National Anthem 11-11-21
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Florida in November
Professor sues UCLA after refusing to grade Black students more leniently than peers
An accounting professor at UCLA said he filed a lawsuit against the school after it put him on leave and allegedly threatened to fire him for not grading Black student’s more leniently than their peers.
“Recently, I was suspended from my job for refusing to treat my black students as lesser than their non-black peers,” Gordon Klein wrote in an op-ed titled, “Why I Am Suing UCLA.”
The ordeal began, according to Klein, on June 2, 2020, eight days after George Floyd was killed in Minneapolis. A white student emailed Klein asking for a “no harm” final for Black students, meaning low grades would not be counted, in response to “unjust murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd.”
Klein described the proposal as “deeply patronizing and offensive” to Black students and said the email left him “shocked.”
Continue readingBiden administration unveils details of vaccine mandate covering 84 million workers
On Thursday, senior Biden administration officials announced details of a highly anticipated mandate requiring U.S. employers with 100 or more workers to ensure employees are either fully vaccinated for COVID-19 or tested each week for the virus.
The officials also unveiled details of a separate mandate that will require employers participating in Medicare or Medicaid to have a fully vaccinated workforce, with no testing alternative.
The first rule covers 84 million U.S. workers, or two-thirds of the U.S. workforce, officials said. That rule, which will be administered by the Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, will require employees to be fully vaccinated by Jan. 4.
Employees who aren’t fully vaccinated by Jan. 4 have to produce a verified negative test to their employers every week and begin wearing a mask at work as of Dec. 5. Workers who test positive for COVID-19 or receive a diagnosis from a licensed health care provider have to be removed from the workplace. The rule doesn’t require employers to pay for the tests, though agreements with unions might require employers to cover the bill.
Starting Dec. 5, the OSHA rule will require covered employers to provide workers with paid time time off to receive vaccinations, as well as sick leave to recover from vaccination side effects that preclude working.
Continue readingHenry Ruggs III drove 156 mph seconds before fatal car crash
Former Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs III was driving 156 mph with a blood alcohol content twice Nevada’s legal limit before his car slammed into the rear of a vehicle that burned, killing a 23-year-old woman, according to prosecutors.
Ruggs, 22, remained seated in a wheelchair with a foam brace on his neck and jail guards at his elbows during his initial court appearance Wednesday on pending felony charges of driving under the influence of alcohol resulting in death and reckless driving.
Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Joe M. Bonaventure said he was troubled by his initial review of the case against Ruggs, adding that in 16 years on the bench he had never heard of a crash involving a vehicle traveling so fast.
Continue readingDesantis Response to Federal Vaccine Mandate
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Michelin Guides coming to Orlando, Miami and Tampa
The vaunted Michelin Guide will add Florida to its list of rated restaurants in 2022, covering Miami, Orlando and Tampa. It will be the guide’s fifth U.S. destination after New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago and California.
The expansion was spearheaded by Visit Florida, which made the announcement Monday on behalf of its partners Visit Orlando, Visit Tampa Bay and the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau.
“Michelin Guide inspectors look forward to discovering the world-class culinary landscape in Miami, Orlando and Tampa,” Gwendal Poullennec, international director of the Michelin Guides, said in a statement. “From the excitement and glamour of Miami to Orlando’s iconic attractions and the rich culture of Tampa’s Gulf Coast, Florida’s gastronomy is unique, diverse and intriguing for locals and travelers across the globe.”
Unlike the James Beard Foundation Awards but similar to other restaurant guides that were started in the early days of automobiling, such as Mobil and AAA, Michelin uses dedicated inspectors who dine at the restaurants anonymously. The guide has a three-star rating system, with three being the ultimate. New York City currently has only five three-star restaurants. The guide also features notable restaurants that fall short of earning a star. The guide was started 120 years ago, in France, by the Michelin tire company to offer handy information to motorists.
A date for publication of the first Florida Michelin Guide has not been announced.
Here’s what ‘Let’s Go, Brandon’ actually means
If you’ve heard people chanting “Let’s go, Brandon!” or seen someone with a shirt or hat sporting the seemingly-jovial message lately, you might be wondering who Brandon is and why so many people are rooting for him.
In this case, the phrase isn’t actually supporting a guy named Brandon. Instead, it’s a euphemism that many people in conservative circles are using in place of saying “F*** Joe Biden.”
The origins of the meme go back to Oct. 2, when race car driver Brandon Brown won his first NASCAR Xfinity Series race and was being interviewed by NBC reporter Kelli Stavast. In the background, some in the crowd can be heard chanting “F*** Joe Biden,” though Stavast says “you can hear the chants from the crowd, ‘Let’s go, Brandon!’ ” in her broadcast.
Continue readingSignificant solar flare’ prompts G3 Geomagnetic Storm Watch
The sun emitted a “significant solar flare” on Oct. 28 and because of it, the Earth is under a G3 (strong) Geomagnetic Storm Watch until Oct. 31, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
The solar flare was categorized as an X1.0-class flare, according to NASA.
“X-class denotes the most intense flares, while the number provides more information about its strength. An X2 is twice as intense as an X1, an X3 is three times as intense, etc. Flares that are classified X10 or stronger are considered unusually intense,” NASA said in a Thursday news release.
The solar flare took place at about 11:35 a.m. ET on Thursday after it was observed by the Solar Dynamics Observatory, according to NASA.
Any impacts the solar flare may have on Earth’s technology are minimal, but the G3 storm has the potential to push the aurora further out, giving people who live in Iowa, Oregon and Pennsylvania a chance to see it over the weekend, the NOAA said.
The aurora borealis and aurora australis — also known as the northern lights and southern lights — are the eerily beautiful green and purple lights seen in the sky at the north and south poles of the Earth. The lights occur when space weather, such as solar flares, interferes with the planet’s magnetic field, according to NASA.
“When we see the glowing aurora, we are watching a billion individual collisions, lighting up the magnetic field lines of Earth,” NASA said.