A Middle Tennessee State University nursing student who will not take the COVID-19 vaccine said other people in the profession she’s pursuing are losing their jobs. This, because certain nurses also won’t allow anyone to inject them with the shot, said MTSU student Avery Garfield.
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In the wake of the bungled U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, many Americans may be wondering how the U.S. government found itself closely cooperating with, and even relying upon, an enemy with whom we were at war for 20 years.
The Taliban maintains its intention to enforce Sharia Law, harbors al-Qaeda, and includes a designated terrorist group among its organizations.
Yet the head of U.S. Central Command, General Kenneth McKenzie, praised the Taliban for their assistance with the U.S. evacuation, calling the jihadist group “actually very helpful.”
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White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki on Wednesday refused to discuss the transcript of a shocking phone conversation between Joe Biden and then-Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, even though she once called for more transparency regarding a phone call between President Trump and Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky.
During the phone call in question, Biden pressured Ghani to create the “perception” that the Taliban weren’t winning, “whether it’s true or not,” knowing that the insurgents had already taken over about half the country.
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Progressives renewed their calls to abolish the Senate filibuster and expand the Supreme Court after it did not block a Texas law restricting abortion access from going into effect.
“Republicans promised to overturn Roe v Wade, and they have,” New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wrote just after midnight Thursday, invoking the 1973 landmark Supreme Court case. “Democrats can either abolish the filibuster and expand the court, or do nothing as millions of peoples’ bodies, rights, and lives are sacrificed for far-right minority rule.”
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The total number of people diagnosed with dementia will increase by over 40% by 2030, the World Health Organization predicted on Thursday.
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that over 55 million currently live with dementia, according to a recent report. The WHO expects that number to reach 78 million by 2030 and 139 million by 2050.
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Apple is delaying the release of a software update that scans iPhones for child pornography after criticism suggested that the features violated user privacy, the tech giant announced Friday.
“Previously we announced plans for features intended to help protect children from predators who use communication tools to recruit and exploit them and to help limit the spread of Child Sexual Abuse Material,” the company said in a statement posted to its website Friday. “Based on feedback from customers, advocacy groups, researchers, and others, we have decided to take additional time over the coming months to collect input and make improvements before releasing these critically important child safety features.”
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The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on the Supreme Court’s use of the so-called “shadow docket” — a method of issuing brief late-night rulings on key cases like the Texas abortion law.
“The Supreme Court must operate with the highest regard for judicial integrity in order to earn the public’s trust,” Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin, who is also the Senate majority whip, said in a statement. “This anti-choice law is a devastating blow to Americans’ constitutional rights — and the Court allowed it to see the light of day without public deliberation or transparency.”
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The State Department would not reveal what the U.S. will do with Afghan refugees who are flagged for security reasons.
“I would rather not entertain a hypothetical,” Ned Price, a spokesperson for the State Department, said at a press briefing Thursday when asked what would happen to Afghan evacuees who fail the vetting process.
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The numbers are startling. More parents are pulling their children out of school for homeschooling this fall, prompted in large part by school mask policies and ongoing virus concerns.
The homeschooling rate in the US doubled in 2020, and tripled from its pre-pandemic level, as parents sought other options when confronted with prolonged school closures.
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European Union regulators imposed a $265 million fine on Facebook-owned messaging service WhatsApp on Thursday for failing to adequately inform consumers what it did with their data.
The fine, issued by the Data Protection Commission (DPC), related to WhatsApp’s failure to provide consumers with certain information about how it shared their personal data with other Facebook-owned companies, according to the agency’s announcement. This omission by WhatsApp violated the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the EU’s data protection and privacy law governing how tech companies collect and share user information.
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Some Virginia universities have started kicking out students who refused to get vaccinated against COVID-19 and other institutions may start following suit.
Virginia Tech disenrolled 134 students this week who did not receive the vaccine. Before that, the University of Virginia disenrolled 288 students, and William & Mary withdrew 42 students for the same reason. All three universities require students be vaccinated against COVID-19 unless they receive a medical or religious exemption.
“Of the approximately 37,000 students enrolled at Virginia Tech, 134 students were not in compliance with the COVID-19 vaccination requirement, meaning that they did not submit vaccination documentation or receive a medical or religious exemption,” a statement on Virginia Tech’s website read. “These students have been disenrolled. The university does not know whether any of these students were not planning to return for reasons unrelated to the COVID-19 vaccine requirement.”
