DeVos Publishes Final Rule on Protecting Speech and Religious Freedom on Campus

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos announced that a final rule “Improving Free Inquiry, Transparency, and Accountability at Colleges and Universities” will go into effect immediately. Any institution that fails to uphold the First Amendment will not receive any grants from the federal government. The rule will also protect student religious groups from discrimination.

Campus Reform:

“Students should not be forced to choose between their faith and their education, and an institution controlled by a religious organization should not have to sacrifice its religious beliefs to participate in Department grants and programs,” said DeVos. “These regulations hold public institutions accountable for protecting the First Amendment rights of students and student organizations, and they require private colleges and universities that promise their students and faculty free expression, free inquiry, and diversity of thought to live up to those ideals.”

The department will rely on state and local court decisions in deciding whether a college or university is in compliance with the rule.

Citing “the well-developed body of case law by state and federal courts on First Amendment rights and violations of stated institutional policies,” the Department of Education will rely upon a state or federal court ruling to determine whether the grant conditions have been violated. Additionally, as a requirement for receiving grants, “public colleges and universities must not deny to a religious student group any of the rights, benefits, or privileges that other student groups enjoy,” such as receiving student fee funds, acquiring university recognition, and using campus facilities.

What makes this rule so dangerous to the left is that it encourages the student to think broadly and explore new ideas in an atmosphere of free expression.

Gary Cantwell of The Navigators, a college campus ministry, said that a university “should be a place where students are free to explore new ideas, perspectives and worldviews. With this guidance, the Department of Education provides for a diversity of thought and spiritual expression on campus that will help students as they prepare for an increasingly complex world.”

There will still be efforts to shut down conservative ideas and religious groups. No rule can stop the left from trying. But at least there are now penalties if they lose in court — penalties that will sting.

Court challenges are already being readied and as the rule makes it clear, schools will have to lose in court before the department would take action. But school administrators have been known to turn a blind eye when other students attempt to shut down their meetings and stifle their speech.

Agreeing to free speech is one thing. Actually putting those words into action is another.

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/rick-moran/2020/09/16/devos-publishes-final-rule-on-protecting-speech-and-religious-freedom-on-campus-n936256

>>10674377

Florida says ‘this is fine’ to release of genetically modified mosquitoes

….The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has also worked with Oxitec to develop something known as a “gene drive” — a genetic modification meant to spread through multiple generations of mosquitoes to leave them sterile or unable to spread certain diseases.

https://globalnews.ca/news/7080776/genetically-modified-mosquitoes-florida/

Killer Chow Chow-cross Teddy 'leapt over rails of pen that was too low' and savaged 12-day-old boy because it was 'jealous' of baby - as it's revealed dog has been put down after parents were arrested for gross negligence manslaughter

Elon, who was just 12-days-old, was mauled to death by the dog in Doncaster

Ambulance crews rushed to the scene but the baby boy could not be saved

South Yorkshire Police rushed to property in the village of Woodlands on Sunday

Parents Abigail Ellis, 27, and her finance Stephen Joynes, 35, were both arrested

They were questioned on suspicion of manslaughter but have now been bailed

Neighbour said the dog looked harmless but police struggled to handle it

Joynes' social media shows two pets playing inside the £100,000 house

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8738821/Newborn-baby-boy-pictured-mothers-arms-just-days-mauled-death.html

Some Advertisers Returning To Facebook After Boycott Over Hateful Content

Facebook Vice President Nicola Mendelsohn said Wednesday that some advertisers that boycotted the social media platform for not adequately combating hate speech have since returned.

Mendelsohn did not name the advertisers but told Bloomberg News the announcement comes after increased efforts to manage content, including the ability to remove “about 95%” of hate speech that reviewers catch before it’s reported.

“A lot of the advertisers have come back, and they’ve come back because they can see the efforts that we’ve been making,” Mendelsohn said.

Some of the world’s top brands and products like General Motors, Hershey’s, and Lego cut spending with Facebook this year. A movement, with the hashtag StopHateForProfit, organized the boycott by pushing companies to stop advertising on Facebook due to perceived weak content-regulation practices.

For brands like Adidas, which recently returned to advertising on Facebook, there is the implication that Facebook has turned a corner on past practices.

“We will continue to expect greater transparency and action from all of our partners,” a spokesperson for Adidas said in August.

