Charlie Kirk; Emil the Moose; "Scrotox"; more diseases that can kill you; weaponized disinformation; AI at HHS.
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Knee Deep in the Hoopla
Latest Charlie Kirk updates: AP, BBC.
MAGA points fingers at ‘South Park’ after Charlie Kirk assassination. In the episode, Cartman goes to college campuses for open “debates,” like Kirk. He also adopts Kirk’s hairstyle and mannerisms. The episode culminated with the awarding of the “Charlie Kirk Award for Young Masterdebaters.” Kirk described the parody as “hilarious” in a TikTok posted Aug. 7.
3 teens wounded in shooting at suburban Denver high school, including suspected shooter.
Trump met with protests while dining out in DC; GOP calls Epstein birthday card fake: A Closer Look (Video)
FBI leaders allege in lawsuit they were unlawfully fired over political loyalty. The former acting director says a Trump administration official asked a series of questions, including “Who did you vote for?”
RFK Jr. mandates HHS to start using ChatGPT.
MAGA senator blows up Kristi Noem’s claims on delaying disaster aid. Senator Ted Budd is threatening to revolt until the Department of Homeland Security steps things up. As of June, his state was still waiting on $4.2 billion, according to a report from the governor’s office.
Supreme Court allows transgender student to use boys' restrooms at S.C. school.
Court rejects Verizon claim that selling location data without consent is legal. And it will cost them (well, us, eventually) $46.9 million.
Associated Press “World News”: The adventures of Emil the moose keep a corner of Austria on its toes.
Science is under siege from weaponized disinformation – posing a threat to human civilization.
Ah, medical science:
What is ‘Scrotox’? Doctors issue warning against rising cosmetic trend among men.
‘Kissing bug’ disease is now endemic in the U.S., researchers say. The U.S. is seeing a rise in Chagas disease, a life-threatening illness transmitted through “kissing bugs” known to bite human faces. Pets can be carriers. The disease is often fatal by the time symptoms develop.
West Nile virus cases running higher than normal, prompting health warnings.
Your own mouth bacteria could give you a heart attack, new study suggests.
No, our ancestors weren't carnivores. Fortunately, they weren’t vegan, either.
AI detects earthquake surge beneath Europe’s most dangerous volcano.
Study links frequent, severe heat waves to pollution from major fossil fuel producers. Planet-warming emissions from 180 major cement, oil and gas producers contributed significantly to 213 heat waves from 2000 to 2023.
Florida!
Florida man accused of posing as nurse using fake license.
'Get my axe and chop you': Florida woman threatens cable employee.
Florida woman stabbed man she just met online in the neck after he called her ‘retarded’ inside her home.
Keep scrolling down. Lots of interesting stuff in today’s daily features.
Quote of the Day:
The U.S. Constitution and the Bible have a lot in common. Few people have read them in their entirety; they are quoted out of context and cherry-picked; their official interpreters wear robes and issue pronouncements that sometimes benefit an entitled few or discriminate against women and minorities; and their decrees and commandments are simply ignored when they interfere with the interests of those in power.
--Kevin G. Barkes
(More KGB quotes from the KGB Quotations Database)
Today’s holidays:
Emergency Number Day, "I Want to Start My Own Business" Day, Libraries Remember Day, Make Your Bed Day, MPN Awareness Day, National Day of Service and Remembrance, National Emergency Responders Day, National Hot Cross Bun Day, National No News Is Good News Day, Patriot Day, Remember Freedom Day, and Women's Baseball Day.
Astronomy Picture of the Day from NASA.
On This Day:
2023 – The Libyan city of Derna experienced catastrophic floods after Storm Daniel caused two dams to collapse, killing over 11,300 people.
2012 – The film “The Martian” premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.
2012 – The U.S. embassy in Benghazi, Libya was attacked, resulting in four deaths.
2008 – A major Channel Tunnel fire broke out on a freight train, resulting in the closure of part of the tunnel for six months.
2007 – Russia tested the largest conventional weapon ever, the Father of All Bombs.
2001 – The September 11 attacks, a series of coordinated terrorist attacks killed 2,977 people using four aircraft hijacked by 19 members of al-Qaeda. Two aircraft crashed into the World Trade Center in New York City, a third crashed into The Pentagon in Arlington County, Virginia, and a fourth into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
1997 – NASA's Mars Global Surveyor reached Mars.
1992 – Hurricane Iniki hit the island of Kauaʻi, Hawaii, killing seven and causing $3.1 billion in economic damages.
1977 – The Atari 2600 was released in North America.
1976 – A bomb planted by a Croatian terrorist, Zvonko Bušić, was found at New York's Grand Central Terminal; one NYPD officer was killed trying to defuse it.
