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Strait of Hormuz remains 'de facto closed', no matter what the US says: Expert
Lars Jensen, CEO of Vespucci Maritime, says the economics and legalities of President Trump's proposed toll on the Strait of Hormuz made his U-turn on this inevitable. He also explains why he believes the Strait remains de fact closed despite U.S. assertions on the contrary, noting that freight rates and insurance premiums have surged on Trump's latest comments.
Kendrick Perkins’ bold Anthony Edwards statement causes a stir
The Minnesota Timberwolves’ trade for LaMelo Ball turned them into championship contenders in some fans and analysts’ eyes. Others believe the star point guard will bring out the best in Anthony Edwards, helping him win the NBA‘s highest individual award.…
Vikings' offense earns praise for improvements from Bleacher Report
The Vikings' offense needs to be better in 2026 and Bleacher Report believes they can be.
2026 FIFA World Cup Schedule: Bracket, matches, dates, locations, group tables, results, how to watch
The full schedule with dates, times and stadiums for all 104 games at the 2026 World Cup.
Fire code dispute pits Bear Lake business against fire district
ST. CHARLES – An Idaho watercraft rental company near Bear Lake is engaged in ongoing legal proceedings with the area’s fire district over what fueling practices are allowed under fire code. The dispute is between North Beach Rentals, which operates in both Idaho and Utah, and the Bear Lake County Fire District. After negotiations between […]
Fixing America’s polarization with proportional representation
Presidentialism plus single-member districts is a bad combination that incentivizes leaders to consolidate power by fueling division.
Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi Criticizes Protect College Sports Act In Letter To Sen. John Fetterman
Multiple Big Ten and SEC schools have opposed the Save College Sports Act in the past week.
Browns young cornerstone already in elite company after rookie season
He may only be entering his second season in the NFL, but Browns linebacker Carson Schwesinger already finds himself in elite conversations
Watch Eternal Founder Goyal Bets on Health Tech, Aerospace
India's quick commerce billionaire Deepinder Goyal is planning to launch his first product after stepping back from the empire he led for 18 years. Goyal says Temple, a wearable device worn on the side of the forehead, will retail for about one-thousand U-S dollars. The founder of Eternal Limited, which counts quick delivery apps Zomato and Blinkit under its umbrella, spoke with Bloomberg's Haslinda Amin in an exclusive interview at his private residence in New Delhi.
Going to museums, movies, and theater may help your body stay younger
Going to the cinema, visiting museums, or attending concerts may do more than entertain. Researchers found that older adults who regularly participated in cultural activities tended to have bodies that functioned like those of people about three years younger. They believe stronger social ties, better mental health, and healthier habits could help explain the link, although more research is needed to determine whether cultural activities directly slow aging.
Matt Damon recalls George Clooney stealing his identify to prank Amy Poehler and Tina Fey: ‘I was so bewildered’
Matt Damon recalls feeling ‘bewildered’ after getting a fruit basket from Amy Poehler and Tina Fey — but after one phone call, he realized it was all part of a prank orchestrated by George Clooney.
How Trash Rangers went from local startup to regional player
When Jake Poche launched Trash Rangers in 2018, the idea was simple: reliable service from a company that would actually show up when it said it would. Today, that same promise has carried the business from a residential garbage service in Ascension Parish into a regional waste provider that stretches across the Capital Region — […]
Samsung's new foldables will debut new Flex Titanium display on July 22
Ahead of Galaxy Unpacked, Samsung is pulling back the curtains on a new foldable phone feature that will debut at the event.
One year since Petersburg flooding, businesses still feeling impacts
Today marks one year since severe storms swept through central Virginia — leaving parts of Petersburg underwater. Families were displaced, and businesses on Bank Street were left to clean up the me…
Dozens of New York cooling towers test positive for Legionnaires’ bacteria as outbreak reaches 60 cases
New York City is managing a community cluster of Legionnaires’ disease cases on the Upper East Side that officials believe is tied to bacteria found in cooling towers. Towers on 76 buildings on the Upper East Side have tested positive for the bacteria, the city’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene said Tuesday.
