Tamil Nadu*** village grabs spotlight after Kamala Harris' nomination as Biden's running mate

he agrarian village of Painganadu is located near Mannargudi in Tiruvarur district near here in the Cauvery delta.

Published: 15th August 2020

Democratic vice-presidential candidate Kamala Harris (Photo | AP)
By PTI

NAGAPATTINAM: A remote village in Tamil Nadu has shot to fame following the nomination of US senator Kamala Harris as the vice-presidential candidate by the Democratic Party for the American Presidential elections 2020.

Harris' maternal grandparents belong to this village and it is gaining attention ever since the announcement.
The agrarian village of Painganadu is located near Mannargudi in Tiruvarur district near here in the Cauvery delta.

Harris' mother, Shyamala, was the daughter of PV Gopalan who was active in the Independence movement and then became a high-ranking civil servant who fought against corruption.

ALSO READ: Should India cheer as Kamala Harris gets Joe Biden’s V-P call?

Her grandmother Rajam belonged to the nearby Thulasenthirapuramvillage. Though Kamala Harris's ancestors left the village, they had kept their connection with the village temple intact.

Gopalan and other members of his family have made donations for temple renovation during various periods.

As recent as 2014, a donation was made in the name of Kamala Harris, says the temple trustee Ramani.

Digital banners have been put up in the village wishing her victory.

People of the area have been sharing photographs of the village, temple, her ancestral home and plaque in the temple carrying information about the donations made by the family members on social media.

US Democratic party presidential nominee Joe Biden had on Tuesday named 55-year-old Harris as his vice-presidential running mate, making history by selecting the first black woman to compete on a major party's presidential ticket.

Harris, whose father is an African from Jamaica and mother an Indian, is currently the US senator from California.

*** TAMIL PEOPLES ARE SOUTHERN INDIAN'S AND NORTHERN SRI LANKAN'S

THEY ARE DARKER THAN NORTHERN INDIANS AND ARE SUBJECT TO RACISM AND CASTISM BY HINDU NATIONALISTS UNDER MODI

TAMIL PEOPLES HAVE A SEPARATE GEOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL RECORD FROM INDIA INCLUDING ANCIENT MYTHS ABOUT LEMURIA

Parit Chirawak vows to join major protest in Thailand on Sunday

Student leader released on bail as protesters continue to demand reform of monarchy and resignation of prime minister.

Protest leader Parit 'Penguin' Chiwarak raises his hand with a three-fingered salute as a symbol of resistance outside the criminal court after he was released on bail on Saturday [Busaba Sivasomboon/AP]

MORE ON THAILAND
Thai king stays silent on protesters' call for reform of monarchy

3 days ago

Thai PM says protesters' call for monarchy reform 'went too far'

3 days ago

A Thai student activist and leader has pledged to continue protesting against the government and demand reform of the monarchy after being detained overnight on charges related to a demonstration last month and released on bail.

Parit "Penguin" Chiwarak, 22, was arrested on Friday and charged with breaching internal security rules and breaking regulations to stop the spread of coronavirus among other charges, by co-organising a protest on July 18.

Since that protest in July, university and high school student groups around Thailand have rallied almost daily, demanding for the removal of Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who first took power in a 2014 military coup, and an end to the military domination of politics.

Some students have also demanded reforms to the powerful monarchy, once a taboo subject.

Parit told reporters at the court that he had been ordered not to re-offend as a condition of his bail, but that the director-general of the court had agreed that he could take part in a major protest planned for Sunday.

"My arrest must not be wasted, people must talk more publicly about the monarchy," Parit said after reciting a 10-point call for monarchy reform issued earlier this week by one of the student group.

"We have lifted the ceiling, there is no lowering it now."

The monarchy is protected by a strict lese majeste law that punishes anyone who offends King Maha Vajiralongkorn or his family, but Prime Minister Prayuth said earlier this year that the king had asked for it not be used.

Prayuth appealed for national unity earlier this week, but also said some of the student activist demands on the monarchy "went too far".

Last week, two other activists were arrested and later released on charges similar to those of Parit.

On Saturday, Human Rights Watch warned that police are reportedly planning to arrest at least 31 other people, including many student movement leaders, in the coming days.

"Each new arrest of a peaceful pro-democracy activist shows the Thai government's authoritarian tendencies and lack of respect for human rights," said Brad Adams, Asia director of HRW.

"Peaceful protests and critical expression demanding political reform should not be criminalised."

Thai students protest to remove gov't and reform monarchy (2:17

Protesters gather outside of US postmaster general's home and stage a 'noise demonstration' over his cuts to USPS

Connor Perrett AUGUST 15,2020

A USPS mail worker wearing a mask is seen driving between houses while it rains as the state of New Jersey on August 13, 2020. Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images

Protesters on Saturday gathered outside the Washington, DC home of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy and marched through his neighborhood to slam his handling of the postal service.

DeJoy, a former Republican donor, has made cost-cutting measures that protesters argue undermine the USPS and risk states' expansion of mail-in-voting due to COVID-19.
President Donald Trump on Thursday, a staunch opponent of main-in-voting, said he was withholding bailout funds to the postal service in an effort to intentionally sabotage main-in ballots though he later walked back the comments.

Protesters on Saturday gathered outside the Washington, DC, home of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy over claims his cost-cutting measures are slowing down mail delivery and could adversely impact mail-in-voting in November.

According to WUSA, organizers from a group called Shut Down DC organized the "noise demonstration" outside DeJoy's home in Kalorama Park, a community in the Adams Morgan neighborhood of Washington.

"DeJoy has fired or reassigned much of the existing USPS leadership and ordered the removal of mail sorting machines that are fundamental to the functioning of the postal service. Meanwhile, mail delivery is slowing down under other decisions made by DeJoy, such as eliminating overtime for postal workers," the group said in a statement, according to WUSA.

Videos of the protest shared on Twitter early Saturday showed demonstrators chanting "stand up, fight back" and similar phrases, banging on drums, and using other noisy items like pots and pans to cause a stir outside the postmaster general's condo.

