Does Forgetting The First Amendment Even Matter? Do The Bill Of Rights Still Apply Anyway?

Amy Coney Barrett recently couldn't even remember the five freedoms listed in the First Amendment; but the bigger problem may be that the government has been slowly chipping away at many of the Bill of Rights, including the First Amendment.

Some good alternative historians, like Howard Zinn, have reported on how the government has been suppressing free speech for decades, if not since the American Revolution. There was plenty of efforts to suppress speech supporting abolition of slavery before the Civil war and censorship has been common in the decades afterwards, often even more during war time, often suppressing speech about the lies that leave us into war. During the First World War both Eugene Debs and Charles T. Schenck were charged, and imprisoned, under the espionage act for speaking out against the War. In the case of Charles T. Schenck argued that his was justified because, "The most stringent protection of free speech would not protect a man in falsely shouting fire in a theater and causing a panic;" however, they never established that either Schenck or Debs ever made false claims!

The truth is supposed to be a solid defense for libel or slander, and it's also supposed to be protected speech when it comes to government corruption or wars based on lies; however, in practice, it's often not. In fact, far more often than not it's our government lying about justification for war then persecuting those telling the truth. During World War I they lied about the arms on board the RMS Lusitania, later they lied about coups in Iran, Guatemala and Chile, they lied about the Gulf of Tonkin incident and traditional media practically never mentioned the Vietnamese Declaration of Independence and the fact that Ho Chi Minh had far more political support than American puppets, showing that war wasn't to defend Democracy at all.

They continued lying in one war after another since then, including the Iran/Iraq War, which we did participate in, the invasion of Granada and Panama, both Gulf Wars and the arming of the Mujaheddin, which became the Taliban and al-Qaeda, contributing to the attack on 9/11 and much more. And as demonstrated by the persecution of Bradley/Chelsea Manning and Jillian Assange they continue charging people that are protesting wars based on lies and disclosing illegal activity by our government.

This got even worse when the media were allowed to consolidate in the nineties so that only five corporations now control over 95% of all national media and the next half dozen or more are controlled by multimillionaires, or in most cases billionaires. With this much control of the media the oligarchs have a major advantage when it comes to indoctrinating the public. The leading principle of propaganda is that "a lie repeated often enough becomes the truth," or at least it seems to, especially if no one is providing alternative views to the majority of the public.

This makes the right to protest even more important; but the threat to this right didn't begin with Donald Trump or Amy Coney Barrett. There have been efforts to suppress the right to protest for decades, often at the local level, as Howard Zinn pointed out in several of his books, and it escalated under the Bush Administration with the use of "Free Speech Zones," which are often located in locations where only other protesters go; they claim that the media can cover them, which may be true; but, if the media does mention them, it's only to say that people are protesting without getting their message across so the public knows what they're protesting.

For all practical purposes the right to protest has been severely watered down, if not eliminated, and they're passing laws across the country and trying to pas even more to reduce the right to protest even more, yet the vast majority of the public is unaware of it. At least there was some coverage in the mainstream media about Amy Coney Barrett not remembering the right for a redress of grievances or protest, although it was quickly forgotten. This is standard operating procedure for views or accurate facts that go against the best interests of the corporations controlling the media. Deceptive propaganda is routinely repeated over and over again, while the best research on many subjects is ignored.

Both political parties have been chipping away at our Constitutional rights for decades, and with Amy Coney Barrett on the Supreme Court it's now much more likely they could be weakened even more. Some of the laws states have tried to pass include giving people immunity for "accidentally" running down protesters, others define protesters, including those protesting environmental destruction or police brutality, as terrorists, despite the fact that both the police and energy companies are responsible for far more deaths than the protesters. The police have been killing over a thousand people each year since citizens began tracking it, yet, the only protester against police violence that I know of that was suspected of murder was Michael Forest Reinoehl, who may have acted in self defense, according to some accounts, and he was killed by police under suspicious circumstances.

There are no environmentalists that I know of that have resorted to violence against people, although some might have resorted to property destruction; however, there have been numerous environmentalists, mostly in third world countries, including Berta Caceres, that have been murdered, in some cases by people with ties to the oil or timber industries; and there have also been dozens of people killed in pipeline explosions or other disasters caused by the oil or other energy industries. And, there are much more killed every year as a result of pollution related diseases with estimates between 100,000 and 200,000 or more based on several studies, globally it runs into the millions, yet there's little or no coverage of this in traditional media, while they sell an enormous amount of propaganda ads to oil companies making them look like environmentalists. However, since the right wing extremists claiming there is a serious problem with "environmental terrorists" they manage to convince a lot of the most credulous, emotional people, even though it doesn't stand up to a minimal amount of scrutiny.

However, even though many of the best informed protesters are much closer to the trruth on many issues, they can't get their views across to the vast majority of the public, and there's a good chance this can get even worse before it gets better, especially since the Democrats, including Biden, aren't much if any better than Donald Trump and the Republicans; Democrats in Congress put up minimal resistance to the confirmation of Barret, even though there were many things they could have done to at least slow it down and inform the public just how much of a threat she, and the rest of the extreme Justices, are to our freedom. Biden is no better, sending out mixed messages at best; he said, "I have nothing-- I'm not opposed to the justice. She seems like a very fine person."

Many of these protests against police brutality or killing innocent people including Breonna Taylor in a no-knock raid, when the real suspect was already in custody are brazen violations of the fourth amendment, which has been escalating for well over ten to twenty years as Radley Balko pointed out in his 2013 book "Rise of the Warrior Cop" which describes a shocking number of raids that have gone wrong years before Breonna Taylor was killed, yet they're still doing little or nothing to stop it from happening again.

Since Radley Balko wrote his book there have been many more disastrous no-knock raids, including one where they threw a flash-bang grenade into a babies crib, invaded a seventy-eight year old mans house terrorizing him at the wrong house, killed another man in another raid at another wrong house and, like the Breonna Taylor case, there's almost never any accountability, often with the victims being stuck with massive injuries and bills for the damage; when they do succeed in suing, receiving payments, it's not the people making the mistakes and violating rights that pay for it, it's the tax payers that aren't involved in the decisions.

Furthermore, a major reason for most of these no-knock raids is the war on drugs, a lot of which is non-violent, contrary to the propaganda repeated over and over from the media, and the government has exposed the fact that the CIA has repeatedly been covering up for the drug running of their allies, most notably those supporting the Contras in the eighties. This was investigated by a Senate Commission lead by John Kerry and Joe Biden was a member of this Commission, and they came out with a report often referred to as the Kerry Report, which hardly got any media attention at the time, that admitted to some drug running by CIA allies or members of the CIA. This is actually just the beginning of the evidence implicating the CIA in running drugs. It's the most comprehensive government report, but there's much more including lower profile disclosures from many government officials, including some that wrote books about it, although they got no promotions from traditional media. I went into this more in The War On Drugs Is Institutional Entrapment, which explains how this was a fabricated crisis.

Furthermore, Portugal has shown that they can save lives and money by decriminalizing drugs and encouraging treatment instead of putting people in jail. Their program began almost twenty years ago and has had enormous success since then, especially after it had been in place for over ten years; for a while, there was an increase in the murder rate, which was still much lower than ours, but it was never conclusively tied to their efforts to decriminalize and treat drug addiction and then after five years or so the murder rate went down 205 below the rates when the program began, so in the long run they decreased their murder rates and had much better success treating drug addicts. I went into this more in Machiavellian Ideology Ignores Real Science which also covers a program in Finland that dramatically reduces homelessness, if not eliminates it, and points out that they can solve both the drug problem and homelessness and save money at the same time, similar programs also do a lot to reduce violence, including a home visitor program for at risk parents that I covered in Burying Solutions to Prevent Gilroy, Dayton and El Paso Shootings; these three examples show that solving problems before they escalate saves much more money than they cost for the solutions, yet so called "fiscal conservatives" are constantly trying to cut funds for these programs, even though it costs much more to deal with the problems after they escalate.

This also applies to many other social problems including studies showing that Medicare for All saves money and lives, according to 22 studies agree: 'Medicare for All' saves money 02/24/2020, all studies agree that Medicare for All saves hundreds of billions of dollars ever year, the only disagreement is whether it's $200 billion or $600 billion and saves many lives too; and more studies show that renewable energy will save money and lives, including Renewable Energy Isn’t Just Cutting Costs, It’s Saving Lives 08/17/2017 and How Renewable Energy Can Save Over 50,000 Lives, and Millions of Dollars a Year 07/27/2017

Why don't we implement any of these programs, and many more, that solve major social problems and save an enormous amount of money? Because the oligarchs are making a massive amount of money off of this one way or another and it's not in their interests to fix it so they hardly cover the research on this at all, nor do they cover candidates that support effective policies, ensuring they never get the name recognition they need to get elected. Even though the majority of the public may not hear about the best research for many of these programs they still support some of the most popular ones and many other popular policies, which the political establishment and Wall Street oppose, by large margins, including Medicare for All, The Green New Deal, higher minimum wage, an end to wars based on lies, etc. as indicated by several Memes citing polls, which have been confirmed, for Bernie Sanders and the Green Party.

With 57% to 86% support from the majority of the public for all of these policies why don't most establishment politicians support them and why are, many if any being passed into law? We routinely get candidates, for president and Congress who either oppose almost all of these popular policies or campaigns on some of them, then, once in office, does little or nothing to push for them often showing they never supported them in the first place. In 2008 Barack Obama pretended to support some of these issues; but once in office he showed that he never really cared about them after all. In the case of the Keystone pipeline he stopped it temporarily, but only after massive protests, and he paved the way for the next president to push it through. Neither Hillary Clinton or Joe Biden did a good job pretending to support these popular issues. Both of them spent their careers opposing them, then, at the last minute during the campaign made some promises indicating they support a couple of these issues, which is hardly credible. When it comes to Medicare for All and the green New deal, which are among the most popular, Joe Biden said he would veto them both, despite the enormous amount of support they get from his constituents.

The reason for this is largely becasue a fraction of 1% controls over 95% of the media and they ignore the best research on any given subject when it impacts their profits. They can't completely supress it; however, the vast majority of the public doesn't know where to look for this research. This is all the more reason why we need equal rights to free speech instead of a system where billionaires ahve a massive propaganda advantage enabling them to repeat misleading information or outright lies over and over again without being challenged. Furthermore, they can and do, rig elections all over the country, by simply refusing to cover candidates they oppose so they can never get name recognition.

Both political parties are relentlessly trying to chip away at the constitutional rights that are supposed to protect the vast majority of the public, while continuing to take advantage of the flawed portions of the Consitution that helps them rig elections, like the Electoral College, and the fact that Senators from small states have as much power as those from large states. No doubt that Amy Coney Barrett and the other extreme judges being appoiinted are a threat to our Constitution as well as Donald Trump; But Joe Biden and the establishment Democrats, like Diane Fienstien, who played softball with Barrett and lectured little kids for critisizing here negligence on Climate Change, are little or no better, although they sometimes pretend to be better.

This is all the more reason why we have to defend our first amendment rights to protest and speak the truth about epidemic levels of corruption from both parties, before we lose those Constitutional rights. However, if there's one silver lining to another Trump presidency, it's that at least those on the left recognize how horrible he is. Many supporters of Biden, especially celebrities, have indicated they're willing to look the other way at his epidemic levels of corruption and efforts to chip away at the Constitution a little more subtly.

Within the last couple days according to 'No Excuse For The Looting': Biden, Trump Respond To Philadelphia Protests 10/28/2020 Joe Biden said "There is no excuse whatsoever for the looting and the violence. None whatsoever," which may seem reasonable to many people who only see the looting, without hearing about the leading causes of many social problems and how elites are causing them by ignoring the best research. There's no excuse for rigging the economy so that large numbers of people are forced to live in poverty and are often pushed to desperation. There's no excuse for ignoring good research that shows how to reduce violence, homelessness and drug addiction and save an enormous amount of money at the same time. There's no excuse for starting wars based on lies and killing thousands if not millions of innocent people. There's no excuse for epidemic levels of white collar crime which does far more damage than these riots.

Of course you don't hear any of that on mainstream media, because they're involved in much worse forms of looting, by rigging the economy and elections so that only corrupt candidates like Trump and Biden can get the presidential nomination! They even censor opposing views, sometimes even on news outlets that were created to challenge the Oligarchs like the Intercept.

According to Glenn Greenwald: My Resignation From The Intercept 10/29/2020 The Intercept is now censoring articles critical of Joe Biden including his corruption problems in Ukraine, which contrary to establishment propaganda isn't entirely made up by Russia. Greenwald claims they refused to publish his article critical of Biden and writes, "But modern media outlets do not air dissent; they quash it. So censorship of my article, rather than engagement with it, was the path these Biden-supporting editors chose." Ray McGovern also reported on how the establishment is using Russia as a scapegoat in Blaming Moscow for Hunter Biden’s laptop is Russiagate disinformation 10/23/2020 There's much more about Biden's corruption and his long record defending Oligarchs that donate to his campaign, enabling them to get away with epidemic levels of fraud, including massive efforts to rig the primary for him, but it's almost completely absent from traditional media, although they may have reported on a lot of it in the past, they've let it fall down the memory-hole for the duration of the election, this information is, for the most part, only available in alternative media outlets that don't get nearly as much attention from complacent voters.

The following are some additional sources or related material:

Amy Coney Barrett HUMILIATES herself, FORGETS First Amendment when asked 10/14/2020

Barrett Confirmation Hearing, Day 3 Part 2 10/14/2020

First Amendment: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Amy Coney Barrett can't name the 5 freedoms in the First Amendment: ‘What am I missing?’ 10/14/2020

Amy Coney Barrett Won’t Say Climate Change Is Real; Forgets 1st Amendment Protects Right to Protest 10/15/2020

The First Amendment Freedom That Amy Barrett Forgot Is Really Revealing 10/14/2020

‘What am I missing?’: Amy Coney Barrett unable to name five freedoms in First Amendment 10/14/2020

Wikipedia: Free speech zone

When Colleges Confine Free Speech to a ‘Zone,’ It Isn’t Free 02/07/2019

Media Consolidation Means Less Local News, More Right Wing Slant 07/30/2019

How Media Consolidation Threatens Democracy: 857 Channels (and Nothing On) 05/12/2017

Sailing And Sinking The RMS Lusitania: A Century Of Lying America Into War 05/06/2015

ACLU: Anti-Protest Bills Around the Country

US states have spent the past 5 years trying to criminalize protest 06/04/2020

States Rush to Pass Anti-Protestor Laws Updated periodicaly

3 States Pass Anti-Pipeline Protest Bills in Two Weeks 03/30/2020

Update: Lawmakers in Ten States Have Proposed Legislation Criminalizing Peaceful Protest 01/23/2017

'Protesters as terrorists': growing number of states turn anti-pipeline activism into a crime 07/08/2019

Natural Gas Pipeline and Infrastructure Explosions Nationwide In just 2015 to 2017, there were 12 deaths and 10 injuries reported from natural gas pipelines in the US.

Will people really die due to Trans Mountain pipeline protests? 06/15/2018

Body of Glendale man found in river near former Dakota Access Pipeline protest camp 04/10/2017

Dakota Access pipeline: 300 protesters injured after police use water cannons 11/21/2016

Standing Rock protests, killing of activist, unite indigenous struggles 03/14/2017 Protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline in the United States and the killing of prominent Honduran land rights campaigner Berta Caceres have united the struggles of indigenous peoples on the continent, a Guatemalan indigenous leader said on Tuesday.

100,000 Americans Die from Air Pollution, Study Finds 04/08/2019

US among top 10 countries for pollution-related deaths, new study shows 12/18/2019 US ranks seventh for overall deaths and is the ‘wealthiest’ nation to feature in top 10 with 197,000 lives lost in 2017 .... Toxic air, water, land and workplaces killed at least 8.3 million people around the world in 2017, accounting for 15% of all premature deaths. (If the United States had the same average as the world, the pollution related deaths would have been over 425,000 by this estimate. This means that we have less than half the global average, and other areas must have higher than 15% of premature deaths caused partially by pollution.)

Mortality in the United States, 2018 January 2020 In 2018, a total of 2,839,205 resident deaths were registered in the United States—25,702 more deaths than in 2017.

Air Pollution Accounts for 1 in 8 Deaths Worldwide, According to New WHO Estimates April 2014

Amy Coney Barrett's past calls into question her pledges of impartiality 10/26/2020 Guardian investigations reveal a deeply conservative jurist committed to reversing abortion rights

What Amy Coney Barrett Means For Voting Rights 10/26/2020 Unless we act, I fear a return to Jim Crow regime under which my grandparents and tens of millions of Black people suffered is inevitable.

Wikipedia: Kerry Committee report

Kerry Committee report: original documents scanned in.

Kerry Committee report: searchable text.

Joe Biden Not Opposed to Amy Coney Barrett, Says She 'Seems Like a Very Fine Person' 09/29/2020 "I have nothing-- I'm not opposed to the justice," Biden said. "She seems like a very fine person."

