July 8 and 9, 2016


News and Views


MORE OF THE TERRIBLE EVENTS AT DALLAS ARE COVERED IN A SEPARTE BLOG PUBLISHED UNDER YESTERDAY’S DATE. THERE IS TOO MUCH FOR ME TO ATTEMPT TO ANALYZE MUCH AT ALL, THOUGH I HAVE INCLUDED SOME TANGENTIALLY RELATED MATERIAL AS USUAL, AND THEN SOME LIGHTER SUBJECTS.

I AM STARTING WITH ONE HAPPY ARTICLE FROM A POLICE DEPARTMENT WHICH IS TRYING TO DO MORE SELF-EXAMINATION AND EXPLORATION OF REALLY POSITIVE CHANGES. FASCINATINGLY, THEY ACTUALLY REPLACED THEIR WHOLE POLICE DEPARTMENT DUE TO CORRUPTION AND “DEEP BUDGET CUTS.” I THINK THAT EVEN IF THEY DO HAVE A FULL BUDGET THERE ARE PROBABLY A LARGE NUMBER OF OUR DEPARTMENTS NATIONWIDE WHICH COULD USE A SEVERE WEEDING, IF NOT TOTAL REPLACEMENT. TOO MANY OF THE “BAD APPLES” HAVE BEEN HELD ON THE FORCE WITH NO SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES TO THEMSELVES, AND THEN RETIRED WITH A PENSION. I KNOW MOST CONSERVATIVE PEOPLE WILL BELIEVE ME TO BE “ANTI-COP,” BUT I’M NOT. I’M ANTI-CORRUPTION, EITHER FINANCIAL OR CULTURAL.

THE QUOTATION BELOW SUMS UP WHAT THEY HAVE DONE IN CAMDEN. IT’S SIMPLE, COURAGEOUS AND DIRECT. I REALLY LIKE IT.

Excerpt -- “In 2013, Camden replaced its entire police force, once plagued by deep budget cuts and corruption. The new department is half minority with fewer desk jobs and squad cars because they want more boots on the ground. "You can't just see a criminal, you can't -- You got to see a man, and you have to have respect for each other," Thornton said. Camden's new training tactics emphasize deescalation.”


http://www.cbsnews.com/news/camden-new-jersey-police-emphasize-community-relations-non-lethal-force/

Camden police emphasize community relations, non-lethal force
By DEMARCO MORGAN CBS NEWS
July 8, 2016, 8:02 PM

Photograph -- camden-police.jpg, Police officers walk their beat on Friday, July 8, 2016 in Camden, N.J. CBS NEWS
Play VIDEO -- Dallas mourns after five officers killed


CAMDEN, N.J. -- We've seen the mistrust between police and minority communities play out across the country this week. But Camden, New Jersey has taken a major step toward fixing that.

Camden Police Sgt. Raphael Thornton has been an officer for nearly 20 years. Thornton, who grew up here, now commands the Neighborhood Response Teams -- training officers to get out of their patrol cars and engage with members in the community.

"You're going to have to fight and scrap and earn the community's trust," Thornton told CBS News.

In 2013, Camden replaced its entire police force, once plagued by deep budget cuts and corruption. The new department is half minority with fewer desk jobs and squad cars because they want more boots on the ground.

"You can't just see a criminal, you can't -- You got to see a man, and you have to have respect for each other," Thornton said.

Camden's new training tactics emphasize deescalation. Police point to an incident which was captured on a body camera last year.

Officers kept their distance and talked the man, telling him to drop his knife. Lt. Kevin Lutz says the officers eventually used non-lethal force, which is all part of their training.

"A few years ago that probably would have ended in a deadly force encounter, and the officers were able to communicate, provide distance, time and cover," Lutz said.

Lutz says handcuffs and service weapons are tools of last resort. The department says that the new training is paying off. Over a period of three years, homicides are down 52 percent.

"Not everybody is going to be able to deescalated," Lutz said. "But I think through this training, if we are able to have them thinking morally, have them acting ethically, that more often than not those deadly force encounters can be avoided."

Just four years ago, Camden was known as one of America's most dangerous cities. Last year, President Obama praised the department for its efforts to build better relationships with its community.



AN EXCELLENT SUMMARY OF THE FACTS IN DALLAS SO FAR --

https://www.yahoo.com/news/three-officer-fatally-shot-during-000000452.html?post_id=1605282889713411_1763584253883273#_=_

Dallas sniper shooting: 5 police officers slain, suspect ID’d as Army vet Micah Johnson
Jason Sickles
National Reporter
•July 8, 2016

Photograph -- A picture Micah Johnson used as his profile photo on social media. (Facebook)
Photographs -- A collage of photos of shooter Micah X. Johnson, from his sister’s Facebook page.
Photographs -- Four of the five officers killed in Dallas: Brent Thompson, Patrick Zamarripa, Michael Krol and Michael Smith. (Courtesy photos)


DALLAS — The sniper who fatally shot five Dallas cops and wounded seven more in the deadliest day for a police force since 9/11, is an Army veteran who targeted white officers to avenge the recent police-involved shootings of black people.

Micah X. Johnson, a 25-year-old who served six years in the Army Reserve, died early Friday when police deployed a robot to blow up an explosive device in the parking garage where officers had cornered the gunman and engaged in hours of negotiations that ultimately failed.

Police earlier described the attack as “well-planned” and Friday evening revealed that law enforcement found a trove of guns and combat gear in a search of a home the sniper apparently shared with his mother in Mesquite, 20 miles outside of Dallas.

“During the search of the suspect’s home, detectives found bomb making materials, ballistic vests, rifles, ammunition, and a personal journal of combat tactics,” Dallas police said in a statement. “Detectives are in the process of analyzing the information contained in the journal.”

In a morning press briefing, Dallas Police Chief David Brown described a chilling exchange between Johnson and officers attempting to negotiate his surrender.

“The suspect said he was upset at white people. The suspect stated he wanted to kill white people, especially white officers,” Brown said. “The suspect said he was upset about Black Lives Matter. He said he was upset about the recent police shootings.”

A picture Micah Johnson used as his profile photo on social media. (Facebook)
A picture Micah Johnson used as his profile photo on social media. (Facebook)

Johnson allegedly opened fire Thursday night on what had up to that point been a peaceful demonstration over the police-shooting deaths of black men this week in Minnesota and Louisiana.

The hail of gunfire sent hundreds of demonstrators screaming in terror, and a police manhunt culminated with the suspect cornered by police in a downtown parking garage. After attempted negotiations failed, Brown said police sent in the robot bomb as a last resort to protect more officers from harm.

Robotics expert Peter W. Singer told the Associated Press he believes this is the first instance of a robot being used to kill a suspect.

Brown said that during the standoff, Johnson told officers he was acting alone, but police said investigators are still trying to determine whether there were other potential assailants. The chief declined to provide specifics. A woman and two men were detained overnight, but police have not revealed if they were connected to the ambush.

“Through our investigation of some of the suspects, it’s revealed to us that this was a well-planned, well thought out, evil tragedy by these suspects,” Brown said at a Friday afternoon vigil. “And we won’t rest until we bring everyone to justice.”

A profile of Johnson began to emerge Friday as media outlets dug into public records and scoured his social-media profile pages for possible clues as to what triggered the deadly attack.

Johnson, according to military records, served in the Army Reserve from March 2009 until April 2015. He was a carpentry and masonry specialist, the records show. He was deployed to Afghanistan in November 2013 and July 2014, which earned him a Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, among other awards.

A Facebook photo dated April 30 of this year shows Johnson with Professor Griff of the hip-hop group Public Enemy, known for its politically charged music and critique of police treatment of the African-American community. A 1989 single titled “Fight the Power” is the group’s best-known song. Griff took to Twitter Friday to deny any relationship with the alleged shooter.

“I do not advocate killing cops,” Professor Griff tweeted. “The police and FBI have been watching me and tapping my phone they know who I talk to, I DO NOT KNOW THE SHOOTER,” he wrote in another tweet.

“I do not advocate killing cops,” Professor Griff tweeted. “The police and FBI have been watching me and tapping my phone they know who I talk to, I DO NOT KNOW THE SHOOTER,” he wrote in another tweet.

October 2010 photos on Johnson’s mother’s Facebook page show a young man dressed in U.S. Army fatigues posing with a pistol. Johnson’s most recent address is listed as a home belonging to his mother, located in the suburb of Mesquite, about 20 miles outside downtown Dallas.

The collage below appeared on the Facebook page of Johnson’s sister, Nikki, who posted several times on her page to express disbelief over her brother’s apparent role in the tragedy.

“I keep saying its not true…my eyes hurt from crying. Y him???” Nikki wrote in a post. “And why was he downtown smh [shaking my head].”

“We may fuss or fight but at the end of the day i love him!!” she wrote in a 2014 post. “He’s definitely army strong but also a entertaining, loving, understanding, not to mention handsome friend, brother, son and etc!! Idk what I’d do without him. Happy Birthday my homeskillet biscuit!!!! #Still waiting for you to return home!”

Police investigate a car shortly after the shooting during a protest in downtown Dallas. (AP/LM Otero)
Police investigate a car shortly after the shooting during a protest in downtown Dallas. (AP/LM Otero)
More
Fourteen people in all were wounded in Thursday night’s ambush. The victims included two civilians.

How Johnson went about the rampage reveals a lot about him, said former FBI profiler Mary O’Toole.

“This hunting behavior is a very unique violence called instrumental violence, and it is the preferred violence of individuals who manifest traits of psychopathy,” O’Toole told Yahoo News. “It is extremely difficult to negotiate with a psychopath and Dallas police realized that, and realized this shooter was on a mission and was going to continue to kill no matter what they said to him.”

Brown said Thursday night that police believed the attack could have been coordinated by multiple snipers, who, “working together with rifles, triangulated at elevated positions in different points in the downtown area where the march ended up going.”

Members of the police department had met with protest organizers several times before the event, the chief said.

“We have yet to determine whether or not there was some complicity with the planning of this, but we will be pursuing that,” Brown said.

There was confusion early on in the investigation, and in their efforts to quickly identify a suspect, police posted a photo of a gun-toting man who was later found to be the brother of one of the demonstration’s organizers. The man, identified as Mark Hughes, turned himself in to police when he realized he had been identified as a person of interest and was released after being questioned for about 30 minutes, CBS News reported.

Slideshow: Officers killed by sniper in Dallas protest over police shootings >>>

“I could easily have been shot,” Hughes told the network. He was interviewed in Dallas with his brother Cory. Both were downtown to participate in the protest.

Mark Hughes was carrying an AR-15-like gun on a shoulder holster, which is legal under Texas’s open-carry laws. After shots rang out downtown, Corey Hughes said, “I told my brother, give your gun to [police] because we don’t want an accident.”

Witnesses posted several videos and images from the attack, in which several rounds of rapid gunfire can be heard as pedestrians run screaming for cover.


Follow
Andy Cole @AndyCole84
Video from a protestor as the shooting began. Jesus. Disturbing content. #Dallas #DallasPoliceShooting
10:45 PM - 7 Jul 2016 · Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada
7,920 7,920 Retweets 5,556 5,556 likes


Witnesses said they believed that the shooter or shooters ambushed officers from a multistory parking garage.

“The cops had no idea who was shooting at them,” Jamal Johnson told KTVT-TV in Dallas. “Everyone knew it wasn’t a firework — it was an actual shot.”

The shooting broke out just hours after President Obama — reacting to the shootings deaths of black men in Minnesota and Louisiana this week — posted an emphatic message on Facebook calling upon all Americans to confront persistent racial disparities between law enforcement and the communities they serve.

“To admit we’ve got a serious problem in no way contradicts our respect and appreciation for the vast majority of police officers who put their lives on the line to protect us every single day,” he wrote. “It is to say that, as a nation, we can and must do better to institute the best practices that reduce the appearance or reality of racial bias in law enforcement.”


Downtown residents described the chaos on social media.

