The behavior of many people in the Pandemic is beyond reprehensible.

The childish like temper tantrums by adults in name only calls into question the maturity and intelligence of today’s grown ups.  And this foul behavior is not an American phenomena.  These dangerous, immature and brutish antics are occurring all over the World.

People simply refuse to acknowledge the seriousness of the Pandemic.

These sensible restrictions, such as mask wearing, are going to be with us for the foreseeable future. It’s scary to think about this abhorrent behavior growing worse as time goes by.

Excerpted from the San Francisco Chronicle 8.3.2021

Last Tuesday, a customer at Community Foods Market in West Oakland, upset about the store’s indoor mask mandate, threw a bag of groceries at a cashier, shattering glass items that were inside of it, owner Brahm Ahmadi said. Earlier in the month, another customer threw a watermelon at an employee, and in a separate incident the general manager had to duck to avoid a full can of soda that a customer chucked at his head, Ahmadi said.

The cashier who had a bag of groceries thrown at her last week called out for the next two shifts, he said. Ahmadi posted about the harassment to Instagram on Sunday with the message in the hope of supporting his staff: “Please don’t assault us.”

Since Community Foods Market started asking customers to mask up again in mid-July, verbal animosity and even physical harassment from customers have become a regular occurrence, Ahmadi said. His employees are worn down and stressed out, forced back into the role of public health enforcers amid conflicting local, state and federal guidance over the past few weeks.

In May 2017 Liz and I were in Berlin and visited the Sinti and Roma Memorial located next to the Bundestag. It was a very sobering experience.

Excerpted from Deutsche Welle 8.2021

On August 2, 1944, 4,300 Sinti and Roma were killed in the gas chambers of the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp. Genocide survivors described the horrors. To this day, many of their descendants are refused compensation.

Genocide in Europe: Cruelly systematic, horrifically spontaneous

In many countries today there is still very little awareness that Sinti and Roma were victims of systematic genocide, said Karola Fings. She believes the full extent of the murderous violence will only become clear with a wider European perspective.

In response, researchers are working on an encyclopedia of Nazi genocide — a project that the German Foreign Office is backing with €1.2 million ($1.4 million).

In Germany, the genocide was largely ignored for decades. Members of the police continued to employ racist methods, using Nazis files in investigations and blocking acceptance that Sinti and Roma have been gravely persecuted. That, in turn, led to further trauma for survivors: trauma that has extended into the second and third generations, said Fings.

The historian was a member of the German government’s Independent Commission on Antigypsyism which recently issued its final report. Alongside clear recognition of the genocide committed against Sinti and Roma and further investigation through the mediation of a truth commission, Fings said there must be material compensation — and not just in Germany.

“This also applies to those living in other countries, especially in Eastern Europe who after 1945 were completely shut out from compensation,” she said.

The commission also said that, as is the case with Jewish victims of Nazi persecution and their descendants, Germany must also take responsibility for ensuring “that Roma and Romnja are recognized as an especially marginalized and vulnerable group.”

Wherever in Europe the Nazis gained ground, Sinti and Roma were persecuted and forced to fight for their lives. Many were murdered, in camps, or in mass shootings. “It all depended on local occupation policies and who the local proxies were,” said Fings.

In German-occupied Poland, there were the death camps. However, there were also an estimated 180 other locations where massacres are known to have taken place. And when it comes to the Soviet Union or Yugoslavia, “most of the victims were not murdered in camps but wherever the killing happened to take place — on the spot.”

In occupied Bohemia and Moravia — today’s Czech Republic — Sinti and Roma were detained at the Lety and Hodonin camps before being deported to Auschwitz. In Croatia, Jasenovac “was a particularly horrific camp, where many were beaten to death.”

https://www.dw.com/en/europe-remembers-sinti-roma-murdered-under-nazi-rule/a-58705933

The Gold Cup final match was played in Las Vegas, the gambling hub of America. The enthsiastic and boisterous crowd was colorful and overwhelmingly pro-Mexico. In the end the USA prevailed and everyone was having a good time.

It’s the seventh Gold Cup crown for Team USA.

Next comes the 2022 World Cup qualifying matches beginning in September. It will be a tough road to Qatar for Team USA. For now the squad can enjoy the victory.

