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Court rebuffs Gretchen Whitmer's plan to keep state on lockdown until after election


21st Century Wire
Wed, 14 Oct 2020 00:00 UTC
Whitmer
It's now becoming clear that one of the deciding swing issues of the 2020 Presidential Election is going to be COVID Lockdowns. Incredibly, Democrats are now openly attempting to convert Americans' pain and suffering into votes on Nov 3rd.

This week a Michigan Supreme Court ruled in favor of the people by effectively rebuking efforts by the state's Democrat Governor, Gretchen Whitmer, to impose a new state-wide lockdown supposedly to stop coronavirus.

Earlier this month, the court struck down Whitmer's initial decree to extend her COVID lockdown into the spring of 2021, but Governor's office was still determined to keep the state under lockdown and appealed for a stay of the court's decision.

It appears that a desperate Whitmer had hoped to delay the Court's ruling going into effect for a further 21 days - until after the General Election on November 3rd, but the Court saw through this maneuver and proceeded to reject Whitmer's attempted delay on Monday.

This latest legal drama confirms what many had already suspected - that some Democratic politicians are attempting to keep their states under lockdown until after the election, in effect, increasing the amount of economic and social pain and suffering - arguably a dangerous strategy designed to blame President Trump for the damage caused by the very policies championed by Democrats since the beginning of the pandemic.

Comment: See also:

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Bizarro Earth

UK's National Grid warns of electricity shortage that could last days, wants to prevent major blackout

Jillian Ambrose
The Guardian
Wed, 14 Oct 2020 21:10 UTC
pylons
© Gareth Fuller/PAJillian Ambrose
National Grid has warned that Britain's electricity will be in short supply over the next few days after a string of unplanned power plant outages and unusually low wind speeds this week.

The electricity system operator said it will take action to "make sure there is enough generation" during the cold weather spell to prevent a second major blackout in as many years.

"Unusually low wind output coinciding with a number of generator outages means the cushion of spare capacity we operate the system with has been reduced," the company told its Twitter followers.


Comment: Proof that wind generated power is dangerously inefficient and unreliable.


Comment: That is just one example of what a terrible state the UK is in, here's some others:

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Eye 1

Ireland imposes harsher local lockdown rules, leaves open possibility of making them even more severe

Mícheál Lehane
RTE
Thu, 15 Oct 2020 22:43 UTC
ireland social distancing
Six people from two households can meet in other outdoor settings but must maintain physical distancing
The Cabinet has agreed a ban on all household visits from midnight tomorrow, for four weeks, except on compassionate grounds and for essential reasons, such as childcare.

This ban on visits includes homes and gardens, but up to six people from two households can meet in other outdoor settings while maintaining physical distancing as part of the enhanced Level 3 restrictions.


Comment: The idea that these extremely particular orders with similarly peculiar exceptions would do anything to stop a virus is patently ludicrous.


Government ministers have also decided to move Donegal, Cavan and Monaghan to Level 4 Covid-19 restrictions for a four-week period from midnight tomorrow.

The other border counties, Louth and Leitrim, are to remain at Level 3.

Comment: See also: Also check out SOTT radio's:

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Chess

Trump campaign says rapper Ice Cube added input on its plan for the black community, and his fans are outraged

Carlos Garcia
The Blaze
Wed, 14 Oct 2020 18:28 UTC
Ice Cube, Donald Trump
© Rick Kern/WireImageIce Cube
Fans of the iconic rapper Ice Cube were outraged on Wednesday after a top Trump campaign adviser tweeted that the notoriously anti-Trump musician was working with the administration.

Katrina Pierson let the cat out of the bag in a tweet thanking Ice Cube, whose real name is O'Shea Jackson, for his contribution to the campaign's "platinum plan," a set of policies meant to help the black community prosper.

"Shoutout to @icecube for his willingness to step up and work with @realDonaldTrump Administration to help develop the #PlatinumPlan," Pierson tweeted.

Comment: The Trump campaign must be full of the most incompetent racists ever if they're willing to work and negotiate with a prominent black figure who is vocally against them in a way that benefits all parties.

