theblaze--2020-04-26--Jeff Goldblum slammed with liberal backlash after asking question about Islam on 'RuPaul's Drag Race

Jeff Goldblum slammed with liberal backlash after asking question about Islam on 'RuPaul's Drag Race'

Jeff Goldblum slammed with liberal backlash after asking question about Islam on 'RuPaul 's Drag Race '

Hollywood actor Jeff Goldblum is facing liberal backlash on social media after he asked a question about Islam while appearing on "RuPaul's Drag Race."
"RuPaul's Drag Race" is a VH1 reality TV show where host RuPaul Charles leads asearch for "America's next drag superstar." On the most recent episode that aired on Friday, Goldblum was a guest judge for the drag queen competition.
One of the competitions was for contestants to do a stars and stripes-themed runway walk. Contestant Darius Rose, who goes by the performance name of "Jackie Cox," wore an American flag-inspired outfit with red and white stripes, as well as a blue hijab with silver stars.
Goldblum asked Cox, "Are you religious, may I ask?"
'I'm not," Cox, who is Iranian-Canadian, replied. "To be honest, this outfit really represents the importance that visibility for people of religious minorities need to have in this country."
The "Jurassic Park" actor then followed up with a question asking if homosexuality and feminism are compatible with Islam.
Goldblum asked, "Isn't this an interesting wrinkle though? Is there something in that religion that is anti-homosexuality and anti-woman? Does that complicate the issue?"
"I'm just raising it and thinking out loud and maybe being stupid," Goldblum tacked on a disclaimer to his queries, possibly realizing at that moment that he had made a mistake by simply asking a legitimate question.
RuPaul attempted to defuse the potential tinderbox moment by saying, "I think drag has always shaken the tree, so to speak. And there are so many different layers to this presentation, and if it was ever going to be done, this is the stage to do it."
"It's a complex issue," Cox replied. "I have my own misgivings about the way LGBT people are treated in the Middle East. And at the same time, I am one. What is so important to me that if you just happen to be different, then live that truth."
Goldblum's questions were lambasted on social media, with dozens of commenters calling the inquiries "Islamophobic." Some said he was "demonizing Muslims." Other people responded by referencing the relationship between Christianity and homosexuality.
Cox also said that President Donald Trump's 2017 "Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States" travel ban barring foreign visitors from entering the U.S. had "really destroyed a lot of my faith in this country."
"When the Muslim ban happened, it really destroyed a lot of my faith in this country. And really hurt my family. And that's so wrong to me," Cox tearfully explained on the runway. "And that's so wrong to me. And I had to show America that you can be LGBT and from the Middle East and there's gonna be complicated s**t around that. That's OK. I'm here, and I deserve to be an American just as much as anyone else."


theblaze--2020-04-26--Satellite images likely show Kim Jong Un's train at resort compound amid health concerns

Rumors about Kim Jong Un 's health swirl after he has n't been seen in weeks .

Satellite images show a train likely belonging to Kim Jong Un has been spotted at his compound in a resort town on North Korea's east coast. The train has been parked at the compound since last week.
There is much speculation that Kim Jong Un is critically ill and possibly dead, despite the lack of confirmed reports on his condition. There are unconfirmed reports Kim was in critical condition after receiving heart surgery. A Japanese magazine reported that the North Korean leader is in a "vegetative state."
The rumors concerning Kim's health are being exacerbated from his recent lack of public appearances. Kim's last confirmed public appearance was on April 11, when he was at a meeting of the ruling Workers' Party committee of policymakers, according to North Korean state media reports.
Kim, 36, was noticeably missing from The Day of the Sun celebrations on April 15, which is North Korea's most important holiday because it commemorates the birthday of the nation's first leader Kim Il-Sung.
On Saturday, Kim did not make any speeches or appearances during the 88th anniversary of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army.
Since April 21, the 820-foot-long train has been parked at the Wonsan compound, and it was repositioned for departure on April 23. The train was not present on April 15.
"The train's presence does not prove the whereabouts of the North Korean leader or indicate anything about his health, but it does lend weight to reports that Kim is staying at an elite area on the country's eastern coast," 38 North wrote.
The Wonsan complex includes nine large guesthouses and a recreation center. At the center of the grounds is a large building that was constructed shortly after Kim Jong Un came to power in 2014. It also includes a protected port, shooting range, recreation building, and a covered dock that is believed for his mega yacht. Adjacent to the railway station is a small runway that was originally used for light aircraft but was converted in the second half of 2019 into a horse-riding track to match Kim's latest hobby.
If Kim is in Wosan, that will back multiple reports that Kim left Pyongyang to shelter on North Korea's eastern coast.
However, there are many reports disputing speculation that Kim Jong Un's health had deteriorated.
According to Reuters: "South Korean government officials and a Chinese official with the Liaison Department challenged subsequent reports suggesting that Kim was in grave danger after surgery. South Korean officials said they had detected no signs of unusual activity in North Korea."
The South Korean source said Kim was alive and would likely make an appearance soon.
President Donald Trump rejected reports that Kim was gravely ill or dead. "I think the report was incorrect," Trump told reporters during Thursday's White House coronavirus news briefing. "I'm hearing they used old documents."
"I think it was a fake report done by CNN," Trump added. Trump did not say if he had talked to North Korean officials about the condition of Kim Jong Un.
A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to talk to the media, said the rumors of Kim's declining health is "speculation."
This isn't the first time that there have been rampant rumors regarding the decline of the hermit kingdom's leader. In 2014, Kim Jong Un had not been seen in nearly six weeks before returning and needing a cane to walk. South Korean intelligence said Kim had undergone surgery to remove a cyst from his ankle.


theblaze--2020-04-26--AGENDA 21: The socialist plan to use coronavirus pandemic for GLOBAL CONTROL

AGENDA 21 : The socialist plan to use coronavirus pandemic for GLOBAL CONTROL They 've been planning this for decades

In the 1990s, the United Nations drafted "Agenda 21" -- their plan for defeating climate change. In 2015, it was re-branded by socialists into "Agenda 30," but neither had anything to do with global warming and everything to do with using it to reshape our political world.
Starting last year, the push for Agenda 30 wasn't just about climate change, but about fighting future global pandemics as well. In October 2019, some of the world's most powerful business and political leaders met to discuss how to prepare for such a crisis.
And now we have the coronavirus outbreak reaching every corner of the world. It's becoming clearer everyday that socialists are going to use this pandemic to achieve their ultimate goal: global control.
Watch the video below to hear Glenn Beck break down the details:
THE PLAN FOR GLOBAL CONTROL: How Socialists Will Use Coronavirus Pandemic to RESHAPE OUR WORLD youtu.be
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theblaze--2020-04-26--Every single Democratic senator refuses to acknowledge sexual assault allegations against Joe Biden

Every single Senate Democrat is refusing to acknowledge the sexual assault allegations against Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee for president.
The Daily Caller News Foundation reached out to every Democratic senator — all 45 plus the two independent senators who caucus with Democrats — to ask them about Tara Reade's allegations that Biden sexually assaulted her in 1993 when she worked for him in his U.S. Senate office.
Not a single Democratic senator, or their office, responded to requests for comment. They were given 24 hours to respond, more than enough time in the fast-moving world of politics.
Their silence comes despite mounting evidence that lends credibility to Reade's claims.
On Friday, Reade told a journalist that her mother called into CNN's "Larry King Live" in 1993 to ask where she could report that her daughter had problems with a "prominent senator."
Hours later, the Media Research Center unearthed the old video.
Reade then confirmed that the caller in the video was her mother.
"I just heard audio, my mother died and hearing her voice made me cry. She was such a good mom and always watching out for me even now," she told the Daily Caller, explaining the video proves "that I was forced out and wanted to come forward in 1993."
The hypocritical silence by Senate Democrats has reached deafening levels, considering they were the loudest voices decrying Brett Kavanaugh during his Supreme Court confirmation.


theblaze--2020-04-26--Lindsey Graham drops bombshell, explains why he believes Kim Jong Un is 'dead or incapacitated'

Lindsey Graham drops bombshell , explains why he believes Kim Jong Un is 'dead or incapacitated' ' ... you do @ @ @ @ @ go forever or go unanswered '

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) revealed on Saturday that he would "be shocked" if North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un is not dead or medically incapacitated.
Speaking on Fox News, Graham said he did not have direct knowledge about Kim's situation, but said the rumors about his health are probably more truth than fiction.
"Well, it's a closed society, I don't know anything directly," Graham said. "But I'd be shocked if he's not dead or in some incapacitated state because you don't let rumors like this go forever or go unanswered in a closed society, which is really a cult, not a country, called North Korea."
"So I pretty well believe he is dead or incapacitated," he said.
"And I hope the long-suffering North Korean people will get some relief if he is dead, and President Trump's willing to do business with North Korea in a win-win fashion," Graham continued. "So, if this guy is dead, I hope the next person who takes over will work with President Trump to make North Korea a better place for everybody."
Graham chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee and sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
As TheBlaze reported, Japanese media has reported that Kim was left in a "vegetative state" following complications during a recent surgery. According to the report, Kim underwent surgery after suddenly collapsing during a visit to parts of rural North Korea.
The development followed a CNN report last week that indicated Kim's health was in "grave danger." The South Korean government pushed back against those claims, and top U.S. military personnel said they had no reason to believe Kim was not in control of North Korea.
Kim has not been seen publicly for weeks, and he missed celebrating a major North Korean holiday on Saturday.


theblaze--2020-04-26--Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy says college football system is 'immoral' during the NFL draft

Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy says college football system is 'immoral ' during the NFL draft Chris Murphy thinks college athletics @ @ @ @ @ 's rooting for his favorite college team .

