Monthly Archives: June 2017

YouTube star accused of child porn

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By NEYDJA PETITHOMME

Alternative pop vocalist from Chicago and youtube star with 543,600 subscribers was arrested.

According to CNN, Austin Jones, 24, had been arrested for child pornography on Friday. Jones is a famous for his acapella cover video. Jones  was accused of encouraging two minors to send him sexually explicit video. As told, Jones asked two 14-year-old girls to film themselves dancing while exposing themselves in a sexual manner.

“I’m just trying to help you!” Jones wrote in a message. “I know you’re trying your hardest to prove you’re my biggest fan. And I don’t want to have to find someone else.”

Authorities found dozens of pornographic videos in Jones’ phone when he was arrested and taken into custody at the Chicago O’Hare International Airport. Jones said he was deeply distraught about his mistake.

“It’s not something that I am proud of,” Jones said.

According to authorities, this was not Jones’ first rodeo.

In 2015, he posted an apology video to his YouTube fans account after being allegedly accused of asking fans to send him videos of themselves twerking in a sexual manner.

The problem with this situation is that authorities needed to nip in the bun since 2015. Due two the fact that authorities needed to wait until another little girl is harmed to take action is absurd. This situation needed to be solved since 2015.

Force him to take down his YouTube channel or fine him a penalty that will cause him to never do it again, but to accept that the fact that he say it is the cause of depression that forced him to to take action in such a way, is illogical.

Jones was charged with two felony counts of production of child pornography.

Robbers dressed as cops invade home

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By ALEJANDRO GRANDA

Two robbers impersonating police officers handcuffed a South Miami-Dade couple and stole cash from their safe at 3 a.m. on Tuesday.

No one was injured and all three of the couple’s children stayed asleep during the robbery.

Miami-Dade police Detective Argemis Colome said police don’t know how much was taken from the home just west of Palmetto Bay and robbers wore long-sleeved shirts with “Police” on a side along with police insignia, law enforcement-like vests and fake badges.

I believe The Miami Herald could have included safety tips and instructions when answering the door to someone who is believed to be of authority, especially so late at night, to prevent themselves from being in a situation that could possibly be more dangerous.

Ransomware attacks Apple products

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By NOELIA GRAHAM

New software designed to attack Mac operating systems is being spread around the “dark Web” leaving Apple products vulnerable.

According to BBC technology correspondent Mark Ward, there are two different types of software that are being given out for free to anyone who can access the program. “One is ransomware that encrypts data and demands payment before files are released. The other is spyware that watches what users do and scoops up valuable information,” he wrote.

This information was gathering by security firms Fortinet and AlienVault when they found a web portal hosted on a TOR network that advertised malware and spyware software for Mac products.

The authors of the malicious software are advertising their product as “sophisticated malware for Mac users” and calling it MacSpy.

In order to access the software you need to contact the developers and have it set up by them.

The concept is to split the profits 70/30 percent of the amount of bitcoin the person using the program wants to retrieve from the person’s computer they’ve attacked.

However the program only works if the person trying to attack your files has access to your Mac or if you open an unknown file from unknown developers.

Aamir Lakhani from Fortinet said, “Mac users should make sure their machines were kept up to date with the latest software patches and be wary of messages they receive via email.”

While Mac computers are not often heard about in cyber attacks that is because most personal computers run windows.

However according to stats from MacAfee there are 450,000 malicious programs aimed at Macs and 23 million targeting Windows users.

As the market continues to expand and include Mac systems the demand for malicious software targeting these operating systems will grow as well.

Golden State claims another NBA title

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By ISAIAH TAYLOR

Late last night, almost every basketball sports enthusiast’s eyes were glued to the television. The much anticipated game five of the NBA Finals took place in the Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif. Fans from both teams were wondering if history will be made that night or if the Cleveland Cavaliers would force a game six.

Before the season started, people awaited the news from Kevin Durant, who just became a free agent of what he would do leading up to the next season. Not to my surprise, he ended up teaming up with Stefan Curry and the Golden State Warriors

Kevin Durant, the most-talked about player on the Warriors, won his first NBA championship last night. There was much speculation as to why Kevin Durant would leave his former teamm the Oklahoma City Thunder, to team up with the Golden State Warriors and their powerhouse. Some people believe that, of course, he was taking the easy way out, but I feel like he saw what he wanted to accomplish and knew what must be done. Throughout the entire final series, Kevin Durant averaged 30 points or more.

