Dynamism of IoT-powered Gas Monitoring Solution

IoT is a stay-ahead technology that is providing an effective paradigm shift in multiple industries, including the oil and gas sector. With the help of real-time monitoring and advanced analytics features, this disruptive technology is allowing the O&G companies to effectively monitor their assets ranging from pipeline networks to machines and pumping equipment.

Currently, technology investment in the gas sector completely depends on mobility, asset management, cloud adoption, and analytics. It is further targeted to reduced infrastructure costs which are greatly justified with the usage of IoT. The Internet of Things is more focused on generating data efficiencies and more informed decision-making.

Along with improving operational and asset efficiency, IoT holds a great potential to increase output in some cases. For instance, Intel has claimed that IoT-powered infrastructure and data analytics procedures used in gas wells can provide improved results by 30%. Also, McKinsey estimated that offshore platforms are performing at 77% of maximum production levels.

Hence, if applied accurately, IoT and advanced analytics tools allow the gas companies to increase their potential in collecting massive data and gain valuable insights for the future. Moreover, it can generate a greater ROI of up to 30 to 50 times the actual investment in a very short deployment period.

The Need for An IoT-powered Gas Monitoring Solution

A large variety of applications and processes in the gas industry use highly dangerous flammable and toxic gases. The inevitable occasional escape of such gases creates a hazardous environment for each worker and even the nearby residents. This results in devastating incidents involving asphyxiation, unwanted explosions, and life losses.

In most industries, one of the safety plans to avoid such situations is to implement a gas monitoring solution as an early warning system where it is easier and safer to pre-detect the toxicity in the atmosphere.

It Serves Multiple Areas

Apart from huge oil and gas refineries and plants, a gas monitoring solution can also be used in commercial areas like parking lots, laboratories, sewage treatment, hospitals, and swimming pools. Such areas are prone to high-risk due to the vigorous machineries and plant operations. A slight gas leak could lead to major havoc and cost human lives when not taken the necessary action. Let's find out how this system works.

Workability

• Real-time Monitoring
• End-to-end Solution
• Control Visualization
• Immediate Alerts

These are the key factors on which a gas monitoring solution relies. The sensors installed on the assets allow you to sense the presence of gas concentrations in the atmosphere at all times and from any location. This is a completely tailored solution that is enabled with all the necessary hardware and software capabilities to simplify your purchases. Moreover, it is equipped with advanced analytics to optimize and keep control of industrial operations. Along with full control, this solution enables remote monitoring to help identify the presence of toxic gases in remotely located infrastructures. After detecting the presence of gases, it immediately alarms the authorities to stay prepared with necessary measures.

A gas monitoring solution comprises of the latest sensor devices that automatically fetch data from the assets and allow the authorities to predict necessary results for improved facility maintenance. A centralized dashboard is a versatile management desk for the managers to not only supervise environmental conditions but also perform administrative and managerial tasks for the plant facility.

Here are some of the benefits that you can avail by using a gas monitoring solution at your premises.

Benefits of Implementing IoT in the Gas Industry

Remote Monitoring

                How convenient is it to be able to monitor the industrial facility from anywhere and at any time? This is what IoT provides to the industries. It allows effective remote monitoring of the industrial equipment or assets through sensor devices. In remotely located oil and gas infrastructure, toxic gases are produced in a high ratio. The managers use remote monitoring to find out the presence of these gases in those infrastructures and fetch real-time data to take immediate actions in case there are hints of any mishap occurring. Though it is riskier for the plant authorities to manually go and supervise the infrastructure, they use remote monitoring through IoT as a significant alternative to avoid the chances of gas explosions. This, in turn, also saves a huge amount of money spent in constructing the entire framework for oil and gas production.

Predictive/Preventive Maintenance

                Many O&G companies require real-time monitoring of the machinery to keep a regular check on their condition and performance. Also, detecting harmful and toxic gases within the industrial facility is of major concern to avoid disasters. This is significantly possible with the help of an IoT-powered gas monitoring solution that offers remote services to the authorities. This allows the facilities to react immediately via predictive maintenance. The solution utilizes advanced capabilities of the sensors which are installed on the industrial equipment to identify the presence of harmful gases. With the help of sensors, a quick alert is generated that helps the workers and any other authorities evacuate the premises in case of any disaster. Also, these sensors send valuable data on a cloud-based platform for the authorities to predict future scenarios and avoid chaotic situations. Using predictive maintenance, the managers can analyze different scenarios and bring forth necessary outcomes to work upon. 

Asset Management

                An IoT-powered gas monitoring solution leverages the use of analytics and wireless connectivity to offer an improved and consolidated asset management process. It is an end-to-end solution that provides remote monitoring of the industrial assets to avoid explosive disasters within the facilities. Apart from smart asset management it also provides useful insights to keep the equipment up-to-date. Moreover, a gas monitoring solution helps the plant authorities to operate the assets with the help of predictive maintenance, making the automated workflows more intelligent. It helps provide real-time visibility of the assets and their performance history for better analysis of their working conditions.

Implementing an IoT-powered solution to detect harmful gases is the most productive asset to your industry. Hence, IoT is giving us major goals to implement technology for our safety purposes. Its smart techniques and innovative concepts not only help you live in safer surroundings but also provide automation to resolve task complexities. Who would have known that it’ll be possible to measure accurate gas concentrations in the air even in huge refineries where the risk rate is 99.99%? But IoT is significantly making it possible and enabling smart plant management with reduced life risk.

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Skipjack Stock Trading Environment

While the skipjack tuna is a reasonably attractive fish, it is perhaps less so if its colours are inverted as in the case below.  Later in the blog I will be introducing the "Destroying Angel Formation."  This can be found during a full-spectrum inversal of the skipjack waveforms, which might occur before a major stock-market correction or crash.

Skipjack as a form of technical analysis is primarily about math and geometry.  It is not a psychological approach.  Unlike studying Japanese candlesticks, I make little or no effort to guess or assess the state-of-mind of investors.  I would say that it is meant to exploit market tendency - this being the predisposition to form skipjacks.  In terms of making this determination that a market has tended and will tend to do anything, it is necessary to study its history and then to some extent assume that it will persist.  This represents both the strength and weakness of skipjack because of course it is impossible to be completely certain. 

I introduced the skipjack in my previous blog.  Since there seems to be some interest in how the trades are made and the rationale behind the trading, I am providing a bit of an elaboration here.  I have yet to determine the full extent and pace to which I will be sharing information about the methodology.

