Russian drones crossed into two NATO countries over the weekend, authorities said, in the latest set of incidents of the war in Ukraine reaching the alliance's eastern flank.
A growing number of Connecticut radio broadcasters with AM stations are taking their programming to FM side of the dial. read more
Analysis: It's the start of the school year, and thus the start of a fresh round of discourse on generative AI's new role in schools. In the space of about three years, essays have gone from a mainstay of classroom education everywhere to a much less useful tool, for one reason: ChatGPT. read more
Researchers and the TSA have different views on the impact of vulnerabilities in an airport security application that could allegedly allow the bypass of certain airport security systems.
The commander of a Navy destroyer that's helping protect the San Diego-based aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt in the Middle East has been relieved of duty about four months after he was seen in a photo firing a rifle with a scope mounted backward. read more
@#6 ... And in the mid-west, aquifers are drying up. ...
The Ogallala Aquifer: Saving a Vital U.S. Water Source (2009)
www.scientificamerican.com
... On America's high plains, crops in early summer stretch to the horizon: field after verdant field of corn, sorghum, soybeans, wheat and cotton.
Framed by immense skies now blue, now scarlet-streaked, this 800-mile expanse of agriculture looks like it could go on forever.
It can't.
The Ogallala Aquifer, the vast underground reservoir that gives life to these fields, is disappearing. In some places, the groundwater is already gone. This is the breadbasket of America"the region that supplies at least one fifth of the total annual U.S. agricultural harvest. If the aquifer goes dry, more than $20 billion worth of food and fiber will vanish from the world's markets. And scientists say it will take natural processes 6,000 years to refill the reservoir. ...
More from the cited article...
... What Is Vance Actually Talking About?
The Trump campaign did not respond to HuffPost's questions. But it appears Vance was responding to a collection of rumors and baseless internet posts related to immigrants living in Ohio -- all breathlessly amplified by Trump-aligned social media accounts.
In one instance, a social media post purportedly from Springfield, Ohio, that's been making the rounds includes the claim that the unnamed poster's neighbor's daughter's friend -- say that five times fast -- lost her cat, then later found the cat hanging from a tree outside her Haitian neighbor's house. It's impossible to verify such a fourth-hand claim, but no news stories indicate anything similar happening recently. And Springfield police told the News-Sun Monday that while they were aware of the rumor on social media, they hadn't actually received any reports related to pets being stolen and eaten. ...
Ohio police have 'no credible reports' of Haitian immigrants harming pets, contradicting JD Vance's claim
www.nbcnews.com
... Police in Springfield, Ohio, said Monday they had received no credible reports of immigrants harming pets, contradicting a claim by Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance.
The senator from Ohio, as well as other Republican lawmakers and several conservative commentators, have in recent days asserted without evidence that the arrival of thousands of immigrants from Haiti had created chaos in Springfield.
In a post on X, Vance wrote Monday that "people have had their pets abducted and eaten by people who shouldn't be in this country."
The Springfield Police Division said in a statement that they were aware of the "rumors" and had no information to support them.
"In response to recent rumors alleging criminal activity by the immigrant population in our city, we wish to clarify that there have been no credible reports or specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community," the police said in a statement emailed to NBC News.
They added that they had no information to support similar assertions about immigrants squatting or disrupting traffic.
"Additionally, there have been no verified instances of immigrants engaging in illegal activities such as squatting or littering in front of residents' homes. Furthermore, no reports have been made regarding members of the immigrant community deliberately disrupting traffic," the police said. ...
@#5 ... On March 01 Lake Mead was 30 feet higher than it was in March of 2023. Today it is 3 feet lower. ...
Lake Mead Water Levels -- Historical and Current
arachnoid.com
Good chart showing a trend.
... Lake Powell was 40 feet higher than 2023 in March, now it's 6 feet higher. ...
Lake Powell Water Database
lakepowell.water-data.com
But aquifers are not lakes.
Aquifers are ground water.
When a farm uses a pump to pull water up from the ground, that is using the aquifer.
And in the mid-west, aquifers are drying up.
And another...
Draining Aquifers to Extinction (May 2024)
mrgwateradvocates.org
... Measurement data has shown regularly increasing drawdowns of aquifers in many, perhaps most, areas of the state, This is visible particularly in "closed" basins that don't have regularly flowing rivers to provide recharge. The State Engineer's rules do not currently provide a plan or mechanism to prevent (or delay) the aquifers' becoming dry or impractical to pump. ...
@#2 ... Red state cesspool is running out of water. ...
Yeah. I've posted articles along those lines for years here on this most august site.
Here's another...
America is using up its groundwater like there's no tomorrow (September 2023)
www.sltrib.com
... Global warming has focused concern on land and sky as soaring temperatures intensify hurricanes, droughts and wildfires. But another climate crisis is unfolding, underfoot and out of view.
Many of the aquifers that supply 90% of the nation's water systems, and which have transformed vast stretches of America into some of the world's most bountiful farmland, are being severely depleted. These declines are threatening irreversible harm to the American economy and society as a whole.
The New York Times conducted one of the most comprehensive examinations of groundwater depletion nationwide and found that America's life-giving resource is being exhausted in much of the country, and in many cases it won't come back. Huge industrial farms and sprawling cities are draining aquifers that could take centuries or millenniums to replenish themselves " if they recover at all.
States and communities are already paying the price.
Groundwater loss is hurting breadbasket states like Kansas, where the major aquifer beneath 2.6 million acres of land can no longer support industrial-scale agriculture. Corn yields have plummeted. If that decline were to spread, it could threaten America's status as a food superpower. ...
@#2
To wit...
