Political operative went to prison before becoming a popular radio talkshow hostG Gordon Liddy, a mastermind of the Watergate burglary and a radio talkshow host after emerging from prison, died on Tuesday at age 90.His son, Thomas Liddy, confirmed the death but did reveal the cause, other than to say it was not related to Covid-19. Continue reading...
Darnella Frazier said Derek Chauvin did not ease up as he pinned Floyd down and that she still loses sleep over the killingThe woman who recorded the shocking video of George Floyd’s death that prompted mass protests for racial justice around the world has told the Derek Chauvin murder trial of her feelings of guilt at being unable to intervene to save his life.Darnella Frazier, who at times sobbed as she gave evidence on the second day of Chauvin’s trial in Minneapolis, said that she still loses sleep over the killing of the 46-year-old Black man. Continue reading...
Florida Republican congressman says he has never had sexual relationship with underage girlMatt Gaetz, a prominent Republican in Congress and a close ally of Donald Trump, said on Tuesday he was being investigated by the justice department over a former relationship but denied any criminal wrongdoing.Gaetz, who represents parts of western Florida, told Axios that his lawyers were informed that he was the subject of an investigation “regarding sexual conduct with women” but that he was not a target of the inquiry. He denied that he ever had a relationship with any underage girls and said the allegations against him were “as searing as they are false”. Continue reading...
Secretary of state takes veiled swipe at Trump administration and says change of approach is ‘in America’s interests’The United States will speak out about human rights everywhere including in allies and at home, secretary of state Antony Blinken has vowed, turning a page from Donald Trump as he bemoaned deteriorations around the world.Presenting the state department’s first human rights report under President Joe Biden, the new top US diplomat took some of his most pointed, yet still veiled, swipes at the approach of the Trump administration. Continue reading...
Visit reveals overcrowded tent structure with over 4,000 migrants packed into pods and the youngest kept in a large playpenThe Biden administration for the first time on Tuesday allowed a limited pool of journalists inside its main detention facility for migrant children at the US-Mexico border.The visit revealed a severely overcrowded tent structure where more than 4,000 migrants, including children and families, packed into pods and the youngest kept in a large playpen with mats on the floor for sleeping. Continue reading...
Officer Luther Hall, who was recording criminal activity during protests, required multiple surgeries after the attackNo convictions were returned for three white St Louis police officers accused of beating a Black undercover colleague so severely during a protest over another officer’s acquittal that he had to undergo multiple surgeries.A jury on Monday acquitted officer Steven Korte of charges of deprivation of rights under color of law and of lying to the FBI in connection to the attack on officer Luther Hall. Continue reading...
by Martin Pengelly and Richard Luscombe on (#5FYQK)
Ketanji Brown Jackson nominated to replace Merrick Garland on US appeals court, as part of president’s 11 diverse selectionsJoe Biden has announced a “trailblazing” set of federal judicial nominees, 11 picks including three Black women.Related: Justice, Justice Thou Shalt Pursue review: how Ruth Bader Ginsburg changed America Continue reading...
45office.com allows visitors to book the former president and his wife for personal appearances and greetingsVisitors to Donald Trump’s new website can book the former president and his wife, Melania Trump, for personal appearances and greetings.Related: Donald Trump uses new website to rewrite history of his presidency Continue reading...
A majority of anti-vaccine propaganda can apparently be traced back to a handful of people. While de-platforming them is sometimes appropriate, there is a bigger, better solutionHow many conspiracy theorists does it take to change a lightbulb? QAnon won’t let me tell you. I can, however, reveal that it takes only a dozen anti-vaxxers to spread dangerous misinformation to millions of people. According to a report from the NGO Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), up to 65% of anti-vaccine content on Facebook and Twitter can be traced back to just 12 people. Although Facebook has disputed the report’s methodology, the 12 have been nicknamed the “disinformation dozen”, and include Robert F Kennedy Jr, the nephew of John F Kennedy. A few of the 12 have been removed from at least one social media platform, but are still free to post on others.Citing the CCDH report, a number of US lawmakers have urged social media companies to de-platform the 12 immediately. Which seems like a sensible thing to do considering we’re in the middle of a pandemic that will drag on for ever unless a critical mass of people are immunised. Nevertheless, I think it’s important that we don’t react to misinformation with a kneejerk response. Free-speech issues aside, banning people from tech platforms is a game of whack-a-mole. As long as the incentive structures for spreading false information remain in place, more conspiracy theorists will pop up. I’m not saying de-platforming is never appropriate, just that it can be a simplistic solution to a complex problem. Continue reading...
