'Our paychecks bounced': US workers in limbo as coalmines suddenly close

Blackjewel files for chapter 11 in a move critics say is increasingly used to avoid paying workers what they are owed

On 1 July, Missy Cole was notified by her bank that her husband’s most recent paycheck had bounced, leaving their account more than $1,000 in the red. Her husband had worked as a coalminer for nearly three years at one of the eastern Kentucky mines operated by Revelation Energy affiliate Blackjewel mining.

But both companies had filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy, a financial move that has implications far beyond just laying off staff as the ex-workers now wait for bankruptcy proceedings to play out. Critics say the move is a ploy increasingly used in the struggling industry to avoid paying workers what they are owed.

“A layoff is always expected with miners. It’s always in the back of your mind and it’s no surprise when it happens in the coal industry. But this is much more than a layoff,” Cole told the Guardian.

“We have absolutely no access to our bank accounts. Those accounts are still negative, and falling deeper into the negative daily. We cannot even touch his 401(k) to withdraw money to survive on without the signature of the Blackjewel mining CEO or his personnel.”

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/jul/22/blackjewel-mines-shut-down-layoffs-future


Since a lot of these miners voted for the trumpster.........................they now have a new worry too putting food on the table, guess what...............................they will have a whole new "means test".....................congratulations, now what do you think of your "guy"..........................and the cronies at the mine.....................pocketing your 401K savings........................because of the two books being used hiding the robbery, if you have money in savings, even if you can't get access to the savings or the bounced checks, you can't collect unemployment insurance, why might you ask, its an asset.........................

So, come next November 3, 2020 just think about all of those great jobs he said he was going to save for you, and the CEO of the mine ripping you off..........................and giving that money to trump for his re-election..........don't you just love being sold a bill of goods on making maga again, don't you................................

So the next time your in line for SNAP just thank your trumpster and how you support a narcissistic treasonous racist asshole that doesn't give one iota about you, but himself and his cronies...........................so put on that hard hat and or that red hat and that red white and blue shirt .......and then have your signs at his rallies and just smile, so that he can tell himself, while your cheering and wondering about your next plate of food chanting "send them back" (that maybe he and his trolls are talking about you) .............and while you stand in line for SNAP...........................knowing that he has now made another "means test" of outright bullshit of just lacking any empathy or vision except of his, I got mine, attitude, because after all who needs food, and you paid for that program ( Snap) to protect you in the event you are now in...............................

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10142344802

A GOP senator just laid out his blueprint for theocratic segregationism

May the Lord open.
Ian Millhiser
Jul 22, 2019, 8:00 am

The frustrating thing about Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), is that he so often walks right up to the edge of an excellent idea, presenting a compelling case that he’s identified a problem that demands a solution — and then suddenly offers a completely ridiculous solution or nothing at all.

Such was the case at the “National Conservatism” conference, which took place in Washington, DC last week. Railing against the impact of globalization on many American workers, Hawley attacked the goal of “a global consumer economy” intended to “provide an endless supply of cheap goods, most of them made with cheap labor overseas, and funded by American dollars.”

Too many American workers, Hawley accurately notes, are left with “flat wages, with lost jobs, with declining investment and declining opportunity.” America leaves behind workers without specialized skills. “We don’t make things here anymore—at least, not the kinds of things a normal person without a fancy degree can build with his hands.”

It’s a familiar grievance in the age of Trump. But it’s also not a frivolous one. If you want to understand why so much of America’s white working class abandoned liberal democracy and rallied behind a racist populist president, you’ll find part of the explanation in the elephant curve.

https://thinkprogress.org/a-u-s-senator-just-laid-out-a-blueprint-for-turning-the-united-states-into-a-theocracy-17f8262398df/

-snip-

Hawley’s speech, in other words, is nothing less than a direct attack on our national motto — E Pluribus Unum, out of many, one. For Josh Hawley, America’s youngest senator, our nation’s original sin is its embrace of pluralism.

The second frustrating thing about Josh Hawley is that he is a liar. As a candidate for the United States Senate, Hawley literally used his own son as a prop to deflect allegations that he wanted to strip federal protections from Americans with preexisting conditions.

There is a precedent for this kind of immigration policy. In 1924, at the urging of the Ku Klux Klan, Congress enacted an immigration law that assigned “quotas for immigrants in proportion to the ethnicity of those already in the United States in 1890.” Like Hawley, the lawmakers who supported this legislation believed that America must have a common cultural identity.

Hawley’s “kingdom politics” are more Christian nationalist than they are explicitly racist. But the vision that animates Hawley is the same vision that animated the 1924 immigration law. It’s a vision which teaches that sameness is strength, that diversity is dangerous, and that E Pluribus Unum is an abomination.


https://thinkprogress.org/a-u-s-senator-just-laid-out-a-blueprint-for-turning-the-united-states-into-a-theocracy-17f8262398df/

So this Hawley "guy" talks out of both sides of his mouth......................and he appears to hide his racism..............

