RIGHTING HIS WRONGS IS A MORAL IMPERATIVE
The Poet, Oil on Canvas, 24" x 36", Richard J Van Wagoner, Courtesy of Van Wagoner Family Trust**
This week a close friend asked whether I thought we are overreacting to Indivdiual-1. I understood his question to imply that Individual-1 may not be as great a threat as many people believe him to be. My knee-jerk response was a self-congratulatory, emphatic ‘nyet,’ considering I’ve been blogging since the inauguration about the destructive force he is, domestically and geopolitically, something he proves in dangerous, inane and embarrassing ways on a daily basis. I decided, however, to give my friend’s question and my response more thoughtful consideration. Upon further reflection, I had a momentary, albeit selfish, thought that I may be overacting to Individual-1, not because he is any less an existential threat to the United States, its allies and the future of the planet than many people believe. He is singularly that and worse. I briefly thought that I could escape the personal angst I experience from my ongoing investment in the chorus against him by doing something else and tuning him out. Others do it, and successfully. Then I came back to my senses. Virtually any reaction falls short. I cannot do something else. I am morally obliged. I should find ways to do more.
I have taken much for granted, including a mostly functioning government that has worked for me. I have a comfortable life. I am able to do what I choose. I make one dollar for every 70 cents women make in Utah for the same work. I have never been racially profiled, except in positive ways, again something I have taken for granted. I know where my children and grandchildren are. They are together, safe, comfortable, uncaged. They know where I am. We know how to reach and see each other. We often do. We all have health care.
I have had a growing, inexplicable sense of urgency and helplessness. I usually feel best at this time of year. My seasonal affective disorder is in remission and in the evenings and on weekends I can problem solve while bicycling in Utah’s dry summer heat and dirty air. Exhaustion, endorphins, dopamine. People even tell me I am slightly less intolerable. This year is different. I have been trying to understand the cause or purpose of the dark, low-hanging clouds. After one of those long bike rides, I concluded it must come from a sense of personal stuckness, a term I first began to understand and appreciate upon reading Robert Persig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. More on him later.
My stuckness derives from a perception that the assaults to undermine the traditional and institutional mechanisms for addressing the growing domestic and geopolitical problems, caused by those creating many of those problems, are succeeding. It’s the indiscriminate, overwhelming use of substitutes for thinking on public display which, unfortunately, is not the sole prerogative of the party of Individual-1 or its religious base. It’s the ominous realization that one-third of the citizens of this country overlook or even welcome dishonest, corrupt and otherwise reprehensible conduct precisely because they see it as attacks on intellectualism, on the critics of Individual-1 and on liberal democracy. It is recognizing that Individual-1 continues to have stunning success encouraging people to be their worst, most selfish, least empathic, morally irresponsible selves. It is the foreboding that comes with (at least the appearance of) congressional impotence at meaningful oversight, at holding Individual-1 accountable and at course correcting. It’s a growing sense of moral responsibility in the face of my own helplessness as the unprecedented history of Indivdiual-1 and his administration continues to unfold.
At that same friend’s suggestion, I (twice) listened to Sam Harris’s podcast Making Sense, #160, The Revenge of History, in which Harris interviewed Michael Weiss, a prolific investigative journalist who co-authored the 2015 book Isis, and Yascha Mounk, a writer, academic and speaker whose expertise includes understanding the rise of populism throughout the world which he discusses in his latest book, The People Versus Democracy. Despite Harris’s boredom with talking about Individual-1 and the meaninglessness of challenging Individual-1’s disciples (which Harris likens to the futility of arguing with religious fundamentalists over their beliefs), he engaged on the subject. I found the discussion powerful and cautiously hopeful. Government institutions remain in place and largely effective despite this political novice’s cumbersome efforts to dismantle them. We may disagree with the judiciary, but it remains a viable branch of government that exercises independence and oversight. Mueller completed his report despite what everyone knows were Individual-1’s serial efforts to obstruct the investigation into Russia’s interference which everyone knows he welcomed in the 2016 election.
One point the podcast made was that Individual-1 is too politically inexperienced and naïve, is motivated solely by a black hole of narcissism and, frankly, is not smart enough to pull off an authoritarian regime. It’s not usually the first person through the door. Mounk suggested we will not know for many years whether the stage is being set for a future, more politically adept and smarter executive to pull it off. One discouraging concern is that due to the widespread foreign breaches, United States’ elections may never be fully restored to sovereignty, because the traitorous and unpatriotic beneficiaries have no political or moral will to change the new status quo. By their very nature and not unlike political gerrymandering, the fix is in the interference and may take decades to undo.
I strongly commend the podcast to you. The dark, low-hanging clouds lifted a little.
After the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., when I was ten, I studied, and admired, the practice of civil disobedience. I read Parting the Waters: America in the King Years 1954–63 by Taylor Branch, a masterful account of the Civil Rights Movement. I will post on civil disobedience another day. As Dr. King wrote in his 1963 Letter from Birmingham Jail:
“We should never forget that everything Adolf Hitler did in Germany was ‘legal’ and everything the Hungarian freedom fighters did in Hungary was ‘illegal.’ It was ‘illegal’ to aid and comfort a Jew in Hitler’s Germany. Even so, I am sure that, had I lived in Germany at the time, I would have aided and comforted my Jewish brothers.”
In that spirit, we see people stepping forward, shouldering the burdens and consequences of rejecting and refusing to comply with immoral laws. The examples of others inspire me in working through my own stuckness. Last week the media reported a hopeful event that reminded me of Dr. King. I encourage everyone to read this Amicus [friend of the court] Brief recently submitted in a case in support of a District Court’s entry of an injunction prohibiting employees of the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) from being required to enforce the Migrant Protection Protocols (“MMP”). Local 1924 represents the interests of employees of the DHS in labor relations. Those employees are responsible to enforce the MMP. MMP requires individuals entering the US from Mexico illegally or without proper documentation to be returned to Mexico for the duration of their immigration proceeding.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/context/u-s-asylum-officers-slam-trump-s-remain-in-mexico-policy-in-federal-court-filing/0d6f520b-e035-47d4-a64c-0550d9233541/?utm_term=.6cea809a91b7
“Local 1924 has a special interest in this case because, as the collective bargaining unit of federal government employees who are at the forefront of interviewing and adjudicating the claims of individuals seeking asylum in the United States, Local 1924’s members have first-hand knowledge as to whether the MPP assures the United States’ compliance with international and domestic laws concerning due process for asylum seekers and the protection of refugees and whether the MPP is necessary to deal with the flow of migrants through our Nation’s Southern Border. . . .
“The MPP, promulgated by the Trump Administration in January 2019, fundamentally changed our Nation’s procedures for the processing of asylum applicants who enter the United States through our Nation’s Southern Border with Mexico. Prior to the MPP, our country’s processing of asylum applicants ensured that people fleeing persecution would not be — pending adjudication of their asylum application or anytime thereafter — returned to a territory where they may face persecution or threat of torture. That process was consistent with our country’s longstanding tradition of providing safe haven to the persecuted, and was also compelled by our international treaty obligations and domestic law implementing those obligations.
“The MPP upended that process in favor of a new one purportedly designed to address the challenges faced by our immigration system as a result of migrants from Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador (referred to as the ‘Northern Triangle’) entering the United States through our Southern Border. Under the new process, asylum applicants entering the United States through the Southern Border, with certain exceptions, are forced to return to Mexico where they are required to remain pending adjudication of their asylum applications. In the course of waiting for a determination of their asylum applications, many will face persecution because of their race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group. By forcing a vulnerable population to return to a hostile territory where they are likely to face persecution, the MPP abandons our tradition of providing a safe haven to the persecuted and violates our international and domestic legal obligations.
