Wednesday, March 31, 2021
Tuesday, March 30, 2021
Monday, March 29, 2021
DeSantis vows to take executive action against 'vaccine passports'
March 29, 2021 - 04:44 PM EDT
BY JUSTINE COLEMAN
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) vowed to take executive action this week banning "vaccine passports" that businesses and local governments could potentially require to show digital or physical proof of vaccination against COVID-19.
The Florida governor said during a Monday press conference that he would take action by "an executive function, emergency function" against vaccine passports and requested the Republican state legislature draft a bill forbidding such passports.
"We always said we wanted to provide it for all but mandate it for none," DeSantis said in Tallahassee. "And that was something that, while it was advised to take particularly if you're vulnerable, we were not going to force you to do it."
"It's completely unacceptable for either the government or the private sector to impose upon you the requirement that you show proof of vaccine to just simply participate in normal society," he added.
DeSantis said he believes people "have certain freedoms and individual liberties" to decide whether to get the vaccine and conveyed concerns about privacy if such a program was launched.
"You're going to do this and what, give all this information to some big corporation?" the governor said. "You want the fox to guard the hen house? I mean give me a break."
The governor's press conference followed his signing of legislation that protects businesses and schools from COVID-19-related lawsuits. DeSantis has previously expressed his disapproval of vaccine passports, which some countries including Denmark, have already begun implementing.
New York was the first state in the U.S. to announce its vaccine passport program called Excelsior Pass which will use a QR code to get into different venues.
Andy Slavitt, White House senior adviser on COVID-19, said earlier Monday that the federal government is not "viewing its role as the place to create a passport, nor a place to hold the data of citizens."
"We view this as something that the private sector is doing and will do," he said, noting that the government plans to ensure equitable access to and privacy of these programs.
"It is important for us, and it will be - we will be very clear about how that will happen, that the guidelines that I just talked about are part of that process," he added.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki reiterated Slavitt's comments during a press briefing, adding that there will not be a "centralized, universal federal vaccinations database" and "no federal mandate requiring everyone to obtain a single vaccination credential."
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) vowed to take executive action this week banning "vaccine passports" that businesses and local governments could potentially require to show digital or physical proof of vaccination against COVID-19.
The Florida governor said during a Monday press conference that he would take action by "an executive function, emergency function" against vaccine passports and requested the Republican state legislature draft a bill forbidding such passports.
"We always said we wanted to provide it for all but mandate it for none," DeSantis said in Tallahassee. "And that was something that, while it was advised to take particularly if you're vulnerable, we were not going to force you to do it."
"It's completely unacceptable for either the government or the private sector to impose upon you the requirement that you show proof of vaccine to just simply participate in normal society," he added.
DeSantis said he believes people "have certain freedoms and individual liberties" to decide whether to get the vaccine and conveyed concerns about privacy if such a program was launched.
"You're going to do this and what, give all this information to some big corporation?" the governor said. "You want the fox to guard the hen house? I mean give me a break."
The governor's press conference followed his signing of legislation that protects businesses and schools from COVID-19-related lawsuits. DeSantis has previously expressed his disapproval of vaccine passports, which some countries including Denmark, have already begun implementing.
New York was the first state in the U.S. to announce its vaccine passport program called Excelsior Pass which will use a QR code to get into different venues.
Andy Slavitt, White House senior adviser on COVID-19, said earlier Monday that the federal government is not "viewing its role as the place to create a passport, nor a place to hold the data of citizens."
"We view this as something that the private sector is doing and will do," he said, noting that the government plans to ensure equitable access to and privacy of these programs.
"It is important for us, and it will be - we will be very clear about how that will happen, that the guidelines that I just talked about are part of that process," he added.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki reiterated Slavitt's comments during a press briefing, adding that there will not be a "centralized, universal federal vaccinations database" and "no federal mandate requiring everyone to obtain a single vaccination credential."
Border Democrat Shares Another Batch of Leaked Photos From Border Patrol Facilities
Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) speaks during a rally in Washington on Sept. 12, 2019. (Tom Brenner/Getty Images)MORE
IMMIGRATION & BORDER SECURITY
BY JACK PHILLIPS
March 28, 2021 Updated: March 28, 2021
Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), whose congressional district lies along the southern border, shared another batch of photos that were sourced from Border Patrol facilities.
Cuellar aired the photos during a CBS News segment on Sunday morning. The photos showed numerous unaccompanied minors being held in overcrowded conditions, sitting on the floor with foil blankets, and more.
“Border Patrol does not want to keep people there longer than 72 hours,” Cuellar told the network. “But there’s two issues, two factors coming into play. One, there are so many—there’s a large number of people coming across every single day, groups of over 100 individuals coming in into the Border Patrol custody, number one. Number two, the flow through, that is through [Health and Human Services], they’re moving and they’re trying to get more shelters open.”
Cuellar said that adult illegal immigrants are “pretty much returned,” adding that 71 percent out of 100,000 people that illegally crossed the border in February were adults.
“Those are being returned, expelled back. Some family units are turned back into Mexico depending on the age of the kids. Thirteen and above are being returned,” he remarked.
However, Cuellar said that some 2,000 people who entered illegally have been released into the United States by federal officials without any notices to appear at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) court date in the future.
“They’re supposed to appear, show up, maybe in 60 days, report to an ICE office,” he said. “This is unprecedented.”
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And these family units, he warned, have placed pressure on border towns, NGOs, and others. Cuellar said that the Mexican government can provide more assistance in dealing with the surge in illegal immigration.
“Certainly myself, the other congressmen down here, Congressman Vicente Gonzalez and of course, Vela, Congressman Filemon Vela, we all want to be helpful to the vice president,” he said, referring to two other Democratic lawmakers in Texas. “I’m glad that the president put the vice president in charge, because we need somebody that can look at the comprehensive view of what we’re seeing here. It’s not a simple solution.”
Last week, Cuellar’s office sent the first batch of photos from a Donna, Texas, overflow facility to The Epoch Times, which showed crowded conditions and children being kept in plastic pens.
And these family units, he warned, have placed pressure on border towns, NGOs, and others. Cuellar said that the Mexican government can provide more assistance in dealing with the surge in illegal immigration.
“Certainly myself, the other congressmen down here, Congressman Vicente Gonzalez and of course, Vela, Congressman Filemon Vela, we all want to be helpful to the vice president,” he said, referring to two other Democratic lawmakers in Texas. “I’m glad that the president put the vice president in charge, because we need somebody that can look at the comprehensive view of what we’re seeing here. It’s not a simple solution.”
Last week, Cuellar’s office sent the first batch of photos from a Donna, Texas, overflow facility to The Epoch Times, which showed crowded conditions and children being kept in plastic pens.
Sunday, March 28, 2021
Transportation Secretary Floats Taxing Drivers by the Mile to Pay for Infrastructure Bill
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg (R) meets with President Joe Biden in the White House's Oval Office in Washington on March 4, 2021. (Andrew Harnik/AP Photo)MORE
US NEWS
BY ZACHARY STIEBER
March 27, 2021 Updated: March 27, 2021
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg on Friday said a proposal that would tax Americans for each mile they drive “shows a lot of promise.”
Asked about various possible funding mechanisms for what’s expected to be a multi-trillion dollar infrastructure bill from the White House, Buttigieg said a mileage tax looks promising.
“If we believe in that so-called user pays principle, the idea that part of how we pay for roads is you pay based on how much you drive, the gas tax used to be the obvious way to do it, it’s not anymore. So a so-called vehicle miles traveled tax, or mileage tax, whatever you want to call it, could be the way to do it,” he said during an appearance on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”
Other funding possibilities include a new set of bonds, a carbon tax, and an increase of the gas tax.
If the latter is featured in the legislative proposal, people should keep in mind it’s more of a temporary measure, Buttigieg said.
“The gas tax has traditionally been part of how we fund the Highway Trust fund, but we know that it can’t be the answer forever, because we’re going to be using less and less gas. We’re trying to electrify the vehicle fleet. So if there’s a way to do it that doesn’t increase the burden on the middle class, we can look at it, but if we do, we’ve got to recognize that’s still not going to be a long-term answer,” he said.
The administration is working with Congress on identifying “sustainable funding streams” for the package while keeping open using some deficit financing. President Joe Biden is generally supportive of using tax increases to fund the proposal, White House press secretary Jen Psaki has said.
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Buttigieg told members of Congress during a recent hearing that America faces “a trillion-dollar backlog of needed repairs and improvements, with hundreds of billions of dollars in good projects already in the pipeline.”
“We see other countries pulling ahead of us, with consequences for strategic and economic competition. By some measures, China spends more on infrastructure every year than the U.S. and Europe combined,” he said.
The Biden administration has been discussing infrastructure with both Republicans and Democrats in recent weeks, following the partisan approval of the president’s $1.9 trillion package that included COVID-19 relief and funding for state and local governments.
Buttigieg told members of Congress during a recent hearing that America faces “a trillion-dollar backlog of needed repairs and improvements, with hundreds of billions of dollars in good projects already in the pipeline.”
“We see other countries pulling ahead of us, with consequences for strategic and economic competition. By some measures, China spends more on infrastructure every year than the U.S. and Europe combined,” he said.
