Two men who allegedly duped a doctor into buying an "Aladdin's lamp" for $93,000 - and even conjured up a fake genie (also known as a jinn) - have been arrested in India, an official said on Sunday.Laeek Khan approached police in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh after he realised the lamp did not have any magical powers, as described in the popular folk tale about Aladdin … [Read more...] about Indian doctor tricked into buying ‘Aladdin’s lamp’ after genie display
You have rights when you go to vote – and many people are there to help if there’s trouble at the polls
Poll workers, election observers and poll monitors are all on hand at voting places to ensure the 2020 election proceeds smoothly and safely. Macrovector/iStock via GettyImages Daniel R. Birdsong, University of Dayton Despite all the challenges to this year’s election – long lines, calls for voter intimidation, baseless claims of fraud – voting is a … [Read more...] about You have rights when you go to vote – and many people are there to help if there’s trouble at the polls
Sir Sean Connery has died aged 90
James Bond legend Sir Sean Connery has died.The Scottish star - who was the first actor to play 007 on the big screen - has passed away at the age of 90 with his family confirming that he died in his sleep while in the Bahamas.Connery's first outing as British super spy Bond was in 1962's 'Dr. No' and in total he played author Ian Fleming's character a total of seven times with … [Read more...] about Sir Sean Connery has died aged 90
Trump, Biden barrel through key states on final weekend before vote
Washington (AFP) - With Tuesday's US presidential election only days away, Donald Trump, Joe Biden and their top surrogates were barreling through the crucial states of Michigan and Pennsylvania on Saturday, digging deep as they pressed their closing arguments.Underscoring the high stakes -- and the disruptive impact of the coronavirus pandemic -- a record 90 million early … [Read more...] about Trump, Biden barrel through key states on final weekend before vote
Biden is the better choice for constructive coexistence with China
Joe Biden is more likely to entice China back into the international community instead of creating two parallel worlds as Donald Trump is doing, one led by the US and the other by China. A main foreign policy reason for preferring Biden on 3 November is that his steady personality is better suited to dealing with China’s Xi Jinping and other top officials who abhor … [Read more...] about Biden is the better choice for constructive coexistence with China
THE WOLF WHO CRIED BOY
“Literature was not born the day when a boy crying ‘wolf, wolf!’ came running out of the Neanderthal valley with a big gray wolf at his heels. Literature was born on the day when a boy came crying ‘wolf, wolf!’ and there was no wolf behind him.” - Vladimir Nabokov, Lectures on Literature, 1980 There is no wolf behind Donald Trump – no caravan of illegal immigrants … [Read more...] about THE WOLF WHO CRIED BOY
TUCKER’S LOST CONSPIRACY (Cartoon and Column)
You gotta be careful with where you put those conspiracies. They’re like car keys…or that one missing sock. Where’d it go? For me, it’s batteries. I’ll buy a pack of 20 batteries then when the remote dies, I can’t find the batteries. I go insane hunting for them until I finally give up and buy another package which also can’t be found six months later. I bet Hunter Biden’s … [Read more...] about TUCKER’S LOST CONSPIRACY (Cartoon and Column)
Anti-Murdoch petition wins record support in Australia
Sydney (AFP) - A petition demanding an inquiry into Rupert Murdoch's dominance of Australian news media has garnered a record 420,000 signatures, overtaking a previous appeal focused on climate change.The online petition was launched on October 12 by former Labor prime minister Kevin Rudd, a frequent target of newspapers controlled by Murdoch's News Corp.By Friday, the call for … [Read more...] about Anti-Murdoch petition wins record support in Australia
Protests resume in parts of Muslim world over Mohammed cartoons
Protests resumed on Friday around parts of the Muslim world as anger spread over France's handling of cartoons of Islam's prophet Mohammed deemed offensive by Muslims.Protests erupted after Friday prayers in several areas of the Middle East. In Lebanon, demonstrators clashed with police near the French ambassador's residence in Beirut."God bless our prophet," members of the … [Read more...] about Protests resume in parts of Muslim world over Mohammed cartoons
7 Tips to Recruit Top Manufacturing Talent
If you've been having trouble recruiting for roles at your manufacturing company, you're not alone. Statistics published in 2019 indicated that 89% of manufacturers polled reported an inability to fill all open positions. The research showed that retiring baby boomers and general misperceptions about manufacturing jobs were among the primary difficulties businesses … [Read more...] about 7 Tips to Recruit Top Manufacturing Talent
Do suburban women like Trump? Polls say no
Washington (AFP) - President Donald Trump is pleading with suburban American women to vote for him but with the election just four days away the polls suggest his appeal is falling on deaf ears."Can I ask you to do me a favor, suburban women? Will you please like me?" Trump said at a rally this month in Pennsylvania. "Please. Please. I saved your damn neighborhood, OK?"The … [Read more...] about Do suburban women like Trump? Polls say no
Will Bunch: Trump’s politicized Supreme Court has lost legitimacy. 2021’s Dems, do something!
