Plan includes multiple ambitious proposals, such as expanding benefits like free school meals and food stampsThe Biden government has launched a new strategy to end hunger in the US by 2030 through the expansion of benefits such as free school meals and food stamps.One in 10 households struggled to feed their families in 2021 due to poverty – an extraordinary level of food insecurity in the richest country in the world which has barely budged in the past two decades amid deepening economic inequalities and welfare cuts. Of those, children in 274,000 households went hungry, skipped meals or did not eat for entire days because there was not enough money to buy food. Continue reading...
Memo warns employees they should not speak in support of abortion following state ban on procedureCondoms should only be provided to students to prevent sexually transmitted infections, not as birth control, according to a memo sent by the University of Idaho to staff last week.The memo, first obtained by the Idaho Press and issued to all employees on Friday, laid out the university’s reproductive policies following the enactment of Idaho’s abortion law, which bans the procedure in nearly all cases. Continue reading...
Amber Rones Barnes, 36, condemned for posting picture of dead Siberian husky – not the ‘predator wolf pup’ she believed she killedIn a horrifying and tragic turn of events, a Montana hunter has shot and killed a Siberian husky she believed was a wolf and sparked an online tirade of outrage after posing with a photo of the skinned dog.Thousands of people condemned Amber Rose Barnes, 36, after she proudly posted about the kill on Facebook, along with graphic photos of the deceased husky which she at the time thought was a wolf pup. Continue reading...
Agency files slightly amended list of seized materials and an affidavit that the list reflects what was taken during searchThe Department of Justice has pushed back on the unsubstantiated claims from Donald Trump that the agency planted evidence during its search of Mar-a-Lago, submitting a slightly amended list of seized materials and an affidavit that the list reflects what was taken during the 8 August search.The FBI submitted a first version of the inventory list several weeks ago. It only had one business day to compile the first list but had more time to submit the most recent version, reported CNN. Continue reading...
Britain has its third female prime minister and Italy is likely to get its first. That’s progress, right? Well, only if you can ignore their policiesWhat a fine few weeks for feminism it has been! First Liz Truss became Britain’s third female prime minister and now Giorgia Meloni is expected to be Italy’s first ever female prime minister. The former is a deeply unserious person who used to be most famous for a viral rant about cheese before gaining global recognition for helping to crash Britain’s economy in record time. The latter is the most right-wing Italian leader since 1945: a bigot with a history of homophobic, anti-immigrant and anti-choice views who represents a post-fascist party and hasn’t definitively distanced herself from fascism.Scrap all those inconvenient facts, though. It’s not their policies or their moral compasses that matter: the most important thing about Truss and Meloni is that they are women. Sisters are doing it for themselves, and all that. (“It” being far-right politics and crashing the economy.) Like it or not, representation matters: you can’t be what you can’t see. I might not agree with Truss and Meloni’s policies but I can put my lefty political leanings aside for a moment and admit that they are both inspirational trailblazers. Little girls can finally grow up secure in the knowledge that they have what it takes to help drive the pound to record lows. They can go to sleep at night knowing that authoritarianism isn’t just for the boys. That’s progress, isn’t it? That’s worth celebrating, right?Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...
With Putin mired in the Ukraine war and facing unrest at home, it’s time the west tried to negotiate a way back from the brinkPresident Putin’s declaration of partial mobilisation is a sign of the utter failure of Russia’s Ukraine strategy since February’s invasion. That Putin waited so long before declaring mobilisation is partly because it involves an implicit recognition of this failure, and of the fact that the “special military operation” is in fact a full-scale war, which Russia seems to be losing. It is also because he feared – rightly – a backlash from the Russian public. His regime is now in serious danger. Another major defeat would most probably bring it down.What could be much more dangerous than the mobilisation itself is the combination of this announcement with the decision to hold referendums in the eastern Donbas (recognised as independent by Russia in February), and the other territories occupied by Russian forces during the invasion.Anatol Lieven is director of the Eurasia programme at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft Continue reading...
