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Parkland to loan mental health agency Metrocare $18M to avoid collapse
The Parkland board chair said the emergency loan is to prevent disaster from hitting residents and incarcerated people in the Dallas County jail who depend on Metrocare’s mental health services.
The Quintessential Trump-era Politician
In 2020, I wrote an article about collaboration and collaborators. The title was History Will Judge the Complicit, and it started with the story of two famous East Germans, Markus Wolf and Wolfgang Leonhard, who both landed in East Berlin just after the end of the war. Although they came from very similar backgrounds, the former stuck with the regime, eventually becoming its spy boss; the latter, horrified by the brutal reality of Soviet-style communism, escaped. By way of juxtaposition, I also wrote about Lyndsey Graham and Mitt Romney. These two men also made very different decisions when confronted by Donald Trump’s assault on the ideals that they had both grown up believing: A glance at their biographies would not have led many to predict what happened next. On paper, Graham would have seemed, in 2016, like the man with deeper ties to the military, to the rule of law, and to an old-fashioned idea of American patriotism and American responsibility in the world. Romney, by contrast, with his shifts between the center and the right, with his multiple careers in business and politics, would have seemed less deeply attached to those same old-fashioned patriotic ideals. Most of us register soldiers as loyal patriots, and management consultants as self-interested. We assume people from small towns in South Carolina are more likely to resist political pressure than people who have lived in many places. Intuitively, we think that loyalty to a particular place implies loyalty to a set of values. But in this case the clichés were wrong. It was Graham who made excuses for Trump’s abuse of power. It was Graham—a JAG Corps lawyer—who downplayed the evidence that the president had attempted to manipulate foreign courts and blackmail a foreign leader into launching a phony investigation into a political rival. It was Graham who abandoned his own stated support for bipartisanship and instead pushed for a hyperpartisan Senate Judiciary Committee investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden’s son. It was Graham who played golf with Trump, who made excuses for him on television, who supported the president even as he slowly destroyed the American alliances—with Europeans, with the Kurds—that Graham had defended all his life. By contrast, it was Romney who, in February, became the only Republican senator to break ranks with his colleagues, voting to impeach the president. “Corrupting an election to keep oneself in office,” he said, is “perhaps the most abusive and destructive violation of one’s oath of office that I can imagine.” In the wake of Graham’s unexpected death on Saturday, I wrote about him again. He was, in many ways, the quintessential politician of Trump’s Washington, a man who shifted 180 degrees. Graham had been a fervent American patriot, proud reserve officer and military lawyer; he became one of the most important defenders of a president who believes soldiers are “suckers and losers” and shows no respect for law of any kind. As his politics changed, his language grew coarser and his behavior grew worse: He urged Israel to “level the place” in Gaza, and insulted the Danish prime minister in Munich, prompting a colleague, Senator Elissa Slotkin, to issue an apology. Here’s an excerpt from the article, which you can read in The Atlantic (gift link here) Like his close friend John McCain, Graham believed that America should stand at the center of a broad democratic alliance. The few times I met him were in that context, at the Munich Security Conference or at other European-American gatherings, which he once attended with great regularity. He also took seriously the practice of American democracy at home. In a 2014 conversation with The Atlantic, he described himself as a pragmatic politician who eschewed populist slogans. “I know Washington is broken, but what’s broken about it is everybody yelling and nobody trying to fix it,” he said. “I’m trying.” When Donald Trump first appeared in U.S. politics, Graham recognized him immediately for what he was: the spokesman for an alien ideology, one radically different from the idealistic patriotism that Graham had practiced and preached since childhood. Trump privately mocked the military that Graham loved as nothing but “suckers and losers.” He put falsehoods, cynicism, and personal greed at the center of his politics, while expressing disdain for transparency, accountability, and democracy itself. In 2015, Graham described Trump as a “race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot” who should “go to hell.” Also as a “nutjob.” When Trump won, Graham understood, as did so many others, that he would have to make some important choices. For a while, he went silent. In the spring of 2016, I saw him at one of those conferences in Europe. He seemed too depressed to speak. But then, like many other Republicans—and, more important, like many other people who have lived under political occupation or experienced radical regime change—he made the decision to abandon his previous ideals, to bury the patriotism that was once so important to him, and to become, instead, a loud, opportunistic collaborator. As I wrote in 2020, it’s very hard to look in to anyone’s heart and to understand their motivations from the outside. But it does seem that Graham had a deep need to be relevant, to be in the game, to be a player, at any cost. And that, rather than any particular achievement, is what he will be remembered for. Continuing to monitor conflicts of interest, ostentatious emoluments, outright corruption and policy changes that will facilitate outright corruption. (Read my original article, Kleptocracy Inc and check out the SNF Agora Institute chart) June 27 Trump diverted funds from more than 900 projects nationwide—including safety upgrades at national parks—to finance beautification projects around Washington, including $700,000 used to fix a White House walkway. June 28 After a years-long Department of Justice investigation into Abbott Laboratories over its management of a baby formula facility where potentially deadly bacteria turned up enough evidence to criminally charge the firm, top department officials instead opted for a financial penalty—illustrating the department’s move away from strict corporate enforcement under the Trump administration. June 29 Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stacked the Defense Policy Board—which is charged with providing independent national security recommendations to the Office of the Secretary of Defense—with Trump allies, including tech billionaire Marc Andreessen, who has invested in defense contractors like OpenAI and SpaceX, after purging the panel last year. Trump purchased between $1 million and $5 million worth of stock in Axon—which makes about 90% of US tasers—two weeks before ICE solicited bids for a $220 million taser contract. The White House unveiled limited-edition US passports for America’s 250th birthday, featuring a portrait of Trump overlaid on the Declaration of Independence. June 30 Trump made around $1.2 billion from his various crypto companies last year, including more than $500 million from World Liberty Financial and $600 million from sales of his meme coin. Trump is considering issuing 250 pardons to commemorate America’s 250th birthday. These are expected to be largely doled out through the Office of the Pardon Attorney’s informal network of intermediaries. White-collar defense attorneys say they can typically win pardons for clients for $2 million. Last year, Trump administration officials awarded a no-bid contract worth up to $500 million to Clark Construction for the White House ballroom—negotiations