The Biden administration has been discussing infrastructure with both Republicans and Democrats in recent weeks, following the partisan approval of the president’s $1.9 trillion package that included COVID-19 relief and funding for state and local governments.
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Republicans have largely signaled opposition to the infrastructure proposal, which has yet to be formally rolled out because of its size, and because they say there are indications they’ll be frozen out of negotiations yet again.
“I’m very disappointed with what I’m reading because I’m envisioning that the same thing is going to happen that happened with our COVID attempts to become a part of that,” Sen. Shelly Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) told reporters on Capitol Hill this week.
Some Democrats have said they want to use budget reconciliation for a second time. The party used the budget process for the COVID-19 bill, lowering the number of votes needed in the upper chamber from 60-50, effectively cutting out any requirement for Republican support.
“I’m going to support certainly, the next infrastructure bill, to be voted on through reconciliation,” Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) said in Washington on March 23.
Republicans have largely signaled opposition to the infrastructure proposal, which has yet to be formally rolled out because of its size, and because they say there are indications they’ll be frozen out of negotiations yet again.
“I’m very disappointed with what I’m reading because I’m envisioning that the same thing is going to happen that happened with our COVID attempts to become a part of that,” Sen. Shelly Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) told reporters on Capitol Hill this week.
Some Democrats have said they want to use budget reconciliation for a second time. The party used the budget process for the COVID-19 bill, lowering the number of votes needed in the upper chamber from 60-50, effectively cutting out any requirement for Republican support.
“I’m going to support certainly, the next infrastructure bill, to be voted on through reconciliation,” Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) said in Washington on March 23.
Saturday, March 27, 2021
France’s Macron: No regrets for rejecting new virus lockdown
By ANGELA CHARLTON
March 26, 2021
PARIS (AP) — France’s president says he has no reason to be sorry about refusing to impose a third national lockdown earlier this year, even though surging coronavirus infections are straining his country’s hospitals and more than 1,000 people with the virus are dying every week.
President Emmanuel Macron’s government has stressed the importance of keeping children in school and businesses afloat as the pandemic stretches into a second year. Families of French COVID-19 victims say, however, that Macron has turned a blind eye to their suffering.
“We were right not to implement a lockdown in France at the end of January because we didn’t have the explosion of cases that every model predicted,” Macron said late Thursday at the end of a European Union summit. “There won’t be a mea culpa from me. I don’t have remorse and won’t acknowledge failure.”
For months, France has championed a “third way” between confinement and freedom, including a nationwide curfew and closing restaurants, museums, cinemas, gyms, many shopping malls and some other businesses. The measures kept France’s infection rate steady for a while, but it’s been rising markedly again this month.
France has recorded the fourth-highest number of confirmed virus cases and one of the highest pandemic death tolls with 93,378 lives lost. Intensive care units are again at or beyond capacity in Paris and several other regions because of a flood of critically ill COVID-19 patients.
Many medical workers have urged the French government for weeks to impose stronger restrictions in response to the more contagious virus variant first identified in Britain, which now is dominant form of the virus in France.
“A zero-virus situation doesn’t exist, and that’s true for every country in Europe. We’re not an island, and even the islands who’d protected themselves sometimes saw the virus come back,” Macron said. “But we considered that with the curfew and the measures we had, we could cope.”
Relatives of people with COVID-19 who died took to social networks to express their anger at Macron’s comments.
“I started to listen to him, and it started to irritate me and I had to change the channel,” said Lionel Petitpas, whose wife, Joelle, died last year.
“It’s insane. Macron, the prime minister, they always think they are making the right decision. As a citizen, I state that no, because we are finding ourselves in the exact same situation as a year ago,” Petitpas, who started an association to allow families to mourn virus victims together, told The Associated Press.
He acknowledged the challenges facing those who have lost jobs and livelihoods to the pandemic. But he asked, “What is the point of an economy if there is no one healthy enough left to run it?”
While the government is determined to avoid a new nationwide lockdown, Macron said that tougher measures may be announced in the coming days. Last week, the government closed non-essential stores and imposed travel restrictions for residents of Paris and several other regions, but some doctors fear that won’t be enough to slow the new outbreak.
“We are at 100% occupation rate for nearly a month. We have stretched our capacities to the maximum,” Dr. Mohamed El Hadi Djerad of the Pierre Beregovoy de Nevers Hospital in Burgundy told local broadcaster France-3. “We are in a crisis situation.”
The infection rate in the Burgundy region doubled in two weeks.
PARIS (AP) — France’s president says he has no reason to be sorry about refusing to impose a third national lockdown earlier this year, even though surging coronavirus infections are straining his country’s hospitals and more than 1,000 people with the virus are dying every week.
President Emmanuel Macron’s government has stressed the importance of keeping children in school and businesses afloat as the pandemic stretches into a second year. Families of French COVID-19 victims say, however, that Macron has turned a blind eye to their suffering.
“We were right not to implement a lockdown in France at the end of January because we didn’t have the explosion of cases that every model predicted,” Macron said late Thursday at the end of a European Union summit. “There won’t be a mea culpa from me. I don’t have remorse and won’t acknowledge failure.”
For months, France has championed a “third way” between confinement and freedom, including a nationwide curfew and closing restaurants, museums, cinemas, gyms, many shopping malls and some other businesses. The measures kept France’s infection rate steady for a while, but it’s been rising markedly again this month.
France has recorded the fourth-highest number of confirmed virus cases and one of the highest pandemic death tolls with 93,378 lives lost. Intensive care units are again at or beyond capacity in Paris and several other regions because of a flood of critically ill COVID-19 patients.
Many medical workers have urged the French government for weeks to impose stronger restrictions in response to the more contagious virus variant first identified in Britain, which now is dominant form of the virus in France.
“A zero-virus situation doesn’t exist, and that’s true for every country in Europe. We’re not an island, and even the islands who’d protected themselves sometimes saw the virus come back,” Macron said. “But we considered that with the curfew and the measures we had, we could cope.”
Relatives of people with COVID-19 who died took to social networks to express their anger at Macron’s comments.
“I started to listen to him, and it started to irritate me and I had to change the channel,” said Lionel Petitpas, whose wife, Joelle, died last year.
“It’s insane. Macron, the prime minister, they always think they are making the right decision. As a citizen, I state that no, because we are finding ourselves in the exact same situation as a year ago,” Petitpas, who started an association to allow families to mourn virus victims together, told The Associated Press.
He acknowledged the challenges facing those who have lost jobs and livelihoods to the pandemic. But he asked, “What is the point of an economy if there is no one healthy enough left to run it?”
While the government is determined to avoid a new nationwide lockdown, Macron said that tougher measures may be announced in the coming days. Last week, the government closed non-essential stores and imposed travel restrictions for residents of Paris and several other regions, but some doctors fear that won’t be enough to slow the new outbreak.
“We are at 100% occupation rate for nearly a month. We have stretched our capacities to the maximum,” Dr. Mohamed El Hadi Djerad of the Pierre Beregovoy de Nevers Hospital in Burgundy told local broadcaster France-3. “We are in a crisis situation.”
The infection rate in the Burgundy region doubled in two weeks.
NYS launches vaccine, testing passport ‘Excelsior Pass’ for use at venues, theaters, stadiums
by: Corey Crockett
New York State’s “Excelsior Pass” is shown. It is a free, voluntary platform developed in partnership with IBM, which utilizes proven, secure technology to confirm an individual’s recent negative PCR or antigen test result or proof of vaccination to help fast-track the reopening of businesses and event venues in accordance with New York State Department of Health guidelines. (Image: NYS Governor’s Office)
As Americans continue to inch back toward normal life as more and more vaccines are administered, so-called vaccine passports have become a widely discussed tool to safely reopen economic engines.
Friday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the launch of the state’s “Excelsior Pass,” a digital platform to show proof of test results or vaccination to enter a participating business. Users will be able to either print out their pass or store it on their smartphones using the Excelsior Pass Wallet app. Each Pass will have a secure QR code.
The platform is similar to an airline boarding pass; it’s free to use and is voluntary.
Madison Square Garden will begin using the technology next week, the governor’s office said.
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Beginning April 2, Excelsior Pass will expand to smaller arts, entertainment and event venues.
New Yorkers can choose to use Excelsior Pass to verify their COVID-19 vaccination or negative test results as needed to gain entry to major stadiums and arenas, wedding receptions, or other events above the social gathering limit.
Interested New Yorkers can opt in to use Excelsior Pass and learn more here; interested businesses can opt in and learn more here.
“New Yorkers have proven they can follow public health guidance to beat back COVID, and the innovative Excelsior Pass is another tool in our new toolbox to fight the virus while allowing more sectors of the economy to reopen safely and keeping personal information secure,” Cuomo said. “The question of ‘public health or the economy’ has always been a false choice — the answer must be both. As more New Yorkers get vaccinated each day and as key public health metrics continue to regularly reach their lowest rates in months, the first-in-the-nation Excelsior Pass heralds the next step in our thoughtful, science-based reopening.”
The system was developed with IBM’s Digital Health Pass with a special emphasis on privacy.
