WORLD NEWS
UN Security Council passes resolution affirming Biden-proposed Gaza cease-fire deal!
The U.N. Security Council voted yesterday in favor of a U.S.-led resolution affirming a Gaza cease- fire proposal that President Joe Biden announced on May 31st.
Thirteen members of the 15- member Security Council voted alongside the U.S. delegation in favor of the deal, while Russia, one of four permanent members with veto power, abstained from voting.
The cease-fire deal could see an end to the fighting between Israeli forces and the Hamas terrorist group, after more than eight months of combat in the Gaza Strip. As of June 10, the Hamas- controlled Gaza Health Ministry has reported some 37,124 Palestinians killed and 84,712 injured in the course of the fighting, though the organization does not clearly distinguish between combatants and non-combatants.
The Israeli prime minister recently said he would not accept a permanent cease-fire deal that leaves Hamas intact; the proposal President Biden described on May 31st wouldn’t meet that wartime goal.
Markets react after far right EU election surge triggered by shock France vote!
Gains for the far-right in European Parliament elections that prompted French President Emmanuel Macron to call a shock national vote puts the focus squarely back on political risks in Europe that financial markets had long put on the backburner.
The euro, French stocks and government debt were all hurt on Monday as investors assessed whether the far-right can repeat their success in French elections and how much sway far-right parties can have on the new European Union executive.
French stocks are the clear losers from Macron’s surprise decision, which came after a bruising loss to Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally (RN) in the EU ballot.
Leading lenders BNP Paribas and Societe Generale (SOGN.PA) both fell as much as 8% on Monday.
Barclays’s head of European equity strategy Emmanuel Cau expected banks and utilities to bear the brunt of the uncertainty. Another concern was that populist parties could push for a bank tax which may also be creating unease.
French government bonds could also suffer. Big investors have already shunned them given a high deficit — S&P just cut France’s credit rating.
The French/German 10-year bond yield gap was 7 basis points wider on Monday at 55 bps, but remains far below the 80 bps reached in 2017 when Le Pen, now less eurosceptic, vowed to leave the euro.
New Zealand reverses left-wing plan to tax cow burps and farts …
New Zealand is scrapping a scheme to price gas emissions from livestock — squelching a so-called burp and fart tax initiated under the previous left-wing government led by now departed Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.
New legislation will be introduced to parliament this month by the ruling conservative coalition to remove the agriculture sector from a new emissions pricing plan, thus responding to farmer pressure that the plan would make their business unprofitable.
“The government is committed to meeting our climate change obligations without shutting down Kiwi farms,” said Agriculture Minister Todd McClay.
“It doesn’t make sense to send jobs and production overseas, while less carbon-efficient countries produce the food the world needs.”
The New Zealand economy is driven by agriculture with around 10 million cattle and 25 million sheep roaming the nation’s pastures.
As Breitbart News reported, the Ardern government proposed taxing the gasses farm animals create from burping, farting, and peeing as part of a plan to reset agricultural production and “tackle climate change.”
Her Labour administration claimed what it called a farm levy would be a world first and farmers should be able to recoup the cost by simply charging consumers more for their products.
Critics saw it simply as a punitive tax on farmers and their produce. That has now been reversed and farmers welcomed the decision. But environmental groups rounded on the government, which also announced plans at the weekend to reverse a five-year ban on new oil and gas exploration, AFP reports.
Google’s plan to influence Canadian journalism with a $100-million slush fund …
Google has selected the Canadian Journalism Collective (CJC) to oversee the distribution
of $100 million annually to eligible Canadian news organizations.
CBC reports that in a move to comply with the Online News Act, which requires tech companies to enter into agreements with news publishers, Google has chosen the Canadian Journalism Collective (CJC) to manage the distribution of $100 million to Canadian news outlets. The CJC, a federally incorporated non-profit organization founded in May by a group of independent publishers and broadcasters, will be responsible for ensuring that eligible news organizations receive their share of the funds in a fair and transparent manner.
To be eligible for a share of the $100 million, newsrooms must meet certain criteria, such as being designated as qualified Canadian journalism organizations under the Income Tax Act, producing news content of public interest, operating in Canada, and employing at least two journalists. The funds will be distributed proportionately based on the number of full-time journalists employed by each organization.
U.S. NEWS, POLITICS & GOVERNMENT
Breaking news: Hunter Biden found guilty on all charges in historic felony gun trial
A federal jury convicted Hunter Biden of federal gun charges, a historic first for the offspring of a sitting president, after a trial featuring wrenching emotional testimony about his drug use from his ex-wife and sister-in-law.
President Joe Biden’s son faces up to 25 years in prison for three charges − lying on a federal screening form about his drug use, lying to a gun dealer and possessing the gun − although first-time, nonviolent offenders typically get shorter sentences. U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika will soon set Hunter Biden’s sentencing date.
The 54-year old businessman and attorney’s case came after a plea deal fell apart in July 2023 that could have resolved gun and taxes charges without prison time. Hunter Biden still faces another federal trial starting Sept. 5 in California for allegedly avoiding taxes.
