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Donald Trump is a strong and brave leader, which is why he’s skipping Wednesday night’s GOP debate. Perhaps he sees duking it out with candidates he’s already handily clobbering as a waste of time. Perhaps he’s afraid of Chris Christie. Whatever the reason, he’ll be (mostly) MIA during Fox News’ big show. That doesn’t mean his campaign won’t still try to spin this as some kind of victory.

“President Trump has already won this evening’s debate because everything is going to be about him,” Trump Campaign Senior Adviser Chris LaCivita wrote in a statement. He continued:

“Only President Trump has the policy ideas, the fortitude, and the polling to go head-to-head with Crooked Joe Biden in the general election. Republican voters recognize this, hence President Trump’s 62-16 lead in the GOP primary.

You should also expect the Fox hosts to show an unnatural obsession with President Trump tonight, asking other Republican candidates over and over to react to President Trump’s policy positions. In fact, we will be tallying the number of times President Trump’s name is brought up, and his total ‘speaking time,’ even though he is not in attendance.

LaCivita concluded that “tonight’s Republican undercard event really shouldn’t even be called a debate, but rather an audition to be a part of President Trump’s team in his second term.”

Of course, the GOP debate will probably feature candidates talking about other things. But even when they are, Trump will definitely be the giant orange elephant in the room.

Trump will still be around during the debate. In a fit of eff-you counter-programming, the big guy will be sitting down for a softball chat with one of his fiercest critics, Tucker Carlson.

(Via Mediaite)

After dropping two stand-out albums, 2017’s Good Woman and 2020’s The Greatest Part, Nashville-based musician Becca Mancari is leaning away from their alt-country sound to indie-pop territory (while not leaving the slide guitar behind) with the dreamy project Left Hand.

Throughout the album, Mancari unpacks family, identity, and religion on tracks like “I Had A Dream,” the Brittany Howard-featuring “Don’t Even Worry” and the Julien Baker– featuring “Over And Over.” Mancari was raised in a fundamentalist Mennonite community and went to a Evangelical university. But after coming to terms with their upbringing and learning the strength of radical acceptance, Mancari has poured their self-discoveries into song.

The album title itself, Left Hand, is a nod to their family crest from the Italian region of Calabria, which features a left hand holding a dagger. “In many cultures children born with a dominant left hand were taught not to use that hand, and were told that using the right hand was ‘normal’ and ‘correct,’” they said in a statement. “Similarly, queer children are often times told that it’s not ‘normal’ for them to love who they love and that they need to ‘change.’”

To celebrate the release of Left Hand, Mancari sits down with Uproxx to talk Brittany Howard, Frank Ocean, and sleeping at a haunted house in our latest Q&A.

What are four words you would use to describe your music?

Truthful. Interesting. Seeking. Sonically Minded.

It’s 2050 and the world hasn’t ended and people are still listening to your music. How would you like it to be remembered?

Haha if the world hasn’t ended by then, well I hope I am still touring and playing my music, but if I am gone then I hope they remembered me for my love and for my honesty, and I hope that I can help others feel less lonely by listening maybe even a little understood.

What’s your favorite city in the world to perform?

NYC and Paris.

Who’s the person who has most inspired your work, and why?

Brittany Howard, who I am lucky enough to call my friend. She is just as pure as it gets with music and I want to be as honest in my life and my art as she is.

Where did you eat the best meal of your life?

I love food so much, but I will have to say it has to be some of the family meals at my old job where I was a line cook. The restaurant is sadly no longer in business, but it was called “Silly Goose”.

What album do you know every word to?

Frank Ocean’s Blonde record.

What was the best concert you’ve ever attended?

Kendrick Lamar (Damn Tour).

What is the best outfit for performing and why?

Kind of depends on my mood! I either like a very nice sleek suit or oversized jeans and t-shirt with vans.

Who’s your favorite person to follow on Twitter and/or Instagram?

Hayley Williams on IG. She keeps it real.

What’s your most frequently played song in the van on tour?

The whole record Songs from Adrianne Lenker.

What’s the last thing you Googled?

“Family another word in English.”

What album makes for the perfect gift?

Wede Harer Guzo by Dahlak Band. I would personally love this on vinyl.

