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☆ Opinion | Nancy Pelosi: ‘It Didn’t Sound Like Joe Biden to Me’
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-09 | by ( Ezra Klein | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +55 min

And they know you’re going to act so they won’t mess with you. Put it in somebody else’s mouth because it was AI mean, it didn’t sound like Joe Biden to me. I think you’re I think you’re underselling this a little bit. And if they don’t, I’m going to keep my promise and send them 100 powdered wigs because they’re just living in a different era. All these other politicians, these career politicians didn’t know how to make a good deal.

Persons: Nancy Pelosi, Harris, Tim Walz, Al Gore, They’re, he’s, Joe Biden, Obama, Walz, Donald Trump, it’s, Trump, Said, JD Vance, Kamala Harris, Gavin Newsom, Ro Khanna, Scott Wiener, haven’t, Liam McCarthy, Willie Brown, George Moscone, Leo, Dianne Feinstein, It’s, Kamala, she’s, let’s, Suzan, You’ll, That’s, you’ll, I’m, that’s, We’re, I’ve, He’s, what’s, Bob Dole, George Bush, Svetlana, they’re, Scott Brown, Ted Kennedy’s, Ted Kennedy, Scott Brown’s, We’ve, you’re, Bill, Harry, Harry Reid, Pelosi, John Boehner, you’ve, Weaver, that’s O.K, Kevin McCarthy, kaka, Bernie Sanders, Sanders, Ted Cruz, Let’s, Barney Frank, Bill I, Steny Hoyer, don’t, You’re, John Dingell, Roe, Ira, Biden, McCarthy, o’clock, Wade, Kathy Manning of, Kathy Manning, didn’t, America’s, Republicans can’t, You’ve, Mary Barra, Steph Curry, Elton John Bono, Bill Gates, ain’t, Abraham, Little, Hillary, Norman Lear, Umberto, Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s, I’ll, Darwin, Lincoln Organizations: Democratic Party, Democratic, Republican, Veterans Affairs, Trump, Republicans, Democrat, San, Cal Stanford, University of San, Morning, NATO, Affordable, Senate, White House, California Democratic Party, Technology Committee, North, Global, Abraham Accords, Rogue, Republican Party Locations: America, Minnesota, San Francisco, University of San Francisco, United States, It’s, Belarus, Massachusetts, California, Iraq, Idaho, Italian, Kathy Manning of North Carolina, China, Sudan, Michigan, Arizona, David, South, Baltimore

Jeff Landry has a suggestion for parents who don't believe the Ten Commandments should be displayed in public school classrooms throughout the state. "Tell your child not to look at them," he told reporters Monday. The law requires all public K-12 schools and colleges to display the Ten Commandments by January. One poster riffed off the song "Ten Duel Commandments" from the musical "Hamilton," while another poster compared Moses and Martin Luther King Jr. The U.S. Supreme Court last weighed in on the issue of the Ten Commandments in public schools in 1980, when the justices ruled 5-4 to strike down Kentucky's law.

Persons: Jeff Landry, Landry, Moses, —, nonreligious —, Bill, Liz Murrill, Murill, Murrill, Hamilton, Martin Luther King Jr Organizations: Louisiana Gov, Republican, GOP, — Jewish, Unitarian Universalist, Republicans, U.S, Supreme Locations: Louisiana

☆ College student falls to his death at the Grand Canyon
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-02 | by ( Tim Stelloh | Tim Stelloh Is A Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

A college student visiting the Grand Canyon died after an accidental fall near a scenic overlook, park officials said Thursday. The park service said it is investigating the incident with the local medical examiner’s office and no additional details were immediately available. According to National Park Service data, there were 205 fatal falls across the entire park system between 2014 and 2019, the most recent year available. At Grand Canyon National Park, which has recorded millions of visitors annually for decades, there were 14 deaths in the same period. An NBC News analysis last year found that Washington state's North Cascades National Park had the highest fatality rate in the country.

