Enforce our Bill of Rights
Natural Blaze – by Heather Callaghan
Kat Von D is an internet sensation having been a reality TV star, tattoo artist, makeup guru and musician – just a few of the things on her resume. The 36-year old celebrity garners 12 million likes on Facebook and many adoring Instagramers. Her and her husband, Rafael Reyes, are newly weds about to give birth to her first child. Continue reading “Kat Von D In Vax Shaming Firestorm After Declaring She Will Not Vaccinate Unborn Child”
A hardware store owner in East Tennessee is celebrating a new Supreme Court ruling by putting up a sign that says “No Gays Allowed.”
If that sounds familiar, it’s because he’s done it before and made national headlines for it three years ago. Continue reading “‘No Gays Allowed’: Tennessee store owner puts sign back up after SCOTUS ruling”
The Southern Baptist Convention, the country’s largest evangelical denomination, is headed for a showdown over its treatment of women that could not only have far-reaching ramifications for the church but also influence the broader secular #MeToo movement.
At its annual meeting next week in Dallas, delegates called “messengers” will decide whether to approve a resolution acknowledging that, throughout the church’s history, male leaders and members of the church “wronged women, abused women, silenced women, objectified women.” Continue reading “#MeToo goes to church: Southern Baptists face a reckoning over treatment of women”
PORTLAND, OR. Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) unveiled on June 6 what President and CEO Roger Nielsen said will be the “broadest [electric] truck fleet in North America by 2021.”
The unveiling of the Freightliner eCascadia heavy-duty truck and Freightliner eM2 medium-duty model took place on the same day DTNA announced the creation of the Automated Truck Research and Development Center in Portland. Continue reading “Daimler unveils two all-electric Freightliner trucks”
Last weekend when I wrote about the new bills that were turned into law in California by a mercifully-departing Governor Jerry Brown, I never expected a hub-bub. I did my research, came to some conclusions, and titled my article, “Now It’s Illegal to Have a Shower and Do Laundry on the Same Day.” That’s the link if you want to read it first. Fact-checkers Snopes and Politifact said I was a big fat liar, but let’s take a look at their “facts,” shall we?
Contrary to popular belief, no kittens were sacrificed to the devil in the writing of that article. I just sat down, did a little research, and came to some conclusions that in my eyes were (and still are) entirely reasonable. However, Snopes and Politifact disagreed rather vehemently. (About the conclusions, not the kittens. The kittens actually were a figment of my imagination, unlike anything in the article they “debunked.) Continue reading “Fact-Checking the “Fact-Checkers”: Snopes & Politifact Said I’m a Big Fat Liar, But Let’s Look at THEIR “Facts””
So far this year, 31 people have been killed in school shootings, including 26 students. In comparison, 13 military service members have died in the line of duty in 2018. The fact that our schools are currently more dangerous than combat zones should fill us all with horror. As a mother, that is certainly my reaction.
Each time a new shooting occurs — on average, once every week — the same question arises: What warning signs did we miss? Continue reading “Are Antidepressants to Blame For America’s Violence Epidemic?”
The Liberal – by Roibeard O’Longain
The EU will likely soon pass a new directive on copyright that will change the internet forever and this Orwellian move is getting almost no media attention.
Article 13 is being touted as the “End of Memes” in Europe and digital rights activists and policy experts have described as the most comprehensive and frightening move towards censorship of the free flow of information online in history. Continue reading “The end of Memes – New EU directive aims to end free speech”
Anthony Bourdain was found dead by hanging in his hotel room in France, adding to the long and baffling list of celebrities who lost their lives in this grim fashion.