He Sought Asylum After MS-13 Tried to Kill Him. Amy Coney Barrett Sent Him Back Into Danger. 10/09/2020

Amy Coney Barrett’s Take on Voting Rights Act Exposes Her Entire Legal Philosophy as a Lie 10/14/2020

A No-Knock Raid in Houston Led to Deaths and Police Injuries. Should Police Rethink the Practice? 02/01/2019

Cops do 20,000 no-knock raids a year. Civilians often pay the price when they go wrong. 05/15/2015

Qualified immunity: Police off the hook for no-knock raid on wrong house 09/10/2020

Ex-Georgia Deputy Acquitted After Flash Bang Grenade Hurts Toddler​ 12/13/2015

Family of Toddler Injured by SWAT 'Grenade' Faces $1M in Medical Bills 12/18/2014

Mississippi Police Fatally Shoot Man at Wrong House While Serving Warrant 07/26/2017

Police Raided the Wrong House 41 Times! 03/22/2011

Authorities shot a woman during a botched raid at her home. The real suspect was already in jail. 12/24/2019 Wayback machine or original article

Mobile officers shoot woman during search for man already in jail 12/21/2019

Radley Balko "Rise of the Warrior Cop" 2013

Laws ending no-knock warrants after Breonna Taylor's death are 'a big deal' but not enough 09/10/2020

Fact check: Louisville Police had a 'no-knock' warrant for Breonna Taylor’s apartment 06/30/2020

Polls With Citations: Americans Want Bernie’s New Deal For All 07/26/2019



At best some establishment candidates might support a couple of these policies, like Roe v. Wade, or even legalizing of marijuana; however, when it comes to policies that enrich the wealthy elites, which include the rest almost all politicians, including all presidential nominees oppose all the issues overwhelmingly supported by the public! This is the opposite of how a Democracy is supposed to work!

Machiavellian Ideology Ignores Real Science

What if I told you that reducing or ending homelessness would save more money than it would cost?

What if I told you that treating drug addiction would save more money than it would cost?

What if I told you that treating the leading causes of violence and many other social problems would save much more money than it would cost?

This isn't a fringe conspiracy theory; it's the truth and there's evidence to prove it, although neither the media or the political establishment pays much if any attention to the best research that shows how to solve these problems and many more. The best research is usually reported in academic journals or alternative media, with an occasional article from mainstream media that usually is relatively low profile and quickly forgotten; while propaganda pushing ineffective ways to address these problems are repeated over and over again in mass media and by politicians.

This makes no sense if we live in a democratic country with diverse media, some of which at least tries to report on the best research so voters can make informed decisions. It makes perfect sense if, on the other hand, we live in a Machiavellian oligarchy with, at best, the illusion of a democracy where elites only cover corrupt candidates ensuring honest ones can't get name recognition, and they intentionally rig the economy to keep the masses poor so they can control them better.

But don't take my word for it, at least not without looking at the evidence, including the following article describing how Finland reduced or eliminated homelessness and saved more money than they spent doing it:

Finland ends homelessness and provides shelter for all in need 07/13/2020

In Finland, the number of homeless people has fallen sharply. The reason: The country applies the “Housing First” concept. Those affected by homelessness receive a small apartment and counselling – without any preconditions. 4 out of 5 people affected thus make their way back into a stable life. And: All this is cheaper than accepting homelessness.

Finland is the only country in Europe where homelessness is in decline

In 2008 you could see tent villages and huts standing between trees in the parks of Helsinki. Homeless people had built makeshift homes in the middle of Finland’s capital city. They were exposed to harsh weather conditions.

Since the 1980s, Finnish governments had been trying to reduce homelessness. Short-term shelters were built. However, long-term homeless people were still left out. There were too few emergency shelters and many affected people did not manage to get out of homelessness: They couldn’t find jobs – without a housing address. And without a job, they couldn’t find a flat. It was a vicious circle. Furthermore, they had problems applying for social benefits. All in all, homeless people found themselves trapped.

But in 2008 the Finnish government introduced a new policy for the homeless: It started implementing the “Housing First” concept. Since then the number of people affected has fallen sharply.

......

Providing people with apartments is cheaper than leaving them on the street

Creating housing for people costs money. In the past 10 years, 270 million euros were spent on the construction, purchase and renovation of housing as part of the “Housing First” programme. However, Juha Kaakinen points out, this is far less than the cost of homelessness itself. Because when people are in emergency situations, emergencies are more frequent: Assaults, injuries, breakdowns. The police, health care and justice systems are more often called upon to step in – and this also costs money. In comparison, “Housing First” is cheaper than accepting homelessness: Now, the state spends 15,000 euros less per year per homeless person than before. Complete article

15,000 euros comes to about $17,628. If we implemented the same programs in the United States and save the same amount per homeless person in the United States, with an estimated 552,830 homeless people (2018) that could eventually come to a savings of 9.7 billion dollars per year; and as the homeless population drops the savings will grow even more. This doesn't mean the savings would come immediately, since it would take years to teach people how to start these programs, and it may actually cost more while they're beginning them, which probably happened in Finland as well. Furthermore, there may be other contributing causes to homelessness which also need to be addressed; if so, there's almost certainly more research on those as well, and if all the contributing causes are addressed then the savings might be even bigger, although it will be difficult to tell whether it might happen sooner or later.

Even if the savings aren't quite that high it's still far more cost effective to address the problem in ways that have been proven to work, instead of those that are proven failures, which is happening in the United States, although some parts of the country are worse than others. In Kansas City Missouri a couple years ago Police were caught on video pouring bleach into food that was being handed out to the homeless. This program may not have been as effective as the one in Finland, but it was far better than what the town was doing, which actually made the problem worse.

Spending taxpayer money to make things worse is a clear indicator that the claim that our government often acts in a Machiavellian way, following his recommendation that rulers "keep the citizens poor," presumably so they can control them. This isn't limited to one isolated incident; there are so many cases where police raid homeless camps often taking their few belongings so they have to go to charities for more or spend money to replace them keeping them in poverty longer, Border Patrol has a history of dumping water or food left for migrants, possibly leaving to starve or die of thirst and there are many more incidents where towns or businesses harass the homeless, instead of trying to help them, often leading to higher crime and other expenses, including, in some locations like Britain or China putting down spikes so homeless people can't sleep in locations under bridges that provide them shelter, which may increase the deaths of the homeless.

Numerous other studies or researchers have also provided additional evidence showing how helping people get out of poverty is less expensive than keeping them in it, including Jonathan Kozol author of "Rachel and Her Children" 1987 He cited several programs to allegedly help the poor by housing them that were run be people with political connections, that were clearly scams; they charged the government an enormous amount of money for atrocious housing and the homeless were kept in poverty so some of these hotel owners with political connections could continue collecting massive profits, or corporate welfare that is far more outrageous than the false "welfare queens" that Reagan said were riding around in Cadillacs. Kozol also cited more effective programs that got people out of poverty without the corruption. This was over thirty years ago; and most of the scams were exposed and stopped; however, people with political connections have an amazing knack for coming up with new scams once the old ones are exposed.

For those familiar with Finland's efforts to reduce homeless almost everyone agrees that it's been successful. If you Google "Finland ends homelessness" you'll find numerous sources including 'It’s a miracle': Helsinki's radical solution to homelessness 06/03/2019; The city with no homeless on its streets 01/31/2019; and Wikipedia Homelessness in Finland, some that disagree on the details; but all agree that it's a major success, implying that it should be replicated elsewhere, including in the United States. However, the vast majority of Americans have probably never heard of this and don't realize that effective solutions are available and being ignored by our politicians.

One of the rare occasions that mainstream media reports on good research is a CNN article about a Canadian experiment, Researchers gave thousands of dollars to homeless people. The results defied stereotypes. 10/09/2020 which says, "The preliminary findings, which will be peer-reviewed next year, show that those who received cash were able to find stable housing faster, on average. By comparison, those who didn't receive cash lagged about 12 months behind in securing more permanent housing." Unfortunately I haven't seen anything about this on Cable news, and I've been watching CNN regularly. This isn't unprecedented, some of their best articles about good research are pointed out to me on the internet or in books from researchers, including an article by James Garbarino and a brief appearance for Stacy Patton, which she mentions in her book. Repetition is an important tactic for propagandists; they repeat the appeals to emotion and bad research over and over again while rare good research is quickly forgotten.

The reason for this is our mainstream media practically never mentions it at all, instead repeats demagoguery or false claims over and over again. Many other social problems follow similar patterns of behavior, including drug abuse. The following article about Portugal's decriminalization and drug treatment efforts, shows how effective solutions have been available for years, yet most people haven't heard of them:

Portugal’s radical drugs policy is working. Why hasn’t the world copied it? 12/05/2017

Since it decriminalized all drugs in 2001, Portugal has seen dramatic drops in overdoses, HIV infection and drug-related crime. By Susana Ferreira When the drugs came, they hit all at once. It was the 80s, and by the time one in 10 people had slipped into the depths of heroin use – bankers, university students, carpenters, socialites, miners – Portugal was in a state of panic.

Álvaro Pereira was working as a family doctor in Olhão in southern Portugal. “People were injecting themselves in the street, in public squares, in gardens,” he told me. “At that time, not a day passed when there wasn’t a robbery at a local business, or a mugging.”

......

In 2001, nearly two decades into Pereira’s accidental specialisation in addiction, Portugal became the first country to decriminalize the possession and consumption of all illicit substances. Rather than being arrested, those caught with a personal supply might be given a warning, a small fine, or told to appear before a local commission – a doctor, a lawyer and a social worker – about treatment, harm reduction, and the support services that were available to them.

The opioid crisis soon stabilized, and the ensuing years saw dramatic drops in problematic drug use, HIV and hepatitis infection rates, overdose deaths, drug-related crime and incarceration rates. HIV infection plummeted from an all-time high in 2000 of 104.2 new cases per million to 4.2 cases per million in 2015. The data behind these changes has been studied and cited as evidence by harm-reduction movements around the globe. It’s misleading, however, to credit these positive results entirely to a change in law.

Portugal’s remarkable recovery, and the fact that it has held steady through several changes in government – including conservative leaders who would have preferred to return to the US-style war on drugs – could not have happened without an enormous cultural shift, and a change in how the country viewed drugs, addiction – and itself. In many ways, the law was merely a reflection of transformations that were already happening in clinics, in pharmacies and around kitchen tables across the country. The official policy of decriminalization made it far easier for a broad range of services (health, psychiatry, employment, housing etc) that had been struggling to pool their resources and expertise, to work together more effectively to serve their communities.

........

When Pereira first opened the CAT in Olhão, he faced vociferous opposition from residents; they worried that with more drogados would come more crime. But the opposite happened. Months later, one neighbour came to ask Pereira’s forgiveness. She hadn’t realized it at the time, but there had been three drug dealers on her street; when their local clientele stopped buying, they packed up and left. Complete article

Like the reports on Finland's homeless programs there are some slight differences, but once again virtually all the credible ones I found agreed that it's an enormous success. Another report, Want to Win the War on Drugs? Portugal Might Have the Answer 08/01/2018, indicates that we might be able to cut our fatal overdoses by as much as 98% as indicated in the following excerpt:

Seventeen years on, the U.S. is suffering its worst addiction epidemic in American history. In 2016 alone, an estimated 64,000 Americans died from opioid overdoses—more than the combined death tolls for Americans in the Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq Wars. In Portugal, meanwhile, the drug-induced death rate has plummeted to five times lower than the E.U. average and stands at one-fiftieth of the United States’. Its rate of HIV infection has dropped from 104.2 new cases per million in 2000 to 4.2 cases per million in 2015. Drug use has declined overall among the 15- to 24-year-old population, those most at risk of initiating drug use.

This isn't a guarantee, of course; like the problem with homelessness, there may be other contributing factors and we would have to address them all to get these results and do it on a much larger scale. However, most reports indicate that we're going in the wrong direction including a NYT article, In Shadow of Pandemic, U.S. Drug Overdose Deaths Resurge to Record 07/15/2020, which says that the total number of deaths from overdoses has gone up almost every year since about 1995 rising significantly to four times the annual rate from 2000, and the largest increases appear to be between 2014 and 2017 before declining for the only time in 2018 then breaking another record in 2019. As our death rates continue to go up and there's go down the potential saving will dramatically grow if we implement rational drug treatment programs instead of criminalizing it and relying on courts and prisons, which are clearly making it even worse.

Another major concern that has been overrated is the belief that decriminalization will make crime even worse; but most reports indicate that it has done the opposite including this article, Drug decriminalisation in Portugal: setting the record straight. 05/21/2020, which says:

A widely repeated claim is that, as a result of Portugal’s decriminalization policy, drug-related homicides increased 40% between 2001 and 2006.29 30 But this claim is based on a misrepresentation of the evidence. The 40% increase (from 105 to 148) was for all homicides, defined as any ‘intentional killing of a person, including murder, manslaughter, euthanasia and infanticide’31 – they were not ‘drug-related’. In fact, there are no data collected for drug-related homicides. ......

Despite claims to the contrary,34 decriminalization appears to have had a positive effect on crime. With its recategorization of low-level drug possession as an administrative rather than criminal offence, decriminalization inevitably produced a reduction in the number of people arrested and sent to criminal court for drug offences – from over 14,000 in the year 2000, to around 5,500-6,000 per year once the policy had come into effect.35 The proportion of drug-related offenders (defined as those who committed offences under the influence of drugs and/or to fund drug consumption) in the Portuguese prison population also declined, from 44% in 1999, to just under 21% in 2012.36

There's little doubt from this report that it has lead to a reduction in crime, in general; however, some might not be so certain about the potential connection to the increased homicide rates, without data on drug related homicides, although they went back down even lower after 2006. By 2018 they were down to 81 homicides, which was a reduction of homicide by 23% compared to 2001 or 45% compared to 2006, instead of an increase. Even at their worst, in 2006, their murder rate was less than one third of the rate in the United States, and in 2018 it was less than one sixth, so there's little doubt that they're doing something better than us, although other contributing factors to homicide also have to be taken into consideration, including early child abuse and corporal punishment.

In 2007 Portugal also banned the use of corporal punishment on children in the home and everywhere else, which is another major contributing cause for violence later in life which I went into more in several previous articles including Evidence Is In; Corporal Punishment Should Be Banned! which explains that states still allowing corporal punishment in schools have higher rates of murder as well as some of the reasons why this leads to escalating violence alter in life. It's unlikely that either the banning of corporal punishment or reduction of drug addiction were the sole contributing factor; but it's almost guaranteed that both of them possibly combined with other factors helped reduce their murder rate. Unless there were major reforms for other factors they might be the two leading causes for the reduction in murder.

Previously I reported that the murder rates have always been higher in states still allowing it in schools; however, the longer they ban it the more the difference grows. They were at their closest in 1992, when the murder rates were only a couple percent higher in states allowing it than those not allowing it, and presumably using it less at home as well; this grew to over 22% each year for the last ten years or so and in 2018 they broke a record with the states allowing it having murder rates just over 32% higher. The FBI Uniform Crime Report for 2019 (Published Fall, 2020) just came out within the past few weeks, and they broke another record with the states allowing it having murder rates 36% higher. The 19 states still allowing corporal punishment in schools had a murder rate in 2019 of 6.07, compared to 4.22 in states banning it. I went into the details and how I calculated them in Research On Preventing Violence Absent From National Media

These are just a handful of the leading contributing causes of violence. In some cases, like Finland there are hard statistics to prove how much money can be saved and homeless housed; Portugal, that shows large reductions in overdoses and declining murder rates; or corporal punishment and child abuse also showing large reductions in murder rates as well as many other related social problems, which are available from a variety of sources. If you look into the best research for many other social problems there's almost always evidence to show we can partly solve them, at least, and it almost always costs less to solve them than to ignore them.

I went into many other contributing causes of violence or other social problems in several articles including Crime Prevention and Rehabilitation Should Become a Priority Again! and a series of articles that ended with Politicians increase crime; Grass roots efforts reduce crime; Politicians steal the credit. With one contributing cause of violence after another there is always much better research in the academic world or in alternative media outlets than there is in mainstream media, and politicians routinely ignore the best research on each subject.

Furthermore, there's almost always, if not always, a financial motive for wealthy well connected people to suppress the research. Some of the biggest contributing causes of violence or other social problems include poverty and income inequality, as well as other economic issues, like outsourcing, which contributes to this. This is a direct result of corporations corrupting both the government and the media. Other contributing causes of violence include gambling, which does get reported on, although not in in a high profile manner, and insurance, which is almost never researched honestly, at least not by big institutions, even colleges. However there's enough evidence scattered throughout the news, including stories about people killing for insurance or committing fraud, although they're not put in perspective, or the internet to conclude this is a major contributing factor to fraud and violence, as I reported in Insurance Executives Profit By Inciting Murder Occasionally Paying Killers.

If the for profit media wanted to report on this good research they would have done so long ago! The fact that they refuse to do so shows they have no intention in serving the public's best interests. The most likely reason obviously seems to be maximizing profits. Apparently helping to educate the public so they can look out for their own best interests. Over 95% of the national media is controlled by six corporations and the next dozen or so media outlets are controlled by billionaires or multimillionaires.

