Oklahoma City

Trump’s aides were eager to take Russian dirt on Clinton. But it wasn’t a conspiracy, Mueller report said

The special counsel's final report report paints picture of a campaign eager to benefit from Russian interference.

Casualties after several explosions hit churches and hotels in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday

Several blasts hit churches and hotels in Sri Lanka on Sunday, injuring at least 80 people as worshipers attended Easter services, police and health officials said. "Eighty people have already been admitted, and more are still coming in," an official at the Colombo National Hospital told AFP on condition of anonymity. Police said the blasts hit churches in the north of the capital and in the town of Negombo, just outside Colombo. The nature of the explosions was not immediately clear. Sources from two leading tourist hotels in Colombo also confirmed the explosions but did not give any details. "A bomb attack to our church, please come and help if your family members are there," read a post in English on the Facebook page of the St Sebastian's Church at Katuwapitiya in Negombo. Only around six percent of mainly Buddhist Sri Lanka is Catholic, but the religion is seen as a unifying force because it includes people from both the Tamil and majority Sinhalese ethnic groups. More to follow...

110 Kosovars, mostly children and women, returned from Syria

PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — Kosovo authorities announced Saturday they have brought back from Syria 110 Kosovar citizens, mostly women and children, with the assistance of the United States.

Tiger Attacks Keeper in Topeka, Kansas Zoo

The keeper is currently in stable condition

Doves, heartbreak and hope on 20th anniversary of Columbine High massacre

Addressing hundreds of people gathered at Saturday's service in a park next to the school, Dawn Anna, mother of slain student Lauren Townsend, spoke on behalf of all the families of the victims about their sense of loss. Patrick Ireland, whose fall out of a school library window into the arms of firefighters, which became one of the iconic images of the massacre, spoke of his long physical and emotional recovery. "You're a victim only if you allow yourself to become one," Ireland said.

A Meditation after Easter

Editor’s Note: This article was first published in the April 24, 1987, issue of National Review.*   *   *And he said unto them, Behold, when ye are entered into the city, there shall a man meet you, bearing a pitcher of water; follow him into the house where he entereth in. And ye shall say unto the goodman of the house, The Master saith unto thee, Where is the guestchamber, where I shall eat the passover with my disciples? And he shall show you a large upper room furnished: there make ready.—Luke 22: 10–12There is a strange agency at work here. The Scripture might be haunted. That pitcher-bearer. This goodman. They spook me. Who are they, what special order of grace do they belong to? And, elsewhere, those men who surrender the colt “whereon yet never man sat.” Nameless, equivocal shapes. “Hey,” they shout, “why loose ye the colt?” The Lord has need of it, His disciples explain. Oh, well. In that case. Why didn’t you say so? Take our expensive animal. And has their free will been taken also? It is as if a casual, weird cast of accomplices inhabited Jerusalem. Men or suchlike who know, often better than fumbling Peter or over-literal Thomas, just how to ornament the Passion.Were they perhaps made of some angelic stuff? I don’t think so: it is the Lord’s habit, thank God, to enlist men wherever convenient. He has an economical disposition. And Man was, after all, what this grand enterprise had been about from the first. But how then did Jesus, so to speak, make His room reservation in advance? Were these men sensitized by dreams? Did the Holy Spirit, foraging like a quartermaster sergeant, requisition their possessions through sign and vision? It is possible. The Lord had been known to trouble sleep. “And being warned of God in a dream . . . ” Was there fitfulness before the Passover?Again, I think not. God prefers, when He can, to conserve terrestrial order. He has a dramatic instinct. And His own peculiar unities. The Passion is as naturalistic as frail wrist tissue shredded by a spike. Jesus could ferment water. He could infinitely divide the loaf and the fish. But here He had need of a furnished apartment. His colt might have come about providentially, as Abraham’s ram came about, caught in some thicket. But God wanted a known colt: one that had memorable references in Jerusalem. It was His purpose to leave a clear and historical track behind — evidence that might stand up in court. The presence of transcendent power among modest instruments is more persuasive than any bullying miracle could be.I suppose it this way, then. That these — pitcher-bearer and goodman and colt-owner, these first acolytes of the Eucharist — were men given sudden and heightened perception. An abrupt seeing Into. Spirit came upon them as Jesus came upon Matthew sitting at the receipt of custom: “Follow me. And he arose, and followed Him.” Simply that. Next Window Please. We are so habituated to reason and a precious carefulness that Christ’s people seem, well, irresponsible. But grace is first the law-breaker. It can be brutal: “Let the dead bury their dead.” Brutal and rash and unfair. Because there is no ground whatever for believing that these were righteous men. They didn’t earn their cameo roles in the Passion through good work. I suspect they were chosen rather for an openness to potential. They were, above all, ready men.Simon of Cyrene, recruited by grace and some Roman to lug Jesus’ cross, is my paradigm in this. He had, it would seem, no previous experience for the work. No moral credentials that we hear about. Just a man “who passed by, coming out of the country.” To trade, to sightsee, to window-shop: another tourist in the Big Fig. And, all at once, he is absorbed by that rubbernecking mob. Elbow to the front — what have we here? And it’s you, yes you. Bozo, pack that wood. We know nothing about Simon, except that his children, Rufus and Alexander, became Christians. On Good Friday, Simon was what we all are, a passerby. And shanghaied by the Holy Spirit. I take comfort in this thought, whose life otherwise does not much recommend itself to God. That I may be granted, through His fierce randomness and my mere availability, a walk-on moment of redemption.Return to the Passion now. Imagine, say, a man in his workshop room alone. For best effect, I’d fancy him preoccupied: revising some device of his craft, in thought, whatever. Suppose it hot and ordinary out. Then, all of one rush, as weather can change, there should be an importance in the air. Let that cheap pitcher interpose itself across his attention here. For this instant it should have more pitcherness. The way common objects astound and please when we are full of joy. This is, you know, not his regular time to fetch water in. But the thought of “pitcher,” the very surprising idea that it can hold water, contains aptness and fascination for him. It has been infused by grace. And he rises at a call — not from God as such, nor from any impending event — but to honor the perfect nature of one created thing. There is elevation all around.Returning from the well he happens upon two men. After that, unaware, they will become a procession of three.It is not through war and celebrity that God has most advanced His will. It is through the commonplace: room, colt, manger, fisherman — thunderous Easter, atrocity and miracle, are prepared for in them. Open a window. Pick up anything. Inhale. These are moments and incidents without moral import except for this: that reverence and special shining can inhere. We are admonished to be alert. And certainly we have lost just that measure of openness and heightening and expectation. This is, I suspect, what those shadowy men are about. If they didn’t know, they felt, felt at some proper instant, that even in the filling of a pitcher one might lead great strangers to magnificence.

