Author: J.P. Knowles

Onondaga County, New York, lawmakers passed a resolution to give some senior residents who are struggling during a time of high inflation a one-time cash gift.

A $200 stipend would be made to qualified households in upstate New York county for elderly individuals who fit the criteria under the proposed law.

“When we’re looking at the cost of everything else going up, there’s not a lot of flexibility even if they give them a little bump in Social Security,” Democratic Legislator Peggy Chase said.

Chase’s resolution, recently put before the county legislature, stated that seniors’ fixed income “amidst the highest rates of inflation since the 1980s,” makes them “disproportionately” impaired in terms of their “ability to maintain a stable and sustainable livelihood within the comfort of their home[.]”

Seniors must already be receiving New York’s Enhanced STAR exemption from school property taxes for the following academic year in order to be eligible for the payments. For households making $60,000 or less, when the property owner is at least 65 years old, this exemption applies.

The resolution proposed allocating $5.5 million for the initiative.

Chase’s fellow Democratic lawmaker Bill Kinne reportedly wanted the cash payments to include low-income families and said that “it would be nice to give it to everybody,” but that “logistically, we haven’t figured that out.”

Through new music on the soon-to-be-released album with British guitarist Jeff Beck, Johnny Depp seems to express his thoughts about the multi-million dollar defamation battle he was involved with his ex-wife, Amber Heard.

After a nearly seven-week trial in Virginia involving accusations of domestic abuse and sexual assault, Depp was given $10.35 million in damages after the jury found Heard defamed him on all counts. Heard lost the defamation case, but the jury found that Depp had slandered her through his lawyer, and she was granted $2 million in her countersuit.

On Friday, the 59-year-old actor will collaborate with Beck to release the 13-song album “18,” which includes two ballads allegedly penned by Depp.

One line of lyrics leaked reportedly features Depp singing: “I think you’ve said enough for one motherf—king night.”

On the track “Sad Motherf—kin’ Parade,” Depp sings, “You’re sitting there like a dog with a seven-year itch … If I had a dime, it wouldn’t reach your hand.”

Along with songs by the Beach Boys, John Lennon, and the Velvet Underground, the album, which has been in the works for three years, also has versions of Motown artists.

“When Johnny and I started playing together, it really ignited our youthful spirit and creativity,” Beck said. “We would joke about how we felt 18 again, so that just became the album title too.”

“This is a Song for Miss Hedy Lamarr” is an original song by Depp, and also the opening track on the album.

“I was blown away by it,” Beck said of the music. “That song is one of the reasons I asked him to make an album with me.”

Beck and Depp have been touring together in Europe since the trial ended and the actor “isn’t even talking about the trial” anymore and “just wants his career back.”

“The trial was necessary, but he is happy that it’s over,” said a source. “Although he is relieved about the jury’s verdict, he isn’t gloating about it.”

Heard’s defense team requested a mistrial on Friday, claiming that the wrong juror had been chosen and had served on the panel during the whole trial.

On Sunday, Vice President Kamala Harris called for the Federal Assault Weapons Ban to be reinstated, claiming that some semi-automatic weapons are “intentionally designed” to murder people and should only be used in combat.

“When you meet with first responders, when you meet with families of these victims, you cannot avoid the reality of what the impact of this gun violence is on a community,” the vice president commented.

Harris said the reason mass shootings keep happening across the country is “because those weapons are available, and we have to stop allowing those weapons to be available to civilians living in communities of people who have a right to believe that they are not in a war zone.”

“Assault weapons were specifically and intentionally designed to kill a lot of human beings quickly,” she continued. “It is a weapon of war. If you’ve ever looked at, if I may be so blunt, an autopsy photograph to see what it does to the human body. And the fact that we can’t get Congress to renew – it’s not like we’re pulling something out of our hat. We’ve done it before as a nation – to renew the assault weapons ban, is outrageous.

