The Weekly Town Crier (07/31/20)

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All the week’s news that’s fit to cry about (07/31/20).



We’ll Miss You:

Read “Fleetwood Mac blues guitarist Peter Green dies at 73” at Los Angeles Times.

Read “Ronald L. Graham, Who Unlocked the Magic of Numbers, Dies at 84” at New York Times.

Read “Regis Philbin, TV Host With the Most Congenial Demeanor, Dies at 88” at The Hollywood Reporter.

Read “Olivia de Havilland, star of 'Gone With the Wind,' dies at 104” at CNN.

Read “Former GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain dies of COVID-19” at MSNBC.

Read “Malik B. – Co-Founder of The Roots – Has Died” at Relix.

Religion and Stuff:

Read “Multiracial Congregations May Not Bridge Racial Divide” at NPR.

Read “Evangelical, Midwestern, Southern churches most likely to be meeting in person again” at Religion News Service. “A new survey found that 7 out of 10 Protestant churches held an in-person service last week.”

Read “Supreme Court Rejects Nevada Church’s Appeal to Reopen Like Casinos” at Christianity Today.

Read “Sex Offenders Can Find Hope in Christ But Not Necessarily a Place at Church” at Christianity Today. “Most Christians believe offenders belong at worship. Most congregations aren’t prepared to welcome them.”

Read “Coronavirus, Conspiracy Theories, and the Ninth Commandment” at French Press. “A better political theology can make us less vulnerable to lies.”

Read “Rep. Ted Yoho removed from board of Christian charity over his comments about Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez” at Washington Post.

Read “Faith in protest as young people find fervor on the street” at Associated Press.

Read “For Third-Party Christians, Some Things Are More Important Than Winning” at Christianity Today.

Read “Alabama Pastor Resigns After Praying at KKK Leader’s Birthday” at Christianity Today. “The pastor and state representative also posted a photo of himself standing in front of a portrait of the first KKK Grand Wizard and surrounded by Confederate flags.” “Baptist leaders said the controversy was not good for his church.”

Legal/Justice and Social Justice and Race or Gender or Sexism-Related Stuff:

Read “Sterilization abuse of Uighurs in China meets international legal criteria for genocide, experts say” at PRI.

Read “The World’s Most Technologically Sophisticated Genocide Is Happening in Xinjiang” at Foreign Policy.

Read “Alan Yang on anti-Asian bias: We're all 'fighting the same common enemy' at MSNBC.

Read “Confronting Racial Disparities in America, From Cradle to Grave: A Reading List” at Also A Carpenter.

Read “It's Time to Admit That the Department of Homeland Security Has to Go” at Esquire.

Read “‘Empowerment’ Selfies Are Burying a Turkish Women’s Rights Campaign” at KQED.

Read “LeBron James joins push to turn out ex-felon vote in Florida” at Politico.

Read “A Rare Look Inside Trump’s Immigration Crackdown Draws Legal Threats A new documentary peers inside the secretive world of immigration enforcement. The filmmakers faced demands to delete scenes and delay broadcast until after the election” at New York Times.

Read “The late Rep. John Lewis to lie in state in the U.S. Capitol next week” at News and Guts.

Read “US sued over expulsion of migrant children detained in Hampton Inns” at AZ Central.

Read “NBA players pick social justice jersey messaging” at Axios.

Read “Permission Required to Change Your Tampon” at ACLU.

Read “Bill by Sen. Tom Cotton targets curriculum on slavery” at Arkansas Online.

Read “Santa Clara County will no longer seek death penalty, DA says” at Palo Alto Online.

Read “Tom Cotton calls slavery 'necessary evil' in attack on New York Times' 1619 Project” at The Guardian.

Read “House passes legislation to create Smithsonian Latino museum” at The Hill.

Listen to “'Rednecks For Black Lives' Urges Southerners To Fight For Racial Justice” at WBUR.

Read “America Has Been Addicted To Whiteness For 400 Years” by Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove at Sojourners.

Read “The Poison of Male Incivility When a woman dares respond to it, she’s seen as “disruptive” at The Cut.

Read “Switzerland opens criminal case against FIFA boss Infantino” at Al Jazeera.

Read “Judge blocks Trump administration's "public charge" rule on immigrants during pandemic” at Axios.

Read “Republican senator deletes ad that made Jewish opponent’s nose bigger” at Forward.

Read “10 Ways Good White People Can Help Black America (If 'Good White People' Exist)” at The Root.

Read “Census Door Knocking Cut A Month Short Amid Pressure To Finish Count” at NPR. “The change increases the odds of an undercount of hard to reach groups, such as people of color.”

Read “ICE Agents Complain About Nazi Comparisons, Say They're Only Enforcing the Laws” at Newsweek. In related news,

  • Read: “How the Nazi’s defense of ‘just following orders’ plays out in the mind” from PBS News Hour, originally posted in 2016.

  • Read “Ex-Nazi concentration camp guard, living in U.S. since 1959, faces deportation”” at Washington Post. “Reached by phone, Berger, now 94, said he was ordered to work in the camp . . . “

This week in traitorous, white-supremacist Confederate monuments (and/or Columbus monuments // and/or other “American monuments” // and/or weird Confederacy stuff):

Read “Robert E. Lee high school in Virginia to be renamed for late Rep. John Lewis” at NBC News.

Read “Christopher Columbus statues taken down at 2 Chicago parks” at Yahoo.

Read “Virginia evicts Confederate monuments from its state Capitol” at The Black Wall Street Times.

This Week In Protest-Related News:

Read “Protesters March for Release of Fellow Demonstrator” at Nashville Scene. “A Black Lives Matter protester who is experiencing homelessness has been held by the Davidson County Sheriff's Office for a week.”

Read “Black Lives Matter Organizer in Florida Facing Felony Charges for Snatching Flags at Pro-Trump Event” at The Root.

Read “In Portland, this rabbi leads the clergy resistance” at Religion News Service.

Read “Portland Mayor Tear-Gassed By Federal Police After Joining Crowd Of Protesters Calling For His Resignation” at Comic Sands.

See “A literal tear gas tornado in downtown Portland” on Twitter and remember, kids: Tear gas is illegal in war but legal for police . . .

Read “The Lead Federal Agency Responding to Protesters in Portland Employs Thousands of Private Contractors” at Medium. “Congress needs to shine a light on the use of private security firms, including ‘Blackwater’ legacy companies, in Trump’s response to ongoing civil rights protests.”

Read “How One of America’s Whitest Cities Became The Center of B.L.M. Protests.”

Read “'The first step': Yankees, Nationals players all kneel before national anthem in MLB opener” at USA Today.

Read “Trump Expands Deployment Of Federal Agents To End 'Explosion Of Shootings'“ at NPR.

Read “Massive Protests in Portland Continue After Judge Denies State Request for Restraining Order Against Federal Agencies” at Common Dreams.

Read “Police declare a riot at Seattle protests” at Axios.

Read “Fatal shooting at Black Lives Matter protest in Austin, Texas” at Axios.

Read “Riot Ribs to Transfer Leadership to Don't Shoot PDX” at Portland Mercury.

Read “Black armed militia demands swift decision in Breonna Taylor case” at WLKY.

See “Videos Show How Federal Officers Escalated Violence in Portland” at New York Times.

Read “Police declare riots as protests turn violent in cities nationwide; 1 demonstrator dead in Austin” at Yahoo.

Read “Philadelphia DA on federal agents: Trump is acting like an ‘authoritarian dictator’ at MSNBC. “"My dad volunteered and fought in WWII to fight fascism. I wouldn't be doing my part for this country if I didn't say the obvious: We have a president who is acting like an authoritarian dictator."

Read “Anti-fascists linked to zero murders in the US in 25 years” at The Guardian. “As Trump rails against ‘far-left’ fascism, new database shows leftwing attacks have left far fewer people dead than violence by rightwing extremists.”

Read “'Umbrella Man' was a white supremacist trying to incite George Floyd rioting” at Star Tribune.

Read “What The 'Wall Of Moms' Protests Say About Motherhood, Race In America” at NPR.

Read ‘AG Barr agrees he ‘misspoke’ about FBI arrests in Kansas City under Operation LeGend” at Kansas City.

Read ‘Portland protesters released from jail on condition they no longer attend protests” at Boing Boing.

Read “Minnesota Twins hold moment of silence for George Floyd at 8:46” at AZ Central.

Read “It’s like they’re testing it on us': Portland protesters say tear gas has caused irregularities with their periods” at Oregon Public Broadcasting.

Read “Federal Agents Will Begin Leaving Portland in a 'Phased Withdrawal,' Says Oregon's Governor” at Time.

Read “Analysts Say Armed Groups At Protests Raise Specter Of A 'Street War'“ at NPR.

Read “'It's About the Core Values of Black Lives Matter.' Portland Activists Are Trying to Remind People Why They Started Protesting to Begin With” at Time.

This Week With The Police:

Read “How the state uses “police morale” to divert from the violence inherent to policing” at Black Youth Project.

Read “NYPD admits it’s used unmarked vehicles to apprehend suspects for “decades” after “disturbing” video” at Slate.

Read “Federal encroachment on local police raises mission creep concern” at MSNBC.

Education and The Learnings:

Read “Chinese students who once set their sights on US schools now weigh other options” at PRI’s The World.

School Re-Openings:

Read “Many Arizona Grandparents Raising Grandkids Worried About Going Back To School” at KJZZ.

Read “CDC director concedes schools in ‘hot spots’ face tougher call on reopening” at Washington Post.

Read “GOP Senator Says They 'Can Kiss My A**' as Teachers, Unions Oppose School Reopenings Over COVID Concerns” at Newsweek.

Read “Ireland: Schools set to fully reopen before end of August” at BBC.

Your Weekly Coronavirus Roundup:

Read “As US passes 150,000 coronavirus deaths, experts at Johns Hopkins call for reset in national response” at CNN.

Read “Public health expert says ‘zero doubt’ most U.S. virus deaths were avoidable” at PBS News Hour.

Read “Fed chair warns path of the economy depends on path of coronavirus” at Axios.

Read “China Superspreader Gave COVID-19 to 71 People in a Single Elevator Trip” at Newsweek.

Read “A Doctor Who Specializes in Long-Term COVID-19 Effects Is Alarmed by What He Sees” at New York Magazine.

Read Fauci tells MarketWatch: I would not get on a plane or eat inside a restaurant” at Market Watch.

Read “McDonald’s to Require Face Masks in U.S. Restaurants” at Wall Street Journal.

Read “More than 60% disapprove of Ducey’s handling of pandemic, poll finds” at KTAR.

Read “Osteoporosis drug could be repurposed to fight Covid-19, say scientists” at The Telegraph.

Read “Would you like a side of glitter with that burger? Thanks to COVID-19, Houston is home to Texas’ first drive-thru strip club.” at CHRON.

Read “Fauci says family, including wife and daughters, receiving 'serious threats' at 12 News.

Read “Why casinos remain open despite experts saying gambling is a high risk activity during Arizona's COVID-19 spike” at AZ Central.'

Read “N.M. governor blasts Trump's virus response as "worst abdication" of duty” at Axios.

Read “Ex-CDC head: Total tests conducted is a "useless number" if results are delayed” at Axios.

Read ‘MLB faces its first coronavirus crisis with Marlins outbreak less than a week into season” at Washington Post.

  • Read “MLB Temporarily Suspends Miami Marlins' Season After 15 Players Test Positive for COVID-19” at Time.

Read “Florida surpasses New York to become the state with the second highest number of coronavirus cases” at CNN.

Read “White House, Senate GOP race to finalize coronavirus package ahead of Monday rollout” at The Hill.

Read “Study identifies six different "types" of COVID-19” at CBS News.

Read “Reality Winner, former NSA contractor who leaked classified intelligence, contracts coronavirus” at Washington Examiner.

Read “Senate GOP coronavirus bill includes $29.4B for Pentagon” at The Hill.

Read “Senators Introduce Bill to Fund Independent Venues Struggling During COVID-19” at Rolling Stone.

See “Video compares droplet sprays when wearing different masks -- and no mask at all” at Boing Boing.

Read “Why these retail chains won't require customers to wear masks” at CNN. “they aren't introducing mask mandates because they are difficult to enforce, and they don't want to put their workers in the position of having to tell shoppers to put on facial coverings.”

Read “Pandemic Is Overwhelming U.S. Public Health Capacity In Many States. What Now?” at NPR.

Read “How Airlines Are Changing the Flying Process” at AARP.

Read “Rep. Gohmert Tests Positive for COVID-19, Cancels Trump Trip An eight-term lawmaker, Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas is often seen without wearing a mask” at Snopes.

  • Watch “Kevin McCarthy accidentally calls Louie Gohmert "Congressman COVID" at Twitter.

Read “Can Masks Save Us From More Lockdowns? Here's What The Science Says” at NPR.

Read “Buddy, first dog to test positive for COVID-19 in the U.S., has died” at National Geographic.

Read “We Thought It Was Just a Respiratory Virus We were wrong” at University of California San Francisco.

Read “Retailers are canceling coronavirus hazard pay. That's a mistake” at CNN.

Read “Coronavirus pandemic pushes U.S. economy to worst-ever contraction” at Axios.

Read “How Jared Kushner’s Secret Testing Plan “Went Poof Into Thin Air” at Vanity Fair. “This spring, a team working under the president's son-in-law produced a plan for an aggressive, coordinated national COVID-19 response that could have brought the pandemic under control. So why did the White House spike it in favor of a shambolic 50-state response?” // “Most troubling of all, perhaps, was a sentiment the expert said a member of Kushner’s team expressed: that because the virus had hit blue states hardest, a national plan was unnecessary and would not make sense politically. “The political folks believed that because it was going to be relegated to Democratic states, that they could blame those governors, and that would be an effective political strategy,” said the expert.”

Read “Three-quarters of adults with COVID-19 have heart damage after recovery” at UPI.

This Week in Hydroxychloroquine News:

Read “Misleading Virus Video, Pushed by the Trumps, Spreads Online” at New York Times. “Social media companies took down the video within hours. But by then, it had already been viewed tens of millions of times.”

  • Read “Trump’s New Favorite COVID Doctor Believes in Alien DNA, Demon Sperm, and Hydroxychloroquine” at Daily Beast.

  • Read “Madonnna Heralds Demon Semen Doctor As “My Hero” Following Bizarre COVID-19 Presser” at Consequence of Sound.

  • Read “Social media giants remove viral video with false coronavirus claims that Trump retweeted” at CNN.

  • Read “Trump is retweeting complaints of censorship after Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter take down hydroxychloroquine video” at Business Insider.

  • Read “No Evidence That Doctor Group in Viral Video Got Near COVID 'Front Lines' at Med Page Today.

  • Read “'America's Frontline Doctors' may be real doctors, but experts say they don't know what they're talking about” at USA Today.

  • Read “Who Are ‘America’s Frontline Doctors’ and Dr. Stella Immanuel?” at Snopes. “During the course of our investigation, we found a doctor who describes herself on Twitter as “God’s battle axe and weapon of war,” health care providers some of whose claimed credentials and affiliations could not be confirmed, and some questionable and outright dangerous claims regarding an unproven “cure” and preventative treatment for COVID-19.”

  • Read “Fauci: Trials have "consistently" shown hydroxychloroquine is "not effective" at Axios.

  • Read “Former FDA head Scott Gottlieb: "We can definitively say hydroxychloroquine doesn't work" at Axios.

  • Read “Ohio Board of Pharmacy bans sale of hydroxychloroquine to treat coronavirus” at WKBN.

Miscellany Cultural Items:

Read “On Anthony Bourdain in a Tearing World” at The Millions.

Read “Culture, Claims ‘PAW Patrol’ Was Dropped, But It Wasn’t” at Deadline.

Read “Hi, my name is Karen. Embarrassed to meet you” at America Magazine.

Read “Former X-Factor Live star exposed as 'pure evil' serial rapist is jailed for life” at the Daily Record.

Read “A cyberpsychologist explains why you can't stop staring at yourself on Zoom calls (and everyone else is probably doing the same)” at Insider.

Read “Americans Aren’t Making Babies, and That’s Bad for the Economy” at Bloomberg.

Read “How America weaponizes motherhood” at Washington Post. “The experience of motherhood in America is a political question just as much as it is a question of flesh. We allow white mothers a sainthood not extended to other types of mothers.”

Read “Greta Thunberg Wins $1.15 Million Prize; Pledges to Donate All to Environmental Groups” at A Mighty Girl.

Politics And Sucheries:

Read “Fire at Arizona Democratic Party headquarters under investigation” at MSN.

Read “Russia satellite: Kremlin accuses US and UK of 'distorting' truth” at BBC.

Read “Twitter Finally Cracked Down on QAnon—but There’s a Catch” at Slate.

Read “Down In The Polls, Trump Pitches Fear: 'They Want To Destroy Our Suburbs' at NPR.

Read “Reagan Foundation Calls on Trump Campaign to Stop Using Ex-President’s Image to Raise Money” at Slate.

Read “Ocasio-Cortez calls for end to federal funding for military recruitment in schools” at The Hill.

Read “How Shannon Watts Says You Can Be A Mom And Advocate During Coronavirus” at Forbes.

Read “Record number of Black women are running for U.S. Congress” at NBC News.

Read “Democrats seek to shame Barr over politics at the Justice Department” at Washington Post.

Read “Biden says he will pick running mate by end of next week” at Washington Post.

Read “Trump: Republicans who oppose funding FBI building in stimulus "should go back to school" at Axios.

Read “Former President Obama to speak at Rep. John Lewis’ funeral” at News and Guts.

  • Read “John Lewis’ Final Words Published” at News and Guts.