Sports-starved fans had enhanced excitement for this year's NFL draft, especially since the NBA suspended its season on March 11, and the NHL suspended its season on March 12. Sports addicts looked forward to this week's NFL draft as a distraction to the daily dose of stressful coronavirus news that everyone has been inundated with for weeks. But Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) couldn't allow everyone to enjoy the brief diversion of the 2020 NFL draft without scoring some woke points by injecting identity politics into something that should be devoid of virtue-signaling.
The 2020 NFL draft was held from April 23–25 via video conferencing because of the coronavirus pandemic. During Friday night's portion of the NFL draft, Murphy felt the need to deviate from trivial observations about the football draft, such as questioning the Los Angeles Raiders' selection of Damon Arnette with the 19th pick overall. Instead, Murphy needed to drag the NFL draft into the culture war.
"Hard not to notice all the shots of filthy rich, almost exclusively white coaches, GMs, and team presidents, drafting almost exclusively African-American players who have been forced to work for free for 3 years in order to get a shot to be chosen," Murphy tweeted.
Chris Murphy, a white male of privilege from the fourth-richest state in the U.S. with a GDP per capita of $75,938, couldn't help but to wokescold on Twitter about football players being drafted into a league where they will make between $1.96 million and $6.58 million if they are selected in the first round. No. 1 pick, Joe Burrow, will sign an estimated four-year, $36.19 million contract.
"I'm glued to the NFL draft like most other sports fans, but it just reminds me how immoral the football syndicate is," Murphy said in another tweet about the NFL draft. "College football trains players for the pros, pays the trainees nothing, and forces them to endure 3 years of head trauma before getting a single paycheck."
Murphy forgot to mention that the football players receive an education from a college that many would not qualify for based solely on their academic performance. All while training to play professional sports at the highest level where they will be paid generously.
Despite the "evil" college system, Murphy supports the University of Connecticut "enslaving" athletes.
Murphy despises immoral colleges so much that the header image on his official Twitter account is a photo of UConn's women's basketball team.
Murphy even encouraged his nearly one million followers to support the iniquitous college athletic system.
Murphy is so against the unethical college athlete system that he gladly enriches colleges by attending UConn basketball games.
I'm starting to think that Chris Murphy has no problem with the college athletic system as long as it is unpaid athletes helping UConn win games.


theblaze--2020-04-26--Hawaii is paying tourists to leave if they don't obey coronavirus rules

Hawaii is paying tourists to leave if they do n't obey coronavirus rules Hawaii is not messing around

Hawaii has zero patience for tourists who don't obey their coronavirus rules. Globetrotters who don't heed their quarantine rules will get shipped off the Pacific island. Hawaii is so serious about removing misbehaving guests that the state will even pay to fly them off the islands.
Travelers visiting Hawaii must quarantine for two weeks once they arrive, an order that was made effective on March 26 by Gov. David Ige. If visitors are caught not in lockdown during the state-mandated quarantine, Hawaii will send them packing.
Before the coronavirus pandemic, the Hawaii Tourism Authority had a main objective of enticing travelers to the islands in the middle of the Pacific Island. Now, after the COVID-19 outbreak, the Hawaii Tourism Authority is diverting funds to pay for visitors to go back where they came from is they don't abide to quarantine orders.
Since the decision to ship out rule-breakers on April 1, the Hawaii Tourism Authority has set aside $25,000 to ensure that the state could deport travelers who refused to quarantine.
"So far, with $25,000 in funding from the Hawai'i Tourism Authority, the Visitor Aloha Society of Hawai'i or VASH has paid to send 19 people back to their airports of origin during the COVID-19 crisis," Hawaii's health department said on Thursday.
"The ability to return people quickly to their airports of origin during the coronavirus crisis greatly assists law enforcement's ability to ensure the success of our statewide emergency measures," Hawaii's Attorney General Clare Connors said in a statement. "The fact scarce government funds do not need to be expended for these return trips also helps fulfill the mission of keeping Hawaii safe."
A woman from Los Angeles was caught breaking the quarantine after she uploaded photos to her social media account, and she was sent back to California.
Two other travelers were caught disobeying the lockdown, but were given a second chance. However, they tried to circumvent the quarantine by checking into another hotel, but authorities tracked them down.
Hawaiian authorities can monitor visitors because there is hardly anyone coming to the islands. Only 438 arrived in Hawaii by air on Thursday, typically 30,000 travelers arrive each day this time of year, according to the Tourism Authority.
Hawaii has the fourth-least confirmed coronavirus cases of all the states, only trailing Wyoming, Montana, and Alaska. Hawaii has 604 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 14 deaths.


theblaze--2020-04-26--Millions of gallons of beer could go to waste

Millions of gallons of beer could go to waste Would anyone volunteer to take a few kegs off their hands @

The coronavirus pandemic has completely shut down some of the biggest spring events where people gathered to celebrate, including March Madness, the NBA playoffs, the NHL playoffs, the beginning of the MLB season, The Masters, SXSW, Coachella, and St. Patrick's Day. These massively popular events were big drinking occasions, whether at the event or watching at a bar. Because of the COVID-19 outbreak, all of those kegs at stadiums and bars are going stale. The national emergency gets worse every day.
There are currently millions of gallons of beer just sitting around and not being tapped because of stay-at-home orders. Non-pasteurized draft beer typically lasts about 45-60 days, and pasteurized draft beer will stay fresh for approximately 90-120 days. Many of the state-mandated lockdowns went into effect in mid-March, meaning there is a real concern for beer companies that all of those kegs of brew could go to waste. Would anyone be willing to help take a few thousand kegs off their hands?
"This was the absolute worst time for this to happen for draft beer," Craig Purser, chief executive of the National Beer Wholesalers Association, told the Wall Street Journal. "We have never ever seen an interruption like this where everything freezes in place."
The beer industry's troubles ramped up in March when roughly 10 million gallons of suds were abandoned in venues that month alone, according to an NBWA estimate. That is the equivalent of almost one million kegs. Even more beer is stuck at distributors' warehouses, in transit from other countries and in breweries. Unsold and expiring beer could cost the beer industry as much as $1 billion, according to the NBWA.
For the week ending March 14, total beer dollar sales increased 14% compared to a year ago, according to Nielsen. However, that doesn't make up for on-premise sales in bars, restaurants, taprooms, and tasting rooms, which amounts to approximately 20 percent of the total beer volume in the United States.
Boston Beer, the parent company of Sam Adams, has developed a novel idea on what to do with those millions of gallons of expiring beer. Boston Beer, which is the second-largest craft brewer in the U.S., will take the expiring beer and distill the booze into ethanol so that it can be blended into gasoline.
While there is an overabundance of beer kegs, there is a potential shortage in the national supply of compressed carbon dioxide, which makes beer and soda fizzy.


theblaze--2020-04-26--Frontline doctors who administered 5,000 coronavirus tests want to re-open, say COVID-19 similar to

Frontline doctors who administered 5,000 coronavirus tests want to re-open, say COVID-19 similar to flu

Frontline doctors who administered 5,000 coronavirus tests want to re-open , say COVID-19 similar to flu Not all health care @ @ @ @ @ .

Two doctors, who have administered more than 5,000 coronavirus tests, say that the coronavirus is similar to the seasonal flu, the quarantine is not helping with building coronavirus immunity, and they are confident that reopening is safe.
The two frontline physicians, Dan Erickson and Artin Massihi, are the owners of Accelerated Urgent Care in Bakersfield, California. The doctors are presenting medical advice about the coronavirus that is far different than what health officials have been saying over the past weeks.
Last week, the doctors gave a news conference to deliver their COVID-19 findings.
"Do we need to still shelter in place? Our answer is emphatically no," Erickson said. "Do we need businesses to be shut down? Emphatically no. Do we need to test them and get them back to work? Absolutely."
Accelerated Urgent Care has tested 5,213 patients within the county, which makes up half of all testing done in Kern County. "Now that we have the facts, it's time to get back to work," Erickson said.
Erickson noted that the coronavirus and seasonal flu are "similar in their prevalence and death rates."
"If you study the numbers in 2017 and 2018, we had 50 to 60 million with the flu," Erickson said. "And we had a similar death rate in the deaths the United States were 43,545 — similar to the flu of 2017-2018. We always have between 37,000 and 60,000 deaths in the United States, every single year. No pandemic talk. No shelter-in-place. No shutting down businesses."
Erickson added that quarantining could lead to weakened immune systems.
"Sheltering in place decreases your immune system. And then as we all come out of shelter in place with a lower immune system and start trading viruses, bacteria — what do you think is going to happen? Disease is going to spike," Erickson explained. "And then you've got diseases spike — amongst a hospital system with furloughed doctors and nurses. This is not the combination we want to set up for a healthy society. It doesn't make any sense."
Erickson said he talked to emergency room doctors who said they are being "pressured" to add the "coronavirus" as the cause of death.
"You know it's interesting, when I'm writing up my death report, I'm being pressured to add 'COVID.' Why is that? Why are we being pressured to add COVID? To maybe increase the numbers and make it look a little bit worse than it is? I think so," he said.
"This is not about science. This is not even about COVID," Erickson stated.
However, not everyone is sold on the green-light advice coming from the doctors at Accelerated Urgent Care.
"This virus is not a virus to be taken very lightly," said Dr. Navin Amin, an infectious diseases specialist who has resided in Bakersfield for more than 40 years. "It is a killer virus. It spreads very rapidly, and it doesn't spare anybody."
"Even an asymptomatic person — 25 percent of them — can spread the virus without knowing it," Dr. Nimisha Amin, who is Navin's daughter, added. " As a result, social isolation may be a help. That's why we need everyone to be practicing social distancing."
"Social isolation has no bearing, no effect on the immune system at all," Amin stated.
"The flu acts a lot different," said Dr. Hemmal Kothary, who argued that the flu and coronavirus are not similar. "This virus is a lot more virulent. It passes from people to people a lot more aggressively. The symptoms are a lot more aggressive. It seems to affect a lot of age groups the flu typically won't affect."
"The doctor at Accelerated has spoken with our director. Our director has not concurred with the statements that were made yesterday about the need to reopen at this time," said Michelle Corson, Public Information Officer for Kern County Public Health.
"There are top medical minds in our state, in our county, in our nation that are providing this guidance to us. And we concur that these are actions that we should be taking right now, and we are steadfast in our recommendation to our community to continue this," Corson said.
The Kern County Public Health Department responded with the following statement:
In our ongoing effort to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19 on our residents and healthcare system, we continue to adhere to the guidance issued by Governor Newsom regarding the stay at home order.
Kern County Public Health Services recommends the following protective measures:
Stay at home except for essential needs.
Practice social distancing.
Wash hands with soap and water often.
Avoid touching eyes, nose or mouth with unwashed hands.
Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue or your elbow.
Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
Stay away from work, school or other people if you become sick.
Wear face covering while in public if you are unable to maintain social distancing.
You can watch the entire COVID-19 news briefing with Doctors Dan Erickson and Artin Massihi below.
Dr. Erickson COVID-19 Briefing www.youtube.com