Persons: Abel Joseph Mejia, Mejia Organizations: National Park Service, Rangers, Indiana Bible College, Indianapolis, NBC Locations: Washington

☆ Why Scandals Are Hurting Organized Religion - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-31 | by ( David French | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +6 min

Don’t Tell My Friends, But… is a seriesin which we asked Times columnistswhateveryone else is wrong about. The two concepts are so distinct within Christianity that they have different names — orthodoxy (right belief) and orthopraxy (right conduct). Right conduct should flow from right belief. The person who prioritizes orthodoxy says, “Hear my voice.” The person who prioritizes orthopraxy says, “Watch my life,” and the competing emphases can play out in concrete political ways. By contrast, the person who prioritizes orthopraxy has the opposite inclination.

Persons: Let’s, sears, ”, Donald Trump, They’re, orthopraxy, Robert Morris, United States —, Morris, Sybil Jordan Hampton, wouldn’t, Russell Moore’s, Moore, It’s, Paul Organizations: Southern Baptist Convention, Gateway, Evangelical America Locations: Southern, orthopraxy, Christianity, United States, Louisiana, Kentucky, Little Rock, Ireland

“We were never asked what we’d seen or where we were from Secret Service. “Before this incident, I would have thought Secret Service is, like bulletproof. The Beaver County officials were part of a multi-jurisdictional team assisting the Secret Service for Trump’s July 13 rally. The Secret Service has not responded to questions for comment from CNN. A federal law enforcement official familiar with the matter said the Secret Service was and has been in touch with the lead for the Butler Emergency Services Unit, which oversaw the Beaver County local law enforcement officers and others that day.

Persons: Robert Rowe, Donald Trump’s, Thomas Matthew Crooks, Nate, Patrick Young, Rowe, ” Young, “, we’d, Crooks, you’re, Young, Trump, Butler, ” Rowe, they’d, ”, Greg Nicol, Bible, Nicol Organizations: CNN, Emergency Services Unit, Service, Secret, Secret Service, Trump’s, Trump, Butler Emergency Services Unit, Beaver Locations: Pennsylvania, Beaver County, Beaver, Butler , Pennsylvania, Butler

☆ Francine Pascal, creator of beloved ‘Sweet Valley High’ books, dies at 92
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-30 | by ( Associated Press | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

NEW YORK AP —Francine Pascal, a onetime soap opera writer whose “Sweet Valley High” novels and the ongoing adventures of twins Elizabeth and Jessica Wakefield and other teens captivated millions of young readers, has died at age 92. Pascal died Sunday, her publisher, Penguin Random House, said. Starting in 1983, Francine Pascal oversaw the completion of more than 150 “Sweet Valley High” stories with the help of others. “Sweet Valley is the essence of high school,” Pascal told People magazine in 1988. John Pascal died in 1981.

Persons: Francine Pascal, Elizabeth, Jessica Wakefield, Pascal, ” Pascal, “, —, ”, Francine Paula Rubin, John Pascal, Dallas ”, Jessica, You’ll, Jerome Offenberg, Jamie Organizations: Sunday, Penguin Random, Wakefield, New York City, New York University, Cosmopolitan, Dallas, Entertainment Locations: Sweet, Angeles, New York

☆ My foster mother hated her first name. I found another way to honor her after she died.
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-30 | by ( Nicole Johnson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Nicole Johnson gave her daughter the same middle name as her foster mother. While I loved the meaning, I heard the voice of my foster mother in the back of my mind. Over time, it had become more than a promise; Esther brought it up more than once, turning it into something of a threat. It was the perfect way to honor the woman who became my best friend and mother, no matter our mismatched DNA. My daughter reminds me of my foster mother — independent and fierce.