“Moreover, the MPP is entirely unnecessary, as our immigration system has the foundation and agility necessary to deal with the flow of migrants through our Southern Border. The system has been tested time and again, and it is fully capable — with additional resources where appropriate — of efficiently processing asylum claims by those with valid claims while removing those that are not entitled to protection after they undergo the process designed to ensure that they will not be returned to a place where they will be persecuted. The MPP, contrary to the Administration’s claim, does nothing to streamline the process, but instead increases the burdens on our immigration courts and makes the system more inefficient. Accordingly, for the reasons set forth herein and in the Plaintiffs-Appellees’ submission, amicus curiae urge the Court to affirm the district court’s award of a preliminary injunction enjoining Defendants from administering the MPP.”
Robert Persig, who literally lost his mind in an obsessive quest for Quality, used motorcycles and their maintenance as Zen metaphor for meaningful endeavors. Persig explained that stuckness invites creative, innovative solutions so long as we open our minds, withdraw our egos and are willing to accept them:
“Stuckness shouldn’t be avoided. It’s the psychic predecessor of all real understanding. An egoless acceptance of stuckness is a key to an understanding of all Quality, in mechanical work as in other endeavors. It’s this understanding of Quality as revealed by stuckness which so often makes self-taught mechanics so superior to institute-trained men who have learned how to handle everything except a new situation.
“So the thing to do when working on a motorcycle, as in any other task, is to cultivate the peace of mind which does not separate one’s self from one’s surroundings. When that is done successfully then everything else follows naturally. Peace of mind produces right values, right values produce right thoughts. Right thoughts produce right actions and right actions produce work which will be a material reflection for others to see of the serenity at the center of it all. . . .
“If you have a high evaluation of yourself then your ability to recognize new facts is weakened. Your ego isolates you from the Quality reality. When the facts show that you’ve just goofed, you’re not as likely to admit it. When false information makes you look good, you’re likely to believe it.”
*My brother the very talented fiction writer and novelist, Robert Hodgson Van Wagoner, deserves considerable credit for offering both substantive and technical suggestions to https://medium.com/@richardvanwagoner and https://lastamendment.com
**Richard’s list of honors, awards and professional associations is extensive. He was Professor Emeritus (Painting and Drawing), Weber State University, having served three Appointments as Chair of the Department of Visual Arts there. He guest-lectured and instructed at many universities and juried numerous shows and exhibitions. He was invited to submit his work as part of many shows and exhibitions, and his work was exhibited in a number of traveling shows domestically and internationally. My daughter Angela Moore, a professional photographer, photographed more than 500 pieces of my father’s work. On behalf of the Van Wagoner Family Trust, she is in the process of compiling a collection of his art work. The photographs of my father’s art reproduced in https://medium.com/@richardvanwagoner and https://lastamendment.com are hers
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Home » Blog » The Bootmaker’s Wife: Historical Fiction
Post category:Author Interviews
The Bootmaker’s Wife, historical fiction based on the author’s family history.
Don’t miss any author interviews, click the link here.
The Bootmaker’s Wife
The harsh and rugged Sand Hills of Nebraska in 1875 wasn’t the environment most young ladies brought up in a Victorian home in Illinois aspired to. But when Elizabeth Schultz receives a marriage proposal from Charles Horn, a bootmaker twenty years her senior, she readily accepts. A year later, she’s walking behind a covered wagon along the Oregon Trail as she makes her way to Nebraska to meet her fiancé and start a new life filled with, what she hopes will be, adventure and an opportunity to be her own person.
Elizabeth soon discovers, however, that life on the trail and in a sod house on the prairie is far more difficult than she imagined. Can she cope with the extreme weather, isolation, food insecurity, health challenges, and her husband’s dark side? Will her physical and emotional strength be enough to sustain her or will she give up and return to the comfortable life to which she’s accustomed?
Not only does Mershon Niesner give the reader the opportunity to spend fourteen months in the boots of a woman who has barely left girlhood behind, she immerses them in a startling vivid world where the heroine discovers the importance of caring about the environment, those who came before her, and friendship in a time and place where rugged individualism is revered.
The Bootmaker’s Wife is historical fiction based on the life of the author’s great grandparents.
To purchase The Bootmaker’s Wife, click the following link: Amazon
The Bootmaker’s Wife — The Interview
The Bootmaker’s Wife is set in various locations, but primarily the Sand Hills of Nebraska in 1875. What drew you to that geography for your debut novel?
I grew up as a “free-range” kid in Nebraska and many of the details I wrote about such as mushroom hunting, target shooting, using an outhouse, cooking over an open fire, walking to school in a blinding blizzard, were part of my experience. My home town of Grand Island is where the main characters, Elizabeth and Charles Horn, were married.
I lived my pre-retirement life in the Chicago area and have (sort of) retired to Florida but I still consider myself a Nebraska Girl and wanted readers to have the opportunity to get off of Interstate 80 and “see” the real Nebraska.
Mostly, I wanted to relive and share stories my dad told of his grandparents forging a life in a sod house in the Sand Hills. His grandfather was a boot maker for soldiers at Fort Hartsuff and had a shop in the nearby town of Calamus. The Jesse James true story was one of my favorites.
How did you go about researching the era and the places for The Bootmaker’s Wife?
The original manuscript for The Bootmaker’s Wife was written during Covid isolation so I was unable to visit the location in person. The following summer, however, I traveled West and stayed at a farm house, a cattle ranch, stepped inside an authentic sod house, and toured Fort Hartsuff, a restored fort in the region of their house. I took the book cover photo near where they actually lived in 1875 and ’76.
James Domeier, Superintendent of Fort Hartsuff State Historical Park, provided me with historical records as well as an extensive tour of the grounds and buildings of the restored fort. He also suggested I read The Trail of the Loup, a documentary written by H.W. Foght and originally published in 1906. Many of the true stories in the book were told to Foght first-hand. It was a wonderful resource for scenes like the grasshoppers and the disappearance of the two children (both true stories).
I also received information from my great aunt, Audrey Linderkamp, who, after the death of her parents, was raised by Charles and Elizabeth. She sent me their photo and old newspaper clippings.
Tell us about Elizabeth Schultz:
Much of what I wrote about Elizabeth is fictional. Her birthdate, wedding date and other facts are historically accurate but her personality and the kind of person she was came from my imagination. Elizabeth is just one of the brave and hardy women I portray in the book.
As a social worker and Certified Life Coach, I have spent much of my life championing women and encouraging them to be strong. Portraying women in The Bootmaker’s Wife was another opportunity to send a similar message and revere the women who cleared the way for us today.
Elizabeth was not quite fifteen when she married Charles who was twenty years her senior. It might seem unrealistic to many readers that a girl that young could run a household, especially in the difficult times of 1875. I was a motherless, only child at eight so, by age fifteen I had many of the homemaking skills Elizabeth displayed—without the challenges of 1875, of course. So, to me, her life seemed plausible plus her age is historically accurate.
You are also the author of Mom’s Gone, Now What? Ten Steps to Help Daughters Move Forward After Mother Loss. Tell us about that project:
Click the cover to purchase
As I mentioned above, my mother died when I was eight and her mother died when she was three. I was raised by my dad. My life has been, mostly, joy-filled and productive. I wanted to tell my story to help other daughters of loss move forward. I also interviewed over fifty motherless daughters. Their stories, along with my own experience, helped me shape the ten steps I wrote about.
