Salesforce Fires 1,000 On Day Its Stock Soars To All Time High

With Saleforce stock exploding 25% higher today, one would think that some of the newly-found $48 billion in market cap would "trickle down" to its employees. One would be wrong.

Earlier today, Salesforce reported that revenue climbed 29% to a record $5.15 billion smashing expectations (even as the costs to generate that revenue jumped around 35%), and also boosted its full year forecast for annual sales, signaling that it is one of the companies benefiting immensely from the covid pandemic. Shares of the San Francisco-based company surged 25% on Wednesday in New York on the rosy projections, bringing gains for the year to 65%, and pushing its market cap to a record $243 billion.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/salesforce-fires-1000-day-its-stock-soars-all-time-high

Illegal Alien in Alabama Charged with First-Degree Rape and Sexual Abuse of a Child Under the Age of 12

An illegal alien living in Alabama was charged with first-degree rape and sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12.

Pablo Perez was arrested on Friday and charged with raping an 11-year-old girl in Albertville after the victim spoke up about the abuse.

Perez remains in jail on a $500,000 bond and told law enforcement he is in the US illegally.

Perez and the victim knew each other, according to Albertville Police Chief Jamie Smith, however no other details were disclosed.

Via Sand Mountain Reporter:

Albertville Police Chief Jamie Smith said the 11-year-old victim and her mother came to the police department Thursday to make a report.

After speaking with investigators and officials with the Court Appointed Juvenile Advocacy Center, officers searched for Pablo Perez, 28, of Albertville.

He was arrested late Friday and was transported to the Marshall County Jail on charges of first-degree rape and sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12.

Complicating the case is an admission Perez made to officers that he is in the country illegally.

Smith said an investigation into Perez’s immigration status is ongoing, but he suspects Immigration and Customs Enforcement will be involved with Perez once he faces trial for the sex abuse and rape charges.

Pablo Perez faces up to 20 years in prison.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2020/08/illegal-alien-alabama-charged-first-degree-rape-sexual-abuse-child-age-12/

'Millions Of Americans Will Suffer' - Janet Yellen Warns Of Devastating Fiscal Cliff If Congress Fails To Act

Former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen and Jared Bernstein, chief economist to former vice president Joe Biden, penned an op-ed for the New York Times on Monday blaming Congress for their inability to pass additional fiscal support as depressionary unemployment and surging virus cases and deaths weigh on the economic recovery.

The op-ed, titled "The Senate Is on Vacation While Americans Starve," outlines monetary policy by itself cannot save the economy from the virus-induced recession, and the solution will require additional rounds of fiscal stimulus to thwart a deepening fiscal cliff (see: "Look Out Below": Why The Economy Is About To Fly Off A Fiscal Cliff").

"If senators still fail to resolve stalled negotiations when they return after Labor Day, millions of needy Americans will suffer — and the overall economy could degrade from its current slow rebound in growth to no growth at all," Yellen and Bernstein wrote.

The pair said monetary policy alone could not generate a robust recovery, and further support will need to have a fiscal component to cushion households.

"Both monetary policy, which is the Federal Reserve's job, and fiscal policy, the job of the federal government, have complementary roles to play in supporting the economy," they said.

Yellen and Bernstein warned about a faltering recovery as the virus continues to rage across the country, forcing states to pause or reverse reopenings:

"Now, so-called real-time data show consumer spending slowing overall and deteriorating conditions for low-income households, who have become more anxious about how they will pay for their rent and their food," they wrote, suggesting 30 million Americans are going broke and hungry.

"These numbers reflect the confluence of at least three forces: acceleration of the spread of the virus; expiration of the supplemental federal unemployment benefits; and the ending of various eviction moratoriums," they said, noting an economic recovery cannot occur unless the virus disappears.

"It became clear this summer that public health measures across much of the country were relaxed too soon and without proper medical safeguards against the coronavirus," they added.

The economists said, "the Federal Reserve has largely done its job," suggesting Congress "cannot expect the Fed to keep everything together on its own."

Yellen and Bernstein wrote the op-ed, in what could be a move to shift blame to Congress for the coming growth scare that could lead to a correction in the stock market.

