Bradley Beal scored 34 points, Russell Westbrook added 19 as part of his NBA-leading 10th triple-double, and the Washington Wizards used a 44-point third quarter to pull away for a 128-112 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night.
Westbrook added 14 rebounds and 12 assists for the Wizards, who have won seven of eight to move back into playoff contention following a 6-17 start.
"It’s big for everybody, confidence-wise," Beal said of the recent surge. "But at the same time, we still know we haven’t done much. We haven’t done anything. That’s what I keep telling our guys."
Davis Bertans scored 12 of his 19 points in the third quarter, including four of his five 3-pointers. Garrison Mathews scored 18 points in Washington's first home game following a four-game West Coast trip.
"I thought he had some great looks in the first half, but shooters have to keep shooting," Wizards coach Scott Brooks said of Bertans. "He made some shots that kind of broke it open for us."
Karl-Anthony Towns had 23 points and 11 rebounds for the Timberwolves, who dropped their seventh straight, matching their longest slide of the season.
Anthony Edwards added 21 points for NBA-worst Minnesota, as starting guard Malik Beasley served the first of a 12-game suspension.
The Timberwolves were in it until Washington's third-quarter outburst, which included an extended 35-12 run.
The Wizards scored nine straight to start it, with Westbrook's running dunk and Beal's 3-pointer from the top of the key giving them a 72-67 lead and coaxing newly installed Minnesota coach Chris Finch into a timeout.
"When teams make a run on you, you’ve got to fight back," said Finch, following his third game in charge. "That’s what we have to be. We need to learn how to be a little more resilient right now."
It was a five-point game before the Wizards made six 3-pointers over a 4:20 stretch. Bertans' last 3 of the quarter, off Westbrook's 11th assist of the game, made it 98-79 with just under a minute left.
"I feel like we’re kind of bringing together everything we’ve been talking about at the beginning of the season," Bertans said.
Timberwolves: Dropped to 3-5 in the opener of back-to-back games. ... G Jarrett Culver (ankle) returned after a 17-game absence, though he was available for Wednesday's loss in Chicago, Finch said. ... Jarred Vanderbilt had 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Wizards: Improved to 3-6 in the opener of back-to-back games. ... Westbrook nearly achieved his triple-double by halftime, entering the break with 13 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. He also received his 11th technical foul of the season with 9:36 to play in the game ... Bertans (knee) returned after missing Thursday's win in Denver.
CENTER OF ATTENTION
Wizards Center Thomas Bryant, who suffered a season-ending ACL tear in January, made his first appearance on the bench since the injury, to the delight of teammates.
"That was definitely the best part about the first half — just seeing him in the locker room," Brooks said. "I was walking on the court with about four minutes to go (until tip-off.) Gave him a great big hug. He’s definitely missed and loved by all of us."
"LIKE FOR LIKE?"
With Beasley serving the first of a 12-game suspension related to a guilty plea to a felony count of threats of violence, guard Josh Okogie returned to the starting lineup. Finch won't ask anyone will serve as a "like-for-like" replacement for Beasley, who is averaging 20.5 points and just over 33 minutes a contest.
"We don’t expect any one person to come in and fill that void," Finch said. "We’re going to put out lineups out there that suit ourselves to start, and then go from there."
UP NEXT
Timberwolves: Return home to face Phoenix on Sunday.
(AP) — Wisconsin election officials could decide next week whether to send special voting deputies back into nursing homes ahead of the April elections.
Wisconsin law allows municipal clerks to send deputies into nursing homes to help residents complete absentee ballots. The state Elections Commission banned deputies from entering the homes in March 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic was taking hold, saying such visits could jeopardize residents’ health. The ban remained in place for the November election despite Republican concerns that it could enable voter fraud in nursing homes.
The Legislature’s Republican-controlled administrative rules committee this month challenged the commission to show how it can legally ban the visits. It also ordered the commission to promulgate the ban as an emergency rule. The commission is scheduled to discuss the committee’s orders during a meeting Tuesday.
Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe recommended that commissioners drop the ban. She wrote in a memo to them that it’s clear Republicans on the rules committee believe the commission lacks the authority to ban the visits and will strike down any emergency rule extending the prohibition.
“It seems futile, and a waste of resources at all levels of the process ... to pursue the promulgation of a rule when it is clear that the rule ... will ultimately fail,” Wolfe wrote.
She noted that some nursing homes have relaxed their visitor policies over the last year and said clerks should follow individual protocols of homes in their jurisdictions. She also suggested that the commission pursue statutory changes allowing for nursing home staff to act as voting deputies and allowing deputies to work with residents remotely.
The election is set for April 6. The only statewide race on the ballot is for state schools superintendent. Pecatonica Area School District Superintendent Jill Underly and former Brown Deer Superintendent Deborah Kerr are vying to replace outgoing state Superintendent Carolyn Stanford Taylor.
The number of COVID-19 infections in the state remained relatively flat Friday after several weeks of declining numbers. State health officials reported that the daily average number of new cases during the seven-day period that ended Friday was 615. They added five more deaths to the state’s pandemic total, pushing it to 6,399.
What would you do if your child killed someone in a hit and run? “The answer,” says Peter Moffat, “is fairly obvious. You have to take your child to the police station.” But what if it turns out the victim was the son of the biggest mob boss in New Orleans? “You turn around,” says Moffat. “You can’t send them off into probable death. That’s not something any parent can do.”
This conundrum forms the centre of Moffat’s new drama, Your Honor, a remake of the hit Israeli show Kvodo. In it, Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston plays another father bending the rules for the benefit of his family – this time Judge Michael Desiato, who is forced to confront the consequences of protecting his own son from the justice system he upholds. As he scrambles to cover up the crime, using his legal connections at every turn, Desiato sucks others into the case – and is forced to face the damage his own desperation has caused. Desiato, says Moffat, “knows how the system functions, how he can manoeuvre it to his advantage. It just felt great to write.”
While Your Honor excels as a taut thriller, it’s no coincidence that the protagonist is a judge. A former barrister, Moffat left life at the bar after the success of his first play, A Fine and Private Place, which led to the TV series North Square, and then Silk and the Bafta-winning Criminal Justice. Like North Square, Silk was set in the highly politicised world of a barristers’ chambers – following Maxine Peake through professional and personal battles. Criminal Justice may have been more narrowly focused, following an individual case through to its conclusion – but its clear that the law is his dramatic niche, and it’s not something to which he objects.