I didn’t choose the subject, I believe it chose me. It was another way to honor extraordinary women.
What can we find you doing when you aren’t writing?
Although we don’t see them often, my husband and I have a combined family of six children, 19 grandchildren, and 11 great-grands. Just tracking birthdays and anniversaries keeps me busy. In the summer months and at Christmas, we return to Illinois where we see most of our family.
As an author I read a lot but I also love to entertain. I’m in a cooking club and have attended cooking schools in Italy, France, and Spain. I belong to the Marco Island Writers and a writers’ critique group, an international organization that supports scholarships for women, a weekly group called Girl Talk God Talk, Marco Island Women Democrats, and I’m active in my church. I write a column titled Ask the Life Coach for my local newspaper. At 77, it’s especially important for me to stay fit so I work out three days a week.
I’m writing a sequel to The Bookmaker’s Wife with a working title of THE BEE LADY. Angie is a mysterious and interesting character in my first novel so I decided to back-track and tell her story from the time she was ten and became separated from her family as their wagon train crossed Nebraska.
Final words of wisdom for aspiring writers:
Just do it! Although I’d had experience writing business materials (adoptive case studies, newsletters, brochures, video scripts), I published my first book on my 75th birthday; my second at 77-1/2. It’s never too late, you’re never too old, too young, or too inexperienced.
Find yourself a good editor! I would never put a book out for the public to read without Elena’s amazing editing. Seriously! (Awwww, shucks … it was my pleasure to work with your wonderful manuscript!)
Although I’ve had pets most of my life, I personally no longer have one. However, my daughter, Katie, fosters rabbits.
Bunnies don’t do well in shelters due to barking dogs, etc. so she keeps them (one or two at a time) in her home, turns them into cuddly family pets, then helps them find forever homes.
Her husband and three kids have allergies so they can’t have dogs or cats but bunnies work for them.
If Katie had her way, she’d live like Elena, with animals all around.
Mershon Niesner — Author of The Bootmaker’s Wife
Mershon Niesner has a background as a Certified Life Coach, child welfare social worker, marketing/communications entrepreneur, freelance writer, and author. Between them, Mershon and her husband have six children, nineteen grandchildren, and eleven great-grands.
In her first book, Mom’s Gone, Now What? Ten Steps to Help Daughters Move Forward After Mother Loss, Mershon writes about losing her mother at eight-years-old. In addition to her own experience, Mershon interviewed over fifty motherless daughters and uses their stories to illustrate the ten steps. Her mission is to help other women who have experienced loss move forward in a healthy way.
Growing up in Nebraska cemented the author’s love of the a 360 degree view of the horizon, the constant wind, the majestic sunsets, and the rolling hills of the northern prairie. Later, as a Florida transplant, she wanted to relive and share stories her father told of his grandparents forging a life in a sod house in the Sand Hills of Nebraska in 1875 so she wrote The Bootmaker’s Wife, a historical fiction incorporating some aspects of her great grandparent’s life.
To learn more about Mershon, click on any of the following links: Website, Blog, Twitter & Instagram
Header image by Falkenpost on Pixabay.
Tags: 1800s, Author Interview, historical fiction, Homesteading, Mershon Niesner, Nebraska, The Bootmaker's Wife, US History
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Wax Museum – Seek And Find
Wax Museum – Seek And Find is an Adventure, Casual, Family-Friendly, Fantasy, Hidden Objects, and Single-Player game developed and published by Crisp App Studio. Experience a brand-new mysterious tale filled with mysteries and puzzles. Unable to leave your automobile due to the weather, you’re driven inside an abandoned wax museum. However, you are unable to depart due to an unknown force.
The exhibitions’ beauty and uniqueness aren’t diminished by wear and tear or vandalism, but where did the torches and other indications of life originate from. In order to battle an ancient evil, you must uncover the Wax Museum’s deadly secret. The abandoned Wax Museum’s displays are stunning and fascinating. The mystery and intrigue in this supernatural detective narrative are sure to keep you guessing until the end. It is the newest installment in the series of hidden object games. Explore the Museum’s fascinating history through discovering its many papers. Collect unique items and revisit previous settings to take on new challenges and earn new prizes. The game has many amazing and significant features for players, such as Unusual Locations, Competitive Streak, and many more.
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#12 Soulslayer
Soulslayer is an Adventure, Casual, Detective, Female Protagonist, Visual Novel, and Single-Player game developed by 开水工作室 and published by NVLMaker. Yao Xiu, the daughter of a wealthy family, is an average young woman. Despite this, she continues to live in a family where she is unable to fit in. Her only option is to get married and create a family, which is the only thing that will save her.
Now, as her wedding day draws near, she meets an untimely demise. Right after her ‘death,’ Yao Xiu’s eyes reopen. A time loop traps her in the same day, causing her to live and die in the same way over and over. Three opportunities are given to her to rescue herself. The game and her life are over if she loses three turns. The game has many significant and fundamental features for players, such as Multiple Endings, Full Chinese Voice Cast, Achievements, and many more.
#13 Arkham Horror: Mother’s Embrace
Arkham Horror: Mother’s Embrace is an Adventure, Detective, Horror, and Single-player video game developed and published by Asmodee Digital. It is set in the haunted worlds letting the player adopt the role of an investigator who is forced to solve the murder mystery. A famous professor of astronomy has died, and the clues show that it is a planned murder. It all depends on the player’s sharp skills and suspicious mythologies to bring the murderer to light.
More than ten intrepid investigators, each with a unique set of skills, are there, requiring the chief detective to assemble a team of masters and solve the mysterious death. Show professionalism, find clues, explore things, examine each situation deeply, perform interrogations, and complete nine chapters to unfold the entire storyline. While investigating the main case, the player may come to visit shadowed institutions and mysterious locales.


Pope names new Swiss Guard commandant
Pope Benedict XVI has chosen a Swiss police commander to lead the Vatican's elite Swiss Guards, the Swiss Bishops Conference has announced.
This content was published on August 19, 2008 - 14:53 August 19, 2008 - 14:53
Daniel Anrig, who has a law degree, is currently head of police in canton Glarus in central Switzerland. He will take over from Commandant Elmar Mäder in December.
The Swiss Guards with their colourful antiquated uniforms have been serving pontiffs for more than 500 years. The 1998 killing of a guard commander and his wife in a Vatican City apartment tarnished the guards' image for a time.
The male guards number about 110 and must be Swiss Catholics. They stand guard at papal ceremonies as well as help to protect the pope. Vatican and Italian police also protect the pontiff.
The 36-year-old new commandant is married to a theologian and has four children. He earlier headed Glarus' criminal police force, and served as a Swiss Guard in the early 1990s.
Debate has been revived in recent years over whether the pontiff needs more protection during public appearances. Last year, a German man jumped a security barrier in St Peter's Square at a crowded general audience with the pope.
Pope thanks Swiss Guards for long service
This content was published on May 6, 2006 May 6, 2006 Pope Benedict XVI has thanked the Swiss Papal Guards for 500 years of service as papal protectors at a special mass in St Peter's Basilica in Rome...


Dissecting Two Damning Critiques of Medicine
I don't do a ton of op ed reading, but two pieces caught my eye in a span of a few days at the New York Times. Both are fairly savage critiques of medicine. Both should be taken very seriously, especially by those of us in the White Coat Tribe. But only one of them makes a compelling case.