Pakistan says gunmen behind killing of 14 based in Iran

The gunmen who killed 14 members of Pakistan's security forces in the country's southwest earlier this week came from Iran to carry out the attack, officials said Saturday. Some 20 people wearing uniforms from the paramilitary Frontier Corps stopped buses in Balochistan province, which were travelling along the coast to megacity Karachi, before gunning down the security officials. Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said Pakistan had evidence the "terrorist outfits" that carried out the attack have "training and logistic camps inside Iranian areas bordering Pakistan".

The Army Passed on This Glock Gun (And It Could Be Your Gain)

The ultimate Glock? The Army may have chosen Sig Sauer’s P320 for its Modular Handgun System program over Glock’s offerings, but that doesn’t mean you have to: Glock plans on releasing a civilian variant of its 9mm Glock 19 pistol to civilian buyers this month, the company announced today.(This article by Jared Keller originally appeared at Task & Purpose. Follow Task & Purpose on Twitter. This article first appeared in 2018.)Glock’s commercial pistol, dubbed the 19X, is the company’s first stab at a crossover model, combining the Glock 17 frame with a Glock 19 barrel. With a “marksman barrel” and ambidextrous slide-stop levers, the pistol is designed to be as versatile as it is powerful, “almost like a [1911] Commander-style situation where you’ve got the shorter barrel with the full-sized grip frame,” as national sales manager Bob Radecki told Army Times on Jan. 2.The new 9mm Glock 19X from Glock