Read “Trump Tries To Appeal To 'Housewives' And White Suburbs, But His Views Seem Outdated” at NPR. “Whatever you call them, they're not in Trump's corner. Trump needs them back, and he's trying to use fear to do it.”

  • Read “Trump Plays on Racist Fears of Terrorized Suburbs to Court White Voters” at New York Times.

Read “Pending Postal Service Changes Could Delay Mail And Deliveries, Advocates Warn” at NPR.

Read “AOC Introduces Measure to Stop the Military from Recruiting on Twitch” at Vice.

Read “More Than Half Of Young People Lack Resources To Vote By Mail” at NPR.

Read “Yankees surprised by Trump announcing plans to throw first pitch without invite” at The Hill.

Read “Senate adjourns without extending expiring unemployment benefits” at Axios.

Read “Postal Service backlog sparks worries that ballot delivery could be delayed in November” at Washington Post.

Read “Trump-backed postmaster general plans to slow mail delivery” at Fortune.

This Week In Political Corruption:

Read “Trump floats delaying November election” at Axios.

  • Read “2020 Election Live Updates: Republicans Reject Trump’s Suggestion to Delay Election, Something He Cannot Do” at New York Times

Read “Tax burden from the Pentagon budget authorized by the NDAA wipes out COVID stimulus payments” at Responsible StateCraft. “The new defense budget imposes a $4,711.11 cost on each tax filer. The average coronavirus stimulus check was $1,809.”

Read “White House Lies About Paw Patrol Being Cancelled While Criticizing So-Called 'Cancel Culture' for Cops” at The Root.

Read “Obese politicians signal corruption, study finds” at Eurasianet. “Post-Soviet nations with the biggest corruption problem have the biggest politicians.”

Music-Related News and Such:

Read “The Man Brian Eno Called ‘the Daddy of us all.” at New York Times.

Read “Grateful Dead, Dead & Company, Bob Weir and More To Be Featured on Rex Foundation and Jerry Garcia Family’s ‘Daze Between’ Livestream” at Relix.

Read “The Endurance of Bob Dylan’s Rough and Rowdy Ways” at Pitchfork.

Read “Marilyn Manson announces new album ‘We Are Chaos,’ shares video for title track” at Brooklyn Vegan.

Read “Taylor Swift Has Been Working Toward ‘Folklore’ All Along” at Rolling Stone. “Her new album’s indie-folk touches fit into a career full of effortless reinvention.”

  • Read “5 Takeaways From Taylor Swift’s New Album, folklore” at Pitchfork. “The superstar singer-songwriter teams up with Bon Iver and members of the National for her quiet, personal eighth album.”

  • Read “Aaron Dessner Describes Keeping Taylor Swift Album Secret From His 8-Year-Old Daughter” at Stereogum.

  • Read “Black-Metal Legend Ihsahn Calls Out Taylor Swift Over Album Artwork” at Consequence of Sound.

Read/Listen to “Reclaiming Boogaloo” at NPR. “Boogaloo was a music developed in the 1960s by Nuyoricans who were listening to American pop music, James Brown, Tito Puente and Machito – young folks bringing together disparate sounds and cultures to make their own. But recently, an informal network of white supremacists and other hate groups have adopted the word "boogaloo" to signify an impending race war or some other form of mass violence.”

Read “Bloodshot co-founder responds following allegations of unpaid royalties and plans to sell label” at Brooklyn Vegan.

Read as Pitchfork considers “Bad Brains I Against I”. Each Sunday, Pitchfork takes an in-depth look at a significant album from the past, and any record not in our archives is eligible. Today, we revisit the hard-fought third album by the D.C. hardcore icons who played faster and better than everyone else.”

Read “Lalo Guerrero: The Forgotten Father Of Chicano Music” at Daily Chela.

Read “Rilo Kiley Will Reissue And Finally Stream Their 1999 Debut” at Stereogum. “After attending Rilo Kiley's first show, comedian Dave Foley of 'Kids In The Hall' and 'NewsRadio' funded the recording sessions for the band's 1999 debut, soon to be streaming for the first time. He recalls, "I was in a full on, pop music fan swoon."

Read “The Killers respond to allegations of sexual misconduct against band & crew members” at Brooklyn Vegan.

Read “Amid a Racial Justice Reckoning, Pioneers of Rap, Reggae, and R&B Recount Their Struggles to Get Paid” at Pitchfork.

Read “Jerry Garcia’s “Pretzel” Guitar Resurfaces” at Relix.

Read “A Neil Young Time Capsule” at the New Yorker.

Read “Yo La Tengo announce socially distant shows at MASS MoCA, share Matmos collab” at Brooklyn Vegan.

Read “Trent Reznor, Kamasi Washington, RZA, More Nominated for 2020 Emmys” at Pitchfork.

Read “New Orleans Musician Offers Kids Trumpets In Exchange For Their Guns” at NPR.

Browse “10 Best Quarantine Concerts Online” at New York Times.

Read ‘Pop music is getting faster (and happier)” at BBC. “The average tempo of 2020's top 20 best-selling songs is a pulse-quickening 122 beats per minute. That's the highest it's been since 2009.’

Read “Phish Lyricist Tom Marshall Hospitalized for Bacterial Blood Infection” at Jambands.

Read “Merge Records cuts ties with Ian Svenonius” at Brooklyn Vegan.

Read “Want live music back? Wear a mask and call Congress” at Reader.

Read “Trey Anastasio Announces New Album, ‘Lonely Trip’” at Relix.

Read “MTV VMAs 2020: See The Full List of Nominees Here” at Pitchfork.

Read “Spotify CEO Daniel Ek says working musicians may no longer be able to release music only “once every three to four years” at The Fader.

Movies/TV/Etc.:

Read “Disney is remaking its classic 1973 Robin Hood film as a CGI Disney Plus exclusive” at The Verge.

Read “Wes Anderson’s New Movie The French Dispatch Pushed to 2021” at Pitchfork.

Read “Dystopian series ‘Watchmen’ leads all Emmy nominees with 26” at Associated Press.

Read “IMAX has lost $26 million due to coronavirus closures” at NME.

Books/Reading/Authors

Read “Stuck in an imperial system that has outlived its promise Ross Douthat wonders what will get us beyond decadence” at Christian Century.

Design/Artsy Things:

Read “33% of U.S. museums are "not confident" they will survive next fall”

See “Design Inspiration: Bailey Elder” at Raven Sings The Blues.

Movies/TV/Etc.:

Read “Disney is remaking its classic 1973 Robin Hood film as a CGI Disney Plus exclusive” at The Verge.

Read “Universal and AMC strike historic movie distribution deal” at Axios.

Books/Reading/Authors/Podcasts:

Read “Michelle Obama to "Explore Meaningful Topics" in New Spotify Podcast Launching This Month” at Pop Sugar.

Design/Artsy Things:

Read “33% of U.S. museums are "not confident" they will survive next fall” at Axios.

Read “Is It Time to Repatriate Africa’s Looted Art?” at Foreign Policy.

Science/Animals/Technology/Environment/Etc.:

Read “No Longer in Shadows, Pentagon’s U.F.O. Unit Will Make Some Findings Public For over a decade, the program, now tucked inside the Office of Naval Intelligence, has discussed mysterious events in classified briefings” at New York Times.

Read “It’s Still Not Aliens The latest report on military study of UFOs is just as tantalizing—and unilluminating—as all the ones before” at Slate.

Read “Baboons 'carrying knives and chainsaw' spotted in safari park” at Yahoo.

Food Cultures:

Read “The 19th-Century Swill Milk Scandal That Poisoned Infants With Whiskey Runoff” at Atlas Obscura.

Read “Coca-Cola Entering Hard Seltzer Market With Topo Chico Hard Seltzer” at Paste.

Browse “The Best Burger in Every State” at The Daily Meal. What do you think of their picks?

Misc. Oddities:

Read “How to Outrun a Dinosaur” at Wired. “If, through some scientific malfunction, you found yourself transported 70 million years into the past, you might be safer from certain hungry reptiles than you think.”

Local:

The Weekly Town Crier (07/24/20)

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All the week’s news that’s fit to cry about (07/24/20).



We’ll Miss You:

Read “Rev. C.T. Vivian, key civil rights leader, has died at 95” at Associated Press.

Read “Rep. John Lewis, who 'risked his life and his blood' as a giant of the civil rights movement, dies of cancer at 80” at USA Today.

  • Read “When John Lewis Cosplayed at Comic-Con as His Younger Self” at New York Times. “For several years, Mr. Lewis would lead a group of children in a march across the San Diego Convention Center.”

  • Read “Patience Is a Dirty Word “We do not want our freedom gradually,” John Lewis said, “but we want to be free now!” by Ibram X. Kendi at The Atlantic.

Read “J. I. Packer, ‘Knowing God’ Author, Dies at 93” at Christianity Today.

Read “Charles Evers, Businessman and Civil Rights Leader, Dies at 97” at New York Times.

Read “R.I.P. Emitt Rhodes, Power Pop Icon and Home Recording Pioneer Dies at 70” at Consequence of Sound.

Religion and Stuff:

Read “Atlanta Church Splits With SBC for Downplaying Racial Issues” at Christianity Today.

Read ‘Biden’s bid touts faith, courts even religious conservatives” at PBS News Hour.

Read “A Gospel reading for those who feel rejected by a broken world” at America Magazine.

Read “The pandemic calls for closed hymnals Forgoing congregational singing as a spiritual discipline” at Christian Century.

Read “I’m Awash in Christian ‘Content.’ But Am I Living Like Christ?” at Christianity Today.

Justice/Social Justice/Race/Equality and Such Related Stuff:

Read “GOP senator stops bill to make Juneteenth a federal holiday Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) claimed the new holiday would come at the expense of the American taxpayer, suggesting federal employee's lose a day of paid leave” at 12 News.

Read “This land is my land For generations, my family has owned a piece of untold Black history in Boley, Oklahoma. This year, I finally got to see it” at Chicago Reader.

Read “Rev. Dr. William Barber II: A Multi-Racial Coalition Is Necessary For This Moment” at Real News.

Read “GOP senator: Hispanics show 'less consistent adherence' to social distancing, mask-wearing” at The Hill.

Read “East Texas Town Removes Fence Between White, Black Cemeteries” at NBCDFW.

Read “Federal court rules DACA must be restored fully after Supreme Court ruling”

Read “Roger Stone calls Black radio host a racial slur on air” at NBC News. “"I did not. You're out of your mind," Stone replied when Morris W. O'Kelly questioned him about it.”

Read “Supreme Court deals blow to felons in Florida seeking to regain the right to vote” at Washington Post.

Read “No, The Civil War Wasn’t About “States’ Rights” — Just Slavery” at All That’s Interesting.

Read “Americans support Black Lives Matter but resist shifts of police funds or removal of statues of Confederate generals or presidents who were enslavers” at Washington Post.

Read “NBA debuts 'Black Lives Matter' painted on game court” at 12 News.

Read “Red Sox hang Black Lives Matter banner outside Fenway Park” at 12 News.

Read “Texas School Board Doubles Down on Hair Policy That Pushed Two Black Male Students Out of School” at The Root.

This week in traitorous, white-supremacist Confederate monuments (and/or Columbus monuments // and/or other “American monuments” // and/or weird Confederacy stuff):

Read “Pentagon effectively bans Confederate flag from military installations” at Axios.

Read “Confederate monument outside Arizona Capitol to be moved, returned to donor” at AZ Central.

Read “Confederate monuments removed from Arizona Capitol as United Daughters of the Confederacy take action” at AZ Central.

Read “House Votes to Remove Confederate Statues From the Capitol' at The Root.

This Week In Protest-Related News:

Read “Trump Sent Cops to Portland and They're ‘Kidnapping People Off the Streets’” at Vice. “Camouflaged federal officers have been patrolling the streets, pulling protesters into unmarked cars and arresting them.”

  • Read “The Authoritarian Operation in Portland Is Only a Dress Rehearsal” at Esquire.

  • Read “Federal officers Trump sent to Portland teargassed protesters despite being told to leave by the mayor and the governor” at Business Insider.

  • Read “What the Heck Are Federal Law Enforcement Officers Doing in Portland?” at Lawfare Blog.

  • Read “Federal Agents Unleash Militarized Crackdown on Portland” at New York Times. “Federal authorities said they would bring order to Portland, Ore., after weeks of protests there. Local leaders believe the federal presence is making things worse.”

  • Read “Oregon will sue federal police agencies, open criminal investigation into use of force” at Oregon Live.

    • Read “Oregon Attorney General sues DHS amid reports of unlawful detainment of Portland protesters” at NBC. “Ellen Rosenblum is asking for a restraining order to prevent officers with Homeland Security and other federal agencies from making any further arrests.”

  • Read “Federal Officers Deployed in Portland Didn’t Have Proper Training, D.H.S. Memo Said” at New York Times.

  • See “Federal police strike protester with baton, use pepper spray and tear gas outside courthouse in Portland” at Zane Sparling’s at Twitter.

    • Read “‘They just started whaling on me’: Veteran speaks out after video of federal officers beating him at Portland protests goes viral” at The Independent.

  • Read “Presence, tactics of federal agents in Portland, Oregon, prompt questions and criticism” at PBS News Hour.

  • Read “Portland Protests Grow Despite Violent Crackdown from Militarized Federal Agents & Local Police” at The Root.

  • Read “Federal Law Enforcement Use Unmarked Vehicles To Grab Protesters Off Portland Streets” at Oregon Public Broadcasting.

  • Read “Portland and the Paramilitarization of the Border Patrol” at Cato Institute.

  • Read “Portland’s Wall of Moms Joined by Dads With Leaf Blowers Against Trump’s Police” at Truthout.

  • Read “In Portland, A 'Wall Of Moms' And Leaf Blowers Against Tear Gas” at NPR.

    • Read “‘What choice do we have?’: Portland’s ‘Wall of Moms’ faces off with federal officers at tense protests’.

    • Read “'Wall Of Moms' Organizer Calls On Fellow Suburban Mothers, People In Power To Fight For Black Lives” at WBUR.

  • Read “Portland’s Pretext: Barr’s Long History Manipulating Law to Put Federal Forces on U.S. Streets” at Just Security.

  • Read “U.S. Homeland Security confirms three units sent paramilitary officers to Portland” at Reuters

  • See Sergio Olmos’ Tweet: “It appears that federal officers, during dispersal, pepper sprayed the medical supplies in the tents”

    • Read “Portland Federal Agents Accused of War Crimes for Destroying Medical Supplies” at Newsweek.

  • Read “A Photographer Says He's Traumatized By What He's Captured In Portland’ at Buzzfeed News. "Last night was the most horrifying thing I have ever experienced in my life."

  • Read “Oregon officials decry arrests by federal agents in Portland” at PBS News Hour.

Read “Homeland Security sending 150 agents to Chicago this week” at The Hill.

  • Read “Activists, officials slam Chicago police for alleged brutality in Columbus statue standoff” at Chicago Sun Times.

Read “I don't need invitations': Homeland Security chief says he has authority to deploy more feds to shut down protests across the US” at Business Insider.

Read Barr calls reaction to George Floyd's death 'extreme' at CNN.

Read ‘Men Charged With Murder Of Ahmaud Arbery Plead Not Guilty” at NPR.

Read “Police arrest 4, including organizers, at downtown Phoenix protest” at AZ Central.

Read “St. Louis couple charged for pulling, waving guns at protest” at Associated Press.

Read “In emerging role, chaplains are providing spiritual care for activists in movements across the nation” at Religion News Service.

Read “Trump Is the Problem. The Organizational Chart Doesn’t Matter. Federal agents are confronting protesters in Portland because voters chose a president with authoritarian instincts” at The Atlantic.

This Week With The Police:

Read “The Honolulu Cop Who Forced a Homeless Man to Lick a Urinal Is Going to Prison” at Vice.

Read “Why We Should Be Alarmed That Israeli Forces And U.S. Police Are Training Together” at Common Dreams.

Read “Portland protesters tear gassed as DHS head calls them 'violent'“ at Al Jazeera.

Read “‘They just started whaling on me’: Veteran speaks out after video of federal officers beating him at Portland protests goes viral” at The Independent.

Read “DPS trooper who killed Dion Johnson previously reprimanded for using stun gun on puppy, threatening ex-partner” at AZ Central.

Read “Pennsylvania Approves Police Reform Bill Requiring Employment Records From Officers Seeking New Jobs” at The Root.

Read “The Invention Of The Police” at The New Yorker.

Read “Phoenix police fired an officer charged with sexually assaulting handcuffed woman” at AZ Central.

Education and The Learnings:

School Re-opening news:

  • Read “CDC Won't Release School Guidance This Week As Anticipated” at NPR.

  • Read “Health Kim Reynolds Virus Outbreak Iowa General News Iowa governor overrides schools, requires in-person classes” at Associated Press.

  • Read “Kids Get Coronavirus, But Do They Spread It? We'll Find Out When Schools Reopen”

  • Read “Teachers Are Ready To Quit Rather Than Put Their Lives At Risk” at Buzzfeed.

  • Read “Missouri governor’s comments on coronavirus, McCloskeys raise eyebrows” at St. Louis Dispatch. “These kids have got to get back to school.... And if they do get COVID-19, which they will — and they will when they go to school — they’re not going to the hospitals.... They’re going to go home and they’re going to get over it.”

  • Read “Florida teachers union sues DeSantis, Corcoran over schools’ ‘reckless, unsafe reopening’ at Miami Herald.

  • Read “Health care professionals and school board members warn Arizona governor returning to school isn't safe” at CNN.

Your Weekly Coronavirus Roundup:

Read “We’re Learning More About How COVID Spreads. What You Need to Know Now. Transmission by aerosols helps explain why the virus spreads so much more indoors than it does outside” at The Dispatch.