Interested New Yorkers can download the Excelsior Pass Wallet app for Android here and for iOS here. Interested businesses can download the Excelsior Pass Scanner app for Android here and for iOS here.
Why America Must Lead Again Rescuing U.S. Foreign Policy After Trump
By Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
March/April 2020
RENEWING DEMOCRACY AT HOME
First and foremost, we must repair and reinvigorate our own democracy, even as we strengthen the coalition of democracies that stand with us around the world. The United States’ ability to be a force for progress in the world and to mobilize collective action starts at home. That is why I will remake our educational system so that a child’s opportunity in life isn’t determined by his or her zip code or race, reform the criminal justice system to eliminate inequitable disparities and end the epidemic of mass incarceration, restore the Voting Rights Act to ensure that everyone can be heard, and return transparency and accountability to our government.
Biden campaigning in Elkader, Iowa, December 2019
Calla Kessler / The New York Times
By nearly every measure, the credibility and influence of the United States in the world have diminished since President Barack Obama and I left office on January 20, 2017. President Donald Trump has belittled, undermined, and in some cases abandoned U.S. allies and partners. He has turned on our own intelligence professionals, diplomats, and troops. He has emboldened our adversaries and squandered our leverage to contend with national security challenges from North Korea to Iran, from Syria to Afghanistan to Venezuela, with practically nothing to show for it. He has launched ill-advised trade wars, against the United States’ friends and foes alike, that are hurting the American middle class. He has abdicated American leadership in mobilizing collective action to meet new threats, especially those unique to this century. Most profoundly, he has turned away from the democratic values that give strength to our nation and unify us as a people.
Meanwhile, the global challenges facing the United States—from climate change and mass migration to technological disruption and infectious diseases—have grown more complex and more urgent, while the rapid advance of authoritarianism, nationalism, and illiberalism has undermined our ability to collectively meet them. Democracies—paralyzed by hyperpartisanship, hobbled by corruption, weighed down by extreme inequality—are having a harder time delivering for their people. Trust in democratic institutions is down. Fear of the Other is up. And the international system that the United States so carefully constructed is coming apart at the seams. Trump and demagogues around the world are leaning into these forces for their own personal and political gain.
The next U.S. president will have to address the world as it is in January 2021, and picking up the pieces will be an enormous task. He or she will have to salvage our reputation, rebuild confidence in our leadership, and mobilize our country and our allies to rapidly meet new challenges.
By nearly every measure, the credibility and influence of the United States in the world have diminished since President Barack Obama and I left office on January 20, 2017. President Donald Trump has belittled, undermined, and in some cases abandoned U.S. allies and partners. He has turned on our own intelligence professionals, diplomats, and troops. He has emboldened our adversaries and squandered our leverage to contend with national security challenges from North Korea to Iran, from Syria to Afghanistan to Venezuela, with practically nothing to show for it. He has launched ill-advised trade wars, against the United States’ friends and foes alike, that are hurting the American middle class. He has abdicated American leadership in mobilizing collective action to meet new threats, especially those unique to this century. Most profoundly, he has turned away from the democratic values that give strength to our nation and unify us as a people.
Meanwhile, the global challenges facing the United States—from climate change and mass migration to technological disruption and infectious diseases—have grown more complex and more urgent, while the rapid advance of authoritarianism, nationalism, and illiberalism has undermined our ability to collectively meet them. Democracies—paralyzed by hyperpartisanship, hobbled by corruption, weighed down by extreme inequality—are having a harder time delivering for their people. Trust in democratic institutions is down. Fear of the Other is up. And the international system that the United States so carefully constructed is coming apart at the seams. Trump and demagogues around the world are leaning into these forces for their own personal and political gain.
The next U.S. president will have to address the world as it is in January 2021, and picking up the pieces will be an enormous task. He or she will have to salvage our reputation, rebuild confidence in our leadership, and mobilize our country and our allies to rapidly meet new challenges.
There will be no time to lose.
As president, I will take immediate steps to renew U.S. democracy and alliances, protect the United States’ economic future, and once more have America lead the world. This is not a moment for fear. This is the time to tap the strength and audacity that took us to victory in two world wars and brought down the Iron Curtain.
The triumph of democracy and liberalism over fascism and autocracy created the free world. But this contest does not just define our past. It will define our future, as well.
As president, I will take immediate steps to renew U.S. democracy and alliances, protect the United States’ economic future, and once more have America lead the world. This is not a moment for fear. This is the time to tap the strength and audacity that took us to victory in two world wars and brought down the Iron Curtain.
The triumph of democracy and liberalism over fascism and autocracy created the free world. But this contest does not just define our past. It will define our future, as well.
RENEWING DEMOCRACY AT HOME
First and foremost, we must repair and reinvigorate our own democracy, even as we strengthen the coalition of democracies that stand with us around the world. The United States’ ability to be a force for progress in the world and to mobilize collective action starts at home. That is why I will remake our educational system so that a child’s opportunity in life isn’t determined by his or her zip code or race, reform the criminal justice system to eliminate inequitable disparities and end the epidemic of mass incarceration, restore the Voting Rights Act to ensure that everyone can be heard, and return transparency and accountability to our government.
Friday, March 26, 2021
Krispy Kreme offering free doughnut a day to anyone with COVID-19 vaccination for rest of 2021
By Kelly Hayes
Published 3 days ago
The company announced Monday that anyone who shows a valid COVID-19 vaccination card will get a free Original Glazed doughnut at participating Krispy Kreme locations nationwide for the remainder of 2021.
Customers must bring in their own COVID-19 Vaccination Record Card to redeem the offer, and they can go back for one free doughnut every single day — no purchase required, the company says. Vaccine stickers do not qualify for the offer.
Krispy Kreme said anyone who has received at least one of the two shots of the Moderna or Pfizer coronavirus vaccine, or one shot of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine qualifies for the free doughnut.
RELATED: AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is safe, 79% effective in late-stage US study
"We all want to get COVID-19 behind us as fast as possible and we want to support everyone doing their part to make the country safe by getting vaccinated as soon as the vaccine is available to them," said Krispy Kreme Chief Marketing Officer Dave Skena.
Customers who show a valid COVID-19 Vaccination Record Card can get one free glazed doughnut at Krispy Kreme each day for the rest of 2021. (Photo credit: Provided / Krispy Kreme)
The famous doughnut shop is also offering up to four hours of paid time off for employees to get COVID-19 vaccines.
Several other companies have offered similar benefits to employees who choose to get vaccinated, including Target and Dollar General, while Walgreens and Uber teamed up to offer people in underserved communities free rides to vaccine centers.
The pace of vaccinations in the U.S. has rapidly increased in recent weeks with three currently authorized vaccines.
Last week, President Joe Biden said the country had met his goal of administering 100 million coronavirus shots, more than a month before the target date of his 100th day in office. Biden teased the possibility of setting a new 200 million dose goal by his 100th day in office at the end of April.
"We may be able to double it," he told reporters last week.
Nearly 125 million COVID-19 vaccines have been administered since inoculations first began in December, according to the latest numbers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
RELATED: Biden looks to double vaccine goal as US clears 100 million shots since Jan. 20
This story was reported from Cincinnati.
Source
President Biden remarks on 100M vaccinated ahead of scheduleWINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Krispy Kreme is offering Americans a sweet incentive to get a COVID-19 vaccine by giving a free doughnut to anyone who shows proof of vaccination — and inoculated customers can keep going back every single day for the rest of the year.
President Joe Biden gave his remarks on 100 million people who have been vaccinated ahead of schedule, but stressed we still have a long way to go.
The company announced Monday that anyone who shows a valid COVID-19 vaccination card will get a free Original Glazed doughnut at participating Krispy Kreme locations nationwide for the remainder of 2021.
Customers must bring in their own COVID-19 Vaccination Record Card to redeem the offer, and they can go back for one free doughnut every single day — no purchase required, the company says. Vaccine stickers do not qualify for the offer.
Krispy Kreme said anyone who has received at least one of the two shots of the Moderna or Pfizer coronavirus vaccine, or one shot of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine qualifies for the free doughnut.
RELATED: AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is safe, 79% effective in late-stage US study
"We all want to get COVID-19 behind us as fast as possible and we want to support everyone doing their part to make the country safe by getting vaccinated as soon as the vaccine is available to them," said Krispy Kreme Chief Marketing Officer Dave Skena.
Customers who show a valid COVID-19 Vaccination Record Card can get one free glazed doughnut at Krispy Kreme each day for the rest of 2021. (Photo credit: Provided / Krispy Kreme)
The famous doughnut shop is also offering up to four hours of paid time off for employees to get COVID-19 vaccines.
Several other companies have offered similar benefits to employees who choose to get vaccinated, including Target and Dollar General, while Walgreens and Uber teamed up to offer people in underserved communities free rides to vaccine centers.
The pace of vaccinations in the U.S. has rapidly increased in recent weeks with three currently authorized vaccines.
Last week, President Joe Biden said the country had met his goal of administering 100 million coronavirus shots, more than a month before the target date of his 100th day in office. Biden teased the possibility of setting a new 200 million dose goal by his 100th day in office at the end of April.
