Tuesday, July 24, 2018

Tuesday's Garbage

Starting on top of the bag:

Police Commissioner William Evans to retire

I'm not interested, even if he is being replaced by Boston’s first black police commissioner.

Meets with the Globe's approval, though, even if it is going to cost some money.


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Pot is legal, but is it safe?

Globe will tell you as they light up.

What stinks?

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Immigration crackdown extends to new citizens

That's your national lead as they flog the agenda yet again.

Duck boat inquiry will check if Coast Guard rules were ignored

They have confidence in the investigation.

Drought leads to extreme measures to protect wild horses

Michigan woman celebrates 108 years with five generations of family

Family of woman killed by Minneapolis officer sues

Still won't help them get over the grief.

"New York City vowed to fix the subway a year ago, but on-time rates are still terrible" July 24, 2018

NEW YORK — A series of meltdowns and accidents on New York City’s subway last summer led to a startling admission: The system was in crisis and in desperate need of immediate repairs.

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo, after declaring the subway to be in a state of emergency, promised that a rescue plan by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority would deliver results. The authority’s chairman, Joseph J. Lhota, said subway riders would see improvements “relatively quickly,” but long delays continue to upend New Yorkers’ lives. Trains are still breaking down at an aggravating pace. Signal equipment dating to the Great Depression repeatedly wreaks havoc across the system.

The authority’s own statistics show minor progress in some areas, but no major boost in reliability, despite the hundreds of millions of dollars spent on repairs. The on-time rate for trains hovers near 65 percent on weekdays — about the same as a year ago.

Where has all the money gone?

Subway leaders say the rescue plan, known as the subway action plan, is gradually improving service. There have been no major derailments like last June, when an A train crashed in Harlem, injuring more than two dozen people.

Yeah, you shouldn't complain because the trains haven't crashed!

Andy Byford, the subway’s new leader, said that the rescue effort was focused on making the existing system more reliable, and that a separate long-term overhaul plan would provide larger and sustained benefits.

“The subway action plan was designed to arrest a decline in performance and to stabilize the system,” Byford said in an interview.

The subway action plan is expected to pour $836 million into fixing the system. So far, officials have spent about $333 million on repairs and hired an additional 1,100 workers. About $253 million has gone toward operating costs and $79 million for capital spending. Lhota called for 2,700 new workers, but it is unclear how many the agency will hire.

--more--"

And now there is not even anything to read.

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Trump ‘exploring’ idea to revoke security clearances of 6 Obama aides

They should be revoked. 

They spied on the Senate under him, remember?

Trump tries to cast fresh doubt on Robert Mueller’s inquiry

That's why they are turning the page to Manafort again, and fresh doubts must mean there already were some!

Senate confirms Robert Wilkie as veterans affairs secretary

By a vote of 86 to 9, and I wish him luck.

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Toronto shooting leaves 2 dead, 13 injured

That's my World lead.

"Indian mob lynches woman on rumors of child kidnapping" Associated Press  July 24, 2018

NEW DELHI — A woman was lynched in central India on rumors that she was part of a gang that kidnapped children, police said Monday, days after the highest court called for immediate steps to control deadly mob violence across the country.

She was no saint.

The Indian government announced Monday that it is setting up two committees to recommend ways to deal with the growing mob violence.

India has a long history of mob violence, but in recent years, the Internet has aided the circulation of deadly rumors even to remote places.....

Yeah, blame the Internet.

--more--"

Speaking of garbage:

"Waves of garbage crash into Dominican Republic’s beaches" by Palko Karasz New York Times   July 24, 2018

NEW YORK — Come for the beaches, say tourism ads for the Dominican Republic. But it has some beaches you might want to skip right now.

The Caribbean nation is known for its ivory beaches and sapphire seas, but it is grappling with waves of garbage washing up on its shores, a vivid reminder of the presence of thousands of tons of plastic in the world’s oceans.

On Montesinos beach in the Dominican capital, Santo Domingo, hundreds of city workers and volunteers have been waging an uphill battle against wave after wave of sludgy garbage. Images have shown teams using pikes, shovels, and excavators to remove the garbage, only to be met with new waves carrying even more.

Sixty tons of garbage have been collected on the beach since last week. The images are shocking, but perhaps not for people who live in the Dominican Republic.

Sixty tons? 

With all due respect, seems like a more immediate problem than "climate change."

The phenomenon is not confined to the Dominican Republic, said Cyrill Gutsch, founder of Parley for the Oceans, an organization that works to reduce waste in the world’s oceans.....

As long as it doesn't wash up on U.S. shores, 'kay?

--more--"

Btw, what is going on next door in Haiti?

"Gunmen kill four civilians in mosque in Afghanistan" Associated Press  July 24, 2018

KABUL — Gunmen opened fire on worshipers inside a mosque in eastern Nangarhar province over the weekend, killing four people, officials said.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but both the Taliban and Islamic State militants are active in eastern Afghanistan, especially in Nangarhar province.

