This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareWith hundreds arrayed before him, standing shoulder to shoulder, the retired Army colonel vented his fury from the steps of Pennsylvania’s capitol building.The governor’s orders to shut down businesses in the face of a pandemic, he railed to a crowd of protesters this week, amounted to “tyranny.” He had battled overseas to defend freedom. Now, with the governor telling healthy people like him to stay home — “What the heck is going on here? I’m not sick!” — the fight had come to America’s shores.“It’s time to rise up!” he...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareWith hundreds arrayed before him, standing shoulder to shoulder, the retired Army colonel vented his fury from the steps of Pennsylvania’s capitol building.The governor’s orders to shut down businesses in the face of a pandemic, he railed to a crowd of protesters this week, amounted to “tyranny.” He had battled overseas to defend freedom. Now, with the governor telling healthy people like him to stay home — “What the heck is going on here? I’m not sick!” — the fight had come to America’s shores.“It’s time to rise up!” he...WW…

Larcenia Floyd holds her toddler son George. (Angela Harrelson) Floyd at Jack Yates High School in Houston. (Lynn Gallien) Floyd and his girlfriend, Courteney Ross, in Minneapolis near the end of his life. (Courteney Ross) His life began as the last embers of the civil rights movement were flickering out. Its horrific, videotaped end ignited the largest anti-racism movement since, with demonstrators the world over marching for racial justice in his name.During the 46 years in between, George Perry Floyd came of age as the strictures of Jim Crow discrimination in America gave way to an...…Larcenia Floyd holds her toddler son George. (Angela Harrelson) Floyd at Jack Yates High School in Houston. (Lynn Gallien) Floyd and his girlfriend, Courteney Ross, in Minneapolis near the end of his life. (Courteney Ross) His life began as the last embers of the civil rights movement were flickering out. Its horrific, videotaped end ignited the largest anti-racism movement since, with demonstrators the world over marching for racial justice in his name.During the 46 years in between, George Perry Floyd came of age as the strictures of Jim Crow discrimination in America gave way to an...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareGALLUP, N.M. — Louie Bonaguidi had been mayor of this tiny city set among high desert buttes and Native American reservations for just a matter of hours last week when the governor called.“I want to congratulate you on your election,” New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham told him. “And give my condolences, because we’re locking your city down.”Bonaguidi was not disappointed to hear that state troopers would be deployed to blockade all roads into Gallup. He was relieved: This was the only way, he believed, to stop local...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareGALLUP, N.M. — Louie Bonaguidi had been mayor of this tiny city set among high desert buttes and Native American reservations for just a matter of hours last week when the governor called.“I want to congratulate you on your election,” New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham told him. “And give my condolences, because we’re locking your city down.”Bonaguidi was not disappointed to hear that state troopers would be deployed to blockade all roads into Gallup. He was relieved: This was the only way, he believed, to stop local...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareAs governors across the country fell into line in recent weeks, South Dakota’s top elected leader stood firm: There would be no statewide order to stay home.Such edicts to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus, Gov. Kristi L. Noem said disparagingly, reflected a “herd mentality.” It was up to individuals — not government — to decide whether “to exercise their right to work, to worship and to play. Or to even stay at home.”And besides, the first-term Republican told reporters at a briefing this month, “South Dakota is...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareAs governors across the country fell into line in recent weeks, South Dakota’s top elected leader stood firm: There would be no statewide order to stay home.Such edicts to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus, Gov. Kristi L. Noem said disparagingly, reflected a “herd mentality.” It was up to individuals — not government — to decide whether “to exercise their right to work, to worship and to play. Or to even stay at home.”And besides, the first-term Republican told reporters at a briefing this month, “South Dakota is...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareNASHVILLE — Music blared from the honky-tonks of Lower Broadway on Tuesday, with crowds packing the sidewalks just as they usually do on sunny afternoons.But on the other side of a police checkpoint, behind layers of yellow tape, a once-vibrant street of bars, boutiques, tattoo parlors and blues clubs was eerily quiet, much of it now reduced to rubble.Building owners got their first look Tuesday of the damage done when a 63-year-old tech worker detonated his in downtown Nashville on Christmas morning. They found a scene...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareNASHVILLE — Music blared from the honky-tonks of Lower Broadway on Tuesday, with crowds packing the sidewalks just as they usually do on sunny afternoons.But on the other side of a police checkpoint, behind layers of yellow tape, a once-vibrant street of bars, boutiques, tattoo parlors and blues clubs was eerily quiet, much of it now reduced to rubble.Building owners got their first look Tuesday of the damage done when a 63-year-old tech worker detonated his in downtown Nashville on Christmas morning. They found a scene...WW…

