WEDNESDAY JANUARY 23 2019 news roundup

Nancy Pelosi tells Trump there will be no state of the union speech until the government has reopened.. Trump said he is coming anyway! A showdown on LIVE TV set.. the epic battle of ratings. . . for the ages..




VACCINATION POLICE ARE COMING NEAR PORTLAND! A quickly escalating measles outbreak around Portland, Oregon, has led health officials in nearby Clark County, Washington, to declare a public health emergency as they warn that people infected with the highly contagious virus since the beginning of the year have visited schools and churches, a dentist's office, an Amazon locker pickup station, a Costco, and an Ikea...


Massive booms heard in three Kentucky counties.. .. In a Facebook post, Jackson County 911 said "No it's not a 'conspiracy' and no we are not hiding anything."..





NASA wants to knock an asteroid out or orbit by 2022.. The asteroid in question, informally known as Didymoon, is a moon asteroid about 150 meters tall. It's part of a double asteroid system — named after the Greek word for twins, Didymos — in which it orbits another 800-meter asteroid about a kilometer away...




Late shift, long after it was battled: Jay Leno opens up about David Letterman and Conan O'Brien.. MORE: "We don't hate each other," Leno said of Letterman. "The media makes a big thing about it. I am a huge fan." ..






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Attention deficit democracy

The national mood is dark..
Ever since that dreaded blood moon—oh and an meteorite hit the moon DURING THE TOTAL ECLIPSE that was seen from earth this weekend. .

The Covington Catholic High School fiasco is a symptom of an even greater problem we face: WE have no time to get to know a story..let it develop..we judge quickly and hate even quicker when something newsworthy bursts open and makes the “viral” rounds..

There are Hollywood stars and media moguls proclaiming that the children involved should be doxxed, that someone should put the young teens in wood chippers.. and that the school and teachers need to be “taught a lesson”—and Saturday Night Live ‘comedy writers’ saying they will give fellacio to whoever punches the MAGA teen.. 

While the media and some stars had to back track on the video when MORE video and more information was released and known, others line just don’t care.. Everyone is dying to give their political view on the topic. They are spreading their hate on social media... on Facebook and Twitter we are developing into de-evolution..

George Orwell wrote of a ‘Face crime” in 1984..This young teen, who now is taking to media to defend himself as his image has been spread around the world and his family and friends have been threatened with bodily harm.



You can read the full report on what occurred somewhere—maybe you’ll get an unbiased report here or there.. All sources seem shaded just a bit towards their own side ... their own political end game in mind..

But in mind is how we are three seconds away from hate at all times on Twitter.. how people can make horrid comments about anyone at any time and call for violence.. Twitter may suspend some. But not all..and in the end the attention deficit democracy spreads far and wide.. with common sense, true journalism, and the dream of America falling by the wayside.

We are divided. And when divided, much easier to be conquered...
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2019’s blood moon rises

There is something magestic about a blood moon with negative 14 degree wind chills.. it binds you to history and the time and place you inhabit ..


It gives you a sense of wonder and dread... it forces you into a position where you feel small.. feel helpless... feel alive!


As the blood moon rises tonight ... 







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Real life meets horror: HAPPY DEATH DAY 2U shifting release date

Universal Pictures is shifting the film's release date from the planned February 14th, the one-year anniversary of the shooting at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, to February 13th...

"When Universal Pictures became aware last week that the one-year anniversary of the tragic events in Parkland, Florida fell on the Happy Death Day 2U release date, the studio spoke with victim advocates and immediately began the process of changing the release date of the film," the studio issued in a statement. "Following discussions with its partners in exhibition, Universal will move the North American release date to February 13th. Additionally, the studio has decided not to show the film in Parkland and the surrounding areas. Outdoor, digital and in-theatre marketing for the film will be suspended in that market. The studio understands the importance of memorializing the February 14th date as an opportunity to continue to allow the Parkland community to heal."

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Nick Castle in the staying power of his performance in the original HALLOWEEN

There was a great interview that appeared in COLLIDER..

Among the best part was Michael Myers himself, Nick Castle, trying to explain the staying power of his performance in the original John Carpenter film and the staying power of the movie itself:

Someone’s like, “How did you walk across… when you were chasing Jamie, and you turned at the banister, and you cross your leg, and what is that?” And I said, “I have no idea what you’re talking [about].” So I have to go back. I went back and took a look at it. And I was happy to see it again, ’cause I can see why it has lasting power. It just kind of all worked. The characters were well-drawn. And John just did a fantastic job, very simple but straightforward, but in a very artistic way.

So yeah, it was fun to go back, and to revisit it. And I didn’t know this. In the performance, I guess just the angular… I was 145 pounds, man. And the way my face was, I had kinda stretched, I think, the mask a little bit. So it does have its own character. And in fact, someone told me there’s a… in the world of fandom, there’s a thing called the “Castle Stretch”, or something like that, which indicates that’s the captain instead of the other guys in the other sequels. It’s a fun thing, I know, for fans to do. And it’s more fun for me, as well.

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ARREST MADE: MAN WAS PLANNING ATTACK ON D.C. AT SEVERAL LOCATIONS

Federal authorities have arrested a man in Georgia who they are accusing of plotting to attack several prominent locations in Washington, D.C., including the White House.

Hasher Jallal Taheb had been under investigation by the FBI as part of a sting operation after local authorities reported concerns about him becoming radicalized last March, according to a criminal complaint filed in the federal court in the Northern District of Georgia in Atlanta on Wednesday.

In a meeting with the informant and an undercover FBI agent on Dec. 2, Taheb allegedly stated that "they could do more damage" in the U.S. because abroad they would be "one of many." He also allegedly said that he wanted to be a “martyr” and cause as much damage as possible, the complaint states.