Jill Biden racks up a huge bill jetting from France to Hunter Biden’s trial!
First lady Jill Biden racked up a huge bill as she traveled back and forth from France to Wilmington, Delaware, for her stepson’s trial, according to the Daily Mail.
Over the last week, Biden flew from Washington, D.C., to Wilmington, Delaware, where Hunter Biden’s trial was taking place, before flying to Paris, France. Biden then flew back from Paris to Wilmington before turning around again and going back to Paris. The trip, a total of about 3,600 miles, is estimated to cost $345,400 in flight costs, the National Taxpayers Union Foundation told the Daily Mail.
“In accordance with relevant regulations utilized across administrations, the government has reimbursed the value of a first-class fare for these flights to Wilmington and back to Paris,” Jill Biden’s office told the Daily Mail.
The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is expected to be providing the reimbursement for the first lady’s flights, a White House official told the outlet, though the total being reimbursed was not provided. The DNC is expected to cover what the cost would be for the first lady to fly commercially, leaving the rest to the taxpayers, the Daily Mail reported. The outlet was not told who was covering the cost of aides who made the trips with the first lady.
“The White House should be more transparent about these costs so taxpayers aren’t taken for a ride,” Demian Brady, the Vice President of Research for the National Taxpayers Union Foundation, told the Daily Mail.
Democrat Senator John Fetterman (PA) and his wife Gisele Fetterman, were injured in a car crash Sunday morning in Maryland and transported to a nearby hospital.
According to reports, John Fetterman was driving and crashed his vehicle into the back of a Chevy Impala.
“According to a preliminary investigation, a Chevrolet Traverse and a Chevrolet Impala were both traveling west on I-70 when for unknown reasons, the Traverse struck the rear of the Impala,” Maryland State Police said in a statement.
“A passenger in the Traverse and the operator of the Impala were transported by ambulance to War Memorial Hospital in West Virginia for treatment of their injuries,” authorities said.
John Fetterman suffered a bruised shoulder. Senator Fetterman and his wife were released from the hospital after treatment for minor injuries. No citation was issued.
Judge Cannon rules against Trump request in classified documents case!
The federal judge overseeing one of the criminal cases against former President Donald Trump on June 10 rejected the former president’s bid to throw out some charges against him, although she ordered one paragraph struck from the superseding indictment in the case.
Along with his co-defendants, former President Trump argued that the superseding indictment, which brought the obstruction charges he is facing, failed to state an offense and should be dismissed.
Special counsel Jack Smith and his team disagreed, asserting that the charging document was “more than sufficient” under the law.
U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, the judge overseeing the case in a Florida federal court, sided mostly with the government.
Judge Cannon said there were issues with the indictment but that the issues did not rise to the level of dismissing the additional charges.
Mr. Smith’s team indicated in a recent hearing that a decision was made to include that paragraph due to federal rules that let prosecutors inform jurors about acts carried out by defendants even if the acts don’t support any particular charges that are brought.
“This is not appropriate,” Judge Cannon said. “The Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure contemplate a specific procedure governing attempts to introduce evidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts.”
She ordered that paragraph struck from the indictment.
RFK, Jr. inching closer to qualifying for CNN’s June 27th presidential debate!
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is simultaneously working to get on the ballot in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and racing to meet a June 20th deadline to qualify for CNN’s presidential debate.
The independent presidential candidate is getting closer to accomplishing both objectives.
After submitting 3,300 signatures in Minnesota on June 7, Mr. Kennedy noted that he has ballot access in 19 states with 278 Electoral College votes.
CNN is scheduled to host the earliest televised presidential debate in history on June 27th.
According to debate qualification rules listed by CNN, a candidate’s name must appear on a sufficient number of state ballots to reach the 270 electoral vote threshold to win the presidency by June 20th.
The Kennedy–Shanahan ticket is officially on the ballot in nine states—California, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Michigan, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, and Utah.
The campaign said it had collected enough signatures for ballot access in 10 other states—Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, and Ohio.
Candidates must also get “at least 15 percent in four separate national polls of registered or likely voters that meet CNN’s standards for reporting.”
Oklahoma teacher shortage persists for K-12 public schools …
There are no guarantees that Oklahoma public schools will have enough teachers for every classroom when the 2024–2025 academic year begins this fall.
The Sooner State was already struggling with a significant teacher shortage when legislation was introduced earlier this year to lure former certified teachers back to schools.
The bill, House Bill 4017, which proposed $7,000 annual signing bonuses for up to five consecutive years for teachers with at least three years of experience, failed to make it to the Oklahoma Senate before the annual session ended last month.
The Oklahoma State Department of Education previously created a provision allowing individuals with non-teaching degrees to lead classrooms. Then, it went a step further and added an adjunct teacher program where vacancies in most grade levels and subject
areas can be filled by applicants who don’t have a college degree, let alone any teaching experience. The law was initially passed as an emergency measure to mobilize part-time teachers quickly, but under a 2022 amendment, adjuncts can now teach five days a week.
