RadioRob

Published by Euronews (English) Day 9 of our Cultural Advent Calendar, in which we’re counting down our highlights of 2022 day-by-day all the way to Christmas and beyond. We’re currently listing our favourite TV shows and streams of the year… Today: The White Lotus – Season 2 (HBO). At this stage it’s a cliché to say that I’ve never seen myself represented on screen. But I’ve definitely never seen three versions of myself on screen in the same show until the second season of ‘The White Lotus’. A drunk white woman disassociating from her life; a whiny Zillennial with a Depop wardrobe; and a gay guy fawning over Jennifer Cooli… Read More View the full article

Published by AlterNet Fox News’ Tucker Carlson is spinning a new conspiracy theory about WNBA star Britney Griner being released from a Russian prison. According to Carlson, Griner was released instead of Paul Whelan simply because she is a Black lesbian. On Thursday, December 8, Carlson laid out his argument during a segment of “Tucker Carlson Tonight” hours after it was reported that President Joe Biden secured Griner’s release. As part of the agreement about her release, Mediaite notes that the U.S. “released arms dealer Viktor Bout, whom the U.S. convicted in 2011 of conspiring to kill Americans.” According to … Read More View the full article

Published by AFP Brittney Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, was arrested at a Moscow airport nine months ago against a backdrop of soaring tensions over Ukraine Washington (AFP) – American basketball star Brittney Griner was headed back to the United States on Thursday after being released from a Russian prison in exchange for an arms dealer known as the “Merchant of Death.” Griner, 32, who was arrested in Russia in February on drug charges, and Viktor Bout, 55, who was serving a 25-year sentence in a US prison, were exchanged at an airport in Abu Dhabi. In footage released by Russian state media, Griner, shorn of her distinctive dreadlocks, and a relaxed and animated Bout could be seen crossing paths on the airport tarmac and heading towards the planes that would take them home. President Joe Biden announced Griner’s release early Thursday in an address to the nation at the White House. “She is safe. She is on a plane. She is on her way home,” he said. The president said he had spoken to her and she was in “good spirits” after suffering “needless trauma.” Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, WNBA champion and LGBT trailblazer, was arrested at a Moscow airport nine months ago against a backdrop of soaring tensions over Ukraine. She was accused of possession of vape cartridges with a small quantity of cannabis oil and sentenced in August to nine years in prison. Bout, who was accused of arming rebels in some of the world’s bloodiest conflicts, was detained in a US sting operation in Thailand in 2008, extradited to the United States and sentenced in 2012 to 25 years behind bars. He landed in Russia Thursday, state television said. “Don’t worry, everything is OK, I love you very much,” he told his mother Raisa. While Griner’s family and friends celebrated her release, another American held in Russia, Paul Whelan, a former US Marine detained since 2018 and accused of spying, was not part of Thursday’s exchange and he told CNN he was “greatly disappointed.” “I don’t understand why I’m still sitting here,” Whelan told the US television network in a phone call from the Russian penal colony where he is imprisoned. Biden pledged to obtain Whelan’s freedom, saying “we will never give up.” “Sadly, for totally illegitimate reasons, Russia is treating Paul’s case different than Brittney’s,” he said. As for Griner’s release, Biden said “this is a day we’ve worked toward for a long time. It took painstaking and intense negotiations.” ‘Family is whole’ Biden made the announcement flanked by Griner’s wife, Cherelle Griner, Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken. “I’m just standing here, overwhelmed with emotions,” Cherelle Griner said. She acknowledged Whelan’s fate, saying: “Today my family is whole, but as you all are aware there’s so many other families who are not whole.” In a statement late Thursday, the Griner family thanked President Biden and his administration again, and said they “pray for Paul and for the swift and safe return of all wrongfully-detained Americans.” “We ask that you respect our privacy as we embark on this road to healing,” they added. WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said there was a “collective wave of joy and relief” in the women’s professional league where the 6’9″ (2.06 meter) Griner has been a star for a decade with the Phoenix Mercury. Biden thanked the United Arab Emirates for helping “facilitate” Griner’s release and the UAE issued a joint statement with Saudi Arabia saying it was the result of “mediation efforts” by leaders of the two Arab nations. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, however, there was “no mediation involved” and “the only countries that negotiated this deal were the United States and Russia.” ‘Rescue our compatriot’ At the time of her arrest, Griner had been playing for a professional team in Russia, as a number of WNBA players do in the off-season. She pleaded guilty to the charges against her, but said she did not intend to break the law or use the banned substance in Russia. Griner testified that she had permission from a US doctor to use medicinal cannabis to relieve pain from her many injuries. The use of medical marijuana is not allowed in Russia. The Russian foreign ministry said it had been negotiating with Washington to secure Bout’s release “for a long time” and that initially the United States had “refused dialogue” on including him in any swap. “Nevertheless, the Russian Federation continued to actively work to rescue our compatriot,” it said. “The Russian citizen has been returned to his homeland.” The 2005 film “Lord of War” starring Nicolas Cage was based in part on Bout’s arms trafficking exploits and he has been the subject of several books and TV shows. Russia’s ambassador to the United States, Anatoly Antonov, told Bout in a video message that he was aware that the arms dealer had been subjected to “powerful physical and moral pressure” while in prison, Russian news agency TASS reported. “And you endured it with dignity,” the ambassador added, saying Moscow was “genuinely delighted by the fact that Russia’s efforts for your release have eventually succeeded.” Asked about Bout’s release, a senior US defense official said “there is a concern that he would return to doing the same kind of work that he’s done in the past.” View the full article