On Dec. 7, Taheb allegedly showed the undercover operative a hand-drawn diagram of the White House's West Wing in a composition notebook and asked for help with obtaining weapons and explosives for the attack, the complaint states.

"He said the group would fight to the end and make it a big bang," according to the document.

DEVELOPING..,
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ALEXA FIGHTS BACK!

Various reports from around the world today: A weird Amazon outage meant that Alexa – typically controlled by voice – was "ignoring" user requests throughout the day in various countries..

Reports across the pond in Theresa May's UK *she survived so far*:

Outage tracker Down Detector received hundreds of reports about Alexa not working at around 8am UK time – and was resolved about an hour later.

Most of the reports were related to either server connections not working, or problems with logging into Alexa.

A global outage map showed that users were experiencing issues around the world, although primarily in the UK and Europe – which was just waking up.

A large number of reports also came in from the USA, although the majority of America was sleeping at the time.
So imagine a future world where Alexa gets angry.. where Alexa stops listening.. maybe starts controlling with its own brain. 

Black Mirror stuff....
Real life. 
TODAY she started her fighting back..


One user on Twitter wrote: "Anybody else's Alexa ignoring them this morning?
"It played my local radio station after a while, but won't do anything else. Just ignoring me. Won't even turn off."

Another Brit complained: "Anyone else got a problem with Alexa this morning? Refusing to talk to me, just a spinny blue light and then goes off."
On Down Detector, a user complained that he couldn't control his smart home: "Won't turn up the heating, and is thinking long and hard about whether to turn lights on or off."
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Toto's "Africa" plays on repeat in the middle of the Namib Desert... for as long as it can play

Namibian artist Max Siedentopf has set up a sound installation in the coastal Namib Desert to play on loop..

MORE..

The 1982 track is quadruple platinum, and was the most streamed song in 2017, with over 440m views on YouTube.

Mr Siedentopf tells the BBC it is set to play forever, with solar batteries "to keep Toto going for all eternity".

Or as long as eternity lasts...

So cool!

If you recall, there are some YOUTUBE videos where TOTO is playing in vacant malls and other portions of 1980s settings where the song was born.

Amazing video in VIMEO!






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Baby shark science revealed!

For anyone who hates this song... with kids who love it.. the science of BABY SHARK is now revealed!

This is how CNN is reporting it,

"Baby Shark," that wholesome children's song that's somehow become an anthem for toddlers, families, marquee celebrities and groups of complete strangers from Indonesia to Indiana. "Baby Shark," that viral earworm/mom group in-joke/meme/marketing craze circling the globe in innumerable, unlimited permutations.
One of the most interesting parts, and a commentary on culture:
The YouTube of 2010 may have inspired some important viral moments, but the YouTube of 2019 is a massive all-encompassing entertainment hub. That's exactly why "Baby Shark" landed on the Billboard Hot 100 next to Imagine Dragons and Cardi B. It's simple math, really: In 2013, Billboard charts began to factor YouTube views into its equations, in addition to streaming data. There are literally thousands of "Baby Shark" videos on YouTube, primed and ready for searching little fingers to find. A charting breakthrough was only a matter of time.
MORE..
"As soon as a child is old enough to be on any device, they're going to be searching," says Morley. "Toddlers are free searching. They may not know exactly what they're doing, but they're pushing buttons all over and sometimes parents are too busy and distracted and disconnected to look over their shoulders. It's uncharted territory for a lot of parents, and they find it hard to keep up."
So..........to ruin your day, here it is!


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The KILLERS return with a strike against President Donald Trump

The KILLERS have returned with music that has social and political commentary about President Donald Trump and his push to build a wall... My home region of the coals mines of PA are mentioned.

My advice: All comment threads are toxic.. just listen to the music and absorb the feeling..

.. the KILLERS are back.    :)


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Pre blood moon weekend quake in Maryland

Not that a blood moon ever scared anyone right ?

An earthquake was reported off the coast of Ocean City, Maryland, at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday according to the U.S. Geological Survey Earthquake Hazards Program.
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Jason Reitman to direct GHOSTBUSTERS

Ivan Reitman directed GHOSTBUSTERS... his son Jason will direct the new one..

The Academy Award-nominated filmmaker confirmed on social media Tuesday that he is set to co-write and direct a new installment of “Ghostbusters.” 

It’s not a reboot, according to Reitman, but a continuation.. the 80s happened. We just continue into the new day with a furtherance of the story..
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M. Night Shyamalan was approached by Marvel and DC Comics.. and he said no!

M. Night Shyamalan was approached by Marvel and DC Comics to potentially deliver a story featuring their characters, but he is revealing that he felt as though he would be denied creative control on those universes, making him pass on those offers..'

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“I want to make sure it’s right for everybody. I have a strong [filmmaking] accent. It’s very particular, and the best version of it is, to keep the accent,” Shyamalan shared with Yahoo when asked if he would apply his perspective to Marvel or DC. "Are those movies [Marvel and DC superhero films] a place for that? Or is it appropriate for that?” 
"Because they, in and of themselves, have their own flavor. Do they want this other Tabasco in there? So it’s philosophically a question. It doesn’t mean [I’ll] never [do it], but it’s very hard to imagine. Filmmakers that have a heavy accent – I don’t necessarily want them to make those movies.” 
“It’s not fair to [studios], because they want to make [their films] in a certain language,” the filmmaker pointed out. “And what if I said ‘Hey, I’m going to do this three-minute shot on the back of his head, and I also want to make them very dark, and I want his motivation to be really ambiguous, and I want to challenge the audience to make them super-uncomfortable.’ I want [the studio] to be OK with those things.”
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UK report from across the pond: St Nicholas' Church in the village of Thorne





The ALWAYS REPUTABLE (sense the sarcasm??) UK SUN reports....

