Category: News

Aging is a weird thing. From one perspective, it’s something we should be grateful for. Few people would wish for the kind of short, uneventful life that would remove aging from the equation completely. The longer we live, the more we grow and learn and experience life, and “aging” is simply the mathematical sum of those experiences. All good, right?

On the other hand, our society does everything in its power to hide the fact that aging happens. Especially when it comes to women. According to Statista, the global anti-aging beauty market is estimated to be worth $58.8 billion. People will try all manner of creams, serums, masks, acids, lights, technologies and surgeries to try to prevent wrinkles, lines, sagginess, spots and other signs that our bodies are changing with time.

Most of us live our daily lives somewhere in the middle of these two realities, wanting to embrace our aging selves but also hoping to stave off some of the more obvious signs that we’re getting older. It’s natural to resist it in some ways, since the older we get, the closer we get to the end of our lives, which we certainly don’t want to hasten—especially if we actually love living.

It can be helpful to see people who are embracing their age, which is why it can be inspiring to see someone like former supermodel Paulina Porizkova confidently sharing photos of her 57-year-old self.

In posts social media, Porizkova shared a photo of herself in a bikini and a screenshot of a comment made by a person who felt the need to comment on her aging body. And phew, was it something. The commenter wrote:

“You must be in so much pain to keep posting bikini pictures at your age. I’ve always thought that getting old and ugly is hardest on the pretty people. The fall from grace is so much farther when you were beautiful. Ugly people were always ugly so getting old and ugly isn’t a change. In summary, I feel your pain. I pray you can come to terms with your mortality. We all get old and ugly…you just had to fall from a greater height than the rest of us. Tears Times Infinity!”

So many things to unpack here.

Porizkova shared her thoughts on the comment on Instagram.

A thoughtful reader comment on IG need an equally thoughtful response.nThank you for feeling my pain, rickaroo777. As you can see, Iu2019m suffering indeed.pic.twitter.com/mWijP55iAS

— Paulina Porizkova (@Paulina Porizkova)
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“Here’s a good follower comment- echoing a few others,” Porizkova wrote. “A woman of 57 is ‘too old’ to pose in a bikini – no matter what she looks like. Because ‘Old’ is ‘Ugly.’ I get comments like these every time I post a photo of my body. This is the ageist shaming that sets my teeth on edge. Older men are distinguished, older women are ugly.”

“People who believe prettiness equals beauty do not understand beauty,” she continued. “Pretty is easy on the eyes, partly because it’s a little bland, inoffensive. It’s easy to take in and easy to forget. Not so beauty. Beauty can be sharp. It can wound you and leave a scar. To perceive beauty you have to be able to SEE.”

“This is why I believe we get more beautiful with age,” she added. “We have earned our beauty, we understand what it is, and we can see it so much better. There is no such thing as ugly and old. Only shortsighted and ignorant.”

On Twitter, Porizkova was a bit more sarcastic, writing, “Thank you for feeling my pain, rickaroo777. As you can see, I’m suffering indeed.”

That tongue-in-cheek response prompted others to share their aging selves in photos, sharing how their “old and ugly” phase of life is going. The thread turned into a veritable celebration of middle-to-late age, with posts about how much more comfortable people feel in their bodies as they get older and the freedom that comes along with not caring what other people think.

You suffer beautifully

You suffer beautifully

— Paulina Porizkova (@Paulina Porizkova)
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There are two big ironies with the original trolling comment. Most obviously, Porizkova obviously looks freaking amazing in a bikini, so the whole “ugly” and “fall from grace” line of thought is object and off base. The second is that if you look through Porizkova’s Instagram feed, she doesn’t pose in bikinis very often at all. It’s not like she’s plastering her bikini selfies all over social media trying to make herself feel better about herself, as the commenter implies. She just…sometimes wears a bikini. Whoop dee doo.