theblaze--2020-04-28--Sean Hannity threatens to sue the New York Times if they don't apologize and retract coronavirus sto

Sean Hannity threatens to sue the New York Times if they don't apologize and retract coronavirus story

Sean Hannity threatens to sue the New York Times if they do n't apologize and retract coronavirus story The story @ @ @ @ @ statements made on Hannity 's show

Fox News host Sean Hannity threatened to sue the New York Times over a coronavirus story unless they retracted and apologized for including him.
In a letter from Hannity's lawyer to the New York Times, his lawyer demands the newspaper retract a story that connected Hannity's statements about the coronavirus to a man who later died from the disease.
The letter accused the Times of "blatant and outrageous disregard for the truth in mischaracterizing Mr. Hannity's coverage of the coronavirus pandemic and blaming him for the tragic death of Joe Joyce."
The Joyce story was published on April 18 and detailed how the family of Joyce said that he was a Fox News viewer and believed the virus was a hoax intended to damage President Donald Trump.
The letter continues on to explain that although Joyce took off on his cruise on March 1, the comments that Hannity made and supposedly influenced Joyce were made more than a week later on March 9.
"Moreover, you were fully aware that this was the actual timeline, and in order to mislead your readers and support your false narrative, you withheld the date of Mr. Hannity's comments from your story," the latter claimed.
"We demand that you promptly remove the foregoing false and defamatory statements from the Stories and any subsequent republications in print or any other medium, and publish a full, fair and conspicuous retraction, correction and apology as to each of the false and defamatory statements identified above," the latter added.
Here's the latest about the coronavirus epidemic:


theblaze--2020-04-27--Angry New Yorker confronts Mayor de Blasio and wife publicly over 'selfish behavior'

Angry New Yorker confronts Mayor de Blasio and wife publicly over 'selfish behavior' The far-left progressive has been accused of @ @ @ @ @ once again

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) and first lady Chirlane McCray were confronted in public by an angry New Yorker in a video that was posted online Saturday. The man accused the pair of "selfish behavior" for allegedly making a nonessential chauffeured trip to take a stroll in a park 11 miles from their home, instead of utilizing the park near their mansion.
What are the details?
A man identified by The New York Post as Darren Goldner posted the footage purportedly taken from Prospect Park, and he can be heard telling the mayor and first lady, "Seriously, you guys have a park. You live in the middle of a park. You don't need to non-essentially travel to Brooklyn."
De Blasio replies, "C'mon guys, give it a break," and starts to walk away, but Goldner follows, saying, "I'm not going to give it a break. This is selfish behavior. This is so terribly selfish. You call yourself a progressive, but you chauffeur yourself to Brooklyn. You force people to drive you."
New Yorkers are allowed to walk in parks despite the city's COVID-19 mandates. It appears that what offended Goldner was that the mayor allegedly put a driver at risk so that he and his wife could take a leisurely stroll miles away rather than staying put in their own neighborhood.
NYC Mayor bill de Blasio taking a stroll in the park www.youtube.com
Goldner slammed the mayor to his face and online, calling out de Blasio for being a fake progressive and saying, "His actions tell us who he really is. Austerity for the working class, privilege for the ruling class."
But conservatives weren't impressed with de Blasio and McCray's behavior, either.
Parkland survivor Kyle Kashuv said of the video, "Quarantine for thee, but not for me," and "The View" co-host Meghan McCain tweeted, "DeBlasio is a national disgrace. New Yorkers have every right to be furious at this blatant disregard for breaking HIS OWN RULES. How can our mayor 'lead as I say, not as I do.' What an utter joke."
Anything else?
De Blasio has been repeatedly torched for taking his walks in Prospect Park while insisting New Yorkers only leave their homes for essential reasons. He was even turned in to his own social distancing snitch hotline for violating his own orders after he and his wife were spotted taking their regular walk far from home.


theblaze--2020-04-27--Democratic rep says pandemic re-opening is targeted to put blacks at risk

Democratic rep says pandemic re-opening is targeted to put blacks at risk 'They do n't care about our safety '

A Democratic lawmaker said that officials were opening up businesses that blacks use to put them at risk in order to let them spend their coronavirus relief checks.
Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio) made the comments during an online videoconference in support of Joe Biden's presidential campaign.
"Let me just say very quickly on them opening things, you know they opened up the beauty salons and barber shops, the bowling alleys and the movie theaters. When they open up the Country Clubs and the tanning spas, then I'll know it's safe for the rest of us," she said.
"That's first," Fudge added, chuckling.
"Because they just opening up things that black people go to because they know we've got these checks and they want us to spend them," she continued.
"They don't care about our safety, that's why when they start to open things they go to," Fudge concluded, "then I'll understand it's time for them to open up some things for us."
Fudge's inflammatory comment pleased the rest of the virtual town hall attendees who laughed and smiled at the suggestion that blacks were being targeted.
She has previously expressed concern that statistics showed minorities in the U.S. have a higher rate of infection from the coronavirus and also a higher death rate.
Fudge also made headlines in 2019 when she excoriated the supporters of President Donald Trump as racist and ignorant.
Here's the video of her comments:


theblaze--2020-04-27--Environmentalists are celebrating 'new way of living' during COVID-19 pandemic: 'We're doing it!'

Environmentalists are celebrating 'new way of living ' during COVID-19 pandemic : 'We 're doing it ! '

In a recent episode of "Psuedo Intellectual," host Lauren Chen highlighted several examples of environmentalists, including Greta Thunberg, who are celebrating the worldwide coronavirus pandemic because lockdowns have resulted in significantly reduced carbon dioxide emissions.
Apparently, they aren't concerned about the economic devastation that could potentially lead to deadly famine and enormous human cost.
"This is roughly the same pace that the IPCC says we need to sustain every year until 2030 to be on pace to limit global warming to 1.5C and hit the Paris climate goals. This is what 'rapid, far-reaching and unprecedented changes in all aspects of society' looks like," tweeted former Wall Street Journal columnist and climate activist Eric Holthaus.
"We're doing it. It's possible!" he added. "We need to take some serious time and energy during this pandemic to look around and see what parts of this new way of living we can keep ... We can build a better world for everyone out of the ashes of the old one."
Watch the video below to get Lauren's take:
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theblaze--2020-04-27--Data suggests the 'crazy science deniers' may have been right to compare coronavirus to the flu

Data suggests the 'crazy science deniers ' may have been right to compare coronavirus to the flu

Unpopular theory: Many "patriotic" Americans who've supported the call to bring our economy to a screeching halt have served as an eye-opener. Who would have ever thought the United States would be a nation using the system to force able-bodied adults inside their own homes to "slow the spread" of a virus?
Those who dared ask questions about the details surrounding COVID-19 were met with fear-stricken mobs who decided they are science deniers or worse — hysterical fools.
Hysterical? For requiring evidence and a damn good reason for going along with the destruction of everything, we have worked to build?
Because forcing Americans inside and shutting down the economy isn't a hysterical path.
And let's not forget what happened when we compared coronavirus to the flu!
A great T-shirt idea: "Don't you dare compare COVID-19 to the flu if you know what's good for ya."
OK, maybe not a great T-shirt idea, regardless, to compare COVID-19 to the flu based on data is a fair comparison when compared to the original models being used to determine the project mortality rate.
Here's a reasonable theory that could explain why Americans cling to the notion that COVID-19 is the worst pandemic of our lifetime: Ego and fear may render it too painful to admit that our country allowed the U.S. economy to plummet over something comparable to the flu.
Americans were promised a major pandemic. And so, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other reporting institutions continue to keep their promise to the American people.
The CDC now combines the mortality rate to reflect COVID-19, flu, and pneumonia deaths together.
Steven Crowder broke down the numbers on Monday's "Good Morning Mug Club" and gave his take on the mob has treated us "science deniers."
Jeff Goldblum Cancelled for Islam Comments?! | Ep #13 Good Morning MugClub youtu.be
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theblaze--2020-04-27--Bill Gates praised China's COVID response, trashed America's, then had his words immediately used by

Bill Gates praised China's COVID response, trashed America's, then had his words immediately used by Chinese propagandists

Bill Gates praised China 's COVID response , trashed America 's , then had his words immediately used by Chinese @