Whether or not the assault on the Capitol actually failed is yet to be determinedAs the January 6 hearings are about to resume, it is unlikely that our basic understanding of what happened between the 2020 presidential election and the attack on the Capitol will significantly change. That is a testament to the crucial work the Committee has already done and to which we owe much of our detailed knowledge of the weeks long, multi-level coup attempt and the evolving strategies of those involved in this deliberate campaign to nullify the election results, prevent the transfer of power and end constitutional government in America.And yet, the Committee’ job is far from done. It still has an important role to play in determining the meaning and role of January 6 in US history. Was the attack on the US Capitol a failed, desperate, last-ditch effort by delusional extremists? Or will it be remembered as a milestone in America’s accelerating descent into authoritarianism – an assault on the system that didn’t succeed initially but played a key role in democracy’s demise? The answer to these questions is not decided by facts and past events. In a very real sense, January 6 isn’t over yet, and the success or failure of the Trumpian coup attempt will be decided by what happens next.Thomas Zimmer is a visiting professor at Georgetown University, focused on the history of democracy and its discontents in the United States, and a Guardian US contributing opinion writer Continue reading...
Since 2002, eligible households have been shielded from price fluctuations in the energy market. People don’t have to struggleBritain is facing a cost of living crisis on multiple fronts – and has been for some time. Research conducted a year ago showed households were already feeling the pinch as the cost of everyday essentials steadily climbed alongside their energy bills, with the poorest households disproportionately affected.Twelve months on, and we are still waiting for a long-term, sustainable solution to tackle this poverty premium – the extra cost of being poor. Millions of the poorest households have since slipped into fuel poverty, meaning they sacrifice more than 10% of their income to energy costs. In a cruel irony, those on universal credit are four times as likely to be using a prepayment meter to pay for energy – among the most expensive ways to pay for fuel.Carl Packman is head of corporate engagement for the Fair by Design campaign Continue reading...
by Sam Levin in Long Beach, California on (#643KS)
Mona Rodriguez’s killing fueled a movement to transform Long Beach’s approach to student safety: “Fund schools, not officers”On 27 September 2021, a school officer in Long Beach, California, tried to intervene in an altercation between teenagers down the street from a high school where he worked.As a group of the youth drove off in a car, the officer fired two shots at the vehicle, striking 18-year-old Mona Rodriguez, who was a passenger and unarmed. Eight days later, she was taken off life support and died. She left behind a five-month-old baby. Continue reading...
A nationwide movement hopes to close the ‘slavery loophole’ that enables the exploitation of 800,000 prisoners in the USWhen prison reformer Johnny Perez was incarcerated he made sheets, underwear and pillowcases working for Corcraft, a manufacturing division of New York State Correctional Services that uses prisoners to manufacture products for state and local agencies. His pay ranged between 17 cents and 36 cents an hour.“We have a system that forces people to work and not only forces them to work but does not give them an adequate living wage,” said Perez. “Slavery by any name is wrong. Slavery in any shape or form is wrong.” Continue reading...
The quarterback and kicker was judged too old by the Bears when he was in his early 30s. He was approaching his sixth decade when his career finally endedTom Brady, the 45-year-old Tampa Bay quarterback who is often said to be ageless, has smashed nearly every NFL record that he can – one notable exception is held by an ageless predecessor, a grizzled quarterback and kicker who finally stopped playing because his team cut him.George Frederick Blanda was of Slovak heritage, and his dad was a Pittsburgh coal miner. He played his final NFL game on 4 January 1976, at the age of 48 years, 109 days, a record that still stands. Blanda intended to keep playing, but he was not in the Oakland Raiders’ plans. Continue reading...
