DP 8/11/2021
August 11, 2021
As promised, here are the results of the vaccine survey we sent out last week. We’d like to again encourage all of you to get vaccinated if you are able to. They are safe, effective, and the best weapon we have against this virus. Visit the CDC’s website to find your closest pharmacy with available vaccines.
“Earth and sky, woods and fields, lakes and rivers, the mountain and the sea, are excellent schoolmasters, and teach some of us more than we can ever learn from books.” — John Lubbock
Cuomo, Uncuomo
Mario Cuomo was New York’s dynamic and popular governor for three terms, serving from 1983 to 1994. The senior Cuomo exuded charisma, a gift for powerful oratory, and steadfast dedication to hard work and Democratic values. Andrew Cuomo followed his father into politics and was himself elected New York’s governor three times. He served from January 1, 2011, until his very reluctant resignation this week, on August 10, 2021. Andrew Cuomo had every intention of running for a fourth term in 2022. Had he run and been elected, he would have been only the second governor of New York in modern history to win four terms, after Nelson Rockefeller, who served from 1958 to 1973.
On Tuesday, Andrew Cuomo succumbed to relentless political pressure to resign, following an investigation and scathing report by the state’s attorney general concluding that he had sexually harassed 11 women while in office. Cuomo’s 20-minute resignation speech Tuesday morning showed he had his father’s gift for compelling speech-making. It could have left some viewers with a sense of sadness that such a capable, strong, articulate leader was stepping down. But it also showed a stubborn, entitled politician more concerned with defending his political legacy than truly grasping the reality of his years-long hubristic behavior.
At one point, Cuomo said he took “full responsibility,” and yet he didn’t accept the conclusions of the report as factual, and didn’t say he was sorry for anything. He said: “I am a fighter and my instinct is to fight through this controversy because I truly believe it is politically motivated, I believe it is unfair and it is untruthful….” He tried to frame what he was accused of as a “generational divide,” saying he was just trying to be friendly, and never thought he was overstepping any boundaries. “I have done it all my life. It’s who I have been since I can remember. In my mind, I have never crossed the line with anyone, but I didn’t realize the extent to which the line has been redrawn. There are generational and cultural shifts that I just didn’t fully appreciate – and I should have. No excuses.”
“Me Too” founder Tarana Burke took strong exception to Cuomo’s blaming “generational and cultural shifts” for the sexual harassment allegations against him. Burke tweeted: “This ‘generational difference’ and ‘rules have changed’ nonsense is WRONG. The *rules* have NOT changed. It was WRONG 50 years ago and today. The difference is there were few paths to accountability years ago.” In other words, it’s not that the rules have changed, just attention to the subject. “The rule of ‘keep your hands to yourself’ is universal. We all learned that in Kindergarten,” she continued in a Twitter thread. “Nothing is NEW here. Women didn’t JUST start fighting back and speaking up. We just finally found a frequency that folks can hear us more clearly on.” (Independent, CBS News, ag.ny.gov, CNN)
Airing Grievances
- Mexico is one of the most dangerous countries in the world to be a journalist. But while attacks on local reporters are common, public warnings are rare. Now, men claiming to speak for Mexico’s most powerful drug cartel, Jalisco New Generation cartel (CJNG), have released a video threatening to murder a prominent female news anchor over what they deem to be unfair news coverage.
- A man in the video complains that Milenio Television is being biased in their coverage of the battle between the cartel and vigilante groups organized to resist the CJNG. A masked speaker, surrounded by six heavily armed men, warns journalist Azucena Uresti specifically, saying “I will make you eat your words even if they accuse me of femicide.”
- Uresti is one of the best-known TV anchors in Mexico and presents Milenio TV’s nightly news program. Groups representing journalists have supported her and demanded the government offer her protection. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said that Uresti “was not alone,” and that she “could count on us” without providing any details of what the government would do to protect her. (BBC)
Algerian Fire Turns Deadly
- Wildfires ravaging mountain forests and villages in northern Algeria have killed at least 25 soldiers and 17 civilians. Multiple fires burned through forests in the difficult-to-access mountainous region of Kabyle — 60 miles east of the capital of Algiers — that is home to the Berber population.
- The inferno devoured the olive trees, cattle, and chickens that provide livelihoods for the villagers. The army was sent to help citizens using buckets, branches, and rudimentary tools to battle the blazes — the region has no water-dumping planes. No immediate explanation was offered for the high death toll among the military; however, photos and videos posted on social media showed soldiers battling flames wearing only army fatigues without protective clothing.
- By Monday evening, officials had counted 41 blazes in 18 regions. On Tuesday, the North African nation’s prime minister told state television that initial reports from security services showed the fires in Kabyle were “highly synchronized,” and could be the result of arson. (WaPo)
Additional World News
- Ethiopia urges citizens to join fight against Tigrayan forces (Reuters)
- As Wildfires Ravage Greece, Countries Send Aid (NYT, $)
- IPCC report shows ‘possible loss of entire countries within the century’ (Guardian)
- Why Most Europeans Still Can’t Travel to the US (NYT, $)
- China upholds Canadian’s death sentence as Huawei case looms (NBC)
- Survivors of Guatemalan mudslide face death or emigration (AP)
- China recalls Lithuania ambassador in Taiwan diplomatic office row (Guardian)
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Texas, We Have A Problem
- Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott wants to be reelected, and he keeps being pushed farther right by hostile challengers in his own party who are even more ideologically extreme than he is. In May, Abbott issued an executive order banning public schools and most other governmental entities from requiring masks. Three months later, the Delta variant is raging throughout the state, hospitalizations are rising among all age groups, including children, and schools are starting.