The underlying skipjack shape or object is the skipjack waveform as presented below.  Within this waveform, the value of a stock might increase perhaps 6 percent over several days or weeks.  I know this is not saying much these days given that stocks sometimes increase more than 10 percent on a single day!  Well, if I ever develop a model that can predict a 10 percent jump in a single day, that would certainly be an accomplishment.  So no, using the skipjack is not nearly as lucrative as simply being at the right place and time - e.g. to catch a sudden spike.

Generally speaking in order for a skipjack to work, its "action line" (on the chart) has to enjoy fluctuating near the water line or neutral.  In some markets - for example during a euphoric, non-correcting rise - the action does not do this, and it is necessary to make use of a slightly different technique.  If an investor is game, a buy-and-hold strategy might be more efficient.  This being said, if an investor holds precisely during this time, there is an elevated chance of holding during a major market correction.

For a period of time as the action line forms the waveform shown above - again, assuming it completes the form - the "effect line" begins to become highly correlated with the price of the stock.  Since the effect line tends to have an entry point near the base (the paa) and an exit near the head (the ulo), the hope here is that the investor will hold the stock during the rise.  This is the general concept.  However, I consider the exact details important - e.g. the exact entry and exit points.

I took out my ruler and physically measured the distance between the hypotenuses (in mm) and the change in value (in dollars) of the highest and lowest points of the effect line; this results in the gradient shown below.  The correlation during the rise during this particular waveform by the way was more than 0.99.  I know readers might be thinking, an investor practically needs a drafting table to trade this way.  Well, I suppose software can do a fair amount of the work especially if it is designed to use the "triggers" for the algorithm.  But I prefer the lived experience of using my hands to handle a ruler, protractor, and mechanical pencils - and then gazing out at the graphical outcomes of the data while sipping coffee.

Below in blue just using a quick visual inspection, I point out some skipjacks on the Nasdaq Composite.  The interesting thing about this sample data is that it contains a horrific stock market crash - the first I personally encountered - Black Monday or the Crash of October 1987.  I bet the crash sticks out even using this waveform.  See it?

Like other forms of technical analysis, skipjack makes use of formations.  Understandably since the trading methodology was inspired by my fear of stock-market crashes, the first formation called a Full Spectrum Inversal or the Destroying Angel is of a stock market crash.  There is no healthy-looking skipjack anywhere near the Destroying Angel below.  There is a rather sickly-looking skipjack at the far left, which if played likely would have caused the trader to exit at around October 6 - the "crash" being often associated with October 19.  Between October 6 and 19, I personally would have ran for the hills given the technical developments.  However, as I mentioned earlier, the skipjack was so off-formation, I likely would not have have played it at all.

I hope this blog has explained the general trading technique using skipjacks reasonably well.  As I take this opportunity to map out the scenery and develop different formations, I admit that nothing is nearly as enjoyable as having all the time in the world and not trying to publish a book or sell investment products.  For me for the most part, this is research.  Of course, having some protection against a major correction or stock-market crash doesn't hurt.

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Filmmaker Michael Moore warns of 2016 redux, says Trump support is ‘OFF THE CHARTS’

In a Facebook post last week, the activist raised questions about Joe Biden’s election strategy, warning of a repeat of the 2016 election

“Are you ready for a Trump victory?”

This is not an affirmation of celebration from a Donald Trump supporter, but a warning from filmmaker Michael Moore. The Oscar-winning documentary director posted on social media that signs are pointing to a Trump reelection come November.

Moore, an avid critic of the president and advocate of Sen. Bernie Sanders, took to his Facebook page to let his followers know that history may be repeating itself as the president’s poll numbers rise in swing states that will be critical to winning the electoral college.

“Sorry to have to provide the reality check again, but when CNN polled registered voters in August in just the swing states, Biden and Trump were in a virtual tie,” Moore wrote. “In Minnesota, it’s 47-47. In Michigan, where Biden had a big lead, Trump has closed the gap to 4 points.”

READ MORE: Biden campaign buys ‘Keep America Great’ domain to troll Trump

Sorry to have to provide the reality check again, but when CNN polled registered voters in August in just the swing…

Posted by Michael Moore on Friday, August 28, 2020

The filmmaker feels that Democrats’ lack of campaigning in said swing or battleground states — Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin — is the same flaw that may have doomed Hilary Clinton in the 2016 election.

“The Biden campaign just announced he’ll be visiting a number of states— but not Michigan. Sound familiar?”

Former Vice President Joe Biden said at a fundraiser Thursday, the same day of Moore’s post, that he would begin traveling to hold campaign events since the coronavirus pandemic limited his campaign, including the Democratic National Convention, to virtual outreach. Wisconsin, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and Arizona are being considered for stops, according to NBC-affiliate KARE in Minneapolis.

The in-person events will be done in “a way that is totally consistent with being responsible,” Biden said, the outlet reports.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and Democratic Vice Presidential nominee Kamala Harris confer on stage outside the Chase Center after Biden delivered his acceptance speech on the fourth night of the Democratic National Convention from the Chase Center on August 20, 2020 in Wilmington, Delaware. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Moore warned against overconfidence among Democrats and left-leaning voters leading up to November.

“Are you mentally prepared to be outsmarted by Trump again,” Moore continued. “Do you find comfort in your certainty that there is no way Trump can win? Are you content with the trust you’ve placed in the DNC to pull this off?”

The warning even caught approval from Trump himself, who on Sunday reshared a Twitter post referencing Moore’s message.

“Michael knows!!!” said Trump, who is firing on all cylinders with the November election nearing.

Michael knows!!! https://t.co/QNuj5Y1PZc

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 30, 2020

Additionally, Moore wrote that Trump’s popularity among his supporters has increased, in comparison to the supporters for Democratic nominee Biden.

“I’m warning you almost 10 weeks in advance. The enthusiasm level for the 60 million in Trump’s base is OFF THE CHARTS! For Joe, not so much.”

The Bowling For Columbine director concluded his post by urging readers to vote and rally others to do the same.

“Don’t leave it to the Democrats to get rid of Trump. YOU have to get rid of Trump,” Moore stated.

“WE have to wake up every day for the next 67 days and make sure each of us are going to get a hundred people out to vote. ACT NOW!”

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Man shot and killed in Portland as Trump supporters confront protesters

The man’s identity has not been released

A man was shot and killed at a rally in Portland, Oregon on Saturday after protesters against police violence were met by a caravan of counter-protesters, according to news reports.