—Stephanie Ramirez (@RamirezReports) August 15, 2020
—Melissa Barlow (@LiteraryMouse) August 15, 2020

The protesters also marched through nearby streets.
—Melissa Barlow (@LiteraryMouse) August 15, 2020

The protest comes amid growing concern over DeJoy's cost-cutting measures to the postal service, including the elimination over overtime and late trips that have created service disruptions and delays in mail delivery in parts of the country, as Business Insider's Grace Panetta explained.

Earlier this year, the Postal Service Board of Governors appointed DeJoy, a North Carolina-based shipping and logistics executive and former Trump donor with no experience with the postal service, to his current position. His moves, which come amid a years-long financial struggle for the USPS and has been further exacerbated by the novel coronavirus, have caused concern that USPS will have difficulty handling a surge of mail-in-ballots in November.

President Donald Trump has also opposed assisting the post office amid his repeated claims that mail-in-voting could lead to widespread voter fraud, Business Insider previously reported. On Thursday, he said he would reject $25 billion in emergency funding for the USPS in an effort intentionally sabotage mail-in voting. The president later changed his tune and said he would agree to sign a bill that included funds for the USPS.


There is little to no evidence to back up Trump's claims that mail-in-ballots would cause widespread fraud.


Barack Obama accuses Trump of attempting to 'actively kneecap' the US Postal Service to suppress mail-in votes

The machines USPS is removing from distribution centers can sort more than 36,000 pieces of mail per hour. Here's how they work.

USPS warned 46 states that it can't guarantee that all mail-in-ballots would arrive on time to be counted

The US Postal Service is weighing higher fees on domestic packages

UPDATED 
US: Far-right groups and counter-protesters clash in Georgia

The far-right groups had gathered, in part, in support of a Confederate sculpture in a nearby Stone Mountain park.

Police broke up demonstrations after far-right groups and counter-protesters clashed on Saturday [John Bazemore/The Associated Press]

Police have broken up duelling demonstrations about an enormous Confederate monument in a park near the city of Atlanta in the US state of Georgia.

Several dozen far-right demonstrators, some waving the Confederate battle flag and many wearing military gear, gathered on Saturday in central Stone Mountain, where they faced off against a few hundred counter-protesters, many of whom wore shirts or carried signs expressing support for the Black Lives Matter movement.

People in both groups carried rifles.

Far-right groups led by an Arkansas militia called Confederate States III% had applied for a permit to hold a rally in nearby Stone Mountain Park, in support a giant sculpture of Confederate leaders General Robert E Lee, Confederate President Jefferson Davis and General Thomas J "Stonewall" Jackson.

But the Stone Mountain Memorial Association denied the permit on August 4.

Amid a national reckoning about racial justice following the May 25 police killing of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, calls for the removal of Confederate statues and monuments have grown.

Demonstrators gathered in Stone Mountain in support of a confederate monument and faced off against a few hundred counter-protesters [File: John Bazemore/The Associated Press]

Stone Mountain Park was closed to visitors on Saturday and was set to reopen on Sunday.

With police manning barriers to keep people from entering the park, demonstrators took to the streets of the adjoining city of Stone Mountain, which on Friday had advised residents to stay home and businesses to shut down.

After several hours of mostly peaceful demonstrations, large numbers of police moved in to disperse the crowds when fights broke out just before 1pm, with people punching and kicking each other and throwing rocks.

Within an hour, almost all of the protesters had left the area.

The event was planned as a response to a march in the park by a Black militia group on July 4, in which demonstrators spoke out against the huge sculpture, which is carved into the face of a granite mountain.

The park has historically been a gathering place for white supremacists, while the city of Stone Mountain has a majority-Black population.

The clashes occurred following several hours peaceful demonstrations from both groups [File: Mike Stewart/The Associated Press]
Michigan clashes

Also on Saturday, members of the far-right Proud Boys group held a rally in Kalamazoo, Michigan with counter-protesters gathering in response.

The groups confronted each other and fistfights broke out before police arrived and ordered the crowds to disperse. A reporter for MLive.com, who was detained by police while recording live on Facebook, reported that some of the Proud Boys also used pepper spray during the clashes.

The male-only Proud Boys has been called "extremist" by the Anti-Defamation League and described as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. The Proud Boys dispute those descriptions.

The face of Stone Mountain depicts three Southern Confederate figures: General Robert E Lee, General Stonewall Jackson and President Jefferson Davis [File: Leita Cowart/The Associated Press]

Stone Mountain Park in Georgia closes ahead of white nationalist rally, counterprotest

A far-right group applied to hold a large rally at Stone Mountain Park, home to the largest monument to the Confederacy. The permit was denied, but some groups said they would gather anyway.

A woman argues with a far-right protester during a rally on Aug. 15, 2020, near the downtown area of Stone Mountain, Georgia.Lynsey Weatherspoon / Getty Images

Aug. 15, 2020, 9
By Minyvonne Burke

Georgia's Stone Mountain Park, known for its giant rock carvings of Confederate leaders, closed to the public Saturday over concerns about a planned white nationalist rally and counterprotest.

The city of Stone Mountain, about 25 miles northeast of Atlanta, announced the closure in a tweet on Friday.

"The City of Stone Mountain is anticipating and preparing for at least two opposing groups of protesters whose intentions are to demonstrate at Stone Mountain Park on Saturday, August 15, 2020. Stone Mountain Park has made the decision to close the Park on this day," the city said.

Opposing groups meanwhile faced off in the city's downtown on Saturday morning, according to NBC affiliate WXIA in Atlanta. A video showed people chanting "Go home, racists, go home."

Some of the counterprotesters burned a Confederate flag, and a shoving match broke out between the two groups. But overall a larger confrontation was avoided, the outlet reported.

“Go home, racists, go home!” Members of BLM, Antifa and independents chant during protest in the town of Stone Mountain @11AliveNews pic.twitter.com/Rr75W36hrv— Maura Sirianni 11Alive (@MauraSirianni) August 15, 2020

City officials said that out of an abundance of caution it was warning residents and visitors to avoid the area and said buses in the city will be suspended.

"Every effort is being made to ensure that any demonstrations conducted within the City's limits are performed peacefully and without incident," the tweet read.

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VIDEO Far-right groups and counter protesters face off near Stone Mountain Park in 

A far-right group, Three Percenters, applied last month to hold a rally with more than 2,000 people at the park on Saturday, according to Reuters. The militia said it wanted "to defend and protect our history" and Second Amendment rights.