No public, no press … Cranston in Your Honor. Photograph: Showtime/Skip Bolen/SHOWTIME
“I’m lucky that’s my pigeonhole,” Moffat says. “The law is more fascinating to me now than it was when I started out, not least for the politics of it all. There are still elements that make me angry.”
This is the first time Moffat has had the opportunity to explore these issues in a US context and, while he happily acknowledges the flaws in the British system, he believes the problems in America dwarf them. “I felt myself to be pretty unshockable,” he says. “And then I went to America – in particular Chicago, then New Orleans. I couldn’t believe it.”
In Louisiana, he visited Angola, the largest maximum security prison in America, where “some people are treated like animals. The iconography is astonishing – in a country whose original sin is the enslavement of black people, they can put people in chains and make them work in fields, on a former plantation. It’s the most appalling thing. It shocked the hell out of me and I felt pretty compelled to write about it.”
He adds: “Twenty-five per cent of the world’s prison population are in American prisons. And they have 5% of the world’s population. If you’re poor, if you’re disadvantaged, if you’re black, then your chances to do well are massively diminished.”
‘Am I in the way of other people who should be writing?’ … Peter Moffat. Photograph: Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP
Moffat delves into these issues further in his next series, 61st Street, about a promising black high school athlete who is swept up into the Chicago criminal justice system. As with Your Honor, and unusually for US drama, the team based the writers room in the south side of Chicago, where the story is set. “It just gave us so much,” says Moffat. “Texture, sounds and people – outside the window, or coming into the room and being with us.”
Moffat admits that the higher stakes of the US system – with its life and death sentences – offer rich pickings for any dramatist. But he also knows there’s power in drama: it can reach people in a way that journalism or documentary can’t. But is he – as a white, British writer – the best person to help draw attention to these issues? Moffat is happy to confront his own privilege and the responsibilities that brings. “If a production is spending a lot of money, and if they want to be safe, then there’s definitely still a lot of work coming to white, middle-aged men like me, because they can see that you’ve done it before. But I think it’s changing. I just have to write – it’s how I get paid.
“I do ask myself, however, if I’m in the way of other people who should be writing but are not able to – because there are people like me around. And in order to work against that, I do everything I can, especially in America, to bring in and bring on younger writers who are different from myself – and give them power, authority and control over what they’re doing.”
Your Honor was the first time Moffat had worked in a US writers room. And as head writer, he was able to shape that group to reflect the country he was trying to capture on screen. “The whole starting point for who was going to be in the room was, ‘Who can tell me things I don’t know?’ It’s always tempting to surround yourself with like-minded folk, and I decided to do the opposite. I made sure all of the writers were from very different backgrounds from mine, and from each other, so that it was a genuinely diverse group that could represent all kinds of sectors of society. It was an unbelievably exciting experience.”
Of course, there was one other voice in that mix, the undoubted star of the show, Bryan Cranston, on whom success and failure rests. Moffat worked closely with the actor, spending upwards of four hours a day going through his character and the shape of the story. He calls it “one of the richest experiences of my writing career” – and the relationship stood them in good stead when filming was halted due to the pandemic, with 35 days of filming still to go.
“It’s courtroom drama,” says Moffat, “and those courts are nothing if not packed with human beings. So I had to introduce a Covid storyline. But it didn’t feel like a square peg in a round hole. We were talking about the corruption of a man’s soul – there’s this plague without, and there’s a plague within. It really suits Bryan’s character to say, ‘I don’t want the public and the press in here.’ The fact that he was talking about keeping out an existential threat – that was trying to get in and corrupt all of us – was a reasonably apposite way of doing things.”
If that all sounds a bit highbrow for a crowdpleasing thriller, fear not. “As a writer you get into the big fat jurisprudential philosophical moral problems,” Moffat says. “But you also know this is solid thriller territory. So all the big questions aren’t too pompous – they’re tucked in alongside the action. It’s a happy combination.”
• Your Honor launches on Sky Atlantic at 9pm on 2 March.
Last week, the NASDAQ slipped below 13,200, making the net loss from its all-time peak, reached earlier this month, 6.4%. If this trend keeps up, the index will slip into correction territory, a loss of 10% from its peak. So what exactly is going on? At bottom, it’s mixed signals. The COVID-19 pandemic is starting to fade and the economy is starting to reopen – strong positives that should boost markets. But an economic restart brings with it inflationary pressures: more people working means more consumers with money in their pockets, and the massive stimulus bills passed in recent months – and the bill working through Congress now, which totals $1.9 trillion – have put additional funds in people’s wallets and liquidity into the economy. There is pent-up demand out there, and people with money to spend, and both factors will work to push up prices. We can see one effect of all of this in the bond market, where the ten-year Treasury bond is yielding 1.4%, near a one-year high, and it has been trending upwards in recent weeks. This may be a case of jumping the gun, however, as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has said in testimony before the Senate that he is not considering a move to boost interest rates. In other words, these are confusing times. For those feeling lost in all of the stock market fog, investing gurus can offer a sense of clarity. No one more so than billionaire Steven Cohen. Cohen’s investment firm, Point72 Asset Management, relies on a strategy that involves investments in the stock market as well as a more macro approach. This very strategy has cemented Cohen’s status as a highly respected investing powerhouse, with the guru earning $1.4 billion in 2020 thanks to a 16% gain in Point72′s main hedge fund. Bearing this in mind, our focus shifted to Point72's most recent 13F filing, which discloses the stocks the fund snapped up in the fourth quarter. Locking in on three tickers in particular, TipRanks’ database revealed that each has earned a “Strong Buy” analyst consensus and boasts significant upside potential. Array Technologies (ARRY) The first new position is in Array Technologies, a ‘green tech’ company providing tracking technology for large-scale solar energy projects. It’s not enough just to deploy enough photovoltaic solar collection panels to power an energy utility; the panels have to track the sun across