December 29, 2021

Fight on Delta flight from Tampa to Atlanta started with Rosa Parks comment and masks, feds say

A drink cart, an unworn mask and a comment about civil rights activist Rosa Parks led to violence on a Delta Airlines flight last week from Tampa to Atlanta, according to court documents and a passenger from Tampa who helped restrain a woman.

Delta 2790 departed from Tampa International Airport two days before Christmas. Passenger Patricia Cornwall was returning from the restroom and found the aisle blocked by the beverage cart, according to a federal criminal complaint filed Monday in the U.S. District Court’s Northern District of Georgia.

When a flight attendant asked Cornwall to find a different, open seat to wait in until the beverage service was over, the complaint states that Cornwall responded with, “What am I, Rosa Parks?”

The cart was stopped near the seat of Russell S. Miller, who “believed Cornwall’s comment was inappropriate,” the complaint states. Miller told Cornwall she “isn’t Black ... this isn’t Alabama and this isn’t a bus.”

https://www.tampabay.com/news/tampa/2021/12/29/fight-on-delta-flight-from-tampa-to-atlanta-started-with-rosa-parks-comment-and-masks-feds-say/

December 29, 2021

Friendly family man's 50-year secret: He was fugitive, too

Just before Thomas Randele died, his wife of nearly 40 years asked his golfing buddies and his co-workers from the dealerships where he sold cars to come by their home.

They gathered to say goodbye to a guy they called one of the nicest people they’d ever known — a devoted family man who gushed about his daughter, a golfer who never bent the rules, a friend to so many that a line stretched outside the funeral home a week later.

By the time of their final visit last May at Randele’s house in suburban Boston, the cancer in his lungs had taken away his voice. So they all left without knowing that their friend they’d spent countless hours swapping stories with never told them his biggest secret of all.

For the past 50 years, he was a fugitive wanted in one of the largest bank robberies in Cleveland’s history, living in Boston under a new name he created six months after the heist in the summer of 1969. Not even his wife or daughter knew until he told them in what authorities described as a deathbed confession.

https://apnews.com/article/cleveland-bank-robbery-mystery-solved-6d9260c287774ff1904f896896031ff9

Seems to me it would be terrible going through life always looking over your shoulder.

December 29, 2021

Ethics Investigators in Congress Increasingly Run Into Walls

Lawmakers under scrutiny are more likely than before to simply refuse to cooperate with an inquiry.

WASHINGTON — As House ethics investigators were examining four cases this fall detailing a sweeping array of improper financial conduct by lawmakers, they ran into an obstacle: Two of the lawmakers under scrutiny refused to meet with them or provide documents.

The investigators were not too surprised. Over the past decade, fewer and fewer House members have been willing to cooperate with congressional investigations, a development that ethics experts warn could reduce accountability for misdeeds and erode trust in the institution of Congress.

Omar Ashmawy, the staff director of the Office of Congressional Ethics, an independent entity that reviews allegations against House members and refers misconduct cases to the House Ethics Committee, acknowledged the growing resistance to his office’s work, but said he was undeterred: “It has never prevented us from being able to gather the facts and determine what happened and whether or not the subject was culpable.”

Still, the trend is unmistakable.

In 2009 and 2010 — the first Congress scrutinized by the Office of Congressional Ethics, which was created in 2008 — three lawmakers refused to cooperate with the office’s 68 investigations, a noncooperation rate of just 4 percent.

