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Post by mhbruin on Mar 16, 2024 8:04:22 GMT -8
In North Carolina’s worst air disaster, a two-seater Cessna 150 crashed into a cemetery. Search and Rescue workers have recovered 300 bodies so far and expect the number to climb as digging continues into the evening. The pilot and copilot survived and are helping in the recovery efforts.
They Managed to Take a Load Off
The first maritime humanitarian aid shipment to Gaza has been unloaded on to the shore.
The US charity behind the mission World Central Kitchen (WCK) is carrying out the mission in co-operation with the United Arab Emirates.
The shipment contained 200 tonnes of food desperately needed for Gaza, which the UN says is on the brink of famine.
Aid agencies have accused Israel of impeding aid deliveries, a charge vehemently denied by Israeli officials.
They say Israel is allowing aid through two crossings in the south and has blamed aid agencies of logistical failures.
Much of the Gaza Strip has been devastated during the Israeli military operations that began after Hamas gunmen attacked southern Israel on 7 October, killing about 1,200 people and seizing 253 hostages.
More than 31,400 people have been killed in Gaza since then, the Hamas-run health ministry says.
Saturday's shipment arrived on board Spanish charity ship Open Arms. Its cargo includes beans, carrots, canned tuna, chickpeas, canned corn, parboiled rice, flour, oil, salt and pallets of dates, which hold spiritual significance during Ramadan.
It had been checked by Israeli officials in port in Cyprus.
It marks the start of a trial to see if the sea route would be more effective than air and land deliveries.
Aid agencies have repeatedly warned that no method of relief is as effective as delivery by land, but they say Israeli restrictions mean a fraction of what is needed is getting in.
In a statement, WCK said: "All cargo was offloaded and is being readied for distribution in Gaza."
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Post by mhbruin on Mar 16, 2024 8:08:29 GMT -8
I Thought Salt Melted Snow and IceThe 'insane' plan to save the Arctic's sea-icePerched on sea-ice off Canada's northern coast, parka-clad scientists watch saltwater pump out over the frozen ocean. Their goal? To slow global warming. As sea-ice vanishes, the dark ocean surface can absorb more of the Sun's energy, which accelerates warming. So the researchers want to thicken it to stop it melting away. Welcome to the wackier side of geoengineering - deliberately intervening in the Earth's climate system to try to counteract the damage we have done to it. Geoengineering includes more established efforts to lock up planet-warming gases, such as planting more trees and burying carbon underground. But more experimental measures aim to go a step further, seeking to reduce the energy absorbed by the Earth. Many scientists are strongly opposed, warning that such attempts distract from the critical step of cutting carbon emissions and risk doing more harm than good. But a small number of advocates claim their approaches could give the planet a helping hand while humanity cleans up its act. The ultimate goal of the Arctic experiment is to thicken enough sea-ice to slow or even reverse the melting already seen, says Dr Shaun Fitzgerald, whose team at the University of Cambridge's Centre for Climate Repair is behind the project. Will it work or is it, as one scientist put it, "quite insane"? "We don't actually know enough to determine whether this is a good idea or bad idea," admits Dr Fitzgerald.
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Post by mhbruin on Mar 16, 2024 8:10:57 GMT -8
This is Laughable. Paying to Be Part of a Science ExperiementBlood sugar monitors are unnecessary for people without diabetes and could, in extreme cases, fuel eating disorders, leading doctors have warned. They are part of a personalised diet trend, promoted on social media and spearheaded by companies including ZOE. But NHS national diabetes advisor Prof Partha Kar said there is no strong evidence the gadgets help people without the condition. ZOE said research is at an early stage but is "cutting edge". In people with diabetes, blood sugar - also known as blood glucose - can remain high for several hours after eating. At very high levels this can cause organ damage if it's not monitored and kept in check. ZOE - previously involved with the Covid symptom-tracking app - is one of the main companies selling the blood sugar monitors to people without the condition. Now it offers a programme, starting at around £300, which it advertises widely, including across social media platforms. Participants log their food intake and wear a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) for two weeks to measure blood sugar levels after eating. In separate tests, they also have their responses to fat, and their gut bacteria tested. ZOE says all of these tests have helped it identify that even two healthy people can have wildly different responses to the same food - for example one person's blood sugar might spike and dip more after eating carbohydrates than another person's. It suggests this could guide individual food decisions. But other researchers argue that what, if anything, those numbers mean - including bigger spikes and dips in blood sugar within the non-diabetic range - is still not properly understood.