Persons: Esther, Nicole Johnson, she'd, Elizabeth, Cameran, it's, I've Organizations: Service Locations: New Hampshire

☆ How VC Stephen Hays scraped his life off rock bottom after addiction and a bipolar diagnosis to tackle mental health stigma
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-29 | by ( Rebecca Torrence | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Some parents had voiced concerns about Hays' "background," he told Business Insider. In 2020, he started What If Ventures, a venture firm focused on investing in mental health startups. Hays's new public persona as a staunch mental health advocate also puts a certain pressure on him to perform his recovery — "and I hate that," he said. He wants to show people struggling with their own mental health that working to get well is good enough. Advertisement"I don't just want to destigmatize addiction and mental health issues — I want to destigmatize the journey of getting better," he said.

Persons: —, Stephen Hays, Hays, couldn't, didn't, They'd, it's, Christine, he'd, Amit Etkin, Etkin, he'll, that's, Stephen, Christopher Kim, Kim, Hays doesn't, It's Organizations: Service, Little League baseball, Business, Neuroscience, Ventures, West, Space Ventures, Atlantic City, Magazine, Deep Space Ventures, Alto Neuroscience, BI, Argosy Strategic Partners, Argosy Locations: Dallas, Texas, Atlantic, Las Vegas, Colorado, Wickenburg , Arizona

☆ A Gen Xer got $10,000 to move from Los Angeles to Tulsa. He likes the slower pace of life in Oklahoma but misses California's big-city culture.
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-27 | by ( Madison Hoff | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

He said he didn't "have a timeline in mind until after" he was accepted into the Tulsa Remote program in Oklahoma in 2021. Dalton said the cost of living and pace of life are pros of living in Tulsa. Several people who have participated in the Tulsa Remote program, which launched in late 2018, have previously talked to BI about their moving experience. The new remote job would help him qualify for a move from California to Oklahoma through the Tulsa Remote program. Tulsa's slower pace of life gives Dalton more time to enjoy life and have fun with others.

Persons: —, Morgan Dalton, Dalton, Tulsans, I've, It's, he's, Joe's, it's, Guthrie Organizations: Service, Business, BOK Center, Tulsa, Tulsa Drillers Locations: Los Angeles, Tulsa, Oklahoma, West Coast, West, Mexican, Texas, Houston, California, LA, Southern California, New York, DC, San Francisco

☆ Sean Grayson, who killed Sonya Massey, was removed from the Army for serious misconduct, had DUIs and needed ‘high stress decision’ classes, records show
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-27 | by ( Holly Yan | Bill Kirkos | Amanda Musa | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

He also failed to obey a command while working for another sheriff’s office in Illinois and was told he needed “high stress decision making classes,” the agency’s documents reveal. Bodycam footage from another deputy showed Massey saying she rebuked Grayson, and Grayson responded by threatening the 36-year-old. In May 2022, Grayson started working at the Logan County Sheriff’s Office in Illinois, records show. Then he started working full-time with Auburn police, the Logan County Sheriff’s Office, and finally the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office in May 2023. He resigned from the Logan County Sheriff’s Office in April 2023.

Persons: Sean Grayson, Sonya Massey, Grayson, Massey, Breonna Taylor, Atatiana Jefferson, Massey “, Ben Crump, Daniel Fultz, ” Grayson, DUIs, Crump, Bryce Dubee, “ Sean P, KSHB, Kincaid, “, Grayson “, ” “, Jack Campbell, “ Sonya Massey, ” Campbell, “ Grayson, ”, Malachi, ” Malachi, Jesus, ” Massey, Massey’s, Brad Parks, Natasha Bertrand, Emma Tucker, Eric Levenson Organizations: CNN, Army, Department of Defense, Kincaid Police Department, KSHB, Auburn Police Department, Pawnee, Auburn police, Office, Auburn, Massey Locations: Illinois, Sangamon County, Fort Riley, Kansas, Macoupin, Logan, Lincoln, Logan County, Sangamon County –, Massey

☆ Oklahoma Superintendent Vows to Force Schools to Teach Bible, Issuing Guidance
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-25 | by ( Isabelle Taft | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Oklahoma state superintendent vowed on Wednesday to force public schools to comply with his mandate that they teach the Bible and issued striking guidance for teachers, amid pushback from critics who say the move infringes on students’ religious freedom. The guidance comes about a month after Mr. Walters, a conservative Christian and former high school history teacher, directed all state K-12 schools to teach the Bible. The directive was met with swift criticism from school district officials and others who said it infringed on students’ and teachers’ rights to religious freedom. Some school district leaders have responded with defiance, vowing to not comply with the requirement. But in a social media post announcing the guidance, Mr. Walters sought to crack down on any resistance.

