Tuesday, August 6, 2019

And another long day comes to a close:

"We die. That may be the meaning of life. But we do language. That may be the measure of our lives." — Toni Morrison

Florida governor orders state criminal probe into Jeffrey Epstein case.

Nebraska GOP tells Republican lawmaker who said party is 'enabling white supremacy' to register as Democrat. Essentially admitting the truth of those words.

No Terrorist Is A ‘Lone Wolf’. As research into terrorism and rare types of violent crimes has become more data-driven, it’s begun to show that the people we call “lone wolves” aren’t.

“In this country American means white. Everybody else has to hyphenate.” -- Toni Morrison

The House passed a gun control bill calling for background checks. But it's been sitting on Mitch McConnell's desk since February.

Trump rushes to blame video games for mass shootings, but the evidence proves him wrong.

“Well, Jesus Christ, of course he’s racist. He’s been racist from day one.” — Beto O’Rourke

Trump suggests El Paso and Dayton mass shooting response should include hardline immigration reform. Democrats wasted no time comparing his proposal to Nazi Germany.

Trump campaign still owes El Paso more than $500,000 on eve of President's return visit. Because all he’s ever known how to do is screw people over. What a waste of our precious air, he is.

‘Invasion’ and ‘fake news’: El Paso manifesto echoes Trump language. And only a racist would think it didn’t.

President Trump has run over 2,000 Facebook ads warning of "invasion". Words matter.

Trump's America: Where politics dictate the definition of racism.

There is no excuse for supporting this president.

Trump made 56 false claims last week. Um, lies. He lied at least 56 times last week. There, I fixed it.

Republican politicians are more resistant to gun control than Republican voters are.

Lawmakers Push For 'Red Flag' Laws To Take Guns Away From People In Crisis.

Former GOP Congressman Wants His Party Defeated Because They “Will Never Do Anything on Gun Control.” “Republicans will never do anything on gun control. Nothing, ever. If this is the issue that informs your ideology, as a voter, the strength to draw in this moment is to commit to beating Republicans. Beat ’em. Beat every single one of ’em.” We all lose, and some of us die, when you vote Republican.

“The function of freedom is to free someone else.”— Toni Morrison

Texas Police on horses parade suspect down street tied to rope: "You don't 'round up' human beings with a leash like animals". The image is disgusting.

Police are a leading cause of death for young men, especially those of color, study finds.

Nearly 1.8 billion people in seventeen countries, or a quarter of the world’s population, appear to be veering towards a water crisis—with the potential of severe shortages in the next few years.

Teachers. Doctors. A small-town Mayor. New sex abuse claims against Boy Scouts suggest leaders exploited prominent positions.

Emma Watson announced that she's helping launch a free legal advice line for those experiencing sexual harassment at work in England and Wales.

Depending where you live, an electric fan may not cool you down and could actually hurt you.

Scientists find a seriously giant parrot fossil in New Zealand.

“I know the world is bruised and bleeding, and though it is important not to ignore its pain, it is also critical to refuse to succumb to its malevolence.” — Toni Morrison

RIP Toni Morrison. She was 88.

Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.

Until next time, my friends. Good night.

Sunday, August 4, 2019

And another sad day in America comes to a close:

“Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent.” -- Isaac Asimov

The two shootings, first in El Paso, Texas, and then in Dayton, Ohio, are the latest instances of deadly mass shootings in 2019, bringing the total number of such incidents up to at least 17 — an average of one every 12.7 days this year. Man those “thoughts and prayers” sure are working.

FBI document warns conspiracy theories are a new domestic terrorism threat. The “Great Replacement” idea is a conspiracy theory.

After majority of House Democrats call for impeachment, Pelosi says Trump 'will be held accountable'. We shall see.

Greenland Is Melting Away Before Our Eyes. This week alone, Greenland will lose about 50 billion tons of ice, enough for a permanent rise in global sea levels by about 0.1mm.

11 billion tons of ice melted in Greenland - in just one day.

Joe Biden’s Climate Plan Melted During the Debate. “Mr. Vice President, your argument is not with me, it’s with science.”

Air travel is a huge contributor to climate change. Now a global movement wants you to be ashamed to fly.

A teen scientist just figured out how to suck microplastics from the ocean. There may be hope for humanity.

Just 10% of fossil fuel subsidy cash ‘could pay for green transition’.

U.S. pulls out of Soviet-era nuclear missile pact with Russia.