Read “Georgia's Governor Issues Order Rescinding Local Mask Mandates” at NPR.

Read “Tom Hanks Decals Are Popping Up in Toronto to Mark Your Social Distancing” at Exclaim.

Read “Woman who refused to wear mask wants half of $100,000 donated to Starbucks barista” at NBC4I.

Read “Banner Health utilizing 1,000 out-of-state workers for coronavirus response” (Arizona).

Read “Studies provide glimpse at efficacy of Covid-19 vaccines from Oxford-AstraZeneca and CanSino” at STAT News.

Read “As cases surge and poll numbers drop, Trump to resume White House coronavirus briefings” at ABC News. "Never been anything like it," he said, calling them "very successful."

Read “India coronavirus: Amarnath pilgrimage cancelled due to Covid-19” at BBC.

Read “Outbreak at Iowa pork plant was larger than state reported” at Associated Press.

Read “'Worse before it gets better.' Trump delivers sober warning in return to coronavirus briefings” at USA Today.

Read “Ohio, Minnesota Governors Issue Statewide Mask Mandates” at Daily Beast.

Read “Coronavirus Has Raged Inside American Prisons At A Higher Rate Than Rest Of Nation” At The Appeal.

Read “US surpasses 4 million reported coronavirus cases as hospitalizations near record” at CNN.

Miscellany Cultural Items:

Read “Queen knights 100-year-old who raised more than $40 million for U.K.'s National Health Service'“ at Axios.

Read “Near and Present Anarchy America’s death tango with state failure” at The Baffler.

Politics And Sucheries:

Read “Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Has Cancer Again, Says She Will Remain On The Court” at NPR.

Read ‘Mary Trump Describes Abusive Trump Family Home, Says She Will Vote For Biden” at NPR.

Read “DeSantis and Rubio Brutally Fumble Their Responses to Lewis’ Death” at Rolling Stone.

Read “White House portraits of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush moved from prominent space to rarely used room” at News and Guts.

Read “Pandemic surge damages Trump, boosting Biden's White House bid” at ABC News.

Read ‘Everytown Applauds House Democrats for Including Key Gun Safety Measures in Appropriations Package” at Everytown.

Read “Presidential Nominees Rarely Speak To Muslim Audiences. Biden Did Monday” at NPR.

Read “In unusual arrangement, deputy HHS secretary’s wife has been lobbying the agency on behalf of health care companies” at STAT News.

Read “With No Final Say, Trump Wants To Change Who Counts For Dividing Up Congress' Seats” at NPR.

Read “US accuses China of hacking coronavirus researchers, others” at Al Jazeera.

Read “The Billionaire Behind Efforts to Kill the U.S. Postal Service” at In The Public Interest.

Read “More than two dozen DC Bar members urge disciplinary probe of AG Barr” at The Hill.

Read “Ted Yoho apologizes after reportedly verbally accosting Ocasio-Cortez over stance on unemployment, crime in New York” at CNN. In case you’re wondering, this, fine upstanding Republican who protects “family values” called her "f**king bitch". Watch Ocasio-Cortez’s response here and here and here. “Mr. Yoho mentioned that he has a wife and two daughters. I am two years younger than Mr. Yoho's youngest daughter. I am someone's daughter, too. My father, thankfully, is not alive to see how Mr. Yoho treated his daughter."

Read “White House aware of Russian bounties in 2019” at Associated Press.

Read “President Trump Cancels Jacksonville Component Of Republican National Convention” at NPR.

This Week In Political Corruption:

Read “Two Trump Judges Broke Ethics Rules to Stop Up to 1 Million Floridians From Voting in November” at Slate.

Read 'Rep. Matt Gaetz Had a TV Studio Installed in His Father’s Home With Taxpayer Money and Other Possible Violations” at The Root.

Music-Related News and Such:

Read “Senators Introduce ‘Save Our Stages Act’ to Support Struggling Venues” at Jambands.

Read “The Stranger-Than-Fiction Secret History of Prog-Rock Icon Rick Wakeman” at Vanity Fair.

Read “Live music won’t return until 2022, Lollapalooza co-founder says” at Brooklyn Vegan.

Read “Gillian Welch Announces Archival Collection, Shares New Songs” at Pitchfork.

Read “Mike Watt says he reunited with Porno For Pyros for first time in 24 years & filmed 4 songs” at Brooklyn Vegan.

Read “Barns, breaks and barebones production: Recording Khruangbin’s Mordechai” at Music Tech.

Read “Laraaji’s music has emphasized stillness and calm for decades. Now the world is trying to get on his level” at Washington Post.

Read ‘US rockers REM to stream documentary of Stirling gigs to mark 21st anniversary” at The Daily Record.

Read “A Music Manager Suggested New Artists Should Only Release Singles and Everyone Is Pissed” at Exclaim.

Read “Why Do So Many People Love The Grateful Dead Now?” at Uproxx. (EDITOR’S NOTE: Genius is often ahead of its time).

  • Read Pitchfork’s “The Grateful Dead: A Guide to Their Essential Live Songs” from 2017.

Read “Pavement joins Bandcamp (all five studio albums streaming)” at Brooklyn Vegan.

Read “Kanye West Says New Album Is Out This Week The follow-up to Jesus Is King and Jesus Is Born arrives July 24” at Pitchfork.

Read “Kim Kardashian West Releases Statement on Kanye’s Mental Health” at Pitchfork.

Read “Burger Records Shuts Down Completely” at Pitchfork. “Following misconduct allegations, the tape label’s plan to rebrand and establish new leadership has reportedly fallen apart.” at Pitchfork.

Read “The Growlers’ keyboardist leaves band following sexual misconduct allegations against other members” at Brooklyn Vegan.

Read “The Cure say new LP will be their “most intense, saddest” yet…when they finish it” at Brooklyn Vegan.

Read “Lady A Discusses Lady Antebellum Controversy on Desus & Mero” at Pitchfork.

Read “I Don't Want This Sullied by These Foul-mouthed Youngsters": An Interview With Old 97's” at Pop Matters.

Read “Howe Gelb :: Surrounded By Sound And Washed In Color” at Aquarium Drunkard.

Movies/TV/Etc.:

Browse “Every Episode of Psych, Ranked Eight seasons, two movies, and a whole bunch of cases” at Vulture.

Read “How Psych Evolved Through the Character of Carlton Lassiter” at Den of Geek.

Read “Ukraine President Ends Hostage Situation by Endorsing Joaquin Phoenix Film” at The Guardian.

Read “Blocked Busters: Disney Pushes 17 Movie Release Dates” at NPR.

Books/Reading/Authors

Read “Colson Whitehead Awarded 2020 Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction” at Publisher’s Weekly.

Science/Animals/Technology/Environment/Etc.:

Read “Something Weird Happened to Men 7,000 Years Ago, And We Finally Know Why” at Science Alert.

Food Cultures:

Read “To Evade Pre-Prohibition Drinking Laws, New Yorkers Created the World’s Worst Sandwich” at Atlas Obscura. “It was everywhere at the turn of the 20th century. It was also inedible.”

Local:

Read “Phoenix May Use CARES Act Funds to Keep Homeless People Out of Alleys” at Phoenix New Times.

Read “Florida coronavirus cases surge for fifth day as Trump pledges outbreak will be under control” at Reuters.

The Weekly Town Crier (07/17/20)

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All the week’s news that’s fit to cry about (07/17/20)


We’ll Miss You:

Read “Judy Dyble 1949-2020 at DGM Live.

Read “R.I.P. Kelly Preston” at A.V. Club.

Read “Zindzi Mandela, Daughter of Nelson and Winnie Mandela, Dies at 59” at The Root.

Read “Grant Imahara, Host of 'MythBusters' and 'White Rabbit Project,' Dies at 49” at Hollywood Reporter.

Read “'The Magic School Bus' Series Author Joanna Cole Has Died” at NPR.

Religion and Stuff:

Read “Moore, others ask Trump not to rescind DACA” at Baptist Press.

Read “Why Black Christians are bracing for a 'whitelash' at CNN.

Read “Andy Stanley Explains Why His Megachurch Won’t Gather on Sundays Until 2021” at Christianity Today.

Read “Re-Anarchizing Christianity Justice, The Politics of Scripture” at Political Theology Network.

Read “The Redemption of Interfaith Dialogue Three evangelicals wrestle with faithful witness in conversations with Muslims” at Christianity Today.

Read “Do I consider myself a Christian? I know one thing: there is holiness” at Christian Century.

Read “The “Purity” Hoax Elisabeth Elliot was the Evangelical sex guru because of a love story. Did it happen?” at Medium.

Read “Sudan Drops Death Penalty for Apostasy, Alcohol Ban for Christians” at Christianity Today.

Read the opinion piece “Roger Stone is saved” at Washington Post.

Read “The God of Good Manners? It’s easy to forget that God is both kingly and courteous” at Christianity Today.

Read “Finding God outside the church walls The Spirit is God’s wild card, played over and over again when old forms fail” by Barbara Brown Taylor at The Christian Century.

Read “What the Ministerial Exception Will Mean for Religious Employers” at Christianity Today.

Read “Social Justice, Critical Race Theory, Marxism, and Biblical Ethics Looking at Marxism and Critical Race Theory in light of the problem of racism in America” at Christianity Today.

Read “The church has no need to apologize for Paycheck Protection Program loans” at America Magazine.

Read “Comedian John Crist: ‘The Biggest Hypocrite Was Me’ The Christian viral video-maker is back online after confessing his “sexual sin and addiction” and seeking treatment” at Vox. “Local church leaders look to educate themselves and their congregations on racial injustice in the church and how Biblical teachings relate to the Black Lives Matter movement.”

Read “Columbia churches reflect on racial injustice and religion” at Vox. “Local church leaders look to educate themselves and their congregations on racial injustice in the church and how Biblical teachings relate to the Black Lives Matter movement.”

The Section for Considering “Justice”/Race/Social Justice/Immigration and somewhere in the middle:

Meet “Queen Nzinga, The West African Leader Who Fought Off Slave Traders” at All That’s Interesting.

Read “Young Asian American Christians Are Finding Their Voice on Racial Justice” at Christianity Today.

Read “A Liberal North Carolina Town Has Unanimously Voted to Give Its Black Residents Reparations” at The Root.

Read “Hispanic figures slam Goya Foods after CEO praises Trump” at Axios.

Read “What’s Behind Neil Gorsuch’s Stunning Win for Indigenous People” at Slate.

Read “Poetic Justice Is The Exonerated 5 Helping Paint The BLM Mural Outside Of Trump Tower” at Blavity.

Read “Green Berets add first woman to their ranks” at Axios.

Read “The 'Best of Nextdoor' Account Is Trying to Make the Site Less Racist” at Vice.

Read “ICE is offering a six-week course on how to arrest immigrants - including 'firearms and defensive training' - as critics warns they are using private citizens as their eyes and ears” at Daily Mail.

Learn about “Mary Bowser: The Former Slave Who Helped Bring Down The Confederacy” All That’s Interesting.

Read “Appeals court: 1st federal execution in 17 years can proceed” at 12 News.

Read “Redskins to retire team name Monday; new name to be revealed later” at Washington Post.

Read “George Soros' foundation to invest $220 million in racial justice efforts” at Axios.

Read “After Years of Advocacy, the House of Representatives Finally Cuts Funding to Trump’s Deportation Force” at ACLU.

This week in traitorous, white-supremacist Confederate monuments (and/or Columbus monuments // and/or other “American monuments” // and/or weird Confederacy stuff):

Read “Is the destruction of monuments a rewriting of history? Holding in tension our achievements and failures as a nation” at Christian Century.

Read “American History Is Not Canceled While Christians can’t erase the church’s slaveholding past, we can change the symbols, statues, and namesakes we celebrate” at Christianity Today.

Read “Statue of Black protester replaces toppled U.K. slave trader” at PBS News Hour.

This Week In Protest-Related News:

Read “History Shows That Sustained, Disruptive Protests Work” at Yes!

Read “Over 600,000 Hong Kongers cast 'protest' vote against new security laws” at Reuters.

Read “Trump Dismisses Police Killing Outrage, Saying 'More White People' Killed Than Blacks” at NPR.

  • Read “Trump says 'more white people' are killed by police, while studies show Black people are more likely to be killed” at AZ Central. “A Harvard analysis of deaths by police from 2013-2017 and published last month found Black men are more than three times more likely than white men to be killed by police.”

Read “Who are these federal officers sent to Portland to deal with protesters?” at KGW.

  • See these “federal officers” disappear someone in Portland.

  • Read “Trump Sent Cops to Portland and They're ‘Kidnapping People Off the Streets’ Camouflaged federal officers have been patrolling the streets, pulling protesters into unmarked cars and arresting them” at Vice.

  • Read “Federal Law Enforcement Use Unmarked Vehicles To Grab Protesters Off Portland Streets” at Oregon Public Broadcasting.

Read “Leaked Documents Show Police Knew Far-Right Extremists Were The Real Threat At Protests, Not ‘Antifa’” at The Intercept.

This Week With The Police:

Read “Police Viewed Less Favorably, But Few Want To 'Defund' Them, Survey Finds” at NPR. “A Pew survey finds two-thirds of respondents think officers should be held legally accountable for using excessive force — but few say they would support cutting police budgets. The results were skewed by respondents' race and political persuasion.”

Read “LA Coroner Defies Sheriff, Releases Andres Guardado Autopsy Results” at Los Angeles CBS Local.

Read “Florida Cop Fired and Charged With Assault After Pointing Gun to Handcuffed Black Man’s Head for Not Giving His Name” at The Root.

Education and The Learnings:

Read “Los Angeles and San Diego Schools to Go Online-Only in The Fall California’s two largest districts made the joint call amid a White House push to get children back into classrooms” at New York Times.

Read “New York will use formula to determine if it's safe to reopen schools” at Axios.

Read “A Teenager Didn’t Do Her Online Schoolwork. So a Judge Sent Her to Juvenile Detention” at Pro Publica.

Read “Is School Safe? Will Districts Test For COVID-19? Answering Back-To-School Questions” at NPR.

Read “White House vows not to 'let the science stand in the way' of reopening schools as poll shows three-fourths of parents DON'T back Donald Trump's reopening demands” at Daily Mail.

Your Weekly Coronavirus Roundup:

Read “Merkel says pandemic reveals limits of 'fact-denying populism'.

Read “3 things the U.S. can do to stop coronavirus” at PBS.

Read “Gov. Doug Ducey says Arizona seeing signs coronavirus is flattening” at KTAR.

Read “The Toll That Isolation Takes on Kids During the Coronavirus Era” at Wall Street Journal.

Read “Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter: "Please wear a mask to save lives" at Axios.

Read “Bill Gates calls for COVID-19 meds to go to people who need them, not 'highest bidder'“ at Reuters.

Read “How can we grieve with funerals on hold?” at The Atlantic.

Read “Dozens of Arizona bar owners suing Governor Ducey over executive order keeping bars closed” at 12 News. “Bar owners from Prescott to Phoenix to Tucson filed a lawsuit claiming that Executive Order keeping them closed isn't fair or constitutional.”

Read “CDC director: U.S. could get coronavirus "under control" in 4–8 weeks if all wear masks” at Axios.

Read “Missouri school district asks parents to sign COVID-19 ‘death’ waiver for children” at Raw Story.

Read “California orders sweeping rollback of open businesses as virus cases surge” at Axios.

Read “‘Don’t be a sheep’: Washington sheriff urges residents to defy mask order”at New York Post.

Read “New Zealand lifts all Covid restrictions, declaring the nation virus-free” at BBC.

Read “White House tells hospitals to bypass CDC on coronavirus data” at Axios.

Read “White House Strips CDC Of Data Collection Role For COVID-19 Hospitalizations” at NPR.

Read “A dangerous new chapter of the outbreak: Every state for itself” at Politico.

Read “Fauci is sidelined by the White House as he steps up blunt talk on pandemic” at Washington Post.

  • Read “Fauci on who to trust amid coronavirus: "Stick with respected medical authorities" at Axios.

Read “'We Still Face Much Uncertainty': Pandemic Hammers Big Banks” at NPR.

Read “First COVID-19 vaccine tested in US poised for final testing” at Associated Press.

Read “8 world leaders demand equal access to coronavirus vaccine” at Axios.

Read “NPR Radio Ratings Collapse As Pandemic Ends Listeners' Commutes” at NPR.

Read “Why is There a Coin Shortage in the U.S.?” at Newsweek.

Read “These States’ Leaders Claim to Be ‘Pro-Life.’ So Why Are So Many of Their Citizens Dying of COVID-19?” at Time.

Miscellany:

Read “Notre Dame to be restored as closely to original structure as possible” at Axios.

Read “Record Numbers Have Lost Their Health Insurance the Moment They Need It Most” at Slate.

Politics And Sucheries:

Read “The Fair Labor Standards Act: What to Know and Why the U.S. Needs New Labor Laws” at Teen Vogue.

Read “Facebook considering political ad blackout ahead of election” at Axios.

Read “Fox host's writer quits after racist and sexist online comments revealed” at The Guardian.

Read “Trump Reportedly Suggested Selling Puerto Rico After Hurricane Maria” at Slate.

Read “Trump's failing culture wars” at Axios “Google search trends for “Crooked Hillary” and “Sleepy Joe” in the U.S.”

Read “Kanye West Reportedly Drops Out Of 2020 Presidential Race” at Hot New Hip Hop.

  • Read “A ‘Kanye 2020’ Committee Just Filed With the FEC, But Is It Legit? Hours after rapper’s presidential run is rumored to be over, a supposedly Wyoming-based PAC files Statement of Organization” at Rolling Stone.

  • Read “Kanye West Is Maybe Still Running for President After All” at Exclaim.