“I THINK A SHOOTOUT IS HAPPENING DOWNSTAIRS OH MY GOD,” a Twitter user named Allison posted moments before capturing the sound of rapid gunfire on video.


Follow
Allison @allisongriz
I am so scared.
10:01 PM - 7 Jul 2016
77,396 77,396 Retweets 73,426 73,426 likes


Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings said the White House and Texas governor’s office both called to offer support.

“In the end, three things remain: faith, hope and love, OK?” Rawlings said Friday afternoon. “We need all three today. We must have faith in each other, in our institutions. We must have hope and believe that tomorrow will be better — and it will. And we must love one another, because if we don’t, this cancerous separatism will kill this body.”

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Jason Sickles is a national reporter for Yahoo News. Follow him on Twitter (@jasonsickles).



PROFESSOR GRIFF AND POSSIBLE TERRORISM CONNECTIONS --

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

Professor Griff
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Richard Griffin (born August 1, 1960), better known by his Stage name Professor Griff, is an American rapper, spoken word artist, and lecturer. He is a member of the hip hop group Public Enemy and head of the Security of the First World.

Early years in Public Enemy[edit]

After returning from the army, he started a security service to work the local party circuit, calling it Unity Force. At the time, Carlton Ridenhour (a.k.a. Chuck D) was part of the Spectrum City DJ-for-hire service led by Hank Shocklee, and Spectrum and Unity Force frequently worked side-by-side at local events. When Public Enemy was formed and signed to Def Jam, Ridenhour invited Griffin to be a sideman. Unity Force was renamed "The Security of the First World", or S1W for short. The S1W's were brought along, and became a curious combination of bodyguards/dancers for the band. Their stage routines were a loose combination of martial arts, military drill and "step show" dances lifted from black college fraternities.

His role was also that of road manager and Minister of Information, the intellectual public face of the band for interviews et cetera, as Flavor Flav was the "fun" one. He was rarely MC'ing, except between songs. Professor Griff started to emerge on the conspiracy theory scene, typically New World Order conspiracy theory. He is known for linking these allegations to past and present celebrities.

Controversy and departure from Public Enemy[edit]

Before the release of It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, Professor Griff, in his role as Minister of Information, gave interviews to UK magazines on behalf of Public Enemy, during which he made homophobic and anti-Semitic remarks.[1][2] However, there was little controversy until May 22, 1989, when Griffin was interviewed by the Washington Times. At the time, Public Enemy enjoyed unprecedented mainstream attention with the single "Fight the Power" from the soundtrack of Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing.

During the interview with David Mills, Griffin made numerous statements such as "Jews are responsible for the majority of the wickedness in the world".[3][4] When the interview was published, a media firestorm emerged, and the band found itself under intense scrutiny.[2][5]

In a series of press conferences, Griffin was either fired, quit, or never left[clarification needed]. Def Jam co-founder Rick Rubin had already left the label by then; taking his place alongside Russell Simmons was Lyor Cohen, the son of Israeli immigrants who had run Rush Artists Management since 1985. Before the dust settled, Cohen claims to have arranged for a Holocaust Museum to give the band a private tour.[6]

In an attempt to defuse the situation, Ridenhour first expressed an apology on his behalf,[7] and fired Griffin soon thereafter. Griffin later rejoined the group, provoking more protests, causing Ridenhour to briefly disband the group. When Public Enemy reformed, due to increasing attention from the press and pressure from Def Jam hierarchy, Griffin was no longer with the band.

Griffin later publicly expressed remorse for his statements after a meeting with the National Holocaust Awareness Student Organization in 1990.[8]

In his 2009 book, titled Analytixz,[9] Griff once again admitted the faults in his alleged 1989 statement: "To say the Jews are responsible for the majority of wickedness that went on around the globe, I would have to know about the majority of wickedness that went on around the globe, which is impossible...I'm not the best knower—God is. Then, not only knowing that, I would have to know who is at the crux of all of the problems in the world and then blame Jewish people, which is not correct." Griff also said that not only were his words taken out of context, but that the recording was never released to the public for an unbiased listen.

Afrocentrism[edit]

Griffin embraces a radical form of Afrocentrism. "Muslim, Christian, Jew, Here's a little somethin' I thought you knew/There is only one God and God is one, the rich praises none."

After his departure from Public Enemy, Griffin formed his own group, the Last Asiatic Disciples. Griffin's albums were of an Islamic and Afrocentric style, combined with increasingly spoken word lyrics.

He was a member of the Nation of Islam, which his lyrics and record titles as a solo artist referenced. Another general theme in his lyrics is New World Order conspiracy.

[SEE : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_World_Order_(conspiracy_theory) for the early 1900s idealistic origins of this term.]



POLICE SHOOTINGS OF THE LAST WEEK

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/alton-sterling-shooting-protester_us_577d708ee4b0344d514dd2d5

BLACK VOICES
Protester Says Society Failed Alton Sterling Long Before He Was Killed
Sterling’s predicament illustrates the difficulty of reintegrating into society and finding a job after incarceration, he said.
David Lohr
Senior Crime Reporter, The Huffington Post
Rahel Gebreyes
Editor, HuffPost Video
07/07/2016 12:58 pm ET | Updated 1 day ago


The killing of Alton Sterling has moved crowds of protesters to gather in front of the Triple S Food Mart in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where he was shot and killed on Tuesday. One of the protesters, who was near the scene, shed light on an issue that has been largely overlooked in the rhetoric surrounding the shooting ― the challenges faced by formerly incarcerated individuals.

The man, who goes by Mally Mall, told The Huffington Post’s David Lohr he was once incarcerated with Sterling. He said that society had failed Sterling, who sold CDs and had been living in a shelter for the past few months, long before he was killed at the hands of police. Sterling’s predicament illustrates the difficulty of reintegrating into society and finding a job after incarceration, he said.

“Y’all send us home from jail [and] tell us to get a job, knowing that every application they have say, if you’re a convicted felon, then we can’t work. So then we try to sell CDs, try to sell a few little item[s] just to make it,” he said. “Even when we get jobs, we still get judged as criminals.”

He added that Sterling’s efforts to earn an “honest living” inspired him to get a job and “not get caught up in the wrong.”

THE HUFFINGTON POST

Ivy Early Thomas holds a sign while mourning the death of Alton Sterling, a 37-year-old father of five who was killed by Baton Rouge police officers.

Sterling, a 37-year-old black man, was selling CDs outside of a Baton Rouge convenience store before he was killed early Tuesday morning. The altercation was captured on video and has since gone viral, helping to propel the tragic story into the national spotlight.

While the Department of Justice, the FBI’s New Orleans Division and the United States Attorney’s Office in Baton Rouge are all investigating the high-profile shooting, Larry Billins, a 54-year-old Baton Rouge resident, said he isn’t optimistic about the outcome of the inquiry.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if [the police involved] didn’t [face any consequences] because it’s done happened so many times,” he said. “But as long as we let it happen, they’re going to keep on doing it. We’ve got to put this thing to a stop today.”

This video was produced by Gemma Sapwell, edited by Zachary Chapman and shot by David Lohr.

Also on HuffPost

15 Photographs -- Baton Rouge Protesters Show Support For Alton Sterling




TRUMP, CLINTON ON RACE AND MASS SHOOTING/RACIST STATEMENTS FROM TRUMP CAMP

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jul/08/dallas-shootings-us-elections-trump-clinton

Dallas protest shooting
Shootings in Dallas expose US election faultlines of policing, guns and race
David Smith in Washington
Friday 8 July 2016 13.41 EDT

Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton call off campaign events because of mass shootings for second time this month, and give statements on the issues exposed

Photograph -- People gather in a parking lot after a Hillary Clinton campaign event with was canceled on Friday. Photograph: Mel Evans/AP


The Dallas shootings exposed an ugly faultline in American politics that threatens to run all the way to November’s presidental election, already one of the most polarised in memory.

For the second time in a month, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton were forced to call off campaign events, just as they did after the mass shooting in Orlando by a man claiming allegiance with Islamic State. Both candidates now find themselves in a febrile political atmosphere around policing, gun control and race.

Trump, the Republican presumptive nominee, has pitched himself as a tough-on-crime candidate and previously claimed he will impose the death penalty for anyone convicted of killing a police officer. His Democratic rival Clinton, like Barack Obama, has repeatedly called for tighter gun control and reform of a criminal justice system that unfairly targets African Americans.

If the 2016 election will be a reflection of a divided nation, race is demonstrably a facet of that. A recent ABC News/Washington Post poll found that Clinton has a 79% favourability rating among African Americans, while Trump has a 94% unfavourability rating.

Police in Dallas said one of the suspects stated that he wanted to kill white people, especially white police officers. Just as after the violence in Ferguson, Missouri, after the killing of black teenager Michael Brown by a white officer, the response quickly turned toxic in rightwing media, with Obama accused of waging a “war on police”.

A host on the conservative Fox News asked guests if this week’s killings of African Americans Alton Sterling in Louisiana and Philando Castile in Minnesota had received “too much” media coverage.

Derek Harvey, a former US army colonel and senior intelligence executive for the Defense Intelligence Agency, told Fox News that the Black Lives Matter movement and others have been “routinely calling for the deaths of police officers and inciting people to violence”.

He insisted: “Black Lives Matter is not blameless in this situation,” and even compared its use of messaging on the internet with Isis.

Donald Trump
Facebook Twitter Pinterest
Donald Trump on Friday condemned ‘a coordinated, premeditated assault on the men and women who keep us safe’. Photograph: Jae C Hong/AP

Corey Stewart, the Trump campaign’s state chairman in Virginia, wrote on Facebook: “Liberal politicians who label police as racists — specifically Hillary Clinton and Virginia Lt Governor Ralph Northam — are to blame for essentially encouraging the murder of these police officers tonight.” He later deleted the post. The Trump campaign disavowed it.

And former Illinois congressman Joe Walsh, now a radio host, reportedly tweeted: “This is now war. Watch out Obama. Watch out black lives matter punks. Real America is coming after you.” The post has also since been deleted.

A Black Lives Matter account on Twitter posted: “#BlackLivesMatter advocates dignity, justice and freedom. Not murder.”

Trump has not been slow to exploit past political opportunities, including the Orlando massacre, and can be expected to accuse of Clinton of being anti-police, soft on crime and blinded by political correctness when he next makes a stump speech.

In a statement on Friday, he condemned “a coordinated, premeditated assault on the men and women who keep us safe” and said “we must restore law and order”, although he did also comment: “The senseless, tragic deaths of two motorists in Louisiana and Minnesota reminds us how much more needs to be done.”

Trump later corrected his statement on Facebook to acknowledge that Sterling was not in fact a motorist.

In a thinly veiled attack on Obama, Trump, who had been due to address Hispanic voters in Miami, added: “Our nation has become too divided. Too many Americans feel like they’ve lost hope. Crime is harming too many citizens. Racial tensions have gotten worse, not better. This isn’t the American Dream we all want for our children.”

Clinton had been due to share a platform on Friday with Joe Biden in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and address the killings of Sterling and Castile by demanding urgent reform to “our broken criminal justice system”, according to an aide.

In an interview with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, she emphasised the need to respect and support the police but also did not shy away from criticising “systematic racism” in some of the country’s 18,000 police forces against people of colour.

“I would call for white people like myself to put ourselves in the shoes of those African American families who fear every time their children go somewhere, who have to have ‘the talk’ about how to really protect themselves when they should be being protected,” Clinton said. “I’m going to be talking to white people; I think we’re the ones who have to listen to the legitimate cries coming from our African American neighbours.”

Gun violence, and its effect on black communities, has been a major theme of the Clinton campaign and may be part of her offensive against Trump. Dan Gross, president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, said: “This latest mass shooting is another example of how guns in the hands of dangerous people tear families and communities apart.”

Clinton’s response to the deadliest attack on police since 9/11 is also likely to be seen through the prism of the White House. She appeared alongside Obama for the first time at a campaign event this week and her closeness to him can be both a strength and weakness. America’s first black president comes under unique scrutiny on the issue of police shootings and their racial dimension.