Thursday's budget deal proves once again Republicans never cared about the deficit.

Rural hospitals are shutting down in states that didn't expand Medicaid. Most closures have happened in places where people came out in droves to vote for Donald Trump. A vote for a Republican is a vote against your best interests.

On a momentous day for Tribal Nations, Congresswoman Liz Cheney (R-WY), the House Republican Conference Chairwoman, stated that the successful litigation by tribes and environmentalists to return the grizzly bear in Greater Yellowstone to the Endangered Species Act (ESA) “was not based on science or facts” but motivated by plaintiffs “intent on destroying our Western way of life.” Yeah. She said that. I’m sure she doesn’t see the irony in her callous remarks.

Next week marks 45 years since President Richard Nixon resigned. The latest Economist/YouGov Poll shows that half of Republicans (52%) approve of how he handled his job as president.

Third Ebola case confirmed in DR Congo's Goma as Rwanda shuts border.

Indonesia's Aceh whips 11 for sharia-banned romance. The six men and five women -- all in their late teens and early twenties -- were rounded up by religious officers who caught them behaving amorously, a crime under local law. What archaic bullshit. Nothing but about power. The power to dominate others.

Birth rate in England and Wales has hit a record low according to the Office for National Statistics.

New medical procedure could delay menopause by 20 years.

Scientists went to China to create controversial human-monkey embryos.

Deaf student creates more than 100 new signs for scientific terms: “It’s not easy to convey complex processes with a few hand gestures."

Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.

Until next time, my friends. Good night.

Wednesday, July 31, 2019

And another day that proves the Republican Party has been the party of racists for decades comes to a close...oh yeah, and Happy National Orgasm Day!

“Although slavery may have been abolished, the crippling poison of racism still persists, and the struggle still continues.” -- Harry Belafonte

National Archives releases Reagan's racist call with then-President Nixon, ex-Nixon library director says. Republican blood runs deep with racism. Has for decades. Don’t be a Republican.

Trump rewards conspiracy theorist with key national security job.

Festival gunman's social media suggests white supremacy ties.

California has some of the strictest gun laws. In Nevada, you don't need a permit to buy one. Another reason why this issue needs to be dealt with at the national level.

California's governor signs law requiring presidential candidates to release their tax returns if they want to appear on the state's primary ballot.

Trump aide submitted drafts of 2016 "America First" energy speech to senior United Arab Emirates officials for edits, according to emails and text messages uncovered by a House Oversight Committee investigation.

Trump complained about Baltimore in 2015 but blamed the 'African American President'. He has always hated people of color. What?

Marianne Williamson isn’t funny. She’s scary. Williamson’s views on depression and illness are dangerous. The media is complicit in spreading them. “..she looms as a menace to public health — someone who has attacked antidepressants and vaccination in a manner that “can literally kill people,”” No. Just, no.

Poland faces threat of water crisis as rivers dry up.

Ebola: second death confirmed in Goma.

‘You're gonna kill me!': Dallas police body cam footage reveals the final minutes of Tony Timpa's life. He was afraid and asked for help. The police killed him. Their behavior both during and after the murder is disgusting. Then they lied about it during the investigation. Police don’t get a free pass just because they are the police.

A bodycam caught a deputy shooting a man in his South Carolina home. It contradicts the initial police narrative.

Pink seesaws appear at border, allowing children in US and Mexico to play together. We’re all pretty similar and just trying to make it through this crazy thing called life.

Equifax might run out of settlement cash, FTC warns. The regulator said that consumers rushing to get a $125 check from Equifax as restitution for its 2017 cybersecurity breach should consider the credit monitoring option.

Brazil police recommend no charges for soccer star Neymar in rape case.

Wealthy parents in Illinois are giving up legal guardianship of their children in order to "scam" universities into qualifying them for need-based financial aid money, report says. Disgusting.

The Trump administration has taken hesitant first steps to allow the importation of certain drugs from Canada and other countries.

Several dozen patients with sickle cell disease will be among the first in the US treated for a genetic disease with the experimental gene-editing technology CRISPR.

200 reindeer died on an Arctic Island -- and researchers think climate change is to blame.

Potentially habitable 'super-Earth' discovered just 31 light-years away.

NASA’s newest planet-hunting satellite finds three new worlds.

Happy National Orgasm Day. Now go have one...or many.

Majority of women have better sex with marijuana, according to study.

What are the benefits of having an orgasm?

Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.

Until next time, my friends. Good night.

