Featuring Joe Jaquint & Jason Walker
So many things have happened throughout history. It is easy to forget everything good or bad that has been recorded happened to people just like you and me. It is easy to say “oh that is just history,” and not give things a second thought. What if we told you major things in history happened all throughout September? It can be mind blowing to think things we never thought could happen to us, happened to people just like us, on days much like any other day we have. As you read this list, the hope is you can gain perspective about time and the world we live in… or maybe you just like to know random facts, and that’s okay too.
On this day…
September 1, 1985
The Titanic was located by a joint American-French expedition force led by marine geologist Dr. Robert Ballard.
September 2, 1944
Holocaust victim, Anne Frank, was sent to Auschwitz concentration camp.
September 3, 1783
Treaty of Paris signed in Paris ends the American Revolutionary War between Great Britain and the United States of America.
September 4, 1998
Google is formally incorporated by Larry Page and Sergey Brin, two students at Stanford University.
September 5, 1905
US President Theodore Roosevelt will receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his role as mediator because the Treaty of Portsmouth is signed concluding the Russo-Japanese War.
September 6, 1666
After St Paul’s Cathedral and many of the homes in the city had been burned down, the Great Fire of London was finally extinguished.
September 7, 1888
Edith Eleanor McLean is the 1st baby to be placed in an incubator at State Emigrant Hospital on Ward’s Island, New York.
Michelangelo’s statue of David is unveiled in Florence, Italy.
September 9, 1908
Orville Wright is the first to fly an airplane for an hour in Fort Myer, Va.
September 10, 1945
Mike the Headless Chicken is decapitated in Fruita, Colorado then survives for another 18 months before choking to death.
September 11, 2001
19 militants associated with al Qaeda hijacked four airplanes and carried out suicide attacks against targets in the United States. Two of the planes were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, a third plane hit the Pentagon, and the fourth plane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. 3,000 people were killed during the 9/11 terrorist attack.
September 12, 1958
The U.S. Supreme Court orders the all-white Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas to integrate. Students of color are later forced out by a white mob before the military establishes a presence. The Little Rock Crisis ended with 9 african-american students being enrolled at the school; the students were accompanied by the military for the rest of the year to protect their safety.
September 13, 2017
Nursing home residents are rescued after 11 die due to losing their air-conditioning in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma in Hollywood, Florida.
September 14, 1814
Francis Scott Key writes the poem “Defence of Fort M’Henry” which becomes “The Star-Spangled Banner.” He writes the poem while watching the bombing of Fort McHenry from a ship in Baltimore harbor.
September 15, 1835
The HMS Beagle, with Charles Darwin on board, lands for the first time in the Galapagos Islands. Darwin uses this research in his theories of evolution and natural selection.
September 16, 1920
The “Wall Street bombing” kills 38 and injures 143 when a horse-drawn wagon explodes on Wall Street, New York. The perpetrator has never been caught, it will forever be a mystery as to who set the bomb off, and why.
Harriet Tubman escapes slavery in Maryland with two of her brothers for the first time. She later goes on to create the Underground Railroad and helps rescue many others from slavery.
September 18, 1932
Actress Peg Entwistle commits suicide by jumping from the letter “H” in the Hollywood sign.
September 19, 1995
The Washington Post and The New York Times publish the Unabomber’s manifesto. This leads to his capture. He pled guilty in January 1998 and was sent to an isolated cell in a “Supermax” prison in Colorado.
Gangster Bugs Moran attempts to assassinate infamous Al Capone in a drive-by shooting but fails.
J. R. R. Tolkien’s ‘The Hobbit’ is published by George Allen and Unwin in London. ‘The Lord of the Rings’ series goes on to be a widely known franchise of books, and later on movies.
September 22, 1692
The last eight people are hanged for witchcraft in the US. 19 people were hung overall during Salem witch trials.
September 23, 1980
Bob Marley plays his last concert at Stanley Theatre in Pittsburgh.
September 24, 1919
Boston Red Sox player Babe Ruth sets the home run record at 28.
September 25, 2015
Caitlyn Jenner officially changes her name from Bruce and her gender to a woman.
September 26, 1665
The Great Plague of London is at its height. 7,165 people die just in the previous week
September 27, 1905
The physics journal Annalen der Physik introduced the equation of E=mc² when they published Albert Einstein’s paper “Does the Inertia of a Body Depend Upon Its Energy Content?”
September 28, 1944
Theodore Roosevelt Jr. is awarded the Medal of Honor for directing troops at Utah Beach during the D-Day landings.
Elizabeth Taylor is sent to rehabilitation at the Betty Ford Clinic.
September 30, 1962
JFK sends 3,000 federal troops to Mississippi to enforce integration of schools and James Meredith becomes the first person of color to register for classes at University of Mississippi.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Labor Day weekend is quickly approaching! Despite COVID, Colorado has a whole bunch of end of summer activities to choose from. From water parks to the kick-off of college football games, the beloved mountainous state will be absolutely booming with activities for all ages. Remember to take precautions when you and your children are subjected to the last rays of summer sun. Heat exhaustion and dehydration can still occur despite Colorado already showing signs of the highly anticipated fall season. We will be dripping with orange pumpkins and nutmeg in what seems like no time at all. Until then, enjoy these Labor Day festivities across the centennial state. There is always your traditional hiking which could be great, when done safely, for a labor day weekend activity. After you see all of our labor day ideas check out our list of top 10 hiking places in Colorado if you want hiking recommendations!
Lakes and Water Parks
Splish splash, here comes the end of summer. After you finish your hike, take a break at one of these Labor Day celebrations which all focus on cooling you down. For one of the places on this list, this end of summer weekend means their doors are closing for the season.
Summer’s End Celebration – Avon
The inaugural Summer’s End celebration will be held this Labor Day weekend. The event will start with Lakeside Cinema Friday evening. Then we will enjoy the Avon Art Festival on Saturday morning and through the rest of the weekend. There will be sand volleyball, paddleboat rentals and beach activities. The Summer’s End Celebration will finish out Monday with a free performance by Los Lobos at 6 p.m. Their website says, “Remember your reusable water bottle – Plastic-Free Event! Fostering a culture of environmentalism, waste mitigation and energy conservation which minimizes the negative impacts to our collective environment and community for the long term is of utmost importance to the Town.” There will still be canned beverage products for sale.
Water World – Federal Heights
This is the final weekend of 2021 to visit Water World. Water World is one of America’s largest water parks. The last three days of operation for 2021 are Saturday, Sunday and Monday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., weather permitting. Water World features many attractions including huge thrill rides. Outside food and drinks can be brought in making it perfect for picnics, plus parking is free. Enjoy the last water-filled weekend of 2021.
Labor Day Fairs and Festivals
If water parks or hiking aren’t your thing, maybe you would enjoy a fair or festival! Imagine the laughter and joyous conversation in the air mixing with the smells of great food. The sound of live music pulls you over to the stage then you and whoever you’re with dance to the musicians song. What better way is there to spend an afternoon?
A Taste of Colorado & Cherry Creek Arts Festival – Denver
Originally dubbed the Festival of Mountain and Plain, the historic A Taste of Colorado festival has brought Coloradans together since 1895. The local-favorite Labor Day weekend festival is back with a new downtown sprawling format. The 38th A Taste of Colorado will be held September 4 through the 6 across downtown Denver. This year’s event will be the biggest it has ever been, featuring three stages where attendees can listen to music from a variety of local and regional musicians. Downtown restaurants will have special menus for the festival, and local vendors will be selling art and goods along the 16th Street Mall. Their website says, “The festival will be an authentic and spirited union of sights, sounds, tastes, and color as we celebrate together. The Downtown Denver Partnership is thrilled to be bringing back Taste of Colorado in 2021 because it’s more than a festival, it’s in our nature.”
CherryArts and the Denver Chalk Art Festival have joined forces this year forming the Cherry Creek Arts Festival. The Cherry Creek Arts Festival will be held at Denver’s Cherry Creek Shopping Center in the northwest parking lot near University Boulevard and 1st Avenue from Saturday through Monday. The festival will have 220 artists, 100 chalk artists,16 performing artists, a creation station for children, delicious food, and lovely interactive experiences. “We’ve been waiting to hit the Denver streets again since June of 2019. Watching the joy this craft brings to attendees, and the camaraderie of the artist community coming together, has been sorely missed,” said Michel Rieger, Denver Chalk Art Festival artist director. “Collaborating with CherryArts is a perfect match. We look forward to bringing Denver’s most colorful event back through the long-standing tradition of the Cherry Creek Arts Festival.”
Colorado State Fair – Pueblo
The largest summer event in Colorado, the Colorado State Fair, will be holding its second week this Labor Day weekend. The fair has a carnival, 4-H exhibits, agricultural competitions, tractor pulls, live music performances, rodeos, Major League Eating and entrancing food options. The Colorado State Fair runs through Monday, Sept. 6. Find the event you want to attend most at ColoradoStateFair.com.
Beer Gardens, Hot Air Balloons and Car Shows
Visit a delicious Beer Garden, see breathtaking sights of hot air balloons in the sky, or show off your vintage ride at a car show. One of the events in this category even has horse-drawn carriage rides. What could be more romantic for the one you want to impress? These options are great for couples and families who want something a little more laid back.
Windsor Harvest Festival – Windsor
Windsor Harvest Festival is back for its 99th year with a theme of “Big Ol’ Block Party.” The festival runs from Saturday to Monday with live music, cruise-in car show, horse-drawn carriage rides, beer garden, movie screening in the park and so many more. Balloon launches are planned for Saturday and Sunday at Eastman Park. The best growers will show off their garden in the annual Garden Show and Veggie Art. The Windsor Harvest Festival Parade will be on Monday. This festival is perfect for families who want to attend events every day of the Labor Day weekend. There will be a large number of activities just for kids!
Colorado Springs Labor Day Lift Off – colorado springs
Colorado Springs Labor Day Lift Off runs Saturday to Monday. This option is perfect for those planning a Friday night get-together at home and want to get out for the rest of the weekend. The event is free. Every morning will start with a mass hot air balloon lift off of over 70 balloons. It will be a beautiful site to see while you eat breakfast and drinks from local vendors. There will be all kinds of demonstrations during the day such as skydiving, and wakeboarding exhibitions. You will enjoy paddle boarding and live entertainment. The Colorado Springs Labor Day Lift Off will take place at Memorial Park.
College Football
Does your family prefer tailgates and jerseys over fair food and water parks? Well, you’re in luck because college football is back in Colorado! We can already feel the energetic anticipation in the stands. Who will win? Who will lose? The eruption of cheers has a way of breathing life into almost anyone. Which game will you find yourself enjoying?
BOULDER
The University of Colorado Buffaloes and University of Northern Colorado Bears kick off the 2021 season with a game Friday night. You can get tickets at CUBuffs.com or at the CU ticket office.
FORT COLLINS
The Colorado State Rams begin their season Friday night at Canvas Stadium. The Rams host the South Dakota State Jackrabbits in a “Green Out” game that will be broadcast on FS1.
DURANGO
High noon Saturday is when the Fort Lewis Skyhawks will start their football season. Fort Lewis hosts New Mexico Highlands University at 12 p.m. at Durango’s Ray Dennison Memorial Field.
ALAMOSA
The Adams State Grizzlies welcome Western New Mexico University to Rex Stadium this weekend, at 5 p.m. Saturday in Alamosa.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Two weeks ago the Taliban gained control of Afghanistan and president Joe Biden began to pull our troops from the country. The Kabul airport was targeted in a rocket attack that was intercepted by the U.S.’s C-RAM missile defense system, according to Fox News. Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, said top aides have briefed President Biden on the development. She said the president “has reconfirmed his order that commanders redouble their efforts to prioritize doing whatever is necessary to protect our forces on the ground.” The U.S. has been attempting to airlift our troops and Afghans fearing for their lives out of the war torn country. The U.S. State Department released a statement signed by 100 countries, NATO and the European Union, saying the Taliban assured people with travel documents would still be able to leave the country. A promise that the Taliban doesn’t seem to want to keep, since they continue to allow militant groups to attack U.S. forces amid the exit chaos.
Did the Rocket Hurt Anyone?
U.S. air defenses were engaged when as many as five rockets were fired at the Hamid Karzai International Airport. The attempted attack did not stop U.S. military cargo jets, which continued the effort to get people out of Afghanistan. The rockets ended up landing in Kabul’s Salim Karwan neighborhood, which is two miles from the airport, and mostly residential apartments. So far, no known casualties have been reported. In the Chahr-e-Shaheed neighborhood, what appeared to be six homemade rocket tubes weren mounted where the backseat should be in a car, according to Military.com. “I was inside the house with my children and other family members, suddenly there were some blasts,” Jaiuddin Khan, who lives nearby, told AP. “We jumped into the house compound and lay on the ground.” This would not be the first attack at the airport while people are attempting to flee Afghanistan. Recently, a devastating suicide bombing at the airport gates killed at least 169 Afghans and 13 U.S. service members. Biden has said he will continue to evacuate our citizens. President Biden said Afghanistan continues to be “extremely dangerous” and projected another attack on Kabul airport as “highly likely” before the end of U.S. exit.
U.S. Diplomats Leave Afghanistan
According to a memo from the State Department, evacuation of U.S. diplomatic personnel has begun. The U.S. has secured all staff members, and their families, from the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan. Afghans and American citizens working for the embassy initially struggled to make it through the chaos at the airport gates. The U.S. will not have a diplomatic presence in Afghanistan after this week, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken confirmed. Blinken said the U.S. will continue to facilitate the evacuation of Afghan refugees. Evacuation missions will be conducted from another nation such as Pakistan. A majority of other countries have already finished leaving Afghanistan. The UK confirmed they have finished leaving Afghanistan, which ends 20 years of British military presence. Smoke from several fires along the airport’s perimeter could be seen throughout Monday. U.S. forces typically destroy material and equipment they won’t take with them during the evacuation, this is not for sure the cause of the fires. If that is the case, it will signify the end of the longest war in U.S. history. What will happen now that the Taliban is back in power? How will President Biden and future presidents keep another pearl harbor, or 9/11 from happening? What kind of defenses are we setting up here at home in order to be prepared?