We’ve just seen one of the worst weeks in the 230-year-plus history of the U.S. Supreme Court. And that is really saying something, when you think about its other low points including the 1857 Dred Scott ruling, which held Black people as inferior and denied them U.S. citizenship, or 1896’s Plessy v. Ferguson that allowed segregation, or the high court’s more recent jags that … [Read more...] about Will Bunch: Trump’s politicized Supreme Court has lost legitimacy. 2021’s Dems, do something!
Urban forests are springing up around the world as cities battle heat and pollution
Seoul, South Korea, has recently launched an urban forest project, hoping to lower city temperatures by up to 7°C. From Phoenix in the United States to Mumbai, India, and Paris, France, as cities try to combat pollution and improve air quality, urban forests are mushrooming.In South Korea, Seoul residents are increasingly faced with intense summer heat. In the summer of … [Read more...] about Urban forests are springing up around the world as cities battle heat and pollution
(UPDATE) The Protestant Church in the Netherlands to ‘Confess’ Guilt for ‘Silence,’ ‘Inaction’ Towards Jews During Holocaust
UPDATE: Five more Dutch churches have issued “an acknowledgment of guilt” for "not having done more to save Jews or protest their murder during the Holocaust.” [Thanks, Holly R.] Original Post: During World War II, while all the Dutch people suffered greatly under the Nazi boot, the plight of the 140,000 Dutch Jews was nothing short of genocidal. Some 107,000 … [Read more...] about (UPDATE) The Protestant Church in the Netherlands to ‘Confess’ Guilt for ‘Silence,’ ‘Inaction’ Towards Jews During Holocaust
Next Summer Olympics to feature world baseball championship
The game of baseball is very popular in Japan. Since Japan is hosting the next Summer Olympics (23 July to 8 August 2021), baseball will be featured among the games of the XXXII Olympiad. "We are a global sport, not just an American sport," states Riccardo Fraccari, president of the World Baseball Softball Confederation. Being that baseball teams from nations besides the … [Read more...] about Next Summer Olympics to feature world baseball championship
(UPDATED) A Back-of-the-Envelope Calculation for November 3
UPDATE: While the back-of-the-envelope calculations below were based on a total early vote (in-person + mail-in) of 85 million by November 3, Professor McDonald reports a total of 86,166,713 early votes as of 5:32 PM Eastern Time, October 30, with a little over 35 million mail ballots still outstanding. In a little kudo for my home state, Texans have already cast more … [Read more...] about (UPDATED) A Back-of-the-Envelope Calculation for November 3
Will Russia influence the American vote?
As American voters cast their ballots, they are also being targeted with foreign disinformation. Mark Makela/Getty Images Scott Jasper, Naval Postgraduate School The idea that someone recently tried to influence Americans to vote for a particular candidate by sending them threatening emails may sound outlandish – as might federal officials’ allegation … [Read more...] about Will Russia influence the American vote?
My worst moment: The time Matthew McConaughey came to set unprepared. It was not alright.
Much of Matthew McConaughey’s new memoir, “Greenlights,” is drawn from journals he’s kept over the last 35 years.With the exception of two journals documenting specific travels, this was the first time he sat down and read through them all. “I had more compassion for myself than I thought I would,” he said. “That’s part of the reason I think I dared myself to write a book: I … [Read more...] about My worst moment: The time Matthew McConaughey came to set unprepared. It was not alright.
Tsunami, Small Wave or Calm Waters
While most of the polls have Biden way ahead of Trump in the race for president, some have it fairly close. In addition, many Democrats refuse to believe the results of the polls, remembering the 2016 debacle with Hillary ahead in the polls for most of the campaign. Many Democrats are still shell-shocked from 2016 and will not accept any predictions of a Biden victory until all … [Read more...] about Tsunami, Small Wave or Calm Waters
The New York Times 2018 Op-Ed ‘Whodunnit’ Is Solved.
Remember when, in what now seems to be an eternity ago, the “infamous” Anonymous penned an explosive op-ed in the New York Times skewering Trump, calling him --among other -- unmoored, amoral, impetuous, impulsive, erratic, adversarial, petty and ineffective? In his op-ed, “I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration,” the “senior official in the Trump … [Read more...] about The New York Times 2018 Op-Ed ‘Whodunnit’ Is Solved.