The demonstration had been interrupted by a group in support of President Donald Trump, who has been critical of protests that broke out across the country over the death of George Floyd in late May and fueled by ongoing tense relations between law enforcement and Black communities.

According to the New York Times, a protest had been taking place in the city’s downtown when a procession of trucks and vehicles carrying Trump supporters arrived.

While Floyd-inspired protests had been taking place every day in the city for more than three months, a planned counter-rally dubbed “Trump 2020 Cruise Rally in Portland” had driven through the crowd, CNN reports.

A caravan of supporters of President Donald Trump drive in downtown Portland, Ore., Saturday, Aug. 29, 2020. Saturday’s rally was the third consecutive weekend that pro-Trump demonstrators converged in and around Portland, leading to clashes with counter protesters. (Dave Killen/The Oregonian via AP)

READ MORE: Activist’s arrest in Portland galvanizes Black Lives Matter

The participants of the Cruise Rally were shooting paintball guns at the protesters from trucks, some of which carried signs that read “Trump 2020” or “Thin Blue Line.” This led others to retaliate by throwing objects back at the vehicle.

Portland police responded to gunfire that had taken place about a quarter before 9 p.m. When they arrived on the scene, one man was dead on the street from a gunshot to the chest.

While the victim is still unnamed, New York Times reports he was wearing a hat from a Portland-based far-right group Patriot Player. The shooter has not been identified, but Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell says authorities are looking for a suspect.

A Black Lives Matter protester yells at a supporter of President Donald Trump during a rally and car parade Saturday, Aug. 29, 2020, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Paula Bronstein)

“This violence is completely unacceptable, and we are working diligently to find and apprehend the individual or individuals responsible,” said Lovell, who gave a statement on Sunday.

READ MORE: GOP portrayal of urban mayhem doesn’t always match reality

Prior to the shooting, the police department had tweeted that citizens should avoid the downtown area after incidents of violence had occurred between the two opposing protests.

A political rally is caravanning throughout downtown Portland. There have been some instances of violence between demonstrators and counterdemonstrators. Officers have intervened and in some cases made arrests.

— Portland Police (@PortlandPolice) August 30, 2020

This shooting comes on the heels of two protesters being shot dead in Kenosha, Wisconsin days after police shot Jacob Blake seven times in the back last week. The suspect in that shooting, 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse, had traveled to Kenosha from Illinois with an assault rifle, allegedly joining other counter-protesters.

Portland has been a sight of civil unrest since late May, in response to the deaths of Floyd and Breonna Taylor. Additional controversy occurred in July when protesters were being arrested by camouflaged federal agents in unmarked vans.

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How Warren Buffett made his billions and became the 'Oracle of Omaha'

From childhood side-hustles to launching his own investment firm, Warren Buffett has spent his life turning a profit. Here's how he became the 'Oracle of Omaha.'

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How This Black-Owned Luxury Luggage Pivoted When Coronavirus Shut Down Travel

Every frequent flier knows the importance of finding the right luggage. For women travelers, and especially those of us who are constantly packing and unpacking for business trips, getting everything we need into one bag that we’d actually want to carry can be a challenge.

Sonja Salmon lived those frustrations firsthand as she criss-crossed the globe for work, from her home base in Toronto to Bermuda, London, Hong Kong, and Switzerland. In 2014, she traded in her day job as a high-flying finance exec to start Ebby Rane, a line of luxury luggage named after her two grandfathers—who were both entrepreneurs in Jamaica.

Black Enterprise caught up with Salmon to talk about what it’s like as a woman designing luggage for the way women travel, and what happens to your business when travelers around the world are grounded.

The idea for your luggage was born of your own frustration as a frequent business traveler.

I had been traveling a lot. And I literally was somebody living out of my suitcase. I felt like the luggage was really unattractive and I wasn’t that proud of it and I didn’t think there was enough variety. How can it be that I just can’t seem to find anything that is refined and polished; everything has a whimsical or kitschy look to it, if it was considered female. And my friends were like, “No, we don’t know of anything either. That’s why we all carry black luggage.”

Was there one moment when you started to think that you could be the solution?

There actually was an aha moment. A girlfriend of mine was having her birthday in Nassau, Bahamas, and she had mentioned to bring your best. I had all my stuff laid out on the bed. I took out my Prada high heeled shoes, I can’t remember what I would have paid for them, and I started zipping them into a Ziploc bag that somebody would have used basically for marinating meat. And I thought, I can’t believe I’m doing this, surely there has to be a better way. That was the first weekend that I sketched out the concept and the business plan.

Ebby Rane Founder Sonja Salmon

As someone with no experience creating products, how did you go about it?

I thought, what would be the wish list? Like if I took off all constraints off, and many times in my career, that’s how I tried to think. The constraints automatically narrow what you think your options and choices are. But in an absolute complete blank canvas, what would be my wish list of what I would want in luggage? I wanted a California Closet on wheels and I wanted a place for everything that I take: gym clothes, wet swimwear, makeup.

Then I took my very rudimentary idea to New York City, and had a focus group. There were about 10 or 12 professional women, all in a boardroom. I had a prototype built out of plywood, which I’m almost embarrassed to admit. I said “Imagine if the same way that you have thoughtfully considered your trench coat, your shoes, your handbag as an accessory to your overall look, that your luggage would be like that. Imagine if we could have a place for everything, for the way women think about packing the things that are important to us.” And we refined it that day. I remember walking out that day and all those women were like “We’re your first customers.” That’s when I knew I had something, because all of them said, “Sign me up. The day this is on the market, I would like mine.”

Then I had to go back and work with a design engineer. And we basically mapped out down to 21 by 14 by 9, how could I keep everything and still have optimal space for packing. So that was the challenge. But we did it.

So you launched a successful luxury luggage line. And then 2020 comes with the coronavirus pandemic.

The business ground to a complete halt. The business was just zero, because it was travel related; there was not a soul that was even going to consider buying luggage. So maybe about two and a half months into the pandemic, we started to have very open discussions about what are we going to do short term, mid term, long term? How are we going to address this? Life has changed. People aren’t traveling the same way. And that’s how the Live Simple collection came about.

Ebby Rane’s luxury carry-ons (Image: Courtesy of Ebby Rane)

The new collection includes items people would use in their everyday trips, such as canvas tote bags, a wine bag, and produce bags. Tell us about the choices behind it.

