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A wave of young adults bought their first home with the help of student loan pauses and remote work - but will the boom last?Vicki Buehler never thought she would own a home. By her mid-30s, her student loan balance had ballooned to $200,000 after she deferred payments, and she eventually went into default, leading to a subprime credit score. She was a workers' comp attorney in Binghamton, New York, and earned about $60,000. Having my own home was a pie in the sky dream," she said.This changed suddenly in 2021, when Buehler, a millennial, became part of a wave of homebuyers among Americans her age. Continue reading...

While it's hard to imagine Trump winning the popular vote in 2024, our archaic and unfair electoral college is another matterRead the indictment handed down by a Fulton county, Georgia, grand jury: weighing in at 98 pages, it is a breathtaking document, granular in its description of a coordinated criminal enterprise that brazenly broke numerous Georgia state laws.The 19 persons named in the racketeering charges are not, however, members of some sleazy organized crime syndicate; rather, they include the former president of the United States, his chief of staff, a former mayor of New York, a former law school dean and a former official in the US Department of Justice. Together they stand accused of knowingly and willfully joining a conspiracy to subvert the outcome of a fair, democratic election.Lawrence Douglas is the author, most recently, of Will He Go? Trump and the Looming Election Meltdown in 2020. He is a contributing opinion writer for the Guardian US and teaches at Amherst College Continue reading...

Animal shelter has been staff tending to several dozen wounded animals since the fires ravaged Lahaina, but it is hoping for a surgeMore than a week after wildfire destroyed Lahaina, burning thousands of homes and killing at least 110 people, Maui Humane Society is still waiting for the wave of animals.The animal shelter has been bustling in the days since the disaster began, with volunteers sorting through thousands of donations, staff tending to several dozen wounded animals and limited vet crews on the ground searching for more. But with as many as 3,000 animals missing, Maui Humane Society is hoping for a surge. Continue reading...

Surely as fans we want to see performers express themselves in concert - however misguided they sometimes might beEarlier this week, the Killers were subject to boos and walkouts while onstage in Georgia after bringing a Russian man onstage to play drums with them. We don't know the etiquette of this land, but this guy's a Russian," frontman Brandon Flowers told the crowd. After the audience became visibly perturbed, Flowers doubled down: You can't recognise if someone's your brother? He's not your brother? We all separate on the borders of our countries? ... Am I not your brother, being from America?"The answer from the crowd seemed to be a unanimous no" - a fair enough response, given that it was only 15 years ago that Russia invaded Georgia and still occupies around 20% of the territory (as well as significant portions of Ukraine). It hasn't been the only time lately that a musician has put their foot in it with regards to cultural norms, either: the 1975 were banned from Malaysia last month after lead singer Matty Healy kissed his bandmate Ross MacDonald onstage in Kuala Lumpur. Homosexuality is illegal in Malaysia - and now the Good Vibes festival, which hosted the band, is demanding Healy and co pay damages to cover the costs of the event, which they were forced to cancel after the incident. Continue reading...

The NWSL's Kansas City Current, co-owned by Patrick and Brittany Mahomes, are months away from moving into a revolutionary venueHanna Glas started playing soccer at five years old in the small town in Sweden she grew up in, four hours north of Stockholm. She played because her older brother did, and she always wanted to copy him.Excitedly, they'd rush out to the small patch of grass by their house, kicking the ball around until they got tired. But Glas could never have dreamed of playing professionally. Continue reading...

Former president sparks a flurry of online abuse directed at district attorney Fani Willis after he attacks opponents using the word riggers'

Since a misjudged anorexia storyline in Skins, television has continued to glorify and glamorise eating disorders. I am so relieved that Netflix's hit teen drama has finally got it rightWhen I look back at my teenage years, I remember being hungry. In the tangle of GCSE exam panic, awkward adolescence, angst and first love, I decided I had to take charge of my life in the only way I knew I properly could. At 16, I made the very active decision to stop eating. Lunchtimes stretched out into blank space. Before going to restaurants, I compulsively checked menus in search of the smallest thing I could stomach and still go unnoticed. Calories listed on the back of food packets demanded attention. Numbers, values and sums swarmed and swamped my head. Food was an all-consuming obsession, but I was empty.The desire to avoid eating informed almost every decision I made. I came late to dinner plans, parroting that I wasn't that hungry" or that I'd eaten at home". I'd shamefully tip full plates of food into the bin, pretending I hadn't let any go to waste. But however hard I pushed myself to skip snacks or adjust the levels of what I was allowed - and not allowed - to eat, my struggle was an internal, quiet and solitary one. Continue reading...

