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"Where’s the unity?" Fox Business host Larry Kudlow asked "America Reports" co-anchor Sandra Smith Monday during a discussion of why Democrats have failed to condemn Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., for "inciting violence" after calling for Minnesota protesters to "get more confrontational" if Derek Chauvin is acquitted.

America is bracing for a verdict.
After watching footage of a police officer applying brutal force against a man who was handcuffed, crying out for his mother and begging for his life, will the jury find former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin guilty of murdering George Floyd? Or will jurors doubt that Chauvin’s actions were a major cause of Floyd’s death and let the officer go free? And what will happen after the verdict?
This whole situation brings me back to 1992. We had protests in the streets then — just like we do today. We had plenty of chatter on television then — just like we do today.

Florida
Several aspects of life were taken into account to determine the unluckiest states. To rank all 50 states, Best Life "... looked we looked at accident mortality by state according to the most recent statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The rate of accidental death measures death from unintentional injuries stemming from incidents like drug overdoses, vehicular accidents, and falls ... the number of official natural diasters that have occurred in each state since 1953 .... the number of Powerball jackpot winners in all 45 states where the game is available ... data on each state's unemployment rate..."
California has a 35.9 percent rate of accidental death, 336 federally declared natural disasters, 9 Powerball winners, and an 8.5 percent unemployment rate.

Jim Mone
/ AP
High fences, razor wire, Jersey barriers, armed troops.
The view isn't from a guard post at the entrance of a U.S. military base, or at the post-riot U.S. Capitol. Instead, it's the checkpoint set up more than a month ago on a city street just outside the Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis.
The National Guard was ordered up for this task and others even before jury selection began in the Derek Chauvin trial.
Normally, the profile of this county courthouse and administration building resembles a capital "H" standing straight and tall in downtown Minneapolis.

By Jeffrey T. Kuhner
Apr 19, 2021
Rep. Maxine Waters must be impeached and removed from office. In fact, she should be arrested for inciting riots and violence.
The California Democrat and left-wing firebrand flew to Minneapolis on the weekend, and then inserted herself into the middle of a riot and ongoing protest in Brooklyn Center. For nearly a week, Black Lives Matter terrorists and activists have been rioting, looting and committing arson. Shops and businesses have been destroyed and plundered; buildings have been set on fire; police cars and other vehicles smashed; the local police station came under attack; every night BLM thugs have assaulted police officers with projectiles, rocks, bottles and cement blocks, sending many to the hospital; and street battles with the cops have become the norm, turning much of Brooklyn Center into a war zone.

DEVELOPING... Story will be updated as new information can be verified. Updated 3 times AlertMe
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is privately weighing how to handle the upcoming verdict in the trial of former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin, including considering whether President Joe Biden should address the nation and dispatching specially trained community facilitators from the Justice Department, aides and officials told The Associated Press.
Closing arguments began Monday in Chauvin’s trial with a prosecutor telling jurors that the officer “had to know” he was squeezing the life out of George Floyd as he cried over and over that he couldn’t breathe and finally fell silent. Chauvin faces murder and manslaughter charges.

Illinois American Water
FARMINGTON, Ill. — Illinois American Water will be replacing over 3,000 feet of water main, approximately $635,000 worth, in the City of Farmington.
According to Illinois American Water, work will begin this month in the following areas:
North and South Cedar St.
West Cottonwood St., between South Cedar St. and South Mill St.
South Mill St.
Pleasant St.
The upgrades are necessary to keep up with aging infrastructure, according to Senior Manager of Operations Eric Larson.
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) this year gave America’s drinking water systems a C- grade, while wastewater systems received a D+.

US vows to lead on climate, press world to reduce coal
Tue 20th April 2021 | 12:00 AM
Washington, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Apr, 2021 ) :The United States will press all nations to reduce reliance on coal, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Monday, warning "we won't have much of a world left" without stronger leadership fromWashington on climate change.
"Our diplomats will challenge the practices of countries whose action -- or inaction -- is setting us back," Blinken was to say in a speech ahead of President Joe Biden's climate summit later this week, according to early excerpts.
"When countries continue to rely on coal for a significant amount of their energy, or invest in new coal factories, or allow for massive deforestation, they will hear from the United States and our partners about how harmful these actions are," he said.

Howz yor speling? An organisation known as the International English Spelling Congress has just voted in favour, or favor, of major reform.
Apparently, English takes up to three years longer to master than other languages, and the peculiarities of our spelling sytem are at least partly to blame.
The congress is concerned that far too many English words don’t sound the way they are spelt, or, indeed, spelled. Traditional Spelling Revised, or TSR, aims to get rid of silent letters such as ‘w’ in wrong. 
If they have their way, rong will soon be right, rite will no longer be rong, and illogical spellings such as colonel, biscuit, yacht, daughter, parliament and knife will all be simplified.

Chauvin’s actions those of any ‘reasonable officer’: Defence lawyers 20/04/2021|2min
The defence lawyers for former police officer Derek Chauvin say he acted as a “reasonable officer” during their closing arguments at the murder trial over the death of George Floyd.
The defence and prosecution have delivered closing arguments today as the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin is brought to a close.
Mr Chauvin has been charged with second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter over the death of black man George Floyd.
Mr Floyd died in May last year after the former police officer placed his knee on Mr Floyd's neck during an arrest triggering waves of protests and violence across America.