We knew we wanted to stay in touch with our existing customers who’ve been so loyal. We knew they might not be traveling but we might be able to connect with them on something that would have helped going to the marketplace, taking a walk to the park as things opened up.

And we said let’s do this at an affordable price point. We, like many businesses, may have to consider what does the future look like. Are we going to stay firmly and squarely in the premium space? It actually felt authentic to say, we’re recognizing that the world has changed and we would love to be able to serve a community of women who still appreciate style and beauty and simplicity with the same ethos we’ve always brought to things, but for a different time in life, where we all may be facing a different set of financial circumstances.

You found a way to pivot but still give your customers something simple, sustainable, and a little luxurious.

We always love to bring our little touch of what makes an everyday product special. And it’s usually the attention to detail. That’s always been what we have put time and thought into. We’re just coming out with it, so I can only hope that it’s well received. Only time will tell.

What’s next for the brand?

We would like to extend that collection, in a thought where we bring organization to everyday life with a little bit of beauty. I think there’s a lot of other things to do in that lane that will be helpful for people when they’re out and about town, or even at home. And it seems like a natural evolution for us coming from travel because we were always oriented and grounded and anchored on the philosophy around simple, beautiful, organized. If we expand that beyond travel, we think there’s some exciting things to do.

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Covid Is Accelerating a Global Censorship Crisis

Autocracies and democracies alike are suppressing information within their borders, which will affect public health and security around the world.

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Porn Sites Still Won’t Take Down Nonconsensual Deepfakes

The videos are racking up millions of views. Meanwhile, for victims, the legal options aren’t keeping up with the technology

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6 Kids School Supplies for Online Distance Learning

Whether your children are distance learning, in the classroom, or somewhere in between, we’ve got a school supplies list to make this year a little easier.

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These New Shape-Shifting Materials Get Super Cool, Super Fast

Shape memory alloys and a kind of plastic crystal chill quickly under force or pressure. They could lead to eco-friendly fridges and air conditioners.

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The 15 Best Wireless Headphones (2020): Earbuds, Noise-Canceling, and More

These are WIRED's favorite wireless headphones and earbuds for taking phone calls, listening to music, working out, and more.

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How to Protect the Data on Your Laptop

Your laptop is a treasure trove of personal and sensitive information—make sure it's as secure as it can be.

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The Joy of ‘Analog’ Cooking on a Green Coleman Camp Stove

The best way to unplug from all your digital kitchen gadgetry is to fire up a pair of propane burners in the middle of nowhere.

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Can Australia Force Google and Facebook to Pay for News?

A proposed law would require the tech giants to negotiate with publishers. Similar attempts in Europe have largely failed.

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Algeria's lessons from The Plague in the age of coronavirus

Finding parallels between the famous novel and how Algeria is coping with coronavirus amid political upheaval.

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New tenants in NYC create issues for minority businesses

Businesses are being targeted by the NYPD and FDNY in a project called MARCH.

As new tenants flock to “diverse” and “emerging” New York City neighborhoods, they are more likely to call the authorities on local activities, according to a Buzzfeed News report.

Businesses owned by minority groups are now being targeted by the NYPD and FDNY in a project called MARCH, or multiagency response to community hot spots.

The project targets businesses that are “affecting the quality of life” in a particular area, and makes sure that the businesses are monitored and regulated.

READ MORE: Coronavirus pandemic has eliminated almost half of Black small businesses

Many of these businesses, owned by members of the LGBTQ community and POC, have started racking up fines and code violations, while other businesses have been ignored.

Shanylka Hunt-Mitchell, owner of the Atlantic Boat Club in Brooklyn’s Prospect Heights, had her business reported to the police on two occasions.

Her business was fined $25,000, and she had her license temporarily suspended by the State Liquor Authority. She paid her fine and her liquor license was reinstated with her lawyer’s help, BuzzFeed News reported.

Police kept a close eye on her business and she was fined a second time. She was fined $50,000 for allegedly violating social distancing protocols and serving a drink to someone, which was prohibited because only takeout orders were allowed at the time.

Fantastic reporting by ⁦@lamthuyvo⁩ on the MARCH program and it’s links to gentrification. We helped out by making a FOIA request which resulted in a list of all MARCH operations from 2012-2017. The NYPD refuses to release recent data. https://t.co/uTuzVQFSNn

— globally.ltd / fifteen.pm (@_globallyltd) August 27, 2020

“It’s the responsibility of the location to keep things safe and to operate within code,” Jim Long, a spokesperson for the FDNY, told BuzzFeed News.

“Sometimes our inspections permit an opportunity to correct issues without a fine and there are other times when they will warrant a violation that could lead to a summons if not handled in an expedited fashion.”

READ MORE: Black-owned businesses see sales boost from Blackout Day

Friends and Lovers owner Diana Mora, who is a Latina, had her business inspected by the fire department. She was fined for having candles in open glasses, exceeding the maximum number of people in the building, and having her bar’s license laminated.

In March 2018, Friends and Lovers received $2,500 worth of fines, causing the bar to shutter for weeks until the bar made changes. One of the bar’s required changes was to construct a new wall, which ended up costing about $50,000, BuzzFeed reported.

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‘A time to pick up:’ Hurricane-hurt Louisiana begins cleanup

President Donald Trump toured the damage in Louisiana and Texas.

Residents in southwestern Louisiana embarked Saturday on the epic task of clearing away felled trees, ripped-off roofs and downed power lines after Hurricane Laura tore through parts of the state.

The U.S. toll from the Category 4 hurricane rose to 16 deaths, with more than half of those killed by carbon monoxide poisoning from the unsafe operation of generators. The latest deaths included an 80-year-old woman and an 84-year-old man who died from just such a poisoning.

President Donald Trump toured the damage from Laura in Louisiana and Texas on Saturday. He and Gov. John Bel Edwards made their way down a street blocked by trees and where houses were battered by the storm, which the governor said was the most powerful hurricane to strike the state. That means it surpassed even Katrina, which was a Category 3 storm when it hit 15 years ago on Saturday, to the day.

READ MORE: Hurricane Isaias causes major damage as it approaches the U.S.

Although the storm was not as bad as once feared, authorities were still warning it could leave people with out running water or power for weeks in the stifling late summer heat. It made roads impassable, tore roofs and walls off buildings and strew debris about.