Republican extremist says I haven't made up my mind' on running for Georgia seat because Is it possible that I'll be VP?'The rightwing extremist Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene has not made up her mind about running for Senate in Georgia - in part because she hopes to be Donald Trump's vice-president.I haven't made up my mind whether I will do that or not," Greene told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, about a rumoured challenge to the current governor, Brian Kemp, in a Georgia Senate primary in 2026. Continue reading...

Ex-president and co-defendants, including Giuliani, can turn themselves in at any time', sheriff's office saysDonald Trump and the 18 co-defendants charged with racketeering and crimes for conspiring to subvert the 2020 presidential election in a criminal enterprise" are set to be booked at a jail in Fulton county, Georgia, the local sheriff's office said on Tuesday.The grand jury has issued arrest warrants for all 19 defendants, said Fani Willis, the district attorney, during a news conference after she delivered a sweeping 41-count indictment late Monday night. Defendants have until 25 August to surrender voluntarily, after which they can expect to be arrested. Continue reading...

Ex-president faces years of prison if convicted in Fulton county, but if case is moved to federal court it might result in dismissal of chargesAfter news broke on Monday night of Donald Trump's indictment in Fulton county, Georgia, attention quickly turned to the possible spectacle of a trial unfolding on television as a former president attempts to rebut charges of racketeering and conspiracy over his efforts to overturn the results of an election.But before the district attorney Fani Willis can have the opportunity to make her case against Trump with the cameras rolling, she must first clear a key procedural hurdle to keep the case in Fulton county. Trump's legal team is expected to rely on a little known legal statute to argue the case should be moved to federal court, and that jurisdictional question could delay a trial for months. The stakes of that procedural fight will be high, as a conviction in Fulton county would leave Trump facing years of prison time with no clear pathway to a pardon. Continue reading...

Guideline on Diet Coke ingredient by consultants tied to industry is obvious conflict of interest' and not credible', report saysIn May, the World Health Organization issued an alarming report that declared widely used non-sugar sweeteners like aspartame are likely ineffective for weight loss, and long term consumption may increase the risk of diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and mortality in adults.A few months later, WHO declared aspartame, a key ingredient in Diet Coke, to be a possible carcinogen", then quickly issued a third report that seemed to contradict its previous findings - people could continue consuming the product at levels determined to be safe decades ago, before new science cited by WHO raised health concerns. Continue reading...

Crystal Czerno says GE knowingly contaminated nine-year-old son's school playground with PCB waste while downplaying harmA Massachusetts mother has filed a lawsuit blaming widespread PCB pollution by General Electric (GE), Monsanto and its German owner Bayer, and several other companies for causing her nine-year-old son to develop leukemia and suffer repeated debilitating medical treatments.Crystal Czerno alleges, among other things, that GE knowingly contaminated her son Carter's elementary school playground with PCB waste while downplaying the harm it could cause. The school is located in the town of Pittsfield, just north of a GE facility that made electrical transformers containing PCBs for more than 40 years. PCB-laden soil from the GE site was spread over the school grounds. Continue reading...

Amid a spiraling homelessness crisis, a new law went into effect to ticket those sleeping outside. But there are few beds and cases go nowhereMorning, it's police! Collect all your stuff!"At 7.30am on a recent Friday, two policemen shouted commands into tents along a downtown sidewalk in downtown San Diego. One barefoot man startled awake and remarked that someone had stolen his shoes. Next to him, Moses Miramontes, 47, was frantically tying up his tent and belongings. Continue reading...

The industry generates 80% of Maui county's economic activity - but it risks devastating the island's natural resourcesThe fire that leveled the Hawaii town of Lahaina didn't discriminate. It seared through vacation rentals and historic landmarks alike, scorched a 150-year-old banyan tree and touristic Tiki bars, reducing nearly everything to gray rubble.And the destruction has laid bare seething tensions about the dominance of tourism on the island. Continue reading...