- On Monday, as a county-owned hospital in Houston put up tents to accommodate their coronavirus patient overflow, Abbott appealed for out-of-state help to fight Texas’ third wave of COVID-19. He directed the Department of State Health Services to use staffing agencies to find additional medical staff outside Texas, and asked hospitals to postpone all elective medical procedures. But Abbott continues to stubbornly refuse to lift his mask mandate ban, so Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins filed a lawsuit asking a judge to strike down the ban.
- On Monday, both the Dallas Independent School District and the Austin Independent School District announced that students, staff, and visitors must wear masks on district property in accordance with guidance from the CDC. Houston ISD is expected to follow suit this week. Tuesday evening two Texas judges, in Dallas County and Bexar County (San Antonio), issued temporary restraining orders blocking the enforcement of the governor’s ban. (Guardian, The Hill, KVIA-ABC News)
A Line In The Oil Sands
- Protests are growing against Line 3 of the oil sands pipeline currently under construction through Minnesota. More than 600 people have been arrested or received citations as they seek to highlight the environmental impact of the pipeline, especially amid an escalating climate crisis caused by fossil fuel emissions. Native American tribes and indigenous-led organizations are leading the opposition efforts in court and on the ground, mobilizing “water protectors” to try halting the project.
- The energy firm Enbridge is constructing the pipeline and paying the salaries of police officers who are providing security as a part of a deal struck with the state. The pipeline was approved in exchange for a promise taxpayers wouldn’t have to foot the bill for policing.
- Enbridge’s Line 3 tar sands pipeline is a 1,097-mile crude oil pipeline extending from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada to Superior, Wisconsin. Most of the pipeline’s 330-mile long U.S. route is being built in Minnesota, and crosses more than 200 bodies of water and 75 miles of wetlands. (Guardian)
Additional USA News
- Black real estate agent and his clients handcuffed at house viewing after neighbor wrongly reported break-in (CBS)
- DeSantis’ office says salaries of officials who require masks for students may be withheld (Yahoo)
- Californians draw guns on firefighters trying to rescue them from wildfire (The Hill)
- Pentagon announces COVID-19 vaccines will be mandatory for troops by mid-September (CBS)
- Andrew Cuomo: Time’s Up leader resigns over ties to governor (BBC)
- Democrats gamble on GOP caving in debt ceiling fight (The Hill)
- Senate Dems unveil $3.5T budget for social, climate efforts (ABC)
You Better Shop Around
An enduring debate continues over where to stock ethnic foods in American grocery stores. Should they be lumped together in one international section? Should each country have its own aisle? Or should all ethnic foods just share shelves with other typically American cuisines like macaroni & cheese or Rice-a-Roni?
In 2019, Kroger accelerated its effort to move products from the ethnic aisle into other parts of the store. Local retail chains, like Food Bazaar in the New York metropolitan area, have sections dedicated to specific countries like Pakistan and Ecuador, rather than a single international section. Megastores like H Mart and online grocers like Weee! have gone so far as to display non-Western foods right up front.
Some argue an ethnic food section is anachronistic, since 40% of the population identifies as nonwhite. Even signs emblazoned with the word “ethnic” seem meaningless; after all, everybody has an ethnicity. But at many grocery stores, a wholesale elimination of the ethnic aisle may not be easy, or even all that popular. One white shopper thinks mixing it all together would make finding different kinds of ingredients much more difficult. Another shopper doesn’t like the quality or selection in his local small grocer’s ethnic section, but it beats driving to a bigger city’s Vietnamese market to get soy sauce.
Cuong Pham, founder and CEO of the Bay Area company Red Boat, wants customers to use its fish sauce for pastas and vinaigrettes, not just in East Asian dishes. But because it’s usually placed in the ethnic aisle, he says it limits perceptions of the ingredient’s uses. Pham thinks the aisle probably exists more for people looking to find ingredients new to them, rather than for the communities whose cuisines are represented there.
A former VP of grocery at Whole Foods contends the ethnic aisle is part of “a legacy of white supremacy and colonialism” built into the framework of the grocery business, starting with the low wages paid to hourly workers, often people of color, and the lack of diversity among store buyers. He and other employees often talked about eliminating the ethnic aisle at Whole Foods, only they couldn’t convince the company to go for it.
Just to be fair, some grocery stores in countries like France and Columbia have “American” aisles, with products like peanut butter, mayonnaise, boxed cake mix, and barbecue sauce. And who knows? Maybe it even includes macaroni & cheese and Rice-a-Roni. (NYT)
Additional Reads
- Boeing Starliner launch problems more widespread than previously reported (WaPo, $)
- The ocean is about to flip a switch that could permanently disrupt life on Earth: study (Salon)
- 4th person in US mysteriously stricken with deadly bacteria from South Asia (Ars Technica)
- Why Even the Fastest Human Can’t Outrun Your House Cat (Wired)
- Gymnasts Make the Wolf Turn Look Easy. Physics Shows It’s Not (Wired)
- NASA watchdog says return of astronauts to moon by 2024 ‘not feasible’ due to spacesuit delays (CNN)