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Post by mhbruin on Aug 8, 2023 8:36:38 GMT -8
Today, my son asked "Can I have a book mark?" and I burst into tears. 11 years old and he still doesn't know my name is Brian. Flori-Dumb: ‘Lord, what fools these mortals be!’
Hillsborough schools cut back on Shakespeare, citing new Florida rules The decision is aimed at better performance on state tests and avoiding sexual content found in some of the Bard’s work. English teachers in Hillsborough County are preparing lessons for the new school year with only excerpts from William Shakespeare’s works. Students will be assigned pages from the classics, which might include “Macbeth,” “Hamlet” and the time-honored teen favorite, “Romeo and Juliet.” But if they want to read them in their entirety, they will likely have to do it on their own time. School district officials said they redesigned their instructional guides for teachers because of revised state teaching standards and a new set of state exams that cover a vast array of books and writing styles. “It was also in consideration of the law,” said school district spokeswoman Tanya Arja, referring to the newly expanded Parental Rights in Education Act. The measure, promoted and signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, tells schools to steer clear of content and class discussion that is sexual in nature unless it is related to a standard, such as health class. “There’s some raunchiness in Shakespeare,” said Joseph Cool, a reading teacher at Gaither High School. “Because that’s what sold tickets during his time.” In staying with excerpts, the schools can teach about Shakespeare while avoiding anything racy or sexual. Flori-Dumb Want to Protect Kids From Climate Nazis
DeSantis’s Florida Approves Climate-Denial Videos in Schools[/font] Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has already come under fire after the administration formally approved the use of far-right PragerU videos as educational material in K-12 schools, owing to these videos' distorted takes on American history, whitewashing of slavery and other issues. But that's not the only way these videos misinform children — PragerU also spouts false claims about climate science, according to Scientific American. "PragerU CEO Marissa Streit told Scientific American that the videos are meant to counterbalance information students are currently being taught about climate change. "'Young kids are being taught climate hysteria," Streit said. "They’re hearing that the world is coming to an end, and we think that there needs to be a healthy balance.'" READ MORE: 'Skilled fighter' Jack Smith delivered a Trump indictment that's 'built for speed': legal expert These videos use a teenage character Ania, who is concerned about climate change, and has her fears allayed by narrators who tell her that the climate has always cooled and warmed "long before carbon emissions were a factor" — which is true but irrelevant to the current crisis, which is directly caused by emissions of carbon into the atmosphere. Other videos attack wind and solar energy as harmful to the environment and unreliable. The material even compares climate activists to Nazis, having a survivor of Hitler's regime compare his own struggle to Ania being criticized by her teacher and classmates after she repeats PragerU's talking points. |
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 8, 2023 8:40:40 GMT -8
The New Math. Was He Educated in Flori-Dumb?
MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell predicted Donald Trump would "have more votes than people in the United States" in the next election because he has faced so many indictments.
On Monday, Lindell told podcast host Steve Bannon that Trump's indictments were only increasing his support.
"And I and you know, if they keep indicting our real president, Donald Trump, he'll have more votes than we have people in the United States," Lindell offered. "It'll be like Pennsylvania, that has more votes than voters! Every time they attack him, his numbers go up."
Lindell took a shot at Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis, who he said "colluded" with Dominion Voting Systems before the 2020 election.
DON'T MISS: 'Hatching schemes to stay in office' after losing an election 'is not a crime': Fox News host
The Pillow executive suggested he would have the solution to alleged voting problems at his next election summit.
"Everybody, go to LindellEvent.com — get signed up," he said. "I think we're over a million now."
What is One Republcan Plus One Republican? Two Morons.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 8, 2023 8:46:44 GMT -8
Didn't Bankers Used to Be Trusted?
U.S. regulators on Tuesday announced a combined $549 million in penalties against Wells Fargo and a raft of smaller or non-U.S. firms that failed to maintain electronic records of employee communications.
The Securities and Exchange Commission disclosed charges and $289 million in fines against 11 firms for “widespread and longstanding failures” in record-keeping, while the Commodity Futures Trading Commission also said it fined four banks a total of $260 million for failing to maintain records required by the agency.
It was regulators’ latest effort to stamp out the pervasive use of secure messaging apps like Signal, WhatsApp or Apple’s iMessage by Wall Street employees and managers. Starting in late 2021, the watchdogs secured settlements with bigger players including JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup. Fines related to the issue total more than $2 billion, according to the SEC and CFTC.
“Today’s actions stem from our continuing sweep to ensure that regulated entities, including broker-dealers and investment advisers, comply with their recordkeeping requirements, which are essential for us to monitor and enforce compliance with the federal securities laws,” Sanjay Wadhwa, deputy director of enforcement at the SEC, said in the release.
The firms admitted that from at least 2019, employees used side channels like WhatsApp to discuss company business, failing to preserve records “in violation of federal securities laws,” the SEC said Tuesday.
An Accurate Descrption of the President of Wells Fargo
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 8, 2023 8:49:10 GMT -8
Even This Guy Offered to Change His Name Subway announced Tuesday that nearly 10,000 individuals said they would legally change their name to "Subway" to receive free sandwiches for life from the quick-serve chain — and did so within 96 hours of the original offer being unveiled last month. Now, one winner will be selected later this month, Subway said. In addition to the sandwiches, the winner will receive money to reimburse legal and processing costs to complete the name change process.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 8, 2023 8:53:35 GMT -8
The Biggest Election of 2023 is Going on Today.
While many projected low turnout for the Aug. 8 election on Issue 1, Ohio voters have headed to the polls at incredible rates over the past few weeks, according to election officials. For the first time, Ohio no longer allows early in-person voting on the Monday before election day.