Play VideoPlay
Current Time 0:00
/
Duration Time 1:48
Loaded: 0%
Progress: 0%
FullscreenMute
Facebook Twitter Pinterest
Barack Obama: Dallas shootings ‘a despicable attack’

In 2013, following the fatal shooting of black teenager Trayvon Martin by a neighbourhood watch volunteer, Obama memorably said: “If I had a son, he’d look like Trayvon.” He was criticised by some for being too emotionally involved.

In cases involving police brutality, he has had to walk a fine line, condemning persecution of minorities while also praising the dedication of most officers. The White House regularly has to deny the existence of so-called “Ferguson effect” that allegedly deters police from intervening and leads to a spike in crime.

Now inside the last 200 days of his presidency, Obama has admitted that he feels at liberty to speak more freely and be less circumspect.

Initially, arriving in Warsaw, Poland, for his last Nato summit, Obama gave his response to the deaths of Sterling and Castile. “[T]hese are not isolated incidents,” he said. “They’re symptomatic of a broader set of racial disparities that exist in our criminal justice system. ... We’ve got to tackle those things.”

Hours later, the president returned to condemn the “vicious, calculated and despicable attack” on Dallas police and added carefully: “Let’s be clear there are no possible justifications for these attacks or any violence towards law enforcement.”

Obama added pointedly: “Even as yesterday I spoke about our need to be concerned, as all Americans, about racial disparities in our criminal justice system, I also said yesterday that our police have an extraordinarily difficult job and the vast majority of them do their job in outstanding fashion.”

But he was probably less surprised than anyone when opponents sought to put the blame on him.



SANDERS AND THE FUTURE

VERY INTERESTING ….

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jul/08/jill-stein-bernie-sanders-green-party?CMP=twt_gu
Green party's Jill Stein invites Bernie Sanders to take over ticket | US news (theguardian.com)

Stein, expected to become the party’s nominee at its August convention, says she has invited Sanders to collaborate: ‘Everything is on the table’
Oliver Milman
@olliemilman
Friday 8 July 2016 09.07 EDT
submitted 11 hours ago by AStupidHippo

Photograph -- Jill Stein has invited Bernie Sanders to join her in the Green party. Photograph: Paul J Richards/AFP/Getty Image

Bernie Sanders has been invited to continue his underdog bid for the White House by the Green party’s probable presidential candidate, who has offered to step aside to let him run.

Jill Stein, who is expected to be endorsed at the party’s August convention in Houston, told Guardian US that “overwhelming” numbers of Sanders supporters are flocking to the Greens rather than Hillary Clinton.

Stein insisted that her presidential bid has a viable “near term goal” of reaching 15% in national polling, which would enable her to stand alongside presumptive nominees Clinton and Donald Trump in televised election debates.

But in a potentially destabilising move for the Democratic party, and an exciting one for Sanders’ supporters, the Green party candidate said she was willing to stand aside for Sanders.

“I’ve invited Bernie to sit down explore collaboration – everything is on the table,” she said. “If he saw that you can’t have a revolutionary campaign in a counter-revolutionary party, he’d be welcomed to the Green party. He could lead the ticket and build a political movement,” she said.

Stein said she had made her offer directly to Sanders in an email at the end of the primary season, although she had not received a response. Her surprise intervention comes amid speculation that Sanders will finally draw a line under a bruising Democratic contest by endorsing Clinton’s presidential bid next week.

“If he continues to declare his full faith in the Democratic party, it will leave many of his supporters very disappointed,” she said. “That political movement is going to go on – it isn’t going to bury itself in the graveyard alongside Hillary Clinton.”

Stein said the Democratic establishment had conducted “psychological warfare” against Sanders and “sabotaged” his attempts to gain the party’s presidential nomination. Many of his young, progressive supporters are now moving over to the Green party rather than fall in behind Clinton, Stein added.

“I’m not holding my breath but I’m not ruling it out that we can bring out 43 million young people into this election,” she said. “It’s been a wild election; every rule in the playbook has been tossed out. Unfortunately, that has mainly been used to lift up hateful demagogues like Donald Trump, but it can also be done in a way that actually answers people’s needs.”

Stein, a former Massachusetts doctor turned environmental activist, is attempting to woo young voters with a promise to make college free and, beyond what Sanders has pledged, to cancel all existing student debt through quantitive easing.

With a more ambitious climate change policy (Stein favors getting to 100% renewable-powered electricity by the middle of the century) and a less interventionist approach to foreign affairs than Clinton, the Greens have also pitched at voters who have been dubbed as being “Bernie or bust”.

However, Stein still faces an uphill battle to reach the 15% in polling that would give her a spot in the televised debates. She may not even secure the 5% that would give the Green party federal funding in the next election.

Stein, who secured nearly 470,000 votes as the Green party candidate in 2012, is currently polling between 4% and 6%. Almost nine out of 10 voters don’t know enough about Stein in order to pass judgment on her leftwing stances, and polling conducted for the Guardian has shown that a large chunk of Sanders’ base is prepared to back Clinton if, as expected, she is confirmed as the Democratic nominee.

The veteran political scientist Larry Sabato, of the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics, said he expected most Sanders voters to rally to Clinton.

Bernie Sanders on Capitol Hill last month.
Facebook Twitter Pinterest
Bernie Sanders on Capitol Hill last month. Photograph: Cliff Owen/AP
“The polarization we’ll see in the fall will be as intense as we’ve ever seen,” he said. “It’ll push the right to Trump and the left to Clinton. You’ll see consolidation, especially on the Democratic side – the idea of Trump as president will make anyone even slightly left of center vote for Clinton.

“Jill Stein will get some of the Bernie voters but Hillary will get most, not because people love Hillary but because they hate Trump. The Green party vote won’t have much an influence unless it’s a squeaker like in 2000 [when Ralph Nader got 2.9m votes for the Green party and George W Bush became president]. But a lot of Democratic voters remember what happened then.”

But Stein, who unsuccessfully challenged Mitt Romney to be governor of Massachusetts in 2002, said Clinton’s policies made her unsavory to many young people.

“She is the fracking queen,” Stein said. “We would be fools to expect Hillary to deal with the climate crisis – the day of reckoning will come closer with her as president. As scary as Trump talks, Hillary has a scary record for warmongering and the neoliberalism.

Shootings in Dallas expose US election faultlines of policing, guns and race

“It’s a mistake to think the lesser of two evils will fix things. A lot of people are in the target hairs of a neoliberalist nightmare. Wars are bankrupting us morally and financially. At least when Republicans are elected, people fight – when Democrats are elected, people are lulled into complacency and fall asleep.”

While the Green party has had members elected to several US state legislatures, the party has never made inroads into federal politics. This is in contrast with sister Green parties in the UK, which has a member of parliament; Australia, where the Greens have been part of government; and Austria, where a former Green was recently elected president.

Stein said this was because the US had a voting system “designed to suppress opposition”. A switch to a different model is highly unlikely, however, particularly in the near term.

“Since the Republicans were established in the 1880s, we haven’t had a third party become a major party,” said Sabato. “If we had a parliamentary system, the Greens would have representation. But that is scheduled to happen on the 12th of never.”



https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/video/2016/jun/17/how-bernie-sanders-changed-america-video

Bernie Sanders
How Bernie Sanders changed America – video

His presidential campaign began, as it is now ending, as a protest movement: aimed at raising issues which this stubborn Vermont senator felt had been ignored for much of his working life. They are now firmly on the political agenda – perhaps for a generation
Laurence Mathieu-Léger Dan Roberts, Source: The Guardian
Friday 17 June 2016 08.15 EDT



http://www.cnbc.com/2016/07/08/why-sanders-endorsement-probably-wont-help-hillary-clinton-with-millennials-commentary.html

Why Sanders’ endorsement probably won’t help Hillary Clinton with millennials
Jordan Chariton, a political reporter for "The Young Turks" news show
7 Hours Ago, July 8, 2016
CNBC.com

Photograph -- Carlos Allegri | Reuters, Senator Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton

As the nation lies glued to their televisions and iPhones to watch the horror of two more African Americans shot and killed by police—followed by what seemed like a professional hit job that killed five Dallas police officers—the tremors of Hillary Clinton's political earthquake have dwindled by default.

But the aftershock won't go quietly into the night.

Republicans, who up until now became famous for dog and pony show investigations like Benghazi, actually had a strong leg to stand on in their hearing with FBI Director James Comey Thursday, grilling him on blatant inconsistencies and contradictions layered into his decision not to indict the former Secretary of State for sharing classified information on a private email server.

She was "extremely careless; I think she was negligent," he said to Republican and Democratic lawmakers—but apparently not grossly negligent enough to be prosecuted.

Would anyone not named Hillary Clinton get the same benefit of every doubt?

As Attorney and Assistant Professor at University of New Hampshire Seth Abramson wrote, "The issue for Comey wasn't that Clinton hadn't committed any federal crimes, but that in his personal opinion the chief federal felony statute Clinton violated has been too rarely applied for him to feel comfortable applying it to Clinton."

All of this paints a clear picture: that people in Clinton's power bracket are above the law compared with average citizens without bankers, lobbyists, and other corporate lawmakers in their corner.

And that helps Donald Trump—the candidate representing the exploding anti-establishment, anti-corruption voting bloc filled with a mix of Democrats, Republicans, Independents, Libertarians and millennials.

"The choice between an unorthodox candidate who makes them believe their situation can be better, and an above the law symbol of everything that's keeping them down, is powerful."

Sure, Trump might be falsely playing the part of an outsider against corruption. In reality he's as much an insider and benefactor of corruption as any other elected official. But he's sold millions of Americans by playing a fire-breathing populist who'll untangle the rigged political web Clinton helped create.

For low-information voters who've not been glued to politics for a year like myself and many of you, who's just tuning in a few months before Election Day—who's going to sound more appealing?

A woman you've been exposed to for 30 years, with many negative connotations to boot; most recently having potentially lied about sending classified material from a cockamamie basement home server, who is called "crooked" from opponents and untrustworthy from members of her own party?

Or, by the optics, a successful businessman tapping into your frustration with your frozen or declining wages, increased work hours, crummy or non-existent healthcare, and general cynicism toward the politicians who are supposedly representing you.

With all his unforced errors, many of which have been blatantly racist and xenophobic, Trump is down just 4.7 percent in the RealClearPolitics general election average.

He'll likely score record lows among Latinos and do poorly among African Americans. But he's also likely to do very well among working class whites in all-important Rust-Belt states like Pennsylvania and Ohio, which are also crucial swing states.

Ultimately, like most elections, independent voters and millennials may play a deciding role. What will be crucial will be the rate at which the latter turns out for Clinton.

Yes, Bernie Sanders is likely to endorse Clinton; reportedly as soon as Tuesday. Despite the power and influence he wields among millions of supporters—even a towering progressive figure like Sanders playing the broader political game of stopping Trump will struggle to endear Hillary Clinton to millions of young people who simply don't trust her, and in many cases, don't like what she stands for.

I've met and spoken to thousands of them along the campaign trail; they certainly don't like Trump, but their disdain for Clinton is visible from the moment her name is mentioned in a question.

That kind of opposition doesn't magically disappear in response to a Sanders endorsement, or out-of-touch TV and digital pundits telling them what's good for them, or a few months to cool off before November.

And for the broader electorate, the choice between an unorthodox candidate who makes them believe their situation can be better, and an above the law symbol of everything that's keeping them down, is powerful.

By dodging indictment, Clinton avoided jail. But the negative connotations many Americans bring away from it, and how craftily Donald Trump can make the crooked label stick, may just deprive her of The White House.