the sky, and account for seasonal differences in its path. Array delivers solutions to these problems with its DuraTrack and SmarTrack products. Array boasts that its tracking systems will improve the lifetime efficiency of solar array projects, and that its SmarTrack system can boost energy production by 5% overall. The company clearly has impressed its customers, as it has installations in 30 countries, in more than 900 utility-scale projects. President Biden is expected to take executive actions to boost green economic policy at the expense of the fossil fuel industry, and Array could potentially benefit from this political environment. This company’s stock is new to the markets, having held its IPO in October of last year. The event was described as the ‘first big solar IPO’ in the US for 2020, and it was successful. Shares opened at $22, and closed the day at $36. The company sold 7 million shares, raising $154 million, while another 40.5 million shares were put on the market by Oaktree Capital. Oaktree is the investment manager that had held a majority stake in the company since 2016. Among Array's fans is Steven Cohen. Scooping up 531,589 shares in Q4, Point72's new ARRY position is worth over $19.7 million at current valuation. Guggenheim analyst Shahriar Pourreza also seems to be confident about the company's growth prospects, noting that the stock appears undervalued. “Renewable energy companies have seen a large inflow of capital as a result of the ‘blue wave’ and the Democrats’ control of the White House and both chambers of Congress; however, ARRY continues to trade a significant discount to peers," the 5-star analyst noted. Pourreza added, "We continue to be bullish on ARRY’s growth prospects driven by 1) tracker market share gains over fixed-tilt systems, 2) ARRY market share gains within the tracker industry, 3) ARRY’s large opportunity in the less-penetrated international market, 4) the opportunity to monetize their existing customer base over the longer-term through extended warranties, software upgrades, etc., which are highly margin accretive.” In line with these bullish comments, Pourreza rates ARRY shares a Buy, and his $59 price target implies a 59% upside from current levels. (To watch Pourreza’s track record, click here) New stocks in growth industries tend to attract notice from Wall Street’s pros, and Array has 8 reviews on record since it went public. Of these, 6 are Buys and 2 are Holds, making the consensus rating on the stock a Strong Buy. The average price target, at $53.75, suggests room for ~45% upside in the next 12 months. (See ARRY stock analysis on TipRanks) Paya Holdings (PAYA) The second Cohen pick we're looking at is Paya Holdings, a North American payment processing service. The company offers integrated payment solutions for B2B operations in the education, government, healthcare, non-profit, and utility sectors. Paya boasts over $30 billion in payments processed annually, for over 100,000 customers. In mid-October of last year, Paya completed its move to the public market via a SPAC (special acquisition company) merger with FinTech Acquisition Corporation III. Cohen is standing squarely with the bulls on this one. During Q4, Point72 snapped up 3,288,843 shares, bringing the size of the holding to 4,489,443 shares. After this 365% boost, the value of the position is now ~$54 million. Mark Palmer, 5-star analyst with BTIG, is impressed with Paya’s prospects into the mid-term, writing, “We expect PAYA to generate revenue growth in the high-teens during the next few years, with Integrated Solutions poised to grow in the mid-20s and Payment Services set to grow in the mid-single digits. At the same time, the company’s operating expenses should grow in the 5% context, in our view. As such, we believe PAYA’s adjusted EBITDA growth will be north of 20% during the next few years, and that its adjusted EBITDA margins will expand to 28% by YE21 from 25% in 2019.” Palmer puts an $18 price target on PAYA shares, indicating his confidence in 49% growth for the year ahead, and rates the shares as a Buy. (To watch Palmer’s track record, click here) PAYA’s Strong Buy analyst consensus rating is unanimous, based on 4 Buy-side reviews set in recent weeks. The shares have an average price target of $16, which suggests ~33% upside potential from the current share price of $12.06. (See PAYA stock analysis on TipRanks) Dicerna Pharma (DRNA) Last but not least is Dicerna Pharma, a clinical stage biotech company with a focus on the discovery, research and development of treatments based on its RNA interference (RNAi) technology platform. The company has 4 drug candidates in various stages of clinical trials and another 6 in pre-clinical studies. The company's pipeline clearly got Steven Cohen’s attention – to the tune of taking a new stake totaling 2.366 million shares. This holding is worth $63.8 million at current values. The drug candidate farthest along Dicerna’s pipeline is nedosiran (DCR-PHXC), which is being investigated as a treatment for PH, or primary hyperoxaluria – a group of several genetic disorders that cause life-threatening kidney disorders through overproduction of oxalate. Nedosiran inhibits the enzyme that causes this overproduction, and is in a Phase 3 trial. Top-line results are expected in mid-’21 and, if everything goes as planned, an NDA filing for nedosiran is anticipate near the end of 3Q21. Covering the stock for Leerink, analyst Mani Foroohar sees nedosiran as the key to the company’s near-term future. “We expect nedosiran could see approval in mid-2022, placing the drug roughly a year and a half behind competitor Oxlumo (ALNY, MP) in PH1... A successful outcome will transform DRNA into a commercial rare disease company in an attractive duopoly market with best-in-class breadth of label," Foroohar noted. To this end, Foroohar rates DRNA an Outperform (i.e. Buy), and his price target of $45 suggests a one-year upside potential of 66%. (To watch Foroohar’s track record, click here) All in all, Dicerna Pharma has 4 Buy reviews on record, making the Strong Buy unanimous. DRNA shares are trading for $26.98, and their $38 average price target puts the upside at ~41% over the next 12 months. (See DRNA stock analysis on TipRanks) To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.
The FBI's warning that protesters were "preparing for war" did not reach Capitol Police command staff, according to public testimony on the riots. USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — A screaming man with his fist raised, a Byzantine cross emblazoned in red on his T-shirt. A white flag with a lone green pine tree and the words "An Appeal to Heaven" fluttering over the angry crowd. The Christian flag whipping in the wind from a parked pickup.
Those images on display at the Jan. 5-6 rally and riot in Washington, D.C., have raised concerns that some of former President Donald Trump's most ardent and dangerous supporters, including groups such as the Proud Boys, Oathkeepers, QAnon, 3 Percenters and America Firsters, are cloaking themselves in Biblical language to justify their actions.
The flags and other displays are the latest examples of how white terrorists throughout history, including the KKK, have cited Christianity to justify what they claim is their god-given right to control races and ethnic groups, experts said.