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Eye 1

Firearms officers descend on gym for staying open despite lockdown orders in Merseyside, UK

Jake Massey
LADbible
Thu, 15 Oct 2020 09:22 UTC
gym uk lockdown
© Instagram/Nick Whitcombe
A gym in Merseyside was fined £1,000 ($1,300) after it refused to close amid new Tier Three lockdown measures.

Nick Whitcombe, owner of Body Tech Fitness in Moreton, Wirral, previously said that he couldn't afford to shut the gym in line with the new localised lockdown restrictions, claiming that if he closed his doors there would be 'no business, there will be no gym, there will be no jobs'.

When officers arrived yesterday (Wednesday 14 October) and ordered him to shut Nick refused, and he was subsequently hit with the fine.

In a video posted on Instagram - which has been viewed 1.3 million times - Nick said: "We have just received our first £1,000 fine at Body Tech.

Comment: Notably gym owners in the area had been quite vocal that they would stay open despite the government imposed lockdown and so it's likely that the boss in the police department who decided to skip the warning system and go straight to a massive fine was using this gym as an example.

Local leaders have also been quite vocal that they have not agreed to the lockdown demands but rather than defy them outright, they have instead spent their time bargaining for the best financial 'support' package. That may be a wise move because, using Madrid in Spain as an example, the local government there took their grievance to the courts, and won, but, as a sly way to get their demands met, central government smacked the region into a 'state of emergency':



See also: Also check out SOTT radio's:

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TV

'Russian hacking'! Media reverts to form in responding to Hunter Biden/Burisma report

Nebojsa Malic
RT
Thu, 15 Oct 2020 18:27 UTC
Russiagate protest, White House
© REUTERS/Jonathan ErnstA July 11, 2017 'Russiagate' protest outside the White House.
The only thing more absurd than insisting Hunter Biden's employment by Ukrainian gas company Burisma was above board is arguing that Russia is somehow behind the revelation it wasn't. So of course that's precisely what happened.

A last-minute development before the November election is somewhat of a tradition in US politics, so much so there's a name for it - "October surprise" - going back to 1980 or so. In 2016, it was supposed to be Donald Trump's 'Access Hollywood' tape, only to be overshadowed by the WikiLeaks publication of Hillary Clinton campaign chair John Podesta's emails - which Democrats later blamed on Russia.

This time it seems to be the New York Post story, citing emails from a laptop found in a Delaware repair shop to claim that Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden knew about his son Hunter's involvement with the Ukrainian gas company Burisma.

Comment: See also:

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Handcuffs

Sydney university professor who teaches law of protest arrested at student protest

Naaman Zhou
The Guardian
Thu, 15 Oct 2020 19:56 UTC
Simon Rice
© Honi SoitUniversity of Sydney Prof Simon Rice says he was trying to move past a protest when he was pushed to the ground by police with ‘disproportionate force’ on Wednesday.
A University of Sydney law professor, who was observing a student protest on Wednesday as part of research into protest law, was thrown to the ground by police, then arrested and fined.

Prof Simon Rice said he was not participating in the protest and was trying to move past it when he was pushed to the ground by police with "disproportionate force".

Multiple students and staff were arrested at the university as hundreds protested the government's changes to higher education, university funding cuts and job losses.

Previous protests at the university have also been disrupted by police with arrests made.

Footage captured by the university's student newspaper, Honi Soit, showed Rice being pushed to the ground by police, and another student thrown to the ground.


"I have been running an extracurricular volunteer law firm research project," Rice told Guardian Australia. "I have a bunch of students who are working on reforming protest laws. I told them there is a protest today and you may want to watch. I also chose to watch.

"The footage shows from a distance them pushing me down. That is actually the second time, they had kicked my legs out from under me and that was me trying to get up again, then they pushed me down."

Comment: Nothing to see here... Just Australia turning into a complete authoritarian nightmare.

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Arrow Up

Jobless claims spike to 898,000 in latest sign of economic weakness; Trump signals he's ready to 'go big'

Niv Elis
The Hill
Thu, 15 Oct 2020 08:48 UTC
FragmentationJobs
© Unknown/KJNFragmentation of wealth: A mosaic of instability
Initial jobless claims for the week ending Oct. 10 spiked to 898,000, the latest sign of weakness in the U.S. labor market.