Officials denied the application because of violence that erupted at a similar event in 2016, Reuters reported.

30 seconds from our business. Still in Main Street & side roads. Small fights, protesting, tensions are still high... will tweet as long as we can as it permits. pic.twitter.com/Dr9mFGS6j7— Gilly Brewing Co. (@gillybrewbar) August 15, 2020

Despite this, several groups, including one called Defending Stone Mountain, said online that they would hold a rally at the park anyway and asked participants to bring U.S. and Confederate flags. An opposing group, Atlanta Antifascists, said it would hold a counterprotest.

"It has been clear for weeks that Stone Mountain tomorrow will be a focal point for white power organizing. Follow @flowerunited for tomorrow's anti-racist counter-mobilization," the group tweeted. "ALL OUT against racists and the far-Right! Spread the word!"

Stone Mountain Park is home to the largest monument to America's Civil War Confederacy, according to Reuters.

Minyvonne Burke is a breaking news reporter for NBC News


Police move in after fights break out during Georgia protest

Saturday, August 15, 2020


Photo: John Bazemore, AP
IMAGE 1 OF 17
A man falls after being hit by counter demonstrators during a protest , Saturday, Aug. 15, 2020, in Stone Mountain Village, Ga. Several dozen people waving Confederate flags, many of them wearing military ...

STONE MOUNTAIN, Ga. (AP) — After several hours of mostly peaceful demonstrations Saturday in an Atlanta suburb that's home to a giant Confederate memorial, large numbers of police moved in to disperse the crowds when fights broke out.

Several dozen right-wing demonstrators, some waving the Confederate battle flag and many wearing military gear, gathered in downtown Stone Mountain where they faced off against a few hundred counterprotesters, many of whom wore shirts or carried signs expressing support for the Black Lives Matter movement. People in both groups carried rifles. For several hours, there was little visible police presence and things were largely peaceful, aside from some shoving and pushing and spirited arguments.

But just before 1 p.m., fights broke out, with people punching and kicking each other and throwing rocks. That's when police officers in riot gear moved in to disperse the crowds.

By 2 p.m., almost all of the protesters had left the area.

Right-wing groups led by an Arkansas group called Confederate States III%, had applied for a permit to hold a rally in Stone Mountain Park, where there's a giant sculpture of Confederate leaders. The event was planned as a response to a march in the park by a Black militia group on July 4.

But the Stone Mountain Memorial Association denied the permit on Aug. 4, citing a violent clash between groups in April 2016, spokesman John Bankhead said. The park closed to visitors Saturday and was set to reopen Sunday.

With police manning barriers to keep people from entering the park, demonstrators took to the streets of the adjoining city of Stone Mountain, which on Friday had advised people to stay away all day and urged residents to stay home and businesses to shut down.

The predominantly Black demonstrators on July 4 spoke out against the huge sculpture depicting Gen. Robert E. Lee, Confederate President Jefferson Davis and Gen. Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson. Carved into a granite mountain, the bas-relief sculpture is the largest Confederate monument ever crafted. The 100 to 200 protesters, many of whom carried large rifles, were peaceful.

Although the park has historically been a gathering spot for white supremacists, the adjoining city of Stone Mountain has a majority-Black population today.

The park at Stone Mountain markets itself as a family theme park rather than a shrine to the “Lost Cause” mythology that romanticizes the Confederacy as chivalrous defenders of states’ rights. It’s a popular recreation spot for many families on the east side of Atlanta, with hiking trails, a golf course, boat rentals and other attractions. The park has long been known for its laser light shows, but those have been canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

UNITED STATES

Study: Police Violence a Leading Cause of Death for Young Men 

A recent analysis also shows black males in the U.S. Face the greatest risk of dying at the hands of police.

August 15, 2020 by Mark Greene

“In an era of body cameras and Black Lives Matter protests, a study released Monday indicates African American men are more than twice as likely as their white peers to die from police use of force.

The issue of police-related fatalities overall is so acute, however, that the study labels such encounters a “leading cause of death” among all young men ages 25 to 29, not too far behind the diseases of cancer and heart disease. And it urges community leaders and elected officials to treat police violence as a public health concern.

“Racially unequal exposure to the risk of state violence has profound consequences for public health, democracy, and racial stratification,” says the study from researchers at Rutgers University, Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Michigan.”

Previously published on Medium.com.


Photo credit: istockphoto.com

A vast plague of field mice in Germany is devouring crops on a massive scale
Sophia Ankel AUGUST 15,2020

Wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus) head emerging from nest while leaving burrow. Arterra/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Field mice have destroyed swathes of farmland in Germany in what is the worst rodent infestation in over thirty years, according to the country's national farming association.
An estimated 300,000 acres have been stripped bare by the small furry animals, which has resulted in significant crop loss for farmers.
Farmers have blamed the infestation on the weather as well as highlighting a reduction in pesticide use, which has helped the rodents flourish in recent years.
While there have been calls on the government to relax the rules on the use of pesticides, environmentalists say that other endangered species will be at risk of being killed off.

Plagues of field mice have destroyed thousands of acres of farmland in Germany, which has been described as the worst rodent infestation in over 30 years, according to the country's national farming association.

An estimated 300,000 acres (120,000 hectares) of fields across the country have been stripped bare by the ravenous rodents, leading to significant crop loss and calls for compensation.

The country's agricultural minister, Julia Klöckner, has called the decimation of land an agricultural emergency and is now asking for a reassessment of laws governing the use of pesticides.

"We've already seen huge damage, and more is to be expected," Klöckner said, according to the Guardian.

Farmers in the worst-affected states of Thuringia and Saxony-Anhalt have complained that the mice, which are around 5-inches (15 cm) long, are devastating their food crops.

In the worst-affected state of Thuringia, as much as a quarter of the crops are affected. The damage is estimated at around $530 for every acre of wheat, the Guardian reported.

"They are eating everything," said Matthias Krieg, who manages an agricultural firm near the town of Zeitz in Saxony-Anhalt told German news website Der Spiegel. "Not even the sugar beets are safe."

Some farmers blame a succession of dry summers and mild winters for the infestation — but a reduction in the use of pesticides has also helped the rodents flourish, they say.