Published by Radar Online florida house of representatives/youtube Florida representative Joe Harding, who is known for his controversial “Don’t Say Gay” bill, was indicted on six counts of fraud for allegedly obtaining and misusing $150,000 in COVID relief funds, RadarOnline.com has learned. Rep. Harding, 35, was accused of misusing funds obtained from two applications to the Small Business Administration’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program. The program was intended to provide economic relief to small businesses that risked closure and layoffs due to severe financial loss brought by the impact of the pandemic. abc news/youtube In total, Harding was charged with six counts of fraud that included alleged money laundering and wire fraud, according to the Department of Justice’s statement on his indictment. “By this conduct, the indictment alleges that Harding fraudulently obtained and attempted to obtain more than $150,000 in funds from the SBA to which he was not entitled,” the DOJ stated in a press release. Harding is accused of applying for COVID financial assistance through The Vak Shack, a vacuum sealer company, as well as a cattle farm under the name Harding LLC. Both companies had been inactive since 2017 — three years prior to the pandemic that prompted the formation of the relief program. According to the indictment, Harding allegedly applied for the program during the time period of December 2020 to March 2021. Additionally, Harding was accused of falsifying other documented requested in the application. Harding allegedly falsified bank statements — and other supporting financial documents — that were requested on the application to secure tens of thousands of dollars. Harding denied the allegations of multiple counts of fraud against him and claimed that he already repaid the financial relief that he received from his accepted applications. Harding faces 20 years for alleged wire fraud, 10 years for alleged money laundering, and 5 years for allegedly making false statements. Harding was elected to represent Florida’s 24th District in the state’s House of Representatives in 2020. During Harding’s brief two-year stint, the lawmaker introduced Bill 1557 — also known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. mega Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed Harding’s bill into law in March 2022. Along with Gov. DeSantis, Harding won his reelection in the November 2022 midterms. Harding’s trial for his indictment is scheduled for January 11 at 8:30 AM at the United States Courthouse in Gainesville, Florida. View the full article

Published by Reuters By Moira Warburton WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday gave final congressional approval to legislation that provides federal recognition of same-sex marriages, a measure born out of concern that the Supreme Court could reverse its support for legal recognition of such relationships. The House vote was 258-169, with all of the chamber’s Democrats and 39 Republicans voting in favor – though 169 of the chamber’s Republicans voted against it and one voted “present.” The measure now goes to Democratic President Joe Biden’s desk for signature into law. The Respect for Marriage Act, as it is called, won Senate approval last month. The legislation won the support of LGBT advocates as well as a number of religious organizations and entities including the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, though many American religious conservatives still oppose gay marriage as counter to biblical scripture. It is narrowly written to act as a limited backstop for the 2015 Supreme Court decision that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, known as Obergefell v. Hodges. It would allow the federal government and states to recognize same-sex and interracial marriages as long as they were legal in the states where they were performed. It makes concessions for religious groups and institutions that do not support such marriages. The measure would repeal a 1996 U.S. law called the Defense of Marriage Act, which among other things denied federal benefits to same-sex couples. It bars states from rejecting the validity of out-of-state marriages on the basis of sex, race or ethnicity. The Supreme Court in 1967 declared prohibitions on interracial marriage unconstitutional. But the legislation would not bar states from blocking same-sex or interracial marriages if the Supreme Court allowed them to do so. It also ensures that religious entities would not be forced to provide goods or services for any marriage and protects them from being denied tax-exempt status or other benefits for declining to recognize same-sex marriages. In a speech on the House floor ahead of the vote, Democratic Speaker Nancy Pelosi condemned the “hateful movement” behind attacks on LGBT rights in the United States. The legislation “will help prevent right-wing extremists from upending the lives of loving couples, traumatizing kids across the country and turning back the clock on hard-won prizes,” Pelosi said. Republican Representative Jim Jordan said the bill was “dangerous and takes the country in the wrong direction.” When the Senate passed it by a vote of 61-36, 12 Republicans joined 49 Democrats in supporting it. Most Senate Republicans voted against it. A broader version of the bill – without the explicit protections for religious liberty – passed the 435-seat House in August, with the backing of all the Democrats and 47 Republicans. But to get the necessary 60 votes in the Senate to proceed with the legislation amid opposition by many Republican senators, its co-sponsors added an amendment clarifying that religious groups could not be sued under the it. The legislation was written by a group of Democratic and Republican senators in response to fears that the Supreme Court, with its increasingly assertive conservative majority, could someday strike down the Obergefell ruling, potentially jeopardizing same-sex marriage nationwide. The court has shown a willingness to reverse its own precedents as it did in June when it overturned its landmark 1973 ruling that had legalized abortion nationwide. The Supreme Court’s conservative majority on Monday appeared ready to rule that a Christian web designer has a right to refuse to provide services for same-sex marriages in a case the liberal justices said could empower certain businesses to discriminate based on constitutional free speech protections. About 568,000 married same-sex couples live in the United States, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. (Reporting by Moira Warburton; Editing by Will Dunham and Scott Malone) View the full article

Burn in Hell on Earth Lyrics to Chris Houseman’s ‘Bible Belt’ Maybe you grew up a little like I did Maybe you knew someone like me as a kid Maybe you worked through your own shit Or learned that the one fix is Believing you can pray it away, cause hey They hit you over the head with it Stuff it down your throat Say ya need to be forgiven While they keep casting stones I know that they mean well They’re just trying to save ya from hell But I’m still bleeding from that beating I got from the Bible belt They told me Jesus would save me from my sin But they still paint pictures of Him with white skin They made some bad outta that Good Book And I hate that it took So long to get over what it did to me, cause They hit you over the head with it Stuff it down your throat Say ya need to be forgiven While they keep casting stones I know that they mean well They’re just trying to save ya from hell But I’m still bleeding from that beating I got from the Bible belt No there ain’t nothing wrong with having religion Ain’t trying to change no one’s mind Ain’t trying to look down or judge their convictions Just wish they would stop judging mine ‘Cause they hit you over the head with it Stuff it down your throat Say ya need to be forgiven While they keep casting stones I know that they mean well They’re just trying to save ya from hell But I’m still bleeding from that beating I got from the Bible belt Yeah I got from the Bible belt Published by The Boot Chris Housman has an uncanny knack for taking pop country tropes and spinning them into cutting, unvarnished truth. Housman’s breakout hit “Red State Blueneck” is a summery two-stepper that interrogates institutional racism with the catchiest chorus you can think of. (For the record, it’s the first country song to use the phrase “y’all means all.”) With his new song “Bible Belt,” Housman sets his sights on repressive religion backed by a hooky country crooner. On the surface, Housman isn’t doing anything different than most country singers: he’s setting his truth to three chords. But when your… Read More View the full article