Persons: Ryan Walters, Walters Organizations: Republican, United, Constitution Locations: Oklahoma, Independence, American

☆ I grew up in France and the US but America is the best place for a go-getter like me
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-19 | by ( Ella Hopkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

I grew up in a blue-collar neighborhood in Toulon, in the south of France. In France, my sister, who was a year and a half older, and I would walk to school when I was six. I struggled with moving back to FranceOur family moved back to France when I was 14. In France, you're stuck at the bottom if you don't have the right connections. Europe is better for work-life balance and a better quality of life, but the US is the place to be if you're a go-getter like me.

Persons: —, Arthur Begtine, Begtine, we'd, I've Organizations: Service, Business, France Locations: Atlanta, France, Toulon, Tunisia, Nice, Georgia, Ernstein, Spanish, York, Pelham , New York, New York, Europe, Montreal, Canada

☆ Why some women stay in religious groups that don’t let them become leaders
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-15 | by ( John Blake | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +19 min

“It hurt,” says Muse, the executive pastor of Hayes Barton Baptist Church in Raleigh, North Carolina. Nikki Hardeman, of Atlanta, an advocacy director for Baptist Women in Ministry, left, Meredith Stone, executive director of Baptist Women in Ministry, center, and Christa Brown, an advocate for survivors of sexual abuse and a supporter of the Baptist Women in Ministry, protest outside the venue of a Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting on June 11, 2024, in Indianapolis. Some Southern Baptist leaders, for example, say they do not oppose women running for political office. And yet millions of women still give their time and money to church groups that won’t allow them to lead men. Meredith Stone, executive director of Baptist Women in Ministry, a group that works with the SBC and other Baptist groups.

Persons: Kristen Muse, Muse, Paul, Timothy, ”, Hayes Barton, “, –, Clint Pressley, Nikki Hardeman, Meredith Stone, Christa Brown, Doug McSchooler, Albert Mohler Jr, Kamala Harris, Shelby Tauber, ” Muse, Christ, Mary Kassian, Beth Allison Barr, Barr, Jesus, Pope Francis, lectors, Beth Moore, Terry Wyatt, Moore, Infants, ” Barr, it’s, they’re, Rick Warren, Peter Smith, that’s, she’s, Rabbi Nachman, Rosh Hashana, Sergei Supinsky, don’t, ‘, Bishop Teresa Jefferson, Jay Reeves, Deborah, Lydia, Priscilla, Dorcas, Mary Magdalene, Mary, Luke, hasn’t, John Blake Organizations: CNN, National Public Radio, Southern Baptist Convention, Hayes Barton Baptist Church, SBC, Baptist Women, Ministry, Southern Baptist, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Roman Catholic Church, of God, Reuters, complementarianism, Children, Baylor University, Research, Saddleback Church, Saddleback, Getty, Christian Methodist Episcopal, Moody Temple CME Church, Jefferson Locations: manila, Raleigh , North Carolina, Atlanta, Indianapolis, Indiana, Dallas , Texas, Nashville , Tennessee, Texas, Saddleback, Southern California, New Orleans, Uman, Ukraine, AFP, Raleigh, Moody, Fairfield , Alabama, Israel

☆ Martyr Inc.: How Trump Monetized a Persecution Narrative
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-12 | by ( Russ Buettner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Former President Donald J. Trump hawks $59.99 Bibles with the same words he uses to win the votes of evangelical Christians. All of it could be described as Martyr Inc., a machinery that makes Mr. Trump money and promotes his re-election by characterizing him as unjustly persecuted and selflessly saving his supporters from a similar fate. Even after recent declines, Mr. Trump’s shares are worth more than $3 billion, though he cannot yet sell. With Mr. Trump’s tacit encouragement, his supporters have characterized buying Trump products as a measure of patriotism. That was the former president’s message in his Truth Social pitch for the customized Bible on the cusp of the Independence Day holiday: “Every Patriot should have one.”