in which the president was directly involved. July 1 The Amazon MGM Studios documentary about Melania Trump earned the First Lady more than $10 million. Trump made hundreds of individual stock purchases worth as much as $12.8 million the day before his announcement pausing “Liberation Day” tariffs for 90 days sent the S&P 500 soaring nearly 10%—one of the largest single-day gains ever. Mar-a-Lago and Trump National Doral saw record surges in revenue during Trump’s first year in office, earning $77.5 million and $121.9 million respectively, compared to average annual revenues of $25 million and $75 million during Trump’s first term. Entities across the Persian Gulf paid more than $300 million to Trump’s businesses last year, including $263 million from the sale of half his stake in World Liberty Financial to a firm backed by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a top UAE royal and brother of the country’s president. Kash Patel failed to properly disclose his stock purchase of a Department of Justice contractor, MicroStrategy, worth up to $250,000 last year, despite laws requiring disclosure within 45 days of the trade. July 2 Trump has been directing administration officials to steer more government contracts—so far worth more than $2.4 billion—to Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin aerospace firm, after Amazon gave $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund, donated to the White House ballroom project, and reached a $40 million deal to license a Melania Trump documentary. Alongside the billions he made from cryptocurrency last year, Trump earned millions of dollars from real estate licensing fees, including $21 million from organizations in the UAE and $9.2 million in Saudi Arabia, along with smaller sums from merchandise sales, including $4.7 million from Trump Watches and $35,920 from 45 Guitar, a guitar brand endorsed by the president. House Democrats accused consultants tied to the Trump administration of financial fraud, alleging they gave prospective donors to America250—the bipartisan committee created by Congress to celebrate the nation’s semiquincentennial—the banking and routing numbers for Freedom 250, the White House’s fund for events like the UFC cage fight. Democrats also allege that Freedom 250’s CEO traveled to the World Economic Forum in Davos to solicit donations from foreign government officials and business leaders. The Trump administration’s proposed rollback of gun regulations would lift the prohibition on mailing handguns to individuals, a significant win for GrabAGun—the direct-to-consumer firearm retailer on whose board Donald Trump Jr. sits and in which he holds a 1.1% ownership stake. GrabAGun currently must rely on a middleman to transfer firearms to customers. Trump’s financial disclosure revealed that he made more than 21,000 securities trades during his first year back in office, growing his investment account to at least $858 million across stakes in around 1,600 companies, compared to the 13 total trades Joe Biden made during his entire presidency. July 4 Nearly 1 million people who bought the president’s meme coin—Trump Coin—collectively lost $3.8 billion on the token, while he walked away with $636 million. July 6 Shares of Dell closed up 4.4% after Trump recommended people buy the firm’s computers during a speech announcing the launch of Trump investment accounts for children, boosting the more than $1 million worth of shares the president owns in the company. July 9 Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh named crypto investor and Trump ally Marc Andreessen to a task force aimed at modernizing the Federal Reserve, including rethinking its approach to inflation—a key factor keeping interest rates elevated. Palm Beach International Airport has officially changed its name to Trump International Airport—a move that will require Florida to pay royalties to the president’s family for licensing his name. I was there a few months ago, during a trip to Barcelona. The sculptures were a revelation, I’d never seen so many together before. Each one has its own personality. Enjoy the good weather, if you are lucky enough to have it. History Will Judge the Complicit The Quintessential Politician Autocracy Inc Open Letters, from Anne Applebaum is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe
Sen. Lindsey Graham's sudden death spurs false claims
Sen. Lindsey Graham's unexpected death on Saturday night fueled baseless speculation on social media that his passing was the result of a criminal action. Here's a closer look at the facts.
Detectives seek suspects in Upstate business break-in
Detectives in Anderson County are trying to identify the people responsible for breaking into a business on July 4.
Opinion: Anchorage’s mental health system has bigger problems than the location of care
When it comes to helping people with an acute mental illness, both Anchorage and Alaska are failing.
A heart for health
Albany High retiree Mary Kelly has a heart for health that expands beyond her professional responsibilities. Not only did she serve the City School District of Albany for over 23 years as a nurse, she also has been a faithful supporter of our food pantry here at Albany High! Since June 2022, Kelly has given a monthly donation to the Regional Food Bank of Northeastern New York specifically designated for Albany High. Thanks to Kelly and other individual donors and partner organizations, our students and their families can have access to nutritious food, free of cost at the Falcon Market. As someone who raised three boys, she knows how hard it can be to keep one’s shelves stocked at home. “I remember when they would sit down, three teenagers, eating a box of cereal a piece as a snack,” Kelly reminisced with a laugh. “Who can afford that nowadays?” Known affectionately as Nurse Kelly throughout her career in the district, she served our students at the elementary, middle and high school levels, and was stationed at Albany High from 2019 until her retirement. By caring for students day in and day out, Kelly was keenly aware of the negative impact of food insecurity on the lives of young people. This is what motivated her to take a proactive step towards improving access to nutritious food for our students and families. Kelly’s generosity is a way to carry on the memory of her youngest son, who passed away in 2019. “The kindnesses that I do are always in his memory,” Kelly shared. On behalf of our Albany High staff, students and families, we thank Nurse Kelly for her incredible support and wish her all the best during her retirement. For more information about how to support the Falcon Market with in-kind or financial donations, please contact Joey DiPiazza at jdipiazza@albany.k12.ny.us.
<i>Elle’s</i> Lexi Minetree Wants People To Acknowledge Their Privilege
Elle's breakout star Lexi Minetree isn't shying away from the tough conversations. She wants people to acknowledge privilege, and help those around her.
How Unaffordable is Health Care and What Can We Do About It?
For decades, the cost of medical care, prescription drugs and health insurance has consistently risen faster than general inflation and wage growth, posing financial challenges for government, businesses and people.
2 hospitalized after shooting at Clearwater sports bar: Police
Clearwater police are investigating a shooting that left two people hospitalized early Monday morning at a downtown sports bar.
Opinion: The Science of Reading Goes to High School
For anyone who cares about student literacy, the past few years have given us reason to cheer. While trends in national test scores, young people’s reading habits, and talk of a “learning recession” a...
2.6 million Americans lost health insurance in 2025 after ACA subsidies expired, leading to real health consequences
Research shows that losing coverage, even temporarily, tends to make people less healthy, and it exposes them to financial losses.
Do People Trust Science Anymore?