On the other side, there was LeBron James, who averaged a triple double throughout the series. LeBron James and the Cavaliers were not giving up easily as they put up a great first half keeping the score close until the final minutes. It was one of the most exciting games that I have seen in basketball in a while although I know many other people got tired of seeing those two teams in the finals.

The last three NBA championships have been fought between the Golden State Warriors in the Cleveland Cavaliers. Just like the previous two the teams did not disappoint. They provided an insane caliber match between the two rivals.

If you can’t beat them, join them

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By MYLES VALENTINE

On June 12, 2017 the Golden State Warriors became the 2017 NBA Champions.

The Warriors edged Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in a 129-120 victory to take game five and win the series, 4-1. There was a lot of talk about the series potentially going to game 7 so that the NBA would still bring in revenue. With addition of Kevin Durant to the already dominant Warriors, there was no way they were going to let the Cavaliers stop them this year.

The Warriors needed to add Kevin Durant to the core of a team that won 73 regular-season games and pushed James to the brink of elimination in the 2016 NBA Finals.

Last season, Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder blew a 3-1 lead of their own to the Warriors in the 2016 Western Conference finals, Durant had still won two more games against Stephen Curry than he did against James the first time they squared off in the 2012 NBA Finals. Curry, he could beat. Probably should’ve beat. But they needed to join forces to defeat James and Kyrie Irving. I believe Lebron was the driving force behind Durant’s championship decision.

It has been five seasons since Kevin Durant had reached the NBA finals. This time he went out with a bang. Durant finished with 39 points, seven rebounds and five assists on 14-for-20 shooting in 40 minutes. He averaged 35.2 points, 8.4 rebounds and 5.4 assists in the Finals, with a 55.6 field-goal percentage. With this amazing performance not only did he get the win over the Cavs, named Finals MVP. Durant also becomes the third player to win four NBA scoring titles and an NBA title, joining Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain.

I believe it’s safe to say that the Warriors+Durant is a recipe for domination. The next question is: Are the Golden State Warriors, who completed the best postseason record in NBA history by beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 4-1 in the NBA Finals to finish 16-1, the greatest single-season team in league history?

Fox News co-host calls rising temps ‘BS’

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By ALEJANDRO GRANDA

Greg Gutfield, a co-host from Fox News, says that people talking about the hottest year ever or high temperatures are spreading “BS” and he claims they are not telling the full story.

“If you asked them what the increase was, they wouldn’t be able to tell you that every single year that there’s an increase, it is within the margin of error, meaning it isn’t increasing,” Gutfield said.

“So, those are called real truths. The poetic truth is the chaos and the hysteria, because that plays to the media. And it makes you feel so important. And you get to punish America for being so successful by doing these stupid deals. But if you read the facts about the high temperatures, about the reality of our past, it is all BS,” he added.

The Miami Herald did a great job arguing against that statement, interviewing many scientists who reveal that Gutfield is actually wrong, saying that long-term trends clearly show the temperature has been rising for decades as opposed to “single year increases.”

The Herald‘s coverage against Gutfield’s statement is that some years are within the margin of error, some are definitely not, and that Gutfield is not only wrong with the details but also on the big picture and they rate his statement with “pants on fire.”

Man imprisoned for 17 years freed

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By NEYDJA PETITHOMME

Convicted 17 years ago, Richard Jones, 41, has been overturned when University of Kansas School of Law helped uncover what was believed to be an unjust conviction.

“I hope and prayed every day for this day to come, and when it finally got here it was an overwhelming feeling,” Jones said in an interview with ABC News’ “Good Morning America.”

Nearly 20 years ago, Jones was wrongfully convicted after trying to steal a purse in the parking lot of a Wal-Mart in Roeland Park, Kan. According to authorities, Jones had an alibi as to her whereabouts. It was told that DNA and fingerprints never linked Jones to the crime.

