SAN JOSE (KPIX 5) — Several restaurants and small businesses in the South Bay say they have recently been targeted by thieves trying to take advantage of the COVID-19 shelter-in-place order.
“They walked out with kind of the heart of the restaurant a,s far as the financial aspect of it. It’s your monetary income,” said Dan Holder, owner of Jack Holder’s Restaurant and Bar in San Jose’s Cambrian neighborhood.
Holder said his employees arrived Sunday morning and discovered that someone had smashed out a window on the side of the business and stolen several tablets and other items.
“The immediate reaction was, ‘You’ve got to be kidding.’ You come into work on Sunday morning knowing that some lowlife has broken into your place of business and stolen valued possessions from you,” said Holder.
He said the break-in was especially painful because just two days prior he’d organized a meal giveaway for police officers, firefighters and other first responders in San Jose.
And sadly, Jack Holder’s Restaurant wasn’t alone. Another neighboring business, West Coast Beef Company, was the victim of a similar robbery a few weeks earlier. The thieves managed to steal the cash register and a safe during the earlier break-in.
“Another horrible part to the story with the shelter-in-place order is that small businesses are really being left out on a limb and now being victimized,” said West Coast Beef Company owner John Ladas.
Ladas said the owner of the shopping center has agreed to step up security patrols especially during the overnight hours.
The San Jose Police Department told KPIX 5 it still has the full number of officers on the street during the shelter-in-place order and will aggressively investigate reports of break-ins. Detectives were able to recover some of the items stolen during the break-in at Jack Holder’s.
“They were able to actually find my DoorDash tablet,” Holder said, referring to a tablet used for to-go orders for the DoorDash app — an essential part of the restaurant’s business during the lockdown.
Luckily, the tablet was undamaged and is back in operation at the restaurant. Some small business owners told KPIX 5 they would like authorities to consider — at the very least — tougher penalties for those arrested in connection with break-ins and burglaries during the current coronavirus shelter in place order.
CBS News posted a video of a crying nurse who claimed she was forced to quit her job after being asked to work in a coronavirus ICU without a face mask, only for it to emerge that the woman hadn’t worked at the hospital for over a year.
“In tears, a nurse says she quit her job after she was asked to work in a coronavirus ICU without a face mask: “America is not prepared, and nurses are not being protected,” stated the text accompanying the video posted by CBS News, which received over 8 million views on Twitter.
In tears, a nurse says she quit her job after she was asked to work in a coronavirus ICU without a face mask: “America is not prepared, and nurses are not being protected” https://t.co/ywoSuLOPYPpic.twitter.com/S5BsnlO5nt
The network appeared to have conducted no research into the claim whatsoever, as it was quickly revealed that the woman was an Instagram “influencer” who hadn’t been at the hospital “for over a year” according to her own Facebook post.
The woman, Imaris Vera, also said that she suffered from anxiety and bi-polar depression and had been triggered by the coronavirus “information overload.”
CBS’ later responded to their own tweet by stating, “The hospital, Northwestern Medicine, acknowledged that Imaris Vera had quit her job, but referred CBS News to Vera as to the details of why.”
Bernie Sanders’ staff didn’t bother to check the veracity of the story either before tweeting it out to the Senator’s 9.5 million followers and calling on the on the Department of Labor to respond by issuing emergency workplace standards
“Nurses and medical workers are working tirelessly with inadequate protection gear, and they are the real heroes. For an Instagram “influencer” to deliberately misrepresent her career for the instant glorification of internet fame is sickening,” writes Chrissy Clark.
Another Twitter user posted a video of the same woman talking about coronavirus while acting noticeably less upset.
The Director-General of the World Health Organization is a former member of a violent revolutionary communist party in Ethiopia that denied emergency medical treatment to an ethnic group and he is accused of personally overseeing the extradition of dissidents who were later imprisoned and tortured.
As we have previously highlighted, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has repeatedly parroted Chinese Communist Party talking points, constantly heaping praise on Beijing’s response to coronavirus despite the fact that China hid the truth about its spread and viciously silenced scientists and doctors who tried to warn the world.
Now we know why.
As John Martin explains in his excellent piece ‘The Crimes of Tedros Adhanom’, during his time in Ethiopia, the WHO chief was a member of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), a violent communist revolutionary party which was listed as a terrorist organization by the U.S. government in the 90’s.
According to one Ethiopian newspaper, Adhanom was listed as the 3rd most important member of the politbureau standing committee in the TPLF.
Martin writes how the TPLF engaged in “systematic discrimination and human rights abuses” by refusing emergency healthcare to the Amhara ethnic group because of their affiliation with the opposition party. The Ministry of Health that oversaw these abuses was led at the time by Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Birth rates were recorded to be significantly lower in the Amhara region compared to other regions and 2 million Amhara people “disappeared” from the subsequent population census.
