Thursday, September 17, 2020

Now there is One

After months of rumors that it was right around the corner, Apple’s subscription bundle has finally been announced. Dubbed Apple One, it combines multiple Apple services like Apple Arcade, Apple TV+, and Apple News+ into one subscription—a page from Amazon’s book, to be sure. Apple One will offer three tiers. The lowest-priced one, at $14.99/mo, includes Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, and 50GB of iCloud storage for a single user. The next one up, “Family,” offers those same services to multiple family users for $19.99/mo. The highest-priced “Premier” tier, at $24.99/mo, includes bundled magazine subscription service Apple News+ and Fitness+, as well, along with a bump to 2GB of iCloud storage. Apple says these plans will roll out “this fall,” with a 30-day free trial for all new users to determine which tier is best for them. (Ars Technica)

Man captures Gettysburg ‘ghosts’ in spine-tingling video during tour of Civil War site

A 46-year-old man says he captured video footage of “ghosts” during a late-night tour of the infamous Civil War battle site in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. He and his family had driven to the site as tourists “to learn more about the history of the Civil War and see the old battleground where the Gettysburg Address was given.” They were driving along at night and started hearing noises. One person could hear things to the left while another person heard things to the right, and there was a fog, but the it was only in one patch not dispersed. At that time, they got so scared and rolled up the windows. Later on that night, they watched the videos “over and over again,” blowing it up on the big screen to get a closer look. “It was really exciting, but I also got this strange, ominous feeling, like something was saying to go back there,” they said while admitting none of them could go to sleep that night. (The Sun)

Man charges after couple with a rock – but would-be victim pulls out gun and announces he’s a cop

An off-duty police officer and his wife were on a walk on what should have been a peaceful afternoon. However, the walk ended in a bit of excitement when a person, who did not realize the man was a police officer, decided to attack the couple and man. They noticed that there were two people in the bushes along the side of the road. The officer and his wife ignored them and continued on their walk. A short time later, they heard running behind them. As they looked behind, they noticed the 23-year-old man running behind them with a large rock in his hand. The man became extremely surprised when the off-duty officer pulled his concealed firearm and pointed it at him. The man immediately dropped the rock and ran. The officer decided to chase the suspect on foot while his wife called for assistance. The off-duty officer was directly behind him, ordered him down to the ground and the suspect complied. The officer stood by until an on-duty Bloomington Police officer arrived at the scene to take the man into custody. Officials say the suspect made up several different versions of what brought him into contact with the off-duty officer. One story was that he was waiting for a friend at the transit station. While there, he apparently bumped into another person he knew and started talking with him about trading sex for drugs. The suspect was quick to tell officers that he would never take part in something like that. The suspect was arrested for his assault on the off-duty officer and his wife for charging at them with a rock.  He was charged with second-degree assault. (Law Enforcement Today)

A Pennsylvania judge threw the book at several protesters setting their bail at $1 million each for allegedly rioting in the wake of the police shooting of a knife-wielding Lancaster man

Lancaster, Pennsylvania police nabbed a dozen people and one juvenile for staging the riots around 3am this past Monday in clashes that culminated in police deploying tear gas at the crowd. The overnight violence came on the heels of the death of a mentally ill 27-year-old who was seen on body cam footage charging at a cop with a knife in hand. The officer shot and killed the man outside his mother’s house in downtown Lancaster. The mob of twelve adults marched from the scene of the shooting on Laurel Street to the police station, chucking glass bottles, rocks, brick, gallon jugs filled with liquid and plastic road barricades at cops, police said. A county vehicle parked in front of the station was also damaged. The mob now face a slew of felony and misdemeanor charges, including arson, riot, institutional vandalism and criminal conspiracy. A 16-year-old boy was also busted on riot, disorderly conduct, possession of instruments of crime, possession of a small amount of marijuana, propulsion of missiles onto a roadway and institutional vandalism. (Fox News)

‘UFO’ spotted in NJ was apparently just a Goodyear blimp

A viral video circulating on social media had some New Jersey residents convinced they had seen a genuine UFO flying over their state. But the “unidentified flying object” turned out to just be a Goodyear blimp. In a video shared on Twitter, a man filming the “UFO” expresses amazement at what he’s seeing. Another person posted a video, claiming that the supposed UFO was flying over Teterboro Airport. It soon became apparent that the blimp was indeed not a flying spacecraft being operated by extraterrestrial entities. (Insider)

A growing body of research suggests that how popular you are in adolescence has a link with psychological and physical health decades later

Thirteen-year-olds who weren’t very popular with their peers growing up seem to have a heightened risk of developing circulatory system disease in later life, a new study has found. This includes higher risk for conditions such as narrowed and hardened arteries and abnormal heartbeat that affect the normal functioning of the heart and blood vessels. “Although not many realize it, peer status is one of the strongest predictors of later psychological and health outcomes, even decades later”, said a distinguished professor of psychology and neuroscience at the University of North Carolina. The authors of the study said that it’s important to note that peer status is a specific form of popularity, likeability rather than being the cool kid. Peer status is rather an indicator of likability, and the degree to which a child is accepted and respected by their peers. Chronic health problems are usually explained by genetic factors or actions like smoking, drinking or an unhealthy diet, but research has suggested that high-quality relationships are a key indicator of mortality. (CNN)

TikTok will spin off into a separate company, partly owned by Oracle

Oracle plans take an ownership stake in a newly formed TikTok corporation as part of the recently announced deal, the Financial Times reports. The new arrangement will not cleave off TikTok regionally, but it will create a separate corporate entity for the app, in which Oracle will take a minority stake. Oracle will also ensure that data from American users is stored and processed in the United States, per the recommendations of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). TikTok was already headquartered in California, with nominal independence from ByteDance’s China operation. The main change made by the deal is Oracle’s minority stake in the company, the size of which is still unclear. (The Verge)

