@19:54, , 4/18/21

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1

Activists Question Whether Police Reform Bills Are Enough

Steve Eder, Michael H. Keller and Blacki Migliozzi, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 56 minutes ago

States have passed over 140 police oversight bills since the killing of George Floyd, increasing accountability and overhauling rules on the use of force. But the calls for change continue.

 

Activists are never happy.

 

2

Week-end Wrap – Political Economy – April 18, 2021

Tony Wikrent, Ian Welsh - 5 hours ago

Week-end Wrap – Political Economy – April 18, 2021 by Tony Wikrent Strategic Political Economy Michael Hudson: America’s Neoliberal Financialization Policy vs. China’s Industrial Socialism Michael Hudson, April 15, 2021 [Naked Capitalism] US West prepares for possible 1st water shortage declaration [Associated Press, via Mike Norman Economics, April 17, 2021] The Pandemic India’s health system has […]

 

Tony Wikrent has not surprised me. 

He is negative on the future of politics.

 

3 

Alex Jones Faces a Reckoning

Elizabeth Williamson, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 8 hours ago

Dan Friesen and Jordan Holmes turned their Infowars-skewering podcast into a business. In the post-Trump era, they’re documenting Mr. Jones’s reckoning.

 

Getting Trump Republicans attention is a problem.

 

4

Despite Tensions, U.S. and China Agree to Work Together on Climate Change

Steven Lee Myers, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 11 hours ago

The two countries said they would treat global warming “with the seriousness and urgency that it demands.”

 

There may be ratinality in responses to global heating.

 

5

One America News Network Stays True to Trump

Rachel Abrams, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 14 hours ago

A recent OAN segment said there were “serious doubts about who’s actually president,” and another blamed “anti-Trump extremists” for the Capitol attack.

 

I am not missing anything by giving OAN a miss.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Herring_(businessman) 

6

One America News Network Stays True to Trump

Rachel Abrams, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 14 hours ago

A recent OAN segment said there were “serious doubts about who’s actually president,” and another blamed “anti-Trump extremists” for the Capitol attack.

 

I am not missing anything by giving OAN a miss.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Herring_(businessman)

 

7

Donations Surge for Republicans Who Challenged Election Results

Luke Broadwater, Catie Edmondson and Rachel Shorey, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 1 day ago

The lawmakers, who encouraged their followers to protest in Washington on Jan. 6, have capitalized on the riot to draw huge campaign donations.

 

Faith can do terrible things to people.

 

8

Biden Rejects Pentagon's Views on Afghanistan Withdrawal

Helene Cooper, Eric Schmitt and David E. Sanger, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 1 day ago

Over two decades of war, the Pentagon had fended off the political instincts of elected leaders frustrated with the grind of Afghanistan. But President Biden refused to be persuaded.

 

Biden is correct.

 

9

100 Days Without Trump on Twitter: A Nation Scrolls More Calmly

Sarah Lyall, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 1 day ago

Democrats are breathing easier. Republicans are crying censorship. For all of the country’s news consumers, a strange quiet has descended after a four-year bombardment of presidential verbiage.

 

I am relieved.

 

10

Biden's Choice for Justice Dept.'s No. 2 Is Lisa Monaco

Katie Benner, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 1 day ago

Lisa Monaco, a veteran of national security posts, is expected to be a key player in the administration’s push to combat domestic extremism, embodied most publicly in the department’s inquiry into the Capitol attack.

 

Good choice.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lisa_Monaco

 

11

The Covid-19 Plasma Boom Is Over. What Did We Learn From It?

Katie Thomas and Noah Weiland, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 1 day ago

The U.S. government invested $800 million in plasma when the country was desperate for Covid-19 treatments. A year later, the program has fizzled.

 

"But by the end of the year, good evidence for convalescent plasma had not materialized, prompting many prestigious medical centers to quietly abandon it. By February, with cases and hospitalizations dropping, demand dipped below what blood banks had stockpiled. In March, the New York Blood Center called Mr. Cohen to cancel his 12th appointment. It didn’t need any more plasma."

 

A salable idea that did not work.

 

12

The Afghanistan War Is Ending. A Pennsylvania Town Exhales.

Trip Gabriel, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 1 day ago

In Canonsburg, known for its big Fourth of July parade, many people say they are proud of America and its military but weary of the two-decade war in Afghanistan.

 

The Afghanistan campaign should never have been more than a raid.

Any action there results in "Blood Feude".

13

A War Is Ending. A Pennsylvania Town Exhales.

Trip Gabriel, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 1 day ago

In Canonsburg, known for its big Fourth of July parade, many people say they are proud of America and its military but weary of the two-decade war in Afghanistan.

 

The Afghanistan campaign should never have been more than a raid.

Any action there results in "Blood Feude".

 

14

Danica Roem, a Pathbreaking Lawmaker, on the Fight for Trans Rights

Jennifer Medina, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 1 day ago

Ms. Roem, a Virginia delegate who in 2018 became the first openly transgender legislator in the country, spoke with The Times about Republicans’ anti-trans crusade and how Democrats can push back.

 

Some will like it.

Masochism is acquired.

15

The Republican Retreat on World Affairs

Lisa Lerer, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 1 day ago

What will G.O.P. foreign policy be post-Trump? Who knows!

 

"Neil Newhouse, a Republican pollster, said he saw three foreign policy issues resonating with G.O.P. voters: restricting immigration, taking a tougher stance against China (which many blame for the spread of the coronavirus) and ending foreign entanglements."

 

All of these are failed policies.

 

16

Biden and Suga Agree US and Japan Will Work Together on 5G

David E. Sanger and Katie Rogers, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 1 day ago

The subtext of the meeting was responding to China’s influence and its aggressive actions in the Indo-Pacific and beyond, and Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga resisted being drawn into a rivalry.

 

The U.S. security establishment wants trusted chip design.

 

17

Biden and Suga Agree U.S. and Japan Will Work Together on 5G

David E. Sanger and Katie Rogers, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 1 day ago

The subtext of the meeting was responding to China’s influence and its aggressive actions in the Indo-Pacific and beyond, and Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga resisted being drawn into a rivalry.

 

The U.S. security establishment wants trusted chip design.

 

18 

Open Thread

Ian Welsh, Ian Welsh - 1 day ago

Use comments to discuss topics unrelated to recent posts.

 

Sooner is better.    As soon as you can is best.

 

19

President Biden Wavers on Restricting Refugee Entry

Zolan Kanno-Youngs and Miriam Jordan, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 1 day ago

The Biden administration will for now maintain a historically low refugee cap. But after a widespread backlash from Democrats, the White House said it would raise refugee admissions in May.

 

Biden is faced with four years of accumulated chaos and racism on refugee policy.

20

Biden Wavers on Restricting Refugee Entry

Zolan Kanno-Youngs and Miriam Jordan, NYT > U.S. > Politics - 1 day ago

The Biden administration will for now maintain a historically low refugee cap. But after a widespread backlash from Democrats, the White House said it would raise refugee admissions in May.

 

Biden is faced with four years of accumulated chaos and racism on refugee policy.

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