The Southern Baptist Convention, the largest Protestant denomination in the United State, has agreed to open up hundreds of thousands of confidential records to investigators looking into sexual abuse allegations against the organization, the Associated Press reports.

By a 44-31 vote, the denomination’s Executive Committee agreed to waive lawyer-client confidentiality, allowing records on how leadership dealt with accusations of abuse and harassment at its churches and institutions.  It was the third vote on this issue for the Committee in less than three weeks; the other two attempts were voted down, despite church messengers–representatives from member congregations–voting at the denomination’s Convention in June to release the records.  Experts on church law say the vote by the messengers would ultimately prevail.

“What we’re doing is about creating chaos,” committee member Joe Knott of North Carolina said in opposition to the waiver.  The messengers “voted to investigate sexual abuse” but not to “void our insurance,” he said.

“A majority of Americans support the two spending bills being debated on Capitol Hill that are key to President Biden’s economic agenda, with stronger support for the infrastructure bill than the broader social spending bill, according to a Quinnipiac national poll of adults released today.”

“Americans say 62 – 34 percent that they support a roughly $1 trillion spending bill to improve the nation’s roads, bridges, broadband, and other infrastructure projects. This compares to 65 – 28 percent support in August. In today’s poll, Democrats support the bill 85 – 11 percent, independents support it 62 – 35 percent, and Republicans oppose it 58 – 38 percent. Americans say 57 – 40 percent that they support a $3.5 trillion spending bill on social programs such as child care, education, family tax breaks, and expanding Medicare for seniors, compared to 62 – 32 percent support in August. In today’s poll, Democrats support the bill 92 – 5 percent, independents are split with 50 percent supporting it and 48 percent opposing it, and Republicans oppose it 68 – 28 percent” – Quinnipiac Polls.

A thorough analysis of the downvoters to an inflammatory anti-Russian comment posted by National Zero editor “Spartan” on an article at Kremlin propaganda site RT.com on Tuesday revealed that fully 90 percent of the identifiable Disqus accounts having recorded a downvote had themselves posted zero comments, with the remainder also being of suspect origin. The comment mocking Russia’s economy in contrast to California’s received a high number of downvotes – 68 as of 3:19 PM EDT on Tuesday – however only 50 of those 68 were tied to an account, with the remaining 18 being recorded as “Guest votes”.

NASA: “Like the speed of an advancing race car driver, the winds in the outermost ‘lane’ of Jupiter’s Great Red Spot are accelerating – a discovery only made possible by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, which has monitored the planet for more than a decade. Researchers analyzing Hubble’s regular ‘storm reports’ found that the average wind speed just within the boundaries of the storm, known as a high-speed ring, has increased by up to 8 percent from 2009 to 2020.”

“In contrast, the winds near the red spot’s innermost region are moving significantly more slowly, like someone cruising lazily on a sunny Sunday afternoon. Researchers found that the average wind speed just within the boundaries of the Great Red Spot, set off by the outer green circle, have increased by up to 8 percent from 2009 to 2020 and exceed 400 miles per hour. The massive storm’s crimson-colored clouds spin counterclockwise at speeds that exceed 400 miles per hour – and the vortex is bigger than Earth itself. The red spot is legendary in part because humans have observed it for more than 150 years. ‘When I initially saw the results, I asked ‘Does this make sense?’ No one has ever seen this before,’ said Michael Wong of the University of California, Berkeley, who led the analysis. ‘But this is something only Hubble can do. Hubble’s longevity and ongoing observations make this revelation possible.'”