1973 –Chilean president Salvador Allende dies in coup.
1972 – The San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit system began passenger service.
1971 – Donny Osmond’s single “Go Away Little Girl” hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
1970 – The Ford Motor Company introduced its first North American subcompact model, the Pinto.
1967 – The Carol Burnett Show premiered on CBS.
1965 – The Beatles’ album “Help!” reached #1 on the Billboard Top LPs chart, where it remained for nine weeks.
1961 – Hurricane Carla struck the Texas coast as a Category 4 hurricane, the second strongest storm ever to hit the state.
1954 – Hurricane Edna hit New England (United States) as a Category 2 hurricane, causing significant damage and 29 deaths.
1954 – First national television broadcast of the Miss America Pageant.
1941 – Construction began on the Pentagon.
1941 – Charles Lindbergh's Des Moines speech accused the British, Jews and FDR's administration of conspiring for war with Germany.
1916 – The Quebec Bridge's central span collapsed, killing 11 men. The bridge previously collapsed completely on August 29, 1907.
1857 – 120 emigrants murdered at the Mountain Meadows Massacre.
1851 – Christiana Resistance: Escaped slaves led by William Parker fight off and kill a slave owner who, with a federal marshal and an armed party, sought to seize three of his former slaves in Christiana, Pennsylvania, thereby creating a cause célèbre between slavery proponents and abolitionists.
1814 – War of 1812: The climax of the Battle of Plattsburgh, a major United States victory in the war.
1792 – The Hope Diamond was stolen along with other French crown jewels when six men broke into the house where they were stored.
1789 – Alexander Hamilton was appointed the first United States Secretary of the Treasury.
1777 – American Revolutionary War: Battle of Brandywine: The British celebrate a major victory in Chester County, Pennsylvania.
1609 – Henry Hudson arrived on Manhattan Island and met the indigenous people living there.
9 – The Battle of the Teutoburg Forest ended: The Roman Empire suffered the greatest defeat of its history and the Rhine was established as the border between the Empire and the so-called barbarians for the next four hundred years.
(For comprehensive lists of the day’s historical events, check here, here, and here.)
Some Birthdays:
1987 – Tyler Hoechlin, American actor
1981 – Dylan Klebold, American mass murderer (died 1999)
1977 – Ludacris, American rapper and producer
1970 – Taraji P. Henson, American actress and singer
1967 – Harry Connick Jr., American singer-songwriter, pianist, actor, and talk show host
1967 – Maria Bartiromo, American financial journalist and television personality
1962 – Kristy McNichol, American actress
1961 – Virginia Madsen, American actress
1958 – Roxann Dawson, American actress and director
1956 – Tony Gilroy, American director, producer, and screenwriter
1954 – Kevin G. Barkes, American software consultant, columnist, editor and writer.
1953 – Tommy Shaw, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1950 – Amy Madigan, American actress
1942 – Lola Falana, American actress, singer, and dancer
1940 – Brian De Palma, American director, producer, and screenwriter
1939 – Charles Geschke, American businessman, co-founded Adobe Systems (died 2021)
1928 – Earl Holliman, American actor (died 2024)
1924 – Tom Landry, American football player and coach (died 2000)
1917 – Ferdinand Marcos, Filipino soldier, lawyer, and politician, 10th President of the Philippines (died 1989)
1917 – Herbert Lom, Czech-born English actor (died 2012)
1913 – Bear Bryant, American football player and coach (died 1983)
1885 – D. H. Lawrence, English novelist, poet, playwright, and critic (died 1930)
1862 – O. Henry, American short story writer (died 1910)
1816 – Carl Zeiss, German lens maker, created the Optical instrument (died 1888)
(A more complete list of today’s birthdays.)
Some Deaths:
2014 – Bob Crewe, American singer-songwriter and producer (born 1930)
2010 – Kevin McCarthy, American actor (born 1914)
2010 – Harold Gould, American actor (born 1923)
2009 – Pierre Cossette, Canadian producer and manager (born 1923)
2009 – Larry Gelbart, American director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1928)
2009 – Earle V. Wittpenn, newspaper publisher and editor (born 1924)
2004 – Fred Ebb, American songwriter (born 1928)
2003 – John Ritter, American actor (born 1948)
2002 – Kim Hunter, American actress (born 1922)
1994 – Jessica Tandy, English-American actress (born 1909)
1987 – Lorne Greene, Canadian actor (born 1915)
1973 – Salvador Allende, Chilean physician and politician, 29th President of Chile (born 1908)
1971 – Nikita Khrushchev, Russian general and politician (born 1894)
(A more complete list of today’s deaths.)
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