“You can support the Second Amendment,” said Harris. “I support the Second Amendment, but we should agree we should not have weapons of war on the streets of America.”

While responding to how potential shooters slip past red flag laws, VP Harris condemns the availability of assault weapons.

“We have to stop allowing those weapons to be available to civilians living in communities…who have a right to believe that they are not in a war zone.” pic.twitter.com/XafVpjgxym

— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) July 10, 2022

The Federal Assault Weapons Ban, which was in effect from 1994 to 2004, specifically forbade the possession of 19 different semi-automatic firearm types as well as other rifles, shotguns, and handguns with two or more of a specific group of characteristics, such as pistol grips, detachable magazines, and sound suppressors. Additionally, a magazine could hold a maximum of 10 rounds.

A study released for the Department of Justice determined that its “impact on gun violence is likely to be small at best, and perhaps too small for reliable measurement.”

In the wake of many recent mass shootings, President Biden, who was a senator when the ban was imposed, has frequently campaigned for its reinstatement.

However, despite the fact that Democrats now hold a majority in both houses of Congress, any gun control legislation would need 60 votes to pass in the Senate, which means that at least 10 Republicans would need to support the proposal for it to pass.

In the meanwhile, a recent Quinnipiac University survey indicated that 50% of registered voters support a national ban on semi-automatic long guns, compared to 45% who oppose it. This is the lowest level of support since Quinnipiac started asking that subject in February 2013, when the poll was conducted.

In what may have been the largest data breach in Chinese history, a hacker claimed to have stolen from Shanghai police the personal information of one billion Chinese citizens.

The information of “one billion Chinese national residents and several billion case records” was offered for sale in a post on the hacker forum Breach Forums for the price of 10 Bitcoin, or around $200,000.

Using the alias ChinaDan, the poster said on Sunday that the data set contained “name, address, birthplace, national ID number, mobile number, and all crime/case records.”

The post remains unverified, but it has drawn immense interest within China and abroad: Users on China’s Weibo and WeChat platforms expressed great concern and distress about the truth of the claim. Posters on Breach Forums analyzed a sample of the data and debated the authenticity, largely due to the asking price for such valuable information.

Forum administrators closed the thread Sunday night, with one offer of 6 Bitcoin on the table at the time.

Kendra Schaefer, a partner at consultancy firm Trivium China, said the breach would be “bad, for a number of reasons” if it were to be proven legit.

“Most obviously, this would be among the biggest and worst breaches in history,” Schaefer wrote on social media. “Two, China’s Personal Information Protection Law just came out late last year. It requires gov bodies to protect the info of citizens, which if the source is indeed MPS, MPS has failed to do.”

It's hard to parse truth from rumor mill, but can confirm file exists. If the source is indeed MPS, that would be, erm… bad, for a number of reasons. Most obviously, it would be among biggest and worst breaches in history. Alleged screenshots: 2/7 https://t.co/MpLQSiYzGS

— Kendra Schaefer 凯娜 (@kendraschaefer) July 4, 2022

Schaefer noted that the records “also allegedly contain details on case files of minors,” making this a violation of the Minor Protection Law.

“Would be surprised if they don’t also contain files on celebs and minor officials,” she continued.

The Shanghai police would have had access to a national data-sharing system, enabling access to more information than a regional police authority would have ordinarily had, which may be one reason why the breach contained so much information.

The running mate for Howard Stern has been announced. Days after announcing his presidential ambitions on his SiriusXM show, “The Howard Stern Show,” Stern acknowledged that he had already selected his running mate.

“I have some exciting news I’d like to share with you,” Stern told his fans.

The radio show continued with Stern saying he had been exchanging texts with an anonymous person about who he would like to have as his right-hand man if he runs for president.

“You wanna know what he said?” he continued. “‘Done. Done. Done.’ In other words, ‘I’m in.’ It’s exciting.”