Natalie Wilkinson, 28 and her friend Kerry Morris, 31, saw an advert for bell ringers and thought it might be a good thing to try. 
They turned up to St Nicholas' Church in the village of Thorne, Doncaster, South Yorks, and had a tour before taking a quick snap.

But they were stunned to find what they claim is the ghostly face of a little boy behind them.
They since found out the church's north doors are known as 'Devil's doors' because they were meant to be left open to let the bad spirits out.
Natalie, from Doncaster, said: “It’s quite freaky up there being a church and as old as it is, the steps are narrow and old wood, meaning only one person could squeeze down at a time.
“After exploring we headed down to the bell floor, being the last down I said ‘quick let’s take a selfie’ as no one would believe what we had been doing on this random night.
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The Grande Pokemon product placement?

This is news today.....

Tattoo artist Kane Navasard shared a photo of Ariana Grande's new ink on Monday, tagging the singer and writing in the caption, “For the best Pokémon trainer in the game, @arianagrande."

Grande previously posted a photo of the tat on her Instagram Story, thanking Navasard and writing, "I've wanted this for so long."

The tattoo depicts the Pokemon character Eevee, which has fox-like ears – similar to the cat ears Grande once favored wearing – and a big tail.



But inquiring minds would love to know... who paid!? Certainly a tattoo could not be product PLACEMENT, could it!?

The 25-year-old tweeted about her love of the "Pokémon: Let's Go, Eevee!" Nintendo Switch game on Sunday, telling a fan on Twitter how she spent one of her recent days off playing for 15 hours.

NEVER... RIGHT///
?
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Hollywood being besieged by debt!

VARIETY REPORTS

AT&T is not alone in seeing red-ink levels rise in an era of merger mania.
Comcast will have to shoulder $114.7 billion in debt, according to Moody’s, now that it has shelled out $40 billion to buy Sky — this after losing the bidding war with Disney for 21st Century Fox. Like Comcast, Disney is carrying more leverage than it has in more than a decade.
The task facing AT&T, Disney and Comcast is a daunting one, requiring deft corporate maneuvering to avert disaster. All three companies have made big bets that the only way to survive and thrive amid the digital disruption is to get bigger, and they’ve used debt, lots of it, to finance their empire building.
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Alex Jones loss: Judge rules he needs to turn over marketing and financial data for INFOWARS to Sandy Hook families just as he returns to ROKU

Judge Barbara Bellis has granted the discovery request of the family members’ of several children, a teacher, and an FBI agent who were killed during the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School the Newtown, Connecticut.

MORE..



The plaintiffs are suing Jones for defamation and allege that Jones spread a series of “abusive and outrageous false statements” and encouraged his viewers and listeners to act on this information.

The plaintiffs allege that because of Jones’ actions, they have been subject to “physical confrontation and harassment, death threats, and a sustained barrage of harassment and verbal assault on social media.” The lawsuit further claims that Jones knew his Sandy Hook hoax talk was a bunch of lies but he pushed them anyway as part of a profit-making plan for his internet and radio shows.

The plaintiffs will have access to internal company communications, including email messages and texts, concerning the Newtown massacre as well as the website’s contracts with social media companies, all of which could shed light on the intricacies behind Infowars’ conspiracy theory business model.

Meanwhile, according to USA TODAY:

Streaming player Roku has come under fire for bringing banned conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and his InfoWars video channel back online.
Jones, who has called the Sandy Hook school shootings a "hoax," was thrown off Apple, Facebook, Spotify and other online platforms in 2018.
“Roku’s shocking decision to carry Infowars and provide a platform for Alex Jones is an insult to the memory of the 26 children and educators killed at Sandy Hook," said Josh Koskoff, a lawyer representing several Sandy Hook families suing Jones.
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M NIGHT expected to smash with GLASS this weekend!


This from DEADLINE:

Tracking is seeing Glass at $60M over four days at roughly 3,700 theaters in U.S. and Canada, but there are some who believe this pic, given its long fandom appeal, could jump to $70M. Glass cost in the low $20M before P&A to make and was completely financed by Shyamalan; the movie was a negative pickup for both Universal and BVI.

One more quick report from DEADLINE:

Anecdotally, if you’re looking for a copy of Unbreakable on DVD at Amoeba in Hollywood — they’re already sold out after having several copies in stock.
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PENN STATE HORROR SHOW! HAZING DETAILS REVOLTING!

Penn State on Tuesday published a hazing report that showed the university investigated 31 incidents over the past five years, including allegations last year that sorority pledges were forced to lick members' toes and fraternity pledges had to run routes in a basement while members threw cigarettes and beer cans at them.

MORE!

Penn State’s report, which includes all Penn State campuses, can be found on the Office of Ethics and Compliance website.

Members of the Zeta Psi fraternity allegedly forced new members to run errands and on one occasion instructed to chug a jug of wine in 30 minutes

Members of the Gamma Phi Beta sorority said they were forced to engage in underage drinking, servitude and required to lick the toes of members. The women’s soccer team was among three non-Greek organizations included in the report. The new members of the team reported verbal harassment, and said they were forced to consume alcohol and wear clothing with derogatory wording on it in 2015..

Image result for penn state scandal hazing

DEVELOPING..



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#RIP BROADWAY ICON CAROL CHANNING DEAD AT 97

Tributes from stars like Kristin Chenoweth and Bette Midler poured in to honor the life and career of Carol Channing, the three-time Tony Award-winning musical comedy star who delighted American audiences over 5,000 performances as the scheming Dolly Levi in “Hello, Dolly!” on Broadway and beyond. She died Tuesday at 97.

Publicist B. Harlan Boll said Channing died of natural causes at 12:31 a.m. Tuesday in Rancho Mirage, California. Boll says she had twice suffered strokes in the last year.