Educators have complained about low pay, poor working conditions, low morale, and conflicts with parents, administrators, and school boards.
Democrat Senator Whitehouse probes Justice Alito’s interview with Wall Street Journal …
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) has raised questions about Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito’s interview with The Wall Street Journal last year, calling it “improper.”
The comment came as congressional Democrats pressed Justice Alito to recuse himself in two pending Trump-related election subversion cases the justices are currently deliberating. In the interview published on July 28, 2023, Justice Alito said, “No provision in the Constitution gives [Congress] the authority to regulate the Supreme Court—period.” The conversation took place as the newspaper gave the justice a chance to respond to a then-unpublished ProPublica report that a Republican donor had paid for his fishing trip to Alaska.
In a June 7 letter to Justice Alito that the senator made public on June 10, Mr. Whitehouse wrote that the Supreme Court “is the only place in all of government where issues of this nature have no place or means of investigation or resolution.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee “is undertaking investigative work into the facts about right-wing billionaires funding certain Supreme Court justices’ lifestyles,” he added.
New video footage provided to House Republicans reveals then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) admitting responsibility for not having the National Guard protect the Capitol building ahead of protests on January 6, 2021.
The footage, Politico notes, was “was shown in a video shot by the former speaker’s daughter, documentarian Alexandra Pelosi, and recently provided to congressional investigators by HBO.” It was never aired — nor did Alexandra Pelosi provide it to the January 6 Committee when it was supposedly investigating the Capitol riot.
The January 6 Committee also never subpoenaed Speaker Pelosi or her daughter for documents about the riot.
The video substantiates claims by former President Donald Trump that Pelosi was responsible for failing to prepare sufficient security ahead of the protest. Trump offered the National Guard in the days before the “Stop the Steal” rally 6, but was refused. (Trump was later faulted by critics for not intervening quickly to send the Guard during the riot.)
In the video, Pelosi is shown lamenting: “We have responsibility … we did not have any accountability for what was going on there. And we should have. … Why weren’t the National Guard there to begin with?”
She continues: “I take responsibility for not having them [the National Guard] just prepare for war.”
Pelosi later rejected Republican nominees for the minority positions on the January 6 Committee — the first time in congressional history that the leader of the majority party had done so — and instead hand- picked two anti-Trump Republicans. The result was a completely one-sided investigation that declined to question Pelosi’s role in events.
Rudy Giulani calls district attorney Willis in Georgia election case “Fani the Ho”!
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) labeled Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis — who pursued the now-stalled Georgia election case against him, former President Donald Trump, and others — a “ho” Friday night.
Mother Jones staff writer Stephanie Mencimer shared a video to X showing Giuliani insulting Willis. According to Mencimer, Giuliani gave the speech at a ReAwaken America tour event in a Sterling Heights, Michigan, church.
Giuliani called Willis “Fani the ho,” drawing laughs and cheers from the audience. “I could drop the “Ho” part if she’d just quit and go away,” he added.
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
45,000 dockworkers threatening to strike …
The International Longshoremen’s Association has called off master contract talks with their maritime employers, the United States Maritime Alliance, in a potentially significant blow to U.S. businesses looking to ship goods into East and Gulf Coast ports in the second half of 2024. The current coast-wide master contract is set to expire on September 30th, with the union pledging to strike in October if a new deal is not finalized. More than 45,000 dockworkers across 36 ports from Maine to Texas would be affected by the walkout.
Elliott Management takes $2-billion stake at Southwest Airlines; wants to change exec board!
Activist hedge fund Elliott Management revealed its latest target yesterday morning: Southwest Airlines Co. The fund has built a stake of nearly $2 billion in the airline company, signaling its intention to push for changes within the organization. Elliott Investment Management called for leadership and board changes at Southwest Airlines after reporting a stake worth about $1.9 billion.
The activist investor is seeking major changes at Southwest Airlines, including a board shake-up and the ouster of its CEO. With a stake of $1.9 billion, Elliott Management plans to push for leadership changes at the struggling airline company.
Southwest Airlines shares surged Monday on word activist investor Elliott Investment Management took a $1.9 billion stake in the carrier. The news of Elliott Management’s stake in Southwest Airlines has caused a significant increase in the airline’s stock price. LUV shares gained altitude early yesterday following the hedge fund’s announcement.
Southwest’s stock could soar 77% in 12 months if the company 1) replaces the CEO and chairman with outside hires 2) fills the board of directors with industry vets who have experience at other airlines (none currently do) and 3) refocuses on modernization and monetization, Elliott said.
The airline said it looks forward to “better understanding” Elliott’s “views” but that its board is “confident” in Southwest’s leadership. Elliott has a proven record of snapping up large stakes in underperforming companies and forcing CEO replacements—including at Crown Castle, NRG Energy, and Goodyear since May 2023.
Bottomless pockets win again! Google avoids jury trial in advertising antitrust case …
Google has successfully circumvented a jury trial in an antitrust case by sending a $2.3
million check to the DOJ, which a judge deemed sufficient to cover potential damages.
