[Daily Mail, where America gets its news] A bank robber who is believed to have a bomb strapped to his chest is holding hostages in California.
Bakersfield police said they received a call just after 1pm about a bomb threat at the Chase Bank on 17th Street and Chester, and soon learned that the unidentified male suspect barricaded himself inside with an unknown number of hostages inside, Sergeant Eric Celedon said.
By 5.30pm local time, crisis negotiators were able to get the suspect to surrender one of the hostages, he said.
The others inside the building remain 'in good health' as police and federal agents work together to try to resolve the situation.
It is believed the would-be robber has an explosive attached to his torso, Bakersfield Now reports.
Roughly a dozen police vehicles were spotted responding to the scene Tuesday evening, as well as at least one tactical vehicle, according to KGET.
Photos also showed heavily armed police officers and FBI agents in tactical gear responding to the scene.
'What I can guarantee to the community right now is that every single resource is at this this site's disposal - SWAT team, bomb squad, K9 team, gang unit, drone team,' Celedon said.
'Every single asset we have to bring this to the safest conclusion is out here right now, not just 'cause that's what the community needs, but that's what you guys deserve.'
The man who held 10 hostages overnight in a California Chase Bank building and threatened to detonate explosives — before he was shot dead by FBI agents — has been identified as a registered sex offender with a violent history.
Authorities in Bakersfield, about 110 miles north of Los Angeles, say 41-year-old Anthony Scott Searles-Harris took 10 people hostage on the second floor of a Chase Bank building around 1 p.m. Tuesday while claiming to have explosives strapped to his body.
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The hostages worked for a local school district, which has an office on the second floor. Five of the hostages were tied up, but none of the 10 were injured. Searles-Harris also attached explosives to some of the hostages, officials said.
Searles-Harris had a history of violence and is a registered sex offender. He served in the U.S. Army from 2006 to 2007 but was dishonorably discharged after going AWOL, said Sid Patel, of the FBI’s Sacramento field office.
Patel noted that Searles-Harris was no stranger to law enforcement. In addition to his violent history, in 2014, he was charged with sex acts with a child under 14.
[Breitbart] Turkey on Tuesday expressed alarm over a weekend gig by Kanye West in Istanbul attended by nearly 120,000 fans, saying it included elements that offended its spiritual sensitivities. Talk to me about the Hagia Sophia
The US rapper has had shows banned in several European venues over his antisemitic remarks, but Muslim-majority Turkey’s objections were focused elsewhere.
In a post on X, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s chief advisor Oktay Saral said the show featured "rhetoric and symbols that run counter to our faith and civilisational values".
"The fact that tens of thousands of people enthusiastically chanted ’I am a God’ is a serious matter that demands close examination," he said of Saturday night’s performance.
Posted by: Besoeker ||
06/03/2026 05:56 ||
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Link ||
[1779 views]
Top|| File under: Sublime Porte
#1
The resurgence of antisemitism, the occult, body art, the counterculture, nazism, and the new multi-genderism; what are we to make from all of this ?
To understand how much money a concert venue makes, consider these factors:
*Ticket Sales: Revenue from ticket sales is the primary income source for venues.
*Concessions: Food and beverage sales contribute significantly to overall earnings.
*Merchandise: Selling artist merchandise can provide additional revenue.
*Sponsorships: Partnerships with brands can lead to lucrative sponsorship deals.
*Rental Fees: Venues may charge for renting out space for private events or corporate functions.
*Parking Fees: Income from parking can add to the venue's overall profits.
Posted by: Frank G ||
06/03/2026 00:00 ||
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Link ||
[1797 views]
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#1
Thank you for this. There is a set of entitled fools posing as "journalists" that feel the need to impose their narrow, pinched worldview upon the rest of us because they think they know better. It is past time to expel them from their nests. This is a step in a better direction.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
06/03/2026 4:18 Comments ||
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[FoxNews] School officials cite a $732M deficit and low enrollment as the reason for the change.
Each a legitimate point. Together they should be insuperable, but this is deep blue Chicago, where political power plays and an imaginary money tree trump reality… until a greater power steps in, anyway. But they’re still in the first part of the FAFO process.
A Chicago high school's decision to eliminate its Arabic language program due to low enrollment and budget constraints has sparked backlash from community members who argue the course is vital for inclusion and diversity.
Lincoln Park High School (LPHS) announced it will no longer offer Arabic to incoming freshmen. The decision comes as Chicago Public Schools (CPS) grapples with a projected $732.5 million deficit, forcing district-wide cuts to teaching and administrative staff, according to a new report by The Chicago Tribune.
LPHS Principal Eric Steinmiller defended the decision during a May 21 local school council meeting. Steinmiller explained that beyond the district’s severe financial constraints, the Arabic program enrolled a total of just 20 students this year and ranked as the school's "lowest-performing" International Baccalaureate (IB) language track based on test scores.
There are only a few, and they’re clearly both stupid and lazy. If they’re serious, let their mosques provide classes, just like the Jews do in their Hebrew schools and Chinese, Koreans, and even Germans do in their community centers.