Sunday, July 28, 2019

And another day of racism, mosquitos, and another shooting comes to a close:

“Why is it that, as a culture, we are more comfortable seeing two men holding guns than holding hands?” -- Ernest Gaines

“Finally, while we would not sink to name-calling in the Trumpian manner — or ruefully point out that he failed to spell the congressman’s name correctly (it’s Cummings, not Cumming) — we would tell the most dishonest man to ever occupy the Oval Office, the mocker of war heroes, the gleeful grabber of women’s private parts, the serial bankrupter of businesses, the useful idiot of Vladimir Putin and the guy who insisted there are “good people” among murderous neo-Nazis that he’s still not fooling most Americans into believing he’s even slightly competent in his current post. Or that he possesses a scintilla of integrity. Better to have some vermin living in your neighborhood than to be one.”

Partisan differences on impeachment remain after Mueller testimony, as nearly half of Americans show little movement.

Trump just fired his top intelligence official for telling the truth. Daniel Coats said what’s happening in the world. In the Trump era, that’s an act of defiance.

New GDP data confirms Trump’s tax cuts aren’t working. Growth is slowing and business investment is actually negative.

Multiple victims reported in shooting at Gilroy Garlic Festival.

Trump blames White House air conditioning on Obama.

'Unprecedented': more than 100 Arctic wildfires burn in worst ever season.

Alaska defunds scholarships for thousands of university students ahead of fall semester.

A deadly mosquito-borne virus that causes brain swelling in humans has been detected in Florida.

How hospitals are using AI to save their sickest patients and curb 'alarm fatigue'.

Isolated And Struggling, Many Seniors Are Turning To Suicide.

Textured breast implants are being recalled over a link to cancer. Here's what to know if you have them.

Want To Feel Happier Today? Try Talking To A Stranger.

Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.

Until next time, my friends. Good night.

Friday, July 26, 2019

And another day of claims, divides, ballots, segregation, glaciers, asteroids, and evolution comes to a close:

“There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires.” -- Nelson Mandela

The Democratic divide over impeaching Trump, explained.

Who In The House Is Calling For Impeachment? There are now over 100.

Democrats Say Their Impeachment Inquiry Has Already Begun.

Supreme Court allows Trump to tap $2.5B in Pentagon funds for border wall. Not voting has consequences.

What happens if you don't claim your $125 Equifax money? You lose it -- and your chance to sue in the future.

Utah to test out smartphone ballots with absentee voters. Experts in voting integrity and technology have raised security and practical concerns about the plan.

Florida officials failed to act on warnings about 2016 Russian hacking, a Senate report finds.

A new paper found that many birds are adapting to climate change –– but probably not fast enough. It comes to a stark conclusion: "The temperature is changing so fast that evolution isn't able to keep up." Um, think about that.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg defends Kavanaugh, Gorsuch as 'very decent and very smart'.

"Open carry is legal in 45 states. In Colorado, you can walk up and down Pearl Street with an A/R 15 strapped to your chest but not a dog. That’s the absurdity of the gun laws in our country."

Emmett Till memorial in photo of gun-toting Mississippi students will be made bulletproof. Because there are horrible people on the planet

How segregation keeps poor students of color out of whiter, richer nearby districts.

South Dakota Public Schools Add 'In God We Trust' Signs To Walls. WTF?

Apple contractors 'regularly hear confidential details' on Siri recordings.

Glaciers are melting underwater. It's worse than previously thought.

A heat wave is headed to the Arctic.

Trump administration starts paying $14.5 billion to farmers hurt by the trade war. It’s the second time the Trump administration has paid them. Oh, look everyone. Socialism.

Girls are reporting three times as much harassment online as boys amid a nationwide rise in cyberbullying, new data shows.

How To Bring Cancer Care To The World's Poorest Children.

Juul exec says he never intended the electronic cigarette to be for teens. Mmm hmmm.

A “city-killing” asteroid just zipped by Earth. Why didn’t we see it coming? NASA tracks big asteroids. Small ones — which can still do damage — are harder to spot. It’s just a matter of time.

Poll: Two in five Americans still believe God created humans 10,000 years ago. Jesus Christ these people.

Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.

Until next time, my friends. Good night.

Thursday, July 25, 2019

And another day where “I’m begging the American people to pay attention” comes to a close:

"The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.” — George Orwell, 1984

Mueller reminds the public: Trump betrayed the United States.

House Democrats authorize subpoenas for top White House officials' private communications.