Ars Technica reports that Google has managed to avoid a jury trial in an antitrust case by sending a $2.3 million check to the U.S. Department of Justice. The preemptive payment was deemed adequate by U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema to cover any damages that might have been awarded by a jury. As a result, the case will now proceed with a bench trial, overseen by Judge Brinkema, set to begin in September.
The unusual move by Google came in response to the U.S. government’s request for a jury trial, which is atypical in antitrust cases. The U.S. argued that a jury should determine damages because government agencies were allegedly overcharged for advertising. However, Google’s payment of $2,289,751 was seen as sufficient by the judge, who stated, “I am satisfied that the cashier’s check satisfies any damages claim.”
The U.S. government, along with eight states, initially sued Google in January 2023, alleging that the company “corrupted legitimate competition in the ad tech industry” through a series of acquisitions and by forcing publishers and advertisers to use its products. The lawsuit claimed that federal agencies had purchased over $100 million in advertising since 2019 and sought to recover treble damages for alleged overcharges.
Despite the U.S. government’s opposition to Google’s motion to strike the jury demand, arguing that the payment did not fully compensate for the claimed damages, Judge Brinkema sided with Google.
She likened the receipt of the unconditional payment to “receiving a wheelbarrow of cash,” regardless of whether Google prevailed in its arguments to strike a jury trial.
While the U.S. government lost its bid to obtain more damages than Google offered, the lawsuit also seeks a declaration that Google illegally monopolized the market. The complaint requests a breakup, requiring Google to divest its Google Ad Manager suite, including its publisher ad server, DFP, and ad exchange, AdX.
No SSI Social Security checks coming in June (that is, if you normally get two of them) …
Some Americans will receive one less Social Security payment in June due to how the payments are scheduled.
Generally, the Social Security Administration (SSA) sends out a Supplemental Social Security Income (SSI) payment to people with disabilities and older adults with little or no income on the first of each month.
June 1 falls on a Saturday, so the payments that would normally go out in June will be sent on Friday, May 31, according to the agency’s payment schedule for 2024 and 2025.
The two May SSI checks recipients aren’t getting extra money from the federal government, merely an early payment for the following month. The next SSI payment will come on July 1.
A similar payment quirk is scheduled to happen two more times in 2025, occurring in the months of August and November, according to the SSA’s payment schedule.
For June, there will be no change to the standard Social Security payments that all retired Americans receive. Generally, those payments are sent out the second, third, and fourth Wednesdays of each month, depending on the recipient’s birth date.
According to a Social Security Administration report issued in 2023, about 7.4 million people receive SSI payments each month.
Colorado weed industry in free fall; sales plunge $700-million over the past 2 years!
Colorado’s cannabis market is in free-fall, going from peak revenues of $2.2 billion in 2020, to $1.5 billion just three years later. The drop has had a substantial impact on the state’s economy – with cannabis tax revenues decreasing more than 30% over the past two years to just $282 million last fiscal year, Politico reports.
The causes are manifold, and include an oversaturated local market, regulatory burdens, and increasing competition from nearby states such as New Mexico and Arizona – two out of 24 states where weed is now legal, which may have been attracting consumers that would have previously made a border run to Colorado.
In fact, sales in Colorado’s southern border counties have fallen nearly 50% from their 2021 peak.
What’s more, the price of weed has plummeted thanks to a supply glut, going from nearly $1700 per pound to around $700. Meanwhile, there’s been more than a 16% drop in the number of cannabis licenses issued over the past year, and 16% drop in cannabis-related jobs in the second year of job losses within the industry, suggesting the market is contracting.
One wholesaler, Veritas Fine Cannabis, had 144 employees at their height. They’re now down to just 21.
“We all overestimated the market,” said CEO Jon Spadafora. “We all believed a little bit too much of our own PR.”
HEALTH
12 Potential Health Benefits of Royal Jelly
Royal jelly contains nutrients with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects that may provide benefits to your overall health. Benefits can include supporting immune health and menopause.
Royal jelly is a gelatinous substance produced by honey bees to feed the queen bees and their young.
It’s frequently sold as a dietary supplement to treat a variety of physical ailments and chronic diseases.
While it has long been used in traditional medicine, its applications in Western medicine remain controversial.
Here are 12 potential benefits of royal jelly.
- 1. Contains a Variety of Nutrients
- 2. May Provide Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Effects
- 3. May Reduce Heart Disease Risk by Impacting Cholesterol Levels
- 4. May Aid Wound Healing and Skin Repair
- 5. Specific Proteins May Lower Blood Pressure
- 6. Regulates Blood Sugar by Reducing Oxidative Stress and Inflammation
- 7. Antioxidant Properties May Support Healthy Brain Function
- 8. May Increase Tear Secretion And Treat Chronic Dry Eyes
- 9. May Provide Anti-Aging Effects Through Various Means
- 10. May Support a Healthy Immune System
- 11. Reduces Side Effects of Cancer Treatment
- 12. May Treat Certain Symptoms of Menopause
Product of Interest: Royal Power from North American Herb & Spice
Royal Power helps you build the internal power of your adrenal system and the hormone system in general through the potency of raw royal jelly plus wild rosemary and sage. Give your body the support it needs for a healthy way to combat stress and support a whole body hormone response.