This is problematic, if Jones can be wrongful conviction due to eyewitness misidentification, what does this mean to countless of innocent victims placed in prison due to being unlawfully accused Jones teamed with “the Midwest Innocence Project and the Project for Innocence at the University of Kansas School of Law.” During his time in prison, Jones overheard of a man in incarceration who looked just like him.

The Kansas state system followed in on a man named Ricky Amos, 39. Both men executed the age, similar skin tone, the same facial hair and cornrows.

“Once I had seen his picture beside mine and I seen the resemblance me and him had, I just knew,” Jones said. “It was understandable why other people would say the same thing.””It was hard,” Jones said. “I won’t say it was easy because it wasn’t, but I made it through.”

What need to be done, is figuring out a better solution to figuring out who the victim is, we cannot continue figuring out who is who just out of looks, and merely no facts. This cannot continue, if the country what to find better result. Because of the lack of focus, and integrity to get it right, we the people placed an innocent man before bars for 17 years. Thankfully, he is not looking to press charge on the government for lost of years.

Jones said he is enjoying his family, keeping his faith in God and wants to work with The Innocence Project to give freedom to others who are wrongfully convicted.

Documentary film vs. news story

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By MYLES VALENTINE

Recently some friends and I were discussing the differences between a documentary film and a news story. Most of them couldn’t tell them apart. There are a few main points to look at.

A documentary film is basically a movie that attempts to document reality. Even though the scenes are carefully chosen and arranged, usually through editing after filming, they are not scripted and the people in the movie are not typically actors. Sometimes, a documentary film may rely on voice-over narration to describe what is happening in the footage; in other films, the images speak for themselves without commentary.

A documentary often includes interviews with people in the film for additional information. Documentaries can use more time to establish world, character and struggle whereas, with news, a journalist has only a few seconds or minutes. There is often more mat sound with a documentary, also. Many documentary filmmakers attempt to change or improve society in some way with their messages. They want to inform.

Their goal is to bring to light a certain cause or injustice with the hope that their film will help galvanize the masses to demand change. An example might be a documentary on all the recent crimes that have been happening. In general documentaries are longer than news segments or stories and they focus more on real life. The mood of a documentary is also changed smoothly by the music that was chosen by the filmmaker. The news doesn’t use music as much.

News is defined as newly received or noteworthy information, especially about recent or important events. The news also wants to inform just like documentaries. There is less time that the news has to establish world,character, and struggle. News also tries to entertain its viewers. They entertain viewers by choosing to talk about stories that are new, unusual, interesting and also about people. News covers many different topics.

The freshness of news gives it an uncertain quality which distinguishes it from the more careful investigations of history. The news describes the world in the present or immediate past. The news is given to you from a news anchor in different segments. All in all a news story is a factual, prose story for print or broadcast media about a person, place or event answering these five questions: who, what, when, where, why and how.

Last, but not least, a news story is sometimes written in the inverted-pyramid style, giving the most important information first and additional details later.

3-on-3 Olympic basketball planned

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By MYLES VALENTINE

The International Olympics Committee added 3-on-3 basketball to the 2020 Tokyo Olympic program on Friday. The IOC called the changes more youthful, urban and female focused. They are striving to one day have an even split of 50 percent male and 50 percent female athletes. There were about 45 percent female athletes in Rio. As far as what teams are selected and how teams qualify, that’s still unclear.

“They don’t want just the basketball powers to compete in 3-on-3,” said USA Basketball CEO Jim Tooley . “FIBA will get together and figure out how teams will qualify. They will definitely want to reward countries that have been doing a lot of 3-on-3 activities.”

The U.S. has been pushing 3-on-3 over the past few years and held a national tournament last month. The winners will head to the World Cup in France later this month.

Three-on-three only uses half of the court. It’s played with one-basket with two teams of four players (one sub). Typically, game time is 10 minutes or first team to 21 points. The 2020 Olympic 3-on-3 tournaments will include eight men’s teams and eight women’s teams.

The rules are made for more up-tempo competition. There should be more updates in the coming weeks .FIBA said it will announce qualification procedures and a competition format at a later date.

Madrid cracks down on ‘manspreading’

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By GABRIELA SANTOS

Madrid, the Spanish capital, will begin to place signs on city buses that will prohibit “manspreading.” Much like those already in place that do not allow smoking or littering.