Paul Gosar and Louie Gohmert were eager to believe ‘wild, dramatic fantasies’, claims Denver Riggleman in new bookThe Republican congressmen Louis Gohmert and Paul Gosar adopted such extreme, conspiracy-tinged positions, even before the US Capitol attack, that a fellow member of the rightwing Freedom Caucus thought they “may have had serious cognitive issues”.Denver Riggleman, once a US representative from Virginia, reports his impression of his former colleagues from Texas and Arizona in a new book. Continue reading...
I wouldn’t vote for her if I were on fire, but I’m in nauseated awe of what it must take for a woman to succeed among hard-right conservativesAustralia’s Sky News opened its report of far-right Giorgia Meloni’s imminent election victory as Italy’s first female prime minister with the statement: “Giorgia Meloni is not a fascist.”Seems a helluva disclaimer to feel obliged to make, really, but then even Sky admits Meloni and her Brothers of Italy party is not without ideological baggage. Continue reading...
US pro-wrestler fulfilled 650 wishes through non-profit that helps children who are gravely sick or dyingAfter vanquishing seemingly countless foes in the ring as well as on the screen, the US pro-wrestler and actor John Cena has notched one more mark on his body count.He has set the new record for the most wishes granted through the Make-A-Wish Foundation, the non-profit that helps fulfil the wishes of children who are gravely sick or dying, according to a recent press release from Guinness World Records. Continue reading...
Messages include group chat among cabinet officials and plans by lawmakers to object to election certificationMark Meadows, Donald Trump’s former White House chief of staff, was at the center of hundreds of incoming messages about ways to aid Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, according to texts he turned over to the House January 6 select committee that have been published in a new book.The texts included previously unreported messages, including a group chat with Trump administration cabinet officials and plans to object to Joe Biden’s election certification on January 6 by Republican members of Congress and one former US attorney, as well as other Trump allies. Continue reading...
Storm prompted Nasa to shelter its lunar rocket as it approached the Cayman Islands on a track to hit Florida as a major hurricaneFlorida officials issued a mandatory evacuation order to residents of Tampa in anticipation of Hurricane Ian, and leaders in other parts of the state are warning residents that similar orders could come within the next day as they brace for a storm that forecasters fear will be potent.Ian moved near the Cayman Islands and closer to western Cuba early on Monday on a track to hit Florida as a major hurricane this week. Continue reading...
Claim of call at 4.34pm made in book by former Republican congressman and adviser to House select committeeThe White House switchboard dialled a phone associated with a January 6 rioter after it was clear the deadly Capitol attack had failed to prevent the congressional certification of Joe Biden’s victory over Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election, according to a new book.The book from the former Republican congressman and House January 6 select committee adviser Denver Riggleman says the connection was an outgoing call routed through the switchboard at 4.34pm, and it was answered by an unnamed rioter who allegedly has since been charged by the justice department with a role in the storming of the Capitol. Continue reading...
Pen America says Central York school district banned the books but officials strongly deny it in statementA school district in Pennsylvania temporarily banned the Girls Who Code book series for young readers, according to an index of banned books compiled by the free expression non-profit, Pen America.The books are four of more than 1,500 unique book titles that have been banned by various schools across the country after conservative pushes to censor books. According to a report released by Pen America in April, 138 school districts across 32 states have banned books from their classrooms and school libraries, sometimes temporarily, even if only for a day, sometimes on an ongoing basis. Continue reading...
Whale Safe, backed by a tech billionaire, is a step forward, but not the only answer to avoiding collisions, biologists sayFran was a celebrity whale – the most photographed humpback in the San Francisco Bay, with 277 recorded sightings since 2005. Last month, she was hit by a ship and killed.Her death marked a grim milestone: Fran was the fifth whale to be killed by a ship strike in the area this year, according to the Marine Mammal Center. Collisions with ships are one of the leading causes of death for endangered whales, who breed, eat and travel in deep channels in the same busy waters that cargo ships frequent. Continue reading...