Taylor Riggs: This is an economy that's open for business
'The Big Money Show' co-host Taylor Riggs reports on major banks like JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo delivering blowout profits in Q2, indicating a resilient economy and strong consumer spending.
Preliminary ACAP test scores show improving science, stagnant ELA and math scores
The Alabama State Board of Education is sharing preliminary data on spring 2026 test scores for the Alabama Comprehensive Assessment Program (ACAP).
Preliminary ACAP test scores show improving science, stagnant ELA and math scores
The Alabama State Board of Education is sharing preliminary data on spring 2026 test scores for the Alabama Comprehensive Assessment Program (ACAP).
AI Is Quietly Fueling America’s Small-Business Boom
New U.S. business applications hit 5.6 million in 2025 and have risen 24% since ChatGPT launched, Citadel Securities reported in a July research note,
New York becomes first state to freeze new AI data centers in move critics warn could drive away jobs
Dem Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the nation's first statewide moratorium on new AI data centers while officials develop new environmental standards.
Fort Pierre couple’s love of math, science, engineering still inspiring South Dakota youth
For Gary and Connie Grittner, investing in young people has always been about creating opportunities that can change the course of a life. Gary knows this firsthand. As a young teen, he attended a summer science camp that sparked his own interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). That experience led him to pursue his doctorate in chemistry and reinforced his belief that exposing students to STEM at an early age can shape their futures. [ ](https://www.thedakotascout.com/p/alleged-cryptocurrency-conman-released) [ Alleged cryptocurrency conman released pending fraud trial ](https://www.thedakotascout.com/p/alleged-cryptocurrency-conman-released) Jonathan Ellis · 11:03 AM [ Read full story ](https://www.thedakotascout.com/p/alleged-cryptocurrency-conman-released)
SkyFall
NASA's SkyFall mission to Mars, building on the success of the Ingenuity helicopter, will send a trio of aircraft to survey the Red Planet, uncover clues about its climate history, scout areas inaccessible to rovers, and prepare for human explorers.
Health Brief: The $10M contraceptive mess
Plus: The Trump administration deepens its push into psychedelic medicine.
From NBA Summer League back to college basketball? NCAA coaches bracing for more roster chaos
As the NCAA's new age-based eligibility rule comes under legal attacks, some agents see a pathway from the NBA back to college
47 revelatory hours with Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced
To review this month’s supposed remake of 2013’s Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, I must first correct the record. Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced isn’t a game about pirates (and assassins) in the 18th century Caribbean. Sure, sure, that’s what the trailers would have you believe. They’ve go their clips of Edward Kenway swinging his swords and steering his pirate ship into cannon-blasting combat against British frigates. Is Resynced truly a pirate game? Of the 47 hours I spent playing Resynced over the past few weeks, I will admit I spent maybe 44 (?) of them collecting plunder with Blackbeard, drinking rum with Anne Bonny and debating the pros and cons of the lawless pirate-run settlement Nassau with Benjamin Hornigold. I may in fact have spent dozens of hours sailing to remote islands, reading treasure maps, opening messages left in bottles, sinking the odd Man o’ War with a well-timed broadside, collecting sea shanties for my crew, befriending a pet monkey, and hunting whales. I am nevertheless neither so Gullible nor so Narrow-Minded as to call the magnificent Resynced a “pirate remake.” Oh no. Forget any reviews of Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced you may have read. Forget what you yourself may have played, if you’ve spent any time with the game since its launch. What Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is really about I’m here to give you the scoop (spoilers for Resynced’s Animus menu lore, which many players are probably not going to see): Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced, the new game whose development was led by Ubisoft Singapore, is set in the year 2096. It’s about a societal split, about revolution, about an old Assassin’s Creed adventure repurposed in the series’ distant future as propaganda or samizdat. It’s about the overheated future of 2096, essentially conquered by the series’ well-established nefarious Templar-run company Abstergo. (In this future, Abstergo is, among other things, remaking a 2013 pirate movie called Devils of the Caribbean, but this time in VR. The VR version will be backed by a marketing plan that involves AI influencers, a 10,000-avatar “metaverse premiere event” and that manufacturing of memes aimed at “50 million VR nodes.” See what I mean about Abstergo being evil?) Resynced is about a late 21st-century