Bus driver beaten by mini bat-wielding passenger who refused to wear mask
A San Francisco bus driver was attacked this week by a miniature souvenir baseball bat-wielding passenger who became irate when he was told he had to wear a mask, reports said.
The attacker was one of a group of three maskless men who boarded the Muni city bus Wednesday in the city’s SoMa district.
Passengers are required to wear face coverings on San Francisco’s public transit, and the driver instructed the trio multiple times to put on the required face coverings, but they refused, officials said.
The driver then pulled over to escort the riders off, when one of the three attacked him with the mini bat, according to reports.
The driver’s injuries were not life threatening and he is recovering, police said. A union rep told local TV station KTVU, that the victim had a fractured finger, and was also spat on.
No arrests have been made.
In the Big Apple, a passenger hit a driver Monday after being told he needed to wear a mask. The man punched the 62-year-old driver and then got off the bus on the Lower East Side.
via: https://nypost.com/2020/07/25/bus-driver-beaten-by-passenger-who-refused-to-wear-mask/
Photo Credit: Jeff Chiu/AP
Teen, 17, becomes fourth person to drown in Lake Lanier this month
A 17-year-old teenager has died in a drowning accident at a Georgia lake – marking the fourth person to drown in the lake this month.
Cristofer Acosta-Farias, of Gainesville, Ga., was swimming in Lake Lanier on Friday afternoon when he disappeared from view, The Gainesville Times reports.
Hall County Fire personnel found the boy’s body after being called to Balus Creek Park on the lake, according to the paper.
A spokesman for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources told the paper the searchers used sonar to find the boy.
He was found in a part of the lake that is 27 feet deep.
Cristofer was a member of the band at West Hall High School in Gainesville, the paper reported.
The organizer of a GoFundMe page for the boy’s family said, “Everyone knew him to be a kind and loving person. He always knew how to make us laugh and bring joy to our lives.”
There had been three drownings in Lake Lanier in July, according to the paper. The other victims were men aged 59, 45 and 28.
via: https://nypost.com/2020/07/26/teen-17-becomes-fourth-person-to-drown-in-lake-lanier-this-month/
Photo Credit: GoFundMe
NJ gym owners arrested after repeatedly ignoring COVID-19 lockdown orders
Two New Jersey gyms owners who have repeatedly reopened in defiance of the state’s coronavirus lockdown have been arrested, police said Monday.
Atilis Gym owners in Bellmawr— Ian Smith, 33, of Delanco Township, and Frank Trumbetti, 51, of Williamstown — were charged with contempt and violation of a disaster control act, according to the Camden Couty Prosecutor’s Office.
The two owners have continually railed against Gov. Phil Murphy’s executive order amid the pandemic COVID-19 and even sued lawmakers claiming their constitutional rights were violated when they were forced to close their South Jersey gym.
Last Wednesday, Judge Robert Lougy ordered the owners to vacate the gym and stop reopening.
Yet since the ruling, the owners, as well as others, were spotted using the gym, law enforcement said.
Cops and county prosecutors asked the owners to leave but they refused, which led to the arrests, according to police.
Smith and Trumbetti were charged and released, police said.
In a post on the gym’s Facebook page Monday morning, Smith attacked the governor as “flexing his little tyrant muscles.”
“Officers from the county sheriffs entered the premises without a warrant or adhering to the signage posted on the door requesting they call first,” Smith claimed.
“This is gonna be fun in court.”
via: https://nypost.com/2020/07/27/nj-gym-owners-arrested-after-repeatedly-ignoring-lockdown-orders/
Photo Credit: Stephen Yang
A 9-year-old who died of coronavirus had no known underlying health issues, family says
A 9-year-old girl with no known underlying health conditions is the youngest person to die from coronavirus complications in Florida, officials said.
Kimora “Kimmie” Lynum died on July 18 in Putnam County, according to Florida Department of Health records. It confirmed her identity and said she’s the state’s youngest coronavirus fatality.