The USMNT’s best players don’t turn out for the Under-23 team, but there were glaring errors in the campaign to reach the Tokyo Games anywayHere we go again.The US men have failed to even qualify for another global tournament, this time the Tokyo Olympics, after a sloppy 2-1 loss Sunday to Honduras. Even worse, this is now the third straight Olympics the US will miss, in addition to failing to qualify for the last World Cup. Continue reading...
China and the Emirates have teamed up to launch a rebranded vaccine – and that’s good news for the developing worldhina’s leading vaccine just got rebranded. On Sunday 28 March, its major pharmaceutical company, Sinopharm, announced a new joint venture with G42, a UAE-based tech company: the vaccine is called Hayat-Vax, hayat meaning “life” in Arabic. The partnership shows immense promise as a new source of vaccines across the developing world.But there’s a catch: a lack of scientific transparency in its phase III clinical trial data. A successful phase III trial is the golden seal confirming a jab’s efficacy once and for all. It allows scientists to observe possible side effects and make comparisons with placebo cases, while mirroring real-life conditions. From a scientific perspective, it provides critical evidence for developing future vaccines. But Hayat-Vax’s phase III data hasn’t been released. Continue reading...
The newspaper wouldn’t let Felicia Sonmez cover stories about sexual misconduct. That policy was to the Post’s detrimentFelicia Sonmez had to flee her home. In early 2020, after the death of the basketball player Kobe Bryant, Sonmez, a longtime breaking news reporter at the Washington Post, tweeted a link to a Daily Beast story about the 2003 rape allegation against Bryant. The tweet had no commentary and no editorializing by Sonmez, and yet on the day it appeared online, it was a lonely acknowledgment of Bryant’s compromised legacy amid a sea of uncritical praise for the dead athlete. In response, the reporter received a deluge of abuse from Bryant’s fans. They were angry at what they saw as Sonmez besmirching Bryant’s memory by acknowledging the accusation that he had been sexually violent towards a Colorado woman; they were willing to avenge this disrespect, or so they claimed, with more violence against women. The name-calling escalated into threats, and some of those threats seemed credible. Her home address was published online. For her own safety, Sonmez went briefly into hiding.Related: The Washington Post silenced one of its reporters. It now owes her an apology | Arwa Mahdawi Continue reading...
Narrative omits two impeachments, economic crash, Covid death toll and riot that marked end of his termDonald Trump has launched a new website celebrating his time as US president that includes a very selective retelling of the history of his time in office.45office.com is billed as a platform for his supporters to stay in touch and a place where Trump will continue his “America first” campaign. Continue reading...
Prosecutors accused the former police officer Derek Chauvin of deliberately killing Floyd and preventing others from administering first aid, in opening statements yesterday. Plus, 90% of Americans will be eligible for a vaccine by 19 April, says BidenGood morning.The trial of a former police officer accused of murdering George Floyd began yesterday, with prosecutors alleging that Derek Chauvin “deliberately” killed a defenceless Floyd by kneeling on his neck for nine minutes, even after he had stopped breathing. Attorneys accused Chauvin of “grinding and crushing him until the very breath, the very life, was squeezed out of him.” Continue reading...
In states across the US, conservatives are pushing to ban gender-affirming healthcare and limit trans kids’ access to sports teams. Children and their parents speak outArkansas lawmakers on Monday passed the most sweeping ban on transgender healthcare in the US, with legislation that restricts trans kids’ access to gender-affirming care and punishes doctors who treat them.It’s one of dozens of states where Republicans are pushing legislation that seeks to restrict trans youths’ access to sports teams that match their gender and outlaw gender-affirming healthcare. As the bills advance, trans kids are increasingly speaking out on the effects these efforts have on their lives, with some traveling to their state capitals to demand a voice in the debate. Continue reading...