population mollified by the widespread use of Abstergo’s Animus devices which let people experience the lives of historical figures culled from “genetic memories.” It’s about an insurgent faction of Assassins. And it’s about a plan to wake the population into revolutionary fervor by showing them the memories of 18th century pirate Edward Kenway, who—as depicted in the original Black Flag and again in Resynced—gradually comes to an understanding about the Assassins of his day and their centuries old fight for freedom. Resynced is also about an AI developed within the late 21st-century Animus, called Ego. It has found a way to alter genetic memories, to create and show Animus users false ones. The game is about Ego’s efforts to tell the people experiencing Edward Kenway’s memories that Kenway was wrong, that fighting against order is folly, that we should crave a world where “compliance is rewarded with power.” Who are we in this game? We’re an unnamed Animus user in 2096 who experiences Kenway’s journey virtually. At four moments during Kenway’s exploits in the Caribbean our virtual jaunt can be interrupted for 10-15 minutes, as we explore Animus “rifts” where Ego explicitly tries to tell us how wrong Kenway was. None of this is what 2013’s Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag was about, of course. That was a different game, even if you also spent dozens of hours pirating as Kenway in that game, across missions and a map that’s been faithfully reintroduced and rebuilt for Resynced. The 2013 Black Flag was about you playing as an unnamed researcher newly hired in 2013 by Abstergo Entertainment, the video game development wing of the Templars’ evil-corp. In that game, you were assigned to use the Animus to dive into the genetic memories of Desmond Miles, a man who died in Assassin’s Creed III and who was descended from a long line of Assassins (and at least one Templar) whose adventures were featured across the prior AC games. In 2013’s Black Flag, your mission was to plumb the Edward Kenway experience for material that Abstergo could use in productions such as the motion picture Devils of the Caribbean, though the Templars had some ulterior motives for the assignment. Resynced is therefore not a remake of 2013’s Black Flag. It’s a sequel. It is a new game about a new exploration of Edward Kenway’s pirate/assassin journey, set 83 years after the framing sequences of the original game. Resynced provides a new narrative framework that, thanks to the concept of an AI that wants to alter historical memories, arrives with creative justification to tweak a now-classic 13-year old game. That makes Resynced, already a hot seller, a tantalizing hint of where Ubisoft could go with a line of Assassin’s Creed remakes. They could remake the first game, the Ezio games, even the recent ones set in ancient Egypt and Greece. And for each, they could not just modernize the graphics and controls but expand and alter their sequences of events to use them as reference points for a conflict set in the late 21st century, as rival factions try to weaponize historical memories. Game File is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, even when that work consists of ravings about Assassin’s Creed’s modern day plot, please consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe A story most players will probably miss If you didn’t know any of this, I’m not surprised. If you played the game and still didn’t catch it, I’m not a bit shocked. If Ubisoft has no plans to do more of this, I won’t fall down. Almost all of what I’ve described is optional and missable in Black Flag Resynced. I nearly missed it myself, as I planned for a breezy playthrough of an old Assassin’s Creed favorite. Instead, I found myself in a 40+ hour hunt for the “real” story, buried deeper in Resynced than any gold-filled chest. The story of 2096 is Resynced’s meta-story, told in two remote pockets of the game: 1) four optional playable “rifts” that players may find as they proceed through Resynced’s pirate fantasy , 2) in dozens of text files tucked three menus deep in the game’s barely-interactive Animus hub. Assassin’s Creed games have almost always had a meta-story about people in the 21st century (usually matching the game’s release year) and their connections to the main history portions you play. Those meta-stories have always been squeezed into the margins, though seldom as severely and as, uh, graphiaclly simple, as in recent games. Back in 2013, the modern-day exploits of you as an Abstergo Entertainment employee were prominent. They were portrayed via first-person portions that occasionally interrupted the third-person Kenway experience and could be explored for hours, complete with their own missions, side quests and puzzles. Resynced’s 2096 story—of Assassin “Watchers” vs. Abstergo/Tempar goons, of rogue AIs, of panicking scientists, of a woman wondering why her Animus-addicted husband is muttering about Mary Read (“What does he mean by Assassins?”), of a fight for the population’s hearts and minds via varying interpretations of Edward Kenway’s life choices—is mostly told through unlockable text