She had no pre-existing health issues and her mother took her to the hospital due to a high fever, said family spokesman Dejeon Cain. The hospital sent her home and she collapsed a short time later, Cain said.
“She was always happy and made everybody happy. She was phenomenal,” said Cain, who’s also her cousin.
The family does not know how or where she was infected. She appeared healthy and spent the summer at home, and did not attend school or camp, Cain said.
Kimmie’s mother was tested for Covid-19, but had not received her results as of Saturday, Cain said.
State health department records show the child did not have close contact with anyone who recently had Covid-19. Putnam County Health Officer Mary Garcia confirmed the fatality to CNN and said she was unaware of any underlying medical conditions.
Kimmie is the fifth minor in Florida to die from Covid-19, according to the latest health records. The others were an 11-year-old boy in Miami-Dade County, an 11-year-old girl in Broward County, a 16-year-old girl in Lee County and a 17-year-old boy in Pasco County.
Putnam County is located between Gainesville and St. Augustine in the northeastern part of the state. Since April 1, the county has had 11 fatalities.
As of last Friday, 23,170 minors have tested positive for the novel coronavirus. The positivity rate of the children tested is 13.4%. The state’s total number of confirmed cases now stands at 379,619.
Florida has the second-highest number of coronavirus cases, passing New York, once the country’s epicenter early in the pandemic. California, the most populous state, surpassed New York a few days ago. The states with the most recorded cases now align more closely with population rank. Florida is the country’s third-most populous, and New York is fourth.
Florida has reported 414,511 cases since the pandemic’s start, above New York’s 411,200, according to state health agencies. The number of hospitalizations has increased by 79% since the Fourth of July, according to data from the state’s health care administration.
At least 50 hospital intensive care units in Florida reached capacity Saturday. Eight of the hospitals are in Miami-Dade and six in Broward — among hardest-hit counties in the state.
Photo Credit: Courtesy Lynum Family
LeBron James Helping Florida Ex-Felons Pay Fees So They Can Vote
A voting rights group founded by NBA superstar LeBron James is raising funds to help people in Florida with felony records pay outstanding court debts that prevent them from voting, the group announced Friday.
More Than A Vote, a campaign the Los Angeles Lakers player started with other Black athletes and artists last month to fight Black voter suppression, is partnering with the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition (FRRC), a group that helped end Florida’s lifetime voting ban for most people with felony convictions in 2018. They hope to raise $100,000.
Miami Heat Forward Udonis Haslem, who’s also a member of More Than A Vote, said in a statement that the thinking is simple: “We believe that your right to vote shouldn’t depend upon whether or not you can pay to exercise it.”
There are around 1.4 million Floridians with felony convictions, the FRRC said. And as of 2016, one in five Black citizens in Florida were disenfranchised. As Politico noted, as many as 775,000 people in Florida with felony convictions face financial penalties that render them ineligible to vote until they can pay them.
Those penalties come in the form of restitution, court fines or other fees associated with their past convictions. Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld Florida’s rule blocking people from voting if they have any of those outstanding fees, which Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed into law last year. In her dissenting opinion, Justice Sonia Sotomayor argued the law disenfranchises people “simply because they are poor.”
The FRRC, which has already raised more than $1.5 million for its fines and fees program, hopes teaming up with James’ campaign will raise awareness around the issue.
“This partnership will improve lives and strengthen our democracy,” FRRC executive director Desmond Meade said, adding, “We look forward to the positive impact it will have on our communities and the lives of those who are hoping to vote and have their voices heard.”
While the deadline to register for Florida’s August primary has already passed, residents have until Oct. 5 to register for the presidential election on Nov. 3. Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, currently holds a 13-point lead over President Donald Trump in the state, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday.
via: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/lebron-james-florida-ex-felons-vote_n_5f1b2a0bc5b6296fbf42703f
Photo Credit: newsvoice.com
Texas woman, 20, found hanging in white roommate’s garage
McKinney resident Gloria Bambo was found hanging in her white roommate’s garage and now questions are being raised surrounding the circumstances of her death.