Dominion Big Box II Board Game is on sale at Amazon for $39.71 (was $75): https://t.co/0xMM1VoTTt 🎲 pic.twitter.com/4iH48YPLaI

— IGN Deals (@IGNDeals) October 5, 2021

“Mr. Greenberg submits that a continuance of the sentencing hearing will allow the parties sufficient time to resolve the foregoing matters prior to Mr. Greenberg’s sentencing hearing. After consulting with the Government, the Government has advised that it does not oppose Mr. Greenberg’s request for a continuance until March 2022… Mr. Greenberg’s ongoing cooperation, which will not be completed prior to his current sentencing date, could have an impact on his final sentence. Concerning the Sixth Amendment, this constitutional provision guarantees Mr. Greenberg’s Because Mr. Greenberg’s ongoing cooperation involves sensitive matters concerning ongoing investigations, he requests that the parties be allowed to provide additional information regarding Mr. Greenberg’s cooperation to the Court under seal, if deemed necessary” – Motion to delay sentencing for former Matt Gaetz pal Joel Greenberg who pleaded guilty and is cooperating with the Justice Department investigation of Gaetz over suspected sex trafficking.

“The man accused of using his pickup to burn tire marks across a gay-pride streetscape in Delray Beach on Tuesday moved to fight the charges against him. Alexander Jerich, 20, appeared in Palm Beach County Court on Tuesday. He had the opportunity to take a plea deal, but his attorney indicated a desire to go to trial. Jerich, of Lake Worth, turned himself into police after viral video showed a white pickup truck registered to his father burn tire marks into the rainbow flag painted on the road. He is charged with criminal mischief over $1,000 and reckless driving. The video shows a pickup truck with a blue ‘all aboard the Trump train’ flag flying from the rear of the truck. An SUV driving in front of the truck also appears to have a Trump flag affixed to it. Detectives used the video in their investigation, said Delray police spokesman Ted White. The person who took the video wanted to remain anonymous, the arrest report says.”

“Gay rights advocates expressed frustration that Jerich wasn’t charged with a hate crime. Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg said he believes Jerich was motivated by prejudice but that Florida’s legal standard prevented his office from charging Jerich with a hate crime because the victim is the city, not an individual person. Florida defines a hate crime as ‘a committed or attempted criminal act by any person or group of persons against a person or the property of another person or group, which in any way constitutes an expression of hatred toward the victim because of his/her personal characteristics'” – South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Spartan NZ ✓TEAM SOROS™ • a few seconds ago
️Russia’s economy is half the size of California’s. Stick to krokodil and bathtub vodka, you losers. Lol.
Tue, 10/5/2021 11:07 AM on ‘Catastrophic Facebook crash proves time for Russian internet sovereignty has come, Moscow announces after 6-hour network outage’

The widely-detested American internet troll known only as “Spartan” reacted with giddy joy Tuesday upon discovering that the English-language Russian propaganda site RT.com uses the Disqus platform for commenting on its news articles. “This is a game-changer in terms of time-wasting on the political internet,” Spartan said in an interview between voices in his head being transcribed in the third person. “We can give those turnip-fuckers some small measure of payback for the years of sitting through the shit they heaped on our news sites,” he added, encouraging all National Zero readers to regularly visit to mock Putin and Russia in general, with a specific emphasis on pro-Democracy and pro-Biden propaganda. “They will suffer our wrath,” Spartan said.

“The feds descended on the Manhattan headquarters of the controversial NYPD sergeants union Tuesday, the Daily News has learned. While the details of the investigation were not revealed, an FBI spokeswoman confirmed to The News that the agency was ‘carrying out a law enforcement action in connection with an ongoing investigation’ into the Sergeants Benevolent Association.”

“A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York declined to comment. The controversial union is headed by Ed Mullins, a fiery leader known for his over-the-top social media attacks on NYPD leadership and Mayor de Blasio” New York Daily News reports.

And – you’ll surely be shocked to hear this – the Sergeants Benevolent Association endorsed Trump for reelection in 2020. I know, right? Mullins said “The Trump Administration has an undisputed record of supporting police officers at a time when many other segments of society are abandoning or openly attacking us” in a statement on election day – which was two months before that other thing happened when a certain “segment of society” openly attacked police officers and then a certain someone abandoned them, and also allegedly called a few of them “pussies”.

