Week in review, 06/27 - 07/03

For the record, I am in favor of certain voting restrictions being put in place - just not of the racist, desperate, ulter-partisan and utter bulls**t variety that Republicans seek. Possessing full literacy, demonstrating an understanding of how government is structured, and having a minimum IQ (at least 90) rightfully ought to be bare requirements for being given license to vote. A substantial portion of Americans - the willfully and aggressively ignorant - would be dispossessed of their vote if common sense and decency were ever to be enforced. Which would be very bad news for the Republican Party, of course; in other words, Donald Trump would never have been president if we actually had any standards and didn’t allow illiterates, pop culture twits, conspiracy goofs, religious zealots, white nationalists, and other assorted malevolents and lowlifes to lord over the rest of us. No, not everybody shows themselves equal and worthy by mere virtue of being alive, and most any attempt in human history to prove otherwise have backfired. Sometimes tragically so …

‘A ransomware attack paralyzed the networks of at least 200 U.S. companies on Friday,’ Russian crime syndicate appears to be responsible

Search paused at collapsed Florida condo tower as authorities move to demolish building before storm

The American flag is supposed to represent all Americans, but has been so thoroughly hijacked as a political prop that many no longer feel it belongs to them or serves as a symbol of unity

California is forced to beg and plead with recalcitrant residents not to set off fireworks in the bone-dry, drought-plagued state; nearly 80,000 pounds of illegal fireworks seized in just May and June alone

An economy that is ‘rapidly recovering,’ they declare. But the official unemployment rate rose in June (real unemployment being far higher), wages increased by a paltry 0.3%, and how many of the 850,000 new jobs created are in low-wage industries?

Photo: CDC

A scary parasite is spreading from dogs to humans, and it’s establishing itself in North America

‘The World Health Organization declared China free of malaria on Wednesday after a seven-decade campaign against the disease, which has killed hundreds of thousands of people in the country’

‘Several reputed virologists and vaccinologists have resigned as editors of the journal Vaccines to protest its 24 June publication of a peer-reviewed article that misuses data to conclude that “for three deaths prevented by [COVID-19] vaccination, we have to accept two inflicted by vaccination”’

Cowardly shepherds, allowing the sheep to stray into dangerous territory: Southern faith leaders wary of advising congregants to get vaccinated

Photo: AP

House votes to create select committee for investigating Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol: No sympathy here for GOP concerns about a Democratic ‘witch-hunt,’ for they brought every bit of this upon themselves the day they embraced the charlatan as their leader

The U.S. Capitol building remains closed to the public following COVID-19 and the January 6 riot: I don’t see any compelling reason to ever reopen it. Maybe if people were still civilized or had any appreciation of our history and constitutional republic

Trump Organization and CFO Allen Weisselberg charged with fifteen counts in alleged tax fraud scheme: I’ll get excited when (if) the former president himself is directly charged and America becomes serious, in earnest, about upholding its laws. Until then, meh

Photo: Mary Schwalm/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald

Yet another cult group causing chaos: ‘Interstate 95 in Wakefield was shut down by a standoff between Massachusetts State Police and a group of heavily armed men Saturday morning. The men claim to be part of a group called “The Rise of The Moors – The Moorish American Arms”’

Who is the Rise of the Moors militia group that stopped traffic on the highway in Wakefield?

Massachusetts State Police identifies militia members arrested after standoff on I-95

Death penalty for this cretin: ‘Ways to torture a cat’: Court docs reveal Cambridge cat attack suspect’s disturbing search history

Both the youngest and oldest person to have been Secretary of Defense: Donald Rumsfeld dies at 88

Been way out of the horse racing loop of late, but good to see Essential Quality and Mandaloun looking good ahead of big stakes races

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