July 5, 2015

first couple's fourth of July outfits

July 5, 2015

Man shoots off firework (mortar) from top of his head, dies instantly

CALAIS, Maine (AP) — A young man who was drinking and celebrating the Fourth of July tried to launch a firework off the top of his head, fatally injuring himself, authorities said Sunday.

Devon Staples and his friends had been drinking and setting off fireworks Saturday night in the backyard of a friend's home in the small eastern Maine city of Calais, said Stephen McCausland, a spokesman for the state Department of Public Safety. Staples, 22, of Calais, placed a fireworks mortar tube on his head and set it off, he said.

The firework exploded, killing Staples instantly, McCausland said.
His death is the first fireworks fatality in Maine since the state legalized fireworks on Jan. 1, 2012, authorities said.

Calais is on the Canadian border near New Brunswick.
http://www.sfgate.com/news/us/article/Police-Man-shoots-off-firework-from-top-of-his-6367009.php

July 5, 2015

progress.. University of Mississippi cheerleaders, seen in 1962 and now

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jul/04/progressive-american-south-flag-klansman-next-door

July 5, 2015

Former Disney Chief Michael Eisner: A Woman Who Is Funny and Beautiful Is "Impossible to Find"

Source: Hollywood reporter

"In the history of the motion-picture business, the number of beautiful, really beautiful women — a Lucille Ball — that are funny, is impossible to find."

Michael Eisner thinks that funny, beautiful women are hard to find.

That's what the former Disney CEO told an audience Thursday at the Aspen Ideas Festival, according to The Atlantic.

During an onstage conversation with Goldie Hawn, he theorized on why she'd been so successful: "From my position, the hardest artist to find is a beautiful, funny woman. By far. They usually—boy am I going to get in trouble, I know this goes online—but usually, unbelievably beautiful women, you being an exception, are not funny."


Read more: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/disney-chief-michael-eisner-a-806748

July 5, 2015

woman who threw kittens from black infinity suv arrested!

Good! Too many times people get away with this cruel shit. Expensive vehicle..she could afford to make a different decision. Infinity suv can cost more than 60k

-!!!!!!

Florida woman 'who threw kittens out of her SUV while cruising down highway' is arrested
Veronica Gordon, 39, was reportedly seen tossing kittens on Highway 87
Witness reported seeing her throw four small kittens from SUV in Navarre
Authorities said she confessed and was charged with felony animal cruelty
Only one was recovered and was in poor condition when deputies found it
Kitten taken to vet and its condition is unknown while others still missing


A 39-year-old Florida woman has been arrested after authorities say she was spotted throwing kittens out her car window while driving down the highway around 11.45am on Friday morning.

Santa Rosa County Sheriff's deputies say a witness reported seeing 39-year-old Veronica Gordon throwing four small kittens alongside Highway 87 while cruising in a black Infinity SUV in Navarre.




The witness said she saw kittens thrown from the driver and passenger-side window, according to the Northwest Florida Daily News.

She reported one of the kitten 'grabbed on to the passenger-side door in an attempt not to fall' and made if for 'several seconds' before letting go.
Authorities said Gordon was crying as she confessed and she was charged with felony animal cruelty.




Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3149529/Florida-woman-arrested-throwing-kittens-car-window.html#ixzz3eyXivP8w

July 4, 2015

Should the homeless be allowed to sleep in their cars?

Should the homeless be allowed to sleep in their cars?

A bill making its way through the state legislature would legalize something that, on its face, seems uncontroversial: sleeping in your car.

But for homeless advocates and leaders of some beach communities in Orange County, the bill, AB718, is a point of contention that reflects starkly different worldviews.

People who work with the homeless say the bill would provide a small measure of dignity for people struggling to survive on the streets. They view the practice of issuing fines, or rousting people from their cars, as many local agencies now do routinely, as a form of harassment.