Read “Hamilton, In Fiction And History, Is Key To Understanding The Electoral College” at NPR.

Read “The once-mocked ‘Never Trump’ movement becomes a sudden campaign force” at Washington Post.

Read “What Are 2019’s Tax Brackets, and Who Gets Audited the Most?” at Pro Publica.

Read “In a Death, Details of More Russian Murder-for-Hire Plots” at New York Times. “In 2006, Russia legalized the targeted killing of 'terrorist' suspects abroad under authorizations that Russian officials like to compare to the legal justifications for American drone strikes."

Read “A Senate Takeover Is Very Much A Possibility For Democrats. Just Follow The Money” at NPR.

Read “Trump administration rescinds foreign student visa guidance” at Axios.

Read “Signed, Sealed, Undelivered: Thousands Of Mail-In Ballots Rejected For Tardiness” at NPR.

Read “'It was only done to make me look bad': Trump denounces border wall section funded by supporters” at AZ Central.

Read “Biden unveils $2 trillion clean energy and infrastructure plan” at Axios.

Read “South Dakota Is Sharing Driver's License Info To Help Find Out Who's A Citizen” at NPR.

Read “Jeff Sessions loses Alabama Senate primary runoff” at Axios.

Read “Pelosi calls for Trump to invoke Defense Production Act” at PBS News Hour.

This Week In Political Corruption:

Read “Trump commutes Roger Stone's sentence” at Axios.”President Trump has commuted the sentence of his longtime associate Roger Stone. Stone was sentenced in February to 40 months in prison for crimes including obstruction, witness tampering and making false statements to Congress.”

Read “Schiff: Trump commuting Stone an appalling attack on rule of law” at MSNBC

Read “Robert Mueller speaks out on Roger Stone commutation” at Axios.

Read “The Roger Stone Case Shows Why Trump Is Worse Than Nixon” at New Yorker.

Read “Roger Stone Clemency Latest Example Of Trump Rewarding His Friends, Scholars Say” at NPR.

Read “President Trump has made more than 20,000 false or misleading claims” at Washington Post.

Read “Kansas Rep. Steve Watkins charged with voter fraud” at Axios.

Music-Related News and Such:

Read “The Revolution Will Be TikTok’d” at Pitchfork.

Read “Blues Singer Lady A: ‘I Should Not Have to Bend to Band’s Will Because They’ve Got Money’” at Rolling Stone.

  • Read “Lady A Explains Why Co-Existence With Country Band Will Not Work: “Lady Antebellum Has Erased Me From Every Platform” at Stereogum.

Read “The Many Electronic Surprises To Be Found In The Nation's Vast Archive Of Folk Music” at NPR.

Read “Jerry Garcia’s Army Record Uncovered, Describing the Guitarist as “Willfully Disobedient,” An “Irresponsible, Immature” Soldier” at Relix.

Read “Bob Geldof Reflects On Live Aid, 35 Years Later” at NPR.

Read “Billy Martin Discusses Unorthodox Route To New Album, ‘G U I L T Y’” at Live For Live Music.

Read “Canadian Vinyl Sales Are Down in 2020 — and It's Not Just Because of COVID-19” at Exclaim.

Read “How Avant-Garde Legend Cecil Taylor Inspired Idris Ackamoor’s Psychedelic Jazz” at Bandcamp.

Read “Arcade Fire’s Will Butler Announces New Album Generations, Shares Song” at Pitchfork.

Read “Oumou Sangaré Proves Why She's the Songbird of Wassoulou” at Okay Africa.

Read “Nike Confirms Grateful Dead Sneaker Collaboration, Sets Release Date” at Jambands.

Read “A Band Like Us Doesn’t Have Deep Pockets”: Galactic’s Robert Mercurio Explains Uncertain Future of NOLA’s Famed Tipitina’s Club” at Jambands.

Read “An interview with Ian Curtis | Fully transcribed for the first time—Says he’s a fan of Bauhaus” at Post-Punk.

Read “Vinyl Nick Cave figure with a glowing red right hand is being released” at Brooklyn Vegan.

Movies/TV/Etc.:

Read “Robert De Niro's Lawyer Says He "Will Be Lucky If He Makes $7.5 Million This Year" at Exclaim.

Read “Richard Linklater's making an animated movie about the moon landing for Netflix” at AV Club.

Books/Reading/Authors

Read “Flannery O’Connor’s Grotesque Grace” by Karen Swallow Prior at Think Christian.

Design/Artsy Things:

Watch “Banksy paint COVID-19 art on London Underground system” at Brooklyn Vegan.

Science/Animals/Technology/

Books/Reading/Authors

Design/Artsy Things:

Science/Animals/Technology/Environment/Etc.:


Food Cultures:

Read “A Pirate Botanist Helped Bring Hot Chocolate to England” at Gastro Obscura.

Read “The Lost Art of Growing Blueberries With Fire” at Gastro Obscura.

Misc. Oddities:

Read “FAA Documents Offer Unprecedented Look Into Colorado Drone Mystery Hundreds of pages of documents provide consistent detailed descriptions of the drones and conclude the military wasn't behind the operation” at The Drive.

Read “Inside Lenin’s Mausoleum And The Best-Preserved Corpse On Earth” at All That’s Interesting.

Local:

Read “This Underground Hike In Arizona Will Take You Through A Lava Tube” at When In Your State.

Read “Arizona Minimum Wage Earners Would Need To Work 70 Hours A Week To Afford Housing” at KJZZ. “To afford a two-bedroom home, Arizonans now need to earn at least $21.10 per hour. That’s up more than $1.50 from last year.”

The Weekly Town Crier (07/03/20)

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All the week’s news that’s fit to cry about (07/03/20).





Read ‘Milton Glaser, Master Designer of ‘I ♥ NY’ Logo, Is Dead at 91” at New York Times.

Read “Marc Orleans of Sunburned Hand of the Man Has Died” at Pitchfork.

Read “Carl Reiner, longtime comedy legend, dies at 98” at CNN.

Read “Controversy and Coronavirus Keep Church Plants Out of Schools” at Christianity Today.

Read “I’m Not Hateful, You Are Judge me? You don’t even know me!” by David French at The Dispatch.

Read “Israel Orders Christian TV Channel to Stop Broadcasting GOD TV argues application for new Shelanu channel in Hebrew was forthright, decries decision as political” at Christianity Today.

Read “This is a moment of reckoning on race for White Christians” at CNN.

Read “Will International Religious Freedom Survive the Trump Administration? The president’s executive order elevates its priority in US foreign policy. Nine experts assess the strategy’s longevity” at Christianity Today.

Read “White Supremacist Ideas Have Historical Roots In U.S. Christianity” at NPR.

Read “Black Lives Matter in the Bible From Genesis to Revelation, racism runs counter to everything Scripture teaches” at Christianity Today.

Read “White, Black, and Blue: Christians Disagree Over Policing Black Christians overwhelmingly say police treatment is biased against them. Why don’t white evangelicals believe them?” at Christianity Today.

Read “87 Percent of Practicing Christians See the U.S. as a Leader to the World” at Barna.

Read “Supreme Court Dismisses State Ban on Public Funding for Religious Schools” at Christianity Today.

  • Read “Taxpayers Shouldn’t Have to Fund Religious Education: How Today’s Supreme Court Decision Further Erodes the Separation of Church and State” at ACLU.

Read “Pastors Worry About Patriotism But Still Favor July 4th Displays”at Facts and Trends. “53% of Protestant pastors say their congregation sometimes seems to love America more than God.”

  • Read Mark Noll on “Christian Patriotism” for Christianity Today in 1986. “Is This Land God’s Land?”

Read “Researcher: Most Evangelicals Support Women in Church Leadership” at Christianity Today.

Read “Why Evangelicals Support Trump—and Why They Shouldn’t Worry about ‘Christianophobia’ is understandable. But Trump is no true ally—and his immorality, race-baiting, and sexism give his Christian supporters a bad name” at The Bulwark.

Learn about “The Sand Creek Massacre: When U.S. Forces Slaughtered As Many As 200 Unsuspecting Native Americans” at All That’s Interesting.

Read “CBP Is Using Pandemic As Cover For Deportations, Advocates Say” at Sojourners.

Read “Trump Retweets Video Of Apparent Supporter Saying 'White Power' at NPR.

  • Read “'Indefensible': Trump slammed for sharing video where supporter yells 'white power' at protesters” at AZ Central.

  • Read “It Took 3 Hours to Delete the President’s ‘White Power’ Tweet Because No One Could Reach Him. He Was Out Golfing...During a Pandemic” at The Root.

  • Browse “How Trump talks about race” at PBS.

  • Read “Black Lives Matter mural in front of Trump Tower a 'symbol of hate,' Trump tweets” at 12 News.

Read “US soldier accused of sending information to neo-Nazi group as part of plot to attack his unit” at The Hill.

Read “Disguised Sacha Baron Cohen Crashes Far-Right Rally With “Inject Obama With The Wuhan Flu” Sing-Along” at Stereogum.

Read “Hair weaves from Chinese prison camps seized” at AP.

Read “3 States Abruptly Make Protesting Fossil Fuel Pipelines a Felony” at Green Matters.

Read “We have been through this before.’ Why anti-Asian hate crimes are rising amid coronavirus” at PBS News Hour.

  • Read “Asian American churches hold march through Chinatown, calling for unity with Black communities” at Chicago Sun Times.

Read “Why We Never Talk About Black-on-Black Crime: An Answer to White America’s Most Pressing Question” at The Root.

Read “Mike Pence explains why he refuses to say "Black lives matter" at Axios. “Vice President Mike Pence told CBS that he won't say the words "Black lives matter" because he believes the leadership of the BLM movement is pushing a "radical-left agenda."

  • Read "Trump: Painting 'Black Lives Matter' On 5th Avenue Would Be 'Symbol Of Hate' at NPR.

  • Read “'Black Lives Matter' to be painted on NBA courts” at 5 News Online.

George Floyd:

  • Read “New Jersey Corrections Officer Seen Mocking George Floyd's Death on Track to be Fired” at The Root.

Elijah McClain:

  • Read “Cops in Riot Gear Stormed a Violin Vigil for Elijah McClain” at The Cut.

  • Read “Colorado Police Officers Under Investigation For Photos At Elijah McClain Memorial” at NPR.

This Week In Protest News:

  • Read “On Stonewall anniversary, the NYPD launched a brutal unprovoked attack on LGBTQ people As Mayor Bill de Blasio tweeted about honoring Stonewall, the NYPD was unleashing pepper spray on LGBTQ people dancing in celebration” at LGBTQ Nation.

  • Read “Couple points guns at protesters marching to call for St. Louis mayor to resign” at 12 News.

  • Read “Troops were issued bayonets in DC unrest” at Associated Press.

This week in traitorous, white-supremacist Confederate monuments (and/or Columbus monuments // and/or other “American monuments” // and/or weird Confederacy stuff):

  • Read “Native Americans protesting Trump July 3 trip to Mount Rushmore Many Indigenous American activists say the Rushmore memorial is as reprehensible as the many Confederate monuments being toppled around the nation” at 12 News.

  • Read “Meet The Confederados, The Confederate Loyalists Who Fled To Brazil After The Civil War” at All That’s Interesting.

  • Read “Mississippi lawmakers vote to remove rebel emblem from flag” at Fox 4 News.

  • Read “Mississippi governor signs bill into law removing Confederate symbol from state flag” at NBC News.

  • Read “Trump’s Message to African-Americans Unhappy With Monuments to Slave Owners: ‘You Have to Learn’ History” at Media-Ite.

  • Read “Boston to remove statue of slave kneeling before Lincoln” at Associated Press.

  • Read “Homeland Security sets up task force to protect monuments, statues” at 12 News.

  • Read “President Trump says he'll veto defense bill to keep Confederate base names” at 12 News.

  • Read “Columbus, Ohio, Takes Down Statue Of Christopher Columbus” at NPR

  • Read “Some Arizona Veterans Call On Ducey To Remove Confederate Monument.”

Read “Read "Three Words. 70 Cases. The Tragic History of ‘I Can’t Breathe.’ The deaths of Eric Garner in New York and George Floyd in Minnesota created national outrage over the use of deadly police restraints at New York Times.

This Week With The Police:

  • Read “House approves sweeping police reform package that would ban chokeholds, end qualified immunity after George Floyd death at AZ Central.

  • Read "City Council OKs charter amendment to remove Minneapolis Police Department. “The Minneapolis City Council on Friday unanimously approved a proposed amendment would remove requirements for the city to maintain a police department from the city’s charter. The 12-0 vote is step toward putting the issue in front of Minneapolis voters on the November ballot.”

  • Read “Miami Cop Arrested And Charged After Tasing A Pregnant Woman On Her Stomach And Lying On The Police Report” at Blavity.

  • Read/Watch “How the Philadelphia Police Tear-Gassed a Group of Trapped Protesters” at New York Times.

  • Read “Landlords Use Police to Stop Tenants From Organizing” at Jacobin Magazine.

  • Read “Police Unions: What to Know and Why They Don’t Belong in the Labor Movement” at Teen Vogue.

  • Watch “How Cop Shows Lie to You | The Daily Social Distancing Show” by Trevor Noah at Youtube.

  • Read “Two San Jose School Districts End Contracts with Local Police” at San Jose Inside.

  • Read “ACLU of Oregon files class-action suit against PPB, city” at KOIN.

  • Read “Philadelphia officials announce moratorium on tear gas following NYT investigation” at The Hill.

  • See an interactive map of police violence in the United States. So far, “Police have killed 576 people in 2020.”

  • Read “Hoover police officer fired over Facebook photo of protester in crosshairs” at Al.com

  • Read “‘We are just gonna go out and start slaughtering them’: Three cops fired after racist talk of killing black residents” at Washington Post.

  • Read “L.A. council advances plan to replace LAPD officers with social workers on non-violent police calls” at KTLA.

  • Read “L.A. cuts LAPD spending, taking police staffing to its lowest level in 12 years” at Los Angeles Times.

  • Read “Congress Urged to Repeal Program That Transfers 'Weapons of War' to Local Police” at Common Dreams.

Read “NFL to play Black anthem before national anthem” at Associated Press.

Read “Was It All for This? The Failure of the Conservative Legal Movement” at The Public Discourse.

  • Read “Supreme Court strikes down restrictive Louisiana abortion law that would have closed clinics” at Washington Post.

  • Visit “The Louisiana Clinic At The Center Of Abortion Case Before Supreme Court” with NPR.

  • Read “Have Pro-Lifers Lost the Supreme Court Fight? What's ahead for abortion opponents after another frustrating decision” at Christianity Today.

Read ““Reality” is constructed by your brain. Here’s what that means, and why it matters. What the science of visual illusions can teach us about our polarized world” at Vox.

Weekly Coronavirus Roundup

  • Read “Scottsdale nightclub Riot House charged for failing to enforce social distancing, mask requirements Several other Old Town Scottsdale businesses are under investigation and may be charged for similar violations, a Scottsdale police spokesman said” at AZ Central.

  • Read “How Arizona ‘lost control of the epidemic’” at Washington Post.

    • Read “Inside the COVID-19 ICU: Valley nurses share what they see as cases rise in Arizona” at 12 News.

    • Read “Tempe mayor-elect tests positive for coronavirus” at 12 News.

  • Read “If president, Biden would make Americans wear face coverings in public during pandemic The presumptive Democratic nominee's comments came amid a surge of coronavirus cases in several states” at 12 News.

  • Read “CDC says coronavirus cases in U.S. may be 10 times higher than reported” at MSNBC.

  • Read “Judge Orders ICE To Free Detained Immigrant Children Because Of COVID-19” at NPR.

  • Read “In Mexico City, the Coronavirus Is Bringing Back Aztec-Era ‘Floating Gardens’” at Atlas Obscura.

  • Read “Parties — Not Protests — Are Causing Spikes In Coronavirus” at NPR.

    • Read “Black Lives Matter protests have not led to a spike in coronavirus cases, research says’ at CNN.

    • Read “Little Evidence That George Floyd Protests Spread Coronavirus in U.S., Experts Say” at ABC7.

    • Read “Why researchers say protests have not contributed to rise in COVID-19 cases” at 12 News.

  • Read “Workers removed thousands of social distancing stickers before Trump’s Tulsa rally, according to video and a person familiar with the set-up” at Washington Post.

  • Read “Revived Mount Rushmore Fireworks Will Feature Trump But No Social Distancing” at NPR.

  • Read “This chart shows the link between restaurant spending and new cases of coronavirus” at CNBC.

  • Read “Tennessee Concert Attracts Packed Crowd With No Masks Or Social Distancing” at Stereogum.

    • Read “Festival organizer defends packed, maskless crowd at Chris Janson show” at Brooklyn Vegan.

    • Read “The Pandemic Is Still Killing People. Why Is Country Music Putting on Concerts?” at Rolling Stone.

    • Read “Chase Rice responds to criticism over his TN show with packed, maskless crowd” at Brooklyn Vegan.

    • Read “Jason Isbell Blasts Chase Rice & Other “Country Stars”: “Some Are So Broke They’ve Decided To Do Shows This Weekend” at Whiskey Riff.

    • Read “Vanilla Ice Cancels 4th of July Concert: “I Didn’t Know the Numbers Were So Crazy!” at Consequence of Sound.

  • Read “Global coronavirus death toll exceeds 500,000” at Axios.

  • Read “Fake News and the Politicization Of Science Could Cost Lives” at Sojourners.

  • Read “U.S. Pediatricians Call For In-Person School This Fall” at NPR.

  • Read “Poll: 30% of Americans say they trust Trump to get facts right on coronavirus” at Axios.

  • Read “Kansas becomes latest state to make wearing masks in public mandatory” at Axios.

