Media Today

[Rick Plant]

Anne Heche ‘expected to live’ after suffering severe burns in car crash: report



Actress Anne Heche is expected to survive after reportedly being involved in a series of car crashes in Los Angeles on Friday.

"Witnesses tell TMZ, she was driving a blue Mini Cooper and crashed into the garage of an apartment complex," TMZ reported. "Residents of the apartment complex tried getting Anne out of the vehicle but she put the car in reverse and then sped off. A short time later, she crashed into a nearby home, igniting a fire. The fire was significant and engulfed the house."

Video from a Fox LA helicopter appears to show firefighters pushing a stretcher towards an ambulance. Shortly before they reached their destination, the person on the stretcher throws off the white sheet and flails their arms just before the stretcher entered the ambulance.

TMZ also obtained an image of Heche taken through the passenger side window.

"Look closely at the photo of Anne inside the car (above) ... there's a bottle with a red cap in the cupholder next to the gearshift, and it looks like a bottle of alcohol," TMZ reported. "We do no know the extent of her injuries or burns. We're told she's currently in the hospital intubated but expected to live."

Watch a slowed-down video of the stretcher below:

[Rick Plant]

Alex Jones hit with $45 million in punitive damages by Texas jury: report



One day after a Texas jury determined Alex Jones must pay two Sandy Hook parents $4.1 in compensatory damages, the same jury ruled in must also pay $45.2 million in punitive damages.

Jones was sued for defamation by Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, the parents of Jesse Lewis, who was murdered in the 2012 fatal school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut which Jones falsely claimed was a hoax.

Heslin and Lewis were awarded a total of $49.3 million.

Elizabeth Williamson, the author the book Sandy Hook: An American Tragedy and the Battle for Truth, attempted to put the verdict in context.

"Remember this is the first of three trials for damages against Jones," Williamson wrote.

"Two more are scheduled for next month-— one in Texas, and one brought by the families of eight victims in Connecticut, where laws governing damages favor plaintiffs more than in Texas," she reminded. "And Connecticut is where the shooting occurred."

Watch: https://twitter.com/i/status/1555672916401917952

[Rick Plant]

Hurricane experts still expect more storms than normal as peak of season approaches



ORLANDO, Fla. — Although tropical storms have been off to slower start this year than anticipated, experts are still calling for the 2022 season to be an above-average year.

Both Colorado State University and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration called for above-average seasons in their updated August forecasts of what the rest of the season may look like, which ends Nov. 30. So far, 2022 is producing the norm in storm production, three storms by Aug. 4. But meteorologists expect the tropics to start picking up steam as the peak of season approaches, or the time where the most tropical storms are typically observed.

“We’re just getting into the peak months of August through October for hurricane development, and we anticipate that more storms are on the way,” said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad.

The NOAA kept its storm-total predictions from May the same, forecasting a likely range of 14 to 21 named storms. NOAA defines an average season as having 14.

Of the predicted total, scientists are expecting to see six to 10 become hurricanes; with maximum sustained winds of 74 mph or higher, and three to six major hurricanes — also known as Category 3, 4 and 5 storms; with maximum sustained winds greater than 110 mph.

CSU adjusted its July prediction of tropical storms from 20 to 18. CSU also changed the amount of hurricanes it predicted from 10 to eight, and its count of major hurricanes from five to four.

But why did CSU adjust its count?

The answer is due to the subtropical Atlantic experiencing cooling along the sea surface, which could lead to increased vertical wind shear — a hurricane deterrent that breaks up organized winds from properly circulating and becoming tropical storms.

However, both CSU and the NOAA found the majority of Atlantic sea-surface temperatures to be warmer than normal, fueling their predictions for enhanced hurricane activity. Adding to that is the persistent, Pacific cooling presence of La Niña — an atmospheric current that can weaken vertical wind shear in the Atlantic. Experts predict La Niña to linger throughout the rest of the season.

As for major storms, CSU predicted the entire continental U.S. coastline has a 68% chance of seeing a Category 3 hurricane or higher make landfall. Meteorologists gave the U.S. East Coast, including the Florida peninsula, a 43% chance, which is higher than the full-season average of 31% from the last century. The Gulf Coast, from the Florida Panhandle to Brownsville, Texas also was given a 43% chance — higher than the full-season average of 30%.

“Communities and families should prepare now for the remainder of what is still expected to be an active hurricane season,” said Ken Graham, director of the National Weather Service. “Ensure that you are ready to take action if a hurricane threatens your area by developing an evacuation plan and gathering hurricane supplies now, before a storm is bearing down on your community.”

So far, 2022 has three named tropical storms: Alex, Bonnie and Colin. Comparatively, by this time of the year, 2020 had nine named storms and a tropical depression — although that year is considered an outlier. The last two years saw record breaking storm production, with 2020 becoming the busiest recorded hurricane season in the Atlantic’s history totaling 30 named storms, and 2021 earning the third-place title for busiest year with 21 named storms.