Pandemic worsens health gap fueled by barriers to care and underlying conditionsQueer and transgender people across the US have been more vulnerable to contracting and dying of Covid-19 than their straight, cisgender counterparts, several new studies have found, with barriers to medical care and high rates of underlying conditions exacerbating the pandemic’s toll.Much about the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on LGBTQ+ Americans remains unknown. Few national surveys on Covid-19 ask people about their sexual orientation or gender identity; it’s unclear how many LGBTQ+ people have contracted coronavirus, or how many have succumbed to it. Continue reading...
The telecoms giant has closed hundreds of stores and cut 3,400 jobs amid the pandemicSince the coronavirus pandemic began, the telecoms giant AT&T has announced permanent closures of hundreds of retail stores around the US and laid off thousands of workers. Continue reading...
Finally, a global news event that we weren’t screaming at each other on Twitter about – and which was simple enough to explain to a childAs the Ever Given was freed from the Suez Canal on Monday — just under a week after it jammed itself in there like a husky gentleman in a waterslide — the prevailing attitude online was not one of relief or celebration.The hashtag #putitback started trending as people, with varying degrees of sincerity, immediately became nostalgic for the time when the whole world’s attention was fixed on huge oaf of a boat gunking up 200km of canal. Continue reading...
As York gives up its crown as the UK’s ‘best place to live’, I’ve come up with some alternative criteriaWhen I moved back to my home town in 2018, it was the year York was crowned “best place to live in the UK”. I know that, because people kept sending me this information, approvingly, as if I had made the move based on inside knowledge. “Rich history,” read the bland summary above the article awarding the city this arbitrary honour. “Cool cafes, destination restaurants … the perfect mix of heritage and hi-tech.”This was not the first or the last time York topped one of these lists. The local paper keeps track of our standing, relaying the sad news that this year Stroud and upstart Ilkley have beaten us as overall national and regional champions. Obviously, we will be assembling as a city to debrief on where we went wrong and strategise about how to wrest back our crown: civic pride is at stake. Continue reading...
The Republican narrowly escaped becoming the fifth US president to be assassinated – and there’s been no closer call sinceFew guests at the Washington Hilton, a vast hotel rendered in curving Brutalist concrete, notice the simple plaque tucked away near a lower entrance designed for VIPs.It marks the spot where, 40 years ago today, President Ronald Reagan was shot and injured when would-be assassin John Hinckley fired six bullets in two seconds. White House press secretary James Brady, police officer Thomas Delahanty and secret service agent Tim McCarthy were also hit. Continue reading...
As it turns out, the cost of disruption to world shipping is smaller than some coverage would suggestThe Ever Given container vessel is finally freed, but there has been extensive discussion of the potential economic costs of disruption to world shipping arising from the closure of the Suez canal. Much attention has been paid to the fact that 12% of total global trade flows through the canal.By contrast, few observers have remarked on the fact that the canal has been closed for long periods in the past, giving us a fairly good idea of the likely cost of an extensive blockage. As it turns out, this cost is smaller than some coverage would suggest. Continue reading...
Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin's trial over the death of George Floyd has begun. Minnesota prosecutor Jerry Blackwell said that Chauvin ‘betrayed his badge’ by using ‘excessive and unreasonable force’ on Floyd: ‘He put his knees upon his neck and his back, grinding and crushing him … until the very life was squeezed out of him.’ Chauvin's defense attorney Eric Nelson said that although ‘the use of force is not attractive’, the former police officer did ‘exactly what he had been trained to do over the course of his 19-year career’. Witnesses were also called to the stand, with prosecution witness Donald Williams describing watching George Floyd 'fade away like a fish in a bag’
Measures are among dozens of anti-trans legislation across the US and conservatives have filed more proposals this year than ever beforeArkansas lawmakers have approved a ban on gender-affirming healthcare for transgender children, sending the governor a bill that has been widely criticized by medical and child welfare groups.Related: How trans children became 'a political football' for the Republican party Continue reading...
Vill recalls the New York governor ‘manhandled’ her, grabbing her face and aggressively kissing her cheeks in front of her familySherry Vill remembers feeling embarrassed and stuck as the New York governor Andrew Cuomo “manhandled” her and came onto her in her own home, in front of her husband and son.“He towered over me,” she said during a press conference on Monday. “There was nothing I could do.” Continue reading...