The party on Wall Street, driven by liquidity via central banks and bailouts from Congress have reinflated financial assets to nosebleed valuations as the labor market implodes.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/millions-americans-will-suffer-janet-yellen-warns-devastating-fiscal-cliff-if-congress

Law Enforcement Requested 750 National Guard Members in Kenosha Tuesday, Gov. Evers Sent 250

Authorities in Kenosha, Wisconsin, requested 750 National Guard members to assist in quelling the unrest in the city, but Gov. Tony Evers (D) rejected the White House’s offer to assist with the request and only provided 250 members, as the night descended into chaos, leaving two dead and one more wounded.

The Democrat governor declared a state of emergency Tuesday, following two nights of civil unrest. While he increased Wisconsin National Guard support from 125 to 250, local authorities told the White House that they needed at least 750 in anticipation of Tuesday night’s protests.

According to White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows’ advisor Ben Williamson, Evers declined the White House’s offer to provide 500 guards needed to fill the gap, and the violence reached an entirely different level, leaving two dead and one wounded as a result of last night’s protests.

“The president was on the phone with the governor today as well,” Meadows said during a Tuesday appearance on Tucker Carlson Tonight.

“We have National Guard standing by that, if the general for the National Guard needs additional help, we’re there to do it. But today, that request was denied by the governor,” he said.

On Wednesday, Evers authorized 500 members of the Wisconsin National Guard to aid local law enforcement in anticipation of escalating violence:

.@GovEvers has now authorized 500 members of the Wisconsin National Guard to support police in Kenosha tonight. No mention in his press release of the federal law enforcement the president said are also coming to Wisconsin. pic.twitter.com/35rg1CAB8e

— Shawn Johnson (@SJohnsonWPR) August 26, 2020

In a Tuesday statement, prior to the night’s deadly protests, Evers appeared to stand in solidarity with the demonstrators, but acknowledged the “line between peaceful assembly and what we saw last night that put individuals, families, and businesses in danger.”

“Tonight, and in the days ahead, if you are going to protest, please do so peacefully and safely. Please do not allow the actions of a few distract us from the work we must do together to demand justice, equity, and accountability,” he pleaded as part of a greater Twitter thread:

We are assessing the damage to state property and will be increasing the presence of the Wisconsin National Guard to ensure individuals can exercise their right safely, protect state buildings and critical infrastructure, and support first responders and fire fighters.

We cannot forget the reason why these protests began, and what we have seen play out over the last two nights and many nights this year is the pain, anguish, and exhaustion of being Black in our state and country.

— Governor Tony Evers (@GovEvers) August 25, 2020

We cannot allow the cycle of systemic racism and injustice to continue. We also cannot continue going down this path of damage and destruction.

— Governor Tony Evers (@GovEvers) August 25, 2020

Tonight, and in the days ahead, if you are going to protest, please do so peacefully and safely. Please do not allow the actions of a few distract us from the work we must do together to demand justice, equity, and accountability.

— Governor Tony Evers (@GovEvers) August 25, 2020

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2020/08/26/law-enforcement-requested-750-national-guard-members-kenosha-tuesday-gov-evers-sent-250/

Army Moves to Kick Out 3 Unit Leaders After Deadly Bradley Accident in Korea

The Army's 1st Cavalry Division has ordered changes to its driver training program and is kicking two company-level officers and a staff sergeant out of the Army as the result of an investigation into a deadly Bradley fighting vehicle accident in Korea last year.

Spc. Nicholas Panipinto was killed when the right-hand side tread of the M2A3 Bradley came off and caused the massive vehicle to roll over during a Nov. 6, 2019 road test at Camp Humphreys, South Korea.

Before the road test, Panipinto had received only six hours of hands-on driver training and no classroom instruction.

Current Army regulations require three days of classroom instruction and two days of hands-on driving experience, with an instructor, before military personnel are given licenses to drive Bradleys.

"He never should have been behind the wheel," Kimberly Weaver said she was told during an investigation brief meeting with Col. Kevin Capra, the commander of the 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team (ABCT).