  • Read “Sen. McConnell Says Americans Must Have 'No Stigma' In Wearing Face Masks” at NPR.

  • Read “Fauci warns U.S. could see 100,000 new coronavirus cases per day” at Axios.

  • Read “Goldman Sachs says a national mask mandate could slash infections and save economy from a 5% hit” at CNBC.

  • Read “South Dakota governor: "We will not be social distancing" at July 3 event with Trump” at Axios. "We will have a large event on July 3. We told those folks that have concerns that they can stay home, but those who want to come and join us, we'll be giving out free face masks, if they choose to wear one. But we won't be social distancing."

  • Read “European Union formally bars U.S. travelers due to coronavirus threat” at MSNBC.

  • Read “CDC expert warns U.S. has "way too much virus" to contain outbreak” at Axios.

  • Read “Model Predicts Tens of Thousands of Lives Could be Saved if Almost Everyone Uses Masks” at US News.

  • Read “Young people of color more likely to be hospitalized for coronavirus” at Axios.

  • Read “Florida is "not going back" on reopening, governor says” at Axios.

  • Read “Coronavirus ‘Incarnates’ Biblical Teachings in French Evangelical Leader President of CNEF and COVID-19 survivor explains his renewed confidence to defend the faith and French evangelical churches, as well as why his mother now calls him “Lazarus” at Christianity Today.

  • Read “A's join Giants and offer MLB fans option to buy cardboard cutouts of themselves for empty stadiums” at CBS Sports.

  • Read “Army Halts SERE Course after 90 Students Test Positive for Coronavirus” at Military.

  • Read “The US Public Paid to Develop This COVID-19 Drug. It Will Cost $3,000 a Dose” at Jacobin Magazine.

  • Read “This fall, going back to school will be a luxury few families can afford” at The Gazette.

  • Read “Texas governor mandates face masks in public spaces” at Axios.

  • Read “White House to 'seriously consider' second stimulus check, Treasury Secretary says” at 12 News.

  • Read “The gift of nurturing small things during isolation” at Christian Century.

  • Read “More than 40 Bay Area school principals exposed to coronavirus during in-person meeting” at San Fransisco Chronicle.

  • Read “Closing bars to stop coronavirus spread is backed by science” at Associated Press.

Read “Attorney General Barr Says DOJ Acts Independent Of Trump's Interests” at NPR.

Read “Atlanta Hawks Arena To Host Voting Site, Team Challenges Rest Of NBA To Follow” at NPR.

Read “Oklahoma Votes For Medicaid Expansion Over Objections Of Republican State Leaders” at NPR.

Read “Judges rule Donald Trump CANNOT use $2.5 billion in military cash to build his border wall - days after he signed a new section” at Daily Mail.

  • Read “Appeals court rules funding for Trump border wall construction ‘unlawful’” at NBC News.

Read “Trump’s Latest Comments About Blacks Thanking Him for His ‘Law and Order’ Approach Is Right Out of the Slave Master’s Playbook” at The Root.

Read “Trump renews vow on preexisting conditions after urging court to overturn ObamaCare” at The HIll.

Read “Spies and Commandos Warned Months Ago of Russian Bounties on U.S. Troops The recovery of large amounts of American cash at a Taliban outpost in Afghanistan helped tip off U.S. officials” “Spies and Commandos Warned Months Ago of Russian Bounties on U.S. Troops The recovery of large amounts of American cash at a Taliban outpost in Afghanistan helped tip off U.S. officials” New York Times

  • Read “Russian spy unit paid Taliban to attack US troops, US intelligence says It couldn’t be determined whether Russian bounties paid to Taliban fighters resulted in any American combat deaths in Afghanistan” at Fox News.

  • Read “Top Republican demands answers from White House over reports of Russian bounties” at Axios.

  • Read “GOP senator demands accountability over reports of Russian bounties on U.S. troops” at Axios.

  • Read “White House briefs Republicans on Russian bounties Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer are calling for all lawmakers to be briefed, not just GOP members” at Politico.

  • Read “AP sources: White House aware of Russian bounties in 2019” at Associated Press.

  • Read "President Trump tweets that Russia bounty allegations are 'Fake News'“ at 12 News.

  • Read “Top Democrat introduces amendment to sanction Putin for alleged Russian bounties” at News Break.

Read “Russians back reforms that could let Putin rule through 2036, officials say” at Axios.

Read “Veterans Group Accuses Donald Trump Of Acting Like A Traitor” at News and Guts.

Read “House approves statehood for DC in 232-180 vote” at The Hill.

Read “Tribes, environmentalists sue to stop rollback of Clean Water Act protections” at AZ Central.

Read “r/The_Donald banned from Reddit as Trump suspended from Twitch” at Brooklyn Vegan.

  • Read “Reddit Bans The_Donald, Forum Of Nearly 800,000 Trump Fans, Over Abusive Posts” at NPR.

Read “From pandering to Putin to abusing allies and ignoring his own advisers, Trump’s phone calls alarm US officials” at CNN.

Read “Amy McGrath wins Kentucky Democratic Senate primary” at Axios.

Read “Colorado Supreme Court upholds state’s ban on large-capacity gun magazines State’s prohibition on magazines that hold more than 15 rounds adopted after Aurora theater shooting” at Denver Post.

Read “Biden calls on Trump to wear a mask, limit rallies amid coronavirus surge” at Axios. "The crisis is real and it’s surging, Mr. President. America knows that this crisis isn’t behind us, even if you don’t."

  • Read “Hundreds Of Former Bush Officials Unite To Endorse Joe Biden” at NPR.

  • Read “Biden Faces Pressure To Pick A Black Running Mate. But Warren Remains A Top Contender” at NPR.

Read “McConnell warns Democrats not to change filibuster rule” at The Hill.

Read “Judge temporarily blocks publication of tell-all book by Trump's niece” at Axios.

Read “AOC’s brand was groundbreaking. Now it’s inspiring copycats around the world” at Fast Company.

Read “GOP Candidates Open To QAnon Conspiracy Theory Advance In Congressional Races” at NPR.

Read “A 10% cut to the US military budget would help support struggling American” by Bernie Sanders at The Guardian.

Read “Wave Of Young Judges Pushed By McConnell Will Be 'Ruling For Decades To Come' at NPR.

Read “Starbucks stops advertising on ALL social media while Pepsi joins the growing list of companies boycotting Facebook as pressure grows on sites to crack down on 'hate speech'“ at Daily Mail.

Read “Zuckerberg Loses $7 Billion as Firms Boycott Facebook Ads” at Bloomberg.

  • Read “Mark Zuckerberg reportedly said Facebook is 'not gonna change' in response to a boycott by more than 500 advertisers over the company's hate-speech policies” at Business Insider.

Read “The Indebted Dead Tracing the history of the Grateful Dead folktale and the evolving obligations of being alive” at Lapham’s Quarterly.

Read “The cost of giving birth in America is now more than an average month’s salary” at Motherly.

Half-year-end Half-lists:

  • Browse “The 33 Best Albums of 2020 So Far” at Treble.

  • Browse “The Best Of 2020 – Halftime Report A list of 72 Albums we've enjoyed from January to June” at Uncut.

  • Browse “Exclaim!'s 33 Best Albums of 2020 So Far”.

  • Browse “NPR Music's 25 Favorite Albums Of 2020 (So Far)” at NPR.

  • Browse “Post-Trash's Best of 2020: A Mid-Year Report”.

  • Browse “The 50 Best Albums of 2020 So Far” at PopMatters.

Read “Trey Anastasio on the Power of Live” at Relix.

Read “Dean Wareham interviews Pete Kember, aka Sonic Boom The Luna/Galaxie 500 singer chats with his old friend, Sonic Boom of Spacemen 3 and Spectrum” at Talk House.

Read “Sufjan Stevens Announces New Solo Album 'The Ascension'“ at NPR.

Read “New True Crime Podcast to Explore Deaths and Disappearances of Deadheads” at Jambands.

Read “With New Albums, Bob Dylan, Neil Young And Willie Nelson Are As Relevant As Ever” at NPR.

Read “Rolling Stones Threaten Trump With Lawsuit Over Rally Music “This could be the last time Trump uses any Jagger/ Richards songs on his campaigns,” band’s rep says” at Rolling Stone.

Browse “The 50 Greatest Bassists of All Time From funk masters to prog prodigies and beyond, we count down the players who have shaped our idea of the low-end theory” at Rolling Stone.

Browse “40 Years of Experimental Dub Label On-U Sound Records: Nine Essential LPs” at Bandcamp.

Read “John Prine Named Illinois’ First Honorary Poet Laureate” at PItchfork.

Read ‘Roland and Korg fined £5.5 million” for price fixing at Wire.

Read “Back-stabbing, bullying, busking: how The Clash disintegrated” at Louder Sound.

Read “One Eleven Heavy interview” at It’s Psychedelic, Baby. “Transatlantic psychedelic rock resurrecting the joyful, altered reminiscence of the first wave of Cosmic American Music.

Read “Radio Is Quietly Scrubbing the Word ‘Urban,’ Sources Say Insiders say radio giant iHeartMedia and radio analytics company Mediabase are poised to remove the word, which has been controversial in industry-wide discussions around systemic racism” at Rolling Stone.

Read “Ford-Wyoming Drive-In was top-grossing movie theater in nation over weekend” at Freep.

Read “Beavis and Butt-Head Are Returning With New Episodes Mike Judge is resurrecting his beloved Gen X cartoon as part of a new deal with Comedy Central” at Consequence of Sound.

Read “Drawing on Walls: An Wondrous Illustrated Homage to Keith Haring, His Irrepressible Art of Hope, and His Beautiful Bond with Children” at Brain Pickings.

Read “The Origins of Warhol’s Brillo Boxes” at Warholiana.

Browse “5 Best Routes for a Cross-Country Road Trip” at The Discoverer.

Read “Arizona reps. Debbie Lesko, Paul Gosar push for Peoria to be home base of Space Force” at 12 News.

The Weekly Town Crier (06/26/20)

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All the week’s news that’s fit to cry about (06/26/20).

Read “Complementarians in Closed Rooms Aimee Byrd, Beth Moore, and private words that reveal a pressing problem” at Christianity Today. “When we see the words of some complementarians outed from a Facebook group, it reminds us we all have a responsibility to root out misogyny.” (EDITOR’S NOTE: What is the difference between Complementarianism and Patriarchy?)

Read “Leaving Liberty After a decade of declining black enrollment on campus, a tweet set off several recent departures among black students and staff” at Christianity Today.

  • Read “I Suppressed So Much of My Humanity in Being Here” What it’s like to be black at Liberty University” at Slate.

Read “Why are so many white Christians suddenly standing up for racial justice? It might help that our pews aren’t available to sit in and pray” at Christian Century.

Read “Dozens of Christian College Faculty Eliminated in Spring Budget Cuts” at Christianity Today.

Read “In an interview with EWTN, Trump hails ‘tremendous letter of support from the Catholic Church’” at America Magazine.

Read “The ‘Over There’ Era of Missions Is Over Nowadays, the Western church needs to send ambassadors to its own culture” at Christianity Today.

Read “We reversed Trump’s immigration policy once. We’re back to fight ‘Remain in Mexico.’ at Religion News Service.

Read “Black Practicing Christians Are Twice as Likely as Their White Peers to See a Race Problem” at Barna.

Read “Brazil’s massive replica of the Temple of Solomon The Pentecostals of the Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus have a mighty vision” at Christian Central.

Read “Did Race and Racism Exist in the Middle Ages?” at Not Even Past.

Read “Aunt Jemima and Uncle Ben deserve retirement. They're racist myths of happy Black servitude. The mascots were intended to let white consumers indulge in a fantasy of enslaved people as submissive, self-effacing, loyal and contentedly pacified” at NBC News.

Read “Fact check: Father of modern gynecology performed experiments on enslaved Black women” at USA Today.

Read “Who Wrote ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’? Inside The Little-Known True Story” at All That’s Interesting.

  • Read “Tulsa Athletic to no longer play “The Star-Spangled Banner” at The Black Wall Street Times. “Tulsa Athletic, an American soccer team based in Tulsa and part of the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL), announces the club will no longer play the “The Star-Spangled Banner” and will play a new song of that's more inclusive and representative of today's America, “This Land Is Your Land” by Woody Guthrie, at all home matches.”

  • Read “Pro Softball Players Quit After Manager Brags To Trump About Her Team Standing For The National Anthem” at PercoLately.

Read “Why some people are willing to challenge behavior they see as wrong despite personal risk” at PBS. “Psychologists describe those who are willing to defend their principles in the face of potentially negative social consequences such as disapproval, ostracism and career setbacks as “moral rebels.”

Read “Never Forget, America’s Mass Lynching: 237 Black Sharecroppers Were Murdered In Arkansas” at Black Westchester.

Read “'World should know what is happening' to children in ICE detention: Mother testifies "It is painful for me to relive this experience and remember that suffering." at ABC News.

Read “We still don’t know just how much was lost in the Tulsa massacre of 1921” at QZ.

Read “The History of Racism Is Not Past” at Sojourners.

Read “'Black Lives Matter' is About More than the Police” at ACLU.

Read “A Call For Reparations: How America Might Narrow The Racial Wealth Gap” at NPR.

Juneteenth:

  • Read “Why Juneteenth is a holiday every American should celebrate” at Denison Forum.

  • Read “On Juneteenth, look to the biblical prophets and the Black Lives Matter movement” at America Magazine.

  • Read “Juneteenth and the Meaning of Freedom Emancipation is a marker of progress for white Americans, not black ones” at New Yorker.

  • Read “Honoring the 'Mother of Juneteenth' in Portland, Clara Peoples” at KGW.

  • Read “Senators propose bill to make Juneteenth a federal holiday Juneteenth is currently recognized by 47 states and the District of Columbia as a state holiday or observance” at NBC News.

Read “How Did We Get Here? 163 years of The Atlantic’s writing on race and racism in America” at The Atlantic.

Read/Listen to “'An Extraordinary Moment': Angela Davis Says Protests Recognize Long Overdue Anti-Racist Work” at WBUR.

Read “Black Lives Matter is inspiring demonstrations all over Latin America” at America Magazine.

Read “13 Microaggressions Black People Deal With All The Time” at Huff Post.

Read “Bubba Wallace responds after FBI says noose found in stall there as early as Oct. 2019” at 12 News. “"The image that I have, that I have seen hanging from my garage is not a garage pull," Bubba Wallace said in an interview with CNN. "From the evidence that we have, that I have, it's a straight-up noose."

Read “High court justices press attorneys over high-capacity magazine ban” at VT Digger.

Read “Mark Taylor: Black men are hanging themselves to start ‘civil war’ that will stop Trump’s reelection” at Dead State.

Read “Antisemitic incidents in Colorado continue to rise as attacks against American Jews reach all-time highs, new report shows” at MSN.

Read “Supreme Court blocks Trump from ending DACA in big win for Dreamers” at NBC News.

Read “NASA names headquarters after first Black female engineer Mary W. Jackson” at Axios.

Read “The US Government Kills Black People with Impunity Both at Home and Abroad” at The Nation.

Read “U.S. Soldier Charged With Plotting to Let Neo-Nazis Ambush Read “NASA names headquarters after first Black female engineer Mary W. JacksonHis Army Unit” at Time.

Read “Tennessee Tennessee Republicans approve six-week abortion ban in surprise vote Ban beginning at six weeks, which is before most women know they are pregnant, is blatantly unconstitutional” at The Guardian.

Read “Looking for black-owned restaurants in Arizona? Here are more than 50 around metro Phoenix” at AZ Central.

Read “What We Know About the Killing of Elijah McClain” at The Cut.

Ahmaud Arbery:

  • Read “Ahmaud Arbery murder suspects indicted on murder charges” at Axios.

George Floyd:

  • Read “Opinion Why Did Cup Foods Call the Cops on George Floyd?” at New York Times.

  • Read "Scottsdale Councilman Apologizes to George Floyd's Family for Mocking 'I Can't Breathe' at Phoenix New Times.

Breonna Taylor:

  • Read “One of the officers involved in the shooting of Breonna Taylor is being fired, Louisville mayor says Interim Police Chief Robert Schroeder calls actions of Brett Hankison a "shock to the conscience" at Salon.

  • Read “Mayor Fischer announces initiation of termination procedures against LMPD Officer Brett Hankison” at LouisvilleKY.gov.

This week in traitorous, white-supremacist Confederate monuments (and/or Columbus monuments):

  • Read “SEC tells Mississippi it has to change its flag, or risk losing host rights for championship events” at CBS News.

  • Read “Mayor Fischer announces initiation of termination procedures against LMPD Officer Brett Hankison” at LouisvilleKY.gov.

  • Read/Listen to “Confederate Monuments Continue To Come Down In Racial Justice Protests” at WBUR.

  • Read “Washington, D.C.'s only Confederate statue sacked during protest” at Axios.

  • Read “Confederate Speaker Portraits To Be Removed From The U.S. Capitol On Juneteenth” at NPR.

  • Read “President Trump tries to tie statue destruction to Democrats” at 12 News.

    • Read “President Trump says 'learn from history' instead of removing statues President Trump spoke out after an attempt Monday night to bring down a statue near the White House of Andrew Jackson, one of Trump's favorite presidents” at 12 News.

    • Read “President Trump threatens anyone destroying statues could face 10 years in prison” at 12 News. “President Trump said he's 'authorized' the arrest of anyone 'who vandalizes or destroys' monuments or statues.”

      • Read "Twitter flags ANOTHER Donald Trump tweet for 'abusive language' after he threatened protesters trying to topple Andrew Jackson statute outside the White House with 'serious force' at The Daily Mail.