"We may be able to double it," he told reporters last week.
Nearly 125 million COVID-19 vaccines have been administered since inoculations first began in December, according to the latest numbers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
RELATED: Biden looks to double vaccine goal as US clears 100 million shots since Jan. 20
This story was reported from Cincinnati.
The Great COVID Migration: 31% Of Young Adults Relocated During The Pandemic
BY TYLER DURDEN
TUESDAY, MAR 23, 2021 - 07:10 PM
The great Covid Migration of 2020 and 2021 for people between 18 and 21 continues.
We have extensively documented the exodus from major cities not only by Gen Z and millennials, but also by corporations, over the last 12 to 18 months. This is why we weren't surprised when it was reported that 31% of people aged 18 to 31 "relocated either permanently or for an extended period of time" during the pandemic, according to CNBC.
This figure compares to 16% of adults overall who moved. Among the findings of a Bankrate.com survey, CNBC reported:
Gen Z — who range from ages 18 to 24 — were most likely to pick up stakes, with 32% relocating. That was followed by millennials — ages 25 to 40 — at 26%.
Members of Gen X — ages 41 to 56 — and baby boomers — ages 57 to 75 — were least likely to relocate, with 10% and 5% having made moves, respectively.
In terms of motivation for moving, 31% of people said they moved to be closer to friends and family. 27% said it was due to affordability and 21% said they were relocating for a job. 18% said they wanted more space and 17% said it was due to a newfound ability to work from anywhere.
And while technically they left the cities, they didn't go too far. The survey reveals that three of the five most popular relocation destinations from New York City were under 15 miles away.
When respondents left cities like Austin, Texas, Dallas, Houston or Orlando, Florida, they chose new living locations that were "less than 30 miles away", the report notes.
The survey included 5,158 adults and U.S. Postal Service address requests from January to December 2020. According to the survey, "Bankrate analyzed 12,681,085 USPS change of address requests, which covered Jan. 1 through Dec. 31, 2020. They were compiled by zip code and only registered moves within or between zip codes with at least 10 requests over that period. For example, if three people or families moved from Bethpage, NY 11714 to Myrtle Beach, SC 29577, that would not show up in the dataset, but if 11 people or families made that same move, it would."
Zach Wichter of Bankrate.com concluded: “It really seems like people are just leaving the densest neighborhoods to go to places where they may be able to get a bit more bang for their buck.”
He continued: “Millions of the most popular moves last year were within the same zip code and the same county, illustrating the desire for more affordability while staying close to home. It will be interesting to see if people have relocated permanently, or if they will return to their previous locations once we return to some sense of normalcy following the pandemic.”
Thursday, March 25, 2021
57 Black Leaders Warn Congress the ‘Equality Act’ Turns LGBT Rights Into ‘a Sword Against Faith Institutions’
Image: J F from Pixabay.com
Pastor Hal MayerSpeaker / Director
Tuesday March 23rd, 2021
CBN News, by Deborah Bunting: A group of nearly 60 black Christian leaders is urging the U.S. Senate to reject the Equality Act recently passed by the House of Representatives and instead opt for a compromise bill that protects the rights of the LGBT community while also preserving the rights of religious believers and institutions.
The Equality Act would nullify the right of Christian and other religious groups and schools to hire people according to their moral and religious beliefs, and force acceptance of lifestyles contrary to their deeply held values.
The AND Campaign sent a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee this week, signed by 57 Christian leaders such as New York City megachurch pastor A.R. Bernard, President of the AND Campaign Justin E. Giboney, Esq., former NFL player Benjamin Watson, former U.S. Ambassador-at-large for International Religious Freedom Suzan Johnson-Cook, Bishop Claude Alexander of The Park Church in North Carolina, and respected public policy strategist Barbara Williams-Skinner.
In the letter, they warned that this bill was “a danger not just to Christian institutions, but those belonging to our Jewish, Sikh, Buddhist, and Muslim neighbors as well.”
The letter detailed the dangers of the Equality Act, saying:
“It would remove many of the basic rights that allow religious organizations to operate according to the tenets of their faith. It would allow LGBT rights to be used as a sword against faith institutions rather than a shield to protect the vulnerable. In addition to failing to offer religious protections to religious institutions, the Equality Act would likely:
Revoke federal security, disaster relief, and school lunch money from thousands of religious schools.
End federal partnerships with thousands of faith-based programs that serve the most vulnerable.
Revoke the Pell Grant and federal loan eligibility for tens of thousands of students that attend hundreds of religious colleges.
Convert houses of worship and other religious properties into public accommodations, enmeshing them in constant litigation.”
Signees to the letter advocated for an alternative called the Fairness for All Act, which they say would protect religious liberty as well as preserve the rights of the LGBT community, and was more a product of churches and the LGBT community coming together to find ways to “co-exist and promote tolerance.”
They went on to urge that the Fairness for All Act be given a full hearing and vote, saying, “Black and Brown Christians worked too hard for the Civil Rights Act to have it revised in ways that would take away basic rights and funding from our communities. The Equality Act needlessly pits the concerns of diverse communities against each other.”
Our Comment:
The Equality Act is a not so subtle attack on religious values and institutions. Religious liberty has to be attacked in other way than the Sabbath to set precedence. The Equality Act is staging the assault.
Prophetic Link:
“There are many who, if they understood the spirit and the result of religious legislation, would not do anything to forward in the least the movement for Sunday enforcement. But while Satan has been making a success of his plans, the people of God have failed at their post. God had an earnest work for them to do; for the honor of his law and the religious liberty of the people are at stake. God would have us see and realize the weakness and depravity of men, and put our entire trust in him; “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” The Review and Herald, December 24, 1889, Art. B.
Source References
Marvel Comics to introduce a gay Captain America designed by transgender artist
Prophetic Intelligence Briefings are provided to show a link between current events and Bible prophecy only. The article summaries, which are not intended as a commentary in support of or in opposition to the views of the authors, do not necessarily reflect the views of Pastor Mayer or of Keep the Faith other than to point out the prophetic link.
Pastor Hal MayerSpeaker / Director
Tuesday March 23rd, 2021
CBN News, by Deborah Bunting: A group of nearly 60 black Christian leaders is urging the U.S. Senate to reject the Equality Act recently passed by the House of Representatives and instead opt for a compromise bill that protects the rights of the LGBT community while also preserving the rights of religious believers and institutions.
The Equality Act would nullify the right of Christian and other religious groups and schools to hire people according to their moral and religious beliefs, and force acceptance of lifestyles contrary to their deeply held values.
The AND Campaign sent a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee this week, signed by 57 Christian leaders such as New York City megachurch pastor A.R. Bernard, President of the AND Campaign Justin E. Giboney, Esq., former NFL player Benjamin Watson, former U.S. Ambassador-at-large for International Religious Freedom Suzan Johnson-Cook, Bishop Claude Alexander of The Park Church in North Carolina, and respected public policy strategist Barbara Williams-Skinner.
In the letter, they warned that this bill was “a danger not just to Christian institutions, but those belonging to our Jewish, Sikh, Buddhist, and Muslim neighbors as well.”
The letter detailed the dangers of the Equality Act, saying:
“It would remove many of the basic rights that allow religious organizations to operate according to the tenets of their faith. It would allow LGBT rights to be used as a sword against faith institutions rather than a shield to protect the vulnerable. In addition to failing to offer religious protections to religious institutions, the Equality Act would likely:
Revoke federal security, disaster relief, and school lunch money from thousands of religious schools.
End federal partnerships with thousands of faith-based programs that serve the most vulnerable.
Revoke the Pell Grant and federal loan eligibility for tens of thousands of students that attend hundreds of religious colleges.
Convert houses of worship and other religious properties into public accommodations, enmeshing them in constant litigation.”
Signees to the letter advocated for an alternative called the Fairness for All Act, which they say would protect religious liberty as well as preserve the rights of the LGBT community, and was more a product of churches and the LGBT community coming together to find ways to “co-exist and promote tolerance.”
They went on to urge that the Fairness for All Act be given a full hearing and vote, saying, “Black and Brown Christians worked too hard for the Civil Rights Act to have it revised in ways that would take away basic rights and funding from our communities. The Equality Act needlessly pits the concerns of diverse communities against each other.”
Our Comment:
The Equality Act is a not so subtle attack on religious values and institutions. Religious liberty has to be attacked in other way than the Sabbath to set precedence. The Equality Act is staging the assault.
Prophetic Link:
“There are many who, if they understood the spirit and the result of religious legislation, would not do anything to forward in the least the movement for Sunday enforcement. But while Satan has been making a success of his plans, the people of God have failed at their post. God had an earnest work for them to do; for the honor of his law and the religious liberty of the people are at stake. God would have us see and realize the weakness and depravity of men, and put our entire trust in him; “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” The Review and Herald, December 24, 1889, Art. B.
Source References
Marvel Comics to introduce a gay Captain America designed by transgender artist
Prophetic Intelligence Briefings are provided to show a link between current events and Bible prophecy only. The article summaries, which are not intended as a commentary in support of or in opposition to the views of the authors, do not necessarily reflect the views of Pastor Mayer or of Keep the Faith other than to point out the prophetic link.
