The new American normal: Another crazed lunatic armed with a rifle and wearing body armor arrested at Missouri Walmart

Vegas gunman Stephen Paddock shot more than 500 people

CC™ News 

Police in Springfield, Missouri, detained a man on Thursday afternoon after he walked into a Walmart, armed with a rifle and wearing body armor. 

The white male, who appeared to be in his 20s, was stopped by an armed off-duty firefighter until officers arrived and took the man into custody, the Springfield Police Department said. 

A video taken by a witness outside the store shows the suspect with his arms up in the air and what looks like an assault rifle slung around his neck as he’s being arrested. 

It’s unclear what the man’s motive was, but police told ABC Springfield affiliate KSPR that the man was recording himself with his cellphone while walking through the store.

The man had about 100 rounds of ammunition on him when he entered the store, police told the station.

"All we know is the fact that he walked in here heavily armed, with body armor on, and military fatigues on, and caused a great amount of panic inside the store," said Lt. Mike Lucas with the Springfield Police Department. "He certainly had the capability and potential to harm people."

"His intent was not to cause comfort or peace to anybody that was in the business here. In fact, he’s lucky to be alive still, to be honest," Lucas added.

The man's name was not released and it's unclear if he's facing any charges.

The scare comes less than a week after an armed man killed 22 people and injured dozens more at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, and nine were killed during a shooting in Dayton, Ohio.

"Obviously what’s happened in Texas and Dayton, and that kind of stuff in the last seven days, that’s on everybody’s mind," Lucas said.

Police said there is no longer a threat to the community and the Walmart has since reopened.

Witness Julie Belew said she was getting out of her car at the Walmart when she realized something was going on.

She said she heard someone "say, 'Is that a rifle? Is that a real rifle?' So I looked up and I saw the person to my left was holding a gun."

The incident at the Missouri Walmart comes hours after police in Florida identified a man they were looking for who they alleged told a Walmart salesperson in Port St. Lucie that he was looking for something "that would kill 200 people."

That man was identified as 55-year-old Philip Michael Attey II and during a subsequent interview with detectives, Attey said he is an anti-gun activist and that he believes his statements made to the Walmart clerk in front of a customer "only helps his cause which is for Walmart to stop selling firearms," police said.

Authorities do not consider Attey an immediate threat and he was not arrested or charged. An investigation is ongoing.


Source: ABC News

Attacks on the Media Continue Unabated in Nigeria

Nigeria - A nation under siege from a brutal tyrant

CC™ Diplomatic Viewpoint - By John Campbell

There has been a string of arrests of media personalities and suspensions of media outlets in Nigeria. Recently, some of the arrests have been related to support for a protest tagged “Days of Rage” and #RevolutionNow, against what supporters consider a failure of governance, but the harassment of media in Nigeria is nothing new. 

In January 2019, Nigerian Security Services raided multiple offices across the country of the Daily Trust, one of Nigeria’s largest circulation newspapers, apparently angry at its published reports about upcoming army operations against Boko Haram. President Buhari quickly ordered the military to leave the newspaper’s offices, raising questions at who exactly had ordered the raids. In April, an activist known as IG Wala was sentenced to seven years in jail for organizing a peaceful demonstration and for making “unsubstantiated allegations” against a public official, the chairman of the National Hajj Commission. He is in the process of appealing the ruling. He had been denied bail, which he requested on health grounds until his appeal could be heard. He was then transferred to a remote prison.

In June, DAAR Communications, owner of African Independent Television and RayPower FM radio, had its license suspended indefinitely, allegedly for failure to pay licensing fees and for the presence of hate speech and suspect information from social media in its programming. The following day a Federal High Court judge ordered the reopening of the networks. The owner of DAAR communications had accused the director general of the National Broadcasting Commission of editorial interference and political bias. 