Ocasio-Cortez's video with a brand CEO angered some who saw it as consumerist, while others backed her on health groundsThe burning debate on the American left this week: is sunscreen socialist?It was sparked last Thursday when Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez spoke out about the poor quality of sun creams in the US compared to elsewhere. I was in South Korea earlier this year and it is so clear how far advanced the rest of the world is on sunscreen, and we deserve better in the US," the congresswoman said in a social media video filmed with Charlotte Palermino, a skincare brand CEO. Continue reading...

Jason Preston could barely get a game in high school, and now he is a member of the LA Clippers. Staying there requires incredible amounts of hard workIt's the peak of the summer. But Jason Preston, the young point guard for the Los Angeles Clippers, wakes up at 4.45am. At a time when other 24-year-olds are sleeping in - or still out on the town - Preston is stretching. Then he has some breakfast - nothing decadent - a meal to carry him through his upcoming morning workout. It doesn't end there, though. Preston has a full day ahead, then it's early to bed all over again. Such is the life of a young player trying to make an impact in the NBA.I don't even necessarily look at it like I have to get up so early," Preston tells the Guardian. It's a good feeling. As if I'm a step ahead of everybody. I like waking up and it still being dark outside." Continue reading...

The leak could undermine security in Northern Ireland - restoring power sharing is a political necessity at this momentHalf of the people who live in these islands have no adult memory at all of the Northern Ireland troubles. Too many of those who can remember them have allowed the bombings, shootings, riots and violence to slip from their minds in the 25 years that have passed since a peace treaty was signed in 1998. But last week's data leak by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) ought to be a wake-up call for the forgetful, and a lightbulb moment for the unaware.Nine days ago, in response to a freedom of information request whose provenance remains unclear, someone in the PSNI mistakenly put the names, initials, ranks, place of work and departments of all of its 10,000 officers and staff online for about three hours before they were removed. Especially in a profession where police and their families were, and sometimes still are, regular targets, it was a spectacular security breach, even in these more peaceful times.Martin Kettle is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

US president aiming to take advantage of recent thaw in ties under president Yoon Suk Yeol and prime minister Fumio KishidaThe US has promised to usher in a new era" in relations with its most important allies in Asia, as the region struggles to address the threat posed by an increasingly assertive China and a nuclear-armed North Korea.Joe Biden is expected to take advantage of a recent thaw in ties between Japan and South Korea - home to tens of thousands of US troops - to announce new collaborations on missile defence and technology, when he meets the countries' leaders on Friday. Continue reading...

Attorney for Carlos De Oliveira also represents witnesses who could testify against him, according to special counsel's officeSpecial counsel prosecutors asked on Wednesday for a hearing to inform the Mar-a-Lago club's maintenance chief, charged with helping Donald Trump to obstruct the government's attempt to retrieve the classified documents at the property, that his lawyer might be hamstrung at trial due to potential conflicts of interest.The issue, according to prosecutors, is that De Oliveira's lawyer, John Irving, represents three other witnesses who provided incriminating evidence against Carlos De Oliveira and could be called to testify against him at trial. Continue reading...

Study shows that 60% of teens between ages 13-17 agreed with four or more conspiracy statements compared with 49% of adultsTeenagers are significantly more likely to believe online conspiracy theories than older generations, a new study has shown, underscoring the broad impacts of gen Z's relationship with social media.Findings from Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), a non-profit that fights misinformation, showed that 60% of 13-17-year-old Americans surveyed agreed with four or more harmful conspiracy statements - compared with just 49% of adults. For teens who spend four or more hours a day on any single social media platform, the figure was as high as 69%. Continue reading...

President has faced criticism for not speaking about wildfire disaster earlier and using the wrong name when referring to MauiJoe and Jill Biden will travel to Hawaii next week to witness the impact of wildfires that devastated the town of Lahaina, the White House said on Wednesday, as the death toll from disaster rose to 110.Announcing the visit, which will take place on Monday, the White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, said: In Maui, the president and first lady will be welcomed by state and local leaders to see first-hand the impacts of the wildfires and the devastating loss of life and land that has occurred on the island, as well as discuss the next steps in the recovery effort. Continue reading...

Police raid on office of Marion County Record drew widespread condemnation by press freedom advocatesAuthorities have announced the controversial search warrant of a local Kansas newspaper office has been withdrawn.The Marion county attorney Joel Ensey announced that following a review of the search warrants made last Friday at multiple locations in Marion county, he has come to the conclusion that insufficient evidence exists to establish a legally sufficient nexus between this alleged crime and the places searched and the items seized". Continue reading...

