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☆ 'Fait accompli': Inside Democratic lawmakers' paralysis over Biden
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-10 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

One by one, Democratic members of Congress began to stream out of the Democratic National Committee's headquarters on Tuesday morning. House Democrats had convened to discuss Biden's future. The number of Democratic lawmakers publicly calling for Biden to withdraw remains in the single digits. Rep. Summer Lee wears headphones as she departs House Democrats' meeting at the DNC on Tuesday. On Tuesday afternoon, hours after House Democrats' DNC meeting, Rep. Mikie Sherill of New Jersey became the seventh to call for Biden to step down.

Persons: Steve Cohen, Tennessee, We're, Summer Lee, Mike Quigley of, Biden, Adam Schiff of, Joe Biden's, Mike Quigley, Bryan Metzger, he's, John McDonnell, He's, —, Greg Landsman, Ohio, Landsman, Dean Phillips, Phillips, Mike Mansfield, Lyndon B, they're, it's, Chuck Schumer, Patty Murray, Maria Cantwell, Schumer, Alex Wong, Rachel Scott, Scott, I've, Joe, CNN's Manu Raju, Murray, Jon Tester, Sherrod Brown of, Michael Bennet of, Bennet, Sen, Amy Klobuchar, Tom Williams, Kamala Harris, Mikie, Democrats aren't, Nancy Pelosi, It's, Tim Kaine, Virginia, Kaine, I'm Organizations: Service, Democratic, Democratic National, Democrats, DNC, Capitol, Capitol ., Democrat, Congressional Black Caucus, AP, House Democrat, Biden, White, NATO, Trump, Montana, Civil, Republican, CNN, Getty, Democratic Party, Monday, MSNBC Locations: Pennsylvania, Mike Quigley of Illinois, Adam Schiff of California, Washington ,, Minnesota, Ohio, Sens, Washington, Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Michael Bennet of Colorado, New Jersey, Richmond

While she is not a member of the LGBTQ+ community, Gamblin said, she is an ally. Aldrich had expressed an open hatred for the LGBTQ+ community and had indicated an interest in mass shootings before, the document said. Some patrons hid or played dead as Aldrich moved though the club, shooting indiscriminately. Anderson Lee Aldrich, center, sits during a court appearance in Colorado Springs in November 2022. The shooter agreed in January to plead guilty to federal charges stemming from the Club Q shooting.

Persons: Anderson Lee, Aldrich, Charlotte Sweeney, Sweeney, ”, “, ” Ashtin Gamblin, Gamblin, Daniel Aston, Derrick Rump, Ashley Paugh, Kelly Loving, Raymond Green Vance, Aldrich –, Stephanie Clark, Paugh’s, ” Clark, ” Wyatt Kent, ” Kent, ” Aldrich, Anderson Lee Aldrich, Anderson Lee Aldrich’s Organizations: Denver CNN, Prosecutors, US Department of Justice, Pride, Q, Justice Department, Court, Colorado Springs, CNN Locations: Colorado, Wyoming, Colorado Springs, El Paso County, Orlando , Florida, Aurora

☆ Gen Zers are starting to tease Gen Alpha tweens, saying they have a 'blue light stare'
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-12 | by ( Lindsay Dodgson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

But Gen Z has a new target: Gen Alpha. Zoomers are starting to tease Gen Alpha tweens, saying they are stunted when it comes to socializing because of what they say is their addiction to screens. Nicholas Drake, a content creator, described the blue light stare as a "nonchalant, just unbothered look on their face." A TikToker called Hannah said she was recently served by a "Gen Alpha kid" and that the "blue light stare is so real." Terms such as "blue light stare," Varbanova said, "makes people feel more in control."

Persons: —, boomers, Gen Z, Alpha, Gen Alpha tweens, They've, Gen Alpha, Nicholas Drake, They're, Zers, Katya Varbanova, Lyndsey, Hannah, Flora Wells, Brenda Christensen, Christensen, Wells, Gen, Varbanova Organizations: Service, Business, Stellar Public, Inc, Alpha Locations: millennials

☆ Idaho Man in ‘Doomsday’ Killings Is Sentenced to Death
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-01 | by ( Christine Hauser | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

An Idaho judge on Saturday sentenced a man to death, two days after he was found guilty of first-degree murder and other charges in the 2019 killings of his first wife and two of his current wife’s children, capping a case that drew scrutiny because of the couple’s “doomsday” religious beliefs. The decision came after jurors took more than a day to deliberate during the special sentencing proceeding in the case against the man, Chad Daybell, 55, in Ada County District Court in Boise, Idaho. Earlier on Saturday, the jury had recommended the death penalty before the judge ordered a short recess to make a final sentencing decision. As the judge, Steven W. Boyce of the Seventh Judicial District, read his decision, Mr. Daybell sat with his hands in his lap, expressionless at the defense table. Defense lawyers did not have any questions when asked by the judge.