Manspreading is the practice whereby a man, especially one traveling on public transport, adopts a sitting position with his legs wide apart, in such a way as to encroach on an adjacent seat or seats, as defined by the Oxford Dictionary.

Cities around the world, like New York and Philadelphia, have been adopting these kind of campaigns to dissuade riders from practicing the careless behavior.

“The mission of this new signage is to remember the need to maintain civic behavior and to respect the space of everyone on board the bus,” Spanish bus operator EMT said in a statement this week.

The decision came after a Spanish feminist group called “Mujeres en Lucha” created a petition that garnered more than 600 signatures on the popular site Change.org. They also created the hashtag #MadridSinManspreading (MadridWithoutManspreading) to help spread the message.

Manspreading “is not something that occurs sporadically, but if you look, you will realize that it is a very common practice,” the petition read. “It is not difficult to see women with their legs closed and very uncomfortable because there is a man next to her who is invading her space with his legs.”

Transport officials in Madrid also plan to use this campaign for the city’s metro system, according to BBC News.

The term “manspreading” has become a worldwide phenomenon and has led to many men being called out via social media. So much so that the Oxford Dictionary entered it into their online dictionary in 2015.

The practice has become so commonplace that most perpetrators don’t even realize that they’re doing it- and if they do they certainly don’t care. Hence, the new campaign to put a stop to it.

News media outlets have maintained a pretty good level on non-bias reporting on this topic, which surprisingly has been reported on by most top sites.

This is just one of those issues that is non-partisan, because after all, how can you be mad at people just trying to make the world more polite?

12 persons dead in terror attacks in Iran

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By ISAIAH TAYLOR

​At around 10:30 in the morning on Wednesday, six armed terrorists attacked the Iranian Parliament building and the tomb of the 1979 revolutionary, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

All six of the attackers were killed in the attack, two at the mausoleum and four at the Parliament building in Tehran. Twelve deaths have been confirmed, only one of which taking place at the shrine, and 46 people were injured.

​The attacks on the two locations happened almost simultaneously and lasted for hours. Due to this, many people believe that it must have been planned long in advance, Randa Slim, an analyst at the Middle East Institute in Washington, being one of them. “[This group] must have had a network inside the country … an infrastructure that took time to develop,” she stated.

The Islamic State group took credit for the attacks, posting a video with footage from the inside of the building. They also warned of further attacks against Iran. President Trump had visited the Middle East and met with a leader of Saudi Arabia, Iran’s rival, just a week before the terrorist attacks on Iran, leading Iran’s Revolutionary Guards to accuse the United States of being allied with the attackers.

Not helping this accusation, President Trump issued a statement after the attacks taking a jab at Tehran. He said, “states that sponsor terrorism risk falling victim to the evil they promote.”

However, the White House had also issued a sincerer and more sympathetic statement. Saudi Arabia had also responded to Iran, their Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir stated that he was not sure who was responsible for the terrorism, and that his country condemned the attacks.

It is likely that Iran will have increased public support and calls for tougher action in the aftermath of the attacks. But, despite the terrorism that rocked the country, there would be ‘no effect’ according to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Hackers threaten car computers

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By NOELIA GRAHAM

With technology embedded into cars, it opens the door for hackers to join the ride as well.

Cyber security is becoming an increasing issue with the automatization and implementation of tech in everyday life. Essentially anything that communicates to the outside world has the possibility of being hacked.

With the fast-approaching reality of driverless cars, problems are mounting on how to prevent hackers from accessing the car’s computer area network (CAN).

Some automakers now install gateways as a buffer between the driver system and the cars CAN network.

According Techopedia, an online resource for technology, “Gateways serve as the entry and exit point of a network; all data routed inward or outward must first pass through and communicate with the gateway in order to use routing paths.”

But it can still be hacked. And it’s been done multiple times with Teslas and Jeeps.

Charlie Miller and Chris Valasek, two security researchers, were able to successfully hack a Jeep Cherokee remotely through a wireless internet connection. They were able to control the brakes, stop the transmission and ultimately paralyze the vehicle on the highway.

But a car’s CAN network is only the beginning. According to The New York Times, “The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has proposed that V2V equipment be installed in all cars in the future. But that channel, and all the equipment involved, open millions more access points for would-be attackers.”

