RadioRob

Published by BANG Showbiz English Kelvin Harrison Jr. will play artist Jean-Michel Basquiat in the biopic ‘Samo Lives’. The 27-year-old actor has boarded the cast of the movie that will celebrate the life, career and impact of the New York-born, Haitian-Puerto Rican American artist whose seminal painting and street art defined the Neo-expressionism arts movement during the 1980s. The film is being directed by Julius Omah, who previously collaborated with Kelvin on the critically acclaimed drama ‘Luce’, and is being financed and developed by Endeavor Content. Basquiat became the youngest artist at the Whitney Biennial in New York at the age of just 22. He sadly passed away aged 27 in 1988 but his work continues to make an impact on the art world – the painting ‘Untitled’ sold at Sotheby’s for $110.5 million in 2017. Julius is also producing the project and will co-write the script with Peter Glanz. In a lengthy statement, the director explained: “Jean-Michel Basquiat redefined the idea of who ascends to the highest altitudes of the fine art world. But the complexity and richness of his experience as an artist and child of the African diaspora has yet to be dramatised in the manner it delivers. “It’s an honour to work with Kelvin and my collaborators, and with Endeavor Content, to celebrate the legacy of an artist who has invited audiences everywhere to be inspired by the transformative power of art.” Omah explained how he first discovered Basquiat as a teenager and realised that his story would be perfect for the big screen as he learned more about the artist. He said: “It was a gateway for a kid desperate to find artists he could see himself in. But the older I got and the more I learned about Jean-Michel, the more I began to feel his story hadn’t been fully told in cinema. “Never have we seen the full spectrum of Basquiat’s incredible life as a black artist and a child of the immigrant African diaspora. And the richness and nuance of his journey is a story worthy of celebration.” View the full article

Published by Reuters By Jeff Mason WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Joe Biden will urge Americans to reject lies and live by the “light of truth” in remarks on Thursday to commemorate the first anniversary of the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol by supporters of former President Donald Trump. Biden, a Democrat, defeated Republican Trump in the 2020 election, but the former president has falsely claimed the vote was marred by fraud, and his speech two weeks before Biden’s inauguration urging supporters to fight fueled a deadly riot at the Capitol, a symbol of U.S. democracy. Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are slated to speak at the Capitol on Thursday and the White House said Biden would assign “singular responsibility” https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-president-biden-lay-out-trumps-singular-responsibility-jan-6-attacks-2022-01-05 to Trump for the violence a year ago. Four people died on the day of the riot, and one Capitol police officer died the day after. “And so at this moment we must decide what kind of nation we are going to be. Are we going to be a nation that accepts political violence as a norm? Are we going to be a nation where we allow partisan election officials to overturn the legally expressed will of the people?” Biden will say, according to excerpts of his remarks released by the White House. “Are we going to be a nation that lives not by the light of the truth but in the shadow of lies? We cannot allow ourselves to be that kind of nation. The way forward is to recognize the truth and to live by it,” he will say. Biden and his advisers have shied away from talking directly about Trump during the Democrat’s first year in office, preferring to move forward with their own agenda. But the former president has continued to spread falsehoods about his loss and may decide to run for president again in the 2024 election. (Reporting by Jeff Mason; Editing by Mary Milliken) View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Saweetie and Cher have teamed up to star in MAC campaign ‘Challenge Accepted’. The 28-year-old rapper and the ‘Believe’ singer,75, have joined the cosmetics company’s latest campaign which encourages the stars to “challenge the status quo”. Saweetie explained: “Challenge Accepted’ means challenging a status quo, and I try to do that every day with my business, with my music, with the message I give out to the world. Because I went to college, something that was said to me was: ‘Why would you be a rapper when you have a degree?’ But I challenge that. I’m going to do what I’m passionate about. So Challenge Accepted from MAC’s side, from my side, I feel like we continue to challenge the doubters.” The ‘Best Friend’ singer – who joined MAC as an ambassador back in September 2021 – then went on to gush about getting to work with iconic pop singer Cher, describing the experience as “magical.” Speaking to WWD, she added: “Cher is so magical. Every time someone asks for me to describe her, I feel like there’s no one word to put it, but she’s magical. he’s fun. She’s so full of knowledge and she was such a pleasure to work with. If I can, I would do it again.” Her feelings were echoed by Drew Elliott, senior vice president and global creative director at MAC Cosmetics, who said that seeing the stars collaborate on set for the campaign video was a “dream., noting that Cher’s fashion wisdom was “endless.” He said: “When they were filming together, Cher gave endless advice and ‘wisdom’ about the industry, fashion and style. It was such a moment — a moment only MAC could make. These two artists are powerhouses on their own, but together they are unstoppable.” View the full article