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas by Secret Emchy Society Inflatable Menorah by Mya Byrne [This post contains video, click to play] Published by The Boot It’s beginning to feel a lot like the holidays. While we all eagerly await the opportunity to slow down, for many of us, the holidays can be stressful as well. Country music is all about yearning for family and hometown pride, but for many people, that nostalgia is a double-edged sword of anxiety and pain. But why wallow in it when you can laugh? Some of these queer country songs poke fun at the holidays, while others revel in winter nights of chosen family and togetherness. No matter the tone, these five songs get down to the holiday spirit: finding community when the nights get dark and cold… Read More View the full article

Published by Radar Online mega ’90s sitcom star Kirk Cameron claimed he was banned as a featured author at over 50 libraries across the public system, in addition to being prohibited from presenting his new faith-based children’s book at a storytime event. Cameron was allegedly told his book’s contents did not “align” with one library’s values, RadarOnline.com has learned. The child actor-turned-writer/producer, along with his publisher, Brave Books, condemned the banning and claimed the refusal was a threat to “our kids” and “this country.” mega The Rochambeau Public Library, based in Providence, Rhode Island, allegedly denied the 52-year-old’s request to promote his new book, As You Grow after he contacted them about the program. “No, we will pass on having you run a program in our space,” a staff member from the Providence library allegedly told the sitcom actor and his publisher during the phone call. Cameron and Brave Books claimed the library staff member elaborated on the reason, stating, “We are a very queer-friendly library. Our messaging does not align.” According to Brave Books, the publisher requested information on the library’s process to book Cameron for a future story hour slot. mega “You can fill out the form to reserve space, to run the program in our space — but we won’t run your program,” the library allegedly replied to Brave Book’s inquiry. In a statement released by Rochambeau Public Library on December 7, the facility claimed that Brave Books “mentioned no particular author or book in their call.” “Our libraries are free civic spaces, and our meeting rooms are available free of charge to the public,” the library’s statement read. “We provide space for many types of groups, including religious organizations.” The Growing Pains star and his publisher criticized the move by the public library system as an attempt to discriminate against Cameron’s strong beliefs. mega “This is proof that more than ever, we are getting destroyed in the battle for the hearts and minds of our children,” Cameron told Fox News. “Publicly funded libraries are green-lighting ‘gender marker and name change clinics’ while denying a story time that would involve the reading of a book that teaches biblical wisdom,” Cameron continued. “How much more clear can it get?” The actor then stated that “we have to start fighting back” or else “we will lose our kids and this country.” View the full article

Published by Raw Story Former Trump White House counselor Kellyanne Conway is apparently proud of the fact that she has not been caught up in any potential criminal conspiracies. While talking with Piers Morgan this week about her cooperation with the House Select Committee investigating the January 6th Capitol riots, Conway boasted about not being in the kind of legal jeopardy that has befallen so many of her other former colleagues in former President Donald Trump’s White House. “I’m the one Trump official with no subpoenas, indictments, scandals, and investigations,” Conway said. “And I plan to keep it that way.”… Read More View the full article

Published by AFP Park City, Utah's Old Main Street, where the 2022 Sundance Film Festival would have taken place had it not been cancelled in-person, is seen in January 2022 Los Angeles (AFP) – Documentaries exploring sexuality and fame via the life stories of supermodel Brooke Shields, singer Little Richard and author Judy Blume are among the lineup for next month’s Sundance film festival unveiled Wednesday. Co-founded by Robert Redford and renowned for launching major independent, art house and documentary films, the festival is set to return in-person to the mountains of Utah from January 19, after two previous editions were forced to take place online due to Covid. Stars including Anne Hathaway, Emilia Clarke, Jason Momoa and Chiwetel Ejiofor all have feature films in the lineup, while Emilia Jones returns to the festival that first played her best picture Oscar winner “CODA,” with two new movies of her own. On the documentary side, “Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields” tells the story of the global supermodel and actress who first achieved fame aged 12, and reflects on the objectification, sexualization and commodification of women and young girls. “Judy Blume Forever” charts how the US young adult fiction author came under attack for sexual content and offensive language in the 1980s, leading her to take a stand against book banning and censorship. Both films “reflect the trends that we’ve seen in the last few years of biographically driven work” which allows viewers “to reopen history and to look at it from a different perspective,” said Sundance senior programmer John Nein. Similarly, “The Disappearance of Shere Hite” tracks the pioneering feminist author of “The Hite Report,” whose bestselling 1976 book on the female orgasm provoked a sexual revolution, but who was forced to vanish from the public eye afer drawing vicious criticism. And documentary “Little Richard: I Am Everything” tackles the Black queer origins of rock ‘n’ roll via the late, flamboyant singer, who renounced homosexuality and became a born-again Christian in later years. The films each provide “a chance to engage with history in a very different way” via “the framework of a notable person within the arts and culture field,” said Nein. Another prominent and topical theme in the lineup is films by and about Iranian women. Documentary “Joonam,” and feature films “The Persian Version” and “Shayda” all explore the stories of women in Iran and its diaspora communities, at a time when the country has been rocked by protests over its strict female dress code. And Hollywood A-listers are expected to return to the festival in force after two years of virtual Q&As and Zoom interviews. Former “Game of Thrones” star Clarke appears alongside Ejiofor in “The Pod Generation,” a near-future social satire in which a company has invented a detachable womb, enabling couples to share their pregnancy. Hathaway and Thomasin McKenzie star in “Eileen,” about a young secretary working at a prison who befriends a glamorous counselor with a dark secret. “Aquaman” star Momoa narrates a documentary about the deep ocean and a mysterious organization planning to extract metals from the seabed. And Jones stars in dramas “Cat Person,” adapted from a famous New Yorker short story, and “Fairyland,” based on a best-selling memoir about San Francisco’s AIDS crisis. The 2023 Sundance Film Festival runs January 19–29. View the full article