There are several psychological reasons why some people reject scientific consensus. How distant one feels psychologically from science increases the likelihood of rejection.
Are 988 and other mental health crisis lines missing people over 50?
Many people over 50 aren't aware of the 988 mental health crisis line, though some are aware of other crisis lines, suggesting an opportunity to increase awareness and use.
How Wealthy People Are Getting to World Cup Games
The skies above the Hamptons are packed with choppers headed to games, as “inequality is taking it right in the face.”
Bosses credit AI instead of employees, delaying promotions, raises
Bosses are crediting AI with work that human employees actually did. People said the mistaken attribution is delaying promotions and cutting raises.
Northwest Montana’s growing entertainment economy
The Flathead has built a strong network of places where people gather around music, food and community.
Sam Neill, 'Jurassic Park' actor, dies at 78
Sam Neill, the New Zealand actor known for his roles in 'Jurassic Park,' 'The Piano' and 'Hunt for the Wilderpeople' has died. He was 78.
A look at some of the deadliest fires in bars, nightclubs and music venues
A blaze tore through a pub in Bangkok overnight into Monday, killing at least 27 people and injuring dozens.
Sen. Lindsey Graham's career marked by reversals, including on Trump
Sen. Lindsey Graham's career in Washington was shaped by his hardline foreign policy beliefs and shifting views of President Donald Trump.
Pokémon Go at 10 and the millions still trying to catch 'em all
Michael Steranka, vice president at the mobile game's owner Scopely, says it has always been about bringing people together.
Where you live could shape your dementia risk, massive study finds
Researchers analyzing data from more than 214,000 people found that dementia risk factors differ widely across countries, challenging the idea of a one-size-fits-all prevention strategy. At the same time, they uncovered surprisingly consistent patterns that could help shape smarter, more targeted public health efforts.
Street therapists struggle to meet growing need for homeless mental health services
LIKE MANY PEOPLE who are or have been homeless, Jessica Scott struggles with debilitating anxiety. When she finally moved from her stepfather’s car into a
Detroit Free Press
In Detroit, a business showcasing sweet potatoes has appealed to people from all walks of life while launching another business and support groups. See link below ⬇️ 📸 Photo provided by Espy Thomas
Final day of Infinity Con brings more fans with entertainment for all ages
Sunday marked the final day of this year’s Infinity Con in Tallahassee, giving people a mix of pop culture, comic books, and anime.
Obsidian Director Blasts People 'Running Their Mouths' About How the Studio Has Changed Following Xbox Layoffs
Obsidian Entertainment director Brandon Adler is tired of seeing "cold take artists" who are "running their mouths" about the studio following recent Xbox layoffs.
Venezuela’s Post-Quake Politics
People are openly and forcefully voicing their anger at the government for the first time in years.
OpenAI keeps losing the people in charge of AI safety
OpenAI just lost another leader of one of its safety teams. The company's safety and alignment teams have had high turnover in recent years.
Governor signs legislation expanding access to health care, relieving medical debt
These reforms — which Hawai‘i Gov. Green signed during two separate ceremonies — help ensure people receive screenings, treatment and support they need without risking financial stability.
Business People: Mark Reilly named editor-in-chief at Business Journal
MEDIA The Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal announced that Mark Reilly will be its next editor-in-chief, succeeding Dirk DeYoung, who is retiring next month. Reilly has been managing editor of the Business Journal since 2006, starting…
Israeli fire in Gaza kills 5 people, including a little girl, health officials say
Israeli fire in Gaza has killed at least five Palestinians, including a 9-year-old girl
Israeli fire in Gaza kills 5 people, including a little girl, health officials say
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli fire in Gaza on Sunday killed at least five Palestinians, including a 9-year-old girl, and wounded others, according to local health officials.
The Right Way to Get Rid of Old Laptops, PCs and Printers (and It's Free)
Getting rid of old computers and printers responsibly is free, accessible and considerably simpler than most people assume.
Republican Lindsey Graham dies at 71: World leaders, US politicians react
The longtime US senator, an ally of President Trump, was an advocate for using US military force overseas.
At Family Science Night, Wonder Comes Before Answers.
BAR HARBOR—Family Science Night isn’t really about science. It’s about wonder. It’s about watching a five-year-old realize that the tiny creature under a microscope is a real living thing. It’s about a teenager discovering that the scientist explaining genetics or regeneration isn’t much older than they are. It’s about parents seeing curiosity spread across a child’s face the way excitement spreads across a crowd at a Fourth of July parade. For one evening, families realize that the laboratory isn’t some secretive place where knowledge is hidden behind white coats and closed doors. They learn that the lab is a place their neighbors work, their friends’ parents work, and it becomes a place where questions matter more than answers. It’s a place where wonder is the origin for knowledge. At the lab, children learn that it’s okay not to know. Adults remember that they once asked “Why?” about everything. Scientists are reminded why they fell in love with discovery in the first place. There are experiments, games, obstacle courses, and demonstrations, of course. But those are really just invitations—to touch, to explore, to laugh, to make mistakes, and to ask one more question. In a world that often rewards certainty, Family Science Night celebrates curiosity. And perhaps that’s its greatest gift. Long after the microscopes are packed away and the experiments are over, what families take home isn’t just a few new facts about biology. They take home the feeling that discovery belongs to everyone—that science isn’t something happening somewhere else by someone else. It’s simply what happens when people are given permission to wonder. A Family Science Night at the Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory is one of those rare community events where children and adults can experience science as something they do, not just something they read about. Hands on discovery allows hands-on learning and joy. Real scientists, some local, some scientist-interns (but still scientists) just in college make science real, approachable, and exciting. And there, complex ideas like forever chemical-filtration, DNA and so much more become not complex. Instead, they become fun. Summer fellows are challenged to explain cutting-edge biomedical research in ways a first-grader—and their grandparent—can understand. Past activities have explored gene expression, kidney function, axolotl regeneration, worms, microplastics, and phytoplankton through games and creative demonstrations. Though it’s called family night, you can also see adults going from station to station, exploring, learning together across ages. Family Science Night reflects the laboratory’s broader mission of breaking down barriers between researchers and the public, helping people understand how scientific discoveries relate to everyday life and the health of Maine’s environment. Family Science Night transforms a world-class research laboratory into a giant interactive classroom, where curiosity is encouraged, questions are celebrated, and families discover that science isn’t just something that happens in a lab—it’s an adventure anyone can join. About MDI Biological Laboratory For more than 125 years, MDI Bio Lab has been a center for training and research in comparative biology. In the last two decades its biomedical research has focused on aging, regeneration, and environmental toxins. The Laboratory houses 11 research groups staffed by an international team of world-class scientists and graduate students. It also leads a statewide network of colleges, universities and research institutions that collaborate to provide training, research experiences and financial support to help young Mainers play a bigger role in today’s biomedical revolution. Located on Maine’s rugged coast, the Laboratory’s 100+ acre campus houses research facilities, cottages and dorms that house visiting scientists and students. It is also home to MDI Bioscience, a subsidiary working to design innovative techniques to speed the drug discovery process. LINKS TO LEARN MORE NIH INBRE MDI BIOLOGICAL LABORATORY Photos: Carrie Jones and Shaun Farrar/Bar Harbor Story HELP SUPPORT THE BAR HARBOR STORY When we started The Bar Harbor Story, we didn’t know if anyone would read it. But you showed up. You shared. You sent tips. Now—over 400,000 views every month later—it’s clear: people here care about their community and each other. We’ve kept everything free because news should never be out of reach, but every one of our stories takes time to write, and your support keeps The Bar Harbor Story going. If you value our work, please consider a paid subscription, a founding membership, or a sponsorship. It truly helps us cover one more meeting, tell one more story, shine one more light. Even $5 a month makes a difference. Click here to become a one-time supporter now. Thank you so much for being here. Founding member information can be found here. Have questions about sponsorships? Just send Shaun an email at sfarrar86@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you. Subscribe Share Bar Harbor Story Share Leave a comment
Sen. Lindsey Graham dies at 71. See his life and political career
Sen. Lindsey Graham's death marks the passing of a longtime conservative fixture of the Senate, and one of Trump's closest political allies.