Commentary by Jordan Chariton, a political reporter for The Young Turks, reporting on the presidential campaign trail. He can be seen on TYT Politics. Before TYT, Jordan was a reporter for TheWrap and TVNewser. Follow him on Twitter @JordanChariton.



http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/bernie-sanders-makes-his-last-stand-democratic-platform-n606086

Bernie Sanders Makes His Last Stand With Democratic Platform
POLITICS JUL 8 2016, 4:12 PM ET
by ALEX SEITZ-WALD

Related: Ahead of Democratic Platform Meeting, Warren Urges Opposition to TPP Trade Deal
Play video -- Bernie Sanders: This isn't about my ego 7:06
Related: Democrats Take a Step Left With New Party Platform


ORLANDO, Fla. — With Bernie Sanders expected to endorse Hillary Clinton next week, the Democratic platform meeting that started here Friday afternoon will be his last chance to make his mark on the document that codifies the party's values and goals.

Sanders got in the presidential race more than a year ago more to advance his ideas than to actually win, many felt, and this moment is what that was all building toward.

Team Sanders is preparing for a final push on a dozen policy items at the first meeting of the full Democratic Platform Drafting Committee, with the top priority being an amendment opposing the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal.

Over two days, the Platform Committee's 187 members will consider new amendments and changes to the platform, which will then be sent for ratification to the floor of the Democratic National Convention later this month.

Michael Lighty, policy director of the Sanders-aligned National Nurses United union, said everything rides on the Orlando meeting as the Sanders and Clinton campaigns prepare for an endorsement.

"They're in the final stages of negotiating an agreement between the two campaigns. I don't know if they're going to get one, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist here at the Kennedy Space Center to know that once that deal is cut, there's nothing left on the table. So this is the table," he said.

Delegates in Orlando will build off the draft party platform that was previously written by a 15-member working group.

Sanders praised the draft as a good first step that included many of his properties but said, "Much more needs to be done."

The Vermont senator lost the Democratic presidential nomination over a month ago, and many Democrats have been frustrated by his refusal to back Clinton earlier. Sanders still receives Secret Service protection, even as some major allies have said it's time to move on.

But he's stayed in the race specifically to influence the platform process, even though some Democratic critics say he's lost leverage by waiting too long.

"The entire focus right now is to continue to improve the platform in Orlando," said Warren Gunnels, Sanders' top policy adviser.

Sanders allies hold 73 seats on the committee, while 105 are committed to Clinton and the rest are Democratic National Committee appointees. That means that for Sanders to get a majority of votes to pass something, he will need to find about 20 extra votes from beyond his own ranks.

Sanders aides are pushing a wish list of a dozen amendments on everything from nuclear weapons to immigration to pension reform.

At the top of the list is an amendment explicitly opposing a vote in the lame-duck session of Congress on the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a massive trade deal opposed by both Clinton and Sanders.

President Obama supports the TPP, and the White House has been lobbying Platform Committee members against the amendment. Obama even personally spoke with Sanders on the TPP, according to a Sanders aide.

PlayTom Perez: Pres. Obama and Hillary Clinton Disagree Over TPP Facebook Twitter Google Plus Embed
Tom Perez: Pres. Obama and Hillary Clinton Disagree Over TPP 3:42

Delegates appointed by Clinton and the DNC feel it would be disrespectful to the president to include platform language affronting one of Obama's top goals. But Sanders is insistent, rounding up 700,000 petition signatures in support of his desired amendment.

Next on Sanders' list is stiffening the language from the draft platform on the $15 minimum wage. Clinton supports a federal $12 minimum wage and encourages states and cities to raise it if they wish, but she says the higher standard is not right for poorer and rural areas.

Third on Sanders' list is a ban on fracking, using language proposed by anti-fracking filmmaker Josh Fox. The current draft says nothing about fracking. Clinton has a more nuanced approach to fracking, which calls for tightly regulating — but not banning outright — the controversial natural gas extraction process, similar to the approach taken by California.

Sanders' expected endorsement of Clinton Tuesday in New Hampshire would be a major turning point in the election and would help Clinton consolidate the Democratic Party against Donald Trump.

While it's unclear what role Sanders will play in Clinton's campaign, at a minimum he can help her win New Hampshire.

On Wednesday, both campaigns took a major step towards reconciliation when Clinton rolled out a plan to provide free tuition to in-state colleges for a large number of families, something that Sanders championed during the primary. Sanders hailed the plan, which his staff had helped develop with Clinton's, as a "very bold initiative."

ALEX SEITZ-WALD
TOPICS 2016 ELECTION
FIRST PUBLISHED JUL 8 2016, 4:12 PM ET
NEXT STORY Clinton: Country Must Confront 'Implicit Bias' After Shootings


HOW IS A HATE CRIME DEFINED?


https://www.yahoo.com/news/u-s-attorney-general-hate-crime-charge-unlikely-if-shooter-acted-alone-200558816.html

Attorney general: Hate crime charge unlikely if Dallas shooter acted alone
Liz Goodwin
July 8, 2016


Attorney General Loretta Lynch said during a news conference on Friday at the Justice Department that violence is never the answer. Lynch called for peace and calm in the wake of the sniper attack on police officers in Dallas Thursday night. (Photo: Carolyn Kaster/AP)
Attorney General Loretta Lynch told law enforcement union leaders Friday that it’s unlikely the Justice Department will pursue hate crime charges in Thursday’s Dallas shooting of police officers, Yahoo News has learned, because the suspect in the crime is dead.

Lynch told the leaders in the 45-minute meeting that a hate crime investigation would be on the table if more suspects are discovered, according to a police union official at the meeting. So far, investigators have said that evidence suggests the suspect, Micah Johnson, a 25-year-old Army veteran, acted alone. “We continue to have faith that the attorney general is going to take this as far as it goes,” the police union official said.

Dallas Police Chief David Brown said Friday morning the suspect in the murders of five police officers said he “wanted to kill white people, especially white officers.” The suspect told police he was not affiliated with any group and that he was upset by recent police shootings of black men. Police later killed him with a robot-operated bomb.

Leaders of the Fraternal Order of Police, which represents more than 300,000 police officers, pressed Lynch during the meeting to consider investigating the crime as a hate crime. They also shared their concerns about the tone of the racially charged debate around police-involved shootings.

The federal hate crimes statute applies to offenders targeting people based upon their “actual or perceived race, color, religion, or national origin.” (Sexual orientation and gender identity were added to the list in 2009.) In 2014, 23 percent of federal racial hate crimes were motivated by anti-white bias, with 64 percent motivated by anti-black bias. The police union has unsuccessfully pushed for Congress to include police officers in the hate crime statute. Hate crimes typically carry stiffer punishments than regular crimes.

The New York Post reported Friday citing anonymous sources that the Justice Department would consider launching an investigation into the shootings as a hate crime.

But Melanie Newman, a Justice Department spokesperson, called that report “absolutely not true.”

“We have no updates or announcements on any investigations at this time,” she said.

Lynch spoke about the shootings Friday afternoon, urging people not to resort to violence and to come together as Americans. She praised Dallas police for protecting the protesters’ right to demonstrate, and she commended protesters of police violence, for trying to make their country better. “To our brothers and sisters who wear the badge, I want you to know that I am deeply grateful for the difficult and dangerous work that you do every day to keep our streets safe and our nation secure,” she said. “Our hearts are broken by this loss. And the Department of Justice will do all that we can to support you in the days ahead.”


RACIAL FACTORS IN DALLAS AMBUSH AND SIMILAR THREATS FOR THE FUTURE


https://www.yahoo.com/gma/witnesses-describe-dallas-protest-went-beautiful-evil-173305503--abc-news-topstories.html

Good Morning America
Witnesses Describe How Dallas Protest Went From 'Beautiful to Evil'
MORGAN WINSOR,Good Morning America
July 8, 2016 3 hours ago

What began as a peaceful protest for Black Lives Matter on the streets of Dallas ended in horror Thursday night.

Witnesses of the ambush-style shooting, which left at least five police officers dead, described how the rally started off with love and respect between demonstrators and law enforcement before it was overtaken by violence.

As in other cities across the nation, people gathered in Dallas just before 7 p.m. to protest against the recent fatal police shootings of two black men: Alton Sterling in Louisiana and Philando Castile in Minnesota.

"People were upset about what happened in Baton Rouge, people were upset about what happened in St. Paul and we wanted people to have a healthy place to engage their anger, to breathe, to comfort each other, to network and this protest certainly started off as a really beautiful thing,” the Rev. Jeff Hood, an organizer of the protest, said on “Good Morning America” today. “Things went from beautiful to evil very quickly.”

Protesters said there was a sense of solidarity and peace as they marched from Belo Garden Park to the Old Red Courthouse with law enforcement supervising the rally. Officers took photos with demonstrators and were supporting their cause.

“They were really comforting us and being there for us and supporting us in our march,” Sharay Santora, a former U.S. Marine who attended the protest rally with her two children, said on “Good Morning America” today.

After reaching the courthouse and remarking on the harmonic event, the protesters decided to march back. They chanted, “Hands up, don’t shoot.”

And as night fell on the city, the pop of high-powered ammunition echoed above the marchers and across downtown Dallas.

Witnesses said the gunfire sounded like fireworks at first, but the chaotic reality quickly settled in.

“I was talking to one of the sergeants at the police department; all of a sudden I heard, 'Pop, pop' and I looked up and I see two bodies on the ground," Hood said. “I was touching my body. I was touching my chest because I really felt there was a possibility that I was shot. And so, as the sergeant ran toward the shooting, I ran back to tell the crowd, 'Back up, back up. Active shooter. Run away.’”

Officials said at least two snipers in elevated positions opened fire on police, who were protecting protesters. Some of the officers were shot in the back, police said.

Authorities negotiated with a suspect for several hours Thursday night and exchanged gunfire with him. The suspect told a hostage negotiator he was upset about the recent police shootings of black men and that he “wanted to kill white people, especially white officers,” Dallas Police Chief David Brown said at a news conference this morning.

The suspect also told the negotiator he was not affiliated with any groups and was acting alone. Police “saw no other option but to use our bomb robot … for it to detonate where the suspect was.” The suspect died as a result of the bomb, Brown said.

Shetamia Taylor, 37, was one of two civilians who were injured in the shooting. She was attending the protest rally with her four sons and was shot in the right calf while shielding one of them from the spray of bullets. The other three boys scattered in opposite directions, Taylor’s sister, Theresa Williams, told ABC Dallas affiliate WFAA.

"She jumped on top to cover him on the ground as she pushed him in between two cars in the curb," Williams told WFAA. "All she could think about was her other three boys -- where are they at."

Taylor laid there protecting her 15-year-old son for about five minutes before police rescued them. The mother was undergoing surgery early this morning and is expected to recover.

"She's not so much worried about the gunshot wound she has on her leg," Williams told WFAA. "We're watching the news in the hospital room, and all she can do is say, 'Lord, be with those families of those police officers.' And that's what she kept repeating."

Santora, another witnesses who attended the protest rally, expressed grief for the officers who were killed and injured in the shooting, saying hatred and violence cannot be the response to police brutality.

“We have to keep love in our hearts and we have to fight for justice, and justice isn’t an eye for an eye and a life for a life in this moment,” she said on “Good Morning America” today.

“Those police officers were there taking care of us. Everyone in blue isn’t bad, but for those that are it makes all of us look bad if we don’t stand up for it.”



http://www.popsugar.com/news/Obama-Killings-Alton-Sterling-Philando-Castile-41897090
U.S.
In 2 Sentences, President Obama Nails How We Should View Police Who Kill Black People
by LISETTE MEJIA
Fri, July 8, 2016 Thu, Jul 7 3:05 PM PDT

Related Stories: John Legend Uses 1 Tweet to Burn the NRA After Philando Castile's Killing;
Trevor Noah Perfectly Explains the Biggest Misconception About Black Lives Matter and Cops;
People Are Sharing Photos of Happy Black Kids to Bring Hope After This Week's Killings


On Thursday, President Obama issued a powerful statement on Facebook about the killings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, two black men gunned down by police within 48 hours of each other. In it, he said the incidents represented bigger issues within our criminal justice system and the racial disparities rampant throughout the country.