Do it anyway! Every body is valid. Every body is a bikini body.pic.twitter.com/slDLHLWQo7

— ud83cuddfaud83cuddf8Noel Gigerud83cuddfaud83cuddf8 (@ud83cuddfaud83cuddf8Noel Gigerud83cuddfaud83cuddf8)
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People don’t have to wear bikinis if they don’t want to. But to tell strangers what they can wear crosses a line. All bodies are bikini bodies, and if the person in the body wants their body to be in a bikini, more power to them.

Wow! Youu2019re suffering for sure!

— Paulina Porizkova (@Paulina Porizkova)
1651287653

The “suffering” and “pain” in the posts were so funny to see.

Ah, so painful. also- frickin

— Paulina Porizkova (@Paulina Porizkova)
1651288265

I’m 49 and I haven’t yet put on a bikini. Steph, thanks for showing me it’s not too late! Tho, somehow I feel like I won’t fill it as well as you & Paulina. But it’s all about attitude, right? So let’s the 3 of us hit the beach! (I’ll stay in the shade of an umbrella, tho.)

— Spark The Genius (@Spark The Genius)
1651262083

The thread brought inspiration to those who may fall prey to the idea that people shouldn’t wear certain things after a certain age or that only people with certain body sizes or shapes should wear certain things.

The hashtag #oldandugly started trending as people responded to Porizkova’s call for a celebration of aging beautifully.

“Todays thread has been my absolute favorite of all time,” Porizkova wrote on Twitter. “Thank you all you ‘old and ugly’ women (and a few men) showing the world how much we ‘suffer’ at in our old age. You’re all breathtaking!”

The love continues! 57 and proud! Keep posting your wonderful beautiful selves and tag #oldandugly so we can keep sharing the pic.twitter.com/Veg72kQOqt

— Paulina Porizkova (@Paulina Porizkova)
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May we all age beautifully and gracefully in whatever way those words are meaningful to us, and show those who think that aging means “suffering” and “pain” due to being “old and ugly” that they have no idea what they’re talking about.

(And here’s an extra shout-out to Porizkova for using her beauty and her age to make an important point—not only about celebrating getting older, but also about how propaganda works. Brava.)

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In the internet era, the idea of personal privacy is all but a myth. With a few keystrokes just about anyone can get your home address, phone number, email, age and the names of your family members. The fact that this information is readily available puts us all in the dangerous position of being the victim of fraud, stalking and violence.

What makes the situation even worse is that our information was put online without any of our consent.

The good news is that Google just made a big change that gives us all a little more control over our personal information. On April 27, the company announced it will allow anyone to request removals of their personal information from its Search feature.

“Open access to information is a key goal of Search, but so is empowering people with the tools they need to protect themselves and keep their sensitive, personally identifiable information private. That’s why we’re updating our policies to help people take more control of their online presence in Search,” Michelle Chang, Google’s Global Policy Lead for Search, announced on the company’s blog.

Hereu2019s how you can remove your phone number, email and other personal information from Google search results.https://cnet.co/3y6utEa

— CNET (@CNET)
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“[T]he internet is always evolving—with information popping up in unexpected places and being used in new ways—so our policies and protections need to evolve, too,” Chang continued.

The new policy also allows people to request the removal of personal information in Search that could be used for financial fraud such as log-in credentials or account numbers.

Although Google’s new policy is a step in the right direction, it doesn’t cure the problem altogether. “It’s important to remember that removing content from Google Search won’t remove it from the internet, which is why you may wish to contact the hosting site directly, if you’re comfortable doing so,” Chang said.

Do you have any personal information that pops up in Google Search that you’d like to have removed? Visit the topic’s support page, scroll down and click the “Start removal request” link. As you follow the prompts you will be able to specify the personal information that shows up in Search and will be asked to share a list of relevant search terms, such as your full name, maiden name and nickname. You’ll also be able to share supplemental details before submitting the request.

After your request is submitted, you should receive an email from Google confirming the request was received. It’s unclear how long the removal process will take.

Google’s new policy changes come during a surge in online fraud. The Federal Trade Commission reported that consumers lost $5.8 billion to scammers in 2021, a jump of 70% from the previous year.