Billionaire Microsoft founder Bill Gates recently defended the communist Chinese government's response to the coronavirus pandemic, arguing that they "did a lot of things right at the beginning." As for America's response to the virus — he said that it was "particularly poor."
His stunning comments came during an interview with Fareed Zakaria on CNN Sunday.
What did he say?
"How would you respond to the charge that the Chinese covered this up, they essentially deceived the rest of the world, and as a result, they should be held in someway responsible for this?" Zakaria asked Gates during the interview.
"Well, I don't think that's a timely thing because it doesn't affect how we act today. China did a lot of things right at the beginning," Gates said in response. "Like any country where a virus first shows up, they can look back and see where they missed some things."
"Some countries did respond very quickly and get their testing in place and they avoided the incredible economic pain, and it's sad that even the U.S., that you would have expected to do this well, did it particularly poorly," Gates went on to claim.
Gates went on to call criticisms of China "a distraction."
That's not right at all
Gates seems to have forgotten that Chinese authorities have been lying about the virus since the start of the outbreak late last year in Wuhan.
They censured and reprimanded early whistleblowers who sought to inform the public about the dangers of a novel coronavirus spreading within Wuhan. Health care workers were silenced and citizen journalists went missing. It wasn't until December 31 that China finally reported the virus to the country's World Health Organization office.
Officials claimed that the outbreak started in a Wuhan wet market where bats were sold, but is becoming more and more likely that the virus accidentally originated in a Wuhan virology lab. Officials claimed for weeks that the virus could not spread between humans despite very early evidence of human-to-human transmission. For at least 6 key days, they peddled the lies.
Even after the virus spread worldwide, the Chinese government continued to lie about the extent of the outbreak within its own country. Officials have gone so far as to blame the U.S. for the pandemic, claiming that the U.S. military developed the virus and infected China and Europe.
Chinese state propaganda
Almost immediately after the interview, Gates' remarks in defense of China were promoted by Chinese state propagandists.
Chen Weihua, China Daily's European Union bureau chief, posted the clip on Twitter, writing, "Bill Gates blasts Trump's blame game on China as a distraction."
(H/T: The Daily Wire)


theblaze--2020-04-27--TIMELINE: Media's, Dems' treatment of Kavanaugh vs. Biden sexual assault allegations is complete OPP

TIMELINE: Media's, Dems' treatment of Kavanaugh vs. Biden sexual assault allegations is complete OPPOSITE

TIMELINE : Media 's , Dems ' treatment of Kavanaugh vs. Biden sexual assault allegations is complete OPPOSITE

On the radio program Monday, Glenn Beck compared how the mainstream media covered Christine Blasey Ford's sexual assault allegations against Brett Kavanaugh to the nearly nonexistent coverage of former Biden staffer Tara Reade's allegations against former Vice President Joe Biden.
"Let me just show you the duplicity here," Glenn said. "On Sept. 16, 2018, within minutes of the Washington Post story outlining Blasey Ford's claim that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her at a high school party more than three decades earlier, the New York Times immediately published a story stating that Kavanaugh's nomination was in turmoil."
"CNN reported the news immediately with an article, and then another one likening it to Anita Hill, then another one describing the White House as 'mounting an intense effort to squash the accusation,'" Glenn continued. "Then CNN did another one describing a senator's assessment of how Kavanaugh's nomination would go forward. And then finally, another one, all in the same day, describing how Democrats would push for a delay in Kavanaugh's confirmation vote."
Read more on this here.
By contrast, Tara Reade, a former staff assistant to then-U.S. Sen. Joe Biden, spoke out during a podcast released March 25, alleging that Biden sexually assaulted her in 1993.
That day, both the New York Times and CNN ran with a story about the futility of Bernie Sanders' presidential campaign.
"On day two," continued Glenn, "Jimmy Kimmel interviewed Biden and they talked about 'Where's Waldo?' [Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.)] spoke on the Senate floor, touting the new green new deal, saying that Republicans refuse to admit that climate change is real. And CNN teased an upcoming CNN town hall with Joe Biden. The Reade accusations were not discussed on-air ... I should just point out, they were never addressed. This goes on day after day."
Watch the video below for more details:
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theblaze--2020-04-27--Rapper DMX holds online Bible study, asks people to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior

Rapper DMX holds online Bible study , asks people to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior

Rapper DMX — real name Earl Simmons — recently held a live online Bible study to help his fans connect with Christianity.
He also held a virtual altar call to encourage fans to accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.
What are the details?
Simmons held the study via Instagram Live on Friday.
According to reports, more than 14,000 Instagram users viewed the Friday broadcast.
Simmons cited Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, which says, "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace."
He used the COVID-19 pandemic to point people toward God.
"God is giving you the time," he said. "He's giving you the time to get closer to Him, to become familiar with Him. At the end of the day, at the beginning of the day, it's going to be God's will. If you try to understand why He does what He does, you're just going to end up with a headache. Just do the right thing."
The rapper also added, "The word says my people perish for lack of knowledge. Perish is not always dying. It's being lost, not being found, not being able to be found."


theblaze--2020-04-27--15 cops 'raid' restaurant allegedly over too many customers — a COVID-19 violation — and owner may g

15 cops 'raid' restaurant allegedly over too many customers — a COVID-19 violation — and owner may get year in jail, $5,000 fine

15 cops 'raid ' restaurant allegedly over too many customers — a COVID-19 violation — and owner may get year @ @ @ @ @ fine 'It 's hard enough to get two cops at any other time .
If @ @ @ @ @ , I would n't get that kind of response . '

The owner of a Maryland riverside restaurant could face steep fines and a year behind bars after 15 police officers allegedly showed up at his business — Lee's Landing Dock Bar in Port Deposit — over too many customers, which violates COVID-19 social distancing orders, the Cecil Whig reported.
What are the details?
State troopers arrived at the restaurant on the afternoon of April 19, and Sgt. S. Spayd told the Whig that police found more than 70 motorcycles in the parking lot — plus they had already responded to reports of large numbers of patrons at Lee's Landing a week prior and issued a warning.
But there would be no second warning.
"Apparently they thought it was OK to serve drinks at the bar and the dock bar while people waited for their orders," Spayd noted to the paper, adding that customers were lingering in the parking lot and around the establishment.
Greg Shipley, Maryland State Police spokesman, told the Whig that Gov. Larry Hogan's executive order and state of emergency were violated. In February, Hogan ordered all restaurants that can't offer takeout or delivery to close, the paper said, adding that the governor also banned gatherings of 10 or more people in one place.
"The investigation indicated the restaurant was selling 'to go' food and drink orders, but some of that food and drink was being consumed on the premises," Shipley added to the Whig. "The crowd dispersed, and those who remained were determined to be waiting for carryout orders."
The other side of the story
Dave Carey, managing owner Lee's Landing, told the Whig he was following Hogan's social distancing and crowd size orders "to the letter of the law" and is upset that 15 uniformed officers from four agencies showed up to his establishment Sunday.
He added to the paper that in addition to state police, deputies from the Cecil County Sheriff's Deputies, officers for the Maryland Transportation Authority, and Perryville police officers also arrived at Lee's Landing. He said law enforcement found staffers wearing masks and other protective equipment while taking orders, placing them in tied-shut plastic bags, and handing them to customers who were in measured lines with proper spacing, the Whig reported.
In addition, Carey told the paper there were no more than 10 motorcycles in the parking lot, and customers waited for their orders and then departed.
"What exactly did we do wrong?" Carey asked the Whig. "And who had the authority to take that many resources off the road?"
He added to the paper, "It's hard enough to get two cops at any other time. If I called for a riot I wouldn't get that kind of response."
Hard times
As you might expect, Carey is trying to keep his business afloat while taking in only about $2,000 per day — a fraction of the bar and grill's typical daily revenue — and being open only three days weekly, the Whig said.
"I'm selling my 32-ounce drinks for $5, beer for $1, and crab cakes for $10 when they are normally $18.99," he added to the paper. "I'm trying to give great deals to my customers at this tremendous time."
"To raid a local carry out that is doing everything by the book ... is this what the governor wants?" Carey also asked the Whig.
Charges are in
According to a separate story from the outlet, managing owner Carey apparently was not charged — but state police did throw the book at Lee's Landing owner Charles "Bud" Harry Craven Jr.
Craven, 58, was hit with two violations of Maryland Emergency Management Administration regulations, the Whig said, citing court records.
The most serious misdemeanor charge — punishable by up to one year in jail and a $5,000 fine — alleges that Craven willfully violated an order prohibiting on-premises consumption of food and drink served by bars, restaurants and similar establishments, the paper said.
Charging documents indicated an officer "observed an exterior trash can overflowing with what appeared to be recently disposed of drink and food containers," the paper said.
The second misdemeanor lacks the "willful" violation distinction and carries a maximum penalty of six months in jail and a $1,000 fine, the Whig reported.
Craven was not arrested but instead was issued criminal summonses, the paper said, citing court records.
Here's a look at Lee's amid more festive times:
Lees Landing Dock Bar youtu.be
(H/T: BizPac Review)


theblaze--2020-04-27--US Army reservist says she’s receiving death threats after radio host labels her COVID-19 patient ze

US Army reservist says she’s receiving death threats after radio host labels her COVID-19 patient zero

US Army reservist says she ’ s receiving death threats after radio host labels her COVID-19 patient zero