Giuliani rails against Mueller report as Democrats mull Trump impeachment

* Trump lawyer: ‘Nothing wrong with information from Russians’ * Teflon Don: how Trump the mafia boss fought the law … and won * Opinion: Moral squalor, not impeachment, will remove TrumpDonald and Melania Trump arrive at the Bethesda-by-the-Sea church for Easter services in Palm Beach, Florida. Photograph: Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty ImagesAs the White House mounted a furious assault on the Mueller report and critics of a president not found to have conspired with Russia but not cleared of obstruction of justice, the chair of the House judiciary committee said obstruction, if proven, “would be [an] impeachable” offence.Trump’s personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani toured the Sunday talk shows, arguing with interviewers in a series of chaotic encounters.On Fox News Sunday, he claimed Robert Mueller’s 448-page report, which was released with redactions on Thursday, was full of “calumny, lies and distortion”.On CNN’s State of the Union, the former New York mayor called one of Mueller’s lawyers a “hitman” and claimed the special counsel’s team “came close to torturing people” in questioning and confining Trump campaign chair Paul Manafort, who was convicted and sentenced on financial charges.Asked on NBC’s Meet the Press why Trump was so angry at Mueller and former White House counsel Don McGahn, a key witness, Giuliani replied: “Because they tried to frame him.”> There’s nothing wrong with taking information from Russians. It depends on where it came from> > Rudy GiulianiThe first volume of Mueller’s report concerns Russian election interference and the Trump campaign’s warm reception to “offers of assistance” including an infamous June 2016 meeting with a Kremlin-linked lawyer offering “dirt” on Hillary Clinton.Giuliani told CNN: “There’s nothing wrong with taking information from Russians. It depends on where it came from.”On ABC’s This Week, White House adviser Kellyanne Conway, who previously called the inquiry a “a political proctology exam”, took a different tone, saying: “The campaign I managed in those last few months did not welcome help from Russia. In fact, I don’t recall getting, being offered help from Russia. It would have been a ridiculous prospect.”In his second volume, Mueller considers potential obstruction of justice by Trump or his campaign, of which 11 instances are listed. He passed judgment on the issue to Congress.House judiciary committee chair Jerrold Nadler told NBC that if evidence shows Trump obstructed justice, “some of this would be impeachable, yes”. He added that Democrats plan to “go where the evidence leads”.Democrats remain split on impeachment, which would begin in the House they control but almost certainly fail in the Republican Senate. Some fear it would galvanise Trump’s supporters and win him sympathy among independents.On Fox, House intelligence chair Adam Schiff said to impeach or not to impeach was “going to be a very consequential decision and one I’m going to reserve judgment on until we have a chance to fully deliberate on it”.Oversight chair Elijah Cummings told CBS’s Face the Nation he could “foresee [impeachment] possibly coming”. But he said: “We have to be very careful here. The American people, a lot of them clearly still don’t believe that President Trump is doing things to destroy our democracy and has done a lot of things very poorly.”He also said he thought “history would smile upon us for standing up for the constitution”.> The American people, a lot of them clearly still don’t believe President Trump is doing things to destroy our democracy> > Elijah CummingsGiuliani fiercely attacked McGahn, who is cited by Mueller in descriptions of orders from Trump to fire the special counsel, which McGahn did not do.McGahn’s recollections were “wrong”, Giuliani said on CNN, claiming the experienced lawyer was “confused [and] cannot be relied upon”. Mueller depicts McGahn taking notes of meetings with Trump, a practice Trump is said to have questioned. The Trump campaign has severed links with the law firm to which McGahn returned.An incensed Giuliani made the “hitman” claim about Andrew Weissmann, a prosecutor Trump allies claim is too close to the Clintons.“I have no problem with investigating Russian interference in the election,” Giuliani said, adding: “The reality is, you think this is the first time the Russians have interfered with a presidential election?”Special counsel Robert Mueller and his wife Ann Cabell Standish leave St John’s Episcopal Church in Washington. Photograph: Andrew Harnik/APGiuliani was pressed on criticism of Trump by the 2012 Republican nominee, Mitt Romney, who said he was “sickened at the extent and pervasiveness of dishonesty and misdirection by individuals in the highest office of the land, including the president”.“Stop the bull, stop this pious act,” Giuliani said, adding: “Who says [taking information from Russians is] even illegal? … And then does the information turn out to be false, by the way?”Referring to Democratic party emails hacked by Russia and obtained by WikiLeaks, he said: “The information that was gleaned and disseminated, every newspaper printed it. Why did the Washington Post print the information that came from a foreign source, when they knew it was hacked? Aren’t they just as wrong for doing that as the campaign wanting to use it?”Of Giuliani’s claim there was “nothing wrong with taking information from Russians”, former US attorney Preet Bharara, who was fired by Trump in 2017, told CNN: “That’s an extraordinary statement and I would hope he would retract it.”Giuliani ran against Romney for the 2008 Republican nomination, both losing to John McCain. Asked if he would have accepted such information, Giuliani said: “I probably wouldn’t. I wasn’t asked. I would have advised, just out of excess of caution, don’t do it.” He also accused Romney of doing “things very similar”, although he did not elaborate.Asked if Trump thought Russian interference helped him win, Giuliani told NBC: “Whether he did or he didn’t, I think it’s quite clear that there are a lot of factors that go into any election and the reality is he was elected president.”Conway told ABC Trump “didn’t need WikiLeaks. We had Wisconsin. He won because he was the better candidate”.Trump has repeatedly claimed Mueller’s investigation exonerated him, which it did not, and called the inquiry a “hoax”. He continued to tweet on Sunday, from his club in Florida.Attending church, the president was asked if he felt betrayed by staffers who spoke to Mueller. According to the White House pool report, he “clearly heard the question” but “just smiled and turned away”.

A look at sites hit by Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — The Easter Sunday bombings were Sri Lanka's deadliest violence since the country's civil war ended a decade ago. The nine blasts hit mainly churches and luxury hotels in Colombo, the capital. A look at the sites targeted:

'House of horrors': California couple sentenced to life in prison for torturing their children

David and Louise Turpin, who pleaded guilty in February to torture and false imprisonment, are eligible for parole after 25 years.

N. Korea Says Bolton Comments on Third Summit Are Foolish: KCNA

“We never expected anything logical from Bolton, but as national security adviser, he should at least know the context of dialogue that took place between the two leaders regarding a third summit before he says anything,” North Korea’s Foreign Ministry diplomat Choe Son Hui was quoted by the news agency as saying.

This tiny RC car could absolutely destroy your car in a race

A 0-to-60 mph time of under three seconds is something that all but the most wealthy supercar owners are ever likely to enjoy. A 0-to-100 mph time of just over five seconds? Well now we're in territory that few production automobiles have ever dared tread, but it's all in a day's work for RC enthusiasts who seek to achieve the most ludicrous speeds with their high-tech toys.A recent video posted by YouTuber Innovation RC clearly demonstrates just how insane RC cars can be, with one of the pint-sized speed demons hitting an absolutely absurd speed of 124 mph in less than eight seconds, all while hauling a not-super-light action camera and traveling over what seems to be a fairly rough surface.Radio-controlled vehicles used to be near the top of every kid's wishlist, and perhaps some of them still are, but these aren't your grandfather's RC toys. These tiny cars are built with performance in mind, and enthusiasts regularly modify them in an effort to push the hardware to its absolute limit. They can set you back several hundreds of dollars, and that's without any additional tuning or upgrades. But they're fast... really, really fast.Just check this out:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YpdRrPYcEVsThat's 124 mph while hauling a camera that, if I had to guess, doesn't look like the most aerodynamic thing in the world. Not to mention the fact that the pavement being raced on here appears to be anything but smooth. It's easy to imagine this little car topping out at much higher speeds under ideal conditions, but it's still an incredibly impressive run considering the circumstances.In fact, in a subsequent video the same car can be seen hitting a top speed of 133 mph, though without a GoPro on board it's a little bit less interesting to watch:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yo_oCzCHCxMI want one. No, no. I need one.

Authorities say investigation into murder of two Indiana schoolgirls is going in 'new direction'

Indiana State Police say they will announce new information about the deaths of Abigail Williams and Liberty German who were found dead on a hiking trail in Delphi, Indiana in 2017.