Anthony Bourdain was found dead on Friday morning by his friend and French chef Eric Ripert in his room at a luxury hotel in northern France. According to the authorities, Bourdain killed himself by hanging. The exact cause of the death is still under investigation. Continue reading “Anthony Bourdain: Yet Another Celebrity Dead by Hanging”
Activist Post – by Qi Alfred Chen
The day when cars can talk to each other – and to traffic lights, stop signs, guardrails and even pavement markings – is rapidly approaching. Driven by the promise of reducing traffic congestion and avoiding crashes, these systems are already rolling out on roads around the U.S.
For instance, the Intelligent Traffic Signal System, developed with support from the U.S. Department of Transportation, has been tested on public roads in Arizona and California and is being installed more widely in New York City and Tampa, Florida. It allows vehicles to share their real-time location and speed with traffic lights, which can be used to effectively optimize the traffic timing in coordination with the real-time traffic demand to dramatically reduce vehicle waiting time in an intersection. Continue reading “Connected Cars Can Lie, Posing a New Threat to Smart Cities”
A mother who visited her soon-to-be kindergartner’s classroom in Somerville this week tweeted her shock over a sing-song nursery rhyme teaching kids how to respond in a lockdown — which city leaders are defending as a sober reminder of the reality in schools across the nation.
Georgy Cohen tweeted an image of the rhyme, writing that “this should not be hanging” in the classroom and added “but I, like most of you, have congressional representatives I can call to advocate for gun reform. Or we can support orgs like @Everytown and @SandyHook.” Continue reading “Lockdown rhyme draws attention in Somerville”
Fellowship of the Minds – by DCG
Press release from representative Bobby Rush, dated June 6:
“Today, U.S. Representative Bobby L. Rush (D-Ill.) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) introduced the Blair Holt Firearm Licensing and Record of Sale Act of 2018. This legislation would prohibit unlicensed gun-ownership and transferring or receiving firearms without a valid firearms license, as well as direct the Attorney General to establish and maintain a federal record of sale system. Continue reading “Illinois demorats propose national firearms licensing system”
Alleged drug dealers shot an agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) on Thursday in what was described as an ambush during a drug buy operation conducted in the Chicago area. The gunmen shot the agent twice. Agents returned fire, killing one.
The shooting occurred in Gary, Indiana, just southeast of Chicago on Thursday. The incident occurred during a drug buy operation, ABC News reported. The drug buy is part of an ongoing effort by federal officials to attempt to reduce drug-related gang violence in the Chicago area. Officials said their teams go after the “worst of the worst.” Continue reading “Chicago Area ATF Agents Ambushed During Drug Buy Operation”
BACK IN 2013, when you could still mine bitcoins at home, WIRED was sent a small, sleek mining device manufactured by the now-defunct Butterfly Labs. We turned on the Roku-looking machine in our San Francisco offices and allowed it to do its job. A small fortune was soon amassed, now wortharound $100,000. Then, we lost the money. Forever.
Here’s what happened to WIRED’s 13 Bitcoins—and to the millions of others that have faced the same fate. Continue reading “How WIRED Lost $100,000 in Bitcoin”
President Donald Trump told a gaggle of reporters Friday that he will “probably” support efforts by Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) to end the federal ban on marijuana in states that have legalized it.
“I support Sen. Gardner,” the president said before departing for the G-7 summit in Canada, as quoted by the Los Angeles Times. “I know exactly what he’s doing. We’re looking at it. But I probably will end up supporting that, yes.” Continue reading “President Trump on Marijuana: ‘I Probably Will End Up Supporting’ End to Federal Ban”
AUSTIN — President Donald Trump praised the Coast Guard for its heroics during Hurricane Harvey Wednesday, but credited the high number of water rescues to people taking their boats out to watch the storm roll in, baffling first responders.
Trump was on a conference call with state and federal leaders in preparation for another dreadful hurricane season. During the call, Trump thanked the Coast Guard for its service in helping save 16,000 people after Harvey, Hurricane Maria and other storms. The Coast Guard doesn’t “get enough credit,” Trump said. Continue reading “Trump: Many Texans watched Harvey from their boats, requiring Coast Guard rescue”