It also led to fires at a chlorine plant in Westlake in the hard-hit Lake Charles area. On Saturday, crews were battling a new blaze, leading authorities to broaden a shelter-in-place order to 1 mile (1.6 kilometers) around the plant, state Department of Environmental Quality spokesman Greg Langley said.

It was at least the second fire at the BioLab plant, which makes swimming pool chemicals, after crews extinguished one that filled the skyline around Lake Charles with billowing black smoke after Laura hit. Authorities believe chemical reactions are causing the soaked chemicals to overheat and burst into flames.

Langley said he believed the new fire was about 90% out by Saturday afternoon.

The shelter in place means any residents of the industrial area around the plant are to stay inside with windows and doors shut, in summer heat with no electricity to power air conditioners.

In Lake Charles, a city of 80,000 residents hit head on, Mayor Nic Hunter said the National Guard would begin handing out tarps Sunday to residents so they could cover damaged roofs.

Katlyn Smith, 24, found more than just damage to the roof when she returned to the Jesse James trailer park in the city on Friday to see what remained of her two-bedroom trailer. Speaking Saturday from the park by telephone, she said the wind ripped the roof off “like a sardine can. And then the walls folded in.” Many of the other trailers in the park were also decimated.

READ MORE: New York man killed by falling tree caused by Hurricane Isaias

Friday night, the few remaining residents barbecued roasts, burgers and chicken in a makeshift grill before the food goes bad. Her car has a flat tire, and she has no cash on hand, so she’s not going anywhere for now.

“There is a time to cry and to be sad and there’s a time to pick up, too. You have to pick yourself up and keeping going and my strength comes from God and my fiance,” she said.

Simply driving was a feat in Lake Charles. Power lines and trees blocked paths or created one-lane roads, leaving drivers to negotiate with oncoming traffic. The parish sheriff’s office posted an extensive update on their Facebook page of streets that were impassable.

The mayor has cautioned people that there is no timetable for restoring electricity and that water-treatment plants “took a beating,” leaving barely a trickle of water coming out of most faucets.

Several hospitals in Calcasieu Parish and one in Cameron Parish evacuated critical patients to other facilities because of water and power issues, the state health department said. Other hospitals are operating on intermittent generator power.

An aerial view from a drone shows a damaged apartment complex after Hurricane Laura passed through the area on August 29, 2020 in Lake Charles, Louisiana. The hurricane came ashore bringing rain and high winds to the southeast region of the state, reaching wind speeds of 150 mph and a 9-12 feet storm surge. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Nineteen babies who weathered the hurricane at Lake Charles Memorial Hospital were brought to other hospitals across around the state. The babies, some on respirators or eating via feeding tubes, were at the neonatal intensive care unit of another hospital and had to be moved Wednesday hours before the hurricane arrived out of concerns that storm surge would swamp the one-story building. Hospital officials said they then decided to move them out of Lake Charles when it became apparent that it could be weeks before water was restored.

Along the coast in Cameron Parish, the receding storm surge left behind sediment and debris. Roads appeared still impassable. At South Cameron High School in Creole, parts of the roof of one building were ripped off, and debris was strewn everywhere. A barge appeared tilted on its side along the water.

Hurricane Laura also killed nearly two dozen people in Haiti and the Dominican Republic en route to the U.S. Gulf Coast.

Associated Press journalists Melinda Deslatte in Baton Rouge, Rebecca Santana in New Orleans and Ellen Knickmeyer in Oklahoma City contributed to this report.

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Kenosha police chief says officers did nothing wrong by ignoring Kyle Rittenhouse

Police were responding to a shots fired complaint, which is not the same as an active shooting.

Armed white teenager, Kyle Rittenhouse, was seen on video walking away from a line of officers during a protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

As theGrio previously reported, Rittenhouse was eventually charged with first-degree murder for the deaths of two men during a protest over Jacob Blake. Blake was an unarmed Black man who was shot in the back by police.

Kenosha Police Chief Daniel Miskinis says his officers did nothing wrong by failing to stop Rittenhouse after the deadly shooting.

READ MORE: Kyle Rittenhouse, 17, arrested for murder in Wisconsin protest shooting

Rittenhouse managed to escape the Kenosha Police Department despite witnesses directing officers to the alleged killer and Rittenhouse himself surrendering by walking towards the officers with his hands up.

“Clearly, they’re not seeing him as a suspect or a threat of any kind,” the chief police officer said.

The officers did not stop to question Rittenhouse, enabling the teen to walk away from the scene and return back home to Antioch, Illinois.

Kyle Rittenhouse was one year away from having a badge, a state-issued weapon, and qualified immunity. pic.twitter.com/366ZTM2H32

— Kaniela Ing (@KanielaIng) August 27, 2020

Miskinis said that police were responding to a shots fired complaint, which is not the same as an active shooting. Miskinis also said confusion could have stemmed from the fact that there were others carrying weapons, The Chicago Sun-Times reported.

“There were a lot of people in the area, a lot of people with weapons and unfortunately a lot of gunfire,” Miskinis said.

“So what the officers were walking into, or driving into in this case, was a shots-fired complaint, not a shooting, not a person-down complaint. We have had many of those over the course of this unfortunate event.”

READ MORE: Jacob Blake left paralyzed after shot from behind by police, father says

“We have armed individuals out protesting or counter-protesting or simply walking around exercising their right, who will put their hands up,” Miskinis said.

“It might have been abnormal two weeks ago. It’s no longer abnormal. So there was nothing to suggest this individual was involved in any criminal behavior.”

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Meet the Black Interior Designer Behind GM’s First Fully-Electric Cadillac SUV

Cadillac added luxury and style to its new electric vehicle thanks in large part to a Black woman.

Earlier this month, General Motors unveiled its first fully-electric SUV, the Lyriq. To compete with rival luxury electric vehicle makers like Tesla, the Lyriq offers a number of innovative features as well as a sleek and lavish feel.

First mentioned in January 2019 at the Detroit auto show, the all-electric two-row SUV has the ability to park itself and pull out of a parking space on its own with no one inside. It is also equipped with GM’s advanced Super Cruise semi-autonomous driving system, which allows drivers to completely take their hands off the steering wheel on major highways. In addition, the Lyriq can drive more than 300 miles on a single charge.

Slated to go into production in late 2022, the midsize crossover also includes a massive 33-inch curved glass screen on the interior and advanced lighting technology on the exterior.