Where’s the weirdest place you’ve ever crashed while on tour?

A farm in Idaho where I slept in the owners bed. They had a haunted house vibe in the basement.

What artists keep you from flipping the channel on the radio?

SZA or Palehound.

What’s the nicest thing anyone has ever done for you?

My partner loving me everyday.

What’s one piece of advice you’d go back in time to give to your 18-year-old self?

Take care of yourself and your mental health and forgive yourself!

What’s the last show you went to?

Tegan and Sara.

What movie can you not resist watching when it’s on TV?

Speed.

What’s one of your hidden talents?

I am a pretty good photographer but I don’t do it often and never for others.

Left Hand is out 8/25 via Captured Tracks. Find more information here.

John Fetterman is one of the most distinctive-looking members of Congress. The Pennsylvania senator is a giant, with the build of an NFL lineman. He’s got tattoos, some of which hold deep, personal meaning. He wears suits on Capitol Hill, but he usually rocks hoodies and basketball shorts. And he’s got a giant, busy goatee. But over the weekend he changed things up. Gone was the mass of chin hair, and in was an awesome ‘70s porn mustache (plus prescription glasses). When he debuted his new look, he teased that he’d “lost a bet to Karl,” his 13-year-old son. Turns out the full story behind the ‘stache is even better.

In an interview with GQ, Fetterman explained that the bet he lost involved the brainiest of games.

“Karl is into chess, he plays online, so I got him pieces and a board,” Fetterman explained. “We played together, and I bet him that if he loses, he’d have to make me a dozen deviled eggs because he makes great deviled eggs. He said that if I lose, I’d need to have a mustache for two weeks.”

Fetterman added, “I wish I could say that I went easy on him, but he beat the brakes off of me.”

When Fetterman debuted his new whiskers, social media inevitably melted down. It also further discombobulated the internet’s conspiracy theory nutters, who saw it as further evidence that the “current” Fetterman is really a clone due to the “real” one’s health issues.

Fetterman is aware of that line, addressing it in an April tweet. “You know, during my time [in] the hospital, the fringy fringies really came up with a conspiracy that I have a body double,” he wrote. “And I just want you to know that is just crazy. That’s not true!”

In any case, don’t get too used to Fetterman looking like he’s in Boogie Nights; he plans to shave it after the allotted fortnight.

(Via GQ)

When you think of fast cars, statistically, the only things you can and should think of are “Fast Car” by Tracy Chapman, Gran Turismo, and the Fast and Furious franchise. It just makes sense. But back when The Fast and Furious first came out, nobody knew what a staple it would become.

David Ayer, who wrote the movie back in 2001, says that he has “nothing” to show for penning the film, which spawned almost a dozen sequels, various spinoffs, and a stunt show at Universal that people love to visit when the VelociCoaster is down for the day.

Ayer appeared on Jon Bernthal’s Real Ones podcast where he said, “Biggest franchise in Hollywood, and I don’t have any of it. I got nothing to show for it, nothing, because of the way the business works.”

The writer, who also directed Suicide Squad, so he has had some critiques under his belt, said that he was the one who took the initial script and made it into the Vin Diesel masterpiece it turned out to be. “When I got that script, that s*** was set in New York, it was all Italian kids, right?” he told Bernthal. “I’m like, ‘Bro, I’m not gonna take it unless I can set it in L.A. and make it look like the people I know in L.A., right?’ So then I started, like, writing in people of color, and writing in the street stuff, and writing in the culture, and no one knew s*** about street racing at the time.”

Ayer implied that he didn’t get the recognition because he was an “outsider” in Hollywood at the time. “It’s like people hijack narratives, control narratives, create narratives to empower themselves, right? And because I was always an outsider and because, like, I don’t go to the f****ng parties. I don’t go to the meals, I don’t do any of that stuff. The people that did were able to control and manage narratives because they’re socialized in that part of the problem.” Instead of hijacking narratives, people should stick to just hijacking cars.

Meanwhile, Vin Diesel is out here creating a Fast empire. Maybe Ayer can attend one of those family meals for once.