=Buck SlipThe ineffective, draconian sex offender registry is being used prop up unconstitutional ‘buggery’ laws that a few states refuse to take off the books.Yes, criminalizing consensual gay sex was not found unconstitutional until 2003 and there are people today in South Carolina who are on the onerous sex offender registry for convictions that have been pardoned and that happened in the 2000s. Below post are case documents as well as the conditions sex offenders agree to for life in South Carolina. Add this to the urgent list of reforming every part of criminal justice. Also add to the list of concerns about the supermajority conservative activists on the Supreme Court. Attached are the legal complaint and supporting document at the end of the post –Editor Charleston Pride. State is one of three still using sex offender registry on convictions of consensual gay sex.Challenging “Buggery” A lawsuit filed by a South Carolina man last month is putting the state’s anti-sodomy laws and their use in criminalizing LGBTQ individuals as well as the lifetime-without-review rules for sex offenders in South Carolina back under the spotlight. The man, identified in the filing as “John Doe,” is challenging in order to have his sex offender status changed after being convicted under South Carolina’s anti-sodomy statutes, often referred to as the “buggery” law, over 20 years ago. According to the filing, Doe was convicted for having consensual sex with a man in 2001 under the South Carolina statute. He was later pardoned of the charge in 2006, three years after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down similar laws in Texas and deemed them unconstitutional nationwide. Despite the pardon, Doe has remained a registered sex offender in South Carolina. The ACLU of South Carolina and Los Angeles lawyer Matthew Strugar filed the suit on behalf of Doe in U.S. District Court on December 22, aiming to have Doe removed from the state’s sex offender registry and prevent others convicted under the state’s anti-sodomy laws from having to register as sex offenders. Menges won his case, with U.S. District Court Judge Dana Christensen stating that “Montana has no rational basis for forcing Menges to register as a sexual offender.”Strugar sees the parallels between the cases of Menges and Doe. “This kind of overt, state-sanctioned homophobia would have been surprising 30 years ago. Today it is shocking. And it is unconstitutional,” Strugar said in a statement. The Montana Attorney General’s Office is appealing the ruling. Menges and another man also have a similar lawsuit currently pending in Idaho challenging its reciprocity laws. Doe’s complaint names South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson and State Law Enforcement Division Chief Mark Keel as defendants. Doe’s filing highlights Menges’ case as an example of successful challenges to anti-sodomy and reciprocity laws in other states that effectively criminalizes LGBTQ sexual activity. “This practice needlessly subjects law abiding citizens to the horrors of the sex offender registry and demonstrates a deeply troubling animosity by the state towards the gay community,” said Allen Chaney, ACLU of South Carolina legal director. The South Carolina Attorney General’s Office declined to comment citing the office doesn’t comment on pending litigation. Sex Offenders in South Carolina, for Life With the ACLU case documents below is the form signed by sex offenders in South Carolina. Once someone has been identified for. thelist it is for a lifetime, as is frequently a requirement for electronic surveillance. In South Carolina there is no process, no scheduled check in to analyze if the person needs to remain on the list, and no way to petition for removal, no matter what offense has been committed. This was recently found unconstitutional but still no changes haver been made. Among the requirements many are particularly onerous and make finding living space and work next to impossible in some places. This is not incidental to require of someone who was convicted of a crime that is not a crime, and in fact is onerous and unnecessary according to clear research across the country for. the vast majority of people forced to register. Sex offenders have to register twice a year, in person, with the sheriff. Their names , offenses and addresses are on local and national lists and maps anyone can consult via the internet. If they move, through state reciprocity, they are forced to still register in other states. Many are victimized lacking safety and via the details on the internet. In South Carolina, sex offenders give up rights to question tests to determine if they are drunk and waive all requirements for warrants to search homes, cars, phones, computers etc at any time as well as waiving rights to confidential treatment and therapy. They have to report where they are living, and they have to sleep there every night. And this place has. to be the slivers and outskirts of towns that are 1000 feet from any place young people might frequent AND any places that sell goods or services related to sex activity. This includes all schools, day care centers, playgrounds, arcades, public pools and beaches, shopping malls and theaters as well as adult book stores, strip clubs, massage parlors etc. (In many cities this reduces the areas in which it’s possible to live to such an extent that many are made homeless. Homelessness and having no work, i.e. isolations have been shown to be among the few factors that actually increase recidivism among sex offenders. The rate of recidivism for these crimes is around 8% already though, compared to 67% for all other offenses. have been shown to be among t Sex offenders can have no contact with anyone under 18 outside the immediate family. In fact there are three myths about sex offenders that have been studies significantly with results conclusively showing that: A. Stranger Danger is not a thing. Ironic in that 80% of sexual assault victims know their assaulters, 93% if just the child victims.. The last numbers from 2011 are that across a country of 74 million children there were 105 kidnappings by strangers, and some of those involved sexual assault.. B. Not true that sex offenders have very high sexual re-offense rates. Recidivism is not high at all. The vast majority of sex offenders are first time offenders. Recidivism rates have been found to be 5-8%, 10-14% in another (compared to 67% for all other convictions.). 1994 federal study followed 10,000 released offenders, about 2/3 of the total, with almost half of those who assaulted children found found a 5.3 recidivism rate. C. Also Not true that all sex offenders are not treatable. multiple studies have found statistically significant impacts. It is also a myth that those on the sex offender list have assaulted someone sexually, many have not assaulted anyone, and in fact many have had contact with anyone. In South Carolina this can include soliciting someone under 18 for sex, peeping toms, stalkers, other crimes with intent, indecent exposure and anything else if part of a judge’s conviction. And while all of these are serious and are crimes, they do not all fall to. the same level of offense or threat as say repeated sexual assault It is hardly a surprise that the impacts of sex offender lists and the huge attendant stigma impact people of color more significantly South Carolina Sex Offender Registry : Previously on Towleroad ACLU Sues South Carolina: Man Kept On Sex Offender List For 2001 Consensual Gay Sex Conviction; Was Pardoned in 2006; Sodomy Laws Tossed, 2003 Brian Bell January 5, 2022 Read More Omicron Result Of COVID HIV Connect, Mutated in Immune-Suppressed Untreated Person With HIV; ‘Most Plausible Origin Story’; ‘Pretty Good Bet’; Top Scientists Agree. Get Tested, Treated. Michael Goff December 7, 2021 Read More Two Firsts Among Nonbinary Election Wins; Texas Religious Businesses Step Closer to Legal Discrimination; Michigan Effort Fails To Extend LGBTQ Rights Brian Bell November 3, 2021 Read More Raiders Coach Resigns Over Homophobic Emails; NC Lt. Gov. Calls LGBTQ People ‘Filth;’ Dean Cain Bummed at Bi Superman: Homophobia Newsletter Brian Bell October 13, 2021 Read More Spanish Hospital Draws Gay Health Advocates’ Ire After Listing ‘Homosexuality’ As An Illness On Gay Patient’s Medical Report Brian Bell October 7, 2021 Read More OKCupid’s Full, Inclusive ‘Every Single Person’ Campaign Is Literally Attacked. Dating App: ‘If We’re Pissing Off People … You Can Go Elsewhere’ Brian Bell September 30, 2021 Read More View the full article

Published by Reuters By Anna Mehler Paperny and Ismail Shakil TORONTO (Reuters) -Canada announced on Tuesday two agreements totalling C$40 billion ($31.5 billion) to compensate First Nations children who were taken from their families and put into the child welfare system and to reform the system that removed them and deprived them of services they needed. The agreements include C$20 billion for potentially hundreds of thousands of First Nations children who were removed from their families, who did not get services or who experienced delays in receiving services. Another C$20 billion is to reform the system over the next five years. The agreements come almost 15 years after the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society brought forward a human rights complaint. The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal repeatedly found child and family services discriminated against First Nations children, in part by under-funding services on reserves so children were removed from their homes and taken off-reserve to get those services. Canada admitted its systems were discriminatory but repeatedly fought orders to pay compensation and fund reforms, including an appeal it filed last year https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/canada-appeal-decision-compensate-indigenous-children-harmed-by-discrimination-2021-10-29. Canada is also fighting a class-action lawsuit on behalf of First Nations children that the compensation agreement seeks to resolve. Justice Minister David Lametti said Tuesday the government will drop its appeals once the agreements are finalized in the months ahead. The reform deal includes C$2,500 in preventive care per child and provisions for children in foster care to receive support beyond age 18. Funding aimed at reform and preventive services should start flowing in April but may not address deep-rooted problems, said Cindy Blackstock, executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society. “I see it as words on paper,” she told Reuters. “I judge victory when I can walk into a community and a child is able to say to me, ‘My life is better than it was yesterday.’ Nothing in these words actually changes children’s lives until it’s implemented.” Lawyer David Sterns, representing harmed First Nations children and families, said during a press conference that this would be the largest class-action settlement in Canada’s history. “The enormity of this settlement is due to one reason, and one reason only. And that is the sheer scope of the harm inflicted on class members,” he said. At the press conference Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu vowed to end discrimination against First Nations children, who are over-represented in foster care across Canada. “Canada’s decision and actions harmed First Nations children, families and communities,” she said. “Discrimination caused intergenerational harm and losses. Those losses are not reversible. But I believe healing is possible.” ($1 = 1.2696 Canadian dollars) (Reporting by Anna Mehler Paperny; Editing by Denny Thomas and Lisa Shumaker) View the full article

