Musk's Idiocy Got Twitter Banned in Brazil

X (formerly Twitter) has been banned in Brazil after failing to meet a deadline set by a Supreme Court judge to name a new legal representative in the country.  Alexandre de Moraes ordered the "immediate and complete suspension" of the social media platform until it complies with all court orders and pays existing fines.  Reacting to the decision, X owner Elon Musk said: "Free speech is the bedrock of democracy and an unelected pseudo-judge in Brazil is destroying it for political purposes."

The social media network is said to be used by only 10% of the nation's 200 million inhabitants.  By Saturday morning some users had reported access to the platform was no longer possible.

The row began in April, with the judge ordering the suspension of dozens of X accounts for spreading disinformation.  X then closed its office in Brazil three months later, after its representative had been threatened with arrest if she did not comply with legal orders.  Justice Moraes had ordered that X accounts which spread disinformation (many supporters of the former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro)  must be blocked while they are under investigation.  Moraes said the company's legal representatives would be held liable if any accounts were reactivated.

It is the latest in a series of rows involving the tech billionaire - who has clashed with the EU over the regulation of X and earlier this month became embroiled in a war of words with UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.

The head of Brazil's telecommunications agency, which has been tasked with suspending the platform, said he is "proceeding with the compliance" to do so, according to Reuters news agency.  Justice Moraes has given companies such as Apple and Google a five-day deadline to remove X from its application stores and block its use on iOS and Android systems.  People or businesses using means such as VPNs (virtual private network) to access the platform could be fined R$50,000 ($9K)

According to the judge's order, a ban will be in effect until X names a new legal representative in the country and pays fines for violating Brazilian law.  In a previous post from one of its official accounts, X had said it would not comply with the demands.  Meanwhile, the bank accounts of Musk's satellite internet firm Starlink have been frozen in Brazil following an earlier order by the country's Supreme Court.

Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - Long Dark Night

It's That Time of Year

J.D. Vance is One Weird Motherfucker

Since being named as Donald Trump’s running partner, J.D. Vance has been attracting scrutiny wherever he goes, with everything from his awkward TikTok videos to his “weird” persona. It wasn't much help when Vance was roasted for asking about Swiss cheese at a Philadelphia cheesesteak spot echoing a historic political scandal.

As folks have gotten to learn more about the faux-hillbilly author, Vance’s popularity numbers have continued to get worse. And seemingly every day, a new tape or video of him reveals more weird and misogynistic things about his worldview.  And his infamous use of the phrase “childless cat ladies” to attack Democrats has only stirred further outrage among likely independent voters.

But Vance is keeping the allegations of weirdness  alive after his recent visit to a donut shop in Georgia.  The donut shop worker serving Vance didn’t want to be filmed, but the pair still had an incredibly awkward exchange while Vance ordered a load of donuts. 

“I’m JD Vance. I’m running for vice president,” Vance tells the donut shop worker.  The worker replied: “Okay.”  Vance continued: “We’re gonna do two dozen. Just a random assortment of stuff here.  Everything. A lot of glazed here. Sprinkle stuff. A lot of cinnamon rolls. Just whatever makes sense,” Vance added.  Then came more awkward small talk, as Vance tried to chat to the clearly uninterested workers. Vance asked how long the shop had been open, with the staff replying “four years”. “About four years? Okay,” Vance said. “Well, we selected this place. I didn’t know if it had been here for 20 years or four years. You never know.”

That wasn't the only thing that people noticed about the clip as Vance's hair, which appears to have a rather brutal chop job at the back had people joking that "even his hairdresser hates him."  Someone else compared it to a 'medieval punishment,' saying on social media: "I still can’t get past JD Vance’s haircut. It looks like something they do to punish u in Medieval Times. Like the dudes who cleanup donkey dung all day are forced to wear these cuts, so everyone knows he’s a donkey boy."

Another user quipped: "Vance has truly one of the worst haircuts I’ve ever seen, oh my god. Unfinished business there on the top."