Impact of energy and inflation crises worse than forecast, with Europe most directly exposed to fallout of Russian invasionThe world’s leading economies are sliding into recession as the global energy and inflation crises sparked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine cut growth by more than previously forecast, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).A dependency on expensive gas for heavy industry and home heating will plunge Germany, Italy and the UK into a long period of recession after global growth was projected by the OECD to slow to 2.2% in 2023 from a forecast in June of 2.8%. Continue reading...
Former NSA intelligence contractor was given asylum in Russia after leaking secret files in 2013Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Monday granting Russian citizenship to the US whistleblower Edward Snowden.Snowden, 39, a former US intelligence contractor, has been living in Russia since 2013 to escape prosecution in the US after leaking secret files, published by the Guardian, that revealed vast domestic and international surveillance operations carried out by the US National Security Agency. Continue reading...
Discovery made by same archaeologist less than a year after finding another historical canoe in the same body of waterA 3,000-year-old canoe has been found in Lake Mendota in Madison, Wisconsin, less than a year after another historical canoe dating back more than a millennium was discovered in the same body of water.An archaeologist found the artifact in pieces before it was recovered from the lake last Thursday in collaboration with Wisconsin’s Native Nations, a press release from the Wisconsin Historical Society said. Continue reading...
Host speaks at funeral of Ralph ‘Sonny’ Barger, leader of the group considered by the DoJ to be linked to organised crimeThe rightwing Fox News host Tucker Carlson spoke at the funeral of Ralph “Sonny” Barger, the longtime president of the Hells Angels motorcycle club, in Stockton, California, on Saturday.The Department of Justice (DoJ) considers the Hells Angels to be linked to organised crime. Continue reading...
Decades of activism led to mass protests against Mahsa Amini’s death. Free access to the web has to be a priority nowWoman, life, freedom. These are the words being used repeatedly in Iranian social media posts and carried on banners in the current demonstrations across the country. Three words that may have been a poetic combination in any other context, but not for the women who pay the price of their freedom with their lives. The death of a 22-year-old woman, Mahsa Amini, after being detained by the morality police for her “improper hijab” has sparked widespread anger, leading to the deaths of at least 41 others.The collective fury pouring out on to the streets is a result of decades of oppression against women in Iran. If George Floyd’s killing highlighted the structural racism prevalent in US society, and Mohamed Bouazizi’s suicide in Tunisia paved the way for the arrival of an unforeseen Arab spring across the region, Amini’s death has led to the bursting open of 44 years of Iranian women’s struggle against unjust laws and lack of control over their bodies and sexuality.Azadeh Akbari is assistant professor in public administration and digital transformation at the University of Twente in the Netherlands Continue reading...
A normalisation of far-right parties dating back to Berlusconi has paved the way for the breakthrough of Brothers of ItalyGiorgia Meloni scored a remarkable success in yesterday’s Italian election – and is all but certain to become prime minister. Her post-fascist Brothers of Italy party’s 26% of the vote makes it the largest party nationally. Overall, the rightwing coalition it now leads will have a considerable majority in both houses of parliament.Part of the explanation lies in the weakness of the opposition. The eclectic Five Star Movement (15%) and the centre-left Democrats (19%) did not join forces and, after years of failing to improve working-class living standards, were unable to rally the left’s historic base. Turnout was easily the lowest in the republic’s history, with only 64% of Italians voting.David Broder is the author of Mussolini’s Grandchildren: Fascism In Contemporary Italy Continue reading...
The spouse of a sitting supreme court justice allegedly tried to overturn the 2020 election. It’s hard to say which looks worse – the conflicts of interest, or the possibility that she aided a would-be insurrectionAfter months of wrangling, Virginia “Ginni” Thomas, the wife of US supreme court justice Clarence Thomas, has agreed to sit for an interview with the January 6 committee – thus avoiding a subpoena, at least for now.This development could open a vital inquiry into Thomas’s alleged role in seeking to thwart a peaceful transition of presidential power to Joe Biden. Just as importantly, this news renews attention on the question of whether Ginni Thomas’s radical rightwing activism influenced her husband, who weighed in on numerous 2020 election-related cases despite his conflicts of interest.Kimberly Wehle is a law professor at American University and a legal analyst for ABC News. Her latest book is How to Think Like a Lawyer and Why Continue reading...
