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The Republican-heavy Supreme Court gave people a doozy of a session wind-down, starting late last week when they officially overruled Roe v. Wade, thereby pushing women back to the Dirty Dancing era without remorse. The highest court in the land also ignored the Texas school shooting by slapping down gun restrictions, and expanded Oklahoma’s jurisdiction and power over Native American tribes, and essentially disarmed the EPA‘s ability to fight climate change.

In other words, no one can blame Americans for needing a few drinks over the Fourth of July, but maybe this news out of Minnesota will help? As Ryan Faircloth (of Star Tribune) noted on Twitter, the Minnesota Senate legalized edibles as of Friday. The catch here, though, is that members of the state’s GOP apparently didn’t read (or grasp) the entire bill, and then they wanted to undo the vote.

Yes, really. Here’s details on that hot mess from Star Tribune), which notes that Democrats stood firm on refusing a rollback:

Sen. Jim Abeler, R-Anoka, who chairs the Senate Human Services Reform Finance and Policy Committee, said he didn’t realize the new law would legalize edibles containing delta-9 THC before it passed. He thought the law would only regulate delta-8 THC products.

“I thought we were doing a technical fix, and it winded up having a broader impact than I expected,” Abeler said, adding that the Legislature should consider rolling the new law back.

Cue the poetry and other amused commentary from social media:

Enjoy that holiday weekend, everyone. Minnesotans sure have a reason to party.

(Via Star Tribune)

Yesterday, Sabrina Carpenter announced her fifth studio album Emails I Can’t Send, her first since leaving Hollywood Records and signing to Island. So far, she’s released the songs “Skinny Dipping” and “Fast Times,” which she said are “a good indication for what the rest of the album is going to bring.”

She’s back with the fed-up single “Vicious.” It’s a cathartic anthem that she says is about healing and coming to terms with someone who showed their true colors. Read her full statement about the track below.

“Sonically, you’re able to hear me really closely, and it’s almost like I’m narrating the story to you. This song is really narrative and personal. It’s as if I’m having a conversation. We’ve all had experiences with people we love so deeply who turn out to be different than we thought they were. It’s a really painful realization to come to terms with. A lot of times, we focus on the other side of the healing process and fail to own up to uncomfortable feelings like anger and resentment. I don’t touch on that side of myself too often, but it’s a huge part of my story over the past couple of years, so I thought it was important to start there on ‘Vicious.’”

Listen to “Vicious” above.

Emails I Can’t Send is out 7/15 via Island. Pre-save it here.

An emotionally abusive billionaire father. A disinterested step-mother. A failson. Another son with political ambitions. The fake feminist.

The similarities between the Trumps and the Roys from Succession are unmistakable, even if creator Jesse Armstrong claims the Roys aren’t based on any specific family. “The amazing thing about this stuff is that it’s everywhere. Sumner Redstone’s family. The Mercers. The Murdochs. Conrad Black. Sometimes people have said, it’s really about these people, isn’t it? It’s based on them. And: No. We read widely and we do take elements of stuff,” he once told the New York Times.

But filmmaker Alex Holder, whose Unprecedented documentary is reportedly making the Trumps very anxious, can’t help but see the parallels between the real-life family and their unintentional HBO counterparts. “I’m speaking specifically about Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Eric Trump, and then the president himself, and the interactions they have with each other, and the interaction they have with their father,” he said on the Skullduggery podcast. “It’s sort of got this, like, Succession-type vibe in the project.” He added, “But also, you know, it is a real-life succession drama.”

Was Donald Trump’s COVID stay at the hospital a false flag for one of his sons refusing to help him during a meeting with a many-layered businessman? I’ll leave that for you to decide. You can listen to the podcast below.

Succession is back filming, but won’t return for season four until next year.

(Via Insider)

On Thursday afternoon, the Brooklyn Nets and Utah Jazz agreed to a trade that would send Royce O’Neale to Brooklyn in exchange for a 2023 first-round pick. Without any context, that’s a rather standard trade. Utah seems to be pivoting toward a possible rebuild, while Brooklyn needs more perimeter stoppers around its superstar core of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.

The context, though, is where everything seems to become really hazy. Minutes prior to that deal, Durant’s desire for a trade went public. Despite that, the Nets, already short on future picks, shipped off a first-rounder in a win-now move.

Most folks across the NBA landscape found that odd, perhaps none more than ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, although while most were focused on the Nets side of things, Windy was most curious about what Utah was doing. On Friday’s episode of First Take, Windhorst put on an incredible performance conveying his bewilderment to the rest of the show’s panel. The 131-second clip is near the pinnacle of art. It’s a spectacle. I won’t pull any of his quotes before letting all of you enjoy the scene for yourself.

