Tag Archives: Georgia

Keep an eye on elections as some are too close to call

Romans 13:1 says, “Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.”

Important Takeaways:

  • Georgia’s Senate race still too close, Dow slips, and history has been made in some American states
  • Stacey Abrams conceded to Republican challenger Brian Kemp in Georgia
  • Gretchen Whitmer defeats Tudor Dixon in Michigan
  • Republican George Santos flipped the 3rd Congressional district in New York
  • 4 Senate seats are still up for grabs: Nevada, Georgia, Wisconsin and Arizona. Delay in Arizona’s Maricopa County due to “ballot glitches” and additional results are expected on Wednesday night.
  • Some of the top issues for American voters during this election cycle included inflation, threats to democracy, crime, immigration and border security, and abortion.

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All eyes on Subtropical Storm Nicole as DeSantis issues State of Emergency for 34 counties

Revelation 16:9 “They were scorched by the fierce heat, and they cursed the name of God who had power over these plagues. They did not repent and give him glory.”

Important Takeaways:

  • Subtropical Storm Nicole strengthens, prompting new watches, warnings for Florida, Georgia coasts
  • Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis issued a state of emergency for 34 counties as Nicole is forecast to make landfall as a Category 1 hurricane along the state’s east coast Wednesday night or early Thursday.
  • Nicole is a very large storm, so regardless of its strength as it approaches Florida and the southeastern U.S., significant impacts will be far-reaching and persist for multiple consecutive days along a vast portion of the Eastern Seaboard.
  • North Palm Beach, Florida, to Altamaha Sound, Georgia, including the St. Johns River to the Fuller Warren Bridge: 3 to 5 feet
  • Johns River south of the Fuller Warren Bridge to Georgetown in Florida: 2 to 4 feet
  • Hallandale Beach to North Palm Beach in Florida: 2 to 4 feet
  • North of Ocean Reef to Hallandale Beach in Florida, including Biscayne Bay: 1 to 2 feet
  • Nicole is then expected to spread northward up the Eastern Seaboard from Thursday into the weekend.
  • Southeastern Georgia and portions of South Carolina could pick up 1 to 4 inches of rain on Thursday and Thursday night. Flash, urban and small stream flooding are possible in these areas.

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University of Georgia and Florida denounce Anti-Semitic messaging

Genesis 12:3 I will bless those who bless you, and curse those who curse you

Important Takeaways:

  • Florida, Georgia and SEC Respond to Anti-Semitic Messaging in Jacksonville
  • The Universities of Florida and Georgia released a statement on Sunday morning condemning antisemitic signage that was projected onto TIAA Bank Field and surrounding areas of Jacksonville, Fla. around Saturday night’s annual matchup between the Gators and Bulldogs.
  • A message reading “Kanye was right about the Jews” was projected onto the back of a scoreboard at TIAA Bank Field after the game, in reference to musician Kanye West’s recent antisemitic and threatening comments on social media.
  • The same message was projected onto the 11 East Forsyth historic structure in downtown Jacksonville on Saturday.
  • So without going through all the guff. In short Kanye believes an elite cabal of Jews runs the World

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As Florida begins cleaning up Ian heads to Georgia bringing heavy rains and storm surge

Revelation 16:9 “They were scorched by the fierce heat, and they cursed the name of God who had power over these plagues. They did not repent and give him glory.”

Important Takeaways:

  • Sharks in the Streets, Homes Floating Away; Monster Storm Ian Now Heads to Georgia and Carolinas
  • It’s the fifth strongest hurricane to ever hit the American mainland, trapping people in flooded homes amid rising floodwaters.
  • Hurricane Ian made landfall as a Category 4 storm with 150 mile-per-hour top winds, striking Charlotte harbor, south of Tampa, sending a storm surge of 12 to 18 feet through the cities of Fort Myers and Naples.
  • Flash flooding is still a concern as it’s expected to drop at least 30 inches of rain in some areas.
  • Sharks were seen swimming in the streets.
  • Rescue teams and state officials are fanning out to help victims and begin assessing damage.
  • Now a tropical storm, Ian has moved into the Atlantic and is expected to make landfall again in Georgia or South Carolina this weekend, bringing heavy winds, rain and storm surge.

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Major Storms Hit the South East

2 Timothy 3:1 “But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty.”

Important Takeaways:

  • Deadly storms leave trail of destruction across southern US
  • Tornadoes and severe storms touched down across several states, leaving at least one person dead.
  • A major outbreak of tornadoes is causing significant damage across much of the South – including Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina.

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Mounting Fears as Moldova and Georgia Apply to be Part of EU

Matthew 24:6 “And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet.”