Persons: Donald J, ”, Trump, Trump’s Organizations: Trump

☆ She tried everything to overcome an eating disorder. Then, she found 'magic' mushrooms.
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-09 | by ( Julia Pugachevsky | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Meinert started going to food therapists at five years old, but it wasn't until she tried psilocybin — the psychedelic property in "magic" mushrooms — that she felt her symptoms fade. A lifelong struggle with foodDanielle Meinert eating Mexican food with ingredients that she used to find scary. Still, Meinert felt progress was agonizingly slow and involved "force-feeding" herself foods that scared her. An eating disorder treatment in 'magic' mushrooms? Unlocking motivation to do hard thingsDanielle Meinert happily eating a range of foods after her psilocybin session.

Persons: —, Danielle Meinert, Meinert, ARFID, Michael Pollan's, Johns Hopkins, Natalie Gukasyan, Gukasyan, nervosa, I'd, you've Organizations: Service, Business, Columbia University Irving Medical Center

☆ Road to Recovery, an Israeli nonprofit that gets sick Palestinians to Israeli hospitals and home again, hasn’t stopped after Oct. 7
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-05 | by ( Laura Klairmont | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —For nearly two decades, the Israeli nonprofit Road to Recovery has transported sick Palestinians roundtrip from checkpoints in Gaza and the West Bank to Israel for medical treatment. The organization, founded by 2011 CNN Hero Yuval Roth, had grown to 1,300 volunteers and was helping about 140 patients a day before the war. Today, Road to Recovery’s work continues, and Roth feels that it is as crucial as ever. The organization currently transports between 40 to 50 patients a day between the checkpoints and Israeli hospitals and medical providers. “Each trip is an opportunity to make a ‘small hour of peace.’” Roth said.

Persons: Yuval Roth, Roth, ” Roth, ”, ’ ” Roth, there’s, “ It’s Organizations: CNN, West Bank, ” CNN, Hamas Locations: Gaza, Israel

It was a one-time, lump-sum special separation benefit offered to service members when the U.S. had to reduce its active-duty force. Courtesy Vernon ReffittThousands have found themselves in Reffitt’s position due to a little-known law that prohibits veterans from receiving both disability and special separation pay. Under the law, the VA has to recoup special separation benefits from veterans before those eligible can begin receiving disability payments. Army veteran Daphne Young said she would not have taken the separation pay had she known. Under the law, veterans have a chance to pursue a waiver of their recoupment responsibilities for voluntary separation pay, but the standards are high.

Persons: Vernon Reffitt, Reffitt, Stephanie Rennane, Rennane, it’s, Daphne Young, Daphne Young Young, Young, Marquis Barefield, Barefield, Shane Collins, Collins, Ruben Gallego, Gallego, I’ve Organizations: Department of Veterans Affairs, RAND Corporation, NBC News, Army, Young, DAV, American Veterans, Veterans, recoupment, RAND, Marine, Marines, Pentagon, Defense Locations: U.S, Twin City , Georgia, Panama, Honduras, Germany, Columbus , Georgia, Iraq, Afghanistan, Twin Falls , Idaho, United States

☆ Opinion: Public schools are not Sunday schools
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-03 | by ( Opinion Amanda Tyler | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —It has been an especially active few weeks for news about religion in public schools. Public schools are not Sunday schools, and families should feel free to send their children to school without worrying about state officials interfering in their choices about religious instruction. These politically conservative state officials are seemingly making a show of testing the limits of government-sponsored religious instruction and exercise in public schools, emboldened by the US Supreme Court’s recent decisions. Like religious instruction in public schools, the public funding of religion undermines fundamental principles of religious freedom for all. By merging religious and political authority, taxpayer funding of religious schools threatens the rights of people of all faiths — and those of no faith.