 

Bruno Mars & Lady Gaga - Die With a Smile

Trump Desperate for Legitimancy From the Queen; She Thought He Was Rude

Queen Elizabeth found Donald Trump "very rude", a sensational new biography of the late monarch claims. The sovereign, who hosted the Orange Man twice during her reign, is said to have 'particularly disliked' the way he looked over her shoulder as if 'in search of others more interesting'.

She also mused over his relationship with his wife Melania and said she believed they must have 'some sort of arrangement'.   The astonishing claims are made by Craig Brown in his new book, A Voyage Around The Queen.'  He reports the conversation occurred at a lunch 'weeks after' one of Mr Trump's visits. 

Brown writes: "Over the course of her reign, Her Majesty entertained many controversial foreign leaders, including Bashar al-Assad, Robert Mugabe, Idi Amin, Donald Trump, Emperor Hirohito and Vladimir Putin. She may not have found their company convivial; upon their departure, she may even have voiced a discreet word of disapproval."

"A few weeks after President Trump's visit, for instance, she confided in one lunch guest that she found him "very rude": she particularly disliked the way he couldn't stop looking over her shoulder, as though in search of others more interesting.  She also believed President Trump "must have some sort of arrangement" with his wife Melania, or else why would she have remained married to him?"

"For his part, Donald Trump was confident he had been her favorite guest ever. "There are those that say they have never seen the Queen have a better time, a more animated time," he later told America's Fox News." The embarrassing account will no doubt come as a blow to Trump, who is currently seeking re-election as President.

The Queen first met Trump in 2018, a year after he was inaugurated as the 45th US President. As a result of his political toxicity it was not a 'state visit' but classed as a 'working visit', which meant little in the way of pomp and pageantry and no state banquet.  His meeting with the Queen instead took place over tea at Windsor Castle, which most of the other senior royals refused to attend, but did involve the inspection of a guard of honor.    Shockingly,Trump kept the then 92-year-old monarch waiting for ten minutes in 80 degree heat and repeatedly walked in front of her as they inspected the guard of honor, leaving her trailing behind.   He then abruptly stopped and forced her to sidestep to get alongside him.  Trump advisors later revealed that Trump was 'awestruck' by the Queen, and saw a meeting with her as a sign that he 'had made it in life'.  

Childish Gambino, Jorja Smith & Amaarae - In the Night

Another Tiresome MAGA Boycott

“Prominent” MAGA-world influencers are now boycotting Dunkin' Donuts because they say the company is boycotting the right-wing video platform Rumble by not advertising there. (in case you didn't know:  Rumble as the super racist version of YouTube).  Without any hint of irony, its chief executive Chris Pavlovski claimed the platform “will not be bullied by cancel culture.”  Right-wing extremists are the only ones who can do the bullying and the canceling around here!  Look out, Dunkin’!  You are now on the very long list of targets for MAGA hate-- here are some of my favorites:

Disney - This is one of the longest running feuds in MAGA land, preceding the MAGA movement itself. Back in 1995, the Florida Baptist Convention and other groups started boycotting everything Disney because the company decided to extend health insurance coverage to same-sex partners of employees. Then came Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Disney’s opposition to his “don’t say gay” bill.

Budweiser -MAGA has had a problem with Budweiser for years, since it ran a pro-immigrant Super Bowl ad in 2017, just before Donald Trump instituted his immigration ban and tensions were high over his plans. Things settled down until the company hired a trans influencer named Dylan Mulvaney for a campaign in 2023. Things then got really stupid, culminating with has-been “rapper” Kid Rock posting a video of himself shooting up cases of the beer.

Oreos -  I'm not kidding-- Oreos! "I do not like gay cookies," Newsmax host Greg Kelly wrote on Twitter. The cookies were deemed “gay” when Oreo sponsored a short film together with advocacy group PFLAG depicting a young man preparing to come out to his grandmother by practicing in front of his family. The horror! 

Keurig - This is a personal favorite. Back in 2017, Keurig decided to stop advertising on Fox News host Sean Hannity’s show because he is a terrible person (and because the coffee company was subject to a consumer movement asking the company to stop advertising on Fox). Hannity got so pissed off that he called for a boycott. But since coffee makers aren’t something you buy everyday, unlike snacks or beer, Hannity fans responded by smashing up their coffee makers—which they had already spent money on. Perfect.