The NSA’s surveillance of Americans’ internet use raises serious constitutional concerns, but the government claims a lawsuit against the program would compromise ‘state secrets’Imagine the government has searched your home without a warrant or probable cause, rifling through your files, your bedroom dresser, your diary. You sue, arguing that the public record shows it violated your fourth amendment rights. The government claims that it has a defense, but that its defense is secret. The court dismisses the case.That’s precisely what the federal government has increasingly said it can do in cases related to national security – under the so-called “state secret privilege.” It can violate constitutional rights, and then defeat any effort at accountability by claiming that its defense is secret – without even showing its evidence to a court behind closed doors.
Far-right leader poised to become Italy’s first female prime minister. Plus, the gallery letting insects run wildGood morning.The far-right party leader Giorgia Meloni has claimed victory in Italy’s elections and promised to govern for all citizens, after exit polls gave her coalition a clear majority, putting her on course to create the country’s most rightwing government since the end of the second world war.What did Meloni say last night? She said Italian voters had given a clear mandate to the right to form the next government and called for unity to help confront the country’s many problems. “This is a night of pride for Brothers of Italy but it is a starting point, not a finish line,” she told supporters.Will the pound and dollar reach parity? On Friday afternoon, Bloomberg’s options pricing model showed there was a 26% chance the pound and the dollar hitting parity within the next six months, up from 14% on Thursday. Continue reading...
Florida governor Ron DeSantis transported asylum seekers from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard in ‘appalling’ political stuntIn the wake of the transport of nearly 50 Venezuelan asylum seekers and migrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard by Florida’s rightwing Republican governor Ron DeSantis, immigration lawyers representing the group have labeled the move as an “appalling” political stunt that should never be allowed to happen again.DeSantis – who is both an ally and a rival to Donald Trump – has claimed responsibility for the flight as an attempt to protest Joe Biden’s immigration policy. But the move had been widely condemned as racist and abusive towards those dumped on the upmarket resort island in Massachusetts. Continue reading...
Support for unions is on the rise as workers take action to raise pay and conditions amid booming company profitsThousands of workers around the US are going on strike or threatening to do so heading into October, amid a recent surge of labor action activity in America and just one month before crucial midterm elections.Support for labor unions in the US has grown over the past year, as a surge in organizing has resulted in workers winning union elections at major corporations including Starbucks, Amazon, Apple, Chipotle, Trader Joe’s, Google, REI and Verizon. Continue reading...
It’s far too soon to declare either man’s career over but neither of them produced the fireworks we are used to when they met on SundayIf Sunday was the last time we witnessed two of the most prolific quarterbacks in NFL history face off against each other, the game will be remembered more for tension than either man raging against the dying of the light (although one of them has been raging against electronics). With eight Super Bowl victories (Tom Brady with seven) and seven MVPs (Aaron Rodgers with four) between them, the two have solidified themselves as the best quarterbacks of their generation (along with Peyton Manning who, it is easy to forget, is only a year older than Brady.)But those expecting an offensive explosion on Sunday when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Green Bay Packers met were most likely disappointed. Brady’s first half was one to forget as he failed to lead the Bucs into the end zone and entered halftime down 14-3. Rodgers looked sharper in the early moments of the game, achieving some first-half success against the Bucs’ stingy defense by throwing two touchdowns. But both men were largely anonymous in the third quarter, the explosive plays and ruthlessness that have given them so much success down the years largely lacking. Continue reading...