files. The files are interesting. Offered via diary entries, intercepted chats and news reports, they present varied perspectives of a world in crisis. One set works as a narrative puzzle as it reveals the Rashomonic interpretations of a massacre, or was that a successful Assassin hit? Another favorite reveals the rising bitterness of a person who, through Edward Kenway’s journey, now shakes at the ignored evil around him. One surmises that Ubisoft is averse to putting the Assassin’s Creed’s meta-story in the way of more marketable pirate playgrounds and ninja/samurai epics. Instead, we get a better-than-nothing text-in-menus approach introduced in 2025’s Assassin’s Creed Shadows. In Shadows, players unlocked the meta-story text files largely via time-gated missions that called on the user to kill X number of enemy type Y, clear three enemy castles, re-win a three-phase fighting tournament, and other grinds. Time restrictions on accessing these missions and unlocking the files meant it could take players months to access the full story in-game. But even in the most hardcore Assassin’s Creed hangouts, the fanbase instead seemed to throw up their hands rather than grind to keep up. In Resynced, Ubisoft has shown some mercy, diminishing the amount of new text files that are tied to timed grinds. Now, most of the text-based 2096 lore are associated with “data file” collectibles that players can find in the world. That includes a batch of written entries that explain a historical link between the feudal Japan era in Shadows and the piracy adventures in Black Flag. Players who explore a lot will find dozens of data files, though the game does not appear to offer any in-game tracker for finding each one. You just need to keep looking for them. As of this writing, I have most of them, but not all. I can’t find any full guide for them online. And even Ubisoft’s optional $5 microtransaction that reveals lots of items in-game does not appear to reveal the locations of the text files (at least the official description omits them from its collectibles list). That’s not a huge bother, because tracking the data files down compelled me to re-explore the waves and islands of Black Flag. That was a thoroughly pleasant task to do for the first time in a dozen years. I expect many players, though, will be content to wait for the files to be reproduced in an online AC wiki somewhere, the easier to read on a web page. It may not seem enticing to play a video game in order to gradually unlock pages of text to read. Why not, you may ask, just read a book, where they put the pages in order? For one, they’ve not tucked this latest installment of Assassin’s Creed’s meta saga in a book. I also enjoy the unordered delivery, the dawning comprehension of a story about 2096’s desperate people and questionable tech, which I glimpsed first at its middle, then the end, then the front, then other moments in between1. I am also enamored with the idea of the Assassin’s Creed games I’ve previously played, including Black Flag, being repurposed for an information war. The ideas in Resynced’s meta-story, which builds off characters and ideas in Shadows’ chunks of text, are strong. The potential of where they could go with it is exciting. As for the pirate stuff? Looks great, controls pretty well, is fun to play and oh so speedy in terms of how much of a good time you can have with each sit-down. It never gets old to chase a new shanty page across a rooftop, bombard a fort with upgraded mortars or use a diving bell to explore sunken wrecks (hats off to the team at Ubisoft Barcelona that worked on the underwater portions in Resynced; that team is now facing layoffs, such is the misery of modern gaming and oft-troubled Ubisoft). New pirate missions in Resynced involving new ally characters are brief, dramatic and add more to Edward’s story, even if the gameplay perks they provide barely enhance the gameplay. A new denouement for high-class pirate Stede Bonnet is affecting; a new hunt for Blackbeard’s treasure is a welcome extra moment. A new epilogue to hunt down a pirate killer, on the other hand, over-complicates Kenway’s character. The ending credits remain my favorite of any game I’ve ever played. Black Flag provides great source material. The revisit is well-made and a great sign of what could be. It is offered in a different wrapper that hints at an opportunity for more interesting remakes to come, should Ubisoft choose to pursue such treasures—and as we brace to resist or comply with an Abstergo future. 1 The messages that Edward Kenway finds in bottles tell another out-of-order story, one about a man reckoning with the strange memories and voices he’s heard in his head since he was a boy. That tale was also in the 2013 game and develops into one of Black Flag’s most compelling character arcs. In Resynced, it has lost its climax, because the bottle story previously paid off in the halls of the first-person Abstergo Entertainment, which is exclusive to the older game. An altered resolution, written by the 2013 game’s lead writer is fine, doesn’t invalidate the 2013 version, but makes for an inferior final note.