As result, all 37 companies in the 3rd ABCT were "ordered to reassess their driver's training programs and to back brief battalion commanders on the status of the programs, ensuring that all driver training programs … are enforced to Army standard," according to a briefing slide from the meeting.

There were also malfunctions of the vehicle's communication systems, defective or broken equipment, a lack of medical services on base, and significant delays in medical response to the scene of the accident that day.

Camp Humphreys did not have an on-campus hospital or even a military ambulance available to quickly transport Panipinto for emergency treatment, Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Florida, wrote in a June letter to Defense Secretary Mark Esper.

A civilian ambulance responded to the accident scene, but it did not have a sufficient oxygen supply. Its suction equipment also had stopped functioning and it didn't have a blood transfusion supply and the instruments needed to treat Panipinto were unavailable, Buchanan wrote.

The medical response was further delayed when the first on-base medical evacuation helicopter dispatched to the accident scene initially got lost, and a second medevac helicopter suffered from mechanical problems, the letter adds.

Eventually, the first medevac helicopter arrived at the site 80 minutes after the accident, according to the letter.

Buchannan has since called on the House Armed Services Committee to hold a public hearing on the increase in military training vehicle accidents.

The investigation resulted in stiff punishments for Panipinto's immediate chain of command.

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2020/08/26/army-moves-kick-out-3-unit-leaders-after-deadly-bradley-accident-korea.html

New studies show risk of COVID-19 hospitalization and death decreases with hydroxychloroquine use

The drug has been politicized in the US

Two recent studies support the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for COVID-19 that can reduce the chance of hospitalization or death, refuting narratives in the media that the drug is dangerous and being pushed by President Donald Trump for political reasons.

Hydroxychloroquine is a relatively cheap and readily available drug that has been used for decades to treat malaria. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, doctors around the world have vouched for positive results seen in patients who take it.

What do the studies say?

A study out of Italy found that HCQ reduces by 30% the risk of death for COVID-19 patients who are hospitalized. The result comes from an observational study of more than 3,400 COVID-19 patients in 33 Italian hospitals.

"We observed that patients treated with hydroxychloroquine had a 30% lower in-hospital mortality rate compared to those not receiving this treatment," said Augusto Di Castelnuovo, epidemiologist at the Neuromed Department of Epidemiology and Prevention, currently at Mediterranea Cardiocentro in Naples. "Our data were subjected to extremely rigorous statistical analysis, taking into account all the variables and possible confounding factors that could come into play. The drug efficacy was evaluated in various subgroups of patients. The positive results of hydroxychloroquine treatment remained unchanged, especially in those patients showing a more evident inflammatory state at the moment of admission to hospital."

Another study, which looked at outpatient cases in New Jersey, found that a prescription of hydroxychloroquine reduced the risk of hospitalization by 47%. Because the study was conducted early in the pandemic, when mostly only symptomatic people were being tested, researchers believe their sample of more than 1,200 patients represents people with relatively more advanced cases of COVID-19.

The study concluded that hydroxychloroquine can be effective when given early after a COVID-19 diagnosis, and the study found there was no increase in negative side effects for people who took the drug. One concern about HCQ has been the potential for it to cause heart problems in some patients.

https://www.theblaze.com/news/new-studies-hcq-covid-hospitalizations-deaths

Rob Reiner: Trump’s Racism Encouraging White Supremacists to Kill Black People

Far-left actor and film director Rob Reiner once again unloaded his hyperbole across his Twitter timeline on Wednesday, declaring, without a shred of evidence, that President Donald Trump’s racism is encouraging white supremacists to go out and kill black people.

“Because the President is a Racist, White Supremacists are encouraged to kill Black people,” Rob Reiner warned his some 1.2 million Twitter followers. “Because the President is Incompetent 180,000 Americans are dead.”

Because the President is a Racist, White Supremacists are encouraged to kill Black people. Because the President is Incompetent 180,000 Americans are dead.

— Rob Reiner (@robreiner) August 26, 2020

It is not clear who Reiner was referring to as white supremacists. He constantly uses the term. Reiner’s remarks come as left-wing violence continues to plague parts of the country, months after the Black Lives Matter protests began in response to the death of George Floyd in police custody.

