Swifties, this one’s for you. It seems like Taylor Swift's Eras Tour has lasted eons. Yet somehow, there’s always something to talk about. Just thinking about how much she’s accomplished while on tour makes me want to buckle down, lock in, and channel my inner girlboss. But while I can’t even be bothered to cook dinner at home after a long day of work, Taylor is accomplishing milestones most musicians can only dream of. Let’s recap.
The Era’s Tour began in March 2023 with its North American leg. It’s set to go until December 2024, with dates in Europe, Australia, Asia, and South America— spanning 152 shows across five continents.
As the queen of multitasking, Swift hasn’t stopped at just selling out stadiums. Since the Eras tour began, she’s released multiple albums — both new and old — and shaken up the tour setlist with each new release. Her list of new releases started on the first day of tour with “All Of The Girls You Loved Before,” which was quickly followed up by “The Alcott,” a feature on The National’s album — reciprocity for their work on her pandemic era albums, Folklore and Evermore.
She also released Midnights: Late Night Edition (including the iconic collab with Ice Spice), as well as not one but two album re-releases — Speak Now Taylor's Version and 1989 Taylor's Version. As if that wasn’t enough, she announced her latest album, The Tortured Poet’s Department, in a GRAMMY’s acceptance speech. Talk about legendary. Since its release, she’s also been churning out deluxe versions and remixes to keep us on our toes. The Eras Tour was even made into a Blockbuster film that brought Beyonce to its premiere. Star power: confirmed.
But that’s just her work life. Her personal life is just as eventful. She ended her 7-year relationship with Joe Alwyn in April 2023. Then entered into a brief but controversial fling with 1975 frontman Matty Healy. Though it didn’t last long, the relationship was enough to inspire a whole album and catapult her into her current romance with Travis Kelce, aka Amerca’s first nepo boyfriend. Now they’re the American Royal couple — and she somehow had time to fly from tour to his Super Bowl performance.
We all have the same hours in the day as Taylor Swift, but how she uses them will always be a mystery to me. I work eight hours a day and can barely manage a social life. Meanwhile, Taylor literally has it all — though conservatives are turning on her for daring to be a woman in her 30s who’s not married with kids. If that’s not proof that women can’t do anything right, I don’t know what is.
Clearly, she’s working late because she’s a singer. No wonder Taylor Swift became a billionaire months into her tour in October 2023. Her net worth is currently around 1.3 billion dollars, making her the only female musician to become a billionaire from her music.
Other entertainment billionaires like Rihanna, Kylie Jenner, Kim Kardashian, Jay-Z, and Kanye West have joined the three-comma club thanks to ventures like clothing brands, beauty products, and other entrepreneurial pursuits. Rihanna has her FENTY Empire. Kim has her award-winning SKIMS. Ye had Yeezy. But Taylor has an unbeatable catalog of publishing.
But Taylor isn’t just different from other Billionaires because of how she earned her money. She’s the Taylor we know and love because of how she spends it. Her rollercoaster Eras Tour is how she’s made much of her fortune. And she’s using it to give back in monumental degrees. From individual donations to investing in local infrastructure, Taylor is literally changing lives on a macro and micro scale. And teaching us what to expect from all billionaires in the process.
The Era’s Tour Bonuses — Talk About Workplace Benefits
First to make headlines were the Eras Tour crew bonuses. While some of us get rewarded with a pizza party or a $10 gift card to Starbucks, Taylor casually dropped $55 million in bonuses for her tour crew. The massive sum was paid out to everyone who makes the Eras Tour go around, from truck drivers to dancers and sound technicians.
In fairness, these bonuses are definitely well-deserved. Taylor’s shows are over three hours long. Imagine dancing for that long — because Swift certainly isn’t the one with the impressive moves — for hundreds of tour dates. Or remembering countless combinations of light cues to go with a setlist that changes daily. Yeah, they’re clocking in. And if my boss had millions to blow, I’d be expecting a comfortable bonus too. But $55 Million? That’s a testament to Swift’s generosity. It's like she's Oprah, but instead of cars, she's giving out life-changing amounts of cash. "You get a bonus! You get a bonus! Everybody gets a bonus!"
It’s similar to how Zendaya gave film equity to every member of the crew that worked on her controversial black-and-white drama, Malcolm & Marie. Filmed in a few days with a bare-bones crew during the peak of the pandemic, the film was Zendaya’s passion project with Sam Levinson, in which she starred alongside John David Washington. Though the film got mixed reviews, it captured the audience’s attention all the same. After all, it was Zendaya — and we’ll watch her in anything. So since the film sold to Netflix for a hefty sum, all the crew members got payouts from the deal on top of their salaries to reward their hard work.
Bonuses and equity payouts are common in many industries, but not entertainment. Even though it’s one of the most lucrative and recognizable American industries, most entertainers don’t make enough to survive. The SAG and WGA strikes last year were proof that there needs to be systemic change in the industry. LA County has even identified show businesses as risk factors for being unhoused — after all, how many stories do we hear of actors who were living in their cars before their big break? And for many, their big break never comes. For even more, they get hired on amazing gigs with giant performers … then go right back to the grind afterward. While individual actions from our favorite stars won’t fix everything, Zendaya and Taylor are providing models for how Hollywood should treat the people who make this town go round.
