WorldAssociated PressTaliban official: Strict punishment, executions will return
One of the founders of the Taliban and the chief enforcer of its harsh interpretation of Islamic law when they last ruled Afghanistan said the hard-line movement will once again carry out executions and amputations of hands, though perhaps not in public. In an interview with The Associated Press, Mullah Nooruddin Turabi dismissed outrage over the Taliban's executions in the past, which sometimes took place in front of crowds at a stadium, and he warned the world against interfering with Afghanistan's new rulers. “Everyone criticized us for the punishments in the stadium, but we have never said anything about their laws and their punishments,” Turabi told The Associated Press, speaking in Kabul.
U.S.PeopleMike 'The Situation' Sorrentino Calls Police on His Brother During Surprise House Visit: Report
Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino had a brief family reunion this week that ended with a visit from the police. The Jersey Shore star, 39, called law enforcement after his brother Frank "Maximo" Sorrentino showed up unannounced at Mike's New Jersey home. Frank was there to drop off gifts for Mike's 3 ½-month-old son Romeo Reign, according to TMZ.
U.S.NBC NewsChipotle customer pulls gun after being told location was closing early, police say
A customer became angry that a Philadelphia Chipotle was closing early, pulled a gun and demanded that “somebody better give me my food,” police said Wednesday. The terrifying confrontation unfolded just before 5 p.m. Saturday at the chain's location inside the Roosevelt Mall on Cottman Avenue, according to a statement from the Philadelphia Police Department. The store was closing its in-person service early because of staffing issues, but told customers it would still take online orders, police said.
BusinessTechCrunchTesla's battery-manufacturing 'Megafactory' breaks ground in California
Tesla broke ground on its "Megafactory," a new production facility in California, so christened because it will produce the company's large-scale battery system Megapack. News of the previously unannounced factory was confirmed by the Lathrop Mayor Sonny Dhaliwal in a Facebook post that was deleted and re-posted. “We are proud to be the home of the Megafactory, Tesla's most recent expansion here,” he said.
U.S.HuffPostBrian Williams' Punchline On Anti-Vaxxers, Anti-Maskers Is A Showstopper
Brian Williams unleashed savage sign-off snark on his MSNBC news show Wednesday. Watch the video below. As he was closing out “The 11th Hour,” the host ran a clip from The Recount of anti-vaccine and anti-mask protesters sounding off at local board meetings.
U.S.INSIDERNeighbors say they saw Brian Laundrie and his parents leave their Florida home with an attached camper after he returned from his trip with Gabby Petito
A couple said they saw Brian Laundrie and his parents drive off with an attached camper this month. A neighbor said they saw Laundrie leave on September 11, the day Gabby Petito was reported missing. Laundrie's family told the police last week that they had not seen him since September 14.
BusinessAssociated PressCalifornia 1st to set quota limits for retailers like Amazon
California on Wednesday became the first state to bar mega-retailers from firing warehouse workers for missing quotas that interfere with bathroom and rest breaks under a new law signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom that grew from Amazon's drive to speed goods to consumers more quickly. The measure also bars Amazon, the online retail giant, and similar companies from disciplining workers for following health and safety laws and allows employees to sue to suspend unsafe quotas or reverse retaliation. The bill applies to all warehouse distribution centers, though proponents were driven by Amazon's dominance.
U.S.MarketWatchMy bank accidentally deposited $10K in my account. I reported it, then moved it to my savings account. Have I done enough?
A month later, the money was still in my account, so I transferred it to my savings account so that I wouldn't accidentally spend it. I have nothing against the bank reclaiming the extra money; it is theirs, and I only have it because of an accident. Moreover, if the situation were reversed, I'd want the money returned.
PoliticsHuffPostMary Trump Pulls No Punches When Naming Her ‘Stupidest’ Relative
Mary Trump was asked “what the hell is going on” with her cousin, Donald Trump Jr., and didn't hold back. In this week's episode of the “UnPresidented” podcast, Donald Trump's niece described her cousin as “weak” and a suck-up who was ultimately “left in the dust” by his father, the former president. Trump Jr. is “like many other people in my family,” said Mary Trump, a psychologist who has become one of the fiercest critics of her uncle and his children.