Cadillac LYRIQ (General Motors)

BLACK ENTERPRISE spoke to Crystal Windham, who was appointed as Cadillac’s Interior Design Director in 2016, about the unique design of the Lyriq.

“When you are given the opportunity to open the door for Lyriq — everything that you interact with, whether it be touch, explore, or discover — I led several teams that go into that experience,” says Windham, who joined GM back in 1994. More than a decade later, she was named as the first African American woman Director of Interior Design in GM’s history in 2008. Since then she has spearheaded award-winning interiors like the 2016 Chevrolet Malibu and the 2014 Chevrolet Impala.

Cadillac LYRIQ’s new electric vehicle (General Motors)

BE: What makes the design of the Lyriq different from previous designs?

Windham: Very good question. I have been working for Cadillac for over four years and this is the first full-electric vehicle off of this platform. It really allows us to pivot our portfolio in a new direction. We are given the opportunity to elevate the brand while paying homage to our rich heritage. We can celebrate and respect the past in the interior and exterior while focusing on the future.

The fact that it’s battery-electric, we can carve out different spaces within the vehicle. We were able to carve out space down the center of the interior. The center console allowed for a very striking platform for the component to sit on. Also, the lower area is open. You can put a handbag there. To me, having a place for a handbag is extremely important and women ask for that. Now, we have the opportunity to make it right at your fingertip.

To celebrate even more space, we have a center-stacked drawer and a bin for smaller items. We wanted to make sure that the occupant and driver can sit in their zone and have a clear view of the road and have everything at an arm’s length.

This is a dream for me. We are able to make the interior more youthful, useful, dynamic, and premium. We didn’t just stop at creating the space. We did every detail. The lighting, the stitching, [and] the materials. I call it layers of discovery.

BE: Who is this car best suited for?

I’m proud to say that our customers for Lyriq will expand far and wide. I look at the team and we reflect our customer base. It is extremely diverse — from thought perspective, ethnicity, age, and background. I like to think that we can attract the young to the old, just like our teams. We have different colors and functionality plus comfort and amenity that will attract different buyers. Our design environment is simple and easy to love but not boring!

For technology, we can attract both ends of the spectrum. It’s hard to keep the balance of going virtual with buttons but we made it easy to understand and follow. We just wanted to make sure that all aspects of the vehicle can cover a large bandwidth of customers.

Since we are Cadillac, we hope to attract premium customers. We find that even the youth and the more seasoned customers globally can be different and we take that into account.

Cadillac LYRIQ (General Motors)

BE: How has your perspective and identity as a Black woman influenced your work and the design?

As African Americans, Cadillac has a huge impact on our culture. When you drive a Cadillac, you have arrived. It is a symbol of success and we want that to continue. And with that, I say I bring a sense of pride. Not necessarily trendy pride, I want us to move the world and influence the industry. It was a great honor to be in the position to help elevate the brand in this way. We love fashion, we love style, we love to have a little flare, and something unique. I feel that is me and I bring that [to my work].

As a female, we wear so many hats. I am a mother, a wife, a daughter, a sister. When we come into our vehicles, we want them to be a certain way and be about business. I bring that perspective when designing the team, the handbag holder, and when embracing the team as a leader.

I love technology. I embrace it as it shifts and changes. I like to be one of the first to explore. I do not like to be left behind, I want to be at the forefront and lead it. This is what I bring as a leader in the team.

I have a high tolerance for trying new things. There is a certain level of patience and guts needed in order to be the first. When you want to be innovative and elevate the brand, you have to be the first.

Cadillac LYRIQ (General Motors)

BE: Is there anything else that you would like to add?

Never forget that Cadillac is a premium brand and that on the interior side we wanted a strong foundation with beautiful surfacing, continuous dynamic lines, and simple design. It is simple, but it is far from boring.

We also wanted to make sure that the customer has this layer of discovery. The design possesses a visual and emotional appearance, allowing them to fall in love with their vehicle over and over again.

Everything is newly designed. The screen appears to float, the curvature echoes the interior wraparound-lines, the power mounted shifter is next to the steering wheel, the column shifter is right behind the steering wheel all which allows for more space

 

---

This interview was lightly edited for brevity and clarity.

 

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J. LO and A-Rod no longer in talk to buy the Mets

They placed a bid of $1.7 billion.

Latin power couple, Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez have withdrawn their bid to buy the famous New York City sports team, the New York Mets.

The former Yankees star and the GRAMMY award-winning singer were a part of a group of investors including the co-founder of Glaceau, Mike Repole, and NFL stars Travis Kelce and DeMarco Murray. The group decided to withdraw their bid on Friday.

READ MORE: J. Lo and Diddy reunite for a danceoff on Instagram Live

According to Sportico, Rodriguez-Lopez reached the second round of bidding in July. They placed a bid of $1.7 billion, with $300 million coming directly from the couple, according to ESPN.

“Alex and I are so disappointed!! We worked so hard the past 6 months with the dream of becoming the first minority couple and the first woman owner to buy her father’s favorite Major League Baseball team with her own hard earned money. We still haven’t given up!!,” Lopez wrote on Instagram.

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Alex and I are so disappointed!! We worked so hard the past 6 months with the dream of becoming the first minority couple and the first woman owner to buy her father’s favorite Major League Baseball team with her own hard earned money. We still haven’t given up!! #NY4ever

A post shared by Jennifer Lopez (@jlo) on Aug 28, 2020 at 8:07pm PDT

The whole group, simply referred to as the consortium, also expressed their disappointment.

“The consortium said that they are disappointed to not be part of the revitalization of New York City and provide an exhilarating experience for the fans and wish the Wilpon family and the entire Mets organization well,” said Lopez’s statement on Instagram.

READ MORE: Jennifer Lopez admits she doesn’t ‘really count’ two of her previous marriages

Rumors about Lopez and Rodriguez’s interest in the Mets began in April. The couple was then seen touring Citi Field, the team’s stadium in Queens, and this confirmed many people’s assumptions.

With the star couple out of the bidding for the Mets, billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen, who was close to buying the team in late 2019 for about $2.6 billion, is currently in negotiations again.

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Officer responsible for George Floyd murder wants case dismissed

Chauvin’s attorney filed a motion on Friday that argued there was no probable cause to support the charges.

Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has requested that a judge dismiss the murder charges against him stemming from the death of George Floyd.

Chauvin’s attorney filed a motion on Friday that argued there was no probable cause to support the second-degree murder and third-degree manslaughter charges against him.

