Jacob Riis Beach hosts the day of body positivity and fun, in the city at the heart of the fat acceptance movementFat Beach Day events are springing up across the US in an effort to fight back against fat-phobia, reclaim safe spaces for the community and honor plus-size culture. Today, one of these celebrations is being held to coincide with Pride month at Jacob Riis Beach in New York, a location deeply ensconced in the city's activism space.We're going through something culturally that is impacting us every day on an individual level and a systemic level," said Jordan Underwood, the event organizer. We're really trying to open up a space for people to be themselves." Continue reading...
Just as sanity looks like returning in Britain, the French are tearing each other apart; can the masked hero Kylian Mbappe save the day?Following the UK's election campaign feels soothing for a French political observer. The sight of Britain recovering its senses after years of shambles is a joy like no other; like seeing a dear friend turning a corner after a really bad patch. Meanwhile, France, in a sudden fit of rage, decided to overturn the table. The president dissolved parliament, but it is as if he had dissolved the whole country. And, in return, French voters are playing with the suicidal idea of giving him either a far-right or a far-left majority in the national assembly.Many voters have already warned that, if confronted with such a stark choice in the second round, they will simply refuse to choose between the xenophobic far-right or the antisemitic far-left alliance, both Putin admirers. While French artists have been eerily silent during this snap campaign, ducking down, refusing to take sides, one man, Kylian Mbappe, rose to the challenge and asked his compatriots not only to vote but to fight the extremes. Asked whether he made any distinctions between the far right and far left, he replied that, non, they were the same to him. Their ideas are divisive. I'm for ideas that unite." Liberte, egalite, Mbappe! A few hours later, he was breaking his nose on the pitch; he has since reappeared as a superhero with a tricolour protective mask. Continue reading...
America's evangelicals sense a chance to impose a radical agenda and resist what they see as a tide of liberal secularismGod's army is on the march. And many of its foot soldiers are wearing Make America great again" regalia, sensing that their unlikely standard bearer, former US president Donald Trump, is once again close to the promised land.I do not believe that America can survive another four years of Joe Biden," Ralph Reed, founder and chair of the Faith & Freedom Coalition, told a gathering of the religious right in Washington on Friday. I haven't felt this way since Jimmy Carter was president." The audience burst into knowing laughter. Continue reading...
Burning slopes are now battered by golf ball-sized hail and 8in of rain, creating a grim mix of extreme weather eventsIt's been a harrowing week of fire and flood in New Mexico. Just days after a pair of fast-moving fires roared across drought-stricken landscapes and into communities, a tropical storm swirled north, unleashing downpours and golf ball-sized hail over scorched slopes that had only just burned.As the dueling dangers of two weather extremes converged, charred debris flowed into neighborhoods, crews were temporarily evacuated from the fire fight as emergency officials pivoted from fire support to flood rescues, and strong winds swept up dried soils to create one of the largest dust storms the state has ever seen. Continue reading...
Clark made a bit of a wishy-washy statement, but after the shrill rightwing complaints, she should be applauded for speaking upYou don't need to know anything about basketball to have heard of Caitlin Clark. She's a record-breaking superstar who has helped take women's basketball to new heights. Unfortunately, she's also been shoved into a starring role in the culture wars. An awful lot of conservative men, who don't ordinarily give a damn about women's sports, have decided that she provides a very convenient excuse for them to be racist and misogynistic on main. Although, to be fair, they don't normally need an excuse. Continue reading...
Anti-gun control and gun-safety advocates prepare for fall elections, with National Rifle Association beset by woesAnti-gun-control groups and gun-safety advocates are launching hefty voter-mobilization drives this year with the stakes high in the fall elections given the stark differences on gun violence policy between Joe Biden and Donald Trump.But the long-powerful National Rifle Association (NRA), which has been beset with financial and legal headaches for several years, is not expected to be nearly as active as in 2016, when it spent more than $31m to back Trump's victorious campaign by boosting his political fortunes in key states, say gun experts and ex-NRA insiders. Continue reading...