Wednesday, March 24, 2021
Climate Envoy Kerry to Take Part in Summit Co-Hosted by China
Green
March 22, 2021, 11:09 PM EDT
Kerry has urged climate cooperation amid U.S.-China tensions China responsible for nearly 30% of greenhouse gas emissions
John Kerry, special presidential envoy for climate, speaks during a news conference at the White House in Washington on Jan. 27, 2021. Photographer: Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg
The Biden administration is set to participate in a climate summit co-hosted by China on Tuesday, just days after its first face-to-face talks with that country descended into bickering.
John Kerry, the special presidential envoy for climate, is to participate in the Ministerial on Climate Action, according to two people familiar with the matter. Yet no separate virtual session is planned between Kerry and his Chinese counterpart, Xie Zhenhua, the people said.
The virtual ministerial session, organized by the European Union, Canada and China, is intended to bring together representatives of more than 30 countries, including some of the world’s top emitters of the greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change.
In a joint statement earlier this month, the U.S. and European Union highlighted the ministerial meeting as one of several “key milestones for increasing momentum” and encouraging more ambitious greenhouse gas emissions-cutting goals before a United Nations climate summit in Glasgow this November.
The U.S. also is holding its own virtual meeting with top-emitting countries on April 22.
The Biden administration is set to participate in a climate summit co-hosted by China on Tuesday, just days after its first face-to-face talks with that country descended into bickering.
John Kerry, the special presidential envoy for climate, is to participate in the Ministerial on Climate Action, according to two people familiar with the matter. Yet no separate virtual session is planned between Kerry and his Chinese counterpart, Xie Zhenhua, the people said.
The virtual ministerial session, organized by the European Union, Canada and China, is intended to bring together representatives of more than 30 countries, including some of the world’s top emitters of the greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change.
In a joint statement earlier this month, the U.S. and European Union highlighted the ministerial meeting as one of several “key milestones for increasing momentum” and encouraging more ambitious greenhouse gas emissions-cutting goals before a United Nations climate summit in Glasgow this November.
The U.S. also is holding its own virtual meeting with top-emitting countries on April 22.
World’s First Wildlife Bond to Track Rhino Numbers in Africa
Despite a fraught U.S.-China relationship, Kerry has emphasized the U.S. can “find a way to compartmentalize” its global warming discussions with China, which is the world’s top emitter, responsible for almost 30% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Concerns about other matters , such as protecting intellectual property, are “obviously significant issues,” Kerry said on March 2 at CERAWeek by IHS Markit, “but the climate crisis is not something that can fall victim to those other concerns and contests.”
Read More: Hydrogen Is ‘Jump Ball’ in Global Clean-Energy Race, Kerry Says
Kerry, a former secretary of State and U.S. senator, has been in touch with Xie since they were both appointed, and further conversations between the two are expected, according to one of the people familiar with the interactions.
Tuesday’s meeting comes as the U.S. seeks to rebuild trust after the country’s departure from the Paris climate agreement under President Donald Trump. Since the U.S. formally rejoined the pact in February, Kerry has been meeting with climate negotiators globally to underscore the country’s commitment to the accord.
Kerry, who helped broker the landmark agreement when he led the State Department under President Barack Obama, pressed climate concerns in meetings with top European Commission officials earlier this month. A renewed alliance between the U.S. and the E.U. on climate issues could shift the dynamics of crucial global talks, encouraging China and other major polluters to step up their efforts to reduce emissions, Kerry said at the time.
U.S. Homeland Security studying how to track travel of suspected domestic extremists
Fargo, ND, USA / The Mighty 790 KFGO | KFGO
Thomson Reuters
Mar 24, 2021 3:59 PM
By Mark Hosenball and Ted Hesson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is considering expanding efforts to monitor possible domestic terrorism threats through surveillance of travel patterns of individuals, it said on Wednesday.
"Domestic violent extremism poses the most lethal, persistent terrorism-related threat to our homeland today. DHS is committed to improving security and is reviewing options for enhancing screening and vetting protocols and travel pattern analyses, consistent with privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties," a DHS spokesperson told Reuters.
Precise details were unclear for how the DHS is going to step up screening of domestic travelers for possible extremist ties or intentions. The Biden administration has emphasized in recent weeks the threat that homegrown, violent individuals, including white supremacists, present to the country.
Department of Homeland Security chief Alejandro Mayorkas told lawmakers this month that domestic violent extremism is the "greatest threat" to the United States.
U.S. intelligence agencies also warned in a report https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/21_0301_odni_unclass-summary-of-dve-assessment-17_march-final_508.pdf that domestic violent extremists, or DVEs "motivated by a range of ideologies" pose an elevated threat in the United States in 2021, including "lone offenders," who pose significant challenges, "because of their capacity for independent radicalization to violence, ability to mobilize discretely, and access to firearms."
Founded after the Sept. 11 attacks, the vast, 240,000 employee DHS is tasked with everything from immigration policy to airport security.
DHS's moves, first reported by Politico, are likely to attract skepticism from the FBI, which is principally responsible for tracking and investigating domestic terrorism threats and cases, and from members of Congress and civil libertarians concerned about government spying.
A spokesperson for the Justice Department referred requests for comment to the FBI, which declined to comment.
Two sources familiar with Congressional scrutiny of intelligence agencies said that key Congressional oversight officials had not been informed of DHS's plans to expand domestic counter-terrorism surveillance.
(Reporting By Mark Hosenball and Ted Hesson; Editing by Heather Timmons and David Gregorio)
Tuesday, March 23, 2021
Biden eyes executive action to impose new gun-control measures
President Joe Biden speaks during a tour of the James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute, Tuesday on the campus of The Ohio State University Tuesday, March 23, 2021, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
By S.A. Miller - The Washington Times - Tuesday, March 23, 2021
President Biden is considering executive action to force new gun-control measures and avoid a gun-debate logjam in Congress, the White House said Tuesday.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki did not specify what unilateral moves Mr. Biden was contemplating, but she said he had already explored the options.
“The way he sees is that there are a number of levers that any president of the United States can use, and he as vice president was leading the effort on determining executive actions that could be taken on gun safety measures, it’s something that he has worked on, he’s passionate about, he feels personally connected to,” Ms. Psaki told reporters.
Mr. Biden as vice president in the Obama administration spearheaded an unsuccessful effort to pass a universal background check for gun purchases.
Ms. Psaki said the president now feels a sense of urgency to tackle both gun control and violence after a man with an AR-15 type of semiautomatic rifle opened fire Monday at a Boulder, Colorado, grocery store, killing 10 people.
Sen. Tammy Duckworth tovote against ‘non‑diversity’ Biden nominees
“We are considering a range of levers, including working through legislation, including executive actions to address, obviously, not just gun safety measures but violence in communities, so that has been under discussion and will continue to be under discussion,” said Ms. Psaki.
Earlier, Mr. Biden called on the Senate to immediately take up House-passed measures that would expand background checks for gun purchases. He also called for a ban on rifles such as AR-15s which are sometimes referred to as assault rifles.
Police identified the suspect in custody for the Boulder shooting as Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa. He was charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder.
“We are considering a range of levers, including working through legislation, including executive actions to address, obviously, not just gun safety measures but violence in communities, so that has been under discussion and will continue to be under discussion,” said Ms. Psaki.
Earlier, Mr. Biden called on the Senate to immediately take up House-passed measures that would expand background checks for gun purchases. He also called for a ban on rifles such as AR-15s which are sometimes referred to as assault rifles.
Police identified the suspect in custody for the Boulder shooting as Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa. He was charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder.
Great Reset? Putin Says, “Not So Fast”
February 13, 2021
by Tom Luongo, Tom Luongo:
Did you happen to catch the most important political speech of the last six years?
It would have been easy to miss given everything going on. In fact, I almost did, and this speech sits at the intersection of nearly all of my areas of intense study.
The annual World Economic Forum took place last week via teleconference, what I’m calling Virtual Davos, and at this year’s event, of course, the signature topic was their project called the Great Reset.
But if the WEF was so intent on presenting the best face for the Great Reset to the world it wouldn’t have invited either Chinese Premier Xi Jinping or, more importantly, Russian President Vladimir Putin.
And it was Putin’s speech that brought down the house of cards that is the agenda of the WEF.
The last time someone walked into a major international forum and issued such a scathing critique of the current geopolitical landscape was Putin’s speech to the United Nations on September 29th, 2015, two days before he sent a small contingency of Russian air support to Syria.
There he excoriated not only the U.N. by name but most importantly the U.S. and its NATO allies by inference asking the most salient question, “Do you understand what you have done?” having unleashed chaos in an already chaotic part of the world?
As important as that speech was it was Putin’s actions after that which defined the current era of geopolitical chess across the Eurasian continent. Syria became the nexus around which the resistance to the “ISIS is invincible” narrative unraveled
And the mystery of who was behind ISIS, namely the Obama administration, was revealed to anyone paying attention.
President Trump may have taken credit for beating ISIS, but it was mostly Putin and Russia’s forces retaking the Western part of Syria which allowed that to happen, while our globalist generals, like James Mattis, did as much damage to Syria itself and as little to ISIS as possible, hoping to use them again another day.