© Orlando Sentinel

[Rick Plant]

Monkeypox is now a national public health emergency in the U.S. – an epidemiologist explains what this means
https://theconversation.com/monkeypox-is-now-a-national-public-health-emergency-in-the-u-s-an-epidemiologist-explains-what-this-means-188335

[Rick Plant]

Megalodon sharks ruled the oceans millions of years ago – new analyses of giant fossilized teeth are helping scientists unravel the mystery of their extinction

https://theconversation.com/megalodon-sharks-ruled-the-oceans-millions-of-years-ago-new-analyses-of-giant-fossilized-teeth-are-helping-scientists-unravel-the-mystery-of-their-extinction-185118

[Rick Plant]

Senate passes Democrats' sweeping health care and climate bill in win for Biden

The Senate on Sunday afternoon passed Democrats' $750 billion health care, tax and climate bill, in a significant victory for President Joe Biden and his party.

The final, party-line vote was 51-50, with Vice President Kamala Harris breaking the tie. The package is the product of painstaking negotiations, and its final passage would give Democrats a chance to achieve major policy objectives ahead of the upcoming midterm elections.

The Democrat-controlled House, which is expected to take up the legislation on Friday, August 12, must approve the bill before Biden can sign it into law.

The sweeping bill -- named the Inflation Reduction Act -- would represent the largest climate investment in US history and make major changes to health policy by giving Medicare the power for the first time to negotiate the prices of certain prescription drugs and extending expiring health care subsidies for three years. The legislation would reduce the deficit, be paid for through new taxes -- including a 15% minimum tax on large corporations and a 1% tax on stock buybacks -- and boost the Internal Revenue Service's ability to collect.

It would raise over $700 billion in government revenue over 10 years and spend over $430 billion to reduce carbon emissions and extend subsidies for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act and use the rest of the new revenue to reduce the deficit.

Senate Democrats, with a narrow 50-seat majority, stayed unified to pass the legislation, using a special, filibuster-proof process to approve the measure without Republican votes. Final passage came after a marathon series of contentious amendment votes known as a "vote-a-rama" that stretched nearly 16 hours from late Saturday night until Sunday afternoon.

West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin said that the legislation he helped write is "a good balanced bill."

"I think we'll all benefit from it; the country will," Manchin said. "We have energy security, that's what we were looking for. And we have the ability to invest in the energy of the future."

Biden praised the Senate for passing the bill in a statement Sunday, thanking Democrats in the chamber and touting the legislation's climate investments and health care provisions.

"Today, Senate Democrats sided with American families over special interests, voting to lower the cost of prescription drugs, health insurance, and everyday energy costs and reduce the deficit, while making the wealthiest corporations finally pay their fair share," Biden said.

How the bill addresses the climate crisis

The nearly $370 billion clean energy and climate package is the largest climate investment in US history, and the biggest victory for the environmental movement since the landmark Clean Air Act. It also comes at a critical time; this summer has seen punishing heat waves and deadly floods across the country, which scientists say are both linked to a warming planet.

Analysis from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's office -- as well as multiple independent analyses -- suggests the measure would reduce US carbon emissions by up to 40% by 2030. Strong climate regulations from the Biden administration and action from states would be needed to get to President Joe Biden's goal of cutting emissions 50% by 2030.

The bill also contains many tax incentives meant to bring down the cost of electricity with more renewables, and spur more American consumers to switch to electricity to power their homes and vehicles.

Lawmakers said the bill represents a monumental victory and is also just the start of what's needed to combat the climate crisis.

"This isn't about the laws of politics, this is about the laws of physics," Democratic Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii  "We all knew coming into this effort that we had to do what the science tells us what we need to do."

Key health care and tax policy in the bill

The bill would empower Medicare to negotiate prices of certain costly medications administered in doctors' offices or purchased at the pharmacy. The Health and Human Services secretary would negotiate the prices of 10 drugs in 2026, and another 15 drugs in 2027 and again in 2028. The number would rise to 20 drugs a year for 2029 and beyond.

This provision is far more limited than the one House Democratic leaders have backed in the past. But it would open the door to fulfilling a longstanding party goal of allowing Medicare to use its heft to lower drug costs.

Democrats are also planning to extend the enhanced federal premium subsidies for Obamacare coverage through 2025, a year later than lawmakers recently discussed. That way, they wouldn't expire just after the 2024 presidential election.

To boost revenue, the bill would impose a 15% minimum tax on the income large corporations report to shareholders, known as book income, as opposed to the Internal Revenue Service. The measure, which would raise $258 billion over a decade, would apply to companies with profits over $1 billion.

The provision would have lengthened the amount of time investment managers' profit interest must be held from three years to five years to take advantage of the lower tax rate. Addressing this loophole, which would have raised $14 billion over a decade, had been a longtime goal of congressional Democrats.

In its place, a 1% excise tax on companies' stock buybacks was added, raising another $74 billion, according to a Democratic aide.