For Facebook, any defections from notable advertisers could mean a serious financial setback, with the top 100 advertisers contributing 16% of the platform’s $18.7 billion revenue in the second quarter this year, the New York Times reported.

Meanwhile, there may still be lingering damage to Facebook’s reputation from boycotting advertisers.

“What could really hurt Facebook is the long-term effect of its perceived reputation and the association with being viewed as a publisher of ‘hate speech’ and other inappropriate content,” Stephen Hahn-Griffiths, an executive at data insights company RepTrak, wrote in a July post.

https://www.ibtimes.com/some-advertisers-returning-facebook-after-boycott-over-hateful-content-3046952

Bayer Settles Thousands of Roundup Cases With Trial Attorneys

Bayer AG has settled thousands of U.S. Roundup weed killer lawsuits as part of an $11 billion settlement, reaching deals with the only lawyers who took cases to trial over allegations the herbicide caused cancer.

In letters filed with U.S. District Court in San Francisco late on Monday, three lawyers said they had reached binding settlements.

The agreements covered 15,000 lawsuits, according to attorneys familiar with the talks, bringing the resolved cases to about 45,000. Bayer has estimated it faces 125,000 filed and unfiled claims over Roundup.

“We indicated last week that we were accelerating efforts to finalize and implement current settlements and our progress is consistent with our commitment to pursue a holistic settlement to the Roundup litigation," Bayer said in a statement.

The letters from Brent Wisner, Jennifer Moore and Aimee Wagstaff, who took cases to trial, did not disclose settlement terms.

"I cannot speak to Monsanto/Bayer’s plans, but with trial counsel out of the way, I think they are in an excellent position to find a way to resolve the remaining claims quickly," said Wisner.

Shares of Bayer closed up 2.7% at 56.82 euros on Tuesday.

In August, Bayer's stock fell 3% after it said there were "bumps" in talks to seal the $11 billion settlement of the Roundup cases and the judge overseeing the case, Vince Chhabria, threatened to restart the litigation.

Bayer in June struck an agreement on about 75% of the 125,000 claims stemming from its $63 billion takeover of seed and chemical company Monsanto in 2018.

Chhabria raised concerns in July over the plan to create an independent panel of scientists to assess whether glyphosate-based weed killers such as Roundup caused cancer, delaying a key part of the proposed settlement.

The parties are expected to discuss next steps at a Sept. 24 hearing.

https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/bayer-roundup-trial-attorneys/2020/09/15/id/987020/

Michelle Obama’s influence over Netflix led to release of pro-pedo movie ‘Cuties’

Netflix is under fire for distributing the pro-pedo flick “Cuties” over its streaming video service. The movie “Cuties” is about an 11-year-old girl who discovers her sexuality while twerking.

(Article by Shane Trejo republished from BigLeaguePolitics.com)

“Cuties” has been described by its apologists as a triumph of diversity and womanhood. It should come as no surprise that this content is getting distributed as former first lady Michelle Obama is an influential producer with Netflix.

Big League Politics reported three years ago on how the Obamas were using Netflix to distribute their political propaganda and promote their social agenda after leaving the White House:

Former President Barack Obama is currently in advance negotiations with Netflix to produce a series of shows through them. This will give the former President easy access into the living rooms of virtually every American in order to spread whatever propaganda he wants.

The deal would pay both the former President, and his wife Michelle to provide exclusive content to the over 118 million Netflix subscribers around the world. It is unclear of the exact content that would be produced, but after looking at other content produced by Netflix, the shows being highly political wouldn’t be surprising.

After receiving massive investments totaling over $40 million from George Soros in 2015 and 2016, the content on the streaming service began to shift and include originally produced content with political agendas.

One show they released was titled “Dear White People,” and was extremely racially charged, as the name implies. They also released a show featuring Katie Couric that explores “gender identity,” while at the same time editing a portion of an old episode of Bill Nye the Science Guy, where Nye makes the claim that there are only two genders.

With former President Obama already going against the norm for other Presidents by attacking the current President, it’s clear that Obama is okay with getting divisively political. It would not be surprising to see his show used as a political weapon of the left.

Making matters even worse, Russia-gate villain and former national security advisor Susan Rice also sits on the Netflix board.

https://www.naturalnews.com/2020-09-16-michelle-obamas-influence-over-netflix-cuties.html

Ethics Complaint Filed Against Gideon Campaign

Watchdog claims Maine Dem illegally coordinated with Schumer super PAC

Maine Senate Democratic candidate Sara Gideon's campaign violated campaign finance law by illegally coordinating with a super PAC aligned with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.), according to a new ethics complaint.