WorldAssociated PressDad of 3 girls killed in New Zealand says he's forgiven wife
The father of three young girls who were killed last week in New Zealand said Thursday his precious angels had been ripped away from him in a loss he would carry for the rest of his life. Dickason wrote his thoughts in a letter that was read aloud by a reverend during a candlelight vigil that was attended by hundreds of people outside the family's home in the South Island town of Timaru. Lauren Dickason, 40, has been charged with murder in the deaths of her twin 2-year-old girls Maya and Karla, and their 6-year-old sister Liane, in a crime that has shocked New Zealand.
HealthPeopleWATCH: Heather Rae Young Holds Tarek El Moussa's Hand as He Finds Out He Has Celiac Disease
Tarek El Moussa has been diagnosed with celiac disease, and his fiancée Heather Rae Young has been there to support him from the start. In an exclusive sneak peek, above, of Thursday night's episode of El Moussa's solo HGTV show Flipping 101, the father of two discovers he has celiac disease after undergoing several blood tests at his doctor's office. "It turns out you have celiac," Internal Medicine Specialist Dr. Ellen Song tells El Moussa, 40, as he holds hands with Young, 34.
U.S.INSIDERJohn Walsh, the former host of 'America's Most Wanted,' questions if anyone actually saw Brian Laundrie in his home when his attorney said he was there
John Walsh said he didn't think Brian Laundrie ever went to the Carlton Reserve. Walsh wondered whether anyone had seen Laundrie since he returned to his family home. John Walsh, the host of "In Pursuit," has joined the search for Brian Laundrie and expressed skepticism over whether anyone actually saw Laundrie in his family home after he returned from a road trip with Gabby Petito.
- ScienceAFP Videographics
Portugal grape pickers do it in the buff
With early autumn temperatures in Portugal hovering around 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit), a group of nudism enthusiasts don't even sport a vine leaf to cover their modesty as they go about their work in a vineyard 100 kilometres (60 miles) south of Lisbon.
BusinessBusiness InsiderTheranos founder Elizabeth Holmes reportedly sent a text to her ex-boyfriend and former COO referring to herself as 'best business person of the year'
More texts between Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes and former COO Ramesh Balwani have surfaced. In one, Holmes said, "total confidence in myself best business person of the year," CNBC reports. In another, Balwani said, "They are not investing in our company they are investing in our destiny."
U.S.Fort Worth Star-TelegramFather of 12 dies of COVID in Texas after struggles finding ECMO machine, family says
A day after a wife's public plea to help find her husband an ECMO machine to save his life, a Texas father died of COVID-19. Reed Hickson, a 49-year-old father of 12 from College Station, died Monday. “My little brother Reed was called home last night, leaving behind a legacy of true love and greatness, his family of 12 beautiful children and his magnificent soul mate,” Samuel Hickson said on Facebook Tuesday of his brother.
PoliticsAssociated PressArizona Republican resigns after secret recording released
A Republican official in Arizona resigned Tuesday from the board overseeing Maricopa County after a recording emerged of him criticizing his GOP colleagues for opposing a review of the 2020 election. During the meeting recorded surreptitiously last March, Supervisor Steve Chucri suggested two fellow Republican county supervisors opposed the review by Senate Republicans because they nearly lost their own 2020 races. Chucri apologized in a statement announcing his resignation and said he shouldn't have made the comments, adding “the political landscape has changed for the worst this year.
WorldFTW OutdoorsLeopard’s ‘stunning’ leap showcased in slow-motion video
A rescue leopard at South Africa's Harnas Wildlife Foundation is an impressive leaper, especially at mealtime. The accompanying footage, which has garnered millions of views over the past month, shows “Hellboy” leaping nearly 10 feet to catch a hunk of meat tossed over a fence by a caretaker. The footage reveals the power and grace exhibited by Hellboy – and possessed by all leopards – while taking flight and upon landing.
HealthBuzzFeedThis Woman's Story Of How She Gained 50 Pounds In Three Months And Was Told By A Doctor That Her Bloating Was "Psychosomatic" Has Gone Viral On TikTok
Kalista Dwyer is a 22-year-old content creator who recently documented her journey with extreme bloating and weight gain on TikTok. In the video, Kalista explains that she'd inexplicably gained 50 pounds in just three months, experienced intense bloating and pain every time she ate, had swelling in her hands, and was fatigued. BuzzFeed reached out to Kalista, who said that her symptoms began last November, when she spent two weeks visiting Costa Rica.
