July 17, 2020

The Flint Development Center is located at 4121 Martin Luther King Avenue and feature Mackenzie Patrice Croom Community Lab (click here) for water testing.

Flint - The McKenzie Patrice Croom Flint Community Water Lab, (click here) the first of its kind in the world, provides a trusted laboratory for Flint, Michigan residents for water testing of lead and other pollutants.

The Flint Water Lab has recently been recognized with the 2020 US Water Prize for Outstanding Cross-Sector Partnership.

The project’s focus is providing residents with knowledge about the safety of their water, and resources to help people trust that their water is safe, as thousands of pipes have been replaced in the City of Flint and the system continues to improve. The lab will provide free water testing and resources in Flint to help residents navigate the myriad of information they see and hear about water quality, to ensure their families’ health.

Freshwater Future and the Flint Development Center are currently in the final phases of configuration for The Flint Community Lab with a scheduled opening date of summer to early Fall 2020 (tentative opening based on current COVID-19 restrictions).

The coordinated vision for this community lab provides Flint residents a long-term trusted source for water tests, a place where residents can go to have their water tested for lead and other heavy metals at no cost....

Cessation of movement is a public health priority.

When contact tracing fails because of the sheer volume of the people testing positive and are falling ill, that is when the movement of people needs to stop. The virus is probably everywhere and driving the infection rate. It is time to shut it down.

The information of a person testing positive can be published. Not the name of the person, but, the location of where the person was in the past day or so. People do read these announcements made in public media, but, when the numbers are too great and frequently becomes a map full of contact points, then the virus is out of control. Whenever the virus is out of control, the movement of people needs to stop. The cessation of movement is the only way the virus stops infecting others. 

These parameters are allowing too much movement with the area saturated with the virus. A large number of positive tests mean the cessation of movement has to be instituted immediately to begin to end the infection rate. This is a no brainer. If there is not a call for the cessation of movement with large positive numbers that is gross malpractice of governance.

Who is writing the script? Seriously. Who is writing the script?

This is abduction. An arrest is carried out by stating why a person is being arrested. This is abduction for the purpose of instilling fear and no other reason.

July 17, 2020
By Craig Silverman

Protesters in Portland, Oregon, (click here) say federal officers deployed by President Donald Trump are increasing tensions and violating civil rights by roaming the streets in unmarked vans and detaining people without probable cause.

Videos and witness accounts detail how armed officers outfitted in camouflage and lacking identifying information on their uniforms are snatching people off the street. One viral video shared on July 15 shows two men in fatigues exiting an unmarked van, grabbing a person by their arms, and escorting them to a vehicle. The officers remained silent as bystanders asked who they were and what they were doing....

Just sayin'.

July 14, 2020
By Peter White

Survivor (click here) will no longer be part of CBS’ fall schedule (click here) as a result of the COVID-19 production shutdown as S.W.A.T moves up from midseason as part of the network’s rejig.

Producers had hoped to get Survivor up and running to hit the fall deadline, but will not make it in time. The network said that producers are continuing to work with officials in Fiji on the “appropriate time” to start production with health and safety matters its top priority.

The show, which is exec produced by Jeff Probst, Mark Burnett and Matt VanWagenen, was set to air in a 8pm slot on Wednesday. Instead, the upcoming season of The Amazing Race will move from 9pm to 8pm....

15 July 2020
By Hallie Golden

Seattle Police tackle a demonstrator who was blocking the intersection of East Pine Street and 11th Avenue on 1 July.

Seattle - Twelve protesters or their families (click here) have filed financial claims against Seattle, King county or Washington state following injuries and a death during recent anti-racist protests that they allege were caused by excessive force by police or due to law enforcement failing to protect them.

“You go to protest, you go for a cause, you go because you’re moved to make society better, you’re moved really in a selfless act, for most of these people who have just a passion and belief that something needs to change, something is not good here and it needs to change,” said Karen Koehler, whose firm represents most of the claimants.

“And you’re met with riot police.”

Malichi Howel, 17, was protesting in the early evening on 30 May when police started firing teargas at the crowd, according to the claim. Howel tried to run, but was hit by an exploding flash-bang grenade or teargas canister that partially amputated their thumb....

Many types of cancer will result in a very treatable metastatic liver disease. I am sure Justice Ginsberg is fine. 

COVID-19 is NOT THE NEW NORMAL.

If Ducey reflects the basic effort by the Republicans, they need to be removed from the office. "Living with COVID-19" is a false option. Basically, what the Republicans are saying is that their "stock holdings" are more important than American lives. The Governor of Georgia Kemp is stating the mayor of Atlanta is "harming jobs and a growing economy." End of discussion, two Republicans are placing profits before American lives. It is more than "politics over people" for the Republicans, it is about profits to cronies and padding their own stock portfolios.

A nationwide general strike is not about protesting. It is about Americans literally shutting down the country by walking away from their routines, including work. If there are few to no Americans willing to work through this health crisis the companies will shut down and wait for healthier workers to return. The idea behind a nationwide general strike is to carry out the policy that leadership in the White House never committed to in the beginning. Instead of shutting down the entire country for 16 days, the White House continually stated there was no such danger because a jet from China was contained. It was a "smoke and mirrors" trick on the American people. There has been confusion and false dedication to political movements since those deceptive statements were made.

A nationwide general strike whereby people "GO HOME" for 16 days is the only real way forward if classrooms are ever to be open anytime in the future. The vaccines may or may not be in their final stages of testing, but, computer hacking by Russia and China places a huge question on the efficacy of the research.

In the good days, all research was written in laboratory record books. I doubt seriously anyone is keeping a written record in laboratory books. Most everything in a lab is now computerized. So, until there are fresh trials proving to provide immunity, Americans need to take the matter into their own hands. There is no leadership to end the spread of SARS-CoV-2, hence the deadly disease COVID-19. Americans need to take their well being seriously and in their own hands. 

NATIONWIDE GENERAL STRIKE IS NEEDED TO END THE DEATHS AND HARDSHIP.

Understand the mixed messages from Republicans, Ducey will extend eviction prohibitions, BUT, it is the new normal for workers. There is no plan within those mixed messages.

July 16, 2020

By Maria Polletta and Catherine Reagor

Gov. Doug Ducey (click here) will extend eviction protections for tenants affected by COVID-19 through Oct. 31, the Republican leader announced Thursday.

The delay isn't as generous as the one sought by housing advocates, who wanted protections for renters through the end of the year. Beginning Aug. 21, tenants also will need to show proof they've applied for rental assistance.

But the extension will give tenants who've lost jobs or become ill an additional three months to catch up on payments and seek community assistance — something Ducey called "the right thing to do for public health and our economy."

The announcement comes as the state continues to grapple with one of the worst COVID-19 spikes in the country, which has infected more than 134,000 Arizonans and killed at least 2,492....