  • Read “'I did the right thing:' Man arrested on suspicion of painting Arizona Confederate memorial speaks out” at AZ Central.

  • Read “We need to do more than topple (some) statues” at America Magazine.

  • Read “Miss. Baptists ask for removal of Confederate symbol from state flag” at Kentucky Today.

    • Read “Walmart bans Mississippi state flag due to Confederate symbol” at Axios.

  • Read “Minnesotans Petition To Replace St. Paul’s Columbus Statue With A Prince Monument” at Live For Live Music.

  • Read “Slavery advocate’s statue removed in South Carolina” at PBS News Hour.

  • Read “Dixie Chicks Change Name to The Chicks” at Pitchfork.

This Week in Protest News:

  • Read “Armed Vigilantes Antagonizing Protestors Have Received A Warm Reception From Police” at The Intercept.

  • Read “Phoenix church leads 'White Silence is Violence' march” at 12 News.

  • Read “Over 3,500 people take part in Tokyo’s first official Black Lives Matter march” at Time Out.

  • Read “Police Turned Richmond, Virginia Into a War Zone Last Night” at Vice.

  • Read “Chicago Police Illegally Denied Protesters Right To Attorney, Phone Call, Top Public Defender Says” at Block Club Chicago.

  • Read “Police shoot flash-bang grenades, pepper balls at protesters outside Phoenix Trump rally” at AZ Central.

This Week With the Police:

  • Read “NYC's 1975 Nightmarish Cop Propaganda Pamphlet” at Cracked.

  • Read “Nextdoor Ends Its Program for Forwarding Suspicions to Police” at Bloomberg. “Forward to Police,” one of several Nextdoor programs to strengthen law enforcement relations, has been criticized for elevating racial profiling.

  • Read “Hundreds of Police Officers Belong to Racist Facebook Groups” at The Root.

  • Read “The ‘Warrior Cop’ Is a Toxic Mentality. And a Lucrative Industry. Police are paying firms that preach extreme vigilance and deadly force.” at The Trace.

  • Read “Why Are Cops Putting Kids in Cuffs? Federal funding, zero tolerance, and lack of choice encourage the creeping criminalization of student misbehavior” at Reason.

  • Read “Shake Shack, "poisoned" cops, and how the press falls for police propaganda Break the dependence on police information” at Press Run.

  • Read “APA Urges Closer Partnerships Between Police, Behavioral Experts To Stem Racial Incidents” at American Psychological Association.

  • Read “Six lessons for police reform from the Catholic Church" at America Magazine.

  • Read “Who caused the violence at protests? It wasn’t antifa’ at Washington Post.

  • Read “Lawmakers in New Mexico back mandatory police body cameras” at 12 News.

  • Read “Beyond Reform The Senate stalls out before doing anything about police abuse.” at Slate.

  • Read “Above the Law: The Data Are In on Police, Killing, and Race” at The Public Discourse.

  • Read “Minneapolis Council members draft charter amendment to replace existing police department” at Minneapolis Reformer.

  • Read “National Teachers Union Wants Police Out Of Schools” at Cap Con.

  • Read “Should cops who shoot someone be tested for drugs and alcohol? Metro Council may demand it” at Louisville Courier-Journal.

  • Read “Demilitarization of Police Means Disrupting the Army-to-Police Pipeline” at Jacobin Magazine.

  • Read “Democrats Vow To Block GOP Police Reform Bill Unless Republicans Agree To Negotiate” at NPR.

  • Read “Florida police caught using mug shots of black men for target practice” at MSNBC.

  • Read “Anonymous digs up vast tranche of U.S. police documents” at Axios.

  • Read “The urgent need for deep changes in American policing Are the police meant to protect people? Or to fight them?” at Christian Century.

  • Read “How the Phoenix Police Department Spends Its $745 Million Budget. “The city wants to give the force an additional $24 million. But the department is still failing to solve crimes, and officers have shot 212 people between 2011 and 2018, killing about half” at The Appeal.

Read “Wrongfully Arrested Because Face Recognition Can’t Tell Black People Apart” at ACLU.

Read “Minneapolis Park Board declares parks are ‘refuge’ for homeless” at Minnesota Reformer.

Read “Brett Favre says Colin Kaepernick will be considered a hero like Pat Tillman” at TMZ.

Read “Boston Lawmakers Vote To Ban Use Of Facial Recognition Technology By The City” at NPR.

Your Weekly Coronavirus Roundup

  • Read “Apple Closes Retail Stores in Four States as Coronavirus Cases Rise Apple said it would close stores near Naples, Fla; Charlotte, N.C.; in Greenville, S.C.; and in Arizona” at Wall Street Journal.

  • Read “Ducey will let Arizona cities decide on mandating mask wearing, announces new rules for businesses” at AZ Central.

  • Read “Phoenix will require masks starting Saturday. Refusing to wear a face covering could bring a $250 fine” at AZ Central.

  • Read “The Karens Are Giving Us a Hard Time Now” A waiter at a reopened restaurant explains how dining works in a pandemic” at Slate.

  • Read “Maricopa County sends mandate to every resident in the county: Wear a mask no matter what city, town or area you live in” at AZ Central.

  • Read “Treasury to release names of some businesses that received PPP loans” at Axios.

  • Read “Yes, Wearing Masks Helps. Here's Why” at NPR.

  • Read “Six Trump campaign staffers test positive for coronavirus ahead of Tulsa rally” at Axios.

  • Read “Rep Andy Biggs believes mandatory face masks are tyranny. Yeah, he said that, tyranny” at AZ Central.

  • Read “Phoenix Megachurch Hosting Trump Rally Says It Has Special Coronavirus-Killing Air System” at Phoenix New Times.

  • Read “Phoenix Mayor Gallego: Mask policy won’t be enforced at Trump event” at KTAR.

  • Read “Spain opens border to tourists; Trump wants less testing” at AP News.

  • Read “President Trump suggests he urged slowing of coronavirus testing” at 12 News.

  • Read “White House Defends Trump's Use Of Racist Term To Describe Coronavirus” at NPR.

  • Read “German Federal Government Pledges $169 Million For Live Events Industry With “Restart Culture” Initiative” at Live FOr Live Music.

  • Read “Amid threats and political pushback, public health officials are leaving their posts” at Washington Post.

  • Read “Why Native Americans took Covid-19 seriously: 'It's our reality' Coronavirus is novel to the world, but the impact on native communities is anything but a new experience” at The Guardian.

  • Read “The pandemic has deepened my insomnia—and my prayers As I lie awake, it seems right to join those who address God with different names than I use” at Christian Century.

  • Read “Young people in the US South and West are increasingly getting coronavirus” at CNN.

  • Read “Years of potential life lost” is the most sobering and sad Covid-19 statistic I’ve seen” at Vox.

  • Read “EU prepares to ban American travelers as borders reopen on July 1” at Axios.

  • Read “Coronavirus has brought US 'to its knees', says CDC director” at The Guardian.

  • Read “You Can Order A Face Mask Customized With The Rest Of Your Face On It” at Crafty.diply.

  • Read "We Still Don't Fully Understand The Label 'Asymptomatic'

  • Read “Protest against mask mandates, led by Scottsdale councilman, underway in Old Town” at AZ Central.

  • Love your neighbor, wear a mask.

  • Read “Hospitals issue joint call to wear masks in public: ‘Wearing a mask is not a political statement’” at News Break.

  • Read “Rubio: 'Everyone should just wear a damn mask' at The Hill.

  • Read “Nike Turned Away a Public Health Official From Its Warehouse Days After a Worker With COVID-19 Died” at Pro Publica.

  • Read “Study Finds Black Lives Matter Protests Didn't Lead to Growth in Coronavirus Cases” at The Root.

  • Read “The U.S. divide on coronavirus masks” at Axios. “Mask-wearing has become the latest partisan division in an increasingly politically divided pandemic.”

  • Read “Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro was ordered by a federal judge on Tuesday to wear a face mask outside or be fined” at Axios.

  • Read “What Parents Can Learn From Child Care Centers That Stayed Open During Lockdowns” at NPR.

  • Read “Texas family shaken after 18 relatives test positive for COVID-19 following surprise birthday party.” at KSDK. “Three are now hospitalized, including two elderly family members and one woman battling breast cancer.”

  • Read “With COVID-19 Cases Rising, Some States Slow Their Reopening Plans” at NPR.

Read “CBS Reporter Becomes Internet Hero After Asking Trump Why He Keeps Hiring 'Wackos And Liars'“ at ComicSands.

  • Read ““William Barr Poses The Greatest Threat… To Our Rule Of Law” at News and Guts.

    • Read “Powerful US attorney who investigated Trump associates refuses to step down after Barr pushes him out” at CNN.

    • Read “House Judiciary panel preparing to subpoena Barr” at Politico.

  • Read “Politics Influenced Justice Department In Roger Stone Case, DOJ Lawyer Tells Hill” at NPR.

  • Read “Prosecutor to tell Congress of pressure from ‘highest levels’ of Justice Dept. to cut Roger Stone ‘a break’” at Washington Post.

  • Read “Judge says Bolton can publish book despite efforts to block it” at 12 News.

  • Read “Stephen Colbert To John Bolton: “How Could You Be Naive?” at News and Guts.

  • Read “Appeals court orders dismissal of Michael Flynn's criminal case The decision was made, even though Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to prosecutors in special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation” at 12 News.

Read “In Arizona, Republicans worry about losing traction with independent voters In a state that could prove pivotal in both the presidential race and the fight for Senate control, Republicans are concerned about a shrinking base” at NBC News.

Read “A new Trump proclamation will block foreign workers It could affect hundreds of thousands of foreigners stranded abroad” at Vox.

Read "Trumps lose attempt to gag Mary Trump from publishing tell-all book as a judge dismisses petition for a protective order saying their claims are 'fatally defective' at NPR.

Read “Biden to accept nomination at pared-down Milwaukee convention” at Axios.

  • Read “Biden Takes Dominant Lead as Voters Reject Trump on Virus and Race” at New York Times.

  • Read “Trump Is Struggling To Run Against A White Guy” at The Atlantic.

Read “Devin Nunes can’t sue Twitter over statements by fake cow, judge rules’ at Fresno Bee.

Read “Black Progressives Appear To Surge In Primaries, While Trump-Backed Candidates Lose” at NPR.

Read “More Than 100 Veterans Sign Letter Condemning Sen. McSally” at KJZZ.

Read “24-Year-Old Easily Tops President Trump's Pick In N.C. Republican Primary” at NPR.

Read “Zuckerberg says he’s ‘disgusted’ by Trump’s rhetoric. It’s just crocodile tears” at Washington Post.

Read “Alaska's 'Into the Wild' bus, known as a deadly tourist lure, has been removed by air” at CNN.

Read “Philly shuts down dumpster pools: 'We are not screwing around' at USA Today.

Read “Bill Cosby’s appeal of sex-crime conviction accepted by state supreme court” at USA Today.

Read “Okayplayer CEO Abiola Oke Resigns, Company Cites Recent Allegations” at Exclaim.

Read “Tom Petty’s Family Blasts Trump For Using His Music At Tulsa Rally” at Stereogum.

Read “K-Pop Stans Take Credit For Ruining Trump’s Tulsa Rally” at Stereogum.

Read “Jefferson Airplane to Receive Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2021” at Jambands.

Read “There is Now An Official Grateful Dead Deodorant” at Relix.

Half-year-end Half-lists:

  • Browse “The 33 Best Albums of 2020 So Far” at Treble.

  • Browse “The Best Of 2020 – Halftime Report A list of 72 Albums we've enjoyed from January to June” at Uncut.

  • Browse “Exclaim!'s 33 Best Albums of 2020 So Far”.

Read “Toil and Trouble: Uncle Tupelo’s ‘No Depression’ Turns 30” at No Depression.

Read “'I Have Had No Prouder Moment in Music': Run the Jewels On Capturing the Sound of American Rage” at Esquire.

Read “Sammy Hagar Is Willing to “Get Sick and Even Die” to Kickstart the Concert Industry Again” at Consequence of Sound.

Read “Barcelona opera house reopens with performance to 2,292 plants” at CNN.

Read “More Than 50 Years Ago Thelonious Monk Played A High School In California. Now The Album’s On Vinyl Everything You Need To Know About The Newly Discovered Lost Monk Album” at Vinyl Me Please.

Read “John Prine Scores First No. 1 Single with Final Recording “I Remember Everything” at Consequence of Sound.

Read “Nick Cave Explains Why He Doesn’t Write Protest Songs” at Stereogum.

Read “Paul McCartney Calls on Schools to Cease Serving Meat-Only Lunches "No one needs to eat meat, so it shouldn't be mandatory to serve it in schools" at Consequence of Sound.

Read “Warren Haynes Pens Op-Ed ‘A Change Is Gonna Come—Oh, Yes It Will’, Shares Accompanying Playlist” at Jambands.

Read “Dixie Chicks Change Name to The Chicks” at Pitchfork.

Browse “The Story of ’80s Texas Punk in 9 Photographs” at Pitchfork.

Read “'Brooklyn Nine-Nine' Creators Scrap Season 8, Plan to Start over Amid Police Brutality Protests” at Exclaim.

Read “Large iguana found in freezer of pizza restaurant in Florida.

Read “Large iguana found in freezer of pizza restaurant in Florida” at Boing Boing.

Read “An exploitative digital cult born from Facebook meme groups is imploding” at AV Club.

Read “Tourist's photo showing creature rising from water sparks online claims that it could be 'one of the best ever' pictures of Loch Ness Monster” at The Daily Mail.

The Weekly Town Crier (06/05/20)

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All the week’s news that’s fit to cry about (06/07/20)





Read “Amid pandemic, the Wichita Kenyan community unites virtually through food and family” at Religion News Service.

Read “'Cannabis burned during worship' by ancient Israelites - study” at BBC.

Read “‘How long, O Lord?’ Psalm 13 is the cry of black Americans” at America Magazine.

Read “Dear Evangelicals, You Must Know What You’ve Done To be Healed” by Kyle J. Howard.

Read “Southern Baptists see historic drop in membership” at Washington Post.

Read “Bishop at DC church outraged by Trump visit: 'I just can't believe what my eyes have seen' at CNN.

  • Read “Peaceful Protesters Were Gassed Outside The White House So Trump Could Get A Photo Op At A Church” at Buzzfeed News.

  • Read “Ahead of Trump Bible photo op, police forcibly expel priest from St. John’s church near White House” at Religion News Service.

  • Read “The Bible Is Not a Prop. Its Teachings, Though—about the Gospel and Justice—Are What We Need Right Now A Bible in a photo opp was not the Bible we needed” at Christianity Today.

  • Read “Barr personally ordered removal of protesters near White House, leading to use of force against largely peaceful crowd” at Washington Post.

  • Read “The president is dragging the church into a culture war. We shouldn’t let him” at America Magazine.

  • Read “An 'ANTIFA' Twitter account that called for looting 'white hoods' was actually run by white nationalist group Identity Evropa” at Business Insider.

  • Read “American Bible Society leader: Don’t use the Bible as a political ‘prop’” at Religion News Service.

  • Read “Amid protests, US Faith leaders engage racism and politics” at AP News.

  • Read “Trump Favorability Slips Among White Catholic and Non-College Americans During National Unrest” at PRRI.

Read “Liberty University’s Director of Diversity Retention Has Resigned” at The Way of Improvement.

  • Read “Black Liberty U. alums rebuke Falwell after blackface tweet” at AP News.

Browse “Antiracism Books for Christians – A Reading Guide” at Englewood Review of Books.

Browse “75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice” at Medium.

Unrest erupts worldwide in response to systemic racism in the U.S. manifesting in police brutality:

  • Read “Pentagon puts military police on alert to go to Minneapolis” at Associated Press.

  • Read “The History Behind 'When The Looting Starts, The Shooting Starts' at NPR.

  • Read “The Revolution Will Not Be Videoed What Paul and Silas might have said about George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor and and and …” at Christianity Today.

  • Read “Why Do They Riot? Rioting & The Overflow of Racial Trauma” by Jemar Tisby.

  • Read “JAY-Z Called Minnesota Governor About Justice for George Floyd, Issues Statement” at Pitchfork.

  • Read “Killer Mike Delivers Emotional Speech to Atlanta Protesters at Mayor’s Press Conference” at Pitchfork.

  • Read “In Some Cities, Police Officers Joined Protesters Marching Against Brutality” at Forbes.

  • Read “Cities on Edge as Fires Burn Near White House” at New York Times.

  • Read “Music Industry to Observe ‘Blackout Tuesday’ in Solidarity with Nationwide Protests” at Relix.

  • Read “A Reporter’s Cry on Live TV: ‘I’m Getting Shot! I’m Getting Shot!’” at New York Times.

  • Read “Op-Ed: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: Don’t understand the protests? What you’re seeing is people pushed to the edge” at Los Angeles Times.

  • Read “As cities burned, Trump stayed silent — other than tweeting fuel on the fire” at Washington Post.

  • Read “Protest, Uprisings, and Race War” at Counter Punch.

  • Read “Martin Luther King Jr.’s scorn for ‘white moderates’ in his Birmingham jail letter” at Washington Post.

  • Read “The terror of wearing both a press badge and black skin’: Black journalists are carrying unique burdens” at Washington Post.

  • Read “What Does “Blackout Tuesday” Actually Mean for the Music Industry?” at Pitchfork.

    • Read “What Major Music Companies Actually Did on “Blackout Tuesday” at Pitchfork.

  • Read/Watch “Thousands protest in downtown Phoenix for 4th straight night, people being detained” at AZ Family.

  • Read “When Rioting Is the Answer” at Time.

  • Read “The additional violence of George Floyd’s autopsy report” at Christian Century.

  • Read “Minneapolis police union president releases letter criticizing city leaders following civil unrest” at KSTP.