Boris Johnson blimp takes flight in London as anti-Brexit protesters call 'national emergency'

Updated about 4 hours ago

Campaigners who oppose Britain leaving the European Union have unfurled a "Boris blimp" outside Parliament in London, mocking the man who is expected to become the country's next leader.
Key points:

Polls indicate Boris Johnson is on track to win the British prime ministership
Mr Johnson was a figurehead of the Brexit referendum's successful Vote Leave campaign
Protesters have labelled Britain's impending departure from the EU a "national emergency"

Boris Johnson was caricatured as a crying child in a stunt reminiscent of the baby Donald Trump balloon used to protest against the US President's visit to London last month.

Formerly the mayor of London and British foreign minister, Mr Johnson was a key figure in the Brexit movement which was successful in a June 2016 referendum on whether to leave the EU.

He has pledged to complete Britain's withdrawal from the EU by October 31, irrespective of whether a deal can be successfully reached.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-07-21/boris-johnson-blimp-takes-off-in-london/11329136


WE need more blimps here in the states...................on our racist "guy" fucking the country, Pence, Barr, you name it we need blimps, wherever they travel, with signs on them saying we want a fascists country for the whites.......................leave go back home, and this message has been approved by the committee to re-elect the head clown.......................

The Song that dominated the charts during the Apollo Moon landing..............

Trump's been quietly shutting down defense programs that protect Americans from terrorism

By Mike Stankiewicz -
July 19, 2019

The cuts were reportedly made without a thorough review of the potential risks to national security.

The Trump administration quietly canceled several important national security programs, which were created after 9/11 to help protect Americans from weapons of mass destruction.

More than 30 current and former Department of Homeland Security employees said they did not know why the Trump administration stopped the programs. The employees warned the cuts could hinder the agency's ability to respond to a nuclear attack, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The programs cut over the past two years include training exercises for dealing with weapons of mass destruction at the state and local level. Another initiative that worked with foreign governments to prevent the smuggling of nuclear materials was also abandoned.

The cuts were reportedly made without a thorough review of the potential risks to national security.

Additionally, more than 100 scientists and nuclear experts have been reassigned or have left the Department of Homeland Security, hurting the agency’s ability to protect Americans.

https://shareblue.com/trump-shutting-down-defense-programs-protect-americans-terrorism/


And the asshole goes on a trip to spew and encourage his racists event, with paid trolls yelling "send her back" . Then the nest day he is at the white house next day and is pissed off that he is getting blow back and says that she and others are not patriots, while this asshole has his lackey dismantling national security programs that detect WMD's ......................fucking traitors....................

And then McDonnell refuses to answer some questions.....................

https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2019-07-17/times-investigation-homeland-security-gutted-programs-aimed-at-stopping-wmd-terrorism

GOP's most vulnerable senator is struggling to raise enough cash in Colorado

By Dan Desai Martin -
July 19, 2019

Sen. Cory Gardner raised less than $2 million this quarter, compared to more than $4.3 million raised by Democrats seeking to oust him.

The Republican majority in the Senate is in danger for 2020, and Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner's lackluster fundraising totals could help Democrats regain control of the chamber.

Gardner, ranked as the nation's most vulnerable Republican senator by the Washington Post, raised less than $2 million in the past three months, according to data released Thursday by Daily Kos Elections. The five Democrats vying to oust Gardner from the Senate raised a combined $4.3 million during that same time.

"[W]hile it's still early in the election cycle, it looks like fundraising is once again a bullish indicator for Democrats' success, at least in the Senate," FiveThirtyEight's Nathanial Rakich wrote Wednesday. In competitive Senate races, which includes Colorado, "Democrats have raised $34.1 million in total contributions in the first six months of 2019, and Republicans have raised $29.3 million."

Mike Johnson, a former state senator, leads the Democratic pack in fundraising, pulling in just shy of $1.6 million this past quarter and has outraised Gardner in the past six months, even though, as Rakich notes, "incumbents usually raise more money than challengers early on."

https://shareblue.com/cory-gardner-colorado-fundraising-struggle/

The Southern Path to a Democratic Win in 2020

July 19, 2019 | pppadmin

The lion’s share of discussion about the states Democrats need to win to take back the White House in 2020 has focused on the trio of Midwestern states of Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Those states do indeed present the clearest path to 270 electoral votes and our early polling has found that Democrats are well positioned in them. But new PPP surveys in a pair of states- Georgia and North Carolina- that combined have only voted Democratic for President once in the last 27 years- show a possible backup plan to victory in the South as well.

Trump is underwater in both Georgia (which he won by 5 points in 2016) and North Carolina (which he won by 4 points in 2016.) In Georgia 45% of voters approve of the job he’s doing to 49% who disapprove and in North Carolina 46% of voters approve of the job he’s doing to 48% who disapprove. In Georgia Trump trails a generic Democrat for reelection 50-46, and in North Carolina Trump trails a generic Democrat for reelection 49-44. We wouldn’t go so far as to say Trump is an underdog based on these numbers- Democrats may very well end up with a candidate who’s not as strong as Good Old Generic- but we see them as toss ups if Trump remains as unpopular as he is right now.

