(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Black Kos Tuesday: Where Tim Miller is right [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2024-07-02 Where Tim Miller is right Commentary by Chitown Kev At some point between legacy media’s imperative to push President Joe Biden out of the Oval Office and into an assisted living facility and yesterday’s decision by the Supreme Court of the United States that the President of the United States is, in effect, a king, I’ve gotten a bit weary and a bit scared. I’ve seen a few online fights break out. Given my own tenacity to be confrontational in 2016 during the Bernie/Hillary primary fight, it may surprise some people that I hate confrontation, argument, or even harsh words and avoid confrontation when possible. Yesterday, talk radio host Michaelangelo Signorile posted this response to The Bulwark’s Tim Miller. I think that Signorile hit this one on the head. Signorile, in large part, was responding to a serious beef that Tim Miller was having with Black Twitter about what Miller identifies as “polls, focus groups, conversations with regular people” that Democrats have been losing the Black and other people of color vote. The conversation got...shall we say, overheated on both parts (no surprise for BlackTwitter...they come at you hard!) Here’s the thing...Tim Miller is not exactly wrong. I do wish that Miller had cited longer trends in polling to buttress his point. In my demographic, no less. Mara Ostfeld and Michelle Garcia/NBC News (11.4.20) Eighty percent of Black men supported Joe Biden, down slightly from Hilary Clinton’s 82 percent in 2016 but significantly down from Barack Obama’s level of support among Black men in 2012 and 2008. In Obama’s first presidential campaign, 95 percent of Black male voters and 96 percent of Black women chose him. Four years later, support from Black women remained at 96 percent for Obama’s 2012 re-election, while the figure for Black men slid to 87 percent. In 2016, when the nominee was Hillary Clinton, Black men dropped further to 82 percent while Black women’s support for Clinton remained high at 94 percent. Biden came close to matching that this year, garnering the support of 91 percent of Black women. Support for the Democratic presidential candidate in general appears to be slipping among Black women as well, but to a much smaller degree. Biden still enjoyed the support of more than 9 out of every 10 Black female voters. I specifically recall that 8-point drop between the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections and was a little alarmed by it then. Granted, I don’t think anyone will ever receive the percentages of the Black vote that Barack Obama received in 2008. And yes, the decline isn’t as steep. From election to election, the drop of a few points here and there may not seem like much. A 15-point slide over a period of 12 years for Black men while the percentage of the Black women’s vote roughly stayed the same? It’s a trend. And a problem. And I think that maybe, some of us need to be as quick to point out when and where allies are right as we point out when they are wrong. Because American democracy is going through a seven-alarm fire now and it would seem that we don’t have time for some of this bickering, even when we are right. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ News round up by dopper0189, Black Kos Managing Editor ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The charismatic 20-year-old who has made it his life’s mission to make men’s gymnastics relevant in the United States knew reaching the Olympics would be a vital step in the process. And now it’s here. Emphatically. Richard will headline the five-man U.S. team that will head to Paris next month with a legitimate chance to medal after winning the Olympic trials on Saturday. “It’s like a new mountain in my life,” Richard said. “And I’m ready to climb it.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hurricane Beryl and other superstorms would be much more dangerous without these iconic ocean animals. VOX: The Caribbean has a defense system against deadly hurricanes — but it’s vanishing ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ On Monday night, Beryl, the first named hurricane of the year, strengthened into a dangerous Category 5 storm as it moved northwest towards Jamaica. Earlier in the week, it pummeled islands in the southeast Caribbean, including St. Vincent and the Grenadines, destroying homes and leaving at least one person dead. The storm, which is expected to weaken later on Tuesday, is already record-breaking. Beryl is the earliest Category 5 storm on record in the Atlantic. It also intensified at record speeds for a storm this early in the year, jumping from Category 1 to Category 4 in less than 24 hours. Caribbean nations are particularly vulnerable to hurricanes, for the obvious reason that these storms often lie in their paths. Hurricanes typically form in the Atlantic Ocean, west of northern Africa, and then travel west toward the Caribbean and Southeastern US. But Caribbean islands also have one of the world’s best defense systems against superstorms like Beryl. That system is hidden under the waves, it’s free, and it’s all-natural. It’s coral reefs. Indeed, most Caribbean nations are surrounded by a colorful patchwork of coral reefs, communities of living animals that function together as natural seawalls. These hard, rocklike creatures help dampen waves and reduce flooding. Research shows that coral reefs help dozens of countries avert billions of dollars in flood damage each year, in the Caribbean and globally. The problem, more pressing now than ever, is that these lifesaving ecosystems are vanishing — for the very same reason hurricanes are becoming more destructive. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ At least 18 people have been killed and 19 seriously injured in suicide attacks targeting a wedding, a hospital and a funeral in north-east Nigeria, authorities have said. In one of three blasts on Saturday in the town of Gwoza, a woman with a baby strapped to her back detonated explosives in the middle of a wedding ceremony, according to state police. The Borno state police spokesperson Nahum Kenneth Daso said: “At about 1545 (1445 GMT) a woman carrying a baby on her back detonated an improvised explosive device she had on her at a crowded motor park.” Female suicide bombers also targeted a hospital in the same town, which lies across the border from Cameroon. Another attack was later carried out at the funeral for victims of the wedding blast, authorities said. The region has been scarred by more than a decade of violence by the jihadist group Boko Haram, which did not immediately claim responsibility for the string of attacks. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ State of emergency imposes curfew on young people and gives police powers to detain suspects for up to 90 days. The Guardian: Belize crackdown on gang-related killings leads to dozens of arrests ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A controversial state of emergency in Belize to crack down on a surge of gang-related murders and other violent crimes has led to the arrest of nearly a hundred people. The order, announced on Tuesday, gives police the power to search homes without a warrant and detain suspects for up to 90 days. Originally implemented for 30 days, the government announced on Friday that it was increasing its length to maximise its effectiveness. The state of emergency also imposes a nightly curfew on under-18s, who are often groomed by gangs as drug mules. Located on the coast of Central America, where it shares borders with Mexico and Guatemala, Belize is a member of the Caricom intergovernmental organisation of 20 Caribbean countries, which last year raised alarm about the epidemic of crime and violence in the region. A controversial state of emergency in Belize to crack down on a surge of gang-related murders and other violent crimes has led to the arrest of nearly a hundred people. The order, announced on Tuesday, gives police the power to search homes without a warrant and detain suspects for up to 90 days. Originally implemented for 30 days, the government announced on Friday that it was increasing its length to maximise its effectiveness. The state of emergency also imposes a nightly curfew on under-18s, who are often groomed by gangs as drug mules. Located on the coast of Central America, where it shares borders with Mexico and Guatemala, Belize is a member of the Caricom intergovernmental organisation of 20 Caribbean countries, which last year raised alarm about the epidemic of crime and violence in the region. Caricom leaders have pledged a raft of measures to tackle crime, including a ban on assault weapons, except for security forces and sporting competitions. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ WELCOME TO THE TUESDAY PORCH [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/7/2/2250088/-Black-Kos-Tuesday-Where-Tim-Miller-is-right?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=trending&pm_medium=web Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/