  • Read “The DEA Has Just Been Authorized to Conduct Surveillance on Protesters” at Buzzfeed News.

  • Read “Trump calls governors ‘weak,’ urges them to use force against unruly protests” at Washington Post.

  • Read “Colin Kaepernick sets up legal defence fund for George Floyd demonstrators” at The Independent.

  • Read “Minnesota Files Discrimination Complaint Against Minneapolis Police Department” at NPR.

  • Read “How to Safely and Ethically Film Police Misconduct” at Teen Vogue.

  • Read/Watch “Massive protests defy local curfews, Trump threats” at MSNBC.

  • Read “All four former officers involved in George Floyd's killing now face charges” at CNN.

  • Read “Social media cracks down on sick challenge mocking George Floyd’s death” at New York Post.

  • Read “If You Are White And Anti-Racist, This Non-Optical Allyship Guide Is Required Reading” at Vogue.

  • Read "A Soul Check for White Christians In the words of MLK, "There comes a time when silence is betrayal” at Christianity Today.

  • Read “‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’ Cast, Showrunner Donate $100,000 to National Bail Fund Network” at Variety.

  • Read “They Wanted A War, They Got One” Inside Trump’s Militarized Occupation of Washington D.C.”

  • Read “Institutionalized Racism: A Syllabus How can we help students understand George Floyd’s death in the context of institutionalized racism?” at Daily JSTOR.

  • Read “Final autopsy report reveals George Floyd had CORONAVIRUS but died from 'cardiopulmonary arrest' after Minneapolis cop knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes” at Daily Mail.

  • Read "Jimmy Carter on George Floyd protests: 'Silence can be as deadly as violence' at CNN.

  • Read “New Yorkers Said ‘F**k The Police,’ So The Police Rioted A historic uprising against police brutality in the city has seen the arrest of nearly 2,000 people, including me” at Huff Post.

  • Browse “Resources in the Fight Against Police Brutality and Systemic Racism” at Pitchfork.

  • Read “3 more Minneapolis officers charged in George Floyd death, Derek Chauvin charges elevated” at NBC News.

  • Read “The Problem With Research on Racial Bias and Police Shootings” at City Lab.

  • Browse “Antiracism Books for Christians – A Reading Guide” at Englewood Review of Books.

  • Read “1968-2020: A Tale Of Two Uprisings” at NPR.

  • Read “Tear Gas Is Way More Dangerous Than Police Let On — Especially During the Coronavirus Pandemic In the middle of a respiratory pandemic, law enforcement agencies have used tear gas in especially dangerous ways. The chemical agent also seeps into homes, contaminates food, furniture, skin and surfaces, and can cause long-term lung damage” at Pro Publica.

  • Read “A Dubious Legal Doctrine Protects Cities From Lawsuits Over Police Brutality” at Slate.

  • Read “Floyd Protesters Met With Armed Bystanders During Indiana March” at Time.

  • Read “Law Enforcement Seizes Masks Meant To Protect Anti-Racist Protesters From COVID-19” at Huff Post.

Protests against police violence . . . produce more police violence?

Read “A church returns land to American Indians “This is decolonized land,” a young woman said. “This is a liberated zone” at Christian Century.

  • Read “Standing Rock Tribe Wins in Court After Years of Perseverance” at Earth Justice.

Read “Virginia governor to announce removal of Lee statue” at AP News.

  • Read “Robert E Lee statue: Virginia governor announces removal of monument” at BBC.

Read “K-Pop Fans Have Hijacked #WhiteLivesMatter on Twitter to Teach Racists a Lesson” at News 18.

Read “Study: White people react to evidence of white privilege by claiming greater personal hardships” at Raw Story (from 2015).

Read “Minneapolis Police Union President: “I’ve Been Involved In Three Shootings Myself, And Not A One Of Them Has Bothered Me” at The Intercept.

Read “White New York socialite calls police on black woman for sitting on a bench” at Indy 100.

Read “Racism, Police Violence, and the Climate Are Not Separate Issues” at New Yorker.

Read “Ahmaud Arbery was boxed in by 2 trucks as he tried to escape, suspect used racial slur as he stood over body, evidence revealed in court shows” at Chicago Tribune.

Read “No, I'm not okay By Neal Lester, PhD.” at Ahwatukee Foothills News.

Read “Portland Public Schools will discontinue regular presence of school resource officers” at KATU.

Read “Breonna Taylor lived and died in a part of the U.S. where rights do not matter” at America Magazine.

Read “Atlanta-Based Organization Advocates For Rest As A Form Of Social Justice” at NPR.

Read “Putin decides to announce federal emergency due to fuel spill in Norilsk at RBC.

Read “About Face Death and surrender to power in the clothing of men” at Popula.

Weekly Coronavirus Roundup

  • Read “Social Distancing Is Not Enough We will need a comprehensive strategy to reduce the sort of interactions that can lead to more infections” at The Atlantic.

  • Read “Praying in a church is more important than buying flatpack furniture” at The Telegraph.

  • Read “A pastor’s pandemic diary” at Christian Century.

  • Read “Hydroxychloroquine, a drug promoted by Trump, failed to prevent healthy people from getting covid-19 in trial” at Washington Post.

  • The U.S. death toll passes 110,000.

Read “What comes after the ‘Trumpocalypse’? America has a chance to be reborn” at The Star.

  • Read “Donald Trump Appears to Have Committed Felony Voter Fraud” at Slate.

  • Read “Trump, Lacking Clear Authority, Says U.S. Will Declare Antifa a Terrorist Group” at New York Times.

  • Read “'I wish you the best': US military adviser resigns after Trump's controversial photo op at church” at Business Insider.

  • Read “James Mattis Denounces President Trump, Describes Him as a Threat to the Constitution In an extraordinary condemnation, the former defense secretary backs protesters and says the president is trying to turn Americans against one another” at The Atlantic.

  • Read “History Will Judge the Complicit Why have Republican leaders abandoned their principles in support of an immoral and dangerous president?” at The Atlantic.

Read “Iowa Rep. Steve King defeated in GOP primary” at Axios.

Read “Colorado Democrats Announce a New Bill To Hold Law Enforcement More Accountable As mass demonstrations against police brutality continue throughout America, a group of Centennial State lawmakers has put forth a set of legislative solutions” at 5280.

Read “Carole Baskin wins control of Tiger King star Joe Exotic's former zoo” at Yahoo.

Read “Formation of The Bob Weir Band-Fall 1977 (Enter Brent)” at Lost Live Dead.

Read “Music Industry to Observe ‘Blackout Tuesday’ in Solidarity with Nationwide Protests” at Relix.

Hear “Bob Mould Rage Against the President and Evangelicals on ‘American Crisis’ Track will appear on artist’s upcoming Blue Hearts LP, due out this fall” at Rolling Stone.

Read “This Is How Much More Money Artists Earn From Bandcamp Compared to Streaming Services” at Pitchfork.

Read “The Apollo Theater Schedules Free ‘Let’s Stay In Together’ Benefit with Dionne Warwick, Gary Clark Jr., Warren Haynes and More” at Relix.

Read “Sturgill Simpson Announces Livestream Show At Empty Ryman Auditorium” at Jambands.

Read “The Osbick Bird: Edward Gorey’s Tender and Surprising Vintage Illustrated Allegory About the Meaning of True Love” at Brain Pickings.

Read “The Court Case That Killed the ‘Ladies Menu’ Upscale restaurants once listed prices only for men” at Atlas Obscura.

Read “How ‘Shoebox Lunches’ Made Black Travel Possible During Jim Crow Humble shoeboxes allowed African-Americans to dine with dignity” at Atlas Obscura.

Browse “The extraordinary Polaroid diary of German filmmaker Wim Wenders” at Far Out Magazine.

Support FilmBar Online.

Read “10 Black-Owned Businesses To Support In Downtown Phoenix” at DTPHX.

Read “First Amendment Lawsuit Filed Over Terrorism Lesson At Scottsdale Community College” at Fronteras Desk.

The Weekly Town Crier (05/29/20)

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All the week’s news that’s fit to cry about (05/29/20).

Read “Jimmy Cobb, The Pulse Of 'Kind Of Blue,' Dies At 91” at NPR.

Read “William H. Lamar IV: It's not just the coronavirus -- bad theology is killing us” at Faith and Leadership.

Read “White Woman Calls Cops On Black Man Over Dog Leash Dispute In Viral Footage The man said he’d asked her to leash her dog. The woman is heard saying she would tell police “there’s an African American man threatening my life” at HuffPost.

Read “4 Minneapolis Police Officers Fired Over George Floyd Death The move comes after a video showed an officer kneeling on the neck of Floyd, an unarmed Black man, on Monday” at HuffPost.

  • Read “We must confront the inconsistent laws that allow black lives to be taken with impunity” at Washington Post.

  • Read “Chaotic Minneapolis protests spread amid emotional calls for justice, peace” at Washington Post.

  • Read as the current president calls protesters “thugs” and threatens to shoot them, prompting Twitter to put a warning label on his public communications. This is America.

Read "Angélique Kidjo on Africa Day: 'We demand not to be at the mercy of our circumstances anymore.' at Okay Africa.

Weekly Coronavirus Roundup:

  • Read “The Price of American Arrogance It’s not just Trump. We need to overhaul our approach to foreign policy to avoid another disaster like the coronavirus” at Slate.

  • Read “Trump Suggests Virus Death Count Is Inflated. Most Experts Doubt It” at New York Times.

  • Read “Trump ordered states to open churches. Can he do that? The Justice Department's own actions show just how little power the president has to force the outcome he wants” at Politico.

  • Read “Nearly half of Twitter accounts pushing to reopen America may be bots” at Technology Review.

  • Read/Watch “Calif. Design Firm Working on Protective Suit for Concerts and Clubbing The suit includes a N95 filter as well as snap-in canisters for drinking and vaping” at NBC Washington.

  • Read “An Incalculable Loss” at New York Times.

  • Read “'We All Feel At Risk': 100,000 People Dead From COVID-19 In The U.S.” at NPR.

  • Read “This Is So Unfair to Me”: Trump Whines About His COVID-19 Victimhood as Campaign Flails” at Vanity Fair.

  • Read “Our Daily Breather: Steve Reich Composes During The Coronavirus Crisis” at NPR.

  • Read “As Covid-19 cases rise in 17 states, Americans still divided on whether masks should be mandated” at CNN.

  • Read “WHO Halts Hydroxychloroquine Trial Over Safety Concerns” at NPR.

  • Read “Coronavirus may never go away, even with a vaccine Embracing that reality is crucial to the next phase of America’s pandemic response, experts say” at Washington Post.

Read “On weekend dedicated to war dead, Trump tweets insults, promotes baseless claims and plays golf” at Washington Post.

Read “Twitter adds label to Trump's misleading tweets about mail-in-ballots It's the first time Twitter has slapped a warning label on the president's tweets” at CNET.

  • Read “Stung By Twitter, Trump Signs Executive Order To Weaken Social Media Companies” at NPR.

Read “How Hitler Controlled the Press” at University of North Texas.

Read “Were They Real? See Which Historical Figures May Not Have Existed” at Definition.com.

Read “The Countermelodies That Changed Us: A Lifetime Of Loving Indigo Girls” NPR.

Read “Kendrick Lamar Thinks Like A Jazz Musician” at NPR.

Read “13th Floor Elevators: A Visual History” at Aquarium Drunkard.

See “Bob Dylan’s 1974 Classic “Forever Young,” Illustrated” at Brain Pickings.

Read “Idris Ackamoor and The Pyramids announce new album Shaman” at Pan-African Music.

Read “The Black Crowes to Kick Off ‘Budweiser Stage At Home’ Series” at Jambands.

Read “Nike SB Preps New Grateful Dead “Dancing Bear” Collection” at Relix.

Read “Grimes Is Selling a “Fraction of Her Soul” at Online Art Exhibition” at Pitchfork.

Read “The Remaking of Steve Buscemi” at GQ. “In 2019, Buscemi lost his wife of over 30 years. In a rare interview, Hollywood's most beloved misfit opens up about anxiety, loss, and the hard work of getting through it all.”

Read “Thanks to Bookshop, There Is No Reason to Buy Books on Amazon Anymore Independent bookstores, and booksellers, get a lifeline just when they need it most” at Inside Hook.

Read “Herd Of Fuzzy Green 'Glacier Mice' Baffles Scientists” at NPR.

Read “Controversial study shows rats prefer jazz to classical music, when on drugs” at Classic FM.

Read “Necco Wafers candies make a sweet comeback after 2-year absence” at Today.

Read “Under Pandemic Prohibition, South Africans Resort to Pineapples A strict lockdown has meant a spike in homebrewing” at Atlas Obscura.

Read “Why Supporters Are Working to Save Palabras Bilingual Bookstore” at Phoenix New Times.

The Weekly Town Crier (05/22/20)

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All the week’s news that’s fit to cry about (05/22/20).

Read “Jorge Santana (of Malo and brother of Carlos), RIP” at Brooklyn Vegan.

Read “Fred Willard, Comic Actor Who Thrived in Ensembles, Dies at 86” at New York Times.

Read “Ravi Zacharias Dies of Cancer The famous apologist was 74” at Christianity Today.

Read “Carlos Santana's brother, guitarist Jorge Santana, dead at 68” at Fox News.

Read “Al Mohler, Southern Baptist leader, says he was ‘stupid’ to defend slavery in 1998 CNN interview” at Religion News Service.

Read “When States Don't Talk with Churches about Covid Timetables, Tensions Increase” at Christianity Today.

Read “Despite Bad News, Evangelical Philosophy Is Flourishing” at Christianity Today.

Read “‘Laudato Si’’ was not enough. The Vatican needs to prioritize climate change” at America Magazine.

Read “Churches obsessed with their right to reopen are missing the point Genuine Christian faith is larger than the US Constitution” at Christian Century.

Read “We’re all monks now” at America Magazine.

Read “At New York hospital, a friar watches over those dying: ‘The miracle is to let go’” at Washington Post.

Read “Jane Roe’s Deathbed Confession: Anti-Abortion Conversion ‘All an Act’ Paid for by the Christian Right” at Daily Beast.

Read “Writer Anne Rice: 'Today I Quit Being A Christian'“ at NPR.

Read “'Sleeping While Black': Louisville Police Kill Unarmed Black Woman” at NPR. #BreonnaTaylor

Read “Ahmaud Arbery’s lynching begs America to respond What would it take to stop seeing neighbors as intruders and threats?” at Christian Century. #AhmaudArbery

Read “Meet The Woman Who Led Denmark to Cut Food Waste By 25% in 5 Years Selina Juul isn’t a politician. But she’s leading Denmark’s food waste revolution” at Global Citizen.

Read “Hacker Group Leaks Confidential Lady Gaga Files, Threatens to Next Take Down Donald Trump” at Consequence of Sound.

Read “After My Wife Died I Was Consumed by Both Grief and Paperwork. We Must Work Together to Change the Medical System” at Time.

Weekly Coronavirus Roundup:

  • Read “Obama team left pandemic playbook for Trump administration, officials confirm” at PBS News Hour.

  • Read “Replace Trump And Bolster The CDC, A Leading Medical Journal Urges” at NPR.

  • Read “Defying all odds, the world's last Blockbuster thinks it can outlast the pandemic” at AV Club.

  • Read “Michigan Coronavirus Cases Jump By Over 1,000 As Armed Anti-Lockdown Protesters Shut Down Capitol.”

  • Read “'A Lot To Be Hopeful For': Crisis Seen As Historic, Not Another Great Depression” at NPR.

  • Read “The Pandemic as God’s Judgment Does the biblical pattern of disaster and discipline with a call to repent apply to COVID-19?” at Christianity Today.

  • Read “'Us Vs. Them' In A Pandemic: Researchers Warn Divisions Could Get Dangerous” at NPR.

  • Read “Coronavirus Brings Beer Drinkers Back to Bud Light Craft brewers face a reckoning as Americans opt for value and familiarity with brands like Miller Lite and Coors Light” at Wall Street Journal.

  • Read/Watch “US coronavirus death toll passes 90,000 but influential model lowers its prediction” at CNN.

  • Read the AZ Central opinion piece: “State won't name nursing homes where seniors are dying because it's .... bad publicity?”

  • Read “Where Do White Evangelicals Get Their Coronavirus News? The White House While most agree with the response from public health officials, confidence in the Trump administration outweighs the news media” at Christianity Today.

  • Read “Reports: Inexperience and cronyism slowed Kushner-led efforts to procure medical supplies” at CNN. “The volunteer group was also told to prioritize leads from "VIPs," including political allies, conservative journalists and associates of Trump, outlets reported.”

  • Read “Trump threatens to halt WHO funding, review U.S. membership” at Reuters.

  • Read “Covid-19 lockdowns could drop carbon emissions to their lowest level since World War II. But the change may be temporary” at CNN.

  • Read “Aiming for novelty in coronavirus coverage, journalists end up sensationalizing the trivial and untrue” at The Conversation.

  • Read “Pakistan Is Giving Tree-Planting Jobs to Workers Unemployed Due to COVID-19” Global Citizen.

  • Read “U.S. Could Have Saved 36,000 Lives If Social Distancing Started 1 Week Earlier: Study” at NPR.

Read “Send Nudes": A New Study Shows How Often Boys Pressure Girls For Explicit Photos” at A Mighty Girl.

Read “Social, Political Animals: Embodied Learning and the Limits of Online Education” at Public Discourse.

Read “Tell Me How This Is Not Terrorism People with firearms forced the civil government of the state of Michigan to shut itself down” at Esquire.

Read “Trump, Unveiling Space Force Flag, Touts What He Calls New 'Super-Duper Missile' at NPR.