Legos - Those on the right really do hate children, don’t they? The toy company came under MAGA fire in 2023 for a campaign in the U.K. that featured a video titled "the A-Z of awesome—a LEGO celebration of the beautiful, powerful language of the LGBTQIA+ community." The company was accused of producing “transgender building sets” targeted at 5-year-olds by Caitlyn Jenner's political action committee Fairness First. The company clarified: "The information on Twitter is false. We have not released any LGBTQIA+ sets aimed at children. "A-Z of Awesome" was a marketing campaign released last year that featured sets built by our amazing adult fans. None of these sets are for sale."  My goodness.

Chick-Fil-A -  Yes, you heard me right.  A onetime darling of the far right for its then-CEO’s vocal opposition to marriage equality, the company was later disowned by the right in 2023 for trying to diversify its workforce. 

Cracker Barrel - The company that was once notorious for being the target of a lawsuit accusing it of “widespread racism, from segregating black customers in the smoking section to denying them service,” got on the bad side of the far right last year when it went “woke.” The crime? Celebrating Pride Month on the company website, along with a picture of rocking chairs painted in the colors of the rainbow.

NASCAR - The cultural touchstone of conservative America earned the MAGA hate in 2020, when they decided that it wasn’t such a good idea to have the Confederate flag at its events

 

Best Images of the Paris Olympics

Celine Dion performing "Hymn to Love" at the opening ceremony

Quincy Hall celebrating after winning the gold in the 400M race

Marcus Christopher competing in Men's freestyle BMX event

Slovakia's Yang Wang competing in Table Tennis men's singles

LeBron James in the semi-final game against Serbia

Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles with floor gold medalist Rebeca Andrade

American butterfly specialist Alex Shackell swimming in the 4x100 relay

Malaysia's Nur Dhabitah Sabri in springboard diving

Cycling road race in Cote de la butte Montmartre

USA Women after victory in the gold medal basketball game

Photo finish of Noah Lyle's victory in the 100M race

Beach Volleyball venue underneath the Eiffel Tower

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone after setting a world record in 400M hurdles

Gabriel Medina's medal-winning style in shortboard surfing event

Italy's Sofia Raffaeli in rhythmic gymnastics event

Closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics

Paris Olympics: The Memes Keep Rolling In

 

Coldplay - Feels Like I'm Falling in Love

Battle of the Bulge

A French pole vaulter walked away from the Olympics empty-handed because his pole malfunctioned.  Anthony Ammirati, a prominent French pole vaulter, was jumping in his first heat at the Paris Olympics.  While he expected to sail over the bar and land a spot in the final, he ended up catching his smaller vaulting pole on the crossbar.  Commentators were at a complete loss for words in describing the unfortunate mishap. 

Footage of Ammirati accidentally knocking off the bar with his crotch is understandably getting a lot of  media coverage. The Frenchman was attempting to qualify for the pole vaulting final at Stade de France but won the internet instead. Video shows him first hitting the bar with his leg and then dislodging it completely with his package on the way down.  Believe it or not, Ammirati isn’t the first Olympian to have done this. Japanese pole vaulter Hiroki Ogita also banged the bar loose with his leg and privates at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Following the viral moment, the 21-year-old Frenchman admitted his frustration at missing out on a medal, albeit without directly referencing his unfortunate mishap.  "It’s a big disappointment," Ammirati told the French Athletics Federation. "I’m a bit gutted, because I didn’t miss anything on the third attempt at 5.70 m. What I did miss was a bit of jumping in training to fine-tune the settings. Just a technical session."  He then added: 'I was 100 percent physically, but I was missing a bit of pole vault."  If only he was missing his 'bits' on his last vault!

 

Study Confirms that Undocumented Immigrants are NOT Freeloaders

A new study shows that undocumented immigrants paid $96 billion in federal, state and local tax revenue in 2022 while many are shut out of the programs their taxes fund. The findings run counter to anti-immigrant rhetoric that undocumented immigrants are “destroying” social programs.