Soaring costs and end of tax credit leads 17,000 Minnesotans to drop MNSure health coverage
This year, 17,000 Minnesotans have dropped the health insurance they had purchased in the Affordable Care Act marketplace known as MNSure, as insurance premiums soar and a tax credit that many people use to help defray the cost of ACA insurance expired.
Lindsey Graham was booked for TV Sunday. Then his death shocked Congress
Lawmakers were stunned to learn of Graham's sudden passing. He was scheduled for a TV appearance on NBC's \
Your smartwatch might be making your sleep worse
For people with insomnia or a fixation on perfect sleep, experts say wearable data can sometimes do more harm than good.
Your smartwatch might be making your sleep worse
For people with insomnia or a fixation on perfect sleep, experts say wearable data can sometimes do more harm than good.
How School-Based Kindness Training Can Help Support Students’ Mental Health
Paul & Thompson: Young people should be taught how to handle conflict without cruelty, repair a relationship, reach out when someone feels alone.
Starting with sweet potatoes, this business touches Detroit and beyond
In Detroit, a business showcasing sweet potatoes has appealed to people from all walks of life while launching another business and support groups.
Starting with sweet potatoes, this business touches Detroit and beyond
In Detroit, a business showcasing sweet potatoes has appealed to people from all walks of life while launching another business and support groups.
How PFAS chemicals move through the Great Lakes and into people
New long-term research from the University of Notre Dame deepens the understanding of how “forever chemicals” can move up the food chain to people.
Miniatures make a comeback as young people seek to relieve stress
Life is uncertain. But there is one place where all is serene and predictable - the world of miniatures. “Unlike in real life, things are perfect in the miniature world,” says Lee Thomas Seawell, 66, ...
Business People
Freeman Health System has appointed Kyle Bridges as interim chief administrative officer of Freeman Neosho Hospital in Missouri.
They're Building Half A Bridge to Save Science...
Today’s post is about science: what you can do now to protect it from unprecedented threats, and how your action is the first half of a long-term program that Congress must take up next. Let me start with describing the embryonic state of science advocacy. There are many well-meaning organizations: the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Research!America, and subject-specific organizations such as the Society for Neuroscience and the American Physical Society. Their general approach is to emphasize the common good: the remarkable value that science and innovation have provided to all Americans. However, these organizations are offering an incomplete solution. Before I start, a preliminary: If you already know about the threat, go ahead and weigh in with OMB at this link. Ideas about what to say come from Research!America and the American Physical Society. You have until Monday, July 13 at 11:59pm Eastern. Then come back here and read the rest of this post. Finally, get in touch with whoever is likely to be your next member of Congress in 2027. The threat: An end to merit-based science… The onslaught of attacks on science is accelerating. It’s not just cuts to grants, which was the last battle. That battle is not done yet, but there is a new and worse threat. Now comes a proposed public rule from the Office of Management and Budget. The rule would take decision-making power over grants away from experts and put it into the hands of political appointees. Former NIH official Elizabeth Ginexi wrote an excellent summary of what OMB is trying to do, which is codify the executive branch’s ability to award or terminate grants, for arbitrary cause or no stated cause. Since World War II, a necessary step in scientific grant-making has been consideration of scientific merit. This approach has made America into a dominant scientific superpower, the envy of the world. Of course, political considerations do come into the mix. The proposed rule tilts the balance dramatically away from merit. …but why? Many people have difficulty comprehending why Russell Vought and OMB would want to damage science in this way. If you’re a working scientist, you are likely to be particularly uncomprehending. Who would hurt an activity so self-evidently good? The answer is: this is part of the program to replace the rule of law with a personalist regime. OMB Director Russell Vought, a Christian nationalist, would like to implement what legal scholars call a “unitary executive,” and what I would call a dictatorship. Or if you like, a personalist authoritarian regime. I am a working scientist. This rule will debilitate my research. It may chill the speech of scientists for speaking freely in the public sphere. It is a form of personalizing power and decision-making within the executive branch. In short, it sacrifices science in the service of tyranny. To Russell Vought, a decrease in the quality of science might be an acceptable cost. He might even consider it an added benefit to weaken a pillar of soft U.S. power based on knowledge and skepticism. The professional societies are building half a bridge The nonprofits are asking you to make public comment. Public comment is like building the first half of a bridge. Before implementation, OMB is compelled by law to have a period of public comment. Rules have to be consistent with the law and the Constitution. They express the federal government’s stance toward how those laws will be implemented. When a presidential administration works in good faith, these public comments are used to inform their eventual action, and sometimes mitigate it. The comment period reflects our First Amendment right to petition our government. The executive branch is then supposed to take those comments into account - completing the bridge between us, the people, and our government. Project 2025 seeks to take away the second half of the bridge. We have to replace it. The first half of the bridge Organizations like AAAS, Research!America, and SfN are partly right. You should certainly comment. Their core model is earnest: if enough of us make noise, then we will achieve change. This idealistic point of view is offered in good faith. That point of view is also currently bullshit. The fundamental reason is that the federal rulemaking process has two parts: There has to be a period of public comment. OMB makes the final rule…but is free to disregard public comment. Oops. That’s a loophole. However, not all is lost. Congress can complete the bridge Congress has enormous power. That power suggests a roadmap for how to proceed. This lawless administration is still going to issue that rule. Nonetheless, your comments still play an essential role. Here are two steps you can take. Step 1: Send your comment to your Representative and Senator. Whether they are Democrats or Republicans, many of them support science. Whatever you wrote as public comment in the Federal Register, also send it to your member of Congress. You can include information about jobs in your district or state by looking at Joshua Weitz’s ScienceMatters interactive map. Call the U.S. Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and give your town, zip code, or state, then deliver your message. Step 2: Politicize the hell out of science. You heard me, politicize it as an issue. We hear a lot from the old scientific establishment about science being nonpartisan. This is obsolete, sentimental thinking. Under normal conditions, it was true. But we can no longer make that assumption. We can keep on pretending, but we’re putting science at risk. There is a way forward. Rules are subordinate to the law…and Congress makes laws. Therefore Congress can step in. In this fall’s election, it is likely that Democrats will retake the House of Representatives. That puts at least one chamber of Congress in the hands of Democrats. They are far more inclined than the current Congress to investigate and legislate. This opens a path to undoing the damage. It also creates a permission structure for pro-science Republicans to find a way back from the brink. We have to encourage them. In the House, every district is up every two years. In your district, contact both of the major party candidates. If your state has a Senate race, contact those candidates too. Specifically mention the proposed OMB rule. Ask for two things: For this year’s appropriations process in August and September, ask that amendments be added to stop the implementation of the new rule. Those amendments should support peer-reviewed science and stop political interference. Looking ahead to next year, ask the Congressman/Congresswoman/Senator to work to hold hearings in 2027 on the importance and benefits of peer-reviewed science for health and prosperity. What hearings and amendments will accomplish Congress can use its investigatory power to summon heads of agencies and the director of the OMB. That will allow fact-finding regarding the consequences of this rule. Congress can override the rule through the appropriations process. They can write into statute a requirement to follow peer review and best scientific practices. In this way, Congress can stop the attacks on science. Postscript: Moving forward Now I have a request for you, to help me. As many of you know, I ran for Congress in order to save democracy and science. Although I did not win, that battle continues by other means. I met and heard from thousands of supporters both here in New Jersey and nationally. I learned that pro-science, pro-democracy activists have the potential to become a much greater force. In the weeks and months ahead, I will be building ways to harness that energy. I will be announcing those plans soon. In the meantime, an important step is to wind down the Congressional campaign, which has a few remaining bills to pay. Please help me retire that last debt.
Tri-state people in business: New hires, promotions, recognitions
Grant Sizemore joined Medical Associates Clinic of Dubuque’s surgery department as a general surgeon.
Mick Jagger doesn't want to 'lecture' fans, says his job is to make people 'have the best time'
Legendary Rolling Stones frontman says his job is making audiences forget their problems, but his 2024 jab at Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry at New Orleans Jazz Fest sparked a public feud.
Azerbaijan health officials deny mumps epidemic in Baku
The Ministry of Health of the Republic of Azerbaijan reports posts have been circulating on social networks about the widespread spread of epidemic mumps in Baku do not reflect the current epidemiological situation. Health officials say the epidemiological situation of mumps in the country is stable. The registered cases of infection consist of individual sporadic cases, no epidemics or mass spread have been recorded. The current situation is constantly under epidemiological surveillance by relevant medical institutions, and the necessary preventive and counter-epidemic measures are consistently implemented. Epidemic mumps is observed more often among unvaccinated or incompletely vaccinated individuals. The disease is transmitted mainly by airborne droplets - during coughing, sneezing and close contact. The incubation period usually lasts 11–23 days. The main symptoms of the disease are fever, swelling and pain in the parotid salivary glands, discomfort when chewing and swallowing, general weakness, headache and loss of appetite. In most cases, mumps is mild and results in complete recovery. However, in rare cases, certain complications may develop in unvaccinated adolescents and adults. Therefore, timely vaccination is of particular importance in preventing the disease. Subscribe to Outbreak News TV on YouTube In accordance with the National Vaccination Schedule in Azerbaijan, the combined measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine is administered to children at 12 months of age, with a booster dose at 6 years of age. The MMR vaccine is the most reliable and effective means of protection against mumps. The Ministry of Health recommends that parents check their children’s vaccination status. If for any reason the vaccination has been delayed or missed, it is recommended to contact the medical facility in your area of residence and consult a doctor. To protect yourself from the disease, it is recommended to follow preventive measures such as avoiding close contact with sick people, following personal hygiene rules, washing hands regularly, and frequently ventilating closed spaces. If you experience symptoms of the disease, avoid self-medication, seek medical attention, and do not return to work until you are fully recovered. Citizens are asked to refer only to official sources and not to believe or share unverified information circulating on social networks. Outbreak News Today is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe
What smart people are saying about Apple's lawsuit against OpenAI
Apple sued OpenAI on Friday, accusing the AI startup of orchestrating a campaign to steal trade secrets from iPhone maker.
The First Test of Bar Harbor's New Entertainment Rules.