Persons: Chad Daybell, Steven W, Boyce, Daybell, expressionless Organizations: Court, Judicial District Locations: Idaho, Ada County, Boise , Idaho

Ms. Daniels, who may testify, says that she and Mr. Trump had a sexual encounter in 2006, a claim the former president denies. Mr. Trump has also denied the 34 felony charges, calling them orchestrated by Democrats; if convicted, the former president could face probation or up to four years in prison. Pool photo by Mark PetersonMr. Blanche also attacked Mr. Cohen, a former lawyer and fixer for Mr. Trump. He called the heart of the prosecution case just “34 pieces of paper” that don’t involve Mr. Trump. During his own side’s opening statement, Mr. Trump sat largely motionless and expressionless watching his lawyer Mr. Blanche.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, Stormy Daniels, Daniels, Trump’s, ” doesn’t, Matthew Colangelo, Mr, Todd Blanche, ”, It’s, Mark Peterson Mr, Blanche, Cohen, Letitia James, —, David Pecker, Prosecutors ’, ambled, ” Mr, Pecker, Marion Curtis, We’re, Juan M, Pecker —, Merchan Organizations: Trump, Mr, Trump Tower, New, Prosecutors, National Enquirer, Reuters Locations: Manhattan, Lower Manhattan

☆ How this cult Japanese artist’s eerie paintings foretold our digital malaise
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Christy Choi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

CNN —In the land of Hello Kitty, kawaii (“cute”) culture and the Neo-Pop art of 1990s Japan, Tetsuya Ishida was an outlier. An untitled 2004 acrylic and oil painting by late Japanese artist Tetsuya Ishida from the Gagosian retrospective "My Anxious Self." Ishida, who had gone to art school, worked part-time at a print shop and as a night security guard. Many of the 200 or so paintings Ishida completed in his lifetime portray the gloom of becoming a cog in the economic machine. Another painting entitled "Gripe," painted by Ishidia in 1996, portrays a Japanese salaryman with lobster claws for hands.

Persons: kawaii, Tetsuya Ishida, wasn’t, Japan’s “, Gripe, ”, Gulliver, Tetsuya Ishida's, Gagosian, ” Nick Simunovic, “, ” Gagosian, Simunovic, Ishida, ” Simunovic, Gagosian Ishida, Jacky Ho, ‪, Martin Wong, Ishidia, Cecilia Alemani, ” Ishida, Robert McKeever, Tamaki Saito, didn’t, Sharp, Japan's, claustrophobia, Takashi Murakami, Yoshimoto Nara, ” Alemani, Alemani Organizations: CNN, Asia, Art, San Francisco Asian Art Museum, Venice Biennale, Hong Kong, Christie’s Asia, Japan Inc, dehumanization, Gagosian's, Sony Locations: Japan, Japanese, Japan’s, Gagosian, New York, Venice, Sotheby’s, Christie’s, Tokyo, , York

☆ A photographer’s fantastical portrait of rural China during Lunar New Year
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-11 | by ( Oscar Holland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —In photographer Zhang Xiao’s images of the Shehuo festival, an ancient celebration still observed in parts of northern China during the Lunar New Year, rural life comes alive with something altogether more fantastical. (Lunar New Year celebrations usually last more than two weeks, with Shehuo festival taking place on the season’s 15th and final day.) “In some villages, virtually the entire population has been mobilized to produce and sell Shehuo props,” the photographer writes in his book. Shehuo performers reenact a battle between China's Eighth Route Army and Japanese forces from the Second Sino-Japanese War. “People are not focused on how to improve product quality and craftsmanship,” said the photographer, who is currently working on a documentary about life in rural China.