As Tucker Carlson highlighted earlier this week, Adhanom “got his job with Chinese support after he covered up cholera outbreaks in his home country” of Egypt.
Tedros has denied the allegation, which centered around claims he had downplayed cholera epidemics in Ethiopia in 2006, 2009 and 2011 by passing them off as “acute watery diarrhea,” a symptom of cholera.
“International organisations were pressured not to call it Cholera (despite the UN testing the infected and finding Cholera), and were pressured by government employees not to reveal the number of infected. Another stunning victory for the health minister,”writes Martin.
After he was appointed foreign minister of Ethiopia in 2012, dissidents and journalists across the country were subjected to a brutal government crackdown, leading some to flee to exile in nearby Yemen.
Adhanom was personally responsible for negotiating the extradition of these dissidents back to Ethiopia, some of whom were subsequently imprisoned and tortured.
“One such case was a British citizen Andy Tsege who was arrested at Sana’a airport and twice given a death sentence in Ethiopia,”writes Martin. “This led to the involvement of the British government who threatened denial of aid to Ethiopia unless he be granted asylum. Tedros responded that Tsege was “being treated very well. He even has a laptop, have you ever heard of a political prisoner with a laptop?” Andy of course, after his return to the UK told a somewhat different story of being tortured for days on end, alongside dozens of other prisoners.”
Dissidents being imprisoned and tortured? No wonder Adhanom is so effusive in his praise for China.
It gets worse.
In 2016, the Ethiopian government attempted to force relocate 15000 people in the Oromia region because it wanted to requisition their land. This led to mass protests followed by mass shootings and a stampede that killed 500 people according to Human Rights Watch. The government then embarked on another brutal crackdown, arresting 70,000 people.
Adhanom subsequently tried to downplay the violence, falsely claiming the police weren’t armed and that the numbers weren’t as high as stated.
After ascending to his lofty position within the World Health Organization, Adhanom appointed mass murdering dictator Robert Mugabe to be a “goodwill ambassador” to the WHO while also defending Uhuru Kenyatta, under whose government 1,300 people were killed following rigged elections.
“Tedros of course takes every chance he can to praise the good governance of China, and given the human rights record of the People’s Republic, it’s no wonder he likes them so much,” writes Martin. “From projects like media propaganda centres, mass relocations, and social credit style score cards, Ethiopia’s governance in many ways resembles a carbon copy of the Chinese authoritarian model. Complete with a one party state and focus on profit over human rights.”
In the immediate aftermath of the coronavirus outbreak, the World Health Organization, under Adhanom’s direction, amplified Chinese fake news that there was no “human to human” transmission of COVID-19 as late as January 14th, despite this having already occurred in December.
The WHO and Adhanom also repeatedly demanded countries not impose border controls, exacerbating the spread of the disease, while appearing to be more concerned about political correctness and the “stigmatization” of Chinese people.
“In a sane world, instead of leading a global organisation, Tedros and his cronies would be put on trial at the International Criminal Court, tried for his crimes, and if found guilty, should spend the rest of his life in prison,” concludes Martin.
NEW YORK –A growing scene for those who venture out into the streets of Manhattan these days is boarded up storefronts. From luxury retailers to small bars, establishments that have no idea when they are going to be allowed to reopen are putting up protection over their glass doors and windows.
The businesses have taken the unsightly measure in an effort to defend against the potential for civil unrest caused by the coronavirus and a lack of officers on the streets.
Mayor Bill de Blasio ordered bars and restaurants closed except for takeout service in mid-March. Most stores were also ordered to shut down.
Now, from Lower Manhattan to the Upper East Side, outlets are boarded up. At least a few have offered makeshift messages of hope.
Posted on a pub at 28th and Park the message “let us go forward together” is painted on some of the plywood. Another message is painted next to it saying, “if you’re going through hell keep going.”
Typically bustling Soho sidewalks are marred by boarded-up windows at designer brand stores, including Louis Vuitton, Dior, Coach, and Dolce & Gabbana.
The NYPD has reported that crime in the city has actually dropped since the coronavirus outbreak has limited people on the streets.
As the number of NYPD officers are added to the sick list or test positive to coronavirus, there are questions on the ability to effectively fight crime.
On Thursday, 6,498 uniformed members of the NYPD were on the sick report which accounts for 18% of the Department’s uniformed workforce. 1,354 uniformed members and 169 civilian members have tested positive for the coronavirus.
In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the Empire State will do “whatever we have to do”in response to a growing number of city police officers who have called out sick.
Some shops are opting to board up storefronts as a deterrent
By Ben Chapman and Keiko Morris
Burglaries of businesses have risen in New York City under emergency measures to fight the new coronavirus, according to new New York Police Department data, and some businesses are boarding up their storefronts.