The displays — including a prayer from the Senate rostrum by a QAnon shaman who broke into the Capitol — have so alarmed some faith leaders that they published an open letter Friday signed by more than 1,400 pastors and church leaders condemning the "perversion" of their faith.
"The use of Christian symbols, iconography, scripture in efforts to dominate and exclude are as old the republic itself," said the Rev. Fred Davie, executive vice president of Union Theological Seminary in New York City. "It's deeply baked into our nation. It's deep, but it's also been proven time and time again to be wrong."
Davie, who served as a faith liaison in the Obama White House, said evangelicalism, in particular, has become associated with American nationalism, specifically white nationalism. Online, some hard-right Christians find acceptance for their racist beliefs from white nationalists, most of whom don't share their faith but are united in their hatred.
"We're talking about a minority within a minority, but it is a powerful minority," Davie said. "But they do not represent the essence of white Christians in America — or Christians in America overall."
Using Christianity to justify hate
Some of the people who display Christian symbols or invoke the Bible to justify their actions are doing it in a largely cynical way, several experts said: They're sending a signal to fellow racists.
"For them, it's just shorthand for identity," said Edward Ahmed Mitchell, deputy executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations and a former prosecutor in Georgia. "There absolutely is a connection between far-right political extremism and far-right religious extremism, but I doubt these people are showing up at church every Sunday and reading their Bibles."
Matthew DeMichele, a research sociologist who specializes in extremism at the research institute RTI International in Raleigh, North Carolina, said there are clearly Christians who believe their religion justifies racism, and today's displays are an "intense redeployment of old tactics."
For centuries in the United States, many Christian pastors preached a "natural order" where whites were justified in enslaving Black men, women and children, citing everything from the writings of Paul the Apostle in the New Testament to the Curse of Ham in the Old Testament. Others argued that since the Bible refers to slavery as an institution without specifically condemning it, it must be divinely permitted. In 1861, Texas' leaders cited the "plainest revelations of Divine Law" to justify slavery and secession from the United States.
DeMichele said what we're seeing today is a tweaked re-emergence of the approach used by groups like the KKK, which cloaked themselves in Christian symbols and set crosses on fire as a terror tactic.
'Unthinkable for Christians to support the Proud Boys'
The letter published this week by Christian leaders from across the political spectrum specifically acknowledges that terror groups like the KKK have been tolerated and even accommodated by white evangelicals.
"We choose to speak out now because we do not want to be quiet accomplices in this on-going sin," the letter reads. "Just as it was tragically inconsistent for Christians in the 20th Century to support the Ku Klux Klan and Nazi ideology, it is unthinkable for Christians to support the Proud Boys, Oathkeepers, QAnon, 3 Percenters, America Firsters, and similar groups."
The letter urges pastors to counsel parishioners who align with or support racist and hate groups, and to emphasize the values of democracy, anti-racism and equality.
"Instead of seeing any particular political leader or party as divinely appointed, we believe in the prophetic and pastoral ministry of the church to all political leaders and parties," the letter reads. "Instead of power through violence, we believe in and seek to imitate the powerful, servant love practiced by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."
DeMichele, who has interviewed dozens of white supremacists, said the United States has deliberately been reluctant to investigate why and how people become white supremacists and white nationalists. He said a better understanding of why white Americans become enamored with those ideals will help combat domestic terrorism and help the United States live up to its ideals.
"People don't want to say that this is a country founded on white supremacy. But we know that to be true," DeMichele said. "It's very important to understand that it's not new for white supremacists to have a Christian identity. But it is intriguing there has been the strengthening overlap of the white nationalists and those of Christian identity."
White nationalists generally claim the white race is superior and advocate for racial segregation. White supremacists go a step further by insisting that white people deserve to be in charge of everything because of their skin color. The two descriptions are often used interchangeably by the public, although scholars draw a distinction between the two.
Davis noted Christian symbols have had a visible presence at other white nationalist rallies in recent years, including the Charlottesville "Unite the Right" march in August 2017, where a mishmash of hundreds of white nationalists, Neo Nazis, the KKK and white militias protested the removal of a statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee.
A similar hodgepodge of groups converged on the Capitol Jan. 6, including white nationalists, QAnon adherents, Oathkeepers and others brandishing Christian flags and blowing ram's horns.
"The differing ideologies are all kind of blending together," said Stephen Piggott, a researcher with the Western States Center, a Portland, Oregon-based nonprofit that supports inclusive democracy. "A year ago, if a Neo-Nazi showed up at a Trump rally they'd likely get kicked out."
Turning religious beliefs 'into something very dark'
White nationalists internationally have similarly invoked Christianity to justify their actions — even when they aren't Christian themselves. A man who attacked a summer camp in Norway in 2011, killing 77 people, claimed to be a member of an international Christian military order created to fight Muslims. He later said he was actually a follower of pagan Norse gods, including Odin, and a neo-Nazi, and that he had drawn inspiration from Al Qaeda.
Comparisons between Al Qaeda and white nationalists who profess a twisted, extreme version of Christianity are apt, said Javed Ali, a former FBI and National Security Council analyst. Terror groups such asAl Qaeda and ISIS both have cherry-picked from Islam to justify their violent attacks, said Ali, who teaches counterterrorism at the University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy.
"They were able to turn Islam into something very dark," he said. "I see the same thing playing out in the far-right space: These symbols are being hijacked for a completely different purpose. And it helps justify their actions."
While Christian symbols were present during the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol, prosecutors have not indicated any significant links between arrested participants and churches. Mitchell, of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said federal agents should not target churches for investigation, the way they targeted mosques after 9/11. Critics of that surveillance said it risked alienating and potentially radicalizing Muslims who suddenly felt unwelcome in their own country.
"You don't have to go investigating churches. All you have to do is take seriously the violent rhetoric that's being expressed out in the open," he said. "The federal government, in our opinion, has never taken the threat of far-right religious extremists as seriously as they have Muslim extremists, who are far fewer."