Anna Lee Dozier bought ceramic vessel at Maryland thrift store but it will now reside in Mexico City's main museumMexico has regained a lost ancient Maya vase because of a US woman who bought the artefact for less than $5 at a thrift store.Anne Lee Dozier recently received an expression of gratitude from the Mexican embassy in her home town of Washington DC for her role in reuniting the 1,200-to 1,800-year-old vase with its motherland. Continue reading...
An impatient federation has forced a roster reboot in preparation for 2026 but the quality of the squad has dwindled as players shun the chance to play abroad
After chaos in 2020, the switch from non-partisan overseer to commercial TV has some critics fearing a slippery slopeWill you shut up, man?" It was hardly oratory worthy of Abraham Lincoln, but Joe Biden's primal plea in the face of relentless interruptions and heckling from Donald Trump provided a defining soundbite of the 2020 presidential debates.The two will face each other again on Thursday for the first of two head-to-head debates for the 2024 campaign, under new rules designed to prevent matters degenerating as they did four years ago. The US president and the former president will meet in a TV studio without the presence of a partisan audience, which some saw as an essential ingredient of Trump's rabble-rousing approach. And to counteract the repeated butting-in that so irked Biden, the candidates will have their microphones muted when they are not speaking. Continue reading...
The host country's expectations have been transformed, while fans of all 24 countries have brought colour to these EurosThis Euro tournament is inspiring. There had been only 10 minutes of the opening game when Florian Wirtz's goal against Scotland completely set us all off. My seven-year-old daughter covered her ears because she thought it was too loud in the stadium. But she was comforted by a badge that a Scottish fan later gave her. This is now her treasure.Since that opening night there has been a real party in Germany. A few days later I was in Dortmund for the match between Turkey and Georgia. The atmosphere was indescribable; I've rarely experienced anything like it. The fans from both sides pushed their team to the limit. Even those in the main stand stood up and you couldn't look away for a second. I'm very happy to have been there. Continue reading...
Domestic abusers still may not possess guns, but first case decided since 2022 Bruen decision likely won't be the lastThe US supreme court decided to uphold a 30-year-old federal law prohibiting subjects of domestic violence restraining orders (DVROs) from possessing guns. In Friday's 8-1 decision, justices - except Clarence Thomas - agreed that Zackey Rahimi's constitutional rights were not violated when his guns were confiscated following a lengthy history of gun crimes and abuse against his then girlfriend and mother of his child.While the ruling is not a surprise to many experts who heard the 7 November 2023 oral argument, it represents a small victory for those who advocate for protection orders like DVROs and work with survivors of domestic abuse. Continue reading...
Sean O'Brien accepts invitation as union says its message needs to be heard by as wide an audience as possible'Sean O'Brien, the president of the Teamsters union, will speak at the Republican national convention in Milwaukee next month, a move that could spell trouble for Joe Biden's support among blue-collar workers ahead of the November election.Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, announced on Friday on his Truth Social platform that O'Brien had accepted his invitation to speak at the convention and that he was looking forward to seeing him represent the Teamsters. Continue reading...
Art installation at Gass Peak was taken down on Thursday, police say, citing public safety and environmental concerns'The mysterious monolith that appeared in the Nevada desert has been removed, years after similar mystifying, gleaming objects first appeared in the deserts of Utah during the Covid-19 pandemic and captured the world's imagination.Las Vegas police announced the discovery of the monolith - an art installation - at Gass Peak, roughly 40 miles (64.4km) north of the city, on Monday. Continue reading...
Shooting occurred at Mad Butcher grocery store in Fordyce, a city of about 3,200 people 65 miles south of Little RockThree people were killed and 10 others were wounded - including at least two law enforcement officers - when a shooter opened fire on Friday at a grocery store in Arkansas, police said.The shooting occurred on Friday morning at the Mad Butcher grocery store in Fordyce. The suspected shooter was critically injured after being shot by police, Arkansas state police said. The wounded officers did not have life-threatening injuries. Continue reading...