In 40 states, undocumented immigrants paid higher tax rates than the top 1% of the income scale in those states, according to a study from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a left-leaning, nonprofit think tank.   Study authors also found that undocumented immigrants would contribute $40.2 billion more per year in federal, state and local taxes if all of the undocumented population had access to work authorizations. The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy reasoned that this boost would come from higher wages associated with employment authorization and easier compliance with income tax laws.

The report also shed further light on the tax revenue provided by undocumented immigrants on the state and local level. Undocumented immigrants are paying 46% of their state and local tax payments through sales and excise taxes. Six states—New Jersey, New York, California, Florida, Texas, and Illinois—were able to raise more than $1 billion each in tax revenue from undocumented immigrants, the nonprofit said.

Undocumented immigrants pay property taxes and sales taxes, and federal payroll taxes taken from their wages, as well as income tax returns using Individual Taxpayer Identification numbers. Despite those payroll taxes funding Medicare, Social Security, and Unemployment Insurance, undocumented immigrants are not eligible to enroll in and receive regular benefits from these social programs. They can also face barriers to getting tax refunds, including getting scammed by unscrupulous tax preparers who target immigrant communities.

American Woman Found Chained to A Tree in India

Mystery surrounds an American woman who was found chained to a tree "screaming" in a forest in the western Indian state of Maharashtra.  50-year-old Lalita Kayi was discovered in the dense forests of Sindhudurg district after her cries for help were heard by shepherds. They alerted the police who sawed off the chain and rescued her.

Kayi, who appeared completely emaciated, was taken to hospital. Her physical health has since improved and she was moved to a psychiatric facility for further treatment, doctors treating her said.  In a written statement to the police, she has alleged that her husband "chained her and left her in the forest to die without food or water".   Police say they are looking for her husband in the southern state of Tamil Nadu on the basis of information she provided them.

Pandurang Gawkar, a cow herder who found her said that he had taken his cattle to graze in the forest when he heard "a woman screaming loudly".  "The sound was coming from the forest on the side of the mountain. When I went there, I saw that one of her legs was tied to a tree. She was screaming like an animal. I called other villagers and the local police."

Police said that on her they found a copy of her passport, which stated that she was an American citizen, and her Aadhaar card - a unique ID for Indians - with her home address in Tamil Nadu.  They said she also had a mobile phone, a tablet and 31,000 rupees ($370; £290) in her possession - which allowed them to rule out theft as a motive.

Locals say that it was the woman's good fortune that the shepherd picked a spot near her to graze his flock that day. The forest she was discovered in is vast and she otherwise could have gone for days without anyone hearing her cries for help. Dr Shivanand Bandekar, dean of Goa Medical College, told The Indian Express newspaper that she had some wounds on her leg and that she appeared to be suffering from a mental health condition.  "We do not know for how long she did not eat, but her vital signs are stable," Dr Bandekar said.  Currently Kavi's health is stable, and she is able to take medication, eat, and interact with people. 

According to the police, Kayi was a ballet dancer and yoga practitioner in America - some reports say specifically Massachusetts - and moved to India about 10 years ago to study yoga and meditation in Tamil Nadu.  It was there that she met her husband - in some media reports, police have called him Satish. Police say they believe at some point she fell out with her husband.  Some reports say that she stayed in a hotel in Goa for two days and then traveled to Mumbai city, India's financial capital.  But it is still unknown how she then ended up in the forest where she was discovered.

Kayi, who was initially unable to speak, communicated with the police and doctors by scribbling notes on a pad. Through them she blamed her husband for tying her to the tree and claimed that she had gone without food and water for 40 days.  She also said that she had been given an "injection for extreme psychosis" which locked her jaw and prevented her from drinking water, and that she had to be provided nutrition intravenously.  "I am a victim and survived. But he ran away from here," she told authorities. Police say they have been unable to verify these claims and believe it is unlikely that someone would survive without food or water for so long.  They have registered a case of attempted murder against her husband and have dispatched teams to Tamil Nadu, Goa and Maharashtra to investigate the matter further. Her husband is yet to be traced by the police and hasn't made any statements to the media.

 

Gwen Stefani and Anderson Paak - Hello World