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Colorado is famous for many things but recently it is the Moose who have been making headlines. This season has seen many dangerous encounters between humans and moose already. Moose can be very dangerous especially during mating season. Male moose are called bulls and females are called cows. Both cows and bulls can be dangerous and aggressive towards humans for different reasons. Moose are huge, weighing between 800 and 1,200 pounds. They can stand up to 6 feet tall, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Moose have been known to take over haystacks or feedyards and attack any human or livestock who comes near. Even if you aren’t trying to take their food, doing something as simple as going for a walk can lead to disaster when moose are around. Make sure to take proper precautions when encountering a moose.
Moose Attacks
79 year old Janne Schultz from Glenwood Springs told a news outlet about her experience being attacked by a moose saying, “I was hit by a moose, and he did not like me.” While walking her dog on Friday the 13th in a rural area just south of Glenwood Springs, Schultz saw the cow with her calves and waited for them to pass. Once she thought the moose had moved on she continued walking. Suddenly she was attacked out of nowhere. “I thought it was a human being at first. I said oh god there’s bad people up here too. Then I saw it was the moose,” Schultz recalled to the reporter. Eventually the moose ran off and Schultz was flown to a Denver hospital with a few broken ribs and collarbone. Her scapula was shattered and she had fractured vertebrae in her neck. A few days later a New Mexico man was running on a trail in Winter Park, Colorado with his two dogs when they encountered a bull moose. The dogs were off-leash ahead of their owner when they suddenly turned around and ran away, Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials said. “He stopped and saw the moose at 50 feet,” District Wildlife Manager Serena Rocksund said in a news release. “At that point, the dogs ran past him and left the scene.” The man reported seeing the bull as it charged toward him. The moose left him with only minor injuries. “He’s very lucky that his only injury is a hoof print-shaped laceration on the back of his head,” Rocksund said. Both him and Schultz were lucky to get away with their lives. Moose attacks are becoming more of an issue in Colorado. So, what can you do to reduce your risk of being attacked by a moose?
When Moose Attack
“We’ve had some increased reports of human-moose conflicts near Grand Lake since the East Troublesome Fire,” Area Wildlife Manager Jeromy Huntington said in a news release. According to Colorado Parks and Wildlife, moose are protective animals and will defend their young and home at all costs. Moose have very few natural enemies and do not fear humans. They often will approach humans or houses. That is why it is a good idea to know what different moose behavior means. Signs of moose aggression include laid back ears, raised hairs on the neck, and licking of the snout. Moose have been known to be more aggressive around dogs. Colorado Parks and Wildlife knows of at least 15 moose conflicts since 2013 where people have been severely injured. Dogs were involved in almost all of those conflicts, wildlife officials said. If a moose displays aggressive behavior or begins to run at you, run as fast as you can and try to put a large object between you such as a boulder, car or tree. If at all possible, climb on something taller than the moose, such as a tree. Remember getting a “closer look” or “better shot with the camera” could lead to a life threatening situation when it comes to dealing with Moose. Colorado Parks and Wildlife say they are liable for damage to crops, forage and fences caused by moose. If moose are causing damage, contact your local officer immediately.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
As our children go back to daycare and school in person we have to be extremely vigilant over their hygiene and health. The Delta variant of COVID is known to affect children more than other variants have in the pandemic. There is another illness that has been around even longer than COVID but this year has spiked along with the Delta variant. RSV has spiked this summer way before the usual rise in cases of late fall/ early spring. Symptoms between RSV and COVID can seem similar but Dr. Parth Bhatt says it’s easy for your doctor to test and tell them apart. “We have the specific testing for them, and we can know for sure whether it is COVID or RSV.” The CDC says, “Due to this increased activity, CDC encourages broader testing for RSV among patients presenting with acute respiratory illness who test negative for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.”
What is RSV?
RSV or Respiratory Syncytial Virus has seen cases spike in the recent months all over the United states. RSV affects the nose, throat, and lungs. When infected, adults only show cold-like symptoms and are generally better in a week or two. “It looks a lot like a regular cold but it tends to have more severe symptoms,” Dr. Laura Stage said. “Really runny, snotty nose, and it causes kids to have difficulty breathing and difficulty keeping their oxygen levels up.” RSV can be extremely dangerous for infants and young children but can infect them easily. Dr. Bhatt said “babies especially under three months of age are at high risk, children who were born premature, all babies less than six months of age they may be at a higher risk of getting RSV and higher risk for hospitalization.” He also says children who have a history of a chronic lung disease, allergies, and eczema could also be at higher risk of contracting RSV. “If your child is breathing fast, your child’s nostrils are flaring and if your child is wheezing, their lips are turning blue, I would call your doctor immediately and seek care,” warned Dr. Bhatt. According to the CDC, “RSV can be associated with severe disease in young children and older adults. Each year in the United States, RSV leads to on average approximately 58,000 hospitalizations with 100-500 deaths among children younger than 5 years old and 177,000 hospitalizations with 14,000 deaths among adults aged 65 years or older.”
Why is RSV Spiking Early?
“We really didn’t see RSV all of last year. Starting in April, it completely disappeared and really did not appear until fairly recently,” said Dr. Camille Sabella. “Right now, it seems to be peaking in July and August, which is really very unusual for this virus.” In July doctors and nurses at IU Health Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis reported treating up to five cases a day. “In July, we started seeing some cases pop up and we were like, ‘That’s kind of unusual.’ And from there it just kind of exploded,” said Dr. Laura Stage. Spikes in RSV were first seen in mostly southern states like Florida, Kentucky, North Carolina, Arkansas, Louisiana, and New Mexico. Now, many cases of RSV are being seen in most of the other states as well. The number of cases went down during quarantine but when regulations were relaxed RSV spiked. The CDC has warned, “Due to reduced circulation of RSV during the winter months of 2020- 2021, older infants and toddlers might now be at increased risk of severe RSV-associated illness since they have likely not had typical levels of exposure to RSV during the past 15 months.” RSV spreads through contact, so teaching your child good washing and hygiene habits is important. RSV can live for a long time on objects in your home such as toys and counters. Due to these conditions, RSV can spread through schools and daycare quickly. This is why you should not send your children to daycare or school sick; workers and faculty shouldnt report to work with children if they are feeling sick. The CDC sent out an advisory saying, “This health advisory also serves as a reminder to healthcare personnel, childcare providers, and staff of long-term care facilities to avoid reporting to work while acutely ill – even if they test negative for SARS-CoV-2.” What will the spike in RSV mean for the health of children across America? Will the number of RSV cases continue to grow into the next pandemic?
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Airbnb has announced they will be temporarily housing 20,000 Afghan refugees free of charge. Thanks to donations from Airbnb.org the company is able to host refugees in many places around the world. Airbnb often offers housing in emergencies.According to Airbnb’s CEO, Brian Chesky, refugees will be allowed to stay in the host homes free of charge. Chesky has asked hosts to reach out to him and Airbnb if they want to host a refugee family. “As tens of thousands of Afghan refugees resettle around the world, where they stay will be the first chapter in their new lives. For these 20,000 refugees, my hope is that the Airbnb community will provide them with not only a safe place to rest and start over, but also a warm welcome home,” he said. The company plans to pay the hosts for the time used themselves. This coming after the Taliban took over Afghanistan. The takeover has left many people attempting to leave the country in fear of the Taliban. The Taliban is known for being Islamic purist/extremist who violently enforce literal interpretations of the Quran. Under their rule many people died and felt unsafe in their own homes.
The U.S. has evacuated over 48,000 people from Afghanistan. The refugees have been gathering at Kabul airport searching for a way out of the country. The Taliban gave everyone until August 31 to use airspace. Many people who are attempting to flee the persecution of the Taliban the country won’t be able to. Airbnb CEO said, “The displacement and resettlement of Afghan refugees in the U.S. and elsewhere is one of the biggest humanitarian crises of our time. We feel a responsibility to step up.” Chesky later added “I hope this inspires other business leaders to do the same. There’s no time to waste.” Chesky’s call to action did not fall on deaf ears, all kinds of companies have taken advantage of the chance to show they can be helpful during a time of need. Texas Medical Technology plans to hire 100 Afghan refugees at their Houston manufacturing facility. During this time we not only see businesses answering the call to help but people all over the world are opening their homes during this difficult time.
According to Airbnb, over 75,000 people have been given a safe place during a crisis since 2012. That would not be possible without property owners who host Airbnb locations. Airbnb began asking property owners who host on their platform for help after Hurricane Sandy in 2012. The company launched the official Open Homes initiative in 2017. The initiative has since offered free accommodations to people affected by the Mexico City earthquake, Californian wildfires, Australian bushfires and other disasters. Airbnb also helps other organizations who support people during crises. Airbnb gave emergency funding and support to the International Rescue Committee, the Jewish American nonprofit HIAS, and Church World Service to provide safe places for up to 1,000 arriving Afghan refugees. “As the IRC helps to welcome and resettle Afghans in the US, accessible housing is urgently needed and essential,” IRC CEO David Miliband said in a statement. Airbnb will continue to be a shining example of how big brands and companies can help people who are in crisis find just a small piece of stability. People lose hope during crises, giving them places to stay restores that hope. If more companies would be like Airbnb, maybe the world would have a little more hope.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Health care workers were among the first people to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Still, a large number are refusing to get it. A recent Kaiser Family Foundation survey found “29 percent of health workers are vaccine hesitant.” Many people who are vaccine hesitant worry about the effect politics had on making the vaccine and that it is not yet approved by the FDA. Various people in power continue to tell the public to be vaccinated but their staff aren’t vaccinated. They say things like “everyone has to be protected,” and “unvaccinated people are the reason for the recent surge.” If these are the case, why aren’t your employees required to be vaccinated? During a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing Senator Richard Burr asked a panel of public health leaders how many of their workers had been vaccinated. Dr. Faucci and FDA official Dr. Marks say around half of the people on each of their respective staff are vaccinated. The director of the CDC only said employees are encouraged to get vaccinated.
Workers Required to Have the Vaccine
The Department of Veterans Affairs announced people employed by medical facilities would be required to be vaccinated. This made them the first federal agency to make vaccines mandatory, but not the last.The federal government employs an estimated 10 million people. This includes the main government, federal-civilian workforce, contract workers, and grant workers. These people have been told they must get the vaccine by Biden’s administration. Biden even asked the Department of Defense to make the vaccine part of the mandatory shots required for the military, which they did. The president also has asked school districts to hold clinics to vaccinate the children and young adults before the new school year. More and more people are finding themselves required to get a vaccine but the CDC still says to wear a mask indoors, why? The vaccine doesn’t keep you from getting or spreading COVID. What is the point of the vaccine if it doesn’t actually work? A vaccinated White House official, as well as a vaccinated aide for House Speaker Pelosi, tested positive for COVID after attending the same event. Our leaders want us to be vaccinated but half of them won’t get it themselves because it doesn’t work. There are so many cases of people catching and spreading COVID after being vaccinated.
White House Leaders Don’t Have to be Vaccinated
Many people have worried about the Biden administration not telling the whole truth about COVID cases in and around the Whitehouse. “According to an agreement we made during the transition, we committed we would release information proactively,” Psaki said. She added later they would “continue to abide by that commitment.” The biggest question the people have is why do some jobs and schools make it mandatory for us to be vaccinated to be employed or attend but our leaders aren’t held to the same standard? Press secretary Jen Psaki said every White House official has been offered a COVID vaccine but it was not required. “No, we have not mandated it,” Psaki said. Psaki did not say how many White House officials have been vaccinated. Officials hope FDA approval will make people more comfortable with getting the vaccine. Would FDA approval mean more people find themselve required to have the vaccine? These hypotheticals could be reality sooner than later.
The New York Times says the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine could receive full approval from the FDA. Many employers have feared lawsuits when it comes to requiring the vaccine but FDA approval could mean they become confident in pushing the requirements. Google, Netflix, and many other companies have announced that employees must be vaccinated. What happens when smaller and smaller companies require the vaccination and you have to have it in order to be employed?
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Biden’s Administration wants everyone to believe the Afghanistan situation is under control. However the sudden resurgence of the Taliban has left questions from some regarding the ability of Biden to make decisions. President Biden said he is committed to keeping U.S. troops in Afghanistan until every American is evacuated. This decision has made many people wonder if Biden is fit to stay in office. Both the left and right have questioned Biden’s decisions amid the conflict in Afghanistan. The Taliban celebrated Afghanistan’s Independence Day by declaring that it had beaten the United States. “Fortunately, today we are celebrating the anniversary of independence from Britain,” the Taliban said. “We at the same time as a result of our jihadi resistance forced another arrogant power of the world, the United States, to fail and retreat from our holy territory of Afghanistan.” Protesters defied the Taliban by waving the Afghan national flag and were met with violence. “We’re gonna go back in hindsight and look, but the idea that somehow there’s a way to have gotten out without chaos ensuing, I don’t know how that happens,” President Joe Biden said. Biden says he originally planned for America to exit Afghanistan quietly with no issues. He also dismissed the possibility of a Taliban takeover, something we see now was a lapse in judgement.
Did Biden Cover the Truth?