Dan Patrick pledges to emulate Louisiana with bill that would force schools to display Ten CommandmentsA leading Texas Republican has pledged to emulate Louisiana by passing a bill that would force public schools to display the Ten Commandments.Dan Patrick, Texas's lieutenant governor, said on Friday he would pass Bill 1515 mandating the biblical stricture in all classrooms, in the next session of the state senate, the upper legislative chamber over which he presides. Continue reading...
Six Republicans accused of submitting certificates to Congress falsely declaring Trump the winner in 2020A Nevada state court judge dismissed a criminal indictment on Friday against six Republicans accused of submitting certificates to Congress falsely declaring Donald Trump the winner of the state's 2020 presidential election, potentially killing the case with a ruling that state prosecutors chose the wrong venue to file the case.Nevada's attorney general, Aaron Ford, stood in a Las Vegas courtroom a moment after the Clark county district court judge Mary Kay Holthus delivered her ruling, declaring that he would take the case directly to the state supreme court. Continue reading...
Airline to create advisory group, work with NAACP and update policies for customer-discrimination claimsAmerican Airlines' CEO Robert Isom has said the airline - the world's largest - will implement new measures, including an advisory group, after eight Black passengers were wrongly removed from a Phoenix to New York flight after a complaint about body odor.The removal caused outrage, and three of the passengers involved in the January incident - who were not seated together and did not know each other - sued the carrier. They said in a statement that American Airlines singled us out for being black, embarrassed us, and humiliated us". Continue reading...
Boeing 737 from Las Vegas to Oklahoma City dipped above Yukon nine miles from airport, sounding like wall of wind'The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating a Southwest Airlines fight after it flew several hundred feet above a neighborhood in Yukon, Oklahoma.Shortly after 12am on Wednesday, Southwest flight 4069 - a Boeing 737 from Las Vegas - was approximately nine miles away from Oklahoma City's Will Rogers World airport when it dipped to approximately 525ft above Yukon, according to flight data from Flightradar24.com. Continue reading...
A conflict that no one wants - least of all Lebanon - looks closer than ever as rhetoric hardensAntony Blinken spelled out the paradox when he spoke in Washington on Tuesday. Despite the rapidly escalating rhetoric, and the clashes along the Israel-Lebanon border, the US secretary of state insisted: I don't think any of the potential belligerents actually want to see a war or conflict spread. I don't believe Israel does. I don't believe Hezbollah does. Lebanon certainly doesn't because it would suffer the most. I don't believe that Iran does. And yet you have momentum potentially in that direction."This week, the Israeli foreign minister, Israel Katz, said a decision on an all-out war with Hezbollah was coming soon, and generals said their plans for an offensive into Lebanon were signed off. Hezbollah published drone footage of Israeli sites including key infrastructure in Haifa, and its leader, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, warned of a war without rules or ceilings". Continue reading...
DoJ will reportedly offer deferred prosecution agreement requiring federal monitor oversee safety improvementsThe US justice department is expected to allow the planemaker Boeing to escape criminal prosecution for violating the terms of a 2021 settlement related to the fatal 737 Max crashes in 2018 and 2019, the New York Times reported on Friday.The department plans to offer Boeing a deferred prosecution agreement, which requires the company to install a federal monitor to oversee safety improvements, the Times reported, citing people familiar with the situation. Continue reading...
The black-belt group of good Samaritans' rescued an employee at a Texas cellphone store just in time'A family of taekwondo instructors fought off a man who was sexually assaulting a woman next to their dojo in Texas and detained him until sheriff's deputies could arrive to arrest him, according to authorities.In a statement issued on Thursday, the sheriff of Harris county - which encompasses Houston - thanked Han An, his wife, Hong An, and their three children Hannah, Simon and Christian for what he called quick action in protecting others". Continue reading...
Longtime Trump ally is supposed to begin serving his four-month sentence for contempt of Congress on 1 JulySteve Bannon, a longtime ally of Donald Trump, asked the supreme court on Friday to delay his prison sentence while he fights his convictions for defying a subpoena from the House committee that investigated the attack on US Capitol.