Maeve Coyle, the communications director for the Gideon campaign, tweeted highly specific suggestions about what Maine voters should "see and hear" about rival incumbent Senator Susan Collins (R.). Within 24 hours of the tweet, the Sen. Schumer-aligned Senate Majority PAC (SMP) published two anti-Collins ads that discussed the same topics and aired in the same markets that Coyle suggested in her tweet. The ads constitute an illegal coordination between the Gideon campaign and the super PAC, according to the complaint filed with the Federal Election Commission.

"There is reason to believe Gideon coordinated with SMP resulting in an illegal in-kind contribution," the complaint, filed by the Foundation for Accountability and Trust, read. "We request that the Commission investigate and immediately take enforcement action to address these apparent violations."

This is not the first time Gideon has been accused of violating campaign finance laws. Maine's ethics watchdog concluded that Gideon siphoned money from her PAC to illegally reimburse herself for donations to national Democrats, imposing a $500 fine in October 2019. Another ethics complaint, filed in January, alleged that a Gideon-run PAC failed to disclose thousands of dollars in expenditures spent on social media ads for her own reelection campaign.

The Gideon campaign did not respond to request for comment.

Schumer's PAC has already spent $4 million to support Gideon's campaign. While super PACs are able to raise unlimited funds—SMP has collected $166 million during the 2020 cycle alone—they are not allowed to coordinate with candidates. Despite this restriction, campaigns have come up with creative ways to send signals to allied super PACs.

Coyle's tweet on September 1 included strangely precise suggestions that all Maine voters should learn about Collins's alleged ties to the pharmaceutical industry, while Portland residents should hear about Collins's support for President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

https://freebeacon.com/2020-election/ethics-complaint-filed-against-gideon-campaign/

>>10674377

Rare mosquito-borne virus suspected in Michigan: 10 counties urged to cancel outdoor events

An adult from Barry County is suspected of having the rare and dangerous mosquito-borne virus Eastern equine encephalitis, health officials announced Tuesday.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services now urges people in 10 Michigan counties — Barry, Clare, Ionia, Isabella, Jackson, Kent, Mecosta, Montcalm, Newaygo and Oakland — to cancel or postpone outdoor events that take place at or after dusk to prevent more people from contracting the virus, which is spread through the bite of infected mosquitoes.

More: EEE virus symptoms, how to protect yourself, more

Also known as Triple E, the virus is one of the deadliest mosquito-borne diseases in the United States, with a 33% fatality rate in people who become ill. It leaves many survivors with physical and mental disabilities. It kills 90% of the horses sickened by the virus. So far this year, 22 horses in the 10 counties that are urged to cancel outdoor events have had confirmed cases of the virus.

“MDHHS continues to encourage local officials in the affected counties to consider postponing, rescheduling or canceling outdoor activities occurring at or after dusk, particularly those involving children, to reduce the potential for people to be bitten by mosquitoes," said Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, chief medical executive and chief deputy for health at MDHHS, in a statement.

If the suspected human case is confirmed through lab testing later this week, it would be the first person with EEE this year in Michigan.

Last year, EEE infected 38 people in the U.S. — more than in any previous year since it has been tracked by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In a typical year, there are seven cases nationally.

In Michigan alone in 2019, six people died, and four others were hospitalized. Three of the four people who survived EEE infections in the state "have severe neurologic issues and continue to receive supportive care, either in rehab or at home with home care," said Lynn Sutfin, a spokeswoman for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, in a previous interview with the Free Press.

Signs of EEE infection include sudden onset of fever, chills, body and joint aches which can progress to a severe encephalitis, resulting in headache, disorientation, tremors, seizures and paralysis.

Children under age 15 and people older than age 50 are at greatest risk for developing severe illness from the EEE virus. There is no vaccine for EEE, no treatment and there's no cure. Doctors can only offer supportive therapy to help patients breathe, get fluids and nutrition and prevent other infections.

More:A tiny mosquito bite took away Michigan teen Savanah DeHart's ability to talk, walk

Anyone who thinks they may be experiencing these symptoms should seek medical care. Permanent brain damage, coma and death may also occur in some cases.

https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2020/09/15/eee-mosquito-virus-barry-county-michigan-outdoor-events/5806130002/

The Portland Riots Just Stopped. Why?