On August 2, Abubakar Dadiyata Idris, was apparently kidnapped. Family and friends are saying that he has been arrested by the DSS. Known as Dadiyata, he was a fierce critic of Governor Umar Ganduje of Kano state. The next day, the DSS arrested Omoyele Sowore, editor of Sahara Reporters, ostensibly for supporting the #RevolutionNow Lagos demonstration. He was also the presidential candidate for African Action Congress in the 2019 elections. His support for the demonstration was, according to the police, grounds for arresting him for advocating violence. There is a national and international campaign by some human rights advocates for his release.

Allegations against those arrested appear to be a mixture of the mundane, such as the failure to pay licensing fees, and various forms of incitement or criticism of government officials. It is worth noting that in at least some cases, courts have reversed arrests and suspensions. The specifics of each case are obscure, at least for someone based outside of Nigeria. But people in authority are clearly nervous. The country is facing serious challenges ranging from Boko Haram to Middle Belt conflict over water and land use that falls along ethnic and religious lines. Amid these crises, social media in Nigeria, as elsewhere, can be irresponsible. Governor El-Rufai of Kaduna state has made explicit reference to the role of “fake news” to the Rwandan genocide. Nevertheless, what appears to be an acceleration of media arrests and intimidation must be cause for concern.                                                 

 Source: Council on Foreign Relations

CC™ Flashback: Igbo leadership and their penchant for the absurd

Former Governor Raji Fashola of Lagos State

CC™ Conversation 

There has always been one constant with Igbo leadership. They have always had an obtuse penchant for the absurd while tinkering on the edge of provocation.

In a recent conversation with The Sun, a so-called chieftain of Igbo United Initiative (IUI) and Chairman of Win Peace Investment Ltd., Chief Amobi Nnadiekwe, stated unabashedly that the Ndigbo must produce the next deputy governor of Lagos State.

Chief Nnadiekwe stressed that his position was predicated on the 'fact' that the Igbo now constituted around 43% of the population of Lagos (I guess the Yoruba birthrate must be going down as well as that of the Hausa-Fulani in the state) and had contributed a lot to the growth and development of the state.

This is such obfuscated hubris and it is unfortunate that ethnic jingoists like Chief Nnadiekwe still continue to fight the civil war by preying on the guilty conscience of Yoruba liberals, in particular.

One wonders exactly why the fixation on Lagos State. I will delve into the politics of this in a follow-up piece and it will serve as a reminder to Yoruba leadership across the southwest, that those who forget history are condemned to repeat it.

As expected, it would seem that Chief Nnadiekwe's brethren across the bow does not share his notion of Nigerians "feeling at home" wherever they are, as an APGA (basically an Igbo party) leader declared that the APC (which most Ndigbo view as a Yoruba party) is a "stranger" in the same southeast Chief Nnadiekwe hails from.

Lagos State is a Yoruba state and will remain so. That the host ethnicity of that glorious state are welcoming and cordial, should not be misinterpreted for weakness. The Ndigbo remain by all accounts the most polarizing, parochial and unwelcoming of all ethnic nationalities in Nigeria.

It is time for there to be a realization that Nigeria does not owe the Ndigbo anything and the Yoruba in particular will not be blackmailed into sacrificing their birth-right on the altar of political correctness.

It is hypocritical that a man like Chief Nnadiekwe, whose political views have always been through ethno-tribal lenses should be the one clamoring for equity and egalitarianism, obviously when it suits him.

In this Sun interview, Chief Nnadiekwe speaks on various issues and claims that the Igbo constitute 43 per cent of the population in Lagos. 

Your group has been sensitizing the people of South-East to vote any political party that fields an Igbo as deputy governor of Lagos in 2015. So far, what has been the response?

The response was wonderful. We plan to visit town unions and markets in Lagos State especially, the ones dominated by Igbo. It is time to be part of the political process in the state where Igbo contribute over 52 per cent to the state's economy. Of course, you know that South-East constitutes 43 per cent of the state population. To that extent, we deserve the position of deputy governor. With the number of Ndigbo in Lagos, no doubt, if collectively we decide to vote for any party in Lagos, the party must win. Lagos State has continued to marginalize us politically, hence, Igbos have decided to demand for their right. We have written to all the political parties in the state, informing them of our resolve to vote any party that fields an Igbo as deputy governor.