Suicide bombers in deadly attack on Afghan ministry

Suicide bombers and gunmen attacked the communications ministry in central Kabul on Saturday, officials said, in a deadly, hours-long assault that destroyed weeks of relative calm in the capital. The Taliban said it had "nothing to do" with the attack, which left some 2,000 people stranded in the tall office building for hours at the start of the Afghan work week. "As a result of today's explosion/attack in Kabul city, two people have been martyred (killed) and 6 others are wounded," the health ministry spokesman wrote in a tweet, adding 3 of the injured were women.

Army Vet Sues Company That Made 'Defective' Earplugs for the Military

A Texas veteran is suing the company he says knowingly produced and sold defective earplugs which were issued to the U.S. military, leading him and many others to develop hearing problems, including tinnitus.(This article by Haley Britzky originally appeared at Task & Purpose. Follow Task & Purpose on Twitter. This article first appeared in 2018.)Sgt. Scott D. Rowe, who served in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom from 2003 to 2004, told the Houston Chronicle that he's "never at peace" from the "high-pitched frequency" he hears every day, as a result of the earplugs he received from 3M Company. Rowe told the Chronicle that 3M "lied," and "took our well-being for jeopardy while we're out there protecting the country."Rowe says in his lawsuit that 3M was aware of the defects in earplugs when it acquired the company that originally developed them, Aearo Technologies, in 2008. He says, according to the Chronicle, that the earplugs were made too short, which makes them difficult to be put deeply into the ear canal, causing the earplug to loosen and sound to get in around them.

Converse introduces trans-themed shoes for Pride and Twitter is happy for once

Brands sometimes go too hard during Pride season. Every once in a while, however, they get it right.The year 2019 has already brought us one *actually good* example. Converse recently introduced its LGBTQ Pride sneaker line, which now includes sneakers modeled after the Transgender Pride flag.This is the first time Converse has ever had a trans-specific sneaker.SEE ALSO: Mapping state-by-state tech trends: Most popular dating appsThe trans-specific sneakers currently retail for $80. Customers can also customize their own rainbow Pride shoes and add Trans Pride flair.Regardless of how you feel about corporate participation during gay Pride, this is a huge symbolic step forward. Advocates for the trans community have long complained that gay and lesbian people dominate the LGBTQ movement. Recognizing the trans community as a separate -- though equally sneaker-worthy community -- is emblematic of a larger cultural shift. Trans people are clearly moving into the public spotlight, and they can show that (if Converse is their thing) on their feet.Twitter was largely enthusiastic about the move.> TransIsBeautiful > Thank you @Converse for making a trans PRIDE shoe this year! > My 11 year-old-son is ECSTATIC! ️‍ pic.twitter.com/E6lcqIEvfA> > -- Rachel Q. Lyons (@RachelQLyons) April 15, 2019> CONVERSE HAS A NEW PRIDE COLLECTION THAT INCLUDES TRANS PRIDE SNEAKERS FOR THE FIRST TIME!!!!!!!! > > SHOP HERE: https://t.co/afn0Gc9nwy (affiliate link) pic.twitter.com/TptVcjY87E> > -- Alysse Dalessandro (@readytostare) April 19, 2019> I thought "which of my trans friends would rock Converse decked out in the colors of the trans flag," and then immediately realized the answer was "all of them." pic.twitter.com/E5NPDfPgMY> > -- Aram Vartian (@vartian) April 19, 2019> Me, looking at the chuck taylor pride collection for this year: *not super impressed* > Converse: we have trans shoes now > Me, out loud: DAMMIT pic.twitter.com/oqzpDUqaOD> > -- Rowan Adventurezone (@politebotanist) April 20, 2019> Y'all let me know when @converse lets me put trans flags on these (and they come in my size). pic.twitter.com/3ZOq9Y6rss> > -- Xan (@AlexandriaDVine) April 20, 2019> Look! You can make them with the pride base but then add trans pride touches. I'm in love! pic.twitter.com/bGtajM2QjF> > -- We'll Have A Gay Old Time (@IssaMeBrianO) April 19, 2019This Twitter user perhaps said it best.> Fuckin converse put the Trans flag on some shoes like.....yes fine I will buy them you stupid brand, ill bow to capitalism just this once> > -- Thank you gay dad (@Darius_lives) April 19, 2019Happy incredibly early Pride, everyone! WATCH: Meet the 10-year-old drag kid shaping the future of drag youth

Columbine massacre remembered, twenty years on

Twelve students and a teacher were killed on April 20, 1999, when two teenagers armed with an assortment of weapons and home-made bombs went on the rampage at the school, whose name has become synonymous with school shootings. Only last year, 17 students and staff were killed when an ex-pupil went on the rampage at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida, while 27 people, mostly children, were killed at Sandy Hook elementary school in 2012 and 32 at Virginia Tech university in 2007.

