendments."

"Shameful": Biden's Trip to Saudi Arabia for More Oil Ignores Human Rights Abuses, Khashoggi Murder

Good analysis, worth a click and a full read.

The Angry Arab: Biden in Arabia

President Joe Biden has embarked on a Middle East trip that will include a visit to Saudi Arabia and a meeting with Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman.

So, it’s now official, the Biden administration will forget about the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and the war in Yemen. The U.S. has only gently pressured Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to observe a truce in Yemen in return for designation of the Houthi rebels as terrorists. (It is illustrative of how political the U.S. government’s definition of terrorism is that Houthi rebels — who never perpetrated acts of international terrorism — are designated as terrorists merely as a political gesture toward Gulf despots.)

Biden will swallow the promises and words he uttered during the presidential campaign (when he forcefully chided the Saudi regime and MbS personally) as he cares more about U.S. public opinion and the mid-term elections than human rights considerations. Gas prices for electoral purposes always trump lofty ideals. But when did U.S. presidents ever care about human rights in their relationships in the Arab world? U.S. presidents care about human rights violations only in countries where rulers are not aligned with the U.S. and Israel.

After his stop in Israel, Biden will travel to Saudi Arabia chiefly to line-up Gulf countries with U.S. foreign and economic policies. His first priority is an agreement for increased oil production and Saudi Arabia has the most oil to offer. Biden is concerned mainly about his political fortune (and the sagging political fortunes of his party), and the foreign policy establishment in Washington (much of it beholden to Gulf money) has been urging Biden to basically disregard human rights as an element in U.S. foreign policy in the Gulf region. ...

Fantastically, Biden has been selling his controversial overtures to MbS as part of an effort to end Arab-Israeli wars, as if the UAE and Saudi Arabia have a long history of wars with Israel. Saudi opposition groups in Washington have expressed alarm over the recent gestures of reconciliation between Biden and MbS but all Arab opposition groups, which have in the past pinned their hope on the U.S. government, have been woefully disappointed. Biden will be seen smiling with MbS and questions about Khashoggi’s murder (or about the murder of other dissidents who were beheaded) will be dismissed in the name of “Arab-Israeli peace.”

As Biden Visits Israel, Palestinians Urge U.S. Not to Build Jerusalem Embassy on "Stolen Property"

Biden commits to Israel’s security as he embarks on Middle East tour

Joe Biden has said that the US is committed to Israel’s security on arriving in Tel Aviv for the first leg of a three-day visit to the Middle East, a trip focused on deepening the majority Jewish state’s ties with the Arab world as the region faces a common foe in Iran.

The US leader was greeted by the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog and caretaker prime minister, Yair Lapid on Air Force One’s arrival at Ben Gurion airport on Wednesday afternoon. He opted for fist-bumping rather than shaking hands with Israeli officials during the red carpet welcome, over what the White House said was concern over rising Covid cases.

Ahead of Biden’s trip, senior Israeli officials briefed reporters that the two countries will issue a broad-ranging communique titled the “Jerusalem Declaration”, which will take a tough stance on Iran’s nuclear programme, and reaffirm Israel’s right to defend itself. ...

“We’ll continue to advance Israel’s integration into the region and the relationship between the US and Israel is deeper and stronger in my view than it’s ever been,” the president said.

On leaving Israel, Air Force One will make a first direct flight from Tel Aviv to Saudi Arabia amid efforts to build a relationship between the Jewish state and the conservative Gulf kingdom, which does not officially recognise Israel’s existence.

Biden More Committed To UKRAINE Than America Amid INFLATION Crisis

Inflation Hits ANOTHER FORTY YEAR High

Soaring gas and food prices catapult US inflation to 40-year-high

US inflation accelerated in June by more than forecast, led by elevated prices for gasoline, food and housing costs and resulting in the largest annual increase in inflation in more than 40 years. The news virtually guarantees that the Federal Reserve will hike interest rates by another three-quarters of a point this month.

The consumer price index increased 1.3% last month after advancing 1% in May, the US labor department said, pushing inflation to 9.1% from 8.6%. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the CPI would rise 1.1%. Eight cities registered double-digit inflation, up from four in May. Seattle, Miami, Houston and Baltimore broke the threshold for the first time since records began two decades ago.

The other four cities experiencing inflation above 10% were Atlanta, Tampa, Riverside-San Bernardino in California, and Phoenix, which has had the highest big-city inflation rate throughout 2022.

Joe Biden urged Americans to stay calm and said his administration was committed to tackling the problem. “While today’s headline inflation reading is unacceptably high, it is also out of date,” Biden said, saying gas prices have fallen by 40 cents since mid-June. “Those savings are providing important breathing room for American families,” the president said. “Other commodities like wheat have fallen sharply since this report.”

