More than 10,000 lightning strikes have started hundreds of fires across California

More than 10,000 lightning strikes have started hundreds of fires across California

(Source Yahoo News)

One person has died and thousands have been evacuated due to wildfires in Northern California.

The state has 23 major fires, mostly sparked by lightning, the three biggest of which have spread across more than 250,000 acres. Flames have destroyed hundreds of buildings and threaten thousands more. California faces a shortage of firefighters because coronavirus outbreaks have left many incarcerated people sick or quarantined, and inmate teams often help during fire season.

Climate change is increasing the severity of wildfire season in California. Firefighters are battling more than 360 blazes across California on Thursday, after nearly 11,000 bolts of lightning struck the state from Sunday to Wednesday. One person has died: a firefighting pilot whose helicopter crashed while dropping water on a small fire in Fresno County. Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a statewide emergency on Tuesday, noting that while the lightning likely ignited many of the fires, gusty winds and a statewide heatwave have exacerbated them. “We are deploying every resource available to keep communities safe as California battles fires across the state during these extreme conditions,” Newsom said.

Could the dollar lose its global status?

Could the dollar lose its global status?

(Source usatoday.com)

In the most uncertain era of our lives, there are still a few sure things: Death. Taxes. And the dollar’s status as the world’s reserve currency. On second thought, you might want to strike that last one.

The greenback’s prominence in foreign exchange markets is being questioned for the first time in recent memory as the coronavirus pandemic blows up the national debt and the U.S. response to the crisis falls short of actions taken in other countries. Investors, in turn, have been moving money out of dollars and into gold, weakening the U.S. currency. “Real concerns around the longevity of the U.S. dollar as a reserve currency have started to emerge,” Goldman Sachs wrote in a note to clients late last month. Since then, Congress has remained deadlocked over another stimulus bill to spur the U.S. economy and the dollar has dipped further against other foreign currencies. Certainly, there’s a risk” of the dollar slipping from its perch, says Gregory Daco, chief economist of Oxford Economics. As a reserve currency, the dollar is held in massive quantities by central banks worldwide and used for international transactions, such as oil purchases. The greenback strengthens when investors and central banks acquire dollars in exchange for other currencies, and when foreign investors buy U.S. assets, such as Treasury bonds and American stocks, forcing them to trade their currencies for dollars. It weakens when a shaky economy prompts investors to flee U.S. investments.

Calling on white Americans: Reparations for slavery are due

Calling on white Americans: Reparations for slavery are due (Source bostonglobe.com)

The legacy of slavery is far from resolved. It persists every day and everywhere, as evidenced by income and wealth inequality, disparate living conditions and health outcomes, police brutality and mass incarceration, and the overall white supremacist system that treats white and Black lives in vastly different ways. The other side of this history, the part that was rarely told, is that the wealth generated from all that “free” enslaved labor, combined with the theft of land from indigenous peoples, is what placed white Americans solidly among the wealthiest people on earth today.

That truth was laid bare in a 2016 book by 16 scholars, “Slavery’s Capitalism: A New History of American Economic Development,” which names slavery as the bedrock of the American economic system. Though we whites alive today didn’t do the dirty work it took to create this wealth and privilege based on skin color, we live with the consequences of it. And those consequences go much deeper than we often realize. What follows next in this American story of theft, murder, and profound mistreatment of Black people, and the ongoing legacy of slavery, is up to all of us. We’ve had 400 years of opportunity to make amends and set things right, and Black people have endured 400 years of waiting for America to do just that. As Americans who long for a more enlightened narrative on race than the one we’ve had so far, we formed a collective with like-minded white people called the Fund for Reparations NOW!, which works in solidarity with the National African American Reparations Commission.

Following the Black leadership of NAARC, our fund is a nonprofit philanthropic venture seeking to further the racial healing of America through the expedited implementation of NAARC’s 10-point reparations plan. The Fund is designed to model what reparations could look like through the 10-point plan once formal reparations are legislated by the US government. Our ultimate goal is to see the federal government formally apologize and pay reparations to Black people. It’s time for members of Congress to hear from white people too and urge lawmakers to support reparations. Until legislation passes, we have committed to doing what our white ancestors never did: Acknowledge the deep violations committed and pay reparations for those violations. 