One last evening with Carol Channing in color..

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The best picture Oscar award does not matter.... NO one remembers who even wins it!

The 90th Academy Awards big winner of 2018, Guillermo Del Toro’s fantasy drama The Shape of Water, was correctly identified by only 20 percent of respondents in the survey as the Oscar best picture victor. (The nationally representative poll of 2,201 adults was conducted from Jan. 3 to Jan. 6 this year.) 

Among the 2017 nominees, more respondents thought the Emma Stone-Ryan Gosling musical La La Land won best picture (20 percent) than the actual winner, Barry Jenkins’ drama Moonlight (12 percent). That year at least included an infamous mistake that caused confusion — Envelopegate, where, due to a mix-up, La La Land was unveiled as best picture by presenters before the right envelope was read several minutes later to crown Moonlight.

MORE And more proof that the best picture nomination and award could not matter a hill of beans.. Horror and fantasy, with action, prevail in the minds and habits of the viewing public... the best picture is limited to the elite who earn it. Not the masses of asses who view movies..

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Promising news for the return of HE-MAN

First the news.. then the opining and whining:

“Iron Man” and “Men in Black International” scribes Art Marcum and Matt Holloway have been set to pen the “Master of Universe” reboot at Sony Pictures and Mattel Films.





That’s right.. the potential return of ADAM, SKELETOR, even maybe MAN-AT-ARMS and RAM MAN.. no clue on which of the hundred plus characters from the famous cartoon of so many of childhoods filmmakers would pick. The cast could be endless...

The SONY and Mattel dreams are risky..

Yes, the cartoon was a smash hit in the 1980s and the toy line was the best thing that happened to Christmases during the Reagan years, but will it transcribe into modern day 21st century success...?

The kids who loved HE-MAN were a little to grown up by the time the late 80s movie appeared in theaters where a young Dolph Lundgren appeared as He-Man and ruined it all..



That movie was such a failure! Such a misconception of art .. such an overwhelming box office blunder. No words could describe how unlike the cartoon it was. Even if the kids of that 80s were getting older, they still would have overwhelmingly loved a film that captured the spirit of the cartoon, Grayskull...and Eternia. This movie did not.

But that is also where this modern age could be the best time to go back to the past!

STRANGER THINGS and other shows on Netflix have capitilized on the kids of the 80s being in their 30s and 40s now, and yearning for the nostalgia of the past. Craving for shows that could capture the spirit of their youth, and their generation. They are buying up old pop culture and re-introducing it to their own kids.

Enter.. HE-MAN. This could be, potentially, the perfect time for a return to Eternia. 

....but new characters? They failed with Gwildor. So hopefully filmmakers would stick to the 80s script and not re-invent the wheel.....

WE love the concept of HE-MAN in theaters.. but we all so fear it equally...
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NOT SO FINAL DESTINATION

GET READY! The year 2000 is about to come back to haunt you like never before.. remind you of death.. the falling logs. The crashing planes. The windows from high above ready to smoosh your body into oblivion.

From The HOLLYWOOD REPORTER this weekend, 

THIS:


New Line is gearing up for another trip with Death. The company is restarting its Final Destination horror franchise, hiring scary movie mavens Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan to pen the script. Final Destination proved to be a cornerstone for New Line’s horror business in the early 2000s. The first movie, released in 2000, set up the concept: a character has a premonition of a horrific and deadly event, cheats his or her own death and saves several other lives in the process, only to have Death, as a personified but unstoppable force, come for the survivors one by one.
Hard to believe that the year 2000 is already almost 20 years ago. This film has been one of the few from the early 2000s that stuck around in popularity, but at the same time shocking to think of how long it has been since this has been in theaters.

Will a reboot work? IS THERE A NEED FOR ANOTHER REBOOT of something that has not yet aged a full two decades? And finally... does Hollywood have a horror idea that isn’t something that the previous century created..? 

No on the final question.Unknown on the others.




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BIRD BOX driving challenge crash

Though a bit late to the fad, yet another BIRD BOX CHALLENGE story comes , this time from Utah.. a teenager performing the duties of the challenge—driving blindfolded—crashed..

From the NEWS.....



....let the Darwin Nominations for 2019 begin.
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Stephen King fans love newspapers...?

This is from an AP DISPATCH FROM MAINE:

A Maine newspaper that horrified author Stephen King by dropping its local book review coverage used his complaint to boost digital subscriptions.
King, who lives in Bangor, complained Friday about the Portland Press Herald's decision to stop publishing freelance-written reviews of books about Maine or written by Maine authors and urged his 5.1 million Twitter followers to retweet his message.
The paper responded by promising to reinstate the local book reviews if 100 of King's followers purchased digital subscriptions to the newspaper. It reached that goal late Saturday morning.
In a tweet announcing the subscriptions, the newspaper said, "You all are the best readers anywhere. Sincerely," and "We love you Maine. We love you journalists. We love you newspapers."
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Take that Oscars! Kevin Hart wins the weekend box office

Kevin Hart's "The Upside" surpassed expectations to open with $19.6 million in ticket sales according to studio estimates Sunday.

The strong performance of "The Upside" pushed Jason Momoa's "Aquaman" to second place after the aquatic superhero's three-week reign on top of the North American box office.

Over the weekend, "Aquaman" passed $1 billion worldwide.

Opening in third place was the canine adventure "A Dog's Way Home" with $11.3 million.


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‘Mass casualty’ drug overdose in Cali

Various sources reporting today; 

Police in Northern California responded to a "mass casualty overdose" situation on Saturday that resulted in one death and a dozen people hospitalized.

Authorities said that the incident was caused by exposure to the deadly opioid fentanyl, which also affected two responding officers, according to NBC News. 

