It’s increasingly hard to know who exactly is pulling America’s puppet strings but when I launched my Morning Readings yesterday, it became quickly obvious that my country seems to be about two inches shy of being left of plumb. Yes, I believe we are somewhat off center and that the tail is now wagging the dog. Here are six reasons the true American people can’t be quiet for too much longer. …
NO. 1 -- The Columbia Heights neighborhood in Washington D.C. is a toney type of place where you wouldn’t hesitate for a moment to take your wife and children to one of many restaurants where you can sit outside and enjoy the moment. But a strange thing occurred there Monday when a band of purported Black Lives Matters activists loudly confronted the diners at several of these pleasant eateries and demanded the customers – almost entirely white – raise their fists in a sign of solidarity against “white supremacy.”
This is outrageous.
The people of the United States should never be subjected to such blatant misbehavior, such an invasion of their civic rights and such a horrible display of despicable people running amok and trampling on the peace and gentleness of others. Where were the police? Where did decency go? What became of “The Golden Rule?”In an account on the postmillinnial.com website, it read: “In an outdoor venue, BLM protestors surrounded a masked woman who appeared to be enjoying a peaceful meal alone. One man crouched down to eye-level, shaking his head as he stated something in her face. As the aggressors leaned in, the sheer numbers forced her to recline in her seat, shrinking away from the pouncing mob. Her diplomatic voice was drowned out by chants of "No Justice! No Peace!"
“On the outdoor patio of the Mezcalero Cocina Mexicana, a young couple was berated by a black woman who expressed herself with dramatic hand signs gestured over their food. The BLM sympathizer at the table beside the altercation also clenched his white fist. “Put your mask on now, huh? Motherf*****!" a supporter from the viewing crowd yelled at the man bullied into submission.
The story added, “One protestor decided to flash their middle finger instead, holding the hateful pose throughout the entire race-baiting incident. These innocent civilians were merely paying customers, venturing outside their homes to break bread with their loved ones or in solitude—without having to display their solidarity. That's when the BLM mob attacked their existence in their daily lives for not being actively "anti-racist."
[NOTE: Over 90 percent of the bullied complied with the BLM requests. In all accounts, there was no mention of any arrests. I still would not recommend any such activism south of the Mason-Dixon, for what that’s worth.]
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NO. 2 -- On Tuesday President Trump reiterated his plea to the governor and mayor in Portland, Or., to let our nation help with their addled thinking yesterday. President Trump requested that Brown and Wheeler "call up the National Guard like should have been done three months ago. They must stop calling these anarchists and agitators 'peaceful protesters,'" Trump tweeted. "Come back into the real world! The Federal Government is ready to end this problem immediately upon your request."
Oregon Governor Katie Brown, seeming unfazed as the nightly rioting will soon enter its 90th straight day, tweeted back, “Oregon isn't interested in [Trump's] political theater." The Oregon National Guard is currently focused on aiding with wildfires, distributing PPE, and helping with unemployment calls, Brown said — saying that what the state really needs is financial resources, N-95 masks, and testing supplies.
"Let me be clear: It’s time for the violence and vandalism to end so Portland can focus on the important work to be done to achieve real change for racial justice. Those who have committed acts of violence will be held accountable," Brown continued. "We must work together to deescalate the potential for confrontation, by continuing to foster community conversations and utilizing trained law enforcement officers to keep the peace and protect free speech, not soldiers."
For the record, there have been over 20 arrests in each of the past two nights in Portland. Those arrested, who well know the Portland District Attorney has pledged not to prosecute most cases, are taken to the city’s justice center, duly charged, and then immediately released.
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NO. 3 – The USA Network reports: “LOUISVILLE, Ky. — What organizers called a “massive demonstration" over the death of Breonna Taylor led to the arrests of more than 60 protesters on Tuesday afternoon.
“The demonstration marks the end of BreonnaCon, a four-day event meant to draw attention to her case. The event was organized by New York-based social justice organization Until Freedom, which was behind the July sit-in at Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s house that resulted in 87 arrests. The group's leaders have been in Louisville for the past month to lead protests in the name of Taylor and racial justice.
“Louisville Metro Police Department Interim Chief Robert Schroeder said at a news briefing Tuesday afternoon that 64 people were arrested and charged with obstructing a roadway and disorderly conduct.”