Today was coach Gregg Berhalter’s 48th birthday. Congratulations, coach.

The Guardian 8.1.2021

Miles Robinson scored on a header in the 117th minute, and a reduced United States lineup upset a mostly front-line Mexico team 1-0 on Sunday night to win the Concacaf Gold Cup.

Kellyn Acosta, the only player in the US lineup who gets playing time when the first-choice roster is together, took a free kick, and Robinson outjumped Edson Alvarez and headed the ball in on one hop to the right of goalkeeper Alfredo Talavera.

Robinson, a 24-year-old defender, got his third international goal in nine international appearances, his second goal of the tournament.

Matt Turner got his fifth shutout in six matches of the Gold Cup, the championship of North and Central America and the Caribbean.

The US won its seventh Gold Cup title, its first since 2017, matching Mexico for the most in the 15 tournaments. Canada won in 2000. It was just the second victory for the Americans in seven finals against El Tri.

The US have won nine consecutive games overall and 14 home games in a row.

Top players, who are with their clubs for European preseasons, will return when the US opens World Cup qualifying at El Salvador on 2 September. Mexico start at home that day against Jamaica.

Before an overwhelmingly pro-Mexico crowd, El Tri started seven of the 11 players who began the Nations League final that the US won in extra time in June: defenders Luis Rodriguez, Nestor Araujo, Hector Moreno and Jesus Gallardo plus midfielders Alvarez, Jesus Corona and Hector Herrera. The newcomers were Talavera, midfielders Jonathan dos Santos and Orbelin Pineda, and forward Rogelio Funes Mori, starting in place of goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa plus Carlos Rodriguez, Uriel Antuna and Hirving Lozano.

The US lineup included nine players from Major League Soccer.

The field Concacaf chose was 69 yards wide, narrower than the recommended 75 yards.

US coach Gregg Berhalter made four changes from the lineup in the semi-final win over Qatar, inserting Cannon for Shaq Moore, Bello for Sam Vine, Williamson for Gianluca Busio and Zardes for Daryl Dike.

Top photo – USA’s forward Nicholas Gioacchini, right, points at Miles Robinson after Robinson scored the winning goal during the Concacaf Gold Cup final against Mexico at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Sunday night. Photograph: Patrick T Fallon/AFP/Getty Images

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2021/aug/01/gold-cup-final-usa-mexico-miles-robinson-goal

With the continuing spread of the Delta variant strain of the Covid-19, which is approaching a two year Pandemic, the pathetic reality that people are ignoring health authorities warnings and common sense government restrictions is incredible.

Germany, a country people would like to think of as a leader in enforcing reasonable health measures, is being buffeted by a loud, obnoxious and dangerous protest movement. Origins of and support for these anti-vaccine protests can be found in Germany’s far right political scene which includes the far-right Alternative for Germany party (AfD).

Excerpted from Deutsche Welle 7.31.2021

Judges in the German capital have moved to ban a number of weekend demonstrations amid fears they will lead to a rise in coronavirus infections. Police expect protesters to travel to Berlin nonetheless.

Berlin authorities have banned more than tens of thousands of anti-lockdown protesters demonstrating this weekend.

What is the ‘Querdenker’?

The Querdenker, or lateral thinker group is Germany’s main anti-lockdown movement.

It has been monitored by the country’s intelligence agencies amid fears of its links to far-right and extremist groups.

The group has helped spread conspiracy theories about the pandemic and vaccination efforts.

They claim that COVID-19 and the federal and regional laws aimed at halting the spread of the virus, infringe on citizens’ liberties

Critics, including the far-right Alternative for Germany party, say the ban is hypocritical because authorities allowed a march of 35,000 people to take place last weekend.

Judges at the German capital’s administrative court refused to authorize 13 demonstrations, some of which had been organized by the Querdenker (Lateral thinker) anti-lockdown movement.

The ban was upheld by the Berlin-Brandeburg upper administrative court.

Organizers said 22,500 people had registered to take part in one of the rallies.

Court officials said the protests were banned amid fears of a rise in coronavirus infections sparked by the delta variant.

A separate march planned for Sunday has also been forbidden.

The “For Peace, Freedom, Truth” rally had been expected to draw 3,500 people.