The future of cyber security and cars is uncertain, but research continues to move forward. Uber and Didi are two companies investing in the technology of fully automated driverless cars. But with their investment comes a lot of concern on government regulations and how to prevent physical passengers from hacking vehicles.

It’s time to start considering solutions now, before the mass production of these vehicles enter society at large.

America divided over Comey hearing

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By GABRIELA SANTOS

The long-awaited Senate Intelligence Committee hearing has come and gone but the impact it has left on the country will sure to stay. In a way not seen since Watergate, the event drew in people from all walks of life to stop and watch ex-FBI Director James Comey’s testimony on Thursday.

Americans all over the country filled bars, clubs, airports and restaurants just to sit and listen to the testimonial.

“There were recordings, there were memos made, a paper trail created I think it tells a lot about the trust that not only the American public should have in Trump but his own administration,” Alicia Gosford, who watched and told local New Haven, Conn., news station WTNH.

The news media are clearly divided over what Comey’s testimonials could mean for Trump, and the American people are no different.

“I think it was definitely good for President Trump, with the only exception being Comey’s points about Trump ‘lying’ about his character,” Chris Jones, a marketing executive from Redding, Conn., told Fox News.

It truly boils down to where you stand on the political spectrum. The more liberal stations like CNN, MSNBC, etc., seem to draw up a general consensus that the hearing will have a negative impact for Trump in the coming weeks. News outlets like FOX, on the other hand, seem optimistic that these hearings will amount to nothing.

That being said, when polled Americans overwhelmingly believe that Comey’s firing had to do with the fact that the FBI investigation would “hurt” Trump. According to a FOX News poll, 79 percent of people agree with this while 29 percent believe that he was “hurting” the FBI.

The news media bias in this case is strong, but I believe only time will tell what the facts really are, that is, if the ever come out.

The future of AI in cargo ships

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By NOELIA GRAHAM

Technology is rapidly expanding and will again be making its way to the high seas.

Japan is set to launch self-navigating cargo ships by 2025.

Nicknamed “smart ships” this artificial intelligence (AI) will be used to navigate the shortest, fastest and most fuel efficient sea routes. It will also be programmed to calculate malfunctions and other problems that could arise at sea.

Mitsui OSK Lines and Nippon Yusen, two Japanese shipping firms, are working with Japan Marine Unitedplan “to split costs and share expertise. Developing the technology is expected to cost tens of billions of yen, or hundreds of millions of dollars, at a minimum,” according to the Nikkei Asian Review.

It is planned that the first few ships will have a small crew on-board to man the vessel in case of any incidents, but the goal is to create completely autonomous ships.

But Japan isn’t the only country investing into autonomous technology for ships. Rolls-Royce which also develops ship engines announced in 2016 that by 2020 there would be unmanned cargo ships.

While the use of this technology is impressive, it’s important to consider what will happen to the many jobs that will be lost due to the complete automation of cargo ships once this AI is shared and implemented to systems all around the world.

A future led by technological innovation is our current reality. So it’s time to start considering how humans will be able to compete with machines.

Girlfriend sends chilling text in suicide

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By NEYDJA PETITHOMME

After the life-ending tragedy of Conrad Roy III in July 2014, who inhaled carbon monoxide in his pickup truck, Samantha Boardman, friend, said she received a gruesome text message from Roy’s girlfriend.

According to CNN, Michelle Carter, 17, Roy’s girlfriend, said “He got out of the car because it was working and he got scared and I f—–g told him to get back in.”

“Is there any way a portable generator can kill you somehow?” the message said.

“Because he said he was getting that and some other tools at the store.”

Later, Carter allegedly wrote, “No more pushing it off,” “No more waiting.”

During the time of death on July 13, 2014, Roy was found dead in a Kmart parking lot in Fairhaven, Mass., approximately 40 miles from his home. Roy was wearing a blue T-shirt, shorts and sunglasses, during the time of the scene.

Text messages, such as this, are absurdly difficult to bypass. Carter’s words speak just as loudly as her actions. We cannot say someone did or did not say or do anything, but her words are in black in white, but then again, without physical proof/evidence, Carter is innocent till proven guilty.

According to Carter, “He seemed fine,” she said.