Persons: Amanda Tyler, Jeff Landry, Ryan Walters, ” Amanda Tyler, Kennedy, Walters, beholden, ” Walters Organizations: Baptist, Religious Liberty, Christian Nationalism, CNN, Texas Education Agency, Louisiana Gov, US, Twitter, Oklahoma Supreme Court Locations: Louisiana, Oklahoma’s, Kennedy v, Bremerton, Kentucky, Texas , Louisiana, Oklahoma

☆ Mark Cuban is offloading a portion of his NFTs—one already sold for over $30,000
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-01 | by ( Cheyenne Devon | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

For the first time in two years, Mark Cuban is selling a portion of his collection of non-fungible tokens — and he's already made a little over $39,000. Most notably, he sold his Pudgy Penguin NFT for $30,950. Cuban could rake in even more money for his digital collectibles. Cuban has been a longtime collector of the virtual tokens and still has nearly 1,600 items in his cryptocurrency portfolio. Like other physical collectibles, such as comic books or postage stamps, NFTs may hold sentimental value to the collector.

Persons: Mark Cuban, NFT, NFTs, they're Organizations: ETH, Cuban, CNBC Locations: OpenSea

☆ The author of 'Silicon Valley's bible' is back with a new report predicting how life will change for students and teachers
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-01 | by ( Jaures Yip | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewMary Meeker is back with a new report about AI and education — and it predicts how life will change for both students and teachers. And after a four-year break since publishing a report, Meeker has returned to give her industry insights. For teachers, she writes that using AI to accelerate learning, even for students who miss out on in-person lectures, will be "a new art form." Related stories"As technology evolves and becomes more widely available, teachers should be able to save time and increase productivity," Meeker writes. "On the research side, technical resource availability, such as GPU access, will likely be key to differentiation/leadership," Meeker writes.

Persons: —, Mary Meeker, Morgan Stanley, Meeker Organizations: Service, Business, Bond, Universities

☆ AI images of Jesus are suspiciously handsome. We only have ourselves to blame
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-01 | by ( Aj Willingham | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Now, in the age of AI, Jesus can assume an infinite variety of roles with just a few keystrokes. While AI images of Jesus depict the Christian savior in innumerable situations, they often focus on his physical appearance as well. All of these handsome AI Jesus images are created from patterns a machine picks up from the information it is fed. Some AI images of Jesus contain inexplicable details that are neither Biblically nor historically informed. There are other complications that lead to the persistence of handsome AI Jesus.

Persons: Jesus Christ, Shepherd, Jesus, Instagram influencers, Jesus ’, ”, Brenda Sanderson, ” Sanderson, Michelangelo, Joseph Geefs, Geefs ’, Guillaume, “, Lucifer, Salustiano García Cruz, Saint Sebastian, Mary Magdalene, Morgan Haigh, Cristina Quicler, Christopher Framer, ” Framer, it’s Organizations: CNN, Facebook, St, Paul’s, BBC, Santa de Sevilla, Getty Locations: Liège, Belgium, Spanish, AFP, Petaluma , California

On Today’s Episode:Six Takeaways From the First Presidential Debate, by Shane Goldmacher and Jonathan SwanSchools Police Chief Indicted in Uvalde Shooting Response, by J. David Goodman and Edgar SandovalOklahoma’s State Superintendent Requires Public Schools to Teach the Bible, by Sarah Mervosh and Elizabeth DiasAfter a Testy Campaign in Tense Times, Iranians Vote for President, by Farnaz Fassihi and Alissa J. Rubin

