onfocus

"On top of that, experts said antifa isn't even a group; it's more of a diffuse movement of leftists who share a similar ideology in opposition to fascism."

How do you demonize an authentic public movement that a majority of people support? Make up an imaginary terrorist organization and say they are behind it.

Some impressive investigation using cell phone footage from the scene of the Lafayette Square protest.

Speaking of Ezra Klein (we were!) this is a great interview with Ta-Nehisi Coates. It gets pretty deep on the nature of the State at one point and Coates has some optimism about *gestures around at everything* somehow.

Update: Here's a better link with a transcript: Why Ta-Nehisi Coates is hopeful.

By continuing to provide him with a platform, Facebook and Twitter have become a key mechanism in the president’s effort to silence his critics and violate their civil rights — not in their news feeds or timelines, but where they worship, where they gather, and even where they live.

I know I'm a broken record on this, but Facebook is a key piece of infrastructure for our lives and it's doing real harm in the world.

"Facebook’s principles and policies supporting free speech “show that the right action where we are right now is to leave this up,” Mr. Zuckerberg said on the call referring to Mr. Trump’s posts."

I just deleted my Facebook and Instagram accounts after reading this. Enough.

"So the bottom line is this: if we want to bring about real change, then the choice isn’t between protest and politics. We have to do both. We have to mobilize to raise awareness, and we have to organize and cast our ballots to make sure that we elect candidates who will act on reform."

President Obama on finding meaningful reform.

"The compromise that was reached was to leave that option open for using tear gas or riot control agents in law enforcement and only in law enforcement."

Why we allow tear gas against our own people in peacetime. See also: TED Talk: Non-lethal weapons, a moral hazard?

"The ongoing protests following the killing of George Floyd were caught up in violence again on Saturday, as police all over the country tear-gassed protesters, drove vehicles through crowds, opened fire with nonlethal rounds on journalists or people on their own property, and in at least one instance, pushed over an elderly man who was walking away with a cane."

The state is asserting its ability to continue to operate outside the law.

"Among 1,001 child contacts of these six cases there were no confirmed cases of COVID-19. In the school setting, among 924 child contacts and 101 adult contacts identified, there were no confirmed cases of COVID-19."

Super small sample size here but I hope this holds up with more investigation.

Powerful collection of American voices.

“When you’re exposed to tear gas, your eyes sting, your vision blurs, and you cry and blink uncontrollably. It gets worse the longer you’re in the gas: After a few seconds, you won’t be able to see, which will disorient and confuse you, potentially to the point of emotional and psychological distress.”

Doesn’t hurt to be prepared.