The figure was up 53,000 from the previous week, and the number of claims has remained persistently high over the past few months.

Thursday's report from the Labor Department showed that the total number of people claiming benefits across a slew of programs in late September fell by 215,270, to 25.3 million.

The weak economic figures pose a challenge to President Trump in the final weeks of the campaign, particularly as many economists say they are the result of a pandemic that the U.S. has yet to get under control.

When factoring in an additional 373,000 initial claims for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, a CARES Act program that expanded benefits to gig economy workers and the self-employed, the total number of new claims approached 1.3 million. Glassdoor Chief Economist Andrew Chamberlain said the latest figures
"cast a dark cloud over the nation's slow economic recovery. America is unlikely to see a full recovery and a return to low unemployment until the pace of weekly UI [unemployment insurance] claims dials back significantly. As the virus remains in the driver's seat, today's elevated claims cast a shadow over the fate of the U.S. labor market in the next half year."

Comment: A forecast on the pandemic hole in the global economy:
This year's output figures will be reminiscent of the 1930's Great Depression, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). It said that the world is at risk of significantly lowered investment, trade and job numbers.

The IMF's economic expert, Gita Gopinath, said this week that "the cumulative loss in output relative to the pre-pandemic projected path is projected to grow from $11 trillion over 2020-21 to $28 trillion over 2020-25...this represents a severe setback to the improvement in average living standards across all country groups."

The IMF praised central banks around the globe for stimulus plans that softened the impact that Covid-19 has had on the world economy, and warned that an early removal of these support packages could prove disastrous for recovery efforts. Gopinath advised that:

"The considerable global fiscal support of close to $12 trillion and the extensive rate cuts, liquidity injections and asset purchases by central banks helped save lives and livelihoods and prevented a financial catastrophe, to the extent possible, policies must aggressively focus on limiting persistent economic damage from this crisis. Most economies will experience lasting damage to supply potential, reflecting scars from the deep recession this year."

The World Bank has warned that up to 150 million more people may be pushed into extreme poverty by 2021.


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Health

Head of Russia's national health watchdog: Shutting down economy to prevent spread of Covid-19 is pointless

Jonny Tickle
RT
Tue, 13 Oct 2020 21:33 UTC
PeepsMasked
© Sputnik/Anton DenisovMasked in Moscow
The top official at Russia's state health watchdog believes that there is no point in suspending the economy to fight coronavirus. Anna Popova's comments came after the Kremlin said a second lockdown isn't even being considered.

Speaking at a coronavirus event at well-known university RANEPA, on Tuesday, Rospotrebnadzor boss Anna Popova explained that Russia has quite a low rate of Covid-19 per capita, and therefore there is no sense in taking drastic measures. Currently, there are few restrictions in the world's largest country with bars, restaurants, and shops open as usual.

"Despite the fact that we see a growth in cases, today, in Russia, we are not talking about blocking the economy," Popova said. "We do not see any point in it."

In addition, she noted that Covid-19 testing has not dropped off at any point, even during the summer. Statistics from the country's official coronavirus center show that Russia has carried out over 51 million tests, fourth globally, behind the three most populated countries, China, the US, and India.

According to Popova, over the last week, the average daily rate for new coronavirus cases is eight per 100,000 people. This is much better than in other countries such as Israel (54), France (28), and the Netherlands (27), which are all more than three times worse.

Comment: At least there are still places where common sense prevails.

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Gold Coins

Russia considers issue of digital ruble as demand for cashless payments grows


RT
Wed, 14 Oct 2020 09:27 UTC
rubles
© Getty Images / Savushkin
The high level of development of financial technologies in Russia, and the growing share of non-cash payments make the issue of launching the digital ruble more relevant, according to the Central Bank of Russia (CBR).

The regulator said in a report that it is currently assessing all the possibilities and prospects of such a project, which will allow users to freely transfer digital rubles to their electronic wallets and use them on mobile devices, both online and offline. "The digital ruble will be able to combine the advantages of both cash and non-cash money," the CBR said.

According to CBR Deputy Chairman Aleksey Zabotkin, the share of non-cash payments in the country's retail and public sectors has nearly doubled, from 39 percent to 69 percent.
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