“I’m gonna tell you something happened yesterday that league executives are wondering what the heck it means,” Windhorst said, “and it happened within five minutes.”

By the 15-second mark, Windhorst has already created suspense and intrigue, yet nobody but him is aware of the topic. The cadence and ambiguity make for a perfect build-up. Shortly after, he pans to his right, stares and nods his head before revealing the subject matter: Thursday’s Jazz-Nets trade.

“It’s a very strange trade, a very strange trade,” Windhorst says as he shakes his head and closes his eyes to further emphasize the oddity of the move. “You really have to be a Jazz or a Nets fan to even know what I’m talking about right now.”

OK, Windhorst loses me a bit here. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported it and he’s essentially the NBA’s preeminent newsbreaker. Many NBA fans are cognizant of the move. I’ll let a minor gaffe from the artist slide, though. Keep cooking, Windhorst. You’re in the zone.

“So, you’re going, what do you care about Royce O’Neale? Why does that matter?” Windhorst asks, followed by a brief moment of silence to raise suspense. “Why would the Jazz, who have two stars on their roster, take a player who’s one of their starters and best defensive players, and trade him in a salary dumping move? Why would they do that?”

Windhorst pauses after these inquiries. A couple fellow members of the panel chime in. Maybe, it’s a way to open space to land Durant, one of them posits. Another suggests it’s part of a larger three-team trade. He’s got these folks hooked.

They’re both wrong, though. Windhorst begins swaying in his chair and rubbing his chin. This man is in his element. The 1:13 mark is perfection. Windhorst is in complete control. Everyone is entranced by this monologue.

From there, he draws a comparison to the last time Jazz executive Danny Ainge hired a head coach, back when he was with the Boston Celtics. Both times, Ainge hired a first-time NBA head coach who hadn’t yet turned 40 and gave them lengthy contracts (Brad Stevens received six years, Will Hardy just received five).

The year Ainge hired Stevens, he also dealt Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce to the Nets, which commenced a rebuild for Boston. Windhorst is hinting at Utah smacking the reset button, and says whether a teardown actually comes to fruition is something the rest of the NBA is monitoring.

“Very rare for a first-time head coach to get a five-year contract. Why?” Windhorst said. “What’s going on in Utah? And that’s what people in the league are watching right now.”

This man is an exhibit of provocative facial expressions.

For the kicker, Windhorst concludes his masterful showing by mistakenly referring to the move as “that Royce Young trade.” Young, of course, is a former ESPN colleague of his who now works for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

What a brilliant display from start to finish from Windhorst.

The Atlanta Hawks have been quite busy this offseason, as the team swung a big trade to bring Dejounte Murray into the fold from the San Antonio Spurs, while reports have indicated that John Collins is very much available for trade. On Friday afternoon, word broke that another member of their rotation is on the way out of town.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, sharpshooting guard Kevin Huerter is on his way out of town. Wojnarowski reports that Huerter will head to the Sacramento Kings for a package that includes Justin Holiday, Mo Harkless, and a future lottery-protected first-round pick.

The report was confirmed by Chris Kirschner of The Athletic.

Huerter should be a snug fit for the Kings alongside De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis. Between him and Keegan Murray, the No. 4 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, it seems evident that Sacramento wants to put shooting around their two stars. As for the Hawks, there Holiday and Harkless are a pair of veterans who should be able to contribute if they stick around and get a shot to join the team’s rotation.

Huerter is about to enter the first year of a 4-year, $65 million extension he signed last offseason. The former first-round pick averaged 12.1 points per game last year while connecting on 38.9 percent of his attempts from three.

The Cleveland Cavaliers had one of the league’s best frontcourt pairings during the 2021-22 season. Rookie big man Evan Mobley was a revelation, while Jarrett Allen made the team look awfully smart for sliding into the trade that sent James Harden to Brooklyn and giving him a huge extension.

Ahead of their second year as a duo, the Cavaliers have apparently decided to add some veteran reinforcements to their frontcourt. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the Cavaliers and free agent big man Robin Lopez have come to terms on a 1-year deal that will drop him in the same division as his twin brother, Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez.

Few players in the NBA are as well-traveled as Lopez, as the Cavaliers are set to become the ninth team for which he has played. Last year, Lopez suited up for the Orlando Magic, and provided a steady presence off the bench and in the locker room for a team that was looking to build around its young core. Now, Lopez will join a team with an eye on being a playoff contender.

Lopez averaged 7.1 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game on 55.3 percent shooting (59.3 percent from the line) in 36 games with the Magic.