Stephanopoulos asked Biden about a possible issue with intelligence. “I think there was no consensus. If you go back and look at the intelligence reports, they said that it was more likely to be sometime by the end of the year,” Biden said. “But, you didn’t put a timeline out when you said it was highly unlikely. You just said flat out it’s highly unlikely the Taliban would take over,” Stephanopoulos responded. Did the President know all along that the Taliban was at risk of, or was actively, taking over Afghanistan? Why didn’t Biden first pull our civilians out of the country? These are the questions Florida Senator Rick Scott is asking. He told Fox News Biden’s “abject failure to execute a strategic withdrawal of American forces has needlessly put innocent American lives in danger. This massive failure of leadership cannot be ignored. It is unconscionable that Joe Biden found it acceptable to withdraw our troops before first ensuring the safe evacuation of Americans and our allies. Now, as he hides from the American public and the press, it’s clear that we must ask the serious question of whether Joe Biden is fit to lead our nation as commander in chief,” Scott continued. “While our immediate focus remains on the safe return of all Americans and service members, I am also calling for Leader Schumer and Speaker Pelosi to immediately launch a bipartisan and bicameral investigation into the Biden administration’s failed withdrawal.”
Did we Leave Weapons to the Taliban?
Biden has defended his choices multiple times over the past week. He is insistent on blaming Afghan officials or Trump instead of fixing his mistakes. Now, billions of dollars of U.S. weapons are free to use by the Taliban. Black Hawk helicopters and A-29 Super Tucano attack aircrafts are just a few items seized by the Taliban. They have been riding in U.S. humvees and mine-resistant ambush protected vehicles. It would be hard to operate the advanced aircraft without training. However, the act of seizing the equipment sends a statement. The Taliban wants us to believe our time and money spent there was wasted. “When an armed group gets their hands on American-made weaponry, it’s sort of a status symbol. It’s a psychological win,” said Elias Yousif, deputy director of the Center for International Policy’s Security Assistance Monitor. “They may be able to manage a flight or two or to operate them in some really limited capacity in the short term, but without long term sustainment, maintenance, servicing, that sort of thing, it wouldn’t turn into a robust or useful military capability,” he said. “It took the Afghans and the United States a long time to develop an indigenous air capability, and even then, they were reliant on the United States to keep those planes in the sky.” The more pressing concern is the “fair amount” of small arms left in Afghanistan.
The United States has spent roughly $83 billion in arming and training Afghanistan. While it is unclear exactly how many weapons have fallen into the hands of the Taliban, Biden says it’s a “fair amount.” Is this Biden and his administration attempting to downplay the severity of the situation again? “We don’t have a complete picture, obviously, of where every article of defense materials has gone, but certainly a fair amount of it has fallen into the hands of the Taliban,” White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said. “And obviously, we don’t have a sense that they are going to readily hand it over to us at the airport.” Republican senators are demanding a full summary of U.S. military equipment given to Afghanistan in the last year. They are also demanding to know Biden’s plans to capture or destroy the Taliban seized American equipment. The Joint Chiefs of Staff declined to comment on the possibility of destroying equipment. They say the Military is currently focused on evacuations only. Is Biden making the right calls for the situation? Should the U.S. just ignore the Taliban having American military equipment? Doesn’t that seem like we are willingly supplying the Taliban with weapons? Why is Biden only evacuating and not taking care of the issues in Afghanistan?
Written by: Erinn Malloy
During 1994 a group began to form in Afghanistan during the tension that followed the withdrawal of Soviet forces in 1989. The Soviets were driven out of the country by factions of Islamic fighters, who were supported by the U.S. government. Once the Soviets left, the factions fell apart and everyone wanted control for themselves, leading to a brutal civil war. In 1995 a reporter with the New York Times reported there were major changes happening in the country. The group of Islamic purists used military control to take over large portions of the country. Many of the fighters were originally religious students but together formed a group called the Taliban. Now, the group has seized their first provincial capital, Kabul and for a second time the Taliban has taken over Afghanistan.
What Happened While The Taliban Was In Charge?
The Taliban allowed Osama bin Laden to stay in Afghanistan while he built al-Qaida. On September 11, 2001, al-Qaida viciously attacked the World Trade Center twin towers in New York and the Pentagon in Washington. The group used airplanes to carry out their attack, one of the planes went down in a field in Pennsylvania. Thousands of Americans were killed. After 9/11 the U.S. invaded Afghanistan with groups in the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance coalition, removing the Taliban from power. The Taliban is known for enforcing a harsh interpretation of the Quran with public punishments, like floggings, amputations and mass executions. The Taliban destroyed towering statues known as the Great Buddhas of Bamiyan, in order to tell the country they would not tolerate any other religious practices. They forced women into submissive roles and barred them from working outside of the home or going to school. Women were supposed to be in full burka and escorted by a man in their family when leaving the home. Many women in Afghanistan fear the rights they gained will be taken away since the Taliban has taken over once again.
What are the Taliban doing now?
Taliban leaders have claimed the people of Afghanistan will be safe. The first few days of Taliban control was restrained in some places. Now, reports of brutality and intimidation are flowing in. In Kunduz, residents fear the Taliban. “I am afraid, because I do not know what will happen and what they will do,” one resident said. “We have to smile at them, because we are scared, but deeply we are unhappy.” The city’s Taliban rulers ordered women who had worked for the government to leave their jobs and never return. In Kabul airport is a chaotic scene as thousands of Afghans are trying to leave the country they now fear. Afghans have been lining up outside ATM machines for days, with many attempting to pull out their life savings to secure a way out of the country. The U.S. embassy has been operating out of the airport to secure evacuations. 15,000 Americans remain in Afghanistan, according to the Biden administration. The Taliban promised “safe passage” to the Kabul airport but that isn’t what people on the ground are reporting. There are reports of women and children being beaten outside the airport. Hundreds of people were outside the airport as the Taliban demanded to see documents before allowing the people inside, which was reportedly rare. The Taliban fired occasional warning shots to disperse them. U.S. National security adviser Jake Sullivan said they have received reports of people being turned away, pushed back or even beaten when trying to access the airport. “We are taking that up in a channel with the Taliban to try to resolve those issues,” Sullivan said. “And we are concerned about whether that will continue to unfold in the coming days.” CBS News reporter Roxana Saberi got out of Afghanistan overnight on a U.S. cargo plane which landed in Qatar. She and her crew were on the plane with about 300 Afghans who fled the Taliban and their home. They left behind thousands of fellow Afghans so desperate to escape that some clung to the U.S. military plane as it took off.
What Does Trump Think?
Trump believes that the U.S. is “being set up by” the Taliban, “I never saw anything so stupid in my life until the last few days with Afghanistan, that blows the stupidity of the southern border away. What’s happening in Afghanistan is unbelievable and we are being set up by very tough people that are very great negotiators. I’ll tell you what, they are automatically great negotiators who have been fighting for a thousand years and everything about them they negotiate. We are being set up and in a certain way I guarantee you they consider them to be hostages and let’s see what happens over the coming weeks.” Trump claimed that he had a “conditions-based agreement” with the Taliban after they agreed a ceasefire with him where if any Americans or allies were harmed then the U.S. would retaliate by bombing parts of the country. Trump says President Biden’s actions have caused “the greatest embarrassment in the history of our country.” Later on Trump said “It’s a great thing that we’re getting out, but nobody has ever handled a withdrawal worse than Joe Biden.”
What Has Biden Said About Taliban In Charge?
Biden has shook off criticism of his decision to withdraw troops from the region. Biden said, “If anything, the developments of the past week reinforce that ending US military involvement in Afghanistan now was the right decision. American troops cannot and should not be fighting in a war and dying in a war that Afghan forces are not willing to fight for themselves.” “I have no doubt this will be a huge liability for Biden, even if Trump boxed him in,” said Cameron Munter, former United States ambassador to Pakistan. “The thing that is appalling is that the administration had no plan,” said Stephen Heintz, the head of a foundation that has been working on Afghanistan since 2011. “There was scarcely any consultation with NATO and little with the Afghan government. It’s a failure of intelligence, of planning, of logistics, and in the end a political failure, because whatever it is, it’s Biden’s.”
The Biden administration is still deciding whether it will officially recognize the Taliban as the government of Afghanistan. Russia has established ties to the Taliban but does not officially recognize it. However, the ambassador did give the country praise for being “peaceful” in Kabul. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his government had “no plans” to recognize the Taliban. What will this change of power mean for the people of Afghanistan? What will it mean for the people of America? Will the Taliban allow terrorists to reside in their country once again? If so, what does that mean for, not only America, but the world?
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Britney Spears’ father, Jamie Spears, is stepping down as her conservator. Ever since Britney’s public breakdown in 2008, Jamie was in complete control of her finances and person down to when she could leave her home and with whom. In the official documents Jamie’s lawyer wrote: “There are, in fact, no actual grounds for suspending or removing Mr Spears as the Conservator of the Estate and it is highly debatable whether a change in conservator at this time would be in Ms Spears’ best interests. Nevertheless, even as Mr Spears is the unremitting target of unjustified attacks, he does not believe that a public battle with his daughter over his continuing service as her conservator would be in her best interests. Regardless of his formal title, Mr Spears will always be Ms Spears’ father, he will always love her unconditionally, and he will always look out for her best interests.” Britney believes her conservatorship is abusive and compared it to sex trafficking. “The only similar thing to this is called sex trafficking … The people who did this to me should not be able to walk away so easily … I’m not here to be anyone’s slave,” she told the judge. Jamie is known to have been abusive towards Britney. A witness says they thought Jamie was going to say, “Baby… We love you, but you need help,” “But what he said was, ‘Baby….you’re fat. Daddy’s gonna get you on a diet and a trainer, and you’re gonna get back in shape.’” The witness also heard Jamie call Britney a “terrible mother.” Jamie has even been known to be heard saying, “I am Britney Spears!” Britney has been locked in her life as a prisoner and slave to the people around her while she signs their checks. This conservatorship could not end sooner for Britney and all of her supporters who just want her to be able to live her life.
#FreeBritney Supporters
Stars such as Paris Hilton, Linsdey Lohan, and Kim Kardashian have all made their support for Britney Spears known. Even stars such as Elon Musk and Grimes have voiced their support for Spears amid this battle for freedom. Britney is currently considering a sit down with Oprah Winfrey, who has also been an avid #FreeBritney supporter. Britney is looking to discuss her life in the conservatorship and the issues she faces with Oprah in a similar style to the Prince Harry and Meghan Markle interview. “Britney has been approached by lots of outlets to do a sit down, but Oprah would be her first choice,” her lawyer stated. Certain legal steps are still in place before Britney can discuss her conservatorship battle in detail. She has been open on social media about where she stands with her confidence (which seems to have shot up since her father agreed to step down) and how she feels about certain subjects. She was not able to post freely on her social media before she began the battle to free herself from her conservatorship.
What has Britney Said?
Britney took to Instagram to share some words of wisdom with her 33.4 million followers. “Sometimes self-care is the simple act of doing nothing.” She appeared to be celebrating the recent changes to her 13-year conservatorship. Britney then went to instagram a few days later and addressed some rumours about herself. Spears shared a topless photo and cleared the air about her pregnancy and plastic surgery rumors. In the caption, “No guys I didn’t get a boob job in just a week, nor am I pregnant. I have boobs in these pics cause I devoured food. Before I show you more pics of my body I want you to understand my thoughts on exposing my skin.” She added, ” In my opinion, it’s quite twisted the immediate response of when any woman is hot and they want to shed a layer… no … I’m not talking in a strip club or a performance… just on a practical scale of being in your car and realizing you’re wearing a stupid long sleeve shirt in the summer.” The pop sensation also spoke about the Free Britney movement started by fans and wrote, “And I will admit the FREE BRITNEY comments after I took my shirt off were actually really funny !!! The Free Britney campaign started with all your amazing pink Free Britney shirts 3 years ago !!! There’s a way deeper meaning to the movement than you can ever imagine … My fans have always been so damn amazing and I love you all !!!!”
Britney’s future freedom definitely seems brighter and cause for celebration. Millions of people across the globe have stood with Britney and the #FreeBritney movement whether they were fans or not. Britney has had the power to affect people across the globe who look up to her and listen to her music. She is an entertainer by nature but deserves to pick and choose when she wants to entertain just be Britney. She doesn’t deserve to be forced to work crazy hours or schedules. She doesn’t deserve to be forced into therapy three times a week. She, like any other American, deserves the power to choose what she wants to do with her life.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Oregon Governor Kate Brown privately signed a bill which ends the need for high school students to prove proficiency in math and reading before graduation. Brown did not have a public signing or press release when passing Senate Bill 744 in July. The bill was not added into the state’s legislative database until more than two weeks after being passed. The staffer who was supposed to update the database was experiencing medical issues and the database had technical issues during the 15 day period, according to the Secretary of the Senate’s office. Though, a handful of bills the governor signed into law in July around the same time were updated in the legislative database the same day she signed them and email notifications were sent out immediately to people who signed up to track the bills. Those bills included creating a training program for childcare and preschool providers aimed at reducing suspensions and expulsions of very young children. Why weren’t the new graduation requirements also made public in a timely fashion? This is not the first time amid the pandemic Oregon has made changes to education requirements. Students no longer had to test on a freshman to sophomore level due to Brown’s Stay Home, Save Lives order. Now students don’t have to really learn anything since the standards have been basically erased for the next few classes. What is the purpose of public education if the schools are not teaching the public?
What do Democrats say?