The NYPD has seen a 75% increase in reports of burglaries of commercial establishments from March 12, when New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio declared a state of emergency, to March 31, police officials said. The NYPD recorded 254 burglaries of businesses during that time period this year compared with 145 for the same period last year, the officials said.
All boroughs of the city have seen increases, the officials said.
“We knew with the closing of many stores that we could see an increase and, unfortunately, we are,” said NYPD Chief of Crime Control Strategies Michael LiPetri.
The increase in commercial burglaries comes as major crimes across the city fell during the pandemic. From March 12 through March 31, major felonies, such as rapes, murders and assaults, fell by nearly 20% when compared with the same period in 2019, dropping to 3,740 such crimes from 4,670 a year earlier.
But Mr. LiPetri said that break-ins of eateries, supermarkets and retail establishments are fueling a rise in commercial burglaries. There were 30 burglaries of supermarkets and bodegas between March 12 and March 31, according to NYPD data, a 400% increase from six such incidents recorded during the same period a year earlier. Burglaries of eateries nearly doubled, rising to 51 incidents in 2020 from 28 incidents in 2019.
Thieves are taking currency, electronics and consumables, such as food, alcohol and retail goods from businesses, Mr. LiPetri said. They gain entry to closed businesses by forcing open doors, breaking windows or climbing in from rooftops, he said.
NYPD patrols are mobilized against the thefts, Mr. LePetri said. Police are working with business owners to deploy additional resources where needed and are reassessing patrols in real time, according to NYPD officials. On March 31, police apprehended three suspects charged in a string of burglaries in Queens and Brooklyn.
As burglaries have increased, a handful of chain retailers have boarded up New York City shops, including the cosmetics retailer Sephora, which has covered the windows of stores at locations in Times Square and on West 34th Street in Manhattan.
In a statement, Sephora representatives said the company has closed North American locations to adapt to the coronavirus and adopted standardized precautions for its properties. “Our goal is to ensure a great experience for our clients when we have the opportunity to reopen,” the company said.
Police officials said that few New York City businesses have boarded up their storefronts. But leaders of local business-improvement districts worry that the strategy could invite graffiti and potentially prompt other shop owners to do the same. Some districts said they haven’t seen any large increases or break-ins of storefronts.
Dan Biederman, president of the 34th Street Partnership, a business-improvement district that includes the closed Sephora location, said it isn’t necessary for businesses to board up their windows. “It’s a solution in search of a problem,” Mr. Biederman said.
On Fifth Avenue in Park Slope, Brooklyn, the local business-improvement district already had to send crews to remove graffiti from the boards covering an Aesop store, said Mark Caserta, executive director of the Park Slope Fifth Avenue Business Improvement District.
Residents who noticed vandalism of the storefront run by the high-end retailer of lotions, fragrances and skin-care products called to complain, Mr. Caserta said. Representatives for Aesop didn’t respond to calls for comment.
Mr. Caserta said boarding up buildings sends an inappropriate message to the community.
“It brings up this idea of rioting and collapse of society,” Mr. Caserta said. “This is way too much, and it sends the wrong signal.”
While the US shuts down all commerce for weeks and destroys the economy, other countries like Sweden and Brazil are doing the opposite and allowing the China coronavirus to run its course.
Data indicates there no material differences in fatalities between the three countries leading the casual observer to question why is the US killing its economy?
The US continues to prevent nearly all commerce from occurring to combat the China coronavirus. Many other countries are following suit. But some countries like Sweden and Brazil are keeping their countries open for business. Data shows that the fatalities related to the coronavirus in these countries are very similar to those in the US.
Sweden announced they would pretty much keep their economy open for business when the China coronavirus became a threat:
The US has identified the most cases of the China coronavirus when compared to Brazil and Sweden but all three countries are in the top 20 in the world that have cases identified. The US’s number indicates it has tested more people and also it is a much larger country based on population than Sweden and even Brazil.
Due to its testing efforts the US has the highest number of cases per million of all three countries (US – 741, Brazil – 38 and Sweden – 551).
Sweden has the largest number of fatalities per million in their country (Sweden – 30, US – 18 and Brazil – 2). The world average is 6.8 people per million.
The US, with all its efforts through social distancing to ward off the spread of the coronavirus, has the most active cases identified per million (US – 691, Sweden – 510 and Brazil – 36).
The US has the lowest percent of deaths per case of the three nations (US – 2.5%, Brazil – 4.1% and Sweden – 5.5%). Two of these nations are under the world average of 5.2%.
The data is somewhat mixed and their are various reasons for the differences, but this isolated review based on data indicates that there is no need to shut down economies in an effort to combat the China coronavirus.
The only thing that is eliminated by implementing these radical social engineering actions are economic commerce and prosperity.
Tom's Blog 