Warner Bros. is making it known that the studio is still in business with J.K. Rowling after a dust-up between a reporter and a publicist suggested otherwise. According to reports, Tom Felton was promoting the expansion of “The Making of Harry Potter” attraction in London when he was asked about Rowling’s current status in the franchise based on her bestselling books. The author has been the center of controversy following a series of anti-trans remarks, which seemingly resulted in her having a minimal presence in the recent Harry Potter reunion special.

“You and the other stars of the film are still very much the face of the franchise, if you like. We speak to you and hear from you guys… J.K. obviously has sort of more of a back seat now. Is it strange for her not being around at things like this?” a Sky News reporter asked, according to Variety.

The question prompted what’s being described as an “external PR executive” to step in and shut down the line of questioning. When Sky News later asked why the reporter was blocked (via Variety), the executive’s third-party firm wrote in an email, “J.K. Rowling is not connected to Warner or Tom Felton, the team felt it was not relevant to the piece.”

Warner Bros. has since issued a statement where it set the record straight that it’s still firmly in business with Rowling. Via Variety:

“Warner Bros. has enjoyed a creative, productive and fulfilling partnership with J.K. Rowling for the past 20 years. She is one of the world’s most accomplished storytellers, and we are proud to be the studio to bring her vision, characters and stories to life now — and for decades to come. On Monday, a statement was issued by a third-party media agency that appeared contrary to this view. The statement was wholly wrong, and Warner Bros. Studio Tour London regrets it happened as part of a media event that day.”

Despite the controversy surrounding Rowling, Harry Potter remains a lucrative franchise for Warner Bros. thanks to the immense popularity of the books and films. The studio is also reportedly developing a live-action series for HBO Max that has the potential of being the next Game of Thrones for the network.

(Via Variety)

A couple of years ago, Kanye West took to Twitter to call out his label Def Jam: “90% of the record contracts on the planet are still on a royalty,” he wrote. “A standard record deal is a trap to NEVER have you recoup, and there’s all these hidden costs like the ‘distribution fees’ many labels put in their contracts to make even more money off our work without even trying.” Logic quickly backed him up, writing that they “owe a few of my folks they money honestly.” Now the “1-800-273-8255” rapper is joining BMG after leaving Def Jam.

With BMG, he has a multi-album partnership, but this time he owns his sound recordings. “There’s a lot of bullsh*t in the music industry,” Logic said in a statement. “I’m just glad to move on to a place where I can be independent and respected as an artist, and feel like I’m in control of my career.”

Senior VP of repertoire and marketing at BMG Tim Reid added, “As an artist, creator and entrepreneur, Logic is the perfect fit for BMG and we are excited to join forces. He has a unique authenticity that has consistently enabled him to remain among the best in the business.”

Logic’s new album, Vinyl Days, is his last under Def Jam. You can get it here.

When the internet is full of dreary headlines, it’s even more important to balance it all out with things that spark joy.

Whether it comes from cute kids and animals, amazing art or wholesome acts of kindness, things that make us smile help remind our hearts that the world is indeed a big place, containing both the bad and the good. Sometimes it might take a little extra scouring to find what makes us smile, but Upworthy is here to make the search a little bit easier.

Without further ado, let’s get uplifted:

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1. Benny the guide pup fell asleep at his own photoshoot and Twitter loved him for it.

This is Benny. He fell asleep during his guide dog initiation photoshoot. 12/10 we still think he has what it takes pic.twitter.com/s5Juhz7SP2

— WeRateDogs® (@dog_rates) June 29, 2022

Sometimes being adorable is just so exhausting, wouldn’t you agree?

2. Orchestra conductors got gloriously pranked on their birthdays.

Maestros Sir Andrew Davis, Sir Roger Norrington and Lahav Shani were in for a delightful symphonic surprise. Who knew that “Happy Birthday” could be such a moving tune?

3. People rallied around an honest teen who went out of his way to return a woman’s purse.

Seventeen-year-old Adrian Rodriguez found Eliana Martin’s abandoned purse in a shopping cart. Rodriguez found an address where Martin lived, and dropped it off while she wasn’t home. His act of kindness was caught on the doorbell camera, and Martin’s former roommate was so moved she started a GoFundMe campaign to reward him. People raised nearly $10,000. You can read the full story here.

4. The crowd at a baseball game had the most wholesome reaction to a little girl’s bottle flip.

This girl had the whole section rooting for her bottle flip pic.twitter.com/CxSyGP7OKx

— Gleyber With No Brim (Corey) (@Saquon_Gleyber) June 26, 2022

And the crowd goes wild! I don’t think she expected that kind of applause.

5. A mischievous baby elephant causes the cutest wardrobe malfunction of all time.

See on Instagram

Note to self: Never wear a long skirt while visiting baby elephants.