These particular sentences stood out from his statement:

To admit we've got a serious problem in no way contradicts our respect and appreciation for the vast majority of police officers who put their lives on the line to protect us every single day. It is to say that, as a nation, we can and must do better to institute the best practices that reduce the appearance or reality of racial bias in law enforcement.

Obama makes it clear that calling attention to police brutality does not mean officers are being disrespected. It reflects a frustration we saw yesterday when New York radio host Peter Rosenberg berated an officer who called into his show to discuss the Alton Sterling incident but couldn't admit that the officers had done wrong.

From Warsaw, Poland, Obama also gave a speech echoing his Facebook post and expressing condolences for the families of Sterling and Castile. "We've seen tragedies like this too many times," he said, adding, "All of us Americans should be troubled by these shootings because these are not isolated incidents." He cited facts that he said said [sic] reflect the racial disparities that exist within our criminal justice systems: African-American are 30 percent more likely than whites to be pulled over; after they are pulled over, they are three times more likely to be searched.

"When incidents like this occur, there's a big chunk of our fellow citizenry that feels as if, because of the color of their skin, they are not being treated the same. And that hurts. And that should trouble all of us. This is not just a black issue . . . this is an American issue. All fair-minded people should be concerned."

The president also addressed the those who criticize the Black Lives Matter movement, saying, "When people say black lives matter, that doesn't mean blue lives don't matter — it just means all lives matter. But right now the big concern is the fact that data shows black folks are more vulnerable to these kinds of incidents. This isn't a matter of comparing the value of lives; this is recognizing that there is a particular burden that is being placed on a group of our fellow citizens and we should care about that — we can't dismiss it. We can't dismiss it."

Obama ended his speech by asking those who doubt the problem to ask themselves: "What if this happened to someone in your family? How would you feel?"

The president isn't the only political figure to comment on the killings. Presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton issued this statement on Twitter, referencing the Black Lives Matter movement:

View image on Twitter
Follow
Hillary Clinton ✔ @HillaryClinton
Alton Sterling Matters.
Philando Castile Matters.
Black Lives Matter.
3:19 PM - 7 Jul 2016

<i>Presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump has yet to comment on the incidents.>

Image Source: Getty / MANDEL NGAN



A NEW TRUMP ODDITY

https://gma.yahoo.com/donald-trump-says-hell-protect-constitutions-article-xii-065706692--abc-news-topstories.html?post_id=1605282889713411_1763592770549088#_=_

Donald Trump Says He'll Protect Constitution's 'Article XII'
By BENJAMIN SIEGEL
July 8, 2016 14 hours ago
Good Morning America

Photograph -- Trump Has Just a 25 Percent Chance but Could Win, Polling Analyst Says (ABC News


For Donald Trump the Constitution is yuge...and a lot bigger than it actually is.

Trump told House Republicans Thursday he will make sure to protect the Constitution if he becomes president -- including a non-existent Article XII.

The presumptive GOP nominee, who was on Capitol Hill Thursday to charm rank-and-file Republicans and build party unity, told members he would be the "best constitutional president ever," according to Rep. Reid Ribble, R-Wisconsin, a Trump skeptic.

Rep. Mark Sanford, R-South Carolina, said Trump promised to protect several articles of the Constitution -- including "Article XII," even though the Constitution has seven articles.

"It was the normal stream of consciousness that's long on hyperbole and short on facts," Sanford told reporters after the meeting.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, said the meeting was productive.

“Our members really enjoyed it,” Ryan said. “It’s very clear that he’s working on putting together a strong general election campaign.”

Trump also reportedly told members of Congress golf legend Jack Nicklaus would be attending the Republican National Convention, but Nicklaus' spokesman said that was not accurate.

"Mr. Nicklaus is traveling internationally the next couple weeks, touching down in no fewer than six countries. So I can confidently confirm that the reports are inaccurate and Mr. Nicklaus will not be attending any portion of the RNC," spokesman Scott Tolley said in an email. "[Trump and his campaign staff] have known for quite some time of his travels and prior commitments." . . .



https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/gop-senator-jeff-flake-dramatically-183811551.html

GOP Senator Jeff Flake dramatically confronts Donald Trump in tense Capitol Hill meeting
Allan Smith,Business Insider
Thu, Jul 7 11:38 AM PDT

GOP Senator Jeff Flake dramatically confronts Donald Trump in tense Capitol Hill meeting
Allan Smith,Business Insider Thu, Jul 7 11:38 AM PDT Comments Like Reblog on Tumblr Share Tweet Email
Donald Trump
(Donald Trump.Mark Wilson/Getty Images)
Donald Trump had an intense, testy exchange with Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona — one of his sharpest Republican critics on Capitol Hill — during a closed-door meeting with GOP senators on Thursday in Washington, DC.

The Washington Post reported that when the Arizona Republican stood up and introduced himself, Trump said, "You've been very critical of me."

"Yes, I'm the other senator from Arizona — the one who didn't get captured — and I want to talk to you about statements like that," Flake responded, two Republican officials told the Post.

Flake was referring to Trump's comments from roughly one year ago when he questioned whether Sen. John McCain of Arizona was a war hero because he was captured during the Vietnam War. Trump said he preferred people who weren't captured.

According to The Post, Flake told the Manhattan billionaire that he wants to be able to support him but is still uncomfortable doing so.

Trump noted he had yet to start attacking Flake and threatened to start. Flake then urged Trump to stop attacking Mexicans, according to the report.

The presumptive Republican nominee predicted Flake would lose his reelection bid, to which Flake shot back that he's not on the ballot until 2018.

Sources told CNN's Manu Raju that Trump also threatened to defeat Flake in an election.

Flake declined to elaborate on the exchange when asked by reporters afterward.

"No, I'll just leave it," he told reporters, adding that "my position remains. I want to support the nominee. I really do. I just can't support him given the things that he's said."

A Flake spokesperson confirmed to Business Insider that the Post account was accurate.

Trump also called out Republican Sens. Mark Kirk of Illinois and Ben Sasse of Nebraska, according to The Post. Kirk recently unendorsed Trump, while Sasse has been fiercely critical of the real-estate magnate.

Trump characterized Kirk as a loser.

"I guess he lit me up," Kirk later told The Post.

Jeff Flake
(Jeff Flake.AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

During a recent interview with Business Insider, Flake said anybody who uttered the protectionist rhetoric on trade that Trump has "is not what I'd call a Republican." He also said it's "quite possible" Trump could lose in his state of Arizona, a GOP stronghold, and that he thinks Republicans should consider confirming Judge Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court in October if it looks like Trump is going to lose the election.

"Mr. Trump's problem is not just being dissatisfied with the status quo," he said. "It's that he's gone out and gone after specific groups and organizations. The Mexican judge comments. The Muslim ban, although he seems to be backing off of that. It's just the general statements on too many groups he's going to need to win an election. So I think he's still got to change quite a bit."

He added that "we just don't know" if Trump is capable of change.

"Sometimes he'll walk something back one day and be back with the original policy the next," he said. "So we'll see what holds. He's 70 years old, and it's tough to change. He's made many statements about how he won the primary and why change it. He may, for a time, use more appropriate rhetoric or statements, but I just don't know if that can last. I really don't."

NOW WATCH: Donald Trump defends his praise of Saddam Hussein

More From Business Insider
'Fear and loathing': Republican senator says his colleagues are bummed about Donald Trump
'Not what I’d call a Republican': Prominent GOP Trump critic explains why it's important to push back on his party's nominee
???? GOP senator: We should have a new Supreme Court strategy if it becomes clear Trump will lose


http://finance.yahoo.com/news/gop-senator-supreme-court-strategy-130424973.html

GOP senator: We should have a new Supreme Court strategy if it becomes clear Trump will lose
Business Insider By Allan Smith
June 30, 2016 9:04 AM

Photograph -- (Jeff Flake.AP)

Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona said Wednesday that he didn't think Judge Merrick Garland was likely to get a hearing in the Senate ahead of the November election, even though the Supreme Court already announced its major decisions this month.

But Flake, a Republican who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, is open to holding a vote for Garland if it starts to get close to November and Donald Trump still looks as if he won't win the presidency.

"Obviously if we lose the election and lose the White House, then we ought to move quickly to confirm [Garland]," Flake told Business Insider. "And I think if it becomes apparent that we aren't going to win the White House — if we know in October that it's not good — then we've got to move forward at that point."

"But I don't think my view is shared by too many of my colleagues," he continued. "Or enough of my colleagues to do it."

The Arizona senator met with Garland in April. That was a break from GOP Senate leadership, which has called for no meetings with Garland, whom President Barack Obama nominated to fill the seat left vacant when Justice Antonin Scalia died in February. Obama nominated Garland to the seat in March.

Senate leadership has insisted that no hearing or vote will be held on Garland ahead of the November election. But some Republicans are fearful that, should Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton win in the fall, Obama could pull the nomination and allow Clinton to fill the void with someone considerably more left-leaning.

In an attempt to sway conservatives who were on the fence about him as the GOP standard-bearer, Trump in May released a list of conservative judges he would consider appointing to fill Supreme Court vacancies. The list was roundly applauded by the GOP.

Trump's poll numbers have taken a plunge in recent weeks. Clinton, the presumptive Democratic nominee, has opened up her widest lead over him in the RealClearPolitics average of several polls since early May.

Flake, who has been increasingly critical of Trump in recent months, has not endorsed the Manhattan billionaire. He's said it was "quite possible" that the real-estate magnate would lose in Flake's home state of Arizona, normally a Republican stronghold.

NOW WATCH: TRUMP SPOKESWOMAN: Why the Republican Party has 'miserably failed'


CLINTON TAKES A STAND ON IMPLICIT BIAS IN US LAW

http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/dallas-police-ambush/clinton-country-must-confront-implicit-bias-after-shootings-n606241

Clinton: Country Must Confront 'Implicit Bias' After Shootings
POLITICS DALLAS POLICE AMBUSH JUL 8 2016, 5:13 PM ET
by ANDREW RAFFERTY

Play Video -- Clinton: We Need National Guidelines About Police Use of Force
Clinton: We Need National Guidelines About Police Use of Force 2:51


Hillary Clinton on Friday told NBC News' Lester Holt that the country needs to do more to address "implicit bias" and said she will take a look at her own campaign rhetoric following a string of high-profile shootings this week.

In an interview on MSNBC, Clinton said Americans "have to be honest, all of us, in facing implicit bias that all of us, unfortunately, may still have."

She called for a national conversation on race, as well as criminal justice reform, national guidelines for police use of force, and support for law enforcement personnel across the country.

Those were also themes she echoed in a speech to a conference of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Philadelphia. "White Americans need to do a better job of listening when African Americans talk about the seen and unseen barriers you face every day… Let's put ourselves in the shoes of police officers, kissing their kids and spouses goodbye every day and heading off to do a dangerous job we need them to do," she said.

Five police officers were killed and seven more injured in Dallas Thursday night at a peaceful protest following back-to-back police shootings of black men.

"We are unfortunately in the grip of some very divisive and hateful rhetoric," Clinton said.

The shootings came in the wake of a particularly nasty presidential race between Clinton and presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. She pledged to revisit the language she has used throughout the campaign.

"We have tried to stay away from name calling, but I will certainly take a hard look about what more we can do," she said.

On a separate note, Clinton also defended her use of a personal email address while secretary of state, saying FBI Director James Comey's testimony on Capitol Hill Thursday helped show she did not knowingly send or receive classified emails.


DALLAS HAS IGNITED MANY CONVERSATIONS

Trump’s Son on Race

http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-trailguide-updates-a-final-push-on-trade-wages-and-1467996642-htmlstory.html

Donald Trump Jr. retweets controversial ex-congressman
KURTIS LEE
July 8, 2016 3:55 P.M.

Photograph -- (Patrick Semansky / Associated Press)


Often, it has been Donald Trump whose retweets have caused a stir.

On Friday, however, Donald Trump Jr., the oldest son of the presumptive Republican nominee, retweeted a message from Joe Walsh, the controversial former congressman from Illinois.