This year, six out of 14 House lawmakers under investigation have refused to participate — a rate of 43 percent, the highest on record.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/28/us/politics/congress-ethics-investigations.html?unlocked_article_code=AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACEIPuonUktbfqohlSlUZCybIRp8_qRmHmfnE2_s3gXnxNiWOUnNP0-QUCJPF-kHTaLF_ZtQ6wzWcQsQHMKMqQLY66N5jCHFXalvipIqYytNCKj8pqIm3UyQ70p_EVu5oq3q6ZWXkbbpznuH670vaOX28WKDc1nckIQ1l9pd1ZBr9jyxzs6TOEeZ32tN73-5wRcwpAGddO1TZ-qXgGB58O92ZbhrD6QlQWupRWTjbndX0-KtXOUwJSgqAFCUjlD56vNBMO9oXP7L9Lwoje6f8grYSC29rLuS5FjMNoQoSFR1X796q08dYK7I&smid=url-share

December 28, 2021

I'm a New Yorker who visited California for the first time. Here are 9 things that surprised me most

As a New Yorker visiting California for the first time, I was blown away by the landscapes, gorgeous weather, wildlife, and experiences.

Southern California — the San Diego area specifically — is truly stunning and quite different from the East Coast.

Read on for the things that surprised me most on my trip.

https://www.insider.com/things-new-yorker-found-surprising-about-visiting-california-photos-2021-12

Although it's been a bit wet lately, San Diego is a really nice place to call home.

December 28, 2021

TikTok moderator sues company, alleging trauma from hours reviewing videos of rape and killings

A content moderator who reviewed videos for TikTok is suing the social media company, alleging that it did not protect her from suffering psychological trauma after “constant” exposure to violent videos that showed sexual assault, beheadings, suicide and other graphic scenes.

For as long as 12 hours each day, Candie Frazier and other moderators reviewed “extreme and graphic violence,” including videos of “genocide in Myanmar, mass shootings, children being raped, and animals being mutilated” in an effort to filter out such content from being viewed by TikTok users, according to the lawsuit. The legal action was filed in federal court in California last week against TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance.

Frazier developed “significant psychological trauma including anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder” as a result of her exposure to the videos, according to the lawsuit, which is seeking class-action status. The legal challenge, which alleges that TikTok violated California labor law by failing to provide a “safe work environment,” requests compensation for moderators who were exposed to the material. It also asks that TikTok and ByteDance provide mental health support and treatment to former and current moderators.

Frazier is not a TikTok employee — she works for Telus International, a firm that provides workers to other businesses — but the lawsuit alleges that “ByteDance and TikTok control the means and manner in which content moderation occurred.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/12/28/tiktok-moderator-lawsuit-violent-content-ptsd/

December 28, 2021

The GOP's 'money for me but not for thee' approach to the American Rescue Plan

PHOENIX — Always remember the First Law of Fiscal Policy: “Wasteful” government spending is only the spending that goes to other people — not to me.

When Democrats passed their $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan in the spring, it received zero GOP votes. At the time, Republican politicians decried the stimulus package as “wasteful” and a “parade of left-wing pet projects” that was “bankrupting our children.” In the months since, however, Republicans have been touting projects in their states and districts financed by that very same bill.

This unearned credit-hoarding began almost immediately. Before the bill even hit President Biden’s desk, Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) trumpeted its benefits for restaurant owners (while omitting mention of his own “no” vote, naturally).

Similar boasts soon followed from Republican Reps. Madison Cawthorn (N.C.), Elise Stefanik (N.Y.), Troy Balderson (Ohio), Beth Van Duyne (Tex.) and others.

Republican state officials who once derided the bill as irresponsible, mistargeted or unfair are also now eagerly hoovering up its money. Even so, some still claim to oppose it.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/12/27/biden-initiatives-republicans-like-have-their-cake-eat-it-too/

December 28, 2021

Tampa woman reaches $1.75 million settlement for losing leg after pedicure

The infection brought years of hardship that will continue for Clara Shellman, her attorney said, including medical expenses and the need for others to care for her.

A trip to the nail salon turned into a nightmare for Clara Shellman.

An employee with Tammy’s Nails 2 at 2507 W Hillsborough Ave. in Tampa cut Shellman’s foot while she was getting a pedicure in September 2018, according to a lawsuit. The cut became infected and quickly spread, aggravated by Shellman’s severe peripheral arterial disease. Shellman had to have her leg amputated.