Forbes: “Donald Trump is worth an estimated $2.5 billion, leaving him $400 million short of the cutoff to make this year’s Forbes 400 list of America’s richest people. The real estate mogul is just as wealthy as he was a year ago, when he stood at No. 339 on the ranking, but he is down $600 million since the start of the pandemic. Technology stocks, cryptocurrencies and other assets have thrived in the COVID era. But big-city properties – which make up the bulk of Trump’s fortune – have languished, knocking the former president out of the nation’s most-exclusive club.”

“If Trump is looking for someone to blame, he can start with himself. Five years ago, he had a golden opportunity to diversify his fortune. Fresh off the 2016 election, federal ethics officials were pushing Trump to divest his real estate assets. That would have allowed him to reinvest the proceeds into broad-based index funds and assume office free of conflicts of interest.”

The DOJ has been fully weaponized and is now Biden’s chief force for domestic intimidation and terror

Florida and other Red States must sever any/all ties with the FBI IMMEDIATELY and BAN all inter-agency agreements with our State or any law enforcement agency in our State NOW! https://t.co/Mwny1IYOE0

— Anthony Sabatini (@AnthonySabatini) October 5, 2021

Capitol rioter David Lee Judd apparently believes he’s being railroaded because those Antifa kids in Portland got off easy compared to him, per a defense motion filed in the DC Circuit Court where Judd is facing charges assaulting police officers during the insurrection – throwing a lit firecracker at cops among them. Last week his attorney filed a “Motion to Compel Discovery in Support of Mr. Judd’s Claim of Selective Prosecution“, a maneuver chock full of bullshit MAGA whataboutery:

“The discriminatory effects in this case are the outcomes: protestors supporting left-leaning causes in Portland assaulted officers in the attempted breach of a federal building and in D.C. assaulted officers directly in an anti-police protest. Mr. Judd was at a protest associated with right-leaning causes and support of President Trump and is alleged to have assaulted officers in the attempted breach of a federal building. At least 25 similarly situated defendants in Portland and the D.C. Fireworks Defendant had their charges dismissed, whereas Mr. Judd – who caused no injury and who has no history of violence and is in criminal history category I – received a plea offer that would result in estimated sentencing guidelines of 46 to 57 months. The disparity in outcomes is sufficient that the government must turn over the targeted discovery specified in Section III. Mr. Judd’s request is not a fishing expedition, and he recommends in camera review by the Court where work product of open prosecutions is involved”

Read the report: https://t.co/NPhuncMcDc

— John Solomon (@jsolomonReports) October 5, 2021

AP: “The old music box factory had been abandoned for years on the outskirts of the Swiss mountain town, with paint curling at the edges of its dingy grey and yellow walls. It was the perfect hiding place for the young French mother and her 8-year-old daughter at the heart of Operation Lima, an international child abduction plot planned and funded by a French group with echoes of the far-right extremist movement QAnon. Lola Montemaggi had lost custody of her daughter, Mia, to her own mother months earlier because French government child protective services feared the young woman was unstable. Montemaggi found people online who shared the QAnon belief that government workers themselves were running a child trafficking ring.”

“Then she turned to her network to do what she needed to do: Extract Mia. The April 13 kidnapping of the girl from her grandmother’s home marked what is believed to be the first time that conspiracy theorists in Europe have committed a crime linked to the QAnon-style web of false beliefs that sent hundreds to storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. It shows how what was once a strictly U.S. movement has metastasized around the world, with Europol, the European umbrella policing agency, adding QAnon to its list of threats in June. QAnon has now been tracked to 85 countries, and its beliefs have been adapted to local contexts and languages from Hindi to Hebrew.”

Daily Mail: “Former NASCAR driver John Wes Townley, who was shot dead in Georgia over the weekend during a dispute involving his ex-wife, another man and a hatchet, pleaded guilty in a domestic abuse case and was sentenced to probation two years ago, court documents show. Townley, 31, was shot in the chest just before 9pm on Saturday in the 200 block of Morton Avenue in the Five Points area of Athens, Georgia, just days after his marriage to Laura Townley was formally dissolved. Laura Townley, 30, was struck by gunfire and wounded after the man she was with at the time, 32-year-old Zachary Anderson, allegedly opened fire on John Wes Townley, who was said to be brandishing an ax. The incident comes more than two years after the former NASCAR driver was charged with battery-family violence, simple battery and disorderly conduct.”