One piece is called "When Doctors Discriminate" and is a meditation on the kinds of harm that non-psychiatrist MDs can inflict on patients with psychiatric conditions--in the author's case, a diagnosis of bipolar disorder. "You better get yourself together psychologically, or your stomach is never going to get better", the writer quotes a gastroenterologist as saying. This apparently was intended as a helpful piece of advice, and the article goes on to list the myriad ways in which physicians can negatively impact the health of these patients.
The second piece, called "Crazy Pills", notes the recent change in FDA policy toward the anti-malarial medication mefloquine, as it now includes a "black box warning" for the drug. The warning stems from mefloquine's neurologic and psychiatric side effects, which can persist well beyond the time period when it is taken (the drug is used to prevent malaria infection when people travel to areas with malaria). The author reports having had ongoing bouts of depression, panic attacks, and insomnia since his encounter with mefloquine as part of a stint in India for his Fulbright fellowship. The essay does not make for pretty reading, documenting murders and suicides, and lays them at the doorstep of the medication.
I heed the warnings explicit in both of these articles. Doctors should always be conscious about their biases, constantly on guard against anchoring their judgments based on one piece of data--in this case, a diagnosis of mental illness. Likewise, it's important for people to be aware of the potentially serious side effects of mefloquine, or any other medication for that matter. Nearly all doctors in Infectious Disease were keenly aware of mefloquine's psychiatric side effects even before the black box warning was issued. Nevertheless, making patients aware of the possible serious reactions to a medication, especially when a new warning is attached to it, is an important public service announcement.
But that being said, there is an enormous amount of innuendo and logical leaping in "Crazy Pills", while "When Doctors Discriminate" constructs its argument with a good deal more care. The author of "Crazy Pills" alleges that the drug was responsible for an Ohio man putting a shotgun to his head in 1999 after returning from a safari in Zimbabwe, as well as for the killing of a Somali prisoner by a Canadian soldier who took the drug. He also hints that Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, who went on a killing rampage in Afghanistan in 2012, was under mefloquine's influence. In the first example, we have no link to know any details beyond what is supplied to us by the author, and therefore no way to know anything else about this man. In the latter two examples, there appears to be no alternative hypotheses entertained for these most unfortunate horrors, but surely the fact that these men were under the duress of war might have played just as much a role, or indeed a more powerful one, than an antimalarial.
By contrast, "When Doctors Discriminate" relies not on a few carefully selected anecdotes that can't be considered in context, or even verified, but by noting broad research as reported by major public health organizations. It is a model of a well-constructed argument in the internet age, built not on hearsay, but on evidence, available for all readers to see should they choose to do so.
Lest I be misunderstood as being dismissive of mefloquine's side effects, I think that the inclusion of the black box warning was important for physicians and patients alike. But living in a malaria-endemic region with no prophylaxis is a very, very risky business: malaria kills. There are other drugs that protect against malaria--during my travels to Africa I took the drug Malarone without any problems at all, and it's a very well tolerated drug. But Malarone is expensive, and not all insurance companies will cover it. Should someone just avoid taking mefloquine if they can't have Malarone and take their chances?
That will very much depend on the numerical risks involved. The data presented in the op ed suggest that there's about a 6 percent chance of mefloquine causing a severe reaction for which it needs to be stopped. (The author ominously notes that "67 percent of people who took the drug experienced one or more adverse effects", which is, unintentionally or not, a scare tactic: "adverse effects" can include reactions as trivial as an upset stomach or a touch of insomnia.) Whether this number seems minor compared to the risk of full blown malaria is a proposition that patients and doctors must decide in a discussion, but I'm very concerned by the idea that everyone who needs malaria protection should just stop taking mefloquine if that's their drug. If his advice is heeded, we could soon be seeing NYT op eds about loved ones who went on safari and came home in a casket because they avoided protecting themselves against the great scourge of the tropics.
Labels: bipolar disorder, medication side effects, mefloquine, NY Times, psychiatry, tropical medicine


Home » Business » Biden picks strong Bitcoin critic Saule Omarova to head OCC
Biden picks strong Bitcoin critic Saule Omarova to head OCC
Business 25 September 2021
U.S. President Joe Biden has finally revealed his pick to run the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). Biden nominated Saule Omarova on Thursday, a former policy advisor to the Treasury Department, whose strong criticism for big banks and digital currencies is already causing panic among some of Wall Street’s biggest names.
Aside from working with the Treasury during President George W. Bush’s administration, Omarova has served as a banking lawyer at Davis Polk & Wardwell and an associate professor of law at the University of North Carolina. She currently serves as a professor at Cornell University Law School.
While formally announcing Omarova’s nomination, the White House described her as “one of the country’s leading academic experts on issues related to regulation of systemic risk and structural trends in financial markets.”
If she is confirmed by the Senate, Omarova, who was born and raised in Kazakhstan, will become the first woman and non-white to head the OCC.
“I am deeply honored to be nominated for this role in President Biden’s administration. If confirmed, I will work hard to make sure that our banks remain stable, strong and serve the needs of the American people,” she stated in a statement sent to the New York Times.
Omarova’s nomination is expected to trigger a contentious Senate fight over her confirmation. As she is expected to receive support from the left, with Senate Banking Committee chairman Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, urging his committee to confirm her.
“She will work to ensure the economy works for everyone, and to protect our economic recovery from the risky activities of Wall Street and other bad actors,” Brown stated.
However, the right is not as enthused with Omarova. Senator Pat Toomey, the most senior Republican in the committee, described her as having “extreme leftist ideas.”
The banking fraternity is also expected to lobby strongly against her. Omarova has long expressed her disdain for the power that big banks have. Earlier this year, she told Politico, “…large financial institutions hold so much power now and they move so much money through their own channels that it is effectively impossible through just rules and some enforcement to really shape what it is they’re doing.”
The digital currency industry could be in for a rough ride if Omarova takes over the OCC, an office that polices all top banks in the United States. While the previous office holder Brian Brooks was quite pro-Crypto, his predecessor could bring some very restrictive regulations.
Brooks went on to lead Binance.US, but only for a few months. He resigned, citing “differences over strategic direction,” after just three months at the helm. Reports however revealed that he stepped down after he found that Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao was unwilling to let him put in place measures that would have made the U.S. subsidiary compliant with the rule of law.
Watch: U.S. Congressman Patrick McHenry on Blockchain Policy Matters with Bitcoin Association’s Jimmy Nguyen
https://youtu.be/aRldRdk50JQ
Video can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Blockchain Policy Matters: U.S. Congressman Patrick McHenry (R-NC 10) | Episode 1 (https://youtu.be/aRldRdk50JQ)
Brian Brooks
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
Saule Omarova


CHATHAM - ON CAMPUS is a regular feature of The State Journal-Register to update the collegiate accomplishments of former Glenwood High School athletes.
NEAL ANDERSON, a member of the Southern Illinois-Carbondale men’s cross country team, placed 20th ( 24: 30: 16 for 8 kilometers) at the Louisville Classic.
RYAN ANDERSON, a freshman member of the Southeast Missouri State men’s cross country team, had a time of 27:27.08 for 8 kilometers at the Louisville Classic.
JOSH ATWOOD had six solo tackles and one assisted tackle in addition to breaking up one pass and being credited with one quarterback hurry in McKendree’s 25-10 football loss to Truman State.