Mike O'Brien, a police captain in Chico, Calif., said at a news conference that four of the victims were in critical condition

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Superbug involved in Tijuana bariatric surgery infections showed concerning mutation

THE CDC warns:

The superbug that infected nearly a dozen Americans who recently underwent weight-loss surgery at a Tijuana hospital had a particularly nasty genetic mutation that set off alarm bells after patients began showing up in hospitals and doctors officers with painful wounds.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a travel warning this week, notifying the public that 11 Americans who traveled to Tijuana hospitals for weight-loss surgery had become infected with drug-resistant pseudomonus aeruginosa infections during their stays.

DEVELOPING..


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The nostalgic homage to WWE past

Monday Night RAW featured a traditional ten bell salute to Mean Gene Okurland, the announcer who so many of us grew up hearing the voice of on Saturday mornings and pay per view events.. After the silence, the noise of the WWE live show was burst open by the REAL AMERICAN theme.. Hulk Hogan began his entrance, in character, into the ring..

The video from WWE:



One could wonder how many people in that event knew the Hogan theme as it began.. or did it take a little for the 1980s and 90s to come back to the mind.. 

As Hogan went through his WWE style eulogy for Mean Gene, he mentioned how angels on high are entering the WWE announcer into the gates.. how the Ultimate Warrior and the Macho Man are enjoying a match.. how Andre the Giant is officiating.. The names went on and the Hulkster’s words forced nostalgia for those good old days of wrestling to come rushing back.

Industry watchers know the level of change that Vince McMahan and Linda have brought over the years. Some would say wrought over the years.. The changes are abundant. From the old days of multiple federations across the East Coast into the WWF, before the animals rights group sued and the F turned into Entertainment.. just about when the Federation figured it was time to ‘entertain’ instead of pretend they were sports.. 

Hulk Hogan is still from that last breed of character that, in character, holds firm to the vitamin eating traditions of the Reagan Era.  When he was a cereal brand.. when he was a national figure during the late 20th century.

His image has been tarnished and his reputation dealt blows.. But his homage to Mean Gene was credible and his words were meaningful.. Yes, indeed.. so many big wrestling stars are in a match in the sky.... Flying high. Superfly.. 

Hogan’s the last of a dying breed..
Ten bell salutes in the WWE come early and often. So many wrestling perish of overdoses on drugs or alcohol, or overdoses on fame and fortune coupled with dreadful choices for their bodies and families.. 

It is almost as though the fame of professional wrestling is a curse within itself.. people who are not prone to fame are hit hard by the flashing cameras and even harder by the contracts and jobs that injure without Workers Compensation.

Their tortured careers brought us all laughter and cheers.. We clap and continue to root for the baby faces...

And miss Mean Gene, Gorilla Monsoon, Bobby Heenan, and all of the voices and personalities that somehow helped form us during the formative years..
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FLASHBACK 2018: Taubenberger’s discovery raised the terrifying possibility that, in the future, some other avian influenza virus – like the H5N1 bird flu then circulating in south-east Asia or the H7N9 flu currently causing sporadic human infections in China – might suddenly acquire the ability to trigger a similarly devastating pandemic. It also begged the question, why bring the Spanish flu back to life, and what if the virus escaped the laboratory and fell into the hands of terrorists?


101 YEARS LATER: THE SAME FLU VIRUS THAT CAUSED THE 1918 PANDEMIC RETURNS IN 2019!
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Global chess pieces move on the board

Chinese state media announced Friday that Communist Party leader Xi Jinping has ordered the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to “enhance their combat readiness,” without elaborating what threat has made preparation for combat so urgent.
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The AQAUAMAN scene popular in China

“I'm thinking of all the crazy set pieces and all the cool visuals and all that," James Wan tells The Hollywood Reporter. "I wasn't even remotely close. They said, 'It's the scene where Amber [Heard] eats the flower."

The scene in question finds Arthur/Aquaman (Jason Momoa) and Mera (Heard) in Italy, in search of Atlan's trident. Mera is unsure of how to act amongst the surface dwellers, and in a market she ends up eating a flower as though it were a piece of fruit. Not one to make her feel out of place, Arthur follows suit and eats a flower as well. 

"When he is in her world, he's the fish out of water. When she's in his world, she's the fish out of water. And it is about finding those moments," says Wan, who notes he spends as much time working on the small human moments as he does on the set pieces. 



The film will warn more than $900 mil in global markets with more than $260 mil coming from the newest majority movie consumer: China

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Hacker group wants ransom of Bitcoins... or threatens to reveal 9/11 files

A hacker group has threatened to reveal "secret" data related to September 11 attacks in the US after claiming to have got access to a large cache of confidential files.

In its announcement published on Pastebin, the group known as The Dark Overlord pointed to several different insurers and legal firms, claiming specifically that it hacked Hiscox Syndicates Ltd, Lloyds of London, and Silverstein Properties, the Motherboard reported on Tuesday.

"Hiscox Syndicates Ltd and Lloyds of London are some of the biggest insurers on the planet insuring everything from the smallest policies to some of the largest policies on the planet, and who even insured structures such as the World Trade Centers," the group said in the announcement.

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The Bandershatch ending you’ll never see

Now THIS is some good press for BANDERSNATCH.. an ending so creepy, so hidden, that even people who made the movie cannot access it..

These are the stories modern urban legends are made of.. And with Black Mirror, no doubt as creepy as it could get.

According to the The Hollywood Reporter, Bandersnatch director David Slade has revealed that some endings are so secret and difficult to get that they may never be viewed by audiences.

"There are scenes that some people just will never see and we had to make sure that we were OK with that," explained Slade, adding "We actually shot a scene that we can’t access.”

.....someone out there now has the mission to find this impossible ending.

And maybe never come back again........