Several of the demonstrations had been organized in support of Berlin’s nightclubs.

Why were the demos banned?

The court said the risk to public health was too high.

The upper court said the Querdenker movement was characterized throughout Germany “by the fact that the participants used them to violate legal norms created to contain the risk of infection in a way that attracted public attention, in particular by disregarding the social distance requirement and the mask requirement.”

Berlin police fear that many of them will still decide to travel to the German capital.

The bans affect all protests “whose participants regularly do not follow legal regulations, specifically to protect against infections,” said police spokesman Thilo Cablitz.

He cited the refusal by demonstrators to wear a mask.

https://www.dw.com/en/covid-berlin-court-bans-anti-lockdown-protests/a-58712622

The San Francisco Giants are in first place with the best record in major league baseball. Five minutes before the trading deadline the Giants made a bigtime move to solidify their status.

The now ex-Cub comes to San Francisco as a “rental player”.

Bryant will be a free agent at the end of this season. The Giants are hoping for the big payoff right now.

To keep Bryant long term will be an expensive proposition

Kris Bryant has been the face of the Cubs franchise since being drafted No. 2 in 2013

San Francisco Chronicle 7.30.2021

Two years ago, Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi established that the closer to the trade deadline, the better, swinging five moves in the final minutes.

The Chronicle confirmed that with five minutes to go, the Giants obtained one of the top position players available, snagging former NL MVP Kris Bryant from the Cubs in exchange for two minor-leaguers. Bryant, 29, is a right-handed hitter who plays multiple positions and also provides power to a team that hasn’t produced as well against left-handed starters as righties. Bryant is batting .342 against lefties with a .429 on-base percentage, and he can play third, first and all three outfield spots.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kris_Bryant

Acclaimed director Ridley Scott has directed many films including the cult classic Blade Runner along with such blockbusters as Black Hawk Down and Gladiator.

In 2021 he is here, again with House of Gucci and its all star cast. The just released trailer is must viewing.

Vanity Fair and CNN 7.29.2021

Lady Gaga, Adam Driver, an unrecognizable Jared Leto and Al Pacino headline Ridley Scott’s true crime fashion saga.

Murder has never looked this stylish. The first trailer for Ridley Scott‘s House of Gucci has just dropped, with a haunting echo of Blondie’s “Heart of Glass” underscoring this true-life tale of fashion, power, sex, and murder.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heart_of_Glass_(song)

Lady Gaga stars as Patricia Reggiani, who married into the eponymous style empire only to turn against her husband Maurizio Gucci (played by Adam Driver), the scion of a family whose very name denotes class and influence. Their relationship ended badly, to say the least, but not until after decades of volatility and a long-running legal feud with his uncle Aldo (played by Al Pacino.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurizio_Gucci

A socially conservative, economic radical has taken over as Peru’s president following a bitter election campaign.  Pedro Castillo, a farmer and former school teacher, defeated Keiko Fujimori, daughter of jailed former president Alberto Fujimori.

There is no doubt the new Peruvian president is causing anguish amongst the wealthy, particularly the country’s large copper mining interests — Peru is the world’s second-largest producer of the metal — are fearful of plans to increase taxes to pay for welfare reforms.

On the other hand, Castillo is a staunch social conservative and in favor of the death penalty.  Positions bound to agitate some of his more fervent radical supporters.

Excerpted from Deutsche Welle 7.28.2021

Former teacher Pedro Castillo officially became Peru’s new president on Wednesday.

The new president will have to deal with a fragmented Congress where he will likely have a difficult time passing some of his more radical reforms, including plans to rewrite the constitution. He will also have to deal with the far-left wing of his Free Peru party, led by Marxist neurosurgeon Vladimir Cerron.

“Castillo needs to unite the hard core of his party, but he has to do it without destroying the image the people have of him, which is that he is against radicalism,” Jeffrey Radzinsky, a Lima-based governance expert, told Reuters.

He is socially conservative, opposing gay marriage, abortion and euthanasia. He has also proposed withdrawing from the American Convention on Human Rights so that Peru can reintroduce the death penalty.

The 51-year-old son of peasant farmers was sworn in inside the Peruvian Congress.