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February 28, 2021 at 06:07PM
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2021/02/28/white-nationalists-use-christian-symbols-send-messages-racists/4457702001/
White nationalists are once again using Christian symbols to spread hate - USA TODAY
RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) – The Virginia General Assembly voted to pass legislation Saturday that calls for the legalization of recreational marijuana use and retail sales to begin in 2024, but one key Democrat stressed that the approved bill was just a step in a long process.
The Virginia Senate and House of Delegates, both under Democratic-controlled, adopted conference reports after hours of debate and private discussion over the legislation.
Even without full support from Democrats, the Virginia House voted 47-44 to approve the compromise and legalize marijuana in 2024. One state delegates abstained. The Virginia Senate narrowly approved the measure, 20-19, with state Sen. Chap Peterson (D-Fairfax) voting against it.
Under the agreement reached by negotiators in the Virginia Senate and House, simple possession would still come with a $25 civil penalty for a first offense until retail sales begin on Jan. 1, 2024, and another vote in the General Assembly next year will determine several other components.
Lawmakers who spoke before the vote took time to address the fact that the bill would take years to go into effect, requires more state-funded reports and a new legislature would eventually vote on several key regulatory details.
State Sen. Richard H. Stuart (R-Stafford) questioned how the average Virginian would be able to understand the different aspects of the 264-page compromise report when those in the chamber couldn’t go over each detail. He made it clear that people wouldn’t be able to grow it in their back yard and can’t have a certain amount until after several other steps over years.
Democrats conceded it was just a first step in the process, with even skeptical lawmakers deciding to vote for the bill.
“We need to make it clear, this bill is not legalization,” state Sen. Jennifer McClellan (D-Richmond), a gubernatorial contender said. “There are a lot of steps for legalization.
Advocacy groups that support legalization said before the vote that the compromise failed to address social and racial justice concerns that initially drove the effort and called on legislators to reject the bill.
A re-enactment clause in the compromise report, one of the main sticking points in the negotiations, will require the state legislature to vote again next year on specifics surrounding the regulatory structure for legal sales and remaining criminal justice components of the bill.
Groups that back legalization shared concerns over the penalty for simple possession remaining in place and an open container clause in the legislation, arguing that racial disparities in enforcement, even with decriminalization, still exist.
Justice Forward Virginia, Marijuana Justice, ACLU Virginia and RISE for Youth voiced their displeasure with the compromise after details were reported, calling it “worse than the status quo.”
“This bill does not advance the cause of equal justice or racial justice in Virginia. It is the product of a closed-door legislative process that has prioritized the interests of recreational marijuana smokers over people and communities of color,” the groups said in a joint statement. “The bill is a failure and we urge lawmakers to vote against it.”
Sen. McClellan echoed that sentiment on the Senate floor on Saturday, questioning the chamber’s ability to fully comprehend and vote on a 264-page compromise report and raising concerns concerning the disproportionate fines that Black Virginians still face with decriminalization. The question compelled the bill’s patron and one of the conferees in the conference committee, state Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria), to ask for the debate to go by momentarily.
After a recess and a long debate, the chamber followed the House and approved the conference report.
The compromise also calls for a possible misdemeanor charge, with a $250 fine, for anyone found guilty of driving with a partially open container of marijuana or marijuana product along with “the appearance, conduct, speech, or other physical characteristic,” except for odor, of marijuana consumption.
Another difference, a non-binding referendum where Virginians would share whether they support legalization, did not make the final agreement, one person familiar with the agreement told 8News.
If the new General Assembly, which is expected to be different with all 100 House seats up for grabs, rejects the measure, simple possession would still be legal but retail sales would not.
Legalization was presented as a major agenda item for Northam and Virginia Democrats before this year’s session. The Virginia Senate and House of Delegates, both under Democratic control, each passed legislation on Feb. 5 to legalize use and possession for those 21 years and older.
While the bills had similarities, including an automatic expungement process for misdemeanor convictions and establishing the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority by July to oversee the legal industry, legislators were expecting that a conference committee negotiation would be needed to work out the final details.
With the special session ending Monday, lawmakers had until Saturday to finish their work on the legislation. The bill now goes to Northam, who was actively involved and “personally working closely” with lawmakers to get the bill passed this year, according to his spokesperson.
“Passing legislation this year ensures that the new Cannabis Control Authority and the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board can get up and running in 2021. The CCA will be responsible for writing regulations immediately and issuing licenses in future years,” Alena Yarmosky, Northam’s spokeswoman, told 8News in an email Saturday. “The Reinvestment Board will be made up of community leaders and will ensure that the state keeps social equity front and center in future years. These two organizations will provide much needed expertise and leadership in 2021 and the future, as legislators and others continue to refine details of what legalization will look like.”
Democrats said they hoped Northam would add amendments, including one to repeal the penalty for simple possession in July, as the Senate’s version had before the conference committee.
The Virginia NAACP initially denounced the agreement, saying it would only exacerbate criminal justice issues that prompted the calls for legalization before the legislative session. But issued a second statement applauding the effort to remove certain concerning aspects of the compromise.
“We are grateful that legislators successfully removed the most concerning aspects of the proposed legislation,” Robert N. Barnette Jr., the president of the Virginia NAACP, said in a statement. “While the final conference report is not perfect, it’s a step in the right direction and we hope legislators will move forward with its passage.”
The compromise also includes an opt-out clause for localities to decide whether or not to allow retail sales through a referendum that must be certified by Dec. 31, 2022.
NBC political reporter Steve Kornacki posted a tweet Friday night thanking the Chicago Blackhawks for sending him a new jersey, adding he "can't wait" to see them on the ice Sunday.
"The best part of Jimmy Fallon ambush-cleaning my office: the @NHLBlackhawks saw that I had one of their jerseys and sent me one of these. Can’t wait to see them debut on the ice on Sunday!" Kornacki said in a tweet.
The Blackhawks responded to the tweet with a gif of player Patrick Kane, saying "Looks great Steve!!"
NBC late night host Jimmy Fallon surprised Kornacki last month on his show by cleaning his office while he was away, which was said to be an "incredibly messy" space.
As Fallon went through the various items in Kornacki's cluttered office, he showed an old Chicago Blackhawks jersey on a rack among other button-down shirts.
The jersey was representing player Jonathan Toews, No. 19 on the ice.