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NO. 4 -- Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers, who has yet to condemn the burnings and violence in Kenosha after video of a black man being shot by cops hit Twitter and spawned angry mobs on Sunday, has instead raised the nation’s eyebrows by seemingly offering his concern for the protesters instead of the police. There was widespread destruction in the predominately black neighborhood of Kenosha that quickly spread to the state capitol in Madison. But the Democratic governor lamented racism and called for a special session of the state legislature to address police reform (i.e., to defund law enforcement.)
According to Madison.com (the Wisconsin State Journal), the governor statement read: “The day after the shooting of a Black man by Kenosha police, Governor Tony Evers called on the Republican-led Legislature to “rise to this movement and this moment” by acting on bills aiming to bolster transparency in the state’s approach to law enforcement.
The special session call, which urges lawmakers to convene Aug. 31, follows an evening in which activists took to the streets in Kenosha and elsewhere to denounce the incident and the Department of Justice launched a probe as the officers involved were placed on administrative leave.
Evers, accompanied by Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, said the bills were “common-sense policies” and that the state needs to “put the lives of Black Wisconsinites above politics.”
The pair pulled together a package of nine bills they said would bolster transparency and accountability in policing earlier this summer, the same bills they want lawmakers to act on in the coming week.
“Leaders show up,” Evers said Monday afternoon. “Leaders do the work that needs to be done and that the people demand of them. But we cannot wait for Republican leadership to show up for work because clearly they intend to keep us waiting. That’s not going to cut it.”
Over 1,000 people demonstrated down State Street in Madison on Monday night, chanting, “This is not a riot, this is a revolution!”
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NO. 5 -- Scott Walker, the ex-Governor of Wisconsin, was not shy on Tuesday when he laid blame for the nation’s wave of lawlessness. “Unfortunately, Democrats like Joe Biden and even Governor Evers here in Wisconsin have seemed to at least leapfrog the entire process,” he said. “And in a way, I believe have almost… encouraged people to go forward with the rioting, which is… causing incredible damage and harm to the people who live in that very community.”
Walker said an independent investigation of Sunday’s shooting of Jacob Blake should commence immediately. “I don't know what's going to happen in this case,” he said. “What I do know is that leaders at the local, state and the federal level have to speak out about violence. The rioting does no good and only causes more harm, more danger.”
Walker ensured that making these changes is completely doable and used Senator Tim Scott’s proposed bill as an example which he suggested “could have” passed the U.S. Senate.
“We need to do more things like that, but we cannot rush to just allow rioters to go forward,” he said. “And I think the governor here needs to bring out more members of National Guard, gain control. Let the investigation go forth independently and see where the facts take us.”
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NO. 6 -- The NFL’s Detroit Lions cancelled a 3-hour practice on Tuesday in the wake of a black man, Jacob Blake, who was shot by police in Kenosha, Wisc. According to Michigan sources, “I didn’t really feel right about going into practice and running some football drill without talking to my team,” head coach Matt Patricia said.
“The Lions were scheduled to hit the practice field at 10:30 a.m. Instead, they held a team meeting about the Blake shooting. Practice was pushed to 1:15 p.m., then eventually canceled all together as the moment became bigger than football.
“About three hours after practice was scheduled to start, the entire team emerged in the driveway of their Allen Park headquarters to announce why they wouldn’t practice. “The world can’t go on,” they wrote on one side of a whiteboard. “We won’t be silent,” they wrote on the other,” according to M.com.
“Been a lot of days in my life that I’ve been proud to be a Detroit Lion and a quarterback in the NFL, one of 32 guys that gets to do what I get to do on a daily basis, and part of a team that gets to go out and play games on Sundays and play in front of crowds, win games and do all that -- but never more of an offseason, and really a day like today, that I’ve been more proud to be a part of this team and a member of NFL and do what I do,” said quarterback Matthew Stafford, a 12th-year veteran who just donated $1.5 million to a social justice initiative at the University of Georgia.
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I’m telling you – this is six reflections on America, all within the 24 hours, and it makes me want to vomit.
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August 26, 2020 at 11:00AM
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Roy Exum: Six Things To Loathe - The Chattanoogan
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