Author: Ben Kolodny

Ohio State University President Sparks Controversy with Breonna Taylor Statement

Ben Kolodny

In a video statement posted on Twitter Wednesday, Ohio State University President Kristina Johnson ignited controversy with a statement about Breonna Taylor.

In the 45 second clip Johnson said:

“Breonna Taylor deserves justice, and this does not feel like justice. We cannot accept what has happened in Louisville, we grieve the tragic and senseless loss of Breonna Taylor, a daughter, a friend, a niece, a loved one, who was unarmed and asleep. The breakdown in the justice system and the killings of unarmed Black and Brown people in our country has become all too familiar, tragically. This isn’t going to stop until we create an anti-racist world. We must come together to draw strength from each other and advance our collective vision for a better world where we’ll one day have justice for all. There is much work to be done.”

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Protesters Harass New ICE Director at His House

Ben Kolodny

Protesters from a group calling itself Charlotte Underground showed up at ICE director Tony Pham’s house to protest. 

The organization, who describes itself as a “coalition of community members dedicated to ending state violence against Black and marginalized people” on it’s Facebook page arrived at Pham’s house, chanted, and yelled at police and neighbors.

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Ohio Attorney General Yost Calls on Netflix to Remove ‘Cuties’

Ben Kolodny

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost called on Netflix to remove the controversial new movie “Cuties” from their platform.

In a joint letter to Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, Yost, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry, and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton requested that the platform “voluntarily remove” the movie “from your service due to the great harm it causes to our children.”

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Project Veritas Sues Oregon Calling Undercover Journalism Law Unconstitutional

Ben Kolodny

Project Veritas (PV) and the Project Veritas Action Fund (PVA) have filed suit against the state of Oregon.

The lawsuit calls Oregon’s laws regarding undercover journalism “unconstitutional,” and says that the law prohibits journalists from “exercising their First Amendment rights to engage in undercover newsgathering.”

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Baltimore Republican Candidate Grabs National Attention with Ad

Ben Kolodny

To showcase the plight of Black citizens living in Democratic-run Baltimore, Republican congressional candidate Kimberly Klacik took a simple approach: a walk through Baltimore’s downtown.

In a two-and-a-half minute video, Klacik (pronounced “CLAY-sick”) showcased Baltimore’s run-down buildings, asked citizens their thoughts on defunding police, and explained many of the issues facing the city.

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Police Budgets Nationwide In Crisis After Covid, Activism Cut Funding in Half: Study

Ben Kolodny
Nashville Police

Police Departments across the country are in crisis as calls to defund the police, rioting, and the Covid Crisis threaten to sap existing resources. 

A new study by the Police Executive Research Forum showed that almost half of the 258 departments surveyed are facing budget cuts. Portland City council approved a $15,000,000 dollar budget cut last month as the city struggled with riots. The Portland Police Department was forced to pay over $5,000,000 in overtime to deal with the unrest. 

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Second Stimulus Check Likely to Exceed $1200 for Many

Ben Kolodny

President Trump hinted that the second round of stimulus payments could be higher than the original $1200. The new GOP plan has updated the definition of “dependents” allowing many to receive an additional $500 dollars per person in their families. 

During an interview in Texas yesterday, President Trump spoke on the second stimulus package, saying “we want to take care of people that don’t have jobs,” Noting that “we have to do it smart but we want.. (to be) very generous.” When asked by a reporter if $1200 would be enough the president responded ” We’re going to see it may go higher than that actually.” He went on to praise the economy saying “We just had tremendous job numbers” and “great retail sales numbers.”

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Trump Administration to Send Federal Agents to Cleveland

Ben Kolodny

Federal agents will be sent to Cleveland as part of “Operation Legend.” The operation, named after four-year-old Legend Taliferro who was killed in Kansas City, was created to help combat the uptick in violence in the wake of the George Floyd Protests. Cleveland Police Chief Calvin Williams stressed that there will not be “Federal Troops” in the city.

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Mysterious Seeds Arriving Across the U.S. and U.K.

Ben Kolodny

Unidentified seeds, seemingly from China, have arrived unsolicited across the country. Agricultural officials are asking residents not to plant these seeds. Stating that they may be from invasive, destructive, or otherwise dangerous plants. Officials in at least 27 states have reported unsolicited packages of seeds delivered to residents. Similar packages have begun arriving throughout the U.K.

Jane Rupp, a Better Business Bureau representative, believes that these shipments could be part of a brushing scam, where online sellers ship large quantities of cheap merchandise to increase their overall ratings and visibility by creating fake reviews in the recipients name, reports Fox. Similar cases were reported in late 2019 with Americans receiving unordered, low cost, and even empty packages.

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