And in this economy, even a little bit could go a long way. Inflation and the cost of living are not a joke. Especially when, like with many creative careers, you often have to invest in lessons or equipment for your craft. With all this considered, the impact of Swirt’s donations can’t be overstated. Imagine getting a lump sum of cash for dancing to your favorite Taylor Swift tracks? Talk about a dream job.
The Economic Impact of Swift - Swiftonomics, if you will
Like Barbie and Beyonce last year, Swift is still on a tear to boost the economy of the cities she’s in just by traveling there — ad inspiring others to make the trek, too.
The Barbie movie proved that by marketing to women (instead of just making Marvel flops like Madame Web that aren’t really targeted to women at all), the entertainment industry can make giant profits. Barbie fever went beyond the theater. Thanks to a plethora of product collabs, the phenomenon rippled through retail.
Similarly, Beyonce’s Renaissance Tour tour generated an estimated $4.5 billion for the American economy. According to NPR, that’s almost as much as the entire 2008 Olympics earned for Beijing. People were taking money out of their 401ks to pay for Beyonce tickets and the glittery, silver-hues outfits to rock at her shows. Cities even started calling her effect the “Beyonce Bump.”
Swift has the same effect. She’s not just proving her generosity on a micro-scale for the people close to her, she’s having actual, tangible effects on the economy. It's like she's leaving a trail of dollar bills in her wake, and cities are scrambling to catch them like it's a country-pop, capitalist version of musical chairs.
The US Travel Association called it the Taylor Swift Impact after she generated over $5 Billion in just the first 5 months of the Eras Tour. But how does this work? It’s not like Taylor is printing more money at those shows, but it almost is. Her tour dates are pretty much economic steroid shots for local businesses. Hotels are booked solid, restaurants are packed, and let's not even get started on the surge in friendship bracelet supplies.
“Swifties averaged $1,300 of spending in local economies on travel, hotel stays, food, as well as merchandise and costumes,” say the US Travel Association. “That amount of spending is on par with the Super Bowl, but this time it happened on 53 different nights in 20 different locations over the course of five months.” That’s not to say anothing of her effect on the actual Super Bowl and the entire NFL season thanks to her ball-throwing boyfriend.
It's like she's created her own micro-economy, and everyone's invited to the party. And unlike some economic theories that rely on wealth trickling down (spoiler alert: it doesn't), Taylor's wealth is more like a t-shirt cannon or the confetti at her shows — showering everyone around.
Donations that actually do good
Taylor isn’t just stepping into cities and calling it a night. She’s also not just throwing pennies at problems - she's making significant contributions that are changing lives. And more importantly, she's using her platform to encourage her fans to do the same.
She kicked off her tour with quiet donations to food banks in Glendale, Ariz., and Las Vegas ahead of the Eras Tour. Once the tour was in full swing, she continued this practice. In Seattle, she donated to Food Lifeline, a local hunger relief organization. In Santa Clara, she showed some love to Second Harvest of Silicon Valley. And let's not forget about her $100,000 donation to the Hawkins County School Nutrition Program in Tennessee.
She’s been making similar donations overseas. Taylor Swift donated enough money to cover the food bills for an entire year across 11 food banks and & community pantries in Liverpool. Swift also covered 10,800 meals for Cardiff Foodbank and many more banks across the UK and EU. Her impact is so profound that her numbers are doing more to combat issues like hunger than the government.
Can billionaires actually be good?
One thing about me, I’m always ready and willing — knife and fork in hand — to eat the rich. Because fundamentally, can any billionaire really be good? In our late-stage capitalist horror story, the answer is usually no. Look how many of them are supporting the Trump campaign just to get some tax breaks.
But here's the thing - Taylor Swift might just be the exception that proves the rule. She's not perfect, sure. She still flies private jets and probably has a carbon footprint bigger than Bigfoot. But unlike most of the others in her tax bracket, she's not flaunting her wealth like it's a personality trait.
Take a look around. We've got billionaires trying to colonize Mars instead of, I don't know, helping people on Earth. In this context, Taylor's approach is more like Mackenzie Scott’s — Bezos’s ex-wife. She's not trying to escape to another planet - she's trying to make this one better.
And look, I'm not saying we should stop critiquing billionaires or the system that creates them. But she's just setting the bar for what we should expect from all billionaires. She's showing us that our collective power as fans can translate into real-world change. That our love for catchy choruses and bridge drops can somehow, improbably, lead to food banks getting funded and crew members getting life-changing bonuses.
So sorry to my neighbors who hear me belting “Cruel Summer” and “right where you left me” at the top of my lungs (and range). Just know it’s for the greater good.
Conservative Personality Laura Loomer Handcuffed to Twitter HQ in NYC
Loomer claimed that she had been "silenced in America" after her account was permanently removed from the social media site.
Just in time for Hanukkah, in what was definitely not a stunt specifically orchestrated to get attention, conservative personality and self-proclaimed "citizen journalist" Laura Loomer donned a Holocaust-era Star of David and handcuffed herself to Twitter's NYC headquarters in protest this afternoon. "You can still subscribe to my website," Loomer told reporters while claiming that she had been "silenced in America" after her account was permanently removed from the social media site.