Made with Royal Jelly
Provides a host of nutrients, including amino acids, hydroxy acids, collagen, albumin, Riboflavin (B2), Pyridoxine (B6), pantothenic acid (B5), and naturally occurring steroids. A wonderful source of B vitamins, amino acids, fatty acids, steroids, and phospholipids, all of which are essential for nourishment.
U.S. Pharmacopeia Reports: Drug shortage reaches a decade high!
Drug shortages are the highest in a decade, with 2023 topping the charts, according to United States Pharmacopeia’s first annual Drug Shortage Report (USP).
“The number of drug shortages has increased over a decade, with 125 active drug shortages monitored by FDA at the end of 2023. … This high number of shortages is a direct result of persistent market vulnerabilities,” the report authors wrote. “According to our analysis, over a quarter of drugs in shortage were new drug shortages (34 products) in 2023.”
USP is a nonprofit organization that sets quality standards for medication, dietary supplements, and food ingredients worldwide.
The report, published in early June, notes that the average drug shortage lasts more than three years and affects multiple types of drugs. Almost 25 percent of those drugs have been on shortage lists for over five years, and six drugs, including epinephrine injections, have been in short supply for a decade. Injectable generic medications have been hit hardest, comprising more than 53 percent of new drug shortages.
These drug shortages indicate vulnerability in the market and affect patient care.
Some of the other reasons for the shortages include:
Race to the bottom: Most of the drugs in short supply cost less than $5 to make. Many of these cheap drugs are solid oral and sterile injectable medicines. The authors found that 66 percent of solid oral medications in shortage cost less than $3, and nearly one- third of the injectables in shortage cost less than $2. From 2022 to 2023, the number of discontinued drugs increased by 40 percent. Almost half of these are solid oral medications that cost less than $4. The report suggests tightening margins have pushed some manufacturers to pull out of the market.
Geographic concentration: The United States produces 44 percent of injectable medication, while India produces 56 percent of solid oral medication. These concentrations of production increase supply-chain vulnerability. A well-known example of injectable drugs is semaglutide weight-loss drugs, which were in short supply during the fall and winter of 2023. These medications often require complex chemical synthesis and take more time to manufacture. They also often require more steps in the manufacturing process.
Quality concerns: Unrelated but still problematic quality concerns have also slowed production. The report shows that in 2023, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspected facilities accounting for 40 percent of drug production for having “objectionable conditions.”
Infants exposed to SARS-COV-2 in utero ten times more likely to have developmental delays!
Infants born to mothers who experienced severe or critical COVID-19 during pregnancy are 10 times more likely to develop a neurodevelopmental delay in their first three years of life, according to new research.
The study, recently published in Nature, found that infants exposed to SARS-CoV-2 in utero scored lower in communication, gross motor, fine motor, problem-solving, and personal-social domains, with language development being the most affected domain.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers assessed children born to mothers with SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy and compared neurodevelopmental outcomes to unexposed children born before the pandemic in Los Angeles and Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.
Furthermore, Brazilian children were more likely to have a developmental delay than children born to U.S. mothers. According to the study, 12 percent of children between 6 and 8 months of age had a developmental delay compared to 2.6 percent of those in the control group. In the U.S. group, 5.7 percent of exposed children had a developmental delay compared to no children in the control group.
The long-term neurodevelopmental effects on children born to women who had SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy are not yet well understood, but data suggests the severity of maternal infection and whether it occurs in the first, second, or third trimesters may determine whether infants are more prone to developmental delays.
Study: Late bedtime habits linked to higher rates of depression and anxiety!
You relish those late nights, burning the midnight oil as a badge of honor. But that exhilarating lifestyle of staying up into the wee hours may be silently sabotaging your mental health.
A large-scale new study from Stanford Medicine suggests that no matter your chronotype, late bedtimes significantly increase the risks of depression, anxiety, and other behavioral disorders.
The results were very unexpected, Jamie Zeitzer, senior author of the study and professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford, told The Epoch Times.
One factor is that nocturnal activity often breeds impulsive and maladaptive behavior, she said. The brain operates differently during nighttime wakefulness, especially in areas like risk assessment, behavioral inhibition, and cognitive control, she added.
The researchers initially expected that aligning your sleep schedule with your biological chronotype or sleep preference would benefit mental health the most. But their analysis of data from 73,888 adults, which was published in Psychiatry Research, showed that, regardless of whether a person naturally prefers mornings or evenings, going to bed earlier is associated with better mental health outcomes. An early bedtime seems to override the impact of chronotype when it comes to mental well-being.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Supreme Court to hear case about Facebook data harvesting incident …
The Supreme Court on June 10 agreed to look at a large shareholder lawsuit that claims Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. deceived investors regarding a data-harvesting controversy that involved Cambridge Analytica, a political consulting firm.
