buzzfeed--2020-10-27--The White Extremist Group Patriot Front Is Preparing For A World After Donald Trump

In its secret chat , the group that sprang from Charlottesville is creating a new generation of white supremacists .
“ What are your beliefs that led you to join the org ?
” —Vincent KY “ At the core of my position are these principles : The categorical rejection of the notion of equality .
The categorical rejection of universal democracy .
Explicit In-Group preference.
” —Logan TN “ In short : I can not stand by idly while my people fall into despair , degeneracy , and ethnic replacement.
” —Anthony IL “ I feel like jews immigrants @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the united States and it ’ s economy that ’ s why the people are in current state of civil unrest these n !
# # 3π ’ $ are causing them selves to be shot by the police and Making the split even bigger I feel as if there ’ s going to be a huge race war and us whites will come out on top .
How do you feel about this statement ?
” —Vincent KY Those are just some of the hundreds of messages exchanged by the members of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ organization that has grown into one of the most active hate groups in the United States .
The messages reveal a sophisticated network of extremists who are training for violence .
The men , who believe the United States is a nation that belongs only to white people , wear uniforms made up of bomber jackets , face coverings , and beige khakis , mandate weight loss and intense workouts , and regularly practice hand-to-hand combat .
Some openly call themselves “ supremacist ” and revere Hitler and Mussolini .
BuzzFeed News has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ exchanged by Patriot Front members on Rocket.Chat , an encrypted group messaging app .
In logs of the chats , all from this year , around 280 members of the group discuss grandiose goals — creating a white ethnostate from the existing United States .
The group wants to expel immigrants , people of color , and Jews , remaking the fabric of America .
And while what Patriot Front does in the meantime — putting up stickers bearing their logo in cities and college campuses , covering pro–Black Lives Matter billboards with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the middle of the night through empty streets — may seem small , it has recruited 21 new members in the last 30 days .
As the United States hurtles toward the presidential election , the country seems ready to forget that its own homegrown fascism predated President Donald Trump — and to ignore that it will last after he leaves office .
Yet for its part , Patriot Front could n't care less about the results of the upcoming election .
“ It does not matter what people personally believe about it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leader , Thomas Rousseau , who did not respond to a request for comment , in one of the chats .
“ Casting a ballot is a submissive gesture to legitimize tyranny .
It is fundamentally amoral .
It is done as an insult to the nation ’ s cause and the organization.
” In Vermont , Patriot Front has been active since 2018 .
One of its most disturbing incidents came in 2019 , months after the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting , when the Ohavi Zedek Synagogue , an LGBTQ center , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been doggedly reporting on the group , were vandalized .
As the home of Sen. Bernie Sanders , Burlington is often seen as a liberal bubble , which made Patriot Front ’ s attacks all the more shocking , Rabbi Amy Small of the Ohavi Zedek Synagogue , told BuzzFeed News .
“ A few months before the incident on our property , one of our synagogue members told me that on a nearby road she saw Patriot Front posters pasted on the streetlights and street signs , one after the next , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ beside herself with fear.
” Authorities were called , but nothing could be done because no laws were broken .
Then , one late afternoon in February , Small was driving up to the synagogue after some meetings .
“ As I was approaching the synagogue , I saw the Patriot Front poster pasted onto our front sign , ” she said .
“ It 's very jarring , in a time when I know there 's so much hate.
” Police removed the poster and launched an investigation , which eventually ended @ @ @ @ @ @ @ community was uplifting , Small said , as people left cards and signs of love and support .
Together with other religious and LGBTQ community leaders , Smalls organized a rally on the steps of City Hall .
“ All of a sudden this big pickup truck came loudly down the street honking .
It had Patriot Front signs all over it , ” Small said .
“ I saw all the officers that had been standing right near where I was go running toward it , but by then it tore away @ @ @ @ @ @ @ intimidation.
” Patriot Front formed from the failure of another far-right group , Vanguard America .
As one of its two leaders , Rousseau attended the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville in 2017 , during which a man who marched with them killed counterprotester Heather Heyer .
In the aftermath , Vanguard formally dissolved , allowing Rousseau , then 19 years old , to push out a rival and rebrand the group around a cult of personality .
He and his followers are mostly zoomers , born in the late ‘ 90s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ frequently around topics that include traditional masculinity , weight loss , and white power .
Rousseau keeps strict rules on the conversations in the forum , and his word is gospel .
On a typical day , the chats are filled with lies they believe to be real ( like antifa starting forest fires ) , paranoia , and machismo .
“ While we were sparring , a van full of baptists from the area pulled up and piled out , ” said Anthony IL .
“ They had a bunch of young @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with their father and watched on as we fought each other in masculine competition .
We got to show those boys something that they won ’ t see elsewhere , and a healthy dose of masculinity that is otherwise shunned nowadays .
We make the change in the nation that we want to see , men.
” Like members of any social network , they also trade photos .
Recent images from Rousseau 's garage in Grapevine , Texas , out of which he sells extremist paraphernalia , show muscled men standing next @ @ @ @ @ @ @ filtered in red , white , and blue .
Unlike extremist organizations like the Proud Boys that seek headlines , Patriot Front has a sparse aboveground presence .
New members are carefully vetted and are given strict instructions on social media use .
The vetting takes place first online and then in person .
New members undergo a rigorous process , in part because the group has been frequently infiltrated .
One member , Michael IN , said he had to drive for four hours for his interview .
Another was vetted by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The chat is also a place they share videos of themselves that they also share on Twitter , Telegram , and TikTok , where a recent propaganda video received more than 1 million views .
TikTok removed the videos in response to questions from BuzzFeed News , saying “ Hate speech is not permitted on TikTok.
” Twitter , Telegram , and Rocket.Chat did not respond to requests for comment .
Cassie Miller , a senior research analyst at the Southern Poverty Law Center , told BuzzFeed that Patriot Front is among the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” propaganda in the United States , having put up flyers in over 1,000 places around the country in 2020 alone .
“ [ Rousseau ] wants to really focus on spectacle , and he thinks that a performative show of strength is the most effective kind of propaganda that they can engage in , ” she said .
Carla Hill , a researcher with anti-hate organization Anti-Defamation League , also said Patriot Front ’ s propaganda sets them apart .
“ In the United States , they lead white supremacist propaganda distributions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ On the chat logs , that propaganda plays out in real time .
On Sept. 28 , Rousseau wrote , “ Billboard coverup video is dropping today , keep an eye out.
” Fifteen minutes later , he posted a link to the video in which at least two Patriot Front members use climbing equipment to scale a billboard bearing the Black Lives Matter slogan in Houston .
As thumping , testosterone-fueled music plays , they unfurl a homemade cloth banner that blocked the billboard with the words “ The United States is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on our own ” written in red , white , and blue letters .
Members were excited : “ I hope to do something that based one day , ” one wrote .
Although the status of an investigation , if any , into the alleged Houston vandalism could not be determined , law enforcement has arrested several members on suspicion of vandalism in the past .
[ INSERT ] Most recently , Rousseau was arrested this August in Texas on suspicion that he , Cameron Rathan Pruitt , 21 , and Graham @ @ @ @ @ @ @ county property by putting up stickers .
According to the police report , Rousseau claimed that “ he was promoting the group listed on the stickers but not part of it.
” ( Rousseau and his associates were fined and released . )
In February 2019 , three members , one of whom was 18 , were arrested in Boston .
According to Mass Live , they were allegedly putting up posters that said , “ Reclaim America ” and “ your speech will be hate speech.
” Police said one of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was a former member of the National Guard .
Among those arrested were two men carrying a knife and a trowel , leading to weapons charges for both .
In court , the lawyer blamed their actions on “ youthful stupidity , ” while the Boston mayor issued a statement against hate .
Several members have also been arrested on charges of illegally possessing firearms .
The same month as the Boston arrests , Joffre James Cross III , whom the SPLC determined was a Patriot Front member , pleaded guilty to gun @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 7.62 caliber rifle and three home-assembled weapons : a .45 caliber pistol , an AR-15-style rifle , and an AR-10-style rifle .
Cross is a former private in the US Army who previously had served time in prison after selling drugs to an undercover FBI agent .
In 2018 , the Daily Beast reported that 19-year-old Jakub Zuk was arrested for owning five guns without a license in Illinois .
Zuk also allegedly threatened a judge in anti-Semitic flyers , according to the Daily Beast .
Despite their bravado , Patriot Front is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ discussions on how to deal with the girlfriends that some of them claim to have , whom they often see as liabilities .
“ Generally , if you are a man of action and confident in what you believe in your woman will naturally follow , ” wrote Vincent MA .
“ Ideally , if you can get away with lying to your significant other about your activism , you should do that , ” wrote Paul TX .
“ From what I ’ ve heard women are a weak point in terms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you if they find out.
” The obsession with secrecy also led to a Wikipedia editing war in September .
On Sept. 11 , an editor added Patriot Front to the list of groups opposed to the Black Lives Matter movement .
Three days later , Anthony CA noticed , saying , “ We got name dropped here.
” Later that day , the edit was removed .
“ NO KNOWN ACTIVITY BY GROUP KNOWN AS PATRIOT FRONT ( they 're pussies ) ” the person wrote in Wikipedia 's change log .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the same person took the name of the group out again , saying , “ Patriot Front is not an active participant show proof otherwise or stop reverting it.
” By the end of the day , the Wikipedia editors lost , and Patriot Front no longer appeared on the page .
In their chats , members of Patriot Front revealed the real reason they wanted their name removed .
Not because they were n't opposed to BLM , but because they were mad at being listed together with the so-called boogaloo boys @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the alleged plot to kidnap Michigan Gov .
Gretchen Whitmer .
“ Boog boys r a joke most of the time , ” wrote Mark ND .
“ I ’ ve seen maybe 10 who don ’ t simp for BLM or Antifa.
” “ The whole ‘ Boogaloo ’ thing is a reminder that if you joke about anything long enough , you ’ ll stop joking , ” Rousseau responded .
“ A offhand forum slapstick joke could become something that someone shoots someone over if its left to fester @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is.
” They ’ re also not impressed with the Proud Boys , whom they repeatedly call “ cucks.
” “ They are nothing but Republicans with slightly higher T levels , ” wrote Calvin CO , referring to testosterone .
“ I have zero respect for their organization , although some of their members might be able to be salvaged .
If we do take on a large number of PBs , we need to knock the cuckshit out of them first.
” “ And Proud Boys are a bunch of cucks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They call themselves ‘ Western Chauvinists ’ which means they are a bunch of liberals who don ’ t like PC culture and ‘ snowflakes ’ yet they are too scared to actually stand up to these things in a meaningful way lest they be called RACISTS !
!
!
!
” “ In many ways , a lot of people in the white power movement are not fans of Trump , but they do see him as useful to their movement , introducing some of their ideas and carrying out some of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said Miller , the analyst at the Southern Poverty Law Center .
“ But in some ways , they see him as buying them time.
” To them , Trump is an old man holding up crumbling institutions , enacting policies that incrementally forward the cause without remaking the institutions themselves .
When he ’ s gone , the rubble will remain , and to many he ’ ll be nothing but a tool they used to build the white power movement up .
The members of Patriot Front think that time is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leader still in his early twenties , they take a long view .
“ There is no ‘ endgame , ’ ” Rousseau wrote .
“ The nation doesn ’ t ‘ end.
’ We ’ re not conventionally political to the point where there ’ s a defined ‘ end ’ of service .
It ’ s not an office , a seat in congress , a law , or a percentage of representation.
” ●

