tuesday, day 148

Tuesday,  Aug. 11th, 2020

A shooting involving the Secret Service occurs on Pennsylvania Avenue near the White House. A civilian, identified only as a 51-year-old man, has been transported to a local hospital. (ABC News)

McDonald’s files a US$40 million lawsuit against former CEO Steve Easterbrook, equal to the worth of his severance package, for allegedly lying to investigators about the extent of his sexual relationships with three employees. (CNN)

Spanish actor Antonio Banderas announces via Twitter that he had tested positive for COVID-19. (CNN)

Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab announces the resignation of the entire government as protests grow over their handling of the Beirut explosions on 4 August. (Reuters)

California judge orders Uber and Lyft to classify drivers as employees A California judge on Monday ruled that the ride-hailing companies Uber and Lyft have to classify their drivers in the state as employees, not independent contractors. On Jan. 1, a new California labor law, AB5, went into effect, which makes it harder for companies to misclassify workers who should be considered employees, and thus eligible for minimum wage and overtime. California is the largest market in the United States for Uber and Lyft, and in May, the state filed a lawsuit against the companies, accusing them of violating AB5. Judge Ethan Schulman said there was an “overwhelming likelihood” the companies have been wrongly classifying drivers as contractors instead of employees, and issued a preliminary injunction. He delayed the order by 10 days so Uber and Lyft can have the opportunity to appeal. Source: The Guardian

The End

 

monday, day 147

Monday, Aug. 10th, 2020

State-run oil company Saudi Aramco reports that profits in the first half of 2020 plunged by 50% compared to the same period last year, with decreased demand in oil caused by COVID-19 cited as the main reason by CEO Amin H. Nasser. The company plans to uphold its promise of paying out US$75 billion in annual dividends in spite of this. (AP)

A teenager is killed and 20 others are shot, including an off-duty police officer, in a mass shooting at a large gathering in Southeast Washington, D.C. Police are searching for at least three shooters. (CNN)

A state television exit poll shows President Alexander Lukashenko winning 79.7% of the vote. These results have been dismissed by the main opposition candidate Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who criticized them has “massively rigged”. (BBC)

NetBlocks reports that the internet has been “significantly disrupted” in Belarus, with a near total blackout in Minsk. (NetBlocks)

The End

 

sunday, day 146

Susan Rice Has a Disclosure Problem
The vice-presidential hopeful has some explaining to do.
BY ALEXANDER SAMMON AUGUST 8, 2020

 

Whitmer met with Biden in person as VP decision nears Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer traveled to Delaware last weekend to meet with former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, two high-ranking Michigan Democrats told The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity. If the reports are accurate, Whitmer would be the first known potential running mate to sit down for an in-person meeting with Biden, who is reportedly narrowing down his list of contenders. Whitmer’s office declined to confirm or deny the trip, and Biden’s campaign declined to comment, but flight records show a chartered plane flew from Lansing, Michigan, to Delaware last Sunday. Whitmer, a first-term governor of a battleground state, has long been considered a possible running mate for Biden. Source: The Associated Press

 

August 9th, 2020

2014 – Michael Brown, an 18-year-old African American male in Ferguson, Missouri, is shot and killed by a Ferguson police officer after reportedly assaulting the officer and attempting to steal his weapon, sparking protests and unrest in the city.

2019 – 220 million trees are planted in one day in Uttar Pradesh, India.[3]

1428 – Sources cite biggest caravan trade between Podvisoki and Republic of Ragusa in 1428. Vlachs committed to Ragusan lord Tomo Bunić, that they will with 600 horses deliver 1500 modius of salt. Delivery was meant for Dobrašin Veseoković, and Vlachs price was half of delivered salt.[1]

1936 – Summer Olympic Games: Games of the XI Olympiad: Jesse Owens wins his fourth gold medal at the games.

1945 – World War II: Nagasaki is devastated when an atomic bomb, Fat Man, is dropped by the United States B-29 Bockscar. Thirty-five thousand people are killed outright, including 23,200–28,200 Japanese war workers, 2,000 Korean forced workers, and 150 Japanese soldiers.

1945 – The Red Army invades Japanese-occupied Manchuria.

1973 – Mars 7 is launched from the USSR.

 

 

Sunday, Aug. 9th, 2020

Former Saudi Ministry of the Interior official Saad bin Khalid Al Jabry accuses Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of attempting to assassinate him in Canada, where he currently lives in exile, two weeks after the assassination of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The would-be assassins, believed to be the Tiger Squad, were stopped at Toronto Pearson International Airport after Canadian border official became suspicious of them following interviews. (BBC)

New Zealand marking 100 days without community transmittion of COVID-19. (The New Zealand Herald)

India reports highest single day record of 64,399 new cases in the last 24 hours. (Times of India)

 

 

 

Saturday,  Aug. 8th, 2020

Stimulus bill talks hit another dead end after 2 weeks of negotiations Congressional Democrats and White House leaders were again unable to agree on terms for the next CARES Act on Friday, closing out a second week of negotiations while remaining gridlocked. Democrats don’t have the votes to support any bill under $2 trillion and Republicans won’t accept anything over it. While Democrats offered to slash $1 trillion off their $3.4 trillion proposal if Republicans added $1 trillion to theirs to meet in the middle, White House officials refused, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said. Democrats previously rejected Republicans’ standalone measure to temporarily continue the $600/week unemployment boost that has now expired. White House officials said they had advised President Trump to take unilateral action on stimulus measures, however, Trump likely doesn’t have the power to allocate funding via executive action. Source: CNBC

Trump attempts to bypass Congress with coronavirus relief executive orders President Trump on Saturday announced multiple executive actions aiming to extend economic aid to Americans while Congress remains in a stalemate over the next coronavirus relief package. The effectiveness and legality of the measures was unclear, however, with the orders seemingly exceeding Constitutional limits on executive power. The president said during a press conference at his golf club in Bedminister, New Jersey, that, via executive order, he will unilaterally continue expanded unemployment benefits, at $400/week rather than the previous $600/week. He also signed orders intended to pause student loan payments and extend the moratorium on evictions. Additionally, Trump said the action authorizes the Treasury Department to defer payroll taxes for Americans making less than 100,000 per year. Source: The Associated Press

Paris issues a mask mandate for busy areas to curb the rise of COVID-19 infections. (Reuters)

Anti-government protests erupt in Beirut Thousands of protesters in Beirut’s gathered in Beirut’s Martys’ Square on Saturday called for Lebanon’s politicians to resign and be held accountable for the negligence that led to a blast in the city’s port Tuesday that killed 158 people and injured more than 6,000. During the demonstrations, the protesters stormed Beirut’s government ministries and trashed the offices of the Association of Lebanese Banks, Reuters reports. Police reportedly fired tear gas at demonstrators trying to break through a barrier to get to the parliament building, and one officer reportedly was killed when he fell into an elevator shaft after being chased into a building by protesters, another officer said. The Red Cross said it treated 117 people for injuries, while another 55 were taken to hospitals. Source: Al Jazeera

 

The End

Joe Rogan – April 5th, 2020 Good stuff at end on Trump and Biden in decline 
https://youtu.be/F9KS5-6jjBQ

Joe Rogan Best of March 26th 
https://youtu.be/_nY6I0eJUJQ