The governor had been sounding the alarm for more than a month. But by mid-November, it was clear to Michelle Lujan Grisham that she would need to take extreme measures to head off the "most serious emergency that New Mexico has ever faced."With covid-19 cases rising exponentially and hospital beds dwindling, she dragged her state back to the darkest days of spring, when restaurant dining was banned, nonessential businesses were closed and residents were ordered to stay inside unless absolutely necessary.She hoped it might be enough to avert catastrophe this winter."New Mexico has crushed...…The governor had been sounding the alarm for more than a month. But by mid-November, it was clear to Michelle Lujan Grisham that she would need to take extreme measures to head off the "most serious emergency that New Mexico has ever faced."With covid-19 cases rising exponentially and hospital beds dwindling, she dragged her state back to the darkest days of spring, when restaurant dining was banned, nonessential businesses were closed and residents were ordered to stay inside unless absolutely necessary.She hoped it might be enough to avert catastrophe this winter."New Mexico has crushed...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift SharePfizer filed for emergency authorization for its coronavirus vaccine Friday, capping a two-week period marked by against the pandemic but also by its ghastly toll: an additional 1.9 million people diagnosed with covid-19, the disease caused by the virus, and more than 16,000 deaths.A record were recorded in the United States on Friday alone. California set a new single-day high, surpassing a record from July 22. Also hitting a new high for the first time since late July was Louisiana, which reported 4,743 new cases.The...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift SharePfizer filed for emergency authorization for its coronavirus vaccine Friday, capping a two-week period marked by against the pandemic but also by its ghastly toll: an additional 1.9 million people diagnosed with covid-19, the disease caused by the virus, and more than 16,000 deaths.A record were recorded in the United States on Friday alone. California set a new single-day high, surpassing a record from July 22. Also hitting a new high for the first time since late July was Louisiana, which reported 4,743 new cases.The...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift SharePHILADELPHIA — The mayor imposed a curfew on Philadelphia on Wednesday and called in the National Guard following successive nights of rioting after police shot to death a Black man whose family said he was in the midst of a mental health crisis.The moves by Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney (D) were aimed at curbing incidents of looting, fires and dozens of minor injuries to officers that officials said were caused by people taking advantage of the backlash against the shooting of Walter Wallace Jr. to commit crime. The...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift SharePHILADELPHIA — The mayor imposed a curfew on Philadelphia on Wednesday and called in the National Guard following successive nights of rioting after police shot to death a Black man whose family said he was in the midst of a mental health crisis.The moves by Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney (D) were aimed at curbing incidents of looting, fires and dozens of minor injuries to officers that officials said were caused by people taking advantage of the backlash against the shooting of Walter Wallace Jr. to commit crime. The...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareThey have emerged as an unlikely and a source of bottomless derision for President Trump.But masks on Wednesday moved ever closer to becoming a new national reality in America’s pandemic-scarred life, with businesses, states and health experts preaching their promise as the country’s last line of defense against a fast-growing viral threat.Even as the White House continued to resist pushing for a national mask mandate, evidence abounded that face coverings were becoming a de facto requirement — and not only in big cities...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareThey have emerged as an unlikely and a source of bottomless derision for President Trump.But masks on Wednesday moved ever closer to becoming a new national reality in America’s pandemic-scarred life, with businesses, states and health experts preaching their promise as the country’s last line of defense against a fast-growing viral threat.Even as the White House continued to resist pushing for a national mask mandate, evidence abounded that face coverings were becoming a de facto requirement — and not only in big cities...WW…

This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareStates across the country are moving swiftly to reopen their economies despite failing to achieve benchmarks laid out by the White House for when social distancing restrictions could be eased to ensure the public’s safety during the coronavirus pandemic.These governors’ biggest cheerleader is President Trump.A slew of states — such as Texas, Indiana, Colorado and Florida — have pushed forward with relaxing social distancing guidelines even as the number of people testing positive in many states has increased in recent...…This article was published more than 2 years agoCommentGift ShareStates across the country are moving swiftly to reopen their economies despite failing to achieve benchmarks laid out by the White House for when social distancing restrictions could be eased to ensure the public’s safety during the coronavirus pandemic.These governors’ biggest cheerleader is President Trump.A slew of states — such as Texas, Indiana, Colorado and Florida — have pushed forward with relaxing social distancing guidelines even as the number of people testing positive in many states has increased in recent...WW…