A U.S. Army reservist says she's been on the receiving end of death threats after a radio host falsely identified her as COVID-19's "patient zero" in the U.S.
Purportedly false reports of Maatje Benassi being patient zero have made tracks all across the internet, including on YouTube and social media channels.
What are the details?
Benassi told CNN's Donie O'Sullivan that radio host George Webb said that she brought the coronavirus to China while participating in a Wuhan cycling competition that left her with a fractured rib and a concussion.
"It's like waking up from a bad dream, going into a nightmare, day after day," said Benassi, a mother of two who revealed that the harassment began after she participated in the Military World Games in October.
Some of the threats she received included "[e]xecute them by firing squad, we need to be killing these key people, these people will get a bullet to the skull."
Benassi and her husband — a retired Air Force officer who is now a civilian employee at Fort Belvoir in Virginia — said that because the threats are not directed at them, and instead, have been made on social media about them, law enforcement cannot do anything about the threats.
Webb reportedly said that Benassi tested positive for COVID-19, but Benassi insisted that she has never tested positive and never experienced any symptoms of the deadly virus.
CNN reports that she and her husband are now "subjects of discussion on Chinese social media about the outbreak, including among accounts that are known drivers of large-scale coordinated activities by their followers."
"I want everybody to stop harassing me, because this is cyberbullying to me, and it's gone way out of hand," Benassi added.
What else?
According to CNN, "Webb offered no substantive evidence to support his claims about the Benassis, and said he considered himself an 'investigative reporter,'" and not a conspiracy theorist. The CNN report described Webb as a "prolific 59-year-old American misinformation peddler," who has "for years regularly streamed hours of diatribe live on YouTube, where he has amassed more than 27 million views and almost 100,000 followers."
Benassi's husband added, "It's really hard to hold him accountable. Law enforcement will tell you that there's nothing that we can do about it because we have free speech in this country. Then they say, 'Go talk to a civil attorney,' so we did. We talked to an attorney. You quickly realize that for folks like us, it's just too expensive to litigate something like this. We get no recourse from law enforcement. We get no recourse from the courts."
He said that he aired his grievances to YouTube, but it's often too late after a video goes viral.
He added, "[T]he damage is done. I know it [will] never be the same. Every time you're going to Google my name, it will pop up as patient zero."


theblaze--2020-04-27--The Los Angeles Lakers took $4.6 million from small-business bailout. Now they say they have returne

The Los Angeles Lakers took $4.6 million from small-business bailout. Now they say they have returned it.

The Los Angeles Lakers took $ 4.6 million from small-business bailout .
Now they say they have returned it .

Apparently the Los Angeles Lakers fancied themselves as a small business in need of a government bailout during the coronavirus pandemic. Now the NBA franchise is returning the taxpayer money it received, ESPN reported Monday.
One of the highlights of the $2.2 trillion stimulus package was the $349 billion Paycheck Protection Program. The PPP was created to help small businesses stay afloat in the midst of massive economic turmoil thanks to the coronavirus pandemic that saw millions of layoffs across the country. The program allows the Small Business Administration to give loans to U.S. businesses that can be forgiven, as long as the businesses remain their staff on payroll through June.
The fund was emptied just days after it was opened, and Congress was forced to authorize more funds for it last week.
Part of the reason the funds ran dry so quickly was because companies and organizations that didn't need the money were approved for PPP loans. Shake Shack famously returned $10 million after public outcry. Harvard University was browbeat into returning $8.6 million in PPP funds. A report posted last week revealed nearly $250 million was allocated to large, publicly traded companies.
The L.A. Lakers — one of the nation's most recognizable and profitable sports franchises — felt they needed millions of dollars from the federal government to help them make it through these tough economic times. And the federal government agreed — granting the Lakers a $4.6 million PPP loan.
After days of negative press for wealthy companies and organizations that took PPP money, leading to the quick depletion of funds, the Lakers sent a statement to ESPN announcing that the team returned the millions of dollars intended for struggling small businesses.
The team's statement to ESPN reportedly said:
The Lakers qualified for and received a loan under the Payroll Protection Program. Once we found out the funds from the program had been depleted, we repaid the loan so that financial support would be directed to those most in need. The Lakers remain completely committed to supporting both our employees and our community.
ESPN pointed out that the Lakers didn't need to apply to the PPP for a loan anyway. They already had access to the NBA's credit line:
In preparation for a second round of PPP funding that begins Monday, the SBA last Thursday issued new guidance that discourages applications from wealthier businesses that have access to liquidity and credit markets. The Lakers are considered one such organization.
As a tentpole NBA franchise, the Lakers have the capacity to borrow at favorable rates. For instance, the NBA extended its credit line to $1.2 billion soon after it suspended the season. Teams in need of cash can tap the league's credit facility program, so long as they abide by the NBA's $325 million debt limit. Sources say at least one team has pursued this option.
According to Forbes, the Lakers are No. 2 on the list of the NBA's most valuable teams. The magazine said the Lakers' 2020 value was $4.4 billion.


theblaze--2020-04-27--New York bucks request from the Sanders campaign and cancels Democratic primary

New York state has canceled its Democratic presidential primary due to COVID-19 concerns despite a request not to do so by the campaign for former candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt). The primary was scheduled to take place on June 23 — nearly two full months from today.
The Democratic members of the state's Board of Elections made the unprecedented decision in a vote Monday morning, the Associated Press reported. The state still plans to hold its congressional and state-level primaries on Election Day in June.
Commissioner Andrew Spano reportedly pondered the decision at length but eventually decided it was unwise to force voters to choose between their democratic duty and their health.
The commissioner added that for contested races it made sense to give voters an opportunity to choose. But as as for the presidential primary, it didn't make sense to "have anyone on the ballot just for the purposes of issues at a convention."
'Essentially a beauty contest'
Commissioner Douglas Kellner echoed that sentiment, citing Sanders' recent decision to drop out of the presidential race and support presumptive nominee Joe Biden.
"That has effectively ended the real contest for the presidential nomination," Kellner said. "And what the Sanders supporters want is essentially a beauty contest that, given the situation with the public health emergency that exists now, seems to be unnecessary and, indeed, frivolous."
A lawyer for the Sanders campaign, Malcolm Seymour, asked the election commissioners Sunday not to cancel the primary.
"Senator Sanders has collaborated with state parties, the national party and the Biden campaign, to strengthen the Democrats by aligning the party's progressive and moderate wings. His removal from the ballot would hamper those efforts, to the detriment of the party in the general election," Seymour wrote in a letter obtained by the Wall Street Journal.
The move will undoubtedly anger Sanders supporters who reportedly bombarded Spano and Kellner's offices with emails urging them to keep their candidate on the ballot.
Sanders has argued that he wants to stay on ballots in order to effect change to the Democratic Party's platform.


theblaze--2020-04-27--Hospitals get more money for COVID-19 Medicare patients — then payout skyrockets if they go on venti

Hospitals get more money for COVID-19 Medicare patients — then payout skyrockets if they go on ventilators, fact check confirms

Hospitals get more money for COVID-19 Medicare patients — then payout skyrockets if they go on ventilators , fact check @ @ @ @ @ it 's 'very unlikely that physicians or hospitals will falsify data or be motivated by @ @ @ @ @

Hospitals and doctors get paid more for Medicare patients diagnosed with COVID-19 — or if it's presumed they've contracted the virus save for laboratory-confirmed tests — and then the payout triples if those patients are placed on ventilators, a USA Today fact check confirms.
What's the background?
Minnesota state Sen. Scott Jensen — a Republican and a physician — made the claim to Fox News' host Laura Ingraham on April 8, the paper said, adding that the claims was published April 9 by The Spectator, and then WorldNetDaily followed suit on April 10.
On April 14, New York City's total coronavirus death toll saw a major spike after officials added more than 3,700 fatalities to the count "including people who had never tested positive for the virus but were presumed to have died of it."
On April 15, Jensen noted on his Facebook page: "How can anyone not believe that increasing the number of COVID-19 deaths may create an avenue for states to receive a larger portion of federal dollars."
Four days later, he said via video on his Facebook page that "hospital administrators might well want to see COVID-19 attached to a discharge summary or a death certificate. Why? Because if it's a straightforward, garden-variety pneumonia that a person is admitted to the hospital for — if they're Medicare — typically, the diagnosis-related group lump sum payment would be $5,000. But if it's COVID-19 pneumonia, then it's $13,000, and if that COVID-19 pneumonia patient ends up on a ventilator, it goes up to $39,000," USA Today reported.
More from the outlet:
Jensen clarified in the video that he doesn't think physicians are "gaming the system" so much as other "players," such as hospital administrators, who he said may pressure physicians to cite all diagnoses, including "probable" COVID-19, on discharge papers or death certificates to get the higher Medicare allocation allowed under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act. Past practice, Jensen said, did not include probabilities.
He noted that some states, including his home state of Minnesota, as well as California, list only laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 diagnoses. Others, specifically New York, list all presumed cases, which is allowed under guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as of mid-April and which will result in a larger payout.
Jensen said he thinks the overall number of COVID-19 cases have been undercounted based on limitations in the number of tests available.
How coronavirus relief factors in
USA Today said coronavirus relief legislation created a 20% premium, or add-on, for COVID-19 Medicare patients, citing the American Hospital Association Special Bulletin on the topic.
The outlet said there have been no reports of hospitals exaggerating COVID-19 numbers to receive higher Medicare payments, adding that Jensen did not return an email request from USA Today for comment about his claim.
Affirming Jensen's claims
But the outlet said Marty Makary — a surgeon and professor of health policy and management at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health — noted in a Tuesday email that "what Scott Jensen said sounds right to me."
Snopes also investigated the claim and concluded it's plausible Medicare pays in the range Jensen mentions but without a "one-size-fits-all" disbursement, USA Today said.
PolitiFact reporter Tom Kertscher wrote, "The dollar amounts Jensen cited are roughly what we found in an analysis published April 7 by the Kaiser Family Foundation, a leading source of health information," USA Today added.
The outlet also called attention to Ask FactCheck's report saying "the figures cited by Jensen generally square with estimated Medicare payments for COVID-19 hospitalizations, based on average Medicare payments for patients with similar diagnoses."
"Jensen said he did not think that hospitals were intentionally misclassifying cases for financial reasons," Ask FactCheck reporter Angelo Fichera noted, according to USA Today. "But that's how his comments have been widely interpreted and paraded on social media."
Still Ask FactCheck's conclusion was that "recent legislation pays hospitals higher Medicare rates for COVID-19 patients and treatment, but there is no evidence of fraudulent reporting," the outlet said.
Julie Aultman — a member of the editorial board of the American Medical Association's Journal of Ethics — went a bit further, telling PolitiFact it is "very unlikely that physicians or hospitals will falsify data or be motivated by money to do so," USA Today reported.
(H/T: The Daily Wire)


theblaze--2020-04-27--Intolerance: Survey reveals Democrats much less likely to date Trump supporters