The Monitor and the MerrimentDoctors question science behind blood sugar diet trend
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Post by mhbruin on Mar 16, 2024 8:14:52 GMT -8
They Hate Those Meeces to Pieces
Mice accidentally introduced to a remote island near Antarctica 200 years ago are breeding out of control because of climate change, and they are eating seabirds and causing major harm in a special nature reserve with “unique biodiversity.”
Now conservationists are planning a mass extermination using helicopters and hundreds of tons of rodent poison, which needs to be dropped over every part of Marion Island’s 115 square miles (297 square kilometers) to ensure success.
If even one pregnant mouse survives, their prolific breeding ability means it may have all been for nothing.
The Mouse-Free Marion project — pest control on a grand scale — is seen as critical for the ecology of the uninhabited South African territory and the wider Southern Ocean. It would be the largest eradication of its kind if it succeeds.
The island is home to globally significant populations of nearly 30 bird species and a rare undisturbed habitat for wandering albatrosses — with their 10-foot wingspan — and many others.
Undisturbed, at least, until stowaway house mice arrived on seal hunter ships in the early 1800s, introducing the island’s first mammal predators.
The past few decades have been the most significant for the damage the mice have caused, said Dr. Anton Wolfaardt, the Mouse-Free Marion project manager. He said their numbers have increased hugely, mainly due to rising temperatures from climate change, which has turned a cold, windswept island into a warmer, drier, more hospitable home.
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Post by mhbruin on Mar 16, 2024 8:19:14 GMT -8
MAGA Mike May Be Off of Putin's Christmas Card ListSpeaker Mike Johnson told POLITICO that he expects to pass a future Ukraine assistance bill with Democratic votes, an acknowledgment of the persistent resistance to any new aid within the GOP. Johnson said in a Thursday interview at the House Republican retreat that aid to both Ukraine and Israel could come up as one or even two separate bills. He said he anticipates it would happen using the House’s suspension calendar, which he’s used often in recent days to overcome pushback from his own party. “I think it is a stand-alone, and I suspect it will need to be on suspension,” Johnson said of foreign assistance. The Louisiana Republican added in clear terms that he sees no path to attaching the foreign aid to a larger spending bill to keep the government open. The suspension calendar requires a two-thirds majority to approve legislation on the House floor — meaning Johnson would need a substantial number of Democratic votes. He has taken that approach with many contentious measures so far in his speakership. Johnson says he expects to take up Ukraine aid with Democratic votes
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Post by mhbruin on Mar 16, 2024 8:21:03 GMT -8
 The Mob Just Wanted to Hang His Picture in the Capital |
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Post by mhbruin on Mar 16, 2024 8:28:23 GMT -8
Seriously, again, how dumb is Trump?Yo mama so dumb She heard there was a sale on color TVs, and she tried to buy a green one. Yo momma is so dumb That she tried to drown herself on a pool table Yo momma is so dumb It took her 9 months to come up with a joke. Yo mama so dumb, When the doctor told her she was pregnant, She asked, "Is it mine?" Yo mama so dumb, the only test she got an A on was her blood test ...and even then, it was an A minus! Yo mama so dumb... ...she tells yo mama jokes to you and your siblings. Your mom so dumb... She threw a rock at the ground and missed Your mom is so dumb... that she returned the donuts to Krispy Kreme because they had holes in them. Yo mama so dumb that she spent 5 hours staring at a glass of orange juice because it said ‘concentrate’ on the package. Your momma so dumb.. The brain eating amoeba she contracted starved to death I'm so dumb and out of shape My resting heart rate is higher than my IQ A man asks god... Man:"Why did you make women so beautiful?" God:"So you would love her." Man:"Then why did you make her so dumb?" God:"So she would love you." Your mama is so dumb She had to study for a urine test My brother is so dumb he got fired from the Dollar store... because he couldn't remember the prices Yo momma so dumb she waits for the stop signs to turn green Your mama so dumb She climbs over a glass wall to see what's on the other side. Yo Momma is so dumb She put the newspaper in the TV and called it Paper View. Yo Mama is so dumb she thinks there has been...... eleven World Wars My sister is so dumb, she tells everyone she is bipolar Because she is working at two different strip clubs. Yo momma so dumb.... Someone said it was chilly outside and she went to go grab a bowl. Your momma's so dumb... She thought a quarterback was a refund
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Post by mhbruin on Mar 16, 2024 8:29:52 GMT -8
Kamela Sees the Pot-ential
Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday called on the federal government to move “as quickly as possible” to change the way it officially classifies marijuana, saying that “nobody should have to go to jail for smoking weed.”