“‘I’m in, but, you know, I’m another white male,’” Stern claimed the person said. “And I said, ‘You know, I appreciate you saying that, but I believe you’d be such an asset to the ticket that I think people will understand,’ ”

Bradley Cooper was then identified by Stern as his potential running mate. Cooper would “bring in the female vote like you wouldn’t believe,” the radio host claimed. Whether Stern genuinely intends to run for president in 2024 is unknown.

Following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, Stern declared he would have to run for president.

“I’m actually going to probably have to run for president now,” he said during his show.

Stern does has some experience in the political arena. He ran in New York’s gubernatorial race back in 1994.

A large alligator snapping turtle was caught by a Texas fisherman as he was enjoying Father’s Day. Around 7:30 that Sunday night, Justin Broomhall, 25, of Longview, Texas, his father Michael Broomhall, Sr., his son Lakestine, 3, and James Elliott, the father of his fiancée, were catfishing at Lake Cherokee.

Broomhall thought, at first, the catfish seemed to be biting.

“All of a sudden, they just vanished,” Broomhall recalled.

A trail of bubbles was then seen traveling across the water, according to Broomhall, who has been fishing since he was 4 or 5 years old. He cast his fishing line into the water immediately in front of the trail, assuming it was a huge catfish.

“That’s when everything went crazy,” he said.

The snapping turtle seized the bait almost immediately, and according to Broomhall and his father, they battled it for 15 to 20 minutes before being able to reel it in close enough to the shore to observe it. Broomhall understood he had to release the alligator snapping turtle after realizing it was a threatened species, according to Texas Parks and Wildlife.

“I went to reach down in the water to grab him behind his head on his shell and the line broke,” Broomhall continued.

Broomhall wanted to get the hook out of the turtle’s mouth even though it wasn’t on his line anymore.

“He pulled me back up to land, and I pulled the turtle up there and that’s when we realized how big he really was and how old he really was,” he said.

Broomhall estimates the alligator snapping turtle weighed between 150 and 160 pounds and could have been 100 years old, if not older.

“His eyes were already starting to turn hazy like he was going blind,” Broomhall described also noting the beast’s battle scars.

Broomhall freed the turtle from the hook in its mouth and returned it to the lake. Broomhall, though, hopes that this will not be their final encounter.

According to authorities, a father in Virginia is said to have committed himself on Tuesday after his 18-month-old kid was tragically killed after being left alone in a hot car for several hours.

The child’s father, an adult male, committed suicide after the child’s apparently accidental death, according to Chesterfield County Police on Tuesday.

An 18-month-old male youngster may have been left in an unattended vehicle for several hours when police received a complaint at around 11:42 a.m.

The father of the child was at his home in the 14100 block of Aldengate Road, according to new information quickly provided to police, and he was expressing suicidal thoughts.

The 18-month-old boy was discovered dead inside the home when police arrived at the Aldengate Road address, and the adult man was discovered dead in the woods behind the house from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot, according to a press release from the department.

“It’s just a tragedy on so many levels,” said Chesterfield County Police Lt. Col. Christopher Hensley. “Our hearts go out to the family and friends that are going to deal with this.”

“Other people contacted us [and said] we needed to respond to that address, to check on his welfare, and that’s when things unfolded,” he added.

According to what the investigators have discovered so far, the father unintentionally left the youngster in the car for several hours. The father went back to his house and brought the child inside after finding the infant dead in the car. Then, according to reports, he shot himself as he left the house.

The Biden administration missed its own deadline to schedule the next oil and gas lease sales on Thursday, but it did not provide an explanation.

Deb Haaland, the secretary of the interior, promised to release a legally required program describing prospective offshore lease sales over the following five years by Thursday during a Senate session on May 19. Interior Department (DOI) spokeswoman Melissa Schwartz said the organization was “on schedule” to release the plan by Thursday on Wednesday.

A statement was supposed to be made on Thursday, but it was postponed for an unspecified reason.