Patriot Front formed from the failure of another far-right group, Vanguard America. As one of its two leaders, Rousseau attended the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville in 2017, during which a man who marched with them killed counterprotester Heather Heyer. In the aftermath, Vanguard formally dissolved, allowing Rousseau, then 19 years old, to push out a rival and rebrand the group around a cult of personality.
He and his followers are mostly zoomers, born in the late ‘90s or early ‘00s, and circle frequently around topics that include traditional masculinity, weight loss, and white power.
Rousseau keeps strict rules on the conversations in the forum, and his word is gospel. On a typical day, the chats are filled with lies they believe to be real (like antifa starting forest fires), paranoia, and machismo.
“While we were sparring, a van full of baptists from the area pulled up and piled out,” said Anthony IL. “They had a bunch of young boys with them. They stood there with their father and watched on as we fought each other in masculine competition. We got to show those boys something that they won’t see elsewhere, and a healthy dose of masculinity that is otherwise shunned nowadays. We make the change in the nation that we want to see, men.”
Like members of any social network, they also trade photos. Recent images from Rousseau's garage in Grapevine, Texas, out of which he sells extremist paraphernalia, show muscled men standing next to punching bags. The pictures were filtered in red, white, and blue.
Unlike extremist organizations like the Proud Boys that seek headlines, Patriot Front has a sparse aboveground presence. New members are carefully vetted and are given strict instructions on social media use.
The vetting takes place first online and then in person. New members undergo a rigorous process, in part because the group has been frequently infiltrated. One member, Michael IN, said he had to drive for four hours for his interview. Another was vetted by Patriot Front members carrying concealed weapons.
The chat is also a place they share videos of themselves that they also share on Twitter, Telegram, and TikTok, where a recent propaganda video received more than 1 million views.
TikTok removed the videos in response to questions from BuzzFeed News, saying “Hate speech is not permitted on TikTok.” Twitter and Telegram did not respond to requests for comment.
Rocket.Chat responded to a request for comment after this story was published, saying it had no avenue to remove Patriot Front from its open-source platform because the group chat is being hosted on a private server.
Cassie Miller, a senior research analyst at the Southern Poverty Law Center, told BuzzFeed that Patriot Front is among the most prolific spreaders of “white power” propaganda in the United States, having put up flyers in over 1,000 places around the country in 2020 alone.
“[Rousseau] wants to really focus on spectacle, and he thinks that a performative show of strength is the most effective kind of propaganda that they can engage in,” she said.
Carla Hill, a researcher with anti-hate organization Anti-Defamation League, also said Patriot Front’s propaganda sets them apart. “In the United States, they lead white supremacist propaganda distributions,” she told BuzzFeed News.
On the chat logs, that propaganda plays out in real time.
On Sept. 28, Rousseau wrote, “Billboard coverup video is dropping today, keep an eye out.”
Fifteen minutes later, he posted a link to the video in which at least two Patriot Front members use climbing equipment to scale a billboard bearing the Black Lives Matter slogan in Houston. As thumping, testosterone-fueled music plays, they unfurl a homemade cloth banner that blocked the billboard with the words “The United States is no longer of America now we are on our own” written in red, white, and blue letters.
Members were excited: “I hope to do something that based one day,” one wrote.
Although the status of an investigation, if any, into the alleged Houston vandalism could not be determined, law enforcement has arrested several members on suspicion of vandalism in the past.


buzzfeed--2020-10-27--This Scary Statistic Predicts Growing US Political Violence — Whatever Happens On Election Day