These oligarchs routinely rig elections by only covering candidates they support so honest ones can't get name recognition. If you're a regular reader of mine, you might be sick of hearing me repeat that; but, the mainstream media indoctrinates the public by repeating their propaganda or outright lies over and over again; so one of the most effective ways to expose this is repeating accurate and important principles over and over again.

It's not unreasonable to assume these oligarchs are far more concerned with controlling us than they are with looking out for our best interests. The closer you look at the best research from obscure locations that the media refuses to report on this the more obvious it is that the evidence supports this assumption!

American Psychological Association: How Portugal is solving its opioid problem October 2018

Wikipedia: List of countries by intentional homicide rate

The Global Initiative to end corporal punishment: States prohibiting all corporal punishment of children, including in the home

Somerset woman serving five years after leaving kids at Columbia Ky. Walmart 10/14/2020

These anti-homeless spikes are brutal. We need to get rid of them 07/23/2015

Well that's one solution to people sleeping rough! China puts down concrete spikes to stop beggars dossing under city bridges 07/03/2012

The disturbing anti-homeless architecture you see every day but don't notice 02/01/2018

Health department poured bleach on food meant for the homeless 11/12/2018

KCMO Health Dept. defends pouring bleach on food intended for homeless 11/05/2018

US border patrol routinely sabotages water left for migrants, report says 01/17/2018 Humanitarian groups report agents routinely destroy supplies left in Arizona desert, condemning people to die of thirst.

Anti-homeless spikes: ‘Sleeping rough opened my eyes to the city’s barbed cruelty’ 20/18/2015

Months after the city sweep, heroin camps now scattered across Kensington | Mike Newall 10/27/2017

Drug Decriminalization in Portugal: Learning from a Health and Human-Centered Approach 02/20/2019

Drug Decriminalization in Portugal Learning from a Health and Human-Centered Approach 02/20/2019

United States Coups & Entrapment of Immigrants

Portugal’s Path to Breaking Drug Addiction Spring 2019 While the U.S. and Italy have struggled with addiction, Portugal has crafted one of the most effective set of drug programs in the world.

#DignityMuseum Instagram Posts including photo used for top meme

Is Politics Corrupting Science?

For a long time many scientific institutions pretended to be neutral when it comes to politics, including Scientific American, which has never endorsed a presidential candidate in their 175 year history, until now. They claim that "This year we are compelled to do so. We do not do this lightly." Endorsements from many large institutions often don't reflect the views of the majority of members, and presumably they don't reflect the views of many scientists who contribute to organizations like Scientific American or any other organization that gets involved in politics whether they claim to be neutral or scientific or not.

Christine MacDonald, author of "Green Inc." explained how this often works for environmental non-profits when wealthy people, often with political connections, are appointed to head organizations and wind up turning those organizations into public relations fronts for oil companies. There's good reason to believe the same thing happens to other nonprofits, like the Red Cross, which was once headed by Elizabeth Dole, and Planned Parenthood, which was once run by Cecile Richards, daughter of former governor Anne Richards. There's good reason to suspect so-called scientific organizations are also impacted by politics, which will be easier to recognize if more people understand basic scientific principles of any given scientific field.

I'm sure they shouldn't "do this lightly;" however, the way they've done it demonstrates they're being more political about this decision than they have been scientific. The majority of their article Scientific American Endorses Joe Biden October issue released 09/15/2020 talks about how bad Donald Trump is and what a threat he is to scientific beliefs, which I can't argue with; however, it ignores the fact that both political parties have been ignoring the best scientific research for decades and it's been steadily getting worse, making this inevitable.

They could have seen this long ago and spoken up before it got nearly this bad, yet chose not to. They claim that one of the leading reasons for changing their mind is his response to the pandemic, which certainly was bad; however, there's little or no reason to believe that Joe Biden is much if any better, especially since he repeatedly said he opposed Medicare for All, and would veto it. The countries with better access to health care did a far better job handing the pandemic than the United States. And, frankly, most of the ones with less developed access to health care didn't do as bad as the United states either; however there's good reason to believe that if we tested and treated it faster it could have been handled better. Furthermore, it's clear that those with underlying conditions were more susceptible to the pandemic, and if we had universal health care, many of those underlying conditions would have been treated better, reducing the impact of the pandemic.

Some of this is easy to figure out even without advanced medical training. However there have been several studies, including one that came out earlier this year, as reported by Physicians for a National Health Program in 13% reduction in health care costs projected for Sanders Medicare-for-All Act 02/15/2020; this study also indicates that it would save more than 68,000 lives, even without the pandemic. Furthermore, prevention of medical illnesses would save even more lives, and this includes reduction of pollution and clean energy, among other things, yet when it contradicts corporate interests Biden doesn't favor this, although he may come up with policies that imply he'll try during campaign seasons, despite his record of ignoring them in office.

The Scientific American article claims that Biden "is offering fact-based plans to protect our health, our economy and the environment," yet they do a poor job explaining what these are, and an even worse job checking to see if Biden has a track record of supporting these policies during his long record in office as Senator or Vice President. They claim that "Joe Biden, in contrast, comes prepared with plans to control COVID-19, improve health care, reduce carbon emissions and restore the role of legitimate science in policy making. He solicits expertise and has turned that knowledge into solid policy proposals." I'm sure that he's had help from advisors checking with some so-called experts for advice during the campaign season, but I've been following him for years, and like many other politicians he spends far more time soliciting advice from his campaign contributors, including those in the energy industry and business people, not necessarily health care experts, from the health care industry far more concerned with making bigger profits.

Scientific America claims "Biden is getting advice on these public health issues from a group that includes David Kessler, epidemiologist, pediatrician and former U.S. Food and Drug Administration chief; Rebecca Katz, immunologist and global health security specialist at Georgetown University; and Ezekiel Emanuel, bioethicist at the University of Pennsylvania. It does not include physicians who believe in aliens and debunked virus therapies, one of whom Trump has called 'very respected' and 'spectacular,'" which may be true; however, with Trump catering to fanatics that lowers the bar so much that Biden hardly has to be very scientific to beat it. Furthermore, all of these experts have strong political ties to the political establishment and would be unlikely to be consulted with if they spoke out too much against powerful people.

Both Kessler and Katz were initially appointed by Republicans before serving under Democrats. Kessler may actually be the best of the three, although he supported fast tracking of new drugs, which was pushed by the pharmaceutical industry and may have been risky. But he also pulled a lot of dangerous drugs off the market and provided strong opposition to tobacco. But we can still expect him to abstain from challenging powerful corporations. Katz has ties to the intelligence community and researched biological warfare, which we do need to be concerned about; however, the intelligence community has a bad track record, at times even developing them even after they were banned, and we don't need someone that might cover for them.

Ezekiel Emanuel, brother of Rahm Emanuel, may be the worst of the three, adamantly opposing universal health care, instead supporting a voucher system, getting behind the ACA after insurance lobbyists managed to convince the Obama administration and Congress to support it. This was great for corporate profits but left a lot of people uninsured and even fined people that didn't buy it, often because it was never nearly as affordable as they claimed it was. Getting good advice from the medical community is, of course, important; however, the political establishment has learned to cherry-pick their experts so they will go along with the corporate agenda. There are plenty of more sincere medical professionals looking out for the best interests of the majority, regardless of corporate wishes like members of Physicians for a National Health Program, but they get little or no attention from the political establishment or traditional media. The same goes for many other scientific fields, including the environment, education, research on reduction of violence, foreign policy and much more.

Scientific American does hedge a little bit saying "It is not certain how many of these and his other ambitions Biden will be able to accomplish; much depends on laws to be written and passed by Congress," which is of course true; however they would be far more likely to get good policies through if the leading scientific organizations were doing a good job educating the public and exposing politicians when they cater to corporate interests in their own fields, instead of providing propaganda cover for unscientific politicians.

When it comes to protecting the environment and addressing climate change both Biden and Trump are as bad if not worse; although, Biden may do a better job pretending to address this as well. We keep getting one story after another showing how many records we're breaking for extreme weather of some sort including California’s largest wildfire on record is now a million-acre “gigafire” 10/05/2020 and many more. And there are many more stories about other damage done by pollution, including epidemic levels of air and water pollution which is killing millions of people already, yet both Biden and Trump routinely side with energy companies.

Yet, Biden has indicated repeatedly that he would strongly oppose the Green New Deal, that he wouldn't ban fracking nor will he oppose an enormous amount of practices that are damaging the environment and he has close ties to the energy companies and other corporations making massive profits by looking the other way. He has said that he would ban offshore drilling, but Trump has actually done it recently, and Biden has an incredibly long track record of breaking promises to voters so he can cater to campaign donors, like traditional politicians. Even though he promises to ban offshore drilling, his record doesn't indicate he's done it in the past; as vice president he supported weak bans on offshore drilling mostly after the Gulf Horizons disaster, but after the attention died down many of these were reversed and Obama allowed it again, which indicates Trump may have been better on this issue.

Members of environmental activist groups are much more likely to read up on the science behind this endorsement of Joe Biden and realize that it ignores the vast majority of good science and that Joe Biden doesn't base his policies on science at all.

The same goes for many other scientific fields where the best research is often ignored in the mainstream media and political establishment, although it can be found in good libraries, academic journals, or alternative media, including the most effective ways to reduce violence, which I've gone into in numerous articles including Politicians increase crime; Grass roots efforts reduce crime; Politicians steal the credit, which is the final article in a series of reviews in leading causes of violence, Crime Prevention and Rehabilitation Should Become a Priority Again!, which explains how the media often ignores causes of violence when they have a financial conflict of interest, and Research On Preventing Violence Absent From National Media, which follows up on this focusing on early child abuse leading to escalating violence, and is almost certainly the most important long term cause of violence, followed by abandoned inner cities.

Neither Trump or Biden pay any attention to the leading causes of violence, including early child abuse and corporal punishment, which leads to escalating violence. The nineteen states still allowing corporal punishment in schools and presumably using it more at home consistently have more than 20% higher murder rates, on average than those not allowing it; in 2018 those nineteen states had an average murder rate of 5.90 per 100,000 and the other thirty one states plus Washington DC only had a rate of 4.27. This doesn't directly impact the wealth of the oligarchs financing campaigns; however, it does teach kids to blindly obey their leaders, making them more susceptible to propaganda and less inclined to stand up for their rights.

Many of the other leading contributing causes of violence do have a direct impact on the wealth of those financing campaigns, including poverty, income inequality, lack of education, especially in abandoned inner cities. Neither Biden or Trump are trying to solve these problems, in fact, they both continue trying to rig the economic system for the wealthy doing the opposite. Ignoring these contributing factors leading to higher rates of violence and more confrontations with the police, which are resulting in over 1,000 being killed every year by police, including many that are unjustified. as I pointed out in Most Corrupt Police Forces Are In Most Violent Cities and numerous articles before this, the political establishment responds to high rates of violence by increasing reliance on authoritarian police, who often turn out to be corrupt making the violence even worse, not better. Both Biden and Trump support increased reliance on the police without doing anything about the corruption or holding them accountable.

Instead of basing their decisions on the most reliable research that can help reduce crime and police brutality both candidates rely on misleading slogans like "Biden 2020 He won't teargas your mom!," which is an actual yard sign being sold as well as shirts bumper stickers posters, etc.

Technically neither Biden or Trump are likely to teargas your mom, butt they'll both defend the police if they do it. This is a clear reference to recent protests by mothers in Portland where police teargassed them; but the same thing happened at Occupy Wall Street where police routinely tear gassed protesters, including mothers and children, while Biden was vice president. As a candidate Barack Obama promised to put on a comfortable pair of shoes and march with protesters, and of course broke that promise, along with almost all other promises to the working class. As Senator Joe Biden led the way to increase the militarization of the police which enabled Trump and the police to teargas Portland mothers. At best, Joe Biden does a slightly better job pretending to sympathize with victims of police brutality, with the help of advisers writing his speeches for his teleprompter.

Despite their rhetoric there's far more that both Joe Biden and Donald Trump agree on than they disagree on as pointed out by Caitlin Johnstone in US Politics Isn’t ‘Polarized’; It’s In Almost Universal Agreement 10/06/2020. This is also clear when you look at several memes that were made during the campaign for either Bernie Sanders or Howie Hawkins which list about twenty policies that have overwhelming support, between 57% and 90%, by the majority of the public, yet Donald Trump opposes all of them and Biden only supports a couple, at least during the campaign, but in the past he hasn't even supported those two. The two that Biden supports, or at least pretends to support, are social issues that don't interfere with the fiscal ideology of his campaign donors; on every issue supported by the public, but opposed by his campaign donors, Biden sides with campaign donors who are rigging the economy.

The reason the two leading nominees for president oppose most of the issues supported by a large majority of the public is that a fraction of 1% of the public controls over 95% of the media and they refuse to provide fair coverage to candidates they oppose, so most honest candidates never get the name recognition to become viable. Bernie Sanders turned out to be the exception, for one reason or another, but as I pointed out in Epidemic 2020 Election Fraud Again when it looked like he was going to win the primary there was an enormous amount of evidence of the establishment cheating like hell, all over the country; and Bernie remained silent about this epidemic of cheating and endorsed a candidate who opposes everything he ran on, without a fight.

As it stands we're being told that we have to either vote for a candidate that opposes everything we support because he's the one we think is the lesser evil or "throw away our vote" by voting for Howie Hawkins, who supports the issues that we support and would do a far more effective job using good science to base his decisions.

Scientists usually don't sell out nearly as much as the mainstream media, but the ones that do sell out are far more likely to get media attention than those that don't. A few years ago this was made clear when Neil deGrasse Tyson was promoting his book as TJ Cole pointed out in A Celebrity Salesman for the Military-Industrial-Complex 09/14/2018 where he exposes Tyson's ties to the military and political establishment going back decades and his conflicts of interests. Many people, for a long time including me, have thought that he's one of the most credible scientists out there, since he gets so much media attention, and he does seem credible when opposing views aren't presented.

Tyson tries to give people the impression that the military has been necesary for most scientific discoveries, and that it might not have happened without constant war, although he doesn't discuss alternatives which would be even better. In Accessory to War, the authors, Neil deGrasse Tyson and Avis Lang, write:

“A vibrant economy … depends on at least one of the following: the profit motive, war on the ground, or war in space … Must war and profit be what drive both civilization on Earth and the investigation of other worlds? History … makes it hard to answer no … Star charts, calendars, chronometers, telescopes, maps, compasses, rockets, satellites, drones–these were not inspirational civilian endeavors. Dominance was their goal; increase of knowledge was incidental.

… The first few years after 9/11 were a fine time to be mercenary, a military engineering firm, or a giant aerospace company.”

TJ Cole points out that he heard about this book as Tyson was making the rounds of various high profile media outlets to promote his book. Since the vast majority of the media is owned by a fraction of 1% they have the ability to only promote views they like just like they only promote candidates they like, which is a massive propaganda advantage. Tyson does argue that there should be a way to avoid this; but he doesn't even try to come up with an alternative to relying on the military for scientific development, that I know of, and the mainstream media doesn't cover those that do, nor do they cover those that expose how many wars are based on lies and how the media provides propaganda cover for them like William Blum author of "Killing Hope: U.S. Military and CIA Interventions Since World War II" There are also many other good authors that do come up with better alternatives, but they don't support the oligarchy agenda so they don't get media coverage. If they did, they could go a long way of fulfilling Tyson's desire to stop basing scientific advancement on either profit or war.

Shortly before TJ Cole wrote this I also pointed out how Tyson was using his reputation to praise another pseudo-skeptic in We Must Become The Media And The Scientists! where Neil deGrasse Tyson says “Michael Shermer is a beacon of reason in an ocean of irrationality,” which I found stunning because I was well aware that even though the mainstream media often refers to Shermer as a "rational" or "scientific" skeptic, I found numerous examples where he also sold out his scientific views for his ideological views. One of the most brazen examples is when he argued that "markets are moral," ignoring the fact that markets, in our current economic system are controlled by a small fraction of the public rigging the economy in their own favor so thatt ehy get all the money and the poor do all the work and get stuck with many of the sacrifices by getting stuck in the most poluted areas or fighting and dying in wars based on lies.

One of the scams, which I pointed out in that article and one other before that, was about a charity which Michael Shermer claimed was a success of Capitalism and how "Markets are moral," but this charity, World Vision, was in the process of being exposed as a scam when his book went to press in 2008, and even before I looked it up I recognized other flaws with charities like this since they often rely on expensive advertising to solicit funds, so a large portion of what they collect goes to pay for the ads. Furthermore, it was a Christian charity, which Michael Shermer is opposed to yet he wasn't skeptical of this scam at all.

This is why it's still clear that we must still become the media and the scientists, whenever possible, or at least learn the basics of many scientific fields, which is often enough to recognize political scams. We need to stop relying on the oligarchs for scientific knowledge or deciding which candidates to choose from, especially since the candidates they rig primaries for almost always oppose most things we support, which means we won't have a democracy until we stop accepting this.