Intolerance : Survey reveals Democrats much less likely to date Trump supporters

The Democratic Party often claims to be the party of tolerance, but a new study shows the majority of Democrats are far from tolerant when selecting dating partners.
The Pew Research Center discovered in a recent study that nearly three-quarters of Democratic voters — a whopping 71% — said they would not consider dating someone who supports and voted for President Donald Trump.
Of those, 45% said they would "definitely NOT" date a Trump supporter.
Meanwhile, less than half of Republican voters, just 45%, said they would not date a Democrat who voted for Hillary Clinton, and only 19% said they would "definitely NOT" date Clinton supporters.
When it comes to simply dating members of the opposing party, Republicans continued to show overwhelming tolerance.
The survey found that 43% of Democrats will not date a Republican, while just 24% of Republicans said they would not date a Democrat.
More from Pew Research Center:
The aversion to dating people of different political orientations reflects the partisan antipathy seen in the overall public.
Other recent Pew Research Center surveys have found that sizable shares of partisans are likely to associate negative traits such as "closed-minded" and "immoral" with members of the opposite political party, and many find it stressful and frustrating to talk about politics with people who don't share their political views.
As Newsweek reported, political surveys over the last several years have revealed just how polarized American politics have become.
For example, recent polls showed Democrats believe Republicans are "close-minded" and "unintelligent" while Republicans believe Democrats are "unpatriotic" and "lazy."


theblaze--2020-04-27--University to professors: If students try to attend Zoom calls naked, you're required to report them

University to professors : If students try to attend Zoom calls naked , you 're required to report them

If you attend Indiana University where students are distance learning during the coronavirus pandemic and you have an urge to attend your Zoom calls in your birthday suit, you should know that the administration just won't have it.
The Indiana Daily Student, the university's student newspaper, reported last week that the school's leaders sent an email to professors warning them that some students might hop on to Zoom calls for online classes completely in the buff. The message told instructors to report any instances of in-class virtual nudity.
School spokesman Chuck Carney told the paper that reporting the nudity had a dual purpose. First, showing up to class sans clothing is reportedly a violation of the university's Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities and Conduct. Second, nude class attendance might be a sign that a student is suffering psychological distress.
Carney said the email was sent to the Media School with instruction from Student Affairs, but noted that the guidance applies to every instructor at the university.
He added that all students who choose to expose themselves during online classes could be suspended or expelled because "it's considered sexual harassment."
And if a student thinks he can get away with showing off his goods simply because he's at home, well, think again.
According to Carney, video classes are considered Indiana University property during class, so the school can and will treat offenses as if they had happened on campus.
Every student reported for a nudity offense will be "psychologically evaluated on a case-by-case basis," the paper reported. If students need help coping, the school will attempt to get them the help they need.
The school also wants students who notice nudity during Zoom calls to report their fellow students.


theblaze--2020-04-27--Commentary: We did the whole coronavirus thing wrong

Commentary : We did the whole coronavirus thing wrong This nation desperately needs more common sense

“The truth is out there." — "X-Files"
Although I've been guided by that notion my entire professional broadcasting career, it's never been more true than when navigating the coronavirus rabbit hole.
But what started out as a gut feeling in mid-March — about the problematic projections for the virus and the draconian responses to it — became an ever-expanding theory, and finally an evidence-based diagnosis. To sum up: We did it all wrong.
I've gone into why that is in other columns and at length, day after day, on my show. And with each new daily data point, that is increasingly confirmed. In fact, this week Dr. Scott Atlas, an M.D. and senior fellow at Stanford University, came on the show and plainly stated that common sense and the basics of biology were largely abandoned or ignored by some of the so-called experts and all of the modelers.
I pray we will get to the bottom of why whenever we return to what is left of the future, but some of the answers are already known. For when we had already given up on so many other avenues of common sense and science, before we had ever even heard of a thing called SARS-2 Coronavirus, did we really think we were a people prepared to face true existential adversity?
Not only weren't we, there were many people whose idols of fear or farce had grown so large, that they actually sought to make the adversity surrounding the virus even worse. Just to keep the truth from bursting forth and exposing their grotesque Achilles heels.
Common sense and the basics indeed. How long have we forsaken them, gluttonously eating from the tree of knowledge of good and evil like savages?
If you believe there are more than two genders, I'm talking about you.
If you call yourself a conservative yet thought churches were legitimately “nonessential" during the course of the pandemic, I'm talking about you.
If you are a cop who arrests moms on playgrounds in front of their small children for simply daring to get some fresh air, I'm talking about you.
If you think our rights come from God but consider drag queen story hour to be the price of freedom, I'm talking about you.
If you were below the age of 60 and healthy, but more afraid of this virus than frozen bags of baby body parts, I'm talking about you.
If you constantly lament societal injustice, but never address the breakdown of the family and the need for strong fathers in the home, I'm talking about you.
If you made Dr. Anthony Fauci the equivalent of Greta Thunberg in your pantheon of cosmic Svengalis, I'm talking about you.
If you are a babbling parrot, whose favorite words are "racist" or "sexist," I'm talking about you.
We desperately need more common sense. More fundamentals. The Rube Goldberg machines of the modern smart set have let reality down over and over and over again. And this one is their costliest blunder/sabotage yet.
The answers for what matters most in the future are largely in the past. Truth is discovered, not conjured. Gravity existed long before the apple fell on Newton's head. Electricity was there before we learned how to harness it. Penicillin was there before Alexander Fleming was called a kook for suggesting it.
Science innovates, but scientism infests. And the latter is the contagion that turned coronavirus from a rabbit hole to a black hole.


theblaze--2020-04-27--North Korean state media: Kim Jong Un isn't dead — see, he wrote a thank-you letter recently

Oh , OK , that proves it

In an apparent effort to prove that Kim Jon Un is not dead, North Korean state media reported Monday that the dictator recently sent a thank-you letter to the builders of his tourist resort in Wonsan.
The country's main news outlet, the Rodong Sinmun, claimed Monday that Kim sent a message of appreciation to workers at the seaside resort, according to South Korea's Yonhap News Agency.
"Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un has sent his appreciation to the workers who devoted themselves to building the Wonsan-Kalma tourist zone," Rodong Sinmun allegedly reported. Yonhap added that the Korean Central Broadcasting Station carried similar news.
South Korea believes that Kim has been residing at the Wonsan report since April 13.
What's the background?
The report comes amid intensifying speculation about the health of Kim Jong Un, who has not been seen in public since April 11. His unusual absence from a key ceremony celebrating the 108th birth anniversary of the country's first ruler, Kim Il Sung, was noted in particular.
Then last week, unverified reports began circulating that Un was in "grave danger" following surgery. Over the weekend, Japanese media reported that Kim indeed underwent a surgery that left him in a "vegetative state."
The Trump administration has not yet confirmed whether or not they believe Kim to be dead, but have reportedly been informed that if he's alive, his health is poor. Officials have been looking into who would be in the line of succession should the ruler be deceased.
In a Fox News interview Saturday, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said that he would "be shocked if [Kim is] not dead or in some incapacitated state."
Anything else?
The South Korean government has pushed back against reports that the North's ruler is dead, saying last Tuesday that Kim appeared to be handling affairs as usual. South Korean officials added that they have no information to confirm the rumors about Kim's health.
Satellite images posted by the U.S. monitoring website 38 North appear to show Kim's "special train" parked in the Wonsan compound since at least April 21.
"The train's presence does not prove the whereabouts of the North Korean leader or indicate anything about his health, but it does lend weight to reports that Kim is staying at an elite area on the country's eastern coast," the report said.


theblaze--2020-04-27--Nancy Pelosi endorses Joe Biden for president despite allegations of sexual abuse