Team Trump plots revenge on Mueller amid calls to 'investigate the investigators'

Donald Trump and his allies are attempting to turn his two-year Russia investigation saga into a political boost for the 2020 presidential election in the wake of the Mueller report.  The president’s Justice Department is looking into the inquiry’s origins to see if US intelligence over-stepped the line, cheered on by supporters who want to “investigate the investigators”.  The Trump re-election campaign is fundraising off the report, attempting to raise $1 million with emails titled “EXONERATED (again)” and “CONFIRMED: NO COLLUSION”.  Figures close to the White House have also told The Sunday Telegraph that they believe Mr Trump could benefit from any impeachment move, triggering a backlash from US voters who see it as rushed.  The emerging strategy suggests that far from drawing a line under the report by special counsel Robert Mueller, Mr Trump is preparing to use it as a rallying cry for his support base.  In tweets late on Friday night, Mr Trump dubbed Mr Mueller’s investigation a “big, fat, waste of time, energy and money” and signposted his determination to scrutinise how it begun.  “It is now finally time to turn the tables and bring justice to some very sick and dangerous people who have committed very serious crimes, perhaps even spying or treason,” he tweeted. “This should never happen again!” Mr Mueller’s findings, published on Thursday after a 22-month investigation, found there was no conspiracy between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin in the 2016 US election.  It also did not recommend an obstruction of justice charge against Mr Trump. He pointedly refused to say no crime had been committed by the president but handed the decision to the Justice Department, who brought no charges.  Those two top-line outcomes have allowed the president to declare “no collusion, no obstruction” and his legal team to announce “total victory”.  pic.twitter.com/222atp7wuB— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 18, 2019 The 448-report itself paints a more complex picture, one where Mr Trump repeatedly attempted to thwart the Mueller investigation and both lie himself or make subordinates do likewise. The president urged his legal counsel to say he was not ordered to fire Mr Mueller when he was, the report found. Mr Trump also issued misleading statements to the press to deny reports now confirmed.  The Democrats have attempted to force the spotlight on this “unethical” behavior but are split on how to proceed – whether to begin impeachment proceedings now or wait until the 2020 election to remove him from office.  William Barr, Mr Trump’s newly installed US attorney general, announced shortly before the Mueller report’s release that he would look into how US government officials begun the Russia investigation before the 2016 election.  William Barr, Donald Trump's recently appointed US attorney general, oversaw the handling of the Mueller report Credit:  MANDEL NGAN / AFP The president’s allies see political advantage, framing the investigation as a deep state ploy to thwart Mr Trump – despite the insistence of those involved that they were acting in the public interest.  Sebastian Gorka, a former deputy assistant in the White House, told this newspaper: “It’s clear that what we’ve seen in the last two years is an attempt to use the American intelligence community in a politically motivated spying scandal.” Emails sent out by the Trump campaign in the 24 hours after the report to supporters also used the findings to generate a new wave of funds.  “Sorry haters: NO COLLUSION & EXONERATION AGAIN! How many times do I have to be exonerated before they stop? WHAT A JOKE!” read one line in a fund-raising email, sent in Mr Trump's name on Friday.  “The attacks and lies will keep coming because Democrats know they don’t stand a chance in 2020. That’s why we need to fight back BIGGER and STRONGER than ever before.”  It went on: “Let's send a HUGE message to all of the Trump Haters by raising $1,000,000 in the NEXT 24 HOURS.”  The email ended by saying that Mr Trump would be handed a list naming everyone who had contributed before the 24-hour deadline. The Trump campaign has since confirmed it hit the $1 million mark within 24 hours.

United Constitutional Patriots: Border Patrol pushes back against armed civilians policing border

Customs and Border Protection "does not endorse or condone private groups or organizations that take enforcement matters into their own hands."

Facebook Has Assembled a Small Army of Fact-Checkers. Too Small.

This is Boom Live, one of seven tiny fact-checking firms at the heart of Facebook’s efforts to rebuild some of its credibility during India’s elections. Based on the early tallies, more than 60 percent of India’s 900 million eligible voters are expected to cast ballots between now and May 19, as the center-left Congress Party tries to seize power from the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party. As in other elections around the world, paid hacks and party zealots are churning out propaganda on Facebook and the company’s WhatsApp messenger, along with Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, and other ubiquitous communication channels.

North Korea slams Bolton's 'dim-sighted' call for sign of denuclearization

North Korea has criticized U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton's "nonsense" call for Pyongyang to show that it’s serious about giving up its nuclear weapons, the second time it has criticized a leading U.S. official in less than a week. U.S. President Donald Trump has said he is open to a third summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, but Bolton told Bloomberg News on Wednesday there first needed to be "a real indication from North Korea that they've made the strategic decision to give up nuclear weapons".

Outrage after some French protesters urge police suicides

PARIS (AP) — With French police suicides on the rise, Paris authorities are investigating yellow vest protesters who encouraged police to kill themselves.

Stealth Bomber (1940s Style): Check Out the YB-49 Flying Wing

Although the YB-49 never reached full production, experience with the frame helped validate the concept which now dominates international thinking on strategic bomber design.As the United States approached World War II, it enjoyed the luxury of many innovative aircraft companies, and a ton of money to spend.  Part of this bounty went to pursuit aircraft, part to tactical attack planes, and part to long-range bombers. This last generated one of the most interesting failures ever to emerge from the U.S. aviation industry; the Northrop YB-49 “flying wing” bomber.The Flying WingEarly aviation engineers appreciated the potential for a “flying wing” design. A flying wing, which minimizes fuselage and usually eliminates the tail, reduces many of the aerodynamic compromises associated with a normal fuselage, reducing overall drag. However, many of these features enhance stability, meaning that a flying wing often lacks the stability of a traditional airframe. This makes the aircraft more difficult to fly, especially before the advent of fly-by-wire technology. A flying wing can also struggle with creating space for crew, payload, and defensive armament, as any of these can reduce the aerodynamic advantages than the shape offers.