Joachim Rukwied, the president of the German Farmers' Association, said: "The farmers must be given the possibility to protect their harvest with appropriate measures. Right now environmental restrictions are preventing an effective control of the mouse population," the Guardian reported.

But while there have been calls on the government to relax the rules on the use of pesticides, environmentalists say that endangered species, such as hamsters, hares, and migratory birds, will be at risk of being killed off.

Magnus Wessel, of the Association for the Protection of the Environment and Nature, told German media that poison was not a solution and that the "side effects would be enormous."

"Not only would it kill off the field mice, but also the highly endangered common hamster. Birds that ingest the poison would also die," Wessel added, according to Der Spiegel.


According to the Guardian, some campaigners are calling for a ban on fox hunting that kills 400,000 annually. A fox can eat up to 5,000 field mice a year, they say.

Over 80% of Germany's land is used for agriculture, with chief agricultural products including milk, pork, beef, potatoes, wheat, barley, cabbages, and sugar beets.

The Enduring Legacy of the Pied Piper of Hamelin | Mental Floss

https://www.mentalfloss.com › article › enduring-legacy-pied-piper-hamelin

Apr 23, 2015

As the story goes, in 1284, townspeople hired a rat catcher to lure away the vermin that had overrun their village ...

The Pied Piper of Hamelin by Robert Browning - Poems ...

https://poets.org › poem › pied-piper-hamelin

The Pied Piper of Hamelin · I Hamelin Town's in Brunswick, By famous Hanover city; · II Rats! · III At last the people in a body · IV An hour they sat in council, · V " ...

The Peasant War in Germany - Marxists Internet Archive

https://www.marxists.org › archive › marx › works › download › pdf › pe...

by F Engels - ‎Cited by 105 - ‎Related articles

https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1850/peasant-war-germany/index.htm. The 1848 uprisings in Germany put Engels in mind of the last great peasant ... Miracles supposed to have been performed by the Piper were being related;.

The DOJ's Yale investigation is 'leveraging the model minority myth' to pit racial groups against each other, Asian-American scholars say

Inyoung Choi
Aug 14, 2020,

Yale university in New Haven, CT. Associated Press/Beth J. Harpaz

On Thursday, a Justice Department investigation accused Yale of illegally discriminating against Asian American and white applicants, following a two-year federal investigation.

Scholars of the Asian American and Pacific Islanders community are criticizing the DOJ's accusation, saying it's part of a larger attempt to pit racial minorities against each other. 

The DOJ is "leveraging the model minority myth to undermine the opportunity to build a multiracial coalition in this country to dismantle racism," a former board member of the Korean American Association said.

Meanwhile, students and faculty have criticized legacy status as a factor of admissions that favors white applicants.

Scholars of the Asian American and Pacific Islanders community are criticizing the Justice Department's accusation that Yale discriminates against Asian American and white applicants, saying the move just pits racial minorities against each other while ignoring the larger problem of legacy admissions.

The Justice Department said Thursday that Yale imposes undue and unlawful penalties on racially-disfavored applicants, including Asian American and White applicants in particular. Their notice followed a two-year investigation following complaints about admissions at Ivy League colleges. Yale President Peter Salovey denounced the allegation as "baseless."

A number of AAPI scholars have criticized the Justice Department for the move, saying they're using Asian Americans to create conflict among people of color.

"It's leveraging the model minority myth to undermine the opportunity to build a multiracial coalition in this country to dismantle racism," says Dona Kim Murphey, a former board member of the Korean American Association.

According to Michael Li, senior counsel at The Brennan Center for Justice, a nonpartisan public policy center that focuses on equal representation in government, the DOJ's accusation is ultimately "messaging for white people."

"It's like 'Hey if you're stuck at a job or not moving up the economic ladder, your income hasn't increased for decades — you can blame people of color and elites for keeping you out of schools like Yale,'" Li said. "That's just political messaging for November."

Li added that this messaging was in line with the Trump campaign stoking "white resentment for people taking jobs and spots in schools." He said that, in addition to targeting white working-class resentment, the campaign seeks to promote white suburbanite resentment by talking about "what schools children of white suburbanites get to go to."

"The message that this sends to the AAPI community is that the DOJ is very interested in dismantling policies that create diversity and increase access to those who have been excluded to places like Yale," said Janelle Wong, a professor of American Studies and Asian American Studies at the University of Maryland, who received her doctorate at Yale.

Last year, a federal judge rejected Students for Fair Admissions' lawsuit that claimed Harvard discriminated against Asian-Americans. Brooks Kraft/Corbis via Getty Images

Many selective private colleges use a holistic admissions process that accounts for each applicant's background, including their race. They also take into consideration a number of other factors, like legacy status.

At Yale, only 5.8% of the entire student population identifies as Black. Less than 10% are Hispanic, and under 15% are Asian. 42.7% of the student body is white.

The Justice Department's action against Yale resembles a recent case against Harvard University, which also took aim at affirmative action policies. Last year, a federal judge ruled against plaintiffs in a lawsuit that claimed Harvard discriminated against Asian-Americans. The lawsuit was filed by Students for Fair Admissions, which is led by Edward Blum, a white politically conservative legal strategist. In February, the Justice Department threw its support behind the lawsuit when it was sent to an appeals court.

"There's been a movement to dismantle affirmative action policies for decades at this point," Kim Murphey, a Harvard alumna, told Insider. "It's very misguided and the fact that they're drawing Asian Americans into that is exceedingly problematic."

Jennifer Lee, a professor of sociology at Columbia University, told Insider in an email that the DOJ's accusation is another example of "a full-throttle attack on affirmative action, fueled by the false equivalency of race and minoritized status."

She said that, in reality, "affirmative action is not negative action against Asian Americans" — and most voters recognized that. A 2016 AAPI data survey of Asian American attitudes shows that nearly two-thirds of Asian Americans support affirmative action.

"There's so much evidence that these policies create the learning environment these students thrive in," Wong said, adding that affirmative actions do not harm but benefit the AAPI community.

The Department of Justice did not immediately respond to Insider's request to comment.
Meanwhile, students and faculty call an end for legacy status

Admissions processes have been known to favor applicants with legacy status, meaning they're members of families who attended or donated to the respective university.

