Oregon becomes first state to decriminalize possession of hard drugs

Oregon voters overwhelmingly passed Measure 110 which decriminalizes the possession of small amounts of drugs like cocaine, heroin, oxycontin and methamphetamine.

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  • Lauren Boebert hints she’s still taking gun to Congress in spite of Pelosi rules

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  • Sweden hesitates to use new Covid lockdown laws as infection rate leads western Europe

    At the start of January, Sweden rushed through a new pandemic law which gave the government extended powers to shut down private businesses like cafés, restaurants and gyms, fine people who hold private parties, and even impose exclusion zones. On Tuesday, when state epidemiologist Anders Tegnell announced that new restrictions would come the next day, it looked like these new powers might finally be put to use. If you were going to do it, it wouldn't be a bad time: the number of new infections in Sweden has shot up for two weeks in a row, its per capita rate leaping past Portugal, France and Spain to lead Western Europe once again. It now seemed "almost inevitable", Dr Tegnell warned on Tuesday, that the more infectious British variant would become dominant in Sweden. In Stockholm, it is already identified in 27 per cent of samples tested. When he stood up to announce the new restrictions, Stefan Löfven, Sweden's prime minister, underlined the precarious point the country had reached. "The situation is serious in Sweden. We have a high spread of infection and it is continuing to grow," he said. "There is a big risk of a so-called third wave. This is not already written in our destiny. Whether it comes to pass will be decided by the actions of you and me."

  • While Biden visits storm-torn Texas, Sen. Ted Cruz will be giving a speech on 'cancel culture' in Florida

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  • 'WandaVision' finally gives Wanda her Marvel superhero name and fans are overjoyed

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  • Prince Harry Tells Friend James Corden He Left the Royal Family Because It Was Destroying His Mental Health

    KOEN VAN WEELPrince Harry has said that he stepped back from royal duties because the British press was “toxic” and “destroying” his mental health.In an extraordinary interview unparalleled in the annals of royal history, Harry gave a candid interview to his close friend James Corden on The Late Late Show while they toured Los Angeles on an open-air double-decker bus. Corden was a guest at Harry and Meghan’s wedding in 2018 and arrived at the evening reception dressed as Henry VIII. Another guest at the wedding, Oprah Winfrey, has taped an interview primarily with Meghan that will be screened next weekend.Oprah Winfrey’s Interview With Meghan Markle and Harry Will ‘Shine a Light on What They Have Been Through’The two men were served afternoon tea, which Corden said he had provided to remind Harry of home, however the tea service was abandoned after the bus braked sharply, depositing the contents of a tea trolley on top of the prince.“Clear it up, Harry,” Corden joked as the prince picked up tea cups and scones.While the 17-minute long package had a humorous tone and was packed with jokes and gags, it also provided the most candid insight yet into why Harry withdrew from royal duties.Asked about his decision to leave royal life, Harry said he was left with no choice because the British press “was destroying my mental health.”He said of the “toxic” situation: “I did what any husband and father would do—I need to get my family out of here.”In what will be perceived as a dig at the royal establishment that refused to accept Harry and Meghan’s proposal of a hybrid public-private role, Harry said: “We never walked away, and as far as I’m concerned, what decisions are made on that side, I will never walk away.”Royal Family ‘Wringing Their Hands’ at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s ActivismHarry said that his life now would continue to be about “public service” and added that he and Meghan were “trying to bring some compassion and try to make people happy and try to change the world in any small way we can.”When Harry said he and Meghan often watched Jeopardy! and Netflix (with whom the couple recently signed a $100 million production deal) in the evenings after putting Archie to bed, Corden asked him about The Crown and its controversial portrayal of his family’s history.Harry, who joked he would like to be played in the series by Damian Lewis, said he preferred it to the tabloid media coverage of the royals because it “does not pretend to be news.”He added: “It’s fictional. But it’s loosely based on the truth.“Of course it’s not strictly accurate, but it gives you a rough idea about what that lifestyle—the pressures of putting duty and service above family and everything else—what can come from that.”He continued: “I’m way more comfortable with The Crown than I am seeing the stories written about my family, or my wife or myself, because it’s the difference between fiction—take it how you will—and being reported on as fact because you’re supposedly news. I have a real issue with that.”Harry also opened up about meeting Meghan and how he knew she was the one on their second date.“We hit it off with each other, and we were just so comfortable in each other’s company,” he said.“Dating me or any member of the royal family is kind of flipped upside down. All the dates become dinners or watching the TV or chatting at home.“We went from zero to 60 in the first two months.”Meghan, who is pregnant with the couple’s second child, made a cameo in the interview via FaceTime when Harry and Corden paid a trip to the house from the ’90s TV show The Fresh Prince of Bel Air.When Corden suggested the couple should buy the house, Meghan said: “I think we’ve done enough moving.”During the visit to the house, Corden and Harry spoke to the owner and jokingly made an offer to buy it, before Harry asked if he could use the toilet.“I’m actually dying for a pee. Can I use your bathroom?” he asked.Showing that family relations are at least still somewhat functional, Harry said his grandmother, the queen, bought his son Archie a waffle maker for Christmas.He revealed Meghan now makes waffles with a “beautiful organic mix” and they eat them for breakfast with toppings including berries and syrup.He also said that both his grandparents know how to use Zoom, but joked that his grandfather slams the laptop shut physically to finish a call.Over to you, Oprah.Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

  • Carnival, Disney Cruise Line cancel sailings until June; Holland America, Princess scrap Canadian cruises

    Carnival and Disney announced Wednesday that they would cancel all sailings through May. Three Carnival sister lines also announced cancellations.

