And another day of saving on fees, the Russian exodus, bipartisan bills, Canada dropping Covid border restrictions, charged with a crime for promoting abortion or contraception, Russian propaganda, student protests in VA, streaming music, and ‘gooning’ comes to a close:
“There are two types of Republicans cheering Meloni’s ascent in Italy: morons too dumb to realize she’s literally a fascist and those smart enough to know she is.” — Jeff Timmer
Deaths
US: 1,082,286
World: 6,542,860
Cases
US: 97,991,494
World: 621,216,675
Millions of Americans will save on Medicare fees next year. For the first time in a decade, Americans will pay less next year on monthly premiums for Medicare’s Part B plan, which covers routine doctors’ visits and other outpatient care. The rare 3% decrease in monthly premiums is likely to be coupled with a historically high cost-of-living increase in Social Security benefits — perhaps 9% or 10% — putting hundreds of dollars directly into the pockets of millions of people.
Kremlin announces vote, paves way to annex part of Ukraine. The Kremlin paved the way Tuesday to annex more of Ukraine and escalate the war by claiming that residents of a large swath overwhelmingly supported joining with Russia in stage-managed referendums the U.S. and its Western allies have dismissed as illegitimate.
Russian exodus shows no signs of easing as Ukraine war looms over recruits. The flow of Russian men of fighting age looking to leave the country persisted Tuesday amid fears the government would soon close its borders to stop those trying to evade President Vladimir Putin’s draft.
McConnell endorses bipartisan bill to prevent another Jan. 6. The resulting bill, the Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transition Improvement Act, was approved in the Rules Committee by a vote of 14-1, with Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, the lone opponent. The committee, which adopted minor revisions to the underlying bill, sent it to the full Senate for a floor vote. The bill would clarify the 1887 Electoral Count Act to limit the vice president’s role to counting votes, raise the threshold to object to certain electors to one-fifth of each chamber, bolster laws around certifying elections for the rightful winner and seek to facilitate an orderly presidential transition amid contested results.
Canada dropping COVID border restrictions Saturday. Canada will end all COVID-19 border requirements for travelers entering the country on Oct. 1. Masks will also no longer be required on planes.
Study links Covid-19 vaccination to small, temporary change in menstrual cycle. People who got the Covid-19 vaccine reported slightly longer menstrual cycles, but the change was temporary, according to a new study published Tuesday in the journal BMJ Medicine.
Yes, the University of Idaho warned staff that they could be fired and charged with a crime for promoting abortion or contraception. In a memo sent from the university’s legal counsel on Sept. 23, staff were told that state law “prohibits them from taking any action, and from using or providing institution funds or facilities” to promote or counsel in favor of abortion or refer students for abortions. Staff are also barred under state law from “advertising or promoting services for abortion or for the prevention of conception,” and dispensing FDA-approved emergency contraceptives such as Plan B, the memo says. Staff who violate state laws pertaining to abortion and contraception could face misdemeanor or felony convictions, mandatory loss of state employment, and/or a permanent ban from working for the state, the university said.
In 2019, Doug Mastriano said women who violated proposed abortion ban should be charged with murder. State Sen. Doug Mastriano, the Republican nominee for governor in Pennsylvania, said in 2019 that women should be charged with murder if they violated his proposed abortion ban. In an interview with Pennsylvania radio station WITF, Mastriano was pressed about a bill he sponsored that would generally bar abortions when a fetal heartbeat could first be detected, usually around six weeks. Mastriano’s remarks in that interview were previously unreported.
Blasts precede Baltic pipeline leaks, sabotage seen likely. Denmark said Tuesday it believed “deliberate actions” by unknown perpetrators were behind big leaks, which seismologists said followed powerful explosions, in two natural gas pipelines running under the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany.
