{"id":17421,"date":"2015-11-22T04:48:55","date_gmt":"2015-11-22T12:48:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/?p=17421"},"modified":"2015-11-22T05:30:45","modified_gmt":"2015-11-22T13:30:45","slug":"squatchs-open-thread-22112015","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/2015\/11\/22\/squatchs-open-thread-22112015\/","title":{"rendered":"Squatch’s Open Thread 22\/11\/2015"},"content":{"rendered":"

I have been able to accomplish quite a bit today so I am a happy camper. Tomorrow will be a day to visit with my mother.  I bought her some adaptive clothing so we may have a "fashion show" to try them on for fit and hopefully to see my mother smile.<\/span><\/p>\n

Puzzle — <\/strong>Today’s took me 3:15 (average 5:20). To do it, <\/span>click here<\/strong><\/span><\/a>. How did you do? <\/span><\/p>\n

Short Takes<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Vancouver Sun<\/span><\/a><\/strong> <\/strong>— <\/span>But he believes that building cities is about more than just constructing houses and towers and roads to connect them. It’s also about creating social infrastructure and inclusive societies.<\/p>\n

\"Vancouver<\/p>\n

So, Gillespie’s Westbank Properties is handing over 12 fully furnished and fully stocked apartments downtown to the Immigrant Services Society of B.C. for a minimum of four months. Those multi-bedroom units will be used as transitional accommodation until more permanent housing can be found for some of the 3,000 Syrian refugees expected to arrive in Vancouver within the next several months. <\/p>\n

Click through for the rest.  This attitude is certainly in contrast to that of US state governors, many of whom have said flat out "no refugees", and to the US House which voted "no" to refugees.  But many US Christians are seriously stepping forward in support of the Syrian refugees.  <\/span>Vancouver developer Daljit Thind<\/span><\/a><\/strong>, himself an immigrant, has housing available. <\/span>Vancouver's Temple Sholom<\/span><\/a><\/strong> has raised money to sponsor a family and is working with Mosaic immigrant services.<\/span><\/p>\n

Washington Post<\/span><\/a><\/strong> — h\/t JLA<\/strong> — <\/span>Completing a long-shot bid that ran counter to the conservative tide sweeping the Southern states, Democratic state Rep. John Bel Edwards was elected governor of Louisiana on Saturday, defeating his Republican rival, U.S. Sen. David Vitter.<\/p>\n

Edwards was the top vote-getter in the state’s open primary last month and then built a lead over Vitter that he never surrendered.<\/p>\n

With 1,800 out of 3,945 precincts reporting, Edwards led Vitter 55 percent to 45 percent, prompting the Edwards campaign to declare victory late Saturday evening.<\/p>\n

Click through for the rest of the story.  Although this article states "<\/span>1,800 out of 3,945 precincts reporting", the <\/span>Huffington Post's<\/span><\/a><\/strong> story says "<\/span>Edwards won 56 percent of the vote, with 99 percent of precincts reporting.".  And from <\/span>Mother Jones<\/span><\/a>, <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

Edwards has pledged<\/a> to sign an executive order authorizing the expansion of the program on his first day in office. That's a really big deal. Such a move would provide coverage to about 225,000 residents in one of the poorest states in the nation.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

It certainly looks like things are looking up for Louisiana.  About time!<\/span><\/p>\n

Think Progress<\/span><\/a><\/strong> — <\/span>When a parking lot attendant dared to recycle trash he picked up outside an upstate New York Walmart, the store fired him. Now generous strangers are trying to help cushion his sudden fall.<\/p>\n

Thomas Smith, 52, had been earning $9 an hour at an upstate New York Walmart for less than three months when his manager terminated him over the cans. Smith was in charge of rounding up shopping carts from the lot outside the store, and started collecting trash from the lot while making his rounds. After storing up cans for a couple months, he recycled them in the store’s machines in early November. He got $5.10 for them.<\/p>\n

Click through for the rest of the story.  I think the following line from the story sums up the situation:<\/span> "That thief was white. Smith collected trash while black."<\/p>\n

My Universe<\/span> <\/strong>— <\/p>\n