Reparations Discussions are Back
“The Evanston City Council on Monday approved a reparations plan that’s been put forth as a blueprint for other municipalities, including Chicago, to use in efforts to make amends for historical wrongs against Black residents. In an 8-1 vote, the council approved a plan to distribute $400,000 to Black residents with ties to the city’s Black community between 1919 and 1969. Eligible applicants will also include residents who suffered from housing discrimination due to the city’s policies after 1969.” Chicago Sun Times: Evanston passes first-in-nation reparations Oh! this is going to make some people VERY uncomfortable. The issue, however, and the reason one Black council women voted against it, is that it requires the money be used to purchase a home, pay a mortgage or for home improvements. On the other hand, this is reparations for the city and its racists housing policies. The problem thought is that if you still cannot purchase a home after the amount of the payment, then what happens? It’s important to note: “The housing money is part of a larger $10 million package approved for continued reparations initiatives, which will be funded by income from annual cannabis taxes over the next decade. Black residents make up about 16 percent of Evanston’s population of 75,000.” WaPo: Evanston, Ill., leads the country with first reparations program for Black residents
But also this: Last year in Asheville, a North Carolina city where Black people make up just 11 percent of the more than 92,000 residents, the City Council formally apologized for its role in slavery and voted unanimously to provide reparations to African American residents and their descendants. The St. Louis American: North Carolina city approves reparations plan
Sedition By Its Name
“The federal prosecutor who had been overseeing the Justice Department’s investigation into the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol said evidence is likely to support sedition charges against some of the rioters. Sedition charges, involving conspiring to overthrow the government or hindering the execution of federal law, are rare. One of the last cases was in 2010, when federal prosecutors charged members of a Michigan militia with plotting to provoke an armed conflict with the government.” NBC News: Evidence in Capitol riot ‘trending towards’ sedition charges, prosecutor says
One Call, That’s All
Biden is being asked to approve at-home abortions. It involves a telemedicine visit and proven safe pills mailed to the patient that can be used in the first 10 weeks of a pregnancy. “As the Biden administration deliberates on the federal rules on where, when and from whom patients can get the pills, with a federal court deadline looming in early April, conservatives are already erecting barriers. In court, in Congress and in statehouses across the country, they’re working to preemptively ban the pills or make them more difficult to obtain — with bills now pending in Indiana, Montana, Arizona, Arkansas, Alabama, Iowa this year alone.” But how would this make Roe v. Wade less effective? “Should the federal rules get rewritten, someone in, say, Arkansas, could have a video consultation with a doctor in Massachusetts or even the UK and then receive the pills by mail. Even if red states moved to ban their importation, enforcement would be nearly impossible.” Politico: Will at-home abortions make Roe v. Wade obsolete? Yep, I’m just leaving this here. You are not drawing me into this debate.
Ellen Can’t Dance Out of This
“Viewers tuned in for the apology: This year’s season opener had the highest ratings for an “Ellen” premiere in four years. And then they tuned out. “Ellen” has lost more than a million viewers since September, according to the research firm Nielsen, averaging 1.5 million viewers over the last six months, down from 2.6 million in the same period last year.” New York Times: Ellen DeGeneres Loses 1 Million Viewers After Apologies for Toxic Workplace
Butterfly Effect
Apple’s butterfly keyboard was a slimmer design that no one liked. “Many disgruntled MacBook users found that Apple’s revamped keyboard failed when even tiny particles of dust accumulated around the switches. That resulted in keys that felt “sticky,” failed to register keypresses, or registered multiple presses with a single hit. Apple tweaked its butterfly keyboard multiple times, but after continued complaints, it abandoned the switches in 2020.” But that wasn’t enough. “A judge has certified a class action suit against Apple for its fragile butterfly keyboard design. The suit covers anyone who purchased an Apple MacBook with a butterfly keyboard in seven states: California, New York, Florida, Illinois, New Jersey, Washington, and Michigan. That includes people who bought a MacBook model dating between 2015 and 2017, a MacBook Pro model between 2016 and 2019, or a MacBook Air between 2018 and 2019.” Verge: Angry MacBook owners get class action status for butterfly keyboard suit
The Culture Commentary 