Loomer's account was removed last week for violating Twitter's terms against hateful conduct. The removal was in response to tweets by Loomer in which she accused newly-elected congresswoman Ilhan Omar, who is Muslim, of being "anti-Jew," homophobic, and "pro-Sharia" because of her faith. The tweet itself was Loomer's way of criticizing the use of Omar's picture in a Twitter feature celebrating "women, LGBTQ, and minorities" because as a Somali refugee who just became one of the first Muslim women elected to Congress, Omar is not an appropriate person to be associated with such celebrations.
"Twitter is upholding Sharia by banning me for stating facts about Sharia law," Loomer said as she stood outside of the building with a bullhorn and enlarged prints of her tweets. What she conveniently neglected to tell reporters, however, was that she falsely attributed the "facts" of Sharia law to Omar's beliefs. By that logic, Loomer, herself Jewish, surely spends her Friday nights sitting quietly by candlelight, definitely not plowing, and avoiding the urge to shear any animal at all costs.
Earlier in the day, Loomer announced that she was joining a class action lawsuit against Twitter, Facebook, Google, Apple, Instagram, and YouTube for "discrimination against conservatives."
Police arrived at Loomer's protest and urged her to move, citing a fire hazard. However, because she had only cuffed herself to one of the building's double doors, people were able to enter and exit the building with only the slight inconvenience of the crowd and the grating, false equivalencies of the protester.
Rebecca Linde is a writer and cultural critic in NYC. She tweets about pop culture and television @rklinde
The US Hasn't Gone More Than 5 Days Without a Deadly Mass Shooting in 2018
Last night's deadly incident is only the latest in a year of mass shootings
In the final hours of November 7, 2018, a 28-year-old white male entered the Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks, California and opened fire. Twelve people were killed as a result.
There is no broadly-accepted definition of a mass shooting. A 2013 federal mandate defines a mass shooting as a single incident that results in the death of three individuals. The Gun Violence Archive uses the barometer of four or more people shot and/or killed during a single incident.* By this measure, there have been 307 such incidents in 2018 alone. The longest span of time between mass shootings this year has been five days. This is 2018 in mass shooting casualties:**
Date | Location | Add'l Injured | Killed |
January 1 | Huntsville, AL | 3 | Adrian Jashawn Porter, 21 |
January 4 | Brinkley, AK | 3 | Xavier Parker, 33 |
January 7 | Union Springs, AL | 5 | Unknown Victim |
January 11 | St Robert, MO | 2 | Jonathan Graham, 24 Sherry Gann, 53 |
January 12 | Nashville, TN | 2 | Samaii Daniel, 5 Sammarre Daniel, 8 Robert Payne, 70 |
January 14 | Eutaw, AL | 4 | Mandel L. Pearson, 36 |
January 17 | Washington, DC | 3 | Jasmine Lashai Light, 23 |
January 23 | Benton, KY | 14 | Preston Ryan Cope, 15 Bailey Nicole Holt, 15 |
January 28 | Indianapolis, IN | 3 | James Ratcliffe, 50 Deron Gray, 24 |
January 28 | Reading, PA | 0 | Jarlyn Lantigua-Tejada, 20 Joshua Santos, 20 Juan Rodriguez, 23 Nelson Onofre, 23 |
January 28 | Melcroft, PA | 1 | William Scott Porterfield, 29 Seth William Cline, 21 Chelsia Lou Cline, 25 Courtney Sue Snyder, 23 |
February 3 | Cleveland, OH | 5 | Michael Jones, Jr., 22 |
February 5 | Colorado Springs, CO | 4 | Deputy Micah Flick, 34 |
February 7 | Lake Worth, FL | 3 | Edvin Milkevic, 29 Nicole Novak, 27 |
February 10 | Paintsville, KY | 0 | James Wayne Nickell, 75 Arlene Nickell, 70 Lindsay Vanhoose, 41 Patricia Vanhoose, 57 |
February 11 | Detroit, MI | 3 | Patricia Williams Wilson, 62 Barbara Williams Cynthia Williams |
February 13 | New Orleans, LA | 3 | Byron Jackson, 21 Jamar Robinson, 26 |
