http://mainebeacon.com/gov-lepage-the-enemy-is-people-of-color/



In a press conference meant to address a series of racist and violent comments he has made over the last two days, Maine Governor Paul LePage again attempted to justify his remarks about categorizing alleged drug dealers by race, arguing that doing so was an appropriate way to “identify the enemy.”

“The enemy right now, the overwhelming majority of people coming in, are people of color or people of Hispanic origin,” said LePage.

It’s not clear how LePage believes that his anecdotal, race-based scrap-booking is helpful in addressing the underlying issue of opiod trafficking and abuse.

LePage made a series of false statements during the interview, which Press Herald reporter Scott Thistle broadcast live on Facebook, including that his voicemail to Rep. Drew Gattine was meant as a private communication. During his call, LePage said he hoped Gattine would record his obscenity-laced rant and share it publicly.

http://www.alternet.org/election-2016/rise-irreligion-gops-real-demographic-crisis

In the past several years, many trees have been felled and pixels electrocuted in the service of discussion about the impact of Hispanics on the American electorate. No one knows for sure which way they’ll vote in the future but everyone is interested in discussing it. Curiously, though, an even larger political shift is taking place yet receiving almost no attention whatsoever from political reporters — the emergence of post-Christian America.

Judging solely from the rhetoric and actions of the candidates who sought the Republican Party’s presidential nomination this year, you would be hard-pressed to tell much difference between 2016 and 1996, the year that the Christian Coalition was ruling the roost in GOP politics. Sure there was a lot more talk about the Middle East than before, but when it comes to public displays of religiosity, many of the would-be presidents have spent the majority of their candidacies effectively auditioning for slots on the Trinity Broadcast Network.

Even Donald Trump, the thrice-married casino magnate turned television host, went about reincarnating himself as a devout Christian, despite his evident lack of familiarity with the doctrines and practices of the faith.

Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee and former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum, both of whom won Iowa in past years, dropped out after failing dismally in the Hawkeye State’s caucuses. Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal quit months before even a single vote had been cast. Texas Senator Ted Cruz, despite being significantly better financed and supported by more conservative leaders than previous Christian nationalist candidates, was barely able to win any primary states at all; his main strength was in caucus states where popular appeal wasn’t as important.

http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-trump-latinos-20160820-snap-story.html

He has said that Democrats take black voters for granted and have ignored their needs while governing cities with large African American populations.

“America must reject the bigotry of Hillary Clinton, who sees communities of color only as votes, not as human beings worthy of a better future,” Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, said of his Democratic opponent at a rally in Michigan on Friday.

After waging a yearlong campaign marked by divisive and racially coded rhetoric, the Republican nominee reached out to African Americans several times last week.

He insisted at rallies in Wisconsin, North Carolina and Michigan that he would do a better job than Clinton at creating jobs and improving schools for black families.

In 2012, GOP nominee Mitt Romney won 6% of the black vote, according to exit poll data. Trump is seeing single-digit support among African Americans in most polls. In some states the billionaire businessman is polling at 0%.

Clinton’s campaign responded to Trump’s outreach by pointing out that he had been sued for housing discrimination and was a prime figure in questioning whether President Obama, the nation’s first black president, was born in the country.

“Donald Trump asks what the African American community has to lose by voting for him,” Marlon Marshall, Clinton’s director of state campaigns and political engagement, said in a statement. “The answer is everything from a man who questions the citizenship of the first African American president, courts white supremacists, and has been sued for housing discrimination against communities of color.”

Megan Lochte wins a gold medal in racist ignorance.

The Daily Beast says it took "an unprecedented but necessary step" by removing a controversial article from its website on Thursday night.

In the article, reporter Nico Hines -- a straight, married man -- recounted using dating apps like Tinder and the gay-oriented Grindr to meet athletes in the Olympic Village in Rio.

Headlined "The Other Olympic Sport In Rio: Swiping," the article drew angry accusations that Hines had outed gay athletes, whom he didn't identify by name, with his descriptions of them.

Slate slammed the piece as "disgusting and irresponsible," while author and gay rights activist Dan Savage called for the Olympics to revoke the reporter's press credentials.

"So... straight 'journalist' for @thedailybeast probably gonna get some gay guy killed with this piece," Savage tweeted on Thursday.

The Daily Beast initially responded to the criticism by making some changes to the article and publishing an editor's note. But it later admitted that didn't go far enough.

"We initially thought swift removal of any identifying characteristics and better clarification of our intent was the adequate way to address this," read a subsequent editor's note explaining the article's deletion. "Our initial reaction was that the entire removal of the piece was not necessary. We were wrong. We're sorry."

The drug will be (slightly) easier to study.

On Thursday the U.S. government announced that marijuana would continue to be classified as a Schedule 1 drug, meaning it has a high potential for abuse. However, the feds are allowing more research on marijuana’s medicinal uses by making it easier for researchers to grow it.

Many researchers, both those who view marijuana as beneficial and those who are skeptical, argue that the government’s stance still hinders research. “I understand the cautious nature of the government, whose role is basically to protect its citizens, but it is disappointing that marijuana continues to be included on the DEA’s list of the most dangerous drugs,” says Dr. Yasmin Hurd of Mount Sinai, who studies the effects of marijuana on the brain.

Though more than 20 states have legalized marijuana for medicinal uses, there’s still a lot scientists don’t know about it. “It’s actually quite amazing how little we really know about something that has been used for thousands of years,” says Sachin Patel of Vanderbilt University who studies cannabis. “We desperately need well-controlled unbiased large scale research studies into the efficacy of cannabis for treating disease states, which we have very little of right now. Without these studies we are basically flying blind with regard to medical marijuana in my opinion.”

Scientists argue that studying marijuana is safe, and researching it shouldn’t be such a difficult process. “A question that is not on the lips of researchers is whether or not the consumption of cannabis-based medicines is safe,” says Gregory Gerdeman, an Assistant Professor of Biology at Eckerd College. “In the biomedical research community, it is universally understood that cannabis is a very safe, well-tolerated medicine.”

Is marijuana an effective cancer therapy?

What does it do to the brain?

What dosage or strains have the best use in medicine?

Can marijuana help brain and cognitive problems?

What about anxiety?

Can pot help end the opioid epidemic?

Are there long term consequences of using pot?

It is a fast and furious sport played under the sun and famed for its revealing attire - with a practical uniform of bikinis for women and board shorts for men.

But these pictures show the contrasting cultures among some of the nations taking part in the Rio Olympics after the Egyptian women's beach volleyball team took to the sandy arena wearing long sleeves and leggings.

The outfit, used by Nada Meawad and Doaa Elghobashy, who also covered her head with a hijab, was in stark contrast to their German rivals Laura Ludwig and Kira Walkenhorst who stuck to the sport's traditional two-piece outfit for the clash last night.