Democrats were mostly in favor of SB 744’s because they believe the current standards are flawed. “SB 744 gives us an opportunity to review our graduation requirements and make sure our assessments can truly assess all students’ learning,” said Charles Boyle, a spokesman for the governor. “In the meantime, it gives Oregon students and the education community a chance to regroup after a year and a half of disruption caused by the pandemic.” The bill suspends the need for test scores or grades for three years. Supporters believe the current standards present an unfair challenge for students who do not test well. Boyle said the new standards for graduation would “aid Oregon’s students of color.” I honestly do not see how no longer caring if students truly get an education is an effective way to aid any students. There are plenty of ways to improve the way we test and make it individual to learning and testing styles without removing the need for, what will essentially be an entire highschool graduating class start to finish, to actually learn and retain knowledge. “The testing that we’ve been doing in the past doesn’t tell us what we want to know,” according to Senator Lew Frederick. “We have been relying on tests that have been, frankly, very flawed and relying too much on them so that we aren’t really helping the students, teachers or the community.” Supporters of SB 744 said the state needed to remove current standards so lawmakers could evaluate what policies and standards to update. New graduation standards are due to the Legislature and Oregon Board of Education by September 2022. Oregon currently does not use any particular test score as a requirement for a diploma. The Department of Education says “students will need to successfully complete the credit requirements, demonstrate proficiency in the Essential Skills, and meet the personalized learning requirements.” So during this transition period what would be considered “proficiency in the essential skills?” Especially since the requirements to be at a freshman to sophomore level are no longer in play, what is being considered as proficient?
What do Republicans say?
Republicans have worried about SB 744 lowering academic standards. “I worry that by adopting this bill, we’re giving up on our kids,” House Republican Leader Christine Drazan said on June 14. The bill had some bipartisan support with a small number of republicans voting in favor of passage. Many republicans are angry over SB 744. Most of the courses that teach children to master their skill level of math and reading have been discontinued since the skills requirement was paused during the pandemic. Now lawmakers are killing the requirement entirely. Republicans have come out against SB 744 and claim that it lowers “expectations for our kids.” Oregon education officials have made it clear they won’t “impose” new graduation requirements on students already in high school. New requirements would not take effect until the class of 2027. That means as many as five classes of future adults in America could graduate from a public highschool without needing to actually learn math and writing. Many of the democrats who support SB 744 claim to dislike graduation requirements because of standardized tests. This seems odd for Oregon, since students had the option to demonstrate their ability to use English and do math with five different tests. Students could also complete a classroom project judged by their teachers. How will we know if the children in the transition learned anything? Having the perfect teachers will be so important in this new environment for students to actually learn, even then will teachers be able to help every single student? How can Democrats ensure every single student in the transition will get a quality education?
Many teachers have recently left the field and countless others across the country have considered it due to the way the education system is currently structured. No one disagrees that there are changes to be made in order to have successful students and teachers. The question is, why is it okay to possibly leave up to five classes behind in order to fix the issues? No child in America should be subject to a disservice like that. Teachers used to tell me coming through school, knowledge is power, and they were right.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Due to the 70% uptick in COVID cases last month, the CDC has issued new public health guidance concerning masks. Now, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and Fauci are “urging” people, whether vaccinated or unvaccinated to wear masks. This comes in sharp contrast to the recent policies of reopening and trying to get back to normal. Two states in particular Biden has an eye on forcing to conform to the new policies are Texas and Florida. In both states, the governors have signed laws prohibiting mask mandates. These laws essentially mean that fully vaccinated people cannot be forced to wear a mask.
Biden is currently trying to get rid of the mask mandate ban that DeSantis (FL) and Abbott (TX) have signed. He is currently unsure of whether he has the power to do so. He is unsure about a lot of things. Considering that federal law supersedes state law, it may be possible, unfortunately.
Personally, I see the ban on mask mandates as a sign of progress. The vaccine has been around. In Texas about 45% of the population is fully vaccinated and 49.7% are fully vaccinated in Florida, though, generally, everyone who wanted to get the vaccine has had ample opportunity to do so by now. It seems ridiculous to require people who have been vaccinated to wear masks. In part, it takes the incentive to get the vaccine away. It also acts as a symbol. When will COVID end? When will all the restrictions go away? Are there new restrictions coming?
There is also a psychological toll that the mask evokes. People, as I have noticed since the ban on mask mandates, are less afraid of others. More and more go out and people are friendlier to each other. It is not the mask itself that can cause so much discomfort as the constant feeling of fear that it brings. Saying you need to wear a mask even if vaccinated is like saying, “Sorry, your vaccine didn’t work.”
“Red Herring”
Forbes calls it a “red herring – a distraction from the far more relevant question of how to end the pandemic.”
The uptick in cases is largely due to the delta variant, which the current vaccine appears to protect against. Yale Medicine claims that “vaccination is the best protection against delta.” The Kaiser Family Foundation also claims that “more than 9 in 10 COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths have occurred among people who are unvaccinated or not yet fully vaccinated.”
The real way to win the game of COVID is for a herd immunity to be established or to let the last transmissible remnants of the virus die. The latter may be very difficult to achieve, if not somewhat impossible. There is hope, though. Ebola came and went in this country. No one hears about it anymore.
Obama’s 60th Birthday Bash
Either way, the people at the top do not really believe in the mask mandate. At Obama’s 60th birthday party, no masks were required. There were about 300-350 people, many of whom were celebrities. It took place at Martha’s Vineyard, which is a COVID hotspot. In hotspots, the CDC requires masks (even if vaccinated), people not to have large gatherings, and everyone to socially distance. Fauci never said anything against Obama’s party.
It is quite a display of hypocrisy. Fauci, on the other hand, warned about the “superspreader event” that might take place due to a motorcycle rally in Sturgis, SD. He heavily implied that this was a MAGA crowd, though it was just a motorcycle rally, not inherently partisan.
“A Sophisticated, Vaccinated Crowd”
Then on Monday, a New York Times reporter went on CNN and quoted a Vineyard resident as saying the Obamas were fine because they invited “a sophisticated, vaccinated crowd.”
So basically, an outdoor motorcycle event is worse than an indoor party where no one was wearing a mask. It is fine if one group of people does something but not another. Republicans are portrayed by Democratic elites as ignorant, uneducated people who are all against being vaccinated and wearing masks, while Democrats are all cautious, sophisticated people who vaccinate, wear masks, and socially distance. No one really even knows who was or was not vaccinated in Obama’s party. The elites get to stay at the top and do whatever they want.
But overall, why should Obama and his guests get to party without masks on when now even vaccinated people are forced to wear masks? Why is Obama a hero?
Written by: Miranda Smith
The bipartisan infrastructure deal was first announced by Joe Biden and a group of senators. The Senate has approved the roughly $1.2 trillion package. The infrastructure deal is a direct response to the outcry from the left over building the new pipeline, which has since been halted. The money from the pipeline only accounts for around half of the budget for the infrastructure deal. The deal, which passed by a vote of 69-30, is supposed to benefit: Public transit, by including money for mass transit, passenger and freight rail, airports, ports and waterways. Roads and bridges, with funding to repair and rebuild roads and bridges. The goal is to make roads safer for motorists, cyclists and even pedestrians. Electric vehicles will be included by constructing a network of electric vehicle chargers also electrifying school and transit buses. Water, sewer, and power systems are supposed to get funding to replace the nation’s lead pipe service lines and improve its power grid. Broadband will be funded with $65 billion to try to ensure all Americans have access to wifi. The infrastructure deal is being followed by a budget reconciliation bill. 50 Democrats and 19 Republicans voted for the infrastructure deal. 30 Republicans voted no to the infrastructure deal, which Trump is calling the “start of the Green New Deal.”
Which Republicans Voted for the Infrastructure Deal
A few of the Republican supporters are five senators who voted to convict Trump during his second impeachment. Two of the infrastructure deal supporters have plans to retire soon. Five senators who voted for the deal come from states Trump won by more than 30 points during his election. Some Republicans are seeing voting for the infrastructure deal as a slight against Trump and Republican Party. The Republican senators who voted for the infrastructure deal are:
Mitch McConnell, of Kentucky
Roy Blunt, of Missouri
Shelley Moore Capito, of West Virginia
Bill Cassidy, of Louisiana
Susan Collins, of Maine
Deb Fischer, of Nebraska
Lindsey Graham, of South Carolina
Chuck Grassley, of Iowa
Rob Portman, of Ohio
Mitt Romney, of Utah
Roger Wicker, of Mississippi
Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski, of Alaska
Richard Burr and Thom Tillis, of North Carolina
Mike Crapo and Jim Risch, of Idaho
Kevin Cramer and John Hoven, of North Dakota.
“There’s a joke around town that infrastructure week has come and gone so many times that people are a little cynical when we talk about it,” Rob Portman, one of the retiring senators, said ahead of the vote. “Well today is infrastructure day, we’re actually going to see what we’ve been talking about which is the Senate, on a bipartisan basis, saying you know what, it is time to fix our roads and bridges, we can do so in a responsible way, not by raising taxes on the American people, but by making important investments in long-term capital assets that will last for years.”
What Trump Thinks of the Infrastructure Deal.
Former President Donald Trump has tried very hard to convince the Republican party to not pass the infrastructure deal. Trump continues to maintain his place as a fixture in the Republican party. “It is a loser for the USA, a terrible deal, and makes the Republicans look weak, foolish, and dumb,” he said in a statement last month. “It shouldn’t be done. It sets an easy glidepath for Dems to then get beyond what anyone thought was possible in future legislation. … Don’t do it Republicans — Patriots will never forget! If this deal happens, lots of primaries will be coming your way!”
Trump’s White House tried to have “infrastructure week” many times while he was in office. His attempts were always blocked by various things, mostly democrats. Trump said in a statement, “This is not an infrastructure bill, this is the beginning of the Green New Deal. The bill I proposed, which Mitch McConnell couldn’t do anything with, was pure infrastructure. I want what is best for America, not what’s best for the Communist Democrat Party. This will be a big victory for the Democrats and will be used against Republicans in the upcoming elections. Schumer is using the threat of ‘we can do it the hard way or do it the easy way’ and keeping people in town. McConnell never did that on a real infrastructure bill. Hopefully the House will be much stronger than the Senate.” Trump concluded his statement by saying “Congratulations to Senator Bill Hagerty in remaining true to ‘AMERICA FIRST!’”
What Other Republicans Think of the Infrastructure Deal
Many conservative Republicans were even more opposed after the Congressional Budget Office projected the infrastructure deal could add $256 billion to the federal deficit over the next ten years. Bill Hagerty insists everyone needs to take more time to consider the infrastructure bill’s contents. John Kennedy says he was likely to vote “yes” until he actually read the whole infrastructure deal, which is roughly 2,700 pages. “I don’t know why it passed with 60-plus votes,” Kennedy told Laura Ingraham in an interview, “I don’t know, day drinking, maybe?” Kennedy made statement saying, “I realized pretty quickly that if you look up ‘stupid stuff’ in the dictionary, there’s a picture of this bill,” he said. “They told us it was a real infrastructure bill. It’s not; only 23 percent of the bill is real infrastructure, the rest is Green New Deal and welfare. They told us the bill was paid for; it isn’t, we’re gonna have to borrow maybe up to $400 billion to pay for it. They told us there were no tax increases. There are; my state’s gonna have to pay $1.3 billion in new taxes on our petrochemical industry.” Kennedy went on to say, “the Democrats were really wary of this bill and that if we passed this bill, it would make it harder for them to pass their $5 trillion tax and spending binge reconciliation bill. Well, if that’s true, how come every Democrat voted for this infrastructure bill? And finally, they told us that it’s not going to add to inflation, but it will.” Nancy Pelosi says the House will be holding the infrastructure bill until senate democrats pass a budget reconciliation bill.
Now that the Senate has voted on the infrastructure deal, the House would have to approve it. Nancy Pelosi claims the Infrastructure deal will be held in the house until the budget reconciliation bill comes through as well; the budget reconciliation bill seems to be mostly welfare and attempts at free education. Then the bills would go to President Biden’s desk, where he would then approve one or both. The House is currently on recess till the third week of September. In a statement following the vote, Nancy Pelosi said, “The House will continue to work with the Senate to ensure that our priorities For The People are included in the final infrastructure and reconciliation packages, in a way that is resilient and will Build Back Better.” Both bills will spend money we don’t have as a country and put us in even more debt because of it. The public claim is the bills will make life better for Americans, giving them more money and jobs in the long run. We may have more money and jobs, but our taxes and cost of living will shoot up to pay for the difference. If that is the case won’t we be in the same boat we are now? Will pumping in money we don’t have fix our economy, or break it even more?
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Former Olympic athlete and U.S. Air Force veteran, Eli Bremer, has announced he is launching a Republican Senate campaign in Colorado for the 2022 midterm elections. Bremer, 43, graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy and served 14 years as an officer. Bremer was on active duty in the U.S. Air Force for seven years then transitioned to the Air Force Reserve in September 2007 before transitioning back to Air Force Active Reserve in March 2008. Also in March 2008, Bremer was selected as a regional finalist for the prestigious White House Fellows Program for 2008-2009. He went on to represent the U.S. in modern pentathlon in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He also serves on a congressional committee studying reforms to the U.S. Olympic system. Bremer has never run for public office but was the El Paso County GOP chairman from 2011-2013. His father was a county commissioner. His uncle, Paul Bremer, was a presidential envoy to Iraq. A lifelong Republican, Bremer supported and worked on Trump’s successful 2016 campaign for the White House. Bremer, who lives in Colorado Springs with his wife and 6-year-old son, said he “had the chance to travel the globe, and that gave me a profound appreciation for what we have here in America.”
What Does Bremer Say About Running?