Kornacki made headlines as a data analyst during MSNBC's coverage of the 2020 Presidential Race with his quick number crunching and explanation of nationwide voting.
SPARTANBURG, S.C. — Morgan Safford scored 12 points and his layup with six seconds left sent Wofford past Furman 74-73 on Saturday.
Safford caught the ball on the left wing and beat the defense down the lane for a floater that ricocheted off the back iron before he gathered his miss and banked it in for the lead.
The Paladins inbounded the ball and pushed it to Noah Gurley but his leaning 3-pointer from the left wing with two seconds left drew iron and bounced out of bounds to end it.
Messiah Jones scored 19 points on 9-for-11 shooting with seven rebounds for the Terriers (15-8, 12-5 Southern Conference). Storm Murphy added 15 points and Tray Hollowell 13.
Gurley tied a career high with 29 points and had seven rebounds for the Paladins (16-8, 10-5), whose four-game winning streak ended. Mike Bothwell and Clay Mounce each scored 12 and combined to grab 13 rebounds.
Wofford also beat Furman 75-67 on Feb. 6.
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For more AP college basketball coverage: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and http://twitter.com/AP_Top25
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Elements of this story were generated by Automated Insights, http://www.automatedinsights.com/ap, using data from STATS LLC, https://www.stats.com
WASHINGTON (AP) — Bradley Beal scored 34 points, Russell Westbrook added 19 as part of his NBA-leading 10th triple-double, and the Washington Wizards used a 44-point third quarter to pull away for a 128-112 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night.
Westbrook added 14 rebounds and 12 assists for the Wizards, who have won seven of eight to move back into playoff contention following a 6-17 start.
“It’s big for everybody, confidence-wise,” Beal said of the recent surge. “But at the same time, we still know we haven’t done much. We haven’t done anything. That’s what I keep telling our guys.”
Davis Bertans scored 12 of his 19 points in the third quarter, including four of his five 3-pointers. Garrison Mathews scored 18 points in Washington’s first home game following a four-game West Coast trip.
“I thought he had some great looks in the first half, but shooters have to keep shooting,” Wizards coach Scott Brooks said of Bertans. “He made some shots that kind of broke it open for us.”
Karl-Anthony Towns had 23 points and 11 rebounds for the Timberwolves, who dropped their seventh straight, matching their longest slide of the season.
Anthony Edwards added 21 points for NBA-worst Minnesota, as starting guard Malik Beasley served the first of a 12-game suspension.
The Timberwolves were in it until Washington’s third-quarter outburst, which included an extended 35-12 run.
The Wizards scored nine straight to start it, with Westbrook’s running dunk and Beal’s 3-pointer from the top of the key giving them a 72-67 lead and coaxing newly installed Minnesota coach Chris Finch into a timeout.
“When teams make a run on you, you’ve got to fight back,” said Finch, following his third game in charge. “That’s what we have to be. We need to learn how to be a little more resilient right now.”
It was a five-point game before the Wizards made six 3-pointers over a 4:20 stretch. Bertans’ last 3 of the quarter, off Westbrook’s 11th assist of the game, made it 98-79 with just under a minute left.
“I feel like we’re kind of bringing together everything we’ve been talking about at the beginning of the season,” Bertans said.
Timberwolves: Dropped to 3-5 in the opener of back-to-back games. … G Jarrett Culver (ankle) returned after a 17-game absence, though he was available for Wednesday’s loss in Chicago, Finch said. … Jarred Vanderbilt had 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Wizards: Improved to 3-6 in the opener of back-to-back games. … Westbrook nearly achieved his triple-double by halftime, entering the break with 13 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. He also received his 11th technical foul of the season with 9:36 to play in the game … Bertans (knee) returned after missing Thursday’s win in Denver.
CENTER OF ATTENTION
Wizards Center Thomas Bryant, who suffered a season-ending ACL tear in January, made his first appearance on the bench since the injury, to the delight of teammates.
“That was definitely the best part about the first half — just seeing him in the locker room,” Brooks said. “I was walking on the court with about four minutes to go (until tip-off.) Gave him a great big hug. He’s definitely missed and loved by all of us.”
“LIKE FOR LIKE?”
With Beasley serving the first of a 12-game suspension related to a guilty plea to a felony count of threats of violence, guard Josh Okogie returned to the starting lineup. Finch won’t ask anyone will serve as a “like-for-like” replacement for Beasley, who is averaging 20.5 points and just over 33 minutes a contest.
“We don’t expect any one person to come in and fill that void,” Finch said. “We’re going to put out lineups out there that suit ourselves to start, and then go from there.”
UP NEXT
Timberwolves: Return home to face Phoenix on Sunday.
"Flawed assumptions" about overcrowded hospitals led states like New York to order coronavirus-postive patients into nursing homes during the early days of the pandemic, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told "Life, Liberty, & Levin."
"We looked at the data that we had from other parts of the world as we were getting into March, and we saw that this was a virus that had a disproportionate impact on elderly people and we're the second-oldest state in the country, so that was something that was obviously very concerning to us," the Republican told host Mark Levin.
DeSantis explained that state officials took "action to protect vulnerable people as best as they could."
"One of the things we did, I think, before any other state was protect nursing homes. So we prevented people from visiting for a time," DeSantis said.
"But then, I think more importantly, we barred hospitals from discharging sick nursing home residents back into the nursing homes," he added. "As you know, other states did the opposite and ordered those patients back. We viewed that as something that would be very hazardous."
The full interview with DeSantis airs Sunday night at 8 p.m. ET on Fox News Channel.
In addition to being the third-most populous state in the country, DeSantis pointed out, 4.5 million Florida residents -- nearly a quarter of the state's population, are over the age of 65.
"At the time, there was actually a lot of movement to send the nursing home residents back because people said, 'Oh, you're going to run out of hospital beds, you've got to clear the hospitals,' and I looked at a lot of those models ... and I didn't think that they were worth the paper they were printed on. They were based on flawed assumptions," he said. "They were not being validated in real time by what we were observing on the ground in Florida. So I said, 'You know what? If I have to build field hospitals all across the state, I will do that before I send these patients back into nursing homes and endanger all these elderly people.'"
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is under investigation for his handling of the pandemic after thousands of COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes across the state.