Kylian Mbappé Misses The Final, But He Is Already A World Cup Legend
Despite coming up just short in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Kylian Mbappé has compiled a World Cup résumé that is simply unbelievable.
IBM shares plunge as AI spending boom disrupts business
Shares in IBM plunged 24 percent on Tuesday after the US tech giant released disappointing preliminary second-quarter results, blaming a shift in spending by customers due to expected higher prices for memory chips and other AI-related infrastructure.A global rush by tech companies to build out artificial intelligence infrastructure has sent demand for servers, memory chips and storage soaring, driving up prices and creating supply shortages across the industry.
At a health clinic built ‘for women,’ patients say their pregnancies went undetected
Tia, the $100 million venture-backed healthcare company, faces sharp criticism from dozens of patients for failing to deliver on its promise of comprehensive and compassionate care.
Major Montana healthcare organizations exploring partnership
St. Peter's Health and Billings Clinic-Logan Health announced Tuesday that they are exploring ways to partner that they believe will strengthen and expand local healthcare services.
Majority of Fort Worth Council supports data center pause. Will it happen?
The majority of Fort Worth City Council wants a temporary moratorium on data centers. A supermajority is needed. This comes after the Fort Worth Zoning Commission voted not to recommend new rules for data centers within the city. Lone Star Politics speaks with Councilwoman Elizabeth Beck, one of the leaders of the effort.
After Lindsey Graham's death, sister joins long list of relatives who replaced late family members in Congress
From Julia Letlow to Adelita Grijalva, family succession in Congress has a long history that now includes Lindsey Graham's sister in the Senate.
SGMC Health Foundation Receives Gift for Joyce Aigen Labor and Delivery Unit
The SGMC Health Foundation announces the naming of the Joyce Aigen Labor and Delivery Unit at SGMC Health, honoring Ms. Joyce Aigen and her lasting impact on family and community.
Congratulations to the 2026 American Political Science Association (APSA) Award Winners -
The American Political Science Association (APSA) is delighted to announce the winners of the 2026 APSA Awards! APSA recognizes and honors the work of various scholars who have made outstanding contributions to political science research, [...]
Congratulations to the 2026 American Political Science Association (APSA) Award Winners -
The American Political Science Association (APSA) is delighted to announce the winners of the 2026 APSA Awards! APSA recognizes and honors the work of various scholars who have made outstanding contributions to political science research, [...]
James Cook Highlights "New Energy" In Buffalo Bills Locker Room
As Joe Brady takes the reins, star running back James Cook details the revitalized atmosphere fueling Buffalo's high-stakes pursuit of a Super Bowl title following major coaching changes.
SGMC Health Recognized For Sustained Excellence in Cardiac Care
For the twelfth consecutive year, SGMC Health has received the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines® Resuscitation Gold quality achievement award. The recognition honors hospitals that consistently follow evidence-based guidelines to improve outcomes for patients who experience in-hospital cardiac arrest.
Akin, an Elite Global Law Firm
Akin labor & employment and complex commercial litigation partner Laura Smolowe has been named to the Los Angeles Business Journal's 2026 Leaders of Influence: Litigators & Trial Attorneys list. The…
Xbox Helix May Only Sell 2 Million Consoles In Its Launch Year, Says Analyst
Microsoft has given out perilously few details about Xbox’s Project Helix, its next-generation console which will arrive on the back of a truly dismal period for the brand.
Rory Feek's youngest daughter airlifted to hospital after life-threatening health scare
Rory Feek describes the terrifying moment his youngest daughter Indiana collapsed, leading to a helicopter airlift and emergency heart surgery.