Walsh’s tweet denounced Black Lives Matter and claimed — with no evidence — that protesters from the group were calling for "the death of cops."

“Absolutely Disgusting,” the tweet said.
Follow
Joe Walsh @WalshFreedom
Black Lives Matter protesters amid #Dallas shooting call for death of cops on Twitter.

Absolutely Disgusting.http://hypeline.org/minutes-after-dallas-shooting-blm-radicals-call-for-death-of-cops-of-twitter/ …
9:07 AM - 8 Jul 2016
Photo published for Minutes after Dallas shooting #BLM radicals call for death of cops of Twitter
Minutes after Dallas shooting #BLM radicals call for death of cops of Twitter

In Dallas, TX, protests against police shootings turned violent Thursday night as two snipers killed five police officers and wounded seven others during the Black Lives Matter event. As the shooting...
hypeline.org
1,054 1,054 Retweets 872 872 likes

The retweet by the candidate’s son, who often retweets conservative provocateur Ann Coulter, came on a day when the elder Trump had offered a relatively measured response to the fatal shootings of police officers in Dallas.

Walsh, by contrast, has been widely assailed for the comments he has made since the shootings, particularly a tweet he sent shortly after they happened Thursday night in which he proclaimed: "Watch out Obama. Watch out Black Lives Matter punks. Real America is coming after you."

That tweet was later deleted from Walsh's account — he said Twitter took it down — but screenshots continue to be circulated and condemned on social media.

Reached for comment, Trump's spokesperson, Hope Hicks, declined to say anything on the record about the younger Trump's retweet.

Walsh, now a radio talk show host, gave an interview to the Chicago Tribune on Friday in which he stood behind his statements, but said he had not been trying to incite violence.

"Of course I didn't mean, 'Let's go kill Obama and Black Lives Matter.' I was not trying to incite violence against Obama and Black Lives Matter," he said.

In a 2011 interview with Slate, Walsh, who served a single term and was defeated in his bid for reelection four years ago, claimed Obama had only been elected president because he was a "black man who was articulate."'

Since Donald Trump announced his candidacy last summer, he's been strongly condemned for some of the comments he has retweeted, including some by apparent white supremacists. He's also retweeted statistics that inaccurately portrayed U.S. murder rates among blacks and whites, exaggerating the amount of violence attributable to African Americans.

In recent days, Donald Trump drew criticism from many, including fellow Republicans, for a tweet depicting Hillary Clinton, the presumptive Democratic nominee, next to a pile of money and a six-pointed star. Critics said the imagery was anti-Semitic. Trump denied that.



Donald Trump Jr retweeted this infamous one term Tea Party representative's very disturbing statements. Pay close attention to the material on how far to the Right Walsh actually is:


http://thesource.com/2016/07/08/former-congressman-joe-walsh-threatens-president-obama-in-a-series-of-tweets/

FORMER CONGRESSMAN JOE WALSH THREATENS PRESIDENT OBAMA IN A SERIES OF TWEETS
By KHARI
JULY 8, 2016

HOMEHIP HOP NEWS | TRENDING HIP HOP STORIES
walsh freedom
FORMER CONGRESSMAN JOE WALSH THREATENS PRESIDENT OBAMA IN A SERIES OF TWEETS

KHARI JULY 8, 2016

Social media has likely been abuzz at record levels with responses, dialogue and outrage about what’s been a devastating 72 hours on U.S. soil. On back-to-back evenings, the lives of two Black men were claimed by way of a police officer using unnecessary lethal–and ultimately fatal–force, and late last night, during protests in Dallas, over 11 cops were shot, and 5 have died.

Unfortunately, some people, like former Congressman Joe Walsh, have used social media to spew insensitive and inaccurate narratives, and go so far as in to publicly threaten President Barack Obama. Walsh first claims Obama is the person that created an environment that allows for several cops to be killed, then goes directly at the POTUS, declaring that “Real America is coming after you.”

walsh freedom

He elaborated in a set of tweets that have not yet been deleted.

Follow
Joe Walsh @WalshFreedom
Obama says Cops are racist so 2 uneducated black thugs shoot 10 Dallas Cops tonight, killing 4.

Wake up silent majority. Stand w our Cops.
12:15 AM - 8 Jul 2016
2,178 2,178 Retweets 3,152 3,152 likes

Follow
Joe Walsh @WalshFreedom
It's time 4 patriotic Americans to stand up & stand against all the Cop haters - from Obama to the thugs on the street.

It's way past time.
12:52 AM - 8 Jul 2016
1,543 1,543 Retweets 2,134 2,134 likes

Soon thereafter, people began calling for Walsh to quiet down his rhetoric, including John Legend, who was pretty direct about the quieting down part.

Follow
John Legend ✔ @johnlegend
Joe Walsh needs to be arrested for threatening our President. STFU @walshfreedom
12:46 AM - 8 Jul 2016
26,111 26,111 Retweets 33,585 33,585 likes
Walsh was a known denouncer of the Obama administration, and once called for the President to protect the nation’s borders with “moats and alligators” if necessary. These words likely hold even less weight.



https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/07/08/the-complicated-racial-track-record-of-the-former-gop-congressman-who-warned-obama-to-watch-out-after-dallas-shootings/

The Fix
The complicated racial history of the former GOP congressman who warned Obama to ‘watch out’ after Dallas shootings
By Amber Phillips
July 8, 2016

Related: Here’s what we know so far about the Dallas shooting Play Video2:16
At least five Dallas police officers were killed and seven wounded July 7, after a peaceful protest over recent police shootings. Here's what we know so far. (Deirdra O'Regan/The Washington Post)
Read more: Why President Obama went right to gun control after five police officers were killed in Dallas
The most interesting word in Donald Trump’s Dallas statement
Dallas police used a robot to deliver bomb that killed shooting suspect
[What we know about the attack on police in Dallas]


Even if you don't live in the Illinois congressional district he represented for a single term, you may have heard of Joe Walsh. It may have been the time he said President Obama won the 2008 election because he is a "black man who was articulate." Or the time the then-radio host was briefly kicked off air for using racial and ethnic slurs on his show. Or the time last night, when he promised "war" and warned Obama to "watch out" after the Dallas shooting.

View image on Twitter
Follow
Frank Thorp V ✔ @frankthorp
Former GOP Rep, now radio host, @WalshFreedom, deleted this tweet last night after the #DallasPoliceShooting:
7:34 AM - 8 Jul 2016 · Miami, FL, United States

Follow
Joe Walsh @WalshFreedom
I wasn't calling for violence, against Obama or anyone. Obama's words & BLM's deeds have gotten cops killed. Time for us to defend our cops.
1:21 AM - 8 Jul 2016

Follow
Joe Walsh @WalshFreedom
Obama says Cops are racist so 2 uneducated black thugs shoot 10 Dallas Cops tonight, killing 4.

Wake up silent majority. Stand w our Cops.
12:15 AM - 8 Jul 2016

Follow
Joe Walsh @WalshFreedom
10 cops shot.

This is on Obama.
11:38 PM - 7 Jul 2016

Follow
Joe Walsh @WalshFreedom
BLM should be categorized as a hate group.
11:49 PM - 7 Jul 2016

Update: In an interview Friday morning with the Chicago Tribune, Walsh defended his tweet and said he wasn't trying to incite violence:

"Of course I didn’t mean ‘let’s go kill Obama and Black Lives Matter.’ I was not trying to incite violence against Obama and Black Lives Matter. That’s crazy and stupid and wrong."

He added: "There’s a war against our cops in this country, and I think Obama has fed that war and Black Lives Matter has fed that war. ... Obama’s words and the deeds of Black Lives Matter have gotten cops in this country killed.”

Walsh also told the Tribune he's been getting death threats on social media from "the left."

Whether he meant it or not, his latest comments are arguably some of the most controversial in the immediate aftermath of Dallas, so it's worth learning a bit more about him:

The basics: He's held public office only once, though he's run several times. He beat a Democrat to serve in Congress from 2011-2013 in a Chicago-area district that has bounced back and forth in recent years between Republicans and Democrats. He lost reelection to a Democrat and now hosts a conservative talk radio show.
. . . .

He worked in inner-city Chicago before politics: Walsh taught at inner-city Chicago schools, including teaching high-school dropouts basic life skills, and ran a scholarship fund to pay for low-income Chicago students to attend private schools. Walsh also worked in venture capital, though he told reporters he never made much money.

He's pulled some "outrageous" stunts to get elected: In 1996, when Walsh won the Republican nomination to try to unseat longtime Democratic Rep. Sidney Yates in a neighboring, more liberal congressional district, his campaign grabbed headlines for, in Walsh's words, "some outrageous" stunts.

According to the New York Times, he offered $1,000 for the first person who could spot Yates in the district. He ended up paying Yates's doorman.

He campaigned on a bicycle and carried around an oversize check for $1,000, which he promised to donate to charity if Yates would debate him for an hour.

He also rented a hotel, invited hundreds of people and threw a birthday party for Yates, who was then 87. "The Congressman did not attend," the Times wrote. Yates won by more than 52,000 votes.

The Republican Party wasn't a fan: In that 1996 election, Walsh described himself as "moderate Republican."

"If there's a more gay-friendly Republican around, I'd like to meet him," he said. But when he successfully ran for office 14 years later later, he pitched himself far to the right of the national GOP.

When he won the six-person primary, the House Republicans' campaign arm in Washington told the Chicago Tribune it was essentially giving up on the race. Not even the state Republican Party spent money on the campaign, leaving Walsh badly outspent by his Democratic opponent, Rep. Melissa Bean. Nonpartisan election watchers in Washington ranked the race as "Safe Democrat."

Walsh ended up beating Bean by 291 votes in one of the closest results in the country, no doubt helped by the incredible Republican wave of 2010 that helped the GOP secure its largest post-World War II majority in Congress.

He's no fan of Obama: Almost immediately after arriving in Washington, Walsh started picking fights with Obama.

He posted a YouTube video accusing the president of bankrupting the country. His colorful language made him a favorite of cable news — "the biggest media hound in the freshmen class," my colleague David Weigel, then with Slate, wrote. In a 2011 interview with Weigel, Walsh claimed Obama was only elected president because he is a "black man who was articulate":

Why was he elected? Again, it comes back to who he was. He was black, he was historic. And there’s nothing racist about this. It is what it is. If he had been a dynamic, white, state senator elected to Congress he wouldn’t have gotten in the game this fast. This is what made him different. That, combined with the fact that your profession ... not you, but your profession, was just absolutely compliant. They made up their minds early that they were in love with him. They were in love with him because they thought he was a good liberal guy and they were in love with him because he pushed that magical button: a black man who was articulate, liberal, the whole white guilt, all of that.

He was kicked off air for racial slurs: Walsh's racially driven controversies didn't end with his time in politics. After politics he started a talk radio show, "The Joe Walsh Show," but it was briefly pulled from the airwaves after several racial and ethnic slurs on air during a discussion of the controversy over the team name of the Washington Redskins. Here, via the Daily Herald's Mike Riopell, is what he had to say:

Walsh is heard questioning why a CNN anchor could use the team name but wouldn't say an offensive term for African Americans.

Walsh repeated the anchor's use of an outdated term for black people and the station abruptly went to a commercial.

After a commercial break, Walsh said he was testing the radio station, using multiple words, and was setting up an offensive term for Latinos when the station abruptly went to commercial again.

Walsh said he was using the slurs to make an example of the media's double standard about what's acceptable to say — and not say.

His financial problems inspired a "deadbeat parents bill": Walsh has also had a series of financial struggles during his time in the spotlight. When he was running for office in 2010, he faced a lawsuit by his former campaign manager for not paying for services. While in office in 2011, Walsh's ex-wife sued him for more than $100,000 in back child support.

Following Walsh's headline-grabbing child support woes, the Illinois legislature debated a bill — dubbed the "deadbeat parents bill" — forbidding people who owe more than $10,000 in child support from running for office.