Roy, Conrad’s mother, said she exchanged messages with Carter following her son’s death and mentioned that Carter said she had not been in touch with Conrad on the day of his death. Officials need to investigate Carter’s alibi and focus on the primary concerns of where Carter was during the time of Roy’s death, who she spoke with on the day of his death. The alibis of the affiliates of who Carter was with also need to be investigated.

Harvard rescinds 10 admit decisions

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By GABRIELA SANTOS

Harvard University has chosen to rescind acceptance offers from 10 incoming freshman after becoming aware of an offshoot face group aimed at sharing “offensive” memes.

School administrators moderate an official Harvard Class of 2021 Facebook group in an effort to create a place for new students to get to know each other beforehand and ask questions in preparation for their first semester

Everything began when about 100 students created a separate page to share memes with one another – a trend amongst elite colleges. The page was entitled “Harvard memes for horny bourgeois teens.”

According to the Harvard Crimson, the school’s daily newspaper, the whole exchange took a dark turn when members of this group formed a spin-off page where students could exchange “R-rated” memes.

The founders of the group required that students posted questionable memes on the main page to gain admittance. Otherwise, the page is completely private.

The memes and images that were shared in the private group ranged from offensive racial stereotypes to the deaths of children, according the images provided by The Crimson. When university officials became aware of what was going on they took immediate action.

Harvard reserves the right to withdraw an offer of admission if the admitted student “engages or has engaged in behavior that brings into question their honesty, maturity or moral character,” among other conditions, Rachel Dane, a Harvard spokeswoman, told The Washington Post.

This reaction brings to light a whole new issue that has been growing in recent years – that social media is playing a large role in the university admissions process.

The reoccurring question seems to be that at which point does this violate freedom of expression?

Erica Goldberg, an assistant professor at Ohio Northern law school, which said she taught at Harvard Law School for three years, stated that this page was no different than the popular game Cards Against Humanity, “whose purpose is to be as clearly offensive as possible”.

The group – which garnered more than 30,000 members, including “pharmabro” Martin Shkreli – seems to clearly be aimed at poking fun at these topics and not necessarily supporting these sentiments.

News media coverage of this topic has mainly focused on how this offensive material undermines the current “PC” culture at universities nationwide. The problem with reporting on these topics is, in fact, that it is done by older adults who unfortunately don’t understand the irreverent humor.

The headlines repeatedly use words like “hateful” and “racist” to describe the pages but they fail to recognize that the whole point of these memes is to not embrace these ideals but to laugh at the absurdity that anyone could actually believe these kinds of things.

Instead of demonizing these teens for their jokes, perhaps the news media should be focusing more on how appropriate it is that they are being reprimanded for conversations made in private.

Hmmm. Who will win NBA finals?

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By MYLES VALENTINE

This year there was a lot of hype coming into the NBA Finals because of the stellar performances we all witnessed last season.

So, for anybody who knew what was going on in the NBA has assumed and hoped that Golden State and Cleveland would end up in a heated Battle Royale rematch.

The only real health concern on either side is on the Warriors coaching staff, and I guess we will ultimately see how much Steve Kerr’s absence plays a part. And Kerr, let me tell you, man, that as a person who has had a hamstring surgery and dealt with the nerve pain and shooting discomfort and all of that, I FEEL your pain and don’t blame you a bit for missing time.

My only suggestion would be to invest in some posture helpers and additional pillows for yourself if you do in fact make a return. I’m 100 percent positive an NBA team and their resources can come up with some sort of device to assist your pain while sitting on the bench.

My pick:

The Warriors. Klay, Draymond, Steph, and Kevin are simply too talented and too rested to lose this series. Way back in the day, I used to think that teams that shot a ton of threes were vulnerable in a series because the shooters could get cold and the percentages weren’t high and every other traditional basketball thought they teach you as a kid about layups over jumpers. Wellllll, the reality is that Durant, Thompson and Curry are such incredible shooting talents that they simply don’t really get that cold, and the odds of all of them being off are legitimately LONG. They play defense, they have simply stormed through the playoffs and they are HUNGRY to redeem themselves from last year.

Workplace shooting kills five in Orlando

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By ISAIAH TAYLOR

On Monday, June 5, just a week before the anniversary of the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, another shooting occurred.