The Bar Harbor Story is generously sponsored by the Bar Harbor Historical Society. BAR HARBOR—The Finback Alehouse was the first real test of the town’s new special amusement permit process, July 7 while eight other permits sailed through the process last week. The permit allows music in places where liquor is served. The town’s ordinance which was recently tweaked for a new process allows for the regulation of noise and hours of activity. The only discussion at the July Town Council meeting was about the Finback Alehouse on Cottage Street, in the heart of Bar Harbor’s downtown district. The Finback’s distinctive design—a front wall that is like a garage door that can be opened and closed—was a key to that discussion. The restaurant, which often hosts live bands, singers, and karaoke, at night, has had one substantiated noise complaint this season, which is documented on its application. According to Bar Harbor Police Chief David Kerns, most complaints about noise happen after 10 p.m., and if the Finback had two more violations within a year, they’d have to stop having music. One town councilor said that he’d have no problem reissuing the permit if the door was down. The permit passed through the process with no conditions. Vice Chair Earl Brechlin moved the motion with two time changes for two holiday weekend dates. It passed unanimously. The council asked the Finback why they’d chosen an indoor license with a wall that can be opened to the street. Dale Stockburger, representing the Finback, said he’d applied for an indoor permit rather than an outdoor structure or partial structure (which is usually applied to tents or pavilions). The restaurant has traditionally had an indoor license. Stockburger said that whether the door is open or closed is immaterial because he now stands outside with a decibel reader to make sure that the music isn’t too loud. OTHER SPECIAL AMUSEMENT PERMITS New Councilor Deborah Vickers worried that she had potential conflicts of interests on two other renewals due to the location of her employee housing. Vickers co-owns the Black Friar Inn. They have employee housing directly behind the Finback, which is also 300 yards from the Bar Harbor Inn, she explained. The Bar Harbor Inn also had a permit up for renewal. The councilors unanimously voted she did not have a conflict of interest. The councilors approved permits at The Bluenose Inn, 90 Eden St, Class A; Acadia Hotel Downtown, 20 Mount Desert St, Class A and C; the Bar Harbor Inn, 8 Newport Dr, Class A, B, C and D; C-Ray Lobster, 882 State Hwy 3, Class D; Holiday Inn Bar Harbor Regency, 123 Eden Street, Class B; Finback Alehouse, 30 Cottage St, Class B; Project Social, 278 Main St, Class C and D; Bar Harbor Beer Works, 119 Main St, Class B and D; and Mainely Meat BBQ Dreamwood Hill, 369 State Hwy 3, Class D. That process is laid out in the Special Amusement Ordinance of the Bar Harbor Town Code which is Chapter 14 of the town code. Special amusement permits have class codes. These are the meanings: Number - how many musicians are allowed by the permit. Class A - Indoor non-amplified entertainment. Class B - Indoor amplified entertainment or dancing. Class C - Outdoor non-amplified entertainment. Class D - Outdoor amplified entertainment. RESIDENCE LICENSES RENEWED AND A TAXI LICENSE The councilors also renewed the licenses for three specific sorts of residences that require that yearly renewal per the town code. The employee living quarters at Atlantic Oceanside Hotel, 119 Eden St and another at 278 Main Street were renewed. The shared accommodations license renewal at 39 Kebo Street also occurred. These are annual renewals. Bernard Taxi Services’ license was also renewed. This license had been added to the agenda at the meeting. Bar Harbor Update on Leaf and Grass Clipping Disposal BAR HARBOR — Bar Harbor residents will still have a place to throw away their leaf and grass clippings this summer. The town’s agreement with EMR in Southwest Harbor for disposing of those items will continue through November 30. The agreement, according to a town press release, will continue “while the Town continues evaluating long term composting solutions and the required state permitting process.” As of July 1, residents bringing their grass and leaves across the island to the facility in Southwest Harbor will have to fill out a property registration card. Each property can throw out up to 85 pounds of the grass and leaves. “Any disposal exceeding the 85 pound allowance during this period will be the responsibility of the property owner at the applicable disposal rate,” the press release explains. LINKS TO LEARN MORE Watch the meeting Meeting agenda QUICK NOTE: We’d released the Bar Harbor Leaf information as a brief, but wanted to make sure that people saw it, so we’ve included it here, too. HELP SUPPORT THE BAR HARBOR STORY When we started The Bar Harbor Story, we didn’t know if anyone would read it. But you showed up. You shared. You sent tips. Now—over 400,000 views every month later—it’s clear: people here care about their community and each other. We’ve kept everything free because news should never be out of reach, but every one of our stories takes time to write, and your support keeps The Bar Harbor Story going. If you value our work, please consider a paid subscription, a founding membership, or a sponsorship. It truly helps us cover one more meeting, tell one more story, shine one more light. Even $5 a month makes a difference. Click here to become a one-time supporter now. Thank you so much for being here. Founding member information can be found here. Have questions about sponsorships? Just send Shaun an email at sfarrar86@gmail.com, he’d love to hear from you. Subscribe Share Bar Harbor Story Share Leave a comment
Mick Jagger responds to John Mulaney saying he’s ‘not nice’ in standup bit: ‘You get disassociated’
Mick Jagger responded to John Mulaney claiming he’s ‘not nice’ due to the effects of global superstardom in a standup bit: ‘You get disassociated from what people might call ‘real life.’’
More people are focusing on gut health as fermented foods gain popularity
More people are focusing on their gut health as colorectal cancer rises among young adults and personalized gut microbiome treatments become increasingly popular.
More people are focusing on gut health as fermented foods gain popularity
More people are focusing on their gut health as colorectal cancer rises among young adults and personalized gut microbiome treatments become increasingly popular.
An anti-inflammatory diet may protect against dementia in some older adults
Recent research suggests that healthy eating habits matter, even when people are already at increased risk of cognitive decline.
Obsidian game director reacts to people "spouting off" about the studio and how it's not what it "used to be"
A director at Obsidian shared their thoughts about the "extremely difficult week" at the studio.
From booksmaxxing to looksmaxxing: Why the viral trends concern some mental health experts
People are self-optimizing everything — protein, skincare, fitness — to such a degree that "maxxing" is one of social media's most popular suffixes.
Pokemon Company document shows wanting to increase price from $60, encouraging people to buy both versions
An internal document from The Pokemon Company has surfaced which shows past interest in increasing the price of Pokemon games as well as encouraging people to buy both versions. Going back to the original Nintendo Switch era, Pokemon titles were $60 for each version. However, there was at least some consideration to go higher than that. One thing that prevented...
People have been fermenting food for millennia. Here's why more people are focused on gut health now
More people are focusing on their gut health, as fibermaxxing goes mainstream, colorectal cancer rises among young adults and personalized gut microbiome treatments become increasingly popular.