The McKinney Police Department declared the death of Bambo, 20, a suicide after she was found dead in the garage on July 12. They responded to social media speculation with a post refuting claims of foul play and confirmed that her roommate has fully cooperated with the investigation.
They say that the investigation is still underway but have so far not found any evidence that Bambo was the victim of a crime.
However, there are many who do not believe the official version of events.
The message has since gone viral with others weighing in.
Civil rights attorney S. Lee Merritt addressed his concerns to McKinney mayor George Fuller in an Instagram post on Wednesday.
“Mayor Fuller, We are going to need some answers to this in McKinney, TX. CC: @lashadion,” he wrote.
Kedrian Fisher created a petition demanding “justice” for his former high school classmate and claims she was murdered. Furthermore, he alleged that the police were not doing their due diligence.
“Police refused share any other information to the family. That`s right our law and order only gave her a paragraph of information. Her enemies are so convinced on erasing her life & her story that they hijacked Gloria`s social media,” the petition read.
“Her adversary literally alt delete her images, words and lifestyle. Taking her freedom of speech. Gloria`s body was so decomposed Gloria`s family even cant view her. It seems like our police are more invest. in giving people tickets and find weed than solving this obvious homicide case.”
Fisher deemed her death as a “lynching” in broad daylight.
But a post allegedly written by Bambo’s roommate claimed that she suffered from bipolar an anxiety disorder and had endured unspecified trauma.
via: https://thegrio.com/2020/07/23/dallas-woman-bambo-found-hanging-garage/
Photo Credit: thegrio.com/social media
Ice cream sales are up with more people at home but deodorant sales are down
(CNN) — You’re going out less and spending more time at home, which can mean only one thing: you don’t need to wear deodorant as often.
With social distancing in full effect and people being forced to quarantine at home due to the pandemic, fewer people are going into offices to work or out to socialize. This has led to fewer people grabbing that stick of deodorant to roll on before going out and more people lounging at home watching Netflix with a tub of ice cream in hand.
Consumer goods company Unilever said on Thursday that demand for personal care items have slumped. The company, which owns brands such as Dove soap and Axe deodorant, said that the lockdowns have led to the decline in sales.
It hasn’t been all bad for Unilever, though. The company owns ice cream brands such as Breyer’s, Ben & Jerry’s and Magnum, and ice cream sales at home are up as people consume more food at home.
“Consumers have eaten more soups, used more meal kits and accompanied their meals with mayonnaise and ice cream as dessert,” Unilever CEO Alan Jope told analysts Thursday.
Sales of ice cream people consumed at home increased by 15% in the first half of the year, and sales are even higher at 26% between April and June, Unilever said Thursday.
The jump in ice cream sales at home was “significantly offsetting” a loss in sales in public places, the company said.
Unilever is now worth nearly $155 billion, pacing ahead of drugmaker AstraZeneca, Royal Dutch Shell, HSBC and BP.
Photo Credit: kmov.com
Man stuns Londoners by wearing a face mask — as a G-string
One man in London is taking his public mask wearing to his privates.
Tim Shieff, a 32-year-old former “Ninja Warrior UK” contestant, startled Londoners when he took to Oxford Street wearing nothing but a face mask fashioned into a G-string that (barely) covered his privates, mocking a new law that has mandated mask-wearing in public.
The Connecticut-born athlete is also a world champion freerunner and vegan YouTube sensation, according to the Daily Mail, and known for stunts like admitting to eating meat despite railing against eating animals.