President announces major expansion of nation’s vaccine program but also warns: ‘We still are in a war with this deadly virus’Up to 90% of US adults will be eligible for a Covid-19 shot by 19 April, Joe Biden said on Monday as he announced a major expansion of the nation’s vaccination program.Hours after Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned of “impending doom” in the race against the resurgence of infections, the US president delivered the counter measure. Continue reading...
New indictment also adds sex trafficking conspiracy charge as US prosecutors expand criminal caseGhislaine Maxwell, the British socialite accused of aiding in her former partner Jeffrey Epstein’s sexual abuse of minor girls, faces two more charges, a new Manhattan federal court indictment filed on Monday reveals.This indictment also identified a new accuser in the case, referred to as “minor victim-4” in court papers, and expanded the timeframe of Maxwell’s alleged participation in Epstein’s abuse by seven years – from 1994 to 2004, rather than from 1994 to 1997. Maxwell now faces a total of eight counts. Continue reading...
by Joanna Walters in New York and Joan E Greve in Was on (#5FY52)
Prosecutor says ex-officer betrayed police principles in killing of George Floyd while defense argues Chauvin followed his trainingOpening arguments got under way on Monday morning in the trial of the white former police officer Derek Chauvin, charged with the murder of George Floyd, a Black man, in Minneapolis last May, after Chauvin kneeled on his neck during an arrest.The Minnesota prosecutor Jerry Blackwell began, saying Chauvin betrayed his police principles. He also played the entire bystander video that showed Floyd begging for his life and then passing out as he is pinned to the street by officers, including Chauvin who presses on his neck for more than nine minutes. Continue reading...
Family with civil rights attorney Ben Crump and campaigner Al Sharpton knelt outside as murder trial of Derek Chauvin beganMembers of George Floyd’s family along with civil rights attorney Ben Crump and campaigner Al Sharpton gathered and knelt in front of the courthouse in Minneapolis on Monday morning as the murder trial began of former police officer Derek Chauvin.“Derek Chauvin is in the courtroom but America is on trial,” Sharpton said to the crowd. Continue reading...
Price of clothing and footwear, ceramics, beauty products and furniture could be hitThe Biden administration has warned it could slap 25% tariffs on British exports to the US after the UK levied a digital services tax on major technology companies.The price of clothing and footwear, ceramics, beauty products and furniture exports to the US could rise by a quarter, according to a list published by US officials. Continue reading...
Rochelle Walensky, head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, urged public officials to spread the word about the seriousness of a fourth Covid-19 surge in the country.The Biden administration and Walensky said Americans should continue to take precautions to prevent the spread of Covid-19
Plaintiffs in lawsuit claim discrimination over having to declare themselves male or female in order to receive public assistanceNonbinary New Yorkers who currently must declare themselves male or female to receive Medicaid, food stamps and other public assistance said in lawsuit filed on Monday the state is discriminating against them by failing to provide an X gender option.The lawsuit filed against state and city agencies that run benefit programs seeks the type of nonbinary gender option allowed on New York birth certificates and promised for driver’s licenses. Continue reading...
Sarah Obama was known to generations of Kenyans for her social activism, largely centered on children’s and family issuesBarack Obama’s step-grandmother, known affectionately to many as Mama Sarah, has died in Kenya at the age of 99.Sarah Obama was the third wife of the former president’s paternal grandfather, Hussein Onyango Obama. She died early on Monday in hospital in the western town of Kisumu after a short illness, the Daily Nation newspaper reported, saying her death was not Covid-19 related. Continue reading...
While working people toil, the richest have never have it so good. It’s time to fight back – our democracy depends on itThe United States cannot prosper and remain a vigorous democracy when so few have so much and so many have so little. While many of my congressional colleagues choose to ignore it, the issue of income and wealth inequality is one of the great moral, economic and political crises that we face – and it must be dealt with.The unfortunate reality is that we are moving rapidly toward an oligarchic form of society, where a handful of billionaires have enormous wealth and power while working families have been struggling in a way we have not seen since the Great Depression. This situation has been exacerbated by the pandemic. Continue reading...
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