The Men who Speak for Science 10/01/2020

Science is already political. So scientists might as well march. 04/22/2017

News Flash: Science Has Always Been Political 02/21/2017

“We are giving a false impression of science if we only demonstrate consensus to the outside world”. 03/09/2020

Coronavirus: why it’s dangerous to blindly ‘follow the science’ when there’s no consensus yet 60/18/2020

Gates Foundation doubles down on misinformation campaign at Cornell as African leaders call for agroecology 09/30/2020

Yale Study Says Medicare for All Would Save U.S. $450 Billion, Prevent Nearly 70,000 Deaths a Year 02/19/2020

13% reduction in health care costs projected for Sanders Medicare-for-All Act 02/15/2020

On Climate Policy, Biden’s Advisers Reveal More Than His Proposals Do 08/07/2020

Joe Biden’s Campaign Co-Chair is a Big Oil and Gas Booster 12/16/2019

Joe Biden Has Multiple Ties to Liquefied Natural Gas Pioneer Cheniere Energy 09/05/2019

The Sunrise Movement Is Really Struggling to Live With Joe Biden 04/18/2020

Howie Hawkins Homepage: issues

Vote Smart: Howie Hawkins' Issue Positions (Political Courage Test)

On The Issues: Howie Hawkins

Walmart Crime Report September 2020

Walmart had at least eleven shootings in September 2020, with four of them fatal killing at least five people. At least two of the shootings were officer involved shooting including a non-fatal one, and another where a suspect allegedly killed someone and was killed by police in a shootout nearby. One of the other fatal shootings took place at an apartment complex nearby, after an argument that began at Walmart. A shooting at the end of the month left the victim in critical condition, and the latest report indicates he'll recover but it's still uncertain, and several of the other shootings resulted in serious injury as well, including a manager that tried to stop a shoplifting. One of the non-fatal shootings involved a suspect firing a gun at a woman with her children as they were leaving for unexplained reasons.

There was only one reported fire at Walmart, which is the least they've had in a month for years; however, that one was a big RV fire and it resulted in a fatality inside. This brings the total number of dead at Walmart for the month to six, which is lower than usual.

A California police officer was charged with manslaughter over a shooting that happened last April, where a suspect was holding a bat, but wasn't a threat to the police, who had him surrounded and outnumbered. This is a clear example where charges were spurred by massive protests, prior to the protests police were rarely charged unless the evidence was much more compelling than this, often even when it is they're still not charged, although they're quick to charge police if they shoplift at Walmart or steal from oligarchs. There were over half a dozen additional gun related crimes, including several armed robberies, A drunken Walmart trucker arrested with a gun, and an attempt to steal a gun from Walmart, that was stopped with the help of bystanders and a police officer.

There was one woman that was a victim of an attempted rape that happened right in the Walmart; and a thirteen year old girl that was raped after being abducted from another Walmart; and at a third Walmart a woman who was kidnapped by her husband was left naked because he wanted to humiliate her. Another man has filed a lawsuit against their security officer, who happens to be an off-duty cop, and Walmart claiming they used excessive force, over a disagreement about which door to use, presumably because of the pandemic. There are at least three or four of these lawsuits every year, yet there's rarely if ever any discussion of a potential conflict of interests hiring off-duty police for security, which doesn't appear to be legal in some states. There were also several more brawls, including one that was caught on camera, another where a special need teen was punched in the face, a fight over a parking space, and an assault on a police officer.

There was another story about Walmart giving gift cards for customers that didn't have exact change, which they denied, despite several reports; a previous story a few months ago claimed they donated the change to charity without permission due to coin shortage. I haven't seen other businesses forced to do this. The pandemic has also been used as an excuse to change their returns policy, and another 11 employees were quarantined from their Los Cruces store. And one of there pharmacy technicians was accused of stealing pain medication; but the reason they caught her was apparently because she dropped some of the pills in other prescriptions for customers that weren't supposed to receive this and might not have known what they were.

Walmart had about a dozen or so automobile related crashes, police chases, including one related to a shooting, stolen vehicles, or carjackings. Several of these involved shoplifting's and one of them hit a police officer with a vehicle. Several people were hospitalized as a result of these accidents.

Walmart had at least nine knife attacks including at least three people that were stabbed, several robberies and arguments leading to threats. There were also several assaults, including some against employees, hate crimes, a possible attempted abduction, and a couple thefts from two different states of about $20 thousand dollars a piece, which happens more times than you might expect at Walmart, although most small businesses are far more secure.

Walmart used their oligarchy power to cut workers hours while increasing workers workload, in an effort to squeeze them for higher profits while simultaneously fining suppliers that don't meet tough knew standards to get their orders on time, squeezing people from both ends. They're also trying to get credit for hiring more women, while cutting black managers, hoping no one will notice. They also continue suing small towns for excessive taxation. Walmart dominated the market partly because they cut deals behind closed doors to get better tax breaks in many small towns and used this advantage to wipe out many small businesses that paid higher taxes; now they're trying to cut the tax base even more, so working class people will have to get stuck with the tab or reductions in services. But they did lose one relatively small, by Walmart standards, lawsuit based on an injury caused by a shopping cart.

One of their diesel delivery men put millions of gallons into a SC unleaded tank, which were pumped into many cars that later stalled often having their fuel systems destroyed. Walmart was quick to say they will reimburse customers; however, if they're as quick to actually do so it will be a rare event. Usually they fight liability like this by trying to find someone else to blame. They also had at least three more recalls, one of thyroid medication that was too weak, another of taco seasoning with Salmonella risk, and a popular deli item. This is typical but reporting on the recalls at a high profile manner so most of their customers know about it is not. They also have more lawsuits over their handling of the Opioid crises.

PETA continues their efforts to expose Walmart of relying on a "filthy, cruel egg supplier;" and they've been cutting corners on some of their laptops to make them even cheaper, however those testing them out find that they're a disaster and work very bad, if they work at all.

Do you want this corporation mass marketing drones for delivery?

What could go wrong?

Stay tuned at the same bat time and the same bat channel for answers!

But you don't have to wait for more of their insanity or the insanity of their customers. One robbery suspect said he was an undercover "FBI agent" and that he owned the store. For some reason the police didn't believe him.

A black bear thought about shopping at one store wondering through the parking lot, but he was smarter than a lot of people and decided not to.

Did you think you were only allowed to drive your motorcycle through the parking lot or on the road?

Why not drive through the aisles? You wouldn't be the only one, or even second, or third.

Strange things happen at Walmart!

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In 2006 Wake Up Walmart did a study, "Is Walmart Safe?" based on incidents in 2004, (PDF) about crime at Walmart which showed that it increased when Walmarts opened up and that crime was higher at Walmart than at other retailers. Since then Walmart Shootings began compiling a list of gun related incidents at Walmart and demonstrated that they have a large number of them, including on average more than one shooting per week somewhere in the country; now after counting them for several years that average is over two per week. In January of 2014 another study, "Rolling Back Prices and Raising Crime Rates?" provided additional statistical research indicating that Walmart might be contributing to higher crime rates or at least a slowing of the decline in crime. The study found that. “on average, communities with Walmarts had 17 more property crimes and two more violent crimes per 10,000 people than those communities without Walmarts.” I reviewed this more in Walmart’s crime problem, Rolling Back Safety more than prices? where I explained that although this study is helpful they could have done better with additional data that is available and I reviewed some of that. I also added my own review about why I think that Walmart policies have been contributing to higher crime in a previous blog, Walmart high crime rate continues un-investigaterd and have provided additional information under the author tag Walmart Crime Watch.

Stacy Mitchell has also compiled a list of other studies about Walmart and how they impact society, Key Studies on Big-Box Retail & Independent Business. To the best of my knowledge Walmart has done as little as they seem to get away with, often relying on rhetoric that isn't backed up with action, when it comes to addressing any of their critics concerns, including crime. One of the responses they’ve come up with is what they call "Restorative Justice" which gives first time shoplifters a chance to avoid being arrested or any criminal record if they take an on line course which costs $400 up front or $500 in payments, plus perhaps, reparations. This has been part of the privatization process and often denies suspects of the due process or access to a lawyer, perhaps even intimidating and extorting from some people that might not even be guilty. Walmart seems to be trying to find a way to turn crime into a profit making situation instead of looking for the most effective ways to reduce it. Making Change at Walmart is asking If you or someone you know has gone through @Walmart's "Restorative Justice" program for first-time suspected shoplifters, send us a DM. 03/30/2017 to ensure that it isn’t doing more harm than good. I did my own review of this program as well at Walmart’s “Restorative Justice” Endangers Public Without Reducing Crime. The following are a list of incidents that occurred in September 2020. According to the "Is Walmart Safe?" the average store in their sampling had 250 incidents per year indicating that these are only a fraction of the crime reports at Walmart, and presumably, the ones most likely to make the news on the internet nationwide. This isn't statistically representative, as the 2006 or the "Rolling Back Prices and Raising Crime Rates?" study or some of the studies cited by Stacy Mitchell; but it does provide some additional information that may help recognize how many problems there are at Walmart.

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Shoplifters being sought after hundreds of dollars in merchandise stolen from Clover SC Walmart 09/01/2020

MCEF receives $1,000 grant from Tenn. Walmart for adult education program 09/0/2020

California police officer captured on April video killing Black man in Ca. Walmart charged with manslaughter 09/02/2020

A California police officer who was captured on video fatally shooting a Black man who had a baseball bat inside a Walmart this year was charged Wednesday with voluntary manslaughter, authorities said.

The office of Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley said that Steven Taylor, 33, did not pose an imminent threat to anyone in the store or to the officer, Jason Fletcher, when he shot Taylor to death April 18.

“The decision to file the criminal complaint was made after an intensive investigation and thorough analysis of the evidence and the current law,” O'Malley said in a statement.

A security guard at the San Leandro Walmart, southeast of Oakland, called 911 after Taylor tried to leave the store with a baseball bat and a tent without paying, the statement said.

In disturbing cellphone and body-camera video of the encounter, Taylor can be seen standing in the store’s checkout area when Fletcher approaches him and tries unsuccessfully to take the bat.

Taylor backs up several feet, bat in hand, and Fletcher tells him to drop it, which he doesn’t. From a distance of roughly 17 feet, according to the DA's statement, Fletcher drew a stun gun, then fired as Taylor moved toward him.

The prosecutor’s office said Taylor was “clearly” in shock after he was stunned and struggled to remain standing with the bat pointed toward the floor. In the video, customers can be heard shouting “put it down, put it down,” before Fletcher opened fire, striking Taylor in the chest. Complete article

San Leandro cop who killed man in Walmart held in custody after arraignment 09/15/2020

Woman jailed for stabbing 2 people in Bay County who drove her to Walmart in November 2019 09/01/2020

BAY CITY, MI — A woman accused of stabbing two people who took to a Bay County Walmart to shop has to spend six months in jail.

Bay County Circuit Judge Joseph K. Sheeran on Monday, Aug. 31, sentenced 38-year-old Jessica L. Ayers to two concurrent terms of 182 days in jail. Sheeran also ordered Ayers to pay $190 in restitution to her victims.

Though Ayers had been incarcerated for 279 days, Sheeran gave her no credit for time served due to her parolee status. .......

A man and a woman testified in a December preliminary examination that they had picked up Ayers from a Hampton Township residence on Nov. 25 to take her to the Bangor Township Walmart. Upon returning Ayers to the house, she attacked and stabbed the man and woman in the parked vehicle, witnesses said.

Both victims managed to get out of the vehicle and fled to a nearby Walgreens for help, they testified. While at the Walgreens, the male victim saw Ayers driving away in his vehicle, he testified. Complete article

Man charged with felonies after alleged Ariz. Walmart label-switching 09/02/2020

COTTONWOOD — After Cottonwood police officers were called to the Walmart location in town on Aug. 25, the information they gathered allowed them to make a felony arrest.

On Aug. 25, officers were called to Walmart for a delayed report of a habitual shoplifter. An officer was provided paperwork and surveillance footage of Neal Allan Sacheck, 49, allegedly showing that he shoplifted and scanned UPC labels for less than the intended purchase price and placed items into Walmart bags without scanning them while at the self-checkout on at least three occasions.

The officer conducting the investigation learned Sacheck lives in Rimrock. He contacted the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office to assist with locating Sacheck, who was arrested and now faces felony charges. Complete article

Two local women were harassed and followed at a Iowa Walmart 09/01/2020

Hudson Valley Man's Life Saved Outside NY Walmart 09/01/2020

Police: Man arrested in UTPB gym after stealing from Tx. Walmart 09/02/2020

Planning Board Gives Final OK to New Roxbury NJ Walmart 09/02/2020

Man Attempted to Rape Victim in NY Walmart, Police Say 09/03/2020

A Middletown man was arrested after chasing a victim through Walmart with intent to rape according to police.

At approximately 3:55 p.m. on September 3, the Town of Wallkill Police responded to a report of an assault at Walmart, located at 470 Route 211 East in Orange County.

The investigation into the incident revealed that a 34-year old female victim was chased through the store by a man, who forcibly attempted to remove her pants in an attempt to sexually assault her. Complete article

Woman recounts attempted rape at Middletown Walmart 09/04/2020

Springfield Mass. police looking to identify suspect who allegedly pulled knife on Walmart employees 09/03/2020

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – Springfield detectives are looking for the public’s help in identifying a person who allegedly pulled a knife on two Walmart employees on August 17.

According to Springfield Police spokesman Ryan Walsh, the incident happened around 7 p.m. and no one was hurt. Complete article

Man Files Lawsuit Against Pa. Walmart And Security 09/04/2020

A lawsuit has been filed against a Walmart security guard by a man who claims to have been assaulted.

John Schirra, of Butler, has brought a suit in federal court against Constable Thomas Marak, Walmart, and Point Security Company for violation of the civil right against false imprisonment and for infliction of physical and emotional distress.

According to Schirra’s attorney Al Lindsay, Schirra visited the Butler Walmart on April 9th where he was physically obstructed from entering the store by Marak who was providing security for Walmart as an employee of Point Security Company.

Schirra alleges that Marak demanded that he walk 40 yards away to use another entrance. When Schirra refused, he claims that Marak attacked him repeatedly using pepper spray and tried to place him under arrest. Butler Township Police responded and obtained surveillance video which is now in the hands of the Butler County DA.

Schirra’s complaint says following the incident he has suffered from nightmares, panic attacks, and severe back pain. When asked for comment, Marak’s attorney said that a copy of the complaint had not yet been served so they had not had a chance to review it yet. Complete article

Fla. Walmart crowd control could create safety concern 09/03/2020

An employee sits or stands under an umbrella just outside the one entrance/exit being used at the Walmart Supercenter at 2400 Veterans Memorial Parkway in Orange City.

The other front entrance/exit is closed.

“Wrong door, ma’am. We have to go around – ma’am, ma’am this way,” said the employee who has to count people coming and going in and out of the store. The woman complied.

Michael Parker, a fire inspector for Orange City and DeBary, said he first contacted Orange City Walmart managers about the door situation March 30. The corporation was trying to control the number of people shopping at one time. Complete article

Ohio Walmart shoplifter found with crack pipe in sock: South Euclid Police Blotter 09/03/2020

PA. STATE POLICE RELEASE PICTURES OF SUSPECT IN WALMART THEFT 09/03/2020

CRIME STOPPERS: Police looking for two suspects who defrauded Moline Ill. Walmart employee 09/03/2020

Woman left kids in car while shoplifting at Liberty Ohio Walmart, police say 09/03/2020

Man tries to use self-checkout to shoplift at Dearborn Mich. Walmart 09/04/2020

Mobile Alabama PD: Woman arrested outside of Walmart after punching officer in the face 09/05/2020

MOBILE, Ala. --On Friday, September 4, 2020 at approximately 6:40 p.m., an officer was working an off-duty assignment at the Walmart located at 1300 North University Blvd.

According to MPD, management advised the officer that a woman had left two small children unattended in a vehicle and that the vehicle was parked in the fire lane. They said, when the officer approached the woman asking her to move her vehicle from the fire lane, she became aggressive with the officer and at some point spit in his face. When the officer asked for her name, she refused to provide it and started to walk away.

MPD also states that when the officer stopped her, she spun around on him and punched him in his face. The officer took the woman to the ground while the woman continued to resist arrest. They say, the officer then pulled out his Taser and touch stunned the woman to gain control of her. The officer was then able to get her into handcuffs. Complete article

Fight at Red Bank Ohio Walmart caught on camera 09/04/2020

FAIRFAX, Ohio (FOX19) - A man is behind bars at the Hamilton County Justice Center after a fight at a Walmart was caught on camera.

The fight happened at the Fairfax Walmart on Red Bank Road in late June, Fairfax police say.

The fiancée of the man who was arrested says the fight happened because third-party employees selling electronics at the store pushed the couple to pay for televisions in the electronics department.