Alvin Bragg has received onslaught of threats against him and other officials since guilty verdict in hush-money trialAlvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney who prosecuted Donald Trump in his felony trial, has asked a judge to extend a gag order against the ex-president after an onslaught of threats and harassment against him and other officials since the guilty verdict.The gag order was placed on Trump before the start of the felony trial. It prevented the former president from attacking witnesses, court staff, jurors and relatives of Judge Juan Merchan, who oversaw the trial. Continue reading...
California family lets Diesel live his best life' with his new herd after he got loose on a camping tripA donkey spotted apparently living with a herd of wild elk in a video that went viral on the internet has been identified as Diesel, a once beloved pet who had apparently run away five years ago.The video was taken earlier this year, when Max Fennell, a hunter in northern California, filmed a group of wild elk apparently hanging out with a donkey who appeared to be a member of their herd. Continue reading...
Footage was unsealed in court action by families of victims who claim Saudi government was complicit in eventA 25-year-old video has come to light of a man identified by the FBI as a Saudi intelligence agent filming locations in the center of Washington three months before Al-Qaida decided to carry out the 9/11 attacks.The footage, shot in the summer of 1999 and in the possession of the FBI, was unsealed in a court action by families of the victims of 9/11, who claim that Saudi Arabia's government was complicit in the event, which the country's rulers deny. It was obtained by CBS and shown on the 60 Minutes program. Continue reading...
Traumatic brain injuries are common among young players, who are left dealing with them long after their athletic careers are overThe six-month stretch where I was both going through concussion-related symptoms and continuing to engage in football activities was the worst time of my life," former Vanderbilt offensive lineman John Jabo" Burrow told us by email of his time in college football.That stretch came between spring practice in 2011, when he experienced what he considers to be an undiagnosed concussion, and the first game of that fall season, after which he chose to medically retire from a sport which is treated like a religion in the small city where he grew up.Former players we spoke to for The End of College Football have been granted anonymity to protect them from reprisal and in accordance with academic research protocols and research ethics board requirements. Continue reading...
Britain is complicit in mass slaughter on a horrifying scale. But those campaigning for our votes pretend it's not happeningIs this a serious country or not? It is egregious enough that this general election campaign is so stripped of discussion about the defining issues facing us at home for the next half decade, whether that be public spending, the NHS or education. But it is especially shocking how quickly the butchery in Gaza - and the position of this imploding government and its successor - has been forgotten.This week alone, Israel has threatened all out war" with Lebanon, while Hezbollah's leader threatens a war without rules or ceilings", dangling the prospect of a far graver bloodbath than that unleashed by Israel's genocidal rampage in Gaza. The spokesperson of the Israel Defense Forces has admitted that Hamas cannot be destroyed militarily: this amounts to a confession that the central war goal used to justify the slaughter of tens of thousands is unattainable. And the UN has released a report offering evidence as to how Israel's bombing campaign in Gaza may have systematically violated the laws of war on protecting civilians and civilian infrastructure.Owen Jones is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...
by Stephen Starr in Shelby County, Ohio on (#6NP93)
A growing number of rural Americans now plan to vote for Biden, fearing Trump could cost farmers againFor two decades, Christopher Gibbs, a row crop and cattle farmer in Shelby county, Ohio, was an ardent Republican party member.He served as chair of his county's Republican party branch for seven years and when Donald Trump became the party's presidential candidate in 2016, Gibbs, like more than 80% of Shelby county voters, fell in line. Continue reading...
800m gold medallist from Tokyo took a break last year for her mental health but is back and focusing on ParisGrace, gratitude, appreciation," says Athing Mu of her approach to running, which by no small coincidence also happens to be her approach to life. We're talking about learning and growth, about setbacks and what they can teach you, about expectations and when to let them go. About how to take joy from the process in this most brutally unequivocal of sports, where you win or you lose based on fractions of a second.Things are going to happen," she says with a wisdom beyond her 22 years, via a video link from Los Angeles, where she lives and trains. Say I run 10 more years. In those years, so many things will happen. It's not going to be all smooth sailing. Problems that we have are lessons that we learn." Continue reading...