Senate report warns of ongoing election threat as Republicans block security bills. Mitch McConnell is a horrible person.

Conspiracy theories, excusing Russians, attacking Mueller: How low can Republicans go? They find a way to always go lower.

No shower for 23 days: U.S. citizen says conditions were so bad that he almost self-deported.

Thousands of unaccompanied migrant children could be detained indefinitely.

Active-duty U.S. troops are now just feet away from migrants in Texas. The troops "monitor" migrants at a Texas facility. One congressman said they shouldn't be prison guards, and are close to breaking the posse comitatus law.

Treasury pick Monica Crowley spread Obama smears: 'Can he be both loyal to Islam and loyal to the United States?' Such racist assholes that pollute the highest levels of our government.

16 US Marines arrested for alleged crimes including human smuggling and drug-related offenses.

AG Barr orders reinstatement of the federal death penalty.

A Quarter of All State Supreme Courts Have Never Had a Justice of Color. A new report confirms what you probably suspected: Judicial diversity is bad. But you probably didn’t know it was this bad.

Puerto Ricans pushed out a sitting governor for the first time in history. The massive protests worked.

Raid removing 27 kids from Montana ranch 'may be the tip of the iceberg,' lawmaker says. For more than a decade, religious-affiliated private treatment homes were unregulated and unlicensed. It took only three weeks after a new state law went into effect for the state to crack down.

Temperature records broken in Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands.

Europe's heat wave shatters temperature records and cities are struggling to cope.

Record heat in Alaska melts glaciers, hints at bigger problems that may be to come. Alaska's temperature has risen by 4 degrees Fahrenheit in the last 50 years, that's compared with 2 degrees for the rest of the planet.

A New Jersey school board member is facing calls to step down after he posted that his life "would be complete" if Rep. Tlaib died. Such horrible people in the world.

Exploited at every turn: The lives of Italy's Chinese prostitutes. Female migrants quit factory labour for sex work to survive and provide a better life for relatives back home.

Central African Republic 'not prepared' for Ebola wave.

FBI finds bucket of heads, cooler of penises, sewn "Frankenstein" corpse at body donation center.

A petition to move Halloween to the last Saturday of October is picking up steam.

Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.

Until next time, my friends. Good night.

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

And another day comes to a close. “I take your question.”

“Most of the real bad guys in the world are people like you and me; they’re not stupid, and you can’t smell their horns.” -- Rutger Hauer

“It’s not a witch hunt.” Robert Mueller told Congress on Wednesday that his investigation did not exonerate President Donald Trump of wrongdoing and found that Russia worked to boost his election in a "sweeping and systematic fashion" as the former special counsel defended his nearly two-year probe.

"Based on Justice Department policy and principles of fairness, we decided we would not make a determination as to whether the President committed a crime. That was our decision then and it remains our decision today."

Robert Mueller Says Trump Is Lying About His Report. “That is not what the report said.”

‘Very Innocent President’ Greets Mueller Testimony With Unhinged Tweetstorm.

Jeffrey Epstein found injured with marks on his neck in New York jail cell.

How Trump took over America's courts. How Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell are changing the country for a generation.

'Watermelon smiles' and 'piccaninnies': What Boris Johnson has said previously about people in Africa. Boris Johnson has emerged as the next Prime Minister of the United Kingdom after a leadership contest and could prove to be as divisive a figure in Britain as President Trump is in the United States. Boris Johnson is a horrible person. My heart aches for the United Kingdom.

Climate change: 12 years to save the planet? Make that 18 months.

Climate scientists drive stake through heart of skeptics' argument. But a pair of studies published Wednesday provides stark evidence that the rise in global temperatures over the past 150 years has been far more rapid and widespread than any warming period in the past 2,000 years.

US fertility rate falls to 'all-time low,' CDC says. Why have babies when the future looks so bleak.

Montana removes 27 children from youth treatment ranch, alleging 'egregious' abuse. Officials say children at the Ranch for Kids were alleged to have been beaten, psychologically abused and forced to go on miles-long "disciplinary walks."

A daredevil French inventor said he is ready to realise his dream of flying between France and Britain across the Channel on a jet-powered "flyboard" after overcoming bureaucratic obstacles.

RIP Rutger Hauer. He was 75.

“If you’ve done what you need to do, you need to go bury yourself, because what else are you going to do? I think that’s where life stops.” -- Rutger Hauer

Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.

Until next time, my friends. Good night.