Persons: Zhang Xiao’s, ” Zhang, “, …, ”, Zhang Xiao, —, Zhang, Zhang Xiao “, — Zhang, reenact Organizations: CNN, roosters, dreamworld, UNESCO, Harvard University’s Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology, Eighth Route Army, Aperture, Peabody Museum Press, Peabody Museum of Archaeology, Ethnology Locations: China, Huanghuayu, Shaanxi, Henan, Huozhuang, Henan province, China’s Shandong, Chengdu, Cambridge , Massachusetts

☆ Migrant crisis: They should be in elementary school, instead they speak like war veterans
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-01 | by ( David Culver | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Ciudad Hidalgo, Mexico CNN —The smell of burning wood and plastic hits us as we step out of the van. In the near distance, you can hear children splashing and playing in the Suchiate River, which separates Mexico – where we are – from Guatemala. Her attention shifts to the water, and she excitedly points out to the river and one of the many rafts. “We’re thinking about Philadelphia [or] Chicago,” Sofia tells me, when I ask where in the US they’d like to go. Sofia and Mathias want to be doctors, though Mathias might also want to be a lawyer, he tells me.

Persons: they’ve, “, ”, Mathias, gesturing, Sofia, David Culver, David von Blohn, CNN “, ” Mathias, Joandry, ” Sofia, corroborates, “ He’s, Susana, She’s, They’re, Venice –, CNN Sofia, They’ve, –, they’d, we’ve, ” Mathias ’ Organizations: Mexico CNN, campfires, CNN, Police, Sofia, ” Locations: Ciudad Hidalgo, Mexico, Guatemala, Venezuela, Colombia, Panama, United States, ”, Venice, Philadelphia, Chicago, New York, Florida

☆ Mark Zuckerberg just previewed Meta's new VR avatars – and they don't suck
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( Tom Carter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Mark Zuckerberg showed off Meta's new photorealistic VR avatars in his first "Metaverse interview." Zuckerberg was mocked on social media last year for posting a selfie of his cartoonish VR avatar. AdvertisementAdvertisementMark Zuckerberg has demoed Meta's brand new photorealistic avatars, and they are scarily lifelike. And unlike the company's original Metaverse avatars , which were mocked for being legless, dead-eyed, and deeply disconcerting, these projections are extremely realistic. The photorealistic projections are a dramatic improvement over the cartoonish avatars used for Horizon Worlds, Meta's free VR gaming and social platform.

Persons: Mark Zuckerberg, Zuckerberg, —, Lex Fridman, Meta, Zuckerberg's, Mark Zuckerberg Mark Zuckerberg Organizations: Service, Eiffel

☆ 3 ChatGPT tips that have helped small-business owners nail their marketing copy — and still keep the 'human touch'
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( Erica Sweeney | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Over one-third of small-business owners in a survey said they'd tried ChatGPT for marketing content. The founder and CEO of Slade Copy House, a copywriting agency, believed the artificial-intelligence tool couldn't replace a human copywriter. In an Alignable survey of US small-business owners released in July, more than half of respondents said they had tried ChatGPT, and one-third said they had used it to create marketing content. Using ChatGPT successfully takes practice, and it doesn't work for every marketing task. ChatGPT can save small businesses time and marketing dollars, but it's not a magic bullet.

Persons: they'd, SBOs, —, Haley Slade, ChatGPT, Slade, Chris Winfield, Chris Eckert, Winfield, It'll, We'll, it's Organizations: Small, Service, Slade, Publicly, Super Connector Media Locations: ChatGPT

“If we allow Ukraine to be carved up, is the independence of any nation secure? Republicans, however, have been critical of the Iran deal, calling it a "ransom" paid, and some are also skeptical of continuing to help Ukraine. And as world leaders lauded Zelenskyy, who attended Tuesday’s U.N. meeting in military garb, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican, said he would not have her support. "Zelenskyy is not the Governor of the 51st state, but he does have Joe Biden in his pocket. Meanwhile, House Republicans are preparing the next steps in an impeachment inquiry targeting Biden.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, ” Biden, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Vladimir Putin, Zelenskyy, Putin, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Sen, Lindsey Graham, Donald Trump, Tuesday’s, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Greene, MAGA, ”, Trump, Kevin McCarthy, Ian Sams, – Organizations: General, Ukrainian, Russian Federation, Wagner Group, South Carolina Republican, Tuesday’s U.N, Georgia Republican, Capitol, Fontanne, MAGA Republicans, Republicans, California Republican Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Russia, New York, U.S, Iran, Georgia, Europe, Manhattan, Washington, California

Derna, Libya CNN —It’s quiet at the Tartoba cemetery outside the Libyan city of Derna, despite the presence of dozens of volunteers. The school principal volunteered at his town’s cemetery after the floods struck Derna last week. Close to 4,000 people have perished in Derna after heavy rainfall and two collapsed dams caused ferocious floods, according to WHO figures. Akram al-Kawwash (left) and Abdallah al-Sheikh have not been able to find the bodies of their family members in Derna. He searched the wreckage, hoping to find his family members, but he found only the bodies of neighbors and a few survivors.