(Via EW)

It’s hard to pinpoint the moment when Rudy Giuliani’s legacy fully evaporated. Was it during his cameo in Borat 2? The Four Seasons Landscaping debacle? When hair dye melted on his face during a press conference? Whatever your pick might be, Rudy certainly lost the “America’s Mayor” title long ago. Or perhaps “MAGA’s Mayor” is a better term now.

Rudy, along with Jenna Ellis and Sydney Powell, has now surrendered at the Fulton County jail. This definitely looks like a man who is miffed about those Trump-fueled legal fees coming his way.

Whereas Jenna Ellis looks like she’s back into “live laugh love” mode.

Also! Here is the rest of the gang, other than Trump. It’s the most uncool rogues’ gallery ever.

Trump, for his part, is expected to surrender on Thursday. He has claimed that he will be “proudly” doing his fourth (alleged) perp walk. Meanwhile, everyone can watch and wait to see if either of these (alleged) co-conspirators will turn on Trump. Rudy knows where all of the (again, alleged) RICO details are buried, and this is a guy who has bragged about knowing RICO all too well. So, Trump might be a bit apprehensive on that note. That will especially be the case if no one shows up to that high-rolling, $100,000 per head fundraiser that he decided to go ahead and hold for Rudy’s legal fees.

If there’s anyone left out there who owes Trump an expensive favor, they will probably be receiving that call soon.

More than 70 years after the war, a 92-year-old World War II veteran took to the sky once again.

It’s been decades since her last flight, but Joy Lofthouse, a 92-year-old Air Transport Auxiliary veteran, was given the chance to board a Spitfire airplane for one more trip.

Lofthouse was one of just a few female pilots to fly for the British during World War II, part of an all-female division nicknamed the “Attagirls.”

Her job as a service pilot was to shuttle planes from the front lines back to factories for repairs. During her time in the service, she flew 18 different aircrafts, but one always held a special place in her heart.

To mark the 70th anniversary of the war’s end, she was called on to once again fly in a Spitfire, her favorite model.

In the video, she shows such genuine excitement and nervousness. She tells the interviewer that she’s not as confident as she was when she was younger, and that she is “aware of [her] age.” Still, she couldn’t pass up the chance to fly again.

After landing, Lofthouse just beamed, proving that it’s possible to be amazing at any age.

“It’s very hard to describe the feeling,” she told BBC News. “It almost makes one feel young again.”

This article originally appeared on 05.19.15

Though we’re all part of the same species living on the same planet, our experience as humans walking through this world can differ widely. Children see things through a different lens than adults. Women and men have different perspectives on certain issues. And because racism has long been an active element in our society, people with varying amounts of melanin in their skin face specific challenges that others don’t.

As a white American, I don’t instinctively know what it’s like to walk in a black person’s shoes. I can tell you about the legacy of white supremacy laced throughout our country’s history. I can explain the far-reaching effects of slavery, lynch mobs, Jim Crow laws, redlining, mass incarceration, and more. I can intellectually break down the psychological and sociological impact of centuries of race-based oppression.

But I can’t tell you what it feels like to walk through this world, right now, as a black person—which is why it’s so important to listen to the voices of people who can.

David Summers shared a story on Facebook that reflects the experience of many black Americans—one that can help us non-black folks see through a lens we simply do not and cannot have. Perhaps that’s why it’s been shared more than 20,000 times. From the fear that any object he carries might be mistaken as a gun to figuring out how to smile at a stranger just right so he won’t be considered a threat, the “black thoughts” Summers describes during his walk through a beautiful, white neighborhood—presumably a neighborhood most of us would consider “safe”—are heartbreaking.

He wrote:

“I took a black walk this morning. I took a black walk through a white neighborhood. When I take black walks, I think black thoughts. I am conscious of where I’ve placed my gun, my gun, and my gun. I mean, my phone, my wallet, and my keys. Because Peace Officers have a hard time telling the difference. I rehearse what I’ll say if a concerned resident, or a law enforcement employee has questions about why my black body is walking through their white space. And I remind myself to make sure the law enforcement employee has his body camera recording. Sometimes it helps if there is video evidence to accompany the hashtag.