Two researchers claim that a single number they call the “ political stress indicator ” can warn when societies are at risk of erupting into violence .
It ’ s spiking in the US , just like it did before the Civil War .
Many Americans are clinging to the idea that if Joe Biden wins the presidential election , calm can return to a nation riven by protests and rattled by President Donald Trump ’ s authoritarian rhetoric .
Not so fast , caution two academics who claim they have devised a measure of political instability that shows that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ keg that is waiting to blow , even if a Biden landslide means that Trump has little choice but to step aside .
“ The tendency is to blame Trump , but I don ’ t really agree with that , ” Peter Turchin , an evolutionary anthropologist at the University of Connecticut who studies the forces that drive political instability , told BuzzFeed News .
“ Trump is really not the deep structural cause.
” The most dangerous element in the mix , argue Turchin and George Mason University sociologist Jack Goldstone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on society .
They believe they have a model that explains how inequality escalates and leads to political instability : Worsened by elites who monopolize economic gains , narrow the path to social mobility , and resist taxation , inequality ends up undermining state institutions while fomenting distrust and resentment .
Building on Goldstone ’ s work showing that revolutions tend to follow periods of population growth and urbanization , Turchin has developed a statistic called the political stress indicator , or PSI .
It incorporates measures of wage stagnation , national debt @ @ @ @ @ @ @ government , urbanization , and the age structure of the population .
Turchin raised warning signs of a coming storm a decade ago , predicting that instability would peak in the years around 2020 .
“ In the United States , we have stagnating or declining real wages , a growing gap between rich and poor , overproduction of young graduates with advanced degrees , and exploding public debt , ” he wrote , in a letter to the journal Nature .
“ Historically , such developments have served as leading indicators of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the nation in turmoil , Turchin ’ s prediction seems remarkably prescient .
We live in a pandemic hellscape that has disproportionately harmed Black and brown Americans and those living in poverty .
We have widespread civil unrest over racial injustice .
And we are hurtling toward an election in which Trump is stoking unfounded fears of voter fraud and refusing to commit to a peaceful transition of power .
In August , Turchin gave himself a pat on the back for his predictive ability with an analysis showing a significant rise in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ last 10 years .
But he and Goldstone fear that much worse is to come .
The political stress indicator for the US is rising rapidly , much like it did before the Civil War .
When Goldstone talks about America ’ s darkest days in the 1860s , he provocatively calls it the “ First Civil War.
” He fears that we may be on the way to a second one , with the 2020 election serving as a potential “ fire-starter ” event .
Goldstone has some credentials in predicting conflict @ @ @ @ @ @ @ US military ’ s ill-fated efforts to support UN intervention in Somalia ’ s civil war , which led to the downing of two Black Hawk helicopters and the gruesome spectacle of a dead US soldier being dragged through the streets , Goldstone was tapped by the CIA to help lead the State Failure Task Force .
This group of academic social scientists was asked to identify factors that predict when a nation is likely to spiral into chaos .
The task force ’ s initial report , published in 1995 , identified @ @ @ @ @ @ @ whether a state would fail within the next two years in about two-thirds of cases : high infant mortality , low openness to international trade , and level of democracy .
On the last measure , partial democracies were more vulnerable to collapse than fully democratic states or autocratic regimes .
Goldstone continued to work on the project , later renamed the Political Instability Task Force , until 2012 , tweaking its statistical model to predict both civil wars and democratic collapses with about 80 % accuracy over the same two-year lead time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ applying a similar approach to assess the risk of political conflict in the US until Turchin got in touch in 2015 .
“ I didn ’ t expect political violence because I believed the US was a strong and flexible democracy , ” Goldstone said .
But he is now convinced that Turchin ’ s PSI heralds a disturbing future for the US that won ’ t be solved by politics as usual after the 2020 election , even if Trump is defeated and goes quietly .
“ If those trends continue after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the occurrence of violence will likely continue , ” Goldstone told BuzzFeed News .
“ I ’ m worried about that no matter who wins , ” he added .
“ The social problems are the gasoline .
Trump is throwing matches.
” The PSI doesn ’ t explicitly address America ’ s deep divisions over racial justice .
“ Race has been an enduring faultline , ever since the founding of the Republic , ” Turchin said .
But he argued that it ’ s the additional dynamics captured by the PSI @ @ @ @ @ @ @ right now .
One key concern , according to Goldstone , is that people across the political spectrum have lost faith in government and political institutions .
“ In short , given the accumulated grievances , anger and distrust fanned for the last two decades , almost any election scenario this fall is likely to lead to popular protests on a scale we have not seen this century , ” he and Turchin wrote in a recent article published by the Berggruen Institute , a think tank based in Los Angeles .
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of political instability the researchers dubbed “ the turbulent twenties.
” “ Given the Black Lives Matter protests and cascading clashes between competing armed factions in cities across the United States , from Portland , Oregon , to Kenosha , Wisconsin , we are already well on our way there , ” the article said .
“ But worse likely lies ahead.
” Turchin said people who rule out the possibility of serious political violence in the US based on “ the strength of American institutions ” are being “ unduly optimistic.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in is extremely fragile , ” Turchin said .
Other social scientists consulted by BuzzFeed News were skeptical that the US is on the brink of a civil war .
But they were concerned about the trends highlighted by Goldstone and Turchin , and worried about the potential for violence around the coming election — especially from right-wing militia groups if Trump loses and contests the result .
“ No matter what the outcome is , it is going to be disputed by some components of the other side , ” Craig Jenkins @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who studies political violence , told BuzzFeed News .
“ The difference is that the Trump forces have militia that have some capacity for violence and mayhem.
” One reason that most experts in conflict studies don ’ t predict an outright civil war as a consequence of the US ’ s gap between rich and poor is that inequality hasn ’ t emerged as a major driving factor in studies of such conflicts in the modern era .
“ Civil war has been predominantly a phenomenon in low-income countries , ” James @ @ @ @ @ @ @ University and coauthor of a 2003 paper that identified national poverty as an important condition that can lead to violent insurgency , told BuzzFeed News .
Another influential study , published in 2000 by the economists Paul Collier of the University of Oxford and Anke Hoeffler , now at the University of Konstanz in Germany , suggested that an armed group ’ s ability to seize control over significant economic resources — such as diamonds in several conflict-prone African nations and drug crops in Colombia — was a key driver of modern civil @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a diverse and robust economy , the US should have a fairly low chance of falling into civil war according to these theories .
And if push comes to shove and order needs to be restored by force , few experts in political conflict expect even a well-armed militia to be a match for federal law enforcement or the National Guard .
The circumstances in the 19th century that led the US into the bloodiest conflict in its history were also unusual .
The young nation was growing , adding states that either @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fundamental economic and moral divide that couldn ’ t easily be resolved .
“ That was an irreconcilable dynamic , ” Jenkins said .
“ I think you need the accumulation of irresolvable conflicts to get a true civil war.
” But recent events , notably the plot by a group of right-wing militants to kidnap and potentially kill the Democratic governor of Michigan , Gretchen Whitmer , over her policies to limit the spread of the coronavirus , have shocked even skeptics of the idea that the US is teetering on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is really concerning , ” Fearon said .
The PSI isn ’ t the only indicator that has set alarm bells ringing about the stability of the US .
The Fund for Peace , a nonprofit based in Washington , DC , has developed a measure called the Fragile States Index ( FSI ) that , like the work of the State Failure Task Force , seeks to identify nations that are at risk of violence and instability from a range of underlying pressures including economic distress , refugee flows , and their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the US looks reasonably healthy on the FSI , ranked 149th out of 178 countries for its potential for instability .
But there are worrying signs for the US on a component of the FSI labeled “ cohesion , ” according to Fund for Peace programs manager Natalie Fiertz .
“ Over the past decade-plus , we ’ ve seen very rapid worsening of the score for those dimensions , ” she told BuzzFeed News .
The Fragile States Index shows that the US is becoming a less cohesive society .
This chart @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the three cohesion components of the FSI for the members of the G7 group of rich democracies .
These measure security threats including terrorism and organized crime , factionalization of a nation ’ s elites , and schisms between different groups in society .
Not surprisingly , given the intense and growing political polarization in the US , it is the last two measures that explain why the nation ’ s cohesion score has gone from the second best among the G7 to the worst in just 15 years .
( In recent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the US on this measure , driven by its own political divisions over Brexit . )
But political polarization may be just another consequence of the economic inequality that Goldstone and Turchin argue lies at the heart of the US ’ s current vulnerability to political violence .
Political scientists have put a great deal of energy into identifying why polarization in the US is escalating .
But factors including the influence of partisan cable TV news and congressional redistricting don ’ t seem to provide the answer — the latter , for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Senate has become increasingly divided .
What is clear is that polarization in Congress has historically tracked closely with income inequality .
And recent studies have shown that states with greater income inequality tend to have more polarized state legislatures — supporting the idea that inequality is a fundamental cause of America ’ s deep political divisions .
Even the International Monetary Fund has weighed in , warning nations of the corrosive effects of inequality in a 2017 publication : “ While some inequality is inevitable in a market-based economic system , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lead to political polarization , and ultimately lower economic growth.
” Inequality can also damage public health .
In their 2009 book The Spirit Level , the British epidemiologists Kate Pickett of the University of York and Richard Wilkinson of the University of Nottingham looked at differences across rich nations for an index of health and social outcomes including infant mortality , life expectancy , mental illness , incarceration , and literacy .
They could find no correlation with gross national income per person , but found a strong relationship between poor outcomes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in incomes between the top and bottom 20 % of a country ’ s earners .
“ Inequality is a social stressor , ” Wilkinson told BuzzFeed News .
“ One of the big changes in our understanding of social determinants of health is the role of chronic stress.
” The pandemic has made inequality much worse — but it may also be a catalyst for change .
Given all of the evidence linking inequality to a raft of bad outcomes , it should come as no surprise that unrest has surged during @ @ @ @ @ @ @ poverty and people of color have not only been disproportionately sickened and killed by the virus , but they have also been hit harder by the recession it has caused — which has further widened the gulf between rich and poor .
“ What we need is a new social contract that will enable us to get past extreme polarization to find consensus , tip the shares of economic growth back toward workers and improve government funding for public health , education and infrastructure , ” Goldstone and Turchin wrote in their Berggruen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in today ’ s combat zone of weaponized social media , in which even modest proposals to ratchet back inequality are framed as “ communism ” ?
One hopeful sign is that the US has pulled back from the brink of chaos before through similar reforms , within the lifetime of its oldest citizens .
In the 1930s , as parts of Europe slid into fascism , the US went in a different direction , electing Franklin D. Roosevelt to drag the nation out of the Great Depression by ushering in the New @ @ @ @ @ @ @ think the US could pull off a similar feat again .
“ You can reform your way out of dramatically polarized societies , ” said George Lawson of the Australian National University in Canberra , who has studied societal transformations including the peaceful transition to majority rule in South Africa .
Even given Trump ’ s flouting of democratic norms and the current upsurge in civil unrest , Lawson believes the US , by and large , has withstood a political “ stress test.
” “ I would err on the side that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ robust than fragile , ” Lawson said .
“ One thing to come out of the past few years is an energization of political engagement that is healthy .
”