Georgia prosecutor subjected to flurry of threats after Trump makes thinly veiled reference to N-word after latest chargesFani Willis, the Fulton county district attorney in Georgia who is prosecuting Donald Trump and 18 other allies over efforts to overturn the 2020 election, is facing a flurry of racist online abuse after the former president attacked his opponents using the word riggers", a thinly veiled play on the N-word.Hours after Willis had released the indictments on Monday night, Trump went on his social media platform Truth Social calling for all charges to be dropped and predicting he would exonerated. He did not mention Willis by name, but accused prosecutors of pursuing the wrong criminal targets. Continue reading...

Ruling prevents mifepristone being prescribed by non-doctors or shipped by mail but does not order drug off marketA US appeals court ruled on Wednesday to limit access to the abortion pill mifepristone, returning to regulations that were in place in several years ago, but will not be taking the medication off the market.The US court of appeals for the fifth circuit decided that the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) previous regulations for mifepristone were unlawful, Reuters reported. The FDA had ruled that the abortion pill could be taken at a later stage in pregnancy (70 days into pregnancy versus 49 days), shipped via mail, and could be prescribed from medical professionals who are not doctors. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed. You can read our latest report on the climate crisis here and find out key things to know about the climate bill hereThe US is the world's second largest emitter of greenhouse gases and the Inflation Reduction Act is widely forecast to slash these emissions, by as much as 48% by 2035, from 2005 levels, according to one analysis.These forecasts have a relatively wide range of estimates due to uncertainties such as economic growth but even in the most optimistic scenario the US will require further measures if it is to get to net zero emissions by 2050, as scientists have said is imperative if the world is to avoid catastrophic climate impacts. Continue reading...

Daniel Goldman says fabulist congressman paid someone to impersonate Republican House speaker's chief of staffA senior Democrat called Kevin McCarthy pathetic and shameful" on Wednesday, for continuing to protect George Santos even as a staffer to the fabulist Republican congressman faced charges for impersonating the House speaker's own chief of staff.Daniel Goldman of New York said: According to a federal indictment, George Santos paid someone to impersonate Kevin McCarthy's chief of staff to raise money, yet McCarthy continues to protect Santos. Continue reading...

Trump's second big lie is almost as dangerous to the future of American democracy as was his firstNot content with trying to destroy America's trust in the US election system with his big lie that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him, Donald Trump is now trying to destroy America's trust in the US judicial system with another big lie.The second big lie is that judges, prosecutors, witnesses and juries are corruptly prosecuting Trump as a means of keeping him from being re-elected.Robert Reich, a former US secretary of labor, is professor of public policy at the University of California, Berkeley, and the author of Saving Capitalism: For the Many, Not the Few and The Common Good. His new book, The System: Who Rigged It, How We Fix It, is out now. He is a Guardian US columnist. His newsletter is at robertreich.substack.com Continue reading...

Richard Blumenthal to consider other legal methods' to compel Yasir al-Rumayyan to speak to Senate oversight committeeA senior US lawmaker has challenged a Saudi Arabian official's refusal to voluntarily testify before a Senate committee investigating the kingdom's controversial golf deal with the PGA Tour, saying officials should be prepared to be subject to American laws and oversight if they invest in the US.Richard Blumenthal, a Democratic senator from Connecticut who serves as chairman of the Senate's permanent subcommittee on investigations, also said he would consider other legal methods" to force Yasir al-Rumayyan, the governor of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), to testify if he continued to refuse. Continue reading...

Former New York City mayor was known for wielding anti-racketeering law he is charged under in Georgia against mobstersRudy Giuliani has dined out for years on his aggressive use of Rico, the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, which he wielded with dramatic effect against New York mobsters in the 1980s.For his pains, he was granted an award by the Italian government. Later, as New York City mayor, he turned his use of the anti-racketeering law into a vote-getter, presenting himself as the hero of Rico. Continue reading...

Sales fell 5.4% over the last three months, a higher decline than expectations, according to second-quarter earnings reportThe rightwing backlash to the retail giant Target's Pride Month merchandise contributed to a sharp drop in sales over the last three months, the company announced on Wednesday. Target is reviewing how it will market its Pride Month merchandise next year.Over the last three months, sales at the retailer fell 5.4%, a higher decline than Wall Street expectations, according to the company's second-quarter earnings report. The company decreased its profit outlook for the year and said it expects further declines for the rest of the year. Continue reading...