Of course, there is no actual pandemic of police violence against unarmed black people. As recently noted by USA Today, the “number of unarmed Black shooting victims is down 63% from 2015, when the database began, There are about 7,300 Black homicide victims a year. The 14 unarmed victims in fatal police shootings would comprise only 0.2% of that total.”

As for what President Donald Trump is encouraging, it can be summed up by Trump’s oft-tweeted phrase: “Law and Order.”

On Tuesday, the Kansas City Police Department even revealed that violent crime has decreased by more than 30 percent since Operation LeGend, the federal task force created by the Trump administration to reduce violent crime, that began last month in response to the death of four-year-old LeGend Taliferro, who died from a stray bullet back in June.

Violent crime in Kansas City has decreased significantly since #OperationLeGend. pic.twitter.com/cFFOaiclWJ

— kcpolice (@kcpolice) August 25, 2020

Just this week, Rob Reiner claimed that the Republican Party platform for this year’s presidential election is centered around “white supremacy” and letting Americans die from the Chinese coronavirus.

“The GOP has finalized its 2020 platform: Allow Donald Trump to continue to promote White Supremacy, reject Science, cozy up to Dictators, commit Federal Crimes, and let Americans die,” he declared, again, with no evidence, ahead of the Republican National Convention (RNC), which began on Monday. “Oh, and yes continue to be a fucking Sociopathic Ignoramus.”

The GOP has finalized its 2020 platform: Allow Donald Trump to continue to promote White Supremacy, reject Science, cozy up to Dictators, commit Federal Crimes and let Americans die. Oh, and yes continue to be a fucking Sociopathic Ignoramus.

— Rob Reiner (@robreiner) August 24, 2020

https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/2020/08/26/rob-reiner-trumps-racism-encouraging-white-supremacists-to-kill-black-people/

China Fires Two Missiles Into Sea As "Warning To US" In Huge Escalation Following Spy Plane Breach

Chinese media and regional sources are reporting what appears to be the biggest provocation yet amid the months-long US-China ratcheting tensions in the South China Sea.

"China launched two medium-range missiles into the South China Sea on Wednesday morning, a source close to the Chinese military said, sending a warning to the United States," The South China Post reports in a major breaking development.

The launch is said to be in response to the major incident from Tuesday, wherein China's PLA military angrily denounced that a US U-2 spy plane allegedly entered a 'no-fly zone' off China's coast while the PLA conducted live-fire military drills. It was unclear exactly where the claimed breach of airspace happened, however.

Later reports suggested the spy plane was caught seeking to observe PLA drills in the Bohai Sea off China's north coast.

The SCMP details further of the deeply alarming "warning" missile launch, citing unnamed Chinese military sources:

One of the missiles, a DF-26B, was launched from the northwestern province of Qinghai, while the other, a DF-21D, lifted off from Zhejiang province in the east. Both were fired into an area southeast of Hainan province and the Paracel Islands, the source said.

The landing areas were within a zone that Hainan maritime safety authorities said on Friday would be off limits because of military exercises from Monday to Saturday.

Needless to say this "warning" takes things to a whole new level.

“This is China’s response to the potential risks brought by the increasingly frequent incoming US warplanes and military vessels in the South China Sea,” a military source told SCMP. “China doesn’t want the neighboring countries to misunderstand Beijing’s goals.”

After all, following the Tuesday incident Beijing in a veiled threat said an “unexpected incident” could have easily resulted over the US spy plane operation.

This presumably means the spy plane may have been targeted as "drills" could have rapidly transitioned to becoming fully operational under a perceived US threat.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/china-fires-two-missiles-sea-warning-united-states-biggest-escalation-yet

>>10429258

killing poor slaves won't help

US National Security Council Official Confirms Collision Between American, Russian Forces in Syria

An official from the US National Security Council acknowledged on Wednesday that a day prior there had been a vehicle collision between Russian and American forces in eastern Syria.

https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/202008261080286863-us-national-security-council-official-confirms-collision-between-us-russian-forces-in-syria/

Three Texans, One New Yorker Indicted for Conspiracy to Sell Sanctioned Iranian Petroleum to Refinery in China for Millions in Profit

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/three-texans-one-new-yorker-indicted-conspiracy-sell-sanctioned-iranian-petroleum-refinery

Nevada Man Charged with Using COVID-Relief Funds to Buy House

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/nevada-man-charged-using-covid-relief-funds-buy-house

Bowser Says Washington DC Diners Should Call The Cops On Protesters

Democratic Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said Wednesday that people dining in the city should call the police if protesters harass them.