SEE BELOW: Other Hits From the Net On former Congressman Joe Walsh – all of which go to show that Walsh is racially biased, connected in at least one case with a very rightwing French politician, HATES Obama, is fiscally conservative, but personally and financially irresponsible. Joe Walsh is clearly not well-liked, even among Republicans.

One of his articles below is of some interest to me because I do believe that for a variety of reasons, the family unit in many black homes is not producing good students nearly as often as it should, and kids who will refrain from drugs/sex/gangs long enough to get their 12 years of public schooling, and with enough knowledge to proceed on to college and a degree.

I mention that because the first step in the upward path of our often praised American Opportunities is the home itself. It’s not just about the parents’ will to be stronger in their parenting skills, however, but about their having enough time to spend away from a poorly paid job in order to actively help teach their own kids, like many white parents do. Unlike Walsh, however, I think that the overall society is a very large part of that problem, and that the school administration and teachers have, sometimes cynically, failed to stimulate, aid, and when necessary goad the kids into a more serious effort in their studies. A very interesting UK study cites the same problem there, and puts it down to the very low expectations from parents to teachers to the overall society, which causes educators to “dumb down” their teaching to match the assumed low intelligence of the black and Hispanic children. I suggest you read it. That happens a great deal in the US, too.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/black-parents-should-urge-their-children-to-learn-9271720.html

NewsEducationEducation News
'Black parents should urge their children to learn'
Wednesday 13 March 2002



Walsh Search Results

Joe Walsh Child Support: Ex-Tea Party Rep Says He Can't Afford ...
www.huffingtonpost.com/.../joe-walsh-child-support...
The Huffington Post
Feb 12, 2013 - Joe Walsh Child Support: Ex-Tea Party Rep Says He Can't Afford ... to the Sun-Times, Walsh's attorneys claimed the ex-congressman does not ...

Joe Walsh (Illinois politician) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Walsh_(Illinois_politician)
Wikipedia
William Joseph Walsh, known as Joe Walsh (born December 27, 1961), is an American conservative talk radio host and former politician. He served one term in the United States House of Representatives for ... While he received little Republican Party support in his bid against Bean, he was popular with the Tea Party ...
‎Early life, education and ... · ‎Fundraising and advocacy career

Unemployed Loser Ex-Congressman Joe Walsh Goes Back To What ...
wonkette.com/.../unemployed-loser-ex-congressman-joe-walsh...
Wonkette
Feb 12, 2013 - In the case of one dumb, defeated ex-congressman, Joe Walsh, being ... of funds to pay his ex-wife the six figures he owes her in Child Support.

Deranged Tea Party Favorite Joe Walsh Gets Destroyed In These ...
samuel-warde.com/2015/01/deranged-tea-party-favorite-joe-walsh/
Jan 15, 2015 - Former congressman and deranged Tea Party favorite Joe Walsh is at it ... for being sued for $117,437 — 9 years worth in unpaid child support.

Black Parents Need to Get It Together, Says Former Tea Party ...
www.motherjones.com/.../joe-walsh-black-parents-need-get...
Mother Jones
Aug 28, 2013 - ... Says Former Tea Party Congressman Sued Over Child Support ... Joe Walsh (R-Ill.) Heather Charles/Chicago Tribune/ZumaPress.com.



JOE WALSH ARTICLES AND EXCERPTS --

http://samuel-warde.com/2015/01/deranged-tea-party-favorite-joe-walsh/ (Internet magazine “Liberals Unite”)
Deranged Tea Party Favorite Joe Walsh Gets Destroyed In These Insane Smackdowns
January 15, 2015 by Samuel Warde

Former congressman and deranged Tea Party favorite Joe Walsh is at it again, this time tweeting that he hopes that Islamists target “the appeasing cowards at CNN, MSNBC, et al.”

In celebration, we have decided to put together 5 of the greatest meltdowns from this one-term Tea Party wonder.

In the first video you see him flipping out and yelling at constituents during a town hall meeting in Gurnee, Illinois. In the second he gets taken down by Chris Matthews over the debt ceiling crisis and the complete lack of a Republican plan. In the next one Marin Bashir confronts Walsh for calling President Obama a liar, an idiot, saying he was elected because he was black & skipping the President’s speech on jobs.

. . . .

Marin Bashir confronts Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Illinois) for calling President Obama a liar, an idiot, saying he was elected because he was black & skipping the President’s speech on jobs.

Walsh and CNN Anchor Ashleigh Banfield Get in Shouting Match Over Tammy Duckworth Comments

Walsh’s Illinois Republican said his opponent, Iraq War veteran Tammy Duckworth, was not a “true” hero because she often makes reference to her military service on the campaign trail. . . . .



You all know by now that I am actually shocked at Joe Walsh’s statements, history in politics and view of the world. I have included the Wikipedia below because it gives more detail than the news articles do, even down to the terrible events of July 7th. It’s interesting and, if you are by any chance a fan of Walsh’s, perhaps you won’t be by the time you reach the end. You will note, he promises to run for president in 2020 if Hillary wins this year – gallop in on his powerful steed and save the day, I suppose.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Walsh_(Illinois_politician)

Joe Walsh (Illinois politician)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

William Joseph Walsh, known as Joe Walsh (born December 27, 1961), is an American conservative talk radio host and former politician. He served one term in the United States House of Representatives for Illinois' 8th congressional district.[1][2][3] He served from January 2011 through January 2013, after defeating three-term incumbent Democratic Representative Melissa Bean by a margin of 291 votes in a surprising upset.[4] He is a member of the Republican Party. While he received little Republican Party support in his bid against Bean, he was popular with the Tea Party movement.[5][6] Walsh ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1996 and for the Illinois General Assembly in 1998.[7][8] In the 1990s, he called himself a moderate Republican, but he is now a conservative and a Tea Party activist.[9][10]

During his first months in Congress, Walsh emerged as a sharp critic of the Obama Administration, accusing the president of abandoning the U.S.–Israel alliance[11] and bankrupting the country.[12] He also challenged President Barack Obama to secure the borders with "moats and alligators", if necessary.[6] Walsh maintained a no-compromise approach to legislating that included rejecting any tax increases.[12] He consistently voted against raising the federal debt ceiling and authored a balanced budget amendment to the United States Constitution.[13]

. . . .

Early life, education and early career

Walsh was born and raised in the Chicago suburb of North Barrington, the fifth of nine children.[18] He graduated from Barrington High School in 1980, where he was the class president and active in sports.[19] He attended Grinnell College then earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Iowa in 1985.[1][18] In the mid-1980s, he embarked on an acting career, taking lessons in stage, theater and television at The Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in New York and Los Angeles.[6][19] He completed a Master of Public Policy at the University of Chicago's Harris School of Public Policy Studies in 1991.[1][20]

Described as a "former social worker" by The New York Times, CNN, and Human Events[9][21][22] Walsh worked with the Jobs for Youth program in the inner-city Chicago area, teaching high school dropouts basic academic and job skills.[23] He later taught American government and American history at Oakton Community College and the Hebrew Theological College.[23]

Fundraising and advocacy career

Walsh's congressional website indicates he has advocated for "market-based solutions to education reform and urban poverty".[23] He ran the Daniel Murphy Scholarship Fund, a Chicago-based, privately funded program which grants scholarships to low-income students to attend private high schools.[23] He raised funds for two organizations advocating school choice: the American Education Reform Council, and the Milton and Rose Friedman Foundation.[23] In addition, Walsh raised nearly $1 million over a five-year period for the Fabretto Children's Foundation, an international charity which uses education and micro-enterprise to alleviate poverty among Nicaraguan children.[24]

Walsh also worked on state and local government policy issues for The Heartland Institute,[23] a libertarian free-market think tank based in Chicago. He helped launch conservative organizations that seek to limit government and elect fiscal conservatives to state legislatures such as the Legislative Education Action Drive and the Americans for Limited Government.[23] He also did consulting work with the United Republican Fund, an Illinois political action committee helping to elect Republican state legislators.[23]

. . . .

Post-congressional career

On March 25, 2013, Walsh aired his first radio show on Chicago's talk station WIND-AM 560, accordingly called The Joe Walsh Show, as a conservative political commentator.[66][67] After less than a year on the air in Chicago, The Joe Walsh Show began airing on WNYM-AM 970 in New York City.[68] In April 2015, WNYM-AM 970 dropped Walsh from its radio platform.[69]

On June 19, 2014, Walsh was removed from his radio show for using racially charged language. He was on air again the next day. WIND general manager Jeff Reisman commented: "During the segment Joe intended to cite several common racial slurs as examples. He did not in any way use them in a defamatory or derogatory manner, simply as examples. However, AM 560 The Answer did not allow them to go on the air. AM 560 The Answer has a policy of not using certain words on the air that are highly inflammatory and offensive even in the context of a discussion of why those words are offensive. We will continue that policy."[70][71]

On December 19, 2015, Walsh announced that, should presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton win the 2016 United States presidential election, he would run for the office himself in 2020.[72]

On July 7, 2016, the night of the 2016 shooting of Dallas police officers, Walsh appeared to some to threaten President Obama and what he called Black Lives Matter "punks" on Twitter, writing "This is now war. Watch out Obama. Watch out Black Lives Matter punks. Real America is coming after you."[73][74] After deleting the tweet (by his account it was deleted by Twitter), Walsh wrote later, "I wasn't calling for violence, against Obama or anyone. Obama's words and BLM's deeds have gotten cops killed. Time for us to defend our cops."[75] The next morning, Walsh stated in an interview with the Chicago Tribune that Twitter suspended his account and deleted the tweet itself: "The pre-condition for me reopening my account was they had to delete that tweet." He said, "Of course I didn't mean 'let's go kill Obama and Black Lives Matter.' I was not trying to incite violence against Obama and Black Lives Matter. That's crazy and stupid and wrong. It would end my career and it's wrong."[76]

Political positions

In his failed 1996 congressional bid, Walsh was more socially liberal, favoring abortion rights and gun control.[19]

Walsh holds fiscally conservative views. On taxes, he said he favors extending the Bush tax cuts, abolishing the estate tax, and cutting both the capital gains and corporate tax rates.[25] He blamed joblessness on a reluctance by small businesses to hire and traced that reluctance to an uncertainty on tax policy.[25] In November 2011, Walsh described the Occupy movement as composed of "generally spoiled, pampered, unfocused, clueless young people and a smattering of other people who don’t understand this country and are advocating anti-American solutions." When a constituent pointed out that veterans have also taken part in the Occupy movement, Walsh responded, "I don't know how many veterans are part of the Occupy protest. I can't imagine it's many. But anyone who would advocate socialist solutions to certain problems in this country ... they don't understand this country."[77]

On entitlement reform, he suggested cuts would have to be made.[25] "The first thing we need to do is acknowledge that everybody is going to have to give on Social Security reform and Medicare reform," he said.[25] Walsh opposes the extension of unemployment benefits.[25] He said the benefits have already been extended for too long and that attention should be paid to the cost.[25] Following President Obama's State of the Union address, Walsh remarked that he did not believe there should be a social safety net because it is not in the Constitution.[6]

Walsh also tends rightward on social issues. On global warming, he said the science behind it was "not definitive" and that U.S. economic interests should come first in any discussion of climate agreements.[25] Walsh also criticized President Obama's immigration policies, saying the president had made only token efforts toward securing the borders.[78] In May 2011, while holding a toy alligator in his hand, Walsh announced on the House floor that he would support tough border legislation even if it involved building moats and filling them with alligators.[78]

On abortion, he said to reporters in October 2012 that abortion is never medically necessary to save the life of the mother, saying that "with modern technology and science, you can’t find one instance" of a medically necessary abortion.[79] In response, the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, a professional association representing over 90% of board-certified obstetrician-gynecologists, said in a statement that "“contrary to the inaccurate statements made yesterday by Rep. Joe Walsh (R-IL), abortions are necessary in a number of circumstances to save the life of a woman or to preserve her health”.[80]

