Too Much Screentime for Young Kids will Harm their Ability to Properly Learn Later, Study Reveals

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Excessive staring at screens can cause eye strain, dry eyes, headaches, and poor sleep quality, not to mention increased stress and anxiety, according to Michigan State University.

And the less-than-ideal effects are even more pronounced for children — and require the utmost care to be adequately corrected.

A new study reported by News-Medical and conducted by a team of researchers from Inserm and the National University of Singapore, backed up by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the American Academy of Pediatrics, discovered that high screen time during specific developmental periods for children is connected with lessened academic performance later on, as well as weaker working memory.

The study, which was published in the “World of Pediatrics” health journal this past April, found that the diminished effects were most apparent on children who had been exposed to excessive amounts of screen time during infancy and school-entry age.

Worsened general academic performance appeared to be an additional result of the study, which followed a group of 502 children from infancy to middle childhood, with the effects researchers saw in participants at the tender age of one being among the most pronounced. (Read more from “Too Much Screentime for Young Kids will Harm their Ability to Properly Learn Later, Study Reveals” HERE)

REPORT: 10-Year-Old Accused Of Shooting Baby In Head Execution-Style

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Officials charged a 10-year-old Missouri boy with murder after he allegedly shot a 7-month-old baby in the head execution-style June 26, according to a report.

St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department (SLMPD) officers responded to the incident just after 4:00 p.m. and found the baby, identified as 7-month-old Kiyomi Parker, within the residence, according to an SLMPD press release. The baby died from her wounds. Homicide Detectives and Child Abuse Detectives later opened an investigation into the incident and learned that an unidentified 10-year-old boy shot the child, the SLMPD alleged. Witnesses said the 10-year-old retrieved a gun and shot the infant, according to court documents cited by First Alert 4. The boy confessed that he shot baby in the head, WTHR13 reported, citing a probable cause statement.

Officers transported Parker to a local hospital in a patrol SUV and administered emergency aid, the SLMPD said. The child was declared dead at the hospital, police said, First Alert 4 reported.

Officers allegedly learned that Ca’Marion Pawnell, the baby’s father, stored a gun beneath a mattress in one of the residence’s bedroooms by interviewing witnesses, including the 10-year-old. The minor confessed that he was aware of where the firearm was and had retrieved it before, according to the court documents.

Pawnell, 19, allegedly confirmed the gun belonged to him and he had placed it beneath the mattress. Pawnell has been charged with one count of second-degree felony murder, one count of endangering the welfare of a child resulting in death, and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child creating substantial risk, according to court documents. He remains held without bond, First Alert 4 reported. (Read more from “REPORT: 10-Year-Old Accused Of Shooting Baby In Head Execution-Style” HERE)

Plane Collides With Drone Mid-Air Near JFK Airport, Pilot Says

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A commercial JetBlue plane collided with a drone while trying to land at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Monday, according to a pilot.

A pilot reported that the drone struck the airliner mid-air while the plane approached to land at JFK, according to air traffic control audio. The flight between Las Vegas and New York landed without incident and all passengers aboard safely exited the aircraft, JetBlue said in a statement obtained by NBC News. There was no damage or indications of a collision following an inspection, according to the airline.

“Safety is JetBlue’s first priority, and we will assist with any relevant investigations,” JetBlue said in a statement.

“The pilot of JetBlue Airlines Flight 948 reported striking a drone at approximately 3,000 feet altitude while on final approach to John F. Kennedy International Airport around 7:15 a.m. local time on Monday, June 29. A post-flight inspection did not reveal any damage to the aircraft,” The Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement Monday.

“Just quickly, I couldn’t talk to approach, but we collided with a drone back there in the turn,” the pilot said. (Read more from “Plane Collides With Drone Mid-Air Near JFK Airport, Pilot Says” HERE)

Woke Paris Politician Blames Americans and Our Air Conditioning for Europe Heat Wave That has Killed 1,300 People

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A Paris politician blamed Americans and US air conditioning for the record-breaking heatwave in Europe that has resulted in more than 1,300 excess deaths.

After US tourists mocked France over the lack of air conditioning across the country amid 104 degree temperatures, Audrey Pulvar, deputy mayor of Paris for international relations, claimed the situation was partly America’s fault.

“Dear American journalists and social media ‘influencers’: for days, some of you have been criticizing and making fun of Paris because the city does not have A/C in every room…OMG, this is so rich!” Pulvar wrote on social media.

“As the second-largest emitter of greenhouse gas emissions in the world, you bear a significant amount of responsibility for global warming and the consequences we, in France, are experiencing. Your cities, which are 90 per cent air conditioned, are not unrelated to this,” she added.