“Having twice worn the uniform of our nation, in the military and in the Olympics, I am concerned that the country I have represented is being sold out by self-interested politicians,” Bremer said in a statement. Bremer said “as the next U.S. Senator from Colorado, I will work for pragmatic solutions that positively impact Colorado and America. I’m watching right now as our nation is sort of falling apart and saying, ‘I can’t sit on the sidelines anymore,’” Bremer took aim at current Governor Michael Bennet, saying “in 12 years, he has authored one piece of legislation that has been signed into law. One.” Michael Bennet was Denver public schools superintendent when he was appointed to the Senate in 2009. He narrowly won a full six-year term in 2010 and was reelected in 2016 by nearly six points. Bremer predicted that “people here are living every day seeing the consequence of failed Democratic policies and there will be a backlash, and running a good campaign with a candidate who brings commonsense traditional Colorado values to the table, we have a chance to do something special and win that Senate seat.” While Colorado has been leaning left in recent years, Republicans hope to turn that around with the 2022 midterm elections. They currently see Colorado just behind Arizona, Georgia, New Hampshire and Nevada, the GOP’s top four states that can make or break elections.
Eli Bremer kicked off his campaign with an online ad holding a sign of Bennet’s face with the words “MISSING” and “HAVE YOU SEEN THIS MAN.” Bremer claims Bennet “spends more time at cocktail parties in D.C.” or “talking with voters in New Hampshire” than in Colorado. This is not the first time Bremer has come for part of the Democratic party. “We’re already seeing high inflation, that’s being caused by the single-party (Democratic) control in Washington, D.C.,” Bremer said in an interview. “They’re pumping trillions of dollars of liquidity into the system through deficit spending and that’s very dangerous.” Bremer was asked whether he’d support the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package Democrats are currently pushing. He noted that “we do need to invest in broadband across America, we do need to invest in roads and bridges” but added “I’m deeply concerned about the massive amount of money that we’re pumping into the economy.” He is not the only Republican to raise questions about the bill and the spending, which will come with it. Will these be the types of issues Bremer will tackle if he is voted in as Senator? Will Bremer be able to finally sway Colorado back to the right side of the line?
Written by: Erinn Malloy
As most school students recover from a hot summer by going back to school, another hot topic in the midst of our classrooms this fall is the new delta variant of the Covid-19. With the delta variant in most of the United States, many school districts are reenacting face mask orders, making them mandatory in schools.
Disagreements
With these face mask orders being put back into place, many parents are quite upset about their children having to re-mask. A lot of them claim that it is not good for their children mentally and it is psychologically damaging to their children. Some parents even claim that re-masking hinders the learning process.
The Heat Is On
Currently in Florida, at least four school districts are imposing mandatory mask orders despite Governor Ron Desantis’ executive orders allowing parents to ignore school mask mandates. Immediately after the governor’s executive order was announced, two school districts in the state of Florida reversed their plans requiring students to wear masks. The Florida Board Of Education is expected to meet soon to consider emergency rules for the upcoming school year.
Very Necessary
Most school systems across the United States already have re-masking orders in place, The U.S. department of health recommends that students in schools continue to re-mask, because, many of them due to their ages are not currently eligible for the vaccine. Also, with the delta variant strain of Covid-19, school children are the affected the most.
Higher Learning
With the mask mandate orders for schools put back into place, many of the colleges and universities are reinstating their mask orders as well, for all students and faculty members
Zoom In
With some parents being upset and disgraced over many school districts reinforcing mask mandate orders for schools across the United States, many parents are choosing to place their children in Virtual Online Schools. Many of these virtual schools have seen their enrollment doubled so far this school year, which in some of the United States, the schools have not yet opened back up yet from summer break.
Other Alternatives
Private school enrollment has also doubled due to concerned parents worrying about the re-masking of their students. For Many Parents it’s a mixed bag of mixed reactions. A Mix that all parents are hoping will be sorted out real soon as everyone does their part to once again Stop The Spread
Written by: Gary Taylor
COVID infections in the United States have surged in the last few weeks. The biggest danger to Americans Public Health right now seems to be unvaccinated illegal immigrants being transported across the country by our own government. Biden’s administration is allowing people to come in illegally without being vaccinated or even tested, in some cases. According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement data, more than 80 percent of illegal immigrants coming in are unvaccinated. Countries such as Brazil and Peru that have high infection rates and dangerous variants. The vaccination rates in Honduras and Guatemala are less than 1 percent. A majority of people entering the country illegally are from these countries, while it is understandable to want to leave these countries ravaged by disease and war-like conflict, they have to do things the right way. Everything has to be done correctly because during a one-week period in California, 15 percent of illegal immigrants released into the community by Border Patrol were found to have COVID. 7,000 illegal immigrants who tested positive for COVID recently passed through a Texas city that has become the epicenter of coming to the U.S. illegally. Many Republicans have openly expressed their opinions on Biden’s “Border Control.”
What Do Republicans Think?
Sean Hannity believes the border is the “biggest super-spreader” of the pandemic. Chip Roy went even further, calling for Biden’s impeachment over the border issue. “Here we are saying, ‘Oh, we’re going to have to wear masks on the floor of the House, but we’re going to do nothing to stop the flow of people coming across our border,’” he complained to Tucker Carlson. Senator Ted Cruz has also attributed the surges in COVID cases to the surge in illegal immigration. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis told Biden, “Why don’t you do your job? Why don’t you get this border secure? And until you do that, I don’t want to hear a blip about Covid from you, thank you.”
“No elected official is doing more to enable the transmission of COVID in America than Joe Biden with his open borders policies,” DeSantis said in a fundraising email that went out after a press conference. Governor Kim Reynolds told reporters, immigration at the southern border is “part of the problem” as COVID cases rise again through the U.S. and Iowa. “As they’re trying to impact additional restrictions on Americans, we’ve got people coming across the border that haven’t been vaccinated, and so that’s also something we need to continue to look at,” Reynolds said. Texas governor Greg Abbott has blamed the immigration surge for an increase in COVID cases and hospitalizations in the state.
What is Happening in Texas?
Crowded immigration detainment facilities experience COVID outbreaks regularly but only about 1 in 5 detained illegal immigrants receive at least one dose of the vaccine while in custody, according to Immigrations and Customs Enforcement data from May. That’s if they are even tested, most illegal immigrants go untested. After they are processed they are sent on buses to major cities in the U.S.. Border counties in Texas have called for U.S. immigration officials to stop bringing in migrants who have tested positive for COVID. It is clear to Texas officials how lack of testing and vaccinations at the border affect the spread of COVID nationally, and in their own backyards. The City of McAllen, Texas recently announced the construction of temporary emergency shelters to help the city of 140,000 cope with the flow of illegal immigrants that has overwhelmed existing facilities. The city said, “in the last several weeks, due to the shockingly large number of immigrants released by Customs and Border Protection, the Respite Center’s capacity became overwhelmed.” The Respite Center admitted an average of 750 illegal immigrants per day at the beginning of July.
“That number, over the course of the month, escalated to over 1,100 people per day, and so far in August has surged to over 1,900 people per day,” the city said. “The Respite Center has capacity for only 1,236 occupants and will not allow more than its maximum occupancy at any given time.” Officials in McAllen and Hidalgo County declared a local state of disaster due to rising numbers of COVID cases and limited capacity in holding facilities. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has stepped in and renewed Title 42 protocol, giving federal authorities clearance to expel single adults and certain families at the border in order to prevent the spread of the virus.“Title 42 is not an immigration authority, but a public health authority, and its continued use is dictated by CDC and governed by the CDC’s analysis of public health factors,” the Department of Homeland Security said. “Under Title 42, DHS continues to expel the majority of single adults, and, to the extent possible, families encountered at the Southwest Border.”
Illegal immigrants can bring COVID from their home country, pick it up on the way, or catch it in crowded border detention facilities. Even if they test negative, they have been HEAVILY exposed to COVID, which means they pose a greater threat to public health than most individuals. If many illegal immigrants are not being tested, how many times are the ones who are? They could easily test negative once and begin to show symptoms a week later like many people who have contracted COVID here in the U.S.. The left wants to believe the surge is because of unvaccinated Americans but fail to acknowledge the COVID pandemic was just beginning to be under semi-control. Now, there is a surge of people coming in, also coincidentally a recent surge in cases, but neither is related? The only logical answer is to close the border down. If we have a surge in cases, the responsible thing to do as a country is to shut down so we keep everyone safe from COVID.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
There are three different types of plague. The most common type we learn about in history class is the Bubonic plague or “black death.” The bubonic plague was named the black death because, once affected, the lymph nodes become black and swollen. The three variants “plagued” Europe for over 500 years. That is probably where we get the use of plagued to mean something awful that recurs over a long period of time. Many scientists believed the plague is spread through rodents until we learned their fleas are the real culprits. The fleas bite infected rats and jump to humans, then in the same way a mosquito gives you malaria, an infected flea could give you the plague. “It sucked me first, and now sucks thee, And in this flea our two bloods mingled be” poet John Donne wrote in the 17th century. He never got to see that he was indeed on the verge of a medical breakthrough, if only he knew about microbes and bacteria. Mortality rates for the plague when it first ravaged Europe were close to 100 percent, now with modern medicine that number is closer to 11, if treatment is sought promptly. That doesn’t make the sudden outbreak of Bubonic Plague in rodents at Lake Tahoe any less scary. Last year, a resident of the same area in South Lake Tahoe tested positive for plague. Before him, two people believed to have contracted it in Yosemite National Park. Last month, a 10-year-old girl died after contracting the plague in Colorado, but experts don’t know where she picked it up. “Medical and health professionals are trying to track down where she contracted the disease,” A local public health official from La Plata County told Durango Herald. “At this time, that is still unknown.”
How did the Rodents get the Plague?
Chipmunks in the South Lake Tahoe area tested positive for plague. This outbreak caused officials to close Kiva Beach and the Taylor Creek Visitor Center in South Lake Tahoe through Friday, August 6. It is unlikely the chipmunks had any direct interactions with people, according to the park. No statement has been made regarding the possibility of infected fleas or people. The bacterium that causes plague, Yersinia pestis, grows naturally in some parts of California, according to the California Department of Health. “Bubonic plague is naturally occurring in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and this region,” said Lisa Herron, a public affairs specialist for the agency’s Lake Tahoe basin management unit, which runs the closed facilities. “It’s something that visitors need to take precautions about, but it’s not something that they need to worry about.” She told the public that keeping pets at home, or at least on leash and away from rodent burrows, is a good way to keep out of the plague’s reach. “It’s important that individuals take precautions for themselves and their pets when outdoors, especially while walking, hiking or camping in areas where wild rodents are present,” Dr Nancy Williams, the local public health officer, said in a 2020 statement following a man being diagnosed with the bubonic plague. “Human cases of plague are extremely rare but can be very serious.”
Domestic animals can contract plague and transfer it to humans. Dogs rarely become ill, but cats can suffer a severe illness. A cat with plague will become very ill, stop eating and will have a fever. Swollen lymph nodes occur in the neck area. If a cat develops plague pneumonia, it can infect humans by coughing or sneezing. It is important to contact a veterinarian right away if you have been to an area where plague is common and your pet is showing symptoms. Stay away from chipmunks, squirrels or any other wild rodents and report any that are acting strange or lethargic to rangers immediately. El Dorado county vector control will be dusting the burrows with a powder, according to officials. The powder will basically be giving the forest a flea bath then there will be another round of trapping and testing. Officials hope the visitor sites can be opened by this weekend.
What if I believe I have the Plague?
The plague is commonly found in the western United States. Colorado, California, New Mexico, Oregon, and Arizona are where the plague is mostly found and contracted. Plague loves places that are rural with a high traffic volume, low sanitation, and large rodent populations. Take precautions, such as wearing proper clothing and insect repellent to deter fleas, when hiking in affected areas. Wear gloves when handling dead wild animals in areas where the plague could be common. The Plague’s usual incubation period is 2 to 6 days and curable when diagnosed early. Make sure to tell your doctor everywhere you have been so they can figure out if you have any of the three types of plague. Bubonic Plague is the most common plague and is usually where the illness begins.
(CDC) Bubonic plague: Patients develop sudden onset of fever, headache, chills, and weakness and one or more swollen, tender and painful lymph nodes (called buboes). This form usually results from the bite of an infected flea. The bacteria multiply in the lymph node closest to where the bacteria entered the human body. If the patient is not treated with the appropriate antibiotics, the bacteria can spread to other parts of the body.
If it is not treated in time, bubonic plague can progress to septicemic plague or pneumonic plague.
(CDC) Septicemic plague: Patients develop fever, chills, extreme weakness, abdominal pain, shock, and possibly bleeding into the skin and other organs. Skin and other tissues may turn black and die, especially on fingers, toes, and the nose. Septicemic plague can occur as the first symptom of plague, or may develop from untreated bubonic plague. This form results from bites of infected fleas or from handling an infected animal.
Pneumonic plague affects the lungs. It’s the least common variety of plague but the most dangerous. Signs and symptoms can begin within a few hours after initial infection. Catching Pneumonic Plague is rare, generally it develops as a complication of untreated Bubonic Plague, but if transmitted from person to person, it develops quicker than any other plague
(CDC) Pneumonic plague: Patients develop fever, headache, weakness, and a rapidly developing pneumonia with shortness of breath, chest pain, cough, and sometimes bloody or watery mucus. Pneumonic plague may develop from inhaling infectious droplets or may develop from untreated bubonic or septicemic plague after the bacteria spread to the lungs. The pneumonia may cause respiratory failure and shock. Pneumonic plague is the most serious form of the disease and is the only form of plague that can be spread from person to person through infectious cough droplets.
Plague is a serious illness. If you are experiencing symptoms like those listed here, seek immediate medical attention. Prompt treatment with the correct medications is critical to prevent complications. According to Mayo Clinic complications of plague may include:
Gangrene. Blood clots in the tiny blood vessels of your fingers and toes can disrupt blood flow and cause that tissue to die. The portions of your fingers and toes that have died may need to be removed (amputated).
Meningitis. plague may cause inflammation of the membranes surrounding your brain and spinal cord.