READ MORE: Chauvin faces harsher sentence for killing George Floyd in front of kids

In stark contrast, prosecutors said on Friday that due to the cruelty of Floyd’s killing, they want more severe sentences than state guidelines recommend if Chauvin and the three other officers involved are found guilty.

On May 25, Chauvin was captured on video kneeling on Floyd’s neck for almost eight minutes, sparking outrage and igniting protests against systemic racism and police brutality all around the world.

The three other officers were charged with aiding and abetting.

According to CNN, prosecutors filed a notice that they will be asking for “an upward sentencing departure” in the cases of Chauvin, J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Kiernan Lane and Tou Thao.

George Floyd Case, State Will Seek Harsher Sentence For Cop Derek Chauvin https://t.co/o7SqLZJYWE pic.twitter.com/PCHBNSmcSB

— NEWS (@NEWS71804388) August 28, 2020

Attorney General Keith Ellison told the judge he has reason to go beyond “the sentencing guidelines grid” used in Minnesota.

“Mr. Floyd was treated with particular cruelty,” prosecutors wrote. “Despite Mr. Floyd’s pleas that he could not breathe and was going to die, as well as the pleas of eyewitnesses to get off Mr. Floyd and help him, Defendant and his codefendants continued to restrain Mr. Floyd.”

READ MORE: Judge orders release of bodycam video in George Floyd case

According to the filing, Chauvin also wants the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office disqualified because of “an inappropriate, pretrial publicity campaign.”

The other three former officers also filed motions to dismiss, but Judge Peter Cahill has not ruled on any of the requests.

CNN contacted the former officers’ attorneys for a statement, but has not heard back.

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Drag Queens Trixie Mattel & Katya React to Lucifer | I Like to Watch | Netflix
Drag queens Trixie Mattel and Katya react to scenes from season 5 of the Netflix series Lucifer, in this episode of "I Like to Watch". Watch Lucifer, only on Netflix: https://ift.tt/2QyqY2F SUBSCRIBE: http://bit.ly/29qBUt7 About Netflix: Netflix is the world's leading streaming entertainment service with 193 million paid memberships in over 190 countries enjoying TV series, documentaries and feature films across a wide variety of genres and languages. Members can watch as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, on any internet-connected screen. Members can play, pause and resume watching, all without commercials or commitments. Drag Queens Trixie Mattel & Katya React to Lucifer | I Like to Watch | Netflix https://youtube.com/Netflix Lucifer makes a tumultuous return to the land of the living in hopes of making things right with Chloe. A devil’s work is never done.

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GOP portrayal of urban mayhem doesn’t always match reality

The reality on the ground is much more nuanced

At almost every turn at the Republican National Convention, speakers from the president on down portrayed American cities like Portland, Oregon, New York and Chicago as lawless Democratic wastelands that have been overrun with violence, looting and destruction that is forcing residents to flee for safer locales.

The reality on the ground is much more nuanced.

In downtown Portland this week, tourists from Texas enjoyed gyros at a food cart, a couple from the suburbs soaked up the afternoon sun and a recent transplant from Indiana strummed an acoustic guitar outside a shuttered Apple store, in front of a mural that’s dedicated to Black people killed by police.

“It’s a pretty day and we feel just perfectly safe as long as we’ve got our masks on,” said Benjamin Green, a warehouse forklift operator from Beaverton, Oregon. “I don’t see why there’s any need to be scared to walk around out here.”

The picture of American cities overwhelmed by violence has become a central theme of the 2020 presidential race. In his convention acceptance speech Thursday night, President Donald Trump called for “law and order” and said the country can never allow “mob rule.” But for the most part that portrait doesn’t line up with reality.

READ MORE: RNC is our last reminder that Republicans don’t plan on a fair play election

In Portland, protests have played out for more than 90 consecutive nights, frequently ending with vandalism. Hundreds of people have been arrested. But the disruption is mostly concentrated in small pockets of the city.

In those spots, including the two blocks around the federal courthouse and around some police precincts, graffiti is common and stores and restaurants are open, but boarded up. Downtown businesses this week urged the mayor to do more to address the problems.

In contrast, most neighborhoods in the city of nearly 700,000 people are untouched by the violence. Parks attract young families and joggers, and bars and restaurants cater to customers with outdoor seating areas spaced out for COVID-19.

“It seems business as usual,” said Garrett Martin, who was visiting downtown from Fort Worth, Texas, with his fiancee. “We’ve been to a few shops. It’s just the same regulations as everywhere else — we have to wear masks.”

Protesters march on the Brooklyn Bridge, Thursday, June 4, 2020, in New York under a U.S. flag with the slogan “I can’t breathe.” (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)

Experts say violent crime has generally remained stable and low. Still, homicides and shootings are on the rise in many cities, but experts say it’s too soon to say whether the trend will continue, or what’s driving it. Double-digit unemployment, frustrations over the pandemic and tensions over police violence could all be factors.

In many major cities, there was looting and some property destruction during the height of the George Floyd racial justice protests, but order was restored months ago in most places.

David Abrams, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania, created a database tracking crime statistics in about 25 major cities during the pandemic.

The numbers are nuanced: overall violent crime is down, but there have been increases in homicides and shootings over the summer. For the first half of the year, he said, homicides were up 20% in the cities they follow.

Abrams cautions that it can be misleading to focus on crime statistics over a short time frame, such as week-to-week or month-to-month.

“If you look at a longer time horizon over 10 years, 20 years, 30 years. I mean, crime is down immensely from what it was in the 80s and 90s,” he said.

READ MORE: Activists see disparate police tactics amid Kenosha protests

In New York City, police recorded 280 killings through Aug. 23, up from 208 during the same period last year. Victims include a teacher hit by a stray bullet while walking his dog and a 1-year-old boy shot in his stroller.

But for a broader perspective, there were nearly 2,300 murders in New York City in 1990. In 2000, the number was 673.

The last time New York saw homicides on the scale of 2020 was in 2012, when there were 419. Back then, it was something to celebrate — the lowest number of murders in four decades. Then-Mayor Mike Bloomberg proclaimed New York City the safest big city in America.

That’s around the time that Kelly Baillon moved into her neighborhood just south of Prospect Park in Brooklyn. Baillon said she had never heard a gunshot — until Aug. 14, when her neighbor was shot in the chest outside their apartment building in the middle of the afternoon. Within a week, three more men were shot in her neighborhood, and two died.