The Supreme Court’s eventual ruling in the case could have an impact on corporate disclosure standards going forward.
The case involves a private securities fraud-related class action arising out of the now- defunct UK-based Cambridge Analytica’s “wrongful acquisition and misuse of Facebook user data,” according to Facebook’s filing with the nation’s highest court.
Meta agreed in December 2022 to pay out $725 million to settle a class-action proceeding that said the company permitted third parties, including Cambridge Analytica, to gain access to as many as 87 million users’ personal information. The incident was made public in 2018.
At the same time, Meta is being investigated by the European Union for possible breaches of child safety rules on its Facebook and Instagram platforms.
MISS AI … The world’s first beauty pageant for AI-generated models!
In a major twist on traditional beauty pageants, the inaugural “Miss AI” pageant is showcasing contestants who exist solely in the digital realm, created using generative AI. Although the women may be purely digital, in the face of beauty pageants selecting transgender winners, Miss AI may be a refreshing return to traditional beauty standards.
NPR reports that the world of beauty pageants is undergoing a significant transformation as the first- ever “Miss AI” pageant takes center stage this month. Unlike traditional pageants, where human contestants are judged based on their looks, personality, and charitable endeavors, Miss AI features models created entirely using AI technology. These digital beauties have no physical presence and exist only on social media platforms, primarily Instagram.
The Miss AI pageant, organized by the UK-based online creator platform FanVue, has attracted 1,500 submissions from AI creators worldwide. A panel of four judges has selected 10 finalists, all of whom embody the traditional beauty queen tropes: young, buxom, and thin. The winner of the contest will receive a cash prize of $5,000, along with public relations and mentorship opportunities.
The Miss AI pageant is generating significant attention from both the media and the public. The combination of cutting-edge AI technology and the allure of beautiful, albeit artificial, women has proven to be an effective way to engage with audiences. Eric Dahan, CEO of the social media marketing company Mighty Joy, believes that this type of content is highly engaging and “super low hanging fruit” for creators to pursue in the early stages of AI technology.
However, some experts and observers have expressed concerns about the lack of diversity among the Miss AI finalists. Sally-Ann Fawcett, a beauty pageant historian and Miss AI judge, hopes to change these stereotypes “from the inside” by focusing on the messaging around the AI beauty queens rather than solely on their appearance. She believes that the contest should showcase a more diverse range of AI models, including those of different genders, sizes, ages, and with unique flaws.
FOOD, PREPPING, GARDENING, FARMING & HOMESTEADING
RECALL WARNING: Tillamook Cheese sold to COSTCO members may have plastic in it!
Oregon-based Tillamook County Creamery Association has issued a recall for cheese products sold through Costco outlets, citing the risk of plastic contamination.
Costco members who bought 32-oz. twin-pack packages of Tillamook Colby Jack and Tillamook Monterey Jack cheese slices between May 9th and May 31st were sent a letter this month warning about the contamination.
“Tillamook has identified a very small quantity of gray and black plastic pieces that may be present in a limited quantity of Monterey Jack Cheese,” according to the June 1st letter.
The recalled items, which have a “Best If Used By” date of Oct. 22, were produced for Costco locations in the Northwest.
“In an abundance of caution and as part of our commitment to product quality and safety at the highest levels, we are voluntarily taking action to remove this product from the marketplace,” said the company, citing product number 651195. Tillamook asked customers to refrain from consuming the product and advised them to return the package to their local Costco outlet for a full refund.
2ND AMENDMENT
Fox News Digital reported that a group of high schoolers in Kansas took part in a “senior assassin” prank last month that featured gel bead guns. But the situation turned serious when one teenager was shot with a real firearm that left him paralyzed from the waist down.
Deputies from the Sedgwick Sheriff’s Office reportedly responded to a shooting that took place outside a Goddard Walmart just before 5:00 p.m. a month ago. The victim, 18-year-old Anakin Zehring, suffered a gunshot wound to the back, striking his kidney, liver, and spinal cord.
According to Zehring’s GoFundMe page, “On May 11th, our lives changed forever when my son was involved in the tragic incident at the Goddard Walmart shooting.”
“He sustained severe injuries, including a bullet wound that punctured his duodenum (upper part of the small intestine) and damaged his spinal cord, causing loss of sensation from the waist down. Despite undergoing four surgeries and intense medical care, his recovery journey is just beginning, and we need your help.”
Two other teenage boys were with Zehring when the incident occurred, but they soon fled the scene. The authorities eventually caught up with the teens to question them about the tragic incident.
The three teens had been playing “senior assassin” — a social media-originated game that usually features high schoolers targeting one another with gel-bead guns and water guns. Many teens who take part in the game post footage to social media.
Zehring and his friends ran into trouble after they started shooting their gel-bead guns at a 17-year-old female and her 17-year-old boyfriend outside the Goddard Walmart. While Zehring told the authorities that his friend shot the gel blaster, his friend said it was Zehring who fired at the two teenagers, according to the report.