Biden, Pelosi GASLIGHT On Inflation

Fed Set To CRUSH Workers In Historic Fashion

'Gleefully Committing Arson': Gottheimer Gang May Derail Manchin Deal

Progressive campaigners on Wednesday responded with frustration to reporting that Congressman Josh Gottheimer may rally right-wing House Democrats to thwart a potential reconciliation package party leaders are working out with Sen. Joe Manchin.

As Indivisible co-executive director Leah Greenberg put it: "Gottheimer really is gleefully committing arson all on his own right now."

Axios reports that Gottheimer (D-N.J.) "is gauging support among House centrists for a counteroffer to the emerging Senate reconciliation package, with one big clause: No new taxes."

Specifically, the outlet details that his counteroffer envisions $520 billion in new spending related to health and climate, and $627 billion generated from improved Internal Revenue Service enforcement and drug pricing reform.

"Gottheimer's discussions target a small group that includes Reps. Carolyn Bourdeaux (D-Ga.), Ed Case (D-Hawaii), Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.), Susie Lee (D-Nev.) Dean Phillips (D-Minn.), and Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.)," according to Axios.

While Manchin (D-W.Va.) played a key role in killing the Build Back Better bill that House Democrats passed last year, that came after Gottheimer spearheaded a successful effort to decouple the package from bipartisan infrastructure legislation that was ultimately signed by President Joe Biden.

Greenberg noted that now, everyone from Manchin to Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) "is ready to cut a deal on reconciliation, and understands the importance of raising taxes on the wealthy and corporations while lowering healthcare and energy costs for families."

"Gottheimer is just being a saboteur, totally captured by his financial sector donors, attempting to stop progress by throwing a tantrum," she continued. "He takes his cues from wealthy Wall Streeters who happen to have one of their multiple mansions in his New Jersey district. That's why it makes sense for him to throw sand in the gears of any bill that might make those mansion owners pay their fair share of taxes."

The Indivisible leader also argued that "Gottheimer is insulated from the actual political consequences of Democrats having no big legislative wins to run on in November" because of his wealthy donors, and called out reporters who have treated him "like a vulnerable frontline Democrat who's tapped into the working man's needs" while he "trashes activists and working-class communities who have come together to fight for Biden's economic agenda."

Sunrise Movement executive director Varshini Prakash similarly suggested that Gottheimer and any other right-wing Democrats again obstructing a reconcilation package focused on climate, prescription drug prices, and taxes could endanger their party's candidates across the country come November.

"To be clear, corporate 'centrists' are ruining the party and threatening Democratic seats in 2022," she said. "Sunrise and progressives have been fighting to pass Biden's agenda, while corporate 'centrists' are actively tanking it. We must ask ourselves why Rep. Gottheimer is working so hard to sabotage the party when he knows a climate and jobs bill would not only help communities across the country, but would help Democrats win seats this cycle."

Prakash pointed out that "Democrats are heading into November with a president with notably low approval ratings, a Congress that has not passed Build Back Better, and we are losing young and working people. If Democrats don't take action immediately, Republicans will win."

"In October 2021, 12 young volunteers with Sunrise were arrested for protesting Rep. Josh Gottheimer while demanding that he stop obstructing Build Back Better from passing," she recalled. "At the time, dozens of young people asked Rep. Gottheimer, 'Which side are you on?' We are still demanding answers."

Journalist David Roberts tweeted Wednesday that "Gottheimer being a titanic asshole is a good excuse to remind ourselves of the basic shape of Biden's presidency so far, namely: From the second he entered office, progressives have worked to support his agenda and 'moderates' have fucked him over."

Axios' revelations were followed by The Washington Post reporting Wednesday that Biden is considering breaking key climate pledges to win Manchin's support on a reconciliation package.

White House spokesperson Andrew Bates told the Post that "we do not negotiate in public but are dealing with lawmakers in good faith to pass legislation that will cut costs like prescription drugs and energy, lower the deficit by having the wealthy pay their fair share, and fight inflation for the long haul."

Briahna Joy Gray: Catholic SCOTUS = Religious STATE RULE? GOP Abandons Constitution For Culture War

Austin, Texas Sets Date to Decriminalize Abortion Care

The Austin City Council plans to make good on members' pledges to challenge attacks on abortion rights with a vote next week on a resolution intended to help protect patients and providers in the Texas capital.

During a special meeting scheduled for 10:00 am local time on July 21, the council is set to vote on the Guarding the Right to Abortion Care for Everyone (GRACE) Act, formally introduced last month by Council Member José "Chito" Vela after the U.S. Supreme Court's right-wing majority overturned Roe v. Wade.

Co-sponsored by Council Members Paige Ellis, Vanessa Fuentes, and Kathie Tovo along with Mayor Steve Adler, the GRACE Act would effectively decriminalize abortion in the city by directing the Austin Police Department to make alleged related crimes its lowest priority and restricting the use of funds for investigations.