A big portion of fraud is committed through online scams as well as identity theft and telephone solicitations.

In an attempt to give the FTC more power to fight back against fraud, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell, chair of the Commerce Committee, will introduce legislation this week to make it easier for the Committee to sue deceptive companies and scammers.

“If the FTC remains disarmed of this critical authority, millions of consumers and small businesses who’ve been scammed, swindled, or locked out of competitive marketplaces will never be made whole,” Cantwell said in a statement.

Jared Let’s a bit of a weird one. There’s his notorious on-set antics, including the revelation that on Morbius he got so into his character, who suffers from chronic pain, that he took ages just to go to the bathroom. He’s even one-upped everyone at the Met Gala in 2019 by showing up with a replica of his own head. But alas, and despite what the annual fashion event’s own social media account claimed, he was not behind what was surely the night’s most bizarre outfit.

https://twitter.com/21metgala/status/1521269683651063808

That would be Fredrick Robertsson, a Swedish fashionista and LGBTQIA+ activist who caught Vogue’s eye in some over-the-top get-up a few years back at another such event. At the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s annual show in New York City, Robertsson showed up as…an alien? Or an acid trip version of a porcupine? Some sort of unlivable avant-garde building? Whatever it was, Robertsson was clad in some kind of silver bodysuit with big spikes…or something.

The Gala’s social media account misidentified Robertsson as the most accurately Italian-accented cast member in House of Gucci. For what it’s worth, in heavy make-up, Robertsson does sort of, kind of look like the Oscar-winning actor. But it wasn’t, as many pointed out.

The screw-up prompted a fair amount of jokes.

And there were plenty of guffaws from people who really did think it was Jared Leto.

The upside to this mix-up? Fredrik Robertsson, not a household name, got even more attention than he would have had people simply noticed his eye-catching attire. And now the masses may learn his name.

There were many eccentric characters who participated in the Jan. 6 riot. The influencer who bragged that she wouldn’t go to jail because she’s “white.” (She went to jail.) The guy arrested while in a touring production of Jesus Christ Superstar. The Coors Light guy. And, of course, there’s QAnon Shaman.

One of the strangest, though, is Thomas Webster, a former NYPD officer who was put on trial for assaulting a member of the D.C. police. Webster tried to claim self-defense, but as per ABC News, on Monday he found out a jury wasn’t buying that line.

Webster was found guilty of assaulting D.C. Metro Police Officer Noah Rathbun. A disturbing video shows Webster pushing through a crowd up to a line of bike racks that were being used as make-shift barriers. He wore a bullet-proof vest and wielded a Marine Corps flag. The former policeman then started yelling at the vastly outnumbered officers, calling them “commie mother*ckers” and swinging the metal flagpole at them. After breaking through the bike rack formation, he ran toward Rathbun and tackled him, pulling at his gas mask, which wound up choking the officer.

In his defense, Webster called Rathbun a “rogue cop,” claiming that Rathbun had started the fight. But the jury didn’t buy it, and Webster, the fourth Jan. 6 rioter to be put on trial, and the first to be tried on assault charges, as well as the first to claim self-defense.

(Via ABC News)

For DoorDash driver Sophia Furtado, it seemed like a routine work night. Someone made a pizza order on a Friday evening, near the end of her shift. Nothing unusual.

Except when she got to the house around 10 p.m., what she saw was anything but ordinary.

According to CNN, Furtado saw that the customer, Caryn Hebert Sullivan, had been lying on the ground outside her home, bleeding from her head.

Sullivan, who had a previous arm injury and a bad knee, had been waiting outside for the delivery. When she turned, her arm and knee gave out, causing her to fall and hit her head on the way down.

Sullivan told CNN, “I just remember laying on my driveway thinking, ‘this is pretty much over.’ I was laying there and saw a lot of white clouds.”

Luckily for Sullivan, fate would have it that her delivery driver also had crucial medical knowledge.

