August 26, 2021

It's 'unconscionable' that Ron DeSantis hasn't applied for food aid for kids, Fried says

DeSantis’ administration hasn’t said why it hasn’t requested the money, which has no strings attached for the state.

TALLAHASSEE — Child hunger groups and Florida’s top elected Democrat urged Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday to tap into $820 million in federal aid money that would provide meals for more than 2 million children in low-income households.

Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried said it was “unconscionable” that DeSantis’ administration hasn’t requested the money, which has no strings attached. All the state has to do it ask, Fried said.

“Every day that this aid is delayed is another night where a child would go to bed hungry that could have been prevented,” said Fried, a Democrat looking to challenge DeSantis’ re-election next year. “The people of Florida can’t afford the governor leaving money on the table.”

Why the DeSantis administration has not applied for the money is unclear. Neither his office nor the Department of Children and Families, which would distribute the money, has responded to requests for comment this week.

https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida-politics/2021/08/26/its-unconscionable-that-ron-desantis-hasnt-applied-for-food-aid-for-kids-fried-says/

August 26, 2021

Former FSU receiver Travis Rudolph invokes stand your ground law in murder case

Rudolph said in a court filing last week that he acted in self-defense when he fatally shot one man and hurt another.

Travis Rudolph, the former Florida State and NFL receiver, is asking for the murder charge and three others against him to be dropped because he acted in self-defense in an April shooting.

Rudolph’s attorney, Marc Shiner, outlined the self-defense claim in a court filing last week that gives Rudolph’s first public account of the incident.

According to the filing, the incident began when Rudolph’s girlfriend accused him of cheating on her. She hit Rudolph on the head with a tequila bottle, broke his phone and destroyed a video game system. The woman told two people — whose names are redacted — that Rudolph slammed her to the ground. She texted that they should go to Rudolph’s home and “shoot his s--t up.” She also told Rudolph’s sister that she was sending someone over to kill Rudolph.

Around midnight, four men arrived at the Palm Beach County home where Rudolph was living with his mom and older brother. Rudolph believed that at least one of the visitors was in a gang. He put his AR-15 near the front door before going outside.

https://www.tampabay.com/sports/seminoles/2021/08/26/former-fsu-receiver-travis-rudolph-invokes-stand-your-ground-law-in-murder-case/

August 26, 2021

Florida kite surfer killed as high winds slam him into a house

The man hadn’t even gotten into the water yet when he pushed against the second floor of the house in Fort Lauderdale Beach, officials said.

FORT LAUDERDALE — A kite surfer died Wednesday after a strong wind picked the man off the ground, carried him 400 feet and slammed him into the second floor of a house on Fort Lauderdale Beach, authorities said.

Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue officials said the kite surfer hadn’t even gotten into the water yet when a strong wind lifted him into the air and into the house. He was taken to a hospital, where he died a few hours later.

The victim’s name was not immediately released.

In the sport, participants usually hook a large kite to a body harness, hold onto a bar and then put their feet into straps attached to a surfboard. They then use the kite to pull them through the water.

https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida/2021/08/26/florida-kite-surfer-killed-as-high-winds-slam-him-into-a-house/

August 26, 2021

T-Mobile Hacker Who Stole Data on 50 Million Customers: 'Their Security Is Awful'

A 21-year-old American said he used an unprotected router to access millions of customer records in the mobile carrier’s latest breach

The hacker who is taking responsibility for breaking into T-Mobile US Inc.’s systems said the wireless company’s lax security eased his path into a cache of records with personal details on more than 50 million people and counting.

John Binns, a 21-year-old American who moved to Turkey a few years ago, told The Wall Street Journal he was behind the security breach. Mr. Binns, who since 2017 has used several online aliases, communicated with the Journal in Telegram messages from an account that discussed details of the hack before they were widely known.

The August intrusion was the latest in a string of high-profile breaches at U.S. companies that have allowed thieves to walk away with troves of personal details on consumers. A booming industry of cybersecurity consultants, software suppliers and incident-response teams have so far failed to turn the tide against hackers and identity thieves who fuel their businesses by tapping these deep reservoirs of stolen corporate data.

The breach is the third major customer data leak that T-Mobile has disclosed in the past two years. The Bellevue, Wash., company is the second-largest U.S. mobile carrier with roughly 90 million cellphones connecting to its networks.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/t-mobile-hacker-who-stole-data-on-50-million-customers-their-security-is-awful-11629985105

August 26, 2021

World's Largest Chip Maker to Raise Prices, Threatening Costlier Electronics

Source: Wall Street Journal

TSMC to increase prices of most advanced chips by roughly 10%; less advanced chips will cost about 20% more

The world’s largest contract chip maker is raising prices by as much as 20%, according to people familiar with the matter, a move that could result in consumers paying more for electronics.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. plans to increase the prices of its most advanced chips by roughly 10%, while less advanced chips used by customers like auto makers will cost about 20% more, these people said. The higher prices will generally take effect late this year or next year, the people said.

