Reading archive 2024-08-20

I Have Been Studying Poker for Years. Kamala Harris Isn’t Bluffing.

Outraged Over Gaza, Protesters Show Left-Wing Divisions as Convention Opens: A protest in Chicago on Monday, which was expected to be one of the largest of the week, drew fewer demonstrators than organizers had hoped for.

RFK Jr.’s running mate drops the pretense about helping Trump: Nicole Shanahan offered some surprisingly unvarnished comments that played into Democrats’ longstanding allegations.

D.C. violence interrupters hope bribery scandal won’t undercut their efforts: The relatively small community of people who work on what’s often called “community violence intervention” has been hit hard by the news of Trayon White Sr.’s arrest. - "A 2022 D.C. Auditor’s report on violence interruption programs found that their results were mixed, and that staff with organizations contracted by the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement were spread too thin across D.C. neighborhoods, including in some priority communities that only had a part-time violence interrupter.

...

"While homicides are down significantly in D.C. this year, these community-based organizations have weathered a difficult few years. Last year, the city recorded more homicides than it had in 25 years." [ed. note: lol]