Not the first time Sammy got to the glass of water I put out for myself.
Russia offered the Taliban bounties to kill American soldiers, and Trump has been dithering about a response for months, according to this report in the New York Times.
Russia Secretly Offered Afghan Militants Bounties to Kill U.S. Troops, Intelligence Says
House passes bill to provide D.C. statehood
Republicans oppose statehood for DC because DC is mostly Black people.
Pence tries to put positive spin on coronavirus pandemic despite surging cases in South and West
Dangerous moron Mike Pence says increase in cases is “very encouraging news” and a “great success.” Asked whether people should wear masks, he said they should pray.
Obamacare Must ‘Fall,’ Trump Administration Tells Supreme Court
No, it is the Trump administration that must fall.
In the middle of the worst pandemic in a century, Trump wants to eliminate medical insurance for 20 million Americans. Even for Trump, this is depraved and evil.
YouTube views of sourdough videos jumped 400% in coronavirus lockdown. And “workout from home” video views more than tripled
A subsurface ocean on Europa, a moon of Jupiter, may have been habitable. For microbial life at least, possibly sometime in the past.
Paradise, California, suffered extensive damage and deaths in 2018 forest fires, and is now grappling with the pandemic and recession. The high school graduating faces uncertainty with hope for the future
Justine Calma at The Verge:
For the second year in a row, graduation at Paradise High School became a tribute to triumph over disaster. The tight-knit small town — where many seniors have taken classes together since kindergarten — was almost entirely razed by the Camp Fire in 2018. It was the deadliest and most destructive blaze in California’s history. Then, COVID-19 upended the school year, and seniors once again graduated into a world that looked very different than it did when the year began.
For the class of 2020, even the near future is a question mark. The pandemic has already taken over 100,000 lives in the US and no one can predict when it — or the economic collapse in its wake — will end. Temperatures are soaring to record highs, an ominous sign for the coming fire season. Persevering through compounded crises is the new rite of passage for graduates across the US. The town of Paradise, California just happened to have an early baptism by fire….
In some ways, Paradise is a glimpse into what might be a new normal for many of us: a cycle of upheaval, followed by adrenaline-fueled hope, exhaustion, and, ultimately, adaptation….
Eighty-five people died in the Camp Fire, sparked by deteriorating PG&E power lines; 18,804 homes and buildings burned. Roughly nine of every ten Paradise High students lost their homes; [Class valedictorian Katie-Lynn] Chandler was among those whose homes burned. The care facility where her mother worked was also destroyed. She and her mother rent a room in a house from the person who owned the place where Chandler’s mother had worked.
Surviving paradise: Through fire and fear, Paradise, California’s teens take control of their lives