Apple Inc. is one of TSMC’s largest customers and its iPhones use advanced microprocessors made in TSMC foundries. It couldn’t be determined how much more Apple would pay.

A TSMC spokeswoman declined to comment on prices but said the company works closely with customers. An Apple spokeswoman didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Read more: https://www.wsj.com/articles/worlds-largest-chip-maker-to-raise-prices-threatening-costlier-electronics-11629978308

August 26, 2021

Designed to fail: How Florida's lack of condo board oversight could mean another Surfside

The deadly Surfside collapse is casting a spotlight on how Florida's condominiums are built and regulated.
...
A USA Today Network analysis of property records in the coastal communities of Miami Beach, Fort Myers Beach, Daytona Beach and Palm Beach show more than a thousand condos three stories or taller close to the water constructed in 1981 or earlier. There are likely many more across the state. Some date back to the early 1960s. With so many aging oceanfront condos, could a collapse happen again?

A network examination of the way high-rise condos are regulated and maintained in Florida shows why some experts believe the system was designed to fail.

And human nature plays a part: Many condo boards defer repairs because of the costs. Too much economizing could be deadly.

https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/business/real-estate/2021/08/26/florida-surfside-collapse-miami-condo-disaster-lack-oversight-volusia-lee-palm-beach/7912717002/

August 26, 2021

The Trump Clown Car Has a Smashup in Arizona

Monday was supposed to be a banner day for former President Donald Trump and the MAGAverse. After multiple delays, legal challenges and public controversies, the results of the third — and hopefully final — review of the presidential voting in Maricopa County, Ariz., was scheduled for delivery to its Republican sponsors in the State Senate. At long last, the proof of mass election fraud would be laid out for all to see! Mr. Trump would be vindicated! Maybe even reinstated!

At least, that’s what MAGA die-hards hunkered down in their bunkers of disinformation were hoping. Most everyone else — including plenty of Arizona officials from both parties — just wanted this gong show to end.

Alas, it was not to be. On Monday, the Republican president of the State Senate, Karen Fann, announced that the Cyber Ninjas, the Florida-based firm overseeing the recount, had not yet completed a full draft report after all. It seems the firm’s chief executive and two other members of the “audit team” had come down with Covid-19. Also, the State Senate had only just received images of the ballot envelopes from Maricopa County, which still needed to be analyzed for inclusion in the final report.

And so the spectacle grinds on.

The clown-car chaos in Arizona is a near-perfect distillation of what Mr. Trump has done to the Republican Party, as well as much of the broader public. On what feels like a daily basis, he beats the drum about a stolen election, setting a tuneful lie that many Republican voters still dance to as the party mandarins look on, in either active support or silence. The political ramifications of this disinformation will be on display in Arizona’s U.S. Senate race next year, as well as those elsewhere, as independents and moderates assess if this is the party they want to reward.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/24/opinion/arizona-results-trump-republicans.html

August 26, 2021

The GOP struggles with what to do on employer vaccine mandates

President Biden this week responded to the Food and Drug Administration’s full authorization of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine by calling on employers around the country to mandate it for their employees — which it seems many will.

And Republicans as a party don’t seem to know what to do with that.

In the days since the FDA’s authorization and Biden’s call, Republicans who have otherwise fought tooth and nail against vaccine mandates have been surprisingly quiet about the prospect of employer mandates. And the few who have spoken out have generally said employers should be allowed to implement them.

The issue has played out in recent weeks and months in a number of states, with some lawmakers pushing for bans on mandates. But unlike the party’s posture toward school mask mandates, government vaccine mandates and vaccine passports, there is little cohesion on this subject. So far, only one state bans employer vaccine mandates: Montana.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/08/25/gop-struggles-with-what-do-employer-vaccine-mandates/

August 25, 2021

For those who may be interested

LA Times is currently running a $1 for six months subscription special.

August 25, 2021

'He's only a boy': Man protecting his baby fatally shot in Florida restaurant

Tourist Dustin Wakefield, 21, was having dinner with his family in Miami Beach when a gunman randomly killed him.

MIAMI BEACH — A gunman fatally shot a tourist eating dinner with his family at a Miami Beach restaurant as the man protected his 1-year-old son, police and a family member said.

Tamarius Blair David Jr., 22, of Norcross, Georgia, told investigators he shot Dustin Wakefield, 21, on Tuesday night because he “was high on mushrooms, which made him feel empowered,” according to his arrest report.

David allegedly told police he entered La Cerveceria restaurant just before 6:30 p.m. and randomly decided to shoot Wakefield, who was on vacation from Castle Rock, Colorado.

Mike Wakefield, the victim’s uncle, told the Miami Herald that Dustin Wakefield died protecting his young son.

https://www.tampabay.com/news/crime/2021/08/25/hes-only-a-boy-man-protecting-his-baby-fatally-shot-in-florida-restaurant/