But leaders in Laguna Beach and Dana Point, and several other California cities, say a state law would limit local control and jeopardize residents’ safety.

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/homeless-670180-bill-people.html

July 4, 2015

only three states now ban fireworks.. down from 30 in the 90s

As more states legalize fireworks, what's behind the pyrotechnic boom?

The promise of tax revenue and improved safety have left only three states with fireworks bans, down from nearly 30. On Fourth of July, some say it’s a win for heritage celebration; others see it as an unnecessary risk to people and property.
By Patrik Jonsson, Staff writer JULY 4, 2015
ATLANTA — Georgia is booming, literally.

Just in time for the Fourth of July weekend, Georgia axed its total fireworks ban, allowing a $700 million consumer pyrotechnics industry into the state for the first time in decades.

In the early 1990s, nearly 30 states had total firework sales bans. But after laws were relaxed this spring here in Georgia and in New York, that number is now down to three – New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Delaware. Since 2000, 12 states have liberalized their fireworks laws, even as fireworks contributed to a staggering rate of personal injury and fires, added to emerging concerns over fireworks pollution and even the effect of aerial repeaters and ground spinners on veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder.


In some ways, the impressive expansion of legal fireworks in part pits a muscular post-9/11 “rockets-red-glare” patriotism against a waning sense of safety and propriety.

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2015/0704/As-more-states-legalize-fireworks-what-s-behind-the-pyrotechnic-boom

Bottom line: Americans love to blow things up. And it’s that enthusiasm for gun powder that’s likely driving more and more states to trust residents with bottle rocket wicks, though retaining the ability to enact emergency bans during severe dry spells.

For Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal at least, signing a “heritage celebration” bill into law came down to common sense, given that all but one neighboring state has huge fireworks shacks right across the border.

July 4, 2015

woman shamed for carrying 5 year old on her back

Mother-of-two left outraged after finding a photo of herself and her children posted on Facebook by a stranger who publicly shamed her for carrying her sick five-year-old in a baby carrier
Erica Kalnins, 31, was shopping at accessories store Icing in Tampa, Florida, when the photo was taken by store manager, Mindy Domingo
She was carrying her five-year-old daughter on her back in a Tula baby carrier during the shopping trip because the youngster was feeling unwell
Erica tried to reach out to Mindy to demand an apology, but has yet to receive a response

-----

Aside from the initial remark, Mindy continued her rant in the comments of her post, saying that the daughter was 'checking out jewelry just fine', before adding: 'Plus I can't tell you how many kids i see in strollers that must be 5, 6, 7, 8 years old. My step-daughter has walked with no stroller since she was 2 unless it was at Disney.
'Ridiculous!! Just like money backpacks!! Either watch your damn kid, keep them strapped in a stroller, leave them at home or better yet DON'T become a parent!!! [sic]'
Horrified, Erica reached out to the woman who posted the photo and requested that she remove it. But instead of receiving an apology, or even a response, the woman simply deleted her page.


She is getting support from baby wearing moms

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-3148878/Mother-two-left-outraged-finding-photo-children-posted-Facebook-stranger-publicly-shamed-carrying-sick-five-year-old-baby-carrier.html#ixzz3etDylDDU

July 3, 2015

ISIS publicly smashed this 2nd century artifact to bits with a sledgehammer - the Allat Lion

http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/02/world/isis-syrian-artifacts/

July 3, 2015

A Quick Puzzle to Test Your Problem Solving

A Quick Puzzle to Test
Your Problem Solving
By DAVID LEONHARDT and YOU JULY 2, 2015

A short game sheds light on government policy, corporate America and why no one likes to be wrong.

Here’s how it works:

We’ve chosen a rule that some sequences of three numbers obey — and some do not. Your job is to guess what the rule is.

We’ll start by telling you that the sequence 2, 4, 8 obeys the rule:

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/07/03/upshot/a-quick-puzzle-to-test-your-problem-solving.html?abt=0002&abg=1