BRITTANY COFFIN-BARGAR, a senior forward on the Louisiana Tech women’s soccer team, recorded an assist in a 4-0 win against Prairie View A&M University in Texas.
CARTER COX, a linebacker on the Illinois College football team, had eight tackles — including five solos and one tackle for loss) in the Blueboys’ 54- 44 victory over Lawrence.
BRIAN DIXON, a sophomore member of the Southern Illinois-Carbondale men’s cross country team, placed 42nd (24:54:10 for 8 kilometers) at the Louisville Classic.


Concealed weapons opponent pushes bill before Senate committee
Links: SB 629
JEFFERSON CITY - A staunch opponent of concealed weapons pushed his bill to a Senate committee Wednesday to allow residents to carry concealed weapons.
Sen. Ken Jacob, D-Columbia, told the Senate Crime Committee that he's still opposed to allowing people to carry concealed weapons. But, Jacob said, the law is likely to pass and he wants to make sure certain precautions are included in the legislation.
"I think we are evenly divided in the state of Missouri. There are those that feel they have a constitutional right to carry a weapon and those who are afraid of them," Jacob said.
Jacob took legislation defeated by a vote of the people in 1999 as Proposition B and amended it. The bill would give control of permit licensing to the State Highway Patrol, instead of the local sheriff's office.
"The Highway Patrol could set up a procedure and say who, when and how people get permits," Jacob said.
The bill would require that gun owners stipulate to four conditions when applying for the permit. The owner must sign an affidavit affirming there is a safety device on the gun and it can only be transported in the glove compartment or trunk of a vehicle.
The concealed weapon could not be carried into a sporting event or any place where alcohol is served. If a gun is found in the possession of a child under the age of 12 or a person previously convicted of a crime, the gun-owner would face a felony charge.
"I've heard from law abiding citizens saying "trust us" ad nauseum lately. But we've had five school shootings in the last week and all of those weapons were owned by law abiding citizens," said Jacob.
While sponsoring a concealed weapons bill, Jacob spent part of his testimoney citing problems with the idea.
And the idea faced opposition outright opposition from other witnesses.
"I've handled dozens of murders, rapes, robberies, assaults over the past several years. In most of these cases, actually in all of these cases, the victim was ambushed," said Jeanette Graviss, a chief warrant officer with the St. Louis City Police Department.
She continued, "So if this bill is designed so that people that carry weapons can protect themselves, it's not going to work. Experience tells me its not going to work."
The bill still faces debate in the committee before heading to a vote.


Lyric Video: Calvin Richardson – Can’t Let Go
Jan 17, 2018 | New Videos
The Prince of Soul Calvin Richardson has just released the lyric video for his latest single “Can’t Let Go”. The song was included on his recently released album “All or Nothing” which released September 2017 via Shanachie Entertainment.
The project is led by the single “Treat Her Right” which is a traditional soul ballad that he released a few months back. He also released a remix to the song featuring the legendary K-Ci Hailey.
“All Or Nothing” is at heart a classic soul album featuring all originals. The singer adds: “This album touches on everything – soul, R&B and pop. It has something for everyone – love, laughter, sex, dance and romance. Best one yet!”
The new album is the follow up to 2014’s “I Am Calvin” which he released via Eric Benet’s Jordan House record label.
YouKnowIGotSoul + Radio 103.9 Present Calvin Richardson's "I Am Calvin" The Revealing
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Wilson High School music department students.
Foreigner to donate $1,000 to Wilson High School
Sat, Aug 14th 2010 04:05 pm
Foreigner has teamed up with VH1's Save the Music Foundation to support the continuation of arts programs in schools across the U.S. When the band performs as part of Artpark's "Tuesday in the Park" concert series on Aug. 17, $1,000 will be donated to Wilson High School.
"The reality is that, because of the way the economy is ... there were a lot of budget cuts going on, and the first thing that gets cut is the arts," Foreigner frontman Kelly Hansen said. "The odd thing that I see in that is that the arts is what makes people well-rounded and makes them complete human beings."
Hansen said students who only study math or science or the traditional meat-and-potatoes courses are missing out.
"You need a balance of all those things (including the arts), and to take away a big chunk of balance is devastating - and I see it happening all the time, as everybody in the band does," he said.
Foreigner is working with Save the Music to call attention to what band members consider a worthwhile cause.
"Since we're in the music part of the arts, we felt that this was something that we could do to try to raise awareness and also to contribute to the bands that are coming on stage and help their music departments at a time where they're getting less and less money and less and less ability to pursue what's so important in all these kids' lives," Hansen said.
"We just decided we needed to do something, and this is what we could do," he added.
Wilson music department students will join Foreigner on stage for a performance of "I Want to Know What Love Is."
These young musicians are under the direction of Claudia Andres.
New album in hand, Foreigner 'Can't Slow Down'
Artpark On Stage School


You are here: Home / The Backpack / Winter 2011 Backpack / School Committee Vote Draws Outrage, Grief
School Committee Vote Draws Outrage, Grief
By Jacqueline King and Ann O’Halloran
Hundreds of parents, teachers and students protested school closures at the Dec. 15 Boston School Committee meeting. (Photo by Ann O'Halloran)
Ignoring the passionate pleas and hard evidence presented by hundreds of students, parents and teachers this fall that their schools should remain open, the mayor-appointed School Committee voted unanimously on Dec. 15 to close, merge or allow charter takeovers of 20 Boston schools.
The crowd of hundreds repeatedly interrupted the meeting with chants of “Shame on you!” and “No vote to close schools!” but the members pressed on toward their approval of School Superintendent Carol Johnson’s so-called “Redesign and Reinvestment Proposal.” Many saw the hours-long meeting as a political show conducted by the school board with a foregone conclusion; calls for a return to an elected School Committee, whose members could be held accountable, were met with wild applause. Some people wept as they left the auditorium of English High School; others expressed outrage.
“The School Committee did not listen to the pleas, cries, outbursts, and suggestions by parents, teachers, supporters, and students,” Bryan Moore, a student at Excel High School, said the day after the vote. “The words of the community seem to have gone in one ear and out the other. What has happened to the once great school system I have come to know and appreciate?”
Johnson and Mayor Menino claim the closings and mergers are necessary to close a $63 million school budget gap. Yet they and the school board members repeatedly fail to connect the budget shortfall to the fact that Boston will lose an estimated $64 million to privately run charter schools this year, minus some short-term reimbursements. Meanwhile, 16 additional charter schools â€“ some with little or no track record â€“ are waiting in the wings, ready to take over shuttered public school buildings and drain more students and funds from the public schools.
Nor, apparently, has the mayor sought funds from other sources in the city budget or the private sector. When he met with the Chamber of Commerce the day before the vote, one might have thought the mayor would ask these wealthy businesses to step up to the plate and help out the schools. Instead, Menino was there to assure them that the budget crisis would be solved by closings and cutbacks. Yet private developers and corporations receive large tax breaks every year in Boston, such as the $50 million in city and state “blight” tax breaks Liberty Mutual was awarded earlier this year for its proposed tower in the prosperous Back Bay.
City Councilor Charles Yancey, one of the few elected officials to speak Wednesday night, told the committee, “We are going in the wrong direction!…We must stop balancing the budget on the backs of the schoolchildren! I urge you to vote no on the proposal â€“ this is not a reinvestment, it’s a disinvestment!” (See Yancey’s press release calling for a reversal of the vote here.)
Jireh Wilfred, 17, said the school closings will harm children's lives, adding, "The struggle continues!"