February 14 | Parkland, FL | 17 | Scott Biegel, 35 Martin Duque Anguiano, 14 Nicholas Dworet, 17 Aaron Feis, 37 Jaime Guttenberg, 14 Alyssa Alhadeff, 15 Christopher Hixon, 49 Luke Hoyer, 15 Cara Loughran, 14 Gina Montalto, 14 Joaquin Oliver, 17 Alaina Petty, 14 Alexander Schachter, 14 Carmen Schentrup, 16 Meadow Pollack, 18 Peter Wang, 15 Helena Ramsay, 17 |
February 16 | Oklahoma City, OK | 3 | Aubry Johnson, 66 |
February 17 | Kansas City, KS | 7 | Kevin Forman, 28 |
February 23 | Palm Beach, FL | 3 | William Burgess II, 28 |
February 26 | Detroit, MI | 0 | Cierra Bargineer, 26 Raphael Hall, 60 Kristen Thomas, 21 Jaymon Thomas, 22 |
March 3 | Brooklyn, NY | 3 | Unidentified Adult Male, 20s |
March 4 | Rockford, IL | 3 | Theodore Daniel, 31 |
March 7 | Hurtsboro, AL | 2 | Donald Hughes John Williams, 74 |
March 9 | Wadesboro, NC | 1 | Jacques McBride, 22 Mareco McNair, 33 Unidentified Adult Male |
March 11 | Champaign, IL | 3 | Montrex Vonner, 34 |
March 29 | Plano, TX | 3 | Quintarius Young, 29 |
April 1 | Mobile, AL | 4 | Anesa Baker, 15 |
April 2 | Houston, TX | 3 | Unidentified Adult Male |
April 4 | New Orleans, LA | 2 | Ryan Massey, 25 Carlos Rodrique, 33 |
April 6 | Virginia Beach, VA | 3 | Rakel Ramel Mason, 41 |
April 8 | Miami, FL | 2 | Rickey Dixon, 18 Kimson Green, 16 |
April 8 | Hickory, NC | 3 | Antonio Knoshjun Watts, 20 |
April 18 | Asheville, NC | 3 | Erica Nichelle Smith, 32 Keithan Whitmire, 15 Harmony Smith, 13 |
April 20 | San Francisco, CA | 5 | Unidentified Adult Male |
April 21 | Philadelphia, PA | 2 | Viktoriya Manasyan, 20 Rashawn Tahir Miller, 21 |
April 22 | Antioch, TN | 3 | Taurean C. Sanderlin, 29 Joe R. Perez, 20 DeEbony Groves, 21 Akilah Dasilva, 23 |
April 22 | New Orleans, LA | 5 | Lil' Ricky Goins, 38 |
April 25 | St Louis, MO | 1 | Timothy Solano, 20 Brandon Stephenson, 36 Melissa Tierney, 40 |
April 29 | West Palm Beach, FL | 3 | Kassandra Yamileth Morales, 24 |
April 29 | Monroe, NC | 3 | David Duncan, Jr., 22 |
April 29 | Seattle, WA | 2 | Deondre Cabine, 24 Charles Ray Justice, 35 |
May 2 | Brooklyn, NY | 4 | Unidentified Adult Male, 18 |
May 2 | Chicago, IL | 4 | Nakia Bailey, 21 |
May 6 | Memphis, TN | 4 | Dejuan Hill, 18 Deandre Doyle Rogers, 18 |
May 13 | Los Angeles, CA | 2 | Lamarion Upchurch, 15 Unidentified Adult Male, 25 Unidentified Adult Male, 25 |
May 13 | Stockton, CA | 2 | Joe C. Lor, 22 Gina Xiong, 22 Kayleen Lor, 5 |
May 16 | Ponder, TX | 1 | Seth Richardson, 29 Drake Alexander Painter, 4 Caydence Nicole Painter, 6 Odin Tyler Painter, 8 |
May 18 | Santa Fe, TX | 13 | Glenda Ann Perkins, 64 Sabika Sheikh, 18 Cynthia Tisdale, 67 Christopher Jake Stone, 17 Shana Fisher, 16 Angelique Ramierz, 15 Jared Conrad Black, 17 Aaron Kyle McLeod, 15 Kimberly Jessica Vaughan Christian Riley Garcia, 15 |
May 20 | Hazelhurst, MI | 7 | Jonathan Miller, 26 |
May 27 | Aurora, CO | 3 | Dejon Andre Leon Williams, 37 |
May 31 | Timmonsville, SC | 2 | Cheresse Lutricia Jackson, 39 Breyanna Priscilla Jackson, 11 Nykerria Shanyia Jackson, 14 |
June 2 | Omaha, NE | 6 | Jasmine Harris, 20 |
June 3 | Chicago, IL | 3 | Ari Armour, 35 |
June 5 | Jacksonville, FL | 1 | Trevon Bullard, 18 Jercoby Groover, 19 Royale D'Von Smith, Jr., 18 |
June 9 | Philadelphia, PA | 4 | Kameron Gilfillian, 21 |
June 10 | Chicago, IL | 5 | Tyrone White, 39 |
June 10 | Bloomington, IL | 2 | Steven Alexander, Jr., 18 Taneshiea Brown, 20 |
June 10 | Indianapolis, IN | 4 | Daron 'Manny' Johnson, 14 |
June 10 | Bradenton, FL | 5 | Gabriel Conde, 39 |
June 11 | Orlando, FL | 1 | Dove Lindsey, 1 Aidan Lindsey, 6 Lillia Lopez, 10 Irayan Lopez, 12 |
June 14 | Westminster, CO | 3 | Vaughn Bigelow, 13 |
June 14 | Buffalo, NY | 4 | Unidentified Adult Male, 38 |
June 14 | Tracy, CA | 4 | Emilio Gerardo Enriquez Almanza, 15 |
June 17 | Macon, GA | 3 | Calvin Bernard Harvey, 16 |
June 18 | Chicago, IL | 3 | Shalonza E. McToy, 22 Erin Casey, 17 |
June 18 | Bloomington, IL | 1 | Corey D. Jackson, 22 Nathaniel A. Pena, 22 Juan C. Perez-Macedo, 33 |
June 21 | San Bernadino, CA | 3 | Alize Ross, 20 |
June 22 | Homestead, PA | 3 | Jazmere Brianna Custis, 19 |
June 23 | Chicago, IL | 4 | Michael Sutton, Jr., 50 |
June 24 | Gary, Indiana | 3 | Jazaniel Davis, 19 |