Published by Raw Story Don’t expect Rep. Lauren Boebert to tone down her incendiary speech just because she nearly lost her first re-election bid. The first-term Colorado Republican beat Democrat Adam Frisch by only a few hundred votes, at least unofficially, but political experts aren’t expecting the right-wing lawmaker to move any closer to the moderate middle, reported the Denver Post. “It’s hard to imagine what a more-tempered, moderate, careful Lauren Boebert would look like,” said Kristin Kobes Du Mez, a professor of history and gender studies at Calvin University in Michigan. “I have a hard time envisioning w… Read More View the full article

Published by OK Magazine MEGA Texas Senator Ted Cruz’s 14-year-old daughter, Caroline, has been hospitalized for “self-inflicted stab wounds on the arms,” according to Houston police. A representative for Cruz released a statement about the serious situation on Tuesday night, December 6, which read, “This is a family matter, and thankfully their daughter is OK. There were no serious injuries.” MEGA “The family requests that the media respect their daughter’s privacy at this time,” the statement concluded. FIRST LADY WAR: JILL BIDEN STRIPPED MELANIA TRUMP’S ‘TACKY’ WHITE HOUSE RENOVATIONS, THOUGHT SHE ‘HAD AWFUL TASTE’ Caroline is the eldest daughter of the conservative politician and his wife, Heidi. The couple tied the knot in 2001 and also share daughter Catherine, 11. The upsetting news comes almost one year after the teen, then 13, publicly came out as bisexual and admitted to disagreeing with a majority of her father’s opinionated views. “A lot of people judge me based upon him at first glance,” Caroline said in a January TikTok video. “But I really disagree with most of his views.” The clip offered insight on the young girl’s highly profiled life, as she opened up about the “good and bad” things she has to deal with on a daily basis. “I literally have to have security following me everywhere,” Caroline noted. “Like if I want to go on a walk through the neighborhood or to my friend’s house or something, I have to have like two security guards behind me the entire time,” the seemingly annoyed teenager added. One social media user attempted to change Caroline’s views of her father by commenting, “your dad is awesome,” but she was not having it and curtly replied, “ok.” VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS’ BIGGEST SCANDALS: RUMORED FEUD WITH THE FIRST LADY, QUITTING EMPLOYEES & MORE Caroline did mention the bright side of her day-to-day life, saying, “Some of the good things are we get candy and gifts in the mail. We also get to travel sometimes.” ABC 13 Eyewitness News spoke to Houston police about the cause of Caroline’s hospitalization. If you or someone you know is in emotional distress or considering suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255). View the full article

Published by NJ.com A drag show meant to foster a sense of community among Hunterdon Central Regional High School’s LGBTQ+ students has become a point of controversy, with district officials and student organizers defending the show from backlash over whether it was “fair and equitable.” The drag show was an invitation-only event put on Oct. 27 by the high school P.U.L.S.E (People Understanding Love Serves Everyone) club and it was meant to provide a safe space for students to be themselves, club members said during a recent board of education meeting. But the event has exposed underlying tensions at the school a… Read More View the full article

Published by Radar Online Mega Don’t miss business with pleasure — something Kanye West learned from his alt-right buddy Milo Yiannopoulos, who allegedly billed him for more than $100k for the time they spent together over the past few weeks, RadarOnline.com has learned. Insiders revealed the rapper was blindsided by the bill because he never worked out a financial agreement with Milo to work as an advisor on the Ye 2024 presidential media blast. But Ye allegedly received an invoice from his extremest pal anyway. Mega Milo reportedly slapped the fallen musician with an invoice for a whopping $116k. The bill was dated December 1, according to TMZ. Ye and Milo’s friendship made headlines after they were first spotted hanging out in mid-November. Sources claimed Ye’s other right-wing friends — like white nationalist Nick Fuente— are working with the rapper-turned-politician hopeful as volunteers. It sounds like Ye was under the impression that Milo was a volunteer, too, until he got the bill. Mega While Ye’s been pushing his #Ye2024 hashtag amid his media blitz, the insider pointed out that he has yet to formally announce his campaign run — meaning, Milo can’t bill him for a campaign that isn’t real. Milo revealed to the Daily Beast that he and Ye had come to a “mutual conclusion” to part ways. It appears the hefty bill attributed to that choice. Let’s remember: Ye’s bank account isn’t what it used to be. The fashion designer lost his billionaire status in October following his antisemitic rant that forced several brands, including Adidas, to drop the star. Mega He’s also paying his ex-wife Kim Kardashian out of the wazoo. As RadarOnline.com reported, they finalized their divorce last week, and, as part of their settlement, Ye will be forking over $200k in child support on the first of every month to Kim for their four kids: North, 9, Saint, 7, Chicago, 4, and Psalm, 2. Ye also gave up the multimillion-dollar home that he purchased across the street from his ex. As for their children, they will share joint custody, and each parent will have “equal access” to them. It looks like the agreement is working out perfectly. Ye was even spotted at Kim’s home on Monday to celebrate their son Saint’s birthday like a modern family. View the full article