We have given them early notice, so that they won't say we took them unawares as they are about to begin their primaries. Anything short of making an Igbo man deputy governor in 2015 will not be acceptable to Ndigbo. For the very first time, this vision has united Igbos in Lagos and in the Diaspora. This warning is extended to parties in the other states where Igbos are the second largest population. They should, as a matter of policy, field an Igbo man as deputy governor in 2015. The next stage is rally, which will be organized in the major centers in Lagos and in the affected states.

What other steps do you hope to take to make this happen?

Arrangements have been concluded to visit Igbo leaders and organizations including Ohaneze Ndigbo towards achieving this noble cause, because the population of Igbos in Lagos cannot be undermined in the forthcoming general elections in the state, even though we failed to realize this in the past. Our votes have always decided electoral victories in the state. Any party we vote for must win, hence, we refuse to be used to make up numbers in future elections in Lagos. Ndigbo will participate actively like never before in the 2015 general elections. We will continue to sensitize our people not to vote any party that fails to give the deputy governor slot to Igbos in Lagos. So, this is an assignment for parties jostling to win the gubernatorial race in the Center of Excellence state next year. We don't care about party, what matters most to Igbo is a party that has our interest at heart, whether APC, PDP, Labour or APGA. But if no party fields an Igbo man as deputy governor, we may be forced to boycott the governorship election in Lagos State.

Why the demand for deputy governor slot instead of the governorship seat considering the population of Ndgbo in Lagos?

It is possible for an Igbo to become governor of Lagos State. If you cast your mind back, you will remember that Zik won election as Premier of Western Region but was denied the opportunity and he ran back to become Premier of the Eastern Region. So, it is possible. If Ndigbo can come together, we will produce governor of Lagos State in the near future. We must start from somewhere, and that is the deputy governorship seat in 2015. Lagos is our second home. Majority of our investments are in Lagos and we have a good population. We are law-abiding citizens because there has never been any misunderstanding between Igbos and Lagosians. The relationship has been cordial, hence, even the indigenes wouldn't mind to elect Igbo as governor.

Don't you think that the issue of indigenization should be first enshrined in our constitution before making such demand?

Indigenization is one of the important issues addressed at the just concluded National conference. However, that won't stop us from making genuine demands such as the one at hand. Indigenization is welcomed by all Nigerians. What it means is that a Yoruba man can be governor of Anambra State; an Hausa can contest and win a senatorial seat in Ondo State.

And until we get to this stage, we are not yet a nation. Once again, I beg my brothers in Lagos State to allow Igbo participate fully in the 2015 political process in the state by zoning the position of deputy governor to Igbo.

We have paid our dues and have contributed in the development of the state which warrants this demand. Except they see us as slaves who don't deserve fair treatment. But if Lagosians are sincere, they would agree with me that Igbos are stakeholders in the Lagos project. 

We have developed virtually all parts of Lagos, a sign that we are not willing to leave the state or do anything to destroy or disrupt the relative peace in the state. If the truth must be told, Ndigbo have developed Lagos more than South East.

Turns out U.S. President Donald Trump actually smirked at the idea of shooting migrants at a political rally three months before El Paso massacre

CC™ Insider

We are leaving in rather dangerous times and the song "America the Beautiful" may soon be replaced by an unwanted sequel entitled "America the Ugly". This is unconscionable coming from the President of the United States.

A tyrant will always be a tyrant: Buhari's men in mufti arrest Omoyele Sowore over planned pro-democracy rally

President Muhammadu Buhari

CC™ Africa News

The Presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) in the February 2019 presidential election in Nigeria, Omoyele Sowore, has reportedly been arrested by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS).

According to SaharaReporters, Sowore’s online media outfit, he was picked up at his apartment in the early hours of Saturday, with an eyewitness confirming that his phone was forcefully taken from him.