June 24 | Palm Beach Gardens, FL | 3 | Timothy James Frederick, 19 |
June 24 | Sanford, NC | 6 | Travis Jamarian Mclean, 27 |
June 27 | Oakland, CA | 3 | Derick Alexander, 18 |
June 28 | Annapolis, MD | 0 | Wendi Winters, 65 Rebecca Smith, 34 Robert Hiaasen, 59 Gerald Fischman, 61 John McNamara, 56 |
June 30 | Ashburn, GA | 6 | Za'quavia Smith, 21 |
July 2 | Buffalo, NY | 2 | Yvette Johnson, 54 Kyrie Johnson, 1 |
July 3 | St Louis, MO | 5 | Stanley Sparking, 40 |
July 4 | Atlanta, GA | 3 | Curtis Lamar Wright, 25 |
July 4 | Gary, IN | 3 | Jessie Brown, 29 |
July 5 | Lima, OH | 5 | Carrington Lott, 23 |
July 5 | Los Angeles, CA | 3 | Unidentified Adult Male Unidentified Adult Male Unidentified Adult Female |
July 7 | Wetumpka, AL | 2 | Charlene Ann Orsi, 44 Cadence Rose Orsi, 12 |
July 9 | Orlando, FL | 4 | Edgar Rivera, 20 |
July 9 | Wilmington, DE | 0 | Julie Burton Edwards, 41 Jacob Edwards, 6 Brinley Edwards, 4 Paxton Edwards, 3 |
July 13 | Richmond, VA | 3 | Terrance C. Peters, 46 |
July 16 | Philadelphia, PA | 4 | Tyree Bates, 14 |
July 16 | Washington, DC | 4 | Mikiyah Wilson, 10 |
July 16 | Palm Beach Gardens, FL | 4 | Norriesha L. Hills, 22 Jamal Forrest, 21 |
July 20 | Sunnyside, WA | 4 | Unidentified Adult Male, 23 |
July 21 | Chicago, IL | 5 | Tavish Harris, 30 Kevontay Montgomery, 22 |
July 26 | Oakland, CA | 2 | Unidentified Adult Female, 21 Unidentified Adult Male, 19 |
July 26 | Cleveland, OH | 6 | Cortez Ruffin, 27 |
July 27 | Robstown, TX | 0 | Thelma Montalvo Ernest Starry, 85 Isaiah Starry, 13 Roel Mireles, 41 |
July 28 | Los Angeles, CA | 4 | Juan Lopez, 23 Unidentified Adult Female, 19 |
July 28 | New Orleans, LA | 7 | Kurshaw "Twin" Jackson, 38 Jeremiah "Zippa" Lee, 28 Taiesha Watkins, 27 |
July 29 | Phoenix, AZ | 4 | Jessuh Williams, 37 |
July 31 | Gardena, CA | 3 | Delores Sanchez, 28 Francisco Rafael Montes, 28 |
August 4 | Chicago, IL | 3 | Donald Norris, 19 |
August 5 | Chicago, IL | 5 | Jahnae Patterson, 17 |
August 5 | Chicago, IL | 4 | Charles Green, 32 |
August 8 | Philadelphia, PA | 4 | Averill "General Reezy" Davenport, 34 Niesha Cooper, 32 |
August 11 | Thornton, CO | 3 | Brenda Martinez, 37 |
August 11 | San Francisco, CA | 4 | Gerson Romero, 19 |
August 12 | Clearlake, CA | 1 | Unidentified Child, 2 Unidentified Child, 4 Unidentified Child, <1 |
August 20 | Cleveland, OH | 3 | Jaylin Glanton, 26 |
August 20 | Jackson, TN | 4 | Braxton Watkins, 20 |
August 25 | Nashville, TN | 4 | Mansfield Rutherford, 22 |
August 26 | Wichita Falls, TX | 3 | Davonta Jason Combs, 26 |
August 26 | Jacksonville, FL | 9 | Taylore Robertson, 27 Eli Clayton, 22 |
August 27 | Pine Bluff, AK | 3 | Antonio Brown, 36 |
August 31 | Aurora, CO | 3 | Anthoni Readus, 26 Wayne Carter, 19 |
September 1 | Ft Lauderdale, FL | 3 | Dwayne Smith, 34 |
September 1 | Cleveland, OH | 7 | Theresa Goldwin, 29 |
September 2 | Paterson, NJ | 2 | Daryl Tann, 48 Nykeema Kersey, 33 |
September 6 | Cincinnati, OH | 2 | Richard Newcomer, 64 Pruthvi Raj Kandepi, 25 Luis Felipe Calderon, 48 |
September 7 | Minneapolis, MN | 3 | Steven L. Fields, 42 |
September 9 | Auburn, AL | 4 | Evan Mikale Wilson, 20 |
September 9 | Elgin, IL | 4 | Sharpie Smith-Tate, 25 |
September 12 | Bakersfield, CA | 0 | Eliseo Garcia, 57 Laura Garcia, 31 Antonio Valdez, 50 Emanuel Contreras, 50 Petra Maribel Bellanos Casarez, 45 |
September 17 | Silver Spring, MD | 0 | Sang Yeon Kim, 48 Unidentified Adult Female, 22 Mina Kim, 11 Andy Kim, 10 |
September 20 | Aberdeen, MD | 3 | Sunday Aguda, 45 Bromdra Giri, 41 Hayleen Reyes, 41 |
September 23 | Bakersfield, CA | 4 | Jeremy Charles Littlejohn, 20 |
September 24 | Memphis, TN | 2 | Calitri Boone, 17 Jessie Williams, 30 Unidentified Adult Male, 37 |
September 28 | Philadelphia, PA | 2 | Unidentified Adult Male, 24 |
September 29 | Orlando, FL | 4 | Ruby Steplight, 83 |
September 30 | Compton, CA | 3 | Chloe Hunter, 17 |
October 1 | Chicago, IL | 2 | Steve Nixon, 31 Bruce Y. Miller, 29 |
October 3 | Philadelphia, PA | 4 | Unidentified Adult Male, 20 |