Now, over three years later, Shellman, 55, has reached a settlement with Tammy’s Nails 2, according to court documents filed Dec. 16. The documents don’t spell out the amount, but her attorney said it’s $1.75 million.

“She was stunned, shocked, crying and giddy, all at the same time,” Paul Fulmer, the attorney, said Thursday.

https://www.tampabay.com/news/business/2021/12/28/tampa-woman-reaches-175-million-settlement-for-losing-leg-after-pedicure/

December 27, 2021

5 GOP-led states extend unemployment aid to workers who lose jobs over vaccine mandates

Critics says the rule changes in Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Kansas and Tennessee are incentivizing people to skip shots, and undermining the White House’s pandemic response.

At least five Republican-led states have extended unemployment benefits to people who’ve lost jobs over vaccine mandates — and a smattering of others may soon follow.

Workers who quit or are fired for cause — including for defying company policy — are generally ineligible for jobless benefits. But Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Kansas and Tennessee have carved out exceptions for those who won’t submit to the multi-shot coronavirus vaccine regimens that many companies now require. Similar ideas have been floated in Wyoming, Wisconsin and Missouri.

Critics contend that these states are incentivizing people to skip shots that public health experts say offer the best line of defense against the coronavirus. Business leaders and industry groups have argued against the rule changes because, they say, companies would shoulder much of the costs. And the efforts are playing out as the Biden administration is pressing immunization rules for private companies and as coronavirus cases are surging again because of the fast-spreading omicron variant.

Observers say it’s a mark of the politicization of the coronavirus — with fights flaring over business closures, mask mandates and more — and how it has scrambled state politics and altered long-held positions. It wasn’t long ago, they note, that two dozen Republican-led states moved to restrict unemployment aid to compel residents to return to the workforce and ease labor shortages.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/12/27/5-gop-led-states-extend-unemployment-aid-workers-who-lose-jobs-over-vaccine-mandates/

December 27, 2021

Man Who Tried to Kill the Queen With a Crossbow Made Darth Vader Video Before Breaking into Palace

The man who broke into Windsor Castle on Christmas Day armed with a crossbow recorded a threatening Snapchat clip, channeling Darth Vader and describing himself as a “Sith.”

Jaswant Singh Chail said in the clip that he was planning to assassinate the queen in revenge for a notorious 1919 massacre in India by British soldiers.

His father, a software engineer, told reporters from MailOnline Monday: “Something’s gone horribly wrong with our son and we are trying to figure out what.

“We’ve not had a chance to speak to him but are trying to get him the help he needs. From our perspective, we are going through a difficult time. We are trying to resolve this issue and it’s not easy.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/jaswant-singh-chail-would-be-crossbow-killer-made-darth-vader-terror-video-threatening-the-queen

December 27, 2021

Oakley Introduces Line Of Sunglasses For Front Of Head

FOOTHILL RANCH, CA—In an effort to market “something a little bit different” to diehard fans of its lifestyle brand, sports apparel company Oakley unveiled a new line of sunglasses Monday specifically designed for wear on the front of the head.

“We’re excited to expand into eyewear with these sleek new performance sunglasses, which have the same look and feel as your favorite pair of Oakleys, but are built for shielding your eyes instead of the back of your head,” said Oakley spokesman Brock Shannon, demonstrating how to correctly position the shades so they rest atop the nose rather than on spiky blond-tipped hair or the base of a smooth bald skull.

“Whether you’re on your speedboat, on your Jet Ski, or simply on your Bluetooth in the parking lot of a local Chili’s, these bad boys can withstand the absolute sunniest conditions. Just make sure the holographic orange lenses cover your eyes, and there’ll be no more squinting under the shade of your meaty hand.”

In response to concerns from longtime customers, Shannon later clarified that the new Oakleys would not interfere with the old ones already on the backs of their heads, confirming that they could wear both pairs at the same time.

https://www.theonion.com/oakley-introduces-line-of-sunglasses-for-front-of-head-1848246515