Although the "trigger law" passed last year by the Texas Legislature has not yet taken effect, it is expected to later this year—and the state Supreme Court ruled earlier this month that a 1925 abortion ban can be enforced.

"By introducing this resolution during a special session, City Council is doubling down on fighting back for reproductive health," Fuentes said just after the Roe reversal. "Items like the GRACE Act will promote essential healthcare while enabling individuals to exercise their bodily freedom."

Vela told Common Dreams in an email Wednesday that "the importance of this vote can't be overstated."

"The Austin City Council refuses to allow our residents to live under the threat of 99 years in prison for the so-called crime of providing basic medical care," he added. "I encourage Austin residents to sign up to speak in favor of the GRACE Act at our meeting on Thursday, July 21."

City residents who wish to speak in support of the resolution next week—either virtually or in person—can sign up online from Monday, June 18 to noon local time on Wednesday, June 20.

While the GRACE Act would only apply to Austin, Vela recently noted that there are similar efforts in other cities located in states with post-Roe trigger bans and other abortion restrictions.

"We know this resolution is legally sound, and Austin is not alone in this fight," he said. "We are working with several other cities who are equally horrified by the prospect of an abortion ban and want to do everything they can to protect their residents."

Amazon gave Ring doorbell videos to US police 11 times without permission

Amazon has provided Ring doorbell footage to law enforcement 11 times this year without the user’s permission, despite previously stating it would do so only with consent.

The disclosure came in a letter from the company that was made public Wednesday by Senator Edward Markey and is bound to raise more privacy and civil liberty concerns about its video-sharing agreements with police departments across the US. ...

Brian Huseman, Amazon’s vice-president for public policy, wrote in the letter that in each instance, “Ring made a good-faith determination that there was an imminent danger of death or serious physical injury to a person requiring disclosure of information without delay.”

In such cases, Huseman wrote, Ring “reserves the right to respond immediately to urgent law enforcement requests for information”, adding the company makes a determination as to when to share video footage without user consent based on information provided to it in an emergency request form and circumstances described by law enforcement.

Some prior requests from law enforcement have raised concerns about how police might be attempting to use Ring footage. Last year, the non-profit digital rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation reported the Los Angeles police department requested Ring footage of Black Lives Matter protests in 2020.

Jayland Walker funeral: hundreds gather to mourn victim of police shooting

Hundreds of people filled a theater and passersby sounded horns in sympathy as family and friends shared their memories of Jayland Walker, the 25-year-old Black man killed in a hail of police gunfire in Akron, at his funeral on Wednesday.

Mourners passed his open casket during the viewing at the Akron Civic Theatre, some wearing T-shirts that said “Black Lives Matter” or “Zero Threat, Zero Violence, Justice for Jayland” ...

Bishop Timothy Clarke, of the First Church of God in Columbus, preached about how Walker’s death, and the deaths of other men and women, cannot be normalized.

“We must not try to act as if this is all right,” Clarke said. “This is not all right. There’s nothing right about this. We should not be here, and Jayland should not be in that box.”

The Akron mayor, Dan Horrigan, declared Wednesday a day of mourning. ...

Akron has seen daily protests since officials released body-camera footage. A nightly curfew in downtown Akron applies from 11pm to 5am.

The eight officers have not been identified. The Akron police chief, Steve Mylett, said on Monday rumors about the names of the officers have led to disinformation and that “bounties” have been placed on their lives.

---

---

NYT Ray Epps Profile Raises MORE Questions About FBI Jan 6 Involvement

---

---

Yosemite Fire Sparks Fears of a Climate Tipping Point as Blazes Threaten Ancient Sequoias

A massive wildfire in California’s Yosemite National Park expanded to more than 2,300 acres over the weekend and into Tuesday, threatening some of the world’s oldest giant sequoia trees and forcing officials to evacuate more than 1,600 visitors from a nearby campground Monday. Some scientists worry the blaze signals that forests in the region may have reached a climate tipping point, with increasingly intense wildfires reinforcing deepening drought conditions in a dangerous feedback loop.

Ecologists have long considered giant sequoias, which can tower hundreds of feet above the ground and live for thousands of years, almost impervious to flames. The trees depend on the heat from blazes to release their seeds. And for thousands of years, fires have commonly passed through sequoia groves, burning brush and smaller trees, while leaving the much larger sequoias relatively unscathed.

But that has changed in the last decade, as drought, wildfires and insect infestation—all exacerbated by climate change—have contributed to the deaths of a surprisingly high number of giant sequoias in their native habitat along the western slope of California’s Sierra Nevada mountain range. In fact, in the last two years alone, increasingly severe wildfires have killed as many as one-fifth of the estimated 75,000 sequoias living in those groves, shocking forestry experts who say such deaths point to a grim milestone for the climate crisis. Slow fires that once stayed on the ground are now more frequently racing through the treetops as crown fires.