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Kevin Smith planning a return to JAY AND SILENT BOB




Smith and Mewes made their film debut in the 1994 comedy “Clerks,” funded for $27,000 through Smith maxing out his credit cards. Smith wrote, directed, co-produced, and acted in “Clerks,” portraying the character Silent Bob as part of the team of Jay and Silent Bob.

Smith’s subsequent films featured Jay and Silent Bob and were mostly set in his home state of New Jersey. Those included “Mallrats,” “Chasing Amy,” “Dogma,” “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back” and 2006’s “Clerks 2” 

It is good to see Kevin Smith looking like a million bucks after his heart attack and issues.. he lost weight. He looks amazing..

And the amazing feat of producing a remake of this will be very, very interesting.

I would equally love to see a return to MALL RATS. Perhaps in a dead mall.. maybe the third-nippled psychic would still be working all these decades later... With a cameo from Seph Lawless....

In time, in time.

First we see Jay and Silent Bob coming back again.


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DARWIN AWARDS: Netflix forced to decry the BIRD BOX CHALLENGE

“Can’t believe I have to say this, but: PLEASE DO NOT HURT YOURSELVES WITH THIS BIRD BOX CHALLENGE. We don’t know how this started, and we appreciate the love, but Boy and Girl have just one wish for 2019 and it is that you not end up in the hospital due to memes.”

But they have yet to comment on removing content that Saudi Arabia disapproved of ..
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Madge at 60 with a younger butt: Happy new rear from Madonna



The 60-year-old Madonna performed alongside her son David Banda, 13, at the famous New York gay bar Stonewall Inn in New York on New Year's Eve. ..

And fans have faced to the socials to proclaim that she has a happy new rear..

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China lands on the ‘dark side of the moon’

The China National Space Administration said the 10:26 a.m. landing of the Chang'e-4 lunar explorer has “opened up a new chapter in human lunar exploration.”

The Chang'e-4′s launch on Dec. 8 was hailed as one of the nation’s major achievements in 2018, and state broadcaster China Central Television announced Thursday’s landing to the public at the top of the noon news.
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Mean Gene Okerland dead at 76

Legendary wrestling announcer “Mean” Gene Okerlund died at the age of 76, WWE announced Wednesday.




Okerlund was one of the more recognizable names in sports entertainment with his career spanning the American Wrestling Association, World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment.

We did know something MeanJean.. you were the voice of countless childhood backgrounds and will hold a special place in millions of people's hearts ..




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Hasan Minhaj’s episode on Saudi pulled by Netflix!

Netflix has removed the second episode of Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj from its service in Saudi Arabia after receiving a request from the country’s Communications and Information Technology Commission, reports the Financial Times.

The episode focused on America’s relationship with Saudi Arabia after the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi last year.

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FANS START THEIR OWN #BirdBoxChallenge.

Fans inspired by “Bird Box,” Sandra Bullock’s Netflix horror hit, have started attempting something called the #BirdBoxChallenge.

The task requires participants to attempt to do things blindfolded like Bullock’s character in the film.
There is a slight difference: In “Bird Box,” characters wear the blindfolds as protection against an unseen force that seemingly takes over people’s vision by manifesting their greatest fears.

In the #BirdBoxChallenge, people wear the blindfolds in hopes of going viral.

The hopes of going viral are the hopes of BIRD BOX makers and NETFLIX, who are seeking newfound ways to keep the social media virility alive for the movie.. 

45 million people watched, we are told...
....Got to keep up those numbers at NETFLIX..


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Midsummer nights dream! STRANGER THINGS confirmed for July 4

Don’t want to tell you I told you so .. but I told you so! * Or maybe just friends privately. Can't prove I told anyone so * ... Summer time stranger things on the way. Freedom on the Fourth of July!



Netflix has released the first key art and a video for the third season of “Stranger Things,” with the latter announcing the new season’s launch on July 4th 2019.

 The streaming giant made the announcement via a clip designed to look like a local Hawkins, Indiana television affiliate.

The new season’s tagline is: “One summer can change everything.” And with the news comes beautiful and mesmerizing nostalgic image to coincide with the July 4 theme.. The teaser is appropriately New Year’s-themed, featuring archival footage of Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve from 1984: As the ball drops in Times Square and 1985 dawns, things take a turn toward the Upside-Down just as the clock is about to strike midnight..

 The program has been brought to you by the STARCOURT MALL..

 

 The screen also serves up the following “scene,” which appears to show someone accessing an entity called “Lynx Corp.” and running the program “SilverCatFeeds.exe”..

 

 And now the wait to summer begins.. Born on the Fourth of July in 1985!
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1919 was then. 2019 is now. 100 years later and the same fears and human emotions persist


New years 1919.. 100 years back.. The temperature went down to 25 degrees and remained below 31 all day. 

Sleet fell sporadically, mixed with rain. A blizzard loomed on the Panhandle and threatened Central Texas..

Also in the war’s aftermath, labor unions began a series of strikes for higher pay and better benefits. Unions had stalled negotiations because of the war; now times were different, but management refused to bargain. 

The Santa Fe Railway’s telegraphers went on strike just before New Year’s. Other unions joined in solidarity.

“The fire department was called out twice Tuesday night (New Year’s Eve) to answer false alarms, presumably turned in by New Year’s celebrants,” the Telegram reported. 

“The New Year was otherwise ushered in very quietly. At midnight, many guns were fired, but the whistles and bells joined in the noise very weakly.”

Victories in Europe allowed the United States, once considered a backward uncouth nation, to emerge victorious as a 20th century superpower…

That was then.

2019 is now.
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BIRDBOX with 45 mil?

NO...
Maybe?

Netflix doesn't give ratings.. but BIRD BOX is so popular it decided to come out of the ratings closet and tell some potentially tall tales...