Published by Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. lawmakers are discussing another possible round of COVID-19 stimulus spending for businesses, seeking to blunt the impact of the fast-spreading Omicron variant, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday. Early efforts by Democratic and Republican lawmakers have focused primarily on authorizing billions of dollars to help businesses including restaurants, performance venues, gyms and minor league sports teams, the report said, citing four people familiar with the matter. The White House declined to comment to the Washington Post, as did two lawmakers cited as behind the talks. Such a measure, if passed by Congress and signed into law by U.S. President Joe Biden, would be the latest federal relief package as the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic enters its third year, this time as the Omicron variant sweeps the country. Biden, a Democrat, approved the $1.9 trillion “American Rescue Plan” in March 2021. Former Republican U.S. President Donald Trump approved nearly $900 billion in coronvirus-related funding into law in December 2020 as part of a larger $2.3 trillion pandemic aid and spending package. Before that, Congress had passed bills allocating $3 trillion to combat the pandemic that shut down much of the United States in March 2020. (Writing by Susan Heavey in Washington; additional reporting by Shivam Patel in Bengaluru; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Chizu Nomiyama) View the full article

Published by OK Magazine MEGA Sorry not sorry! Andy Cohen has no regrets about his recent hosting gig during CNN’s New Year’s Eve special over the weekend. After the TV personality had a little too much to drink while ringing in the new year with Anderson Cooper on CNN’s broadcast Friday night — where began slinging insults at numerous celebs — he refused to apologize for simply having a good time. MEGA Cohen appeared on Sirius XM’s The Howard Stern Show earlier this week, where he defended himself for going on a drunken rant during the broadcast, telling the radio show host he was just trying to have a fun night. VICKI GUNVALSON’S FORMER ‘RHOC’ CASTMATE & ANDY COHEN REACT TO HER EX STEVE LODGE GETTING ENGAGED TO NEW GIRLFRIEND “I will not be shamed for having fun on New Year’s Eve. That’s why I’m there.” he explained on Tuesday, January 4. “It’s a four-and-a-half-hour show. The booze started kicking in around 11:30…I kicked into high gear with 45 minutes left.” Cohen became unhinged during his drunken rant while yelling about Mayor Bill de Blasio for doing the “crappiest job” as the mayor of New York. The Bravo host even slammed ABC’s Dick Clark’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest, calling the performers a “group of losers.” MEGA “I had a blast. Anderson had a blast,” Cohen continued on Tuesday. “We left, we were in the car [heading] home, and were like, ‘That was New Year’s Eve.'” Cohen explained CNN president Jeff Zucker instructs him every year to “have fun” while hosting the special. “That is my job,” he pointed out to Stern. He also claimed he was trying to cheer up the world in the midst of Betty White‘s death and the skyrocketing COVID-19 numbers by lightening things up during the New Year’s Eve celebration, which took place just hours after news broke that the iconic Golden Girls actress had passed away. KELLY RIPA IS UPSET PAL ANDY COHEN ATTACKED COHOST RYAN SEACREST ON TELEVISION: HE IS HER ‘WORK HUSBAND & FAMILY,’ SOURCE SAYS Cohen then took the opportunity to reiterate his only regret from the night, which was bashing fellow TV host Seacrest. MEGA “That is my only regret from the night,” he explained. “Because I really like Ryan Seacrest and he’s a really nice guy. I was — as they say — in my cups, and I was kind of enjoying the rant. I was like, ‘Wow, it’s really fun being on CNN just ranting like a nutty guy,'” he remembered, before revealing he, “texted Ryan the next morning.” As reported by OK!, Cohen addressed his comments directed toward the American Idol host on his Andy Cohen Live radio show on Monday, January 3, insisting he “really regret” his unnecessary remarks. “I was just stupid and drunk and feeling it.” View the full article

Published by Reuters By Sarah N. Lynch WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday is set to discuss the Justice Department’s investigation into the deadly Capitol attack by former President Donald Trump’s supporters a day before the one-year anniversary of the violence https://www.reuters.com/world/us/democracy-under-siege-an-hour-by-hour-look-assault-us-capitol-2022-01-04. The department, headed by Garland, has charged https://tmsnrt.rs/3HyfyEg more than 725 people with crimes arising from the riot ranging from disorderly conduct to assaulting police to conspiracy. Of those people, about 165 have pleaded guilty and at least 70 have been sentenced. Garland, the top U.S. law enforcement official, is not expected to speak in detail about specific charges or identify new suspects during his speech, scheduled for 2:30 p.m. ET (1930 GMT). “The attorney general will also reaffirm the department’s unwavering commitment to defend Americans and American democracy from violence and threats of violence,” a department official said on Monday, speaking on condition of anonymity. A mob of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in a failed bid to derail the formal congressional https://www.reuters.com/world/us/riot-shields-metal-detectors-are-reminder-deadly-us-capitol-assault-2022-01-05 certification of his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden. High-profile criminal cases brought so far include several against members or associates of far-right groups such as the Proud Boys, the Oath Keepers and the Three Percenters. A Democratic-led House of Representatives select committee separately is investigating the attack. Steve Bannon, Trump’s former White House chief strategist, has been charged https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-justice-department-indicts-bannon-not-complying-with-jan-6-subpoena-2021-11-12 with contempt of Congress for refusing to appear for a deposition and refusing to produce documents sought by the House committee. (Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Editing by Will Dunham and Scott Malone) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Maria Chutchian (Reuters) – The Boy Scouts of America fell short of winning the support it sought from sex-abuse victims for a nearly $2.7 billion settlement that could bring the organization out of bankruptcy, according to court papers. The proposed settlement of more than 82,000 claims of childhood sexual abuse earned the support of just over 73% of those who cast votes, below the 75% the Boy Scouts sought. Nearly 54,000 survivors cast ballots, according to preliminary results released in a Tuesday court filing. The current tally is not final and marks the first of several steps along a possible path out of bankruptcy for the Boy Scouts. The nonprofit organization said in a statement on Wednesday that it is still negotiating with key parties to garner more support for the deal. “We are encouraged by these preliminary results,” the Boy Scouts said. The 111-year-old youth group based in Irving, Texas, filed https://reut.rs/3JID2bO for bankruptcy in February 2020, after being hit by a flood of sexual abuse lawsuits when several U.S. states passed laws allowing accusers to sue over allegations dating back several decades. Those claimants are now designated creditors of the organization, so they must sign off on any plans to restructure and exit bankruptcy. Representatives of some of the victims have pushed for larger settlements. “We hope the BSA and the lawyers who supported this plan will take this result as sending a message that the plan they proposed was fundamentally unacceptable to a large bloc of survivors,” Irwin Zalkin of Zalkin Law Firm, who represents more than 150 victims, said in a statement. John Humphrey, the co-chair of the committee representing abuse claimants in the bankruptcy, called the settlement “historically low” from the perspective of individual victims. The Boy Scouts https://www.reuters.com/legal/transactional/boy-scouts-bankruptcy-judge-rule-850-million-sex-abuse-deal-2021-08-19 has apologized and says the organization is committed to fulfilling their “social and moral responsibility to equitably compensate survivors.” As negotiations over a deal have dragged on, the Boy Scouts’ lawyers had warned it would have to begin selling off assets, which would otherwise be used to compensate abuse claimants, to pay legal fees. (Reporting by Jahnavi Nidumolu in Bengaluru and Maria Chutchian in New York; Editing by Andrew Heavens, Frank Jack Daniel, Alexia Garamfalvi and Jonathan Oatis) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Alistair Smout and Maayan Lubell LONDON/JERUSALEM (Reuters) -Britain and Israel are overhauling their COVID-19 testing policies as governments seek to reduce the burden on laboratories and struggle with tight supplies of kits amid soaring infection rates fuelled by the Omicron variant. This time last year, vaccines offered hope that the pandemic could be over by now. But Omicron has brought new challenges, including overloading public health systems, even if – as many scientists say – it leads to less severe illness than the earlier Delta variant. Demand for testing kits has squeezed supply. Last week, queues formed outside pharmacies in Spain’s capital Madrid in what has become a common scene since Omicron began driving up infections. Madrid, whose conservative government has put supporting the hospitality sector at the top of its agenda, is opting for increased testing and no restrictions on socialising. A surge in demand for tests has led to issues in Italy and Britain. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said that 100,000 more PCR booking slots per day had been made available since mid-December and that capacity had been doubled to 900,000 PCR and LFD test kits a day. People in England https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/england-suspend-pcr-confirmation-positive-rapid-covid-test-results-2022-01-05 who test positive for COVID-19 on rapid lateral flow device (LFD) tests will not need to confirm their results with a follow-up PCR test if they are not showing symptoms, the UKHSA said on Wednesday. A record-high one in 15 people had COVID-19 in England in the week ending Dec. 31, estimates published by the Office for National Statistics showed on Wednesday. “While cases of COVID continue to rise, this tried-and-tested approach means that LFDs can be used confidently to indicate COVID-19 infection without the need for PCR confirmation,” said agency Chief Executive Dr Jenny Harries. PCR tests are processed in a lab and can be used to determine which variant a person has, while a LFD can be used at home and gives an indication of infectivity within half an hour. Virologists and experts said the move was logical given the incredibly high infection rates as long as LFD supplies were sufficient as they identify the majority of people who are at their most infectious and need to isolate. “There is really no need to confirm (a positive LFD test) with a PCR, a step that not only wastes time but costs a lot of money and uses up laboratory resources that could be better used elsewhere,” said John Edmunds, a professor of mathematical modelling of infectious diseases at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. But the authorities will have less data about the spread of different variants as PCR swabs are used for genotyping and sequencing. ‘SUPERSONIC’ RISE IN INFECTIONS Israel changed its quarantine and testing policy as part of efforts to save resources and ensure continued protection for vulnerable people. PCR tests will be earmarked for people aged 60 and over or with weak immune systems, while those at lower risk will be checked with rapid antigen tests, the health ministry said. “This is a significant change intended to identify risk populations sooner, intervene and prevent severe disease,” ministry director-general Nachman Ash told a news conference. Until now, those exposed to confirmed COVID-19 carriers have been required to take official tests. If found to be positive, they must submit to police-enforced quarantine rules. The United States reported nearly a million new coronavirus infections on Monday, the highest daily tally of any country in the world and nearly double the previous U.S. peak set a week earlier. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Tuesday backed its week-old guidance for people seeking to end their COVID-19 isolation at five days, adding they could take a rapid antigen test if they want to and can access one, but it is not a requirement. The agency had been pressured by health experts to institute a test requirement after it cut in half its guidance last week for people to isolate after a COVID-19 infection to five days from 10. Spain, Portugal and Britain have also slashed the mandatory isolation period for people who test positive for COVID-19 amid fears that lengthy quarantines could paralyse economies. Ireland will drop its requirement for vaccinated arrivals to have proof of a negative COVID-19 test and return to seeking proof of vaccination or recent infection upon entry, Prime Minister Micheál Martin said. Nearly 294 million people have been reported to be infected by the coronavirus globally and more than 5.8 million have died, according to a Reuters tally. Infections have been reported in more than 210 countries and territories since the first cases were identified in central China in December 2019. A “supersonic” rise https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/supersonic-rise-french-covid-cases-continue-coming-days-government-2022-01-05 in French COVID-19 infections is set to continue in the coming days and there are no signs of the trend reversing, a government spokesman said on Wednesday. Interactive graphic tracking global spread of coronavirus: open https://tmsnrt.rs/2FThSv7 in an external browser. Eikon users can click https://apac1.apps.cp.thomsonreuters.com/cms/?navid=1063154666 for a case tracker. (Reporting by Reuters bureaux; Writing by Josephine Mason and Nick Macfie; Editing by Catherine Evans and Alexandra Hudson) View the full article