“According to court records reviewed by DailyMail.com, in August 2019, the NASCAR driver threw his wife, Laura, to the floor, leaving her ‘in reasonable fear of the safety of her life, limb and health.’ Less than three weeks later, Townley agreed to plead guilty to a misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct, and in exchange prosecutors agreed to drop the battery charges against him. Lt Shaun Barnett, an Athens Police Department spokesperson, told DailyMail.com that Anderson has not been arrested or charged with any crime as of Monday afternoon. ‘We are not ruling self-defense out as a possibility,’ Barnett said. The spokesperson stressed that the investigation into the fatal shooting is still ongoing.””

Disgraced former Republican Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich told Hannity doesn’t know what “respond in kind” means:  “What you showed from Talladega, what you showed from these football stadiums, just remember:  there are a lot more of us than there are of these crazed radicals.  If we ever decide to respond in kind, they’ll be gone.”

The Texas state commission responsible for determining the merits of clemency applications has recommended George Floyd, the Black man killed by a Minneapolis police officer in May 2020, receive a full pardon for a 2004 arrest in the state on drug charges, NBC News reports.

All seven members of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles voted to send the recommendation to Republican Governor Greg Abbott, the final arbiter in the state for clemency grants.  It is unknown if Abbott supports the clemency request, which was made by the Harris County Public Defender’s Office in April.

“We lament the loss of former Houstonian George Floyd and hope that his family finds comfort in Monday’s decision,” Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said in a statement. “We do not support the integrity of Mr. Floyd’s conviction and agree these circumstances warrant a posthumous pardon. We urge Governor Abbott to follow the board’s recommendation and grant clemency.”

“The MAGA movement resembles the proto-Confederates in that it bears a powerful sense of loss – that in Trump it had its big chance to Make America Great Again but was robbed of victory by tyrants who will now flood the land with the votes of swarthy immigrants and destroy American enterprise with a socialist administrative state. The Confederates, having been denied control of their country via the organization of a party united by opposition to national recognition of property rights in human slaves, sought a new country rooted in what they viewed as the better parts of the old. And not for a moment did they admit to themselves that they were the aggressors.”

“Yes, I might derive great joy from the overthrow of the U.S. Senate and its filibuster and the conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court. I would feel much safer in a progressive nation that didn’t arm its citizens to the teeth, didn’t view other nations as ‘shitholes’ full of subhuman orcs to be subdued, and didn’t accept calamitous climate change as just the price of doing business. But how could I happily accept the accelerated subjugation of women and people of color in a new, adjacent Red America, any more than abolitionists could accept the continuation and expansion of the slavery they hated? Would it really be safe to live near a carbon-mad country in which the denial of climate change was an article of faith? And could I ever trust that a ‘neighbor’ whose leadership and citizens believed their policies reflected the unchanging ancient will of the Almighty would leave our fences intact? This Union is still worth fighting for, no matter how frustrated we all are with congressional chaos, with elections that feel like nuclear exchanges, and with ‘debates’ taking place between people who can barely communicate with each other. So I say to the would-be secessionists: Please don’t go. And if it’s somehow in my power, I won’t let you go. I have no illusions of compromises yet untried or ‘third ways’ left unexplored. So let’s have it out right here in America as peacefully as we can manage” – Ed Kilgore, New York Magazine.

Donald Trump has announced that he is rebranding his Make America Great Again Action Super PAC as Make America Great Again, Again! (MAGA, Again!) Super PAC, taking over all operations as Trump’s official Super PAC.

Pam Bondi, the former Florida Attorney General who allegedly declined to pursue fraud charges against Trump University after Trump made a $25,000 donation to her reelection fund, will be the Super PAC’s chairman.  Trump’s son’s current girlfriend, Kimberly Guilfoyle will be its treasurer, a role that she held in the old Super PAC, MAGA Action, and for which she said she would give lap dances to top-end donors.