Persons: Shane Goldmacher, Jonathan, J, David Goodman, Edgar Sandoval Oklahoma’s, Sarah Mervosh, Elizabeth Dias, Farnaz Fassihi, Rubin Organizations: Jonathan Swan Schools Police, Schools, Times

☆ The Bible in Public Schools? Oklahoma Pushes Limits of Long Tradition.
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-28 | by ( Sarah Mervosh | Ruth Graham | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Bible has been a presence in American classrooms to at least some degree since before the origins of the country’s public school system in the 19th century. But the announcement by Oklahoma’s state superintendent on Thursday that all public schools in the state must teach the Bible represented a major effort to expand its role and bring a Christian historical perspective to most all students. Schools have become the arena for an array of moral and cultural conflicts, and conservative Christians are asserting their political muscle even as they decline as a share of the American population. “In Oklahoma, we are very proud to lead the country on pushing back on the leftists trying to rewrite history and say, No, we will teach from the Bible,” the superintendent, Ryan Walters, said in an interview on Friday. Mr. Walters, a Christian conservative and former history teacher, said the mandate would focus on fifth through 12th grades, with an emphasis on the Bible’s influence in history and literature, areas where the Bible has historically been accepted in public education.

Persons: Ryan Walters, . Walters Organizations: Schools Locations: “, Oklahoma

☆ How the hyper-colorful queer world of ‘But I’m a Cheerleader’ was made
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-28 | by ( Jacqui Palumbo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

“It was my weird femme fantasy of what my grown-up life was going to be.”“I wanted True Directions to look like the Barbie Dreamhouse,” she continued. True Direction's founder, Mary, insulates herself from reality in the artificial setting that she's built for traditional gender roles. “I just love the cult following that it’s had,” Friedberg said in the call with Babbit and Kamerman. Despite the film’s barriers, Babbit, Friedberg and Kamerman are all pleased with its longevity, particularly as they’ve seen it gain cachet with an entirely new generation this past decade. “We were just making our weirdo indie film of queer joy and female power in a vacuum.”

Persons: ”, Natasha Lyonne, Clea DuVall, it’s, Megan, Lyonne, Jamie Babbit’s, Cathy Moriarty, ’, Eddie Cibrian, Mike, “ Barbie ”, Babbit, “, Dreamhouse, Mary, insulates, Jamie Babbit, Mark Lipson, Kushner, Locke, couldn't, —, Brian Wayne Peterson, Alix Friedberg, Tim Burton’s, Edward Scissorhands ”, John Waters, Rachel Kamerman, It’s, Phoebe Bridgers, MUNA, ” Friedberg, ” Babbit, Rogert Ebert, butch, Gia ”, Kamerman, Graham, DuVall, Eden bodysuits, Adam, David LaChapelle, reining, Jamie — you’ve, she’s Organizations: CNN, ”, Tattle Locations: New York City, New York, London, Palmdale , California, soundstages, Friedberg, Kamerman

☆ Oklahoma’s State Superintendent Requires Public Schools to Teach the Bible
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-27 | by ( Sarah Mervosh | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Oklahoma’s state superintendent on Thursday directed all public schools to teach the Bible, including the Ten Commandments, in an extraordinary move that blurs the lines between religious instruction and public education. The superintendent, Ryan Walters, who is a Republican, described the Bible as an “indispensable historical and cultural touchstone” and said it must be taught in certain grade levels. The move comes a week after Louisiana became the first state to mandate that public schools display the Ten Commandments in every classroom, which was quickly challenged in court. The Oklahoma directive could also be challenged and is likely to provoke the latest tangle over the role of religion in public schools, an issue that has increasingly taken on national prominence. The efforts to bring religious texts into the classroom are part of a growing national movement to create and interpret laws according to a particular conservative Christian worldview.

Persons: Ryan Walters Organizations: Republican Locations: Oklahoma’s, Louisiana, Oklahoma

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