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Tuesday, October 19, 2021

Wake-Up Call: Missile? What Missile?

Daily Mail 10/19/21

China's government flatly denies reports that its test flight of what appeared to be a hypersonic missile with advanced technology was, in fact, a missile. It was just a routine experimental flight of a spacecraft that could be used for peaceful purposes, the government said. According to The Financial Times, the craft circled the globe before speeding towards its target, showing a weapons capability that "caught U.S. intelligence by surprise."

➤COLIN POWELL DIES AT AGE 84: Flags are flying at half mast in Washington, D.C. today to mark the passing of General Colin Powell. The decorated Vietnam War veteran who rose to become the nation's top soldier and diplomat has died at the age of 84. Powell was the first Black person to serve in three high-profile roles: as national security adviser, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and secretary of state. Colin Luther Powell grew up in the South Bronx, the son of Jamaican immigrant parents, and joined the Army as a second lieutenant in 1958, just 10 years after the U.S. military was desegregated. He died of COVID-19 complicated by multiple myeloma and Parkinson's disease.

➤TRUMP SUES INVESTIGATIVE COMMITTEE: Former President Donald Trump has filed a lawsuit suit against a select committee investigating the January 6th attack on the Capitol in an attempt to keep records from his presidency secret. He is claiming executive privilege in an attempt to have the documents withheld from investigators, who want to know whether he or his allies encouraged the violence.

Today, the House committee is expected to vote on whether to pursue criminal contempt charges against Trump ally Steve Bannon, who has refused to comply with a subpoena to testify.

➤TRIAL IN DEATH OF AHMAUD ARBERY BEGINS: Jury selection began this week in Glynn County, Georgia, in the trial of three White men who are accused of murder in the death of Ahmaud Arbery. Arbery was out jogging in a residential neighborhood when he was allegedly hit with a truck and then shot dead. The three men were not arrested until video of the incident was made public in May 2020, weeks after the incident. Arbery was 25.


➤AMAZON HAS 150,000 JOB OPENINGS: Amazon wants to hire 150,000 temporary workers throughout the U.S. to help fulfill orders during the holiday season. That's a 50% increase over just last year. The average starting pay is $18 an hour, and the company is dangling sign-on bonuses and higher wages for some shifts in some locations. Most of the jobs involve picking, scanning, packing and loading products onto trucks for delivery.

➤GRIDLOCK OFF LOS ANGELES: About 200,000 shipping containers filled with goods are sitting off the coast of Los Angeles waiting to be offloaded. That's a record logjam, Gene Seroka, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles, told CNN. Retailers and automakers are anxiously waiting for deliveries of products for the all-important holiday season.
President Joe Biden announced last week that the port would move to a 24/7 operating schedule to try to clear the logjam.


➤LAUNDRIE LOOKALIKE AMBUSHED BY FEDERAL MARSHALS: A man who has the misfortune to resemble fugitive murder suspect Brian Laundrie was rudely awakened from a nap in his hotel room near the Appalachian Trail by armed U.S. Marshals. Severin Beckwith, of upstate New York, even has a notch on one ear like Laundrie. Beckwith had to shave his beard off to convince the marshals they had the wrong guy, after which they gave him and his girlfriend a free night's stay in a lodge with complimentary breakfast.

➤TEEN GIRLS ARE SHOWING UP TO THE DOCTOR WITH TICS, AND EXPERTS THINK TIKTOK COULD BE PLAYING A ROLE:   Here’s one thing you likely never associated TikTok with. Doctors in multiple countries are reporting a rise in teenage girls developing tics, and that anxiety, depression, and TikTok could be contributing factors. The increase started at the beginning of the pandemic and has alarmed and puzzled doctors. Several medical journals report the teen girls were watching TikTok videos of people who said they had Tourette Syndrome, which is a genetic nervous-system disorder that can cause tics which are repetitive, involuntary movements or sounds. The disorder mostly affects boys. A movement-disorders fellow in Chicago says she noticed many patients blurting out the word “beans” with a British accent, and she eventually learned that one British TikToker would blurt out the word “beans.” The experts say that what’s happening is not Tourettes, but a functional movement disorder, and also note that many of the kids who developed tics had previously been diagnosed with anxiety or depression that had been made worse during the pandemic. A recent paper by a child neurologist at Texas Children’s Hospital found that psychological disorders, which have the capacity to spread, were mostly confined to geographical locations in the past, but that social media has allowed them to spread globally. Doctors note the disorders can be treated, and suggest kids take a social media break, and parents keep an eye on the types of videos their kids are viewing. Also, if a child exhibits tics that interfere with daily life, parents should seek out specialists for treatment.

🍬EVEN NUTRITIONISTS DON’T ADVISE GIVING OUT ‘HEALTHY’ HALLOWEEN CANDY, HERE’S WHY:  Halloween and candy just go together, there’s no denying it– but should you consider handing out healthier candy to trick-or-treaters? Registered Nutritionist Amanda Frankeny says you should beware of certain buzzwords on products such as sugar-free, keto, low-carb, or superfood, as they “don’t necessarily make sweets healthier.” Frankeny adds, “While these labels sound nutritious at face value, too much candy of any type can lead to cavities and poor nutrition.” She also notes that you want your kids to have a good relationship with food in general, so, “You don’t want to deprive your little ones of the real deal, or else they may go scrounging around for it, without your supervision and eat large quantities of that candy.” And even more importantly, she says, “People who celebrate eating candy rather than thinking of it as a guilty pleasure are less likely to have body image issues or worry about overdoing it.”


🏀THE NBA SEASON BEGINS: The 75th NBA Season begins tonight with a full schedule of 82 games and a return to near-normal ahead. The Brooklyn Nets will be in Wisconsin to play the Milwaukee Bucks at 7:30 pm ET. The Golden State Warriors play the Los Angeles Lakers in L.A. at 10 pm ET.

Speaking of the Lakers, the team has claimed Avery Bradley off a waiver from the Golden State Warriors. Bradley struggled last season but, CBS Sports notes, he thrived as a shooter and defender for the Lakers on their 2019-2020 championship team.





🏈TENNESSEE FINED FOR ROWDY FANS' BEHAVIOR: The University of Tennessee has been fined $250,000 for the bad behavior of Volunteers fans during a game over the weekend. Rowdy fans peppered the field with trash towards the end of a game against Ole Miss.The Southeastern Conference also demanded that the university try to identify the worst offenders and bar them from sports events for the rest of the school year.

➤VITALE FACES CANCER TREATMENT: Dick Vitale, ESPN's long-time college basketball announcer, revealed yesterday that he has been diagnosed with lymphoma and is facing six months of chemotherapy treatment. Now 82, Vitale said he expects to continue his on-air duties throughout his treatment.

🏒DRUG OVERDOSE KILLED JIMMY HAYES: Former NHL player Jimmy Hayes died of an overdose of fentanyl and cocaine, according to a Massachusetts medical examiner. Hayes was 31. He won a national championship with Boston College and later played for the Chicago Blackhawks, Florida Panthers, Boston Bruins and New Jersey Devils. His father, Kevin Hayes, told The Boston Globe that his son started taking painkillers to relieve injuries incurred in games.

🏈WASHINGTON STATE COACH FIRED FOR VACCINE REFUSAL: Washington State head football coach Nick Rolovich has been fired with cause after refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine in accordance with a mandate for all state employees. Rolovich applied for a religious exemption but was refused.
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