Shieff’s publicity stunt is reminiscent of Chelsea Handler, who recently took to Instagram while working out wearing sneakers, leggings and two face masks tied together and strategically placed to cover her chest.
via: https://nypost.com/2020/07/25/man-stuns-londoners-by-wearing-a-face-mask-as-a-g-string/
Photo Credit: Simon Dawson/Reuters
Kanye West visited by Justin Bieber at rapper’s ranch in Wyoming amid Kim Kardashian divorce claims
Justin Bieber has visited Kanye West at his ranch in Wyoming following a tumultuous week for the rapper.
The 43-year-old is reportedly refusing to see his wife Kim Kardashian West at the moment amid an ongoing bipolar episode.
He sparked concern after he shared several worrying tweets containing allegations against his family, including the claim that his wife tried to “lock me up” and that he has been seeking a divorce.
In response, Kardashian West said she was “powerless” and reminded fans her husband suffered from bipolar disorder.
On Friday, West revealed pop star Bieber was the latest visitor to his Yeezy Campus in Wyoming, and posted a picture of the Canadian deep in conversation with music executive Damon Dash.
West captioned the post: “DD & JB discussing the new spray foam wall prototypes on the YZY campus.”
Bieber, 26, was wearing a lime green hoodie for the visit and was pictured relaxing in a chair while speaking with Dash.
He has been on a road trip with wife Hailey, 23, and shared snaps of the journey on Instagram.
Friday had been scheduled as the release date for West’s latest album, Donda: With Child, but there was no sign of it on streaming platforms.
The 43-year-old is yet to provide an official update on the album. He has endured a chaotic week since appearing in South Carolina on Sunday, in his first event since declaring himself a presidential candidate.
One of the ideas he floated was giving struggling mothers one million dollars in order to discourage abortions. He also said he and his wife considered terminating their first pregnancy.
West followed up the headline-grabbing appearance with several Twitter storms, in which he criticised his mother-in-law Kris Jenner and said he wanted to divorce Kardashian West, the mother of his four children.
via: https://currently.att.yahoo.com/news/kanye-west-visited-justin-bieber-071354480.html
Photo Credit: AP/Kanye West
White woman blocks black deliveryman wearing mask from building
Vile videos show a white woman in Los Angeles blocking a black man from delivering food to a resident in her apartment building, asking the mask-clad worker, “Is this a holdup or something?”
The footage, posted Wednesday on Instagram by Jordan Mykel Gipson, shows a confrontation he had with an unidentified white woman at an apartment building in Los Angeles’ Westwood section.
“So, a Karen stopped me from doing my job,” Gipson wrote in a 4-minute clip showing him holding several containers of food outside the building.
“I don’t want you here,” the woman says. “I don’t want you here at all.”
Gipson, a Postmates deliveryman, asks the woman to let him do his job as he speaks to the customer via the building’s callbox system. The woman who confronted Gipson also referred to him as a “delivery boy,” the footage shows.
“Can you not film me?” the woman says once she realizes Gipson is recording her blocking him from the building. “Don’t point that f–king thing at me.”
“This is really terrible,” Gipson says at one point, asking the woman to move away from him. “This is horrible.”
Gipson then asks the customer if he could leave the food outside, prompting someone to say they were headed down, video shows.
Gipson tells the woman he is “just doing” one of his three jobs, but she is undeterred and apparently is bothered by his green mask and black Los Angeles Dodgers hat, a second video posted by Gipson shows.
“Is this a holdup or something?” the woman asks. “Just take it off.”
The woman had insisted that Gipson was trying to hide something.
“What are you wearing that green thing?” she says, referring to his mask. “And why is that Dodger hat black?”
Gipson’s girlfriend, meanwhile, has launched an online fundraiser following his encounter with the “crazy ass Karen” who blocked him from the building.
“Jordan was very patient with this racist ass woman who did not deserve the calm reaction that he gave her,” the website reads.
via: https://nypost.com/2020/07/24/white-woman-blocks-black-deliveryman-wearing-mask-from-building/
Photo Credit: nypost.com