“So please, enough with the lecture. Just start doing your part,” the post concluded. (Read more from “Woke Paris Politician Blames Americans and Our Air Conditioning for Europe Heat Wave That has Killed 1,300 People” HERE)

Photo credit: Flickr

Venezuela Earthquake: Nearly 1,500 Dead, over 50,000 Estimated Missing

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The socialist government of Venezuela has documented 1,450 people killed by twin massive earthquakes last week, over 3,000 injured, and potentially upwards of 50,000 people missing as international rescue missions deploy to the South American nation.

Venezuela suffered two earthquakes, one magnitude 7.2 and one 7.5, on Wednesday night, centered in La Guaira state. The earthquakes devastated La Guaira and parts of the capital, Caracas, resulting in large numbers of collapsed buildings and the destruction of much of what remains of the dilapidated Venezuelan power grid. After over 25 years of socialism, Venezuela does not have a functional healthcare system or emergency services, and early videos from the sight of the disaster showed desperate victims using the flashlights on their mobile phones as emergency gear, trying to peer into the rubble of former buildings to find people trapped.

The government of the United States was among the first to respond to the calamity, coordinating with interim President Delcy Rodríguez to deploy emergency search and rescue teams as soon as possible by using world class military aircraft to overcome the challenge of the earthquakes destroying the runways at La Guaira’s airport. Other countries such as Chile, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), India, Spain, and Mexico, as well as international aid organizations, have since organized humanitarian missions to help with both the search and rescue operations and caring for survivors.

The scale of the devastation remains uncertain at press time. According to the Venezuelan socialist regime, hundreds of people are believed to be missing. The Emirati newspaper The National reported on Monday, however, that anti-socialist opposition members compiled a list of about 50,000 people whose whereabouts have been unknown since the earthquakes, which corresponds with what Telemundo reported was a United Nations estimate of the number of missing people as of Monday.

Venezuela has historically been vulnerable to massive earthquakes, though typically not more than two per century; the 7.5-magnitude quake on Wednesday was the most severe documented in the country since 1900. The deadliest earthquake before the current one in the past century occurred in 1967 and was accompanied by a devastating tsunami that left 245 people dead and thousands injured. The number of dead is expected to be significantly higher this time around as the 1967 earthquake was estimated to be 6.6 in magnitude and also because the socialist government of late dictator Hugo Chávez invested in building massive government housing units in the early 2000s that were not constructed to withstand intense earthquakes. Many of these buildings collapsed entirely with their residents inside.

(Read more from “Venezuela Earthquake: Nearly 1,500 Dead, over 50,000 Estimated Missing” HERE)

SCOTUS Rules 5-4 to Permit Counting of Mail-In Ballots that Arrive After Election Day

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The Supreme Court (SCOTUS) ruled that state laws allowing for the counting of mail-in ballots after election day are not in violation of federal law, a blow to the Republican National Committee and President Donald Trump’s administration.

On Monday, SCOTUS issued a 5-4 ruling that permits states to count mail-in ballots — sent on or before election day — that are received by state election officials after election day.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote the majority’s opinion, joined by Chief Justice John Roberts as well as Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson.

“Two principles are important here. First, post-election-day receipt, considered on its own, does not conflict with the election-day statutes,” the Court writes:

Second, state law is preempted by the federal election-day statutes only “‘so far as the conflict extends.’” So even if plaintiffs are right about Mississippi law, they would still lose the challenge they have pressed in this litigation: that post-election-day ballot receipt is itself unlawful. [Emphasis added]

The Framers recognized the difficulty of crafting election laws “applicable to every probable change in the situation of the country.” So instead of constitutionalizing election law, they decided that “a discretionary power over elections” needed to be lodged “somewhere.” Suffice it to say, that power was not lodged in this Court. The election-day statutes say nothing about ballot receipt, and we cannot add to the words Congress chose.

(Read more from “SCOTUS Rules 5-4 to Permit Counting of Mail-In Ballots that Arrive After Election Day” HERE)

Report: Iran and U.S. Make Agreement to Pause War, Engage in Talks

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By Breitbart. Iran and the United States have agreed to pause attacks and engage in talks this week, after the U.S. launched strikes against multiple targets in Tehran, leading to Iran launching retaliatory strikes on Bahrain and Kuwait, according to a recent report.

A “senior U.S. official” confirmed to Axios that the two countries had made the agreement and “plan to meet Tuesday” in Qatar.