Turchin said people who rule out the possibility of serious political violence in the US based on “the strength of American institutions” are being “unduly optimistic.”
“The social system that we live in is extremely fragile,” Turchin said.
Other social scientists consulted by BuzzFeed News were skeptical that the US is on the brink of a civil war. But they were concerned about the trends highlighted by Goldstone and Turchin, and worried about the potential for violence around the coming election — especially from right-wing militia groups if Trump loses and contests the result.
“No matter what the outcome is, it is going to be disputed by some components of the other side,” Craig Jenkins, a sociologist at Ohio State University who studies political violence, told BuzzFeed News. “The difference is that the Trump forces have militia that have some capacity for violence and mayhem.”
One reason that most experts in conflict studies don’t predict an outright civil war as a consequence of the US’s gap between rich and poor is that inequality hasn’t emerged as a major driving factor in studies of such conflicts in the modern era.
“Civil war has been predominantly a phenomenon in low-income countries,” James Fearon, a political scientist at Stanford University and coauthor of a 2003 paper that identified national poverty as an important condition that can lead to violent insurgency, told BuzzFeed News.
Another influential study, published in 2000 by the economists Paul Collier of the University of Oxford and Anke Hoeffler, now at the University of Konstanz in Germany, suggested that an armed group’s ability to seize control over significant economic resources — such as diamonds in several conflict-prone African nations and drug crops in Colombia — was a key driver of modern civil wars.
As a rich nation with a diverse and robust economy, the US should have a fairly low chance of falling into civil war according to these theories. And if push comes to shove and order needs to be restored by force, few experts in political conflict expect even a well-armed militia to be a match for federal law enforcement or the National Guard.
The circumstances in the 19th century that led the US into the bloodiest conflict in its history were also unusual. The young nation was growing, adding states that either opposed or supported slavery, creating a fundamental economic and moral divide that couldn’t easily be resolved. “That was an irreconcilable dynamic,” Jenkins said. “I think you need the accumulation of irresolvable conflicts to get a true civil war.”
But recent events, notably the plot by a group of right-wing militants to kidnap and potentially kill the Democratic governor of Michigan, Gretchen Whitmer, over her policies to limit the spread of the coronavirus, have shocked even skeptics of the idea that the US is teetering on the brink of civil conflict. “This is really concerning,” Fearon said.
The PSI isn’t the only indicator that has set alarm bells ringing about the stability of the US. The Fund for Peace, a nonprofit based in Washington, DC, has developed a measure called the Fragile States Index (FSI) that, like the work of the State Failure Task Force, seeks to identify nations that are at risk of violence and instability from a range of underlying pressures including economic distress, refugee flows, and their record on human rights.
Overall, the US looks reasonably healthy on the FSI, ranked 149th out of 178 countries for its potential for instability. But there are worrying signs for the US on a component of the FSI labeled “cohesion,” according to Fund for Peace programs manager Natalie Fiertz. “Over the past decade-plus, we’ve seen very rapid worsening of the score for those dimensions,” she told BuzzFeed News.
The Fragile States Index shows that the US is becoming a less cohesive society.


buzzfeed--2020-10-28--A Dodgers Player Tested Positive For Coronavirus During The World Series. When The Team Won, He Came

A Dodgers Player Tested Positive For Coronavirus During The World Series. When The Team Won, He Came Back To Celebrate.

The Los Angeles Dodgers were two innings away from winning the World Series Tuesday night when star third baseman Justin Turner left the game without explanation .
The Dodgers won , and their players rushed the field to celebrate the team 's first championship in 32 years .
Then broadcasters revealed that Turner had tested positive for COVID-19 .
Turner 's teammates mobbed each other after the final out .
At first Turner was n't there with them , but about an hour into the festivities , he returned to the field .
Donning a mask , he even grabbed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ All kinds of weird moments ensued , including team manager , Dave Roberts , promising that he `` did n't touch '' Turner after the result came in .
( The coronavirus often spreads by air . )
Turner tweeted about the win and the positive test , saying that he had `` Just experienced every emotion you can possibly imagine '' and was feeling `` no symptoms at all '' of the virus .
Several media outlets reported that contact tracing would begin for the Dodgers right after the game .
There @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 'd Turner get it ?
When was he tested and when exactly did officials find out about his diagnosis ?
Should they have stoped the game ?
What does this mean for the rest of the Dodgers ?
How about the Tampa Bay Rays ?
And staff at the stadium at Globe Life Field in Arlington , Texas , where the game was held ?
And that 's how the pandemic-shortened 2020 Major League Baseball season came to a close .

The Los Angeles Dodgers were two innings away from winning the World Series Tuesday night when star third baseman Justin Turner left the game without explanation.
The Dodgers won, and their players rushed the field to celebrate the team's first championship in 32 years. Then broadcasters revealed that Turner had tested positive for COVID-19.


buzzfeed--2020-10-28--Trump Brought Rage Towards Gretchen Whitmer And Doubt About The Kidnapping Plot To Michigan. He Had

Trump Brought Rage Towards Gretchen Whitmer And Doubt About The Kidnapping Plot To Michigan. He Had A Receptive Audience.

LANSING , Michigan — President Donald Trump brought his anger with Michigan Gov .
Gretchen Whitmer to her home state on Tuesday , telling a campaign rally crowd that the kidnapping plot that targeted her `` maybe '' was n't a `` problem , '' and coaxing his supporters into a chant of `` lock her up . ''
Whitmer has been one of Trump ’ s most frequent targets in his last campaign rallies before Election Day , just as she has been throughout the coronavirus pandemic after she took restrictive measures to try to limit the virus ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about three weeks since the FBI announced the arrest of 13 people involved in an alleged plot to kidnap Whitmer .
In an essay for The Atlantic published Tuesday , Whitmer explained how the president ’ s verbal attacks encourage threats .
“ Every time the president ramps up his violent rhetoric , every time he fires up Twitter to launch another broadside against me , my family and I see a surge of vicious attacks sent our way , ” she wrote in the Atlantic .
Trump , looking for the state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , said Whitmer is simply “ not a good governor.
” His response , made before thousands of his most ardent supporters , resulted in chants of `` lock her up , '' which Trump smiled through before resuming his remarks .
“ No , your governor , I do n't think she likes me too much , ” he told thousands of his supporters who came out to the Capital Region International Airport in Lansing , Michigan to see him .
Trump then commented on the plot to kidnap Whitmer , but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sitting president to address an alleged attempt on the life of a United States governor .
“ Hey , I 'm the one , it was our people who helped her out with her problem , and we ’ ll have to see if it 's a problem .
People are entitled to say , maybe it was a problem , maybe it was n't .
It was our people , my people , our people who helped her out .
And then she blamed me for it . ''
It ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ standing in line , in the rain , Monday morning to get into the rally .
The retiree and lifelong Michigander expressed doubt about the FBI ’ s findings .
“ A small number of people have allegedly threatened [ Whitmer ] and the thing is that we do n't know all the facts , yet.
” He added , “ The FBI ’ s findings , right now , are preliminary .
”

LANSING, Michigan — President Donald Trump brought his anger with Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to her home state on Tuesday, telling a campaign rally crowd that the kidnapping plot that targeted her "maybe" wasn't a "problem" and coaxing his supporters into a chant of "lock her up."
Whitmer has been one of Trump’s most frequent targets in his last campaign rallies before Election Day, just as she has been throughout the coronavirus pandemic after she took restrictive measures to try to limit the virus’s spread. It's only been about three weeks since the FBI announced the arrest of 13 people involved in an alleged plot to kidnap Whitmer. In an essay for the Atlantic published Tuesday, Whitmer explained how the president’s verbal attacks encourage threats.
“Every time the president ramps up his violent rhetoric, every time he fires up Twitter to launch another broadside against me, my family and I see a surge of vicious attacks sent our way,” she wrote in the Atlantic.
Trump, looking for the state's support in next week's election, said Whitmer is simply “not a good governor.”
His response, made before thousands of his most ardent supporters, resulted in chants of "lock her up," which Trump smiled through before resuming his remarks.
“No, your governor, I don't think she likes me too much,” he told thousands of his supporters who came out to the Capital Region International Airport in Lansing, Michigan, to see him.
Trump then commented on the plot to kidnap Whitmer, but not the way one would expect a sitting president to address an alleged attempt on the life of a United States governor.
“Hey, I'm the one, it was our people who helped her out with her problem, and we’ll have to see if it's a problem. People are entitled to say, maybe it was a problem, maybe it wasn't. It was our people, my people, our people who helped her out. And then she blamed me for it."
It’s the same skepticism Robert Bothwell conveyed while standing in line, in the rain, Monday morning to get into the rally. The retiree and lifelong Michigander expressed doubt about the FBI’s findings. “A small number of people have allegedly threatened [Whitmer] and the thing is that we don't know all the facts, yet.” He added, “The FBI’s findings, right now, are preliminary.”


buzzfeed--2020-10-28--Alabama’s Most Populous County Says It Has A Plan For Voters Who Received Instructions That Would In

Alabama’s Most Populous County Says It Has A Plan For Voters Who Received Instructions That Would Invalidate Their Ballots