Patrick Griffin, 33, is described as the “physical aggressor” in the fight in court documents. The incident report says Griffin’s fiancée told officers the employees were harassing the couple to hurry up and pay for the televisions they were planning to buy. Complete article

Walmart demands all suppliers comply with 98% on-time in-full shipment rule 09/03/2020

Walmart suppliers have been told that on-time and in-full (OTIF) shipments must be 98% complete effective Sept. 15. Suppliers not meeting the new guidance will be fined 3% of the cost of goods. The guidance gives suppliers, who now meet a 70% completion rate, little time to adjust.

The Sept. 1 memo uploaded on Walmart’s supplier portal was authored by Scott McCall, chief merchandising officer for Walmart U.S., and Greg Smith, head of supply chain at the retail giant.

“As we continue to keep the customer at the center of everything we do, we must improve product availability to help ensure that our customer can purchase the products they want, when they want, in-store or online. To deliver on this goal, orders need to be fulfilled accurately, on time and in full. Over the last couple of years, improvements to the On Time and In Full (OTIF) program have driven increased visibility and accountability for Walmart and our Supplier partners,” the memo said. Complete article

Walmart tightens on-time, in-full requirements 09/11/2020

Walmart sues Baraboo Wisc. for 'excessive taxation' 09/04/2020

In an attempt to use a legal precedent to limit the amount its building is taxed by the city, the Walmart corporation of Bentonville, Arkansas is suing Baraboo over claims of “excessive taxation.”

The lawsuit was filed Aug. 4 in Sauk County Circuit Court. It focuses on what is commonly referred to as the “dark store loophole.” The claim made by large retail stores like Walmart is that the building should be assessed at its value if it were dark, not operating and taking in revenue.

According to Sauk County Land Records, the Walmart building sits on nearly 22 acres of land. The city assessor, Michael Weymir of Tyler Technologies Inc., assessed the building and determined its taxable value at more than $9.48 million. Complete article

Here's Why Walmart Hasn't Been Accepting Returns For Months 09/04/2020

The massive retailer Walmart is not accepting some returns in California, and hasn't been for months. Fed up customers say they want their money back, and have been reaching out to the NBC4 I-Team to find out why they can't get it.

“I'm a busy mom. I work full time. When I go there I can get pretty much groceries, beauty, pick up socks, whatever I need,” Toni Zinn-Taylor, a Walmart customer, said.

Zinn-Taylor says she spends hundreds of dollars a month at Walmart, so she was irritated when she recently tried to return two items and the giant retailer refused. Complete article

Batesburg-Leesville SC police officers need the public's help to identify Walmart shoplifting suspect 09/04/2020

KS court rejects appeal from man who cashed in on Walmart self-checkout mistake 09/04/2020 The Kansas Appeals Court on Friday upheld the theft conviction of a Sumner County man who capitalized on a cash-loading error that left a Walmart self-checkout spitting out $20 bills instead of $1s.

Deputies seek suspect in connection to shoplifting at Madison Heights Va. Walmart 09/04/2020

Warrensburg man facing charges in NY Walmart theft 09/04/2020

The cost of a flu shot at Walmart, Costco, CVS and more 09/04/2020

1 injured during shooting at Calera Alabama Walmart parking lot over alleged road rage incident 09/07/2020

CALERA, Ala. (WIAT) — Arrests were made Sunday night following a shooting in the parking lot of the Calera Walmart.

According to the Calera Police Department, one person was seriously injured in what appears to have started as a road rage incident and continued into the Walmart parking lot, where the shooting happened. All the individuals involved are now in custody and the scene was being processed Sunday.

No charges have been announced and no names have been released for the people involved. Complete article

Man in custody after resisting arrest at Tenn. Walmart, leading authorities on lengthy car chase 09/06/2020

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Chattanooga Police say a shoplifting suspect almost hit an officer with a car.

According to the arrest report, police were called to Walmart On Gunbarrel Road. Police say an officer was working an extra job at the store and approached Jesse Shropshire for allegedly shoplifting.

The report says Shropshire got into his car and did not comply with the officer’s commands to get out. It says the suspect drove at the officer, nearly hitting her. Police say the officer was able to get out of the way.

Authorities say a fairly long car chase followed, but Shropshire was eventually caught with no injuries to anyone involved. Complete article

Wichita Police respond to suspicious device call at N Wichita Kansas Walmart 09/05/2020

Columbia Tenn. Walmart reopens following blackout 09/05/2020

Cops: Man snaps inappropriate pics at Tx. Walmart 09/06/2020

Potential COVID-19 exposure at a Chipotle and Walmart in New Hartford NY 09/05/2020

Couple arrested after allegedly fighting, waving BB gun at American Canyon Ca. Walmart 09/07/2020

AMERICAN CANYON, Calif. (KRON) – A couple has been arrested after allegedly fighting and a BB gun was reported an American Canyon Walmart, according to police.

The incident happened on Monday, September 7th around 1:00 pm. American Canyon police responded to reports of a “large fight” and “shots fired” at Walmart and responded within minutes.

Shoppers running out of the store pointed police to suspects 44-year-old Cornelius Reynolds and his wife, 32-year-old Chandra Vincent.

“There was a fistfight going on with two men, one with a mask and one who didn’t have a mask on. I just went about my business and was getting my groceries. Then all of a sudden, there was this stampede of employees that was yelling and moving toward me and telling everyone to evacuate the store,” said Susan, a woman who was evacuated from the store. Complete article

Police searching for man accused of assaulting Knoxville Tenn. Walmart employee 09/09/2020

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - Officials with the Knoxville Police Department asked for the public’s help identifying a suspect accused of assaulting a woman at Walmart.

According to KPD, the suspect assaulted a female employee at the Walmart on Walbrook Drive.

Police said the suspect usually has a black lab dog with him. He is described as a middle-aged man who is bald. Complete article

Walmart testing drones for delivery of household items, groceries in NC city 09/09/2020

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — Walmart launched a pilot program Wednesday using drones to deliver groceries and household essentials in Fayetteville.

The retail giant is using drones from Flytrex and it said it hopes to gain insight into customers' and its workers' experience with the technology.

Tom Ward, senior vice president of customer products at Bentonville, Arkansas-based Walmart, acknowledged that it will be a while before drones are widely used for package deliveries. Complete article

11 employees at Las Cruces NM Walmart quarantined 09/08/2020

LAS CRUCES - New Mexico's Human Services Department confirmed Tuesday that a COVID-19 "rapid response" investigation was initiated Friday at a Las Cruces Walmart where an employee tested positive.

The store, at 3331 Rinconada Blvd., reportedly employs more than 400 people. In July, the location was briefly closed by the state Environment Department after four employees tested positive for COVID-19 over a three-week period.

The store remains open following the latest confirmed case, while 11 employees who were identified as having had close contact with the individual have been tested and are in quarantine, the HSD reported. Complete article

Las Cruces Walmart store previously closed due to virus cases has another outbreak 09/09/2020

White House Supposedly Blocked Walmart From Buying Tiktok Because It Would Prove Its Rationale For Forcing A Deal Was Bullshit 09/08/2020

Among the rumors of who might take over TikTok (which the Trump administration is forcing ByteDance to sell) was the surprise entrant of Walmart. While we're still waiting for the official decision, a report last week noted that the White House stepped in to tell Walmart that couldn't happen if Walmart was to be the lead buyer:

The deal structure would have had Walmart as the lead buyer, with SoftBank and Alphabet acquiring minority stakes. One or two other minority holders held talks to join the consortium, two of the people said.

Walmart wanted to be the exclusive e-commerce and payments provider for TikTok and have access to user data to enhance those capabilities, one of the people said. But the people said the U.S. government wanted the lead buyer of TikTok to be a technology company because that would better fit with its national-security rationale for forcing Chinese owner ByteDance to divest TikTok’s U.S. operations.

This is why the newer rumor is that Microsoft would be the lead, in combination with Walmart. There's no way the DOJ would allow Google to be the lead buyer for TikTok. But here we have it: proof that the White House knows its own rationale for forcing the sale of TikTok is total and complete bullshit, and it's worried that one potential buyer might underline that fact. Complete article

Walmart reaffirms claims to lower property tax bill in Beaver Dam Wisc. 09/08/2020

With the 2020 bill in, Walmart reemphasized claims in court that its property taxes in Beaver Dam are too high.

Walmart sued the city of Beaver Dam in Dodge County Circuit Court a year ago, claiming the assessed values for the Walmart store at 120 Frances Lane and the Walmart Distribution Center at 115 Distribution Way are too high.

In 2019, the store was assessed at about $9.8 million in value, but Walmart claimed the value should be closer to $7.4 million. The value of the distribution center was assessed at about $41.3 million, but Walmart claimed the value should be $26 million. Lower property values mean lower property taxes. Complete article

Incident at Florence Alabama Walmart location leads to robbery, drug charges 09/07/2020

Update: Investigators ID woman who tried to steal giant TV from Fla. Walmart 09/07/2020

Man facing charges after stealing over $400 worth of merchandise from Pa. Walmart 09/07/2020

No explosive devices found after bomb threat at Antioch Ill. Walmart 09/07/2020

Employee jailed in alleged $40 worth of grocery theft at Fla. Wal-Mart at Buffalo Ridge Plaza 09/08/2020

Ohio Walmart robbery suspect said he was an 'FBI agent', owned store, police say 09/09/2020

ELYRIA — An Akron man accused of stealing more than $183 worth of items from the Elyria Walmart and threatening a store employee while yelling that he was an FBI agent and "owned" Walmart is in custody, police said.

Quandon Mango, 49, was arrested on a felony robbery charge and a misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest. He was taken to Lorain County Jail, where he was being held without bond pending court appearances.

According to an Elyria police report, officers were called to the Walmart at 1000 Chestnut Commons Drive shortly before 2 p.m. Aug. 29 for a report of a theft by a Black male wearing all camouflage clothing who was last seen leaving southbound on foot.

When police confronted him, they say Mango put his hands in his pants pockets and refused to take them out, yelling that he was an "FBI agent." An officer grabbed both of Mango's wrists and pulled them up, asking about what happened at Walmart.

"I own Walmart," Mango yelled, according to the police report. Complete article

Pa. Walmart Employee Accused Of Taking Over $20K 09/09/2020

A local man is accused of stealing a large amount of money while he was an employee of Walmart.

According to the Butler Township Police, 20-year-old Samrajya Khadka of Butler was charged last week with Theft by Unlawful Taking and Receiving Stolen Property.

Khadka spent time as an employee at the Butler Commons Walmart at the end of 2019.

He is accused of stealing over $23,000 from the registers during that time. Complete article

Thyroid medicines got recalled for being too weak. Walmart has put out a store list 09/09/2020

A nationwide comprehensive recall pulled two brands of thyroid medicine off shelves after FDA testing found their strength lacking.

The FDA-posted recall notice written by manufacturer RLC Labs said this “sub potency” is why all 483 lots of all strengths of Nature-Throid and WP Thyroid were recalled. RLC posted a list of all the recalled lots.

Testing of samples from six lots found “the product may have as low as 87% of the labeled amount of (active ingredients) Liothyronine or Levothyroxine.” Complete article

Walmart offering flu shots by appointment or walk-in 09/08/2020

Kansas Walmart on Wanamaker closed due to computer issues 09/09/2020

Man charged with recording underneath women’s dresses at Tx. Walmart 09/09/2020

Man says Geneseo NY Walmart employee asked him to leave store over ‘Back the Blue’ t-shirt 09/09/2020

Bedford Man Arrested After Stealing From Ind. Walmart 09/08/2020

City residents charged for shoplifting at Ohio Walmart 09/08/2020

Mount Pleasant Police searching for man wanted in Walmart robbery 09/10/2020

MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. (WCSC) - Mount Pleasant Police are searching for a man wanted in connection with an armed robbery at the Walmart store on Highway 17.

Andy Smith is wanted for armed robbery and possession of a weapon during a violent crime that occurred at the Walmart in the 1400 block of Highway 17 on Sept. 3, according to Mount Pleasant Police Inspector Don Calabrese.

Anyone who knows Smith’s whereabouts is asked to contact Detective Ballentine at 843-884-4176 or email him at JBallentine@tompsc.com. Complete article

53-year-old man arrested for armed robbery at Mount Pleasant Walmart, police say 09/18/2020

27 Investigates: What’s happening with cash payments at the Hermitage Pa. Walmart? 09/11/2020

First News started looking into the issue after getting several calls and emails into our newsroom

HERMITAGE, Pa. (WKBN) – WKBN 27 First News continues to look into what is happening at the Hermitage Walmart when it comes to cash transactions.

First News started looking into the issue after getting several calls and emails into our newsroom from viewers who said the store was not accepting cash.

The manager there blamed it on the coin shortage. They told us that customers who pay with cash and do not have the exact change will get their change on a gift card right now.

We also reached out to Walmart corporate media relations about this issue. They said cash is accepted at all their stores.

“We’re asking customers to pay with card or use correct change when possible if they need to pay with cash. Cash is welcome at all of our stores. However, we have converted some of our self-checkout registers to card only registers,” A Walmart spokesperson wrote. Complete article

Walmart to Get ‘Pecked’ for Buying From Filthy, Cruel Egg Supplier 09/11/2020

Contact:
Megan Wiltsie 202-483-7382

Wallingford, Conn. – Walmart shoppers will get an eyeful on Saturday, when a “chicken” will lead a PETA protest against the retailer over its ties to Trillium Farm Holdings, an egg producer whose widespread, severe abuse of hens has just been exposed in a PETA undercover investigation.

When: Saturday, September 12, 12:30 p.m.

Where: Walmart, 844 N. Colony Rd. (at the intersection with Beaumont Road), Wallingford Complete article

Teens charged as adults in Colorado Walmart shooting that left 2 brothers dead 09/10/2020

Walmart now offering convenient flu shots nationwide 09/11/2020

No sentence reduction for Hobart Walmart shooter, Indiana appeals court rules 09/12/2020

NC WALMART PEEPER: Person of interest photos released 09/10/2020

Nashville woman attempts to steal $246 in items from Tenn. Walmart 09/11/2020

Crews respond to reports of smoke at Buckhannon WV Walmart 09/10/2020

Gloucester Va. authorities need help identifying subjects with cat who stole from Walmart 09/10/2020

Payson Utah police say Walmart abduction reports are untrue 09/11/2020

Deputies investigating deadly shooting near Pompano Beach Fla. Walmart 09/12/2020

POMPANO BEACH, Fla. – Authorities in Broward County are investigating a deadly shooting.

According to the Broward Sheriff’s Office, a call came in of a shooting in the area of 1950 Northeast 49th Street in Pompano Beach.

The address is located across the street from a Walmart Supercenter.

When deputies arrived, they found a man suffering from a gunshot wound.

He was taken to the hospital by Pompano Beach Fire Rescue, where he was pronounced dead. Complete article

Police help pedestrian get home after he was struck by vehicle at Iowa Walmart 09/12/2020

Officers helped an elderly man get home with his groceries Saturday afternoon after he was struck by a vehicle in Row 9 at Walmart, 5811 Elmore Ave., Davenport.

Local 4 was the only station at the scene where the man, who appeared to have some injuries, was transported from the scene in a Davenport squad car, although an ambulance was at the scene, too.

We do not know whether anyone was ticketed. Complete article

Williams recalls Walmart, HEB taco seasoning for Salmonella risk 09/12/2020

Williams Foods LLC has initiated a recall of certain taco spice seasoning because its cumin supplier has recalled its product because of a positive test for Salmonella.

“These items contain cumin spice involved in a recall initiated by our supplier, Mincing Spice Co. Mincing has issued a recall for a specific lot of cumin they produced because a sample from that lot was tested by one of Mincing’s customers and was found to be potentially contaminated with Salmonella,” according to the recall notice.

A portion of the lot recalled by Mincing was supplied to Williams Foods LLC. Williams is recalling its products certain Walmart Great Value taco spice packets and HEB brand taco spice packets. Complete article

Two Arkansas Counties Sue Walmart Over Opioids 09/14/2020

Two Arkansas counties have sued Walmart Inc. over allegations that the Bentonville retailer contributed to the opioid epidemic by failing to maintain tight controls when filling opioid prescriptions.

Pulaski and Jefferson counties filed the lawsuit against Walmart in July, making them the latest two government entities to sue the retailer over allegations it contributed to the opioid crisis.

“Walmart funneled far more opioids into Arkansas and the Counties than could have been used for legitimate medical purposes, and ignored other red flags of suspicious orders,” the suit said. Complete article

Free Narcan Offered At Cinnaminson Walmart Amid Addiction Battle 09/13/2020

CINNAMINSON, NJ — The opioid overdose reversal drug naloxone (commonly called Narcan) will be available for free to residents without a prescription at a Walmart in Cinnaminson from Sept. 24-26 as part of a statewide effort to combat the opioid crisis. The Cinnaminson Walmart is located at 2501 Route 130 South.

"The opioid crisis is one that New Jersey will continue to try to combat to help reduce the abuse of these drugs," Cinnaminson police said in a social media post announcing the free distribution.