Important Takeaways:

  • Moldova officially applies for EU membership
  • Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has triggered fears among ex-Soviet countries that they may be next.
  • Moldova has officially applied for membership of the European Union, a week after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began.
  • The announcement came after the European Parliament expressed backing for a similar move by Kyiv.
  • The application will be sent to Brussels in the coming days, the president said.
  • Fellow ex-Soviet republic Georgia also formally applied for membership
  • The West has expressed concerns that Moldova and Georgia risk becoming possible targets for the Kremlin after Ukraine.
  • “We stand with Moldova and Georgia to defend their sovereignty and security,” French President Emmanuel Macron said last week

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Russia demands rescinding of NATO promise to Ukraine and Georgia

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia demanded on Friday that NATO rescind a 2008 commitment to Ukraine and Georgia that they would one day become members and said the alliance should promise not to deploy weapons in countries bordering Russia that could threaten its security.

The demands were spelt out by the Russian foreign ministry in its fullest statement yet on the security guarantees that President Vladimir Putin says he wants to obtain from the United States and its allies.

“In the fundamental interests of European security, it is necessary to formally disavow the decision of the 2008 NATO Bucharest summit that ‘Ukraine and Georgia will become NATO members’,” the ministry said in a statement.

Ukraine is at the center of a crisis in East-West relations as it accuses Russia of massing tens of thousands of troops in preparation for a possible large-scale military offensive.

Russia denies planning any attack but accuses Ukraine and the United States of destabilizing behavior, and has said it needs security guarantees for its own protection.

The ministry statement followed a video call between Putin and U.S. President Joe Biden this week that was dominated by discussion of Ukraine.

The foreign ministry said Moscow was proposing a series of steps to reduce tensions, including to agree safe distances between Russian and NATO warships and planes, especially in the Baltic and Black Seas.

Moscow called for the renewing of a regular defense dialogue with the United States and NATO and urged Washington to join a moratorium on deploying intermediate-range nuclear forces in Europe.

(Writing by Mark Trevelyan; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky and Frances Kerry)

Three white men convicted of murdering Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia

By Jonathan Allen and Rich McKay

BRUNSWICK, Ga. (Reuters) – Three white men were convicted of murder on Wednesday for chasing and shooting a Black man named Ahmaud Arbery as he ran in their neighborhood, with a Georgia jury rejecting a self-defense claim in a trial that once again probed America’s divisive issues of race and guns.

The verdict was delivered by the jury, consisting of one Black man and 11 white men and women, after about a two-week trial in the coastal city of Brunswick in a case that hinged on whether the defendants had a right to confront the unarmed 25-year-old avid jogger last year on a hunch he was fleeing a crime.

Gregory McMichael, 65, his son Travis McMichael, 35, and their neighbor William “Roddie” Bryan, 52, were charged with murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment and criminal intent to commit a felony. They face a minimum sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole.

Jurors reached their verdict on the second day of deliberations.

There was never any dispute that the younger McMichael fired his pump-action shotgun three times at Arbery at close range on Feb. 23, 2020, in the suburban community of Satilla Shores. It was captured on a graphic cellphone video made by Bryan, stoking outrage when it emerged more than two months later and the public learned that none of the three men had been arrested.

Lawyers for the McMichaels argued that the killing was justified after Arbery ran past the McMichaels’ driveway in a neighborhood that had experienced a spate of property thefts. Both McMichaels grabbed their guns and jumped in their pickup truck in pursuit, with Bryan, unarmed, joining moments later.

Prosecutors said the defendants had “assumed the worst” about a Black man out on a Sunday afternoon jog. He was chased by the defendants for about five minutes around the looping streets.

The three men face a federal trial next year on hate-crime charges, accused in an indictment of violating Arbery’s civil rights by embarking on the fatal chase because of his “race and color.”

Some Black Americans used a despairing phrase to describe a case seen as another example of Black people falling under suspicion while innocently doing an everyday activity: “running while Black.” Arbery’s name was added to those invoked in nationwide anti-racism protests in 2020 that erupted after the police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, both of whom were Black.

The prosecution was widely seen as another test case in how the U.S. justice system handles instances of unarmed Black people killed by white people. During the trial, there was almost no evidence presented or discussion of race as a motive.

The issue of race hung over the trial. A nearly all-white jury was selected, and one of the defense lawyers repeatedly, but unsuccessfully, sought the removal of Black pastors and civil rights leaders including the Rev. Jesse Jackson from the courtroom.

Superior Court Judge Timothy Walmsley said he was required to accept the “race-neutral” reasons defense lawyers gave for the removal of all but one potential Black juror. Black activists said it showed again how the justice system was skewed against Black Americans.

CITIZEN’S ARREST

Defense lawyers cited a Georgia law codified during the 19th century U.S. Civil War that allowed anyone to make a citizen’s arrest of someone they have reasonable suspicion is fleeing a serious crime they committed. The law was repealed in the wake of Arbery’s killing.

The elder McMichael’s lawyer, Laura Hogue, told jurors the defendants had a duty to catch Arbery, who she portrayed as a frightening burglar with “long dirty toenails,” using a description from the autopsy report.

Lead prosecutor Linda Dunikoski chided the defense for aiming to “malign the victim,” calling that “offensive.”

No evidence ever emerged connecting Arbery to any Satilla Shore thefts.

Travis McMichael, a former U.S. Coast Guard mechanic and the only defendant to take the witness stand, tearfully testified that he fired in self defense as Arbery grabbed the shotgun he was carrying while chasing him in the truck.