6. A helpful grandma pressed her grandkid’s bi flag before Pride Parade.

See on Instagram

Sometimes the simplest gestures hold the most meaning.

7. Two brothers are using their roller skates to spread joy.

@griffinbrothersskating Comin I’m hot 🥵 #TheGriffinBrothers #foryoupage #fyp #jamskating #rollerskating #jamskate #rollerskate ♬ Coming In Hot – Andy Mineo & Lecrae

Brothers Marcus and Michael Griffin, also known as The Griffin Brothers, are rolling through social media showing off their impressive skate skills. With smooth moves, fun outfits and an inspiring story, there’s just so much to love about these two.

8. A 1991 blooper clip of Robin Williams and Elmo resurfaced, and everyone’s in stitches.

Williams was a comedy master. Elmo is adorable. It’s a pretty unbeatable combo.

9. Did you know that an octopus can use jet propulsion?

See on Instagram

Perhaps I’m biased because octopi are my favorite animals of all time, but it was cool to learn that octopuses have two sets of gills inside their mantle to extract oxygen from their ocean environment. They bring water into their mantle and exhale through their “siphon”—that snorkel-like tube sticking out of the mantle. If an octopus needs a speedy getaway from a predator, it can use jet propulsion—inhale with a powerful exhale—to swim away!

10. Kentanji Brown Jackson made history as the first Black woman to serve on the highest court of the nation.

Ketanji Brown Jackson is sworn in as an associate justice to the United States Supreme Court, making history as the first Black woman on the highest court in the nation https://t.co/udbQDO3alg pic.twitter.com/4R6U6rIFgi

— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) June 30, 2022

At least one bit of good Supreme Court news.

The internet doesn’t always have to be a soul drain. Feel free to come back to these anytime you need the healing salve of joy.

As the world slowly spins into chaos, more and more celebs have been actively speaking out about Roe v. Wade being overturned, and some are taking action. Actress Busy Philipps was arrested outside the Supreme Court on Thursday while protesting the court decision alongside Planned Parenthood and a handful of other celebs, including Orange Is The New Black’s Alysia Reiner and author Julia Haart.

The capitol police tweeted that the group was “crowding, obstructing or incommoding” the street, which led to their arrest Thursday afternoon. Vice News asked Philipps why she was arrested, and she appropriately replied, “equality!”

After the arrest, Philipps took to Instagram to post a lengthy statement about the ordeal, saying “we will not back down, we will not give in and we will not stop fighting until there is equality for all Americans.” Philipps has been open in the past about her history with abortions and how vital they are.

On Friday, the right to make decisions about our own bodies and lives – a right we’ve had for almost 50 years – was ripped away from us by this new Supreme Court, a Court whose personal belief’s are NOT shared by the vast majority of Americans. I am one of those Americans.

I was proud to stand today alongside Planned Parenthood Action Fund, the Working Family’s Party, Reverend Barber and the Poor People’s Campaign, Catholic’s for Choice, The National Council of Jewish Women, mi Familia Vota, the Center For Popular Democracy Action and NARAL in an action of peaceful civil disobedience to let lawmakers but more importantly, the people who will be most impacted by this outrageous decision, know that we will not back down, we will not give in and we will not stop fighting until there is equality for all Americans. I can think of no better way to use my privilege and voice than to amplify the message that bodily autonomy IS a human right, as it is ACTUALLY the exact same thing as the promise of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. We must ensure that it applies to all of us. This is the fight of a lifetime, y’all. It’s not gonna be short, easy or without setbacks. But we must MUST MUST keep showing up and taking action. *YOU* must. I promise I will. These horrible hateful small people who have been hiding behind “the will of God” and indoctrinating new believers every day aren’t reflective of ANYTHING- not the greatness or compassion of humanity and certainly not God. I’m pretty sure God has no interest in this bullshit, honey. And fyi, if Jesus were alive today, you KNOW his DMs would be filled with death threats from the followers of F*cker Carlson and the rest of these assholes. ENOUGH OF THIS. ENOUGH OF BEING BULLIED BY PEOPLE WHO DO NOT CARE ABOUT YOU OR ME. WE HAVE TO ALL SHOW THE F*CK UP. I DON’T KNOW WHO NEEDS TO HEAR THIS BUT WE NEED TO SHOW THE F*CK UP NOW.

Other celebs have been supporting the Girls5EVer actress in the comments, including Hilarie Burton and Jenny Mollen. The news comes after actress Jodie Sweetin was thrown to the ground by police while protesting in California. As Philipps states, now is the time to show up, and we will likely see more and more protests in the coming weeks.

(Via IndieWire)