Published by Radar Online Mega A juror in Ghislaine Maxwell’s federal sex trafficking trial has spoken out and is insisting the former British socialite’s guilty conviction was the right verdict because the evidence presented proved she was a “predator.” Scotty David, one of the 12 jurors who convicted Maxwell on five out of six counts of sex trafficking in a Manhattan federal court last week, spoke to The Daily Mail regarding the 60-year-old’s guilty verdict. “After all I’ve learned, she’s just as guilty as Epstein. I don’t want to call her a monster, but a predator is the right word,” Scotty told the outlet after emphasizing how he initially believed Maxwell to be innocent until proven guilty before he heard all the damning evidence against her. Mega “She knew what was happening. She knew what Epstein was doing and she allowed it to happen. She participated in getting these girls comfortable so that he could have his way with them.” “And, to me, them returning repeatedly for the money has nothing to do with anything because these girls were minors, and it doesn’t matter what incentivized them,” he continued. “It matters what happened to them.” Scotty also revealed how Maxwell and her team’s decision to have her not testify, even though she reportedly wanted to, may have played a part in why the jury viewed her as a predator. “It would have shown maybe that she was a little more human,” he said, speculating a scenario in which Maxwell actually did testify on the stand. “Maybe if she gave her version of the story, who knows, maybe if she gave us a story of how she was manipulated. I don’t know,” Scotty continued. “But then that would have been an admission I feel like of guilt.” Mega As Radar previously reported, Scotty David – who is using only his first and middle name – also spoke out recently to reveal that he was a victim of sexual abuse as a minor. But while some are arguing this revelation could be grounds for a mistrial, others are arguing that this information would already be known prior to Scotty’s selection for the jury because of a 50-question survey taken asking whether a potential juror was a victim of sexual abuse. View the full article

Published by Reuters By Sheila Dang (Reuters) -Ahead of the one-year anniversary of the storming of the U.S. Capitol, Twitter Inc created a new team to review the social networking site for harmful content associated with the event, the company told Reuters on Tuesday. Social media platforms including Twitter and Facebook were accused of enabling extremists to organize the siege on Jan. 6, 2021, when supporters of Republican then-President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol to block Congress from certifying Democrat Joe Biden’s presidential election victory. Twitter said it “convened a cross-functional working group” comprised of members across its site integrity and trust and safety teams, which is specific to the anniversary of the attack on the Capitol and will watch for risks such as tweets and accounts that incite violence. The company did not say how many people were on the monitoring team. The company said the effort expands upon its work to monitor the platform around major global events, and added it will continue to monitor trending topics and search results for harmful content. A spokesperson for Meta Platforms Inc, the company previously known as Facebook, said in a statement on Wednesday: “We’re continuing to actively monitor threats on our platform and will respond accordingly.” A spokesperson for YouTube, which is owned by Google, said Wednesday the online video platform had removed tens of thousands of videos for violating its U.S. elections-related policies over the past year, and said it continued to closely monitor for election misinformation on the site. In March, the chief executives of Twitter, Google and Facebook, testified in a hearing before Congress and were asked https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-congress-tech/yes-or-no-u-s-lawmakers-fume-over-big-techs-answers-on-misinformation-idUSKBN2BH1B0 by U.S. lawmakers whether their platforms bore some responsibility for the riot. Then-Twitter Chief Executive Jack Dorsey was the only executive who answered “yes,” but said the “broader ecosystem” had to be taken into account. Days after the Capitol riot, Twitter announced a permanent suspension https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-trump-twitter/twitter-permanently-suspends-trumps-account-cites-incitement-of-violence-risk-idUSKBN29D355 of Trump’s account, citing “the risk of further incitement of violence.” “Our approach both before and after January 6 has been to take strong enforcement action against accounts and Tweets that incite violence or have the potential to lead to offline harm,” a Twitter spokesperson said in a statement on Tuesday. (Reporting by Sheila Dang in Dallas; editing by Jonathan Oatis) View the full article