However, the decision has upset local activists, parents, and students who are demanding the administration reverse course. An online petition protesting the cancellation has already garnered more than 1,500 signatures.
"Eliminating access to Arabic for incoming students would limit educational opportunities and reduce the diversity of language offerings available at LPHS," the petition reads. "Language programs are essential not only for academic growth, but also for fostering empathy, inclusion, and cross-cultural understanding within our school community."
The group frames the programming as evidence of the school's "commitment to educational equity, multicultural learning, and the long-term success of LPHS students."
The Chicago branch of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) also criticized the school's decision. Jordan Esparza-Kelley, communications coordinator for CAIR-Chicago, argued the language provides vital real-world skills, similar to learning Spanish.
Yeah, yeah. CAIR gets millions in funding domestically, and even more from abroad. They can afford to cover the cost of this program, if it means that much to them.
"No one would propose the removal of trigonometry at a school, right? However, only a subset of students will go on in their life and do that specific variant of math," Esparza-Kelley argued. "The other side of that is every student there speaks. Language programs in general, I think, are more fruitful than some of the other programs that would never have a floating question mark over their heads."
Related: Who Funds CAIR? Data collected from form 990s of 501(c)s in 2023.
#1
"No one would propose the removal of trigonometry at a school, right? However, only a subset of students will go on in their life and do that specific variant of math," Esparza-Kelley argued.
Ignorant asshole never pulled into a gas station.
Always arc for the pump with the shortest chord.
[Daily Mail, where America gets its Sean Strickland's fixation with trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney took a disturbing turn on social media, where the UFC fighter shared a violent AI-generated post referencing “her” 2023 Bud Light campaign.
Scare quotes mine.
Fake footage of the UFC middleweight champion pummeling someone with Mulvaney's likeness received more than 80,000 likes on Instagram, where Strickland called out the brewer.
'Ive yet to see one rainbow flag,' he wrote, adding 'We're back!!!' along with Bud Light's handle.
The post comes at the onset of Pride Month and is an obvious reference to Mulvaney's 2023 Instagram post in which she promoted one of America's best-selling beers ahead of March Madness.
Conservative Americans reacted with calls to boycott Budweiser, although critics such as Kid Rock were later observed drinking Bud Light at a Nashville concert hall. The rapper-turned-MAGA darling ultimately told Fox News' Sean Hannity in December of 2023 that he was done with the boycott.
Strickland, however, has held onto this animosity, leading to a number of comments about Bud Light and Mulvaney. He's even remained critical of the brewer in light of UFC's ongoing partnership with the brand.
'Here's the thing about Bud Light: Ten years ago, to be trans was a mental f**king illness and now, all of a sudden, people like you have f**king weaseled your way in the world,' Strickland said before UFC 297 in Toronto.
'You are an infection,' Strickland said of trans people. 'You are the definition of weakness. Everything that is wrong with the world is because of f**king you.'
Strickland's recent Instagram post was well received by his followers, several of whom also added antisemitic comments for some reason.
However, he got a somewhat different reaction on X, where he wrote: 'Say what you want about Trump but June has got far less gay.'
X influencer Morgan Moore asked him why he is 'so obsessed with anything gay.'
Strickland responded by calling homosexuality 'anti American,' but was met with many more questions about his fascination with the topic.
UFC boss Dana White has criticized Strickland as a 'nightmare' to work with, but has continued to book the veteran fighter, who remains one of the more visible talents in the sport.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
06/03/2026 7:24 Comments ||
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#3
Pride, one of the seven deadly sins, considered by some to be the gravest of all sins. In the theological sense, pride is defined as an excessive love of one’s own excellence. As a deadly sin, pride is believed to generate other sins and further immoral behavior and is countered by the heavenly virtue of humility.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited
[Regnum] A magnitude 6.2 earthquake was recorded in southern Italy. The European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre ( EMSC )reported this on June 2
The tremors occurred at 12:12 AM local time (1:12 AM Moscow time). The epicenter was 22 km west-southwest of Paola and 124 km north of Messina. The earthquake's epicenter was at a depth of 240 km.
There were no reports of casualties or damage.
Earlier, on May 25, a strong earthquake with a magnitude of 6.8 was recorded in Chile. The epicenter was located 25 km southeast of the city of Calama in Antofagasta Province, with the center at a depth of 103 km. No damage or casualty information was provided.
On May 18, a significant earthquake struck southern China. A magnitude 5.2 tremor was recorded in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. According to the China Seismic Network Center, it was the most severe earthquake ever recorded in the region. Damage to nine buildings was reported after the quake, but there were no reports of casualties.
[MalwareBytes] A convincing fake website is impersonating OpenAI’s ChatGPT download page and infecting visitors with malware designed to steal passwords, browser data, cryptocurrency wallets, and other sensitive information.
The site, openew[.]app, closely mimics OpenAI’s real ChatGPT download experience and offers what appear to be official desktop apps for both Windows and macOS. Instead, Windows users receive a credential-stealing malware loader, while Mac users get Odyssey Stealer, a fork of Atomic Stealer (AMOS), a well-known macOS malware family associated with cryptocurrency theft.