Score an entire suite of creative design apps for only $40

We're not about to make assumptions here, but we'd wager that the starving artist myth is partially perpetuated by the fact that design programs are so darn expensive. A subscription to a single app alone can sometimes require you to fork out hundreds of dollars you don't have. We don't know about you, but that's plain robbery.You don't have to put yourself in the red just to score apps that will help you perform a variety of design jobs. The Corel Creative Mac Bundle includes an entire creative design app suite from one of the leading software makers with a few surprise bonuses. And you only have to pay $40 to get the whole set.Check out what's in store: Toast 17 TitaniumThe ultimate DVD burning software, Toast 17 Titanium lets you turn videos into professional-looking discs. It comes equipped with a feature-rich digital media suite that includes screen recording, movie editing tools, and media browser. AfterShot Pro 3RAW images aren't the easiest things to edit and manipulate, but this app makes the process feel like a cakewalk. On top of converting RAW files into editable images without inflicting damage, it also boasts a medley of editing tools you can take advantage of to enhance your shots. Painter Essentials 6Create lifelike artworks with this app that features a selection that's chock-full of realistic painting tools and effects. With just a few clicks, it can help you transform a photo into a painting infused with realism. WinZipNobody has the time to wait for hours when sending files. WinZip compresses data with bank-level AES encryption so you can send and receive files faster and more securely. ParticleShopThis powerful brush plugin for Photoshop and AfterShot 3 breathes new life into your masterpieces with fluid, artistic strokes that are a breeze to use. It features 11 different custom brushes, all of which you can incorporate on your creations to take them to the next level.Usually valued at $309.95, grab the Corel Creative Mac Bundle on sale for only $39.99 -- a savings of 87%. Image: Pexels The Corel Creative Mac Bundle  -- $39.99 See Details

Cardi B rejects plea deal in strip club brawl case, facing up to one year in jail

Cardi B rejected a deal to plead guilty to one misdemeanor count in strip club brawl, even though it would keep her out of jail.

Egyptians vote in referendum to extend Sisi's rule

Egyptians started voting Saturday in a referendum that aims to cement the rule of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the former coup leader who presents himself as a rock of stability in a turbulent region. Voters were being asked to back amendments to the constitution to allow Sisi, 64, to run for another six-year term while boosting his control over the judiciary and giving the military even greater influence in political life. At a polling station in Manyal, a Cairo suburb overlooking the Nile, Mohamed Abdel Salam, 45, told AFP he fully supported the changes.

Professor Who Scanned All of Notre Dame Died Months Before Fire

Andrew Tallon (Vassar College/Columbia University)Few people outside certain techie and cultural heritage circles had ever heard about self-described ‘gadget geek’ Andrew Tallon’s work until Monday, when Notre Dame cathedral in Paris went up in a cloud of smoke. Tallon, a Belgium-born Vassar College art professor who died six months ago at the age of 49, of terminal brain cancer, was the first—and the last—person to digitally scan the entire 850-year-old cathedral. He used special lasers to create one billion data points, which he did as a labor of love, driven by obsession. His precise measurements, which are accurate to within five millimeters or 0.1969 inches, are now the only modern record of the cathedral just as it was on the day it was partially destroyed, which will prove invaluable to those who hope to rebuild it—if French authorities ask for them.  Andrew Tallon (Vassar College/Columbia University)Tallon’s work wasn’t taken very seriously when he first started scanning structures. He majored in medieval music in Wisconsin and, for a time, contemplated becoming a monk. He ended up a tenured professor in Vassar’s art department. He learned digital scanning techniques on the side and eventually scanned 45 ancient buildings as a hobby. The holy grail was getting the access he needed to Notre Dame, which he finally got in 2015 shortly before he was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. Roberto Viola, the European Commission’s director-general for communications networks, content and technology, did take Tallon and his work seriously. And, in what is part creepy premonition and part forward thinking, on April 9—one week before the tragic fire—he used Tallon’s digitization of Notre Dame as an example of a “what if the worst would happen” scenario to try to convince 24 European countries to sign on to a declaration of cooperation on advancing digitization of cultural heritage. Viola says his group wants every major cultural heritage site in Europe digitized, both so they can be repaired if they are destroyed by natural or human disaster, and also so that fissures and other structural weaknesses can be found. “I knew I was right, but I had no idea just how right,” he told The Daily Beast about the need for digitization of ancient structures. “I wish Dr. Tallon could have seen how important his work would be.”Tallon became obsessed with Notre Dame when he was in the fourth grade. That year he lived in Paris with his mother while she worked on her theater history dissertation, and he spent all his free time inside the cathedral. “I had this little guidebook and I annotated it like a nutcase,” he told National Geographic in 2015. “I longed to know the usual questions. Who made that thing? How did they make it? Could I ever go up in one of those passages?”But he couldn't tell his art colleagues what he was doing, so he kept his obsession with the Gothic cathedral and his dream to digitize it a secret. “I have a career I don’t really tell my French colleagues about because they’ll think I’m not serious,” he said. Andrew Tallon (Vassar College/Columbia University)Work to digitally scan structures is both expensive and time-consuming. Tallon created a billion data points with his laser scanners inside Notre Dame by taking panoramic laser scans from 50 different spots, including from the high rafters that are sadly no longer there. He also took panoramic photographs at each scanning point, which he then used as a background for the scans to help create an exact replica of the building. All the data can be melded together to create a full 3-D model that will be exactly to scale. French authorities have not yet asked for Tallon’s data, but Vassar said on Thursday that it would be happy to cooperate if they do. “If eventually the authorities wish to use this, then of course it would be shared with them,” Tallon’s former student on the project Lindsay Cook told the AFP. Still, it will take decades to digitally scan every vulnerable historical building just in case something happens to it. Tallon eventually won grants to fund his passion, and Vassar cooperated by providing the digital storage. Copies of some of the scans are also at Columbia University, where they were used on a joint project called “Mapping Gothic” that Tallon was working on when he died last November.  Currently, only 10 percent of the world’s historic sites are digitized, Tibor Navracsics, the E.U.'s commissioner for education and culture, said at the April 9 meeting. “We need to find ways to make our cultural heritage accessible to all. Digital means have an important role to play in this,” he said. “Everyone should have the opportunity to discover how they belong to the complex tapestry that is Europe, no matter their socio-economic background.”In many ways, Tallon could save Notre Dame twice. When he finished his scans of Notre Dame four years ago, he noticed vulnerable areas that looked like they would soon crumble and sounded the alarm bell to a number of groups that privately raised funds for restoration. While the French government was ultimately stingy with funding, Tallon warned that if repairs weren’t made, the whole building could collapse. “The damage can only accelerate,” he told Time magazine in 2017. “The more you wait, the more you need to take down and replace.”On the morning after the fire, Viola tweeted his worst fears. “I fell asleep hoping to wake up from a bad dream,” he wrote. “Europe is full of wonders that no one will bring us back. Preserving with digitization is important for us & for future generations. Close to the Parisians. With NotreDame we've lost a piece of our history.”  Now, thanks to Tallon’s obsession, they know exactly what the lost treasure looked like. Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Northern Ireland leaders urge calm as police arrest two over journalist's killing