AFP

[Rick Plant]

Vintage Scherzer, 'motivated' Mets sweep twin bill from Braves

NEW YORK -- Given how things tend to go around Willets Point, it was easy for some pockets of Mets fans to envision a worst-case scenario entering this weekend’s five-game series against the Braves. An Atlanta sweep would have pushed the Mets to second place for the first time since early April. More than that, it would have solidified the Braves as clear division favorites entering the stretch run of their NL East defense.

Such doomsday scenarios can be as much a part of Queens baseball culture as anything that happened in 1969 or ’86. But these Mets want no part of such cynicism. When the Braves trimmed New York’s NL East margin from 10 1/2 games on June 1 to just half a game on July 23, prompting Austin Riley to declare on Braves television that “we’re coming for them,” the Mets reeled off a seven-game winning streak to wrest back firm control of the division. When the Braves once again proved to be more active at the Trade Deadline, the Mets went out and beat them in a five-game series at Citi Field.

With a doubleheader sweep on Saturday, including an 8-5 win in the matinee and a 6-2 triumph in the nightcap, the Mets clinched that series victory over their closest division rival. What’s more, they looked like a team with no interest in being caught. Max Scherzer’s seven scoreless innings in Game 2 provided the latest vindication of the Mets’ decision to hand him a record-setting $130 million contract this past offseason.

“This is what you play the game for,” Scherzer said. “You play to face the best, especially deep in the season. You grind it out here in the NL East."

With Scherzer, the Mets have legitimized their contention. His 11-strikeout performance moved him into a tie with Justin Verlander for 14th place on the all-time list, while improving his record to 3-1 with a 1.37 ERA in seven starts since returning from the injured list. Pete Alonso collected three hits in the nightcap after Francisco Lindor did the same in the matinee, demonstrating how potent the Mets can be when their stars are clicking.

“We’re motivated, and we want to continue to play well,” Alonso said. “Our goal is to make the playoffs, win the division and have a chance to play for a World Series. Every single day is an opportunity to move one inch closer.”

New York has done it by being relentless. Consider:

- The Mets are 13-0-2 in series against NL East teams
- They are 30 games over .500 for the first time since the final day of the 2006 season
- They went 35-19 over the first third of the season and 34-20 in the second third[/i

For a time, the Mets did much of that without Scherzer, who missed nearly seven weeks due to an oblique strain. They’ve since relied on their ace not only to help them repel Atlanta’s charge up the standings, but also to reclaim a chunk of their lead. Following their doubleheader sweep, the Mets’ NL East edge bulged to 5 1/2 games.

Scherzer did need some help to submit a scoreless effort on Saturday, most notably after he allowed a leadoff double and an infield hit to put runners on the corners with one out in the fifth. The next batter, Ehire Adrianza, hit a sharp grounder to second base that Luis Guillorme fielded.

Typically, an infielder will gladly trade a run for an out with a three-run lead. But when Guillorme noticed Travis d’Arnaud hesitating off third base, Guillorme waited until d’Arnaud committed to the plate before firing an 85 mph strike home, where catcher Tomás Nido applied the tag to cut down a run.

"I don’t know if I’ve seen that,” manager Buck Showalter said. “That’s a baseball player play. You don’t work on that in St. Lucie.”

“It’s something that I, personally, probably have thought about before,” Guillorme said. “It may or may not happen. It just worked out today.”

That it worked out against the Braves was a boon for the Mets, who improved to 7-4 against the defending World Series champions. It’s a fine start to the head-to-head series, though the Mets are cognizant that that’s all it is -- a start. Even in early August, the Mets have eight games remaining against their rivals, which could still change the shape of the division race.

“It’s great to get these wins, but it’s not over yet,” Scherzer said. “We know how good they can play, and they can get hot, and we can continue to play great baseball as well. It’s great to win these games, don’t get me wrong. You want to beat them as much as you can. But it’s going to take that type of effort for the rest of the season.”

https://www.mlb.com/news/max-scherzer-strikes-out-11-as-mets-sweep-braves-in-dh

[Rick Plant]

Olivia Newton-John, singer and actress, dead at 73

Olivia Newton-John, the Australian singer whose breathy voice and wholesome beauty made her one of the biggest pop stars of the '70s and charmed generations of viewers in the blockbuster movie "Grease," died on Monday, according to a statement from her husband. She was 73.

"Dame Olivia Newton-John passed away peacefully at her Ranch in Southern California this morning, surrounded by family and friends. We ask that everyone please respect the family's privacy during this very difficult time," her husband, John Easterling, wrote in a statement on the singer's verified Instagram account. "Olivia has been a symbol of triumphs and hope for over 30 years sharing her journey with breast cancer."

The singer revealed in September 2018 that she was treating cancer at the base of her spine. It was her third cancer diagnosis, following bouts with breast cancer in the early '90s and in 2017.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/08/entertainment/olivia-newton-john-obit/index.html