Furtado had spent time training as an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), but unfortunately failed her National Registry Test (NREMT) which for many candidates is the norm. In 2020, the average first-time pass rate for the notoriously difficult test was 67%. Limmer Education attributes this statistic in part due to the NREMT’s complex question structuring, along with classes simply not prepping for them.

“Test-takers need to be able to recognize small clues in the question stems, and then apply vast clinical knowledge to each scenario. Ideally, this process is taught and practiced in class. In reality, some classes don’t bother or don’t spend enough time on it,” the site says.

Nonetheless, Furtado was savvy enough to notice Sullivan’s congealed blood and accurately estimate that she had been lying outside somewhere between 15 to 20 minutes. It was enough to know the situation was dire.

“Caryn was unresponsive, and her eyes kept rolling to the back of her head,” Furtado explained, “I felt like I was going to lose her.”

Sullivan’s husband Robert awoke from his sleep to Furtado’s cries for help, and quickly retrieved supplies as she dialed 911 to correspond with the dispatcher. As she aided the police, Furtado remained calm and collected. Officer Jillian Jodoin of the Fairhaven Police Department noted to CNN that “Sophia became a part of our team to aid Caryn. I asked her if it was possible for her to keep stabilizing Caryn’s neck to keep her spine safe, her answer was, ‘I’m not going anywhere.'” It wasn’t long before the police arrived and transported Sullivan to the hospital.

Now deemed fully recovered, Sullivan has not only a second chance at life, but a newfound friendship with Furtado, dubbing her a “guardian angel.” The two families are acquainted, and plan to stay in touch. Sullivan even gave Furtado’s twins Easter gifts.

As for Furtado, her efforts have garnered well-deserved recognition. The Fairhaven Police Department posted to their Facebook page an awards ceremony held on Furtado’s behalf, and DoorDash granted her a $1,000 educational grant for her “heroic and tremendous” efforts.

Furtado hopes to put the money towards more EMT school. We’re keeping our fingers crossed that she passes her next exam, because she clearly already has the instincts and resolve necessary to save lives. Way to go, Furtado!

Conservatives are up in arms over a new Department of Homeland Security agency called the Disinformation Governance Board. After all, today’s GOP has a habit of spreading untruths. To the surprise of few, their attacks have inaccurately portrayed it, with many trying to claim that it’s some censorious board right out of George Orwell’s 1984 — a book that’s already gotten them in trouble before. But when Fox News’ Peter Doocy inevitably tried to raise those distortions to White House press secretary Jen Psaki, she was ready for him.

Doocy asked if President knew about the agency, which combats foreign disinformation, such as that coming from Russia, not domestic, as conservatives have claimed. Psaki then turned the tables on him, pointing out its origin stem from the previous administration.

“Well, Peter, I think I would note – and I’m not sure if this has been in your reporting yet – but this is a continuation of work that was done under the prior administration, under the Trump administration, to take steps to address disinformation, address the use of disinformation and helping smugglers prompt the movement of more migrants across to the border,” Psaki patiently explained.

She then demonstrated how the agency actually works. “I would note that the first example given in the announcement about this was DHS has worked to understand how ‘misinformation’ spread by human smugglers that prey on vulnerable populations attempting to migrate to the United States,” Psaki said. “So for anyone who’s out there who may be concerned about the increase in migrants to the border, this is the kind of apparatus that’s working to address disinformation. And again, continuing the work of the Department of Homeland Security and 2020. Something we’re currently applauding.”

But Doocy was undeterred, which is to say he essentially ignored everything Psaki had told him: “Just in terms of what the President wants out of this, does he want the people on this board to start censoring information that is not helpful to him?”

All Psaki could do was quote what the agency does on the DHS website, namely that operates in “ways that protect privacy, civil rights and civil liberties and the right to free speech.’”

Still not getting that the agency won’t police American citizens, Doocy asked about Nina Jankowicz, who’s in charge of it. “She has said that she thinks the Hunter Biden laptop is Russian disinformation,” he said. “So should we look forward in the future to her censoring internet traffic about the Hunter Biden laptop?”