October 3 | Florence, SC | 6 | Investigator Farrah Turner, 36 Officer Terrence Carraway, 52 |
October 4 | Espanola, NM | 3 | Cameron Martinez, 18 |
October 6 | Houston, TX | 3 | Decarlo Washington |
October 13 | Taft, TX | 1 | Juan Espinoza, Sr., 62 Juan Sandoval III, 20 Jeremy Sandoval, 22 Nicky Sandoval, 20 |
October 14 | Las Vegas, NV | 1 | Susan Nash, 52 Dejona'e Nash, 20 Deonte' Nash, 31 |
October 14 | Palo Alto, CA | 2 | Eduardo Sandoval, 22 Mario Vidales Mendez, 23 |
October 15 | Columbia, TN | 0 | Kaileigh Lin, 17 Bo Li, 14 Meigan Lin, 14 Lia Li, 15 |
October 21 | Lakewood, WA | 3 | Terrence King, 28 |
October 21 | Jacksonville, FL | 5 | Robert Lee Williams, 76 |
October 26 | Jersey City, NJ | 3 | Jade Saunders, 17 |
October 27 | Pittsburgh, PA | 7 | Richard Gottfried, 65 Jerry Rabinowitz, 66 Cecil Rosenthal, 59 David Rosenthal, 54 Sylvan Simon, 87 Daniel Stein, 71 Melvin Wax, 88 Irving Younger, 69 Joyce Fienberg, 75 Rose Mallinger, 97 Bernice Simon, 84 |
October 28 | El Dorado, AK | 2 | Darrischica Rogers, 30 Aric Hall, 28 |
October 30 | Vallejo, CA | 3 | Bobby Beasley, 32 De'Angelo Quinn, 26 |
October 31 | Detroit, MI | 3 | Unidentified Male Child, 15 |
November 1 | Springfield, MO | 2 | Aaron Hampton, 23 Steven Marler, 38 |
November 2 | Tallahassee, FL | 5 | Maura Binkley, 21 Nancy Van Vessem, 61 |
November 8 | Thousand Oaks, CA | 10 | Deputy Sgt Ron Helus, 54 Cody Coffman, 22 Tim Munson, 19 Authorities have not yet released the names of the 10 additional victims |
*Because the number of injuries caused by gun violence has increased consistently in the last four years, and because a human life should not be the lowest bar necessary to surpass for the public to take notice, we will be using the GVA definition in this report.
**As the Gun Violence Archive excludes perpetrators from their definition of mass shootings, so too have we excluded the names of those responsible.
Rebecca Linde is a writer and cultural critic in NYC. She tweets about pop culture and television @rklinde.
Jeff Sessions Out as Attorney General
Sessions submitted a letter of resignation "at the request" of the president earlier on Wednesday.
Administrative changes were expected following yesterday's midterm elections, but perhaps none with implications as big as the ousting of Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Sessions, who submitted a letter of resignation at the request of the president, has been the target of criticism from his boss for more than a year after recusing himself from special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and possible collusion from the Trump campaign.
Sessions's chief of staff, Matthew Whitaker, will assume the role of acting attorney general until a permanent replacement is named. Whitaker will oversee the Mueller investigation, which has so far led to the convictions and guilty pleas of Trump allies including campaign chairman Paul Manafort and former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen. Though the former Alabama senator was one of the president's earliest and loudest supporters, he has been on the receiving end of Trump's consistent and public grievances.
"Sessions should have never recused himself, and if he was going to recuse himself, he should have told me before he took the job and I would have picked somebody else," the president told the New York Times in a July interview.
The president has also lambasted Sessions for his management of the Justice Department, though Sessions has largely worked to make good on Trump's campaign promises by shifting legal focus away from protection of civil rights in favor of measures of "law and order" in the name of immigration reform and national security.
Reaction from Democratic leadership has been swift. Ranking House Judiciary member Jerry Nadler took to Twitter demanding answers about the timing of the announcement, and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters that any resulting interference with the special investigation would be considered a "constitutional crisis."