Even though Georgia hasn’t voted Democratic for President since 1992 and North Carolina has only voted Democratic for President once since 1976 (2008) it shouldn’t be much of a surprise that either of these states is looking competitive for next year.

In 2008 Georgia voted for John McCain by 5 points as Barack Obama won the popular vote nationally by 7 points, thus voting 12 points to the right of the country. In 2016 Georgia voted for Donald Trump by 5 points as Hillary Clinton won the popular vote nationally by 2 points, thus voting only 7 points to the right of the country. That trend of Georgia becoming increasingly purple relative to the rest of the country continued last year when Stacey Abrams lost the Governor’s race by only a point.

https://www.publicpolicypolling.com/polls/the-southern-path-to-a-democratic-win-in-2020/

Georgia:

https://www.publicpolicypolling.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/GeorgiaResults.pdf

North Carolina:

https://www.publicpolicypolling.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/NorthCarolinaResults.pdf

Black 'Fox & Friends' fan reassures the president: 'African Americans love you!'

Published 1 min ago
on July 18, 2019

By Travis Gettys

As another racism scandal engulfs the White House, Fox News hauled a black audience member in front of the camera to assure President Donald Trump that African-American voters “love” him.

A former White House official was quoted this week saying that Trump got a warped sense of his popularity with black voters from watching Fox News all day, and the network provided a crystal-clear example of that Thursday morning.

“It’s crazy,” said a member of the studio audience who identified himself as Jim, from Scarsdale, New York. “AOC, she is really new speaker of the House. This Omar is the chairman of the Democrat Party. This stuff about racism and attacking President Trump.”

“African-Americans love the economy right now,” Jim continued. “We have got 6 million new jobs, 1.5 million jobs for African-Americans. He has produced over $100 million for opportunity zones 8,000 regions that are depressed in the United States. He’s doing the right thing.”

https://www.rawstory.com/2019/07/black-fox-friends-fan-reassures-the-president-african-americans-love-you/

My answer to Jim.........................bullshit...............take a look at these facts................about your so called "opportunity zone" in the state of South Dakota...........................................

https://www.re-member.org/pine-ridge-reservation.aspx

Gordon Brown: 'Boris Johnson could be UK's last prime minister'

Ex-PM says Johnson’s anti-Europe conservatism is seen in Scotland as anti-Scottish

Boris Johnson could be the UK’s last prime minister, Gordon Brown has warned, after the Conservative leadership frontrunner met Scottish MPs to reassure them of his desire to bolster the union.

Johnson’s meeting with 11 out of the 13 Scottish Conservatives at Westminster on Wednesday is understood to have covered when he should first visit Scotland if elected, how colleagues north of the border could feed into policy decisions and the future structuring of government – Johnson has proposed a “union unit” within Downing Street. The meeting was described as “positive” and “businesslike”.

Brown, the former Labour prime minister, warned of an approaching “head-on conflict” between Johnson’s hardline views and the Scottish National party’s “extreme nationalism”, with its intention to abandon the pound and leave the UK single market and customs union.

Writing in the Scottish Daily Mail about his plans for a new thinktank to make the “positive, patriotic and progressive case for the union”, Brown said: “Nothing illustrates the sterility of this head-to-head confrontation better than yesterday when, in the wake of news of Scotland having the worst and most deadly drug problem in Europe, the SNP and the Conservatives simply blamed each other.”

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/jul/18/gordon-brown-boris-johnson-could-be-uk-last-prime-minister-

"clusterfuck".........................

Florida city constantly plays Baby Shark to deter homeless from civic building

Official praises ‘effective temporary measure’ using looped children’s song to drive away people from banqueting venue

City officials in West Palm Beach, Florida, are using extremely catchy children’s music to try and drive away homeless people from one of its civic buildings.

The city’s mayor, Keith James, confirmed to Fox News that the songs Baby Shark and Raining Tacos were being played at the patio of the Waterfront Lake Pavilion, where homeless people have been living.

The pavilion is a banqueting venue that hosts weddings and other events, and brings in $240,000 (£192,000) of annual revenue. James complained of finding human faeces and other “unsanitary things” around it.

“It has been effective and is a temporary measure to make the area accessible for those who have rented the facility and for future events,” said Leah Rockwell, the city’s director for parks and recreation. “We are not forcing individuals to stay on the patio of the pavilion to listen to the music. The music is heard only if you are on the patio, a very small area relative to the rest of the waterfront.”

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/jul/18/florida-city-constantly-plays-baby-shark-to-deter-homeless-from-civic-building

The Sunshine state, instead of addressing the plight of the homeless............................they instead use cyops.......................