“I cannot overemphasize how mind-blowing this is for all of us,” Christy Brigham, chief of resources management and science at Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks, told the Visalia Times-Delta in the wake of last year’s devastating Castle Fire. “These trees have lived for thousands of years. They’ve survived dozens of wildfires already.”

Many scientists, including those who helped compile the latest report from the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, now warn that the impacts of global warming are accelerating far faster than previously believed and that old-growth forests like California’s sequoia groves are rapidly turning from vital carbon sinks into major sources of carbon emissions.

Last year, wildfires in the United States, Turkey and parts of Siberia emitted an estimated 1.76 billion tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, the equivalent of more than a quarter of the annual carbon emissions of the U.S., according to scientists with the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service. And as rising greenhouse gas emissions push temperatures higher, it’s exacerbating the drought conditions that have helped fuel the West’s intense fires, which then release carbon dioxide, soot and other climate-warming pollutants into the atmosphere in a self-perpetuating cycle.

As drought shrivels Lake Powell, millions face power crisis

Alongside Nevada’s Lake Mead, Powell is one of the two largest reservoirs in the nation, holding 24m acre feet of water and spanning the Arizona-Utah border, and together they provide a vital water supply to a combined 40 million people in the south-west. Lake Powell is also a major source of hydropower: the vast pressure of the Colorado River traveling through the Glen Canyon dam’s 15-foot pipes, which spins turbines and then powers eight generators, produces cheap and clean energy for as many as 5.8 million homes and businesses across seven states.

But dwindling water levels at Lake Powell, which is now at 28% of its 24m acre-feet capacity, have put the Glen Canyon dam at risk. In March, water levels fell below 3,525 feet – considered a critical buffer to protect hydropower – for the first time. If the lake drops just another 32ft, the dam will no longer be able to generate power for the millions who rely on it.

Such a calamity might not be far off. The Bureau of Reclamation, the US federal agency that manages the Colorado River’s infrastructure, forecasts that even with significant proposed cuts to water allowances there is a 23% chance power production could halt at dam in 2024 due to low water levels and that it is within the realm of possibility that it will happen as soon as July 2023.

As the lake vanishes, water managers are scrambling to find a solution, including an unprecedented conservation order. But some worry that efforts may fall short as states battle over whatever water is available – foreshadowing fights for resources that are only set to intensify as drought further grips the arid south-west. “It’s a gigantic warning,” says Lisa Meiman, a spokesperson for the Western Area Power Administration (Wapa), a federal company that provides wholesale hydropower to 15 states through 57 dams, including Glen Canyon. “The rapid decline of Lake Powell has been surprising. There’s no doubt we are heading towards a drier future.” ...

When the lake is full, its dam can produce 1,320 megawatts, or 5bn kilowatt-hours of power annually – about the same amount as a large fossil fuel plant. But with water levels now 100 feet below the lowest elevation marker, hydropower production has dropped to 800 megawatts.

---

Also of Interest

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

Patrick Lawrence: The Imaginary War

Aaron Maté: John Bolton ADMITS To Planning Foreign Coups

Harpers Declares It's Over - The 'American Century' Is Gone

Ellen Brown: Achieving Self-Funding Local Sovereignty as Global Food Systems Collapse

FBI Still Targets Black People for Entrapment

Italian Prime Minister Draghi announces he will resign later Thursday

Starbucks says it will close 16 US stores out of concern for employee safety

Feeling the urge to take back control from power-mad governments? Here’s an idea

‘It has a pierced heart’: an Indigenous tribe’s fight to protect a sacred lake

Biden's FOOLISH Embrace of TRUMP Saudi Policy

Hispanics Are Like Tacos According To Jill Biden

YouTube Host Silenced For Challenging U.S. Gov On Ukraine

Aaron Maté: Biden DEFENDS Israel On State Visit, Dismisses APARTHEID Concerns

Doubts About Ukraine Kherson Counteroffensive, US Inflation Rises, Europe Fears Winter

---

A Little Night Music

Shakey Jake, Magic Sam, Freddy King - Call Me (If You Need Me)

Shakey Jake & Magic Sam - Roll Your Money Maker

Shakey Jake Harris & The All Stars - Too Hot To Hold, Save Your Money Baby, Respect Me Baby

Shakey Jake Harris w/John Mayall & Freddy Robinson - My Blues Advice

Shakey Jake Harris - Still Your Fool

Shakey Jake & the All Stars - Hold That Bus Conductor

Shakey Jake - Tell me how you like it

Shakey Jake and The All Stars - A Hard Road To Travel

Shakey Jake - Down so long

Shakey Jake and The All Stars - Further On Up The Road

---