The mayor discussed several incidents wherein protesters harassed DC diners during a press conference Wednesday where she said the people harassing those dining in DC do not have “anything to do with demands for social justice.”

“What I saw in those videos was highly inappropriate,” Bowser said at a press conference Wednesday, according to Fox 5 DC. “It was likely against the law if they were on private property. But more importantly I don’t think it had anything to do with demands for social justice.”

The mayor added that she encourages “any diner or restaurant to call the police immediately” in such a situation, noting that many of those eating at DC restaurants are doing so to support the city during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I would venture to say that the vast majority of those experiences have been 100 percent positive,” she said, regarding DC dining . “I also don’t think that D.C. residents would be bullied out of living their everyday lives.”

Her comments come after videos posted on social media Monday and Tuesday portray two separate incidents in which protesters surround people eating at restaurants and yell into their faces, chanting, “white silence is violence” and “no justice no peace.”

https://dailycaller.com/2020/08/26/muriel-bowser-protestors-white-silence-violence-black-lives-matter/

SEC Votes To Ease Rules On Company's Business, Legal Proceedings And Risk Factor Disclosures

For those who see 2020 emerging as the peak year for corruption in US capital markets - or what little is left of them now that the Fed is in charge of everything - the SEC just gave you a big thumbs up.

Moments ago, the top US regulator voted to ease rules on a company's business, legal proceedings and risk disclosures, paradoxically at a time when frauds like Wirecard run rampant and not even their auditors can catch them at the act. Of course, "enabling fraud" would not sound very professional, so instead the SEC said in its statement that it had "modernized" the "description of business (Item 101), legal proceedings (Item 103), and risk factor disclosures (Item 105) that registrants are required to make pursuant to Regulation S-K." And since "these disclosure requirements have not undergone significant revisions in over 30 years" the SEC said that "the amendments the Commission is adopting today update these items to reflect the many changes in our capital markets and the domestic and global economy in recent decades."

What it really meant is that it will now be even easier for companies to engage in fraud and have a perfectly legal claim that the SEC never required them to disclose various shady aspects of their business.

"Today we modernized our public company business disclosure rules for essentially the first time in over 30 years," said SEC Chairman Jay Clayton. "Building on our time-tested, principles-based disclosure framework, the rules we adopt today are rooted in materiality and seek to elicit information that will allow today's investors to make more informed investment decisions. I am particularly supportive of the increased focus on human capital disclosures, which for various industries and companies can be an important driver of long-term value. I applaud the staff for their dedication and thoughtful approach to modernizing and improving these rules and adding efficiency and flexibility to our disclosure framework."

The SEC further said that the modernization of Items 101, 103, and 105 "is intended to elicit improved disclosures, tailored to reflect registrants' particular circumstances, which are designed will improve disclosures for investors and add efficiencies to the compliance efforts of registrants." And since the market is now all GenZers who have the attention span of a gnat, the SEC concludes that "the amendments are also intended to improve the readability of disclosure documents, as well as discourage repetition and reduce the disclosure of information that is not material."

Here are the highlights on the voted changes:

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/sec-votes-ease-rules-companys-business-legal-proceedings-and-risk-factor-disclosures

PRAY FOR EACH OTHER

LAPD Bomb Squad Responding To U.S. Postal Service Facility In Los Angeles

CALIFORNIA — The Los Angeles Police Department was responding to a bomb threat at a U.S. Postal Service facility Wednesday. The scene is in the 7100 block of Central Avenue on the South side of the city.

The building was evacuated and the LAPD bomb squad was called in, according to KABC. No injuries were reported.

https://breaking911.com/breaking-lapd-bomb-squad-responding-to-u-s-postal-service-facility-in-los-angeles/