Last month, New York Attorney General Letitia James said nursing home COVID-19 deaths in the state were undercounted by as much as 50%. Matters escalated after a top aide to Cuomo told state Democratic lawmakers that the administration had withheld data on nursing home deaths out of concern over a federal investigation.
Last year, Cuomo directed New York nursing home to accept patients who had or were suspected of having COVID-19. The decision created an onslaught of COVID-19 cases in thousands of elderly patients and resulted in hundreds of deaths among the state's most vulnerable population.
Fox News' Tyler Olson and Brooke Singman contributed to this report.
When Jonathan Peterson couldn’t celebrate his milestone birthday, the community stepped up to support him.
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Most of us had to celebrate a birthday during the pandemic. Gatherings have been scrapped or canceled, and the thought of the tradition of blowing out the candles seems difficult to understand now.
Jonathan Peterson had to cancel his yearly trip to Dave and Buster’s with his family. Peterson says his mom, Michelle Wood, is in the high-risk category so a small celebration at home was inevitable.
“I just wanted to do something,” said Peterson. “Just get out of the house and have fun. Even go for a drive.”
Wood said it was heartbreaking to see her son so sad leading up to his 18th birthday. As for celebrating she was almost out of ideas when she reached out online to see if anyone in her Delaware community would send him a nice note or a card.
“I just had written a post that my son was going to be 18,” said Wood. “He doesn’t know a lot of people because he’s autistic and he goes to school online with the Autism Scholarship so it wasn’t like we had a lot of friends that we can chitchat with.”
Woods was hopeful that a few letters would appear in the mailbox, enough to lift his spirits until they can one day return to the entertainment restaurant.
The response was overwhelming.
“Not just cards and letters, he’s gotten Lego sets, Amazon packages, the Sign Gipsies put a big display in our front yard,” said Wood.
Peterson says the total count is 160 and climbing
“I’ve read every single one of them. And that’s only so far, they still keep coming in. I got some in the mail this morning,” said Peterson.
Peterson explained he will try his best to respond to every gift that had a return address.
“Thank you very much. This has been my most special birthday yet when I expected it to be my least. And it made me very happy when I’ve been down lately.”
A response Wood never dreamed would have been so grand and kind.
“Thank you so much for everybody. You made my baby’s birthday extra special and that means the world to this mama.”
February 28, 2021 at 08:05AM
https://www.10tv.com/article/news/local/strangers-send-gifts-to-celebrate-18-year-old-with-autisms-birthday/530-a0d4de4a-5211-468c-9987-5c0dc2b5a413
Strangers send gifts to celebrate 18-year-old with autism’s birthday - 10TV
The lasting legacy of the last decade of automotive progress may well be the proliferation of AWD systems. Available more widely than ever before, they come in a variety of forms – and with automakers using all kinds of names or acronyms, customers may get confused.
And that’s what this latest video from Hagerty seeks to parse. Host Jason Cammisa runs through the three basic types of AWD systems and breaks down what they really mean to drivers, particularly the spirited kind of driver.
The bad news is that at the limit, AWD systems tend to promote understeer, which isn’t fun. But there are ways that they can be made beneficial in more than just low grip situations.
Addressing the first major claim that many automakers make, in practice, most cars won’t ever actually send power to just one wheel. Most FWD-based cars with AWD systems aren’t ever likely to even send all their power to the rear axle.
That’s not to say that automakers who boast of being able to send all their power to the rear wheels are lying. Rather, it means that for it to happen an unlikely number of wheels would have to have absolutely no grip.
In more reasonable scenarios, the front-biased AWD systems send most of their power to the front wheels. When those are overworked (as in the example below) they tend to plow and that’s not fun.
There are advantages to sending power to the front wheels, though. Besides the help it provides under acceleration, if you do get into an oversteer situation, with power being sent to the front wheels, you can throttle out of trouble. That’s why an AWD system like BMW’s is actually very handy.
With more power being sent to the rear wheels, you can induce oversteer with the throttle. That can be easier to manage, though, when the front wheels are powered, too. And it actually leads to really nice handling dynamics at the limit.
This is all in high-speed driving and, of course, drive systems aren’t the only things that affect handling, but it’s a good break down of the fundamentals.
WASHINGTON — Bradley Beal scored 34 points, Russell Westbrook added 19 as part of his NBA-leading 10th triple-double, and the Washington Wizards used a 44-point third quarter to pull away for a 128-112 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Westbrook added 14 rebounds and 12 assists for the Wizards, who have won seven of eight to move back into playoff contention following a 6-17 start.
Karl-Anthony Towns had 23 points and 11 rebounds for the Timberwolves, who dropped their seventh straight, matching their longest slide of the season.
February 28, 2021 at 09:53AM
https://www.kare11.com/article/sports/nba/timberwolves/wizards-send-timberwolves-to-7th-straight-loss/89-51cdc63d-8115-4d54-a5ba-bc3ec7b63e9a
Wizards send Timberwolves to 7th straight loss, 128-112 - KARE11.com
ADA CALHOUN: Discusses “Why We Can’t Sleep,” which she wrote when she was the throes of a midlife crisis and realized other Gen X women were miserable, too. After research, she saw a pattern: sandwiched getween the boomers and the Millennials, Gen X women were facing new problems as they entered middle age. 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 2, presented by Magers & Quinn. Live on Facebook and YouTube.
LAUREN FOX: New York Times bestselling author of “Still Life with Husband” and other novels introduces “Send for Me,” a time-jumping work of historical fiction in which a woman discovers a cache of old letters from her Jewish grandmother that sheds light on her family’s struggles and fate during the rise of Nazism in Germany. 7 p.m. Mnday, March 1, in Metropolitan Library Service Agency’s Club Book Series. No registration necessary. Follow the Club Book Facebook page (facebook.com/ClubBook), where events will be streamed in real time.
LITERARY LIGHTS: Celebrates Women’s History Month and women poets with a program featuring Wendy Brown-Baez, Marge Barrett, Ethan McKiernan and Terri Ford, hosted by Donna Isaac. 2 p.m. Sunday, March 7, presented via Zoom by Next Chapter booksellers. Go to: nextchapterbooksellers.com.