"For the naysayers who said there would be low turnout for an August election, I think the turnout for early and absentee voting has been very robust," said Rob Nichols, spokesperson for the Secretary of State's office.
Complete early voting numbers are not yet available, according to Nichols.
Ohioans will decide Tuesday whether it should be harder to change the state constitution. If passed, Issue 1 would require 60% of the vote to enact new constitutional amendments, instead of a simple majority of 50% plus one...
Polls Close at 4:30 PDt
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 8, 2023 8:54:55 GMT -8
Ohio is Expecting High Turnout
Few initially expected Issue 1 to draw so much attention during a historically low-turnout election. It’s a technical issue pertaining to ballot measures and, beyond that, the stakes for abortion are complicated by the fact that courts are currently blocking enforcement of Ohio’s abortion ban, making the procedure legal in the state — for now.
But as both sides rake in millions in out-of-state donations, the vote has become a proxy for something larger. The campaigns are working to remind the public that Issue 1 could have dramatic implications for a number of issues that come before voters in the state. [...]
Abortion may not be the only popular issue on the ballot this November. Activists in Ohio also submitted thousands of additional signatures for a marijuana ballot initiative after they fell short of the required number last month.
And opponents of Issue 1 are warning of its wide-ranging impacts on a whole host of policy fronts.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 8, 2023 8:59:53 GMT -8
Scam Artists Can Suck ItAmanda C. Riley started her blog, “Lymphoma Can Suck It,” in 2012, after she was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in her late 20s. On that blog and social media, in public speaking engagements and on the stage of her megachurch, Riley chronicled her cancer battle over more than seven years. The bubbly, charismatic Christian shared her heartbreaks and triumphs against the disease, inspiring thousands of people. They spread the word, and donations poured in — by the tens of thousands of dollars — to help cover her expensive medical treatments. People also helped with babysitting and donated gift cards, concert tickets and travel vouchers. Her fellow churchgoers celebrated her remissions as miracles and then prayed by the thousands for her recovery with each terrible relapse. Riley had the support of family, friends, church congregants, cancer foundations, cancer patients and compassionate strangers. What she didn’t have? Cancer. In fact, as the new hit podcast “Scamanda” documents, she was faking it the whole time, scamming people for money and gifts to support a lavish lifestyle, basking in their accolades and kindheartedness. She preyed on people whose loved ones were ravaged by the disease, and she co-opted fundraisers for people who were genuinely sick. She even attended cancer patient support groups, learning details about their experiences and treatments to finesse her grift. ‘Scamanda’ Is The Latest Riveting And Malignant Saga Of A Cancer ScammerShould We Really Call "Scam Artists" "Artists"?
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 8, 2023 9:02:31 GMT -8
Plastic Isn't Just a Problem in the Ocean or in Landfills
Americans’ credit card debt levels have just notched a new, but undesirable, milestone: For the first time ever, they’ve surpassed $1 trillion, according to data released Tuesday by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
During the second quarter, credit card balances shot up by $45 billion, or nearly 4.6%, to land at $1.03 trillion, according to the New York Fed’s latest Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit.
Rising credit card debt and auto loan balances helped to drive overall household debt levels up to $17.06 trillion for the quarter, the report showed. Overall household debt has spiked $2.9 trillion since the end of 2019, before the pandemic.
Credit card balances have risen for five consecutive quarters, increasing at some of the largest rates in 20 years, New York Fed data shows.
“Unfortunately, [credit card debt] is only going to go up from here,” Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst for LendingTree, told CNN. “What’s driving it is inflation, higher interest rates and just generally how expensive life is in 2023.”
Debt is Up, Savings Rate is Down. Hmmm!
More Americans are tapping their 401(k) accounts because of financial distress, according to Bank of America data released Tuesday.
The number of people who made a hardship withdrawal during the second quarter surged from the first three months of the year to 15,950, an increase of 36% from the second quarter of 2022, according to Bank of America’s analysis of clients’ employee benefits programs, which are comprised of more than 4 million plan participants.
It’s a “pretty troubling” development if more people are resorting to making hardship withdrawals, Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at LendingTree, told CNN.
“You understand why people do that in the heat of the moment, but the opportunity costs on that are really, really high over time,” he said.
Bank of America’s latest Participant Pulse report also found that a greater percentage of participants borrowed from their workplace plans from the first quarter, and average contributions trailed off as well.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 8, 2023 9:04:14 GMT -8
You Can Never Be Too Rich or Too Thin ... Or Too Heart-Healthy
The blockbuster obesity drug Wegovy cuts the risk of cardiovascular events, such as heart attack and stroke, by 20%, drugmaker Novo Nordisk said Tuesday.
The findings are the first to demonstrate that a weight-loss drug has medical benefits beyond weight reduction.
The results may be compelling enough to get insurance companies to provide coverage, said Dr. Shauna Levy, a specialist in obesity medicine and the medical director of the Tulane Bariatric Center in New Orleans.
Many people who take Wegovy have had trouble getting insurance to cover the weekly injections, which cost more than $1,300 a month, due to the perception that it's a lifestyle medication.
“Twenty percent is huge,” Levy said. “All of this narrative about people just wanting this for cosmetic reasons, I think, to some degree, has overshadowed all of the health benefits we can get from this medication.”
The findings were based on a late-stage clinical trial of more than 17,000 adults ages 45 and up who got a 2.4-milligram dose of Wegovy or a placebo in addition to standard care.
The individuals had overweight or obesity, as well as existing cardiovascular disease, but no previous history of diabetes.
Novo Nordisk said the drug appeared to be safe and well tolerated, in line with what has been seen in previous clinical trials.
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Post by mhbruin on Aug 8, 2023 9:11:50 GMT -8
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