Top-ranked university is one of 17 elite colleges that are accused of restricting financial aid packages for students, lawsuit claimsThe University of Chicago has agreed to pay $13.5m to students after settling a claim that it conspired with other universities to intentionally limit financial aid offers for students.The top-ranked university is one of 17 elite colleges that were accused of restricting financial aid packages for students, according to a federal lawsuit filed last year, Insider reported. Continue reading...

Aaron De Groft hoped to pocket commissions from auction of the works at show he arranged that was revealed to be a scamTrustees of a Florida art gallery are suing its former director, claiming he conspired to cash in on the exhibition and sale of fake paintings purportedly by the neo-expressionist Jean-Michel Basquiat.Aaron De Groft hoped to pocket tens of millions of dollars in commissions from auction of the works after legitimizing" them during a 2022 show he arranged at the Orlando Museum of Art (OMA), according to the lawsuit filed in central Florida on Monday and reported by the New York Times. Continue reading...

At least 106 people have died - a figure set to rise significantly as workers carry out the painstaking work of identifying remainsThe destruction in Lahaina stretches as far as the eye can see - homes burned down to their foundations, blackened cars, and piles of twisted metal from the fire that burned all the way to the sea. It is in these ruins that search teams will determine the true toll of the disaster.The wildfires that ravaged Maui last week exploded rapidly, moving at roughly a mile a minute, and giving residents little time to escape as flames consumed the historic town of Lahaina. At least 106 people died - a figure expected to rise significantly in the coming days as crews scour the rubble. A huge operation is under way to find remains and identify them, and officials have asked for patience. Continue reading...

The main figures in the Oscar-winning movie are embroiled in an ugly legal dispute. But the story never sat comfortably with many observersIn late 2009 I was sent to Baltimore for a Sports Illustrated feature story on Michael Oher, a rare household name among NFL offensive linemen. Oher was a few months into his rookie year and on the brink of a critical showdown against the Indianapolis Colts.In the book version of The Blind Side, which places Oher within the NFL's evolution into a passing league, he is set on a collision course with the sport's top quarterback cruncher - Indy's Dwight Freeney. And after devouring the Michael Lewis book, his Moneyball for football geeks, I was keen to dig into this and more with Oher. By this point he was over the book and unhappy with the much-hyped film that sprang from it and was due to premiere that same weekend. The Ravens PR team cautioned that Oher would turn me away faster than a corner blitzer if I asked too many questions about The Blind Side. Just how touchy a subject it was for him has become that much clearer in the wake of a feud that contains personal wounds, cultural rifts and career consequences that run deep. Continue reading...

One of my life's great joys has been mining the depths of my knowledge for my children. Just one proviso: don't try to explain every event in We Didn't Start The FireWhere does the urge to mansplain come from? Hold on, please don't rush straight to the comments to tell me; I've got my own theory. I think it's about one part male privilege to five parts something more primal: a vestigial survival urge that we learn at school.In the world of the small, awkward boy, knowing stuff is currency: grownups are impressed when you can explain the workings of a trimaran; other youths show grudging respect if you can display an in-depth knowledge of Warhammer 40k lore. This feeling never entirely leaves us, so we go out into the world stepping on endless metaphorical rakes as we mistake polite lack of interest for rapt attention. Some of us grow out of this, have it gently bullied out of us by romantic partners or learn to sense when it's not wanted. Others never quite kick the habit and spend their lives missing stifled yawns or lecturing astrophysicists about their own fields of expertise. Continue reading...

Fani Willis did not charge these individuals, but that doesn't mean they can never face penalties for their involvement in election fraud plotThe Georgia district attorney Fani Willis delivered an extensive 41-count indictment against former president Donald Trump and 18 others over their plot to subvert the 2020 US presidential election, unsealed late on Monday night. While each defendant faces a different list of charges, all 19 have been charged with racketeering in violation of Georgia's powerful Rico (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) Act, which carries a sentence of five to 20 years.The racketeering charge also lists 30 unindicted co-conspirators", as participants in the criminal enterprise in Fulton county, Georgia, and elsewhere". Continue reading...