Whitaker, a former US attorney from Iowa who serves as director of the conservative ethics watchdog group Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust, published an opinion piece for CNN in 2017, before he had joined the Justice Department, which was titled "Mueller's Investigation into Trump has Gone too Far."
Rebecca Linde is a writer and cultural critic in NYC. She tweets about pop culture and television @rklinde.
Deceased Brothel Owner Wins Nevada Election: This is America
Dennis Hof won his bid for Nevada Assembly District 36 last night, despite having died three weeks ago.
Midterm elections are often considered a referendum on a sitting administration's progress—a collective report card graded by the people. Early numbers from this year's elections suggest a substantial and possibly record increase in voter turnout, which has been historically low in non-presidential voting years.
It's not surprising, given the turbulent political climate, that candidates from both parties continued to campaign at full speed up until the final hours. Yet despite an election cycle that saw blatantly racist attack ads, felony accusations, and threats of violence, the one surefire road to victory has been apparent for years: death.
Outlandish as it may seem, at least nine dead people have been elected to public office since 1962—six in the last 20 years alone. The latest, Dennis Hof, whose body was discovered last month after the legal brothel owner had celebrated at a campaign-and-birthday party, claimed victory in Nevada last night. Prior to his death, the 72-year-old had been celebrating with friends Heidi Fleiss, Ron Jeremy, and Joe Arpaio.
Ballots Beyond the Grave: Deceased People Who Have Won Elections
Rep. Clement Miller (CA, 1962; airplane accident)
Reps. Nick Begich (AK) and Hale Boggs (LA, 1972; airplane accident)
Gov. Mel Carnahan (MO, 2000; plane crash)
Rep. Patsy Mink (HI, 2002; viral pneumonia)
Sen. James Rhoades (PENN, 2008; car accident)
Sen. Jenny Oropeza (CA, 2010; cancer)
Sen. Mario Gallegos (TX, 2012; liver disease)
Dennis Hof (NV, 2018; cause of death not yet reported)
Hof ran for office as a self-proclaimed "Trump Republican" and stated that the president's 2016 win ignited his own desire for a career in politics. Similarities between the two run deep. Hof gained fame as a reality star on the long-running HBO documentary series Cathouse, which captured life at the Moonlite Bunny Ranch, one of several legal brothels owned and operated by Hof. In 2015, he published a memoir titled "The Art of the Pimp," a clear homage to Trump's "The Art of the Deal." In it, Hof included a psychological profile by psychotherapist Dr. Sheenah Hankin, which categorizes Hof as a narcissist who abused the sex workers he employed.
Among the issues he championed were immigration reform, a repeal of Nevada's 2015 Commerce Tax, and a campus carry law that would allow concealed-carry permit holders to bring their weapons onto Nevada college and university campuses. He was endorsed by Roger Stone and Grover Norquist. In the 2018 primary elections, Hof beat incumbent James Oscarson by a mere 432 votes. Because he died within 60 days of the upcoming election, Hof remained on the ballot, though signs were posted at polling sites notifying voters of his death.
It seems as though these issues matter more than electing a living person to citizens of the 36th Assembly District. In fact, a 2013 study by Vanderbilt University found that, in lower-level elections, voters are most likely to elect the candidate with the highest name recognition.
The 36th Assembly District, which spans Clark, Lincoln, and Nye counties, has long been a GOP stronghold. Hof defeated Democrat Lesia Romanov, a first-time (living, breathing) candidate and lifetime educator who works as assistant principal of an elementary school for at-risk children. Romanov was impelled to run for office by a desire for common-sense gun reform following the mass shooting in Parkland, Florida. Yet, too many of her constituents, upon discovering she was running against Hof, she became a de facto advocate for women, including "survivors of sex trafficking and exploited and abused brothel workers," according to NBC News. Romanov was among many women running for office in hopes of making Nevada's legislature the first to hold a female majority in the country.
As The Washington Post reported in 2014, there hasn't been an election with a dead person on the ballot in which the dead person lost. It's hard to determine what's more damning for American democracy: that voters are so divided that they're more likely to vote for a dead person than cross party lines or that they've been voting that way for years. At the same time, one might argue that giving Hof's seat to a living Republican (as appointed by county officials, according to state law) is a better outcome than if it'd gone to Hof himself, considering his history of sexual abuse allegations. The most preposterous indictment of the American political system is that although deceased candidates have been elected before, now the electorate could seemingly ask itself—in all seriousness—whether a dead serial abuser makes a better candidate than a living one. And no one seems to know the answer.
Canada Legalizes Marijuana to Become World's Largest Pot-Friendly Country
In addition to nationwide legalization, Canadian officials also announced plans to eliminate the waiting time and fees required to apply for criminal possession pardons.
Canada's legalization of recreational marijuana went into effect on Wednesday morning, making it the largest such legislation to date.
The move comes months after the Canadian House of Commons passed the Cannabis Act, a measure to curtail both underage marijuana use and the high profits earned through organized crime. The first retailers opened their doors at midnight in Newfoundland to long lines of eager customers who can now legally possess up to 30 grams in public and can cultivate up to four plants in their homes. Previously, possession of 30 grams was punishable by up to six months in prison.