There is no way to be stealthy when you take a black walk. White neighborhoods are blanketed by a sophisticated security system comprised of nosy neighbors, Ring doorbell cameras, and white women walking their dogs. So, I’ve learned to notice the white world through my periphery. To be aware of the dangers without acknowledging them. There is an art to making white people feel safe. To say ‘Good Morning’ and flash a smile that shows confidence and deference at the same time. To being polite because your life depends on it.

I felt the squad car behind me before I saw it.

It moved deliberately. Not like the other cars mindlessly whizzing past. Its tires inched. Crept. Stalked their way toward me.

I kept walking.

“Don’t take your hands out of your pockets,” I thought. Or wait, maybe I should? Maybe it’s better if my hands are clearly empty. But it’s cold outside…maybe it’s nothing. Keep walking.

The car rolled past me and made a slow right turn. I glanced quickly but didn’t stare. The air is still. My ears tuned out everything but the slight scuff of my sneakers on the sidewalk and the fading sound of those stalking tires.

Almost there.

Suddenly the squad car re-emerged. It was a block ahead of me. It made a quick right turn, continued to the end of the street, and then waited. No more stalking. This was a show of force. This was a roar. This was a reminder that I was trespassing.

I kept walking.

“Don’t take your hands out of your pockets,” I thought. Or wait, maybe I should? Maybe it’s better if my hands are clearly empty. But it’s cold outside…maybe it’s nothing. Keep walking.

The car rolled past me and made a slow right turn. I glanced quickly but didn’t stare. The air is still. My ears tuned out everything but the slight scuff of my sneakers on the sidewalk and the fading sound of those stalking tires.

Almost there.

Suddenly the squad car re-emerged. It was a block ahead of me. It made a quick right turn, continued to the end of the street, and then waited. No more stalking. This was a show of force. This was a roar. This was a reminder that I was trespassing.

I kept walking.

As I approached the corner, the front window began to roll down. The occupant didn’t speak. Didn’t smile. Just stared. I was being warned.

I crossed the street and the lion trotted off. He had effectively marked his territory. The brave protector had done his job.

I however, couldn’t help but wonder what I’d missed during my black walk. It’s hard to hear the birds chirping, or to smile at the squirrels playfully darting along the branches when you’re on a black walk. It’s easy to miss the promise of a light blue sky, or appreciate the audacity of the red, yellow, and purple daisies declaring their independence from the green grass when your mind is preoccupied with black thoughts.

I took a walk through a beautiful neighborhood this morning. But I missed the whole thing.”

Thank you, Mr. Summers, for sharing your “black walk” experience. Hopefully, it will prompt us all to ask ourselves whether our words and actions serve to reinforce or remedy what you’ve described.

This article originally appeared on 03.02.20

The next generation of superheroes is upon us (no, not those guys yet). The Boys spinoff Gen V is heading to Prime this fall, and now we get gratuitous violence, sex, and political corruption but from the familiar comforts of a college campus!

The show follows a new group of superheroes-in-training at Godolkin University as they learn the ins and outs of becoming a real-life superhero, with brand deals included. Here is the official synopsis:

Set in the diabolical world of The Boys, Next Gen expands the universe to Godolkin University, the prestigious superhero-only college where students train to be the next generation of heroes—preferably with lucrative endorsements. When the group of young supes discover that something bigger and sinister is going on at school, they’re put to the test: Will they be the heroes or the villains of their stories?

Since there is a whole new crew of supes to get familiar with, here is the lowdown on the incoming class.

Jazz Sinclair will star as Marie Moreau, a new student at the college, who has the slightly nauseating power to weaponize her own blood. She intends to be the first Black woman in The Seven. Sinclair’s Chilling Adventures of Sabrina co-star Chance Perdomo will portray junior Andre Anderson, who’s Golden Boy’s BFF and has his own magnetic powers.

Speaking of Golden Boy, Patrick Schwarzenegger plays the boy himself, also known as Luke Riordan. He’ll be a senior at the school who is also set on joining The Seven. Maddie Phillips portrays Luke’s girlfriend Cate Dunlap, a junior who is able to push people to do whatever she commands.