Have Portland’s Professional Protesters™ been smoked out? Since May 29th, Portland has been the back drop of more than 100 nights of antifa, anarchist and Black Lives Matter, Inc™ terroristic riots. They set fires, looted, and intimidated people by threatening to burn them alive in their homes.

But after the millions of dollars of destruction, criminality and thuggery it stopped last week. Poof!

Why?

I certainly don’t want to tempt these thugs, but it can’t go without saying that Portland’s 100 plus days of riots appeared to end after Wednesday, September 9th.

That was the last time the Portland Police Bureau warned about protests.

SW Jefferson to SW Salmon from SW 1st to SW Broadway is closed to pedestrians but open for vehicular traffic. All people must leave the area to the west now. Champman and Lownsdale Squares are now closed.

— Portland Police (@PortlandPolice) September 9, 2020

The usual live-streamers decamped to other riots and fires.

By September 10th, the overworked cops from Portland Police Bureau were offered out to assist other agencies. Suddenly, instead of being required to work the riots lines, they were free.

I have offered @ClackCoSheriff and @ORStatePolice PPB officers to assist with emergencies related to fires. PPB recognizes the need for us all to come together as a state to assist one another in this time of need.

— Chief Chuck Lovell (@ChiefCLovell) September 10, 2020

Why?

On September 7th to the morning of the 8th, the Pacific Northwest experienced a major “wind event.” Winds gusted through Oregon and Washington at more than 60 miles per hour. Fires that had been allowed to crackle along, such as the Beachie fire, flared up. Power lines were downed. The fires kicked up.

Oregon Wildfires: One Family’s Acts of Heroism, Including Duke the Dog’s, Are Absolutely Humbling

And then came the reports. Clackamas County Sheriff’s officials reported that people had seen antifa protester types reportedly stashing gas cans, looting, and looking ridiculously out of place. They were taking pictures and giving locals grief for trying to keep them out of closed neighborhoods. Locals wondered if there was a connection between the fires and the sightings of these folks.

BLM was seen there. The original BLM, the Bureau of Land Management, not the group that borrowed the acronym.

Preventable wildfires threaten lives, property, & precious resources every year. During the #COVID19 pandemic, firefighters are needed more than ever to keep Americans safe, so please, do your part to prevent human-caused wildfires. #WildfirePrevention pic.twitter.com/POm4nfr3W1

— Bureau of Land Management Fire and Aviation (@BLMFire) September 14, 2020

And just as suddenly, such sightings and reports were dismissed as rumors and lies. Myriad law enforcement agencies begged people to stop sharing such stories, as I reported on PJMedia.

I reached out to the Portland Police Bureau for a comment on the lag in riots, but didn’t receive a reply before publication.

Oregon Sheriff’s Deputy Investigating Fires Pays Price for Saying Unkind Words About Antifa

Riot-weary Oregonians aren’t necessarily mollified by the concerted effort to shut down these reports. Until last Wednesday night, they’d seen the antifa rioters and arsonists in action on the news every night in Portland. And now some of them swore they saw those people in Estacada, Sandy, Molalla and other parts of the burning Clackamas County.

Indeed, documents from the Department of Homeland Security show that whatever antifa rioters are doing, they’re doing in concert, organizing with other like-minded people.

are organized and show up night after night, and share common TTPs (Tactics, Techniques and Procedures)..”

"Threat actors who are motivated by Anarchists or ANTIFA (or a combination of both) ideologies to carry out acts of violence against State, Local and Federal authorities..”

— Catherine Herridge (@CBS_Herridge) September 14, 2020

The internal document leaked yesterday from the Department of Homeland Security reads:

https://pjmedia.com/uncategorized/victoria-taft/2020/09/15/poof-the-portland-riots-just-stopped-why-n933330

Report: BLM co-founder lobbying wing funded by pro-Communist China group

The co-founder of Black Lives Matter, Alicia Garza, partnered with a pro-Chinese Communist Party group to fund its lobbying operations in the United States.

Black Futures Lab, started by Garza, which currently "seeks to engage advocacy organizations and legislators to advance local-, state- and federal-level policies," solicits donations on its website that are sent to a group called the Chinese Progressive Association, according to the Daily Signal.

“Black Futures Lab is a fiscally sponsored project of the Chinese Progressive Association,” the website reads.