WW3 fears: US sends second warship to South China Sea in DAYS

WW3 fears: US sends second warship to South China Sea in DAYS – warning to Xi Jinping

(Source express.co.uk)

South China sea tensions are on a knife-edge after the US sent another warship to the region in a sign of defiance against Beijing. The USS Mustin missile destroyer conducted a freedom of navigation through the Strait of Taiwan on Tuesday. The move also shows the US’ support for the island’s sovereignty against China. Although China may see the move as a provocation, the US has insisted it will continue its commitment to a free and open region.

The USS Mustin is the seventh ship to sail through the Taiwan Strait this year. The passage of the US warship comes soon after the USS Ronald Reagan carried out military manoeuvres in the region. The US has been keen to maintain the independence of the strait near to the island in order to support its commitment to Taiwan’s sovereignty.

Due to the presence of foreign vessels, China sent a warship in the South China Sea to conduct live-fire drills in a show of force.

Governments can do nothing to stop technology from destroying labor, tech entrepreneur tells Keiser Repor

Governments can do nothing to stop technology from destroying labor, tech entrepreneur tells Keiser Report (Source rt.com)

Tech entrepreneur Jeff Booth, who’s the author of ‘The Price of Tomorrow: Why Deflation is the Key to an Abundant Future.’ 

“Transitioning from an inflationary world to a deflationary world, people should be scared,” he says, adding, “There’s going to be a disruption and that disruption is coming no matter what.”

According to Booth, “There’s nothing fundamental that governments can do to stop the rate of technology progress. And if you just ask about what technology does – it’s supposed to remove labor.”

All companies use technology to reduce labor and they use it to provide abundance, the tech expert says. “And what’s happening is that you have technology moving at an exponential pace, driving prices down, and governments all around the world caught in an inflationary trap that they created themselves out of the monetary policy, fighting against that force.” Booth says that he then asks himself, “Isn’t it good when the value of your money goes up and prices go down, like for you personally?” He explains that people then “could work less time and the abundance of technology would be broadly distributed instead of being concentrated, like it is today.”

The FDA is recalling some potatoes, lemons, limes and oranges due to potential listeria contamination

The FDA is recalling some potatoes, lemons, limes and oranges due to potential listeria contamination

(Source cnn.com)

First it was onions and now, it’s lemons, limes, oranges and red potatoes. The FDA has announced a voluntary recall by Freshouse II LLC due to a potential listeria contamination.

The recall was issued after Freshouse found Listeria monocytogenes on a piece of equipment at one of its packing facilities, according to a statement on the FDA website. “We voluntarily issued this recall out of an abundance of caution with the steadfast intent to minimize even the slightest risk to public health,” Freshouse President Jamey Friedman said in a statement.

The recalled products were shipped directly to retailer distribution centers in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Virginia and to wholesalers in Maryland and North Carolina. Affected products include Freshouse limes, Nature’s Promise Organic limes, Fresh from the Start red potatoes and lemons, as well as Wegmans lemons and California Valencia oranges.

Nearly 100,000 children tested positive for coronavirus over two weeks last month

Nearly 100,000 children tested positive for coronavirus over two weeks last month

(Source thehill.com)

At least 97,000 children in the United States tested positive for the novel coronavirus during the final two weeks of July, a new report from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children’s Hospital Association found. The report was released as lawmakers and health experts around the nation grapple with questions about whether to reopen schools, which were shuttered in the spring when the coronavirus first began spreading throughout the country.

Some Trump administration officials have aggressively pushed for a resumption of in-person classes, while others have voiced fears about how equipped schools are to handle potential outbreaks. Roughly 338,000 children in the U.S. have tested positive for COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic, according to the report, which includes public data from 49 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam. The report noted that Texas only provided age distribution for a small proportion of cases. Between July 16 and July 30, a total of 97,078 children tested positive for the virus, marking a 40 percent increase in child cases, researchers found. About 7 in 10 cases over that period were reported in states in the South. 

Alaska, Oklahoma, Missouri, Idaho and Montana were among the states to experience the most pronounced increase in infected children, according to the report. Meanwhile, Arizona, South Carolina, Tennessee and Louisiana are among the states with the most reported coronavirus cases among children since the pandemic began. 

(Source thehill.com)

At least 97,000 children in the United States tested positive for the novel coronavirus during the final two weeks of July, a new report from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children’s Hospital Association found. The report was released as lawmakers and health experts around the nation grapple with questions about whether to reopen schools, which were shuttered in the spring when the coronavirus first began spreading throughout the country.