Persons: Libya CNN —, Mohamed el, ”, Sarah Sirgany, ” Sharwy, Akram al, Abdallah al, Sheikh, “, ” Abdallah al, ” Kawwash Organizations: Libya CNN, CNN, WHO Locations: Derna, Libya, Libyan

☆ Police Posed With Cavalcante After His Capture
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( Shaila Dewan | More About Shaila Dewan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In the immediate aftermath of the manhunt for Danelo Cavalcante, a peculiar scene unfolded — some two dozen law enforcement agents in tactical gear clustered around the fugitive. Then everyone posed for a photo. Others said it was unnecessary or unfair to use Mr. Cavalcante, who appeared to remain expressionless, as an involuntary prop. In 2021, a photo of white police officers and their dogs in Mississippi posing with a captured Black bank robbery suspect drew widespread criticism. In 2015, a Chicago officer was fired after a photo surfaced in which he and another officer, both of whom were white, posed with long guns, flanking a Black suspect wearing antlers.

Persons: Danelo Cavalcante, memorializing, Cavalcante, George Bivens, I’m Organizations: Pennsylvania State Police Locations: Mississippi, Chicago

☆ Police officers posed for a photo with the fugitive after his capture.
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( Shaila Dewan | More About Shaila Dewan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In the immediate aftermath of the manhunt for Danelo Cavalcante, a peculiar scene unfolded — some two dozen law enforcement agents in tactical gear clustered around the fugitive. Others said it was unnecessary or unfair to use Mr. Cavalcante, who appeared to remain expressionless, as an involuntary prop. I’m not bothered at all by the fact that they took a photograph with him in custody.”Similar questions have surfaced before. In 2021, a photo of white police officers and their dogs in Mississippi posing with a captured Black bank robbery suspect drew widespread criticism. In 2015, a Chicago officer was fired after a photo surfaced in which he and another officer, both of whom were white, posed with long guns, flanking a Black suspect wearing antlers.

Persons: Danelo Cavalcante, memorializing, Cavalcante, George Bivens, I’m Organizations: Pennsylvania State Police Locations: Mississippi, Chicago

☆ Jackson wins 200m gold in second-best time ever
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( Mitch Phillips | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Jackson, second in the 100m final, ran a brilliant bend, was two metres clear coming into the home straight and tore to the finish to win by a street. It also edged her closer to the late Florence Griffith-Joyner’s 21.34 world record from the 1988 Olympics. I will continue to work and I hope I can maintain at least this level and we will see if the world record will come. As for the world record - I'm close, I'm close, I'm getting there." When asked if she considered herself the "real" record holder, she said: "I won't question a world record.

Persons: Silver, Thomas, Richardson, peerless Shericka Jackson, Jackson, Eugene, Florence Griffith, Gabby Thomas, Sha'Carri Richardson, I'm, Griffith, hasn’t, St Lucia’s Julien Alfred, Briton Daryll Neita, Mitch Phillips, Ken Ferris Organizations: Griffith, Richardson BUDAPEST, Briton, United States, Saturday's, Thomson Locations: Budapest, Jamaica

Around the same time, Rosler began exploring video, which was then becoming popular among feminist artists as an affordable way to make and share work without the institutional support that was often denied them. This resulted in another of her best-known works, “Semiotics of the Kitchen” (1975). As her actions become increasingly violent — Rosler uses a manual juicer like she’s breaking a neck — the hostess’s rage takes on broader significance. “The fact that video sucked was part of what made it exciting,” Rosler told me; it allowed her to make work that no one would judge on its aesthetic qualities. It’s possible, even, to find echoes of Rosler in the amateur videography of TikTok, where every user is the head of their own surreal public access network.