Still calm as ever, Psaki reminded him that she’s explained to him what the agency does twice already, pointing out that Jankowicz has “extensive experience” in “addressing disinformation,” including in Europe.

It’s the umpteenth time Psaki has had to correct Doocy, whether it’s debunking the central tenets of Florida’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill or reminding him that he’s not a doctor.

(Via Raw Story)

The Minnesota Timberwolves were one of the best stories in the NBA this season, but a hard-fought first round series loss to the Memphis Grizzlies showed where they still need to make improvements.

One of those areas is at point guard, where it became painfully apparent during the playoff run that they just did not have anyone who could calm things down and get them into sets in crunch time during their three fourth quarter meltdowns that cost them the series. The Timberwolves had the worst fourth quarter offense in this year’s postseason with a 91.3 offensive rating, shooting 36.4 percent from the field and 25 percent from three, and a constant theme of their losses was the offense crumbling into hero-ball, often from Anthony Edwards and D’Angelo Russell.

The latter of those two had a particularly rough series, averaging just 12 points per game on 33.3 percent shooting from the field, and was relegated to the bench for the close of Game 6. Since arriving in Minnesota, Russell has shown flashes of brilliance, most notably his performance in the play-in win over the Clippers, but the inconsistency in maintaining that level has been a bit maddening, even if his overall averages when he’s been able to play for the Wolves have been good in the regular season.

As such, it appears that if the Wolves are going to shake things up this summer, Russell will be the odd man out from their core group alongside Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns. Marc Stein reported in his newsletter on Monday that the expectation around the league is that Minnesota will look to move Russell and his expiring $31 million salary this offseason.

Numerous rival teams expect the Wolves to try to trade Russell this offseason irrespective of Russell’s close relationship with Minnesota star Karl-Anthony Towns.

It makes sense that Russell would be the one chosen to move, as Edwards and Towns are very clearly 1a and 1b in Minnesota, and Russell doesn’t quite provide the ideal complement to those two now that Edwards has established himself as a lead-scorer type. It’s not that Russell isn’t a capable passer, as his 7.1 assists per game this season (and 6.7 per game in the playoffs) show, but it’s more that the Wolves could use a calming presence on both ends of the floor.

Where Patrick Beverley provides a boost of energy, Minnesota is in fairly desperate need of a steady hand who can stop those long droughts before they even really start. As to who may be available for Russell, that is still to be determined, but one would think a veteran guard will likely be on the wishlist for Minnesota (and more) and Russell certainly still has plenty of value for teams in need of some scoring punch, so there should be some suitors out there.

Marjorie Taylor Greene has been very public about her many kooky beliefs, but there’s one that when people bring it up really gets under her skin. In a 2018 post about Facebook, well before she ran for Congress, she wrote about what has been dubbed “Jewish space lasers.” The term has come to haunt her, and she does not like it. So when a reporter mentioned it at a small rally with her supporters, she quickly got very huffy.

In the old post, Greene spread a bizarre conspiracy theory blaming a deadly wildfire in California on space lasers that were controlled by a Jewish family. When that post was dug up years later, New York Magazine memorably dubbed it “Jewish space lasers,” a term that quickly went viral and is now a permanent part of her mystique.

On Monday, a reporter confronted her with the post itself. “This is your post under your name,” the reporter told her, “and you’re talking about the Rothschild family, which has been at the center of anti-Sematic conspiracies since the 19th century.”

Greene claimed ignorance. “I did not know that,” Greene told the reporter. “I have no idea. I’m telling you.” She then said that at the time “a regular American. Never been in politics. I couldn’t have told you some people back in politics or families names, don’t know their backgrounds.”

But the reporter persisted. “But now that you do know,” he said. “Now that you’ve been told… anti-Semitism is on the rise at an alarming rate.”

“I’m fully against anti-Semitism,” Greene responded, pointing to her support of Israel. “You’re mixing two things together. You’re accusing me of something I did not do, and then you’re trying to blame me for anti-Semitism.”

