Prosecutors allege high tech poker caper bilked players out of 7 million dollars
Prosecutors say an X ray poker table, high tech glasses, and a sprinkle of NBA star power powered a slick con that belonged on a movie set, except the ending was lousy for the marks. If true, it is Ocean's Eleven with less charm and a much angrier cashier.
The Traitors cranks paranoia back to peak levels
Sabotage vibes, Claudia Winklemans icy side eye, and the returning chessboard twist had the faithfuls jumping at shadows. Challenges felt mysteriously undermined, loyalties were toyed with, and everyone left wondering if they had unmasked a traitor or just applauded another well staged bluff.
Hamilton on Verstappen: McLaren needs teeth, not hope
Lewis Hamilton warns McLaren that a cut throat Max Verstappen will not gift positions. If they want him behind, they will have to dig deep, show no hesitation, and definitely no freebies. Verstappen smells doubt like gasoline, and he is not waiting for invitations.
White House weighs equity stakes in quantum firms, Commerce says not so fast
Reports say President Trump is considering taking federal equity stakes in quantum computing companies in exchange for funding, with IonQ, Rigetti, D Wave, Quantum Computing Inc., and Atom Computing said to be weighing arrangements starting around 10 million dollars. Deputy Commerce Secretary Paul Dabbar, an ex DOE official and co founder of Bohr Quantum Technology, is slated to lead industry discussions, while Commerce publicly denies it is negotiating equity stakes. No deals are done, and companies are eyeing the risks of government influence. So the plan is in a Schrödinger box, simultaneously happening and not, which is on brand for quantum and Washington. The sector is labeled critical and the White House is dangling earmarked cash to keep U.S. firms on top, while proponents cite, as precedent, an August example that they say involved a 10 percent stake in Intel to help fund Ohio factories. Because nothing says free market like Uncle Sam on your cap table wearing a flag pin and a fixed smile.
Local news is vanishing, and the vacuum is full of bad ideas
Northwestern's Medill School reports that more than 130 local papers shut in the past year, nearly 40 percent of U.S. local newspapers have vanished since 2005, and 213 counties now have no local news at all. Another 1,500 have only one source, about 50 million people have little to no coverage of their own communities, and even the big outlets saw page views drop more than 45 percent in four years as platforms de prioritized news and audiences drifted. Ad revenue has cratered 75 percent in two decades. The report warns that an executive order to defund public broadcasting would put nine counties, where public radio is the last outlet standing, on the brink of silence. In the vacuum, voter turnout falls, fewer candidates run, government costs rise, and corruption gets bolder, because when no one is watching, the grifters never clock out. Ownership keeps consolidating, over half of major dailies sit with a few companies, and independents are the ones closing. Yes, about 300 local startups launched in five years, but they are nowhere near keeping pace, and 98 percent of big journalism grants go to urban outlets while the deserts are mostly rural and poorer. Solutions are not exotic, keep public broadcasting funded and invest in local news where it is actually disappearing, or get used to learning about City Hall from press releases and rumor mills.
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