WASHINGTON — The election official in charge of absentee voting in Alabama ’ s most populous county announced this week that they are working to identify and contact voters who received special ballot instructions that could invalidate their ballots due to a recent court ruling .
Over the span of approximately a week and a half this month , Jefferson County sent voters a form that they could sign that would allow people with medical conditions that put them at higher risk of contracting COVID-19 to vote by mail without needing witnesses to sign their ballots .
But a federal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Oct. 13 , invalidating any waivers that voters put in the mail after that date .
Voting rights groups expressed concern that the county wasn ’ t taking steps to alert voters who received the waiver that they could no longer use it , and risked having their ballots rejected if they hadn ’ t been postmarked by Oct. 13 .
On Oct. 26 , two days after BuzzFeed News first reported on the waiver issue , Jefferson County published a press release on its website directing voters who had sent in absentee @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or after Oct. 14 to contact Jackie Anderson Smith , the absentee election manager for the county .
The release said the county had a plan for voters to correct “ deficiencies ” with their ballots , although it didn ’ t offer details about what that plan involved .
In an email to BuzzFeed News on Oct. 26 , Smith wrote that she had “ implemented procedures ” to contact voters who were sent the waiver form , but didn ’ t respond as of publication time to questions asking for details @ @ @ @ @ @ @ may have received the waiver form , and what voters who submitted the waiver would need to do to make sure their vote is counted .
The county is promoting the new information about the waivers on Twitter , Facebook , and other social media platforms .
Smith said the waivers were sent out with absentee ballot materials between the Sept. 30 ruling and the Oct. 13 appeals court decision but didn ’ t say how many voters may have received them .
Absentee ballots that don ’ t comply with the state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ two witness signatures or one notary signature — and are postmarked after Oct. 13 will be rejected , regardless of whether voters relied on the information that Jefferson County sent out , Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill told BuzzFeed News in a phone interview .
He said voters who signed the Jefferson County waiver and were worried about their absentee ballot being rejected could cast a provisional ballot in person , which would be counted if their absentee ballot was later deemed invalid .
“ Ballots that were submitted after the deadline @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not legitimate ballots , ” Merrill said , referring to the US Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit ’ s ruling on Oct. 13 that reinstated the witness requirement .
Deuel Ross , a lawyer with the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund involved in sending a letter to the county on Oct. 21 that raised concerns about the waiver , told BuzzFeed News on Tuesday that they hadn ’ t received new information about the county ’ s plan beyond what was in the press release .
“ We ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ proactively working to contact affected voters .
We encourage other Alabama counties to similarly assist voters and establish a cure process for unwitnessed absentee ballots that were postmarked on or after October 14 , ” Ross wrote in an email .
The situation in Jefferson County highlighted the uncertainty that state and local election officials have faced as courts have continued to rule and strike down prior orders in legal fights over election practices this year after voting had already started .
Alabama election law requires absentee voters to have two witnesses or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
On Sept. 30 , US District Judge Abdul Kallon blocked that rule and other voting restrictions in Alabama during the pandemic , finding that they “ unduly burden the fundamental Constitutional rights of Alabama ’ s most vulnerable voters and violate federal laws designed to protect America ’ s most marginalized citizens.
” In a 2–1 vote , the 11th Circuit granted Alabama ’ s request to reinstate the witness requirement while the state appealed Kallon ’ s decision .
Jefferson County published a press release on its website about the 11th @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t include information making clear that voters could no longer use the waiver form they ’ d received .
On Oct. 21 , the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and other groups that had been involved in the litigation sent a letter to Jefferson County officials asking them to alert voters who had received the waiver and come up with a way for voters who had sent it in after Oct. 14 to fix their now-invalid ballots .
Merrill , the Alabama secretary of state , said he learned about the Jefferson @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t know what the county planned to do .
Asked if the state had an obligation to make sure voters who had acted on information they received from election officials had their votes counted , Merrill replied , “ Our obligation is to ensure we have a safe , secure and free election and that 's what we 're going to do .
”

WASHINGTON — The election official in charge of absentee voting in Alabama’s most populous county announced this week that they are working to identify and contact voters who received special ballot instructions that could invalidate their ballots due to a recent court ruling.
Over the span of approximately a week and a half this month, Jefferson County sent voters a form that they could sign that would allow people with medical conditions that put them at higher risk of contracting COVID-19 to vote by mail without needing witnesses to sign their ballots. But a federal appeals court reinstated the witness requirement on Oct. 13, invalidating any waivers that voters put in the mail after that date. Voting rights groups expressed concern that the county wasn’t taking steps to alert voters who received the waiver that they could no longer use it, and risked having their ballots rejected if they hadn’t been postmarked by Oct. 13.
On Oct. 26, two days after BuzzFeed News first reported on the waiver issue, Jefferson County published a press release on its website directing voters who had sent in absentee ballots using the witness waiver form on or after Oct. 14 to contact Jackie Anderson Smith, the absentee election manager for the county. The release said the county had a plan for voters to correct “deficiencies” with their ballots, although it didn’t offer details about what that plan involved.
In an email to BuzzFeed News on Oct. 26, Smith wrote that she had “implemented procedures” to contact voters who were sent the waiver form, but didn’t respond as of publication time to questions asking for details about those procedures, how many voters may have received the waiver form, and what voters who submitted the waiver would need to do to make sure their vote is counted. The county is promoting the new information about the waivers on Twitter, Facebook, and other social media platforms.
Smith said the waivers were sent out with absentee ballot materials between the Sept. 30 ruling and the Oct. 13 appeals court decision but didn’t say how many voters may have received them.
Absentee ballots that don’t comply with the state’s witness requirement — voters need two witness signatures or one notary signature — and are postmarked after Oct. 13 will be rejected, regardless of whether voters relied on the information that Jefferson County sent out, Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill told BuzzFeed News in a phone interview.
He said voters who signed the Jefferson County waiver and were worried about their absentee ballot being rejected could cast a provisional ballot in person, which would be counted if their absentee ballot was later deemed invalid.
“Ballots that were submitted after the deadline will not be counted because they're not legitimate ballots,” Merrill said, referring to the US Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit’s ruling on Oct. 13 that reinstated the witness requirement.
Deuel Ross, a lawyer with the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund involved in sending a letter to the county on Oct. 21 that raised concerns about the waiver, told BuzzFeed News on Tuesday that they hadn’t received new information about the county’s plan beyond what was in the press release.
“We’re pleased to see that Jefferson County is proactively working to contact affected voters. We encourage other Alabama counties to similarly assist voters and establish a cure process for unwitnessed absentee ballots that were postmarked on or after October 14,” Ross wrote in an email.
The situation in Jefferson County highlighted the uncertainty that state and local election officials have faced as courts have continued to rule and strike down prior orders in legal fights over election practices this year after voting had already started.
Alabama election law requires absentee voters to have two witnesses or one notary sign off on their ballots. On Sept. 30, US District Judge Abdul Kallon blocked that rule and other voting restrictions in Alabama during the pandemic, finding that they “unduly burden the fundamental Constitutional rights of Alabama’s most vulnerable voters and violate federal laws designed to protect America’s most marginalized citizens.”
In a 2–1 vote, the 11th Circuit granted Alabama’s request to reinstate the witness requirement while the state appealed Kallon’s decision. Jefferson County published a press release on its website about the 11th Circuit’s order but didn’t include information making clear that voters could no longer use the waiver form they’d received. On Oct. 21, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and other groups that had been involved in the litigation sent a letter to Jefferson County officials asking them to alert voters who had received the waiver and come up with a way for voters who had sent it in after Oct. 14 to fix their now-invalid ballots.
Merrill, the Alabama secretary of state, said he learned about the Jefferson County waivers over the weekend and didn’t know what the county planned to do.
Asked if the state had an obligation to make sure voters who had acted on information they received from election officials had their votes counted, Merrill replied, “Our obligation is to ensure we have a safe, secure and free election and that's what we're going to do.”


buzzfeed--2020-10-28--Here’s What Will Happen On Election Night

This is a really confusing time .
BuzzFeed News is working to answer some of your burning questions leading up to the election .
Have a question you want answered ?
Email addy.baird @ buzzfeed.com .
WASHINGTON — There ’ s one question on everyone ’ s mind these days : What the hell will happen on election night ?
With the coronavirus pandemic prompting mass mail-in voting , calling an official winner will likely take longer than usual .
If the election is a blowout for either candidate , it ’ s possible a winner could be declared on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in how absentee votes are counted in different states , it could be days or weeks before an official call is made .
The first polls will close at 6 p.m .
ET on Election Day in parts of Indiana and Kentucky , and the last polls will close at 1 a.m .
ET in Alaska .
If the election is close , it may initially look like President Donald Trump is winning , regardless of the final outcome .
Because of the president ’ s relentless — and baseless — attacks on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that in-person votes , which will be counted more quickly , will break for Trump , resulting in what Hawkfish , a political data firm founded by Michael Bloomberg , has called a “ red mirage.
” Polling has consistently shown Republican voters prefer to vote in person on Election Day by a giant margin , relative to Democrats .
Essentially , without comprehensive reporting of mail-in ballots in a close election , it might look on election night like Trump is winning big .
And it ’ s certainly possible that he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the ballots have been counted .
But once absentee ballots have been counted , former vice president Joe Biden could seriously cut into or overcome the president ’ s lead .
Some states , like Arizona , Florida , and North Carolina — all-important swing states to watch — have laws that allow them to begin processing mail-in ballots before Election Day itself , which could result in clear and relatively comprehensive results after the polls close on Nov. 3 .
But many other states , like Ohio , Pennsylvania , and Michigan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ absentee votes prior to Election Day , and because they don ’ t have robust histories with mass mail-in voting , their results could likely be delayed .
Even states with strong histories of mail-in voting , however , could take longer to get results simply due to the possibly historic numbers of ballots they ’ ll have to count .