Earlier Sunday, an Islamic State suicide bomber struck near Kabul’s airport, killing 20 people and narrowly missing Afghanistan’s vice president, who was returning home after living in Turkey for over a year.....

And who would that be?

--more--"

Meanwhile, right next door:

Health of jailed former Pakistan leader declines

He's lucky we wasn't shot

I heard Russia was interfering in that election as well.

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In China, vaccine scandal infuriates parents and tests government

At least they are helping out in Africa.

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"A furor has erupted over leaked documents showing that British officials are not requiring the United States to provide assurances that two alleged British jihadis linked to the Islamic State will not be executed if they are put on trial in the United States....."

They are from the group that was making the fake beheading videos!!

Record high in Japan as heat wave grips the region

This comes on top of record floods, and the fires in Greece only received a photograph in my printed pos. 

What's with the gerrymandering?

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Baker challenges Trump proposal that targets abortion

State Senate turned over Bryon Hefner records to federal grand jury

Call for boycott of Faneuil Hall spotlights namesake’s ties to slavery

Doesn't seem to be a concern with the kids.


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Monkey inspired Dr. Seuss’s Lorax character

Everyone knows he was a racist.

Time to put him out to pasture -- with no appeal.

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Undocumented immigrants seeking special crime-victim visa turn to anti-bias agency

They are fixing up a room for you as I type. 

I know I'm forgetting something.

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Tesla investors again worry about carmaker’s finances

You will never guess where they are relocating the factory (because it is good for business).

I'd say grab a bike, but.....

"A dockless bike-sharing company, which proved popular but also susceptible to vandals, is pulling its bikes out of Lynn, Quincy, and Worcester, the only three Massachusetts cities where the company operated. Over the last several weeks, many bikes have been found underwater....."

Along with some people(?).

Better grab a scooter then.

"Tronc cuts Daily News newsroom in half, ousts editor-in-chief" by Jaclyn Peiser New York Times  July 23, 2018

NEW YORK — The meeting lasted less than a minute. By the time it was over, reporters and editors at the New York Daily News had been told that the newsroom staff was being cut in half and that editor-in-chief Jim Rich was out of a job.

The layoffs were not unexpected. The blog Study Hall reported Thursday that a large percentage of the staff was to be laid off and that Rich would not be returning to the newsroom after a vacation.

At 1:40 a.m. Monday, Rich went public with his displeasure in a Twitter post: “If you hate democracy and think local governments should operate unchecked and in the dark, then today is a good day for you.”

Since Tronc, which is based in Chicago, bought the News from New York real estate developer and media mogul Mortimer B. Zuckerman in September 2017 — for a reported $1 — it has been examining its latest asset.

Can it even be called that?

In a memo sent to the paper’s employees minutes after the quick Monday morning meeting, the company said that it had been working to transform the tabloid into a publication better suited to the digital age.

After noting the paper is grappling with “significant financial challenges,” the Tronc statement got down to the details: “We are reducing today the size of the editorial team by approximately 50 percent and refocusing much of our talent on breaking news — especially in areas of crime, civil justice and public responsibility.”

It was not the first time the News had made sweeping cuts. In 2015, under Zuckerman’s ownership, the paper laid off dozens of employees, including virtually its entire digital team. A company that once had hundreds of employees has over the years dwindled to a newsroom staff of approximately 75 to 100.

“You used to go into the office and feel the energy,” said Frank Isola, a sports columnist who has been at the News for nearly 25 years. “I’ve probably been in the office, I would say, maybe three times in the last three years. There’s nobody there.”

He spends his days at ESPN now!

Isola was among those cut, as the sports department went from 35 employees to nine.

The latest layoffs were yet another blow to the tabloid, which was once a no-nonsense staple publication for New York’s working class and had the highest daily circulation of any newspaper in the country. In 1947, The News boasted a 2.4 million daily circulation, its highest figure.

Well, with less of them around.....

In recent years, its print circulation numbers have fallen to roughly 200,000.....

--more--"

I don't want to talk about them anymore.


&&&&&&&&

NEXT DAY UPDATES (starting just below the fold):

"The recommendations that pastors, activists, and academics offered underscored the enormous pressure that William G. Gross, the first black leader of Boston’s force, will face as he seeks to reduce violence and improve trust in the department, particularly among residents of color....."

He is making history and has the support of the community.

Commonwealth Avenue Bridge could spell traffic trouble this summer

Globe trying to kick you in the ass.


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More than 450 migrant parents may have been deported without their children

Judge orders release of pizza-worker immigrant

My national leads on Wednesday (also on the front page of the B-section).

Where is Jeff Sessions anyway?


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Congo confirms end of latest deadly Ebola outbreak 

I don't know how they can say that after yesterday, and it's all about the vaccines.


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