CPA was founded in San Francisco in the early 1970s and continues to be a partner of the People's Republic of China. A 2009 Stanford University paper documented its Marxist ties, saying that “the CPA began as a Leftist, pro-People’s Republic of China organization, promoting awareness of mainland China’s revolutionary thought and workers’ rights, and dedicated to self-determination, community control, and ‘serving the people.'”

The group, which has been frequently praised by China’s state-run media, continued supporting the communist regime since the paper was published. Recently, the CPA partnered with the People’s Republic of China to help Chinese nationals renew their passports, and it sponsored the raising of China’s flag over Boston’s City Hall to honor the Communist Party’s takeover of China.

Lydia Lowe, the co-founder of CPA, wrote in an essay that it was her hope that Asians can play a role in crafting a “revolutionary strategy” that would result in a “fundamentally different society.”

Black Lives Matter officials have openly admitted to following a Marxist agenda, including co-founder Patrisse Cullors, who said in a 2015 interview that the group is led by “trained Marxists.”

"It’s not possible for a world to emerge where black lives matter if it’s under capitalism, and it’s not possible to abolish capitalism without a struggle against national oppression," Garza explained at Left Forum in 2015, an anti-free market gathering.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/report-blm-co-founders-lobbying-wing-is-funded-by-a-pro-communist-china-group

Nearly 16,000 restaurants have closed permanently due to the pandemic, Yelp data shows

Volatility has been a kiss of death for thousands of restaurants during the coronavirus pandemic.

Abrupt closures, inconsistent reopenings, changes in public health guidance for operations and other state-mandated orders have pushed the food service industry to the brink.

MORE: Restaurant, food service industry has lost nearly $120B due to pandemic

New data from Yelp revealed the stark reality of permanent closures for an alarming number of restaurants, which already ran on thin margins.

The review site’s latest Local Economic Impact Report, released Wednesday, showed that 60% of the restaurants that temporarily closed due to the pandemic have since shuttered for good.

https://www.investmentwatchblog.com/nearly-16000-restaurants-have-closed-permanently-due-to-the-pandemic-yelp-data-shows/

Kansas Man Indicted on Federal Child Pornography Charges

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/kansas-man-indicted-federal-child-pornography-charges

Michigan group surpasses signatures needed for petition against Gov. Whitmer’s emergency powers

400,000 signatures collected, 340,000 needed

A group behind a petition to strip Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of some of her emergency powers hit a major milestone after surpassing the number of signatures needed.

The petition is from Unlock Michigan, who said it reached 400,000 signatures over the weekend.

The number needed to meet the state threshold is about 340,000, but officials said they plan to push for 500,000 signatures as both a show of support and to guard against signatures.

The group is pushing to do away with a 1945 law giving Whitmer sweeping and unlimited powers during an emergency in favor of a similar law from 1976 that does have a time limit on those powers.

Whitmer used the 1945 law in defense for dozens of executive orders she issued to fight against the coronavirus (COVID-19). There are 180 executive orders currently listed on the Governor’s website, although many have been rescinded.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s a Democrat now, a Republican in the past or the future. No one individual should have unilateral authority over all thing,” said Unlock Michigan State Co-Chair Ron Armstrong.

Armstrong and Unlock Michigan supporters claim Whitmer overstepped her powers after the state legislature extended her ability to make sweeping stay-at-home orders in the early months of the pandemic.

“When it was determined within the emergency orders you couldn’t get in a boat with your family, you couldn’t go golfing, you couldn’t buy paint, you couldn’t go to the store, it got to be craziness and it was stuffy," Armstrong said. "You couldn’t go to church. Those things are individual rights and freedoms that don’t go away even in the middle of a pandemic”.

Michigan isn’t alone in its state of emergency. According to the National Governor’s Association, 56 U.S. states and territories have active emergency orders right now.

A recent poll from Local 4 News and The Detroit News showed 61 percent of Michiganders approved of the governor’s handling of the pandemic, with 45 percent strongly approving.

The petition still has to be approved by the Secretary of State’s office and it could take time.

The official deadline for this specific kind of legislative initiative is in January although Unlock Michigan thinks without hurdles, the wait time could be 75 days.

If approved, the petition is then sent directly to the legislation to approve or reject, according to state law.

https://www.clickondetroit.com/news/michigan/2020/09/14/group-gathers-signatures-to-petition-against-gov-whitmers-emergency-powers/