Election outcome may depend on whether Harris or Trump can rebrand themselves as new'
www.theguardian.com
... Both candidates are quasi-incumbents, but both are aiming to present themselves as a major change for a divided US ...
When Kamala Harris sat down for her first interview as the Democratic presidential nominee, she praised Joe Biden for his intelligence, commitment, judgment and disposition. But twice she used the phrase "turn the page". And twice she used the phrase "a new way forward".
This was no accident. US voters are yearning for a shift in direction, with two in three saying the next president should represent a major change from Joe Biden, according to a national poll conducted by the New York Times and Siena College. Yet in November they face a choice between two known quantities: Harris, the sitting vice-president, and Donald Trump, a former president with an inescapable four-year record.
Just 25% of voters think Harris signifies a major change, the poll found, while 56% believe she represents "more of the same". When it comes to Trump, 51% think he would offer major change, whereas 35% consider him more of the same. Victory in the race for the White House might be decided by which of these quasi-incumbents can rebrand themselves as a breath of fresh air for a weary, divided nation. ...
@#23 ... acting indifferently to signs of their son's deteriorating mental health ...
When is that a crime?
Along those lines, this new rule may be a good thing: drudge.com
Related?
Justice Alito's Stock Portfolio Stands Apart on US Supreme Court
www.bnnbloomberg.ca
... Justice Samuel Alito is the only US Supreme Court member with a stake in more than two dozen individual companies, a distinction that threatens to sideline him from major business cases. ...
Yeah, as if he may even give a modicum thought about recusing himself from cases he may have an interest in.
Bodycam footage shows how chaotic Tyreek Hill detainment escalated
nypost.com
... Body cam footage is shedding new light on Sunday's incident outside of Hard Rock Stadium when Dolphins star Tyreek Hill was detained by police.
The newly released footage shows a chaotic scene unfolding after Miami-Dade Police stopped Hill for speeding as the situation quickly escalated.
He was cited for careless driving and a seat belt violation, according to ESPN, before being released at the scene.
Teammate Calais Campbell was also detained after he pulled over and attempted to de-escalate the situation.
Video footage from officer body cams shows the moment that police approached Hill's car and knocked on his window, drawing objections from the eight-time Pro Bowler.
"Hey don't knock on my window like that," Hill can be heard saying to the officer, who in turn asked Hill why he wasn't wearing a seat belt.
The first officer attempted to explain why he was trying to get Hill's attention with the knock and Hill, who had appeared to already give the cop his license, responded by asking the officer to give him a ticket so he could leave and then rolled the window back up.
The officer objected to the window and when Hill brought the window down slightly, the cops ordered Hill out of the car.
Hill could be heard saying that he was going to get out of the vehicle when a second officer pulled open the car door and yanked the Dolphins receiver out of the car and brought him to the ground with the assistance of a third officer.
"Hey Drew I'm getting arrested," said Hill, who was holding his phone and appeared to have his agent Drew Rosenhaus on the phone at the time.
Hill could then be seen being placed in cuffs as multiple officers surrounded him. ...
Related...
Judge asks potential jurors if they can be fair toward 3 officers charged in Tyre Nichols' death
www.newsnationnow.com
... Potential jurors in the federal trial of three former Memphis police officers charged with violating Tyre Nichols ' civil rights were asked Monday whether heavy media coverage and publicly released video of him being beaten to death could influence their ability to be fair.
U.S. District Judge Mark Norris questioned jury candidates about what they think are the most important characteristics a juror should have and whether they would be biased in reaching a verdict.
Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith have pleaded not guilty to charges that they deprived Nichols of his rights through excessive force and failure to intervene, and obstructed justice through witness tampering. The beating was caught on police cameras, triggering protests and calls for police reform. Two others have already pleaded guilty to the federal charges and could testify against them.
Nichols, who was Black, died in a hospital on Jan. 10, 2023, three days after he was kicked, punched and hit with a police baton following a traffic stop. Police video released that month showed the five officers, who also are Black, beating Nichols as he yelled for his mother about a block from his home. Video also showed the officers milling about and talking with each other as Nichols sat on the ground, struggling with his injuries.
The officers said Nichols was pulled over for reckless driving, but Memphis' police chief has said there was no evidence to substantiate that claim. ...
@#10 ... See the analogy We are just as likely to get the details wrong if not more so on longer outlooks than this seasonal outlook ...
I see an analogy you are trying to make ...
The devil is in the details, as the saying goes.
So, the weather forecast was an 85% probability for an active hurricane season. Since we are just now approaching what is typically peak season, I'd say it is too soon to tell if the prediction was good or not. I will note the June hurricane, Beryl, that we had was not typical.
Category 5 Hurricane Beryl makes explosive start to 2024 Atlantic season
www.climate.gov
... Hurricane Beryl, the first hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, rapidly strengthened to a Category 5 storm unusually early in the year. This explosive strengthening was fueled in part by exceptionally warm ocean temperatures. That heat was one of the factors behind NOAA's prediction in May of an 85% chance that the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season would be above normal.
Beryl first formed as a tropical depression on June 28, 2024, with winds of 35 mph; within the first 24 hours, the storm rapidly intensified into a hurricane with winds of 75 mph. This was the farthest east that a hurricane has formed in the month of June. In the following 24 hours, Beryl underwent another instance of rapid intensification becoming an extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane. At that point Beryl was the first Category 4 hurricane to form in the month of June. The previous record was Dennis when it became a Category 4 hurricane on July 8, 2005. Rapid intensification has become more common in recent years and is one aspect of tropical cyclone development that is expected to increase globally due to human caused climate change. ...
I dunno.
At this point, I view the Trump/Vance campaign as in a need to expand their base.
So that leads me to ask, how does Sen Vance's comment pull in new voters?