Cards depicting albums by Brooklyn-born rapper are part of initiative to celebrate 50th anniversary of hip-hopForget new lines of sneakers or T-shirts: the most sought-after merchandise this month can be found in public libraries in Brooklyn.In collaboration with Roc Nation, an entertainment company founded by Jay-Z, the Brooklyn Public Library is celebrating the 50th anniversary of hip-hop by issuing limited-edition library cards featuring the rapper, who was born in the New York borough. Continue reading...

The Republican governor of Georgia refutes the former president's claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen, and more. Plus: the slow recovery process after Hawaii's wildfiresGood morning.The fallout continues from the latest criminal indictment of Donald Trump, this time in Georgia on state racketeering and conspiracy charges over efforts to reverse his defeat in the 2020 presidential election.Chris Christie, the Republican former governor of New Jersey, immediately endorsed Kemp's statement. This is a strong leader telling the truth. Others should try it," said Christie, who is challenging Trump for the party's 2024 presidential nomination.Polls now put Christie as second to Trump's 40-point lead in New Hampshire as Ron DeSantis fades in the race.What exactly is the Georgia racketeering Rico" law that prosecutors used to charge Trump and his cohorts? The basic premise of the Rico charge is that the unlawful enterprise was built and established and maintained for the singular unlawful purpose to overthrow the election and deny Georgians their right to vote," said Anthony Michael Kreis, a Georgia State University law professor.Thirty unnamed, unindicted co-conspirators are mentioned in the racketeering charge. While Georgia prosecutors charged Trump alongside 18 of his closest confidantes, the racketeering charge also detailed the involvement of 30 unnamed co-conspirators.Who are the main characters in Trump's Georgia case? Here's a detailed breakdown of Trump's 18 co-defendants, who include the lawyers Rudy Giuliani and John Eastman, and Mark Meadows, Trump's former White House chief of staff.Maui county has released the first names of people killed in last week's wildfires, as search and rescue efforts continue to recover the bodies of the victims.One survivors recounted her harrowing escape from the Maui blaze by jumping into the ocean alongside infants, elderly people and burn victims. Continue reading...

Wide-ranging Georgia election subversion indictment is inappropriate, claims House judiciary panel member Ken BuckThe indictment of Donald Trump and 18 allies for election subversion in Georgia is a nuclear bomb where a bullet would have been appropriate", a Republican member of the House judiciary committee said.It is a Rico charge primarily," Ken Buck of Colorado told MSNBC, referring to racketeering law under which Trump and others are charged. Continue reading...

Ex-president and allies portray drive to stay in power as free speech matter, but ex-DoJ officials say his actions went beyondDonald Trump's dubious defense that he was exercising his free-speech rights in response to a four-count federal criminal indictment charging him with pushing illegal schemes to overturn his 2020 election loss is prompting ex-Department of Justice officials and scholars to criticize such claims as bogus and as threats to the rule of law.Despite special counsel Jack Smith's detailed 45-page, four-count indictment of Trump for promoting several illegal schemes including organizing slates of fake electors in seven states to thwart Joe Biden's victory, Trump and some top Republican allies have repeatedly portrayed his multi-pronged drive to stay in power as a free speech matter. Continue reading...

Post-affirmative action, Black schools show why cultivating diverse campuses should extend beyond the application processEver since Cheyney University opened in 1837, historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) have provided educational access to students who were once barred from attending white institutions. By the 1890s, to support newly freed Black Americans following the civil war, more than 200 HBCUs had opened. And by the 1950s, more than 90% of Black undergraduates in the country were attending Black schools.Once the US supreme court ended state-mandated segregation with its 1954 decision in Brown v Board of Education, followed by the introduction of affirmative action policies designed to rectify segregation's effects, the number of Black students at predominantly white colleges grew significantly. Still, HBCUs remained a touchstone for Black students. So it might be surprising to learn that some experts argue that in light of the supreme court striking down affirmative action earlier this summer, HBCUs could be models for race-blind admissions. Continue reading...

Ron DeSantis has put the rightwing activist Christopher Rufo in charge of reforming' a liberal arts college and remaking it in a rightwing moldRon DeSantis's presidential campaign is flailing: the Florida governor, once considered a formidable contestant for the Republican nomination, is polling at a pathetic 14.8% among the Republican contenders. His camp is struggling to raise money, and the candidate's public appearances have revealed him to be interpersonally unpleasant - coming off stiff, judgmental and creepy.At the Iowa state fair last week, DeSantis was caught on video telling a little girl, who was clutching a fairground treat, that's probably a lot of sugar". The governor, a man so joyless that he scolded a child for eating candy, was later the subject of a taunting banner flown over one of his events: Be Likable, Ron!"Moira Donegan is a Guardian US columnist Continue reading...