Death. Most people who receive prompt antibiotic treatment survive bubonic plague. Untreated plague has a high fatality rate.
Keep yourself safe while camping and hiking. Make sure to leave your pets at home when traveling to affected areas, or if they must come they should have flea medications already working. Experts say flea collars don’t work quick enough to deter plague ridden fleas from your pets. During the time plague ran rampant we did not know much about hygiene and the way disease spread, now we have the knowledge to keep ourselves safe if we decide to use it. Keep areas clean as possible while camping and take precautions against rodents, or other wild animals that may carry fleas. If you develop plague symptoms after visiting a possibly affected area please seek prompt medical care.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
The Trump team sent out two emails on August 4 asking supporters to carry “Trump Cards.” The former president is asking followers which designs of the four they like better. The designs are red and gold, look like credit cards and bear the former president’s signature. “The card you select will be carried by Patriots all around the Country. They will be a sign of your dedicated support to our movement to SAVE AMERICA, and I’m putting my full trust in you,” Trump’s team wrote in the first email.
A second email later in the night read: “We’re about to launch our Official Trump Cards, which will be reserved for President Trump’s STRONGEST supporters.” The email went on to say, “Originally we were planning on releasing just one design, but when President Trump saw the cards on his desk, he said, ‘These are BEAUTIFUL. We should let the American People decide – they ALWAYS know best!”
The Trump team did not disclose how people would be chosen to receive the “Trump Card.” Clicking on the link to vote for one’s favorite design brings the user to a fundraising page. The Trump team did not disclose how votes would be counted. Many of Trump’s followers have joked throughout his presidency of having “Trump Cards” and now they get their chance to have one for real. There are rumors that Trump will be running again in the next election. Will he come back and Make America Great Again?
Written by: Erinn Malloy
On the morning of January 12, 1979 the lives of a Colorado Springs family were changed forever. Yvonne Elaine Sisneros and her two children, Carlos Ray and Benjamin Lawrence, were brutally murdered in their home. Yvonne was three months Pregnant at the time of her death. Carlos was four and Benjamin was two. The children were found in the two bedrooms of the home, Yvonne was found in the bathroom. This happened while their husband and father, Ben Sisneros, worked at Butts Army Airfield as an Army Air Traffic Controller. At first investigators believed Ben was their prime suspect. Was the five minutes between Ben arriving home and calling 911 enough time to kill his family? Famous investigator Joe Kenda was assigned to the case and said the scene “took your breath away emotionally.” How could someone be such a monster to a woman and her innocent children? The father of two says he came home and found his front door unlocked and his family dead but there were no signs of forced entry or struggle. Did Yvonne know her killer and let him in? An anonymous tip led investigators to a 28 year old home improvement worker. Could he have been responsible? Will the culprit ever be convicted? Find out why this case remains unsolved by listening to Momma Kirby’s Murder Mysteries.
Yvonne was everyone’s favorite server at Shakey’s Pizza Parlor and a graduate of Pueblo Central Highschool. The family lived on the floor above their babysitter, who stopped by that morning wondering why the boys had not been dropped off as usual. She said she heard banging in the apartment but n one answered the door. Did she hear the crime occurring, could she also have been in danger during those moments she was knocking? This was essentially a small town family who was targeted for a horrible random act of violence. This crime remains unsolved but did the universe already catch up to the killer? If Ben didn’t do it, this was an act that looked as if it were at least partially planned. Someone who knew the family’s schedule and was close enough to the family it didn’t seem suspicious for them to be there. Evidence says Yvonne was alive before she went in the bathroom, what happened in there? How were they able to get so close to the family?
You can listen to the podcast here.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Gun violence is on the rise in Colorado, authorities have reported six separate shootings from early morning Sunday August 1, to the early hours of Monday August 2, 2021. Four of these shootings occured in Denver. The other two shootings were in the outer metro area. In the first six months of 2021, 43 people’s lives were claimed killed in Denver homicides alone. 39 people were killed in Denver in the same period of 2020. 83 people were wounded in shootings in Denver between January 1 and June 12, 2021. 75 people were shot and injured in the same period of 2020. By the end of 2020, 305 people had been shot, which was a 51% increase from 2019. With shootings and gun violence on the rise, Denver police have established a new two-person team which will be cracking down on violent offenders. Teaming up with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and local and federal prosecutors plan to bring heavy penalties, and in some cases even federal charges, against people convicted of felonies who illegally carry guns. The move comes as the state of Colorado is experiencing an extremely violent summer which is on pace to exceed the bloodshed of 2020.
Gun Violences Erupts Over the Weekend
Denver police said the first shooting happened around 12 a.m. Sunday, August 1, closing down a lane of traffic in the area of South Federal Boulevard and West Iliff Avenue. One person was injured. Then, around 4 a.m. police say a shooting occurred in the 1700 block of West Mississippi Avenue. One woman and two girls were injured in the shooting. In Aurora, police continue to investigate a shooting, which occurred around 5:30 p.m. Sunday at 19th Avenue and Clinton Street. Authorities do not have anyone in custody and they’re asking for anyone with info to reach out; one man underwent surgery for his injuries. You can contact Aurora police with any info you may have here.
Another two other shootings occurred Sunday around 9 p.m.. One of the shootings occured in the Clayton neighborhood of Denver. One man was taken to the hospital after being shot in the 3600 Block of North Elizabeth Street. Then in Jefferson County, one man suffered an injury after being shot in the 3500 block of South Depew Street. Shortly before 3 a.m. on Monday, shots were fired at the downtown intersection of Speer Boulevard and Larimer Street. One person was taken to the hospital with non-fatal injuries while police shut down a few area streets to investigate. These types of crimes will be what the new team, created by Denver police, will investigate.
How Will The New Team Work?
The new inter-agency team will focus on the geographic “hot spots” in the city. The “hotspots” are five parts of the city that make up 2% of Denver’s landmass but that 2% is responsible for 26% of homicides and 49% of shootings. “The reality is we were seeing a rise in violent crime before the pandemic and the pandemic exacerbated what we were seeing and continue to see even today,” Mayor Michael Hancock said during a news conference. “The scholars, the academics, they talk about ‘hotspots’ and ‘hot people,” Denver police Chief Paul Pazen said. “This gives us an opportunity to focus on those ‘hot people.’” Pazen said the new team will respond to shootings to assist officers with building gun violence cases from the beginning of an investigation. The team will also review cases that involve a felon in possession of a gun to see whether they should be prosecuted locally or at the federal level. Pazen said an offender’s criminal history and background will factor heavily into the decision of how to charge. Pazen said Denver police have seized 1,170 guns so far in 2021 and have made 415 arrests of people illegally carrying guns, which is up 48% from the past three years. “It’s no secret that violent crime is on the rise, gun-related crime is on the rise in our city,” he said. “We cannot become numb to this gun violence, we cannot normalize this gun violence. The status quo is not acceptable.”
Matt Kirsch, acting U.S. attorney for the District of Colorado, said the team will use a mix of things to identify the criminals who are the “worst of the worst.” “This strategy uses data from police reports, from gunshot detection technology, from the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network… to focus law enforcement’s efforts on criminals who are most likely to be possessing and using guns. What the new effort today adds to that is data about where the most violent crimes are occurring, as well as other on-the-ground intelligence from DPD officers and the additional investigative efforts to develop those federal cases. We are not going to hesitate to vigorously pursue those charges,” Kirsch said at a news conference, Wednesday. As officials at Denver police headquarters spoke to unveil the new anti-gun violence initiative, the federal courthouse downtown was forced to lock down because of a shooting outside. No one was hurt, but police said at least one pedestrian exchanged gunfire with a person in a vehicle. One person was arrested. This almost seems staged to make the point of the conference but just shows us how important the work of the new team is. Dangerous criminals walk the streets everyday and innocent people suffer for it. Shootings are not caused by guns, they are caused by the people carrying them. If people were able to use guns responsibly we would not have so many gun control issues and people ready to take the right to bear arms away. The new team will hopefully take guns out of the wrong and irresponsible people’s hands before they ruin the right to bear arms for the rest of us. If you own a firearm remember it is a weapon of maximum force to use only for self defense, not a way to force your point across in an argument or solve day to day issues.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Nancy Pelosi was put in charge of creating a 13 member House Select Committee, tasked with investigating the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot. The House Select Committee has 8 seats for Democrats and 5 for Republicans. Democrat Bennie Thompson claims the panel will be “guided solely by the facts. There’s no place for politics or partisanship in this investigation, our only charge is to follow the facts where they lead us,” Thompson said. How is it possible to stick to “facts” when Pelosi has filled the House Select Committee with people who openly dislike Trump? Would a juror be allowed on a jury if they openly disliked the accused? No, no one in their right mind would put that person on the jury. What if they didn’t stick to fact due to personal vendetta? That is the fear Republicans rightfully have as the investigation begins. House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy and other Republicans have alluded to the House Select Committee’s investigation being a tool for Democrats to go after Republicans. Elise Stefanik, chair of the House Republican Conference, called Pelosi a “lame duck speaker” who “doesn’t want the American people to learn the truth or know the facts.”
Trump Allies Rejected from House Select Committee
Pelosi has sparked anger in Republicans, by refusing to approve Trump allies Jim Jordan and Jim Banks, selected by House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy, on the House Select Committee. “With respect for the integrity of the investigation, with an insistence on the truth and with concern about statements made and actions taken by these members, I must reject the recommendations of Representatives Banks and Jordan to the Select Committee,” Pelosi said in a statement. “The unprecedented nature of January 6th demands this unprecedented decision.” Banks and Jordan voted to challenge President Joe Biden’s Electoral College victory on the day of the attack on the Capitol. Banks would have been the ranking Republican on the House Select committee. He said Republicans have contended “all along that this was a purely partisan exercise by the Democrats, and Nancy Pelosi’s rejection of me and Jim Jordan shows once again she is the most partisan figure in America today.” Jordan said Pelosi’s actions show the committee is “a partisan political charade.” ”They just want to continue to attack the former president. They want to play their political game.” Jordan said when talking about the Capitol Police, “When you spend a year talking about defunding police… It’s kind of hard to actually have police here on Jan. 6. Why don’t they want to answer the fundamental question, which is why wasn’t there a better security posture on that day?” Kevin McCarthy threatened to pull all five Republicans he selected out of the House Select Committee if Pelosi did not approve Banks and Jordan. “Unless Pelosi reverses course and seats all five Republicans, we will not participate,” McCarthy said at a news conference. “Pelosi will only take people onto the committee that will ask the questions she wants asked. That becomes a failed committee and a failed report, A sham that no one can believe,” McCarthy said. “We will run our own investigation.” Does this mean we will see action in the next few weeks towards Republicans independently investigating the events of January 6? “Clearly they’re not searching for the truth, they’re searching for a narrative that Speaker Pelosi has already written,” Steve Scalise, the second-ranking GOP lawmaker in the House, said.
Anti-Trump Republicans Join House Select Committee
Pelosi asked Republican Adam Kinzinger to join the House Select Committee. “He brings great patriotism to the committee’s mission to find the facts and protect our democracy,” Pelosi said in a statement announcing. Kinzinger is the second Republican Pelosi chose to join the House Select Committee after Liz Cheney. Cheney has been open about her criticisms of Trump and says she agrees with the decision to exclude Jordan and Banks. She says she plans to stay on the House Select Committee. Cheney also criticized McCarthy saying the violent uprising at the Capitol deserved a thorough investigation. “At every opportunity, the minority leader has attempted to prevent the American people from understanding what happened, to block this investigation,” Cheney said. McCarthy has threatened Republican members who participate in the House Select Committee with stripping them of their other committee assignments. Republicans have criticized Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, calling them “Pelosi Republicans who no longer speak for the GOP.” The House Select Committee plans to move forward with the investigation despite the enormous amounts of criticism. “This committee is completely partisan from top to bottom,” said Troy Nehls, a former sheriff who was among McCarthy’s initial picks for the select committee.
The House Select Committee will meet today (7/27/21) and hear testimony, Titled “The Law Enforcement Experience On January 6th.” While expressing gratitude for the four police officers who are testifying before the committee, Thompson called the men “courageous.” He played a video showing rioters overrunning police officers, busting windows and invading the U.S. Capitol. Police officers were heard calling for help. “It’s an honor to have four of these heroes sitting before us today,” Thompson said after the video finished playing. He then said the riot “loomed over our democracy like a dark cloud.” Today the House Select Committee will call on the four police witnesses, two are U.S. Capitol Police officers, Harry Dunn and Aquilino Gonell; the other two officers, Michael Fanone and Daniel Hodges, are DC Metropolitan Police. All four have previously given interviews about their experience. Members of the select committee say the officers’ stories, though already documented, are necessary. The investigation will continue over the next few weeks. Will they do as they say and stick to the facts, or will Nancy Pelosi’s narrative be the story the people are given again.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Colorado’s law regarding the prohibition of possessing a firearm if you are a felon had changes made through Senate Bill 271, which had bipartisan support. The 304 page Bill changed in the wake of a mass shooting at a Boulder King Soopers. The bill has been passed banning people convicted of certain misdemeanor crimes from purchasing a firearm for at least five years. House Bill 1298 was presented as a way to keep weapons out of the hands of dangerous criminals and people who are generally unstable. The believed King Soopers gunman was convicted of third-degree assault a few years before the mass shooting. Assault is one of the misdemeanors that now has the ability to keep a person from purchasing a firearm. The legislature also loosened prohibition of firearms possessed by felons. These measures are being enacted despite Denver and Aurora having seen record breaking levels of violent crime related to firearms. In 2020, Denver had 95 homicides, 50% more than in 2019 and the highest number in three decades. This year is looking even worse. Aurora saw a more than a 45% jump in firearm-related homicides from 2019 to 2020. 2021 is not on a better pace since there were more non-fatal shootings in Aurora during the first half of 2021 than in 2019.