Some Trump administration officials have aggressively pushed for a resumption of in-person classes, while others have voiced fears about how equipped schools are to handle potential outbreaks. Roughly 338,000 children in the U.S. have tested positive for COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic, according to the report, which includes public data from 49 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam. The report noted that Texas only provided age distribution for a small proportion of cases. Between July 16 and July 30, a total of 97,078 children tested positive for the virus, marking a 40 percent increase in child cases, researchers found. About 7 in 10 cases over that period were reported in states in the South. 

Alaska, Oklahoma, Missouri, Idaho and Montana were among the states to experience the most pronounced increase in infected children, according to the report. Meanwhile, Arizona, South Carolina, Tennessee and Louisiana are among the states with the most reported coronavirus cases among children since the pandemic began. 

Harris bringing energy, dollars and more to Biden’s campaign

Harris bringing energy, dollars and more to Biden’s campaign (Source Associated Press)

In her first two days as Joe Biden’s running mate, Kamala Harris has fired off the campaign’s sharpest criticism of President Donald Trump’s shortcomings. She has vouched for Biden’s character on race and more. And the enthusiasm surrounding her historic candidacy has brought in a record $36 million, including contributions from 150,000 new donors.

The campaign hopes it is just the beginning.

With less than three months before the election, Harris is rapidly embracing her new role.

Democratic operatives and Harris allies believe she’ll energize what has been a relatively quiet campaign that has often preferred to keep the attention on the turbulence of Trump’s White House. She’s already making a vigorous case for Trump’s defeat, allowing Biden to focus more on his own policy prescriptions and less on direct attacks.

“We always look for surrogates and validators that help close the deal and can speak to voters who needed another reason to say, ‘Yes, I’m gonna support Joe Biden,’” said Donna Brazile, a former Democratic National Committee chair who also ran Al Gore’s 2000 campaign. “She fills in the gap.”

Sturgis Motorcycle Rally Kicks Off With Bang Amid Virus Controversy

Sturgis Motorcycle Rally Kicks Off With Bang Amid Virus Controversy (Source Zero Hedge)

Sturgis meet coronavirus shutdowns: the world’s largest annual motorcycle rally in Sturgis, South Dakota has been source of immense controversy this year after health officials warned it could be a ‘super-spreader event’. Running from Aug. 7 to 16, it’s expected to be the single largest gathering that’s taken place since national virus-related shutdowns took effect earlier this year. Some 250,000 bikers are expected to descend on the town, which is still a much smaller number than recent years. 2015, for example, witnessed a record more than 700,000 people. With a reputation for attracting ‘outlaw’ biker types and gangs, the Sturgis rally goes back to 1938, but this year some angry locals have argued before the town council “it’s a huge, foolish mistake” given current pandemic fears.

But the rally is already off to a wild start even with what’s expected to be a smaller than average crowd, as CBS reports: “The Department of Public Safety reported that police made 84 arrests for driving under the influence or drug-related offenses during a 24-hour period spanning from Saturday into Sunday morning. That’s up from last year, when 76 people had been arrested in a similar time frame.”

Police have also reported at least 18 crashes so far. It comes on the very week the US passed another grim milestone, surpassing five million confirmed COVID-19 cases, and as South Dakota may be witnessing a resurgence in cases similar to other states.

US Sends B-2 Stealth Bombers To ‘Warn’ China As PLA Expands Live-Fire Drills Off Taiwan

US Sends B-2 Stealth Bombers To ‘Warn’ China As PLA Expands Live-Fire Drills Off Taiwan

(Source Zero Hedge)

This week just as major Chinese live-firing naval drills were being conducted north of Taiwan, the US flew three of B-2 stealth bombers to its Diego Garcia base in the Indian Ocean. British daily The Times describes that the American bomber movements were to address the growing Chinese threat over Taiwan on the very eve the PLA drill kicked off: “It is the first time the nuclear-capable strategic bombers have been sent to the remote island since 2016, in an indication of the growing concern about China’s intentions towards Taiwan,” according to a report Thursday.

China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) held a series of multi-branch drills in the Taiwan Strait and northern areas this week. According to a PLA statement it’s in response to external countries sending the “wrong” signals to Taiwan’s pro-independence forces – clearly directed at Washington given the high level American delegation currently visiting Taipei – which Beijing says is a threat to peace and stability.

Washington is sending its own counter-message in its stepped up presence in the Indo-Pacific, as The Times continues: “The bombers flew across the Pacific from Whiteman air force base in Missouri to land at Diego Garcia, part of the British Indian Ocean Territory. With their advanced stealth technology, the B-2s can penetrate enemy territory without alerting air-defence radars.”