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden for president on Monday morning.
Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, stands accused of sexual assault from one of his former staffers in an incident that reportedly took place in 1993. Biden's campaign has denied the allegations.
What are the details?
In a video shared to her social media channels, Pelosi said, "I'm proud to endorse Joe Biden for president of the United States because he will be an extraordinary president. He knows how to get the job done."
"Joe Biden brings values and integrity to work every day, because he never forgets his roots," she said of the Scranton, Pennsylvania, native. "Now more than ever we need a forward-looking, battle-tested leader who will fight for the people."
She captioned the video on Twitter, which has been viewed at least 202,000 times at the time of this writing, "@JoeBiden has fought for our health care, for our families & for our children's future. To his work, Joe brings values & integrity. He is a voice of reason & resilience who will fight #ForThePeople. Today, I am proud to endorse him for President of the United States."
Pelosi made no mention whatsoever about the allegations in her announcement, and previously insisted that she was "satisfied" with the Biden campaign's denial.
"Yes, I am. I am very much involved in this issue. I always want to give the opportunity that women deserve to be heard. I am satisfied with his answer, yes," Pelosi said earlier in April.
What else?
In March, former Senate staffer Tara Reade accused Biden of sexual assault, noting that the alleged incident took place in 1993. She filed a criminal complaint against Biden earlier in April.
In her complaint, Reade accused Biden of penetrating her without consent during the alleged incident.
The police report did not name Biden, and the Biden campaign vehemently denied all allegations.
Reade alleged that in the 1993 incident, a senior Biden staffer asked her to deliver a gym bag to the then-senator.
"[Biden] greeted me, he remembered my name, and then we were alone," she said. "It was the strangest thing. There was no, like, exchange really. He just had me up against the wall."
"His hands were on me and underneath my clothes, and he went down my skirt and then up inside it, and he penetrated me with his fingers and he was kissing me at the same time, and he was saying some things to me," she added.
When Reade pulled away, she said Biden tried to coax her into reciprocating.
"He said, 'Come on, man, I heard you liked me,'" Reade recalled.
Reade said she refused, but Biden reportedly became irritated and said, "You're nothing to me."
In March, Kate Bedingfield — who is Biden's deputy campaign manager and communications director — said, "Women have a right to tell their story, and reporters have an obligation to rigorously vet those claims. We encourage them to do so, because these accusations are false."


theblaze--2020-04-27--New Zealand's prime minister says the country has defeated coronavirus, plans to reopen

New Zealand 's prime minister says the country has defeated coronavirus , plans to reopen

Jacinda Ardern, the prime minister of New Zealand, says that her country has "won that battle" over COVID-19, and that most of the social distancing restrictions that had been implemented in that country were going to be lifted.
New Zealand instituted one of the most aggressive social distancing regimes in the world early on in the crisis on March 23, announcing that the country planned to "go hard and go early" at the virus with the goal of completely eliminating it. Due to a number of factors, including lack of population density and remoteness, it appears that New Zealand's strategy may have worked. The country, which numbers about 5 million inhabitants, has reported only about 1,500 cases of the virus and 17 deaths.
The number of new cases has also been trending downward, with no new cases reported Sunday, and only five new cases on Monday.
Those numbers allowed Ardern to announce Monday, "There is no widespread undetected community transmission in New Zealand. We have won that battle. But we must remain vigilant if we are to keep it that way."
Ardern stressed that the country was not claiming that there would be no new cases of the coronavirus or that the country expected the virus to be actually absent from New Zealand, but rather only that the numbers of new cases would be manageable and capable of being traced.
New Zealand's social distancing program included an almost total shuttering of businesses, and an in-home lockdown regime that prevented its citizens from leaving their home except for absolutely essential reasons. New Zealand also almost completely closed its borders to all foreign travel.
Still, experts caution that New Zealand's success at eradicating undetected spread of the disease will likely not be subject to replication in other countries. Thomas J. Bollyky, the director of the global health program at the Council on Foreign Relations, told Time magazine that New Zealand's success is due to a number of factors that don't apply to other countries. For example, "New Zealand has an advantage of a relatively isolated location, which meant fewer early travelers from China and other infected areas and a longer time before cases started to appear. New Zealand saw its first cases on Feb. 28, at a time when the U.S. already had community spread and likely thousands of unreported cases."
Also, due to the fact that New Zealand is an island without a large, porous land border, New Zealand was also able to more effectively and quickly close its borders, particularly to areas with hot spots of the coronavirus infection.


theblaze--2020-04-27--Nancy Pelosi exploits the Bible, well-known parable of Jesus to advocate for prisoner release

Nancy Pelosi exploits the Bible , well-known parable of Jesus to advocate for prisoner release 'In our caucus , we @ @ @ @ @ Gospel of Matthew '

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) wants the release of federal prisoners during the coronavirus outbreak — and she is using the Bible to make her case.
MSNBC host Joy Reid asked Pelosi on Sunday whether releasing prisoners will be a part of future COVID-19 relief legislation. In response, Pelosi cited a well-known biblical parable.
"In our caucus, we are very devoted to the Gospel of Matthew," Pelosi responded, going on to quote the parable.
"'When I was hungry, you fed me. When I was homeless, you sheltered me. When I was in prison, you visited me,' and so this for us is part of our value system," she said.
The parable, found in Matthew 25, tells about the separation of sheep and goats at the end of time. Traditionally, the parable is interpreted to mean that the people whom Jesus refers to as "sheep" are true Christians who receive "eternal life" and those whom he refers to as "goats" are people who will receive "eternal punishment."
The parable is often invoked by those advocating social justice to demonstrate the significance that Jesus placed on carrying out justice for vulnerable and marginalized people.
Pelosi said the House Judiciary Committee is developing legislative "language" that will secure the release of some federal prisoners "who really don't need to be there."
The COVID-10 pandemic has resulted in the release of hundreds of thousands of prisoners around the world, according to the New York Times, including thousands in the United States.
Prisoners are particularly vulnerable to contracting the virus due to the proximity in which they live to dozens of other inmates.
The Bureau of Prisons released updated guidance last week on which prisoners would be eligible for release or revised confinement during the COVID-19 outbreak. Politico reported that home confinement is being considered only for inmates who have less than 18 months remaining on their sentence.


theblaze--2020-04-27--California county allows some swimming pools to reopen amid coronavirus. But only one person at a ti

California county allows some swimming pools to reopen amid coronavirus. But only one person at a time is allowed in water.

California county allows some swimming pools to reopen amid coronavirus .
But only one person at a time is allowed @ @ @ @ @ work out well

Temperatures are expected to hit the 100-degree mark Monday in some areas of Riverside County, California — but hey, at least county officials are letting some swimming pools reopen.
But only one person at a time is allowed in the water, KESQ-TV reported.
What are the other details?
The policy affects private pools connected with homeowner's associations, apartment complexes, and hotels, motels, and country clubs, the station said, adding that city and public pools will remain closed.
The one-swimmer-at-a-time order applies regardless of the size or volume of pools, KESQ noted, adding that no gatherings around pools are allowed.
In addition, all furniture in pool areas must be removed or stacked or chained so that it's unusable, the station added, and drinking fountains and showers must remain closed and roped off.
However, parents or guardians should remain at all time with minors who swim to ensure safety, KESQ said.
In addition, high-touch areas such as hand rails, light switches, and door knobs must be frequently sanitized, the station reported.
While public and city pools are staying closed, pool cleaning will continue because it's considered an essential public work related to safety and cleanliness, KESQ noted.
Riverside County's one-person per pool policy is now in effect youtu.be
(H/T: Red State)


theblaze--2020-04-27--Texas Democratic rep is incensed that immigrants without social security numbers do not qualify for

Texas Democratic rep is incensed that immigrants without social security numbers do not qualify for stimulus checks

In an appearance on MSNBC's "Kasie DC" Sunday, Texas Democratic Rep. Joaquin Castro said it was a grave injustice that immigrants who do not have social security numbers cannot get checks from the stimulus package passed by Congress in response to the coronavirus pandemic, and promised that he would work hard to get this restriction removed from the law.
"This is one of I think the biggest injustices about what the Congress has done so far in terms of its response, the legislative packages," Castro said, during the interview. "If you are a worker who doesn't have a social security number, and like I said, there's four or five major industries that rely on immigrant labor. So if you're one of those workers who pays taxes using what's called an individual tax identification number but not a social security number, you get no financial assistance. So you don't get the $1,200, you don't get the $500 for dependents."
One of the most common reasons that an immigrant would file taxes in this manner is if they are not legally present in the country. All immigrants who are legally eligible to work in the United States are permitted to apply for and receive a social security number and thus make themselves eligible to receive the aid in question.
But Castro went on to explain that, in his view, that should not be a barrier to receiving the aid. Castro went on, "But it gets worse. Because if you're somebody who are part of a family that includes a tax filer with an ITIN rather than a social security number, the whole family gets nothing or the spouse gets nothing at all. So there was a lawsuit that was filed on Friday in Illinois on behalf of an American citizen challenging that fact. So an American citizen who's married to an undocumented person gets nothing."
Castro encouraged Democrats in the House to "put their foot down" and insist on funding for stimulus payments for immigrants who don't have social security numbers.
"Democrats have to put their foot down and say, at the very least, every American citizen, those spouses and their children, deserve financial assistance," he said.
Democrats in the House have attempted to "put their foot down" on previous coronavirus aid packages in order to obtain progressive policy goals. Some of them have insisted that it is appropriate to use the crisis to implement their policy priorities. Those efforts have generally not been received well by the general public and they have ultimately failed.


theblaze--2020-04-27--'Duck Dynasty' star Willie Robertson's family is praising God after being targeted in a drive-by sho

'Duck Dynasty' star Willie Robertson's family is praising God after being targeted in a drive-by shooting. They had just gone inside minutes before.

'Duck Dynasty ' star Willie Robertson 's family is praising God after being targeted in a drive-by shooting .
They @ @ @ @ @ before .