Venue owner for Trump’s indoor Nevada rally fined $3,000 by city for violating COVID-19 rules

The city of Henderson, Nevada, where President Donald Trump recently held an indoor campaign rally, is fining the venue owner $3,000 for violating COVID-19 preventative measures imposed by the state’s governor. Gatherings of more than 50 people are prohibited in the state. Attendees of Trump’s rally were also not required to wear masks, nor was social distancing enforced, despite state rules requiring those measures. Henderson officials had issued a compliance letter and verbal warning to the event organizers prior to the rally. A spokeswoman for the city of Henderson, said in a statement: “During the event, a compliance officer observed six violations of the directives and the City’s Business Operations Division has issued a Business License Notice of Violation to Xtreme Manufacturing and assessed a penalty of $3,000.” (USA Today)

Supporters raise more than $318,000 on GoFundMe to help the two LA deputies shot in their patrol car during Compton ambush

A fundraiser launched for the two LA deputies shot during an ambush over the weekend has amassed more than $315,000 in donations in just over 24 hours as the reward for helping to locate the gunman responsible rises to $200,000. The two officers – one, a 31-year-old woman, the other a 24-year-old man – were shot multiple times as they sat inside their patrol car outside the Metro Blue Line station on last Saturday night by a black male suspect who then fled the scene. Both are now in a stable condition in hospital, and a massive manhunt is now underway for the hooded gunman, who’s said to be between the ages of 28 and 30. (Go Fund Me)

75% of youths who died from COVID-19 had underlying health conditions

Three out of four young people who died from COVID-19 in the United States had underlying health conditions, according to data released Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The analysis of the 121 Americans age 21 and younger who died from the virus between February 12 and July 31 also revealed that 70% were aged 10 to 20 years, the agency said. The remainder, 20%, were children aged 1 to 9, and infants 1 year old and younger, 10%. Among the young people who died from the virus, 45% were Hispanic American, 29% were Black American and 4% were American Indians or Alaska Natives, according to the CDC. (Center for Disease Control and Prevention)

An Oklahoma lawmaker announced plans to file a legislation that would classify targeted assault or threat to a law enforcement officer, first responder, National Guard member or military service member as a hate crime

Senator Casey Murdock said he plans to file the legislation later this fall. Under current state statute, malicious crimes with specific intent to incite or produce imminent violence directed against a person based on race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin or disability are prohibited. “After the events this weekend in California, and the terrible attack on our police officers in Tulsa earlier this summer, it’s more important than ever to protect our law enforcement officers and the individuals putting their lives on the line to protect our safety,” the State Senator said. “With the hatred and unrest in this country, we must classify these careers as a protected class. Attacks against our peace officers are absolutely a hate crime because they are targeted based on their profession.” Measures for the 2021 legislative session can begin to be filed on November 15 ahead of the January 21, 2021 bill introduction deadline. The 2021 legislative session will begin on February 1, 2021. (KOCO)

Man finds apparent brain on Racine beach

Racine, Wisconsin police are looking to determine not only the what, but the why, after what appeared to be a brain was found on a beach recently. Police are still working to figure out if what was found along the beach is human or not. For the man who found it, the discovery is still hard to believe. The man said “I came across this square package, wrapped in aluminum foil, and around it, it had a pink rubber band”. Flowers and what appears to be paper with Mandarin characters printed on it were also found with the suspected brain. He found some city employees working nearby and asked them the same question he was thinking. They responded in agreement with the man before he called the police. They responded similarly, “Yeah, it looks like a brain.” Police said that the brain is not believed to be human. However, authorities are waiting on official confirmation from the Racine County Medical Examiner’s Office. (Fox 6 Now)

Senate bill would keep US on daylight saving time during pandemic

Florida Senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott have introduced legislation that would allow the United States to stay on daylight saving time during the coronavirus pandemic. In six weeks, the United States will “fall back” one hour and return to standard time. The legislation argues that staying on daylight saving time would help provide stability for families who are already dealing with enough change with virtual learning, work from home, and other disruptions the COVID-19 pandemic has placed into our daily lives. “Our government has asked a lot of the American people over the past seven months, and keeping the nation on daylight saving time is just one small step we can take to help ease the burden,” Senator Rubio said. “More daylight in the after school hours is critical to helping families and children endure this challenging school year. Studies have shown many benefits of a year-round daylight saving time, and while I believe we should make it permanent all year around, I urge my colleagues to — at the very least — work with me to avoid changing the clocks this fall.” Senators Rubio and Scott have previously been involved in the fight to make daylight saving time permanent. Florida lawmakers passed legislation that was signed by Senator Scott when he was governor that would make daylight saving time permanent in only Florida, but it has not taken effect because it requires congressional approval. Senator Rubio has twice introduced a bill that would make daylight saving time year-round for the entire country, from Maine to Hawaii. (MSN News)

Thirsty Thursday Creeps In With:

• AKC Responsible Dog Ownership Day
• Ask An Atheist Day
• Apple Dumpling Day
• Citizenship Day
• Constitution Day
• International Country Music Day
• Monte Cristo Day
• Paw Paw Day (Third Thursday in September)
• Professional House Cleaners Day
• Table Shuffleboard Day
• Teach Ag Day (Thursday of the 3rd Week)
• Time’s Up Day
• VFW Ladies Auxiliary Day