And regardless of whether you agree or disagree with the U.S.’s policy in Syria, which I most definitely do not, it is hard to argue that Russia’s intervention there fundamentally changed the regional politics and conflicts for the foreseeable future.
It was the beginning of the voluntary disconnection of China, Russia and Iran from the West.
For standing athwart U.S. and European designs on consolidating power in the Middle East, Russia has been vilified in the West in ways that make the indoctrination I received as a kid growing up in the Cold War look like vacation advertisements for spending the summer in Crimea.
But it is that strength of purpose and character that has defined Putin’s two decades in power. He’s done wonders in rebuilding Russia.
He’s made many mistakes, mostly by first trusting American Presidents and second by underestimating just how arrogant and rapacious the leadership in Europe is.
That said, he’s now reached his limit, especially with Europe, and he’s set a firmly independent path for Russia regardless of the short-term costs.
And that’s why his speech at the World Economic Forum was so important.
Putin hadn’t spoken there for nearly a decade. In a time when WEF-controlled puppets dominate positions of power in Europe, the U.K., Canada and now the U.S., Putin walked into Virtual Davos and dumped his coffee on the carpet.
In terms I can only describe as unfailingly polite, Putin told Klaus Schwab and the WEF that their entire idea of the Great Reset is not only doomed to failure but runs counter to everything modern leadership should be pursuing.
Putin literally laughed at the idea of the Fourth Industrial Revolution – Schwab’s idea of a planned society through AI, robots and the merging of man and machine.
He flat-out told them their policies driving the middle class to the brink of extinction over the COVID-19 pandemic will further increase social and political unrest while also ensuring wealth inequality gets worse.
Putin’s no flower-throwing libertarian or anything, but his critique of the hyper-financialized post-Soviet era is accurate.
The era dominated by central banking and the continued merging of state and corporate powers has increased wealth inequality across the U.S. and Europe, benefiting millions while extracting the wealth of billions.
Listening to Putin was like listening to a cross between Pat Buchanan and the late Walter Williams. According to him the neoliberal ideal of “invite the world/invade the world” has destroyed the cultural ties within countries while hollowing out their economic prospects. Putin criticized zero-bound interest rates, QE, tariffs and sanctions as political weapons.
But the targets of those weapons, while nominally pointed at his Russia, were really the West’s own engines of vitality, as the middle classes have seen their wages stagnate, and access to education, medical care, and the courts to redress grievances fall dramatically.
Russia is a country on the rise, so is China. Once their ties are embedded deeply enough to stabilize its economy, so too will Iran rise.
Together they will lead the central Asian landmass out of the nineteenth-century quagmire that exists thanks to British and American intervention in the region. Putin’s speech made it clear that Russia is committed to the process of finding solutions to all people benefiting from the future, not just a few thousand holier-than-thou oligarchs in Europe.
Monday, March 22, 2021
Sunday, March 21, 2021
Saturday, March 20, 2021
Georgia church disowns suspect, says he betrayed faith
By LUIS ANDRES HENAO, GARY FIELDS and JESSIE WARDARSKI
The church attended by the white man charged with killing eight people at three Atlanta-area massage businesses, most of them women of Asian descent, condemned the shootings Friday and said they run contrary to the gospel and the church’s teachings.
Crabapple First Baptist Church in Milton, Georgia, also announced in a statement that it plans to remove 21-year-old Robert Aaron Long from its membership because it “can no longer affirm that he is truly a regenerate believer in Jesus Christ.”
Previously the church had only issued a brief statement expressing condolences, without mentioning Long. It also shut down its social media accounts and made its website private.
On Friday it said those measures were taken to protect the safety of its congregants.
Congregants were “distraught” when they learned the alleged shooter was a member of the community, the statement said. His family has belonged to the church for many years.
“We watched Aaron grow up and accepted him into church membership when he made his own profession of faith in Jesus Christ,” it said.
“These unthinkable and egregious murders directly contradict his own confession of faith in Jesus and the gospel.”
Investigators are still trying to discover what compelled Long to commit the worst mass killing in the United States in almost two years.
Police say he told them he was not racially motivated and claimed to have a “sex addiction,” and he apparently lashed out at what he saw as sources of temptation.
Those statements caused widespread uproar and skepticism given the locations and that six of the eight victims were women of Asian descent.
Crabapple First Baptist said it would continue to grieve, mourn and pray for the families of the victims and that it deeply regrets, “the fear and pain Asian-Americans are experiencing as a result of Aaron’s inexcusable actions.”
“No blame can be placed upon the victims,” Crabapple First Baptist said. “He alone is responsible for his evil actions and desires.”
The church also said it does not teach that acts of violence are acceptable against “certain ethnicities or against women” or that women are responsible for men’s sexual sin against them.
“Murder, especially, is a heinous evil and grievous sin. We also explicitly denounce any and all forms of hatred or violence against Asians or Asian-Americans.”
Assaults against Asian Americans have risen across the country during the coronavirus pandemic. The virus was first identified in China, and former President Donald Trump and others have used racially charged terms to describe it.
The church said it is cooperating with law enforcement and praying for “both earthly justice and divine justice.”
Tyler Bayless, who lived along with Long at an addiction recovery facility in Roswell, Georgia, for at least six months through early 2020, described him as “a little bit socially awkward but not standoffish or quiet.” Long asked that he pray for him at least a couple of times, Bayless said, but never imposed his beliefs on others.
“He had some interesting religious beliefs, I’m sure, but he was never very overtly pushy about that sort of thing. Like he was never like, ‘I’ve got to save your soul,’” Bayless said.
Bayless recalled several occasions when Long said he lapsed and went to a massage business, prompting extreme self-loathing, guilt and public confession that he feared he might harm himself. Long once asked him to hold on to a hunting knife, Bayless added.
“He said, ‘You know, I went to one of these places. I feel like I’m falling out of God’s grace,’” Bayless said.
“I mean, this was the kind of pain that he was in because of what his religious beliefs led him to think about the acts that he was engaging in.”
Bayless also said Long tried to limit his social media use to avoid what he saw as sources of temptation to sin.
Joshua Grubbs, a professor of clinical psychology at Bowling Green State University in Ohio who has researched the intersection of sexual behaviors, religion and morality, said that especially in the United States, men from conservative religious backgrounds may be prone to interpreting “just a little bit of sexual behavior that violates their morals as an addiction.”
But there’s no evidence that those sexual behaviors would predispose someone to violence against others, he said.
“The notion that ‘I have a sex addiction, I feel so bad about it, I am going to go out and kill eight people,’ I just don’t buy it,” said Grubbs, who has also treated people with the problem. “It’s not true to my experience as a researcher or a clinical psychologist.”
Grubbs counsels religious leaders on how to discuss sex, pornography and “out-of-control sexual behaviors” and advises against using language that can cause or worsen feelings of depression and shame.
“I have never once encountered a religious leader that suggested” that a cure for the behavior is to “go murder the people” who make it possible. “I have never heard that. It’s an absurd premise.”
___
Associated Press religion coverage receives support from the Lilly Endowment through The Conversation U.S. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Do Catholics need to abstain from meat on Fridays in Lent when it's a feast day?
Victoria Dodge
Lafayette Daily Advertiser
Lent is a 40-day period where Catholics abstain from luxuries and refrain from eating any meat, except fish, on Fridays in preparation for Easter. But what happens when religious observances with different obligations fall on the same day?
During Lent in 2021, two major Feast Days occur: the Solemnity of the Feast of St. Joseph on March 19, and the Solemnity of the Feast of the Annunciation on March 25.
St. Joseph's Day — also called the Solemnity of Saint Joseph — always happens during Lent. But this year it falls on March 19, a Friday.
The feast of St. Joseph is also unique in 2021 as Pope Francis has declared this to be the "Year of St. Joseph" for the worldwide Church and Bishop Douglas Deshotel has declared a "Year of St. Joseph" for the Diocese of Lafayette.
More:As Catholics practice sacrifice during the holy season of Lent, do Sundays count?
Feast days, or solemnities, are days in the Catholic church where Saints and events in the Bible are celebrated. Despite the name, the days are not always commemorated with a banquet of food but instead mean "an annual religious celebration, a day dedicated to a particular saint" according to the Oxford English Dictionary.
However, a major part of the Church’s observance of Saint Joseph's Day involves the tradition of St. Joseph's Table or St. Joseph's Altar according to Diocese of Lafayette's director of communications Blue Rolfes.
The altar features a three-tiered table — representing the Holy Trinity — with a number of traditional dishes. These dishes include foods such as breads in symbolic shapes - crosses, palms, lilies, or wreaths symbolizing St. Joseph — and symbolic pastries, usually including figs in the shape of the Bible, chalices, doves, or a Monstrance. Dried figs, olive salad, fava beans are also included.
With all these specialty reasonings for celebrating Saint Joseph's Day, what is the hierarchy when a feast day occurs on a Friday during Lent?