Meta disables Russian propaganda network targeting Europe. A sprawling disinformation network originating in Russia sought to use hundreds of fake social media accounts and dozens of sham news websites to spread Kremlin talking points about the invasion of Ukraine, Meta revealed Tuesday. The company, which owns Facebook and Instagram, said it identified and disabled the operation before it was able to gain a large audience. Nonetheless, Facebook said it was the largest and most complex Russian propaganda effort that it has found since the invasion began.
Black man shocked with stun gun while restrained in jail files federal lawsuit. A Black man who was fully restrained in a chair when a white sheriff’s sergeant in Boulder County, Colorado, used a Taser on him alleges race was a “motivating factor” in the decision to use excessive force, according to a newly filed federal lawsuit. The plaintiff, Travis Cole, says the incident on the night of Sept. 21, 2020, at the Boulder County Jail has left him traumatized and distrustful of law enforcement...The sergeant who deployed the stun gun, Christopher Mecca, resigned in the wake of the incident in lieu of termination and was arrested on misdemeanor counts of third-degree assault and official misconduct. A jury convicted him in December 2021 and he was sentenced to probation...Mecca “made a conscious decision to use force in a way that he thought he could get away with,” Newman said. “He took Travis’ race into account when deciding what kind of excessive force to use against him.”
Virginia students protest Gov. Glenn Youngkin's proposed transgender policies. Student activists held school walkouts across Virginia on Tuesday to protest Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin's proposed changes to the state's guidance on district policies for transgender students that would roll back some accommodations. Beginning Tuesday morning, students streamed out of their classrooms to decry the model policies unveiled earlier this month. If adopted by school districts, the policies would require parental sign-off on the use of any name or pronoun other than what's in a student's official record. They say participation in certain school programming and use of school facilities should be based on a student's biological sex, with modifications offered only to the extent required under federal law.
Cuba without electricity after hurricane hammers power grid. Hurricane Ian knocked out power across all of Cuba and devastated some of the country’s most important tobacco farms when it slammed into the island’s western tip as a major hurricane Tuesday.
Rules sought for ‘gooning,’ taking troubled kids to care. Within what’s known as the secure transport industry, it’s called “gooning.” Brawny men show up under the cover of darkness and force a teenager into a vehicle, taking them against their will to a boarding school, foster home or treatment center. The process is typically initiated by parents at wit’s end over what to do with a child they perceive as troubled. For the kids, it’s the traumatic first leg of a journey to an unheard-of place, perhaps hundreds of miles away from home. Teens who resist are often told, “We can do this the easy way or the hard way.” They might be restrained with handcuffs or zip ties. They could be blindfolded or hooded. Though a secure transport company operator was indicted last month, criminal charges are rare because the little-known industry is virtually unregulated. In fact, the indictment was for violating a restraining order, not for the transport itself. -- WTF?
Feeling lonely, unhappy can accelerate aging more than smoking. Poor mental health can speed up a person’s aging process more than smoking or certain diseases, according to a new study. Humans have two different ages. There is chronological age, which measures how much time a person has spent on Earth, and then there is biological age, referring to how old a person seems. Many lifestyle factors like diet, exercise and psychological state can impact someone’s biological age.
‘I’ve always wanted to be a tree’: Human composting starts to catch on. The process, which is essentially the controlled decomposition of a human body by a funeral service provider, takes about two months. Processing a person’s remains creates 1-2 cubic yards of compost — enough to nearly fill the bed of a pickup truck, which can then be used in gardens or conservation projects.
Has streaming made it harder to discover new music? Music stripped of its cultural context, artists’ histories rewritten, a previously unimaginable abundance of choice that’s apparently limiting horizons, artists who rocket to vast success without becoming remotely famous: music discovery and consumption in 2022 is a weird, confounding, counterintuitive and strangely fascinating place, where the traditional ways of doing things have been completely overturned, but it isn’t entirely clear what’s replaced them. -- I recommend listening to 99.9 Waiting for the Comet.
Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.
Until next time, my friends. Stay safe and stay sane. Good night.
No comments:
Post a Comment