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Take a Look at the SW1911 Gun: Smith & Wesson’s Very Own 1911 Pistol

One of the oldest gun companies in America produces its own take on one of the most exemplary handgun designs in U.S. history.Smith & Wesson’s series of handguns based on the 1911 platform stays true to the gun’s roots while adding in a number of features desirable to modern firearms enthusiasts. The company produces a full line of 1911s, from traditional to contemporary, catering to collectors and duty carriers, in a full range of sizes.The 1911 pistol was invented by prolific small arms designer John Moses Browning in the early twentieth century. Browning paired the pistol with his new .45 Automatic Colt Pistol cartridge, a large, heavy subsonic cartridge that delivered upwards of 400 foot-pounds of energy on target. The pairing of a semi-automatic pistol capable of holding eight rounds with the .45 ACP manstopper round was in response to reports that U.S.-issue revolvers in .38 Long Colt often failed to stop Filipino insurgents in close quarters combat.Although the 1911 missed the Philippine Insurrection, it was well positioned to enter World War I on the side of the U.S. military. The American Expeditionary Force issued the 1911 in large numbers where they fought in the trenches of World War I. Minor changes in the design resulted in the 1911A1 designation during the 1920s. More than a million pistols were produced for U.S. and allied forces during World War II, enough that the armed services kept the 1911 in frontline service well into the 1980s.

North Korea: US Marine arrested in connection with ‘violent raid’ of embassy in Madrid, sources say

A former US Marine who was allegedly involved in a raid of the North Korean embassy in Madrid has been arrested, according to sources familiar with the case.Christopher Ahn was arrested on Thursday in connection with the incident, when a group of at least 10 people stormed into the embassy, restrained and physically beat some personnel and held them hostage for hours in February.Spanish investigators have said the group stole computers and hard drives before fleeing to the United States, where they shared the stolen material with the FBI.US federal agents also reportedly raided the apartment of Adrian Hong, the leader of self-styled human right group Cheollima Civil Defence, this week in relation to the investigation.Cheollima Civil Defence, which is seeking to overthrow North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, has claimed responsibility for the incident but denied that they used violence.Mr Ahn is thought to be the first person arrested in relation to the raid.A Spanish judicial source said the stolen material has been returned to the North Korean embassy, two weeks after the FBI sent it to the Spanish court investigating the raid.The incident came just days before the second summit between Donald Trump and Mr Kim, which resulted in a failure to come to agreement about the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.North Korea’s foreign ministry denounced the incident as a “grave terrorist attack” and suggested that the FBI was involved.The US State Department has denied that accusation.Cheollima Civil Defence has said the incident was not an attack and claimed it had been invited into the embassy.“We were invited into the embassy, and contrary to reports, no one was gagged or beaten,” the group wrote on their website.“Out of respect for the host nation of Spain, no weapons were used. All occupants in the embassy were treated with dignity and necessary caution.”The group also claimed that the US government was not involved with the incident until after the event.However, a judge for Spain’s National Court has accused the group of violently beating embassy officials and putting them in “shackles and flanges”.The judge also said three members of the group took an official into the embassy basement and tried to persuade him to defect from North Korea.Although documents released by the Spanish court said several members, including Mr Hong, had fled to the United States, their whereabouts are unclear.The court is seeking their extradition.Agencies contributed to this report