“President Biden is hell-bent on choking off American oil and natural gas production,” Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member John Barrasso, R-Wyo. said. “Now he has failed to follow the law and prepare a final five-year leasing plan by yesterday’s deadline. That means the federal government will not offer any new offshore oil and gas lease sales this year.”

“This will be the first year since 1958 that has happened. Instead, the Biden administration has spent its time courting overseas dictators,” he added. “The White House has begged countries like Russia, Iran, and Venezuela for oil. It’s an absolute disgrace.”

On Thursday, the most current plan, which started in 2017, came to an end. Offshore lease sales, which last year produced more than 1.7 million barrels of oil per day, cannot take place without a plan.

“The inability of Interior to meet its own June 30th deadline of releasing the Proposed Program is yet another reminder of the administration failing in its statutory obligation to develop and maintain an offshore oil and gas leasing program. Interior has had 17 months to release the Final Program, not just the Proposed Program that they promised would be out yesterday,” sai National Ocean Industries Association President Erik Milito.

“No other administration has failed in this way,” he continued. “Until now, every administration, whether Democrat or Republican, has recognized the critical, strategic advantages of continued U.S. offshore oil and gas production that are achieved through an uninterrupted national leasing program.”

The administration’s actions, according to Milito, amounted to “intentional obstruction” of American energy development. He claimed that they would result in higher gas prices and have a severe influence on the nation’s security, international geopolitics, energy security, and well-paying jobs nationwide.

The only offshore transaction the Biden administration has conducted since assuming office was later overturned by a federal court on the basis of environmental concerns. Three further transactions that were included in the now-expired plan were canceled by the administration.

Republican legislators and business organizations have frequently cited the administration’s climate policy as the cause of nearly record-high gas prices. According to figures from AAA, the national average gas price on Friday reached $4.84 per gallon.

Edward Whalen and his family say they’ll never forget the terror they experienced while driving down I-75 on Friday evening.

The family was leaving St. Petersburg and headed back to their hotel when something shocking happened.

“She [Whalen’s daughter] yelled daddy what happened and I said we got hit by lightning,” Edward Whalen said.

His wife Michaelle took the video while riding in a car behind the truck Whalen and their children were riding in.

“She thought the storm was really neat looking and so she wanted to get a picture of it and she kept trying to snap pictures, but she couldn’t catch it,” Whalen said. “So my son-in-law recommended she use that slow motion video.”

That’s when she captured the big moment.

“You could feel a slight buzz in the car when it hit us, and then my oldest daughter was sitting next to me and she jumped halfway in my lap and screamed,” Whalen said.

No one was injured, however, the truck was “completely fried” according to the family.

“I had to jump out of the truck and run back to her and hold her and let her know we were all fine. We were really confused. We had real bad headaches,” Whalen said. “That was always my dream truck, and I finally got it. I had just made my third payment on it and then boom. Hopefully, it’ll work out though.”

Whalen said he’s just glad they’re alive.

“It was pretty wild. After everything was done, my son said we needed to check ourselves in a couple days for super powers,” he said.

Nicki Minaj’s husband Kenneth Petty will be serving time for failing to register as a sex offender in California, but it shouldn’t be too uncomfortable as he’ll be doing that time in the mansion where he and Nicki live.

A federal judge sentenced the 44-year-old on Wednesday, to 1 year of home detention, 3 years probation, and a $55,000 fine. Petty entered a guilty plea back in September 2021.

Prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s Office had argued home detention wouldn’t actually be punishment, because Nicki and Kenneth live in a luxurious multi-bedroom mansion in a gated Calabasas community.

They had recommended Petty get 15 months in prison and 5 years of probation, but the judge obviously disagreed with him getting that harsh of a sentence.

Petty was convicted of a 1994 rape in NYC where he served over 4 years in prison. When he moved to Cali with Nicki, he didn’t register on the sex offenders list and that’s when the feds busted him.

Nicki won’t have to worry about where her husband will be for the next year. No need for a babysitter now.