USA TODAY
National columnist Suzette Hackney is in Minneapolis for the trial of Derek Chauvin, reporting on the people, the scene and the mood.
MINNEAPOLIS – George Perry Floyd Jr. lived for 17,026 days. But in nine minutes and 29 seconds, that life ceased to exist after a fateful encounter with a now former Minneapolis police officer. 
Prosecutors want us to believe Floyd died because Derek Chauvin kneeled on his neck, restricting oxygen flow to his heart and brain. Chauvin's defense attorney contends that Floyd died because he had a bad heart and was high on fentanyl and methamphetamine.
After 44 witnesses over 14 days of testimony, determining the truth is now up to the jury.

“They have absolutely safe seats,” Davis said.
However, the Justice Department is investigating whether Gaetz violated sex trafficking laws and had sex with a 17-year-old girl, and McCarthy has suggested he'll take action if Gaetz is indicted.
And a memo linked to Greene described a proposed America First Caucus hailing “Anglo-Saxon political traditions” and warning of immigration's threat to the U.S.'s “unique culture,” prompting McCarthy to denounce “nativist dog whistles.”
Gaetz has denied the accusations against him, which were described by people familiar with the investigation. He hasn't been charged with any crimes and says he is “absolutely not resigning."

Another Example of How Educational Stalinists Censor and Destroy Independent Thought and Enforce the Endless Repetition of Mindless Cultural Marxist Platitudes Instead
A man who changed careers to pursue his love of teaching mathematics to high school students has learned all about the Stalinist takeover of “education” in America.  While teaching at Grace Church High School in Manhattan he attended a meeting where he objected to the administration’s demand that the faculty treat all students differently according to their skin color (“critical race theory”).  He said he preferred to treat all students equally according to their accomplishments in his classroom.

US braces for impact as closing arguments delivered in Floyd murder trial 20/04/2021|2min
The defence and prosecution have delivered closing arguments today as the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin is brought to a close.
Mr Chauvin has been charged with second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter over the death of black man George Floyd.
Mr Floyd died in May last year after the former police officer placed his knee on Mr Floyd's neck during an arrest triggering waves of protests and violence across America.
The prosecution has asked jurors to “believe their own eyes” when considering their decision while the defence argued the jury should consider the context surrounding the incident.

For a long time, academics and investors were convinced that small stocks outperform large ones.
The theory was that small stocks, because they carry greater uncertainty, sell at a discount to large ones. Investors in the small fry are rewarded for taking extra risk.
Proving the theory was difficult. Many early studies suffered from survivorship bias. They failed to include some small stocks that ultimately went bankrupt.
One way to look at the issue is to compare the return on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index (which contains 500 large stocks) with the return on the Russell 2000 Index (made up of 2,000 smaller stocks).

Credit Facebook
Vice President Kamala Harris visited central North Carolina to pitch the Biden administration’s $2.3 trillion infrastructure and jobs plan. Monday's trip marked Harris' first visit to the state since getting sworn in to office. She spoke at Guilford Technical Community College’s Advanced Manufacturing Campus and later toured a Thomas Built Buses plant in High Point. Harris said the proposal is a “once-in-a-lifetime, once-in-a-generation” investment in America’s future. She highlighted many items in the plan beyond the proposed transportation infrastructure. She emphasized spending for workforce training, getting rid of lead drinking pipes and building up child care capacity.

Mob Rule In Minnesota
The murder trial of former police officer Derek Chauvin is wrapping up today with closing arguments and jury instructions. The National Guard is standing by to deal with the expected riots when the jury returns its verdict later this week, along with law enforcement from several local agencies as well as other states. Downtown Minneapolis resembles a fortress, only with fewer people. Both Scott and I have questioned whether Chauvin can possibly get a fair trial in the current atmosphere. Jurors cannot fail to understand the consequences of a “not guilty” verdict.
It has been reported that Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman sold his Minneapolis home at a loss and moved out of the city after “protesters” besieged his house, and his office received “millions of e-mails and thousands of phone calls” about the George Floyd case. I have it on good authority that he is not the only public official who has sold his house and moved out of Minneapolis for reasons of personal safety.

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - American Airlines Co said on Monday it will reduce flights to some destinations in South America because the COVID-19 pandemic has reduced demand.
The U.S. airline said it was suspending service to Manaus, Brazil, from Miami until Nov. 2 and delaying the start of service from New York to Santiago until July 2, instead of the planned May 7 start. It will also reduce the frequency of flights to Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo in Brazil, and to Lima from some U.S. airports . . .
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ABC News
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People need to remember the human toll each time a shooter opens fire, he said.
• 12 min read
Merrick Garland confirmed as attorney general
His confirmation comes nearly five years to the day since he was nominated by President Obama to replace Justice Antonin Scalia on the U.S. Supreme Court.ABC News
Two days after an American terrorist visited death and destruction on the heartland, a slight, soft-spoken lawyer in Washington, D.C., was dispatched to run the investigation and prosecution that would bring justice to the victims of the Oklahoma City bombing.

Why the Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price is in focus
Ken Hall | April 20, 2021 9:11am |
More on:
The 
Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) share price is in focus this morning after the buy now, pay later (BNPL) leader’s latest quarterly results.
Why is the Afterpay share price in focus?
This morning, the company reported “strong operating performance” for the period ended 31 March 2021 (Q3 2021). Performance was strong across all regions with underlying sales up 104% on the prior corresponding period (pcp).
On a constant currency basis, Afterpay reported sales up 123% on Q3 2020. That was helped by strong performance in both the United States and the United Kingdom. Sales in the former jumped 2,211% higher on the pcp with UK sales up 277%.