Under cross-examination by a prosecutor, he conceded he told the police hours after the shooting he could not say for sure if Arbery actually grabbed the gun.

(Reporting by Rich McKay in Brunswick; Editing by Will Dunham and Cynthia Osterman)

U.S. coronavirus hospitalizations hit eight-month high over 100,000

By Anurag Maan

(Reuters) -The number of coronavirus patients in U.S. hospitals has breached 100,000, the highest level in eight months, according to the Department of Health and Human Services, as a resurgence of COVID-19 spurred by the highly contagious Delta variant strains the nation’s health care system.

A total of 101,433 COVID patients were hospitalized, according to data published on Friday morning.

U.S. COVID-19 hospitalizations have more than doubled in the past month. Over the past week, more than 500 people with COVID were admitted to hospitals each hour on average, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The United States reached its all-time peak for hospitalizations on Jan. 14 when there were over 142,000 coronavirus-infected patients in hospital beds, according to HHS.

As the vaccination campaign expanded in early 2021, hospitalizations fell and hit a 2021 low of 16,000 on in late June.

However, COVID-19 admissions rose suddenly in July as the Delta variant became the dominant strain. The U.S. South is the epicenter of the latest outbreak but hospitalizations are rising nationwide.

Florida has the highest number of COVID-19 hospitalized patients, followed by Texas and California, according to data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. More than 95% of intensive care beds are currently occupied in Alabama, Florida and Georgia.

The Delta variant, which is rapidly spreading among mostly the unvaccinated U.S. population, has also sent a record number of children to hospital. There are currently over 2,000 confirmed and suspected pediatric COVID-19 hospitalizations, according to HHS.

Three states – California, Florida and Texas – amount to about 32% of the total confirmed and suspected pediatric COVID-19 hospitalizations in the United States.

Children currently make up about 2.3% of the nation’s COVID-19 hospitalizations. Kids under 12 are not eligible to receive the vaccine.

The country is hoping for vaccine authorization for younger children by autumn with the Pfizer Inc vaccine.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, said this week that the nation could get COVID-19 under control by early next year if vaccinations ramp up.

The United States has given at least one dose of vaccine to about 61% of its population, according to the CDC.

The United States, which leads the world in the most deaths and cases, has reported 38.5 million infections and over 634,000 deaths since the pandemic began last year, according to a Reuters tally.

(Reporting by Anurag Maan in Bengaluru; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Michael Perry)

Georgia wins 8-year water fight with downstream neighbor Florida

By Rich McKay and Sebastien Malo

ATLANTA (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday sided with Georgia in ending its eight-year battle with Florida over water that runs through Atlanta’s thirsty metro region and downstream past cotton and peanut fields to Apalachicola Bay and its depleted oyster fisheries.

The high court tossed out claims by Florida that Georgia is using too much water from the Chattahoochee River, a tributary of the Apalachicola River basin downstream, driving up salinity levels in the estuary it feeds and causing the once-rich oyster population there to collapse.

In the eyes of Michael Dasher, a fourth-generation Florida oysterman counting on a different outcome in legal bids to wrestle back more freshwater supplies for his vanishing way of life, it’s over.

“We thought the court would finally do what’s right and help us out, send more water,” said Dasher, 54. “We know Atlanta and them all in Georgia need it too, but they’ve about run the river dry. This is pretty much the end for us.”

In a unanimous 9-0 decision, the court ruled that Florida did not prove that its proposed water diversion caps on Georgia were warranted, given the balance between the needs of Georgia’s population and agricultural needs versus the needs of Florida. Nor did the court accept that water depletion was the cause of the Florida’s declining oyster beds.

Georgia has argued over-harvesting by its southern neighbor in recent years and a 2012 drought were to blame for the oyster crash.

Florida had also neglected to “reshell” its oyster bars, a management practice that gives young oysters greater habitat, the justices wrote.

A spokesman for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection was not immediately available to comment, but the agency has said that it had hoped the court would restore the historic flows of the Apalachicola River.

Georgia Governor Brian Kemp touted the court win as a “resounding victory for Georgia and a vindication of years-long effort by multiple governors and attorneys general here in the Peach State to protect our citizens’ water rights.”

According to federal precedent dating back 100 years, both states have a claim to a share of the water in question, but it’s “not a 50-50 split,” Santa Fe attorney and water rights expert John Draper, previously told Reuters.

Thursday’s ruling was not unexpected, given that a state water rights expert named “special master” in the case by the high court, had recommended that the justices side with Georgia.

Georgia officials and farmers say they are already conserving more water than ever. The Atlanta Regional Commission said the nine-county greater metropolitan area around the state capital now uses 10% less water than it did 20 years ago, even though the population has climbed by 1.2 million.

Katie Byrd, a spokeswoman with the office of Georgia’s attorney general, said the ruling “affirmed what we have long known to be true: Georgia’s water use has been fair and reasonable.”

(Reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta and Sebastien Malo in New York; Editing by Steve Gorman and Grant McCool)