The streaming service on Friday said more than 45 million "accounts" have watched the Sandra Bullock-led film in its first week of release, the "best first 7 days ever for a Netflix film," the company boasted in a Tweet....
Rebecca Keegan of The Hollywood Reporter questioned the value of Netflix's data in the absence of further context.
"Does Susanne Bier's agent use this data as leverage on her next film? How does a traditional studio considering her for a project view it?" Keegan asked on Twitter.

Bier directed "Bird Box."

Exactly how Netflix qualifies what counts as a viewing is another question. Does the figure account for those who accidentally play the film from an auto-play option? Does it log "viewers" who only watch a few seconds or the entire film?

NETFLIX has taken away their ratings grid.. people cannot bully some shows anymore into non-existence.. 

And social media--word of mouth that is either true and original or contrived by intelligent brokers of Twitterverse behind the scenes--is better for the streaming service than any ad they could buy.

But 45 million? ...
Bird Box?

Those are some big numbers.
And if true, it proves they know what we are watching.. streaming.. but does it know what you're turning off midway through while you chill?
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THE BEST OF TIMES AND THE WORST OF TIMES! PREDICTIONS FOR 2019!


Every year I attempt to give me thoughts about the upcoming year and events that will occur..

But first a breeze back in time. HOW DID I DO!?

FROM 2017, WHAT I SAID WOULD BE THE STORIES OF 2018. My comments afterwards in bold. 

  1. Donald Trump is going to have a much more difficult time than expected. At least initially.  He will be besieged by protests and also by people within his own party. By the middle of the year, he will realize that by going directly to people above party leaders can motivate the electorate to accept some if his policies. I expect rallies by the end of the year to be a normal course of White House business.  There were rallies and yes, indeed, a lot of them.. Politics were business as usual as opposed to business as usual. I will give myself credit on this. 
  2. The stock market will hit 20,000 and stay within that range. By August we will be speculating when the market will hit 25,000. YES! Right .. .but the market dropped after. I would chalk this up as yet another victory in my predictions. 
  3. Vladimir Putin will either visit the United States or Donald Trump will visit Russia. Either way a more united front will emerge. They met. But not the visits I expected. HALF RIGHT.
  4. The weather in 2017 will be hot. As hot as 2016.. there may be slick spots of winter that emerge from time to time sporadically throughout the world, but the majority of the months to come will feature hotter than normal temperatures. Yep. As so it goes... Another point. 
  5. The British Royal family will have to decide how to move forward after a tragic scenario.. there may be a new queen before 2018. I will try again next year. No point.
  6. Stephen Colbert may be facing cancellation in 2017. There is going to be a dramatic realignment of late night TV. People are tired of an obsessive amount of politics during the daytime hours. The nighttime should be sacred for comedy. People may turn on political version of such by rebelling against the Colbert program on CBS. Wow how wrong could I be!! Trump helped him. No chance of this ...
  7. BREXIT. Trump. I think France and Germany will have upheaval in 2017. The world is shaking like a post-earthquake atmosphere from the changes in 2016. Transitions something are sloppy. And we have somehow transitioned into something very different than we were in 16.. Yes.. but not being specific, I will not give myself a point.
  8. Major hacking will reveal something in 2017. Either from Wikileaks, or a source not yet to be named. Secrets will become revealed in 2017 to make us question what type of reality we live in. Nope..
  9. Though everyone seems to predict it, Donald Trump will be aggressive in NOT declaring war or bombing other nations. (This is a prediction, but also a prayer) Right.
  10. Virtual reality! All the rage in 2016! …..but just wait. I predict the opposite for 2017. Nope.

And now without further ado some predictions for 2019.......

  1. Economic uncertainly! Will we collapse!? Will we fail?! All of this is on the table as markets go up and down with high momentum.. Big changes and shifts. We will end the year mostly strong, but 2020 remains the enigma.. Election year recession? It's possible by the end of '19
  2. Donald Trump investigations galore! But what to see!? Everyone around him will be in trouble trouble.. him> .... he will make it to 2020 ...
  3. Democrats in Congress MAY impeach Trump but the Senate will not convict...
  4. Most high ranking officials around Trump will continue to resign or go to jail. It's mayhem at the highest levels!
  5. Weather!? Yep. Another big story. Few snow events but much more in the rain and flooding and tsunamis category... it's going to be a brutal year.
  6. Robots will begin to take over parts of many industries.. people will start seeing the end of their careers thanks to tech.
  7. SEARS will be gone, as will many other major retailers that have been around for 200 years. I guess that's called progress.....
  8. Big big celestial events will cause chaos and fright as blood moons and eclipses reign supreme..  These space events will coincide with strange anomalies on this planet. We live in strange times. 
  9. TECH OVERLOAD!!! We will start doing yoga.. seeking out peace.. and anything NOT associated with computers and smartphones...
  10. Ruth Bader Ginsberg will .. well... there will be a new nomination for the Supreme Court.. and the rest of the year of politics will be hell......................
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911 outages across the United States

U.S. officials and at least one state said Friday that they have started investigations into a nationwide CenturyLink internet outage that has disrupted 911 service.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai called the outage that began Thursday “completely unacceptable” because people who need help couldn’t use the emergency number.

“Its breadth and duration are particularly troubling,” he said.

The commission’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau will investigate the cause and effect of the outage, he said.

CenturyLink spokeswoman Debra Peterson said the outage “is not related to hacking,” but she declined further comment.

The company said on Twitter that it’s working to restore service and appears to be making progress. It hasn’t provided a cause for the problems.

“Where CenturyLink is the 911 service provider 911 calls are completing,” the company said in a tweet.

DEVELOPING..


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Not just Blue York City... but Louisiana too!