Utah Helicopter Flights Test NASA’s DAVINCI Mission to Venus
To prepare their spacecraft for Venus, NASA's DAVINCI scientists traveled to the most Venus-like place on Earth.
What's happening in entertainment headlines
Christina "Ms. Basketball" Granville has the latest on Angelina and Brad Pitt's kids, plus Kim Kardashian makes it social media official?
Here’s what health experts believe could be linked to ‘explosive diarrhea’ outbreak
Health experts believe they may have found a source of the cyclosporiasis outbreak.
Here’s what health experts believe could be linked to ‘explosive diarrhea’ outbreak
Health experts believe they may have found a source of the cyclosporiasis outbreak.
Here’s what health experts believe could be linked to ‘explosive diarrhea’ outbreak
Health experts believe they may have found a source of the cyclosporiasis outbreak.
Health system leaders discuss care delivery, workforce and technology at 2026 AHA Leadership Summit
Following an introduction from Michelle Hood, AHA executive vice president and COO, moderator Chris DeRienzo, M.D., AHA senior vice president and chief physician executive, led a panel discussion July 14 at the 2026 AHA Leadership Summit with Betty Chu, M.D., senior vice president and chief medical officer of Advocate Health; Christine Donohue-Henry, M.D., chief population health officer of ChristianaCare; and Bill Gassen, president and CEO of Sanford Health, and AHA chair-elect.
Atlanta Dream and Emory Healthcare Announce Unique Collaboration to Advance Women's Health, Both On and Off the Court
Multi-year partnership will provide world-class athlete care, expand access to women's health resources, and use the power of sport to improve health outcomes for women and girls across Georgia ATLANTA (July 14, 2026) – The Atlanta Dream today announced a multi-year partnership with Emory Healthcare, naming Emory Healthcare the Official Team Healthcare Provider and Official Sports Medicine Provider of the Atlanta Dream. Rooted in a shared commitment to advancing women's health, the collaboration will deliver elite athlete care while expanding access to trusted health education and wellness resources throughout the community. A New Model for Women's Health The Atlanta Dream and Emory Healthcare believe sports can become one […]
College students reveal political ignorance on Trump, Iran and socialism
Fox News’ Johnny Belisario questions college students on the Jersey Shore about current events. Students struggle to identify recent Trump actions, describe the situation in Iran or explain political midterms and socialism.
Vanderbilt Health statement about its ongoing commitment to patients and families of Williamson County
Vanderbilt Health has been proud to partner with Williamson Health for more than a decade in delivering a wide variety of adult and pediatric services and in the immediate term we look forward to continuing our current joint operations, including our pediatric ED and inpatient services, as conversations with Williamson Health evolve.
Netflix's 'The Whisper Man' trailer is every parent's worst nightmare
Adam Scott and Robert DeNiro team up to search for a missing child.
AJ Dybantsa Adds Undeniable Offensive Touch to Washington Wizards
AJ Dybantsa's explosive scoring and elite gravity have redefined the Washington Wizards ceiling. By living at the stripe and punishing double-teams, Dybantsa flashes elite potential.
Xbox Project Helix Vs. PS6 - Data Firm Reveals Its Forecasted Sales Figures For Each
But also warns that the outcome "could look very different"
IBM plunges on preliminary Q2 miss, cites weakness in software, infrastructure businesses
CNBC’s Carl Quintanilla, Jim Cramer and David Faber discuss the news of the day.
Netflix Docuseries Reveals Extent of Bucs’ Mayfield's Injuries Last Season
From sprained ligaments to an injured shoulder, behind-the-scenes footage uncovers the grueling physical toll Baker Mayfield endured while starting every game during Tampa Bay’s turbulent 2025 campaign.
IBM forecasts preliminary Q2 revenue below estimates as spending shifts to AI
IBM's preliminary second-quarter revenue forecast came below Wall Street estimate on Tuesday, as customers prioritized spending on AI infrastructure, including servers, storage and memory purchases, sending its shares slumping 17% in premarket trading.
Can network sharing rescue the 6G business case?
Telcos spend heavily to eliminate costs yet cling to facilities-based competition. Ahead of 6G, embracing network sharing may be a survival move.