Published by Reuters By Diane Bartz WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The chair of the Federal Trade Commission, Lina Khan, on Tuesday said giant companies like Ticketmaster, which faces a tsunami of criticism for problems in selling tickets to a 2023 Taylor Swift tour, can become “too big to care.” Speaking at the Wall Street Journal’s CEO Council Summit, Khan said it was the Justice Department that approved the merger of Ticketmaster and Live Nation in 2010 and referenced a report that the department had a probe under way. “There can be concerns that when firms become (large) they can become too big to care,” she added, saying giant firms may feel no need to invest in innovation because they do not face tough competition. “There’s been public reporting that the Justice Department continues to look at this and I’m sure it’s top of mind for them, given all the incoming that they’re getting,” she added. Ticketmaster has drawn fresh heat from U.S. lawmakers over how it handled ticket sales for Swift’s first tour in five years. On Tuesday, a bipartisan group of lawmakers from the House Energy and Commerce Committee wrote to Michael Rapino, chief executive of Ticketmaster parent Live Nation, to raise concerns about the chaos in the Taylor Swift ticket sale and to request a briefing for staff on fees, dynamic pricing, ticket availability and transferability and scalping. There will also be a congressional hearing, likely this month, on the debacle in November when Ticketmaster put tickets on sale for Taylor Swift’s Eras tour, and some fans struggled for hours with the ticket sale website. Last month, U.S. lawmakers pressed the FTC to enforce a 2016 law against ticket scalpers using bots after Ticketmaster blamed the software for troubles selling tickets to Swift’s tour. Ticketmaster has blamed problems with presale ticketing for the tour on unprecedented demand and an effort to keep out bots run by ticket scalpers. For her part, Swift has said it was “excruciating” for her to watch fans struggle to secure tickets and that she had been assured that Ticketmaster could handle large demand. Neither Ticketmaster nor the Justice Department immediately responded to requests for comment. Khan also said that the FTC was not investigating cryptocurrency firm FTX, whose dramatic collapse sparked fears of contagion and prompted calls for more crypto regulation. (Reporting by Diane Bartz; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and David Gregorio) View the full article

Published by Reuters (Reuters) – More than 1,100 union employees at the New York Times Co are set to walk out on Thursday for 24 hours as negotiations with the news publisher for a “complete and equitable contract” failed on Tuesday, the union said in a tweet. The NYTimes NewsGuild last week had pledged to walk out on Dec. 8 if a contract was not reached by then. The NYTimes NewsGuild has sought “complete and equitable contract” wages that “keep up with inflation” as well as to preserve and enhance health insurance and retirement benefits that were promised during hiring, according to a letter signed by 1,036 members last week. The number of signatories has since topped 1,100, the union said on Tuesday. “Unless the company changes their tune and a deal is reached before Thursday, the work stoppage will officially start from midnight on December 8th and go for 24 hours,” the union said in a statement posted on Twitter. The union said the New York Times during a meeting earlier in the day refused to meet for additional negotiating sessions to resolve the contract dispute by Thursday. The New York Times in an emailed statement to Reuters said the union’s claims were inaccurate and negotiations were ongoing. The union said that the walkout would be the first full-day work stoppage at the New York Times since the late 1970s. The Times Guild represents journalists as well as ad sales workers, comment moderators, news assistants, security guards and staffers at The Times Center, the company’s events venue and virtual production studio. Tech employees of the Times voted last March to unionize and have been trying separately to negotiate their first contract. (Reporting by Akriti Sharma in Bengaluru; Editing by Leslie Adler) View the full article

Published by AFP The US Supreme Court is to hear a high-stakes elections case Washington (AFP) – The US Supreme Court hears a case on Wednesday that could fundamentally alter the way democracy operates in America by expanding the power of state legislatures over elections for the White House and Congress. The case, Moore v. Harper, would potentially give lawmakers in each of the 50 US states more authority in deciding who votes, where and how in federal elections. The prospect has raised concerns on the left in a bitterly divided country still reeling from Donald Trump’s refusal to accept the 2020 election results. But it has also alarmed some on the right. The case focuses on a theory known as the “independent state legislature” doctrine advanced by Republican lawmakers in the southern state of North Carolina. Under the Constitution, the rules for federal elections are set by the state legislature. “The Times, Places and Manner of holding Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof,” the Elections Clause says. State legislatures have used their authority to map out congressional districts, set poll hours and agree on rules for voter registration and mail-in ballots. Their laws have been subject, however, to legal scrutiny by the local courts and possible veto by the state governor. No longer, if the North Carolina lawmakers have their way. In their brief to the nation’s highest court, they say the Constitution “sets forth a detailed set of specific rights, specific procedures, and specific allocations of power. “Here, those carefully drawn lines place the regulation of federal elections in the hands of state legislatures, Congress, and no one else.” Amy Mason Saharia, a Washington lawyer who has argued a number of cases before the Supreme Court, said it “has never adopted that theory, but it has been floating around for a while” and the conservative-dominated court could embrace it. ‘Reshape American democracy’ North Carolina’s Democratic governor Roy Cooper warned that “the court’s decision on this alarming argument could fundamentally reshape American democracy. “Our democracy is a fragile ecosystem that requires checks and balances to survive,” Cooper wrote in an opinion piece published in The New York Times. “Republican leaders in the North Carolina legislature have shown us how the election process can be manipulated for partisan gain,” Cooper said. “And that’s what you can expect to see from state legislatures across the country if the court reverses course in this case.” Moore v. Harper stems from an electoral dispute in North Carolina. The 2020 census found that the state’s population had increased, earning it an extra seat in the US House of Representatives. North Carolina lawmakers redrew the congressional map to add a new district but the state supreme court threw it out in February, arguing that it favored Republicans by grouping Democrats in certain districts, diluting their vote. A second map was also judged to be unfair and the state high court finally named an independent expert to carry out the redistricting. North Carolina lawmakers appealed to the Supreme Court arguing that local courts were usurping their authority. The Supreme Court declined to intervene right away and the map drawn up by the expert was used in November’s midterm elections, resulting in seven House members from each party. ‘Nonsense’ Democrats, from the state level to President Joe Biden, law professors and leading civil rights organizations have filed briefs urging the Supreme Court to reject the doctrine. Sophia Lin Lakin of the American Civil Liberties Union warned of the dangers of an adverse ruling. “An extreme interpretation of the US Constitution by the Supreme Court in this case will make it even easier for state legislators to suppress the vote, fraud, gerrymander election districts and potentially sabotage election results,” she said. The Republican Party dismissed the criticism as alarmist. “Self-anointed constitutional law experts have convinced a healthy cross-section of armchair court watchers that, should the court decide this case the wrong way, it would signal the end of democracy,” the National Republican Committee said in a brief. “Nonsense.” A number of prominent conservatives did express concern. “Our political system would suffer harm if partisan gerrymanders were left entirely without state-level checks and balances,” said Arnold Schwarzenegger, the former Republican governor of California. The court is to deliver its ruling by the end of June. View the full article