The New York Post reported that it was only after the two teens were shot at that the teenage girl called her father, Ruben Marcus Contreras, and told him what happened.
Contreras eventually made his way to the Walmart parking lot and spotted Zehring and his two friends in a Chevrolet Spark. Contreras removed his handgun from his waistband and fired into the vehicle. He ultimately struck Zehring.
Reports have stated that Contreras has since been charged with first-degree attempted murder.
At the time of this report, Zehring’s GoFundMe has raised $12,074 of their $50,000 goal.
COVID RELATED NEWS
Federal court revives lawsuit against Los Angeles COVID-19 vaccine mandate!
A federal appeals court has revived a lawsuit challenging the COVID-19 vaccine mandate imposed by the Los Angeles school district, noting that the record does not clearly show whether the vaccines prevent the transmission of COVID-19.
The Health Freedom Defense Fund and other challengers to the mandate asserted that it violated the due process and equal protection rights of district employees, in part because the vaccines, unlike traditional vaccines, “are not effective” in preventing infection.
U.S. District Judge Dale Fischer disagreed, throwing out the case in 2022. She ruled that even if the COVID-19 vaccines do not prevent infection, mandates can be imposed under a 1905 U.S. Supreme Court ruling because the vaccines reduce symptoms and prevent severe disease and death.
U.S. Circuit Judge Ryan Nelson, writing for the 2–1 majority, added: “At this stage, we must accept plaintiffs’ allegations that the vaccine does not prevent the spread of COVID-19 as true. And, because of this, Jacobson does not apply.” That position was reached after lawyers for the defendants provided facts about the vaccines that “do not contradict plaintiffs’ allegations,” he said.
“LAUSD’s pattern of withdrawing and then reinstating its vaccination policies is enough to keep this case alive,” Judge Nelson said.
He was joined by U.S. Circuit Judge Daniel Collins.
The ruling remanded the case back to Judge Fischer “for further proceedings under the correct legal standard.”
In a dissent, U.S. Circuit Judge Michael Daly Hawkins said that the school district “has averred that, absent a very unlikely return to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, it will not reinstate the policy.”
Transhumanism: COVID injections and the internet of Bio-Nano Things (Part 4)
The whole world is a stage, and the people are actors wrapped in deception inside a simulacra. Military-inspired transhumanism has learned to hide in plain sight by cloaking its existence with diversions, subterfuge, and propaganda. The real truth behind the “Great Panic of 2020” goes beyond concerns about global health and dives into BioNano warfare designed to produce Humanity 2.0. As Noah Yuval Harari has boasted, it is “technology under your skin.”
COVID-Flu combination vaccine performs well in clinical trials, Moderna says!
A combination vaccine that targets both COVID-19 and influenza did well in a phase 3 clinical trial, Moderna said yesterday.
Participants who received the combination shot had at least the same level of immune response as comparison cohorts, according to the Massachusetts-based pharmaceutical company, which produced one of the most widely used COVID-19 vaccines in the world.
The trial compared the immune responses in adults aged 50 and older who received the combination vaccine with the responses in adults in the same age range who received an influenza vaccine and Moderna’s COVID-19 shot. Adults aged 65 and older in the comparison group received an enhanced flu vaccine.
The results from the phase 3, randomized, partial blind trial have not been peer reviewed or published for public review.
Moderna said it planned to present the data at an unnamed upcoming medical conference and submit it for publication in a journal.
Moderna, Pfizer, and Novavax, which currently make the three COVID- 19 vaccines available in the United States, have been moving toward combination vaccines in the hope they will boost flagging vaccination numbers as fewer people opt to take influenza and COVID-19 shots.
CANCEL CULTURE
Louisiana Democrats try and fail to punish Education Superintendent over Prager U deal!
Louisiana Democrats tried and failed to oust the state’s education superintendent this week after he announced a partnership with PragerU, with lawmakers claiming he is infusing “political indoctrination” into public schools.
PragerU, which describes itself as a nonprofit that promotes American values “through the creative use of education videos that reach millions of people online” and a “free alternative to the dominant left- wing ideology in culture, media, and education,” announced its partnership with Louisiana in front of over 7,000 teachers at the Teacher Leader Summit on May 28, making it the seventh state to do so. Under the partnership, teachers are not required to use PragerU Kids materials, but they have the option to supplement relevant videos in their curriculums without fear of being reprimanded or fired for making room for a conservative perspective in the classroom.
State Democrats immediately launched an attack against both Superintendent of Education Dr. Cade Brumley and PragerU by attempting to block Brumley’s reconfirmation this week and by introducing resolutions, SR 152 and HR 323, explicitly condemning PragerU as “discriminatory and anti-Semitic.”
“Louisiana’s children deserve unbiased, fact-based education free of political agendas,” said a statement by Rep. Edmond Jordan, D-Baton Rouge, who chairs the Black Caucus. “Instead, Superintendent Brumley betrayed his responsibilities to help rewrite history in service of right-wing extremists.”