Incredible video captures several electrical explosions in Louisiana Thursday morning..
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Upcoming fear porn for 2019 being revealed: Eclipses, and blood moons abound

2019 is featuring five eclipses, a rare planet transit, one of the best meteor showers and a super blood wolf moon..

The new year will also bring three supermoons, a blue moon, multiple meteor showers, close approach by the moon and Jupiter and several rocket launches..

MORE..

For the first time in three years on January 21, the United States will be able to experience a total lunar eclipse. According to NASA, it will be one of the sky's "most dazzling shows," as the moon will be at its closest point to Earth, making the moon appear slightly bigger and a lot brighter, an event that is often referred to as a "supermoon."

In the late afternoon of July 2, a total solar eclipse will occur over southern parts of Chile and Argentina, and parts of the South Pacific. The entire event will take place from 12:55 to 5:50 p.m. ET, with the maximum eclipse occurring at 3:23 p.m.

The year will also end with a dark bang:

December 26: The annular eclipse occurs when the circumference of the sun shines brightly from behind the moon. This year, the eclipse will begin right at dawn and pass over the Arabian Peninsula and arc over areas of South Asia.

All this, and undoubtedly some more potentially hazardous asteroid fly-bys from rocks we didn't see yet will create the ambiance necessary for another year of total fear porn. 

Enjoy the remaining moments of 18 .. as 19 creeps in and we wonder where the past 20 years have gone since the 20th century..

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Amazing new Jordan Peele 'US' trailer

First Trailer Jordan Peeles Us

FOR YOUR VIEWING PLEASURE.
THIS IS MUCH LESS SOCIAL COMMENTARY WE ARE TOLD, AND MORE HORROR.. THOUGH ANOTHER 'GET OUT' WOULD NEVER BE AN ISSUE, THIS FILM LOOKS FRIGHTENING AND WELL MADE..


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BLUE YORK CITY!

A faulty piece of equipment charged with 138,000 volts of electricity erupted into an “electrical arc flash” that cast an eerie blue glow over the skies of New York, Con Edison officials said Friday morning.





The rare phenomenon blew up at the Astoria East Substation on 20th Avenue and 32nd Street around 9:10 p.m. and could be seen across Queens, Manhattan and Brooklyn.


Immediately the internet erupted in a string of Tweets and Facebook messages of 'aliens landing' and 'the end of the world is here!'


Video from the event looked frightening.. it started people on highways, bridges, and public transit.. some people had a tinge of fear in their voice as to why their dark city nights suddenly erupted in to day-time-like blue auras..




“It’s like a thunder-and-lightning event,” explained Con Ed spokesman Bob McGee. “The loud bangs people heard were likely related to the arc striking the ground grid on the substation from a piece equipment that’s 20 feet up in the air and carrying 138,000 volts.”








Many residents who were home at the time experienced flickering lights.


Despite earlier reports, McGee said there was no actual fire at the substation.


“The illumination was caused just by the arc flash. Once the electrical source removed, the arc flash subsided,” he said.

Con Ed officials are now investigating the incident and whether the flash of light was extinguished because the machinery automatically switched off or because it was burned through.

X X X
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The SINBAD effect




December 19, 2018 Bryan
The SINBAD effect


This news today: Entertainment Weekly has unveiled a first look at Will Smith in costume as the Genie in Disney’s live-action “Aladdin” movie, and not everyone is thrilled with it. Why would they be!? We live in the Twitterverse of judgement world….

Smith stars in director Guy Ritchie’s update of the animated classic, alongside Mena Massoud as Aladdin and Naomi Scott as Princess Jasmine. People have lampooned the imagery in EW since the release..

TWITTER has issued its typical backlash.. no surprise there at all….

Except one thing.. one little thing that caught my eye on a Facebook page I follow. The comment was made by so many Twitter commentators today: “Sinbad never looked better.”



Now… that Sinbad comment sure is strange, considering that interesting “Mandela Effect” that I have written about previously here.

A few years ago, we talked extensively about the Sinbad movie that never existed.. I wrote then:


This is the latest ‘glitch in the matrix’ that even got me.
I recall this myself. I remember him in the outfit. I don’t quite remember the name of the film as some others do, but I am very clear on my memory of him being in an awful un-funny movie when I was younger.

All of this is fodder for crowds of people who have a new-found appreciation of the Mandela Effect. Every day.

For those yet unaware, or those who do not quite know the label to call their strange memory lapses or sudden shocks to learn that reality is different from what they thought, it is called the Mandela Effect. There are people–and lots of them including Stafire Tor on an old Art Bell show that somewhat started all of this–that believed Nelson Mandela died in prison in the 1980s. They recall his funeral. They remember the news headlines and nightly news reporting. And they were shocked that he rose to the presidency of South Africa in the 90s. Because, to them, he was long dead.

Thanks to the new Will Smith movie, this glitch is back in full force, making a joke that Smith looks just like Sinbad looked in the Shazaam movie…

As a matter of fact, people are actually sharing a FAKE photo of Sinbad as “SHAZAAM” in their mockery of the Will Smith movie, not even realizing that SHAZAAM never even existed!!


Jeff D Lowe
✔@JeffDLowe
· Dec 19, 2018



This is approaching on cursed image territory. I’m floored by this photo.


Bacon House@Bacon_House


should have been Sinbad he plays a great genie pic.twitter.com/yA0qO7vwAs
664
8:02 AM - Dec 19, 2018
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It’s the glitch that won’t end!

View image on Twitter



Beyonce has an uncle named Larry Beyince. Bruh....@DragonflyJonez



They could've got Sinbad for all this and saved on a makeup budget
2,608
9:58 AM - Dec 19, 2018
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And one person? ….they are glued in on the current version of reality, questioning another user as to whether it REALLY was Sinbad or Shaq..
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