Persons: Rosler, Mika Rottenberg, it’s, Carmen Herrera, Hilma af Klint Organizations: Rosler, Guggenheim Locations: Argentine Israeli, Saar, New York

☆ Ron DeSantis is trailing Trump in the polls because he hasn’t ‘hit him hard enough’ and isn’t a ‘memorable personality,’ political experts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( Lloyd Lee | Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Ron DeSantis hoped that Donald Trump's legal woes would hurt his opponent, per The New York Times. A USC political science professor told Insider that DeSantis hasn't hit Trump "hard enough." With eight months until the primaries, the public's opinion can still change — and so can Trump's legal standing. As for Trump's top challenger for the GOP nomination, Grose said DeSantis hasn't quite "hit him hard enough." Regardless, it appears like the DeSantis campaign is working hard on its reboot.

Persons: Ron DeSantis, Donald Trump's, Trump, Jack Smith, Christian Grose, Grose, DeSantis, Biden, Justice Department's, kowtowing, Anthony Fauci, Cal Jillson, Jillson, —, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, Donald Trump, He's Organizations: New York Times, Trump, USC, Service, GOP, Truth, University of Southern, Republican, Biden Administration, Department of Justice, Justice, CNN, Southern Methodist University, Politico Locations: Florida, Wall, Silicon, Trump, University of Southern California, DeSantis, Iowa, New Hampshire

☆ Hundreds of Protestants attended a sermon in Nuremberg given by ChatGPT, which told them not to fear death
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-10 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Hundreds of protestants gathered in Nuremberg, Germany to hear a sermon written by ChatGPT. Multiple avatars controlled by ChatGPT delivered the sermon on a huge screen above the altar. During the sermon, ChatGPT told the congregation not to fear death. The 40-minute service — including the sermon, prayers and music — was created by ChatGPT] and Jonas Simmerlein, a theologian and philosopher from the University of Vienna. The entire service was "led" by four different avatars on the screen, two young women, and two young men.

Persons: ChatGPT, chatbot, —, Jonas Simmerlein, Heiderose Schmidt, Schmidt, Marc Jansen, Paul, Jansen Organizations: University of Vienna, Associated Press Locations: Nuremberg, Germany, Paul's, Bavarian, Fuerth, Troisdorf, German, Cologne

☆ Nikola Jokic, an Elusive Superstar, Has a Hold on Denver
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( Sopan Deb | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

About two miles from downtown Denver, the yellows, oranges and reds of a spray-painted mural fill the cracked, gray cement wall of a building that houses a temporary employment agency. The mural rises about 20 feet and depicts an expressionless Nikola Jokic next to a much more emotive Jamal Murray, his eyes narrowed and arms extended as though he is wielding a bow and arrow. Thomas Evans, a 38-year-old artist, finished the mural of the two Denver Nuggets stars recently as the team prepared to begin the N.B.A. He said the mural inspired him and some collaborators to write the song as a tribute to Jokic. James is the biggest star in the N.B.A., with four championship rings, piles of endorsement deals and a constant presence on social media and television.

Persons: Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, Thomas Evans, Damien Lucero, Lucero, Dame, Dame D.O.L.L.A, Damian Lillard, ”, —, LeBron James, James Organizations: Denver Nuggets, Miami Heat, Portland Trail Blazers, Los Angeles Lakers, Nuggets, Western Conference Locations: Denver, Portland, Jokic

☆ I’m a Couples Therapist. Something New Is Happening in Relationships.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Orna Guralnik | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +7 min

They were generally deeply supportive of each other, but after she found out about his transgression, she was terribly upset and also confused. #MeToo rhetoric was woven into their discussions, functioning as a superego, shaping and inhibiting what they could even think. What did I do to just upset you?’”Couples work always goes back to the challenge of otherness. Michelle was aware of the way that Covid was devastating Black communities and wanted to be careful. In our sessions, Michelle sounded hopeless: She wanted him to understand how traumatizing Covid had been for Black people.

☆ Watch Trump defend his lewd 'Access Hollywood' comments in deposition video: 'Historically, that's true with stars'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

In it, Trump defended his "Access Hollywood" comments about grabbing women between the legs. The new clip is part of a 48-minute deposition video and was shown to jurors in Manhattan federal court on Thursday. In the "Access Hollywood" recording, Trump bragged about how women "let you" kiss them, saying stars "can do anything." In the deposition video, Trump watches the tape, expressionless. The Washington Post was the first to publish the "Access Hollywood" tape a month before the 2016 election.

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