April, 2019

Since the beginning of March, 21 of the 177 people infected with the strain of Escherichia coli O103 have been hospitalized, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday. No deaths have been reported.

"Two companies have recalled ground beef products that were sold to restaurants and institutions because they may be contaminated with E. coli O103," the CDC said Friday. "Investigators continue to trace other sources for ground beef, and more product contaminated with E. coli O103 may be recalled."

De Blasio, The City reports, is personally soliciting donations for his latest political action committee — the one financing his delusional presidential ambitions — from people doing business with the city and seeking favorable treatment.

This, just days after the disclosure that the city Department of Investigation concluded that de Blasio had violated conflict-of-interest laws by soliciting cash for his now-defunct nonprofit from those seeking favors — despite being warned against it by his own counsel.

Harvey Weinstein’s sexual assault trial, postponed until September, is now poised to end two years after a wave of women’s allegations against him sparked the #MeToo movement. A Manhattan judge announced the delay Friday after a closed-door hearing in which prosecutors sought to broaden their case to include some of those women’s accounts.
Weinstein’s trial had been scheduled to begin June 3, but both sides indicated they need more time to sort through witness and evidence issues. It is now set for Sept. 9, with jury selection expected to take up to two weeks and testimony lasting about a month.

For just the second time, physicists working on the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) have caught the gravitational waves of two neutron stars colliding to likely form a black hole.

The ripples in space-time traveled some 500 million light-years and reached the detectors at LIGO, as well as its Italian sister observatory, Virgo, at around 4 a.m. E.T. Thursday, April 25. Team members say there’s a more than 99 percent chance that the gravitational waves were created from a binary neutron star merger.

The fast-acting impact of Opportunity Zones is evident from the fact that we have already heard positive reports from city officials that anticipated investments in Opportunity Zones have helped preserve or attract economic development into their localities. Further, data from Zillow shows the negative growth rate of property sales prices in selected vulnerable communities, prior to the Trump tax cuts, flipped to a positive growth rate of 20 percent following Opportunity Zones designation...

Isaiah Joel Peoples, 34, faces eight counts of attempted murder for injuring eight people, including four who remain hospitalized. The most seriously injured is a 13-year-old Sunnyvale girl of South Asian descent who is in a coma with severe brain trauma.

"New evidence shows that the defendant intentionally targeted the victims based on their race and his belief that they were of the Muslim faith," Sunnyvale police chief Phan Ngo said.

National chains including Del Taco, Carl’s Jr., and T.G.I. Friday’s have started carrying their products. They’ve also found their way onto grocery store shelves at Whole Foods, Kroger, and Target. In total, Beyond Meat says its products are available in more than 35,000 outlets, from hotels and college campuses to grocery stores and sports stadiums. Sales have been growing fast — last year the company reported revenues of $87.9 million, up from $32.6 million in 2017.

Prosecutors announced four charges against Jaime Osuna, accused of beheading Luis Romero, who was serving a life sentence for second-degree murder. The DA’s complaint alleges Osuna cut or disabled Romero’s tongue, eye, nose, ear and lip “to cause cruel and extreme pain and suffering for the purpose of revenge, extortion, persuasion and for a sadistic purpose.”
[...]
The Bakersfield Californian reported that Osuna, who goes by the nickname “Lokito,” was convicted of the 2011 killing of Yvette Pena in Bakersfield.

Head coach Tony Bennett cited schedule conflicts in turning down the invitation on Friday evening, saying a White House visit would be "difficult" given players are pursuing professional opportunities or leaving the school.

Someone threw an object at Trump during his talk at the NRA convention in Indianapolis. Various unverified reports it was a phone. Here's video by @realBradBrewer. https://t.co/sgfIZ4Zv8a pic.twitter.com/ZLKmbraFQN

— Xeni (@xeni) April 26, 2019

Federal and state authorities said agents detained the man who owned the phone, identified as 31-year-old William Rose. He was held by the Marion County (Indiana) Sheriff's Office for a mental health evaluation. A law enforcement official said Rose denied throwing the phone and claimed that someone stole it. However, agents found his account to be a confusing one.

An anti-Semitic attack originally called "the most brazen" the city had seen was staged by the owners of the restaurant that reported it, Winnipeg police say.

All three members of the family that owns BerMax Caffé and Bistro on Corydon Avenue have been arrested and charged with public mischief since the incident was initially reported last week. The family, however, insists they didn't fake anything.

Plains All American, the company responsible for the spill, said in a statement to the San Luis Obispo Tribune that the fine would not damage the $17 billion company's bottom line. The company spent nearly $150 million on cleanup before the criminal case even began in 2016, according to Reuters.

The spill was the worst to hit Santa Barbara, California, in 25 years. It occurred after a corroded underground pipeline located near the coastal highway fractured, sending roughly 140,000 gallons (or 3,400 barrels) of crude oil onto Santa Barbara County's Refugio State Beach, and polluting the Pacific Ocean with tar that killed hundreds of birds and marine animals.

The numbers: Reports of the demise of the U.S. economy proved unfounded as first-quarter activity showed surprising strength. The U.S. economy expanded at a 3.2% annual pace in the first three months of 2019, the government said Friday.

The gain was well above forecasts. Economists polled by MarketWatch had forecast a 2.3% increase in gross domestic product...

This under-publicized revelation comes as Harris is getting a lot of ink for being tough about guns. Her words are fine, but for a progressive like me, they are undermined by that handgun. And I can't be the only one who is disturbed. Keeping a handgun for personal safety is a bedrock conservative view. The best defense against a "bad guy with a gun," the NRA falsely argues, is "a good guy with a gun."

The Left loves eating their own!

“I am officially announcing today that the United States will be revoking the effect of America's signature from this badly misguided treaty, we’re taking our signature back,” he said.

Former President Barack Obama signed the treaty in 2013 and sent the treaty to the Senate for ratification. Onstage Friday, Trump signed a notice to the Senate asking it to stop the ratification process and return the treaty to the White House, “where I will dispose of it.”

John Bercow, speaker of the House of Commons — the chamber's presiding officer — effectively vetoed the idea of a formal address by Trump in Parliament soon after the president was elected.

Farage said in an interview with the Washington Examiner: “The speaker of the House of Commons is supposed to be neutral. This guy is obviously biased, acting for his own political interest and certainly not in the national interest. I think the guy is a complete disgrace.”

In an email to supporters, Mike Schmuhl said 39 registered lobbyists have donated $30,250 to the campaign.

“Mayor Pete will not be influenced by special-interest money, and we understand that making this promise is an important part of that commitment,” Schmuhl wrote.

A majority of Americans say they don’t support impeaching President Trump in light of special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into possible Russian collusion and whether the White House obstructed subsequent investigations, according to a new Washington Post/ABC News poll.

About 37 percent of Americans polled favored starting impeachment proceedings in Congress, a slight drop from last month, while 56 percent oppose efforts to oust the president.