Published by Chicago Tribune CHICAGO — Owen Keehnen remembers when the AIDS epidemic, which disproportionately affected the LGBTQ community, was at its height in the late 1980s. The gay community in the United States was still largely in the shadows, said Keehnen, a writer and historian of LGBTQ history in Chicago. Gay bars and gathering spaces had blackened or tinted windows so passersby couldn’t see in. But, Keehnen said, there was a place in Chicago were the LGBTQ community could feel safe while in the open, and that was the Belmont Rocks. A stretch of stone and grass on the lakefront from Belmont to Diversey harbors,… Read More View the full article

Published by Reuters By David Morgan WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Democrats’ efforts to pass voting rights legislation in Congress appeared in jeopardy on Tuesday, as a centrist Democratic senator said he had little interest in a strategy that would allow the party to bypass Republican opposition. Senator Joe Manchin told reporters that it was his “preference” to line up Republican support for a rule change that would allow Democrats to pass a voting rights bill on a party-line vote. That could spell doom for the legislation, which Republicans oppose. “For us to go it alone, no matter what side does it, it just ends up coming back at you pretty hard,” Manchin told reporters. His remarks came a day after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the Senate would vote to change chamber’s rule known as the filibuster by Jan. 17 https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-senate-vote-changing-rules-if-republicans-obstruct-voting-rights-law-schumer-2022-01-03, the federal holiday honoring Martin Luther King, in order to enact voting rights legislation. Without Manchin’s support, Senate Democrats would not be able to muster the votes necessary to alter the filibuster, which requires a 60-vote majority to pass most bills. The 100-seat Senate is split 50-50, with Democrats in charge only because Vice President Kamala Harris casts a tie-breaking vote. Manchin’s objections have also complicated Democratic efforts to pass President Joe Biden’s $1.75 trillion climate and social policy legislation. Democrats would need 10 Republicans to support voting rights legislation if Senate rules went unchanged. But Republicans have repeatedly used the filibuster to block the measures. Manchin and another centrist holdout, Senator Kyrsten Sinema, were due to meet later on Tuesday with fellow Democrats, according to Schumer. Most Democrats want the filibuster changed to accommodate voting rights legislation after a wave of Republican-led states last year passed new restrictions on voting. The state laws were inspired by Republican former President Donald Trump’s false claims of widespread fraud in the 2020 election that he lost to Biden by a substantial margin. (Reporting by Doina Chiacu and David Morgan;Editing by Andy Sullivan, Tomasz Janowski and Cynthia Osterman) View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Cher thinks women in the music industry need to “push the envelope”. The 75-year-old singer is one of the best-selling artists of all time, and she’s now encouraged up-and-coming female stars to keep fighting in what is still a male-dominated industry. She said: “Through history, we’ve had to fight for everything that we have gotten and it never came easy. There were no women executives in music. You were supposed to sing and then someone patted you on the head and then you went and sat down.” Cher believes women in the music industry are held to a different standard compared to their male counterparts. But the ‘Believe’ hitmaker has also urged female artists to stand their ground. She told E! News: “You have to push the envelope and that’s so cliche, but you have to. When men are forceful or know what they want, they’re respected and viewed as ‘tough.’ When women are not even pushing it, but just say ‘I can’t do this. I’m not comfortable with that,’ then they’re thought of as a ‘b****,’ when that isn’t the case.” Cher also explained that she’s taken inspiration from her mother, and she wants younger female artists to follow suit. The singer explained: “Women went through that before I did and just passed it on. We have to just keep going because we’re making strides. When my mom was young, my mom was tough. “My mom is still tough, but there were these silly laws and rules she and her friends were expected to follow, like this notion that you have to cut your hair when you became a certain age. And, I kept thinking, when will the age come that I will have to cut my hair? I finally thought this is such ‘bull****. I’m not gonna do any of these things.'” View the full article

Published by Radar Online mega Andy Cohen revealed that he “really” regrets slamming Ryan Seacrest and his viewers on ABC, however, the damage is done and now Kelly Ripa, ABC’s biggest star is caught between her two friends. “Kelly likes Andy, but she adores Ryan. Andy is her friend, but Ryan is her work husband, he is family. When you attack Ryan you also attack Kelly, that is how close they are,” sources tell Radar. “What makes matters worse is that Kelly works for ABC. She is very loyal. She is a class act. Calling ABC viewers “losers” (as Cohen did while co-hosting CNN’s New year’s countdown) isn’t cool. One thing is for sure, it’s going to be very to ever ask Andy to fill in on ABC next to Kelly the next time Ryan is off.” Andy Cohen ‘Deeply Regrets’ Trashing Ryan Seacrest During Drunken New Year’s Eve Rant After It’s Revealed He Won’t Be Asked Back Next Year Friends add that Anderson Cooper is also in a difficult position as he is also very close to Kelly. “Anderson did nothing when Andy went on his rant. He should have stuck up for Kelly and ABC. This circle of friends is so incestuous. It makes everything really awkward. Andy Cohen Won’t Be Invited Back To CNN New Year’s Special Next Year CNN Cohen revealed on SiriusXM’sAndy Cohen Live show on Monday, Jan. 3, that he really likes Seacrest and what he said was “just stupid and drunk and feeling it.” Sources tell Radar that Andy also reached out to Ryan privately to apologize. “It all comes from a place of jealousy. Andy desperately wanted the job on ABC sitting next to Kelly. He is pee-green that Ryan has a super successful radio show and hosts “American Idol.” At the end of the day, Andy created Real Housewives. Yes, his Bravo late-night show is successful, but usually the only time anyone watches is when he has The Housewives’ on,” adds an insider. “Ryan’s name triggers Andy, but without the alcohol, he can pretend it doesn’t.” mega As Radar first reported, CNN sources tell us senior staffers are “embarrassed” following Cohen’s drunken appearance. “We claim to be the most trusted network in news and yet CNN hires Andy Cohen to make a fool out of all of us with his New Year’s performance?” a source dished to Radar. “Andy doesn’t even work for CNN and yet he has been the face of our network for the past 48 hours. It is embarrassing and real CNN staffers are very angry.” mega;cnn View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Andy Cohen “really regrets” criticising Ryan Seacrest’s New Year’s Eve show on live TV. The 53-year-old star caused a stir with his drunken comments while co-hosting CNN’s ‘New Year’s Eve Live’ special on Friday (31.12.21) with his friend Anderson Cooper and although it was his rant against New York City’s outgoing mayor, Bill de Blasio, that attracted the most attention, the ‘Watch What Happens Live’ star admitted the only thing he wishes he hadn’t done was launch a barrage of negative remarks about ABC’s rival programme ‘Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve’ and its host. He said on his SiriusXM show ‘Andy Cohen Live’: “The only thing that I regret saying, the only thing is that I slammed the ABC broadcast and I really like Ryan Seacrest and he’s a great guy. And I really regret saying that, and I was just stupid and drunk and feeling it.” During the broadcast, Andy criticised the “group of losers” performing on ABC’s show, including Journey, Ashanti and Ja Rule. He said: “There’s lots of smoke coming from Ryan Seacrest’s group of losers that are performing behind us. I mean, with all due [respect] if you’ve been watching ABC tonight, you’ve seen nothing. I’m sorry. It’s true. “I just got doused in confetti from the fake Journey appearing on ABC. If it’s not Steve Perry, it doesn’t count! You get it? It’s not Journey! It’s propaganda! It’s propaganda! It’s not Journey! It’s not Journey! No, that was not Journey. Steve Perry is Journey. No!” And on reflection, the Bravo star admitted he got carried away. He said on his radio programme: “I was continuing the Journey rant and I just kept talking and I shouldn’t have. I felt bad about that. So that is the only thing. It’s the only thing… That is what I really regret. I really do.” Andy’s co-host, John Hill, noted the “headline was what sucked” in the subsequent coverage of his pal’s rant because it appeared he was taking aim at Ryan himself. He noted: “I thought in the moment you understood the context.” Andy agreed: “Exactly, that’s the problem. Yeah. The headlines about Ryan Seacrest are all like I trash Ryan Seacrest. I hope he hears the clip.” Throughout the New Year’s Eve broadcast, Andy and Anderson sank tequila shots and he joked afterwards he had been “over-served”, even though he was helping himself. He wrote on Instagram on Saturday (01.01.22): “I was a hair over-served last night, but man, did I have fun! I hope you did too. Happy New Year everybody.” Meanwhile, a CNN spokesperson has dismissed speculation Andy won’t be covering the occasion for them next year following his performance. The representative said: “I can confirm that Andy Cohen will be back to co-host NYE on CNN next year.” View the full article

