The top House Republican is attempting a series of political contortions to try to secure his place in a party that has shifted under his feet.
MURDER, POLITICS, AND THE END OF THE JAZZ AGE
by Michael Wolraich
|
|
In the News
@ The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, updated 15 minutes ago
[But what the heck, why not continue to deny reality and push the narrative that it's a systemically racist country? Let's keep pushing that line until stuff happens like the Dem party is dead and every single person in the U.S. owns a loaded gun.]
News that the federal government has invoked the Emergencies Act to deal with the continuing occupation of Ottawa by the so-called truckers’ convoy led by far-right and fascist forces, may sound like a good idea to some, but it is a sledgehammer that will suspend the civil and democratic rights of everyone in Canada...
See rest in comment below.I saw a woman with a huge switchblade on her try to divert away from a bunch of rough street people when I was in SF last.
In Seattle, there was a story of a gang rape of a homeless aide worker. Rough stuff.
I read about this and thought how differently it would play out in the United States.
There is no question that the current education system is broken. The Pathways to Prosperity Project warns that a failure to reform the system will “surely erode the fabric of our society.” Economic inequality is increasing. If the young people of today are not better prepared to handle the challenges of the future, their animosity over their limited opportunities will only increase as their social status plummets with the high costs of living. The expense that they impose on society will also increase, and worst of all, many of their possible contributions to society will go unrealized.13
When we asked students what class they would like at their school that didn’t already exist, nearly a third of them independently suggested a “life skills” class that included guidance on personal finance, how to apply for jobs, and dealing with adult responsibilities and life changes, such as the death of a relative. Several students said they were embarrassed that they didn’t even know how to make a simple budget or keep track of the money in their bank accounts. One student even remarked, “The lack of this class may be one of the reasons preventing young people from moving out of their parents’ house.”
By Steve Peoples @ AP.com, 1 hr. ago
SMETHPORT, Pa. (AP) — Some Democrats in rural Pennsylvania are afraid to tell you they’re Democrats.
The party’s brand is so toxic in the small towns 100 miles northeast of Pittsburgh that some liberals have removed bumper stickers and yard signs and refuse to acknowledge publicly their party affiliation. These Democrats are used to being outnumbered by the local Republican majority, but as their numbers continue to dwindle, those who remain are feeling increasingly isolated and unwelcome in their own communities.
“The hatred for Democrats is just unbelievable,” said Tim Holohan, an accountant based in rural McKean County who recently encouraged his daughter to get rid of a pro-Joe Biden bumper sticker. “I feel like we’re on the run.”
The climate across rural Pennsylvania is symptomatic of a larger political problem threatening the Democratic Party heading into the November elections. Beyond losing votes in virtually every election since 2008, Democrats have been effectively ostracized from the overwhelmingly white parts of rural America, leaving party leaders with few options to reverse a cultural trend that is redefining the political landscape [....]
Barack Obama won 875 counties nationwide in his overwhelming 2008 victory. Twelve years later, Biden won only 527. The vast majority of those losses — 260 of the 348 counties — took place in rural counties, according to data compiled by The Associated Press.
The worst losses were concentrated in largely white areas across the Midwest: 21 rural counties in Michigan flipped from Obama in 2008 to Trump in 2020; Democrats lost 28 rural counties in Minnesota, 32 in Wisconsin and a whopping 45 in Iowa. At the same time, recent Republican voter registration gains in swing states such as Florida and North Carolina were fueled disproportionately by rural voters.
Biden overcame rural losses to beat Trump in 2020 because of gains in more populous Democratic counties. Perhaps because of his victory, some Democratic officials worry that party leaders do not appreciate the severity of the threat [....]
By Charles Rabin, David Ovalle & Carli Teproff @ MiamiHerald.com., Updated Feb. 16, 2022 9:22 PM
Three people were shot and critically wounded and a fourth was killed in an ambush-style shooting in Northwest Miami-Dade late Wednesday afternoon, according to Miami-Dade police.
A group of men pulled up in two newer model sedans — one black and one white — in the area of Northwest 99th Street and 21st Court, just after 4 p.m., according to police spokesman Alvaro Zabaleta. The men then jumped out of the cars and ran over to the victims, who were on foot, and began shooting. After a barrage of gunshots, he added, the men ran back to their sedans and drove off [....]
“They were clearly targeted,” Zabaleta said. “This occurred at 4:12 in the afternoon and there were multiple rounds fired and we could have had more people that had nothing to do with this become victims of the gun violence.” [....]