As we move into campaign season, let’s not forget:

  • Read “How Donald Trump Shifted Kids-Cancer Charity Money Into His Business” at Forbes (from 2017).

Read “The Prophecies of Q American conspiracy theories are entering a dangerous new phase.” at The Atlantic.

Read “Democrats Bet Health Care Will Deliver 2020 Victories” at NPR. “"Democrats are betting that Americans will vote for the party of health care over the party of drinking bleach.

Read “Trump says administration will continue legal fight to eliminate Obamacare” at CNN.

Read “Trump wants payroll tax holiday to mitigate coronavirus economic pain” at Reuters.

Read “Texas mayor says women can't pray at city council meetings in email to fellow councilmember” at WFAA.

Read “Monopoly was invented to demonstrate the evils of capitalism” at Aeon.

Read “Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 and 2 remaster soundtrack revealed - and it's missing a few classics” at EuroGamer.

Read “Live Nation to trial socially distanced shows in New Zealand” at NME.

Read “This Is What America’s First Socially Distanced Concert Looked Like” at Stereogum.

Read “Jeff Tweedy, Sharon Van Etten Join Daniel Johnston-Inspired Mental-Health Initiative Hi, How Are You Project asks people to spread awareness of mental health by simply asking others ‘Hi, how are you?’ at Rolling Stone.

Read “Dirty Projectors’ David Longstreth Reflects on ‘Workingman’s Dead’” at Relix.

Read “Americana ‘Wunderkind’ Sammy Brue Opens Up About Balancing Fame And Youth” at American Songwriter.

Read “Neil Young’s Lost 1975 Album ‘Homegrown’ To Be Released in June” at Relix.

Read “The Complicated Legacy of Joy Division’s Ian Curtis We honor the life of the tortured frontman by living and enduring as long as possible” at Consequence of Sound.

Read “Jason Molina's 'Eight Gates' To Get A Posthumous Release In August” at NPR.

Read “Massive Attack's 3D raises £106,000 for Bristol food banks with art print fire sale” at The Guardian.

Read “Wu-Tang Clan Selling “Protect Ya Hands” Sanitizer For every purchase, a bottle will be donated to a homeless shelter in Canada” at Consequence of Sound.

Read “He Thinks He is Pink Floyd”: Roger Waters Calls Out David Gilmour Over Use of Pink Floyd Website” Jambands.

Read “A 3,350-Song Playlist of Music from Haruki Murakami’s Personal Record Collection” at Open Culture.

Read “How the Coronavirus Is Affecting America’s Vinyl Record Industry” at Pitchfork

Read “Grab a book. It’s good for your health. That’s one good thing about sheltering in place” about Christian Century.

Watch “Missouri Penguins Enjoy 'Morning Of Fine Art' At Local Museum” at NPR.

Read “Antidepressant Microbes In Soil: How Dirt Makes You Happy” Gardening Know How.

Read “Are Creative People Crazier? Yes, being "a little bit" bipolar or schizophrenic is linked to creativity” at Psychology Today.

Read “Peyton Manning, Drew Holcomb and others launch top-shelf Tennessee bourbon whiskey” at Tennesean.

Read “Ducey Asks Businesses To Self-Police On Safety Protocols” at KJZZ.

Read “From the Grand Canyon to Stevie Nicks, here are 130 reasons why The Republic loves Arizona” at AZ Central.

The Weekly Town Crier (05/15/20)

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All the week’s news that’s fit to cry about (05/15/20).





Read “Died: Darrin Patrick, Who Used His Fall and Restoration to Help Struggling Pastors” at Christianity Today.

Read “Betty Wright, Iconic R&B Singer, Dead at 66” at Pitchfork.

Read “Little Richard, Founding Father of Rock Who Broke Musical Barriers, Dead at 87” at Rolling Stone.

Read “R.I.P. Andre Harrell, Hip-Hop Mogul and Founder of Uptown Records Dies at 57” at Consequence of Sound.

Read “Jerry Stiller, Comedian With Enduring Appeal, Is Dead at 92” at New York Times.

Read “'Double Rainbow Guy' Paul Vasquez has died” at CNN.

Read “Roy Horn of Siegfried and Roy duo dies of coronavirus” at CNN.

Read “Largest Christian Radio Company Faces Financial Crisis Due to Coronavirus Downturn Salem Media makes cuts as more churches and ministries pull spending during the pandemic” at Christianity Today.

Read “Germany Just Banned Conversion Therapy for Minors” at New Now Next.

Read “Nearly 2000 former DOJ officials call for AG Barr to resign over Flynn case” at ABC News.

Read “White Man Who Wore KKK Hood to Store Won't Face Charges” at The Root.

Read “Ahmaud Arbery died for the indefensible principle of white control” at Religion News Service.

  • Read “Ahmaud Arbery and the Trauma of Being a Black Runner” at Christianity Today.

Read/Watch“High school senior, mother say large group of armed people, including off-duty deputy, terrorized them in their home” at WCET.

Read “Trump Believes Giving Black Voters Access to Voting Is Stealing the Election” at The Root.

Read “Breonna Taylor’s Life Mattered The young EMT didn’t need to be a hero. She just needed to be alive” at Rolling Stone.

Read “Senate Votes to Allow FBI to Monitor Browsing History Without a Warrant Federal agencies no longer need probable cause to access your online browsing data” at Consequence of Sound.

Read “The many failures revealed by the Afghanistan Papers US officials have been lying about the war since it started. Why don’t we care?” at Christianity Today.

Weekly Coronavirus Roundup:

  • Read “Trump says doing too much coronavirus testing makes the US 'look bad' as he pushes for the country to reopen” at Business Insider.

  • Read “White House Rejects C.D.C.’s Coronavirus Reopening Plan” at New York Times.

  • Read “Costco’s Mask Requirement Reminds Businesses The Customer Is Not Always Right” at Forbes.

  • Read “Americans widely oppose reopening most businesses, despite easing of restrictions in some states, Post-U. Md. poll finds” at Washington Post.

  • Read “Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: The Perils of Hollywood’s Reckless Social Media Posts” at Hollywood Reporter.

  • Read/watch “Trump administration cuts funding for coronavirus researcher, jeopardizing possible COVID-19 cure” at CBS News.

  • Read “CEOs, Farm Bureau President Told To Remove Face Masks Before Meeting With Mike Pence” at Huff Post.

  • Read “The U.S. is exporting Covid-19 to Latin America. We should instead be working with our neighbors” at America Magazine.

  • Read “Trump won't wear a mask in public because he's afraid he might look ridiculous and it will harm his reelection chances, report says” at Business Insider.

  • Read “Unreleased White House report shows coronavirus rates spiking in heartland communities” at NBC News.

  • Read "Dr. Anthony Fauci Said Reopening The Country Early Could Lead To Avoidable "Suffering And Death" at Buzzfeed News.

  • Read “Coronavirus cases are on the rise in Texas and other states that reopened early, former FDA chief says” at CNBC.

  • Read/Watch “Doctors Without Borders dispatches team to the Navajo Nation” at CBS News.

  • Read “Cancel The Rent’ at The New Yorker. “If our government can spend trillions of dollars to bail corporations out of a worsening economic situation, then there is no reason why that same gesture cannot be extended to poor and working-class families.“

  • Read “Bill Gates on how to fight future pandemics The coronavirus will hasten three big medical breakthroughs. That is just a start” at The Economist.

  • Read “COVID-19 and The Mark of the Beast” at The Logos Academic Blog.

  • Read “Americans more worried about reopening too quickly than not opening quickly enough, survey says” at USA Today.

  • Read “Heavily Armed Protesters Gather Again At Michigan Capitol To Decry Stay-At-Home Order” at NPR.

  • Read “Thousands of Americans Have Become Socialists Since March The Democratic Socialists of America have an estimated 10,000 new members—growth that organizers attribute, in part, to the coronavirus pandemic” at The Atlantic.

  • Read “Trump Feared Testing Too Many People for Virus Would Spook Stock Markets, Says Report” at Daily Beast.

Read “Liberty University Dumps Its Philosophy Department” at The Way of Improvement.

Read “One For The History Books: 14.7% Unemployment, 20.5 Million Jobs Wiped Away” at NPR.

Read “Fight Over Vote-By-Mail Is ‘Spiritual Battle’ For ‘Control of the Free World,’ Says True the Vote Leader” at Right Wing Watch.

Read “Trump says Washington, DC, will never be a state — because of all the Democrats” at New York Post.

Read “Court Allows Emoluments Case Against Trump Over D.C. Hotel To Proceed” at NPR.

Read “After FBI Warrant, Sen. Richard Burr Steps Down As Intelligence Chairman” at News and Guts.

Read “QAnon Is More Important Than You Think: The Prophecies of Q. American conspiracy theories are entering a dangerous new phase” at The Atlantic.

Browse “Deaf People Show How To Swear In Sign Language, And It’s Shamefully Entertaining” at Design Your Trust.

Read “Live Nation Planning to Resume Concerts at “Full Scale” Beginning in 2021 In the short term, the concert promoter will experiment with fan-less or reduced-capacity shows” at Consequence of Sound.

Read “Supreme Launches Daniel Johnston Clothing Line” at Pitchfork.

Read “Brian May taken to hospital after tearing buttock muscles while gardening” at The Guardian.

Read “Nirvana, Siouxsie and the Banshees, David Bowie and Hundreds More Peel Sessions Hit YouTube” at Flood.

Read “Coachella Radius Clause Lawsuit Dismissal Reversed Oregon-based promoter Soul'd Out Productions can now re-file their anti-trust suit in U.S. District Court” at Pitchfork.

Read “Jason Isbell Discusses New Album ‘Reunions’ On ‘CBS This Morning’” at JamBase.

Read “Laurie Anderson and Michael Stipe on Music, Art and New Chapters “You’ve got to fall on your face to sit at the table,” says the erstwhile R.E.M. frontman” at New York Times.

Read “'I found the roots of electronic music in a cupboard!': the tale of India's lost techno pioneers” at The Guardian.

Read “My Cymbals Were Melting”: Bill Kreutzmann Joins Carrie Fisher, Ad-Rock and Nick Offerman in ‘Have A Good Trip’ Which Debuts Today” at Relix.

Read “Listen to Iggy Pop Read a Bedtime Story About His Dog” at Pitchfork.

See “Salvador Dalí’s Illustrations for The Bible (1963)” at Open Culture.

Read “Original Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater Games Getting Re-Released for PS4, XBOX One, and PC” at Consequence of Sound.

Read “An ASU researcher is working on a virus that's harmless to humans, but kills cancer cells” at AZ Central.

Read “Stanford scientists created a sound so loud it instantly boils water” at CNet.

See “Musician who loves danger invents a flame-throwing trombone” at Classic FM.

Read “Arizona Schools Plan For The Possibility Buildings May Not Open This Fall” at KJZZ.

The Weekly Town Crier (05/01/20)

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All the week’s news that’s fit to cry about (05/01/20).

Read “BREAKING: Fela's Ex-drummer, Tony Allen, Dies In France” at Sahara Reporters.

Read “Knock Knock. It's Weird Evangelical Twitter. Online, millennial Christians embrace the absurd” at Christianity Today.

Read “Can Staying Home Help Us Regain a Sense of Place? How rediscovering creation around us can deepen our connection with God” at Christianity Today.

Read “America's billionaires have become even richer since Donald Trump became president, and it says a lot about the country's record-high wealth gap” at Business Insider.

Read “Microsoft Word now flags double spaces as errors, ending the great space debate” at The Verge.

Read Pentagon Officially Publishes Tom DeLonge’s UFO Videos Confirming what DeLonge's known since Enema of the State -- that "Aliens Exist" at Consequence of Sound.

Read “'This is no damn hobby': the 'gangsta gardener' transforming Los Angeles” at The Guardian.

Read “The Great Gatsby and Catch-22 among classic books banned from Alaska classrooms Works from Maya Angelou, Joseph Heller, Tim O'Brien, Ralph Ellison and F Scott Fitzgerald erased from curriculum” at The Independent.

Read “Land O’Lakes quietly gets rid of iconic Indian maiden mascot” at Minnesota Reformer.

Read “We are living in an apocalypse” by David Dark at American Magazine.

Your Weekly Coronavirus News Roundup:

  • Read “Tom Cotton: Ban Chinese students from learning science so they can’t ‘steal’ coronavirus vaccine” at Raw Story.

  • Read “Miami goes seven weeks without a homicide for first time since 1957” at CBS News.

  • Read the opinion piece “Lysol and UV Rays: Running A Pandemic Like A Reality TV Show” at Empty Wheel.

  • Read “Tennessee Restaurants Reopen As State Sees Biggest 1-Day Jump In COVID-19 Cases” at NPR.

  • Read “How Some Phoenix Record Labels Are Surviving the Coronavirus” at Phoenix New Times.

  • Read “States Warn That Workers Will Lose Unemployment If They Refuse To Return To Jobs” at The Intellectualist.

  • Read/Watch “The dangerous global flood of misinformation surrounding COVID-19” at PBS News Hour.

  • Read “How Are Rich People Getting Richer During the Coronavirus Pandemic? Jeff Bezos has reportedly made another $25 billion since the beginning of the year” at GQ.

  • Read/Listen to “Grief is Everywhere in the Age of COVID-19” at WNYC.

  • Read “King Crimson’s Robert Fripp Launches “Music for Quiet Moments” Quarantine Series” at Consequence of Sound.

  • Read “THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS 'I Am Mourning The Loss': Two-Thirds Of Artists Report They're Now Unemployed” at NPR.

    • BUY MUSIC, SUPPORT ARTISTS (Listen to music. Love Your Neighbor): Beginning this Friday, May 01, Bandcamp will again waive their revenue share for everything sold. Until otherwise stated, they will be doing this on the first Friday of each month. Please use these chances to support artists during this difficult time.

Read/Listen to “How Will Chief Justice And Supreme Court Conservative Majority Affect 2020 Election?” at NPR. “Chief Justice John Roberts has worked hard to persuade the public that the Supreme Court justices are fair-minded legal umpires — not politicians in robes. But that image was tarnished by the Court's decision on Wisconsin's election earlier this month.”

Read “Here are the largest public companies taking payroll loans meant for small businesses” at MSNBC.

  • Read “U.S. Citizens Married To Immigrants Are Blocked From Getting Stimulus Checks” at Yahoo.

Read “Trump’s History With the Word Sarcasm Is Littered with Excuses and Ignorance When Trump uses the sarcasm excuse, it’s because he knows he’s gone too far but can’t bring himself to admit it” at Rolling Stone.

Read “Nancy Pelosi Endorses Joe Biden: “The Personification Of Hope And Courage, Values, Authenticity And Integrity” at News and Guts.

Read “Hillary Clinton Endorses Joe Biden” at News and Guts.

Browse the 2017 piece “11 Warning Signs of Gaslighting Gaslighting is a manipulation tactic used to gain power. And it works too well” at Psychology Today.

Read “I Love Phish Concerts, and I Can’t Wait for Them to Come Back”: Trey Anastasio Speaks About Quarantine, Tour Plans and ‘Sigma Oasis’ in New Interview” at Jambands.

Watch “Post Malone Performs Nirvana Covers With Travis Barker” at Consequence of Sound.

Read “Quarantine Creativity Interview Series: Ethan Miller” at Savage Henry.

Read “Library of Congress Launches Open-Source Hip-Hop Sampling Tool Producers will have access to the library's vast audio collection, which dates back more than a hundred years” at Consequence of Sound.

Read “This Is Heartbreaking For Us": Amoeba Music's Original Hollywood Location Permanently Closed” at Okay Player.

Read “Tori Amos Believes the Muses Can Help A conversation about music, politics, and what you learn about America from being on the road” at New Yorker.

Read “How Do You Sell Concert Tees Without Concerts? Merch Companies Are Up Against a Wall “I was thinking this is a bulletproof business,” says one of many merch execs who have lost their biggest revenue stream” at Rolling Stone.

Read “PJ Harvey, Nick Cave, More Sign Letter Calling for Creative Industry Funding From UK Government” at Pitchfork.

Read “It Has to Be About Need :: The Mysteries of Lucinda Williams’ Good Souls Better Angels” at Aquarium Drunkard.

  • Read “Lucinda Williams on the Music That Made Her The venerable singer-songwriter talks about the artists and albums that have meant the most to her—Sade, Audioslave, Tricky—five years at a time” at Pitchfork.

Read “Live Nation Updates Ticket Refund Policy” at Jambands.

Read “Stephen Malkmus on Traditional Techniques :: We’re Just Going To Wing It” at Aquarium Drunkard.

Read “Charlie Parker's Story to Be Told in Graphic Novel 'Chasin' the Bird' at The Hollywood Reporter.

Read “European Cities Launch Drive-In Concert Series With Great Success” at Live For Live Music.

Read “Watch Fiona Apple Give a Rare TV Interview on Democracy Now!” at Pitchfork.

BUY MUSIC, SUPPORT ARTISTS (Listen to music. Love Your Neighbor): Beginning this Friday, May 01, Bandcamp will again waive their revenue share for everything sold. Until otherwise stated, they will be doing this on the first Friday of each month. Please use these chances to support artists during this difficult time.

Read “For this year only, movies that had to go streaming will still be eligible for Oscars” at AV Club.

Read “AMC Theatres Refuses to Show Universal Films Following VOD Release of Trolls World Tour Universal seemed to imply that the commercial success of Trolls was proof that VOD was the way of the future” at Consequence of Sound

Read “Museums are sharing their creepiest objects in apparent attempt to digitize ancient curses” at AV Club.

Read “In Thailand, Funeral Cookbooks Preserve Recipes and Memories Though their origins are tragic, the books provide invaluable inspiration” at Atlas Obscura.