Published by Reuters By Jan Wolfe WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Almost a year has passed since supporters of Donald Trump attacked the U.S. Capitol in a failed attempt to overturn his election defeat, the worst assault on the seat of the federal government since the War of 1812. Four people died on the day of the riot. About 140 police were injured during the multi-hour onslaught by Trump supporters and four officers have since taken their own lives. What follows is a look at the key events of the day: THE RALLY BEGINS 10:50 a.m.: Supporters of then-President Trump converge on a park near the White House for his “Save America” rally, where lawyer Rudy Giuliani urges the crowd to engage in “trial by combat.” ‘FIGHT LIKE HELL’ 12 p.m.: Trump begins a 70-minute speech at the rally, repeating false claims about a stolen election and telling supporters to “fight like hell.” CONGRESS CONVENES 12:53 p.m.: Lawmakers gather for a joint session of Congress to certify Joe Biden’s election win over the objections of some Republicans, as an initial wave of Trump supporters topples barricades on the west side of the Capitol and harasses police officers. PENCE REJECTS TRUMP’S PLEA 1:02 p.m.: Vice President Mike Pence, who had a legal duty to preside over the certification of Biden’s win, releases a letter making clear he will not overturn the election results as Trump had urged. POLICE OVERPOWERED 1:30 p.m.: Thousands of demonstrators descend on the Capitol after Trump’s speech. A mob overtakes police officers on the Capitol steps. Officers are forced to retreat. THE CAPITOL BREACHED 2:12 p.m.: Rioters enter the Capitol building through smashed windows a floor below where the Senate is in session. HURRIED EVACUATION 2:13 p.m.: Security agents evacuate Pence from the Senate floor to a nearby office. Senator Charles Grassley pauses the certification of the election. EUGENE GOODMAN’S STANDOFF 2:14 p.m.: A lone Capitol Police officer, Eugene Goodman, confronts rioters ascending a staircase where there are doors to the Senate chamber in both directions. Goodman lures the mob away from the chamber, allowing lawmakers to shelter and other officers to seal the doors. TRUMP ERUPTS 2:24 p.m.: Trump blasts Pence on Twitter, saying he “didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done.” FATAL MOMENT 2:44 p.m.: A rioter, Ashli Babbitt, attempts to climb through the broken part of a door leading into an area known as the Speaker’s Lobby. A Capitol Police officer fatally shoots her. ‘REMAIN PEACEFUL’ 3:13 p.m. Trump tells his supporters to relent, writing on Twitter as live television is showing the unprecedented assault, “I am asking for everyone at the U.S. Capitol to remain peaceful. No violence!” ‘YOU’RE VERY SPECIAL’ 4:17 p.m. After hours of violence, Trump releases a video online in which he tells the rioters to go home but also says “we love you, you’re very special” and repeats his false claims of election fraud. THE NATIONAL GUARD ARRIVES 5:30 p.m.: The first National Guard personnel arrive at the Capitol. By then, most of the violence had ended. CAPITOL SECURED 8 p.m.: Capitol Police declare the building secure, and a few minutes later Pence reopens the Senate proceeding. DEMOCRACY PREVAILS 3:40 a.m., Jan. 7: Pence concludes the certification of electoral votes, confirming that Biden won the presidency. (Reporting by Jan Wolfe in Washington; Editing by Scott Malone and Matthew Lewis) View the full article

Published by AFP The US man who appeared as a baby on the cover of Nirvana's Los Angeles (AFP) – Earlier this year the man who as a baby was photographed naked for the cover of Nirvana’s “Nevermind” album sued the band for sexual exploitation — and now a California judge has dismissed the case on procedural grounds. The federal judge dismissed the case Monday as Spencer Elden’s legal team had missed a deadline to file an opposition to Nirvana lawyers’ December motion to drop the case. Elden’s team has until January 13 to refile. In a statement to AFP on Tuesday his lawyer Robert Lewis said they would do so “very soon.” “We are confident that Spencer will be allowed to move forward with his case,” Lewis said. In 1991, when he was four months old, Elden was photographed naked in a swimming pool reaching for a dollar bill on a fish hook, an image that become one of the most iconic album covers of all time. The album went on to sell 30 million copies, with songs such as “Smells Like Teen Spirit” becoming American pop cultural touchstones. But neither Elden nor his legal guardians “ever signed a release authorizing the use of any images of Spencer or of his likeness, and certainly not of commercial child pornography depicting him,” the original lawsuit said. According to court documents Elden had never received any compensation for the image, and asked for $150,000 in damages from each of the 15 defendants — including the surviving former members of the band, Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic, as well as the estate of the late lead singer Kurt Cobain, and the photographer, Kirk Weddle. The lawsuit said Elden had suffered “extreme and permanent emotional distress,” as well as “lifelong loss of income earning capacity.” In their December motion Nirvana lawyers argued the statute of limitations had expired more than a decade ago, and that Elden’s claim that the photo constituted child pornography was “not serious.” Elden recreated the album cover multiple times, including for its 25th anniversaries. Weddle, the original photographer, was a friend of his father’s, the family told NPR in 2008. They held a pool party during which Elden was photographed underwater for the then-unknown band. Elden’s parents were paid $200 for the original shoot. View the full article