  • A 2017 Jen Psaki tweet questioning the legality of bombing Syria is reemerging after Biden launched an airstrike

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  • UK committee: Vaccine rollout 'should continue by age'

    Britain's vaccine advice committee has said that the COVID-19 vaccine rollout should continue to prioritize people by age - rather than occupation.Some frontline workers such as police and teachers had been calling for prioritization for shots on the basis of their jobs.But Chair for the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation Professor Wei Shen Lim said the current system was the best way to keep up the pace of immunisations."Of all the different approaches to vaccination, getting vaccines into arms as quickly as possible is the fastest way and the best way to maximise benefit to the population. Taking all of these factors into account, we advise that the offer of vaccination in phase two should still be age based, starting with the oldest and proceeding in the following order: Those age 40 to 49, followed by those age 30 to 39, and lastly, those age 18 to 29. // An occupation-based vaccine program has never been tested before on a large scale in the UK, it is in that sense untested and untried. So trying to switch from an age-based program to an occupation-based programme will be more complex and potentially introduce more delays to the program."Britain, whose rollout has been among the fastest in the world, aims to complete phase 1 of its vaccine program by mid-April.

  • The surprising real-life age differences between 14 famous movie pairs

    Some on-screen love interest age gaps are surprising, and other times, actors are almost the same age as their on-screen children.

  • Here's what Trump's tax returns could mean for the investigations into his finances

    Donald Trump has fought hard to keep his personal tax returns, and the Trump Organization's a secret. The Supreme Court just let prosecutors get them.

  • Experts say Dominion and Smartmatic could win their defamation lawsuits, but MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell says they have 'zero' chance

    The Trump backers Rudy Giuliani, Sydney Powell, and Mike Lindell face defamation lawsuits from Dominion and Smartmatic that may succeed, experts say.

  • Texas lieutenant governor says people getting huge energy bills 'gambled on a very, very low rate' - but suggests they won't have to pay the full amount

    Texans on variable-rate energy deals were faced with enormous bills as the wholesale price of electricity spiked 10,000% during a winter storm.

  • After a chaotic year, Biden moves to reclaim the USPS, despite a defiant Postmaster General Louis DeJoy

    Biden nominated three people to open positions on the agency's governing board, who, if confirmed by the Senate, would create a Democratic advantage.

  • Biden heads to Texas to survey damage from paralyzing winter storm

    President Joe Biden headed for Texas on Friday as the state works to recover from a severe winter storm that caused serious damage to homes and businesses, left millions without power or clean water for days, and killed at least two dozen. Biden and his wife, first lady Jill Biden, were traveling to Houston where he will meet with Republican Governor Greg Abbott, Senator John Cornyn and Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner to discuss the recovery from last week’s storm. Biden will bring empathy and pledges of financial help from Washington, but no lectures about the dangers of underregulation or calls for the federal government to monitor the state's power grid.

  • UK top court says IS schoolgirl can't return

    The UK’s top court has unanimously ruled that a British-born woman who went to Syria as a schoolgirl to join Islamic State should not be allowed to return.The Supreme Court said on Friday (February 26) Shamima Begum cannot come back to Britain to challenge the government taking away her citizenship because she poses a security risk.She left London in 2015 when she was 15 years old and went to Syria via Turkey with two school friends, where she married an IS fighter. Since that time she gave birth to three children, all of them died.Now aged 21, Begum is being held in a detention camp in Syria.President of the UK Supreme Court Robert Reed said on Friday "The right to a fair hearing does not trump all other considerations, such as the safety of the public".It was stated that Begum can still pursue her appeal against the revoking of her citizenship, but she cannot do that in Britain.This decision overturns a ruling made by the Court of Appeal last year saying she could only have a fair appeal if she were allowed back to the UK.The case has provoked heated debate in Britain, pitting those who say she gave up her right to citizenship by traveling to join IS against those, including Human Rights groups who argue she should not be left stateless but rather face trial in Britain.

  • Why you should never release your pet goldfish into the wild

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  • From the hinterland to Hollywood: how Indian farmers galvanised a protest movement

    Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is struggling to beat back his biggest political challenge in years from a protest movement which began with disgruntled farmers travelling to New Delhi on tractors and is now gaining wider support at home and abroad. Simmering in makeshift camps housing tens of thousands of farmers since last year, the movement has seen a dramatic growth in recent weeks, getting backing from environmental activists, opposition parties and even A-list Western celebrities. At its heart are three new farm laws passed by the government last September, thanks to the majority Modi's right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) enjoys in the lower house of parliament.

  • Ties with Saudis at stake as US releases findings on killing

    The United States has pledged to tell the world its conclusions on what role Saudi Arabia's crown prince played in the brutal killing and dismembering of a U.S.-based journalist, but as important is what comes next — what the Biden administration plans to do about it. Ahead of the release of the declassified U.S. intelligence report, and announcement of any U.S. punitive measures, President Joe Biden spoke to Saudi King Salman on Thursday for the first time since taking office more than a month ago. It was a later-than-usual courtesy call to the Middle East ally, timing seen as reflecting Biden's displeasure.