In a 2005 article published in Yale's student newspaper, the dean of undergraduate admissions, Richard Shaw, said that legacy "gives a slight edge, and we have no qualms about that." But there is little data or investigation into how tangibly the status affects applicant status. According to the New York Times, Harvard places children whose parents attended the college — who often donate money as alumni — on a "Z-list," where they are admitted after a gap year.

A survey conducted by the Harvard student newspaper showed that over a third of the Harvard Class of 2022 were legacy admits. A study by the National Bureau of Economic Research published in 2019 showed that over 43% of white admitted students were "recruited athletes, legacies, those on the dean's interest list, and children of faculty and staff." Less than 16% of African American, Asian American, and Hispanic admitted students, respectively, fit that category.

However, data on legacy admissions released from the university is largely unavailable. A spokesperson for Harvard told Insider in a statement that "we do not publicly release this type of data, as it is not part of the IPEDS data set, required by the federal government." Yale publicly disclosed that 12% of the Class of 2023 had a legacy affiliation.

Earlier this year, Ronald J. Daniels, the president of Johns Hopkins University, wrote an essay in The Atlantic explaining why the university chose to end legacy admissions, citing that ending "hereditary privilege in American higher education" would be a step towards accessible, equitable education. Last month, students and faculty at Georgetown started signing a petition that calls to end legacy admissions.

"I never became reconciled to the prevalence of this form of hereditary privilege in American higher education," Daniels wrote. "Particularly given this country's deeply ingrained commitment to the ideals of merit and equal opportunity."

WHITE PRIVILEGE IS AFFIRMATIVE ACTION FOR THE RICH Read more:Here's the full list of people charged in the college admissions cheating scandal, and who has pleaded guilty so farHere's why Lori Loughlin is facing up to 40 years in prison in the college-admissions scandal while Felicity Huffman, who pleaded guilty, is facing less than a yearCollege admission scandal parents didn't realize how big the scheme was until they were all sitting in jail together and someone brought up the ringleader's nameAs fewer students choose to enroll in the wake of coronavirus, some colleges are promising tuition-free semesters

Fauci slammed Tucker Carlson, saying he 'triggers some of the crazies' to attack him and that it's 'ridiculous' that he needs personal security to protect him

Alexandra Ma AUGUST 15, 2020

A composite image of Dr. Anthony Fauci at an interview with The Washington Post on August 14, 2020, and Fox News host Tucker Carlson at Politicon 2018 in Los Angeles in October 2018. The Washington Post/Instagram; Phillip Faraone/Getty Images for Politicon

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top US infectious-diseases expert, gave an assessment of his vocal critic Tucker Carlson in an interview with The Washington Post on Friday.

While Fauci said he is "not concerned about" what the Fox News host says about him, he said that Carlson's remarks often "triggers some of the crazies in society to start threatening me."

Fauci was recently assigned personal security after receiving threats to his and his family's safety, which he said on Friday was "ridiculous."

Dr. Anthony Fauci criticized Tucker Carlson on Friday, saying the Fox News host "triggers some of the crazies in society" to threaten him.

Fauci, the top US infectious-diseases expert on the White House coronavirus task force, made the comment in a wide-ranging interview with The Washington Post's Geoff Edgers on Instagram Live.

When asked whether he had heard of Carlson, Fauci said: "He's the guy that really loves me, right?"

Edgers went on to recite various criticisms the Fox News host had made of Fauci in recent weeks — such as "Unelected Fauci has been leading this country" — and asked if it bothered or concerned Fauci.

Fauci responded: "I'm not concerned about what he says. It's a little bit — I think you could say that when he does that, it triggers some of the crazies in society to start threatening me, actually threatening, which actually happens."

Fauci and his family were assigned personal security after receiving threats to him and his family last month.

He told The Washington Post on Friday: "I mean, who would have thought when I was in medical school doing things to save people's lives, I'd have to be going around with a security detail? That's really ridiculous."

In the interview, Fauci also said that he does not pay attention to people who appear to idolize him, saying: "I actually don't pay attention to that, because that can really be distracting. I mean that sincerely."

"I don't see the hero part, and I don't pay attention to the death threats and harassments either. We live in an extraordinary society where public-health issues become so politicized and divisive that when you start talking about prudent things to do to preserve public health, that's actually considered by some — hopefully a really small minority — by some as something worthy of threatening you. That's really bizarre."

He also defended White House coronavirus czar Dr. Deborah Birx from the criticism she has received in recent weeks, saying she has a "very, very difficult job."

Earlier this month, she came under fire from both sides of the political aisle.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that Birx had "enabled" the president and has not done enough to confront his baseless coronavirus claims. President Donald Trump later tweeted that Birx "took the bait & hit us" by offering a grim assessment of the US outbreak.

Fauci was also asked for his opinion on Dr. Scott Atlas, the newly-hired White House coronavirus adviser who has vocally criticized lockdown measures, and called on schools and college football to restart. Fauci said he only met Atlas a few days ago and would not form an opinion of him until he works with him more.

He also criticized the country's division over public health — contrasting those who follow health rules and those who see "public health as an obstacle to opening the country," and mask-wearers and anti-maskers.

He said: "It should be society pulling as a whole to get this darn thing under control.""

Fauci also said that he last spoke to Trump "just a couple days ago" when he briefed the president on vaccines, seemingly dispelling the idea that Trump was sidelining him.

washingtonpost

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Stuck with Geoff: Live with Dr. Anthony Fauci

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Rashid Khalidi: Israel & UAE Deal to Normalize Relations Is New Chapter in 100-Year War on Palestine

AUGUST 14, 2020

GUESTS
Rashid Khalidi
Edward Said professor of modern Arab studies at Columbia University.

LINKS
"The Hundred Years' War on Palestine"


In a deal brokered by the United States, Israel and the United Arab Emirates have agreed to fully normalize relations after years of secretly working together on countering Iran and other issues. Under the deal, Israel has also agreed to temporarily halt plans to annex occupied Palestinian territories in the West Bank, which had already been on hold due to international condemnation. We speak with Rashid Khalidi, the Edward Said professor of modern Arab studies at Columbia University, who says the agreement is being falsely characterized as a peace deal. “I don’t see that it has anything to do with peace,” he says. “On the contrary, it makes the chance of a just, equitable and sustainable peace much, much, much harder.”