Published by Radar Online Mega Ghislaine Maxwell is reportedly demanding that the estate of late billionaire and fellow convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein pay her multi-million-dollar legal fees following her guilty conviction in a Manhattan federal court last month for grooming and trafficking underage girls. According to The Sun, the 60-year-old disgraced British socialite claims Epstein promised to support her financially before he committed suicide in a Metropolitan Correctional Center jail cell two years ago. Now, a source close to Maxwell and familiar with the situation spilled to the outlet, alleging she's demanding payment for the nearly $6.75 million legal fees she now owes following her federal trial. Mega “It is pretty unbelievable – that money should go to survivors, not Ghislaine Maxwell,” Spencer Kuvin, a United States attorney representing victims of Epstein, told the outlet. “Even after being convicted of being a criminal conspiracy, she wants to try and get money from a dead sexual pervert’s estate.” “One hundred per cent [sic] of that money should have gone to the victims,” he emphasized. But this isn't the first time Maxwell wants Epstein’s estate to pay her legal fees. The ex-socialite reportedly sued Epstein’s estate in the US Virgin Islands in 2020 claiming that it “failed to uphold Epstein’s promise to indemnify and advance expenses incurred” from both lawsuits and investigations relating directly to the late businessman and billionaire. As Radar previously reported, Maxwell was convicted on December 29, 2021, of recruiting, grooming, and trafficking underage girls over a 10-year span in a New York federal court. Although Maxwell insisted she “had no involvement in or knowledge of Epstein’s alleged misconduct,” the jury found the evidence against her too damning to say otherwise and found her guilty of five out of the six charges. The former lover, confidante, and “partner-in-crime” of Epstein was ultimately found guilty of conspiracy to entice a minor to travel to engage in illegal sex acts, conspiracy to transport a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, transporting a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors, and the sex trafficking of minors. She faces up to 65 years in prison, meaning she will most likely be spending the rest of her life behind bars. Mega View the full article

Published by Reuters By Joseph Ax and Lisa Shumaker (Reuters) – The United States set a global record of almost 1 million new coronavirus infections reported on Monday, according to a Reuters tally, nearly double the country’s peak of 505,109 hit just a week ago as the highly contagious Omicron variant shows no sign of slowing. The number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients has risen nearly 50% in the last week and now exceeds 100,000, a Reuters analysis showed, the first time that threshold has been reached since the winter surge a year ago. Overall, the United States has seen a daily average of 486,000 cases over the last week, a rate that has doubled in seven days and far outstrips that of any other country. The 978,856 new infections on Monday includes some cases from Saturday and Sunday, when many states do not report. The average number of U.S. deaths per day has remained fairly steady throughout December and into early January at about 1,300, according to a Reuters tally, though deaths typically lag behind cases and hospitalizations. Omicron appears to be far more easily transmitted than previous iterations of the virus. The variant was estimated to account for 95.4% of the coronavirus cases identified in the United States as of Jan. 1, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Tuesday. The World Health Organization said on Tuesday that evidence thus far suggests Omicron is causing less severe illness. Nevertheless, public health officials have warned that the sheer volume of Omicron cases threatens to overwhelm hospitals, some of which are already struggling to handle a wave of COVID-19 patients, primarily among the unvaccinated. Maryland Governor Larry Hogan declared a 30-day state of emergency on Tuesday and mobilized 1,000 National Guard members to pandemic response operations as COVID-19 hospitalizations in the state hit a record high of more than 3,000. That is an increase of more than 500% in the last seven weeks, Hogan said. “The truth is that the next four to six weeks will be the most challenging time of the entire pandemic,” Hogan told reporters. “Our newest projections as of today show that COVID hospitalizations could reach more than 5,000, which would be more than 250% higher than our previous peak of 1,952 last year.” Delaware, Illinois, Ohio and Washington, D.C., also have reported record numbers of hospitalized COVID patients in recent days. The unrelenting surge has prompted more than 3,200 schools to close their buildings this week, according to Burbio, a site that tracks school disruptions. Schools that have remained open are facing staff shortages and renewed concerns about virus spread. In Boston, where more than 54,000 students returned to class on Tuesday following the holiday break, Superintendent of Schools Brenda Cassellius told reporters there were 1,000 staff members out, including 461 teachers and 52 bus drivers. “It does make for a difficult start to the day,” she said. In Chicago, the teachers union objected to Monday’s return to schools, saying the district needs stricter protocols such as required testing. Teachers were expected to vote on Tuesday on whether they support working remotely starting on Wednesday. The Biden administration has continued to emphasize widespread vaccinations and boosters as the best way to protect against severe illness. The CDC on Tuesday recommended shortening the interval between Pfizer-BioNTech’s second COVID-19 vaccine dose and the booster shot to five months from six, a day after the Food and Drug Administration made a similar move. (Reporting by Joseph Ax, Lisa Shumaker and Maria Caspani; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Bill Berkrot) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Hyunjoo Jin San Francisco (Reuters) -Tesla Inc’s ability to design components in-house gave the automaker agility in making tweaks to parts and coping with supply chain issues that hit other automakers much harder, sources and experts said. Tesla boosted its deliveries by 87% to a record high in 2021, pushing its shares up over 13% on Monday. Here are some of the ways Tesla navigated supply chain challenges. HOW TESLA COPED WITH THE GLOBAL CHIP SHORTAGE Tesla told some customers they could take vehicle delivery with some missing parts, such as Bluetooth chips and USB ports. Tesla also removed some features such as radar sensors and lumbar support for front passenger seats, which made the car less complicated to build. Tesla did not respond to Reuters’ request for comments. Tesla also increased vehicle prices to address higher costs, including “expedite costs” for parts. American consumers have to wait for seven months if they order a Model Y version, whose prices went up 18% last year. Chief Executive Elon Musk said Tesla was also able to substitute alternative chips for some that were in short supply. Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess said Tesla’s ability to rewrite software to support the new chips in 2-3 weeks was impressive. HOW TESLA IS DIFFERENT FROM OTHER AUTOMAKERS Tesla designs more hardware and writes more software than many rivals, which rely on auto suppliers. Musk has called the company “absurdly vertically integrated compared to other auto companies.” “We design circuit boards by ourselves, which allow us to modify their design quickly to accommodate alternative chips like powerchips,” a Tesla insider said. In-house engineers design the bulk of the complex software that runs the Tesla vehicles, which Musk has described as a “computer on wheels”. Some traditional automakers are also conservative about modifying chips or using different chip factories, because of a risk associated with the change, Kevin Anderson, Principal Consultant at Write-Tek, said. “They have been burned many times in the past and unintended consequences of those changes. A company like Tesla doesn’t have that long experience,” he said. HOW MUCH IS TESLA VERTICALLY INTEGRATED? Tesla also designs the chips used in its driver assistant systems and makes parts ranging from seats to battery cells in-house. It also owns its own direct sales, service and charging networks. “We’re designing and building https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tesla-batteryday-technology-insight/the-musk-method-learn-from-partners-then-go-it-alone-idUSKBN2680K4 so much more of the car than other OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) who will largely go to the traditional supply base and like I call it, catalog engineering. So it is not very adventurous,” Musk said. Ambrose Conroy, CEO of Seraph Consulting, said: “They control what’s going on in that vehicle at a level that no other automaker wants to do it. It is much more aligned to the integration that Henry Ford had originally with the Model T.” HOW TESLA SECURED CHIP ORDERS In 2020, many automakers cut chip orders as the pandemic and lockdown measures hit demand. But Tesla never reduced its production forecast with suppliers, since it expected rapid growth, which helped it weather the chip shortage, Tesla chief financial officer Zach Kirkhorn has said. “They’ve just been smarter about it than other companies in terms of making sure there’s buffer stock,” a Tesla supplier executive said. Tesla’s direct ties with chip suppliers allowed it to move faster than traditional automakers, which rely on first-tier suppliers who have relationships with chipmakers, Anderson said. (Reporting by Hyunjoo Jin Editing by Richard Pullin and Mark Potter) View the full article