The dual-platform setup is what makes the operation notable. Clicking the Windows download delivers a fake installer that opens a back channel to an attacker-controlled server. Clicking the macOS button delivers malware that steals browser passwords, cookies, Telegram sessions, cryptocurrency wallets, and other sensitive files. It also attempts to replace legitimate Ledger and Trezor wallet apps with trojanized versions.
If you only download ChatGPT from OpenAI’s official download page or the Microsoft Store, you were not the target here. But if you searched for “ChatGPT download” and clicked an ad or unfamiliar result, you may have given attackers access to your online accounts, browser sessions, saved passwords, and potentially your cryptocurrency holdings.
[Breitbart] Oz told reporters during Tuesday’s White House press briefing, where he stood in for press secretary Karoline Leavitt, that the additions will now bring the total number of prescriptions offered via TrumpRx.com to more than 750.
“I’ve got an announcement that today we are adding 160 more drugs to this site. Now, the site already has… 600 or so drugs, so it’s going to take it over 750 total,” Oz said.
Oz said that Americans will have the opportunity to ensure they get the best price on eighty percent of prescriptions they regularly pick up at drug stores, with TrumpRx now offering 750 drugs.
“So, it’s a transparency site. It gives everybody the ability to make important decisions about medications they’re purchasing with full knowledge of what the cost of those medications are, and that’s important because transparency drives cost-effective changes in how we procure and consume products,” he said.
The announcement comes just weeks after TrumpRx began offering 600 generic drugs.
“In the two weeks since we did the last event with the president on this topic, we’ve now up to about 12 million unique visitors to the site, estimated savings are about $500 million and again climbing rapidly as more Americans learn about the program,” he said.
“It is our great hope and belief that the average American, before they make a purchasing decision for a pharmaceutical product, will start using TrumpRx.gov as a standard.
Americans can claim coupons on the website to take advantage of the Most-Favored-Nations deals with leading pharmaceutical companies that the president struck beginning last Fall.
Oz also noted on Tuesday that Medicare beneficiaries will be able to obtain GLP-1 weight-loss drugs for $50 per month starting July 1.
[Reuters] "For Helios, commercial customers can launch on a Falcon 9 and take six, eight or 10 months to reach their final orbit. Our pitch is: 'launch with Helios and we'll get you there the same day,'" said President and Chief Operating Officer Eric Romo.
[NYPost] For most of his life, Praveen Gowtham avoided prosthetics.
The Bronx physicist, who lost part of his arm at 1 week old due to a birth defect, found artificial limbs cumbersome, clunky and less mobile than billed.
That all changed last month when he became the world’s first person to be outfitted with Open Bionics’ new 3D-printed Hero FLEX robot arm, a cutting-edge attachment for above-elbow amputees.
Praveen Gowtham, an amputee, smiling while wearing his new 3D bionic arm. 5
Praveen Gowtham shows off his state-of-the-art robo-arm. Open Bionics/SWNS
Within an hour of the procedure, the Bronx-based scientist, 43, was accomplishing tasks he rarely did with previous prosthetics — like holding his dog’s leash, or opening drink containers unaided for the first time.
“I can hold a bottle and then torque it the other way,” Gowtham told The Post. “That makes a huge, huge difference, and I’ve already noticed that.”
The device can even give someone the finger, revealed Gowtham, who went from wearing prosthetics for at most a half-hour per day to donning this cybernetic enhancement nearly full-time.
Released just last month, the Hero FLEX is the first above-elbow socket from Open Bionics, a UK-founded tech firm that has the distinction of producing the world’s first clinically approved, 3D-printed bionic prosthesis.
The arm employs advanced robotics and AI and syncs with one’s muscle signals, allowing wearers to use multiple grip patterns and perform a variety of everyday tasks.
This comes as 3D tech is revolutionizing medicine by offering patients the chance to recreate body parts that are customized to their anatomy. Recent examples include an artificial knee implant in the UK that was tailor-made for the patient’s leg and a UK man who became the recipient of the first-ever 3D-printed eyeball in 2021.
#1
Now THIS is a part of the future that I hoped we would attain.
SpaceX. Tesla. Cell phones. GPS. Hubbell. V'ger. PC's. Stereo. Cat scan. MRI. Fusion. Ball point pens. (When I was in elementary school, we had cast iron-framed wood top desks with ink wells, because ball points had not been invented yet. BIC pens! I remember air raid sirens, getting under the desks to survive nukes. Good times; not.)
Much more to come.
Yes, I am an optimist.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
06/03/2026 4:05 Comments ||
Top||
#2
BIC pens!
I remember doing this over and over, with glee.
While cautioned to not shoot my sister.
#3
I remember doing this over and over, with glee.
Careful, man! You could dot somebody's i doing that.
Back when ball point pens were the New Thing, the future looked bright. We even invented one that could write in zero gravity* for the astronauts to use.
* If memory serves, the Russians solved this problem by giving their guys pencils.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