WASHINGTON — There’s one question on everyone’s mind these days: What the hell will happen on election night?
With the coronavirus pandemic prompting mass mail-in voting, calling an official winner will likely take longer than usual. If the election is a blowout for either candidate, it’s possible a winner could be declared on Nov. 3. But because of incongruities in how absentee votes are counted in different states, it could be days or weeks before an official call is made.
The first polls will close at 6 p.m. ET on Election Day in parts of Indiana and Kentucky, and the last polls will close at 1 a.m. ET in Alaska.
If the election is close, it may initially look like President Donald Trump is winning, regardless of the final outcome. Because of the president’s relentless — and baseless — attacks on mail-in voting, it’s likely that in-person votes, which will be counted more quickly, will break for Trump, resulting in what Hawkfish, a political data firm founded by Michael Bloomberg, has called a “red mirage.” Polling has consistently shown Republican voters prefer to vote in person on Election Day by a giant margin, relative to Democrats.
Essentially, without comprehensive reporting of mail-in ballots in a close election, it might look on election night like Trump is winning big. And it’s certainly possible that he could try to claim victory before all the ballots have been counted. But once absentee ballots have been counted, former vice president Joe Biden could seriously cut into or overcome the president’s lead.
Some states, like Arizona, Florida, and North Carolina — all-important swing states to watch — have laws that allow them to begin processing mail-in ballots before Election Day itself, which could result in clear and relatively comprehensive results after the polls close on Nov. 3.
But many other states, like Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Michigan, are not able to begin processing absentee votes prior to Election Day, and because they don’t have robust histories with mass mail-in voting, their results could likely be delayed.
Even states with strong histories of mail-in voting, however, could take longer to get results simply due to the possibly historic numbers of ballots they’ll have to count.


buzzfeed--2020-10-28--Schools Don’t Seem To Be COVID Hotbeds. That Doesn’t Mean They Should All Open, Scientists Say.

So far , schools don ’ t appear to be COVID-19 superspreading sites .
But Scott Atlas ’ s assertion that there is “ zero excuse ” to keep classrooms closed is an oversimplification , experts say .
From the moment Scott Atlas joined the White House ’ s coronavirus task force , one of his loudest rallying cries has been to open all schools .
A few weeks ago , he crowed on Twitter about new research that backed him up — or so he claimed .
The study in question found no significant coronavirus transmission from young children @ @ @ @ @ @ @ !
” the neuroradiologist tweeted .
But the paper did not say it was safe to open schools during a pandemic .
In fact , it had nothing to do with schools .
It was about childcare centers for kids aged 6 and under , and it explicitly stated that its findings did not apply to K–12 schools or colleges .
Atlas ’ s claim took the study “ completely out of context , ” Walter Gilliam , the Yale professor who led it , told BuzzFeed News .
“ It would be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to talk about science , to have actually read it or read a journalist ’ s take on science , not just make up some stuff.
” Seven months into the US pandemic , children and their families are paying a steep price for the government ’ s failure to control a virus that is now once again surging across most of the country .
After schools shut down en masse , President Donald Trump and Atlas insisted that they should all reopen for in-person classes this fall .
In areas where they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would follow .
Those concerns seem to have been mostly overblown : Early data suggests that , at least so far , schools are not COVID-19 superspreading sites .
But Atlas ’ s assertions that there is “ zero excuse ” to keep schools closed , and that kids “ almost never ” transmit the virus , oversimplify the risks that reopened schools can face .
That ’ s according to researchers studying the issue , including some whom Atlas has cited — erroneously , they say — to argue for universal in-person @ @ @ @ @ @ @ chance of avoiding outbreaks if it ’ s in a community with low transmission and if it ’ s adhering to safety protocols , the researchers say .
There will be exceptions , however : some schools may be able to keep cases low even in areas with high transmission , for instance .
And clusters of cases can still pop up even when all those boxes are checked .
That makes the calculus for reopening different everywhere .
“ I think there ’ s ample room to open schools and to keep @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said David Rubin , a pediatrician and researcher at Children ’ s Hospital of Philadelphia .
“ But to do so without recognizing that kids can transmit this virus , and there can be outbreak events originating in schools that can impact teachers or can impact caregivers at home , to me , is just not true.
” In two months , Atlas , a senior fellow at the conservative Hoover Institution at Stanford University , has become the most visible and controversial presence on the White House ’ s coronavirus task force @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Anthony Fauci , he does not have expertise in infectious diseases or epidemiology , which he considers an asset .
“ I have a background in medical science , but my role really is to translate medical science into public policy , ” Atlas told the site UnHerd .
“ That ’ s very different from being an epidemiologist or a virologist with a single , limited view on things.
” ( He did not return multiple requests for comment . )
Atlas reportedly helped push the CDC to narrow its criteria for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Twitter removed a message of his — “ Masks work ?
NO ” — for violating its policy against sharing “ false or misleading content related to COVID-19 that could lead to harm.
” And he has embraced the Great Barrington Declaration , a push for the unprecedented public health strategy of reaching herd immunity during a pandemic without a vaccine .
“ Vulnerable ” people should be isolated , the proposal argues , and the rest of society should be reopened , including schools , so the virus can spread unchecked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ infectious disease experts say this plan would be practically impossible to carry out and would cause many needless deaths .
Atlas has been demanding to keep classrooms open even before many of them first closed and the world had much data about how the virus affected children .
On March 13 , Atlas proclaimed that there was “ no medical reason to broadly close schools.
” During a Senate committee hearing in May , he argued to “ open all K–12 schools.
” In July , he declared : “ Closing schools denies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thing Atlas focused on as a newly minted member of the White House ’ s coronavirus task force .
During his first week on the job in August , Atlas spoke at a White House event dedicated to resuming in-person education .
In seeking reelection , Trump is making schools a centerpiece of his administration ’ s insistence on business as usual .
“ We have to open our schools , ” he said during the presidential debate on Thursday .
“ We can ’ t close up our nation or you ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” But in an interview , Oster stressed that the data is preliminary and that she is not calling for universally reopening schools , despite what Atlas suggested .
“ What I ’ m saying is in low-prevalence areas where the pandemic is under control , many of which do not have open schools , we should make moves in the direction of reopening schools in those areas , ” she said .
She cited San Francisco , which just entered California ’ s least-restrictive reopening tier thanks to declining virus rates , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the rest of 2020 .
The major obstacle , in her view , is that school reopenings have become deeply politicized under the Trump administration .
“ When the president said all schools should reopen , the divide on who was going to open meant that the red states opened and the blue states did not , as opposed to everyone making a decision based on what the best science said , ” Oster said .
“ This has gotten in the way of a lot of the things we need to do @ @ @ @ @ @ @ possible.
” Rubin , the pediatrician at Children ’ s Hospital of Philadelphia , is also encouraged by what he ’ s seeing .
He is leading a team that is tracking reopenings and compiling safety guidelines for school districts .
Understanding the exact nature of an outbreak is important , and Rubin said most of the transmission he has analyzed is happening off campus , during carpools or slumber parties or athletic events with lax hygiene protocols , and brought onto school grounds .
Rapid contact tracing is key , but hard @ @ @ @ @ @ @ initially thought for deciding when to open or close , according to his team ’ s guidance .
Instead , schools should make these calls as part of a constant dialogue with their local public health department .
Schools improve their likelihood of staying open when the whole community works to keep virus levels low , and when students , teachers , and staff comply with masking , surveillance for symptoms , social distancing , contact tracing , and hand hygiene , according to the group ’ s recommendations .
Even so , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ expect zero COVID cases — which , for some families and teachers , may be deeply uncomfortable or unacceptable .
“ The question is : Are your school protocols strong enough to avert the likelihood that one of those people leads to an event in the school ?
” he said .
And each school ’ s needs will differ depending in part on the level of spread in its community .
“ There ’ s no way to universally do this , ” said Tan , the pediatrician at Northwestern .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ schools may well be able to eventually open and keep the virus largely at bay .
But it would be incorrect to say that schools and public health officials had all the tools and knowledge they needed to do so in the spring , Rubin said .
It ’ s taken until now for researchers in the US to start studying what makes a successful reopening in real time , and for other schools to learn from those findings .
“ The delay of a few weeks to get schools open in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ me , it ’ s a small cost to pay for knowing that we ’ re doing it safely , ” Rubin said .
He and other experts recommend that elementary schools be prioritized , given those students ’ relatively low health risks and the greater harm of keeping them at home .
A new study from Yale adds to the case for opening up settings with young children .
Researchers surveyed 57,000 daycare centers across the US and compared coronavirus infections and hospitalizations among employees in sites that stayed open during the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ those that closed .
There was no difference between them , leading the researchers to conclude that childcare doesn ’ t pose a heightened risk of coronavirus transmission .
But “ a lot of stuff they were doing in childcare providers , I just don ’ t see how it could be replicable at all in a school — which doesn ’ t mean schools can ’ t be safe , ” said Walter Gilliam , the study ’ s lead author and a professor of child psychiatry and psychology .
“ It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ take this data and prove that they would be , because it ’ s a completely different scenario.
” These children were ages 6 and under and were kept in small groups of six to eight .
The majority of employees also reported taking extensive safety measures , including disinfecting as often as three times a day .
From kindergarten onward , classes get bigger and harder to clean .
Older students are constantly changing classrooms and mingling in hallways and during extracurriculars .
In his study on daycares , Gilliam took pains @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not be applied to K–12 schools or universities , ” as did Yale ’ s press release .
That context was made clear in the Wall Street Journal and in other media outlets that covered it .
Atlas , however , did not register that key detail when he shared the Journal ’ s story on Twitter earlier this month .
“ Where have I heard that before , ” he wrote .
“ Yep , it ’ s the science ... again .
End the hysteria .
OPEN the schools !
# @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the study on Fox News .
“ We now have a consensus forming around the president ’ s policy of protecting seniors and ending the lockdowns , opening schools and jobs , ” he said , citing “ the new study from Yale that was just put out , talking about how there ’ s very little transmission from children to adults.
” When Gilliam found out about Atlas ’ s spin , he was floored .
“ We wrote up the science in a way we thought any layperson , without any @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what this means and what this does not mean , ” he said , “ but we were not able to dummy-proof it against the adviser of the coronavirus taskforce.
” So he sought to set the record straight .
“ You clearly need to read the science before tweeting it , ” he tweeted in response to Atlas ’ s message .
“ I should know — I ’ m the study ’ s lead author.
” So far , it ’ s gotten seven retweets , compared to Atlas ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not necessarily the claim that schools are safe to open , which could end up being true .
It is that the coronavirus adviser does not seem to recognize the extent to which childcare providers bent over backward this year to keep their kids and employees safe , despite getting very little direction or resources from the government , Gilliam said .
“ It ’ s just a further slap in the face of the people you were supposed to be serving , ” he said , “ and didn ’ t .
@

