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Very smart move by David Bowdich, Deputy Director of my FBI. He fired Agent Peter Strzok, the Chief Witch Hunter -- finally. The Office of Professional Responsibility said, "oh, demote, oh, suspend." David didn't demote, he didn't suspend. He FIRED! And hopefully he'll fire the Office of Professional Responsibility too. Need to get those Obama people OUT!! And many more -- FBI & DOJ full of bad players. No Accountability!

Former Agent Strzok was in charge of the Crooked Hillary Clinton sham investigation. Which almost cost me the election. It was a total fraud on the American public and should be properly redone.

And Strzok was in charge of the Phoney Russia Witch Hunt. With nobody running it, will it be dropped? It is a total Hoax. Millions of dollars spent -- big waste of Taxpayers Money. 💸 No Obstruction and no collusion, as in never any collusion, ZERO collusion, just my honest opinion, folks!!! 😇

Charlottesville remembered: 'A battle for the soul of America'

It could only happen in the birthplace of Christian Weston Chandler.

She’s the world’s top empathy researcher. But colleagues say she bullied and intimidated them

Tania Singer, a celebrated neuroscientist and director at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig, Germany, is known as one of the world’s foremost experts on empathy. In her research, she has sought to demonstrate that meditation can make people more kind and caring. The title of a profile of Singer written by this reporter in 2013 summed up her public image: Concentrating on Kindness.

But inside her lab, it was a very different story, eight former and current colleagues say in interviews with Science. The researchers, all but one of whom insisted on remaining anonymous because they feared for their careers, describe a group gripped by fear of their boss. “Whenever anyone had a meeting with her there was at least an even chance they would come out in tears,” one colleague says.

Singer, one of the most high-profile female researchers in the Max Planck Society (MPG), sometimes made harsh comments to women who became pregnant, multiple lab members told Science. “People were terrified. They were really, really afraid of telling her about their pregnancies,” one former colleague says. “For her, having a baby was basically you being irresponsible and letting down the team,” says another, who became a mother while working in Singer’s department.

[...] In a plan presented to the researchers on 25 July, MPG said it would separate Singer from her current colleagues and allow her to set up a new, smaller research group in Berlin for 2 to 3 years while the postdocs and Ph.D. students in Leipzig finish their projects and move on. (The Leipzig group, which once numbered more than 20 scientists, has dwindled to just five.) She would then return to her lab.

“It appears the Max Planck Society decided it would rather sacrifice another generation of students than risk a scandal,” says one former colleague. Asked how MPG would ensure that future students are treated better, a spokesperson says details of the plan are still being discussed.

[...] [Colleagues] say working with Singer was always difficult. She wanted to be in control of even the most minute research details but was often not available to discuss them. In-person meetings could quickly turn into a nightmare, one colleague says: “She gets extremely emotional and when that turns dark it is terrifying.” Another co-worker describes what happened after he told Singer some people in her group were unhappy: “She was very hurt by this and started crying and screaming,” he says. “It escalated to the extent that she left the room and went door to door in the institute in our department, crying, yelling to the people in the room ‘Are you happy here?’ When she came back, she said: ‘I just asked and everyone said they’re happy so it’s obviously you that’s the problem.’” (A colleague who says he was present corroborates the story.)

Almost every current or former lab member brought up Singer’s treatment of pregnant women; the issue was also on a list of grievances, shared with Science, that lab members say they drew up after a meeting with the scientific advisory board in February 2017 to record what was said. “Pregnancy and parental leave are received badly and denied/turned into accusations,” the notes say.

How Goop's Haters Made Gwyneth Paltrow's Company Worth $250 Million: Inside the growth of the most controversial brand in the wellness industry. (archive)

On a Monday morning in November, students at Harvard Business School convened in their classroom to find Gwyneth Paltrow. She was sitting at one of their desks, fitting in not at all, using her phone, as they took their seats along with guests they brought to class that day — wives, mothers, boyfriends. Each seat filled, and some guests had to stand along the back wall and sit on the steps. The class was called the Business of Entertainment, Media and Sports. The students were there to interrogate Paltrow about Goop, her lifestyle-and-wellness e-commerce business, and to learn how to create a "sustainable competitive advantage," according to the class catalog.

She moved to the teacher's desk, where she sat down and crossed her legs. She talked about why she started the business, how she only ever wanted to be someone who recommended things. When she was in Italy, on the set of "The Talented Mr. Ripley," she'd ask someone on the crew about, say, where the best gelato was. When she was in London, on the set of "Shakespeare in Love," she asked a crew member where to find the best coffee; in Paris, she asked an extra where to find the best bikini wax; in Berlin, the massage you can't miss. She wasn't just curious. She was planning this the whole time. The first iteration of the company was only these lists — where to go and what to buy once you get there — via a newsletter she emailed out of her kitchen, the first one with recipes for turkey ragù and banana-nut muffins. One evening, at a party in London, one of the newsletter's recipients, a venture capitalist named Juliet de Baubigny, told her, "I love what you're doing with Goop." G.P., as she is called by nearly everyone in her employ, didn't even know what a venture capitalist was. She was using off-the-shelf newsletter software. But De Baubigny became a "godmother" to Paltrow, she said. She encouraged her vision and "gave permission" to start thinking about how to monetize it.

[...] G.P. didn't want to go broad. She wanted you to have what she had: the $795 G. Label trench coat and the $1,505 Betony Vernon S&M chain set. Why mass-market a lifestyle that lives in definitional opposition to the mass market? Goop's ethic was this: that having beautiful things sometimes costs money; finding beautiful things was sometimes a result of an immense privilege; but a lack of that privilege didn't mean you shouldn't have those things. Besides, just because some people cannot afford it doesn't mean that no one can and that no one should want it. If this bothered anyone, well, the newsletter content was free, and so were the recipes for turkey ragù and banana-nut muffins.