Christopher Katsarov/AP
In addition to nationwide legalization, Canadian officials also announced plans to eliminate the waiting time and fees required to apply for criminal possession pardons. At a news conference in Ottawa, public safety minister Ralph Goodale called the decision "a matter of basic fairness."
Retailers and dispensaries must be federally licensed, but regulations will be implemented and enforced on a provincial level. Newfoundland and Montreal, for example, will allow operation of dispensaries. Toronto will not. Cannabis will be available for purchase online in all provinces, though the legal age varies from 18 to 19 in different locations.
The news is considered a big victory for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who campaigned on the promise of marijuana legalization three years ago and has been working on the legislation since 2016. It's the latest in the notoriously progressive politician's track record: he's championed the Paris environmental accord, welcomed 40,000 Syrian refugees, and has been outspoken about his pro-choice views. According to Trudeau, cannabis legalization is the next natural step to reflect the country's liberal-mindedness and evolving views on a substance already widely used by its populace.
Trudeau tweeted about "promises kept" shortly after legislation was passed in June
twitter.com
Canadians celebrated the new legislation from coast to coast, cheering as early sales were made and throwing New Year's Eve-like parties to welcome the new laws. Not everyone was riding the high, however. An op-ed published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal warned against "the known and unknown health hazards" of cannabis use, and expressed concern about how large companies, now able to legally market their products, might target younger audiences.
The op-ed reflected a general suspicion of Big Bud similar to that of Big Pharma, Alcohol, and Tobacco. Legalization is also expected to have a strong impact on the Canadian economy, drawing money from tourists seeking a legal smoking experience on top of an industry already projected to reach an estimated $5 billion by 2020.
Rebecca Linde is a writer and cultural critic in NYC. She tweets about pop culture and television @rklinde.
Key Republicans on Senate Judiciary Committee Condemn Trump's Remarks as Investigation Closes
"To discuss something this sensitive at a political rally is just not right," said Arizona senator Jeff Flake.
Lisa Murkowski (AK), called the president's remarks "wholly inappropriate, and, in my view, unacceptable."
The three Senate Republicans holding key swing votes on Brett Kavanaugh's Supreme Court nomination
spoke out on Wednesday against comments the president made at a political rally in Mississippi the night before. "The president's comments are just plain wrong," said Susan Collins (ME).
"To discuss something this sensitive at a political rally is just not right,"
said Jeff Flake (AZ).
At the rally, Trump questioned the credibility of Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, who testified in front of the Committee last week that Kavanaugh forced himself on her, groped her, and attempted to silence her cries for help when they were teenagers. Mockingly reenacting the questioning, he said, "How did you get home? 'I don't remember.' How did you get there? 'I don't remember.' Where was the place? 'I don't remember.'"
The president's comments are a far cry from the days immediately after Ford's testimony, during which he called her "a very credible witness," and her testimony "very compelling." When asked by the Committee how sure she was that her assailant was Kavanaugh, Ford answered, "100%." Kavanaugh has denied all allegations.
The president then turned his attention to Kavanaugh, echoing the judge's own testimony that the accusations have "destroyed [his] family and good name," claiming, "A man's life is in tatters" and calling the Democratic party's attempts to investigate Ford's claims a smear campaign. President Trump has been vocal about the need for due process, lamenting that the criminal justice system has become one in which someone is "guilty until proven innocent." Rally attendees were enthusiastic about the president's remarks, despite having repeated their 2016 campaign battle cry, "Lock her up," hours earlier.
Ford isn't the only woman who's accused Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct. Julie Swetnick alleged that Kavanaugh and his friend Mark Judge, who Ford claims to have been present during her assault, were among a group of friends who would target and drug girls at parties and take turns having sex with them. While Swetnick does not accuse Kavanaugh of participating in her own gang rape, she claims that he was at the party where it happened. Deborah Ramirez, in an interview with The New Yorker, said that Kavanaugh exposed himself to her at a party when they both attended Yale.
In her opening statement, Ford noted that she was " terrified" to testify before the committee, despite having passed a polygraph test administered by the FBI. Still, both the president, Judge Kavanaugh, and many members of the GOP have dismissed Ford's accusations as false, despite the fact that false rape allegations are very rare.
Collins, Murkowski, and Flake have remained publicly undecided on whether they will vote to confirm Kavanaugh, though Flake called for an expanded background investigation of the nominee and the allegations against him. Controlled closely by the White House, the investigation was closed on Wednesday evening. A single copy of the investigation report was made available to Senate Judiciary Committee members on Thursday morning, and Collins and Flake have said that they were satisfied with the result. However, the FBI never contacted a number of potential sources and character witnesses who may have been able to corroborate such claims. While the agency did speak with Ramirez, they did not follow up with the roughly 20 people whom she said could provide more information. Over 40 people have contacted the agency to offer testimony, including Swetnick and Kerry Bercham, a former roommate of Ramirez's, but federal investigators never responded.
After the investigation was closed, majority leader Mitch McConnell filed a motion to cloture Kavanaugh's nomination, restricting the amount of time to debate before a floor vote to 30 hours and ensuring that a vote will take place this week.
Rebecca Linde is a writer and cultural critic in NYC. She tweets about pop culture and television @rklinde.