The state department seems keen to avoid questions about the Palestinian American journalist’s shooting by an Israeli soldierIsrael has declared the case closed. The US state department has done its best to duck difficult questions. But leading members of the US Congress are refusing to drop demands for a proper accounting of the death of the Palestinian American journalist, Shireen Abu Akleh, four months ago.The longest-serving member of the US Senate, Patrick Leahy, recently upped the ante by warning that Israel’s failure to fully explain the Al-Jazeera reporter’s killing could jeopardize America’s huge military aid to the Jewish state under a law he sponsored 25 years ago cutting weapons supplies to countries that abuse human rights. Continue reading...
Many pharmacies and physicians are forced to deny patients access to drugs, such as methotrexate, that can be used to help induce an abortionA few weeks after the supreme court’s 24 June decision to overturn the nationwide abortion rights established by Roe v Wade, the pharmacy chain Walgreens sent Annie England Noblin a message, informing her that her monthly prescription of methotrexate was held up.Noblin, a 40-year-old college instructor in rural Missouri, never had trouble getting her monthly prescription of methotrexate for her rheumatoid arthritis. So she went to her local Walgreens to figure out why, standing in line with other customers as she waited for an explanation. Continue reading...
Singer declined to play the show in 2019, in solidarity with Colin Kaepernick. Announcing the news, Jay-Z praised her for surpassing expectations ‘at every turn’US singer Rihanna will perform the coveted Super Bowl half-time show in February 2023, after declining an invitation in 2019 Super Bowl out of solidarity with Colin Kaepernick.The announcement was made on Sunday by the NFL. Rihanna posted an image on Instagram of an outstretched arm holding an NFL football. Continue reading...
Family statement says Alex Drueke and Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh were included in prisoner swap mediated by Saudi ArabiaTwo military veterans from Alabama who volunteered to defend Ukraine from Russian invaders but were captured are back home, according to a statement provided to the Guardian on Sunday.The statement from the family of Alex Drueke, 40, said he and Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh, 27, were among 10 foreign nationals included in a prisoner swap between Ukraine and Russia that was mediated by the Saudi Arabian government. Continue reading...
More than 2,100 high school seniors were taken to event that left many of the students traumatized, some attendees sayMore than 2,000 public school students in Louisiana were told earlier this week that they were going to a college fair. They were then shuttled to what parents later deemed a sexist and transphobic church event which left many of the students traumatized.On Tuesday, more than 2,100 high school seniors from the East Baton Rouge Parish School System – which serves residents of Louisiana’s capital – were taken to the local Living Faith Christian Center under the promise that they would receive college and career advice, as well as free food. Continue reading...
Cayman Islands and Jamaica brace while Florida governor declares emergency, with storm headed to state by midweekFlorida residents on Saturday were bracing for a heavy tropical storm system that weather experts warn could become a major hurricane.Ian – upgraded to a hurricane from a tropical storm Sunday – was poised to intensify steadily after forming on Friday over the southern Caribbean. The storm could cross over into parts of Cuba before heading to Florida by the middle of next week, according to forecasts. Continue reading...
Ex-president denied knowing his supporters were rioting and called them ‘fucking crazy’, Maggie Haberman writes in new bookDonald Trump denied knowing at the time the January 6 attack on the US Capitol started that a mob of his supporters – whom he privately called “fucking crazy” – were rioting, the author of a forthcoming book on his chaotic presidency writes in what may stand as one of the most surprising, non-believable postscripts of his tenure in the Oval Office.“I didn’t usually have the television on. I’d have it on if there was something. I then later turned it on and I saw what was happening,” Trump told New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman for her forthcoming account Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America. Continue reading...
Director claims 2013 encounter with film publicist was consensual and that accusation came in retaliation for leaving the churchOscar-winning director Paul Haggis will be allowed to argue that the Church of Scientology is behind a rape allegation against him, a judge in New York has ruled.Haggis, who was separately accused over the summer of sexually assaulting a woman at an Italian film festival, will be permitted to argue that church members were involved in a previous rape allegation brought by film publicist Haleigh Breest dating back to 2013. That case, stemming from a civil lawsuit pursued by Breest, is set to go to trial next month. Continue reading...
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