US Small-Business Optimism Rises by Most in More Than a Year
An index of US small business optimism rose in June by the most in more than a year as lower oil prices offered firms some relief.
Amy Poehler and Will Ferrell unpacking his first jobs is a fun time
Will Ferrell's reason for leaving a Disneyland job? "Tryout with the Dallas Cowboys."
Top of the Morning, July 14, 2026
To complement Meadowbrook Park’s “Beauty" in Urbana, Andy White has delivered “Grace” to Mattis Park in Champaign.
Is 'Backrooms' streaming? How to watch the A24 horror at home.
Enter the liminal space from your couch starting July 14.
Business declares war on Pentagon stock buyback, dividend restrictions moving in Senate
The provision was pushed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and was included in the National Defense Authorization Act on a bipartisan basis.
Want to open a business in downtown New Orleans? A new program is offering cash to help.
Strip clubs, smoke shops, massage parlors and psychics are ineligible.
AI data center boom meets rural reality in Edgecombe County
This low-wealth county is facing economic promises and residents’ concerns over fossil‑fuel power, water use and rising utility bills.
CJ McCollum Shares Honest Thoughts on Knicks Winning NBA Championship
The Hawks guard credits the Knicks for figuring things out during their title run, but believes Atlanta proved it belongs among the East's best.
Fans of the Arctic
Sediment eroded from ice-capped mountains splays out across a broad river valley on Russia’s Severny Island.
Nuggets Receive New LeBron James Reality Check From Rival Insider
A rival NBA insider delivered a sobering update on the Nuggets' pursuit of LeBron James as Denver continues to chase the four-time MVP. The post Nuggets Receive New LeBron James Reality Check From Rival Insider appeared first on HEAVY.
This dinosaur fossil captures the final moments of a T. rex attack
A fossilized Edmontosaurus skull with a Tyrannosaurus tooth still embedded in its face has given scientists rare evidence of a dramatic predator-prey encounter. The discovery suggests the giant carnivore delivered an incredibly powerful face-to-face bite, offering new clues about how Tyrannosaurus hunted.
World Cup continues to delight us
When the World Cup rolls around every four years, I settle in. Greece didn’t qualify and I always had my doubts about the U.S. squad, so I quickly adopted Cape Verde as my team. I wasn’t alone, which is why it was impossible for me to fully get on the bandwagon and buy their jersey. […]
The policy gaps in behavioral health coverage — and what it’ll take to close them, per 1 exec
Nearly four years after the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline launched, states, payers and county systems still define behavioral health crisis care inconsistently, and Medicare offers limited coverage for community-based crisis stabilization services — leaving safety-net funding, Medicaid, federal block grants, and state and local dollars to carry the cost for nearly 200 million Americans. […]
Lowcountry trooper, business owner creating teen outreach event
Higgins believes a connection between adults, specifically law enforcement and teens is the way to help get them on the right path. That's why he, through the Police Activity League, is creating the 3...
Michigan health officials reveal potential source for cyclosporiasis outbreak
With cases of a parasitic infection that causes "explosive diarrhea" climbing into the thousands in Michigan, health officials believe they have the beginnings of a potential source for the outbreak.
Empire Towers shutdown leaves Glen Burnie businesses in limbo
The lack of information has residents, small business owners, their employees' clients and customers feeling unseen, frustrated, confused and worried.
Woodford Believes Sports Entertainment Gaming Global Corporation (Nasdaq:SEGG) 10-K Exposes Unexplained Borrowing, 1,145% Dilution and a Deep Corporate Crisis
SEGG acknowledges the Woodford agreements, security rights and LCIA arbitration, but does not explain how later borrowing, secured financing and share issuance complied with those protections
Island business owners 'forced to plan around' unreliable postal service
Islanders face high postal costs and inconsistent services, according to the watchdog Consumer Scotland.
‘Off Campus’ creator reacts to $80K pay disparity claim between leads Ella Bright and Belmont Cameli: ‘Check your sources’
‘Off Campus’ creator Louisa Levy responded to a claim a podcast made about pay disparities between lead actors Ella Bright and Belmont Cameli: ‘These numbers are far from correct.’
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
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