The laws of the Catholic Church provide for the occurrence of Feast Days during Fridays in Lent. Canon 1251 from the 1983 Code of Canon Law addresses this situation:
Canon 1251: Abstinence from meat, or from some other food as determined by the Episcopal Conference, is to be observed on all Fridays, unless a solemnity should fall on a Friday. Abstinence and fasting are to be observed on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.
When a solemnity falls on a Friday in Lent, the celebration of the Solemnity takes precedence over the requirement of fasting from meat or some other food.
In other words, celebration of the solemnity overrides the Lenten requirement.
Current Justices of the Supreme Court: All Except Two Are Roman Catholics
James Japan
Reading time 2 minutes.
Six out of nine current Supreme Court Justices were nominated by Republican Presidents! And yet Roe vs. Wade has still not been overturned. And seven out of nine are Roman Catholics who are supposed to be against abortion!
John G. Roberts, Jr.John G. Roberts, Jr., Chief Justice of the United States,
President George W. Bush, Republican, nominated him as Chief Justice of the United States, and he took his seat on September 29, 2005. Roberts is a devout Catholic and is married to an ardent pro-life activist. In spite of the fact he was nominated by a Republican and is supposed to hold traditional Christian values, he ruled with other Supreme Court justices in July 2020 that Nevada can impose tighter restrictions on churches than casinos to enforce social distancing guidelines. Moreover, Roberts concurred with the liberals on the court to strike down a Louisiana anti-abortion law! Why doesn’t the Pope excommunicate the guy? Something sinister is afoot. Maybe the RCC’s stance against abortion is really phony after all.
Clarence ThomasClarence Thomas, Associate Justice,
President George Herbert Walker Bush, Republican, nominated him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court and he took his seat on October 23, 1991. Thomas was raised Catholic and attended a Catholic seminary.
Stephen G. BreyerStephen G. Breyer, Associate Justice,
President Clinton, Democrat, nominated him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, and he took his seat on August 3, 1994. Breyer is Jewish.
Samuel A. Alito, Jr.Samuel A. Alito, Jr., Associate Justice,
President George W. Bush, Republican, nominated him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, and he took his seat on January 31, 2006. Alito is a practicing Catholic.
Sonia SotomayorSonia Sotomayor, Associate Justice,
President Barack Obama, Democrat, nominated her as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court on May 26, 2009, and she assumed this role on August 8, 2009. Sotomayor is Catholic.
Elena KaganElena Kagan, Associate Justice,
In 2009, President Obama, Democrat, nominated her as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court on May 10, 2010. She took her seat on August 7, 2010. Kagan is Jewish.
Neil M. GorsuchNeil M. Gorsuch, Associate Justice,
President Donald J. Trump, Republican, nominated him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, and he took his seat on April 10, 2017. Episcopalian, raised Roman Catholic
Brett M. KavanaughBrett M. Kavanaugh, Associate Justice,
President Donald J. Trump, Republican, nominated him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, and he took his seat on October 6, 2018. Kavanaugh is a practicing Catholic.
Amy Coney BarrettAmy Coney Barrett, Associate Justice,
President Donald J. Trump, Republican, nominated her as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, and she took her seat on October 27, 2020. Barrett is a practicing Catholic.
Reading time 2 minutes.
Six out of nine current Supreme Court Justices were nominated by Republican Presidents! And yet Roe vs. Wade has still not been overturned. And seven out of nine are Roman Catholics who are supposed to be against abortion!
John G. Roberts, Jr.John G. Roberts, Jr., Chief Justice of the United States,
President George W. Bush, Republican, nominated him as Chief Justice of the United States, and he took his seat on September 29, 2005. Roberts is a devout Catholic and is married to an ardent pro-life activist. In spite of the fact he was nominated by a Republican and is supposed to hold traditional Christian values, he ruled with other Supreme Court justices in July 2020 that Nevada can impose tighter restrictions on churches than casinos to enforce social distancing guidelines. Moreover, Roberts concurred with the liberals on the court to strike down a Louisiana anti-abortion law! Why doesn’t the Pope excommunicate the guy? Something sinister is afoot. Maybe the RCC’s stance against abortion is really phony after all.
Clarence ThomasClarence Thomas, Associate Justice,
President George Herbert Walker Bush, Republican, nominated him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court and he took his seat on October 23, 1991. Thomas was raised Catholic and attended a Catholic seminary.
Stephen G. BreyerStephen G. Breyer, Associate Justice,
President Clinton, Democrat, nominated him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, and he took his seat on August 3, 1994. Breyer is Jewish.
Samuel A. Alito, Jr.Samuel A. Alito, Jr., Associate Justice,
President George W. Bush, Republican, nominated him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, and he took his seat on January 31, 2006. Alito is a practicing Catholic.
Sonia SotomayorSonia Sotomayor, Associate Justice,
President Barack Obama, Democrat, nominated her as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court on May 26, 2009, and she assumed this role on August 8, 2009. Sotomayor is Catholic.
Elena KaganElena Kagan, Associate Justice,
In 2009, President Obama, Democrat, nominated her as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court on May 10, 2010. She took her seat on August 7, 2010. Kagan is Jewish.
Neil M. GorsuchNeil M. Gorsuch, Associate Justice,
President Donald J. Trump, Republican, nominated him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, and he took his seat on April 10, 2017. Episcopalian, raised Roman Catholic
Brett M. KavanaughBrett M. Kavanaugh, Associate Justice,
President Donald J. Trump, Republican, nominated him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, and he took his seat on October 6, 2018. Kavanaugh is a practicing Catholic.
Amy Coney BarrettAmy Coney Barrett, Associate Justice,
President Donald J. Trump, Republican, nominated her as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, and she took her seat on October 27, 2020. Barrett is a practicing Catholic.
Biden inauguration priest Rev. Kevin O’Brien under investigation in California
By Yaron Steinbuch
March 19, 2021 | 7:51am
The Jesuit priest who officiated then-President-elect Joe Biden’s inaugural Mass — and has been a family friend for almost 15 years — is under investigation for unspecified allegations and is now on leave from his position as president of Santa Clara University in California, according to the college.
The Rev. Kevin O’Brien allegedly “exhibited behaviors in adult settings, consisting primarily of conversations, which may be inconsistent with established Jesuit protocols and boundaries,” according to a statement by John Sobrato, chairman of the college’s board of trustees.
Sobrato’s statement did not specify the allegations against O’Brien but said the trustees “support those who came forward to share their accounts.”
He said that while O’Brien is on leave, the priest will be cooperating with the independent probe, with conclusions to be shared with the Santa Clara University Board of Trustees.
The Rev. Kevin O’Brien, who officiated Joe Biden’s inaugural Mass and has been a family friend for almost 15 years, is under investigation in California.Carolyn Kaster/AP
In January, O’Brien gave the service at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle for Biden, the nation’s second Catholic president, as well as Vice President Kamala Harris before the inauguration ceremony at the US Capitol.
He also presided over services for Biden’s inaugurations as vice president.
The priest — who has been president of Santa Clara University since July 2019 — has known the Biden family for about 15 years, according to the university. When he met the family, he was serving at Georgetown University, another Jesuit college.
Joe Biden and Jill Biden attend Mass at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, DC, on Jan. 20, 2021.Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images
O’Brien didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from the Associated Press.
Tracey Primrose, spokeswoman for the Jesuits West Province, which is overseeing the probe, told the Mercury News that “Jesuits are held to a professional code of conduct, and the Province investigates allegations that may violate or compromise established boundaries.”
SEE ALSO
O’Brien didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from the Associated Press.
Tracey Primrose, spokeswoman for the Jesuits West Province, which is overseeing the probe, told the Mercury News that “Jesuits are held to a professional code of conduct, and the Province investigates allegations that may violate or compromise established boundaries.”
SEE ALSO
Biden attends church service with Nancy Pelosi, Mitch McConnell before inauguration
The rep did not elaborate on the investigation.
“As with any organization, the Jesuits West Province has confidentiality practices, which is why I cannot provide any additional information regarding this matter,” Primrose said.
Santa Clara University alumni and board members expressed shock Thursday.
“I’m not sure what’s going on — I’m really surprised,” said Norman Kline, a member of the university’s Board of Fellows, a fundraising group, and a former mayor of Saratoga, the Mercury News reported.
The Rev. Kevin O’Brien poses with Joe and Jill Biden during Christmas.Kevin O'Brien via Twitter
O’Brien, he told the paper, was well-liked and impressed the community when he embarked on a “listening tour” after his inauguration.
“He’s terrific,” Kline added. “I think everybody liked him.”
The Canadian-born O’Brien became a US citizen in 1988 at age 22 and earned an undergraduate degree in government that year from Georgetown University, followed by a law degree from the University of Florida.
But after exploring a legal career, he accepted a job as a teacher at Cardinal Newman Catholic high school in West Palm Beach, Florida.
O’Brien, he told the paper, was well-liked and impressed the community when he embarked on a “listening tour” after his inauguration.
“He’s terrific,” Kline added. “I think everybody liked him.”
The Canadian-born O’Brien became a US citizen in 1988 at age 22 and earned an undergraduate degree in government that year from Georgetown University, followed by a law degree from the University of Florida.