What changes Will the Legislature Make?
Senate Bill 271 was supposed to reform Colorado’s criminal code related to misdemeanors. Only Felons convicted of a crime that falls under the Victims Rights Act, murder, robbery and felony assault, for instance, are still prohibited from possessing a firearm. This means many dangerous criminals will now be allowed to own firearms legally, including those convicted of drug dealing, organized crime, burglary, arson, car theft, treason, sedition, anarchy, and inciting a riot. Senate Bill 271 raised being a felon in possession of a firearm from a Class 6 felony to a Class 5 felony; The maximum penalty for those who violate the law has increased to three years in prison from 18 months. Offenders may no longer receive probation if they produce a weapon while committing a crime. No matter what felony is committed, being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm continues to be illegal under federal law, carrying a maximum prison sentence of 10 years. Federal prosecutors often reserve charges for people suspected of many other crimes or who have known gang affiliations. No matter the crime, felons in Colorado could still be potentially kept from purchasing a firearm in stores since they wont pass a federal background check. Will they be able to own a firearm but not purchase one? The Colorado Bureau of Investigation handles background checks for firearms in Colorado. They are trying to determine if the change would actually let people convicted of felonies to purchase a firearm or just simply own one.
Tristan Gorman, legislative policy coordinator for the Colorado Criminal Defense Bar, worked on Senate Bill 271. “I think that it’s a statute that has long been in need of reform,” Gorman said, arguing that it’s too broad. The changes are needed for the justice system, but allowing some felons to legally possess a firearm creates conflict in the state’s criminal code. Someone convicted of felony animal abuse is now able to possess a gun under Senate Bill 271, but because of House Bill 1298, someone convicted of misdemeanor animal abuse would not be able to purchase a weapon for five years after their conviction. Organized crime offenders will be allowed to own weapons but someone defending their significant other from an unwanted stranger touching them inappropriately in public will be forced to give up gun ownership for up to five years. While many of the misdemeanor charges do warrant removing the right to own a firearm from a person, the field should be level for all offenders seemingly big or small. House Bill 1298 placed the five-year purchasing restriction on people convicted of the following misdemeanors:
Third-degree assault, Sexual assault, Unlawful sexual contact, Child abuse, Violation of a protection order, A crime against an at-risk person, Harassment, A bias-motivated crime, Possession of an illegal weapon, Unlawfully providing a firearm other than a handgun to a juvenile
Colorado Punishes Law-abiding Gun Owners
House Bill 1298 does not prohibit people from continuing to possess firearms they owned before they were convicted of a misdemeanor that temporarily blocks them from purchasing a gun. Does this mean people would not receive consequences if they have a previously purchased firearm in their possession even though they are banned? It is unclear if Moms Demand Action, Everytown, Giffords and other groups, who are generally leading the changes of laws impacting lawful gun owners, consulted on the bills which will help firearms into the hands of those convicted of dangerous crimes. Colorado placed restrictions on legal firearm owners earlier this year despite the sudden leniency we are all now seeing.
In April, Colorado passed two bills criminalizing not storing firearms properly inside your own home. The punishments include the possibility of jail time. Storing firearms properly is important but so is informing members of your household (you and old) all about firearm safety. The other bill criminalizes victims of burglary and theft who fail to report their firearms were stolen. Once again lawmakers say law-abiding firearm owners cannot be trusted to safely exercise Second Amendment rights. Yet a criminal who has been convicted of multiple serious felonies is told by the same politicians they can be trusted despite the obvious disregard for the laws. Why is this country rewarding the rule breakers? We are giving weapons to dangerous criminals… then what? The leaders sit back bewildered when the snake they let loose inevitably bites them? The leaders of Colorado are setting the state up for disaster. Crime in general will skyrocket and violent crime, even more so. How can we trust our country is a safe place to be when our leaders literally are being enablers to very dangerous people.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Britney Spears has been anything but silent on social media regarding her family and the conservatorships she is currently held under. The posts were thought to be reactions to her family attempting to publicly post support for Britney after the years of abuse she claims they were involved in. Britney also told her fans she will not be performing on a stage anytime soon; the only performing the queen of pop will be doing is from her living room on social media. Britney Spears says she’s tired of being told what to wear and how to act, which the personal and financial conservatorships she is fighting currently control. There have been recent advances in the battle to #FreeBritney from the conservatorships.
What did Britney say on social media?
Many people believe Britney’s posts are a reaction to the public support her sister, Jamie Lynn Spears, gave after Britney went public at the end of June and told the world about the horrible abuse she faces daily. Britney took to Instagram to say: “There’s nothing worse than when the people closest to you who never showed up for you post things in regard to your situation whatever it may be and speak righteously for support, There’s nothing worse than that !!!! How dare the people you love the most say anything at all … did they even put a hand out to even lift me up at the TIME !!!??? How dare you make it public that NOW you CARE … did you put your hand out when I was drowning ???? Again … NO … so if you’re reading this and you know who you are … and you actually have the nerve to say anything about my situation just to save face for yourself publicly !!! If you’re gonna post something …. Please stop with the righteous approach when you’re so far from righteous it’s not even funny … and have a good day !!!!! PS if you’re reading this today and you can relate …. I’m sorry because I know what it’s like … and I send you my love 💋💋💋 !!!!” Not too long after, Britney seemed to confirm the followers of the #FreeBritney movement’s suspicions. Many believed the posts may be directed at the family in general, but a lot say they were mainly directed at Britney’s sister, Jamie Lynn. Britney Spears also posted saying she was done performing for now and did not want her sister performing her songs before telling the world to read a book.
“For those of you who choose to criticize my dancing videos … look I’m not gonna be performing on any stages anytime soon with my dad handling what I wear, say, do, or think 🚫🙅🏼♀️🚫!!!! I’ve done that for the past 13 years … I’d much rather share videos YES from my living room instead of onstage in Vegas where some people were so far gone they couldn’t even shake my hand and I ended up getting a contact high from weed all the time … which I didn’t mind but it would have been nice to be able to go to the mother f****** spa 💆🏼♀️🤭🧖🏼♀️ !!!! And no I’m not gonna put on heavy makeup and try try try on stage again and not be able to do the real deal with remixes of my songs for years and begging to put my new music in my show for MY fans … so I quit !!!! I don’t like that my sister showed up at an awards show and performed MY SONGS to remixes !!!!! My so-called support system hurt me deeply !!!! This conservatorship killed my dreams … so all I have is hope and hope is the only thing in this world that is very hard to kill … yet people still try !!!! I didn’t like the way the documentaries bring up humiliating moments from the past … I’m way past all that and have been for a long time !!!! And for women who say it’s weird the way I still have hope for fairy tales … go f*** yourself !!!!! As I said … hope is all I have right now … you’re lucky I post anything at all … if you don’t like what you see, unfollow me !!! People try to kill hope because hope is one of the most vulnerable and fragile things there is !!!! I’m gonna go read a mother f****** fairy tale now !!!! Psss if you don’t want to see my precious a** dancing in my living room or it’s not up to your standards … go read a f****** book 📕 !!!!!” After those two posts the estranged sisters resorted to the public display of indirect fighting seen below. The two sisters seem to be engaged in an indirect social media battle. Britney is also in another battle as well, fighting to end her oppressive conservatorship and has recently been given a win.
What happened recently in Britney’s conservatorship battle?
In the recent battles against the conservatorship, Judge Penny permitted Britney Spears to appoint her own lawyer, Mathew S. Rosengart, who was a former federal prosecutor. (which she celebrated by doing cartwheels on social media.) Britney told the Los Angeles court she wanted her father to be charged with conservatorship abuse. “I want to press charges against my father today. I want an investigation into my dad,” she said “I’m angry and I will go there.”
Alexander Ripps, conservatorship attorney at Bohm Wildish & Matsen in California, said Britney Spears appointing her own counsel was a welcome development. “I think Judge Penny allowing Britney to retain her own counsel is a welcome development, and frankly I would have been surprised if the request was rejected. I’ve long believed Britney’s conservatorship stemmed from her susceptibility to undue influence, rather than her lack of ability to function,” Ripps said. “Her obvious ability to function is what has largely driven the public outcry. Of course that doesn’t mean Britney doesn’t have problems, but it’s important to remember that a conservatorship is meant to be a last resort only if there are no less restrictive alternatives.” Britney Spears also told the judge she wants to have her father Jamie Spears charged with conservatorship abuse. “I’m here to get rid of my dad and charge him with conservatorship abuse,” Britney Spears told Judge Penny, adding that she is “extremely scared” of her father and “this conservatorship has allowed my dad to ruin my life. I am not perfect, but their goal was to make me feel crazy, and I’m not and that’s not OK.” Britney’s father’s lawyer, Vivian Thoreen, responded after the singer’s latest testimony, claiming “Many of Britney’s characterizations and memories are just incorrect.” She also said Britney has a “lack of understanding and lack of recollection.”
This is definitely not the case. Britney Spears definitely endured abuse at the hand of her conservators. She has made that clear for years and it is time to stop believing everyone but Britney about Britney. This is made even more apparent by her ex-husband, Jason Alexander, and the statements he made publicly about the way their relationship ended. Jason Alexander was married to Britney Spears for just 55 hours before they got an annulment, he was under the impression they may be able to get back together eventually in the future. “They told me if I would sign the contracts – the annulment – they would let me and Britney continue our relationship, and if we felt the same way in six months they would give us a proper marriage. So I had no reason to believe otherwise. I thought that’s what the truth was. They were allowing Britney and I to still have phone communication. So we were talking every day and I still believed the story I was told, that they were going to let us continue to talk and then we would have this marriage, right, in the future if we felt the same way.” Jason tried to make contact with Britney after 30 days but the line had been disconnected. “Literally the day after the 30 days was up, I remember trying to call the number I had for Britney and it was like, ‘Beep, beep, beep [like it had been disconnected]’. I’m like, ‘F*** they got me! Motherf******!’ So that was it.”There are too many instances like these where witnesses who see the way Britney is dealt with in the conservatorship, believe the arrangement is wrong and abusive. The whole idea of conservatorships is absolutely ridiculous. There is so much legal theft and burglary happening due to conservatorships. There are a lot of people like Britney who deal with their daily lives being controlled down to the tiniest details. Their money is being spent to fund other people who don’t see a person as a person, they see them as a walking piggy bank. Britney Spears is not a walking piggy bank and neither is any other person enduring conservatorship abuse. I would love to see Britney become free and be the first domino to fall in a long, long line of shredding apart the abusive conservatorships. For more about Britney Spears, read her 2001 book, A Mother’s Gift. The fiction novel follows Holly Faye Lovell, a 14-year-old girl from the small town of Biscay, Mississippi, who has dreams of becoming a singer. The story is a mirror of Britney’s life with details exaggerated. Holly becomes the youngest student ever to win a scholarship to the prestigious Haverty School of Music. It is a quick and entertaining read.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Heavy rain has been moving across southwestern Colorado over the last few days leading to flash flood warnings in areas that have seen little precipitation the past few months. Tuesday, Crews had to rescue a hiker from Imogene Pass as well as others from other areas of the state. One person died and two others are missing after a flash flood during a rafting trip in a Colorado canyon, according to an email from Larimer County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Jered Kramer. Flash floods and mudslides are very dangerous and can cause widespread damage to both people and property. This is why evacuations are ordered by officials when the conditions are right for dangerous mudslides and flash floods.
Evacuations due to Flash Floods
Emergency evacuations were issued for parts of Larimer county and Poudre Canyon, west of Fort Collins because of flash floods. The National Weather Service in Grand Junction issued flash flood warnings for parts of Dolores, San Juan, Ouray and San Miguel counties Tuesday, the Telluride area was already flooding. The San Miguel County Sheriff’s Office said mudslides were also occurring in the Telluride area. A flash flood warning was issued for the area near the Cameron Peak Fire burn scar, including the Chambers Lake Campground area.
There are currently (7-21-21) mandatory evacuations in place following a wave of flooding and debris in the Poudre River. Mandatory evacuation orders are in place in the area of Highway 14 from Rustic to Ted’s Place at Highway 287. An evacuation site is being set up by the Red Cross at Cache La Poudre Middle School at 3515 W County Road 54G. The electric co-op, Poudre Valley REA, tweeted that mudslides took down power lines, and bridges were out, making damage assessment difficult.
Burn Scars Prone to Flooding
Radar estimates up to an inch of rain may have fallen on the Cameron Peak Fire burn scar in Larimer County on Tuesday, according to Bob Kleyla, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. The fire last year was the largest in Colorado history and burned more than 208,000 acres. Areas burned by wildfire are prone to mudslides because the soil no longer absorbs precipitation, so it runs downhill due to the lack of vegetation to absorb moisture. The National Weather Service in Boulder issued a small stream flood advisory for central Grand County and the East Troublesome burn scar area. A flash flood watch was issued for the Grizzly Creek Fire burn scar. The area has seen several mudslides and closures of Interstate 70 over the past few weeks.
Numerous mudslides from the Grizzly Creek Fire burn scar overtook a section of interstate 70, Tuesday. The Grizzly Creek burn scar is located right near the highway, as a result, flash floods and mudslides are common dangerously close to the interstate. The highway was closed in both directions through Glenwood Canyon. The threat of flash flooding prompted the Colorado Department of Transportation to close the troublesome part of the interstate. If detouring, Colorado Department of Transportation asked motorists to use the northern alternate route, which adds an extra 2.5 hours of travel time. Highway 145 Spur east of Telluride was also shut down Tuesday. Both, Black Bear Pass and Bridal Veil Road were closed as well, according to the sheriff’s office. The highways are closed when conditions are not safe and you should not attempt to drive on closed highways even if you THINK you have experience driving in bad weather.