Just about everyone agrees that in-person learning is the ideal. School closures disrupt learning and socializing, increase anxiety and depression, and burden working parents. In many large districts that started the year with all-virtual schooling, enrollment has declined. Low-income students of color are feeling the greatest impacts: They are cut off from a crucial source of meals and are disproportionately affected by the digital divide exacerbated by distance learning.
According to Atlas and researchers who share his view, these costs outweigh the health benefits of preventing COVID-19 in kids. Children and adolescents can get infected by the virus, but for reasons still not understood, they are much less likely than adults to get severely ill or die.
But other experts, even those who agree that society should prioritize opening schools, do not share Atlas’s one-size-fits-all stance.
The American Academy of Pediatrics advocates for in-person instruction as much as possible. “The importance of in-person learning is well-documented, and there is already evidence of the negative impacts on children because of school closures in the spring of 2020,” its recommendation states. When this guideline was released in the summer, members of the Trump administration seized on it as support for their push to open schools.
“Schools are essential businesses, aren’t they?” Atlas tweeted, not long before he joined the taskforce. “AAP says it’s extremely harmful to keep them closed.”
But that was not the full story: The guidance also acknowledged that “the current widespread circulation of the virus will not permit in-person learning to be safely accomplished in many jurisdictions.” In a follow-up statement after Atlas’s tweet, the AAP and educator groups stressed that “public health agencies must make recommendations based on evidence, not politics.”
One major reason to proceed with caution, according to experts, is that while children’s risk of transmitting the virus appears to be very low under age 10, it increases with age. A contagious student could infect not just a fellow classmate, but an adult in the room.
“If they transmit it to a teacher or a staff member that has an underlying condition, those individuals are at higher risk of complications with COVID,” said Tina Tan, a pediatrics professor at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine and a spokesperson for the Infectious Diseases Society of America.
To date, evidence from around the world indicates that schools are not intrinsic COVID-19 hot spots. Based on data from 191 countries from Feb. 10 to Sept. 29, Insights for Education reported “no consistent pattern between school status and infection levels.” Many country-specific factors, such as the economy, testing, tracing, and healthcare capacity, likely all play a role in how much the coronavirus spreads in the population, according to the independent nonprofit’s report.
Countries where schools have opened have seen a dizzying array of outcomes. In Spain, for instance, cases spiked when schools were closed and kept rising when they opened. But in the United Kingdom, infections were low during the summer break and rose after schools reopened. In Croatia, meanwhile, cases rose during the break, then dropped after reopenings. And in Thailand, cases stayed relatively low when schools were both closed and open.
In the US, the CDC was criticized for confusing and at times contradictory reopening guidelines. The agency was reportedly under pressure by the White House to downplay the risks of in-person instruction. Many states, too, have unclear guidance, leaving 13,000 school districts to forge ahead largely on their own.
Stories of successes and setbacks abound. In New York City, where the virus has dramatically leveled off since the spring, schools have only seen a handful of cases. In Florida, cases among school-age children did not immediately spike after reopenings. Yet outbreaks have happened in Utah and Georgia. Some teachers have died from COVID-19, though it’s not always clear where and how they got infected.
Overall, however, in-person learning seems to be going more smoothly than not, according to a new project, the COVID-19 School Response Dashboard, that is collecting data on reopenings. So far, school-submitted data about more than 200,000 students across all 50 states shows a low infection rate of 0.14%. Among the more than 81,000 staff working at these schools, the rate is slightly higher, at 0.37%.
Emily Oster, a Brown University health economist spearheading the project, shared an early version of these findings in the Atlantic this month. Contrary to fears “that school infections would balloon and spread outward to the broader community,” she wrote, these “numbers are small — smaller than what many had forecasted.”
Her essay, titled “Schools Aren’t Super-Spreaders,” caught Atlas’s eye. In a recent appearance on Laura Ingraham’s Fox News show, he said, “We have the recent studies finally coming into the so-called mainstream, even the magazines like the Atlantic, talking about ‘schools should be open.’”


buzzfeed--2020-10-28--The White Extremist Group Patriot Front Is Preparing For A World After Donald Trump


buzzfeed--2020-10-28--Philadelphia Police Shot And Killed A Black Man Who Officials Say Was Carrying A Knife

Police officers in Philadelphia shot and killed a Black man as he walked toward them in the street on Monday afternoon .
Police said the man was carrying a knife .
Footage of the shooting circulated on social media , showing two officers with their guns drawn walking backward as the man approached them .
The police fired multiple times , and the man crumpled to the ground .
He died of his injuries at a nearby hospital , the Inquirer reported .
Officials identified the man as Walter Wallace Jr. , 27 , according to the Associated Press .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , told the newspaper that his son had mental health problems .
`` Why did n't they use a Taser ? ''
the father asked .
`` His mother was trying to defuse the situation . ''
Wallace had recently gotten married , was a dad , and `` did n't deserve what he got , '' his family said in a statement , according to NBC Philadelphia .
`` Walter was a nice man he would do anything and everything for anybody , '' the family said .
`` No matter what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was he would always come through .
And , he was a family man , he just recently got married to Dominique and he got seven kids plus one due any day . ''
The shooting prompted protests Monday night in Philadelphia , which turned violent and , according to police resulted in 30 officers being injured .
On Tuesday , Lt. Col. Keith Hickox confirmed to BuzzFeed News News that `` several hundred members '' of the Pennsylvania National Guard were being deployed to the city in anticipation of more protests and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as a second night of protests were underway in the city , Wallace 's father pleaded with demonstrators not to turn violent in his son 's name .
`` I hope people show my family and the city some sort of respect , '' he told reporters .
`` I ai n't got time to loot and destroy where I live .
It 's uncalled for , and the people that are doing that , they 're not helping me and my family . ''
Relatives of Wallace and an attorney representing the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a press conference Tuesday night , saying the family had called for assistance due to Wallace 's mental health .
Wallace was taking Lithium , attorney Shaka Johnson said , and despite the family 's request for medical assistance it was police officers who responded .
`` The ambulance never made it , '' Johnson said .
`` [ Officers ] did n't have the training and the tolls to do the job effectively and , as such , a man was murdered . ''
The city 's district attorney called video of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ District Attorney Lawrence Krasner said at a press conference that , according to information received by his office so far , family members made a call requesting medical assistance in connection to Wallace .
Instead of medical assistance , Krasner said , the family received a `` response that was police as opposed to an ambulance , as opposed to medical service . ''
`` When I saw the widely released video , I thought it was concerning , '' he told reporters .
`` I would have to agree with both the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ presents some very serious questions that need to be answered . ''
Krasner said the district attorney 's office was continuing to review evidence , including body camera video , in connection to the shooting .
`` It 's way too early for me to speculate what was going on in the minds of the officers at the moment when they fired their shots , '' he said .
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said in a statement that he had been in touch with the young man 's family and that the incident @ @ @ @ @ @ @ My prayers are with the family and friends of Walter Wallace , '' Kenney said .
`` I have watched the video of this tragic incident and it presents difficult questions that must be answered . ''
Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw confirmed there would be an investigation .
`` I recognize that the video of the incident raises many questions , '' Outlaw said in a statement .
`` Residents have my assurance that those questions will be fully addressed by the investigation . ''
In a statement , Councilmember Jamie Gauthier @ @ @ @ @ @ @ incident to be released .
“ We must acknowledge that things did not need to play out this way , '' Gauthier said .
`` Resorting to the use of a service weapon should be the absolute last resort for any officer .
Had these officers employed de-escalation techniques and non-lethal weapons rather than making the split-second decision to fire their guns , this young man might still have his life tonight .
`` Had these officers valued the life of this Black man — had they treated him as a person experiencing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ criminal — we might be spared our collective outrage at yet another injustice at the hands of police . ''
Krasner said it was his hope body camera footage from the incident would be released to increase transparency with the public .
Early Tuesday morning , a speeding truck ran over a police officer who was on duty at the protests .
Philadelphia 's local Fox TV station reported that the officer is in the hospital with a broken leg .
Philadelphia , like many other cities across the country , was the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis .
Thousands of peaceful protesters marched through Philadelphia 's downtown ; some people burned police vehicles , ransacked stores , and clashed with police .
Between 100 and 200 protesters gathered after Wallace 's death on Monday night , in a neighborhood where people had demonstrated over Floyd 's death , the Inquirer reported .
Krasher said 91 people were arrested by police during the protests Monday night .
Of those arrest , 27 cases have been reviewed so far in connection with second-degree burglary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's office 11 cases connected with suspected assault of a police officer would be filed , but prosecutors have not received those cases as of Tuesday evening , he said .
The killing of Wallace also prompted former vice president Joe Biden to respond , calling the shooting another painful incident of a Black man killed by police .
`` Our hearts are broken for the family of Walter Wallace Jr. , and for all those suffering the emotional weight of learning about another Black life in America lost , '' Biden said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not accept that in this country a mental health crisis ends in death . ''
He also said criticized the violence that erupted during the protests .
`` No amount of anger at the very real injustices in our society excuse violence , '' he said .
`` Attacking police officers and vandalizing small businesses , which are already struggling during a pandemic , does not bend the moral arc of the universe closer to justice . ''
Wallace left behind nine children , Johnson said , including his eldest son , Zamir @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
`` We always go places and we used to always play around , '' he said .
`` And white racist cops got my own dad .
And Black lives still matter . ''