The post was far from the most alarming thing Greene made before she entered politics. She once shared a video of her harassing Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and suggested that Nancy Pelosi should be executed for “treason,” both of which are at the very least major HR issues.

(Via Raw Story)

Every dog is different when it comes to playing fetch. Some have zero interest in playing, while others are obsessed with the game and won’t stop playing until their human friends force them to stop.

There are a lot of reasons why dogs love to play fetch. First, most dogs are genetically predisposed to chasing after objects that move, whether it’s a car or a squirrel. They also instinctually bring back prey to their dens.

“After a hunt, sometimes the wolf will carry the prey back to the den to be consumed safely with the pack, essentially ‘retrieving’ dinner for the family,” Katelyn Schutz, Certified Professional Dog Trainer of Wisconsin Pet Care, said according to BarkPost. “The game of fetch in our pet dogs is suggested to be a simple variation of this ‘prey-carrying’ behavior.”

Fetch also stimulates the reward centers in a dog’s brain, so once they get started playing they don’t want to stop. Bounder, Brittney Reynolds’ black Labrador, can’t get enough of catching and retrieving a tennis ball.

“He’s obsessed,” Reynolds told The Dodo. “He will play fetch until I make him stop.”

@brittneygoes

He brings it back to the edge of the fence. #blacklab #doglover #SeeHerGreatness

Bounders’ obsession with the game led him to ask Reynolds’ neighbor to play fetch with him when she wouldn’t. She discovered the game had been going on in secret one day when she went outside to see why Bounder was barking and discovered he was asking the neighbor to play with him.

“The neighbor was sitting on his back patio with the ball gun on the table, and Bounder was staring him down and barking at him wanting to play,” Reynolds said. “I tried to tell him to stop barking, but the neighbor got up and started shooting the ball gun for him. It was just so cute. I went and thanked him for playing with my boy and found out that they had been doing this for a while.”

The neighbors had a ball gun to play fetch with their dog, Layla.

Reynolds shared a wholesome video of Bounder and the neighbor playing together and it went viral receiving over 6.8 million views. “Just found out my neighbor and my dog have been playing fetch together over the fence,” she captioned the video.

Some commenters thought the game was great for the dog and the neighbor, too. “I just watched all your videos on this and I’m in love with this story! Your dogs have new grandparents and they have a reason to stay active,” Monica wrote.

“I hope that you know that allowing this is making that man’s day. You are a great neighbor and humanitarian. Thank you,” another user wrote.

@brittneygoes

Caught the neighbor playing with a Bounder again. He looks forward to this. #goodneighbors #doglovers #Totinos425

“I am a huge dog lover, and it always makes me happy to see others treating dogs so well,” Reynolds said about her neighbor.

“Our dogs are our family, and I think you can tell a lot about a person by the way they treat animals.” Reynolds shared a follow-up video that showed the over-the-fence fetch game is still happening.

Judd Apatow has been teasing a George Carlin documentary for HBO, and it’s about to arrive surprisingly soon. The premium channel just dropped the first official trailer for George Carlin’s American Dream along with a May 20 release date for the first installment. However, fans of the legendary comedian won’t have to wait long for the second and final installment, which arrives the next day on May 21.

The documentary will feature candid interviews with Carlin’s daughter as well as the numerous comedians he’s inspired over the decades including Chris Rock, Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, Bill Burr, Patton Oswalt, and many more. George Carlin’s American Dream also won’t shy away the comics’ drug addiction and the affects it had on his career and marriage. Like the man himself, the documentary will be no bullsh*t.

Here’s the official synopsis:

The two-part documentary tracks Carlin’s rise to fame and opens an intimate window into Carlin’s personal life, including his childhood in New York City, his long struggle with drugs that took its toll on his health, his brushes with the law, his loving relationship with Brenda, his wife of 36 years, and his second marriage to Sally Wade. Intimate interviews with Carlin and Brenda’s daughter, Kelly Carlin, offer unique insight into her family’s story and her parents enduring love and partnership.

George Carlin’s American Dream premieres May 20 on HBO with the second installment arriving on May 21.