Many who spoke in the hours of public testimony described the harmful impact the school closings could have on children’s lives and the surrounding communities.Â Jireh Wilfred, 17, whose sister teaches at the Emerson School, said, “You are destroying relationships! Can you live with the fact that you are destroying the futures of men- and women-to-be? They might go off, and sell drugs or join gangs or die! Even if this vote passes, we are not going away. The struggle continues!”
The closings and mergers will have a sharply unequal impact, falling most heavily on students of color, English language learners, students with special needs, and low-income areas of the city.
These disruptions are only the beginning of what’s in store for Boston. The School Department has announced that it intends to drastically change the student assignment plan to include more zones, in order to cut bus routes and transportation costs. It also intends to demand significant concessions from teachers concerning health insurance, length of school day, and other measures. Sam Tyler, of the business-backed Boston Municipal Research Bureau, has said that more public schools will have to be closed in the next year or two.
Citizens for Public Schools stands with the students, parents, and teachers of Boston in opposing these school closings, mergers, cutbacks and contract concessions. The fight for the Boston Public Schools will continue in many forms in the months and years to come. Similar conflicts are occurring throughout the country, in suburban and rural, as well as inner-city systems.
In Massachusetts, we need a coordinated effort to change public school policy at the state level, since that is where policy is currently being determined. Legislation passed last Januaryâ€”the so-called Act Relative to the Achievement Gapâ€”removed the cap on the number of charter schools in “underperforming districts” and reinforced the evaluation of schools according to MCAS scores. We need legislative reform to make progressive changes in funding for schools, reinstate the cap on charter schools, and reform the use of MCAS so that a single paper-and-pencil test is not used to justify the closing of schools. Ultimately, as Diane Ravitch said in her recent Boston appearance: This is a battle about the very existence of public schools.
Jacqueline King is a CPS Board Member and Co-Editor of The Backpack. Ann O’Halloran is a CPS Board Member and 2007 Massachusetts History Teacher of the Year.
More on the Fight for Boston Public Schools
City Councilor Charles Yancey’s press release calling for a reversal of the Boston School Committee vote.
Click here for a list of all schools to be affected, the demographics of those schools, and click here for previous CPS coverage.
Go to statements from parents, teachers and students at Boston School Committee meetings here.
For a cogent analysis of the charter school agenda in Boston, read a post by “Jamaicaplainiac” titled The Real Charter School Agenda in Boston.
Go to coverage of Boston in the Backpack newsletter, here.
Gallery of photos from Boston meetings, here.
Jim Horn of the Schools Matter blog has written a powerful report on the Dec. 15, 2010 Boston School Committee meeting. He writes, “The children in the audience last night also saw the promise of a democracy renewed in the strong, eloquent voices of their friends, teachers, parents, bus drivers, school helpers, and community activists, who are now galvanized by the decision of the Mayor, the Chamber of Commerce, and the corporate foundations to turn their backs on so many amazing school programs and committed teachers and energized parents.” Read the full piece here.
Read a “Manifesto” co-authored by Joel Klein, Michelle Rhee and other “education leaders” and signed by Boston Superintendent Carol Johnson. The Manifesto says the way to fix schools is to, for example, “eliminate arcane rules such as ‘seat time,’ which requires a student to spend a specific amount of time in a classroom with a teacher rather than taking advantage of online lessons and other programs.” (Shortly after signing this manifesto, Joel Klein left his job as chancellor of New York City schools to work for an online education company owned by Rupert Murdoch.)
Read a flyer from the Boston Teachers Union charging city leaders with meeting secretly on what to do with “surplus” school buildings slated for closing,Â here.[To return to The Backpack, close browser page.]


What Is America’s Fascination With The O.J. Simpson Trial?
Does America's fascination with O.J. revolve around his ability to afford lawyers the "average rich White man could"?
A new ESPN docuseries is shining a light on the O.J. Simpson trial and what it meant for race relations in the United Sates.
The Simpson trial and subsequent verdict was a shot heard around the world, stirring up tensions in America. Still to this day, his name sparks heated debates in classrooms, at dinner tables, and in barber shops.
Little did America know, the trial of O.J. Simpson was about more than just a verdict. ESPN’s latest 30 for 30 documentary examines the controversial O.J. Simpson case in a way that sheds a harsh light on race relations in the U.S.
During Wednesday’s edition of NewsOne Now, Roland Martin and his panel of guests discussed ESPN’s five-part series and why O.J. Simpson is the poster child for race in America.
Jon-Christopher Bua, White House Correspondent and Political Analyst, explained why he believes this nation is so fixated on Simpson: “Three years after Rodney King was brutalized — we all saw it — the guys who did it to him were let go. They had to go to another regent to even do the trial.”
Bua continued, “Three years later, an African-American handsome star comes out and is able to afford the kind of attorneys, the kind of support that an average rich White man could do and he turned the tables.”
NewsOne Now panelist Lauren Victoria Burke took on the analysis of America’s fascination with O.J. when she said, “This is the first in American history to get away with killing two White people and walk away — it has never happened before.”
She added the fixation with Simpson revolves around “How the hell did he get away with that double homicide?” and the fact “he could afford the legal representation another defendant couldn’t afford.”
Burke believes America’s unhealthy obsession with O.J. is “more about money than it was about race.”
Watch Roland Martin, Lauren Victoria Burke, Jon-Christopher Bua, and the rest of the NewsOne Now panel discuss ESPN’s new series and America’s fascination with O.J. Simpson in the video clip above.
Watch NewsOne Now with Roland Martin, in its new time slot on TV One.
What Is America’s Fascination With The O.J. Simpson Trial? was originally published on newsone.com
30 for 30 espn Joh-Christopher Bua Lauren Victoria Burke O. J. Simpson O.J.: Made in America Roland Martin


American meteorologist
Liam Dutton Bio, Age, Height, Wife, Kids, Net Worth, Channel 4
Liam Dutton Biography
Liam Dutton is an American Weatherman, Broadcaster, Meteorologist, writer, and Musician currently working for Channel 4 News in London, England, as a Weather Presenter.
Liam Dutton Age
Dutton was born on December 11 in England. his birth sign is Sagittarius. He Celebrates his birthday on December 11 every year.
Liam Dutton Salary
Dutton receives an annual average salary of between $ 33,700 – $ 112,500. This is according to Channel News anchors/reporter’s salaries.
Liam Dutton Net Worth
Dutton has an estimated Net Worth of $ 100k – $ 100k dollars. His career as a news Journalist is his primary source of income.
Liam Dutton Height and Weight
Dutton stands at a moderate height, however, the award-winning journalist has not disclosed her exact height and other body measurements like weight, shoe size.
Liam Dutton Family
Little is known about his parents, also there are no details about his siblings, therefore this information will be updated as soon as it’s available.
Liam Dutton Wife
Is he married? Dutton has not shared any information about his current love life. This information will be updated as soon as it is available.
Liam Dutton Education
He attended Adamsdown Primary and later graduated from Willows High School where he gained an A-Level at St. Davids Sixth Form College. He also graduated with a Bachelor of Science with a degree in Geography.
Liam Dutton Channel 4 News
He began his career at the BBC Weather Centre (presenting his first forecast at just 22) and has since traveled the UK presenting for BBC nations and regions. In 2006 he began presenting for national and international BBC outlets and most recently worked across BBC News, BBC World News, BBC Breakfast, and Radio 4’s Today program.