Columbia scientists discover surprising link between serotonin and heart valve disease
Scientists have uncovered evidence that serotonin, the chemical best known for regulating mood, may also speed the progression of a common heart valve disease in some people. The research suggests that patients with degenerative mitral regurgitation who take SSRI antidepressants and carry a specific genetic variant may develop severe valve damage sooner, potentially requiring surgery at a younger age.
Woman, 45, Underwent the First Robotic Single-Port Nipple-Sparing Mastectomy Performed in the U.S by a Robot Named Carol
Vicky Pan, a mom of two, was diagnosed with aggressive, fast-growing triple-negative breast cancer that had already spread to her lymph nodes
In 1991, eight people sealed themselves inside a glass world in the Arizona desert for two years, and the experiment nearly unravelled when the oxygen began disappearing from the air they were breathing
The Biosphere 2 oxygen problem is easy to remember as a failure: eight people sealed under glass, the air thinning around them, and a dream of
Typology Of AI-Based Therapy Micro-Bursts Reveals How People Lean Into Chatbots For Mental Health Advice
I've previously defined AI-based therapy micro-bursts, which is how people tend to use AI for mental health advice. Now, here's my typology. An AI Insider scoop.
Downtown shops making success of all businesses everyone's business
One of the things we love most about summer in downtown Bellingham is the way it brings people together. Whether it's gathering with friends on a patio ...
North Las Vegas entertainment scene heats up this summer with concerts, a new casino and more
The amphitheater at Craig Ranch Park has drawn nearly 25,000 people since reopening, and a newly renovated casino is set to open its doors soon.
Legionnaires' outbreak hits New York as officials rush to test water towers
To date, 46 people have been infected from breathing mist from bacteria-filled water coolers on the Upper East side.
Krull Commentary: McConnell, Platner and the politics of entitlement
This column was originally published by TheStatehouseFile.com. By John Krull TheStatehouseFile.com July 10, 2026 The medical mystery surrounding U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, and the political meltdown of Maine Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner together illustrate much of what is wrong with American politics today. Many, many ambitious people in this country see running
Graham Platner makes it official in Maine, submitting paperwork to leave Senate race
In his withdrawal notice, Platner said "people are desperate for change" and that's why they made him the Democratic nominee. Now, Maine Democrats have to pick someone to replace him by July 27.
Cyclospora outbreak sickens 50 people in Florida, health officials say
A cyclospora outbreak has sickened 50 people in Florida, with health officials warning about the risks of consuming contaminated fresh produce.
Several names floating around for next N.Y. majority leader
Current Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes from Buffalo is stepping down at the end of her term.
How climate change harms human health — and what can be done
From air pollution to wildfires, from heat waves to vector-borne diseases, climate change harms our health and causes significant stress to the healthcare system. Horizons moderator William Brangham explores what can be done to protect people from a warming world with Victor Tsao of the U.S. National Academy of Medicine and Lisa Patel of the Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health.
West Virginia Department of Health pauses cleanup at Wood County warehouse fire site
The West Virginia Department of Health has issued a temporary cease and desist order pausing cleanup efforts at the site of the fire at Peoples Cartage Warehous
Nearby business excited for Lallycooler
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — The stage is set for year two of the Lallycooler Music Festival in Sioux Falls. Here’s what people can anticipate this weekend and the impact it’s expec…
Graham Platner makes it official in Maine, submitting paperwork to leave Senate race
In his withdrawal notice, Platner said "people are desperate for change" and that's why they made him the Democratic nominee. Now, Maine Democrats have to pick someone to replace him by July 27.
Breakthroughs in RNA science
Most people first heard about mRNA during the 2020 pandemic, but this molecule that carries instructions from DNA to make proteins has been studied since the 1960s. Decades of basic
Health officials warn of potential rabies exposure in Loudoun Co., elsewhere
Health officials in Loudoun County, Virginia, are asking people who may have been exposed to a rabid cat in the South Riding area to contact their doctor as soon as possible.
NASA Volunteers Help Zooniverse Reach 1 Billion Classifications
The Zooniverse, a NASA grantee that runs the world’s largest platform for online people-powered research, has reached an extraordinary milestone: 1 billion
Dishonest telemarketers are selling fake health insurance, leaving Minnesotans in the lurch
The state Commerce Department warns a handful of bad actors are preying on vulnerable people as it issues fines against several companies.
Man beaten to death outside Las Vegas business, two suspects at large
Authorities say they are looking for two people who beat a man to death outside a Las Vegas business on Thursday.
DC ‘bottle bill': Costs, recycling and what worries a business owner
“Without a bottle bill, plastic containers are everywhere, and we have to make that trash valuable so that people redeem it,” D.C. Councilmember Brianne Nadeau said.
