1. The US murder rate is down an 12% year-to-date, based on 90 cities that have released data.

If the trend holds it will be the single largest annual decline in the murder rate ever recorded.

And yet, you probably haven't heard anything about it.

🧵

If you see "parental rights" or "parents' rights" in the context of the autonomy and medical and social welfare of a child within the federal jurisdiction of Canada, it may interest you to note that that concept is fairly antithetical to the established legal approach (as imperfect as it often is). According to practice here — as far as I understand it, based on conversations with lawyers and social workers — the welfare of the child comes first and foremost, and the concept of parental rights is not really a thing, but in the eyes of the courts and the law should be framed rather as parental responsibility. Parents don't have the right to do whatever they want with their children. Parents have the responsibility to the welfare and wellbeing of their children.

"Parents rights" is a gender critical, queerphobic, and ableist dogwhistle. Be on guard when you see it.

A message from Greta Thunberg (@gretathunberg)...
_________________________

School strike, week 251.

Today, I graduate from school, which means I’ll no longer be able to school strike for the climate. This is then the last school strike for me, so I guess I have to write something on this day.

When I started striking in 2018 I could never have expected that it would lead to anything. After striking every day for three weeks, we were a small group of children who decided to continue doing this every Friday. And we did, which is how Fridays For Future was formed.

Some more people joined, and quite suddenly this was a global movement growing every day. During 2019, millions of youth striked from school for the climate, flooding the streets in over 180 countries. When the pandemic started, we had to find new ways to protest.

With time, we started to get back on the streets again. We’re still here, and we aren’t planning on going anywhere. Much has changed since we started, and yet we have much further to go.

We are still moving in the wrong direction, where those in power are allowed to sacrifice marginalised and affected people and the planet in the name of greed, profit and economic growth. They continue to destabilise the biosphere and our life supporting systems. We’re rapidly approaching potential nonlinear ecological and climatic tipping points beyond our control.

And in so many parts of the world, we are even speeding up the process. There are probably many of us who graduate who now wonder what kind of future it is that we are stepping into, even though we did not cause this crisis.

We who can speak up have a duty to do so. In order to change everything, we need everyone. I’ll continue to protest on Fridays, even though it’s not technically “school striking”. We simply have no other option than to do everything we possibly can. The fight has only just begun.
_________________________

🤗 💚

#Environment #Climate #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis #ClimateEmergency #ClimateAction #ClimateJustice

Just a reminder that Clarence Thomas let a GOP megadonor take him on lavish trips, buy his mom's house and let her live there rent free, pay for his grandnephew to attend a private boarding school — all in secret until now.

How is he still on the Supreme Court?

When someone like Josh Hawley writes a book about manhood, the natural response is to laugh and move on with your day. But the better response is to support Lucas Kunce, the Marine veteran who’s running against him. You can contribute to his campaign here: https://lucaskunce.com/

“Running" | Lucas Kunce launches campaign for U.S. Senate against Josh Hawley-
https://youtu.be/McuIscYMRmw

It's wired in, it's blatant, and it's old news, but to me it remains pretty remarkable that the establishment press in the U.S. uses the term "conservative" to mean any action the extreme right wing favors.

The more extreme the act, the more "conservative" are the actors!

Thus, the Freedom Caucus in the House — the members of which are the most ready to let the U.S. default on its debt — are routinely described as the most conservative faction in the government.

#uspol #science #journalism

Business leaders: We can't find enough workers!

Workers: You could pay more.

Business: Nope.

Workers: Better benefits?

Business: No.

Workers: More flexible hours?

Business: No way.

Workers: Treat your current employees better to build your employer brand?

Business: Never.

Workers: Well, what's left?!

Business: Child labor!

https://apnews.com/article/iowa-governor-child-labor-laws-e8cb29e2a45b956489c4a192b7ddeba5

CNN:
Have you learned nothing from 2016?
You’re giving this twice-impeached insurrectionist asshole free, worldwide media coverage, AGAIN. Why not go all in, you ratings whores? Recruit that Goebbels clone, Tucker Carlson, to moderate your “town hall” event.

You’re normalizing, legitimizing, and promoting this fascist asshole all over again. It’s all about the ratings and the money, isn’t it? Of course, it is. Face it; you’re more like Fox than you may care to admit.
#CNN #DonaldTrump #news