“I swear by God, by my family, by the peasants, by the Indigenous peoples, by the ronderos [peasant patrols], fishers, professionals, children, adolescents, that I will exercise the office of President of the Republic,” Castillo said.

“I swear by the people of Peru for a country without corruption and for a new constitution.”

Castillo won the June 6 election with a slim majority of just 44,000 votes.

He is set to lead a country that was split in half by the polarized election and that is battling one of the world’s deadliest coronavirus outbreaks.

The election of Castillo has shaken up the Peruvian political establishment. The Andean country’s large copper mining interests — Peru is the world’s second-largest producer of the metal — are fearful of plans to increase taxes to pay for welfare reforms.

The inauguration coincides with Peru’s 200-year anniversary of independence from Spain. King Felipe VI of Spain, along with the presidents of Argentina, Chile, Bolivia and Ecuador, were in Lima to mark the occasion.

Castillo’s electoral win was only finally confirmed last week. His rival in the final round of voting was right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori, daughter of jailed former president Alberto Fujimori.

Keiko is also facing corruption charges that could land her in jail. She contested the results of the election, claiming fraud on Castillo’s part.

Top photo:  Peruvian President Pedro Castillo at his swearing in ceremony

https://www.dw.com/en/peru-pedro-castillo-sworn-in-as-president/a-58672989

The wheels of justice turn in harsh ways when someone, even an attorney, bucks the system.  Steve Donziger, the lawyer who took on the oil giant Chevron and won a nearly $10 billion verdict has found himself disbared and under house arrest for nearly two years.  Forced to wear what he calls the “Black Claw.”

The Guardian 7.27.2021

Steven Donziger, the lawyer who has spearheaded a lengthy fight against Chevron over pollution in the Amazon rainforest, has been found guilty of criminal contempt by a US federal judge in the latest twist in his decades-long legal battle with the oil company.

The sprawling legal saga stems from a 2011 judgment in Ecuador where Chevron was ordered to pay $9.5bn in damages to people, represented by Donziger, blighted by decades of polluted air and water allegedly caused by the company’s oil drilling operations. Chevron has never paid this, claiming “shocking levels of misconduct” by Donziger and the Ecuadorian judiciary.

On Monday, US district judge Loretta Preska ruled that Donziger was guilty of six contempt charges brought against him for refusing to hand over evidence in a complex legal wrangle that has pitted the lawyer directly against Chevron.

“I expected this and I think we’ve got a very strong chance on appeal. I expect to be vindicated,” Donziger told the Guardian after the verdict. “The whole thing was rigged, it was a sham. I’m frankly embarrassed for my country that this has happened.”

Chevron has accused Donziger of bribing the judge in Ecuador and ghostwriting the final verdict, an accusation he strenuously denies. However, in 2016 a US judge, Lewis Kaplan, found that Donziger was involved in racketeering activity and granted Chevron seizure of the lawyer’s laptop and phone. When Donziger appealed against this, he was hit with the contempt charges and placed under house arrest.

In an unusual move, a private law firm that has previously done work for Chevron was hired to prosecute Donziger after federal government prosecutors declined to take up the case.

“I wasn’t prosecuted in a fair process, I didn’t have a jury and I think Chevron is behind all of this,” Donziger said.

Preska’s judgment explicitly denies the lawyer has been the victim of a conspiracy, however. “Contrary to Mr Donziger’s assertion that his conviction was ‘pre-ordained’, the court finds him guilty on each count for one reason and one reason only: Mr Donziger did that with which he is charged. Period,” she wrote.

The Biden administration is taking the realistic tough love approach to combat The Pandemic, particularly with the jump in the number of infections.  The result of the virulent Delta variant.

It’s fortunate there is now an Administration in Washington which pays attention to science and is doing all it can to mitigate the Pandemic’s impact.

Excerpted from The Guardian 7.26.2021

Restrictions that bar much of the world’s population from the US since 2020 will not be lifted in the short term, White House says.

The announcement almost certainly dooms any bid by US airlines and the US tourism industry to salvage summer travel by Europeans and others covered by the restrictions. Airlines have heavily lobbied the White House for months to lift the restrictions and some say the industry may now have to wait until September or later for a possible revision.