The Water In This 2002 Surfing Game Is Blowing People's Minds
Gnarly water Kelly Slater, most excellent dude
Xbox Sends Out Brief Statement Regarding 'Inaccurate' id Tech Reports
They say dozens of people are still working on the engine
MAGA's attack on science is even worse than it looks
In my post on America’s 250-year anniversary, I argued that respect for the individual was the “secret sauce” in the U.S.’ long-lasting preeminence among nations. But it was certainly not the only factor. There were plenty of institutional innovations that helped the U.S. stay on top — economically, militarily, and in terms of the attractiveness of its society. One of these was American science. Today we take things like the modern research university, government grants for science, public-to-private research spinoffs, etc. for granted, but a lot of that infrastructure wasn’t there before World War 2. It was either invented or scaled up massively by the U.S. government in the postwar period, led by far-sighted scientist-bureaucrats like Vannevar Bush (pictured above). If you want to read about this history, a good place to start would be Jonathan Gruber and Simon Johnson’s excellent book Jump-Starting America. Those scientific institutions didn’t exist in a vacuum, however. They were backed by the U.S. government’s abiding faith in the power of science — and, even more fundamentally, by deep popular trust in the scientific enterprise. Science gave us radar and the atom bomb in wartime, and in peacetime it gave us plastics, vaccines, cheap food, and a thousand other things that made our lives easier. Science was also the driver behind American industry — chemicals, aerospace, telecommunications, computers, electronics, and so on. We owed science our jobs, our livelihoods, our comfortable living standards, and our greatness and power as a nation. It’s little wonder that both political parties, even as they fought viciously over other issues, were steadfast in their support of science. For a long time, the only people who distrusted science were a hippie fringe on the left who disliked modernity (or thought they did, anyway), who also disliked American industry and American power, and who subscribed to an early version of degrowth environmentalism. America’s scientific enterprise is still strong, especially compared to the systems in Europe, Japan, Korea, and other developed countries. It has lost a lot of ground to China in a relative sense, but a lot of that is because of China’s incredible growth; as China has poured untold amounts of money and talent into its research labs, spending and output have overtaken the U.S. by some measures. There are a few ways in which China’s rise creates problems for American science — for example, top scientists can choose to work in China instead of in the U.S. — and of course there’s the concern that China’s technological strength will help its military to reign supreme. But overall, China’s rise in science should be good for American science, since American scientists can use Chinese discoveries for free and build on them. The much bigger problem is that the scientific enterprise America built during and after World War 2 is now being threatened with absolute decline. The biggest problem, of course, is that much of the country — the Republican half — has basically lost faith in the scientific enterprise. To what degree this loss of faith is justified is an open question, and deserves to be discussed openly. But the larger point — that the system that powered American dominance is under threat — is true either way. Most Americans still trust science, but MAGA Republicans don’t There’s a myth, popular in right-wing circles, that scientists have lost the trust of regular Americans — either due to the increasingly left-wing composition of academic departments, or to misbehavior during Covid, or to DEI-related research taking over science, etc. This also fits with a wider narrative that Americans are losing trust in all of our institutions. But it just isn’t true. Poll after poll shows that on the whole, Americans still trust scientists and want to spend more on science. For example, here’s a Pew poll from late 2025 showing that although about a fifth of Republicans did lose confidence in science in 2020, two thirds still have at least “a fair amount” of confidence: That same poll found that scientists are among America’s most trusted groups — even better trusted than the military! In fact, Americans trust scientists more than people in most other countries do. Other polls show that although Republican trust in science has dropped somewhat, Republican support for spending more on science remains very strong: A Pew poll in 2023 found the exact same thing: So when MAGA types tell you about scientists losing their credibility, or a drop in trust in science, they’re only talking about themselves. Whatever left-wing politicization of science happened during the Biden administration — and there was definitely some of that — it was not enough to make most Republicans lose faith in the scientific enterprise, or favor research cuts in order to purge unwanted ideology from the system. That doesn’t mean I think progressives should continue down the path of politicizing scientific research. They should not, and Biden made real missteps in this area. Objectivity clearly matters for public trust of science in the long term. But as of right now, there’s no crisis of trust in science, except among the smallish minority of people who are running around screaming that there’s a crisis of trust in science. But despite science’s overwhelming popularity and public trust, Trump and his administration are launching an unprecedented and devastating attack on American science — cutting funding, and forcing science projects to undergo ideological review by government commissars. Trump’s comprehensive attack on science
What you need to know about the cyclosporiasis outbreak
A foodborne parasitic infection has health officials urging people and restaurants to take special care with food safety.
Random: The Internet Is Going Crazy For This Early 2000s Activision Surfing Game
The people yearn for Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer
After Leaving the Marine Corps, She Spent $20 to Start a Side Hustle. Now Her Business Makes $3M a Month: ‘People Absolutely Loved It.’
Hannah Pollack's elevated twist on a nostalgic sweet gained fans immediately.
She Studied Ways to Make People Smarter. Then Her Grant Was Cut.
Jessica Cantlon had a grant with the U.S. Navy to explore whether people could improve spatial problem-solving skills through training. Then the program was cut.
Why people prefer 'creative' punishments
Punishments tailored to the offense itself are viewed as more humane, more appropriate, and more likely to prevent repeat bad behavior than traditional penalties, according to a new study.
With ChatGPT Atlas shutting down, here are the AI browsers people actually use
OpenAI is pulling the plug on its dedicated web browser, ChatGPT Atlas. Instead of investing in an AI browser with...
Alaska governor vetoes new limits on political donations
Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy on Thursday vetoed a bill that would have reimposed limits on the amount of money that individual people can donate to political candidates. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned Alaska’s prior limits in 2021, and the Dunleavy administration declined to appeal the decision. Alaska has been without limits on […]
Scientists’ credibility depends on audience and perceived motives
A new study identifies five audience "classes" based on people's perceptions of scientists’ credibility.
6 hidden Samsung dial codes that unlock secret features on your Galaxy phone
Every Samsung phone has secret cheat codes, and it's a shame that more people don't know about them. Type these and see what happens.
Older adults face greater risk of mental health hospitalizations during extreme heatwaves
As the US recovers from its 4 July heatwave, a new study in Nature Health warns of an impending uptick in people attending hospitals for mental health and behavioral disorders, according to the first multi-country study of heatwave-related mental health hospitalization, led by Monash University in Australia.
Why we don’t know what food is spreading the parasite sickening thousands
There’s a lag between when people consume the parasite and when symptoms appear, making it tough for those infected to remember what they ate to pinpoint the problem.
More phone brands are to disappear just like OnePlus, a popular tipster warns
Yogesh Brar doesn't name names (yet), but he wants people to guess.
Why do mosquitoes bite some people more than others?
Long before they land, mosquitoes are reading our body signals from afar. Find out if you feature high on the bloodsuckers' hit list.
What's next for immigrants with TPS status after Supreme Court ruling?
The legal status of nearly 1.3 million immigrants facing war or environmental disasters in their home countries is up in the air following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program. In a 6-3 decision, the high court ruled last month that the Homeland Security secretary’s decision to grant, extend or terminate a country’s TPS designation, which lets people from eligible countries legally live and work in the U.S. for periods
Annual Bigfork Rodeo draws thousands for 4 days of entertainment
For four days after the Fourth of July, the Bigfork Rodeo brings around 20,000 people to enjoy a display of professional entertainment.
Virginia cannabis budget language triggers legal confusion, political fallout
Virginia’s decision to revive legal cannabis sales through the state budget instead of standalone legislation has triggered several days of confusion over the commonwealth’s marijuana laws, with lawmakers, local prosecutors, Virginia State Police and legislative officials offering differing interpretations of when key provisions take effect. Much of the confusion focused on two issues: whether Virginia’s long-delayed retail cannabis market had accidentally been moved up by a year and whether existing criminal penalties for marijuana possession and distribution involving people younger than 21 were still enforceable.