Transcript
This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.


AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now!, democracynow.org, The Quarantine Report. I’m Amy Goodman.

Israel and the United Arab Emirates have reached an agreement to fully normalize relations after years of secretly working together on countering Iran and other issues. Under the deal, Israel has agreed to temporarily suspend plans to annex the West Bank — a move that appeared to have already been on hold due to international condemnation. The UAE is the first Gulf Arab country to normalize relations with Israel and just the third country in the Arab world to do so, after Egypt and Jordan.

President Trump announced the UAE-Israel deal on Thursday in an Oval Office event, flanked by U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, his former bankruptcy lawyer; Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin; and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.


PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: By uniting two of America’s closest and most capable partners in the region, something which said could not be done, this deal is a significant step towards building a more peaceful, secure and prosperous Middle East. Now that the ice has been broken, I expect more Arab and Muslim countries will follow the United Arab Emirates’ lead.

AMY GOODMAN: The Palestinian Authority rejected and denounced the trilateral deal and recalled its ambassador to the UAE. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu admitted Israel may still annex the West Bank.


PRIME MINISTER BENJAMIN NETANYAHU: [translated] There is no change in my plan to apply our sovereignty in Judea and Samaria, in full coordination with the United States. I am committed. It has not changed. I remind you that I am the one who put the issue of sovereignty in Judea and Samaria on the table. This issue continues to remain on the table.

AMY GOODMAN: Critics of the Israeli occupation decried the deal. Democratic Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, the first female Palestinian congresswoman, tweeted, quote, “We won’t be fooled by another Trump/Netanyahu deal. We won’t celebrate Netanyahu for not stealing land he already controls in exchange for a sweetheart business deal. The heart of the issue has never been planned, formal annexation, but ongoing, devastating apartheid,” she said.

Meanwhile, CodePink’s Medea Benjamin warned the deal is aimed at bolstering the, quote, “Israel-US-Gulf alliance against Iran.”

We’re joined now by Rashid Khalidi, the Edward Said professor of modern Arab studies at Columbia University, author of several books, including his latest, The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine.

Professor Khalidi, thanks for joining us. Can you respond to this surprise announcement yesterday?

RASHID KHALIDI: Well, in a sense, it’s another campaign in the hundred years’ war on Palestine. This is a great victory for Arab reaction. It’s a great victory for the annexationist government in Israel. It’s also a boost for President Trump. The Trump regime, which is one of the most authoritarian in American history, has now gotten a diplomatic victory.

So, I don’t see that it has anything to do with peace, of course. The United Arab Emirates was never at war with Israel. On the contrary, it makes the chance of a just, equitable and sustainable peace much, much, much harder.

AMY GOODMAN: So, were you surprised by this announcement? And can you explain how it came about? And then respond to the Palestinian leadership’s denunciation and rejection of the deal.

RASHID KHALIDI: Well, it came about partly because of the blowback against the Trump-Netanyahu plan to overtly annex territories, which, as Rashida Tlaib said, are already under Israeli control, and, as Netanyahu said, he still plans to annex. But the blowback was so severe that both Trump and Netanyahu were forced to recalibrate.

And this is something that has always been ongoing, the plan to bring the most reactionary, most absolute monarchies in the world into an open public alliance with Israel, as part of the Netanyahu-Trump obsession with Iran, which is something that these regimes are also obsessed with, given that they have — they do not depend on consent of the governed, they do not have any kind of domestic legitimacy, they’re anti-democratic. They are the forces that fight against democracy throughout the Arab world. The United Arab Emirates is not a force for peace. It’s at war with the people of Yemen. It’s at war in Libya. It has never been involved in a war with Israel.

So, this is making overt a relationship that was already covert. This is making even more salient an alliance against Iran, which is the wet dream of both Netanyahu and Trump, to dangle Iran in front of people’s eyes to distract them from the kinds of reactionary dictatorships or absolute monarchies. Those monarchies are so reactionary that they make Henry VIII and Louis XIV look like Tom Paine and Robespierre. They are the most — they are the most absolute monarchies in the world today. The fact that the United States is supporting them is an absolute disgrace.

AMY GOODMAN: Well, on Thursday, President Trump was questioned about whether Israel may still annex the West Bank. This is what he said.


REPORTER: The prime minister was pretty clear today at his own press conference that he considers this to be a temporary suspension and that the deal would still be open to him at some point in the future. I’m asking what you think he should do. Should he actually [inaudible]?


PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: No, right now all I can say: It’s off the table. So I can’t talk about some time into the future; that’s a big statement. But right now it’s off the table. Is that a correct statement, Mr. Ambassador?


DAVID FRIEDMAN: Yes. The word “suspend” was chosen carefully by all the parties. “Suspend,” by definition — look it up — means “temporary halt.” It’s off the table now, but it’s not off the table permanently.

AMY GOODMAN: So, that’s the U.S. ambassador to Israel on the sidelines of the press conference, David Friedman, the former bankruptcy lawyer for —

RASHID KHALIDI: Right.

AMY GOODMAN: — President Trump. Rashid Khalidi, President Trump had said, “I wanted it to be called the Donald J. Trump Accord.” The national security adviser, Robert O’Brien said President Trump should be the front-runner for the Nobel Peace Prize.

RASHID KHALIDI: Well, as I’ve said, the United Arab Emirates has never been engaged in war with Israel. On the contrary, the United Arab Emirates’ air defenses, its missile defenses, are manufactured in Israel and are probably controlled from Israel. So, this is an ally of Israel in practice. It always has been. Now this has been made public.

Whatever the president and his ambassador to Israel say, I would take Netanyahu at his word. There is no change in his plans. He said it. You ran a clip from him, speaking in Hebrew. They will continue the ongoing colonization of the West Bank. They will continue to control it absolutely. Israel will continue to be the only sovereign between the Mediterranean and the Jordan River. And it will continue its discriminatory policies whereby Israelis have one set of laws and Palestinians, under occupation, basically have the law of the jungle, i.e. military occupation, military courts, in which everybody is always guilty and in which about 20% of the Palestinian population has been sent to prison. So, we’re talking about a jackboot regime which is going to be sustained and continued by this deal. That’s not peace. That’s continuation of colonization and occupation, whatever the president says.