Naloxone blocks the opioids' impact on the brain, thus reversing the effects of an overdose, officials said. Those who obtain naloxone will also be given information regarding addiction treatment and recovery. The naloxone will be distributed on a first-come, first-serve basis while supplies last. Complete article

Parolee who lied about bad car crash faces burglary charges at NY Walmart 09/11/2020

Streetsboro Ohio Police searching for Walmart theft suspect who stole $1500 in merchandise 09/10/2020

New Lenox man stole Pokemon, Magic cards from Ill. Walmart: cops 09/12/2020 A man stole Pokemon and Magic: The Gathering cards from a New Lenox Walmart and fled from an officer while committing dangerous traffic violations, police said.

Man wanted for receipt swap at Florida Walmart 09/12/2020

Man sought in connection with scuffle at Villages Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market 09/12/2020

Medford Oregon Police are investigating ‘suspicious activity’ at north Medford Walmart 09/12/2020

Police investigate reports of man with knife making threats at southwest valley Las Vegas Nevada Walmart 09/14/2020

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Police are investigating an incident at a Walmart store in the southwest valley after reports of a possible stabbing.

Officers responded to a call just after 8 a.m. at 5200 S. Fort Apache Road. After an initial investigation, police say a homeless man entered the store and broke a glass case where knives were displayed.

According to witness reports, he grabbed a knife and threatened customers, but no one was injured. Complete article

Police investigating strong armed robbery near W. 7th St. Reno Nevada Walmart 09/15/2020

RENO, Nev. (KOLO) - The Reno Police Department is investigating a strong armed robbery that took place near the Walmart on West 7th Street.

Officers say just before 9 p.m. they received a call about strong armed robbery. They say a woman was robbed and taken to a local hospital with unknown injuries.

RPD is investigating this incident. Check back for updates. Complete article

Loaded handgun recovered from drunken tractor-trailer driver making NJ Walmart delivery: police 09/14/2020

A drunker tractor-trailer driver making a delivery to the Walmart in Secaucus struck a vehicle in the parking lot and then admitted to police that he had a loaded gun, authorities said.

Secaucus police responded to 400 Park Plaza Dr. at 9:45 p.m. Friday on the report of the minor crash. During the course of the investigation it became apparent to police that the driver, 30-year-old James Milien, was intoxicated, Police Chief Dennis Miller said.

The police also found that Milien had a handgun loaded with illegal hollow-point that he had placed in a backpack that he had discarded nearby after the crash, Miller said. Milien had an expired carry permit for the gun. Under certain exceptions, it is legal to carry a firearm in New Jersey, as long as the weapon is unloaded and the weapon and ammunition are securely stored.

Police searching Milien’s truck found an empty bottle of the Jack Daniels whiskey, the criminal complaint said. Complete article

Greendale Wisc. Teen Jumped Outside Walmart: Police 09/14/2020

GREENDALE, WI — Authorities in Greendale are following up on an apparent assault case after the parents of a 17-year-old said their son was jumped outside near the Walmart.

According to Greendale police call logs, the mother of the Greendale teen called police just after 8 a.m. on Sep. 4 to report that her son was jumped by four suspects near Southridge Mall.

Police said the 17-year-old victim was walking near the Walmart parking lot when the suspects punched the victim in the jaw and kicked him while he was on the ground. Complete article

Woman arrested as suspect in hate crime at Manitowoc Wisc. Walmart, suspected of leaving cards on cars with racial slurs 09/14/2020

MANITOWOC — A Two Rivers woman was arrested by Manitowoc police Saturday as the suspect in a hate crime that occurred Thursday at Walmart in Manitowoc.

The woman, 47, is suspected of leaving a racist card on at least two vehicles in the Walmart parking lot.

According to police, a person reported finding a red card on their vehicle that was modeled to look like a hunting license and included at least one racial slur. A photo of the card posted on social media by Lakeshore's United Visionaries showed that it was designed to look like a license to hunt Black people. Complete article

Woman jailed after nearly $1,400 in Pa. Walmart thefts 09/13/2020 A Chemung woman arrested and cited for summary retail theft back in June now faces felony retail theft and misdemeanor receiving stolen property charges after the store’s asset protection uncovered 23 incidences of theft between January and June involving nearly $1,400 in merchandise. According to Athens Township police, asset protection had been investigating 34-year-old Natasha Lynn Conklin since January when they first noticed that she hadn’t scanned all of the items she took out of the store, but were unable to identify her until the June 13 incident. This prompted a more comprehensive review of surveillance video, pictures from the checkout, and copies of her receipts. Police said she had been stealing repeatedly by “skip scanning,” or passing an items through a self checkout register before it can reset from a previous scan, resulting in the theft of $1,371 in merchandise. The amount of thefts per visit ranged from $1.72 to $137.40.

Police: Man Caught Nude In The Act At Delaware Walmart, 16-Year-Old’s Photo Leads To Arrest 09/14/2020

Police Searching For Suspect Who Allegedly Tried To Take Indecent Photos Of Girl In Northeast Philly Pa. Walmart 09/14/2020

LIVE REPORT: Mississippi Gulf Coast Walmart Super Centers to close at 8pm Monday, remain closed Tuesday 09/14/2020

New York woman punched and carjacked outside Kearny NJ Walmart: police 09/15/2020

A New York woman who had just finished her shopping at the Walmart in Kearny Sunday evening was punched in the head and carjacked, authorities said.

The 36-year-old Bronx woman told police she had just gotten into her car at 6:30 p.m. when a man who had been pushing a shopping cart struck her and pulled her out of the car after she had turned on the engine, Kearny Capt. Tim Wagner said.

The assailant fled in the car, with the victim suffering scrapes and lacerations after she was dragged a short distance by the vehicle. Complete article

Tenn. Walmart Parking Lot Altercation Leads to Charges 09/16/2020

Savanah Diane Foster, age 21 of Nashville, was arrested on September 8, 2020 from an incident in the parking lot of Walmart on August 3, 2020.

After an investigation by Officer Wendy Nichols of the Lexington Police Department, Foster was charged with assault, aggravated assault, vandalism and aggravated child abuse and neglect.

According to the court documents, Foster went to the Walmart parking lot and started an altercation with a 17-year-old female, striking the victim multiple times. Complete article

One person injured in two-vehicle accident at Ohio Walmart 09/15/2020

BUCYRUS—One person was issued a citation when Bucyrus Police investigated a two-vehicle crash in the parking lot of Walmart on Sunday evening.

According to Lt. Tom Walker, public information officer for the department who investigated the accident, Walt Owens, 71, Bucyrus, struck a vehicle driven by Bryce Johanson, 21, Delaware, who was traveling northbound through the parking lot.

Walker said a 21-year-old woman was injured in the crash and taken to Bucyrus Community Hospital by Portsmouth Ambulance. Complete article

Walmart heiress Alice Walton named America’s richest woman 09/14/2020

BENTONVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — Walmart’s Alice Walton, the only daughter of company founder Sam Walton, is the richest woman in the United States, according to the Forbes 400 2020 list.

Alice Walton’s wealth has risen by $10.9 billion since 2019, according to Forbes. Several other members of the Walton family, the richest non-royal family in the world, also made the list. Complete article

Lufkin Tx. police release surveillance of fishing gear theft at Walmart 09/14/2020

POLICE BEAT: Police make arrest at Walmart in North Little Rock Arkansas 09/14/2020

Walmart closes dozens of stores in the path of Hurricane Sally 09/15/2020

Police Seek Suspect Who Has Repeatedly Stolen from NY Walmart 09/15/2020

WATCH: Spat over Fla. Walmart parking spot turns into violent attack, police say 09/16/2020

DAVIE, Fla. – An argument over a parking space in a Walmart lot turned violent quickly on Tuesday afternoon, according to Davie Police.

It all happened at the Walmart on University Drive and Griffin Road over a parking-space disagreement.

Police said one woman had been waiting for a parking spot but when the space opened up, a silver Mercedes sped into the spot before she could pull in.

Witnesses said the woman and the occupants of the Mercedes-Benz argued back and forth. That’s when she drove to a different spot nearby. At that time, when she got out of her car, she was attacked by three people from the Mercedes-Benz, according to police.

Video shows the woman on the ground being attacked by the group while other shoppers try to help stop the assault.

“Her phone and her purse were taken and you can see at the end of the video that she was even dragged by the car when she was trying get her purse back,” said Lt. Mark Leone of the Davie Police Department. Complete article

We found out who makes Walmart’s new Gateway laptops, and it’s bad news 09/16/2020

Back in 2007, Taiwan-based PC manufacturer Acer bought the once-iconic Gateway brand in order to stick a thumb in the eye of rival OEM Lenovo and increase its US market presence. In the 13 years since, the Gateway brand has languished largely unused, while Acer built up its own name in the United States directly. The cow is officially back now, though, with a new line of mostly budget, Walmart-exclusive Gateway laptops.

The new line ranges from $180 to $1,000, and several models seem interesting—but when we looked closer, we found a familiar and not particularly attractive name behind the brand. Gateway is also making two models of Android tablet—an 8" GWAT8-1 which doesn't appear to be available retail yet, and a 10" model available at Walmart for $67. Trying to find more detail on the GWAT8-1 led us to a surprising discovery—it's actually made (or imported) by EVOO. Complete article

Police: Queens Man, 23, Tried Using Bogus Credit Card At Flanders NJ Walmart 09/15/2020

Potential COVID-19 exposure at Auburn NY Walmart after employee tests positive 09/17/2020

Woman facing five years for alleged Minn. Walmart theft 09/17/2020 A Walmart loss prevention employee explained to Worthington police that Alizay Ramirez, 19, of Worthington, had used the self-checkout and only scanned some of her items, while bagging everything in her cart and walking out the door with it.

Two juveniles charged as adults in Colorado Walmart shooting 09/16/2020

Man Shoplifts $736 Worth of Items at Murfreesboro Tenn. Walmart 09/16/2020

Cape Coral Fla. police search for Walmart thief who left in black Mercedes 09/16/2020

1 person killed in Lakewood Colorado Walmart parking lot, suspect shot by police nearby 09/18/2020

LAKEWOOD, Colo. (KDVR) — A victim and suspect are dead after a shooting outside the Walmart at West Fourth Avenue and Wadsworth Boulevard in Lakewood.

Police said the victim, a man in his 20s or 30s, was shot and killed in the parking lot.

Witnesses at the scene reported seeing a middle-aged, white man shoot multiple rounds at the victim sitting in his car.

After killing the man, police say the suspect fled from the Walmart parking lot, crossed Wadsworth and attempted to highjack employees’ cars at the nearby Grease Monkey.

“He threatened us — ‘Is your life worth it, is your life worth it?’ Then my manager saw the gun,” Grease Monkey employee Dezirae Kendle said, adding, “I froze. I couldn’t move.”

Original article said: Officers then shot the suspect, who was taken to a hospital in unknown condition. / This was later revised. Complete article

Man killed in Walmart parking lot, suspect killed by Lakewood officers 09/18/2020

Suspect, victim identified in fatal Walmart parking lot shooting 09/21/2020

Suspect in Lakewood Walmart shooting has been arrested 38 times since 1992 09/21/2020

Walmart shopper robbed at gunpoint while loading groceries in southwest Houston Tx. 09/17/2020

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A Walmart customer's trip for groceries in southwest Houston turned into a frightful experience just from the simple act of loading items into her vehicle.

In a video released by Crime Stoppers of Houston, the shopper was face-to-face with a robber who pointed a gun at her. The video came from the parking lot of the Walmart in the 2700 block of Kirkwood, and the holdup was captured on Aug. 30 at around 1:30 p.m.

The footage shows the victim loading her groceries when a dark green vehicle, possibly a 2013 Toyota Rav4, pulled up behind her with a man getting out.

Crime Stoppers said the man pointed his weapon and demanded everything she had, forcibly grabbing the victim's backpack that contained her wallet and other personal items. Complete article

Aberdeen NC Police investigating incident at Walmart 09/17/2020

Aberdeen Police are investigating an incident that occurred at Walmart Thursday involving a local family and their child.

A video posted on social media by the family described what could have possibly turned out to be an attempted abduction of the child by a group of men in the store.

In the video, the mother and her sister share that they were shopping with their 9-year-old son/nephew Thursday morning. After a while, they notice a man taking pictures of the child. As they confronted him, they realized there were possibly four to six men that followed them through the store, watching the boy and taking more pictures of him.

The mother reported the activity to a cashier, who quickly alerted security. In the video, she reported security arrived and immediately began searching for the men. Aberdeen Police were also called and responded to the scene.

The video went on to say that later a group of family members arrived and safely escorted the child and women safely out of the store. Complete article

Police Conclude Investigation into Aberdeen Walmart Incident 09/30/2020

Police: Phone stolen from Butler County Ohio Walmart employee leads to assault report 09/18/2020

Police took a report of a phone stolen from an employee at the Oxford Walmart store Sept. 10 and the next day a report of felonious assault resulting from that one when a second phone and another victim got involved.

The original theft was reported at 10:14 p.m. at the Walmart store. An employee in the electronics department placed his phone on the counter when a patron he described as “jittery” asked about some devices. The employee turned to get a game controller and the man grabbed his phone and “bolted” from the store.

The phone was described as a Samsung A-20 with a black pop socket Otter Box phone case. Total value was estimated at $220. Video surveillance footage showed the man as wearing a red face mask. He seemed to have red hair and had tattoos on his arms. Two pictures were provided to police. Complete article

Sedgwick hires former Walmart risk manager David Stills 09/10/2020

Sedgwick Claims Management Services Inc. has hired former Walmart Inc. risk manager David Stills to the newly created position of global risk manager executive.

Mr. Stills most recently served as Walmart’s vice president of global risk management, a role he held for 18 years. He also serves on the board of advisors of the Workers Compensation Institute.

At Sedgwick he will focus on global carrier relations, risk management and litigation strategy. Complete article

Dothan Alabama's northside Walmart closes as rain batters Wiregrass 09/16/2020

Tx. Walmart robber gets probation amended 09/16/2020

Troopers release photos of man accused of multiple larcenies at Cortlandville NY Walmart 09/17/2020

Fruitland Park woman jailed after failing to scan $27.86 worth of items at Summerfield Fla. Wal-Mart 09/17/2020

Father of Beavercreek Ohio Walmart shooting victim calls recent protests ‘inevitable’ 09/17/2020

Missouri man given probation for shooting threat at Walmart 09/18/2020 A probable cause statement says Pratte made the threats in September 2019 after his supervisors criticized his productivity at work. A co-worker told investigators Pratte also threatened to shoot up his daughter’s school.

Police investigating after officer-involved shooting in Iowa Walmart parking lot 09/18/2020

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa — A police officer has suffered minor injuries after an officer-involved shooting at a Walmart parking lot in Council Bluffs.

According to Council Bluffs Police Captain Todd Weddum, officers were at the Walmart near Lake Manawa responding to two shoplifting incidents. Weddum said police approached a man who then tried to run the officer over.

Police confirmed the officer fired at the car as it attempted to run him over.

It is still unclear how many shots were fired or if the car or anyone inside was hit. Police said the man was the only person inside the vehicle.

The driver hit a silver car as it sped off.

Police found the SUV abandoned on the I-29 southbound ramp at the Lake Manawa exit. Complete article

Racial slur sparks tension-filled confrontation between shoppers at Ga. Walmart 09/18/2020

STONE MOUNTAIN, Ga. (CBS46) -- An upsetting video of a tension-filled confrontation has been viewed thousands of times. The footage shows a woman accusing another woman of calling her the n-word.

“Call me another n****, say it again,” said the Black woman in the video.

A confronting and upsetting scene has been captured on video showing a woman accusing the other of calling her the #NWord. Many are saying it happens far too often in #Georgia . Details @cbs46 #racism #walmart #stonemountain #Atlanta

The woman motions she’s about to slap the white woman accused of using the racial slur.

“Say it again and I’m going to whoop your behind all over this place,” said the black woman.

Walmart employees rush in fairly soon after the confrontation begins.

“There should be a zero tolerance for that,” said Robyn Young who posted the video.

The woman who filmed the Sept. 17 incident said it took place at a Walmart in Stone Mountain, and that she witnessed the elderly white lady calling the Black woman an n-word. Complete article

Walmart, Amazon among donors to QAnon-promoting Tenn. lawmaker 09/19/2020

Walmart, Amazon and other corporate giants donated money to the reelection campaign of a Tennessee state lawmaker who had used social media to amplify and promote the QAnon conspiracy theory, according to an Associated Press review of campaign finance records and the candidate’s posts.

The corporate support for a QAnon-promoting politician is another example of how the conspiracy theory has penetrated mainstream politics, spreading beyond its origins on internet message boards popular with right-wing extremists.

Dozens of QAnon-promoting candidates have run for federal or state offices during this election cycle. Collectively, they have raised millions of dollars from thousands of donors. Individually, however, most of them have run poorly financed campaigns with little or no corporate or party backing. Unlike state Rep. Susan Lynn, who chairs the Tennessee House finance committee, few are incumbents who can attract corporate PAC money.

Though she repeatedly posted a well-known QAnon slogan on her Twitter and Facebook accounts, Lynn told the AP in an interview Friday that she does not support the conspiracy theory. Complete article

Bedford Ind. Employee Arrested After Stealing From Walmart 09/18/2020 A Bedford man was arrested after he stole more than $470 from Walmart. ... On August 20th, Caraway is accused of stealing a package of mashed potatoes, a package of New York strip steaks, a bottle of A1 steak sauce, a box of frozen mac and cheese, a bottle of BBQ sauce, and a 6-pack of Sprite. The total loss to the store during that transaction was $31.51 before tax. (13 days averaging $36 per day)

Police charge man for Pa. Walmart threat 09/18/2020

Walmart Threatens Shoplifter With WWE's The Undertaker 09/18/2020

SMCSO Seeking Identity for Theft Suspect at Md. Walmart 09/16/2020

Police: Man arrested at Charlotte NC Walmart after attempting to rob Belmont Shoe Show with scissors 09/19/2020

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) - A man was arrested at a Charlotte Walmart after he was accused of an attempted armed robbery in Belmont.

Police say 57-year-old James Edward Talford was armed with a pair of scissors before assaulting and demanding money from the Shoe Show on Park Street in Belmont.

Police said the employee fought back and the man did not leave with any money.

The man, who was identified as Talford, left in a white Nissan Altima.

Police obtained the vehicle registration plate and located him at a Charlotte Walmart, Complete article

Man fleeing troopers steals Utah Walmart semitruck, officials say 09/19/2020

MAGNA — A man led Utah Highway Patrol troopers on a long chase Saturday afternoon — first in an SUV, then in a semitruck stolen from a Grantsville Walmart Distribution Center, officials said.

The incident began about 1 p.m. Saturday when a trooper pulled over a black Cadillac Escalade on eastbound I-80 in rural Tooele County, according to UHP trooper Mikki Vargas. When the trooper ran the vehicle's plates, he found out they were stolen and called for backup.

But before backup could arrive, two passengers in the car got out and ran away on foot and the driver took off, Vargas said.

The first trooper focused on the running passengers, who were eventually apprehended; meanwhile, the trooper's backup pursued the vehicle on I-80. Complete article

A diesel disaster for SC Walmart 09/19/2020

Travelers on I-95 and local residents received a nasty surprise on Sept. 3 when their vehicles began to sputter and stall after leaving the Walterboro Walmart gas station.

According to sources, a Walmart truck delivering diesel fuel emptied the diesel fuel into the wrong tank.

Millions of gallons of diesel fuel were inadvertently deposited into the unleaded 87 octane tank. Unknowingly, motorists filled their unleaded fuel tanks with gallons of diesel fuel. This caused vehicles to stall throughout the county and along I-95.

Tow trucks from Colleton were busy as they attempted to retrieve numerous vehicles and assist drivers. One mechanic from a local dealership was stunned. “It was shocking at how many vehicles were needing help,” he said. “One car literally rolled to a stop in front of our business. The fuel system was destroyed.” Complete article

Crash near Houlton Maine Walmart leaves at least one person hospitalized 09/21/2020

HOULTON, Maine — A car crash near the intersection of Ludlow Road and North Street in Houlton, near the entrance to Walmart, occurred in the morning of Sept. 21, around 9:30 a.m.

According to eyewitness reports, a blue Toyota Corolla was driving near the intersection coming from Ludlow Road when it hit a sign placed where the two lanes diverge, causing the car to skid onto the opposite lane, where it collided with a silver Dodge Ram truck. Complete article

Trump backs proposed TikTok deal with Oracle, Walmart 09/19/2020

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Saturday he’s given his “blessing” to a proposed deal between Oracle and Walmart for the U.S. operations of TikTok, the Chinese-owned app he’s targeted for national security and data privacy concerns.

Trump said the proposed deal will result in a new company likely to be based in Texas and under the control of U.S.-based Oracle and Walmart.

“I have given the deal my blessing,” he said. “If they get it done, that’s great. If they don’t, that’s OK too.” Complete article

Alleged Fla. Wal-Mart grocery thief back behind bars on Sumter County DUI warrant 09/18/2020 A former Wal-Mart employee who was accused of stealing food from his employer last month is behind bars again.

SD Walmart evacuated briefly for small electrical fire 09/18/2020

Shreveport La. police seek suspect in Walmart theft 09/21/2020

Warwick RI PD: Walmart Shoplifter Took Hitch, Lights, Caught 09/21/2020

Man accused of kidnapping wife, leaving her naked at Wyoming Walmart 09/21/2020

GILLETTE — A Gillette man is accused of kidnapping his wife and leaving her naked at Walmart, allegedly telling her he wanted her to be embarrassed.

John Jesse Crump, 37, is charged with kidnapping, which carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison. He also has been charged with misdemeanor counts of domestic battery and false imprisonment.

The two had been to Boot Hill Nightclub on Sept. 12 and had begun to argue on the drive home. She told police he told her she needed to pack her belongings and move out, but she said couldn’t because it was past 2 a.m., according to an affidavit of probable cause.

She pulled over at his request about 1.2 miles west of Highway 14-16 on Middle Prong Road. He told her she needed to get out. Initially, she refused, but then agreed to walk home as long as she could get her jacket out of the truck, the affidavit says.

While she was getting her jacket on, he ripped it off, telling he that she wasn’t coming home. He eventually wrestled her to the ground, pulled her hair and dragged her back toward the truck, which caused a road rash to her back. He ripped off all of her clothes and forced her back into the back seat of the truck, according to the affidavit.

He drove back to town, threatening her along the way and asking her at one point if it would be more embarrassing to be left on the side of a road to be dropped off and left in public, according to the affidavit. She asked to be dropped off in a ditch. Complete article

Police search for suspects in SD Walmart knife assault 09/21/2020

Police are searching for suspects in a Friday night knife assault at a Walmart parking lot in western Sioux Falls.

Around 8:15 p.m., a 30-year-old Sioux Falls man drove into the Walmart parking lot on South Louise Avenue. A white pickup truck was nearby, and a passenger in the vehicle got out and appeared to try and "stab the car," said police spokesman Sam Clemens.

The victim got out of his vehicle to confront the person and was punched by the suspect, Clemens said. The suspect then used a knife to cut the victim on his arm. Complete article

Man arrested on I-80 after robbing Nevada Walmart 09/21/2020

ELKO – An Elko man suspected of stealing from Walmart ran onto Interstate 80 in an attempt to escape authorities Monday morning.

Robert Penunui Valles, 36, was arrested on one count of robbery, one count of resisting or obstructing an officer and one count of intoxicated pedestrian on the roadway.

In a statement, Elko police said officers were called to Walmart at about 11 a.m. on a report that a man had tried to leave the store with $115 worth of merchandise.

When confronted by a loss prevention agent, Valles allegedly shoved the employee and ran away.

Officers spotted the suspect walking on Mountain City Highway and attempted to stop him, when Valles ran onto I-80, crossing all four lanes of traffic. Complete article

The Cop, Lawyer and Walmart Executive Who Took on College Football 09/21/2020

Consumer Alert: Man receives letter asking to secretly evaluate Walmart, notices fake check 09/20/2020

Men pretend to be Okla. Walmart employees, steal from store 09/21/2020

Family shoplifts nearly $500 in items at Martinez Ga. Walmart, deputies say 09/21/2020

Police: Ga. Walmart dispute leaves 1 man dead, 4 arrested 09/22/2020

Four suspects have been arrested in connection with a shooting that killed a 24-year-old man Saturday, according to the Griffin Police Department.

Griffin police said they found Reginald Darnell Hamm of Griffin with a gunshot wound to his chest around 2:27 p.m. at the entrance of the Griffin Crossings apartment complex on West McIntosh Road. Hamm was taken to Wellstar Spalding Regional Hospital, where he died from his injuries, police said.

Hamm and two other individuals got into an argument at Walmart, Griffin police spokesman Lt. Daniel Jett said in a press release. After leaving the store, Hamm encountered the two individuals again in front of the apartment complex and during the encounter, John Robert Hunter, 21, of Terrytown, Louisiana, shot Hamm, Jett said. Complete article

2 men wanted, accused of several armed robberies; deputies say 1 shot a Fla. Walmart manager 09/22/2020

BRADENTON, Fla. — The search is on for two men, one of whom reportedly shot a Walmart manager in the leg, after several armed robberies took place across the Bradenton and Palmetto areas.

It happened around 9:39 p.m. Tuesday at the store located on State Road 64 near Interstate 75, according to the Manatee County Sheriff's Office.

Investigators said the person tried to rob the store in the process. No one else was hurt.

Deputies say the two men walked into the Walmart and went to the customer service area. One was wearing an orange hat, a white shirt, white shorts, a white mask and black shoes. Deputies later identified him as the shooter. The second man wore a black long sleeve sweater, blue jeans, black shoes and a headcover with a white hat over it with the word "Gators" on it. Complete article

Walmart manager shot, Publix manager pistol-whipped in suspected robbery spree in Manatee County Fla. 09/23/2020

Gunshots heard near W. 41st St. Gunshots heard near W. 41st St. Sioux Falls SD Walmart Walmart 09/23/2020

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — Police are investigating gunshots in Western Sioux Falls.

Shortly before 2:30 Wednesday morning, officers with the Sioux Falls Police Department heard gunshots in the area of West 41st Street and South Louise Avenue. Officers found shell casings in parking lot of the nearby Walmart. No injuries have been reported.

The investigation is ongoing. Complete article

Man threatens to shoot and kill woman outside Marietta Ga. Walmart 09/23/2020

MARIETTA, Ga - A Marietta woman had just walked out of a store to her car when a man with a gun threatened to kill her. Investigators say the woman's quick thinking, combined with help from business owners and people in a nearby neighborhood and police helped capture the gunman.

The woman, named Arlyn, had just walked out of Walmart in Marietta around noon Sunday. As soon as she got to her car, she said a stranger with a gun surprised her.

"He said 'Get inside the car right now, don't do anything else or I will shoot you, I'm going to kill you. Don't scream, don't run'," said Arlyn.

Arlyn told the man she had to go to the passenger side of the car where her purse was. She held up her hands and slowly took a couple of steps back, then took off running. She screamed for help.

The man swiped Arlyn's purse out of her car and walked away. Complete article

RCSD: Woman wanted for assaulting employee at SC Walmart on Killian Rd 09/22/2020

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - The Richland County Sheriff’s Department is asking for community assistance to help identify a woman who assaulted a Walmart employee.

On September 8, around 12:30 p.m., deputies were dispatched to the 300 block of Killian Road after receiving reports of an assault.

Upon arrival, an employee told officials that a woman had called customer service and asked if they had found a lost VISA card. She gave them the name of the man whose name was on the card.

The employee confirmed they had found the card, but said the man would need to bring proper ID to get the card back. Complete article

RCSD: Woman arrested in connection with attack against employee at Walmart on Killian Rd 09/22/2020

Man punches teen with special needs in face at Walmart in Bucks County Pa.: Police 09/23/2020

QUAKERTOWN, Pennsylvania (WPVI) -- A teenager with special needs was the target of an attack inside of a Bucks County Walmart this past weekend, police said.

It happened around noon Saturday at the Walmart on North West End Boulevard in Quakertown.

Richland Township police release surveillance video from the store on Tuesday.

The video shows the suspect walking in the store with a woman who was pushing a cart with a child.

The suspect then punches the 16-year-old victim in the face. Complete article

Man strikes vehicles in Pa. Walmart parking lot, escapes capture 09/23/2020

Mahoning Township Police are looking for a suspect who struck several vehicles in the Walmart parking lot and then ran away.

Township police Chief Audie Mertz said the incident occurred at 8:05 p.m. when a white Ford F150 drove across the parking lot, hit the curve next the pharmacy drive-thru, went over that curb and struck some shrubbery, and hit three parked cars.

Mertz said two of the cars sustained heavy damage and had to be towed, while the third vehicle had damage but was drivable. Complete article

Walmart Just Recalled This Popular Deli Item 09/22/2020

Almost 7,000 pounds of chicken salad has been recalled because packages could be mislabeled and contain undeclared allergens, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS). The Class I chicken salad recall affects nine states, including several Walmart locations in seven states.

Packs of 15 oz Willow Tree Premium White Meat Chicken Salad Classic may have been mislabeled during production and could contain Willow Tree White Meat Cranberry Walnut Chicken Salad instead. If someone with an allergy to the ingredients in the Cranberry Walnut Chicken Salad unknowingly consumes it, they could develop serious food allergy symptoms. Complete article

Walmart Took Its Eye Off Black Managers While Women Advanced 09/23/2020

On a Friday morning in June 2009, Walmart’s then-Chief Executive Officer Mike Duke stood in front of thousands of employees and shareholders at a star-studded corporate gala and announced that the world’s largest retailer needed more female leaders. His pledge to make changes would have a major unintended consequence — a setback for Black representation.

Duke that day unveiled a global women’s council designed to help boost the share of women in senior leadership roles, then at 27%—a glaring disparity, when women made up more than half of Walmart’s U.S. workforce. Jump forward 11 years, and Walmart has boosted that share to nearly one-third. Meantime, the share of Black leadership roles has recently declined. Complete article

Walmart PS5 Preorders Are Doing Some Weird Things 09/21/2020

Police seek ID in south Jackson Tenn. Walmart shoplifting 09/21/2020

Man sentenced to 14 years in prison for Aug. 2019 shooting in Lakewood Colorado Walmart parking lot 09/22/2020

Police say Facebook post about human trafficking case at Walmart is not accurate, did not happen in Midland Tx. 09/22/2020

Police: Report of suspicious stranger at Kitty Hawk NC Walmart so far unfounded 09/22/2020

Police: Pasadena Man Allegedly Threatened People With Knife Outside Walmart In Glen Burnie Md. 09/23/2020

GLEN BURNIE, Md. (WJZ) — An Anne Arundel County man is facing assault charges following a road rage incident at a Walmart in Glen Burnie.

Police said 44-year-old James Hostetter of Pasadena was threatening people in the parking lot with a knife at around 11:30 a.m. Tuesday morning.

They said Hostetter was angry about something the victims did when they pulled into the parking lot. He eventually fled the scene, but Walmart security was able to get his tag information, which police used to track Hostetter down. Complete article

Walmart pharmacy technician accused of stealing pain medication 09/23/2020

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – A Walmart pharmacy technician is accused of stealing pain pills from bottles meant for customers on multiple occasions, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

The investigation began in February when a technician found a loose hydrocodone tablet in a customer’s will call bag, even though the customer was not prescribed that medication, and then later that same day, Patricia Doud told the pharmacist on duty that she found a loose hydrocodone pill on the floor of the Port Orange Walmart pharmacy, records show.

The pharmacist looked into the matter further and determined that she hadn’t filled any hydrocodone prescriptions that day so she couldn’t understand why there were loose pills.

She then looked at the will call bags and saw there were two hydrocodone prescriptions waiting to be picked up. One of the bottles was missing 17 pills and the other was short 15 pills, according to the report.

The pharmacist alerted loss prevention, who in turn began reviewing surveillance video to determine what happened to the pills, records show.

Agents said they found footage from five different occasions in January and February that showed Doud tampering with will call prescription bags and seemingly dumping pills out of those bottles and putting them in her pocket.

Doud denied the accusations, saying that on one occasion she was looking for a ring she lost that was believed to be in one of the prescription bags. Complete article

Walmart cuts workers' hours but increases workload as sales rise amid pandemic 09/24/2020

Walmart is cutting some workers’ hours and pay while increasing their workloads, according to workers who spoke to the Guardian, all while promising “greater opportunity for associates to lead and take more ownership in the business”.

The retailer has emerged as one of the biggest winners of the pandemic. In August, Walmart announced a 9.3% rise in store sales and a 97% rise in e-commerce.

According to staff the company is now pushing ahead with restructuring plans that for some workers has “cut hours horrendously. It made it very difficult to pay bills.”

Walmart began rolling out the plan – called the Great Workplace program in 2019 – but its introduction to several stores was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The program restructured staffing by consolidating departments and roles, including layoffs for those not chosen for a new role. Complete article

Walmart, Oracle Support President Trump's Idea For TikTok 'Education Fund' 09/23/2020

Walmart has agreed to back an education fund proposed by President Donald Trump as part of a deal between the retailer and Oracle to partner with Chinese-owned video-sharing app TikTok, according to a source familiar with the matter.

The financial contribution will come from the new company that emerges from the unusual transaction, called TikTok Global. The arrangement will allow the app to continue operating in the U.S. after the Trump administration threatened to ban it over national security concerns. Yet to be decided is how much money Walmart and Oracle would contribute to the fund and how it would be used.