Walsh holds strongly pro-Israel views. In a May 2012 op-ed for the Washington Times, Walsh advocated for an Israeli annexation of the Palestinian territories, arguing that the Palestinians living there could be given "limited voting power" within the Jewish state and encouraging them to move to Jordan.[81] This led to accusations that Walsh advocated apartheid and the "soft" ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from their ancestral home.[82] He wrote a column in The Daily Caller stating that President Obama is "not Israel's friend" and should not have criticized Israel for continuing to build settlements in the occupied territories.[6][11] Walsh also argued that most American Jews are liberal and therefore, side with the Palestinians and vague ideas of peace, instead of with Israel.[11] He stated that in order to achieve peace in the Middle East, the U.S. must publicly choose Israel's side, so that Palestinians will "face the combined wrath of Israel and the United States".[11]

In November 2011, Walsh, along with fellow Tea Partier Ron Paul, met leader of the French National Front and anti-Islamist activist Marine Le Pen during her visit to the United States.[83][84]

Walsh campaigned to get Chief Minister of the Indian state of Gujarat, Narendra Modi, a diplomatic visa to the United States, which had previously been denied to him due to allegations of violations of religious freedom against Muslims during the 2002 Gujarat riots. Walsh said that Modi had “quite a successful track record” of fiscal responsibility, described him as “kind of like a Tea Party free market guy in India, which I found very appealing" and noted that he “has been recognized across the world for establishing Gujarat as the most business-friendly state in India and is widely believed to be a serious contender for the 2014 election for Indian Prime Minister.”[85][86][87] Modi subsequently won the 2014 general election, becoming Prime Minister of India.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Front_(France)

National Front (France)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The National Front (French: Front national, French pronunciation: [fʁɔ̃ na.sjɔ.nal], FN) is a socially conservative, nationalist political party in France. Its major policies include economic protectionism, a zero tolerance approach to law and order issues, and opposition to immigration. A eurosceptic party, the FN has opposed the European Union since its creation in 1993. Most political commentators place the FN on the right[13][14][15][16] to far right[19][20][21][22] but party representatives reject this and suggest other ways of looking at the left–right axis.[23] The party was founded in 1972 to unify a variety of French nationalist movements of the time. Jean-Marie Le Pen was the party's first leader and the undisputed centre of the party from its start until his resignation in 2011. Marine Le Pen, his daughter, was elected as the current leader. While the party struggled as a marginal force for its first ten years, since 1984 it has been the major force of French nationalism.[24] . . . .



SCIENCE

https://www.scienceworld.ca/why-cheddar-orange#comment-6720

Monday, October 25, 2010 - 4:15pm
Why is cheddar orange?

Did you know Cheddar cheese is orange because of food colouring? I just found out. It's not like it's toxic or anything, but still it was a shock. Somehow I'd always assumed the orangeyness was just a byproduct of some traditional cheese making process. I checked my package of cheese and sure enough, it listed "colour." So why is Cheddar coloured orange? I felt like a rat in a maze trying to find out.

Orange You Glad I Asked

First of all, I found out that in fact, not all Cheddar is orange, including most of the stuff in England, although other cheeses, like Cheshire, are. In the States, Cheddar from Wisconsin is mostly orange, whereas Cheddar from New England is usually white, as are Cheddars from Ontario and Quebec. I went to a hard core cheese store which sold only white Cheddar. Sometimes people think they can taste differences, but these are more likely the result of differences in aging or in pasteurized versus raw milk. The cheese guy I spoke to said he just preferred unadulterated cheeses on principle.

Colour My World

Since at least the 1800s, in those Cheddars that are orange, the colour comes from annatto or roucou, the red seeds of the achiote tree (Bixa orellana) native to central and south America. The Aztecs used it as body paint. The seeds contain bixen and norbixen, which are caretenoids and antioxidants. But that doesn't seem to explain why they were added to cheese in the first place.

Cheesy Beginnings

Cheddar cheese began in a place called Cheddar, Somerset County, England. Cheesemaking in the area goes back to 1170 AD and something distinguished as Cheddar cheese to the 1500s. Cheddaring is now the term for a method of dealing with the curds, though not only in Cheddar.

Coloured Past

Back when cows actually ate grass, they produced a more yellowy milk in spring and summer because of the beta carotenes in the grass. Over the winter, they ate hay, which is dried grass. It has lost the beta carotenes, so the milk is paler.

Perception is Everything

People saw the yellower cheese as being better, so cheese makers added colour to make the cheese look darker all year and fetch a higher price. In another version of this, cheese makers outside of Cheddar added colour to make their cheese more like the cheese from the well-fed cows of Cheddar.

Evolutionary Cheese

Then, in a cheese maker's arms race, more colour was considered better until it ended up orange. Orange cheese became a purple cow, a way to be remarkable and distinct. This may explain the orange in the Wisconsin cheese and the mass marketing of orange processed cheese that has led to my perception that cheddar is orange at all.



This kind of story is why I have become so cynical about the world of business. It’s practices are all so cheesy!! I don't think being a businessman should be sufficient qualification for election to the US presidency.



http://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/nasa-rovers-sand-dune-studies-yield-surprise

Mars Curiosity
NASA Rover's Sand-Dune Studies Yield Surprise
June 30, 2016

Photograph -- Two sizes of ripples are evident in this Dec. 13, 2015, view of a top of a Martian sand dune, from NASA's Curiosity Mars rover. Sand dunes and the smaller type of ripples also exist on Earth. The larger ripples are a type not seen on Earth nor previously recognized as a distinct type on Mars.
Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS


Some of the wind-sculpted sand ripples on Mars are a type not seen on Earth, and their relationship to the thin Martian atmosphere today provides new clues about the atmosphere's history.

The determination that these mid-size ripples are a distinct type resulted from observations by NASA's Curiosity Mars rover. Six months ago, Curiosity made the first up-close study of active sand dunes anywhere other than Earth, at the "Bagnold Dunes" on the northwestern flank of Mars' Mount Sharp.

"Earth and Mars both have big sand dunes and small sand ripples, but on Mars, there's something in between that we don't have on Earth," said Mathieu Lapotre, a graduate student at Caltech in Pasadena, California, and science team collaborator for the Curiosity mission. He is the lead author of a report about these mid-size ripples published in the July 1 issue of the journal Science.

Both planets have true dunes -- typically larger than a football field -- with downwind faces shaped by sand avalanches, making them steeper than the upwind faces.

Earth also has smaller ripples -- appearing in rows typically less than a foot (less than 30 centimeters) apart -- that are formed by wind-carried sand grains colliding with other sand grains along the ground. Some of these "impact ripples" corrugate the surfaces of sand dunes and beaches.

Images of Martian sand dunes taken from orbit have, for years, shown ripples about 10 feet (3 meters) apart on dunes' surfaces. Until Curiosity studied the Bagnold Dunes, the interpretation was that impact ripples on Mars could be several times larger than impact ripples on Earth. Features the scale of Earth's impact ripples would go unseen at the resolution of images taken from orbit imaging and would not be expected to be present if the meter-scale ripples were impact ripples.

"As Curiosity was approaching the Bagnold Dunes, we started seeing that the crest lines of the meter-scale ripples are sinuous," Lapotre said. "That is not like impact ripples, but it is just like sand ripples that form under moving water on Earth. And we saw that superimposed on the surfaces of these larger ripples were ripples the same size and shape as impact ripples on Earth."

Besides the sinuous crests, another similarity between the mid-size ripples on Mars and underwater ripples on Earth is that, in each case, one face of each ripple is steeper than the face on the other side and has sand flows, as in a dune. Researchers conclude that the meter-scale ripples are built by Martian wind dragging sand particles the way flowing water drags sand particles on Earth -- a different mechanism than how either dunes or impact ripples form. Lapotre and co-authors call them "wind-drag ripples."

"The size of these ripples is related to the density of the fluid moving the grains, and that fluid is the Martian atmosphere," he said. "We think Mars had a thicker atmosphere in the past that might have formed smaller wind-drag ripples or even have prevented their formation altogether. Thus, the size of preserved wind-drag ripples, where found in Martian sandstones, may have recorded the thinning of the atmosphere."

The researchers checked ripple textures preserved in sandstone more than 3 billion years old at sites investigated by Curiosity and by NASA's Opportunity Mars rover. They found wind-drag ripples about the same size as modern ones on active dunes. That fits with other lines of evidence that Mars lost most of its original atmosphere early in the planet's history.

Other findings from Curiosity's work at the Bagnold Dunes point to similarities between how dunes behave on Mars and Earth.

"During our visit to the active Bagnold Dunes, you might almost forget you’re on Mars, given how similar the sand behaves in spite of the different gravity and atmosphere. But these mid-sized ripples are a reminder that those differences can surprise us," said Curiosity Project Scientist Ashwin Vasavada, of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena.

After examining the dune field, Curiosity resumed climbing the lower portion of Mount Sharp. The mission is investigating evidence about how and when ancient environmental conditions in the area evolved from freshwater settings favorable for microbial life, if Mars has ever hosted life, into conditions drier and less habitable. For more information about Curiosity, visit:

http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl

Guy Webster
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-354-6278
guy.webster@jpl.nasa.gov

Robert Perkins
Caltech, Pasadena, Calif.
626-395-1862 / 626-658-1053
rperkins@caltech.edu

2016-169

Last Updated: June 30, 2016
Editor: Tony Greicius



PURE FUN


First, take a look at these photos. It looks just like scenes from the 1970s. HONK! Festival of Activist Street Bands, Website: http://honkfest.org/. Such a Honk! Band was described as following the BLM march in Dallas, just before the shooting started. Honk! Bands and Second Line Bands are used to celebrate the life of someone recently deceased. Go to yesterday's blog under the heading of Dallas Tragedy.



https://www.yahoo.com/tv/prince-george-throws-tantrum-still-152600854.html

Prince George Throws a Tantrum, Is Still Adorable at Military Show With Kate Middleton and Prince William -- See the Pics!
Antoinette Bueno, Entertainment Tonight
July 8, 2016 6 hours ago


Prince George experienced plenty of excitement on Friday when he visited the Royal International Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford, Gloucestershire -- the world's largest military airshow -- where he appeared to be a handful for his parents!

Duchess Kate and Prince William brought their adorable, scene-stealing 2-year-old to the event, where Prince George got to ride in a helicopter and see aircrafts like the Red Arrow Hawk up close.

View image on Twitter
View image on Twitter
Follow
Kensington Palace ✔ @KensingtonRoyal
Taking a closer look @rafredarrows Red Arrow Hawk, which will take part in the @airtattoo later
7:14 AM - 8 Jul 2016
281 281 Retweets 1,289 1,289 likes
View image on TwitterView image on Twitter
Follow
Kensington Palace ✔ @KensingtonRoyal
Prince George takes a seat in a @rafredarrows Red Arrow Hawk #RIAT2016
7:33 AM - 8 Jul 2016
572 572 Retweets 1,803 1,803 likes
WATCH: Prince George Gets His Own Winnie-the-Pooh Story -- See the Adorable Pics!

View image on Twitter
View image on Twitter
Follow
Kensington Palace ✔ @KensingtonRoyal
Taking a closer look at a @RoyalAirForce Squirrel helicopter, which The Duke trained upon @RAFShawburyCC in 2009
7:25 AM - 8 Jul 2016
718 718 Retweets 3,897 3,897 likes
He even got to meet some Air Cadets.

View image on Twitter
View image on Twitter
Follow
Kensington Palace ✔ @KensingtonRoyal
TRHs meet Air Cadets @airtattoo - The Duchess is Honorary Air Commandant @aircadets #RIAT2016
7:55 AM - 8 Jul 2016
172 172 Retweets 788 788 likes
View image on Twitter
View image on Twitter
Follow
Kensington Palace ✔ @KensingtonRoyal
Great to meet the @ChinookDisplay team at the @airtattoo #RIAT2016
10:46 AM - 8 Jul 2016
284 284 Retweets 1,567 1,567 likes
Though the toddler appeared to get a little overwhelmed as the day wore on, becoming a little fussy.

Getty Images
... Perhaps he just wanted his mom!