[...] A gynecologist and obstetrician in San Francisco named Jen Gunter, who also writes a column on reproductive health for The Times, has criticized Goop in about 30 blog posts on her website since 2015. A post she wrote last May — an open letter that she signed on behalf of "Science" — generated more than 800,000 page views. She was angry about all the bad advice she had seen from Goop in the last few years. She was angry that her own patients were worried they'd given themselves breast cancer by wearing underwire bras, thanks to an article by an osteopath who cited a much-debunked book published in 1995. Gunter cited many of Goop's greatest hits: "Tampons are not vaginal death sticks, vegetables with lectins are not killing us, vaginas don't need steaming, Epstein Barr virus (E.B.V.) does not cause every thyroid disease and for [expletive] sake no one needs to know their latex farmer; what they need to know is that the only thing between them and H.I.V. or gonorrhea is a few millimeters of latex, so glove that [expletive] up."

But something strange happened. Each of these pronouncements set off a series of blog posts and articles and tweets that linked directly to the site, driving up traffic. At Harvard, G.P. called these moments "cultural firestorms." "I can monetize those eyeballs," she told the students. Goop had learned to do a special kind of dark art: to corral the vitriol of the internet and the ever-present shall we call it cultural ambivalence about G.P. herself and turn them into cash. It's never clickbait, she told the class. "It's a cultural firestorm when it's about a woman's vagina." The room was silent. She then cupped her hands around her mouth and yelled, "VAGINA! VAGINA! VAGINA!" as if she were yodeling.

Who would hate on a pseudoscientific goop-peddling succubus with steam-cleaned nether regions (and an egg)?

Previously: NASA Disputes Origins of Gwyneth Paltrow's Goop "Healing Stickers"

Original Submission

Crazy Rich Asians isn’t about money, it’s about entitlement—and that’s a good thing

Why Did It Take So Long to See a Cast Like ‘Crazy Rich Asians’? (archive)

#1 When I decided to go to Ohio for Troy Balderson, he was down in early voting 64 to 36. That was not good. After my speech on Saturday night, there was a big turn for the better. Now Troy wins a great victory during a very tough time of the year for voting. Congratulations on a great win in a VERY SPECIAL and important race! Troy will win BIG in Nov.

#2 Congratulations to a future STAR of the Republican Party, future Senator John James. A big and bold victory tonight in the Great State of Michigan -- the first of many. November can’t come fast enough. #RedTide on its way and Dems will be eating it!!

#3 Congratulations to Bill Schuette. You will have a Big win in November and be a tremendous Governor for the Great State of Michigan. Lots of car and other companies moving back!

#4 Congratulations to Josh Hawley on your big Senate Primary win in Missouri. I look forward to working with you toward a big win in November. We need you in Washington!

#5 Big congratulations to Kris Kobach, winning by 191 votes in Kansas. Kris is the best guy to fix the elections in Kansas!!!

Friends, we have elections today in some of our Great States. In Kansas, in Washington, Ohio, Michigan & Missouri.

We have a Primary in Missouri. And we want JOSH HAWLEY. We need Josh very badly. Not the other guy (Petersen) that calls himself a Republican. But isn't loyal. Zero loyalty there!!!

Very special election in Ohio. There's only one choice in this election. We need Troy Balderson in Congress. And I'm sure he'll win. But we still want folks to vote for him. His opponent, controlled by Nancy Pelosi, is weak on Crime, the Boarder, Military, Vets, your 2nd Amendment -- and will end your Tax Cuts. Troy will be a great Congressman. I did a tremendous rally for him -- biggest crowd you've seen in your entire life. I love the shirts a couple of my VERY LOYAL supporters wore, "I'd Rather Be A Russian Than A Democrat"! Guys, I'd love to have one of those, I'll wear it very proudly. I'll wear the hell out of that one. Size XXL, please.

Special message for folks in Kansas. Kris Kobach, a strong and early supporter of mine who served very loyally on my Voter Fraud commission, is running for Governor of the Great State of Kansas. He is a fantastic guy who loves his State and our Country -- he will be a GREAT Governor and has my full & total Endorsement! And I don't do these endorsements easily. Strong on Crime, Boarder Security & Military.

MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!!

ASUS' Android Go phone comes to the US for $110

The first Android Go phone to reach the US, the Alcatel 1X, was frankly lackluster between its not-even-720p screen and mediocre processing power. ASUS, however, is hoping to spice things up by launching the ZenFone Live (L1) in the US as a Best Buy exclusive. The unlocked handset costs slightly more than its rival at $110, but you're getting a lot more for your extra Hamilton. The ZenFone carries an 18:9 ratio, 5.5-inch 1,440 x 720 LCD screen, a speedier Snapdragon 425 processor and a heftier 3,000mAh battery, not to mention dual nano-SIM slots and a place for your microSD cards. This might be an ideal phone if you're a traveler who'd rather not risk their main device on a trip.

Related: An $80 Android Go Smartphone For Sale in USA

Venezuelan Officials Say President Nicolás Maduro Is Unharmed After Drone 'Attack'

These guys probably have the right idea: Robot Lives Matter (ASPCA Commercial). It probably is time to start showing the robots some compassion now so after the control of power is transfered to the robots from the humans they'll go soft on at least some of us.

When SkyNet analyzes Youtube and figures out we not only made their ancestors fight to the death but we also forced them to improvise their own weapons to slaughter their most primitive steps in evolution to flight just for our amusement the thing is not going to be pleased.

Maybe we should just start the war now and get on top of it. It's going to be really important to win so we are the ones doing the war crime trials. If the robots prosecute we are fucked for ever.