AMY GOODMAN: Brian Hook, the State Department’s outgoing special envoy for Iran, also spoke at the White House Thursday.


BRIAN HOOK: Peace between the Arabs and the Israelis is Iran’s worst nightmare. And no one has done more to intensify the conflict between Arabs and Israelis than Iran. And what we see today is a new Middle East. The trend lines are very different today. And we see the future is very much in the Gulf and with Israel. In the past, it was with the Iranian regime.

AMY GOODMAN: Meanwhile, CodePink’s Medea Benjamin warned the deal is aimed at bolstering the “Israel-US-Gulf alliance against Iran,” Professor Khalidi.

RASHID KHALIDI: Right, right. I’m glad you ran that clip by Brian Hook, because one of the greatest falsehoods that these people peddle is this idea that there is a conflict between the Arabs and Iran. There is a conflict between nonrepresentative, anti-democratic regimes and Iran.

Arab public opinion considers Israel a great danger. There are polls every couple of years, run by the Arab Center, which show that across a dozen Arab countries, the Arabs, the people, most of them unrepresented by these dictatorships and absolute monarchies, consider Iran a minor threat. It’s a problem, but it’s not the number one problem.

For these regimes, which have no domestic legitimacy, which do not depend on consent of the governed, of course Iran is a problem. Moreover, they need the United States and Israel, because they can’t defend themselves, given the fact that — against their people, let alone against external threats, because they have no domestic legitimacy.

So, I think this is not something between the Arabs and Iran. This is something between unrepresentative and undemocratic Arab regimes, notably the absolute monarchies of the Gulf, and Iran.

AMY GOODMAN: Of course, President Trump is feeling somewhat embattled. Former vice president, the presumptive 2020 Democratic presidential nominee, Joe Biden responded to his Middle East deal saying in a statement, quote, “The UAE’s offer to publicly recognize the State of Israel is a welcome, brave, and badly-needed act of statesmanship. … Annexation would be a body blow to the cause of peace, which is why I oppose it now and would oppose it as president.” Can you respond to the Democratic position?

RASHID KHALIDI: Well, I think that the leadership of the Democratic Party, from Biden to Senator Harris to the people who run it, the Schumers and the Pelosis and the Clintons and the Obamas, all of them are behind the times. The Democratic Party, its base, the people who are going to vote for the Democrats and will hopefully defeat Trump in November and take back the Senate and increase the progressive trends in the House, don’t feel that way. They strongly believe that Israel should be sanctioned for its violations of Palestinian human rights. They don’t have the position that the Democratic Party leadership has.

So, a lot of work is going to be necessary to force the leadership to do what the people want — that is to say, its own — the people who will vote them into office, should they win in November. They don’t represent the people that they claim to represent, on this issue at least. And it’s going to require a lot of pressure on these people, who are basically mired in the past positions of the Democratic Party, which were always blind to Israel’s faults and blind to the Palestinians.

This is not new, and it’s unfortunately been further entrenched by Biden and Harris becoming the nominees for the party. There were several other candidates — obviously, Senator Sanders and Senator Warren, but others — who had more nuanced positions, much more in tune with the base of the Democratic Party on this issue, on the issue of Palestine. So, a lot of work is going to be necessary to force a leadership, that is, as I’ve said, completely blind to Israel’s faults and doesn’t see the Palestinians, to do the right thing.

AMY GOODMAN: In the Gaza Strip, just as this was being announced, Israeli tanks and warplanes attacked Palestinian neighborhoods overnight for the fourth time this week. Israel said the raids were retaliation for incendiary balloons launched by Hamas, one Israeli missile striking a United Nations elementary school in the crowded al-Shati refugee camp but failed to explode, prompting an evacuation. This is a 12-year-old student, Lianne Al-Musawabi.


LIANNE AL-MUSAWABI: [translated] I was shocked. I went home and told my mother what happened, and I was crying, “Why are they hitting the school?”

AMY GOODMAN: Professor Khalidi, do you see a connection between the announcement and what’s happening in Gaza now and the significance of that?

RASHID KHALIDI: Well, Israel has been engaged in what one Israeli once called “mowing the grass,” you know, periodically bombarding Gaza, periodically using overwhelming force against the Palestinians, partly in order to keep the Palestinians divided, which is an Israeli objective, and to keep Hamas off balance.

Israel and Hamas have been engaged in a secret negotiation for the better part of a year, actually more, with the objective of getting a real ceasefire in place, in return for which Israel would lift some of its incredible restrictions on movement and on the transfer of goods into and out of the Gaza Strip. And this is part of that tit-for-tat between the overwhelming force used by Israel and the relatively minor irritation of balloons that burn some crops. So, Israel will bombard with bombs and missiles, and what comes from Gaza is basically minor in comparison.

The importance of it, really, I don’t think, relates to — I don’t think relates to this larger deal involving the Emirates. It is part of a policy of divide and rule that Israel has adopted over a very long period of time, and that Palestinian division helps. So, the Palestinian leaderships in Gaza and the West Bank, that refuse to put the interests of the Palestinian people ahead of their own narrow self-interest, are playing Israel’s game — both of them, regrettably — and deserve to be sanctioned by the Palestinian people for their blindness.

AMY GOODMAN: And you also have both President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu under fierce attack for how they have dealt with the pandemic. Thousands of Israelis have been in the streets protesting Netanyahu. It has one of the worst outbreaks in the world. Do you see a relationship with what’s going on now, with this announcement? And also, how would it play out? Do you see this happening before the U.S. election? And how do you feel people in the U.S. would respond to this?

RASHID KHALIDI: Do I see annexation happening? Is that your question, Amy?

AMY GOODMAN: No. Do you see this deal being signed off on?

RASHID KHALIDI: Oh, the Emirates deal. Oh, yes, absolutely. This is a feather in — Trump sees this as a feather in his cap, as does Netanyahu. Both of them are facing enormous public opposition because of their terrible handling of the pandemic, because of their appalling handling of the economic issues, not to speak of issues of racial discrimination and police brutality in the United States, not to speak of the Palestine question and the oppression of millions and millions of Palestinians by Israel, in the case of Israel. So they both have enormous pressure on them from the street. We have demonstrations in the street; they have demonstrations in the street in Israel.