It should be pointed out that the co-founder of PragerU, Dennis Prager, is Jewish and was appointed by President George W. Bush to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council, among other accolades. PragerU’s CEO Marissa Streit moved to Israel at a young age, where she completed her primary education and served in military intelligence unit 8200 of the Israel Defense Forces.
“We are proud to partner with the state of Louisiana and their Superintendent of Education Dr. Cade Brumley by offering PragerU Kids resources for classrooms. After announcing our partnership last week at the Teacher Leader Summit with 7500 in attendance we were met with an overwhelmingly positive response from educators,” Streit said in a comment to Breitbart News this week.
“Immediately, left wing political activists including elected officials in the LA legislature attempted to smear us with slanderous attacks and baseless accusations that we are anit-Semitic! The effort to end the partnership thankfully continues to backfire on the bad faith actors and teachers in Louisiana can still use PragerU Kids’ free, optional resources,” Streit added. “We are thrilled that goodness prevailed in Louisiana! All it takes for bad guys to win is good guys stepping back. But when good guys actually ”fight back there is a good chance that they will, in fact, win.
A spokesperson for PragerU told Breitbart News the organization is considering legal action against lawmakers who engaged in smears against them.
The decision to leave Caitlin Clark off of the US Olympic Team draws criticism!
The decision by U.S. Basketball to leave Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark off the 2024 Olympic squad that will compete in Paris this summer has drawn criticism among the media and fans.
Ms. Clark, the No. 1 overall selection in this year’s WNBA Draft, is currently the biggest star in women’s basketball and one of the most popular athletes in the nation.
Her inclusion on the team would likely have gathered more attention to women’s basketball in the 2024 Olympics.
“In leaving Caitlin Clark off the 2024 Olympic team, USA Basketball misses a huge opportunity to showcase the most dominant—and ignored—team in sports,” Christina Brennan, a long- time reporter and columnist, wrote on social media. “I write this as someone who has reported on US women’s basketball at the Olympics since 1984.”
Ms. Clark, 22, was named the WNBA’s Rookie of the Month for May after leading all rookies with 17.6 points and 6.6 assists while grabbing 5.1 rebounds per game. Ms. Clark also tied for first in 3-pointers made among all WNBA players.
Ms. Clark has emerged as the most dynamic player in men’s and women’s basketball. Fans have flocked to her games in person and on TV because of her charisma.
The National Championship game between her Iowa Hawkeyes and the South Carolina Gamecocks had 24 million combined viewers on ESPN and ABC—the first time in history that a women’s final drew a larger TV audience than the men’s, according to ESPN.
Now, expectations are that Ms. Clark will have the same impact on the WNBA and it’s already trending in that direction.
US appeals court upholds ban on student wearing only two genders shirt …
A U.S. appeals court on June 9th upheld a ban preventing a Massachusetts middle school student from wearing a shirt reading “There are only two genders.”
Another prohibition by school administrators, this time blocking the same student from wearing the shirt with “only two” covered by tape, on which was written “censored,” is also allowed under court precedent, according to the ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.
“The question here is not whether the t-shirts should have been barred. The question is who should decide whether to bar them —educators or federal judges. Based on Tinker, the cases applying it, and the specific record here, we cannot say that in this instance the Constitution assigns the sensitive (and potentially consequential) judgment about what would make ‘an environment conducive to learning’ at NMS to us rather than to the educators closest to the scene,” U.S. Circuit Judge David Barron wrote for a unanimous panel of the court.
U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani cited the ruling when in 2023 she ruled in favor of the administrators at the John T. Nichols Middle School (NMS) and Middleborough School District in Massachusetts against Liam Morrison (L.M.), the boy who wore the “two genders” shirt to school.
“[The school] permissibly concluded that the shirt invades the rights of others,” Judge Talwani said before quoting Tinker. “Schools can prohibit speech that is in ‘collision with the rights of others to be secure and be let alone.’”
The NMS dress code states in part that students must not wear pieces of clothing that “state, imply, or depict hate speech or imagery that [targets] groups based on race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, religious affiliation, or any other classification.”
Liam was removed from class after a teacher raised concerns about his shirt. He was ultimately sent home after he declined to remove the shirt, and his father said he would not force the removal.
Biden’s Juneteenth event hit with widespread mockery; lights on, no one’s home!
President Joe Biden became the subject of mockery on Monday night after video surfaced of him at a celebrity-packed Juneteenth event in which he appeared frozen stiff during a musical performance and another in which he appeared to slur his words.
The first video showed Biden appearing motionless with the same smile on his face as he stood beside a dancing Kamala Harris and celebrity Billy Porter during a performance of “Love Theory” by gospel singer Kirk Franklin.
“Lights are on but no one’s home,” the Trump campaign’s war room account posted on X.
“Who said Biden’s got no rhythm?” said Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) quipped on social media.
“While America was being invaded, Biden did … whatever he’s doing in this video,” Mike Lee said in another post.
Biden appeared to become a bit more roused when Philonise Floyd, the brother of George Floyd, wrapped his arm around the president.
In another video that surfaced from the event, Biden appeared to slur his words as he spoke about voting rights.
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