PARENTS MANNERS: Sarah Davis and Evie Granfille discuss “Modern Manners for Moms & Dads,” a look at how parents adjust to and use social media. $5. 7 p.m. Monday, March 1, presented by Magers & Quinn. Go to: magersandquinn.com/events.
STEW THORNLEY: Author and official scorer for Minnesota Twins home games discusses “Ballparks of the Twin Cities.” 7 p.m. Monday, March 1, via Zoom, presented by Next Chapter Booksellers. Go to: nextchapterbooksellers.com.
NBC political reporter Steve Kornacki posted a tweet Friday night thanking the Chicago Blackhawks for sending him a new jersey, adding he "can't wait" to see them on the ice Sunday.
"The best part of Jimmy Fallon ambush-cleaning my office: the @NHLBlackhawks saw that I had one of their jerseys and sent me one of these. Can’t wait to see them debut on the ice on Sunday!" Kornacki said in a tweet.
The Blackhawks responded to the tweet with a gif of player Patrick Kane, saying "Looks great Steve!!"
NBC late night host Jimmy Fallon surprised Kornacki last month on his show by cleaning his office while he was away, which was said to be an "incredibly messy" space.
As Fallon went through the various items in Kornacki's cluttered office, he showed an old Chicago Blackhawks jersey on a rack among other button-down shirts.
The jersey was representing player Jonathan Toews, No. 19 on the ice.
Kornacki made headlines as a data analyst during MSNBC's coverage of the 2020 Presidential Race with his quick number crunching and explanation of nationwide voting.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) - Wisconsin election officials may send voting deputies back into nursing homes ahead of the April elections.
The state Elections Commission banned deputies from entering nursing homes in March 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic was taking hold. That ban remains in place despite urgings from Republicans to lift it.
Earlier this month the Legislature’s GOP-controlled rules committee ordered the commission to promulgate the ban as an emergency rule.
The commission is set to discuss such a move during a meeting Tuesday.
Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe is recommending that commissioners drop the ban. She says even if the commission puts together a rule Republican legislators will strike it down as unlawful.
Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Donald Trump's presidency is over and his Twitter feed silenced, but at the first major conservative gathering of the year, the message is clear: Mr. Trump is here to stay.
Elected officials and activists who spoke on the first day of the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) held in Florida this year, focused on COVID-19 restrictions, the so-called cancel culture, how the 2020 election was administered and the threats they see from Democratic policies. While there was barely any mention of the attack at the Capitol last month, speakers railed against the "liberal mob" and riots over the summer.
The conference doesn't feature open critics of the former president, so praise for Mr. Trump, who still has the support of most GOP voters, was a theme of the opening day.
"There are a whole lot of voices in Washington that want to just erase the last four years," Texas Senator Ted Cruz told the crowd. "Let me tell you right now: Donald J. Trump ain't going anywhere."
Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton told a story about an immigrant attributing his economic success to the former president, and celebrated Mr. Trump ability to attract Latino voters in the 2020 election.
And Missouri Senator Josh Hawley received a standing ovation when he told the crowd of his objection to the election results on January 6. He blasted Twitter for banning Trump, and ended his speech with: "America now, America first, America forever."
Many speakers urged the Republican Party against a return to its pre-Trump origins and criticized some of the policies past GOP leaders have pushed.
"We will not win the future by trying to go back to where the Republican Party used to be," said Florida Senator Rick Scott, who also chairs the Senate Republicans' campaign operation. "If we do, we will lose the working base that President Trump so animated. We're going to lose elections across the country and ultimately we're going to lose our nation."
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who is up for reelection in 2022, set his own mark for conservatives going forward, saying the party rejects open borders, "weakness" against China and "military adventurism."
"We will not go back to the days of the failed Republican establishment of yesteryear," he said. "Hold the line, stand your ground, and don't ever, ever back down."
Hawley told the people attending CPAC that they "represent what's coming next."
"To the people who say to us, 'Oh, you're the past. Your moment has passed, it's over. It's Joe Biden's America now,'" he said. "I just want to say, 'we're not the past. We're the future,'" he said.
At the event, Hawley wore the widespread criticism of his objection to the counting of Electoral College votes on January 6 as a badge of honor.
"I was called a traitor, I was called a seditionist," he said of the reaction to his vote. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm standing right here. I'm going to stand up for you, because if we can't have free and open debate in this country, we're not going to have a country left." His phrasing echoed a remark made by Mr. Trump to his supporters that day: "If you don't fight like hell, you're not going to have a country anymore."
Nearly a dozen speakers at the event have been mentioned as possible 2024 presidential candidates. "For a second there, I thought we were in Des Moines," Cruz quipped about the speaking lineup.
Cotton, among the likely White House hopefuls, suggested Republicans might not be running against Biden in four years. "They want to give amnesty to 15 to 20 million illegal aliens. With no strings attached, with voting rights —presumably in time for what they hope will be Kamala Harris' reelection campaign," he said.
But as a roster of Republicans compete to boost their profiles, it is Mr. Trump who is the marquee speaker, set to make his first public remarks since leaving office at the conference on Sunday.
Mr. Trump's eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., joked that the conference should be called "TPAC" because of the support the former president has among the audience. He offered a brief preview of his father's speech, telling the crowd, "I imagine it will not be what we call a 'low-energy' speech. And I assure you that it will solidify Donald Trump and all of your feelings about the MAGA Movement as the future of the Republican Party."
Polling shows Mr. Trump still holds a firm grip on the Republican Party's base. A Suffolk University/USA Today poll published earlier this week found nearly 6 in 10 Trump supporters said they'd like to see him run for president again in 2024 and 76% said they'd vote for him if he sought the Republican nomination.
Saturday's notable speakers include Florida Senator Marco Rubio, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, who have been floated as potential 2024 presidential candidates.
LAUREN FOX: New York Times bestselling author of “Still Life with Husband” and other novels introduces “Send for Me,” a time-jumping work of historical fiction in which a woman discovers a cache of old letters from her Jewish grandmother that sheds light on her family’s struggles and fate during the rise of Nazism in Germany. 7 p.m. Mnday, March 1, in Metropolitan Library Service Agency’s Club Book Series. No registration necessary. Follow the Club Book Facebook page (