“I cannot emphasize enough that they need to get to it as quickly as possible,” Harris said. “We need to have a resolution based on their findings and their assessment. This issue is stark when one considers the fact that on the schedule currently, marijuana is considered as dangerous as heroin ― as dangerous as heroin ― and more dangerous than fentanyl, which is absurd, not to mention patently unfair.”
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Post by mhbruin on Mar 16, 2024 8:32:37 GMT -8
The 6% Solution
A powerful real estate trade group has agreed to do away with policies that for decades helped set agent commissions, moving to resolve lawsuits that claim the rules have forced people to pay artificially inflated costs to sell their homes.
Under the terms of the agreement announced Friday, the National Association of Realtors also agreed to pay $418 million to help compensate home sellers across the U.S.
Home sellers behind multiple lawsuits against the NAR and several major brokerages argued that the trade group's rules governing homes listed for sale on its affiliated Multiple Listing Services unfairly propped up agent commissions. The rules also incentivized agents representing buyers to avoid showing their clients listings where the seller’s broker was offering a lower commission to the buyer’s agent, they argued.
As part of the settlement, the NAR agreed to no longer require a broker advertising a home for sale on MLS to offer any upfront compensation to a buyer’s agent. The rule change leaves it open for individual home sellers to negotiate such offers with a buyer’s agent outside of the MLS platforms, though the home seller’s broker has to disclose any such compensation arrangements.
The trade group also agreed to require agents or others working with a homebuyer to enter into a written agreement with them. That is meant to ensure homebuyers know going in what their agent will charge them for their services.
The rule changes, which are set to go into effect in mid-July, represent a major change to the way real estate agents have operated going back to the 1990s, and could lead to homebuyers and sellers negotiating lower agent commissions.
Currently, agents working with a buyer and seller typically split a commission of around 5% to 6% that's paid by the seller. This practice essentially became customary as home listings included built-in offers of “cooperative compensation” between agents on both sides of the transaction.
But the rule changes the NAR agreed to as part of the settlement could give home sellers and buyers more impetus to negotiate lower agent commissions.
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Post by mhbruin on Mar 16, 2024 8:33:49 GMT -8
This Lawsuit Isn't a Fake, Deep or Otherwise
The League of Women Voters, based on NBC News reporting, is suing the creators of a deepfake robocall impersonating President Joe Biden that urged New Hampshire voters not to participate in the state’s presidential primary in January.
The century-old nonpartisan organization filed the lawsuit Thursday in federal district court in Concord on behalf of three New Hampshire voters who said they received the calls. The suit asked for injunctions and tens of thousands of dollars in damages from Democratic operative Steve Kramer and two telecom companies behind the call, Lingo Telecom and Life Corporation.
“These types of voter suppression tactics have no place in our democracy,” said Celina Stewart, chief counsel at the League of Women Voters of the United States. “For over 100 years, the League of Women Voters has worked to protect voters from these unlawful crimes and will continue to fight back against bad-faith actors who aim to disrupt our democratic system.”
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