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) announced his administration has appealed a legal ruling striking down his July executive order banning mask mandates. DeSantis initially signed the order to prevent school districts from imposing district-wide mask mandates on students.
DeSantis has previously cited the recently signed “Parental Bill of Rights” legislation ensuring parents have the right to make healthcare decisions for their children, including wearing or not wearing masks.
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Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried (D) took jabs at Congressman Charlie Crist (D-13) over his previous political affiliations and supporting pro-life policies when he was a Republican. Fried and Crist are both running to unseat Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the 2022 gubernatorial election.
On Twitter, Fried posted a YouTube clip with the added caption that she is the only candidate who has been “pro-choice” her entire life, referencing an old clip where Crist said “I am pro-life, I am pro-gun, and I am pro-family, and I am anti-tax and I always have been.”
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The Minnesota Freedom Fund has continued in their trend of bailing out criminals from the justice system by bailing out a convicted domestic assault perpetrator days before he murdered a man on an onramp onto a highway. According to tweets from Crime Watch Minneapolis, a man by the name of George Howard was bailed out of jail by the Minnesota Freedom Fund on, after being briefly imprisoned on a domestic assault charge.
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The Virginia GOP launched an ad bashing Democrat gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe for his recent fundraiser with former President Bill Clinton.
“I go back with President Clinton and Hillary to 1980,” McAuliffe says in an interview included in the ad. “We’ve vacationed together for years. We’re best friends.”
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The FBI keeps getting in hot water when it comes to political expressions against former President Donald Trump.
The latest example came when it was disclosed that one of the lead FBI agents in the investigation into an alleged plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will be precluded from testifying at trial after he used an expletive to describe Trump.
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Wisconsin Representative Bryan Steil (R-01-WI) is questioning why the Biden Administration shuttered the Trump era Contingency and Crisis Response (CCR) Bureau prior to withdrawing from Afghanistan. Steil co-wrote a letter to the Secretary of State Anthony Blinken with another Representative, saying that he believes that the decision to shut down the CCR made the Afghanistan situation worse.
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Ohio’s 88 boards of election began the process of removing inactive voters and those who have moved from the state’s voter rolls this week, Secretary of State Frank LaRose said.
The four-year process identifies voters who have not voted in an election for at least two years and those that appear on the National Change of Address database. Each of those identified would be sent a confirmation notice informing them of their inactivity and how to remain active.
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Two more teachers will join Tanner Cross’ lawsuit against the Loudoun County School Board. On Thursday, the Loudoun Circuit Court approved a motion to amend the case, which adds Loudoun County High School history teacher Monica Gill and Smart’s Mill Middle School English teacher Kim Wright to the case.
The amended complaint also shifts focus to a requirement in the new transgender policy that teachers use students preferred pronouns; the original complaint focused on the district firing Cross after he spoke out at a school board meeting.
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U.S. Representative Jody Hice (R-GA-10), running to replace Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger next year, has announced a statewide “Election Integrity Fly Around Tour” later this month. Hice has scheduled the tour for September 14 through September 16, according to an email he sent supporters this week.
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Parents in Georgia’s largest school district are suing the superintendent and school system over its mask mandate, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
Four parents are seeking an injunction against the mask mandate at Gwinnett County Public Schools (GCPS), which serves around 180,000 students, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC) reported. The requirement was implemented at the end of July when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended indoor masking for schools amid the rise of the delta variant.
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With the U.S. Supreme Court refusing to block a Texas law banning abortions at six weeks when fetal heartbeats begin, Arizona’s Republican-dominated legislature is expected to enact a similar law. Until now, federal courts had struck down several laws regulating abortion enacted in Arizona. The unusual nature of the Texas law — allowing citizens to sue in order to enforce it instead of the state — is why a 5-4 majority on SCOTUS allowed the significant intrusion into Roe v. Wade.
Cathi Herrod, president of the conservative Center for Arizona Policy and a key architect of pro-life bills in the Arizona Legislature, said Arizona should copy the successful legislation in order to avoid being struck down. “The Texas heartbeat law is a road map to what other states can do,” she told Capitol Media Services. “The Texas heartbeat law is worthy of serious consideration by the Arizona Legislature.”
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A federal judge issued an order on Friday evening that blocks Governor Bill Lee’s (R) executive order allowing parents the option to opt their children out of mask requirements in school. The order, by U.S. District Court Judge Sheryl H. Lipman, applies only to Shelby County.
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