Tim Mellon, who said US safety net was slavery redux', has now given $75m to Trump and $25m to support RFK JrBillionaire banking heir Tim Mellon gave $50m to Donald Trump's election campaign after the former US president's hush-money trial in New York, a sum that significantly boosted Trump's post-conviction cash haul.Mellon, a reclusive scion of the banking dynasty founded in America's gilded age, gave the sum to Trump's political action committee Make America Great Again. According to federal filings, Mellon, 81, has now given $75m to Trump, and $25m to a Pac fund supporting the independent candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr, this year. Continue reading...
This week, a musical genius's stuff goes on sale for absurd sums and a heatwave hits New YorkThere is nothing more poignant, or grippingly voyeuristic, than a brass-tacks estate sale after the death of a legend. At Doyle Auctions on the east side of Manhattan this week, the personal effects of Stephen Sondheim, who died in 2021, aged 91, went under the hammer, providing superfans with an opportunity to bid on his gloomy furniture and collection of old crossword puzzles. There hasn't been such excitement in the auction world since Joan Didion's paperclips flew out the door at Stair Galleries two years ago for a cool $1,300. Continue reading...
Many prisoners clean toilets and prep food with no pay - as the state charges $50 a day for their incarcerationA $9bn food services company is using prisoners to make meals for other prisoners that can cost up to $30 - but it's not paying them.Food service provider Aramark runs a prison program called In2Work that hasn't been paying prisoners for the work they've been doing for the company. The work includes making premium meals that family and friends can purchase for their loved ones in prison. Continue reading...
by Bethan Williams, Niall Hignett, Hassan Ali, Paris on (#6NP6R)
From disappointments on Gaza and climate to hope on housing, six 18- to 24-year-olds share their thoughtsIn 2019, Jeremy Corbyn's Labour party embraced the concept of the green new deal, a comprehensive set of integrated policies ranging from creating green jobs to improving home insulation. I was a young climate activist about to vote in a general election for the first time, so a concrete programme for tackling the climate crisis was the push I needed to vote Labour.Bethan Williams lives in Cardiff Continue reading...
Exports of Russian weapons would add to tensions on Korean peninsula, experts say. Plus, Winklevoss twins donate $1m each to TrumpGood morning.Vladimir Putin's suggestion that Russia could supply weapons to North Korea is incredibly concerning", a senior US official said, days after the Russian president and Kim Jong-un signed a defense pact that requires their countries to provide immediate military assistance if either is attacked.What is North Korea's involvement in Russia's invasion of Ukraine? The US and South Korea say there is evidence that Pyongyang has already provided significant numbers of ballistic missiles and artillery shells to Russia. North Korea has described the allegations as absurd".What do the new Israeli powers cover? Everything from building regulations to the administration of agriculture, forestry, parks and bathing locations. Lawyers have long warned that transferring them from military to political control would risk bringing Israel into conflict with its responsibilities under international law. Continue reading...
If the UK seems less attractive to rich people who crave sunny tax havens, so be itDear Mr and & Mrs Loadsadosh,I see you are leaving us. According to the people whose job it is to count our resident millionaires (proper millionaires, not just the couple with a gentrified house in Hackney), you're upping sticks and heading to places more amenable.Nels Abbey is a writer, broadcaster and former banker. He is the author of Hip-Hop MBA: Lessons in Cut-Throat Capitalism from Rap's Moguls and the founder of Uppity: The Intellectual Playground Continue reading...
Although the Washington Post uproar has highlighted cultural differences, we're probably heading to the same placeWhen I first joined Columbia Journalism School as a faculty member in the sweltering summer of 2010, the joke was that I had been recruited to help instill the high ethical standards of British journalism" in the student body. I opened with this in my introductory lectures and it always raised a laugh.Around that time, the Guardian was breaking story after story about news organizations, particularly the Murdoch-owned News of the World, hacking private phones to access information. The Guardian's investigations often met a muted response from the rest of the British press, which felt that phone-hacking was a scandal hidden in plain sight"; everyone was aware of tabloid tactics, if not directly using them. Continue reading...