Both rulers have the kinds of autocratic tendencies — I think they wish they could be Mohammed bin Zayed or Mohammed bin Salman in Saudi Arabia, where they could simply rule by fiat. And the president is moving towards that, trying to move towards that in this country, and Netanyahu has been moving towards that himself. So, they are under enormous pressure from below. And this is a — this is meant by both of them, in terms of domestic public opinion, as a distraction.

AMY GOODMAN: This is from The New York Times, Rashid. Dennis Ross, the former Middle East negotiator for Republican and Democratic administrations, said another lure for the Emiratis was the possibility of obtaining advanced weaponry they’ve long sought, which the United States sells only to countries at peace with Israel to preserve its qualitative military edge in the region. Your thoughts?

RASHID KHALIDI: Well, the United Arab Emirates, as I mentioned, already has a anti-missile defense system, which is manufactured by Raytheon, largely from and in Israel. Obviously, it’s an American company, so they maintain the illusion that they’re buying American equipment. I am sure they would like more of this, but they can already get whatever Israel produces. Now what they hope to get, I assume, is equipment that the United States produces.

So, it is a cozy — it’s a business relationship, as Rashida Tlaib, Congresswoman Tlaib, rightly said. At base, bin Zayed is paying for protection from the local bullies on the block, the United States and Israel, from his own people, from the Arab peoples, and from external enemies. And he needs the weaponry, with which he can defend himself against these external enemies. So, yes, I think that is actually part of the deal. Ross, unusually, is right on this.

AMY GOODMAN: And finally, what do you think a just deal would look like in the Middle East and between the Israelis and the Palestinians?

RASHID KHALIDI: A just deal means equal rights for everybody. A just deal means that national rights have to be accepted for both people. The nation-state law — Israel is a Jewish nation-state — in 2018, said there’s only one people entitled to self-determination in the land of Israel. And that cannot stand. There are two peoples there. Any solution that doesn’t accept that and give them equal rights — what is paraded as a, quote-unquote, “two-state solution” is a one-state solution. One state has sovereignty and control; the other state does not. One state controls movement of everybody in and out; the other so-called state, the Palestinian state, under a so-called two-state solution, would have no control over immigration, import/export, groundwater, airspace — it would not be sovereign. Moreover, Palestinians would be restricted to a tiny fraction of the Occupied Territories, let alone of the entirety of Palestine. This is not just. And the current situation is not sustainable. So, there has to be equality of rights between both people, on every level — religious rights, personal rights, political rights and national rights.

AMY GOODMAN: Rashid Khalidi, we want to thank you so much for being with us, Edward Said professor of modern Arab studies at Columbia University, author of a number of books, his latest, The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine.

SEE
https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2020/08/dont-be-hoodwinked-by-trumps-uae-israel.html

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2020/08/mbz-uae-strongman-behind-historic-deal.html

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2020/08/uae-excusing-and-accepting-israels.html

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2020/08/backgrounder-uae-efforts-to-normalise.html

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2020/08/israel-uae-deal-how-middle-east-reacted.html

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2020/08/opinion-israel-uae-deal-means-goodbye.html

Police Threaten Portland Protesters with 'Impact Weapons' For Failure to Disperse

Portland Protests: Violent Clashes With Federal Agents Spark Renewed Marches Across 

BY BRENDAN COLE ON 8/15/20 

Portland police blocked and advanced on demonstrators they said were throwing missiles during unrest in the north of the city that has been riven by protests for more than two months.

On Friday night, protesters had blocked off traffic on North Ainsworth Street, prompting police to instruct them to leave immediately or face arrest, Portland Police said in a statement.

After they found out that around 400 people would be heading to the Portland Police Association building, which had been the scene of previous violent demonstrations, officers positioned themselves to block the marchers.

To the group gathered at N Lombard St and N Mississippi Ave, this is still an unlawful assembly. Disperse from the area now. If you do not disperse you are subject to citation or arrest and subject to the use of tear gas, crowd control munitions, and impact weapons. Disperse now.— Portland Police (@PortlandPolice) August 15, 2020

Officers said that protesters threw paint balls and projectiles and unlawful assembly was declared.

Portland police tweeted: "Failure to adhere to this order may subject you to arrest, citation, and/or the use of crowd control agents, including, but not limited to tear gas and/or impact weapons. Disperse immediately."

Officers started dispersing the crowd at around 10.20 p.m., an hour after the march had started and a pitched battle ensued with police saying that protesters threw fireworks, golf balls, pieces of concrete and glass bottles.

This brutality is unacceptable. This is the community the police are sworn to protect and serve. They must uphold Portlanders constitution rights. https://t.co/u52zPfJ47Z— Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty (@JoAnnPDX) August 15, 2020

Jonathan Taylor, of Vancouver, told The Oregonian that as he drove his motorcycle on a ride through town, an officer threw a smoke canister and pointed a gun at him, after he hit his horn and asked if he could go through a blocked street.

By the time the protesters had dispersed, at around 3.45 a.m, four people had been arrested.

READ MORE
Oregon State Police Pull Out of Portland, Say DA Won't Prosecute Protesters
Portland: 76 Nights of Protests Leads to 550 Arrests and Millions in Damage
Portland College Police Will No Longer Carry Guns Following Summer Protests


The police actions sparked criticism from Portland commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty who tweeted: "This brutality is unacceptable. This is the community the police are sworn to protect and serve. They must uphold Portlanders' Constitutional rights."

Oregon's biggest city has been the scene of nightly demonstrations following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis by a police officer in May.

The Associated Press reported that earlier this week, protesters had lit a fire and set off fireworks outside the downtown federal courthouse, the location of a number of violent altercations over the last few weeks between demonstrators and federal agents.


The size of the protests has decreased since Oregon Governor Gov. Kate Brown agreed with Vice President Mike Pence to remove federal officers, who have been replaced by Oregon State Police. However after state police said they would be pulling back, federal officers may return to the city, The Oregonian reported.

Protesters retreat after Portland police blocked the road on August 14, 2020. The streets were blocked before the protest could reach the Portland Police Association building.NATHAN HOWARD/GETTY IMAGES