Local media report his arrest by the DSS could be as a result of his plans to mobilize people in Lagos and many parts of the country for a revolution protest tagged ‘Days of Rage’ to demand a better Nigeria

Omoyele Sowore and some other Nigerian activists are staging a ‘RevolutionNow’ protest planned for August 5.

Nigeria police has warned Nigerians to stay away from the planned demonstration saying it would amount to a felony and terrorism.

His party, the African Action Congress (AAC) had declared 5th August for the commencement of revolution protest tagged ‘Days of Rage’ across the country to demand a better Nigeria.

Omoyele Sowore, disclosed recently in Abuja at the end of the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting that the protest would be sustained until the country is put on the right path of honor where justice prevails.

However, Muhammadu Buhari’s administration and the security forces said they are working heavily to address the multi-faceted crisis in the country, thereby calling on citizens to be patient for the efforts to yield the desired result.

Trevor Noah says Ronald Reagan using virulently racist language to describe African leaders is par for the course

CC™ Infotainment

Ellen Pompeo slammed for calling Kamala Harris 'overconfident': Funny thing is she (Pompeo) should know better as she is married to a black man and has two biracial daughters

Senator Kamala Harris

CC™ Political Insight

The internet did not respond kindly to Ellen Pompeo calling Kamala Harris “overconfident.” The Grey’s Anatomy star was tuned into the second Democratic debate on Wednesday, but riled people up with remarks about Harris on Twitter.

Pompeo’s controversial comment came in response to a Bloomberg tweet suggesting that an “emerging trend” in the debate was that Kamala Harris only wanted to debate Biden. The star’s response: “Because she’s overconfident and believes he is her only competition.”

Many interpreted her criticism as a “racial comment,” and took Pompeo to task. “Black women are allowed only a certain amount of confidence,” one person tweeted. “Must always yield something to whatever white man is around.”

Another wrote, “I know you didn’t just call a black woman running for president overconfident.”

Others suggested that her comment was meant to suggest Harris was being “uppity” and said that “white women need to do better.”

Pompeo — who never shies away from a discussion about race (and has faced criticism that she’s anti-white for “celebrating brown people”) — soon found herself defending her tweet. She said the fact that it was turned into a “racial comment” was “so weak.” She added, “Stop looking for sh** to get mad about.”

Others on social media also felt her comment was sexist but at the end of the night, Ellen signed off with love — and reminded people that she’s allowed to have opinions.

Dissecting Obasanjo's latest letter to Buhari

CC™ Political Insight

The Lion King reigns supreme at the box office

CC™ Entertainment News

"The Lion King" rode its circle of life into a second weekend atop the box office and "Once Upon A Time ... In Hollywood," while not quite doing fairytale numbers, gave director Quentin Tarantino his biggest opening ever.

Disney's photo-realistic remake of the Hamlet-themed tale of Mufasa, Simba and Nala, featuring the voices of Donald Glover and Beyoncé, brought in $75 million in North America, according to studio estimates Sunday. Its domestic total of $350 million makes it the year's fourth highest-grossing film after just 10 days of release.

"Once Upon A Time ... In Hollywood" finished a distant second with $40 million in its opening weekend for Sony, but it bested the 2009 opening of Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds" by $2 some million and made a strong showing for an R-rated, nearly-three-hour film that was not a sequel or remake and was aimed solely at adults.

The rest of the box office top 10 remained essentially unchanged from a week earlier. Sony's "Spider-Man: Far From Home" was third with $12.2 million in its fourth weekend and has earned a cumulative $344 million, "Toy Story 4" was fourth with $9.8 million, and "Crawl" fifth with $4 million.

"The Lion King" could reign for a third week. With major summer releases slowing as fall approaches the only real competition it has opening next weekend is "Fast & Furious: Hobbs & Shaw."

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Where available, the latest international numbers for Friday through Sunday are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.

1. "The Lion King," $75.5 million ($142.8 million international).

2. "Once Upon a Time ... In Hollywood," $40.3 million.

