Cannabis dispensary offering 1-cent products as COVID-19 vaccine incentives

latimes.com – By Hayley Smith – Add cheap weed to California’s growing list of vaccination incentives. A Contra Costa County cannabis dispensary is offering select products for a penny to anyone with a valid COVID-19 vaccine card. 7 Stars Holistic Healing Center, located in Richmond, said the promotion is an effort to “decrease COVID-19 infections in our region” and to support the county’s efforts for equitable vaccine distribution.

More… https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-06-10/california-pot-company-offering-covid-vaccine-incentives 

‘Does anybody have a plan?’ New Senate report details security, intelligence failures before Jan. 6 attack

usatoday.com – By Haley BeMiller – Bart Jansen – WASHINGTON – A new Senate report on the Jan. 6 insurrection found U.S. intelligence officials failed to warn of potential violence at the U.S. Capitol, leaving law enforcement unprepared to contend with a violent mob that wanted to overturn the 2020 election.

More… https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2021/06/08/jan-6-attack-senate-committee-recommends-policy-agency-changes/7598428002/

‘Third eye’ invented to stop ‘smartphone zombies’ from bumping into things

sky.com – South Korean industrial designer Paeng Min-wook, 28, says the robotic eyeball can be strapped to a person’s forehead, allowing them to browse injury-free. He said the device was a “satirical solution” which he hoped would make people “recognise the severity of their gadget addiction and look back at themselves”.

More… https://news.sky.com/story/third-eye-invented-to-stop-smartphone-zombies-from-bumping-into-things-12325182 

Woman left in stitches at man’s cringe attempt to catfish her on Tinder

mirror.co.uk – By Rosaleen Fenton – Once upon a time, catfishing was a new and jaw-dropping concept. But online dating has been around for a while – and shows no sign of disappearing. In fact, there’s been a rush in users as society slowly reopens following a year spent largely at home.

So experiences of being catfished entered the mainstream a long time ago, in addition to all the other glorious dating red flags out there. But Tanith Gregory ‘s experience is a little different. The photographer left people with their jaws on the floor after she shared a man’s very feeble attempt at catfishing.

More… https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/weird-news/woman-left-stitches-mans-cringe-24256395

117 employees sue Houston Methodist over COVID-19 vaccine requirement

khou.com – By Janelle Bludau – 117 employees have joined a lawsuit against Houston Methodist over its requirement that all employees receive a COVID-19 vaccine as a condition of employment. According to Houston Methodist policy, employees have until June 7 to get vaccinated or risk losing their jobs.

The lawsuit claims Houston Methodist “is forcing its employees to be human ‘guinea pigs’ as a condition for continued employment,” calling the vaccine “experimental,” since it was granted emergency use authorization but has not received FDA approval.

More… https://www.khou.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/vaccine/117-employees-sue-houston-methodist-covid-19-vaccine-requirement/285-1c6d1749-c125-4b0c-be4f-823e1131b99f 

John Cena apologizes for calling Taiwan a country during interview

cbsnews.com – By Zoe Christen Jones – John Cena is apologizing after calling Taiwan a country while promoting the latest “Fast and the Furious” film, “F9.” The actor and professional wrestler posted the apology Tuesday in Mandarin on the popular Chinese social media site Weibo.

“I made one mistake, I must say right now, very important, I love and respect Chinese people,” Cena said, according to BBC News. “I am very sorry for my mistake. I am so sorry, I apologize.”

Cena’s initial comment came during an interview with TVBS, a Taiwanese broadcast company. The 44-year-old said Taiwan would be the first “country” to see the ninth installment of the “Fast and the Furious” franchise.

More… https://www.cbsnews.com/news/john-cena-taiwan-apology-china/ 

Trump’s one-night NYC visit for UFC fight cost taxpayers more than $250K: records

nydailynews.com – By Chris Sommerfeldt – Donald Trump’s spur-of-the-moment decision to travel to New York for a mixed martial arts fight in 2019 cost taxpayers more than $250,000, as the Secret Service had to scramble to provide security for the president on a particularly busy weekend in the city, according to federal records.

The records, which were obtained by the Daily News in response to a Freedom of Information Act request, reveal that the Secret Service was only given a one-week heads up on Trump’s one-night stay in Manhattan for an Ultimate Fighting Championship event at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 2, 2019.

More… https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/ny-trump-nyc-visit-for-ufc-fight-cost-taxpayers-20210526-fsksbgg7qre6fj6xg66ric6rzm-story.html

Why outsiders like AT&T keep stumbling in Hollywood

latimes.com – By Ryan Faughnder – It didn’t take long after last week’s $43-billion WarnerMedia-Discovery deal announcement for AT&T to be inducted into the unofficial Hollywood merger Hall of Shame.

Jim Cramer railed against AT&T on CNBC, calling the soon-to-be cleaved $85-billion combination of the Dallas phone company and Time Warner (now WarnerMedia) “one of the dumbest mergers in recent history.” On the same network, media mogul Barry Diller referred to AT&T’s decision to spin off its media assets as “the great escape.”

More… https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/newsletter/2021-05-25/hollywood-outsiders-failed-mergers-att-warner-media-general-electric-the-wide-shot 

Groundbreaking Smart Toilet takes photos of your poo to send to doctors for analysis

dailystar.co.uk – By Ian Molyneaux – Scientists believe that a new groundbreaking loo, dubbed Smart Toilet, that takes photos of your poo will be a gamechanger for millions and their health.

It will be able to examine your poo with an algorithm and warn your doctor of any problems that could help keep the nation healthy. The innovative device would potentially enable millions of people, who unknowingly live with bowel cancer, get treatment.

More… https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/latest-news/groundbreaking-smart-toilet-takes-photos-24161328 

Matt Gaetz’s ex-girlfriend to cooperate with federal authorities in sex trafficking investigation

cnn.com – By Paula Reid, David Shortell and Gloria Borger – Federal authorities investigating alleged sex trafficking by GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz have secured the cooperation of the congressman’s ex-girlfriend, according to people familiar with the matter.

The woman, a former Capitol Hill staffer, is seen as a critical witness, as she has been linked to Gaetz as far back as the summer of 2017, a period of time that has emerged as a key window of scrutiny for investigators.

More… https://www.cnn.com/2021/05/21/politics/gaetz-investigators-cooperation-ex-girlfriend/index.html