Just after 6 p.m Tuesday, 1 to 2 inches of rain had dropped north of Telluride, and flash flooding was expected to continue for “another couple hours,” the National Weather Service said. The sheriff’s office said search and rescue crews had to rescue a vehicle on Black Bear Pass that needed help. The sheriff said the people in the car, who were not equipped for any weather emergencies, were driving on dangerous passes with little or no experience. The search and rescue mission was successful and everybody was safe as of 7 p.m. The outcome could have gone different for the people in the car or the rescue crews. Our heroes are heroes but are also human and the conditions are dangerous for everyone. Please try to avoid areas where flash flooding is possible and evacuate when you are asked, in order to keep the people on Colorado’s search and rescue teams safe to search another day. Check your local National Weather Service and Department of Transportation for up to date road closures and weather conditions. When the weather is bad, stay home if you can and stay safe.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Rachel Nichols is a female sports broadcaster, television host, reporter, and anchor. She started working for ESPN in 2004, left in 2013 to work for CNN and TNT. She returned in ESPN in 2016 and has been a host on The Jump, Pardon My Take, and Pardon the Interruption. She was named host of NBA Saturday Primetime and the NBA finals on ABC. She has recently been in the news for comments she made in July last year. She told LeBron James’ advisor Adam Mendelsohn that she believed that Maria Taylor got the plum spot hosting 2020 finals shows because of her race.
Issues of Privacy
Rachel Nichols made her comment on a phone call from a hotel room in Florida. It was recorded “accidentally” from a live camera in her room and quickly circulated around ESPN. The problem seems to constitute a violation of privacy. By definition, invasion of privacy allows an aggrieved party to bring a lawsuit against an individual who unlawfully intrudes into his or her private affairs, discloses his or her private information, publicizes him or her in a false light, or appropriates his or her name for personal gain.
Legal Trouble
OutKick founder Clay Travis said a lawsuit would likely be favorable for Rachel Nichols. His take on it was that “she was recorded without her knowledge in her hotel room, and someone at ESPN — maybe multiple people — then grabbed that audio of what she said and sent it out.” He thinks that “she would have a tort-related lawsuit based on the taping of this conversation and its dissemination … that would have clearly done injury to Rachel Nichols’ employment prospects.” Beyond the obvious, he also thinks that she could sue ESPN for “violating the terms of her contract”.
She was blocked from coverage of the NBA Finals after what she said a year ago and her show was not broadcast by ESPN without warning.
Future for Rachel Nichols Comments
Rachel Nichols has since been on air with ESPN on her show, The Jump, though the controversy has not subsided, and people have questioned why she is allowed on air. Nichols has publicly apologized, but people are still criticizing her. ESPN wants her on because she is a good sports reporter, but the backlash may hurt her.
“Diversity”
The NBA, television networks, and just about every major tv media has jumped onto the bandwagon of “diversity”, which really means one thing: it is bad to be white or male, even worse if you happen to be both. There is nothing inherently wrong with her comment. Advertisements shown during NBA games feature few whites, especially given that over 76% of Americans identify as Caucasian. Were these actors chosen because they were better at selling cars? So her questioning of ESPN’s choice was entirely valid. She also called into question ESPN’s track record of diversity.
ESPN Track Record
Rachel Nichols alluded to ESPN having a “crappy longtime record on diversity” and knowing “from the female side of it”. ESPN has not had a great record when it comes to racism and sexism. Mendelsohn spoke out against how bad it is “to turn two women on each other to compete over the one spot that’s dangling over them”, with “all the spots that should be under consideration”. He was talking about the idea of appealing to women and minorities. The boardroom in his example, which is currently mostly white males, hires a woman and then replaces the woman with a black woman to appeal to both women and blacks. The office then has her and no one else representing any kind of diversity. It’s a way of getting around bringing real diversity in terms of percentages to a company.
ESPN has had largely male broadcasters and minorities have claimed that it is harder to for them to rise to higher ranks within the company. That is sad if true, though it may arguably be a way to gripe to try to get a higher position.
Analysis
It is hard to look at a company and make an assessment over whether an employee was hired due to race or not. It is horrible treat someone poorly for questioning it though. It reflects a double standard that minorities can question why they aren’t given higher positions where white people can’t question why they were removed from a position. Personally, I think it is dumb to try to have certain people in certain positions within a company. The positions should be filled with who has the most talent and who applies. Certain people inevitably gravitate toward certain things. Race and gender simply should not be a part of the selection process.
Written by: Miranda Smith
An animal control officer in Montrose County, Colorado ended up in a slow-speed chase when he was called to capture a wallaby. The Montrose County Sheriff’s Office said Animal Control Sgt. Chuck Searcy responded Thursday, July 9, 2021 to a call from a member of the public, who initially misidentified the wallaby as a kangaroo, hopping loose on Jay Jay Road.
Searcy, who was joined at the scene by the caller and a Colorado State Patrol trooper, said he ended up chasing the Australian marsupial for about 45 minutes. “I just looked for anything hoppy down the road,” Searcy said Friday morning, although at the time he wasn’t entirely certain what a wallaby looked like. The caller was on hand when Searcy arrived, and pointed out the straying marsupial. Plus, he showed Searcy a picture “to make sure I knew they weren’t crazy.”
The callers said they were convinced the responding officer believed he had, “showed up to a drug call. I don’t blame him. I showed him the pictures we took, still a bit apprehensive he began to look around with us. Then, [the] State Patrol shows up, also anticipating some heavy drug activity. We take a walk around the shop and they finally spot Kangaroo Jack, now they’re both believers.” “It ran down right when it got to the driveway, took a left turn, and headed home,” Searcy told the Montrose Daily Press. The wallaby was released back into the custody of its owner. “It sounds like it sticks around the house quite a bit. It’s a well-taken care of and loved animal,” Searcy said.
That sounds like a hopping good time. How would you react to Wally Wallaby hooping through your yard?
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Hunter Biden’s struggled with addiction, published a new memoir, rode the coattails of his famous dad, and his romantic life is a tabloid playhouse, but he has found himself once again in the media… as a painter? We are all getting major Ukraine backdoor business deals flashbacks, as we watch another instance unfold of Hunter Biden making money off his fathers name. The White House defended Hunter Biden’s artwork deal which will be sold to “anonymous buyers.” The White House press secretary said in a briefing, the “system was organized to allow the troubled son of the president to work in his profession within reasonable protection.” The art deal raised numerous red flags by ethics officers, as it should, the art world isn’t known for it’s first class dealings or squeaky clean business.
How Will the Art Sell Anonymously?
Hunter Biden, 51, is suddenly an artist overnight and will be selling his work in upcoming exhibits in Los Angeles and New York. According to Artnet, Hunter Biden has no formal artistic training and only began working as an artist full time recently. The White House made arrangements to keep the names of the buyers “confidential” from Hunter Biden himself. Psaki maintains the sales of Hunter Biden’s artwork will be conducted by professionals with the highest industry standard and the anonymous nature of the transaction is intended to protect against “any improprieties.” Georges Berges, Hunter Biden’s art dealer, will host the private viewings of the “troubled sons” artwork. The price of his work ranges from $75,000 to $500,000. Bergès will set the prices for the art and conceal buyer records. Bergès, not the public, will be the only person able to scrutinize the transactions. Bergès has promised to refuse offers far exceeding the asking price or he deems suspect. Which is pretty suspect if you ask me. Bergès will be compensated for selling the paintings, according to his gallery’s spokesperson. He will retain a percentage from the sales like arrangements his gallery has with other artists; the spokesperson declined to provide the exact percentage. Typically, galleries take around 50% of a sale. This means it is not in Berges’ financial interest to “reject higher offers,” so why would he?
Is the Art Arrangement Ethical?
Walter Shaub, former ethics chief during President Obama, called out the White House in a tweet. He stated the Biden administration is ensuring we will never know who the buyers are. How can we ensure the same people paying outrageous sums of money for Hunter Biden’s paintings aren’t gaining special access to business dealings in or around the whitehouse? Shaub said this move is “very disappointing,” and “the perfect mechanism for funneling bribes” to the president. “They have outsourced government ethics to an art dealer. She mentioned industry standards,” Shaub said in reference to comments by White House press secretary Jen Psaki. “It’s an industry that’s notorious for money laundering. There’s no standards in that industry,” he said during the interview. “The idea that they’re going to flag any overly priced offers? Well, this is art that hasn’t even been juried into a community art sale. How are they going to decide what’s unreasonable when they’ve already priced it in the range of $75,000 to $500,000 for a first outing? This is just preposterous and very disappointing,” the Obama official said.
His point is absolutely correct, that’s way more than an up-and-coming artist without experience or sales under his belt should be selling paintings for.That is one of the reasons Richard Painter, a White House ethics lawyer during the George W. Bush administration, says he’s uneasy about the arrangement. “I’m baldly surprised at the pricing,” he said. “That’s part of the appearance problem.” He went on to explain it didn’t matter who purchased the paintings, such high prices being paid out to a novice means Hunter Biden is profiting off his father’s name. This is an abuse of power, you can’t use your status to gain profit, you have to earn it correctly. Though, this would not be the first time the Biden’s were accused of it. Painter also worried, foreign governments could fund the purchase through a buyer or lobbyists could purchase the painting to win favor. Painter said ideally, Hunter would have waited to sell his paintings until his father left office, to avoid any appearance of impropriety. Since Hunter Biden is turning to this avenue to make a living right now, the buyers and prices for each painting should be disclosed and recused from any work with the administration. “I would not have chosen the secrecy route. I would have gone with the transparency route,” Painter said. On his first day as president, Biden signed an executive order requiring stricter ethics commitments from all administration personnel. Then, we have Hunter Biden’s private dealings leaving some critics expressing concerns that he was profiting from his father’s status.
During the 2020 presidential campaign, Republicans criticized Hunter Biden’s business dealings with a Ukrainian energy company while his father oversaw U.S.-Ukraine policy. Former President Trump believed the Ukraine deal showed impropriety in the Biden family. Hunter Biden continued to defend his previous foreign business actions but told CBS News he would not make the Ukrainian deal again. If there was nothing wrong with the deal and it was not inappropriate, why would you not make it again? Oh… wait. Federal prosecutors also announced they had been investigating Hunter Biden’s taxes, beginning in 2018, in December. “My dad loves everything that I do, and so,” Hunter Biden told Artnet, “I’ll leave it at that.” Is that because everything you do enhances or in some way helps his bank account, as well as yours? Hunter Biden described his new found “artistry” as “getting to the truth.” A line which is slightly amusing given the scandalous affairs the President’s son is believed to have in motion. “I don’t paint from emotion or feeling, which I think are both very ephemeral,” Hunter Biden told Artnet in June. “For me, painting is much more about trying to bring forth what is, I think, the universal truth.”
Written by: Erinn Malloy
Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them, and be established in the PRESENT TRUTH.
2 Peter 1:12
With Rick Rodriguez
What is looking like the makings of a record breaking heat wave is hitting the west coast over the next week. Some flights at Las Vegas’ airport were canceled due to high temperatures. Burn bans are running rampant across all of the U.S. even in states as far east as North Carolina and Tennessee. California’s statewide “flex alert,” which is a call for electricity conservation, was extended into the weekend due to the heat wave and a wildfire in southeastern Oregon threatening transmission lines. “It’s always hot, but it’s not always this hot,” said Clay Morgan, meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Las Vegas, who called the heat unusual and approaching all-time records.
Flights Grounded for Heat
Due to the heat wave, California officials are urging residents to conserve power and cooling centers around the state are open. Las Vegas could see temperatures as high as 117 degrees. This has only happened four times in the city’s history, most recently in 2017. The temperature climbed to within one degree Friday, when the heat wave reached 116 degrees at McCarran International Airport. The airport in Grand Junction, Colorado, saw an all-time record high of 107 degrees, breaking the previous record of 106 from 2005. There were flight delays and some cancellations at the airports because of the heat. The Federal Aviation Administration implemented a traffic management program due to heat and wind, the agency and airport said. Southwest Airlines told frustrated passengers on Twitter that a number of its flights were canceled, citing the extreme heat wave. The airline did not immediately respond to a request for comment about how many were affected. Excessive heat warnings covered a large area of the Western United States on Friday, from California and southeast Oregon into parts of Utah, Colorado and Arizona. The warning is meant to protect people and warn them against going out in the heat wave.
Heat Wave Leaves Many Injured
There’s a dome-like area of high pressure centered over the region causing the heatwave in many parts of the West. Last month was the hottest June on record, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has said. This has led to multiple cases of heat-related injuries and deaths. 63 people have died due to heat in Oregon as of Friday, the Oregon medical examiner’s office said in a statement, and 32 other deaths were under investigation. In Palm Springs, California, simply going on a walk turned deadly in triple-digit heat. A rescue team rescued a hiker, who only wanted to be referred to as James, around 1pm from the side of a cliff where he had no water and was suffering from heat exhaustion and extreme sunburn. Multiple states on the West Coast have asked people not to go out hiking in the heat wave to prevent incidents like this.
On Friday, Death Valley recorded a high temperature of 130 degrees, but the reading is considered preliminary and not yet validated, the weather service said. They also wanted to warn people against going out in the heatwave. “Heed these warnings,” it tweeted in all capital letters. “Do not put yourself, nor first responders in danger this weekend! Death Valley holds the world record for the hottest temperature on earth ever recorded, which was 134 degrees on July 10, 1913. Don’t get stuck in the heat, if you go out please plan accordingly and remember first responders are people like you, don’t put them in danger for no reason. Drink water, jump in the pool, use your sunscreen, and when you can stay away from the heat.
Written by: Erinn Malloy