The movement itself may have grown quieter - but its ideas have percolated into public discourse, freed from their ridiculous premiseIt is the nature of conspiracy theories to turn tragedy into grist, to transform grief and human suffering into an abstract game. The latest horrifying example came out of news late July that Barack Obama's chef Tafari Campbell had drowned in the waters off Martha's Vineyard. What was a terrible accident and a tragic loss for Campbell's family and friends was almost immediately seized upon by the paranoid corners of the internet as proof that somehow Barack and Michelle Obama had been involved in an assassination.It was not the first time that conspiracists have seized on a senseless death as proof of a deeper plot: the 1993 suicide of Vince Foster, lawyer in the Clinton White House, and the murder of the DNC staffer Seth Rich during the 2016 presidential campaign were both used as proof of a Clinton body count" by the right wing, a playbook that was immediately resurrected as news of Campbell's death broke. The difference was that those earlier conspiracy theories were focused almost entirely on the Clintons, while the current iteration is far more diffuse and its targets far more wide-reaching. Continue reading...

Roughly 2,700 buildings were destroyed and at least 101 people lost their lives in the devastating fires that swept through MauiA long road to recovery lies ahead of Lahaina, the vibrant and historic town tucked along the western coast of Maui that now stands in smoldering ruins.Roughly 2,700 buildings were destroyed by the wind-whipped flames and at least 101 people have lost their lives. Search and rescue efforts to recover the bodies of the victims, as well as relief efforts to support the thousands of displaced survivors, are at the center of focus. But tons of charred debris will need to be removed from the island before communities can begin to heal. Continue reading...

Every week, we play football for an hour and then retire to the pub to talk tactics, kids, marriage and work. It's so much more than sportIt's the middle of summer, which means a new football season. The glory game hardly sleeps these days: we're in the midst of the Women's World Cup and there is the constant spectre of the Saudi power grab on men's elite football. As a fan, I'll still embrace this hypothetical moment of renewal. But the big kick-off for me will come in early September with the return of the Thursday night football game that, for the last 25 years, I've played in almost every week.I first got involved with it in 1998, when I was invited along by friends in the time-honoured way. Most of my Thursday evenings since then, amid changes of jobs and circumstance, have been defined by a routine of ferreting around the house for contact lenses, grabbing whatever bits of kit I can find and shoving a towel into a tatty old orange bag. At about 8.20pm, summoned by the beep of a horn outside the house, I'll squeeze into the back of a car that was patently not designed for four portly middle-aged men.Graham Snowdon is the acting editor of Guardian Weekly Continue reading...

There are prompts to add around 20% for simply buying a pint of milk at the local shop or picking up a coffee. How can we stop this madness?The US may be a bitterly divided country, but I think I've found a topic which pretty much everyone can unite behind: tipping culture is out of control. The US norm of tipping at least 20% on a meal, and at (the very, very) least $1 a drink at a bar, has always confused European tourists. In recent years, however, tipping prompts have become so ubiquitous, have spread to so many new areas of commerce, that even Americans are confused about when and where a tip is appropriate.There is now almost no payment transaction in the US that doesn't involve a prompt for a tip. If you go to get a coffee or pick up a takeout order, for example, an electronic screen will almost certainly get swivelled in your direction, asking if you want to add a 20%, 25% or 30% tip. More confusingly, however, if you go to the local convenience store to buy a pint of milk or a pack of crisps, chances are you'll still see that tip screen pointed at you. You're even prompted to leave a tip at some self-checkouts.Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

The 25-year-old was a shock winner in the 100m at July's US championships. Now he's aiming for more glory in Budapest against the world's bestHe thought he had finished fourth. Premature cheers of Coleman!" and Lyles!" echoed around Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon last month. But Cravont Charleston, the 25-year-old without a shoe sponsor, ultimately pipped former world champions Christian Coleman and Noah Lyles to secure the 100m title in 9.95 seconds in his US championships debut.I always knew I could win," Charleston quipped. [My coach Allen] Johnson said to me, I told you so.'" Continue reading...