Also starring in the show is Lizzy Broadway, who will portray Emma Meyer aka Little Cricket, a super who can shrink herself down to insect size, and Asa Germann who plays Sam, a powerful supe who is plagued by hallucinations. London Thor and Derek Luh play Jordan Li, a student who can change between male and female forms, each with their own powers.

As for the adults, Clancy Brown will play Professor Rich Brinkerhoffn who trains the best and brightest superhero minds, Sean Patrick Thomas will portray Polarity, Andre’s father and a Godolkin alum, and Shelley Conn will portray Indira Shetty, the powerless dean who takes a special interest in Marie.

The Boys: Gen V premieres on September 29h on Prime.

The water bill at the Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis residence appears to be pretty low after recent revelations the couple made about their family’s bathing habits.

In a recent appearance on Dax Shepard’s “Armchair Expert” podcast, they admitted they’re not that into bathing themselves or their two children, Dimitri Portwood, 4, and Wyatt Isabelle, 6.

The conversation started when Shepard explained his ongoing disagreement with co-host Monica Padman. The two have dissenting views over whether people should use soap. “You should not be getting rid of all the natural oil on your skin with a bar of soap every day,” he said. “It’s insane.”

Kunis agreed with Shepard and was very candid about her bathing ritual. “I don’t wash my body with soap every day,” she shared. “But I wash pits and tits and holes and soles.”

“I can’t believe I’m in the minority here of washing my whole body in the shower,” Padman replied. “Who taught you to not wash?”

“I didn’t have hot water growing up as a child,” Kunis recalled, “so I didn’t shower very much anyway.” Kunis was born in the then-Soviet controlled Ukrainian city of Chernivtsi in 1983. Her family migrated to America when she was seven.

Kutcher added that he regularly uses soap and water on just his “armpits and crotch” and “nothing else.”

Kunis has passed her lax attitude towards bathing on to her children.

“When I had children,” she said, “I also didn’t wash them every day. I wasn’t the parent that bathed my newborns—ever.” Shepard agreed, saying that he and wife Kristen Bell only bathe their children as part of a nighttime routine and don’t pay much attention to their cleanliness.

“That’s how we feel about our children. We’re like, ‘Oof, something smells,'” Kunis added. Kutcher has a simple rule when it comes to his children and their cleanliness. “Here’s the thing — if you can see the dirt on ’em, clean ’em,” he says. “Otherwise, there’s no point.”

u201cMila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher Say They Only Bathe Their Kids When ‘You Can See the Dirt on Them’u201d

— People (@People)
1627410000

While the Kutcher-Kunis clan’s approach towards hygiene may not be typical of the average American family, they may not be wrong according to science. Research suggests that children benefit from being exposed to germs early in life.

“This line of thinking, called the ‘hygiene hypothesis,’ holds that when exposure to parasites, bacteria, and viruses is limited early in life, children face a greater chance of having allergies, asthma, and other autoimmune diseases during adulthood,” WebMD says.

Basically, the more your body is exposed to the more it can fight off.

“Just as a baby’s brain needs stimulation, input, and interaction to develop normally, the young immune system is strengthened by exposure to everyday germs so that it can learn, adapt, and regulate itself,” notes Thom McDade, PhD, associate professor and director of the Laboratory for Human Biology Research at Northwestern University.

As for Kutcher and Kunis, they both share the same attitude when it comes to hygiene so nobody in the relationship has the right to complain if the other is a little funky. If it works for them, who are we to judge?

This article originally appeared on 7.28,.21

I remember sitting in advanced algebra and trigonometry class in high school wondering if I was really ever going to use any of what I was learning. Math at that level meant nothing to me in a practical sense. I planned to study English and education to become an English teacher, so I couldn’t imagine why I’d need to learn the ins and outs of trig.

As it turned out, some of what I learned came in handy in the functions class I was required to take to fulfill my math requirement in college. But again, I found myself sitting in class with zero idea of why I was learning this level of math and suspecting that I was never going to actually use that knowledge in my adult life.

Now I’m a middle-aged adult and I can say with absolute certainty that I was right. In 27 years, I have not used anything I learned in functions. Not once. Not even a little bit. I agonized my way through that class to eek out a B-minus and to promptly forget everything I’d learned because it was utterly useless to me.

To be clear, higher math isn’t useless—it’s amazing. It was just completely useless to me.