But after exploring a legal career, he accepted a job as a teacher at Cardinal Newman Catholic high school in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Joe Biden and Jill Biden arrive at his inauguration on the West Front of the Capitol on Jan. 20, 2021, in Washington, DC.Rob Carr/Getty Images
He entered the Jesuit order in 1996 and was ordained in 2006.
Located in Silicon Valley, Santa Clara University has an annual undergraduate enrollment of about 5,500 students.
Ranked as one of the top 25 schools for undergraduate teaching nationwide, the private university has a million-dollar endowment and counts California Govs. Gavin Newsom and Jerry Brown among its alumni.
Friday, March 19, 2021
Pope Francis Calls for ‘New World Order’ After the Pandemic
(TIZIANA FABI/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
THOMAS D. WILLIAMS, PH.D.
15 Mar 2021
ROME — Pope Francis insists in a new book things will never be the same in a post-pandemic world, calling instead for the establishment of a “new world order.”
In a book-length interview with journalist Domenico Agasso titled God and the World to Come, scheduled for release in Italian on Tuesday, the pontiff reiterates his case for the Great Reset with a shift away from financial speculation, fossil fuels, and military build-up toward a green economy based on inclusiveness.
After the coronavirus pandemic, “no one today can afford to rest easy,” the pope declares in a lengthy extract from the book published by Vatican News. “The world will never be the same again. But it is precisely within this calamity that we must grasp those signs which may prove to be the cornerstones of reconstruction.”
“Let us all keep in mind that there is something worse than this crisis: the drama of wasting it,” he states. “We cannot emerge from a crisis the same as before: we either come out better or we come out worse.”
We can heal injustice “by building a new world order based on solidarity, studying innovative methods to eradicate bullying, poverty and corruption,” he adds, “all working together, each for their own part, without delegating and passing the buck.”
This new world order will be based on eradicating inequalities and attending to the environment, the pope affirms.
“We can no longer blithely accept inequalities and disruptions to the environment,” he declares. “The path to humanity’s salvation passes through the creation of a new model of development, which unquestionably focuses on coexistence among peoples in harmony with Creation.”
As a path toward a solution, Francis points toward young people involved in “ecological movements.”
“If we don’t roll up our sleeves and immediately take care of the Earth, with radical personal and political choices, with an economic ‘green’ turn by directing technological developments in this direction, sooner or later our common home will throw us out the window,” he insists.
The pope also asserts his conviction the world needs to be healed from “the dominant speculative mentality” to be re-established “with a ‘soul’” in order to reduce the gap between those who have access to credit and those who do not.
Christians and people of good will should choose which enterprises to support based on four criteria, Francis proposes, namely: “inclusion of the excluded, promotion of the least, the common good, and care of Creation.”
“Right now, it is a matter of rebuilding from the rubble,” the pope suggests, a task that involves those in government as well as the rest of the population.
“It is time to remove social injustice and marginalization,” he states. “If we seize the current trial as an opportunity, we can prepare for tomorrow under the banner of human fraternity, to which there is no alternative, because without an overall vision there will be no future for anyone.”
Part of the Great Reset also entails an end to the arms race, he adds.
“It is no longer tolerable to continue to manufacture and traffic in arms, expending huge amounts of capital which should be used to treat people and save lives.”
“Against this planetary discord that is nipping the future of humanity in the bud, we need political action that is the fruit of international harmony,” he declares, urging for an end to “short-sighted nationalism” and other forms of “political selfishness” in favor of multilateral solutions.
Thursday, March 18, 2021
Gentlemen’s Genocide
Gentlemen’s Genocide | Jack Mullen
In war, practice dissimulation, and you will succeed. Sun Zhu
War is insidious, genocide is usually preceded by deception.
Braindead Americans continue to beLIEve and behave according to ‘information” provided by the enemy controlled mainstream media. American mainstream media is now under full control of the enemy which has usurped governments and taken control of the nation and is murdering, maiming, plundering and soon starving the American people.
This enemy disguises itself as a deadly disease, pretending the invisible and, as of yet unidentified, disease is causing the death and destruction of the people and prevention requires the destruction of the American way of life.
The enemy uses the media to blatantly and conspicuously lie to its audiences in an unprecedented uninterrupted psychological experiment that rivals any brutal and deceptive attack Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot, Bella Kun, and other documented Bolshevik terrorists and mass murderers, had ever conceived. The unrelenting terrorism capitalizes on American’s weakness of trusting without justification – a form of pathological altruism. This is the same mainstream media that repeats the physically impossible story of 9/11 or the 1969 moon landings.
The American people, on the other hand, can only blame themselves as these lies and obvious contradictions created to support the on-going genocide and culture desolation are exceptionally self evident; an elephant in the kitchen would be less visible. The once powerful European civilizations scattered around the world are now impotent and incapable of producing even a response as the enemy unleashes a campaign of genocide with intents to wipe out Western Civilization.
“in contrast to most people’s assumptions, the number of deaths by COVID-19 is not alarming. In fact, it has relatively no effect on deaths in the United States.” – Genevieve Briand, assistant program director of the Applied Economics master’s degree program at Johns Hopkins University
It is strange though, Americans are not concerned that no evidence of the phantom menace (covid-19) has ever been shown which proves the virus exists. The vast majority of the people are not concerned that wearing masks weakens and sickens the wearer, or that forcing children to wear mask would be considered child abuse in a mentally healthy society. Americans don’t mind that documented and widely published evidence claims the survival rate of those said to have covid-19 is 99.9% while survival without death or injury from the covid-19 ‘vaccine’ is 94%.
Moreover, 6% of the low-dose group (1 in 20) and 21% of the high-dose group (1 in 5) reported “serious injuries” so grave that they required medical intervention or hospitalization. The Moderna vaccine reported 5x the death rate in Phase 2 as Pfizer’s vaccine. Children’s Health Defense
It matters not to the mindless CNN or FOX news watcher that children and young adults are not susceptible to covid-19 and yet are going to be ‘vaccinated’.
Days after the FDA approved J&J’s COVID vaccine for emergency use, the company announced plans to test the vaccine on newborns, despite the vaccine’s risks and strong evidence that COVID poses virtually no risk to healthy children. Johnson and Johnson to Test Vaccines on Infants
Somehow, the idea that thousands of normal healthy people, those without any symptoms or any evidence of covid-19, have taken the ‘vaccine’ and died within 3 weeks; many within 48 hours. It is not even troublesome that the ‘vaccine’ manufacturers and the pimps called doctors and nurses have no liability for the murder of healthy people by a deliberate injection widely known to kill or damage 4%+ of those injected (shot). The enemy’s mainstream media does not talk about the deaths or paralysis, palsies, convulsions and the many other life long serious body damage.
Unavoidable adverse side effects; warning
No vaccine manufacturer shall be liable in a civil action for damages arising from a vaccine-related injury or death associated with the administration of a vaccine after October 1, 1988, if the injury or death resulted from side effects that were unavoidable even though the vaccine was properly prepared and was accompanied by proper directions and warnings. –42 U.S. Code § 300aa–22 – Standards of responsibility
I was recently told by a person who works for a large university that during their ‘new normal’ zoom meetings the faculty often chit-chat about how soon they will be able to get the ‘vaccine’ and how side affects are a small price to pay to get the ‘protection’ provided by vaccination. But they fail to notice that ‘vaccine’ manufacturers and ‘authorities’ do not claim the ‘vaccine’ provides any protection against covid-19 and if they survive still must wear masks. The brutal mockery of, and its acceptance by the weak-brained American, is a signature of the apparent surrender of civilized Americans to the uncivil attack of the enemy.
Regular Internet readers mostly refuse to take the shot because they have learned from many principled doctors that the shot is not a vaccine but really a nanotech installation that will one day permanently and irrevocably link you via your Smart Phone to the Deep State, constantly checking not only your health but also your bank account. – MASK DEPENDENT MORONS LEAD SOCIETY INTO SLAVERY
People, rather than noticing the contradictions, insult, death, maiming, plunder (due to nationalization of the economy) and the embarrassment, pain and anger that noticing might provoke – prefer the gentleman’s approach. American’s will “walk quietly into that good night” by cooperating with the enemy, pretending there is a pandemic. The medical industry can no longer count flu deaths because flu and pneumonia and respiratory related deaths must now be called covid-19 deaths.
The Gentleman’s Genocide can proceed without the painful emotions and bloody conflict caused by wars of the past. This is the civilized end to a civilized people.
Covid-19: Mass Delusional Psychosis
“Instead of facing reality, the delusional person would rather live in their world of make-believe. But in order to keep faking reality, they’ll have to make sure that everyone else around them also pretends to live in their imaginary world.
In simpler words, the delusional person rejects reality. And in this rejection of reality, others have to play along with how they view the world, otherwise, their world will not make sense to them. It’s why the delusional person will get angry when they face someone who doesn’t conform to their world view …
It’s one of the reasons why you’re seeing so many people who’d happily approve the silencing of any medical experts whose views contradict the WHO or CDC guidelines. ‘Obey the rules!’ becomes more important than questioning if the rules were legitimate to begin with.” The World Is Suffering From Mass Delusional Psychosis – Dr. Joeseph Mercola