“I’m afraid to walk outside,” Baillon said. “I can’t leave my house without feeling like I’m about to start crying. Just sheer anxiety.”

Feeling unsafe, she flew to visit family near Bend, Oregon.

In Minneapolis, city streets have mostly returned to the way they were before the protests and destruction that rocked the city for days after Minneapolis police killed Floyd on May 25, said Michelle Phelps, a sociology professor who studies crime and policing at the University of Minnesota. But there are still some reminders of the violence, in the form of burned out buildings.

Atlanta police officer J. Coleman, left, and protester Elijah Raffington fist bump while officers kneel down with protesters in a symbolic gesture of solidarity outside the CNN Center, Wednesday, June 3, 2020, in Atlanta during a protest sparked by the May 25 death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody. (Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP, File)

Floyd’s killing sparked thousands of protests in cities and small towns across the nation. Nearly all were peaceful, and about 95% of those counted so far by the group crowdcounting.org did not have any property damage.

On Wednesday, a new wave of unrest hit Minneapolis, but in a limited area. False rumors of another police shooting of a Black man drove people downtown, where some then damaged, burglarized or burned businesses. Two police officers were injured. It turned out that the man, a suspect in a homicide, had shot himself as police were closing in.

Focusing just on that chaos misses the deeper story, Phelps said. The rise in homicides is happening in the context of a pandemic that has disrupted lives and amid the public breach of trust that was Floyd’s killing.

“When people are disconnected from their jobs, when people’s employment is terminated or their hours cut back, when whole families are struggling to feed themselves, we have a mass epidemic of homelessness. … We should expect all of that to influence crime as well,” Phelps said. “It’s a powder keg.”

The highest risk of violence, she notes, is borne by young men of color in the poorest neighborhoods.

Phelps, a self-described white lady who lives in an upper-middle class neighborhood, said she knows no one who has moved out of the city, contrary to the assertions by South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, who claimed Wednesday night that people who could afford to were fleeing cities.

Back in Portland, Mayor Ted Wheeler this week took exception to the portrayal of his city as lawless.

“The current national depiction of our city as a dark dystopia with nonstop violence is a lie,” he said.

___

Associated Press writers Michael R. Sisak and Michael Balsamo contributed to this report.

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Activists see disparate police tactics amid Kenosha protests

‘There has been no respect for anybody’s civil rights,’ one protester says

KENOSHA, Wis. (AP) — Police officers in Kenosha were on alert after days of protests over the shooting of Jacob Blake by one of their colleagues, and they’d recently gotten a tip about “suspicious vehicles” from out of state.

So, after watching a group of people fill cans at a gas station Wednesday and then hop into a minivan with Oregon plates, the officers sped in. A bystander’s video shows officers leaping out of black SUVs with guns drawn. About 25 seconds later, an officer shatters the van’s passenger-side window with her baton, unlocks its door and pulls a person out.

The group turned out to be members of Riot Kitchen, a Seattle-based organization that serves food at demonstrations. Jennifer Scheurle, a member of its board of directors, said they were filling up gas cans to power a generator for their food truck.

The nine taken into custody in the SWAT-style operation Wednesday were among dozens of people arrested this week in the Wisconsin city. The arrests have highlighted activists’ complaints that police have been responding to protests over the white officer’s shooting that left Blake, a Black man, paralyzed, even as they’ve tolerated armed militia groups.

READ MORE: Jacob Blake’s children so traumatized after shooting they’ll need therapy, family says

The Riot Kitchen members were charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct, but all were free by Friday morning.

“We reject all claims that our crew was there to incite violence or build explosives,” said Scheurle, who was not among those in Kenosha. “Our nonprofit organization has always been and will always be about feeding people.”

Kenosha Police Chief Daniel Miskinis said at a Friday news conference that “just under 50” people had been arrested during the protests. The department later provided a list of 58 charges, more than half of them for curfew violations, but declined to specify the number of people arrested or provide names.

“I believe everybody out there in law enforcement has been friendly to both sides,” Miskinis said.

READ MORE: Debunking the internet lies about Jacob Blake following Kenosha shooting

An analysis of jail records since the day of Blake’s shooting shows about 45% the people facing charges seemingly related to the protests live outside Wisconsin.

Those arrested were almost 70% white and about two-thirds male. The vast majority were charged with misdemeanors or civil violations, although there were also some felonies. Miskinis said one person had been charged for having a “flamethrower.”

More than 20 of the people remained in jail Friday afternoon.

Adelana Akindes, a 24-year-old from Kenosha, said she spent nearly a day in a crowded cell after being arrested Wednesday while walking toward the demonstrations carrying a shield.

Adelana Akindes, left, reacts after being released from a day in police custody Thursday, Aug. 27, 2020, in Kenosha, Wis. Protesters gathered for a fifth night in reaction to the police shooting of Jacob Blake. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Police had Akindes and three others lie on the ground as they put them in handcuffs, she said, adding that officers did not read their Miranda rights or say why they were being arrested. She was released on Thursday evening and charged with breaking curfew.

“They wanted to scare us,” said Akindes, who is Black. “They wanted to make an example of us.”

The last three nights of protests have been mostly peaceful, and police have not fired tear gas or pepper balls. But they’ve used tactics that local activists see as heavy handed.

On Thursday night, police pulled over several cars of people headed to protests. They arrested a group of people in one vehicle and searched the car of another group.

“There has been no respect for anybody’s civil rights,” said Isaac Wallner, a 30-year-old Kenosha activist. “It’s been a police free for all. They do whatever they want.”

Wallner, who is Black, contrasted this with what he characterized as a tolerant, or even friendly, attitude police have taken toward the white men who’ve come to the city outfitted with heavy vests and long guns, including a 17-year-old charged with fatally shooting two people and wounding a third.

Earlier in the week, sheriff’s deputies shot pepper balls at protesters and arrested them when they failed to quickly leave after being told they were breaking curfew. But officers in an armored vehicle with “Sheriff” on the side were also recorded at night tossing water bottles to men carrying rifles.

“We appreciate you guys. We really do,” someone can be heard calling from the vehicle in a video of the exchange.

Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth said Friday that the officer seen giving out water was not one of his deputies, and the person who said he appreciated what the armed civilians were doing “doesn’t mirror all of law enforcement’s perspective on what happened.”

__

Bleiberg reported from Dallas. Associated Press reporters Lindsay Whitehurst in Salt Lake City and Scott Bauer in Madison, Wisconsin, contributed reporting.

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