Police officers in Philadelphia shot and killed a Black man as he walked toward them in the street on Monday afternoon. Police said the man was carrying a knife.
Footage of the shooting circulated on social media, showing two officers with their guns drawn walking backward as the man approached them. The police fired multiple times, and the man crumpled to the ground. He died of his injuries at a nearby hospital, the Inquirer reported.
Officials identified the man as Walter Wallace Jr., 27, according to the Associated Press.
Wallace's father, Walter Wallace Sr., told the newspaper that his son had mental health problems. "Why didn't they use a Taser?" the father asked. "His mother was trying to defuse the situation."
Wallace had recently gotten married, was a dad, and "didn't deserve what he got," his family said in a statement, according to NBC Philadelphia.
"Walter was a nice man he would do anything and everything for anybody," the family said. "No matter what the favor was or what time it was he would always come through. And, he was a family man, he just recently got married to Dominique and he got seven kids plus one due any day."
The shooting prompted protests Monday night in Philadelphia, which turned violent and, according to police resulted in 30 officers being injured.
On Tuesday, Lt. Col. Keith Hickox confirmed to BuzzFeed News News that "several hundred members" of the Pennsylvania National Guard were being deployed to the city in anticipation of more protests and civil unrest.
Later that night, as a second night of protests were underway in the city, Wallace's father pleaded with demonstrators not to turn violent in his son's name.
"I hope people show my family and the city some sort of respect," he told reporters. "I ain't got time to loot and destroy where I live. It's uncalled for, and the people that are doing that, they're not helping me and my family."
Relatives of Wallace and an attorney representing the family blasted the officers' response during a press conference Tuesday night, saying the family had called for assistance due to Wallace's mental health.
Wallace was taking Lithium, attorney Shaka Johnson said, and despite the family's request for medical assistance it was police officers who responded.
"The ambulance never made it," Johnson said. "[Officers] didn't have the training and the tolls to do the job effectively and, as such, a man was murdered."
The city's district attorney called video of the shooting "concerning."
Philadelphia District Attorney Lawrence Krasner said at a press conference that, according to information received by his office so far, family members made a call requesting medical assistance in connection to Wallace.
Instead of medical assistance, Krasner said, the family received a "response that was police as opposed to an ambulance, as opposed to medical service."
"When I saw the widely released video, I thought it was concerning," he told reporters. "I would have to agree with both the police commissioner and the mayor that it presents some very serious questions that need to be answered."
Krasner said the district attorney's office was continuing to review evidence, including body camera video, in connection to the shooting.
"It's way too early for me to speculate what was going on in the minds of the officers at the moment when they fired their shots," he said.
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said in a statement that he had been in touch with the young man's family and that the incident would be undergoing an investigation.
“My prayers are with the family and friends of Walter Wallace," Kenney said. "I have watched the video of this tragic incident and it presents difficult questions that must be answered."
Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw confirmed there would be an investigation.
"I recognize that the video of the incident raises many questions," Outlaw said in a statement. "Residents have my assurance that those questions will be fully addressed by the investigation."
In a statement, Councilmember Jamie Gauthier called for body camera footage of the incident to be released.
“We must acknowledge that things did not need to play out this way," Gauthier said. "Resorting to the use of a service weapon should be the absolute last resort for any officer. Had these officers employed de-escalation techniques and non-lethal weapons rather than making the split-second decision to fire their guns, this young man might still have his life tonight.
"Had these officers valued the life of this Black man — had they treated him as a person experiencing mental health issues, instead of a criminal — we might be spared our collective outrage at yet another injustice at the hands of police."
Krasner said it was his hope body camera footage from the incident would be released to increase transparency with the public.
Early Tuesday morning, a speeding truck ran over a police officer who was on duty at the protests. Philadelphia's local Fox TV station reported that the officer is in the hospital with a broken leg.
Philadelphia, like many other cities across the country, was the site of major protests this summer after the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Thousands of peaceful protesters marched through Philadelphia's downtown; some people burned police vehicles, ransacked stores, and clashed with police.
Between 100 and 200 protesters gathered after Wallace's death on Monday night, in a neighborhood where people had demonstrated over Floyd's death, the Inquirer reported.
Krasher said 91 people were arrested by police during the protests Monday night. Of those arrest, 27 cases have been reviewed so far in connection with second-degree burglary charges.
Police told the district attorney's office 11 cases connected with suspected assault of a police officer would be filed, but prosecutors have not received those cases as of Tuesday evening, he said.
The killing of Wallace also prompted former vice president Joe Biden to respond, calling the shooting another painful incident of a Black man killed by police.
"Our hearts are broken for the family of Walter Wallace Jr., and for all those suffering the emotional weight of learning about another Black life in America lost," Biden said in a statement. "We cannot accept that in this country a mental health crisis ends in death."
He also said criticized the violence that erupted during the protests.
"No amount of anger at the very real injustices in our society excuse violence," he said. "Attacking police officers and vandalizing small businesses, which are already struggling during a pandemic, does not bend the moral arc of the universe closer to justice."
Wallace left behind nine children, Johnson said, including his eldest son, Zamir, who spoke to reporters Tuesday night.
"We always go places and we used to always play around," he said. "And white racist cops got my own dad. And Black lives still matter."


buzzfeed--2020-10-28--This Scary Statistic Predicts Growing US Political Violence — Whatever Happens On Election Day


buzzfeed--2020-10-28--A Woman's Thong Almost Killed Her And She Shared The Story On TikTok As A Precaution

`` Abscesses in the groin and anorectal area are not uncommon and can happen randomly to people who are more @ @ @ @ @ Dr. Lincoln said .
`` As for causing abscesses in the anorectal area , it @ @ @ @ @ cut in the skin from friction , which can then get infected .
So if @ @ @ @ @ one , opt for a loose-fitting , soft cotton version .
This may be better @ @ @ @ @ be more irritating to the skin , potentially more abrasive , or more likely to @ @ @ @ @ ''

"Abscesses in the groin and anorectal area are not uncommon and can happen randomly to people who are more prone to infections," Dr. Lincoln said. "As for causing abscesses in the anorectal area, it could theoretically cause a small cut in the skin from friction, which can then get infected. So if you do want to wear one, opt for a loose-fitting, soft cotton version. This may be better than synthetic fibers that can be more irritating to the skin, potentially more abrasive, or more likely to trap moisture and bacteria."


buzzfeed--2020-10-29--Women Are Sharing What They Used To Masturbate With Before Knowing What Sex Was, And It's A Doozy

So , she asked other women who also masturbated when they were younger to share the weird things they used @ @ @ @ @ a million views , and tons of women have flooded the comment section with hilarious @ @

So, she asked other women who also masturbated when they were younger to share the weird things they used. Her video has nearly a million views, and tons of women have flooded the comment section with hilarious responses: