The Full Belmonte, 5/9/2023
Texas shooter who killed 8 wore ‘RWDS’ patch linked to far-right extremists
By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER, MICHAEL KUNZELMAN and LINDSAY WHITEHURST
FILE - Supporters of President Donald Trump who are wearing attire associated with the Proud Boys attend a rally at Freedom Plaza, Dec. 12, 2020, in Washington. The supporter on the left is wearing a patch with red lettering that reads “RWDS,” which is short for “Right Wing Death Squad.” The gunman who killed eight people on Saturday, May 6, 2023, at a Dallas-area mall was wearing a “RWDS” patch as well. The phrase has been embraced in recent years by far-right extremists who glorify violence against their political enemies. (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez, File)
“The shooter who killed eight people at a Dallas-area mall was wearing a patch that read “RWDS” — short for “Right Wing Death Squad” — a phrase that has been embraced in recent years by far-right extremists who glorify violence against their political enemies.
Authorities have not said what they believe might have motivated 33-year-old Mauricio Garcia, who was killed by a police officer who happened to be near the mall Saturday when Garcia opened fire.
Social media accounts authorities believe were used by Mauricio Garcia also appear to have expressed interest in white supremacist and neo-Nazi views, according to an official who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because they could not discuss details of the investigation publicly. The official cautioned that the investigation is in the early stages….” Read more at AP News
‘Raise the age’ gun bill passes in Texas
Gov. Abbott believes new gun law is unconstitutional.
“A bill that would raise the minimum age to purchase AR-15 style semiautomatic rifles from 18 to 21 passed out of a Texas House committee advancing the measure hours before a key deadline.
The moves comes after months of advocacy by relatives of the 19 fourth graders and two teachers killed at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde on May 24, 2022.
•While Monday’s progress was a major, and unexpected, step forward , the future of the bill remains uncertain. Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan cautioned that he doesn’t believe it has the votes to pass the House and Gov. Greg Abbott has said he believes the measure to be unconstitutional.” [USA Today]
President Biden wants airlines to compensate passengers when flight plans change drastically due to causes within the carriers’ control.
“The administration plans later this year to propose the rule, which would require compensation in addition to refunds for cancellations and delays, similar to passenger-protection measures required in the EU. Airlines for America, an industry trade group, said airlines are working to improve reliability, but factors beyond their control, such as extreme weather and air-traffic control issues, have contributed to flight disruptions. Biden has gone head-to-head with the airline industry before—over showing customers upfront the total cost of ticket prices, including baggage and seat-change fees, and seat assignment fees, including those parents pay to sit with their children.” [Wall Street Journal]
Imran Khan: Ex-PM arrested outside court in Pakistan
Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has been arrested outside the High Court in the capital Islamabad.
“Mr Khan was appearing in court on charges of corruption, which he says are politically motivated.
Footage showed paramilitary forces in armoured personnel carriers detaining Mr Khan after he entered the court compound, before driving him away.
He was ousted as PM in April last year and has been campaigning for early elections since then.
General elections are due to be held later this year.
Image caption,
Imran Khan has been the main opposition leader since being ousted by his opponents in parliament a year ago
Dozen of cases have been brought against Mr Khan since he was ousted from power.
Last November he survived a gun attack on his convoy while holding a protest march.
On Monday, the military warned him against making ‘baseless allegations’ after he again accused a senior officer of plotting to kill him. [BBC]
“Wildfires raging across western Canada forced the evacuation of 30,000 residents and cut at least 234,000 barrels a day of oil and gas production as companies shut down wells and pipelines. The province of Alberta declared a state of emergency, and evacuation orders were issued as 100 fires blazed yesterday, with about a quarter classified as out of control in Canada’s main gas-producing region.” [Bloomberg]
Games get shorter
Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
“With the pitch clock cutting nearly 30 minutes off the average MLB game this season, the NFL is the only Big Four sports league with average regular-season games lasting over three hours, Axios' Kendall Baker and Jeff Tracy report.
Average game times:
NFL: 3:02
MLB: 2:38
NHL: 2:29
NBA: 2:16
What to watch: The NFL is inching closer to that sub-three-hour mark.
This past season's average game time (3:02) was the shortest since 1993 (3:00), thanks in part to more rushing attempts and better-scoring defenses — two trends that led to fewer clock stoppages.” [Axios]
Barbara Kingsolver, left, and Hernan Diaz.Mike Belleme for The New York Times; Marta Perez/EPA, via Shutterstock
The Pulitzer Prizes
“Two authors won the Pulitzer for fiction this year: Hernan Diaz for ‘Trust,’ the story of a financier’s fortune told from different perspectives; and Barbara Kingsolver for ‘Demon Copperhead,’ a reimagining of Charles Dickens’s ‘David Copperfield.’
The Pulitzer for drama went to Sanaz Toossi for ‘English,’ a play about four Iranians preparing for an English language exam. Two Washington Post reporters, Robert Samuels and Toluse Olorunnipa, won the nonfiction prize for ‘His Name Is George Floyd.’
The journalism prizes: The Associated Press and The Times won for their coverage of the war in Ukraine. AL.com, a local news site covering Alabama, won two awards. Here are the winners.” [New York Times]
“Lives Lived: The historian Ronald Steel infuriated presidents, secretaries of state and other national leaders with critiques of Cold War foreign policy. Steel died at 92.” [New York Times]