Jilly_in_VA
Jilly_in_VA's JournalMichael Flynn Really Doesn't Want the Jan. 6 Committee to See His Phone
A day after he failed to appear before the January 6 committee for congressional testimony, Michael Flynn sued to block the committee from accessing his phone records. The former national security adviser is now the latest Trump confidant to take the committee to court.
On Tuesday, Flynn sued House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, and all nine of its members, including chair Rep. Bennie Thompson and vice chair Rep. Liz Cheney.
The lawsuit, filed in a federal court in Florida, specifically seeks to “invalidate and prohibit the enforcement of a subpoena” issued to Verizon for Flynn’s phone records, which Flynn says is “in violation of his constitutional rights and the laws of the United States.” Flynn is also seeking to block the committee from both obtaining and releasing the phone records of his family members, according to the lawsuit.
Flynn’s time as former President Donald Trump’s top national security aide was extremely brief, as he resigned less than a month into Trump’s tenure in 2017 after admitting he’d lied to top administration officials about a phone call with the Russian ambassador concerning sanctions.
But Flynn remained in Trump’s orbit through his presidency, and in the final months of his term, Trump pardoned Flynn, who had pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI in the Russia investigation. As the White House tried to plot a way to overturn the 2020 election results, Flynn was present for a Dec. 18, 2020, meeting in the Oval Office where participants reportedly discussed the possibility of Trump issuing an order declaring a national emergency and using the military to seize voting machines.
https://www.vice.com/en/article/akv388/michael-flynn-suing-jan-6-committee
Thanks, Barkeep!
We feed our barn cats on the workshop veranda. Dry food in the morning, wet food in the evening. Water dish is filled in the morning and checked in the evening, when it usually has some left and/or is replenished. The next morning it is always absolutely empty. We aren't sure what empties it, although we suspect raccoons, possums, or maybe even the fox that visits from time to time. In any case, yesterday morning spousal unit went out to feed them (I'm still laid up with my back) and found this little note in the water dish. He just had to bring it in and take a picture. It had us both laughing hysterically.
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Department of Wretched Excess
MOUNT SIDNEY, Va. - After taking last year off during the height of the pandemic, a family in Mount Sidney has brought back a beloved holiday tradition.
The James family sets up more than 200 inflatable Christmas decorations in their front yard. During the day, the yard looks a little sad with deflated decorations, but when the sun starts to set, the inflatables wake up.
The first inflatables came when John’s son Spenser was just 3 years old. “Cheerful, amazing. I love inflatables,” Spenser, who is now 17, said.
“Each year we started to buy a few more here and there, especially after the Christmas sales,” John stated. “We have 211 out now. We have another 113 in the garage that we never got out this year.”
https://www.whsv.com/2021/12/22/more-than-200-holiday-inflatables-displayed-mount-sidney-home/
GOP proposals at the state level would nix ballot boxes and create new voting ID requirements
The push to impose voting restrictions at the state level is poised to continue next year as Republicans drive forward with an array of new proposals -- ranging from legislation that would eliminate ballot drop boxes to bills that would establish new ID requirements to vote.
In Georgia, for instance, state Sen. Butch Miller, a Republican and president pro tempore of the state Senate, this month introduced legislation that would ban the use of ballot drop boxes in a state that already passed a law this year dramatically restricting their use. In Florida, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, wants to establish a new law enforcement office to investigate election crimes. In Arizona, another battleground state, one bill would establish new voter ID requirements.
Lawmakers in four states already have pre-filed at least 13 bills for the 2022 legislative sessions that would make it harder to cast a ballot, according to an analysis released Tuesday from the liberal-leaning Brennan Center for Justice at New York University's law school.
And in five states, six pre-filed bills would allow "audits" or reviews of election results, as former President Donald Trump and his allies continue to baselessly attribute his 2020 loss to election fraud.
In addition, some 88 restrictive bills that were introduced but failed to become law in nine states this year are expected to carry over into legislative sessions set to begin early next year, the analysis found.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/21/politics/gop-state-officials-prepare-new-wave-of-voting-restrictions/index.html
Michael Fanone resigns from D.C. police force 11 months after battling mob at the Capitol
Michael Fanone, the D.C. police officer who was dragged into a mob and beaten during the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and later publicly excoriated lawmakers and others who downplayed the attack, said he submitted his resignation from the force Monday.
The 41-year-old officer will officially depart on Dec. 31, after using previously acquired leave. Fanone, whose frequent appearances on national television caused consternation among police commanders, said he will be an on-air contributor to CNN on law enforcement issues. A CNN spokeswoman confirmed his new role.
Fanone, who voted for Donald Trump in 2016 but did not support his reelection bid, spent months after the Jan. 6 riot repeatedly warning about threats to democracy, often alongside CNN anchor Don Lemon.
But his public appearances did not sit well with some fellow officers, who, according to Fanone, derided him in private Internet chat forums for police.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2021/12/20/fanone-resigns-police-capitol-riot/
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This is not good news. Neither is what was done to him.
No, vaccinated people should not cancel their holiday plans
For the second year in a row, a winter coronavirus surge is upon us. Infections were already on the rise before the extremely contagious omicron variant emerged; now, some projections have the United States on track to reach more than 1 million new infections a day.