The fighting between the two countries reportedly comes as a result of “competing interpretations” of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which the countries agreed to and signed.

The different interpretations of the agreement between the two countries are related to the Strait of Hormuz, according to the outlet.

One senior U.S. official explained to the outlet that the U.S. had “decided to stop all the kinetic activity.” (Read more from “Report: Iran and U.S. Make Agreement to Pause War, Engage in Talks” HERE)

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Trump asks Congress for billions for Iran war, after tension with Republicans

By BBC. The White House has asked lawmakers to approve $87.6bn (£66.5bn), mostly for “urgent needs” connected with the US war on Iran, a day after Congress passed a resolution rebuking the military action.

The bulk of the funding – $67bn – is for the US Department of Defence, the White House said.

But the proposal faces an uphill battle in Congress. The Iran conflict is unpopular with voters ahead of the US midterm elections in November, though a ceasefire is currently in effect.

US President Donald Trump has also found himself at odds with some members of his Republican Party over the issue of Iran, and is alleged to have ended up in an angry exchange with one senator on Wednesday.

That senator, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, was one of a handful of Republicans who defied the president on Tuesday by voting to pass a measure demanding that he halt the war or seek congressional approval before continuing military action. (Read more from “Trump asks Congress for billions for Iran war, after tension with Republicans” HERE)

Joe Biden Barely Manages to Find His Way Offstage at Dem Gala After Seeking Directions

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Former President Joe Biden was back onstage at a Democratic Party gala to excoriate President Trump Saturday – but needed a little help figuring out just how to exit.

Biden, who got pushed out of his reelection bid by fellow Democrats in 2024 following his debate disaster against Trump, defended his record and blasted his successor during his speech to the Maryland Democratic Party’s Fight Back & Win summit near Baltimore.

He ripped Trump for the “deliberate distraction – destruction of NATO” and hammered Trump’s White House ballroom as a “vanity project.”

At his speech’s conclusion Biden delivered a familiar refrain about the nation’s ability to overcome challenges – then sought an assist to find out which way to leave the stage.

He turned to the side seeking guidance, then pointed in two different directions to ascertain the best route. Once he had it sorted out, he walked away from the stage with his back to the audience.

His appearance at event, held at the Live! Casino & Hotel in Hanover, Maryland, came just days after he appeared at the grand opening of the Barack Obama presidential library in Chicago. (Read more from “Joe Biden Barely Manages to Find His Way Offstage at Dem Gala After Seeking Directions” HERE)

Thomas Massie Turns the Camera On Fox Reporter in Wild Confrontation: ‘Is This What You DO for a Living?!’

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Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) erupted on a reporter for Fox News Digital and turned the camera on him in a truly wild confrontation.

In a bizarre on-the-street clash in Washington, reporter Nicholas A. Ballasy — on assignment for Fox News Digital — went up to Massie and asked him about various allegations from a woman claiming to be his ex-girlfriend. The woman, Cynthia West — a former Massie staffer — recently claimed that Massie pressured her to sign an NDA, and that he bragged about having a sexual encounter with Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) just weeks after his wife’s death.

Ballasy kicked off the exchange by asking Massie if he could “clear up the stuff your ex is saying about you with the NDA. That you pressured her to sign an NDA for wrongful termination. Is that true, what she’s saying about you?”

“Who are you with?” Massie asked.

“Fox Digital,” Ballasy replied.

“It’s all false,” the congressman said.

(Read more from “Thomas Massie Turns the Camera On Fox Reporter in Wild Confrontation: ‘Is This What You DO for a Living?!’” HERE)

Animal Day Care Has Dogs in Therapy to Prep for Anxiety from Fourth of July Fireworks

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Living in Los Angeles, even dogs end up in therapy.

A Southern California doggy daycare facility is prepping canines for Independence Day by blasting the sounds of fireworks all day long in a therapeutic “desensitization” method that will keep them calm when the real explosions begin on the Fourth of July.

A caption on an Instagram video posted by Dingo Doggies Campus, located on Obama Boulevard in LA, reads:

“Fourth of July is right around the corner! So we have started fireworks conditioning for our pups! We play the fireworks sound track all day everyday and we have it playing in the kennel rooms for our boarders on July 4th evening to blend in with the real fireworks.”

The dogs at the elaborate facility walk on treadmills, snooze and make their way through obstacle courses as a recording of fireworks plays in the background as part of their behavioral reprograming – their calm demeanor also reinforced by pets and praise from a worker, saying, “Good job, you guys.” (Read more from “Animal Day Care Has Dogs in Therapy to Prep for Anxiety from Fourth of July Fireworks” HERE)