Published by Reuters By Shawana Alleyne-Morris (Reuters) – Reduced access to infertility treatments early in the pandemic may have contributed to a drop in twin births, data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest. The number of twin births fell 7% between 2019 and 2020 – from 120,291 to 112,437 – compared to an average 2%-per-year decline from 2014 to 2019, researchers reported on Wednesday in the CDC’s National Vital Statistics Reports, based on data from 50 states and the District of Columbia. The twin birth rate dropped 3% between 2019 and 2020, from 32.1 to 31.1 per 1,000 births, versus an average annual decline of 1% from 2014-2019, the researchers said. The largest declines were in November and December of 2020 and January 2021, when twin birth rates dropped by 10%, 14% and 7%, respectively, compared to the year before. “The timing of the monthly declines in late 2020 and early 2021 coincide with a period of conception when the coronavirus pandemic began and (experts) recommended that reproductive medicine professionals temporarily limit infertility treatment,” Isabelle Horon and Joyce Martin wrote in the report. The number of births involving one baby declined by only 3% from 2019 to 2020, the authors said. Overall, twin births did not rise significantly in 2021 from 2020 levels, although rates began to increase near the end of the year. The largest decline in twin births was seen in women over age 40, the group most likely to use infertility treatment. The smallest decline was in women under age 30, who are least likely to use infertility treatment, the authors said. The study cannot prove pandemic lockdowns caused twin births to decline. In fact, the authors point out that Hispanic women had a larger decline in twin birth rate than non-Hispanic white women, even though Hispanic women are less likely to receive infertility treatments. Early in the pandemic, the number of babies born prematurely, or at dangerously low weights, was lower than usual, the researchers noted. Because twins are at higher risk for these outcomes, “the decline in twin births may have contributed, in part, to the reductions in preterm and low birthweight deliveries … between 2019 and 2020,” they said. (Reporting by Shawana Alleyne-Morris; editing by Nancy Lapid and Bill Berkrot) View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Anne Heche’s final autopsy has revealed that cocaine in her system did not contribute to her death. The actress died aged 53 in a devastating car crash on August 5, and the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Conor has revealed while she had used cocaine and cannabis previously, she was not impaired by drugs at the time of the accident. A coroner spokesperson told PEOPLE magazine: “The hospital admission blood showed the presence of benzoylecgonine, the inactive metabolite of cocaine, which means she used in the past but not at the time of the crash.” They added that while cannabinoids were found in her urine, they were “not detected in the admission blood” which is “consistent with prior use, but not at the time of the injury”. Meanwhile, toxicology has revealed she had fentanyl in her system, but the report has indicated this was “obtained after she received treatment at the hospital and therefore is consistent with therapeutic use”. The report adds: “This is supported by the lack of fentanyl in the blood specimen drawn at admission to the hospital.” The report also indicates that Anne’s burns prevented her body from effectively absorbing oxygen. This led to an “anoxic brain injury”, which is what resulted in her death. She was in a coma for around a week and was on life support until her death, with her heart kept beating so she could be assessed for organ donation. Anne had a “sternal fracture due to blunt trauma”, which was labelled a “significant condition”, and typically takes place after the chest hits the steering wheel following a collision. She was severely burned in the car fire, which took 59 firefighters to battle and more than an hour before it was extinguished and the actress was freed. View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan have accepted an award for fighting “structural racism” in the Royal Family. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex – whose Netflix documentary is set to launch on Thursday (08.12.22) – were honoured at the Ripple of Home awards in New York on Tuesday night, but refused to answer questions about the upcoming series. Kerry Kennedy – the daughter of Robert F Kennedy who runs the RFK Foundation, which is behind the awards – previously said she chosen Harry and Meghan for the prize because of their “heroic” stance as apparent “structural racism” in the Royal Family. She added: “Few would have the courage to question their colleagues, family and community about the power structure they maintained, and this is what Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have done.” Speaking at the gala this week, Harry said: “Ultimately we live in this world now where sharing experiences and sharing stories has an enormous impact.” Previous winners of the human rights awards from the organisation include Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. At the gala, Alec Baldwin revealed his admiration for the Sussexes. He commented: “They way they deal with difficult circumstances in the press without to much difficulty. “They’ve obviously chosen a different path. Good for them. They’re newly arrived in the States. “I think it’s great they’ve agreed to support this cause which we have for years.” In last year’s explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey, the couple accused an unnamed member of the royal family of asking about Archie’s skin tone before he was born. Meghan, 39, claimed in the interview that there had been several “concerns and conversations” raised by a member of the royal family about how “dark” Archie’s skin would be. She explained: “That was relayed to me from Harry. Those were conversations that family had with him.” Meanwhile, their appearance at the awards come amid controversy surrounding their documentary, with the trailer depicts their experiences with the media by using footage and images of the paparazzi from unrelated events, including a ‘Harry Potter’ premiere in 2011, years before Harry and Meghan had even met. View the full article