Again and again, the conservative movement promotes cases based on inaccuracies, falsehoods and outright deceptionsThe first of many lies at the center of Moore v United States, the major tax case that the supreme court decided on Thursday, was that the issue at stake was an existing tax law.Conservative movement lawyers had taken up the cause of Charles and Kathleen Moore, a Washington state couple who own a substantial stake in an India-based company that manufactures farm equipment. The Moores were given a one-time, $15,000 tax bill for their stake in the company under 2017's Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the law colloquially known as the Trump tax cut. To pay for the steep cuts to federal revenue, that bill included a tax on foreign assets held by American shareholders - hence the bill that the Moores received from the IRS.Moira Donegan is a Guardian US columnist Continue reading...
Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie and Christian Pulisic discuss the pressure of a tournament in front of a home crowd and their expectations for this summerDo you feel pressure?" Tyler Adams asks teammate Weston McKennie. I don't feel pressure."Speaking before the USMNT's first major tournament on home soil since 2016, McKennie echoes the sentiment of his captain. I wouldn't say it's added pressure, I would say it's added excitement. We spend our careers playing over in Europe and we come back [to the US] every once in a while with the national team. I think the World Cup and Copa America allow friends and family that maybe haven't been able to see us play in a long time to watch us, and also fans who can't get over to Europe to watch a game or to even introduce new people to the game. Continue reading...
Washington says Moscow's influence over company poses significant risk, as Kaspersky argues its activities do not threaten US securityJoe Biden's administration has banned Russia-based cybersecurity firm Kaspersky from providing its popular antivirus products in the US over national security concerns.Kaspersky will generally no longer be able to, among other activities, sell its software within the United States or provide updates to software already in use," said a commerce department statement. The announcement came after a lengthy investigation found Kaspersky's continued operations in the United States presented a national security risk due to the Russian government's offensive cyber capabilities and capacity to influence or direct Kaspersky's operations". Continue reading...
Lionel Messi's through ball led to Julian Alvarez's goal in the 49th minute, then he assisted on Lautaro Martinez's goal in the 88th as Argentina began the defense of their Copa America title with a 2-0 victory over Canada on Thursday night.Argentina are seeking their third straight major title after winning the 2021 Copa America and the 2022 World Cup. Continue reading...
Manhattan prosecutors decline to pursue charges against dozens of students who occupied building in April protestDozens of pro-Palestinian student protesters arrested in April after occupying and barricading a building at Columbia University in New York City have had all criminal charges against them dropped, Manhattan prosecutors said at a court hearing.The hearing at the Manhattan criminal courthouse came seven weeks after Columbia administrators called in hundreds of armed and heavily armored police officers to the university's campus in a high-profile law-enforcement response that was broadcast live on national news channels. Continue reading...
Incumbent Bob Good, chair of far-right Freedom Caucus, appeals for patience as votes counted in congressional raceThe conservative US representative Bob Good is asking for patience from the people of Virginia's fifth district over the coming weeks" as he hopes the final ballot count from Tuesday's primary will allow him to fend off a fellow Republican challenger endorsed by former president Donald Trump.Good, who chairs the hard-right House Freedom Caucus, currently trails state senator John McGuire by a little more than 300 votes as elections officials finalize their vote counts and mail-in ballots continue to trickle in. Continue reading...
Crypto tycoons claim Biden has openly declared war against crypto' in lengthy critique of administration policyCryptocurrency tycoons the Winklevoss twins have each donated $1m in bitcoin to Donald Trump's campaign and pledged to vote for the former president in November, claiming Joe Biden had openly declared war against crypto".Trump is pro-Bitcoin, pro-crypto, pro-business", Cameron Winklevoss declared on X, formerly Twitter, on Thursday. And he will put an end to the Biden Administration's war on crypto." Continue reading...
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