You know what would have been useful? Learning about financing a car or a mortgage or understanding how and why and where to invest money. In all that time I was doing trigonometric proofs and calculating polynomial functions, I could have been learning all the various real-life math-related decisions I’d have to make as an adult.

I see the same thing happening with my kids in high school and college. It totally makes sense for students who are interested in going into math and science fields to take math beyond basic algebra and geometry. But for those who aren’t—why? There are so many more valuable things for them to take the time to learn—things that every single person really needs a basic knowledge of, such as:

Basic Psychology/Mental Health Maintenance

Every one of us has a brain and mental health is an issue for a huge percentage of people. Even those of us who don’t struggle with mental illness benefit from learning about how our minds work, gaining strategies for managing our thoughts, emotions and behaviors, and understanding why people do the things they do.

How many people would have been saved by learning how to spot a narcissist before getting into a relationship with one? How many people could mitigate an anxiety spiral right when it starts because they learned to recognize the signs earlier? How many people would appreciate the support and understanding of everyone having a basic understanding of their mental health disorders?

Basic Sociology/Human Behavior

Similarly, every one of us lives in a society. Understanding social connections, relationships and group behavior might kind of come in handy. If we don’t understand the causes and consequences of human behavior, we’re going to be confused by society at best and allow or enable atrocities to occur at worst.

From learning how cults and conspiracy theories work to recognizing how our prejudices can blind us to reality, sociology has useful knowledge we all need to internalize.

Media Literacy

If we’re going to be bombarded with media 24/7, we’d better know how to process it. Understanding how journalism works, what makes a source credible, how information can be skewed and how to recognize misinformation and disinformation is vital. What is bias and how can it be mitigated? How can we recognize when an outlet values accuracy?

So many of the problems the U.S. is facing currently are due to people watching or listening to dubious news sources. Mandatory media literacy courses would (hopefully) go a long way toward changing that.

The Stock Market and Other Investments

I underestimated how much I’d need to know about the stock market when I was younger. None of that economic stuff interested me, but I wish I understood it better now.

But really, it’s investing in general that we need to understand more about when we’re younger, especially since starting young is the No. 1 best advice any financial advisor will give you.

How Banking, Credit and Credit Cards Work

Every single one of us uses a bank or credit union and credit is a huge part of adult life. And yet most people I know have had to piece together how credit and credit cards actually work through advice from friends and family and good old trial and error, sometimes with devastating consequences.

Taxes

Good gracious, right? Not just how to do taxes, but what taxes get used for.

Financial literacy is what I’m saying. We need mandatory financial literacy classes. (Florida has actually just become the first state to require personal finance education to graduate, so yay Florida.) I think I was required to take economics in high school, but it was much more high-level economic theory than personal finance. We need personal finance first, then the bigger picture.

First Aid/Safety/Self-Defense

Most of us probably got some first aid and/or CPR training in health class, but how comprehensive was it? Did it include infant CPR? Do we know how to recognize if someone is having a stroke? Signs of infection?

What about basic everyday safety, like why you shouldn’t leave a car running in a garage or common household fire dangers or how to spot asbestos?

Self-defense seems like a no-brainer. Basically, a “How to Stay Alive and Keep Others Alive” course that includes most everything you need to know to protect yourself and your loved ones on a daily basis.

Navigating our Healthcare and Health Insurance System

Ugh. I’ve been an adult for almost three decades and everything about our healthcare system confuses and frustrates me. Maybe if we required schools to teach young people how it works, it would shine a big spotlight on how ridiculously and unnecessarily complicated it is because no one could possibly explain it in a way that’s understandable. Maybe that would push lawmakers to actually do something about it, because honestly, it’s just a gigantic mess.

There are surely others, but those are the major subjects that come to mind as vital after being an adult for a long while and seeing what my own kids need to have a decent grasp on as they make their way into the world. And honestly, there are some classes that adults should be required to take well into adulthood. Parenting classes, for example. Or local government and voting.

All subjects and courses have value to some people, but if we want students to be prepared for adulthood, we should make sure they are given the vital knowledge and skills every person actually needs and will use.

This article originally appeared on 03.25.22