Published by DPA Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman al-Saud awaits the German Chancellor in front of Al-Salam Palace. A US judge on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit against Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman over the 2018 murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Kay Nietfeld/Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH/dpa A US judge on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit against Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman over the 2018 murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Judge John Bates spoke of his “uneasiness” over the decision but said he had to follow the US Justice Department’s recent recommendation that bin Salman be given immunity. Bate’s unease was due not only to “credible allegations” of the prince’s involvement in Khashoggi’s murder, the judge wrote, but also to the timing of bin Salman’s appointment as prime minister of Saudi Arabia. The case was brought by Khashoggi’s fiancee, Hatice Cengiz, who has accused US President Joe Biden of saving the “murderer” and “criminal” bin Salman by granting him immunity. Mohammed has been blamed by US intelligence for ordering the murder of Khashoggi. The crown prince denies having authorized the crime. The murder led to the crown prince being largely isolated internationally, including by Germany. View the full article

Published by Reuters (Reuters) – Neuralink, the Elon Musk company that Reuters reported on Monday is the target of a federal investigation over its animal trial program, has been trying to develop a brain chip that would enable the paralyzed to walk and the blind to see. Here is more on what Neuralink does. WHAT IS NEURALINK DEVELOPING? Founded in 2016 by Musk and a group of engineers, Neuralink is building a brain chip interface that can be implanted within the skull, which it says could eventually help disabled patients to move and communicate again, and also restore vision. Neuralink’s device has a chip that processes and transmits neural signals that could be transmitted to devices like a computer or a phone. The company hopes that a person would potentially be able to control a mouse, keyboard or other computer functions like text messaging with their thoughts. “First @Neuralink product will enable someone with paralysis to use a smartphone with their mind faster than someone using thumbs,” Musk said in April 2021. Neuralink also believes its device will eventually be able to restore neural activity inside the body, allowing those with spinal cord injuries to move limbs. The San Francisco and Austin-based company also aspires to cure neurological conditions such as Alzheimer’s and dementia. WHAT PROGRESS HAS NEURALINK MADE? Neuralink has produced several examples of testing aspects of its technology successfully on animals, including a video in 2021 that showed a macaque playing a simple videogame after being implanted with a brain chip. In a presentation webcast last week, the company showcased improvements in the speed and capabilities of the chip. WHAT HURDLES FOR NEURALINK NEXT? Neuralink has yet to secure U.S. regulatory approval to move to human trials – unlike competitor Synchron, which has less ambitious goals for its medical advances. Neuralink has missed Musk’s publicly stated deadlines to start human trials and this year submitted its application to the Food and Drug Administration to begin them. Musk said last week he believes Neuralink can start human clinical trials in six months. CONTROVERSY AROUND ANIMAL TESTING The company is facing a federal probe for potential animal-welfare violations at a time when its staff has complained that the testing is being rushed, causing needless suffering and deaths, according to documents reviewed by Reuters and sources familiar with the investigation and company operations. In all, the company has killed about 1,500 animals, including more than 280 sheep, pigs and monkeys, following experiments since 2018. (Reporting by Chavi Mehta in Bengaluru and Rachael Levy in Washington; Editing by Greg Roumeliotis, Rosalba O’Brien and Anil D’Silva) View the full article

Published by OK Magazine mega Just 11 when she lost her famous father, Paris Jackson still carries him with her. Michael Jackson may have been worth more than a billion dollars, but his kids didn’t get anything handed to them. “Growing up, it was about earning stuff,” Paris says of her childhood with brothers Prince Michael, 24, and Bigi (a.k.a. Blanket), 19. “If we wanted five toys from FAO Schwarz or Toys R Us, we had to read five books. It’s earning it.” mega That’s just one of the lessons the singer/songwriter took from the King of Pop. “It’s earning it, not just being entitled to certain things or thinking, Oh, I got this,” she said. “It’s working hard for [something] … it’s an accomplishment.” As a result, the 23-year-old shared, she’s not afraid to hustle to launch her own career. “I go to auditions, I study hard,” the model and “Low Key in Love” singer said. “I do my thing.” PRINCE JACKSON RECALLS TRAUMATIC FIRST TIME HE WATCHED ‘THRILLER’ VIDEO WITH DAD MICHAEL JACKSON mega ‘MICKEY’ SINGER TONI BASIL CREDITS MICHAEL JACKSON’S DEATH TO RESIDENCY REHEARSALS, INSISTS ‘IT WAS KILLING HIM AND IT DID KILL HIM’ But being the daughter of the most famous man on earth did have its perks. “My dad was really good about making sure we were cultured, making sure we were educated,” she noted about the family’s world travels, “and not just showing us the glitz and glam, like hotel hopping, five-star places.” To keep the kids grounded, she added, “We saw everything. We saw Third World countries. We saw every part of the spectrum.” And of course, the two bonded over their shared love of music. “He loved classical music and jazz and hip-hop and R&B and obviously the Motown stuff,” Paris recalled. “So we grew up around all of that, and I feel like all of that somehow influences my stuff.” View the full article