The United States will not lift any existing travel restrictions “at this point” due to concerns over the highly transmissible Covid-19 Delta variant and the rising number of US coronavirus cases, the White House confirmed on Monday.

The United States currently bars most non-US citizens who within the last 14 days have been in the United Kingdom, the 26 Schengen nations in Europe without internal border controls, or in Ireland, China, India, South Africa, Iran and Brazil.

The extraordinary US travel restrictions were first imposed on China in January 2020 to address the spread of Covid-19. Other countries have since been added, most recently India in early May.

The decision comes after a senior level White House meeting late on Friday. It means that the long-running travel restrictions that have barred much of the world’s population from the United States since 2020 will not be lifted in the short term.

“Given where we are today … with the Delta variant, we will maintain existing travel restrictions at this point,” White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said on Monday, citing the spread of the Delta variant in the United States and abroad. “Driven by the Delta variant, cases are rising here at home, particularly among those who are unvaccinated and appear likely continue to increase in the weeks ahead.”

Last week, the US Homeland Security Department said US land borders with Canada and Mexico will remain closed to nonessential travel until at least 21 August – even as Canada said it would begin allowing in fully vaccinated American tourists starting 9 August.

Asked on 15 July at a joint appearance with German Chancellor Angela Merkel about when the United States would lift European travel restrictions, President Joe Biden said he would “be able to answer that question to you within the next several days – what is likely to happen”.

Merkel said any decision to lift restrictions “has to be a sustainable decision. It is certainly not sensible to have to take it back after only a few days.”

Since that news conference, US cases have jumped.

US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) director Rochelle Walensky said on Thursday the seven-day average of new cases in the United States was up 53% over the previous week. The Delta variant, which was first found in India, now comprises more than 80% of new cases nationwide and has been detected in more than 90 countries.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/jul/26/us-travel-restrictions-covid-delta-variant-white-house

Here is another example of abhorrent racist behavior in California. 

A Black Lives Mural in Santa Cruz was defaced with tire tread marks. (photo above)

The mentally challenged young men who committed this act of racist vandalism might as well have been wearing Ku Klux Klan uniforms when they performed this despicable act.

San Francisco Chronicle 7.25.2021

Police have arrested two people on suspicion of defacing a Black Lives Matter mural painted on a street in downtown Santa Cruz, investigators said Sunday.

At a community meeting Sunday morning at Police Department headquarters that was attended by several dozen people and also broadcast on Facebook, tensions ran high, with many questioning why the two men were not charged with a hate crime.

“This was a terrorist act against the Black community,” said one attendee. “This is actually an act of violence, it’s psychological damage.”

The mural at 800 Center St. was defaced with vehicle tread marks late Friday, according to authorities, who said they received reports early Saturday.

“The targeted vandalism of the … mural is heartbreaking and violating,” Santa Cruz Mayor Donna Meyers said Sunday.

Brandon Bochat, 20, of Santa Cruz and Hagan Warner, 19, of Boulder Creek (Santa Cruz County) were seen on video provided to law enforcement by community members “burning out” or intentionally applying vehicle tread marks to the length of the mural, officials said.

The two took turns driving over the mural, authorities said. Police Chief Andy Mills said Sunday that the underlying street was also damaged.

“This was an intentional act of vandalism on something that our community holds dear,” Mills said Sunday.

“For those who seek to minimize the events that took place,” he added, “shame on you. This was meaningful to this community, and we will do everything within our power to make sure those who did this are brought to justice.”

City Manager Martín Bernal said the city is working closely with the Santa Cruz Equity Collaborative, the organization that originally helped create the mural, to repair the damage as soon as possible. He added the work is still in progress, and staff does not have a specific dates for completion yet.

The two suspects were arrested and booked on felony vandalism charges Saturday night, police said. Both were released on bail.

Mills said investigators are still collecting evidence, including looking at the social media accounts of those arrested. He added that if sufficient evidence exists at the end of an investigation, the two will be charged with a hate crime.

Investigators are still looking for at least two more people in connection with the vandalism. Anyone with information about this case is encouraged to contact the Santa Cruz Police Department Investigations Unit at (831) 420-5820.

https://www.sfchronicle.com/crime/article/Two-arrested-on-suspicion-of-vandalizing-Black-16338756.php