3. "Spider-Man: Far From Home," $12.2 million ($21 million international).

4. "Toy Story 4," $9.8 million ($19.4 million international).

5. "Crawl," $4 million ($3.4 million international).

6. "Yesterday," $3 million ($3.6 million international).

7. "Aladdin," $2.8 million ($7.2 million international).

8. "Stuber," $1.7 million ($1.6 million international).

9. "Annabelle Comes Home," $1.56 million ($3.7 million international).

10. "The Farewell," $1.55 million.

Source: Associated Press (AP)

Another sad tale of gun violence in America as lunatic gunman kills three at California food festival

California Governor Gavin Newsom

CC™ Headline News

A gunman cut through a fence to avoid security and opened fire at Northern California's popular Gilroy Garlic Festival, killing three and wounding at least 15 before police fatally shot him as terrified people and performers ran for cover.

Gilroy Police Chief Scot Smithee said the gunman was armed with a rifle and sneaked in through a fence that borders a parking lot next to a creek. He appeared to randomly target people when he opened fire just after 5:30 p.m. Sunday, the conclusion of the three-day festival that attracts more than 100,000 people to the city known as the "Garlic Capital of the World."

Police responded within a minute, engaged the suspect and killed him, Smithee said.

Some witnesses reported a second suspect, Smithee said, but it was unclear whether that person was armed or simply provided assistance. A manhunt continued late into the night.

Smithee called the scene at the festival a "nightmare you hope you never have to live."

The wounded were taken to multiple hospitals, and their conditions ranged from fair to critical, with some in surgery Sunday night. At least five were treated and released.

The Gilroy Garlic Festival features food, cooking contests and music. It's a decades-old staple in the agricultural city of 50,000 about 80 miles (176 kilometers) southeast of San Francisco, and normally a sea of tranquility for families. Security is tight — festival-goers pass through metal detectors and their bags are searched.

On Sunday, the band TinMan was starting an encore with the song "We're an American Band" when the shooting started.

Singer Jack van Breen said he saw a man wearing a green shirt and grayish handkerchief around his neck fire into the food area with what looked like an assault rifle. Van Breen and other members of the band dove under the stage.

Van Breen, from nearby Santa Clara, said he heard someone shout: "Why are you doing this?" and the reply: "Because I'm really angry."

Their audience began screaming and running, and the five members of TinMan and others managed to dive under the stage.

Van Breen's bandmate, Vlad Malinovsky of Walnut Creek, California, said he heard a lot of shots and then it stopped. Later, law enforcement came by and told the band members and others hiding with them to come out with their hands up.

Taylor Jackson was working at a booth drawing caricatures of festival-goers when she heard gunfire, saw people running and "ran for the hills." She said her boss ran in the opposite direction. Several hours later, Jackson was at a reunification center trying to get information on her whereabouts.

Donna Carlson of Reno, Nevada, was helping a friend at a jewelry booth when "all of a sudden it was pop, pop, pop. And I said, 'I sure hope that's fireworks.'" She got on her hands and knees and hid behind a table until police told her it was safe to leave.

In a tweet, California Gov. Gavin Newsom called the bloodshed "nothing short of horrific" and expressed appreciation for the police response. President Donald Trump tweeted before authorities confirmed the gunman was dead and urged people to "be careful and safe!"

Evenny Reyes of Gilroy, 13, told the Mercury News that she spent the day at the festival with her friends and relatives.

"We were just leaving and we saw a guy with a bandanna wrapped around his leg because he got shot. And there were people on the ground, crying," Reyes said. "There was a little kid hurt on the ground. People were throwing tables and cutting fences to get out."

Reyes said that she didn't run at first because the gunshots sounded like fireworks.

"It started going for five minutes, maybe three. It was like the movies — everyone was crying, people were screaming," she said.

Smithee said the festival is a source of pride for the community and that thousands donate their time to make it a success.

"It's incredibly sad and disheartening that an event that does so much good for our community has to suffer from a tragedy like this," he said.

Source: Associated Press (AP)