"Duck Dynasty" star Willie Robertson's home in West Monroe, Louisiana, was the target of a drive-by shooting Friday afternoon.
Witnesses say a suspect driving a white and brown Ford F-250 circled the property at least once before firing eight to 10 shots into the home, USA Today reported. One of the bullets went through the bedroom window where John Luke Robertson lives with his wife Mary Kate and their infant child.
Several members of the family have been staying at the home during the coronavirus quarantine, including daughter Sadie Robertson and her new husband Christian Huff. Fortunately, nobody in the family was injured.
"We were pretty shook up," Willie Robertson told USA Today on Sunday. "It looks like they were just spraying bullets across my property."
"It was broad daylight," Robertson said, before adding that he believes the suspect was purposefully targeting his family. "I'm 100% certain, but I don't know why."
On Sunday, police arrested Daniel King Jr., 38, in connection with the shooting.
The family is responding by praising God
Robertson noted that the family had been outside just minutes before the shooting occurred.
"Nobody was outside at the time, but everybody had been out about 5 minutes before," Robertson said. "I had just gone to the store when it happened."
After news broke about the shooting, Sadie Robertson posted on Instagram confirming that "the timing of where we were at the time was crazy protection because we had all just gone inside."
"We have been resting on Psalm 91 and each other's gratitude for all being okay ... thank you for your prayers," she added.
Korie Robertson, Willie's wife, also posted on Instagram about the incident, thanking God for protection and friends for their prayers.
"We are all safe and sound and feeling profoundly grateful for God's protection over us!" she wrote. "Yes, the news reports are true, we had a drive-by shooting at our home on Friday, it was scary and dangerously close, but thanks to God no one was hurt."
From a drive-by shooting to a drive-by birthday
Korie Robertson added that, just days after the scary incident, the family was able to participate in a "drive-by birthday celebration."
"Crazy how life works! We honked our horns and made signs. We are alive and well, and not taking this day for granted!" she wrote.
She also quoted scripture in the post, remembering how her grandmother used to read Isaiah 41:10 every night before going to bed.
"When we spent the night she would read it over us," she continued. "'So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.'"
"God is good! Praising him today and every day!" she wrote.


theblaze--2020-04-27--Tyson Foods chairman offers dark warning about the food supply chain as processing plants close

As the coronavirus outbreak ravages on, Tyson Foods has a dark warning for Americans: "The food supply chain is breaking."
Tyson Foods, which is the second largest meat producing corporation in the world, ran full-page letters in the New York Times, Washington Post, and Arkansas Democrat-Gazette on Sunday to warn of the coming food shortage that is likely to hit your local grocery store in the coming weeks.
"As pork, beef and chicken plants are being forced to close, even for short periods of time, millions of pounds of meat will disappear from the supply chain," John Tyson, chairman of the Tyson Foods board, wrote.
"As a result, there will be limited supply of our products available in grocery stores until we are able to reopen our facilities that are currently closed," he said.
Because numerous food processing centers are being forced to close due to COVID-19, farmers are unable to sell their normal lot of livestock, forcing them to "depopulate" millions of animals, Tyson explained — meaning the animals are being killed and not processed for food.
"In addition to meat shortages, this is a serious food waste issue," Tyson wrote. "The food supply chain is breaking."
Every major meat processing company — Tyson Foods, Smithfield Foods, JBS, and Cargill — has been hit hard by COVID-19, according to the Associated Press.
The Department of Agriculture, meanwhile, told Time magazine that the government is working to "ensure the food supply chain remains safe and secure."
However, Tyson was not the only top executive to warn of coming food shortages.
Earlier in April, Smithfield Foods CEO Kenneth Sullivan warned the COVID-19 outbreak "is pushing our country perilously close to the edge in terms of our meat supply."


theblaze--2020-04-27--Public school teacher accused of offering to pay coronavirus-infected people to cough on President T

Public school teacher accused of offering to pay coronavirus-infected people to cough on President Trump has resigned 'Good .
She @ @ @ @ @ of crap ! '

A Rhode Island public school teacher accused of offering to pay people infected with the coronavirus to cough on President Donald Trump has resigned, WJAR-TV reported.
The Woonsocket School Committee voted 5-0 to accept a settlement agreement with Amy Bednarz on Wednesday night, the station said, adding that she tendered her resignation as part of the agreement. There was no report on other details of the settlement.
What's the background?
"Somebody with Covid-19, I will pay you to cough on #Trump," Bednarz allegedly tweeted in March, WJAR said.
Image source: Twitter
The user identified herself as a sixth-grade English Language Learner teacher at Villanova Middle School in Woonsocket in a subsequent post, WJAR reported, adding that the account has been deleted.
A district investigation into the Twitter post was launched in late March.
What did a state education official have to say about the tweet?
"I was saddened & disappointed to see this tweet — it is unprofessional and sends the wrong message during a time when our whole education community is setting a national example," the state's Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education Angelica Infante-Green tweeted. "This is not acceptable and certainly not representative of the overwhelming majority of RI teachers."
How are folks reacting to the teacher's resignation and settlement?
Commenters on WJAR's Facebook page were almost universally pleased that the accused teacher resigned — but wanted more done to her:
"Good. She is a first class piece of crap!"
"Trump Derangement Syndrome...still can't get over he won."
"She needs professional help!
"Only in RI do teachers [who] encourage endangering the president's life get paid to quit their jobs."
"But the taxpayers still have to pony up $!"
"She'll be picked up by some liberal college to teach."
(H/T: EAG News)


theblaze--2020-04-27--Teacher caught losing her mind on teens in park: ‘Hope both of you get the coronavirus,’ ‘die a long

Teacher caught losing her mind on teens in park: ‘Hope both of you get the coronavirus,’ ‘die a long, painful death’

Teacher caught losing her mind on teens in park : ‘ Hope both of you get the coronavirus , ’ @ @ @ @ @ painful death ’ Overreaction to say the least

A New Jersey teacher has gone viral for shouting at teenagers playing in a public park, telling them that she hopes they die a "long, painful death" for ignoring stay-at-home orders.
What are the details?
According to The Trentonian, the teacher is Nicole Griggs, a teacher at Steinert High School in Hamilton, New Jersey.
Cellphone video shows the teacher approaching a group of teenage boys who were minding their own business and playing football in an area park. The incident reportedly took place on Thursday.
From behind a fence, Griggs — who was out without a mask walking her dog — can be heard telling the teens that she was "just trying to save your a**."
"But die, OK," she can be heard yelling. "I hope both of you get the coronavirus."
Elsewhere in the video, Griggs shouts, "Am I screaming loud enough that you can hear me over your music? Park's closed! You will get arrested if the cops come!"
One boy, who cannot be seen on camera, can be heard asking Griggs if they should move their game elsewhere.
"Park's closed!" she insists. "The whole area! Get it through your thick head! You are the reason we are in this situation! You are the problem, not the solution!"
Griggs, who is clearly aware that the teens are recording her outburst, then adds, "Go ahead, keep recording. Who are you going to show it to? Post me on social media. You're the idiot doing the wrong thing!
"I'm just trying to save your a** and save your life!" she crows. "But die, OK. I hope both of you get the coronavirus. I hope you both die a long, painful death."
What else?
The outlet notes that Griggs has been very vocal in support of stay-at-home orders and social distancing measures in the area.
On Facebook, Griggs has reportedly posted similar stories of lashing out at others.
One post in particular reportedly read, "We are surrounded by idiots! Rode our bikes near Kuser Park this afternoon and what [do we] see but a younger couple with their daughter maybe 2/3 years old UNDOING the caution tape around the jungle gym so she could slide. I totally called them out on it, wished illness on them, and commented that it was scary to even think they were parents."
"Their response?" she reportedly wrote. "'We were going to put it back.'"
Jeff Martin, the mayor of Hamilton Township, told the outlet that he hadn't seen the video, but did not support her remarks.
"This is a very serious thing," he said. "We've got at least 50 people who have actually died from it, 50 families. It's not something to joke around about. Teacher or not, it's unacceptable."
Scott Rocco, school superintendent, promised that the school would open an investigation into the teacher's outburst.
"We will address the issue immediately," Rocco said.


theblaze--2020-04-27--NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio appoints his wife as head of coronavirus racial inequality task force

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) announced that he appointed his wife as the head of a new racial inequality task force.
On Sunday, de Blasio put first lady Chirlane McCray in charge of a special coronavirus task force dedicated to racial inclusion and equity. De Blasio said the program would assist New York City to become a "better and more just society than the one we left behind."
"Every time New York City has faced a crisis, it's come back stronger. That's who we are. We will work together and build something better and fairer," de Blasio tweeted on Sunday.
"I am also launching the City Task Force on Racial Inclusion and Equity, focusing on confronting health disparities, specific needs in communities of color and breaking down structural racism," the Democratic NYC mayor wrote. "I want that mission baked into every aspect of our restart and recovery."
McCray will work with Deputy Mayor Phil Thompson in leading the COVID-19 racial inequality task force, which will begin meeting "in a matter of days," according to de Blasio.
De Blasio said the first lady was qualified because of the work she has done with ThriveNYC, an $850 million initiative to address a variety of mental health issues hindering New Yorkers.
"In terms of fighting inequality, Thrive has gone to that point and in many ways even farther," de Blasio said of his wife's work. "I think that's exactly the kind of mindset needed for this task force."
In the past, critics have blasted the efficiency and effectiveness of ThriveNYC, including Politico, which questioned whether the $850 million mental health program had metrics to measure success or failure, clear initiatives, and spending accountability.
"Meanwhile, more than $133.5 million was spent on 'stress reduction' through things like 'yoga, line dancing, drumming and soul Chi (soulful movement)' and 'equine-facilitated psychotherapy,' the New York Post said of ThriveNYC's initiatives.
The New York City Task Force on Racial Inclusion and Equity comes at a time when de Blasio admits that the city would "go broke" if it doesn't receive federal aid.
Two weeks ago, de Blasio said New York City was facing a $7.4 billion loss in tax revenue because of the coronavirus pandemic.
"It means all the things that people depend on in their lives — police, fire, sanitation, education — go down the list of all the things that makes any city, any town function," de Blasio said on an appearance on MSNBC. "If you're missing $7 billion, I assure you, you have to stop — you have to start to cut that stuff back in ways that can be very dangerous."
The lost tax revenue already forced the NYC mayor to slash $6 billion from his budget proposal, dropping it to $89.3 billion.