An Army veteran identified as John Robert Neumann Jr., shot five people at his former business. He was fired for “unspecific reasons” from Fiamma, Inc. in April, and it has been suggested that the motive was issues in the workplace.

The five victims ranged in ages from 43 to 69, and were identified as Brenda Montanez-Crespo, Kevin Lawson, Kevin Clark, Jeffrey Roberts and Robert Snyder. Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings stated that the shooter had multiple charges on his record, but they were minor. Neumann was also said to have lived alone in Orlando with no relatives in the area.

Demings said that some of the victims had multiple gunshot wounds and others had taken shots directly to the head. Four of the deceased were pronounced dead at the scene, while another passed away after being taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center. There were another eight people present at the business at the time of the attack who escaped injury. After what Demings determined to be a “premeditated plan of action,” Neumann committed suicide with the same gun just before deputies arrived.

Sheila McIntyre, a woman who was in the building at the time of the shooting, had reportedly been on the phone with her sister, Shelley Adams, during the attack. She assured her sister that she was alright, but kept repeating that her boss was dead. Two witnesses who owned businesses near Fiamma gave statements on their sight of law enforcement swarming the location, both expressing their disbelief that something so tragic could happen so close to home.

The Pulse shooting, which happened on June 12 last year, saw 49 deaths and another 53 injuries. Although the two tragedies were not similar in motive or magnitude, they are tragedies all the same, and have both rocked the Orlando community.

Both Florida Gov. Rick Scott and Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs have issued statements about the shooting, with prayers for the victims and their families as well well as a call for all citizens to keep their eyes open and be aware for their safety.

Republicans uneasy with Trump

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By ALEJANDRO GRANDA

After the London Bridge attacks, President Trump lashed out at London Mayor Sadiq Khan, claiming that Khan told citizens not to be alarmed about terrorism and the U.S. Justice Department is pushing a politically correct version of his policy of the travel ban.

Top officials from the White House have suggested to the president that he should not be arguing but to no avail as he continues to brush them off and do what he wants.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders, White House principle deputy press secretary, was asked if the president’s tweets were being vetted by lawyers or aides.

“Not that I’m aware of,” she said at the daily press briefing on Monday.

As Trump continues to engage the news with the anticipated public testimony of former FBI directer James B. Comey before the Senate Intelligence Committee coming up Thursday, many Republicans are neither surprised nor easy and are already nervous about the questions that wait for them after the hearing and expect criticism from Democrats.

Some even fear that Trump will make things worse.

“It’s a distraction, and he needs to focus. Every day and moment he spends on anything other than a rising economy is a waste that disrupts everything,” said former Trump campaign adviser Barry Bennett.

I honestly don’t blame them for being so afraid and nervous. He’s back to the old Trump from his presidential campaign, throwing tantrums worse than my neighbor’s almost two-year-old child because people are disagreeing with him and he’s not getting what he wants. He has to understand that the world does not always revolve around him, even as president of the United States.

CNN fires Griffin over gruesome photo

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By NEYDJA PETITHOMME

CNN made a quick decision to remove comedian and New Year’s Eve co-host Kathy Griffin after posting a photo holding a bloody head which resembled that of President Donald Trump.

Following the post, President Trump responded in this, “Kathy Griffin should be ashamed of herself. My children, especially my 11 year old son, Barron, are having a hard time with this. Sick!

According to CNN, Sen Al Franken was deeply disturbed by the footage taken by Griffin, but will still plan to appear with Griffin at an event in July. This was not easily said by New Years Eve Co host Anderson cooper. Cooper said he was “appalled by the photo shoot.” “It is clearly disgusting and completely inappropriate,” he wrote on Twitter.

Cooper cancels his New Year’s Eve plans with Griffin, which undoubtedly, he should. This act of withdrawal allows viewers to understand the importance of what you say and what you post.

As for Griffin this was no accident. Griffin and her photographer thoroughly planned every ounce of the shoot. Prior to the shoot Griffin mentioned they will have to move to Mexico after exposing the photo. It does not matter if you are a Republican or Democrat, or in this situation a lover or hater of President Donald Trump, this is not acceptable to do.

Griffin lost her endorsement deal with “squatty potty.”