WorldAssociated PressWoman with Down syndrome loses UK abortion law challenge
A woman with Down syndrome lost a court challenge against the British government Thursday over a law allowing the abortion up until birth of a fetus with the condition. Heidi Crowter, 26, and two others took the Department of Health and Social Care to court, arguing that part of the Abortion Act is discriminatory and violates the European Convention on Human Rights. Abortions in England, Wales and Scotland are allowed up till 24 weeks of pregnancy.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderKayleigh McEnany deletes tweet blaming Biden for a 2020 spike in murders that occurred under Trump
Kayleigh McEnany deleted a tweet blaming Biden for a spike in murders that occurred under Trump. Former White House press secretary and Fox News contributor Kayleigh McEnany deleted a tweet blaming President Joe Biden for a spike in U.S. murders that occurred under her former boss, then-President Donald Trump.
U.S.The Daily Beast‘Mama, I Don’t Want to Die’: 20-Year-Old’s COVID Death the Latest Among Younger Victims
Health officials in Florida, Texas, and California have also reported seeing a trend in younger and younger people dying from the virus as the Delta variant continues to drive the fourth wave of the pandemic. Shepherd is far from the only twentysomething to have her life cut short by the virus this week. A 26-year-old Wisconsin police officer died from COVID-19 on Wednesday, just hours after his second child was welcomed into the world, according to Fond du Lac Police Chief Aaron Goldstein.
WorldAssociated PressChina sends 24 fighter jets toward Taiwan in show of force
China sent 24 fighter jets toward Taiwan in a large display of force Thursday, after the self-governing island announced its intention to join an 11-nation Pacific trade group that China has also applied to join. China's People's Liberation Army flew fighter jets toward Taiwan twice on Thursday, once in the morning with 19 planes, and once in the afternoon with five more. Taiwan deployed air patrol forces in response to the Chinese jets and tracked them on its air defense systems, the island's Defense Ministry said in a statement.
PoliticsHuffPostRuh-Roh! Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s ‘Scooby-Doo’ Stunt Did Not Go Well
Conspiracy theory-endorsing Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) turned to the cartoon “Scooby-Doo” to try to trash the Green New Deal on the House floor on Wednesday, and critics couldn't believe the stunt wasn't a parody. “This is a simple meme that you would find on the internet but this meme is very real,” said Greene, pointing to a poster held up by an aide showing character Fred Jones unmasking a baddie who turns out to be the communist emblems of the hammer and sickle. “The Green New Deal, surprise, serves China and China only,” added Greene, who's become something of a celebrity on the right for her peddling of racist and anti-science conspiracy theories and her unswerving devotion to ex-President Donald Trump.
- U.S.NY Daily News
Juvenile hunter fatally shoots suspected thief with arrow: cops
A Missouri boy fatally shot an alleged thief with an arrow after catching the man trying to steal a tractor on a family friend's property, authorities said Tuesday. The unidentified juvenile, whose age has not been released, was walking toward a tree stand where he planned to hunt deer with a bow and arrows when he saw the suspected intruder stealing a lawn tractor and wood splitter from the property Friday afternoon, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office. The boy called his father and a confrontation ensued between the two adults, authorities said.
WorldReutersExclusive-Echoes, uncertainty as Afghan pilots await U.S. help in Tajikistan
A U.S.-trained Afghan pilot was talking to Reuters on a smuggled cellphone from Tajikistan, where he is being held, when something strange happened - his voice started looping, repeating everything he had just said, word for word. It also came amid growing feelings of impatience and uncertainty among the Afghan pilots and personnel who have been held by the government in Tajikistan since fleeing there on Aug. 15. There are 143 Afghans detained at a sanatorium in a mountainous, rural area outside of the Tajik capital, Dushanbe, waiting and hoping for over a month for transfer by the United States.
“It wouldn’t take much of an annual wealth tax to rescue the retirement system.”
“Privatizing Social Security — or at least letting individuals opt-out so they can escape the sinking ship — would be a huge win.”
“Congress could save hundreds of billions of dollars by modestly paring back the benefit formula for future wealthy retirees.”
“Raising the retirement age reduces the number of beneficiaries, thereby reducing the costs of the program.”
“Social Security as we know it needs to be abolished and replaced with a better system.”