Published by DPA The cap of a Russian soldier lies on the road near a destroyed tank column in Borodianka. In the first book of its kind from Russia since the start of the war with Ukraine, a Russian soldier has given a candid version of life on the front. In shedding light on why Putin’s war is failing, Pavel Filatyev has made himself an enemy of the state. Matthew Hatcher/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa For two months, former Russian paratrooper Pavel Filatyev experienced the war in Ukraine first-hand, battling a determined enemy and despairing at a senseless mission and the incompetence of his own commanders. After he returned home in the summer, Filatyev, 34, poured out his frustrations about the shambolic state of the Russian army in his gripping front-line account “ZOV”, which means “the call” in Russian. Packed with insights into daily wartime life and an army riddled with corruption and nepotism, the 141-page bombshell was recently released in German and is also available in English as “ZOV: A Russian soldier caught inside Putin’s unjust war in Ukraine”. Initially published in Russian on the Internet, the first word of its title was then also written in Latin script to highlight the letters “Z” and “V”, the tactical symbols painted on Russian military vehicles that poured into Ukraine on February 24. The memoir quickly became an international sensation, while Filatyev, who keeps his whereabouts secret while in political asylum in France, faces up to 15 years in jail in Russia for defaming the armed forces. Nevertheless, he hopes his writing will help to enlighten his countrymen about the senselessness of the war, and even prompt them to rise up in opposition to it. The Russian audio book version published on YouTube alone has more than 600,000 hits so far. As his unit, the 56th Guards air assault regiment, was sent into southern Ukraine from Crimea, Filatyev naively believed there was a reason for the invasion. He soon realized that nobody there was waiting for the “liberation” that was announced by the Kremlin. The claim of the Russian leadership that they wanted to preempt an imminent Ukrainian attack is also untrue, says Filatyev, denouncing what President Vladimir Putin stubbornly calls a “special military operation” against Nazis in the neighbouring country. His criticism is not aimed at ordinary soldiers who have been misled by a lack of information, Filatyev stresses, but at the leadership in the Moscow Kremlin. “He never served, he was never in a war and doesn’t know what the army is,” Filatyev said of Putin, a former Soviet KGB intelligence service officer, during a video call from a café in Paris. As the world reels from each successive uncovering of horrors against civilians in previously occupied Bucha, Izyum, Kherson and beyond, he says he can’t personally confirm any atrocities committed by the army during his time in Ukraine. “Of course I can’t vouch for the whole army, but no one was tortured in front of my eyes, let alone raped,” he writes. But he has no doubt that, as in every war, there are “scumbags” committing war crimes. At the same time, he acknowledges that Ukrainian civilians are being killed and entire cities senselessly destroyed. Filatyev, a former horse breeder as well as soldier, authentically describes how the military is failing due to a lack of leadership and motivation – and sheer inability to keep the troops supplied with essentials like food. “I’m a smoker and I’m annoyed with the leadership that we’ve been here for three days and apparently nobody upstairs thought that we need something to smoke, eat and drink,” he writes in his diary-like notes from the front. Dilapidated equipment and vehicles that constantly break down point to a bleak outcome for Russia’s “technically hopelessly outdated and morally rotten” forces in Ukraine: “An army like this doesn’t need an enemy, we’ll ruin ourselves all on our own.” Filatyev, who is not married and has no children, paints a dire future also for the country, which is sinking in “lies, fraud and false values”. Everything is atrophied, from defence to health care to the legal system, while the individual counts for nothing. Ordinary soldiers often have to pay for their medical treatment and medicines themselves, but the Russian elites continue to prosper from the comfort of their villas and yachts. After years of watching annual WW2 victory parades on Red Square, this, he muses, this should surely be enough for the Russian people to finally grasp the tragedy that is unfolding in Ukraine: “On May 9 we thank our ancestors who ended the war. Have we, their descendants, really started a war now?” It is a war that not only tore apart Ukrainians and Russians, who once lived in one country and still have close family ties, but also threatens to bankrupt his homeland because of the immense cost of holding the occupied Ukrainian territory. Ordinary soldiers often have to pay for their medical treatment and medicines themselves, Filatyev writes. Ivan Vysochinsky/ZUMA/dpa View the full article

Published by AFP Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky takes part in a flag-laying ceremony during his visit to the newly liberated city of Kherson in November 2022 New York (AFP) – Time magazine named President Volodymyr Zelensky as well as “the spirit of Ukraine” as its 2022 person of the year on Wednesday, for the resistance the country has shown in the face of Russia’s invasion. Calling Zelensky’s decision to remain in Kyiv and rally his country “fateful,” Time editor in chief Edward Felsenthal said this year’s decision was “the most clear-cut in memory.” Since Russia’s February 24 invasion, Zelensky has delivered daily speeches that are followed not only by Ukrainians but by citizens and governments around the globe. He has appeared on the front lines and recently celebrated in the streets of Kherson when Ukraine pushed Russia from the critical southern city. “His information offensive shifted the geopolitical weather system, setting off a wave of action that swept the globe,” Felsenthal wrote in announcing the winner. “Whether the battle for Ukraine fills one with hope or with fear, Volodymyr Zelensky galvanized the world in a way we haven’t seen in decades,” Felsenthal added. Zelensky’s response to the Russian invasion has transformed the 44-year-old former comedian from an embattled leader of a struggling European outlier to a global household name. He has also become the standard-bearer of opposition to Russian leader Vladimir Putin, who himself was Time’s person of the year in 2007. Zelensky, who was born in the southern industrial city of Kryviy Rig in the heart of a mainly Russian-speaking region, has presented his country as the front line in a broader conflict. His appeals to the West for military and financial support, at times echoing the words of British wartime leader Winston Churchill, have helped Ukraine first halt Russia’s advance and then recapture swathes of territory. Zelensky shares the 2022 title with “the spirit of Ukraine,” which Felsenthal said was embodied by the “countless individuals inside and outside the country” who are fighting behind the scenes, including everyday people such as chefs and surgeons. Time’s cover artwork for the edition features Zelensky in his now iconic green fatigues, surrounded by dozens of individuals, including demonstrators bearing the Ukrainian flag, who together represent that spirit. Among those depicted are Iryna Kondratova, who helped deliver babies during shelling, Kyiv chef Levgen Klopotenko, who turned his restaurant into a relief canteen, and Kyiv Independent editor in chief, Olga Rudenko. “The Russians need to understand… They will have no forgiveness. They will have no acceptance in the world,” Zelensky says in an interview published in the issue. Time first presented its Person of the Year award in 1927. Last year’s honoree was Tesla and SpaceX chief Elon Musk, who has since made major headlines with his high-profile purchase of Twitter. View the full article