His work contains an analysis of UK and International weather along with issues related to climate change, health and food, and the impact of weather on travel, finances, and welfare. He will have an important online role too, leading Channel 4 News’ new weather website and using social media to discuss the weather with viewers.
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ITALY: New Fiat turbodiesel on offer to others
Fiat Powertrain Technologies has announced the latest development of the current 1.9 JTD M (MultiJet) 16v engine used in a variety of Fiat and Alfa Romeo models.
Featuring twin stage turbo technology, which lifts power to 140 kW (188 bhp) and 400 Nm (295 lb ft) of torque from only 1.9 litres, the new engine will become available in two versions, one with 132 kW (177 bhp), which FPT will make available to customers outside the Fiat Group, as well as Fiat Group brands, and a higher performance 140 kW (188 bhp) version, which will remain the preserve of the Alfa Romeo, Fiat and Lancia brands.
Compared to existing 1.9 litre JTD M (MultiJet) engines, low end torque has been improved by 50%, with 300 Nm (221 lb ft) available from 1,250 rpm. This has been achieved through the introduction of advanced turbocharging technology together with design changes to increase the thermostructural resistance that allows increased peak cylinder pressure up to 180 bar and exhaust gas temperatures up to 800°C.
Two stage turbocharging enables the new engine to combine the instant low speed response and the elimination of ‘turbo lag’ provided by a small turbocharger, while the second stage offers the ‘deep breathing’ provided by a large turbocharger. Essentially, a small turbocharger operates at low RPM for optimal bottom end torque and response from low vehicle speed. This small turbo is by-passed when the required power output increases, and a second turbocharger of a larger size comes into operation.
Besides the improvement in overall performance, TST technology allows an increase in the exhaust gas recirculation rate without fuel consumption penalties, and therefore provides a significant reduction in NOx emissions.
Thus, the engine complies with projected Euro 5 emission standards. This target has been achieved thanks to reduction of the compression ratio from 17.5 to 16.5 and the adoption of low-voltage metallic glow plugs; improved EGR cooler (with by-pass) and EGR valve adoption on Lambda sensor with DPF and a new inlet port design
Production of the new engine will start next month, beginning with the 132 kW (177 bhp) version. The 140 kW (188 bhp) version will be launched in June 2008.
The new engine is produced in the FPT plant at Pratola Serra, in Italy’s Avellino province. Created from a ‘green field’ site, the plant started production in 1993 and has an annual capacity of 600,000 engines.
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FPT Corp


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Trump’s top federal prosecutors are overwhelmingly white men
By JAKE BLEIBERG, AARON MORRISON and JIM MUSTIANOctober 6, 2020 GMT
These images provided by the Department of Justice, show U.S. Attorneys from across the United States. The nation’s top federal prosecutors have become less diverse under President Donald Trump than under his three predecessors. White men are overwhelmingly in charge of federal law enforcement amid a national paroxysm over racial inequality and criminal justice. (Department of Justice via AP)
The nation’s top federal prosecutors have become less diverse under President Donald Trump than under his three predecessors, leaving white men overwhelmingly in charge at a time of national demonstrations over racial inequality and the fairness of the criminal justice system.
The Associated Press analyzed government data from nearly three decades and found that a persistent lack of diversity in the ranks of U.S. attorneys has reached a nadir in the Trump administration. Eighty-five percent of his Senate-confirmed U.S attorneys are white men, according to AP’s analysis, compared with 58% in Democratic President Barack Obama’s eight years, 73% during Republican George W. Bush’s two terms and at most 63% under Democrat Bill Clinton.
White men lead 79 of the 93 U.S. attorney’s offices in a country where they make up less than a third of the population. Nine current U.S. attorneys are women. Two are Black, and two Hispanic.
Federal prosecutors can have a profound effect on the criminal justice system and leadership holds an immense sway. Without a diverse group considering cases, bias can seep unnoticed into charging decisions and sentencing recommendations, undermine federal leadership with state and local law enforcement and chip away at the perceived legitimacy of the justice system.
The enduring imbalance leaves U.S. attorneys looking less like the people they serve, and is in stark contrast to the population of federal prisons, where a disproportionate share of those incarcerated are Black.
“When you take it in the aggregate, it becomes very evident that the department, as a whole, is simply not valuing diversity at its highest ranks of leadership and not making the most well-informed decisions when those voices are absent from the decision-making process,” said Kenneth Polite Jr., who served as U.S. attorney in New Orleans during Obama’s second term. “It would be silly for anyone to suggest the department couldn’t do better.”
The gap is especially relevant in an era when state and local law enforcement are repeatedly being taken to task over decisions not to prosecute police in the killings of Black people. U.S. prosecutors can serve as a backstop in those scenarios by bringing federal charges.
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The Trump administration’s inability to hire top prosecutors who reflect the nation has also deepened mistrust in communities frustrated by the Justice Department’s shift away from investigating police practices and Attorney General William Barr’s dismissal of the idea of systemic racism in law enforcement.
White House spokesman Judd Deere did not answer questions about the diversity of U.S. attorneys under Trump’s watch, but said in a statement that the administration has “worked closely with U.S. Senators to identify the best candidates to serve as the chief law enforcement officer in their districts back home, and we are very proud of the work that they are doing to keep all Americans safe.”
Former prosecutors say that even among qualified and well-meaning professionals, bias can skew prosecutorial decisions where there isn’t a varied group considering cases. It’s something Danny Williams Sr. saw a year after he became a U.S. attorney in Oklahoma in 2012.
Tulsa police had arrested two groups, one white and the other Black, in separate armed robberies, and the cases ended up before federal prosecutors. The facts were similar, so Williams said he was surprised that the proposed charges that reached his desk were different: The Black defendants were facing more potential prison time.
Williams, who is Black, said he asked the assistant U.S. attorney who’d handled the cases what factual difference accounted for the disparity. The career prosecutor, who is white, responded that the white defendants were college students, Williams said.
“I don’t want this story to come off as I thought the guy was racist. I just think that he didn’t grasp, in the charging decision, the way he treated these two different groups differently,” Williams said. “It’s just an example of, this is why you need diversity.”
The same charges were ultimately brought in both cases, according to Williams.
To be sure, the way bias plays out is complex and there is not a direct relationship between a prosecutor’s race or sex and the decisions he or she makes. Though the U.S. attorney may be the public face of a prosecuting office, he or she is hardly the sole decision-maker, serving instead at the top of a career bureaucracy that relies on the judgment and informed recommendations of lower-level officials who often do the complicated investigative work.
After a white South Carolina police officer gunned down Walter Scott, who was Black, in 2015, the Justice Department secured a 20-year prison sentence for the officer.
Jared Fishman, the white former prosecutor who handled the case, “showed so much compassion and he took on my brother’s case as if it was his own family,” said Anthony Scott, Walter’s older brother.
But other families have had their hopes dashed.
After New York prosecutors didn’t bring criminal charges in the death of Eric Garner, the Obama administration launched a federal investigation that was left incomplete and handed off two years later to the Trump administration before Garner’s family got word no charges would be filed. Garner died in 2014 after a police officer’s chokehold.
And years before George Floyd’s death under the knee of a white Minneapolis police officer set off protests around the country, Valerie Castile turned to the federal government after the Minnesota police officer who killed her son was found not to have committed a crime.
Castile described the Justice Department as “our last hope, when these little towns ... don’t want to do what’s right.”