Despite these staggering numbers, I don’t think vaccinated people should have to cancel their plans for Christmas, New Year’s Eve and other holidays.
Growing research shows that existing vaccines provide significant protection against severe illness as a result of omicron. Those recently boosted with the Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna vaccines have the best protection, including a decreased likelihood of mild breakthrough infections.
It would be reasonable for the vaccinated and boosted to decide that they will continue traveling, dining out and seeing friends and family. Generally healthy people could conclude that their chance of getting seriously ill from omicron is very low. Their fear of hospitalization or long-haul symptoms may be outweighed by their desire to return to pre-pandemic activities.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/12/20/leana-wen-omicron-holiday-guidance/
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Pretty good source here, IMNSHO
Artificial food dyes may cause behavior problems. A bill aims to warn parents.
The rules in the Snow family household were simple. If Emily Snow’s first grader, Evan, made it through the evening without kicking, biting or hitting, he could have his favorite treat: three pieces of chewy red candy.
But Evan rarely got his prize.
“He was volatile from morning to night,” Snow, of Roy, Utah, said. “We were always on eggshells, never knowing when a violent explosion was going to come.”
Evan was on two psychiatric medications for his aggression, Snow said. He had been in weekly therapy since kindergarten.
It was in October 2020, when Evan was in second grade, that a relative suggested the Snows cut out artificial food dyes — which had been in Evan’s nightly reward, as well as many of the fruit snacks, chips and drinks that he consumed.
The dietary change did what thousands of dollars in neuropsychological testing, psychiatry appointments and therapy had not been able to do, Snow said. Within four weeks, Evan was a calmer, happier child.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/artificial-food-dyes-may-cause-behavior-problems-bill-aims-warn-parent-rcna5989
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I have mixed feelings about this, having tried it on my own child some years back with pretty inconclusive results. Maybe it works for some kids. In any case, that stuff doesn't need to be in the food supply.
Arkansas charges former nursing home chain owner with Medicaid and tax fraud
The former owner of a national nursing home chain that collapsed amid widespread allegations of neglect and financial mismanagement detailed in a previous NBC News investigation has been charged by the Arkansas Attorney General with eight counts of Medicaid fraud and two tax fraud counts.
Joseph Schwartz, who lives in Brooklyn, N.Y., is currently expected to turn himself in to Arkansas authorities in early January, according to his Arkansas attorney, Bill James.
All 10 of the counts are felonies.
Arkansas is working with a group of other state attorneys general who are also considering possible civil action against Schwartz, according to a person familiar with their discussions.
At one time, Joseph Schwartz oversaw the care of more than 7,000 older Americans through his company Skyline Healthcare, which at its peak owned or ran more than 100 facilities in 11 states. With a handful of staff Schwartz managed them from a tiny office over a New Jersey pizzeria.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/arkansas-charges-former-nursing-home-chain-owner-medicaid-tax-fraud-n1285972
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And if they get caught they just change their name and do it again......
Pandemic poses short- and long-term risks to babies, especially boys
The pandemic has created a hostile environment for pregnant people and their babies.
Stress levels among expectant mothers have soared. Pregnant women with Covid are five times as likely as uninfected pregnant people to require intensive care and 22 times as likely to die. Infected moms are four times as likely to have a stillborn child.
Yet some of the pandemic’s greatest threats to infants’ health may not be apparent for years or even decades.
That’s because babies of Covid-infected moms are 60 percent more likely to be born very prematurely, which increases the danger of infant mortality and long-term disabilities such as cerebral palsy, asthma and hearing loss, as well as a child’s risk of adult disease, including depression, anxiety, heart disease and kidney disease.
Studies have linked fever and infection during pregnancy to developmental and psychiatric conditions such as autism, depression and schizophrenia.
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/pandemic-poses-short-long-term-risks-babies-especially-boys-rcna9138
Dermatologist says patient care suffered after private equity-backed firm bought practice
The email to the health care workers was like something out of “The Wolf of Wall Street.” “We are in the last few days of the month and are only 217 appointments away from meeting our budget,” the August 2020 memo stated. “Don’t forget the August bonus incentive for all patients scheduled in August! That’s the easiest money you can make. Get that money!!”
The “Get that money!!” entreaty wasn’t addressed to a bunch of hard-charging, coke-snorting stockbrokers. It went to Michigan-based employees of Pinnacle Dermatology, a private equity-owned group of 90 dermatology practices across America.
The memo was shared with NBC News by a former Pinnacle employee, Dr. Allison Brown, a board-certified dermatologist and dermatopathologist. Brown says Pinnacle terminated her shortly after she advised management of questionable practices that she contends were hurting patients.
Among the practices Brown alleges: overlooked diagnoses, lost patient biopsies, questionable quality control in the company-owned lab and overbooking of patients without sufficient support staff.
Physicians have a duty to put their patients’ interests first. But when aggressive financiers take over medical operations, the push for profits can take precedence, doctors in an array of specialties have told NBC News. Paying bonuses for increased patient visits may result in unnecessary appointments and costs, for example.
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-care/get-money-dermatologist-says-patient-care-suffered-private-equity-back-rcna9152
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My former dentist's office was gobbled up this way and it was a horror show. Same with the only optometrist I trusted.
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Gender: Do not displayCurrent location: Virginia
Member since: Wed Jun 1, 2011, 07:34 PM
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