Walmart and Oracle are looking to take a stake of up to 20% of TikTok Global. TikTok's current owner, Beijing-based ByteDance, and possibly its investors, would get 80% of the newly formed U.S.-based entity that will be the new official owner of the popular video platform. Complete article

Man scheduled for plea hearing in Colorado Walmart harassment case 09/22/2020

Mother, Daughter Caught Shoplifting At Walmart: Joliet Ill. Police 09/22/2020

Man walks out of NC Walmart with four TVs, two speakers 09/22/2020

Lady Lake man nabbed on drug charge after arrest at Summerfield Fla. Wal-Mart 09/23/2020

Trial date scheduled for man who threatened to shoot up Tx. Walmart 09/23/2020

Man airlifted after stabbing outside of Walmart in Victorville Ca. 09/24/2020

VICTORVILLE, Calif. (VVNG.com) — A verbal altercation outside of Walmart in Victorville resulted in one man being stabbed Thursday morning.

It happened at about 10:34 AM on September 24, 2020, in the 11800 block of Amargosa Road.

A cell phone video of the incident posted to Facebook showed several men involved in different fights just outside one of the main entrances to Walmart.

Victorville City Firefighters responded to the stabbing and requested a helicopter to airlift the male victim. A Mercy Air helicopter landed in a vacant field next to Walmart and transported the male to a trauma center. Complete article

Police: Bystanders helped officers arrest man who stole shotgun from Richland Pa. Walmart 09/24/2020

CAMBRIA COUNTY, Pa. (WJAC) — Police say a group of citizens helped them arrest a man who had stolen a shotgun from the Richland Township Walmart Wednesday night.

According to the Richland Township Police Department, officers were called to Walmart for a theft that happened just before 7 p.m.

According to a criminal complaint, 19-year-old Cameron Cinko went to the sport goods section of the store and asked to look at the firearm.

Investigators say when the employee turned around, Cinko took the 12-gauge shotgun and ran out of the store, knocking customers to the ground on his way out. Complete article

Man arrested after following an 11-year-old around in a Okla. Walmart 09/24/2020

ROGERS COUNTY, Okla. (KTUL) — The Catoosa Police Department said a man as been arrested on a complaint of attempted kidnapping.

According to the affidavit, police arrested Theodore Insogna.

He is accused of following an 11-year-old girl around in a Walmart in Catoosa and stopping her when she wasn’t around her mother, saying “she had a pretty face” and that he had something to show her in his car. Complete article

Two men in Llano Co. accused of stealing $20K worth of electronics from Tx. Walmart 09/24/2020

The Llano County Sheriff's Office has arrested two men for allegedly stealing approximately $20,000 in electronics from Walmart.

Robert Lee Williams III, 27, and Jerome Anthony Ward, 26, both from Galveston, are charged with theft and fictitious name.

The sheriff's office says on Wednesday they were notified that a Nissan 4-door car involved in thefts from Walmarts in the San Angelo and Brady area was headed toward Llano on Hwy 71.

A traffic stop was initiated in the Valley Spring area where Williams, Ward and two females were detained. During a search of the car deputies discovered 16 iPhones, 81 AirPods, 6 Powerbeats, 1 iPod Touch, and 1 Apple TV. All items were still in their boxes and suspected of being stolen -- with a value at well over $20,000. Complete article

Truck driver tased and maced after bizarre behavior at Pa. Walmart distribution center 09/24/2020

Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) say that a truck driver is facing multiple charges after his erratic behavior led to an altercation with police at a Walmart location earlier this month.

Police say that 24 year old North Carolina-based truck driver Elijah E. Pacheco has been charged with possession of drug paraphernalia, DUI, resisting arrest, and disorderly conduct.

The charges stem from a September 12 incident at Walmart distribution center in Bedford Township, Pennsylvania, local news outlet the Bedford Gazette reports.

Troopers were called to the scene around 10:30 p.m. by employees who said that Pacheco was displaying strange behavior, that he was unable to back his truck up to his trailer, and that he attempted to leave the facility without his trailer. Complete article

Shoplifter takes more than merchandise from Walmart: South Euclid Ohio Police Blotter 09/2/2020

A man tried to leave Walmart Sept. 13 with $734 worth of unpaid merchandise in a shopping cart. He left the cart behind and proceeded to the parking lot, where he stole a vehicle and left the area.

The Cleveland man, 61, was identified as he had provided his personal information to employees before the robbery. A warrant was issued for his arrest. Complete article

Walmart’s goal for its trucks: No more diesel by 2040 09/23/2020

Walmart’s goal of having zero emissions corporatewide by 2040 includes a plan to have all its trucks operate emissions-free as well.

Walmart, with its fleet of roughly 6,500 trucks and 9,000 drivers, was admittedly vague in its announcement earlier this week on how it gets there. But after making the broad commitment to zero emissions for all corporate activities by 20 years from now, it also published an accompanying document about some of its specific plans, including for its truck fleet. A spokeswoman for Walmart directed FreightWaves to the document in response to questions.

“The path to zero emissions will require equipment using fossil fuel combustion in its operation to be replaced with a sustainable zero emission fuel or electrified so that it can be powered by a renewable source,” Walmart said.

But it also conceded that it was going to need help to get there. To reach its goals, Walmart said, “we need the support of many others, including the evolution of necessary infrastructure to support the common business use of advancements in electrification and other zero emissions technologies,” the company said, noting separately that it is “technology-agnostic.” Complete article

Neighbors complain of loud music coming from NY Walmart parking lot all summer 09/23/2020

Warrant issued for Alabama man accused of indecent exposure in Fla. Walmart 09/2/2020

Galesburg man repeatedly steals from Walmart; two Galesburg women arrested for attempting to steal from Ill. Walmart 09/23/2020

Ashton woman jailed for theft at Iowa Walmart 09/24/2020

Deputies searching for man missing nearly a month, last seen at Lincoln Co. NC Walmart 09/24/2020

SW Miami-Dade Fla. Walmart fatal shooting may have been over social-distancing, witnesses say 09/26/2020

SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, Fla. – Homicide detectives are still working on trying to find out what led up to a fatal shooting inside a Walmart in the Westchester area of Southwest Miami-Dade. But witnesses and customers are telling Local 10 that it may have been the result of a disagreement over COVID-19 guidelines and restrictions inside the store.

“There is a possibility that it was about distancing," one witness told Local 10.

The chaos ensued just before 10 a.m. Saturday morning.

“Todo el mundo corriendo (Everybody running),” Larry Vedo, one of the shoppers inside, said. “I just heard two gunshots,” Angel Martinez, an employee of the store, said. Magaly Gonzalez, another employee, said: “We just heard a shot. That’s it and everybody ran out of the store.” Complete article

Police Identify Man Shot and Killed Inside Miami-Dade Walmart 09/28/2020

Exclusive: Brother Of Man Killed Inside Westchester Fla. Walmart ‘Taking This Loss Pretty Seriously’ 09/30/2020

PD: Driver in custody after hitting Peoria police officer in Ariz. Walmart parking lot 09/26/2020

PEORIA, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) -- A driver is in custody after hitting an officer in Peoria and leaving the scene.

According to Peoria police, officers responded to the Walmart near Lake Pleasant Parkway and Deer Valley Road around 7 p.m. on Saturday for a trespassing call. When officers arrived on the scene the suspect fled in a vehicle and hit an officer.

The officer was treated for “very minor” injuries, police said.

Peoria police chased the vehicle until it reached the Loop 101. Officers were later able to arrest the suspect near the Loop 101 and Glendale Avenue. Complete article

Crews called to possible gas leak at east Decatur Ill. Walmart 09/24/2020

Woman suspected of stealing from Walmart wanted by Bainbridge Township Ohio Police 09/24/2020

Police report: Minn. Walmart evacuated after smoke billows from roof 09/24/2020

Man buys phone from Fla. Walmart then calls in bomb threat to justice center, federal courthouse 09/24/2020

Lincoln Nebraska PD: Suspect fires gun at woman leaving Walmart with children 09/29/2020

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - Lincoln Police are investigating after a woman said an unknown vehicle pulled up beside her and her children as they were leaving Walmart and fired a gun into the side of their car.

LPD said on Monday around 9 p.m., the victim was leaving the Walmart on N. 27th Street with her 13 and 17-year-old sons.

The woman told police she realized she was being followed by an SUV and a 4-door sedan, and eventually, the SUV pulled up beside her vehicle.

According to LPD, the woman said a person in the SUV pulled out a gun and started yelling, and fired a shot at the vehicle. Police did find a bullet hole in the side of the car. Complete article

Man charged with rape after 13-year-old girl taken from Nashville Tenn. Walmart 09/29/2020

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A 28-year-old man accused of sexually abusing a 13-year-old girl he met at a Nashville Walmart has been charged with rape.

A warrant states Metro police were notified Monday that a 13-year-old girl, who had been reported missing, was located at an apartment belonging to Orlin Funez-Flores.

The girl told detectives she had been abducted and raped by several people she did not know, but she was able to escape and call Funez-Flores, who she identified as a friend, according to the paperwork. Complete article

Arbutus Md. Walmart employee threatened with knife by shoplifter: Catonsville and Arbutus area crime 09/28/2020

Baltimore County police are investigating after a woman stole multiple electronics and other items from an Arbutus Walmart and threatened an employee with a kitchen knife before fleeing in a vehicle, according to police reports.

The employee stopped the woman to check her receipt as she attempted to leave the Walmart in the 3600 Block of Washington Boulevard around 7:20 p.m. Sept. 20.

When the woman failed to produce the receipt for her items, which included a Soundbar sound system, a trash can and other merchandise, the employee directed her to go back to the register to confirm a receipt was issued, police spokeswoman Natalie Litofsky said. Complete article

Police: Man rode motorized bike in Pa. Walmart 09/28/2020

WILKES-BARRE TOWNSHIP — Police arrested a man on Sunday after he was allegedly riding a motorized bike inside of the Walmart Supercenter.

Absalom Major, 22, of Edwardsville will be charged with reckless endangerment, fleeing police, disorderly conduct and possession of a controlled substance at a later date after township officers responded to Walmart around 6 p.m. on Sunday evening.

Upon arrival, Major had already fled the store. Police were able to track him down near Chik-Fil-A, where he was subsequently taken into custody. Complete article

Black bear spotted outside Cherryville NC Walmart 09/28/2020

CHERRYVILLE, N.C. — There’s an entire website dedicated to documenting the strange and interesting things people are spotted wearing while they’re shopping at Walmart, but last weekend it was something spotted outside the store in Cherryville that is capturing a lot of attention.

Don Burkey and his wife were stunned when they went out for a late-night snack around 1:30 a.m. Sunday and spotted a black bear at Walmart. Complete article

2 purses stolen from elderly women at Walmart in Alice Tx.; Police asking the public for help in identifying the suspect. 09/25/2020

This Is the Only State Without a Walmart Supercenter: Hawaii 09/27/2020

An Ohio Walmart will turn into a drive-in movie theater this week 09/29/2020

Drano incident at Alabama Walmart hospitalizes woman 09/29/2020 FLORENCE — A woman was flown to Vanderbilt University Hospital this morning after liquid Drano got on her skin while she was at Walmart in Florence, authorities said.

Shooting in Walmart parking lot leads to police chase in Fayetteville NC 09/29/2020

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WNCN) – A shooting a Walmart parking lot in Fayetteville Tuesday afternoon lead to a police chase and the arrest of two suspects, police said.

The shooting occurred around 4:45 p.m. in the parking lot of the Walmart located at 2820 Gillespie Street.

A man was shot multiple times and responding officers administered life-saving measures until the victim could be transported to the hospital.

While officers were responding, the suspect’s vehicle was spotted leaving the area.

Officers attempted to stop the vehicle but the driver sped off – leading officers on a chase that ended near Chickenfoot Road and Interstate-95. Complete article

Man found shot multiple times in Fayetteville Walmart parking lot 09/30/2020

Victim of shooting in Fayetteville Walmart parking lot expected to recover 09/30/2020

RCSD: Man wanted in connection with armed (knife) robbery at Walmart on Killian Road 09/29/2020

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - The Richland County Sheriff’s Department is asking for community assistance to help identify a man wanted in connection with an armed robbery that occurred at the Walmart on Killian Road.

Around 5:20 p.m., on September 20, deputies were dispatched to the store after receiving reports of an armed robbery.

Upon arrival, an employee told deputies that a man walked out of the store with a car battery that he had not paid for.

When the employee tried to stop the man he pulled out a knife and said “I’ve got something for you.” Complete article

Tesla (TSLA) secures massive order of Tesla Semi electric trucks from Walmart 09/29/2020

Tesla (TSLA) has secured a massive order of 130 Tesla Semi electric trucks from Walmart Canada.

Back in 2017, shortly after the unveiling of the Tesla Semi, Walmart Canada ordered 15 electric trucks from the automaker.

They have been adding to that original order and now almost 3 years later and after the Tesla Semi program was delayed, Walmart has announced that it is expanding its Tesla Semi orders to 130 trucks: Complete article

Kansas woman wins verdict for injury caused by shopping cart at Walmart 09/30/2020 A Kansas jury has awarded $120,000 in damages to a woman who injured her finger while trying to remove a shopping cart from a Walmart vestibule in 2017.

Rome Man Jailed for Shoplifting, Shoves Ga. Walmart Employees 09/29/2020

Repeat shoplifter charged with felony burglary at Tenn. Walmart 09/28/2020

Wauseon woman faces drug, theft charges after allegedly stealing from Ohio Walmart 09/28/2020

Low-risk COVID exposure at Queensbury NY Walmart 09/29/2020

Walmart is redesigning its stores. This is what they’ll look like 09/30/2020

Answer Man: NC Walmart mask wearing not happening at E. Asheville store? 09/29/2020

Williams Woman Arrested After Stealing from Ind. Walmart 09/30/2020

Witness recounts Feb. fatal shooting outside Muncie Ind. Walmart 09/29/2020

Joe Biden’s Newest Billionaire Donors: A Governor, A Walmart Heir, Tyler Perry And More 09/29/2020

Shots fired into air during armed robbery attempt at Walmart in Fort Lauderdale Fla. 09/30/2020

FORT LAUDERDALE — The sound of gunshots startled shoppers at a Walmart in Fort Lauderdale on Wednesday night.

People who had been outside in the parking lot ran inside to take cover after shots were fired into the air during an armed robbery attempt at the Walmart in the 2500 block of West Broward Boulevard, police said.

The commotion started just outside the liquor store just before 7 p.m. That’s when a liquor store employee was walking out the door with a bag of money from the cash register, police said.

A man who was walking in at the same time tried to grab the money bag out of her hands. Two unarmed security guards who were walking out with the employee got into a scuffle with the would-be thief, according to police.

That’s when the robber’s getaway driver, who was waiting nearby in a silver sedan, shot his gun into the air to distract the security guards. The robber let go of the money bag, ran to the getaway car, and they sped off, police said. Complete article

Person found dead after RV fire in Morganton NC Walmart parking lot 09/30/2020

MORGANTON, N.C. — A person was found dead after an RV fire Tuesday night in the Walmart parking lot, our partners at The News Herald reported.

Police were called to the Walmart in the Morganton Heights Shopping Center, according to a release from the Morganton Department of Public Safety.

The RV was engulfed in flames when officers arrived on scene.

Crews put out the fire on the outside of the RV, then went inside to extinguish the rest of the blaze.

A person was found dead inside the RV, the release said. Their identity has not been released. Complete article

Neighbors, police thought Glen Burnie man was a federal agent. An Anne Arundel officer moonlighting at Md. Walmart sensed otherwise. 09/30/2020

Bree Jones had everyone fooled. A friend, neighbors, even the police thought he was a federal agent.

Charging documents authored by police show he duped a man into lending him a handgun, befriended cops and walked around his apartment complex in Glen Burnie dressed in law enforcement apparel.

Of course his name wasn’t Bree Jones, it’s Renul Barnet Forbes, according to court documents. And he wasn’t a U.S. marshal, but a convincing impostor.

It appears Forbes’ deceitful streak came to a conclusion Saturday at a Walmart in Glen Burnie, when an Anne Arundel officer moonlighting at the retail giant noticed a man carrying a handgun on his hip, who, when confronted, claimed to be a U.S. marshal. The off-duty cop detained him and awaited for backup to arrive and uncover the truth.

Forbes, of Americana Circle, has been charged with dozens of offenses related to impersonating a law enforcement officer and illegally possessing a handgun, court records show. More charges may be pending. Complete article

Man Arrested Following Alleged Assault on Manitoba, Canada Walmart Employee Over Face Mask 09/30/2020

A52-year-old man has been arrested after allegedly assaulting a Walmart employee over a dispute involving face masks in Manitoba, Canada.

The man refused to wear a mask inside the Selkirk store despite being urged by a staff member to wear one, the Royal Canadian Mountain Police (RCMP) told Newsweek.

Officers arrived at the store, 22 kilometers (13.7 miles) northeast of Winnipeg, around 3:45 p.m. on September 23 after receiving reports of an assault, RCMP said. Complete article

Tuesday is final day for public comment on new Ridgeville SC Walmart facility 09/29/2020

Lockport man charged with stealing magic cards from NY Walmart 09/29/2020

Three face charges of theft from Malone NY Walmart 09/30/2020

Man found guilty of murder in Ind. Walmart slaying 09/30/2020