This pricey CBD sheet mask is a fun skincare one-off

The internet is so full of CBD content these days that Lord Jones peppermint tincture is practically oozing from its pores. Now, the (non-psychoactive) cannabinoid is increasingly showing up in beauty products, including mascara, serums, and body soaps.Among the options is the cannabis company Beboe's new CBD line, Beboe Therapies. There's a sheet mask ($78 for a pack of five) and a serum ($148), both of which are available on the Beboe Therapies website. I gave the sheet mask a spin.Before we get started, a quick reminder on CBD: There's a ton more research to be done on its actual effects and benefits, but we do know, as Mashable culture reporter Morgan Sung reported in March, that it affects the body's CB2 receptors. This means it won't give you a "high" feeling, but it is likely to reduce inflammation.Image: Beboe TherapiesSEE ALSO: Aloe Bud is a self-care app for self-care app skepticsThat anti-inflammatory component is the key here: The mask is intended to, according to the company's website, "calm the skin while supporting skin cell renewal, moisturization, brightening, and toning." As someone who struggles with intermittent acne and redness, this seemed like a great proposition. But does it do its job? What's in there?Aside from 50mg of CBD, each mask is formulated with vitamin C, ceramides, plant-extracted AHAs, niacinamide, vitamin E, aloe, glycerin, and algae extract. It does not contain parabens, silicone, preservatives, phthalate, gluten, synthetic fragrances, synthetic dyes, mineral oil, or palm oil -- though it does contain a small amount of lavender and copaiba oils for fragrance. The mask does smell amazing: fresh, soothing, and botanical.The mask itself is made of cloth, which is pleasantly sturdy and easy to apply. Blessedly, it also doesn't instantly slide off like a lot of sheet masks (although this would become a problem down the line). This sets it apart from my favorite face mask ever -- the otherwise perfect Benton Snail Bee mask that I have to secure with my glasses.The instructions did ask that I remove a "liner" before applying the mask, but neither I nor my roommate could find any such liner to peel away. Does "liner" just mean the packaging? No idea, but don't spend your precious time looking for this ghost liner, as it does not exist. The processBeboe recommends wearing the mask for 30 minutes, then massaging excess product into your skin. They suggest using these 30 minutes to "call your mother," which is a nice idea. Unfortunately, my mom was already asleep, so I spent my 30 minutes half-watching Schitt's Creek and using my roommate's Portrait Mode to take mirror selfies. Similar concept!Yes, hi, I'm here for the murder?Image: Chloe Bryan/MashableThe mask stayed on very well for about 15 minutes, then curled away at the sides once its contents had started to transfer from the fabric to the desiccated post-winter sponge that was my face. I had a difficult time keeping it on for the last five minutes. Perhaps next time, I will simply accept my fate and take it off early. The resultsAfter 30 minutes, I removed the mask, patted in the excess serum, then dabbed any remaining product from the mask (there was not very much) onto the backs of my hands (hot tip). Right away, I noticed that my skin appeared slightly less red. It was also extremely dewy, but that was probably because it was covered in fresh, wet lotion. After everything absorbed fully, though, my face felt truly smooth -- like, featuring Rob Thomas smooth. It stayed that way until I went to bed two hours later.The next day, my skin's appearance was pretty much back to normal. It still felt fairly smooth, though.Also worth noting: I have very sensitive skin, but the mask didn't break me out. Everyone's skin has different triggers for irritation, obviously, but I generally stick to a simple four-step routine (cleanser, essence, moisturizer, sunscreen) and this mask didn't instigate acne disaster. Is it worth it, though?So the mask was good. I enjoyed the mask. But that doesn't change the fact that, at $78 for a five-pack, each mask costs about $15.60. That's a steep price to pay for a single sheet mask, especially when there are some very soothing options out there -- full of the great non-CBD ingredients in these masks -- for much less.If there's a CBD enthusiast in your life, these would make a phenomenal and just-luxurious-enough gift. If that CBD enthusiast is you, even better. Beboe recommends using the mask 1-2 times per week, but that's ... a real investment. You're probably better off treating it like a treat.And if it makes you feel a little relaxed? All the better. WATCH: Kim Kardashian wants a 'zen-like CBD-themed' baby shower

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Macron popularity still weak after Notre-Dame fire: poll

The popularity of French President Emmanuel Macron remains stuck at under 30 percent as he battles a series of political troubles, with no major change reported after the Notre-Dame fire, a poll said Sunday. The poll, carried out up until April 20, was published at the end of a dramatic week for Macron which saw him address the nation over the damage to the Notre-Dame cathedral in Monday's devastating fire. With tax cuts and other major reforms expected to be announced, Macron is to hold the first ever formal press conference of his presidency on Thursday.

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FBI arrests leader of armed group stopping migrants in New Mexico

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Watch Steve Jobs prank call Starbucks live on stage during the very first iPhone event

Steve Jobs is known for a lot of things. He was an incredible businessman, a world-class salesman, and he was obviously quite the visionary. When listing Jobs's top qualities, however, his sense of humor doesn't typically come up. Jobs was a terrific showman though, and the little jokes he cracked here and there during Apple's press conferences always helped keep things light. This was actually a very important yet underappreciated element of Apple's strategy during product announcements. The company's marketing has always revolved around hyperbole (It's magic! It's all screen!). In an advertisement that you see here and there in passing, that's fine. When you're watching a press conference and every other sentence is about how magical, revolutionary, and groundbreaking Apple products are, a little levity or comic relief is a must.Everyone remembers Apple's big first-generation iPhone announcement event back in 2007. There were so many iconic moments in that presentation, which saw the unveiling of a device that would quite literally flip the smartphone industry on its head. One moment in particular was the subject of a recent Reddit thread though, and we want to share it because it's something most people likely forgot all about.There are so many killer features introduced by the iPhone that we now take for granted, and several of them pertain to maps. It might seem like Google Maps and all of its great functionality has been available on smartphones forever, but mobile mapping would still be a disaster to this day had it not been for the iPhone. The mapping experience that Apple created while guiding Google was truly revolutionary, and Steve Jobs discussed it at length during the first iPhone event back in January 2007.There were plenty of cool features Jobs covered during his presentation, but something pretty funny went down when he was covering the Maps app's ability to let users search for and call businesses. Jobs ended up making the first ever prank call from an iPhone, and he did it live on stage at the Moscone Center. Whether you watched live or this is the first time you've ever heard about it, it's definitely worth watching in the video embedded below (via Reddit).https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bd6dQmN-mPw

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