Tom DaleyTom Daley OBE, Master Knitter, Entrepreneur, Diver, Dad After a golden 2021, Olympic diver Tom Daley rang in 2022 receiving one of the highest honors handed out by the United Kingdom. Daley was recognized as an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE), the second-highest rank in the nation’s order of chivalry, on the Queen’s New Year Honors List. Daley’s honor came as he closed the book on his best professional years to date. He won a gold medal alongside diving partner and now fellow OBE Matty Lee at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and turned his viral poolside knitting activities into a new business venture as well, Made With Love By Tom Daley Knitting Kits. His gold medal performance added to his array of athletic awards, including multiple World and European diving championships and three Olympic bronze medals. Order of Orders; Arc of the ArcaneryWhat is the Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE)? Uh, WTF?1. King George V founded to honor non-combatants in First World War. 2. 5 levels within order– Knight/Dame Grand Cross, Knight/Dame Commander, Commander, Officer, Member. 3. No more than 858 Officers named in a year. 4. Order’s motto is “For God and the Empire.” 5. In 2004, a report recommended phasing out the Order of the British Empire, as its title was “now considered to be unacceptable, being thought to embody values that are no longer shared by many of the country’s population”. 6. In 2012, the committee however decided not to recommend any changes ahead of the Order’s centenary in 2017, to “recognize the Order’s proud history and the service of its members”, although “the title may need to change in the future”. Source: Wikipedia Recognized for Athletics and Advocacy for Under-represented Communities Daley’s athletic accomplishments and his advocacy for LGBTQ and other excluded and poorly represented communities factored into his OBE designation. The diver indicated his focus and efforts will continue to be on LGBTQ equality in his decision to focus on it for his first public comments following the news. “I feel like it’s almost like a responsibility to make the whole Commonwealth a better place for LGBT people, for women, for people of color, to make it a more inclusive and more accepting environment,” he said in an interview with BBC Breakfast. “It is now my responsibility to try and help create change and help create this environment where everybody can be anything they want, no matter where they came from.” “I think it’s really important to be able to lift up all people that feel like they’re outsiders, feel like they don’t fit in, and feel like they have been ‘less than’ for so many years, to support them in being whatever they want to be,” he added. “If you can’t see it, you can’t be it.” Pushing for Policies To Forbid Hosting Competitions In Countries That Criminalize Human Rights. Daley has used his position in the sports world to call attention of governing bodies to nations that threaten the safety of LGBTQ people. The olympian said at the 2021 Attitude Awards that it was his “mission” to push the International Olympic Committee to exclude countries that criminalize and punish LGBTQ people by death from Olympic competition. Calls Out FIFA for Allowing Qatar to Host 2022 World Cup He has also been vocal in his opposition of soccer governing body FIFA’s decision to host the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, saying “I think it should not be allowed for a sporting event to host in a country that criminalizes against basic human rights.” World Cup organizers in Qatar promised LGBTQ fans and players would be able to express themselves freely during the tournament, raising some eyebrows as the nation still criminalizes homosexuality. Since then Qatar officials recently confiscated a number of rainbow-colored toys because they promoted “slogans that go against Islamic values.” Daley pushed the World Cup issue out further in a Christmas message on British TV channel Channel 4. “In 2022 the World Cup is being held in the second most dangerous country for queer people, Qatar. Why are we allowing places that aren’t safe for all fans and all players to host our most prestigious sporting events,” Daley said while knitting. “Hosting a World Cup is an honor. Why are we honoring them?” Also in that message, Daley specifically called for support of transgender individuals, including trans athletes, at a time when there is perhaps the most vocal and animated effort to de-couple Trans equality movement from the rest. Clearly addressing this wrenching issue, Daley states “There is no LGB without the T. We can make this country the most accepting, the most inclusive, the most progressive country on Earth.” He went on, “What If in Britain anybody can be anything regardless of where they started? What if we all started from the same place? Now wouldn’t that be something to be proud of?” Tom Daley: Previously on Towleroad Queen Honors Olympian Tom Daley for His Athletics and Advocacy; Diver, Knitting Entrepreneur Now ‘Officer of the Order of the British Empire’ Brian Bell January 4, 2022 Read More Tom Daley Diving into Career as Children’s Author After Gold Medal Win in Tokyo 2020 Towleroad August 23, 2021 Read More Raven Saunders’ ‘X’ Protest Gesture Did Not Violate Rules, Says USOPC Towleroad August 10, 2021 Read More Soccer Star Quinn is First Out Trans Nonbinary Olympic Gold Medalist as Canada Tops Sweden in 3-2 Shootout Brian Bell August 6, 2021 Read More LGBTQ Olympics: Raven Sunders Challenges All; First Ever Trans Woman, Non Binary Athletes Compete. LGBTQ Medal Count Hits 20 Brian Bell August 3, 2021 Read More Olympic Rankings If All The LGBTQ Athletes Were A Team They Would Be 7th in Gold Medals, 8th Overall. Plus 6 Pages of Photos in Tokyo And At Home Michael Goff August 2, 2021 Read More Screenshot courtesy of YouTube/Channel 4 PrefixInfo BoxClick here to change this text. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo. View the full article

Published by Reuters NAIROBI (Reuters) – Richard Leakey, a Kenyan conservationist and paleoanthropologist who spearheaded campaigns against the ivory trade to save the dwindling African elephant population, has died, the Kenyan presidency said on Sunday. He was 77. For years Leakey served in various roles in the government including as director of the state-run National Museums of Kenya and twice as board chairman at the Kenya Wildlife Service. President Uhuru Kenyatta said Leakey had “served our country with distinction”. “Besides his distinguished career in the public service, Dr. Leakey is celebrated for his prominent role in Kenya’s vibrant civil society where he founded and successfully ran a number of institutions.” Leakey was the son of palaeontologists Louis and Mary Leakey, whose work helped demonstrate that human evolution began in Africa. He was celebrated for his work to save wildlife from poachers and for leading campaigns against the ivory trade. Paula Kahumbu, a wildlife conservationist who heads WildlifeDirect, told Reuters she had been mentored by Leakey, as had many other young Kenyans. “Very courageous, he was a person who stood for integrity whether it was in wildlife conservation, whether it was related to archaeological and paleoanthropological research at museums or whether it was related to politics,” she said. Leakey also served Kenya’s head of civil service from July 1999 to March 2001, at a time when then president Daniel Arap Moi was under pressure from donors to tackle corruption and other inefficiencies in government. He was a co-founder of the Safina Party in 1995. At the time of his death, he was serving as chairman of the Turkana Basin Institute at Stony Brook University in the United States, which works to facilitate research and education in palaeontology and archaeology in northern Kenya. Leakey was also a fellow of the UK-based Royal Society and an honorary fellow of the African Academy of Sciences. (Writing by Elias Biryabarema and George Obulutsa; Editing by Alison Williams) View the full article