Former St. Anthony police Officer Jeronimo Yanez shot Philando Castile, a Black school cafeteria worker, in July 2016, within two minutes of approaching his car during a traffic stop in the Twin Cities suburb of Falcon Heights. A state court jury acquitted him of second-degree manslaughter the next summer.
After Castile’s death, his mother and political leaders in Minnesota, where police killed at least 60 people between 2008 and 2015, according to state data, pressed for an outside investigation into the shooting and charges of racially biased policing in the region.
Local prosecutors got help in the case from the Minnesota U.S. Attorney’s Office, but no independent federal probe was opened.
The Justice Department’s Community Oriented Policing Services Office did, however, start a review of the St. Anthony Police Department. Castile testified at a community forum similar to ones the department held during its review of police practices in St. Louis County, Missouri, following the 2014 police shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson.
But before the office finished its findings, Trump’s Justice Department, under the leadership of then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions, put a stop to all such assessments, according to an announcement of the changes and the office’s former director, Ronald Davis.
Four years after her son’s death, Castile is confused about what happened with the federal review of the department whose officer killed him. The spokesperson for Minnesota’s U.S. Attorney’s Office declined to discuss its investigation or to characterize its interactions with Valerie Castile.
But Castile knows “we’ll never see my son reach his full potential, as a Black man” – a sentiment shared by protesters across the country who are convinced the justice system doesn’t work for people like them.
“They want to tell you, ‘Oh, it’s not a federal case. We can’t make a case,’” Castile said. “Yes, you can! You change things as you want to.”
A lack of diversity has long been an issue throughout the federal law enforcement and criminal justice systems. In some places it’s grown more acute under Trump.
Then-FBI Director James Comey said in 2016 that the bureau’s failure to recruit more minorities had become “a crisis.” In the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, recent court filings show 8% of the agency’s more than 4,000 special agents are Black while about 77% are white.
An AP analysis also found nearly 86% of the 206 federal judges confirmed to lifetime positions under Trump have been white — the highest rate of white judicial appointments since George H.W. Bush’s presidency. Two-thirds of Trump’s judicial appointees have been white men; fewer than a quarter have been women.
And at the top of the Justice Department, Trump’s two attorneys general — Barr and Sessions — are also white. That compares with the past three administrations in which Black people, a Latino man and the first female attorney general served as the nation’s top law officer.
“Oftentimes you go into court and the judge is white, the prosecutor is white, the defense attorney is white, the only person in the courtroom who’s Black is the defendant,” said Gregory Davis, who was a U.S. attorney in Mississippi during the Obama administration.
U.S. attorneys, who have wide power to bring cases within their districts and draw on the investigative prowess of federal law enforcement agencies, are chosen for Senate confirmation through an interplay of the White House, the Justice Department and political leaders from each state.
The path to a U.S. attorney’s office begins with state political leaders, usually senators or governors, making suggestions to the president, who generally picks a new slate of top prosecutors after taking office. The White House then sends one to three candidates for each federal district to the Justice Department to be interviewed and vetted.
More than a dozen current U.S. attorneys, including four women, are serving in acting roles. An acting U.S. attorney can be appointed in a number of ways if an office becomes vacant and another person cannot quickly go through Senate confirmation.
If the Justice Department doesn’t support a candidate, officials there have to negotiate with the White House for someone else. The state leaders sometimes insist on their picks and exercise significant power over confirmations, which traditionally require the assent of both senators from a prosecutor’s home state.
In response to questions for this story the Justice Department provided a statement from Erin Nealy Cox, U.S. attorney in Dallas and chair of the Attorney General Advisory Committee, that did not address the demographic disparities among U.S. attorneys. She said the current group are among “the most dedicated public servants in America” and noted many have long been prosecutors.
AP Data Editor Meghan Hoyer in Washington contributed to this report.


Insider Access Tour: Behind the Scenes Thursday February 16 2023 at 2:00 PM
Thursday February 16 2023 at 2:00 PM
How many tickets would you like?
Discover the Cathedral’s hidden stories on the behind-the-scenes tour as you marvel at the building’s artistry and engineering. Journey through stone stairwells and passageways to see stained glass windows up close and magnificent views.
• All participants must be able to climb stairs (the equivalent of a few flights of stairs over the course of the tour).
The tour consists of a variety of spaces, including close quarters, dim lighting, and heights.
• All participants must be at least 11 years old.
• By purchasing tickets for a Behind the Scenes tour, you acknowledge that you and anyone else in your party is physically able to handle the tour.
This tour is approximately 90 minutes long.


Have you ever taken a close look at paper money? Each U.S. bill has the words “Federal Reserve Note” imprinted across the top.
But many individuals may not know why the bill is issued by the Federal Reserve and what role the Federal Reserve plays in the economy. Here’s an inside look.
The Federal Reserve, often referred to as “the Fed,” is the country’s central bank. It was founded by Congress in 1913 to provide the nation with a safer, more-flexible, and more-stable monetary and financial system. Prior to its creation, the U.S. economy was plagued by frequent episodes of panic, bank failures, and limited credit.1
The Fed has four main roles in the U.S. economy.
Economy Watch
In addition to its other duties, the Fed has been given three mandates with the economy: maintaining maximum employment, maintaining stable price levels, and maintaining moderate, long-term interest rates.1
It’s important to remember that the Fed cannot directly control employment, inflation, or long-term interest rates. Rather, it uses a number of tools at its disposal to influence the availability and cost of money and credit. This, in turn, influences the willingness of consumers and businesses to spend money on goods and services.
For example, if the Fed maneuvers short-term interest rates lower, borrowing money becomes less expensive, and people may be motivated to spend. Consumer spending may stimulate economic growth, which may cause companies to produce more products and potentially increase employment. When short-term rates are low, the Fed closely monitors economic activity to watch for signs of rising prices.
On the other hand, if the Fed pushes short-term rates higher, borrowing money becomes more expensive, and people may be less motivated to spend. This may, in turn, slow economic growth and cause companies to decrease employment. When short-term rates are high, the Fed must watch for signs of a decline in overall price levels.
Supervise and Regulate
The Fed establishes and enforces the regulations that banks, savings and loans, and credit unions must follow. It works with other federal and state agencies to ensure these financial institutions are financially sound and consumers are receiving fair and equitable treatment. When an organization is found to have problems, the Fed uses its authority to have the organization correct the problems.
The Fed maintains the stability of the financial system by providing payment services. In times of financial strain, the Fed is authorized to step in as a lender of last resort, providing liquidity to an individual bank or the entire banking system. For example, the Fed may step in and offer to buy the government bonds owned by a particular bank. By doing so, the Fed provides the bank with money that it can use for its own purposes.
Banker for Banks, U.S. Government
The Fed provides financial services to banks and other depository institutions as well as to the U.S. government directly. For banks, savings and loans, and credit unions, it maintains accounts and provides various payment services, including collecting checks, electronically transferring funds, distributing new money, and receiving and destroying old, worn-out money. For the federal government, the Fed pays Treasury checks; processes electronic payments; and issues, transfers, and redeems U.S. government securities.
Each day, the Fed is behind the scenes supporting the economy and providing services to the U.S. financial system. And while the Fed’s duties are many and varied, its focus is to maintain confidence in banking institutions.
A Decentralized Central Bank
The Federal Reserve System consists of 12 independent banks that operate under the supervision of a federally appointed Board of Governors in Washington, D.C. Each of these banks works within a specific district, as shown.
Source: FederalReserve.gov, 2022
1.FederalReserve.gov, 2022